#Did I plan to write this tonight? No. Will I write more anytime soon? Who fucking knows man I sure don't

[obsidiancreates]

Out Of The Shadows and Into The Neon

Señor Hueso had promised himself, after a chaotic childhood, that he'd life as peaceful and plain a life as he could once he got older. And he'd done pretty well with that until he'd met Hamato Leonardo. Now he can expect anything from dueling crime families to brotherly bonding by stealing from the most dangerous woman either Above or Below.

So when he steps outside int he early morning to sweep the hidden entrance of Run of the Mill and finds a box full of small sleeping turtle creatures, all he does is sigh deeply and bring them inside.

They wake up once he brings them to the back, all yawning and stretching. They're so very small, all four, and nearly identical. Different shades of green, slightly different head shapes, but otherwise identical. Related, probably.

"And how are you this morning?" he asks softly, cutting up some cucumbers and tomatoes. They probably don't understand, and probably can't reply, but with yokai and mutants it's always a possibility. As he offers out the slices of fruits, however, it's clear there's no tricks.

Four abandoned babies. Left on his doorstep.

Turtle babies.

He pulls out his phone. Two rings, and- "Hueso, my main Yokai man! Everything okay? It's kinda early to be asking me for help with staff shortages you know."

"Too early for your tone as well, Pepino. No, there's no big trouble, but ah... your brothers have not been going out having... flings, have they?" A question he's sure he knows the answer to, the group of young twenty-something year olds hadn't ever really pursued any such relationships as far as he was aware (and too aware he was, with Leon's constant gossip-visits for his 'Favorite Uncle').

"What?! Ew, no, I- hhrk-"

Hueso rolls his not-eyes.

"Why would you even ask that?!"

"Well, this morning I found a box of baby turtle abando-"

There's a buzzing sound, a bright blue light, and then five bodies collectively collapsing on his kitchen floor. The smallest one springs up first, grabbing the box off the counter with his tail and looking inside. Splinter's eyes well up as he delicately picks up one of the babies. The baby (the one with the most blue undertone to it's green skin) paps one tiny three-fingered hand onto Splinter's nose.

"We'll take them!" he delcares.

Hueso feels a swell of relief. He really didn't want to raise four babies at once, his precious Hueso Jr had been more than enough. "Well, that was easy."

"We'll also take as many of our regular orders as this will get us," Mikey says, shoving a wad of cash into Hueso's hands. "We'll need lots of leftovers with how busy we'll be!"

"Uh, are we jumping in a little fast here?" Raph points out as the group heads to their usual table in the empty restaurant, Hueso disappearing into the kitchen. "We don't know how to be dads! Even Pops only figured it out a few years ago."

"Almost ten now!" Splinters barks. He puts the box on the table and squishes his own cheeks as he looks inside. "And you boys have more... nurturing instinct, than I did. Look at Future Boy!"

"Ohmigosh, you're right! Casey is an uncle now! Or older brother?" Mikey picks up the very smallest of the babies. "Ooooh, he's got little freckles! I'm naming youuu Mikey Jr!"

Mikey Jr. giggles and throws both hands up, slapping them down with all his baby might onto Mikey's face. Mikey's own eyes well up now, and he kisses the little baby on his head. His heart? Stolen. "Mikey Jr, you are already carrying on that legacy of cuteness!"

"This won't get confusing at all," Donnie mumbles. He sits up straighter, puts a hand to his chest, and speaks louder than he must, "If we're naming them after ourselves I propose we go by alternate nicknames in group settings. I shall be, Othello Vo-"

"First off, you'd be Donald," Leon says with a tsk and a shake of his head, "Secondly my bro, mi hermano, twin of mine, no-one said all the babies will be named after us. I'm totally naming one after Jupiter Jim."

"Really? And, which one would that be?"

Leon leans over the box. "Well, obviously-! Ah, um..."

Raphie plucks the second smallest baby from the box, holding him by the ankle. The baby laughs as he swings around upside-down. "Maybe this one? He looks like he could be a space adventurer!" He lays him down in his other hand, the baby perfectly palm-sized for now well over seven-foot-tall turtle. The baby stares back up with beady all-pupil eyes. "Awww, lookit the little guy! Raphie loves you, yes he does, yes he does!" He wiggles his finger over the baby as he coos.

Suddenly the baby's face pinches, scrunches, and Splinter gasps in fear as-

"No no no little guy! Don't cry, don't cry!" Raphie pulls his hand away and puts the baby back in the box, where the blue-toned one crawls over and snuggles his brother. It doesn't stop the crying baby's tantrum though.

"No, no!" Splinter picks the crying one back up, leaving the blue one confused for a moment before he goes to snuggle the remaining quietest box baby. Quietest because he's sucking on his hand, so who knows if it's an apt descriptor yet. With the crying baby in hand, Splinter carefully uses the other to position Raphie's arms. "Here, like this! You liked this when you were small."

And then he plops the baby into the cradling arms, and the baby begins to settle. Raphie's eyes widen, and he laughs as they begin to shine with tears. "Aw, yeah, little guy. You like this too?"

The baby blinks, his splotchy face still lined with tears, his breath hiccupping, but a smile slowly taking over his little face.

"Raph Jr," Raphie declares in a proud, soft voice. "Look at you! Bet you're gonna be the strongest little guy ever."

"Possibly," Donald says, picking up the baby with the hand in his mouth. "Though I can't tell if they're Yokai or mutants, so I can't confirm or deny if they're genetic weapons like we are."

The baby blinks at Donald, then slowly pulls his hand out of his mouth. He watches Donald for a moment as Donald watches him, both staring in silence, both examining. Then, the baby grins. He grins and laughs, cooing and gurgling with great passion, trying to say all the baby thoughts in his little baby mind. Donald's expression softens, ever so slightly. An arm comes out of his battleshell, and the baby giggles some more as the arm unfolds to widen and cradle him more comfortably.

"Well it's time to learn, and time to rhyme, because the library champ says it's Dewey Decimal Time-"

"I didn't know it was possible to do a rap like a lullaby," Angelo whispers in awe. He scoots closer. "Make mine smart too!"

Leon picks up the final baby, the bluest one, the one who first stole Splinter's heart. He cradles the baby like Splinter showed Raphie. The baby blinks back up at him, silent and blank-faced. Leon grimaces. "Uh, heyyy, little baby."

The baby doesn't react.

Leon makes a silly face, crossing his eyes and sticking his tongue out. The baby, again, doesn't react. He tries making a silly noise, and while he does get a laugh out of Angelo and Mikey Jr, he gets nothing from the oddly serious baby in his arms. Leon's starting to have flashbacks to Big Mama's Battle Nexus New York incident.

"Here we are. For most, this would be a month's worth of pizza for every meal of the day." Hueso drops the huge stack of boxes, taller than Splinter is by far, onto the table. "For your family? I say a week."

Leon grins. "Well, we'll need the energy! After all, raising four kids will leave us all... bone-tired."

Everyone, including Hueso, groans at the pun-

And the baby in Leon's arms laughs.

His eyes snap down, taking in the screeching sound as the baby's face flushes from the force of the laughter, and the tension he'd felt melts away into unconditional love in an instant.

"Alright, Leo Jr," he says, bringing the baby up to nuzzle not-noses with him. "We'll get started on the one-liner training right away then!"

It's only after they bid farewell to Hueso and steps through a portal back into their home that Angelo gasps. "We've gotta tell April too!"

"You're right!" Raphie hands Raph Jr to Splinter and pulls out his phone. "And Raphie knows exactly how to break the news. Delicately, and totally reasonable sounding..."

Above ground and across the city, April O'Neil's phone chimes. Casey Jr and Cass both lean over her shoulder as she opens the text, ignoring the movie they had been watching in favor of snooping.

Raph-a-doodle: YOU'RE AN AUNT NOW!!!

"What?!" Casey Jr grabs the phone out of her hands as April sits frozen in shock. "But- what did- how-"

"Does this make me an aunt too?" Cass grins. "Because I've been building up a collection of wines in preparation!"

[shuadotcom]

don't wannna wait on it (m)

> summary: if it’s a crime to want to have sex at every opportunity with your incredibly sexy boyfriend then you’ll gladly accept your sentence. > pairing : na jaemin x fem!reader > genres & aus: established relationship au, non!idol au, smut, porn with absolutely no plot, the occasional small fluff bits because i’m me rating: 18+ [MINORS & AGELESS BLOGS DNI! YOU WILL BE BLOCKED] > warnings/content: car sex, rough sex, clit & tit slapping, dirty talk, pet names (baby girl/pretty girl/slut), unprotected sex, creampie, one mention of a ‘sir’ kink, lowercase writing > words: 3.6k > note: hi i’m back?! 🫣 this was not something in my wips nor was it a request. i didn’t even plan on writing for the dreamies anytime soon but na jaemin is my all consuming sleep paralysis demon and i’m unbearably whipped for him so this happened over the weekend when i was high and staring at pictures of him so surprise~🧍🏽‍♀️ thank you to my love @horanghater for beta reading this and always being my biggest cheerleader 🩷❤️

he smiles that megawatt, heart-stopping smile at you. the corners of his mouth quirk up, lush pink lips stretching over two rows of perfect teeth. jaemin’s smile has always been your favorite physical feature on him.

“yes, of course, i love the rest of you!”

“but what about-”

“yea jaem - that includes your dick.” is usually some variation of how the conversation would go between the two of you when you complimented his smile. of course he knows you love him, and that you’re in love with him, but who would he be if he didn’t whine his way into getting more compliments from you?

jaemin’s smile is something that needs to be immortalized in a mural on the sistine chapel ceiling, or however, the damn saying goes.

it’s hard to remember much when he’s fucking your last remaining brain cells out of you..

“if only you could see yourself right now, baby girl - so fucked out you can’t even focus on me for more than a second,” jaemin sighs at you, eyes focused on the way your eyes cross and mouth twists in a choked cry.

you wanted so badly to strike back with something sassy, but his thumb has moved to stroke your clit just the way you like and the breath is knocked out of you.

jaemin’s left hand, the one gripping your thigh like a lifeline as it hangs limply around his waist, shifts downward to the back of your knee. he lifts your leg to drape it over his shoulder. his cock wedges deeper into you, the sensation completely blocking out the way your knee hits the roof of the car on the way up.

in the very back recesses of your brain you conjure enough sense to be happy that jaemin had driven your suv out tonight. fucking him in his sedan would’ve been doable, but a little trickier.

you would know since he has in fact, fucked you in his car before. comfort makes all the difference.

it had been him that needed you that night, the dress you’d worn for jeno’s birthday party at his favorite club making it impossible for jaemin not to watch you all night. just seeing you standing and talking to your group of friends had him locked in, his heavy gaze watching your every move. when he finally got his hands on you, he could only focus on dancing with you for a single song before he was dirty talking you out of the club and onto your hands and knees in the backseat of his bmw.

tonight, it just so happened to be your turn to shamelessly ogle your boyfriend like a woman starved.

in your defense, it is literally his fault. he’d been teasing you all day.

your boyfriend had taken it upon himself to wake you up this morning by crawling between your legs and rousing you out of your sleep with his lips attached to your clit. apparently, he missed you so much while you were asleep he couldn’t wait to have a taste of you as soon as his eyes opened.

you didn’t have a problem with it, nor did you have a problem with the way his hands took every opportunity to find your hips, your side, your ass, or your hands with his own as the day went on. you cleaned your shared apartment before getting ready for your friends’ housewarming gathering later and jaemin couldn’t keep his hands off of you - again, not that it was a bad thing.

what did end up being a bad thing - for you at least - is how wound up he left you, only to leave the house for your outing tonight looking like the sexiest man on the planet (as if he didn’t already do that every day).

jaemin wore dark denim jeans and a casual blazer - a very normal outfit in your opinion.

except, under his blazer was a form-fitting tank top. the get-together was only a handful of friends and the hosts made it clear it was an extremely casual time so neither of you had to worry over an outfit to wear. still, the moment jaemin decided to take his blazer off and you watched as his shoulders, arms, and the thick vein that runs up his bicep whenever he flexed became visible, you wished he had worn a three-piece suit instead.

how the hell were you supposed to be normal when he had riled you up so much over the course of the day? and of course, even in the car ride over, he had let his hand rest on your bare thigh, fingertips casually resting just under the bottom of your skirt. you wanted more than anything for him to creep those thick fingers up the rest of the way and find their way into your panties.

he didn’t though, he instead talked about how excited he was for donghyuck and his partner, your best friend, to have finally been able to get their own house. it made jaemin talk wistfully about when the two of you would do the same. your heart would normally be fluttering in your chest at how sweet your boyfriend of four years is and how much it made you fall even more in love with him when he talked about your future together.

and while yes, you were feeling that giddiness, your pussy was also throbbing, panties sticking uncomfortably against you as his fingers danced on your skin, but made no move upwards.

so, again, it was hardly your fault that you needed him so badly. that’s why, at some point in the night, you simply lost all decorum. it was when jaemin came into the kitchen while you were trying to decide which appetizer to distract yourself with. he was still just in his undershirt and had the nerve to smile at you.

“hey, beautiful,” he immediately came over to place a kiss on your cheek. your back was to him so he casually draped himself over you, back-hugging you as he surveyed the food options. “having fun?”

you hummed in affirmation, suddenly getting distracted as he pressed into you, reaching over your body to grab a slice of pizza. his chest was so solid behind you, his warmth striking the match that was your overwhelming thirst for him.

“yeah, but i’d be having more fun if you were fucking me right now.”

jaemin’s eyes widened, head tilting as he studied you. “oh yeah?” he sounded genuinely intrigued. “and where is that coming from?”

rolling your eyes, you scoffed at him, pushing your ass back into his bulge behind you, jaemin letting a grunt sound in his throat.

“you’ve been messing with me since you woke me up!” he smirked at the memory, obviously not sorry one bit. “then, you spent the whole day groping me like a perv!”

he gasped, “first of all, i’m offended that me wanting skinship with my girlfriend whom i love so much makes me a perv!”

“still! and then you walk around this house in this tight shirt with your arms just out!”

“is it not warm in here?! it’s not my fault donghyuck won’t let us turn the aircon lower!”

you flipped around, wrapping your arms around his waist, surprising him again.

“jaem, please can we go home? i need you so bad,” you gave him your best puppy-dog eyes, jutting your lip out for good measure. jaemin’s willingness to give into you would typically depend on how nice or how mean he was feeling that day.

unfortunately for you, it was obvious he wasn’t going to give you what you want anytime soon. a downright devilish smirk overtook him as he pressed against you, his bulge pressing into your belly. your grip on his waist tightened as you felt in real time, his dick hardening against you.

“honestly, i had no idea i was getting you so flustered, baby girl,” one of his hands moves to hold your waist, grinding against you once more. “but now that i know, i think instead of leaving now, it’ll be much more fun to make you wait until later.” as soon he says that, he snatches his hold on you away, separating your bodies before you can grab at him again.

“jaemin!” you pout, arms falling to your side.

“besides, it would be rude to leave our friends’ gathering celebrating this milestone in their lives! you wouldn’t want to do that, right sweetheart?” you cross your arms. that was true - you didn’t want to leave the celebration early just to run off and have sex with your boyfriend - even if your body was practically buzzing at the sight of jaemin just standing in front of you. “plus, sometimes i just love making you unbearably horny. you get so fucking desperate for me.”

he had the nerve to giggle at the scoff you let out as he blew you a kiss and left the kitchen.

and you hate how right he was. you were so pathetically desperate for him. you kept your eyes on him all night and quickly got tired of just looking, so you decided to flip the script on him, using every excuse you got to touch or rub up on him.

your ass rubbed against him as you inserted yourself into a conversation with he and jeno. your nail scraped across his firm chest as you scooted past him to get to the bathroom. you made sure to grip the highest part of his thigh when for “stability” as you rose from the couch to go talk to a friend.

it was partially to tease him right back and partially to fulfill your scorching need to feel him up. you were admittedly shameless in your lust for him, but so what? if it’s a crime to want to have sex at every opportunity with your incredibly sexy boyfriend then you’ll gladly accept your sentence.

by the time the night was over and goodbyes were shared, you knew your actions were anything but criminal.

“just so you know, when we get home i’m going to do so much more than eat your slutty little cunt out,” he says low enough for only you to hear, which combined with the way his fingertips dug into your lower back as he walked you to the car, was anything but a punishment.

excitement coursed through your veins - when jaemin started to say absolutely filthy things to you before using his soft words as foreplay, you knew he wanted you in more of a carnal way than anything slow and drawn out. he needed you then just as badly as you had needed him.

“oh yeah?” you mused, pretending to be surprised by his admission. you unabashedly smiled up at him, amused by the way he frowned back in response.

“yeah,” he said simply, opening your passenger door, holding your hand as you stepped up and in, not saying another word.

you had known he was going to fuck your brains out when you got home, but what you hadn’t known was that he’d decide he couldn’t wait anymore. that instead of waiting to bend you in half at home in your bed, he was going to pull onto a side road on the way home and do it. the road was still under construction, so it was a dead end with no one nearby, all the workers having gone home for the night.

jaemin drives his hips into the backs of your thighs faster, the sound of skin-on-skin echoing against the fogged-up windows.

“ja-aemin!” your back arches up when he takes his thumb away from your clit to readjust your hips on the seat.

he tuts at you, his hand quickly moving back between you to smack at your clit, the sting pushing a squeal out of you.

“patience, my slutty baby. i’m making sure you don’t fall.” he smacks your bud again, hand going back to your hips and forcefully slowing your movement down. he ignores your pleas and protests for him to do anything other than stop.

“jaemin, no no no no please!”

“fuck i love when you beg for me like this. my pretty, needy girl.”

“yes, yes, jaem please, i’m so needy.”

jaemin bites his lip, slowly rotating his hips. it’s not fast enough to give you any relief from the pressure building in your stomach and you whine out louder in frustration.

“needy for what exactly?” he’s teasing you because of course he is.

“you, jaemin!”

“what about me?”

“oh my god, jaemin, your dick! i need your dick and i need you to fuck me and make me cum! please!” you’re more irritated when you say it, your orgasm having been taken from you.

“i know, i just like to hear you say it,” jaemin chuckles.

“you’re so annoying!” you grunt, trying to move your hips to set the pace yourself. instead, jaemin presses them down into the cloth seats, leaning over your body to bring his face directly in front of you.

you stop your squirming to gasp, surprised by his proximity. his dark eyes sweep over your face before he’s leaning down to kiss you, plump lips moving against yours with hunger and determination. you instantly kiss him back, eyes slipping closed as jaemin’s tongue caresses yours, both of you sighing into the other. jaemin reaches up to cradle your head and he deepens the kiss, but only for a few more seconds. he pulls away, giggling at the tiny “noooooooo” you whimper, going so far as to kick your legs the best you could, throwing a tantrum.

jaemin coos at you, sitting up straighter. his hands skillfully reach for the buttons on your blouse, undoing them with little effort and pulling your bra up, making sure your tits fall out the bottom and tucking the unneeded fabric under your chin.

“jaem! i’m going to die if you don’t finish what you started!”

jaemin brings a heavy hand down, smacking your right tit, making you scream. “hush, brat! i wanted to see your tits while i fuck you.”

you humph at him, turning your head to look away from him with an attitude.

jaemin rolls his eyes as he repositions himself, slowly entering your waiting pussy again, and watches as your eyelids flutter closed, frown melting away as your mouth opens.

“you’re lucky i need to fill you up now or else i’d make you wait till we’re home.”

you barely hear him as inch-by-inch of jaemin slides into you until he’s bottomed out, stretching your walls out as if he hadn’t just been pumping into you minute ago.

jaemin carefully positions both legs over his shoulders, bending down into your space, both to witness the stunning expressions he’ll get you to make up close and to not risk hitting his head on the roof of your car.

the position allows it to feel as though jaemin fills you up even more, crowding so close to you that all you see, all you hear, all you smell is jaemin. if you lean up close enough, you may be able to kiss him again so you can taste jaemin too.

that stops being an option once he finally starts to move his hips and thrusts into you, wasting no time to ease you into it. jaemin grinds into you with a force that makes the car start to shake again.

“shit - jaem!”

“feel good, baby girl?”

“so so good!”

jaemin shuffles his lower half closer to you, pushing you further up the seat with each rough thrust. he manages to lean closer to pepper your faces in sloppy kisses with each snap of his hips.

“so fucking beautiful,” jaemin groans, the blunt nails on his left hand dig into the sensitive skin of your thighs as he bullies his cock into your sopping pussy harder, harder, and harder again, your cries for him nothing but incomprehensible nonsense at this point.

when the positioning of his hips changes an inch, it’s just enough to have the fat head of his cock knocking into your g-spot over and over again.

“fuuuuck! yes, right there jaem baby, right there!” you shriek, nails digging into his thick biceps as you cling to them, your head spinning with pleasure.

“open your eyes, pretty girl,” jaemin nearly growls. “look at me when you cum.”

it feels almost impossible, but you do as you’re told, prying your teary lashes open to meet jaemin’s gaze. you’re greeted with the sight of your boyfriend, eyes dark, pupils blown out as he stares you down. his black hair is sticking to his face as a few sweat droplets trail down the side of his face and drip, making his beautiful, honeyed skin glow. 

your eyes follow, catching sight of the way his gold chain dangles over you as he snakes his hand between your bodies again, this time returning his fingers to your aching clit, twisting and rubbing harsh circles into the sensitive bud with a purpose.

“jaem…baby, i-i i’m so close. s-so close!”

“yeah? gonna cum for me baby girl?”

“mmhmm!”

“gonna be my good girl and make a mess for me to clean up when we get home?” jaemin’s words are strained, his own end also approaching.

“yes! anything please, jaem, just wanna cum! can i, please?”

“only if you look at me while you do,” he commands, pulling your gaze away from his sculpted chest.

when your eyes lock with his, jaemin immediately smiles at you again, this time in the cocky, self-assured way he always does when he watches you breaking down and falling to pieces for him.

“cum for me, pretty girl. come on and cream all over my fat cock,” jaemin demands, finger pressing against your clit at the same time that his cock drills into your spot for the final time needed to have your toes curling and vision turning white as you cum, nails nearly breaking skin on jaemin’s arms as you do.

through the static filling your ears, you can hear his moans getting louder and high-pitched.

he keeps his heavy eyes locked on you until he can’t anymore and his body stutters, then he’s cumming hard, lids clenching shut as ropes of white warmth fill your hole and drip out around jaemin’s twitching dick.

he rests his head against your chest, his sweaty hair making your bare skin itch. even so, you let him stay for a few more minutes, enjoying the warmth of his breath with each exhale.

eventually, you have to call his name a few times, tapping the top of his head. he doesn’t respond at first, so you have to shake him harder and he finally sits up.

