#I think a new Princess Knight anime would do well in today's world

[shiyonasan]

Rose of Versailles and Magic Knight Rayearth are both getting new anime

I feel like this is the right time for Tezuka Productions to announce a new Princess Knight anime

[authoruio]

Hello I just recently started to follow you but I love your art, it's tasty. Anyway could I possibly get your twst gang's opinions on my mc Melanie and her talking buddy Louise please and thank you!!

Hi! Thank you ^7^!

oh my god- Melanie so pretty!

Melanie and Louis with UiO and Jiyoon!

There's a light coming from Melanie and UiO thinks she is lost while Jiyoon is stupefied.

This school is full of ruffians, why is Melanie here? Oh, Louis is her guard? Good! UiO questions the hows.

UiO is full of wonder! Melanie is literally shining with brilliance, like one of those fairytale princesses! Not from what Jiyoon writes... no, put them aside.

She's on fangirl mode, a lot of praise is running through her head-

Melanie... is so ???

She's so shiny like a diamond! Not to mention, she's so pure! Who's this, Aori but with more purity???

UiO cannot comprehend the reason why she's been put to NRC, at least she was put to Pomefiore right?-- WHAT!? RAMSHACKLE!?

HELLO CROWLEY? ARE YOU FREAKING BLIND?

UiO WOULD LIKE TO HELP WITH YOUR EYES-!

she's fine when Crowley placed Miren to Ramschackle, but when a girl she just met today? wow favoritism- ahem-

She will basically drag Melanie around the school in any place she thinks she haven't seen!

She wants to have fun with Melanie without risking her of getting hurt-

UiO calls her 다이아몬드 공주님 (Diamond Gongjunim/princess or just 공주님 /princess)

Louis and UiO get along quite well! She finds him cute and interesting! Probably bows to him and Melanie.

The only talking animal she have seen are Lucius, Trein-seonsaengnim's cat and Crowley! Crowleys a talking crow to her... Of course he's interesting!

Protect gongjunim at all cost!

Jiyoon feels like she can have a deep breath with Melanie alongside her. She's like a fresh air that Jiyoon was not allowed to have!

but why are you here in NRC?

You should be at RSA... Did Crowley really hit his head with a nail?

At least you have your knight in shining armor, Louis-- Jiyoon takes Louis really serious considering Melanie seems to treat him closely.

Her kindness makes her stand out from the rest of the NRC students, Jiyoon is amazed how she can stay pure staying in this school full of annoyance.

Jiyoon would make a charm out of paper, maybe origami butterflies, she do not want anything to happen to this precious gem.

Though Melanie reminds Jiyoon of someone from a distant past, it brings her a melancholy feeling but will do her best to hide it.

She finds Melanie's presence comforting!

Jiyoon would like to offer her books for Melanie and have a little chat for what she likes about them and whatnot.

Melanie and Louis with Aori and Miren!

Ah, of course, Melanie meets the duo AoRen doing stupid shenanigans. Nonetheless, they would welcome her with open arms!

Aori is curious and happy! (he's always happy-)

A new friend! Not to mention, she reminds Aori of a purifier if she belongs to their world!

Seeing Louis would make Aori showcase his own companion! A water sprite he named Aqua!

Aori wonders if Louis' sword can pierce through the clothes, but he doesn't want to challenge him. He's a knight doing his job, why would he even bother?

Aori appreciates Melanies kindness, it was just him and Jiyoon but the more the merrier!

Now Aori wants to pull a prank on Melanie but he somewhat awfully feels bad, he doesn't know why...

So why not ask her to join him in the pranks? :D

Aori would like to offer some protection too :)

For Miren, he's pretty neutral with Melanie. though he is quite happy Melanie is quite.. normal, no who's he joking? Melanies brilliant.

Despite being afraid with someone who's like Aori, he doesn't mind her considering her kindness seems to be ever present.

She won't mind spicy kimchis right? ^_^

Miren doesn't like that Melanie doesn't get angry to the others who doesn't seem to like her.

Yeah, yeah, he gets that she's kind and all, but show some fight like Aori! >:(

And that's why Miren appreciates Louis companionship with Melanie, and he wants Melanie out of NRC to save a kind soul, god, maybe eating a crow would be fine this time.

If Melanie has any food request, Miren won't mind making them

[blueberry-sunshines]

Small Surpises— Big Brother Shiro x Little Sister Reader

Summary:

You are Shiro's younger sister waiting on him to return from a mission while you reminisce about your life with your big brother which then gets interrupted when he brings you back an unexpected surprise...

Word Count: ~2K

Childhood memories | Brotherly Love

Requested by: @white_skittle on Wattpad

{Your POV}

Honestly, you had never really thought that it would be so boring to be in a half-castle half-spaceship until you were actually in one. It sounds crazy to even think you'd be in one let alone that one exists! One moment you were on earth with Keith trying to figure out these weird radio signals and then the next your brother who'd been missing for a year had crash landed onto earth in an alien pod! And just when you didn't think anything could get any crazier, you found a giant blue lion that whisked you all away into space! That was just the beginning of all the adventures you'd have traveling the universe with your new found family. But as of now, the only thing you could do is wait around the Castle of Lions until the Paladins are back from their mission. To keep your mind off of your boredom and anxiety you tried your best to distract yourself with useless things like wondering the castle and getting lost in your own thoughts.

You were significantly younger than your brother, Shiro. While he was 25, you were only a teenager. You two were always rather close despite your age difference. Shiro was always so cool, you and all of your friends thought he was the most amazing person in the whole world. And if you were being honest with yourself, he still was. I mean, being the paladin of the Black Lion and the leader of Voltron was the coolest thing you could think of! As kids you and Shiro loved playing together, you would play with his soldiers and planes or he'd play dolls with you. You two would spend hours playing little games like hide and seek or just playing pretend.

You would be the princess and Shiro would always be the courageous knight there to protect and save you from evil villains and mystical dragons. Using sticks and pool noodles as swords he would slay any foes that even dared to hurt his little sister. Shiro has always been your hero in more ways than you'd ever realize.

"Fear not, Princess (Y/N)!" He would cry, holding his makeshift sword in the air. "I will slay this dragon to protect you and your kingdom from his evil!" He would then jab at one of your stuffed animals or sometimes even trees, pretending they were the villain.

     As you got older, you two were still super close. Shiro was then entering his teens, going to the Galaxy Garrison to be a pilot. He was so smart and so talented and all you ever wanted to do was impress him. When you didn't think he could get any cooler he always did. But even though he was at the Garrison, he still had never let you down. You have many memories of Shiro picking you up after school and taking you out to your favorite diner. Sitting in a booth across from each other he would ask you about your day while drinking a milkshake in his bright orange Cadet uniform.

"You look silly in your uniform, Takashi." Little you giggled in your memory. You could still see Shiro's face as he pulled away from his Oreo milkshake's straw, as well as the smile that formed on his face as he let out a small chuckle.

"I guess I do look kind of silly, huh?" He agreed, setting down his milkshake softly.

These couple times a week visits made it feel like Shiro had never really left at all. Soon you were able to transfer into the Garrison Cadet program and next thing you remember is staying up late into the night studying with Shiro and practicing your techniques. Shiro was the star of the Garrison and he still remained the star of your life. Sure you had made many friends, but Shiro was still your best friend above all else. You still remember when Shiro had introduced you to Keith and how you two got off to a rocky start. But eventually, it didn't feel like it was just you and Shiro against the world anymore. Soon you had a new honorary brother in Keith. You would all ride around together on Hoverbikes and Landspeeders and you even would take Keith for milkshakes at your diner.

"Hah!" You beamed triumphantly as you swung to a halt on your hoverbike. You looked behind you now as your brother came up to a stop behind you. You laughed triumphantly as you had just beaten Shiro to your designated finish line. "I told you I could beat you!"

"I never doubted you for a second." Shiro told you proudly as he whipped the sweat from his forehead.

You looked now on the other side of you over the edge of the large cliff next to you. "So can I learn the dive now?" You blurted out quickly.

Shiro laughed warmly, "Absolutely not." He said quickly and gave you a teasing smile. "Not until I'm sure you and Keith are both ready." He explained, watching you pout in amusement.

As you were entering your teenage years and Shiro was leaving his, you two had somehow managed to grow even closer. He had come out to you over the course of your time at the Garrison. You still remember him gushing to you all about his, then crush, Adam. You were there for him when coming to terms with his feelings and there when he brought Adam home to your parents for the first time. In return he was always there for you, helping you when you were sick, giving you advice when you were down in the dumps, and he helped you through your first ever breakup.

Time was flying by so quickly and soon, you were an accomplished pilot just like your big brother, and Shiro had asked Adam to marry him. Life was just the way you liked it and you didn't think anything could ruin your wonderful relationship with Shiro. If none of the petty sibling fights you got into or even any of the serious ones could have ruined it, you didn't know what could. But, you could never forget Kerberos...

"We're back!!!" You heard a voice shout from a room over. It was the cherry voice of Lance McClain exclaiming their arrival in the castle. You began running back down the corridor to return to the lounge where you heard the voices coming from.

"Hey, (Y/N)!" Hunk smiled seeing you enter the room. You saw Lance, Pidge, Hunk, Keith, and Allura all standing in the room.

"How did it go out there today?" You asked them all, subconsciously looking around for your brother. The Paladins went to a freed planet to collect some tech that was needed to help the fight against the Galra.

"We collected all the samples we needed." Pidge told you before gesturing behind her, "Coran and Shiro are unloading as we speak." She was unusually smiley, but you brushed it off as her just being happy to have new tech to work with. You were about to leave to go find Shiro when,

"(Y/N)," Keith said your name now, walking over to you, also dawning a small smile. "There's also something we brought back for you, too."

"Hey!" You heard Lance complain, "I wanted to be the one to tell (Y/N)!"

"Too bad." Keith smirked at him and the two began a small, signature squabble as they walked past towards the direction of the showers.

You looked over at Pidge and Hunk now curiously, "What are they talking about?" You asked them, furrowing your brow in thought trying to guess what on earth they could have brought you. You heard them both giggle as they refused to give you any clue before heading towards the showers as well. Your last hope was Allura.

She just looked as confused as you, "I do wonder what they had brought you as well." She said warmly before following you towards the other door the four Paladins had come from originally. As you and Allura made your way down the hallway she tried to offer you ideas as to what they could've brought you, but half the things she said you had no idea what she was talking about.

Once you reached the hangar where the Paladins had come from, you sprinted towards the Black Lion. Coran was placing small metal crates onto a floating cart and Shiro was helping him.

"Shiro, Hey!" You yelled as you got closer, Allura still following suit.

"(Y/N)!" Shiro called your name happily placing down a crate and turning towards you. You laughed as you ran into his arms, you felt him stumble a bit upon impact and you heard him chuckle.

"You really missed me that much?" He teased you as he gave you a tight squeeze before putting you back safely balanced onto your feet.

"Always do." You smiled up at him affectionately. You then cut right to the chase, "Keith said you guys brought me something!"

Shiro raised an eyebrow at you, "He did, did he?" You nodded in response and he let out another laugh. "Alright, you got me." He admitted humbly.

"Is it another crystal?" You asked excitedly. Shiro had brought you small trinkets before from the missions you didn't get to go on. The Paladins often needed your help, but sometimes when there wasn't any risk you'd just stay behind.

"It's better than that." He said mysteriously as he lead you back towards his lion.

"Is it a bigger crystal?" You asked which earned you a laugh in return.

"No... now stop guessing!" He shook his head in amusement. "Wait here, I'll be right back." Shiro instructed you, turning snd disappearing into the lion.

You looked back over to where Allura and Coran were conversing about something while you waited. Once your brother reemerged from Black, he was holding a small box that had some kind of cloth or blanket sticking out from it. You stared at the box in pure curiosity as Shiro grew closer.

"Keep your voice down," he advised as the contents of the box were nearly in full sight. "You don't want to startle him."

You were still not understanding what this could be but now you were thinking it may be alive. Despite not knowing, you listened to your brother and kept quiet. Shiro held the box further down and you saw him.

      You had to hold in a squeal as you saw what Shiro had brought you. It was a small light gray ball of fluff. The creature had long droopy ears, four legs with five tiny toes on his paws. It had four small horns above his closed eyes, a pink nose and cute little pouting mouth. His chest and his face were white and he was all curled up in his long, white, fluffy tail. He sort of reminded you of a chinchilla but much more alien like.

        Gasping you looked back up to Shiro, "No way..." you breathed out finally. Shiro had a large smile on his face.

        "Do you like him?" He asked now, "His breed is concerned to be a loyal partner on Ormaphu. He's a traditional Ormanphian pet called a Bentorm."

         "Shiro I love him!" You gushed looking back down as your sweet, little baby Bentorm.

          "I'm glad, I thought you would."

      When you were kids, you would always beg your parents for a pet but they never let you or Shiro get anything besides fish. Your new Bentorm was the most amazing pet you could think of! Your attention was turned back to the box when you heard him let out a soft yawn as he stretched and uncurled himself. You let out a soft aww, as he sat upright and looked up at you with big, black eyes. He looked as if he was smiling as he looked up at you, he began making a sweet chirping noise and you looked up at Shiro in amazement.

        "You can pick him up." Shiro told you softly, smile still prominent on his face. You reached down and picked him up softly from his tummy, under his arms. You pulled him close to your chest and he quickly snuggled into you, smile on his cute, Bentorm face.

         "From what his breeder told me, they don't get much bigger and they love riding on their owners shoulders as they get older."

       "Allura!" You exclaimed, "Look what Shiro brought me!!"

       

        Allura came over then, in the same awe that you were upon seeing him for the first time. "Is that a Bentorm?" Allura asked looking up at Shiro.

      Shiro nodded and moved the box onto his hip you free one of his hands to pet the Bentorms head.

       "What are you gonna call him?" Shiro asked looking back up to you.

         "Hmmm, I'm not sure..."

_________________

Hi everyone! Thanks for reading this Brother Shiro one shot! It wasn't super long but I think it's pretty cute. Shiro would be the best big brother and I hope I captured that!

Have a great day! Keep requesting please!

[firstofficerwiggles]

Chapter 6: Where No Mando Has Gone Before

Link to Chpt. 5 -- For other chapters please visit my Masterlist

Pairing: The Mandalorian x female reader

Rating: M/E, 18+ only

Warnings: SMUT, Flirty!Din, Jealous!Reader, swearing, kissing, use of blindfold, groping (in public), oral sex (female receiving), explicit description of unprotected sex (be safe in the real world please), still pretty fluffy though

Word count: ~12.5K (I know, but it’s worth it I promise)

Author’s Note: This takes place on Angel One a matriarchal planet from Star Trek, the Next Generation. While that episode of TNG is honestly not good, I have been intrigued by the idea of that planet and always thought they could have done so much more with it. (Btw, I do suggest you look at the costumes from that episode because they are hilarious.) So anyway, I’m pretending that Angel One is in the Star Wars galaxy. Also, in this I describe the women of this planet as being taller, broader, and generally much larger than the reader. I always try to keep the reader as physically non-descript as possible, so just know that no matter how tall and broad you yourself may be, to these women, you are petite. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy this chapter!

For the third morning in a row, you awake to strong arms wrapped around you and the solid, warm body of Mando, or rather, Din, by your side. You’ve fully recovered from being shot, but Din has still been on high alert for any pain or discomfort that you could be feeling. He pretends to protest each evening that he should let you rest, before you easily convince him to climb into bed with you and cuddle all night long. Honestly, at first you thought he was just putting up with the cuddling to make you happy, but turns out, he seems to truly love it, as he is the one who continues to pull you closer any time you roll away in your sleep.

You’re lazily tracing circles with your fingers over his chest now as you think about him. He’s sleeping in a shirt and boxers, and even though you can’t touch the skin of his chest directly, you can feel his warmth easily through the thin fabric. He’s been so incredibly caring these past few days and he’s hardly let you lift a finger. Even when you’ve worried about him sleeping in his helmet and offered to sleep blindfolded so he could take it off, he’s dismissed the idea in favor of your comfort. Although part of you wonders if he’s still too nervous to consider taking off the helmet in front of you despite the presence of a blindfold or darkness.

You really are feeling so much better this morning, and you figure you’ll take over breakfast today. It would be nice to start getting back to your normal routine. You move to loosen yourself from Din’s hold and slide out of the bed, when you feel him stir and yank you back to his side.

“Where’re you goin’?” he asks you sleepily.

“I was going to make breakfast, and let you sleep a bit more,” you reply softly.

“Mmm, no, stay with me,” he says.

You shift a little so you can look at him more directly and tell him, “I’m so tempted, really, but you know someone else will be awake and hungry very soon.”

“Stay,” he repeats, “Wanna cuddle more.” You give in to him, and snuggle closer; it’s too hard when he’s insistent.

Din’s hands are starting to wander now, slipping just under the hem of your pajama top to caress your lower back. You let out a contented sigh at the feeling of his skin against yours.

“You must be feeling much better, if you want to make breakfast,” he says, sounding more awake, as he continues to trail his hands up your back under your top.

“I am, I feel completely better,” you reply confidently.

“Better enough to do other things?” Din asks with a husky tone to his voice as he brings one of his hands around to caress the upper part of your stomach, just below your breasts.

“I could do other things,” you say in a breathy voice; breakfast is now the last thing on your mind.

Din lets the hand on your stomach explore upward and over your breast, lightly palming you and teasing the sensitive tip. It’s been so long since a man touched you like this that it’s enough to make you moan softly. Din lets out a low rumbly sound in his chest and his hand becomes bolder, kneading you and rolling your hardening nipple between his fingertips. With his other hand, he pulls you in closer to him so that your hips brush up against his, letting you feel his arousal. Experimentally, you rock your hips against his, slightly grinding against him, drawing out another deep growling sound from Din’s throat.

“Been wanting to touch you like this ever since I got in bed with you,” he says.

“Me too,” you tell him as you let your own hands finally run up underneath his shirt and over the hard planes of his stomach and chest.

“You’re so soft- oof!” Din’s compliment is cut off by a sound of surprise and you realize why as soon as you see a little green head pop up over his shoulder. The sneaky kiddo has managed to climb up on the bed and his little claws must have grabbed Din’s arm to hoist himself up. Din immediately yanks his hand out of your top as the child meanwhile is crawling over Din’s chest to get to you. You scooch away from Din to make room for the little guy and also to discreetly put some distance between you two so that you can both calm down.

“Good morning, buddy!” You say a little overly cheerful, trying to come back to your senses. You look up at Din and mouth ‘sorry’. He just shakes his head lightly as he pats the child on the back.

“I think someone is a little jealous that I keep taking all the cuddles,” Din says with a chuckle, “Tell you what, I’ll make breakfast and you two have some snuggle time.”

“Aww, come here, buddy, and give me a hug,” you pull the child into your chest and kiss his wrinkled little brow. He lets out a series of happy coos making you laugh.

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

After breakfast, you get dressed and join Din in the cockpit where he’s putting in coordinates to a new destination. The child is sitting in one of the passenger seats playing with his silver ball. You come over to stand next to Din and look at the star chart he’s using.

“I’ve got an idea for our next move,” Din tells you, “But it will require us to carry out some deception for it to work.”

“Deception, huh? Well, I’m intrigued already,” you reply with a smile.

“I’ve heard from several of my guild contacts that the bounty on the child has increased,” he says concerned, “There’s also a bounty out on me too.”

“Oh, that explains the hunters.” Your voice is more serious now.

“It’s fortunate that no one in the guild will support the job, but although it’s an off-the-books bounty, the price is high enough that there’ll still be hunters after us.” Din explains.

“So what’s your plan and how can I help?” you ask.

“You’re an integral part of it, particularly since no one knows you’re with me,” he tells you, “Have you ever heard of a planet called Angel One?”

“No, never.”

“It’s a place that few people have visited,” he explains, “They have a matriarchal society and you’re only allowed to visit the planet if you’re accompanied by a woman.”

“Ah, I see, so no one will expect you to be there.” It’s a good idea.

“Yes, but there’s more,” Din says, “They’re very particular about whom they let stay on the planet for a visit, and from what I’ve heard they usually only let powerful or influential women visit for more than a day. Any potential visitors need to be fully vetted by one of their Mistresses to be allowed to stay.”

“Hence the deception; I need to pretend to be someone powerful or influential,” you respond.

“Yes, I thought you could pretend to be a princess and I’ll be your bodyguard,” Din proposes.

“A princess?” You reply, a touch startled by the idea.

“You’re as beautiful as a princess,” Din says, his voice flirtatious, “I’d definitely believe it.”

“Stop,” you say, rolling your eyes a little at him, “But, seriously, do you think I can pull that off?”

“Why not? You’re intelligent, well educated, and you seem to have a knack for socializing with people, you put them at ease and get them to trust you right away, I’ve seen you do it a lot.” Din compliments you in such a matter-of-fact voice that you find yourself thinking that just maybe you could do it.

“Well, and in your beskar you definitely look like a royal bodyguard,” you say thoughtfully, and then flirt back with him, “My knight in shining armor.”

He chuckles at that, “See, you’re already in character.”

“What if they notice that we’re…” you trail off and just gesture between you two with your hands. You’re uncertain how to define what you are, together? involved? You haven’t really discussed it.

“A couple?” he asks. Ok, so he’s defined it.

“Yes.”

Din thinks for a moment and then chuckles again deeply, “You’ll say I’m your consort.”

“My consort?” You snicker at his choice of words.

“Yeah, your consort,” he repeats, and you can swear by the tone of his voice that he must have the biggest grin on under that helmet right now. “I kinda like the idea, my job being to protect you and service your every, ahem, need.”

“Din, the kiddo is right there,” you whisper a little flustered at his suggestiveness.

“Come here, my princess,” he says playfully as he pats his lap.

“You’re having too much fun with this,” you tell him, but you move towards him anyway because you can’t help yourself.

He tugs you down to sit in his lap, “Oh, we’ve only just started having fun.”

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

The landing crew that meets you on Angel One is most decidedly not about fun. When you descend the Crest’s ramp, you are met with five of the largest warrior-like women you’ve ever seen in your entire life. They are all broad, muscular, and statuesque, decked out in black and gold armor on their arms, chests, and legs, and wearing capes decorated with animal fur. Their makeup is like war paint and they seem to share Din’s love of weapons. You can’t deny that they are all fiercely beautiful and you suddenly feel insecure. Geeze, no wonder Din wanted to come here, these women look like a Mandalorian’s wet dream. You take a deep breath and tell yourself that you are a beautiful and influential princess. You repeat this to yourself a few times and steady your shoulders as you do.

You hold your head up as high as you can and address the women, “Good morning and thank you for welcoming us to your home. We hope that your Mistress will find us worthy of a visit.”

One of the women nods to you as she says, “Right this way Your Highness, Mistress Lagertha is expecting you.”

You follow the woman as she leads you into a large governmental building. Both Din and the child follow behind you allowing you to be the more prominent figure in your little party. The building is a very grand stone structure with sweeping columns and polished stone floors. The furnishings are mostly dark, grey and black with a few metallic accents. You pass several people, all women, who stop to stare at you as you walk down the long corridor. When you reach the end of the passageway, you are ushered into a large office where you see a majestic blonde woman. While this woman is not wearing armor, she exudes power and once again, you are dwarfed by her size. She rises from her desk when you enter and offers you a small half bow.

“Welcome, Your Highness, please have a seat and we will begin the interview.” She pointedly addresses her welcome only to you as if Din isn’t even present. You approach her desk and the proffered chair, while he remains quietly by the door with the child’s pram.

“Thank you for being willing to speak with me, it’s an honor to meet you, Mistress Lagertha,” Now that you’re both seated you feel a little more confident as it’s easier to look her in the eye.

“It’s very interesting to meet you,” she says with a smile, “I’ve never seen an off-worlder before.” She looks over your appearance carefully. In helping to perpetrate your ruse, you’re wearing a summer dress in a pink floral fabric. The dress has a long swirly skirt and it seemed like the most princess-y thing you owned. You’ve also taken extra care to do your hair and make-up in a slightly fancier style. You even took the time to dress up the child as your little ward, wrapping a brightly colored scarf around his tunic like a sash and pinning a costume jewelry broach to it. He seemed to like it, once he stopped trying to bite it. Of course, Din is handsome as always in his well-polished armor and you think all together you should be able to fool these people who haven’t seen many real royals.

