#I almost couldn't find this one! Thought it got lost to the sands of time...

[jennerallydrawing]

For the Season 2 episode "Wax Museum"

[yuri-is-online]

Out of the Bag (Jamil, Ace, and Idia x Yuu)

"Oh can I help you? You seem to be lost." You attempt to cheerfully ask the vaguely familiar looking person in front of you. As if he is deliberately trying to rub salt in your wounds, Crowley ignored your request to leave campus for NRC parents day and is instead making you and Grim run errands. The person in front of you, blissfully ignorant to your inner turmoil perks up at your attention.

"Forgive me for asking, but are you the magicless prefect?" You and Grim exchange a confused glance. "You've got to be right?" They're practically glowing with how happy they are to see you. " Oh I'm sorry, I've just heard so much about you!" Wait, what?

notes: (so uhhhh Jamil and Ace were supposed to be a part of the original post but I cut them out because I had to go to bed but forgot to remove the tags, sorry </3) they/them pronouns used for Yuu, sibling snark (Jamil and Ace) vs light angst (the Shroud parents), light reference to certain events in Ch. 6, but nothing specific. If you liked this please check out the first version on my masterlist.

Jamil

"Oh yeah, you're Najma, right?" The younger girl looks pleasantly surprised you have remembered her from your visit to the Scalding Sands.

"Well that makes this a lot easier, do you know where Jamil is?" You internally cheer at how polite she is, some of the other families you have been dealing with today have really been testing your patience. "I've been looking everywhere for him, but couldn't seem to find a good opportunity to sneak up on him." Or maybe not, that doesn't sound like she hasn't seen him at all, why is she asking you?

"According to my schedule he's probably in the gym for the club activities program." You confirm with your clipboard and Najma sighs.

"Lame, he's gonna be all sweaty and gross." She checks her phone as you sneak a glance at Grim trying to figure out how much longer you have before you need to find something shiny to distract him. "Actually maybe I can just ask you." You turn your attention back to Najma who seems to be tapping her cheek with her phone and sizing you up. "Is there anywhere to get snacks on campus?"

"Now you're talkin!" Cheers Grim, bringing a really bright smile to Najma's face and a tentative one to yours. "Mr. S's Mystery Shop's got all the tuna you can ask for!"

"And other things to." You helpfully add and Najma happily begins to follow.

"So what do you like to do?" she asks almost ten seconds into your walk. "Like what fun stuff is there to do around campus?"

"Shouldn't you be asking your brother?" You ask, thankful Grim is too caught up in his tuna thoughts to make any snarky comments.

"About you?" Najma laughs and you feel a bit silly. "Nah he hates being honest about things like that."

"Well I don't have much free time..." but you manage to list off some things that you like as Najma nods, still tapping her phone on her chin for some reason.

"What about food?" she stops fiddling with her phone and just goes straight to texting on it as the Mystery Shop comes into view. "I know Jamil's food looks boring but it tastes super good."

"It sure does." Grim says, well more like whines. "He only ever gives it to Yuu and gets mad when I eat it though."

"That's because he asked for my opinion, not yours." It's a petty thing to say, but hey Jamil's a good cook. Najma seems to agree, giggling before you both jump ten feet backwards as a strangely shaped blur nearly knocks you over.

"NAJMA!" Jamil is indeed, sweaty and gross looking, his basketball jersey is practically drenched through, almost like he ran the entire way to here from the gymnasium. He's doubled over, hands on his knees as you fumble around looking for the water bottle Crewel made you bring with you earlier which he gratefully takes.

"Oh hey what are you doing here Jamil?" You don't know Najma super well, but she almost sounds disappointed to see her brother. "Prefect said you were at the gym."

"Don't start." Jamil passes you back the empty water bottle, hesitating just a bit before he lets you take it. "She didn't do anything weird, right? Hasn't said anything strange?" You blink in confusion.

"No? She's just been asking a bunch of questions about stuff. Jamil relaxes, letting you take the bottle with a genuine smile-

And gets cut off by a shutter sound effect making you both turn towards Najma, who doesn't bother looking up from her phone camera.

"Whoops thought I turned that off."

Ace

"Well, well, well, just what should I do with you?"  The ginger stranger is stroking his chin with an all too familiar look that puts you on edge, not because you think he is going to try anything illegal (yet) but because you can practically see the collar on this guy already.  There really is no beating around the bush about who this guy is, even if you really wished you had some plausible deniability.   "I could tell you about that time I told him if he kissed a frog it would turn into royalty and he actually did it-"  Too much information he technically just did.  "Or what about that time he only wanted to eat carrots so I freaked him out by saying he was turning into one because his hair was orange-"  So is yours big brother Trappola!  And where the hell is Grim he is supposed to be suffering through this with you.  "Nah those are too boring- oh I got it!"  Before you can break out in a dash for the mirror chamber, big brother Trappola claps an unintentionally (you hope) firm hand on your shoulder.  "Listen to this- wait I didn't introduce myself I-"

"Ace's brother."  He seems genuinely taken aback.  "He talks about you all the time." 

"Oh does he?"  Maybe you shouldn't have mentioned that, little Trappola's ego was insufferable already, older Trappola's has got to be worse right.  It's so obvious you can't even bring yourself to put the question mark on it.

"Funny you mention that, from my end it seems like all he ever talks about is Yuu."  He makes a big show of looking you over.  "Always talking about what a pain it is to look after you, but he never does stop."  He maneuvers himself to look directly into your eyes.  “You must be pretty special then, right?”

“Didn’t you used to go here?”  You ask, crossing your arms and fixing your best “not today Trappola” look onto your face.

“Sure did!  Also got put into Heartslabyul, must run in the family, we’re all a bit mad.”  Older Trappola breaks eye contact for just a second, something dancing on the tip of his tongue you have no desire to entertain at all.  You just want to ditch this overgrown root veg on his brother and then take a nap.

“So then, just to be clear, you don’t need me to show you around.”  You fumble around your clipboard looking for a map anyway.

“Oh no I absolutely need you to do that.”  You like it when Ace plays dumb better, at least it’s cute.  “Would be a really bad thing if you just left me all alone and I went somewhere I wasn’t supposed to.”  He stands up straight, looking off into the distance behind you with a dramatic sigh.  “Somewhere like Ramshackle Dorm maybe?  I hear that’s one of Ace’s-”

 A surprisingly strong pair of arms wraps you into an embrace from behind.

“Back off.” snaps Ace, a lot harsher than either of you have heard before “This one’s mine.”

Idia

"Dear! Dear! Come look it's the prefect!" A very excited very pink woman in a sundress and comically oversized sunglasses beckons to a very tall, very out place looking man who is... also wearing comically oversized sunglasses.

"The who?" he sheepishly walks over to his wife and gives you a little wave, clearly out of place but trying his best.

"The prefect! Ortho and Idia's friend." The realization seems to hit both you and Mr. Shroud at the same time, causing you both to retreat just a bit. You because you feel desperately dumb for not noticing the flaming hair and him because-

Well you hope it's because of the whole house thing but who knows.

"Oh sorry. Um we're Mr. and Mrs. Shroud but you probably already guessed that it's really nice to meet you." You awkwardly shake hands while Grim hides behind your legs.

"Do you have any plans for today?" Asks Mrs. Shroud. "I'd hate to interrupt things too much."

"Oh no that's not really an issue for me." You look down at Grim for half a second before adding. "For us."

"I'm sorry to hear that." whispers Mr. Shroud, gently taking his wife's hand and you stand around in silence for a little bit, trying to figure out how to walk the conversation from the ledge it's found itself on.

"Um if there isn't anything you need help with-"

"Idia speaks really highly of you." Mrs. Shroud says gently, and you have to keep yourself from fainting from shock. Idia speaking highly of- no forget that. Idia talks to his parents? And you were the conversation topic? If she had said it was Ortho that would make sense but Idia? "I know he can be a bit blunt, but he treasures your friendship. And as his mother, I am very grateful he has someone as kind as you in his life."