“hmm?”

“were you asleep?!”

“no, but i didn’t wanna leave. your tits are so soft,” jaemin pouts, hands cupping both of your breasts and squeezing. he almost gets you - your head nearly lolling back as his thumbs roll over your nipples.

you fight it though, pinching his side which makes him yelp.

“you can play with my tits when you get us home if we leave right now.”

your boyfriend sighs, but straightens himself up, gingerly pulling his softening length out of you. he can’t help but hesitate to watch in fascination when his cum leaks out from between your puffy pussy lips, only looking away when you close your legs.

“babeeeeee!”

“babe nothing! home now!” you push him away with your foot and sit up to pull your skirt down.

“fine, but you better hold all my cum inside you till we get there. i need to fuck it back into you.”

you pretend to think, jaemin making eye contact with you through the rearview mirror when you hesitate. “mmm okay…but only if you promise to fill me up again right after.” jaemin lets out a huff through his nostrils, throwing the car into drive.

“seatbelt, baby,” he tells you, waiting for you to do so before he peels away. “good girl.”

the timber of his voice has you clenching around nothing, already missing the heaviness of jaemin stretching your walls to their limit.

“anything for you, sir.” the words are sticky sweet and jaemin has to count to five because he’s sure he’ll explode if you keep it up.

“you love playing with me, don’t you?” jaemin mumbles through gritted teeth, wishing more than anything that red lights were never invented as he slows to a stop, traffic laws delaying him in getting to his destination.

“i do. not my fault i always wanna fuck my gorgeous boyfriend.” you lean up when you speak, placing a kiss on the shell of his ear.

“fuck baby…” he trails off, getting momentarily distracted when your tongue starts licking up the side of his neck, your teeth biting down on his shoulder. he refocuses when you pull away, smiling flirtatiously at him in the mirror. “it’s a good thing then that i love fucking my gorgeous girlfriend, huh?” he looks at you for a second longer before stepping on the gas when the light turns green.

“it’s because we’re perfect for each other.”

you see jaemin’s reflection in the driver’s side window and catch him smiling wide - the sight prompting you to do the same.

“yeah, i guess we are,” jaemin concludes, still smiling as he makes a turn, your apartment only a few blocks away. you watch his reflection, loving his smile as you always do, but you also can’t wait to see the way he’ll smile down at you when you get home and you get his dick in your mouth.

jaemin’s smile is your favorite feature of his - no matter how you’re making him do it.

net tag: @kbookshelf

[aureatchi]

⚕ ᡣ𐭩 . ° . AND IF THERE WAS A PLACE I HAD TO CHOOSE…IT’D BE IN YOUR ARMS TONIGHT. (bedroom session) ft. dazai, chuuya, fyodor, akutagawa, sigma

— how the bsd men treat you when you’re sick. (& more)

a/n. started writing when i was sick djsjsja. tagging my moots who were under the weather anytime this month <3 to them & anyone else unwell, feel better soon !!

info. fem!reader. fluff. established relationships. light angst & hospital in akutagawa’s. chuuya plays the guitar. you play the piano in fyodor’s. sigma’s a chef. some inspo from RED for dazai & fyodor’s (our hcs!)

DAZAI will cuddle with you anyway, even when you are buried under bundles of blankets. he still thinks you need a little more warmth…and you look just too cute wrapped up in what resembles an igloo to not nuzzle with you! however, don’t be surprised when he blames you for making him sick once you recover, as if it wasn’t his fault.

“A-choo!” Your eyes were watery, you felt too cold for your liking, and it was harder than usual to breathe through your nose. Your sneeze made you sit up in discomfort, and you hastily pulled the covers toward you.

“‘Bella? Are you alright?” Dazai sat up next, meeting your eyes as you turned your face toward him.

He noticed how flushed your cheeks were and how watery your eyes were as you frowned—no, the first thought Dazai had wasn’t Oh no! You’re sick!

“Aw, love! You look so cute!” And he tackled you back down.

“Osamu!” you shouted as he lay practically atop you, squeezing you like a teddy bear.

“‘Samu!” you repeated once more. “You’re going to suffocate me!”

“You feel so cold, though, darling!” His reply was muffled as he buried his face into your neck.

“It’s like you’re trying to get yourself sick!”

He sat the both of you back up.

“H-huh? What’d you mean? Why would anyone willingly get sick?”

“Oh, I’m not sure either!” you exclaimed. “Maybe so you can use it as an excuse to skip wor-“

You sneezed again, interrupting your statement, seeing through Dazai’s plan.

“Bless you ‘bella!” he replied, a bit too excited. “What were you saying?”

“I. Was-” you sneezed again. And then twice. And then thrice.

“Aw, my poor baby!” Dazai spoke in his infantile voice. “Looks like you’re super sick…don’t you worry your pretty head about that. I have a solution.”

“Yes, please,” you responded—as best as you could with him pinching your cheeks—thinking Dazai would finally get up and bring you medicine so you didn’t have to do it yourself. That was, in fact, a terrible assumption.

“You trust me so well you didn’t even wait for me to tell you!”

“Uh-”

He then proceeded to pepper your entire face with kisses.

“Get-well kisses! They work better than medicine, trust me. Because these ones are made from lo-ove~.”

“Osamu!” you shouted. “You’re really going to get sick!”

“Do you really think I care, pretty?” He moved his face so his nose was touching yours. “I’ll tell you a secret. I know why I’d get willingly sick. So that I’ll be taken care of by my favorite girl in the world-“

“You’re so stupid!” you facepalmed. “You see being ill as a reward?”

“Yeah, I’ll make you believe so by the end of the day,” he winked. “I’m not going anywhere.”

…

Thankfully, Dazai did give you medicine to clear your stuffy nose. And then he told you to stay in bed while he would prepare you…breakfast.

“Oh no,” you said, knowing well that you mostly cooked the meals for a reason. Dazai was good at many things, but there were exceptions. He wasn’t the worst cook, but he certainly wasn’t the best.

“Wait, please trust me on this one!” he pleaded before you could get up. “I promise you I won’t burn the house down.”

The brunette was staring at you with dramatic puppy-dog eyes, and you were too tired to object any further.

“You have to make sure it’s edible, too,” you glumly replied.

…

It felt like almost an hour passed. You started to get worried—was he really struggling with cooking you something? You imagined the kitchen would be a chaotic nightmare by now, and it was enough to make you want to check on him.

But the moment you decided to get up, the door opened with Dazai bringing in a bowl of hot soup. Surprisingly, you could smell the aroma—and it was good.

“You really underestimated me, ‘bella?” Dazai smirked as he placed the bowl on a portable bed tray. “Bon appétit!”

“I haven’t even tried it yet,” you smiled back. “It might be the worst soup I’ve ever had.”

It wasn’t bad. You hated to admit it, but it tasted delicious.

“The virus must’ve affected my taste buds, too,” you chuckled. “Because for someone whose forte isn’t cooking, this tastes really good.”

Dazai wiped his head with a phew! “I actually…put in a lot of effort. I wanted to make sure I did it all right for you. Sorry it took so long.”

You wanted to hug him. You found it so adorable that he had really taken his time to make you something.

“Awe, thanks, Osamu,” you responded. “This was really sweet.”

“So…do I get a few kisses and back rubs as a thank you?” he asked.

“Sorry, back rubs? I’m the one sick; you should be the one giving me them!”

…

Dazai ended up giving you the massages in exchange for continuing to cling to you without complaint. You accepted and were defeated at this point—the man really wasn’t going anywhere.

He continued to stay with you until you felt better, and very unsurprisingly he spoiled your recovery celebration by becoming sick himself.

“Heh…” he mumbled as you looked at the thermometer with a frown. Contradicting was Dazai with a large smile, despite just finding out he had a fever.

“Your turn, ‘bella!” he exclaimed. “I already called Kunikida saying I’m going to be out for another week! This almost beats a vacation.”

“Osamu!”

“What? Any time spent with you feels just as amazing. And this is just a result of how well I’ve taken care of you.”

CHUUYA wants to make your recovery as comfortable and entertaining as possible—he doesn’t want his darling feeling mopey the entire time. after all, enjoying something distracts one from the botherations of being sick, right?

You hadn’t done as much as you would’ve liked today. Unfortunately, you were sick, but not to the point where you had to visit a doctor or were stuck in bed. It was an inconvenient gray area, where you were still able to do things but accompanied by the mild symptoms of a cold.

“Nah, doll, you’re just a workaholic.”

Chuuya laughed as you pouted while trying to do your laundry. Just because you were sick didn’t mean you should skip your chores. You would probably still go to work the next day, too—as long as you weren’t dying, you’d be alright.

You sort of felt like you were, though. You were overcome by a haze of debilitation, whether you wanted to admit it or not. But you couldn’t just sit around all day.

“I’m fine though, Chuu,” you replied, but a contradicting sneeze immediately followed.

“Your nose is saying something different,” he replied, handing you a tissue. “If you’re so bored, how ‘bout we do something actually fun? And won’t exhaust the life out of you?”

“Well, what are you thinking?” you asked, curious as you wiped your nose.

…

Chuuya had you sat by the table with a bowl and a box of cornstarch.

“Out of all people, it was Q who showed me this.” You raised an eyebrow. “Don’t worry, baby, it’s not dangerous. It’s weird, but I can’t deny this entrances me.”

Chuuya poured some cornstarch into the container and added a cup of water. “It gets a little messy, but…” he started combining the contents until it became a gooey mixture.

You started giggling. You didn’t know what you were expecting, but it definitely wasn’t the sort of crafts experiment you did as a kid.

“Chuu, this is quicksand. You’ve never made it before?”

His eyes widened in surprise. “Quicksand? Nope. But look—if you play around with it, it becomes solid—isn’t that amazing? But if you let it go-“

“It turns back into liquid, yes,” you replied before you sneezed again.

“It’s so weird! What kinda manipulation is this?

You couldn’t help but laugh at how the Port Mafia executive was captivated by such a simple science project. You watched as he played around with the oobleck.

You realized you could live this day simply as well. You proceeded to make your own cool mixture as well.

“You got some on your face,” Chuuya said a little after you were finished with your venture and were washing your hands.

“Where?” you asked, about to touch your head.

“Right here,” you felt his thumb gently rub your cheek and then move around your neck to tug you closer.

“Just kidding.” He stole a kiss in its place.

…

Chuuya sat down on the edge of the bed with his guitar. It was late afternoon, and you decided for once a very needed nap. But not before your lover entertained you with one more thing.

“I’m gonna give ya a little performance.”

He strung his guitar several times and ensured everything was correctly tuned.

Your widened eyes in curiosity made his heart warm. You were so enamored with everything he did—just as he was utterly obsessed with you.

He started playing a familiar tune. Your favorite song. You immediately smiled despite your oncoming headache.

“One day, I think I’ll write my own song for you,” Chuuya said. “You work so hard, how couldn’t you be the inspiration of a ballad?”

You cherished times like these. Even though you were sick, you had the company of the soft, sweetheart side of the Mafia Executive.

FYODOR is full of surprises, and you falling ill is no exception. unexpectedly, he decides to let go of his schemes and responsibilities for the day, to make sure you’re feeling better.

He could already tell by your unusual exhaustion yesterday evening. You didn’t do anything that required more exertion than usual, and it was too frigid in the year for you to feel so hot.

Fyodor already knew you wouldn’t feel so good when you woke up the following day. Your cheeks were flushed, and your head was pounding. It even ached to sit up. It was the worst combination.

Feverishly, you sneezed. A tissue was immediately placed over your nose.

“Blow, milaya.”

You looked up at Fyodor, who was standing by the bed. His amethyst gaze fell upon you—his usual amalgam of tranquility and complacency looked a bit different today…was there a hint of concern shining through his eyes?

You took the tissue from his hands and blew your nose.

“You’re supposed to be at work, no?”

You tried your hardest not to get sick because of this reason. You would be another hassle on Fyodor’s list of endeavors. You hated the thought of contributing, especially when he was already stressed and occasionally neglected his own needs with what he already had to do.

“You would really expect me to when I had to carry you to bed last night?”

The previous evening was a blur. Sometime after dinner, the weather immediately flew over you, and all your energy just drained out.

“Ah.” You sneezed again into the tissue. “Well, I think I’ll be fine on my own. I know you have a lot on your hands. I can take care of myse-“

“Please believe me. You’re not being a burden,” Fyodor cut you off and directly addressed the point you had been dancing around. His hand found yours and started to massage your fingers. He felt ice cold against you—or perhaps, you were on fire.

“Is your throat sore? I’ll make you some tea.”

…

He didn’t leave you alone for too long. Fyodor returned with a cup of hot ginger tea that you immediately took, desperate for some relief for your throat. Your nose was quickly soothed by the warm, sharp aroma of the ginger as you held the mug close to your mouth.

If there was one thing you learned, there was a type of tea for every occasion. Fyodor had an entire cabinet dedicated to those beverages—all precisely arranged.

“Is it alright?” Fyodor asked as you sipped, the liquid alleviating the soreness in your throat.

“Yes, of course,” you replied. “Maybe after I can try to get up…” your voice trailed off as you struggled even to shift your position.

“What’s wrong?” Fyodor moved beside you again as you frowned.

“I feel really sore. Like I ran a marathon without stretching at all yesterday,” you dryly chuckled, even though that had not been the case at all. Your whole body ached; it felt uncomfortable to move anything, and you felt awfully weak.

Fyodor didn’t respond for a moment, thinking.

“You can still entertain yourself without moving. Do you want to read? I’ll bring you to the living room.”

You curtly nodded your head and picked out one of the many books on the large shelf before Fyodor carried you to the sofa in the next room.

“Stay on my lap,” he said, holding you by your waist when you tried to move away.

“I don’t want you to get sick too,” you replied, confused.

“I won’t, don’t worry. Besides, I’m doing a favor for you.”

He motioned for you to enjoy your book and not pay attention to him. So you did as he said—you flipped to the page you left off on and tried to immerse yourself in the plot.

It got easy to do so and lose track of reality because Fyodor started to massage you—hands moving in circular motions on your shoulders to ease and relax the pain on your joints.

You felt both too hot and cold alone on your bed earlier. But here, in the embrace of your lover, you could see the end of your little tunnel of fever.

“Thank you, Fedya,” you whispered sometime after.

…

He got up to do something on his own a little later, but not before tucking you into the softest blankets you owned on the couch. He admired you for a moment right after—a touch of amusement in his eyes.

“What’s so funny?” you asked with a pout. You felt like you were made into a burrito.

Fyodor had thought the same.

“Milashka,” he simply smiled.

You thought he went away to attend to the business he was able to at home—Fyodor was infamous for being a workaholic after all, but you were surprised once again when amidst your reading, you heard a melody coming from the other room. Rich and resonant, you realized he was practicing his cello.

You placed your book down and freed yourself from the warm blankets before making your way over to the next room, disregarding the dull pain that still accompanied you.

Fyodor didn’t pause as you entered and sat down on the piano’s stool. You opened the cover and placed your fingers on the keys before smoothly joining in with the composition you had secretly been learning while he was away so you could play with him.

He probably suspected it anyway, but you still smiled and felt a little pride as you harmonized with him without error—and while sick.

♬♩♫♪

There was a moment of silence after the final note. You felt at peace. The tune made you sleepy.

Fyodor stepped towards you, and you lifted your head to meet his gaze.

“You played it perfectly, lyubov,” he said before kissing your forehead. “How about a nap now as a reward?”

…

After a glass of water and an adjustment of the heater, Fyodor tucked you back under the covers. He checked your temperature with the back of his palm, and he was appeased to find that your fever had noticeably gone down.

You suddenly giggled, catching Fyodor off guard.

“Why are you giggling?”

“I had an observation,” you chirped. You wanted to tell him it was evident he had been stealing physical affection from you throughout the day and that he wasn’t sly, but alas, exhaustion had overcome you again.

You took his own hand in yours. “Wash your hands after,” you whispered before placing a kiss on his fingertips. “This was nice. I feel better because of you staying.”

AKUTAGAWA feels that the roles have been reversed because it is usually him who is sick, and you helping him get better. however, this time it’s you, and so he wants to repay all the care and love you showed him. for once, not to prove something, but to show proof of your adoration towards him.

You didn’t want Akutagawa to visit you that day. You had sent him a text earlier that you were sick—your pneumonia was so severe that you were admitted to the hospital. He immediately rushed over right after.

You told him he didn’t have to—truthfully, half of your heart didn’t want him to because of his already weakened immune system and his tendency to get sick easily.

Yet he still showed up at your bedside with a “get-better” box and pink tulips, a mask covering half his face.

“Ryu, I appreciate this so much,” you told him, a cough accompanying your statement. “But I promise you don’t need to stay—I don’t want you to get sick too.”

He didn’t respond before striding over to the sink as if he were in his own house, grabbing a vase and filling it with water. You watched him trim your flowers, place them in the container, and then putting it on the counter.

“Ryu…”

“You’re in the hospital. Do you think I could just go about my day like my girlfriend isn’t sick?”

Even though his tone was straightforward, his hand gently brushed away the hair covering your eyes.

He was visibly bothered. He hated seeing you in the hospital gown, lying on the bed. He hated the IV line attached to you and the distant beeps! of your vitals. Akutagawa went through this experience more often than not, and if not painful, it was always irritating and unpleasant.

He would never want you going through this, even once.

“Are you comfortable? Should I move you to one of the VIP rooms?”

“That’s not necessary, thank you though,” you replied. You noticed the exhaustive distress in his argentine eyes.

“I’m going to be okay, Ryu,” you reassured him. “I promise. Just don’t touch me for now.”

Akutagawa nodded. “Are you hungry? Is there anything you’re craving?”

“I want…something sweet,” you bashfully replied. “All the hospital food was savory…they missed a dessert.”

You could see the corners of his mouth slightly lift up—an unlikely smile, especially in a place like this. “No explanations are needed. I’ll be back.”

…

He returned with one of the sweets you always picked up whenever you went grocery shopping and a couple of figs for himself. Akutagawa didn’t like sugary things that much, but this fruit he could eat for days. He indeed ate one a day—you were able to observe how long he would be gone on a mission based on how many figs he brought with him.

Akutagawa had brought two today. Was he planning to stay with you overnight? You knew he hated the hospitals—he would never willingly go to one.

Yet here he was, pulling up a chair by your bedside.

“I brought a book,” he said. “Can I read to you?”

“Of course,” you replied. “I didn’t feel like using the TV here anyway, so nothing’s been entertaining.”

The onyx-haired pulled out a book from his coat.

“Once when I was six years old I saw a magnificent picture in a book, called True Stories from Nature, about the primeval forest,” he started.

When Akutagawa was sick, you often read him children’s stories to combat his restlessness. He was calmed by your voice and fell asleep faster than any over-the-counter medication ever worked.

The first time you had found him in the hospital before you were even in a relationship with him, you introduced him to The Little Prince. At first, he scoffed and turned his back the other way, pretending not to listen. But his furrowed brows relaxed, and his frown lifted as you continued with the story—the theme of the openmindedness of children compared to adults, loneliness, love, and loss all gave him something to think about.

Eventually, the book became a source of comfort and light to Akutagawa, and now he had his own copy.

"‘And now here is my secret, a very simple secret: It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.’” By the time Akutagawa had gotten to that part, you had dozed off into a nap.

…

When you finally awoke, the curtains were closed, and the only source of light came from an ambient lamp on the nightstand. And in this night, you also felt a soft pressure on your legs—Akutagawa’s head. He had fallen asleep too, with the book still flipped to a page.

You felt both adoration and woe in your heart. He was sacrificing comfort and possibly his health for you. You desperately felt the need to stroke through his white-tipped raven hair, but you didn’t want to heighten any more chances.

You fell asleep again after minutes of watching your lover’s chest delicately rise and fall, just as he carried his true self without his violent front.

…

Akutagawa stayed until you woke up the following day. He went out to do some errands and then returned with a small gift for you he picked up during the day. That was the routine he followed for the next three days, always content to find you better than the previous day until you were all better.

A nurse came in with a final evaluation and discharged you. You changed into new clothes Akutagawa had brought you before running up and embracing him.

He hugged you back tightly, relieved that you were finally out. He turned to the vase of the pink tulips, which were starting to wither.

“Just in time,” he said.

“The get-well-soon flowers,” you giggled, taking your first good look at them. You loved how he knew of flower symbolism.

“Let’s get out of here,” Akutagawa said, holding out his hand for yours to take. “I despise dwelling in this place any longer.”

SIGMA is worried sick, even though you’re the one sick. how could he not, especially when he isn’t with you? are you feeling alright? drinking enough water? eating well?

“You’re sick?” Sigma asked over the phone.

“Is it my fault? I mean, I was feeling unwell last week, but I got better in a day, so I didn’t think it was that serious…”

“No, it wasn’t; please don’t worry,” you replied. You hated when your lover blamed your problems on himself. “But yeah, it sucks. I even lost my smell! I can’t smell anything.”

“Really?” You sensed his worry through the call.

“Do you need to go to a doctor? I can pick you up and take you there—or I can call the doctor to your house if you’d prefer that-“

“No, it’s okay! It’s not that serious; I’ll be fine in a few days,” you said. “I just wanted to let you know because I won’t be able to see you for a week. But don’t worry about me. I’ll update you.”

“Oh, I see,” Sigma responded. “Alright then.”

Firstly, Sigma was most definitely worried. Secondly, you couldn’t smell? He knew how much you loved the dulcet scents of the desserts he created and the delicate fragrances of your favorite flowers. You must’ve been even a little upset when you realized that sense was gone.

Of course, he wasn’t going to leave you to battle the viruses alone, despite you having just said you didn’t plan to see him until you got better. So, the part lilac, part pearly-haired immediately set out to plan a sweet surprise for you.

…

The next day, Sigma showed up at your front door with a homemade bento box and a few bags of groceries.

“What are you doing here?”

“I at least have to check if you’re eating well.”

One thing that hadn’t changed since meeting Sigma was the butterflies in your stomach feeling. He always showed nothing but ultimate consideration and compassion towards you, treating you like royalty.

“I’m trying,” you replied honestly. “Everything tastes the same. I can’t smell any of it.”

“Maybe it’ll be more appealing if the food looks nice.” With that, he walked to the dining table.

“You haven’t had lunch yet?” You nodded, expectably to him.

“Sit down, love.” He pulled out one of the chairs. You followed him, taking a seat as he prepared your meal—putting a placemat on the table and setting the bento box on top.