You’re surprised when she starts to laugh lightly after looking you over. “I’m sorry, it’s just, I wasn’t expecting you to look so manly.”

“Excuse me?” Your confusion could not be more evident as you look down at yourself. This is quite possibly the least manly you’ve ever looked.

“Well, I knew you would be small, those who’ve seen off-world women have always described them as small, but the pastels, the flowers, even your make-up, you look like one of our men.” She chuckles again lightly.

“Ah, I see,” you reply trying to keep your face neutral, “Where I come from, this would be considered very feminine.” She smiles widely at this and laughs again. Well, if anything you’ve certainly broken the ice.

“That’s hysterical!” She says, delighted, “Plus your man is wearing armor! I’ve never seen such a thing.”

Oh Maker! You really wish she wouldn’t laugh at Din. To his credit, Din makes no reaction whatsoever; he’s doing his silent suit of armor thing again.

She asks you a long series of biographical questions most of which are very easy to answer and require little to no lying at all. Thankfully, you and Din practiced speaking about your invented past and so when you do need to be untruthful it comes out naturally. The only time you feel you really slip up is when she asks you about your views on the New Republic.

“Well, clearly there is much we can learn about your culture and so much that we can share with you about ours,” you say diplomatically.

“I support the New Republic, but I wish they would be more persistent in going after former Imperials. There are still too many evil men out there wreaking havoc in the galaxy.” You can’t keep the bitterness out of your voice and you know you’ve dropped your polite expression in favor of a frown. Uh oh, probably should have given a more politically neutral answer.

Fortunately, Mistress Lagertha says, “A very good point. Men seems to be particularly bent towards doing evil.”

While you can’t agree with that blanket statement, it seems better to simply nod and continue with the interview. For the rest of the time, you try to be your most charming self and it seems to work, because you’re starting to feel like she’s almost a friend the more you converse. When she gets to the part about the reason for your visit, you have a more elaborate answer about cultural exchange prepared, but she says,

“Of course the reason for your visit must be the Jubilee of Astrid which begins this evening. It’s our most sacred and special time, and the most common time for off-worlders to request a visit.”

“Yes, I would be truly honored to be able to experience your sacred celebration,” you say in an awed tone. You have no idea what she is talking about, but this is clearly the answer she expects to hear.

“I understand as a princess there must be certain pressures on you, especially from familial demands,” Lagertha says.

“Yes, there are,” you agree with her demurely, but still clueless as to what she’s getting at.

“Well, you can be certain to have your prayers answered while you are here, and enjoy yourself immensely! May Astrid bless you!” She gives you a cheeky grin as she says this and her eyes flick back to Din for the first time in quite a while. “Incidentally, if your man isn’t up to the task, I’m sure we can find you a man who will find your uniqueness appealing.”

“I assure you that won’t be necessary, my guard is always prepared for any task,” you tell her. You’re still not sure of her meaning, but there’s something in the gleam in her eye that tells you that you only want to be with Din for whatever ‘tasks’ are involved in this holiday of theirs.

“Well, that’s good then.” She’s smiling at you again and then extends her hand, “Welcome to Angel One, we would be honored to grant you permission to stay on our planet for as long as you like.”

You grasp her large hand in your smaller one and give her a beaming (and relieved) smile as you thank her. You’ve successfully secured your visit.

A communication device on her desks beeps and she presses a small button, which allows a voice to state, “Mistress Sigrid wishes to meet the off-world princess.”

“Thank you, Brenna, please let her know that we’re ready for her at any time,” Lagertha replies. She then turns her attention back to you as she explains, “Mistress Sigrid is our leader, the Elected One, and I must confess she has been monitoring this meeting.” You nod and smile, it doesn’t surprise you really, considering how cautious they are about visitors.

“I am delighted to have the opportunity to meet her.” You hope this is a sign that you’ve made a good impression if their leader wants to say hello.

A door in a side wall opens and a stately woman enters. You rise to your feet out of respect as she approaches. She’s older than Lagertha but still moves with the athletic grace of a younger woman. Like the other women you’ve seen here, she is striking with shrewd eyes and a small scar on her cheek that adds to her mystique rather than marring her beauty.

“Your Highness, how lovely it is to meet you,” Mistress Sigrid greets you and reaches out to shake your hand.

“It is a pleasure, Elected One,” you reply, craning your neck to meet her gaze, as once again she is incredibly tall.

“I must say I have never seen or heard an off-world woman quite like you before,” she tells you with respect, “The others I’ve met have been rather anxious and shy, and so easily intimidated.” She dismisses them with a wave of her hand.

“It is a shame you haven’t met more off-world women then, many are quite strong and accomplished. Perhaps while I am here, I can demonstrate how capable we can be,” you reply. The way she says that irritates you immensely but you know you need to stay overly respectful towards her and so you swallow any other comments you’d like to make.

She laughs warmly at your response, “See, I knew I liked you already! You have a spark about you.”

“Thank you,” you say.

“And this is your little ward, hmm?” She walks over to the child who is starting at her with big eyes and a slightly wary expression.

“Yes, my guard rescued him and he is in my care.” You follow her over, reach down into his pram to pick him up, and hold him so she can see him better.

“Hello, tiny child,” she says to him, “Aren’t you a cute little thing?”

He looks mesmerized by her for a moment, and then is suddenly shy, turning his head into your chest. She merely chuckles and you gently place him back in his pram and hand him one of his stuffed toys to hold.

“Shame he’s a male though,” she comments. You don’t know how to respond to that terrible statement and so you elect to simply stay quiet.

“And this is your bodyguard, a Mandalorian.” Mistress Sigrid approaches Din now looking him up and down with curiosity. “I’ve never had the fortune to see a real Mandalorian, I’ve only heard stories,” she says with interest. It’s the most attention anyone has paid to Din this entire time.

“What do you call him?” Mistress Lagertha pipes up.

“Mando,” you tell her, knowing that you can’t share Din’s real name with anyone.

“Mando, will you turn around, I’d like to look at you,” Mistress Sigrid says, speaking to him directly. Something about her tone of voice rubs you the wrong way and you’re fortunate that she’s looking so intently at Din because you fail to hide your displeasure on your face.

Din complies with her request, rotating so she can look at him. He had heard that the women openly objectify the men on this planet and so he knows this is the type of treatment he can expect. It doesn’t really bother him too much as he’s used to people staring at him no matter where he is. He knows Mandalorians are unique and the beskar will always draw attention. He has to bite his lip though to keep from laughing at your expression as Mistress Sigrid ogles him. You look positively jealous.

“That is sufficient, Mando.” The Elected One seems to have gotten her fill.

“Mistress,” he replies softly.

“So unusual to see a man so large and wearing armor,” Mistress Sigrid is turning back towards you with a smile and a little shrug.

Din sees that you’ve managed to paste a bland smile back on your face as you tell her, “I’m so accustomed to it that it would be odd to see him in anything else.” He catches your eye and gives you a nod. It’s the only thing he can do to reassure you that everything is going well. Honestly, he’s so thankful that you were able to do all of the talking for this meeting. You handled all the questions so well and he knows you were able to be charismatic in a way he doesn’t think he ever could. It’s a real credit to your communication skills, especially as Mistress Sigrid is now inviting you to stay at the Elected One’s state residence.

“That is very kind of you, Mistress Sigrid,” you say, “But we wouldn’t want you to go to any trouble on our behalf.”

“Nonsense, it will be delightful to have you there,” she replies, “You will be my special guests for the Jubilee. I do hope you have something red to wear, it is the official color of the celebration.”

“As a matter of fact, I have just the dress,” you tell her.

Mistress Sigrid arranges for two of her staff to accompany you back to the Razor Crest so you can collect your things before they will take you to get settled at the state residence.

“I’ll see you tonight at the opening gala for the Jubilee, and may Astrid bless you!” Mistress Sigrid says before bidding you farewell for now.

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

The state residence is an elegant mansion and you have to remind yourself that you’re supposed to be a princess and so you shouldn’t be overly impressed by any of this. Still you can’t help letting your eyes wander over the beautiful furnishings and art. The mansion reflects much of what seems to be the core beliefs for this society, that women are strong fighters who have accomplished great things, while men are beautiful decorations. You haven’t seen any men in person yet, but in the artwork, they are portrayed as soft and fragile looking creatures with dainty features dressed primarily in flowery pastels, just like you at the moment.

Every woman you pass still stops to openly gawk at you and now you are even hearing laughter accompanied by hushed voices no doubt discussing your odd appearance. You try to ignore it, but you’re not used to being assessed like this so much. You look over to Din and wonder if this is what it’s like for him on a daily basis, not that people laugh at him, of course.

When you reach your room at the residence, you are astonished by the grandeur of the accommodations you’ve been given. Your ‘room’ is actually a large suite with a sitting room, bedroom, and elegant bathroom. After briefly showing you around, Mistress Sigrid’s staff finally leave you alone to rest and relax before the grand gala tonight.

“Thank the Maker!” you say flopping onto the giant four-poster bed. “I feel like I’ve been under a microscope this whole day.”

“Yeah, they really seem quite fascinated by you,” Din says chuckling. He hands the child a piece of fruit from the generous buffet of treats the Mistress’ staff has provided for you. The little guy chomps down on it quickly and you smile at his cuteness.

“I’d say they’re fascinated by us, or at least Mistress Sigrid sure was,” you say still a little miffed at the way she practically undressed Din with her eyes.

Din laughs again, “Your face when she was making me turn for her nearly had me in stitches,” he says.

“What do you mean?” you ask sitting up to look at him better.

He walks over to you and cups your cheek in his hand gently, “You looked rather jealous.” His voice is still full of mirth as he says this and you get the impression that he liked it, at least a little.

“I didn’t like the way she was treating you like an object,” you say reproachfully, but then you look up more directly at him, “Ok, but fine, maybe I was jealous too,” you admit.

“Cyar’ika, you don’t have to be jealous,” he says, “But it is kinda cute.” He’s still chuckling as he steps in between your legs and his hands move to your shoulders, squeezing them lightly.

“It’s hard not be when they’re all insanely giant, stunning, war goddess women,” you reply. Looking up at him thoughtfully, you say, “Seems like that would be just the kind of woman a Mandalorian would find incredibly attractive.” You can’t help the note of insecurity in your voice as you say that.

He shrugs his shoulders, “Not this Mandalorian, besides, I’m already with the most beautiful woman in the galaxy.” He taps your nose playfully as he says this and you smile back at him.

“You really do say the sweetest things, Din.”

“Only to you, cyar’ika.” He replies and you can hear the smile in his voice.

The sound of inquisitive coos interrupts your conversation, and you look over to the child. “Maybe they’ll let us visit the gardens for a while. I think the kiddo could use some fresh air.”

“That’s a good idea, especially because it sounds like our entire evening is already planned with their gala.” Din nods his head as he says this.

“I’m just going to change first, maybe if I put on something black they won’t stare as much,” you tell him.

“Ok, the kid and I’ll wait in the other room.”

You take a moment to hang up your gown for tonight as well as your black dress that you thought to bring too. You put a few of your other things away in the dresser in the room to help keep them organized, when you find a few things that have been provided for your stay, some soft robes, slippers, and a couple black satin sleep masks. Your mind instantly goes to a naughty place as you feel the soft material between your fingers. You slip it on over your eyes, blindfolding yourself completely.

“Hey, Din, come here and look what I found,” you say playfully. You hear him come back into the room.

“What? Oh.” Din’s voice seems to drop several octaves with just that one small sound. “Can you see anything with that on?”

“Not a thing,” you reply.

“Stay there and keep it on,” he tells you and you hear his footsteps approaching you until you can feel that he’s right in front of you.

“You really can’t see anything?” Din asks again.

“No, I promise.”

You hear a soft hiss followed by a metallic thunk on the dresser behind you. Then you feel Din pull you in close to him and he lowers his face towards yours, letting his bare forehead touch yours for the first time. He nuzzles into you more, letting his nose caress yours and then you feel his warm breath against your lips.

“May I kiss you, really kiss you?” Din asks his lips practically brushing against your mouth with his question.

“Yes,” you breathe out.

His lips melt into yours in a sweet kiss as his hands come up to rest on either side of your neck. He seems just a little hesitant, so you slowly start to move beneath him, guiding. He follows your lead, letting his lips explore more. You part your lips slightly so you can tease his plump bottom lip in between yours. He parts his lips when you do this and daringly, you let your tongue lick into his mouth just slightly. His reaction is immediate, as he opens his mouth more to give you greater access. You deepen the kiss and brush your tongue against his. He groans deep in his chest when your tongues meet and he pulls you in tight to his body. You let your hands roam around the back of his neck and into his soft hair. You’re kissing him passionately now, showing him what you like. Din’s response is enthusiastic, as he chases your lips and tongue wherever they wish to lead him. Just before you pull away to catch your breath, you give his bottom lip a suck making him groan again.

“Is kissing always this great?” Din pants out.

“No,” you tell him honestly, “I think it must you.”

“It’s us,” he says before capturing your lips again. This time he teases you with his tongue and tries sucking your lip the way you did to his. It draws out a moan from you; he’s clearly a very quick learner.

A sudden crashing sound from the other room reminds you both that you’re not alone and that you promised the child some outdoor fun. Din groans softly before giving you one more quick kiss and then pulls away from you. You feel him reach for his helmet as you try to take a deep breath and collect yourself.

“Ok, you can take off the mask now,” he says, “But, put it somewhere safe for later.”

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

After a nice afternoon spent exploring the mansion’s lush gardens, followed by a hot cup of tea and several delicious snacks that were thoughtfully provided, it’s time to get ready for the gala. You already know you’ll wear your new red gown, but you decide to go more avant garde with your hair and make-up to hopefully create a better impression on the women tonight. It’s a good look, but something is missing that will give you a certain edge that you want to achieve. You look through your meager jewelry collection but nothing gives off the right vibe. You look over to where the child is playing with Din and you have an idea.

“Buddy, can I borrow your mythosaur for tonight?” You ask the little one. He smiles up at you and gives you his happy coo. You gently take the necklace off him and drape it over your head. The silver pendant comes to rest just above your cleavage, and it’s perfect, much better for the darker image you’re trying to achieve.

You turn with a flourish towards Din, “Well, what do you think? Still a princess but maybe more to the standards of this place?”

Din cannot respond to you because his mouth has gone completely dry. He thinks you look outstanding in that sexy dress that he bought you and then, it’s made even better because you’re wearing his mythosaur around your neck. Fuck! He looks at it sparkling against your bosom, it’s like you’ve put on a giant sign that says you belong to him. It creates a primal reaction in him and it’s taking all his self-control not to grab you and claim you as his right now.

“Din? Is it too much?”

“No, I like it,” Din practically growls at you, “I like it so much, I’m thinking I’d like to pull you back into that bedroom and show you how much I like it.”

“Di-in,” you stretch out his name as you can feel your cheeks blazing with his praise and it makes you giggle a little. He’s never been so outrageously direct like that before.

“I’m serious,” he says, “That’s how good you look. In fact you better pick up the baby to keep me in check.” He’s teasing you now, but his voice still sounds predatory. Your heart is racing and he’s making you feel lightheaded.

“Stop, you’re being naughty,” you flirt back at him, but you do pick up the child in any case. As much as you’d much rather stay in the bedroom with him, you know you have an obligation to go to this gala tonight. And as if on cue, there is a knock at your door.

Mistress Sigrid is there and for the first time, there are men with her. The men are much smaller in stature, dressed in soft pastel colors and wearing make-up that resembles what you had on earlier today. You notice that one of the men is more conservatively dressed, while the other is wearing a rather revealing outfit with a dramatic deep vee neckline that practically screams ‘boy toy’. You’ve never seen anything quite like it. Both men clock you with big eyes and smiles, like the women, they appear to be amused by you too, only at least they don’t laugh out loud. When they glance at Din, however, their smiles falter and they seem taken aback at his presence. You wonder if Din looks somehow feminine to them going by their standards. Your thoughts are interrupted by Sigrid before you have more time to consider the men.

“Good evening, Your Highness, you look festive,” she says, but from her tone it doesn’t exactly sound like a compliment. She is also wearing red, but instead of a gown, she has on a sharply tailored suit, almost like a red tuxedo.

“Thank you.” You just smile at her diplomatically.

“Gregor is here to collect your little ward for the evening to take him off to the nursery to play with the other children and provide him with a nice place to sleep for the night.” She motions to the more conservatively dressed man who is smiling and waving at the child.

“Oh, I wasn’t expecting that, he usually just accompanies me everywhere,” you respond. Although Gregor seems nice enough, you feel reluctant at leaving the little guy with someone else.

“Nonsense, you don’t want to bring a child to the gala tonight. It isn’t done.” Sigrid declares.

“Well, I need to see the nursery first, before I decide if I’m going to let him stay there.” You want to be certain you and Din know exactly where the child will be and how to get to him quickly in case of an emergency.

“I suppose,” Sigrid sighs, but then she smiles at you again, “There’s that feisty spark I saw in you earlier.”

Gregor motions for you to follow him, “This way Your Highness,” he says in a shy voice.

“Gregor, do you take care of many children?” You would like to know more about his background.

“Oh, yes, I am the nanny for all of the mistresses on the High Council for any of their children under age 5.” He smiles warmly at you, “They will all be there tonight too, so your little one will have plenty of other children to play with; there’s about a dozen all together.”

“Is it just you taking care of all of the children?” That seems like too many for just one person.

“No, no, I have three assistants too,” Gregor says, “You’ll be able to meet them at the nursery.”

You continue to pepper Gregor with questions about childcare and the nursery and he seems positively delighted with all the attention you’re paying towards him. You sometimes hear Sigrid let out a sigh as if she finds the entire conversation boring, but you don’t care, after all the child is your primary priority. When you arrive at the nursery, you can see that everything is quite nice and it does seem like a safe place for the little guy to spend the evening. You kiss him goodbye and Din pats him on the head and gives him a soft reminder that he should be on his best behavior.

“Oh isn’t that cute!” The boy-toy guy coos as he watches you and Din say goodnight to the child. It’s the first you’ve heard him speak.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t ask you your name earlier,” you say to him as you’re leaving the nursery, “I didn’t mean to be rude, I was just very focused on the child, you understand.”

“Well aren’t you sweet, Your Highness,” he says beaming at you, “I’m Trent, I’m Mistress Sigrid’s lover.” He seems very proud of that fact.

“It’s very nice to meet you, Trent,” you reply with a nod. You slip your hand around Din’s elbow deciding that they already seem to know you two are a couple, so you might as well feel free to show a little affection. You tilt your head towards Din as you say, “This is Mando.”

“I know,” Trent says giggling a little, “The man in armor, it’s so shocking.” Trent sounds both amused and a little scandalized. “It’s super nice to meet you, Mando. I can’t wait to hear more about you and your princess at dinner. You’re all anyone is talking about.” He winks and flashes his dazzling white teeth.

“Nice to meet you,” Din says. His voice and body language don’t give anything away but you wonder if he’s a little taken aback by Trent’s enthusiasm.

“Yes, the men will have plenty of time to get to know one another during the feast since they’ll be sitting together at their table,” Sigrid explains, and then addresses you directly, “You’ll be with me at the head table with all the other mistresses of the High Council.”

“Oh, you don’t sit together as couples?” With the insinuations that Mistress Lagertha made earlier about the Jubilee, it seemed like this was going to be an event for couples or at least dates.

“Not during the dinner,” Sigrid tells you, “It gives us women time to have serious discussions while the men can chatter about lighter things. Trust me, your Mando will have a much better time conversing with the other men. He won’t miss you at all.” You doubt that, but say nothing and simply grip Din’s arm a bit tighter as a way of silently communicating with him.

“Besides,” she continues, “You’ll have plenty of time to sit together during the entertainment.”

“Ooh, it’s going to be so good this year too,” Trent says, “My best friend is one of the performers and he’s been filling me in on all the juicy details. I’ll tell you all about it, Mando.” Oh my, seems Din’s made a new friend already.

“Just be sure you don’t spoil it for him though, Trent,” Sigrid says patting his shoulder.

“Oh, I won’t,” Trent beams up at her. He reminds you a bit of an eager puppy just so happy to please her in any way.

At last, you come to a large room festooned with red, black, and gold decorations and several round dining tables. The table in the middle of the room is the biggest and it is raised up on a dais so that it is more visible across the entire room. There are several people milling about with glasses of wine and a few servers passing appetizers throughout the space. You’re thankful to see that several of the women are also wearing red gowns, so at least you’re not the only one in a dress. But once again, your attire is much more feminine by your standards. Where your gown is more revealing and designed to show off the curves of your figure, theirs have long sleeves and high necklines designed to showcase their muscular frames. The men are almost all dressed like Trent in soft pastels of varying colors with revealing tops that show off their chests and very tight pants that show off other assets. As you enter the room with Mistress Sigrid, a gong sounds to announce your arrival and every eye that wasn’t already staring at you is suddenly on you as a hush comes over the room.

“Good Evening, all!” Mistress Sigrid’s voice booms out, “I am pleased to welcome you to this year’s opening gala of the Jubilee of Astrid, may she bless you all!” Cheers and applause follow this statement. Sigrid holds up her hand and waits for everyone to quiet again.

“Tonight we welcome our special guests, a princess and her Mandalorian!” Polite applause follows this along with several whispers and small bouts of laughter. You smile placidly at the room and nod your head in greeting.

“Take your seats and let’s begin the feast!” Sigrid announces and the cheering and applause build back up.

“C’mon, Mando I’ll show you where our table is,” Trent motions.

“Just a moment,” Din replies, before turning to you and dropping his helmet to your forehead, his voice is low so that only you can hear it as he says, “Have a good dinner, cyar’ika.”

“I’ll see you later,” you whisper back to him and give his hands a squeeze before being led away by Sigrid.

“You two are very affectionate with one another, I think you’re going to enjoy tonight’s festivities quite a lot,” Sigrid says smirking at you.

At the table, she introduces you to all of the mistresses seated there, most of whom look you over with amusement and curiosity. There are a few though who seem displeased by your presence and they openly frown at you. You suppose it is due to your off-worlder status more than anything else, but you sincerely hope you haven’t made some type of social gaff that may have offended them. You look over to the men’s table and notice that Din has positioned himself so that he is seated in your direct line of sight. It puts you at ease knowing that you can look up at any time and see that familiar helmet and visor.

One of the younger mistresses, Eira, seems the most interested in you and she seems to be one of the friendliest so you strike up a conversation with her. She tells you about her background as a professional fighter, and how that fame brought her into the arena of politics. You’re telling her a little bit about your travels with Din, when one of the other mistresses, Runa, pipes up,

“Yes, tell us all about the Mandalorian.”

“Well, he’s an incredibly skilled fighter, very brave, and I trust him with my life,” you say, thinking that’s what will most likely impress them.

“No, no,” Runa says, “Tell us about your relationship with him. And not just the lovey-dovey stuff, the good stuff.”

“The good stuff?” you repeat, rather surprised.

“Yeah, like what’s it like sleeping with a man who’s so large?” Eira asks, apparently also curious to hear about Din.

“Well, it’s great,” you tell them, “He’s very big and strong and I like the way it makes me feel when I’m in his arms.” You know you’re being liberal with the definition of ‘sleeping with’ here but they don’t need to know that.

“Huh?” Eira responds, “It just seems so weird. I like my men the smaller the better, like I can just wrap myself around their whole body.” The other women nod along with her and several look at you like you must be crazy.

“I suppose that’s just one of the differences between our cultures, but I would say that where I come from, people are very accepting of all different types of bodies and partners. I’m sure there are women from my society who prefer smaller men like you do.” Eira smiles at you when you say this.

“Yes, but when you say big, is he big everywhere?” Runa asks you pointedly and motions with her hands holding them side by side and then expending them outward little by little.

You laugh at loud at that, especially because of the alarmed look on her face as her hands get wider apart. You notice too that now the entire table is waiting for your answer, so much for Sigrid’s ‘serious discussions’. You smile, amused by their interest, and you can’t help but glance over at Din for a moment before you tell them,

“He is very well endowed.” You might not have direct knowledge of that, but from the time you saw him after swimming and the times you’ve felt him against you lately, you know your answer is correct.

“But doesn’t that, you know, hurt you?” Runa wants to know. Her face is very concerned and you do all you can to keep from laughing again so that she won’t think you rude.

