#I hope we get plenty of ship-teasing between them | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

hugmekenobi · 8 months ago

Text

Heal

A Bad Batch Post S3 Oneshot

Gif by @barissoffee

Hunter x femaleJedi!reader

Summary: Shaking the effects of Tantiss is easier said than done

Warnings: Literally one use of (Y/N), swearing, hints of Tech/Phee, references to past pain and torture, angst, hurt/comfort, nightmares and trouble sleeping, descriptions of illness (headaches), reader is hard on herself, suggestive dialogue, light PDA (kissing, teasing touches), mentions of food, me making up what everyone is up to on Pabu, fluff and happy ending

Masterlist for S1, S2 and S3

Word Count: 7.2K

Rating: 18+

Author's note: Okay, not gonna lie, I struggled with this one. It was a last minute idea as I was rewatching and writing the final few episodes of season 3 but it worked and felt a lot better in my head and when it came to writing, my brain was not my friend lol. I hope it's still enjoyable! The next oneshot is the story I've had planned for months so that should be a smoother process haha

It had been a few weeks since you’d all taken up official residence in Pabu.

Shep’s offer of setting up homes for you all stayed true.

You and Hunter had been put in a hut perfectly designed for the two of you that was a short walk away from the water and there was even a spare room for Omega who alternated between sleeping in your home and the home Tech, Crosshair and Wrecker all shared.

The three other clones may have been grouped together but there was plenty of room, and not a lot of time was spent indoors anyway.

Wrecker had taken to fishing like, well, like a fish to water.

Crosshair did a bit of everything, helping out with tasks of whoever needed assistance but he mainly he kept up with practicing shooting with his left hand. He wanted the practice, and he genuinely enjoyed it. He didn’t miss being a soldier anymore but that didn’t mean he had to renege on his skills.

Tech spent much of his time with Phee or assisting Shep in rebuilding parts of Pabu that still needed it and upgrading equipment.

Omega often kept close company with Lyana and the other young reg clones or she went off with Tech to plan out a potential search for lost or salvageable pieces of the Marauder- the two of them had dreams of rebuilding new a ship with as many pieces of their old home as possible. It was yet to be undertaken but the vision was there.

The task of reuniting the children from Tantiss with their families had been successful but with that final mission complete, you and Hunter were also in the same boat as Crosshair and still yet to find your official niche on island. For now, you both were just relishing in the peace and each other’s company.

One thing you had managed to achieve was finding a way to finally get in touch with Lyra again, who- despite being filled in on everything that had happened since you parted ways on Christophsis- still managed to scold you for the lack of communication. But after hearing you all were alive and settled, she’d sent you all packages of more suitable island clothes with promises to visit soon.

Everything was coming together and so you were feeling one with the island life.

However, life here was not without its challenges.

The impact and aftermath of Tantiss remained a constant shadow that would still find ways to rear its ugly head. Something you and Hunter in particular found yourselves dealing with.

“I figured we could have the party in the next couple of weeks right here in the colonnade and, I don’t know, you could slip away or…” Shep trailed off as he saw the way Hunter’s brow furrowed in pain.

“Uh huh.” Hunter agreed distantly. He didn’t want to ignore Shep, especially when he was doing him the favour, but fuck had the sun always been this bright? The blinding pain behind his eyes and throbbing in his skull was getting harder to dismiss.

You were a casual observer and listener to the conversation between the young reg clones and the adult clones that had remained on the island- Deke, Stak and Mox had no shortage of questions for them. But you sensed a rising discomfort and then you caught the way Hunter kept pinching the bridge of his nose and squinting to get away from the glare of the warm sun. “Excuse me.” You politely removed yourself from the conversation and hurriedly walked over to where Shep and Hunter were conversing. “Shep, I’m sorry to interrupt but do you mind if I steal him away for a moment?”

“Not at all.” Shep bid the two of you farewell with a smile.

You lightly rested a hand on his upper arm. “Hunter? Another flare up?” You figured, keeping your worried voice quiet.

Hunter just about managed a nod and said through gritted teeth, “But I can wait it out. Shep-”

He would attempt to come up with an excuse every time and every time you wouldn’t even entertain it. “Come on.” You carefully wrapped an arm around him and guided him back home.

You opened the door and carried on through to the bedroom. You gently prompted him to sit on the bed as you knelt down and took his shoes off before you shut the bedroom window to cancel out the noise outside and closed the blinds to keep the sunlight out. You kept your voice low and monotone as you instructed him, “Lie down.”

Hunter did as you said and rested on his back.

The routine was second nature to you. He hadn’t had headaches like this for a while but since Tantiss and because of what he’d suffered there, they’d become more frequent. His senses hadn’t quite readjusted back to what they used to be.

You moved silently throughout the house as you went to the freezer and came back with the cold compress you stored specifically for these moments and placed it over his eyes. “I’ll just be in the living room if you need anything. Try to sleep.” You whispered caringly before you lightly squeezed his hand and made to leave. However, you had barely stepped away from the bed when Hunter’s hand caught your wrist.

“Stay.” He requested through a wince.

“I don’t want to overwhelm you.” You cautioned quietly. You had remained a couple times before, but it had never been a certainty that he wanted you to stay when he was going through this. You always waited for him to give the okay.

“You can’t.” He murmured. He needed you here to ground him in a way the usual methods could never do.

You removed your own shoes and supported his back as you sat him up and slotted yourself behind him.

Hunter rested his head against your chest.

You readjusted the compress slightly once you were both in a comfortable position. “This okay?” You asked as you softly massaged each of his temples.

Hunter let out a tranquil sigh and he could already feel the discomfort receding. You always knew just what it was he needed from you in these moments. “Perfect.”

Hunter wasn’t the only one still feeling the lingering toil of Tantiss. Your screams of terror and the way you thrashed next to him woke him up. He called your name and shook your arm to wake you up. “Hey, hey. Easy, easy. It’s alright.” He assured you as he saw your eyes widen in fear.

You shot awake and hastily sat up, your breathing hard and uneven.

“You’re okay. I’m here.” Hunter whispered soothingly as he sat up alongside you.

You closed your eyes and let his voice be the only thing you focused on.

“You’re alright. It was a bad dream.”

Right yes, a bad dream.

“Hold on.” Hunter pressed his lips to your clothed shoulder before he got out of bed and ran a cloth under some cold water.

You worked on getting your breathing back under control. You ran a hand over your face and felt the beads of sweat dripping down your temples and down your neck and back. Your sleep top was sticking to you uncomfortably. But you forced yourself to concentrate on anything that didn’t remind you of the nightmare you’d just escaped. You took in your secure and familiar surroundings of your bedroom to calm yourself down. You weren’t back there. You were on Pabu with Hunter. You were safe here.

Hunter slid back in bed beside you. “Arms up.” He prompted delicately. When you did that, he carefully removed your sweat soaked top and tossed it to the side of the bed– he’d deal with it in the morning- and placed the cool cloth to the back of your neck and spine before he tenderly dabbed at your temples. He then put a replacement top back over your head and continued to press the flannel around your forehead and neck.

“I’m sorry.” You rasped as you hid your face in your palms in embarrassment. You hated this. He would already have tough days and you couldn’t even offer him any relief in the evenings. The two of you had gotten into a rather unfortunate ritual where you would comfort him during the day and then the roles would switch as soon as night fell.

“You’ve nothing to be sorry for.” Hunter reassured you lovingly. He placed the cloth on the bedside table and rubbed his hand up and down your back to ease away the lingering tension and to help settle you back down. “Same one?” He guessed.

You nodded but kept your face hidden from him. “I’m just standing there. I’m watching him hurt you over and over again and I’m not doing anything to stop it.” You said, your voice cracking with each word. “Then he goes to the rest of you- to Omega. I’m completely frozen and all I can do is watch you all writhe in pain. I keep fighting to move but nothing happens. I’m just so useless and I stand by and let it happen. You’re crying out for help, and I just stand there.” You whispered with plenty of self-loathing behind your words.

Hunter shushed you consolingly. “But that’s not what happened. It’s just the nightmare talking.”

“Is it? Because it feels an awful lot like that’s what I did.” You said with self-directed disgust.

““You didn’t do nothing. You didn’t give up. You did what you thought you needed to do to get us out of there alive.” Hunter reminded you.

“Imprisoned.” You corrected.

“Alive.” Hunter countered.

You knew there was no sense in arguing with him over it. “I should be over this by now. I coped after Christophsis. I don’t know why this is sticking with me so much.” You said critically instead.

Hunter was all too familiar with this line of argument. As soon as you admitted to the nightmare and the fear it brought, you started looking for ways to berate yourself for feeling the way you were. “You couldn’t process Christophsis on your own time. You were in a position where you were forced to carry on. And I don’t think going through and being impacted by torture has a time requirement.”

You finally half-turned to face him. “Do you really believe that?”

The doubt in your voice made his throat constrict and chest tighten. “I know it.”

“But dealing with this is annoying.” You mumbled self-consciously and you averted your gaze once more.

“Do you get annoyed when you’ve needed to help me?”

You lifted your eyes back to him. “No, of course not.”

“Exactly. You help me through those episodes. Why do you think I’d treat you any differently?” He rubbed his thumb along your cheekbone. “You still need to give yourself the same treatment you give other people.” He said caringly.

You leaned your head against Hunter’s shoulder and just gave a series of reluctant but agreeable noises to signal your acceptance of his statement.

“You’re talking to me though. That counts for something.” Hunter praised, angling his head so he could kiss your forehead.

“Yeah, I’m a work in progress.” You managed to say with some light-heartedness before your voice went solemn again. “Just don’t give up on me… please.”

“Never.” Hunter promised with steadfast seriousness.

Your eyes flickered shut and you snuggled closer to him as he ran his hand up and down your arm in soft, delicate patterns.

“Want to sleeping try again?” He suggested after he felt your breathing and pulse settle back down.

You gulped but agreed to give sleep another go. “Okay.” You laid back down readjusted the covers you had kicked off in your sleep-panicked state. You breathed deeply as you closed your eyes and willed yourself to at least get a couple uninterrupted hours. But the darker part of your nightmare, the part you couldn’t vocalise, lingered with you and you didn’t know how to get past it.

Hunter wrapped his arm around your side and pulled your back tight to his chest, but despite all you opened up about, he knew you were holding something back. It was the same every night and he knew sleep would continue to elude you.

This new day was nearly over. Dusk had come and gone but the concept of night and sleep filled you with a deep anxiety. You needed to clear your head before you even thought about winding down for the night. “I’m going for a walk; I’ll be back soon.” You said, giving Hunter a chaste kiss to his lips before you exited your home.

Hunter gave you a slight smile as you parted from him, and he could only watch you leave. He had never felt so helpless.

He knew he couldn’t quite help you in the way you needed but there might be someone else who could.

“Hey there, Hunter.” Phee greeted cheerily as she opened the door to greet the clone.

“I’m not interrupting anything am I?” Hunter asked apologetically.

Phee rolled her eyes, “Pfftt no way. He’s been at this for hours, if you can get his attention onto something else, be my guest.” She led him through to the living room.

Tech grunted his greeting as he sought out the tool that he needed for the task he was completing for Shep. The island had a healer- Dalia, but she mainly operated out of her home because, until recently, that suited just fine. But when the attack on Pabu occurred, Shep and Dalia had found themselves ill-prepared for accommodating the seriousness of the injuries that followed so Tech was assisting in expanding and updating her equipment and resources. AZ was already a big help with that, but more was needing done. It was a longer but important project that Tech was taking very seriously.

“Sorry about the mess.” Phee said with an annoyed yet affectionate stare in Tech’s direction, but she was not surprised when the clone did not appear to even register that she’d spoken. She had stopped trying to get Tech to tidy as he went about altering this latest piece of machinery since he’d insistently claimed there was an order to the chaos around him. The entire area in which he was working was covered with random tools and intricate pieces of machinery. Phee struggled to see how this all equalled a system since all she saw was an array random pieces of metal taking up her living room floor. It didn’t truly bother her though; it was just another quirk she was fond off. Her appreciation for his intelligence and passion outweighed a little untidiness.

“Don’t worry, it’s something I’m very used to.” Hunter said lightly as he carefully stepped over some discarded screws.

“Sit down.” Phee encouraged, gesturing to a spare chair as she took a seat on the couch across from where Tech was working in the middle of the floor. But when Hunter made no move to do so, Phee properly looked at him and she noticed the distant and slightly nervous expression Hunter donned. “Everything alright?”

“I need your help, Tech.” Hunter said in answer.

Tech spoke for the first time since Hunter arrived as he found the spanner he needed, “I’m not yet finished with this. Once I’m done-”

“I don’t need you to fix anything, Tech. It’s about (Y/N). She’s struggling right now and-”

“Well, we know that she has a habit of taking things on by herself. A habit both of you have shared for quite a while.” Tech said plainly, not taking his eyes off the medical equipment he was fixing up. “I wouldn’t take her refusal or dismissals personally.”

Hunter bit back his frustrated huff. He knew attempting to get his brother’s focus when he was so absorbed by a project was always going to be challenging. He went to speak again but Phee beat him to it.

Enough was enough. Phee firmly nudged Tech’s good thigh with her boot, “Would you stop playing around with that and actually pay attention to what he has to say?”

Tech snapped out of his intense concentration. “Right, yes. Sorry, Hunter.” He started officially packing up. Once he was done, he gave his brother his full attention and it was then that he saw the genuine worry on Hunter’s face which told him it was more important than any mechanical repair. “What’s going on with her?”

“She keeps having nightmares from her capture on Tantiss. I can’t remember the last time she slept through the night.” Hunter took a ragged breath. “And it’s not like she’s keeping them to herself and that’s why they’re so bad. She’s doing everything we’ve worked on. She talks to me; she lets me in and help her, but I know there’s something else she’s keeping hidden. And it’s because she knows I can’t offer her the right words, or she wants to protect me from whatever it is she’s not telling me. I’m stuck and she’s not getting any better and I can’t offer her anything more than what I’m currently doing.”

“So, how exactly can I help?” Tech asked, rather puzzled as to why his brother had come to him with this dilemma. He wasn’t exactly known for providing helpful assistance for this type of issue. It wasn’t that he never wanted to, it just always didn’t come easily to him and usually you and Hunter would always be able to work through it yourselves.

Hunter began tentatively, “Y-your experiences were- were similar. I’d thought about Crosshair but what he went through was a bit different and from what you’ve told us, it sounds closer to what she’s been through. I hate to ask it of you but-”

“Where is she?” Tech asked, getting to his feet.

“If you’re not comfortable doing this I understand. It’s a lot to talk about and-”

“Hunter, just tell me where she is.” Tech interrupted with a firm reassurance to show that he truly didn’t mind.

“Down by the shore.” Hunter told him through a grateful sigh.

Tech nodded and got ready to leave for the beach.

You breathed in the fresh and clean sea air, a gentle breeze wafted through your hair. The moonlight cast the water and sand in a luminous white glow. It offered you a peace you were yet to find in your own mind. The faint but demanding whines of the hound you’d acquired on your walk down had you smiling to yourself as you focused on the sounds of the waves lapping on the shore.

Tech saw you seated on the sand, Batcher waiting for you to throw a stick for her. “Did you know that gravity and the gravitational pull of the moon creates a phenomenon called tidal force, which is what causes the ocean tides to change?”

“I mean… I knew it was something like that.” You straightened your shoulders and managed a tight smile in his direction. “Hey, Tech.” You hoped you didn’t sound as exhausted as you felt.

Tech picked up on the heaviness in your voice despite your attempts to conceal it. “Also, did you know that water absorbs the red light of the colour spectrum, leaving the blue for us to see.” He added as he threw the stick for the hound.

You hummed out your acceptance of the fact as a reply whilst Batcher returned the stick but- after greeting Tech- decided she’d had enough and curled up beside you. “You didn’t come here to share ocean facts, Tech.” You said after a moment. “What’s going on?”

“You’re right. I have another purpose in joining you.” Tech admitted as he sat down on your other side.

“Which is?” You asked leadingly.

“Hunter asked me to. He’s worried about you.” He gave you a chance to speak but you offered nothing, so he carried on, “From what I hear, you’re having difficulty sleeping due to nightmares. They are based around your confinement on Tantiss?”

You cleared your throat to buy yourself some time before you answered, “Yeah.” You brought your knees to your chest.

“Can you tell me more? Whatever you’re comfortable sharing is fine.”

You breathed deeply and peered up at the starry night sky. “Well, you know about Christophsis.”

Tech nodded. That was something he’d been told about on the shuttle back.

“Tantiss… Tantiss was different. I took beatings but they were a treat compared to that fucking droid. Hemlock did a much better job of getting the most out of that damn serum. It got harder and harder to fight it. He knew exactly what buttons to push.”

“I’m afraid I had a helping hand in that.” Tech said sheepishly.

You placed your hand on his shoulder. “I don’t blame you, Tech. Not at all.” You reassured him earnestly.

“Regardless, his methods would’ve been that effective because I told him what would work.”

You patted his shoulder to indicate that you really didn’t hold any of that period against him before you removed it and placed it back across your bent legs. You surprisingly found that you kept wanting to talk so you carried on, “I’d never be able to ignore him, he’d always be able to get in my head so, instead, I’d would look for things to take me out of it.”

“A reasonable response.” Tech agreed. The times when he’d resisted, he’d acted similarly.

You felt irritation rise in you. You’d been weak, how could he not see that? “He told me you were alive, and I used it as a way to keep pushing back against him. Omega didn’t doubt it and she only heard him say it once.”

Hunter had warned him about this before he’d left. He expected you to say things designed to make him reprimand you instead of sympathising with you. The part of ‘no emotion’ element of the Jedi Code was deeply engrained in you. Despite your affinity for handling attachment and genuine love for them, when it came to your own emotions, you had gotten a bit too good at supressing or dismissing them. “Years fighting in a war has a way of creating a certain cynicism- or realism- depending on your point of view. It helps with survival and enduring each battle. I may have gotten out of it but even I have to admit that the odds were slim. I called out the plan. I knew what I was doing, I didn’t expect to live, and I didn’t expect you all to assume that I had.” Tech easily explained away the argument. “I’m grateful for Omega’s optimism and hope- it is a wonderful quality of hers and it got me out of there and brought me back to you all-, but I never expected you to believe I lived.”

You couldn’t accept the fact that the people around you were okay with how you’d acted. Every night was a painful reminder of how you’d failed them. “What I don’t understand is why Tantiss is still affecting me in this way. I got over Christophsis just fine.”

“No, you didn’t process Christophsis. You were thrown into mission after mission and were left with no choice but to keep going. It is highly plausible that Hemlock’s own similar torture was harder to get through because it was a reminder of a traumatic time that you’d already experienced but not healed from. Plus, I don’t believe feeling the effects of torture has a time requirement.”

You sighed heavily, “You’re the second person to tell me all that.”

“Does that not tell you something?” Tech prodded but he did it gently.

“I guess.” You said through a weary sigh as you ran your hands through the sand to distract yourself. “I handed myself over to Hemlock though. I gave up.”

“The guilt you’re experiencing over agreeing to Hemlock’s terms is natural. You-”

“It wasn’t guilt. Not wholly.” You said, your voice so quiet it barely registered over the rhythmic lull of the waves.

Tech glanced at you in surprise, but you were keeping your head down, stroking Batcher’s snout- the dog seemed to sense your distress and had nuzzled closer to you. He allowed the silence to grow as he patiently awaited further explanation from you.

You swallowed thickly as you went to speak again. “I was relieved.” You admitted, it was the first time you’d ever said the words out loud, and you instantly wished you could take them back. You wrapped your arms around yourself as you awaited the disappointed and shameful remarks from Tech.

“What were you relieved about?” Tech asked calmly.

That hadn’t been the response you were expecting. “Um-” You searched for the words to answer him. “When I was-” You broke off and started again and you found yourself being more honest than you’d anticipated. “When I was in that training room watching Hunter be tortured and I heard Hemlock say that he was going to do the same conditioning to Crosshair again and to Wrecker too… I gave him what he wanted. Throughout my time there, he wanted me to join him and that’s what I was prepared to do. But as I said it, there was a sense of relief. Finally, I could stop fighting him. The torture he put me through would end. And in the dream- nightmare- I keep having, as much as I hate what’s happening, part of why I can’t move to help any of you is because I’m just relived it isn’t me.” You visibly tensed as you finished speaking. Saying that last part out loud caused you physical pain and your stomach churned nervously as you waited for judgement. There had been a reason you couldn’t share this with Hunter. It sounded so selfish, so pathetic.

“I understand that.”

You angled your head to face him. It was your turn to wait for him to talk.

Tech took a grounding breath before he elaborated, “In my time imprisoned there, Hemlock wanted to know all he could about you all. He knew there would be a time where he’d have to face you all again. I didn’t quite experience the same beatings you took; it was always psychological. But whenever I showed willing to give him information, all I felt in that moment was a profound relief that the torment and pain would end. Granted, that swiftly became guilt as soon as he left but I couldn’t deny the respite those few minutes of me telling him about you all gave me. Now, did you only feel relief at it being over? Or was it relief that you could join him and do his bidding?”

You thought back to that time and realised what he was getting at. “No, it was because I knew if I gave him what he wanted, then at least they wouldn’t have to go through any more agony. At the time, imprisonment felt like the better option than becoming one of his operatives and experiencing that level of hurt.”

“Precisely. Your sleep is being haunted by the worst outcome. It’s praying on the flash of relief you felt and twisting it into something more than what it was. If you accept what happened and stop fighting it, it loses its power. You didn’t do anything wrong, you acted how you needed to. The only person that has the power to blame you is yourself. No one here does, sometimes it just helps to hear it out loud once in a while and it’s true. You resisted him for as long as you physically could. Those circumstances would’ve cracked anyone.”

You looked at him thoughtfully. “Is that how you did it?” You asked quietly.

“Well, I didn’t. Not always.” Tech reminded you, assuming you were referring to how he resisted Hemlock’s torment.

“No.” You released another deep sigh. “You seem to have settled here. You’re coping with it, and you were there for a long time.”

“I was in hell on Tantiss but not so much anymore. Being reunited with you all has really helped. Though I think if I had to watch any of them get hurt the way you had to, it would be different.” As he spoke, Tech realised why Hunter had come to him for this. He was sharing this part of him with you because he knew you were the only one that would truly get it. There was no worry of judgement, no worries of saying something too jarring. You would understand him just as he understood you. “I’ve accepted what happened to me and how I reacted to it but you’re the only one that knows those particular details of my experience. Phee and my brothers do not. Family helps with some of the burden but until you’ve had the unfortunate time of living it, their support can only do so much. We need each other it would seem.” Tech said with a kind look in your direction.

You widened your eyes at his openness. You were incredibly touched by that, and you didn’t take the lightly. “Thank you, Tech.”

“You asked a question, I merely answered.”

You shot him a look, “That’s not the only thing I’m thanking you for.” After speaking to him and fully unburdening yourself to someone who could only understand where you were coming from without the worry of saying the wrong thing or being too much, you felt like a weight had been lifted off your chest. You weren’t plagued by all the horrible and conflicting feelings that had followed you since Tantiss. You could breathe. You were free. You gently squeezed his hand as you said, “Thank you for what you’ve done tonight. For all of it.”

Tech shrugged off the thanks but smiled at you all the same. “We’re family, it’s what we do.”

You walked through the door to your home and took your shoes off.

Hunter walked out of the bedroom as he heard you come through the door. “Hey, how was your walk?”

You didn’t answer immediately. Instead, you just drank him in. You took in the way he leaned against the doorway, the book he was reading dangling from his hand. The way the soft linens of his sleep clothes framed his body. The way he’d still kept and worn the necklace you’d given him all that time ago. And the way he was looking at you with such deep care and affection, it made your heart clench and emotions clog up in your throat- you didn’t trust yourself to speak.

Hunter took your silence for upset. “I had to tell him. I thought-” But he didn’t get to finish his sentence as you strode towards him and embraced him.

You hugged him tightly. “Thank you.” You whispered.

Dropping his book and wrapping his arms around you instantly, Hunter rested his cheek on top of your head. He didn’t need or expect you to share the details of the conversation with Tech, he’d realised that you needed a different kind of comfort and that was okay. All that mattered to him was that it helped you.

You let the warmth of his soothing hold flow through your body, and you kept your voice hushed as you said, “I want you to know that it’s not that I didn’t want to tell you it all.”

“I know.” Hunter replied softly as he caringly caressed your back. He would not break away until you wanted to.

You pressed your face into the crook of his shoulder. Even though he had sent Tech your way, you didn’t want him to feel like he’d let you down or anything along that vein. “You did everything right. I needed you there… I still need you there. I can’t get through it without you but…” The words to describe just what it was Tech gifted you got lost and you frantically searched for them so he would know why you hadn’t just come to him with it.

The last thing Hunter needed or wanted was you feeling like you had to reassure him on the issue. “Sweetheart, all I wanted was for this to get easier for you. I know that there are emotions and parts of that experience on Tantiss that I will never fully understand- as much as that kills me, I wish none of it had happened to you or Tech in the first place but that doesn’t change the fact that it did. You needed more than a shoulder to lean on, and if Tech gave you that, then that’s all that matters to me. I won’t stop being there, whatever it is you need, I’m here.”

The wave of emotion came rushing back and tears threatened to spill from your eyes, and you found yourself pressing yourself tighter to him still so there were absolutely no gaps between you. “Thank you for not giving up on me.”

“I love you, giving up is never an option.” Hunter murmured as he kissed the crown of your head.

“I love you too.” You croaked as you fought through the lump in your throat.

You stayed like that for a couple more minutes before you finally pulled away.

Hunter wiped away a few stray tears that had escaped your eyes. “Fancy an early night?”

“Yeah.” You said through a deep exhale as the exhaustion you’d been fighting with came crashing into you. “That sounds good.”

3 weeks later.

“How’s your pain? Anymore headaches?” You asked Hunter as the two of you wandered arm in arm through the main square. You had been keeping a watchful eye in the time that had passed but he hadn’t had any bad episodes of late.

“Everything feels back to normal.” Hunter replied. “And you? How are you sleeping these days?” From what he could tell, you were sleeping through the night but that didn’t necessarily mean they weren’t still there.

“No nightmares at all.” You said with a relieved sigh. The weight of what you’d endured was no longer keeping you down. It had no control over you anymore. You’d thrown yourself back into mediating again and that also seemed to help a lot.

You both walked in easy silence, smiling at the clones from Tantiss who had stayed and at the merchants shouting out enticing deals and offerings from their stalls as you passed by.

“Although, there’s one thing I need…”

You glanced at him expectantly.

“Can you try it now? I should be fine.”

You hadn’t done it since settling down here in case it was too much. “You’re sure?” You double checked.

Hunter nodded. It was the final step to the normality that he craved.

You both paused and headed over to the side walkway of the colonnade that offered shelter from the open area. You reached out into his familiar Force signature, the connection you formed with it giving you an extra sense of security and warmth. How does this feel?

Hunter closed his eyes and breathed out a serene sigh as he heard your voice in his head, but it felt like everything finally clicked back into place. Then, he felt the gentle press of your lips against his. He reacted automatically and placed his hands on your waist as he returned the embrace.

“What was that for?” He whispered against your lips as you parted.

“It’s part of the check up process.” You murmured before you took half a step back to look at him properly, but you kept your arms looped around his neck so that he was still close to you.

Hunter gave you a fond smile. “Ah, of course.” He sweetly stroked his thumb along your jawline.

You shut your eyes and leaned into his touch.

“Are you happy?” Hunter asked after a few beats of silence.

You dropped your arms and looked at him in surprise. “Yes, of course I am!” You looked at him, worry furrowing across your brow. “What brought that on?”

Hunter awkwardly ran a hand through his hair. “I know things haven’t been easy since we arrived here. It didn’t get off to the peaceful start that I’d hoped for. I just want to make sure it’s still what you want and that you’re definitely feeling better.”

You were caught off guard by the emotions that caught in your throat. What did you do to deserve such a man? “I am very content and happy here; Hunter.” You took a hold of each of his hands. “I’m very content and happy being here with you.” You let out a faint, slightly embarrassed laugh, “I am very much in love with you, you silly man. Every day that I wake up beside you, every day that I get to come home to you and every day I just get to be around you is a day that reminds me that how lucky I am.” You removed your hands and lightly followed the lines of his face tattoo. “Are you happy?”

“Completely.” Hunter murmured as his eyes fluttered shut as he fell completely complaint under your touch.

“Good. Settling down here is what exactly what I want, things just weren’t settling down as quickly as I would’ve liked but it’s different now. We’re both doing much better, it’s a good thing.” You kissed his cheek and delicately brushed your fingers through the shorter strands of hair at the front of his head. I love you, that’s never changed, and it never will. Does that about cover everything?

“Almost.” Hunter said huskily as his own love for you overcame him.

Before you could question what he meant, he tugged you in tight to him and kissed you passionately. You felt him cradle the hinge of your jaw, silently asking permission to deepen the kiss and you granted him access without a second thought. You tangled your fingers in his hair and pressed yourself close to him. You allowed yourself a few minutes to just get lost in the pleasure he was giving you, but you remembered where you were and with a groan, you withdrew from his embrace.

It hurt you to pull away and from the way Hunter just insistently pushed you back against the stone column and carried on kissing and raking his teeth along your neck, he wasn’t impressed with stopping either. “We- we came here for groceries.” You hummed distractedly as you found yourself titling your head to give him easier access.

“So, we’ll get them tomorrow.” Hunter responded simply as he kissed behind your ear and brushed his fingers under your shirt and along the soft skin of your stomach.

“We have- have no f- food and-” You attempted to protest but now his mouth was doing wonderful things along your pulse point that was making you feel very lightheaded.

“That’s fine. What I’m in the mood for, only you can give me.” Hunter teasingly dipped his fingers just under the waistband of your leggings.

You forced yourself to get a grip before you were too far gone. “Get off.” You playfully shoved at his chest with an exasperated shake of your head.

Hunter inclined his head in surrender, “How about you shop, and I meet you at home?” He offered as he stopped his teasing and removed himself from you.

“Is this your bizarre way of just wanting to get out of a chore?” You joked, crossing your arms and feigning irritation.

“No, I just think that if I stay, we’re going to wind up getting done for public indecency and it would be entirely my fault.”

Despite his admission, you still saw a faint but lustful glint in his eyes and you knew he was envisioning precisely what would happen if the two of you remained by this column. And you knew both of you would decide it was worth the risk. You gulped as you hastily said before you lost control of yourself, “I’ll see you at home.”

Hunter released a low chuckle before he kissed you softly once more, the promise of what was to come still lingered behind the action despite his best attempts to keep it brief.

You took a few hesitant steps away him and then gathered yourself and went about your task- your walk brisker than before.

Hunter watched you before he moved out from the shelter of the pillar. He spotted Omega sitting with Lyana by the Maya tree. He called over to her.

“What’s up?” Omega asked breezily as she jogged over to him.

“Can you round up the boys and meet me at home? I’ll get Echo on comms.”

“How come?” Omega asked curiously.

“There’s a mission I’m gonna need all your help with. But it needs to just be the five of us.” He indicated to where you were making a purchase. “Think you can get Lyana to delay her return?”

“A mission? Then why can’t-” An excited gasp left her as she saw the silent but confirming look that Hunter gave her. They’d all been eagerly waiting for this. “Yes! I’m on it!” She sprinted off back to Lyana, chaotically relaying the instructions before she ran go find the others.

Hunter laughed to himself as he saw her enthusiastic departure before he hustled off back home and readied the comm channel for Echo. It didn’t take long for the clone to answer.

“You better be calling for the reason I hope you’re calling for.” Echo said by way of greeting.

“Think you can help me out?” Hunter replied with a validatory nod at the holoimage of Echo and he saw the way Echo’s shoulders lifted as he realised it was finally going to happen. Hunter had talked to them all about it in the days after arriving on Pabu and it had been met with an enthusiastic yet somehow still teasing response. It reminded him of how he felt back before the two of you officially got together, with the others just waiting for it to happen. He’d wanted to do it sooner, but your circumstances changed, and so he wanted to wait until both of you were recovered. And, whilst they’d all accepted his decision to hold off, they had been impatient for this day for both genuine well-being purposes but also because they wanted it for the two of you- his family were very supportive and insistent on him doing this. With things faring better, he felt comfortable doing it now. “I don’t want to take you away from anything urgent or-”

“Name it!” Echo said with a pleased smile.