"We both are." whispers Mr. Shroud. "If you need help while you are here please don't hesitate to ask us." And with that they leave you and Grim

~~~

[Fullmetal] hey ortho said u ran into our parents irl

[Fullmetal] srry that had to be awkward

[yuu] it's cool

[yuu] I mean they spooked Grim but they were nice lol

[Fullmetal] UNACCEPTABLE

[Fullmetal] ...so do you think that he'd be cool to come over so I can like

[Fullmetal] apologize

[Fullmetal] u know for the stress

[yuu] and not for talking about me behind my back (￣ε￣)

[read at 6:57 pm]

[Fullmetal is typing... ... ...] [... ... ...] [... ... ...]

"I don't need to apologize if I said nice things... right?"

[daisyvisions]

Demonstration - (l.sy)

‧⋆ ✧˚₊‧⋆. Pairing: Lifeguard!Sangyeon x afab!reader

‧⋆ ✧˚₊‧⋆. Summary: You do almost everything to get your hot lifeguard's attention. But what happens when he also shows interest?

‧⋆ ✧˚₊‧⋆. Word Count: 2.9K

‧⋆ ✧˚₊‧⋆. Warnings: Smut (18+, minors DNI), public sex (but no one’s around), mutual pining, dry humping, fingering, handjob, groping, allusions to sex at the end, pet name (sweetheart), mentions of drowning, a bad representation of CPR because I had to cut it short lol. Proofread once.

‧⋆ ✧˚₊‧⋆. A/N: It’s been a while since I've done a Sangyeon fic, and it just so happens my brain has been plagued by lifeguard sangyeon for a while so… here 🤪 (might have a part 2! but more on the smutty scene because why the fuck not?)

‧⋆ ✧˚₊‧⋆. Network & Tag: @deoboyznet @winterchimez

You hated going to the beach.

The blazing heat of the sun scorching your skin, annoying children chasing each other around, the sand sneaking its way into your bathing suit uncomfortably, the list goes on.

But here you were, lying down on a beach towel under the shade of your umbrella, sporting the cutest two-piece bikini you’d never imagine wearing in your whole existence of living.

So, if you hated the beach so much… Why were you here again?

Oh yes! Trying to catch the attention of the hot lifeguard that saved your life the other week.

Was it desperate? Absolutely.

Did you really go out of your way to get the attention of a man? Of course!

Did you want to fuck him every time he’d glanced your way? Hell yeah!

Why wouldn’t you especially when the lifeguard in question made you melt into a puddle more than the radiating sun’s heat?

It was a fairly sunny day that time you went to the beach with your friend. The sun wasn’t too hot but it wasn’t too dark to go out either. You haven’t been out of the house in a while, plus it was starting to get stuffy inside so you thought a good breath of fresh air would do you good.

Your friend was busy playing beach volleyball with a bunch of other strangers as you waded in the somewhat shallow end of the ocean, trying to cool off and enjoy the calm waves moving you.

Because it had been years since you’ve gone to the beach, you didn’t anticipate how strong even the smallest of waves could be. So when the next wave came crashing into you as your back was turned, you immediately lost your balance.

You didn’t remember much but all you could remember was shouting for help and the next thing you know you feel someone performing CPR on you and immediately coughing out the ocean water.

“Hey, are you alright?” The deep voice asks you with concern.

As soon as you look at the person who saved your life, you’re too stunned to speak. All you could think about was how tanned and muscled this guy was.

Your cheeks start to blush when you get a better look at this guy’s face too. He looked like a Michelangelo sculpture that was brought to life. His strong jaw, his manly hands, and that nose…

Oh he was so hot.

“I-uh…” you couldn't find the words in you as his brown orbs looked deep into yours.

“It’s okay, I got you.” He reassures you as his hand rests on your lower back. “I’m Sangyeon.” He introduces himself. You give him your name and he replies with a gentle smile.

“Beautiful name for a beautiful girl” he replies. Your cheeks redden even more from the compliment.

You were so fucked after this.

And ever since he saved you that day, you kept on trying to remember the way his kissable lips felt on yours, the way he held you and made sure you were okay until you left the beach, and how his gaze on you made your knees buckle in place.

You wanted him. And you did everything you could to get his attention.

Asking him for help in carrying your stuff, teaching you how to surf, and “bumping” into him at the juice bar. Even going as far as asking for help to rub sunblock on your back. You remember the way you felt a pool of heat forming below as his hands delicately rubbed the sunblock on your exposed back, his hands lingering on your waist a little longer than normal, and his deep voice near your ear when he asked “Is this good?”

God you were so desperate.

But who wouldn’t be? Especially when you felt this spark between you aside from the raging physical attraction you had for him. You soon found out how good of a person he was from all the conversations you had with each other. How pure and genuine his soul was. He wasn’t just some hot lifeguard, but a man who genuinely enjoys helping others. You were starting to fall for him.

As soon as you saw him setting up his stuff at the lifeguard post, you immediately got up and adjusted your bikini and fixed your hair as you walked towards him. Your movements suddenly stop when you see another woman talking to him, his co-worker.

Her hand lingering on his bicep too long, the way he smiled at her, how she looked effortlessly beautiful especially with the wind blowing her hair. The way they hugged before she left to leave before swapping duties. Your insecurities quickly flooding inside you as you observed the two.

Who were you kidding? Sangyeon would never go for someone like you. Someone has handsome and genuine as he is? Not a chance.

You turned your heel and made your way back to your spot on the beach, immediately covering yourself with a large shirt and packing away your things. You didn't want to break down with all these strangers around and be reminded of what you just saw.

Sangyeon was about to climb up to his post when he saw you. As he was about to greet you and ask you how you were, you rushed past him, not paying attention to him in any sort of way. His happy demeanor dropped in seconds. You always say hello to him. It’s the one thing he always looks forward to every time you’re at the beach.

Did someone bother you while he was gone? He always made sure no creeps were walking towards you. Or did he do something to upset you yesterday? He was more worried about the latter.

Of course, he didn't want to bother you in that moment so he decided to just let you be and maybe ask how you are when he sees you again tomorrow.

Little did he know you wouldn’t be returning for a long while.

It had been a couple of weeks since you’ve made an appearance at the beach. Insecurities and anxieties getting the better of you that you just wanted to dig a hole and stay there til the big wave of embarrassment you felt remembering all the things you did to get Sangyeon’s attention washed away.

There were too many thoughts running on your mind tonight for some reason, so you decided to walk to the small beach spot near your house. This secluded spot was on the opposite end of the more populated area. You found yourself walking here at night often whenever you had too many troubling thoughts.

The sounds of crashing waves against the rocks were so calming. No person in sight to be found. The slight chill in the wind’s breeze blowing against your skin. How come you never go to this side of the beach during the day time?

You walked until you found a good spot to spread out your towel, opening your phone to play some relaxing music before lying down and looking up at the stars above. Just when you were about to close your eyes and enjoy the stillness of the moment, a deep voice startles you.

“I was starting to wonder if you got sick of me already.” You slightly gasp from the initial shock, but your cheeks start to blush as soon as you get up to see who it was.

“Sangyeon! Oh I- I didn’t know you’d be here” you nervously fiddle with your fingers, trying to avoid his gaze. Of all people that had to sneak up on you tonight, it just had to be him.

“Mind if I sit?” He takes a step forward, his feet at the edge of your towel.

“Uh- yeah. Sure..” You reply. You scoot over to make space before he sits beside you.

You instantly feel the warmth radiating from his body as his thigh nudges yours. The scent of his alluring cologne making its way to your lungs as you breathe in the ocean air. Thank god it was nighttime, otherwise the flaring blush on your cheeks and the redness of your ears would give away the effect he had on you.

There was an awkward silence between you two. What would you even say to him? You've never talked to him outside of the times you tried to get his attention. Before you opened your mouth to attempt to make conversation, he beat you to it.

“So… How are things? I haven’t seen you in a while.” he slightly turns his body to face you.

“Good.. Everything’s good..” You awkwardly reply. You wanted to cringe at the way you answered him, it’s small talk at its finest. He hums in response.

“You know… it’s not the same being on duty.” He suddenly blurts out.

“Oh? How come?” Your eyebrows slightly knit in confusion.

“Because I don’t get to talk to my favorite girl anymore” He sighs.

“Did she move away or something?” you ask, your heart slightly stinging at his words.

“No, uh-” He chuckles in between, finding your denseness very adorable. “She just ran off when I was about to go talk to her. I was actually gonna ask her out and everything too. But thank god I found her here on this side of the beach.” He looks straight into your eyes.

“Oh… OH! Me?” Your eyes widen. You couldn't believe what he just said. He called you his favorite girl too.

“Yes you!” He laughs and you smile with him. Suddenly his fingers intertwine with yours, slightly playing with them. He subtly moves his body closer to yours.

“You’re really beautiful, you know that?” His gaze doesn’t leave yours as he brushes a loose hair behind your ear. His eyes quickly glance at your lips, making the butterflies in your stomach flutter and twirl.

“Ever since I saved you that day, couldn’t stop thinking about you.” He admitted. “And every time since then I just couldn’t stay away…”

Sangyeon moves his fingers to your chin, slightly tilting your head to get a better look at you. He leans forward to try to kiss you, but you suddenly panic and stop him before he could even close the small gap between your lips and his.

“Actually! I wanted to ask you about that-”

“About what sweetheart?” His eyebrows slightly raise as he tilts his head.

“CPR. Yeah that. I was wondering like if you could teach me how? You know so that I can be prepared in case and save someone’s life just like you.” You ramble.

Sangyeon takes a moment to respond, the gears in his head turning before mischievously smirking at you.

“Sure, I’ll teach you now!” He replies. He shifts his body to a kneeling position.

“N-now?” You ask, wondering where this conversation is going.

“Yeah! C’mon. Lie down for me.” His hand slowly pressing on your shoulder as you lower yourself until your back hits the ground.

“Okay first thing you have to do is make sure that the victim lying down facing up, so you’ve got that covered.” He smiles at you, his hand resting on top of your stomach.

“Next, you have to check for any signs of breathing. If there is none, call for 911 and start placing both your hands on their chest, on top of the other.”

As soon as Sangyeon says this his hand slowly moves up to your chest, intentionally snaking them in-between your breasts making your breath hitch. You try to ignore the pooling heat forming between your legs.

“After, you’re gonna do thirty chest compressions, meaning pumping your hands on their chest.” Sangyeon gestures the motion. He slowly lowers his head, his face dangerously close to yours.

“Then tilt their head a bit, pinch their nose-” His face inching closer to yours, you can feel his breath fanning lightly on your lips. His lips lightly graze yours, making you gasp at how soft they feel.

“And perform mouth to mouth-”

“Sangyeon, I-” He smashes his lips against yours, making you whimper in desperation. This is so not happening right now. This must be dream.

Sangyeon kisses you like a man deprived of touch. He takes every chance he gets to remember the way your lips move with his perfectly. He shifts his position to hover above you. His hands grazing your waist before slipping them under your shirt, groaning in pleasure the moment his palms meet your naked chest.

You thank the universe for not wearing a bra tonight as his fingers flick and pinch your perked nipples. His lips never leave yours, desperately snaking his tongue inside your mouth as soon as your lips slightly part.

You place your hands on his strong chest, slightly pushing him away to catch your breath for a moment from all the kissing. Sangyeon’s lips start kissing your jaw and making its way to the most sensitive part of your neck.

“You don’t know how long I've been wanting this…” He mumbles. You let out a breathy moan as he rolls his hips into you, his hard length pressing rubbing against your throbbing core.

“Sangyeon-” you moan out his name as he grabs your hands and places them over your head. You wrap your legs around his waist, pulling him closer as he continues to grind his hips. He holds your wrists with one hand as the other slips under your shorts, your hips jolt as he starts to skillfully rub your sensitive bud.

“So wet for me sweetheart. This because of me?” He whispers in your ear.

“Y-yes. Always for you…” You whine.

“I feel dirty every time I stare at you in your cute little bathing suits. You know that? Always getting me hard during my shift sweetheart.” He groans.

“Fuck- that time you asked me to rub sunscreen on your back, had to stop myself from pressing my cock against your ass.” He smirks before kissing your neck again, his fingers quickening the pace before inserting them in your wet entrance.

You let out a loud moan feeling his thick fingers fill you up.

“That’s it sweetheart, let those pretty sounds out. Been dying to know how you sound like-” He pumps his fingers into you faster, the squelching sound of your wet pussy ringing in your ear. He moans into your mouth as he kisses you again, rutting himself against your inner thigh.

The smell of his cologne lingering in your nose, the sounds of the waves crashing around you, the vibrations of his groans electrifying you within, his strong hands holding you down, you brain was starting to get foggy for the overwhelming sensations. The coil inside your abdomen tightening slowly.

“S-sangyeon- wanna touch you-” You mumble against his lips.

“Please do-” He lets go of your wrists. You hastily untie the drawstring of his shorts and slip your hand under the waistband. Sangyeon lets out a pornographic moan as soon as your soft hand grabs his cock. His oozing precum making it easy for you to fist his length up and down in a fast pace.

He curls his fingers inside, hitting that delicious spot inside you that you could never reach on your own. You continue to fist his cock vigorously, both of you moaning into each other’s mouths.

“I-I’m gonna-” You whine.

“That’s it. Cum on my fingers sweetheart. Wanna see your pretty face when you cum.” He adds a third finger inside you, stretching your walls even further. Your orgasm hits you right away after a few pumps of his fingers inside you.

Your brain fogs up for a moment as you catch your breath before coming back to earth. When you open your eyes to see Sangyeon you see him looking back at you sucking on his fingers as he savors the taste of you.

“Taste sweeter than I imagined.” He releases his fingers from his mouth with a pop. The sight almost making you wet again.

Sangyeon lends his hand to help you sit up from your position, your chest bumping into his in the process. Your eyes widen when you suddenly realize Sangyeon didn’t reach his high with you.

“Oh- you didn’t get to-”

“Don’t worry about me, okay? I can take care of it myself. Wanted to make you feel good.” He softly smiled while caressing your cheek. He was more interested in you reaching your high above anything else to be honest.

“But I want to…” You shyly look away as you admit this to him. “Been wanting to show how thankful I was for you saving my life…” You cheeks blush.

Sangyeon lets out a chuckle, his fingers holding your chin up to look at him.

“Is that so?” He smirks.

“Y-yeah.”

“If you insist.” He leans closer to your face. “As long as I get to come over your place and…” His other hand sliding between your legs, squeezing your inner thigh in the process.

“… You wear that cute little bikini you were wearing the last time I saw you. Deal?”

You smile at his suggestion as you graze your fingers delicately over his clothed erection, making him lightly gasp at your touch.

“Deal.”

[kasagia]

The last time

Pairing: William "Billy" Russo x fem! reader Summary: You're done being the less important one. The one who always had to conform to the big asshole and playboy Mr. Billy Goddamn Russo. And this time you really promised yourself that it's over... but is it? Wairning(s): Billy is toxic, but he loves the reader; the reader loves Billy, but everyone is fucked up; fight; swearing; blood; the reader is a doctor; the reader and Billy argue, but both cannot live without each other; violence; weapon; Inspired by: Taylor Swift - The Last Time (Feat. Gary Lightbody) Nonsense from me: I'm so happy I was able to write this in this week. I hope you like it. 💙🖤 P.S. The next oneshot will be with Darkling (Would've, Could've, Should've), but I don't know when I'll be able to write it. 😅 Word count: 6,5k Taglist: @aoi-targaryen

Find myself at your door Just like all those times before I'm not sure how I got there All roads, they lead me here

When you opened the door, you didn't expect that instead of finding the pizza delivery guy, you would find Billy Russo... or rather, what was left of him.

The hood over his head and his slightly lowered head were unable to hide the scars on his face. You notice that over time they have become... less visible... at least not as angry red as they were in the media after they published the fugitive's photo.

Yeah. You saw the news. (And talked to Maria.) You know what happened.

Maybe you didn't want to deal with a man who had broken your heart many times over the years, but you couldn't just pretend he didn't exist.

His face, his name, even that stupid nickname, Jigsaw, were everywhere. In the newspapers, on TV, on the internet, in your old photo albums and even in your fucking dreams. And now he was standing in front of you. The shell that remains of a one and only Billy Russo.

"May I... may I come in?" he whispered, staring at you uncertainly. You promised yourself that you would slam the door on that scarred face when he came to you... but in your toughts he was more... arrogant... just like he used to be.

"I... I'm not sure." the words come out of you as you look at him, trying to recover from the shock. You thought seeing him in person wouldn't do anything to you. How stupid you were...

"Please... I just want to talk to you. Give me five minutes and then you can sand me back to hell."

You bite your lip. You saw on the news that the Punisher and Jigsaw had teamed up... if Frank could forgive him enough to work with him and let him near Maria and the kids, you could give him that five damn minutes, before you try to kick his ass.

"Only five minutes, Russo." you say as you let him in.

Closing the door behind him, you wonder how far you've fallen by letting him back into your home… but from the way he looks around your place hesitantly, avoiding looking at you, you wonder who's really lost their dignity here.

I imagine you are home In your room, all alone And you open your eyes into mine And everything feels better

"You... you look beautiful." he says as he finally looks at you for the first time since your… rather tumultuous breakup.

"You wanted to talk." you say, crossing your arms as you lean against the dresser and stare intently at the man sitting on your couch.

"I… wanted to come to you after… all this shit. I… I could have lost my fucking memories somehow, but I think you've embedded yourself in my brain more than anything else. I went to your apartment, but you moved away." he admits, avoiding your heavy gaze to stare at the coffee table. You see a sad smile on his face as he stares at the pile of books and papers that were almost always present in any available space in your apartment. Some things don't change.

"I did." you say, closing some of your patient files from him so he can't analyse where exactly you work after you quit your job at Anvil as their private doctor. You collect papers and put them on your desk, turning your back to him. "Some people would get the hint. Did Frank throw out what was left of your brain by smashing your head against a mirror?"

You know it's a low move on your part, but you can't resist making him suffer. And by the way you suddenly feel his warm body behind you, you know that turning your back on your former marine and murderous ex wasn't such a smart idea. You swallow and turn around, crossing your arms to stare defiantly at him.

He is angry. You see it in his eyes. For some strange reason, instead of throwing you against the wall, he decides to close his eyes and take a few calming breaths.

And the part of you that still cares about him reminds you that he never laid a finger on you. Screaming, shouting, verbal threats were options. However, he never lost his temper enough to actually try to hurt you... but maybe you should stop testing your luck after all?

"Well... I... I think he finally put something into my empty head." you shift your puzzled gaze to him. You thought Frankie and Billy would go back to fighting like vicious dogs, trying to kill each other. Apparently, things have changed more than you originally expected.

"And here I thought that no one would be able to get through your thick skull."

"I'm going to therapy." he blurts out. You frown. Well, this wasn't at all what you expected when you saw Billy again. "To… sort it all out." he says, not breaking eye contact with you.

"Well… good for you. But I assume you didn't come here just to brag about it."

Billy shakes his head and takes a step towards you, watching your reaction. You tense up, but then relax as your body subconsciously takes in the scent of his perfume, which after all reminds you of (ironically) safety.

"No. I don't. I... I'm here to ask you if..."

"Stop it. Whatever you are about to ask me, my answer is no. I don't want to have anything to do with you." you interrupt him before he makes any suggestions for you to consider. "Not after what you did to me, to Frankie, to Castles. I'm glad you're on the mend, but I don't want to know you, Russo."

"Y/N, please..." he sighs pleadingly and reaches up to cup your cheek. You grab his hand before you can feel his fingers on you in a tender gesture that so often melted your heart for him.

"DON'T... just leave. Do one damn thing for someone else's sake and just leave. Let me be as I was." you say, glaring at him and internally cursing yourself for the tremble in your voice.

Somehow you win this battle of hurt glances because the next thing you hear in the room after his heavy breathing is the door slamming as he leaves. You are left alone. You're shaking with the emotions that are flowing through you now. You put your hand to your mouth and cried quietly.

Billy fucking Russo always had to come and mess up your life like a damn master.

And right before your eyes I'm breaking, no past No reasons why Just you and me

You come back from your shift at the hospital to find Frankie sitting outside your apartment door.

"One more such trip to the past, and I swear I will take a dog from the shelter and threaten you with it. What do you want, Frank?" you ask, crossing your arms and glaring at the Punisher.

"Nice to see you too, Doc. Have you finally learned how to sew people up, or are you still torturing them?" he asks with a mischievous smile, standing up and walking over to you.

"It was only once in Afghanistan, and in my defence, you were squirming like a dog in a nettle. Besides, it's not my fault you fell on knives because you stumbled like an idiot after the action was over."

The man laughs and pulls you into a hug. "It's been too long. Too bad you fucking ran away from Russo all the way here, I hate coming back to this town. By the way, Maria and kids missed you too."

"I spoke to them just yesterday on Skype. Besides, somehow this distance doesn't stop you from harassing me. And not only you. Billy was here two weeks ago." you say, leading him into your apartment. You give him a stern look as he walk inside. He rolls his eyes at me but bends down and takes off his shoes before walking further in.

"I thought so. He's been looking like shit for two weeks. I'm sure he now consists of 70 percent alcohol. Lisa wondered if his corpse on the couch was starting to decompose enough for Maria to let her perform an autopsy on him." you smile at the mention of your goddaughter. That's your little girl.

"If you tell me you're here to stand up for him, I'll kick you out of my apartment. The idea of letting him be part of your family again after all this shit he has done is sick. You're a fucked-up man, Frankie."

"Y/N, it's not what it looks like."

"Frank damn it, he almost helped kill your family! If I hadn't let Maria talk me into going with you that damn morning to the Central Park and forgave him after seeing those fucking eyes of a broken puppy, he probably wouldn't have lifted a finger to save Maria, kids and you!"

"I thought so too, so I shattered up his face, and we did a lot of shitty, sick things to each other, but believe me, it's not that simple. This fucking mess around us... is partly his fault, but not in the way we first assumed. He's still my brother… he's still our Bill."

You sigh, running a hand through your hair. You were fed up with it all. All this drama that's going on around Russo. Sometimes I wonder if it wouldn't have been better if they'd never called you in to stitch up that damn Marine and you'd never met him...

"I don't care, Frank. He hurt you. For money. He can go and keep selling himself like a whore." you say bitterly and walk past the man standing in the middle of your living room. You go to the bar and pour yourself a glass of something stronger.

