#//and both he and his partner are somewhere else together in their hotel room/suite would be fine too min is just a private person

[r3dblccd]

Minsungie, give us your top three places where you like to have sex

"I'm pretty sure I've said this before, but I think back home is the most comfortable for me. With the bedroom being the best spot, the couch - second. And if there's a very soft and comfy carpet, I guess on the ground in front of the fireplace would be nice too."

[snazzy-suit]

Luigi: Liaison of Ghosts Chapter 9 Snippet (Electric Boogaloo)

Have another sneak-peek at the next installment; this time, before the viOlEnCe!

For context, Luigi, Mario, Gooigi, and King Boo are in an underground portion of E. Gadd’s lab that’s specifically designed to keep ghosts/spirits contained. The room is bisected by a barrier. On one side stands Luigi, Mario, and Gooigi. On the other, is King Boo. The professor is watching the following events from the safety of an observation room. He communicates through an intercom system.

Currently, Luigi is informing King Boo of his mediating work with spectral entities...

_____________________

“Mediator? Contacts?” King Boo mutters. “I don’t understand. You hunt ghosts and spirits—you fear them!”

Luigi quirks a brow incredulously. “You were spying on me as I recovered all the elevator buttons at the Last Resort. After everything you saw then, and what you’re witnessing now, do you honestly still believe that?”

King Boo scowls in place of an answer. “You still capture them,” he hisses.

“I do,” Luigi agrees with reluctance, “but only when I’m given no other choice. Nowadays, I mediate conflicts between specters and mortals. Finding a peaceful resolution is my top priority, not capture.”

King Boo clicks their tongue in disbelief. “I do believe Professor E. Gag has a gallery lined with portraits and canisters full of ghosts that says otherwise.”

“…about that,” Luigi replies slowly. He presses his hands together, fingers splayed as he takes a deep breath. “We… set all of them free.”

{“Quite a while ago, actually,”} E. Gadd adds. {“In fact, you’re the last one to go!”}

Luigi closes his eyes with a grimace. “Thank you, professor,” he sighs.

“Right, of course. The mad scientist just let you release his entire collection of prized specimens,” the monarch scoffs. “Now I know you’re lying.”

“No, really!” Luigi says earnestly. “It’s been a long process, but everyone has been set free and safely reintegrated into society.” He reaches into one of the pockets of his overalls and pulls out a collection of business cards. “Madame Clairvoya has a fortune telling business, Van Gore has his own art studio, Neville started a book club, Melody gives piano lessons…” He flips through the cards, showing each one off as he goes. “Johnny Deepend is a fitness instructor at our local gym, Dr. Potter runs a plant nursery, Soulfflé has a cooking show, Morty directs movies and teaches filmography on the side—”

“Alright, enough! You’ve made you’re point!” King Boo snaps. Their irritation shifts into a more thoughtful look. “Is that why I was moved to a separate canister? To keep me in the dark?”

“Eh… partially?” Luigi says, tilting his hand in a so-so gesture. “Mostly it was for security reasons.” He pauses, silently weighing the pros and cons of full disclosure. “We also thought it would be best to separate you and Hellen Gravely—for both of your sakes.”

King Boo grimaces upon hearing the name of his old partner in crime. He glances about uneasily, as if the mere act of acknowledging the haughty entrepreneur would summon her from the very shadows. Luigi would find the normally unflappable monarch’s alarm funny if he didn’t share similar sentiments regarding the hotel owner.

“Ah… so Gravely has been moved elsewhere.” King Boo comments, attempting to sound nonchalant, but failing rather miserably. “You’re keeping her in another lab. Somewhere… secure?”

{“Ms. Gravely isn’t being kept anywhere,”} E. Gadd replies. {“She’s staying in her suite at the Last Resort; free as everyone else.”}

“You let her go as well?!” King Boo cries in disbelief.

“Unfortunately,” Mario grumbles. It speaks volumes of his own opinion of Hellen that he doesn’t take the opportunity to revel in King Boo’s distress.

“Yeah, but don’t worry,” Gooigi adds, “we filed for a restraining order on your behalf.”

“…with magic enforcement?”

“The strongest in all the known kingdoms.”

King Boo heaves a relieved sigh. They school their expression into something more regal and raise a nubby arm as if taking an oath. “For your act of service, I vow that when the time comes to strike you all down, I will make it quick and painless.” They pause with a hum. “…mostly.”

“How gracious of you,” Luigi says wryly.

“It’s just one of my many virtues,” King Boo agrees. “There’s a reason why my subjects address me as ‘your grace’.”

“No one calls you that.”

“And how would you know?”

“Because I’ve spoken to a lot of your followers,” Luigi says, giving the monarch a flat look, “and I’ve never heard them refer to you that way.”

The revelation seems to take King Boo aback. “…you’ve spoken to my Boos?” they ask incredulously, eyes narrowed. “What a bold thing to say. Care to back up your outrageous claim with some names?”

Gooigi waves urgently at Luigi to get his attention. “Don’t tell him!” He signs. “Snitches get cursed by witches!”

“That’s not how that saying goes,” Luigi corrects the ectomorph, tone tinted with amusement, “But I agree that it’s not my place to say.”

“My, my, how convenient,” the monarch drawls. “Do you want to make any other baseless declarations while you’re at it? The floor is open.”

Luigi frowns in consideration. It might be best to just drop the matter and move on to presenting the actual offer they’ve long since digressed from. This could, however, be a good opportunity to further prove his integrity. Which of King Boo’s followers can he call upon without potentially putting them at odds with their king?

“…Boolossus.”

The monarch’s smug grin drops. “What?”

“I had a long talk with Boolossus when I set them free,” Luigi continues. “I won’t claim we’re on amicable terms, but we managed to come to an understanding before parting ways.”

“Liar,” King Boo snarls. “Boolossus would never have left this lackluster lab without me; not of their own free will. Their loyalty runs deeper than the filthy sewers you call home.”

Luigi squints at the fuming monarch. Do they think plumbers live in sewers? Or just Mario and Luigi in particular? King Boo’s rather poor understanding of mortals sometimes makes it difficult to tell whether they sincerely believe a falsehood or are cracking a joke. Luigi shakes his head, quietly electing not to ask.

“You’re not wrong about their loyalty,” Luigi affirms. “Boolossus was… resistant to the idea of leaving you behind—”

{“Resistant?”} the professor huffs. {“They just about destroyed half my lab!”}

“—but I gave them my word that you would be freed next.” Luigi raises his hand when the monarch opens their mouth to dismiss him. “Before you say anything, no, they didn’t believe me. I don’t think there’s anything I could have said or done that would have convinced Boolossus of my sincerity, and I anticipated that. Which is why I brought along a trustworthy Boo to vouch for me.”

King Boo laughs condescendingly. “There’s not another Boo on this mortal plane that could pull the sway you would have needed.”

“Oh, I can think of one,” Mario smirks.

King Boo sneers at Mario’s smug expression. “And just who would that be?”

“Lady Bow.”

_____________________

Before you get too excited, no, Lady Bow will not be in this installment (unfortunately).

But that's all I have for now! Everything in this snippet is susceptible to change, so we'll just have to see how it all turns out in the completed work. Until then~

[arty-shadow-morningstar]

A Failed Betrothal (5)

This is going to be the last part I am going to post in a while. My school is finally starting up again and I am sure to be swamped with homework. Without further ado. Enjoy ❤

[Masterlist]

(Part 1)(Part 4)

-----------

Damian laid in bed, thinking about the recent turn of events. Lady, who told them that they can call her Marinette since they might as well get acquainted while the Waynes were in Paris. She had found out Jason’s identity after a few google searches and by extension, the rest of the Bats while they both were taking a shower. It had taken a few arguments and one sentimonster attack that cut one of the arguments short to trust the Dupain-Chengs with their secret identities. His bride was apparently a superhero too. Has been for a few years. In a different world, he might have actually dated her out of his own free will and fought crime with her together.

Damian shook his head at that thought.

That was the curse talking. Get a hold of yourself, Wayne. Resist. Don’t think about Marinette and her blue eyes.

Back to the akumas, Paris had been under the control of a magical terrorist for years. Lady Noire, formerly known as Ladybug, formed a team to battle against him. He also found out about the Guardian who chose Marinette and someone else, who wasn’t spoken about much except that his name was Chat Noir and she now wields his ring temporarily, to fight against Hawkmoth as partners. The same Guardian that promised her hand-in-marriage in exchange for protection from the League of Assassins. Sabine, the Blue Reaper, had to be restrained from killing the old amnesiatic man by her bear of a husband who was reluctant to do so and also wanted to help her.

Hawkmoth also had a partner who went by the name, Mayura, with a power similar to his and could create sentimonster out of negative emotions. Their top suspect was Gabriel Agreste, with much evidence pointing his way but they had difficulty trying to confirm it and had the time to gather evidence to do it. The local authorities were helpful but getting a search warrant for a famous, rich designer who was a known recluse with circumstantial evidence is not possible.

After informing their father of their kidnapping and the situation in Paris (and racking up the Dupain-Cheng's phone bill), they were told to stay there and help as much as they can. Tim, who was coming to Paris for a vacation (suspicious), got his plans hijacked and was now going to help uncover Hawkmoth’s identity.

When the Justice League had reached out a few years ago, they were rebuffed by the Mayor. Nightrunner got into contact with the one of the heroes, Ladybug who asked for a meeting outside of Paris with Wonder Woman and Batman came along, to assess her. They didn’t expect a young girl to be Paris’s heroine.

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

3 years ago…

“Bonjour, Princess Diana of Themyscira, daughter of Hippolayta, it is an honour to meet you. And you too, Batman.” The spotted heroine greeted both of them with Nightrunner besides her. Their meeting point was in the gardens in the Palace of Versailles.

“The pleasure is all mine, Ladybug. But I am confused as to why you have refused the Justice League’s help.” Wonder Woman was worried that the Ladybug Miraculous was active again and for many good reasons.

“I would be glad for some help but Paris is run by an incompetent fool. He wants no one outside of Paris to think that the city is unsafe due to Hawkmoth and keep the tourism numbers high. The other reason is that my Miraculous Cure can restore any physical damages done during a fight and involving you might result in more damages than I could cure. But I also think it would be better if there were less powerful heroes in Paris, akumas amplifies one’s power and I don’t want to fight you after you had a bad day.” Ladybug explained. Nightrunner murmured in agreement.

“Do you know how Hawkmoth operates?” asked Batman. He had read reports of the situation but wondered the true extent of it.

“Have Wonder Woman explained to you about the Miraculous?”

He nodded.

“Hawkmoth has the butterfly miraculous, and it has the power of transmission. In the right hands, they would be used to grant ordinary people powers as the user’s champions. But in the hands of Hawkmoth, he targets people with high negative emotions, a girl after a bad break-up or a student with a failed grade. He grants them powers to use for revenge or some obscure version of justice. In return, he asks for mine and Chat Noir’s miraculous. With our two miraculous, he can make a wish but wishes always come with a price so it is best if we keep it out of his reach.”

“How have you not captured him yet?”

“Hawkmoth is a coward who rarely comes out to face us. I have never met him face-to-face. He uses people to get what he wants. Not very honourable. The Mayor has refused to help my attempts to stop him or prevent more akumas because his bratty daughter isn’t given a Miraculous to be a hero. I don’t have the time or resources because I am still in school and have other obligations outside the suit. I can’t tell my family and ask for help because the Guardian’s ,the one who gave me the Miraculous in the first place, secret identities rule and some magic thing that makes me unable to tell them.”

The adults were all horrified at what the girl was going through.

“We could help in other ways. Not fight the akumas but provide you the resources to track down and capture him. Do you have any training? From the footage we have seen, you know martial arts and how to use some weapons.”

“I was raised in a forgotten temple somewhere in Asia with brutal training everyday before I ran away. I met someone on my way out who took me in and adopted me.” She said it seriously enough that they have no room for doubt.

“Batman, she just said she was adopted. She may have the features but the answer is no.” Wonder Woman said with a knowing look in her eyes.

“I wasn’t thinking about it. She has a duty to Paris right now and I am not going to take away from her life here. I don’t adopt every black-haired and blue-eyed child I see.” Batman denied.

“I am confused.” Ladybug said, tilting her head.

“Batman here has a bad habit of adopting kids with a tragic past, especially kids with black hair and blue eyes.” Nightrunner explained to his fellow Parisian hero.

“Well, Mousier, you will have to fight my parents for custody. While I have training, Chat Noir doesn’t and he hinders the battles with his ‘help’. I would give him some but he sees them as dates even though I have told him it’s not.”

“His incompetence is a liability. Why is he your partner?”

“The Guardian chose him too like he chose me through some stupid trial I somehow passed the requirements for. I am just hoping that there is a really good reason for choosing Chat Noir. I have some questions on how you are-”

“Ladybug, what are you doing?” A sharp voice cut in. An old man who appeared to be dressed as a tortoise landed in front of them.

“Master Fu, this is Princess Diana of Themyscira and the world’s greatest detective, Batman. I am asking for their help in finding Hawkmoth.” Ladybug explained, confused why Master Fu looked upset.

“Ladybug, that was extremely foolish of you. This is a matter of the Order. You shouldn’t have involved other heroes in it. We can resolve this on our own. I apologize on behalf of her for wasting your time.”

“But, Master-” “We will talk about this later, Ladybug. You are young and don’t understand things yet.”

“Guardian, with all due respect, my mother was a Ladybug wielder herself and the Amazons will lend a hand to any miraculous holders in need.”

“It is appreciated but Ladybug, Chat Noir and I can do it on our own. Come along, Ladybug.”

“Let me at least apologize for my mistake, Guardian.”

“Very well. Meet me later.”

“I am sorry but it looks like I have to fight Hawkmoth without your help. That being said please don’t try to look further into Hawkmoth’s identity and leave any notes of your leads in the mouth of the gargoyle on the northside of Notre Dame where I usually rest after I finish patrol. Salut, Princess Diana, Batman, Nightrunner.” She left using her yo-yo to swing away after giving them a wink.

Batman smirked. He had to give it to Ladybug, she was clever and resourceful and Diana was right, he wanted to adopt her.

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

Present time…

(Words in bold are French)

Now that the previous Guardian was out of the picture, the Miraculous team would gladly accept any help they can get.

Damian and Jason had picked up Tim from the airport and they had already set things up in one of the Wayne penthouses in Paris. Less chance of nosy maids than in a hotel.

Bilal had already handed over all the evidence he could find. He was also one of the Miraculous team’s trainers when Sabine couldn’t make it. Jason and Damian were going to help in training and be back-up heroes when needed. (Bilal wore a miraculous once to help out. And that one time was weird enough to last him a lifetime and he was never doing it again.)

Sadly, all the magic users who were allies or part of the JL were busy with other missions or MIA so they couldn’t break Damian’s curse yet. Bruce didn’t see the problem with the curse so unless it causes major problems or someone is free to break it. They couldn’t go back to Gotham until they got the necessary things in order so it looks like they were going to be in Paris for a while.

The next morning, Tim was nowhere to be found. Because they were paranoid Batboys, they tracked his phone to see him at the Dupain-Cheng’s bakery with Marinette and a group of other people, having breakfast.

“There you are, Replacement.” Jason shouted as he entered the bakery, “So, this is where you were? I see you have already figured out who Ladybug is and met her.”

Marinette looked at Damian and Jason, then at Tim and back at them again.

Oh.

Oh.

She face-palmed as she connected the dots and realized what the nagging feeling she had around Tim was about.

“Oh my Kwamis, you are Tim Drake, adopted by Bruce Wayne aka Batman. Jason and Damian are your brothers. And judging by your build, you are Red Robin. I feel so stupid.”

Thankfully, there were no customers around yet to hear some of the world’s most important secrets being out.

“I am- We are not- Bruce isn’t- How?! How the hell did you find out? And you are Ladybug?!” Tim was floundering at Marinette’s words and the caffeine from his first coffee of the day hadn’t kicked in yet. He looked at her friends, who were looking at the Wayne boys with shocked expressions….and looked similar to the rest of the Miraculous Team.

The caffeine finally kicked in.

“Oh my God. I was talking to the entire Miraculous Team and I didn’t know it. That means Chloe Bourgeois is a hero. That bratty blonde I met as a child is a hero.”

“Speak for yourself, Timothy, my childhood friend is a hero too. I can’t believe we are all heroes.” Chloe said in total disbelief.

Introductions and alter egos were exchanged.

Nearly everything went swimmingly if it weren’t for Chloe jokingly elbowed Marinette and said, “You get to date a hero too. No need to worry about flaking out on dates.”

“What do you mean dates? Dupain-Cheng and I aren’t dating.” Damian said, “My mother wanted us to marry each other, not date.”

“Mari, looks like you need some explaining to do.”

Marinette gave the short story on how she met Damian and Jason.

“So you guys are absolutely not dating? Cool. Tim, are you still open to being Mari-bug's fake boyfriend?” Chloe asked. Tim looked at her incredulously.

“You called me all the way here to fake-date your friend. Why? Not that I am complaining about her or anything.” “There is this boy in our class, Adrien Agreste and he has a little obsession with Marinette.” Chloe explained. “Romantic Soulmates.” Nathaniel chimed in, doing air-quotes.

“So I volunteered on your behalf to be my best friend’s long-distance boyfriend in America who has video-call dates with her once a week. You are going to have little romantic dates coincidently where our classmates are going to be, especially Adrien. It might put him off from pursuing Marinette for a while. After you leave, we are just to mention you every now and then to prevent him from getting any ideas.”

Damian felt a hot, burning sensation in his chest and clenched his jaw at the thought of Marin- Dupain-Cheng holding hands, cuddling and doing all those romantic actions with Drake of all people. (No, he wasn’t jealous. Not at all. Don’t be stupid. )

“Tch, Drake is going to be busy trying to find Hawkmoth. He can’t go around Paris, being Dupain-Cheng’s boyfriend. Besides, he can’t be a proper boyfriend even in his most lucid moments. I will be her boyfriend instead.”

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

Tag list: @alysrose-starchild, @buginetye, @lookatthestars1, @blackroserelina, @macncheesemonster, @mochinek0, @myazael, @tonicxworld, @thewitchwhowaited, @t1dwarrior-of-earth, @kissa-chan, @iwantasecretidentity, @theymakeupfairies, @user00000003, @woe-is-me0, @kashlyn, @mochegato,@moonlightstar64 , @greatcatblaze, @moongoddesskiana, @tazanna-blythe. @tonicxworld, @toodaloo-kangaroo, @frieddonutsweets, @local-witch-of-mn, @lady-bee-fechin, @iglowinggemma28, @indecisive-mess-named-me, @k-tea-and-coffee, @jayjayspixiepop, @all-mights-asscheeks, @idk-j-go-with-it , @loysydark, @thenillabean, @lolieg, @zalladane, @silvergold-swirl, @henie04, @blueblossombliss, @khneltea, @mochegato, @itsmeevie01, @roguishredaxion, @alyssadeliv, @steph-hearthlight, @adrestar, @eliza-bich, @abrx2002, @hikari55ttva, @doglover82, @daminette5074

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

(PART 6)

[nothing-but-dreamy]

BLACK TIE

A/N: Thanks again for this idea @mindlessstories

I hope you have fun with it

Pairing: LEON KENNEDY x READER

Words: 1.736

Warnings: fluff, cursing, Leon in a suit

Synopsis: Yn and Leon are on a mission with fancy clothes. But somehow the mission is not the most interesting thing...