You opened the container, and you were revealed with an assortment of the prettiest foods. For the first time this week, you were hungry.

The ones that caught your eye the most were the rice balls decorated to look like chibi versions of you and Sigma. A part of you didn’t want to ruin something so cute.

“What—this is so cute, Sigma! You’re so creative,” you complimented him. “It’s like you cook with magic.”

You noticed Sigma’s cheeks tint a rosy pink. “T-thank you. Go ahead and eat while I prepare your dessert.”

“Dessert?” you asked as you eyed the remaining grocery bags he was holding.

“You’re going to bake here?” You weren’t complaining, but you wondered why he didn’t decide to do it at his place.

“Yeah. That way, it’ll taste the best. Everything tastes the best when it’s freshly baked.”

…

You ended up eating everything. Sigma’s cooking never failed to impress you, even for a previously sated stomach.

“I finished!” you exclaimed, earning a smile from Sigma in the kitchen.

You hadn’t paid attention to what he was making in the meantime. He had put the tray of mystery into the oven a few minutes ago, so you were unable to see what it was.

“It’ll be done in twenty minutes,” Sigma said, walking over to you and taking your hand. “Was it good?”

“Very tasty; I’m full now,” you replied, looking up at him. His ashen eyes shone a gleam of fondness once he made eye contact with you, causing him to fluster again. He was so cute—at times, Sigma still acted like a schoolboy with a crush on you.

“You know your body makes room for dessert,” he noted coyly.

He guided you to stand up, and as you did, a familiar scent softly breezed past you.

The smell of your favorite muffin—and the smell of Sigma’s kitchen. It was faint, but it was there. Your eyes widened in wonder.

“Wait, Sigma—I can smell this!”

Even though it was a bit dramatic, you were cheerful to finally be able to smell any thing after a couple of days. You spun with Sigma around the room in delight. Surrounded by the aroma that made you feel truly at home and the sunrays through the windows, you started to dance together.

“You’re sure you’re okay?” he asked, a bit concerned you were spinning around while feeling unwell.

“Yes,” you reassured him, drawing Sigma into an embrace. “I’m just thrilled right now. I think you’re cooking does have magic.”

…

The muffins were out and looked mouthwatering. Sigma took the first one from the tray and peeled down the wrapper.

“First taste is yours,” he said, taking your palm and placing the pastry in your hand.

“Today, I’ll be Sigma’s food critic,” you joked among the two of you. “He’s baked my favorite muffin—I’m rea-ally picky about this dessert, for your information. So I’m going to be really harsh on this review…”

Catching him off guard, you ate the entire sweet in one bite. You started laughing when Sigma abruptly gasped.

“Mm! That was delicious!” you declared, trying to sound like you were trying this for the first time. However, it contradicted the way you were reaching for a second one. Sigma had made this for you hundreds of times before—there was never one time you refused a muffin from him.

“Eleven out of ten!”

“And so are you,” Sigma added, bopping you on the nose. “If my cuisine does involve magic, then I hope that the food works better than medicine.”

bea’s acoustic songs are always so calming & pretty; in my mind, this is what chuuya plays for me. <3

i saw you said you were sick on the dash this month, i’m glad you’re feeling better by now/feel better soon, this is for you <3 @lovedazai @cheriiyaya @chuuyrr @osaemu @atlasnessie

i heard if you rb, your fav will give you get-well kisses until you feel better !! reblogs are cherished; they are what support me the most <3

© AUREATCHI 2024. no reposts or translations. do not steal. dividers by cafekitsune.

[whatthefishh]

Happy Halloween, Steven

Steven Grant x F!Reader

Summary: this was supposed to be a fluff piece and then I thought about how Steven would look in his costume and how I'd probably react to it so. You guys get light smut.

Warnings: 18+, smut, heavy petting, handjob, jealous coworkers lol

Author's note: Thanks to @villainvindicator and @kittyofalltrades for helping me decide how to go about certain parts of this story :) xo

Jake is written in bold, Marc in italics, sorry if its OOC I was just having the best time writing this LOL

Word count: 2.5k

This wasn’t really how Steven imagined the annual Halloween party the National Gallery threw for its staff to go, but let’s just say he was over the moon with how his night was going.

The entire staff was being forced to go. Steven didn’t necessarily dislike parties but he wasn’t the best in social settings either. He felt a little better going to outings with Marc and Jake around now, it felt like he wasn’t going entirely alone. Plus, he did really enjoy Halloween. 

Although Marc grumbled the whole week leading up to the party about having to dress up and how lame he thinks it all is, Jake was quietly supportive of Steven putting himself out there more and more. Especially since he picked up on his little crush on you.

Jake noticed that every time you’d rush by the gift shop, piles of paperwork haphazardly collected in your arms, heels clicking on the floors trying to make it to your destination without bumping into anyone, Steven would stop whatever he was doing and just blankly follow your movements with his eyes until you were gone. This happened maybe a handful of times per day, and every time it was the same: Steven would longfully gaze after you, sigh dramatically and then return his attention back to the task at hand. Marc usually mentally clocked out when Steven literally clocked in, so only Jake really knew about this little reaction Steven had towards you aka dopey heart eyes anytime you were in the vicinity. 

Tonight’s party was a Halloween costume party, being held in the gallery’s dining hall, but it was supposed to be decked out by the party planning committee. Steven was slightly bitter towards the committee, led by Donna, since they didn’t let him help when he offered. You were on it, too, which was honestly part of the reason why he offered to help to begin with, hoping to get a word in with you, but Donna quickly interrupted your conversation to shut him down as rudely as she always does. 

Steven had his costume picked out for a while, thinking it made him look bloody handsome, if he did say so himself. Jake helped him style his hair into a neater, slicked back look instead of his usual unruly curls to better match the outfit. Marc teased Steven saying that he was trying too hard for a bunch of coworkers that didn’t give a shit if he showed or not. Needless to say, Steven did not like that. 

“Oi! Just because Donna’s insufferable, doesn’t mean they all are! There are some people I actually like at work.” 

Yeah you’re a real social butterfly.

Marc, stop being such a culo. Steven, you better talk to her tonight.

Oh? This whole getup is for a girl?

Steven has to admit when he purchased his Captain Hook costume, the idea of you and what you would possibly dress up as dipped into his daydreams enough times. The shopkeeper looked entirely too thrilled when Steven tried on the black pleather pants, maroon vest and long black overcoat complete with gold hardware detailing and a fake sword for his belt. He also pressured him into buying some cheap eyeliner to drive the pirate look home. It was definitely not Steven’s first choice (initially he’d asked for Prince Charming) but upon looking at himself in the tri-fold mirror and seeing how the tight pleather pants made his thighs and rear look, he readily agreed, secretly hoping it would catch your attention. 

If we’re gonna be here, at least we look good. 

Deep breath, hermano. Look, there she is. 

Again, WHO?

As soon as Steven walked in, it was almost magnetic how his eyes zeroed in on you; animatedly describing something with your hands to the angel with bright white, oversized wings next to you over the blaring dance music. His eyes widened and mouth dropped open slightly once he took in the sight of you, in a tiny, tiny sparkly, green number, hem cut in a zigzag pattern, clear high heels to give the illusion that you were floating, with petite green wings to match. The dress was much shorter than he expected to see you in, especially for a work party, but he was guessing you probably didn’t realize the effect it was having on those around you and honestly? He’s not complaining because where the hell have you been hiding those legs this whole time?! 

He was beginning to attract attention just standing at the door of the hall, yet again caught staring at you with a dopey look on his face. It didn’t occur to Steven that he could be attracting attention because of how damn fine he looked tonight, pleasantly surprising some of the staff with his defined muscles on display with his costume choice - the pleather didn’t leave much up to imagination. He quickly made his way over to the food table, as one does with anxiety at a party, and scoured the table for vegan friendly options with shaking hands. Why did he come to this party again? What if nobody talked to him? What if he made a fool out of himself? Why did he think this costume was a good idea? They probably think he looks ridiculous, that's why they’re all staring…

Fighting the urge to nervously run his hands through his gelled hair, Steven stood fidgeting with his jacket and finally looked around the room to catch a handful of the more forward women blatantly staring at him bent over the table stacking his plate sky high, promptly choking on his food at the numerous eyes on him. Rushing to the punch bowl in an attempt to wash his food down before he further embarrassed himself, he didn’t notice you also approaching and narrowly avoided bumping into you. 

“Are you…alright? Steven, right?” you asked just as he managed to gulp down half his cup of punch, nearly causing him to choke again as he swiveled around to face you. 

“Uh hiya, yeah I’m Steven, Steven is me,” he tried to laugh at the end of that horrible, horrible introduction. He already knew your name, but pretended to ask anyway so as not to seem like a creep, which you confirmed with an easy smile. He tried so desperately not to look away from your face while you were talking but it was proving to be challenging, especially now that Marc perked up at your presence. 

This is her? He playfully laughed. Steven, where have you been hiding this little nymph?

Steven wasn’t that guy, he would not be the guy caught staring at your breasts while you were showing him kindness and striking up a conversation by the punch bowl, like the nice girl he was sure you were, he would not, could not blow this chance with you. But God was it making him break a sweat at the effort. He tried to focus on some part of your face so that his gaze wouldn’t stray but then he got caught up in your eyes and the meticulous makeup you applied that accentuated the soft glow of your skin, trailing down to the perfect pink pout you wore tonight and-

She’s asking you a question, cabrón.

Ah, shit, he was not listening. Did you know he wasn’t listening? He thinks he’s ruined it now, for sure. His eyes betrayed his inner turmoil and panic, quickly making his whole demeanor tense which you picked up on with concern and asked again, “You sure you’re alright?” You ask as you move closer to him. He’s tall enough to see down your dress now and he quickly closes his eyes and inhales deeply. 

This is torture. There’s a promising pink flush gracing your cheeks when he opens his eyes to look down at you. The track changes, something with a heavier bass starting up.

Do not. Fuck. This up, Steven. She’s hot, and likes what she sees.

Sí, parece que le gustas, this might work. 

“Y-yeah, m’alright, more than actually,” he says, schooling his features into what he thinks is a coy smile but on Steven’s open and honest face just screams ‘I really like how close you’re standing next to me’. 

You’re perceptive, he will soon learn. You’ve actually noticed him gaping at you a few times you rush past the gift shop in your hurry to get to your meetings on time, but you never get the chance to stop and chat with the cute, tousled-looking man behind the counter. You’ve taken notice though, especially tonight, with his tight black pants about to bust at the seams. 

You’re smiling at him encouragingly, hoping Steven will catch on to your advances as you slowly lift your hand to finger at the lapels of his jacket, eyes slowly blinking up at him, looking over his face for a reaction. “I was just saying how it's a shame we don’t get to talk more at work,” you supply him with bits of your previous conversation. The other women who were watching this play out are scoffing at how obvious you’re laying it on for him, muttering bitterly amongst each other as they shift their attention elsewhere for the night. You have faith he’ll catch on, eventually. Hopefully. 

“Me, too, I-I know you must be busy though, Donna definitely would ‘ave my head if she saw me bein’ friendly with anyone on the clock. Bit crazy, that one.” He manages to get out even with your close proximity and finger touching him through his clothes. Steven was going to slowly lose his mind if you kept dragging your finger on his clothes, your nail pressing into the fabric scandalously. There’s no way he could be misinterpreting this anymore. 

Dude she wants you, stop fucking around. 

And then you’re leaning up to whisper to him and he can feel the heat of your breath hit the shell of his ear and your breasts graze his arm, hair slightly brushing against his face in your movement; he can feel his dick twitch in his too tight pants, and it sounds like you’re smiling around your words as you say, “I could use some air, care to join me, Captain Hook?” Pulling back to look at him with eyes he couldn’t say no to let alone form words around. Steven thinks he agreed to join you because the next thing he knew he was being led out the doors to the main gallery by his hand, trailing after you like a puppy. Maybe Marc jumped in for a second back there. He’d have to thank him later.

You don’t stop pulling him behind you, occasionally looking back to giggle at his expression, until you reach the bathrooms on the other side of the gallery. He didn’t notice how long you two were walking, taking the opportunity to zone out at your legs effortlessly floating in those damn clear heels and the gentle sway of your hips as you brazenly walked in front of him. 

Marc must have fronted again because he suddenly finds himself caging you in against the bathroom counter, standing in between your legs, hands spreading them as wide as they can in your obscenely short dress, as you sit between the sinks and you’re pulling him closer, closer, closer, until your lips meet in a hot, open mouth kiss. Steven’s hands are roving over your body, nonstop, from gripping your hips to squeezing your waist to ever so softly cupping your breast, and you moan into his mouth when he hesitantly swipes his thumb across your nipple through your dress. Your hands are in his hair, meeting slight resistance due to the product he’s used to tame his curls, his matching groans of desire echoing off the bathroom walls. You’re smiling into the kiss now, pulling back for air as you lean your head back giving Steven access to your neck which he happily attacks with his mouth, lightly nipping you in the process. 

So - you didn’t think you were gonna end up with your hand down Steven’s pants - or rather Steven’s pants hanging around his knees - but you’re okay with it, more than okay with it considering you unzipped them to begin with even though he had to pull back to look at you to make sure he wasn’t making a fool of himself. 

“O-oh, please, love,” he stutters out as you massage the head of his cock, thumb swiping over the slit. There was nothing you wanted more than to make Steven lose control in his stupid hot costume in the work bathrooms. He’s already breathing shakily, eyes rolling back as you work your fist up and down his cock, as you watch mesmerized, cataloging his face to memory. 

Ahh, is this how every work event is gonna go from now on? You guys hiring, Steven? 

Marc, we shouldn’t be here for this… As gorgeous as this little tinkerbell is

Steven tries to ignore the voices of his headmates as you continue to work him up, leaning forward to lick into your mouth partially to muffle his sounds and partially to not blow his load right there at the way you’re looking at him. He starts thrusting his hips into your hand, making you wetter just by watching him give in to his baser instincts.

“God, I’m not gonna last, love,” he whines out for you. 

“Good,” you purr against his mouth. 

His brow starts to furrow, and he looks up at you with a needy gaze as you pump your fist tighter, faster, your other hand reaching up to tug his hair back and he comes with a shout, eyes clenched tightly together and chest heaving. 

You’re still slowly gripping his limp dick as you both look down to see his spend all over your thighs, leaking from his tip, dripping down your hand. He shyly meets your eyes as he hums happily and reaches for the paper towel stack behind where you’re perched to clean up his mess. When he comes back to wipe the white ropes off your thighs, you’re already tasting him and his jaw drops open at the sight of you smiling mischievously around your finger. You end up taking the paper towel from his hand and cleaning yourself up because Steven’s brain seems to have short circuited - something you’re very smug about at the moment. He has to shake himself out of his stupor to properly tuck himself away, and voices his concern about you not getting your own happy ending. 

“Oh, we’re not done for the night, Hook,” you grin before pecking him and then gracefully hopping off the counter to stand pressed up against him. 

“You’re so bloody gorgeous,” he mutters in amazement.

Told you it would work, hermano.

Steven, I swear to God if you don’t take care of her, I will. 

Marc didn’t need to front anymore that night. 

Taglist: @dameronscopilot @unspokenmoon @romanarose @milkymoon2483 @soonknight @lucianadraven32 @xbellaxcarolinax @raven-rk @twwcs @bit-dodgy-innit @einno-arko @my-secret-shame-but-fanfiction @sadsatsumahead

[zelphin124]

DreamTale Short Story

This is the prize for the honorable mention, @cakesmelons from the SeasonTale Creative Challenge! Apologies it took so long to get to.

My writing commissions are still open! (If you can, please commission. I'm digging into emergency funds right now.)

Enjoy!

___________________________________

"He's not getting any better."

Killer paced outside the big black door, his hands squeezing his skull together. He was panicking, and he didn't know what to do.

Dust came out with a list of things the boss would need, but none of them were obtainable anytime soon.

Horror did his best to slave in the kitchen, but the boss would barely eat anything.

In fact, he had been sick for weeks. Nightmare couldn't get out of his bed without throwing a heap of coughs. The gang had never seen him like this before, and it worried them. It was so bad that all missions and plans were cancelled week after week. Even Killer started to get bored. But all of them were concerned for their boss.

"What are we going to do?" Horror was the most concerned about Nightmare out of the three. He barely ate and slept just like the boss, all to make sure he was okay.

"Nothing we have is working," Dust flipped through his list again. "Everything that we would need is out of stock in the AUs we've been to... we've stolen it all."

"So then we go to more AUs and get more medicine!" Killer hissed, stopping his pacing. "We find more of it, and give it to boss..."

"It's not working!" Horror cried. "He's just gotten worse..."

"We need blue bone fiber," Dust said. "But... no one has it."

"The last time I saw it was when we were fighting the Star Sanses," Killer sighed. "There's no way they would give some to us..."

There was a moment of silence as Nightmare hauled a dozen or so coughs that echoed inside his room. Each cough hurt the trio's souls worse and worse. Although Nightmare could sometimes be cruel and unnerving, he was still their boss... and he took them in and cared for them.

"What if they did give it to us?" Horror proposed.

Dust's face looked like he just got hit by a baseball bat. "The heck you mean, 'what if'? They would never!"

"They might," Horror argued. "This is Nightmare we are talking about... didn't Dream have some sort of attachment to him?"

"Duh, they're brothers," Killer rolled his eyes as his soul flickered. Black tears started to drip down his skull. "But that was like, 500 years ago-"

"But what if he still cared for Nightmare?" Horror continued. "Surely, we could convince him to give us some medicine to help his sick brother."

"And give away the info that he's deathly ill to our enemies? Are you out of your mind?!" Dust hissed, throwing his clipboard on the ground. "Think with your brain for once!"

Killer pulled on Dust's shoulder, holding him back. "Actually..." he put his phalanges to his chin. "We could... manipulate Dream."

"We've tried that before and it didn't work," Horror shook his head. "I say we tell him upfront we need his help."

"You two are insane," Dust pushed Killer away from him. "They. Would. Not. Help. Us."

"Dream tends to be more deceivable when Swap and Ink aren't with him..." Killer smirked. "And he goes to visit that weird stump often."

"Maybe we could catch him there..." Horror added. "And we should be honest with what we need."

"Eh, who needs honesty when we have knives?" Killer smirked, pulling one out of his pocket and twirling it before walking away. "Come on, I'm sure he'll be there tonight!"

Dust's head bellowed with smoke coming out of it before he shouted in frustration, following after Killer. He seemed to be in an argument with himself again, despite him claiming it was his brother.

Horror sighed, hoping beyond hope that this would work. He creaked open the door to his boss' chambers.

Nightmare's eyes were glazed over as he stared at the ceiling. His hands were properly folded across his chest, and he looked unnaturally gray. He didn't have enough energy to sit up when he coughed, which slowly suffocated him. Thankfully, Killer sat him up earlier when he was asleep, but it only helped a little.

Horror mouthed some comforting words to his boss and to himself before he closed the door and bounded after the others. This has to work... his chest ached with anxiety. I don't know what I would do if it doesn't...

* * *

The gentle ray of sunshine looked so dim in the dark clouds. His light wasn't as bright when he stared at the stump in a forgotten land. Oftentimes, he would mutter words unbeknownst to anyone else. Sometimes, onlookers could catch him crying.

Dust had difficulty keeping Killer quiet as they sneaked up to Dream. It took everything in Killer to not giggle from excitement. The grin on his face was one of a girl getting to buy her favorite doll.

Dust hated it.

Horror thought it was amusing.

The more Killer smiled and laughed, the most Dust threatened to push him out in the open, away from the bushes. Horror encouraged Dust not to. They were close to sneaking up on Dream. One wrong move, and their plans might be screwed.

"I'm sorry, mother," The voice of Dream stopped them in their tracks. Expect for Killer's giggling. Apparently, everything was funny to him.

"I am doing my best to protect the balance, but it's hard..." Dream sighed. "People don't have hope anymore, and it weakens me..."

Before Horror could stop Dust, he pushed the laughing Sans out into the open, cursing at him.

Dream spun around, wiping his face as he observed Killer. His eyes widened, and he summoned his bow.

"Woah woah woah," Killer glared at Dust in the bushes before slowly approaching the ray of sunshine. "No need to shoot that, I'm not here to fight."

"Then what are you here to do, Killer?" Dream glared, extending his bow with each step Killer took.

"Hey can we not just talk? Not everything's gotta be about fighting ya know?" Killer bowed playfully, one of his hands gripping a knife behind him. "It's not like I'm going-"

"What do you want, Killer?"

Killer shrugged and sighed like a kid before standing up straight. "I know you still care about your brother."

Dream's grip on his bow loosened. He seemed taken aback. "W-What do you mean?"

"Come on now, I know you still spare him in battles. I see how you fight him; I see how you hold back."

"He's taking too long..." Dust whispered. "We need that blue bone fiber fast... Nightmare skipped his other medicine."

Horror shifted uncomfortably, wondering if he should go up and be honest, unlike Killer's stalling.

"It doesn't matter if I hold back or not," Dream sighed. "I still will stop you!"

"If you wanted to stop us, you would have already," Killer shrugged. "Now, I've come to make an offer. One that... I don't think you can refuse."

"What offer is he talking about?" Dust hissed.

Horror shrugged. He too, had no idea.

Dream glanced over at the bushes where Dust and Horror were hiding. His eyes narrowed in suspicion, but he lowered his bow. "What... offer?"

"Tell you what, Dreamy," Killer took another step up the hill. "How about we end this lil war of ours? Let's make a deal, and neither of us have to suffer."

"What's the catch?" Dream asked.

Horror couldn't wait any longer, Killer was taking too long. He sprang up from the bush and ran over to where Killer was. "We need blue bone fiber!"

Dream took a step back in surprise, before narrowing his eyes at the two. "Let me guess, Dust is with you too?"

"Idiots," Dust hissed as he casually trailed behind.

Dream shook his head and backed away. "Nuh uh, I ain't getting ambushed by you three-"

"We are not here to fight, Dream," Horror sighed. "Nightmare is sick... very sick... it's why you haven't seen us."

"We need the blue bone fiber to heal him, stat." Dust added.

Horror watched the conflicting emotions swirl in the sunshine's eyes. So he does still care, huh.

"That... makes sense," Dream whispered.

"I was getting there, guys!" Killer rolled his eyes. "I was striking a deal!"

"Nightmare wouldn't agree to a deal without his permission!" Dust barked.

"To save his life, he might!"

"That's not-"

"Boys," Dream interrupted them. "Look, I understand the dire of your situation. I can give Nightmare the blue bone fiber that I have... on one condition."