"You can't be serious."

"I fucking am, Castle." you reply dispassionately, drinking the alcohol in a gulp. You pour yourself another glass and sit on the couch, watching the conflicted man in front of you.

"Come on. It's you and Billy. You always came back to each other. After every shit, big fight and breakup. Like a damn Ross and Rachel."

"For the last time I'm telling you, stop fucking watching Friends with Lisa and Maria, it's our show. Besides, this isn't damn Friends or any soap opera, Frankie. Billy fucked up. Ultimately. Nothing will change that, so just fuck off or accept it. God! You're taking our breakup worse than that cold bastard." you laugh bitterly and finish your glass. You set it down on the coffee table with a bang and run a hand through your hair. No. You won't get drunk again because of that damn asshole.

"Bullshit. He's a mess… I've never seen him like this."

"Do I look like I care?" you ask him, raising an eyebrow defiantly.

"You fucking liar, you couldn't stop loving him overnights."

You don't answer right away. He was right. You couldn't stop loving someone who was so deeply embedded in your soul, who saw all of you and became a part of your heart so easily... but loving Billy hurt you more than staying away from him. And for once in your life, you just want to feel at peace and be somewhat happy. Even without Bill by your side.

"If you want something, you better fucking say it or get the hell out." you say, not looking at him as your attention is drawn to your hands instead of the man standing in front of you.

He sighs, tightening his grip on the chair. You see his white knuckles, and for a moment, you think he's going to break the back of the chair. He sighs suddenly and relaxes his muscles, staring at you with a less angry look.

"I need your help."

This is the last time I'm asking you this Put my name at the top of your list This is the last time I'm asking you why You break my heart in the blink of an eye (Eye, eye)

You imagined your reunion with everyone a little worse. Maria and the kids were in a safe house outside the city, but it was nice to meet the rest of your old friends (in the case of the murder of the last of Rawllins' men, but hey, people talk about different things, right?) And it was really nice... until Billy returned to the apartment.

As soon as his dark-brown irises met yours, an unpleasant, awkward silence fell in the living room. You felt not only his gaze but also the curious gazes of the others as they glanced between the two of you.

"What the hell is she doing here?" he asks, shooting an angry, betrayed look at Frankie.

"Don't worry. I'll be gone as soon as I make sure the Castles are out of any danger. I don't really feel like seeing your face too." you say, giving him a defiant look. You turn your head away from him and towards Micro as quickly as you can.

Billy had dark circles under his eyes, a paler face than usual, and obvious signs of sleep deprivation. You'd care if he was more than just a piece of trash who betrayed people close to him. Yet you still cared.

However, the man does not give up easily. He walks over to you, stands in front of you, and takes your chin in his hand to make you look at him. If you didn't know better, you'd think you saw pain in that son of a bitch's eyes.

"You don't have to look at me from the hiding place where we put Maria and the kids, so get your pretty ass out of here and don't cause us any more troubles than we already have."

"How dare you talk about them after what you did?!" you growl at him in anger, pushing his hand away and standing up to face him. "All the trouble we're having is because you're a selling-out motherfucker who betrayed the only people in this world who fucking cared about you!"

Billy clenches his fists and takes a step towards you, leaning towards you. You both breathe quickly, shooting each other hostile glances, waiting to see who will break away and attack first. The tension in the room is so great that you can almost feel sparks flying between you. Frank quickly steps between the two of you, gives Billy a stern look and turns to face you.

"Save the lovers' quarrel and make-up sex for later, okay? Billy, Y/N is coming with us. Y/N, you're not trying to kill Billy until we do what we have to do, and it's best not to argue with him at all. Same with you, Bill. Can you do it, or are you resentful young brats who will be at each other's throats after a breakup?" he says, looking between you two. You huff, crossing your arms and staring at Castle.

"And since when did you become such a responsible asshole, Frankie?" you ask mockingly, raising an eyebrow in question.

"Since we've been planning a glorious murder at those, who tried to kill my family." you sigh and nod. He is right. Killing these bastards is your priority. You can't let your feelings for that asshole who still manages to get under your skin somehow complicate your already difficult mission.

"Fine. Just keep him away from me." you growl in anger and walk past Billy, elbowing him as you go to get ready for your 'mission' with the boys.

And if you looked over your shoulder, you would see a dark brown irises staring longingly at your retreat towards the armoury silhouette.

You find yourself at my door And just like all those times before You wear your best apology But I was there to watch you leave And all the times I let you in Just for you to go again Disappear when you come back Everything is better

A ring at your door at 2 a.m. should make you suspicious.

You should pretend to sleep and finish studying for the last exam that separates you from your desired diploma. You promised yourself that after completing your specialisation, you would leave the army and move to a state hospital. You were fed up with gunshots all around you. For now, you were well on your way to shedding your soldier's uniform and permanently donning a doctor's coat.

You were one exam away from your dreams... and one Billy goddamn Russo who was standing outside your door.

Before you could close it in his face, the man stuck his shoe between the door and the frame. You curse under your breath and open them again to meet this hot damn asshole on your doorstep.

"You shouldn't open the door at this hour without checking who's behind it." he starts, resting his hand on the door as if to make sure you won't shut it in his face again. Only now do you notice his bag slung over his shoulder. He must have come here straight from the airport as soon as he landed.

"A lesson for the future. What do you want?" you ask dryly, crossing your arms. He looks at you tiredly and sighs. The hand that isn't holding the door is combing through his hair. Dog tags hang from his neck as he bows his head slightly before looking back into your eyes.

"Please... I just want to talk." he pleads, wearing his best apologetic, kicked puppy look.

"We have nothing to talk about. Can you let go of my door now? I have an important exam tomorrow; I need to get some sleep." he smiles slightly. Reluctantly, you feel your chest warm up at that damn cute smile.

"Knowing you, honey, you probably weren't even going to go to sleep, just keep revising the material."

"What are you doing here? There were no more sheets of paper in Afghanistan? The poor postman used to come here with a bag full of letters from you. I felt bad sending them back just because of him."

"So… you haven't read any?" he asks, swallowing and staring at you with those damn eyes you would kill for someday.

"Why? I broke up with you before I left the unit. I was just your sexy doctor, right? Or maybe I'm distorting your words? I'm almost sure that's what you called me while bragging to your colleagues in the unit that you fucked the coldest and most unapproachable bitch from the base."

"These same colleagues saw me rage and fall apart as I was getting my letters back from you. I was the one of us, who was there to watch you leave." he responds to your accusations, and the pain in his eyes almost convinces you to throw yourself into his arms. But luckily, you remember the nights you spent crying because of the asshole in front of you.

"And I was the one who overheard that everything between us was some kind of fucking adventure for the time being until you get to another woman." you growl angrily, trying to slam the door on him, but his hand on it prevents you from doing so. He pushes himself inside your apartment and pins you to the wall, closing the door behind him with a loud bang. Loud enough to have your neighbours hear that.

"It's not true… what was between us… it was the only real thing I ever had in my damn life." he says with a shaky voice and you see tears forming in his eyes. "Neither of us expected what was between us to turn into something more than a few-month fling, but here I am, flitting around without you like a moth searching for the fucking light after spending years in the darkness, which was my life without you. I care about you. More than anything. More than I want to admit, more than I would like. That damn much that I would travel halfway around the world for you, I will grovel at your feet just to be fucking close to you."

You let your tears flow freely as you listened to his confession. You know what the man in front of you has been through—what demons of his past pursued him at every turn. And maybe it's his words; maybe it's those damn, tearful eyes that allowed you to see his vulnerability, hidden for so many years; or maybe you just can't live without him either...

Anyway, you grab his dog tags and pull him towards you for a passionate, tearful kiss as both of you realise one terryfing truth... You need each other.

"This is the last time, Russo." you whisper against his lips as he guides you towards your bedroom, stripping you of your clothes.

And right before your eyes I'm aching, run fast Nowhere to hide Just you and me

"What the fuck are you thinking you are doing?" you ask him angrily as he drags you by your elbow away from the shooting.

Things have gone a bit south. Frank didn't anticipate how much support the group we were supposed to kill would get, and now they cut off your group, and now you were forced to work with Billy to get out of here and kill the people you had to. A very mad Billy Russo in his stupid mask.

"I'm saving your ass. Stay here. I'll take care of the rest." he says, letting go of your elbow as he looks around the room.

"There's no fucking option. You won't play my hero, Russo." you say, and reload your gun.

"You won't distract me. You're staying here. End of discussion." he walks up to you and tries to grab the gun out of your hand. You struggle with him and use the grip he taught you to push him away. After a while, you aim your gun at him. You see a hint of fear in his eyes. You shoot, killing the guy standing in the doorway behind him.

"I'm not you. I don't kill my people." you growl at him in anger and move past him to drag the dead man inside and close the door. Billy is grateful for his mask... at least you can't see his shocked, pained expression.

He pulls up a chair and starts rummaging through the flap of the ventilation duct. During this time, you take the gun and bullets from the corpse.

"I would never kill the Castles." he says, not looking at you as he continues to open the vent. "They are my family... just like you."

"You haven't been my family for a long time." you snort at his seemingly tender words. You shiver when he suddenly jumps from the chair and pins you to the wall. Even from behind his mask, you can see how hurt and furious he is.

He holds your arms tightly, almost in a bruising embrace, as he whispers from under his mask so quietly that you can barely hear his words and his voice shaking with emotion.

"Everything... I've ever done... I've done for you. For us."

"There are no us, Russo." You growl in anger and push his arms off of you. You go to the air vent, but he grabs you by the waist and pulls you towards him. You fight him, even going so far as to rip off his mask, but he still holds you in a tight hug, staring into your eyes.

"I fucking love you; do you understand?! With my entire pathetic existence. I know that now you only see me as a monster and that my face is disgusting, but I can't... I can't lose you. Not you. I can endure everything—insults, your hatred... just... please... please don't leave me." he whispers desperately, cupping your cheek in one hand and resting his forehead against yours. You close your eyes, feeling tears welling up in them. You can't count how many times you cried because of that bastard in front of you.

"You think I care about your scars? I don't give a damn about them. What's keeping me away from you is your ugly inside, Russo. You don't care about anyone suffering as long as you profit from it. I'm disgusted by your personality and by the fact that you were willing to sell out your best friend's family and all the people who cared about you for goddamn money and fame. And I hate you, because somehow, even after all you've done, I still care about your damn ass."

His thumb strokes your cheek tenderly as you let him kiss the tears off your face as you almost fell apart in his hands, which you've missed for so long.

“Y/N, my heart, I swear I would never, ever hurt them. You have to believe me. I wouldn't risk what we have… I wouldn't risk losing you after having no one to care about for my whole messed-up life.”

And you're inclined to believe him. You are willing to forget everything and just accept him back. But then you hear a faint beeping sound. You both freeze, staring at each other.

Billy works fast. Too fast for you. He pushes you into the vent and closes the hatch behind you before you can do anything. After a moment, a quiet explosion echoes from the room below you, masking your frantic scream of his name.

This is the last time I'm asking you this Put my name at the top of your list This is the last time I'm asking you why You break my heart in the blink of an eye (Eye, eye)

Billy was not a good man. He knew it. He had no reason. Life never spoiled him, and everything he worked for he had to tear out with his nails. He had no reason to be good. But what he was about to allow now would seal who he was forever. There would be no turning back. And he knew it the moment he joined Castles in the Central Park.

He actually had nothing to lose. Y/N left him, and it would only be a matter of time before Frank would turn on him. He would be alone again. At least he would have guaranteed his future... however empty it might be. But he always believed that it was better to be depressed in an expensive sports car than anywhere else.

At least that's what he thought until he saw Y/N again, for the first time since their next big (this time final, which he deeply believed) breakup. And God, she was beautiful. More beautiful than ever.

She was wearing that little black floral dress that he loved, and she was joking about something with little Lisa as she dragged her through Central Park and the stands. Little Castle led her towards him.

Quiet: "Don't fuck it up, Uncle Bill." came from Frank Jr.'s mouth, before the kid disappeared, likely going to his father, who was probably already watching him. A young boy had to stop using such words. Maria would have his and Frank's heads for it.

Billy's eyes met yours. He gulped, watching as you walked up to him, and Lisa disappeared, probably going to the hideout where her parents were, watching him and Y/N. He clears his throat as you stand in front of him and gives you one of his practiced smirks... though he doubts he's acting as confident as he should be.

"Hi." he says quietly, staring at your face. His stupid heart beats like crazy as he completely forgot everything that wasn't you.

"Hi." you reply, playing with one of the rings on your finger—a nervous habit that he has despised since he felt the need to put HIS ring on you that you can play with and twirl on your finger when you feel insecure. "It was a long time."

"Indeed." he agrees and puts his hands in his pockets, trying to appear nonchalant. "You look beautiful, how are you?" he asks, as if he didn't have people positioned around you, to keep you safe and out of his troubles... the daily update about your life was the only thing that kept him from losing his mind after... losing you.

"All right. I got this job at the hospital." he knows. He himself made a transfer to the account of the hospital's head so that he would employ you there. Still, a smile appears on his face at the excitement in your eyes.

"I told you it was only a matter of time. You are the best surgeon in the USA."

"Well, I doubt Frank would agree with that." you laugh, and he can't help but join you. Frank was your test subject. A very grumpy test subject. Billy could never complain about being a little too strict or stitching it up too quickly at your beginnings. You were just perfect in his eyes.

"Don't listen to him, he is just a brat." he says, nudging your shoulder gently with his. And suddenly, you both stare at each other. You both linger on the other's lips for a moment longer.

"I missed you, Bill." you admit and his heart starts beating wildly.

He swallowed. No. He can't drag you into his shit. You would be better off without him... but as you stood in front of him, looking at him with those beautiful eyes of yours that he would do anything for, he knew he had lost. And much sooner than he realised it.

He pulls you into his embrace. And when you wrap your arms around him, when you snuggle into his chest, and he inhales your scent, burying his nose in your hair, he knows he's home. He knows that he wants to feel this way forever and that life without you simply makes no sense to him anymore. And if he were anyone else, if he hadn't gone through all this shit in his life, he would have cried right there.

Instead, he pulls you closer to his chest, almost digging his fingers into your back, and whispers softly, his eyes closed tightly:

"This is the last time, I won't hurt you anymore." he kisses your head, sealing his promise. He will burn the world for you. And nothing will stop him.

And as you sit next to him on the bench, across from the Castles, who are teasing you about how you two can't live without each other, he just smiles and texts his people to call off the action. Unbeknownst to you all, he declares war on Rollins, writing to him: "No one hurts my family. That's the end of the deal."

This is the last time you tell me I've got it wrong This is the last time I say it's been you all along This is the last time I let you in my door This is the last time, I won't hurt you anymore Oh-ho, oh-ho, oh-ho, oh-ho Oh-ho, oh-ho, oh-ho, oh-ho

You've been holding his hand since you returned to the Castles' house after his doctors examined him and patched him up. They didn't let you get to him. Something about an emotional attachment would cloud your judgement as a doctor. Stupid bullshit, but there was nothing you could do against Frank's strong grip as he held you in the hallway until you were allowed to carry him home. You're sure Castle had scratches from your nails when you tried to get away to go to Billy.

You shiver when Frank suddenly enters the room and hands you cup of tea. You take it from him without a word with one hand, and with the other, you still hold Billy, waiting for him to wake up. Frank snorts and sits down in the chair next to you, watching you closely.

"He'll get through this. Fortunately, he didn't set himself on fire, he just crashed into the opposite wall." you shiver, ignoring his words as you sip your tea. "Although I doubt he'll have any luck next time if you dump him again. Who knows what he'll do next time just for you to hold his hand."

"What the hell are you talking about?" you ask angrily, shifting your outraged gaze to him. He just shrugs.

"Do you think he let me give him those scars just like that? This is some form of his twisted compensation or punishment. The fact that he was hoping you would magically come get him and patch him up only encouraged him more to stay still as I smashed his face."

"You're fucked up. Both of you. No normal people would come back to being friends after something like that."

"We're all fucked up. Me, because I still see him as a brother. He, because he still wants to be part of my family. And you, who love him despite everything, but leave him at every possible opportunity." you turn your gaze away from him to Billy. He is right. And that hurts the most.

"Every time I promise myself it will be the last time. That I will never go back to him. That this is the last time he breaks my heart without even blinking. One last time I let him back into my life, but I… I just can't, Frankie… I can't leave him, no matter how much he destroys me."

"He thinks he's not worthy of you. That you deserve better." you huff bitterly, shaking your head, trying to fight away the tears.

"There is nothing for me apart from him." you whisper, staring blankly at your linked hands with Billy's. "Not after everything I've been through with him."

"Then stick with it. It's better to be fucked up together." you are laughing. It's not that simple, it never was… or maybe it was you who didn't want to make it such a simple thing.

"You should go to Maria and the kids." you say, wanting to get rid of him. You don't know what you feel. All you know is that you won't leave this room until those dark brown irises look back at you again.

"Will you stay with him?" he asks, and from the heavy atmosphere in the room, you feel like this question means more. He asks if you will stay forever. You lift your hand and gently run through Billy's short hair, observing what happened to him after the two of you were apart... and in fact, you weren't holding up any better than he was.

"Yes... yes I will." you whisper, never taking your eyes off his face. And you feel like something heavy has fallen off your chest. Months of crying, anxiety and apathy passed with the snap of a finger.

"I want to be godfather to your first. And for him to have Frankie as his second name if it's a boy."

"Fuck you, Castle." you say and throw a spare pillow at him. The man laughs as he leaves. He closes the door behind him and you look at the unconscious Billy.

"This is the last time, Russo. I mean that. Don't fuck it up." you whisper and kiss your joined hands.

This is the last time I'm asking you this Put my name at the top of your list This is the last time I'm asking you why You break my heart in the blink of an eye This is the last time I'm asking you this (This is the last time I'm asking you this) Put my name at the top of your list (Put my name at the top of your list) This is the last time I'm asking you why (This is the last time I'm asking you why) You break my heart in the blink of an eye (You break my heart) This is the last time I'm asking you, last time I'm asking you Last time I'm asking you this This is the last time I'm asking you, last time I'm asking you Last time I'm asking you this

The gentle brushing of your hair is the first thing you feel when you wake up. Another is his tight grip on your hands, as if he's afraid you're just a product of his head high on painkillers. You raise your head slowly. His hand slips from your hair and rests hesitantly on your cheek.

"Hello." he whispers, staring at you. And for a moment, you just stay like that, each drinking in the sight of the other.

And your heart breaks when you see him waiting for the moment when you start screaming at him, when you take away the closeness he missed so much.

So against your better judgement and what you should do, you lean in and kiss him sweetly, cupping his cheek in your hand. You caress one of his worst scars with the pad of your thumb as he responds to your kiss. His hands stay stiffly in place as he's afraid to move, lest he disturb this moment between you, to feel your lips as long as possible.

You pull away from him and rest your forehead against his. You close your eyes, catching your breath. You feel his burning, confused gaze on you, but you don't move. You don't say anything. You just sit there, enjoying his touch and his closeness, not thinking about the conversation you need to have.

"I missed… I missed this." he whispers shakily. You feel him burning with the desire to taste your lips one more time, but he maintains some semblance of control and settles for just moving the hand that isn't cupping your cheek to your waist.

"Me too."

"I know I screwed up. But… I will never… never again…" you kiss him again, interrupting him. You brush away the tears that fall down his cheek with your thumbs and gently brush your nose against his as you end your kiss.

"Shhh... I know." you whisper, straddling him, needing to feel him as close to you as possible after everything that happened. You were both shattered, but maybe you could put each other back together?

"Are you sure?" he asks, swallowing. You nod and bury your face in the crook of his neck, breathing in his scent. He strokes your back slowly, drawing patterns with his fingertips under your blouse. You shiver at the feeling of his touch on your skin.

"This is the last time, Russo. Either we succeed or... it's over. And I mean it. There will be no great quarrels and returns, no appearances on the doorstep of the other at midnight. We'll either be honest with each other... and make it work... or we won't be together at all. You understand? We're at the top of each other's lists, or not at all. I don't want anything less, any toxic love, any blaming each other, and all that bullshit. We take each other and try to do something with us, or we end it."

He nods and pulls you closer to him, digging his fingers into your back, anchoring you to his chest.

"Deal. I hope you know, you just stuck with me forever, because I'm not leaving you." you lift yourself gently from his chest to look at him. Your eyes water as your eyes meet and for the first time in a long time, you allow yourself to fully express your feelings to him.

"Just... don't make me ask you this again... don't hurt me. Please."

Billy pulls you into a tender kiss, showing you all the love and devotion he has for you. Trying with your actions to ensure that this time will be different, that you will never suffer because of him again, that you will never run away from each other again, that you will never watch the other one leave again.