"W-What the bloody... What are you wearing?", Yn asked as she checked the appearance of the man in front of her. The guy was neatly dressed in a white suit shirt, black suit pants and a black jacket. Even a black tie was bound around the man’s neck. Quickly, Yn checked the number of the hotel room once again in fear she had mistaken it and might stand in front of some stranger. No, it was the right room and actually, it was also the right guy. It was just … even if it was part of the mission, Leon S. Kennedy had swapped his typical, casual leather jacket with a tuxedo. It was a sight for sore eyes. Unusually and at the same time, perfectly fitting as if Leon would be some kind of secret undercover supermodel instead of an agent.

Leon, amused about Yn’s big eyes and astonished expression, chuckled and stepped aside, letting his partner in who was still watching him as if he would be an alien. A handsome one but still. Leon closed the door, "It's a tuxedo. That's what you wear on a bow and tie event.", he explained and watched how Yn rolled with her eyes.

“I know what it is but to see you in it… and by the way! Black Tie, Kennedy! It’s called Black Tie! And not ‘bow and tie’.”, Yn explained for maybe the hundredth time since they both got assigned to this secret mission. In fact, the job was easy. A rich weapons dealer had started to ‘extend’ his sortiment with some BOWs. His business was flourishing. But instead of just catching him, Yn and Leon had decided it would be better to bug the dealer to get information about his clients as well. Therefore, they were able to dig out the whole nest.

“I don’t care what these events are called. They’re all the same. It’s just to show off how rich and important everyone is.”, Leon said and leant with crossed arms against the doorframe.

“I know how much you hate these things.”, Yn said, grabbed her bag and aimed for the bathroom to change her outfit as well, “But I have to admit, you look good in this tuxedo. It suits you.”, she said through the half closed door.

Leon smirked, “Oh, really? You know, maybe you could show me how much you like my outfit?”, he asked flirtatiously.

Yn opened the door again and stepped out, “Focus on the mission, Kennedy.”

Leon was hearing her words but his mind went kinda blank as he saw her robed in a floor-length, backless, black dress. The silky-soft fabric hugged all her curves perfectly and gave much input for many, many x-rated fantasies. Slowly, Leon’s eyes wandered upwards until he met her challenging glance. Slowly, he stepped forward with a smirk, “I might hate these events but I could get used to seeing you working in such a stunning outfit.”, Leon said low.

Yn saw dirty thoughts glittering behind his steel-blue eyes and smirked, “Take a picture, it might last longer. Come, we have to go.”, she said, passed Leon and knew that he was staring at her back all the way.

**

Thirty minutes later, Yn and Leon were entering a huge, pompous decorated ballroom. Chandeliers bathed the room in dim, atmospheric light. Soft jazz music played in the background. And obviously a whole diamond mine had exploded because it was sparkling and twinkling in each corner. The room was filled with high-society and in the middle of it two special agents who tried to fit into this kind of world.

“Shall we split up?”, Leon asked low.

Still with a wealthy smile on her lips, Yn shook her head, “Let us take a round together and then, if necessary, we split up.”, she said and linked her arm with Leon’s.

The idea had been good but quickly, they had to admit that the room was too stuffed with people. And because they searched for a guy, and everyone looked kinda the same in their black suits, they had difficulties finding their subject.

Evading into a quiet corner, Yn looked up at Leon, “That’s not working. There are too many people here. Alright, we split up. I walk around a bit. You could monitor the guys who are without women like the group over there at the bar.”, she said and nodded unobtrusively into the said direction while putting a small intercom into her ear to activate it and gave Leon the other earpiece who mirrored her move. With a serious expression, her eyes met Leon’s, “If one of us finds him, the other one comes to the position.”, she said and was about to leave.

Leon held her back, “Be careful, okay?”, he said and looked her caringly but serious in the eyes.

She smirked, “Of course. I’m not the one with the reckless moves like fighting against infected dogs on a motorbike.”, and with that, she stepped back to vanish in the crowd.

Leon chuckled about her boldness and shook his head before he followed her idea to aim for the bar. He ordered a drink and while waiting for it, Leon looked left and right to check out the people around him if their target would be with them. Leon was just about to check an older man with salt-and-pepper hair as fragments of a conversation waved over to him, catching his attention.

“These women are all the same. Rich, wealthy and absolutely boring.”, one tall man said before taking a sip of his Whiskey.

“Yeah, or ugly. I mean, how many surgeries are really necessary? I get the impression that all these women here are just made out of plastic and silicone.”, another man said. He was a bit smaller than the first one.

Leon was just about to leave as the third guy said something that caught his attention to the point that he fully turned over to them, “You might be right except with this pretty thing over there. What? None of you haven’t seen her yet? Okay, then, she’s mine.”, the guy said and let it sound as if the woman was just a piece of meat and he was the lion to hunt it down.

Leon knew he had to focus on the mission and he really was about to leave the group of idiots behind but then, he noticed the way how the guy looked at the unaware victim. It was a lust filled glance that even Leon felt disgusted by the sight. The guy was pretty sure about himself that he would be successful to win the woman over this evening. The guy, tall, dark haired and looking like a lot of money, licked over his lips while his eyes showed that he looked at a point that was lower than the woman’s waist. Now more interested in who the innocent lamb might be, Leon followed the guy’s glance and felt how his blood ran hot and cold at the same time.

Yn stood there, talking with an older lady and facing the group of guys with her back. The dress gave a beautiful sight of her flawless skin. While she talked, her body moved beautifully and she even swayed a bit to the soft tune of the music so that her hair fell over her bare back, dancing a little through the air.

“You can’t have her! I saw her first. I just couldn’t say anything because I became speechless by her eyes.”, the first, tall guy said.

“By her eyes? Forget them! Look at her god damn ass. So round and juicy.”, the guy said and his eyes became filled with raw, sexual hunger.

That was enough for Leon to forget the mission for a moment as he walked over to the group, “I couldn’t miss hearing how you were talking about this young lady.” Leon said low, getting the attention of all three men at the same time, “Stay away from her. All of you. Or otherwise, things will turn ugly.”, he said with a kind of threat lingering in his voice.

One of the men stepped closer to Leon, slightly towering over the agent and looking down, “Who do you think you are, huh? Nothing we do is your concern.”

Not impressed at all, Leon stepped forward, holding the man’s glance, “She’s mine, get it? Therefore, yes, it concerns me how you are talking about her. So, do yourself a favor and stay away from her or I will become your worst nightmare. And trust me, I know what I’m talking about.”, Leon said threateningly, leaving no room for any further arguments.

The guy stared at Leon for several more moments and considered his best next step but in the end, the guy saw something in Leon’s eyes that told him to better back off. And after another few seconds, the guy stepped back, nodded to his friends and disappeared somewhere else.

Leon went back to his drink and emptied it in one big sip. As he placed the glass back on the counter, Yn stood already next to him, leaning against the bar with a smirk on her lips, "So, I'm yours, huh?", she asked low.

With a shock filled glance, he stared at her and swallowed thickly, "Oh, uhm... Well... I- I didn't like the way he looked at you.", he stammered with an apologetic glance.

Yn nodded, "Yes, I heard that.”, she said, tapping at her ear with her index finger to remind him of the intercom. As Yn saw his awkward smile, she stepped forward, “You know, to see you jealous and protective was kinda cute. But it was unnecessary, don't you think? I'm not your girlfriend."

Leon also stepped forward, a smirk was playing on his lips while he snaked his arm around her waist to bring her even closer, "Actually, we're just one date away that I can call you mine."

"Oh, really? Then, I would say we count this evening as a date, what do you think?", Yn suggested whispering against his lips which were just inches away.

"Deal.", Leon breathed before he kissed her. It was a deep kiss. Filled with hunger to show off to whom Yn belonged to. Yn tugged on his suit jacket to bring him even closer, knowing exactly where these clothes would land later this evening…

[shirophantomvox]

What Would a Card Game with Hisoka Be Like? Hisoka x S/O

This is part 2 to my previous headcanon post about how to get the Adult Trio to blush. Check it out now!

Hello anon and thank you for this wonderful ask! Your question is very unique because it asks about card-playing and Hisoka. I’ll be honest, I have never thought about Hisoka actually playing a card game but since it is a part of his aesthetic, I’m sure it’s possible. You and I are wondering the same thing…how would a card game go with him? How would Hisoka enjoy a night at a Casino? He’d love it! The thrill of intense game playing, stupid wagers, and fancy hotels with beds as soft as the clouds?! I mean, he has stated before that he learned card tricks from his mother. I used “lady” in here as a context filler just to make the story but anyone can insert themselves in this story. As usual, I have to incorporate fluff in here somewhere. Say no more! Buckle up, people; we are about to go on a fast ride to satisfaction-Ville.

♠️ Tonk, survival of the fittest ♠️

It is common knowledge that playing cards are Hisoka’s strength. I’m not sure if he knows how to play cards or if he only uses them as weapons. Either way, he somehow perfects his moves. Sometimes playing a game of cards with him are loads of fun and sometimes they turn into heated and naughty dares session if one loses a certain amount of rounds.

Headcanon 1: Hisoka is the king at bluffing. He’ll say anything to pressure you into dropping your hand on the table. Don’t be surprised if he expresses how he’ll cater to your every whim if you drop your hand in an instant, but do not fall for it!

Headcanon 2: Drama makes him full; more than oatmeal. He’ll talk about how horrible you are at card games and that you move slowly like an old person just to make you angry so you can quit at the game. He often gives you the evilest glares from across the table. Sometimes they can be so bone-chilling that you turn your head to make sure no one had anything to your neck. But something about those evil glares made you break a sweat not from fear but from arousal. It’s something about that thin, smug smile that makes you want to say “Take me here.” The anticipation is eating you both alive.

Headcanon 3: Most of the time, he likes to include a wager to make the game more interesting. This can be something as simple as giving him a massage to who will be handcuffed that night. One time he bet $1,000, convinced that he was going to win a game of Gin but when you beat him in the first 10 minutes, he was flabbergasted.

Headcanon 4: Hisoka isn’t afraid to admit to defeat. If you won the game fair and square, then so be it. You have won a surprising amount of card games. Since this magician is the master at card tricks, it would seem like he’d win, but you and he were nearly even. After you won this round, he’d slightly throw his hands up and laugh.

“I didn’t know you’d catch on so quickly and quite well, I might add.”

“Well...I learned from a great teacher…”, you pause for second sipping from your cup and fluttered your eyes, “...Hisoka.” The purring of his name pushed a slight groan of relief from the magician as he held his 5 cards in front of his mouth, leaving only his nose and golden eyes exposed.

Headcanon 5: Hisoka doesn't cheat at all when he plays cards. It isn’t fun if a person continuously cheats because the game would be over in seconds. Although he doesn’t cheat, he often distracts you with physical touch. Sometimes he’d rub his fingers on your hand as it rests on the table or blows you kisses. This is done to divert your attention from the game and focus on his passes. Well...I guess you could call this cheating. If you’re having a hard time trying to pull a card for the win, sometimes he will give you a pass and allow you to discard one card to put you ahead of him. If you’re taking absolutely TOO LONG to pull, he’ll throw his stack of cards on the table, come over, and demonstrate for you. To add insult to injury, he’d bend over placing his sharp chin your should on purpose so his mouth could be by your ear. He is now taking up the majority of your seat (doing squats for so many years finally paid off) and is guiding both of your hands mimicking how to pick cards to win a game.

Headcanon 6: Flirting is his strength. He already knows that he is eye candy to everyone and uses it to his advantage. As he explains his methods, within each explanation he takes a card (without Nen) and grazes it against your jaw or arm, and whispers what card it is.

“...Here we have a Queen of Hearts. Look familiar?”

You nod and frown. “No.”

“It’s you, silly.”

Ah! Those cheesy pick-up lines! You never get tired of those

“A 2 of Spades, a 4 of Diamonds, and a Joker card.” His deep voice tickled your eardrum as he spoke softly. “Are you paying attention, kitten?” He knew that you weren’t but continued to pull your finger anyway.

As he continued to fiddle with cards, he gently places a few kisses on your cheek to see if you can still focus while doing so. Truth be told, it wouldn’t be fun for either of you if you developed a stone heart like how he had.

♦ ♥ Casino Night ♥ ♦

Headcanon 7: He loves to participate in exciting Casino Games and have you attend as his “partner in crime”.

On a Casino Date Night, he often chooses a dress for you and you choose his suit. Red and black or black and gold always look flawless together.

The casino is his favorite place to go when he accompanies Illumi on missions. The Zoldyck boy is often irritated by the fact but allows him to do whatever he pleases as long as he doesn’t attract too much attention to himself. That is such a stupid thing to ask of this magician. He is eye candy after all. How can he go unnoticed? If you are with him, he is bound to be noticed. People would stare in awe and jealously at how you two were beyond a power couple.

Hisoka often engages in stupid and dangerous wagers that almost cost him his life but knowing the excitement he gets from it, he doesn’t care.

He has placed bets with members of the Mafia and gang-bangers betting his house and jewels but somehow always manages to win. To make matters worse, the sore losers would often call you horrible names simply because they were angry because they lost to a sly young man.

He refers to you as his “good luck charm ♣” which seems to be true. Every time you are with him, he wins the riskiest wagers.

Headcanon 8: He despises the slot machines. He believes they are rigged to not match on purpose so you can continue to waste money. He forbids you to play them especially when you are using his money.

Headcanon 9: When in “Gamer’s Den”, he is much more protective of you than anywhere else. The Gamer’s Den is a Den of thieves; they mainly consist of money-hungry men that prey on people and their vulnerabilities and/or have committed crimes before (example: robbing winners when walking to their cars). Keeping his arm around your waist, he glares at everyone in the room to establish a sense of dominance AND to let it be known that he is not to be messed with.

Headcanon 10: His kitten (you) is not to be flirted with. You were in the Lion’s Den; something similar to a piece of steak in front of warm-blooded mammals. Of course, wolf-whistles were heard when you walked by, but your man was by your side; it was easy to ignore. Some of the men disregarded his stares and began to flirt with you hard. It made you cringe. Who would want a 50-year-old man with too much cologne on, in your face smiling with a yellow tooth showing? The man only backs up when Hisoka throws his Joker card at him, grazing his cheek causing it to be scratched. One man pushed you to the ground because you ignored his passes. Hisoka began to laugh, sounding a bit psychotic.

“Sir, you do not put your hands on a lady. It shows how much of a coward you are for not excepting that she isn’t interested.”

“Shut up you bag of bones! There’s no way she’s with your skinny ass,” the older man yelled. “You young people annoy the crap out of me! I could break your thin ass in half in a matter of seconds!” His face was red, ready to burst into flames yet he wasn’t ready for the surprise he was about to get.”

Hisoka walked over, helped you up, and dusted off your dress. The man started in confusion. He couldn’t bear the thought of such a beautiful person to be with someone like him.

The man continued to hurl insults at Hisoka but before he could react, security had already thrown him out.

“What a pity. I was going to show him what a ‘skinny’ man can do. Oh well.

Headcanon 11: You enjoy playing pool more than he does. Again, he takes this opportunity to distract you as much as possible. The touch of his cold moist lips from drinking wine on your warm neck causes you to jerk, missing the hole you were shooting for. After pouting, nearly about to jab him in his stomach (because you were playing for money), Hisoka chuckles in a teasingly way.

“I adore that look,” he says sipping from his wine cup.

“I’m sure you do.”

[owletstarlet]

the grand deeds of great men, the smallest of gestures

"My hero."

An (extremely late) request of sorts from @taizi for some solid nishi content, involving Tanuma putting those childhood karate lessons to good use. Established tanunatsu.

Ao3 link in the notes. 

“Your boyfriend,” Satoru announces without preamble, dragging Tanuma by their joined hands through the hotel room door, “is a badass.”

Natsume looks up sharply from where he and Atsushi are huddled over a pile of rumpled travel pamphlets on the bed. But it’s Taki who’s on her feet first, closing the distance to the door with a pinched look and taking the shopping bag out of Tanuma’s hand.

Satoru’s grinning. Tanuma is very much not.

But they’re both shaking.

Satoru doesn’t let go of Tanuma’s hand until Natsume’s there to take it. Atsushi’s there to grab Satoru by the shoulders, and the five of them shuffle back as one towards the beds.

Natsume doesn’t press for the explanation until they’re all seated, he and Taki pressed up against either side of Tanuma, their knees bumping up against Atsushi’s and Satoru’s in the narrow space between the two beds. The muttered question is probably more directed at Satoru than at Tanuma, because Tanuma’s gray-faced in the lamplight, gaze a little too wide, breaths coming a little too fast. Both Natsume’s hands are wrapped around Tanuma’s slack one, and on his other side Taki’s hands are gentle where they rub his back, but her keen eyes keep darting over to Satoru, expression tight with all the same concern. Satoru, for his part, is practically vibrating where he sits tucked against Atsushi’s side, from nerves or exhilaration or both, Atsushi can’t quite tell.

“He flipped a guy!” Satoru declares, with a wide one-handed swoop of a gesture at Tanuma, sounding positively giddy about it.

Well. Whatever Atsushi was expecting to hear, it wasn’t that.

“What,” Natsume says, blankly, at the same time that Taki says, “…wait.”

And then they’re all looking at Tanuma. Who very much looks like he’d rather not be looked at.

“It was the actual best thing I have ever seen,” Satoru says, nudging Tanuma’s knee with his own, and there’s something fierce and warm in his eyes. “And he thinks he’s gonna go to jail or something for it, which he’s not, because the guy deserved it, so that would be dumb.”

“What happened?” Atsushi blurts, now well and truly alarmed.

And he tells them.

They’re in Osaka for a long weekend, because Natori had invited them all along for some premiere of a new period piece that Satoru had been gushing about for months. Natsume’s not exactly ecstatic about attending the event itself, but he’s clearly happy that Satoru’s happy—Atsushi gathers that that’s whole point of this—and even if Natori himself is all booked up with press events for the majority of the weekend, it’s a chance for them all to explore the unfamiliar city together.

Not thirty minutes ago, Satoru and Tanuma had volunteered to make a combini run for snacks, only about two blocks from the hotel. But once they’d finished and were through the door, bags in hand, Tanuma had realized he’d forgotten to get the ice cream Taki had asked for. He’d gone back in to get it, while Satoru stayed out front to sip at the cocoa he’d bought. They hadn’t really paid any mind to the group milling about out front. Salarymen, by the looks of them, three or four younger guys in tidy suits with raucous voices and beers in hand. Satoru had been making his way to the bench near the entrance to wait, not quite looking where he was going, and he’d bumped into one of them, causing some of his beer to slosh over the lip of the can and onto the guy’s blazer sleeve. From his place in line Tanuma had heard it, the sharp “Oy!” and the rumbles of displeasure from man’s friends. Tanuma’s not sure what became of the ice cream he’d been holding—maybe he dropped it, maybe he shoved it into the hands of the customer beside him—but the next thing he knew he was out the door, wedging himself firmly between Satoru and the man who now had him by the arm.

