#I was going to do all six of my fics but I had already devoted way too much time into finding these lol

[harmonictechnicality]

soooo everyone was sharing these lovely book covers while I disappeared - and I had major fomo, so here's mine xx

got a devil's haircut (in my mind)

What Happens in Suite 14V...

Passing Notes (and other tropes)

Eddie's Memory Log

(and shout out to @sparklyslug bc she was the first one I saw doing this and therefore, instigated the brainworms hehe) ✨

[sansaorgana]

— LADY OF THE ROSES (IV)

PART ONE || PART TWO || PART THREE

PAIRING — Ser Gwayne Hightower x fem!Reader // Tyrell!OC

SUMMARY — Gwayne and his wife visit King's Landing with their children, who are very jealous of the fact that their cousins own their dragons and they do not. In the meantime, Otto Hightower wonders if his daughter-in-law is truly loyal to his house.

AUTHOR’S NOTE — It’s written as an usual x Reader fic without describing anything about the Reader’s looks but I still classified it as an OC as well since she is a Tyrell. + You don’t have to know the previous chapters to understand this one and it's the last one of this story. 😊💚 In the show Gwayne mentions that it took him three months to get to King's Landing but I was using some website while writing previous parts where it says that it takes a week from Oldtown to Highgarden and, according to the same logic, it takes less than a month from Highgarden to King's Landing – that's why I decided to make the whole trip only a month long here. 🤔

WARNINGS — Alicent slapping Aegon's face, Reader's child getting hurt (nothing major)

WORD COUNT — 6,870

ENGLISH IS MY SECOND LANGUAGE.

LADY OF THE ROSES (IV)

Past few weeks had been busy and spent on making all the necessary preparations before the long trip. Oldtown would be left without the Lord or Lady to look after it for around three months and it required lots of training and instructing all the servants and knights around the city what to do in your absence.

You had been summoned by your father-in-law and his daughter, The Queen Consort. They had invited your Lord Husband and you to King’s Landing to spend time together – even though you had a very weird feeling the sudden need to create a stronger bond within the family was dictated by some hidden agenda. Either way, you were rather excited for the trip even though it would take about a month on the road to even get to the capital city of Westeros.

What stressed you the most was travelling for so long with four children you had given Gwayne for the past few years. Your eldest son Edmund was twelve now and his brother William was ten. Your daughter Rosalynd was eight and her sister Florys was six. You were glad that the time when you had been pregnant nearly constantly was over now and you could enjoy the ups and downs of motherhood without many worries because your husband was a man devoted to his family. Gwayne had not only been raising his sons and teaching them all they needed to know about the sword but he also made sure to spend quality time with his daughters. And above that all, he was simply a caring and sweet husband. No matter how many years had passed.

Your trip started in the very early morning and you all were half asleep while getting inside the carriage. Rosalynd was sleeping with her head on your lap and little Florys was asleep in her father’s arms. Edmund and William were looking out of the window, excited and interested in everything that they were seeing although the road to The Highgarden was very well known to them. Because you lived so close to your parents, your children were often visiting their castle. 

What started peacefully, soon turned out to be a little nightmare. The children were very whiny and easily getting bored. When you reached The Highgarden a week after leaving Oldtown, you were seriously considering coming back home instead of going further down the Rose Road. 

“It is only the beginning of the trip and it is already exhausting,” you complained to your parents during supper when you were staying overnight at their place.

“You might not get a second chance to go to King’s Landing, my darling,” your father reminded you. “Endure it.”

“Easier said than done, I’m afraid,” Gwayne chuckled and shook his head.

“I do not understand,” your mother spoke up. “Look at them, my grandchildren,” she smiled at the four of your children eating their meals quietly. “They’re so well-behaved. Little angels, really,” she sighed lovingly.

“Perhaps we might leave them here for three moons, how about that?” Your eyes sparkled at the idea. “We shall leave for King's Landing on the morrow while you watch over them.”

“I would love to,” your mother grinned.

“I would not,” your father’s eyes widened at the idea.

“I do not think that is a good idea, my Lady,” Gwayne put his hand on top of yours gently and you looked at him, confused. “To spend three moons without my little ones would be a nightmare,” he explained and your smile dropped.

Gwayne was right. You would miss your children dearly, too. You were sending them sometimes to spend two weeks at The Highgarden with their grandparents and given the fact the trip lasted a week, it would be a month away from you. It was barely bearable already whenever it happened. Three months sounded like torture.

“My Gwayne is right,” you sighed and laid your tired eyes on your mother. “They must go with us. Also, just like Lord Father said, such a chance might not happen again. They should see King’s Landing, too,” you nodded.

In the early morning of the next day, you were already back on the Rose Road, which took you through the town of Bitterbridge to The Kingswood where you entered The Kingsroad and The Crownlands. You had never been there and only two times before you had been on the road for such a long time. Both times it had been to attend your sister’s weddings. One had taken place in Dorne and the second had been in The Vale. 

Once you entered The Kingsroad, it would only take you a few days to reach King’s Landing and you were more than grateful for that. Both you and Gwayne were exhausted after trying to entertain your children on the road and attempting to tame their tantrums caused by boredom and frustration.

The night before reaching King’s Landing you were sleeping at the castle of some lesser Lord who lived nearby the road. You had been given the guest rooms but you couldn’t fall asleep, both excited and anxious about the next day.

“What are you possibly scared of, my love?” Gwayne soothed you by caressing your face with his fingertips when you were laying in his arms and staring at the ceiling instead of drifting off to the land of dreams. “You had met my father already and he seems to be quite indifferent towards you,” he pointed out.

Otto Hightower had visited Oldtown a few times after your wedding to his son and what Gwayne had said was painfully true – he seemed to be indifferent towards you. Just like he was indifferent towards his own son. The only signs of affection you had seen in him were for your daughters. He hadn’t even thanked you for giving him two healthy grandsons and heirs – his attention had been fully focused on the girls. It was quite adorable, you had to admit. But it was also saddening for your husband and sons.

“What about your sister? The King? Will our children get along with their cousins?” You voiced out all your insecurities in a low whisper. “And The Targaryens… I do fear them, Gwayne. People say they are more gods than men.”

“I am sure they are men just like you and I,” Gwayne smiled and kissed your forehead while caressing your arm.

“They have dragons…” You sighed.

“We probably will not even encounter one,” he assured you. “And do not be afraid of my sister or her husband. Are you not always reminding everyone that you are a sister-in-law of The Queen? Now it is time to meet her personally,” he teased and you rolled your eyes.

You somehow managed to get some sleep on that night. In the morning you had your dress prepared already because you had been planning to wear it for quite a long time. Your maids helped you to put on the elegant green gown that was pretty low-cut. You were a daughter of The Highgarden and you had never stopped wearing such necklines. Your own Lord Husband had given up already on trying to change that – in fact, he enjoyed it. You decorated your exposed neck with a golden pendant of The Seven-Pointed Star to make Queen Alicent happy.

