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heyitsyn · 4 years ago

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Keeping Up With Seijoh Ep. 6

a/n: DKFJSLDKFSJ OMG YOU GUYS IVE LTR BEEN LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS FOR SO LONG AACCKKK!!!!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

also, omg im screeching bc BAHAHAHA THERE IS GOING TO BE A SLIGHT PLOT TWIST YOU GUYS!!!!!

for more seijoh content, check this masterlist out!

anon:

- Ever since yn got lost during a trip to another school, the team made the rule that she has to hold one of their hands. Its probably so small compared against the boys. She got lost cause babie saw a cat

SKDLFJLSDKFJ EWWWWWWWW IM SCREECHING IN DISGUST RIGHT NOW LIKE THATS SO DIS COS TANG OIKAWA TOORU LIKE LEAVE MY GUY ALONE!!!!!!! #LETMAKKILIVE

lmao yep this is really happening

okay so anyways

you guys know how seijoh is like known around the prefecture right?

and we all know that nekomata and old ukai are like besties so they were talking over the phone right

and nekomata was complaining that his players were already fed up with playing against the same people and they wanted to be challenged and wanted new exposure to other players and all that jazz

old ukai was cackling at the other side bc haha youre actually begging me to find you new teams now?

but anyways

theyre like besties forever so ofc old ukai would help

and by help, he turned to poor zaddy keishin and told him to look for teams that could be sent up to tokyo and play against nekoma

‘what?! im already busy and i dont have time to scout-’

‘YOU WATCH YOUR TONGUE BOY! I CREATED YOUR FATHER AND WITHOUT HIM, YOU WOULDNT BE HERE TODAY!’

‘BOLD OF YOU TO ASSUME I WANTED TO BE ALIVE IN THE FIRST PLACE!’

family goals 😍😍😍

but keishin still listened to his grandfather and recommended seijoh as being the one to go as they are one of the hardest to beat opponents in the preferecture

but its more like he wants to hear about nekoma being destroyed by oikawa’s service aces and grovel at their feet since naoi always made fun of them saying country boys arent as good as city boys

LIKE PLEASE

anyways!!!!!!

nekomata got word of it and immediately phoned aoba johsai and talked to the coach

‘yes, i heard from an old friend of mine that you are quite strong’

nekomata praised, wanting and desperate to have them come up

‘and do you think your team is good enough to beat us?’

LMAO YESSSS GRANDPA IRIHATA!!! DRAG THEM KITTIES!!!!

WAIT NO THAT SOUNDS WRONG

but they settled on their disagreements and decided yep they were going to go up there and have a practice match

however

irihata and nekomata wanted their boys to be kept in the dark about who this team is as knowing them, they have sources to find them tapes of old plays

they wanted it to be a fair match

even the managers were being kept from it as they could easily be influenced by the players for that information

irihata walked into the gym and announced a team meeting to which they stopped

you sat down next to kyotani, who pulled you beside him and wrapped a protective arm around your waist

‘we have a practice match against a prominent team up in tokyo in 3 days. make sure you have your plays right and pat down as they are known to be quite an opponent’

the boys shouted a determined cheer and they all hussled back to practice

you were running around, tending to everyone with towels or medical tape

once you finally sat back down on the bench, you noticed your phone screen light up, indicating someone sent you a message

it was natsu

you swiped open and smiled softly at his picture

it a selfie of him in front of his school as you told him to send you a picture that he arrived safely

‘got here in one piece since im not ready to meet daddy satan yet’

i hate him you guys

after receiving news of his mother gaining custody of him, he cheered and was able to go back to tokyo without his father in the picture

lets just say,,, hes not nice

anyways

you were sad to let him go but you understood he missed his friends and his almost-boyfriend so you were able to say goodbye easily at the station

‘gross but im pretty sure katsuki would blow satan to smithereens’

‘hehe ;) he would’

‘N A S T Y’

you cringed but giggled and the team noticed so they tried hard to gain your attention back on them

‘aaa!!!!! y/n-chan!!! my leg!!!!’

‘i think i chopped off my finger!!!!’

‘my head snapped off my body!!!!!’

you rolled your eyes and placed your phone down before walking over to mattsun to help him snap his head back on his neck

finally, it was the day of the match

you were arranged to stay the night at tokyo to have a few practice matches with this unknown team

the team was arranged to meet at the train station at 9:45 since the train leaves at 10

you arrived the earliest to keep track of everyone and just because you were actually kinda excited

theres this weird feeling in your stomach that isn’t exactly bad but its,,, giddy

you sat on the bench, waiting for the team

they all started arriving one by one and you were doing a headcount for everyone but you were missing one

you checked your phone and you noticed he was getting late

it was already 9:54

you hate it when people are late to meeting time so you were slightly irritated

you dialed up your captain’s number and you stood up, pacing around

‘hello~~~~ y/n-cha-’

‘oikawa-san! do you know what time it is?! you were arranged to come here at specifically 9:45 but its 14 minutes passed that so where the hell are you? you better have a good excuse you piece of-’

‘aww y/n-chan oikawa-san is sorry’

someone whispered in your ear from behind and you flinched, surprised at the sudden person

oikawa wrapped an arm around your waist while his other hung up the call and you turned around, arms crossed while pouting at him

‘sorrysorrysorry!’

he apologized and you rolled your eyes

‘i swear, oikawa-san. if i find out it was because of your hair again-’

‘oi shittykawa! your sister just called me and you left the curling iron on, you stupid bastard!’

iwaizumi’s shout made oikawa sweat and pale

your eyes glinted dangerously

‘this is the last straw, oikawa-san’

you growled and he shot down to his knees and was about to start praying to you when the coach decided he had enough entertainment for the day and called everyone to gather around

‘heres your tickets. this train will get us there around lunch time so dont worry about getting hungry’

the shinkansen train had 2-person seating so everyone fought secretly amongst each other to sit next to you

literally, their private group chat was blowing up until early this morning at the shouts and yells of everyone caps locking their arguments as to why they deserve to sit next to you

the only one who didnt was mattsukawa issei

bc quite frankly, he didnt care who he sat next to and although it sounds nice to be next to you, he isnt exactly the comfiest to sleep on due to the obvious size difference

lmao like your head probably wouldnt reach his shoulders bruh

now youre not oblivious

or blind

so you noticed the glares of everyone as you all stood for the train to come

and you also noticed mattsun just standing there, bored, so you sneaked over to him, wrapping your arms around him

‘arent you excited, mattsun-san?’

