#I need to touch grass on occasion probably uh
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thatoneluckybee · 8 months ago
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Do you have any webcomic recs?
I am really showing the Webtoon dealer huh
A lot of recommendations depend on what one likes personally. I notice I gravitate towards those with darker themes (like current short Nevermore hyperfixation) like horror and thriller genres, or even more lighthearted stuff with serious themes like Castle Swimmer. (Like... I have read too many zombie apocalypse things it has a good balance usually!) So good recommendations for me take into account what someone likes personally. But I can recommend some general ones!
I mostly use Webtoon but one story I enjoy a lot that isn't on Webtoon is the Backmaker by @catnippackets. You can find it on their pinned post! It's still early on in the story but the description is this on the website:
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I'm mostly on Webtoon (easy to use on mobile which I'm almost always on) and have read a lot there. I don't want to spend 80 years with descriptions so some I read that I think are good or just like are
Nevermore (as of like. Yesterday or so.)
Castle Swimmer
Morgana and Oz
School Bus Graveyard
Deathsitter
Suitor Armor
Homesick
The End of Ma'at
The Four of Them
Space Boy
Silent Screams
Not So Shoujo Love Story
Realta
1HP Club
Nomads
Surviving Romance
Funtime Phobia (and any of Strawberry Circus' stories! They're a wonderful group)
ShootAround 
High Spirits Neoma
Dead But Not Gone
Cursed Princess Club
UnOrdinary (the entire Joker arc INFURIATES me but the last 100 or so chapters have been really good! Just went through a rough patch but it's good now imo)
Marionetta
Sable Curse
I'm on this website too often. Probably a lot more I'm forgetting but these are generally the ones I look over when thinking of propaganda to make for mutuals. Hi.
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sednas · 2 years ago
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─ TAKE YOU LIKE A DRUG I TASTE YOU ON MY TONGUE.
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FT. toji fushiguro x fem!reader featuring my daddy issues
TW. dd/lg, half mean half gentle!toji, sub!reader, daddy issues, thigh riding, oral (m receiving), slight dumbification, praise and degradation, public s!x (at first), creampie, p!ssy slapping (once), 2k+ words
♡♡♡. sorry for the potential typos/ugly sentences, it's been a long day but i really wanted to post this
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you met toji during the first semester of college, when your parents moved out to get closer to the place where you were studying.
it all started out innocent. quick glances, lingering hands on the skin, a few smirks and playful winks, smalltalk about college and work...
he was tall, dark hair, deep green eyes, a scar on the corner of his lips, big hands, broad shoulders, strong thighs...
every time you'd come back home for the weekends you expected him to finally have settled down with one of the numerous women in the neighborhood, all salivating over him.
but he stayed single, and you could fantasize about him without the annoying thought of his pretty wife sucking him off. as years went by, your crush on him got pretty obvious, you became more confident, trying to give him the hint that he could do whatever he wanted with you. but toji was blind to your signs, or at least that's what he was pretending to be.
his ignorance toward you left a bittersweet taste on your tongue, putting you as nothing more than the plain daughter of his neighbor, and you felt like fifteen again, ignored by the boy you liked.
which brings us to tonight, a few days after your graduation. you came back to your parent's place and you can't seem to sleep, sitting on the grass, you look up at the stars and think of all the things that are awaiting for you now that you're done with college. it's scary and exciting at the same time. you'll be leaving the city for your dream job soon, and there's only one regret that comes to your mind.
“beautiful night uh?” you hear a deep voice coming from the darkness of the night. speaking of the devil... it's toji, he just sat down on a chair a few meters away from you in the neighborhood's common garden, he has a drink in his hand, you can't tell what's in it but it's probably alcohol.
“I've heard that you graduated. I always knew you were a smart girl, your parents must be proud of you.” he says, his green eyes lazily resting on you.
you shrugged your shoulders, still sitting on the grass.
“my dad barely said that he was proud of me...” you laugh bitterly. why are you even talking about this? he doesn't care, he just wants to make a quick small talk.
a few seconds of silence go by... you see toji moving, patting the seat next to him. it's... unexpected, but you can't let go of such an occasion to be closer to him, and without a word you go sit down. he extends his legs with a sigh. your eyes linger on him in a not so subtle manner. he's wearing a black tank top with gray baggy sweatpants.
“your dad's just not great with words, I'm sure he's very proud of you.”
you don't say anything, not trusting your voice right now, feeling like a lost little girl even though you're past twenties. he must surely pity you by now, and you hate it.
“do you need to hear it?”
“what do you mean?” you ask, arching an eyebrow, and you see him shift on his seat until he's facing you, your knees touching.
“alright... gimme your hands.” he says, and even though it's an order his voice is soft and reassuring. you obey, putting your hands in his. the skin of his hands is calloused, you can tell he's been working with them all of his life.
you can feel your heart beating faster and harder inside your chest, unsure of what you're going to do once he will speak. you're so close to him, of course you already had conversations with him, but this one feels too intimate, both of you alone in the darkness of the night... anything could happen.
“I'm very proud of you. you told me before that you were anxious about the future but I'm sure it will all turn out to be okay. you've got that light in your eyes, I'm not quite sure how to describe it but it's bright and I know you'll make a good use of it.” he finally says and for a few seconds you both drown in a silence where you can only hear the sound of crickets.
within a second, your lips crash into his as he lets out a surprised moan which comes out muffled, feeling your soft hands running down on his forearms, sending shivers down his spine.
“what the fuck are you doing?” he finally asks, pulling away from you. your heart stops for a second, hearing him raise his voice at you, but he unexpectedly pulls you in for another kiss, his hand snaking up behind your neck and this time you're the one moaning against his mouth.
“been wanting you for so damn long.” he mumbles as he deepens the kiss, his tongue slipping between your lips and making you feel empty brained. you clutch on his chest, heart fluttering to his words.
“re-really? I thought you didn't like me...” you can't believe what you're hearing, your body trembles slightly as toji kisses your neck and nods his head.
“how could I not like such a sweet girl like you.” he purred in a low, baritone voice, his hands slowly sliding down your waist to guide you on his lap, letting you feel how hard he is against you.
you let out a gasp when you feel him start to rock your hips on his thigh, his green eyes piercing through yours. “you think I didn't notice the way you were looking at me for all those years. how your outfits got sluttier just to have a crumble of my attention uh? just imagine how many times I've fucked myself imagining you taking my cock like the good girl I know you fucking are.”
you moan, feeling pure bliss at this revelation as his big hands keep forcing you to hump his thigh. you can feel your pussy getting dragged all the way up and down his clothed hard cock, giving you a hint of how big it is. both of you moan when your pussy lips engulf his tip through your shorts and soon enough a wet spot starts to form on his sweatpants.
“fucking hell Y/N, look at you... I don't know how I resisted fucking you for so long when your body is that perfect to play with. fuck!- but I'm done holding back, I'm gonna fucking ruin you.” he grunts, his voice still low and dominant, his fingers digging into your plump skin.
the fact that you're in the neighborhood's common garden is already long forgotten, you don't care about the whole city seeing you in this position, you've wanted this for too long. your pussy is throbbing, the soft material of his pants rubbing deliciously against your hardened clitoris, your tongue almost comes out of your mouth while toji watches your dumb expression with delight.
“gonna cum... I'm... I'm...” your whiney voice echoes through the silent night and toji bounces and flexes his thigh on purpose, taking you over the edge as he whispers praises against your ear. you come in a muffled cry, biting toji's shoulder to silence your cute moans.
toji gives you a few minutes to rest, caressing your hair and giving your thighs reassuring strokes every time he feels your body twitch on top of him. in a gentle gesture, he takes your chin in his hand to look at your face.
“let's go to my room yeah? I want to give you more.” you can only nod your head as you both leave the garden and head over to his house. the whole place is plunged in darkness and you follow him closely not to trip over anything, your arm wrapped around his own in a clingy way while he guides you to his bed.
he gets on top of you, removing your shorts and your top in a fast motion, so smoothly that you barely notice that you're now half naked under him. you suddenly feel shy under his warm gaze which devours your body and you turn your head to avoid his eyes.
“don't turn all shy now sweetheart, your body is a work of art.” he murmurs, his hot breath tickling your skin before kissing your neck. his hands travel up to your chest, playing with your tits and gently pinching your nipples.
“ahh~ please, daddy...” you whine without thinking, and toji suddenly stops what he's doing, lifting his head to look into your eyes. his pupils are dilated, his gaze darkened by lust and need. you can feel him squeeze your skin a little bit harder than before, and you whine again.
“is it true? am I your daddy?” he teases, bringing his hand close to your inner thighs, caressing them with the tip of his digits. his cock never ached to be inside someone like this, he can feel it twitch and throb inside his pants, begging to know how your little pussy feels like.
“yes, yes you are, please daddy, I need you... want you to feel good too...” you beg, your hands clutching on his chest once again, trying to remove his clothes but it's no easy task in your position and with how your body is trembling.
toji wears a boyish smirk at your words, thinking about how cute you look and sound right now. he brings his face close to yours, his lips only a few inches away from your open mouth. “yeah? do you want to make daddy feel good?” and he smiles when you nod eagerly. he stands up, gently dragging you toward the edge of the bed, letting your head suspended in the air.
“alright, you know what's coming next, don't you baby?” as an answer, you open your mouth, presenting your tongue and waiting for him. he huffs with amusement at your hunger, finally freeing his cock and sighing of relief. he taps the tip against your tongue, smearing your saliva all over it. before you can whine with impatience he pushes it right in, sliding his entire length down your throat in one smooth motion of his hips.
“god... I wonder if your pussy is as tight as your throat...” toji groans, biting his bottom lip to prevent any slutty moans to come out of him. your greedy tongue swirls around his leaking tip, and you moan whenever you feel a vein drags along the curves of your lips.
you feel light headed, with your head hanging in the air, half naked in the bed of the man you like, his balls slapping against your face. he lets out a moan, watching your tits bounce and the buldge that his cock is forming inside your throat, his eyes roll back, one more minute and he's going to cum down your throat.
he makes you choke on his cock one last time before pulling out, the action earning a disappointed whimper from you. “don't whine you baby.” he warns with a smug look on his face, manhandling once more to put you on your back.
“but I...” he hushed you by slapping your clothed cunt and tears immediately start to form in the corner of your eyes and he almost regrets what he just did, seeing your teary expression.
“it's okay baby. just be a good girl and let me do what I want with you, you're gonna like it I promise.” you nod as he massages your pussy, and once you say “yes daddy” he's a goner, tearing your panties apart, he presses his cock against your puffy clit, making you jolt under him.
he lifts your hips and enters you in one second, your wetness immediately coating his cock, making it easier for him to sink deep inside you. “good... good... how do you feel so fucking good...” toji rambles in his low voice, and it makes you spread your legs wider. you don't know when he removed his clothes but he's as naked as you now, you almost whimper at the sight, wrapping your legs around his slutty waist.
“does that feel good baby?... fuck, you look so dumb right now.” he chuckles darkly, his big hand gently slapping your cheek before holding your whole face in it. you try to get your half lidded eyes to focus on his face, with his dark hair adorning his facial features and his eyes shining with lust as his cock keeps reaching deep for that spongy spot inside you. it's too much for you to handle.
you start babbling incoherent words, all interrupted by whines as your head falls on the pillows. his bedsheets smell like him, it almost makes you feel tipsy, drunk on his strong, masculine scent. you want to stay here forever, drowned in him. “daddy, daddy...” you keep repeating, your legs quivering as he towers you, his arms caging your face.
toji smiles, kissing your cheek as his thrusts keep getting faster and faster. “you're such a good girl, taking my cock like the good little whore that you are... ah fuck-!” he curses, feeling your hands clawing at his back. he looks at your face, feeling his cock twitches at the sight.
“I'm... I'm gonna cum again...” you try to speak, your eyes rolling back as his mushroom tip pushes against your cervix, making you arch your back and see stars.
“let it all go for me Y/N, I'm here for you.” just what you needed to hear. you whimper a weak “daddy” one last time as shockwaves of pleasure run through your body, your pussy spasming and throbbing around his cock. your vision goes blank, all you can hear is the voice of toji throwing praises at you against your ear while he tries his best not to lose his mind to the feeling of you gushing all over him.
“good girl... you really do have the best pussy god damn it...” the rest of his sentence is just a gasp, his hands shaking slightly as he can feel himself getting closer and closer to his own release.
“breed me... daddy. please breed me...” you manage to plead through your hazy state and who is he to deny you when you asked so sweetly? with his hands firmly gripping your waist he cums deep inside you, releasing a string of moans that sounds like music to your ears.
you feel so full once he's done, your body still twitching under him as he finally comes down from his high, and the first thing he does is to pepper your face with kisses, sweetly humming when he feels you running your hands through his hair.
“good fucking god... I don't think I've ever been so turned on in my life...” he sighs, laughing a little and falling on his back next to you. he reaches out for your hand, kissing the back of it. it must be a dream, how are you still not waking up?...
“I really meant what I said earlier. I'm proud of you... you took that cock so well...” he laughs in a low voice when you gently hit his chest, his right arm circling around your waist to bring you closer to his body.
“no but for real... I'm proud of you, I'll give you all the love you deserve.”
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jjk masterlist
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kikilefangirl · 4 years ago
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Safety Net
Steve Rogers x Reader
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(Word Count: 1.7k)
It was dark, but you knew movement on your property when you saw it.
Your grip on your gun tightened as you stared into the black abyss in front of you. The sound of footsteps crunching across your grass was off—different pairs of feet hitting the ground at different times. You counted more than three.
The gun wasn’t ideal. It was too much of a spectacle for the occasion. You pulled a knife out of its sheath, and sliced it through the air. You stuffed the gun into the waistband of your shorts, and crouched down. Thankfully, the intruders were too far to hear the slight groan of the floorboards under your bare feet. But they were too close for your liking.
In a strange stroke of fate, one of them moved recklessly, sprinting towards your front porch. You sprung into action, launching at them from the shadows.
You sliced a nice sized gash on the right leg. The pain caused an audible male groan, causing him to falter long enough to take advantage and place a knife to the man’s throat.
He stilled at the cold metal on his carotid.
“Y’all are either stupid, arrogant, or desperate to come here!” You called out. Your voice carried out into the darkness and the footsteps ceased. Your hostage didn’t dare struggle against you for fear of death, but how much his crew cared was unknown.
“Y/N, stand down.”
A red sphere of light formed, and none other than Steve Rogers stepped forward, bathed in its glow. You lowered the knife and your hostage bolted towards his companions.
Your focus never left Steve as you surveyed his group. The light came from the girl beside him, while none other than Bucky Barnes was on his other one.
“I have spare beds and medical supplies for your friends down in the bunker. Second door on the right.” You stated.
One by one you let Steve’s team pass you, with varying looks of venom and curiosity. When it came time to let the man himself inside, he spoke.
“Y/N, I know this—”
You cut him off with a hand in his chest.
“Not tonight, Rogers.”
You turned on your heel and left the large man standing in the doorway.
...
Strangely enough, you slept soundly for the rest of the night.
You woke up just before dawn and began cooking for your guests. If they were worth anything battle wise, Steve’s team would be up soon. You started on breakfast. Grits, sausage, the works. You imagined it had been some time since they had a proper meal. You felt eyes on your back, and chose to ignore them.
“We had nowhere else to go.”
As soon as the words left his mouth, you stiffened and stirred the grits harder. Although your back was to him, you heard the floor groan under his weight. He couldn’t have been much more than a few feet away.
“You gonna look at me?” Steve asked you. His tone was low and deep.
You clicked your tongue and turned the burner down. You still had on your short shorts, tank top, and no bra from the night before. Your headscarf was wrapped around your head, a weapon just in reaching distance. You came around slowly, schooling your features into a blank expression.
“Thank you, for letting us stay.” He said.
When you finally took him in, Steve was as captivating as he was when you saw him the first time. His hair was a shaggy mess on top of his head, though. And he’d grown a beard. His eyes however, were full of the same dutiful gaze you remembered.
“You came here for sanctuary, I’m giving it.”
Don’t ask me for more.
Steve frowned and put his hand on his hips.
“Y/N. What do you want me to say?” He pleaded. You ran your tongue across your front teeth. Before you could respond, the girl from the night before emerged from the bunker.
“I’m Wanda, thank you for your hospitality.” She said. You softened at her somewhat haggard appearance. Her clothes were ripped in places, and her hair wasn’t combed out. You’d come across her file before, but only in passing.
“I just washed some towels and I’ve got fresh clothes in my closet for you, if you want ‘em.” You knew what it was like to be a woman on the run, surrounded by nothing but men. Wanda lit up at your offer and thanked you, slipping into a language you didn’t speak. You nodded and she left.
As soon as the bathroom door clicked shut, you stalked over to Steve, whose eyes had never left you.
“Tell your friends breakfast is ready.” You ordered. Steve nodded.
His hand came up to your cheek, and you could feel the rough calluses against your skin. All you wanted to do was close your eyes and melt. To keep Steve Rogers to yourself and stay in your hideaway.
He was a soldier—dutifully watching over those who couldn’t defend themselves. You were entirely different. You had been fucked over by enough people, enough times to know better. Why Steve didn’t, you had no clue.
You stepped back and folded your arms together.
“We get to work on game plans after breakfast. I’ll cash in some favors and see how far that’ll get y’all.” You told him.
The rest of Steve’s team was beginning to file into the kitchen. Steve held your hand, and the sudden warmth in front of everyone caught you off guard. Instinctively, you bristled at the contact.
You pointed Sam to a plate you made him, as a sort of apology for your misunderstanding. He gave a half smile and nodded in thanks.
“Listen up. Y’all got a week to get the hell out my house and plan your next moves. Meet me downstairs when y’all are done.” You announced. Without sparing Steve a glance, you promptly exited.
...
“Your best bet is a big city. I can get you passage from here to Cape Town, but after that you’re on your own.” You explained.
A chorus of tentative approval came from Steve’s group, but he hadn’t said anything yet. His eyes were glued to the different screens and maps.
“What if we went the back way. Get in by land and make our way to the coast.” He offered. You squinted, following his logic and trying to find truth in it.
“Waterways are crawling with authorities, legal or not. Y’all want that heat without a solid exit?” You pondered out loud. Steve was staring at you in complete earnest and everybody knew it.
“Plenty of blinds spots if we get enough distractions in the meantime.” He countered.
“I’m not keeping you safe here just for you to take bigger risks.” You said firmly.
The two of you were battle hardened strategists with too much history and a lot of unfinished business. Sam groaned from the other side of the bunker, cutting through your standoff.
“I, uh, need help in the kitchen. Y’all come help.” He called out. One by one, Steve’s team excused themselves with varying levels of awkwardness. Then it was just you and Steve in the bunker.
“I think that was intentional.” You joked. Steve placed his hands on his hips and sighed.
“Probably because you haven’t looked me in the eyes since we got here.” He replied.
“I’m not the one trying to get myself killed, Steve. You are. So don’t blame me for not wanting to look at the dead man walking.”
Your words hung in the air and a long silence followed.
“Come with me.” He said at last.
You scoffed, knowing full well you were retired. You had absolutely no desire to get back out in the field out of sheer self preservation. Steve talked a big game about love and a future, but he was in no shape or form willing to hang up the shield for it.
The two of you were at an impasse. Then Steve did the unexpected: he punched the wall.
It was a relatively controlled impact, but your house wasn’t built to sustain a super soldier’s outburst. An outburst that was a rarity in itself. Steve chest heaved less from effort and more from frustration. His jaw kept clenching and unclenching as he tried to keep it together. Dust from the wall coated his fist, and a solid chunk of cement dropped to the floor.
“I can feel something coming. I don’t––I don’t know what it is yet, but I feel it.” He said at last.
You made no move to approach the blonde, just waiting for him to finish processing the wave of emotions on his face. That was what you liked most about Steve. He never hid when he was angry or sad or lonely; his openness was a welcome change for you.
And this time it was more serious than it had ever been. You swallowed hard and made a beeline for the console. Punching in the code, a small chamber on the far side of the wall appeared, revealing the one thing you never thought you’d ever need again.
“Nat got one suit, I got another,” you started, meeting Steve’s eyes for the first time. A haunting uncertainty stared back at you.
You clasped your hand in Steve’s, gripping tight enough to turn the tips of your fingers white.
“I trust you, Rogers.” You admitted. You looked straight ahead at the suit, but you weren’t really there. You imagined the action you would see in it, and how devastating this phantom battle would be. A growing pit in your stomach nagged at you, Steve’s foreboding presence had fully transferred to you.
Something wet hit your cheeks. Tears to brace yourself, tears to mourn the peace you had here, and warmth. Steve wiped them away as they came, cradling your face with his free hand.
You craved the closeness––it was a string of touch and breath and skin the both of you lost in isolation, but found in each other. A new day was coming and you needed to be by his side when it did.
“I like the beard look.” You whispered. Steve snorted, but promised to keep it just for you. And the calm you felt with him was enough and would always be enough.
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tokoyamisstuff · 3 years ago
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Tender Ch. 3 - Loki x Mute! Reader
Summary: As time passes,Loki and Reader grow closer.
Warnings: None. Cheesy, self-indulgent romance.
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[Story Masterlist] [All of my Works]
Taglist: @austynparksandpizza​ @queenariesofnarnia​​ @commonintrest​​ @buckylokisimp​ @just-someone-who-likes-to-write​ @lxdyred​ @frostay​ @nina1800​
It was almost 8pm when the display of Loki’s cellphone lightened up, and immediately his heart dropped to his stomach.
Only recently the god had learned how to use this annoying tool, still refusing to take it with him all the time. But since it was easier for you to just text, he’d put up with it.
And truth be spoken, except for Thor sending him those silly ‘Memes’, there wasn’t really anyone eager to talk to him anway - so he knew it had to be you.
Thousand worries were made up by his mind, of you having realized this wasn’t a good idea and canceling your date. Holding his breath, he dared to unlock the screen and read:
“I’m so excited to see you tonight! 💘”
“Don’t raise your hopes” he thought to himself, now busying his mind with every possible way of him fucking things up - and still, your message made him grin from ear to ear.
“As you should be” Loki answered and put down the phone, just to pick itn back up and sending some random emoji’s so it wouldn’t sound so harsh. “💌💚💐😏“
You on the other hand felt as excited as a teenager on their first date, having occupied yourself for hours through trying on different outfits, as well as getting your hair and make-up just right. This was a special occasion, after all!
“I hope he’ll like me...” you thought as you assessed your silhouette in the mirror, debating wether this dress was too revealing or not. In the end, you decided to wrap a silken scarf around your neck - so he won’t have to see the scar.
A knock on your door made you jump a little. Had it already been this late?!
“Miss Y/N?” Loki patiently waited in front of your flat’s door, just for his whole expression to falter when you opened. “You- uh...look ravishing.”
“T-h-a-n-k y-o-u!” You mimicked, trying to give him your most welcoming smile. Oh, how glad you were that he could at least read lips - but then, the most unexpected thing happened.
“You’re welcome” he signed, a little sloppy and unsure how to precizely use his hands, but still good enough for you to understand.
“When did you-” Loki answered before you were even done signing the whole sentence, and you were completely and utterly baffled at his skill. “Started a week ago. Needs some improvement, but I get the basics.”
Basics?! Since when was the God of Mischief so humble? Especially if he really only self-teached this at such an incredible speed, that was amazing!
Loki’s trademark grin spread over his cheeks, pretty satisfied with himself as he saw how your eyes were shining in excitement. “No big deal. Shall we?”
Much to your further surprise, the god even offered you his arm to cling on, before the two of you made your leave.
You couldn’t help but admire how handsome he appeared in that suit, his locks tamed behind his ears and golden accessory complimenting his look. The whole way to wherever he’d lead you was coated in pleasant silence, with both of you exchanging small smiles and joyful glances.
“There we are!” Loki declared proudly, as if you were not still in the Stark Tower - well, he isn’t allowed to leave, so we’d better make the best of it.
The compound was gigantic, having almost everything one could think about. To be honest, you had expected a restaurant, maybe a movie night or something classy - well, on the other hand you don’t know they do it on Asgard.
But this?!
You’ve never been at this part of the tower before, unaware there were such beautiful places in this rather boring, high-tech environment.
“I come here often” he signed and you nodded approvingly, “It eases the feeling of being imprisoned.”
Yes, one could truly forget that you were still inside of the tower while standing in that great botanical garden at the top floor, ceiling made completely out of glass and revealing the starry night sky.
"B-e-a-u-t-i-f-u-l” your mouth formed silently, just as you felt a hand on your hip. Loki embraced you from behind, his lips gracing your ear as he whispered “Just like you.”
“P-Pardon” he cut himself off, his grip loosening much to your frustration. “I didn’t know what came over me.”
Yet you only clasped his hand, signalizing him it was alright. “Well then...let me lead you to the table.”
In midst of this beautiful garden was a festively decorated table for two, with Loki holding one chair out for you to sit down. It seemed like he had thought of everything, making you wonder just how long he had prepared for this evening to go well.