“No, it doesn’t hurt,” you tell her, “Quite the opposite, actually.”

“Tell us more about him as a lover,” Lagertha says, her voice loud as it carries across the table. You cringe a bit internally at that because you know that the men’s table has to have heard her. You look right at Din and he tips his helmet in a way that you know means ‘really?’ and you give him a slight shrug in response.

Maker, what can you say to these horny women? Your experience with him is so limited as it is. You decide to just go off of what you do know and then let your imagination fill in the gaps. You figure as long as you keep them entertained with this, they’ll be less likely to ask you any other questions about your invented background that could potentially poke holes in your story. So you tell them all about how generous Din is as a lover, that he’s tender and caring, but then able to be harder and rough when you want him to be. You make him out to be a complete sex god for these women and they are entranced.

“Well, then, it seems like you have the perfect partner for the Jubilee,” Sigrid says chuckling, “I’m sure he’ll get you pregnant.”

You choke on your wine as she says this. What the hell?

“Of course he will, you don’t have to worry,” Eira says and she pats your arm supportively, “After all, that is the point of a fertility festival and Astrid is sure to bless you even if you’re an off-worlder.”

Sweet Maker above! You can only imagine what the rest of this Jubilee will entail.

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

You and Din are finally able to be back together after the dinner. It feels like a relief to have him place his hand on the small of your back as you both follow everyone to a large ballroom where the entertainment is scheduled to begin soon.

“So, what am I like as a lover?” Din leans down to ask you discreetly, his voice is teasing though.

“I knew you had to have heard that,” you say embarrassed, “But these crazy horny women just wouldn’t stop asking me about you.”

“It was the same for me,” he tells you, “All the men wanted to hear about how we fell in love.”

You laugh as you tell him, “Oh no, the women only wanted to hear about sex. But I am curious to know what you told the men.”

“And I’m curious to hear what you told the women,” Din replies.

“Well, obviously I had to do some speculating, but in essence I told them you were a very generous and highly-skilled lover, oh, and that you’re very large.” You wink at him as you say this and give him your most flirtatious smile.

Din pulls you in closer to him and tilts his head down to tell you, “I think that’s a fairly accurate description but I’d much rather you’d experience it first-hand instead of just taking my word for it.” You shiver in anticipation at that.

“Ok, now, what did you tell the men?” You’re very interested to hear this.

“I told them the truth, that you’re the most beautiful, kind, and caring woman I’ve ever known, that you make my life so much better, and that I couldn’t stop myself from falling for you, I also told them that you’re a wonderful kisser.” He says this so sincerely that your heart swells with happiness.

You drop your voice to a whisper so that there’s no way anyone will overhear you use his name, “Din, that’s the most romantic thing I’ve ever heard,” you have to pause for a moment to collect yourself before you tell him, “I hope you know that you make my life so much better too.” You want to tell him more but it’s too public here.

“Thank you for telling me, cyar’ika,” he replies, his voice sounding warm even in a whisper.

Speaking of romantic, the ballroom is set up like a large cabaret with small tables for couples all around, only instead of chairs, each table has a rounded booth with a high back, positioned to face the large open area in the front of the room. As couples start to be seated, you can see that there’s quite a bit of privacy for each table despite the large number of attendees.

“Trent said we can sit wherever we like, but I get the impression we should pick something near the performance area so they’ll think we’re really interested in the show,” Din tells you. You find a table in the second row with a good view of the stage area. The booth is very comfortable and you lean into Din as he places his arm around your shoulders.

“Did Trent give you details about the show?”

He groans slightly, “Yes, probably too many, the best I can tell you is that we’re going to see an erotic celebration designed to honor their goddess, Astrid.”

“Ah yes, I found out something else about this celebration,” you tell him, “This whole Jubilee is a fertility festival; everyone thinks we’re here so that you’ll get me pregnant, that’s what they mean when they say ‘may Astrid bless you’.” Your face feels hot as you inform him of this.

“Well, I’ll certainly give it my all, cyar’ika,” Din tell you, his voice sounding deeper.

“Very funny,” you reply, “I have an implant in any case.”

“Still, practice does make perfect,” he says, laughing, “And the thought does intrigue me.” You giggle in response to that and then start to quiet down as the lights dim.

Truthfully, Din is more than intrigued by the idea. The men also filled him in on the purpose of this holiday during the dinner and he has been thinking about it ever since. Honestly, he hasn’t been able to stop thinking of taking you to bed all day, and his arousal has only been growing. While impractical, the idea of seeing you pregnant with his child is appealing to him in ways he never knew were possible. The reality of how much he wants that someday with you is so strong it’s almost overwhelming to him. In the past, the idea of becoming attached to someone never interested him; the women that he met were good for a sexual release but they were never anyone he wanted to spend time with outside of the bedroom. But with you, everything looks different, feels different, and he wants things he’s never wanted before.

Din’s thoughts are interrupted by the arrival of several dancers, male and female, who have started their performance. He watches a bit at first but then becomes bored and turns his attention back to you. He likes the way you’re cuddled up to him, he’s glad you’re not shy about showing him affection in public. Din is also enjoying watching your face and your reactions as you watch the performance unfold. You seem enthralled until you notice his visor is turned toward you instead of the dancers.

“Is everything alright?” you ask, blinking up at him. He simply gives your shoulder a squeeze and nods.

He keeps looking at you instead of the performance though until he sees your eyes widen and you gasp. Din turns his attention back to the dancers to see that they are removing most of their clothing to reveal their bodies. The dancers then start to pair off and dance together in what can only be described as the most sexual dancing Din has ever seen. There is grinding, thrusting, and a lot of groping. Turns out Trent was right about it being an erotic spectacle. He chuckles a bit to himself at the description and really, it’s nothing worse than some of the pornographic holovids he’s seen before. He looks down at you however and notices that you have become a little restless next to him. You can’t seem to tear your eyes away from the dancers and he sees your tongue come out to wet your lips as you watch. This is turning you on, he realizes. As he glances around the room to see if anyone is paying attention to you, he notes that several of the couples in the booths have started to put on their own performances, so to speak, and no one is interested in the two of you anymore. Never a man to let an opportunity pass by, Din decides to take full advantage of the situation and he reaches over and pulls you into his lap.

“Din, what are you doing?” You gasp, surprised by his actions.

“Shh, cyar’ika, look around,” he tells you. You look over at the other booths to see that most everyone else is making out all around you.

“Oh”

“It’s ok, keep watching the dancers, I can tell you like it,” Din says as his arms wrap around you. He holds you like that for a moment as you continue to watch the performers simulate various sexual acts. But before long his hands begin to wander, starting by running his fingers lightly over your collarbone. He traces the line of your necklace down to the mythosaur and then brushes against the tops of your breasts just along the edge of your bodice. Din hears you let out a small whine as he touches you and it emboldens him to palm one of your breasts fully. Between the layers of fabric of your dress and his gloves, it’s only a tease, but as he continues to grope you, he can hear the pace of your breathing increase. Din wants more and his hand finds the long slit in your dress allowing him to run his fingers up your thigh. He can feel your warmth as he gently kneads your flesh. Each movement he makes seems to elicit a small sound from you and he’s eager to hear more. Din slowly makes his way higher up your skirt thinking he’ll just tease the edges of your panties or maybe touch you over them, when he realizes he’s not finding any.

“Oh, my naughty girl, are you not wearing anything under this dress?” Din asks.

“Didn’t seem necessary,” you whisper to him.

He lets his fingers lightly explore between your legs, and when he can feel how wet you are already he can’t keep himself from letting his hand become more bold. He runs two of his fingers through your damp folds and up to the small bundle of nerves that he knows will bring you the most pleasure. Din feels you shudder against him as he circles your clit before bringing his fingers back down. The movement makes you shift your hips over his making you grind against his cock and he lets out a deep groan. It’s more than he can take and he says,

“We’re going back to room, now.”

“But, the show is still going on,” you say a little worried about being rude to your hostess.

“No one will miss us,” Din insists, “Let’s go.”

You quickly slide out of the booth following Din and he grabs your hand to hustle you to the exit. He’s right that no one seems to notice you at all, except for one other couple that is also sneaking out early. Din and you practically run back to your room, but once you get inside all you can do is stand there for a moment looking at each other.

“I want to make love to you,” Din says, his voice deep, “Please tell me you want that too.”

“I do, so much,” you reply.

He sweeps you into his arms and brings his helmet down to your forehead, as he asks, “Can we use the sleep mask? I really want to kiss you again and be able to use my mouth on your body.”

“Yes, but can we get undressed first?” you ask, “Because I’d like to see your body for a bit before.”

“Absolutely,” Din replies and he starts to pull off his armor. You have a lot less to remove, so with a simple whoosh of fabric, you’re standing before him in only your bra and his mythosaur necklace. You unhook the bra and toss it aside.

“You’re so gorgeous,” Din says, as he yanks at his own clothing in an attempt to be faster. You reach to lift the necklace off, when Din stops you, “No, don’t, I’d like it if you’d leave that on.”

“Oh?”

“I like seeing it on you, especially when it’s the only thing you have on,” he rasps out.

He’s finally almost totally naked except for his boxers and his helmet. Din can see you are transfixed with the way you are practically hopping from foot to foot in anticipation. It makes him smile how enthusiastic you are to see him. He slows his movements to draw out the moment and watches your face intently as he leisurely lowers the boxers from his hips. He sees your eyes widen and he chuckles as your mouth makes the most adorable little ‘o’.

“Wow, Din, you are the gorgeous one,” you reply practically in awe, “And I was right, you are large.”

Din chuckles at that comment, “I’m glad you like the view.”

“I don’t think I could ever get tired of it,” you say as you walk closer to him and as soon as you are in arms reach, Din pulls you to him so he can finally feel you. The sensation overwhelms him and all he can do is hold you there reveling in the feeling of your naked body against his. He lets out a loud groan from deep in his chest.

“I never thought this could feel so good,” Din breathes out. You shift against him and he groans again, “Please can we get the blindfold now? I need to kiss you.”

You pull away from him to reach into the nightstand drawer where you stashed the sleep mask. You take one last long look at his nude form before giving him an appreciative smile and slipping the mask on over your eyes. Not a second later, you hear a clunk as the helmet hits the floor and then Din is on you. He kisses you like he’ll never get another chance again, so full of passion and desire that it makes your head spin. His kiss is so all consuming that you don’t even realize that he’s picked you up and carried you to the bed, until he’s lying you back onto the soft cover. Din breaks the kiss just for a moment so that he can climb on top of you and come to rest comfortably between your spread legs.

Din could kiss you forever if you would let him. He loves the way your lips mold to his and the feeling of your tongue tasting his. He only pulls away to let you both catch your breath slightly before he’s back, trying to kiss you with even more fervor each time. Finally, you break the kiss so that you can explore more and the soft feel of your lips on his neck is magical. You find a sensitive spot just under his ear that makes him moan with pleasure. That moan quickly turns into a growl though as you use your teeth to nip at the spot.

“Ah, cyar’ika, let me try that on you,” he says, moving so that he has better access to your neck. Like you, he starts with soft kisses before biting into your neck to mark you as his. You’re more vocal than he is, letting out little mewls and whines of pleasure the more he kisses and sucks on your skin. He works his way down your neck to your chest, kissing and nipping at you the entire way. Finally, he’s at your breasts and Din does something he’s been dreaming of forever. He takes your hardened nipple into his mouth, pleasuring the sensitive peak with his tongue.

“Din!” you cry out his name and arch your back beneath him from how wonderful it feels. You can’t keep still as he suckles you. You run your fingers through his thick, wavy hair and then down his strong shoulders. When he tries out his teeth on your breast, you scratch your fingernails down his back. You feel his responding groan vibrate against your chest before he lifts his head from you,

“Do that again, cyar’ika, I liked it,” he tells you before switching to your other nipple to lavish it with the same mind-blowing pleasure. You rake your fingernails down his back again and again, as you writhe beneath him. It feels so good but yet, it isn’t enough.

“Please, Din, please,” you beg him.

He pulls off your breast with a soft pop of his lips, “Please what?” he asks you, his voice sounding amused.

“Touch me,” you pant out, “Please.”

“I am touching you,” Din teases and he drops his head back down so he can lick in between your breasts and down your stomach. “Or do you want me touch you somewhere else? Maybe here?” He licks and nibbles just above your belly button.

“Yes, but lower,” you say.

“How about here?” Din kisses lower, near your hipbone.

“Din!” Your voice comes out as a whine and he chuckles, Maker, he’s such a tease.

You feel him shift his body down and even though you can’t see him, you know he’s looking right at your pussy. You wait in anticipation of his touch and then start to wonder, as he doesn’t move.

“Din?”

“Just enjoying the beautiful sight,” he says, his voice full of desire. He waits just a beat more and then you feel his tongue moving through your wet folds.

You shudder and let out a loud moan as he licks you. He’s moving so slow, like he’s trying to savor you, and it feels wonderful but it’s also so maddening.

“Please, please more,” you beg him, your voice shaky in your need.

Din is happy to oblige you and he lets his tongue begin to explore you in earnest. His hands are splayed on each of your thighs as his mouth moves over you. As he licks you higher, he holds your lips open with his thumbs so he can have better access to your clit. Each time he lets his tongue brush over the little pearl, you cry out. He keeps this up for a bit, tormenting you, until he finally latches his lips around it and sucks your clit into his mouth. You cry out his name so loudly when he does that and you thrust your hands into his hair gripping it tightly.

The sensation makes him groan and he’s pleased when you do it again. The more he suckles and tongues your clit, the harder you tremble against him and he has to push down on your hips to keep you still. He pulls away from you for just a moment and lets his thumb draw circles on your clit in place of his tongue.

“You’re the most delicious thing I’ve ever tasted, cyar’ika,” he tells you, “Wanted to do this for so long, so much better than I could have imagined.”

All you can do is moan in response because the mounting pleasure has robbed you of all logical thought. Din dives back into you, licking his tongue around your entrance before he pushes the muscle inside you. You cry out again and you grip his hair even tighter as your orgasm begins to close in on you. You feel yourself surging higher and higher, your thighs pushing tight around his head, until suddenly you are at the peak, feeling the most sublime pleasure as you gush on his tongue.

Din slows his movements as he lets you come down from your high, but he wants more. He’s waited so long to be here, he’s going to take his time until you’re begging him to stop. He lifts his mouth from you so that he can suck two of his fingers into his mouth, wetting them thoroughly.

“Is that really the first time you’ve done that?” You’ve regained enough composure to ask him.

“Yes,” he says, chuckling.

“If you get any better, you might kill me,” you tell him still sounding rather breathless.

“Well my darling, I’m not stopping yet,” Din replies as he pushes one long finger into you and drops his head back down to tongue your clit again. The high-pitched cry you let out makes him smile against you and he sees what he can do to hear it a second time. He can feel you flutter around his finger and he can’t believe how tight you are. He knows it’ll be easier for you to take his cock if he can make you come a couple more times on his fingers first. He slowly adds his second finger to you before he starts pumping them into you at a steady pace while licking and sucking your clit the entire time. He just barely crooks his fingers upward to brush the top of your walls when you’re coming apart again, shuddering so hard you almost buck him off you.

“Ahhh! Din, how’re you doing th-at, fe-feels so go-od,” you try your best to praise him but you can barely get the words out.

“Does it, cyar’ika? Does it feel good what I’m doing to you?” Din asks as he keeps his fingers working within your body. You clench around him hard.

“Talk to me,” you pant out, “like it so much.”

“You want me to talk to you, tell you how wonderful you feel around my fingers, how hot and wet you are?” Din replies and all you can do is moan in response.

“Mmm, you came so nice and hard for me before, gripped me so well, I can’t wait to feel you around my cock, going to feel fucking amazing.” The more Din talks dirty to you the more you cry out and thrust your hips against him.

“You really like this, don’t you, my fingers stretching you out, getting you nice and ready for me,” Din’s voice is so deep that the tone is doing just as much to pleasure you as his words do. “Tell you what, I’m going to keep this up and I’m going to suck on that beautiful little clit of yours until you come again for me.” And with that, his mouth returns to his favorite spot.

All you can do is cry out his name as the pleasure burns through your body. It’s so strong that you feel tears welling up in your eyes and you’re shaking all over from the sheer delight of his actions. It feels as if you are being tossed on a sea of pleasure, rising and falling with each wave, until finally you reach the largest wave of them all and it crashes over you. You lay there boneless and panting until Din finally stops and kisses his way back up your body before finally lying down next to you.

When you finally feel your breathing calm, you reach for him and bring him into a passionate kiss, tasting yourself on his lips. He moans his approval and rolls over on top of you.

“Wait,” you say breaking the kiss, “Don’t you want me to touch you? I’d love to taste you too.”

“I’d like that, cyar’ika, but some other time,” Din says, “Right now, I need to be inside you.”

In response, you widen your legs for him and draw them up to frame his hips, “I want that too, Din.”

 “Tell me again, please,” he says as you feel his cock glide over your folds spreading your wetness all over him.

“I want you, Din, I need to feel you inside me, I need you to make love to me,” you tell him, your voice full of emotion.

“Oh, ner cyar’ika,” Din says before he kisses you and begins to push into your narrow passage. Even with as wet and ready as you are for him, he wants to go slowly both so he can be sure not to hurt you and so that he can enjoy every moment of this first time.

You gasp into his mouth as he gradually stretches you open; you saw how big he is, but feeling him now, he seems enormous, but the sensation is amazing. He’s unhurried as he lets your body adjust to him and you feel nothing but pleasure as he continues to push forward. You know he’s been delaying his own pleasure this entire time that he’s been devoted to you and you marvel at his control now. Finally, he is completely sheathed within you and he breaks the kiss so he can let out a moan. He drops his forehead to yours and just stays there without moving. You let your inner muscles flutter around him as you enjoy the feel of him deep within you. He moans again.

“You little minx, do it again,” he says before kissing you anew. So you do, you tighten and release him almost like you’re trying to pull him deeper inside of you. You do it again and again until finally he starts to withdraw from you to begin thrusting. Din continues to move at a languid pace, allowing you to feel every delicious inch of him as he brushes your walls. Every time he reaches the deepest point inside you, you clench around him as tight as you can, in a vain effort to keep him there.

“Din, you’re so good, I love the way you feel,” you tell him.

“You’re perfect, cyar’ika, you’re so tight and hot and perfect,” he says and he starts to roll his hips into yours so that he strokes firmly on the most pleasurable part inside you as he pulls out. It makes you cry out his name.

“I love the way you say my name, my wonderful girl,” Din praises you and you wish you could compliment him back but he’s making you forget how to speak it’s so good, and all you can do is repeat his name.

Din reaches down to shift your legs higher on his hips and it changes your position so that he can thrust even deeper into you. He feels you lock your legs around his narrow waist and he adores it. He feels so close to you; it’s the most intimate sex has ever been for him. He wants to tell you how great it is but all he can get out are a string of random words of praise. He knows he’s getting close, but he wants you to come one more time before he does. He slides his hand between the two of you so he can reach your clit and he circles it roughly as he begins to piston into you at a fast pace.

“Yes, Din, yes, right there, don’t stop!” you call out to him. His hips are rocketing against yours now and you know you’re almost to another climax. You feel your thighs start to quake with your release and you know it will be a strong one.

“Please, please cyar’ika, come for me,” Din begs you and his voice urging you on is what you needed. You feel yourself explode and everything feels white hot as you clench hard around him. Din thrusts twice more before his own orgasm overtakes him and he spills himself deep within you, his cock pulsing. He shudders above you and his arms give out, making him sink his full weight into you. It feels wonderful and you wrap your arms around him to hold him tight.

When you can breathe again, you tell him, “Din, that was so amazing, I don’t even have the words, just incredible.”

“For me too,” he pants out as he is still catching his breath. You let him relax as you run your hands over his back gently. Eventually though, he picks up his head and kisses you so sweetly.

“I had no idea that anything could ever feel this wonderful,” Din tells you, and he kisses you again before rolling to the side and snuggling next to you with his head nestled in the crook of your neck and his hand resting on your stomach.

“So did I live up to the reputation you gave me as a lover?” Din asks, his voice flirty and teasing.

“Oh, you surpassed it,” you reply, “You are even better than the sex god, I described.”

“Ah, sex god, I like it,” he laughs, “Feel free to call me that any time.”

“Should I tell, Sigrid, to announce you as such tomorrow?” you laugh with him.

“Absolutely, may I present to you her Royal Highness and her Sex God.” He’s still chuckling and shaking the bed with his laughter. He calms down for a moment and he lets his hand trace lazy circles on your stomach before it comes to rest just below your belly button.

“So?” Din drawls, “Do you think you were blessed by Astrid?”

“I think modern science may have thwarted her in that,” you respond with a giggle.

“Hmm, maybe I should try again?” Din replies as he turns you to face him and pulls your leg over his hip. You’re surprised to feel that he’s already hard again as he grinds himself against you.

“I suppose you should,” you tell him encouragingly and you find his lips again in an adoring kiss.

------------------------------------------------------------

Thank you again so much for reading! I really hope you enjoyed this chapter. Go to Chapter 7: The Mando Games

Tag list: @grogusmum @wellofeternalthirst @idreamofboobear @theamuz @fangirlalexia @callmekane @im-the-nerdiest-of-them-a11 @theravenreads @nicotinebirds @boomtownboy @nova646 @wandering-storm-lost-shadow @becks-things @sleepwithacommunist @mackycat11 @som3thingcr3ative @punkdalek @pinkninja200 @s-unflowxr @ladyjenny19 @peppywitch @haley7242 @the-bottom-of-the-abyss @imthemandalornow​ @overtly-cuteashell 

[nemuitoka]

What are your favorte jshk fanfics? also where do you like reading them the most?

Hi Anon!!! today is the day I can finally answer this question😈 ahaha you know how much I enjoy making fic recs so 👀 Let’s go!!!

To answer your second question first, I like reading them on AO3 the most! Mostly because I get almost unlimited number of characters to rant in the comment section........... 😆but also the tagging system is very helpful.

Okay, now to the fun part of this ask😏

You said JSHK, but I mostly read Hananene ones so all of my favs include that pairing... as  I already did a fic rec here of my favs, this list will continue that one, so please check that one first hehe ((I apologize in advance..., I would love for people to recommend me some mitsukou ones tbh... I’m really lost when it comes to other pairings orz)) 

If I’m completely honest with you anon-san, my favorite JSHK fic right now is the one Roxanne ( @istoleyourboat )  wrote based of my art and her snippet:

Star-Crossed and Falling- Where Stars Go to Die by lilaflo

Hanako is Princess Nene’s personal knight 👀. A tale of forbidden love. They slowly fall in love as they exchange a series of gifts, one that includes a pair of matching earrings that remind them of their love when they’re apart. Also, jelly Hanako of Nene’s suitors😏... Oh, but nothing lasts forever and those sweet moments will come to an end when they have to face their cruel reality, in this world, they don’t get to choose neither their battles or the ones they love.

Now more of Roxanne, because I seriously enjoy her work so much (I’m sure everyone knows by now lmao sdkj) 

Night of the Phantom King by lilaflo 

This one is a spooky one. Nene’s regret for never realizing who she truly loves takes her to mourn her deceased friend Amane and cry on his grave in a Halloween night, then suddenly the Phantom King comes to take her away👀 & he looks suspiciously familiar... Beautiful world building btw, also the ending is just, excellent. 

