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ginnyw-potter-archive · 2 years ago

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Wreck My Plans

Written for Several Sunlit Daylights, the Taylor Swift x Hinny Collab we all need, organised by @ginwiz

Prompt: Based on Evermore/Folklore. I picked 'Willow' (It could have been Speak Now if Harry showed up a few months later lol)

This is 8K words so it may be easier to read on AO3 but also below.

It could not be worse timing. How could he possibly know? How could he have such awful timing? She was engaged now, he had been gone for two years and just as she was taking a break from her relationship, from her fiancé, and staying over at the Burrow, that is when he showed up, in the middle of May.

She just had a good cry with her mum and expressed her doubts and worries about Gabriel when Harry walked in through the back door as if he had just been there the other day. He looked healthy, he looked happy.

“Uhm, hi,” he said hesitantly, looking between the two women.

Neither she nor her mum moved. She could not have moved if she wanted to, her eyes focused on his green ones, staring back. He swallowed.

“Harry, you’re back!” Mrs Weasley said with feigned enthusiasm. She engulfed him in a hug.

“So good to see you, Mrs Weasley,” he said and she could tell he was being genuine.

She hated how much he looked like a man now, he had lost the boyish charm that Gabriel still held. Gabriel, fuck. Harry couldn’t be here, not now when she was already on the edge of cancelling every plan she ever had. She composed herself.

“Hi Harry, how are you?” she asked politely.

Harry appeared taken aback by her polite tone. “I��m … good. You?”

“I’m great.” It could not have been more of a lie. She glanced at the clock and saw it was two already. “Crap, I got to go.” She shot up from her chair. She had promised Gabriel she’d come by at two to pick up some items. She turned to her mum. “I won’t be long.”

Mrs Weasley offered her sympathetic smile and she dashed out of the door.

She apparated to his apartment. They had been barely living together for six months, all her stuff hadn’t even made it in there yet. She knocked on the door.

Gabriel opened the door carefully.

“I am sorry I am late, we had … a guest,” she said, walking past him and into the bedroom.

He stood in the door opening as she gathered more of her clothes. She threw everything into her bag.

“Honey, please, can we at least talk?” he tried.

She shook her head. “I need more time.” She slung her bag over her shoulder and walked through the living room, picking up some more of her items.

“Is this really about that girl? We weren’t exclusive then… I didn’t know…” His face dropped. “I feel like you have just found a reason to doubt and you’ll cling to it.”

She walked to the door and turned around to him. “You don’t know anything,” she snipped and walked out.

Ginny apparated back to The Burrow and found Harry in the garden. She decided to bite through the bullet and just talk to him, clear the air.

“I believe congratulations are in order,” Harry said carefully.

“Don’t.” She let the bag drop on the ground, as if to emphasise exactly why.

“Your mum only said you were engaged, I didn’t know-” he told her.

She nodded. “She is trying to save me some pride, I guess. Nothing happened, I just… I need more time. I can’t be making decisions so quickly.”

Harry reached out to her hand and electricity ran through her when he lifted her hand up. He looked at the ring on her finger for a moment.

“I mean most women would be won over by a ring like that alone,” he said.

She pulled her hand out of his grip. “Shut up.” They started walking towards the orchard. “My affection can’t be bought.”

“No, it can’t.”

“Where have you been?” Ginny asked, trying to get the attention off her.

“Here and there, all over the world,” he told her and then he started speaking of some of the places he had been. Secret wizarding communities in the desert, magical waterfalls, mythical creatures and wonderful places.

“Sounds like you had a great time,” she said.

“I did,” Harry agreed.

“So you are not staying then,” she deduced, looking at him carefully.

“No, I just figured I was overdue a visit. I went by Ron and Hermione’s first.”

“They must've been glad to see you,” she commented with a smile.

“So what is the deal with your fiancé?”

Ginny sighed, she really didn’t want to talk about this with Harry. “Nothing, he is fine, he is a good guy.”

“But?” he asked.

“I don’t know. We started dating eight months ago, moved in with him six months ago, engaged for one… I suddenly felt like there were too many changes, like I’m not myself anymore and … “ She stopped, something was gnawing at her that she could not place.

“Do you love him?”

Ginny stopped in her tracks, surprised by his question. “He is a good man.”

“Do you love him?” Harry asked again.

“Harry, you don’t get to do this, you left.” She hated how her voice almost broke at the end of her sentence.

“This isn’t about me,” Harry defended himself, as if he genuinely wanted to save her upcoming wedding.

“Isn’t it?” she shot back. “You chose to go off on your own.”

“I needed some time to myself.” He looked down apologetically. Then he glanced back up. “Travel with me.”

“What?” she asked warily.

“Come with me, travel, see the world a little. I can show you the most amazing sights, the most remote places in the world, magic beyond belief.”

“I am engaged,” was the only objection she could muster. Her head felt empty and suddenly disappearing into the wilderness with Harry sounded all too tempting. It shouldn’t be, it was more of a gamble than marrying was, but something about it sounded far too inviting.

“What do you want?” Harry asked her.

“The more you say, the less I know,” she told him honestly.

“Give me a month. Let me show you things for a month and then you decide. You can come home whenever you want after that but give me a month. If you want to get married to…”

“Gabriel.”

“Right, then you do that. No strings attached, no hard feelings. I just think you need a getaway as much as I did two years ago.” His green eyes were so warm, so caring as they focused on her.

“Harry, it’s you and I… how can I go and return to Gabriel…” Ginny knew well enough if she left with him, she’d never go back to Gabriel, even if she returned after a month.

“Like I said, it’s no strings attached, we can have separate beds, whatever. I am just offering you a little escape.”

She wanted to beg him to take her hand and wreck her plans. “Okay, wherever you stray next, I’ll follow.”

Harry’s eyes lit up. “Really?”

She nodded. “You’re right, I need a little escape.”

Harry ran a hand through his hair for a moment as he thought. “We can leave tonight.”

“Okay,” she agreed immediately. She didn’t want to change her mind, she didn’t want her parents to stop her.

“I need to go arrange a Portkey. Just wait until after dark and wait for my signal. If you wait by your bedroom window, you’ll see me,” he said, piecing together a plan.

She should be more scared to take off to a strange place for a month after thinking about it for less than ten minutes, but she was not. She wanted to feel like herself again, and Harry always knew how to bring out the real her.

---

She shot up from the window sill when she saw the wave of his wand at the end of the garden. She left the envelopes on her nightstand. One for her parents, explaining she was alright but she took off and one for Gabriel with her engagement ring, asking him not to wait for her if she wasn’t back in a month.

She grabbed her backpack and her bag and silently walked down the stairs, conveniently half her items had already been packed. She shrunk one bag to fit into the other, carrying nearly all she owned with her as she walked outside.

Harry smiled reassuringly at her. “Just in time.” He offered the Portkey to her and she grabbed onto it too.

A minute later she felt the tug behind her navel and they were whisked off. When she felt soil under her feet, she let go of the Portkey. There wasn’t much to see in the moonlight. They seemed to be rather high up.

“Where are we?” she asked.

“The Azores, Mount Pico,” he said looking around before his eyes landed on a spot a little higher up. “Up there.”

They started walking further up the mountain.

“Have you been here before?” she asked, looking at the ground to make sure she didn’t trip.

He shook his head. “No, but I made some friends in the wizarding travel community, they know the most peculiar spots on earth.”

Ginny’s eyes fell on their destination, a small mountain hut. “That’s cosy,” she commented.

“Don’t worry, it is bigger on the inside.”

---

Mrs Weasley stood in her daughter’s bedroom, clutching the letter in her hand. She had heard some noise and when she went to check on Ginny, she found the room empty but then she noticed Ginny outside in the moonlight. For a moment she thought Ginny was going to see Gabriel again.

She glanced down and saw the envelopes and saw one addressed to Gabriel and one to her and Arthur and her stomach dropped. She grabbed the one for her and ripped it open.

Mum, dad,

I am so sorry to leave like this but I need to get away for a while. I promise I am alright. If I still want to get married, I will see you in a month. If not, I promise I am still okay.

I love you tons, give my regards to my brothers,

Ginny

Mrs Weasley looked up, her heart pounding and looked towards the apparition point. She already had a sneaking suspicion who was involved in this getaway, but when the Portkey lit up both their faces, she got confirmation, Ginny was with Harry. In some way that comforted her. If she had to go, with Harry she’d be okay, Mrs Weasley hoped.

With the letter still in hand, she mindlessly walked back to bed. She put the letter down on her nightstand and got back under the covers.

“Everything okay, Mollywobbles?” Mr Weasley asked softly.

She hesitated but then she handed him the letter. He sat up and took out his glasses, reading by the light of his wand.

“We should stop her!” Mr Weasley said.

She shook her head. “I saw them leave. She has gone.”

“Them?” He paused. “She’s with Harry, isn’t she?” He didn’t sound particularly surprised.

“Yes.” She sighed. “She can take care of herself,” she reassured herself more than her husband.

“The wedding is off then.”

“She didn’t say so but… she was even reluctant about the honeymoon with Gabriel and … Harry was here for less than 12 hours and she took off to Dumbledore knows where. We both know what’s going to happen,” Mrs Weasley said.

He nodded. “The heart wants what it wants.”

“She better not disappear for two years, I will have her head, and Harry’s too.”

Mr Weasley kissed her temple. “She’ll be back.”

---

Harry woke her up far too early, his side of the bed already vacated.

She grumbled. “I did not sleep long enough.” She sat up and stretched out.

“The sunrise is supposed to be wonderful. And that’s the beauty now, we are free, can get back into bed after the sun has risen, we can nap the afternoon away, we make the rules.”

Ginny wasn’t sure if he was still trying to sell her on the idea. She did not comment on it. Harry stepped into his shoes and shrugged his coat on and went outside already. Ginny joined him five minutes later, still half in pyjamas. She paused at the door and looked at him. The gnawing feeling had gone and she wondered why she couldn’t feel about Gabriel that way, she had really tried but she knew before she held onto that Portkey that it was no use. She sat down beside him on the short deck in front of the hut, the sun just coming to peak over the horizon. Harry handed her a mug of tea wordlessly. It felt nice not to have to fill every silence. She could never stand silence with Gabriel, they were never quite comfortable. With Harry, she had never needed many words to understand him and the silences were always pleasant.

The sun crawled a little higher and the whole world seemed to bathe in an orange glow, and they were on top of it, even higher than the clouds. She could make out the green fields below between the clouds and where the island ended into the sea. It was breathtaking.

Harry looked at her and he laughed. “Oh, you look like you’re on fire.”

She looked amused at him, her brows furrowing.

His hands lifted her hair. “Look at that,” he said, showing how the sun illuminated every single strand of hair as it fell through his fingers. She looked up at him, she had forgotten how much he loved her hair. She felt tears well up in her eyes and she chuckled at herself, that something so silly in a moment like this could bring her to tears.

Harry observed her silently. She ducked her head to get away from his prying eyes. He carefully wrapped an arm around her in comfort and she leaned her head against him.

“You’ll be okay,” he offered, looking back at the sunrise.

Ginny wondered if he understood what she was sad about, but she didn’t know exactly either what made her so sad. There was a hole in her chest and it needed mending, and it was mending.

When the sun had risen, Ginny stood up. “Back to bed.”

She peeled her layers off and plopped back on the bed, already feeling sleepy again.

“We could do the summit in the afternoon,” Harry mumbled beside her with his eyes closed.

“Apparate?” she asked.

“I always find walking rather refreshing,” he replied.

“Okay,” she agreed.

Several hours later they reached the peak of the mountain after a good two hours of walking and climbing.

“Ooh, I feel a little lightheaded,” she commented as she halted.

Immediately Harry’s hand came around her arm to make sure she was steady. She took a few breaths and nodded, confirming she was okay. Harry let go and looked around now.

“You know, the person who recommended this to me, he told me to be wary of the Wrackspurts up here.”

Ginny turned to him. “You’re kidding?”

Harry smiled. “100 per cent, I am not.”

Ginny sat down on the bench and Harry joined her. He offered her the water bottle and she took a sip from it.

“How is your first travel day going?” he asked her.

“Really good,” she confirmed.

Harry looked glad, so glad she was happy to be there. She moved, it happened so naturally and she was kissing him. Harry kissed her back without missing a beat. It had been years but it took them no time at all to find their rhythm again. Harry’s lips were warm and steady against hers in the fresh mountain air.

She leaned away, Harry’s cheeks flushed.

“Now I am lightheaded,” he commented.

“Those are the wrackspurts, Harry.” She patted his knee and pushed off the bench.

A few minutes later they started their way back down. Ginny ran past Harry when she suddenly lost her footing and dropped down and out of sight. Fear ran through her veins but then she hit the ground. She must have fallen less than two metres down but she couldn’t see the path anymore.

“Gin?!” Harry let out in pure panic.

“Ow!” she let out, to let him know she was okay. She pushed off the ground, ignoring the stinging pain in her left hand. She pulled herself back up to the path to find Harry crouched on the ground, covering his eyes.

She peeled his hands off his face and smiled. “Still alive.”

“Don’t ever do that again! I thought you died!” he let out, standing back up.

“I’m alright, Harry.”

“Less than 24 hours and you already fell off a mountain, unbelievable!”

He wasn’t truly upset but she knew it must have scared him.

“I will try not to do that again,” she said as they resumed their way down.

“You bet. Our next destination will be flatter, I can guarantee that.” He shook his head.

When they got back, she showered. Harry’s eyes fell on the scrape on her hand when she came out of the tiny bathroom. He immediately pulled her to the table. He took out his wand and started mending her hand until it was completely gone.

“You should have said so,” he told her softly.

She shrugged, then noticed how close they were sitting. She leaned in and kissed him again. His hand carefully rested against her cheek. She was becoming aware Harry was not initiating anything but willingly followed. He was letting her decide.

He leaned away first this time. “Do you have any other injuries?”

“No.”

He raised his eyebrows. “Are you sure?”

She stood up and turned around to show she was fine. “Or do you need to see under here too?” She half-heartedly raised her shirt.

Harry frowned as he looked at her. “What about sex?” he asked. “With Gabriel, I mean.”

For a moment she thought he had suggested having sex. “Oh. Well…”

“Not waiting for marriage, was he?” Harry poked.

“No, he, huh, he had strict rules about it, worried it would influence his performance,” Ginny explained as she sat back down.

“Performance?” Harry almost laughed.

“Of Quidditch, you prick!”

“He plays?” Harry asked. “Wait, is this Chudley Cannons’ Gabriel?”

“Yes!” Ginny said.

“He’s got that boyish charm, doesn’t he?”

Ginny nearly grumbled. “He does. Ron liked him but then when I started dating him, Ron suddenly didn’t find him good enough.”

“So typical of Ron, I hope Gabriel didn’t take that personally,” Harry said.

“Only a little. He is used to being liked by everyone.”

“Why don’t you play?” Harry asked her.

Ginny bit her lip. “I was going to try out this year but if you are the girlfriend of… suddenly no one takes you seriously. Didn’t even get to try out.”

“Damn, Gin, that sucks.” He sounded sorry about it.

“Well, it is what it is,” she let out.

Harry nodded, deciding to drop it. “So your sex life was…”

“Mediocre at best. Even off-season and all those rules…” She smiled in amusement, at how ridiculous it sounded now. “Once I came onto him two days before a game and he flipped out at me, it was the biggest fight we had.”

“Strange guy,” Harry commented. He had every opportunity to slander the guy, but he didn’t.

She looked at him. “Would you have sex with me?” She tried to sound casual.

“Today?”

“Yes,” she said without a doubt. “Just because, like old times.”

He locked eyes with her. “Sure.”

“That was a quick reply,” she said, her cheeks burning.

“Well yeah, it’s like ‘Do you want chocolate cake?’ ‘Yes’,” he said without any reservation

She looked up at him. “I am chocolate cake?” she asked.

His hand came to the rest against her face, his thumb on her chin. “No, you are treacle tart.”

He stood up and pulled her up too. His hands came to her waist, taking the lead, perhaps understanding she needed that. His hands bunched up the fabric of her shirt and pulled her to him. He kissed her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer. His hands went under her shirt, sliding up her back.

“You can check if I have any more injuries,” Ginny said against his lips.

“I will,” he said, leaning down to kiss her neck but he found the height difference much too big. Harry wrapped his arms around her and pulled her up. “Better,” he commented, resuming to kiss her neck and exposed collarbone.

Harry placed her on the bed, shedding his own clothes before he joined her. “Are you sure?”

“Yes,” she said.

“I just assumed you’d have a little more reservations, all things considered.”

“Harry, I think we both know my upcoming wedding is a lost cause,” Ginny admitted out loud for the first time.

“Then what is this about?” he asked.

“You, me, and making up our own rules,” she said, her hand roaming his chest.

“I like your rules,” he commented and then he kissed her again as he pulled her closer.

And sex with Harry was deliciously uncomplicated. They barely spoke, and let their bodies lead and that worked out perfectly. Harry’s body still felt so familiar to her after more than two years in a way that Gabriel’s never did.

She didn’t expect the tears after. She sat up. “I’m sorry. This isn’t about- this isn’t about you, I don’t know why-”

Harry sat up too and pulled her into his lap. He held her and remained silent.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

“Gin, it’s okay.” He rubbed her back. “It’s normal. When I left I cried a ton at first. Your body lets go of a lot of pain when you are free to feel them.”

“You cried into some poor woman’s lap?” she asked through her tears.

“That would have made me feel better,” he agreed.

“All by yourself?” she asked.

“I had things to sort through and I never stayed somewhere long enough. Most places were pretty remote. And women just seem to travel less on their own for some odd reason.”

“Oh, I wonder why,” Ginny said sarcastically. She rested her forehead against his chest and sighed, letting the tears trickle down her face. “You know, Gabriel, apart from the schedule, certain positions were off-limits.” She snorted at it too.

“What is that good for?” Harry replied.

She shook her head and looked up. “Maybe he was afraid to pull a muscle. I really don’t know.”

Harry reached out and wiped her tears. “Better?”

She nodded. “Yes. Did you find any more injuries?”

“Ah, yes. I believe your right ankle is a little sore.” He pulled on her right ankle.

She wiggled it. “I suppose a little. I didn’t notice it before.”

“Give me my wand, I’ll heal it too.”

She got off his lap and reached out for his wand. When she turned back around, she caught Harry looking. “Oh, I know, I should lose some weight around the hips. Courtesy of no quidditch.”

Harry grabbed his wand and his brows knitted together. “This perfect curve?” His hand ran down over her hip. “Doesn’t need to go anywhere.” He met her eyes and then realization hit. “You know, I am starting to like him less and less.”

“He really is a good guy, he just has quirks.”

“Look, sex schedule is weird but … acceptable. Not unheard of for athletes. Telling you to lose weight, is unforgivable.” He shook his head. “Your ankle, miss Weasley.”

She offered her leg and he took it.

“Would you have taken his name?” he asked as he put his wand against her ankle.

“No, his name is far too known, I didn’t want that.”

“You’re right, Weasley isn’t known at all these days,” he responded with a smile.

“Oh, well. You know that’s different. Nothing quite knocks it out of the park like Potter, though,” she said.

“Haha, yes, that’s true. Though I have to say internationally, it is a name they’ve only vaguely heard most of the time. Of course, if I come across Brits…” His thumb ran across the joint. “How’s that?”

“All fixed.” She looked outside. “Should we catch the sunset too?”

“We certainly can. I’ll heat up pasta and we can eat outside.”

“So that’s it? You just choose what you want to do, when it pleases you?” Ginny wondered.