Before he could get into what he needed Echo to do, he heard the door open. Hunter half-turned to see the crowd of eager and motivated faces made up of Omega and his brothers.

All of them gathered round him and Echo’s hologram.

Hunter took a deep inhale and exhale. In a strange way, this was going to be one of the most important yet daunting missions he’d undertaken. “Alright, we don’t have long before she gets home. Here’s what I need…”

Tagging: @noeasyisnoisy, @notgonnaedit, @arctrooper69, @andreaaxy, @dominoeffectsworld, @allthingsimagines , @nightmonkeysstuff , @jellybeanstacey0519 , @callsign-denmark , @superbookishhufflepuff , @qvnthesia @justsomerandompersonintheworld

Next Oneshot>

177 notes · View notes

imaginespazzi · 11 months ago

Text

Part 5: One Perfect Day

Masterlist - Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 6 - Part 7

Let me photograph you in this light (in case it is the last time that we might be exactly like we were)

(In which a procrastinating writer procrastinates giving her ship happiness)

Pairing: Paige Bueckers X Azzi Fudd

Themes: Angst, Pining, Some Fluff

Words: 7.5K

TW: Swearing, Alcohol, Alludes to Sexual Content

A/N: Good evening my lovelies <3. As many of you have reminded me it is indeed Friday and so here we are, nobody needs to yell at me! I know I'm years too late with this but I hope y'all like it anyways, even though this is very much mainly hurt with very little comfort. But for things to get better, they have to get worse and remember, it's all for the plot! There's plenty of creative liberty taken this chapter with how hotels and post-championship celebrations work and other logistics but I wrote it how I needed to so just go with it. Did I edit? Yes. Are there typos and errors anyway? Probably. As always, tell me what you liked, what you disliked and what you'd like to see next. Have a wonderful weekend lovelies!!

March 2019

The final buzzer echoes through the Williams Arena, and the disappointment of the last couple of years is finally drowned out as the Hopkins Royals win the state championship. Surrounded by the cheers of her teammates, Paige doesn’t know if she’d call this the happiest moment of her life, the stomach flu symptoms haven’t quite faded yet, but she knows it’s definitely on her mount rushmore of times when life was great.

For a second, as she’d been crouched over the toilet with Azzi’s hands soothingly rubbing her back, feeling her soul leave with the remnants of last night's dinner, Paige had almost lost hope. But she’d never been taught to give up without a fight. And so it hadn’t mattered that she definitely looked a little green or that standing up was taking twice the energy it normally did, Paige was going to play today. It hadn’t been a flashy scoring night but she’d done everything else her team needed. And as that lead had built and built and built, Paige knew, the moment was still hers.

“Paigeyyyyy,” Drew is the first one to find her after her and her teammates break apart, launching his tiny body into her legs, “you won!”

Paige laughs, lifting her brother into her arms and spinning him around, “I told you I was gonna didn’t I?”

One by one, her whole family, the epitome of a modern family, pull her into hugs and then they gather into one large group hug, with Paige at the centre of it all. Her siblings look at her with pure admiration while her parent’s eyes are filled with pride. And it fulfils that part of Paige that has always lived a little more for her family than for herself.

As her family moves away slowly, Paige finds herself face to face with Azzi’s shining smile and her heart skips a beat. And she doesn’t really know when it started or even how really, but it gets a little more difficult every time she sees Azzi, for Paige to convince herself that that fluttering in her chest is nothing.

“You look a little pale white girl,” Azzi teases, taking a couple of steps towards the blonde, “glad you didn’t vomit all over the floor.”

“Nah no bullshit flu is stopping Paige Bueckers. The flu is scared of me,” Paige juts out her chest with a smirk, earning her a patented eye roll from the younger girl.

“Oh yeah, you’re real scary,” Azzi indulges before pulling Paige into a bone-crushing hug, “I’m proud of you P.”

Paige smiles into the crook of Azzi’s neck, basking in the glow of the compliment. It’s these little moments they have in between their constant banter, where they let themselves be each other’s biggest cheerleaders, that makes them Paige and Azzi. They pull away, still grinning. and Paige’s eyes roam over the Team Paige jersey framing Azzi’s body. It makes her feel some type of way to see the younger girl wearing her name across her chest, but it’s not a feeling Paige is quite ready to accept. Perhaps it’s been written in their destiny that someday things will change, that eventually they’ll both have to confront the something more that’s simmering underneath it all, but for now, Paige just wants to protect what they already have.

“That’s a pretty jersey,” she says with a wink, fingers rushing over the soft material.

“I was forced at gunpoint to wear it,” Azzi sighs dramatically, “I was actually cheering for Stillwater. Their pg’s kinda cute.”

Paige bristles at the comment, the queasiness from this morning returning with vengeance, “she’s mid as hell on and off the court.”

“Don’t be petty Paige. You think she’d let me wear her jersey instead?”

“You know what,” Paige fights a losing battle with the quick surge of anger that’s taking birth in her stomach, “how about you take off my winner’s jersey and go to the loser’s locker room and beg for her jersey instead.”

She knows Azzi’s joking, knows the point guard on the other team isn’t even really Azzi’s type, knows that even if Azzi’s being serious, Paige doesn’t have a right to feel this way. But that green eyed monster is clawing at her heart, squeezing it and making it hard to breathe.

“Oh- hey hey hey,” Azzi’s quick to grab at her when Paige tries to storm off, “chill dude. You know I’m just kidding.”

“Well it wasn’t funny,” Paige pouts, aware that she’s being unnecessarily childish.

Azzi opens her mouth, about to make some smartass quip but there must be something about how genuinely frustrated Paige looks that softens her expression, “I came to watch you P. I have no idea what that other girl was doing. I was cheering for you the whole time.”

“You’re so sappy,” Paige snorts, throwing a handful of confetti at Azzi, but inside, the ice cold jealousy melts into something warm and lovely, spreading through her heart into her veins.

“Can’t even say nice shit without you being a dick about it,” Azzi rolls her eyes, as she links her arms through Paige’s, “now come on, let’s go celebrate you.”

***

It’s almost 2 a.m. when Paige’s teammates finally begin to filter out of her house, leaving with droopy eyes and tired smiles. She and Azzi stand in the doorway, waving goodbye to every last one of them and it feels a little domestic, like a couple after a dinner party. Paige shakes that thought away the minute it begins to form, forcing herself to ignore the burst of wouldn’t that be lovely that blooms in her chest.

“What if I just fell asleep here?” Paige sags against the doorframe.

“You’d probably fall flat on your face and I’d get an epic video of it.”

“You’re so fucking mean to me.”

“Oh yeah right because you’re so nice to me.”

“Am to,” Paige retorts, before she makes grabby hands towards Azzi, “carry me?”

Azzi swats her hands away, “Absolutely not lazy, it’s one flight of stairs.”

“That’s like 20 steps,” Paige whines. To be honest, she’s not that tired. Out of the two of them, she’s probably closer to being a night owl. But Paige is nothing if not a little bit of nuisance, especially when it comes to Azzi.

“Are you an athlete or not,” Azzi chides, rolling her eyes.

“Bro I just won a championship AND I had the flu. And you won’t even carry me? What kind of best friend are you?”

“Paige.”

“Azziiiiii.”

“Paige I’m tired.”

“Pleeeeeaseeee.”

The younger girl sighs, a sign of her caving in, before turning around so her back is facing Paige's front, “fine, get on you big baby.”

“YES-”

“Dude shut up, you’re gonna wake everybody up,” Azzi groans, always the responsible one.

“Sorry, sorry,” Paige whispers as she jumps onto Azzi’s back, the force of it causing the brunette to take a couple steps forward, “fucking hell Azzi don’t drop me.”

Azzi lets out an indignant squawk, as she regains her balance, “with that attitude, I should drop you.”

“If you’re too weak to carry me, just say that,” Paige teases, wrapping her legs firmly around Azzi’s torso. She buries her shit-eating grin in her best friend’s neck, as she loops her arms around Azzi’s shoulders.

“It is not my fault you’ve put on like a hundred pounds since I last saw you.”

Azzi squeals when Paige pinches at her ribcage and the blonde immediately slaps a hand on her best friend’s mouth, “what happened to being quiet? Now, onwards horsey- OW! Did you just fucking bite my hand!?”

“What happened to being quiet?” Azzi mocks, adjusting Paige’s weight on her back as she begins to walk towards the staircase, grumbling something under her breath about ‘ungrateful best friends’ but Paige knows she doesn’t mean a word of it. She snuggles further into Azzi’s neck, letting herself breathe in the scent of the younger girl.

When Azzi had first left Minnesota, after they’d spent every second since the plane ride back from Argentina, Paige had thought that that hollowness in her chest was temporary, that it would fade once she got back into daily life. It didn’t. And the thing is the word miss had existed in Paige’s dictionary before too but she doesn’t think she really understood what it meant til she started to miss Azzi.

As soon as they reach Paige’s bedroom, Azzi’s already swatting Paige off her back. The blonde falls back onto the pillows on her bed with a content sigh, watching with a cheeky grin as Azzi pretends to stretch out the muscles on her back and her arms.

“I think that might have broke my fucking back,” the younger girl groan, face scrunching up in mock exhaustion, “and I have to sit on a plane again tomorrow.”

That wipes the smile straight off Paige's face. It’s so easy to get lost in the moment with Azzi, so easy to forget that they spend less time together than they do apart. They haven’t bothered with the actual lights but even in the dim glow of the moon through Paige’s windows, Azzi sees her best friend’s change in expression clearly, her own face becoming melancholic. Sighing, she climbs onto the bed herself and lies down next to Paige, intertwining her hands with the older girl’s.

“You could stay a little longer,” Paige says after a moment, eyes resolutely focused on the ceiling.

Azzi let out a wistful sigh, “I wish. But you know I can’t.”

“You can, you just won’t, little miss goody-two-shoes,” the light-hearted teasing eases some of the mood as they both let out soft giggles. They dissolve into a comfortable silence before, “I can’t wait til we’re playing for UConn together.”

Paige misses the way Azzi stiffens a little next to her, too enthralled with imagining a future where she and her best friend could conquer the world together. She knows Azzi, with all her indecisive tendencies, hasn’t quite come around to being anywhere near ready to pick a college team yet but Paige still has time to convince her and Paige Bueckers is nothing if not persuasive.

“So it’s definitely UConn then?”

“Yeah. I mean it’s UConn dude. The UConn. They’re the best. All these other programs are nice but when UConn calls, you don’t say no to that shit,” and Paige means that with all her heart. As the number one recruit in her class, there had been no shortage of offers and of course Paige had entertained them for a little while. But the minute Geno Auriemma had given his offer, everything else had become obsolete. She hadn’t committed yet, still maintaining a façade of being in the decision stage, but all of that was just a front. Paige knows she’s meant to be a UConn husky, there’s no way around it.

“I think you’ll make a pretty damn good Husky,” Azzi says with a soft smile, as she absentmindedly plays with Paige’s fingers.

“We’ll make damn good Huskies,” Paige affirms.

“I don’t know P, California’s pretty tempting,” it’s said teasingly but a hint of seriousness slips through the cracks anyway.

Paige scoffs, “cause it’s hot? Bruh that much heat would be boring. Connecticut gets all four seasons. We’d get the heat and the snow.”

“I get all of that in Virginia already,” Azzi points out with a huff, “maybe I want something different.”

“You do get something different. You get to play with me. That’s different.”

“Yeah but-”

“Dude why are you fighting me on this? Do you not want to be on the same team as me or something?” Paige asks agitatedly, suddenly feeling frustrated with the turn the conversation had taken.

“Okay breathe,” Azzi gives her a stern side-eye, “I was just saying California’s nice. Of course I want to be on your team. Did the shirt not make that obvious?”

Involuntarily, Paige has to smile at the memory of Azzi’s jersey, the team Paige that had been loudly imprinted across her chest, “right, sorry got a little carried away. I just always want you on my team, you know?”

“I’m always on Team Paige. I always have been. I always will be,” Azzi says firmly, as if it’s the most obvious truth in the world.

When Paige turns her head to look at her best friend, the younger girl is already looking back at her and the sincerity in Azzi’s eyes makes Paige’s heart stutter. The moon shines against Azzi’s face and Paige swears she can see every little detail in the dim light. And the thing is Paige has always known Azzi’s a pretty girl, she’s not blind. But it’s different tonight. Tonight Azzi’s the kind of beautiful that Paige wants to memorise until it’s imprinted in the back of her eyelids, the kind of beautiful that she wants to lock away in a treasure chest and preserve only for her own eyes to ever see again. The kind of beautiful that Paige knows she isn’t allowed to think of Azzi as. But still, right now, Azzi’s the kind of beautiful that makes Paige want to try and see if maybe, just maybe, there’s the possibility for something more.

That night, when she finally falls asleep to the sound of her best friend’s quiet breathing, Paige dreams of UConn and championships and at the end of it all, kissing Azzi under the confetti.

***

April 2024

There’s 14 seconds left in the National Championship game and UConn is ahead by eight points. Adrenaline courses through Paige’s veins as that one elusive dream of hers seems to finally be coming closer and closer to fruition. Winning a National Championship had been on her mind since she’d first picked up a basketball. The minute she’d committed to UConn, it had felt inevitable and yet year after year, her team had fallen just a little short. But this afternoon, it seems like it’s finally within grasp. 14 seconds to go. 14 steps closer to having her perfect moment.

Except, every time Paige had imagined this moment, she’d expected her best friend to be there. In the beginning, before everything, she’d dreamed of them being on the court together, running into each other’s arms the minute the buzzer sounded. And then, until the last second today before she had to take the court, Paige had just assumed that when she’d look in the stands, somewhere in the crowd, there’d be the one face she wanted to see most in the world. But no matter how much she squinted, that face had been nowhere to be found and Paige had forced herself to compartmentalise her disappointment, and focus on the game. She hadn’t looked at the crowd since.

The ball is in the other team’s hands, their point guard, diligently calling out plays before she inbounds it. Coach’s words echo in Paige’s head, try for a clean steal but don’t under any circumstances foul. Their pg inbounds the ball and the shot clock starts to count down. The ball bounces through the hands of different players on the other team but the UConn defence is stifling. Their coach is out of timeouts and it isn’t until the last millisecond that they heave up a prayer shot. And it doesn’t matter if it goes in, it’s a two point possession game, but Paige’s eyes are glued on the basketball anyways.

The shot is an airball. The buzzer sounds through the arena. UConn wins their 12th national championship.

For a second, everything goes silent around Paige. The normally over-excitable girl, known for her insane golden retriever energy, is perfectly still. It takes a couple more seconds for the adrenaline to hit. And then she’s screaming, pummeling her body into the rest of her teammates as the bleed blue crowd goes wild. She loses herself in the noise of her teammates cheering and the bright lights of cameras flashing nearby. They did it. And it doesn’t erase just how fucking hard the last couple of year had been, but it makes the burden significantly lighter.

Paige rushes through the handshake line, the opposing team’s coach giving her an appreciative review of her performance before she’s recaptured into a group hug by her teammates. It’s a surreal feeling really, one that’s far better than even her most wonderful dreams. For the first time since the game began, Paige lets her gaze wander over to the family section who are all tearfully hugging, smiling at her parents and then her siblings and then-

When her eyes meet Azzi’s, it’s like the last piece of the puzzle has finally settled into its rightful place, completing the perfect picture of Paige’s perfect moment. A #5 UConn jersey hangs loosely against Azzi’s hips as she smiles shyly at her best friend. And Paige is scared to blink, scared if she looks away, the girl in front of her will disappear. It takes everything in her to not rush into the stands, pull her best friend into her and kiss her under the confetti.

Azzi doesn’t budge when the rest of the family and friends crew start to move towards the court. There’s too much attention, too much media, for that to be a feasible option. Paige wishes they would all just disappear, let her have her moment the exact way she’d pictured it. She thinks she’d like to fulfil that dream of hers, kiss Azzi in the confetti, twirl her around, and between it all, let the world know that she was Paige’s.

As always, Drew is the first person to reach her. He’s a little too big for her to pick up, but she spins him around anyway.

“You won Paigey,” her little brother squeals and he might be older now, but that innocent admiration of his older sister is as palpable as always, “I knew you could do it!”

“Thanks for always believing in me, little dude,” Paige says softly, leaning her cheek against the top of Drew’s head.

Over the top of her brother's head, Paige realises with sudden panic that Azzi’s not there anymore. Dread filters into her bloodstream, the voices in her head screaming it was too good to be true. The way her body tenses doesn’t go unnoticed by her mother who’s quick to hold her.

“She said to tell you she’d see you at the hotel later,” Amy Jo says with a knowing smile, before letting Paige’s body sag into hers. She rubs her daughter’s back as relief settles into the younger girl's features, “proud of you Paigey.”

Paige smiles into her mother’s chest. Last year had been the hardest of her life and for a while the light at the end of the tunnel had been hard to see. Today, she feels the light surrounding her, washing away all the darkness from the last few years, bathing her in the glow of happiness.

***

“I always knew you’d look good in a UConn jersey.”

Azzi’s eyes fly open and Paige smirks, leaning her body against the wall. The last couple of hours had been a whirlwind of media, champagne and excited chatter about what the after party would be like. Paige’s focus had been on celebrating, but the thought of getting back to Azzi had been a constantly lingering presence in the back of her mind. And as the bus had gotten closer to the hotel, anxiety had creeped in because what if Azzi wasn’t there? What if she’d changed her mind?

Paige had smiled for the fans outside the hotel, diligently posing for pictures and signing autographs, ignoring the heaviness in heart. But as soon as she was far away from prying eyes, she was bolting towards her room. And then everything was okay. Paige has heard a lot of cliché things about love, about how it makes you hear violins and see stars and all of that, about how it increases your heart rate and makes you flush. But Paige thinks all of that can’t quite be right. Because when she’d seen Azzi, curled up in her sheets, #5 jersey crumpled but still fitted around her body, Paige had only felt a sense of calm. And that Paige thinks, is probably the actual truth of love, it’s about finding peace and to Paige, Azzi has always been her peace.

“I’d look great in any jersey,” Azzi claps back groggily, moving to sit up.

“But you look the best in mine. You always have,” Paige tries to keep her voice teasing, but it comes out sounding rather wistful, and the next words are even softer, “you came.”

Azzi bites her lips, looking down at her fiddling thumbs, “you asked me to.”

Those four little words carve themselves into a little crevice in Paige’s heart as if they’ll stay there forever, as if they’ll echo through her entire body for the rest of time. She practically throws herself onto the younger girl, the force of it pushing Azzi back down into the pillows, as she buries her head in the crook of Azzi’s neck. Their legs slot together of their own accord and it’s a little bit like they’re trying to meld into each other’s skin the way they press themselves as close as possible, til there’s barely space for air in between them. They lie like that for god knows how long; it goes by in a rush and yet ever so slowly.

“I’m really fucking happy you’re here,” Paige whispers into Azzi’s skin, “really fucking happy.”

Azzi doesn’t say anything, humming into Paige’s hair as she tightens her grip on the blonde’s waist but Paige can tell by the way she stiffens underneath her, that Azzi’s holding herself back from something. Her heart hammers in her chest as she lifts her face from Azzi’s neck to inspect the younger girl’s face.

“What aren’t you saying to me Az?” she whispers quietly with a sinking feeling.

“Paige,” Azzi closes her eyes. And just that is enough for Paige to understand exactly what’s going through her best friend’s head and suddenly she wishes she’d never asked, just let them have this moment.

“Never mind, I don't want to hear it.”

“That’s not how that works. I- I wanted to wait a little but we- we need to talk.”

“No we don’t,” Paige retorts stubbornly, fighting the tears threatening to spill, “I don’t want to.”

“Paige-”

The girl in question pushes herself off of Azzi, rising to sit on her knees, “this is meant to be the best day of my life Azzi.”

“I know- I’m sorr-”

“What game are you playing, Azzi? Why even fucking come if you were never gonna stay?” Paige spits out.

“Maybe I shouldn’t have,” Azzi says softly, as she sits up “maybe- maybe I should have stayed away. But it’s you Paige, it’s you and I- I’ve never been that good at staying away from you. And maybe I’m just really selfish but I- I told you once that I wanted to be there when your dreams came true and so- here I am.”

They’d barely known each other when Azzi had said that, when they had just been young innocent girls with a tentative friendship, lying in the grass and sharing their dreams. Back then, the words had thrown Paige off. She hadn’t quite understood why they had meant that much to her, why they had filled her with more warmth than the sun shining above them. But she’d tucked them away in a little corner of her heart hoping she’d understand it better when she was older. She’s older now and she understands. Except every single emotion she’d felt at fifteen is heightened with the realisation that the words had meant something to Azzi too. And-

Paige surges forward to kiss Azzi. She’s pretty sure this bipolar act of theirs will be the death of them someday but it’s the only thing in the moment that makes sense. Azzi is hesitant at first, clearly too in her head, always the overthinker, but she gives in when Paige squeezes at her waist. It’s not as if they’ve kissed that many times before but it feels familiar, a little bit like coming home. She moves to straddle Azzi’s hips and they can’t get any closer really with every bit of their bodies pressed together now, but Paige tries anyways, tries to etch please don’t leave me into the other girl’s skin. And she isn’t sure if the salt she can taste is from the tears steadily streaming from Azzi’s eyes or the ones free-falling from her own.

The minute Azzi pulls away, Paige misses her.

“We can’t-”

“Don’t finish that sentence,” Paige cuts Azzi off immediately, resting her forehead against the younger girl’s, “please.”

“Paige,” Azzi breathes out, “I have to go.”

“No you don’t,” Paige says stubbornly.

“Paige please-”

“Stay- fuck please- Azzi- just give me tonight. Tomorrow we can talk and you can-,” Paige swallows, not wanting to say leave out loud, “but please- tonight can we just pretend? Can you give me that? Fuck- can I just have tonight? Please- just- stay.”

Azzi lets out a shaky breath, “it won’t make it hurt less.”

“I know- fuck- I know but I just don’t want it to hurt right now.”

“Okay,” Azzi whispers slowly, thumb caressing Paige’s wet eyelashes, “okay, I’ll stay tonight.”

Paige kisses her again.

***

The UConn team falls in love with Azzi in a matter of hours. No one had been shocked when Paige had shown up to the after party a.k.a everybody gathering at the hotel bar, fashionably late and with a nervous Azzi teetering behind her. It had been awkward at first; everyone was a little unsure of how to act around the new presence. Not only was Azzi from a rival team, but everyone was at least a little aware of her tumultuous relationship with their star player. But then KK had wanted to film a tiktok that needed someone to do random camerawork and when everybody else had groaned, Azzi had quietly volunteered. Much to KK’s delight, Azzi turned out to be quite the cameraman. And that apparently was all that was needed and Paige marvels at the way Azzi just fits.

She moves around Paige’s team as if they’re just as much hers. One second she’s timing some stupid drinking game that KK and Ice are playing, the next she’s sitting in a corner laughing with a more subdued Ash and Q.

Aubrey and Ayanna gush over their girlfriend and Azzi’s coos over their pictures, a hint of wistfulness on her face when she meets Paige’s eyes.

The team does their routine of teasing Aaliyah’s about being vegetarian and Azzi diligently backs the Canadian up with a spiel of how tofu isn’t actually that bad. That gets her a hi-5 from Aaliyah despite the eye rolls from the rest of the team.

Despite being a little tipsy from having been dragged into doing shots with Amari and Carol, the two other people she knows pretty well, Azzi diligently lets Inés and Jana teach her little bits of Portuguese and Egyptian.

Even Nika sheds her frostiness, amused by Azzi’s curiosity to learn her native language beyond just the curse words, and teaches the younger girl a couple of words. Azzi rolls her eyes fondly when she realises she’s been taught to say UConn is the best team ever in Croatian and amidst Nika’s laughter, Paige knows is a hidden acceptance.

But the best part of it is that although Azzi’s suddenly being pulled in all different directions by various UConn girls, she never really leaves Paige’s side through it all. There’s always a little bit of them touching, whether it’s their shoulders or their knees, even when they’re both involved in completely different conversations and activities. It feels oddly domestic and Paige is reminded of the part after her state championship all over again. The burst of i want this forever that stirs in her chest makes her want to sob because it collides head first against a wall of this is only for tonight. And Paige knows that one night won’t ever be enough for her.

“Aye Paige’s girl, come play truth or shots with,” KK’s loud voice breaks through Paige’s cloud of distress and it’s eclipsed by the implication of those two words.

Paige’s girl. The phrases makes itself home in Paige’s heart, sounding so fucking right. She hasn’t let herself acknowledge it truly ever but that’s how it’s always been in Paige’s mind. It’s how she’s always thought of Azzi. As hers. Her Azzi. Her girl.

“I’m not-that’s not-” Azzi’s cheeks are tinted pink as she stutters through her words, withering under KK’s cocked eyebrow.

“Uh-okay if you say so,” KK rolls her eyes, holding her hands up in a sarcastic defensive position, “guess we’re starting off truth or shots by lying.”

The rest of the team laughs as Azzi’s blush grows even deeper and Paige can’t even try and hide her smile, her own neck tingling a little bit as she tucks herself into Azzi’s side. And it’s not real, they’re not anything, but in this moment it feels a little bit like they’re everything.

“You guys are sickening,” Ice accuses when she notices the two of them cheesily smiling at each other, “it makes me gag.”

“They’re cute. Leave them alone,” Caroline chastises, ever the supportive friend.

Azzi leans back against Paige’s arm as the group goes around the circle, asking each other ridiculous questions, cheering like little kids when their teammates opts to drink instead of answering a vaguely invasive question. When it’s her turn, Paige can already tell by the glint in KK’s eyes that her menace mini-me is about to cause trouble.

“Paigey cakes, when’s the last time you had sex?”

Next to her, Paige can feel Azzi stiffen immediately. The shot feels heavy in Paige’s hand as she seriously contemplates taking it. She knows why KK asked the question, probably having concocted some idea of exposing Paige and Azzi. She’d known by the waggling eyebrows that the whole team had thought the two of them were late because they’d been fucking but that couldn’t be further from the bitter truth.

Paige chances a look at Azzi’s face as she bites down on her lips. The younger girl’s face is stoically devoid of any emotion and Paige knows she’s thinking about the night of the crash (or as Paige likes to call it, the most terrifying night of her life) except-

“November, last year,” Paige says slowly and Azzi whips her face around to look at her, lips falling apart in shock.

“Don’t play, there’s no fucking way,” Ice guffaws and Paige shrugs.

“It’s the truth.”

“Bruh what the fuck,” KK looks a little shell-shocked, “how the fuck did you survive that long?”

“Some of us actually know what to do with our own fingers,” Paige quips defensively, trying to ignore the butterflies dancing in her stomach at the way Azzi’s still looking at her.

“I bet Azzi knows all about your fingers huh Azzi?” and even that, KK’s unhinged commentary, isn’t enough to get Azzi to pull her gaze away from Paige. It’s almost as if she hadn’t heard it all.

“You didn’t- that night?” Azzi manages to get out.

“Couldn’t do it,” Paige mumbles, “she wasn’t you.”

Despite the horde of people around them, they’re in their own little bubble now. There are a multitude of questions swimming in Azzi’s eyes and Paige wants to answer all of them if it means that maybe just maybe, she could prevent the inevitable misery tomorrow would bring.

“Okay Azzi, it’s your turn,” Amari’s voice draws Azzi’s attention away and Paige feels cold without the heat of it. She doesn’t know how she’ll survive tomorrow. Living in the present isn’t working and Paige finds herself already feeling the emptiness she knows will become her reality in a couple of hours. Her fingers tap an incessant pattern on her thigh as she tries to keep her focus on the game,

Azzi swallows nervously before mustering up a grin with false confidence, “I’m ready. Hit me with your best, I’m not drinking.”

“We’ll see about that,” KK smirks, diabolically rubbing her hands together, before she turns to Nika, “all yours Nik-Nik.”

The other girls “ooh”, knowing Nika’s reputation for being notoriously good at this game. The Croatian grins at Azzi, as she sits up from where she’d been lazily lying on the love seat, a glint of mischief in her eyes. And then her eyes meet the forlorn ones of her twin and something shifts. When she looks back at Azzi, there’s a more serious look on Nika’s face.

“Have you ever been in love?”

There’s pin drop silence once the gravity of the question registers. The light-hearted air in the room is replaced with anticipation, as all of Paige’s teammates look back and forth between their point guard and her best friend. Paige isn’t sure if she wants to know the answer, doesn’t know if there’s an answer that wouldn’t break her heart just a little bit. For a second, it looks like Azzi’s going to drink until she puts the shot down on her hand rest until-

“Yes,” she confesses in a whisper, and Paige feels her heart begin to race, “I have.”

“How many times?” Nika prods

“That’s not how the game works. I already answered your question.”

“Different rules for newcomers,” Nika shrugs. It’s a blatant lie but nobody says anything. Paige is still caught up in her own head and the other girls won't challenge Nika, not when they’re just as curious, “I get to ask questions til you drink.”

Azzi narrows her eyes, knowing it’s all bullshit and maybe if she wasn’t a little bit tipsy and competitive, maybe if she couldn’t feel every inch of Paige’s side pressed against her, she’d walk away but she can’t.

“Only once,” she answers.

“With your ex-girlfriend?” Nika asks. The way she raises an eyebrow suggests there’s only one right answer to the question. Paige doesn’t know if there’s a right or wrong answer, only that there’s an answer that would shatter her.

“No. I was never in love with her,” Azzi directs the answer towards Nika, but everyone knows it’s meant for Paige’s ears. And despite the tornado still roaring in her body, the blonde lets out a sigh of relief.

Nika’s intimidating demeanour cracks a little bit when that answer makes her smile, “are you in love with someone right now?”

Even if it’s not said out loud, the implication of Nika’s question, the someone, is clear. And suddenly Paige doesn’t want to hear the answer, not right now, not when they’re both a little tipsy, not when they’re surrounded by all her teammates, not when their future is so unclear.

“Drink,” Paige cuts in, holding the shot in front of Azzi, “don’t answer it.”

“Paige-”

“Drink Azzi,” Paige says firmly.

Azzi looks equal parts relieved and frustrated as she downs the drink, happy to have gotten out of the uncomfortable round of questioning but a little annoyed at losing in front of the UConn girls.

“And you said you wouldn’t drink,” Nika sneers, as she hi-5’s her teammates.

“Because you bent the rules; she did great,” Paige defends immediately and everyone snickers, the mood in the room returning to something more casual.

“So fucking pussywhipped,” Ice teases.

“Shut up,” Paige whines, hiding her face against Azzi’s shoulder as everybody else laughs. If the voices in head screaming this is just for tonight would shut up for a second, Paige thinks maybe she could fall in love with this moment, surrounded by her found family.

It’s almost 3 am when the team decides maybe they should start going to bed, knowing they have a morning flight back to Connecticut. Everyone else is still in a jovial mood, sufficiently drunk of both alcohol and the high of a championship but Paige’s stomach pools with dread. Every minute is a step closer to a goodbye, she’ll never be prepared to say.

They get to the lobby of the hotel when Paige turns to Azzi, ignoring her anxiety to be a nuisance instead.

“No,” Azzi says immediately when she sees Paige making grabby hands at her, “there’s literally an elevator Paige.”

“So? That just makes it easier for you. This is tradition.”

“In what world is this a tradition?” Azzi sighs exasperatedly.

“Since I won the state championship,” Paige grins, “pleeeeease, I’m tired, my feet hurt.”

Azzi gives her an unimpressed look, “you’ve been sitting for the last couple of hours.”

“And before that I was winning a championship, after beating your team by the way,” Paige’s smirk widens when Azzi guffaws at catching a stray.

“Oh fuck off. Reminding me of that is not the way to get me to carry you by the way.”

“C’mon Az, you know you’re gonna give in anyway. You know you wanna sleep, stop wasting time.”

Azzi rolls her eyes with a dramatic sight before doing exactly what she always does, giving into Paige, “hop on then you big baby.”