“And then he just…bam!” Satoru mimes the motion, as though he’s grabbing something heavy with both hands from behind, and twisting it downwards in front of him. “Like. Grabbed him. And just. Flipped him! Guy went down beer and all, and he looked super confused about being on the ground all of a sudden. And it was amazing, and I had no idea he took karate before.”

And with that, three sets of startled eyes all land squarely on Tanuma. Natsume taps his knee, like he’s trying to break him away from whatever’s got its grip on him behind his own glassy gaze.

“Karate?” Taki looks, at first, gobsmacked by this piece of information. But it morphs into something like slow-breaking delight across her features.

Tanuma’s nod is a single, tight bob of the head. “Just, um.” It’s the first time he’s spoken since walking through the door, and his voice is a ghost of a thing, like it might get swallowed up by the stale air of the room. “Until I was twelve. On and off. I don’t remember much.”

“You remembered plenty,” Satoru tells him, tone banking no argument, before clasping his hands together dramatically. “My hero.” His grin is so wide and irresistibly cheesy that Tanuma looks up, just for a moment, with the barest twitch of his lips before his gaze drops back down towards the stretch of flowery pink carpet beneath their toes. Natsume shoots Satoru a grateful look, even as Atsushi finds himself doing the same to Tanuma. Somewhere, during the course of the story, he’d found himself squashed up impossibly close against Satoru, arm tucked firmly around his shoulders. He seems genuinely excited, not distressed, but against Atsushi’s side he still feels wound up tight as a coiled spring. It’s definitely not lost on Natsume, either, judging by the glance he gives Atsushi. Atsushi nudges Natsume’s foot—he’s okay, I got him—and Natsume nods, once, though his gaze lingers a moment longer on Satoru’s flushed, still-beaming face.

“So you’re afraid someone saw?” Atsushi asks, while Taki fishes out a tea bottle from the shopping bag, uncaps it and presses it into Tanuma’s hand.

Tanuma doesn’t answer, but that touch of a grin from before has twisted itself into something distinctly nauseated.

“If anyone did see, they’d know the dude was fine.” Satoru shrugs. “Also that he deserved it, remember. We ran, anyways.”

Natsume blinks. “You ran here?”

And Atsushi can’t help but see the comedy in that being what Natsume seizes on, considering the truly impressive amount of times Atsushi’s seen him tearing through town apropos of nothing like he’s got a swarm of invisible hornets on his tail.

“Yup,” Satoru says, brightly, tapping Tanuma’s knee. “Felt like an action movie.” A pause, before he tacks on, not unkindly, “Y’know, if you’re not gonna drink that tea, then I will.”

Tanuma blinks down at the tea bottle, which had tilted enough in his hand to nearly spill onto the scratchy comforter as though forgotten about. He manages a couple measured sips before letting Taki take it back and cap it.

Natsume squeezes Tanuma’s fingers in his own, looking unsettled. Taki looks thoughtful, idly tapping the bottle in her hands.

“Were you thinking they had a security camera out front or something?” she asks.

Tanuma says nothing.

Taki leans into his side. “You know, even if anyone watched the footage, it’s like Nishimura said. All they’d see is that man getting exactly what was coming to him,” she says, fervently.

“And you being cool as hell,” Satoru adds. “Seriously, they teach twelve-year-olds how to do that?”

The way his shoulders loosen, just a fraction, feels like a win. “I don’t…actually know?” he starts, squinting like he’s trying to recall. “I was in this class for high-schoolers at the time, because there were nothing else available in the town I lived in.” A shrug, a sheepish glance up and away. “Usually I was just partnered up with my teacher.”

“That actually sounds kind of brutal, though,” Atsushi says, curious now. “Did the teacher demonstrate take-downs and stuff on you?”

“She did, but. Really slowly,” Tanuma replies, and it’s as though the warmth of Natsume’s and Taki’s shoulders pressed up against his has started, though incrementally, to seep into his voice, his eyes. “And I never really got the hang of doing any of it back to her. I’m surprised that worked, earlier.”

Precisely none of this explanation seems to have made Satoru look any less starstruck. Atsushi has to hold back his snort. “You should totally pick it up again,” Satoru’s saying now, around a mouth full of the lemon ice pop Natsume had fished out of the shopping bag for him. “What color belt did you get up to?”

“Um.”

Just that half-second’s hesitation is long enough to put a loaded look into Natsume’s eyes, for him to slot their fingers together properly and squeeze.

Tanuma lets out a breath, and there’s something years-old and lonely clinging to the edges of his smile. Atsushi doubts he’s aware of it. “None.” He shrugs. “I didn’t pass the one exam I took. I got pneumonia that year and had to quit after that, so.”

He looks faintly embarrassed, now, and Satoru opens his mouth as though ready to nip that right in the bud, but Taki beats him to it.

“Tanuma,” she says, solemnly, turning around to face him. “You have got to teach me how you did that.”

***

By the time the polite-yet-firm call arrives from the front desk, indicating a noise complaint from their neighbors in the next room and forcing them all to call it a night, things are better.

By then, Tanuma had been goaded into demonstrating some unwieldy modified version the maneuver behind his earlier takedown, executed on a poor unsuspecting hotel pillow because the entire room had immediately nixed Satoru’s offer to be the human test dummy.

Now, Satoru and Taki are a boneless, lightly snoring tangle of limbs on the far bed, one of Satoru’s arms thrown over Natsume’s whale shark plushie. (A surprise gift from all of them, Taki’s idea, after they’d caught him eyeing it more than once in the aquarium gift shop yesterday. If he’d walked out of the aquarium clutching it to his chest just like he might’ve done with his fat cat, currently hundreds of kilometers away, none of them said a word about it.)

Natsume himself is dozing in the other bed, but he lies facing Satoru—and Satoru’s fine, he’s unharmed and happy and completely safe, he is. But for some reason the longer the night’s worn on, Atsushi’s had to remind himself of these facts more, not less. He knows the dark cast to Satoru’s slack wrist is the lamplight-shadow of his sweatshirt sleeve, knows because he checked.

Still.

Tanuma’s in the bath, now. And he seems, well. Better than he was, certainly. But Atsushi had seen the taut-lipped glances he’d stolen at Satoru, and he looks about the same way Atsushi feels. At least the unwelcome scenarios and possibilities unspooling in his own mind have got to be more vague than whatever Tanuma’s imagination was serving up. Tanuma had seen it. Had stopped it.

Let Satoru wave it off, insist ‘til he’s blue in the face that it was fine, all fine, that he hadn’t been in any real danger. If it would put his friends at ease, he’d have said the same with a smile on his face even if he’d just been robbed at knifepoint.

Atsushi really needs to stop thinking about this.

He’d heard Natsume earlier, voice whisper-gentle through the bathroom door after he’d led Tanuma in by the hand behind him. Satoru and Taki had drifted off by then. Atsushi couldn’t make out the words, and heard nothing at all from Tanuma, aside from a few isolated, stuttering breaths. Tanuma had re-emerged dazed, red-eyed, but calmer than Atsushi had seen him all evening.

When the door opens now, Tanuma steps out in a halo of steam, wet-haired and barefoot in an old t-shirt. Atsushi’s on his feet and halfway across the room before he’s even really aware of it, the change of clothes for his own bath forgotten at the foot of the bed.

Tanuma goes still, when Atsushi pulls him close. Atsushi almost lets go, but then he feels the tentative hands come up to rest on his back.

“Thank you,” Atsushi mutters into his shoulder.

“I—“

“No. Listen.” Atsushi pulls back, hands shifting to rest on his upper arms. And god but Tanuma looks exhausted. “You kept him safe,” Atsushi says. “And don’t try to tell me you didn’t, because you did. Thank you.”

Tanuma opens his mouth, closes it again, swallows. He says nothing for a long moment, but he doesn’t look away. Finally, “…sorry for freaking out.” He smiles as he says it, but his voice snags on the words. He swallows again.

“Hey.” Atsushi waits until Tanuma’s now-dropped gaze returns to him. “You don’t ever have to be sorry for that, okay? Not with us.”

A sound like an inhale, somehow sharp and shaky all at once, and then it’s Tanuma that’s pulling them together again. A steadying breath, in-out-in that ruffles Atsushi’s hair. Stillness.

“Okay,” he whispers.

***

If he does go to jail, it's Natori who'll have to bail him out :)

Sensei didn't come along because I like to think Hiiragi, Sasago and Urihime have been taking turns watching over Natsume, which is more than sufficient, except for when it's *not* Natsume himself who's getting into trouble--

Fun fact, according to the most current iteration of canon, Tanuma's taken judo in the past as well as karate, but the bulk of this was written before that chapter came out.

All credit to taizi for the nice hug idea--

[animedaddymilkers]

Kinkmas 2020: Day Eight

Prompt: Breeding w/ Jiraiya

Genre: Smut/18+ || Tags: Breeding, Creampie, Dirty Talk, Slight Impregnation, Sex Worker, Mutual Pining, Oral, Fingering || Characters: Jiraiya, Female Reader || read it on ao3 here

Three hours, three agonizing hours until your favorite client checked in. Three hours filled with you anxiously doing your makeup and little odds and ends to make sure your appearance was as enticing as possible. It wasn't usually like you to go all out for customers, but this particular one was special. Not to mention he was also your highest paying one. Andddd you may have caught some stupid, school-girl crush for him. Though you wouldn't dare say anything to his face, or to anyone for that matter. It wasn't worth risking your best client. Being a sex worker was hard enough as it was.

Jiraiya was a different breed of man, probably a different breed of human if you were being totally honest. He was so suave and smooth, yet put on a sleazy front, driving away most of the civilian women. You had your suspicions that he did that on purpose, but it wasn't your place to pry. He definitely attracted all the women who worked in similar professions as you, that was for sure. Even though he was known to be a cheapskate, drunk, and always tried to get more than he paid for, he wasn't like that with you. You heard once he found a favorite he was the exact opposite of his reputation and now you were living through just that.

The white-haired man appeared in the doorway of your designated hotel room, a bright smile on his face. This time the room had to be the presidential suite, it was comparable to a whole ass apartment for Kami's sake. After hearing the hotel door open you scurried out of the ridiculously large bathroom, your heels clicking along the marble floor to greet your client. His roaring laugh filled the room as he watched your delicate appearance not-so-delicately enter the room.

"Well, look at you! Shit, darling, you look amazing today. You're going to kill an old man like me," his cherry tone made you smile and you stopped in front of him.

"Oh please, you're harder to kill than that! So, what were you thinking today?" Your hands trailed up his still clothed chest, taking in the feel of the muscles you knew laid underneath.

Jiraiya's hands went to your waist, thumbs running over the lingerie you donned," Always so straight to the point, aren't you? Always loved that about ya. Anyways, thought maybe today we could just do something… soft? Just got back from a rough mission and could use some soft lovin'."

"Oh, yeah definitely! I can be whatever you need, handsome," you leaned up and kissed his cheek, using the other hand to caress the opposite cheek.

If he wanted soft, soft was what he was going to get. He knew it was dangerous to request sexual favors that included gentle actions from you. He knew your soft touches would fan the ache in his heart, but he couldn't help it. Maybe somewhere inside of him he just wanted an excuse to hold you close and "accidentally" let some sweet nothings be whispered in your ear. Your lips came together much slower than they usually do, gently pressing together as your eyes closed. His large hands rubbed your hips, fingers kneading into your soft flesh as he easily lifted you from the floor. As if from muscle memory alone, your legs wrapped around his waist as much as they could, happily clinging onto his built figure. The oversized king bed came too soon, your back meeting the plush sheets as Jiraiya's kisses began to trail down your jaw. His lips were warm and harsh against your skin but far from unwelcome. You knew what was coming but you still gasped quietly the first time he sucked the skin of your neck into his mouth.

"You drive me wild," his voice was low and rumbled against your throat, sending a shiver down your spine.

His hands wandered from your hips to your chest, playing with your boobs through the thin bra you wore. One of Jiraiya's favorite things was to leave love marks on you, all over you to be exact. Usually, you wouldn't allow it, marking up the merchandise and all. But for him, it was worth it. Not only did he pay more than enough to mark you, but you always felt almost proud to wear his hickeys on your neck and body after a session with him. It definitely helped you pretend you were truly his until they faded that is. Then you'd just have to wait until Jiraiya's name showed up on your booking schedule again. Though unbeknownst to you, your customer felt quite the same about the love marks. He knew very well he was lucky you allowed him to leave them and he'd be lying if he said he didn't go into the village the next day just to get a glimpse of you proudly displaying what he left you.

You tried not to rush things, going at whatever pace he set for the session, but it was hard not to get slightly greedy with such a mountain of man within your grasp. Thankfully, your partner picked up on your gathering impatience and began to slowly unwrap you from the lingerie you had on. The action wasn't empty of affection, quite the opposite. Each time he revealed more skin, his fingers lingered, his touch warm and gentle against you. Once you were naked it was more obvious how overdressed he was. So, you set about fixing that fact. His layers were peeled off one by one until he was left in his mesh shirt and underwear. This part, you loved to lay back and watch as he slowly stripped the rest, his shirt pulling up and revealing more of his abs and toned chest. Ugh, Kami, he was so hot for an older man. So many of your clients were tolerable at best, but Jiraiya? Quite literally the definition of 'you'd let him hit it for free'. But again, you had rent to pay.

Once you were both naked came the part where you two adored the other's body, not a usual part of your rendezvous but he wanted softness today. His rough fingers played with your nipples, shit-eating grin spreading across his face as you moaned and whined when he tugged them. Meanwhile, your hands roamed over every inch of him that you could reach, which currently only entailed his shoulders, head, and top of his chest. But that was enough for you to reach down and play with his nipples in return. The way his face reddened with blush almost made you giggle, but he twisted yours teasingly to get back at you. Jiraiya could seriously tease you for hours on end if it were any other day than today. Today, he had other plans, he needed emotional sex but he also needed it sooner rather than later.

His fingers were tracing along your slit, gathering up some of your wetness to spread it around more. He lazily rubbed at your clit as he kissed you, teeth nipping at your lips just lightly enough to make it hurt but not draw blood. It was a bit dizzying to have a man above you who could so easily kill you with minimal effort, yet each of his movements was filled with nothing but adoration. Part of you hated how tender he was with you every session and the other part that was head over heels in love begged him to continue. Your hips ground down against him, a whine falling out of your mouth before you could even help it. He exhaled a quiet laugh at your desperate reaction and did it again, only slightly harder this time. Teasing was a given when it came to Jiraiya unless he was really drunk. But hell, this time you were almost sure he was completely sober. It really must have been a rough mission if he didn't stop at the bar first. The thought made you want to stop him and give him all the extra attention in the world. The only thing stopping you was your business professional side. It'd just be too much, too risky to make a move like that. You'd be able to pamper him in due time and then it wouldn't seem out of place.

In the meantime, Jiraiya finally slid a thick finger inside of you, probing your insides like he was trying to test something out. His tongue stuck out slightly, caught between his teeth with a determined look on his face. If there wasn't a finger curling inside of your pussy you would have laughed at the expression. He pumped it in and out slowly, gently prodding for your g-spot. As he explored your insides he slipped another finger in, taking care to slowly stretch you out for him. He leaned his head down and let his tongue join in on the party, pressing it flat against your clit. Your head fell back against the bed as your fingers tangled into his expanse of lush, white hair, tugging gently to try and get more out of his mouth. He grinned against your thigh, a third, thick finger pushing into you. The stretch was now slightly uncomfortable, but you both slightly knew you had to endure it, or else the main event wasn't going to be as enjoyable. And Jiraiya always wanted you to enjoy it. Truly, he was the best client you ever had and it wasn't fair that this was just no strings attached business.

His tongue circled your clit before his teeth grazed your bundle of nerves, sending a shiver down your spine. Then he started a session routine, spelling out his name against your clit with his tongue. Again, you wish you could laugh during the cheesy action but it felt too damn good. The low rumble of his voice against you had your hips grinding down against his fingers. His fingers which still thrust in and out of you, changing positions and angles every now and then, intent on finding your g-spot. When his fingers finally made you gasp, he grinned devilishly and your grip tightened in his hair, knowing you were in for a ride now. Once they zeroed in on their target his fingers barely changed angles, repeatedly hitting your sweet spot. His mouth wrapped around your clit, sucking gently as his other hand slid down to your other hole. At first, he just teased, swirling his pointer finger around the puckered hole before using some of your pussy juice to slowly push in. The pressure from the extra finger had you gasping out his name, the assault on your other private parts far from ending. Your legs defied your intent to hold out longer and began to shake, the warm spasm in your lower stomach fast approaching.

"Fuck! Oh Kami, Jiraiya! Fuck I'm cumming!" cuss words continued to fall from your lips between moans as you came on his face.

Your juices properly soaked his stubble-covered jaw, more proof he didn't even bother going home before seeing you. As your legs spasmed he kept sucking your clit, welcoming the feeling of your plush thighs wrapping tightly around his head. A good three minutes later he finally let you have some reprieve, removing his face and hands from his body. Your eyes met his gleaming ones as he brought one hand to his mouth, sucking his fingers off. The skilled tongue that made you fall apart, swirled around his fingers, intent not to waste a single drop of your sweet juice. He had little to no reservations when it came to sex, happily sliding his finger from your other hole into his mouth, sucking it off just as he did the others. Next time you just might have to ask him to use his mouth on your ass… but for now, it was your turn to get your mouth busy.

Jiraiya had other thoughts, leaning up to kiss you again and slowly grind his hips against yours. He kissed you for a while, savoring the taste of your mouth, and went to line himself up at your entrance before you stopped him. Concerned, he looked up at you and was about to ask if something was wrong before you gently pushed to flip him over. Now with a look of understanding he chuckled softly and laid back against the pillows, arms tucked behind his head. Hair sprawled around him and arms flexed he looked like a true Adonis before you, even including the brutal scar on his chest. If anything, the scar just made him more god-like. It was a testament to what he did for a living, how self-sacrificing he was. There was only one thing that could make the view better: a lower perspective.

Your hands rubbed against his skin, just taking in the feel of it. The feel of his scars, the feel of the tensing muscles beneath, the intoxicating feel of his pulse beating beneath your fingers. You grinned as you brushed your fingertips along his pelvis, savoring in the shiver he always gave you. His hips were so sensitive it was almost cute. You leaned forward and kissed a trail down his abs, leaving little love bites along the way. Time didn't mean anything right now, so you took as long as you wanted, paying extra attention to leave darker marks along his hips and purposely avoiding where he wanted your touch most. He sighed heavily and closed his eyes, trying not to think too hard about the sweet ways you touched him. Oftentimes, he had to remind himself that these affections from you were bought, if he hadn't bought this time with you, you wouldn't be here. The kisses and marks you left all over his body were just for sexy times. The gentle way you admired his body was just to keep him coming back, to keep him thinking you cared for him on a personal level. Damn, his thoughts got carried away again. He couldn't help but think of what waking up next to you would be like, you smiling-

His eyes flew open and he groaned as you licked up his cock. The grin you had on your face made him groan again, damn your sinful actions. Your lips wrapped around him and he locked eyes with yours as you slowly sank your mouth down his length. The gleam in your eyes drove him wild, watching as you took him inch by inch, careful not to gag. That is, until he gave you a cocky little thrust of his hips. You gagged and choked at the unanticipated movement, taking your mouth off of him, your hand relaxing it.