As a prince, he was not really used to cooking, so he had gotten something in advance, together with some fine wines. “Not to compare with Asgardian quality” he joked, insisting you’d only deserve the best, “But it will do.”
Loki Odinson was the perfect gentleman, and every second of this date you became more aware of how unbelievably you had already fallen for him from the very start.
The two of you would exchange tales about your respective homelands, impactful events on your life as well as your dreams and ambitions. Even without a single spoken word, this conversation was deep and so natural, you could’ve kept on forever.
He would be happy to show you some little magic tricks, such as making blossoms float or lights appear everywhere. May you want it or not, the prince showered you in small gifts such as a selection of his most favourite reads he thought you might like, or a bracelet resembling two snakes intertwined with each other.
Oh, how both of you wished time would stop, letting you revel in this evening just a bit longer...
Having forgotten about time completely, you only realized how much time had passed when the sun was already rising at the horizon.
“Oh my” Loki chuckled shyly, almost feeling guilty for you were probably exhausted. “Let me consort you to your rooms, my fair lady.”
Trying his best to ignore all the spiteful looks Tony’s coworkers gave him as they crossed your way in the hallways, the god wished he would’ve just teleported you back.
“I need to thank you, my love.” The nickname escaped his lips quicker than his mind could catch up on. “Umm, I mean, I really enjoyed myself today. Hopefully you did too.”
You bit your lip, trying to play down your nervousness from expecting him to make a move - yet there was no kiss. Not even a hug, or anything to bid you goodbye.
“Sleep well-” Loki blinked heavily as you clutched on his arm, fingernails digging into the fabric of his suit. “What’s wrong, little dove?”
He squinted his eyes together, racking his brain as hard as he could to decipher your ASL, hopefully not misunderstanding something.
“Do you want to come inside?”
"I-I-I...” Hel, that caught him off guard. But you only gave him a sleepy smile, expression as welcoming as always. “That’s considered bad manners, I mean-”
“Not that!” You huffed quite amused at him becoming all flustered. “I thought you may want to sleep here? Just sleep, nothing more.”
“Of cou- I mean, if you insist” he desperately tried to preserve the last piece of dignity left inside of him, trying to downplay just how needy he was for your affection. "If you insist.”
Sheepishly entering your wide, one-room flat, Loki walked close behind you as his glare immediately went to the sofa on your right - yet you confidently shook your head, pointing towards the king-sized bed.
“This is new to me.” You judgingly rose your eyebrow at his statement, knowing the stories about how he and his brothers were heartbreakers back on Awsgard very well. “Not like that, I mean...ah, forget it.”
Much to your displeasure, the prince would rest far away from you, lying stiffly on his back.
Thinking back about your relationship up until now, you didn’t feel like sleeping in the same bed would cross any line:
It all started very subtle and slowly, but not unnoticed by you and the others - how over time, the God of Mischief was craving your touch. Like his hand ‘accidentally’ brushing against yours, just barely noticeable. Or how he almost naturally cuddled under the blanket with you whenever you were sitting on the same sofa.
The more time passed, the more confident Loki became in his approaches, always wary of your reaction - which would be delighted every single time.
Hugs had already become a firm ritual whenever one of you two traumazized messes were in need of affirmation.
Even some innocent kisses anywhere but your lips were a permanent feature or your togetherness by now, and both of you cherished every second of it.
So you’d plainly crawl over to his side of the bed, pressing yourself against his back.
“I tend to experience nightmares...” Loki whispered, only to be answered with your grip around him depending. "Maybe I should leave."
You snug your head hard against his back, inhaling his scent - for some reason, Loki always smelled like freshly cut grass and old books, not that you'd complain though.
The sound of his heartbeat was like music in your ears, and without giving him a response, it would soon calm you into a sweet slumber.
Tonight, Loki's mind would find peace.
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bludhavents · 4 years ago
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hiii ☺️ whenever you want/can, could you do random/fluff prompt 11 with Cedric?
11. “just trust me on this one” reader x cedric.
omg i loved writing this i’m sorry it took an extra day for me to post, i wanted to make sure i was really proud of it before i sent it out. thank you so much for the request i hope you enjoy reading🤎
Felix Fly-icis: Cedric Diggory x reader
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“Bloody hell, y/n i’ve been looking for you everywhere,” you heard Ron yell through the hallway. You turned around with a puzzled look on your face; Don’t be mistaken, Ron was a sweet boy who you’d talked to on occasion, but by no means were the two of you friends. You had no idea why he’d be looking for you, nevermind what could be so important he felt the need to shout it out in the hallway.
“Oh, uh. Sorry, Ron, I didn’t know you were looking for me, what’s going on?” You spoke once he was caught up to you. His eyes opened wide and he took a deep breath and began speaking.
“Well Cedric told Cho who told Luna who told Neville who told Dean who told Harry who told me to tell you,” Ron gasped for air before continuing, “Cedric wants you to meet him at the Quidditch field for lunch. Something about Liquid Luck. Or maybe it was Felix Felicis, I don’t remember,” his eyebrows drew together as he tried to think back to what Harry told him. “Either way, I’m almost positive he said the Quidditch field. Almost. You won’t be mad if I’m wrong, will you?” The expression on his face was nothing short of terror.
You let out a small laugh, “Ron, it’s okay. Liquid Luck and Felix Felicis are the same thing, genius. And I promise I won’t be mad. Thank you for passing the message on, see you later.”
With that, Ron turned around and made his way down the opposite side of the hallway, leaving you to ponder why in Merlin’s name Cedric would choose to meet at the Quidditch field. He knew how you felt about the sport.
Quidditch certainly was not for everyone. Neither was flying in general, for that matter. Despite the countless times Professor Sprout had tried her best to convince you that flying on a broomstick isn’t as terrifying as it seems, you refused to try and had no intention of ever doing so.
Poor Professor Sprout had truly done everything she could think of to help you overcome your fear of heights, but it was no use. The thought of not being able to put your feet on the ground, the possibility of falling, and the rare—but possible owl collisions always instilled the idea that flying was dangerous and had every right to be feared. Quite honestly you were surprised to be the only one in your class who was afraid of heights, in the Muggle world it’s a very common fear, almost every Muggle was some degree of acrophobic, but it’s no surprise that the Wizards werent afraid to defy the laws of nature.
You often didn’t even attend Quidditch matches even though you’d be tucked away safe in the bleachers; Seeing your housemates gliding through the air and trying to knock the opponent off their respective broom made you queasy. You thought Quidditch was a fine sport, in fact you always wished you could overcome your fear and learn to play, but the idea itself was laughable. Everyone at Hogwarts knew that you were afraid of flying.
So to say Cedric’s invitation to meet at the Quidditch field was strange would be the understatement of the century. Not to mention the Liquid Luck, it took six months to brew for goodness sake. Despite his own self-doubt, you were sure Ron got the right potion name. If he could remember the long list of people the message had gone through before it reached you, you were sure he could remember the message itself.
After you pushed your curiosity aside, you were excited to spend time with Cedric. You made your way through the corridor and sat in the back of the DADA classroom replaying the day you became friends with Ced.
You’d properly met him at the beginning of the semester after someone told him about your acrophobia. With this new information, Cedric had taken it upon himself to ask if you wanted him to teach you. He was very kind about it all, and you could tell he genuinely wanted to help you; There was no judgement or teasing in his tone. He was always a very admirable person in your eyes, and was without a doubt the most hufflepuffely Hufflepuff you’d ever met. Being a Hufflepuff yourself, you knew what true loyalty and compassion looked like, and Cedric was a shining example.
Your hesitation was seemingly very clear to Cedric after he proposed the idea of lessons. He spent almost an hour in the Common Room assuring you that he didn’t mind going as slow as you needed to, telling you that he wouldn’t pressure you to do anything you didn’t want to do, and saying that you could quit whenever you pleased. He just wanted to help you and get to know you.
The first lesson was absolutely dreadful. The typical anxiety you felt about flying was now paired with the nervousness that comes with being alone with a very handsome boy. Despite him being as empathetic and careful as possible, Cedric couldn’t get you to even watch him fly for more than sixty seconds at a time. Needless to say the first lesson was also your last. Cedric didn’t want you to quit, but he understood where you were coming from. The two of you got along really well, though, and he was the first person who made you laugh through your anxiety. After the two of you hit it off so well that day, Cedric proposed a lunch at the Black Lake.
So for the past six months you and Cedric spent four days a week eating, laughing, and sometimes even swimming at the Black Lake during lunch hour. It was easy with him. He made you feel comfortable, understood, and carefree, and you did the same for him. The two of you enjoyed each other’s company more than anything else; It was almost addictive. A lot of the moments shared between the two of you could’ve easily been considered romantic, and although neither of you had ever had a conversation about wanting to date, there was a sort of unspoken agreement that you each had feelings for the other. It wasn’t hard to miss, either. Cedric and you had such an intense chemistry that one would have to be a fool to not recognize it as love.
Professor Lupin pulled you out of your thoughts as he dismissed the class and sent you on your way to lunch. You were careful to blend in with the hallway traffic flow, so you headed towards the Dining Hall with the rest of the students before you broke away from the crowd and hurried off into the girl’s quidditch locker room. You knew all of the players would be off to lunch already, but that didn’t stop you from rushing across the room and leaving through the back exit that led straight to the field. When you stepped into the bright sunlight you didn’t see Cedric anywhere, and a quick moment of panic struck you at the thought that maybe Ron had relayed the message wrong and Cedric was waiting for you somewhere else. Your worries quickly dissipated when Cedric seemingly appeared out of thin air. He was barely hovering on his brand new nimbus 2000 over the grass in the middle of the field. His smile was as charming as ever and in his hands he held his old broom and a tiny potion bottle.
“Y/n!” He quickly flew to your side and landed on one knee next to you. Cedric held the potion bottle in his hand like a wedding ring, “Hi.”
You laughed, he surely could be extra cute when he tried, “Hi, Cedric.” You gave him a gentle pat on the top of the head.
“Ahem,” he cleared his throat. “Oh Y/n dearest, I come today to present you with one bottle of liquid luck,” he was talking like Dumbledore, and his dorky grin grew bigger as he kept going. “The day we met you wouldn’t even touch a broom, and I made it my personal duty to have you try. So today, as I present you with the magic potion, you will fly.” By the end of his speech you were so lost in his sparkling eyes it took you a minute to process his words.
“Wait, what?”
���Yeah! Come on, it’ll be okay,” He reached for your hand and you helped him back to his feet.
“I don’t really understand what you mean,” you let out a nervous laugh as he handed you his old broomstick.
“I was thinking, you just have to take some liquid luck and you’ll have no chance of falling!” The excitement was evident across his features.
“Oh, uh-,” you stammered. “I don’t know how i feel about this.” His plan was good, but there was no way you were going to be able to talk yourself up onto the broom. You felt bad, he’d probably been brewing this since the week you met and you didn’t want to let him down.
“I promise I’ll be right there with you. Please, just trust me on this one,” you searched his eyes for any sign of insincerity, and before you could think about it you grabbed the bottle out of his hand and drank the liquid luck.
“Yes!” Cedric threw his arms in the air and hopped back on his broom, flying straight up and doing a backflip in celebration of your sudden boost in confidence.
The potion tasted terrible, but you didn’t have much time to think of your regrets before it took affect. Your whole body felt lighter and you became giddy with excitement before tightening your grip on his old broom. Cedric came back down to the ground and shook your shoulders, you thought he might’ve been more excited than you were.
“Okay, are you ready to try this?” He calmed down a tad and made direct eye contact. You responded without a moment’s hesitation.
“So ready.”
He cheered in excitement before taking both of the brooms and setting them on the ground, just a little bit apart from eachother. He moved to stand over his broom and you did the same to yours. The two of you simultaneously lifted your brooms into the air and shared a look of pure joy.
“On the count of three, okay?” Cedric reached out to hold your hand. “One. Two. Three!”
You let go of his hand as you both took off into the air, laughter ringing in your ears as you experienced the thrill of flying for the first time ever. Luckily you’d known how to fly, so the liquid luck was only calming your nerves, the rest was your talent.
“Cedric I’m doing it!” You looked beside you and saw how much fun he was having, the proudness overcoming his features as you conquered your biggest fear.
“You’re really doing it, you’re flying, y/n!” He shouted back.
The two of you were in the air for hours, forgetting about the rest of your classes and messing with eachother above the quidditch field. When the sun started to set, the two of you headed back down to the field and landed.
“Thank you, Cedric. This was the best day of my life,” you breathed out, wrapping Cedric in a tight hug.
“Mine too,” he said, hugging you back and resting his chin on top of your head. “You know that I have feelings for you right?” Cedric blurted out.
“Yeah, I know,” you spoke into his chest. “I have feelings for you too, Ced.”
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drabbles-of-writing · 4 years ago
Text
We’re Soarin’, Flying
This is part of my Wing AU
AO3
Masterpost
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
“Amity! Hey, Amity! Amity!”
Luz swooped from the top of one of the lockers, flaring her wings to slow herself down as she skidded to a stop by the girl, nearly knocking into her.
Amity jumped, her wings twitching ever so slightly before she relaxed into a smile, side-stepping to avoid Luz’s flailing wings.
“Hey, Luz.”
“Sorry about the drop in,” Luz said sheepishly, her wings scrunching up over her shoulders as she rubbed the back of her neck. “I’ve been trying to find you all day, but, ah, all my classes were practically on the other side of school.”
Amity’s ears perked slightly in curiosity. She let Luz continue rambling as she placed the last of her books in her lockers, far more relaxed than how she had been earlier.
“So, I actually have an idea for us! You said you weren’t busy today, right?” Luz asked, clearly straining to not stand so close to Amity as to avoid hitting her with her wings that refused to sit still.
“No…” Amity said slowly, shutting her locker and glanced at Luz with sudden interest. “What were you thinking of?” She said, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear.
“You’re gonna love it!” Luz smiled, grabbing her wrist with both hands and beginning to tug her along. “It’s just a little off from where we fought Grometheus, remember?”
“It was only a few days ago, Luz.” Amity said, a faint blush on her cheeks as she was pulled along. “What’s this about?”
“So, I was talking with Willow and Gus,” Luz said, flapping her wings on occasion to speed up their movement. “And I felt bad that you can’t fl--”
Amity stiffened and suddenly seized forward, slapping her hand over Luz’s mouth. Only then did the human stop.
Amity looked around fearfully, though since it was the end of the day, nobody was really paying attention. The only students still in the building were too busy making their ways to the exit.
“Luz!” Amity hissed, slowly taking her hand away.
“Right, sorry, private subject, I forgot.” Luz said sheepishly, her wings drooping slightly. “But that’s the point of this outing! It’s to help you with that little dilemma.” 
Amity blinked at her in confusion. Luz’s wings were already twitching again as she was hurrying towards the exit, once again, pulling the kestrel along.
Then Luz saw her expression of realization.
“No, no, no no no,” Amity said, digging her heels in, but it was useless against the tile and the unstoppable force known as Luz. “No, bad idea, we’re not doing this.”
“Yes, yes, yes we are!” Luz said, giving Amity a wide grin and beating her wings as they came out of the school. “You said you couldn’t, you know, do the thing, during our fight with Grometheus, and I have made it my mission to help you.”
“You really don’t have to,” Amity shook her head, still half-heartedly struggling as Luz dragged her to the bottom of the steps, where Willow and Gus were waiting.
“Too bad, I’m doing it anyway.” Luz said, finally stopping by her friends, her wings practically vibrating.
“Please tell me you’re here to try and be the voice of reason,” Amity begged, turning to Willow leaning against the stone by the steps.
“I am,” Willow nodded, and Amity visibly relaxed. “And my voice of reason says that you need to learn how to use those wings.” She said firmly, crossing her arms.
Amity groaned and hung her head, defeated. Luz was too giddy with excitement to bother with a sympathetic pat on the back.
“And it would be interesting to document,” Gus added. “I mean, not a lot of people write down or talk about what happens to wings when they aren’t used in flight for years on end. It could be enlightening!”
“You better keep that completely anonymous.” Amity warned, pointing a threatening finger at the boy. “No names, no locations, no mentions of species, anything.”
“All my research is one hundred percent confidential.” Gus said, raising a hand. “It’ll remain personal for a long time, anyway.”
“Keep it that way,”
“Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go!” Luz said, flapping her wings widely and jumping around her friends. “We only have so much light left!” “We have at least a few hours,” Amity pointed out.
“And those precious hours are being wasted,” Luz whined, her wings hanging loosely at her sides. “Come on, come on!” She said, grabbing Amity’s hand with both of hers and already tugging her along.
“Looks like the natural disaster has truly begun,” Gus sighed, hurrying after the two as Luz pulled them along.
“Oh, just you wait.” Willow mumbled.
,
“Okay, so!” Luz stood in front of Amity, the cliff behind her. “What do you know about flying?”
“Uh,” Amity blinked, glancing back at Willow and Gus, who were sitting on the sidelines of the clearing. “I know you need to...flap your wings a lot?”
“Alright, not a bad start.” Luz said, her wings half-open as she scrunched her face in thought. “Do you know how to take off?”
“I just need to jump and flap my wings, right?” Amity said. “Then, I dunno, catch a draft of air?”
Luz pressed her mouth into a thin line, mildly concerned.
“How about we just take a look at those wings first?” She said, doing her best to give a reassuring smile.
Luz spread her own wings to their full length, then gestured for Amity to do the same. The witch swallowed and slowly unfurled her wings from her shoulders.
They sagged a bit, the tips of her feathers brushing the grass. The first thing Amity noticed was that, in comparison to her own, Luz’s wings were tiny. Amity’s wings were narrow and meant for speed. Whereas Luz’s were wider, the feathers and patagium thinner, and practically shrank when put in front of the kestrels.
Which was an odd realization, Amity thought. Her wings were nowhere near big, and barely even normal-sized. She supposed it put into perspective just how...fragile Luz was in this world.
“Not bad, not bad,” Luz hummed, her wings arching as she walked in a circle around Amity, peering at her wings.
Luz reached forward and touched Amity’s left wing. Amity startled and jerked her wing back.
“Sorry, sorry!” Luz raised her hands quickly and stepped away. “Wing sensitivity, my bad.” She said shyly.
“N-no, it’s fine,” Amity mumbled, slowly stretching out her wing again and ignoring Willow and Gus’s snickers behind her. “Just surprised me, that’s all.”
Luz flicked her tail and reached forward again, glancing at Amity. At her nod, she drew her hands underneath Amity’s wing and lifted it higher.
Amity resisted the urge to shutter at the touch and instead did her best to hold her wing at the height Luz lifted it to.
Once Luz was satisfied, she hurried to Amity’s other wing and did the same, until they were raised just above her shoulders and back in a take-off position.
“Try moving them,” Luz said, backing up to stand in front of Amity again. “Like this,”
She began beating her wings, slowly at first, but soon became rapid. It created a small gust of wind that ruffled Amity’s hair and feathers, and even rose Luz off the ground a few inches before she stopped and dropped back down.
Amity shuffled her feet and stretched her wings back further, feeling small pops in her muscles at being stretched. She beat them forward, and mid-movement, the bones on her wings let out a sickening crack.
Really, it was only the type of crack that your bones give in the morning when you wake up and haven’t moved for a while. But nevertheless, it was loud, and it was disturbing, to say the least.
Luz instantly cringed back, wincing at the sound. Willow did the same as Gus self-consciously drew his wings closer.
Amity paused, her wings halfway hanging in front of her as she gave a nervous smile.
“It’s, uh, been a while.” She mumbled.
“I can tell,” Luz nodded. “Just, erm, stretch them out.”
Amity nodded and slowly beat her wings back and forth, wincing at every strain and crack her wings gave, not used to being moved. Luz was disturbed by every noise she heard, and Amity didn’t blame her.
Eventually, her wings stopped making sickening noises, and she began to speed up her flapping. Luz perked up and her own wings started to beat in excitement.
“Don’t forget the tail!” Luz added above the wind being created by Amity’s flapping.
Amity spread her tail and increased the power, despite already starting to feel fatigued.
She felt her feet begin to lift slightly and she held the speed her wings were at. Luz bounced on her heels in excitement and stepped back.
Amity rose a few inches in the air, causing Willow and Gus’s interest to grow. 
A spike of pain shot through Amity’s right wing and she dropped with a yelp, her wings laying on the grass as she landed on her side.
“Are you okay?” Luz worried, hurrying over and dropping to her knees. 
“M’fine,” Amity mumbled, raising her head and giving a smile as Willow rushed over. “Just a cramp, I think.”
“Probably from not using your wings for a while,” Willow said, both her and Luz helping Amity to her feet.
“Maybe we should just work on wing exercises today,” Luz hummed, glancing back at Amity’s wings, which were loosely dragging on the ground. “It’s probably not easy on your wings to start flying after going unused for years.”
“No, no, I can do it.” Amity shook her head, raising her wings to her sides.
“Someone had a change of heart,” Willow murmured, stepping away and fluttering her wings.
“Zip it,” Amity grumbled, her ears pressing back.
“Are you sure?” Luz worried, her tail flicking. “I thought this would only take a few days, but if it hurts, it might take longer…” She said, running a hand through her hair.
“I’m fine, really.” Amity insisted. “I wanna try again.”
Luz seemed unsure, but nodded. She stepped back and let Amity stretch out her wings again. Willow wandered back to Gus but stayed standing, her wings buzzing every now and again.
Amity beat her wings once more, testing them out. Luz circled her in half-flutters as she did so, her tail twitching nonstop.
Amity soon rose off the ground again, feeling a heavy strain in her wings and creeping pain. She ignored it and held her position a few inches in the air. Luz started grinning and chirped, flying a little ways above her in encouragement.
“Come on, let’s see if we can get you airborne!” Luz said, giving Willow and Gus thumbs up.
Amity felt a swell in her chest and beat her wings faster, trying to angle properly and push herself in the air.
The second she tried to fly up instead of hovering, however, was when her wings suddenly felt like thorn-covered chains had suddenly wrapped around them.
A strained cry escaped Amity and her wings cramped up. She hit the ground harder than she thought and was winded momentarily, letting out a wheezing breath of air.
She was subconsciously aware of Luz landing and her friends surrounding her, asking questions that blurred together. Her vision was fuzzy and she tried to blink it away, shutting her eyes like that would combat the pain her wings were in.
It truly felt like a sharp string was contracting around them at different levels, and she was reminded of those awful binding straps her parents made her try out that wouldn’t let her wings move an inch.
She tried to mumble that she was fine and attempted to push herself upright. Her wings started to automatically move to fold regally over her back as they had been for all these years, and the muscles in not only her wings but shoulders and back cried in protest, causing her to whimper and collapse again.
She was aware of the flash of speckled brown wings covering her before she let her head thump on the ground and her eyes shut.
,
“Day three of flight training,” Gus mumbled, walking along the large branch as he tapped his pencil on his notebook. “Luz has decided to try moving through the trees to build up Amity’s wing muscle-mass. It's…” He paused, frowning.
“Not going too well,”
“I can hear you!”
Amity hopped to the next closest branch, stumbling before clinging to the trunk of the tree, her wings curled tightly at her sides. Willow landed on the same branch, giving her a pitying look.
“This is ridiculous,” Amity grumbled under her breath, looking off the branch to the ground spiraling below. “The kid with baby fluff is better than me.”
“I’m writing that down!” Gus called from his branch, angrily scribbling in his notebook.
“Don’t mind him, he’s just had more...exercise with his wings.” Willow said, hovering a few feet away as Amity peeled herself off the trunk and sheepishly stepped to the next branch.
“If it makes you feel any better, Luz still has a bit of fluff.” She offered.
“She does?” Amity instantly perked up, missing her branch and slipping off.
Thankfully, she managed to scramble and grab onto the branch, her lower half hanging off as she clinged to the thicker branch for dear life, her wings still tightly around her sides as she tried to pull herself up.
“Hey, Amity!”
Luz zoomed right on by, pausing for a moment to perch on a thinner branch above the witch, making her pause and look up.
“The point is to, uh, use your wings.” She said, ruffling her own. “Just try gliding! Or moving them when going from branch-to-branch.”
“I’d rather not fall out of the tree, thank you.” Amity grumbled, struggling to pull herself up as Willow watched with mild concern.
“Psh, you won’t fall. We’re high enough that you’d hit a branch that’d stop your fall...eventually.” Luz shrugged.
“You’re terrible at reassurance,” Willow deadpanned.
“Tell you what,” Amity said, laying her chin on the branch. “I’ll give it a shot. But I’m starting slow.”
“I can work with that!” Luz said cheerfully, her wings raising. “Hey, Gus! Race ya!” She called, hopping off the branch.
“Wha--wait! I wasn’t ready!” The nuthatch cried, fluttering after her.
Amity watched Luz fly off, stopping on branches occasionally to laugh and tease Gus. Her wings were constantly moving this way and that, and not for the first time, Amity wondered if Luz’s wings were really as fragile as they looked.
Willow cleared her throat and Amity jerked her head up, catching the hummingbirds smile with a raised brow.
“What?” Amity growled, finally managing to pull herself up onto her branch and trying to steady herself.