Paige cheers, latching on Azzi’s back as her knees circle around the other girl’s waist. Unlike when they were younger, Azzi’s doesn’t stumble anymore at the additional weight. She’s stronger now, completely solid and steady underneath Paige and that absolutely doesn’t trigger any inappropriate thoughts in the older girl’s brains, absolutely.

“Y’all are so cringe,” KK crinkles up her face when she turns to look at them as they wait for the elevator, but there’s a certain amount of fondness in her voice, “but Azzi’s cool. Much cooler than you P boogers. You should bring her around more often.”

Paige’s smile vanishes in tandem with Azzi letting out a strangled noise. KK looks between the two of them, slowly realising maybe she’d just put her foot in her mouth.

“Yeah, maybe,” Paige answers noncommittally, trying to keep her voice steady.

Much to her relief, the elevator dings open, saving her from having to say anything more. She wraps her arms tighter around Azzi, burying her face as far into the other girl’s neck as she can and closing her eyes, trying to lose herself in Azzi, instead of in the jail of her own mind.

She doesn’t look up from where she’s nestled into Azzi’s skin, when the rest of her teammates start towards their own separate rooms, telling Azzi how lovely it was to meet her.

“Can you get off her back, so I can give her a hug?” Ice pinches Paige’s arm but the older girl just shrugs her off.

“No. Go hug someone else.”

“Bro you’re so fucking annoying,” Ice groans and Azzi sends her an apologetic wink but it doesn’t go unnoticed that she doesn’t try to shake Paige off like she normally would. It heals something in Paige to know that Azzi doesn’t want to let go either. And she doesn’t understand why they’re doing this, why they’re fighting this, when neither of them want to.

“I think your teammates might like me better than you,” Azzi teases when they finally get back to the room and Paige climbs off of her back. The blonde is too lost in her thoughts to come back with a smart quip. And of course her best friend notices it immediately, nudging her quietly, “P? You good?”

Paige blinks up at Azzi, and even before she says the word, she knows Azzi’s already read them in her eyes, “I don’t want you to go.”

“Paige,” Azzi sighs tiredly, “what happened to pretending tonight?”

“Fuck pretending,” Paige blames the alcohol for how loud her voice comes out, guilty only because it makes the girl in front of her flinch, “I don’t want just tonight. It’s no where near fucking enough. I want forever. With you.”

“That’s not- Paige- we live on different sides of the country.”

“For now, but we can make it work. It’s us,” Paige pleads desperately.

Azzi scoffs, stepping away from Paige, “you say that like it a good thing.”

“What-”

“Us! We don’t- it’s not- being ‘us’ is not a good thing Paige. May us from before but us now? Us now is complicated and messy and hard and I just- I can’t do this Paige.”

“You can- we can- Azzi- just- think about it okay- sleep on it- you’ll see. You’ll see, I’m right.”

Azzi shakes her head, closing her eyes as a single teardrop leaks out, “you’re making this so fucking hard Paige.”

“I don’t want to- I’m sorry- I’m so sorry baby,” the term of endearment slips through Paige’s lips before she can catch it, “but I need you to think about it once please.”

She moves to cup Azzi’s cheeks, thumb caressing away the tears, “please.”

“Okay, okay,” Azzi nods, resting her forehead against Paige’s, “I’ll think about it.”

They’re quiet as they get changed for bed, thinking about the same thing. Co-existing together comes naturally to them after years of inhabiting each other’s space and the. there's no getting in each other’s way, even if they’re both dead silent. It’s awkward when they finally get into bed, both of them lying on their back, resolutely staring up at the ceiling. Paige is the first one to move, turning onto her side so she can face Azzi. The moon shines against Azzi’s face and Paige thinks that so much has changed, but Azzi’s still that kind of beautiful, the same kind of beautiful Paige had thought of her as since the state championship.

“What was your answer going to be,” she asks quietly.

“To what?”

“To Nika’s question. Are you in love with someone right now?”

Azzi hesitates a little bit, before turning her own body to face Paige, “you know the answer Paige, you don’t need me to say it.”

Paige doesn’t prod, knowing they were too volatile for her to keep pushing. Instead she reaches over to intertwine their hands together.

“Do you know what my answer would have been?”

“Yeah,” Azzi says softly, squeezing her hands, “yeah I do.”

Maybe there’s peace in knowing. Or maybe there’s only more pain. Paige doesn’t know if the truth sets her free, doesn’t know if she could ever even be set free from the shackles that bind her to Azzi, doesn’t think she even wants to be set free. But at least Azzi knows too. Maybe there’s peace in drowning together.

***

Paige wakes up in a panic when she reaches over and finds the other side of the bed empty. She gets up with a jolt, eyes frantically searching for Azzi, until they finally land on the girl sitting on the couch next to the bed.

“Fuck,” Paige’s voice is still wracked with sleep, “I thought you left.”

“That’s more your style,” Azzi says and Paige flinches at the reminder, “how’d you sleep?”

“Pretty good. How about you?”

“Pretty shit actually” Azzi admits, “I woke up every two seconds, scared you’d be gone.”

“Az-”

“You asked me to believe in you- to believe in us and I-” Azzi draws in a sharp breath and Paige knows she’s not going to like where this is going, “I want to- I really, really, wish I could. But I don’t. I can’t- I can’t be with you Paige- not when I’m scared you’re going to break my heart every second.”

“Azzi,” Paige scrambles across the bed, stopping when the girl in question holds her hands up. Everything in her feels like it’s on fire. There are no burn marks on her skin but she swears she’s been turned to ashes underneath.

“And you deserve better than that too Paige. You deserve someone who- who’s not scared. Who can give you all of herself without- without holding back and I- I can’t do that.”

“You can- fuck- Azzi you can- please,” desperation leaks through every syllable as Paige fights what she knows is a losing battle.

“Not right now. Too much has happened between us and we can’t- we can’t just ignore all of that and start something new- maybe someday- but not right now.”

Azzi stands up from her seat, hesitantly walking over to Paige’s side of the bed. She cups Paige’s face, watery dark brown eyes meeting crystal blue ones that are glistening with tears.

“Azzi please,” Paige begs, feeling everything slip away before she’d even had a chance to fight for it.

Azzi presses her lips to Paige’s forehead, holding them there for what feels like the briefest of seconds until she’s pulling away, “I’m sorry P.”

And then she’s gone and every part of Paige’s heart is gone with her.

#pazzi #paige bueckers #azzi fudd #wcbb

246 notes · View notes

shiorihyugawrites · 3 months ago

Text

Diamond Of The First Water

In the aftermath of war, Paradis finds itself in need of powerful alliances. When Emperor Armand of Valoria offers his military aid in exchange for the hand of his daughter, Princess Solina, in marriage, Captain Levi Ackerman is thrust into an engagement that begins as a political strategy but soon becomes something much deeper.

Princess Solina, sheltered from the world and unaware of the realities of love and war, finds herself drawn to Levi—the man known as Humanity’s Strongest Soldier. As they navigate royal customs, public expectations, and the growing threat of Marley, the bond between them deepens into a genuine connection.

But neither Solina nor Levi are prepared for the challenges of a political marriage, the weight of intimacy, and the secrets that lie beneath the surface. As Solina enters a new life with Levi, her naivety is tested, and Levi faces a battle unlike any he’s fought before—the fight to protect his heart.

Can their love flourish in the midst of war, duty, and danger? Or will the forces conspiring against them tear them apart before they can find peace? (Levi x OC)

Chapter Twenty Six

As the sun climbed higher in the sky, the ship gently docked at the vibrant shores of Montessa, a stunning country known for its sprawling mountain ranges, lush jungles, and unique treehouse-style homes. The air was thick with the scent of exotic flowers and fresh rain, and the distant calls of tropical birds echoed across the dense greenery. The shoreline was framed by cascading waterfalls that glimmered in the sunlight, painting an almost otherworldly picture.

Solina stood on the deck of the ship, her green eyes wide with awe as she took in the breathtaking scenery. She clutched the rail tightly, her excitement bubbling over, though it was tinged with a bit of nervousness. “It’s beautiful,” she whispered, more to herself than to anyone else.

Levi, standing beside her, nodded in quiet agreement. His sharp gray eyes scanned the horizon, lingering briefly on the towering jungle trees and distant mountains. Though he was usually indifferent to such views, even he couldn’t deny the natural beauty of Montessa. Still, he had more practical concerns.

“I just hope this treehouse place is clean,” Levi muttered under his breath, earning a soft chuckle from Solina.

“You really do think of everything, don’t you?” she teased, her lips curving into a smile. “Even on our honeymoon.”

“I just don’t like surprises,” Levi replied matter-of-factly, though the corner of his mouth twitched upward. He turned to one of the maids, who had been tasked with helping pack their belongings. “Did you pack the extra cleaning supplies I asked for?”

The maid nodded quickly, stifling a laugh. “Yes, Captain. Plenty of supplies.”

“Good,” Levi said with a curt nod, seemingly satisfied. Solina tried and failed to hide her amusement, shaking her head fondly.

As the gangplank was lowered, they were greeted by a small welcoming party led by Montessa’s Prime Minister, a tall man with a warm, sun-weathered face and a sharp green ceremonial robe adorned with intricate gold embroidery.

“Welcome to Montessa, Princess Solina and Captain Levi,” the Prime Minister said with a gracious bow. “It is an honor to host you during your honeymoon. We hope your stay will be both relaxing and memorable.”

“Thank you for having us,” Solina replied, her voice polite yet warm. She offered a graceful curtsy, her nervousness easing slightly in the face of the Prime Minister’s kind demeanor. “Your country is breathtaking.”

“We’re glad you think so, Your Highness,” the Prime Minister said with a smile. “Your treehouse has been prepared to the finest standards of Montessian hospitality. You’ll find it nestled deep within the jungle, offering unparalleled privacy and views of our natural wonders.”

Levi inclined his head in acknowledgment. “Sounds good. Let’s get moving.”

The Prime Minister led them to a waiting carriage drawn by sturdy jungle ponies, their coats sleek and their harnesses adorned with vibrant flowers. The ride through Montessa’s winding jungle paths was mesmerizing, the dense greenery interspersed with vibrant blooms and glittering streams. Solina’s eyes darted to every corner, trying to take in as much as she could.

“Look at that,” she gasped, pointing to a family of monkeys swinging effortlessly between the branches above. “Aren’t they adorable?”

“They’re alright,” Levi said, though his gaze lingered a moment longer on the playful creatures before returning to the path ahead.

After nearly an hour of travel, the carriage came to a stop at the base of a colossal tree. Their accommodations for the next two days loomed above them: a grand treehouse perched among the branches, its wooden exterior blending seamlessly with the natural surroundings. A series of rope bridges connected various levels, and Solina could just make out the open-air terrace that provided a stunning view of the surrounding jungle.

“It’s… breathtaking,” Solina murmured, her voice filled with wonder.

Levi’s eyes narrowed slightly as he scanned the structure. “As long as it’s sturdy,” he muttered.

The Montessian guide who had accompanied them assured Levi with a smile, “Captain, the treehouse has been inspected thoroughly. It is both sturdy and clean.”

“Good,” Levi replied curtly, though his sharp gaze didn’t waver until he seemed satisfied. Solina bit back a laugh, finding his practicality endearing.

They ascended a series of wooden steps carved into the tree trunk, arriving at the entrance of the treehouse. The interior was even more impressive than the exterior. The space was airy and open, with polished wooden floors, gauzy curtains that swayed in the breeze, and elegant furnishings crafted from local materials. The centerpiece was the open terrace, which offered a panoramic view of the jungle and the mountains beyond.

Levi dropped their bags near the doorway, his sharp eyes scanning every corner. Solina, meanwhile, wandered toward the terrace, her breath catching at the sight of the sprawling jungle canopy below.

“It’s like something out of a dream,” she whispered.

Levi joined her after a moment, leaning casually against the railing as he watched her take in the view. “You’re happy with it?”

She turned to him, her face alight with excitement. “It’s perfect.”

He nodded, his expression softening as he watched her. “Good.”

The afternoon passed in a blur of exploration and quiet moments. Levi, true to form, insisted on checking the cleanliness of every corner of the treehouse, though he grudgingly admitted that it met his standards. Solina, on the other hand, spent much of her time on the terrace, sketching the view in the small journal she’d brought along.

As the sun dipped below the horizon, casting the jungle in hues of gold and crimson, Solina and Levi sat together on the terrace, sharing a simple yet delicious dinner of Montessian cuisine. The sounds of the jungle at night—the hum of insects, the distant calls of nocturnal animals—created a serene backdrop.

Solina glanced at Levi, who was quietly sipping his tea, his expression calm and content. “Thank you for bringing me here,” she said softly.

He looked at her, his gray eyes meeting hers. “I should be thanking you. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for you.”

She smiled, warmth blossoming in her chest. For the first time since their journey began, she felt truly at ease. Montessa, with its wild beauty and tranquil atmosphere, was the perfect place to start this new chapter of their lives together.

…

That night in Montessa was stiflingly hot, the kind of humid heat that clung to the skin and made even the simplest movements feel exhausting. The large canopy bed in the treehouse was draped with a fine mosquito net, but that did little to alleviate the oppressive warmth. Solina lay sprawled on her side of the bed, her lacy nightgown sticking uncomfortably to her skin. She was practically melting, and judging by the quiet groan from the other side of the bed, Levi wasn’t faring much better.

“Is it always this hot here?” Solina asked, her voice breathy as she fanned herself weakly.

“Doubt it’s ever this bad on Paradis,” Levi muttered, sitting up to adjust the mosquito net. He tugged it tighter around the edges, ensuring there were no gaps, before flopping back down onto his pillow. “Mosquitoes are biting the hell out of me too.”

Solina giggled softly despite herself. “You’re their favorite tonight, it seems.”

“Yeah, lucky me,” Levi replied, his tone dry as he swatted at a bug on his arm. After a few moments of futile attempts to find comfort, he finally let out a sigh and tugged his shirt over his head, tossing it onto the floor. The sight of his bare chest glistening slightly from the humidity caught Solina completely off guard.

Her eyes widened, and she immediately turned her face away, cheeks blazing. He’s your husband, she reminded herself, this is normal… perfectly normal.

But as much as she tried to keep her gaze elsewhere, her eyes had a mind of their own, sneaking glances at him whenever she thought he wasn’t looking. Levi, of course, noticed almost immediately. His sharp instincts never failed him, even in the dead of night. He smirked faintly, amused by her shyness.

“You’re staring,” he said, his voice low but teasing.

“I am not!” Solina exclaimed, her tone a little too defensive as she whipped her head toward him. The way her face burned only made her denial more obvious.

Levi raised an eyebrow. “You’re a terrible liar, Princess.”

Solina huffed and crossed her arms, turning back to face the opposite direction. Her chest rose and fell as she tried to ignore the way her pulse quickened. But the heat was relentless, and even with the thin material of her nightgown, she felt like she was roasting. She shifted uncomfortably, her fingers nervously fiddling with the hem of her gown.

Her thoughts raced. It’s too hot. I can’t sleep like this. But… should I? Would it be improper? She glanced over at Levi from the corner of her eye. He was lying back now, one arm draped over his forehead, his expression calm and unreadable. He’s my husband… it’s not like I’d be doing anything wrong…

Her internal debate must have shown on her face because Levi turned his head toward her, his sharp gray eyes narrowing slightly. “What’s wrong?”

Solina froze, her lips parting as she struggled to find the right words. “I… um…” She bit her lip, looking away again. “It’s just… it’s really hot.”

“I know,” Levi said, his tone matter-of-fact. He shifted slightly on the bed, the movement drawing her attention back to him. “What else?”

Solina hesitated, her cheeks burning. “I… was thinking… maybe I should take this off.” Her voice was barely above a whisper, and she refused to meet his gaze. “It’s so uncomfortable, but… I don’t know if that’s… proper…”

Levi’s eyes widened slightly, and he cleared his throat, his ears turning a faint shade of pink. “If it’s bothering you that much, just take it off,” he said, his voice low but steady. “You’re my wife. You don’t have to ask permission. Besides…” He glanced away, his tone softening. “I won’t look.”

Solina turned to him then, her green eyes searching his face for reassurance. He met her gaze, his expression sincere. Slowly, she nodded, her heart pounding as she reached for the straps of her nightgown. Her fingers trembled slightly as she slid the fabric down her shoulders, revealing the soft curve of her collarbone and the delicate lace of her underwear. The cool night air kissed her heated skin as the gown pooled at her waist before she pushed it the rest of the way off, leaving her in nothing but her lacy underwear.

Levi sat rigidly, his body tense as he kept his eyes fixed on the mosquito net above them. But from the corner of his eye, he couldn’t help but catch glimpses of her. Her skin glowed in the faint moonlight filtering through the treehouse windows, and the delicate lace accentuated her figure in a way that made his chest tighten.

“Is… this okay?” Solina asked softly, her voice laced with nervousness.

Levi exhaled slowly, forcing himself to keep his gaze respectful. “It’s fine,” he said, his voice quieter than usual. “Just… get comfortable.”

She nodded, lying back against the pillows, her long hair fanning out around her. Levi shifted to lie beside her, his heart pounding in a way that surprised him. He had never been one to lose his composure, but something about the sight of his wife lying so vulnerably beside him made him feel a mix of emotions he couldn’t quite put into words.

“Goodnight, Solina,” he murmured, his voice soft.

“Goodnight, Levi,” she replied, her voice equally quiet. Though the heat still lingered, the moment felt oddly serene, as if the world outside the treehouse had faded away, leaving only the two of them.

The night stretched on, the faint chirping of insects and the occasional rustle of leaves breaking the otherwise quiet atmosphere of the treehouse. Solina had managed to drift off to sleep, her soft breathing a soothing rhythm in the oppressive heat. Levi, on the other hand, lay stiffly on his side of the bed, staring up at the ceiling with a thousand thoughts racing through his mind.

He glanced to his right, where Solina was curled up, the moonlight casting an ethereal glow on her skin. Her delicate lace undergarments left little to the imagination, and her hair, slightly damp from the humidity, spilled across the pillow like a red waterfall. Her soft sighs in her sleep were almost too much for Levi to handle.

He let out a slow, steady breath through his nose. Pull it together, Levi. You’re a grown man, not some lovesick recruit fresh out of training.

But no matter how many times he repeated the mantra, it didn’t stop his heart from thudding painfully in his chest. This wasn’t just any woman—it was his wife. The realization made his stomach twist, not with regret or hesitation, but with something he hadn’t felt in years: vulnerability. Solina was kind, intelligent, and now here she was, lying beside him, completely trusting him.

He adjusted his position slightly, trying not to disturb her. Despite the heat, her nearness made the air around him feel even heavier. He was hyper-aware of every movement she made, even in her sleep. The way her lashes fluttered against her cheeks, the gentle rise and fall of her chest—everything about her was captivating.

Levi let out a soft groan and rubbed his face with one hand, his other arm lying rigidly by his side. "Get a grip," he muttered under his breath, his voice barely audible.

The faint buzz of mosquitoes around the net was the only other sound. He swatted at one that had somehow managed to find its way inside, his irritation mounting. Mosquitoes and this heat… great combination for staying calm.

But no amount of pest control could distract him from the fact that Solina was right there. The memory of her slipping out of her dress earlier played on a loop in his mind, and he found himself involuntarily glancing at her again. Her shoulder had shifted, exposing more of her collarbone, and a strand of hair clung to her neck. She looked peaceful, unburdened, as if the weight of the world had been lifted from her shoulders.

Levi turned his head back toward the ceiling, his jaw tightening. Why is this so hard? You’ve faced Titans. You’ve fought battles where the odds were impossible. But lying in a bed next to her is enough to make you lose your composure?

He shifted again, feeling restless. The heat was unbearable, and his mind wouldn’t stop racing. Every time he tried to close his eyes, he could see her looking at him, hear her voice in his head, soft and full of trust. It wasn’t just physical attraction—it was the way she made him feel something he thought he’d lost a long time ago.

Levi sighed again, sitting up slightly and running a hand through his hair. He glanced at her one more time, and his gaze softened. He didn’t want to wake her; she looked so peaceful. Still, he couldn’t help but whisper, “You’re making this damn difficult, Solina.”

Her lips twitched slightly in her sleep, as if she’d heard him, and a small smile graced her face. Levi froze, his heart skipping a beat. He quickly lay back down, pressing his fist against his mouth to suppress the unexpected chuckle that threatened to escape. Even in her sleep, she’s got me wrapped around her finger.

He turned onto his side, his back to her, and tried to focus on the faint breeze filtering through the treehouse. But his mind stayed stubbornly on her. He wasn’t used to this—feeling so exposed, so vulnerable. And yet, with Solina, it didn’t feel like a weakness. It felt… safe.

As the minutes dragged on, he heard her shift slightly. He glanced over his shoulder to see her stretching, her arm brushing against his. She murmured something unintelligible before settling back into the pillow, her hand resting just inches from his.

Levi stared at her hand for a long moment before slowly, tentatively, placing his own hand over hers. It was a small gesture, but it steadied him. For the first time that night, he felt a sense of calm.

“Goodnight, Solina,” he whispered, his voice barely audible over the night’s symphony. This time, he didn’t fight the warmth that spread through his chest.

…

The morning sun filtered through the lush canopy of the rainforest, casting dappled shadows on the wooden deck of the treehouse. Solina, dressed in a lightweight, flowing outfit perfect for the tropical heat, was practically bouncing with excitement as she adjusted her sunhat in the mirror. Levi, however, was packing his bag with a focused intensity, double-checking everything like he was preparing for battle.

“Are you sure you need a machete?” Solina asked, tilting her head to watch him from across the room.

“Yes,” Levi replied curtly, sliding the blade into its sheath and tucking it into his pack. He held up a bottle of mosquito repellent. “And this. Don’t forget to reapply every hour.”

Solina stifled a laugh as she tied her sandals. “You’re acting like we’re about to fight Titans in the rainforest.”

Levi shot her a dry look. “I’d rather fight a Titan than deal with another night of mosquitoes,” he muttered, scratching at his arm where a bite had left a red welt. “If anything jumps out of the bushes at us, I’m not taking chances.”

The idea of Levi battling a rogue monkey or snake in the rainforest was too much for Solina, and she couldn’t help but giggle. “I’m sure we’ll be fine. It’s a guided tour, remember?”

Levi merely grunted, slinging the pack over his shoulder. “Guided or not, I’m ready for anything.”

A soft knock on the door interrupted them. One of the maids entered with a tray of fresh tropical fruits and steaming cups of coffee. “Your breakfast, Princess, Captain,” she announced cheerfully, setting the tray on the small table near the window.

Solina thanked her warmly, her excitement bubbling over as she sat down to eat. She picked up a piece of mango and offered it to Levi. “Here, try this. It’s so sweet.”

Levi leaned back in his chair, eyeing the fruit with a skeptical expression. “I’m not a fan of sweet things.”

“Just try it,” Solina insisted, holding it closer to his mouth with a teasing smile.

With a sigh, Levi gave in, leaning forward to take the piece from her hand. His brows lifted slightly as the taste hit his tongue. “Not bad,” he admitted.

“See? You might actually enjoy yourself today,” Solina teased, popping a piece of pineapple into her own mouth.

Levi shook his head but couldn’t hide the small smirk tugging at his lips. “We’ll see.”

The rainforest was even more breathtaking up close. Towering trees stretched toward the sky, their trunks wrapped in vines and moss. Birds with brilliant plumage flitted through the canopy, their songs echoing in the humid air. Solina was mesmerized, her eyes wide as she took in the vibrant greens and the shafts of sunlight that pierced through the dense foliage.

Their guide, a cheerful local named Mateo, led the group along a narrow path. He pointed out various plants and animals, explaining their significance to the local ecosystem and indigenous culture. Solina hung on every word, occasionally pausing to marvel at a flower or a particularly colorful butterfly.

Levi stayed close behind her, his sharp eyes scanning their surroundings. He didn’t relax for a moment, his hand occasionally brushing against the machete strapped to his side. The faint hum of insects was ever-present, and he made sure to swat away any that ventured too close to Solina.

“Look!” Solina exclaimed, pointing to a monkey swinging from a nearby branch. “Isn’t it adorable?”

Levi followed her gaze, his expression unimpressed. “It’s adorable until it steals something out of your bag.”

Solina laughed. “You’re so paranoid. It’s just a monkey.”

Mateo turned to them with a grin. “The Captain is wise to be cautious. Some of these little ones are very clever thieves.”

Levi crossed his arms, clearly satisfied with the validation. “See? Not paranoid—prepared.”

Solina rolled her eyes but couldn’t hide her amusement. “You’re impossible.”

The tour continued deeper into the rainforest, the group pausing occasionally to admire hidden waterfalls and small, crystal-clear streams. Solina couldn’t resist dipping her fingers into the cool water, the sensation refreshing in the sticky heat.

“Careful,” Levi warned as she leaned over the edge of a rock to get a better view of a tiny frog perched on a leaf.

“I’m fine,” Solina replied, glancing back at him with a reassuring smile. She slipped slightly on the damp rock, and Levi was by her side in an instant, gripping her arm firmly.

“Fine, huh?” he said, arching a brow.

Solina blushed, her heart fluttering at the concern in his eyes. “Thank you,” she murmured, steadying herself.

As the tour wrapped up, the group made their way to a clearing where a small picnic area had been set up. Levi and Solina sat together under the shade of a large tree, sipping on fresh coconut water. Solina was still buzzing with excitement, recounting her favorite parts of the tour.

“That toucan was incredible,” she said, her eyes sparkling. “I’ve never seen one up close before.”

“You liked the toucan?” Levi asked, his tone dry. “I thought you’d be more impressed by the giant spider web we walked through.”

Solina wrinkled her nose. “Don’t remind me. I thought you were going to cut it down with your machete.”

Levi smirked. “I considered it.”

They fell into a comfortable silence, the sounds of the rainforest surrounding them. Levi glanced at Solina, who was gazing out at the trees with a content smile. Despite the heat, the humidity, and the occasional insect, he couldn’t deny that this place was special. And seeing Solina so happy made it all worth it.

As the day went on, it was time for their next activity: Ziplining.

The afternoon sun filtered through the canopy of the rainforest, illuminating the zip-lining platform with golden light. The sound of birds chirping and the distant rustling of leaves added to the sense of adventure. Solina stood on the wooden platform, her face glowing with excitement as she adjusted her sunhat and gazed at the line stretching out before them, disappearing into the dense jungle below.

"This is going to be amazing!" she exclaimed, practically bouncing on her heels. "Ivoria said this was one of the best experiences of her honeymoon."

Levi stood a few steps back, arms crossed, his sharp eyes scanning the setup. The zip line stretched far into the jungle, the end point nowhere in sight. The steel cables seemed sturdy enough, but the thought of flying through the air attached to one of them made his stomach churn—not from fear but skepticism.

"This doesn't look safe," he muttered, narrowing his eyes at the harnesses hanging on the racks.

Solina turned to him, her sunhat tilting slightly. "Levi, you’ve flown through forests and cities using ODM gear. This is nothing compared to that."

He grunted, clearly unconvinced. "ODM gear was tested and built for combat. This... is for tourists."

Before Solina could respond, the zip-line instructor stepped forward, clapping his hands to gather their attention. "Welcome, Your Highness and Captain Ackerman. My name is Miguel, and I’ll be your guide today. Let’s start with a quick rundown of the equipment and safety protocols."

Miguel held up a harness, demonstrating how it would strap around the thighs, waist, and shoulders. He explained the mechanics of the pulley system, the importance of braking at the end, and how to lean back to maintain balance. Solina listened attentively, nodding at every word, while Levi’s sharp gaze dissected every detail.

"It’s like ODM gear," Levi finally muttered under his breath, eyeing the harness.

Miguel gestured toward Solina. "Your Highness, if you’d like to step up on the platform, I’ll help secure your harness."

Levi’s eyes instantly flicked to the man’s hands, and his jaw tightened. He noticed exactly where the straps would need to be adjusted—between Solina’s legs and around her waist. The thought of another man’s hands so close to her body, even for something as mundane as a harness fitting, sent an unfamiliar wave of jealousy washing over him.

Before Miguel could take another step, Levi moved forward. His voice was calm but firm. "Step aside. I’ll handle it."

Miguel blinked in surprise. "Captain, I assure you—"

"I said I’ll handle it," Levi repeated, his tone leaving no room for argument. Miguel hesitated but eventually nodded and stepped back, clearly recognizing Levi's commanding presence.

Solina’s cheeks flushed as Levi approached her, harness in hand. "Levi, you don’t have to—"

"I know how to strap in a harness," Levi cut her off, his movements efficient as he adjusted the straps. "This isn’t complicated."

Solina felt her heart race as Levi knelt slightly to secure the lower straps around her thighs. His hands were firm but respectful, his touch professional yet somehow gentle. She didn’t miss the faint pink dusting his ears as he worked.

"There," Levi said, stepping back and checking the harness one last time. "Perfect fit."

Miguel, standing awkwardly to the side, muttered, "It’s a flawless setup... Captain."

Levi shot him a brief, pointed look before turning back to Solina. "You’re good to go. Let’s see how safe this thing really is."

Solina was the first to zip-line, and her excitement was palpable as she stepped onto the edge of the platform. The jungle stretched out before her like an emerald sea, and the rush of adrenaline made her hands tremble slightly as she gripped the handles.

Miguel gave her a reassuring nod. "Lean back, Your Highness, and let gravity do the work. You’ll be fine."

Solina turned to Levi, who stood a few feet behind her with his arms crossed. Despite his usual stoic expression, there was a flicker of concern in his eyes. She smiled at him, her confidence bolstered by his presence. "See you on the other side!" she called out before taking a deep breath and stepping off the platform.

The moment the pulley caught the cable, she felt a rush of wind against her face. The world blurred into a cascade of green and blue as she zipped through the rainforest, the trees below appearing like tiny specks. Solina let out a laugh, exhilaration coursing through her veins.

Levi watched her go, his chest tightening. Despite his earlier doubts, she looked... free. The sound of her laughter reached him even through the rustling leaves, and for a moment, he allowed himself to relax.

When it was Levi’s turn, he tightened his own harness with practiced precision. Miguel offered to double-check it, but Levi waved him off. "I’ve got it," he said tersely.

Stepping up to the platform, Levi glanced at the cable and then at Miguel. "If this snaps, I’m coming back to haunt you."

Miguel paled slightly. "It won’t, Captain. I promise."

With one last glance at Solina waiting on the next platform, Levi stepped off. The rush of air hit him instantly, and the sensation was both familiar and foreign. It wasn’t unlike ODM gear, but the lack of control made him uneasy. Still, the view was stunning, and he couldn’t deny the thrill.

When he landed on the next platform, Solina was waiting with a radiant smile. "Wasn’t that incredible?"

Levi adjusted his harness, his expression neutral. "It was... fine."

Solina laughed, knowing him well enough to interpret that as high praise.

By the time they reached the last platform, Levi was more relaxed, though he still kept a wary eye on the equipment. Solina, however, was glowing with happiness, her cheeks flushed from the excitement.

"Thank you for coming with me," she said softly as they walked back to the main lodge. "I know you were skeptical, but I’m glad we did this together."

Levi glanced at her, his expression softening. "You were right. It wasn’t terrible."

Solina laughed, the sound bright and melodic. "I’ll take that as a victory."

As they reached the lodge, Miguel approached them with a polite bow. "Your Highness, Captain, you both did wonderfully. It’s not every day we see a couple tackle the entire course so gracefully."

Levi ignored the compliment, his focus on Solina as she beamed at the praise. "It was amazing," she said. "Thank you so much."

As they headed back to their treehouse, Levi carried her harness along with his own. Solina noticed the quiet contentment in his expression and felt a warmth in her chest. He might not say much, but his actions spoke volumes. He was here for her, every step of the way.

…

After their ziplining, the evening sun had painted the sky in hues of orange and pink as Levi and Solina made their way through the bustling town square. The streets were alive with laughter, music, and the scent of sizzling food wafting from the open grills and stalls. Strings of colorful lanterns illuminated the cobbled roads, casting a warm glow over the scene.