"I'm nothing without you. Trust me. I tried to live without you and look how it ended." he jokes, and in any other situation you wouldn't find it funny, but now, fueled by the high of being with him again, you giggle stupidly into his neck. Billy smiles fondly and strokes your hair, pressing a kiss to your forehead.

"Break my heart again, and it will end worse for you. I have connections in the mortuary, Russo." he huffs, undeterred, and pulls you closer.

"Please. As if you didn't fly across two states just to stitch my face together because you didn't believe in the competence of the doctors at the hospital." you blush as you realizes that he knew about your moment of weakness after you found out what happened to him after his fight with Frank.

"How did you know?"

"I'd know your stitches anywhere." he says with a shrug and pulls you in for a kiss.

Maybe this really was the last time after all… and this time you will stitch the scattered pieces of both of you together for good.

[scarasimping]

But have we talked about Pirate! Scara angst?

He knows he’s a pirate and he steals and gets in trouble but it doesn’t you from loving him, he’ll distance himself not wanting you to get hurt, if he got caught stealing something of value you would run after him and the guards, you know when they lost him were he would be and when you find him…

Insert fluff

note before you start!: I haven't mentioned it in anything yet, but in my mind the princess is under strict watch, so it's almost impossible for her to leave the castle and see scara....almost. I'm also trying to stick closer to the plot I have in mind for pirate scara and the princess’s story, so it's a little different than the request. hopefully it all makes sense.

also i was listening to work song by hozier while writing this i think its fitting for how scara feels about the princess.

word count: 1.85k

Pirate! Scara believes wholeheartedly that he does not deserve you. He's a liar and a thief; he can't wash away the blood on his hands from all of the battles he fought, where someone had to die and he couldn't let it be him.

Yet, these same hands are the ones you hold so gently, the ones that you bring to cup your own face and kiss the palm of. He feels as though being with him is going to stain your perfect and gentle soul, that he's smearing the blood he's taken onto you while you just smile so beautifully and tell him how much you love him.

He doesn't even notice he's begun to distance himself from you; it happened instinctively. His nightly visits soon turned to every other night, to once a week, until he stopped showing up all together. 

It wasn't like you could ask someone to check up on him, or else that would give away all the rendezvous you were having, so you really had no idea why he stopped coming to see you. All you know is that in his more recent visits before he disappeared, he seemed so much more...sad. He clung to you tighter, his voice cracked like he was going to cry, but the tears never fell, and his responses were much more vague, whereas before he would tell you all sorts of stories in great detail about his adventures on the open sea.

For a while, you thought he left your kingdom all together, without even saying goodbye. That soon proved to be false, however, when you overheard some guards talk about how they heard someone sneak into the people’s bank on the far side of your kingdom, and how they almost caught him, but were a few seconds too late. 

So, not only was he ignoring you, he was getting sloppy with his work, meaning something had  to be wrong with him, and you were determined to find out what. 

When the moon rises the following night, and the kingdom is asleep, you put your plan into action. Waiting until just after a set of footsteps passes your door, since there’s usually a large gap of time between each person passing, you step out onto the terrace and start climbing down the same way you had watched your lover do many times before. It definitely took a lot longer than he would take, too scared of falling and getting gravely injured to go any faster, but eventually you made it to the cold, grassy ground underneath. Pulling the hood of your cloak over your head, you made a break for the treeline that separated the castle from the ocean. After a short run through the miniature forest, the sound of waves crashing against the rocks and sand reaches your ears, soon followed by the ocean coming into view. Though there were many ships at the pier, it was easy to tell which one was Scaramouche’s, his being the only pirate ship in a swarm of those meant for business only. 

The crew members on night watch easily picked up your presence as you approached, as any cloaked figure nearing the ship would be suspicious and hard to miss. Though you hadn’t met most of them before, you could tell the man staring down at you from the edge of the ship was Xiao. Scaramouche had described him before, and said he was the only crew member with tattoos.

He was observant and knew who you were as well, staring down at you with an unblinking and piercing glare.

“I know why you’re here, but if I let you on, you won’t like what you’ll see,” he warned, and a loud thud coming from the ship drew your attention away from his face. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that it was Scaramouche making that noise.

You look back at Xiao with a determination on your face, your own glare matching his own. He sighs, turning his back to you and lowering the gangway for you to climb on. Walking on the ship without Scaramouche right next to you is definitely a  different experience, and one you are not happy about. 

Xiao watches as you approach the captain’s cabin, before walking away, not wanting to invade at a moment that should be private.

The thudding you heard earlier only gets louder as you approach the door to Scaramouche’s quarters. You knock softly, barely audible, and there’s no answer, so you assume he didn’t hear you.

You’re cautious as you open the door, peeking your head inside. Scaramouche is there, standing over his desk with his hands gripping the wood so tightly that his knuckles were turning white. Crumbled pieces of paper were scattered across the floor, his bottle of ink thrown across the room as well as his hat. Everything was shoved off of his desk as well, as if knocked off in one fell swoop, and many other things were thrown around in anger, making a mess of his usually neat room.

“Did I say you could come in?” Scaramouche seethes, looking up with such fury in his eyes, it had you scared. He didn’t seem to realize it was you until after he said those words with such a bitter tone. When his eyes lay on you, they soften just a bit and a look of regret washes over him. He never wanted you to see this side of him - the angry and harsh side he only showed to his enemies or his crew when he was really upset.

“You..” he starts, sighing and dropping his head to avoid looking at your fear-stricken face. “What are you doing here?”

“Did you really think you could disappear and I wouldn’t notice?” You responded, shifting awkwardly where you stood, still behind the door. 

“Can I…come in?” 

Scaramouche runs a hand down his face, shaking his head at his own foolishness. It was clear you were trying your best not to upset him more, and that only made him feel worse.

“Yes, yes, of course, get in here.”

At his words, you cautiously step inside his room, closing the door behind you softly. Still, you were barely inside, hanging by the door and attempting not to overstep. Scaramouche sighs once more,  moving away from his desk and sitting down on his bed, head in his hands. “Sit.”

Though it’s true he was a man of few words, how little he was saying made you anxious. You sat down on the bed, keeping a few feet of space between your bodies.

“So what happened, dearest?” You asked him, breaking the silence that had grown between you.

“Nothing, I was just writing, that’s all.”

“Just writing?” You looked at him incredulously, glancing at all of the papers and the ink bottle spilling on the floor. “What were you writing that could have possibly made you so angry?”

“It’s not necessarily what I was writing, more so that I couldn’t explain everything the way I wanted to,” he responded, and true to his deceptive nature, you could tell he was only telling half-truths. It wasn’t a lie, but it wasn’t the whole story.

“I’m sure it’s not so bad, let me see,” you say, leaning down and picking up a crumpled paper from the floorboards, unraveling it in your hands.

“No! Don’t read that!”

Scaramouche snatches the paper from your fingertips, but it was too late. You had already seen the most important part.

“You were going to leave? And you were going to tell me through some letter instead of coming to see me?”

Scaramouche sits in silence, tonguing his cheek as he looks away from you, crushing the paper once more in his hands. It took him a while to form words, and for a second you thought he simply wasn’t going to answer. He closes his eyes, taking a deep breath before, finally, he speaks.

“It’s for the best…that way you can finally marry someone like your father wants who would treat you way better than I.” Again, he doesn’t say the whole truth, but growing up with a dismissive father and a mother who never spoke up, you have learned to read between the lines.

“You don’t think you’re enough for me, do you? Is that what this is?” 

His silence answers your question for you, and the fact that he couldn’t face you only enforced that fact. You scoot closer to him, closing the distance that separated you two. One of your hands rests on his shoulder while the other cups his cheek, turning his head to look at you. His face was tinted red and tears welled in his eyes. You decide not to point that out though, as to not ruin how far you had gotten to being able to comfort him. When it came to emotions, Scaramouche was difficult, to say the least, so the fact that he was almost crying around you was a big step.

“I don’t want some pompous prince or a rich man’s son; I want you.”

He simply clicks his tongue at this, rolling his eyes. He takes hold of the hand that holds his face and removes it, simply planning to let go afterwards, but you intertwine your fingers instead. When comforting a man that’s as emotionally constipated as Scaramouche is, persistence is key after all.

“Dearest, if you weren’t enough for me, I wouldn’t be with you despite the universe being against us or sneaking out of the castle to come see you. I only want you, so stop being an idiot and avoiding me!” You tried to reason with him.

He simply drops his head once more, and you lean your forehead against his. He bites his lip, holding back a smile as you insult him in this situation.“Alright, I get it, now drop it please.” 

A small chuckle escapes you, and once again you hold his cheek in your hand. His eyes look up, meeting your own, and you can see the relief flooding through him.

“Are you still going to leave?” You whisper, and Scaramouche shakes his head.

“Not yet, though you know I will have to eventually? A man like me can’t stay in one place for long.”

“We’ll figure that out when the time comes, but for now, can I stay with you?”

Scaramouche doesn’t answer; he simply leans forward and presses his lips against your own. The hand that holds onto yours tightens as he pulls you even closer, turning his body to face you even more. His other hand holds onto your waist, thumb caressing you over your shirt. He’s smiling as he kisses you, each movement filled with more and more longing than the last. Even without words being spoken, you can feel how much he’s missed you these past couple of weeks. He’ll allow himself to taint you with his hands that have committed countless sins just this once, and be selfish with you, because who knows how long it will be until his hands can’t hold you anymore. 

[daisyblog]

Always Here

When We Were Young Masterlist Summary: YN promises to support Louis.

After the band's last performance together in December on The X Factor, YN struggled a lot. After five busy years of non-stop travelling, singing, writing and recording and having their lives planned out, YN felt lost, she didn't know who she was or what she wanted to do.

In the first month of the hiatus, Louis announced the birth of his son, Freddie. He had sent YN a text to share the news, along with a photo of the little baby. She remembers staring at the message, part of her was thrilled that Louis was now a father, and clearly taking to fatherhood amazingly. But the other half of her felt a pang in her chest, missing what they once had and thinking back to the times where they had discussed having children of their own and even thought about names they liked. But like always, YN was always sweet and kind and typed out a message.

Congratulations Lou! Freddie is adorable. I hope Mum and baby are doing well 💙

She had even sent a message to his Mum and sisters congratulating them on becoming a grandmother and aunties. She sent a parcel to Louis and Briana that included baby stuff for their new arrival.

Wanting to escape reality and try and find normality, whatever that was, YN and her family went on holiday to a quiet area in Cyprus, where they enjoyed some much-needed family time, exploring new places. Soaking up the sun, sea and sand. Enjoying being YN, a daughter and a sister, and not YN LN from the biggest band.

Once YN had returned to her home in London, after her holiday, she reached for her guitar. She loved writing songs in the band but they were always changed to be from a male perspective, but now she was free to write from the heart. As she began to strum on the strings, words came following after, almost like she felt she was free to sing her feelings without worrying about the boys or management not approving.

You want someone you can show off Whenever you go out She'll wear a tight mini black dress With all her friends around And then you'll probably spend the night at Her nice big house And by then, I'll just be someone You've forgotten about, oh

If you say she's nothing to worry about Then why'd you close your eyes when you said it out loud?

Stupid boy makin' me so sad Didn't think you could change this fast She's got everything that I don't have How could I ever compete with that? I know you'll go and change your mind One day wake up and be bored with mine She's got everything that I don't have And she's all I wanna be All I wanna be so bad So bad She's got everything that I don't have And she's all I wanna be All I wanna be

Once YN had written one song, she couldn't stop, it was like everything she had built up inside her for the last five years was ready to be released. She didn't necessarily know if she wanted to do anything with the songs, but singing them out loud felt good, almost like a release of new life.

---

YN was absolutely devastated when she heard the news of Jay, Louis's Mum. Her heart crumbled, she was heartbroken for Louis and his family. Jay had been a big part of YN and Louis's relationship, and she had grown close to her in that time. She was a caring, kind and beautiful woman inside and out. That evening, YN lit a candle in her living room as she sat and reflected. It hit her that night how short life was and how quickly someone can be gone from your life. She made a promise to herself and Jay that night as she looked up "I promise, I'm going to look after him". YN wanted to let Louis know she was thinking of him, and she typed out message after message and deleted them straight after because they just weren't right. She thought of something she and Louis would do when they were together to let the other know they were thinking of them. So she sent him a song, that reminded her of him with a row of heart emoji's.

YN was shocked at the message that stared back at her from Louis after she had sent him the song 'I miss sending you songs, thank you for remembering it means a lot to me. I love you YN ❤️'

Louis was performing his new single on The X Factor with Steve Aoki, and YN along with the other boys had planned to show their support and attend the show. YN would be lying if she said she wasn't nervous, she hadn't seen Louis for a year and these circumstances made her nerves worse.

Harry arranged to pick YN up from her home so they could travel to the venue together. She was so grateful to Harry, despite him being the youngest of the group, he watched over her like an older brother and she loved him for it. He always knew when she was anxious or worried about something, and would be there to ease the pressure and talk her through it.

As the four entered the backstage room where Louis and his team were currently waiting. YN felt two arms wrap around her and she pulled Lottie's frame closer to her "Hey..it's okay..I'm here" she spoke into the younger girl's ear. That was another thing, YN was like an older sister to Louis' sisters, especially Lottie who joined them for their last tour, so when they split she hardly saw the younger Tomlinsons.

"I've missed you so much" Lottie admitted as she still clung onto YN, looking for comfort.

Over Lottie's shoulder, she could see Liam, Niall and Harry hugging Louis and him thanking them for coming. But as Louis glanced over and spotted YN comforting his sister, his eye glossed over a second. As Lottie released YN, she was pulled into a hug by the other boys.

Louis took the opportunity to wrap his arms around YN's shoulders as she wrapped hers around his waist "Thank you so much for comin' darlin'"

YN looked up into Louis' eyes "I'm here for you always"

Louis swallowed his tears and nodded his head "I need you now more than ever" he admitted.

"And I'm going to be there..I promise"

---

YN had stuck to her promise, in every message or call she received from Louis, she was there, day or night. She had spent hours holding him in her arms and she held him close and tight as the tears and sobs left him. It was the most heartbreaking scene she had witnessed. She wanted to take his pain away, but how could she? So she did everything she could, she listened when he talked, she held him while he cried and everything in between.

Tag List: (let me know if you would like to be added) @peterholland04 @werewolfbansheelove

[slygirl666]

august (Charlie Weasley)

Charlie x reader

notes: based on the Taylor Swift song, but I couldn't not end hopeful. Slytherin reader but the is only one reference to it not explicit but refers to sex

I have more Taylor swift Harry Potter fictions in my stuff if y'all want more

word count: 1,217

You brushed by Charlie Weasley entering potions, you looked down to control the heat that rose to your cheeks. Looking up you caught his eyes lingering.

You flushed remembering this last summer before your seventh year. 

You were out at a small beachtown with your parents, they were there less often than one would think for a family vacation so you spent much time walking around the town.

You had walked down to a more private area taking off your shoes laughing to find your toes in the sand. 

But when you got to your spot you found someone sitting there.a familiar mop of red curls, the gryffindor quidditch captain.

He turned to meet your eye. He looked over your curiosity written all over his face. When he moved you noticed a sketch book in his lap.

“Sorry I didn't think someone would be here,” you began to turn around.

“No, it's fine,” he smiled at you. “You go to Hogwarts don't you? I think we had charms together.”

You nodded at him smiling. You gave him your name.

“Its nice to properly meet you.”

You were soon meeting him in this spot every day. Talking, subtly getting closer, memorizing the way his hair curled around his face and how it carelessly fell back when he ran his finger through it.

It turned into an everyday thing to meet him out by that small hidden place. You were reading, he was drawing something facing you and you caught his eye more than once.

“What are you drawing this time?” you smiled at him placing down your book.

“You,” he shrugged like the simple word didn't just take your breath away.

“I thought you only drew dragons,” you tried to recover quickly. 

“I draw what i'd like to,” he looked up at you shyly placing the sketch book on your lap.

You inhaled sharply as you saw the way he drew the curve of your nose and the silly face you make when you concentrate too hard. 

“You made me beautiful,” you gave him a soft smile somewhere in you being lost in the drawing he moved right next to you.

“I drew you as you are,” his voice was almost a whisper and a rather large hand round a lock of your hair. 

You turned to face him, finding an intensity in his eyes you've never seen up close. Your eyes went to his lips that were twisted into a slight smirk. 

He was getting closer giving you time to pull away, but you met him there. You met slightly chapped lips and a hand found its way to your chin. 

You wanted to wrap yourself in him, he was warm and inviting. 

“Charlie,” you beathed when he pulled back his forehead against yours. “Do you want to come to my cabin?”

It was forward,stupid and might scare him off. But you wanted to take the chance what if it was only today, but also what if this could mean forever. 

He smiled, bringing his lips to yours again before getting up to go. He grabbed your hand so you could pull him with you.

Once you got to the cabin he seemed less dazed. “Your parents?”

“Out of town for the weekend.”

He pulled you to him, his arms circling your waist, a soft kiss on the front porch. “Are you sure?”

It was a good question, they could turn back now but nothing in you wanted to. 

You nodded, pressing a kiss to his lips pulling him in by his tee shirt.

Innocent kisses easily turned to gentle touches, clothes were shed frantically, it was a hunger you had never known before.

“Charlie,” you breathed as he went for your waist band. “I haven't ever done this before.”

He nodded, “we can stop.” 

“No.”

***

You pulled away from his eyes as you joined the other slytherin students on their side of the class. You took notes as diligently as you could wondering why he hasn’t talked to you. 

You needed to know what only two months ago put so much distance between the two of you. You thought he wanted you too.

Thinking back to how your parents never being present meant you and Charlie got the cabin to yourselves. 

You remembered his golden skin that stood out on your green sheets. He was laying on his stomach looking at you as you mindlessly traced his back. It took everything in you to not trace your own name on the muscle you were feeling.

“Charlie?”

“Yes love?” The nickname made your heart flutter.

“This won't be it for us, will it?”  you whispered. The doom of seventh year only weeks away.

“If you don't want it to be it won’t,” he twisted to face up,his fingers laced with yours bringing them to his mouth for a kiss.  

But it had been a lie, you walked onto the train and saw him with his friends, his arm slung around a pretty blond hufflepuff.

You walked to where you knew your friends were fighting back tears that you never allowed to slip.

You breathed you thought a week without hearing from him was reasonable but now you saw he may have had another reason.

You were young sure but everything in you knew you wanted Charlie Weasley in your life, you wanted his hands around your waist, his whispers at night.

He was everything you never knew you needed.

You hoped maybe he’ll reach out after maybe you miss understood, it was known Charlie Weasley was not intrested girls or anyone really. 

He never did.

So here you were in the October chill reading the same book you read on that beach for what had to be the tenth time since that day.

You heard a soft ‘oh’ as someone intruded on your quiet spot. 

It was Charlie.

“I'll go,” you said at the same time. You stood up almost falling from how fast you got up. You turned to walk away but a familiar hand grabbed your wrist. 

“Love?” he breathed as your face twisted into one of hurt you could fee the tears pricking your eyes. 

“What do you want Weasley” you tried to pull but his grip was firm.

“I want to know what happened to us,” you turned to meet his eyes to find hurt in them. “I thought you wanted us, I did, well I do.”

“I waited to hear from you Charlie, I understood the week before school, I did.” tears slipped, “but then I walked onto the train to find a pretty hufflepuff around you and i thought maybe you made a mistake.”

“Love, no, I meant what I said only if you wanted it.” he breathed, softly pulling you closer you followed his movement. “Penny is genuinely a friend. When you didn't reach out i thought you didn't want us.”

“Somehow, after everything all I want is us.” you managed a smile. You put your free hand into his red curls as he intertwined your fingers on the hand he used to pull you in. You laughed, pulling his face down to meet yours. 

There would be much to talk about , but right now you are grateful that Charlie wasn't a lost memory to linger on.

[tanjamikaelson]

STRANGE LOVE - CHAPTER 21

MASTERLIST

CHAPTER 21: | WOULD I LOSE YOU? |

Allison woke up with a newfound determination. She couldn't let doubts and accusations control her. She needed answers but had to find them without hurting those she cared about.

Slipping out of bed, she quietly made her way to Wheezie’s room. Pushing the door open just a crack, she peeked inside to find the young girl still fast asleep, her chest rising and falling with the slow, steady rhythm of dreams. Allison smiled softly, a wave of protectiveness washing over her. Wheezie was innocent in all of this—a child caught in a web of lies and deceit. For her sake, Allison knew she needed to keep it together, to find answers without tearing everything apart.

In the kitchen, the scent of freshly brewed coffee filled the air as Allison prepared breakfast, her hands moving on autopilot while her mind raced with thoughts of the previous night. The party, Nicole’s careless words, the way Rafe’s voice had wavered when she confronted him—it all played out in her head like a movie she couldn’t pause. She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn’t notice Rose enter the room until the older woman spoke.

“Good morning, Allison,” Rose greeted, her tone polite but distant, as always.

“Morning,” Allison replied, forcing a smile as she flipped pancakes on the stove. She wondered, not for the first time, how much Rose knew. The woman had an air of calm detachment as if she had seen too much to be surprised by anything. Did she know what Rafe was capable of? Did she care?