“I didn’t say anything,” Willow said simply, landing on a branch next to Amity’s. “Just that...you’re awfully more open recently, that’s all.”
“Luz has that impact on people,” Amity said stiffly, half-opening her wings and debating if the five foot jump to the next branch was worth it.
“Of course,” Willow said calmly.
Amity jumped to the next branch, her wings spread to balance her. She floundered for a moment before shooting out both of her wings, keeping herself from falling off.
Amity let out a breath of relief and lowered her wings slightly, but kept them open. She looked down the line of trees again, spotting Luz darting around the bigger trunks and startling Gus, laughing with her wings hanging at her sides, yet seeming so lively.
She smiled, just a bit.
“You know I wouldn’t mind, right?”
Amity squawked and whirled around, realizing Willow had landed next to her without her noticing, a smug look on her face.
“Mind? Course, course not.” Amity said quickly, ears flicking back as a flush came to her face. “I mean, it’s a small thing anyway, why would you even worry about it?” She said, forgoing judging the gap and flapping her wings as she landed on the next branch, having to grab one above her to stop herself from slipping off.
“But, uh, you wouldn’t? Really?” Amity swallowed, glancing at Willow as she calmly landed next to her.
“So you do know what I’m implying,” Willow said smugly, her wings arched.
“I--” Amity started before slowly shutting her mouth again and resorting to a glare. “I don’t like you.”
“Yes, you do.”
Amity muttered and released the branch above her, debating the consequences of knocking Willow off the branch with her wings. So far, the cons were outweighing the pros.
“Out of curiosity, could you bend the trees so I don’t break every bone in my body when I inevitably fall?” Amity asked, hoping to change the conversation.
“It would be more like growing the leaves, not bending the tree, but yes.” Willow said, deciding to be merciful. “You’re going to be fine, Amity. Luz went out of her way to make sure nothing went wrong today.”
“Which means she shoved a bunch of problems into a closet and is going to deal with them when she forgets they exist and suddenly burst free?” Amity guessed, giving Willow a side-eye.
“Yeah, pretty much.” Willow nodded with a tired sigh. “But let's focus on getting those wings moving before whatever troubles Luz has hidden away come looking for blood.”
“It is sounding more appealing now,” Amity agreed, holding her wings out and taking a breath before jumping off her branch.
She glided in a wonky fashion for only a few moments before smacking into a thin branch and clinging clumsily to it, her cheek resting against the wood. She heard whoops and rattles and looked up, seeing Luz and Gus had brought their game closer to her and Willow.
“That was a good glide,” Luz complimented, landing on a branch underneath Amity’s so her face could lean closer to hers. “We could probably try glides across the clearing, soon!” She said gleefully.
Amity short-circuited for a moment, her words coming out in a jumbled mess before she realized she was slipping off and re-tightened her old on the branch.
“Y-yeah! Totally,” Amity nodded, swallowing thickly as she attempted to sit up.
“How are your wings feeling?” Luz asked, flying up and offering a hand to Amity, which the witch gratefully took.
“A little stiff, but not too bad.” Amity said, steadying herself on her feet. “I haven’t been moving them much, so that probably helps.”
“Aw, come on, Amity! You’re supposed to use them,” Luz complained, landing on the thin branch beside her and making it wobble. 
If she noticed, she didn’t react to it.
“We gotta build up those muscles! Make them big and powerful, like mine.” She said, proudly flaring her wings, despite them being significantly smaller than Amity’s.
Amity raised a brow in amusement and looked over Luz. Her gaze paused for a moment on her wings. Specifically, the base of them.
Sure enough, Willow was right. Where Luz’s wings met her body, and even underneath her marginal and secondary covert feathers, was small gray and white downy fluff. It wasn’t exactly hidden, but due to how close it was to her body and her wings' natural white speckles, most people wouldn’t even notice them.
“Amity?”
The witch jerked her head up, startled. She blushed redder when she noticed Luz was looking at her oddly and drawing her wings half-closed.
“Are you sure you're okay? You kinda spaced out for a moment, there.” She said, a slight twitch to her tail.
“Yes! Yeah, I, erm, I’m okay.” Amity said, hating how loud her voice was at first and rubbing the back of her neck. “Just, uh, thinking about how I’m gonna actually manage to fly.” 
“Aw, you’ll get it, I’m sure.” Luz said kindly. “We’re not giving up that easily!”
“What are ya talkin’ bout?” 
The branch shook more as Gus landed on Amity’s other side. Amity held out her hands to keep her balance, uneasy.
“Just flying,” Luz said, oblivious as Gus rose his wings to hold himself still. “Hey, where’s Wil--”
Willow, sure enough, came to land on the branch where it connected to the trunk of the tree. Her wings were still slowing down to stop her flight when a cracking noise reached their ears.
Before anyone could shout a warning, the branch snapped off from underneath the kids, sending them tumbling down.
Amity flailed and flung out her wings, trying to stop her fall. Her wings caught the air and she got momentary whiplash as her fall stopped abruptly.
She glided for a good few moments, looking around frantically before crashing face-first into a branch and landing with a thud on the one beneath it, groaning.
She lifted her head to check what happened to the others, worried. Gazing below her, she saw that Gus had landed on a large leaf that Willow made to catch him. Luz hadn’t been so lucky and clearly tried to fly away but instead hit a branch and landed on the intersection between two larger ones. Bruised, but no worse for wear.
Willow, since she had been the last to land, and was a hummingbird, had avoided falling altogether.
“You guys okay?” Willow asked, landing in the middle of where her friends were scattered.
Groans of pain greeted her.
“I think we’re done for today.” Amity decided, folding her wings over her back as she sat up. 
“Fair,” Luz mumbled, rolling off the intersection before flaring out her wings and flying up. “Amity, you need help getting down?”
“I...I think I can try and glide down.” Amity said, peering over the branch. “Willow, prepare to catch me, please.”
“Can do,” Willow sighed, letting Gus’s leaf shrink to normal size and dumping the nuthatch on the ground below, much to his complaints.
“Hey, I think today was pretty successful.” Luz shrugged, flying around Amity. “Considering how it could’ve gone, breaking a branch is actually pretty decent!” Amity and Willow made eye contact from across the trees.
“You have a monster chasing you today, don’t you?” Willow deadpanned.
“Two, actually.”
,
“This is the worst idea you’ve ever had during these sessions. And you wanted us to try and ride a Roc.”
“I think you’re being a little over-dramatic, Amity.”
“It’s not so bad,” Luz said, standing at the edge of the cliff. “I mean, you’ve made a lot of progress. And it’s only been just over a week! If anything bad happens, you can just glide to safety. Or Willow can catch you.” She added.
“There is one branch on this entire cliff.” Amity said, pointing below. “And I don’t want to land in the ocean, Luz.”
“This is why we don’t take advice from Eda,” Gus mumbled under his breath.
“I won’t let you fall, I promise.” Luz said, her tail quivering slightly. “I can catch you, and so can Willow.” She insisted.
Amity frowned and peered over the edge, clearly not convinced.
Okay, Luz thought, so maybe her previous ideas hadn’t all been bangers. Especially not the Roc or the throwing plan. But this wasn’t that bad, not really. Sure, Amity could get her wings wet, but so long she didn’t crash at the bottom of the cliff, she’d be fine, this is fine.
“We gotta get those wings in the air somehow, and you’re already able to glide longer! This’ll be great, I’m sure.” She said, waving a hand.
“Yeah,” Gus drawled out slowly, glancing at Luz’s tail, which had not stopped twitching. “Maybe we shouldn’t do this if you're not completely sure of it?”
“Course I’m sure, why wouldn’t I be sure?” Luz said quickly, glancing around. “I’m fine, it’ll all be fine. Look, here,”
With that, she calmly took a step backwards off the cliff.
Amity jerked forward for a moment before drawing back. Luz had fallen for barely a second before she had spread her wings and flown up, now hovering a little over two thousand feet in the air.
“Now I can make sure nothing bad happens.” She said. “Just, uh, you know...don’t look down?” She tried with a sheepish smile.
“We’re all going to regret this,” Willow muttered.
Despite her words, she also stepped off the cliff and flew halfway down where the broken branch was, hovering by it at the ready.
“You three have fun, I’m staying here.” Gus said, fluttering his wings as he focused on his notebook. “I’d rather not risk crashing into the sea.”
This did little to reassure Amity.
“Just open your wings and glide,” Luz said, flying around the edge of the cliff. “Maybe flap your wings a little. What’s the worst that could--”
“Don’t finish that,” Amity growled, snapping her head up to glare at the sparrow. “I don’t need us being jinxed right now.”
“Right, yeah, sorry,” Luz nodded, flying back. “Uh, you can do it?”
“Thanks,” Amity deadpanned.
Luz flew a little below the cliff, clinging onto the rock as she looked up at Amity psyching herself up. She kept her wings half open behind her, should she fall off.
“I’m right here, I promise.” Luz said, offering a smile.
Amity looked down at her for a few moments before giving a smile back and vanishing from her line of view. 
Luz tilted her head, confused, and a little intrigued, as she heard the shuffling and ruffling of feathers above her.
Then, without warning, Amity suddenly leapt off the cliff.
Her wings were spread wide, and she soared right over both Luz’s and Willow’s heads. Luz gaped for a few moments before launching off the rockface. 
Amity was managing to glide, albeit shakily, over the ocean. Luz grinned and flew up beside her, whooping and cheering.
Amity had her arms held out at her sides and her eyes were glued to the horizon.
“You alright?” Luz giggled.
“If I just keep staring ahead I’ll be fine,” Amity said, never moving her head. “I’m not falling, right?”
“Hmm,” Luz glanced back and at Amity’s steady gliding. “Nope! Well, I guess you are, but it’s with style.” 
Amity snorted, her stiff stance wavering for a moment. Luz grinned in victory and looked back, noticing they were getting further from the cliff. Willow had moved away from the branch and was waving to them.
“We should probably turn back before you glide out to sea,” Luz called over to her. “You remember how to tilt your wings?”
“I think so?” Amity mumbled.
She dipped her left wing and leaned, turning in the air. Luz smiled, flying up and over Amity in a spinning circle before continuing to fly normally just underneath the witch.
Willow was cheering as well, hovering above the cliff. Luz could see Gus furiously scribbling notes and constantly looking back up at them, grinning.
Amity laughed, finally relaxing as she tilted her wings slightly, swaying in the air.
“And you thought this was a terrible idea,” Luz smirked.
“Yeah, yeah, whatever.” Amity grumbled, rolling her eyes before glancing down at Luz.
Luz saw her eyes wander to the crashing ocean beneath them and her face fell.
“Uh, Luz?” Amity said, going a little pale.
“I told you not to look down!” Luz squawked, flying higher up so that her wings were nearly brushing Amity’s.
“It-it’s not the height,” Amity shook her head, tearing her gaze away from the ocean and looking back up at the human. “I think there’s something down there.”
Luz blinked and looked down, squinting. For a few brief moments, she saw nothing. Then, in a brief flash, she saw something dark flick out of the water before vanishing.
Luz glanced back at Amity, who was banking to the right in a circle, nervous.
“Uh, out of curiosity,” Luz said slowly, pausing in the air to hover as Amity glided by. “What’s the ocean wildlife like in the Boiling Isles?”
A massive tremor suddenly shook the area, catching the attention of Willow and Gus, who were both standing when it hti. Luz whirled around to call a warning to Amity before the sea suddenly split apart, revealing massive, gaping jaws. 
Luz let out a cry and flailed, barely missing jaws closing around her tail as she tucked in and darted away.
She spun, taking in the massive monster that had come from the sea.
It’s lower half was a golden carp, even with the head. But the mouth was wide open, and coming from said mouth was a striped cat-like demon. All that was coming out of the mouth was from the shoulder up, including paws nearly the size of the Owl House and a maw filled with teeth as big as a person.
The monster fell back to the sea at it’s failed attempt, though it’s eyes still shone with hunger.
“What was that?” Luz shouted, looking around wildly. “Amity? Amity!”
The kestrel, during the chaos, had smacked into the cliffside and was about two hundred feet down, clinging to the rock for dear life. Willow and Gus were picking themselves up from the sudden attack, panic evident.
“Luz, get back here!” Willow waved her hands around. “It’s after you!”
Luz didn’t need to be told twice.
She dove towards the cliff, hitting the safe grass before springing up a moment later and leaning over, her tail trembling.
“Amity!” She called down, and the witch jerked her head up.
“Hang on,” Willow said, stretching out a hand and making the branch a couple hundred feet below Amity twitch and move.
The branch had grown to a reasonable size before it started growing up towards Amity.
That was when the sea monster leapt out again.
It had spotted Amity, as her bright green feathers made her stand out against the dark gray stone. It snapped its jaws, taking out the branch cleanly as a claw dug into the cliff, dangerously close to the witch.
Luz didn’t know when she jumped off, but in a flash, she was suddenly diving right towards the leviathan.
She flared her wings, barely slowing her descent before she landed right between its eyes. She could hear her friends screaming, either at her or for their own lives, but she couldn’t make out any of the words.
“Get lost, you overgrown catfish!” She barked, flapping over to its left eye before slamming her feet down on it.
The monster howled and reared back, nearly taking Luz with it before she darted back into the air. She turned and flew to Amity, who was curled into a ball where she was clinging to the rocks, her wings shaking.
Luz landed right on the rock beside her and grabbed her shoulder. Amity’s eyes opened and she stared at Luz, unable to speak. All Luz could hear were distressed, rapid chirps from her throat.
“Willow! Help me grab Amity!” Luz called up the cliff, taking Amity’s arm.
It took a few moments, considering all the howling and tremors the sea beast was causing, but Willow appeared on Amity’s other side just a moment later. She grabbed her right arm and the two were quick to launch off the cliff and rise to the air.
Until a paw slammed into the cliff, just above them and barely a few meters away from missing Gus, who had been peering over the edge.
The girls all whirled around, meeting two massive eyes, one of them slightly red from getting kicked.
The three froze for a moment, the girls and the monster having a momentary staring contest.
Then its jaw opened and it launched towards them.
The three split apart in a flash. Luz and Willow flew to the left and right, and Amity...dove.
Luz could see her wings tucked into her sides as she dove downwards, panic violently seizing her.
“Amity! Pull up!” Luz cried.
The monster’s face hit the cliff and it hissed, jerking back and swiping it's free paw towards the closest bird, which happened to be Willow.
Willow managed to dodge and fly upwards, making a beeline for Gus, who had stepped back.
Luz tightened her wings to her sides and dropped like a stone, attempting to peer around the hulking beast, trying to figure out where Amity was among the thrashing golden body and massive waves.
She saw something coming at her from the corner of her eye and spun to the side, spreading her wings right as a gust of wind went by, accompanying a paw with claws the length of a bus.
The tiger roared, furious that it’s prey was proving so hard to catch. 
Luz finally saw Amity, right as she was twisting around to miss the beasts thrashing tail.
Luz cried out, curving around to try and reach her friend.
Amity suddenly shot out her wings and tilted upwards, sending her soaring nearly straight-up.
Luz didn’t have the chance to gape, because the beasts paw had hit the water right by her, sending waves four times as big as she was.
She darted up and around its forearm, missing its jaws by the brush of her feathers as she finally popped up above its head.
Willow was swiftly growing the grass on the cliff face, beginning to move them around the monster's neck and face, causing it to yowl and hiss.
Luz couldn’t even pay attention to that, she was too busy flying around and looking for a familiar flash of green.
And, right by the leviathans back, she saw it.
Amity soared up and her hand suddenly lit ablaze. She paused right by its head and flared out her wings. In that brief moment of pause, she flung the handful of fire at the cat's nose, hissing a slew of curses at it.
The fire grew when it came in contact with its nose and the beast shrieked, pulling back and breaking free of the grass wrapped around it. Amity flew, flew, out of the way as it hissed and removed its claws from the cliff face.
Luz slowly landed, deciding she’d rather not get involved. Amity’s rage-filled snarls were enough to keep her at bay.
The cat spat back at her but lowered its head, rubbing at its nose with its paw.
With a growl, the beast turned and dove back into the sea, deciding the fight wasn’t worth the prey.
In mere moments, it was like it was never there.
The others were breathing heavily, trying to process what had just happened. Luz, on the other hand, was left staring in the air at Amity, who was hovering right where she was, still watching where it vanished.
“She’s flying,” Luz murmured, before suddenly jumping up. “She’s flying! Amity! Amity! You’re flying!”
The witch turned back around, confused for a brief moment before glancing at her wings.
Luz leapt into the air and spun around the kestrel, talking a mile a minute as she resisted the urge to tackle Amity out of the sky in a hug.
Amity exhaled, shaking with the effort and her wings faltered. Luz paused then and gave her a worried look.
“Yeah, great,” Amity wheezed, her eyelids drooping. “I’m...I’m kinda tired…”
“Oh, right, right!” Luz nodded, taking her hands and flying the witch down. “Yeah, I think we’ve done more than enough for the day.”
“Are you okay?” Willow worried, coming up to Amity once they landed and holding her up.
“Everything hurts,” Amity whined, “Especially these,” She weakly twitched her wings.
“But not as much as before, right?” Gus inquired.
“...nah, not yet.” Amity shook her head.
“That’s a win in my book!” Luz said cheerfully. “C’mon, let’s get back to the Owl House before Eda shows up wondering what the fuss was all about.”
Amity didn’t respond. She just closed her eyes and nodded tiredly, leaning on Willow as she began the walk back to the Owl House.
Gus and Luz kept on talking, about the fight, the flying, what Gus had written down, anything. Luz somehow still had an abundance of energy, asking Amity questions she didn’t expect answers to and thinking up more ideas now that Amity had flown. After all, just because she flew once didn’t mean she was a master now.
Amity could barely keep her eyes open, and her walking was more like stumbling. 
And yet, despite that, she couldn’t stop smiling, either.
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tortie-tales · 4 years ago
Text
Vilkas x Reader
On an impulse decision, I had walked into Jorrvaskr and asked Kodlak if I could join the Companions. I did not realize the price would be fighting my crush.
I followed Vilkas outside, passing Aela who was casually drinking a bottle of mead.
I readied a flame spell in one hand and a shock spell in the other. I faced my opponent, who just looked annoyed.
"Whoa whoa whoa-" Vilkas put his shield down "-we don't use magic here."
"But I don't know how to use weapons," I said, irritated. I relinquished the magic and put my hands down. This topic always seemed to come up in a conversation.
"I don't know what to tell ya." Vilkas glared at me, obviously not willing to compromise. When Kodlak agreed to let me in, he immediately objected. That alone hurt my feelings, but this behavior was just salt on the wound.
Enough is enough. This ends now.
I walked up to him, ready to ask him why he was being a skeever face. "Fine. No magic."
"I thought you didn't know how to use weapons, though." he said, obviously mocking me.
That's it. You asked for it, buddy.
"I don't." I punched him in the face.
Aela, who had been watching from the deck, burst out laughing. "How's her sword arm, Vilkas?!" She bent over and smacked her knee, snorting.
Vilkas slowly straightened up and glared at me. I gulped, knowing this probably got me kicked out.
"That'll do," he mumbled, before storming off, slamming the door behind him. Aela continued to laugh at him.
Well. He's pissed, isn't he?
I walked towards the doors, afraid of the fate that awaited me. I heard yelling coming from inside.
I took a deep breath and opened the heavy wood doors. I blinked a few times to allow my eyes to adjust to the difference in lighting.
"She punched me!" I heard Vilkas' complaints coming from downstairs the moment that I walked in. A few others looked up at me, and I blushed.
Silence filled the air, unnerving me.
Great. I should probably just leave. Actually, you know what? No. Vilkas asked for it. Just because I don't use weapons doesn't mean I'm weak!
I walked down the stairs, annoyed. I ran into Vilkas, who gave me a death glare. I returned the look, and continued walking.
"Kodlak? I understand if you don't want me to be here anymore, considering I punched Vilkas in the face." I peeked into his room, and he grinned at me.
"Quite the opposite. You seem to have a strong arm, considering Vilkas' reaction," Kodlak continued to smile.
"O-oh. Uh, is he going to be ok?" I asked, unable to keep the blood from rushing to my cheeks.
"He will be fine. You are still welcome here. I hope you can refrain from punching any more members, at least without a fair warning."
I nodded. "Thank you, Kodlak." I walked out and bumped into Aela.
"Are you still in?" I nodded. She slapped her hand on my shoulder. "You are my new favorite person. Come, let's show you around." She gave me a short tour of where everyone's rooms were, stopping at hers. She started talking to Skjor, forgetting about me.
I sighed, wondering if I would be able to make things right between Vilkas and I. The main reason I joined was because of him, after all.
Aela snapped me out of my thoughts. "Hey, Ice Brain! Come show (y/n) where the newbloods sleep!" I looked up and saw Farkas walk over.
"You were still accepted?" Farkas sounded slightly surprised. I smiled nervously and nodded.
"Alright, well, come on. Let's go, new blood." He walked me over to a large sleeping. "Vilkas told me that you were rather strong. It's disappointing that you aren't using that strength to wield a weapon, but I'm sure you know what you're doing."
"Yeah, I work better with magic than I do weapons. If I get desperate, I can always punch my enemies in the face." Farkas chuckled at my joke.
~~~
It was cold that day; I wore my favorite pair of gloves and a nice pair of boots to keep the chill at bay. I took a deep breath, admiring the orange leaves in the trees.
"New blood!" Vilkas shouted, startling me. I turned around, only to have a sword shoved in my arms.
"Go get my sword sharpened. And be careful with it, it's worth more than you are." He pointed at a forge on top of the hill.
"Why should I?" I shoved his sword back in his arms. "I don't understand why you've been so mean to me. What did I do to you, Vilkas?" I asked, upset. I had apologized multiple times for punching him in the face, asking him how I could make it up to him, and he just ignored me or waved me off.
No. Even before that, when I was first accepted, he was acting like this.
He got in my face. I could feel his breath on my lips as he spoke. "What are you going to do, cry? Suck it up, new blood, the world is tough. Now go get my sword sharpened," he growled, shoving the sword back into my arms..
"Careful, Vilkas, she might punch you in the face again!" Aela started laughing, and Farkas shook his head, sighing.
I was pissed. Punching him in the face was tempting, but a small part of me still knew it wouldn't solve anything.
I need to calm down before I do something I regret.
"Get out of my way," I said quietly.
"No. Go sharpen my sword," he growled, getting closer to my face. I wanted to take a step back, but I felt like that would be equivalent to surrendering. Instead I took another step forward, as though I were challenging him.
Our noses were touching now.
I locked eyes with him, refusing to back down. "No. I won't," I narrowed my eyes, "what are you going to do about it, cry?" I spat out each word, sick of his attitude.
Vilkas shoved me back, sheathing his sword. I stumbled back and glanced up at him. He looked furious.
"You know what, Vilkas? I've tried solving this like adults. I've tried talking to you. But nothing seems to get through that thick skull of yours." I tapped my head, pretending to be in deep thought. "Should we just fight? Will it make you feel better if I beat you in a fist fight? Let's go, little boy." I clenched my fists, furious. I felt a familiar buzzing in my hands, and heard a crackle. My fists were now coated in electricity. "No holding back."
"Fine. No holding back," Vilkas said, putting his own fists up.
I heard Aela cheer and Farkas tell her to shut up.
I was the first one to attack, aiming for the same spot I hit him in last time.
Maybe I can knock a tooth out this time..
My thoughts were cut short when he grabbed my arm and yanked me down. I face planted on the dirt, getting some in my mouth. I heard him yelp, likely getting shocked from coming in contact with my hand. I smiled and rolled over, hopping back up on my feet.
I raised my fists, this time feeling them burn. "Have you ever played with fire, Vilkas?" I asked, trying to be cool. I saw smoke and realized I had caught my gloves on fire.
"AAAAHHHH!!!" I started screaming and tore off my gloves, stomping on them to put out the flames. That only caught my boot on fire.
I screamed some more, this time out of frustration, and cast frost. This extinguished the fire completely, leaving a few blades of grass frozen solid.
But by then it was too late. My gloves had already been burnt to a crisp, and now I had a hole in my boot.
All of my anger from earlier had dissolved; all that was left was a deep sadness, caused by the loss of my favorite gloves and Vilkas' hatred towards me. I sighed, picking up the scraps.
"I surrender, Vilkas. You win. I'm a skeever-face and you are a perfect specimen. Sharpen your own damn sword." I walked away, wondering if my gloves would be able to be saved.
~~~~~
Nothing worked. My gloves were dead.
I held a small funeral service over a trash can, the only attendant being myself.
"You were a good pair of gloves. I'm sorry my stupidity killed you." My eyes watered, sad to see them go. I dropped them in the trash can and sat down.
I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked up, surprised to see Vilkas.
"I-" he stopped and sat down before continuing "-I'm sorry, (y/n). I let my temper get the best of me on several occasions. I hope we can start over." He handed me a box, containing a pair of leather gloves.
"They're fire resistant, so you casting your spells and what not shouldn't be a problem." He looked at me, hope in his eyes. I hugged him.