12 Year Romance by lilaflo

Amane meets Nene at the Tanabata festival, she’s older than him, but he falls for her instantly, fast forward, Amane is now in middle school, he’s a troublemaker, & gets constantly into fights, but he swears the new school nurse looks familiar... he then realizes it’s her and thinks it must be fate!!!... This one hits close to home bc I’ve been in this situation irl, so I can confirm all of Nene’s struggles are real (and ofc how a love with an age gap should be handled the correct way, this fic really teaches you many life lessons hahaha) 

took a sip then another sip, then you turned and said to me by chivalrousamour 

This autor has a bunch of good JSHK fics!! I recommend you check their AO3 out, bec you may find something you like for sure! But, this is my absolute fav from them. Nene is a mangaka, celebrating the finishing of her long serialized manga, while Amane is a delivery boy who happens to find her in a very questionable state in her house👀 (it’s all family friendly ofc, anon, I’m not a slimy pervert like some ghost boy)

Maid for Each Other by corologs ( @corologs )

Courtney has this amazing College AU collection series that I encourage you to check out!!! But Maid for each other is my fav!!! So it’s the Yugi twins birthday, and it’s Tsukasa’s turn to choose where they go to celebrate it... you can already tell where this is going... (let the chaos begin) & as the title said, it involves maids!!! (it has Kaicho wa maid sama vibes if you liked that anime~~)

If I Could Tell Her by corologs

What if the picture perfect arc plan was successful??? Well, this fic explores this idea, and it’s very interesting to read. I like how Amane and Hanako are two separate people here.

the horizon tries but it’s just not as kind on the eyes by sincerelyand ( @sunlightinourheadlights ) 

(Oh my sweet Karen, she writes such good fics, so go check her AO3 out as well!!) Amane and Yashiro are friends that share an apartment (& they were roommates-- OMG they were roommates), even if Amane has its complains, because Nene can be a handful sometimes (and in denial of her true feelings as always, are we even surprised at this point?) he loves her dearly anyways😭.

for real, this time by sourlemoncandy  ( @sour-lemon-candy )

Did somebody say fake dating AU?????? Because hell yeah I did asajj I loved reading this so much!! Nene and Amane are childhood friends, and Nene overhears some girls talking about Amane and how one of them plans to ask him out... but she senses these girls are up to no good so she... well, you gotta read it to find out more~~ it’s no fun If I tell ya everything hehe... so go go go!!

lemon cream by sourlemoncandy

Amane and Nene, just two good friends having a road trip and sharing donuts... what could go wrong??  😏 seriously, I loved this fic so much!! Instant fav! Also makes me wanna try some good sweet donuts...

Trip Down Memory Lane by insipidenvy ( @insipidenvy )

This fic is so sweet. I have such a huge attachment to it, because I read it when I really needed some fluff in my life hahaha. It’s sort of a collection of memories between Amane and Yashiro’s relationship over the years. So heartwarming... if you need the fluffs you’ll enjoy this very much!!

The Radish Princess and the Toilet Prince by insipidenvy

This is my favorite fic from insipidenvy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You know how I am a slut for Royalty AUs so that’s why!!!!! Also Toilet Prince!! hahahaha such a good nickname lmao. I love how they bond over their insecurities, it’s very relatable tbh. 

Between Wind and Water by WingSongHalo  ( @wingsonghalo )

My beautiful Wing always delivering the good Hananene content, as she should!! This fic is so fun to read!! I laughed so hard at Nene and Hanako being awkward with each other!!! So you know how Hanako is super clingy with Nene, he’s always touching & hugging her, but this time something weird happens and he’s so distant~~ Nene doesn’t want to admit it at first, but she misses his clingy ghost boy~~ you’ll have a good time reading this for sure!  

The Monster's Bride by Hammsters ( @uglierdaikon )

Have you heard about the myth of Cupid and Psyche? Well this fic rewrites it in a very Hananene way <3 hehe I loved it so much (as I’m a huge fan of mythology~) To sum it up, Nene is fated to marry a monster that lives in the mountains so she’s devastated... to her surprise, her husband is far from what she expected... she only had one rule to obey and well... we all know how reckless Nene is so... you go find out what happens next now!! hehehe

Morning Reflections by FalalalaLa  ( @miss-sternennacht )

So you’ve heard of Hanako watching Nene sleep, but what about Nene watching Amane sleep???!! this fic offers you this and so much more fluff <3 Also Nene remembering how they met and how their relationship evolved during the years, aww <3 

Cursed Coin by DaikonSenpai  ( @daikonsenpai )

There’s a school dance, Yashiro’s supposed to be dancing with Kou (since she can’t go with Hanako, which causes him to be jelly~~ and bitter), but she loses a coin Aoi gave her for good luck so she goes out and searches for it on the last place she saw it, the school fountain. Suddenly Hanako spots her, what’s she doing outside??? is she drunk or something?? what happens next you may find out when you read it~~~

Between Love and Hope by Baronesscmd (SweeterThanYourDarkestSin) ( @baronesscmd )

Oh to be Nene and get to sleep between the Yugi twins... God really has favorites uh... ISTG, this collection of fics is so cute. I love how Nene loves the twins so much in this AU, they have their little cute family. She ofc is in love with Amane, but their relationship with Tsukasa is so tender... it’s mostly this trio having fluffy moments together to heal your soul... if you need some, you’ll get it here for sure hahaha. 

Ghost of You (And All the Futures We've Forgotten) by Indigo_Floof  milkteamoon  ( @indigosienna , @spades-queen )

So anon you may have been wondering, well this bitch likes fluff only???? how about some angst for a change, uh? DAMN, OKAY THEN, here you have some angst to rip your soul out and wish you never sent me this ask in the 1st place, bec of the emotional damage this fic will leave you sdajjsa, also if you liked “Erased”, you’ll love this fic too! 

Hanako of the Opera by zxrstan

Finally, but not less important, me being annoying about Hanako of the Opera & POTO AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!! This fic is based of the AU Aidairo created mostly, it’s really fun to read if you didn’t get much of what was happening during the Hanako of the Opera event, it has a nice ending also! very satisfying I must say. 

AAAAND THIS IS THE END OF MY ALL TIME FAV LIST OMG;;;; Kudos for me for searching through all my damn AO3 and Google Chrome history (from both my PC and phone, since I am a FOOL and forgot my AO3 password so I read a lot of these in the past as a guest before recovering my password LMAO, please be patient with me omg, and also if you see me bookmarking them now, you know why 😭) 

Kudos to all of my writer homies as well, I love and appreciate all of you so much!! you have no idea! 💖

I hope you find this list useful, anon!! Thank you for sending me this ask and have a wonderful day! 

Ps. Please everyone feel free to add more fics to this list if you want! this is all my personal picks, but I’m aware there are a lot more fics that I haven’t read and deserve as much recognition as the ones I listed!

[penwieldingdreamer]

Dante's Prayer - Chapter 1

Thank you all for your likes and reblogs. I'm really happy you liked it. Now on with the next part. Let me know what you think about it and if you want to be tagged. As always thank you @fortheloveoffanfic for being my beta.

Warnings: Mentions of war, mentions of sex, period-typical sexism, canon-typical violence

Words: 1304

Chapter 1

Arrow House, Warwickshire, 1924

"Tommy, you need to consider remarrying." Aunt Polly told him, bouncing Charlie on her knee as she watched her nephew pace behind his desk. "There have been rumors goin' round."

Taking a deep breath, the leader of the Peaky Blinders turned to the older woman. "What would you have me do, Poll, ey? Take the next best woman that's out on the streets?"

"Don't be ridiculous, Tommy. You need someone with good connections and money." she told him, hoisting the boy into her arms and coming to stand next to Tommy. “She has to accept that you’ve been married before, that there’s a child. Even though we’re rich now, doesn’t mean that all women of the world will fall over for Thomas Shelby.”

Snorting, the second eldest Shelby grinned at his aunt, although the smile wouldn’t reach his eyes. Not since Grace had been shot because of him. “As you just so nicely reminded us, we don’ need the fuckin’ money, the Shelby’s are already fuckin’ rich. What are you gonna do? Arrange a marriage, just like John and Esme?”

“Stop the cursin’, will you. There’s a small child here.” Shrugging her shoulders, Polly regarded him with a stern look he just knew all too well. “I talked to Johnny Dogs, he knows a family in Ireland. Lots of connections, loads of old money.”

“No, Poll.” he shook his head, opening the silver case to grab another cigarette, hoping to calm his nerves from the nagging of his aunt. “I’m not goin’ ta bring anyone new into this family. There’s enough people to take care of as it is. Who’s to say that family doesn’t have ties to our enemies?”

Smoothing out Charlie’s dark blond hair, Polly Grace shook her head. “Stubborn as a mule, that one.” she muttered to the boy, the corners of her lips moving up into a smile as she heard the two-year old laugh at her. “Even John wasn’t bitchin’ so much. I know why you won’t do it, Thomas, but you need to see reason. Your boy needs a mother and you, you need someone to warm that heart of yours, even if ye don’ believe me. Be ready in a week, Johnny will take you to see your future wife.”

Grunting, Thomas Shelby watched his aunt leave the study, his son perched on her hip. Grace had only been gone a few weeks - or had it really been months? - and yet his family was forcing him to marry some spoiled high society girl, whose only problem would be the perfect temperature of her tea. Letting out a defeated sigh, the leader of the Peaky Blinders sank into the plush sofa Polly had occupied minutes before and looked at the portrait of his late wife. “What am I goin’ to do without you, eh? You shouldna have been involved in my fuckin’ mess, Grace."

Of course there was no answer from her, the smile on her lips stayed forever frozen. Dropping his head into his hands, he breathed in the air filled with tobacco and whiskey, trying to keep every detail of his love in his heart, never to forget her.

Dublin, Ireland 1924

"Edward, when will you tell our daughter that it's not ladylike to run around with a horse like that?" Helene McCann, Duchess of Leinster and Baroness of Kildare, admonished her husband entering the large sunroom of their country home Castletown House.

Sitting at the table with his other two daughters Amalie and Louise, he read the newspaper and only hummed. "What would you have me do, hm? Send her to her rooms and lock the doors?" Andrew, Duke of Leinster folded the papers and leaned back to watch his wife with an amused smile on his lips. "She is just as free spirited as you, my darling."

"Oh no, I'm definitely blaming you on that one. Saoirse has done everything to avoid being a proper lady, no thanks to you, love." she countered, sipping her tea and giving her husband an angry look. “You know that Mr. Shelby will arrive today and I want her to be presentable.”

Shaking his head, Andrew grabbed his pipe and lit the tobacco. "Saoirse is just like your mother's cousin has been. She was a free spirit, too, a friend of nature and I know you often went to visit her. I do believe Mister Shelby will be very lucky to marry her and you know that as well."

Sighing, the mother of three leaned back in her seat and turned her gaze on the gardens, hoping that her youngest daughter would at least be fine while out there riding through the forest behind their home.

Hooves beat against the cold ground, harsh pants of the horse sounded in the silence of the woods as it raced through the trees, nostrils flared and kept its attention on the sounds around him.

“Socair.” Saoirse spoke softly, guiding her stallion through the thick undergrowth. “Calm, my love.”

Since her mother had told her about the arranged marriage, the youngest of three daughters left to find solace with her animals. Her dappled grey White Knight brought her to the flower field she had found a few months earlier. “Good boy, we’re going to stay here and enjoy the sun before those men come.”

With a snort, the stallion stopped and Saoirse jumped from the saddle, taking the bridle off of him. She took a deep breath and brushed her hand over the speckled coat of the horse. “I can’t believe father agreed to that marriage mother arranged.”

There had never been time in her life that she wished more than ever to not be a descendant from royalty than now. Arrangements had been made with Thomas Shelby, leader of a gang in Birmingham. Her mother had told Saoirse that in a few months she'd be his wife and make sure that their connections would help him further his business and standing in politics.

Leaning against his neck, the young woman closed her eyes. "What should I do, huh? I don't want to be a wife being kept in a house as a broodmare. I just, I want freedom."

Both, rider and horse snapped to attention when a twig broke behind them in the woods. "Who's there?" she called, her eyes flitting through the green leaves of the trees.

"It's just I, princess." the man reasoned, his accent thick as he spoke. Moving through the underbrush, Saoirse could see the kind eyes of Johnny Dogs he only reserved for her. "I knew I might find ye out 'ere."

Smiling, she moved in for a tight hug. "Oh, how I missed you, Johnny. It has been boring ever since you left."

"Oh I know," the Irish mused with a smile. "I bet yer mum has had you reciting poetry and embroidery."

Rolling her eyes, Saoirse lightly hit his shoulder. "Don't remind me. I'm not as much the lady she wants me to be. But now, why are you here? Don't tell me he's here already."

"I'm afraid he's 'ere." Johnny sighed, seeing the defeated look darken her eyes. He had known her since she was a little girl, having worked for the Duke in his stables and taught her everything about horses and riding that he knew. "Please Saoirse, it's not as bad as ye make it out to be."

Exasperated, she turned away from her friend, crossing her arms over her chest. "I'm losing my freedom to be a gangster's wife so he can further his business while I'll have to sit in his manor and play the lady of the house, greeting guests and giving him children to make him seem good."

"Just give Thomas a chance, once in a while people will surprise you." Johnny tried to reason with her.

tagging:

@fortheloveoffanfic @fics-not-tragedies

[heliosthegriffin]

Jaune “Mean Bastard” Arc AU.

The Arc family is a family stapled into history with their deeds of heroism, their immense physical strength, willingness to accept others into their clan at the drop of a hat, fighting against insurmountable odds for no apparent reason other than it being the right thing to do.

...That was only half the story however.

Ozpin thought to himself as he watched a tall, very lean blonde strut off the airship.

“Please, please don’t make scene today, Mr. Arc.” Ozpin said to himself, but the tone lacked hope, and most of all was riddled with fear. “Your not even a student here! You didn’t even send in transcript! How’d you even get onto the airship!”

But, deep down Ozpin knew, he always knew, he was an Arc, and Arc’s found a way, one that most people wouldn’t call ethical, sane or even reasonable.

Ozpin shivered, the Arc clan had been much too quiet in recent years. Was he the reason?

What terrible reason could this new Arc have to come to his school.

“Gods help us all, gods help every one of us.”

-

“So, much for a warm welcome to Beacon.” Ruby muttered to herself in her crater.

“Need a hand?” A warm voice asked her.

Ruby looked up into the two bluest eyes she’d ever seen, and blushed deeply.

“You ok? Looking a little hot under the collar.” The man before her asked with concern.

Ruby could hardly speak, he looked like a modern day fairly tail knight. WIth long blonde bangs, sapphire eyes, handsome face, dressed in all white, blue, and gold.

“I..I”..I”m fine!” Ruby squeaked out.

The blonde boy reached out to grab a flailing hand and pull her to her feet. Ruby wasn’t ready for that however and ended up face to abs with him.

‘So warm, so firm, I could stay here forever.’ Ruby thought to herself. Before going atomic on her blushing, and Rose Warping ten feet behind herself.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you, just thought you could use a hand getting up.” The man said with remourse. “I’ll let you go about your buisness now.

“RUBY ROSE!”

“Hmm?” “MY NAME IS RUBY ROSE! THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR HELPING ME!”

The blonde man reeled back from her sudden outburst of thanks.

A smile graced his face.

“Jaune Arc.”

-

“So I got this.”

*Unfurls Crescent Rose*

“Neat.”

“So, you got anything?”

“Hmm. not here.” “Oh, did you send it ahead?” “Nope just didn’t feel like bringing it from home. Didn’t think I need a weapon for this.”

“What! How are you going to fight any Grimm if you don’t have a weapon!? Even my sister needs Ember Celica before she goes punching Grimm out!” Ruby said doing so painfully bad shadow boxing.

“Oh, I didn’t come here to fight Grimm.” “What? Why are you here then, if you’re going to be a hunts-man in training you need to fight Grimm.” “Bold assumption, I’m not already a huntsman.” “Oh, yeah right, you look pretty strong and stuff...” “But, a correct one.” Ruby could only pout at being played like she had. Eye little eyes then spyed two blocky pouchs on his waist.

“What are those?”

“Oh those, one is my journal that take notes in, and the other, well, hehehe, I guess you could say it’s ledger.” “A ledger for what?” “Oh, for keeping track of debts and stuff.”

SIlence filled the space between the two.

“Are you a kneecapper?”

“Of sorts.” “I don’t think we can be friends.” “That is fair.”

“Do you work for the mob, or like, Torchwick.” “Nope, I work for me.”

“Freelance?” “All of my debts relates not to money, but personal experiences.”

“Oh, kinda like when you help some move, and they drive you across town?”

“Close enough, and looks like we’re at the auditorium, I’d say see you around, but since we can’t be friends, bye forever.”

“Wait, wait, I take it back!” But Jaune was gone into the crowd.

“Ahh, fiddle sticks.”

-

Ozpin looked calm and composed on the outside, but he was freaking the hell out on the inside. He lost track of the Arc, he fucking lost him! He could be anywhere doing anything!

He hasn’t even told Glynda, or anybody else, oh, gods this is going to be a blood bath.

He gave a inperceptible sigh, and decided to give his speech. “Hello, children-”

Warm breath behind him caused him to freeze.

‘When did he get behind me!?’

He could see the children murmuring at the unexpected guest.

“Hi, you must be Ozpin!” The warm voice said behind him. “I’m Jaune Arc lord patriarch of the Arc Clan, and you have been at the top of our shit list for five decades, you have a one day to prepare your last will and rights. Tah-Tah see you in twenty four hours.”

“What are you doing here young man! Get off the stage!” He heard Glynda yell at the Arc behind him.

He would stop her, but he needed to right his will again tonight.

Jaune Arc seemingly did nothing to react to Goodwitch but stare at her.

“Are you obstructing me?”

“Why yes I am, you are interrupting the initiation!”

“I see then.” Jaune brought out his note book.

“What are you doing!?” “Adding you to my shit-list ma’am, and if you don’t stop talking I’m going to just put you further up there.” Jaune said as if it was the most casual thing in the world.

“What I, I never, you, you miscreant!”

“Just keeping talking sugar tits, just keep going up my to-do list.” He shot a Glynda a smirk. “I changed my mind I want to break you into the Arc clan, we like ‘em feisty.”

She went Nuclear with rage and leveled her wand at him and fired a telekinetic wave at him.

“Oops,” Jaune said as the wave hit him, sending him out of the room and into the courtyard.

“That’ll teach him, the arrogant miscreant, should have been smarter to pick a fight here.” Glynda said proudly, “Someone get him off this campus and into a hospital.” “Ah, so kind. You do care, too bad you hit like a child.” Jaune said from behind Glynda picking her up in his arms like a princess “Well, fix that later.” Shooting her a wink in his arms.

‘So strong, and comfy.’ Glynda thought gobsmacked in his arms.

He then looked at Ozpin. “Remember old man, a day and no more.”

It was then that Jaune remembered a legion of students looking at him. “The fuck you all looking at, never seen a man take care of business before?”

The student shuffled around awkwardly.

“Yeah, I damn well thought so. Why are you all dressed so damn weird? Am I at a Anime con or a huntsman academy, Ozpin your standards suck.”

‘I like him more already.” Glynda thought. ‘Standards have been dropping for years.’

“Alright, I know whats happening next.” Jaune said proudly. “I am going to walk my happy ass out of here, and if anyone of you can so much as inconvience me, I will personally train or find someone to train you at the Arc compound.”

The student started looking very nervous, the man took down Glynda Goodwitch with no effort. What chance did they have?

Yang thought differently and launched a flying punch at him, Jaune bent his waist and launched a brutal kick straight into Yang's midsection and sending her through the ceiling.

Ruby came next like a rose petal reaper for his bent over next. Jaune grabbed it with his teeth and threw her aside like a puppy with just neck power.

Weiss not to miss a opportunity, speeds forward on glyphs to skewer him also while shoot a wave of ice at his feet, and a stream of fire at his face.

Casually he flexed his legs and shattered the ice, and kicked his leg out hard enough to send a shock-wave that knocked over idle students and killed Weiss flames.

Weiss however sped through the shock wave, and went to stab Jaune. The blade mere inches from his heart, Jaune leaned down to head butt Weiss while dodging the blade. Weiss went down like a sack of potatos.

Nora went down with hammer at Jaune, but he moved and let her fall on his knee, then grab her by the neck with his teeth throwing her through a wall. Jauen followed up with a kick behind him hitting Ren rag dolling him.

Pyrrha appeared last, an launched a series of precise shots and then strikes at Jaune, only for him to dodge each one, and knee her when she over extended by the millimeter.

WIth that the last of the challengers fell unconscious. All within twenty second, All with Goodwitch in his arms.

“Nice try, I’ll come collect the one’s who tried tomorrow, but first.” Jaune grabbed a handful of Goodwitch’s ass, causing her to gasp out. “I got break in the new Arc.”

“It’s Goodwitch..” She muttered weakly.

“Not anymore.” “...Ok.”

“Ozpin, anyone else that wants to try can do so tomorrow when I merc’ you ass.”

And with that the Arc left, taking Ozpins secretary with him.

-

That was the other side of the Arc clan, one of maruding madmen who recorded their grudges and never let them go, holding onto any slight for centuries, training their young to perfecting and taking fresh blood to increase their grudge spilling power.

Destroying Grimm Hordes because they killed a family pet.

Killing Tyrants for increasing taxes.

Cucking buisness men, because they heard they them demean their name.

The list goes on. But the fact is the Arc Clan is petty beyond reason, and always looking for more members... If you meet their interest that is.

AN: Added a drop of smut in there, don’t know how I feel about it. Hope it turned out ok. Then again it’s crack.

[stardust-walker]

Undying Fidelity

(Loki X Sigyn!OC)

Summary: Sigyn is feeling v stressy and depressy after Loki dies. She volunteers to return to 2012 New York with Tony, Steve, Scott, and Bruce. Her reasons weren’t selfish, she promises. Chaos ensues. Big dorks. 

My first time writing for any fandom besides TWD but this idea has been in my head since the Loki trailer came out and I couldn’t shake it so here it is lmao.

Sigyn had felt like the world moved in slow motion from the moment the life had left Loki’s body. The snap had only made things worse. It had been 5 years since she had seen pretty much anyone other than Thor and sometimes the residents of New Asgard. She kept to herself more often than not. 

It was almost ironic how Loki had spoken of undying fidelity shortly before his life had been snuffed out. Meanwhile her own undying fidelity had seemed to leave her cursed with never-ending grief.

The talk of time travel had gained her interest almost as soon as the idea was pitched to the team. Asgard was an option but she knew that wouldn’t be the best option for her. Odds were that in the time they would send them back to, the residents would still think that she was dead.

Her heart had done a funny sort of flip-flop as they talked about heading back to New York. Her stomach sank even lower as an image of Loki was pulled up on the screen.

“So Sigyn will come to Asgard with myself and the rabbit,” Thor began to announce.

Her brown eyes drifted over to where Rocket had, once again, slapped himself on the forehead in frustration. “As much as I would love to go back to Asgard, I believe my skills are needed in New York.”

“You sure that’s such a good idea there, Frosty?” Tony quirked an eyebrow. 

“Are you sure it’s such a good idea to have two Hulks in one place? No offense, Bruce.”

“She’s right.” Steve spoke up, “I know what you’re thinking, Tony, and it won’t happen.”

Sigyn locked eyes with Tony for a moment before the older man relented. “Fine. But any funny business and I’m leaving your ass back in 2012.”

~

She hated travel. Whether it was through space or time, it all sucked to her. All the hair on her arms seemed to stand up inside of the suit as she shared one last worried look with Thor before they were off. Something was different about hurtling through space when you were a lot smaller.

“We all have our assignments,” Steve began as Sigyn stood up straighter and began to glance around. She knew he was around but more importantly she could feel him again.

A loud roar jolted her from her thoughts as she took a step closer to the men she had traveled with. There was the Hulk. Or the old Hulk. However time travel worked, there was the previous Hulk from that time smashing up a car like his life depended on it. 

A small smirk crept onto her face as she caught the embarrassed look that Banner had on his face. That was the champion she had seen back on Sakaar. A total wild animal. 

This Bruce, however, didn’t seem to have any of that in him anymore. Sigyn’s head tilted slightly as the rest of them watched the green man try to get back into how he was before. “Well, he’s a little confused..” She muttered.

“But he’s sure got the spirit.” Tony joked. “Let’s roll.”

Sigyn didn’t even have to ask where they were going. Sure, they had talked about it in the plans but she felt like she was almost in a trance as she scurried after Tony and Scott as Steve split off from them with a flash of a reassuring smile.

~

After not using her magic for what was probably years, she was surprised that she didn’t stumble as she landed inside the Stark tower right after Tony. As she slipped behind the stone wall to hide from their old selves, she couldn’t help but sneak a peek. Did her hair really look like that from behind? Ew.

“If it’s all the same to you,” her heart leapt into her throat, “I’ll have that drink now.” Tony gripped her arm a little too hard. Her eyes narrowed as she shot him a look.

The 2012 version of her let out a quiet snort of laughter. She remembered the look that Natasha had shot her. “What?” She heard herself say. 