Gwayne found it quite funny but you gave him a scolding look.

Your children had green outfits, too. Pretty little green dresses on your girls and dark green tunics with The Hightower beacon embroidered on them on your boys. The Hightowers were coming to King’s Landing.

When you reached the city you were staring out of the window with as much curiosity as your children. Gwayne had been in the capital once before for the tournament when he had been very young so his excitement was not as big.

Lots of people were staring at your carriage with a hint of curiosity. They knew that The Hightowers were The Queen’s family and for that reason some of them waved shyly at you. You were trying to wave back but Rosalynd and Florys were the ones who actually enjoyed it the most – feeling like little Princesses greeting the crowd. So, you allowed them to have fun as you leaned back on your seat. Your hand found Gwayne’s immediately and you squeezed it.

“You better be on your best behaviour once we reach The Red Keep,” you told your sons. “All of you,” you laid your eyes on your giggling daughters.

“You do not need to worry, mother,” Edmund nodded at you and straightened his back, trying to present himself more mature.

“I cannot wait to train with my cousins,” William added. “Father, will we be able to?”

“I do think so,” Gwayne nodded with a smile at him and leaned in to fix William’s ruffled hair.

“I cannot wait to spend time with Princess Helaena,” Rosalynd sighed dreamily. “She must be so ethereal… A Targaryen Princess…”

“I want to see grampa,” Florys’ eyes sparkled and you chuckled at your sweet little girl.

You smiled nervously at your husband when you realised you were already entering The Red Keep’s courtyard and a few people were waiting for you. You spotted your tall father-in-law and that beautiful woman standing next to him had to be Queen Alicent herself. She had soft, curly hair in the auburn colour and her dress was of the same shade of green as yours. You sincerely hoped it would not be considered rude of you but you had no idea. There were three silver-haired children with them – two boys and a girl. They had to be Prince Aegon, Princess Helaena and Prince Aemond.

“Grampa!” Florys clapped her hands excitedly and already moved to the carriage’s door.

“Florys, mummy and daddy are leaving the carriage first,” you reminded her softly.

“Do try to behave like a big girl!” Her older sister scolded her. “We are in King’s Landing!”

“Rosalynd, you are not her Lady Mother,” Gwayne reminded his daughter.

In the meantime, the servant announced your family and opened the door of the carriage. You took a deep breath in and watched your husband get out before offering you his hand to help you. You took it softly and wore a nervous smile before facing your in-laws.

The moment your feet touched the ground, you felt something moving behind your skirts. It was little Florys jumping out of the carriage already and running as fast as possible towards her grandfather. Everyone froze for a moment and widened their eyes at the scene.

“Grampa!” Florys reached her hands out and Otto Hightower let out a nervous chuckle before crouching down to give her a tight squeeze.

“You are being impatient, Lady Florys,” he greeted her and she clapped her hands.

Rosalynd stood by your side with a sigh and an eye-roll. Meanwhile, your sons chose to stand by their father. Since Florys had broken all the protocols already anyway, you decided to simply walk up to The Queen without caring about the right order as you nodded at your husband. He nodded back and only then Rosalynd ran up to her grandfather as well to give him a hug, too.

You sighed and shook your head before walking up to Queen Alicent herself. Your sons followed you and Gwayne while Otto whispered something to the girls, which made their faces go serious as they joined your side, too. You all bowed down respectfully. 

“My Queen,” you greeted her.

“Sister,” Gwayne kissed the palm of her hand.

From the corner of your eye you spotted the older Prince yawning. Queen Alicent blushed and pushed him slightly with her elbow.

“I see we both struggle when it comes to disciplining our offspring,” she smiled at you but you noticed how she looked down at your low-cut dress and the religious pendant on your exposed chest. She chewed on the inside of her cheek at the sight but she decided not to comment.

“Lady Hightower,” your father-in-law kissed the palm of your hand.

“Lord Father,” you greeted him and he gave you a shadow of a smile.

At his son, he only nodded. Gwayne nodded back and clenched his jaw.

“My grandsons,” Otto approached your boys and shook their hands. “Let me introduce the young Princes to you,” he pointed at the silver-haired boys standing by Queen Alicent’s side. “Prince Aegon, Prince Aemond.”

“Lord Edmund,” Edmund introduced himself and extended his hand towards Aegon. Prince Aegon looked him up and down and after a while of hesitation, he shook your son’s hand.

“Lord William,” your younger boy introduced himself and reached out for Aemond’s hand. Prince Aemond shook it shyly.

“Are you Princess Helaena?” Rosalynd stood in front of the Princess with Florys hiding behind her. 

The silver-haired girl widened her eyes and looked pretty startled. She took a step back and Rosalynd furrowed her brow.

“Princess Helaena is of a… rather timid nature,” Queen Alicent explained.

“Let us come inside, you must be exhausted after the journey,” Otto pointed at the doors leading to the castle.

“Do not even get me started, Lord Father,” Gwayne chuckled. “And certainly do not get my Lady Wife started,” he added teasingly and you shot him a scolding glance.

The first day was pretty chaotic because everyone was exhausted but also excited to see as much as possible of The Red Keep. Otto Hightower gave you and your children a tour himself. The only place he avoided were the chambers of The King who was ill and you had already been told you would not see him most likely.

Gwayne had already seen The Red Keep before but it had been before his sister was The Queen so now he was allowed in more places. He joined your little tour and kept his hands on your sons’ shoulders, while your daughters were holding Otto’s hands. 

To your surprise, during the supper, you quite befriended Queen Alicent. Of course she was still frowning upon your dress but you bonded over the experience of motherhood.

“The Red Keep is so green now,” your father-in-law pointed out happily at the sight of you, his children and grandchildren by the long table. All dressed in green clothes to show off their Hightower surname. “It makes me glad. Gwayne, I would like to have a word with you after supper.”

“Tomorrow, father,” Gwayne shook his head. “We are tired after the journey.”

Otto didn’t say anything to that but he gave his son quite an unpleasant look. You squeezed your husband’s hand underneath the table and caressed the palm of his hand lovingly to soothe him.

You retired to your chambers pretty early because you were longing for the comforts of a bed. Your husband and children followed and you made sure they all found their rooms and beds before you went to your own chambers.

“What do you think is the matter he wishes to discuss with you?” You asked Gwayne while brushing your hair in front of the mirror by the vanity table. He was sitting up on the bed and watching you with admiration in his eyes as every evening. “Do you think it is something about Oldtown?”

“No,” Gwayne shakes his head. “Those instructions have always been sent to us by ravens. It must be something about… the future and its possibilities.”