"Anything," Horror answered before the others could speak.

"I will go give him the fiber."

"Ain't no way," Dust shook his head. "Boss would not be happy about that."

Killer laughed. "So, you can kill him with your positivity?"

"I wouldn't kill him," Dream sighed. "I just... wish to see him again. If he's not so busy trying to kill me... maybe he will just hear me out..."

"You can give it to him," Horror answered. "Anything to save his life."

Dream stared at Horror for a long time before he smiled softly. "I'm glad he has you guys. You care about him... You risked coming to me to save him, it shows a lot. Thank you for... taking care of him all this time."

"Oh whatever," Dust sighed. "Can you give him the blue bone fiber already?"

"I will go grab it, and I'll meet you at the castle." Dream replied.

"Well hurry up," Dust hissed as he dragged Killer by the arm. "Your brother doesn't have long."

* * *

"He's in there."

Dream nodded softly before following Horror into Nightmare's room. The sunshine winced as he came in direct contact with negativity. It didn't slow his pace, however. He had a mission to save his brother, regardless if the murder trio liked it or not.

Nightmare's hands shook as Dream got closer. "What... are you... doing here..."

Horror found it intriguing that Dream remained silent as he crushed the blue bone fiber in the bowl. He sat on the edge of the bed and slowly fed it to Nightmare, the negative unable to resist.

"What did you... do..."

"Blue bone fiber," Dream answered his brother. "It will heal you within the next two days or so."

Boss seemed bewildered, and his eyes barely opened as he glanced at Dream. "W... why?"

"I..." Dream paused, wiping his teary eyes again. "I don't want to fight anymore. I miss my brother... I just want to have peace with you..."

Nightmare's breath was shaky as he tried to swallow the remaining fiber. "You... missed me?"

"I've always missed you," Dream sighed. "I never liked fighting you. I just did so you would stop killing people..."

"I..."

"But that doesn't matter right now," Dream continued. "I want you to get better, and I want you to recover and be okay. I care about you..."

Horror watched as Nightmare's weak hand barely touched Dream's.

"... I... care about you... too..."

Dream had to hold in his positive feelings of reassurance and resolution as he grasped Nightmare's hand. "I'll be here for you, brother."

Nightmare coughed again. "Go... now..."

Dream nodded and squeezed his brother's hand one more time before stepping towards the door, Horror following close behind. He couldn't help but notice a small smile on his boss' face before shutting the door. He sighed softly as he glanced at Dream. "Thank you, I don't know how to repay you."

The widest smile covered Dream's face as he brushed his arms and cried happy tears for the first time in a while.

"No, thank you."

[thelampisaflashlight]

Cryptid Biology Season 2: Litha

[Previous entry: Here. Edit: I legitimately forgot to write the easiest part of this entire thing, the description. Rain helps Bea set up for the abbey's summer solstice bonfire party and reaps the rewards of a hard day's work. I don't know how Rain wound up the way he is, but he's not changing anytime soon.] Below the cut.

It's hot as Satan's balls out -a misnomer, considering the Morningstar's junk is stuck in a frozen lake for all of eternity, or at least until the end of days- and Rain wishes more than anything that he was in the lake instead of lugging tables and chairs across the sandy shore, but at the very least he can use his magic to keep himself cool.

Bea, on the other hand, is positively drenched in sweat despite having stripped down to what is absolutely necessary... which Rain has to say is a LOT more clothing than he expected to see the groundskeeper in on a day like this.

She's dressed in a bright, electric yellow work shirt with "MINISTRY STAFF" emblazoned on the back.

It's supposed to protect her skin from UV rays, as is the floppy bucket hat she has on, but Rain can't help but find the whole get-up a little silly.

The shorts she's wearing doesn't make it much better either, to be honest; A pair of white swim trucks with multi-colored flowers splattered across them without any real rhyme or reason to the pattern.

It makes him feel a little nauseous trying to make sense of it.

Does blue come after orange and blue? Is red and yellow before purple and brown?

Why are some of the flowers brown?

Are there brown flowers?

...He files that question away for later, when he has his phone with him... or Mountain.

He'll ask Mountain later.

Then again...

"Are there brown flowers?" he asks, eliciting a grunt from the groundskeeper, who is preoccupied trying to make sure that the tables are level.

"Are there brown flowers?" he asks again, setting down another one of the folding tables, "Or is that just not a thing?"

Bea pauses, thinking.

"Ya know, I'm not sure." she says after a moment, reaching into the pocket of her shorts before clicking her tongue and looking across the lake at her cabin, "A question for later... or Mountain. Just ask Mountain. He knows more about flowers than I do."

Rain snorts.

"Glad to know the gardens are in your capable hands." he jokes, and Bea flips him the bird, crouching back down to lock the legs of the table in place, "So..."

"Mn?"

"Are you going to come to the party with anyone special tonight? You know, since it's the solstice and all."

Bea looks over her shoulder at him.

"Huh? Why would I do that?" she questions, turning back to the stubborn latch, "No, I'm staying in my cabin with the curtains drawn, and pretending y'all aren't out here throwing a rager..."

Rain blinks.

"...You're not going to come to the bonfire at all? Even though you're setting everything up?"

The groundskeeper shakes her head.

"I plan on being in my bed by the time things kick off tonight," she says, "sorry to disappoint."

"Mountain doesn't mind?" he wonders aloud, causing Bea to make a choking sound and look at him like he's sprouted another head, "What? I just figured, since you guys have something going on-"

"I dunno who said what about what, but Mountain and I aren't..." she throws her hands in the air, "...We don't have 'something going on', unless you count having a couple, uh, adult sleepovers, but it's not like that... We're just friends who fuck occasionally."

"Oh." Rain lets this information sink in, "And... And, again, Mountain doesn't mind? Just being friends? 'Cause he... You know how he is."

Bea turns to face him head on, arms crossed.

"You're asking a lot of bold questions here, water boy, you wanna cease the inquisition for a minute?" she huffs, "Look... Mount and me, we're both adults, and we've talked about 'us' before, enough to know that's not how either of us feel about what we've got going on. If he and I did have something going on, I wouldn't have fucked you that time."

Rain's ears twitch, and his face heats up.

"I... I mean, here... we're all pretty open and..." he mumbles, rubbing the back of his neck, "I just assumed..."

"You know that they say about assuming things, Rainy, it makes an ass out of you and me." Bea chastises, then sighs, "I'm... just not looking for that sort of thing right now, and, like I told Mountain, I don't want to tie anyone down if I don't know if that's actually what I... what I want."

"It's... It's complicated, and I..." she frowns, crossing her arms, "I don't want to jump into a relationship on a whim, or because we had sex one time... I like Mountain, don't get me wrong, he's a good guy and he makes a lot of people happy, he's a loving and devoted partner from what I've seen, and a very attentive lover... but I'm not ready for that kind of thing."

"...Romance?" Rain asks.

"Love in general." she says, sticking her hands in her pockets, "Look, I really don't know how to... words. I'm not good at articulating this shit, I just know I don't like Mount like that. He's got a fuckin' good heart and a ten out of ten dick, but he's not for me."

Rain snorts.

"What?"

"Ten out of ten dick."

Bea rolls her eyes.

"You've seen it, you know what I mean."

"I do, I do..." the ghoul places a hand on his chest and stares out over the water wistfully, before turning back to the woman in front of him, "Still though, you should come to the party. You could just post up by the fire and play around with it. That's what all the fire elementals will be doing, might as well have someone around to supervise them and make sure they don't go ham..."

"Nah, I don't need more work..." Bea waves her hand dismissively, then looks at the ground, toeing a rock with her shoe, "...But, ya know, I might need a little help falling asleep, wat with all the noise and shit..."

Rain stands up a little straighter, taken off guard, "O-Oh?"

"The party starts in two hours, and the siblings are going to be swinging by any minute now to take care of the decorations, so..."

"Miss. Milne, are you propositioning this humble servant of the lord?" Rain raises his eyebrows, putting on a posh accent, laughing when Bea swats at him, "Okay, okay, I won't tease... We should hurry though, because if I have to endure another second seeing you in that outfit, I'm going to throw myself in the lake."

"Asshole."

"I guess we could try that hole this time."

Bea takes her hat off and hits him with it.

"Ow! Ow! I'll behave, I promise!"

"I have no idea why everyone thinks you're such a sweet, shy man, you're honestly the worst." Bea pouts, putting her hat back on.

"Who says that?" Rain asks, following Bea along the trail leading around the lake towards her cabin, "...Don't tell me you've been looking things up about us online, haven't you?"

"Not really, no." she says, "I mean, I looked up Sister Imperator once."

"You did??"

She nods.

"Obviously, I didn't find more than what anyone else already knows, but, I mean... Look at me." she gestures at herself, "Look at where I am. Do I look like I deserve to be here? Clearly, that woman has other plans for me, and, fuck, if I get to keep living like this in the meantime, I think I'll be okay if she... ya know..."

Rain bites his cheek.

"No, I don't know." he furrows his brow, "Bea, are you... Is anyone... How should I say this...? Is someone keeping you here against your will? Are you in danger?"

Without hesitation, Bea parts her lips and says a single, "No."

And for a moment, Rain wants to believe that's true.

But even as they ascend the porch, leaving their shoes outside the door as they slip inside the cabin, hands peeling away more clothing, Rain can't help but feel like he's trailing after a ghost.

Bea seems... weirdly resigned to her fate.

Detached.

He tries not to dwell on it, not right now, not when she's pulling him towards her bed, tugging at his belt like a leash.

She bumps the mattress and tumbles backwards, giving a soft gasp as Rain takes advantage of the undignified pose to slide her shorts off, revealing pink lace.

Her shirt comes off with a bit more of a challenge, the long sleeves catch as he tries to free her from it, and he growls his frustrations into her lips the moment its gone.

"You don't make this easy, do you?" he pouts, purring when she crooks her fingers under his chin, scratching at his beard for a moment before running her fingers through his hair, massaging his scalp a bit, "...I'll forgive you just this once."

Sitting upright, Rain straddles Bea's hips before kneeling down to kiss between her breasts; They're small, less than a handful, but they're soft and have little freckles dusted across them that are fun to trace with his eyes...

He's peeked at them more than he should probably admit to, even before he got to see them up close and personal, but given the harried nature of their encounter in the lake, Rain hadn't had much time to admire them.

He gives them a tender squeeze, bunching up the baby pink bralette in his hands, and watches as Bea bites her lip to contain a squeak.

"I like this." he says, thumbing over her nipples through the fabric, "Your fashion sense might be questionable at best, but you do know how to pick out some lovely lingerie..."

"I didn't..." Bea arches into his touch, "...I didn't pick it out."

"Oh~? A gift then? From who?" he gives a slightly harsher press, "Who should I be thanking for this?"

Bea writhes beneath him.

"...Don't wanna say..."

"A secret admirer then?" he lowers his head back down, licking one of the rosy buds, "Not Mountain then..."

Bea shakes her head, whining when Rain nips at her chest.

"N-Not Mountain..."

"He is more of a natural sort..." Rain hums, blowing a puff of air out of his mouth, making her shiver as his unnaturally cold breath wicks the saliva he's left behind, "He likes a bit of hair..."

Bea shifts her legs and Rain raises himself up so she can slide them out from beneath him, moving so that she can sit up in his lap.

"So do I..." she admits, gliding her hand over the trail of coarse hair that runs down his stomach, pawing at the soft pudge there, "...Well?"

"Well?" Rain repeats.

"Are you going to fuck me or what?"

Rain grins devilishly.

"Oh, Honey Bea, I'm going to ruin you."

.

.

.

"Anyone know where Rain got to?" Dew asks, looking around at the gathered partygoers, "He sent me a text, like, ten minutes ago saying he needed five more minutes, and then another one that looks like a keysma-...Well, well, well, look who it is."

Rain lowers his head apologetically, still in the process of redressing himself as he strolls up to the other ghouls, shoes untied and his fly undone, "Sorry, sorry... Got carried away with... stuff."

Dew hands him a cup of cider, "Does 'stuff' have a name, or are you going to keep us in suspense?"

"My lips are sealed." he draws a line across his mouth.

"Yeah, but your pants aren't."

"Aw, fishsticks..."

"More like, fishdick, bro, I can see your pubes!" Swiss chortles from nearby, "You going commando, or did you leave your panties with 'stuff'??"

Rain does a little hop as he buttons his fly.

"You guys can tease me all you want, I got what I wanted out of the evening, here's to you maybe, MAYBE, getting the same, my friends." he raises his cup in a toast and downs his drink in one go, "Guh, fuck..."

"Gentleman," he salutes, "I bid you adieu."

Dew and Swiss watch Rain saunter away, scoffing as he plops himself down in one of the chairs on the beach overlooking the lake.

"He's always so weird post nut, I swear to fucking Satan..." Dew mutters, "...He seems like he had a good time with whoever stuff was though."

"Yeup." Swiss sips his beer, "...Where do you suppose Mountain is?"

"Huh, now that you mention it, he's missing, too... I guess he's hooking up with someone, too... Man, it seems like everyone's getting laid but us."

"...I might have a solution to that." Swiss says, side eyeing Dew before sliding his hand down his back.

"What are you-Oh. Oh-ho-ho~"

[reallyromealone]

Hellooo! Can I request a Bonten with a teenage son reader where they forget his birthday but he doesn't say anything because he knows his dads are busy. Like how they react when they realize and maybe how they make it up to him. Anyway have a good day or night! I really love your work and totally don't stalk your blog everyday👀

Of course! Let's goooo

And I realize more and more how many of you wait for me to post stuff

Well I'm taking a break from writing kinktober so I got maximum capacity focus on fluff

Warning: male reader, angst to fluff, teenage reader

♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️

(Name) felt his heart sink to his stomach as he read the text from Kakucho 'wont be home tonight, we will see you in the morning' With a 'love you' sent after.

Today was his birthday.

His 16th birthday.

For the past two months they had been hyping it up for him, getting his hopes up.

Only to forget.

He should have expected it though.

They are really busy.

They don't have time to stop and throw a stupid party for him, he didn't even want a party though.

He just wanted a day with them.

They told him how they were gonna do fun stuff he enjoyed but (name) supposed that wasn't happening anytime soon.

"Better do my homework, not like I have plans anyways"

(Name) didn't tell his dad's they forgot, not wanting to seem whiny or anything but after a week he just decided to move on despite the pain in his chest.

"Have you noticed (name) seems a little down lately?" Mochi asked Takeomi who grunted in agreement "he's acting like someone killed his dog or something" takeomi commented as their teenage son did his homework quietly, bags under his eyes.

"What day is it again?" Ran asked as he checked the calendar on the first of two fridges, the men barely have been home to check the family plans.

"Oh it's (date)" Kakucho said as he came in to grab a bottle of water, the others watching ran freeze as he looked at a circled date on the calendar "...shit"

"What?" The others looked at the calendar and held an expression of guilt before glancing at their kid.

Oh god.

They forgot his birthday.

And they hyped it up so much!

Just to crush that hope.

(Name) never asked for much, even as a baby he only really wanted quality time and got them to hang out with him sometimes.

God they felt like monsters.

No wonder (name) was so down!

"We have to make it up to him!"

"Get the others, meet in the home meeting room" and with that one half of the dad squad went and collected the rest, glancing at the teenager.

"Why didn't he say anything?" Koko asked as they sat at the table and Sanzu scoffed at him "seriously? Somehow we managed to make the most polite kid in the world, he would never call us out on forgetting"

"How the fuck do we make this up to him? We literally crushed his spirit!"

"We will figure something out!"

The men walked into the living room where (name) sat, still doing his homework and God did they feel like assholes.

"Oi! Come with us" Rindō said seriously and (name) looked confused as he walked to his dad's, handed his shoes "what's going on?" (Name) asked softly as he was brought to the expensive car "don't worry about it kiddo" Kakucho said patting his back as they drove off.

(Name) was confused, though never scared.

He never had a reason to be scared of his dad's.

Even when Sanzu was in a drug crash.

They drove through Tokyo till they made it to a diner.

He hadn't been to the diner in ages, it's where they would take turns taking him as a small child when they would collect him from preschool and parts of grade school.

Some of his fondest memories were at this diner.

And Sanzu would never admit it but he would always share his cheesecake with little (name), making him promise to keep it a secret that he shared.

Mikey was the same with his food, though less secretive.

"...what's going on?" (Name) asked softly and Ran sighed "we're sorry"

"Sorry for what?"

"Forgetting your birthday"

(Name) very obviously closed up and mumbled "it's fine, you're all busy"

"It's not fine, we built it up to be great and crushed your hopes, this is the beginning of us making it up"

And they kept to their word, taking (name) anywhere he wanted to go.

And they promised themselves and (name) to not do that to him again.

They didn't want him to face the disappointment they faced countless times before from their own families.

[fanfic-the-wish-your-heart-makes]

Revenge Can Hurt More Than the Person It's Aimed at - An Angsty Nygmobblepot x Reader Hurt/Comfort Fix-it Fic

Chapter 1: Late Messages and Phone Calls

(I made a cover for this, whaat? With text messages from the fic edited onto flip phones? Yes, I did 😄🤗)

Word count: 1757

Reader: gender-neutral (no pronouns)

Spoilers: season 3 episode 12 (& in later chapters for at least S03 E15) Stop reading here if you want to avoid the spoilers :)

Plot: After Ed left his position, seemingly due to Oswald's love for him, the mayor's left with no one but his other best friend, you, who comforts him as best as possible, all while Oswald tries not to lose you as well - or accidentally tell you that he's in love with not just Ed but you.

Meanwhile Ed hopes to destroy Oswald from within, making him doubt his own perception by playing evil tricks on him.

At least he tries to do so. There's still you, who he's kept in the dark so that he could hurt Oswald unexpectedly.

However, he'll soon ask himself whether it's worth seeing you hurt by Oswald's poor state.

Warnings: canon betrayal (including gaslighting & intimidation) & poor mental state, a lot of angst (Ed's hate for Oswald)

Author's note: I originally just wanted to write some comfort for Oswald for this episode and well, Ed needed to be there for the original hurt to be there, so I made it Nygmobs x reader 🥰

Also on AO3

_____________________________________

Ed had chosen not to tell you his plans. You would only confront Oswald, ask him whether he had truly killed Isabella, acceleratung the process and taking away from Oswald's suffering, and oh, how Ed wanted him to suffer!

He'd tell you in time, when he had captured Oswald. Once you knew that Oswald had killed her, you wouldn't like him anymore, and then Ed could take Oswald's life.

You'd be sadder about his betrayal of Ed than about his death. After all, Ed's relationship with Oswald's was just as good as yours to the mayor, so wouldn't your reaction be the same?

Ed didn't know for sure and it was plaguing him. He didn't want to hurt you.

Everyone you love gets hurt sooner or later, he heard a familiar voice inside his head whisper. It had been piping up more over these last weeks, at least more than it had when everything had been alright. When Oswald's concern had been a lie.

What a pretty lie it had been: spending time with his best friends, going on dates with Kris-Isabella, even before her, life had been like a daydream.

Not anymore. Oswald just had to go and destroy everything!

Ed balled his hands into fists. He had to be quiet, otherwise his whole plan might blow up.

Checking his muted phone one last time, he read your message from before again:

No, I won't be at the manor tonight. Why do you ask? Are you coming back?

Or just for a visit? You can call us anytime. Or just me.

Whatever it is that made you leave, I'm sure we can find a way to make things work.

No, we can't, he thought grimly, when a new message popped up that made his heart clench:

If this is about Isabella, it's okay too.

What is it about her? he thought alarmed. Did you know about her murder?!

A new message appeared:

Don't let what Oswald said bring you down. Even if you only knew her for a short time, it's alright to still grieve.

Did he still grieve? Ever since turning his ideas into plans he had thought about her less and less. All that was on his mind was his revenge, Oswald and you.

Thinking of: he started typing but then figured it would be best to wait until later. That way he could stall for time, make you expect less from him, only seeing the grieving boyfriend.

He was about to close his phone when he saw one last message:

Can we meet sometime? I want to make sure you're alright. Plus I haven't seen a friend for a long time.

He closed the phone. He hadn't seen you in too long indeed. And it was all Oswald's fault. He stood ready in the Van Dahl mansion near the switch for his illusion. Oswald would pay.

Until the finale however, there would be many more a step.

For the ones tomorrow, he'd text you this evening. He was already thinking of the phrasing.

_________________

After Oswald's encounter with what he was sure was his late father's ghost, he wanted nothing more than to be held by the two people he loved the most.

Unfortunately he was so shaken that it took him a minute to even walk to the bathroom to splash water onto his face.

That didn't help much and so he just stood there, frozen on the spot for half an hour, both of his legs stiffened uncomfortably, until he finally had to move to shake the feeling back into them.

He dialled your number first, not wanting to alienate Ed and knowing that you had already been ready to comfort him in the last weeks, without even knowing why exactly he was so sad.

The only thing you knew was that it had to have to do with Ed, who had resigned from his position as chief of staff and left the manor to live elsewhere.

When you asked, Oswald had merely said that it didn't matter, that it was criminals' business you needn't worry about.

You worried about it. Just a few weeks ago, you had believed Edward, Oswald and you to be be an inseparable trio, but now it was weeks since you had last seen the brown-haired man.

Oswald worried as well. After calling you four times, he decided to ignore his fear of annoying Ed, and called him. Twice. Then he waited until the hour was early instead of late to call again. Ed would simply have to see it as the emergency that it was.

After all, reciprocating Oswald's feelings or not, Ed still treasured their friendship...didn't he?

He had looked so shocked when he had heard Oswald confess his love, his hand raised so defensively.

But then in the library..."You're my best friend as well, Oswald" resonated in his head. If only he was more than that.

_________________

As soon as Oswald had gone to the bathroom, Ed had quickly gotten himself and the paid actor out of the mansion, and texted you when he was alone again.

I'm free tomorrow but after that I'm not available at all. Can you keep the day free?

He knew for a fact that you could. Lately Oswald had been clearing your schedule so that he could be comforted by you at any time.

You responded soon after:

Yes, I have the day off

When are you free?

Ed replied immediately:

I don't know when I'll be free yet, but maybe early on. He'd try to choose a time that would keep you away from Oswald for as long as possible.

He could tell you tomorrow that he didn't have time in the morning. Or for lunch or in the afternoon and so on and so on. Most importantly: you wouldn't be there to support Oswald when Ed's plan to make him freak out on Margaret Hearst's live show came into action.

The phone ringing mere seconds after Ed texted you made him light up at seeing that you were obviously waiting for him to respond.

Ok, I could always wait for you.