"Thank you, Vilkas. You know, I've always thought you were kind of cute," I hiccuped, only slightly tipsy.
"What? Are you drunk?" Vilkas asked, pulling back from the hug. He looked deep into my eyes.
"HA! You owe me fifty septims!" Aela yelled from across the hall.
"No fair, she's drunk! That doesn't count!" Farkas yelled back.
"I am NOT drunk, I am tipsy. There's a difference, people." I finished off a bottle of Black-Briar Mead, savoring its taste.
Vilkas sighed, smacking my hand when I reached for another bottle. "Why am I the one who always has to babysit?"
"Would you ever consider being more than friends, Vilkas? It's completely fine if you wouldn't-" I started back pedaling, sober enough to realize my mistake "-you know what, just forget I asked."
"In time, (y/n). In time."
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pumpkinofthedale · 3 years ago
Text
Here’s the fanficfic! Sorry if I stepped on any toes, and I hope you enjoy it :)))
The party was bumping. Though you supposed that was to be expected, given who was hosting it.
Unlike that first Christmas party, however, this one was being thrown for a much different occasion: to end Eridan’s summer vacation with a bang. There were fewer people this time; the guest list mostly consisting of Eridan’s friends, Cronus’ friends, and some of their friends by extension, along with a few tertiary friends thrown in for good measure.
But you weren’t really one to keep track, so you just showed up in a nice blouse and shorts with the intent of sticking by your boyfriend for the evening.
Of course, it was Eridan who greeted you at the door, toothy grin on his face when he saw you. “You came!”
“Of course I did.” You smiled, “Wouldn’t want to miss out.” He let you in, escorted you to the outlandishly large backyard, and you beelined for the food.
The spread was, as usual, incredible. Bowls of fresh-cut fruit, plates of barbecued burgers, hot dogs, fish, and chicken, and a whole table dedicated to drinks. You grabbed a skewer and scored yourself a glass of lemonade. Elsewhere on the grass, a group of kids about Eridan’s age were playing in a sprinkler.
You glanced towards the pool—and oh, it was so big—but made your way towards the hedges near the edge of the yard to enjoy your food in relative peace.
You watched as other guests, troll and human alike, filed in, and wondered how much longer you’d have to wait until Cronus showed up. Not that he was the only reason you came, but he was one of the main reasons you planned on staying.
You’d gotten about halfway through your second glass of lemonade when your boyfriend finally showed up, tight white tank top emblazoned with his sign.
You had to double take when he spotted you, though, because you hadn’t expected him to be wearing booty shorts.
It was definitely a good look on him, though.
You took another swig of your drink as he stalked over to you, shark-toothed grin plastered on his face.
“About time you showed up,” you teased the moment he made it to you. “Almost thought you might not show.”
“And miss this view, babe?” His eyes flicked up and down your body, hands straying towards your hips. “You know I love seeing your pretty eyes up close, doll.”
You took his hands in yours, mostly because you weren’t sure you wanted them on your hips right now.
“Oh, and uh, sorry for being so loud, Tuesday night.” He apologized. “I’ll try to tone it down next time, kitten, so you don’t get quite so many noise complaints.”
You finished off your lemonade. “I don’t know,” and then you leaned in, tugging your boyfriend down by the shoulder so you could whisper in his ear like the smooth, sexy person you so obviously were, “I kinda like it when you’re screaming my name.” You pecked him on the cheek.
Cronus’ face flushed, fins fluttering as he trilled quietly. “Oh… yeah, okay.”
You held up your glass, “I’m gonna go refill my drink real quick, okay?” You turned around and made your way to the middle table, grabbing another chicken skewer as you went.
It was as you were refilling your glass that you were approached by two unknown trolls.
Wait, no, you think you might’ve been told about them by Cronus before. You nodded your head in greeting. “Meenah and Porrim, right?”
Porrim nodded. “And you are?”
You gave them your name.
Meenah cleared her throat. “So how much is that buoy paying ya?”
It took you a second to process this. What did she—
Oh.
Oh.
You weren’t sure whether to laugh or be mildly offended. “He’s… not?”
Porrim frowned. “Are you quite sure?”
Being completely honest, you fully understood where they were coming from. Hell, you from eleven months ago probably would have felt the same.
But at the same time, you were mildly offended that they pegged you as so shallow, so easily bought. “I am telling you with one-hundred percent honesty: Cronus isn’t paying me a dime.”
You pushed past them, fully intent on returning to Cronus (and maybe laughing about this little incident), but were stopped by Porrim’s grip on your arm.
“Oh, dear,” She all but whispered, aghast, “It’s okay, we can help you.”
…You didn’t think you liked where this was going.
You tried to wrench your arm free, but Porrim was holding it in an iron grip. “Look, I’m not gonna lie and say that I don’t see exactly where you’re coming from here, because trust me, I do.” You set your lemonade on the table and carefully pried your arm from Porrim’s grip. “Believe me when I say that if Cronus was violating the boundaries I’ve set I would not hesitate to dump him, okay?” You smiled, but it didn’t feel quite as genuine as you hoped it looked. “Now, if you’ll excuse me,” you grabbed your lemonade and shuffled past them, “I’ve got places to be.”
The table wasn’t that far from the spot you had picked, so there was no doubt that Cronus would have been able to see Meenah and Porrim interrogating you. As you approached, though, you realized why he hadn’t come over: another troll (Aranea? Yeah, you were pretty sure that was Aranea) had him pressed up against the hedges without even touching him, talking him into submission. As you got closer, you could start to make out what she was saying.
You resisted the urge to snort. She was pressing him for information on your relationship, likely out of the same concern that had Meenah and Porrim approaching you earlier.
She hadn’t noticed your arrival. Cronus had; there was a silent plea in his eyes.
Right. You’d told him you weren’t exactly comfortable spilling every detail just yet. It actually made your heart flutter a little to see him trying to respect that, even if the result was him being cagey and trying to be anywhere but under Aranea’s scrutinizing gaze.
You cleared your throat. “Hello.” Aranea turned to face you. “Aranea, right?” You offered your free hand. “I don’t believe we’ve met before.”
She smiled, “It’s nice to meet you,—?”
You gave her your name. “And before you ask, no, Cronus isn’t paying me, and no, I do not need help dumping him. Nor am I trying to.”
Cronus made a sound akin to a dying fish being put through a wood chipper.
“Oh!” Aranea startled. “And you’re certain of this?”
“Yes.” You stared her down, taking a sip of your lemonade.
Aranea shrugged. “Well, I guess some people just have terrible taste—” Cronus gasped in offense— “But to each their own.”
She started walking away, but paused, “Lemme know if he ever hurts you, though, so I can get the girls together to give him a good thrashing, okay?”
You shrugged. “Sure.”
Aranea chuckled, then left.
“Wow, Chief,” Cronus sidled up next to you, tentatively slinging an arm across your shoulders, “That’s quite some nerve you’ve got there. Care to show me what else you can do?”
You took another sip of your lemonade. “When we’re not in public, Cro.”
You could feel his eyebrows wriggling. “That a promise?”
You laughed. “Yes.”
_________________________________________________________
Holy shit!!!!! This is hilarious!!!!!!!!!!
You are absolutely not stepping on my toes or anything like that Though I did have a few things already planned out. It’s very cute seeing everyone’s interpretations and I’m so happy people are having a lot of fun and theorizing about things! It’s really amazing and I love it so much
after all, good endings only is based around the same kind of principle that pesterquest and friendsim are where there are a lot of ways things can go down and that’s part of the fun. So while this isn’t the primary ending it is like a fun little offshoot to explore!
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volleychumps · 5 years ago
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To Love a Libero (Nishinoya Yu x Reader)
“Maaaan, this sucks.”
“Nishinoya-senpai?” Hinata blinks at his senior, wondering just why the star libero of the Karasuno volleyball team was laying down on the floor with his knees tucked into his chest, his expression screaming of depression. 
“I want a girlfriend!” Nishinoya whines as the rest of the team sweat drops as he hits the floor with balled fists like a child. Bokuto, seeing the commotion, comes over and puts a hand seriously on his shoulder before kneeling down to meet him at eye-level. 
“Are you lost? Do you need me to find your mom?”
As the teams among the camp stifle their laughter into their fists, Nishinoya gains an irk mark at the teasing Ace of Fukurodani as said man keels over in laughter. 
“T-The girls are coming! That’ll lift your spirits, Nishinoya-senpai!” Yamauchi exclaims as the libero helps himself to his feet, glaring daggers at his still giggling teammates. “Let’s watch them play a set, ne?”
As the boys all return to the stands to watch the girls compete, Nishinoya looks among them with a bored stare. Perhaps after being near Kiyoko this whole time, and it for sure would never happen, most girls didn’t hold the same effect on him. Even if they did, none really responded to his advances or showed any interest. 
“Noya-San...” Sugawara puts a hand on his shoulder, giving him a nervous grin. “I can see your depression cloud getting bigger.”
“Hah? No way, I don’t need a girlfriend. Volleyball is life! Right, Hinata?”
“Senpai...you’re too cool!” His orange-haired kouhai flashes him two large thumbs up as Nishinoya laughs, a little too loudly. The two opposing teams from Fukurodani and Nekoma make their way onto the courts with no problem. 
“Whoa...who is that?” Tanaka’s eyes widen a little.
“She goes to Fukurodani. She’s the libero for the girls’ team.” Akaashi replies evenly as Bokuto sniffs. “She’s also rejected Bokuto-san on numerous occasions.”
“She’s just blind to how awesome I am. It’s fine.”
You make your way onto the court with a small smile, blushing as the more louder boys on the Fukurodani team begin to cheer your name specifically, tugging your hair back into a braid as your team prepares for the practice match. 
“Hm. She’s pretty short.” Daichi notes as Tanaka cackles, clapping Noya on the back. 
“Probably shorter than Noya!” 
Nishinoya didn’t reply as his eyes locked on your figure, his heart gaining an almost too steady rythym as you get into position. 
Damn were you pretty. 
That wasn’t what took him off guard though. 
You deflected the balls the opposing team hit to the floor as if it were nothing, jumping up to do a cute little cheer every time you succeeded. You smiled at your teammates lovingly through the familial bond you shared with them. 
“Noya...you’re staring.” Asahi grins down at his friend as Nishinoya feels the heat rise to his cheeks. 
“W-whatever!” 
Nishinoya looks back to your figure to see the end of the match had commenced, Fukurodani beating Nekoma with a gap of six points. His eyes locked with yours as your friend on the team was whispering something in your ear, a slight blush forming on your cheeks as you look away quickly.
“Uh oh, looks like she caught you!” Tanaka cackles even louder as Nishinoya sinks back in his seat, feeling embarrassed.
“She just plays really good...that’s all.”
-- 
“(Y/N)-chan! I saved you a seat!” 
“No, thanks.” You reply flatly to Bokuto as the ace sinks down in his seat, sighing dejectedly as Akaashi coughs into his fist to hide his laughter.
It wasn’t like you had anything personal against Bokuto...it was just the fact you would rather reject him outright instead of stringing him along with false hope. You didn’t like him the same way he did you, that’s all it was.
Plus, you could never tell if he was serious or not. 
You had walked into the cafeteria in the standard white shirt and dark shorts, blanching as your team waved you over to their already over-crowded table. You shake your head no with a small smile, motioning that you would find somewhere else to sit. 
In a flash, the table to your right’s members all seemed to scatter at the same time, some dragging others as you amusedly watch a dark haired boy drag along the orange, spunky looking kid, telling him to take a hint as one lone person remains at the table. 
Unsurprised, you plop your tray in front of the boy who was staring at you throughout your match, silently giving approval to the amount of effort his teammates had given to lead to this situation as they stuff themselves into bordering tables. 
“E-eh? Where did everyone go?” The boy across from you had unique hair, you noted silently as you giggle at the fact that he was too engrossed in his food to notice the situation his teammates had left him in. When he sees you taking apart your chopsticks, you swear you can practically see the smoke puff up from his head. 
“You’re Nishinoya-san, right? I heard you have a pretty good title for yourself back in Miyagi.” You make conversation, smiling warmly at the now nervous boy in front of you. 
“Y-yeah...um! You played really well today! You’re defense tactics are super good!” 
This startles you. You knew for a fact that Bokuto and the boys on the Fukurodani team liked you primarily for your appearance, but not once had any of them complimented your playing style. 
“Mm. Thank you.” You shyly put your chopsticks in your mouth, a blush forming on your features at the foreign feeling.
From another table, Akaashi holds a hyperactive Bokuto in place, who was practically fuming. “What the hell is that atmosphere?!” 
“Bokuto-san. Please eat your food. And be quiet.”
The members of Fukurodani chuckle to themselves as Bokuto sits down immediately, almost like a pet. 
“T-then! I’ll see you tomorrow, (Y/N)...chan?” 
“Tomorrow it is, Noya-san.” You reply happily, smiling at the fact that he said the honorific with much hesitation. 
You watch him dart away, smiling to yourself until you suddenly notice that he had put his dessert on your tray, making you blush slightly as you unwrap the pudding. 
-- 
The rest of the camp went by in a breeze, and you happily met for dinner every night to eat with Nishinoya as you two formed a more comfortable friendship with one another, Noya giving you the cheesiest pick-up lines to ever exist as you laughed so hard your stomach hurt. 
Naturally, both of your teams teased you relentlessly, and when you two were together during practice breaks, it was obvious to anyone that Nishinoya had fallen for you. Hard.
The real question was, how did you feel about him? 
--
“The last day of training camp is tomorrow.”
“Mm.”
“I go back to Miyagi in one day.” 
“Mm.” 
You both laid in the soft grass past curfew, Nishinoya successfully sneaking you out of the girls’ dorms with ease and a signal to be quiet pressed to his playful grin. 
“Don’t worry! You can take me sight-seeing when we meet at Nationals.” 
“Noya-”
“I’m like, not sad at all to go. Not at all.” 
“Nishi-”
“Why would you even say something like that? Me? Sad? HAH!”
“Yuu!” You had sat up and pressed a hand to his blabbering mouth, watching as his eyes slowly become more saddened. Without hesitation, you pressed your lips against the hand that covered his mouth, leaving the unsuspecting boy in shock before pulling back.
“Just...hold me for awhile, okay?” You lay against his chest, listening to his thumping heart beat. “You might not be sad, but I am.” You look up from your position laying down on him, tracing patterns into his shirt. “Anybody would be sad to see the person they like leave.” 
“You...like me?”
“Yes, dummy.” 
Without a second beat of silence, Noya carefully lifts you off of him before hurling himself to his feet, punching the air excitedly. 
“You like me!” 
You’re laughing now, shushing him to be quiet until he kneels down before you, tilting your chin to meet his lips as he kisses you passionately. Your head spins as you feel something cold and metal being rested against the skin on your neck.
“This is a brand.” He says softly when he pulls away, admiring the glint of the necklace in the moonlight. “You’re mine, (Y/N).”
“This is why you disappeared that one practice?” You laugh, touching the chain around your neck. He nods, his eyes looking more confident than you had ever seen them before he reaches out to hold a strand of your hair, kissing it. 
“Please let me cherish you.”
“I would be honored, Yu.”
He tackles you into the soft grass, afterwards, joy lit up in both of your hearts simutaneously as you hug him tightly back.
--
“Hah? What kind of libero love shit is this?” Tsukishima blinks in surprise as Yamaguchi swats his arm. The day Karasuno had to take its’ leave back to Miyagi arrived, and you and your newly minted boyfriend had broken the news rather sheepishly.
“NOYA!” Tanaka and Asahi lean on each other for support, tears in their eyes. “W-We’re so happy!” 
“S-Senpai!” Kageyama holds a running Hinata by the collar, sighing about how he was surrounded by idiots.
“Weren’t you just saying you didn’t need-?” Daichi’s hand covers Suga’s mouth without hesitation, grinning at his Libero who wasn’t letting anybody ruin his over-the-moon feeling. 
“Be careful, shorty-kun.” Bokuto mentions, slinging an arm around your shoulder as you naturally swat it off. “If you don’t make it to nationals, I’m gonna steal (Y/N) away.” 
Noya’s eyes glint at the challenge before pulling on your wrist to make you fall into his chest, looking fearlessly into Bokuto’s smirk. 
“I’d like to see you try.” 
When all goodbyes are said, the Karasuno team leaves you and Noya outside the bus, your eyes welling up with tears as the realization of the dreaded day settled in. 
“Hey. None of that.” You laugh through your tears as Noya swipes them away, grinning down at you. “I’ll call every night, and I’ll be back before you know it.” 
“Promise?” 
“Promise. And you won’t go to Bokuto-san because you’re lonely and I’m not there to fill the empty void in your heart, right?”
“Ah. That one’s hard to promise.” You say flatly, sarcasm dripping from your tone before Noya tucks a strand of hair behind your ear, gazing at you as if he was trying to commit your face to memory.
“Don’t miss me too much, now.” With that, his mouth captures yours in a loving kiss before he pulls away, climbing his bus without looking back. You laugh a little at his over-dramatic crying form in the window as Suga gives you a thumbs-up, signaling his teammates were gonna take care of him. 
You give him a small wave as the bus pulls out of the parking lot, reaching up to grip the chain around your neck.
“See you soon.” 
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novaiya · 4 years ago
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Hunt or be Hunted - Pearson x Reader
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Summary: You’ve tried, time and time again to flirt with Pearson, but it seems that all your advances went right over his head. Maybe some time alone while hunting will bring the two of you closer? Unfortunately, your outting took a completely different turn.
Words: 1,554
Warnings: Pearson.
A/N: Don’t even ask. I don’t know, man, I really don’t. This just poured out of me in one go. I don’t know what to tell you, I’m just a vessel for these words.
The first thing you felt when you woke up was the smell of stew; a mix of meat, vegetables and herbs. It was the smell that always lingered around the camp, one that you woke up to and often went to bed with. It’s a smell that brought you comfort, for it indicated that there’s enough provision, everyone’s fed and maybe, just maybe you were going to be alright.
Pearson, the resident chef, was by the provision wagon, preparing all the necessary ingredients for the next meal.
You got up from your cot, stretching your body by reaching towards the sun with your hands, and started getting yourself ready for the day.
“Good morning, miss,” Pearson said.
“Good morning, Pearson,” you returned with a smile, fresh cup of coffee in your hand. You stood by where the pot was, watching Pearson as he stirred all the ingredients together. It was just you and him there. The rest of the ladies have long finished their coffees and have started on their daily tasks.
“How’s the stew coming along?” you said.
“It’s alright,” he said before stopping stirring the stew. “Could be better with some meat. Boys haven’t been bringing much lately.”
You nodded your head, humming in agreement before an idea popped in your head.
“Well, maybe we can bring some?” you said, looking sheepishly at Pearson, holding the cup of coffee tightly against your chest. You were thankful that no one was around; they would probably laugh or smirk at your shy attempt at Pearson. Some of them already knew about your little crush, and would often poke fun at you about it.
“I saw a few deers roaming around not far off. We could probably bring a couple right in time for dinner,” you finished.
Pearson thought for a second before nodding his head and standing up. “Sounds like a good idea,” he said. “I’m gonna see if anyone else wants to join.”
“No!” you exclaimed rather abruptly, making Pearson tilt his head at you. You brought your voice down, speaking again, “We might scare them off if there’s too many of us. Better we go alone, just the two of us.”
“Uh, sure,” Pearson said, still eyeing you warily.
Pearson wouldn’t know what flirting is even if it died in his bed. You’ve tried, time and time again, to steal some alone time with him, asking him to go on a walk around the woods, or go into town to replenish some supplies. He would happily agree, and bring any and everyone along. “The more the merrier,” he would say. It seemed like he didn’t understand that your outings weren’t supposed to be a morale building activity for the entire camp.
Like now; you didn’t care about hunting deers, hell, you barely knew how to hunt. Your forte was your beauty and your mouth. You could talk anyone into giving you anything, poor prey too enticed with your beauty to tell you no.
Pearson was waiting for you by his horse when you finished getting ready. The two of you mounted up your horses, and left the camp, heading west where you often spotted deers roaming around.
You took out your bow and arrow and got into a crouched position, slowly approaching the group of deers by the shore, Pearson with his own bow and arrow two steps ahead of you.
“Wait,” he said, extending out his hand to stop you.
You looked at him with a puzzled expression before you saw where he was looking. A few men, O’Driscolls by the look of them, drove by on their horses before stopping. They were looking around, as if tracking something or someone.
“I’m telling you I’ve seen them around here,” one of them said.
“Well, where are they?”
“Their camp can’t be too far, I’ve seen a bunch of them hunt around this area.”
“Dismount, let’s look around.”
The three men jumped off their horses before walking around, looking around at trees, grass and the road, hoping to see something that’ll help them catch your track.
You and Pearson hid behind a tree, the shadow from it and a small bush hiding you well enough. Your heart was beating hard against your chest and your breathing was coming out in uneven, short bursts. You left your guns on your horse, not expecting to need them, only bow and arrow in your hand. The touch of Pearson’s hand on your arm brought you out of your thoughts. He smiled at you. He too was nervous, but he didn’t show it, trying to calm you down instead, and it surprisingly worked. You felt safer with his touch, his smile calming down your beating heart. You wanted to reach out, touch his hand, but you lost your balance, falling down on your butt.
“There!” one of the O’Driscolls screamed out, pointing to where you were hidden, your fall making enough noise to alert them.
“Shit,” Pearson said before the two of you got up and ran deeper into the woods. You could hear the O’Driscolls not far behind. Pearson took out his revolver and turned back towards them, shooting back at them. He shot one of them in the neck, the poor scum holding onto the wound as the blood shot out of him. You hid behind a rock before peaking out, bow and arrow in your hand. You saw one of them hiding behind a tree, revolver in his hand, and took your shot, your arrow penetrating his chest.
You didn’t see any more of them, so you got up from your hiding spot, looking around and seeing Pearson crouched by a tree, looking around.
You were about to call out his name when you were pushed face down into the ground, your breath knocked out of you. You started fighting back, squirming under the perpetrator. He turned your over, and tried pointing his revolver at your head, but you were wiggling so much that he couldn’t get a straight aim. He hit you in the face, the impact instantly making your ears ring and a taste of blood hit your tongue. He finally pointed his revolver at you, the cold barrel right against your forehead. You closed your eyes, getting ready for the fateful shot, but it didn’t come. You felt the weight of the man fall from you and you opened your eyes. He was lying to the side of you, knife sticking out of his neck, his eyes open and glossy. You looked up, seeing Pearson standing next to you, breathing heavily. He gave you a hand, helping you up to your feet. You both looked around, silent for a moment as you surveyed your surroundings.
“You got something,” Pearson said as he reached out with his hand, wiping off the blood from your nose.
“Thank you.”
“Told you we should’ve brought more people along, it can be dangerous around-“
You didn’t let him finish, sighing in exhaustion.
“My lord, Pearson,” you said, “do you really not understand? I don’t care about the deer, or hunting, I just wanted to spend some time with you.”
Pearson kept quiet for a moment, blinking at you. You could practically hear gears turning in his head.
“Are you… serious?”
“Yes, I am.”
In that moment, Person remembered every occasion where you seemed much nicer to him than you usually were to other camp members. He remembered how often you would spend your time by his wagon, chatting with him while he prepared stew, how you would laugh at his jokes that even he himself thought weren’t really funny.
He never thought that it meant something more. You were a beautiful woman, probably the most beautiful he has ever seen, in both your features and your soul. He never allowed himself to even think you might be interested in him.
Your hand against his cheek pulled him out of his thoughts. You were looking up at him, your eyes asking a silent question as you stood on your toes, bringing your face closer to his.
You could feel his breath on your lips, a mix between thyme or oregano. Slowly, you pressed your lips against his. He didn’t respond for a moment, too shocked to react. You were about to pull away when he placed a hand on your hip, kissing you back. One of your hands reached behind his head, twisting your fingers in his hair, deepening the kiss.
The two of you quickly broke away when you heard hoofbeats approaching. You got your bow and arrow ready, and Pearson took out his knife from the dead O’Driscoll. You were about to shoot when you saw a figure coming out of the bushes, but instantly lowered your bow when you saw that it was Lenny.
“You guys alright,” he said. “We heard shots all the way from camp.” Lenny looked around, seeing the bodies of dead O’Driscolls. “I guess you guys got it all covered,” he said with a smirk.
You looked at Pearson, a smile on your lips. “Yes we did.”
“You guys should go back to camp, Arthur and Charles are on their way, they’ll clean this up.”
You nodded your head, taking Pearson’s hand in yours and walking back to your horses, leaving confused Lenny behind, murmuring to himself “What the…”
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doctors-star · 3 years ago
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u want prompts? i am going to make shit up. how about trying to outrun a horse or piggy back rides for cowboys
“Well,” Finn says cheerfully, patting Johnny’s chest with the flat of his hand as though to reward him for good behaviour. “This may just be our dumbest idea yet.”