“Pretty much. If there are things I want to see, I do that but the day doesn’t matter. If I want to sleep in, I do so. No appointments, no nothing… Most of my arrangements are last minute and most solo wizard travellers do it like that. There’s an index you can check on popular listings: what is free, what is recommended. You let them know when you leave so someone else can use it. That’s it.” He shrugged.

“Incredible.”

“Okay, pasta.” Harry got up and stepped back into his clothes.

She stood up and slowly got dressed. She hated her hips just a little less when she pulled her trousers over them. Less than 24 hours ago she was home, having dinner with her parents. She knew they must know she had left by now. She hoped they weren’t too angry about it. She’d be back, eventually.

They walked outside and around the back of the hut and sat down, each with their bowl of pasta as the sun sunk behind the horizon again.

“Lumos,” Ginny said, putting the wand between them to illuminate their immediate surroundings when it became too dark.

“Well, your first 24 hours are up. You’re still alive. It was a close call but… “ He grinned.

“It wasn’t that dramatic,” she replied, setting her bowl aside.

“No, just disappeared off a cliff. Imagine if I had to go back to your parents and explain that.”

“In that case, I think you’d be better never setting foot in England again,” she told him with a smile.

Harry nodded. “Yes, I think you’re right.”

“If,” she paused. “If Hermione is pregnant, we need to go home.”

“What do you mean?” Harry asked, looking unusually confused.

“Well, she hasn’t said, but I believe they’re trying for a kid,” Ginny told him.

“Trying for a kid?”

Ginny blinked. “Merlin, Harry, do I need to spell that out for you too?”

“No.” He looked thoughtful. “I didn’t expect that. They didn’t say.”

“Hermione didn’t tell me either but I just… caught a vibe. They’ve been together for a while now, I guess it makes sense.”

“I guess it does… You’d think they’d get married first.”

“But marriage is such an old-aged institution that is only meant to keep women at home, Harry,” Ginny said.

“Hermione said that, didn’t she?”

Ginny bit her lip, trying not to smile. “In front of my mum, who nearly cried. She’ll shut up if she gets grandbabies instead I suppose.”

“And now she must suffer another cancelled wedding,” Harry said.

“We have been talking about that the last few days, I think she already knew it was no good, without you showing up. I think she was just waiting for me to realise that on my own,” Ginny said and she felt more tears well up but she pushed them back. She left a mess behind at home. Poor Gabriel got all but two sentences from her. “But George will marry soon I think.”

“To who?” Harry asked.

“Oh dear, I have to give you some updates I guess. Angelina.”

“Huh.”

“If I think of anything more you should know, I’ll let you know.” She rested a hand on his knee.

“I guess I do miss out on some things.”

Ginny laughed. “Well, you almost missed my wedding, how tragic.”

“Would you have invited me?” he asked curiously.

“If I could get a hold of you perhaps. I hadn’t considered invitees yet,” she said. “We should get inside.”

Harry nodded and stood up. She picked up both their bowls and walked back to the front of the hut. She tossed the bowls in the sink and charmed them to wash themselves. She took her coat off.

“Is that my hoodie?” Harry said.

She turned around. “Oh, is it?” She glanced down at it as if it was the first time she had noticed. “If you want it back, you’ll have to take it off me.”

Harry stepped to her. He was about to pull it off but then he pulled on the collar and glanced inside. “Naked under there, aren’t you?”

She kept her face straight. “We’re all naked under our clothes, Harry.”

“Ah, are those the rules of your game then?” he asked.

“You catch on quick,” Ginny said.

And Harry didn’t object, he couldn’t be further away from abiding by a schedule. He pulled the hoodie off her, took her into his arms and kissed her passionately.

“I’ll let you choose the position,” he breathed.

She chuckled. “Good.”

This time she did not cry.

She rested her head on his chest.

“I’m really glad you came with me.”

Ginny took his hand and entwined their fingers. “You’re going to make me watch the sunrise again tomorrow, aren’t you?”

“Yes.”

They watched every sunrise and sunset for a week. They travelled around the island. Every sunrise he’d make jokes about her hair in the sun and in response she’d kiss him. As they were leaving they first apparated to the wildflower field at the base of the mountain.

She walked through it, her fingers dancing around the flowers.

“Time to go, Gin,” Harry said, glancing at his watch.

She ran back to him and took the Portkey while also picking up her bag.

“This will be a longer one, don’t let go too soon.”

She nodded and waited for the Portkey to start glowing.

She let go almost immediately when she landed and bent over, almost hurling.

“Sorry, longer ones are harder, you get used to them too.”

She took a few deep breaths. “That was deeply unpleasant.”

Harry offered her water and she took a few sips.

“Okay, that’s better.” She looked around. “Where are we?”

“Chile,” Harry supplied. “There is a magical colony of penguins nearby.”

“Ooh, penguins!” she let out excitedly, immediately forgetting her previous nausea. “I love those.”

“Yes, I knew you would.”

The month flew by in the blink of an eye. They were currently in India in the middle of the rainforest and the birthplace of the phoenix. She’d see one almost every day.

Harry sat down beside her as they looked over the clearing.

“That’s it, your month is up today.”

Ginny looked at him. “It is.”

“So, what’s the verdict?” Harry asked her.

“Harry, you can’t be serious.” How could he doubt what she wanted?

He shook his head. “I promised you, one month on your terms, no strings attached.”

“You’d think I’d have this wonderful month with you and then go back to Gabriel?” she asked.

“I’m not saying it wouldn’t break my heart. I’d let you though.”

She sighed. “I don’t want Gabriel. I want you.”

“Do you want to go home?” he asked.

She leaned into him. “Not yet.”

He reached beside him and showed her a Daily Prophet.

“Happened to have one at the store I visited for potions. I wasn’t going to buy it but then I saw your name.”

He handed her the paper and she took it carefully. He pointed at the article.

“ Gabriel Dunlow to take a short time off from the Cannons. One can only assume this is in relation to the sudden unexplained disappearance of his fiancée, Ginny Weasley. ” She paused there. “He must have realised I am not coming back.” She read on. “While her absence raises concern, there is no evidence of her being reported missing by her family. This just two years after the mysterious disappearance of the Chosen One, who has not been seen since. Though there is no news of either of them, they are assumed to be alive. Neither Mr Dunlow nor the Weasley family was available for commentary. ” She folded up the newspaper.

“You okay?” he asked carefully. His arms came around her waist and he kissed her neck.

“It’s fine, I knew that was going to happen.” She let Harry trail kisses down her skin for a while. “When I go home, are you going to take off again?”

He halted for a moment. “No, I’ll go home with you if you’ll have me.”

“I have no place to live, but other than that,” she replied.

“We can figure that out when we go home.”

“Are you done travelling then?” she asked, turning to look at him.

“Almost.” He smiled. “At first I needed some time, to deal with my own shit. Then the last year I have been looking for something… to fill in the hole in here,” he said, pointing at his chest.

“Did you fill it?” she asked softly.

“It is filling, slowly but surely. It will continue to do so if you’re here.”

Ginny smiled fondly at him.

“I am happy to travel for as long as it pleases you, then we can go home.” He kissed her lips.

“I am having the time of my life with you, I still want to travel for a while. My heart hasn’t been this light in… a very long time.” She was about to kiss him but noticed his eyes were on a spot behind her.

“Was that there before?” Harry asked, pointing towards the centre of the clearing.

Ginny turned around, it looked like a red rock. It definitely had not been there earlier. They both stood up and walked to it.

“Is that a phoenix egg?” Harry asked.

“Should we take it?” Ginny wondered. To leave it there seemed entirely irresponsible.

A phoenix whistled overhead and it swooped down when they looked up. It landed carefully beside the egg, then pushed it towards them gently.

“Oh, okay, momma phoenix, no worries,” Ginny said, bending down and picking up the egg, looking carefully for the phoenix’s reaction. As soon as the egg was safely in her two hands, the phoenix took off again.

They both quickly walked back to their cottage. Harry made a little nest from clothes and Ginny placed the egg in it.

“This is an interesting development,” Ginny commented, observing the egg as if a phoenix was about to sprout from it.

“I guess it makes sense. Phoenix must have sensed the fire you have,” Harry commented.

“Or maybe it knows you are as likely to die from dying as a phoenix does.”

Harry frowned. “That’s one way to put it.”

They took two chairs and kept sitting by it, not sure what else to do with their egg.

Ginny looked at Harry. “What was your intention when you asked me to come, did you have hope for us?”

“I knew leaving was selfish, I didn’t expect you to wait for me. I just… saw how lost you were when I arrived. I knew I loved you too much to ignore it, I wanted you to feel better and I know what worked for me.” He smiled. “I didn’t have hope necessarily, but then you… “

“Pulled you into bed?”

“I was going to say kissed me but that too. I think you were ready to move on from Gabriel, you just needed a little push, and that push was me.”

“Or,” Ginny started, she stood up and sat down on his lap. “You just showed up at the right time and I was ready to fall in love with you all over again.” She kissed along his jaw.

“The egg,” Harry objected half-heartedly.

“It’s right over there, it will be fine,” she argued, unbuttoning his shorts.

The egg would not hatch for several more days.

---

“Are you ready?” Harry asked on Christmas Eve as they stood in front of the Burrow.

She nodded. “Yes.”

They walked through the door.

“Hi, mum,” Ginny said as she walked into the kitchen.

Mrs Weasley immediately dropped everything she was holding and rushed over to her, hugging her tightly. She grabbed Ginny’s face between her hands. “Are you home?”

“Just for the holidays,” Ginny told her.

Mrs Weasley looked a little disappointed. “I am so glad you’re here.”

“Me too.”

“Did you go by Gabriel?” Mrs Weasley asked.

She shook her head. “We only just arrived. I’ll go see him before we leave, tie up the loose ends.”

Mrs Weasley patted her cheek. “You look wonderful.” She turned to Harry. “Ah, our lost son, home too.”

“It’s Christmas,” Harry argued, though he had not appeared last Christmas or the one before that.

“Go on, they’ll be happy to see you.”

Ginny walked into the living room and beamed as she looked over her whole family.

“Okay, you have ten minutes to update me on any major life events,” she spoke, crossing her arms.

Every single one of them whipped their heads around. Then she hugged every brother and then Hermione and Angelina too, Fleur got a hug too, just this once. She took a long time hugging her dad.

“Well, Angelina and I are engaged,” George said happily when they all settled down again.

“Oh, congratulations!” Ginny said. “Though I can’t say I’m surprised.”

“I think you’re the only other one with a major life event, Ginny,” Ron said with a look towards Harry.

“You mean the whole disappearing act?” she said.

“Yes!”

“Well, that’s all there is to it. We’ve been travelling, it’s been really good,” she offered.

“Harry, is your jacket making noise?” Charlie asked.

“Oh!” Harry said. He took out the phoenix, who was definitely too big to fit in a normal jacket pocket and placed him on the table. “This is Mambo.”

“Godric, is that a phoenix?” Charlie let out excitedly.

“Who names a phoenix Mambo?” Angelina wondered.

“Ginny, of course,” Ron said.

She grinned at him, he never really forgave her for calling his owl Pigwidgeon.

“Where the hell did you find one?” Bill asked.

“It was gifted to us by another phoenix, we assume his mother. We hatched the egg and well, here we are.” She petted Mambo under his chin. “You are a good boy, aren’t you? Let’s see if Mum has some veggies for you to nibble on.”

She stood up and Mambo landed on her shoulder.

“What in the oversized-chicken-hell did you bring into the kitchen now?” Mrs Weasley let out.

“Hey! This is your very first grandchicken, Mambo, be nice to him.”

They returned to the living room a few minutes later. Mambo flew to Harry’s shoulder and settled down there.

As they stood up to go to the dining table, Harry stopped her. “So, uh, when are we telling them we accidentally got married before the Sun Gods.”

Ginny shrugged. “Perhaps after dessert.”

---

Ginny knocked on the door of Gabriel’s apartment. It took a minute but then the door opened. He looked at her in surprise.

“Hi,” she carefully tried.

Gabriel opened the door further to let her in but he did not speak. She walked to the couch and sat on the edge.

“I know I owe you an apology for leaving like I did, so that’s why I am here,” she said.

“And you expect me to forgive you?” he jabbed.

She shook her head. “No. Still, you deserved one.”

Gabriel laughed humorlessly.

“I had a lot of emotional turmoil. I should have realised far earlier we weren’t going to work,” she admitted.

“We could have, had you stayed,” Gabriel told her.

“No, Gabe-”

“Don’t call me Gabe,” he interjected.

“This never would have worked. I was chasing the idea of a man like you and in turn, I dismissed your flaws at the expense of myself.” She looked at him as the anger flared up in his eyes.

“My flaws?! So this is my fault?” Gabriel said, standing up and pacing, too agitated to sit down.

“We weren’t a match. I made sacrifices I never wanted to make because I thought that was what I was supposed to do. That isn’t me though, I don’t want to make sacrifices for someone else and stop feeling like myself. I’ve learned to set my own rules, my own boundaries.” Hindsight had shown her exactly where it went amiss.

“You never made sacrifices for me,” he said bitterly.

Ginny shot up. “How dare you! I gave up everything for you! Every relationship choice was an ultimatum for you. Move in with me, or. Marry me, or. Every day of our lives was planned around your life, not mine. Never me. I gave up quidditch to be with you!”

“As if you’d ever make professional,” he scoffed.

It was a slap to the face. “You never even saw me play.”

Gabriel’s jaw clenched. “So you are going to pretend this isn’t about him ?”

“It isn’t.”

“So you haven’t been off for months with the Harry Potter?” Gabriel said.

“Gabriel.”

“Or is that just a groundless rumour that you were off together?” He challenged her with his eyes.

“Yes, I’ve been off with Harry,” she admitted, there was no point in lying.

“Right. You accuse me of all these things but when Harry shows up and begs you to take him back, you run at him!”

She had come to apologise, but he was pushing her. “He didn’t beg, he didn’t have to. He offered me some time away from everything, to take a breather and I took it. I had to spend less than ten minutes with him to realise that you and I were wrong in every way.”

Gabriel grimaced. “I wouldn’t expect to live up to the great Harry Potter.” He stepped closer to her. “He left you, he broke your heart. Him you can forgive of course. Well, I am sorry I didn’t kill some dark wizard.”

Ginny grabbed onto his collar. “You don’t know what he has been through, he deserved to take all the time he needed. He never asked me to wait.” She was determined to make it sting now. “I didn’t need to forgive him, he never made me any promises. I was all too glad to let him touch me in ways you can’t even imagine as soon as we were alone and I can assure you he has never objected once, whatever hour of the day... You, however, don’t have the right to talk about Voldemort.” She forcefully let go of his collar.

“Don’t call him that,” Gabriel said.

“Are you a child?! Voldemort. That’s his name.” She shook her head. “You really don’t understand… you don’t know what I went through, what he went through. You were too busy throwing quaffles through hoops in France because god forbid a wizarding war got in the way of your quidditch career!” She walked towards the door and turned back around. “You don’t know the darkness I’ve seen.”

“You were a child when he came back to power, how could you-” He must have seen her reaction, how the colour drained from her face.

“You don’t know me at all, do you?” She reached for the door handle. “You should open a history book, you may be surprised to find my name right along with my boyfriend's.”

And she left without looking back, she summoned Mambo and he took her home.

She briskly walked into the living room and then halted and closed her eyes. Harry came down the stairs and unwrapped her scarf from her neck and pulled her coat off her shoulder and then scooped her into his arms. He sat down on the couch with her.

“He is such a dickhead.”

“You don’t have to see him again,” Harry said, kissing her temple. “It’s done.”

She nodded and got comfortable on his lap. “He said things today… unforgivable. Some were about you.”

“I guess that was to be expected,” Harry replied.

“Oh dear,” Mrs Weasley said when she saw the sight. “Do you want some hot chocolate, darling?”

“Yes, please,” Ginny replied.

She walked into the kitchen behind her mom.

“Do you know where you are going next?” Mrs Weasley asked as she put milk on the stove.

“We were thinking Australia, but we’ll see,” Harry said.

“So you never stay somewhere long?” she asked.

“Usually about a week, just to see a few things. If we like it we stay longer. We stayed three weeks waiting for Mambo to hatch and grow.”

Mrs Weasley nodded.

“I am sorry I didn’t come back after a month… it was too soon.”

Now she smiled. “Ginny, I never expected you to come home after a month. Not for Gabriel anyway, I already knew that. Not when you were with Harry. It was inevitable.”

“You think so?” Ginny asked as Mrs Weasley placed a mug in front of her.

“Even when you two were not together, before Harry left, you always were kind of together. You’re drawn to each other naturally, always have been.”

Ginny looked at her mum in surprise.

“Yes, I knew perfectly well what was going on after the Battle while you helped the Ministry clean up the remaining Death Eaters.”

Ginny glanced at Harry with a smile. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

“Not my business. It was a complicated time.”

Ginny nodded. “It was.”

---

“It’s been a year,” Harry said to Ginny around mid-May, who sat atop his stomach.

“What a year it’s been,” she said. “I guess that makes it our anniversary.”

“I guess it does.” His hands curled around her hips. “How do you want to celebrate?”

She glanced down at him. “I mean…” She cocked her head.

“Anything else?” he asked.

“Nope.” She bent down and started kissing her way down. She started on his jaw, then his neck, collarbone and chest. She loved Harry’s little hums of appreciation. “Any way you want to celebrate?”

“Treacle tart.”

Ginny looked up. “Okay.”

Harry grinned at her. “You’re treacle tart, darling. I was playing, do continue.”

Ginny softly bit into the skin of his stomach and then sucked on the spot, determined to leave a hickey.

“Marking me as yours again, are we?” he commented, his hand running through her hair.

“You’re mine.” Ginny kissed his inner thigh and his breath hitched.

“You know what we should do in the coming year?” Harry said suddenly.

“Tell me.”

---

Ginny pulled her shirt on as she talked. “So we have about five more stops to do and then we go home .”

“I think it’s time,” Harry said as he watched her get dressed.

“For what?” she asked, pausing to look at him.

“Pregnancy test, sweetheart,” Harry said with a smile while raising an eyebrow.

“Oh, you think so?” she asked.

He nodded. “Your boobs are… bigger. I am pretty convinced at this point that you are pregnant.”

She glanced inside her shirt and looked. “What month are we?”

“February.”

Her head shot up. She tried to recall the last time she had her period. She went into her bag to retrieve the muggle test they had picked up. “Well, I don’t think we need the test then, I don’t think I have had my period since before Christmas.” She took out the test. “Be right back.”

She held onto the test and crawled into bed again with Harry, making herself the little spoon. Harry put his arm around her. She held up the test and looked at it intensely.

“It needs a few minutes, glaring at it won’t make it go any faster,” he commented.

“If this turns out positive, it will be just like we planned, we can get settled into our own place and then get ready for the baby,” she said excitedly.

“It will be positive, I just know,” Harry murmured, kissing her cheek. “So before Christmas, that’s three months already.”

“That would be my best guess,” Ginny said. “Oh, it’s coming in.”

They fell silent as the lines coloured in. Ginny grinned and turned around in Harry’s arms. “We are having a baby.”

---

The first of May came around, five years after the end of the war. Ginny and Harry landed in the garden of the Burrow with Mambo.

Harry steadied Ginny. “You good?”

“Alright, darling. Let’s go.”

Together they walked into the house with excitement.

“Mum? Dad?” Ginny let out.

She could hear noise in the living room and her dad walked into the kitchen.

“Ginny!”

“Hi, dad. You can’t hug me yet, I’m holding a little surprise,” she said, peeking from behind Harry. She really didn’t want to spoil the surprise.

“Molly, Ginny is here!” Mr Weasley called. He looked at her. “How are you?”

“Splendid,” she told him.