“And what is that supposed to mean?” You furrowed your brow and turned around to see his face better.

“You know that my father wants Prince Aegon on The Iron Throne, not Princess Rhaenyra,” your husband reminded you. “And The King might die soon. We are not even allowed to see him.”

“They say he is slowly decaying with each passing day,” you winced when you imagined such a thing happening to a person.

“That must be a terrible fate,” Gwayne sighed. “However, his death will bring the conflict of succession.”

“What conflict?” You asked. “Aegon is his eldest son.”

Gwayne squinted his eyes and then shook his head with a chuckle.

“My father is underestimating you, my sweetling,” he hummed to himself. “Now, come here, since we are sleeping in The Red Keep, I want to make you feel like a Princess,” he opened his arms for you to join him but you only scoffed and put the hairbrush down before fixing your hair with your hands.

“I am not a child anymore, Lord Husband,” you teased. “You shall make me feel like a Queen.”

You and Queen Alicent were sitting in the garden together and watching your daughters trying to befriend each other. Rosalynd and Florys were pretty grossed out and shocked to see Princess Helaena sitting on the grass and picking up all sorts of bugs and insects to examine with her curious eyes. She handed Rosalynd a spider once and your daughter nearly fainted at the sight.

Princess Helaena was of a gentle nature, though. She seemed to like her younger cousins and she was whispering to them all the details about every bug she was picking up. Florys was more interested in them than Rosalynd. Your eight years old daughter was often shooting you meaningful glances but you were only smiling at her in return.

The young princes and your sons were training together in the courtyard with Gwayne and Ser Criston Cole, whom you had recently met. You wondered how it was going, so you decided to finally put Rosalynd out of her misery.

“Shall we check on our sons, Your Grace?” You asked Queen Alicent but she seemed to be surprised.

“What for?” She inquired. “Are they not with the men who teach them?”

“I like to watch my sons while they train and cheer for them,” you told her and smiled softly. She visibly did not understand the appeal of it but she stood up from the bench and you followed. “Girls,” you looked behind your shoulder and extended your hand. “Come.”

Florys ran up to you to take your hand while Rosalynd and Helaena followed quietly behind you. You could hear your daughter desperately trying to start a conversation she was dying to have with a real Princess.

“You must own so many beautiful dresses, Helaena! What is your favourite colour?”

“Beige,” Helaena answered, clearly uninterested but also not wanting to make her cousin sad.

“Nice…” Rosalynd sighed and you could hear that she was disappointed in that answer. “Do you think you could give me some of your old dresses that do not fit you anymore?”

“Rosalynd!” You gasped as you scolded her.

“That is quite alright, Lady Hightower. We shall gift Rosalynd some of Helaena’s old dresses,” Queen Alicent nodded at you and caressed her daughter’s head lovingly.

“Thank you, my Queen,” you smiled at her and then you gave Rosalynd a meaningful look.

“Thank you, aunt,” the girl bowed down happily.

You reached the courtyard but to your surprise, your sons and the young princes were spending time together on their own, whispering and laughing about something, while your husband seemed to be in the middle of an argument with the other knight.

“Is that what you teach them, Ser Criston?” Gwayne was irritated. “Knights shall be chivalrous and rightful.”

“They are no knights, Ser Gwayne, for they are young princes,” Ser Criston answered.

“Gwayne,” you approached them quickly to stand beside your husband and rub his arm before intertwining yours with his. “How is the training going?”

“Oh, rather marvellous, Lady Wife,” he answered, his voice filled with irony and mockery as he looked Ser Criston up and down. “I have a fascinating conversation with Ser Criston here about the manners of a knight. Perhaps they do not teach them in Dorne.”

“You are from Dorne, Ser?” You tried to change the subject as you looked at the man standing in front of you.

“Yes, my Lady,” Ser Criston nodded at you.

“My sister Olenna married a lesser Lord from Dorne,” you told him. “A Toland,” you explained.

“I hope she has found her happiness with him, my Lady,” Ser Criston cracked a smile at you, which made Gwayne move uncomfortably.

“Barely,” you had to admit with a sigh and Ser Criston’s smile turned into a frown.

Before the conversation would become even more awkward, you were interrupted by Edmund and William running up to you and tugging onto your skirts, making both you and your husband turn around.

“What is it?” You asked them.

“Can we go to the dragon pit to see the dragons?!” William’s eyes widened out of excitement.

“I do not think that is a good idea,” you shook your head as your heart skipped a beat out of fear at the thought.

“We only wish to see them,” Edmund explained. “Father…”

“Your mother is right,” Gwayne agreed with you.

“But should not a knight be brave? I want to see a dragon and so does William!” Edmund insisted and sadly, the mention of the knighthood convinced your husband – especially after an argument with Ser Criston about the very same matter.

“Alright then, but be careful you two,” Gwayne nodded and you watched with terror in your eyes as two of your sons ran away to join their cousins and a few servants on the way.

“Gwayne…!” You gasped.

“Worry not,” Queen Alicent’s voice made you turn around. “The Dragonkeepers and the guards are there.”

After hearing this, your daughters seemed to be interested as well. Rosalynd gave you puppy eyes.

“Can we go, too, mother?” She asked.

“Are you a squire, Rosalynd? Or Florys – is she?” You shook your head.

“Let them go, my Lady. It is better to feed the curiosity instead of letting it grow,” Ser Criston spoke and you shot him a deadly glance but you were sort of forced to agree to your daughter’s request now.

You nodded, reluctantly and watched the girls run away to join their brothers and cousins. Princess Helaena remained by her mother’s side, though.

“What about the young Princess?” Gwayne asked her with a smile and lifted her chin up gently with his finger.

“I do not find pleasure in flying, uncle,” she admitted.

You quickly regretted your decision to allow your children to see the dragons. They seemed to be mesmerised by the creatures and they could not stop whining about the fact they did not have their own beasts to ride.

“They are our cousins, mother,” Edmund kept whining to you on your way back from the supper. “Vhagar is so huge… It is so unfair we do not have any dragons and they do have so many!”

“They are princes and you are lords,” you reminded him. “They are Targaryens and you are Hightowers,” you added. “There is no shame in being different.”

“We are not different, Lady Mother,” Rosalynd rolled her eyes. “We are simply worse.”

“I am not jealous,” Florys saved the day with her sweet confession although her siblings shot her a deadly glance. She clinged to her father’s hand and sighed. “Dragons are big and I am small,” she explained and you chuckled because you found her reasoning adorable.

“You are just a coward because you are a girl!” William pointed out.

“I am a girl, too!” Rosalynd protested. “And I am not afraid. In fact, I would surely have a bigger dragon than you!”