“Then we ain’t doin’ half bad,” Johnny objects, shifting Finn’s weight on his back as he carefully picks his way through the grasslands. In the half-dark of the moon and stars, the prairie is as a great aquamarine ocean of shifting blue-green grass that brushes against Finn’s dangling ankles as Johnny walks, and it has the curious edge of unfamiliarity and unreality in the night. Finn ain’t that heavy, and he knows the lands around Danser well enough not to be worried about getting lost, but it’s more than just the occasion that has him pressing hard for home - there’s a distinct undefined weird at play tonight, and he’s keen for familiar sights and sounds to ground him. Bitchin’ at Finn goes some way towards that. “If me carryin’ you through the night is our worst, we got a good ways to fall.”
“Oh, sure, and we’re gonna,” Finn says, still irrepressibly bright. “But we are tryin’ to outrun a horse, so. Although, I guess you’re outrunning the horse - I’m competing with the rider.”
Johnny considers, not for the first time, the merits of dropping Finn, and finds them barely insufficiently compelling. “You’re being the horse next time,” he grunts.
“Never fear,” Finn says smugly and ruffles Johnny’s hair now that he’s too pinned down to wriggle angrily away - Johnny does toss his head crossly, but this just makes him stumble. “Next time we have to run for it on foot in the night on account of how everything’s gone wildly tits up and Ainsel’s accidentally made off with our horses, you can stick your foot in a gopher hole and I’ll carry ya home.”
“Too kind,” Johnny grumbles absently, pausing to make use of a small rise and reacquaint himself with his surroundings. The desert falls off to the south, the trees forming a sharp dark line to the north and east, and somewhere between ‘em, Danser. And, god willing, Ainsel and Tommy with the horses, Will with his bag of bandages, and Noel with some helpful words of severe disapproval. No matter what Johnny had said about having yet further to fall - this displayed a level of ineptitude Noel was not, exactly, going to love.
“We’ll have more cover in the trees,” Finn points out rather more seriously.
Johnny makes a face. “Too dark - ain’t no sense in us both busting our ankles and falling in the creek in the dark.”
Finn pauses, like he’s weighing the truth of that against how funny he reckons it’d be, but concedes the point. “Desert’s a bit exposed, though,” he says, sounding resigned.
“Yeah,” Johnny says slowly, and not without confusion, as he continues down the rise and on through the grass. He shifts Finn on his back again - all right, maybe Finn is kinda heavy, or at least, his weight is wearing on Johnny - and there’s a rustle in the grass on the tree-side of them. Johnny doesn’t figure it’s much they gotta worry about: coney maybe, or gopher come out to ogle the humans outta their natural habitat - but Finn flinches away from it like he reckons the gophers have all gone rabid, or something. “I figured we’d keep going in the prairie grass ‘til we hit town.”
Finn fidgets awkwardly and nearly sends them both arse over elbow until Johnny works a hand free and smacks him quickly on the thigh. “I just-” he begins awkwardly, giving off the impression that it is only a great deal of effort that is keeping him from fidgeting. “I don’t much wanna be on prairie lands after dark, y’know.”
Johnny does not know. “I don’t wanna be out here either,” he says, bewildered. “That’s why we’re heading on home.”
“Oh, sure,” Finn says, like he’d kinda forgotten that they were desperadoes on the run, “but - I don’t wanna be here, specifically. Desert’d be fine.”
“‘Cept how we’d be shot for morons without any cover,” Johnny points out, not very gently. He twists his head awkwardly and manages a good squint at Finn’s cheekbone and a crick in his neck. “What’s eatin’ you, huh? You ain’t never gone off the prairie before.”
“Hayfever?” Finn tries.
“So help me God, Finn, I’ll drop you.”
Finn clings a little tighter, ankle flinching away from the floor. “Awright, jeez. It’s just-” he sighs massively, breath gusting down Johnny’s neck like the touch of a ghost and making him shiver. “I don’t wanna come across the Coyote.”
Johnny shifts Finn’s weight again and ignores the twinge in his back, pressing on along his straight line across the grasses to the faint lights of the town. “Coyotes aren’t that dangerous. Will says-”
“Not coyotes,” Finn corrects, “the Coyote. He, uh, might not want me hanging around long after dark. Not my patch,” he says, as if that’s cleared everything up.
Johnny raises an eyebrow. “You’ve got a feud with a coyote that’s landed you a curfew?”
“No-o,” Finn says carefully. “It’s not that bad. But. We might be better off in the desert.”
“Did you hear me about the gettin’ shot thing?” Johnny snaps, a bit louder than he had meant to. And then he stumbles forward a few more steps, emerging into a bizarre clearing of grass which he definitely had not seen from the little hill, or even one step before landing in it - this perfect circle of mown-short grass. Sitting in the middle of it is a coyote.
It tilts its head on one side.
Finn offers a sharp, nervous grin. “Technically,” he says to the coyote, “I am not on the prairie. So.”
The coyote does not so much as blink.
Johnny reckons he might be in over his head more than a little. “Desert, you said,” he declares firmly and begins trekking south.
Finn does not relax. There is a rustling noise behind them - quite a lot like the sound of a coyote following them through the grass. Johnny attempts to pick up the pace.
“I am sorry about this,” Finn says conversationally. “But can you go any faster.”
“Nope,” Johnny puffs. “You’re fuckin’ heavy.” He manages a slight increase in speed, which the coyote matches easily, and nearly trips over his own feet for it. This had not been so difficult when they’d started out - Finn seems to be getting heavier by the second, like every inch of him is slowly turning to lead.
It reminds him of a warm day when he wasn’t quite grown, but wasn’t a boy either - there had been an accident, and his Uncle Jack had died, and he was tall enough to be one of the men carrying the coffin. If, and only if, he could contain his excitement at being considered one of the men, said his mother, for long enough to behave decently, jeez. So he’d wrangled himself into solemn calm and taken up his place behind his father, and lifted when told to - and he remembers thinking, dang, why’d we need six men? Uncle Jack isn’t heavy at all. Until they’d started walking, and then Johnny had been glad of the others - but still, not too bad. But they’d kept walking. And kept walking. And by the time they’d reached the church his arms were shaking and his breath came fast and he couldn’t put Uncle Jack down fast enough, the corpse’s limbs all slowly petrifying and dragging them all down, inexorably, inevitably, into the dust.
Finn is heavy as a dead body on his back.
It is suddenly less difficult to push those last yards and hurl them both over the boundary, into the dirt. Finn is thrown from his back and rolls neatly; instinctively he tries to stand, and crumples into a small ball of hissed curses as his ankle makes itself known. Johnny himself manages to control his stumble to his knees and scramble backwards away from the grassland. He watches a black nose press through the leaves, white-glowing eyes the only thing visible in the shadows; after a considering sniff, all melt away. There is no sound, but he no longer feels eyes on him - and then there is a barking call far to the north, and the pound of hoofbeats drumming through the earth under his palms heading for the disruption, and then nothing.
He turns, very politely and calmly, to Finn. “What the fuck was that?”
Finn waves a hand dismissively. “You don’t want to know. But he’ll probably hold ‘em off for a while, as long as it’s fun to do it - we should keep goin’, though.”
“No no no-” Johnny says firmly, holding up one hand. “This - weird shit has gone on long enough. What in the god damn hell just happened to us?”
Finn narrows his eyes and tilts his head to squint thoughtfully at Johnny. In the darkness, sprawled out at the foot of the desert with limbs in every direction and propped up on his elbows, he nonetheless looks strangely alert - as though he might at any moment leap onto his twisted ankle and outdance the devil to keep them both safe. For all that the desert leaves them exposed, Johnny feels safer here than he did in amongst the prairie grasses, the same way a man feels safe from wolves behind a stock fence, for all that wolves can jump. This space has been demarcated, somehow, and called Finn’s, and Johnny don’t reckon anything else is going to come in and mess with that.
“Alright,” Finn says eventually, still with that considering tilt. “This town ain’t what you think it is. There are more things in heaven and earth, Johnny McPherson, than you ever dreamed of. There’s magic in these hills, in them stars above, in you - like as not - and definitely in me. Ainsel pretty much isn’t anything else. Sold his soul to them devilish fae.” Finn spreads his palms to the night and Johnny feels it pressing close like a crowd of people, wrapping him in the tangible darkness of a shroud, the cloying earth of the grave. “But this night - in this place - is mine. And nothing out here can hold me,” he says, eyes fixed on Johnny and black-dark in the moonlight, “not on my lands. No-one can touch me; nothing can stop me in any way that matters. Why should I fear the grave, Jonathan Elmer McPherson, when I’ve known it already? I felt its touch and it could not keep me. I am master of Danser Town, and I am chained to it like a dog. A dead-and-alive dog, black as shadow an’ the world beyond the end, and there ain’t none as can move you on without my say so. You, Jonathan Elmer McPherson,” Finn says, with a grin as cold as hard iron and as pointedly canine as a wolf - it sets Johnny’s teeth on edge, makes him shiver under his skin, makes the soles of his feet tingle with the urge to run like he’s being stabbed by a hundred tiny needles but he can’t move can’t run can’t look away from Finn’s terrible black eyes and shining silvered teeth - “you are my little lamb.” Finn raises an eyebrow in amusement. “And I will look after you.”
The desert is horribly silent for a moment. Johnny’s toes dig into the dirt. A breeze strokes through the hair at the back of his neck, and he shivers
“Well, you ain’t gotta pull my leg,” Johnny grouses, indignant more than cross. “I was only askin’.”
Finn snorts inelegantly and throws his head back to howl with laughter at the moon. Johnny feels around for a pebble and bounces it neatly off Finn’s drawn-up knee.
“An’ how come you know my middle name, anyhow?” he says, pushing up onto his feet to glower down at Finn as he snorts and tries to get his breath back under his control. “You been writin’ to my momma, or what?”
Finn unfurls, still wheezing slightly, and Johnny hauls him up onto his good foot. “Aw, never you change,” he tells Johnny fondly. “Anyhow, someone’s gotta know what gets written on your headstone. Gee up.”
“Oughtta leave you here,” Johnny grumbles, bracing for Finn’s weight. The man ain’t quite so heavy now - or not yet - Johnny reckons maybe he’d just needed a rest. They ought to make Danser, no trouble. “I thought I was a lamb, not a horse.”
“Nah,” Finn says with confidence. “I’m the lamb. You can be Saint John the Baptist.”
“I ain’t got the patience.”
“You out-walked a horse with marvellous patience,” Finn points out cheerfully. “And, as Saint John, you get to dunk me in a river and claim it was for the good of my soul.”
“Oh.” Johnny tilts his head and shift’s Finn’s weight on his back as they set out once more for home. “Well, when you put it like that.”
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kiribaku-queen · 4 years ago
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Home [8/10]
Pairing: Bakugou x reader, Kirishima x reader
Fluff, angst, werewolf!au
Word count: 3.5k
A/N: Let me know if you want to be added to the taglist! Let me know what your predictions are for the end! 
Summary: Being called the beauty of the clan isn’t as nice as it sounds. The beauty of the clan is supposed to exude confidence, power, and well, beauty. You were quite the opposite, only possessing one of those traits. Yet, the older you got, the more you fit into the role you were given. After your brother and all the boys of age come back from their training period, it was time to find a mate. But who will steal your heart? Is it Bakugou, the rising leader of the pack, or is it Kirishima, the personal guard and the strongest in the pack?
[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10]
17 year old Kirishima was ecstatic. It was his first time exploring the clan’s boarders. Usually, teenagers aren’t allowed to help patrol so early, but since Bakugou was going to be the next alpha and Kirishima was supposed to be his personal guard, this was an exception. Bakugou didn’t show it, but everyone could tell that he was just as excited. As they were all in their wolf forms, Kirishima couldn’t help but show how excited he was by his wagging tail. Even if he wanted to stop, he couldn’t. It was annoying Bakugou because his tail kept hitting him so he had to physically hold his tail down with his paw.
Patrolling the boarders was fascinating to Kirishima. He learned where not to cross and what parts were their territory. He learned different scents to look out for and what to do if you do see something. But going over boundaries once wasn’t enough for him. No, he needed to do multiple rounds so that the trail is embedded within his memory. So, he snuck out in the middle of the night to go over the tracks again.
The grass felt good under his paws, the cool, night breeze tickled his muzzle, and the view of the whole clan light up in his eyes. Now he could get used to this every day. All he had to do was train for two years, get a ripped body for all the ladies and he would live his dream out. Kirishima was so immersed and excited that he forgot all the basics that he learned earlier that day. He didn’t even notice or smell two others that were watching and following his every move. While he was too distracted by everything around him, the two mysterious strangers who were way bigger and way stronger than him attacked him from behind. They pounded on his back, making Kirishima unable to react properly. It all happened to fast. By the time that he knew what was going on, it was already too late. They were taking him far… far away. Farther way from the town. Far enough where the lights started to dim out and can no longer be seen. Far enough where even if he screamed, no one could hear him.
He was doomed, he thought. They were either going to cut him up and kill him, even worse eat him! Or they were going to sell his body to a slave trade and his friends and family would never see him again. The two strangers tied his hands behind his back and put a muzzle around his mouth to prevent him from attacking. Not like he could do much to them anyway. He didn’t know how to fight yet. At least not for serious occasions. There was a feeling of nervousness in the pit of his stomach that just would not go away. He was getting anxious and fidgety not knowing what was going to him. The strangers weren’t even talking. Just silently dragging him to wherever they wanted.
It wasn’t longer until Kirishima could spot lights up ahead. Hope started glimmer in his eyes. Perfect, they weren’t taking him somewhere shady or taking him somewhere to kill him. At least, he hoped. They were entering another clan. This clan had a whole different vibe compared to his. His clan was always bright with lights. No matter what time of day it was, buzz and chatter was always happening. Everyone was so friendly with one another and it was almost like the clan never sleeps. This clan was like the opposite. Although there were lights lit, it was very dim. No one was out and about. The aesthetics of this clan was more sophisticated than what he was used to back home. The strangers took him inside this gigantic building, bigger than Bakugou’s house. But how could anything be bigger than Bakugou’s house? His house was the biggest in all of the clan? And to know that someone here has an even more massive house, they must mean business.
The strangers took him to this room and pushed him forward, causing him to fall straight on his face. He was going to feel that in the morning. He got up and rested on his knees. He looked up to see a girl, probably around his age, sitting on a throne-like chair with her legs crossed and a bored expression on her face.
“Kirishima Eijirou?” she questioned. Kirishima cocked his eyebrow in confusion. She knew his name? How? He had never met or seen her in his life. He couldn’t speak due to the muzzle that was still on him. Without saying another word, the girl on the chair gestured with her finger to the two strangers. They went up to him and set him on his feet, taking the muzzle away but still keeping his hands tied together.
“Do I know you?” Kirishima questioned back once the muzzle was taken off.
“No,” she replied curtly. “But I know you. Upcoming personal guard of Bakugou Katsuki, son of the current alpha of your clan.” Shit, how did she know all of that? Before anything could makes sense, she continued. “I have a proposition for you.” Oh, he knows where this is going.
“I will not kill my best friend!” Kirishima screamed determinedly. He’s seen this in movies. The villain kidnaps the one closest to the main character and forces them to kill them or else they would do something horrible like kill their family, torture them or take their loved one! How pitiful. It was a shame that he had to go like this.
“Cute. But that’s not why I called you here,” Kirishima looked even more confused. And not gonna lie, a bit disappointed. Look like he wasn’t going to be a part of a real life movie. “I’m going to marry Bakugou Katsuki and I need your help.”
“Uh sorry to burst your bubble but Katsuki is taken.”
“Hmm,” the girl faked a pout and went to dig for something. She took out a picture of you and then Kirishima was on high alert. “I’m assuming by this? (y/n), was it? Yeah she’s going to get in the way, but that’s where you come into play. And it’s as easy as pie, make her fall in love with you.”  When she showed him that picture of you, panic and anger started to rise in him. But when she told him to make you fall in love with him, then he got flustered. What kind of demand was that? Sure he had a bit of a crush on you for like a 12 years but never in a million years would he backstab his friend to get the girl… right? And even if he did, you were head over heels over Bakugou so he didn’t even have a chance. She got sense how hesitant Kiri was by the slow response which ticker her off. Rolling her eyes, she threw your picture aimlessly on the floor.
“Well if you don’t, I’ll just have to kill her myself,” she smirked when Kirishima finally reacted in pure rage. He leaned forward but was pulled back by the same people who kidnapped him and served him a few punches to the face to calm him down.
“You’re going to kill her all for some guy?!” Kirishima yelled even though he was in pain. She laughed out loud, obnoxiously and over the top.
“Aw you don’t get the big picture. See, when I marry Bakugou, I’ll be the alpha’s wife and our two clans will be united. And all I have to do is get rid of him and I will dominate both clans and have all the power!” The brown haired girl laughed and smiled at her own, devilish plan. So no matter what he chose, one of the two people he cares most about is going to get hurt. “Help me and you’ll also get the girl. It’s a win-win situation really. But if you don’t, your precious little love will be dead by sunrise.” she made it seem like it was an obvious choice. She didn’t him much time to answer because she was already beckoning for those two guys to do the deed.
“Wait!” he managed to get out. This was all too much for him. All he wanted was to do his job to protect his people by going over the clan’s boarder but now he had to chose who he wanted to protect: the girl he likes or his best friend. Bros before hoes but it seemed like your life was in more serious danger at the moment. “Fuck…FUCK! Fine, I’ll help you. Just, don’t touch (y/n) alright?” he said, defeated. She smirked, having known she won and her plan was coming along.
“I knew you’d see it my way.”
 And so from then on, Kirishima worked on trying to make you fall in love with him. He knew you loved eye candy, no matter who it was. So throughout those two years off at training, he tried his hardest to have the best body at camp. It was easy to work out with a goal in mind but hard because he had to compete with Bakugou. Everything he did, he matched that or tried to one up him. And it never got noticed because Bakugou loved a challenge. It was also common for the two to do everything little thing together cause they were so close. Shredded body? Step 1 complete. Step 2? In progress.
If Kirishima wasn’t in this dilemma, he would still admire you from afar while Bakugou has you all for himself. Of course, he wouldn’t miss the opportunity to flirt with you once in a while, but that’s as far as he could go. And if you fell for him on the way, then a plus for him. He wouldn’t intentionally try to steal you away from his best friend. Now this was a different story. Although his feelings towards you never changed, his intentions did. It didn’t feel right at first. But the more and more he purposely tried to make you fall in love with him, the more he wanted.
When you were crying when you first heard about the engagement to Uraraka, he comforted you like a friend. And only as a friend because he didn’t know how to flirt with someone who he had a major crush on. But he knew he couldn’t chicken out because if you were still in the picture by the time Uraraka and Bakugou were to be wed, then she would come after you herself. That’s the last thing that he wants. So he got more bold with his actions.
The first time, it was the promise. He pulled you in for a kiss to seal the deal, but backed off. Push and pull and they will always come running back to you. His heart jumped when you blushed at his actions. Did you really just get flustered with him? His confidence level surged. But he was going to go step by step to not scare you off. So he spent as much time as possible with you. He followed you around and did things together so that you could be comfortable around him. He would touch you here and there so that you could get comfortable with his touch. He sat on your bed and did your laundry so that he could leave his scent wherever you are. When he saw that your reactions were going to become a regular thing, he bumped it up a notch. Staring at you until you noticed and smirking when he got caught. He was told that really got the ladies. He tried it and what do you know? It worked like a charm. You stared at him right back. He got lucky that day too because he had the perfect opportunity for a kiss. He leaned in to kiss you because he knew that you would get flustered. But god, how he really wanted to kiss you. But he had to remember the push and pull method.
As days go on, he was falling for you deeper and deeper each day. Honestly, forget about the deal that he had with Uraraka. It really looked like you were forgetting Bakugou and started having feelings for him. Even if he was treated as a rebound, if it turns something pure then it would have been worth it. Hell, even if there was no deal, he would try to protect you at all costs. At the market, it was pure coincidence that they were there at the same time as Bakugou and Uraraka. Kirishima knew that Uraraka smelled them a mile away and wanted to take this opportunity to mess with them. But he avoided that to protect you.
When he goes to kiss you again in the kitchen, he wasn’t going to take advantage of you like that. He wanted to do this properly and wanted for you to make the first move. Because if his suspicions were right and you were falling for him, you kissing him first would confirm it. He get up boundaries and restrained himself. He was going to make you fall in love with him, with or without this mission.
 Back to present day, Kirishima has to sneak out once a week to meet with Uraraka to give her updates on his progress. It was dangerous and risky but if he didn’t comply, Uraraka always manages to threaten something. Not only did he almost get caught a few times by you sneaking out in the middle of the night, but Uraraka wanted to meet at Bakugou’s place. She was too lazy to meet him anywhere else and whatever she says, goes.
“Hes so easy to toy with,” Uraraka is satisfied that her plan is almost complete. “Tell me, have you made her fall in love with you yet?” she raises an eyebrow but Kirishima stands there tall, arms crossed behind his back.
“No,” very blunt and straight to the point. Uraraka knows that Kirishima isn’t very fond of her but who cares? He was hired for a job not to be friends.
“Still? I’ve given you enough time. How much long do I have to wait?” she massaged her temple with one hand. She was running out of patience and was getting more irritable by the second. “Where do you two stand?”
“Just a… just a kiss.” He was shy to admit it to someone who wanted to kill you.
“Well, speed up the process! Our time is coming to a close and you know what will happen if this wedding fails, right?” Kirishima gulped because he knew what was ahead of him if this mission didn’t succeed. You could die. Or Bakugou. Even worse, both of you could. Hell, he could too if he didn’t play his cards right. But it started to feel wrong. He was feeling guilty about forcing you to love him when he knew you were in a difficult position. But it was too late to back out now because they were already too far in.
It was hard sleeping that night. You were confused. You thought you were doing so well without him but then he shows up in your life again, telling you how much he missed you and that he still wanted you? Dumb feelings. You don’t even know what you want anymore.
You woke up feeling groggy. Even if you went to bed early, your mind was up all night. Thinking about the past, the future. What could have been. What would have been if you two were still together. But it broke your heart every time because you knew you couldn’t be together. He was engaged. You would just get in the way of his success and his bright future. There wasn’t a better match for him. Sighing, you finally got out of bed and the first thing in sight was a red rose sitting on your windowsill. You were surprised and all thoughts of Bakugou were gone. Your mind drifted off to Kirishima and the kiss you shared. Did he do this? How sweet of him. You blushed and pulled the rose to your nose to give it a good sniff. A smile grew even wider on your lips. How did he know that roses were your favorite? This didn’t just happen once. It happened day after day after day after day. Every day you woke up in the morning, a new rose would be sitting there, waiting for you. And every morning you would gush at how cute Kirishima was for doing such a romantic gesture. Day after day, your collection of roses was just getting bigger. You didn’t confront Kirishima about it because you knew he would get shy. And you were afraid that if you did, he would stop doing. So you secretly enjoyed it while going about your day like usual.
Kirishima was getting bolder ever since you gave him that little kiss on the lips. He was pulling you in closer and being more handsy but you didn’t stop him this time. You enjoyed it and actually flirted back. He was giving you more attention that ever but at the same time, he looked distracted. Like something was eating at him. But you were sure that was just your imagination. It’s been a long time since you felt comfortable around someone that made you feel like you were on top of the world. Like you were the only person who mattered. And it felt really good to be wanted again.
Your dad needed help with chopping up fire wood so of course, manly Kirishima comes in hand. You were setting out plates for dinner while your mother was finishing up the food and Sero was setting out napkins and utensils. Standing side by side with your brother while setting up the table, Sero nudges you with his elbow.
“Hey,” he whispers. Weird, why was he whispering. It’s only us that are listening. What did he not want people to hear? Pushing your initial thoughts out of the way, you elbowed him back because damn, his elbow poking hurts because of his stupid quirk. “Hey (y/n)! Are you and Kiri… you know,” he was making weird hand motions and you slapped him on the shoulder.
“Stop that. If you’re asking if we are together, no we’re not.” You firmly state.
“Yeah? Well do you like him?”
“Eh? Uhm… Yes? No? Maybe?” you side eyed your brother and he was just nodding his head slowly, a small frown could be seen on his face. “What’s with that look?” you asked, little concerned about that face he was giving you.
“Nothing,” he simply says but you know that’s a lie.
“No, what is it? Why are you looking at me like that?” Sero sighs and thinks a bit before speaking.
“Just… make sure you are 100% of your feelings for him before you guys are official, kay?” You tilt your head to the side, confused. “I don’t know! I just don’t want you using Kirishima as a rebound, you know?” he continues.
“I am not using him as a rebound,” you tried to defend yourself but Sero thinks otherwise.
“Not intentionally. But from what I see right now, you kind of are,” he admits and goes to put food on the table. Before you could retaliate or even think about it, Kirishima and your dad burst through the door ready to be fed.
“Who’s ready for food because I’m starving!” your dad erupts, kissing your mom on the cheek and sitting down at the table. Kirishima follows suit, glancing up at you, giving you a charming smile. You smile back. You weren’t using him as a rebound, were you?