“All right, get him on his feet.” The younger Tony Stark ordered. “Uh-uh. Not you, princess. Come on, Point Break. Get him up. We can all stand around posing up a storm later. By the way, feel free to clean up.”

“Wow I almost forgot how much of an ass you were, Stark,” Sigyn hissed through gritted teeth.

“At least I had style. Speaking of! Mr. Rogers, I almost forgot. That suit did nothing for your ass.” Tony shook his head in mock sympathy. 

Steve practically sounded like he was rolling his eyes. “No one asked you to look, Tony.”

Sigyn raised an eyebrow and shrugged in agreement as she caught sight of Captain America. That suit really was terrible. 

“I think you look great, Cap. As far as I’m concerned, that’s America’s ass,” Scott called out over the line.

“C’mon.” Sigyn whispered, “No one likes a...kiss ass.” She smirked as Tony shot her an appreciative look.

“Who gets the magic wand?” Nat asked.

Thank god that Tony knew his way around Stark tower more than anyone even after years of not living there. Sigyn’s eyes narrowed as she watched the Hydra agents in disguise begin to file into the apartment from their new hiding place.

A laugh nearly slipped out as she watched Loki transform into Steve from across the room. “I mean honestly,” he joked as he turned back into himself, “how do you keep your food down?” 

“Shut up,” Thor snapped as he placed a lock over Loki’s mouth. 

“I wish I could tell you dearest,” she heard herself say as she watched the scene unfolding in front of her. In spite of Loki being in chains. A prisoner. She watched herself grab him gently by the arm to lead him into the elevator with Thor almost like when they used to walk through the gardens together. “But then I would have to kill you.”

Tony’s grasp on her shoulder pulled her out of the moment as he pulled her back towards the window. The plan flooded back into her mind as she began to plummet backwards towards the ground. She let out a grunt as she was finally able to regain her own balance to drift back towards the ground without Stark’s help.

“What’s-a matter, Frosty? No knight in shining metal armor today,” Stark joked. 

“You burn my hair with those flaming feet of yours and you won’t make it back to the future,” she hissed through gritted teeth as the small green embers flickered from her own fingers as she continued on a quick course back to the ground. 

~

“Looking fresh, Stark,” Sigyn mumbled as she walked up beside Tony in her own security outfit. The only difference was her long blonde hair hung out from under the helmet. “Almost didn’t recognize you without the extra few inches of metal.”

“That really hurts me, you know. I would think for someone so old you would want to be a little nicer to the younger gen-ow!” Tony rubbed his arm as he received a hard pinch. 

“Shut up. Here we come,” she swallowed hard as she spotted herself again out of the corner of her eye. She walked side by side with Loki with her head held high. It was amazing how she could walk like that when she remembered how she’d felt. She had known that Loki had pretty much signed his own death sentence and yet still she walked beside him with pride. He was her husband and she was loyal to him. It was her gift and her biggest curse. 

“Thumbelina, do you copy? I’ve got eyes on the prize,” Tony chirped into the ear piece. 

“I’m going inside you,” Scott whispered back after a moment. Sigyn’s eyebrows shot up as she shot an amused glance at Tony. 

Sigyn flashed him a delicate smile. “I didn’t realize I would learn so much about your personal life today, Mr. Stark.”

“Quiet down, Glinda. We don’t want Elphaba to hear you.”

“May I ask you where you’re going?” Pierce’s voice made her skin crawl as she watched him approach the group. 

“A bit of lunch and then Asgard,” Thor answered cheerfully.

“Perhaps a stop for gas. I hear mileage on the Bifrost is killer these days,” past Sigyn cooed as she shot a look back at Loki over her shoulder. 

Pierce stood up a little straighter. “I’m going to have to ask you to turn the prisoner over to me.”

Sigyn could almost feel her throat close up all over again as she watched herself take a defensive step back towards Loki. Her hand came to rest a mere inch away from the handle of her knife.

Tony whispered beside her, “Easy, Sig. We know how this goes, right?” He paused. “I see what you mean by the whole fidelity thing though but the victory thing?”

“Hush!” She hissed back as she watched Loki turn slightly with an annoyed look in his eye. The woman turned to face the other way quickly as chaos seemed to be breaking out behind them again. Pierce had always been an asshole that much was sure. She wished she could’ve said she were surprised when she found out he was Hydra all along. Her stomach churned as more thoughts raced through her head of what they would have done to her husband if they’d gotten a hold of him in the first place.

Sigyn squeezed her eyes shut tight as she heard the crackle through the ear piece and a different sort of chaos broke out. “Oh my gods! Stark,” she heard her own panicked voice and the two of them turned to see herself abandon Loki and reach a hand out to steady Tony.

“Aw, you do care.” 

Sigyn resisted the urge to punch Tony in the chest for good measure. Her heart leapt as the suitcase with the tesseract spun towards them. Her pulse quickened as Tony leaned down to pick up the case and her gaze wandered for just a moment. Loki had noticed. 

“Good job, meet me in the alley,” Tony mumbled as he began to quickly exit the building. She was just about to take a few steps to follow when another explosion happened. Except it wasn’t so much of an explosion as it was a rampaging green monster busting down a door.

“Oh shit,” she hissed through her teeth as she skittered back. Stark landed at her feet with a groan but a softer noise drew her attention. A soft tinkling noise and her gaze flickered to the case. The tesseract. 

Time seemed to stand still again as Loki glanced over his shoulder and locked eyes with her. A confused look crossed the upper portion of his face for a moment before he glanced back towards the chaos ensuing over past Tony. He had noticed.

With one last look back at her, he knelt down to pick up the tesseract. She thought she heard Tony grunt something but her feet carried her quicker than she could ever remember running before. 

Just as Loki stood again, Sigyn came within one step of him. The sudden noise behind him made him turn once more. She gritted her teeth into a grimace as she placed both her hands on the tesseract. Sigyn fully intended to yank the damned thing right out of his fingers but before she could, she felt a strange sensation. A wall of blue and black smoke engulfed the pair of them.

She hated space travel.

~

Loki landed in the sand with a loud grunt despite the muzzle still over his mouth. The tesseract was still in his grasp. Had he even really seen what he thought he had?

A loud scream echoed through the air around him. His eyebrows raised as another portal seemed to open in the sky right above him. A figure all in black fell through it; arms flailed and legs kicked as the ground seemed to raise to meet them.

Another loud grunt left Loki, this time a more pained one as the smaller figure landed right on top of him. 

Quickly, the woman rolled to the other side and let out a quiet groan as she pulled the helmet from her head. With a fluid movement, the black object was tossed aside into the sand before she flopped back onto the sand. A grunt beside her alerted her to the presence of the man. Without even a glance to the side, she reached over and pressed a hand to his mouth to deactivate the muzzle. 

“Lovely of you to drop in, Sigyn,” Loki coughed as he took a deep breath.

Sigyn let out an annoyed grunt. “A pleasure, as always.”

Loki caught her gaze out of the corner of his eye as he rose to a sitting position. “You should have just let me take it,” he hissed through his teeth.

Sigyn let out a heavy sigh as she sat up and shrugged off the heavy black bulletproof vest and jacket she wore. “And let you cause more chaos and destroy more cities?”

Loki glanced over at her. A nearly imperceptible look of nervousness crossed his face before he smirked at her. “Who says that’s what I was going to do with it.”

Sigyn rolled her eyes as her gaze flickered forward to a small group of people that were moving slowly towards them. “I would like to think I know you better than you know yourself. Whatever you do, we’re in this together now.” She wasn’t about to lose him again. Not so soon.

“I’m positively touched,” he cooed.

“Til death do us part, darling.” And even after.

[shera-dnd]

New chapter arriving a little early today. This time featuring Weiss’s lesbian awakening at the hands of a certain Knight of the Fall Maiden

As usual you can read here or over on AO3, just follow your gay little heart (like Weiss is hopefully gonna do soon)

It had taken Weiss a couple of days to get used to not wearing her helmet, and a few more still for her to ditch the armor altogether. She hadn’t engaged in combat since those first couple of days, and even if she did, she was more than confident that she could best her opponents with sword alone.

Now, with the protection of Lady Ilia’s shawl she was given a level of freedom she did not expect. She was able to roam the festival grounds without a care in the world, no longer weighted either by iron or name. Tied down no longer by responsibilities to her father nor to House Schnee as a whole.

Of course Lady Ilia accompanied her wherever she went, though now Weiss saw her less as a shackle and more as a companion, with whom she spent time happily. She hoped that by putting aside her iron she had made herself more approachable to Lady Ilia. She had the fae to thank for all this after all.

“Must we really accompany those two once more?” Lady Ilia demanded as they followed a little ways behind Lady Yang and Lady Blake, who were both very openly and blatantly flirting.

“Lady Blake is our friend, Lady Ilia,” Weiss replied, “shouldn’t we be happy to accompany her in such a joyful evening stroll?”

“Oh, I’m plenty happy,” Lady Ilia countered, clear annoyance disproving her own statement, “though I do not understand why I must be exposed to these love birds every day.”

“Because Lady Blake requested that we accompany her,” Weiss informed, a playful grin forming on her face, “besides how else will you reach your daily quota of snark and mockery?”

“I’m sure you’d still give me plenty to work with, Lady Gigas,” Lady Ilia replied in kind, using the false name they had chosen for Weiss’s disguise.

“You know nothing delights me more than being of help to you, Lady Ilia,” Weiss added. The two of them looked at each other with an attempt at annoyed glares which very quickly dissolved into amused smirks.

“If you two are quite done,” Lady Blake called, “we’ve arrived.”

Around them sprawled the tents of the valean envoys and the Knights of the Fall Maiden, above them fluttered the flag of crossed axes over a crown, the symbol of their kingdom. They would finally meet Lady Blake’s companions.

“Come here, men,” the knight called in the valean tongue, “I wish to introduce you to my friends.”

With that many of those present gathered around the four of them to exchange greetings. Plenty of these knights had been bested by Weiss the week before, but none of them seemed to hold a grudge against her, and many had taken the opportunity to request rematches, which she gladly accepted.

It was after she had assumed she had met all of Lady Blake’s companions that she was greeted by the sight of a new arrival. An arrival that caught both her eye, and every scrap of breath from her lungs.

She was a tall woman with a flowing mane of red hair. Her body may not be as large, nor bulky, as Lady Yang’s, but the lean muscle it had looked as if it had been sculpted from marble, and the sweat - from what was clearly an intense training session - gave them a shine that made it near impossible for Weiss to look away.

She was starstruck.

“Lady Nikos,” Lady Blake called, “I hope I haven’t interrupted your sparring practice.”

“Hello again,” she greeted, with a lovely smile on her face, “are these the companions you have spoken so fondly of?”

With that she happily greeted the four of them and then continued to hold an animated conversation with her fellow knight. Weiss’s mind was having a difficult time grasping what was being said, most of it focusing on the lovely sound of Lady Nikos’s accent, and the insufferable smirk on Lady Ilia’s face.

Before she could question her companion on this another knight stumbled after Lady Nikos. A blonde man that Weiss first assumed to be her squire, but whose regalia was that of a full fledged knight.

Her next assumption was that the man had stolen his gear from an actual knight, though Lady Blake would have apprehended him if that was the case.

“Sir Arc, good to see you’ve survived your sparring session,” Lady Blake welcomed, the title as unfitting on him as his armor.

“Jaune’s been getting better and better,” Lady Nikos assured her, though why someone like her would waste her good will on such a buffon was beyond her.

“It’s only because of your teachings, Pyrrha,” he replied, offering the recognition back to the one who actually deserved it, “I wouldn’t have made it this far without you.”

“Nonsense, you’d still be a knight of great renown,” she assured him, quite wrongly in Weiss’s fair opinion.

To drive her point home she took his hand and gently pressed a kiss against his knuckles. Weiss decided then that she despised Jaune Arc with all her being.

With her mind now being assaulted on three fronts - two annoying and one lovely - Weiss did not contribute much to the conversation, which only aggravated Lady Ilia’s accursed smile.

It was only later, when the two of them had been separated from the group that Weiss finally had a chance to question her on that.

“What amuses you so, Lady Ilia?” Weiss asked, making no attempt to hide her annoyance.

“Nothing much,” she replied, her tone as unbearable as her smile, “only that you’re so clearly smitten by Lady Nikos.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” Weiss scoffed.

She was not some foolish little princess swooning over any knight who so much as flexed a bicep in her vicinity. More importantly she did not seek the company of women in that way...at the very least she was pretty sure she didn’t.

“That you wish it was your hand, not Sir Arc’s, that she had kissed,” Lady Ilia replied with certainty.

“That is…not untrue,” Weiss admitted, “but that doesn’t mean anything.”

“Doesn’t it now?” She teased, “does the thought of a strong woman in knightly armor, carrying you off into the sunset not set your heart aflutter?"

“It very much does not,” Weiss informed her, unamused.

“Then perhaps you wish to be that knight in shining armor,” she tried again, “brave, powerful, holding a swooning maiden in your arms as she declares her undying love for you.”

That thought certainly brought some color to Weiss’s cheeks. Though it was obviously only because it played to her dream of becoming a knight, and not because of any previously undiscovered attraction to swooning maidens.

Certainly not.

“Oh Lady Schnee,” Lady Ilia continued, hands clutching her chest as she leaned back in a clear mockery of said maidens, “you’re so handsome and strong, please carry me off to your chambers so you may ravish me.”

“Yes, yes, you’ve made your point,” Weiss rolled her eyes, deigning to ignore Lady Ilia’s nonsense in favor of preparing their camp once more.

That was certainly a lot for her to process all at once. Certainly she was surrounded by women who held interest in other women, but that did not speak of her preferences, right? Though if she was so certain she shouldn’t be having all these doubts right now.

Perhaps she enjoyed the company of men and women, much like Lady Yang’s mothers. Though she couldn’t quite remember a time in which a man’s company did to her what the mere sight of Lady Nikos did.

She needed something to get her mind off of this. Something that would both distract her and help her think more clearly. Thankfully she knew just what could save her in her hour of need.

“What are you doing?” Lady Ilia asked, as Weiss began searching through her belongings.

“Searching for my training swords,” she informed her, “the two of us are gonna spar.”

“I see,” Lady Ilia replied, seemingly not much entertained by this idea, “and why is that?”

“You’ve claimed to know how to defend yourself,” she explained. Having found the pair of wooden swords that she had stashed away - just in case Winter could spare some time with her - Weiss tossed one over to Lady Ilia and continued, “I wish to test that.”

Her reasoning wasn’t entirely untrue. She did want to measure her companion’s skill, just to be sure she would be safe were they ever separated, and that explanation dealt a far smaller blow to her pride than, ‘I’d rather swordfight you than sit around and question my sexuality all night.’

“Very well,” Lady Ilia agreed, getting up and giving her sword a few practice swings, “though do not be saddened when I put an end to your winning streak, Schnee.”

“My lady,” Weiss replied, in a tone she knew annoyed her companion deeply, “you know you could never sadden me.”

“You know that won’t stop me from trying, Schnee,” she replied, matching Weiss in her annoyance.

This would bring her such joy.

“On my mark then,” Weiss declared, taking a proper fighting stance, “begin!”

The word had barely left her lips before Lady Ilia’s sword was already swinging for Weiss’s head. She barely had the time to block that blow before another hit came her way, then another, and another still. Lady Ilia pressed the offensive with a terrifying fury, backed by skillful swordsmanship.

Sidestepping her next blow, Weiss finally managed to get her footing again and swing her first blow towards her opponent. Lady Ilia evaded it masterfully and pushed the attack once again, only to be stopped by a follow up blow of Weiss’ sword.

Oh, this was exhilarating. The intensity of her lady’s attacks, the rhythm of their push and pull, truly nothing could get her blood pumping quite like a good fight, and Lady Ilia was giving her exactly that.

“I wanna see you grinning like that once I turn you into worm food, Schnee,” she threatened.

Oh? Had Weiss been grinning this whole time? Perhaps she had been enjoying herself too much. Not that she had any cares right now. There was only space in her mind for the fires of combat, both with blades and words alike.

“Your skills with the blade are matched only by your eloquence, my lady,” Weiss declared, trying to keep a calm tone even as the fight continued.

“And yours is only matched by your fairness,” Lady Ilia countered, matching Weiss blow for blow.

“I’ll be taking that as a compliment,” she replied, taking some ground as well while she was at it.

“Not once I’m done beating your face bloody!”

Weiss laughed.

She couldn’t help herself really, not when she was enjoying herself so much. She hadn’t had such fun in ages, so of course she had been grinning and laughing like a complete fool. It did not help that her sparring partner was making herself a fool in much the same way.

Perhaps it had been such bouts of laughter that had caused Lady Ilia’s stance to slip for a moment. Making the best of the opportunity she had been given, Weiss lunged forth, hitting her partner’s sword with force, knocking her backwards with the blow. Though she did not wish for her companion to suffer any real wounds, and dutifully caught her in one arm before she could touch the ground.

Her breathing was labored, heavy with strain and adrenaline. Lady Ilia did not find herself in a much better position, clinging to Weiss’s arm to keep herself from falling back as the both of them simply held themselves like that. Their bodies pushed oh so closely as they allowed themselves to slowly recover.

“I must admit, Schnee,” Ilia was the first to break the silence, “you’re quite the fighter.”

Weiss did not care to stop the smirk that had returned to her face, “it wouldn’t do for my lady to have a poor knight at her service.”

Calling herself a knight was perhaps a bit much, but she felt she could allow herself such indulgences in this moment. As expected, Lady Ilia clearly disagreed, rolling her eyes at Weiss’s self satisfied comment.

What wasn’t expected was for her body to fracture into a kaleidoscope of butterflies, each of them flying away and dispersing into the air. Weiss froze in stunned shock, unable to move as her mind tried to grasp what had just unfolded.

She felt hard wood gently press against her back, before the real Lady Ilia allowed herself to retort, "and it wouldn't do to let you grow too cocky, Schnee."

The Ilia she had fought was an illusion.

Now that had returned the smile to her face.

Weiss righted herself and turned to face her sparring partner. Ilia’s excitement was written on her face as clear as day. She smiled not only at the fact that she had bested a Schnee, but at the simple joy of a good fight.

It struck her then that perhaps there was some truth to Lady Ilia’s assumptions. Perhaps she had certain preferences when it came to her partners. That was certainly a lot for Weiss’s poor mind to digest while still being pumped full of adrenaline. Maybe it would be for the best if she saved the self questioning for later, and just allowed herself to enjoy this moment of joy.

“Again?” Weiss asked, already knowing what her lady’s answer would be.

“Again!”

[c-rose2081]

Knights of Auradon

Prologue

Five children played in the Garden of Beast’s Castle; innocent and carefree and yet to be touched by the perils of the world. Auradon was still new to them; unusual and wild. They never had to stray far from home to get the thrill of adventure they craved. Prince Benjamin, eldest of them all, hurriedly ran across fallen logs and crumbling walls. At his heels, a feisty brunette followed close behind, her cheeks and neck dusky and sun kissed. Aurora and Phillip named her Audrya, though just Audrey would do for her.

Below them, a boy just Audrey’s senior ran along side, his arms outstretched lest one of them happen to fall. Chad was an empathetic boy, with a head of sunshine gold curls and brilliant blue eyes that sparkled like sapphire. Behind him, two dark haired girls pulled up the rear. Lonnie was dragging young Jane by the hand, helping her short legs keep up with the others as they all laughed and played pretend.

Upon reaching the end of the stone wall, Ben leapt from it, whooping and growling like an animal. He pounded his chest dramatically as Chad tackled him to the grass, the two boys rolling around and wrestling in laughter till the young future-king was pinned down. Chad was strong for his age, and would no doubt dwarf Ben when they grew up.

“Oh let him up, Chad,” Audrey chided, elegantly stepping down from the wall as to not ruffle her skirt to much, “you’ll get dirt on his blouse.”

“Not till he says Uncle,” Chad responded, letting Ben move a bit before pinning him back down to the grass with a boyish grunt.

“He’ll never become King if he’s always the one pinned down,” Lonnie laughed, still dragging the youngest of them along with her, the small fairy sweating and panting from the exertion.

“I’ll grow up to be the strongest King ever, you’ll see!” Ben insisted, his cheek still smushed in the grass by Chad’s hand as Audrey rolled her eyes and tapped the stronger boy’s shoe with her foot.

“Chadwick, please let Benny up! Your mum will be furious if he tattle-tells,”

“I’m not a tattle tale,” Ben complained, huffing as Chad wisely stepped off him and hoisted the future king back to his feet with a hand.

“Sure you’re not,” Lonnie drawled, rolling her eyes, “not about that time Chad snuck the extra pastry from dinner, or Jane spilled the soup cauldron in the kitchen...”

“Or the time we lost Fluffy in the woods,” Audrey added, “and then when Belle asked who tracked mud through the castle you said...”

“Ok! Ok, I get it.” Ben grumbled, placing his hands on his hips and pouting, “but that was forever ago! I’m different now.”

“It was just last week, Benjamin!” Audrey laughed, causing the Prince to go red in the face as Chad and Lonnie both laughed jovially at his expense. In the meantime, Jane had wandered off to find a place to sit down. Instead, as she passed through some low foliage, her dark eyes went bug eye’d. They’d been through this part of the castle grounds dozens of times; they knew every nook and cranny. So seeing something new?

“Ben! Audrey! Guys! Come look, come look!”

Forgetting her exhaustion, Jane sprinted back to the group, grabbing onto Audrey’s arm and pulling her away, “you have to see this!”

“Janey? What is it? Not an animal or anything I hope?”

“No, no, you won’t believe it!”

Dragging the elder Princess through the bushes and into a clearing, the five young Royals found themselves standing before a beautiful lake. It reminded them of the Enchanted Lake, with its glassy water and beautiful stony bottom. But that lake was miles away, in the Enchanted Forest. This body of water was smaller, though just as equally beautiful.

“Wow,” Ben breathed, eyes wide as he looked around, “has this always been here?”

“No way, we’ve been all over this garden. We’ve seen every inch of it,” Lonnie insisted, “kinda hard to miss though, huh?”

“Hey Ben, first one in is a rotten eggplant!”

Chad, boisterous as ever, pulled Ben’s jacket up over his head and took off running towards the water. Ben, who was always competing with Chad, followed suit. By the time he dove into the water, he was shirtless, chasing after his friend with intent to dunk him.

“Come on girls, the waters fine!” Chad called, waving from where he was Otter floating on his back, paddling away from Ben with ease. Glancing at each other, Lonnie shrugged and sprinted into the lake, followed by Jane. Audrey was more composed, taking off her shoes and setting them aside, along with her jacket and outer skirt so they wouldn’t be wet when she returned for them.

“Audrey! Come on!” Lonnie called, already initiated in a splash fight with Chad and Ben as the Princess smiled and dove in after her friends. Only after the splash fight was won by Chad (naturally), and they had all taken the chance to dunk Ben from behind did the five children return to the shore, laying on their backs as they dried out in the sun.

“I hope it’s like this forever,” Ben said out loud, his arms creating a pillow behind his head as they watched the clouds drift by.

“What happens when we grow up, anyway?” Lonnie grimaced, “tea parties and fancy dresses, sitting around with stuffy adults talking about adult things?”

“If that’s the case, then Audrey is already to far gone,” Chad teased, receiving a hard punch to the shoulder from said princess who was laying between him and Ben.

“Mom says we’ll have responsibilities to the Kingdom,” Jane chipped in, braiding a few pieces of grass to create a rope.

“Responsibilities,” Ben echoed her, his brows furrowing, “like, King stuff?”

“Naturally, Benjamin. You are to be King of Auradon,” Audrey said, rolling over to lay on her belly and resting up on her elbows, “it’s exciting, isn’t it? The thought of being King?”

“I mean, I guess,” Ben shrugged, still frowning, “but it seems like a lot, having to be in charge of everything. I like the way things are now. Just us, here, together as friends.”

“I don’t see why becoming King would change us being friends,” Chad complained, “I mean, King Arthur had tons of friends. And they were around him all the time.”

Audrey, who had been thinking hard while Chad was talking, gasped suddenly.

“That’s it!”

She was on her feet in a blink, running into the woods and vanishing as Ben and the others sat up in surprise.

“What was that about?” Lonnie asked, stretching out her arms as Ben shrugged.