Ed smiled at your eagerness to see him. Your meeting would be wholesome. Unlike Oswald's bad, selfish possessiveness.

Wonderful! I hope he can spare you for a few seconds, I've missed you ;) Ed typed with a similar jealousy, not realizing his own hypocrisy...and not thinking about the hope that wink would elicit in you.

_________________

A wink... Had Ed mistyped? Edward Nygma, the man who sometimes sent comically formal messages? The man who had once asked whether this was "an adequate symbol for philandering via text" when he had dated Isabella?

In the last days his texts had lacked any trace of humour. Maybe he was feeling better.

I probably shouldn't interpret anything into a single letter. Maybe he tried to write a smiley and missed.... but he'd told Oswald once that he tried to proofread all of his messages just in case. Maybe he hadn't been wearing his glasses...which he almost always wore. Maybe he was...maybe he had had tears in his eyes?

Your heart ached at the thought. Seeing him so heartbroken after Isabella's death was horrible, add to that not seeing him at all, not even receiving written riddles...

You felt with him...and yet at the same time there was that insistent piece of jealousy, which was questioning why he would think more about a dead woman he had known for little more than a week than about his two best friends.

Of course you understood that he wasn't merely mourning the librarian but also his chance at a new chance of love. So despite it not feeling right on first thought, you'd let him grieve for as long as it helped him.

Just because there was someone else in love with him didn't mean that he was considering to give them a chance. It would be selfish of you to assume that.

Even if you were almost certain that you weren't just assuming. Before he had met Isabella, you could have sworn that there had been something else than friendship between him, Oswald and you.

He'd give each of you compliments with a lot more admiration than necessary, throw admiring glances your ways and lean towards the two of you as if he was being pulled in by a magical force.

Perhaps you were just projecting your love for them onto him; maybe he had only been beaming with joy because he treasured this friendships, which you definitely did as well.

It could be that he only got so close because he didn't understand the idea of personal space...even if he had once made a very hurtful jab at a politician who had stepped too close during an argument.

Still, maybe he just didn't have any previous examples of good friendship to base his behavior on.

When you thought about these things individually, the chance of him having had a crush on Oswald or you didn't seem big and there was almost always an excuse, but adding all the looks, compliments, leans, touches, smiles and talk of fate together, you couldn't help but think about your secret hope: that he had been, maybe even was, in love with you and Oswald.

Then the day he had handed in his resignation, you had been afraid that you'd lose him, that it had maybe just been living together and that he'd forget about you once he no longer saw you.

Yet he proved you otherwise when he texted you after leaving the manor, explaining that he needed time away from anywhere he had been with Isabella and that he hoped you would be alright without him.

He asked a lot about that, about whether you were doing okay, whether he could do anything for you.

What he didn't ask about was Oswald, at least not beyond inquieries of how he was doing, which only proved to you that something bad had happened between them: otherwise Ed would have already heard from Oswald himself and Oswald wouldn't constantly ask you about Ed.

It seemed a hopeless case. You should let go of it already. He and Oswald didn't even talk anymore.

Just then your cellphone lit up. Ed had sent you a new message:

I've really missed you.

You could almost hear his voice, low and comforting.

I've missed you too, you wrote back. Oh, how you still loved him!

Missed you a *lot*, you added.

Author's note:

To be continued.

If you have any comfort regarding this episode and the ones before it, please share, seeing Oswald so down was very hard for me to watch and still hurts after writing this! 🥺😓

And of course let me know what you think of this, and let me know if you want to be tagged :)

Chapter 2->

[fe-fictions]

Can you write a Felix one where Byleth is sitting in bed reading over papers or something and he just curls up with her like a cat? I have this headcanon that Felix can be super touchy-feely when he’s tired or lonely, even if he’d never admit it lol

(Touchy feely Felix needs that love ;;;___;;;)

You beat Felix to bed that night, a rare occurrence considering how demanding your schedule could be. The duke would make it a habit to be in bed at a certain time, however he was usually exhausted when he did. So your being in bed before him meant he was likely ensnared in some duchy-related nonsense that was going to make him even more tired than usual.

The reunification and repair of the territories was brutal and difficult; naturally you were both stretched thin.

So it makes sense that, when Felix finally did drag himself to bed, he came in, crawled under the sheets, and rested his head squarely on your lap, pushing away the papers that had taken up space there.

“I’m still reviewing those, dear.” You murmur, recovering the stack and setting it at your side instead. He grunts, but makes no attempt to move.

You smile softly, resting your hand in his hair and gently taking the hair tie out.

“Long day?”

“I hate almost all the people I work with.”

“I know.” You laugh softly, “I suppose they were somehow more grating today than usual?”

“If they aren’t kissing my ass, they’re doing everything they can to undermine my work, take credit for any of the successes I pull from the ashes of their corrupt policies, and drain as much money and resources that they can to hoard for themselves rather than give it to the people who need it. Why are nobles so…”

“Not noble?” You muse, stroking his hair to soothe your poor, ruffled tomcat. Felix huffed, pressing into your lap and throwing his arms around you lazily.

“They’re bastards.”

“Well, they can’t get you here.” You promised, “I’ll run them off if they try.”

“They won’t; they know they can just harass me, tomorrow.”

“Just say the word, and I’ll accompany you to a meeting and put them in their place.”

“Thanks, By.” He sighed again, sounding awfully tired. It did make you feel bad for him. If only you could banish the people who would make his life so difficult. Then it would be far easier for him to be happier.

“Get some rest; I’ll put the candle out once I finish with these.” You said, brushing your hand along his cheek before you returned to the paperwork.

Felix remained rooted in place, snuggled up to you as close as he possibly could. It proved a small challenge, having a grown man dozing in your lap, but you would never dream of telling him not to. He was so peaceful, wrapped up in your arms. There was no place he’d rather be, and quite frankly, no other place you wanted him to be.

His breathing slowed while you worked, absentmindedly running your fingers through his hair over and over, occasionally shifting to stroke his back or hold his hand. He didn’t respond when you played with his fingers, but he would never have stopped you; it was his favorite place in the world, surrounded by your warmth.

Eventually, the workload eased, and you were able to set aside the paperwork until later. You put out the light, and gently shifted so that Felix could be better settled into your embrace.

Felix was able to pull back and let you settle under the covers. You had just enough time to put your head on the pillow before Felix engulfed you in his arms. He buries his face in your chest, with absolutely no plans to go anywhere, anytime soon.

You click your tongue, wrapping your arms around him with a shake of your head.

“Needy tonight, aren’t we?”

“Shut up.” It was muffled in your night dress, but you couldn’t help but laugh.

“Sweet dreams, honey.”

“...You, too.”

[densi-obsessed]

Honestly devastated by the news tonight I knew that the end was coming but just did not expect this. I know I’ve been a little inactive on this blog. I had some personal things go down but I’m gonna try to be more active again for the remainder of the show (and beyond just bc it’s ending doesn’t mean there’s still not fics to write 😉) Thanks to everyone who welcomed me to the fandom and for all the amazing fics and GIFs everyone made! I know nobody is planning on stopping anytime soon but I just wanted to show some gratitude bc I know this is tough news for all of us ❤️

[sunnyie-eve]

Deserve Love || Oblivious

Paring: Prince Paul (Catherine the Great 2019) x Original female character

Word Count: 2924

Summary: Lillia just wants out of an arrange marriage and just wants Paul to be with someone who isn't going behind his back

Warnings: arrange marriages, hidden feelings, jealousy, hinted SA, angst

Last: Childhood Friends | Next: First Love

"Is your fiancé coming tonight?" Paul asks as we sit near each other. "I don't know. He'll probably be with some girl being too busy to show up. Or show up and find one to leave with." I explain as I write to my father. "He has you yet gets with other women?" Paul asks. "Yes because we aren't in love and I don't see us ever falling in love." I look over at him. "Then why marry you?" He scoffs. "I don't know. He mother wants a grandchild... But I don't plan of having sex with him anytime soon or ever. What can I do for him to call off the wedding?" I stop what I was writing. "Why are you asking me?" He raises an eyebrow. "Because your my friend. Also you don't want me to marry him." I explain. "Stop pretending to be interested in him. Tell him stop his affairs or you will leave him... We know he won't stop. Or find someone to have an affair with so he won't want to marry you."

"I don't pretend to like him, I tried that, and who the hell would I have an affair with?" I answer each thing. "Peter..." He gives me a look. "Why that look?" I cross my arms. "I see the way he looks at you." He gets up walking over to me. "Doesn't mean I like him back." I go back to writing. "Do you like anyone who's not me?" He tilts my chin up. "I never said I liked you in that way." I look back down. "You did when we were kids." He laughs. "You mean when we were eight? Ten/eleven years ago?" I look up giving him a look. "You never stated you stopped." He leans down on the table. "Fine, I stopped like you a long time ago." I look him in the eyes but he smiles, "That's a lie." I huff getting out of my seat. "What do you what from me, Paul?" I ask annoyed. "Just for you to admit you still like me." He stands up taking a step closer to me.

"Paul, I'm getting married and you will be soon too." I grab my things but he stops me. "Do you really not love me anymore?" He gives me a sad look. "Why should I answer when you don't say anything straight forward?" I ask him but he keeps quiet. "I'll always love you in some way Paul. In what ways? I'll never say." I leave the room. When I get to my living area I see Andrei waiting for me. "I've been waiting for you. Where have you been?" He asks as I walk in. "Around trying to write to my father. Why are you here?" I ask placing the stuff down on the table. "I wanted to see my lovely fiancé." He takes me by my hand giving me a kiss. "Why are you marrying me? You don't love me." I ask walking away from him. "My father wants me to. Wants me to settle down." He rolls his eyes. "And since my mother promised, I'm the only option?"

"I know I'm not your pick. If you could you would marry Paul since that's who you're in love with." His voice slowly gets louder. "I do not love Paul that way." I tell him. "I see the way you look at him. You can't fool me, darling. But you're gonna be my wife not his. So keep pretending you love me." He grabs my arm roughly. "Then you should keep doing the same yourself." I give him a smile. "I love you." He smiles. "I love you too." I give him a kiss with a smile. "I won't be at the party tonight. My father and I will be doing things." He leaves the room and I pick up a pillow throwing it across the room.

As I enter the party I see everyone dressed up. To be honest this was so much more comfortable than wearing a dress. "Well look at the two of you. You make such beautiful woman." I find Paul with Minister Panin. "Thank you." Panin gives me a smile while Paul looks miserable. "How do we look Your Majesty?" He asks her as she arrives. "I think one of you looks like a lesbian, but I'm not quite sure which one!" She laughs at them. "Lilia, you look wonderful. I'm looking for Potemkin." She walks off. I turn to see Paul lift up his chest making me laugh while Panin tells him he has to much rouge in one side. As Panin goes to fix him Paul walks off making me follow him. "Who are you trying to impress pushing up your chest?" I laugh at him. "It's uncomfortable." He messes with himself. "Congratulations. You know what we women have to deal with. I for one feel comfortable tonight." I smile looking at his face. "Panin is right. You have too much on this side." I step closer to him trying to make it look the same on each side.

"You say I make a beautiful lady?" He says ask I touch his face. "You do. How do I look?" I step back showing off my look. "Like a beautiful lady in men's wear." He smiles so I roll my eyes. "I saw Andrei leave earlier today." He says as I even out his makeup. "He said he wanted to see me." I forget to smile. "What did he talk to you about?" Paul asks. "Doesn't really want to marry me. Knows I don't want to marry him but I have to pretend I love him. I told him he needs to do the same with me." I explain. "You deserve to with with someone you love. I say that as your friend." He takes my hand into his. "Paul, you know for a man in this time... you treat me very different than most men treat women. Most men would never say a woman was their best friend, or spend time together like we do. You also let me be me." I explain to him.

"We grew up together and it was just the two of us. That's the difference between me and other men. Lilia, I'll always love you in many ways even when I marry someone else. No other woman can beat my first love." He tells me so I look down. "If I can't have you as a wife... I'm glad to still have you as a friend." He kisses my cheek as Panin joins us. "I am Victor Heinrich Emanuel the Landgrave of Hesse Darmstadt, the Landgrave of Hesse Darmstadt, Your Majesty. I hear you're looking for a wife for Prince Paul. I have three attractive daughters..." We hear and a see a man talking to her. "See what you did." Paul leans closer to me. "Not my fault again." I tell him as I see Andrei come over to us.

"I thought you were with your father?" I ask him. "I was but he said I should spend time with my fiancé." He gives me a kiss and eyes Paul. "Shall we see which of his daughters you like the most?" Panin asks Paul. "That one would make a beautiful wife for you Paul." I point out one of the daughters before Andrei takes us away. "How do I look?" He asks me. "Wonderful darling." I laugh. "Now, let's celebrate new beginnings. I want something Russian!" Catherine laughs and music starts. "Shall we?" Andrei asks as more people start to dance. While we have a fun time and I see Paul eyeing us as he talks to one of the daughters.

~

Two years have passed since the ball and I hated being married to Andrei especially when he was having an affair with Paul's wife. Paul slightly, not even slightly, he 100% didn't even notice when it was so obvious. Andrei knew I knew but didn't care and neither did I because in two years we never fell in love with the other. One thing I liked about being married to him was we didn't live together. "Paul, Natalia." I pass them. "Come here." Paul calls me over. "I was just showing Natalia my father again." He smiles at the painting and I see the boredom on her face. "Weak chin, don't you think?" Catherine shows up so we bow to her, well not so much Natalia. "Hm, so how do you like your new name?" Catherine asks her. "Natalia. I love it, Your Majesty." She tells her. "It's Russian. You should love it." She tells her. "I wanted to ask you something." Paul tells his mother. "I wanted to join the Council." He says and I knew the answer to that. "No." She says right away.

"He would have wanted it." He tells her talking about his father. "He also wanted me in prison. Or dead." She adds. "I am simply asking if I might be allowed to sit on the Council and do the work my fa-," She cuts him off with a no. Paul looks annoyed so I place my hand on his arm, "I somewhat disagree with her choice." I tell him. "Somewhat?" He looks at me. "Yes... I 100% believe you should be on the council because of your right." I explain. "But?" He asks. "You think off of emotion which is a slight problem..." I explain more being honest. "So you think I shouldn't be apart?" He gets defensive. "Until you know not to act on emotions, yes." I stand by my words. "Watch your tone with me." He says making me laugh. "Or what? Your Excellency?" He grabs my wrist dragging me off away from Natalia till we were completely alone and shunts the door behind him. "I'm waiting Your Excellency?" I tell him as his face turns red.

"What has gotten into you? You act so different." He asks. "I do? Well I hate my husband and I hate your wife because she doesn't love you." I smile at him. "She loves me." He tells. "No she doesn't. As a woman, I can read another woman's emotions clear as day." I chuckle a little. "I get it. You're jealous. I'm married to her and not you. My wife loves me when your husband doesn't love you." He smiles making me laugh more. "Trust me, I'm not jealous. I care about you, Paul. I just want you to be with someone who loves you like you love them." I explain to him. "I could never be with you then since you don't love me, right?" He makes me sigh. "I'm not having this conversation." I turn to leave the room. "Lilia, I'm talking to you." He calls my name. "And I'm done, Paul." I leave him.

~

"Paul. Natalia." Catherine comes up the stairs so all of us expect Natalia bow to her. As we walk some Natalia keeps giving looks to Andrei while fanning herself. "Are you listening? Why are you staring at Count Razumovsky?" Paul notices asking her and Andrei averts his eyes to me. "Was I staring at Count Razumovsky? Don't think I was. I was listening to you, darling. I always listen. You are a very interesting man." She lies to him making me glare at the back of her head. As the four of us take our seats Andrei and Natalia give me a look so she could sit next to him. I force a smile and take the seat on the other side of Paul. "She sounds wonderful doesn't she?" Paul leans over to me as I hear Natalia giggle. I look over at the two flirting making me annoyed. If you're going to cheat make sure to hide it from everyone else at least.

"Yes, she does." I whisper back to him as we watch the show. "I'm sorry for how I acted the other day." He tells me. "That's alright, Paul." I let him know. "No, your my best friend." He makes me giggle. "I thought that was my husband. That's what I hear lately. Now that he's around the palace more." I look at him for a second. "I can't have two? One of each sex?" He smiles. "Well for a man best friend you picked the worst." I let him know. "He has his moments and I know he's a terrible husband to you." He sighs, "You deserve someone who loves you too." He takes my hand into his. I hear Andrei clear his throat so I look back at him giving me a look making me let go of Paul's hand. He looks at me confused as I keep my hands on my lap. Paul tries to reach for my hand again but I move it away from him keeping my eyes on the show.

After the show Andrei comes into my room in a bad mood, "Are you trying get with Paul behind my back?" He asks. "No, but if you and Natalia are going to keep going behind his back don't make it so obvious to everyone else." I say and get back handed. "Don't forget I'm your husband." He walks behind me messing with my dress. I close my eyes trying to to keep the tears in. "Who do you love?" He asks. "You darling." I tell him. "Who do you listen to?" His breath hits my ear. "You." I keep my eyes closed. "Who are you supposed to please?" He touches my neck. "You." My voice almost cracks. "Maybe if you did your job... I wouldn't go behind Paul's back with his wife." He forces me to face him. "Stop being so close with Paul. Do you hear me?" He stares into my eyes. "Yes, Darling." I hold back my tears as he undresses me.

The next day while we spent the day with Paul and Natalia, I stood by myself keeping quiet while Andrei and Natalia flirted in front of Paul. "You are awfully quiet today Lady Lilia." Panin says making me look up from the floor. "Are you alright?" Paul reaches out to touch me back I back away so I don't make Andrei mad with me. "I'm fine." I give them a smile as they talk. "Natalia." Catherine walks up. "Count Razumovsky." She looks at him. "Lilia." She gives me a small smile so I bow. "I want to speak with you, now." She looks at her son and he follows her.

As the two go back to flirting I move to slightly ease drop on Paul and his mother. "If you want to stay married to that insolvent girl, you'll probably have to lock her up." As Paul turns to look at her I move some looking down at the floor. "You have no idea, do you? Even when it's right in front of your nose." She tells him and Panin notices me listening so he clears his throat. "I always thought you and Price Paul would get married." He leans towards me making me laugh. "So did I..." I walk away as Paul leaves his mother.

I decided to go visit my father without telling anyone because it didn't seem important. "My dear daughter." My father smiles as I enter the room. "Father." I give him a hug. "Gisela." He smiles as she walks into the room. "Nice to see you again." I give her a little bow. "Lilia." She gives me a smile. "You two should spend time together. I'll be right back." He leaves us. "I still hear you're not married yet." She sits down with me. "That's actually why I decided to come visit. You see, I was going to tell my father I am but..." I mess with fingers. "But what dear?" She takes my hand into his. "I don't want to be anymore. Him and Natalia, Prince Paul's wife, are having an affair. We never have loved each other for the past two years... Last night was the first and he..." I start to tear up. "Oh honey." She moves closer wrapping her arms at me so I let it out.

"What did I miss?" My father walks back in so Gisela gets up and takes him out of the room. After a few minutes I hear him yelling and she comes back into the room. "Give him a few minutes." Gisela comes back in. As we wait he comes back in handing me a letter. "Read this and then give this to your husband." He hands it to me to read. I read over it and look at him shocked. "Are you serious?" I ask him. "Yes, I didn't have any say and this marriage and I demand it to end. I want you to marry someone you want to marry. You being my only daughter I want you to be happy. You aren't allowed to get married to any man unless you really want to." He gives me a hug. "I sent one to his parents now you give this one to him." He kisses my cheek. "Thank you, Father." I leave his place.

[homeofthelonelywriter]

RW: Bunny Pt. 3 - Jasper Hale

(A/N) Here is the third part! I’m really happy that you all like this fanfiction so much. If you want more, I’d love to write more! The third part was requested by @ruleroftides​ (awesome username btw)!

Pairing: Japer Hale x Reader

Warnings: sensitivity to sound, making out

Tags:

@rainbow-bunny-bts​

Part 1

Part 2 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Baseball:

“What do you mean I can’t come?” I frowned at the blonde vampire. We were walking through school on our way to our last class before the day would be over. Jasper had just told me about what he and his family had planned for later today and as soon as I heard that, I wanted to come. But he wouldn’t allow it.

“I mean, you can’t come.” I glared at him, but he just shook his head with a smile. I couldn’t understand why not. It was just baseball.

We walked into the classroom and took our seats next to each other. Jasper, who had been holding my hand the whole time, let go to take his stuff out of his bag. I did the same but decided to ignore him for the rest of the class.

He soon tried to take my hand underneath the table, but I pulled it away. I could see the confused look on his face out of the corner of my eye and grinned internally. Now he knows how I feel when he won’t explain stuff.

It continued like that for the hour we spent inside the classroom. Whether it was physical touch, notes he tried to pass me or when he tried to speak to me, I ignored it all. And as soon as the bell rung, I grabbed my stuff and jumped to my feet. As quickly as I could, I left the room and made my way to another classroom, where I knew that Alice was having her last lesson for the day.

I waited outside the door, growing slightly nervous as I saw Jasper walking towards me.

“Come on Alice.” It was barely a whisper, but Jasper clearly picked up on it because his eyes widened and his pace quickened. But before he could reach me, Alice walked out and noticed me.

“Hey Y/N!” She hugged me carefully.

“Hey Alice. I have a question. Jasper told me that you’re planning on playing baseball tonight. Can I come?” Alice eyes lit up and a grin took over her face.

“Of course-” “No!” Both of us turned to look at Jasper who’d just arrived at our side.

“Well, Alice said that it’s okay for me to come along. So, I will.” I grinned, proud that I found a way. He looked annoyed, but the grin wouldn’t disappear anytime soon.

Jasper tried to argue with me, just as the rest of his siblings joined us.

“What’s going on?” Emmet had his arm around Rose and smiled at us.

“I’m tagging along to your baseball game.” Jasper opened his mouth to disagree, but I shot him a glare and with an exaggerated sigh, he gave up.

“Yes! Finally! I thought Jasper would never let you join us.” Emmet and I high fived before our little group walked out of the school building. Our ways parted at the parking space. While the others jumped into one car, Jasper and I got into another one and took off. He had been silent the whole way and I started to feel bad.

“Jasper…” He glanced at me for a second before his eyes returned to the road. I sighed before I continued. “I didn’t do this because I want to hurt you or something like that. But I want to be part of your life. No matter how dangerous it may be. I love you and I love how protective you are of me, but I still need to experience stuff. You can’t shelter me from the entire world.” This time, he sighed and nodded. His hand moved to my lap, where he slid his hand into mine and intertwined our fingers.