"You bastard! You ruined my rhythm!"

Jiraiya chuckled before grinning, "Oh but you sound so cute gagging on my cock, darling!"

His happy go lucky tone laced his words, making you roll your eyes as you pumped him. Taking a deep breath you wrapped your mouth around him again, determined to make it all the way down him this time. You knew he'd thrust again, but now you were expecting it and you were able to relax your throat more, grinning around his cock when you didn't gag. Jiraiya only grinned, proud that you caught onto his little game and resorted to letting you have the reins again. One of his large hands reached down, gathering your hair from out of your face to help you and so he could see better. Your head finally met the coarse white curls at the base of his cock and you held yourself there for a few moments. You swallowed a couple of times just to hear the man beneath you moan before you slowly began to slide back up, swirling your tongue around his tip. Kami, his face looked so good with the blush dusting his cheeks and chest. You'd give him all his money back just to have this view all to yourself. Still, you had the power to make him fall apart even more and you had every intention to do just that.

Again, your mouth surrounded him and you went down his length quicker this time, although you didn't go down all the way. Your rhythm took a few tries to perfect but you finally found it. Hollowing out your cheeks a bit you bobbed your head on his cock, twisting slightly as you went up and down. For a bit of cock you didn't force your mouth to go down on, your hand picked up the slack, rubbing around it while your mouth worked. Jiraiya's other hand came down to join his first in your hair and when your eyes met his he groaned. You looked so good when you were desperate to please him. He was comfortable enough with you now that he didn't even think of holding back all of his noises, even if they were the high pitched whines he let out when you played with his balls. Or the gasps when you gave him a taste of his own medicine and pushed a finger into his asshole. His hips twitched at the sudden pressure and he almost comically began to fall apart beneath you.

He panted and moaned, thighs tensing when you pushed another finger into him, "Damn it, fuck, (Y/N)... Darling please…"

You moaned around his cock before popping his cock out of your mouth, pumping it with your hand, "Mmm, what is it dear?"

His face was beet red and his chest near heaving, "Don't wanna cum like this…"

"Ah, that's right, I forgot geezers like you can only go so long." you grinned at him and let his cock free.

If it had been any other client, you wouldn't dare speak to them like that, but for Jiraiya, it only fired him up more. He smirked back at you and easily leaned down, lifting your body from between his legs. Before you could comprehend you were on all fours, ass properly displayed for the man behind you. His hands spread across your rear and massaged your ass before spreading your cheeks. The tip of his cock pressed at your entrance and you whined, trying to push yourself back onto him. He laughed at your desperation but still obliged, pushing into you slowly. Kami, he filled you so well, dragging along your walls perfectly. He didn't stop until his hips met yours, pushing his pelvis into your ass, staying there for a long moment. With a grin, he ground his hips against yours before pulling out almost all the way and then slamming back in.

It made you gasp and grab at the sheets for balance, the pace was both torture and pleasure. His hands gripped your hips, no doubt going to leave bruises as he continued fucking you. After a few minutes, he finally sped up, his cock hitting against your deepest parts. He leaned over your back and pressed kisses into your shoulders before trailing up your neck. His hot breath against your skin was enough to drive you wild and mixed with his groans you felt tingles fire through your body from your ears straight to your pussy. Your whines egged him on and he once again sped up, fucking into you with vigor now. The lewd sounds of your skin slapping together was like music and only sounded better accompanied by the noises you both were making. One of his hands slid from your hip and a thick finger rubbed at your clit, the extra stimulation making you groan and bury your face deeper into the blanket beneath you. You could feel your thighs shake, threatening to give out as your pussy clenched around his cock. Your cum properly wet his cock more and a bit of his thighs too, but that wasn't going to stop him.

Jiraiya fucked you through your orgasm, slowing as you came down before he roughly flipped you over onto your back, taking in your post-orgasm face, "You look so gorgeous like this darling. I could stare at you for hours."

His voice was deep and you sighed softly at his words, legs opening wide so he could slide back inside of you. Gently, he took your legs and pushed your knees towards your chest, leaving some room so he could lean down between them and kiss you. The position let his cock slide in deeper and you moaned feeling him hit your cervix. "Kami, Jiraiya, just fuck me already, I want your cum!"

He smirked and thrust roughly, making the breath catch in your throat, "You want my cum, pretty girl? You want me to fuck my baby into you?"

The words weren't supposed to come out. Not like that. But he always was a sucker for dirty talk so he wasn't really surprised with himself. You, on the other hand, were slightly shocked. Or at least you would have been if you weren't so horny. His words made you moan at the thought and you knew you wouldn't be satisfied until you felt his cum inside of you now. He did prefer to go in raw, but every time before this he had no qualms about pulling out. Briefly, you wondered what changed and if maybe it was all talk, but regardless, you couldn't help but lose all inhibitions at the thought of feeling his cum inside of you.

"Yes! Fuck your baby into me! Fill me up, Jiraiya, I want everyone to know what you've done to me!"

He growled and pushed your legs closer to your body as he nearly laid down on top of you. The heaviness of him added an extra warmth of protection, bringing you two closer physically and a bit emotionally as well. Now, you were so close you could lean up and kiss him, his hot breath on your lips, his intoxicating smell filling your nose while his hips quickly thrust in and out of you. Cuss words and praises fell from his lips, muffled by your skin as he fucked you harder, barely holding back at all. It was appropriate that he had you positioned in the mating press, adding to the feeling of the moment. You let yourself get absorbed in the fantasy, pretending he was saying those words under different circumstances, that he really meant what he said.

"Fuck I'm so close," he growled and his arms wrapped around your back, holding you closer, "You ready for it, darling? Let me hear you. C'mon."

As if you really needed any more convincing, you let it out, legs once again starting to shake as they wrapped around him, "Please, please, give me your cum. Oh, Kami~"

"You'd like that, wouldn't you? Being forced to be mine, huh? You want to be my little breeding slut?"

"Yes, yes yes! Make me yours!" Your high pitched whines sent him into a frenzy and he roughly began to rub your clit again.

You were already over sensitive so when you felt him bury himself to the hilt inside of you, you let yourself go. He groaned your name as you could feel his hot cum fill you up, your pussy spasming around him. Part of you couldn't believe he actually just came inside, though the majority of your lust clouded brain was absolutely satisfied that he did. You panted hard and was thankful as he helped stretch your cramping legs. He himself was breathing hard in the crook of your neck. Your arms wrapping around his neck as you played with his hair before he began to slowly pull away. His eyes locked with yours as he sat back on his feet, soft cock slipping out of you. When he did his eyes wandered down, watching as his cum slowly dripped out of your hole. But he gathered the drips onto his fingers and pushed it back into you.

"You're going to look so cute, big and round with my baby."

The words shook you from the bliss and you looked up at the white-haired man. The full possible repercussions of your actions crashed down onto you. Before you could voice any concerns, Jiraiya sighed and leaned down, putting his head in the crook of your neck again before filling the quiet of the room.

"I shouldn't have done that."

"I wanted it too."

"Did you really? Or just because I pay you to want it." his voice was gravelly and almost laced with guilt.

You had to say, you've seen Jiraiya through many post-orgasm moods, but this one full of something akin to regret was new, "No. I really wanted it. And… If it happens, then I'll happily welcome it."

He didn't lift his head, he didn't think he could even if he wanted to. Instead, he only held you tighter and finally let himself embrace his feelings for you, "I love you. I don't care about your line of work. I don't care how much I have to pay. Just…let me see you more?"

The breath you didn't know you were holding was exhaled and you looked down at him, "Jiraiya…"

"You don't have to like me back. I'd understand. I just couldn't keep it to myself any longer. (Y/N), you're the only thing keeping me returning to this village."

He looked almost scared as he confessed his feelings, his hands stroking over your skin, eyes avoiding yours, "Jiraiya, I love you too…"

Quickly his eyes snapped up to finally meet yours, his heart felt like it skipped a beat. It took him a minute to fully comprehend your words before he pressed his lips to yours again. The rest of the day was spent together, telling the other all the things you'd been holding back for who knows how long. Not to mention a few more rounds in the bed. Never in a million years would you have guessed a shared breeding kink would finally be the thing that brought you to confess your love for each other.

hope you enjoyed! remember likes & reblogs help me reach more people! :D

[idkthisisjustforfanfic]

UNPLANNED, Jeff & Glenne’s wedding

author’s note: MY GIRL GLENNE GOT MARRIED SO YOU KNOW I HAD TO!!!!!!!!

Jane tugged at your pearl necklace, her flower girl dress was already wrinkled at the bottom and she probably needed a snack.

“Do you know where he is?” Glenne’s voice was frantic, and if you hadn’t already seen the writing on the wall, now was a good time to realize she was a terminally stressed-out human. The day of her wedding was not exempt. 

“He’ll be here,” you reassured her, watched as her mother zipped up the back of her dress. “He said he was writing some last minute additions.” 

Clicks from the photographer’s camera cut between her words. “Y/N, if your boyfriend ruins my wedding, so help me God.”

Lexi appeared from the bathroom, her arms outstretched to take Jane from you and offer her some cheerios. “Who’s ruining what?”

“Harry is gonna ruin everything,” Glenne turned around, her lips were perfectly glossed, hair tousled in a divine way. She was perfect, she looked beautiful, but her anxiety was through the roof and no one seemed to know how to calm her down. 

“Harry is going to be fine,” Lexi assured her. “And you literally had the last six months to freak out over asking him to officiate your wedding, so…”

“Well he’s late--he’s not even here and we’re supposed to start the ceremony in--” Glenne looked down at her phone on the bed. It was blowing up, Jeff, presumably, just as anxious and likely freaking out over Harry’s absence. “Three minutes. We’re supposed to start in three minutes.”

You held back a giggle and smiled at your friend. You couldn’t tell her, you couldn’t explain that this was all part of Harry’s plan: freak her out and make her think that he’d dropped the ball, waited until the last second to write up the ceremony and get things in line. Buy some time and keep her in the hotel for a few more minutes. Distract, distract, distract.

But he wasn’t late, he was somewhere outside, his lateness was the distraction he and Jeff had put in place to surprise Glenne with a performance tonight from an artist Glenne had been obsessed with for literal decades. 

Jeff was in on it, too--which Glenne had no idea about. His last minute texts where he bad mouthed Harry’s lack of punctuality were all a ruse, one that you were starting to laugh about when Glenne looked up at you with wide eyes. “What is so funny? This is comical to you?”

“No, no,” you shook your head. “I just know it will all be okay. He’s been so excited to do the ceremony, Glenney.”

“Well,” she sighed, looked over to Lexi and then to her sister, two cousins were also waiting in the living room area of her suite. “Should we go out there?”

“Yes,” Lexi nodded. “And let’s get you a drink while we’re at it. This is supposed to be fun, remember?”

“Oh I remember,” Glenne smiled, “I just hope I don’t have to murder anyone tonight.”

You rolled your eyes, took Jane back in your arms when she giggled at a silly face Lexi made. You followed them out through the hotel hallways and onto the beautiful grounds. A clear top tent sat off in the distance, lights strung up to its peak for the main event. Your heels wobbled on the manicured lawn and Jane squinted in the Southern California sun. You were ushered into place, hoping that she would be able to waddle down the aisle and throw out petals like you had practiced the night before. 

Jeff and his parents had already gathered beneath the ceremony trellis, they looked tiny in the distance, stood in front of the ten rows on each side of the aisle. In the middle, almost blending into the flowers and rose bushes behind him, stood Harry. 

Glenne’s sister spotted it first: “What on earth is he wearing, Y/N?”

Lexi and the other bridesmaids burst out laughing, the sight of Harry in a white hotel bathrobe and slippers was enough to make Glenne freeze. 

“Oh my fucking God,” Glenne laughed, a smile cracked on her face when she turned to look at you again. “He’s literally getting murdered tonight,” she giggled. “Always has to be the center of attention, doesn’t he?”

Jane giggled when the others did, a woman with a headset barked more orders for everyone to line up, the rest of the groomsmen appeared and linked arms with their assigned partner. 

Harry--being the person he was--knew damn well that Glenne would lose her shit over him wearing a bathrobe to officiate their marriage ceremony. Which is why he had a partially unbuttoned dress shirt underneath, boxers on and pants waiting nearby. He wouldn’t actually perform the ceremony like that, but he wanted her to have a heart attack thinking he might. 

You weren’t too sure about it at first. Get Glenne all riled up right before her wedding, piss her off and give her a good reason to think that Harry officiating their wedding was the worst decision they’d made? Risky.

But they needed a diversion, something that would keep Glenne’s attention away from the tent and away from the smuggling of a superstar into her wedding--one that she’d planned every single detail and minute of months in advance. 

When you listened to Harry and Jeff talk about it in your living room and plan it all out, the robe, the book, the scotch--you knew that the surprise would be worth it and you knew she’d be thrilled with the outcome. Even if she was left thinking for a little bit that Harry was an asshat.

Jeff was right, it has to be something stupid and big and totally weird to throw her off course. 

I’ll take on for the team, Harry agreed.

Soon the music played and everyone fell into step. Jane didn’t cry, instead she smiled at Harry at the end of the aisle and wobbled forward in her party shoes, holding onto your fingers as she smiled at the guests who waved and cooed in her direction. You took it upon yourself to toss the petals out and hoped it would suffice for Glenne. 

Yet when she made her way down the aisle, her eyes meeting Jeff’s for the first time today, everything else seemed to melt away. Harry’s robe was not the center of attention, and he pulled on some trousers and fixed himself up in the first few minutes of the ceremony, all the while using it as a way to break the ice. 

“Glenne might be one of the most diligent, hardworking, and responsible people I know,” he said to the crowd. “She’s also quite Type A and I figured giving her a good scare right before she marries Jeff would use up any nerves she might have today.”

He smiled in your direction before continuing. “And Jeff is also quite Type A--he’s an incredible manager and friend and partner, and being able to join the two of them today in marriage will likely be the highlight of my year.”

Maybe it was being in front of a crowd, or maybe it was the glass of champagne she’d downed in the hotel room right before coming outside, but Glenne softened once Harry had tugged up his trousers and gained enough of a laugh from everyone. 

They’d written their own vows, words of promise that brought tears to your eyes and made Jane clap her hands together excitedly. She cheered when they kissed, and you were pleased that phase one had gone as swimmingly as it had. 

Glenne was so swept up in the moment that she had seemed to forget all about it, happily strutting down the aisle with Jeff by her side when the music played again. You stuck around and let Jane crawl into Harry’s arms as guests filed out. “Do you need me to do anything?”

“No,” he shook his head, leaned forward and pressed a kiss to your lips. “She doesn’t suspect anything, right?”

“Not at all,” you smiled. “But she did say she was going to murder you.”

He smirked, watched as the guests filed out and started greeting each other for cocktail hour. “I think helping Jeff pull off the surprise of a lifetime will be a good way to go.”

“Well hopefully when Justin Timberlake shows up to serenade them at their wedding she’ll forget all about you in a bathrobe being her first sight when she walked down the aisle.”

“Ugh, we are killing it, Jane! Auntie Glenne is going to be so excited,” he told your daughter, nuzzling his face into hers when she grinned up at him. 

“Auntie Glenne already wants to kill you,” Lexi appeared suddenly. “So you need to get over there and put that bathrobe on for more photos. She was just asking why there’s a live-mic getting set up with a stage in there.”

Lexi pointed at the tent--you could see the last minute touches being put in place for the big performance. 

“I can’t believe I’m the sacrificial lamb,” he looked at both of you. “Taking the piss and being labeled as the worst officiator ever for showing up in a robe, all to distract her from the plan her now husband hatched in our living room when he was drunk.”

Both you and Lexi watched him for a second, unimpressed with his mini monologue. 

“As if you don’t love the attention and the theatrics,” Lexi shot back. 

“Well, I can’t believe you guys are putting her through this,” you laughed, pulling Jane out of his arms so he could continue on with his official duties. 

“I know--she’ll forgive me soon enough.”

He pressed another kiss to your face and was off, grabbed a glass of scotch from Jeff’s brothers and changed behind a bush back into the robe. Maybe he was crazy, or maybe it was genius: keep her distracted and pissed off enough with a silly outfit to make the surprise even more special. 

You watched her hit him playfully in the chest when you made your way over. The entire bridal party had gathered round for photos.

 “Aren’t you not supposed to wear white?” Glenne joked with him, took another look at the robe when Jeff reached up a hand to let Harry twirl around under, really showing off his get up. 

“Glenne, forgive me,” he smiled, “I just had to be comfortable!”

“Comfortable my ass!” She laughed, accepted a flute of champagne from a server and picked a fuzz off of Jeff’s suit. “You can be comfortable later--not right now.”

“A few photos like this, though, babe,” Jeff begged. “Don’t you want to remember how much of a dick Harry was at our wedding?”

She eyed Harry closely, and for a second you were sure she was on to them. “Fine--but only because you look absolutely ridiculous and this will be perfect blackmail.”

Harry wrapped his arms around her for a picture, “I can live with that.”

It wasn’t until speeches were made and dinner was eaten that phase two began. Jeff and Glenne had been practicing their first dance for weeks, the music started to play over the speakers and everyone watched as they swayed in the center of the dance floor. 

Harry, who knew exactly the moment the song would end and things would take a sudden turn, had his arms around your shoulders and swayed behind you. “S’nice, isn’t it?”

“That Glenne is about to have a stroke in front of all these people because her celebrity crush is about to pop out of nowhere?”

“No,” he laughed, “this--the wedding stuff.”

“Oh,” you smiled, “yeah, it’s a beautiful place.”

“Would you want something this big?”

You looked over your shoulder, saw Lexi swaying with Jane in her arms at the table over.

“Probably not,” you admitted.

“That’s good.”

“Oh?” You looked over your shoulder at him with a smirk. “Why’s that good?”

“Well,” he took a dramatic pause. “If you plan on marrying me--which I really hope you do--we might be stuck having something extremely small and private.”

You tried not to smile, tried not to get swept away in the idea of marrying Harry and continuing to build a family with him. You’d just made it a year--366 days since Jane was born and the biggest plans you had moving forward was her first birthday party next week, once Glenne and Jeff were back from their honeymoon, of course. 

Before you could reply, though, the song ended, the crowd cheered for Jeff and Glenne, and then people started to gasp when a man in a tuxedo emerged from the crowd and took the stage. 

“Jeff and Glenne,” he spoke into the mic, you peered through the crowd to see her face. White, like she’d seen a ghost, or better, Justin Timberlake. “I’m so excited to be here tonight and to help you celebrate. Glenne, your husband let me know how much it would mean for me to sing a specific song for you tonight.”

Lexi thrust Jane into Harry’s arms and grabbed your hand. “We need to be on the dance floor for this!” She tugged you through people, your bridesmaids dresses automatically giving you the right to elbow them out of your way to get closer to Glenne’s impending freak out.

Harry took Jane and laughed, waved you off and let you throw your arms around Glenne when Justin started to sing SexyBack. 

“No fucking way!” She screamed over the cheers, “did you know about this?”

“Of course we knew about this,” Lexi laughed. “Who do you think helped make everything run so smoothly?”