“Audrey! Are you ok?”

“Fine! Just need to find...aha! Here,”

There was a sharp snap of foot on branch before the Princess returned wielding a rather good sized branch. She was smiling broadly, her cheeks slightly flushed from scrambling around in the foliage.

“A stick?” Chad questioned, “sure you haven’t got to much sun, Auds?”

“Shut up, Chadwick. This is important,” the girl hissed, “Ben, come here and kneel down.”

Pointing to the place in front of her, Ben made a strangled noise in his throat. His bush was bright like strawberries as Lonnie snorted and Jane squeaked behind her hands.

“Oh, you lot are so gutterbrained,” Audrey complained hotly, “it’s nothing like that. Ben, please?”

Giving the boy her best large doe eyes, Ben sighed and rubbed the back of his head as he walked towards her. Slowly, he bent the knee, leaning on it with his arms as he stared at Audrey’s shoes.

“Prince Benjamin Florian Beast, son of Adam and Belle, Champion of Auradon,” lowering the stick in her hands, Audrey gently tapped Ben’s shoulders, “today I hail you King of the Lake. So mote it be, by me, and witnessed by this congregation.”

“Audrey...” Ben mumbled, glancing up at her as she smiled but shushed him.

“We’re not done,” she hushed, clearing her throat and continuing with her little proclamation, “Do you, Ben, King of the Lake, promise to be just, and righteous? Swear to be generous, kind, honest, and true for as long as you reign?”

“I do.”

“And do you swear to protect Auradon, and all who live there, till the end of your days?”

“I do.”

“Then rise, Benjamin Florian Beast, King of the Lake, ruler of Auradon. Long may he reign,”

“Long may he reign!” The others cheered excitedly, clapping and whistling. Ben laughed and gave a little mock bow, waving his hand and pouting his lips.

“Yes, yes, thank you my subjects, thank you,” There was more laughter as Ben shook his head, turning to Audrey who was pulling a leaf from her hair, “so what was that all about?”

“You said you didn’t want this to change, right?” Audrey asked, brushing off her skirt as Ben nodded slightly in response, “well,” the girl drawled, extending the branch for the Ben to take, “every Arthur needs his Knights.”

“Y’know she’s right,” Chad pointed out, “Kings wouldn’t be very powerful without their armies,”

“Can girls be Knights?” Jane asked, receiving a hard elbow from Lonnie who huffed.

“Of course they can. Ben’s going to make us Knights. Right Ben?”

“I mean...yeah, sure. But we need tokens first.”

“Tokens? What for?”

“To make it official,” Ben insisted, wandering to the lakes edge where he began to peruse the shore, “it’s like wearing a badge. It’s very honorable to have a token of the crown.”

Slowly, Ben plucked four stones from the water. A bluish turquoise one for Audrey, a white one for Chad, a reddish one for Lonnie, and a perfectly smooth brown one for Jane. Slowly, he distributed the rocks to his friends, “ok, now hold them in your hands and kneel down like I did for Audrey.”

Nodding, the four being Knighted knelt in a semi-circle around Ben, facing the lake. Coughing, the young Prince took his stick and waved it.

“Today, I choose my most loyal Knights. Assets to the King, Champions of the Realm, and guardians of all that is good.”

Shuffling to Jane fist, she fidgeted nervously as the stick touched both her shoulders, “you are Knight Jane, of the Enchanted Wood. Daughter of the Fae, Knight of Auradon. So mote it be.”

“Thank you,” Jane whispered, nodding slightly as Ben moved to Lonnie and tapped her shoulders.

“You are Knight Lonnie, of the Imperial Country. Daughter of Fire and Steel. Knight of Auradon. So mote it be.”

Lonnie nodded silently as Ben moved on again, tapping Chad’s shoulders with his stick.

“You are Knight Chadwick Percival,”

Chad groaned at the use of his full name as Ben grinned triumphantly and snorted though his nose, “of Charmington. Son of the Mourning Doves. Champion to the People of Charmington. Knight of Auradon. So mote it be.”

“So mote it be,” Chad echoed quietly as Ben moved to Audrey last, using his hand to touch her shoulders, “you are Knight Audrya, of Auroria. Daughter of the Thorn and Rose. Champion to the People of Auroria. Knight of Auradon. And the Kings most trusted advisor. So mote it be.”

Stepping back, Ben lowered the stick to his side as he waved a hand, “rise my friends, you bow to no one. Today, you are Knights of the Realm. Do you promise to protect the good and the just? To stand by me and protect all of Auradon?”

“I do.”

It was an echo of four voices as Ben grinned and tipped his head.

“Then as King of the Lake, I declare you Knights. Long live Auradon.”

“Long live Auradon,”

And so four Knights and a King grinned stupidly at one another. Chad was the first to look at the sky, realizing how low the sun had fallen.

“We should probably be getting back. The FG with throw a fit if Jane is out after dark,”

“Yeah. To bad though, today was awesome,” Ben insisted, passing Audrey her shoes which were still waiting on the shore, “thanks for being out here with me guys. All this royal stuff? Seems boring,”

“We’ll all have responsibilities, Ben,” Audrey insisted, hopping around awkwardly as she slipped on her flats, “to our Kingdoms, to Auradon. But that doesn’t mean we have to stop being friends or anything,”

“That would be pretty stupid anyway,” Chad said, folding his arms, “and if you knew better, you’d get a head start cause I bet I can beat you back to the Castle,”

“Chad! No fair!”

Running off after the boy, Lonnie rolled her eyes.

“I bet I could beat both of them,” she said, taking off sprinting as well as Jane groaned at the idea of more running and Audrey finished getting her shoes back on.

“Audrey,” the younger girl asked, the two of them falling into step after their friends, “do you think things are going to change? All of us being friends I mean?”

“I dunno,” Audrey admitted, looking at the stone still in her hand before squeezing her fist around it, “but I hope not.”

“Yeah. Me too,”

And as the children returned to the castle, dirty, happy and free, an ethereal woman stood on the surface of the hidden lake. Her smile was fond and gentle; arms draped in molten silver silk. She had heard the oaths the children had made; and knew the son of Adam was indeed an heir to the Arthur the Great. And as four souls left the King to his Castle, tired and dreaming of things to come, four stones glowed in pockets and hand, binding them together.

As Knights of Auradon.

.

AN: I imagine the AK’s practically grew up together, so I wanted to make sure that came through here. Let me know what you guys think, and if you have any questions or ideas ping me! :3

[deputy-videogamer]

Gemini |Part 1|

Pairing: Geralt x Reader, Yennefer x Reader, Geralt x Reader x Yennefer

Part 2

Summary: This is based off of @deepestfirefun Witcher imagine where the reader is a powerful sorceress of the world and her father the king fears for her power and asked his royal healers to seal her powers. It does so successfully but the results led to the reader's mind to be split into two. One is kind hearted the other is a crazy murderous lunatic. Geralt is tasked to kill her, but finds something is off of this request.

A/N: Their original imagine is a Geralt x Reader, but I though it would be more interesting if it was also a Yennefer x Reader cause WE NEED MORE YENNEFER X READER FICS!

Being a person who possesses powerful abilities is something that can be feared by many, including the king; your own father.

Your mother was a woman who originally possessed your powers, but when she was pregnant with you, the chances of you surviving were slim. So she transferred all her powers to you in order to live, at the cost of her life.

Perhaps you father started fearing you when you were just a small girl who just had discovered your new found powers

You were in the garden being watched over by one of your many handmaidens as you were running around all over the place. The smell of fresh flowers filled the area, showing off it’s vibrant colors. While exploring the garden, something caught your attention, one of few fruit trees that were planted in the garden had a bright shiny apple dangling from one of it’s limbs.

You usually would ask your handmaiden to call one of the guards to retrieve the juicy fruit, but the limb of the tree was closer to the ground compared to the other fruits. Looking back at your handmaiden was busy knotting something, most likely another piece of clothing for you, taking this as a sign of distraction you quickly climbed up the tree.

Once at the top you then slowly crawl towards to receive your red reward. You danity fingers almost there as you struggle to get closer making sure you wouldn’t fall off. But as fate likes to put people in dangerous situations, your hand has slipped causing you to fall towards the ground and release a scream in the process. Your scream was heard from not only the garden but from inside the castle as well. The guards along with your father heard your cries and raced towards the guard to rescue you from any harm.

If only you had called your handmaiden to help you get the apple instead of you trying to get it yourself.

The first few guards had entered the guard, but instead of finding any types of assassin or even seeing their princess harm from the fall, the opposite had happened. There you were floating off the ground as you remained still in the crawling position with your eyes closed in hopes to not see the ground when you fell. Realizing you were not in pain, you hesitantly opened one eye to see what was the prevention. Your hands hovered over the ground as the air that kept you from falling had acted like a cushion.

The magic had stopped reacting when you managed to gently stand up. The air dispersed into nothing, you were amazed at your new found powers, wanting your father all about it. You were about to run and tell him about your new discovery when you looked up and saw your father. The smile on your face had dropped when you saw the fear in your father’s eyes. The handmaid that was with had fear that your father would do something to you and quickly scooped you into her arms, racing towards your room.

Being so young you thought that your father would be proud of having powers like this. But such fantasies are nonexistent and you knew so too. Ever since that day your father had avoided you, leaving you with your handmaiden to take care of you as you grew older learning to control your magic with the help of your mother’s former master. He had commented with enough training and control you would become the most powerful mage of all Tameria. This even puts more fear for your father.

You had remembered the day that everything changed just like it was yesterday. You were already at the age of 12 when your father had called you. Such an usual request from your father for he avoided you all your life. The child in you had believed that he had finally come to accept your powers and wanted you to forgive for such neglect after all these years. The thought in your head, had filled you with joy finally you can have a father.

The maids had escorted you to the dining hall where your father had sit on one side of the table as your seat was all the way to the end.

“Ah (Y/N), you finally arrived.” The first ever words that had spoken to you in years. “Please take a seat.” Your body skipped all the way to your seat.

With the sound of the bell, the servants had brought out food and drinks for the two of you. Your father had gestured to you to eat first. Being young you didn’t think little of it, bringing the chalice to your lips, the sweet liquid ran down your throat.

Placing the chalice back down on the table, a sudden headache had you clutching your head.

The pain. The pain was indescribable. It burned almost like someone had set you a curse that made you feel pain throughout your whole body. Your knees gave up sending you in a fetus position, as the pain continued to spread throughout your body. Your lips release a heart wrenching scream hoping for anyone one to hear you and to send help.

Then it stopped. The pain no longer was there, instead you felt empty. You couldn’t even bring yourself the only energy you had left was the movement of your eyes. Your eyes moved around the room to see anyone that would help you move. What your eyes caught was the shards of the plate scattered around the floor, it must have fell when you were in pain. Immediately, all the color vanished from your face when you saw that your eyes no longer look (e/c) in its place were blood red eyes in your reflection that stare hauntingly at you back.

Finally picking yourself back up. Your eyes angrily stared at your father who didn’t do anything to help you.

“What did you do to me?” Your voice didn’t have any other emotions but hatred. When he didn’t answer you threw the dinner knife at him. The small utensil caused a cut on his cheek.

“I-I- I did what I had to. Your powers have been getting too much ever since the first time you showed them to me.” You wanted to be shocked, instead you let out a menacing laugh.

“And you thought that poisoning your own daughter would save you sorry ass.”

“No, the drink was supposed to destroy your powers not kill you.” His reasoning only made you even more frustrated.

“Oh it did alright. But not without a price.” As the venom dripped from your mouth the hatred in your voice changed to an oddly sweet voice. “Instead of being a normal person who could show emotions. I now have only two emotions; happiness and anger.”

“I did what I had to do. It was to save you!” Save you? He took away the powers that were the only thing left of your mother. They could take away your appearance, make you deformed or curse, but taking away your mother’s magic wasn't one of them. 

The rage appeared once again in your heart, this time it wasn’t going anywhere. “No, you are wrong you didn’t save me. You saved yourself!

That was the final straw. Grabbing the glass shard from the ground, you tackled your father out of his chair, pinning him on the ground as you tried to stab him with the piece of glass. Your father cried for his guards as he struggled to keep the glass away from his heart. 

The sounds of heavy metal footsteps were coming closer to the dining room. You didn’t want to hurt the knights that were the only source of friends along with the servants, all you wanted was to kill your so-called father. With one final push the shard pierced your father's shoulder his cries of agony filled your ears like it was some sort of melody. You raced out of the castle, out of the town, out of the kingdom that you once called home. You didn’t stop running until you reached the heart of the forest, the dress you wore was torn and dirty, the heels that you wore were removed in order for you to run faster. The crown that you wore on your head was no longer there as it fell down when you ran away.

Wanting to forget your heritage you had ripped the remaining of your dress, shorting it up to your knees. You wanted to cry, but you couldn't. The emotion didn’t seem to exist to you all there was happiness and anger. Only the drops of the rain were the only representation of tears the only thing you could count as sadness.

It seemed like that piece of memory was like a horrible nightmare only it wasn’t a nightmare. It was real. The day your father poisoned you were only 15 years old, no young woman should experience such a horrific event.

For the last 16 years you remained hidden in your forest that you now called home. You survived this long due to the books you read back at your home.You hunted for animals with the bow and arrows you created by hand, forged edible plants, bathed in the lake, and took shelter in caves or built your own hut. You even made friends with the nymphs, nereids, godlings, and even with the strange woodland spirits that had a deer skull for it’s head. When you told them about how your father poisoned you they pitied you and offered their help. 

As of right now you were picking blueberries to have for snacks and to share with the forests natives. Looking inside your basket it was full to the brim, it should be enough for you for a few weeks. Dropping a few more berries into the basket, you then headed off to your little cottage. The weather today was so relaxing, the gentle breeze soothing your nerves, forgetting the reminders of being an ex-princess. 

“You are humming.” A feminie voice called you out. On the right side of the trail a familiar looking nymph grinned at you. Just like all the nymphs here she wore no clothing, only her hair covering her chest. 

“Hello to you, Maia. What brings you here?” You asked her, offering her your basket to her. Which she grabbed a handful.

“Just wondering what you are doing now.” She plucked one of the berries from her hand into her mouth. “But also some concern.”

You slightly tilted your head to the side with your smile still on your face. “Concern? For what?”

Your friend’s expression told you something horrible was to occur sooner or later. She plucked one of the berries and raised it. 

“Do you know about the White Wolf and Yennefer of Vengerberg?”

Ah! So that’s what this is all about. It seems like your father is desperate to rid himself of your existence, it seems like it has gotten to the point where he called two of the most feared and deadly people of Tameria.

“I heard from my sisters that your father has requested for both their presence. Just how desperate is that man?” She squashed the berry between her fingers, wiping it the juices away

All you did was giggled at her response, the face on Maia’s face said otherwise.

“This is something to jest about (Y/N). Both names aren’t supposed to be taken lightly,there is a reason why they are feared.” All you did was shrugged, you twirled in place before dancing around the trail.

Due to the potion you drank. Your two emotions tend to do random gestures. For your happiness it meant singing, dancing, laughing, and telling jokes. The anger it would led to short temperance, fighting, and in some case the desire to murder, although as long as you were calm it won’t show.

You stopped your little dance to turn and face your sister.

“A Witcher and a mage?” You smiled at your nymph sister as she looked at you with concern. “I should honor the coming for my head….That is if they can get past my other half.”

[equestrianwritingsstuff]

Part 3 of my previous two asks, where the humbled prince and knight reunite, but the prince is them captured by a dragon the size of a horse, and when the knight tracks the dragon to the den, she sees the prince has tamed the dragon gently to be a regal riding steed.

Thank you for the ask! I warn you though, this isn't edited.

The Prince and the Knight Part 3

Part 1, Part 2

Warnings: injured animal (cuts on a horse), kidnapped (? It's by a dragon...), exhaustion

Anyway, not much.

~

And they were reunited at last- loved ones caressing each other in the largest of embraces.

"Thank God," the knight whispered into her prince's ear, nuzzling her face into his neck.

"So will you marry me, my dear?"

"Shut up," the knight said, but it was with a laugh. One filled with relief and adoration.

"Never," the prince teased lightheartedly before whistling. A pretty horse pranced into sight, dappled gray with large eyes. The knight gasped and ran to the horse, seemingly more interested in its arrival than the prince's.

"Did you really?" The knight was close to tears as she stroked her gelding's face. The horse nickered, thrusting its face into his owner's arms.

"Yes, of course," the prince seemed proud of himself, but not overly boastful. He's changed, the knight realized with a twinge of disapproval. She once admired the snarky comebacks, the sharp tongue. In a way, it seemed like a key component of the prince's complex was gone, leaving an empty hole, a void.

But maybe it was for the better. The knight grabbed her prince's hand and held on to it, grinning ear-to-ear. Whether or not the prince came to terms with the knight's level of appreciation for his newfound modesty, he didn't show it as he helped the knight onto her Andalusian's back.

"Thank you, kind sir," the knight said in a playful tone. The prince smiled and leaned against the gray horse's shoulder.

"Give me one reason that you still won't say yes after all these months."

The knight's face fell and see looked to the ground. "Royalty isn't for me," she said, voice taut with the whispers of tears.

"We don't have to be-"

"Let's just go," the knight interrupted and gathered her reins. "Let's just go home."

The prince nodded solemnly and hopped on his black horse. They rode towards the fluorescent sunset in utter silence.

《~~》

"I'm getting married today," the prince fumbled with his tunic's collar as he gazed at the knight.

"Fantastic. Do you want me to gather the rest of the knights and set up a procession? Or do you want me to ride to the other kingdom to extend the invitation?" The knight asked, compliant and ready for orders, even though her heart beat with a dangerous mixture of regret, jealously, and anger.

"No I want you to stop this," the prince said, mischief pulling the edges of his mouth up. "Flatten the cake, ruin the citadel, give false orders." The prince then said, in a soft tone, "Say yes to me."

"I won't say yes to you and you know it," the knight snapped and went back to work, scrubbing the laundry.

"Okay stop that," the prince grabbed her hands, but the knight ripped them away. She glared daggers at him.

"Please don't touch me sir," she asked in a light tone.

"I love you," the prince pleaded.

"And I love you too!" The knight exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air. "I love you more than anything else in this world."

"Then why won't you marry me?"

"Because I don't want to be a queen."

The knight said, spun on her heel, and walked away.

《~~》

The prince galloped through the woods, hanging on to his horse's thick mane as thought rushed through his head.

Renounce the throne, live in the countryside.

Give up the throne to your brother, let him rule the kingdom while you mosey along your life as a farmer.

The prince groaned and pressed his head into the horse's mane. He allowed a couple tears to slip through his flimsy defenses, but that was all.

He had to make a choice. The throne or the love of his life. His head screamed at him to take the throne- his brother would go to war with every king within a week's ride. But his heart ordered him to give his heritage up and marry the elegant knight.

It was one or the other, both produced their own various deals of pros and cons- quite equally actually, leaving the prince unable to determine the greater path.

Suddenly, the prince was flying. But that only lasted a second before his body made contact with the hard ground beneath. He gasped for breath as the wind was knocked out of him, fingers clawed at the ground. The overwhelming stench of blood filled his nose as the tingling formed throughout his bones and muscles.

His horse galloped away, clearly spooked.

"Mhnngh," the prince groaned, trying to navigate through his spinning vision. Everything hurt, oh how everything hurt.

Then, as if levitation was a new involuntary talent, the prince was soaring again. Fear gripped at his very being as realized that he was going up... up...

He was going to drop. The prince thrashed, finding his hips tightly bound by some sort of fleshy contraption. He couldn't move.

Couldn't move.

The prince opened his eyes, very slightly. Above him was a red and black mass with shiny scales.

Dragon.

The prince kicked out in desperation, but teh dragon was stronger and carried him above the top leaves of the evergreens.

"Let me go!" The prince hollered, but the dragon's swift wings did not falter.

So the prince was doomed to ride the wind with a foreboding beast.

《~~》

The crowd bustled in merry joy as the kingdom prepared for the wedding. Children ran with flowers in hand while men courted young ladies in hope to have a date for the ball. Old women gossiped amongst themselves with tall tales of how the prince's father once asked them to marry him. It was a time for celebration.

But the knight was not amongst the giddy crowd. She hung out in the stables, braiding countless horse's manes in a waterfall braid pattern laced with red roses- the princess-to-be's favorite flower. Every once in a while, the knight contemplated chopping a good portion of a horse's mane off in an angular fashion to make it look like it was rubbed off.

But she held herself back. She did this upon herself. She could've been the lady on the altar, the bride being kissed, but she refused and had to pay the price.

The knight snickered. There were so many other men in the kingdom, some with more delectable features like brown hair instead of blue. Not that she actually cared about appearances, the knight tried to love what's on the inside, but...

The knight sighed and looked out the door. The prince should be returning soon after his ride. Actually, the knight glanced at the sun for a moment. It was nearly five in the evening... he should be home.

No worries, the knight thought and continued to prep the mares and stallions for the parade. If he wanted to be late and miss the wedding, then so be it. Not the knight's problem.

"Knight!" Came a rushed voice. The knight looked over her shoulder to see a young boy, an apprentice of some sorts with dirtied pants, runninf up to her. "Where is the prince? He needs to go to the church to prepare for his marriage."

"He left and hasn't returned," the knight said as she strung a piece of thread through a tightly braided knot.

"He left?" The boy asked astounded. "Why?"

Because he's a coward, the knight wanted to say, but based on the boy's large mouth, she assumed that anything she would say would be repeated, so she settled for,

"I don't know, probably to soothe his nerves."

《~~》

The prince was thrown against the wall of the cave and landed with a thud. His arm throbbed, but he could move it.

The creature in front of him, a small dragon barely the size of a large horse, approached him, snarling. If it wasn't for the dire circumstances, the prince might've called the sight beautiful.

That was if the dragon wasn't trying to eat him.

The prince pressed himself against the wall and searched for objects lying on the floor. Dragons liked to collect things, right? Or was that just a folktale. Whether the dragon just wasn't your typical beastly being or there was another phenomenal reason, there wasn't anything. Not even a wooden spear.

The situation was hopeless. The prince squeezed his eyes shut and prepared for imminent death.

But after three agonizingly long seconds, he still was alive- heart beating and lungs breathing. He peeled an eye open to see the black and red creature still staring at him, ready to pounce.

"Can't you just kill me?" The prince said galantly.

Well, he wanted it to be gallant like the princes and knights in stories, but in reality it came out as a squeak.

The dragon didn't reply, just stared.

Oh it just stared.

For the longest time, its brown eyes watched the prince. Every movement, no matter how miniscule, was calculated.

Slowly, the prince stood up, and once again the dragon observed. It didn't attack, just watched every contraction of muscle.

The prince drew in a shuddering breath, lungs aching. He didn't realize he was holding his breath.

The prince took a hesitant step forward. The dragon growled, baring its teeth. The prince took one step back, two steps forward.

His hand hovered over the dragon's nose. He could feel its hot breath...

His hand landed on the rubbery snout.

《~~》

"The prince is missing! The prince is missing!"

The knight silently cursed herself for interacting with the young boy as she rubbed the dirty grease of her fingers. She hustled outside to see the citadel filled with civilians and members of the army alike.

"Knight!" She heard one of her subordinates call. "Where did he go?"

"I think he took a horse and went for a ride. He said he would be back in an hour and that was maybe two hours ago?" The knight replied, running up to her small group of knights. They were the head knights, the best in the kingdom, and she was good enough to lead them.

"We need a search party," one said.

"Yes," the knight agree. "Send out other patrols, we need to cover as much territory as possible before the sun goes down."

Within ten minutes, the knight and her fellow soldiers were cantering out of the city and into the woods. They took the prince's favorite path- a long stretch for an easy gallop through the forest.

Suddenly, all the men and women halted their horse and dismounted. The black horse, the prince's mount, was grazing nearby. The knight hurried to the horse, who was too content with his grass to mind, and examined his well-being.

Other than a couple tiny scratches on its back, the horse appeared fine, but the saddle was close to ruin. The seat was torn up by what appeared to be claws.

"Dragon," one of the other knights whispered, running her fingers over the garbled leather. The knight hummed in agreement.

"Someone bring this horse back to the stables, I would hate for some bandits to steal him," the knight set her eyes on the weakest member. He squirmed under her piercing gaze before grabbing the reins and mounted his own horse. He rode away.