Solina’s emerald eyes sparkled with excitement as she clung to Levi’s arm, her white and gold dress flowing around her ankles. She looked radiant, her happiness infectious. Levi, ever composed, walked beside her, his sharp gaze sweeping the area. He wasn’t used to such lively crowds, but he found himself less tense as he caught glimpses of Solina’s pure joy.

“This is incredible!” Solina exclaimed, her voice almost drowned out by the rhythmic drumming echoing from the center of the square. “Look at all the people dancing, Levi! Isn’t this wonderful?”

Levi smirked faintly. “It’s loud,” he muttered, but his tone lacked its usual sharpness. He didn’t mind the noise as much when it meant seeing her so delighted.

They approached a corner where a group of drummers sat in a semi-circle, their hands pounding against taut drum skins in a synchronized rhythm that made the ground vibrate. Men, women, and children danced barefoot in the center of the square, their movements fluid and joyous, as if they were one with the music. Solina clapped her hands along with the beat, her body swaying slightly.

“Come on, Levi!” she said, tugging on his arm. “Let’s join them!”

Levi raised an eyebrow. “Dancing isn’t exactly my thing.”

Solina laughed. “You danced with me at our wedding, didn’t you?”

“That was different,” he replied, his lips twitching into a small smile. “That was for you.”

Her heart swelled at his words, but before she could tease him further, one of the drummers—a middle-aged man with a wide grin and a vibrant feathered headdress—caught sight of her enthusiasm. He gestured toward her, speaking in accented Valorian.

“Princess! You like the music?”

“I love it!” Solina replied, clapping her hands.

The man beamed and patted the drum beside him. “Then you try! Come, play!”

Solina’s eyes widened in surprise, and she turned to Levi, a mixture of excitement and nervousness on her face. “Do you think I should?”

Levi shrugged, his usual calm demeanor in place, but his eyes held a flicker of warmth. “You’ll probably be better at it than all of them combined.”

That was all the encouragement she needed. Solina stepped forward, her smile bright as the drummer handed her a seat and positioned a smaller drum in front of her. The crowd cheered as the princess took her place, and Levi crossed his arms, standing at the edge of the circle with an amused expression.

The drummer showed Solina a simple rhythm, his hands moving over the drum in deliberate, practiced motions. She watched intently, nodding along to the beat before lifting her own hands to try. At first, her movements were hesitant, her hands light against the drum. But then, as she found the rhythm, her confidence grew, and the sound became stronger, more vibrant.

The crowd cheered louder, and the drummer laughed in delight. “You are natural, Princess!”

Solina’s cheeks flushed with pride as she continued, her fingers flying across the drumhead in perfect harmony with the others. She didn’t need much instruction—her natural talent for music took over, and soon she was creating her own rhythm, weaving it seamlessly into the melody of the group.

Levi couldn’t take his eyes off her. She was glowing, completely in her element, and the sound of the drums combined with her radiant smile made something stir deep within him. He wasn’t the type to be moved by public displays or loud crowds, but watching Solina, he felt an unfamiliar sense of pride. This was his wife—talented, kind, and full of life.

After a few minutes, Solina finished her piece with a dramatic flourish, and the crowd erupted into cheers and applause. She laughed, slightly out of breath, and turned to look at Levi. “How was that?” she asked, her voice teasing.

Levi’s lips curved into one of his rare, genuine smiles. “I think you’ve just upstaged the entire band.”

The drummer clapped Solina on the shoulder, his grin wide. “Princess, you have a gift. Anytime you want to play, you come here.”

“Thank you,” Solina said sincerely, her cheeks still pink from the excitement.

As she returned to Levi’s side, she slipped her arm through his, her face glowing with happiness. “Did you really think I did well?” she asked softly as they walked toward the open dining area.

“You were incredible,” Levi replied, his voice low but honest. “You always are.”

Solina blushed, her heart swelling at his words. They found a quiet table overlooking the square, where they enjoyed a dinner of local delicacies, the sounds of laughter and music filling the air. Though Levi remained his usual stoic self, Solina could tell he was enjoying the moment in his own way. For her, this evening was a memory she would treasure forever.

…

As their night continued, it was finally time for dinner and the night air was warm and alive with the sounds of laughter, clinking glasses, and rhythmic drums echoing in the distance as Solina and Levi sat at their small wooden table, surrounded by the locals enjoying the vibrant evening. Their table was laden with colorful dishes, each one more aromatic and enticing than the last.

Solina leaned forward, her emerald eyes gleaming with curiosity as she picked up a piece of flatbread. “Levi, this all looks amazing! I don’t even know where to start.”

Levi, ever the skeptic, eyed the spread warily. His gaze lingered on a particularly fiery-looking red curry that seemed to radiate heat just from its scent. “I don’t trust food that looks like it could set my mouth on fire.”

Solina laughed, a melodic sound that drew a few smiles from nearby tables. “You have to try it! We can’t come all this way and not taste the local cuisine.”

Levi sighed, resigned. “Fine, but if I regret this, you’re to blame.”

She giggled and reached for a small piece of roasted meat glazed with a sticky, deep red sauce. “Here, start with this. It’s not even that spicy.”

Levi raised an eyebrow but took the offered morsel, his fingers brushing against hers for a brief moment. Popping it into his mouth, he chewed cautiously. At first, the flavors were rich and smoky, but then, like a fiery ambush, the heat hit him full force. His eyes widened, and a faint red flush crept up his neck.

“Not spicy?” he managed, his voice a touch strained. “Solina, are you trying to kill me?”

Solina gasped, her hands flying to her mouth to stifle a laugh. “Oh no! Is it that bad?” she asked, though the glint in her eyes betrayed her amusement.

Levi grabbed his glass of water and drank it quickly, but it did little to quell the burn. “Bad? My tongue feels like it’s been set on fire. This is worse than any titan fight.”

By now, Solina was laughing so hard that tears gathered at the corners of her eyes. “I’m sorry, Levi! I thought you’d like it.”

He gave her a flat look, though the corners of his mouth twitched. “I think you knew exactly what you were doing.”

Still giggling, Solina reached for a bowl of yogurt sauce and held it out to him. “Here, try this. It’ll help with the spice.”

Levi hesitated but eventually dipped a piece of bread into the sauce and ate it. The cool, creamy texture did help ease the burn, though his face remained red, both from the heat and Solina’s teasing.

Feeling emboldened, Solina tried a piece of the spicy meat herself. She gasped as the heat hit her, waving her hand in front of her mouth. “Oh my goodness, you weren’t exaggerating! That is spicy!”

Levi smirked. “See? Now you know how I feel.”

The two of them worked their way through the rest of the dishes, each more adventurous than the last. Solina, ever the enthusiast, insisted on trying everything at least once, even if it made her eyes water or her cheeks flush. Levi, though skeptical, followed her lead, determined not to be outdone.

At one point, a local chef approached their table, noticing Levi’s flushed face and the beads of sweat forming on his brow. “Too spicy for you, Captain?” the chef teased good-naturedly.

Levi looked up, his stoic expression unchanging. “Not at all,” he replied dryly. “I’ve faced worse.”

The chef laughed heartily and clapped Levi on the shoulder before offering them a plate of sweet, cooling fruit to cleanse their palates. Solina immediately reached for a slice of mango, sighing in relief as the sweetness soothed her tongue.

“This is amazing,” she said, turning to Levi with a bright smile. “Even if it’s spicy, I love how bold the flavors are.”

Levi nodded, his eyes softening as he watched her excitement. “It’s... different,” he admitted. “But I can see why you like it.”

As they finished their meal, the lively atmosphere around them seemed to heighten. A group of dancers took to the square, their movements graceful and rhythmic, their colorful skirts swirling in time with the drums. Solina watched them in awe, her hands clasped together.

“Levi, isn’t this beautiful?” she asked, her voice filled with wonder.

He followed her gaze, his eyes lingering on her rather than the dancers. “Yeah,” he said softly, though his answer wasn’t about the performance.

Solina turned to him, catching the way he was looking at her, and her cheeks flushed—not from the spice this time. She reached across the table, her fingers brushing against his hand. “Thank you for trying everything with me tonight,” she said earnestly. “I know it wasn’t easy.”

Levi shook his head, a small smile tugging at his lips. “You make it easy.”

The two of them sat there for a while longer, enjoying the sights and sounds of the town. Despite the lingering heat of the food, Levi couldn’t deny that this evening—watching Solina’s joy, hearing her laughter—had been one of the best he’d had in a long time.

Suddenly, the lively beat of drums filled the night air again as the square buzzed with life, the dancers spinning and twirling to the rhythm. Solina’s eyes sparkled as she watched the scene, her excitement bubbling over. Unable to contain herself, she turned to Levi, a playful grin spreading across her face.

“Come on, Levi!” she said, grabbing his hand. “Let’s dance!”

Levi’s brows furrowed instantly, and he barely managed to set his cup down before being tugged out of his chair. “What? Solina, I told you I don’t—”

“You can’t say no,” she interrupted, pulling him toward the center of the square. “It’s our honeymoon! We have to enjoy it.”

Levi glanced around nervously at the crowd, which was now cheering them on, many clapping in time to the music. “Solina, I don’t dance,” he muttered, his voice low enough for only her to hear.

Solina turned to face him, still holding his hands, her cheeks slightly flushed from a mix of the spicy food and the exhilaration of the moment. “You don’t have to be perfect,” she said, her tone encouraging. “Just follow me.”

Levi sighed, his lips twitching as though he might protest further, but Solina’s enthusiasm was infectious. With her hands firmly gripping his, she began to sway and step to the beat, her movements light and carefree. Levi, on the other hand, stood rooted to the spot, his body stiff as a board.

“Levi,” she said, laughing softly. “You have to move, or it doesn’t count as dancing.”

“I am moving,” he deadpanned, shifting his weight from one foot to the other in the most minimal way possible.

Solina burst into laughter, the sound musical against the drumming. “No, no! Like this.” She spun in a small circle, her skirt twirling around her, then stepped closer to him. “Just follow the rhythm, okay?”

“I’m a soldier, not a dancer,” Levi muttered, though he allowed her to guide his hands.

Solina began jumping lightly to the beat, her hands still holding his, and Levi found himself being jostled into the rhythm despite his resistance. He felt incredibly awkward, standing stiffly as his wife danced around him, her movements full of joy. But then he caught her gaze, her eyes sparkling with laughter, and something in him softened.

“Alright,” he muttered under his breath, shifting his feet a little more intentionally. “But don’t expect miracles.”

“That’s the spirit!” Solina beamed, encouraging him with a bright smile. She gave his hands a gentle tug, pulling him slightly forward, and he took a hesitant step.

The crowd around them began clapping louder, and some even started cheering, clearly amused by Levi’s reluctant participation. Solina spun again, laughing as she twirled back to face him. “See? You’re doing great!”

“I look ridiculous,” Levi muttered, though the corner of his mouth twitched into a reluctant smile.

Solina tilted her head, her expression softening. “Not to me,” she said quietly, her voice barely audible over the music.

Levi blinked, her words catching him off guard. For a moment, the noise of the crowd and the beat of the drums faded into the background. All he could see was Solina, her face glowing in the warm light of the lanterns, her joy so genuine it made his chest ache.

“You’re really something, you know that?” he said, his voice low.

Solina blushed, her grip on his hands tightening slightly. “You bring it out of me,” she replied, her smile turning shy.

The music shifted to a faster tempo, and the crowd began dancing more enthusiastically. Solina let go of Levi’s hands to clap along, her hips swaying naturally to the beat. Levi, feeling a bit less self-conscious now, took a small step closer, his movements more fluid than before.

“Levi!” Solina exclaimed, noticing his progress. “You’re dancing!”

“Barely,” he replied, his tone dry, though the faintest hint of a smile lingered on his lips.

The two of them continued to move together, Levi’s steps becoming more confident as the minutes passed. Solina couldn’t help but giggle as he made a concerted effort to keep up with her, his usual stoicism softened by the moment.

When the music finally slowed, signaling the end of the song, the crowd erupted into applause. Solina clapped along, her face glowing with happiness. She turned to Levi, reaching for his hand.

“Thank you for dancing with me,” she said sincerely.

Levi squeezed her hand lightly, his gray eyes warm as they met hers. “You’re welcome. But don’t expect me to make a habit of it.”

Solina laughed, her heart full as they began walking back to their table.

…

After dinner and dancing, the humid jungle air clung to Solina and Levi as they walked back toward the treehouse with their attendant, their lantern casting dancing shadows on the path. Solina was chatting softly about the night’s festivities, her voice light with happiness, while Levi, ever alert, kept his eyes scanning their surroundings. It had been a long, adventurous day, and the thought of finally resting in the treehouse felt like a reward.

That was until they saw it.

Levi stopped abruptly, his body tensing as his sharp eyes caught movement near the treehouse ladder. Solina, confused, took another step forward, only to freeze when Levi held out an arm to block her. Her eyes followed his gaze, and her blood ran cold.

There it was—a massive cobra, its sleek black body coiled tightly around the base of the ladder. Its hood flared wide, and its yellow-green eyes gleamed ominously in the dim light. The snake hissed, the sound sharp and menacing, and Solina instinctively stepped back.

She opened her mouth to scream, but Levi’s hand shot up, covering her mouth gently yet firmly. “Quiet,” he whispered, his tone low and commanding. “Don’t startle it.”

Solina’s heart was pounding so hard she thought it might leap out of her chest. Levi removed his hand from her mouth, his sharp gaze never leaving the snake. He turned to the attendant, his voice calm but firm. “Take her somewhere safe.”

The attendant’s eyes widened, and he shook his head quickly. “C-Captain, it’s a cobra, yes, but it’s not aggressive unless provoked. Please don’t harm it. It’s sacred in this region—”

Levi shot him a look so incredulous it could have cut through steel. “Sacred or not, it’s blocking the way to our treehouse, and it’s massive. That thing’s fangs could kill someone in seconds.”

The cobra hissed again, swaying slightly as if it were sizing up the group. Solina whimpered softly, her fear evident as she clung to Levi’s arm. Levi glanced down at her, his resolve hardening. He couldn’t let anything happen to her.

The attendant squeaked when the snake bared its sharp teeth, venom glistening on its fangs. He quickly ducked behind Levi, his courage evaporating. “P-perhaps we should call for someone experienced—”

“No time,” Levi muttered, unsheathing the machete strapped to his back. The blade gleamed in the moonlight, and his grip was steady. He didn’t care if it was a cobra or a titan; if it was a threat, it was going down.

Solina’s eyes widened as she watched him prepare to confront the snake. “Levi, please be careful!” she whispered, her voice trembling.

Levi gave her a brief glance, his eyes filled with determination. “I’ll handle it. Stay back.”

The cobra, sensing danger, coiled tighter and raised its head higher, its hood fully flared. The sound of its hissing filled the air, and the tension was palpable. Levi took a step forward, the machete steady in his hand. He moved like a predator, his body low and his stance poised for attack.

The attendant whimpered from behind him. “Please, Captain! I beg you, don’t harm it. Just—just scare it away!”

Levi didn’t respond. His focus was entirely on the snake, his mind calculating every possible move. The cobra struck first, lunging with lightning speed. Levi sidestepped effortlessly, his blade flashing in the light as he slashed toward the snake. The machete didn’t connect—Levi wasn’t aiming to kill yet, only to warn.

The cobra hissed louder, its body shifting as it recoiled. Solina gasped, her hands clutching her chest as she watched Levi in action. He moved with such precision, such confidence, that even in the midst of her fear, she felt a strange sense of awe.

The snake swayed, its movements erratic as Levi held his ground. He raised the machete slightly, the blade glinting, and then he slammed it into the ground in front of the cobra with enough force to send a shockwave through the dirt.

The cobra flinched, its hood retracting slightly as it reevaluated the threat before it. Levi took a calculated step closer, his eyes locked on the serpent. “Go,” he said, his voice low and commanding. “Or the next swing won’t miss.”

For a moment, it was as if time stood still. The cobra stared at Levi, its body tense and coiled. Then, slowly, it began to slither backward, uncoiling itself from the ladder. The snake hissed one last time before retreating into the underbrush, disappearing into the shadows.

Levi exhaled, lowering the machete. “Good riddance,” he muttered, turning to check on Solina.

Solina, still trembling, stepped forward and threw her arms around him. “You were amazing,” she whispered, her voice shaky. “Thank you.”

Levi hesitated for a moment before wrapping an arm around her, his other hand still gripping the machete. “It’s fine now,” he said softly. “Let’s get you inside.”

The attendant peeked out from behind Levi, his face pale. “C-Captain, that was... incredible. I’ve never seen anyone face a cobra like that.”

Levi shot him a look. “Next time, let’s avoid sacred snakes blocking the way.”

The attendant nodded vigorously, leading them up the ladder to the treehouse. Solina stayed close to Levi, her trust in him solidified even further after witnessing his bravery.

As they entered the treehouse, Solina turned to Levi with a small, grateful smile. “I think you just saved my life.”

Levi shrugged, setting the machete aside. “It’s what I’m here for.”

But the slight curve of his lips betrayed the pride he felt.

As they made their way up the treehouse, Solina flitted about, her excitement and admiration for Levi palpable. She turned to him, her green eyes sparkling, and clasped her hands together as though she were holding back a cheer. “Levi, that was incredible! You just... faced that snake like it was nothing!”

Levi, who had just set the machete against the wall, glanced at her and raised an eyebrow. “It’s just a snake, Solina. I’ve fought titans—things a hundred times bigger and uglier than that.”

Solina’s lips twitched, but she was undeterred. “Yes, I know! But this was different! It wasn’t like... like one of those planned missions you’ve done. You didn’t even hesitate. You just acted, and that snake was terrifying!”

Levi leaned against the wall, crossing his arms over his chest. His gray eyes softened as he took in her flushed cheeks and animated gestures. “Titans are a bigger threat. That thing was a nuisance at best,” he said, though his tone lacked the sharpness it usually carried. Instead, it was tinged with quiet amusement.

“But it was venomous!” Solina exclaimed, taking a step closer to him. “And so huge! You didn’t even flinch.”

Levi gave a small shrug, as if to downplay the feat. “I flinch at nothing. You know that.”

Solina stopped in front of him and tilted her head, a playful smile tugging at her lips. “Well, I think it was very brave,” she said softly, her voice laced with genuine admiration. “I mean, even the attendant—who is supposed to be used to these creatures—hid behind you.”

Levi smirked at the memory of the quivering man. “Yeah, that guy was useless.”

Solina giggled, the sound light and musical. “You were incredible, though. Honestly, I was so scared, Levi. I thought I might faint.”

Levi’s smirk faltered slightly, replaced by a flicker of concern. He straightened, uncrossing his arms. “You’re okay now, though?”

Solina nodded eagerly. “Because of you,” she said without hesitation. “I don’t know what I would’ve done if you hadn’t been there.”

Levi reached out and brushed a stray strand of red hair from her face, his touch gentle. “You don’t need to worry about things like that, Solina. Not when I’m around.”

Her cheeks flushed a deep red, and she averted her gaze for a moment. But then her lips quirked into a grin. “Still, I think I’m allowed to gush a little. My husband just saved me from a deadly snake.”

Levi’s ears turned pink at the word “husband,” though he quickly masked it by clearing his throat. “If you insist on calling me brave for dealing with something I could step on, go ahead.”

Solina laughed, a sweet sound that filled the treehouse and eased the lingering tension from earlier. “I do insist!” she said, placing her hands on her hips in mock defiance. “I think it’s well-deserved.”

Levi shook his head slightly, but there was a small, almost imperceptible smile on his face. “You’re impossible,” he muttered.

“And you’re amazing,” Solina countered, stepping closer again. She looked up at him, her green eyes warm and earnest. “Really, Levi. I mean it.”

He met her gaze, and for a moment, the room felt still. There was a softness in her expression that tugged at something deep within him—a feeling of being seen, of being appreciated in a way he hadn’t been before. “Thanks,” he said quietly, the word simple but sincere.

Solina’s smile widened, and she reached out to take his hand. “So,” she said, her voice lighter now, “are there any other heroic acts you’re planning for tonight, or do you think the snake was enough excitement for one evening?”

Levi chuckled softly, shaking his head. “I think I’ve done my part.”

“Well, then,” Solina said, her tone teasing, “you’ve earned a nice, peaceful rest.”

Levi glanced toward the bed and then back at her. “I’ll rest once I’m sure no other ‘sacred’ creatures are lurking nearby.”

Solina laughed again, and the sound made Levi’s chest feel inexplicably warm. “Fair enough,” she said. “But, Levi... thank you. For everything.”

He squeezed her hand gently. “Always.”

As they settled into the night, the earlier tension and fear faded, replaced by a quiet comfort that spoke volumes. Even in the midst of a foreign land, with all its challenges and unknowns, they had each other—and that, for now, was more than enough.

Masterlist | Patreon

Join my Taglist

Note: I am three chapters ahead on patreon:)

Tags: @nironasaran @outlawqueen17 @xngelsau @Picodegwap @multifandom-03 @ackermansbest @anything4yoongi @blmcd57110 @may-machin @Estella-novella

15 notes · View notes

thethiefandtheairbender · 1 year ago

Note

Hiii, I really love your ATLA analyses. I'm genuinely interested, what can you say about this take? I mean, it sounds pretty logical, and I'm really interested to know what objections there might be to that view of EIP?

https://www.tumblr.com/writer-rider-dirty-thirties/744225630324965376?source=share

There's a few main things that meta like this one, I think, miss out on. That said beyond the two paragraphs I'm not really discussing their meta in particular. Everyone's entitled to their opinion, but it does play into why I think EIP gets blown out of proportion while ignoring the more... grounded subtext there? Which is what the rest of the meta response here is about as follows. Please refrain from sending me specific metas in the future - discrediting other people's work is not what I'm about, even I don't necessarily think it's always well argued.

They acknowledge the Doylist perspective... and then completely ignore the actual, textual Doylist perspective they have going on. The writers' intent was to, very evidently, use Ember Island Players to acknowledge their own and fans' reactions to the show (which is why the Great Divide, an episode that the writer of EIP wrote, gets the shaft in the play) by exaggerating and making fun of their own characters and plot points. Grounded in their portrayals yes (Katara does indeed make speeches about hope) but so heavily distorted; just look at how they portray this Katara and Jet, who are completely remorseless about drowning a town ("Oh Jet, you're so bad~").

But the distortion is key. The play pretty glaringly says "Canon Katara would never like Zuko" or vice versa, "because to do so would be a great distortion of her character and characterization." Furthermore, for Katara to only see Aang "like a little brother, and that you don't have feelings for me" is also a distortion, which is why Katara outright states on the balcony, "I didn't say that. An actor said that". It's also worth noting I think that the play itself also erases Aang's romantic feelings for Katara ("I wouldn't want it any other way!"). He doesn't make his feelings plain and be rejected in the play; they just don't exist. So even the play itself isn't saying that there's a love triangle, they're saying that a distorted version of these characters would feature a Katara and Aang that don't have feelings for each other, and a Katara and Zuko that would.

Now, I don't think the play is meant to be that dismissive of fans, either. Like I said - it's meant to poke fun, and the ZK faction had always been quite large and vocal. The crossroads of destiny and its associations with Oma and Shu (which serve the basis for Kataang's love theme) are the bulk of what the ship tends to stand on, 'canon' wise. It makes sense if you're going to do a ship tease with them to do it there, and it's also the last instance you can really make actor Katara 'like' anyone.

It's also a misread to assume Aang would get this angry over jealousy, as well, given that Katara was very obvious with Jet both times, and Aang was very sparingly jealous in Book 1 and only slightly so in Book 2. EIP is one of the rare instances where Aang projects onto other people, a trait more usually seen from his friends.

What makes him upset - and we Know this, because he repeats it outright when they actually Talk about it - is this exchange between actor Katara and Zuko:

EIP!Zuko: I thought you were the Avatar's girl. EIP!Katara: [Laughs] The Avatar? Why he's like a little brother to me. I certainly don't think of him in a romantic way.

That's what makes him potentially upset, which fair enough: it can be upsetting when someone doesn't like you back, especially when Katara previously has given plenty of indications that she does. But he's not mad at her on the balcony. He doesn't take his frustrations over her not seemingly returning his feelings out on her. He's mad because Katara can't, or won't, give him a straight answer.

Aang: You said that I'm just like a brother to you, and that you didn't have feelings for me. Katara: I didn't say that. An actor said that. Aang: But it's true, isn't it? We kissed at the invasion and I thought we were going to be together, but we're not. Katara: Aang, I don't know... Aang: Why don't you know?

AKA "if you don't like me, which I just gave you a perfect out to acknowledge, can you at least confirm it for me?" And she won't even do that.

Katara is usually a very openly emotional person, which is why when it comes to whether she has feelings for him or not (and he has very good reasons to think that she does, given if you remove the Aang's POV we see, Katara is wayy more obvious with her affection than he is), it's accordingly frustrating that she won't just come out and say it. When does someone like Katara hold back? Well... normally when she's concerned about Bigger Things (i.e. not initially pushing with Pakku because Aang learning waterbending is more important to her) or when she's not sure what to do (when Aang rejects her comfort in The Serpent's Pass).

Conversely, his feelings for Katara also makes Aang more likely to stop evading or dodging and to stick his landing. He's the one who tries to confess on two different occasions. He's the one who kisses her first. And he's the one who wants to actually discuss their relationship now. (These are all reasons why I think, if they ever did break up, Aang would actually be the one with the guts to say it out loud, just FYI.)

Alternatively, if we wanna talk about Framing, let's talk about the actual balcony scene, namely Katara's dialogue, and the placement of the moon:

Not only does this balcony scene take place on a balcony like their infamous finale kiss, with parallel framing of Katara walking up behind Aang and seeking him out to talk (if Katara hadn't approached him, it's likely neither would've happened either time) but like

When Yue finds herself in a similar situation with Sokka - a young man she loves, has kissed, but finds herself unable to be with for a variety of reasons - she says almost beat for beat what Katara says here about her feelings and reasonings for wanting more distance. But like both Yue and Katara say, there's more important things going on:

I say this because everyone ignores the aspect of Katara's bond with Aang that is informed by her own trauma and fear of losing people. Aang kisses her because "What if I don't come back?" Katara literally watched him die and brought him back to life. She watched her father mourn her mother and Sokka mourn Yue (The Swamp), which the play likewise gives her an ample reminder of. She watched Jet die too. Katara has faith that Aang will be different ("I knew you'd come" from CoD and "He's gonna come back; he has to" in Sozin's Comet) but that doesn't mean she's not scared. Everyone else going on is complicating her feelings for Aang, and that's perfectly valid -- but like I said, it's a 1 for 1 with Yue.

Which is why she kisses Aang first after the war, on another balcony, because now it is the right time.

This isn't even touching on the in-universe canonical reading of EIP being Fire Nation imperialist propaganda, but that's a meta for another day.

Not to mention: EIP also teases Zukaang through Aang and the Blue Spirit, has them similarly react in distaste, you can equally read Zuko wanting to sit in between them as wanting to sit next to Aang, and Zuko and Aang's dialogue is a lot more ship teased in canon, Anyway.

June: What happened? Your girlfriend run off on you? Zuko: It's not the girl I'm after. It's the bald monk she's travelling with.

Zuko doesn't even correct June for implying a romantic connection, only who he's looking for (love you Avatar "Zuko I want you to dance with me" Aang).

I also personally think that basically any episode that has 'strong' Zuko-Katara subtext actually has far stronger Zuko-Aang subtext, but that's a meta for another day.

I do always think the ZK fandom is a fascinating example of what can happen to a fandom when they only have maybe 5 episodes to work with, nor does ship teasing make something implied canon, otherwise The Dragon Prince (also created by Aaron Ehasz) would have a very different endgame ship (to the point that every Soren/Rayla shipper I've seen also ships ZK, funnily enough, because neither of those are remotely canon).

People have gotta stop taking the bone they're thrown and acting like it's a feast.

#antizutara #atla meta #thanks for asking #pro kataang #atla #analysis series #kataang #otp: penguin sledding

41 notes · View notes

heliads · 1 year ago

Note

Okay, this request has been on my mind for a while, so here’s my first ever Enola Holmes request!!

This one might sound a little strange, so you totally don’t have to write it, but we all love some Holmes and Watson shipping, and I was super happy when they introduced Watson at the end of the second movie, so: could I maybe request Enola and her girlfriend helping to get Sherlock and Watson together post-second movie?

Again, I know this one’s a little weird, so you don’t have to write it, but if you do, thanks in advance and I hope you’re doing well, beloved!! 🖤

'love stories repeat themselves' - enola holmes

masterlist

The office is quiet, and were it not for the fact that you’re currently occupying this cozy space with Enola Holmes, you would be perfectly fine with that. In every other study space you’ve shared, quiet is normal, quiet is expected. With the lovely whirlwind of a girl that you’ve grown to appreciate as Enola, though, the silence still permeating the office of her detective agency can only mean one thing: she’s plotting again.

You cast Enola a wary look. Typically, Enola never sits still, forever spinning between a pile of papers on her desk to the window overlooking the street outside to the chair next to you so she can take a peek at what you’re doing. Right now, though, Enola is perfectly motionless, the only movement in her entire frame the slight flick of her eyes back and forth as she mentally catalogs sources for some mysterious argument.

An impartial observer would spy upon this scene and see nothing wrong with it. You’re working hard, Enola is simply relaxing. Nothing wrong with that. However, you’ve known Enola for several years now, and that gives you the background knowledge necessary to realize that she’s only ever still like this when her mind is far more active than her body could ever hope to be.

That’s what falling in love with a girl does to you, you suppose. You and Enola have been secretly courting for a little over a year now. Sherlock deduced it almost immediately, and you were eventually forced to tell Tewkesbury after he found a new bouquet of flowers in Enola’s study and demanded to know of which suitor had finally won her over, but other than that, your privacy is well enjoyed. The two of you can show your love in the confidence of your own homes or Enola’s office, like you’re doing right now. This would give you the perfect opportunity of learning about her new conquests– if, that is, Enola ever told you.

You shake your head slightly and attempt to focus on your work once more. There’s plenty of schoolwork on your plate tonight; your tutors have decided to heap readings and essays upon you with unnervingly coincidental deadlines. Secretly, you believe that they get together to decide how to best ruin your life all at once, but that’s hardly here nor there. Maybe you’ll send Enola to track them down when she’s bored, although that happens rarely. Enola is perfectly capable of filling her free time. After all, she’s doing it right now.

Eventually, the curiosity of knowing just what’s got Enola in a tizzy wins out over your determination to stop procrastinating on some sums, and you place your pen down with no small amount of excitement. “What’s on your mind, Enola?”

Your girlfriend jumps as if startled, then glances guiltily over at you. “Nothing, nothing. How’s your schoolwork?”

You arch a brow. “Sweetheart, if you’re trying not to look suspicious, you’re failing miserably. Just what are you planning now?”

Enola smiles weakly. “Nothing major.”

You look at her, thoroughly irked. “Enola.”

She sighs and gives in. “Fine. Fine. It’s just– have you ever seen the way my brother acts around his new flatmate?”

“The flatmate you signed him up for?” You ask pointedly.

Enola gives you an exasperated stare. “Y/N, you’re meant to be supportive of me right now. How else can I share my musings when you’re teasing me like this?”

“I would never tease,” you tell her, eyes wide in mock surrender. “That would be a horrid thing to do.”

“It would be,” Enola agrees crossly, but continues on. “Anyway, Sherlock and Watson. I want them to get together.”

“They live together,” you argue. “How much more together can they possibly get? And besides, didn’t Sherlock warn you about meddling in his affairs once already? He’s going to be expecting you to pull something like this.”

“But it’s worth it this time,” Enola protests. “Y/N, haven’t you seen them? My brother is lost in his head around the clock, but the second Watson opens his mouth, it’s like he’s never heard anything half so interesting. I actually saw him ignore the day’s newspaper for a full hour to listen to Watson talk. It’s got to be love, Y/N.”

You tilt your head to the side. “I can’t argue with that. I visited Sherlock’s flat with you once, I think we were dropping off some old books. He did appear rather besotted.”

“He didn’t just appear besotted, he was,” Enola claims. “The only problem is, my brother can be so bloody prideful that I don’t think I can do this on my own. I’m going to need your assistance in this grand endeavor.” She stands up abruptly, hastening to your side so she can offer you her hand to shake with all the solemnity of a banker about to conduct business. “So? Will you help me?”