“Oh my God,” Glenne laughed, “I cannot believe this is happening.”

“We wanted to make sure the day was really special,” Jeff laughed, pulled her close and kissed her again. “And our good pal Harry offered to be the world’s best distraction so we could make sure everything ran smoothly.”

“I knew there was a reason he was wearing that,” she hid her face in her hands. 

“Hey, Harry knows how to cause a scene,” Lexi teased.

“Where is he?!” Glenne searched around the dance floor, a sea of people thrilled with the live performance. 

He was standing off to the side, bopping around with Jane in his arms, mouthing the words to her and pulling her hand back and forth to pull a giggle from her. 

“Just being the world’s best dad,” Jeff smiled and nudged you. “Go get him!”

You got his attention, pulled him back to your circle of friends and felt relief wash over you when Glenne gave him a playful punch in the arm. “I might still murder you for giving me a heart attack, but I’ll try to hold back.”

“You’re welcome, Glenne,” Harry joked, his eyes wide. “You are literally the world’s most meticulous bride, so our scheme to pull one over on you had to be crazy.”

“Yeah, well, I guess Justin Timberlake is a good way to make up for wearing a bathrobe to my wedding ceremony.”

“So you forgive me?”

She thought about it for a second, laughed when he rolled his eyes. She wrapped her arms around him and looked up at him. “If anyone was going to wear white to my wedding, I’m glad it was you. But I’m definitely leaking those photos to the press.”

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[alwaysbeliev]

Snapdragons

happy (very belated) Valentine’s Day, @the-awkward-outlaw ! i hope you enjoy this!

summary:  Arthur Morgan has never been very good at talking about his thoughts and feelings. He finds it much easier to show them, and he hopes he's doing it the right way.

relationship: Arthur Morgan x f!Reader

word count: 1838

link on AO3

The First

Sunlight filtered delicately through the trees in the early morning. Birds chirped somewhere above, hidden among the flourishing summer canopy, a shadow dashing here and there between the branches. A squirrel scurried around roots on the forest floor, pausing only to dig at a spot and sniff before deciding it was fruitless and moving on. 

You idly watched them, bundled in your coat as you stood by the morning campfire, holding a tin cup of coffee in your hands. The heat had pierced through the metal and was warming your cold hands. In slow, deep breaths, you inhaled the fumes, grateful for the steam that wafted upwards. It would be another hour before the air truly started to warm up.

Most of the camp was stirring now. You heard the rustling of Pearson at his wagon as he dug through the cart in search of ingredients. Jack emerged from his family’s tent, Abigail’s voice trailing after him in kind fashion, followed by a grunt from John. Miss O’Shea was combing her fingers through her hair just outside hers and Dutch’s tent. It was nice to watch them all in these moments and learn more about them than they might know about themselves. They were tiny snapshots into their lives.

But the one person you enjoyed watching the most was markedly absent from the group. His cot was visible to all the camp in these summer months, the little table with the flower and the photographs pinned to the side of the wagon. There was no indication he had slept there last night. You inhaled deeply, allowing it to lift your shoulders as you took a drink from your cup again. You didn’t dare ask where he was. You were determined, for some unknown reason both to you and externally, that nobody knew you were sweet on Arthur. You were sure it might give people the wrong idea. 

For several months, you had been learning about the van der Linde gang. You had found them in New Austin, scouting the streets of Tumbleweed, and Dutch thought you were after them. Instead, you partnered on a score, and were ultimately invited to work with them permanently. “Family”, he said they were. You had never really known “family”, but were happy to be included. Now, you knew it meant you belonged.

Arthur had been wary of you for a long time. It wasn’t until Blackwater when he started focusing on keeping everyone together that he softened. “Softened” was the mildest word available for it, as he merely stopped shooting you disdained looks and avoiding you, but shortly after, he started having actual conversations with you. Not much longer after that, you would even call him your friend, and you wanted to be more. You knew his past now, though, and were sure it wasn’t in your cards. For now, you were content.

As you finished your cup and stepped away from the fire, the sound of slowly approaching hoofsteps made your head turn. Arthur and Hosea were riding back into camp, the former atop a new horse and the latter looking his age. You smiled involuntarily and hurriedly turned away in hopes that nobody saw. You busied yourself with placing your cup near the dishes that needed washing, certain you would be asked to do those later, and tugged your jacket tighter around your shoulders.

Someone called your name. You were surprised to see that it was Arthur, approaching you with a hand behind his back. Jack had done the same thing to you more than once, gifting you both frogs and candies on separate occasions. 

“Mr. Morgan,” you greeted with a genuine smile, “how are you gettin’ on?”

“Jus’ fine, thank you,” he replied. He smiled, too, but abashedly. 

“Is everything alright?”

“Yeah, of course, I just, ah… I ain’t very good at this kinda thing, but thought you might appreciate these.” With a clumsy flourish, the cowboy pulled a cluster of flowers from behind his back, gripped tightly in his fist. Your heart skipped a beat when you recognized your favorite, snapdragons, in the center. Your mouth dropped open and you fumbled for words. Emotions raced through your head too fast for you to capture any of them.

“I, er, heard you the other day,” he admitted, “tellin’ the girls that you missed having some color around. We was out huntin’ and I saw ‘em and, well…” Arthur was out of words. He offered them again. Gingerly, as if nervous they might disappear, you took them from him, carefully thumbing through them with your other hand to identify what else was in the bouquet. It looked as though they had all hung from his saddle on his return journey, the leaves a little wilted and dusty, but the gesture was enough to bring a small sting to your eye.

“Thank you.” You barely managed to get the words out. You swallowed the emotion before looking up at him again. “That was mighty kind of you, Arthur, thank you very much.”

“Course,” he muttered, one hand gripping his belt while the other rubbed the back of his neck. 

The Second

The gang had to move camp. Again. It felt like there was no chance to make a real home, more and more trouble coming your way. There were rumors of Pinkertons out here. How they had followed you through the mountains, you were at a loss, but there they were and away the gang had to go.

Following Mrs. Grimshaw’s orders, you helped Karen, Tilly, and Mary-Beth pack up the bed rolls and take down tents. You walked Horseshoe Overlook back and forth to make sure no identifying items were left behind. Soon, you were sitting in a wagon watching the fading camp. Recent memories of laughing, drinking, and even dancing with Arthur rolled through your mind. Mary-Beth took your hand and squeezed it. You gave her what you hoped was a reassuring smile. 

Since bringing you flowers, Arthur had become an entirely different person. There was a strange kindness to him. You had seen it before, but now it felt tenfold, and most of it was directed to you. He would share his treats, his coats, sometimes part of his meal if he thought you might still be hungry, even showing you some of the sketches he made in his elusive journal. Tilly and Karen hadn’t missed it. Mary-Beth even sighed dreamily over some imaginary scenario in her head and called it “romantic”. It made you feel giddy.

Charles greeted the head of the wagon train. After entering a cove of trees, the wagons rolled onto a grassy clearing that edged up to a lake. A large tree took up the center, providing a great ceiling to what you hoped was the last place you would have to make home. Everyone circled in and you were immediately put to work again. 

Hours later, the sun was setting on yet another day, and you watched it from a log on the lake shore. The smell of the evening stew was drifting towards the water. You had finally cooled off-- as much as you could, anyway, with the humidity-- and were just beginning to think of going for your shawl. Gravel crunched behind you and you turned to see Arthur approaching. He seemed down, the golden light highlighting all of his scars and frown lines. 

“Mr. Morgan.” You hoped your eagerness wasn’t visible to him in the low light. His face, however, lifted instantaneously.

“Hope your day weren’t too rough,” he mumbled, stepping over the log to sit beside you. Casually, as though he had done it a million times, Arthur pulled some flowers from his satchel. They were more snapdragons, different colors than last time, and your face split into a wide grin. 

“Well, it’s much better now.” Feeling a rush of bravery, you leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. It was rough and smelled different than you expected, but it fit him perfectly. The tinge of red in his cheek might have been explained away by the sunset turning a shade of pink by someone who wasn’t paying much attention. The bravery was gone almost as soon as it had arrived and you turned your gaze back to the flowers in your hand, gently picking at the leaves. 

“Anyway, thank you,” you murmured. He grunted about it being nothing and you fell into silence together, your head burning with questions you were too nervous still to ask.

The Third

Early morning in Saint Denis had its own little charms. The city made you uneasy, that was for sure, and you knew you would long to return to the untamed wilderness soon, but as you studied the way the light shone on the buildings and listened to the sounds of the streets waking up, you could understand the appeal. Vines grew up the balcony, bees buzzed lazily between the small buds, the occasional neighbor greeted the other. Slowly, you grew aware of your immediate surroundings; the soft blanket, the real mattress beneath you, the new pillow under your head. Memories from the night before were beginning to set in and you couldn’t stop yourself from grinning widely. 

Arthur had gone with Dutch and a few others to a party the mayor was throwing. You knew it was important, and what they were doing was dangerous, but he looked so good in his suit, you couldn’t find it in yourself to worry too much. The friendship between the two of you had blossomed into something more, something both soft and fiery, comforting and passionate. With the move to Shady Belle, you found yourself spending more nights in Arthur’s room inside of the house than on your bedroll outside. He seemed to have read your mind when he saw you looking at him dressed up, slipping cash into your hand and giving you whispered instructions to meet him at a hotel that night, after the party.

Inhaling deeply, you turned onto your back, stretching your arm over to find who filled the space beside you. It was surprisingly empty, and your head turned to find the blankets poorly pulled back into place. In the dip on the pillow, however, were snapdragons. Pink, red, white, mixed with a few other wildflowers. It was a bigger bouquet than he had given you in the past and it was tied together with a piece of twine. A paper with a short message was laying beside it. Picking it up, you read:

Went for a ride. We both needed to stretch our legs, you understand. I will be back soon. Stay in bed, I will have breakfast soon. Yours, Arthur.

He was yours. He brought flowers, he was bringing breakfast, and it was all for you. Finally feeling content, you closed your eyes again, allowing sleep to pull you away until he made his return. This was your happy place, you thought as you drifted off again. You could stay here forever.

[dessarious]

What Makes a Family? Pt11

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Marinette woke up on the floor sandwiched between Luka and Kagami. She was about to just go back to sleep when she noticed it was dark outside. That was a problem… why was that a problem? Chat. She bolted upright.

“It’s only nine sweetheart.” Her Papa’s voice came from the kitchen and when she looked over he, her Maman, and Alfred were sitting around the counter. All of them looked worried and tense. Marinette got up slowly so as not to wake her partners and as soon as she was out from between them they scooted together. She just smiled fondly at them before going over to the adults.

“Everything will be fine. Where’s Chloe?” Her Maman glared at her while her Papa let out a frustrated sigh.

“Miss Chloe went back to the hotel to see about rooms for everyone. Also, Master Bruce’s finance wishes to come meet you as well if that is acceptable.”

“Of course, but I may not be able to spend much time with them at first. I have a feeling that things are going to progress rapidly once my true Black Cat has the Miraculous.” They were all frowning at her now.

“And how exactly are you planning on taking it from Chat Noir in the first place?” Her Maman’s tone had an edge to it and she was speaking through clenched teeth. Her parents hated her doing anything dangerous and it was times like this she was honestly sorry they knew who she was.

“I told him to meet me somewhere there will be cover. I’m bringing Chloe so she can stun him. I also wanted to ask if you would be willing to come Grandpa Alfie. It will mean you’ll have to use a Miraculous but it would help misdirect Chat as to who is actually in charge.” Her parents exploded immediately while Alfred just frowned at her in thought. This was exactly why she couldn’t let them take part in things like this. “Please don’t yell, you’ll wake the others.”

“And why does he get to go rather than one of us?” The fury in her Maman’s tone sent a chill down her spine but she didn’t let them see it.

“For starters, he’s not attached to me yet. You two are too close to me, not to mention that as my parents it’s completely against your nature to follow orders from me. I can’t risk you moving too soon. Also Grandpa Alfie doesn't know me well enough to give away my identity unless he calls me by name. I love you both, but you have no filter when it comes to protecting me. He also has military experience that could be useful and given Master Fu’s age before he died, Chat will be far more likely to assume he is the Guardian. That misdirection could be vital in keeping everyone safe.” They didn’t look happy, but they did stop arguing.

“How did you know I was in the military?” She blinked at Alfred in confusion for a moment before letting out a yawn. She really hoped there wasn’t another Akuma in the next few days.

“You didn’t tell me?” He shook his head and she shrugged. “Must be the way you carry yourself then.”

“I also didn’t tell you that Miss Cassandra goes by Cass but when you asked me to contact them that’s what you called her.” Marinette rubbed the sleep from her eyes as she considered that.

“I suppose I made the logical leap. I mean what else would she go by? That or I was just too tired to get the full name out.” Alfred just gave a thoughtful hum but she could tell he thought it was more than that. And maybe it was. Things like this had happened before but she’d never paid much attention to them. It simply made sense to her and she really didn’t understand why it didn’t to everyone else.

“I would like to know a bit more about these Miraculous before I agree to using one.” Oh right. She hadn’t been able to explain had she?

“Tikki will probably be able to explain it better at the moment. I tend to over simplify and forget important things when I’m tired.” Her parents were fighting back grins and Alfred just looked confused.

“Who’s Tikki?” She metally facepalmed but before she could apologize the Kwami in question flew out to introduce themselves.

“I’m Tikki, Kwami of Creation. I give Marinette her powers as Ladybug. It’s very nice to meet you.” The poor man just blinked at them, obviously unsure how to proceed. Tikki was studying him and gave an approving hum. “You’re right Mari, he and Wayzz will suit each other and it will help Chat make the Guardian connection you want as well.”

“So I assume each Miraculous is powered by a Kwami?” Tikki just beamed at him. They liked talking to people who could grasp things quickly.

“Yes. Each grants the powers of their aspect. Mari is planning on having you use the Turtle Miraculous which houses Wayzz, Kwami of Protection. His most notable power is the ability to create shields.” Alfred seemed to be debating his next question. She wasn’t certain if he was trying to decide what was more important, or trying to find a way to word it so it didn’t sound offensive.

“Exactly how much control do your users have?” He sounded cautious and she could understand why if that was something he was worried about.

“The Kwami have to obey their holders. When transformed you’re in complete control. Depending on how attuned a person is with the Miraculous your Kwami may be able to subconsciously communicate with you but they can’t control you. Tikki and I are a perfect match so they can actually talk to me while I’m transformed.” That had come in handy too many times to count, but it also meant Marinette got to hear the Kwami giggle anytime a particularly random Lucky Charm showed up. They absolutely refused to help with those.

“So they’re basically slaves.” Alfred’s tone was oddly flat and Marinette could only sigh.

“In a way yes, which is why Hawkmoth even exists. It’s not ideal, but the Kwami themselves don’t mind for the most part and any time I’ve suggested destroying the Miraculous or coming up with a way to give them more autonomy they all act horrified.” Tikki just gave her a stern look.

“Because we agreed to this existence for a reason. Balance must be maintained and this is the best way to do that overall.” This was one of those agree to disagree problems. She would defer to Tikki’s judgement though, given that they were a god older than the universe as they knew it.

“I would still like a more detailed explanation, but given the current time restraint I believe it will have to wait. If you feel you need me there I will go.” Marinette gave him a tired smile.

“Thank you. If everything goes to plan you won’t even have to do anything except make sure Chat sees you after Chloe stuns him. He should jump to all the wrong conclusions on his own.” He frowned at her.

“And if things don’t go to plan?” She tilted her head in thought. It wasn’t a question she was used to simply because her team had learned to just deal with problems.

“Then we improvise. My luck works better without detailed planning so I try not to overthink things in advance.” Now he was just looking at her like she’d lost her mind. This was going to be interesting.

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Ko-Fi

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[dreamescapeswriting]

Empty Shell ~ JJK [Request]

↬↬↬Word Count: 3.1k

↬↬↬Genre: Angst [No happy ending part 2 planned]

↬↬↬Pairing: Jeon jungkook x Fem!Reader

After finally getting some well earned time off from your schedule you were finally going to get to see your boyfriend of two years - Jeon Jungkook from BTS. You had been dating for two years next month and since you were going to be busy shooting a film he decided to fly you out and see him in Korea for a while as an early present to you and him. He promised it would be a way for you both to spend time together before he went on tour and you had more shootings to go and do,

"I don't want to get up," You giggled as you felt the hotel bed shift, he rolled over to face you and nodded in agreement. He'd been staying in your hotel room with you rather than you staying at the dorms, it was easier this way and the paparazzi had fewer chances to catch you together here. Not that no one knew you were dating, it was just easier to hide from them so they wouldn't catch anything happening between you. Public display of affection was a 'No, no' for BigHit and your agency.

"I don't want to either." He whispered looking into your eyes as he placed his hand lovingly on your cheek, running his thumb over your skin and smiling to himself thinking about how lucky he was to be able to spend this much time with you. He'd been hopelessly in love with you for years - even before you began dating. He'd seen your movies, all of your interviews and fell head over heels for who you were as a person, you'd mentioned BTS in one of your interviews and he flipped out. Begging Namjoon to somehow arrange a meeting with you, as if Namjoon had any control over how all of it worked but the universe somehow aligned for it to fall into place. 

You were attending the Grammy's to support a friend who was up for an award when you spotted them all, the BTS boys were sitting a table ahead of you talking amongst themselves while you panicked about what you were wearing since he was right there. They'd just won the final award of the evening and everyone was getting ready to leave, it was now or never for you to make a move,

"Will you relax? You look great," Your friend laughed, he knew what you were trying to do though - he wasn't an idiot, the moment he'd seen BTS in the lineup he knew he had to bring you along to the event with him. He had known about your huge crush on Jungkook from the moment you found their music when you were younger - how could he forget the countless nights of you giving him facts about the boys, forcing him to learn the dances and songs. It couldn't be helped that you were now a nervous wreck right in front of them despite being an award-winning actress - they were still BTS. The boys who had helped you through so many rough times in your life and inspired you to chase your dreams and become who you were. 

"I just want to-" You were going to say make a good impression but he'd began yelling a friend over,

"Hey!" You stared at him with wide eyes as he shouted at someone else gaining the attention of almost everyone close to you, eyes were turning around to see what the shouting was about, it was the end of the night so it wasn't like it mattered much anymore but it was still embarrassing. Jungkook was about to turn away when he saw that it was you sitting there, you were hiding your face in your hands as the guy you were with began interacting with someone else loudly. You looked breathtaking he'd forgotten for a second that they were even at an award show, you seemed to be the only person in the room to him as he watched the way you flicked your hair out of your face. The way the ballgown you were wearing fit to your body perfectly and suited your skin tone-

"Jungkook?" He snapped out of his daze to see Yoongi waving his hand in front of his face holding up the grammy award in front of him. You got up from the table trying to get out of the way for your friends' friend to sit down, you didn't want to get between what looked like was going to be a great conversation between old friends. Jungkook pushed his chair out from under the table going to go to the bathroom before they all headed back to the hotel only he was walking backwards and bumped into you, causing you to stumble. 

"Shit!" His arms wrapped around your waist as he dipped you back as if you'd just done a dip in a slow dance together, you stared up into his eyes your mouth agape as they seemed to sparkle like they did in the music videos. You were at a loss for words as he licked his lips and tried to think of something to say to you instead, but both of you were drawing blanks as you stared back at one another. 