“That is enough,” Gwayne shushed them. “Go to your beds, all of you. Sweet dreams about dragons – dreams, only,” he pointed out with a chuckle but the children did not find it funny.

“Goodnight, daddy, mummy,” Florys nodded and dragged Rosalynd with her to their shared chambers. Your older daughter only mumbled her goodnight.

“Goodnight,” Edmund and William both nodded and walked away, still frustrated and offended by the injustice of life and your light treatment of their situation.

You and Gwayne looked at each other and chuckled before going to your own bedroom.

You were asleep in your husband’s arms. The bed you shared in The Red Keep was twice as big as the one you had in Oldtown but you still were sleeping close in the middle of it. Your face was buried in the thin fabric of his shirt and Gwayne had his chin on top of your head and his arms wrapped around you just like yours were wrapped around his chest.

Sudden, loud and rapid knocking upon your doors made you both startle in your sleep and open your eyes. Gwayne sat up and rubbed his eyes and you hid your yawn with your hand.

“What is it?!” Your husband grunted and left the bed to grab a robe laying on the chair and put it on loosely. You sat up as well and watched his silhouette approaching the doors in the darkness of the room. “Someone better be dying,” Gwayne opened the doors and looked the servant up and down.

“F-forgive me for the rapid interruption, my Lord, my Lady…” The man stuttered. He was holding a candle to light up the room a little. “It is about your children…”

Your heart skipped a beat at that and you jumped out of the bed to stand behind your husband.

“What is it? What happened?!” You inquired. “Which children?”

“Lord Edmund is hurt, my Lady. Lord William and Lady Rosalynd seem to be alright but they were involved in it, too,” the servant swallowed thickly after delivering the dreadful news.

“Hurt?!” You squealed and squeezed your husband’s arm out of fear.

“Involved in what?” Gwayne furrowed his eyebrow.

“Apparently, young lords and the lady attempted to claim their own dragons with the help of Prince Aegon,” the servant explained and you nearly fainted at the news. Gwayne’s face went a shade paler in an instant.

“Where are they now?” He asked.

“Everyone is gathering, my Lord. You are expected in the dining hall,” he explained and walked away.

“Gods…” You whimpered and grabbed the very first dress to put on over your nightgown. You did not care much about your appearance at such a moment. Your hands were shaking because you were worried about your children, especially Edmund who was hurt.

Looking presentable enough, both you and Gwayne hurried downstairs and straight into the dining hall. Queen Alicent was there, too and so were Ser Cole and your father-in-law. Your eldest son was being looked after by a maester while William and Rosalynd were standing behind him with their heads kept low. Florys was scared and clinging to Otto’s hand. Prince Aegon looked pretty terrified, too, and he was not even smirking or laughing as usual.

“What happened?! Edmund!” You left Gwayne’s side to rush to your son. Your heart clenched inside your chest at the sight of his cheek burnt slightly. His lips and eyes were unharmed and for that he was lucky but there was a long burnt line on his cheek that would surely not heal completely and leave a scar. “Oh, Edmund…!” You sobbed and pressed the good side of his face to your chest.

“I am alright, mother,” he whispered.

“What were you thinking?!” Gwayne lost his temper but you knew it was dictated by worry and fear. “Grown tired of living, have you?!” He addressed William and Rosalynd now and they both looked away, ashamed.

“I did not go, daddy!” Florys exclaimed proudly. “And I was telling them it was a bad idea!”

“Shut your mouth, Florys!” Rosalynd scolded her and Florys hid herself behind her grandfather. Gwayne clenched his jaw.

“Do not speak to your sister this way, Rosalynd. Do not speak at all, I advise,” he pointed his finger at his daughter and she looked down again. “Whose idea was it?!”

Both William and Rosalynd pointed their fingers at Edmund. Even Florys stuck her little hand out from behind her grandfather to point at her eldest brother.

“Traitors!” Edmund shouted at them.

You looked down at your son’s face. He winced while the maester was putting an ointment on his injury.

“You’re scarred for life,” you sniffled your tears back. “My sweet boy…”

“I have nearly gained a dragon,” he told you proudly. “And the scar does not bother me, mother, for I have survived the attempt. I shall try again soon.”

“You could never own a dragon, son! Only Targaryens can own and ride them! It is common knowledge!” Gwayne raised his hands up as if he was giving up.

Aegon moved uncomfortably while Edmund shot him a glance full of hatred.

“What is it?” Queen Alicent asked, already sensing her own son’s involvement in this whole thing being much worse than she had expected.

“It was Aegon!” Edmund’s lower lip trembled suddenly. “He told us we could gain our own dragons, too! That we can claim the spare ones or Helaena’s since she has no interest in it!” He confessed.

Now everyone’s angry eyes were laid upon the young Prince. He huffed with an eye roll but his cheeks turned crimson red.

“I did not know,” he whispered. “I did not know that only we can ride them.”

You were filled with rage. Your eldest son liked to pretend he was more mature than the rest of his siblings but he was only twelve after all – he was still a child. Prince Aegon was the eldest out of the cousins and he should had known better.

“You have cruelly teased my children to risk their lives… To… To possibly lose them and die!” You approached him angrily and began to shake him by his arms. You couldn't care less that he was a Prince. You wanted him punished. “And now you are playing a fool by saying such a stupidity! You insolent son of a–”

“(Y/N),” Gwayne stopped you as he rushed to you and put his hand on your shoulder but you shrugged it off.

“Edmund has a scar for life!” You sobbed again.

“Mother, I am alright!” Your son’s voice reached your ears.

“I did not know…!” Scared Aegon was trying to get out of your grip and Queen Alicent was attempting to help him by pushing your hands away.

“Lady Hightower, be reasonable!” She pleaded. “I shall punish my son accordingly but it is my punishment to give him, not yours!”

“My children could have died! All of them!” You screamed at her.

“Not me!” Florys squealed.

“Shush, my darling,” Otto scolded her gently. “All of us should calm down now. After all, everybody is alive, thank Gods,” he pointed out and you pushed Aegon away before angrily turning around.

The maester was no longer sitting by Edmund’s side and now you approached your boy to grab him by his shirt and drag him towards Otto.

“Look at him! My son nearly died!” You yelled at him. “Do not order me to calm down, Lord Father!”

“Mother, let go of me, it hurts,” Edmund whined and you stopped pulling him by his shirt but your whole body was trembling out of anger, fear and frustration. “Young Prince Aegon should learn how to treat other people, especially the weaker ones…” You patted your own chest with your fist and your son huffed at the word weaker. “...if you wish to put him on the throne!” You finished and the whole room went silent.

It was something that should not be said out loud. Thankfully, everyone inside the dining hall was on the same side when it came to the conflict of succession.