“You’re up early,” Rose observed, pouring herself a cup of coffee. There was a faint note of curiosity in her voice as if she found Allison’s early morning presence unusual.

“Yeah, I just thought I’d make breakfast for everyone,” Allison said, trying to keep her tone light.

Rose smiled, a small, almost imperceptible curve of her lips. “That’s very thoughtful of you,” she said, taking a sip of her coffee.

Allison nodded, but her mind was elsewhere, spinning with thoughts of Rafe. She needed to talk to him again, to get the truth out of him without pushing him away. But how? Every time she tried to get close, he shut her out, retreating further into himself. And every time he did, the distance between them grew wider, the trust they once shared slipping through her fingers like sand.

・ • ・ • ・

Rafe sat in the passenger seat of the car, his hands nervously drumming on his knees as he waited for his father to finish up inside. The sun was already high in the sky, casting a harsh light on the events of the past few days. The weight of the gold—the literal and figurative burden—pressed down on him, making it hard to breathe. But what weighed even heavier was the conversation with Allison.

As Ward finally emerged from the house, Rafe’s thoughts raced. He knew he had to be careful, to play his cards right. One wrong move, one slip-up, and everything could come crashing down. And then what? He would lose Allison, the one person who made him feel like there was still something good in him, something worth saving.

Ward got into the car, glancing at his son. “Ready to head back?” he asked, his tone casual as if they were just returning from a regular business trip.

“Yeah,” Rafe replied, his voice flat, devoid of emotion. The truth was, he didn’t feel ready for anything. But what choice did he have?

As they drove back to the airport, Ward tried to make small talk, but Rafe was barely listening. His mind was miles away, replaying the conversation with Allison over and over. He wondered if she believed him, or if she was starting to see through his lies. The thought of her finding out the truth—the real truth—filled him with a cold, creeping dread.

When they finally arrived back home, Rafe felt a knot of tension tighten in his chest. He needed to see Allison, to reassure her, to make her believe that everything was okay—even if it wasn’t.

Rafe walked into the bedroom, finding Allison sitting on the bed, her phone in hand. She looked up when she saw him, her expression guarded.

“You’re back earlier than I expected,” she said, her voice neutral.

“Yeah… I couldn’t wait to come back,” Rafe replied, forcing a smile as he climbed onto the bed beside her.

“Really?” Allison asked, her eyes narrowing slightly as she looked back down at her phone, the skepticism in her voice evident.

Rafe reached over and gently took the phone from her hands, placing it on the nightstand. As he did, he noticed a small bag of cocaine sitting next to it.

“Did you start using it again?” he asked, his voice a mixture of concern and curiosity.

“Uh, a little bit,” Allison admitted, her eyes flicking away from his.

Rafe sighed, the guilt gnawing at him. He reached out, lifting her shirt slightly, revealing her bare skin. He wanted to lose himself in her, to forget everything else for just a little while.

“Wait. What are you doing?” Allison asked, her voice tinged with uncertainty as she placed a hand on his chest, stopping him.

“I want to do a line on you,” Rafe replied, his voice dropping to a whisper as he leaned in closer, his lips brushing against her ear. “Can I?” His breath was warm on her skin, sending shivers down her spine. He pressed a few kisses to her neck, trying to coax her into giving in, to letting him distract her from the questions he didn’t want to answer.

Allison sighed, torn between the desire to escape and the need for clarity. “We need to talk,” she said, her voice firm despite the growing warmth in her body.

Rafe’s lips trailed down her neck, ignoring her words. “We can do that later,” he murmured between kisses, his hands roaming her body.

But Allison was done waiting. She grabbed his head, pulling him away from her neck. “No, we can’t,” she insisted, her voice cutting through the haze of desire.

Rafe’s face fell, his frustration evident as he pulled away from her, moving to the other side of the bed. “What do you want to talk about?” he asked, his tone laced with irritation.

“The conversation we had over the phone,” Allison said, watching him carefully.

Rafe ran a hand through his hair, standing up from the bed. “What is there to talk about?” he asked, his voice rising slightly.

“Did you do it?” Allison’s voice was calm, but there was an edge to it—a steely determination that made Rafe’s stomach churn.

Rafe let out a bitter laugh, shaking his head in disbelief. “I can’t believe you actually believe them,” he muttered, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

“No,” Allison shook her head, trying to keep her cool. But Rafe seemed as if he hadn’t heard her.

“Why don’t you just go back to your pogues if you trust them more than me, huh?” Rafe snapped, his frustration boiling over as he began pacing back and forth across the room.

“Rafe, stop,” Allison said, her voice firm as she stepped in front of him, grabbing his face between her hands, and forcing him to look at her. “I never said I believe them, but I need you to look me in the eyes and tell me you didn’t do it.”

Rafe froze, his breath catching in his throat as he stared into her eyes. For a moment, he felt like he was standing on the edge of a cliff, teetering on the brink of disaster. But he couldn’t let himself fall. He had to lie—had to make her believe.

“I didn’t do it,” Rafe said, the words coming out more forcefully than he intended. “John B killed the Sheriff. I saw it with my own eyes.” He grabbed the back of her neck, his grip firm but not painful. “Now I need you to look me in the eyes and tell me you believe me.”

Allison stared back at him, searching his eyes for any hint of the truth. But all she saw was the man she loved, desperate and afraid. “I do,” she whispered, the words feeling heavy on her tongue. “I believe you.”

But it was a lie. They both knew it, even if neither of them would admit it. Allison couldn’t shake the doubt that had taken root in her heart, and Rafe knew that his lies were only a temporary fix—a band-aid on a wound that was festering beneath the surface.

In the next moment, Rafe crashed his lips against hers, and all thoughts of doubt and betrayal were pushed aside. Allison’s arms wrapped around his neck, pulling him closer as they lost themselves in the intensity of the kiss. It was a desperate, almost frantic need to connect, to hold on to something real amidst all the lies and deception.

Rafe’s hands roamed her body, pulling her shirt over her head before pinning her arms above her head. “I want you so bad right now,” he whispered into her ear, his voice thick with desire. His lips trailed down her neck, leaving a burning path in their wake as he moved lower, pressing kisses to her chest.

Rafe paused, his gaze locked on Allison as he reached for the small bag of cocaine beside the bed. The moment was heavy, filled with unspoken words and the weight of their shared secrets. He wanted to lose himself in her, to drown out the doubts and fears that threatened to consume him. But more than that, he wanted to pull her into his world—one where everything was hazy, where the lines between right and wrong were blurred by the intoxicating effects of the drugs.

Allison watched him with a mix of apprehension and longing, her heart pounding in her chest. She knew this wasn’t the answer, that using the drugs would only further complicate the mess they were already in. But she also knew that she wanted to be close to him, to feel the connection that was slipping away with each lie they told.

Rafe eyes never left hers. “Can I?” he asked, his voice a mix of desperation and seduction.

Allison hesitated for a moment, then gave a small nod, her breath hitching as she felt the powder against her skin. Rafe leaned down, his lips brushing against her as he snorted the line that was between her breasts, the sensation sending shivers down her spine.

“Fuck,” Rafe groaned, the rush of the drug hitting him immediately. He lifted his head, his eyes wide and bright with the effects. He ran his finger over the remnants of the line, picking up small traces of the coke before bringing his finger to Allison’s mouth.

“Open,” he whispered, his voice low and commanding.

Allison obeyed, parting her lips as he slid his finger inside, rubbing the powder along her gums. The numbness hit instantly, and she felt a wave of euphoria wash over her, dulling the edges of the anxiety that had been gnawing at her all day.

Rafe’s other hand moved to her inner thigh, his fingers sliding along her slick folds before gently entering her. Allison moaned, her back arching off the bed as he began to work her with slow, deliberate strokes. His tongue traced a path along her neck, his breath hot against her skin.

“Rafe,” Allison gasped, her hands tangling in his hair as he added another finger, thrusting deeper. The pleasure was intense, heightened by the drugs coursing through her system. She began to rock against him, desperate to reach the edge.

But just as she was about to tip over into bliss, Rafe pulled away, leaving her on the brink. Allison whimpered in protest, her eyes opening to find him standing at the foot of the bed, stripping off his clothes.

He looked at her with dark, hungry eyes, his body taut with desire. In one swift movement, he was back on top of her, his lips claiming hers in a fierce kiss. He nipped at her chest, sucking harshly along her skin, leaving marks in his wake.

Rafe positioned himself between her legs, his erection pressing against her entrance. He moved slowly, teasing her with the tip before finally pushing inside. He paused for a moment, letting her adjust to his size before pulling back and slamming into her with a force that made her cry out.

Allison’s breath hitched, her fingers digging into his shoulders as he set a relentless pace. “Oh, Rafe,” she moaned, the sound vibrating through him, intensifying his need. The room was filled with the sounds of their heavy breathing and the rhythmic slap of skin against skin.

Rafe’s hand moved down to her thigh, gripping it tightly as he pulled her closer, deeper. “You feel so good,” he murmured against her ear, his voice raw with need.

Allison’s head fell back, her hair splayed across the pillow as she arched into him. “Don’t stop,” she pleaded, her voice barely above a whisper. She felt the familiar tension building inside her, the heat pooling low in her belly.

Rafe shifted his angle slightly, hitting a spot that made Allison cry out. “Right there,” she gasped, her eyes fluttering shut as waves of pleasure coursed through her.

He thrust harder, faster, pushing her to the brink. Her nails raked down his back, leaving red trails in their wake. “I’m so close,” she breathed, her voice hitching with every thrust.

“Me too,” Rafe groaned, his movements becoming more erratic, driven by pure need. He could feel her tightening around him, her body trembling as she reached her peak. With a final, deep thrust, he sent them both over the edge.

Allison’s body convulsed with the force of her orgasm, her cries of pleasure mingling with Rafe’s guttural moans. He felt her walls clenching around him, drawing out his own release. For a moment, everything else faded away, leaving only the intense connection between them.

As their breathing slowly returned to normal, Rafe gently pulled out and collapsed beside her, pulling her into his arms. They lay there in silence, their bodies tangled together, the weight of their earlier conversation hanging in the air.

Rafe’s fingers traced lazy patterns on Allison’s back, his mind still reeling from the intensity of their lovemaking and the lies he had spun to keep her by his side. He knew he was treading on thin ice, and the fear of losing her gnawed at him.

“Rafe,” Allison whispered, her voice breaking the silence. “I need you to be honest with me.”

Rafe sighed, tightening his hold on her. “I am, Allison. I swear.”

She pulled back slightly, searching his eyes for any hint of deceit. “Promise me,” she said, her voice trembling. “Promise me you’re not hiding anything.”

Rafe swallowed hard, the weight of his lies pressing down on him. “I promise,” he said, forcing the words out, hoping she wouldn’t see through him.

Allison nodded, resting her head against his chest. “I just want us to be okay,” she murmured, her voice filled with vulnerability.

“We will be,” Rafe whispered, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. Allison closed her eyes, letting herself believe his words, even if doubts still lingered in the corners of her mind.

But the truth was, Rafe was far from okay. He was drowning in guilt, in lies, in a darkness that threatened to consume him. He suddenly stood up from the bed and went into the bathroom, needing a moment to himself. Allison turned her body to the side that wasn’t facing the bathroom door. She started thinking again about how Rafe was possibly lying to her, and she couldn’t shake that feeling. But she decided to stay and get the truth out of him however she could. She closed her eyes, hoping she would fall asleep fast. Once she heard Rafe exiting the bathroom, she didn’t move, but she felt him pulling the sheets over her body, covering her tenderly.

“Goodnight, baby,” Rafe whispered, and Allison mumbled back as she fell into an exhausting sleep.

・ • ・ • ・

The following morning, Rafe was drowning his anxieties in alcohol, surrounded by his kook friends at the Country Club. The usually lively atmosphere felt stifling, the laughter and chatter around him a dull roar in his ears. He waved at the bartender, slurring his request, “Hey, pretty… give me another one of these.” He held up his empty glass, his vision slightly blurred.

“Are you sure?” She asked concern etched on her face as she saw how intoxicated he already was.

“Yeah, I’m sure,” Rafe replied, watching her pour him another glass. He leaned in closer, trying to appear charming despite his drunken state. “So, what’s your name?”

“Julia,” she replied with a polite smile.

“I’m Rafe,” he winked at her, trying to muster a semblance of his usual charm. Julia’s smile wavered slightly before she turned to attend to another customer, clearly uncomfortable.

Rafe turned back to his friends, his voice louder than necessary, drawing unwanted attention. "Bro, the kick on a GLOCK… you load it up, line it up, it's like—" He mimicked firing a gun, "Yah! Like… damn!" In his drunken enthusiasm, he stumbled into a man sitting next to him, nearly spilling his drink.

"Hey, excuse me," the man said, irritation evident in his tone.

"Yeah?" Rafe slurred, struggling to focus on the man’s face.

"Do you mind?" the man asked, trying to maintain his composure.

Rafe leaned in closer, his breath reeking of alcohol. "I’m sorry," he muttered, but the apology lacked sincerity.

"Do you mind?" the man repeated, his patience wearing thin.

"Yeah, I do mind, Bob," Rafe said, his tone turning confrontational. Bob looked away, trying to ignore him, but Rafe wasn’t ready to let it go. "Take a shot with me, pussy." He grabbed a glass of tequila and poured it on the table in front of Bob. "Come on. Take a shot."

"Hey!" Bob stood up, shoving Rafe. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Take a seat. That’s what you need to do," Rafe said, his words slurring together.

Kelce quickly stepped between them, holding Rafe back. "Whoa! Whoa!"

"Get the manager. He’s crazy," Bob demanded, his voice rising.

"Eat shit," Rafe pointed at him, his eyes wild. The rage boiling beneath the surface threatened to spill over. He felt like he was teetering on the edge, and it would take only one more push to send him spiraling out of control.

"Hey," Kelce tried to calm him down. "Look at me. Look at me."

"What?" Rafe snapped, his eyes wild, unfocused. The alcohol coursing through his veins only added fuel to the fire.

"Look at me," Kelce insisted, his voice soft but firm. He could see how close Rafe was to losing it, and he knew he had to get him out of there before things got worse. "Calm down, all right?"

"Nobody will drink with me. I swear to—" Rafe began to rant, but Kelce cut him off.

"Hey! I swear to God, minutes ago, I just saw John B and your sister, bro. They’re alive," Kelce said in a low voice, trying to break through Rafe’s haze of anger and alcohol with the shocking news.

"I’m trying to relax, and you’re telling me this bullshit?" Rafe hissed, disbelief and anger mixing in his voice.

"I know you’re trying to relax, bro, but I saw them buying beer at Geechie’s," Kelce insisted.

"Freaking bullshit," Rafe muttered under his breath, his hands trembling slightly as the reality of what Kelce was saying began to sink in.

"You wanna go see for yourself?" Kelce challenged. "I’m telling you, I saw them. Go sober up, man."

Rafe stood there for a moment, swaying slightly as his mind worked to process everything. He felt like the ground was shifting beneath his feet, and he couldn’t find anything to hold onto. “Hey, put it on Cameron!” he yelled suddenly as if the money could make the growing panic inside him go away.

He stumbled out of the Country Club with Kelce, his mind buzzing with fear, anger, and a desperate need to understand what was happening.

・ • ・ • ・

When Allison woke up, the empty side of the bed confirmed her fears—Rafe had left again without a word. She sighed, the sense of dread growing. After a quick shower, she checked her phone and saw messages from Jessica, saying she saw Rafe at the Country Club and asking if everything was okay.

Allison quickly got ready and texted Jessica back, telling her she was on her way. By the time she arrived, Rafe had already left.

"Hey, where is he?" Allison asked, her voice laced with worry as she approached Jessica’s table. The anxiety was clawing at her, making it hard to think clearly.

"Uh, he left like ten minutes ago," Jessica replied, her own concern evident in her tone. "Sit down."

Allison shook her head, her anxiety mounting. "I have to find him. Do you know where he went?"

"I just heard Kelce telling him how John B and Sarah were back, and the two of them left together," Jessica explained, her own surprise evident. "They are alive?" she asked.

Allison’s face drained of color as she sat down heavily, the revelation hitting her like a ton of bricks. “This is the first time I’ve heard they are alive too,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper. Her mind spun, trying to piece together how this could be true. “Do you think Rafe went to find them?”

Allison’s head fell into her hands, her thoughts racing. “He’s going to get into a fight again, I just know it.”

“With a fugitive,” Jessica added, her voice growing more serious. “Maybe it’s better if someone calls the police and tells them John B is back.”

Allison bit her lip, trying to hold back the tears that were threatening to spill. “I have a bad feeling, Jess,” she muttered, her voice trembling. “About everything.”

Jessica squeezed her arm gently. “Let’s figure this out. We can find him, okay? We can make sure everything’s alright.”

・ • ・ • ・

After sobering up a bit, Rafe found himself at Barry’s place, his mind still reeling from the news.

"Hey!" Rafe called as he walked up to Barry's porch, where Barry was casually reading a book.

"Shit, you’re early," Barry remarked, not looking up from his book.

"You got my shit?" Rafe sniffed, his voice tense.

"Yes, I’ve got your shit," Barry said, tossing a bag of cocaine on the table. "You got my money?"

"Yeah," Rafe threw the money at him, snatching the bag. "Also, I need a piece," he added, sitting down heavily.

"Oh, shit!" Barry chuckled, the sound devoid of humor. "Country Club kill now, huh? He need a piece, right?"

"Don’t!" Rafe slammed his hand on the table where he was making a line of coke. "Don’t mess with me. Not right now, all right?"

"What do you need a piece for?" Barry asked, his curiosity piqued.

"John B is back," Rafe told him, his voice low and intense.

"John B is dead, bro," Barry said, disbelief coloring his tone.

"I saw him for myself in the Bahamas, all right?" Rafe insisted, his eyes wild. "Then Kelce just told me he saw him scoring beer in town. So, yeah, he’s back."

Barry kicked the table out of frustration, wood and bottles clattering to the floor.

"You realize it’s him… it’s him or me in this situation, right?" Rafe asked, his voice cracking slightly.

"I understand, Rafe," Barry said, pacing through the room. "You don’t need to tell me this shit, bro. But what you need to understand is you’re gonna need a hell of a lot more than just a piece, okay?"

Rafe glanced up at him, desperation in his eyes. "What do you suggest then?"

"What you need is to go at this shit like a freaking soldier, bro," Barry rifled through the bag and pulled out a Glock. "I’m done playing around with these kids, bro."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah," Rafe repeated, his voice shaky.

"That’s what we need right here," Barry loaded up a revolver, handing it to Rafe.

Rafe grabbed it, but Barry kept a firm grip on the barrel.

"We do this, you know I’ll take care of you," Rafe assured him. "All right?"

Together, they set out to find the pogues, their minds set on confrontation.

・ • ・ • ・

Allison's heart pounded in her chest as she approached the pogues gathered around the fire. The sight of them huddled together in the dim light, brought a flood of emotions—relief, fear, and a creeping sense of dread. She hadn’t seen them in what felt like ages, and now, with the heavy weight of what she had to say, the distance between them felt wider than ever.

Jordan was the first to notice her, his eyes widening in surprise. “Allison,” he called out, drawing the attention of the others. As they turned to look at her, she felt a jolt of anxiety twist in her stomach.

Her gaze locked with Jordan’s for a fleeting moment, before drifting to Sarah and John B. They were alive, just as she had been told. The reality of it was both shocking and overwhelming. The words she had come to say seemed to falter on her lips.

“What are you doing here?” John B asked, his voice laced with suspicion. His brow furrowed as he studied her, the tension in the air thickening.

“I—I…” Allison stammered, her voice trembling as she stepped closer to them. The gravity of what she had to say weighed heavily on her. “I came to warn you. Rafe knows you’re alive, and I think he’s coming after you.”

“We know he knows,” Sarah spoke up, her voice steady despite the tension. “He saw us in the Bahamas. He…he shot me.”

Allison’s breath caught in her throat. “What?” she whispered, the shock evident in her voice. “What do you mean he shot you?”

“I don’t know if he meant to, but he did,” Sarah replied, her tone calm but tinged with an underlying pain. She lifted her shirt slightly, revealing a bandage on her lower abdomen. “I barely survived.”

Allison’s world tilted. The air seemed to thin around her as her mind raced to comprehend the horror of what she was hearing. She had known Rafe was troubled, but this? This was something she couldn’t have imagined. Her legs felt like they might give out, but she forced herself to stay standing.

“I—I didn’t know…” Allison’s voice faltered, the words feeling inadequate. “I didn’t know he could…that he would…”

The sound of a car engine cutting off nearby sent a jolt of fear through the group. They all exchanged panicked glances, knowing who it had to be.

“Rafe,” Sarah whispered, the name hanging in the air like a curse.

Without a word, Jordan grabbed Allison’s hand and pulled her toward a nearby tree. “Can you climb?” he asked urgently, his eyes searching hers for a sign of resolve.

“I don’t know…” Allison replied, her voice trembling. She felt paralyzed, her body heavy with the weight of what she had just learned.

“Come on, I’ll help you,” Jordan urged, his voice steady despite the rising tension.

With his help, they scrambled up into the branches, their breaths coming in shallow, frightened gasps. They barely had time to find a hiding spot before Rafe and Barry appeared, prowling through the yard like predators hunting prey.

Rafe’s voice cut through the night, low and dangerous. “Where the hell are you?” he muttered, his eyes scanning the shadows with a terrifying intensity. Allison’s heart hammered in her chest as she held her breath, trying to stay as still and silent as possible.

“Yo! Anything?” Rafe called out to Barry, who was inside the house, the sound of shattering glass punctuating his search.

“No, ain’t shit in here, bro,” Barry shouted back, frustration lacing his words.

“They were obviously just here based off the smoke,” Rafe growled, his frustration growing with each passing second. His eyes landed on the still-smoking fire, and his grip tightened on the gun in his hand.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Great observation, boy scout." Barry responded sarcastically.

“They're not far, you know." Rafe continued to shout.

"Smokey the bear. Look at you, bro." Barry shouted, laughing as he did so.

Allison’s pulse quickened as she saw the weapon, her fear rising to a fever pitch. She shared a terrified glance with Sarah, who was watching her brother with an expression of mixed anger and sorrow.

"They gotta be around here somewhere." Rafe muttered, his voice taking on a manic edge. He paused when he spotted the memorial on the tree that they were hiding in.

Allison's grip on Jordan’s hand tightened, she felt panic washing over her, but she had to stay quiet.

“P4L,” Barry read aloud from a memorial etched into the tree trunk.

"Well, shit." Rafe laughed, pointing the gun at the tree.

“Your sister’s a Pogue for life, huh, Rafe? Who would’ve thought?” Barry’s tone was mocking, goading Rafe’s already volatile temper.

Rafe stood still, nodding slightly as if agreeing with Barry’s taunt, but his expression twisted with a mixture of hurt and anger. Allison could see the shift in him, the way his emotions bubbled just beneath the surface, ready to explode.

“SHIT!” Rafe suddenly roared, the sound tearing through the quiet night. Allison’s breath caught in her throat, her entire body freezing in fear.

Barry’s laugh echoed through the air, but it was cut short as Rafe’s rage boiled over. He fired a shot into the tree, the bullet slamming into the wood just inches from where Allison and the others were hiding. She nearly lost her balance, gripping Jordan’s hand so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