 Bakugou made it his mission to get you back. After that night, he knew he approached it the wrong way. He was too forward and too aggressive. You didn’t like that. You like romantic things. Things that are seen in TV shows and movies. He was going to do just that.
Every morning, he would tag along with the morning pack to patrol boarders because that would give him an excuse to visit you. But from afar. On the way, he would pick up a rose and lay it on your windowsill while you were still sleeping. Then he would wait in a nearby tree, where he could see your room clearly, to see your reaction when you woke up to a rose waiting for you. He knew he scored the jackpot with that move because the way your face brightened up at the sight of something so romantic told all. So he continued to do that everyday until you physically couldn’t hold any more roses in your room. He was determined to make you his again and do anything to make you gain his trust again.
Tagged: @goodpop9 @superblyspeedydragon @tspice283 @marvelobsessedteen @rosetheshapeshifter @cabbagesquadfam @bnha-iamhere @theartsydoodler @taehyungbbe
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stereksecretsanta · 4 years ago
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Merry Christmas, ravenclawkward-art!
For @ravenclawkward-art. Happy Christmas! I hope you enjoy!!
Read On AO3
*****
Derek catches the first hint of the scent as he fits the key into the lock. Traces of vanilla, cinnamon and the earthy tang of petrichor hang in the air— it’s a scent he’s become thoroughly acquainted with over the last few years.
He pushes open the front door, prompting the scent to waft through and envelope him like a warm hug.
“How did you get in?” He asks, not even looking at the figure sprawled across his couch. Moving through to the kitchen, Derek sets down his paper bag of groceries. “Actually, how did you get here?” He asks, turning. He hadn’t seen the Jeep on his way in.
“Oh, you know.” Stiles wanders in after him, hopping up onto the counter beside the fridge. “Magic.” He punctuates the word with jazz hands.
Derek huffs fondly, rolling his eyes and reaching for the milk. “Don’t you have friends you can annoy instead?”
“Good try big guy,” Stiles teases, helping Derek by handing him things out of the bag. “I’m here for the pack meeting.”
“You’re three hours early.”
“I’m super punctual.” Stiles swings his legs, knocking his heels into the cupboard door beneath him. “Oh.” His legs still suddenly and he drops down from the counter. “You got mail.” He disappears out of the room for a minute, returning with a letter, still talking. “Like, who even sends mail anymore? I swear werewolves live in the stone ages.”
Derek snatches the envelope Stiles is waving in his face, tearing it open to scan the letter inside.
“It’s the Robertson pack.”
“The who pack?” Stiles peers at the letter over Derek’s shoulder, trying to read along. Saving him the effort, Derek passes it over when he’s done.
“The Robertson pack took me and Laura in after the fire,” Derek explains, moving to lean against the bench. “Their Alpha, Sarah, knew my mom when they were young.”
“Why didn’t you stay with them?” Stiles asks, folding up the letter. “You and Laura lived in New York on your own. Wouldn’t it have been better to stay with another pack?”
Derek shakes his head. “I wanted to, but- Laura had just become Alpha. It made things difficult. So, we left. We kept in touch for a while, but after coming back here, after Laura’s death and everything that happened with Peter… we just lost touch.”
“Until now?” Stiles hands back the letter. “They’re asking permission to enter the territory.”
Nodding, Derek takes it, unfolding and refolding the paper carefully in his hands. “I’ve never hosted another pack before. Mom did it a couple of times.”
“What does it involve?”
“It varies depending on the pack. We would offer them a place to stay and a meal. The Robertson are old family friends so it will probably be a little more informal. More like… what does your dad do when extended family comes around?”
“He hides the good whiskey,” Stiles jokes. “But seriously, this is awesome and, as your emissary, I can help you plan.”
With a roll of his eyes, Derek turns from the kitchen. “You’re not my emissary.”
“Why not?” Stiles whines, trailing behind the werewolf. “I’d be so good at it.”
“At planning or being my emissary?”
“Por qué no los dos?” Stiles says it with an exaggerated wink, dropping back down onto the couch.
***
By six pm the rest of the pack have arrived, and the house is full of loud voices, lively conversation and laughter.
It’s taken a long time to reach this point—a point where the pack trust Derek as their Alpha, and each other. A point where a pack get together feels like… family.
Looking around the room, something swells in Derek’s chest at the sight of Kira and her swollen belly. Sandwiched between Stiles and Erica on the couch, she’s guiding their hands to feel the baby’s kicking.
His gaze flicks across Stiles, laughing at something Erica says, his head thrown back exposing the long line of his neck. A lot of this was Stiles’ doing.
Stiles was the one who had instituted pack night. He’d called it compulsory fun night. He’d begged and bullied every single one of them into gathering at the site of the old Hale house and had turned up with Lacrosse sticks and movies. He’d forced Derek to use his words when he was feeling frustrated and encouraged communication with the pack.
Derek had wanted nothing more than for the pack to bond together properly, so he had done as Stiles told him and in doing so, he’d built his confidence as an Alpha.
Stiles looks up suddenly, catching Derek’s eye from across the room, and winks, before turning back to Kira without even breaking from their conversation. Derek feels his face flush and ducks back into the kitchen to finish cooking.
This was something Derek had initiated. Everyone takes a turn providing for the pack, whether it’s a home cooked meal or take out.
Derek’s made tacos. He sets out meat and salsa and guacamole on the counter so that everyone can serve themselves and starts building his own before the literal wolves descend.
It becomes a free for all after that. Derek snatches his plate and his beer and escapes to the living room. The rest of the pack follow suit, finding places to perch and eat. The house has a more formal dining room, but they really only eat in there on special occasions, preferring to sprawl out in front of the TV.
“Hey.” Stiles drops down onto the couch beside Derek, almost toppling his tacos off his plate. He rescues one, jamming it onto his mouth and crunching down. “So, I spoke to Lydia and she said she can help with planning this pack get together thing.” He continues to talk around another mouthful of food, and it should be gross, but it’s just so Stiles.
“Uh huh.” Derek rescues Stiles’ beer before he sends it flying. “So, if Lydia’s in charge I guess should I be pulling out the tux?”
With a snort, Stiles retrieves his drink and drains the bottle. “You own a tuxedo? I don’t believe you have ever worn a suit in your life.”
“Hey, I have hidden depths,” Derek counters. “I could own a tux.”
“I’d like to see that.” Stiles smirks and brings his beer back to his lips, seemingly forgetting that the bottle is empty. He lowers it quickly, face flushing—though, maybe that’s just the glow from the TV.  Derek tries not to dwell on it.
Sometime around midnight the pack start to either filter out or upstairs. The house is big enough for everyone to stay over if need be, Derek made sure of that when building it, but he’s the only one who lives there full time—most of the pack have houses closer to town.
Derek doesn’t mind that they’re all spread out. There’s always someone over at any given time—usually Stiles. Speaking of, Stiles is sprawled out on the couch, snoring gently.
“Hey.” Derek wakes the spark gently. “You want to crash here?”
Stiles stretches on the couch, his shirt riding up to reveal the pale skin of his stomach. “Wha’ time izzit?”
“Almost one.”
“Oh.” Stiles sits up slowly, scrubbing a hand down his face. “Yeah, thanks.” He shuffles off towards the downstairs bathroom and Derek finishes unpacking the dishwasher. “Can I borrow a sweater?” He asks when he returns, his hands wrapped around his body to ward off the chill in the air. It’s two weeks until Christmas and winter has finally settled across Beacon Hills.
“Sure, come on.” Derek puts the last plate away and leaves the kitchen, heading to his bedroom. Stiles follows him upstairs, taking a seat on the edge of the bed while Derek digs through his drawers. “Here.”
Stiles takes the sweater and shrugs it on over his head. They’re the same height, but Stiles is not as broad as Derek so the sweater hangs, just a little, on his lanky frame. He paws his hands up in the sleeves and flops back onto the bed.
“I’m so tired,” he whines.
“Then go find your bed,” Derek tells him, nudging Stiles to move. “This one’s mine.”
“Can’t move. Too sleepy.”
“Stiles.”
“Can’t hear you. I’m already asleep.”
With a quick shove, Derek sends Stiles tumbling to the floor.
“Rude.” Picking himself up off the floor, Stiles sticks his tongue out at Derek and trots off to his room.
***
Three days later the whole pack gathers at Derek’s house.
Lydia, as always, has outdone herself with the spread. There is enough food and meat to feed a small army and she has the wolves all rotating through shifts on the spit. The rest of the pack are put to work moving tables and chairs out onto the wide green lawn.
Up on the porch, Isaac has set up speakers to play music while they work.
“One of the wards just triggered,” Stiles says, grinning as he sets down his armload of plates and cutlery. “Must be them.”
Twenty minutes later Boyd is the first to cock his head to catch the faint rumble of a car turning on to the winding track that leads up to the house. By the time their visitors pull up onto the grass, everyone (bar Scott and Jackson on spit duty) is gathered around on the porch.
“Alpha Robertson,” Derek greets walking up to the newly arrived group.
“Alpha Hale.” The werewolf’s mouth ticks up in a smile. “It’s good to see you Derek. It’s been too long.”
“It has.” Derek returns the smile. “Sarah, this is my pack,” he says, turning and gesturing to the curious faces lining the porch. He almost knocks his hands into Stiles, who is hovering a half-step behind him.”
“Stiles Stilinski,” he says pushing forward, arm outstretched in greeting. “Pack emissary.”
Derek barely restrains rolling his eyes in front of the older Alpha, turning to hide his face under the guise of beckoning forward the rest of the pack. After they’ve made their introductions, Sarah introduces the pack to her husband and three children, Alex, Mark and Lilah.
“So, what brings you out our way?” Stiles asks as they all walk back up to the house.
“My eldest joined the Thomson pack earlier this year,” Sarah explains. “We’re heading up to visit for Christmas.”
“She’s gonna have a baby,” the youngest kid, Alex, offers shyly from behind his mom.
“Oh, that’s cool,” Stiles tells him. “So, you’re going to be an uncle. I’m going to be an uncle soon too,” he says with a conspiratorial whisper and a head nod towards Kira.
“We’re not much for flying,” Sarah continues, “and we thought the trip might be a good opportunity to visit.”
Nodding, Stiles leads the way into the house. “Derek said you were friends with Talia.”
“We’re actually related.” Sarah grins when Stiles skids to an abrupt halt. “Third cousins?”
“Through Dad,” Derek confirms.
“What?” Stiles turns to Derek. “But you said- I thought your dad was human.”
“He was.”
“Huh. Cool.”
They show their visitors to their guest rooms so they can put down their bags and then take them outside.
Dinner is a rowdy affair.
There are fifteen of them crowded around the two long tables that have been dragged onto the grass. Once the younger members of the Robertson pack, namely Alex and his older brother Mark, get over the shyness of meeting strangers it’s every man for himself as the food is laid out.
“So, who’s manning the fort back home?” Stiles asks, leaning across Derek to talk to Sarah.
“Stiles,” Derek warns, nudging the human away from his plate. “You can’t ask that, it’s not polite.”
“Oh, sorry,” Stiles says, looking genuinely apologetic, but then he barrels on anyway. “I didn’t mean anything by it, it’s just this guy here-” he pauses to bat at Derek’s shoulder “-keeps telling me we can’t leave the territory unguarded whenever I try to suggest getting away for a few days.”
“It’s fine,” Sarah is quick to reassure them. “My sister is looking after things while we’re gone. And Derek’s right when it comes to new packs.”
Derek raises his eyebrows at Stiles as if to say, ‘I told you so’ and ducks another playful swipe.
“But you’ve been Alpha for what, seven years now?” She asks. “And Beacon Hills has been Hale Pack territory for, I don’t know, generations, not to mention those wards we passed on the way in.” Sarah points to Stiles. “That was you?”
Stiles nods quickly. “Yep.” He accepts the bowl of baked potatoes from Boyd. “So, what you’re saying is that Derek needs to get out more? ‘Cos that’s what I’m hearing.”
“I’m saying that it’s okay to take a break occasionally.”
Stiles laughs, his knees knocking into Derek’s under the table. “Derek doesn’t know the meaning of the word.”
***
The full moon falls two days after the Robertson’s arrive and Derek invites Sarah and her family to run with them through the preserve.
It’s a Saturday and most of the pack have taken the weekend off, so they spend the day at the pack house, working off the restless energy that comes with a full moon. As the afternoon rolls on the games get rougher and someone digs out the lacrosse sticks.
“Count me in.” Stiles jogs over with Scott and Isaac and snatches up one of the sticks, twirling it in his hands.
“Is that a good idea?” Mark, the middle Robertson child, asks. “A human playing against werewolves?” He looks to Derek, tone dripping with cocky arrogance but Derek just shrugs.
“Oh, to have the confidence of a fifteen-year-old werewolf,” Stiles sighs, scooping up the ball. “I could have used some of that as a teenager.”
“Could have used some of the athleticism too,” Derek quips, knocking Stiles with one shoulder.
“Oh, you can shove it,” Stiles grins stumbling away, still in possession of the ball. “You playing or what kid?”
“Fine,” the young werewolf shrugs. “It’s your funeral.” His eyes flash gold.
“That’s not that impressive,” Stiles tells him. “I can do it too.”
“But you’re not a wolf.”
“So many doubters today.” He closes his eyes for a moment and when they re-open they shine bright with the power of his spark.
“You going to play or just keep showing off?” Boyd asks.
Stiles grins, playfully baring his teeth “Oh, it’s on.”
The moon finally breaches the horizon just after four pm. It’s not yet dark enough to go running through the preserve, but some wolves start shedding clothes and skin, sprouting fur as they shift from two legs to four.
The lacrosse game is forgotten in favour of chasing each other around the clearing.
“Don’t even think about it,” Stiles warns, backing away from Derek. “We will not be playing chase the human tonight.”
Grinning wolfishly, smile wide and full of teeth, Derek makes a big show of slowing kicking his sneakers off.
“I’m not kidding Der, I will end you.”
“Better start running,” Derek teases, pulling his shirt up over his head. From the corner of his eye, he can see the rest of his pack watching with various shades of amusement.
“Fuck you buddy.”
Derek can tell there’s no heat behind the words and Stiles is trying to hold back a smile. He’s bolting off around the house before Derek’s shirt has even hit the ground.
“Go on then,” Stiles says once it’s finally dark enough to enter the preserve. “Pick on Stiles time is over; I need a nap after that.” He sprawls out on his back in the grass, staring up at the sky. It’s a clear, cool night.
Derek stands over him, nosing at Stiles’ hair then swinging his head towards the trees. He takes a half step, waiting for Stiles to follow.
“I think I’m going to hang here with the women and children,” Stiles says, craning his head back. “I’ll just slow you down. You have fun though.” He reaches up to tangle his fingers in Derek’s coarse fur before giving him a gentle shove towards the forest. “Go on.”
With one final glance over his shoulder, Derek trots off into the trees.
***
By the time they return to the house, everyone is exhausted. Derek immediately searches out Stiles as he re-enters the clearing. He’s easy enough to find, sitting by the dying bonfire chatting to Kira. The red glowing embers illuminate their faces and cast deep shadows across the lawn.
Derek pads over to them, drawn to Stiles like a moth to flame, flopping down in the grass beside Stiles.
“Good run?” Stiles asks, slumping back so that he’s half leaning against Derek. The werewolf lets out a soft contented rumble. “Mm, glad to hear it,” Stiles mumbles around a yawn.
“Ugh, it’s late,” Kira complains from where she sits. “I think I’m going to call it a night. I’ll see you boys tomorrow.” She stands with Scott’s help, and waddles back towards the house.
“I think I’m going to call it too.” Stiles pats Derek on the shoulder and stands slowly, taking the time to stretch before heading inside.
Derek waits until he’s inside before he heads off in search of his discarded clothes, still sitting and collecting dew on the grass. He shifts, picking up his sweatpants and shaking them out. He pulls them on and makes his way towards the porch.
“You should be proud of what you’ve created here.” Sarah joins him at the top of the steps. They lean against the porch railing and watch the wolves still sprawled out in the grass after the run. “You’ve built a strong pack. I know Talia would be proud of you.”
Derek ducks his head. There’s a warm feeling in his stomach at the Alpha’s words. “I didn’t think I’d find this again.” He confesses, voice low. “And, for a while I didn’t think deserved it.”
There’s a familiar footfall behind them and the comforting scent of cinnamon and vanilla.
“Hey, sorry to interrupt.” Stiles wanders up beside them. “Can I borrow a sweater?”
“Did you return the last one you ‘borrowed’?” Derek asks.
“Hey,” Stiles leans against him, one arm slung across Derek’s shoulders. “It’s not my fault your clothes are so damn comfy. If you didn’t want me taking them, you should have bought cheaper, scratchier sweaters. Ever think about that Der?”
“Fine,” Derek gives in quickly, waving Stiles off before he can launch into another tirade on the superiority of Derek’s sweaters.
“Thanks.” Stiles trots off, letting his hand trail across Derek’s back.
“You guys are good together,” Sarah says, her voice warm. “You’re lucky to have found a mate like Stiles.”
“Mm,” Derek nods, eyes following Stiles back towards the house. The words sink in and he freezes, mind frantically replaying every interaction he’s had with Stiles over the last few days, wondering how they could have possibly given her that impression.
Stiles is- he’s Stiles. He’s funny and smart and kind and— they’re not mates, no matter how much Derek might wish otherwise.
Still, he doesn’t correct her.
Instead, he makes some mumbled excuse about being tired and escapes to his bedroom.
That, at least, is the truth. It’s been a long night and now the sun is just beginning to peek up over the horizon. Derek feels as though he could sleep for a week as he climbs the stairs to the second level and throws his bedroom door open ready to crawl beneath the covers.
“Stiles.” He nudges the lump half hidden under the covers. “This isn’t your bed.”
The younger man murmurs something unintelligible and rolls onto his side.
With a sigh, Derek pulls back the covers, and climbs into bed.
***
He’s warm when he wakes.
So, very warm.
There’s a line of cinnamon scented heat pressed down the length his chest. Lying there in the soft space between sleep and wakefulness, Derek feels more comfortable that he ever has in his life.
And then the warm body in front of him shifts and Derek is suddenly very aware that Stiles is that warm body. He must have pulled him in to his chest at some point while they slept.
Carefully drawing back the arm that had been casually slung across Stiles’ waist, Derek wiggles back on the bed so that he’s no longer pressed up against his packmate. The sheets are gathered around their waists, hiding Derek’s rather unfortunate issue, but it doesn’t hide the pale expanse of skin where Stiles’ sweater has ridden up over his side.
With a bitten-off sigh Derek rolls out of bed and stumbles across to the bathroom.
He stands, head bowed beneath the spray and lets the pounding water rinse away the dirt and sweat that still clung from the full moon run. He tries not to think about the fact he’s still hard, and lets his mind drift, but his thoughts keep coming back to Stiles, stretched out in Derek’s own bed.
With one hand coming up to brace against the wall, Derek palms himself with the other. He allows a single flash of guilt before letting his thoughts drift back to the bed, to the hollow of Stiles throat. He starts slow, working up to a quick rhythm and biting back a soft moan.
He’s close, the pleasure starting to pool in his gut and Derek increases the pace. His mind wanders to the dip of Stiles’ hips between the ruched-up shirt and the low-slung sleep shorts. His own hips jerk in short aborted thrusts and he comes with a swallowed curse.
After washing away the evidence, Derek cuts the running water and reaches for a towel.
Stiles is still asleep when Derek re-enters the room, so he dresses quickly and slips out the door. The house is quiet, with most wolves having only gone to bed a few hours ago, but there’s a soft clatter of someone moving about downstairs.
“You’re up early,” Derek says, stepping into the kitchen.
Scott stifles a yawn with the back of his hand and gestures to the coffee maker that has just beeped. “The baby is awake,” he mutters, reaching for the pot. “Which means Kira is awake, which means I am awake.” He pours himself a generous serving, filling the mug up to the rim, then passes the pot over. “Why are you up?”
“Sarah thinks Stiles is my mate.” The words come out in a rush.
“Yeah? And?”
“What do you mean ‘and’?”
“I mean…” Scott looks uncertain. “What’s the problem? Was that all she said?”
“She said we’re good together.”
“Okay.”
“Scott.”
“What?” Scott leans back against the counter. “You are! You’re like the pack mom and dad.”
Derek waves him off. “Stiles doesn’t even like me like that!”
Scott scoffs against the rim of his mug. “What are you talking about? Stiles is crazy about you.”
“No, he’s not.”
“Dude, can’t you smell it? He’s like, super aroused around you, like all the time.”
“That’s just Stiles’ scent. He always smells like that.”
“No, he doesn’t.”
Derek’s expression goes blank. “He doesn’t?”
Shaking his head, Scott continues. “It’s only when he’s around you… or talking about you… or thinking about you. It’s super gross.”
“I didn’t know.”
“He’s over here all the time! He’s asleep in your bed right now- don’t give me that look, you reek of Stiles.” Scott refills his mug and moves to pat Derek on the arm. “He likes you man, like, really, really likes you. Honestly, you’d have to be blind not to see it.”
***
The Robertson pack head off the next morning once everyone is well rested. There are fewer people around to see them off— Scott had been called in to an emergency at the vet and Erica had dragged Boyd off to visit her parents.
“It was really good to see you Derek. Please don’t be a stranger.” Derek lets himself be bundled up in a hug before Sarah moves on to say goodbye to the rest of the pack. “Stiles, you make sure to remind that stubborn mate of yours to take a break every now and then.”
Watching from the corner of his eye, Derek can’t quite read Stiles’ facial expression. If he’s surprised, he certainly doesn’t say anything, just returns the Alpha’s hug and cheerfully waves until the car disappears down the driveway.
Once they’re gone, Derek makes his excuses and escapes to his bedroom. Despite Scott’s assurances, he still hasn’t said anything to Stiles.
“We need to talk.”
Derek starts so badly at the voice in his room. “How do you keep getting in?” He asks, turning to face the doorway.
“Magic.”
“Still not funny.”
“Uh, it’s hilarious,” Stiles says, grinning.
“The door was locked Stiles.”
“I know, figured you were either moping about something or jerking off. Decided to take my chances.” He walks into the room, shutting the door behind him and leans against the far wall. “Anyway, you’re dressed, so you probably weren’t jerking off, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong.”
“You’ve been avoiding me since yesterday, something’s wrong.” He’s still smiling, but Stiles’ scent has turned tart with concern.
“It was nothing, just something Alpha Robertson said.”
“I like her.” Stiles gazes at Derek thoughtfully. He pushes away from the wall and crosses the room to sit on the bed. “She seems like a good Alpha.”
“She is.”
“You’re a good Alpha too.”
Derek smiles, ducking his head. It’s high praise coming from Stiles.
“A little clueless sometimes...”
The smile drops from his face.
“Let me guess.” Stiles leans forward, his arms braced against his knees. “Your current mopey face has something to do with what Sarah said before?”
Derek can’t look at him, he stares at the patterns in the carpet instead.
“The other night, she called us mates and you didn’t correct her.”
Derek’s stomach drops as his head jerks up. “You heard that?”
“It wasn’t exactly whispered. She said it right as I was leaving. Why-” Stiles swallows audibly. “Why didn’t you correct her?”
Letting out the breath he’s been holding, Derek asks, “Why didn’t you?”
He watches Stiles’ face carefully, scrutinising every little expression that flickers across his face in that second, reading the exact moment he makes up his mind with the slight lift of one brow and the uptick at the corners of his mouth.
“I wanted it to be true.”
Derek can only imagine what his own face must look like, caught someplace between shock and joy at Stiles’ words. His grin is probably bordering on manic when he says, “me too.”
“Oh. That’s-” Stiles licks his lips and tries again. “Good. That’s good. I’m, uh-” His gaze flick from Derek’s eyes to his lips. “I’m going to kiss you now, okay?”
“Yeah.”
Stiles’ hand hooks into the Derek’s shirt, drawing him in. Fingers tangle in his hair and then Stiles’ lips are on his, warm and urgent.
When they pull away from each other Stiles laughs, knocking his knees into Derek’s.
“I’ve wanted to do that for so fucking long.
*Epilogue*
The glare from the window falls right across Derek’s face and he shifts, slowly surfacing from the depths of sleep. He drags his arm up to cover his face, provoking a grunt from the person who’d been using it as a pillow.
Stiles shifts, rolling over to blink up at Derek.
“Morning.”
“Morning.”
Derek throws his arm over Stiles’ hip, dragging him in so their bodies are flush. “You’re in my bed.”
“Nuh uh, it’s my bed now,” Stiles teases sleepily, stealing a quick kiss before tucking his head under Derek’s chin.  “Oh.” He pulls away suddenly and rolls to the edge of the bed, leaning over to rummage around underneath it. Sitting back up, he holds out a present wrapped in brightly coloured paper. “Happy birthday.”
Derek sits up against the pillows and takes the parcel. “Thank you.”
“I got you a Christmas present too,” Stiles says. “But you can’t open it until we get to Dad’s.” He gestures for Derek to unwrap the paper. “It’s not much.”
“It’s perfect.”