“That is enough, my Lady,” Gwayne shook his head and put his hands on your shoulders to walk you out of his surprised father’s sight. “I am sure Prince Aegon will be punished for his behaviour by his own parents.”

“I did not know, I swear!” Aegon whined. “I would not want cousin Edmund or cousin William to get hurt and especially not cousin Rosalynd!”

“Save it!” Queen Alicent scolded him angrily and slapped his face. “You have outdone yourself this time, Aegon!”

Gwayne was rubbing your arms soothingly and pressed you closer to his body by putting his hand in the back of your head. Your heartbeat was slowing down and your breath was coming back to normal.

“I think we should all agree to collectively remove Lady Hightower’s accusation from our memories,” Otto spoke calmly. “And that it is time to go back to our beds.”

All of your children approached you, clinging to your skirts, except for Edmund who felt stupid and guilty now, embarrassed. He was looking down and clasped his hands behind his back but Gwayne put his hand around his shoulders to pull him closer.

“Your grandfather is right, it is time to go back to our beds. If we manage to fall asleep after such a night,” he pointed out.

Prince Aegon did not show up for the breakfast and you were glad he did not because you would tear him apart if you saw him. Now, after taking a better look at your son’s injury in the morning light, you were heartbroken. His scar would probably look intimidating when he would become the fearsome knight he wanted to be but you were his mother and your heart ached for him. 

The breakfast overall was pretty quiet and after the meal Gwayne took your sons to the courtyard to continue their training while Rosalynd and Florys followed Queen Alicent to Princess Helaena’s chambers for the girls to embroider together. Rosalynd also hoped to try on some of Princess Helaena’s dresses. You considered not allowing her to take any as a form of punishment for yesterday's stunt but you eventually decided it would be too cruel.

You were asked by your father-in-law to see him after breakfast and you kind of dreaded the conversation because you had a feeling what it would be about. Gwayne wanted to accompany you but you disagreed because it would make you look weak and scared. You had to face Otto Hightower alone. Gwayne had reluctantly agreed but he had assured you that he would remain by your side no matter what your father-in-law would say to you.

On your way to his chambers, you walked past Prince Aegon’s room. The doors were ajar and he was sitting on the edge of his bed. At first, seeing him brought back all the memories from the last night and all the anger. But after a short while of staring at him, you noticed that he was… sad.

It confused you as you kept staring and in the meantime, he spotted your presence. He got startled a little, knowing that you were alone now since his guard was nowhere to be seen and his mother was not there to push you away if you attacked him again.

He approached the doors to close them but he kept glancing at you like a beaten dog and even dared to speak.

“Is my cousin alright, aunt?” He asked quietly, his voice filled with guilt and worry. Suddenly, you started to have a feeling he had not been lying. Perhaps he truly had not known about the Targaryens being the only people who could ride dragons.

It would not surprise you because your father-in-law had been complaining about Prince Aegon not wanting to study his books and his knowledge of High Valyrian was… questionable.

“Edmund is quite alright,” you nodded at him and took a step ahead before he would close the doors. “Can we talk?”

Aegon hesitated but he looked down and nodded, letting you inside. You entered his chambers and looked around, humming at the sight of a wine goblet on his nightstand table.

“I truly did not know about the dragons, I am sorry,” Aegon confessed. “I know I am of a rather careless nature but I would not risk my cousins’ life,” he added and you sighed.

After a short while of hesitation, you approached him and caressed his hair before putting a silver strand behind his ear and lifting his chin up to make him look into your eyes.

“I am sorry for my outburst, young Prince. I do believe you now,” you assured him with a soft smile. “It still was irresponsible and foolish but I see now that your intentions were not malicious,” you nodded and his eyes sparkled at your words.

“Really? You do believe me, aunt?” He couldn’t be convinced and it made you sad to see it.

“I do,” you moved your hand away from his face. “To see a scar on my son’s face is painful for a mother but I do realise he does not mind it at all and he is proud of how he gained it. Let it be then,” you sighed. “It cannot be undone anyway.”

A short while of silence occurred between you two and you smiled at Aegon before approaching the doors again.

“You should join uncle Gwayne and my sons in the courtyard, my Prince. They are training with Ser Cole and young Prince Aemond,” you encouraged him. “And I shall leave now to speak with your grandfather.”

Aegon nodded at you and you left his chambers to hurry to Otto Hightower’s room where he was already waiting for you. He gave you a scolding look when you entered.

“What took you so long, Lady Hightower?” He asked, sitting on an armchair by the fireplace.

“I was stopped on the way, Lord Father,” you explained calmly and he pointed at the armchair next to his. You took a seat there and waited for him to start the conversation.

“We shall speak about last night,” he started.

“I do believe it was your idea to remove my accusations from the memory,” you reminded and he shot you an unpleasant glance.

“I need to know where you stand,” he looked deep into your eyes.

“Where do I stand?” You furrowed your brows. “What does it matter?”

“You have a great influence on my son. Much bigger than a wife should have on any man,” Otto pointed out. “I need to know I can trust you.”

“Speak plainly, Lord Father,” you challenged him with a head held high. “And I shall tell you.”

Otto hesitated as he looked at the dancing flames for a while. You waited patiently until he eventually laid his eyes on you again with the most serious expression.

“Do you support Prince Aegon as the future King of the Andals and the Rhoynar and the First Men?” Otto lowered his voice – his whispers were nearly audible.

“I believe you wish to know if I support your treason,” you raised an eyebrow and Otto clenched his jaw. “I do,” you nodded. “Prince Aegon is half-Hightower and I shall always support my family,” you added and stood up. “Does that answer satisfy you, my Lord? I shall join my sons and husband in the courtyard. I have promised them to watch their training,” you explained.

“You can go,” Otto dismissed you and you turned around but then you stopped.

“Lord Father?” You looked at him one more time.

“Yes?” He looked up to meet your gaze with furrowed brows.

“I shall ensure that my own Lord Father – Lord Tyrell – supports King Aegon when the time comes,” you promised.

Otto only nodded at you and you nodded back before walking out of his chambers and hurrying downstairs to the courtyard.

You smiled at the sight of your boys being instructed by their father. Prince Aegon joined them in the meantime as well and you waved at them all before taking a seat on the bench as usual – to watch and cheer.

After giving your sons their instructions, Gwayne gave them some space and joined your side as he sat next to you.

“What did my father want from you, darling?” He asked, worryingly.

“He wondered about my loyalty,” you scoffed and looked up at your husband’s face to fix a reckless auburn hair strand falling onto his face. “As if I didn’t give him four grandchildren to inherit his wealth and titles. As if I didn’t run Oldtown in his name for years. As if I didn’t love his son with every heartbeat of mine,” you finished quietly and a slight blush brightened your husband’s cheeks.

“Last night must have frightened him,” Gwayne explained. “You were rather furious with Prince Aegon.”