he gasped quietly at your sudden appearance but he smirked

‘its nothing special. just another team that we’re going to beat’

you giggled at his confidence and you walked in front of him so you could properly be held by him

it was practically second nature now by the way he just opened his arms and you crashed into them, his own wrapping around your shoulders to hold you tight

‘i love your confidence so much mattsun-san’

he flushed red and furrowed his eyebrows, head turning to the side to hide the obvious effect you had on him

‘whats the point of playing when you cant be confident’

‘aaaa why are you looking away mattsun-san!!!’

lmao when the team saw you sitting next to mattsun, they all felt so betrayed like bruh

ltr kyo and iwa were about to go feral

oikawa was like ready to screech his ass off but one look from you made him shut up

‘i sincerely, really, truly hope youre just complaining about the seat hurting your flat ass, oikawa-san’

KDFJLSDKFJSDL Y/N NO STOP IT

it was kinda funny actually bc everyone was all pouting and sulky while you just have mattsun who’s smirking like ‘beat that’

SDKFJLSDKF I LOVE MATTSUN’S SMIRK LIKE PLEASE OMG

ofc he let you sit at the window bc you love window seats

like iwa, he also pulls up the arm barrier thingy and you shuffle closer to him and mattsun practically combusts

the ride isnt expected to be very long but you still found yourself sleeping during it

mattsun has his arm around your shoulder while your head is leaning against his peck man boobie

omg its so cute like he actually slides lower on the seat to help you reach his shoulder and hes slouching and back is hurting just for you

;’)

he was awake the whole time bc he couldnt sleep with his heart beating so hard it might rip out of his chest

ew thats kinda gorey

your hand was gripping his own and to pass time, he found himself fiddling with your fingers

an unknown smile appeared on his face at the obvious size difference between yours and his

a finger traced different and foreign shapes just to feel the softness of your hand and he combusts again when you unconsciously squeeze his hand

mattsun couldnt help but bring your linked hands up and kiss the back of yours

it was soft, gentle, and his lips lingered there for more than a second

then a sudden feeling of fatigue washed over him and he leaned his cheek against the top of your head

the last thing he remembers is the smell of your f/s (favorite smell) shampoo

then you guys arrived in tokyo

irihata had to personally wake you all up because even naoi fell asleep and everyone fell asleep

irihata gently shook mattsun awake and when the boy opened his eyes, the older man nodded over to your form

‘gently wake her up’

as if mattsun didnt already know

thats why he softly ran the pad of his thumb on your cheek that was exposed to the air

‘y/n~~’

he coos and your nose twitches, in between the border of dreams and reality

‘darling, wake up, baby bear’

FSDKLFJSDLKSDJKFJDSKLFJSDLFKSJDLF YOU GUYS I CANNNNTTTTTTTTT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

also im listening to kataomoi by aimer so that kinda influences the ‘darling

his deep voice that surprisingly reaches a level of quietness made your eyes flutter

your whole face scrunched at suddenly being woken up but the sight of mattsun’s genuine smile made you mirror it and cuddle closer for an extra dose of warmth

‘hmm, is my baby tired?’

he teasingly whispers and you nodded, snuggling even further and he gently cups your face

his hold had made your cheeks squeeze slightly together and your pout increased the cute factor

‘nwoooo dont skweeze demmm’

you slurred and he chuckled

‘hai hai’

‘kwiss it better’

you demanded and he full on laughed before moving his hands to your jaws so he could plant many kisses on your cheeks

the repeated kisses tickled so you giggled and squirmed

‘aaaaaa mattsun-san it tickles!!!’

your playful protests forced him to stop and allow you to actually sit up

as usual, your hair was a bird’s nest and mattsun attempted to settle it out

‘hah, y/n-chan your hair is like another being itself’

he choked out and you pouted at him

‘so mean! mattsun-san is so mean! baba-san! rescue me!!’

yahaba was known in the team to be the one who fixed your hair and you trusted him the most with it

hearing his name being called, the pretty boy dashed towards you and mattsun’s seats

‘is senpai giving you trouble again? come, honey, come to baba-san’

mattsun gave him a look for the younger’s passive agressive tone

oikawa immediately dashed over right next to yahaba

‘oh? y/n-chan! oikawa-san is here!!’

iwa and kyo growled

‘SHUT UP SHITTYKAWA!’

meanwhile irihata and naoi were just done

they just wanted to get off the train like is that such a big favor?

finally!!!!

seijoh was able to actually make it to the city and ngl, despite living in sendai, you were actually overwhelmed by the bustling city of tokyo

there were people all over the place and many cars and you were being pushed around

it didnt help that it was ltr lunch hour and a flurry of business people just flooded out of their buildings

you unconsciously gripped your bag and focused on just not tripping over people so your eyes were trained on your feet

then in the corner of your eye, you saw a tiny animal that was in danger of being stepped on so you ofc had to go chase after it

you shouted at some people to watch out and to not step on it

but then it disappeared

the moment you looked up, everyone was gone

you panicked and your head was turning from side to side

‘MATTSUN-SAN?! IWA-SAN?! KYO-SAN?!’

you shouted but it seems your voice wasnt loud enough

GIRL YOU GOTTA MANIFEST THAT BULLHORN VOICE

worry and dread bubbled inside of you but you stopped, just trying to calm down and think

then you saw the flash of white again so you hurriedly ran after it, not knowing that you were straying away from the city and towards the suburbs

you noticed you were now lost at the less amount of feet walking and this wasnt the city and you were now away from the team

taking yoru eyes off of the cat, you looked around to confirm your fear and that gave the cat an opportunity to disappear again

yoo crookshanks

huffing a curse, you pulled your phone out of your bag and dialed each

your phone wasnt reaching the boys and no one was picking up

what the heck

you ended up at some quieter and less crowded spot

like a neighborhood

you contemplated calling natsu as he lived in tokyo but tokyo was a big city and you were at some neighborhood so its highly unlikely he would know where you are

so you just walked around, looking for a place to sit and think like a park

then you heard a distressed meow

you were just walking and hearing that loud cry of help made you stop and immediately follow the sound

‘kitty? kitty?’

you called out even though you knew fully well they didnt understand you

but the cat cried even louder and you heard another cat

it was less higher pitched and honestly, you just felt like there was another cat

as you looked around, you saw the same cat you followed after and it bobbed its head at you as if asking you to follow him

‘you want me to go with you?’