Mrs Weasley could be heard coming down the stairs. Mr Weasley intercepted her before she could go hug Ginny.

“They said they had a surprise,” Mr Weasley explained.

“I didn’t expect you home, especially since tomorrow…” Mrs Weasley trailed off. They all knew what tomorrow was.

“We’re coming home, for good, less travelling,” Harry said.

“Oh!” Mrs Weasley said excitedly. “Is that the surprise?”

Harry grinned. “No.” He stepped out of the way.

Ginny stepped forward, opening her poncho that acted as an extra layer to hide it and showed off her 6-month bump. “Surprise!”

Then the hugs came and the tears.

“So you are really staying?” Mrs Weasley asked as they sat at the table, drinking tea

“Yes, we will still travel some but we will be home the majority of the time. You’ll get sick of seeing me,” Ginny said, feeling a little tearful.

“Never, that will never happen,” her dad said.

“Actually we were wondering if we could stay here for a few weeks until we find a place for ourselves.”

“Of course, you can stay as long as you like,” Mrs Weasley said. “So do you have plans of getting married as well?”

She looked at Harry and back at her parents. “How do I put this…”

“Ginny.”

“We will get officially married at some point… we have more or less already been married five times. We discovered so many different wedding customs, you would not believe,” she said with a chuckle.

"Married?"

"Well, not legally, but yes. The first time was an accident."

Harry smiled at her. “We could have backed out of that one if we really wanted to, I guess.”

Ginny nodded. “Could have.”

“Are you going to the memorial with us tomorrow?” Mr Weasley asked.

“Yes. I think it’s time,” Harry said.

Ginny took his hand and squeezed it.

#hinny #harry potter #ginny weasley #severalsunlitdaylights #fic #harry x ginny

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lee-hakhyun · 2 years ago

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sorry for continuing to spam your inbox; i am very enthusiastic about the secondhand information i hear, and i love hearing your thoughts a lot. lemme know if it gets annoying, though!

last thing about the 41st round being an alternate version here like the 1863rd round leading to 1864

you see, the secretive plotter first tried to change things himself - but in the end, he was just revisiting a past he couldn’t change, thus continuing the cycle of regressors reliving their grief

but secretive plotter’s actions regarding the alternate 1863 is different. it’s different because he had gotten someone else to help change yoo joonghyuk’s ending

first han sooyoung, in order for her to ensure his death - the closest thing to suicide the secretive plotter could have, via the disconnected film theory. and then kim dokja, who was brought in out of spite, wanting to prove to himself and the reader that his presence changes nothing.

except it did change things. it created a world that the secretive plotter - yoo joonghyuk of ways of survival - had never heard of before. all because he had, whatever the intentions were, asked for help. and this theme of reaching out for help is actually echoed throughout the story; if none of the details are changed, it just becomes another stage transformation, but if there’s someone else, if you’re not repeating the same events alone… you could write a better ending

it’s even in the revision of the ‘world after the fall’. i never actually read it in full myself, but there’s a translation of the last chapter available online for free if you look for it. there, yoo joonghyuk makes a sudden appearance at the very end; as the story’s lonely protagonist jaehwan waits to die under a bookshop’s debris caused by an earthquake, he is suddenly saved by a character from the book he was reading while trapped. and when jaehwan bemoans that his rescue was only possible because of literal cosmic intervention, yoo joonghyuk responds;

“there are some things that we can’t change ourselves. it took me a long time to realize this.”

and here lee hakhyun is, a writer, brought in to rewrite the story of a wordline often spoken of as a tragedy, making decisions that neither yoo joonghyuk, han sooyoung nor kim dokja would have ever done.

god i wish i was in a position to pay for the chapters. i’m betting it’s delicious over there

noo anon i love hearing your ideas too keep talking!! oh that quote. things that can't be changed

and maybe things that can be changed by someone else. lee hakhyun's exclusive skill is literally one that rewrites, if there's someone who is meant to rewrite a story now it's him

lee hakhyun never knew kim dokja personally, and maybe because he didn't write orv specifically for him and having written so many settings for characters that never showed up in orv, he's clearly paying more attention to the extra characters, giving everyone in geumho station a chance to survive as for why, i think it's a difference in core values kim dokja and han sooyoung, prioritizing the ones closest to them over everything else and yoo joonghyuk + now lee hakhyun, while keeping those close to them also doing more to aid those who they don't know

it might just be my interpretation, but it's interesting and lee hakhyun ending up in cheon inho's body.. a man who did not care for other life at all. and the way he's constantly calling himself a villain even as he's trying to save people

i am so interested in seeing how lee hakhyun develops, there's so much that could be done with him i drafted something about this and never posted it but lee hakhyun is more 'just some guy' than kim dokja. his trauma stemming from him being just so normal, and the specter in the phantom prison saying there's nothing in him there's something there about him inciting himself as other people to act as them, and him using kim dokja's story in his trauma, i just can't put it into words yet

authors ending up in their creation and having to deal with their own world,, (i love you too shang qinghua)

#orv side story #orv #orv spoilers #really need to read twaft sometime #i got distracted a few times (understatement) so i jump around a lot #probably lost my train of thought a few times #ask

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khalixascorner · 2 years ago

Text

Say it Loud(er) Pt5

Summary: When Tony goes before the Senate to protest an inhumane amendment to the Superhero Accountability Act, he doesn't mean to admit he loves Spider-Man on live CSPAN. Rather than recant his statement, Tony rolls with the punches and declares them married too. Now he just has to let Peter know before the press gets their hands on him.

Tags: Accidental Marriage, Public Confessions, no literally, it's mostly fluff with a little bit of spice right at the end.

Fill for Marvel Trumps Hate 2022

Read on AO3 Here Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4

They hadn’t had time to change before the press conference, so Peter found himself standing in front of Tony as the man tugged at his suit and redid his tie before declaring him presentable.

“Now remember, just keep it simple, and if a question gets directed to you but makes you uncomfortable, just let me handle it,” Tony said, his warm hand on Peter’s back as they quickly walked through the halls.

Pepper was already buying them some time by laying down ground rules under the excuse that Spider-Man had heightened senses. The downside was that they wouldn’t have long to collect themselves before walking on stage.

“Alright, you ready?” Tony asked.

“Honestly?” Peter asked, and Tony nodded seriously. “I feel like I’m about to puke, but it’ll be fine. And if I do puke, I’ll aim away from you.”

“Pep always puts the most annoying journalists toward the wings in the front if you need a target,” Tony teased and Peter smiled.

For as nervous as he was, he was equally sure that everything would be ok because Tony was there.

“Ok, kid, let’s do this,” Tony said, sliding his arm back around Peter and gently guiding him out. “Try to smile, or at least, don’t Morse code SOS with your eyes.”

Peter snorted then tried to contain it to just a smile as cameras started clicking away. Tony was waving so Peter followed his example, pretending that he had Tony’s confidence.

“Thank you all for coming on such short notice,” Tony said as they reached the podium. “Of course, who would want to miss anything I had to say, right?”

Peter huffed and rolled his eyes good naturedly as Tony continued, working the crowd as he always did. He tuned it out, eyes flitting across the crowd as Tony gave their joint statement confirming their marriage. He didn’t give details, leaving those for the reporters to waste their questions on in hopes that it would shield them from any more probing ones.

To Peter’s surprise, it worked. As Tony opened the floor up, the first questions were exclusively how did they meet, when did they marry, and all of those things. A few were directed toward Peter, but they were all easily answered using the story they had come up with.

And then, someone asked Peter about the amendment.

“Mr. Stark- Peter Stark, that is, why wasn’t Spider-Man more involved fighting the SAA amendment?”

Peter glanced at Tony, who just nodded for Peter to go ahead, so Peter took a deep breath and stepped up to the podium properly.

“I’m sorry, I haven’t learned all of your names yet like Tony has,” Peter started, giving an easy smile. “Just Peter is fine, otherwise, we’ll always be getting confused. As to your question though, there were a lot of factors that went into my decision to initially stay out of the fray.”

Peter paused here, his eyes looking over the crowd before returning to the asker.

“I have spent the last 8 or so years as Spider-Man, and in all of that time, only a handful of people have known my identity,” Peter said solemnly. “Even after fighting Thanos side by side with the Avengers, I preferred to stay close to the ground. Spider-man looks out for the little guy, and there was definitely a bit of fear that trying to get involved on the national stage like that would force me into revealing myself. I’m also still a college student, so scheduling speeches in front of committees is a bit hard to manage around lectures.”

That got a laugh as he paused again, his eyes flicking over to Tony as he took a deep breath and continued.

“But honestly? The biggest reason? Tony said he would handle it. And when Tony Stark tells you that he’s got it, and everything’s going to be fine, well, you believe him,” Peter said, unable to keep the warmth from his voice. “I mean, how can you not? He’s saved the literal world, and sure, he accidentally smears grease all over his face when he’s working on big projects and can’t remember not to drink Dum-E’s coffee but he’s always there when it counts.”

“Peter, has being exposed as Spider-Man caused tension in your marriage?” Another report asked. Peter frowned at that one.

“Why would it?” Peter asked, confused. “It was bound to come out at some point and now, I get to tease Tony that he chose literally the most dramatic way to confess his love and announce our marriage in the history of mankind.”

Despite his attempt to lighten the mood, the next question had him frowning again.

“You said earlier that Spider Man was a hero that looked out for the little guy. How do you handle the conflicts of interest that come from being married to Mr. Stark? In other words, how do you reconcile being married to a billionaire, who once had the moniker Merchant of Death, with being “the Friendly Neighborhood Spider-man?”

Peter’s hands clenched on the podium, and Tony started to step forward, only for Peter to wave him off. He was shaking, true, but it was from anger, not anything else.

“I think there’s a bit of a misunderstanding here,” Peter said, his voice hard as he spoke. “All of you seem to be operating under the opinion that Tony is a less than ideal husband. That his history and behavior are something to be avoided or tolerated, and that he’s not a person capable of change.”

Peter took a deep breath and looked around the room, his face dead serious as he continued.

“I have known Tony for years now and in all of that time, he has done his very best. From saving the Earth many times over to just being there when his friends need him, Tony Stark is a man who gives his time, energy, and resources freely to people and causes, because he wants to help,” Peter said, his voice firm and confident. “He has saved my life more times than I can count and helped me to become the best version of myself. Spider Man would not be here today without Tony’s direct care and protection either, because when I was just starting out, it was Tony, not anyone else, who gave me gear, training, and guidance.”

Peter paused again, feeling out of breath and out of control of his mouth, but he refused to let these people talk poorly of Tony using him as the so called reason. His spider sense was starting to tingle and his senses were sharpening in response to the adrenaline coursing through him.

“You’re probably thinking Tony married a fanboy, a yes man, and you wouldn’t be entirely wrong,” Peter said with a harsh laugh. A few of the reporters nodded tentatively, then seemed to catch themselves as Peter continued. “I’ve looked up to Tony for a long time, first as an inventor and then as a hero. And if he said we’re hopping on an alien spaceship to go fight a big baddy, I’d follow him. I did follow him, though technically he told me not to. The point is, I’d follow him anywhere because I believe in him, and I trust him more than anyone else in this universe. And sure, he’s made mistakes. He’s a human, and we do that. I know I’ve made plenty too but you’re not standing here asking him if marrying someone so beneath his status like Spider Man has influenced his work as Iron Man.”

Tony started to object to that but Peter waved him away again. He knew if he let Tony stop him, he wouldn’t say the part that was most important.

“No, I’m not done, and I know, I know you don’t consider me less but clearly, they have opinions about the balance of things in this relationship,” Peter said, turning back to the reporters. “Let me be blunt. Tony Stark is the best man I know. He makes me a better person and I won’t have you using my love for him as a weapon against either one of us, because everyone deserves to be loved and accepted for who they are. And if all of you are too blind to see beyond his mistakes and his past, then it’s your loss. I love this man, with every molecule of my being.”

Peter’s chest ached and he could hear every heartbeat in the room but as always, he immediately fixed himself on the one that mattered most. It grounded him and allowed him to take another breath.

“They say we’re made from stars and the romantic in me would tell you that we're from the same star, destined to find each other again and uniquely suited to each other,” Peter said softly, finally turning to look at Tony and hoping the man could read the truth on his face. “The realist says that finding Tony, and having him in my life, was the only lucky thing I’ve had after a lifetime of tragedy. Either way, I intend to treasure him for however long I am fortunate enough to have him for.”

Tony looked dumbstruck for a moment, and then Peter was being ushered off stage, the strong warm hand on his back, and Tony’s heartbeat thrumming through him.

#khalixa writes #starker #tony stark x peter parker #tony stark/peter parker #tony stark #peter parker #marvel trumps hate

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leafbatraccoon · 1 year ago

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these were notes on my journal till yesterday but the news that we're getting the nectar-making skill with horses i figured i'd have some fun with it yet still be loud with my opinions, so i'll reblog with updates from time to time - im reposting with the original slot texts bc i was unhappy with my sleepless decision making 👍👍 | details under the cut if u wanna know but i'm a bit of a hater fyi |

longer seasons - i don't think this will happen, if miracle mods show up i might stamp them on in a different color but from what i've found it's pretty ingrained in the game that 28 days is the longest and if modders we're going to crack it they might've done it already but when im playing on pretty long life spans i just 💔💔 50+ days seasons would be the dream, but i'd be happy with 45 👀 10 outfits per category - same as before ig, this is probably super niche but i'm not satisfied and i hate having to get into cas to change it up so much bc in my head they have a closet each and i want to mix and match pieces in a realistic way 👚 pack refreshes - tbf, they did set up an expectation for that one which for the looks of it they are done with it; there's so much to fix, dine out in general, mermaids deserve some love in comparison to the other occults, updates to the bodies of water (going in the water in windenburg would be legendary), hu just bug fixes and compatiblity here and there would be nice (more hiking ? power walks in more places? its so weird how they are restricted to ONE place) now by world refreshes - i mean that in my dreams they go back and expand the maps they give us 🗺️🗺️ im greedy and want 2 neighbourhoods for my vampires & spellcasters, a lil more space in moonwood mill, granite falls & del sol valley too why not not gonna happen so i can say wtv an extra space in mt komorebi with apartments and since we're at it in san sequoia too; will def not happen working gallery - ig that might be coming too ?? idk my gallery sucks at times like it wont find any results when there are ?? and i know there are bc if i restrict more it might come up with something?? also just wanted better mechanism for the searches, i never had issues with disturbing content showing up tho so idk i heard some simmers weren't so lucky

bigger households - having to control or monitor 8 human/humanish sims is challeging enough but because pets, because having to fake apartments, because reasons; i use mccc but this workaround brings issues in cas so yea, wishlist ✔️ snakes // lizards - this would've been appropriate to launch with horses imo and i'd love if there had been interaction/compatibility from snakes in the wild and those taller friends & other small pets - small pet options in ts4 are non existent, sorry, birds only exist in that one tree (they are probably happy about not being captive actually), bunnies are also wild (personally im fine with it but i know that its a popular pet so i'd love if it was an option), reptiles don't exist (yet) and rodents are exclusive to the slap-in-the-face-of-this-community pack... 🐁🐇🐢🦎🐍🐦🐜 faeries or other fae kin - i feel like they've hinted at it for quite a while and we've seen it show up in quizzes too?? 🧚‍♀️ so i'm hopeful for this one and hope they are just trying to make sure they properly deliver on it bc there's a lot of fantasy enthusiasts and they deserve it & woodland creatures - personally would love it if the fae pack came with woodsy world and the addition of woodland creatures at least the spiritual kind (like unicorns or a white doe which they possibly alluded to with puzzles - it made me real giddy) bonus points if it has some outdoor retreat compatibility

owning more lots - after winning the lottery or keeping up with a family for generations, sims can accumulate quite a lot of money, there's not a lot of expenses in the life of a sim tbh, travelling only costs one loading screen, gardeing makes you rich and thats ok ig but being able to own a holiday house would be welcomed, not just a business 🏘️ nectar making - when tartosa came but no nectar making i was a bit let down, imagine making or acquiring a special batch for your wedding?? it would've been lovely and appropriate for a wedding pack but ... yeah anyway it comes with the horse pack for some reason so at least it's coming, and only 3 years after juice fizzing 🥂 bands and more instruments - another thing they've hinted at in polls and i kinda wished it to come with HSY yet was not surprised it didn't; that being said we need drums and other instruments like bass and/or contrabass, just more than what we have if we're to have bands plz skating and/or surfing - these two are very different and honestly idk how the latter one would work, i just think they are popular sports we could have; at least skate boards should be easy enough to implement and a cute way for sims to drift around their closed off worlds so i have more hope for that one 🏄

hotels - even if they've been around the franchise and ts4 seems to draw all it's ideas from previous iterations i'm not confident they haven't just been replaced by rental properties but it's not the same, i'd like to be able to meet other guests vacationing on the property without having to engineer everything about it, ordering meals at hotel services and running/owning a hotel also; retirement homes - ELDER SIM LOVE IN GENERAL (canes, health issues, idk im not that old yet ..hum wills & testiments, special interactions) i feel growing together really fucked up on that one but i was not surprised bc it's ts4 and we rely on crumbs mods here and thats why some players stop buying dlc 👵☕👴 the townie refreshes - just pay some fans to do it at this point bc it's taking so long; most of them don't need to be redesigned anyway, just add hot and cold weather outfits, preferences and maybe a sneaky extra trait or lifestyle they could have developed and voilá, finish that chapter disabilities - i don't want it in the form of traits and thing it's rotten to make people to pay for it BUT i'd love to see some disability representation in this game, physical, cognitive and what not. i understand at this point it might be hard to introduce but i think it be really important to have this in the sims and ts4 is about time funerals & cemeteries - death is a part of life, this is a life sim... thats it basically, i want it, i miss it in comparison to previous games, i fake it with parks and inviting guests over, but we shouldn't have to tho seems pretty basic stuff

more and better apartments - i would like it if we saw more conjoined builds, more apartment builds, both with few floors and plenty, the option to have sims living in different floors of the same building and even having business or community lots in builds that are divided into multiple lots - ambitious ik - bonus points if they update apartments in a way you can own one or more and rent them out - i don't want to play as a landlord, i swear - i just want my sims to be allowed do simbnb while they go for a weekend in the city (which ig u cant bc of the current system/coding idk) or bringing them to more existing worlds but bc of the obstacles to that i have 0 hopes well-crafted worldly words - i see a lot of americancentric choices being made when creating the worlds, it's unrealistic for a global player base and hum.. a life sim and whenever they drop interesting worlds they are always so frigging small you have to sacrifice making a lively town, with people and businesses, if you want you're sim to live in certain environments (or use multibuilds, which is fine ig but it bothers me a bit) and they fail to utilize the common spaces of the neighbourhoods in ways simmers would love to, to bring some life into these worlds; 🌍 the worldly part of it... i am yet to see african like climates and cultures represented, asia is so wide & full of diversity and we get one japan inspired world so far, south america if confined to a destination world if you don't have mods ig (maybe it's changed by now im not sure) and europe while being represented in 3 packs so far - and one of them being the best in terms of lots per world we've had so far - 2 of them have few lots and its all very niche, so in a way i don't need to be able to point to the actual cities that inspired those worlds, it's not my priority just something that crowded and lively that draws from wider range of cultures and that mre people could recognize as close to their experience would be nice 🌏 also more islands maybe im a sulani simp new jobs & careers - i love GTW, it was the first pack i got and sure it deserved a refresh by now and i would welcome it, especially if it meant more careers, i really liked that gameplay feature; that being said i feel like we deserve more job options OR branches. y no dentist ??? i cant think of ideas right now but while playing the game and setting up townies or sims i feel limited a lot trans content fixes - yea i avoid using the in-game system for trans rep (i headcanon a lot and cheat stuff basically) bc its just not the best in general (clothes fit weird, there's no changes in the frame through time as there would be with hormonal treatments - which there arent in the game so makes sense), not in comparison bc i dont know other games to compare it to just real life ig but im not even that informed tbh; i am happy they didnt create a life sim where trans people are erased and don't want them to be discouraged to stop investing in this at all so i try not to mention it but fix the binder at least & here's a tumblr post that helps me a bit something that surprises me - /pos !! because... they don't... a lot of what we see seems to me like repeating the content ideas from older games but spreading it out to make as much dlc as possible; i had a lot of more wow reveal moments with ts2 & ts3 i feel like but cant truly be sure bc brain is mush

#ok here we go im keeping this one #two ppl saw the og #i love love love to know what people miss in the game + their opinions and this just felt like a fun format #wish fulfillment #but with typos #bingo #roadmap #kinda #long post #repost #raccoon only #sims opinion #sims discourse #simblr #sims 4 #ts4 #the sims 4 #sims related

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sonik-kun · 11 months ago

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Okay, but literally no one in the JC fandom says he's perfect, though? Like, sure, we joke saying he's never done anything wrong in his entire life, but.. We've always acknowledged his flaws along with his pros. And explained why he's the way he is instead of just boiling him down to some asshole character who's a jerk for no reason Lol.