You smile up at her. “Seeing as I have the most recent experience with getting a Holmes to confess their feelings, I think my assistance is of the greatest importance. I hereby join your efforts.”

You shake her hand briskly, and Enola breaks into a beaming smile. “See, I knew you would help. You’re the best girlfriend ever.”

You can’t help but laugh. “The greatest ever? On what grounds can you possibly form such a claim?”

“The grounds of the truth,” Enola declares cheerfully. “Now, we must remain focused. My brother’s future happiness depends on it.”

Thus Enola’s so-called grand endeavor begins. The two of you start this effort as you would for any other case. Gathering information is critical to the success of this affair. It would not do to start out on the wrong foot and doom this little adventure before it hardly even gets off of the ground.

The difficulty lies in furthering your well-intentioned goals without alerting Sherlock to your real motives. There’s no doubt that he suspects you from the very moment you first arrive in his flat, but the last thing you want is for him to protest and start going against the whole idea.

At first, Enola wants you to look at the scene with fresh eyes, just to make sure that the whole thing isn’t in her head. This, if anything, tells you that she’s serious about all this– Enola usually jumps headfirst into the first problem that comes her way, never bothering to doubt herself for longer than a second. This, though, she wants to get right. It’s her brother, after all, and if she messes up in the slightest, she’ll lose more than just a potential client but some of her last remaining family.

However, all you see is a match that needs to be made. Sherlock orbits around Watson without even realizing it. At one point, Watson suggests a change that should be made to the room’s layout to allow for better flow of traffic from room to room, and you’re certain that Sherlock’s head may fall from his neck due to the overabundance of bobbing nods of approval.

You and Enola return to the office that night of one mind: Sherlock must be helped, and as soon as possible. You launch an intensive campaign to drive the two men together, including but not limited to inviting both of them out to a midday meal and then accidentally forgetting that neither of you could make it, thus forcing Sherlock and Watson to lunch together, insisting that they go to a certain show or performance in search of clues when really you just want them to go to events together, and even going so far as requesting that Watson try his hand at an old recipe so Sherlock could see him cooking for the two of them and realize his ardent affections.

Nothing, however, goes according to plan. The two of them spend time with each other, of course, and seem more attached to each other than ever, but nary a word is said about it. Annoyed, you and Enola redouble your efforts, but the only result is that you’re both called to Sherlock’s flat about a week later. Alone. No Watson in sight.

Sherlock sits the two of you down on the settee and picks a chair opposite it for himself. Seated with his arms folded tightly across his chest, he doesn’t even have to say a single word before you and Enola regard each other with quick, panicked glances. He’s caught onto you, obviously, and now it’s time for the resulting unhappy speech about your meddling.

Enola smiles tightly, deciding to fend off any unhappiness by acting as if everything is normal. “It’s lovely to see you again, brother. To what do we owe this pleasure?”

Sherlock sighs. “You’re a fellow detective, Enola. How about you tell me?”

You shuffle slightly in your seat. “Are we here because you think we’re doing something we shouldn’t?”

Sherlock turns the force of his disappointed glower onto you. The effect could wither the healthiest of oaks. “Correct, Miss L/N. I have reason to believe that the two of you have been interfering with my affairs. Specifically, my friendship with my flatmate.”

Enola stiffens. “Whatever made you think that?”

Sherlock arches a single dark brow. “I don’t think that, Enola, I know it. You’ve been sending us on excursions so we have an excuse to spend time alone, as if we don’t do that enough already by living together. You’re intentionally manipulating us in an effort to coax what you believe to be the truth from our lips. It isn’t.”

Enola gives him a disbelieving look. “It isn’t? I don’t believe you.”

Sherlock presses his lips together. “You don’t have to believe it. Nothing will come of this. I know what is expected of me. This cannot continue.”

Enola leans forward slightly. “It cannot or it should not? Sherlock, I know you. I know how you look at him, it’s how I look at Y/N. At least admit the truth to yourself.”

Sherlock goes silent for a long time. You almost think he’s forgotten the question entirely until his voice comes again, quiet and strained. “I know what I feel for him. I know that he will never feel the same. Feelings like this are irrational. They do me no good.”

Enola has lost her interrogatory spirit, but she still presses on. “And what are those feelings?” She asks softly.

Sherlock looks up at her, and the expression in his eyes breaks your heart. “I love him,” he says simply.

The room echoes with the gravity of such a confession. And then–

“You love me?”

The voice behind you is unexpected. Startled, you turn around in unison with Enola to see Watson coming through the door. His eyes are wide, but not unhappy. Just surprised. Perhaps even hopeful.

Sherlock rises to his feet in a flash. “Watson– this isn’t what it sounds like, we can work past this, we can–”

Watson raises a hand. “I don’t want to move past it. Not when I’ve been waiting so long to hear you say it.”

You and Enola exchange triumphant glances. By your side, Sherlock and Watson are beginning to go through the tentative motions of realizing that the one thing they have feared all their lives will never come to pass. You recognize this dance from when you and Enola were partners in it; you too remember all of the aching heartsickness involved in it, and what a private moment it was.

Gently, you tug Enola to her feet. “We should leave them to it,” you whisper.

She nods in agreement. The two of you slip out of the flat. You doubt your exit was noticed by either of the men behind you, too lost are they in their own delight.

The afternoon is just settling into dusk when you and Enola emerge onto the pavement outside. Street lights glow down the length of the street, and passersby disappear behind closed doors. You and Enola walk hand in hand down the softly lit avenue, two young lovers leaving two older ones behind. The circle always repeats, the cycle gone unbroken. All is as it should be.

requested by @faerieroyal, i hope you enjoy!

enola holmes tag list: @mayfieldss

all tags list: @wordsarelife

#enola holmes #enola holmes imagines #enola holmes x reader #enola holmes oneshot #millie bobby brown #enola holmes fanfic #enola #enola imagines #enola x reader #enola oneshot

44 notes · View notes

vdragon-creations · 1 year ago

Text

Spring Stars! (Part 2) A Date By Any Other Name!

(2003 Donatello x Sasha Fic)

✨💛💜✨

Author’s Note: Holy shit, it’s been a hot minute since I made Part one! I just wanna say a quick thank you (and a very big sorry) to those of you who read it! Means a lot to me that you even attempted to sit through my garbage writing! And now, you’re here looking for more punishment, and deliver it I shall! Plenty of OCxCC ship trash to go around, and more art with it too! Also, MAYBE a slight CW on this one for mentions of possible Spicy thoughts & a little angst! Other than that, it’s all just some fun character interactions! There will also probably be one more part to this story because I love torturing myself, and I can't seem to make anything easy! So enjoy! :3

✨💛💜✨

“Is this a… date?”

The question felt like a switch being flipped, turning the world around them into nothing. Donnie froze, feeling his heart start to pound. He hadn’t really planned for this kind of question, and to him this didn’t FEEL like a date. Though, thinking back on what he had in mind for this outing, it did seem like one. The idea making his face burn even more. But, he had to be honest, the look on Sasha’s face was more studious, and she’d surely be able to tell if he was trying to lie.

“W-we don’t have to call it that just because tht’s what everyone else does. It can be a j-just two friend having fun and getting to know each other better!” Donnie said, nervously smiling as he gulped. Sasha chuckled a little while an unsure grin came to her lips, “That sounds like a date though…” “Fair…” Donnie admitted. There was another pause between them, Sasha now looking at the floor again, then back up at Don. She approached him, getting in so close that Don felt the need to back up, but he stood his ground. While not being much taller then Donnie, Sasha’s stature always made it seem like she was bigger then him. This was a test, and she stared him down to see if there were any signs of wavering. And he just stared back.

“So…what do you say?” Donnie asked, trying to break the silence. Sasha tucked her bottom lip in a bit, her eyes not leaving him. The look in her eyes was thoughtful, then she opened her mouth to speak.

“YO GUYS! WHAT’S THE ETA ON THAT POPCORN? YOU TWO LOVE BIRDS DONE YET?”

The interruption from Mikey calling out for them, along with the ensuing swoons from others mocking them as well, made them both quickly jolt back from one another. Sasha actually seemed rather pissed off by it and she growled back, “ROME WASN’T BUILT IN A DAY! AND NEITHER IS GOOD POPCORN! JUST SETTLE YOUR SHELL!” The others could be heard laughing in the background. Sasha caught her breath and hissed a bit in irritation, before sighing, looking back at Donnie with a disappointment look. “W-we’ll talk more after the movies. Okey?” Donnie had caught his breath too, but now looked disappointed. “S-sure…”

With that the two finished making the Popcorn, and finally came out to the living room where everyone was waiting to start the movie. “Bout time you two joined us! Donnie burn something again?” Raph teased. “Nooo, he actually did quite well. Though maybe it would’ve been done faster if SOME turtles had tried helping out!” Sasha chastised, only to be met with the remaining three turtles looking away, whistling a tune. Sasha rolled her eyes, looking over to April, hoping to get some actual conversation going! “Soooo, did you guys finally decide what to watch? I’m pretty curious!” April nodded, putting in a DVD, “Yep! Casey’s movie is the first!” “Booyah! You’re gunna love it! You’re from like, the desert and stuff, right? The Mummy is the best horror film ever!”

Donnie placed down a few bowls of popcorn onto the coffee table, as Sasha moved over to the side of the couch, still holding a huge bucket of popcorn for herself and Leatherhead. “The Mummy? What’s so scary about Mummies?” She seemed genuinely confused. “You don’t think they look creepy! Dead bodies wrapped in bandages, trying to eat your brain!” Casey argued, getting up and out of his seat and lunging at Sasha playfully, imitating a mummy. Sasha’s ears tilted back, and she stepped back from him, “Yeah…mummies aren’t like that at all! Having seen some up close, they’re more fascinating then anything. You humans are spooked by the weirdest things…”

Casey scoffed, sitting back down and crossing his arms, “Says the girl who can’t look at a kiddy pool without getting shaky…” He muttered under his breath to April, who rolled her eyes at him. “What was that Jones?” Sasha hissed as she turned her head to look back at him, her ears still back. “N-Nothin’! Nothin’ at all!” He scrambled to keep her from jumping him, April and the others having to stifle giggles. “That’s what I thought…” Sasha huffed, turning her attention on trying to find a seat.

Sasha quickly noticed that all the seats where taken on the couch and chairs, with only Leatherhead sitting on the ground, as he was far too big to sit on anything really. As small as she was, she still didn’t like the idea of having to squeeze into any of the seats, getting a little too close for comfort with anyone. But he didn’t need to worry as Leatherhead patted his lap, sitting cross legged on the ground. “It’s easier to share popcorn this way.” He said, giving her a warm and toothy grin. Sasha thought nothing really about it, and agreed. Walking over to him and plopping herself down in his lap. Being this close to Leatherhead was pretty normal to her, having spent plenty of nights by his side, calming him down from his nightmares and helping him get to sleep. However, it was a new sight for a certain terrapin ninja. Donnie had scooted into the couch next to Mikey and Honeycutt, and if she had asked, he would’ve gladly moved to the floor. But instead, here he was, staring at his crush in the lap of another large male mutant!

The normally levelheaded turtle had to admit to himself, it made his heart sink and his blood boil. Truthfully he’d always envied, to some degree, how close Leatherhead was to Sasha. She lived with him, spent most of the day with him, and judging by how comfortable she was touching him and sitting in his lap, spent a lot of time getting…cozy with him. As the movie started on the TV, Donnie started to feel a bit sick, watching Letherhead and Sasha in the corner of his eyes. He’d hold out his hand, and Sasha would take a bit of the Popcorn and place it into his palm.

“Why isn’t she like that with us? With me?”

And after she left his offer for a date unanswered, it made this even harder to watch.

✨💛💜✨

Movie after movie, the night continued, until it was time to start getting to bed. Everyone set up sleeping bags, pillows, and blankets in the living room. Casey and April shared the couch, Mikey and Donnie taking up the Lazyboy chairs, and the others all scattered along the floor. All except Honeycutt who decided to return to Leatherhead’s lair. While getting ready for bed, Donnie ran into Leatherhead, who was washing the bowls and cups they had used all night. “Oh, Donatello! I need to ask you, which soap do you tend to use for your dishes? The Green Apple scent or the Original?” Leatherhead asked, turning his head to see his turtle friend standing in the doorway. Donnie was stunned for a moment, as he wasn’t sure how to feel. His voice was caught between wanting to snap at him cause he was still upset about Sasha. But the more rational side of him told him to cool it for now. He shrugged, “Oh uhhhh, I think we use Original…” he replied, sounding a bit mopey as he crossed the room and grabbed a cup from the cabinets, doing his best to not make eye contact. But Leatherhead noticed immediately, “What is wrong my friend? You seem upset.” Donnie stayed still, staring at the cup in his hand, trying his best to not snap at him, debating on whether or not to say anything.

“I really don’t have the right to be upset. I don’t own her…” Donnie said flatly. His eyes flew wide open, and he gasped a bit at what just came out of his mouth. He really didn’t wanna say it out loud, but it just…came out. Even Leatherhead was a little spooked, it was a tone he had never heard from his terrapin friend. He sounded almost, bitter and childish. “What are you talking about? You don’t own who?” As soon as he said it, it’s like the answer came right to the front of his mind, but it still didn’t make sense. “Are you…talking about Sasha?” Hearing her name come from Leatherhead’s mouth brought Donnie back to reality, and brought back his earlier frustration. That’s when he finally looked up at the taller reptile, with a face that made Leatherhead actually step back for a second. “Look, Leatherhead. I-I…need you to be honest with me!” Donnie started, he looked like a mixture of determination, worry, and possibly anger. “Of course my friend…” Leatherhead’s brows turned down in concerned confusion.

Donnie sucked in a breath, clenching his fist before finally breathing out, a slight shake coming from the puff of air. “Are and Sasha…involved at all?” The words felt painful coming from his lips, the meaning of which almost made a tear come to his eyes. Even his voice hitched as he spoke. He trusted Leatherhead so much, he was one of his closest friends. For sure he knew how he felt about Sasha, even without being told directly! And if he was having a relationship with her while knowing this, it was a betrayal on a level he hadn’t dealt with before. Leatherhead’s eyes went wide as the words finally met his ears, his jaws gaping open in an attempt to speak. “W-what? Have you gone mad?” “Just please answer me Leatherhead!” Donnie snapped back, he was trying his best to sound tough, like he wasn’t about to cry. And still trying not to be heard by the others. “I-I don’t know what you’re going on about friend! What Sasha and I have is purely platonic. Nothing more! Where on earth would you get the idea otherwise?” Leatherhead asked, but Donnie didn’t answer back, he just stood there, keeping eyes contact with him. That’s when it hit him.

“This is about her sitting on my lap…” he stated, his voice starting to sound less startled and more cold. If the Croc was being honest, he was kinda offended by the implications this question brought on. “And the touching and the feeding you popcorn…” Donnie added, starting to sound a bit more argumentative. A growl started to form in Leatherhead’s voice now, “You can’t be serious Donatello! I would never-“ Before he could finish his words, Sasha’s voice coming from the doorway spooked both of them. They whipped their heads to see Sasha standing there clutching a couple of chip bags that were now rolled up and clipped shut. She had a confused look on her face, looking back and forth between the two. “Did I interrupt something?” She asked.

“So…she didn’t hear anything…”

The thought alone made Donnie relax a little bit and he stammered out a response. “N-No nothing really.” Sasha squinted a bit at him, then looked at Leatherhead, who straightened up at her gaze. “Yes, nothing really too pressing.” Yeah, she didn’t buy that for a second, looking back and forth between the two again. “Alright then…well…I’ve got these leftover chips. Where would you like me to put them Donnie?” She asked. Donnie stuttered a bit but approached her “I’ve got it for you!” He took them from her arms and walked over to a random cabinet and shoved them in there. “Ah! I s-see…thanks…” Sasha said, feeling a little weird now. It was clear the two were in the middle of a conversation, one she wasn’t welcome to, so she made herself scarce. Sasha then stretched and yawned, “Well then, I’m just gunna…uhh start getting our blankets ready Leatherhead!” She chirped. “Thank you Sasha! I’ll be over to help in a minute!” Leatherhead nodded her way, prompting the turtle to give him a side glance. Sasha nodded back, giving the two of them another look before walking off.

There was silence once more between them, before Leatherhead huffed and looked back down at Donnie. The Turtle already looking back up at him. “I don’t know what is going on with you my friend, but I’d never willingly hurt you. I’d hope that after what happened with bishop and your transformation, I would have proven myself more then loyal to you and your brothers.”

“Ouch…he really had to go there…”

Donnie bristled a bit at that. It had happened a while back. And while he didn’t remember anything that happened during it, from everything Leatherhead and his brothers told him, he was a lot to deal with. He didn’t know if Sasha had been told the story of that or not, but the thought of her knowing made him cringe a bit. With that, Leatherhead went back to the dishes, turning his back to Donnie.

✨💛💜✨

After getting something cold to drink from the fridge, Donnie left the kitchen to see everyone getting settled down for the night. Including Sasha, who was making a big spot on the floor for Leatherhead. A smaller spot lay right next to it. Sasha, looked up for a split second to see him staring. Her face becoming a bit flustered. Donnie bit his lip and quickly walked over to his bedroom. Raph happened to look up and see him making a beeline for his room and let out a quick “Yo Donnie!”, prompting the purple clad turtle to stop dead in his tracks, squeezing his eyes shut in embarrassment. “What are you doing? We agreed on a full crew sleep over!” He had to think fast, come up with an excuse, any excuse that would keep him out of the same room where Sasha and Leatherhead would be laying together.

“Oh uhh, yeah I know! I-I was just gunna work on something real quick, just till I get sleepy! Then I’ll join you guys!”

Donnie chirped, just as Leatherhead came out of the Kitchen. He turned his head just in time to meet eyes with the Croc once more, then he looked back at the others, the ever friendly smile still on his face. “Promise! You guys just go ahead without me!” The others looked at one another confused, meanwhile Sasha just looked at him confused, ears tilted low. Leatherhead himself looking at the turtle with a stern stare. With that, Donnie booked it into his room and shut the door behind him, breathing in a sigh of relief, shell against the door.

After his retreat the others decided to play a few card and board games to wear themselves out. But the whole time, Sasha seamed a bit, distracted. Leatherhead had to get to the bottom of this. It was clear now to him that something had to have gone down between both of his friends. It was the only way to explain Donnie’s sudden jealousy. So after excusing himself to the kitchen, he gestured for Sasha to come with him. Sasha was confused, but agreed, as she was pretty thirsty. Once she entered the kitchen, Leatherhead was leaning against the countertop, staring right at her with an expectant look on his face. She flinched a bit, but then tried to play it cool. “H-hey big guy, what’s up?” “I was hoping you would know.” Leatherhead responded flatly, letting his thick tail flop loudly on the ground behind him. “Know about what? I don’t fallow.” Sasha asked, now genuinely curious and a bit annoyed. Leatherhead was quite for a moment, looking like he was trying to choose his words carefully. “Donatello is acting strange, and I was hoping you’d be able to tell me why.” Sasha raised a brow, her lips turning into a frown, “Well, yeah, he’s acting weird. But why would I have anything to do with it? The more likely thing is that whatever it was you two were talking about in here earlier is what set him off.” Sasha shot back, crossing her arms, “Maybe I should be asking YOU why he’s acting weird.”

Leatherhead snorted loudly, narrowing his eyes at the feline. “You know, Michelangelo told me he overheard you two talking earlier in here…” Sasha seemed to freeze as her eyes widened, her face somehow starting to burn with embarrassment. She gulped, but tried to play it off, though her tone wasn’t convincing at all, “W-What did he hear?” “He didn’t give any details, said that the two of you were far too quiet to be understood. But whatever it was, it was charged. So to speak.” Sasha’s eyes looked down at the floor, as she absentmindedly sighed. Both with relief and frustration perhaps. Then her eyes looked back up at Leatherhead, still a bit miffed at this interrogation, “Still not sure where you’re going with this then.” Leatherhead hummed a little under his breath, before deciding it was better to be blunt about this. “Donatello seems to be a bit jealous with our relationship.”

Sasha’s face went from annoyed to being downright stunned in a matter of seconds. And she just stood there, mind spinning like a video game loading screen, before words finally started forming in her throat, “I-I w-what? How does that work? What do you mean by our ‘relationship’!?” Sasha asked, in a hushed but clearly angered tone. Doing her best to keep the others in the living room from hearing. Leatherhead shrugged, “He just really seemed to be upset with how close we seemed. Especially physically. Had a problem with you sitting in my lap during the movie and handing me popcorn.” Sasha shook her head and started rubbing her temples in frustration. A hissing sound escaping her lips. “I told him that he should be able to trust me, given our history together. But I wanted to know if there was actually something going on between the two of you that I should know about. Because I’m clearly missing something.” Leatherhead added. Sasha huffed, now crossing her arms. Having her back turned now at the Croc.

Even from behind her, he could see her staring at the ground, her tail and ears twitching with aggravation. Clearly thinking. He gave her a few moments, before her ears drooped in defeat and she sighed, “Promise me! This doesn’t leave this room!” She looked back at him over her shoulder. Leatherhead silently nodded. Sasha then turned to face him, eyes still low to the ground and arms crossed in front of her, but now her cheeks actually started to show a slight pink hue. “D-Donnie sorta…asked me out…” She muttered.

There was a pause, and Leatherhead’s eyes slowly widened.

“Oh!” He said, finally putting two and two together. Sasha growled and her eyes snapped up at him, she wasn’t sure why, but his almost lackluster reaction to this news pissed her off. “Oh! Just Oh!?” “Sorry! Sorry I just wasn’t expecting that! You mean like…asked you out! As in a date?” Leatherhead asked. Sasha’s irritation dropped a bit and she shrugged, “He said we didn’t have to call it that. Just two friends hoping to get closer to one another and understand their feelings more…” She muttered, looking back down at the floor. Leatherhead raised and eyebrow at that, a slight smirk tugging at his lips, “That sounds a lot like a date.” “That’s exactly what I said.” There was another pause.

“So, did you say yes?”

“No…”

“You rejected him?”

“What? No! W-we got interrupted before I could give him an answer…”

“Ooohhhhh…” he said, looking off to the floor. Mulling over this new information. Now Donnie’s attitude made a lot more sense. To pour your heart out and finally ask out the girl you’ve been crushing on for the last few months, only to then have no clear answer and watch as she gets closer to another dude. And his close friend at that! He’d be a bit miffed too. Maybe even violent. Though, Sasha can’t really be held responsible for this alone. “So what did you end up telling him?” He asked, finally looking back at her. “I told him that we would talk more about it after the movie. But…then I saw you two in here talking, and now Donnie seems awfully upset…” Sasha responded, leaning against the counter. Leatherhead sighed, This whole thing was a bit of an emotional mess. And communication would be the obvious answer. “You need to tell him your decision tonight. Irreparable damage could be done to your relationship if you don’t let him know soon. And frankly, I can’t stay. I’ve never seen Donatello so angry before, and while I won't hold it against him, if I stay the night, I’ll only make it worse…” Leatherhead muttered. Sasha’s ears drooped, he was right. This needed to be settled soon.

With that, Leatherhead left the room with Sasha closely following. He said his goodbyes to the others, but explained that he had to head back home to be with Professor Honeycutt.

As he left, Donnie peaked ever so slightly out of his door, to see Leatherhead leaving…with Sasha close behind him. It stung, he couldn’t deny that! But, he also couldn’t blame them. After being the kind of ass he was being, he’d be surprised if either of them wanted to talk to him ever.

“So much for…getting closer and figuring things out…”

With regret and shame in his heart, he slumped back over to his bed and flopped down onto it.

✨💛💜✨

A few hours had passed since Donnie passed out, and he looked over at the clock across the room. “2:30 a.m…” he muttered, yawning as he did so. He felt his mouth was dry and his head seemed to hurt quite a bit. “Should probably get some water…” he thought, before remembering that the others were still in the living room, and that he had promised to come out to join them all. He cringed, guilt tugging at his nerves. He tiptoed over to the door and peaked out again, relieved to find everyone had fallen asleep. The pressure of them badgering him was now gone, and replaced with a new fear and mission. “Get to the kitchen and get some water without waking them.” He thought.

As silently as he could, he cracked the door open and stared tiptoeing his way to the kitchen, putting his ninja training into practice. Only stopping shortly to look over at the entrance to the Lair, more guilt seeping in as he remembered seeing Leatherhead and Sasha leaving together. But, he got to the kitchen without waking anyone, and he quietly got a small cup and turned the faucet on. After filling his cup, he peaked out of the kitchen, and after seeing that the coast was clear, he tiptoed back to his room.

He turned to softly close the door behind him, but as soon as he turned back to look at his bed, he saw Sasha sitting there. Blue eyes staring right at him in the dark room. The surprise alone of someone being there, made him flinch and almost scream, but he was stopped when Sasha zipped off the bed and was now in front of him, covering his mouth with the back of her hand. “Shhhhh! It’s me, relax!” She whispered harshly. After a few seconds of hyperventilation, Donnie blinked a bit and relaxed, Sasha then moved her hand away from him and stepped back. “W-when did..” he tried asking, but Sasha answered promptly, “About the time you were on your way to the Kitchen. You stopped and looked my way. Thought you saw me, but it didn’t seem like it…” “Oh…I see.” He muttered, then froze realizing that his cup was missing and nearly having a heart attack, thinking that he dropped it and alerted the others. But just as the thought crossed his mind, he saw Sasha holding up the cup in the dark. “Getting yourself a drink after working for so long?” She said softly, a tinge of sarcasm and bitterness in her tone. Donnie’s heart shriveled up a bit. She knew he was lying.

Donnie took the cup from her fingers and chugged it down, but it really didn’t help much, her being here like this made his stomach feel sick. The silence between them was the loudest thing in the world now, and it made Donnie feel so clammy. But he had to say something. But once again, Sasha spoke first. “Leatherhead told me everything…” And just like that, Donnie’s heart dropped to the floor so hard he was surprised it didn’t wake everyone in The Lair. He felt heat rise to his cheeks and he felt tears beginning to come to his eyes. “I-I don’t know what came over me…” he started, “…and I’m sorry…” “I’m not really the one who needs to hear that…” Sasha piped up. “I know, and I plan to tell him sorry in the morning. But, I’m also sorry to you…” Sasha raised an eyebrow at that. Donnie sighed, “I had no right to act Ike that. You didn’t belong to me, you still don’t, and you never will. I was being selfish, entitled, jealous, and…just plain stupid…” he said, taking a seat over by his deck, slumped over, face in his hands.

Sasha kept her eyes on him the whole time, and after hearing that, a soft red started to creep up on her cheeks. She stayed silent for a bit, waiting to see if he would say more. But he didn’t, so she continued, “You’re the furthest thing from stupid Don. Cut yourself some slack. Not every guy out there can admit that sorta thing out loud, ya' know?” Donnie let out a dry chuckle, no humor was there though. “I don’t know if I should be praised so highly. After all…I-I…” his cheeks went dark red before continuing, “I still can’t admit how I feel about you…not to myself, to anyone, and…” his eyes trailed up to her, and seeing her rosy cheeks and blue eyes staring at him, he swallowed his words and just clammed up, looking back down at the floor. Sasha blinked in shock, her mouth slightly agape. But this shock only lasted a moment, and it was replaced with a rush.

Confidence, Determination, and Excitement!

An ever so slight grin came to Sasha’s lips, her cheeks getting warmer. “Well… at the very least I’m glad you plan on apologizing to Leatherhead! I wouldn’t wanna spend the night looking at stars with you if that was gunna be the case.” Donnie softly nodded, the words “Yeah…” muttered their way out of his mouth as he stared at the floor. Until what Sasha said finally clicked in his brain, and his head snapped back up to look at her. She had a soft smile on her lips, a small red tint peaking its way through the fur on her cheeks. Donnie’s eyes started growing wide as his heart started gaining speed in his chest. “W-wait, w-what? Did you just..” he was about to question, but Sasha just nodded softly in response. “REALLY?!” Donnie said, almost shouting, before noticing how loud he was and flinching, bringing his hands up to his mouth, clamping it shut. He quickly got up and rushed around to his door and peaked back out into the living room. Everyone was still sound asleep, and he sighed in relief.

Donnie closed the door back behind him, and faced back to Sasha. A sheepish grin pulled at the corners of his mouth, “I-I..I’m happy you’re up for it.” Sasha let a small giggle out, crossing her arms in front of herself, “Well, I was always up for something like this, but finding an activity that didn’t necessarily involve being all ‘Sciencey’ and what not was a bit difficult. Especially finding something we’d both like equally.” Donnie nodded in agreement, having had the same thoughts before talking with April about all this. Happy to see he wasn’t alone in that. “But…Stargazing actually sounds really fun! Used to do that all the time back home. And…it’s pretty romantic…” The heat on her cheeks getting stronger as those words came from her lips. Don wasn’t sure if that was a bad reaction or if she liked the idea of that, so he reiterated his earlier statement, “Y-yeah…I know. But again, we don’t…have to call it a date if that makes it too…well…you know.” “Y-Yeah, I know….” There was a very tense pause between them, before Sasha spoke up again. “Well then…Uhhh…” she stuttered out, looking at him, almost like she wasn’t sure what to do next. Her arms now kinda lifted like she wanted to reach out to him, almost like a hug or maybe something else. But she quickly shook her head and brought them back down to her sides, “Y-you have a good night, ok?”

Donnie was about to protest a bit, after seeing that, but decided not to try and press his luck. The girl he’d been crushing on for a while now had just agreed to go out with him. He wasn’t about to try anything stupid now! He softly nodded, “Y-yeah… you too Sasha…”

✨💛💜✨

With that everything was set in motion! Splinter was told about his plans and his blessing was given, though not without the embarrassing implication that he “Expects that they’re not going to do anything that would be irresponsible.” Donnie promised no such thing would get even close to happening. Not that the idea hadn’t crossed his mind before in a few dreams he’d wish would leave him alone. And of course April knew about the plan. The only one’s not in the loop where Casey & his brothers! And if he had anything to say about it, none of them would ever know about it. Though hiding the fact that he’d be gone for about a week was gunna be impossible.

For the next few days, Sasha and Donnie texted back and forth, disguising the details of the trip. Sasha was a little surprised to find out that it wouldn’t just be a single night out alone with him, but it would actually be a six day long trip! One day to make it there, two days hike out to where they would actually be star gazing, Two days back to the farmhouse, and then a one day trip back to the city! This made Sasha just a tad bit more worried about the idea, and it made a pit form in her stomach.

“Oh god…am-am I gunna be able to handle being alone with him for that long...?”

Sasha looked down at her claws, noting the sharp nails again. The memory of the other night where she accepted his offer replaying in her head again for the 30th time that day. She was about to hug him, but she had to stop herself again. Those feelings, Those thoughts, those…urges, they showed no sign of stopping. And it really started to scare her more. Worried about how she would handle it all, she went to Leatherhead for advice. If it was this hard to hold back being all cooped up, she could only imagine how much harder it would be to keep herself under control while not only being out in nature again for the first time in months, but it was also spring time. The Time of Passion for a lot of species, including themselves. Leatherhead assured her she’d be fine, but if she really felt uncomfortable, she could just change her mind about going.

But no, Sasha snorted, “I can’t keep being a coward. And I’ve already gotten this far. I might as well see how this goes. And I trust Donnie, so I need to start trying to trust myself.”

Finally the day came, and with it, butterflies galore for both of them. Donnie was in his room, getting his final preparations ready. All the gear he’d be taking with them laid out over his floor. “Let’s see…Blankets, Pillows, Telescope, Flint, Matches, Water Canteen, Notebooks…” He muttered to himself, before a knock at his door spooked him. “Hey yo, Donnie! You in there bro?” called out Raph’s muffled voice from behind the door. Donnie panicked a bit and quickly started to shove the items into his duffle bag, “Uhhh, j-just a minute Raph! I’m here!” Raph raised a brow at that, “The heck does that mean? The hell are you-“ Raph asked as he opened Donnie’s door anyways to see his brother haphazardly slamming his duffle bag under his desk and him quickly plopping his butt into his deck chair. There was a pause while Donnie tried playing it cool, “Oh hey! Sorry about that Raph, I was just…uhhh…you know…reorganizing my stuff…” trailing off in the last part a bit. Both in a way that made it sound like he was questioning what was coming out of his mouth and instantly regretting it. He had been able to hide the trip from his brothers for the whole week, but this is where shit was gunna hit the fan.