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jbbuckybarnes · 5 years ago
Text
I wanted to
Pairing: Bucky x Reader (5k words) Description: You’ve been gone for 5 years, living in the forest for now. He just witnessed his friend stay back in time and come back as an old man. Maybe you could help each other and fall in love along the way. Warnings: Nightmares, crying, PTSD, awkwardness, canon typical violence, slight angst, fluff, not proofread A/N: I wrote this in my notes a few months back and it is a little openended, but after I figured out that it’s 5k words long, I had to post it. I hope y’all like it anyway, even with how awkward it’s written.
M A S T E R L I S T
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You reappeared, the last thing you remembered was turning to dust, alone on a walk. Then the news got to you. 5 years, you were gone for 5 years. Your living situation was currently homeless. You were living in a forest, thankful that it was summer, and waiting for the government to start solving problems. On your daily walk by the cottage that always had a lot going on and the equipment all around it you saw a figure in all black, sitting against a tree, clearly sad. Nobody else was there and you weren't afraid of anything at this point, so you went to the person.
"Um, excuse me? Is everything alright? Do you need help?" You asked coming to a hold 4 steps away from them. A man with long brown hair and ocean blue eyes looked up at you, eyes red and streaks down his cheeks. "No, thank you. I think you'd need my entire life story for that." He sniffled. "Well, I'm currently living in the forest cause I've been dead for 5 years and nobody seems to solve the entire missing people and housing problems, so I think I might understand your hurt a little bit. What's wrong?" You crouched down to be on his level. Now that you looked at him, he looked way bigger and potentially dangerous than you previously thought. You both just sat in silence for a few seconds. "You know when you want your friend to be happy, even if it hurts you like being torn to shreds?" He asked, staring into the distance. "Yeah. It's the worst when they don't consider that pain." You were picking grass from the ground. "Multiply that hurt times 100. That's how I feel right now." He sniffled again and you inched a little closer. "Tell me what happened." "Well. Hi, I'm Bucky, formerly known as the Winter Soldier, frozen and unfrozen since the mid 40s. My friend who wasn't made to kill but still equally frozen just went back in time to choose his first love over me and his other friends in this time. And he came back as an old man. I should be happy for him. He had a great life and probably found his peace. But I would've loved to spend those decades with him, my other friends and maybe some new people." A tear ran down his cheek. "You would've needed the support, the love from a true friend. Let me tell you something. A true friend would always choose his friends over his love. No matter which situation. And I hope you're gonna have some damn great decades. Better than he had them. Cause you didn't live in nostalgia. Okay?"
You didn't know how your daily walk turned into a therapy session with a former assassin but this was needed. "Okay." He nodded with a tiny smile. "You need a hug?" You smiled back and he nodded sniffling. The moment your arms had surrounded him he started sobbing. Way too many emotions coming through, thinking of all those years he did everything for that small boy from school. "It's okay, let it out." You murmured, stroking his back. "It hurts." He got out. "I know. For a reason. It hurts because you cared. A lot," you said and felt arms hugging back. "Thanks." He sniffled again. "No problem." "What's your name, therapy stranger." He laughed loosening the hug and wiping his tears away. "Y/N." "James, but call me Bucky." He finally had a true smile on his face. "That's gonna hit you a few times, Bucky. Don't drown in it, okay?" Your hands were on his shoulders. "Promise."
You sat side by side in silence after that. Just relaxing with a view of the forest. "Can I help you with your housing problem?" His voice broke through, a little groggy but calm. "I don't know if you can." You grinned, throwing away a flower petal you had picked. "Well, now that Steve is definitely out of question as a third roommate...you might be a good shot. You don't have to. Just an idea. I can also just help you search for a flat." "I'd like to. An actual shower would be nice again." you giggled. "There's one in there. I can, you know, ask if you can-" "You don't have to." "Well, but I want to. You don't deserve to die for 5 years and then not have at least THAT luxury." He chuckled at how dumb this all sounded. "I guess." You grinned. He stood up, "Let's just walk in there. Ignore any question about Captain America or Steven Grant Rogers & get you to a shower and a hairbrush." "Thanks for subtly insulting my hair." You boxed against his arm and heard a chuckle.
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A knock, "Can I come in without risking a punch?" "Yeah." You giggled, standing in front of the mirror in a shirt that he gave you, getting knots out of your hair. "You look like a new person, Y/N." He grinned leaning against the counter. "Imagine what a good 10 hours of sleep would do to me now." You smiled before making a grimace at the pain on your scalp. He watched you starting to frown into the mirror at your hair strands. "Can I help?" He came closer. "Depends on how gentle you can be." You chuckled. "I had sisters, I know how to do this without anyone crying, darling," he said proudly. "Well, then help away." You shrugged. His hands were gently going through the hair strands on your left side while you went on with the right side. Your eyes wandered to his patient but slightly frowning face that was concentrated on your hair and you smiled. "Didn't think helping a stranger would end this positive." You giggled and he looked up with a smile. "Good things happen to good people." "Well, bad things also happen to good people." You looked at him through the mirror with a soft smile and saw him shake his head to get rid of a thought. "It'll get better," you whispered. "I know," he whispered back, letting the brush glide through your hair. "Damn. You really are good at this." "Of course. Didn't wanna hear my sisters cry at me for an entire week back in the day." He chuckled at the fond memories on his mind. Would he go see them if he could? No. He didn't want to interfere with their life, everything happened for a reason. When you were finally done with your side you exhaled exhausted and turned around to him. "You look pretty in it." He smiled down at you and you followed his eyes. Oh, yeah, this was his shirt. "Uh, thanks." You answered touching it.
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"Who's the pretty girl you got with you, Barnes?" Sam looked up from his drink in the kitchen and eyed you. "Our potential third roommate." Came back. "Oh." He set down his cup of coffee. "Hi, my name's Y/N. I've also been gone for 5 years and currently live off of forest food cause our government is a burning pile of trash," you introduced yourself dryly. "What did you do before?" "Was the definition of a homebody." You shrugged. "Hm, not to come off wrong but...we're Avengers and that means cleaning & errands might end up in your hands cause of missions. Any problems with that?" He smirked. "Not really. I just want sleep, food, water and a roof over my head." "What music do you like?" "Pop, Rock, Hip Hop." "Favorite sports team?" "Not my area." "Favorite movie?" "The Matrix." "I like her." Sam looked at Bucky. "Does that mean I can just stay with you from now on? Cause I literally don't have anything else out there other than my knife and a missing persons file for my mother." You asked. "Of course. Why would we let you sleep in the forest?" Bucky looked back at you. "You never know."
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"Welcome to your new home." It has been a few days since you all met and gotten to know each other better. Bucky had just opened the door to your room and a bed frame and mattress were already in there. Together with a decent laptop and phone. Clothes had been ordered a few days earlier, but you were still mainly living in Bucky's clothes. There had been multiple occasions of him hiding somewhere in the house or outside to just get it all out, but you always found him and calmed him down. "Oh god, you didn't have to-" "But I wanted to." With a soft smile he closed the door behind you As soon as you used both devices and logged back in, you were searching for your friends and family members. Then world news & government aid. Then Steve Rogers and then Bucky. Sure, you'd learned about them in school years ago but a little refresher on their history and more reasons to be mad at Steve weren't a bad idea. "Gone for a press conference." Was yelled through the apartment by Sam and a door closed. Shortly after there was a knock on your door. "Come in." Bucky's head peaked in with a shy smile. "Something wrong?" You asked. "No, just wanted to say thank you for being there for me so much the last days. You don't have to but you do it anyway." His hand wandered through his hair. "You're the one giving me a place to stay after all this mess." You smiled back. After a bit of silence he breathed in, "Wanna make dinner together?" "Sure."
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"Am I ever getting my clothes back?" He grinned down at you. "No. Too comfy." You grinned back in your giant shirt from him. "It's okay, you can have 'em. They look better on you anyway." Now the smile got softer. "Thanks. Always prefered men's clothing." You handed him something he needed for the food you were preparing. There was a comfortable silence across the room while you two continued until the food was ready. "Thanks for cooking with me." He smiled like a little boy. "Of course, Buck."
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You woke up from whimpers next door. It was 2am and you really needed sleep, but you got up and walked to his room. When you slowly opened the door you saw him toss and turn a bit with a frown on his face. "Bucky. Hey, Bucky. It's okay. Wake up." Your hand wandered over his head and arm. With a little gasp his eyes opened, "Y/N?" "Yes, I'm here. You had a bad dream." You gave him a concerned smile. "Thank you for waking me up." He smiled sleepily. "Of course." You stood up. "Can you stay here? I don't want to dream that again." His hand reached out and landed on your legs. "Sure." You shrugged and got into the bed next to him. Big arms were snaking around you and hugged you close into a spoon position. "Thank you." He whispered before you drifted off.
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Your eyes slowly opened and you found yourself to be in a room that wasn't yours. As soon as you heard little huffs behind you, you knew where you were again. The hand that was over your waist was tried to be removed but without luck. "Bucky. Let me get up." You grumbled. "Hmm?" He asked half asleep. "Let me get up," you mumbled. "No." He grumbled and pulled you closer. "Bucky!" You squealed and got a deep chuckle back. "What's wrong, darling?" You only crossed your arms in response. "Good morning to you too." He chuckled. "You're definitely awake," you mumbled and the arm around you instantly loosened after he realized what you were talking about. "Sorry," was mumbled. "Nah, it's fine." You smiled and finally turned around, "Sleep well after the nightmare?" "Yes, thank you for staying." His tired eyes were shimmering. "No problem." You got hair strands out of your face. "You look adorable right now." He laughed. "I feel more like a squished teddy bear." You pouted and got a giant grin back. "You were a good teddy bear though."
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He still occasionally cried and you came to his room whenever you noticed or heard, but he got better, even after visiting Steve. A mission finally called for both of them, not a good sign. Seeing him in his full gear for the first time was overwhelming but fascinating. "Be safe you two idiots." You smiled at both of them. "Don't redecorate the entire house." Sam grinned. "I'll try my best." You chuckled before giving both of them a good hug. The second one came with a kiss to your temple before they were out of the door. You were worried the second they were out of the door, but the two weirdos would be keeping each other safe.
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After the mission had turned into a national problem and back, the two men finally came in through the front door exhausted. "Hey, darling." A familiar voice broke the silence and you fell into his arms. "I'm so glad you both are back unharmed," you mumbled. "Of course! We need to annoy the hell out of you. Don't we?" Sam chuckled. You hugged him too before dragging them both into the kitchen to make them some sandwiches. "Sooo. How did it go?" You grinned, knowing well that both of then were ready to explode at the inability of the government. A grumble, "Don't get me started." "Smith is a fucking idiot." "Yeah, and that Tom idiot from mission control." "And Sharon's contact." "Literally anyone involved except for a few." Bucky concluded. "Well, I painted a wall in my room while you were gone and fixed the faucette in the bathroom." You smiled at them accomplished. "Without US!?" Sam said fake offended. "How could you? Let us fail at it first." Bucky joined in. "Can't believe you two manage to keep each other alive." You laughed before starting to clean the counter.
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"It's pretty." Bucky smiled at your wall after sitting on your bed and staring at it for a good minute. He was not sure if he liked pastel colors on the wall but guessed they made sense for you. "Thanks. Stood in the paint aisle for almost two hours for the right color." "You think I should paint mine too?" He looked over to you at the desk. "If you want to." A quick shrug. "What color would you pick?" "Maybe...a dark warm purple. Or a tapestry with a lot of moody but colorful things going on. Or maybe just hanging up a few decor pieces in black and brown, fitting to your furniture." Your mind was working with all the possibilities. You didn't notice the soft eyes on you, "I think actually...the best one would be getting a few hang up tapestries that you like and change them up every now and then and the other half of the wall with the decor idea." "Y/N?" He snapped around to get you back. "Huh?" You shook your head and saw his nose crinkle with a chuckle. "Search for some and show them to me." He nudged his head towards your laptop. You grabbed it and fell onto the bed next to him and both of you spent the entire evening checking out tapestries on Society6.
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Hands wrapped around your sides before picking you up unexpectedly. With a squeal you found yourself on the shoulders of the super soldier. "I was just trying to hang this up." You giggled. "Thought I should help." He chuckled. "My head literally almost smashed into the ceiling." "But it didn't." The tapestry was put up next to the frames and shelves you had been working on all afternoon while he was at the compound. "It's pretty. Thanks for making it that way." He smiled down at you after letting you down again. "No problem. I love doing this kind of stuff." "Pizza?" "Pizza."
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"W-" "Just take it. Wear it everyday and use it if you need to." You were looking down at a bracelet that they got configured for emergencies. In case of imminent danger you just needed to press down a button. "But why?" "You live with two Avengers, we'd feel better if you wore it." Sam added. "Oh okay." You were intimidated by the tech. You studied Hydras infiltration into S.H.I.E.L.D. in your freetime after the files came out and while you were aware that your phone was technically also a tracking device, this felt a little bigger than some phone that can be encrypted by a VPN. You put it on anyway, these two idiots would never want to harm you. "Why not simply use my phone?" You looked up. "You better have two devices than one. If somebody gets your phone a bracelet will be the least suspected thing on your body." "Hm. Okay." You looked at the beads of the bracelet. Looked not too expensive but also not cheap. "Guess I'll get used to it." Two relaxed smiles came back at you. Good.
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Arms wrapped around you while you made yourself french toast. A grumble and exhausted exhale. "You'd think with two soldiers you'd have people in the house that are used to early mornings." You chuckled. "Not when you slept like shit and have a roommate that feels like a good surface to fall back asleep on." Sam grumbled in his groggy voice. "You want one?" A soft movement on your shoulder was given back. You added one more slice to the pan and leaned back against him. "Damn you, soft woman." He mumbled squeezing you closer and making you giggle. "You awake or falling asleep again?" You chuckled. "Awake. Unfortunately." He whined before letting you go and taking his toast. "Drink your coffee, birdie. 's gonna be fine." You grinned. He tossled through your hair before making his way to his chair. "You havin' any plans for today?" "Hm. Maybe I'll go adventure the city a bit. Quite a bit has changed in the last 5 years." "You bringing dinner on the way back?" His head dipped to the side like a puppy would do it. "Sushi?" "Sounds good to me."
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You'd been all around the Central Park area to scope out new places and what had changed. A few big companies went down after the decimation and smaller shops moved into the places. One of them was actually a sushi place and you already felt it slowly getting colder and the sun was getting lower. You made your way to that block. It was a bit further from the park and not much tourist attractions near, so you could slow down your pace a bit. You never made it to the entrance. You were yanked back by somebody and silenced with a hand over your mouth. You opened your eyes again to an empty street, only darkly clothed men all around. How did you not see them earlier. "Well, if it isn't our Avengers girlfriend." A dark voice said behind you, manifesting into a man coming to a hold in front of you. The man holding you let you go a little, knowing you wouldn't run with all these men around. "What do you want from me and who the hell are you?" You said stronger than you thought you could in this situation. Your hand wandered to your wrist, pressing down the little dent in your bracelet. "The Handler, Hydra, we don't want anything FROM you, we just want you. They'd never let their friend die at our hands. They wanna save you, don't they." "You wanna take me to get them?" You made clear out loud. "Yeah. You wanna come with us normally or do we need to use strength on you?" "I come with you, but only if you can prove you're really Hydra and not just some human trafficking gang." You played the game, they wouldn't take long. "Girl, you wanna see prove?" The man grinned. "I know all his trigger words. You wanna die at the hands of Bucky Barnes or do you wanna live?" "Not sure how long you can keep that promise of me living." You smirked, hearing a faint jetpack coming closer. In seconds somebody grabbed you, Sam kicked down the mysterious man and multiple men fell to the floor. You didn't look at the scene but had enough self defense training to kick the man holding you where the sun doesn't shine before ramming an elbow into his sternum and your hand into his face. A metal hand grabbed over his mouth before his body turned limp. "Stay behind me!" You heard from Bucky, finally getting you out of the shock and did as he said. Your eyes were trying to stay as far away from anything trauma inducing as they could. Bullets were kept from hitting you by black vibranium and you flinched at a cry behind you. "Sam, get her out of here." The arms from this morning suddenly felt possibly threatening for a second, then like the only safe option. "Close your eyes." He quickly told you before flying you up to the next best roof. Redwing hovered above you shortly after and you were pressed to sit down on the floor. "Stay here. Gonna make sure everything is safe." You were shaking, heard a few more gunshots and the little computer over you scanning everything around. "I'm just saying. You better tell her soon or she'll never start training to do these things." "She shouldn't need to. Even if I do." The two flew up in front of you, Bucky immediately coming straight towards you with a concerned face. "Didn't know you could break noses, darling." He huffed before grabbing your shaking form close, letting you sob out the shock. "I'm so sorry, Y/N." He mumbled into your ear. "H-home." "We'll bring you home, darling. You're safe now."
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"They waited all this time for her to go into an area of the city that's calmer. What the hell could they want from me or you?" Sam was stressed. "They always want me for something." Bucky muttered. "Hey, that's not your fault. Okay?" "I know, but I'm still the reason this bullshit happened to her." "You don't know that." "They wanted to kidnap her to lure us in. Told her they knew the trigger words." Bucky growled. Your pitter patter moved towards the kitchen. Red swollen eyes staring at the two men for a second before you went for the fridge. "He said "come with us or die by Bucky's hands" like it wasn't part of the same plan," you mumbled taking out chocolate pudding, "Which makes me question if they have more stuff to get you with." "I honestly don't wanna try it out without having Steve to kick your head back to normal." Sam shook his head. "I need to call Shuri, Cho & Banner," Bucky muttered before making a quick way out of the kitchen. You sat down on the counter, spoon deep in your comfort food. "You feeling better?" Sam asked. "A bit." "Bucky's still not over you breaking someone's nose. That was badass for someone that's not an agent. But also risky." The last sentence was accompanied by a stern look. You gave a soft smile back, "I knew you both had my back." "I can teach you a few more moves if that helps you." He grinned. "Would always love to learn from my favorite Captain America." You laughed towards the end of the sentence.
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"I'll be back in a few weeks. Promise." Bucky looked down at you, regretting that he needed to go to Wakanda. "Gonna miss you." You squished your face into his chest. "I'm gonna miss you too, darling." He smiled down. You pulled his head down a little, making his breathing hitch and his cheeks flush. A soft kiss was pressed onto his forehead before he could get his cool back. "Now nothing can go wrong." You giggled and he grabbed you into a tight hug again with a chuckle before you parted ways and he flew away in the Quinjet.
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In the following weeks you got at least one voice memo per day. Sometimes a picture of a beautiful Wakandan flower. Mostly diary-like updates. You kept his room clean, changed the tapestry to a more colorful one, stole some more jumpers and maybe one of his throw blankets. "Sam told me you're a thief again?" He said when you finally video called after a month. "It's getting colder, your jumpers are the best, what else am I supposed to do?" You pouted. "I also see my throw blanket around you right now." He laughed. "I miss you, okay?" You said flustered. "I miss you too. Next time I'm gone I demand to steal something from you too." He grinned. "Alright," you agreed, "How are you doing?" "I think they only test one or two more times for stuff and then I'm gonna be back." "Prepare for the longest hug in the history of hugs." "Alright, darling. Ugh, I need to go. Annoy Sam for me, will you?" He smiled truly happy. "Of course. See ya, Buck."
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"No, don't go back before punching. That gives me too much time for defense. Surprise effect." Sam explained to you while showing you some of the things he learned in the military. "So, like this?" You punched him and caught him off-guard. "Damn, girl. You're getting really bold around me, huh?" He smirked. "Thought Captain America could take a hit from someone like me." You chuckled. "Oh, you could easily win against me with the right training. I think Bucky would be hard for any agent or soldier." "Another point for me disliking Steve, thanks. Goes onto the list." "You have a list?" He asked impressed. "C'mon. Good doesn't mean sane." "You're more protective than I thought you'd be." He winked continuing the session. "Why wouldn't I? Physically I'm not a match, but mentally?" You smirked, diffusing a punch. "Fair point." He shrugged, dodging your next punch. "Gaaah." You threw yourself at him in a cuddle attack. "You tired?" He laughed catching you. "Yeah." "Sushi?" "Please."
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With a gasp you woke up from a nightmare. A weird one too. Nothing made sense but it had involved your two roommates. After grabbing the water bottle on your bedside table and drinking from it you had calmed down, but not enough to fall back asleep. *I had a nightmare.* *Can't fall back asleep?* *No :c* *Sleep in my bed if it helps.* You had silently made your way to Bucky's room and laid down in his bed, surrounded by his smell. Something about that did wonders to get your eyelids heavy in an instant. The next morning you were greeted with wiggly eyebrows at the kitchen table. "You act like we don't have a nightmare routine." "Yeah, it's real cute. You should try seeing how oblivious you both are. Drives me insane." "Excuse me?" He held his hands up and stayed silent about it for the rest of the week.
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You started sleeping only in his room after that day, since it just felt better for whatever reason. You really felt the parts of your day where he was missing. And one morning you finally woke up to arms being tightly wrapped around you with a face pressed into your back. "Bucky?" You whispered tired and turned around. "Hm?" He grumbled half asleep. "I missed you." You grinned squinting. "I missed you too, darling." He peaked his eyes open with a soft smile. You inhaled to say something but held yourself back from doing so. "Missed you more than anything." He grinned with his hand getting your messy hair under control. "Anything is a lot." You giggled. "I know, darling." He pulled you closer, having you in his personal space. "I slept way better in here." You smiled. "Really? Was it because of the bed or the stolen clothes?" He chuckled. "Both." Another giggle left you. "I really want to kiss you right now," he said with his eyes locked on yours. Words failed you and you nodded with a shy smile. Lips touched yours slow and hesitant, testing the waters, making sure you feel comfortable. "I waited so long to do this, god. I'm so madly in love with you." Everything just left him like a waterfall of words. "I love you too, Bucky." Your face lit up. "Sooo, we're gonna stay in this cocoon for a few more minutes?" His hand went down your side. "Of course, you idiot." You laughed. A few more minutes had turned into an hour. Spent with kissing, touching, giggling and content smiles. "You want french toast or not?" You sat up. "I want you...wait...that came out wrong." He laughed. "Oh no, Buck. You meant that the way you said it, player." You grinned. "I mean...it wasn't a lie." Innocent eyes landed on you. "You'd have to kick Sam out for that." You laughed and gave him a little wink, making him blush. "Maybeee I need 5 more minutes." He cleared his throat. "Alright. Good to know." You smirked before leaving the bed next to him warm, while he needed to calm down from any fantasies playing out in his head.
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twoidiotwriters1 · 4 years ago
Text
Pure Blood 21 (Sirius Black x F!Oc)
A/N:  I'm not crying, you are
Warning: Broken hearts, including mine -Val
Words: 3,358
Masterlist:
Chapter 20 / Chapter 22
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"I can't believe what I'm saying, but," He says sitting next to me. "I think we have another mission in common."
"What are you talking about?" I say, stopping looking at the couple sitting a few meters from us.
“We must separate Trixie from Remus, it’s obvious. When we least expect it, she’ll take his blood.” That comment makes me smile.
"The other day she apologized to me about Hogsmeade, I'm talking about Trixie."
"And? Are you best friends now? ” I scoff.
"Of course not. I won't lie, it made me hesitate, but there’s something very wrong with that girl, Black.”
“What's your idea?" I look at him.
"Me? It's up to you, I already suffered from the first battle, it's your turn,” He grimaces.
"I'll see what I can think of.”
That's when Slughorn comes in and the class begins.
"Well, everyone, come here, I have something new for you,” We all stand around a table, which has several cauldrons. "Can anyone identify these potions?"
Lily is the first to raise her hand and answers everything correctly.
“…And the one in the middle is amortentia.”
“Correct, Miss Evans, thirty points for Gryffindor. Very well, can anyone describe the amortentia? Use and its characteristics.”
Lily raises her hand again.
"Miss Evans, please let your classmates try," We laugh. "Well, I have an idea…”
"Miss Evans, Singh, and Lupin. Come over to the cauldron, please.” I stand between Lily and Remus. "Now, what smells can you detect?"
I focus on the cauldron.
The first thing I smell reminds me of the grass when I go to the gardens in the morning. Then I smell chocolate, which makes me happy, the other reminds me of all those bonfires we made at home, or the continuous times I fell asleep near the fireplace when I was little; something surprises me, is- What is that? It’s not a pleasant smell. I wrinkle my nose and look confused at the cauldron.
"And well?"
"I can smell old books,” begins Lily, "new parchment, but the last one I'm not sure, I know I've smelled it before, but I don't remember…”
"Very good. Miss Singh? ”
"Lawn, chocolate, firewood and the other- it's something strange,” I say looking at the teacher, "I don't know what it is exactly, but it's not pleasant.”
“Sometimes it’s confusing, but over time, you’ll be able to identify that smell. Remus?”
"Chocolate, the next one reminds me of a forest, pumpkin pie and... I don't know, strawberry?"
“Excellent, good work. These scents are very peculiar, they remind us of happy moments, things that are pleasant or, in many occasions, are related to the people we love.”