If anything, it's the JC antis who needs to stop viewing JC exclusively through one lense. They're the ones viewing him in black and white, claiming he's the big bad and 100% in the wrong, with no other nuance other than he's a big meanie. Nobody here in the JC fandom is white washing him, believe me. In fact, most of us wished he went ham more often, and we got to see him physically torture DCs. His whip is sexy! 😂

I feel like some of yall are reading into our appreciation posts the wrong way tho. idk. The reason why we make them is to balance out the unnecessary hate he gets. Because you got to admit, the overall fandom view on him is rather unfair and incredibly skewed by people who only want to see things through WWX's pov.

We merely put forward things from JC's pov and the aspects we love about his character. Like let's be real here, some of the things he did recklessly out of love, was rather ballsy of him. And the point we make is, he didn't think twice about doing them because they're all for the people he loves and that thus proves he isn't this major villain JC antis wish to paint him as lol. We can't honestly sit there and say we'd be brave like he was and do the same thing he did in his shoes.

Also, sorry, but I'm going to have to disagree with the coward part. Him begging WWX to come home doesn't make him a coward. He's a genocide survivor.. The last thing he needs whilst his sect is recovering is another war.. One against the three big clans, no less, which it would have been if he had sided with WWX 😅

At that point in the story, the decisions he made had to be with his sect in mind, not WWX anymore. I'd argue that doesn't make him selfish in that sense. More so pragmatic.

Also, he does let WWX go.. Both to defect and be with the Wen remnants and ultimately at the end of the book.. Nor did he ever force him to stay in LP against his will. He was always free to come and go as he pleased, even shirking his duties when he lived there.. He didn't try to take away his autonomy and was accused of allowing him to roam a bit too freely, in fact, by JGS. So I disagree with that, too.

He also allowed JYL to freely choose to wed JZX despite his prior opinions on him.. Never forced her into the arranged marriage her parents put her in and was willing to let her marry into the Jin sect of her own volition..

But if your definition of selfish is someone who puts the needs of his family and sect first, before anyone outside that circle.. Then yeah.. He's selfish lol

saw a post about how jiang cheng isn't selfish because he's done all of this stuff for his loved ones and it's like yeah. jiang cheng loves very deeply and that's. exactly why he's selfish. jiang cheng being selfish doesn't equal jiang cheng being heartless or unloving. his goals are to selfishly keep his loved ones, most notably wei wuxian, to himself at the expense of their own personal autonomy. when jiang cheng goes to the burial mounds and begs wei wuxian to give the wen remnants up and come home, he does it because he loves him, but he also does it because he's a selfish coward who puts his own wants for wei wuxians safety and companionship above wei wuxians personal wishes and the lives of the wens. these things are not mutually exclusive in fact they are intricately connected

#jiang cheng #canon jiang cheng #mdzs #just my opinion as a JC fan who's seen it all on here :')

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katcoquette · 2 years ago

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Heyyy!! Hope your doing ok!

Could I request Rooster + 15

IVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS ONE !!! & our first rooster, thank you for requesting!! I'm such a sucker for angst it's absurd.

PSA this an angst request meaning the ending will not be happy (sorry!) I love hurting my own heart & am forcing the same onto you.

#15 "choose her, I'd rather be remembered than loved with half a heart."

“Hey, there you are.” Rooster looks up at the sound of the door you’d just walked through swinging open from his seat at the bar. You pause when you see him, shifting the crate of glasses on your hip before continuing behind the bar and unfortunately, closer to him.

“Here I am.” You give him a tight-lipped smile, and then, under your breath, you mumble, “Right where I always am on Sunday afternoons.” He doesn’t catch it.

The glassware clangs together as you set the crate down on the bar. You start to take out mugs and wipe off the remaining condensation from the hot dishwasher you’d pulled them from, still not making eye contact with the man in front of you.

“You’ve been ignoring my calls the past week. I was worried about you.” His hands are clasped together and resting in front of him.

You continue to dry and put away the glasses. “Just a busy week.” That wasn’t technically a lie- but he didn’t need to know that you’d busy feeling sorry for yourself over a picture your friends had sent you of Bradley with another girl.

You weren’t exclusive, but you’d been hoping that’s where the two of you were headed. Obviously not.

So you’d spent the week wallowing anytime you weren’t at work, a multitude of emotions accompanying all thoughts of him. Not to mention the added embarrassment that you felt that your friends had found him after you’d been talking him up all this time.

The week had been busy.

You’d cried, been angry, cried again, and decided you’d rather have all of him or nothing at all. That decision had been hard all on its own.

“Did you need something?” You ask him, wanting the entire interaction to be over with. You’d had a lot of time to talk yourself up for this moment, but now that it was here, you just wanted to be done.

“I just wanted to see you.” He grabs your wrists, gently stopping you from continuing your work. You meet his gaze. “I missed you.” He smiles, thumb brushing over the back of your hand. You return it, though yours is sadder as you slowly pull your hands away.

Confusion crosses his face.

“I can’t do this.” You blurt out, not sure how else to start the conversation. He furrows his brows, but you continue. “I know you’ve been seeing someone else, and that’s fine, it is, but I think I just had different expectations of what this was.” You huff after finishing your ramble, waiting for his reaction.

He leans back, putting even more distance between the two of you, contemplating his words. “I wasn’t lying when I said I couldn’t stop thinking about you. I just…” He trails off, looking down at his lap, and you bite your lip to try and keep your emotions in check.

You’d be lying if you said some part of you wasn’t hoping this conversation would result in him confessing his feelings and begging to be with only you.

“What are you saying?” He looks up at you, brows still furrowed.

“I’m saying…” You sigh. “I’m telling you to choose her. I’d rather be remembered as the one that got away then loved with half a heart.”

His tongue swipes over his bottom lip, a habit you’d come to recognize as something he did when his mind was racing. You spend a few more moments staring at him, but when he still doesn’t say anything, you take another deep breath in.

You were a little bit annoyed, hurt even, that he didn’t have a single thing to say about the ending of your relationship after he had just been talking about missing you. No protest even gracing his lips.

“I should get back to work.” You mutter, yanking the crate off the counter. You don’t spare him another glance as the door to the back swings shut behind you.

PART TWO!

Taglist: @gcldtom @picked-off-by-barzal @sarahghae @lucianaasf @strawb3rrydr3ss @pennbii @owenniasstars @hotch-meeeeeuppppp @oliviah-25 @theliterarybeldam @littlebadariell @averyhotchner @kyramaximoff @rosie-posie08 @shadeds-library @icemansgirl1999 @callsignlunar @dempy @justjedithingss @emptyloverofmine @rach7318 @heyimmadison @simp-for-fictional-people @choochoo284 @teti-menchon0604 @hopefulinlove @phoenix1389 @classygirlything21

#bradley bradshaw #bradley rooster bradshaw #rooster top gun #top gun maverick #rooster bradshaw #rooster bradshaw imagine #top gun 2 #top gun fanfiction #miles teller #rooster bradshaw x you #rooster x you #rooster bradshaw x y/n #rooster bradshaw x reader #bradley bradshaw x reader #bradley bradshaw fanfic #top gun #rooster blurb #bradley bradshaw blurb

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vulturetime · 1 year ago

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actually now that I think about it this is making me really pissed.

the book is “a long way to a small angry planet” by Becky chambers and I do have other gripes with the book but like. Ok there’s this navigator character named ohan, and in that species, most people are infected with a virus that helps them conceptualize 4D and gives them another “mind.” However it also dramatically reduces their lifespan and also is the core of their religion. It is possible to break this pairing with the virus but it’s very taboo. From the get go they pronouns are used for Ohan because they are both the virus and ohan so it’s “plural.” Ignoring the fact that they can be singular as well but whatever. However the thing that really pisses me off is ohan’s storyline. They do start to get doubts on their own as to whether they actually want to die early but due to situations, they are forced to take the cure for the virus. They were still conflicted about the decision and honestly may have chosen it in the end so like ok. Whatever. The fallout of this action would be interesting to follow right? Except it’s not really followed up with at all and now people are using he him pronouns for Ohan cause they’re just Ohan now, no virus. And things are just gonna be happy go lucky now I GUESS. And also when the cure was first brought aboard basically every fucking one was trying to convince Ohan they’d be better off taking it and ohh it’s just the VIRUS speaking that makes you want to keep it. And there was an exchange between two characters about this where one kept purposefully misgendering Ohan and the other accidentally did it and it’s just like.

1) they them IS singular. And this world has been fucking constructed to be more gender inclusive because aliens and different languages mean different pronouns and words. So why is it so hard for these people to conceptualize that just because Ohan is “biologically” male, that doesn’t mean you have to use he him pronouns. And also even if they them had to be a plural only pronoun here, why is it so difficult for these people to make that switch in pronouns to they them??? Outside of being really frustrating as someone who exclusively uses they them pronouns and has been misgendered a lot, it doesn’t line up with the world.

2) it also doesn’t line up with actually accommodating for cultural differences. So much of the book is about species and cultural differences and yet when it comes to Ohan so much of the situation is chalked up to it just being a virus. Like yes there’s a virus but surrounding that are huge cultural and religious values. There are some token efforts to even out the sides and “see from both perspectives” but ultimately the answer is supposed to be that Ohan shouldn’t stay like this. And I’m sorry but honestly I think the story would’ve been better if Ohan could make their own choice. Like yes they would’ve died but this is their own life. There’s a lot of talk of family in the book since it’s supposed to be a lot of found family but Ohan doesn’t even interact with the group a lot so it just rubs the wrong way to me. I’m just. Really not a fan as to how this story was handled and honestly I lost a lot of respect for the characters.

when the story that legit uses neo pronouns is pushing the idea that they/them is solely a plural pronoun 🙃🙃🙃

#vt.talk #it’s not the worst thing I’ve ever read but once again the reviews of other people got to me and made me raise the bar

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babybluebex · 4 years ago

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me and my husband [baron zemo x reader]

summary ↠ in the process of making sure zemo is okay after a fight in latvia, you find a way to put captain john walker in his place. pairing ↠ baron zemo x fem!reader (y/n) word count ↠ 1.6k warnings ↠ explicit language, itty bitty tfatws ep. 4 spoilers, john walker being misogynistic and a Total Dick a/n ↠ (yes the title is a mitski reference) enjoy! masterlist/taglist in bio! (also thank u @therenlover for your invaluable support and screaming in my instagram dms)

As far as you were concerned, John Walker could rot in hell.

You had only just heard the fight break out, the smashing of glass making your quicken your step, and you had rushed into the room the moment that Walker, in his infinite prickishness, had hurtled that dumb metal shield through the air. You had watched it collide against your husband’s cheek, and Helmut had gone limp instantly and crumpled to the floor.

“What the hell?” you had cried, enraged, and Bucky and Sam were quick to come in after you. “What the fuck was that for, you prick?”

John Walker had given you a confused look, then looked to his partner, then to Sam and Bucky. Originally, Sam had initially been opposed to bringing you along on their mission to retrieve information about the Flag Smashers, but your husband had extended an ultimatum: “She comes with me, or I don’t come at all.” They needed Zemo to get into Madripoor, so the Americans sighed and allowed you to come. You yourself weren’t quite sure why Zemo was insistent that you come with him, but, the moment you saw him get hit by Captain America’s shield, it made sense: to vouch for him when he couldn’t.

“Who’re you?” John had asked carefully, and Sam huffed out a laugh.

“Aw, this’ll be good,” Sam had mumbled as you stormed towards John. Your shoes clicked against the floor as you came chest to chest with him, and you planted your hands on your hips.

“My name is Zemo,” you had told him. “And you just gave my husband a concussion.”

John stared at you for a minute, then at Helmut at his feet, then back at you. “Husband?” he replied. “But he’s been in jail for seven years.”

“Of all the people to explain my relationship to, you are not high on that list,” you spat. “Now, get him up.”

John looked around at his compatriots in obvious confusion, and Bucky sighed. “Just do it, man,” he mumbled.

“And why won’t you do it?” John asked.

“Because he’s not the one with the giant metal trash can lid strapped to his arm,” you said. “You are. You are the one who hurt my husband, and you are going to fix this. So, Captain, I suggest you move him from the middle of the floor.”

And now, finally back in the small Latvian flat, you were able to properly tend to Helmut. He had come to just as John had set him on the sofa, and you could gauge that he was concussed. It didn’t seem too bad, but he was still a bit disoriented. Helmut gave a small groan, certainly one of pain, and you whispered, “There he is. How’re you feeling, love?”

Helmut glanced around you for a moment, trying to get his bearings, and he mumbled, “What happened?”

“An American oaf with a trash can lid took you out,” you explained. “He got you in the face pretty good.” Gingerly, you skimmed your fingers over his cheek, testing for any tenderness, and you heard a low groan escape him when you touched the red patch on his face. “Let me get you an ice pack.”

“I can do it, mein Schatz,” Helmut began, but you gently pushed on his chest to keep him down.

“Hel, please,” you sighed. “You need to rest. Let me take care of you.”

After a moment, your husband sighed and laid back down, and he rested his head back on a pillow. Just as you stood up, Helmut reached out and grabbed your hand tightly. “You’re too good to me,” he mumbled, stroking his thumb along the back of your hand. “What would I do without you?”

“There’s no telling,” you sighed, and you leaned down to kiss him. He kissed back, a bit weak and tired, but his hand on yours spoke the words that his kiss didn’t. “Take off your jacket, my love, you’ll get too warm.”

You walked across the space to the bathroom, and you grabbed a small hand towel to run under some cold water. As you did your task at the kitchen sink, you heard John, Bucky, Lamar, and Sam all muttering between themselves, and you hardly listened to it. You expected it to be some drivel about teamwork or patriotism or whatever it was that any conversation with Captain America turned to, but you finally tuned in when you heard your husband’s name. “Zemo’s got you two cornered,” John said. “Making you do his shit for him. And he demanded to bring her along? Why didn’t you say no?”

“We needed him,” Bucky replied. “And there’s no him without her.”

“Oh, they’re some sorta Bonnie and Clyde?” John huffed. “You’re harboring a fugitive here. A-And you! You’d really put your wife in danger like this?”

“Mein Schatz is resourceful,” you heard Helmut mutter, and you drained the rag of excess water before moving back to him as he spoke. “Smart, clever, and cunning; I married her for a reason.”

You sat on the floor next to him and settled the cold rag over his eyes. He smiled a little and gave a quiet groan, and you rested your hand on his chest. He had done as you had asked and taken off his coat, but you still saw the red flush under his collar. Carefully, you reached up and undid the top few buttons in his wine-colored shirt, and you gave a playful tug at his gold necklace. “Can I get you anything?” you asked him quietly; you spoke in Sokovian, for no other reason than to make John and Lamar squirm.

“Bourbon?” Helmut asked, following your linguistic lead.

“Of course,” you replied. You took his hand off of his stomach and gave his knuckles a kiss, and added, “Anything else?”

“A kiss,” Helmut said, and he gave a quiet little laugh. “I can’t see your face, my treasure, but I know you’re grimacing at me.”

“Never,” you said with a click of your tongue, but you sat up on your knees and pressed a soft kiss to your husband’s lips. You liked kissing Helmut Zemo, especially moments like this, when it was just you and him. Of course, you were surrounded by men who were all bigger and stronger than both of you, but your mother language gave you a feeling of exclusion that you welcomed.

“Alright, whatever the fuck this is has gotta stop,” John groaned, and you broke away from the kiss slowly. “Listen, we’ve put up with a lot of your shit, Zemo, but your little cock-sleeve or whatever she is is taking things one step too far.”

Helmut sighed with the weight of the insult, took up your hand blindly and squeezed, and he whispered, “Go easy on him, won’t you?”

“Would you?” you asked, and planted a quick kiss to his cheek. You stood carefully and smoothed out your shirt, and then you turned to John. He truly was an impressive figure, but you felt his uneasiness radiating off of him. You were the player, and he the instrument; you only had to find the right chord. “First of all,” you began. “Insulting a woman because she likes to have sex? Low blow, Walker. I thought that Cap respected women.”

“He does,” Bucky said. “He’s supposed to.”

“I’m not Steve--”

“Did I ever say Steve?” you snapped. “No, I said Cap. Captain America is a title and a role that you should be fucking thankful for, and you treat it like a curse that’s been put on you. Cap protects and serves, and look at what you’ve done while you’ve had that shield: you’ve been frolicking around on television and causing more trouble than you’re worth.”

Sam gave an affirmative grunt from over your shoulder, and, if you had been facing him, you would have seen the way he pressed his fist into Zemo’s shoulder with a smile.

“You may not be Steve,” you said, taking a step closer. “I truly doubt that the world needs another Steve Rogers. But Captain America is supposed to inspire peace and freedom and trust and all of those American buzzwords, and you’re doing a piss-poor job at it. You have to trust that Sam and Bucky are making the right decisions here, even if those decisions involve me and my husband.” You paused and titled your head in trademark Zemo fashion, a habit you had picked up from Helmut, and you said, “I think that you’re forgetting that you’re in the presence of a man-- the man-- who managed to dismantle the Avengers. Bucky wouldn’t have gotten him out of prison without a good fuckin’ reason, and I think that his help’s been pretty invaluable. But what do I know, right? I’m just his little cock-sleeve.”

You pushed John aside in order to go to the kitchen area and fulfill Helmut’s request of a drink, and you felt proud of yourself. You had wanted to put him in his place ever since you had first heard of him, and your stomach was warm with pride.

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Zemo,” John called across the room as you settled a few ice cubes into a small tumbler. “Sometimes I just… I’m sorry.”

“I’m not sure if I want to accept that apology or not,” you replied. “Let me sleep on it.” You brought the drink back to Helmut, and he moved himself to sit up on the couch properly. You took the cool towel from his face and carefully pressed it to the back of his warm neck, and you watched John and Lamar exchange uncomfortable glances. “Oh, and, Captain?” you added, and he turned to look at you. “Missus is nice, but it’s Baroness Zemo to you.”

#baron zemo #baron zemo fanfiction #baron zemo x reader #baron zemo x y/n #daniel bruhl #daniel bruhl fanfiction #daniel bruhl x reader #kit.txt

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miekasa · 4 years ago

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fluff alphabet: levi ackerman

↯ pairing: levi ackerman x (fem) reader

↯ genres and warnings: modern au, fluff…. obviously, no real warnings i don’t think, oh spoilers for his ova?