It was pretty obvious that Donnie was lying, he was never good at it! Raph’s eyes flicked down at the duffle bag and then back up at his brother, then they narrowed, “You always stuff your bag full of your crap when you ‘Reorganize’ things?” He asked, really not amused. “I do now.” Donnie stated, quickly rushing past his brother. If he was gunna be getting ready for this trip and getting the snacks packed, he was gunna have to do it now while he still could. But Raph wasn’t letting him go that easy. The whole week leading up to today, he, Leo, and Mikey had been feeling like something was up with him and Sasha! Big time! Mikey said that during the sleepover, he overheard Sasha and Donnie talking in his room, but couldn’t exactly understand what they were saying. And ever since that, the two of them have been a lot weirder around each other. They could be seen starring at one another more often, they’d be whispering to one another, and it seemed like the super awkward air they had between them was nearly gone almost over night! And now, this morning, Donnie hadn’t come out of his room and was now packing a bag with god knows what!

“Like Shell you do! The heck is up with you today?” Raph asked, fallowing close behind his brother who was heading to the kitchen. “I have no clue what you’re talking about…” Donnie said quickly, trying to shake off the praying. But it wasn’t gunna work. Leo stopped his training to walk over to them, “What’s going on?” Leo asked, concerned that the two might have gotten into another fight. “Donnie here is packing a bag in his room!” Raph said, still fallowing Don and not stopping. “What?” Leo asked, genuinely concerned hearing this. “It’s not how it sounds…” Donnie said while digging through the cabinets for a few sandwich bags and filling them with a few small snacks. “It’s exactly how it sounds! Don’t give us that!” Raph barked back. “What the shell are you doing packing up your stuff Donnie?” Leo asked, now getting really worried. “I’m…going on a short trip…” Donnie’s said, figuring he might as well give them that much. “What!? Why? Where? Does Splinter know about this?” “Any particular order you want those answers in?” Donnie snarked back as he quickly gathered up some juice pouches into a cooler along with the snacks, still not making eye contact with his brothers.

“Stop it Donnie, I’m serious! What is going on?” Leo tried to plead, but it fell on deaf ears as Donnie slid a few extra things from the fridge into his cooler and made his way back out of the kitchen, cooler in hand. “Nothing that you two need to concern yourselves with! I’m just gunna be gone for a week! I’ll be fine!” Donnie said, obviously getting annoyed and stressed by the badgering from his brothers, speed-walking his way back to his room. And just as he saw his open bedroom door, he could see Mikey, looking through his Shell Cell. The duffle bag he had on the floor now open.

“MIKEY!” Donnie shouted in anger as he charged into his room, quickly whipping the Shell Cell from his hands and quickly slinging the duffle bag over his shoulders. “Whoa! Easy Donnie, I was just-“ “Snooping through my things when I’ve told you about a thousand times not to…” Donnie quickly retorted, clearly not amused. “Come on dude! You aren’t telling us what you’re up to, and I KNOW you’re up to something!” Mikey said back, sure he could be a little shit stirrer, but he was just as worried about this “trip” as much as his brothers were. Donnie rolled his eyes, letting out and exacerbated huff, “Look I’m gunna be fine! I have my Bo with me, and if I need anything, I have my Shell Cell!” He said, now packed up and ready to leave. He had already texted Sasha to let her know he was ready to leave.

Walking into the living room area, Donnie just stood there, looking through the Shell Cell at his messages. But his brothers weren’t gunna let up. “Can you at least tell us where you’re going?” Leo asked. “Why, so you three can fallow me? I don’t need any praying eyes!” He brothers all just threw up their brows and that, and looked at one another. They had to admit that fallowing him was kinda on the table, but no way they were admitting it. “What does that mean?” Leo asked. “Yeah!?” Raph asked. “You got some super secret vehicles you’re working on or something?” Mikey asked. Donnie turned to look at his brothers, “What? No! Look, I’m not telling you guys what I’m doing or where I’m going! And that’s final!” Donnie snapped. The brothers had to take a step back for a minute, looking a bit concerned now. Donnie sighed, “Look, I’m sorry, ok? I just need to be alone for this! Splinter and April know where I am if something happens to me. But I’m gunna be fine, I just, need to face this on my own.”

Leo narrowed his brows a bit, Donnie made it seem like a very important mission, “Face what on your own?” But before Leo could get any kind of answer to his question, a voice came up from behind Donnie at the entrance to the lair! “Hey Donnie, sorry for taking a while, I had to find all my old camping ge-“ Sasha chirped as she entered the lair, to see Donnie, Leo, Mikey, and Raph all looking up at her. The latter three looking up at her a bit bewildered. Donnie looking back at her over his shoulder, now smiling. There was a short pause before Sasha let out a nervous chuckle, taking in the scene right in front of her. “Oh…Am I interrupting something?” She asked, a crooked smile crossing her face. “Nope! Just finishing up here!” Donnie chirped back, giving her a sweet smile, his brothers now looking at the two of them with wide eyes and slacked jaws.

Sasha, noticed the light signal from Don that she needed to run, and she nodded. “Ah! I see, well…meet you in the Battle Shell then! See you in a week fellas!” She said, giving them another smile and backing up a bit. And before any of them could react, Sasha turned tail and sped off on foot. Another awkward pause wafted through the room, before Don looked back at his brothers, “Welp, you heard her! And it’s not polite to keep a lady waiting!” “WHAT?” His brothers shouted, but Don was already booking it out of the lair, disappearing in to the darkness of the tunnels. “The shell was that?!” Raph asked, genuinely thrown off by how bizarre and quickly that went down. “I-I don’t know…” Leo muttered, honestly too shocked to really understand what just happened. “Huh…well that explains what I found in Donnie’s bag…” Mikey then starts to giggle a little, that impish smile he gets when he’s just played a prank on someone slowly growing on his face. “What? What’s so funny?” Raph looked at his brother with a raised eyebrow. “Oh nothing…sure we’ll find out in a week…” Mikey grinned.

✨💛💜✨

Donnie was nearly out of breath by the time he made it to the warehouse, where Sasha was already sitting besides the Battle Shell, leaning up against it. But once she heard his feet approaching she straighten up and waved. She looked nervous, but was clearly trying to hide it, “How did it go?” She asked. Donnie shook his head as he approached her, “About as good as I figured it would…” he said. Sasha cringed, “Ooof. Sorry to leave you behind like that…” “No need to apologize, probably would’ve gone way worse had you stuck around.” Donnie admitted, opening the back of the Battle Shell, loading up his duffle bag and cooler. “Fair enough!” Sasha said, also placing her duffle bag next to his. “With that said we should probably get outta here pretty quick before they have a chance to fallow?” “Oh you bet! Hop in!” Donnie said, climbing into the Battle Shell first, turning around once inside, holding out his hand to her. Sasha blinked a bit, surprised by the offer. Her eyes looked up to his and he was giving her a soft smile, cheeks the slightest bit dark. “N-need a lift?” Sasha looked back down at his outstretched hand, lips pressed into a thin line, contemplating and nervous. Finally, she tentatively reached out and gently took his hand. Donnie then pulled her up into the Battle Shell, finally sliding the back hatch behind them down.

Sasha had been in the Battle Shell a small number of times before now, and it always impressed her just how much work went into it. It was one of the first projects Leatherhead ever told Sasha about when she first met him, and was telling her about how brilliant Donnie was. When she finally got to meet him and he decided to show her the Battle Shell, she was smitten with it! Such a beautiful machine made from only scraps and junk. It was truly a sight to behold. Since then, she’s been allowed to help in making adjustments to it. Specifically, Donnie wanted her to help with making it go faster, which the cheetah was more than delighted to help with. Speed was part of who she was after all, and her tips on making the Battle Shell more aerodynamic were incredibly effective. Only now further demonstrated by how fast Donnie pulled it out of the warehouse and into the back allies! When they finally made it onto the main streets of the city, Sasha’s eyes seemed to grow to the size of dinner plates!

“Oh my spots…” She said in amazement. Seeing the city at night from the rooftops was one thing, but during the day it was a whole other beast. The sun was so bright, there were so many people it was impossible to make out any one face in the crowd, and all the noise going on was insane. A stray thought made Sasha wince as her ears drooped and she moved her face away from the windows a little. “Uhhh aren’t you worried someone is gunna like…see us?” She asked, honestly not having thought about that until now. “No need to worry! I tinted these windows to the maximum legal limit! They won’t be able to make us out.” Donnie chimed up. Sasha sighed, feeling a lot better now. “Oh good! Thought I was gunna get us caught there of a sec…” She started shifting her gaze back out the window again, partly to keep looking at the world around them, and partly to try and keep from making eye contact with Donnie. She was hoping that the new sights would keep the butterflies that had been doing back flips inside her stomach down, but that wasn’t happening.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?” Donnie asked, noticing her wondering look. “It’s definitely something! They have cities in South Africa too, but…nothing like this!” Sasha responded, still not looking back at Donnie. Donnie nodded, his eyes now wondered over from the road to Sasha in the passenger's seat. He didn’t say anything about it before and had no plans to bring it up to her at all out of fear of being seen as a creep, but…something seemed…different about her today. Almost…prettier. Not that he ever thought of her as not pretty, far from it actually. But for some reason, her fur seemed smoother, more groomed then she normally looked. Her coat shining in what little sunlight was making its way through the windows. And…if he wasn’t mistaken, she had to be wearing some kind of perfume, or maybe it was her shampoo. It was a fruity smell, like a watermelon maybe. The smell of which was filling the cab.

“Did she really get all dolled up just for this?”

This staring went on for a bit, till he noticed something, her tail was wrapped around in her lap. Her nails lightly playing with the fur at the ends, hands seemingly shivering. Of course, she was nervous. Not that he blamed her, so was he.

A honk from a car behind them made Donnie jolt a little, focusing his attention back onto the road, nearly making him leap out of his shell. Sasha then glanced back at him, “Y-you get everything you needed?” She asked. “Huh? O-oh, yeah! Well, just the essentials. I was packing over the span of the week so my brothers wouldn’t get suspicious. B-But uhhhh…you saw how well that went.” Donnie answered, his hands gripping the steering wheel every once in a while. Sasha nodded, taking notice of his hands, it was pretty clear he was nervous but was doing his best to seem relaxed. And that’s when a faint hint of sunlight made her notice something else. A short but noticeable glimmer came from behind Donnie.

“D-Did he polish his shell? All for...this? For...me?”

The thought made Sasha’s face burn, though she really couldn’t judge. She was the one that called April and had her come over way earlier in the day before she left to help her get ready. And for moral support.

Feeling like she was starting to stare a bit, she quickly looked away and started trying to think of something to say, keeping her eyes anywhere but at him. “I-I'm really glad you asked me to come with you…” She said, sheepishly. Donnie blinked, glancing at her from the corner of his eye, “Oh…Really?” Sasha nodded, “Yeah, I mean, I not only get to spend a bit more time with…well, you. But I also get to see a forest for the first time!” Donnie took a second for those words to set in his mind, the idea of her never seeing a forest before was baffling, but then logic kicked back in and he nodded. “Oh yeah, that’s right!” “This closest I’ve ever gotten to seeing one was a Jungle, but it wasn’t very big. And of course, pictures online and in books don't really count.” Sasha added. “Well, I’m hoping to show you more then just that! We have a two day hike ahead after we get there. Casey, April, and my brothers have had a few…adventures out there. I can even show you where a spaceship crashed!”

Sasha’s eyes grew wide and her head snapped up to look at him, “Are you for real?” Donnie laughed, “I wouldn’t lie to you! Yeah! I can also show you a nuclear power plant that we shut down because it was killing off some mutant fish folk that were living in the river!” Sasha’s mouth curled into a wide grin, “This so cool! I can’t wait to see it!”

With a little bit of the tension lifted, the rest of their drive out of the city was a little more comfortable. And once they started hitting the wilderness, Sasha’s eyes wondered even more. Without much traffic around them now, Sasha felt safe enough to roll down her window a bit to see everything better. The trees were just beginning to sprout fresh leaves, and the grass seemed to already be bringing out colorful flowers and weeds! The sun was high in the sky, giving the daytime a pleasant warmth, something for the plants and newly awoken critters to soak up to prepare for the new season. The scent of clean spring air hit Sasha’s face, her smile turning soft as she took it in. Her fur seemed to shiver a little, as if a new wave of energy was going through her body.

That’s when another feeling creeped into her body, and she froze a little, a rush of embarrassment and worry slowly starting to take over. Her eyes glanced over at Donnie, who seemed more relaxed, but was still focused on the road. A very slight smile on his face. Taking in his features, Sasha felt that weird tingle in her body and she frowned.

“T-this is…gunna get…weird…”

Sasha started looking down at the floor, thankful that the window was down now so that she could get a soft cool breeze on herself as her cheeks began to burn hard. “H-Hey uhhh, D-Donnie?” She started softly, starting to feel her paws shake. Donnie almost didn’t hear her over the sound of the wind, but his eye’s could see her lips move from the corner of his eye and he turned his head slightly, “Huh? What’s up?” He asked, honestly looking a little concerned now. She didn’t look too hot, and her cheeks could be seen turning red through the fur on her cheeks, “You getting sick? Should I pull over?” He asked. Sasha shook her head, “N-no it’s just…I-I’m a bit worried.” She muttered, her hands coming together in her lap, clamping onto one another tightly. Donnie’s brows curved up, taking quick glances at her, still trying to keep an eye on the road. “What about? If it’s the hike and camping-“ He was cut off pretty quickly. “N-No! I-It’s not that…I-It’s…about me…” Donnie cocked a brow and looked at her for a good long second at that. “What do you mean? Thought you said you weren’t sick.” Sasha grimaced a bit, looking back out the window at the beautiful woods just beyond the road, as if she were looking for a way to put it. “I suppose you could…see it as being ‘sick’, in a way…” She said.

Now that REALLY confused the poor terrapin, but she was clearly getting at something, so he prodded as gently as he could, “Okeeeey…care to explain?” Sasha gulped, “Tell me…W-what does spring usually mean?” Donnie felt like he had to pause and reboot his brain for a moment. The vagueness of that question only making his worry and confusion more tangled. But, he trusted she was going somewhere with this, so he tentatively answered, “Uhhhh, well I think Blooming Flowers, Bugs, Warmer weather, and maybe allergies?” Sasha has to hold back a small laugh at his last statement, but it seemed like he didn’t notice. But the laugh was replaced with a loud sigh, as she started coming to the realization that she was gunna have to spell it out for him. Her face getting even hotter. “It also happens to be the season of procreation for many species…”

"..."

The silence is incredibly loud in the Battle Shell, even the wind coming in through the cracked window seemed to be drowning in it. Donnie’s eyes went wide as a slight heat creeped up into his cheeks, waiting for a second for what she said to sink in. He turned his head slightly her way, only to see her still facing out the window, but her eyes staring right at him. Her cheeks were a bright red, ears drooped and her mouth was in an uncomfortable frown. “…that includes yours and mine.” She concluded, her voice almost hitching, but the statement still hit like a semi-truck. That’s when Donnie’s face started turning bright red and he quickly looked away just to try and save himself from every thought racing into his head at once. But, it was too late! He really wasn’t sure what to say to that!

“I-I uhhh, w-well, I mean…you’re right. But-but that d-dosen’t mean anything. W-we’re not like…well normal animals! We have more control!” He said, just trying to get something said out loud. Though it sounded more like he was trying to convince himself and her, but it didn’t, as a hoard of butterflies started churning in his stomach again. Nights worth of dreams finally flooding his brain with any and all scenarios his teenaged mind could conjure. Sasha just whimpers a bit, shifting in her seat so that she’s scooted a bit further from her turtle friend, but still facing him. Her eyes started drifting down to the floor, “Y-Yeah, I know. B-but it’s less you I’m worried about, and…m-more me…” Donnie glanced at her, and she continued, “Being a cheetah, we a-aren’t that tough, but we’re still big cats. And cats are…p-pretty…aggressive during this kind of season…” a tinge of worry coming across Donnie’s face a little hearing this. “And it get’s more intense when w-we’re…in our element. So to speak…”

“Y-your not gunna…like…hurt me, or anything like that are you?” Donnie asked, honestly a little confused by her words. The way she was talking it was like she was scared she might try to eat him. Sasha’s eyes flew up and she looked really scared, “My Spots! N-no! Never in my life! It’s just…remember that night how I-I…” she trailed off, looking down. She slowly opened her paw to look at it. He knew what she was getting at almost immediately, bringing his own hand up to his cheek, it getting warm again. “Y-yeah…I remember…” “When I’m…in my element, I tend to be a…bit more bold. And I start to show a bit more of myself…” she continued, “You’ve likely noticed before…” Donnie thought about it, and she did seem to be a bit more open when they’d be out on missions, or in the heat of battle, or even just when she’s in the zone while in the lab. Calm, tactical, and cheery most of the time, but Donnie started seeing glimpses of something else during these other occasions. A Sly playfulness here or a small trace of bashfulness there, little peeks into Sasha’s true personality.

Donnie let his mind wander a bit, before Sasha sighed, “I’m sorry for having to bring it up NOW, but… I didn’t wanna seem like I didn’t wanna…go out with you like this…” she said, her eyes glancing back out the window, leaning against the door with one arm up against it, the other on her lap and cradling her stomach. “N-no! It’s ok! I-I’m happy you’re being honest with me! That’s the whole point of this trip after all! To get to know each other more!” Donnie said, reassuring her. A slow nervous smile passed over Sasha’s lips, “…just promise me that… if I get too…” her cheeks turned bright red and her ears lowered “…Frisky…, you’ll stop me if I cross a line. And p-please don’t…take it too personally…”

The word ‘frisky’ coming from Sasha of all folks made Donnie nearly laugh, but he held it in immediately. “Of course! I promise, nothing you could do would cross a line for me! But, uhhhh, I suppose the same should be said for me…” Sasha looked at him, an eyebrow raised. Donnie nervously chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck some, “I’m assuming you know how turtles get w-when…uhhh…” he trailed off, cheeks burning immediately. Sasha smirked a little, nodding.

Of course, Sasha was always more into the Biology branches of science, it was something he admired about her. He swallowed, “R-right, so…stop me if I cross a line too.” Sasha nodded again, “Deal… though…” a light devious glint hit her eyes “I don’t think I’ll need to worry about you. I know more about your body than you do about mine…” Donnie eyes grew at the sound of that, and his looked over her way. She was blushing still, a slight smirk on her face, but she was leaning against the window again. Staring off at the passing trees. The butterflies in his stomach were going insane now, his face practically wanting to melt off.

"W-what the shell?"

Quickly looking back at the road so they wouldn’t crash, Donnie kept driving. Sasha felt pleased with that, but the pit in her stomach still hadn’t let up. She had been honest with him. Right?

✨💛💜✨

After about another hour or so, they finally pulled up the long dirt road leading up to the large Farmhouse. Sasha let out a long whistle, looking at the size of the property and seeing the woods just beyond it. “Talk about some fresh air! This place is so…beautiful!” She said, taking off her seat belt, still keeping her eyes trained on the tree line. Donnie huffed out a small laugh, “I know right! Plenty of wide open space for us to just stretch our legs a-“ The sound of Sasha’s door opening and her hopping out made him stop. The speedy pattering of her feet on the grass was so quick that Donnie hardly started unbuckling his seatbelt yet. By the time he finally climbed out, he turned his attention to the back of the Battle Shell, and Sasha had already made it halfway across the property. She was looking all over the place, slowly turning, her tail softly flicking behind her. She was wonderstruck!

A soft smile spread on Donnie’s lips as he watched her. “I guess she really HAD been needing some time out in nature.” Sasha only stopped moving when her eyes landed on the sight of the distant hills, a huge smile spreading on her face. A present spring breeze blew through the trees and grass, and as it made its way into her fur, Sasha closed her eyes and took in a huge breath of it. The tips of her ears and tail now softly twitching. She then let out with a sigh, the wind suddenly changing direction and strength along with it, almost in sync. That’s when her ears flicked to something behind her, and she quickly turned to see Donnie approaching her, carrying both his and her own bags. “Huh, that wind gust was pretty strong!” He chuckled, getting closer and holding her bag out to her.

Sasha seemed to flinch at him taking notice of that and her ears drooped a bit, but she quickly shook that off and took her bag from him. “O-oh yeah, you know! These Spring winds they…uhhhh…always seem to…you know…move with the hearts of those who let it in.” Donnie raised a brow at that, “I’ve never heard that one before…” he said, a small smile on his face. While it was strange, Sasha always seemed to know a few weird sayings, most of which were kinda funny but mostly endearing. Maybe even a little spiritual at times. “Y-yeah, it’s something my Grandmother used to say…” She said, seeing to be in a hurry to stop talking about it, quickly slinging her bag onto her shoulders. “Well, I hope you’re ready to move like the wind, cause we’ve got a LOT of ground to cover before we make it to were we gotta be.” Donnie piped up, tilting his head in the direction of the woods just ahead of them.

She looked at him of a second, her ears perking back up again, the cat-like smirk returning to her lips, “Born ready my terrapin friend! Lead the way!” Donnie walked ahead a bit, “Well, We’ll have to move a bit stealthily from here for about a mile through these woods! Casey has a neighbor here who once sent his pitbull after Mikey.” “Oh! Crazy Man Hatchet?” Donnie froze for a second, looking back at her surprised that she knew. “How did-“ Sasha shrugged, “Mikey told me the story! You three saved a furry green man thing and it’s baby.” “Right…well, I’m hoping we won’t be seen like he was. But, like I said, we only got to get past a mile and then we should be in the clear.” Sasha nodded, “You got it…” she started walking ahead of him, only stopping to get right next to him, giving him a playful bump on his shoulder “Ninja Boy…” The way her voice came out was so sultry and almost teasing. Donnie froze a bit, feeling her soft tail brush his arm as she passed him. The tingle from such an action traveled through his whole body, making him shutter as his face began to burn. “Oh shell…is THIS what she meant by ‘being bold’?” He thought to himself, staring at Sasha, slack-jawed as she walked ahead of him. Noticing the way her tail swooshed, moving in time with her steps and the sway of her hips. He gulped, “If so, I just hope I can handle all of…that!”

The cheetah looked back at him, over her shoulder, “Race you to the other side?” She shouted back, a sly smirk on her. The return of that competitive spirit in her, and the quickening of her steps made Donnie flinch, before springing to life himself. He smirked and ran to catch up, “Sure, but aren’t I supposed to lead the way!?” He yelled back, with a laugh in his voice.

(To Be Continued...)

7 notes · View notes

nikarie5 · 1 year ago

Text

First Frost

Rating: General Audience, no ship unless squinting General description: Leo finds out what happens when a sidewalk frosts over. Cast: Leo Knut, Finn O'Hara, Remus Lupin Thanks to @noots-fic-fests for organising, and @lumosinlove for such lovely characters to play with. ---

“Awww, yikes!”

Leo goes down, grabbing onto the railing as his gangly legs flail out from under him. He starts pulling himself back up, his legs dancing on the slippery pavement as he tries to find traction. Failing, he gives up and scoots on his butt to sit against the railing’s post. Finn collapses with laughter in the doorway.

“Is this why you wanted to get up early and go for a walk before practice, Knut?”, Finn asks as he regains his breath.

“It looks so pretty out, like everything has been etched over by tiny lutins. I forgot elves are also known for being dangerous, luring unsuspecting travelers to their doom,” Leo drawls, looking out over the frosted over shrubbery that lined the path sloping down to the sidewalk and road. “I had read about this, but never seen it before. Our sidewalks are different kinds of booby traps down in Nola.”

“This is your first ever frost? That does explain how a professional hockey player can’t manage to walk on a tiny dusting of ice,” Finn teases as he helps Leo lever himself up off the ground and shuffle back to safe ground. “Grip with your toes, grip with your toes.” Finn twirls the car keys around one finger. “Tell ya what. I’ll drive us to practice and park in the outdoor lot instead of the spot in the garage, and you can practice on a flat surface.” He throws his arm around Leo’s waist and starts steering him towards the stairwell. “You’ll get plenty of opportunities to see frost up close and personal this winter here in Gryffindor, I promise.”

Leo leans in to the support Finn is giving him, hoping Finn can’t feel his heartbeat speeding up at the casual contact initiated by his shorter teammate. He blows lightly on his palms, happy he had had the forethought to put on his light knit gloves before venturing out onto the treacherous pavement. The last thing he needed was scraped up hands, he’s still getting used to his new Lions blocker and glove.

In the car, Leo presses his forehead to the window, watching the frosted landscape pass by, marvelling as they pass through the park across from the arena.

Finn pulls into an empty space in the near-deserted parking lot, about halfway between the subway station exit and the arena’s entry. Hopping out of the car, he yells out to the lone walker leaving the subway, “Loops! Come watch a baby deer learn to walk!” He dashes around the hood to open Leo’s door before he can do it himself.

Remus comes striding over, and offers Leo a hand to get out of the car. “Oh right, I guess you aren’t used to walking on frost yet. It’s a vital skill up here, especially if you aren’t planning on getting your own car.”

Leo leans lightly on Remus, gripping his forearm tightly as Leo’s feet threaten to betray him on the slippery concrete. “Thanks Loops. I haven’t got the trick of it yet.”

Finn butts in, “I told him the trick is to grip with your toes.” Loops joins in, chanting with Finn, “Grip with your toes, grips with your toes!” The two look at each other, give a high five, “Ya man!”.

“I am so lost right now”, comments Leo, still struggling to find his footing while Remus shakes with laughter next to him.

“Kiss my lucky egg?” Finn asks.

“Some people say you know you can’t believe”, Remus starts off, with Finn joining in for “Hey Jamaica, we got a bobsled team.”

Leo looks at them both, completely bewildered. “I am definitely missing the reference. Seriously, how do I do this?”

“Aw, sorry Knut. Here, for now, practice sliding your feet along as though you are skating, just with smaller strides.” Finn steps out in front, demonstrating, then Remus slowly slides one foot forward and waits for Leo to copy him.

“You got this Knut, you are a professional hockey player, you can skate. It’s just like skating,” Remus adds, guiding Leo into another step forward.

The three make their way slowly to the rink’s entrance, Leo chanting the whole time under his breath, “I’m a hockey player, I can do this. I’m a hockey player, I can do this.”

#sweater weather fanfic #coops #fic-o-ween #fic fest #lumosinlove #hazelnoots #sweater weather

17 notes · View notes

wotcherangie · 2 years ago

Note

I rather lettuce with pie, I don't think ryou is emotionally ready to have a relationship with anyone and I don't think he looks at lettuce that way only as to encourage her especially after that comment about how about we kiss ichigo

I totally get what you mean, even though I prefer Ryoutasu 😊

But the beauty of these two ship, you see, is that are so similar: you say that Ryou seems not ready to have a relationship (being lonely so many years, childhood trauma, etc) and… I agree with you.

But same is Pie, or better, Pie wouldn’t even dare to think about having a relationship AT ALL xD

But here’s where the two ships are similar: it seems (anime speaking, we know that the manga has only a panel of Retasu blushing at Ryou and No Pietasu at all) that both of them, Ryou and Pie, are warmed or moved by Retasu kindness, heart and smile.

So I agree that Ryoutasu would be so difficult to make, but Pietasu is even more difficult, almost impossible.. and despite of that… I am glad that shippers from both sides do not care at all and keeps making amazing art and stuff for both couples 💛💚💜

I hope that Retasu character arc will also help these two character to grow in any way possible

P.s. for the ichigo stuff… I actually don’t even care xD don’t get me wrong, there are plenty of manga cute moments between ichigo and Ryou, but despite the fact that ichigo only interest is in masaya, I have always found Ryou childish teasing towards her,,, just teasing xD I totally see the beauty of the ship ichigo and Ryou, but since people have no problem in shipping poor ichigo with anyone… including Kisshu… I see no reason why anyone shouldn’t enjoy another ship involving Ryou

#tokyo mew mew new #tokyo mew mew #mew lettuce #lettuce midorikawa #pietasu #ryoutasu #retasu x ryou #ryou shirogane #retasu midorikawa #Mew mew new

8 notes · View notes

casspurrjoybell-21 · 2 years ago

Text

Pirate Chains - Volume 1 - Strong Tides

*Warning Adult Content*

Chapter 13 - Sweet Confusion - Part 1

Nyx

We awoke a few hours later, the sunlight still pouring in through the window. I couldn't help but feel my cheeks flush a deep red. It was so embarrassing to wake up entangled in each other's arms, especially with our faces so close together. And to make matters worse, I realized that I was completely naked. I quickly searched for my pants and scrambled out of bed to retrieve them. As I bent over to grab my pants, Agenor's voice startled me...

"Nice view... if you bend over more, we'd finish what we started earlier..."

I groaned in annoyance, trying to hide my embarrassment. I looked back at him. He lay on his right side. His head rested in his palm. His black hair traced his neckline and fell on his chest. Involuntarily, I slowly followed his abs down to his lower abdomen then to one perfect V... He had his right leg stretched beautifully on the dark sheets. His left leg though, it was half folded and his knee aimed for the ceiling making a perfect demi-plié. And... his member rested on his right inner thigh... I felt a thump in my heart as I mentally took a step back to admire his sexy pose all together...

But his perfection was spoiled by a blue mark on the side of his nose. It's the punch I threw earlier. I hope he doesn't walk by any mirrors... I couldn't help but feel confused. How could I be admiring my captor, someone who took me and keeps me against my will? His chuckle brought me back to reality. He had the most annoying smirk ever and his eyebrow was raised as to tease me and accuse me of watching his nude body. I was confused about how I felt, admiring my captor's body and at the same time feeling embarrassed.

I instantly looked away, pretending not to care but my blushing face exposed me and Agenor gave into one of his evil victorious laughs. I hustled to wear my pants, I had one leg of the pants up to my right knee when suddenly the door of the cabin opened without any warning. I instantly dropped to the floor and used the bed as a cover. I landed right on my bare ass and groaned as Agenor amused us with more of his arrogant laughs.

"Nyx, you're awake? NYX..."

'God, it's Maren.'

"Captain, where's Nyx?"

"Hiding. Looks like he doesn't want to talk to you, Maren."

"I'm here."

I lean on the bed and show my upper half.

"Hello, Maren. Sorry, I tripped."

I continued to fight with my loose pants but as I looked over, I saw that Agenor didn't even flinch. He just lay there, unabashedly displaying his bare ass towards the door.

"God, Agenor. You're indecent, cover yourself."

I grabbed the end of the bedsheet and threw it over his waist.

"Relax," Agenor said with a smirk.

Maren rushed in...

"Hey! Is this a nude party? I want in."

"What? See what example you're setting for him. He's still a kid, for God's sake," I muttered under my breath.

"You're shameless."

"A kid. Maren?" he laughed boorishly.

"He's been on more pirate ships than I have. Believe me, he has seen more than you could ever imagine."

"Still. You should have some dignity."

"I have plenty of dignity. In fact, I have such a massive amount of dignity that I'm not afraid to show it," he said with a wicked piercing look that made my blood rush to my face.

Why was I the one blushing? I grabbed Agenor's pants from the previous day and threw them at his face to shut him up. Maren just stood there, clearly amused by the banter between Agenor and me.

"You two seem to be getting along well," he grinned.

"Of course, we are," Agenor replied, stretching his arms behind his head.

"We've been through a lot together."

As Agenor chuckled at my embarrassment, he couldn't resist teasing me further.

"By the way, Nyx, your pants are still undone," he said with a sly grin. Mortified, I glanced down and quickly tied them up as Maren joined in with his own amused laughter.

Just as I thought things couldn't get any more bizarre, I turned to face Maren only to find him half-naked with his shirt in hand.

"Maren. Put your shirt back on," I scolded, feeling more exasperated by the minute.

"What? I want a naked party. I miss those... Captain, we should all do it. Remember Captain Kier?" he exclaimed, grinning mischievously.