"Everything okay?" The voice of your friend questioned bringing you both back to the harsh reality that you didn't know one another and were awkwardly holding each other as you did.

"Y-Yeah, fine." You were placed back down onto two feet and Jungkjook chuckled holding out his hand for you to take and shake while he attempted to introduce himself in a cooler way than he had done. 

Jungkook was over on the stage with backup dancers and the boys laughing about something he was showing to them on his phone. You'd finally made your way out of the hotel room for him to come and get some practice done before the concert that night. You stared at your phone as your agent called for the 15th time in a row about a new movie she'd been wanting you to do with her, offering you no audition, just take the job and go deal but you'd already talked it through with Jungkook. It was an explicit movie meaning there were going to be scenes where you and the other actor would be naked together, making out heavily and having intimate scenes - that wasn't going to be real but would look it - he told you he wouldn't feel comfortable with you doing the movie and you accepted it. 

"You look like you're lost in thought," Yoongi whispered coming over to you, you were leaning against one of the speakers while you stared at the phone. Your agent was now doubling her money offer and willing to give you whatever it would take for you to do the movie, they were either truly desperate for an actress or they wanted nobody but you to do the shoot - which was what they were telling you. That the movie was made for you and nobody else would fill the role better. 

"Just this movie offer, it would have really got me out there you know?" It was true, doing that movie would have opened up a world of different opportunities for you to take on but now it was gone because Jungkook didn't want you to do it. 

"Why don't you go for it?" The look on your face was enough to answer the question that Yoongi had for you, his eyes travelled over to Jungkook who was talking to Namjoon about something.

"He won't let you?" You shook your head, explaining that it wasn't that he wouldn't let you but that he told you he would rather you didn't have a movie with someone crawling all over you and kissing you when it was his job to do so. 

"Do you let him dictate everything?" You scoffed loudly at him and shook your head, 

"He's right though, isn't he? Would you let your partner?" Yoongi could see where you were coming from when you put it that way but the more he thought about it the more it began to make less sense to him, 

"This is your dream job correct?" You nodded at him turning your attention to him, Jungkook looked over at you both noticing how close you were sitting to one another and seemed so in-depth in your conversation you hadn't noticed him looking at you. 

"You allow him to do his dream job," He was right but his dream job didn't include him making out with other people all of the time, 

"You love him?" You nodded again and he jumped down from the speaker you were sitting on together, Jungkook watched you closely as you walked over to him. 

"Ready to get something to eat?" He looked at Yoongi who was walking in the opposite direction, 

"Wouldn't you rather eat with Yoongi?" You frowned, he sounded annoyed and was snapping at you rather than talking to you normally. You were taken back, Jungkook had never been like this before with you. 

"What? Why would I eat with Yoongi-"

"You seemed to be getting along well over there." You heard sniggering coming from some of the backup dancers Jungkook had been talking to, you knew none of the people standing with you because Namjoon had left to do some last-minute writing on a song he was working on. 

"Jungkook we were just talking about-"

"I honestly don't care what you were talking about, why don't you go and be clingy somewhere else." Your mouth fell open as he called you clingy, he knew that was one of your fears for someone to say that to you and yet he was there using it against you as if it meant nothing to him. Your heart was pounding against your chest as you watched a cocky smirk appear on his face, it was obvious he was doing this to show off in front of the backup dancers but you weren't going to just stand there and take it.

"I mean come on - I know we don't see each other much but we don't need to constantly be together, just this morning she was pleading me not to leave her alone in the hotel room, begging me to fuck her before I left for practice." They all began laughing loudly but you were standing there astonished that your boyfriend was talking about you like that right in front of you and not caring that you heard every word. 

"Are you fucking kidding me right now?" Your voice came out stern and he smirked as the boys around him ''Oh'd'' only shutting up once they saw the death glare you were sending their way, they all backed away and Jungkook stared at you. 

"What was that for-"

"No, Jungkook what the fuck was that? You think you can just tell everyone about our mornings together?" You were offended that he was able to just spill out so easily what you told him in confidence, your love life was your love life. Not for everyone else to know the ins and outs of. 

"It's no big deal-"

"Maybe not to you, but it is to me." You cut him off not wanting to hear some stupid piss poor excuse because he wanted to brag to his friends about the actress he was sleeping with. It wasn't nice to hear him talk about you like that, 

"You're always so damn annoying, god! Just let me have a moment to breathe." You looked at him trying to determine if he was serious about this or not, he didn't look like he was taking any of this seriously. He had a cocky grin plastered across his face as he laughed off everything you and he were saying to one another. 

"If you weren't such a good fuck I would have dumped you months ago." That was it. The final blow to your chest. Your eyes filled to the brim with tears but you weren't going to give him the satisfaction of seeing you cry. 

"Whatever." You mumbled pushing his shoulder as you moved to get past him, ignoring the dancers who were all pointing and laughing at you as you ran from the venue to get a taxi back to the hotel. Maybe he just needed time to cool off, he was probably just stressed from everything Bighit had him doing but it gave him no right to talk to you like that. Tears were rolling down your cheeks as you got into the back of a cab, telling him the address of the hotel you were staying at.

When you got inside your room there were flowers waiting on the table for you, a small card attached to them. You knew they were from Jungkook since he was the only one who knew which room you were staying in, you dropped your bag on the floor and walked over tot he vase taking out the small card to see what he had to say about himself.

The truth hurts sometimes, see you at the concert tonight x JK.

You stood there for a second holding the small pink card in your hand as you tried to come to grips with what he'd done, he hadn't even apologised for saying he would have broken up with you but still expected you to be there? You took out your phone and dialled your agent's number as you picked up the flowers and tossed them into the bin,

"Where shall I meet you and when does shooting start?" You questioned going over to the wardrobe to pack everything up, you began throwing your clothes into the suitcase while she spoke to you, 

"I'm so glad you came to your senses, we'll be flying to Venice to get the hotter shots done right away. Do you still have a script?"

"No, send me one and I'll read it over on the plane home. See you soon." You hung up the phone and slid it into your carry on bag, the thought of leaving a note for Jungkook tempted you but you didn't want to. You didn't want to give him the time of day right now. All you wanted to do was get out of Korea and then to Venice to shoot a movie you'd been dying to do but wouldn't because of him but fuck him. You were going to do whatever you wanted because you could, he shouldn't be allowed to stop you. 

"She's not been out there all night Taehyung," Jungkook snapped as he tried calling you for the 20th time that night, he'd expected to see you sitting front row which was where he'd given you tickets for but you were a no show. He'd been calling you all night worried out of his mind that something was wrong, 

"Maybe she left, you were a dick to her," Yoongi said as he looked up from his own phone. He knew exactly where you were, you'd called him and told him that thanks to his talk you were going to take the movie offer but made him swear to secrecy that he would never tell Jungkook where you were heading or that you had even left the country.

"What do you know about it?!" Jungkook snapped hanging up his phone before trying it again but it was going straight to your answering machine, he was sick of hearing the same robotic voice every time he dialled your number, so sick of it that he launched his phone at the wall watching it break in an instant. Yoongi shook his head at the immature maknae and got up to leave the changing room that they were all sitting in, he didn't want to be apart of what was sure to be a riveting display of anger.

"Sir! You can't go in there-" Jungkook burst down the door to your hotel room to find it empty, your clothes were gone, the closet doors were wide open and the flowers he'd had sent to you were sitting in the trashcan beside the door of the hotel room. 

"Miss Y/l/n checked out this afternoon, she seemed as though she was in quite the rush." The bell boy said in a panic, he could tell that Jungkook was angry and didn't want to upset him any more than he was, BTS were high paying customers and he knew if he lost them as loyal customers his boss would have him fired on the spot. 

"Call her from the hotel phone, I want to talk to her,"

"I don't think we're allowed-"

"I said call her." The bell boy shook with fright and began walking with Jungkook down to the reception desk to see if they could somehow get a hold of you but again, your phone was going straight to your voicemail without ringing which meant you were already on a flight out of Korea. 

"Hello?" Your voice came through the phone happily and Jungkook felt his heart beat faster as he realised that you were okay, that you hadn't died on the way out of Korea. 

"Where are you?" Your heart sank as you could hear Jungkook through the phone, you hadn't spoken to him in almost a week since leaving him in Korea and he sounded broken. He'd been crying even you could tell that from over the phone but you weren't about to feel bad for what you did, he was the one that hurt you first not the other way around. 

"Y/n? I know you're there, you answered the phone." You swallowed the lump in your throat as you felt it building up again, your angent was watching you from across the set as you began to tear up just from the sound of his voice. You missed him there was no lying about that but whenever you thought about it the memories of that day came crashing back to you. 

"I can't do this anymore Jungkook, you said it yourself, you should have broken up with me months ago so this is me...saving you the job." Your voice cracked and he began pleading with you not to hang up the phone and finish things this way. That it wasn't fair for you to do this to him but you hung up and burst into tears instantly. Throwing the phone down onto the sun lounger you'd been sitting in as your agent came over to comfort you about it. She knew everything that was happening with him, she wasn't an idiot it was her job to know everything going on inside of your life. 

Tagline: 

@writingdreamsnottragedies​ @jooniesdarlingdimples​ @snowy-meowl​ @lyoongx​ @lynnthevirgo​ @fan-ati--c​ @mitzwinchester​ @callingmyangel​ @rjsmochii​ @kneel-begyourpardon​ @taestannie​ @innersooya​

[orange-imagines]

Only One Bed

Danny X Reader (Romantic - Crushing)

Warning(s) - None, I’m pretty sure! Just me projecting, a trope that’s way too overused, and some cuddling 

A/N - Be honest,,,you guys saw this coming. I am in way too deep for a character who only had like five minutes of screen time and at this point it’s not even funny I want love and I’m going to make it everyone else’s problem 

“Well, I think we’re just about finished with the contract. What do you say we wrap this up tomorrow? You two can spend the night here in one of our rooms.”

Currently, you and Danny were wrapping up your end of the Mad Dogs’ most recent con. You’d just gotten your last signatures on the documents you needed, and after meeting up with the owners of the hotel you were trying to rob assets from the following day, you’d be home free.

But before that, apparently, you’d be spending the night.

You ended up looking to Danny for his decision on the matter, and he just shrugged.

“Sure thing. We’re doing business together, might as well stay at least one night.”

“Sounds great!” the co-owner -a salamander Yokai- said cheerfully, “I’ll get you the key for one of our five-star suits. It’s not every day we get guests like this- competing with Big Mama is a tricky business, you know.”

Danny gave a small laugh as the Yokai began digging in a drawer behind the front desk. After a moment, she pulled out a small, golden key with the room number “30” etched into it.

“Thanks,” Danny said, and you gave her a small nod as the two of you turned and headed for the elevator.

You both fell into a comfortable silence as you entered the elevator and Danny pressed the button to take you up. As the elevator lurched, you pulled your phone from your pocket to send a quick text to Leonard letting him know that you’d be spending the night at the hotel. By the time you got a reply, the elevator had arrived on the top floor.

The two of you stepped out, and you followed Danny down the hall as he searched for your room number, unlocking and swinging the door open once he found it.

It was a nice room, which is exactly what you’d been expecting from a hotel of this standard. There was a large window on the opposite end, a plush carpet beneath your feet, fancy wallpaper, and a large, blank hologram across from the bed that was meant to serve as a TV.

…Back up a minute.

Bed? Singular?

Yep. There was only one bed. King-sized, with a detailed wood frame and silk sheets. It was nice, but, as previously mentioned, the only one there.

“…Did you tell the owners we were a couple?” you asked.

Danny seemed equally confused by the singular bed, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly as he searched for an answer.

“Uh- nope,” he said, “just told ‘em we were business partners. Guess they took that and ran with it.”

You laughed it off, and so did he. This wasn’t the first time you two had been mistaken for a couple, nor would it be the first time you’d slept near each other, though you couldn’t say the two of you had ever shared a bed before.

“So…no pajamas,” you muttered, making your way across the room to set your phone down on the dresser, shrugging your jacket off to drape it over the top of a nearby chair.

“Eh, there might be some stuffed away somewhere,” Danny said, crossing the room to begin sorting through the dresser beside you, “five stars, after all.”

Miraculously, Danny was right. There were two sets of neatly folded satin pajamas tucked away in the top drawer of the dresser. Purple. Of course.

“So we’re heading to bed already?” you asked, “it’s, like, eight.”

“Yeah, and it’s been a rough day,” Danny said, tossing you one pair of pajamas, “we don’t all have a never-ending supply of energy.”

“I think you’re just used to sleeping early ‘cuz Mick causes a riot late at night. Every night. Somehow.”

“I think ya cracked the case, Toots. You ever thought about becoming a detective?”

Without waiting for a reply, he slipped into the bathroom and closed the door behind him.

You took a moment to quietly laugh the conversation away before ditching your clothes and changing into the provided pajamas. You were sure they were smoother than anything you’d ever felt, and you couldn’t help but run your hands over the sleeves while staring longingly at the silk bed. The sheets were probably just as soft, and you soon realized you couldn’t blame Danny for wanting to hit the hay early, because soon you were giving into temptation and climbing in underneath the covers.

Exhaustion overtook you as soon as your head hit the pillow. It was just as comfortable as you’d predicted, and your body seemed to sink into the mattress. Your eyelids grew heavy, and you let them close, fully content to nod off right then and there until you heard the bathroom door open.

“So I guess you call the bed, huh?”

Looking over your shoulder, you caught a glimpse of Danny in his pajamas, laying his suit out over the top of the dresser with a smile on his face.

“We can share,” you said, heart pounding in your chest as you laid your head back down.

What would he say to that? He was a pretty affectionate guy, but what if this was crossing some sort of line?

“You sure you wouldn’t rather me sleep on the floor?” Danny asked, and you could practically hear the smirk in his voice.

“I mean, if you’d rather, that’s fine. I just thought you’d appreciate-“

He cut your quip off by pulling the covers back, sending a chill up your arms as he cackled and climbed in beside you, the two of you ending up back-to-back when he pulled the covers back up to where they were before.

“Thanks for the consideration, Toots,” he said, pressing his back further against yours, making your breath hitch.

“No problem.”

You weren’t sure how long it took either of you to fall asleep. You were only aware of the warmth against your back and Danny’s soft snoring. For some reason, you couldn’t bring yourself to move or roll over, afraid that you would wake Danny and he would snap out of his tired daze and leave the bed altogether. You weren’t sure why you were getting so worked up over this: you’d slept in group cuddle piles before! This was nothing new.

But still…it was different. This time it was just the two of you. Just you alone in this king-sized bed.

You let out a quiet groan, burying your face in your pillow.

It was too late for this. You would deal with your feelings tomorrow.

—

The following morning you woke up to an arm around your shoulder and a face full of cologne.

You didn’t think anything of it at first. The smell was familiar to you, and not overwhelming, so you just nuzzled closer to the heat source that had its arms wrapped around your shoulders.

Then you remembered that you weren’t the only one in the bed, and your eyes shot open.

Somehow, in the middle of the night, you had managed to turn yourself around and ended up resting your forehead on Danny’s chest. And the worst part was that he was still asleep. Or was that good? You had no idea: you just knew there was no way you could let him realize what was going on.

But you couldn’t just push him away. He’d managed to wrap his arms around your shoulders in his sleep, fingers twitching against your back as his chest calmly rose and fell. His tail had also managed to wind itself around your right leg, so even if you wanted to move, you doubted you could.

He’d stopped snoring, you noted. Weird.

You let out a quiet sigh, awkwardly folding your hands against his chest as he rested his chin on your head. His grip on you tightened for a moment, then relaxed.

“…You awake?”

You felt your heart catch in your throat at his words. So he was awake.

“…Yeah,” you answered weakly, and felt Danny tense.

The two of you laid there in silence for a moment, the curtain-blocked windows providing just enough light to make out the outlines of the room’s interior.

“You mind if we, uh…stay here for a bit?”

You weren’t sure whether to feel relieved or embarrassed, but ultimately went for the former, winding your right arm around Danny’s torso as one of his hands trailed up to cup your face.

“Yeah,” you said, heart pounding so loud you were sure he was able to hear it, “I mean- no. No, I don’t mind.”

You heard Danny chuckle, and his grip on you tightened. It wasn’t too compressed, just secure. And very, very warm.

“We don’t have a deadline to meet the owners, do we?” you asked, not wanting to risk accidentally blowing the mission in favor of...whatever you were doing.

Danny just hummed in response, pulling you closer, “don’t care if we do. This beats just about every con we got.”

[perseusjackson-jasongrace]

Empires on the Horizon Epilogue

Jason is a CEO: Epilogue

When i started this fic (around 9 months ago-- holy hell we could have had a whole human in that time) i didn’t expect it to go in the directions it did or to produce the characters and story it did. While it’s not one of my more action-packed fics it is still very special to me because 1. it’s my first jason centered fic (of which we don’t have much of); 2. it’s my first really long multi-chap (the longest before this was 10 parts); 3. i got to explore so many of my crackships and dynamics of friendship i may not have been able to if we (for example) stuck to canon; 4. most importantly i love this fic because it started out (the very first chapter) as an original story that just was not going anywhere but when i decided to make it a fanfic, suddenly ideas were pouring from my fingers like wine from a split barrel. these characters feel as much mine as they are Rick’s (which is a dangerous path to go down and i’m not actually claiming they’re mine-- gods please don’t sue me). in short i love this fic dearly, i’m so proud of how far all these little babies have come (especially jason) and i hope you feel even a smidge the joy i feel over this, as you go on to read the very soft conclusion to Jason Grace as CEO.

masterlist; my links

[image has alt text]

There was something almost magical in the gleaming silhouette of the Manhattan skyline. There was something hopeful about it too. 

Jason Grace stepped out of his car, relishing in the sound of the gravel crunching under his feet and the babble of people all around him. His suit—  a deep blue, dark enough to look black, and glittering with tiny silver diamantes that looked like stars— clung to his shoulders and hugged his legs. The theme of the evening was “Starry Night”. He figured coming as the actual night was accurate enough. Drew and Silena had done a beautiful job on his outfit, to no-one’s surprise. He would see them here tonight, along with their husband, and the rest of his friends. And tomorrow, oh tomorrow, he would be off to Rome, with the man that filled his life with overwhelming light.

“Jase,”  Someone called out from the darkness, “Are you hiding from us because you put two different shoes on again and are too embarrassed to say?”

“Shut up Annabeth,” He laughed, “I’m coming.”

He walked towards the group of silhouettes, making out Leo and Annabeth, and Nico and Will, and coming from behind them were the dressmakers and their Charles. Hazel and Frank would be making an appearance later in the night.

“You all look beautiful.” He smiled, hugging them, kissing cheeks and foreheads, relishing in their closeness and their comfort, as he has always done. And they did in fact look beautiful. Annabeth in a dress of blue swirling around her and pooling at her feet— the colours matched the sapphire on her ring finger; Leo in a matching floor-length skirt and a sheer polo-neck that showed off every clean brown line of his skin; Nico and Will, in contrast, were complete opposites, the former in a black suit with silver jewellery, and the latter in an off white with gold accents; Silena, Drew and Charlie all had on suits with various parts of the galaxy embroidered in gold, threading a spectacular tapestry through the emerald green. All in all, his friends were really hot.