↯ word count: 3k lol don’t ask me how

↯ notes: i was going to take requests for this for valentine’s day, but i figured i’d just do them all in one post lolol. i feel like i haven’t posted for levi in a while, so here we go

Activities — What do they like to do with their s/o? How do they spend their free time with them?

If you ask Levi to do something, there’s a good chance he’ll try it at least once for you. Unless it’s something he’s said he explicitly dislikes or doesn’t want to partake in, he’d gladly try it out with you.

He strikes me as the kind of person to like trying new restaurants. Not necessarily the trendy or popular or exclusive ones; but local places with good recommendations or reviews.

Down for late night drives, but you have to be the one driving. He’ll drive if you become too tired, but he prefers to sit in the passenger seat and just let you take him wherever. He doesn’t mind, and it’s a sign he trusts you.

I also think museum dates would be some thing he enjoys. Not history museums—I feel like the concept of stolen artifacts on display would piss him off more than anything lol—but art museums. That’s not to say he’s extremely into art, but I think something about a museum environment is somewhat calming to him. He doesn’t mind.

One more activity I would say suits him is watching movies or shows together. Levi’s the kind of guy that catches you watching a series and expresses how it looks stupid or boring at first, but still hovers around and backseat watches it anyway. After a while, he just gives up and starts actively watching it with you and becomes invested. He just won’t admit it.

Beauty — What do they admire about their s/o? What do they think is beautiful about them?

In the least cheesy way possible, everything. Levi sees people, and his s/o in particular, as a whole person, rather than the sum of their parts. He understands that everything about you—physical, emotional, or otherwise—contributes to the person he loves. There’s something to appreciate about all of it at different times.

He’d probably admire and/or find little habits you have beautiful in some way or another. Probably things you might not even notice about yourself unless he pointed them out to you.

Personality wise, he’d admire it if his s/o were blunt and/or the kind of person to stick up for themselves or their friends. A little bit assertive; not going out of your way to make other people feel small or be rude, but simply refusing to shrink to make room for others.

Physically, again, I don’t think he has a preference for most anything, but if I had to pick, I’d say he’s a thigh/ass guy.

Comfort — How would they help their s/o when they feel down/have a panic attack, etc.?

Levi is observant, so he would be able to tell when you’re struggling perhaps before you’re ready to realize it yourself, and long before you’re about to burst.

However, he would ask you how he can help. For as observant as he is, he’s also not a mind reader, and if there’s something specific he can get you, he would want to know, even if it’s seemingly small or superficial.

He would be pretty proactive about it, too. The second he figures out how he can help, he’s on it. You need a new desk to work from home? He’ll have it built by that weekend. You’re feeling overwhelmed and behind on your tasks? He’s already doing the ones he can do without your help.

He does his best to try and help you relax if the issue is a stressor, and if he could, he would eradicate the root of the stress from your life completely. Unfortunately, in the real world, that’s not always possible, but it’s nice to know that he’s willing.

The other obvious answer is tea, but allow me to expand it more generally to food. Going along with the theme of acts of service being his love language, Levi would try to provide the basic necessities for you in order to allow to focus on solving your problems and/or feeling better. If not worrying about dinner is one thing that can help you, Levi’s happy to cook for you.

Dreams — How do they picture their future with their s/o?

Simple, but fulfilled. Levi just wants to be happy—to have someone to care for, and to have someone who will care for him.

Truthfully, I don’t think he’d mind children later down the road, and I think he would be a good parent. It might not be something he talks about outright at first, but as time progresses, and perhaps the timing becomes right, it’d be something he would want to consider.

Equal — Are they the dominant one in the relationship, or rather passive?

It’s equal. Levi doesn’t want to have more power, nor does he want to be passive. However, there are things he doesn’t mind handing over to you, and conversely, responsibilities he doesn’t mind taking on himself.

Compromise would be a big part in the relationship—not for the sake of compromising on your dreams or ambitions, but rather, to reach a middle ground if there’s any kind of argument.

I think it’s a give and take with him. And I don’t think he would want it to be any other way. He doesn’t strike me as someone who’s on either polar end.

Fight — Would they be easy to forgive their s/o? How are they fighting?

When you do fight, it’s a lot of pointed frustration. He doesn’t raise his voice, but he can get snippy, and a little closed off—speaking in clipped sentences, using underhanded phrases, focusing on past points. What drives him crazy is the aftermath of the fight, and if you give him the silent treatment, he’s bound to crack much sooner than later.

He’s quite easy to forgive. Canonically, he doesn’t like to fight with his friends or the people he cares about, and he would rather reach a solution as quickly as possible.

We saw that with Isabel and Farlan, despite the way he was firm on his decision for them to stay behind, they were able to break his resolve pretty quickly. He cares a lot about the people in his life, and I don’t think he’d like to go long with a riff between him and you. Especially if he thinks he might regret not talking to you about it sooner.

He’s one to keep a promise, but not to hold a grudge. That is to say, he understands that forgiveness goes both ways, and to work in a healthy relationship, both parties have to forgive themselves and each other at some point.

Gratitude — How grateful are they in general? Are they aware of what their s/o is doing for them?

Yes and no. It might take a minute for Levi to understand the depth of your actions—especially the ones that appear more mundane or are not as explicitly romantic.

Once he does, he is very aware of them, and as such, if very grateful. He didn’t every really think he’d be able to create and be apart of the kind of loving relationship the two of you have. He really cherishes it.

Honesty — Do they have secrets they hide from their s/o? Or do they share everything?

He has secrets by way of omission. He doesn’t lie to keep things hidden from you, but sometimes he doesn’t tell everything about himself, especially towards the start of your relationship.

It’s not always with malicious or even self-protective intent. He just doesn’t share because he doesn’t think it’s important, or that you might care. If you pry long enough or insist that you want to know just to know and because you care, then he’s happy to share.

As previously mentioned, it might take him a while to realize just how much you care about him, and his past and interests by extension.

Inspiration — Did their s/o change them somehow, or the other way around? Like trying out new things or helped them overcome personal problems?

As your relationship progresses Levi comes to learn that you genuinely find him attractive not just physically, but emotionally and psychologically. That you actually want to know him and that he’s worth knowing.

So, his biggest change is in the way he approaches his thoughts about himself and his self worth. But he also begins to pick up on your habits, your interests, and tries to understand your general approach to life, too.

He would probably change you in some ways, too. Most notably in the way you organize and clean your space, probably. He’s not sorry about it.

Jealousy — Do they get jealous easily? How do they deal with it?

No, he doesn’t. To him, jealously would imply that someone has something he wants. Firstly, you’re not an object to him, and secondly, he has you. There’s nothing more to it.

He’s not childish, nor is he out of check with his emotions, so he wouldn’t lash out on you, especially if it’s not your fault. In his small momentary slips, you wouldn’t even have noticed he was jealous at all.

He wouldn’t like it if someone was repeatedly making advances on you, especially if you’ve explicitly told them off/they were making you uncomfortable. In situations like that, he would simply try to get the both of you out of there/away from the person as quickly as possible.

There’s also an element of trust to this with Levi. He wouldn’t expect you to try and make him jealous out of spite; and he would trust that you wouldn’t play on the advances of other people if you notice them.

Kiss — Are they a good kisser? What was the first kiss like?

He is a good kisser. Mainly because he’s very perceptive to what you want and how to give it you.

The first kiss was sweet. Knowing Levi, there was probably quite the build up to it, so even if it was sweet and innocent, there was a layer of tension and a crash of emotions coming forward in the moment. It was memorable, to say the least.

Love Confession — How would they confess to their s/o?

I have imagined this time and time again… and I think it really depends on the foundation of your relationship/friendship with him before.

In the most generic scenario, it would probably be a little backwards—you would have, intentionally or not, gone on some dates before he realized what his feelings really were, and then take it from there.

If you were friends for a while before hand, it can probably go the implicit dating route—that is you’re both exclusively emotionally invested in each other, and basically involved in most relationship aspects without having realized it or put a label on it. You kind of naturally morph into a relationship, and it probably takes a verbal confession or kiss or two to solidify it.

It can also go the sexual tension route, and one day one of you finally snaps and makes a move. The verbal confession would come in the aftermath, but your actions will have solidified and expressed your feelings long before that.

Marriage — Do they want to get married? How do they propose? What would the marriage be like?

Again, yes and no. Without taking into account the legal aspects, the actual concept of marriage is that juxtaposition of sweet and powerful that Levi likes; the idea of devoting yourself to someone and receiving a special kind of love for the rest of your life.

And while all of that is beautiful to him, there are the unfortunate cultural norms or marriage, especially in a modern au. The legality of it all, especially the financial defaults, would be a headache. Not to mention all the fluff and grandeur and gender expectations about it. He thinks all of that fucking sucks.

Above all, he doesn’t get why people expect him to pay for what’s basically an expensive document that tells the federal government he lives with you and loves you. He could do that without them in his business.

If you want to get married, then the proposal is sweet. Intimate, and probably a call back to something in your relationship, or a significant date/event for the both of you. He wouldn’t dare do it in public or even involve anybody else, other than maybe asking a friend or two.

Marriage with Levi is much like being in a long-term relationship with him. The way he acts in marriage isn’t exponentially different than the way he had been acting as your boyfriend. It’s all still very quiet, very sweet, very domestic.

Nicknames — What do they call their s/o?

He calls you by your name, unless you ask him to call you by something else. He might call you by an actual nickname, that is a shortened version of your name, if that’s the name you usually go by.

He’s not big on pet names and they slip out from time to time, but not in place of your actual name on an every day basis. If anything, he calls your name with a very unique tone to his voice. He rarely calls for anybody else with the same tone and/or emotion.

On Cloud Nine — What are they like when they are in love? Is it obvious for others? How do they express their feelings?

It’s not… not obvious to his friends, but he doesn’t look like he’s been shot by cupids arrow or anything. If you know Levi, you might pick up on the fact that he seems a bit happier, less stressed, has taken up new hobbies/habits, etc. But there’s not he’s not shitting rainbows and sunshine all of a sudden.

Love is very personal and intimate for him. He would do his best to express to you that he loves you and loves the love he receives from you, but he doesn’t feel that everyone else needs to know.

So, it’s somehow simultaneously noticeable and unnoticeable when you’re together in the presence of other people.

PDA — Are they upfront about their relationship? Do they brag with their s/o in front of others? Or are they rather shy to kiss when others are watching?

Levi isn’t big on PDA. He’s not hiding your relationship, but he doesn’t care to boast it to every person he meets, either. If somebody asks him, he’ll happily say that he’s in a relationship, but he doesn’t bring it forward himself.

He’s not hiding it or shy, but he doesn’t feel the need to be all over you in public. He doesn’t anything to prove to anybody. Besides, nobody wants to see that shit. He knows he wouldn’t.

There are some displays of affection, though. Hand holding isn’t abnormal, though likely not in a casual space with your friends or family. He’ll brush is hand along your arm when he’s walking past you, might ruffle your hair if the occasion calls for it, squeeze your thigh under the table.

Quirk — Some random ability they have that’s beneficial in a relationship.

He’s canonically good at math. This comes in handy when you’re at restaurants and trying to calculate a tip quickly. Somehow, he knows how to figure out 18% of your bill in 3 seconds flat.

It also comes in handy when you’re trying to organize things. Along with math comes a pretty good understanding of spatial reasoning. Somehow Levi is always able to put away your left overs using the smallest and least amount of tupperware possible. It’s kind of ridiculous, he might be a wizard.

Romance — How romantic are they? What would they do to make their s/o happy? Cliché or rather creative?

In the traditional sense, he might not appear romantic, but he’s the kind of person to say or do or gift little things that would take a much deeper romantic understanding of his partner than some grand, generic act like buying a thousand roses.

His romance is tailored to you and your relationship, not general expectations of what it means to be “romantic.”

Support — Are they helping their s/o achieve their goals? Do they believe in them?

Levi is very devoted to you, so if you ask for his help, or he can help without stepping on your toes, he will. He wants you to not only succeed, but feel fulfilled through your achievements, and he’s happy to help you get there.

He believes in you wholeheartedly. If it’s something you really want, Levi wouldn’t dare doubt that you could achieve it.

Thrill — Do they need to try out new things to spice up your relationship? Or do they prefer a certain routine?

He doesn’t feel the need to try out new things based on expectations, but if you want to try something, or if he wants to try something, you can have a conversation about it, and eventually try it out.

There’s a sort of established routine in a domestic sense; a sharing of a mutual space and the behaviors associated with that. But there’s not, like, established date nights or “week-a-versaries.”

In that sense, he can be pretty spontaneous; bringing up new places to go or activities to try when the idea strikes him. But I suppose it’s never something… too adventurous? Not dangerous, at least lololol, he’s not going to randomly suggest you go skydiving as a bonding exercise.

Understanding — How good do they know their partner? Are they empathetic?

Very well. Levi kind of makes you his business—in the most non-intrusive way possible. He’s perceptive and picks up on things about you with relative ease, and genuine interest.

He can predict how you might respond in a situation with pretty good accuracy, can guess what you might pick off the menu at a new restaurant, if given a choice has a good sense of which option you’ll choose. Very much a “I knew you would say that/do that, I don’t know why I even asked,” kind of person once he gets to know you.

He can be pretty empathetic, and I think he would be in a relationship.

Value — How important is the relationship to them? What is it’s worth in comparison to other things in their life?

Your relationship is pretty damn important to Levi, and he devotes a significant amount of time and attention to it. Not in the place of giving time for himself, his friends, family or interests; but he is very much devoted to you.

However, he’s not the type to give up solid opportunities (ex: financial, for his family/mom, career-wise) for the sake of a relationship, especially if he’s not in the position to do so; and he wouldn’t want you to give up exceptional opportunities that align with your goals for him either.

Everything is relative in that sense, I suppose. He cares for you, deeply, and knows that you do, too. That, contrary to popular belief, is what enables you both to be strong enough to bend and not break.

Wild Card — A random fluff head canon.

I’ll give you a few :)

If you want him to, Levi will do your hair for you, and he’s pretty fucking good at it, too; hair type or texture be damned, he’ll take his time with it, and do it well for you.

When he’s alone, Levi hums himself to sleep. Usually singing/humming his mother’s favorite songs and/or songs he remembers hearing as a child.

He always gives you the lighter bags when you take your groceries upstairs/into your house. He doesn’t tell you, but he knows you don’t like to ‘make’ him do all the work.

He always makes dinner if he gets home before you.

He’s a pretty good artist, and has even drawn you once. He’s never told you or shown you, but he keeps the picture folded up in his wallet. Or behind his phone case.

XOXO — Are they very affectionate? Do they love to kiss and cuddle?

Affectionate in private, yes. He doesn’t mind it if you’re all over him, and truthfully, has his moments where he’s shamelessly all over you, too. Especially in the morning, he’s a cuddle bug.

Kisses are always good, he would never oppose them. He’s quite easy to persuade with kisses, actually. And most physical touches; he doesn’t get them often, so he kind of melts when he does.

Cuddles, too. Again, all of this is private and in the comfort of your own home. His favorite way to cuddle is to either have you completely on top of him, or to lay his head in your lap. Because he loves the feeling of you playing with his hair.

Yearning — How will they cope when they’re missing their partner?

Levi will take part in things you like or things you’ve claimed in your shared space.

For example, he might find himself eating your favorite foods more often, sitting on the spot on the couch your sit in most often, rolling over to your side of the bed in his sleep.

He also likes to look back on pictures of the two of you. He doesn’t particularly like to be photographed, but he likes having these physical memories of your relationship, so he’ll indulge you when you want to take a picture together. And they come in real handy during times like this.

Zeal — Are they willing to go to great lengths for the relationship? If so, what kind of?

Levi will definitely put up a fight for you, so long as it’s mutual. He wouldn’t pour his effort into someone or a relationship in which he feels like he’s not receiving the same.

I’m not sure what great lengths there would be to go to in a modern au, but he definitely believes that relationships are hard work, and as such, is prepared to put in the work when things get hard. He’s not a quitter, and he knows that love is foundation and requires time and energy.

He cares about you too much to let you go without reason.

#aot x reader #snk x reader #levi x reader #levi ackerman x reader #levi x you #aot imagines #snk imagines #levi fluff #levi smut #eren x reader

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gladerwolfstarkimagines · 3 years ago

Text

Imagine being Sokka and Katara’s cousin and having a complicated romantic relationship with Zuko.

Your cousin Sokka had initially set you up with Zuko because he figured the firelord needed some fun and you were exactly that. You weren’t interested in titles or riches you were just an infectious whirlwind of carefree energy. He figured Zuko could learn something from you and so arranged the date.

He could tell by how light Zuko walked into the room the next day that his plan had worked and he liked seeing the positive effect you were having on Zuko. The pressures of the throne had really been weighing down on him and you helped him to get some much-needed freedom and connect with his non-Firelord side....however it always had a way of coming back.

Zuko loved dating you but he’d gotten pressure from every single fire nation noblemen on the council to break up with you. They disliked you because you were from the water tribe so many viewed you as an outsider trying to influence the fire nation. Zuko’s reign was still so new and with rebellions breaking out more frequently Zuko agreed. He had to put his country first even if that meant losing you. One thing Zuko hadn’t realised however was you had a very different view of your relationship...for one thing you didn’t even realise you were in one with the Firelord.

Your POV

Zuko was always pretty tense but you noticed tonight he was even more stressed and quiet. You tried to make conversation but he was sombre throughout dinner and when you’d finished he put his cutlery down and looked across at you. “Y/n I need to speak to you”. You nodded folding your arm “sure, what’s wrong?”. Zuko sighed "Y/n i’ve really enjoyed our time together but i...have to break up with you, I can’t see you anymore". You blinked surprised, one at Zuko’s honesty and two at the news you had apparently been dating the Firelord. You and Zuko weren’t dating or even close to dating, in your mind you’d just been having fun and sure you were definitely not just friends but you also didn’t think you were boyfriend/girlfriend. Regardless of what the label was you quickly realised what Zuko was telling you and it made a heavy weight settle in your stomach. Whatever this between you was...it made you sad to think it would be ending. "You do?" you asked remaining composed and Zuko nodded. "It’s nothing to do with you it’s me, being firelord i don’t have the time for dating or fun, i don’t think it’s fair to keep this going when I can’t guarantee i’ll always be able to give you my attention". You nodded your head "that sounds fair, thank you for thinking of that". "No problem" Zuko said smiling sadly and you nodded awkwardly. “I’ll be going then” and you went to walk away when he spoke again "but i really enjoyed our time together y/n, i really did". You smiled "me too, you’re pretty fun for a royal" and bowed "see you around firelord” and you walked away.