"Aye, that asshole," Agenor muttered, his tone dripping with contempt.

Maren's eyes sparkled with delight as he reminisced...

"After successful raids, he used to invite women on board and we'd all get naked and spend the evening quaffing booze."

"Lord, he was a pain in the ass," Agenor grumbled.

"What an irresponsible Captain he was. That behavior of his was what brought him down."

I was surprised by Agenor's reaction. Perhaps he was capable of considering the well-being of his crew after all. Agenor continued...

"Bringing women on board is a bad omen. It's asking for trouble."

"That's what bothered you," I exclaimed with disbelief.

"God, you're hopeless."

I turned to Maren and said...

"Please put your shirt on. It's still chilly outside."

Maren's voice cut through the tension.

"I'm fine, Nyx. Pirates are used to hellish weather conditions. It's you who should be careful since you're not used to living on a ship and all."

I couldn't help but fire back at Agenor.

"Well, tell that to your Captain."

Agenor looked bewildered.

"What did I do?"

I didn't hold back.

"You're an asshole."

I could feel Maren's shoulders tense up at my words but I didn't care. Agenor deserved to be called out.

"You chain me here with nothing but oversized pants to wear."

Agenor smirked in response.

"You could grab something from one of the boxes near you. But I guess you've come to like walking half-naked around me, haven't you, Nyx?"

His insinuation made my cheeks flush with embarrassment. My eyes widened in disbelief. Did Agenor just insinuate dirty talk in front of Maren? I couldn't believe this unprincipled pirate's audacity.

"I don't. And I don't touch other people's belongings," I snapped back at him.

"What? You really didn't open any of those boxes?" Agenor asked, clearly surprised.

"Do I look like someone who'd disrespect other people's privacy?"

I replied, trying to keep my tone steady.

For a moment, Agenor's usual smirk and arrogance disappeared. I saw a flicker of surprise in his eyes. It was rare for me to come out on top in a conversation with him and I was determined to score some points.

"I'm not like you, Captain," I added, feeling a sense of satisfaction wash over me.

1 note · View note

icharchivist · 2 years ago

Note

I am very conflicted about LuciSan! Please hear me out: I love them. But I also want Sandalphon to get some time for himself to focus on himself and grow as a person and just get a chance to experience life as himself. But they do absolutely deserve each other, because they make each other so happy and they deserve to be happy. So I guess I hope they can be reunited later, when Sandalphon has learned a lot and has plenty of things to show Lucifer! They can go to a sauna together and Sandalphon can show Lucifer how it's done and his boyfriend can be super impressed by him and it will be very cute. 😊

(Not going into how reviving Lucifer would ruin his dramatic death in WMTSB, that is not the point here, but while that is a problem to be considered, they had no problem bringing Cosmos back after a dramatic sacrifice either)

(Also not going into Sakurai being a garbage person, that isn't Lucifer's fault, I'm speaking strictly from a character standpoint)

oh yeah i actually understand that a lot?

I mean i'm personally torn on the Reviving Lucifer thing for the exact reason you mentioned in the parenthesis to start with ahah, i like to think about a future in which they would be happy, but i don't know how much i actually want it in canon because of that.

And, yeah, Sandalphon's individuality is also up there on the reasons why I like them being apart a bit, to have Sandalphon experience things for himself, make friends for himself, figure out what he likes for himself.

On paper i think bringing back Lucifer wouldn't really change Sandalphon's healing process since he's pretty advanced by now, but at the same time, it /is/ nice to have Sandalphon do all of those things for himself and not just because he's a grieving widow.

In truth i remember when Created by the Stars, Loved by the Skies came out, and Lucifer first was teased, I was constantly torn about how i wanted Lucifer to really be developped as his own character, while also being all "i'd kill for him to mention Sandalphon ONCE though". and then he sorta did and i was happy, because i had 99% Lucifer development and 1% LuciSan bone to munch on.

And as it is i am kinda content with "99% individual development, 1% shipping bone" as is, so i'm good with how Sandalphon is at the moment and i wish it carries on for a while.

One day perhaps they'll bring back Lucifer, we shall see how it goes then. Nothing says they would be glued at each other the whole time either, i think that, after everything they've been through, Sandalphon and the primarches would want Lucifer to live an individual life like the one he died to give them all. I could definitely imagine a post-resurrection event where all 5 of them take turns at trying to have Lucifer try on new things. And Sandalphon especially probably reflecting on how, he wants to be there for Lucifer, sure, but he remembers the time he lived only for him and he doesn't want to let go of the new things and new people he has come to like now.

It would be an easy trap to make them so devoted to one another that it'd cut down on their individual time, but if anything with the other "big ships", canon or not, is that we do actually get to see them outside of their love interest being developped a lot... if only, cynically, because they keep the door opened a lot for say, the self shipping stuff, so they do tend to separate the duos once in a while to really drive home how they are as individuals.

so i wouldn't be too worried about Granblue backing away from Sandalphon's development as an individual if Lucifer comes back.

But as it is, yeah personally i'm not even sure if i really want Lucifer back canonically (fan-discussion is a hard yes, of course, but canon is different), and for what it is, i think it's best to leave a lot of time for Sandalphon to breath first.

And well, i think also that the more time they let between his death and him coming back, the more actually we can be relieved by him coming back without going on about how his death was ruined. Because years of mourning still count as mourning and all. Honestly i kinda feel like Cosmos was brought back from the deads too fast for instance, despite me completely cheering for her coming back in a fanon sense (again, not sure where i stand with the canon sense though)

We'll see anyway ;D

#ichareply #ichafantalks gbf #anonymous #ichablogging wmtsb

0 notes

trials-of-a-spirit-worker · 11 months ago

Text

I don't know who needs to see this but...closure is not clean. It normally never is.

It's messy, it fucking hurts. And yes, at the heart of it all Atla is a fucking kids show, but to tackle meeting your parents killer again and facing up to your abuser was handled in a fantastic way at the time.

God forbid Katara have another layer to her other than the crying hopeful people portray her as. She is a young girl, forced into parentification the majority of the damn series with no time to assess or cope with her tragedy.

Her facing the very man who took her mother and essentially her childhood and innocence away from her was the darkest form of healing that show could muster and it was handled brilliantly. She has the power to get revenge, a life for a life long lost. And she stops herself. Because she sees no point in taking his life. She finds him in his pathetic life, a life that would be have no true impact if it was lost. He wasn't honored, no fame, nothing to lose. Willing to give up his mother in his place.

She is the very embodiment of Yon Ras failure. He didn't kill the correct person and it came to bite him in the ass. Looking her would be assassin in the face and basically showing him how she thrived and could very easily snuff him out then choosing not to because he's so fucking worthless is power.

And I'll always applaud that this came after her having off with Hama. Because somewhere you knew in the back of your mind she had that power within her. Hama's anger is more than understandable. I've seen people call both Katara and Aang genocide survivors, and I'm not disagreeing with that. However, what we seem to overlook or not talk about is the fact that Hama herself was there to survive that genocide. She survived tortuous hell. Watched her friends, her people, die one by one in probably humiliating and gut wrenching ways. She carried all of that pain for decades. She found a way out, a way of surviving and wanted to teach it to Katara. Hama probably never left her survival do or die mindset and never left the thought of revenge. Which makes the stark difference between the two of them have much more impact when it comes to Katara's moment here.

Hama put that kind of fearful power into a young girl's hands. And Katara chose not to use it on her own moment of revenge. She could've done anything to Yon Ra. She could've completely destroyed and obliterated that man. Instead, she chose to allow him to live, because she knew she damn well could.

That is what makes that scene so powerful.

And what's even braver is she never forgives the monster who ruined her life. She says it herself. "I'll never forgive him."

That is a brave lesson that no one deserves your forgiveness. It's a brave lesson that you can let go without forgiveness attached. Because that's what she did. She learned her forgiveness is a choice. Which is why she then chose to forgive Zuko.

The Southern Raiders is an episode that is picked apart to hell and analyzed like crazy. It's a damn good episode and has plenty of lessons to pull from. But what sucks so much about it is so many people pull from their shipping angles or have a skew on their ideas that take away from the real meat of the episode.

In the end, this episode was pivotal for Katara. But it was so subtle about her change. No ham fisted mental transformation, no emotional "lemme lay out my lessons I've learned and how I changed like a small children's show" bullshit. She just... Pivoted. She's freer, kinder than before and maturing in a way where she doesn't become the parent anymore. Her talks sound less like a parentified person and more like a friend. Hell, she becomes a bit more playful, constantly teasing Zuko as a friend (or more, depending on how you see it). And that's great for her. She slowly heals from that pain.

Some more quick thoughts on "Southern Raiders" (Ugh, there are so many layers in this episode to analyze, and so many different angles. It's like a freaking kaleidoscope. My autistic brain could get stuck in this mess for eternity.)

Basically, there are three separate choices with "Katara confronting Yon Rha" situation:

1) facing/not facing him at all

2) killing/not killing him

3) harming/not harming him in any other way

I'm not interested here in the moral side of things - it's too difficult topic for me to decipher, to be honest.

I'm here for a "mental health" perspective.

And psychologically speaking, both "facing your mother's murderer" and "specifically seeking a person and killing him with your own hands" are not really good experiences, especially for a 14-year-old girl who is already in a bad state of mind.

Hmm... But there is still point three to consider, isn't it?

The only thing facing Yon Rha seemingly could help Katara with was to make her feel powerful.

"I'm not a helpless little girl anymore. I can beat the person who hurt me. I can have a semblance of control."

But this is all it was - just a semblance.

The thing is, Katara knows from the start she can beat Yon Rha. This man couldn't be stronger than Azula.

And feeling powerful by beating or killing someone obviously weak and helpless is a psychologically degrading experience, no matter what the person in question did to you. In perspective, it can become an unhealthy addictive coping mechanism, and this is something you shouldn't encourage in yourself or a person you care about.

Basically, that's the problem with Zuko's "closure" on the Day Of The Black Sun as well. His whole speach was pointless from a practical point of view - Zuko couldn't change Ozai's mind on anything. In essence, what Zuko was really trying to achieve by making his temporarily powerless father listen to him is to feel in control (well, and prove to himself what he wasn't a coward by not leaving the palace quietly like any reasonable person on his place would do). But the power his father held over him was never something physical, and it almost costed Zuko his life in the end. Offering the similar experience to Katara only shows what Zuko didn't reflect on what really happened that day.

So facing Yon Rha was at best pointless, and at worst harmful experience for Katara. The real reason why she felt so angry and helpless would not go away like this.

In the end, I believe the "killing/not killing" angle most people choose as a point of focus doesn't give enough credit to the complexity of the problem.

Something like this, I guess.

#katara meta #alta analysis #Katara's character growth #pro katara #not witch related #not witchcraft

35 notes · View notes

mimi-ya · 3 years ago

Text

almost ~ shanks x reader

2,900 words | she/her reader | angst

summary: it never was the right timing with you two

a/n: happy birthday @chososrightpigtails !! this was literally so fun to write and maybe one of my favorite works so far, thank your for the inspiraton and i hope you enjoy!

masterlist | birthday masterlist

“You’re back. And on today of all days.”

The red-haired pirate’s grin stretches across his cheeks, “You think I wouldn’t remember?”

“There is no way that you took down a Navy ship all by yourself!”

“Yeah huh! You can even ask my first mate, Buggy!”

You can’t hold back the snort, “Buggy? If you’re going to make up a pirate crew, at least make one that’s believable.”

The boy with the straw hat goes as red as his hair, “Buggy is real! He’s right over there!” He stomps his foot, pointing at another young boy who’s passed out at table after just one drink.

“Him?” You laugh, “Are you a pirate crew or a circus?” And you turn around to leave before he can respond, having way too many tasks to attend to than listen to the tales of a boy who’s playing pirate.

It wasn’t uncommon for pirates to fill the tavern you worked at, but it was far and few between someone your age would stumble in.

The red haired one had been pestering you all night for attention, which couldn’t he clearly see you were in the middle of a shift? But you humored him for a bit, enjoying the stories he spun like gold. They had you on the edge of your seat even if you didn’t quite believe them.

An island in the sky? One just as deep underwater? Fights that lasted for days?

Yeah right. The boy clearly couldn’t handle his alcohol.

You assumed that night would be the end of it. That he would wake up the next morning and remember his embarrassment and would never step foot in the tavern again.

But there he was the next night, and the next, and the next.

His red nosed friend always tagging along and knocking out after a drink which left the straw hat boy plenty of time to annoy you.

Although you’re starting to wonder if annoy is the right word. But the same day you come to that realization is the day he tells you he’s leaving.

“Alas, the life of a pirate cannot keep me in one place too long.”

It was the afternoon slump, barely anyone in the tavern to serve.

“You and Buggy aren’t gonna capsize in your dinky raft, are you?”

“Wha- raft?” He sputters, “We don’t sail on a raft! I have a ship ten times the size of this place!”

“Then take me to it.”

“N- now?” For the first time since knowing him he looks hesitant.

You place a hand on our hip with a challenge, “Well if’s the last time I’ll see you, you at least have to show me your vessel.”

“Alright.” He nods, “Let’s go now.”

“Lead the way.”

The two of you weave in and out of the crowded town square, down the off beaten path to the shore where a giant pirate ship lays waiting.

“This is your ship?”

“Of course it is!” He stands proudly, “You don’t think the great captain Shanks would sail on anything less, do you?”

“I didn’t think captain Shanks sailed at all.” You tease, looking back at the ship that was the most massive and grand thing you had laid eyes on in your entire life, “Well? You gonna show me aboard?”

“Uh, well.” He shifts awkwardly, “We’re about to set off, and I wouldn’t want you to, umm, get mixed up and go out to sea, heh.”

“Well aren’t you the captain?” You press, “Don’t set sail until I’m off.”

Shanks opens his mouth to respond but is interrupted by the boisterous laughter coming from behind. You spin around to see two large men coming around the bend, shoving at each other with smiles on their faces.

Now those are some pirates, you think.

Tall and imposing, swords at their hips with an imposing aura radiating from them. And then they spot you, and you honestly feel a chill run down your spine for a moment.

“Oi, Shanks!” One yells with a grin that’s partially obscured by his moustache, “Ready to set sail?”

“Of course!” Shanks answers, a slight unease in his voice.

The second pirate zeros in on you, a scared eye narrowing slightly, “And who’s this?” But there’s no malice behind the question, instead his lip quirks up at the edge.

“(Y/N).” You answer for yourself, “I work at the tavern in town.”

“Is that so?” The blonde man asks, eyes sliding knowingly to Shanks, “And what brings you this far out of town?”

“Well to see his ship, of course.” You answer, feeling more at ease with these two.

“His?!” The brunette one shouts, earning a swift elbow to the gut from the other, “Hey! What was-” But cuts off when he get’s a meaningful look from the blonde, “I mean, of course! His! Of course this ship belongs to our great captain Shanks!”

“Well captain Shanks.” The blonde interrupts the other’s rambling, “We’ll be attending to the ship whenever you’re ready to depart.”

“See to it then.” Shanks says, seeming to have regained his voice.

“Right-o captain Shanks!” The other laughs with tears in his eyes, patting the boy on the head when they pass by. Shanks tries to bat at his hand, but the man is too fast and continues to the ship cackling as he goes.

“They’ll be scrubbing the deck for that.” Shanks mumbles to himself with a blush.

“Quite the crew.” You tease, “Although I’m glad to see it’s more than just you and Buggy. I was a bit concerned for you before.”

“Worrying for little old me?” He nudges your shoulder, “I’m touched.”

You scoff, shoving him back “Just worried your big head would sink the boat.”

Shanks laughs off your jab.

“Captain Shanks!” A call from the boat, reaches the two of you, “Time to sail!”

Shanks throws a look over his shoulder before facing you, “Well, I suppose I’ll be going.”

A weird pit forms in your stomach. Annoying as the boy maybe you still thought of him as a friend, “Will you come back one day?”

“Gonna miss me that much?”

“Nah.” You brush off, “But I would like to see you again when you’re actually a captain.”

Shanks flushes, looking at the ground and muttering how he is a captain.

You roll your eyes, leaning in while he’s distracted by himself to plant a kiss on his cheek, “Bye Shanks.” And as any other teenager would after their first kiss, you run back to the forest that separates the town and beach.

Not of course without throwing a look over your shoulder to see he’s stock still with a hand pressed to his red face.

“Just surprised you’d keep a tidbit of information about me in that brain of yours. I’m sure there’s more important things to remember.”

“Like I’d ever forget a single thing about you.”

You hadn’t thought of him in years.

Of course he’d always have a place in your heart. The overcompensating young pirate that was desperate for your attention. But it’s not like you held out hope for a childhood crush.

You’d fallen in and out of love many times since you last saw Shanks.

Which is why it’s so surprising when your heart constricts the second you see him stroll into town.

It has to be him, there’s no one else it could be. The red hair. The strawhat.

But he’s changed, that’s for sure. He’s a man now. Tall and nicely filled out with a jagged scar over his eye that makes him look even more intriguing.

Is he here for you? Would he even remember you? Impossible. He probably doesn’t even know what island he’s on let alone that it’s one he visited over a decade ago.

You watch from behind the curtain as he walks down the street, a band of rowdy pirates following in tow. It seems he finally found his crew.

He stops before an old, dilapidated building, starring at the broken windows and worn sign.

You can’t hear much, but you see his crew is a little peeved at whatever he’s saying. And then he pulls aside a townsperson, gesturing to the building.

Does he remember?

The little tavern you worked in closed down many years ago after one too many bar fights and not enough care to keep it afloat. You jumped from job to job before you saved enough to open your own place. Learning a valuable lesson to keep out those who were itching for a fight.

Shanks is still talking to the townsperson, clearly distracted because his crew start to wonder off. Which you also miss until one of them bursts through the door.

“Hey captain! Here’s a place!” He shouts back.

The sudden noise nearly has your heart leaping out your throat as your press yourself further against the wall. You can see Shanks thanking the man before catching up with the rest of the pirates who have effectively taken over your bar.

And then he walks in.

“Fellas, I think you might have just barged in a closed establishment.” He looks around, not seeing anyone in sight. And he’s not wrong, opening isn’t for another few hours.

“Then who’s she?” One of them nods in your direction and all the sudden the attention is on you.

“Well shit!” Shanks says gleefully, finally spotting you around the corner, “(Y/N)! I’ve been lookin all over for yeah!”

“That’s (Y/N)?” One of them asks.

“Didn’t think she was real!” Another one adds in, murmuring continuing among the crew.

But you’re too focused on the red haired pirate who’s approaching to care too much about what the others are saying.

“Shanks?”

And his smile is as bright as it was all those years ago, “So you remember me?” He asks excitedly, pleased he wouldn’t be making a fool of himself in front of the others, “This is my crew!” He gestures to the dozen or so pirates who wave back. It seems he’s found a bunch just as go lucky as he is.

“And you came,” You begin, a little confused, “to tell me?” Thinking back to the boy who tried to pass off a renowned pirate crew as his own once.

“You told me to.” He says, as if it’s the simplest thing in the world.

And you laugh at the absurdity of it all.

The days that follow are reminiscent of the ones from all those years ago.

Shanks entertains you with stories, just as unbelievable as before, but this time you don’t feel he’s fibbing to impress you. He’s more confident than before, taking on his role of leadership like a second skin.

Being with him is so natural. But also so overwhelming.

The sweaty hands your feel when he smiles at you. The butterflies in your stomach when you spend hours talking about nothing and everything. The burning that etches into your skin each time he brushes against you.

“I never did thank you.” He looks like something out of a romance novel right now. Shirt unbuttoned and hair tussling in the wind on the deck of his pirate ship.

You cock your head, “For what?”

“My first kiss.” He smiles cheekily with a wink, “Drove Buggy wild with jealously.”

“Oh yeah?” You laugh, hoping he doesn’t notice your nervousness, “Well I’m sure you’ve had your fill, being a dashing young pirate and all.”

“But none of them were you.” His face softens with a serious glint in his eye, “I thought about you. Wondered what you were up to, what you looked like.” His eyes rake over your body with a smirk.

“And?” You push off the ship’s railing and take a step closer, “Did I live up to your expectations?”

“Surpassed ‘em.” Shanks breathes, eyes flicking to your lips and back. He wordlessly wraps an arm around your waist and leans in-

“Captain!” A shriek breaks through the moment, “It’s a Navy blockade!”

He reels back, looking out to sea where sure enough, a dozen marine vessels are blocking the cove’s entrance.

“Shit!” Shanks says, looking at between you and the impending situation. He makes a quick decision and wraps an arm around you, “You haven’t eaten a devil fruit, have you?”

“Huh?” You manage to get out, overwhelmed at how quick the afternoon has changed. Red Haired Pirates running up and down the deck, preparing for battle or an escape you’re not sure.

“Devil fruit? Got one?” Shanks asks again, hoisting you onto the rail of the ship.

“What! No! Shanks what are you-”

“I’ll come back, I promise.” He says, leaning in to at least steal one proper kiss, but you don’t sit still, so he catches your cheek instead and then it’s too late as he pushes you over the side.

“Shanks!” You scream, voice cutting off when you hit the water and the impact stinging every inch of your skin.

By the time you’re able to surface and sputtering sea water, the Red Haired Pirates have already begun to move, but there he is, standing on the stern of the ship.

“Asshole!” You scream, but it’s unlikely he can even hear you.

He just waves and waves until he’s nothing more than a speck in the distance.

“I still haven’t forgiven you for throwing me over like that.”

“Better than getting captured by the marines though?” He smiles, resting his chin in his hand, his only hand you note.

“You all get caught then?” You drop the ale in front of him, rounding the bar to join him with your own.

It was well past closing when he knocked on your door. Honestly scaring the shit out of you until you realized it was him of all people.

“Course not, but I didn’t want to risk yeah.” He takes a sip from his mug, “You’re too pretty to be tied up in all that pirate nonsense.”

“So, what’s that make you?”

“If I recall, the word you used was dashing.”

You scoff, “Doesn’t sound like me.”

“Trust me.” He says softly, “I wouldn’t forget any word of praise that comes from those lips.”

You have to look away from his honest stare, unable to comprehend his presence and his words, “Shanks.” You begin, starring at the wall, “Why are you here?”

“I told you, had to stop by for-”

“Don’t give me that shit that it’s my birthday.” You snap, eyes shifting to his, “You come banging on my door at three in the morning looking like a mad man after years of not seeing you. What’s going on?”

He doesn’t say anything at first. Just drinks in your face with that fiery expression he always loved, wished he could have seen more of.

“Things are changing, (Y/N).” He turns to you, hand resting on the bar top with fingers that almost brush yours, “The world’s about to be thrown into absolute chaos, I can feel it, I know it.”

“World’s always been shit.” You counter.

Shanks lips quirk up, “You’re not wrong.” He pauses, “But this time’s different, can’t say much, can’t say why, but you’ll understand one day.”

“So what?” You spit, “Going around making all your amends while you can?”

“Something like that.”

And it stings to hear him say it.

The first time Shanks had sailed off, you thought nothing of it. Just some pirate wannabe with a schoolyard crush. But the second time? Well, you held out hope for longer than you’d care to admit.

“So which number am I on your list? Surely can’t be the only desperate slag you’ve got waiting at a port.”

“(Y/N).” He says, trying to conceal the hurt that still seeps through, “It’s not like that with you, it was never like that with you.”

“What was I supposed to think?” You throw back, “Never saw your face again except in the papers. Made me into a fool waiting for you.” You can’t stand to sit here any longer, “Finish your drink or don’t, but I assume you remember the way out. It is your specialty after all.”

“(Y/N).” He grasps your hand, pulling you back with such passion. And if you thought he had filled out nicely before, it’s nothing compared to what the recent years have done to him, “I wish it wasn’t like this, truly.”

“Then why is it? Why are you doing this to us?” You plead, fingers curling into his shirt.

“I can’t say.” He chokes out, “But I wish it could be different, for us, for you.”

He holds you tightly against his chest, trying not let your subbduded cries get to him.

“When do you leave?” He hears you whisper.

And he’s never wished for something more in his life than to be able to lie to you right now, “The morning,”

The choked noise that leaves your throat hurts worse than the scar on his face and missing arm combined.

“It just wasn’t in the cards for us, huh?” You ask with a watery laugh.

“No, I don’t think it was.”

“Well.” You begin, pulling back to wipe at your cheeks, “We still have tonight, don’t we?”

Shanks eyes darken with want and lust, “We still have tonight.” He agrees, cupping your jaw with his rugged and worn hand that scratches at your soft skin.

And when he presses his lips to yours, you’re both thinking how maybe this isn’t just for tonight. Maybe there can be something in the future for the two of you. That this is too good and perfect to be limited to just once.

But you’re both wrong.

#red haired shanks x reader #shanks x reader #op x reader #one piece x reader

495 notes · View notes

swan-of-sunrise · 2 years ago

Text

Endgame (Chapter Nine-Part I)

Summary: The Avengers face off against a past iteration of Thanos and his army for the fate of the entire universe.

Pairing: Steve Rogers X Reader

Word Count: 3.7k

Warnings/Disclaimers: Disclaimer for battle/combat violence

A/N: And here we’ve finally reached the Battle of Earth! Thank you for reading, I hope you all enjoy!

Chapter Nine (Part I) (Previous Chapter)

In her eighth grade English class, (Y/N) was assigned to write a report on A Sound of Thunder, a science-fiction short story written by Ray Bradbury that revolved around the dangers of traveling through time and humanity’s arrogance for thinking it could control its overwhelming power. Bradbury’s famed short story struck fourteen-year old (Y/N) with two thoughts after finishing it: that she was definitely sticking to writing historical-fiction novels when she grew up, and that she would never dabble in time travel if the opportunity ever arose in her lifetime. She was reminded of her naïve teenage promise as she rocked Carina in her arms and listened to Stephen’s brief but concise run-down of the situation they now found themselves in.

Back on Titan in 2018, the doctor utilized the Time Stone to foresee all the futures in which they’d win against the Mad Titan but he was only able to find one, one where half the universe would stay Vanished for five years until Scott Lang emerged from the Quantum Realm and inspired their time heist. Stephen foresaw everything, from Thanos’ death at the hands of Thor to the switch that 2014 Nebula made with her future counterpart on her adoptive father’s orders, and (Y/N)’s heart sank into her stomach when he told them how 2014 Nebula hijacked their Quantum Tunnel and brought Thanos and his entire army to their own timeline while the Avengers were preoccupied with the Infinity Stones. We were all so shocked by Natasha’s death that we didn’t even realize it wasn’t our Nebula, she silently lamented, anxiously biting her lip as the doctor explained how Thanos’ ship launched a surprise blitz on the entire Avengers Facility just after Bruce snapped his fingers and how he was currently preparing to deploy his entire army.

“The gauntlet containing all six Infinity Stones is still buried beneath the wreckage of the compound, but Thanos will send his forces after it while he battles the Avengers,” Stephen called out over his shoulder, his attention split between filling them in and summoning more portals to gather warriors from all five Wakandan tribes.

“Then we don’t have a moment to waste.” T’Challa turned to Okoye with a resolute expression on his face. “General, gather your Doras and begin readying the tribal warriors for our imminent attack; I shall join you in a moment to assist.” The general bowed her head in respect before hurrying to follow her king’s orders, and T’Challa turned his attention to Shuri. “Shuri, ready our pilots and see to it that every available aircraft is armed and operational…and, you might want to change your clothing, little sister. You can’t fight a battle dressed as though you’re visiting an American shopping mall.” Shuri ignored her older brother’s light teasing and fist-bumped the air in delight as she sprinted through the original portal leading into the palace, and T’Challa’s small grin faltered when he met Ramonda’s eyes. “Mother, I-”

The Queen Mother held up a placating hand and smiled. “We’ll have plenty of time to talk later, sithandwa sam. You are both the King of Wakanda and the Black Panther, T’Challa, and now is the time to show Thanos why that is.”

Nodding once, T’Challa gave his mother a brief hug and sprinted off to the field beyond the forest, and Stephen cleared his throat to get their attention. “I have to portal back to Titan; wait for my signal to know when it’s time to attack.”

“Wait, what signal?” (Y/N) exchanged an exasperated look with Sam when Stephen vanished through another sparking orange portal without answering. “Every single time I’ve encountered that doctor, he’s pissed me off one way or another.” Carina blew a loud raspberry and (Y/N) winced a little. “Sorry, Cari, but swearing’s a hard habit to kick.” She glanced up at Ramonda. “Your highness, do you mind-?”

“I’ll protect her, (Y/N), as if she were my own child.” The Queen Mother placed a hand on her shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. “Bast ukukhusela wena. May Bast protect you, and may she guide you to victory on the battlefield.”

(Y/N) smiled in gratitude at Ramonda and glanced back down at Carina; out of the corner of her eye, she saw the older woman gesture for the others to give them a moment alone but her daughter’s soft cooing regained her attention. “I know that’s only been about an hour since you last saw your daddy and I, but for us it’s felt like an entire lifetime. And I know that you’re probably getting pretty tired of your parents leaving you to go and fight against gods and un-dead warriors and genetically-enhanced aliens, but it’s something we’ve got to do. You’re going to grow up in a better, safer world, lemon drop, and we’ll both be right there with you. But first, Mommy needs to go and help Daddy save the world again.” She pressed a soft kiss onto her daughter’s forehead and smiled. “Love you, Cari, more than anything.”

Placing the infant back into the floating pram, (Y/N) handed Ramonda the uru bracelet and her overnight bag, pausing only to retrieve the weapons she’d packed away, and she watched as the Queen Mother escorted her daughter through the swirling orange portal they’d entered through and disappeared from view. She took a deep breath before turning around to face the others, who were all preoccupied with looking over their weapons for the impending battle except Groot; the tree-like creature was anxiously twiddling his branched fingers and when he realized that she was staring, he perked up and moved closer to her. “I am Groot?” (Y/N) frowned in confusion and Groot lowered his hand to gesture for something knee-height. “I am Groot.”

“Oh, are you asking about Rocket?” She grinned triumphantly when Groot’s eyes lit up and he clapped his hands together in excitement. “Rocket’s fine; he’s back in New York with my husband and friends, and we’ll be seeing him pretty soon. He’s missed you a lot, so he’ll be very happy to see you again.”

Groot nodded. “I am Groot.”

“Talking to trees now, Booksmart?” Sam chuckled as he walked up to her and good-humoredly bumped her shoulder with his. “Is there anything you can’t do?”

“Besides understanding what trees say back to me? Well, I spent five years trying my damnedest to find a best friend as wonderful as you, and I failed spectacularly because…well, there’s only one Sam Wilson, after all.”

Sam’s smirk of amusement softened into a tender smile and his arm moved to wrap around her shoulders in a partial hug, squeezing her tight and providing her a sense of reassurance she hadn’t quite felt since the day she’d lost him. Before either of them could speak, a familiar voice called out through their comm links. “All right, it’s almost show-time. How’s everything looking on your end?”

“Um, i-it’s looking good, Doc.” A bewildered Sam exchanged a look with them. “How exactly are you doing…whatever this is?”

“…How do you think, Mr. Wilson?”

“Magic,” (Y/N), Bucky and Wanda replied at the same time, and Sam rolled his eyes at them.

“I cast a communication spell on everyone’s – and I do mean everyone’s – comm links; they’re fully synchronized now and trust me, you’re gonna be grateful that they are in a few seconds.”

Wanda hummed thoughtfully at the doctor’s words. “Ominous sort of man, this Doctor Strange.” Her eyes began to glow as she summoned her scarlet-hued energy into the palms of her hands. “Now, isn’t it about time we pay Thanos and his army a little visit?”

“I was just thinking the same thing, Miss Maximoff. Oh, and just for the record, this is the signal.”

Muttering under his breath about Stephen Strange being a smart-ass, Sam took a deep breath and brought a hand up to his comm link. “Hey, Cap, you read me?” There was no reply and in her mind, (Y/N) prayed that it was only stunned silence and nothing more concerning. “Cap, it’s Sam. Can you hear me?” Past the trees and across the field where Wakanda’s forces had amassed, a new portal started forming into existence as Sam smiled to himself and added, “On your left.”