“Y’all ready?” Will drawled, tilting his head to the entrance of the hotel a little way away.

“Let’s go celebrate!” He winked in response.

And then they’re walking towards the bright lights, launching into conversations and updates and work and jokes. It was familiar in the way driving home after a long time away was, or catching a waft of the specific smell of your elementary school art room, or seeing someone from your childhood and slipping into a comfortable back-and-forth.

“Jase,” Charlie scooted next to him, breaking away from his conversation with Nico, “How’s the construction for the new section of the outdoor center going? I heard you hit a snag last week with the design?”

“Yea there was a few centimeters off with one of the structures and it caused the whole area to be off balance,” He scrunched his nose, remembering the horror from last week. “I’m just grateful we caught it in time.”

“I can’t believe it’s been a year since that center went up,” His friend marvelled, eyes wide with the disbelief of time. He knew the feeling well.

“It’s crazy. I came back from my holiday and then everything was just on fast forward.” He shook his head, a smile tugging at his lips. “I’m happy though, with the progress and how far we’ve come.”

“You’ve just burst and grown and brightened,” There’s that soft smile, the one that made all of Jason’s insides turn to mush. The one that told him he was loved in every capacity.

“I know.” He felt the blush creeping up his skin, pale after the long winter months. “I don’t owe it to myself though. All of you guys have—” 

“No way mister,” Annabeth chimed in, “You absolutely owe it to yourself. You got yourself there, we just cheered you on.”

“Yea,” Leo nudged his arm, a gentleness shimmering in his brown eyes. “You were the hero of your own story.”

He muttered thank you’s and tried to embrace the blush but their love and joy and pride still drowned him. Before anyone else could pile on the sincerity they were walking into the lobby and being ushered to the large, elegant ballroom three doors down.

There was a collective gasp from their group, audible even above the low hum of chatter, and the soft jazz drifting through the speakers. The entire room had been made to look like they were standing inside the middle of “Starry Night”. Like they were the townsfolk parked outside their houses witnessing the strange and magical sky above them. Swirls of blue in the draping curtains and circles of yellow in the chandeliers and wisps of the cypress trees growing from the walls as if the very room had been built around a tree.

“This is—” He didn’t even have the words to fully express his awe. If he were an art major he would have died from the beauty of it all. As it stood he could barely keep himself up.

“I know,” A voice said quietly from behind him. “It’s almost divine.”

He didn’t say anything, didn’t even turn around to see who it was. He simply stepped back and let arms envelope him. He didn’t need to check, because he knew, he would always know. In the heat of their skin, and the hum of their voice, and the love that radiated between them like scorching summer sun.

“Moró mou,” He sighed, tipping his head back to rest against a shoulder. From this angle he could see blazing green eyes and jet-black curls, and impossibly high cheekbones, and a jaw sculpted by Michaelangelo.

“Hello my love,” Percy Jackson smiled. “How are you?”

“Happy.” He muttered, lips brushing against his boyfriend’s cheek.

“Good,” The man nodded, squeezing his waist where his arms still wrapped around. “Are you going to be okay tonight?”

“I will not just survive through it,” His eyes crinkled at the corner as pure joy washed through him, “I will live through it, and I will enjoy every minute of it.” He knew the reason for the question, for the concern. But tonight it was not needed. He was nothing but excited and elated for the hours, and then days, weeks, years to come.

“I love you.”

“I love you.”

A glass tinkled somewhere to their right, grabbing their attention. And then Zoe and Reyna were stepping together and drawing people towards them as if they were gravity, magnets, the center. They looked it certainly: Zoe in a stark white dress, hugging her figure, shimmering like stardust every time she moved; and Reyna in a watery blue, gauzy and flowing in time with her body, where she goes it will ripple behind her.

“Thank you,” His lawyer started, giving them a dazzling smile. “For being here. All of you.” She looked them each in the eye, her own filled with love and… were those tears? From his no nonsense, boss lady lawyer? Oh he was so going to give her a hug and then tease her endlessly about it. 

“We have a thousand people to thank for all of this,” She gestured to the room, “And a thousand more to thank just for being here, but that will come in the form of surprise take-me-homes at the end of the night.”

“However,” Zoe’s voice, still as strong and quiet as ever, rang out across the room. “There are two people we would like to thank right here, right now.” Her smile lit up the world as her eyes landed on them. “In typical us fashion, it’s a little out of the ordinary but please can both our ex-boyfriend’s come up here.” 

The crowd burst into laughter, him and Percy with them, as they detangled themselves from each other and walked hand in hand to the front of the room.

“As you can see,” Reyna grinned. Jason held in the groan he knew would accompany her next words. “We did a Partner Swap.”

The laughter only loudened, people whistling, and clapping in time with their amusement.

“I will spare you the sordid details,” Zoe’s own giggling softened to a smile, “But two years ago, after Jason and I had broken up, I called him in a panic asking for help. And despite being on a much needed holiday where he happened to meet a certain someone,” She winked at them, eyebrows waggling comically, “He listened to me, then made use of his contacts and connected me with Reyna.”

“And after I charmed the suit off of her, and won her lawsuit,” Reyna stepped in, grinning wildly, “She agreed to pop open a bottle of champagne and celebrate our win.”

“I’m not quite sure about the charming part, angel.” Zoe quirked an eyebrow, “But yes one champagne bottle and the rest was history.”

“In conclusion to this whole ordeal,” His lawyer turned to them, “Jase, Percy, we have a present for you, to thank you for loving us, and for loving us enough to let us go, and furthermore for bringing us together.”

Zoe handed them an envelope but before they bothered to open it they pulled the women in for a hug, thanking and congratulating them. He would not change what they had for the world. He will be grateful forever. He will love them even longer.

Percy ripped open the envelope and pulled out a single sheet of paper. He leaned over his boyfriend’s shoulder and read with him.

The universe has a funny way of pulling stars together but we know with certainty that the four of us are born from the same constellation. Thank you for everything. We know we can never really repay you but please accept this as a start. 

Tucked into the last fold of the paper were two plane tickets to Japan. The holiday they had discussed once, a Saturday game night that ended with the four of them huddled around the fire in Zoe’s apartment, chattering softly about this and that. Printed in small font at the bottom of the page was a cherry blossom branch and more text that read,

Get married losers, we want joint holidays so we can get the couples packages.

He bubbled with laughter at that, and looked up at his friends, tears pooling in his own eyes.

“Alright everyone!” Reyna clapped her hands, gathering the attention of the humming crowd. “Let’s get this engagement party started.”

And then music filled the room and people dragged each other to the middle of the space and there were cheers as the song came into focus and truly Jason understood the meaning of life that night.

After they had thanked Reyna and Zoe again, and chatted with their other friends Percy pulled him to the dance floor.

“Jase,” His boyfriend cupped the back of his neck, arranging their bodies into a work of art. “We have wonderful friends.”

“The very best,” He agreed, swaying their hips in time with the beat. “We have built an empire with them by our side.”

“Will you be the emperor then?”

“There is no monarchy in this kingdom,” He smiled, blue eyes glittering and bright. “It is just us, and our love, and everything beautiful the world has ever had to offer.” He saw oceans reflecting back at him, wonder soaking in his words, happiness pressing against his lips.

His boyfriend pressed their foreheads together, bodies still moving to music far away. “And if we look further?” Percy breathed, “Past the empire, to the horizon beyond?”

“It is all home,” Jason Grace smiled. “We are home, my love.”

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

Okay there are so many people to thank and you best believe i’m going to thank them all because this fic would literally not exist without them.

@nishlicious-01​​ my favourite person, my biggest supporter and the only person who gets to shout at me when im writing fanfic at 1am because i’m not sleeping but also because ‘why am i not reading it ciara????’

@queen-of-demons-and-hell​​ for every comment, every like, every complaint you took when the writing demon was on strike. you have my heart. id be lost and a little lonely without you.

@leyontheway​​ your comments on this fic were golden and i often came back to them just for that extra burst of motivation and serotonin. i found a friend in you and now i can’t imagine my life without you.

@msdrpreist​​ Sky, mi cielo, you are one in a billion and i cannot believe i found you (and you me) across all this space and time. thank you for your unwavering support and your wonderful thoughts.

@larrikin-is-a-himbo​​ when we started this fic i believe you were @/queenbrunnhilde (or something to that effect) but although your username has changed your loveliness and endless support hasn’t. Thank you for sticking along for the ride

@spoopylucy​​​ Lucy... what do i even say to the person who singlehandedly changed my day, week, mood every time i saw a reblog from them? your tags were the start and the end. they made every upload an exciting task. and i knew no matter what happened in the fic or how long it took as soon as i got a notif from you i couldn’t be anything but happy. thank you my Luce, you’re an angel!

@not-hiesenberg​ for being my ‘ciara what the fuck even does this say? do you know how to spell?’ checker when i was too tired (more like too lazy) to do it myself.

@lesbian-peanuts​​ thank you for the love! you were one of the first people interested in this little universe and i can never thank you enough for that​

@legendary-cupcake​​ your spam when reading this was such a happy moment in my life and im ecstatic that you stayed for the ride! thank you​

to all the people on my tag list, who have liked this fic, and especially those who have commented: i see you, i love you, and i thank you with a heart full of happiness. you changed my world.

[cauldronoflove]

“Do you want to talk about it?” + msr 🥺

A lilac duvet and navy blue pillowcases, a plot of bronze lamplight. Scully laid her jacket out over them both, itself petal-crushed violet. Her shoes crawled under the bed one by one, and her phone clattered on the nightstand--in the dark room of her mind prints hung out to dry of squat hotel room nightstands of yore, black-and-red light on cedar and ash; spruce and pine and fir.

Tucking one leg underneath herself, she eased onto the edge of the bed. The springs coughed up phlegm and final breaths, pinched her shins in crustaceous retaliation suited for the sand still collected in the soles of her shoes. She batted at the quilt uselessly with the tips of her fingers as if to press the springs back in line, and succeeded only in advancing the timeline on her next tetanus shot. Her arms already pricked with phantom needles.

From the nightstand--catalogued as B-1D-4, for the material and the drawers and the commonality--she retrieved her phone to tuck to her ear.

"Two FBI agents walk into a restaurant," she started as soon as the line clicked.

"Oh, I've heard this one."

"Really? I was thinking about going into prognostication, but in that case you beat me to it."

"Give yourself some credit; in mine it was one agent and he was already standing outside his partner's room with dinner."

She smiled with half her face, the corner of her mouth raising overhead hands in righteous awe. There truly were no bounds to Mulder's whims, nor to the pleasant surprise that she still felt, even now at six months in the field with him under her belt.

She looked to the door, thinking of each grain that separated her from him, cutting his outline in life-size. She'd have left him out there if she wasn't so damn hungry.

"One FBI agent opens the door for another," she amended, pacing across the room on legs pulled taught from her earlier sprint. Her stockings slid unfortunately over the coarse carpet, making her toes curl.

On the other side, his hair was still wet from the shower, a water drop sliding down past his ear and steadily marking for the worn collar of his t-shirt of which he had a jacket tossed off-set over. He raised a greasy bag of something god-sent with a sheepish smile. Oil and fat and salt pollinated the air, leaving her off-kilter at how deep her hunger ran.

"Can I come in?"

"Depends."

He showed his other hand, carefully cradling two drinks--white plastic with a purple cuff that made the carbonation burn all the way up into your nose. One stretched his palm to full width and the other chapped the soft skin on the inside of his elbow, each showing dark cola through the foggy lid.

Her mouth curled up silently at the other end, an apple peeled in one long strip and scattered for divining on the floor. She pushed out of the way to let him through.

Before she could get too far away he put a burger wrapped in slippery-thin paper blotted in grease marks between her hands. It was lopsided, leaking processed cheese slice and juices from browned onion, but it was a welcome sight. She could barely get it undone through her shaking hands. Hunger overtakes--and it takes and it takes and it takes.

He kept to his side of the room, propping up in the squat chair shoved under the window like a fire hazard. He had his burger, had the bag rolled up at his feet and the drinks on the table between the chair and the door. First was the main course, then the entree. She scarfed down half of hers before he ever even got his up to his chin for inspection.

They worked through their burgers in meantime, chewing quietly to accommodate the volume and length of thought balling up their brows. When it was done, she crumpled the already wrinkled wrapper and tossed it underhanded to him, where it bounced harmlessly off his stomach and rolled right off his lap and between his splayed legs. He batted it between his boots, a fast-food, fast-tracked game of Pong that petered out once he had a wrapper to add to the mix.

Scully eyed the rest of the food with intent, waiting, childishly, for Mulder to realize what she was doing and remedy it. Instead, he pulled the bag up and sat it on his thigh where it tilted toward the door like a man on the run.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" he asked quietly, teeth and lips and stubble on his chin all separate parts she couldn't piece together. Her eyes ached, trying to make Monet into Renoir.

Her eyes ached, because she had a concussion. His face, every long line and press of skin, snapped into focus, and she took a seat on the edge of the bed to rid herself of his earnestness.

"No, I want my fries."

He was good at bartering with her already, understood that she didn't take well to flat out denial, but if he tried he could get her to give a little slack on the line. His offer then, paddle to the air and blazing black number, was to carefully roll the sides of the bag down so as not to rip and drop it between them when he sat on the bed too.

Out of the corner of her eye she could see golden-crisp fries obscured only by fat ketchup packets ready to be torn between her teeth. She could see, too, him making himself comfortable, shoving a drink toward her so her could clasp his hands over his middle.

The ice was melted a little, just the way she liked it. She framed her teeth around it and sipped through the impossibly thin straw, each bit of syrup and chipped ice rejuvenating down to her blood.

He never repeated the question, and she didn't offer an answer. Jaw set, eyes tracing the push and pull in the carpet, she reached for a handful of fries. She ate them all, one by one; every fleck of salt and sash of tomato, down past the core and then deeper. Until the pounding eased in her head and her stomach felt like it was on this side of alive.

"Better?" he asked, his tight smile smug and his eyes searching her profile for confirmation.

She thought about leaning back across the end of the bed and focusing on the ceiling, turning the white ridges in stars and the lumpy mattress into a ship's deck. The nausea would be the waves lapping against starboard and she would be somewhere else instead of in her burning coat of shame. But that, something in her grated, would be inappropriate with him still propped against the headboard, looking at her from underneath hair flat on his forehead and eyelashes still damp from rain.

"Thank you for dinner," she said instead, which answered his question quite nicely.

"Okay, one last party trick, but then I'm out." From the inside pocket of his jacket he pulled an oblong cardboard box that was cinnamon and consolation made. He tossed it over and even through the packaging it burned her fingers, but it was perfectly intact. On the side was scribbled peach in hard black letters.

She shot him a look, quickly head on, before prying it open, already scrabbling at the flaky crust and rushing steam with a smile. It was only in the second before she bit down that she thought to offer him some, but he shook her off.

"I'm more of an apple pie man myself."

[slightly-nerdy-rambles]

Robstar Week Day 2: Morning Sun (Prompt: Warmth)

I decided to take the prompt “warmth” and write something involving “cuddly body heat” (as the planning notes say), and the end result... maybe kind of got away from the actual warmth element, at least as far as the focus. But that’s okay, because I’m immensely pleased with how it turned out, to the point where I can confidently say that this is the story I’m most proud of for this week. Really I probably could have gotten away with just doing the second scene (and it would have fit the prompt more closely anyway, lol), but why do that when you can be EXTRA

Morning Sun

Robin groaned softly as he came to, his head mired in that fuzzy sort of awareness that comes with just waking up. Something felt off, but not in a painful or truly disorienting way – he hadn’t been knocked unconscious, at least. But the odd, half-upright position he found himself in proved that he hadn’t gone to bed properly either.

Blinking open bleary eyes, he pushed himself further up and took stock of his surroundings. That was right – the team had piled into their ops-slash-common room after a late battle and put on a movie to wind down. He must have fallen asleep on the couch, where he found himself now.

As awareness returned to him, he noticed that his side was pleasantly warm. He looked over to see Starfire propped up against him, still fast asleep.

…Huh. It was far from the first time he had fallen asleep with another Titan like this – hell, he was pretty sure every member of the team had done so with every other at least once. That was just what happened when your teammates were also your roommates and nights got unpredictable. But now that he thought about it, he was pretty sure this was the first time he’d actually fallen asleep right next to Starfire. A gentle heat seemed to radiate off her, and Robin frowned. She didn’t look like she had a fever, but he still peeled himself off of her and gently shook her shoulder.

“Hey,” he whispered. “Hey, Star, you okay?”

Starfire’s eyes fluttered open as she began to stir. She gave him a confused look.

“Robin? Did I fall asleep on the couch?” She sat up and looked around, and Robin chuckled.

“You and me both,” he admitted. With a frown he added, “You’re not sick, are you? You feel like you’re burning up.”

Starfire shook her head, the confusion in her face only growing as she stood up and stretched. “I do not feel feverish at all.”

“Huh.” That was just her normal temperature, then. He supposed that Tamaraneans must have a higher than average body heat, or maybe it just seemed that way since he’d apparently spent all night right up against her. He wondered if that was why she gave such nice hugs.

It was that thought that drove in exactly what was going on right now. Not only had he fallen asleep all snuggled up with Starfire, of all people, but they were the only ones here, the other Titans nowhere in sight. He scrambled to his feet, and even though there was no one else to see them he could feel himself blushing furiously.

Starfire just gave him a baffled look, one which was swiftly becoming her expression of choice this morning. “Is something wrong, Robin?”

Robin was too flustered now to answer her, so he just muttered something half-intelligible about paperwork and beat a hasty retreat for his office.

********

It was far from the first time Robin had found himself waking up in unfamiliar circumstances. With the way things had been going, it would be a while before he woke up somewhere that actually felt right.

The Titans had been chasing the Brotherhood of Evil with their stupid worldwide bases and their dumb plots that turned out to be just a small part of some bigger puzzle for about a month now. And honestly? The fact that his mind had resorted to describing the mission this way paid testament to how much he just wanted to go home. If the Brotherhood hadn’t started targeting Honorary Titans specifically, and if what few hints his team managed to uncover hadn’t pointed to some scheme involving the young heroes of the world, he would have been happy to leave these psychos to the Doom Patrol and call it a day. They did have more experience dealing with the Brotherhood, after all.

But the fact of the matter was that the Titans and other young heroes were the targets, and that meant it was their responsibility to defend themselves and their comrades. Even if it meant spending months away from home, chasing any lead they could find. Even if it meant finding themselves in the middle of nowhere in some stretch of northern Russia, where there were no nearby motels to speak of and they had to make do with a parked T-ship and a makeshift snowfort for the second time that week.

Even if it meant everyone huddling up together for warmth.

At least Starfire was there with them this time.

Robin opened bleary eyes to the dim light of the portable lantern set up for this occasion and the gentle glow that always emanated from Cyborg’s circuitry. He checked his communicator for the time, and found it was right around ten minutes before the alarm he’d set for everyone would go off.

Not bad. Normally he would just get up and take the brief head-start to get himself ready for the day, but the makeshift quarters were kind of cramped and he didn’t want to wake anyone else up before he had to. Besides, he didn’t think he’d been this comfortably warm in days.