“I know, love…I just…it’s going to be loud and I know how you react to loud noises. I don’t want you to be uneasy or in pain.” He glanced at me again, a concerned look on his face. I smiled in return.

“I’ll take some earplugs, as well as my noise cancelling headphones with me, okay? And if it gets too much for me, I’ll let you know immediately. And even if I don’t, Edward definitely will. Besides, you’d also feel it.” Jasper nodded and squeezed my hand.

“Okay. Let’s get your stuff and maybe you should change.” I looked down at what I was wearing. The flowy dress I had put on that morning reached just above my knee and the matching ballerinas I slipped into seemed more and more unfitting the longer I looked at them.

“Yeah…that’s probably a good idea.” Jasper grinned and without taking his eyes off the road, he raised my hand to his lips and pressed a soft kiss against my knuckles.

We soon pulled into my driveway and Jasper got out. Before I could even attempt to open my door, he was there and opened it for me.

“I swear…I anyone ever sees you doing that, I’m going to kill you.” He smiled. Both of us knew that that would never happen.

He accompanied me to the door, where he gave me a goodbye kiss. Nothing but an act to keep my mother of our backs for a bit. I waved him goodbye before he walked back to his car and drove away. After telling my mom that I was home and that Jasper would pick me up again in an hour, I rushed up to my room, finding Jasper already waiting for me.

He was leaning against the windowsill and grinned. I rushed over to him and fell into his arms. At school, both of us tried to not show too much PDA, but once we’re alone, we could cuddle, hold hands and kiss as much as we wanted.

His arms were wrapped around my waist, holding me close to him. I looked up at the vampire and smiled.

“Hi.” With a soft smile, he rarely showed, he leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to my lips.

“Hi.” I grinned back at him, before I pulled away from the hug. I walked to my wardrobe and pulled out a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. Without hesitating, I slipped out of my dress and grabbed the shirt. I was about to pull it on, when two cold hands closed around my waist and pulled me flat against a chiseled chest.

Jaspers lips immediately latched onto my neck and started nibbling on my skin. A shiver ran through me, making the man behind me chuckle. He spun me around and pressed his lips against mine while his hands traveled to my thighs. Without any effort, he hoisted me up. My legs automatically wrapped around his waist, making him groan quietly.

I pulled away with a giggle and held a finger in front of my lips. We really had to be quiet. Explaining my mom why Jasper and I were making out would be easy, but explaining to her how he got into my room without her noticing, would be a completely different story.

He used his nose to push my finger out of the way, pressing his lips against mine again. His grip on my thighs got tighter and tighter and I knew that I would have bruises in the morning, but I didn’t mind. Neither did I mind it when he started marking my neck.

Of course, no one dared to even think about me in a romantic way since Jasper and I became public, but he still loved marking me. Just as I loved marking him.

A moan escaped my lips as his teeth bit down on that one spot. As a response he suddenly crashed me against the wall, reclaiming my lips. Neither of us noticed the noise that had traveled downstairs.

“Y/N? Are you alright?” My head was clouded, barely registering my mom’s voice. But Jasper’s lips felt way too good on mine. And answering would’ve meant pulling away from them.

“Y/N?” This time her voice sounded closer and both of us pulled away at the same time, eyes wide and breathing hard.

“S-Sorry! I just…I lost balance while trying to put on some jeans. I’m okay though!” I prayed that she bought my excuse. My eyes were pressed shut as I anxiously waited for a response.

“Be more careful next time.” I heard her footsteps walk away from my room and I sighed in relief, my eyes flickering down to the blonde vampire who still had me pressed against the wall. He smiled sheepishly.

“Sorry ‘bout that, love.” I rolled my eyes with a smile and leaned down, to peck his lips. After pulling away again, I took a deep breath and leaned my head against the wall, eyes closed. That was a scary moment. I was still trying to calm my beating heart, when I felt a tug on my left breast. My hand flew up to my mouth to stifle the moan that rushed out of my mouth. Jasper smirked against my skin, before he bit down again, no doubt leaving a mark.

My hand stayed pressed over my mouth until his lips and teeth stopped their assault. As soon as I was sure he was done, my eyes flickered open and found his honey-colored ones.

“Couldn’t resist.” He grinned and I gently slapped his shoulder, not wanting to hurt myself.

He slowly set me down but held onto me until he was sure I was steady. One more kiss before I slowly pushed him back, giving myself some space to put on the clothes I’d chosen earlier. After I was done, I checked the time and noticed that the hour I had told my mom about was almost over.

“Don’t you need to get changed too?” Jasper looked surprised. He had forgotten about that. I chuckled at his reaction and pushed him towards the window.

“Go get ready. I’ll be waiting outside.” He nodded and climbed onto the windowsill. Before he jumped down, he demanded one more kiss. With a smile, I cupped his face and pressed my lips against his one more time. This time, I had to stop him before it got to heated again. An annoyed groan left his lips, but I just pushed him out with a smile.

He landed gracefully and waved before he disappeared into the woods. It wouldn’t take him longer than ten minutes to be back, so I quickly grabbed a bag and threw everything I thought I might need inside.

Ear plugs, headphones, phone, keys and wallet. I also grabbed Jasper’s baseball cap, which he had left at my place a few weeks ago, and put it on. I was about to walk out of my room, when I remembered that I’d be wearing sneakers instead of ballerinas. I grabbed a pair of socks and made my way downstairs. Sitting down on the last stair, I first pulled on the socks and then my favorite pair of sneakers.

My mom walked out of the living room with a smile.

“Are you okay honey?” I was confused for a second before I remembered my ‘fall’.

“Yeah, probably gonna have a bruise tomorrow though.” That wasn’t a lie. Technically.

I just got done with lacing up my sneakers when I heard a car horn outside. He was quick today.

After checking that I really had everything, I jumped to my feet and pressed a kiss to my mom’s cheek.

“I’ll call you when we’re on our way back.” She nodded and wished me a good time, before she opened the door for me. I ran out and jumped into Jaspers waiting arms. He caught me and spun a few times, making me laugh. As he set me down, I turned back to the door, seeing my mom still standing in it and watching the two of us with a smile. She waved and Jasper returned the gesture, before he opened the car door for me and I slipped inside.

We soon arrived at a clearing, hidden away in the middle of the woods. No human would come across this. Especially not with the looming rainclouds above our head.

Jasper, as always, opened my door and I stepped out, smiling as I saw the rest of the Cullen family. I walked over to Carlisle and Esme, which I hadn’t seen in some time and hugged both of them.

“It’s nice that you finally got him to agree to let you come with us.” Before I could answer, Jasper appeared at my side, holding my bag.

“I didn’t. She asked Alice and she said yes. This little minx tricked me.” I grinned up at my boyfriend and stuck out my tongue, causing the others around me to chuckle.

With Jasper’s arm around my waist, we walked over to his siblings. Emmet and Rose were already swinging bats, making fun of each other. Alice was off to side, staring at the sky while Edward was staring at his phone. He was probably texting Bella.

I slipped out of Jasper’s grip and walked over to the brunette, tapping him on the shoulder. He looked up and raised an eyebrow in question.

“You should invite her next time. It would be nice to not be the only human.” He chuckled and nodded, before turning back to his phone.

I returned to Jasper who had picked up a bat and played around with it. As he noticed me approaching he stopped, instead holding it out to me.

“Have you ever played?” I shook my head and without saying anything else, he stepped behind me and wrapped his arms around me, placing his hands over mine. With the bat in hand, he slowly showed me how to swing and after a few tries, he pulled back, letting me try on my own. He nodded, satisfied and grabbed a ball, standing a few steps away from me. He raised an eyebrow and I nodded. He gently threw the ball in my direction and I tried my best to hit, barely missing it.

Emmet’s booming laugh could be heard all over the clearing, making me turn and glare at him. He just raised his hands and turned back to Rose.

“Don’t worry about them. You were really close, love.” Jasper had retrieved the ball and stood back at his position. I nodded at him and this time I managed to actually hit the small. It didn’t fly far, but it flew, and a grin took over my face. I jumped up and down in celebration and was soon joined by Jasper, who had just quickly caught the ball.

He wrapped his arms around me, and he twirled me around. I was laughing in his arms as Alice’s voice rung out across the field.

“It’s time.” Jasper sat me down and slipped his hand in mine. I was confused. It was time for what? My boyfriend led me over to where his family was already gathered. They were choosing teams when we arrived.

“You are with me, Alice and Edward.” Carlisle addressed Jasper, who nodded.

“And you are going to be the referee.” Esme grinned at me and I chuckled.

“Sounds good.” They took their places but before they started, Jasper handed me my bag.

“Put at least the ear plugs in. You’re going to need them.” I nodded and did what he told me. His team was the first one to run, so for the first hit, Jasper stayed by my side with his arms around me. I cuddled into his embrace, getting ready for…whatever really. I didn’t know what to expect. But as Rose pitched the ball and Edward hit it with his bat, I knew what Jasper was talking about. I jumped at the loud noise which carried even through my ear plugs. Jasper immediately gave of a calming wave and the two of us watched as the others rushed around.

“Do you now know why I didn’t want you to come?” I nodded but smiled at him.

“I’m still glad that I did. I’ll just put on the headphones too and I’ll be fine. I promise.” Jasper nodded, concern written all over his face, but at least he didn’t drag me back to the car.

The next one to hit was Carlisle and Jasper continued to hold me. I was now wearing the headphones and had music playing. The noise wasn’t as bad this time so I didn’t jump. Plus, I knew what was coming and could prepare myself accordingly.

The game continued and Jasper’s team was in the lead. But soon, it started to rain. Something the others didn’t really mind. Jasper immediately handed me an umbrella, before he continued.

By the time the game was over and Jasper’s team had won, all of them were completely soaked and covered in mud. I laughed as Jasper walked up to me, his arms wide open. The closer he got, the further I backed away, until it turned into a play of catch. Jasper never actually touched me, just chased me until I took refuge in his car. He acted as if he was about to open the door when I quickly flicked the lock and stuck my tongue out. He chuckled and shook his head before he used some of the mud to draw a small heart on the window, making me smile.

I watched him walk to the back of the car and opening the trunk. He used the door as a cover and quickly changed into dry and clean clothes.

The other came to the car and bid their goodbyes. I waved at them as Jasper jumped into the driver’s seat and started the engine. I smiled at him, my fingers combing through his wet locks. He caught my hand and pulled it down, placing kissed to my fingertips before intertwining our fingers.

Music came out of the stereo and Jasper and I started to sing along, laughing at each other’s skills. Or lack thereof. Too soon, we pulled into my driveway.

“Are you coming to my room?” Jasper nodded at my question and got out of the car, opening my door quickly. As always, he accompanied me to the front door, where we shared a goodbye kiss before he returned to his car and drove off.

I quickly greeted my mom and she asked me how it was.

“Fun. As always.” She smiled and I kissed her cheeks before I walked up the stairs. Jasper was waiting for me and wrapped his arms around me as soon as I walked in. I giggled as quietly as possible as I felt his wet locks against my face.

“What?” He had slightly pulled back, but his question wasn’t genuine, given away by the grin on his face. With a smile off my own, I pushed him until he was sitting on my bed, before I disappeared into my bathroom and grabbed a towel. I returned and sat down behind him, starting to dry his hair with said towel. The longer it went on, the more he leaned against me, until his head rested against my chest. I looked down and smiled at him, before leaning over him to press a kiss to his lips.

With his supernatural speed, he maneuvered the two of us so that he was laying on the bed and I was straddling him. I rolled my eyes with a smile and leaned down again, continuing the kiss before I laid down on his chest. His arms wrapped around me and I sighed with content.

We spent the rest of the day like this, quietly talking to each other until I started to get tired. Jasper had me get changed, ignoring my protests that I was too tired, before pulling me close to him and wrapping the blanket around the two of us. My head rested on his arm while his lips were softly pressed against the crown of my head.

It didn’t take long for me to get drowsy and it got harder and harder to keep my eyes open.

“Go to sleep, love. I’ll be here when you wake up.” I nodded against his chest and closed my eyes.

And he kept his word, being the first thing I saw when I woke up.

[probablyspooky]

Arranged Marriage (King Desha x Fem! Reader)

I was live streaming We were here too and in the middle of it, I started hardcore gushing over Desha from Ousama Rankings (Ranking of Kings), so I figured that I'd write the fanfic I've been thinking about.

Pairings: King Desha x Fem!Reader

Warnings: NSFW, language, violence

Plot: Despa, brother of King Desha, finally convinces his brother to please at least try to find a wife, if not for him for his kingdom at least. At first, Desha is a bit nervous, finding a wife is easy when you're a handsome, but Desha doesn't feel like he is, no one would want to be with him. No one besides you.

I plan for this to be a two parter, or three depending on how I feel.

Next part

It had been at least 7 months after the fall of his father, Desha had taken the throne, and was reworking the kingdom, trying to bring life back into the kingdom of the Underworld. With his younger brother Despa at his side, Desha was able to win the love of his people, and the loyalty of his men. With all the perks of being King, he was missing one other component that most kings desire, but this wasn't his priority, but Despa made sure to let his brother know that he wasn't getting any younger.

"I'm only looking out for you brother, a good king has his people, his men, and his queen. I just don't see why you don't try to search", Despa probed at Desha.

"I understand your concern, but I have no need for such things. I simply wish to do my job as king, and that is all. I don't long for companionship, I don't need a queen," Desha stated, but deep down he knew the truth, he wanted to love, he wanted to be loved, but who could love this face.

"Brother, if you don't want a wife for yourself, simply do it to strengthen the bonds between two kingdoms," Ouken stated, walking from the far entrance of the throne room.

"You're both gonna continue to give me grief over this aren't you?, Desha sighed

"We're your brothers aren't we?", the two said in unison.

With that, the invitations from the Underworld flooded above ground, to all nearby kingdoms. Stating a grand ball was going to be held at the castle, that the king was looking for a bride, and all princesses were welcomed.

The night of the ball hundreds of nearby kingdoms arrived, hoping to solidify their ties with the Underworld, having the strongest army on their side, they would be untouchable. Almost as untouchable as the princesses who arrived that night. Long flowing ball gowns, tightly curled hair, with perfect braids, and even more perfect skin.

These princesses however, had no clue on how King Desha looked, barely anyone outside the Underworld did, any statues they saw as they arrived, had their faces vandalized. However, with the push from their fathers, and their families, these princesses were willing to put give their lives to their kingdoms by marrying the king.

Now when I say that the overworld was flooded with invitations, it was flooded, as this wasn't a private event, King Desha had his gates open for all for this very night, as he wasn't going to be doing something like this again anytime soon.

You had found a invitation to the ball in a local shops window, curious, as you had never attended a ball, let alone a party before, you dawned your finest (color) gown, you made your way to the gates of the Underworld, where there was a rather long line of people going down, surely on their way to the castle as well. Arriving at the bottom, massive golden arches were the entrance to the Underworld, guards posted at every angle, insuring no one was going to get hurt tonight.

Arriving at the Castle was a magnificent sight, the caves surrounding the kingdom left you with a sense of nervousness, who knows what's out there.

The ball itself was rather nice, people were dancing, the food was amazing, and the music was delightful. You had no clue where to stand, you felt so out of place, surrounded by upper-class princesses, knights, and lords. You stood in the back of the ballroom, studying the crowd, unknowing of the man approaching you from the side.

"Enjoying the ball?", he asked

He was a rather tall man, grey skin, purple cape, wide downturned frown, and he had slicked back, black hair, which he left frizz out at the bottom.

"I suppose so," you said," Can't really complain if I've never attended a ball before."

"Really you've never been to ball?," he chuckled, "You do know why the Kings having this ball correct?"

"To find a wife, simple as that."

"These things aren't really my style," he sighed

"It's not mine either, I'd rather having a connection with the man I'm going to marry." you smiled at the man

He smiled at you, a wide smile, that appeared to extend off his face. He put his elbow out to you.

"Would you like to dance with me" he asked, almost sweating, he seemed really nervous about that question.

You looked up at him, surely, he was out of your league, he was very handsome in your eyes, just thinking about his looks made you blush, your face turning red.

"U-um...sure!" you stuttered, taking his arm

He lead you to the center of the ball room, taking your hand, and gently placing his other hand on your waist, the two of you began to dance.

It's like as soon as the two of you started dancing, the rest of the people on the floor proceeded to stand around the two of you, whispers began to emerge from the crowd.

People asking who you were, why did that man look that way, two weirdos dancing on the floor.

"Are you alright?" he asked,

You hadn't looked at him since you started dancing, because you were very shaky around him. But when you looked up, you noticed, he was also very red in the face, shaky, and even sweaty.

"I could ask you the same thing..."

Before he could spit out his answer, horns began to trumpet.

Despa came from the side entrance of the room.

You thought he looked rather odd, his pants especially. The man you had been dancing with quickly excused himself and began to walk to Despa.

Was that weird pants man the king?

"Ladies and gentleman, my brother, King Desha, thanks you all for arriving to his ball," the weird pants man stated, "But we must get to the main event brother. Have you chosen one of these fair maidens to be future queen of the Underworld?"

At first you stood there in shock, you had been dancing with the king, the redness on your face was apparent, as all eyes went to look at you, some with general confusion, some with smiles, others with hatred. Hatred mostly came from the princesses who traveled the distance to become queen.

Of course however, King Desha didn't speak to any one of them, they were too busy speaking to anyone else to notice Desha, you however spoke to him, and treated him kindly, like a person.

If uncomfortable had an image, it would be Desha right now. Standing at the top of the stairs leading to his throne. His large grey hand resting on the back of his neck.

"Despa, I haven't really spoken to anyone besides one person tonight. As I told you before I don't feel comfortable doing this."

"Honestly brother! This ball has been going on for 3 hours, you only spoke to one person! Tsk tsk! Where is she? If you spoke to her only, then she's your queen. I will not have you look a fool up here." Despa exclaimed

No one heard this however, their conversation was drowned out by the murmurs overtaking the crowd, as the maidens began to scoff at you, at your clothes, at your hair, at your face, and at you status.

You wanted to run and hide, you quickly turned around, before a hand took your arm.

It was Despa.

"Kingdom of the Underworld! And Guests, my brother King Desha has chosen his queen, say hello to-" he turned "What's your name?"

"(y/n).."

"Queen (y/n)!" he shouted

The crowd broke out in applause, mostly the guards, the rest of the guests turned and left.

"SHE NOT EVEN A PRINCESS YOU KNOW!" a voice shouted, it come from a princess, who was now very red in the face, but she quickly left along with the other.

Desha was sitting in his throne, looking very uncomfortable.

"Despa, I barely know her, we spoke a bit, we danced a bit. I don't know one thing about her"

"Get to know her you have 5 days till your wedding, and I'd hate for it to be awkward for you" he chuckled, "And for you," he turned to you, "I expect you to go along with this smoothly, not even a princess, I'm not sure how the kingdom would react."

With a chuckle he had left you in the ballroom with Desha, you were too embarrassed to say anything to him. You just stood there looking at your feet.

The air was stiff, but it was mellowed with the sounds of Desha telling his guard to lead you to your room. It had been prepared for Desha's bride.

Walking through the castle to your room, the guard told you not to worry, as King Desha was not a terrible man, he was a wonderful king. He would treat you nice as well. With that he left you to your room.

It was much bigger than the room you had at home, hell, it had a window. It was decorated in dark colors, banners with the Underworlds sigil embroidered on them, drapes that were 4 times the height of you clung to the window.

The bed was soft, it was covered in soft blankets, and expensive furs of animals you had never seen before. It was all overwhelming for you. You wanted to go home, but you couldn't right now, the night was drawing closer, you decided it was best to go to sleep now, and try to return home tomorrow for you things. With that, you crawled under the covers, and drifted asleep.

Desha however, did not sleep. He thought about you looked, he thought you were beautiful, your hand felt soft, and tiny in his own. But he felt awful for pulling you into this. If he really could go back, he would have thrown the ball for fun, met you, and then courted you normally. He wouldn't force you into this, heck he would've told his brothers to but out of his personal life.

But he truly was questioning if this was really the best move for his kingdom, you weren't a princess, there was no kingdom to combine with. Would they accept you anyway?

[vechkinfan]

Lost In The Shadows ~ (Part 1)

A/N: This is my first time writing for the Lost Boys, but they are my current hyper fixation. So my brain must produce all the content, since I haven't been able to find much Lost Boy love out there. So thank you all who said they'd love to give this a read. Please let me know what you think and if you want to be tagged/ removed in more potentially.

Words: ~4.8k

Pairing: For now The Lost Boys X OFC

Warnings: None yet! Just the boys being themselves.

Summary: The warnings and the hundreds of missing persons flyers never bother Charlie all that much. She knew the dangers of Santa Carla when she moved there, she just never thought she'd fall victim to the darkness the city held. Little did she know she was the closest person to that darkness, and the lost boys wanted to know why she was so special that Max chose to keep her around.

Part 2 // Part 3 // Part 4 // Part 5

"Now Charlie, I'm trusting you with the shop tonight, do you think you have things handled?" 

Charlie, who had been half-heartedly watching the few customers browse the aisles of the VideoMax, drumming her fingers against the lament countertop in a rhythmic pattern, looked up to see Max standing by the door. Eyeing her with a cautious gaze as if he was on the verge of canceling whatever his evening plans entailed so he could stay back and help her out. Granted Charlie was new to the job, only being in Santa Carla for about a month now, but she could handle it. This wasn't exactly rocket science afterall. 

It's not like she expected a stampede of people anytime soon either, given it was a fairly warm summer night and the thrills of the boardwalk were much more appealing then any old VHS that was sitting on the shelf. The most she expected would be a group of rambunctious teens running through the front door to hide in between the aisles as their friends chased them. 

"I'm fine Max, relax will you." She tried to give him a reassuring smile as she stood to her full height. "I think I can hold down the fort for a few hours while you're gone." 

Shifting his weight, he slid his hands into his beige dress pant pockets, cracking the tiniest of smiles. "Thank you. I owe you big for this, given it's such short notice afterall."

Charlie rolled her eyes playfully as she sank back down onto the red vinyl stool behind the counter. Fingers absentmindedly finding the closest pen beside her, allowing her to fidget with the cap. Pulling it off and back on again as she stared at Max. "You don't owe me anything, now get going before you miss…." She thought for a brief moment, setting the pen down, just now realizing he hadn't said what he was actually doing this evening. "Well before you miss your big something or other." 