“Every parent would be,” you rolled your eyes. “Were you not furious, too?”

“I was but I did not show it,” Gwayne pointed out.

“Every person reacts differently,” you shrugged. “Either way, such conflicts always happen sooner or later between the family members. I shall not take them outside,” you assured Gwayne and took his hand to squeeze it. “I gave birth to four Hightowers. How could I play on any other team?” You asked, genuinely.

Gwayne squeezed your hand back and moved a little closer to you, as much as his armour allowed him. You both watched your sons train with loving smiles on your faces.

At one point, young Prince Aegon looked at you and smiled at you nervously. You smiled back and waved at him even, which caused his own smile to grow wider. Poor boy had no idea what responsibility was being plotted to be put onto his back.

MASTERLIST

[frankenkyle19]

Grownup Time

Kintober day 6: Kit Walker x reader get up to some fun while the kids are out trick or treating ;)

word count: 1.5k short one! Short and sweet! description/warnings: unprotected sex, quickie, smut, p in v penetration, uh that’s it I think? Very tame compared to some of my other fics

You met Kit Walker at one of the hardest points in his young life. Both the women he loved died, one murdered by the other and the other passing away in an asylum that he knew didn’t treat people right. He had first hand experience there sadly. Something he wasn’t too keen on sharing with others. Not even you. 

Now he was a single father, caring for two beautiful kids while also trying to work and support them. It was hard, really hard and everyone wondered when he’d get married again. 

He still wasn’t married, but he had a girlfriend. You. You didn’t need a ring on your finger to know how much you two loved each other. He was completely devoted to you and you loved him just as much.

His kids were absolutely precious and loved to spend time with you, instantly clinging to you as a mother figure that they hadn’t had in months. 

You moved in with Kit soon after you met, deciding it was the best for all of you, kids included. You’d be able to help around the house and with the kids, giving Kit some much needed rest while also being able to spend more time with him which was a win win.

Now, six whole months later you all had a set schedule as a family. Kit went to work, the kids went off to school and you’d cook dinner. Two days a week Kit would insist that he cook for the family and of course you let him. He looked beautiful in the kitchen leaning over a pot or pulling something out of the oven.

Everything was absolutely perfect. Except for one thing… You two barely had any time alone.

Sure maybe after the kids fell asleep but they were both very light sleepers and got up frequently in the night. The last thing you needed was for one of them to walk in on the two of you getting it on. 

You could realistically do it in the shower, but when Kit nearly slipped bending you over you two had called it quits and just finished cleaning up before drying off. It wasn’t for lack of trying. You two tried hard, but it seemed that every single time you made a move on each other the world had to be the biggest cockblock. 

Luckily for the two of you lovebirds, it was Halloween and that meant trick or treating which meant kids out of the house. 

Kit was a bit nervous to let the kids go off without him, but after some convincing and the knowledge that their friend's mother would be going along with them, he agreed.

It had been hard for him ever since Grace and Alma died. He was so worried for his kids in every aspect of their lives. The kids loved their father, but he was a bit overbearing at times. It all came from a place of love. Kit wouldn’t be able to survive if something happened to them. He’d already faced so much loss.

Kit had gotten off of work early that day to be able to see Thomas and Julia off, making sure that he talked with their friend’s mother and discussed where they’d be going. 

He kissed each child on the head, much to their dismay before waving them goodbye, watching as they walked off down the path to go trick or treating. Kit would be lying if he said he wasn’t at least a little bit nervous.

You had made a roast for dinner that night, something simple but also something Kit loved. You were just about to finish up in the kitchen when he came up behind you, wrapping you in his large arms and squeezing gently, pressing a few kisses to your exposed neck.

A shiver ran up your spine as you subconsciously leaned back against him, sighing out a soft exhale of contentment. 

His body was warm and soft against yours… save for one thing.

“Kit Walker!” You exclaimed, turning around to face him.

“Are you hard?” You teased, looking down to see that he was in fact aroused. Not like he had much of a choice in how he felt. It’d been so long since he’d had you all to himself to even entertain the thought.

“It’s been so long suga’ just give me a bit of lovin’ yeah? The kids are gone, we’ve got the house all to ourselves for at least the next two hours.” He smiled softly, accent thick as he swallowed, Adam’s apple bobbing in his throat.

You’d be lying if you said you didn’t want to. Of course you did. Who wouldn’t? 

You pulled him into a kiss, standing on your tiptoes as he wrapped his arms around your waist, pulling you flush against his chest as he deepened the kiss. It was obvious how eager and desperate he was for this. 

The two of you stumbled out of the kitchen and into your shared bedroom, clothes coming off on the way there, the two of you tripping as you rushed to get your pants off.

You had no intention of taking things slow, despite having all the time in the world. You were much too worked up for any of that, and by the way Kit was panting, he wasn’t in the mood for slow either.

Kit’s large hands came behind you once your shirt was up and over your head, undoing your bra like he’d done so many times before, letting the straps slide down your arms before your breasts were freed.

Kit brushed the pad of his thumb over one of the hardening nipples, grinning. You shivered, arching into the touch. Just the simplest of touches had you so desperate for more.

Luckily for you, Kit was more than ready to give you anything your heart desired.

Your hand gently brushed over the bulge in his white boxers, causing him to throw his head back with a sigh, subtly bucking into the touch.

“Okay baby- ya gotta stop that or I’ll cum-“ he whined, cock twitching in his boxers as he pulled your hand away, shaking his head with a laugh.

“It’s been too long.” He mumbled as he pulled you into a kiss, practically ripping off your panties along with his underwear before positioning himself between your legs.

You reached down and gave his length a few strokes for good measure before he lined himself up with your entrance and pushed his length in.

It always hurt the first few moments with Kit, no matter how much you’d done it. He was well above average and you always needed time to adjust to his size.

Kit nearly collapsed over you at the feeling of your plush walls squeezing him so tightly, urging him deeper inside.

You gripped his hair in your hands and played with it absentmindedly as the two of you waited to adjust. Kit shook subtly against you, face buried in the crook of your neck.

“Baby- go ahead I’m ready.” You moaned out. He didn’t need to be told twice, already beginning to thrust in and out before you even finished your sentence.

Gripping onto his shoulders, your nails dug into his skin, sure to leave red marks tomorrow that he’d admire in the mirror each time he got changed. 

“Fuck baby, yer so tight. Damn-“ he groaned out, peppering kisses along your neck and collarbone, fucking into you at a much harsher pace now.

“Mmm Kit f-Fuck-“ You moaned out, his groin brushing against your clit with each thrust in, causing pleasure to surge through you, a tight dull ache forming in the pit of your stomach.

Kit sensed this change in you almost immediately and it made him weak in the knees. Making you cum was always such an honor for him, and god was he so, so good at it. 