Zuko’s POV

You walked out of the room and Zuko sighed. He felt a mix between relief and sadness. That had gone a lot easier than he thought it would and that should be a good thing but it didn’t feel that way. A part of Zuko had wanted you to argue with him or to dig to find the real reason he was breaking it off. He knew if you’d have challenged him in even the slightest way he’d have told you the truth and taken back what he’d said but you had just agreed and let it go without a fight. Zuko couldn’t help feeling disappointed and a little hurt. You remained on his mind the rest of the day and Zuko couldn’t stop wondering about your reaction. He was sat with your cousin Sokka when he decided to bring you up. "Just so you know I’ve ended things with y/n" Zuko explained and Sokka blinked "i’m sorry what?". "I know i should’ve warned you seeing as she’s your cousin...i’m sorry". Sokka shook his head "no i’m confused how do you think you were dating her". Zuko blinked "what do you mean? You literally set us up". "I introduced you because i thought y/n could make you loosen up a bit but Zuko y/n doesn’t date". Zuko blinked "but we hung our several times and...kissed and stuff". Sokka sighed "oh god as gross as this is to have to explain about my cousin...Zuko that doesn’t mean you were dating". "It doesn’t?”. Sokka sighed "okay here’s what you need to know about my cousin, she grew up in a town that was heavily sexist and married girls off at young ages, so as times started to change she leapt at the new opportunities. She refused to ever date anyone, it’s too much commitment and so instead she has fun with people, typically for short periods of time and then she flutters away, usually leaving a broken heart or two". Zuko blinked "but we were dating!". "Did you ever agree to make it exclusive?" Sokka asked. Zuko shook his head "well not in words". "Did you ever ask her to be your girlfriend?". "No but i thought it was implied". "Did you ever call her your girlfriend then?". "No i...it was new i didn’t want to come on too strong" Zuko sighed. Sokka patted his back "and there’s the broken heart". "I’m not heartbroken just confused! Why did she let me break up with her if we weren’t even dating?". "Well breakups are awkward, imagine having to explain to someone in the middle of one, that you're not even dating, i bet she did it just to spare your feelings". As soon as those words left his mouth Sokka regretted it. "No i didn’t mean that...i meant". Zuko stood up angrily "it appears i need to find your cousin".

Zuko was furious. He felt like he’d been living two different lives this whole time and that had caused so much stress. One half of him was the teenager who wanted fun, the freedom to go on dates and just be careless. Then the other half of him was the Firelord who knew he had to be responsible. He knew all the elder nobles thought he was too irresponsible and all his friends thought him too boring and conventional. He liked you because you opened him up to new things and made him feel normal. Not too young or too formal, just right, you made him feel valid.

But he’d sacrificed all that for the “greater good” and now not only was he regretting his decision he was also furious because apparently he wasn’t anything to you anyway. The thing he’d struggled so much with, you weren’t even aware of.

Zuko walked into the large living room the gang had taken to lounging in and saw you sat with Haru. He felt his temper rise as Sokka’s words filled his mind. How you broke hearts and moved on instantly. You laughed at something Haru said and Zuko’s eyes narrowed. He really meant nothing to you. Zuko stalked across the room and came to stand in front of you both. Haru jumped "Firelord Zuko" but you took your time glancing at him. You eventually raised your eyes to his and nodded "Firelord Zuko". Zuko tensed "y/n we need to talk". "Is it urgent because....". "It is, now...please" Zuko said and he walked away.

Your POV

You blinked as Zuko stormed away and apologised to Haru before following him. You had no idea why Zuko wanted to speak to you, surely everything was wrapped up now you were done but he seemed so angry. You’d heard about this famous fire nation temper but you’d never seen it on Zuko and part of you was a little impressed. You liked fire benders for that reason precisely, their inner fire and passion but Zuko had been completely composed and calm the whole time you’d know him. Not now though.

You followed Zuko into a room and he shut the door. "Zuko what’s wrong?" you asked and he spun to face you rapidly. "What’s wrong?" he cried "why did you let me break up with you and say all that rubbish if I meant nothing to you?". You paused "who says you mean nothing to me?". "Sokka!" Zuko cried "he explained how you flit from person to person, never dating them just having fun and how you move onto your next person when you get bored. We were never dating, why didn’t you correct me?". You shrugged "i... I didn't want to be rude, but Zuko I wasn’t just waiting to flit from you to someone else". "Ow yeah, Haru’s just a coincidence?". "You broke up with me! Why are you angry even if something was going on with Haru?". "Because i didn’t want to break up with you y/n" Zuko explained "i did it because i had to and it was a really tough decision for me to make. It felt like a big sacrifice to me and then to find out you didn’t even think twice about me" Zuko said rapidly before staring at the floor almost deflated. "Zuko i do think about you" you said softly "whatever Sokka said isn’t completely true. Yes i don’t like putting labels on things but that doesn’t mean i don’t care or feel the same things anyone does at the start of something. I think the reason i move on or flit around so quickly as you said is because i move on as soon as I start feeling things, i don’t like being vulnerable so me not thinking of you as my boyfriend wasn’t because I didn’t care about you, it was more to protect me from the opposite". "So you do like me?" Zuko asked and you took a breath. "I do...a lot". Zuko rushed forwards hastily and kissed you. You kissed him back wrapping your arms around his neck before you paused "but wait...i thought you said you literally weren’t allowed to do this". Zuko nodded but didn’t remove his hands from your waist "i did, as Firelord i’m expected to behave dignified and composed all the time, i’m not supposed to get emotional or act irresponsibly for example by dating an unconventional water tribe girl" Zuko smiled "but i don’t care! I don’t care if they disapprove! I don’t care if we’re boyfriend and girlfriend or it’s just casual, all i know is i really like you and really really want to kiss you". You smiled and rehooked your arm around his neck "then kiss me".

Zuko was obedient and kissed you passionately before moving onto your neck. You were both surprised and pleasantly fascinated at Zuko’s confidence. Usually he was shy and kissed you quickly before moving away but now....now he was confident and purposeful with each touch. It was very attractive and you suddenly saw why the fire nation had such a strong reputation. Zuko caught the look in your eye and smiled "if you want we can....go to my room?". You smiled "lead the way”. Zuko stepped towards the door so quickly he knocked a table over but he just tugged you past it "leave it, it can stay that way for all i care right now" he muttered and you laughed at how spontaneous he was being. It was nice to see him let his hair down and you grinned as he pulled you through the fire nation halls hastily. He yanked his door open before pulling you inside and slamming the door. Trapping you on the other side. "Hmm i don’t think running through the hall is dignified Firelord Zuko". Zuko shrugged "neither is this" and began to kiss you again.

***

You laid side by side and Zuko seemed very relaxed but you were wondering about something. "Should I be going...am i even allowed to stay here in your room overnight? Doesn’t it break some century old fire nation tradition?" you asked. You’d never been in Zuko’s room before and only now did it really hit you he was the Firelord with a whole country on his shoulders and hundreds of advisors all monitoring his every move. If they’d gotten so angry at you for spending time together surely the nobles would be furious at you spending the night in his quarters? Zuko however did not care. "Of course you can” he said immediately “no servants will bother us and my guards will know to leave so we can be alone...of course that’s if you want to? If you don’t want to stay the night...". “Are you kidding me? And miss sleeping in these silk masterpieces?" you asked wriggling against the royal bedding. Zuko laughed watching you before he looked more serious. "I meant what i said" Zuko said softly "you don’t have to be my anything...i like you, i don’t need any labels or anything". "But do you want them?" you asked. You’d been more honest with Zuko than you’d ever been with anyone and now a part of you....wasn’t terrified by the idea of making him something more. But Zuko had also listened to you too and didn’t want to scare you off. "All i want is you" he smiled coming closer "if you don’t want labels then they won’t come anywhere near us". You smiled at the effort Zuko was making and leant into him. Zuko wrapped his arms around you and you buried your head in his chest. Ignoring the feeling in your stomach that you should have been more honest.

1 week later

Zuko definitely took what you’d said into account. He was a lot more confident with you both in private and publically. Apparently almost losing you made him more determined to make the most of his time with you. He invited you to royal events and was attentive to you throughout them. When nobles questioned him about you he would tell them it was none of their concern and refuse to answer any further prying. You liked seeing Zuko stand up for himself using his dominant abrupt side but also kind of missed his soft sweet side. Sure having a temper and attitude were hot in the moment but after a while they lost their depth and you got the feeling it was an act Zuko was putting on for you. As if Zuko thought by acting tough and in control with his court you’d be more attracted to him when in reality you loved how caring and considerate he was.

Zuko was also struggling. As well as maintaining the imposing Firelord who didn’t care what others thought of him, Zuko was also pretending he was okay with being casual. Zuko was not a casual person in any meaning of the word. He was a dramatic over-thinker, he had never been carefree and although in the moment with you he did enjoy it, afterwards his mind fretted over everything he’d done. He also worried about your open relationship. He knew freedom was important for you but he couldn’t help but wonder if when you looked at another person you’d start seeing them as well. Zuko liked you a lot and was sure he never wanted to see you with another person. He wondered if it was selfish but he wanted you all to himself and wanted an exclusive relationship....but he’d promised you he would be fine with this and that meant more to him.

So you and Zuko continued the charade to please the other, no idea that the other person actually felt the exact same way.

Your POV

You and Zuko had just had a pleasant evening with his friends and were retiring to his room for the night. On the way you passed a guard who looked at the two of you and then frowned. Zuko immediately tensed and went into Firelord mode. “Something you want to say?” Zuko called and the guard lowered his eyes “no Firelord Zuko”. “I thought not” Zuko agreed and took your hand. Zuko led you into his room and shut the door with a loud snap. You watched Zuko and all the things you’d been feeling this week came up. You needed to say something and now was just as good a time as any.

You prepared for the night and sat down on the edge of the bed watching Zuko warily, wondering how he’d take what you were about to say.

"Zuko i’ve been thinking about something and I think we need to talk” you said suddenly and Zuko jumped standing up taller. "Are you okay?" he asked immediately coming to sit next to you. "I am and i want to thank you for all the effort you’ve gone to but i think we need to reassess the situation”. Zuko immediately panicked, you’d realised he wasn’t a cool collected leader and that he was faking it....you weren’t attracted to him anymore. "Y/n i think i know what you’re going to say" he frowned when you carried on "i miss how it was before". Zuko blinked "what?". "I know you’re trying to be more dominant in your rule and to be more protective of us but that doesn’t mean you have to act all unfeeling and unbothered for my benefit. You’re a kind sweet person Zuko and I like when you show that, so i guess i’m asking have you been trying to change for me?". Zuko looked down "i have....you just reacted so intensely to me being more confident and so i thought you’d want that more". "I do love it when your confident" you smiled "but you don’t have to keep that in every aspect of our lives, maybe just when we’re alone?". Zuko felt a blush rise to his cheeks but he nodded "okay". You smiled "and sorry one more thing....i know i said i don’t like labels but i think i’d maybe like to try them?". Overcome with the realisation you felt everything he did Zuko just kissed you passionately. You kissed him back before laughing as you separated "what was that for?”. "For weeks i’ve been playing this character and restraining myself from asking you to be exclusive with me and i thought if i felt this way how can we be compatible but all along you felt it too". You blushed and nodded "yes i....i’ve felt that too”. Zuko grinned and kissed you again before pulling away "wait let me make sure i understand this correctly, you’d like us to start dating? Properly and officially?". "And exclusively" you smiled and Zuko grinned "i’m going to do this officially then, y/n will you be my girlfriend". "I thought you’d never ask!" you cried and kissed him again.

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whatisreggieshortfor · 2 years ago

Text

Not That Girl

For @aislinnstanaka 💛 my giftee

Marisol x Lottie

Marisol always swore to herself she’d never be that girl.

She’d be her partner’s first choice. The one and only choice.

If anything, she’d be the girlfriend that got cheated on.

She saw the red flags. Always had plans or didn’t feel well when her friends were involved, dates were more at home dinners than going out, he kept saying he didn’t like labels.

But she wouldn’t have guessed this.

Her best mate invited her to a get together, her boyfriend was finally going to be there, and Marisol couldn’t wait to meet him and the new friend Alecto had made during a poetry reading.

She got there first, as she always did for Alecto, and helped with the decorations. The two of them shared a bottle wine while Marisol tried to pry his name, at the very least, from her, but she was as tight lipped as she had been from the start of the relationship.

Hope and Noah arrived first, bringing wine and tapas, followed by Hannah and Chelsea with Gary and Henrik. Before long her little flat was filled with people.

Her poetry friend was next, and Lottie seemed to look at everything with a critical eye. Marisol was nervous, but then Lottie complimented a painting Alecto had hanging up and her best friend was able to beam and talk excitedly about when she painted it.

When there was another knock on the door, Marisol offered to get it.

Swinging the door open, she was met with the last face she expected, and he must’ve felt the same as the big smile on his face drifted away and he immediately stepped back to check the flat number again. “Marisol, I didn’t expect-“

“Rocco!” Marisol looked on in horror as her best friend threw her arms around him, “Babe, I’m glad you’re finally here! Everybody, everybody! This is my boyfriend!”

Chelsea squealed, running over to meet him as everyone else offered grins and waves, but Marisol was frozen. Rocco seemed to make a decision, “It’s good to meet everyone. Where’s the bestie I’ve heard about?” Alecto grabbed Marisol’s hand and tugged her forward.

“This is my Mari! Marisol, this is Rocco.”

Clearing his throat, he held out his hand, “Good to meet ya, Marisol.”

“Oh, hell no.” They all turned at the sharp voice, Lottie was leaning against the wall near the front door, scowl on her face, “You just gonna lie straight to my girl’s face right now?”

Marisol couldn’t get her mouth to work, horror filling her as she watched Alecto turn to Lottie, “What are you talking about? He wouldn’t lie to me.”

“Babes, he called Marisol by name when she opened that door.” The law student wanted to flinch away from the tattooed girl’s glare, but then she caught Alecto’s concerned expression.

“Mari? Did he?”

Tears filled Marisol’s eyes as she looked back at her, “I-I am so sorry, Lec. I didn’t know.”

Rocco stood there, eyes bouncing between them before he stepped forward, “It- it isn’t what you’re thinking. We’ve just had coffee a few times, we’re just-“

“Don’t you dare lie to her again.” Marisol sniffled, “You never told me you had a girlfriend!” Alecto ran off to her room, but Marisol didn’t miss the tears starting to slip down her cheeks. She was grateful when Hope and Hannah chased after her. “You played both of us, Rocco.”

“Some people like playing games.” Lottie snarked, rolling her eyes when Chelsea got Marisol a tissue, “You’re telling me that your best mate has been seeing someone for months and you didn’t know you were bedding her boyfriend? Please.”

“She didn’t!” Rocco answered, “I lied to her. And I lied to Alecto. But I was just trying to see if I had the feeling with either of them.”

“The feeling?”

“You know like when you leave home and have something that makes you forget that you’re staying somewhere unfamiliar? Like because you have that thing you are home?”

“So what?” Lottie snapped, “She’s a comfort blanket? I can see through your whole ‘rolls with the wind’ thing, but could you be anymore fake?”

“I never meant to imply we were exclusive!”

“You never implied we weren’t!” Marisol argued.

Noah stepped forward, “I think it’s best if you leave, mate.” Rocco nodded, turning out the door without making it past the threshold to begin with.

Lottie glared at Marisol, “I think you should, too.”

Henrik intervened, “That’s not fair. Mari didn’t know-“

“I look out for my girls when there are snakes in the grass.” Lottie cut him off, “And as far as I’m concerned there’s still one here.”

Marisol looked at Noah, “Just tell her I’m sorry.” The blonde left before anyone could stop her.

For days, she showed up to Alecto’s flat every day.

And every day she either didn’t get an answer, or she got Lottie slamming the door in her face.

Two weeks went by before Alecto ambushed her outside of her evening lecture, not that she’d registered a single word her professors said in those two weeks. “We need to talk, Mari.”

Marisol followed her anxiously to the cafe on campus, waiting as Alecto ordered both their usuals, and then waiting more as she led the two of them to a table. Sitting in silence as Alecto took a few sips of her coffee, Marisol started plaiting her hair. This was when her best friend told her they weren’t friends anymore. This was when she went back to being alone, not only was she sparkless in her love life, she would lose the one friend that made her believe she could be loved and-

Her train of thought was cut short by Alecto touching her hand, “Mari, you okay? You look like you’re gonna cry or throw up or something.”

“I’m so sorry, Lec. If I had known- I’d never-“

“Babes, please, I’m not mad.” She squeezed her fingers, “I was upset, yeah. But never with you. Though, I won’t lie. Lottie is a different story.” She frowned, spinning the stirrer around in her cup, “I’ve tried to tell her that you would never do that on purpose. At most if we weren’t official you’d tell me and make it a level playing field, but even that’s a stretch. It just sucks. I really thought the two of you would hit it off.”

“So…are we still…are we still friends?”

Marisol watched bemusedly at her theatrics, Alecto gasping as she threw her hand over her heart.

“You think I’d let some dirt of a boy take my best mate away? Never, my love.” Alecto grinned as Marisol finally caved to the laughter in her chest. “It is a bit of a bummer. We both thought we were finally making a connection but instead…”

“Instead we realized he’s just another name to cross off the list. And that is still progress.” With a point of her finger and a nod, they tapped their mugs together and sipped their coffee, talking about an abundance of other things.

Marisol was determined to find someone for Alecto. Rocco wasn’t the right fit, but she knew that her sweetheart of a best mate deserved someone just for her. Noah, Gary, and Henrik were all nixed from the list. Noah was unavailable, and the other boys were great in friend territory but they wouldn’t fit more than that. Henrik still thought she was too high maintenance of a girlfriend- though Marisol had seen him date far worse.

Gary liked her once, but his head could be turned by anyone with a pretty face until he got serious, and Marisol didn’t want to risk him hurting her. Marisol needed to look wider.

Ibrahim was in her lit class, but too shy for someone as extroverted as Alecto.

Jakub was someone she routinely ran into at the gym, but as fit as he was she would never subject her best mate to his behavior.

Bobby could’ve been a fair shot, but they had already tried and deemed themselves friends.

Arjun was funny but was as much of a serial dater as Rocco seemed.

Carl was smart but a little pompous.

Finally, she found the perfect candidate.

Lucas was in her history class. He was funny, and outgoing, and sweeter than a posh boy had the right to be. He spent his time on breaks from uni helping the community he was from. He was exactly what Alecto needed.

The issue was approaching him about it.

And as much as Lottie hated Marisol now, she had seen the tatted blonde around him.

So she steeled her nerves, and made an approach.

“Oh, look. More snakes in the grass.”

Marisol sighed, but she’d anticipated that. “Look, I know you don’t like me, but-“

“It’s not about if I like you, babes.” Lottie scoffed, “Lect seems to think you’re trustworthy for whatever reason.”

“I didn’t go behind her back on purpose.”

“Didn’t say you did.”

“You implied it.” Marisol sighed again. “Nevermind. I’ll do this myself.”

Lottie scoffed again, “What? Gonna snake her again?”

“No!” She snapped, “I found someone that’ll be perfect for her! I don’t care if I find my spark at this point. But Lec deserves to feel it. She’s…. She’s everything good in this world.”

Lottie seemed to stare her down, like she was trying to break her down to her barest components and examine each one. Until she finally looked off at nothing with a sour expression, “Fine. But just to be clear, you’re right. I don’t like you.”

Working with Lottie seemed impossible at times, and just improbable at others. Every suggestion Marisol had was shut down in seconds, but the worst part was that Lottie usually had a valid explanation to shut it down. The law student was at the end of her rope. And then Lottie had the idea.

“We’ll be friendly with each other, or whatever, ‘Sol. Lect will be so over the moon about it, she won’t question what happened. I’ve already had words with Lucas, so if we both start feeding the idea to her, we can win her over.”

It wasn’t a bad plan, Marisol had to admit. So, when she hung out with Alecto next, she proposed inviting Lottie. And, while shocked, her best mate was beaming that she’d be willing to give her another shot.

Sharp words and even sharper glares were passed between them when she wasn’t looking, but she had her two favorite people together. Marisol was just glad the two of them had an understanding. When she was finally with Lucas, they’d go their separate ways. She could deal with Lottie’s comments about her until then.

But it was taking weeks.

Alecto was wishy washy about getting back into dating, but the two of them could see that she was interested in Lucas during the brief meetings they’d orchestrated- Lucas and Lottie arriving at the cafe just as Marisol and Alecto were leaving causing the two ‘friends’ to insist they caught up for at least a few minutes, Marisol asking for tutoring help from Lucas (that he was too kind to say no to even though he knew she didn’t need it) until it was time for Alecto start studying for the lit exam with her, Lottie planning movie nights and purposely making sure every seat was taken except for the one beside Lucas.