the cat blinked then turned around and started walking

‘okay then’

you took the time to inspect the actual color of the cat

it was dominantly white furred but it had multiple colored spots, mainly yellow and brown

you eventually ended up at a large tree with a cat shivering on the biggest branch

it was black and had some fur sticking out at the top of its head and it looked young so its probably a kitten

you tutted and reached out your hand but it recoiled, hissing at you

BOI SHE TRYING TO HELP YOU WHAT

‘hey, i want to help you’

you softly said and maybe youre just doctor dolittle?

bc it stopped hissing and started whining instead

‘kenma-san! i swear i saw it just now-’

a sudden foreign voice made the black haired cat hiss again and this time, even you were counted as a threat

the appearance by the corner of two boys made you glare at them

one was freakishly tall with grey hair and scary green eyes while the other was shorter and had bleached hair that grew out

they both wore running shorts and black shirts and they looked like they were on a run or something

then you had a thought

this guy was tall

he could help

‘hey! you!’

you waved and the boys stopped, eyes wide

they pointed to themselves and you nodded

‘yes, silly! especially the tall one!’

the other had a flash of a glare that disappeared almost immediately but the ‘tall one’ happily skipped over

‘oho, hello chibi-chan’

KDFJSLDFKSDJLFDKSJ YES IM CONDENSCENDING

you puffed your cheeks out in anger at the nickname but this was not the time

‘that kitty up there is stuck. and i cant help it because its scared. and its all the way up there’

you pointed and he nodded

‘i followed that cat here too but i needed someone else. thats why i brought kenma-san’

your eyes shifted to ‘kenma-san’ who was focused on the other cat who also stared back at his spot by the tree

hmmm, they look kinda similar

‘well! we need to help it,,,,,, grandpa-san!’

taken aback by the nickname, the tall guy gasped while the blonde boy choked out a sudden laugh and you giggled

‘GRANDPA?!’

‘yea. you know cus you have gray hair’

you reasoned and he was about to retort when he stopped himself

‘no. we have more important matters in hand. kenma-san, come stand on my shoulders. chibi, use my jacket to catch it if it falls’

you scrambled to do your task but you heard kenma-san mumble

‘you cant tell me what to do’

‘oh hey! whats your name?’

you asked and the tall guy waved

‘im lev. haiba lev. first year’

‘kozume,,, kenma. im a second year’

‘oh! then nice to meet you! im l/n y/n!’

introductions had to be cut short as you all assembled

kenma wobbled while lev cringed at the obvious pain but they gritted their teeth and kenma lunged to grab the cat

but the cat jumped away, falling to the ground where it was caught safely by you

thankfully the jacket saved you from scratching but after a few soft whispers of reassurance, the kitty calmed down and it resulted in just shaking

‘its okay. we’re okay. i got you’

you were completely oblivious to the fact that kenma and lev were on the ground, bleeding after falling, or the shout at the distance

‘kenma! lev!’

‘Y/N-CHAN!’

you three turned to see two groups of boys coming from two directions

on the right had a guy with black hair similar looking to the cat on your arms

while the left had your familiar looking captain

‘oikawa-san!’

you shouted and he ran up, eyes wide with worry

‘where were you?! why did you run off?! you shouldn’t-’

he rambled but your eyes stopped at the appearance of your familiar pink-haired cousin

‘natsu?!’

you shrieked and he had an equally surprised expression

‘y/n?!’

he shouted

‘what-!’

he started but you beat him to it

‘why are you here?!’

you pointed to the people behind him

‘im,,, a manager. im a manager for my volleyball team’

‘volleyball,,,’

you trailed off

‘VOLLEYBALL?! NEKOMA?!’

you knew of your cousin’s school but you didnt think you guys would meet here

‘shes your cousin?’

someone piped up from the back and natsu nodded, still looking at you

‘oya? the apple doesnt fall far from the tree, then. hello gorgeous, the names kuroo tetsurou’

KSLDFJDSK I HATE THIS LIKE PLEASE HES JUST A NERD YET I WRITE HIM LIKE THIS I HATE MYSELF

‘HAH?! YOU BACK OFF!’

kyotani started but you caught him in time, holding him in your arms

‘nooo,, calm down, kyo-san’

natsu’s nose crinkled and his mouth curled

‘ugh, nice to see you too, brat’

‘BRAT?! YOU BASTARD!’

‘IM A THIRD YEAR, YOU BASTARD!’

kyotani was held back by oikawa and iwa while your cousin was with that kuroo guy and lev

you hurried back to the rest of the team and they each glared at you but they had an obvious expression of relief

‘do that again y/n-’

‘i know, makki-san. youll use a leash backpack’

lets just say its not,,, the first time youve been lost

‘new team rule. youre holding someone’s hand at all times. no matter what, always hold us’

yahaba scolded and watari nodded

meanwhile, mattsun grabbed your hand and gripped it tight

‘youre never leaving my sight again’

his tone was different from his usual playful and teasing voice

you knew he was very worried and that made you feel really guilty

‘im sorry’

you whispered and he pulled you to him, hugging you tightly

‘its okay. youre here right now and thats all that matters’

you nodded and you turned your head, leaning on his chest to watch oikawa yelling and shouting at this kuroo guy while your cousin and kyo were arguing and you chuckled

this was,,, chaos

‘dear god, you shouldve let me be lost for a few more hours’

you mumbled, smiling lightly when mattsun’s chest vibrated as he laughed

‘take me with you next time’

‘i will’

you hummed

‘Y/N-CHAN! YOU ARE NOT GOING NEAR THIS-THIS MONGREL!’

oikawa screeched, stomping his way over to you

you smirked

‘oi kuroo-san! lets hang out after the match!’

oikawa screamed

a/n: now that my nekoma manager is out, i can finally have a manager x manager interaction and uwuwuwuwu just wait until i finish the others and ill do that req anon sent in ;) if you sent it in, you know what im talking about ;)

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killthe-illusionarydreams · 4 years ago

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Chronic Emptiness

Fred x reader

After the war

Summary: Y/N having a depressive episode & Fred trying to help her through it. Basically me living vicariously through her. Soft moment.

Warning: Mentions of depression & plainly feeling like shit

——————

Y/N was exhausted. Not by her job or work, just mentally drained. This sort of thing happened sometimes. One moment she was okay, the next it all came crashing down on her & she’d feel pure hatred for the world she was living in. Fred had gotten used to it by now, he’d be the ever so caring boyfriend & try to help her through it however he could. Exept he really couldnt do much but reassure Y/N that he was there for her.

And of course Y/N appreciated him & all his efforts, she loved Fred more than life itself & everyone knew that. But sometimes she just needed space. Like today.