"The dragon took flight," the knight noted, looking at the broken branches overhead. "So it's not land dragon."

Which makes this harder, the knight wanted to add, but didn't.

"Send word to the villagers in the mountains. I have stationed a couple good knights for protection, have them send word if there was any movement in the cave," the knight ordered. Two of her knights nodded and galloped away.

"We need to alert the king and send troops to the mountains," the knight instructed the remaining knights. "The wedding is postponed."

And the knight couldn't help but feel a twinge of satisfaction at that.

《~~》

Two days.

Two days without any word.

Everyone was on edge, pacing and refusing to eat.

"We should send some troops up," the knight argued with the king. "Check him out ourselves. My knights haven't even returned from sending word!"

"Which is why we can't go until we have a plan," the king argued back, running his hands through his coarse, gray hair. He seemed to get much older these last two days, though his strength was not failing.

"I can confirm things myself," the knight begged. She was about to drop to her knees to plead if this arguement continued to go in its current direction.

"I can't lose you!" The king roared, slamming his fists against the mahogany table that served as his resting place these last two days.

The knight was dumbfounded, stunned into silence.

"Why?" She asked with a slight testing tone.

"Don't ask," the king brushed her off.

Suddenly the doors to the room busted open. Both the knight and the king looked up to see a blue-haired man striding into the room.

"Prince!" The knight exclaimed, running over to him. She wrapped him in a hug.

"Hey," the prince's voice wavered. He was tired.

"Are you okay?" The knight wrapped her hands around the prince's face.

"Just tired," the prince mumbled, leaning into the touch. "I have a dragon."

"You what?!"

"A dragon," the prince grinned.

Why the heck would he have a dragon?!

[romana73]

REYLO FANFIC: YIN AND YAN. 3 PART

WRITER: Romana73 TIME: One year after Star Wars. Episode VIII. The Last Jedi THEME AND FANDOM: Star Wars RATING: Explicit TITLE: Yin and Yan CATEGORIES: M / F COUPLES: Kylo Ren / Ben Solo and Rey CHARACTERS: Rey, Kylo Ren / Ben Solo, Anakin Skywalker (nominated), BB - 8, Knights of Ren, Chewbacca, Darth Vader (nominated), Finn, General Hux, Han Solo (nominated), Leia Organa, Luke Skywalker, Poe Dameron, Rose Tico, boys from Canto Bright, Snoke (nominated), various Resistance and First Order fighters WARNINGS: The characters, the world and the stories of Star Wars AREN’T MINE AND DON’T BELONG TO ME, but they are created and owned by George Lucas, Lucasfilm, Disney, J.J. Abrams and Rian Johnson and the actors who play the Star Wars characters and their stories. I’M NOT IN ANY WAY LINKED TO THESE PEOPLE AND CINEMATOGRAPHIC HOUSES. I DON’T KNOW NO ONE OF THEM and I’M IN NO WAY IN CONTACT WITH THEM WARNINGS 2: violence, also at the language level. The starting idea of ​​this story derives from a leaks I read last year and which struck my imagination CHAPTER I can be found HERE: https://romana73.tumblr.com/post/189784450126/reylo-fanfiction-yin-e-yan CHAPTER II can be found HERE: https://romana73.tumblr.com/post/189959876431/reylo-fanfic-yin-and-yan-part-2

CHAPTER III

Rey remembered attacking Kylo with all herself, animated by a dull anger, until then, she didn't know she was feeling. Sometimes her vision blurred, while in her mind images of workouts she had spied on boy 's head swirled when they had joined hands on Anch - To, and now her body repeated these moves diligently and precisely. Nonetheless, Kylo dodged her shots with calm, dexterity and precision. A couple of times, Rey had blocked Kylo's lightsaber by raising one hand and using Force, but he had twisted her move against her, blocking her lightsaber. Clash had continued in that way, until a strong pain had flooded Rey's brain throwing her on the ground in excruciating spasms. Rolling on the ground with her head in her hands, she had had time to notice  Kylo was in same condition, before someone lifted her up and took her away. Rey had seen her other companions throw themselves on Kylo, ​​immobilize him and tie his wrists with anti - Force handcuffs. - Where did you get those?- Rey had heard herself babbling before she passed out. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rey had woken up the next day, lying in her quarters bed. Sitting up, she had looked around until her eyes had fallen on tray covered with a white napkin, resting on bedside table next to bed. Raising cloth, Rey had found several dishes, a bottle of water and a glass with pills next to it. She had shaken her head annoyed. She felt groggy and didn't like it. Raising a hand to her head, Rey had inhaled deeply, until he calmed down and concentrated. Images of clash of last night had infiltrated nebulous blankets occupied her brain, until they became increasingly clear. Kylo Ren! They had caught him! How had they succeeded? Had they really taken it? Rey had expanded her senses and jumped as her eyes filled with tears. Leia's pain had overwhelmed her like a Tsunami. Rey had placed a hand on her chest as her breathing became labored. Swiftly swallowing pills on tray and opening water, to attach herself to the bottle, swallowing enough water to knock them down, Rey had jumped out of bed and rushed to General Organa's door. - Leia! - Rey had run into room, throwing herself at woman's neck, sitting at table in her room, her eyes closed, one hand resting on her forehead. Leia had barely had time to lift her head, open her eyes and turn to side where girl was, before finding Rey in her arms. Old woman had held Rey tight. -…it's true? Is... is he here? - Rey asked hesitantly.

Pain she read in Leia's eyes was impressive. Princess had nodded, silent and sad. Crouching in front of her, Rey had taken woman's hands in her own, looking at her sympathetically. -Where is he now? -  She asked sweetly. - In anti - Force cell, below us. He didn't want to meet me - Leia had sighed tiredly. -All right. He will want to meet me then - clutching Leia's hands once again, Rey had stood up, heading for exit. A step away from door, Rey had stopped, turning to Leia. - Since do we have anti - Force tools? - She asked, frowning thoughtfully. Leia had shrugged. -I don't know about handcuffs. As for anti-Force cell... Luke had built it for safety. Emperor and our father were dead, but nobody assured us there were no survivors or crazy cells... not to mention someone could always fall on the Dark Side... - Leia's voice had cracked, while she had lowered her shiny eyes on hands she held in her lap.

Rey had nodded, smiling.

- Rest, General Organa. I'll take care of rest - Rey had brought an outstretched hand to her temple, slamming her heels before going out. Leia had reacted to hoax with a faint smile and Rey had nodded. Girl had just left room, when a excruciating pain had caused her to crouch on the ground, her mouth distorted in a grimace of pain, without being able to make a sound. Rey had brought both hands to her chest, closing her eyes and tightening her eyelids, waiting for pain to pass. Someone was torturing Kylo Ren and Leia didn't have to know. Woman was too much sad and Rey feared she wouldn’t stand news. As soon as pain had passed, Rey had run to underground prisons. He was in first cell. Rey had widened her eyes in horror at seeing scene appeared before her. C3PO ran from one side of cell to other like a hen, shaking his head and murmuring in agitation what they had done. R2 - D2 turned his head left and right, following C3PO movements. Poe and Finn were standing in front of Kylo, ​​hanging by arms on ceiling thanks to a pair of long and massive chains. Kylo's wrists were tight in thick, narrow iron rings, his head dangled on left side, his long, wavy black hair covered half his face, like a black wing of a crow, his eyes were closed, his skin shone with sweat. Rey's eyes had moved to new Supreme Leader’s cheast, where she had also felt pain. Young woman had jumped. A deep diagonal wound ripped through man's skin. Blood rivulet ran down his skin, smearing belt of his black leather pants and dripping on the floor beneath him. Rey had felt her breathing gasp as she frantically looked around. Eventually she had noticed Finn was holding a long bloody blade in his hand. Acting instinctively, Rey had reached out to cell lock, trying to blow it up using Force. Not only had nothing happened, but a kind of invisible electric shock had hit her palm, causing her to withdraw and scream. These movements had attracted two adventure companions attention . Finn and Poe both turned their heads towards her. - R-Rey ... - Finn stammered, widening his eyes and tightening even more blade he held in his hand. Rey had noticed beige linen shirt worn by man was stained with blood splashes, her friend was breathing heavily and his pupils were dilated. Poe wasn’t in better shape and he had stared at her as if a horn had come out in her forehead. - What are you doing here?- Poe had asked, genuinely surprised to see her in prisons. -Let me in!- Rey had roared. - Now! - She added, narrowing her eyes trying to influence them. - Are you crazy? Were you really trying to manipulate us? Do you remember this area is anti - Force and then... were you doing it for HIM? - Poe had finished, in a scandalized tone, blinking, pointing to Kylo with his thumb, but staring at her. R2-D2 had rushed to Rey's aid, opening cell door. Rey had come in like a tornado. In silence, she had run her eyes over Kylo's hung and exhausted figure. Planting her feet on the ground, legs spread and chest out, Rey had turned to Finn and Poe. -You are mad! Since do we torture people? We must be better than them! - Rey had thundered. -You can't blame us! Kylo has hurt us all! Poe was tortured, I was seriously injured, you ... - Finn reacted animatedly, gesturing furiously.

Rey was surprised.

- Fortunately you aren’t Force sensitive, otherwise ... - Rey had murmured, becoming sad to see her friend in those conditions. Finn's neck veins had swelled, his face was red, his eyes out of his sockets. Rey had a pang in heart when she saw her friend, usually sweet and cheerful, overwhelmed with anger and hatred. This was also Kylo’s fault, ​​of his decision not to end war and First Order. -If he had been Force sensitive, today he would surely have fallen into Dark Side... - Kylo's tired voice had a cavernous and sarcastic tone.

Poe moved threateningly towards him.

- Shut up, damn you! - Pilot had shouted.

Rey stood in front of him, with open arms, blocking him.

- That's enough! He just wants to provoke us! Come back, I think about it - she said firmly.

Rey had half-closed her mouth, with a surprised expression when she saw two men move an inch, staring at her suspiciously.

- Kylo said you have helped him to kill Snoke and you became his ally... - Poe explained, answering her silent question. -That's why I hit him. I know I didn't have to do it, sorry, but I'm tired of his lies! Especially when it concerns you. I thought he just wanted to muddy you, but now you're defending him ... - Finn had spoken ardently, going out on the end, as if he were disappointed by Rey's behavior.

Girl had staggered for a moment to hear Kylo had revealed some of truth so easily, most likely to hurt her friends and undermine her relationship with them. Rey could feel Kylo's lips curl into a satisfied, malicious smile. Her eyes had filled with tears, but she had pushed them back. Sighing deeply, Rey had lowered her arms, relaxing. - I'm defending you ... us - she corrected herself, shaking her head. - I don't like seeing you in these conditions. You aren’t these. Don't let him win, please!- Rey had taken Finn's hands in her own. At that sight, Kylo had made a threatening, snarling sound. Poe had sighed.

- Okay, as you like, but if he does something ... - - Don’t worry. Poe ... General Organa isn’t very well - Rey had informed him, spying out of her eye corner Kylo Ren’s reaction. Suddenly, Supreme Leader had fallen silent and darkened. -R2 -D2 go with him. Leia may need you. Finn - Rey had grabbed her friend’s arm, stopping him. He had turned his sweaty face towards her, staring at her with a serious expression. - Calm down and rest - Rey had lightly squeezed his arm, Finn nodding, had left cell. - ... what about me, Miss Rey? What should I do? - C3PO had intervened.

Rey smiled kindly.

- Come here, help me get he down - Rey had stood on tiptoe, fumbling until an iron ring was released, while C3PO had thought of the other. Kylo had fallen dead on her, threatening to make her fall to the ground. -It seems you have hidden various things from your friends... this is also a Jedi thing, you know? - Kylo had whispered in her ear.

Rey bit her lower lip, refraining from screaming. C3PO had run to help her, taking Kylo by arm and passing it around his robotic neck. Rey had done same with other, transporting Kylo to a corner and letting him go on an old moldy mattress. -Fault of all this is yours, you could have ended war, but you didn't - Rey had hissed between her teeth, with flashing eyes. Kylo had laughed bitterly - Of course, as usual. You have no faults, do you? You could killed me. It would have been easy, I was passed out... you knew choice I had made, but you didn't. You got caught up in sentimentality... Luke, great Jedi hero and master, would have killed me without even thinking about it. Did you tell your friends you saved my life? I think they would have something to say about it ... - Kylo had spoken sharply, though weakened. By end of his speech, Rey's breathing had become labored and this time she had been unable to hold back tears that had started to run free along her cheeks. She had got up and ran away. Kylo's blood had started to boil in fury as he followed Rey's thin, nimble figure with his eyes. For a moment his attention had been drawn to something else. Kylo had inspected place by making his eyes dance between his half-closed eyelids, but it was difficult to focus wounded in way, with cell interference. He had turned on his side, falling into a kind of doze until, through Force, he had heard Rey return to him. She seemed to have recovered and eaten. Rey senses were clear and he had had no difficulty communicating mentally with her. Kylo was surprised when she started to medicate him silently until she decided to drop bomb - What are you doing here? Why did you get caught ... Kylo? -

[miragerules]

With theaters unfortunately shut down, and me sadly being laid off because Oregon has a shelter in place order it's given me a lot of time to play video games as well as think about the best films of each decade, and the who I believe are the current directors of all time. I am going to start with who are believe are the current 15 best directors of all time.

15. Bong Joon Ho: I have not seen all of Bong Joon Ho films only seen Snowpiercer, The Host, Memories of Murder, and Parasite with Snowpiercer being his best film.

14. David Lynch: David Lynch is probably the most visionary and unique director on this list. It has not paid off for Lynch all the time, but all his films and series are certainly memorable. I have seen Eraserhead, Blue Velvet, Dune, Twin Peaks, Dune, Lost Highway, and Mulholland Drive with Lost Highway and Mulholland Drive being is best films. Even though Lynch has not directed a full-length feature film since I think 2006's Inland Empire Lynch is still one of the best directors of all time.

13. Clint Eastwood: Although this biographical themed obsession Eastwood had been on this past decade with good, but flawed films in Richard Jewell, The 1517 to Paris, American Sniper, and J. Edgar among others it does not take away from Clint Eastwood's nearly fifty years of directing with some of his classics being Unforgiven, Mystic River, The Outlaw Josey Wales, A Perfect World, and Letters from Iwo Jima to name a few.

12. David Fincher: I could say David Fincher is the best suspense thriller director, but that would be disrespecting the one and only Alfred Hitchcock, so I will that Fincher is the Hitchcock of our time with his most known film being Fight Club, but not his best film. That would go to Gone Girl, The Game, and Se7en. Then here is the elephant in the room by the name of Alien 3. Alien 3 had its problems in production and especially with studio interference by FOX in not having faith in the young up and coming director, which hurt the film, but by no means does that make Alien 3 a bad film. Alien 3 had good acting by Charles S. Dutton, Charles Dance, Sigourney Weaver, and the rest of the pretty unknown cast. The score by Elliot Goldenthal is riveting, and one of the best scores in the Alien franchise if not the best. William Gibson original screenplay would have been the best route to go with the film, and there were a lot of hands on the script for Alien 3 with ultimately the writing brainstormed, poorly put together, and written by producers Walter Hill and David Giler. The screenplay was definitely flawed, but not bad with a decent story and good ending to Ripley’s journey that was ruined by the truly terrible Alien Resurrection. Overall, I say Alien 3 is the third best Alien film not as good as Alien or Aliens, but not as bad as the rest of the Alien films or the Alien vs Predator films.

11. Zhang Yimou: Sadly, I have not had a chance to see some of Zhang's older films like Not One Less, Raise the Red Lantern, and especially To Live, which some have said is one of Zhang's best films. I have seen all Zhang's films since the new millennium with films that include Hero, Shadow, Under the Hawthorn Tree, House of the Flying Daggers, Coming Home, Curse of the Golden Flower, Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles, Happy Times, The Flowers of War, A Woman, a Gun and a Noodle Shop, and The Great Wall. Zhang is a master of using aesthetics whether it be the story, lighting, or choreography of his action sequences. The Great War is easily Zhang's worst film, and it is not a terrible film, and not for the reasons you might be thinking. I know when The Great Wall was coming out and came out a certain group of so called up set people were outrage that a fantasy film had a some white characters in the film and Zhang and the writers were using the white savior trope in the film, but if you actually watch the film that was not what happen or why The Great Wall was a mediocre film. It was because of the at best average CGI, poor writing, and uninspired action sequences. As for Zhang's best films they are Hero, Curse of the Golden Flower, Happy Times, and The House of the Flying Daggers. Yes, Zhang Yimou is best known for his historical films with simply masterfully choreographed action sequences I definitely recommend you give some of his smaller films like Happy Times and Coming Home a chance.

10. Ridley Scott: Although some of Scott's latest films like Robin Hood, Prometheus, All the Money in the World, and Exodus: Gods and Kings have not lived up to the directors reputation Ridley Scott will still go down as one of the best directors of all time by directing some of the best films of all time. I would also recommend Kingdom of Heaven. It is one of Scott's best film that was underrated by critics and the general population.

9. Michael Mann: Like Scott above Michael Mann's most recent films in Blackhat, Public Enemies, and Miami Vice have not lived up to the reputation Mann has earned as a director or his vision and style as a writer and director. Mann as not directed a lot of films and it is debatable what his best film is between The Insider, Heat, Thief, and The Last of the Mohicans. For me it is Heat.

8. Denis Villeneuve: Denis Villeneuve has only been directing since 1998, but has already made it into the top 10 of this list, and it is for a reason. Villeneuve is helped to craft some of the most riveting and compelling stories in films this past decade that was also greatly impacted by Villeneuve’s masterful use of cinematography creating an atmosphere in his films with Arrival, Blade Runner 2049, and Sicaro being masterpieces and three of the best films this past decade. I am really looking forward to his vision of Dune.

7. Hayao Miyazaki: Miyazaki is by far the most mainstream and acclaimed director of anime films from Japan, and for good reason. Hayao Miyazaki is a masterful writer and director who stands by his belief of caring for the environment, being anti-war, and love. Speaking out on his beliefs regulating not caring if it offends some of his fans or his own government. His beliefs play a heavy influence in his films, which I think make is unique visions all the better for that. In my view Miyazaki’s best film is Princess Mononoke. 1999 was a terrible year for me on many levels and Princess Mononoke just blew my mind and help to lift my spirits and my will to go on. No other Hayao Miyazaki film has come close to affecting me that way.

6. Terrance Malick: Terrance Malick has been directing films for directing films for 47 years, but has only directed ten films in that time with 1973’s Badlands. I think the reason is while other directors like Uwe Boll, Michael Bay, and Paul W.S. Anderson will just make films no matter the quality of the film Terrance Malick is determined that his artistry be perfect, and it shows in his film. Malick’s determination to perfection shows in his true mastery of cinematography and his use of nature and the environment to enhance the story and isolate they characters. His perfectionism shows in all his films, and while Malick’s films may not always land on perfection, but his films always leave a mark on the viewer. I consider Terrance Malick’s best film to be 1998’s The Thin Red Line, and a far better film than Saving Private Ryan that came out earlier that year.

5. Christopher Nolan: We have finally reached the top 5 of what I consider to be the current best directors of all time with number five being Christopher Nolan. Nolan is number five on this list, and is the best director alive today. There are better directors on this list, but they all have passed away. Christopher Nolan is known for his love of the theatrical experience, and the technical side of filmmaking. Christopher Nolan along with his brother Jonathan Nolan and other writers to craft unique and captivation stories and their use of memories, time, space, dreams, perspective, and war in each of film of films. Nolan has also directed has put his stamp on Batman and the comic book film genre by directing the Dark Knight Trilogy that is the best superhero/comic book trilogy. As for what is Christopher Nolan’s best film, it is too hard for me to choose between Prestige, The Dark Knight, and Dunkirk.

4. Alfred Hitchcock: Alfred Hitchcock is and as far I am concerned will go down as the best suspense thriller director of all time. Hell, the term Hitchcockian was named after the type of films he wrote and directed. It wasn’t just the huge impact Hitchcock had on the suspense, thriller, and horror genre’s, it was Hitchcocks technical and writing imfluence that has had a lasting impact on in film and popular culture. Alfred Hitchcock’s basically created a new filmmaking style using camera’s for perspective many times putting making the viewer the voyeur in his films to brilliantly adding to the suspense to his films. Hitchcock along his early writers created for better or worse the plot device called the MacGuffin that has a tremendous influence today in filmmaking that is used too much in not correctly. In my view Alfred Hitchcocks best films are North by Northwest, Rear Window, and Strangers on a Train.

3. Sergio Leone: The legendary director Akira Kurosawa who had a huge influence on Sergio Leone’s filmmaking, and in doing so Sergio Leone created his own impact on filmmaking creating the “spaghetti western” with his script writing long sprawling epics, and the use of long sweeping shots and extreme close ups. While Leone did not direct a lot of films, he did direct perhaps the two best unofficial trilogies of all time in No Name trilogy and the Once Upon A Time trilogy. All six films could easily fit into the top 50 films of all time and two of them in the top 20 films of all time. While both Clint Eastwood and composer Ennio Morricone were in the business of filmmaking Sergio Leone should get credit for lunching both to super stardom of the film industry in the 1960’s.

2. Stanley Kubrick: Whether it be Crime drama, Science Fiction, Epics, War, or Comedy Kubrick has had a lasting influence on virtually every genre. Like Terrance Malick, Stanley Kubrick had a different style with his filmmaking process saying his scripts were never really finished before his film started filming so he could be willing to adapt during filming, his relentless and sometimes endless scene takes sometimes making his actors shoot scenes dozens of times trying to get what he view as the perfect shot. Some film historians would call Stanley Kubrick the most influential filmmaker in history with in my view Paths of Glory, Dr. Strangelove, and 2001: A Space Odyssey.

1. Akira Kurosawa: It was a little hard to choose between Stanley Kubrick, Sergio Leone, and Kurosawa, and in my view the most influential, and all-around best director of all time is Akira Kurosawa. Kurosawa has had so much influence on cinema in story, style and technique throughout the years influencing directors like George Lucas, Sergio Leone, Quinton Tarantino, Clint Eastwood, Stanley Kubrick, and countless others. Akira Kurosawa introduced the world two different story styles/tropes in with the “Team building” trope, and the perspective or Rashomon style that can be seen in the Dirty Dozen films, Star Wars films, Ocean 11 films, Hero, Knives out, and countless other films as well as just about every part of popular culture. Akira Kurosawa as faced some criticism over his career with one that I can understand was his filmmaking during WWII. Like many filmmakers throughout the world in the late 1930’s and through the 1940’s they were pushed, paid, and sometimes forced to make propaganda films for the citizens of their countries. Akira Kurosawa was one of those directors, and I can understand the criticism of Kurosawa’s first films as a director in the early 1940’s. Another criticism that is completely unfounded and is laughable was by the French new wave movement in the 1950’s with many of the film makers saying Kurosawa was elitist and his films were not Japanese enough. Really men Frenchman from a former colonial power telling a Japanese filmmaker that his films were Japanese enough. That would be me as a white man like telling Spike Lee that his films aren’t black enough or Zhang Yimou that his films aren’t Chinese enough. Simple that is unfounded and just wrong. Even with some small legitimate criticism of Akira Kurosawa’s life and work it does not take away from his brilliance as a filmmaker crafting some of the best films made influencing countless others. As for Kurosawa’s best film that is hard, but even though I love his sprawling historical masterpieces in Yojimbo, Seven Samurai, Ran, Rashomon in my view it is one of Kurosawa’s smaller films that is the director’s best film. That would be 1952’s moving and poignant drama Ikiru.

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Honorable mentions that I briefly considered for this list: David Lean, Steven Spielberg, John Ford, Charlie Chaplin, Sergey Eisenstein, Ingmar Bergman, and Billy Wilder to name a few. I have seen very few films from the silent film era.

[whatcouldgowrong-ohthat]

The Prince and the Pauper Ch.1

So I know that most people are going to see this and probably think it’s something like Barbie’s The Princess and the Pauper. I just want to warn y’all that like the only thing they have in common is the fact that Prince and Pauper swap places. I hope y’all don’t mind, but I just wanted to make it clear ahead of time. :)

Summary: James Barnes is a prince given everything. He can travel and explore, live a life unlike any other man, and he loves every moment. He can love any woman or man, come and go as he pleases, and gives an opinion on the politics of his kingdom. When the news of his arranged marriage comes about, James finds himself needing only a moment to get away. However, a moment can change everything. What happens when a man identical to James crosses paths with him in this moment of weakness? And what happens when James is forced to live as “Bucky” - a simple peasant whose kept under the stern watch of Clint Barton and his sister, Y/N?