Max chuckled softly at her, before he gave a wave goodbye and Charlie carefully watched as he pushed open the doors and disappeared into the crowd of people meandering around the boardwalk. She hoped that whatever he was going to tonight would relax the man, he needed a night off from whatever was stressing him. Which clearly wasn't the VideoMax, because even on a slow day it was bringing in a profit. But it was something, and Charlie just couldn't quite put her finger on it yet. 

She had actually only just met Max a month ago when she was hitchhiking her way to Santa Carla. Charlie knew it was a stupid idea from the get go, the bright red flashing lights in her brain going off as a distant warning about that type of reckless behavior. She had heard the horror stories of women being picked up on the side of the road and never being heard from again. Except for the greyhound she had paid an egressus ticket price for, had the engine blow out about fifty miles away from her destination, filling the entire cabin with thick black smoke. Unfortunately for her, all the passengers had to evacuate immediately. It was typical Charlie luck at that point. The universe was laughing in her face with how close she had come to making it to her new 'home'. 

However, her luck seemed to take a perverbiable nose dive as the driver announced that the bus was no longer functional and it'd be waiting for a tow truck from the greyhound station at the nearest town, so the passengers would have to find alternative routes. Leaving about twenty or so people stranded on the side of the highway. 

The world at that point didn't leave her with many options, and she didn't have the money to hire a cab to take her the rest of the way. Not to mention she doubted her badly worn out converse with the soles half gone, and holes in the black canvas sides would have made it that far. 

So that's how Charlie found herself thumbing her way down the interstate at nine o'clock at night. Canvas bag slung over her shoulder and her heavy over stuffed duffle bag in her free hand. 

 For a while she had no luck, the road seemed to be barren the majority of her walk. The several cars that did eventually drive by either never saw her or they just didn't feel like picking a stranger up. Admittedly if Charlie was in their situation she probably wouldn't have stopped either. She would have just driven by without looking out the window, ignoring the helpless stare of the person. Stamping down whatever conscience she had left, reminding herself that the risks far exceeded the reward in that case. 

But someone must have been looking out for her that night, because about two hours into her long trek Max pulled over in his red convertible and offered her a ride. He was a sweet man, very friendly with a sense of humor, who thankfully didn't chop her up into a million little pieces and scatter her body around California. 

Charlie would forever be in his debt for that. 

On top of stopping for her, he even offered her a job at his video store to get her up on her feet, seeing as they were both headed to Santa Carla. Plus the two quick side eyes he gave towards her overly stuffed bags sitting on her lap gave her situation away quite quickly. But he never brought it up, didn't even ask about why she was headed to the murder capital of the world, a fact see learned off the back of the Welcome to Santa Carla sign as they reached the city line.

Max was even generous enough and offered her a place to stay above the store. It wasn't much, two rooms and a small bathroom, occasionally having to share space with extra inventory, but it was more than enough for Charlie. Plus if she worked extra hours at the store he offered to lower the rent, which she happily agreed too. Any amount of money she could save up the better. 

And that's how she found herself sitting behind the register counter on this boring Thursday night. Typically Charlie covered the morning into the later afternoon shifts, before Max would come in towards the evenings. But tonight she was facing the night crowd, which meant rowdier people and more of them. None of which Charlie really liked dealing with. But she would do anything for Max, she owed him her life at this point and in truth he had slowly turned into a fatherly figure for her. Which Charlie had never had up until this point. 

She didn't want to disappoint.

Thankfully the evening passed fairly uneventfully for her, only having to ring out a handful of customers. She even had been unwillingly roped into a conversation about the newest John Carpenter movie. An older gentleman scoffing at how the genre was being ruined by how bloody the movie was. Frankly Charlie didn't care, she had liked the movie The Thing, but she wasn't in the business to disagree with the man. Instead she silently nodded her head in agreement as he spoke, doodling a strange geometric shape on the pad of green post-it notes that had been sitting by the telephone. 

"Charlie my girl! I see the store is in one piece still." The bell above the door rang as she raised her head to see Max stride in with a bit of pep in his step. 

More than she had seen since she had met him. It was crystal clear that whatever he got up to seemed to brighten his spirits.

Smirking, she shoved the post-it notes away from her. "Only had to put out two fires." She stated plainly an air of seriousness laced in her words but once she saw Max's smile falter she held up her hands in playful surrender. "I'm joking, I'm joking. There were no fires, just one angry man pissed at hollywood." 

Furrowing his brows for a brief moment Max stared at Charlie, but he quickly shook his head at her jovial antics. "I'm glad everything went smoothly, besides that. But you're free to go, I can close up for the night, it's the least I can do." Shimmying off his slightly oversized striped sports coat, he placed it on the counter. "Go enjoy the rest of the evening, the boardwalk is still open for a few hours. On my way back I actually heard a concert going on down at the beach, might be worthwhile to check out." 

"You know I don't do crowds." Charlie chuckled as she got up from her seat and wandered over towards the employee only door. 

She prided herself on her innate ability to avoid people. Living in Santa Carla was the mecca for tourists, and the boardwalk was the end all be all for all of them. And despite the VideoMax being off the main road, she had managed to avoid getting into that mess. 

"You've been here a month Charlie, and I haven't seen you leave your apartment except to come to work. You know I just worry." Folding his hands over his chest, Max watched as Charlie stepped into the room quickly. Only to re-emerge seconds later with her small canvas bag. "Humor me for once, just go out and see if you can enjoy yourself. Here," reaching into his pant pockets he pulled out a stack of small red stubbed tickets. "I found them in the inside of my jacket tonight. Must have forgotten about them when I bought them last." 

As she slowly made her way towards him, she glanced up at Max's smiling face and then to his outstretched hand. Eyeing the semi familiar tickets, having seen them on almost any tourist who walked through the door. "Carousel tickets?" She asked with a raised brow. "You know I'm not five right?" 

"Depends on the day, if you ask me." He said with a smug shrug. A playful smile pulled across his face as his eyes glimmered with mischief. 

With a loud gasp Charlie covered her heart in mock hurt, "You wound me with such cruel words." But after a few moments she snatched the tickets from his hand and stuffed them into the back pocket of her black denim shorts. He'd never know if she never put them to use. "We both know I'm at least eight on good days. It's my great math skills with peoples change that gives me the edge." 

"I wouldn't say it's great, but around here you definitely have the edge." He winked and wandered off down the new release aisle seeing a middle aged woman in the midst of what appeared to be a dilemma. Two VHS tapes in hand and still a look of utter confusion plastered across her face. 

Charlie shook her head and silently laughed to herself as she made her way out of the Video store. Slinging her bag over her shoulders as she looked down the boardwalk. To the left most of the stores had closed up for the night, their lights and obnoxiously buzzing neon signs switched off, except for the two food vendors that were positioned by the stairs that lead down to the beach. Knowing they would get lucky if they waited long enough for the bonfires to die down and people to start making their way back towards the parking lots. 

As she tilted her head towards the right, that's where all the action seemed to be. She could hear the distant screams and the methodical clicks of the rollercoaster chains as it slowly raised its passengers up the mountainous hill before letting them drop, the night air instantly filling with laughter and the screams of guys' girlfriends that had been roped into going on just one quick ride. 

The warm summer breeze surrounded her, wafting an intoxicating scent of sickly sweet cotton candy, popcorn and freshly fried funnel cake that held just the tiniest scent of puke in the undertones. 

It'd wouldn't be the boardwalk if some unsuspecting kid didn't lose their dinner to a ride they knew better than to get on right after eating something greasy. Her third day in Santa Carla actually entailed some bratty kid throwing up all over her shoes just after he entered the video store. So not only did she have to clean it up but had to suffer with the rancid acidic scent reaching her nose every time she took two steps until her shift was over. 

Charlie found herself wandering aimlessly through the crowd of people. Trying her best not to get food spilled on her, there had been a close call with some man's hotdog. The dude barely noticed her presence as he plowed into her, shoulder to shoulder, with such force it knocked Charlie back slightly. Thankfully the ketchup drenched end of his hotdog just barely missed her army green jacket, cause she was in no mood to remove stains from her favorite piece of clothing. 

From the boardwalk she was able to see the concert Max mentioned earlier, except even from where she stood leaning against the railing she knew it wasn't exactly her taste in music. Perhaps if she was high and drunk out of her mind she would have made her way down to the sandy beach and joined in with all the people dancing like complete idiots. Except she was none of those things, and she would rather be caught dead than dance sober in public. 

Instead she drummed her fingers impatiently against the weather worn wood railing. Wondering what was an acceptable amount of time to be out at this hour, before she crept back to the VideoMax. Hoping that Max would be busy in the office with paperwork or buried in the inventory supply closet, so he wouldn't notice her coming back almost instantly. She would surely get a disapproving dad look from him if he caught her coming back now.

A couple, a few feet down caught her attention briefly as they practically ate each other's faces. Charlie's nose crinkled in disgust as she watched them make out, completely oblivious to the onlookers that would stop and gauk for a few moments before continuing on their way. She could never imagine being that in love with someone that the embarrassment of public displays of affection wouldn't affect her in some way.

Turning away from the spectacle, she sighed to herself. 

Instead she panned the crowd of people once more, before glancing over at the missing persons board. She was under no illusion when it came to Santa Carla, people came here to go missing. If your head wasn't on a siviel, if you didn't question your own decisions, your own picture would be plastered on top of hundreds of others, only to be buried a few days later by even more. You'd be lost, forgotten about in time until one day no one would even remember you existed.

Perhaps that's why Charlie even stuck around Santa Carla. Sure the graffitied words on the back of the welcome sign warned her, but the hundreds of missing persons flyers only confirmed it. But to normal people it should have had them running to the next town over. Not Charlie though.

Maybe on some level she was hoping to vanish from this hell hole planet. 

Turning around, she rested her back against the railing. Shoving her hands into the front pockets of her black jeans, fingers fiddling with a few loose coins she had forgotten she put in them, most likely on her last take-out run. However, as she looked out at the crowd she noticed a pair of piercing blue eyes staring at her from across the way.

A lit cigarette hung from the man's lips, as the three guys beside him continued to talk amongst themselves. All of them didn't look out of place on the boardwalk, no, quite the opposite, they blended in well almost making them unnoticeable if you weren't paying real attention. Making her wonder how long they had been behind her, and how long the guy had been staring.

His bleached blonde mullet and all black get up, had her brain screaming bad boy to Charlie. All four of them did, actually. BAD BOY, in big bold capital letters flashing brightly above their heads. Warning her to keep her distance. 

His friend, well she assumed he was his friend, looked like he crawled out of a Def Leppard music video, blonde hair teased to hell and back. He had the heads of several women turning as they passed, eyeing him up and down like they were starved and he was the last steak on earth. His ego was clearly just as big as his hair because he winked playfully at them and smirked devilishly as they giggled amongst themselves before giving him an awkward wave. 

Tall, dark and brooding also didn't make a good case for them. He was by far the most muscular of the bunch, with long dark hair that framed his face in even more darkness. His black leather jacket did nothing to hide the fact he was shirtless underneath, letting the entire boardwalk see the dark wispy trail of hair that lead from his navel under his too tight jeans. If he wasn't standing on the boardwalk in Santa Carla she wouldn't be hard pressed to believe he was a model. 

The last one, who was now punching the arm of the wannabe hair band member, was the least intimidating of the group. His cherub-like face was framed by long blonde curls that would make any girl envious. His bright colorful patched jacket and his uncanny fashion choice of jeans and chaps was really the only thing strange about him. 

When she circled back around to the bleach blonde, Charlie noticed a tiny smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth. His cigarette was now pinched between his fingers, before tossing it to the ground causing the glowing embers to scatter across the boardwalk from the force. With the tip of his black boot he snuffed it out easily, eyes still trained on Charlie. 

He made no moves as he continued to stand there, however his friends seemed to take notice of his attention. All of them looked up and over to her before laughing wildly to themselves.

Charlie felt her cheeks warm, and a flood of embarrassment washed over her almost instantly. Caught red handed, so it seemed. 

Taking that as her queue to leave, she pushed off the railing and started back towards the Video store. Her feet carried her at a quick pace, but it seemed like it didn't quite matter how fast she was walking. In less than a minute, she heard the roar of motors screaming loudly behind her followed swiftly by a motorcycle abruptly cutting off her path. 

The bleach blonde was sitting on top of his bike, idealing for a few moments before three more bikes surrounded her. Blocking any way out she might have been able to slip through. 

"So the new video girl finally makes an appearance." The wannabe rock star said from her left, revving his engine playfully with a smirk. "Was wondering when you'd come out to play with us." He laughed, which seemed to only earn him a pointed look from the bleach blonde. 

"Yeah, cause we aren't allowed in the video store any more." The curly hair blonde added, inching his bike closer to her side. His eyes gave her a slow once over, before smirking.  

"Can't imagine why…" She mumbled to herself quietly, knowing exactly why Max had probably banned them. However the bleach blonde must have heard her, cause another devious grin spread across his face. "What is it that you guys want?" She shoved her hands back into her pockets, nervously twisting her fingers in the loose fabric. 

"Came to introduce ourselves." The bleach blonde said smoothly. "David." He reached out a gloved hand towards her, calculating eyes watching her almost in a predatory way. A look that sent shivers down her spine and caused the hair on the back of her neck to raise. It was a feeling she had never experienced before from another person, and it worried her slightly.

Charlie ignored his hand, as she looked him over with a scrutinizing gaze. It was clear just by the tone of his voice and how the other guys reacted to his comments that he was the leader. The man with the plan that everyone followed. 

"Nice to meet you, now if you'll excuse me I have to get home." She really didn't care to learn the rest of their names. Instead she used the small gap the curly hair boy made when he moved his bike up, to slip out and around them. 

"Nights still young, what's the rush?" David asked as he followed her with his eyes again. 

Shrugging her shoulders, trying her best to play it cool, she rounded their bikes until she stood in front of him. "Yeah what's the rush, babe?" The blonde with the blown out hair laughed, earning a chuckle from the curly haired boy. 

Ignoring their harassing comments she leaned forward, hands resting on David's motorcycle handles. "I don't have a death wish like some people." Her eyes stared into his, only glancing down when she saw a mischievous smirk tugged at the corner of his lip. Clearly amused by her tenacity, which had come out of nowhere. Charlie usually never was this forward with people. 

"Night boys." With that she spun around and disappeared into the surge of people who had just exited the Carousel. 

********

It had been about three weeks since her run in with the bikers on the boardwalk. Don't get her wrong, she had seen them individually over those days. Cruising by on their bikes, revving their engines like maniacs or walking by the store front only to peek their head in to give a devilish smirk and a quick 'what up hot stuff?', before disappearing. 

For the life of her she had no idea as to why they held such a fascination towards her. Perhaps it was because she didn't swoon at the two blondes' advances, or cowar at David's deathly gaze. Instead, she either ignored them completely or gave a half hearted wave in their direction just to shut them up.

"There's the best looking girl on the boardwalk." The blonde in the fishnet shirt practically yelled as he entered the video store trailed shortly behind by the patched jacket kid. 

"Paul, you know that shit doesn't work on her." 

"She'll break one day Marko, no one can resist my charm for that long." Paul smirked as he leaned over and rested his arms against the counter. 

"Aren't the two of you banned from this store?" Charlie sighed, crossing her arms over her chest. Sizing up the two boys, Marko and Paul. It was strange having names to their faces suddenly, because what she was calling them in her mind certainly wasn't close to the real thing. 

"David wants to know if you want to go riding with us tonight. Maybe find out that name of yours as well." Paul reached over and grabbed the stack of sticky notes from beside the phone. Along with having the balls to grab the pen that was sticking out of the breast pocket of her army jacket. "Plus ‘banned’ is such a strong word, babe. We're more like uninvited."

He began doodling quietly, presumably waiting for an answer from her. But Charlie just blinked at him, her brain still processing the nerve of this guy. Clearly that ego of his hadn't popped at all, it seemed to only grow exponentially by the day. Maybe all the hairspray was eating away his brain. 

For once she actually didn't regret losing her name tag in the toilet all those weeks ago. Charlie could only imagine the harassment she'd get if her name was proudly displayed and easy for them to find…. Well if they could read, Paul certainly didn't look the type. Pictures books were probably more his speed.

Marko let out an amused laugh, seemingly at nothing, causing Charlie to glare in his direction. 

"Aren't they the same thing?" 

"Nah, if Max isn't here we're more than welcome." Marko piped up, clearing his throat from his laugh. Spinning the lollipop display on the edge of the counter around, only stopping it when he plucked a red one from the holder. "So are you in?"

"I don't even know you guys." Charlie stuck her hand out towards Marko, who began unwrapping the sucker impatiently. She motioned with her finger for him to give her the cash for the item he was most certainly trying to steal. 

At her words Paul's head shot up and a feigned gasp escaped his lips. "Sure you do. You know I'm Paul and that idiot is Marko." He pointed at the curly haired blonde who was fishing around in his jacket pocket for the quarter he owed Charlie. "How much more of an introduction do you need?" 

Charlie opened her mouth, ready to let Paul in on a little secret. That knowing peoples names and being friends weren't mutually exclusive. However before the words could even escape past her lips, Max walked through the door. Eyes zeroing in on the two biker boys almost immediately, which set his lips into a fine line. Clearly annoyed they were inside his store. 

"What did I tell you boys, you aren't allowed in here." Max's voice settled across the store front. His tone on the verge of anger caused the hairs on her arms to stand up. She had never seen Max this pissed before "Are they bothering you Charlie?" 

"No, they were just leaving." She forced a fake smile, hoping the two blonde idiots would take the queue and leave. "Weren't you." 

"Yeah, we were just leaving. Right Marko." Paul grinned wider, sliding the stack of posted notes back towards Charlie. 

"Yep." Marko said as he popped the sucker out of his mouth. 

"Catch you on the flip side, Charlie." With a playful wink, she watched Paul shove Marko towards the door. The two of them only stopping to size up Max for a brief moment before disappearing into the night. 

When she heard the door fall closed, she sighed heavily, sinking back down onto her stool behind the counter. Eyes drifting to the sticky note that Paul had given back to her. A crood drawing of two stick figures on the back of a poorly drawn motorcycle. With the words Me and You etched and circled above the peoples heads in scratchy handwriting.

"No good punks they all are." She lifted her head, seeing Max glaring out the front windows making sure the boys were really gone and not lurking out front somewhere. "They didn't threaten you did they?" Turning his attention away from the crowd that picked up outside, his eyes focused on Charlie. Looking her over cautiously as if he half expected her to be missing an arm or leg after talking to those two. 

"What? No?" Yeah they seemed like the bad boy types but none of them had ever made any attempts to hurt her. Or put a hand on her for that matter. Paul seemed the biggest threat and it was only because he seemed so damn persistent, and the only hurt she'd get was the punch to her ego when she finally gave in and let his smooth talking ways win. "Just annoyingly persistent is all. I'm sure they're harmless." 

Waving off his concern, Charlie went back to rewinding the VHS tapes that had been returned that afternoon. Ninety percent of them needed to be rewound despite the 'be kind, rewind' sticker she had slapped on all the plastic casing a few weeks prior. Hoping her idea, that she unabashedly stole from Blockbuster would make everyone's job here a tiny bit more bearable. But, like all things, people seemed to miss the hints. 

Stepping behind the counter Max jokingly placed the back of his hand against her forehead in passing. Which caused her to stare with an unamused smirk dead ahead of her. "Just making sure you aren't sick. Cause I don't think I've ever heard you stick up for those punks once since I've known you. Don't tell me they are wearing you down." 

"I'll have you know it takes more than a few charming words, rockstar hair and bad boy bikes to wear me down." OK, that wasn't entirely true. Charlie was a sucker for just about anything that gave her positive attention. Except she knew better than to act on it. These guys were probably treating her like a game, who could get Charlie to break first. Especially because there were far more beautiful girls walking the boardwalk every night. Easier pickings so to speak. 

She just had to wait it out. Eventually they'd lose interest in her newness and set their sights on someone else. 

Tag List: @readingafterdarkness @pitiful-anonymous-vampire @ilikechocolatemilkh

[redrobin-detective]

the only ghost in Amity Park

Continuation of Half Of

______________________________________________

Only in Amity Park did the revelation that a local teenager was sorta, kinda a ghost just blow over in a few days. Sure, people still stared at Danny Fenton as he walked by and everyone was still wondering what exactly he was, but overall life had moved on. Star sighed to herself as she organized her notebooks, waiting for class to begin. Just another day.

Star herself really didn’t want to get involved in whatever was going on with Danny. She didn’t like him before he was a celebrity and didn’t plan on starting anytime soon. While Paulina still relentlessly, and vainly, pumped him for information on her dead boy crush, Phantom and he and Dash formed some weird macho bond or whatever, Star avoided him. He’d given her the chills since the day he’d walked into Casper High. When Danny’s secret had been exposed mid-attack, Star hadn’t been surprised. She didn’t need some ghost to tell her that there was something deeply, unsettlingly wrong with Danny Fenton.

Danny didn’t seem particular bothered, by his inhuman nature or by suddenly having his secret exposed. If anything, the nerd looked more relaxed than ever. Star had been watching him, they all had, but Fenton kept his ghostly antics to a minimum when in public. The occasional flash of green eyes when emotional, a grin of sharpened teeth. He made Mikey’s locker lock intangible the other day when the kid had forgotten his combination and he floated down the stairs instead of walking sometimes. It had been a week and it was  frightening how quickly such strangeness had become almost normal. 

“Alright kids, phones and notes away we’re starting class with a pop quiz. Hope you’ve all kept up with your weekly readings,” Faluca announced cheerily. The whole class, including Fenton, moaned and packed up their bags. Star supposed being an undead being haunting his own life didn’t make him immune from normal human problems. She was biting her lip trying to remember which antibody caused allergic reactions when she got an uneasy feeling. She looked up and was not surprised to see Danny Fenton looking around too. It had been a solid week without ghost attacks, looks like Fenton’s supposed vacation time was up.

Star stopped her writing and adjusted the bag at her feet to prep for evacuation. She briefly wondered what Fenton would do, what he could do? Did he also hunt ghosts, like his parents? Like Phantom? There were no blasts, no screams, no monologues but the dread increased when a ghost shield descended over them. Actually, it looked like it was just covering their classroom. Now everyone was looking up from their quizzes and out the window at the flickering, green shield.

“You’d think the administration would’ve warned me we were going to do a drill,” Faluca said but his voice was hesitant. Clearly this wasn’t planned so despite the lack of alarms, there was a good chance this was real. “Pencils down for the moment while I figure out what’s going on.”

“Mr. Faluca, I need to go,” Danny said, raising his hand. Star was so used to hearing the request she almost ignored him but the dread curling in her stomach made her look again. His face was pinched, sharp and his eyes burned with an icy fury like a sudden storm blowing in without warning. 