“Hey! Whoa! Chill, bro!” Barry shouted, grabbing Rafe’s arm and wrenching the gun from his hand. “You’re gonna get our asses busted, dawg. Let’s bounce.”

Allison’s heart raced as she watched Rafe being dragged away, her mind struggling to reconcile the man she had loved with the one who had just fired a gun in a blind rage. When they finally climbed down from the tree, she felt her legs nearly give out beneath her.

She couldn’t stay. She couldn’t confront him now. But she knew she had to go back, had to face the truth of what Rafe had become.

As she turned to leave, Jordan grabbed her arm, his eyes filled with concern. “Don’t go back to him, Allison. He’s dangerous.”

“I have to,” she replied, her voice shaky but resolute.

“Aren’t you afraid he’ll hurt you?” Sarah asked, her voice trembling with the same fear Allison was trying to push down.

Allison shook her head, even though she wasn’t entirely sure. “No. He won’t hurt me. But if he finds out I was here…he’ll hurt you.”

“Just be careful, okay?” Jordan said, his voice thick with worry.

Allison nodded, giving him a weak smile before turning and walking away, her heart heavy with dread.

・ • ・ • ・

When Allison arrived back at Tannyhill she had expected Rafe to be there, but when she didn’t find him, she knew he had gone to Barry’s. Probably to numb himself with drugs after what had just happened.

She didn’t have to wait long for him to return. She heard the door slam shut and felt her heart rate spike as Rafe’s heavy footsteps echoed through the house.

The moment he stepped into the room, Allison was on her feet, her eyes blazing with a mixture of anger and concern. “Where have you been?” she demanded, her voice shaking.

Rafe barely looked at her, his expression distant and cold. He sighed heavily, trying to brush past her, but Allison quickly moved to block his path, her anger flaring. “Don’t ignore me!” she snapped, her voice rising. “Where the hell have you been, Rafe?”

“You don’t need to know everything,” Rafe replied, his tone dismissive as he tried to push past her again.

Allison felt her frustration boiling over, her hands clenched into fists at her sides. “Oh, just like I didn’t need to know that Sarah and John B are alive?”

Rafe’s eyes snapped to hers, his body going rigid with tension. “Where did you hear that?” he demanded, his voice sharp and filled with suspicion.

“I went to the Country Club looking for you,” Allison replied, her voice trembling with barely contained anger. “Jessica told me you left when Kelce said they were back. You didn’t tell me. You didn’t even say a word.”

Rafe’s jaw tightened, his mind racing to come up with an excuse, a lie that would calm her down. “So? That was the first time I heard they were alive too.”

Allison could feel the lies rolling off him, her stomach twisting with the realization that she couldn’t trust him anymore. “You’re not telling me the whole truth,” she said, her voice breaking.

“No. You’re just letting the pogues get into your head,” Rafe argued, his voice growing louder, more defensive. “Why would I lie to you?”

“Because you don’t want to lose me,” Allison whispered, her voice filled with sadness. The words hung between them, heavy and loaded with truth.

For a moment, Rafe was silent, the weight of her accusation pressing down on him. He knew she was right, that he was lying to protect himself, to keep her from seeing the darkness that had consumed him. But he couldn’t admit that. He couldn’t let her see the truth.

He stared at her, his mind spinning, trying to figure out what to say. But all he could manage was a soft, desperate question: “Would I lose you?”

"If what?" Allison asked, her voice breaking. "If what pogues are saying is true? Is it, Rafe?"

Allison looked at him, her heart breaking at the sight of the man she had once loved so completely, now so lost in his own darkness.

Rafe shook his head, stress etched into his features. "Would I lose you?" he asked again, desperately avoiding her question.

Allison’s eyes filled with tears as she looked at him. “I don’t know, Rafe,” she whispered, her voice thick with emotion. “I just don’t know.”

Rafe felt a surge of panic and anger rise within him. He couldn’t lose her. He couldn’t let her go. But he couldn’t tell her the truth either. The lies had become too tangled, too deep.

Without another word, he pushed past her, storming into the bathroom and slamming the door. Leaning against the door, Rafe shut his eyes tightly, trying to push away the overwhelming emotions that threatened to drown him. He felt like he was losing control, like everything was slipping through his fingers and there was nothing he could do to stop it. The lies, the secrets, the fear—it was all too much, and he didn’t know how much longer he could keep it together.

Rafe turned on the shower, letting the hot water scald his skin in the hopes that it would somehow wash away the guilt and fear that clung to him like a second skin. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t shake the feeling that he was standing on the edge of a precipice, and one wrong move would send him plummeting into the abyss.

Allison stood frozen, her heart pounding as the sound of the door slamming echoed through the room. The intensity of their confrontation left her feeling drained and disoriented as if the ground beneath her feet was no longer stable.

She didn’t move for several minutes, listening to the faint sounds of Rafe moving around in the bathroom. The silence between them had grown into a chasm, wide and deep, filled with things unsaid and feelings unacknowledged. Her mind was a whirlwind of thoughts, each one pulling her in a different direction, each one more painful than the last.

Was this the man she had fallen in love with? The man who had once made her feel safe, cherished, and loved? Or had that man always been a facade, hiding the darkness that now seemed so evident? She replayed the moments of their relationship in her mind, searching for clues, trying to piece together how they had ended up here.

But the more she thought about it, the more confused she became. She knew Rafe had always had his demons, but she had convinced herself that she could help him, that her love could save him. Now, she wasn’t so sure. The weight of her doubts pressed heavily on her chest, making it hard to breathe.

Allison turned away from the bathroom door, her legs feeling unsteady as she moved toward the bed. She sat down on the edge, her fingers tracing the pattern of the bedspread absently. She could still feel the heat of their earlier confrontation, the tension that had crackled between them like a live wire. She had wanted to push him, to force him to tell the truth, but now she wasn’t sure if she was ready to hear it.

What if he really had done all the things she feared? What if he had killed the sheriff, shot his own sister, and lied to her face about it all? The thought made her stomach churn with a sickening mix of fear and disgust. She didn’t want to believe it, but the evidence was piling up, and the truth was becoming harder to deny.

After what felt like an eternity, he finally stepped out of the shower, his mind no clearer than when he had entered. He wrapped a towel around his waist and stared at his reflection in the mirror, barely recognizing the person staring back at him. His eyes were bloodshot, his skin pale, his expression haunted. He looked like a man on the brink of losing everything, and in a way, he was.

With a deep, shuddering breath, Rafe opened the bathroom door and stepped out into the bedroom. Allison was lying on her side of the bed, curled up in a fetal position with her back to him. She didn’t move as he approached, and Rafe hesitated for a moment before lying down beside her. The tension in the room was palpable, and neither of them knew how to bridge the growing chasm between them.

Rafe curled up on his side, mirroring Allison’s position, his back facing hers. They lay there in silence, each lost in their own thoughts, the distance between them feeling wider than ever. Sleep eluded them both, the weight of their unspoken fears and doubts pressing down on them, making it impossible to find any peace.

As the hours ticked by, Rafe found himself staring at the ceiling, his mind racing with thoughts of what he had done, what he was still doing. He knew he was spiraling out of control, and the lies he had built around himself were starting to crumble. He could feel the darkness closing in, threatening to swallow him whole, and he didn’t know how to stop it.

Beside him, Allison lay awake, her heart heavy with the realization that the man she loved was slipping away from her. She could feel the distance growing between them, and no matter how hard she tried to reach out, to pull him back, it seemed like he was slipping further and further away. The doubts, the secrets, the fear—it was all too much, and she didn’t know how much longer she could keep pretending that everything was okay.

In the stillness of the night, the only sounds were their quiet, uneven breaths, each of them struggling to hold on to something that felt like it was already slipping through their fingers. The darkness around them felt suffocating, pressing down on them, making it hard to breathe, hard to think, hard to hold on to the hope that things could ever go back to the way they were.

TAGS: @tiaamberxx

[paracosm-draw]

A little fandom crossover but I've been obsessed with the concept of Warlock Darth Vader and Fae Obi-Wan who fall in love with each other 👀 

It's Sunday prompt day !! 🥳

I'm so excited about this new concept and I received very interesting prompts to write about, I can't wait to post them all !

This one was the first I wrote about, thank you for sending it, it gave me so many ideas, I got a little carried away aha. I couldn't write the whole falling in love process or I had to write a whole fic but I hope you'll still enjoy it !! 💕

TW : mention of heavily scarred body (kinda suitless Vader)

___________

When Vader first sets foot on Aldhani, he immediately feels like the atmosphere is different than any other planet he’d ever landed on. And he has visited a lot, conquered a lot.

This one would make no exception.

Stepping off the metallic bridge of his ship, he presses the sole of his boots on the wet ground, tall grass lazily dancing in the wind around his legs.

The view is breathtaking, a soothing break in the dark turmoils of the war.

Framing the valley in which he landed are mountains, rising high enough to be crowned by the clouds. The early morning light is painting them in shades of orange and the only sounds he can hear are the singing of the birds, the light breeze playing with his hair and his own breathing, loud and unnatural.

Closing his eyes, he lets his mind wander, searching for any living presence in the area.

It’s an easy mission, the population being mainly made up of farmers and religious people, none of them bearing any kind of power. That's why he came alone, on the orders of his master, counting on his magic and lightsaber alone to convince them to join the Empire.

When he’s done scanning his surroundings for any advanced intelligent form - he hasn’t found any - he decides that his best chance is to leave his ship behind and to follow the river deeper in the valley until he finds a village.

Before leaving, he decides to change his heavy suit and coat for something lighter and more practical. He adjusts the lightsaber to his tunic belt, wraps himself in a long dark cape and checks that his portable oxygenator is fully charged. Once he’s done making sure it’s carefully strapped to his mouth and nose and working fine, converting the right amount of air into his oxygen needs, he grabs his traveling bag and heads to the river.

The walk is pretty gentle on his mechanic joints, far more comfortable than walking on the rough stone banks of Mustafar or worst, in the sand. Here he doesn’t even think about his next steps as he strolls along the riverside, leaving space for his head to think and his senses to explore.

The Force is strong in here, almost palpable, pure life energy flowing into every being, from the smallest flower to the highest mountain. It’s neither good nor bad he realises. It’s nothing and it’s everything at the same time. It doesn’t care about the war, it doesn’t care about politics, about pain and hope. It exists only to serve a purpose : giving life and keeping the gears of the universe turning.

The thought keeps him wondering for a while.

The sun is high when he’s confronted to a choice. He's deep down in the bottom of the valley and in front of him the river is sinking between trees marking the edges of a forest. He can continue following it or try to avoid the woods in which he might get lost.

He hesitates for a second, deciding to rely on his instincts. The call of the forest is strong, as if the Force is even denser here, flowing through the sap of the old trees and impregnating the very ground. He can almost feel it buzzing around him.

So he follows it.

The cover of the trees is welcomed as the sun starts to hit harder in the middle of the day. He has dropped the cape and rolled up his sleeves, exposing one delicately crafted mechanic arm, the other one being only torn flesh and burned skin. Still functional but painful and unsightly. He doesn't really care, he has learned how to wield his lightsaber with his other hand.

The scars on his body and face are another thing, though. They make him suffer every minute, a painful reminder of what he had to endure to become as powerful as he is today. They took away any sense of comfort he had taken for granted for too long, forcing him to rely on a machine to draw breath after breath and keep himself alive. They also took away the privilege of being perceived as “normal” in other people eyes, not that he seeks any kind of contact with any kind of people, but some looks still hurt, even years later.

He's on the edge of the slippery path to self-loathing when something makes him stops right in his tracks. A feeling.

Looking around, he realises that the river has given life to the beginning of a lake. From where he is, he can see it entirely ; a calm body of water enclosed by ancient trees, their reddish foliage reflecting in the water like a mirror.

For a moment he just stays there, staring at the gorgeous sight. It looks like a dream.

Light pierces through the branches, illuminating the myriad of insects flying over the surface of the lake, diving through the shades of blue to highlight the silver scales of the fish hiding in the shadows.

The Force is so thick in here, bathing every creature in vital energy, he can taste it on the back of his tongue.

And then he realises why he had stopped in the first place. He had felt something. Something bigger than the frogs and the deers wandering around. Something with a consciousness so vast and complex he wonders why he’s only feeling it just now.

It is there, right in the middle of the lake.

Someone.

Vader’s heart misses a beat as he crouches down behind the trunk of an elder tree.

There’s a creature immerged in the deep waters, swimming gracefully between the water lilies. A man, as far as he can tell. The sun, where it pierces through the leaves, is kissing his pale skin and making his wet hair look like a flaming crown.

Vader’s eyes are stuck to his silhouette, and the time seems to stretch out as he follows him slowly getting back to the bank.

And then the man climbs out of the water and he doesn’t know if he’s chocked out by the fact that he’s completely naked or if it’s because of the pair of wings sticking out of his back. His face still heats up all the same.

Saying that this creature is the most beautiful person he’s layed his eyes on is an understatement.

He’s gorgeous, droplets of water running down his skin like little beads of light, bronze hair sticking on the back of his neck, his body lean and strong.

And there’s the wings. Vader still has a hard time believing his own eyes.

They’re tall, rising up a few inches above his head and falling to his bare feet, where he notices a bracelet around one of his ankles.

They look incredibly thin and fragile, for they’re mostly transparent. But when they're playing with the light, they’re suddenly painted in a million color, like a diamond in a beam. He’s never seen something like that before, it’s hypnotizing.

Just when he leans a bit closer on the tree, his scarred hand rips on the bark and he loses his balance, putting a knee on the ground with a loud thud, and the echo of the sound seems to ripple in the Force.

Immediately the man turns his head in his direction, scrutinizing the shadows where he hides.

“Who’s there ?” He asks warily, swiftly picking up a piece of clothes on the ground and putting it on.

Vader feels a tingle of regret when the beige tunic drapes almost all of his body, covering his arms and falling just above his knees. He watches him tighten it at the waist with another blue piece of fabric, and feels his cheeks burning up again when the man picks up a thinner leather belt that he fixes around his thigh, lifting the tunic in the process. He notices the dagger in the sheath just before the piece of clothes falls back again, hiding the pretty thigh and the weapon with it. He’s so fascinated by the whole sight that he needs a second to realise that the wings are gone.

“I can feel you.” The man says again, and this time he’s moving in his direction. “Show yourself.”

Vader can understand what he says without any problems. His accent informs him that he’s probably not a native from this planet.

He weights his choices for a while. The stranger doesn't seem to be dangerous, and his weapon is no match again his lightsaber. Maybe he can even lead him to the nearest village.

He steps out of the shadow of the tree with his hands up, showing no sign of hostily.

“I’m sorry.” He says. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

The man stops in his tracks and his eyes widen when they land on Vader’s face, his lips parting in a horrified grimace.

Vader is used to that kind of reaction, but he can’t help feeling sharply self-conscious about his looks under the creature's gaze. It almost makes him want to hide under his hood.

They stare at each other for a long while, none of them daring to move or to speak. Vader feels like the stranger’s eyes are piercing right through him, dissecting every one of his scars, reading every bad decisions leading to them like an open book. He has to force himself not to squirm under his gaze.

Then the man takes a step closer, reducing the distance between them from another meter. From where he stands Vader can see his face better, he can tell that his eyes are the same color as the lake, fierce and suspicious, or that he looks like he’s in his late thirties. His skin seems as soft as his own is damaged, studded with a galaxy of freckles on his nose and cheeks. A beard is framing his perfect face, sharing bronze and golden hues with the hair falling on his shoulders.

He looks like the Sun personified and Vader cannot take his eyes of him.

“Who are you, stranger ?” The man asks, pulling him out of his thoughts. “State your name and business.”

His voice is firmer and colder, but it still sounds like music to Vader’s ears. He sees his hand getting closer to his thigh when he doesn’t answer and decides to speak then.

“I think I’m lost.” He half lies. “My ship crashed half a day of walk from here and I’m looking for the nearest village to repair it.”

The man raises an eyebrow and takes another careful step closer.

“I heard no such thing as the crash of a ship. And you didn’t tell me your name.”

“Is it really that imp-”

Vader cannot end his sentence that a root breaks out from the soil and wraps itself around his legs, pinning him to the ground and growing bigger by the second, curling up around his waist and pressing his arms to his side like one of those snakes he saw once in an archive. The pressure is strong enough to immobilize him but it feels like they could break his bones at any moment. When they reach his throat, the instinctive rush of magic flowing through his body makes his skin tingle, ready to be used at full power to defend himself.

“I can feel the darkness in you.” The man growls.

His dagger is in his hand now, and there’s something irradiating from him in the Force. It takes Vader a second to understand that he’s also using some kind of magic to control the roots. It makes him re-evaluate the situation and his opponent.

“Alright.” He says, struggling as one of the roots wraps itself tighter around his throat. “I’m not going to hurt you.”

The man frowns and slides in front of him, close enough for Vader to see every details of his face, like the little mole under his right eye or the pink shade of his lips, twisted in an upset line.

“What are you ?” He enquires, making no move to ease the pressure on the other’s body.

“I’m- I'm a warlock.” Vader decides to reveal. It’s a half-truth, but the stranger doesn't need to know more. He doesn’t need too convinced, though.

“Liar.” He hisses a few inches from his face and Vader can feel the hair on the back of his neck stand on as his self-preservation instinct begins to doubt whether he's the predator in this situation. “You reek of the dark side. Why are you here ?”

As he asks questions, the man grabs the sides of his cape and pulls them apart to search him. It doesn’t take long until he finds his lightsaber, that he takes with a disgusted look on his face.

“You’re a Sith.” He growls, narrowing his eyes to look at him more closely, hostility clearly written on his features. “You’re siding with the Empire. You’re here to enslave us.”

Vader doesn’t deny it, there’s no use.

“Don’t kill me.” He just asks softly, and he doesn't even have a good excuse to add.

“And why would I let you live ?” The man snarls. “When you come here bringing chaos, pain and destruction ?”

He takes a step back suddenly, looking around in alert.

“Are there others like you ?”

“I came alone.” Vader replies, he had stopped struggling and the roots had stopped tightening, making it uncomfortable but not impossible to breathe. “I swear.”

“Why should I trust you ?” The man asks again, crossing his arms against his chest.

“I’ll let you read in my mind.” Vader says. “You’ll see I'm telling the truth.”

It’s a risky move. He doesn’t know how powerful the stranger is, and he already made the mistake of underestimating him once. But he doesn't want to engage in a fight.

The man gives him a suspicious look. He has no reason to trust him, but he seems conflicted. Vader can almost hear his thoughts. He’s not sure he’s strong enough to kill him if he tried, but he doesn't want to put his village in danger by bringing him there as a prisoner. It’s a dead end. Maybe he can offer a solution.

“I could… Tell the Empire that I found no-one here.” He says carefully. “That you already fled to another system to seek the help of the rebellion.”

The man's eyebrows shot up at his words.

“And why exactly would you do that ?”

“It would be a waste to destroy a planet like that. Where the Force is so strong and balanced.” Vader replies, and then coughs as his oxygenator finally has a hard time providing enough oxygen in his state.

The man observes him for a while, pondering.

“So you’ll just fly back to your emperor and lie to his face for the sake of one planet out of the hundreds you probably already doomed ? This is absurd.”

“This- This planet is no use for the Empire.” Vader says and, oh, black dots are dancing around his vision now. “I- I can’t breathe.”

He sees the man straighten, peering at him to evaluate if he’s trying to fool him or if he’s really in distress.

That’s when his legs give way under his weight that he has a glimpse of the stranger rushing to him before everything goes black.

When he comes back to his senses, he’s lying on his back on a pile of soft leaves, under the cover of what looks like a weeping willow. It takes a second for his brain to kick in, and when it does his first reflex is to get up. That’s when he realizes that his hands are tied in front of him, and that he’s not alone.

“I thought you were dead for a while.” The man sitting a few meters away from him says.

He’s building a fire camp with dry wood and terse grass. He added another layer on his shoulders and Vader shivers when the chill air of the evening slips under his thin tunic. He must have blacked out for a few hours. Without thinking, he closes his eyes and concentrates on the fire camp. A second later, a spark ignites in his center and flames start to consume the dry wood.

He can’t help but smirk when he hears the man gasp at his little trick.

“What-”

“Relax.” He says, slowly sitting up on the ground. “I’m not going to hurt you, I’m just cold.”

The stranger makes a face but doesn’t reply. Instead he picks up his dagger and starts to peel some edible roots piled up by his side.

Vader watches him in silence for a while. He’s still as fascinated by the stranger. He wants to know more about him. About his story.

“What’s your name ?” He finally asks, trying to find a more comfortable position for his metallic joints. At least his oxygenator is working fine again.

The man raises his head in his direction, his blue eyes staring at him with a mix of curiosity and defiance.

“You didn’t tell me yours.”

“Ah, fair enough.” Vader replies with a light smile. He hesitates for a millisecond. “Anakin. My name is Anakin.”

“Anakin.” The man repeats, and it’s strange to hear it in the mouth of someone else. To hear it again after such a long time. Maybe it’s not as dead as he thought. “I’m Obi-Wan.”

Vader thinks that it’s a beautiful name for a beautiful man he met on a beautiful planet.

Now he doesn’t have to get back to the emperor just yet, does he ? He can take a few days away from the war, from the horrors and the pain. He can pretend that he’s not a monster for a while. He can bathe in the beauty and the calm of this planet, let it heal him even if he doesn’t deserve it. The best he can do is to avoid corrupting it.

“Obi-Wan.” He tastes the name on his tongue and decides that he likes it. “Tell me more about you.”

[marchsfreakshow]

Clair De Lune [JPM x Reader]

This is based on a story I have in the works and both inspired by a prompt: Deaf!sailor x Syren (siren) In this, James is a sailor and the reader is a syren. :) Fem! Reader

No one's perspective