“Close-“ You whined out, hips chasing his each time he pulled back to thrust once more.

“Yeah? Gonna cum fer me? Yeh you are. Good girl, my good girl.” He cooed, reaching down to rub circles against your clit.

You were so lost in the pleasure that the air was knocked out of your lungs when you did cum. You arched your back and cried out, biting down on your bottom lip nearly hard enough to draw blood as you writhed underneath Kit 

Seeing you like this was more than enough to trigger his own release and soon, a warmth filled you up from deep inside. Kit soon collapsed next to you, holding you close as he slipped out of you, his cum dripping onto the bedsheets that would now definitely need changed.

You both stayed silent for several moments, just panting, enjoying the after effects of your releases.

“We need to do that more often.” Kit breathed out with an exasperated chuckle, brushing your hair out of your face before pressing a kiss to the tip of your nose.

“Well we still have a few more hours until the kids get home.” You grinned, rolling over to sit atop him, hands laying flat on his chest as you gave him a suggestive smirk.

“Oh baby-“ he cooed, his accent stronger now in his hazy state of pleasure as he held your hips.

Happy Halloween to the two of you. 

[only-lonely-star]

Hi!!! I think you are my fav author currently lol so I'm gonna request something for the first time ever!

Could you do a fic where the reader is dating Soda and she has a little sister whose like six? Darry isn't too sure about the reader yet because he's very protective of Soda after Sandy so you and Soda plan to use your sister to charm him into fully accepting you. Somehow Soda is able to convince Darry to let you and your sister stay the night and your sister comes over and quickly decides Darry is the best thing ever (Soda is jealous so is pony) she becomes his little shadow following him around and sitting in his chair with him to read the paper (she can't read very well) she even convinces him to share her nighttime snack with her. During the night she ends up wandering down to his room because she's scared and he let's her stay with him for protection?

Just fluffy big scary Darry being the biggest softie for kids!

Thanks!

⁠♡ Charm ⁠♡

~ Darrel Curtis ~

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Warnings - None! This is a cute fic, just fluff!! Soft Darry with kids.

Summary - He’s got a soft spot for your kid sister 🤭💞

Author’s Note - AAHH THIS IS SO CUTE RIPPING MY HAIR OUT!! I feel like I wrote this so out of order but it’s fine (I think 🙂). I’m so sorry this took me literally ages to complete, enjoy my loves! 💋

Word Count - 4.1k.

──୨ৎ── ──୨ৎ── ──୨ৎ──

(Quick A/N: This is similar to some of my other writings where I have to give a character a name. If I don’t, the story seems redundant and can leave you confused. For this one, I chose the name ‘Diane’ as the little sister role in this story. This is still an ‘x reader’ story, so ‘you’ is still you. I hope this clears up any confusion !! OKAY OKAY ENJOY 😁)

“Come on, Diane, quit that,” you snapped at your little sister, practically dragging her to the front door of the small bricked house in which you called home. You crouched to her level, resting your hands upon her shoulders. “Listen to me,” you began authoritatively, forcing her wandering eyes to focus on you entirely, “You’re going to be good, and you won’t disappoint me, right?”

Diane nodded along, her mind obviously elsewhere. You had dressed her in a colorful cotton dress, yellow and pink polka dots embellished all over. Her hair was tied up in small pigtails, the hair-do sure to charm anyone she would cross paths with. She had to look flawless tonight - it was different from any other.

On the other end of the door stood your loving and devoted boyfriend, Sodapop. He had been patiently waiting to pick the two of you up to drive back over to his house. Meeting family meant your relationship was becoming serious, although this was a different family meeting than you were used to. Sodapop lived with only his two brothers, Darrel and Ponyboy. You had heard a good amount about each of the boys, knowing enough to hold a decent conversation. With your guardians out of town, you were left to take care of your sister, Diane - which ultimately meant taking her along with you to meet Sodapop’s family.

Rewarding her with a small pat on the back, you turned around and opened the front door to your home. Sodapop greeted you with an affectionate grin, your own smile returning the gesture. “Hey, baby,” he spoke gently, his arms already apart as they waited for the warmth of your body to collide with his.

You returned the hug, tightly enclosing him against yourself. You hummed against his chest, “Missed you.” A tender kiss pressed against his cheek, smearing your lipstick in an instant.

“Woah, woah, kisses later, I got a little sister to meet,” Sodapop chuckled, his eyes darting down toward the small girl behind you. “Diane, right?”

Diane nodded slowly, sizing up Sodapop now that he was up close and not trapped behind a picture frame. He was handsome - very intimidating, but handsome. Diane stepped closer, tilting her head all the way up to meet Sodapop’s eyes. “Diane,” she said with a nod of confirmation.

Sodapop’s shot you a small smirk of approval. “Beautiful girl…” he smiled fondly as he extended a hand for you.

You placed yours on his, and with a firm yank, you were out the front door. Diane followed and crept around Sodapop’s other side while you double-checked the locks on the door. Once completed, the three of you walked steadily to his car. Sodapop was a known ladies man - he was especially sweet to a girl he fancied. He raced to open your door and helped you inside before helping Diane.

————————-————————-——————————

Once at the Curtis’ home, Diane shadowed you all the way up to the front door. Making your entry with Sodapop’s arm snaked around your waist, his brothers gathered to welcome the two of you.

The taller, more muscular, and older appearing boy stood across from you, a very much forced smile on his lips. The smaller one had his eyes glued to you, his mouth wide as if slowly shifted to form a welcoming smile.

You nervously tapped your hands against your thighs and smiled, trying to seem like you were real girlfriend material for Sodapop. You had brothers to impress here.” Hi… Soda’s girl,” you said with a smile, the nervousness evident in your tone.

The older boy gave a head nod, not willing to say much more than his own name. “Darrel.”

The smaller boy with bright green eyes stepped forward, his hands in the loops of his tattered denim. “Ponyboy,” he said simply, his gaze soon shifting towards Diane who had tried her hardest to hide from the entire encounter.

Diane sighed once she had been discovered, everyone’s eyes soon on her. She emerged from behind your legs, letting go of your skirt shyly.

Darrel’s eyes once cold, now sparkled. Sodapop took notice of the change in mood, placing a hand on Diane’s shoulder blade to gently scoot her forward. “This… this is Diane, her little sister,” he grinned.

Darrel’s smile enlarged from there, holding out a hand and crouching down to Diane’s level. It was like love at first sight. “Well, ain’t you a sweetheart?” Darrel teased, stroking his thumb over her tiny hand in his.

Diane giggled, feeling the same connection as Darrel did. Sodapop exchanged a look of surprise with you, finding the connection cute. Darrel looked at you once more, standing back up and crossing his arms over his chest. “Well- uh…” It was as if he felt embarrassed after he was seen being so soft with Diane. He loved children, no doubt about it. Growing up with two younger brothers meant he played the caretaking role when his folks couldn’t.