The portal expanded and (Y/N) watched T’Challa, Shuri and Okoye stride through to the other side; she reached behind her and unsheathed both of Natasha’s electrified batons from her uniform’s shoulder harness and twirled them around her hands once before tightening her hold on them. “After you, Birdbrain.”

“See you on the other side, Booksmart.” With a playful wink, Sam deployed his wings and sped off into the sky where he flew straight through the sparking portal.

More and more portals began to open as dozens of Wakandan Talon Fighters and Dragon Flyers took to the skies and another small portal burst into existence, this time directly in front of the foursome. Wanda wasted no time, her expression darkening with unreserved fury while she used her scarlet-hued powers to launch herself into the air fly through the portal; (Y/N), Bucky and Groot exchanged a silent look before following after her and as they took their first step onto the grounds of the Avengers Facility, she bit her lip to stifle her horrified gasp. The entire compound was gone, reduced to towering piles of ash, rubble and enormous pieces of debris; the sky above was darkened by thick black smoke and they stood in the center of a sizable crater, no doubt the result of Thanos’ surprise blitz attack on the Avengers Facility.

Thanos and his entire army stood at the opposite side of the crater. The Black Order, comprised of his so-called children, flanked either side of him and stretched out behind them were thousands of Chitauri troops, Sakaarian soldiers and snarling Outriders; the Sanctuary II hovered in the skies high above them, along with a dozen massive Leviathans and manned cruisers, while armed hover tanks and cybernetically-enhanced Chitauri Gorillas were scattered amongst their ground forces. It was an impressive army – infinitely larger than the ones present for the Battle of New York and the Battle of Wakanda combined – but all around (Y/N), a far more extraordinary assemblage was taking place.

Dozens of swirling orange portals were littered across their side of the crater and legions of heroes from across the galaxy poured out, ready to band together and face the greatest threat to their universe. Doctor Strange emerged from the nearest portal with Peter Parker and a trio who, judging by Groot’s enthusiastic reaction, were the Guardians of the Galaxy; T’Challa, Shuri and Okoye led the united army of Wakanda while M’Baku rallied his own Jabari warriors, their resounding chants of ‘Yibambe!’ echoing across the entire battlefield; Brunnhilde, dressed in her impressive Valkyrie armor and sitting astride a snow-white winged stallion, led her battalion of Asgardian Einherjar alongside Korg and Miek; Wong stood before a throng of sorcerers from Kamar-Taj, some brandishing bow-staffs and other weapons while others conjured orange magical shields; nearby, Hope Van Dyne seemed to appear from thin air and her eyes frantically searched their growing army for any sign of Scott; a sizable band of humans and aliens brandishing blasters emerged from another portal, and the flame-shaped patch on their jackets told (Y/N) that they were the faction of Ravagers allied to the Guardians; a figure donned in a silver-and-blue Iron Man suit landed hard on the jagged rock and raised their face-plate to reveal Pepper; a stunned Tony and a bloodied Thor, both dressed for battle in their respective armor, staggered to their feet and joined their ranks; a deafening rumble was followed by a super-sized Scott bursting out from beneath the smoldering ruins of the Avengers Facility, and the Giant-Man opened his fist to allow Bruce, Rhodes and Rocket to jump down. A rallying cry resounded throughout their troops and high above them all, Wakandan Talon Fighters and Dragon Flyers and Ravager spacecrafts hovered in midair as their pilots awaited their commands.

Finally tearing her eyes away from the inspiring assembly, (Y/N) looked out at the vast space between both armies to see Steve. The super-soldier stood alone, his Captain America uniform stained with blood and ash and his vibranium shield broken but still strapped to his arm, and the sight of her sweaty and blood-soaked husband brought tears to her eyes; Steve, understanding the overwhelming odds stacked against him, had selflessly and defiantly prepared to stand against Thanos and his entire army alone, knowingly sacrificing himself to try and keep the Mad Titan away from the Infinity Stones as long as he possibly could. When Steve’s reddened gaze finally found hers amongst the growing army, (Y/N) recognized the same fire in his eyes that she’d seen in his old photograph at the Smithsonian so long ago, and it was in that moment that she could feel herself falling in love with the super-soldier all over again.

In three long strides, Steve was standing before her, his ash-coated face was filled with apprehension and a hint of longing as his azure eyes searched hers. “Is Carina okay? Is she safe?”

“Carina’s fine, sweetheart, and she’s perfectly safe with Queen Ramonda,” (Y/N) quickly reassured him and smiled as he breathed a sigh of relief. “Now, let’s go get this son of a bitch and save the world again so we can finally be a family.”

The corner of Steve’s lips slowly curved up into a small smile. “Yes, ma’am.” They both turned to face Thanos and his imposing army, standing side-by-side as their friends, teammates and allies all lined up on either side of them and readied their weapons for battle. (Y/N)’s grip on the electrified batons tightened in anticipation and she spared a brief glance down at the red hourglass-shaped buckle fastened onto her belt; the sight of Natasha’s signature accessory calmed her nerves and imbued her with the strength she needed to stare head-on at the deadly horde across the crater. “Avengers!” Steve thrust his arm out and (Y/N)’s eyes widened in awe when Mjolnir flew straight into his open hand, and she made a mental note to ask him about the magical Asgardian weapon later as he commanded through gritted teeth, “Assemble.”

Thor’s bellowing battle cry was echoed by their vast army and they all charged forward as one, Steve leading the ground forces while Tony took to the sky and led their legion of flyers. Thanos leveled his double-edged sword in their direction and watched with cold indifference as his army charged past him, looking almost bored at the striking show of defiance before him, but his mild reaction only spurred them on. Both armies met at the center of the wide crater and clashed with a cacophony of sounds and with that, the Battle of Earth began.

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

Thanks to Doctor Strange, Wong and the fifteen minutes they’d spent frantically gathering forces from across the entire galaxy, Thanos’ army was fairly evenly matched by theirs; however, it quickly became apparent to both armies which one of them was the most impassioned. The Avengers, Wakandans, Asgardians, Guardians, Ravagers and the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj all fought with a fiery passion that was wholly unmatched by the determination of the Black Order and the forces they commanded. A super-sized Scott punched a Leviathan to the ground and swatted aside a Chitauri cruiser while Peter swung from his arm and webbed the gun of a hover tank. The trio of T’Challa, Shuri and Okoye fought a troop of Outriders and nearby, Brunnhilde flew down on her winged horse and slashed at a roaring Chitauri Gorilla while M’Baku impaled it with his spear. Bruce, who’s right arm was badly burned from the newly-created Infinity Gauntlet and hanging limp at his side, snatched an attacking cruiser out of the sky and threw its commander across the battlefield, and both Korg and one of the more enthusiastic Guardians took on Cull Obsidian together. Overhead, Tony and Pepper fired their repulsors at Sakaarian ships and directly below the husband and wife, (Y/N) and Steve fought alongside one another; it was a deadly dance – with (Y/N) jamming her electrified batons into attackers and kicking them away and Steve slamming Mjolnir into his opponents and summoning bolts of vivid-blue lightening from the sky – but it was one that the husband and wife performed seamlessly together.

“You know, your new look is really kind of doing it for me!” (Y/N) spared Steve an appreciative glance as she blocked a Chitauri soldier’s strike and finished it off by ramming a baton into its neck.

Steve chuckled, throwing the hammer at another Chitauri soldier and upper-cutting a Sakaarian with his broken shield. “Not too shabby for a kid from Brooklyn, huh?” He thrust his open hand out and his helmeted head cocked to the side in confusion when Stormbreaker flew into his hand instead.

“No, no, give me that!” Thor called out from across the small clearing and they both looked over to see the Asgardian waving Mjolnir above his head. “You get the little one!”

Both men exchanged weapons and as Thor flew off towards the nearest hover tank, (Y/N) flexed her extended wrist and watched a charging Outrider drop to the ground, entirely encased in red electricity emanating from the Widow Bite fused to its neck. “Hey, (Y/L/N), how much for the fancy bracelets?”

(Y/N) rolled her eyes and continued to fight without glancing over at the nearby raccoon. “They’re not for sale, Rocket.”

“What about the batons?”

Kneeling atop a sizable chunk of concrete, Bucky fired his gun and managed to spare (Y/N) a brief smile in between shots. “You’ve got some weird friends, doll.”

“Not exactly the adjective I’d use, Mr. Stares-A-Lot,” Sam interjected as he flew overhead. “I was thinking something like handsome, funny, or devilishly charming. Or hell, why not all three?”

“…Yeah, I stand by my original statement, Pigeon-Wings.”

Steve shook his head in mild exasperation and summoned a bolt of lightning to destroy a diving cruiser. “Your best friend and my best friend really need to learn how to get along.”

The two of them continued to fight alongside one another, careful not to accidentally become separated as they battled Sakaarian troops, Chitauri soldiers and snarling Outriders. (Y/N) was busy firing a deadly Widow Bite at a charging Outrider and Steve was disarming a Chitauri soldier when Clint’s panicked voice rang through their comm links. “Cap! What do you want me to do with this damn thing?”

(Y/N) kicked a defeated Sakaarian away and frantically scanned the chaotic battlefield around her, eyes widening when she finally spotted the archer sprinting through the pandemonium with the Infinity Gauntlet clutched tight in his arm. “Oh shit.”

“Get those stones as far away as possible!” Steve shouted into his comm, holding an Outrider at bay with his broken shield and summoning Mjolnir to finish it off before tossing its carcass aside.

“No!” Bruce batted the Outrider’s corpse away with his good arm and vehemently shook his head. “We need to get them back where they came from!”

Tony’s voice suddenly crackled through their comms as he blew up a hover tank nearby. “No way to get them back; Thanos destroyed the Quantum Tunnel.”

“Hold on!” In the distance, Scott shrank down and vanished from view before continuing. “That wasn’t our only time machine.”

The familiar notes of ‘La Cucaracha’ suddenly played throughout the battlefield and after exchanging matching looks of surprise, (Y/N) and Steve scaled a mound of debris to look out at the sprawling, wreckage-filled crater spread out before them. “Anyone see an ugly brown van out there?”

“Yes!” Brunnhilde’s voice replied through their comms. “But you’re not gonna like where it’s parked!”

Steve cursed under his breath and pointed with Mjolnir towards the far end of the crater; Scott’s van and their original Quantum Tunnel was located well behind enemy lines, completely surrounded by transport ships and hordes of Outriders, and the darkened sky above was populated by Chitauri-manned cruisers and Sakaarian gunships. (Y/N) frowned and her brow knit in worry as she considered their new mission; keeping the stones away from Thanos long enough for Scott to prepare the Quantum Tunnel and return them to their original timelines wouldn’t be easy, even with their impassioned forces to assist them, but certainly not impossible. All we have to do is hold onto our hope, (Y/N) thought with silent determination as she recalled the advice Natasha had given her in her final message.

“Scott, how long you need to get that thing working?”

“Um, maybe ten minutes.”

Steve’s jaw tightened with anticipation as he ordered, “Get it started, we’ll get the stones to you.”

“We’re on it, Cap.”

Recognizing Hope Van Dyne’s voice from S.H.I.E.L.D.’s old video logs from Pym Technologies, (Y/N) smiled thinly and secured her batons together before bringing a hand up to her comm link. “Good luck, you guys.”

Steve moved to stand in front of her, his expression filled with firm resolve as he leaned down to meet her gaze. “Clint’s never gonna get that gauntlet to the Quantum Tunnel by himself, and Scott and Hope can’t prep the van and clear the area at the same time.”

“Then I’ll go help Clint while you work on clearing the area.” Although wary of splitting up, (Y/N) knew that between the two of them, Steve was better equipped to take on the swarm surrounding the broken-down van while she could be of more use getting the gauntlet to Scott and Hope. Judging by the look in his azure eyes, Steve knew it too and after a wordless nod, he ducked down and captured her lips in a brief but bruising kiss that she was quick to return. “Stay safe, sweetheart,” (Y/N) breathlessly pleaded when they separated. “Whatever it takes.”

“You too, sunshine. Whatever it takes.” Her husband pressed another firm kiss onto her lips and took a reassuring breath before turning and sprinting off into the fray.

Taking a reassuring breath of her own, (Y/N) wrenched her connected batons apart and took off in the direction she’d last seen the archer, doing her best to ignore the foreboding feeling slowly taking shape in the pit of her stomach as she ran.

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

Xhosa Translations: Sithandwa sam-My darling Bast ukukhusela wena-May Bast protect you Yibambe!-Hold fast!

A/N: Stay tuned for next chapter’s thrilling conclusion to the Battle of Earth, and bring lots of tissues! Thank you all so much for reading and commenting! I’ve created a Spotify playlist inspired by this series, and I’ll be updating it every time I upload a new chapter. Enjoy!

Spotify Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5L6MERx3PIydW3FyNPqYvl?si=ad6c46de8e954c11

Chapter Nine-Part II

“Endgame” Masterlist

Tagging: @mrs-obrien @lahoete @awkward117 @cminr @natdrunk @momc95 @savedbystyle @miraculouscloud @awkwardnesshabitat @marinettepotterandplagg�� @mangosandmimosas @supersouthy @benakenalove @brooke0297 @hufflepeople @becausewelie @outoftheregular @junipermurdock @ladydmalfoy @mads-weasley @username23345 @crist1216 @capswife @lilmschild @avngrsinitiative @crowleysqueenofhell @y-napotat @mary1raven @groovy-lady @ljej95 @innersublimefury @prettysbliss

30 notes · View notes

wtfevenismypage · 5 years ago

Text

Curiosity Killed The Cat

request: request. i’m not sure if you’re comfortable with writing it but it’s worth a try the team is always teasing spencer saying “he’s definitely a virgin” and he’s like “wtf no i’m not” one day they’re like ok well then y/n can see for herself, y/n is like “😳i didn’t sign up for this” and long story short they come back to the bau and the team is like “ ok soooo?” and y/n is like zoning out mumbling “you were wrong”

Warnings: SMUT (Penetration, oral (female recieving), spanking, over-stimulation, choking, degrading kink)

A/N: YO SHIT’S ABOUT TO GO DOWN, I am going to start publishing fics again, but updates will be very very slow. They’ll increase eventually, but for now, they are slow. Love you all!

The night began at work. A late night with the team at the office, stacks of files mounted on all of your desks and you’re all gathered around to keep each other awake.

“Ugh. This is too much work. Seriously. Can’t killers ever take a break?”

You whine, spinning in the swivel chair and holding a file in the air. Morgan chuckles, staring at his own file before speaking.

“I need a drink after this.”

“You and me both Morgs.”

“I told you to stop calling me that Girly.”

You chuckle, stopping your spinning and standing up to stretch. It feels nearly impossible to stay awake. Not necessarily because you’re tired, but you’ve been staring at similar files all day and it’s getting boring and tiring.

“I’ll do refills on coffee. Gimme your mugs.”

You say, letting them pile different sizes of cups and mugs in your arms. You saunter over to the coffee machine and set them on the counter.

You set the pot for a lot of coffee and quickly dash to Hotch’s office, where him and Rossi are.

“Yo, I’m making coffee, y’all need refills?”

They shake their heads and you shrug, returning to the coffee machine and pouring the coffee in the mugs before adding cream and sugar.

“How much sugar tonight Reid?”

You ask, turning to the tall doctor with a smirk. Luckily, you and your team are the only people left in the bullpen so you can be as loud as you want.

“A lot.”

You snort, grabbing the box of sugar and piling it in, almost emptying it before putting it on the shelf and making a few trips to distribute the coffee.

“Here you are Spencer, sugar with some coffee on the side.”

You chuckle, sitting in your chair again and picking a new file up, only to find that this was the last file.

“Oh. Anyone else wanna give me files? I’m on my last one.”

Morgan and Emily immediately run up to you with files, dropping them on your desk and thanking you. It made you laugh, watching smiles grown on their faces.

“Okay team. We’re almost finished. Just a little bit more now.”

(SEXUAL THEMES BEYOND THIS POINT)

A few hours later you, Spencer, Rossi, and Hotch are finished with your stacks, waiting for the other three with Penelope, discussing bars to go to.

“Oooo there’s a new one downtown, we should go there.”

“Can you guys hold back your alcohol talk until tonight please? I just wanna get out of here fast and maybe get lucky tonight.”

Emily pleads, making you and the other women go “oooo” while the men groan.

“Oh boy you are right Em. I haven’t gotten laid in so long. Too long.”

You say, leaning back in your chair and looking at a flabbergasted Penelope.

“How long?”

She asks, staring at you in disbelief. You were a very beautiful woman (Don’t you fucking dare say otherwise) so people often assumed you had sex often. You weren’t private about it either. So what if people judged you? Sex is natural and anyone who says otherwise is selling something.

“Since my first time in middle school. I had a delusion that sex was gonna be this amazing thing and then it was actually terrible. I gave up all hope and never slept with anyone ever again. So you know, it is what it is.”

Everyone looked at you in shock, confused as to how you went your whole life without sex.

“Wait really?”

Morgan questions, his attention dropping from the files to you in an instant. Spencer simply stared at you in disbelief, his expression suddenly making you nervous.

“Y-yeah. I haven't had sex since middle school. It isn’t a big deal.”

You defend, but Penelope wraps an arm around you, pulling you close.

“Oh honey I’m definitely finding you someone to take home.”

“Hey, at least you had your first time, unlike pretty boy over here.”

Morgan teases, messing with Spencer’s hair. Spencer was often teased for being a virgin, but none of you knew what to believe. He said he wasn’t, but refused to tell even Morgan about any of his times.

“How many times do I have to tell you guys, I’m not a virgin!”

“Then tell us about one time.”

Morgan says, a wide smirk on his face at the disheveled state of the genius doctor. Poor Reid just wanted to be left alone but Morgan will not let this go.

“Morgan. Not all of us are public about our sex lives like you bud. Sometimes I wish you were as secretive as Reid. None of us want to hear about how you “got it on”.”

Morgan grimaces, and Spencer looks to you thankfully.

“C’mon Y/N, you aren’t even a little curious?”

Emily asks from her desk, finally finishing up the last file with JJ. You shrug, playing with your hair briefly.

“Of course I’m super curious, but, unlike you lust goblins, I stand with Hotch and Rossi and don’t want to make him uncomfortable.”

Various groans come from the team as you fist-bump Hotch and Rossi, laughing at their defeat.

When Morgan finally finishes, you all head to the new bar downtown, smiling at the flashing lights of the dance floor and immediately going to a small table with the rest of the team.

“Oh hells yes! This place is already fun!”

Penelope squeals, waving a worker over to get food. Morgan sits next to you, Emily on your other side and Spencer is next to Morgan and Hotch.

“Alright my baby’s we are partying until Y/N gets lucky!”

You chuckle at Penelope’s words, raising a glass of water to your lips and taking a big swig of it before looking around. The people in there were definitely attractive, but your mind never swayed from a certain genius.

You meant it when you said you were curious, your mind had always wandered to certain images when you went to sleep, constantly imagining what he would be like.

You’re mind was so easily destroyed by him. All of your thoughts contorted by him. To the point where you can’t imagine sleeping with any of these other people, but you’re scared to ruin your friendship with him by trying to sleep with him.

“Ah guys. I’m fine. I don’t want to sleep with someone I don’t know.”

Morgan groans, nudging your side and making you laugh.

A few hours later, Spencer has abandoned ship and went to the bathroom, leaving you alone with the rest of the team as you eat some wings.

“Oh my god I know how to figure out if Reid’s a virgin or not!”

Penelope shouts, you look at her excited face, just smirking as she squeals.

“And what is your plan?”

“One of us hooks up with him!”

You all choke on your food and drinks, staring at her in shock.

“I’m sorry what? Did you just say-”

“Actually that’s not a bad idea.”

Hotch cuts you off. You turn to his smirking face in shock. Never in a million years would you have thought that Aaron Hotchner thought one of you sleeping with Reid is a good idea.

“Hotch! Wouldn’t that like, mess with work or something?”

He shrugs, turning to you and smirking.

“What can I say? I’m curious too.”

You sigh, chuckling a bit and shaking your head.

“I say Y/N does it.”

“What?”

“Yeah! Y/N is single and hasn’t gotten laid in a while, it’s perfect!”

“Guys no I-”

“Oh my god you’re right! Plus there’s plenty of sexual tension between the two of them.”

You sigh, knowing they won’t let up until this happens. When the team wants something, they make it happen.

“Okay guys, I didn’t sign up for this, I’m not your test dummy.”

You say, putting your wings down on the plate in front of you and looking around at them all.

“Please girly? Pretty please?”

Morgan begs, clutching your hand tightly and shaking it up and down like a child who wants a toy.

“Y/N, I will make sure you get a raise in your paycheck.”

You stop and think about it for a second.

It could ruin your relationship with him forever, then again, he’s the type to forgive and forget when it comes to his friends.

And if it did work out, then things could be awkward between the two of you for a long time, or worse, he’d regret it. And like all the things he regrets, he’d ignore you until you disappeared.

And the worst you can think of, you take his virginity. Not someone he loves, not his girlfriend or wife, you. His bestfriend and co-worker.

But still, just that small percentage that everything might go completely right and you might even get a second time with him makes it feels like it might be worth it.

“Okay fine. But I don’t want a raise. If I’m doing this it’s because I want to.”

They all cheer and you just smile, taking a swig of beer before motioning for Morgan to switch seats with you so that when Spencer comes back he’ll be next to you.

Within a few minutes Spencer returns and you feel a heat travel up your neck as you look at him. He turned to you and smiled, sending shivers up your spine as you smiled back.

“Why’d you switch places?”

He asks, you turn to Morgan for help, pleading him to come up with a fake story.

“Emily kept poking her so she told me to switch.”

He says, you practically glare daggers at him, but you go with it, turning back to Spencer and nodding with a smile.

“Yep, so now, you are stuck with me.”

You joke, trying to ease the dusty pink on your cheeks, and nudge him gently in the arm.

In a few minutes you muster up the courage to let your hand travel off of the counter and onto Spencer’s thigh, feeling your entire face go crimson at the feeling of the hard muscle.

He choked on his water briefly before looking at you, his eyebrows furrowing at the sight of your red face. You were trying to hide any emotion you felt out of embarrassment.

He didn’t say anything though, you’re hand felt warm against the cool breeze of the bar, and he wasn’t opposed to your touch whatsoever.

Everyone continued talking and laughing as your hand inched upwards, and you could feel his body tense up every once in a while, and every time he did, you paused, giving him a moment to push your hand away or tell you to stop, but he didn’t. Not even when you began massaging and squeezing the muscle in your hands.

In fact, he at some point grabbed your hand and positioned it right above his own cock. You weren’t touching it yet, just hovering in slight fear.

He wants this.

You thought before slowly lowering your hand, your eyes widening at the feeling of his semi hard and fairly large cock. What the hell were you getting yourself into?

You glance at him quickly, only to find him staring straight back at you with lust lidded eyes. They were intimidating, almost scary. Usually you would have hated to be on the receiving end of this glare, but in this context, it made you feel like a match had been lit inside of you and you were just left there with a lit match inside of you.

The moment you squeezed your hands just slightly, he abruptly stood up, your hand falling from his crotch. Everyone looks at him in shock as he yanks you up.

“I need to talk to you.”

Is all he says before dragging you away. You only had a split second to turn and see the teams faces, but they were all pretty much the same.

A shit eating smile with wiggling eyebrows.

From the moment you were yanked into the private room with Spencer, you were super nervous. It had been years, you were inexperienced. What if he didn’t like it? What if he left because you were bad at it?

He seemed to notice your panicked state and sat you down on the bed, crouching in front of you and taking your hands in his.

“Hey, we don’t have to do this. As much as I would love to prove to you that I really am not a virgin, I don’t want you to be uncomfortable. But if you say yes, I will pillage your body to the point that you can’t walk next week.”

Well shit, now you were fully convinced and super turned on. You had thought he was vanilla, or maybe even a bottom, but oh wow you were so wrong.

“Do it.”

Those were the only two words needed for Spencer Reid to pounce, and your plane of vision was knocked over, now laying on your back as he traps you under his body.

His lips are everywhere. They’re on yours at first, but they travel to your jaw, your neck, and his lengthy fingers work at the buttons on your dress shirt rapidly.

“Shit Spencer...”

You whine out as he works his hands across your body. They feel like fire against your skin. His lips are wet and messy, kissing and marking your neck for the world to see.

You grip his shirt, tugging at it and opening your mouth to speak, but a moan slips out instead. You shut your eyes in embarrassment as you feel his lips curl upwards on your collarbone, the suckling feeling feeling so warm and tingly.

“What is it baby? You want me to take my shirt off? huh?”

You nod eagerly, chest rising and falling quickly as he raises his body off of yours, and you open your heavy eyes to see him strip off his shirt. He isn’t muscly, but he’s perfect, he looks perfect.

“What do you want baby?”

You stumble over your words, your mind already fuzzy somehow by just his lips.

“You. I want you. Please Spencer I want you.”

You beg, your hands travelling up his torso and feeling his soft skin. He leans down again, towering over you and smashing his lips on your while his hands work on getting your pants off.

His lips were safe, careful. Not aggressive, and his tongue that tasted the inside of your mouth was warm and loving, savoring your taste as you whined into his.

He was smiling so widely against your skin, his pride booming at the way you reacted to his touch. He never once thought he could get you to react like this.

“You just wanted to see if I was a virgin huh? You curious?”

You nod and shake your head, confused on why you were doing this as well. You wanted this so much it almost hurt, you’ve wanted this since day one. You were also really curious as well though.

“You know what they say.”

He leans into your ear, kissing your neck and biting your ear.

“Curiosity killed the cat.”

You felt his fingers rub at your clothed pussy, your black cloth panties preventing him from fucking you with his fingers. His fingers rub against your clit, the cotton creating friction on it as well.

“Please Spencer! Please please please!”

You beg, feeling his breath land on your cold skin in a way that felt so raw and rigid. He tugs at your panties, freeing your cunt as a finger rubs against your clit, the bundle of nerves jolting you up.

A loud moan escapes your lips as he continues circling your clit with his long fingers, His lips kissing your open ones.

Two fingers probe into you, scissoring themselves inside of you. You groan into his mouth as they curl upwards into your wet cunt.

“Shit!”

He moves his head between your thighs, licking a wet stripe up your clit, flicking it around as you moan at the sensitive feeling. It feels like electricity lighting up the sensitive nub.

A pressure builds between your legs, a spring coiling in your stomach as he suckles on your clit, fucking you fast with his fingers.

“Spencer! I’m gonna- I’m gonna cum!”

“Do it.”

It hits you like a fiery clap of thunder, the feeling so extreme and hot it almost makes you scream and you can only hope no one heard you over the music outside.

Your breathing is labored as your high dies down, but Spencer doesn’t let up, he flips you over onto your stomach, dragging you to your knees by your hips.

“Wha-”

You get cut off by your own moan of pain, the tip of his cock slowly being pressed into your tight and wet cunt.

“It’ll get better baby, I’ll go slow, I promise. Just tell me when you want me to go, and when you want me to stop. Okay?”

You nod against the pillow under your face, tears slipping out of the corners of your eyes. A hand lands on your ass, making you yelp at the rough feeling.

“Words baby.”

You moan, palming the sheets with your fists as he pulls out completely, leaving you to feel empty.

“Okay! Please Spencer! Please I need you!”

You could practically feel his pride rolling off of him as he pushes into your sex slowly, filling you up fully.

It’s a stinging feeling, as if you were being torn apart. But he waits, he let’s you adjust to his girthy size before moving. He really was gentle. You hadn’t expected him to be rough exactly, but he was shockingly gentle and patient.

Eventually, you got used to the feeling, it felt so satisfying as well. The feeling of being so full and warm was so pleasuring, it sent little jolts of pleasure up your spine and out your mouth, making Spencer smirk.

“You’re so tight for me. You so curious you let me fuck you huh? So eager?”

You nod, burying your face into the pillows. You want him to move, to fuck you until you break, but words won’t come out, so you move your hips forwards, letting part of him slip out of you before moving him back into your dripping cunt.

A loud groan escapes both of your lips at the feeling, his hand lands on your ass again, reddening it before taking the hint and thrusting into you carefully.

“Oh... Holy crap!”

You moan out as he continues to clench your hips, surely leaving bruises tomorrow. His thrusts remained slow and deep, but it felt just right. He let his hands wander, travelling up and down your body.

His fingers find your bra, unclipping it and letting it fall off. Your breasts move to the rhythm of his thrusts.

“Faster... Please Spencer faster!”

“What’s that my little slut? You want more? You gonna be a greedy little slut?”

You could feel your cheeks become a dark crimson color, slightly embarrassed at the degrading language he was using, but you nod nonetheless, wanting him to pound into you shamelessly.

“Very well. What a dirty slut wants, she gets.”

His pace quickens suddenly, each thrust into you sharp and hitting into you just right. Loud moans escape both yours and Spencer’s lips, the room becoming sweaty and sticky quickly.

“This want you want you whore? You just want to be fucked like a cheap whore?”

Pointless babbles fall out of your mouth, quiet “Yes” and “I’m your cheap whore” being mumbled as he pounded into from behind.

A gasp escapes your lips as he lands another smack to your ass, leaving a burning sensation that felt so damn pleasurable after the initial sting.

A familiar pressure builds up between your thighs again, Your legs trembling under the Thunderous feeling of your orgasm washing over your entire body.

You had thought that two orgasms would have been enough for him, but he doesn’t let up, even flipping you back over and thrusting into you harder.

“S-Spencer!”

You gasp and squirm as his fingers find your sensitive and swollen clit, pinching and rubbing it with his thumb and index finger. It felt like a wave of nerves jolting every bone, your back arching off of the cushion underneath you.

He continues pounding into you mercilessly, admiring the way your tits bounce at his pace, the way you so desperately panted for mercy, but your body betrayed you.

If you really wanted him to get off of you, you would have made it much more clear, you would have been pushing him off more, but you were more just clutching him closer than anything, wriggling your body around.

You couldn’t form any words at this point, chasing after your third orgasm endlessly. You manage to spot the hand that isn’t abusing your clit snake its way up your body, playing and pinching your nipples briefly before wrapping itself around your neck.

Soft squeezes are delivered to your throat, making you whimper and whine, your own hands reaching his wrist for support, feeling up the vein-y muscles.

“Spencer! Spencer I’m gonna... I’m gonna cum!”

You whimper out, his hand tightens around your throat and his fingers rub your clit faster and harder, abusing the already raw nerves.

Everything felt so overwhelming. Your body was shaking aggressively each time he rubbed your swollen nub, and the feeling of him pounding into your wet cunt repeatedly slamming your sweet spot mercilessly and choking you out at the same time was so raw and powerful.

It felt unlike anything you’ve ever felt before. And with a broken moan, you came all over his cock, clenching around him and pushing him over the edge as well.

He came right inside of you, riding out his high while slowing the rubs delivered to your clit. Your insides were twitching like crazy around his sensitive cock, making him groan while watching your entire body shake.

Soon after you both came, he pulled out, letting his cum drip out of you and onto the bed, pulling your body to sit up.

“Well, did I pass your test?”

You lazily nod at his question. You panted heavily, trying to chase after your breath.

“Holy shit Spencer... That was... Wow.”

He chuckled, grabbing your clothes off of the floor and placing them next to you.

“Need help cleaning up?”

You shook your head, meeting his starstruck eyes for the first time since he choked you. They were so bright, so in awe.

“Alright, well I’m gonna head home so I don’t have to face the others. See you at work?”

“See ya.”

Twenty minutes later, Spencer had gone home and you had finished getting all of his cum out of you, and now you were fully dressed, making your way back to the others in a shell shocked state of mind.

Everyone else was trying their hardest not to laugh at the sight of your shaky legs when you stumbled into your chair, red hickies all over your neck. You sat with a blank stare in your eyes, chugging your water.

“So?”

Morgan asked, knowing the answer already but just wanting to hear it anyways.

“You were wrong.”

You managed to mumble out. Everyone broke out laughing, even Hotch and Rossi.

You continued to eat your wings, The memory of what just happened stuck on replay in your brain.

PERMANENT TAGLIST(OPEN) @pinkdiamond1016 @spencer-reids-snow-white @sheepfather @eusuntgroot @libradolan

9K notes · View notes