They were at a bar with George & Angelina and several other mates after their shifts had all ended from their various occupations. George & Fred at their joke shop, Angelia at the Ministry, Y/N at St Mungos.

Y/N never truly felt like she belonged, not growing up at home, not at Hogwarts, & certainly not in St Mungos where she was working as a nurse. Its not that she hated the job, more like it didn’t particularly cause her immediate joy. She just did it. She got on with it & did what she had to.

As her friends were dancing to the music Y/N leant into her boyfriends ear so he’d hear her say “Hey Fred I think I’m gonna head home early today, I’m tired.”

The man looked up at her, as if trying to read her thoughts “D’you want me to come with love?”

Y/N shook her head, declining the offer “No dont worry. I’ll go through the park, I need some fresh air anyway.” Fred nodded & bid her goodbye with a kiss, telling her to stay safe. “I’ll see you at home.”

It was already dark outside, the tall streetlamps being the main source of light for the woman, but she wasnt really paying attention to where she way going, not caring enough to look. Y/N got to the park near the flat where her & Fred lived, deciding to make a pitstop there she sat on one of the wooden benches that overlooked a small river.

Letting out a heavy sigh she put her head into the palms of her hands, it was feeling all too heavy lately. “Dear Merlin I’m so tired.” Mumbling, the woman rolled her head in her hands before sitting back up and gazing at the sky. Oh how beautiful it looked tonight.

Lighting up a cigarette, she put it to her lips & took a long inhale. She was supposed to be quitting smoking, Fred always got on her about continuing the habbit. In all honesty Y/N didnt care enough to stop, at this point she wasnt even sure if she still got the same boost of seratonin from smoking as she used to. But again, it didnt bother her.

“Fuck me why is life so draining?” She asked no one in particular, she knew why it was draining, the abundance of issues with her brain promptly being the answer. She just wished it were easier. Easier to deal with things.

Realistically Y/N had nothing to be unhappy about anymore, there was no war, she had a good life, an amazing boyfriend, a stable job, decent friends. But there was a permanent void in her heart that could never be filled. Ever since she was a child it stayed with her. Maybe her cold & harsh, unloving parents brought it on, or maybe how she didnt let herself feel love & would distance herself from anyone that ever got close to her. But it was there. Unmovable.

The woman let the smoke out from her mouth, sighing at why she was having another one of her episodes, feeling shitty about having said episode. Yet, there was nothing she could do to stop it from occuring. “Fuck off brain.” She mumbled to herself, cursing her biology & upbringing “Stop feeling so Shit.”

“I keep you alive you ungrateful idiot.” She huffed to herself “And I’m doing a pretty good job, so stop making me feel like its my fault.” It wasnt her fault. If it were, Y/N would know how to fix it & evidently stop feeing this way.

Some would say the war brought this Y/N on, but people knew that she was like this way before. However, before she was better at hiding it. Better at hiding the dark circles, the restlessness, the ‘I dont care what happens to me’ attitude. In all honesty it didnt bother Y/N that people knew she was like this, she didnt do it on purpose. And when she could- she’d be happy- the life of the party, in those instances she could hide her feelings. But sometimes they just got too overwhelming to bare.

“You’re being such a selfish prick.” She sighed and puffed on yet another cigarette “Go home Y/N. Go to the man who loves you.” Yet she made no motion to move. It’d probably been two hours since she left the bar, she wasnt keeping track of time, not feeling the need to.

Sometimes she thought that Fred didnt love her, not because he said something or did something, but because she thought that Fred puts up with her. Which wasn’t true, the man loved her to death, she made him feel alive. Y/N was a risk taker, an adventurer, someone that kept you on your toes- & he admired that about her. Y/N was smart & funny & the most gorgeous person Fred had ever seen, but he knew that behind her sarcasm & faux narcissistic comments, she didnt believe it. Oh what he’d give for the woman to see herself through his eyes.

A few more minutes passed & the woman got up with a sigh, throwing the butt of her cigarette down, she made her way home.

The door creaked open, a little too loudly for Y/N’s taste, she winced at the sound, hoping it wouldnt wake Fred.

“Where were you?” The light flicked on. Before her stood a dischevelled Fred, arms crossed “I got home and you werent here.”

“I was in the park.” She mumbled, taking her coat off “Lost track of time, sorry.”

Fred looked at the woman before him, he noticed the dark circles that she tried to cover prefousley with makeup, noticed the ash on her jacket and faint aroma of smoke mixed with sadness.

“Its fine.” He reassured her and went to hug her, pretending to not notice her cold body & how she stiffened when he touched her “Just let me know next time alright?”

The woman hummed in agreement and walked into the living room, as she sat on the couch she put the tv on to play some sort of muggle program but not really paying attention to it. She just didnt fancy Fred interrogating her about her feelings. She hated talking about them, normally just botteling them up. Maybe that was the cause of her unhappiness.

A few moments went by & she thought Fred had went to bed, but then she felt the couch sink next to her. “Here” he placed a blanket around her & handed her a hot mug of tea “You’re freezing.” Mumbling a thanks she sipped on her drink, not really feeling like talking she waited for him to say something, anything.

And he did “Is it getting bad again?” Oh. Was it? Probably. Most definitely.

“I’m fine.” She lied “I’ll be fine.” Y/N wasnt convincing anyone.

Fred watched her, not knowing what to say or do. He wished he could help, just magically cheer up the love of his life. But thats not how life worked. “You’re good enough.” He blurted out “You deserve to feel happy.”

Y/N didnt look up at him, she knew Fred was trying to help. But was he? I dont know.

“Do I though, do I really?” She finally asked with a sigh, those seemed to be coming from her a lot lately “Because I know I do, I just dont feel it coming to me and its so draining to get on with life when you feel worthless.”

Fred took in what she just said, pausing before trying to come up with a reasonable response “I know.” He sighed “I want to help you Y/N, what can I do?” What could he do though? Realistically?

“I dont know. Nothing. This’ll pass soon enough and I’ll be okay.”

Fred knew that, Y/N was always ‘okay’ or ‘fine’ or ‘just tired’ “But I want you to be better than okay. I want you to be happy, to enjoy life and all its moments.”

Y/N scoffed “And you think I dont want that?” There was a tense silence

“Why dont we take the day off tomorrow and go out somewhere? We havent done that in a while.” Fred suggested. It was true, with both of them being bombarded by work they hardly saw eachother in the last few months.

“Sure.” Y/N smiled sickly and set her tea down “Yeah alright I’ll just sack my job off to have a fun little date with you eh? Why not risk getting fired just because I’m feeling a little moody huh?”