And Lucas was definitely interested. He couldn’t keep his heart eyes to himself if he tried.

So they just needed one last push.

Which is how Marisol found herself hiding in a bush near a diner with Lottie.

The two of them were supposed to be meeting with Alecto and Lucas for dinner, separately. They watched until the two of them awkwardly met up outside the door, chatting and flirting, before Marisol sent the text saying she couldn’t make it because of a surprise exam in her law class. Lottie waited, knowing Lucas would swoop in to be the hero, and when he offered her to join him and Lottie, she sent her own text canceling.

Alecto wasn’t stupid, but they knew she would finally take the opportunity in front of her.

So they watched as their best mate asked the boy if he was okay having dinner, just the two of them.

They stayed a while longer, watching how Lucas made her laugh and she’d rest her hand on his arm.

Lottie finally smirked at Marisol, “We done good, kid.”

“Finally.” Marisol heaved a sigh of relief. “If he steps out on her-“

“He’d never. I would’ve never helped if I thought he would. Bloke might be daft sometimes, but he’s a family friend and he’s not a big enough knob to cross me like that.” Marisol laughed, but when she looked back at Lottie there was an unreadable expression on her face. “You’re pretty okay, ‘Sol.”

Marisol blinked, “Oh. Thank you. You are, too, Luna.” Lottie just shrugged. Without another word, the tattooed girl walked off.

It only takes two days before Marisol reaches for her phone, intent on sharing date gossip Alecto had just spilled, when she realizes that Lottie probably doesn’t want her to. But then that thought catches her and it won’t let go. When had she started thinking of Lottie as a friend to chat with?

It could’ve been when the smirk started accompanying her insults, taking away some of their bite and becoming more along the lines of teasing. Inside jokes.

It could’ve been when Lucas had offered Marisol some wine one night, and Lottie had told him it had better be a red wine because any white made her sleepwalk, and she remembered the time she’d accidentally told Lottie about waking up in stationary closets.

It could’ve been when their meetings at the cafe to help Alecto became conversations that included other things, and Lottie always seemed to have her favorite ready for her when she got there because the other was always there first.

It could’ve been when Lottie started her that nickname that seemed to fluster her deep inside, even though she was no stranger to nicknames. When she started calling her Luna because it meant moon.

But suddenly she realized that they were friends.

And she might’ve wanted more.

Storming into Alecto’s apartment, she was already ranting as soon as the door opened, “When you said we would hit it off- what did you mean? Because at first we weren’t even friendly, and I have no idea when it started to change but it did and now I want it to keep changing but I have no idea how to-“

She froze midstep, seeing Lottie sitting on the couch and sniffling with Lucas rubbing her shoulder. Suddenly her own frustration didn’t matter.

“Babes, what happened?”

“Rejection does this to a person.” Lottie scoffed, but Marisol could see the hurt she tried to hide.

“Who is the daft minger-“ taking a deep breath, Marisol took her hand, “If they rejected you, then they aren’t worth the tears, Luna. He isn’t good enough for you.”

Lucas seemed to glance past Marisol, clearing his throat and excusing himself when Alecto patted her shoulder and encouraged them to talk. Lottie was quiet for a long moment after they left, “What if…it wasn’t a guy?”

Marisol shrugged, “Then she isn’t worth it. Trust me, I know the sting of that.”

Lottie’s eyes hardened with determination, “What you were saying when you came in-“

“Don’t you worry about that.” Marisol waved her hand, “I’ll get over it. I’d never make any unwanted advances.”

“….what if they’re wanted?” Marisol’s eyes almost bugged out of her head. Lottie hadn’t even liked her when they met, and it took weeks for her icy exterior to thaw a little bit. But had she really been chipping away at the wall around her heart at the same time? Lottie cleared her throat, “Why do you call me Luna?”

“Because you call me ‘Sol.” She answered seriously, “I know you mean it as a shortened form of my name. But it translates to-“

“To sun. I know. That’s why I say it.”

“W-What?”

Lottie gripped her hands, like she was afraid Marisol would disappear, “When we met, no matter what Lect told me I wanted to lump you in with that prat. But then I kept feeling this…magnetism, I guess. My eyes would dart to you when I’d pass you in the quad, even before that night. I wanted to reach out for more than just helping out our mutual friend. It was like you had this gravitational pull. And you were so…bright and warm. Those aren’t things that are ever used to describe me, but you would still let me bask in it with you when I wasn’t even nice to you.”

“Luna, babes, I don’t want you to say something you’ll regret just because you got hurt-“

“You hurt me.” Lottie answered defiantly, “I kept hoping you’d reach out. Show me that it meant more to you than just setting them up. But I was too afraid to do it myself.”

Marisol wasn’t naive. She knew this level of vulnerability wasn’t something Lottie was known for.

So she did the only thing she could think of to convey what she meant.

Marisol kissed Lottie.

And she didn’t stop until she needed to breath, but as soon as she inhaled, Lottie pulled her right back in.

“You two are really living in a fan fiction, huh?” They jerked apart to see their best mate leaning against the doorway, Lucas just behind her with his arm snaked around her waist. She looked Marisol in the eye, “How’s that spark feeling?”

Trying to quell the blush she felt in her cheeks, she chances a look at Lottie only to meet her smile and match it, “Feels more like a bonfire now.”

Masterlist

@justtuesdays @sunshinejihyun

#litg #litg season 2 #litg marisol #litg lottie #litg Marisol x Lottie #enemies to friends to lovers #no villa au #s2litgexchange

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mochegato · 3 years ago

Text

Even the Losers

Chapter 9

Chapter 1 Chapter 8

Marinette stopped a few feet from the corner of the restaurant at which M. Wayne had made their reservation in order to collect herself. She checked her reflection in the restaurant’s darkened windows to make sure nothing had changed in the past few minutes. It wasn’t that she wanted to impress M. Wayne, but she didn’t want to make him think less of her either. She wanted to be perfect for him and yeah, maybe, she wanted to impress him, make him want to stay… this time.

She brushed her bangs out of her face a little rougher than she intended to, trying to force those thoughts out of her head and punish herself for thinking them in the first place. This wasn’t about making him like her. She lived this long without him. She didn’t need him. She’d be just fine without him. She had been so far. It didn’t matter if he didn’t love her. It didn’t matter if he didn’t like her. It didn’t mean she was unloveable.

She watched as her reflection deflated. It just meant that one of the two people who were biologically programmed to love her no matter what, didn’t. That he fought through biology to brush her off. She shook her head and stood straight up again. But! But, that didn’t make her unloveable. Jagged did the same to Luka and Juleka and they were two of the most amazing people she knew. They weren’t unloveable, and neither was she. They repaired their relationship and so could she.

This was about adding to her family, not filling a hole in her life. There was no Bruce Wayne shaped hole in her life. His opinion of her didn’t matter. His opinion of her didn’t change who she was. She was going to be who she was around him and if he didn’t like it, she lost nothing. She would still have an amazing family. She would still have amazing friends. She would still be loved.

This was about him fitting into her life. Not the other way around. This was about her deciding if there was a place for him. If she wanted him there, to give him a chance or not. This was about getting answers so she could make those decisions. She took a breath. This was about giving him a chance to speak and for her to listen to what he said.

She nodded to her reflection resolutely and pushed through the doors to the restaurant’s waiting area. Her eyes widened incrementally seeing the lobby. It screamed luxury and exclusivity. Only certain people were allowed here and Marinette was confident if she hadn’t been meeting Bruce Wayne, she wouldn’t be considered one of those people. The maître d’ eyed her with a sneer that looked so at home on his face it must have been his normal expression.

She gave him a nervous smile. “I’m here for a reservation under the name Wayne.” The maître d’ looked her up and down and gave a curt nod. He walked toward the doors to the dining room without saying anything to her.

Marinette smoothed down her hair one last time as the maître d’ led her through the doors to the dining area. She clutched her purse so tightly her knuckles were turning white. She really hoped Tikki had found a different spot to hide in, because otherwise it had to be incredibly uncomfortable for her. Marinette was focusing all of her tension into her hand and forcing the rest of her body to relax so she wouldn’t appear as terrified as she actually was. Now if she could just get her heart to start beating in a regular rhythm, she’d be all set.

She gave a nervous smile to Bruce as he stood to greet her and struggled to remember any part of the pep talk she had just given herself a few minutes ago. Because as soon as she saw his relieved and excited face, she started forgetting. It was not about wanting to see that expression on his face and knowing she was the cause. This was about her. She should not be filled with anxiety about making him lose that expression and wanting to walk away. He was proving himself, she wasn’t proving herself.

“Marinette!” He gave her a warm smile and held his hand out to shake hers while she went in for a cheek kiss greeting at the same time. He chuckled awkwardly and quickly shifted his hand to her arm as he kissed her cheek as well. He nodded to the maître d’ and pulled her chair out for her. As soon as they were alone, he sat down anxiously. “Thank you again for agreeing to meet me. You look nice.”

Marinette smiled and nodded to him. “So do you. And thank you for agreeing at such short notice.”

He chuckled nervously. His eyes darted between her, his glass of wine, the menu, really anything as he searched for his next words. It shouldn’t be this hard. He spoke to boardrooms of hostile and dangerous businesspeople. Speaking to his daughter shouldn’t be harder. She wasn’t going to destroy a city. She wasn’t going to undermine entire groups of people just so she could make a few more dollars. She wasn’t dangerous… well, not to anyone but him. With him, she had the power to destroy his heart with just one word.

“I ordered a merlot if you would like some. If not, I can call someone in…”

He started to get up to call someone over, but Marinette lunged at him to get him to sit down and not draw attention to them, knocking over his glass of merlot. Marinette’s eyes widened in horror. “Oh no, no, no, no,” she whimpered helplessly. She grabbed a few napkins to clean it up. Why? Why did her clumsiness have to act up now? In front of M. Wayne. Why did she have to be such a klutz? She could feel the tears stinging her eyes as they tried to escape.

“Marinette,” Bruce cooed gently. He gently gripped her wrists and pulled them away from the table. “Marinette, it’s okay. It happens. You should see a normal dinner at the manor. If there isn’t at least one spill or something isn’t broken, we start thinking someone is sick.” She finally looked up at him apprehensively and he could feel the breath leaving his chest. His eyes softened and he tried to give her an encouraging smile. “It’s fine. We can just move to another table and I’ll leave a big tip.”

Her eyes widened even larger and she looked around. “We can’t just…” She stopped when she noticed the empty restaurant. It was prime dinnertime, or at least it was in France. Maybe a bit early, but not uncommon. But this restaurant was completely empty. Not even families with kids. And there was no way M. Wayne would choose a restaurant that nobody liked. “Do Gothamites eat dinner really early? Or really late?” she whispered, not wanting to break the silence that engulfed them.

“Hmm?” Bruce hummed in confusion.

“There aren’t any… It just isn’t as crowded as I would expect,” she explained. “Not that that doesn’t work in my favor in this case.”

“Oh,” he nodded his head in realization and gave her a soft smile. “No, not as crowded as the place usually is. I rented it out.”

“You rented out the entire restaurant?” she whispered incredulously. “At the last minute?”

Bruce’s smile widened at the astonished look on her face. “I didn’t want people gawking at us all night or taking pictures and the manor is rather hectic.” He grimaced slightly at the thought. “Not to mention, we’d have just as many gawkers there. And I wanted this first meeting to be just between us. So I made sure we had some privacy.”

Marinette shook her head. “Right. Forgot. Rich.”

Bruce chuckled too. “Yeah, I forget sometimes too.” He sat at a table next to the one they had been sitting at.

Marinette scoffed lightly and joined him at the new table. “I doubt that.” She slapped her hand over her mouth, her eyes going wide as she stared at him. “Sorry. I’m sorry. That was… so rude,” she stuttered. She dropped her eyes quickly. She mentally berated herself for sabotaging this so efficiently. She doubted she could do it more effectively if she were trying.

Bruce shook his head. “No, not at all. You’re not wrong. And a lot more polite about it than Jason would have been. Or Stephanie.”

Marinette looked back up at him through her bangs. “Oh… um… okay.”

Bruce squeezed his eyes shut behind his menu. He was screwing this up so badly. Instead of making her feel more comfortable, he was making her increasingly nervous and doubtful. He pursed his lips as he searched for anything to talk about to lighten the mood. “I hope you like it here. The food is really good.” He had to stop himself from physically slapping himself for that terrible non-sequitur. His entire job was to say things in an engaging, elegant way. It was a skill he’d started honing decades ago. Where was that training now?

Marinette opened her menu as well with an anxious smile. “Great. I’m starving.”

“Hi Starving, I’m your father.”

Marinette blinked a few times at him, trying to catch his eye but he was staring blankly at his menu. “Did you just…”

“I admit to nothing,” he answered flatly, still staring at his menu.

Marinette continued to stare for a few seconds before breaking down into giggles, the tension that had been building since she entered the restaurant breaking with his joke. “I… I can’t… believe you sai… said that,” she gasped out between laughs.

He watched her with an amused glint in his eyes and a relieved smile. “Do not tell your siblings. Dick will pout for a week that he wasn’t here to hear it.”

Marinette let her giggles die down and nodded. She looked up at him with a much more relaxed smile. “Not known for your sense of humor?”

“No, definitely not,” Bruce shook his head with a grin. He set down his menu to focus on Marinette. “Jason used to tease me mercilessly about it.”

Marinette quirked her head to the side, an amused smile pulling at the corners of her mouth. “And was Jason a comedian or he just liked to tease you?”

“A little of both. Dick is more of our comedian. He’s usually the first to make a joke… to lighten the mood. Stephanie will make a fool out of herself to get you to smile, or herself. She likes being over the top. But Jason, when he was a kid, was excited about everything. Everything in life was new and exciting. He was constantly smiling and bouncing from thing to thing. So optimistic.” Bruce’s eyes unfocused as he remembered the first year after Jason came to the manor.

Marinette furrowed her brow in doubt. Not a single one of those words were ones she would use to describe Jason from the time she’d spent with him. Maybe her translation of the words was wrong? “Jason? Jason Todd. Your son Jason.”

Bruce chuckled wryly. “Yes, that Jason. “ A pained expression flashed across his face morphing into a sad frown he didn’t even try to hide. “A lot changed over the years. Some… things happened about eight years ago. It changed all of us.”

Marinette let out a dry laugh as images of Hawaiian shirts and rock giants flashed through her head. She turned back to her menu to avoid his eyes. “I can understand that.”

Bruce furrowed his brow, a guilty frown settling on his lips for a few seconds before he plastered on a smile. “Now he’s more likely to make a sarcastic remark than a joke. But, he’s fiercely protective of his family, maybe more than any of the rest of us.”

Marinette thought back over their interactions and slowly started nodding. “He seems like it.” She paused when the waitress came in to take their orders. She smiled politely while the waitress was in the room, acting the part of a dutiful, happy daughter rather than a temperamental stranger who took her frustrations and insecurities out on him without letting him explain. And that’s what this was about, letting him explain. But before he could do that, she needed to make sure he knew she wasn’t mad. Well… that she wasn’t going to attack him anyway.

As soon as the waitress left, her shield was gone. She could no longer hide behind the façade. Now she had to face him. She looked down and squeezed her eyes shut. She took a beat before she looked back up at Bruce. “I wanted to say sorry for how I behaved when you came to my hotel room. I wasn’t being fair to you. I only found out about you a few days ago and then the world found out and then you were at my door. It was a lot all at once and I did not handle it well, so I’m sorry.”

Even with half her face hidden from looking down as she spoke, Bruce could see the shame radiating from her expression. When she finally looked up to make eye contact he had to force himself not to gasp at the guilt and pain in her eyes. His heart clenched at the sight. He hated seeing her look like that. He’d do anything to keep that look off her face. That was his job. That was the entire point of what he’d done. But he failed. He might have failed at it so far, but he was going to make up for it now… if she would let him.

His hand shot out almost too quickly to see and gently squeezed hers, hoping that at least that level of intimacy was allowed. “No, I invaded your space. I forced a confrontation before you were ready. I knew I shouldn’t do that. Sabine… your mother warned me not to do that and I did it anyway. I’m sorry for that. I didn’t… I didn’t want to lose my chance to…” He looked down at the table and frowned trying to get his words in order.

“I didn’t want you to leave before I could talk to you, to try to connect and explain.” He looked at her almost desperately. “You were here, right here. So close. I couldn’t let you slip through my fingers again, not when I knew you knew. Not when I didn’t have to keep it a secret anymore.” He frowned and looked down at his glass, pulling his hand back into his lap. He suddenly chuckled wryly. “If there was ever a good reason to begin with.”

Marinette sucked in a breath not ready for this conversation yet. She thought they’d ease into it. Get comfortable, then get into it. But apparently M. Wayne’s approach was to rip the Band-Aid off. Dealing with uncomfortable situations was definitely not an inherited trait because her method of avoiding any uncomfortable conversations in increasingly unlikely and embarrassing manors until the entire thing festered into a debilitating, unnecessarily explosive fiasco, was not a technique she picked up from her maman either.

Bruce looked back up at her with a determined look. “Marinette, you had a right to react. You had… have a right to be upset or hurt or both. I deserved it. Believe me, I understand that. I’ve gotten worse from your siblings for less. Don’t feel like you have to apologize to me. However you react, I can take it and I’m not going to walk away again. But I am hoping that you being here means you want to move forward, you want to try.” He looked up at her questioningly, an edge of fear in his eyes. “Do you?”

Marinette let out the breath she’d taken in. She looked down and pushed a strand of hair that was still in place behind her ear, letting her fingers linger so she had something else to focus on for a moment. When she looked back up, there was a more determined look in her eyes. “Yes. I… I want to listen. I want to understand.”

Bruce nodded with a grateful smile. “Thank you. I know this is a lot and it hasn’t been fair to you and I’m sorry for… everything.”

Marinette nodded. “Thank you.” They both sat and looked in the vicinity of each other uneasily, both waiting for the other to say something first. Marinette tapped her fingers together while she waited for him to continue speaking, to give the explanation he’d promised.

Bruce was waiting for… he wasn’t sure. Inspiration maybe. He’d thought through what he wanted to say. He’d gone over it all, but somehow seeing her in front of him, looking in her eyes and seeing her vulnerability laid bare, none of his excuses seemed like enough. None of them seemed valid, but then again, they never were.

After a few minutes of silence, he finally spoke up. “When you were born, I was younger than you are now and I didn’t think I’d be able to be a good father.” He frowned at the table. “And in my head it was better for you to not be with me at all. I thought I’d bring you down. But your mother…” he gave her a wan smile, “she was always strong and good. I knew she would be an amazing mother… without my interference. I thought you had a better chance away from me and Gotham and in my idiot mind that meant cutting off all contact.”

“But you took in other kids,” she pointed out timidly.

Bruce nodded and flicked his eyes up to hers before looking back down in guilt. “I didn’t intend to. I came across Dick about awhile after your mother took you to France. He lost his parents. They died, were killed in front of his eyes, like mine had been. He was angry and violent. He needed someone and I thought I could help. I might not be a good parent, but I could help him… keep him from becoming… me.”

Marinette’s brow furrowed sympathetically. “Would that be bad?”

Bruce cringed slightly, remembering how he was at the time. “Yes, it would have. Anger and desperation? They can do bad things to a person.” He looked at her pointedly. “Makes you make terrible decisions.”

Marinette nodded in understanding. She understood how far desperation could drive a person. She understood how dark some people could go. She understood how bad things could get if they continued unchecked. She’d fought those people. She’d helped defeat one of them. And no matter how bad the battle was, it was always harder handling them after they were defeated, when all they had was their grief.