The three of us return to our seats.
“Amortentia is the strongest love filter in the world. However, it doesn’t create true love, it’s impossible to create or imitate love. It only produces an intense infatuation, a powerful obsession. It’s probably the most dangerous and powerful potion of all in this room."
Some girls get a little closer and then back off laughing. Maybe thinking about smells and the people it reminds them of.
I’m still confused by the last scent I perceived.
"But well. There's something else,” says Slughorn. “This potion is called Felix Felicis, or better known as liquid luck. It makes the drinker a lucky being for a certain time, conditioned on the amount taken, during which everything he tries or undertakes will have a successful result.”
"That would do me good," I hear James say behind my back.
"Oh Mister Potter, you and your companions have a chance to own this little thing." Everyone gets excited and looks anxiously at the potion. "All they have to do is prepare perfectly is the Filter Potion of the Living Dead. Whoever does it will earn it. Move your tables away, it won't be as a team. Let's go.”
Everyone runs to the shelves to grab the correct ingredients and return to the tables and start the potion.
Wormwood, asphodel, valerian roots, brain sloth, soporific bean, all good so far. I look up to see the others panic, I'm sure everyone has a different reason to make it perfect and win the potion.
"I can finally get all the credit when Slughorn sees my excellent work," says Sirius next to me.
"You seem too sure.”
"I'm sure of what I'm doing, doll.”
I roll my eyes and go on with my own, but as I read the following instruction I frown in confusion. If you want all the juice from the 12 soporophore grains, why cut them?
I decide to ignore it and crush one of them and then put the juice in the potion, I hear Sirius giggle, which I ignore, do the same with the others and stir the liquid.
"Hey, you missed a grain of soporophore," adds Sirius.
"Of course not.”
“Eh, yes.”
“Eh, no.”
"I know what I'm saying, you missed one.”
"Of course not, I brought everything I needed, I know how to count, Black.”
He raises his hands in surrender.
"Okay, but if it doesn't come out, then don't cry."
I stop and my anxiety causes me to doubt. I curse and put another grain and then listen to his low chuckle.
"Now what?"
"You shouldn't trust anyone when there’s an award as valuable as the potion."
"What? No!” The idiot cheated and now my potion is wrong.
“Time's up!" Slughorn yells.
The teacher reviews each of the works, but none, so far, has succeeded. We’re all surprised to learn that neither Lily nor Remus were able to do it.
"I hate you," I whisper when the teacher arrives at our place, checking Sirius' potion.
"You should thank me, I taught you a good lesson."
"Mr. Black, very good work,” Sirius smiles. "But I'm afraid you haven't done it perfectly either, it must be a problem with the sopophor beans, I'm sorry.” His smile disappears.
"I still love you, Padfoot!” James yells at the back and everyone laughs.
Slughorn walks to my cauldron, for a few seconds nobody says anything.
"I can't believe it," He says, dropping a small leaf into the liquid. "With just a few drops we would all be lost," He turns to me. "Excellent work, Miss Singh. I’m very surprised, good done. I think we have a winner.”
Some applaud in surprise, but someone in particular makes a rather animalistic growl.
"Thank you, Padfoot," I tease him.
—————————————————————
“I'm very proud of you, my little winner," says Jenna, squeezing me into a hug. "I knew you would win something like this!”
"I can't breathe,” I manage to say and she releases me.
"Tell me you’ll do something good with that potion," adds Remus.
"I don't know, I don't know…” I lift the potion between my fingers and the corridor light illuminates it. "So many possibilities…”
"Maybe you can use it to end our future marriage, Singh,” says Sirius coming to our side along with James.
"Oh sure. As if you had used it for that and not for selfish purposes,” I cross my arms.
“Obviously, I’d use it wisely."
I look at him incredulously.
“Not even I believe it, Padfoot," adds James, making the others laugh.
"Whatever," Sirius snorts.
"I have time to decide, nobody will take it from me,” I put the bottle in my bag.
"You have to be careful with that, Persephone," says Lily.
"Yes, mom," I tease.
"Congratulations, Persephone. I'm sure you deserve it,” says Trixie smiling, then smiles at Remus.
"How strange, I don't remember calling for the devil," adds Sirius, feigning confusion.
“Padfoot," scolds Remus.
“It’s okay, Remi,” She replies and then kisses Lupin's cheek causing him to blush. "I must go, see you later!” She says goodbye and goes to meet her friends.
"If you keep clenching your teeth, they'll break," Jenna whispers to me and I relax my jaw noticing that it was actually quite tense. I look up to see her and she raises and lowers her eyebrows suggestively.
"Not a word," I growl, making her laugh.
———————————————————————
I walk through the hallways in my way to the library all alone, for some reason everyone’s busy and no one could come with me. It’s not that I’m always surrounded by my friends now, I try not to think about it much and I go on my way quietly, but that doesn’t last for long.
Someone forces me to run in another direction. I try to get away, but nothing works, until we reach an empty corridor.
"What the fuck is wrong with you, Black?" I screech rubbing my wrist.
"Sorry, but this is important," He says, breathing hard, holding some sort of blanket in his free arm.
“What's important enough to drag me through school?"
"I know how we can stop the devil from being with Remus.”
I look at him confused. "I hear you.”
His mouth opens, but he regrets it, he looks at the blanket and gets nervous.
"Sirius?"
He lets out an annoyed growl and brushes some strands of hair out of his face.
“James is going to kill me, but it’s for a good cause,” He says, raising the blanket. "This is an invisibility cloak, it's from James, but you can't say anything."
"Uh-huh and I have the Elder wand. Is this why you hurt my wrist?" I say tiredly.
Sirius looks down and notices my wrist, which is a little red.
"Sorry, I- I didn't want to,” He shakes his head. "We'll talk about that later, but I'm telling you the truth about the cape,” he says and extends it to later put it around his body, disappearing entirely.
I walk away a few steps in surprise.
“Oh.”
"Great, right?" He says with a sly smile. "It's from James, well, his father gave it to him, it’s a family thing."
"Yes, you just wanted to show me something that’s not yours?" I say reaching out, maybe too close, to touch the fabric of the cape.
"What? No, I–” He stutters a bit. I look up meeting his gray eyes, I feel his breath hit my face.
Suddenly, I realize the closeness and move away a little, he also comes out of his thoughts and shakes his head.
"Listen, this may interest you.”
“Okay?" I say unsure.
"I was with James in- well, I don't know why we were there- but the news are that I heard the devil talk to her friends.”
Now he has my full attention.
“And?"
"Wait, won't you tell me something about invading privacy or something?"
I roll my eyes.
"We can talk about your immoral behaviors another time, now continue.”
“Well, after all the female chatter, they asked her how she felt about Remus and she said she was just playing with him, that she was really planning something bigger for when they meet again and then they all laughed. I'm sure it was an evil laugh.”
I think carefully about what he tells me, and then grimace.
"Wow, I didn't think we could go that far,” Sirius seems to understand and nods, surprised. "We must tell him."
I can't believe Remus will finally realize the girl's evil.
"Do you know where he is?
"He said he would be in the gardens- now that I think about it, he said he wanted to be very far from you.”
Sirius laughs.
"Yeah, he didn't agree with the joke- it doesn't matter- come on.”
We almost ran through the school until we found the boy, who was reading under a tree with Lily by his side.
"You told me you were busy, but you’re just reading," I accuse them when we arrived.
"Sometimes we need a break, Percy," Remus replies with a smile.
"We have proof of why you shouldn't date Satan," Sirius blurts out without thinking. I look at him raising my eyebrows and he smiles embarrassed, apparently the gossip can not be held long enough inside his body.
"What are you talking about?" Remus asks closing his book.
"Guys, I think you should drop that topic. Trixie’s not the same girl you met when you were kids,” adds Lily.
"But now we have proof," Sirius repeats.
"Just say it, Padfoot.”
Sirius tells him the same thing he said to me a few moments ago and Remus doesn't respond for a few minutes. The three of us look at him expecting the worst.
"Are you sure of what you heard? Maybe it's a misunderstanding,” He says nervously.
"I think I identify a malicious laugh when I hear it.”
I hit Sirius's arm and he complains.
“Sorry, Wolfie,” I say sitting next to him.
“You don't have to, you guys warned me, right? It's my fault.”
Before anyone could do otherwise, Lily warns us that Trixie is approaching with a big smile, but Sirius steps in front of us to stop her.
"He no longer wants to see you, he says that you are a bad, bad monster and that he hopes never to see you again,” He warns crossing his arms.
I almost want to laugh at his childish speech. Remus gets up and confronts the girl.
"It is true?" Lupin asks.
"What are you talking about?" She says confused.
"Someone heard you talk to your friends about how you want to play with Remus' feelings," I added annoyed.
"Play with your feelings?" She looks at Remus. "I don't understand what they mean…”
I approach to be next to my friend and I can notice the pain reflected in his honey-colored eyes. My heart squeezes when I see it.
"You better never talk to Remus again."
"It is true? Am I just a game for you?” She denies and her eyes water. Wait a minute. “Everything they talk about you is true. You're that kind of girl who has guys under her control."
"No, Remus, I would never hurt you, I really don't understand that-" She interrupts herself in mid-word and looks at us. "I think- I think I know."
Sirius stands next to me.
Trixie sighs, "It's not what they think.”
"Yeah right," Sirius replies defensively.
"Sirius, enough is enough, there must be an explanation," adds Lily.
Trixie nods and turns to Remus.
"It was a surprise," She smiles sadly. "I was planning to give you a gift, you have helped me a lot with all my subjects and you’ve been kind and nice to me, I thought…” She sniffs. “My friends helped me get a book, a first edition of your favorite book. When I said that I was just playing with him, I meant that I was making up many excuses for not seeing him, I needed more time to get the book.”
My eyes widen and I gape. I'm sure Sirius has the same face.
"B-but, you all laughed maliciously, besides, who uses that expression?" Sirius defends himself.
"It's kind of a game,” She replies a little embarrassed. "The excuses were ridiculous, I really wanted to surprise him.”
No one says anything for a few seconds.
"Remus?" Lily asks, touching his shoulder.
Suddenly, Lupin turns to us and the pain is replaced by pure anger.
"What the fuck were you thinking?" His scream makes us start. Remus's face turns completely red and the marks on his veins are more visible than ever before.
“Re-Remus–" Sirius stutters.
"What? Now what excuse will you give me? Hmm?” He gets closer and we back off a little. “You're impossible, I can't believe it!" He rubs his face with both hands.
"Calm down, Moony…”
“How do you want me to calm down after what you have done to me?”
Lily tries to help, but Remus just watches us.
“I'm sick of you two and your stupid ideas about Trixie! Finally, after so many years of being in this school, someone notices me, and what do you do? I can't believe how selfish you are!”
“We're not–”
"Oh, please, leave the role of victims. You’ve succeeded. It's easy for you to just judge people, and act selfish under the guise of your pathetic childhood and family. You’re not the only ones who have suffered and yet you’re the ones who have the most. You can both have whoever you want. Sirius has no problem getting dates with any girl, even guys line up to be with you. And Persephone, you have all the boys in the palm of your hand. You don't know what it feels like to be someone's shadow, you never stopped to think that this could be my one good thing. Everything’s normal for you and still you can't help but stick your noses into my life and destroy what I’ve always wanted!”
My heart hammers against my chest. I never believed that something like this would go out of hand. And without a doubt, I never thought I’d see Remus in this state.
His breathing is rough, his body’s tense. After a few seconds he realizes all he’s said to us, looks up, and notices the attention he elicited from some students, but then turns to us one last time.
"I don't want any of you to ever get into my life again, I-I don't want to see you again. I'm sick of being the good person among hypocritical people.” He setences and leaves.
Lily shakes her head disappointed and goes in the same direction as Remus. Trixie cries and her friends arrive to comfort her.
In the end, only Sirius and I were left.
——————————————————————
As an excellent dramatic touch, the day ends with a major storm flooding the school. Sirius and I are sitting under an arch with a view of the gardens, the lake and some trees. A few drops cover my hair and part of my uniform.
"Do you think he will ever forgive us?" Sirius says after several hours without saying anything. His voice is very thin right now.
"I don't know," I reply, my voice hoarse from crying.
"Of all the things I've done in my life, I've never felt this way."
Before, I would have taken that comment to complain about what he did to me, but I don't have the energy to do it. Now that no longer matters.
"Me too," I sigh and the tears return. “I’m the problem.”
Sirius turns to me confused.
“Every friendship I've had, I always manage to ruin it. It happened with you, with Jenna, Remus… I'm only missing Regulus or Lily.”
"I don't think you’re the problem, the problems will always be there, and we will have many discussions with our friends, it can’t be avoided, but that’s why we shouldn’t give them up. If they’re true, everything will work out.”
"Since when are you so wise?" I say trying to joke and he smiles a little.
"Actually, my uncle Alphard told me this in second grade," He clears his throat. "I was upset the whole time because of what had happened with you, he was the only one who could calm me down.”
I nod.
"I never wanted to hurt Remus.”
"Me neither," He says in a broken voice, after so long, I see Sirius Black cry. “He's my best friend and- and he's always been there for me. I didn't know he felt like that. It wasn’t my intention to make him feel inferior, I always believed that we were a team.”
"I wanted someone to listen to me, but I never did," I add.
We were silent for a long time, letting the crying subside a little. In that a thunder resounds in the castle causing me to jump from the fright, I’ve never been a fan of loud noises. Sirius notices it and takes my hand.
"Easy, it will pass,” he murmurs.
My heart squeezes again. It’s like when we were kids and storms would take the best of me. I bite my lower lip and wrap my arms around Sirius's torso while he puts one arm around my shoulders and the other wraps around my waist. I hide my face on his chest and feel his head rest above mine.
This was definitely not part of the plan.
Taglist
@treestarrrrrrrr​ @siriuslysirius1107​      @thagreenmoon​ @madmaiden2890​   @ren-ela​  @avipshamitra​   @auroraawrites​ @findzelda​  @lizlil​ @siriusmuch​   @chloe-geoghegan1��� @reverse-hxlland​​  @may-rapp​​ @the-specific-oceans​
 @bloodorangemoonlight​
@littledeadgirlwalking​
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yukayjei · 5 years ago
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Linked Universe FanFic: No Courage Without Fear, Part 2
Super excited to continue this @linkeduniverse fanfiction! Tracking the Wizzrobe isn’t as easy as it appears. Our Heroes will need to jump through a few hoops first!
[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4]
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“I was almost convinced that Wizzrobe is a ghost,” Hyrule admitted as they reached the top of the hill, “but no ghost leaves footprints.”
Under the light of the moon, the Wizzrobe’s footprints were easy to find. True, it had teleported away, but it left two distinct imprints where it had stood. Where it had gone was unclear, but Hyrule suspected it hadn’t traveled far. Wizzrobes could only warp short distances.
“Ghosts aren’t usually malicious, to my knowledge,” Sky replied, swerving to avoid a lone pine tree. “Though I have only met one,” he added with a laugh.
“Every ghost I’ve met has been nothing but trouble. As if all they want is to inflict the same pain and unrest they feel.” Hyrule’s face darkened like thunder as he recalled his first adventure. “All I did was accidentally bump into their graves! Accidentally!”
“They might want something to ease their pain,” Sky grinned, restraining laughter at his friend’s grumpiness. “My ghost wanted paper.”
Hyrule almost tripped over a stray rock. “Paper! What on earth for?”
Sky, now walking backwards so he could face him, gave him a funny look. “For the toilet, of course!”
“Why in the name of the Triforce would a— you know what? I don’t want to know.”
“I actually didn’t give any to her, yet she still went away.” Sky shrugged and resumed walking normally by his side. “I guess ghosts are just finicky.”
Hyrule raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t share with a ghost? You, who’d share a meal with an ant? I’m surprised.”
Sky glanced away, a tiny, secretive smile etched across his face. “Let’s just say someone else needed it more.”
Hyrule opened his mouth to press him with more questions, only to see something that made him stop dead in his tracks. Sky, noticing the tension, stopped as well, and followed Hyrule’s gaze to the flattened grass in front of them.
“Well, that’s weird,” the latter noted.
“Another pair of footprints,” Hyrule muttered, running a hand through his hair. “Right at the forest’s edge. There’s no telling where it is now.”
Said forest, upon closer examination, was denser than it appeared. Trees were packed so closely together that all moonlight had been blocked out.
Sky exhaled slowly. “That’s a tight fit,” he mumbled under his breath.
Hyrule frowned, his brow furrowed as he wracked his brain for answers. “It couldn’t have gotten far. Maybe it warped further inside. We probably should— HEY!”
The outburst nearly made Sky jump out of his skin. Snapping his eyes back to the forest, for just a fleeting second, he saw a pair of bloodred eyes stared out at the Heroes. Then, just as quickly, they blinked and were gone.
Trying to ignore his pounding heart, Sky drew the Master Sword. “Well, it’s definitely in there.” He addressed Hyrule, only to find himself gazing upon empty air. He turned back to the forest. Hyrule was already three steps ahead, Magic Sword already drawn, and charging into the inky shadows.
“Hey, wait!” Sky hurried after him.
…………………………
At first, there was just enough moonlight to make out obstacles a few feet ahead, such as overgrown roots and low-hanging branches. But Sky had barely made it ten steps in before every last drop of weak, white light vanished, swallowed up by the darkness. All sound and motion ceased as well.
While his eyes adjusted, Sky strained to see any sign of the Hero of Hyrule. Unfortunately, it felt like trying to peer through a thick black curtain. With absolutely no light to bounce off his eyes, he may as well have been blind.
“There’s no way he got that much of a head start,” Sky muttered to himself. “Then again, he has a candle, and I don’t.”
A brilliant idea popped into his head. Holding the Master Sword aloft, he pointed it skyward. A pale blue light trailed up from hilt to tip. The brightness pierced his eyes, but when he managed to look, a mystical aura-like radiance surrounded the blade.
It did not have the fuller range of a regular flame, but it lit his surroundings enough to guide him a few feet at a time. Reassured, he proceeded forward with all the haste he could muster, praying that Hyrule wasn’t too far away. Hylia forbid the Wizzrobe find him first!
His eyes swept over the forest, hoping for the warm flicker of the lantern’s fire. A wintry chill had set in, and the temperature steadily dropped further and further. Sky shivered, not because he was cold— his former home, Skyloft, had always been on the nippy side— but because of how unsettling the whole environment was. Not even the slightest breeze stirred the trees’ leaves; they may as well have been made of stone. All sound— his footsteps, his breathing— was suppressed to the point where it pressed on his eardrums.
Getting lost in these creepy woods was not an idea he wished to entertain. He thought he had a good grip on his direction, but he was starting to wonder if the forest had a conscience of its own, if it wanted to get him lost. At first he thought that was a stupid, paranoid thought, but the deeper he ventured in, the closer the trees grew together. He kept bumping into them, kept getting swatted in the face by low-hanging branches. Still, he tried to shake it off…until he dared to look back.
Blocked. Completely sealed by tall trees packed so closely, you together couldn’t fit a blade between the gaps. Nausea and dread punched his stomach like a cannonball. He and Hyrule had walked straight into a death trap. The Wizzrobe’s wicked curse overpowered the forest’s natural order, literally bending it to the monster’s wishes.
The sound of his rapid breathing faded in and out, until all he could hear was his heart, pounding against his ribcage like a hammer. His mouth felt dryer than Lanayru Desert. His shoulders instinctively hunched in a defensive posture, and he eyed the trees warily.
This artificial cage reminded him of Eldin’s dark, cramped tunnels he was forced to crawl through on several occasions. Each and every time, he felt like he was suffocating, like there was no space for air. He’d hated them. Hated them so much. He could accept everything new and different the Surface threw at him, except that. Being so confined went against everything he knew. Never again. He did it for Zelda, but never again.
These cursed trees…they were too close. Just like before. Too close. An invisible hand squeezed his lungs. The world spun, pressing in on him, and he shut his eyes to steady himself. Blood roared in his ears. No one knew where he was. And his body would never be found. He would die here, die alone—
A familiar chime brought him back. He gasped and opened his eyes.
Her dazzling blue light faded in and out, like a cloud passing over the Sun. But each time she glowed, there was that sharp, clear ring. The one he always heard when she was about to speak to him.
C’mon, deep breaths, he told himself, forcing down the panic rising in his gut. Deep breaths. And though it took several tries, he succeeded in doing so.
The Sword did not actually speak, but she did not need to. The reminder of her presence alone was enough to calm him, at least somewhat.
The Skyward Strike fizzled out, stranding him in the dark. Quickly, he charged another one; this wasn’t as easy as the first time because his hand still trembled. But when the soft blue glow infused the blade once more, his nerves settled a bit more. To him, it was a sign the forest hadn’t succumbed completely to the Wizzrobe; as long as there was light, evil hadn’t won.
Besides, he would not turn back, even if he could. Hyrule still needed to be found, and the Wizzrobe vanquished. So, drawing one last deep breath, he pressed on, holding the Master Sword high.
He wasn’t sure how far he’d gone before he spotted the lantern’s familiar glimmer. An ear-splitting battle cry shattered the eerie silence into a thousand pieces. Hyrule! He found the Wizzrobe!
Sky ran faster than he’d ever run before. He tore across the grass, leaped through the narrow gaps between the trunks. He kept banging into trees, kept almost losing his footing. Low branches whipped and scratched his face.
The wind howled, hailing the presence of the evil abomination waiting for him. All subtlety lost, the trees shifted with groans comparable to a Hinox’s, forced to unnaturally pull themselves into a silently commanded formation. A literal wall began filling in before his eyes. They were trying to cut him off. But they weren’t quick enough.
He dashed at a full sprint. Already he was at his limit, but raw fear and determination boosted his speed to that of a maniac’s. Just before the gap closed, he hurled himself through, bowling over the Hero of Hyrule, snuffing out his lantern.
“Sorry!” Sky gasped as he untangled himself.
“Where’d it go?” Hyrule scrambled to his feet, grabbing for his dropped Magic Sword.
Just a few yards ahead, the Wizzrobe cackled gleefully at the Heroes’ unexpected mishap. It conjured massive fireballs in its clawed hands and hurled them faster than speeding arrows.
Sky and Hyrule easily dodged sideways, so the fireballs crashed into the wall of trees behind them instead. The heat in the air skyrocketed as the forest shot up in flames like dry grass. Worst of all, the fire, as unchecked fires do, was rapidly spreading to all it could touch. The Wizzrobe grinned and disappeared.
Hyrule uttered, “Uh-oh.”
“Run!” Sky yelled, turning on his heel and tearing for the second closing gap he’d faced in less than two minutes. A race against an infernal ring of fire, twenty feet high.
Hyrule sprinted behind him, hot on his tail. But the ring closed just a few feet before they made it. They were trapped.
“Oh, goddesses!” Sky shouted over the blaze’s roar. He broke into a coughing fit, for thick smoke billowed everywhere.
“Don’t panic!” Hyrule commanded, leaping back as a large tongue of fire snaked towards him. “We’ll figure it out!”
He’s right, Sky forced himself to focus. Using one hand to cover his mouth and nose with the sailcloth, the other fumbled around his pouch. Gust Bellows. His bag of winds. Maybe he could blow it out. No. The wind would only spread the flames even more.
There was the great moaning of a massive tree felled by the fire. Sky hurled himself out of the way as it crashed to the ground, separating the Heroes.
“Hylia, help us,” he whispered through the thick fabric. The smoke stung his eyes, making them water. Everything was red, orange, yellow. Dark and bright at the same time. The heat waves distorting the air were dizzying. Disorienting. Hotter than Eldin Volcano.
Close by, Hyrule had just cast a Shield Spell on himself to avoid a nasty burn from the spitting tongue, but it was only a temporary fix. He wracked his brain for a solution, but all he could see was the wall of fire towering over him, slowly bearing down.
If only he could sprout wings and fly.
If only he were flameproof.
If only—
“That’s it!!” they shouted in unison.
Hyrule crouched down and began chanting. At once, his legs gained an almost weightless feeling. Taking a running start, he rushed forward and cleared the wall in a single, effortless leap.
Sky clapped his hands to his ears, though this was just a reaction to how stupid he felt. How could he forget that he had fireproof earrings? The fire would be hot, sure, but he would not be touched. And sure enough, when he dashed through the wall and reunited with Hyrule, he emerged completely unscathed.
“I feel like a complete idiot,” Sky related as they caught their breath. “Serves me right for almost losing it.”
“Me, too, but I’m just glad we’re alive.” Hyrule brushed sweat off his forehead and dusted ash off his clothes. “Amazing, huh?” He jerked his thumb towards the ring, which mysteriously shrank to the size of a campfire. “It stopped spreading outward, and only went inward. I’d say we’re in the clear— for now, at least.” As he spoke, the fire poofed out of existence in a puff of multicolored smoke.
“Guess the Wizzrobe didn’t count on us escaping.” Sky shrugged. “At least we don’t have to worry about the entire forest catching on fire. The old man would kill us.”
Their relief was dashed into tiny pieces when the Wizzrobe reemerged from the shadows.
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