“Mr. Fenton, I don’t think...” Faluca murmured uneasily. Danny frowned harder.

“It wasn’t a request, actually,” Danny said roughly as he stood up and began walking towards the door. He was almost there when the door slammed open and Fenton had no less than 3 ectoweapons pointed in his face. A few kids jumped back in alarm but Danny held his ground as half a dozen Guys in White agents entered the room and surrounded him.

“Spectral scum formerly known as Daniel Fenton, you’re coming with us,” one of the agents said. 

“Danny not Daniel and it’s still my name,” Danny quipped, eyeing each of the government officials and their weapons. “And no, I’m not. I’m still alive, somewhat anyway, so I have rights. The courts backed me up.”

“Everyone who signed for your freedom doesn’t know ghosts like we do,” Another agent said so forcefully, some spittle flew out of their mouth and hit Danny’s cheek. Star watched it freeze and fall away the instant it hit his skin. “Your kind are too dangerous to wander around, you need to be contained and eliminated. Don’t worry, your parents will receive a sizable check as recompense.”

“I’m the one who needs to be contained?” Danny said slowly, evenly but there was a static to his voice that caused the hairs on the back of Star’s neck to rise. When she breathed out, she saw her breath was misting. Everyone’s was as the room temperature continued to plummet. “When you come in here and take hostages to threaten me?” Danny hissed, he took a step forward and his eyes took on a neon green glow. “You didn’t come to my home or on the streets, you came to take me in the middle of biology when I’m surrounded by civilians, kids.”

“You delude yourself into thinking you’re still human,” another agent scoffed. “Everyone knows ghosts are weaker when giving into their obsession.” Danny laughed, it was loud and mocking and like fingernails running down a chalkboard. Faluca, stuck in between Danny and the agents, was white as a sheet and gripping his desk like it was the only thing keeping him from collapsing.

“You know nothing,” Danny hissed, his voice barely recognizable as human. His hair and shirt floated in an invisible but angry breeze. Frost crawled up his arms and his face. Various ecto alarms were ringing on the belts of the agents and they started to look a bit nervous. He looked nothing like the kid who, minutes before, had clearly been struggling with their bio quiz. “You have no idea what you’re dealing with. You cannot come into my haunt and threaten my people to get to me. Protecting what is mine will always make me stronger!” 

“This whole town is constantly under attack because of things like you!” One particularly brave agent said even as a few others had backed up. “Amity Park is on the verge of collapse because of all the ghosts!”

“There is only one ghost in Amity Park,” Danny said, he tilted his head, his black and white hair dangling in his face as he gave a sharpened smile. “There is only me and the ghosts I allow, ghosts who know the rules, who respect my authority here by keeping damage to people and property down. I am the only ghost haunting this town and why do you think that is?” One agent threw down his gun and ran through the open door.

“You’re-you’re a monster!” Another woman shouted, shaking as she stepped back before fleeing.

“I’m not the one who needs to threaten innocents to get to their target,” Danny sneered. “It’s a good thing you did though, I wouldn’t hold back if I wasn’t worried about collateral.” Another three agents turned tail and ran. Until there was only one left. His gun was still trained on Danny but his hands were shaking. 

“You don’t scare us,” the agent trembled through the obvious lie having been abandoned by his comrades. “We’ll get you monster, if it’s the last thing we do.”

“Looking forward to it,” Danny drawled sarcastically as some of his horrifying aura dissipated along with the freezing grip on the room. Within moments Danny has settled back into more human form. While he’d been angry before, now he looked almost bored. At no point had he seemed afraid. 

“You take your people and your equipment and you leave Amity’s borders by sunset tonight,” Danny declared resolutely. “If you have continued problems with my existence, you take it up with the courts. We settle this as humans but if you treat me as a ghost then I will fight back like one.” His eyes turned green again as a threat. As a promise. 

“I don’t take orders from spooks!” The agent shouted, securing his finger on the trigger and preparing to fire. Star had ducked to avoid the blast so she missed exactly what happened. All she saw was the green glow and heard a strangled scream from the agent followed by a series of thumps. By the time Star had gotten back into her seat, Danny was aggressively pulling apart the ectogun with his bare hands. There was no sign of the agent and, around them, the ghost shield fizzled away. 

“Jerks,” Danny grumbled, kicking at the remains of the ectogun he’d destroyed. “Sorry about that, Mr. Faluca. I knew they’d cause problems but I didn’t think they’d come to school.” Their teacher stared at Danny like a rabbit facing down a lion. “You okay?”

“Fine, Mr. Fenton, just fine!” Falcua grinned in a high pitched voice. “Shall we get back to our quizzes?” The bell rang just then and Danny did a little fist pump.

“Tomorrow then? After I get a chance to study more?” Danny asked with puppy dog eyes. It looked wrong on his face that had just threatened the government with bodily harm. Faluca just nodded dumbly, not sure what else to say. “Yes! I’ll pass tomorrow for sure. The attention kinda sucks but it does come with some perks.”

He walked back to his desk, ignoring the wide-eyed looks of the class when he stopped and gasped, his breath fogging in front of him. His lips pursed again with annoyance. A few people jumped in surprise as the Box Ghost, a familiar annoyance, poked his head through the wall.

“Child! Your requested reprieve is up and the Box Ghost is here to cause insurmountable square shenanigans!” He laughed heartily, stopping when the room temperature dropped again. Danny didn’t even turn to face the ghost. 

“Your watch is off, Boxy. I have another 10 hours before I have to deal with you annoyances again,” Danny growled. “I’m feeling good right now, take advantage of it and leave in one piece.”

“Uh right okay then,” the ghost stammered, sinking back into the wall. “See you tomorrow.” Danny cracked his neck before he walked to his desk, grabbed his things and walked to the front of the room.

“Late bell’s gonna ring any minute, you guys should hurry if you don’t wanna be late,” Danny said as he left. Falcua’s strength gave out as soon as Fenton was gone and he hit the floor, one hand clutching at his chest.

“Jeepers,” Mikey surmised appropriately before stuffing his things in his bag and leaving as well. Star watched everyone loosen up themselves and begin gathering their things to leave. No, she would never like Danny Fenton but he and his ghost weirdness was just part of the deal now, whether they wanted it or not. Such was life in the most haunted city in America which was only haunted by a single ghostly entity.

[nxrthmizu]

Crash and Burn

fandom | miraculous ladybug

genre | salt, lila salt

pairing | n/a

w.c | 3.2k

author's note | hey remember that lila salt fic i promised? this isn't it but this is something i made today so yep. please accept this as an apology for yknow. me promising to write and. not doing it.

Enough was enough.

“Marinette, stop accusing Lila! She just wants to make friends!”

“Take the high road.”

“Be a good model student, Marinette.”

Enough. Was. Enough.

Marinette had the connections, the power, the choice to make Lila’s entire world crumble apart. The only thing that stood between the liar’s demise was the tiniest pinch of morality and self-restraint— And no, that self-restraint did not come in the form of Tikki. Even the kwami, who had to be an aggregation of all the good and nice things in the world, was fed up and ready to retaliate.

“What a joke.” Lila cackled, tossing a chunk of her sausage hair over her shoulder flamboyantly. The two girls were in the bathroom, with Lila smirking in front of the sink and Marinette a little distance away from her. “You can make my world crumble? What is this, a threat?”

“A promise.” Marinette corrected. “Stop telling lies. Come clean to every one. No more lying about knowing celebrities left and right, no more making excuses about not being able to take your own notes, no more making up ‘diseases’ just so your life gets a little more convenient. To be frank, I really don’t care what happens to you— But by making these empty promises to introduce my classmates to great ‘celebrities’, you’re ruining their futures. Stop.”

“And what are you going to do if I don’t?” Lila sneered, face twisted into an ugly grin. “You going to cry in front of the class? Try and convince them that I, the one they adore— That I am lying?”

“No.” Marinette’s eyes were clear when she met Lila’s. The clouds of self-doubt that used to hover over the bright, shining star inside her soul had now dissipated, letting the bluenette emit a confident, glowing appearance as she met the liar head on. “I’m just going to keep my promise.”

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

Lila headed off to a modelling shoot after school, pleased at the prospect of spending more time with Adrien. There were a couple tendrils of Marinette’s words hanging behind in her mind— Did the girl mean what she said? Did she actually… Was she actually capable of causing Lila’s downfall? … Surely not. Marinette may have once been the ‘Everyday Ladybug’, but there was no way she was that competent, there was no way the girl was capable of plotting.

The Italian hummed, brushing away thoughts of the annoying bluenette from her mind. She was going on a photoshoot— One that was going cause the rise and burst of her career, the one that was going to make her name a globally-known one. Unfortunately for Lila, her plans were going to be derailed quite soon— In fact, as soon as Gabriel Agreste’s car rolled into the parking lot of the shoot location.

“Explain this, Mlle. Rossi.” Gabriel’s nostrils flared as he pointed to the tabloid article on his tablet. The Italian girl froze, the headlines seared into her eyes, big and black and bold, shooting poison right into the core of her body, paralysing her cell by cell starting from her heart. “What is the meaning of this?”

‘Adrien Agreste Reported To Be Harassed by Fellow Model’— The image under the caption was one that was clearly taken by a hidden photographer. The picture was framed with leafy foliage, which suggested that the camera was tucked up in a tree. Despite the distance, it was quite obvious in the image that Adrien was reeling away, disgusted and uncomfortable as a faceless woman in an orange blazer, back turned to the camera— Invaded his personal space.

The subtitle was the cream on the cupcake.

‘Witnesses State Gabriel Agreste Ignorant of Workplace Harassment’.

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

As if things couldn’t quite go down a worser path, Lila returned home to a fuming mother and an unexpected visitor.

“Lila! You come here right this instant!” The diplomat demanded as soon as the front door opened, her daughter shrinking slightly at the tone and pitch that her mother was using. The last time her mother had been this angry— Well, it was when she got expelled from her last school. “I can’t believe what you’ve done! If it weren’t for your kind classmate, lord knows how long you would’ve continued with this!”

The Italian meekly followed her mother into the living room, eyes widening until they were as large as saucers, mouth agape at the last person she expected to see sitting on the couch.

Marinette smiled kindly, waving at the girl, looking every bit the part of the innocent, pure, kind child that every parent wanted to have. Before Lila could release a torrent of questions about what the hell Marinette Dupain-Cheng was doing in her living room, her mother charged on, beginning to take out her anger on her daughter while a literal angel sat on the sofa, cradling a box of pastries from her family’s bakery.

“Your friend here tells me that you’ve been taking absences from school to go on trips to help humanity!” Mme. Rossi exploded, waving her arms around madly. “She says she’s here to share her notes from the classes you’ve missed! You’ve never left Paris this year! What’s this I hear about flying off to the kingdom of— What was it called again, Marinette dear?”

“Achu.” Provided the bluenette helpfully, the diplomat’s expression instantly softening when she talked to the other teen in the living room.

“Ah, yes. Thank you, dear.” The woman turned back to her daughter, instantly snapping on a mask of anger in a matter of a fraction of a second. “What’s this about flying off to this kingdom of Achu to help homeless orphans with some random prince?”

“Um…” Lila piped up, wriggling as her brain churned at 200 lies per hour, trying to whip up a cover of some sort.

“I’m not done! Your friend here is such a helpful child that she even went as far as to ask her family doctor is there’s a cure for your… Lying disease!” Mme. Rossi practically roared, breathing flames as if she were an intimidating dragon, her daughter flinching away from the heat. “I’ve never heard of anything more ridiculous! And then there’s the fact that you lied to your classmates about having tinnitus?!”

“I actually do have tinnitus!” Lila cut in forcibly, widening her eyes to make herself look more pitiful. “I was just afraid to tell you because I didn’t want you to worry!”

“Bullshit!”

“Um… Sorry to interrupt, Mme. Rossi,” Marinette piped up, the diplomat instantly cooling down as she faced the bluenette, a soft smile tracing the Italian woman’s lips. “But it’s getting rather late and my parents would love me home soon. I also have some tests to revise for tonight, so I think I should get going.”

“Oh, of course, dear.” Mme. Rossi hastily got up to help the bluenette to the door, shooting a warning glare at her daughter— ‘Sit still and don’t you dare go anywhere’, the glare read. “Feel free to come over again anytime you want, dear. I’m not home often, but you are such a sweet child. I’m sure Lila could learn a lot from you.”

“Thanks for having me as well, Mme. Rossi. I really like your home. I left the pastries on the counter— Make sure to warm the curry puffs before you eat them.” Marinette returned the smile, bowing slightly to the older woman as a sign of respect.

“Thank you for the pastries as well, Marinette. I ought to visit your parents’ bakery sometime when I’m free.” Mme. Rossi opened the door kindly for the bluenette, waving the girl off with an affectionate smile. Her parents must be so lucky to have such a sweet little thing like her, Mme. Rossi sighed internally, turning the key so she locked the door. And she seems to be a high-scoring student as well.

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

Lila seethed, having been grounded by her mother. As far as Mme. Rossi was concerned, there was a boarding school not too far away from their current residence, and by the next week, the Italian girl would be transferred over. Lila had never hated Dupain-Cheng as much as she did in that moment.

Still furious, the Italian snapped her laptop open, too angry to bother with the fact she might’ve scratched the surface. Clicking into the web browser, she started to type in the words ‘Ladyblog’— That was, before a news article caught her eye.

‘Jagged Stone Interview Reveals Underage, Obsessed Fan’.

What on Earth…

As soon as Lila clicked into the link, the news footage from the interview immediately begin to play. The date stamp on it showed that it had aired last night— Which meant that she would���ve missed it, since her mother was too busy yelling at her to turn on the television to watch Nadja Chamack’s daily news.

“As soon as I heard this rumour about some underage teenage girl claiming that she had saved my cat on an airport runway, I called Penny and asked her to book a slot for me to clarify this,” Jagged Stone said grimly, dressed in more formal attire as he sat in the comfortable, cushioned chair of the news station, with Nadja nodding equally seriously beside him. “Let me clarify— I’ve never owned a cat. I’m allergic to fur. The only pet I’ve had was Fang, and he’s an al-li-ga-tor. Not a cat. Whatever the girl is claiming, she’s obsessed and making up stories.”

“It’s also kind of bewildering that she saved it on an airport runway,” Nadja continued, shaking her head in disappointment. “That kind of thing only happens in dramas— It’s too dangerous for anyone besides authorised workers to be on airport runways.”

“Right, right!” Jagged agreed instantly. “The whole rumour is just really baffling.”

“M. Jagged, may I ask what kind of effect these rumours have on a celebrities’ career?” Nadja continued, leading the conversation on like a professional.

“Well, rumours that circulate around tend to have really bad effects, and the worse ones can hang around for a long, long time. Tabloids are often spun off from rumours, baseless and with no evidence. Those tabloids will never truly disappear, so they can leave a mark on a celebrity’s reputation as some people will believe anything— Even things they read from un-cited tabloids.”

“That is simply terrible. Have you ever had any cases of rumours created by underaged teens before this?”

“I’ve had quite a number, but none of them really got as big as this one. From what Penny has found from digging around, the teen girl managed to spread the rumour through her school and onto a once-popular blog.” Jagged explained. “Penny has also found out that the same girl has claimed that I’ve written songs for her to thank her for saving my cat! I would never write songs and dedicate them to an underaged girl— Trust me. If I could do such a thing, I’d already have written a dozen in honour of my niece— She’s my favourite designer.”

Nadja smiled at that sentence. “Then—“

The news footage cut off abruptly as Lila slammed her laptop shut, too upset to continue watching.

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

On the other side of Paris, Alya was pacing around her room frantically, wondering why on earth Lila wasn’t picking up on her calls. She’d left at least four dozen messages to the Italian, who was absent from school that day. There had been a couple whispers here and there about why she was missing— Rose had suggested another impromptu trip to Achu.

Lila’s absence wasn’t the weirdest part of the day, however.

That award would go to Marinette, who walked into class with a smile, the slightest sprinkles of delight colouring her bluebell eyes when she spotted Lila’s empty seat.

Growing in frustration, Alya threw herself onto her bed, phone clattering onto the mattress with her. Within the next few minutes, however, her phone suddenly started exploding with notifications. Excited at the prospect of Lila finally texting back, Alya turned on her phone, only to be disappointed by the notifications all clamouring from the class group chat.

Kim had sent a link to the chat— Without hesitation, Alya clicked into it, frowning when she saw Nadja and Jagged appear on the screen. Throughout the interview, the colour on the Ladyblogger’s face only paled by the second until she was as white as a sheet, and if it were halloween at that time, she would’ve won the best costume award for being a ghost.

There must… There must’ve been a mistake.

A notification from Lila’s number made the blogger perk up, instantly clicking into the conversation— But her newfound hope didn’t last very long.

[Lila]

Hi, Alya. This is Lila’s mom. She’s currently grounded right now. Is there anything important you need to tell her?

[Alya]

Oh, nothing much… I just wanted to ask where she was.

[Lila]

She’s at home.

[Alya]

Okay, thanks.

Flopping onto her bed, Alya begin thinking, revising over the past few months like it was an old clip. Lila’s exciting adventures and interactions with celebrities of every kind— Lila going overseas and face timing the entire class— Lila letting her in on the secrets of being Ladybug’s friend…

… Marinette trying to tell them that Lila was lying…

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

The class was awfully silent the next day. Adrien was absent as well— A social worker was looking into his home life as a result of the tabloid that arose. Things for the blonde could either get better or worse from then on, as the matters were still foggy and things hadn’t cleared up yet. The blonde maintained contact with his friends, however, calling and texting them whenever he could.

“Class, settle down.” Mlle. Bustier stepped into the class, looking very tense and uncomfortable. “Today, we will have a guest, so please be on your best behaviours, alright?”

Just as the teacher finished speaking, a tall, regal-looking Italian woman entered the classroom, a cowering principal and a meek-looking Lila in tow. The class brightened slightly at the sight of their friend— But by the way she wasn’t looking into their eyes… Things weren’t going to be good.

“Good morning. I am Mme. Rossi, Lila’s mother.” The woman begin speaking, her firm and no-nonsense tone instantly making every student sit straight, their eyes too afraid to look anywhere else but the Italian diplomat. “It has come to my attention that my daughter has been taking absences from school to do charity work— And I have to clarify that this is a lie. Lila has been doing nothing but holing herself up in her room, lying to me and saying that there are no classes due to akumas.” The Italian diplomat glowered at Damocles. “What’s even more baffling is the fact that neither her homeroom nor the principal bothered to check up with me despite a student having extended periods of absence with no note or email written whatsoever.”

The class was so quiet that they could hear the quiver of Mlle. Bustier’s trembling lip.

“In addition, I’ve been kindly told that Lila has claimed to have a lying disease, which is the most ridiculous thing I’ve heard this week.” It was impossible to miss the way the Italian diplomat was glaring daggers at both Mlle. Bustier and Damocles. “No one bothered to look it up online to see if it’s actual disorder, nor did anyone call me to confirm and ask for a doctor’s note, which is standard procedure.” Chills burst over the room, making every one shiver as the woman hissed out her words.

“Mme. Rossi, we didn’t want to disturb your busy schedule—” Damocles begin, only to be blown backwards from the sheer intensity of Mme. Rossi’s glower.

“M. Damocles, standard procedures exist for a reason. Unless you’d like to tell me about any other things you’ve been letting my daughter get away with?”

“N— No, Mme.”

The Italian diplomat continued on her war path. “My daughter also claimed to have tinnitus, am I correct?”

“Y— Yes, Mme.” Mlle. Bustier answered when it seemed like no one was going to.

“And I heard that the class seating arrangement was shifted to accommodate for that?” The homeroom teacher didn’t dare answer this time, for it seemed like whatever she said would be the incorrect answer. “And apparently, my daughter has also been faking broken wrists and requesting for her classmates to complete her work for her.” Mme. Rossi was practically breathing flames at that point, “And I am incredibly upset at the lack of action from the homeroom teacher.”

No one could breath.

“I have many concerns about the running of this schooling facility, and I expect to discuss this with M. Damocles privately after this. However, there is still something to be done.” Mme. Rossi swept her gaze towards her daughter, who found the floor incredibly interesting at that point of time. “Lila? Something you’d like to say to your classmates?”

“… I’m sorry for lying to you.” Lila mumbled resentfully.

“Louder, Lila. No one can hear you.”

“I’m sorry for lying to you!” Lila swallowed, bursting like an explosion that had finally been triggered, tears in her eyes and fists hatefully curled. “I’m sorry for lying about my diseases and injuries. I’m sorry for making you do my work,” She spat. “Sorry for causing any inconveniences.”

Mme. Rossi raised an eyebrow at her daughter. “Is that all?”

Lila glared at her mother, who was completely unfazed. “Oh, so you want an apology from me? Fine!” She turned to the class, a maniacal glint in her eyes as she sneered at the class, a few gasps puffing from around the room as they caught their first glimpse of the liar that resided in the ‘harmless’ shell of Lila Rossi. “I’m sorry that you are all such idiots that you all fell for everything. I’m sorry that Marinette has such terrible, untrusting classmates that turned their backs on her even though she was still a goody-two shoes till the end, even though she still wanted to help you sorry peasants. I’m sorry that you were all so goddamn gullible! There! Good enough for you?”

Shock was etched into the faces of every human in the classroom— Including Mlle. Bustier, M. Damocles, and Mme. Rossi themselves. Clearly, that part of the apology had not been part of the plan.

“Did I miss something?” Said a sweet voice, followed by the presence of a bluenette, her hair tied in a half-up. A royal blue blazer decorated her lithe form, accompanied by a smart-looking white blouse and a black plaited skirt. Formal had never looked so good on anyone— And if someone didn't know better, they'd think that the bluenette was a young lawyer, emerging victorious from her first successful case.

“Marinette!” Alya exclaimed.

“I’m sorry that you’re such an annoying, little, pest.” Lila bit in the girl’s face, disdain colouring her features as she ignored her mother’s enraged gasp behind her.

The bluenette simply smiled, unaffected by the liar who had crashed and burned like the liar once wished upon her. Marinette Dupain-Cheng stood at her full height, the perfect image of grace and poise as she maintained her composure, quite unlike her nemesis, who thrashed under her mother’s restraining hands.

“And I’m sorry that you didn’t take my promise to heart.”

this can count as adrien redemption depending on you cause ehhh i dont like how passive he is but i havent caught up with the recent episodes, he might have become better. idk.

also where the hell is my miraculous taglist i cant find it so eep. no tagging ppl ig oops