Fred was taken aback by her words and immediately went back on what he said “If you dont want to thats fine I-“

“Im sorry” she cut him off “I’m sorry, that was a dick move I didnt mean it, just everythings gotten so much-“ she put her feet up on the couch to hug them “Im sorry.” A few stray tears fell onto her knees

Fred moved closer to her “Hey, its okay, its okay dont worry. I understand.” Oh sweet understanding Fred, Fred who gave you unconditional love and support. Fred who you keep snapping at.

Moments pass as he embraces you, your body leaning against his heavily. Not sure whether its the exhaustion or something else “I dont deserve you.” You mumble into his chest. He frowns cups your face in his hands, you lean in to his warm touch.

“Dont say that” you let out a quiet sob “Y/N you deserve the absolute world, and I wish I could give it to you & more. If I could take away your pain, I would. In an instant I would. You dont deserve to feel like this, to think like this. But I’m here for you okay. I love you, so fucking much you don’t understand.” He gazed into her eyes, wishing she could feel how much he meant it “You’re the best thing that happened to me & I’m going to prove it to you, whatever it takes Y/N.” He kissed your nose before letting you hug him tighter, relieved that you no longer shrunk away from his touch “Words cant express how much I love you.”

After a few more tears fall, Y/N laughs into his chest “Good because you’re stuck with me.”

Fred grins to himself “I wouldnt have it any other way.”

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lindzem · 5 years ago

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GLASS GARDEN

The full moon shone down as it always had and Pitch Black flew around upon his trusted steed Onyx. He sprinkled nightmares far and wide every night for years and years. He knew this because the moon told him it was his duty many years ago.

He did so, gathering fear across the world as best he could and sending out his many nightmares. He felt strong pride in his duty.

But Pitch became very lonely as time passed. He tried to talk to the moon, but he was ignored. He thought that if perhaps he did his job SO well, the moon couldnt ignore him any longer. Maybe he could ask for a companion.

So Pitch spread his nightmares with as much energy as he could, gathering more fear than he had ever known.

But one night Pitch saw streams of golden sand, flurries of little green fairies holding teeth, presents in ever home, and snow falling almost at random. It was confusing for the man, but he tracked down these elements to their sources.

It happened to be a group of other colorful immortal spirits, with powers just like him! This filled Pitch with excitement as he tried to join them, but he was greeted with glares.

Pitch didn't understand why they didn't like him, but they all flew off in a rush before he could inquire. It saddened him, but he followed.

Gliding through the night sky he tracked them down to a glass greenhouse that looked so cozy and bright. Etched into the glass above the doors was 'Spirits welcome to Happiness'. All of the Guardians waltzed right inside and began to eat at a large dining table. They all chatted and seemed to be having such fun together.

Oh how Pitch wanted to join them! He approached the doors that seemed to be guarded by tall glass knights in armor. He tried to open the doors, but suddenly the two knights swung their swords at him.

Pitch dodged back and inquired at them.

"Why can I not enter this place?"

They did not respond. Pitch tried to enter again, but the knights attacked. The man became increasingly more irritated, but tried a variety of ways to enter the glass house. He tried smokescreens, brute force, hitting the glass with his scythe, but nothing worked. Everytime he was grabbed by the glass knights and tossed away.

Finally Pitch yelled to the moon in fury.

"Why can I not enter this place?! Am I not a spirit too? I just want to be happy like they are!"

Finally the moon answered back.

"You are Pitch Black, the Nightmare King. You are not meant to be happy."

(Im sorry this one is so depressing, I'm still freaking out over myself being a freaking idiot and spilling juice all over my laptop. I guess this is sorta how I feel, a little. Like Im not supossed to be happy sometimes. Or maybe I really am just utterly stupid. Ahck, im sorry...)

#pitch black #rotg pitch black #rotg au #rise of the guardians #riseoftheguardians

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writingfortoomanyfandoms · 6 years ago

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Arguments

Pairing: Ben x Reader x Roger

Summary: Roger isn’t used to being the middle man in their arguments

Requested: No

Warnings: Swearing

A/N: Hey guys!!! I hope you enjoy this - I actually love writing for this pairing so much it’s not even funny I swear to God haha. Please remember to reblog, leave comments and let me know what you think - also remember that I respond with my main blog @ijustreallylovezebras but yeah, please remember to let me know what you think - hearing from you guys honestly makes my day!

Roger wasn’t used to this. He hadn’t known what to do when he came home from band practice, expecting a hug and a kiss from his two favourite people, but was instead greeted by the cold silence of his apartment, broken only by quiet sobs.

And he definitely hadn’t expected to find Ben being the source of the sobs.

“Babe?” He asked, dropping to the floor next to him. Ben was sat with his head in his hands, his back against the hallway wall. Roger placed an arm around his boyfriend’s shaking shoulders, pulling him into a half hug. “What’s wrong?” Ben’s only response was to sob harder and lean into Roger’s embrace. “Shhh, shhh, it’s okay,”

“I fucked up,” Ben sniffed out, lifting his head and running a hand down his face roughly.

“Come on, I’ll make you some tea or something, just go sit down, okay?” Roger said unsurely. Ben gave him a watery smile, pushing himself from the floor and wrapping his arms around Roger in a tight hug.

“I love you,”

“I love you too, babe,”

Roger walked through to the kitchen, pulling out his phone and switching it on. He rarely used it and only really carried it around with him for emergencies - the only time he truly relied on it was when he was on tour with the boys.

There was a single text on the screen - one from Y/N, as he had expected.

Am safe. At Lily’s xx

Roger sighed, running a hand through his long hair and shaking his head, wanting to know what was going on between Y/N and Ben.

He wasn’t used to being stuck in the middle in this way - a lot of the time he was the one causing the arguments, though they were always little ones, never ones as big as this one appeared to be.

Roger wasn’t used to comforting Ben - that was always Y/N’s job. She’d make him tea and run him a bath as Roger cuddled him and tried to make him laugh or distract him.

He wasn’t used to Y/N’s absence - she was a constant in their apartment. When she wasn’t at work she was at home waiting for her boys to return. And he wasn’t used to her anger either. She was the calm, level-headed of the three, often being the one to calm Roger down when he got too pissed off with something.

Roger walked back through to their living room with two mugs of tea in his hands and placed them both on the coffee table before sitting next to Ben but angling himself so he was facing his boyfriend.

“Wanna tell me what happened?” He asked gently. Ben let out a sigh, shaking his head lightly.