So instead, he sighed contentedly and leaned closer against his… uh… body heat partner, or whatever he should call it. He was about to rest his eyes for a few more minutes when he suddenly realized he wasn’t the only one awake.

Across the way, from where he and Raven both lay back against a massive green polar bear, Cyborg watched him with the smallest teasing quirk to his lip. In spite of himself, Robin could already feel the heat rising to his face.

“Shut up,” he muttered, pulling the blanket wrapped around him and Starfire up further.

Cyborg’s smirk only grew. “I didn’t say anything,” he pointed out in a voice too soft to wake anyone else. “But if I did, it would just be to point out that you two look very comfortable.”

Robin huffed. “And you three don’t? We all need to share body heat to keep the cold from getting in, if you remember.”

“But there’s plenty of room here on the big green couch, and last I checked, Star does just fine in space-level cold if she’s not overworking herself. Admit it already; you just like the company.”

Robin’s blush deepened. He’d been getting more of these little jabs from Cyborg and the others lately, and he knew it was kind of his fault for letting himself be more affectionate with Starfire without making anything official. But what was he supposed to say? That he hadn’t quite been ready to do this relationship thing when the subject had first come up, and now he was on a long mission that didn’t really seem like the appropriate time to ask out your teammate? That he was maybe sort of stalling on that, and possibly hoping that Starfire would make the first move? That he just really wanted to be near her after the blizzard incident, to know that she was safe, and it didn’t hurt that snuggl- huddling against her just felt warm and comfortable and right?

No, trying to explain any of that would only make the teasing worse. So instead, he huddled back further and summed up all his annoyance and confusion and dumb teenage hormones in the most eloquent way he could.

“I said shut up.”

********

When you took up the hero’s mantle, it wasn’t hard for normal sleep schedules to go out the window. Sure, some villains – the egomaniacs, the sowers of chaos, and those who were just way too confident about attracting the attention of the local superhero team – chose to partake in their villainy at reasonable hours of the day or perhaps early enough in the night. But many others, thieves and black-market dealers mostly, preferred to try their luck at slipping past the city’s awareness when everyone reasonable was trying to sleep. When those late-night crimes spiked, or when it took several nights to crack a case or track down a busy criminal, Robin would often find himself dead on his feet for most of the morning and collapsing into bed at some random hour to take a very long nap.

Because of this, it did not surprise him in the slightest to find himself waking up just as the sun had started drifting down toward the horizon. What did surprise him was the manner in which he found himself: on a hotel room bed, with the DVD menu for some long-finished movie running on the television and Starfire awake but clearly relaxed and curled up beside him in a very definitely non-platonic manner.

In the brief, maddening moment before he remembered where he was and what he’d been doing, Robin flew into a panic and made a flailing attempt to get off the bed. Starfire’s eyes widened and she leaned away from him, allowing him to sit up.

“Is something wrong?” she asked.

Robin blinked and took a few deep breaths. Right. They were in Tokyo, and this was part of the team’s hotel suite. He and Star had been watching a movie – actually watching it, nothing untoward – and they must have fallen asleep at some point.

And the reason it was just the two of them, not simply sitting together but cuddling on top of the bed, was because they were dating now. Really, truly dating. He was still trying to wrap his head around that.

All at once he realized that Starfire was still waiting for an answer, so he let out an embarrassed chuckle and said, “Sorry, kind of forgot where I was for a second there.”

The concern in her features dissolved, and just because he could, he leaned over and gave her a small peck on the lower jaw. Yeah, he could get used to this.

Starfire blushed and giggled at the attention, and then swung an arm back around him. “Should we go see what the others are doing?”

Robin leaned into her side and let his head nestle under her chin, basking in her warm presence. “Mmm, I think we can wait a few more minutes.”

********

Nightwing had long since stopped feeling embarrassed when he and his girlfriend fell asleep on the couch.

Now, there were a few unspoken rules surrounding the situation. It was always the couch, or something similar – if they spent the night together in one of their rooms, it’d be too tempting to try something that they personally preferred to wait until marriage for, and even if that didn’t happen, it would still be enough for Cyborg and Beast Boy to start on the teasing and the rumors. In return, it had become common practice for the other Titans to leave Nightwing and Starfire be if they wanted to stay late in ops to talk, or if everyone fell asleep to a movie marathon and one of the others happened to wake up and make his or her way to bed. It still didn’t happen especially often, but it wasn’t exactly something they tried to avoid.

Nightwing had been up late last night, finishing up the paperwork for a case down in ops where Starfire could keep him company, and when he’d finally wrapped up they had both been too tired to bother heading upstairs into their respective bedrooms. Now a soft morning light filtered in through the bayside windows, and he found Starfire still fast asleep with her head on his chest and Silkie curled up near them at the foot of the couch.

Nightwing smiled softly to himself as he ran gentle fingers though his partner’s hair, careful not to wake her. They hadn’t even bothered to fetch blankets, as she rarely felt the need for one and he considered her body heat as she cuddled up against him to be enough. It was a quiet morning, and on these kinds of mornings his mind tended to wander.

They were like a little family, he thought. More so than the Titans as a whole. He loved his other teammates like siblings, of course, but there was something a little more… intimate about just being here with his beloved and their pet. If he closed his eyes, he could almost picture them in a bedroom – their bedroom, not just his or hers – with the snuffling larva curled up in the pet bed that in reality occupied Star’s room, or perhaps swapped out for a young child who had insisted in sleeping with Mom and Dad after a nightmare. It was a nice thought, a peaceful one.

Not for the first time, he wondered what he was waiting for. They were adults now, perhaps a little on the young side for marriage, but he knew that was a weak argument. Even setting aside the fact that Starfire’s home culture had considered her ready to marry ever since her transformation, the circumstances of the team meant they had effectively been “grown up” for years now. He and she had been in love even before they’d begun dating, and he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that their love was not going to waver now.

He wanted this – to give himself over to her completely, to be her partner in the deepest sense of the word, to start a family together one day and to live out his life by her side. He wanted to wake up with her every morning, his own personal ray of sunshine, and to be her moonlight when she went to bed at night.

It was just a matter of figuring out the right time, he supposed, but as his thoughts drifted to the drawer in his room where he kept his mother’s engagement ring, he thought that time might be coming soon.

********

He dimly realized he was awake, but he wasn’t in a rush to get up. Without even opening his eyes, he nestled his forehead deeper into the crook of her neck and draped an arm loosely over her bare side.

Soft laughter reached his ears, followed shortly by his wife’s teasing voice. “Are you comfortable?”

Even though they couldn’t see each other’s faces in this position, Nightwing smiled lazily and cracked open one eye. “Why wouldn’t I be, Kor? I’ve got you here.”

Starfire laughed again at the use of the pet name he’d given her, and then sighed contentedly. Her breath ruffled his hair, and she tousled it lightly with one hand.

“I could get used to this,” she said. “You are so very playful in the mornings, and your presence is… pleasantly warm.”

Nightwing couldn’t help but snort in amusement at that, and he shuffled himself back to get a proper look at her. Starfire was radiant in the morning light, and beyond her he could see the room they now shared. It had been their first night back from their honeymoon, but already the room just felt… right.

“You’re warmed by me being here? I’m pretty sure Tamaraneans run hotter than humans, Star.”

Starfire’s eyes glittered with mirth, and she shook her head slowly in mock disappointment. “It is not a competition,” she said, and before he could retort she leaned forward and planted him with a deep, long kiss.

Not that he really had much else to say. Only that he thought he could get used to this too.

[silverwhiteraven]

Borne of the Stars - Chapter 11 - An MLB Kryptonian AU

Tag List:  @eve-valution @weird-pale-blonde-person @kris-pines04 @soulmate-game @abrx2002 @amayakans @vixen-uchiha @heldtogetherbysafetypins @raisuke06 @dorkus-minimus @mopester-is-here @moonlightstar64 @annabellabrookes @toodaloo-kangaroo @the-navistar-carol @elspethshadow @chocolatecatstheron​ @ivymala07

Not Working Tags:  @captainartsypants, @daminett4life (older tags suggest a change to @maribat-is-lifeblood, do correct me if I’m wrong, though!!)

[ Summary: We check in on Kara and the free-range amateur journalist she followed. ]

[ A/N: Hi, I’m back with another chapter!! Also doing Krypto-Mari AUs, check that out!! ]

[ Posted on Ao3 ] [ Chapter 1 ] [ Chapter 10 ] [ Chapter 12 ]

Kara took off after Alya in the best controlled sprint she could muster. Pulling attention to herself with inhuman speeds would likely prove to be one of her worst decisions yet, for various reasons, if it happened, especially considering she wasn’t dressed as Supergirl.

Not that she even had it in the first place. No, Kal-El just had to confiscate her suit, to prevent temptation, he had claimed, and hidden it somewhere in the Fortress of Solitude where she couldn’t find it. So she kept it slow, yet quick enough to catch up to the amateur reporter by the end of the first block.

She also made sure to send a text to the group chat she had with Karen and Barbara as she ran. ‘With Alya, a classmate, she’s pulling a Lois Lane. Just keeping her out of trouble, so don’t yell at me if you were thinking about it! Check on Adrien Agreste, Lila Rossi, Geode and DJ, before you try any investigation of what’s goin on. Told them you would make sure they're somewhere safe. Also heard DJ and Geode were headin to check on their families when I followed our new stray reporter. That's it, I’ll tell you if I figure anything out while I’m with Als, see ya guys from the ground if you show up’

“Ya know, Als,” she says in an exasperated drawl as she pulls up alongside Alya, phone now put away, “you really shouldn't be running head first into things like this. Maybe consider not making this a habit, yeah?”

Alya scoffs, the verbal reprimand not doing anything against the excitement on her face, or budging the currently recording phone into being put away. “You're here too, aren't you?”

Kara blinks at that, then grins herself. “True, but I’m not a reporter, and yet here I am, already knowing this vital information.”

“Too late now,” Alya clips back, but her tone is still full of glee and adrenaline that Kara suspects won't go away until the situation is either over, or something bad happens. She hopes for Alya’s sake nothing bad will happen; it would suck if her spark was put out too soon.

“Have any other tips for me, Metropolis Girl?” Alya continues, her phone’s camera now pointed at Kara. The other rolls her eyes, but decides she might as well entertain the request.

“Sure,” she replies, pointedly glancing forward with a tip of her head before stepping closer to scoop the other up. Alya secure in her arms, she jumps the glowing half-metre rise in the ground that Alya had been about to run into. “Keep your eyes where you're going. And two,” she adds, setting the still-learning journalist down, “always have back-up, a partner; someone to keep you from doing exactly what I just kept you from doing.”

“Woah,” Alya breathes out, a bit breathless from a mix of having just been carried and having also just learned a lesson. She really didn't want to end up face-planting anything any time soon. “I guess I have a lot to learn. You get that from your cousin?”

“Uh, yeah, you could say that,” Kara shrugs, looking back the way they came, awkwardly rubbing at her arm. Her hand drops and she looks back to Alya, a brow now raised. “So, I'm guessing I won't convince you to turn back, will I?”

“Nope!” Alya practically cheers her denial of the request. The costumeless hero holds back a sigh as she tacks on, “Say, since you seem to be here to keep an eye on me, care to help me in learning lesson number two and being by partner-in-crime?”

“Crime? No, but a temporary partner in making sure you don't get knocked on your tush while you wave your phone around and aimlessly hope you catch sight of what’s causing all of this? Sure, why not; we’re already this far, no point in turning back. We’ll be safer keeping an eye out for places to hide than fully turning back, anyways. Let's go,” Kara finishes, grabbing hold of Alya’s wrist and getting them both started on running again. 

They continued to run together down the streets. Kara kept her gaze between looking ahead, to the path of their feet, and then above them for what she felt would be an inevitable collapsing building or two. Alya proved herself steady on her feat through the quakes, and a fast learner as she guided them both around more rises in the ground after hopping their third one. 

“This seems weird,” the blogger notes, brows furrowed together. “There’s no center to this, nothing to indicate where it all started. Look, News says it’s city-wide, too,” she tilted her screen towards Kara, who glanced over enough to notice the camera feature was still recording, but she was split-screening it to look at a live-feed from a News’ helicopter.

Kara pulled Alya under the awning of a building as they continued to watch the feed. There was no audio for the recording besides the reporter's voice-over, which was muted, replaced by subtitles. As she concentrated between the screen and their surroundings, Kara listened, and listened hard.

Sounds from all over the city came to her, and she focused on bits and pieces, one at a time while everything else became white noise. Most of it was generally the same: road-rage from the new physical barriers getting in the way; people calling out to their loved ones to get somewhere safe; frantic questions of what was happening. A particularly loud person kept repeating, “Where are they, where is it,” over and over, and it seemed particularly pronounced compared to everything else, almost making it hard to tune out. 

A certain voice caught her ear; gentle, full of comprehension. 

“A map…”

Marinette, Kara recognized. She wondered why Marinette had said that, why her voice had been clear, as though she had been outside. Isn’t she with her family? Then she remembered the balcony, and it hit Kara that she must have been up there, looking over what she can see of the city from there. The images from the helicopter feed only solidified her thought.

The Kryptonian snapped her fingers, dropping her concentration and letting her hearing return to normal. “We need to get up higher, any ideas?” She asked as she grabbed Alya’s attention with her sudden new spur for the task at hand.

“There’s the Eiffel Tower, might take a bit to get to, though,” the amateur reporter mused.

“No,” the suitless hero automatically shot the suggestion down. “Takes too long to climb and a huge safety hazard to be around, not to mention be on. Villains always target tall and important locations, so keep away and at a safe distance at all costs, got that? Good, and don't forget it; consider it a tip from my cousin if it helps it stick,” Kara stresses the point as the other nodded her confirmation, then looked around for any other options.

“What about-” the suggestion is interrupted by the honk of a horn, and both girls share twin frowns as they both recognize in displeasure the form of their interruption.

A sleek, short, black limo pulls up beside the pair, bearing the crest of the mayor’s office. The window rolls down to reveal Chloé Bourgeois, and the two girls outside it only continue to frown, to which the girl inside returns with an even greater scowl and tut.

“Get in, Danvers,” the aloof blonde tries to command, “I don’t want any negative PR for me, the hotel, or daddy from you getting caught causing trouble during some incident if I can help it.”

Kara scowls back, about to retort a no with heavy sarcasm, when an alternative idea presents itself, and her expression morphs into a big smile with. “Sure thing, Clo, the hotel is exactly where we need to be anyways! Come on, Als, let’s go for a ride!”

“What?” Echoes one cry in surprise, the other in outrage.

“No way am I letting Césaire into my car!”

“Seconded, no way am I getting in a car with Chloé.”

“Why not?” Kara asks innocently, popping open the side door, Chloé jumping back from it like it had bitten her. “The choice is either lose me as your back-up, Miss Journalist, and have to stay out of the field, or, come with me, suffer a little bit of stuck-up,” she ignored the offended protesting cry of “Hey!”, “and in reward, get a safe and high enough vantage point on everything going on around us. 

“And you,” she turns to Chloé, sliding into the black leather seat, further prompting the other girl to back up against the opposite door, “Either put up with one extra passenger for a few minutes and be graced with us staying out of your manicured hair for the rest of the day, or, find an article tomorrow that calls you and your precious daddykins out on being terrible hosts that are horrible at keeping even your private guests safe from the ‘terrors‘ that currently plagues the city your dad is currently the Mayor of. What do ya think of that, princesse?”

Kara’s smile was strong as ever, only sickly-sweet as it was aimed at the minor heiress. Chloé looked caught between looking worried for having just been threatened with a PR problem, and looking offended for having been threatened at all. It quickly turned to only being offended, the fear of threat brushed aside as she crossed her arms with a loud huff, and bodily tuned away.

“Fine, she can come! As long as you both stay away like you promised, and she doesn't touch anything that is clearly more expensive than her mother’s monthly salary!”

“Cool! Come on, Als, let’s go!” Kara noticed, as she made room for Alya on the seat and she climbed in, that the journalist looked stunned at having heard someone resist Chloé’s demands. 

“Girl,” the blogger hissed out in an awed whisper as she shut the door and the car drove off. “That was such a smooth comeback! You either have experience or you're just as done with ‘Chloé being Chloé’ as much I had been when I first met her, if not more.”

“Little of both,” Kara shrugged, smiling both smugly and sheepishly. “It’s a trick you learn as a reporter I guess, and from being around stuck-up people. Learn what they want so you can use it to your advantage. But also be willing to do things the hard way, because they won’t give you even an inch if they're not convinced you really will let yourself lose a lead purely to spite them and make them lose something of value, too.”

“With everything you know and who your cousin is, you plan to be a reporter, too?”

Kara only considered it for a second before shaking her head. “No way. Maybe as a side gig or a hobby, but that’s not really my cup o’ joe. Photojournalism is a maybe,” she amends, “but journalism still not really my thing. 

“Besides, I’m stuck in Clark’s shadow enough, I prefer making my own path to going down all of his,” she states, feeling and looking a mix between determined, annoyed, and forlorn.

Alya didn't have much time to consider a followup response before the limo came to a stop and all three of the girls in the car perked up.

“We’re here! Now get out and stay out of my hair! Don't you dare go running off anywhere, either, or I’ll have you moved into an old broom closet until you leave Paris!” Chloé was gone before either of them could respond, and they only shrugged to each other, grinning because it was really Chloé out of their hair, and left the car, heading inside.

“You’re a slowpoke,” Alya jabbed as she ran ahead, her phone reappearing in her hands. “I’m heading up to the roof on my own, I should be fine, right?”

Kara waved her off, “Yeah, yeah, go, I’ll see you up there! I should call Clark anyways; he wanted to know if anything interesting happens, and, well.”

“Guess this counts?” Alya teased as she slid into the waiting elevator.

Kara snorted, “Yeah, basically. Have fun, don't go falling in the pool or anything!” Alya laughing at the final ‘warning’ is what the elevator closes on.

Kara heads to the stairs, and a simple peek up the stairwell to see it clear has her running up the flights in a matter of a split second. She had to do something to take the edge of the energy jitters she was getting from forcing herself to sit still among all the chaos, and using her powers where no one would see it was the best she could do for now.

As she walked down the hallway and slipped into the suite she would be calling home for a while, she pulled her phone back out to check the chat between herself, Barbara, and Karen.

First reply was from Babs. ‘Tracked all their phones. Marinette is at the bakery, Nino at his brother’s school in one of their safe rooms, Lila is in one of ours, and so is Adrien. I think, anyways, his phone must have died after he got there, but I’m sure he’s fine without it for now, must be with others if he isn't bothering to charge it now.’

Karen replied next. ‘Doing scouting now, I won’t engage without back-up, though, but I'll let you know if I find anything!’

No other messages than that, and the grounded hero sent a quick ‘thanks, girls’ in response. Her contacts were then opened, looking for Clark’s.

It was then that she noticed the black box sitting on the vanity, small and painted with red details. 

Curious, and ever the one to ‘ruin surprises’, she used her X-Ray vision on it, only for her brow to furrow when she realized that while the box was clearly only wood, the object inside wasn’t having it, only appearing as a solid silhouette to her eyes.

“What the-” 

She slid her phone away and snatched up the box, opening it up to a black ring and a flash of white and acid green light.