“Jason… he came a few years later. He was alone and on the streets. He was tough and smart and so excited about life, but he was never going to get the opportunity to do anything on the streets.”

“And you wanted to help him too,” Marinette finished his unfinished thought.

“Yeah. He needed someone to let him be a kid, let him be passionate, to love him like a parent should. And I couldn’t leave him there. And Tim… he kind of snuck in and declared himself family. He wasn’t wrong. He is. He came along after Jason… was gone. He filled a void I didn’t even know I had until he stepped in. And I hope I’ve done the same for him. He didn’t have the best childhood either. And now… I can’t imagine the family without him.”

Marinette gave him a small smile. “Sounds like he adopted you.”

Bruce nodded absently, his eyes taking on a far-off focus as he remembered the past. “Sometimes children are smarter than their parent. In the case of my kids,” he looked up at her meaningfully, “all of them, it’s true.

“They didn’t have a better choice… you did. And in my idiotic self-destructive mind, I was helping you. I was convinced for more than a decade that the best thing I’d done in my life, the most selfless, was walk away from you, not force you to have to suffer with dealing with me. But I was just afraid and selfish. I made a stupid choice. By the time I realized how monumentally I’d screwed up, Jason was gone and by the time I got my head back on right, Damian was here and Damian needed all my attention.”

“You didn’t have Damian since he was a baby?”

Bruce shook his head. “No. I didn’t even know about him until he was ten. Then his mother just dropped him off with me. His childhood…” Bruce let out a long breath. “His grandfather taught him since birth that he needed to earn love, or as close as he’s capable to love. Damian’s mother told him he was better than everyone else… so you can imagine the kinds of issues we had for quite a while.”

He gave a proud smile. “He’s made such a big change since he came. He’s grown so much.”

“You sound proud,” she observed poignantly.

Bruce’s smile turned bittersweet. “I’m proud of all of my kids. You’re all amazing people. I don’t know how I ended up with so many amazing kids.”

She smiled and hoped it didn’t come off as awkward as it felt. “So what about Duke? And I think Jason mentioned sisters.”

Bruce nodded. “Cass is the only one I adopted. Stephanie is just around enough that she’s essentially a child. Same with Barbara. I ran into Cass while I was travelling. Her parents were mentally and physically abusive to the point that she didn’t speak until she was a teenager.” Marinette gasped. “She’s a lot better. She communicates with us a lot, mostly through sign language. And Duke… Joker tortured his parents because they saved me once.”

Marinette gasped and grasped his hand, squeezing it. When he met her eyes she gave him another encouraging squeeze and a warm smile. “They’ve all come such a long way. I’m sure a better parent could have done more but somehow we’ve all become a slightly dysfunctional family. Watching them… It’s amazing to see how far they’ve all come. They’ve all had to fight so hard, go against so many obstacles.”

“It sounds like you’ve done a lot of work with all of them. And they’ve grown amazingly with you watching over them. They were incredibly lucky to have you,” Marinette said quietly a strained smile on her face, no longer making eye contact with Bruce. She took back her hand to take a drink of her wine.

Those were valid reasons. She could admit that and she didn’t begrudge them the better life being with M. Wayne afforded them, but still… She fought frowning at her lap. It all made sense. Every step made sense. They needed someone and he could provide, so he did. From an objective perspective. It made sense. Did it make her a bad person if that didn’t make her feel better? What did it say about her that she was still hurt? That she still was angry, felt betrayed? That it wasn’t enough?

Bruce’s face fell as he watched her change in demeanor. His chest clenched. “I never stopped thinking about you and how you were doing. I never stopped loving you.” He reached out for her hand but let his hand dropped when she didn’t offer it readily. “I know you don’t feel that way about me, you just met me, but I’ve loved you from the moment you were born. And I know it’s hard to see and I don’t show it well… at all… but I’ve always tried to make sure you were taken care of, that you never wanted for anything. I’ve kept up on your life to make sure.

“And I need you to know it was never because I didn’t want you. It was never that I thought my other kids were better than you in any way. It was never because I didn’t think you were good enough. I didn’t think I was. I thought you deserved better than I could ever give you, better than you could get in Gotham. But running away wasn’t the way to do that, and I realize that.” He was unsure how to interpret the wide eyed look Marinette was giving him, but he plowed on, needing to say it anyway.

“I really did intend to try to connect. That’s why I went to your final showing. I showed pictures of your work to someone on the fabric project and said I happened to see you there.” He chuckled lightly and shook his head. “I thought I’d have to do a bunch of conniving behind the scenes to get Lucius to use you. But as it turns out, he’s just as excited to get you on the project as I was. He mentioned you to me after you spoke with him.”

Marinette smiled. It was small and self-conscious, but significantly better for Bruce to see than the strained smile she’d had earlier. “M. Fox is a very nice man. I liked speaking with him a lot.”

“And he is quite fond of you.” Bruce smiled fondly at her but his smile quickly turned conspiratorial. “I think he likes you better than he likes me, actually.”

Marinette straightened up in her seat. “I plan on accepting his offer to consult on the project.” She looked up to make eye contact with Bruce. Her body tensed slightly in preparation for her next words. “If… if that’s okay with you.”

Marinette gave a small, uncertain smile when she saw Bruce’s brilliant smile. “Yes! That’s great to hear.” His face turned serious. “What does that mean for… do you want to…”

“I was hoping to take you up on the apartment offer as well… if that’s still an option.” Marinette looked down again, her anxiety back. “It will help Max while he settles in and I thought I could use it while I figure out how the project is going to work and what the requirements on my time will be.” She tapped her fingers together, unable to control her fidgeting. She looked up nervously. “I thought it would also give us a chance to see each other more and your other kids.”

“Absolutely. It is absolutely still available. If you want your own apartment, I can get a penthouse for you. Or you’re welcome to stay at the manor,” he rambled excitedly.

“M. Wayne,” Marinette interrupted. Bruce immediately sobered at her serious expression. “I don’t need special treatment. I don’t need you to buy me things. And I don’t know how long I’ll be in town. Adrien and I are trying to figure out where we want to set up and I’ll need to start taking commissions again.”

Bruce nodded. “I understand. Sorry. I got excited and got carried away. Rich, you know… it’s how we show love.”

Marinette’s face immediately soured as she thought of Adrien’s and Chloe’s childhoods. “That’s not love you’re showing. I’m staying to get to know you and your family, not get things.”

Bruce blinked at her a few times. “Right. I know that. I never thought it was,” he assured her awkwardly. He took a sip of his wine and glanced around the room. He suddenly perked up. “Speaking of commissions, I was hoping we could finally commission you… if that’s okay!” he added quickly. “I don’t want to put pressure on you. I’ve just been waiting to get something made by you for years.”

Marinette blinked a few times and looked down. Her brow furrowed. She fought letting out a sigh. “No, you’re right. I should.”

“We’ll pay you, of course,” he insisted.

Marinette rolled her eyes. “I’m not going to charge you to make something for you.”

Bruce shook his head. “You run a business. I’m commissioning the business. I can cover our commission.”

Marinette huffed and narrowed her eyes at him. “Compromise. You pay for materials. Nothing more.”

Bruce narrowed his eyes back at her. “Materials and time.”

Marinette huffed out a laugh. “Okay fine.”

Bruce grinned. “I’m excited to work with you. I wasn’t kidding. I’ve wanted to commission you for years. I’m a fan of your style and art.”

Marinette opened her mouth but closed it quickly when the waitress came back in with their food. Bruce leaned back so she could set the plates down. “Speaking of, how would you feel about going to the art museum tomorrow and then maybe get some lunch after?”

Marinette nodded. “Oh yeah, there was an exhibit that looked interesting.” She nodded to the waitress and thanked her. The waitress lingered for just a moment before leaving the room.

“Would 9 work for you? Oh, no wait.” He scrunched his face in annoyance. “I have a meeting at 10. It should be done by noon though.” He looked up and gave her an earnest look. “I’ll make sure it is done by noon. How about lunch then art museum?”

Marinette smiled and nodded. “That sounds good.”

“Great. I can bring the keys for the new apartment. Now, I’ve done all the talking. Tell me more about you. Tell me about your friends.” He took a bite giving Marinette his full attention while Marinette talked about her friends and how they had all met and some stories about their time together.

She started out slowly, building up more confidence as she spoke. The more she spoke the more comfortable she was with what she wanted to say. The quicker she was able to filter out what information she didn’t want to share. She wasn’t ready to give him much yet, not enough to do anything with, not more than he could probably get from searching Instagram or Tik Tok, but it was a start. A start to what exactly, she wasn’t sure. But it was a start to something.

Tags:

@maribat-bdbwm @jayjayspixiepop @redscarlet95 @alice-hazelwood @deathssilentapproach-blog @unoriginalmess @alyssadeliv @emotionalsupportginger @frieddonutsweets @when-no-wings-do-broomsticks @toodaloo-kangaroo @colorfulmongerpsychicranch @iloontjeboontje @wolf-for-life @maribatserver @aespades @prettylittlebutterflie @imarivers8 @ certainmuffinbagelcalzone@ritacrow-blog @unoriginalmess @demonicbusiness @kking13 @lady-bee-fechin @blur-of-colours @kittenmywaythrulife @kashlyn @loysydark

#maribat #bio!dad bruce #bio dad bruce wayne #roynette #Even the Losers #prompt - dad jokes

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aliensunflower-fics · 4 years ago

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Marinette The Perfect Daughter In Law: A Prompt

[ I've seen a few ‘everyone loves Marinette AU’s’ and a couple Marvel DC ‘all the mentors want THEIR kid to end up with Marinette AU’s’ and well frankly! I felt inspired! So I present to you my new prompt / AU thing! In which all the most powerful / rich / popular people in Paris decide to play matchmaker… ]

It starts when Adrien and Kagami have a less than AMICABLE break up according to their parents and the media anyway in reality it was a really REALLY dull break up. The pair have been ‘dating’ (using each other as an excuse to go out and experience normal teenage stuff) since they were 15. Now at 17 soon to be 18 the pair decided to publicly break up in order to pursue other people and interests. The problem is they never told their parents the truth so both Gabriel and Kagami’s mother Tomeo feel protective and concerned about what must surely be an upsetting first heartbreak for their child. And okay maybe both parents take that out on each other and both get a bit defensive and protective. And MAYBE it ends with Tomeo vowing to get revenge for her daughter. Enter, Marinette. Up and coming fashion designer for the rich and famous! She’s single, talented, and as far as Tomeo knows Gabriel is interested in the girl for her talent. So what better revenge could exist but having Marinette take an interest in Kagami!

Kagami has no idea why her mother suddenly has an interest in Marinette but she wont complain about having more time with her very cute designer friend. And all the outfits Tomeo is paying Marinette to make for Kagami is giving the young fencer plenty of up-close and personal moments with Marinette. And okay Marinette is VERY cute and Kagami wont question why she suddenly has all this tine with Marinette, eating ice cream with the girl and having brunch. But she knows shes absolutely head over heels when Marinette shows up at her fencing tournament gives her a luck charm and cheers her on wearing HER colors. Obviously Kagami wiped the floor with all the competition she cant be seen hesitating in front of Marinette!

On Tomeo’s side of things she makes sure that the paparazzi still lurking around after Kagami and Adrien’s breakup catch photos of what could easily be interpreted as dates between the girls. After all this is a revenge ploy but also Marinette is fantastic so Tomeo is 300% down with Kagami ‘bringing her into the family’ something she tells Kagami after the first paparazzi ‘date photos’ leak into the news. Kagami still has no idea this was an orchestrated affair and just thinks her mothers caught on to her feelings and is overjoyed that Marinette is approved of because after the cheek kiss Marinette gave her for winning the fencing tournament Kagami was preparing to fight her mother for the right to pursue the young designer seriously. After all she never hesitates!

But Tomeo never realized Gabriel isnt the only one interested in Marinette. Audrey Bourgeouis has been keeping an eye on Marinette trying to find a way to get Marinette on to her side and away from Gabriel. So when she sees the photos of Kagami and Marinette she sees an opportunity. After all if Marinette isnt exclusively into men (and those photos of her flushed cheeks as Kagami cleans ice cream off her bottom lip are a clear indication shes not) then Audrey smells opportunity. After all Marinette was Chloe’s first crush! How cute would that be! The next day Marinette is being offered yet another opportunity to intern under Audrey this time with much looser restrictions. When Marinette accepts she suddenly finds herself working with Chloe… A LOT. The pair are modeling together, often paired together for shoots in perfect complementary clothes that screams ‘opposites attract’. Chloe is also helping manage Marinette’s brand and the two start to get along very well. The model photos and their business lunches are soon plastered alongside the Kagami and Marinette outings with parisian gossip blogs finding their interest picked by this potential love triangle.

Chloe for one, was confused at first. Sure she knew her mom was interested in Marinette but she never thought SHE would be working so closely with her first crush. And Chloe tries to ignore it, after all those are dead feelings! And Marinette woud never forgive her anyway so why even- Wait. Is that Marinette in a downright gorgeous golden dress? A-and she will be posing right next to Chloe for their shared shoot? Well… Chloe always thought herself deserving of royalty and damn if Marinette aint the princess of her dreams. Sorry Adriken’s you had your chance to get the girl, but now its winner keeps all and Marinette is the only prize shes interested in. For the record Alya is freaked out by Chloe being nice, but shes more weirded out by Chloe being protective and handsy and downright shamelessly flirty with Marinette. Audrey is pleased when she hears the news and is quick to give her daughter encouragement acting as if none of this was premeditated at ALL.

Oh but they have no idea that this is just the beginning. Because guess who's moved back into town. Adrien’s favorite cousin and aunty. And Felix’s mom is quite the busybody and dammit Felix needs friends! And maybe a cute girlfriend! And oh whos that pretty girl on the magazine cover? Marinette? The one her celebrity connections have nothing but praise for? Perfect! Shes invited to lunch with Felix and herself on friday to discuss movie costumes! And oh Audrey dear dont you think Marinette would look fabulous sandwiched between TWO blondes! Felix hasnt modeled in a while but come now. So suddenly Marinette is being spotted with Felix guiding him about paris and modeling with him AND Chloe under AUDREY’s brand NOT Gabriels.

Felix thought hed really hate Marinette; he tried to ignore her he really did. But shes funny, witty and sweet. Not to mention trustworthy, so a good candidate for a business partner. And thats it, but then he has to admit hes impressed when he rolls up to a photoshoot and Chloe! The definition of brat personified is acting… Bearable. Yes, somehow Marinette has done the impossible! She has tamed the beast known as Chloe. And yes fine he will admit shes drop dead gorgeous and how intelligent of her to learn all sides of the fashion industry and boost her rep with modelling! Soon hes spending more time with her, he tries to argue he needs a guide, that shes the most bearable person to be with! That she is just a friend- Oh god. No it cant be! He sounds like-! Like ADRIEN! And Chloe already told him about THAT mess! No! Absolutely not! He will not lead on Marinette like his idiot cousin! Marinette is a rare and beautiful woman! She could be his queen! And god he has to admit it much as he loathes too Marinette’s smile is enough to make him thank every non-existent god. He will win her heart, show her that she deserves better than his brain dead cousin! Felix is sure mother will approve of his decision to pursue the girl, now he just needs to do more shoots with Marinette...

And that's what finally gets Gabriel to snap. Because REALLY Felix!? Is there no loyalty to FAMILY. Not to mention he was totally drafting a potential contract for Marinette when Audrey snapped her up the witch! But its fine! Marinette has always been interested in Adrien! Surely she still is? Surely she's not been swayed by any of her new suitors! Right? Gabriel knows he can't mess with Audrey’s contract so he goes through Adrien, freeing up his sons schedule and telling him to spend time with Marinette to help her ‘adapt’ to the harsh world of fashion and modeling. He uses Adrien’s heroic nature to make it sound like hed be saving her from Chloe and Felix. And sure enough Adrien bites, using his friendship with Chloe to worm into fittings, meetings, and photo shoots. At first hes just there to make sure Chloe and Felix arent hurting sweet Marinette. But when he sees the blondes fighting for her attention, flirting with her, posing with her in some rather romantic settings. Suddenly hes less worried and more… Jealous? No! Not him! Hes concerned, confused, suspicious! Obviously he needs to spend more time with Mari- Wait! When did Kagami get here to take Marinette to lunch! And why are they all ignoring him!!!

Now Marinette is fully in the public's eye. Gossip blogs are being fed bits of info writing up each ‘candidates’ appeal as THE romantic partner to the Marinette Dupain-Cheng paris new darling, the girl with a heart of gold too oblivious to see the trail of hearts following her around! But there is still another contender yet to enter the game! Jaggeds been away on tour teaching Luka his up and coming protege all the tricks. And lets not lie Luka has his own fans now, enough to rival all the others. Jagged sees Luka as his own son, even calling him as much! Hell hes even adopted Luka and Juleka and when I say adopted I mean Jagged literally got shared custody of the kids when their real dad tried to start trouble once Luka started gaining fame. Luka and Juleka for one love their adopted father and his wonderful fiance Penny. But back to Jagged, being Jagged.

The moment Jagged is back in Paris he's checking up on his favorite designer and hopefully future daughter in law! When… WHAT'S THIS?! All the other ritchies in Paris are playing his game! Trying to get Marinette married into THEIR families! Not rock and roll at all! He was here first! And so being Jagged he decides to make Luka’s stake in the race for Marinette’s heart clear! By spamming social media with photos of Marinette being cute with Luka, taking his measurements, going out with him, the pair babying Fang, the two passed out against each other after a long concert. And he has photos going back at least a year or two! Soon Luka’s fans pick up the hype starting a trending hashtag finding the pair cute! Jagged feels confident that hes won! When Audrey retaliates, and from there its a complete train wreck. Before long each pair has a hashtag filled with cute moments and arguing over whos dating the model / fashion designer!

Meanwhile Adrien is drowning in denial as he goes through each hashtag seething about how many MORE photos everyone else has with Marinette, when HE is her very good friend and was here first! Felix, Chloe and Kagami on the other hand have declared open war after they tried to talk to each other about the hashtags reasonably only for it to devolve into “so you agree Marinette is best with me!” - “WHAT! No! Thats not what I said! Besides she clearly is best with me!” - “Ridiculous!” And so on. Poor Luka is having an entirely different reaction hiding in shame unsure how to face Marinette because he WAS going to ask her on a proper date now that she seems over Adrien, because even with everything she's the melody playing in his heart and he had a plan! But now his mom and sister are texting him and teasing him and apparently he has MORE competition! Who do these people think they are to deserve Marinette! No! Luka won't lose Jagged has been teaching him to be bold and confident! And Marinette is worth all of his efforts! Jagged REGRETS NOTHING even if Penny confiscated the tv remote!

Marinette meanwhile has no idea what's going on because the whole class made a dumb bet on when the designer would notice with one of the bet conditions being that no one could tip Marinette off and that they have to keep her away from Paparazzi so they dont spoil it either. And sense Alya is helping manage Marinette’s social media Marinette hasn't looked at it yet so she has NO idea what's happening. But her birthday is coming up next week and Chloe definitely didn't get dibs on planning a surprise party for her all so she could spoil the girl and RUB her GREAT relationship with Marinette into her competitions FACES! The competition however (and Adrien JustAfriend Agreste) have decided that they really aren't going down without a fight!

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#my fic #kagaminette #lukanette #adrienette #chlonette #chloenette #miraculous ladybug #marinette dupain cheng #everyone loves marinette #kagami tsurugi #adrien agreste #felinette #felix graham de vanily #chloe sugar #chloe bourgeois #ml prompt

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