“I said some shit I shouldn’t have said,” Ben responded as though that was enough information. Roger quirked an eyebrow.

“Care to elaborate?” Ben sighed again, rubbing his eyes roughly with his hands to stop the tears from coming again.

“I asked why she wouldn’t come visit me on set and she said because of her job, I then said that she could just quit her job,” Roger winced. This was an argument that they had had before - Y/N didn’t want to be seen as a golddigger by their fans and she also loved her job at the newspaper. But the boys had always backed down before it could get too heated. “And then we started yelling and she was crying and I felt bad for making her cry but it was like I couldn’t stop and I-” Ben was cut off by a sob tearing from his throat. Roger scooted across the sofa and wrapped his arms around him, his heart breaking at the sight of Ben’s tears.

“It’s okay, babe, it’s okay,” Roger promised.

“I told her that her job didn’t matter anyway and if she really loved us then she’d quit it and spend more time with us when we’re on tour and when I’m filming,” Ben finished, collapsing into Roger’s arms, grateful for the comfort that they brought.

“Oh Ben,” Roger let out in a breath, rubbing a hand back and forth on Ben’s back, kissing his blond hair gently.

“I don’t even know where she is,” he whimpered. “I’m so sorry, Rog,”

“It’s okay, babe, she’s safe at Lily’s,” Roger assured him, the words muffled against Ben’s skin as the drummer tried to comfort him.

“I love you,” Ben murmured, kissing Roger’s neck gently.

“I love you too,” Roger responded. “And you know Y/N does too?”

“I know,” he whispered.

“Come on, babe, I’ll run you a bath,” Roger said after a couple of moments of silence, standing up and offering Ben his hand. His boyfriend took it with a watery smile.

Ben gently pressed his lips against Roger’s and the drummer gladly returned the action.

As Ben was in the bath Roger took out his phone again, clicking on the call button for Y/N’s contact as he switched his prescription sunglasses just for his regular glasses.

“Rog?” Her voice was small and tearful.

“Hey, love,” Roger responded. “You doing alright?”

“No,” she admitted softly.

“Want to come home?” He asked.

“Yeah,” came the reply after a moment of silence. “I don’t think Ben wants me home, though, he was really upset with me,”

“Trust me, love, Ben is such a mess without you here, he feels really bad,” Roger promised. “Want me to pick you up?”

“Thank you,” she whispered.

“You look tired,” Y/N said as she got into the car. She kissed Roger quickly and when she pulled back Roger saw the tear tracks still evident on her face and so was quick to pull her into another kiss.

“It was a long day at practice,” he shrugged, offering a small smile.

“Is he still mad?” Y/N asked in a small voice and Roger shook his head adamantly.

“Far from it, love, he’s really upset,” he said, reaching his hand across the centre console to grab her hand and stroked his thumb over her skin on the back of her hand.

“I do love you,” Y/N spoke after a moment.

“Yeah, I know, love,”

“And I love Ben too,”

“He knows that, too, he’s just tired and stressed with work,” Roger paused. “And we just miss you when we’re gone and we both want to spend more time with you,”

“I love my job,” her voice was small and sad and Roger responded by squeezing her hand.

“Princess?” Ben asked as the door shut. Roger took Y/N’s coat from her, gesturing for her to go further into the apartment.

“Ben?” She responded, walking into the living room.

Roger hung back, placing Y/N’s coat on the rack and going into the kitchen, making himself a mug of tea and sitting at the kitchen table, his head in his hands.

To say this wasn’t the evening he was expecting would have been the understatement of the century.

It had been a long, stressful day at band practise - Freddie had risen them all early for practise to start at half six in the morning because he got too excited over the most recent song that he had written and wanted to get as much practise in as possible.

Then he had argued with Brian over a line in the chorus, John had accused him of not paying enough attention and Freddie had disappeared over lunch break and arrived back an hour later than had been expected.

So yeah, he had had a bad day and had wanted nothing more than to come home to his loved ones and cuddle them until everything felt better again.

Roger let out an audible groan, pushing up his glasses and rubbing his eyes. They were aching again. He pulled over the notebook he wrote songs in from where it sat at the other end of the table and squinted down at one of his works in progress, frowning at the words.

“Rog?” Roger looked over at Y/N and offered her a tired smile. Ben was stood behind her, his hand wrapped around hers and a smile on his face.

“All good?” He asked. The two nodded, crossing the kitchen floor to be with Roger.

“Sorry about putting you in the middle,” Ben murmured into Roger’s hair as he hugged him over the chair from behind. Y/N clambered into the gap between Roger and the table so she was sat on his lap, curling up to place her head on his chest.

“‘S all right,” Roger responded quietly, turning his head to press a kiss to Ben’s cheek.

“I love you,” Y/N said, moving her head so she could kiss the bare skin of Roger’s chest. Roger smiled at the action, kissing her hair in response.

“I love you too,” Ben promised, shifting his hand slightly so it was rubbing Y/N’s back as she lay curled up on Roger’s lap.

“I love you guys too,” Roger added, a smile taking over as he decided that, of course it was worth it.

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vyladromeave · 5 years ago

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Mr. Zvahl has updated!

Chapter 6: Forage and Found

(Read the full thing on AO3!)

(A/N: nbvGJDFSFSD THIS IS SO LATE IM SORRY. It was TECHNICALLY done like a week or so ago but it was under 1k words and i just couldnt Post It mnbdsfghfsd. ANYWAYS now its nearly 2k so hopefully thatll make up for the wait nfdsbghdjsf. i have been Neglecting Zoey so now you have to read So Much about my beautiful elf wife mndsfbhjsfdk. not much else to say, ill edit this if i can think of anything important. Also Once Again gentle reminder tht i would seriously reccomend reading this on ao3 instead because tumblr formatting makes the spacing Whack but whatever man u do u,,,, you do u,,,,,, dshjgsfd ANYWAYS Hope u enjoy!!)

They had been walking for some time now. She had explained on the way out there that the path used to be much clearer, but too much overgrowth in the area had made reaching difficult. It was still possible, it just took extra time. In their case, it had taken a good half-hour at least. (It could have taken longer, but he wasn’t too good at keeping track of the time these days.)

As they approached he wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but now that they were there, he realized it wasn’t actually that different from what he’d imagined. His only experience in portals were the ones that lead to the nether- it somewhat shocked him to see that this portal wasn’t much different. It was about the same size and shape, though the material was different and it gave off an energy that was much less malevolent. Even then, its aura made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end, and it wasn’t even activated.