~~~~~~~~~

She had spotted the lone sailor as his eyes twinkled in the moonlight.

Clair De Lune... he thought to himself. I wish I could be a part of the moon.

The syren stared and stared while thinking of her song. While she thought, which seemed like forever, she had been following the ship and keeping an eye on the sailor. In her thoughts, she felt like Ariel, spying on a sailor she found incredibly handsome. But while watching from a corner, a realisation hit her mind, bringing her imagination back to reality. I won't be able to have him after! I'll have to eat him! It crushed the syren's heart, and she let herself go, sinking down back to the bottom of the sea.

But the sailor was distracted, in the moonlight only, he did not see the siren looking at him lovingly. Another sailor approached the distracted man, sighing heavily to himself. James was always a distracted sailor, constantly looking at the moon when it was the evening, and zoning out when it was cleaning time. This evening was no different. At first, though, it seemed like James was zoning out as usual, but his face told a different story. There were cringes, sighs, and furrows of his eyebrows. All so many emotions for such a man who couldn't even do his job properly.

That's how the accident was caused.

James was daydreaming as usual, what about, no one knows. It was a windy day at sea, and there had been no boats for miles. Good thing the ship had heavy reinforcements, ready in case something came up in the caverns of the deep blue.

Yet the wind crashed and hurled coral, rocks, and grainy sand at the unmissable ship. James was taken in a big gush of ocean water, being hit in the eye of the storm with the rocks. Cuts, gashes and grazes all over the man's body. His clothes were now practically rags, torn. Buttons came off, buckles lost, and the small velvet he owned, was now gone forever. Lost at sea, James swam and swam, not wanting to lose his crew.

His crew? Dismissive of the captain's right-hand man, and let only the captain play James' song. They called him a yellow-belly, and a girl if he was not able to quickly find his ship in the nick of time. Simply, they let him die in their minds. How odd it was though, when they were ashore for goods, James found them. He seemed to do so while walking onto the glowing, hot sand. Almost naked, however. The rags that stuck themselves to James' body were now stained a deep red. His legs, arms, torso, everywhere. There was a scratch here, a gash there, a salty wound around about here. He was red all over, and his usual skin colour disappeared.

Screams emerged from watchers. Two did not scream. The captain, and the hiding syren. The dear Syren looking at the interactions from afar was intrigued by the man and how red he was. But she simply could not just swim up to him and look after him. Guns would be fired her way, and her life would be taken by the hateful sailors. The screams were for James. He looked odd, and like he did not belong on land. People started to run away, they did not want to witness a crazy person die. His crew watched on, shocked that the daydreaming man found his way to land. "James?" The captain asked as he slowly walked towards James. He snapped his head over. "James is that you?" No response, he was unaware of what the captain had said to him.

A snap brought James back to reality.

A fine and clean reality of the ship at sea. "Guys! We got a Syren!" A member of the crew shouted as he brought a syren onto the sea. Her eyes were dull, and lifeless, her mouth sewn shut. Presumably by the member of the crew who brought her wriggling body on board. The chatter and mutters were hoarded around the creature. Everyone was intrigued, James too. He looked at her. "What should we do with it?"

Ideas were spurted out.

"Kill her."

"Let her drown"

"she can breath underwater dumbass."

"tape her gills shut!"

"torture her and then throw her out."

"I want her."

That last comment stuck out to everyone, and they turned around to see James looking quiet, and more meek than he usually was. "I want to name her, and take care of her."

"..." His captain gave him a look of disappointment as the crew threw the Syren back out to the sea. "want to join it? In the cold, vast, sea? Reliving every single memory you had when the horrible, dark water, almost killed you?"

"Yes."

Everyone stared daggers into James. Some of them walked into the shared room downstairs and grabbed his things. James didn't have much. Clothes, knives, shillings. The knives and shillings were rusty, he hadn't used them for ages. The two small bags were tatty, and they were thrown James' way. He picked them up with hesitation, walking backwards. He felt he had made a mistake, but the Syren was too pretty to say no to. He didn't care if the Syren ate him anymore.

"pick him up, and throw him the way you threw the syren."

So they did.

He held onto his bags tight and swam up once he hit the water, his now ex-crew members, leering at him. They turned away once James felt a tap on his shoulder. It was the Syren. She looked sad, innocent and gentle. But she quickly pointed her mouth, so James nodded and swam towards a rock he could sit on. The Syren followed, hoping someone would be nice to her. James took out his tatty and rusty knife, bringing it to the Syren's lips. She was scared, shaking, and looked up at James, worried. "Shh, shh. It's okay." He gently held the Syrens chin, slicing the thin thread that was keeping her mouth shut. Both of them let out a breath, knowing she was okay. "Are you okay?" James asked, not even knowing if she could speak English or not. But in the meantime, he took out the threads, blood peeking out of the holes.

The Syren nodded. "Y/N."

"Y/N? That's pretty." James was slightly aghast that a Syren would just say her name like that. Even then, he would have expected an ancient Greek name, one that the mythology would use for the sea creatures. (Sorry if your name is actually Greek or something-)

"Clair De Lune..." She breathed, taking in deep breaths and moving herself around onto the rock.

"...you know that song?"

"It's my song. I heard you humming it a while ago." Y/N smiled at the man, entranced by his eyes, his unkempt hair and his moustache. She had never seen a man like him before. It excited the dear Syren. "It's what I sing to bring people in for my sisters."

James gave a smile back, but stopped immediately, thinking to himself. "Will you use it on me?" The thought worried him, he didn't want to die right after being thrown off. But Y/N shook her head, leaning her hands on James' legs. "I don't have anywhere to go though."

Y/N leaned on James, looking up at him. "I want to keep you, please. I won't kill you, or hurt you. I want to sing for you." The sun was rising behind the rock, so there were shines of light facing their way. It made the sun orange and pink, a beautiful array of colours that captivated both Y/N and James. They watched the sky turn from pink to blue, the stars slowly fading from their vision.

[clone-anon]

Hi Clone-Anon I would like to make a request. I have always been scared of deep water even though I can swim in a pool. Can I get something that's early relationship for a gender neutral reader with Commander Monnk? lie a day on the beach and he finds out you aren't sure about going in the water?

Absolutely! This is my first time writing Monnk so let's see what happens.

Commander Monnk x GN!Reader

Warnings: swimming in the ocean, reader does get in the ocean so if you want a version outside of the water let me know Anon, holding on to each other, hugs, kisses, this is the Clone Anon blog so you're getting fluff

"You coming," Monnk called, already far enough into the waves that he was chest-deep.

"Yeah," you replied, trying to smile back to him. You looked down at your feet as each wave covered your ankles and buried your toes a little deeper in the sand. You took a few steps forward and Monnk approached you. He didn't want to leave you behind. He didn't say anything but reached for your hand. You walked into the water with him and paused once you got to be waist-deep. The waves weren't rough, but you felt your heart pounding in your chest. It almost felt like you couldn't breathe.

"What is it," he asked.

Your attempted grin looked more like a grimace. This was date number four and you were still getting to know each other. You thought a day at the beach could be fun and while the picnic part was, you weren't completely sure about the swimming part.

"I'm scared of water," you replied.

"Water or the ocean," he asked, remembering when he met you, you'd been wading in a small pool at your friend's house.

"It's the deep water that worries me," you admitted. You felt him squeeze your hand a little.

"We can stay on the beach," he offered. "Or if you want to go further, you can hang on to me."

"Are you sure," you asked. "I don't want to ruin the fun."

He pulled you in for a hug and replied, "You're not ruining anything. I just want to spend time with you."

You decided to at least try to go further. He was a fantastic swimmer and if you were going to try to enjoy the deep ocean, you felt he was someone who would make sure you didn't get hurt. You took your time walking further into the ocean. He made sure you always were holding on to each other in some way. He was more than comfortable in the water, his strong legs kicking through the depths. You faced him, trying to tread water along with him and keeping your hands on his shoulders. You started to find a rhythm and had to admit that you even enjoyed the feeling of weightlessness.

When a fish swam up against your leg, you practically jumped on to him. He held you, treading water while keeping your head well above it.

"It's okay," he said reassuringly. "It's just a fish. We're not out deep enough for anything to get us. I promise."

You wrapped your arms around him and took a few calming breaths. After a little while, you started to relax again. You enjoyed his company and felt like you could get used to this. You started noticing some of what was in the water around you.

"Look at that shell," you said, trying to point to one that seemed to be a brighter color than the others that lay around it. Monnk swam you both closer to land so you could stand up, water not only up to your waist.

"Wait here," he said, diving back into the water and retrieving the shell. He handed it to you and kissed your cheek. You cupped his face and returned the kiss, getting lost in his eyes and thinking it might be nice to have another date on the beach soon.

[tirsynni]

LoZ Whumptober/Nanowrimo (as I failed to complete it in October), prompts 1 - 15:

Sands of Time Ganlink 1/3 - "Calling to You (My Safety Net)" “But now this room is spinning while I’m trying just to fill in all the gaps.” Safety Net | Swooning In which the call of Link's new home proves stronger than common sense or years of experience. Mistakes are made.

Revalink One-Shot - "Almost a Memory" “I’ll call out your name, but you won’t call back.” Delirium | “They don’t care about you.” Link wasn't sure what the Hero from a hundred years ago would have done, but he was confident that he could have dodged that arrow.

Malon/Link Gen/Pre-Relationship One-Shot - "In the Cold Light of the Moon" “Like crying out in empty rooms; with no-one there except the moon.” “Make it stop.” After Termina, nothing fits quite like it should and Time marches on even as Link wishes it wouldn't.

BotW Gen 1/2 - "Riding the Lightning" “I see the danger, It’s written there in your eyes.” Cattle Prod | Shock | “You in there?” The Yiga were either very lucky or were competent for a change. It didn't matter. Either way, Link was about to have a bad day.

Hyrule Warriors Gen 1/2 - "So Far to Fall" “You better pray I don’t get up this time around.” Debris | Pinned Down | “It’s broken.” When the small child with the Spirit of the Hero entered the battlefield, Link had no plans on getting attached to the feral brat. He swore to protect him, to keep him safe, but that was supposed to be the end of it. Now trapped and wounded with the young hero crying in front of him, Link realized far too late that he had failed.

Revalink One-Shot - "See You Later" “Do or die, you’ll never make me; Because the world will never take my heart.” “It should have been me.” Tomorrow, Link would finally face the Calamity. He feared that tomorrow would spell the end of many things, not just that nightmare. An unexpected source provided reassurance. If Link had learned nothing else since awakening in the Shrine of Resurrection, it should have been that death wasn't the end.

Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Warriors Gen - "That Old Familiar Sting" “I paced around for hours on empty; I jumped at the slightest of sounds.” Alleyway | “Can you hear me?” In an alleyway in Castle Town, with Sprite and a handful of burning corpses as his witnesses, Link faces his failures once again.

Sands of Time Prequel - "Airless" “I’ve got soul, but I’m not a soldier.” “It’s all for nothing.” Immediate SoT Prequel: Before Link awoke in the desert, it was just him, Epona, and a terrible decision to make in a cold cave.

Hyrule Warriors Gen 1/2 - "Can't Rain All the Time" “Learning everything ain’t what it seems, that’s the thing about these days.” “You’re a liar.” Hyrule Warriors Gen 2/2 - "Can't Rain All the Time" “Can’t you see that you’re lost without me?” “You said you’d never leave.” The war was over. It was time for everyone to return to their original time. Whether they wanted to or not.

Hyrule Warriors NC Cia/Link 2/2 - "A Song of Love and War" “All the lights going dark and my hope’s destroyed.” Captivity | “No one will find you.” Link thought he knew what to expect of Cia: what she wanted of him and what would happen if he was captured. He was so very wrong. (Second chapter = Whumptober Prompt) Cia and Link meet again: this time, on the battlefield.

BotW Gen One-Shot - "Deep Silent Complete" “I haven’t slept in days but who’s counting?” Insomnia | “I’m up, I’m up.” Link was no longer sure what were nightmares and what were memories, but at least he wasn't alone... even if he couldn't figure out what exactly his lupine friend was.

Sands of Time Ganlink 2/3 - "Calling to You (My Safety Net)" “It comes and goes like the strength in your bones.” Cold Compress | Infection In which the call of Link's new home proves stronger than common sense or years of experience. Mistakes are made.

Hyrule Warriors Gen 1/2 - "Just Hold On" “Feed me poison, fill me ‘till I drown.” Water Inhalation | “Just hold on.” If Link survived this, his old commander was going to yell at him if he saw him again. This was beyond stupid. It didn’t matter. It hadn’t since that moblin backhanded Sprite and knocked him into the raging waters of the river.

Sands of Time Ganlink 3/3 - "Calling to You (My Safety Net)" “I don’t need you to help me I can handle things myself.” Suppressed Suffering | “I’m fine.” In which the call of Link's new home proves stronger than common sense or years of experience. Mistakes are made.

[some-pers0n]

White Noise Telepath

Fandom: WoF

Characters [OCs]: Sol, Miasma

CW: Nothing

Summary: Solstice (or rather Sol, thank you very much) is an explorer who has recently rediscovered the Lost City of Night. However, after looking around a fair bit, he uncovers something...odd. That isn't any NightWing he's ever seen before.

Word Count: 2.2k

A/N: This one goes out to @kratt09. I saw you tag me saying you want to know more about my OCs. Here's my WoF ones. These new ones are silly. I'd love to ramble a bit more about their lore if pressed. Or other OCs too, I guess.

Even when coming here knowing that it would be a haunting sight to behold, there was nothing else even comparable to the beauty of the Lost City of Night. Ruined buildings from an age long forgotten. Abandoned and left to the sands of time. Even the insects and lizards avoid this place, deeming it as too unsafe. Cursed land that remains to this day to be uninhabitable to even the most desperate of scavengers. Not one soul dared to step into such an infernal city.

Meaning it was a great place for aspiring explorer, Solstice of the SandWings, to check out!

Solstice (or rather Sol, thank you very much) was always enamoured by the legends of ancient cities and lost worlds. The forgotten Kingdom of Night and the legends surrounding it were fascinating. Nobody truly believed in it. Some thought that it never existed, while others were convinced that the Darkstalker fellow fully destroyed it. Nobody could agree on how or why he did it. Some said he sunk it into the ocean because he deemed them all unworthy to keep living. Others said he burned it after the queen had slain his lover. A couple of times he read tales of the Darkstalker simply killing them all instantly so their souls will pass on in peace.

Whatever it was, it sure didn't work. The city was still here, albeit in a dilapidated state. That and the fact that the NightWings still roam the continent, so the giant murder plot didn't pan out in the end. At least some stragglers got through.

Sol climbed on top of a fallen pillar, overlooking the landscape. He was staring at what must have been the plaza. The rotting remains of marketing stalls were half-buried in the sand. Through it all, Sol could almost make out the patterning of the stone walkways below.

"Oh, marvellous!" he muttered, pulling out his sketching scroll and jotted down some notes. A good explorer always writes down their discoveries, do they not? He didn't exactly want any other dragon to come around. Queens and their "expeditions" were more like glorified tomb-raiding. What he was doing? Simply marking locations and visiting worlds of the past before going back to write his adventures. He was sure there would be some dragons out there who would love his tales and findings.