Chapter One

Rays of sunlight streamed through golden-framed windows, lighting up the contents of the study. Its warm glow cast a particular shine on the family portrait, lighting up the faces of the royal siblings. Dark hair framed similar faces, bright blue eyes staring intently at any passing viewer that took the moment to notice them. They were young in the portrait, no more than eleven and fifteen. 

Oh, how times have changed.

Ten years had passed since that portrait had been finished. And James, the older of the two, only kept the décor around for the sake of his sister, Rebecca. Flipping through a book, the prince passed by the painting and instead stared intently at the pages. He was searching for an answer, for a way to get the council to see his way. He had to be prepared for today's meeting and although he'd had three years to prepare for the day, the particular subject that was planned for discussion always seemed to slip his mind. Until now. Until five hours before he'd be told who he's signing his single-status away to. It was an arranged marriage that he had never agreed to, but that was the tradition Shield had thrived on for centuries. 

"You look busy."

James looked up, blue eyes shining particularly bright when the sun caught them just right. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that it was only Brock. He had come to trust the man well over the years, the advisor really being someone that he would give his life for. "Yes, I was." He shut the book, knowing that confiding his concerns to Brock would earn himself a lecture. The man, though a friend to James, had the kingdom's best interests at heart. And the kingdom's best interests always involved tradition.

Brock smirked, pushing himself off the shelf he'd leaned against. He made his way to the desk covered in books, noting their titles and which particular ones had pages marked. "You're looking for a way out? Aren't you cutting it a little close?"

"Maybe, but there's no proof that tradition always suited a kingdom best." James offered that boyish grin, the same one that would get him out of trouble with his mother. "And I have a history with the council. They know I've made good decisions in the past and I've always had Shield's best interest at heart."

"Yes, but you aren't king yet, James. Should you push your luck every chance you get?" Brock hesitated, lifting the cover of one book before dropping it with a soft thud. "You don't know. Perhaps this woman could be someone you see yourself with. You could really have a life with this woman and fall in love."

James snorted. "You actually think that?"

"Perhaps."

The prince watched his advisor for a moment, noting the way Brock didn't meet his eyes. "You know who she is." It wasn't a question, but a statement. Brock was the best at finding out any information he possibly could. It was his best skill and one that James often relied on for finding out those particular details the council tried keeping in the dark. This seemed to be one of those moments that he would definitely be relying on Brock's talent. "Well, come on, then. Tell me who it is."

"I shouldn't, Prince James."

"Why? It could help me, you know. I thought you were on my side."

"You already know that isn't the truth. I'm on the side of the kingdom. You are merely one man."

James huffed, leaning against the edge of the desk. He wasn't sure he would really mind the idea of a wife. It was possible that tradition might work, sure. He wasn't going to be so thick-headed that he would argue for no reason. However, there were some potential unions that James had no interest in being a part of. One of which was K.G.B. Their women were strange and the idea of his little sister having to endure anything similar to the stories he heard of the "Red Room"? A shudder ran down his spine. No, that was one union he refused to be a part of. For the sake of his sister, he refused to let the K.G.B marry into Shield. He would not let Rebecca lead that life. Not as long as he was alive. "Brock, you know I am only against one potential bride. Only one. Can you assure me it isn't her?" Brock hesitated, gaze fixated so intensely on the books that James was almost positive he could burn a hole through them. "Brock, please?"

Brock drummed his fingers and finally met James's gaze. "If you gave Natalia --" "Oh, come on!"

"I'm only saying this as your advisor."

"Then what about as my friend?" James stood, anger flashing in those brilliant eyes. "I didn't want to marry, but so long as it could open doors for Rebecca, I was willing to consider."

"Says the man who was looking for an out moments before my arrival. It doesn't matter the name of the kingdom or the princess. It doesn't matter the influence it has on your sister. You enjoy your lifestyle, James, and its coming to an end makes you a terrified man," Brock pointed out, earning a glare.

"Watch yourself, Brock."

"I could say the same to you, your highness." Brock faced James completely, hands dropped to his sides. "You say you are fine with an alliance and you look for any possible loophole. Tell me, James, which is real? Which story is honest?"

"I don't want Rebecca to endure any influence from K.G.B."

"Then who would you recommend? Tell me the name of one woman that you would willingly marry. Tell me which kingdom would lead to you putting these books away and instead acting as the future king. If you can give me a name, I will go to the council right now and put this whole argument to rest." Silence. "I thought not. It does no good to talk yourself in circles, your highness."

James grit his teeth, shoulders tensing and practically reaching his ears. He tried to slow his breaths and calm himself, but knew he was unable. His heart beat wildly in his chest, hammering through all his anger and frustration and yet unable to calm him in any sort of way. "What would you do?"

"My responsibility."

He glared at Brock, hating that the man was so dutiful to Shield and its mind-numbing "duties". "It's done," he muttered, looking away. Another statement. James had no loophole, nothing to offer instead. He was left with the council's decision and it would lead to Rebecca suffering in the future.

"There are still hours until the meeting. Get some fresh air. Allow yourself to clear your mind before you go before them."

James glanced to the window, to that warm sun that had been encouraging only an hour before. Now it seemed that was his fleeting escape before everything would be finalized and set in stone. Grabbing the jacket draped over the chair, he ordered Brock, "Don't tell anyone that I've left." 

"Yes, my prince."

Hesitating, James told him, "Don't tell Mother or Rebecca about K.G.B. They need to hear it from me."

"Of course, but please, take the time to calm yourself."

Watching his retreating form, Brock tilted his head curiously. Was the prince really so easy to manipulate? How...pathetic. Sighing softly, he picked up one of the books and read its spine. Grimacing with distaste, he set the book back in its place and muttered, "Pierce will be glad to know that everything's falling into place rather well." --------- Shield's vast country was a particularly wonderful aspect of the kingdom. With massive forests to the north and south and mountains protecting it from both east and west, Shield was practically impenetrable. It made escape, desperation, and a need for adventure almost easy to find. The kingdom never had to worry about the nomads that lived within the forest because they didn't have the resources to take on Shield's army. They needn't worry about the possibility of threat coming from the mountains due to the never-ending winters that plagued the peaks. 

But between the two, James's favorite escape was exploring the forests. He never seemed to get enough of the possibilities. The northern forest was eerie with a constant fog. It left him desperate to seek out anyone who had the potential to survive a world that lacked food, resources, or any means for expected survival. Meanwhile, the southern forest was constantly damp with thick canopies that left almost no room for sunlight to come through. Animals thrived as did evolved plants. He remembered one knight who had come back without his leg, delirious from the acid that had come from one of the carnivorous flowers.

So which was he to escape to?

James dismounted his horse, knowing better than to encourage the beast to trek into the northern forest. He pat her neck, cooing comforting words as he eyed the dense fog before him. Other than making out vague shadows and figures that he assumed to be branches, James could see nothing. It was the perfectly place to leave his thoughts behind, lost to the world. "I'll be back soon." The horse, Domino, knickered, moving in front of him and earning a roll of the eyes. "I will. I've explored this place more than the other and have yet to run into anyone that could live here. Relax." Domino was obviously displeased, but allowed James to move around him. "I just need to clear my head. If I don't come back soon, come and find me."

It wasn't exactly normal that James assured his animal or that he even offered it solutions, but the bond he shared with the beast was unlike what most would work to create. The two trusted one another and, on more than one occasion, had saved each other's lives. He knew that he could trust Domino to find him and bring him back safely.

And so James walked. He was slow with his steps, deliberate just in case. He couldn't afford to be late for the council, but James certainly didn't want coming back to be easy. He wanted the challenge and was desperate for it. All he wanted was to get lost in the possibilities of a future, but if not, he could get lost here. Here could be enough. Ducking under a branch moments before it could snap him in the face, he rounded a corner and kept on a new path. Maybe he could find someone this time? Maybe now there would be something different? However, as easy as it was to get lost, as easy as it was to hope for a new adventure, it was just as easy to lose track of time. There was no way to tell where the sun was in the sky, its rays unable to break through the thick clouds residing just above. Instead he was left to guess, to assume whether it was moments, minutes, or hours. 

And perhaps it had already been more than the former. Pausing in his tracks, James squinted, already knowing it would do him no good. Of course it wouldn't. Sighing softly, he scratched the scruff of his jaw and looked around. Had he come from that way? Or that way? Could he try to backtrack with his footsteps? No, the ground wasn't soft enough. 

"Domino!" His voice echoed, lost to the wind and James knew that maybe he was in trouble. Maybe he would have to offer a few apologies to Fury, Pierce, and Brock. 

Maybe.

"Domino," he called again, spinning around. The more he looked, the more his memories began to blur together. He really couldn't recall which was which. "Really, now you want to be a stubborn mule?"

"That's not very nice." 

James froze, the sound of the feminine voice surprising him. He looked over his shoulder, a woman decked in red being the exact opposite of what he was expecting. "Hello."

"Hello." She smiled, tilting her head curiously as James turned to face her.

 "You're the prince."

James knew he shouldn't admit to that. If this woman wasn't alone, they could possibly kidnap and attempt to ransom him. Or worse, they could kill him. "I'm afraid you have me mistaken."

"No, I don't. I'd know that face anywhere. You look exactly like Soldat.”

James's brow furrowed as he looked around, expecting others to come from what he assumed was nowhere. "Who is Soldat?"

"He is." She pointed past James. He turned around again, his head practically spinning. However, it all came to a screeching halt when he saw the person before him. Ice seemed to hit his veins, stopping him from forming any sort of retaliation. Before him stood an all too familiar face. An all too familiar person. It was him. Except it wasn't. Long hair shielded the same blue eyes and where James had scruff, this "Soldat" had a full beard. He was wearing simpler clothes and it seemed there was a hollowness, a wall in his gaze to keep the rest of the world at bay. It was similar to the look he'd seen in his men that had come back from the war. Now he was seeing it in himself.

"It looks like Crossbones didn't fail us," he spoke, his voice exactly like James's except softer. 

"Who is Crossbones?" James frowned and made a pass for his sword. The action was stopped almost instantly when a knife whizzed just past, barely nicking the back of his hand before striking the ground. He looked to where the attacker must have been, unable to see anyone through the fog. "What is this?" He took steps away from the woman and Soldat, frowning when they took slow strides towards him. "I demand for you to explain yourself."

"How cute." The woman's hands glowed scarlet, a type of magic James had only ever heard stories of. "He thinks he has a say here."

"Who are you?" James's back hit a tree, earning an uncomfortable grunt from him.

"Don't think about that right now." Walking to his side, the woman ran her finger along his jaw and leaned closer. Her eyes flashed scarlet as she whispered in his ear, "I have something else to cloud that little brain of yours."

His mind flashed brilliantly, as if wisps of scarlet were dancing through his mind. James grunted, clenching his jaw as he leaned forward. A hand propped on his knee, struggling to hold him up. "What are you --"

"Go, Soldat, I have this." The words were muffled, practically lost on the prince. 

"Just be sure to finish the job this time."

The sound of footsteps was lost beneath the pounding of James's heart in his ears. He breathed heavily, practically hearing the sound of blood coursing through his veins. Everything was heightened, turned up to a twelve. It left him trembling, lost in his mind. Falling to his knees, he started forgetting about Shield and his life. He started forgetting about titles and duties, his mind drifting off to a world he had yet to see before. 

Until it stopped.

James fell forward, turning his head just in time to see the scarlet woman cry out and stumble back. An arrow struck the ground. He only saw her feet and legs, his hands pinned at his sides by the weight of the world and unable to lift him up. He didn't see the attacker. He couldn't make them out through the black edging at the corners of his eyes. Everything felt so...heavy.

"Wh-Wh..." His voice trailed off, lost in his throat. 

"Fight or flight, witch? She won't miss again." That voice sounded familiar. It was male, but James couldn't bring himself to make out where he knew it from. "And I can do this all day." Who was he? Why was he so familiar? Blinking slowly, he watched the scarlet woman's feet turn and run, disappearing in fog almost instantly. The man's feet turned to face him and, instead of walking towards him, James felt the hands of a third person flip him over. They were small and frail. For a moment, he tried fighting, thinking that it was the scarlet woman yet again. Until he saw this woman's face. It was a blur, but clearly different from the other that had attacked him earlier. Finally, the man who had spoken appeared just behind what he assumed was a concerned face. His low voice rumbled, "Oh, Buck..."

Was that his name? Buck?

The woman looked towards the man still standing. "We have to get him out of here, Steve." She finally spoke. It was nice, oddly comforting.

Steve. Buck knew a Steve, but that was a long time ago. A really long time ago.

"If she was here, there's no doubt that the others are close." Watching Buck intently, her hand brushed the scruff on his cheek. "Maybe Bruce can do some damage control."

Steve nodded. He disappeared for a second before it felt like the ground was disappearing out from underneath Buck. He realized then that Steve was carrying him. Shaking his head, the blonde looked down at Buck and couldn't stop himself from asking, "How the hell did you get out here, Bucky?"

Bucky. He shrugged, unsure how to answer because he couldn't really remember. But that name sounded familiar. Bucky.

-----

Tags:

Prince and the Pauper:

@hail-ey-sader​ @broco8​

All Work:

@rinthehufflepuff​ @the-captain-bambooty 

[youtuberswithalex]

Consone, Chapter One: The Princess

Summary: After Thomas passes away, the Sides are all sent spiraling into their next lives. New families, new dreams, new surroundings. But… Something has always felt missing, to them. Something important.

When four strangers meet at Tamzen University, they discover that some loves can transcend lifetimes.

Warnings: Ableism (both external and internal), awful friends, probably sexist thinking, author probably not doing near enough research and only going off of what he’s learned from his friends who have IBS

Word Count: 2.274

(Author’s note: I’m interested if you folks can guess who’s who in these upcoming chapters! Some might be more obvious than others...)

Writing Masterpost – Ko-Fi

-------

Sarah had always known she was a princess.

For as long as she could remember, she had always felt drawn to tiaras and Disney movies and glittery ball gowns. Half of her birthday parties growing up had been princess themed, even when she was probably considered too old to have them. Her friends all knew to never try to convince her that she was just a normal girl; anyone who dared would end up having to watch her break down in tears and feel bad enough to try to fix it. She was lucky to have parents that encouraged her interests, always reminding her that she could be whatever she dreamed, whether it be royalty or not.

Not that she needed reminding, at the beginning— at the start of middle school, when all of those dreams should have began to fade away, the boys in school began to notice her. Sarah reveled in all the attention she could get. They loved to watch her draw her poorly-done anime characters, and read her cliché-ridden fanfiction. Some boys would even argue over who would get to see it first, if they weren’t fighting over who got to ask her if they could be this week’s boyfriend.

High school started out pretty much the same way. As her art and writing developed, so did her looks, and with everyone hitting puberty now, it was rare to find a girl safe from the boys’ gaze. There were quite a few unsolicited and creepy ones that she was lucky to get away from. On the other hand, she had the choice of any of the popular boys to date, and she loved every second of it.

But not every development in her body was for her entertainment. And halfway through her junior year, she got a diagnosis that cost her everything she had.

IBS.

Sarah made the mistake of trusting one wrong person with the secret, and suddenly, no one could get away from her fast enough. Students would scurry away from her locker in the morning, bellowing about how she was going to shit on them if she got too close. Lab partners would purposefully miss class to avoid being near her. Friends, both the ones she knew were fake and the ones she thought she could rely on, gradually stopped answering messages and calls.

By the end of the year, Sarah was left with her parents, her older brother, and a diagnosis that made her sick.

She was no princess.

--------- 

“Sarah?” a voice called through her door. “I’m going to the store. Do you want to come along?”

Sarah looked up from her laptop, her greasy, blonde hair falling into her vision as she looked over. “Uh… Sure, Mom,” she slowly replied. “I’ll be down in a minute.”

Footsteps pattered back down the hall, and she carefully sat up and set her laptop to the side. Her arms crossed over her torso as a cramp rippled through her abdomen; she swallowed thickly and pushed her way off of her bed, trying to force herself to ignore it.

She had wanted to put on make-up and a cute outfit, present herself as something worthy just in case anyone from school was there. It didn’t seem like it was going to happen. It never happened, anymore.

Instead, Sarah just slipped on a pair of flipflops and tied her hair into a ponytail. Really, there probably wouldn’t be anyone there that she knew. It was a Wednesday morning in the middle of July—what high schooler would ever want to get up before noon during the summer?

(Sarah, of course, was including herself. She hadn’t gotten up before noon. She simply had stayed up the whole night to write.)

After a moment’s hesitation, she decided to throw on her glasses before heading out the door. Can’t see the judgey stares if you can’t see, right? But she also wouldn’t be able to see the shades on the lipstick she wanted to pick up. So, glasses it was.

Sarah flashed her mother a smile when she reached the bottom of the stairs, and Rebecca returned it, fishing the keys out of her purse. “You ready?”

“Yeah, let’s go.”

As she was opening the door and walking out to the porch, her mom touched her shoulder; she stared at Sarah with a frown, and a knowing eyebrow raised.

“Did you go to bed last night?” she asked.

Huffing, Sarah pulled away and walked out. “Inspiration waits for no one.”

Rebecca scoffed and rolled her eyes, quickly following after her. “Y’know, one of these days, you’re going to pass out and fall down the stairs.”

“Good, can’t wait,” she retorted. “I hope I break my leg so that I can make Noah do everything for me.”

She caught a glare from over the top of the car. Throwing up her hands, she raised her eyebrows.

“What? I’m kidding!”

Rolling her eyes again, Rebecca dropped down into the driver’s seat, waiting until Sarah was safely inside before opening her mouth again. “So, what do you want to listen to today?” she asked. “Haven’t had a Disney day in a long time.”

Sarah’s gut twisted— only emotionally, thankfully –and she avoided her gaze to snap her seatbelt on. “Mom, I’m not a little kid anymore. I have taste now.”

“Taste? You, of all people, are insulting Disney music?”

She ignored both the comment and the hole opening up in her chest, electing to grab her phone and open Spotify instead. “Paramore’s better— and more age appropriate.”

Before Rebecca could say anything, guitar riffs blasted through the speakers. Sarah sat back and stared out the window.

 -------------

When they got to the store, the two split up to get the items on their respective lists: Rebecca to the grocery section, and Sarah to the cosmetics.

She had a mental list about a mile long with all of the new products she wanted to try out, all the lipsticks and nail polishes and foundations—and the eyeshadow! There was something that always made her adore eyeshadow above everything else, something that just felt… familiar about it. She couldn’t let herself go into the aisle unless she was planning on buying four new pallets, so she always ended up steering clear, but damn if she didn’t long to go in every time!

There was a bounce in her step as she headed towards the lipstick aisle. If she couldn’t add to her (far too large) eyeshadow collection today, at least she could get some new lipstick. And eye liner. And bronzer. And—

“Oh my god, is that Sarah?”

Her stomach leapt into her throat. Those harsh whispers were not friendly.

“I think it is!”

“Holy shit, dude, she looks terrible!”

It took all of her willpower not to let her shoulders fall. She couldn’t let them know she could hear them. If she did that, they would confront her, make fun of her and her disease in the middle of everyone.

“How many times do you think she’s shit her brains out today?”

“I don’t want to think about it.”

“She’s probably here to buy those adult diapers!”

Sarah ducked into the nearest aisle just as tears began to well up in her eyes.

Embarrassed rage began to fill her chest. It wasn’t fair! Of all the people that could have gotten stuck with this, feeling sick all the time and constantly running to the bathroom, why did it have to be her?! Princesses were supposed to be perfect! A little naïve to get kidnapped so often, sure, but never cursed like this!

Where was her prince? The man who was supposed to save her from this hell, who would rid her of her faults with a single kiss? The fairest knight of all to protect her from evil high school boys and their despicable comments? Her soulmate, her one true love?

Wasn’t he supposed to be here by now?!

Sarah wanted to throw a fit. She wanted to knock shampoo off the shelves, rip her own hair out, turn around and yell at the stupid boys that had started this emotional mess in the first place. But the idea of drawing attention to herself paralyzed her with fear more than anything, so she instead scrubbed the tears from her face so forcefully that she was sure that her cheeks were red.

I can’t keep doing this anymore!

He wasn’t coming. There was no prince coming to sweep her off her feet, no knight to save her from her enemies. Even if there was, he’d run for the hills the second he found out about her curse. There was going to be no wedding, no crowning, no epic fight where he vanquished her enemies!

She was stuck with herself, and only herself, forever.

Sarah had to be her own knight.

A knight, she thought to herself. That feels… right.

Why should she have to sit around and wait for someone to save her when she could do it herself in half the time? Why should she stay helpless and a victim when she could stand, and fight, and save others from their hells, too? Sarah could practically feel a sword in her hand, cool metal against her palm, weight pulling on her wrist, the resistance of flesh while she stabbed it into a winged lion—

Yes. This was what she was meant to be.

Sarah huffed out a laugh and grinned, reaching up and snatching the first box of hair dye she could grab. She needed all the world to know of her change, and the easiest way was to change the most obvious part about her.

 --------

That night, Sarah stood in the bathroom alone and stared in the mirror. Long, blonde hair covered the floor around her, and drips of hair dye stained the tile floor. The thin, plastic gloves on her hands crinkled and held in the humidity of her sweaty palms. In the back of her mind, she thought about looking down to make sure the stray dye on them wouldn’t touch her shirt, but she couldn’t take her eyes off of her reflection.

Short, uneven, bright red hair sat on top of her head.

Taking a deep breath, she squared up her shoulders and lifted her chin.

“I am a knight,” she whispered, “And I live to serve.”

 -----------------------

Just over a year later, Sarah got the name of her college roommate.

If it had been last summer, she never would have said a thing to this stranger about her IBS. She would have kept it to herself, like the prim and proper princess she was trying to be, never allowing a flaw through her perfect disguise.

But this wasn’t a year ago. And Sarah wasn’t a perfect princess anymore.

…Still, she couldn’t ignore the nerves causing her guts to rumble. She’d had to run to the bathroom three times while typing, deleting, and retyping this Facebook message to the girl she’d be living with for a whole year. She wasn’t ashamed of IBS anymore, but watching people’s first reactions never got any easier.

To her surprise, when she returned from her fourth trip, she found that her roommate had beaten her to the punch.

Hey, this is Kealoha! I’m supposed to be your roommate this year. I’m excited to meet you!

Sarah sucked in a deep breath. It was now or never.

Hey, Kealoha! I’m Sarah. Great to meet you! I know we’ve got a lot to learn about each other, but I just want to tell you this in case you want to switch roommates. I have Irritable Bowel Syndrome. It’s a chronic digestive disorder that makes me need to use the bathroom, like, a lot. It shouldn’t effect you or your college experience in any way, but I know people think it’s gross so I just wanted to get it out of the way now.

She sat back in her desk chair as soon as she hit send. Her heart thudded in her chest, and she wrapped her arms around herself. After a moment, when the three little dots popped up on the conversation, she had to remind herself to breathe.

Kealoha’s message popped in.

Oh, okay. I was actually messaging you now for a similar reason. I have a permanent leg injury that requires me to be on crutches any time I’m not sitting. I can get around fine, but I might need a little help every now and again with little things. If you’re okay with me, then I’m okay with you.

Sarah let out a breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding. A relieved laugh slipped out of her before she could stop it; she sunk down her chair until she was almost on the floor, hand over her eyes as she laughed.

Another message popped up, and then a second. Sarah quickly sat up to read it.

You let me know how I can help, by the way. Even if it’s small stuff, like grabbing some candy from the store when you’re not feeling well.  Also, I saw on your page that you like Zelda. I’m a huge nerd for those games. Which one is your favorite?

Sarah was typing in an instant, and it wasn’t long before the two fell into casual conversation. The rest of the evening was spent geeking out, sharing stories, and learning new things about each other. The next day, they picked up the conversation where they’d left off, and the next day, and the next day.

It almost felt like they’d known each other for their whole lives.

Sarah couldn’t wait for college.