“The portal leads to the Irene Dimension. That’s where we believe Aphmau, and all those that went with her, are trapped.” she continued.

He looked to her, silently asking permission if he could get a closer look, although she didn’t seem to notice. He took it as a yes. He approached the portal to get a closer look while she talked.

“I’ve been working for nearly a decade to find a way to open it again. Nothing has worked so far, but I’m getting close. I can feel it.”

“How so?”

She was somewhat thrown off by how direct his question is. “I- well- when I first started working on this… I didn’t really know what I was doing? I was just throwing things together, I didn’t understand any of it. And now… well, there’s a lot I still don’t understand, I won’t lie about that. Emmalyn was our resident Irene expert, but we lost her to the portal too. But I’ve also learned- I know what I’m doing now, I know the end goal. I just need to figure out how to get there.”

He nods, though his focus is still mostly devoted to the portal. He understands what she means now when she said there was a lot she didn’t understand- if he was in Zoey’s place he wouldn’t even know where to start. It takes him a solid minute to recognize that no, those “scratches” he spotted on the portal are words, and in some language he has no clue of recognizing. He shakes his head. He would love to help out, of course he would, but he isn’t cut out for this.

“Well, you’re the barrier magicks user. If anyone could do it, it’s you.”

She sighs and nods. “I suppose so. I’m not sure if it’s a good thing, but it’s better than nothing.”

“Of course it’s a good thing. The town just needs to have faith in you.”

“It’s been ten years. There’s not much faith left to go around.”

“Well, what about you? Do you think you can do it? Bring them home?”

She pauses for a second, but nods. “Yes. I do.”

“Then that’s good enough for me. That settles it.”

She gives him a look and tilts her head, confused. “Settles what, exactly?”

“I think I’d like to stay here. In Phoenix Drop. At least until everyone returns.”

“Oh!” She smiles, but took another moment to process and “Oh.” Her face drops. “I- I mean that’s great, I’m glad you’d like to stay, but- this could take years. Decades. Centuries, even. You could be long dead by the time everyone is back here.”

“That’s fine. It’s worth the wait.”

She was startled by his ease in acceptance. “That’s- I mean- you could-“ she takes a breath to calm herself. “Alright. Welcome to Phoenix Drop, Mr. Zvahl.”

~~~

She had agreed to take him out to the portal if he would do some work for her in return. Nothing too strenuous, she wasn’t cruel, but it was nice to have help every once in a while.

For as good as he was in navigating the forest, he knew next to nothing about the plant life within it. Or plant life in general. She spent a solid ten minutes explaining to him what they were looking for, “Four leaves, notched edges, somewhat pointy at the ends. You’ll know you have the right plant if the base of the leaf is much thicker than the edges.” His understanding seemed to be shaky at best, but he didn’t want to waste more time when they were supposed to be gathering. And so he wandered north, she went a bit south, and hoped that he had at least a basic understanding of what they were looking for.

She hadn’t found too many- but she figured as much. It took some time to get to the better spots where the plant often grew in, which they had instead spent observing the portal (as if she didn’t spend enough time on that blasted thing already). So she paid it no mind when he was late meeting back up by a couple minutes. And then ten went past. Then fifteen. It was just enough time to make her start to worry when she’d spotted him returning. That was another odd thing about him, sometimes he was easier to spot with your eyes than to notice with your ears. He was oddly quiet, inhumanly stealthy. She’d wanted to say he was just good at that sort of thing, but what kind of person can disappear in a forest but can’t tell an acorn from a rock? Either he was oddly talented, or there was something even odder going on here, and it bugged her a bit too much.

Her mind was taken off the question when he’d stopped in front of her and she got a good look at him. She understood now why he was late- he seemed uncomfortable, and kept shifting the rather large pile of plants he gathered around. It was a bit hard to tell with the gloves he wore, but she swore she could see splotches of red creeping up his arms.

“Is this stuff we’re gathering… supposed to be itchy?”

And just like that, her suspicions were confirmed. “Well- yes, that is normal for that plant. But it’s also not the plant I told you to gather.”

“It’s not?” He said, looking down at the bundles of leaves in his arms.

“No, it isn’t. I sent you to gather lushsprout. The plants you’re holding look like poison ivy.”

A blank expression slowly grew on his face as he stared through the plant he’d gathered and into the middle distance. A look Zoey could only describe as regret took hold, and he dropped everything he had spent so long gathering as the name finally registered in his brain.

“One moment.” he said and rushed off in the direction of what Zoey could only assume was the nearest water source, a desperate attempt to wash off the red splotches that had already begun to form on his skin. Zoey couldn’t help but snort- it was the most emoted she had seen him ever, and yet it was all so comical.

Well, there was nothing comical about poison ivy, she supposed. It was mildly annoying at best, and painful at worst- but judging by his seeming unawareness she figured he would be alright this time. It would certainly make a good story for later, at least. They had done enough herb gathering for the day.

~~~

They made their way back to Phoenix Drop, recuperating at Aphmau’s house. He washed his hands and arms once again, as well as his gloves in order to make sure they were completely poison-ivy-free. (He’d gathered too much to be completely unscathed, but it was something he could deal with.) Zoey made him tea once again, and Vylad didn’t have the heart to turn her down. Of all the citizens of Phoenix Drop, he’d grown to like her and Dante the most.

She was kind and thoughtful, and understanding of his quiet demeanor. Where Dante often barged in and forced conversation, Zoey understood the importance of silence. They hadn’t physically talked much, though he discovered that he’d somewhat enjoyed just hanging out around her, helping her gather herbs, looking at her miniature garden, whatever trivial way they decided to pass the time. She was certainly more suspicious of him than Dante was (so perhaps she was smarter too), but Vylad figured it was justified and tried to not let it bother him much.