The sun shone warmly in the sky, beaming down onto his black and grey scales. He had orange accents that streaked down his neck and claws. It was as though it were a river of lava pouring and streaming down obsidian, following his body and splintering off into sections. Or rather, the ring of light around a moon during an eclipse. Striking and lovely in its own way.

He slipped his inkwell and scroll back into his messenger bag, slinging it back over his neck. He Hopped down and walked around the deserted plaza. The sand was coarse, yet fine and soft to the touch. It was quiet. The air was still and the only sounds were Sol's talonsteps.

Yet...the lifeless city didn't feel as empty as it should. A small, unsettling feeling in his stomach grew as he thought about it more. Perhaps he was being paranoid and a coward, but he couldn't shake it off. He took small breaths to try and calm himself. Yeah, maybe he was just being a bit overdramatic-

...what was that? He craned his neck, facing a seemingly vacant alleyway. It was a tight space. He could fit in it, but with not too much wiggle room to spare. He could've sworn he heard something. Shuffling. The faintest breathing. Something was in there. It had to be.

"Hello?" he called out. "Is anybody there? Am I just going crazy or...is there actually anybody there?"

No response.

"Well, if you aren't going to come out now, it's going to bother me for the rest of time." He stepped forward, readying his claws. This was stupid, yes, but one must prepare for anything when exploring these ruins. Once or twice before he had a close encounter with a dangerous mongoose. Gave him a nasty little bite, that horrible bugger.

He walked into the alleyway. It was even tighter than he thought. His breathing was strained as he looked around to try and figure out where the source of the noise was. Then, he heard it again. Rustling. What's worse is that now he knew where it was coming from.

It was directly in front of him.

He looked down, seeing pale white scales somewhat buried in the sand. It was a long, bulky serpentine body that twisted and shifted around. Right at his feet he could make out the head. Its eyes were a striking red as its tongue flicked out to taste the air.

It was a snake.

"VIPER!" He stepped back, almost tripping over his talons. "Moons above, are you..." he muttered, "no, no you can't be. You're too pale to be a dragonbite viper. Unless you're albino or something." He inched away more. "Please don't kill me... I quite enjoy living, thanks."

The snake looked at him, its eyes unblinking. It slithered closer to him. He was about to try and stomp on it when he heard a voice.

"Tallus! Clearsight above... Gave me a proper heart attack with your little disappearing act."

Sol looked forward. To his surprise, a dragon was standing there. What made him worry was the alien appearance of them. Slender and sharp, almost reminding him of a RainWing. Her scales were a rich, deep purple. It was as though staring at a part of the starry skies above. She had two sets of black horns. One set came from the front. They were small and pointed upward. The other went out from the back and curved around like a ram.

The most bizarre thing were the wings. Four of them. They were thin and translucent, resting at the side. The word "wasp" popped into his head. They were more bug than they were dragon.

She picked up the snake and looked up at Sol. She tilted her head, a confused, yet playful expression on her face. "Oh, hello! You're new." She rested the snake around her neck and approached him. The scales glittered in the afternoon light. He noticed she was wearing a large black hat, little stings hanging from it with beads attached to the end. Her glasses were silver with lavender-coloured lenses. Along her horns and body were tiny accents of white.

Above all though, she radiated a feeling of warmth. Not in a typical sense, but looking at her was fairly calming. He couldn't shake the feeling that something was off about her though. Well, other than the whole bug-dragon thing.

"Salutations, I'm Miasma. Pleasure to meet you." She held out her talons. "You must be one of these SandWings I've heard so much about. Barb and all."

Sol stammered and stuttered. He stumbled to form the words he wanted to say. He wanted to do something, say anything. Why was she in the Kingdom of Night? Why did she look so strange and nothing like any other dragon he'd seen before?

Instead, he sputtered out, "can I draw you?" He cringed instantly. "No wait! That was the wrong thing to say. Talons and tails, I'm so sorry..."

Miasma squinted briefly before laughing. It was hearty and warm. "Draw me?" she scoffed. "What for? I don't see why."

Well, now that he dug this hole for himself, he might as well keep going. "What tribe are you?" he asked.

"Mh? Oh, a NightWing."

His eyes widened. "Excuse me, what?"

"NightWing. Can't you tell? I would've thought all of you would at least recognize another tribe by their appearance."

Sol stared at the very un-NightWing-like dragon. "...I don't think I've ever seen a dragon like you before?"

"Welp, now you have." She looked him up and down. "So, I gave a little bit of background on me. Don'tcha think you could do the same for me? Not like I'm going to steal your name or anything."

He got up on his feet, dusting off the extra sand. "My name is Solstice. I prefer Sol though." He shook her talons.

"Nice seeing another dragon here at my base of operations. That's what I like to call my home, by the way.

"I can tell."

"Not too often do I see living dragons around here. Come to think of it, I haven't seen anybody in...well, ages! Ah well, I'm sure there are reasons."

"Yeah, there are. There was a curse placed on this kingdom. Dragons being superstitious avoid it, and eventually it becomes a lost piece of history."

"Huh. Odd. I've been around here since I can remember and I haven't heard a thing."

"How long have you been around here for then?"

"Hm...since I hatched? Don't recall too much. Foggy memory and all. Actually, it's all somewhat cloudy. All I can safely say I remember is waking up on the shore with only my name." She shrugged. "Mystery for another day though! Doesn't bother me none." She turned her attention back to him. "So, what brings you here?"

"Huh? Me?" Sol pointed to himself. "Exploring mostly. I've always wanted to come here and find this place. Lo and behold, I do. I've been taking notes and drawing things and then, well, your snake scared me."

"Tallus spooked you?" She laughed, letting the snake coil around her neck. "He's just a big suck. He can't hurt a fly. Literally. I have to go look for some plants for him to eat. Usually, I go over to the big rainforest area and pick berries and such."

"Wait, the Rainforest Kingdom?"

"That's what it's called? Galaxies and geckos, my brain is just scattered," she chuckled. "Regardless, I like visiting there every once in a while. Find some new trinkets and, if I've brought those old goggles, I can chat with the locals. Dead locals, but locals nonetheless."

"I'm sorry what?" Sol asked. "Hold on, hold on. Back up. I'm sorry if this comes off as...well, rude, but can you explain what's going on a bit? Why are you here? What do you mean by all of this? Who even are you? Why do you look like that?"

She blinked. "Well, my name is Misama. I am a NightWing. I live in the now-ruined NightWing kingdom. I do so because it is my home. I collect weird objects and such. They are pretty strange and some have different properties- OOH!! You might know some of them!" She began to walk deeper into the city. "Come on!"

"Still not my name!" he said. Yet, he couldn't help himself but follow. This was a great find. A living dragon in the NightWing ruins. Not to mention such a strange and bug-like form too. Despite her instance, it was safe to say this was an entirely new tribe! Was it dangerous to trust her? Oh, absolutely. Yet, there was a feel to her that was comforting and cozy.

Still, one could never be too safe. As he trailed after her, he watched her movements. He noticed that her wings didn't move too much. When they did, she winced. Were they hurt? He didn't want to pry too much. Regardless, he looked more at the city around them and where she was going.

To his surprise, she led him to the castle. Rubble littered what used to be the garden. Statues of what once were historical dragons were crumbled and eroded. She led him up the dusty ebony stairs and towards the door. "It takes a while to get there. Sorry!" She slipped through the archway and into the castle proper.

Sol ran after her. The interior was desolate and abandoned. The sprawling halls were massive, the ceiling itself stretching farther than what he could have ever imagined. His talons clicked against the black marble floor. The occasional hole in the roof let the daylight bleed through.

Finally, after chasing her down through corridor after corridor and up a long, long flight of stairs, she stopped. "There we go. Hope that wasn't too much of an issue there." She gave a small, perky grin.

"Moons above..." he wheezed. "How do you have so much energy?"

"Here it is though! My little section right for weird objects." She completely ignored him, opening the metal door. "This was actually bolted pretty good before I came here. Can't see why though."

Inside were shelves upon shelves of scrolls, rocks, pieces of jewelry, crowns, sceptres, anything. Dazzling objects of various shapes and sizes. Instantly upon seeing it all, Sol was hit with a wave of disgust and repulsion. Being near these things felt wrong. They weren't supposed to exist. 

Yet, Miasma was unphased. She just walked in like nothing was wrong. In fact, she took notice of Sol's change in attitude. "What's wrong?"

"Moons, how can you stand to be near that?" he mustered, stepping away. "It's awful."

She frowned. "...what?" she asked.

"Sorry, didn't mean to say it like that! I just..." Sol's eyes widened. "Blazing scales, are those animus touched!?"

"Animus?" she echoed. "That sounds familiar."

"They must be animus touched. I've read about them having this effect. Wrongness. Like a distortion in reality." He took another step. "How can you just stand to be in there?"

"I dunno. Nothing really feels wrong. Maybe I'm just used to it." She shrugged. "It's really cool in here though. C'mon! Nothing's going to bite you or anything."

Solstice looked at Miasma, then back at the room. He flexed his claws. He was an explorer after all. This would be a massive find. All of these animus enchanted objects. Imagine what they could do! All of the information he can bring back and write about. 

He flexed his claws and then marched on in. Fear cannot stop him now.

[bunny-hoodlum]

☆ Share 3 fun facts about you, then pass this to three of your mutuals! ☆

Wow, I've been tagged four times! @alexis513, @littlemonstert-blog, @mrs-messy and @mysummerchoi, thanks for tagging me. :3

@mysummerchoi, I feel the exact same way. 😭 Plus, I'm not used to supplying info about myself when asked, haha. That stuff always evaporates from my head. ( . _ . )

I might have maybe almost died when I was three or four? Just kidding, but my mom thinks so. It was a day at a Californian beach, I was buried up to my neck in the sand for a picture and I guess they buried me too close to the water, so when a wave washed over me, they completely lost me in the sand, like either I sunk in deeper or sand washed over my head. My uncle just scooped me out like shwoop! lol. Without a picture, I won't know if it was a bad as they thought it was.

I can be clumsy and hurt myself and for whatever reason I never get scared or feel pain with this happens. Sometimes it feels predictable or like it's happening in slo-mo and I just go 'damn' before it happens. Like, at my old job working warehouse, I tripped on my ankle I think? And I just neatly fell forward like a feather, like I just knew not to resist or I'd hurt myself more. Try to imagine a lego man but with bendable knees. Now picture how you would use that lego man in a stop-motion film. It was like that. And it was so weird too that I thought it was funny. Sometimes when I derp and hurt myself it is actually pretty damn funny, but if it happens too often I get severely frustrated and devolve into a 5-year-old. Another time we got rear-ended twice near the offramp to Santa Barbara, and before the second impact, I just relaxed expecting it -- cuz you know, shitty drunk drivers survive because they literally can't tense up or do something worse like move to look behind them (you will hurt your neck doing that) -- But… But..! Try to get my attention when I can't see you, I freak the fuck out. This was probably more than one thing, but I think it's all related to each other lol.

Maybe this is too personal, but I always find psychology and whatnot very interesting, so from that perspective I'll share this bit of dumbassery: My attachment style has improved but is still pretty damn fucky. I just recently remembered how I had a crush on this boy in middle school (our middle school had 3 separate schools attached, so only time you could mingle with students from another jr high was after school clubs and we met in art club and bonded over FLCL), and I didn't know I liked him until the following year, but then I couldn't do anything about it because he was already dating someone else, a witty Korean-American girl (and I also had a complex about not being Asian enough). Time skip three years and he's finally a freshman, so I get to see him again. (We were same age but he had to start school late). I ask if he's still with her (because I still got some feels leftover) and he said she moved to Canada and had a girlfriend. And fuck if I know why cuz... I don't. My initial reaction wasn't 'Oh goody, I get to try again!'. No. I thought 'She's bi?! Why didn't she have a crush on me?!', like in that split second I wanted to be HER girlfriend instead of this other person. How dare this totally cooler than me girl that grabbed my crush find her own super cool girl to be with, like, first I'm not good enough for him, now I'm not good enough for her, I can't even begin to imagine how cool her Canadian GF must be, blah blah blah, she must be unsurpassably cool because she was chosen by someone also unfathomably cool and that's just how that shit works, blah blah blah-- sigh. The silent screams of my pathological need to be important, everyone. And that is why I will no longer do vent posts, because I feel super ashamed whenever I get validated for my bullshit. ; u ;

Haaa, alright, pick three mutuals. Hm. Feels like everyone got tagged tbh... @peppercornpress @char-lotteral aaaand @spaciousignatius 💖

[thelostflxwer]

reunion ; rapunzel & flynn

rapunzel had just finished closing up the shop, finishing the last of the dusting and trying to keep her mind off of the thoughts that had plagued it today. it had been yet another exhaustingly long and draining day, but rapunzel noticed she had been having a lot of days like this lately. her sadness felt a little heavier, her fears were a bit more prominent in her day to day life, and her loneliness was a bit more ... well, lonely. whilst the blonde was good at being optimistic, having practically perfected the art of seeing the bright side of things, sometimes the weight was just a little too heavy to smile through. perhaps it was how rainy it had been lately, or maybe how quiet the shop was, or the fact that the more time passed by in evermore... the more she wished she could return to her normal life in her kingdom with her parents, her kingdom and pascal- and eugene.

god, maybe that's what hurt the most right now.

three decades in a tower, thirty trips around the sun, no one but maude and pascal to keep her company and while pascal's company was lovely in it's own right, she never got to leave the tower. they did. then along comes this ruffian of a man who changed her entire life, flipped it on it's head and showed her things she had only ever dreamed of or read about in the few selections of books she was provided. eugene brought her peace, he showed her adventure, he aided her in finding the truth and didn't abandon her when that very truth was both frightening and fierce. eugene became the center of her entire world, as he is the one who showed it to her, and to be somewhere without him- not knowing where he was, what he was doing, fearful that maude had gotten to him before he could find her here....she almost lost him once, she couldn't lose him again.

rapunzel noticed she was gripping the feather duster so tightly her knuckles had turned paper-white, and she felt her vision getting blurry as her eyes began to become filled with salt water and a sad, deep-rooted longing. she missed his voice, she missed his smell - a fragrance of leather and musk with notes of sand and cypress. rapunzel deeply missed the way he would envelop her hands with his and kiss each knuckle whenever she was having a bad day- she could use some of those kisses right about now. she missed running barefoot through the woods with him, confronting danger head on right besides each other, dancing in the village with the townspeople, HER people...

the blonde was startled from her thoughts by the ringing of her door chime, her head snapping up as desperate hands went to wipe feverishly at the moisture that had started running down her rose-tinted cheeks. "i'm so sorry- i just closed up..." she meekly informed the visitor, her voice dampened by the emotion that dared to leap out of her throat. turning around to meet their eyes, rapunzel felt her entire world stop when she saw who it was, her feather duster dropping to the ground and her hands flying up to cover her mouth. she blinked a few times, trying to process if they were real or if she was just making this up. it couldn't be.

"... eugene?"

@flynnridcers

[thepayloadisgay]

TBH I can whore Genji out to most people. He's just pretty good for that. Even his brother. And hey, if I ship Genzo, I can relate him to S76 because they almost got killed by their ex boyfriends, lmao. I do love Genzo, though, and I also have wanted to dig into how other people would react to Genji banging his own brother. Hm.

Oh man I had fun with this. Thank you so much anon sjsjhss. Just a handful of chars rn. Probably more to come.

Okay so. How I think some chars might react about finding out about Genji and Hanzo being together:

Moira: Out of most, she probably cares the least. Moira cares mostly about herself, her research, and where she can get the next fix of money and resources for it.

It's subtle, but Moira sees.

Touches that weren't there before. They linger. Long. A closeness she understands with her own little fuck and feel. You're in a strange sync. You move different around eachother. Less careful, more known.

Working with Genji in Blackwatch, she witnessed his instability, his impulsivity. What does she care or know about some self walked path of healing in Shambali. Moira knows what she's seen. What's there and can be unleashed.

Does that mean she thinks them being together is a product of instability, stupidity? Unlikely. For if Angela sunk a knife in her tomorrow, she'd sink one right back in with a kiss.

----

Angela: A love lost. She mourned. Maybe it was more than she thought, more than it should have been, so it couldn't.

Angela sometimes wondered if it was because she was wired into him. Her prints beneath his skin, remade.

But when she caught him kiss Hanzo like he used to kiss her. 3:57am. She remembers the time glowing Genji's green, burned on her eyes she didn't know why. No-one said anything. Hanzo stuttered. She could hear his pat pat of feet. A snap of Genji's wrist to stop.

But Hanzo unmade him. She fixed his murder. The pieces he broke, ripped away with the teeth of his dragons, seared from the scales-

It was then she realised what bothered her more was the fact it wasn't her anymore, rather than it was his own brother.

Things pass. Things change. Your ex fucks his brother.

"Are you happy Genji?" days later.

He didn't know how to say that he felt he found something that was missing with Hanzo. Like his brother had held the pieces of himself he'd torn, and with every touch kiss fuck placing them back to whole. He didn't know how to say he's a piece of Hanzo. He's the blood on his tongue. The sinew under his skin. The last breath he'll take. And who will close his eyes.

So he said yes.

----

Reaper: He liked Genji, really. Confident, brassy, beautiful little shit. Snapping that blade around like it was art.

And the least of Reaper's cares really, were everyone's personal lives. But catching your old friend knees spread ontop of their brother was new, he guessed.

No skin off his nose. Whatever was left.

So he ignored it, like any normal (abnormal) person would do. It seemed to keep them both in check. New boy Hanzo frowned less, slept more. Genji talked more, less preachy.

But there was one thing.

"I don't think I could shack up with someone who pretty much murdered me."

It gave Genji pause. Then almost a laugh.

"Oh. Just someone you pretty much tried to murder instead?"

Reaper sipped his coffee.

----

Zenyatta: There was something different about Genji.

They were reunited after too long, and this time Genji had someone for him to meet. Hanzo.

He knew Genji's energy could be boundless. That he needed an outlet or six. That he focused so much on one thing he couldn't let go, obsessiveness a curse. That he masked pain so well.

Too well, sometimes.

A leaden blur sanded his edges for so long. Time at the monastery, meditation, talk helped. But there was a plateau, and it began to stick again.

Now, it began to lift.

And looking at Hanzo, sitting close enough knees touched, a flyaway touch on his shoulder, a shared secret, smile, Zenyatta could see why.

Finding peace with the thing that broke you, is one thing.

Love with it again, another.

But he wondered if Genji had ever really relinquished that love, and it had just compacted beneath the weight of agony and change.

"Shall I set up another bed in your room, Genji?" Asks Zenyatta as they sit on the roof of the monastery, listening to quiet chatter below.

Genji raises a brow.

"For Hanzo." He stares ahead.

Genji tries to speak, but just chews the side of his finger.

"Top and tail it is, then."

Genji knows there's a smile, and just nudges his master's shoulder. "Doesn't bother you?"

"What bothers me is your unhappiness, disquiet." A pause. "That is all."