In a strange turn of events, he ended up the one to break the silence.

~~~

“...Just how often does Kawaii~Chan bake?”

“Well, she’s been doing it less often lately, since she’s got a child to look after now, but…”

“So not too often, then?”

She could’ve sworn he sounded almost disappointed. “Gods no, Kawaii~Chan is an unstoppable force when it comes to cooking. The day there is a force strong enough to prevent her is probably the day the world ends.”

She chuckled a bit at her own joke, Zvahl never laughed (or reacted much to anything at all, she’d noticed), so she did for both of them. Maybe it was a bit conceited, but in her eyes it let them both enjoy it, even if he was reluctant to show such feelings. “Why, were you hoping to get some of her sweets yourself?”

“Uh-”

“Have you ever even had her cooking? It’s very good, I’m just not sure why you’d be so interested…”

“Yes, I did. At that breakfast, about a week ago.”

“You’ve been craving her cooking for a week? ”

“Well-”

Any form of excuse was interrupted by more of her laughter, this time it was entirely for herself. Was he so reserved that it had taken him a week to ask about something as trivial as baking? She glanced over him once again to make sure she wasn’t missing anything- only finding what she decided was a hint of embarrassment. He opened his mouth to speak, and she nearly found herself laughing again when he closed it and glanced away.

She stifled her laughter to save him from any more embarrassment, and gave him a knowing wink. “Don’t worry, I’ll put in a good word with her for you if you want. She loves to bake after all- I’m sure she’d be happy to make you something.”

It was muffled by the scarf which most of his face had retreated into, but through the cloth she swore she heard him give a mumbled, “... Thank you...”

Perhaps she was wrong. He had plenty of emotion. Zoey would just need to learn where to look.

~~~

#vylad ro'meave #zoey taltatheil #zoey aphmau #aphmau zoey #minecraft diaries #mcd #Mr. Zvahl #aiki writes #aiki be like: *doesnt know what consistent formatting is*

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officialleehadan · 6 years ago

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From the Grave

(For @whatevercomestomymind, who won one of the Third Prizes and requested a story from the perspective of a Background NPC. [sorry it’s not a whole week, but this will probably end up spinning into a whole series] who gets to watch the Hero do the Thing without actually being involved.}

+++

“You heard that Landon is back?”

“I saw him the other day, and again this morning. He’s... different.”

Etina leaned across the counter to look at the man in question as Urrelle did the same. They were the same age. Had grown up in the same village. Known all the same people. Their mothers were friends from childhood.

But then Landon disappeared, and soldiers spent the next three years coming through the town, asking odd questions about him.

‘Have you seen him?’ they had asked with strange, fixed smiles that faded every time someone told them no. ‘Has he been home? Have you heard from him at all?’

Of course, no one had. Landon’s mother was dead ten years back, and he never had a father that anyone knew, although his mother swore to her last breath that she was married, and that Landon was his father’s son.

Most everyone thought she was a little crazy, but she was gentle and sweet, and when she died, the town did their best to look after Landon.

He was kind, and friendly, but odd, always a little too fast, and a little too good with the bow he used to bring meat in from the deep forest.

And then, the night of the Grand Eclipse, Landon’s house went up in blue flames, and he vanished completely.

For three years, they waited, and wondered as stories whispered through of a legendary swordsman who challenged a tyrant, and fought a god, and lost everything except his life and the sword that no one else dared wield.

“He looks sad,” Urrelle noted as she carefully peeled an apple with her little knife. “Worn out, too.”

“I tried to ask where he went,” Etina agreed thoughtfully. “He didn’t want to talk about it much. He doesn’t talk much at all, anymore. He has a wedding band now.”

“I saw that. You think...?”

“Well, whoever it is, they aren’t here.”

Probably, Landon’s wife, or maybe husband- some preferred their own, for all that it was less common- was dead. The bone-deep grief that he carried seemed to intimate for a parting, and his ring glimmered with care, polished and clean no matter what.

Sadly, it was all too common a story.

It wasn’t that heroes were unknown, even in their little town. Every now and then someone came out of the woodwork, having been born under the wrong sign, or the right one, but no one ever talked about what happened to the ones lucky enough to survive their adventures.

Landon was one of the rare ones. The ones who lived to come home, but carried the weight of all they had seen and done like an invisible shroud.

He was still kind, and friendly, but his eyes never quite focused on the ‘now’ and he always seemed to be looking for someone who should have been at his side and wasn’t.

Etina’s mother said it was a broken heart, but no one had gotten up the courage to ask him themselves, and Landon did his level best not to talk about the years he was gone. His wedding band was sign enough, and that wound was clearly still open and raw.

The sound of an inhuman scream overhead, sharp as glass and so loud it echoed off the mountains, made the whole market turn and look at what could possibly have made such a noise.

When they saw the source, people scrambled for what cover there was, and scattered out of the market.

A dragon.

Etina felt her heart still as the huge white beast swooped down out of the clouds and shrieked again, long and loud as it circled the town with more grace than such a huge creature ought to have.

Out of the corner of her eye, Etina saw Landon turn too, and was surprised to see him freeze dead in his tracks. His lips moved, mouthing something that might have been a name, face alight with shock, and then brilliant, shining joy.

The dragon must have spotted him as their hero ran into the quickly-emptying market square, because it folded its wings and dropped like a stone towards the ground.

A breath before it hit the stone, the great white form blurred like clay. In moments the dragon was gone, shifted into a man who landed running only to fly into Landon’s arms.

“I saw you die,” Etina heard Landon choke the words off even as the dragon pressed kisses to his face. “I saw- the demon-“

“I promised I would never leave you,” the dragon told him, and twined their fingers together, white hair glowing in the sunlight, eyes glitteringly blue. “I would crawl from my own grave to return to you. What was a jump between worlds compared to that?”

“You beat me to it,” Landon said, and pressed their foreheads together. They were almost of a height, but the dragon was thin, as if he had been fighting hard and alone for too long. “I finally found the last components to open the door, but you’re here and I can hardly believe you’re real.”

“I am real,” the dragon promised, and brought their tangled fingers up to trace a shimmering mithril band around one of his horns. It was engraved, but Etina couldn’t read it from where she was. “You see, my human? I still have our bond-band, polished and cared for as I worked to come back to you.”

Landon traces the pale-silver band and finally bent ever so slightly to steal a feather-light kiss that promptly turned into rather more.

Etina watched them kiss, and part, and smile together, that painful open space at Landon’s side finally filled, a missing puzzle piece slotted into place as if he should never be anywhere but there.

“Well,” Urrelle said as she crawled out from under her table, having hidden when the dragon swooped down. He and Landon were still completely wrapped up in each-other, radiating joy that was almost brighter than the warm sunlight. “That... answers some questions I guess.”

“I would say so,” Etina agreed as Landon towed his dragon off in the direction of his house, both of them laughing like the long-parted lovers it seemed they were. “At least they seem happy?”

“Three coppers says we don’t see them for the rest of the week,” Urrelle said dryly, but with a warm smile. “Bets?”

“Go scam someone else,” Etina chuckled, and began settling her good from where they had blown about in the excitement. “But I wouldn’t want to be them when the gossips hear of this!”

+++

Uncollected Dragons:

Exploration by Wing

Iced White Wine

Mine to Hoard

Hoard of Memories

+++