He took in your appearance from head to toe, letting out an exaggerated sigh. He gave Sodapop a look that said everything you needed to know about how he felt about you. You cleared your throat as your eyes darted down to the floor. Sodapop stepped forward and rested his hand on your shoulder gently. “Alright - uh..” he began, ushering Ponyboy to allow them to speak privately, “Pony, it’ll be five minutes, promise.”

Ponyboy stifled a scoff, glaring at his brothers while he exited the room, making himself busy in the kitchen. Diane noticed the look in your eye which meant she best find somewhere else to stay while the grown-folk spoke. She followed behind Ponyboy, making sure she kept a bit of distance between her and the boy she’d just met.

“Sit down,” Darrel spoke gruffly, shutting the door as you followed Sodapop to the off-white-colored sofa. He sat down first, pulling you from your waist. Making yourself comfortable beside him, you rested your head on his shoulder while Darrel paced around the living room.

“So tell me, what’re your intentions with my brother?” Darrel asked blatantly, staring directly into your eyes as he leaned against the nearby wall beside the fireplace.

You swallowed hard, trying to come up with a more sophisticated answer even though you knew your intentions were nothing but pure. Your fingers nervously picked at a stray thread from your skirt as you spoke up, “I just… I want to love him, and plan a future with him. Right, Soda?”

Sodapop nodded, smiling sweetly before planting a gentle kiss on the top of your head. “Damn right,” he agreed while Darrel’s expression only seemed to grow firmer.

“You’ve been together… how long? A week? Two?” Darrel then asks with a rather confused look. Before one of you could respond, he gave a nod to Sodapop to signal he needed to have a word with him - alone.

Sodapop stood from the sofa, stepping aside with his older brother as an annoyed expression flashed across his face. “What?” he snapped, preparing to hear the worst.

“I already don’t like this. First Sandy, now her? Soda, slow down,” Darrel lectured, shaking his head as he did so, “She’s gonna hurt you - I know it.”

Soda tilted his head back as a frustrated groan left his lips. “Come on Darry - you ain’t even met her yet! Give her a chance!”

“It ain’t my choice who you run around with, but I’m trying to look out for you,” Darrel spoke in a low voice, careful to make sure you didn’t hear. He had advised Sodapop to stay away from women before. After the stunt, his ex-girlfriend, Sandy, had pulled… Darrel didn’t trust anyone. He hated seeing his kid brother so heartbroken and vowed he’d never let it happen again.

“She’s different, she ain’t like Sandy,” Sodapop defended as he started his way back towards you on the sofa. He didn’t care to argue any further, he had his mind made up.

Returning back beside you, Darrel gave a head shake to the both of you before heading towards his bedroom. This ‘family-introduction’ didn’t necessarily go as planned, leaving a strange tension lingering in the air. Sodapop sighed, running his fingers through your hair as you leaned against him for support. “I’m sorry, darlin’, he ain’t in a good mood is all,” he assured you softly.

“No, it’s alright, I’ve been told worse,” you chuckled dryly, trying to distract yourself from the massive fail this whole encounter had turned out to be.

“I just don’t know how to get him to warm up to ya,” He admitted with a puzzled look etched on his face. “Darry ain’t ever like this.”

“Hey…” you grinned cheekily, sitting up from Sodapop’s chest. It was as if you had some sort of epiphany right then and there. Sodapop seemed to have been missing the context behind your idea, his eyes wide with confusion. You smiled to yourself and nudged his shoulder. “You saw the way he lit up with Diane, right?”

Sodapop nodded slowly, his mind far from connecting the dots here. “Sure did, what’re you gettin’ at?”

“You think Diane could be a big help in getting your brother to maybe…warm up to me?” you finally asked, the grin on your lips filled with both mischief and a sense of amusement.

“I mean - I guess so… he sure loves kids,” Sodapop shrugged, reluctantly giving your idea a chance.

Without a second thought, you leaped off the couch to search for Diane. Ponyboy had been entertaining her since being shooed away moments ago. He had been tossing his red ball back and forth, engaging in a game of catch with you little sister. “Diane!” you whisper-shouted, a sly smirk forming on your lips.

Her head turned towards you, the tiny rubber ball soaring back towards Ponyboy. Now that you had her attention, you motioned for her to come closer, which she obliged. You leaned down so that your face was beside hers, your voice quiet as ever, “Diane, I’ve got a job for you.”

Diane couldn’t be happier, as naive as she was cute, she was also useful. She was always a helping hand, trying to be a good kid sister to you and prove herself worthy. Her face seemed to light up at the request, her small fist pumping into the air. “Yes! I’ll do it!” She agreed excitedly.

You chuckled alongside your little sister, sharing a tender moment. “I haven’t even asked you yet!” You protested as you attempted to back your laughter. Diane’s enthusiasm was refreshing.

“Well, what is it?” Diane asked with curious and almost doll-like eyes which displayed every ounce of her innocence.

You placed a hand on her back, inching her closer. Your voice was soft as you whispered to Diane, “You remember Darrel…? The big man with the big smile?”

She nodded. Of course, she remembered Darrel, she couldn’t forget such a warm smile in such a short amount of time. This was perfect. Sodapop watched from the sofa, his eyes registering the plan which was going surprisingly well even though it had been schemed just moments ago. You shot him a knowing grin, focusing back to Diane. “Do you want to go see him? He’s been waitin’ for you to go - play with him,” you coaxed her slyly.

Diane’s childlike wonder hit its peak, her heart now set on spending some quality time with the muscular man she had briefly encountered earlier. She gasped, her eyes wide, “Really? Let’s go play right now!”

You held her wrist, preventing her from leaving just yet. “Woah, Diane - …” Your voice lowered even further, the volume so quiet that nobody else besides Diane could hear. “I need you to just… talk… good about me.”

Diane’s eyebrows furrowed, sensing some sort of trick behind this whole request of yours. “Mm… okay…” she agreed hesitantly, eyeing you down before she caught glimpse of the door. Once earning a smile of approval, you loosened your grip on her wrist. She raced for the wooden door that Darrel was last seen entering, a giddy smile on her face.

Pounding her fist on it with all her might, you scrambled back for the couch to seem as if Diane went to his bedroom all on her own. He opened moments later, his eyes shifting downwards once he noticed a small figure standing in his doorway. A small yet sincere grin formed on his lips. “Hey, kiddo,” he greeted, glancing around to notice Diane was ‘unsupervised’. You were ‘busy�� chatting with Sodapop, and Ponyboy was occupied with a book in hand, ball in the other.

Diane giggled, her own excitement making itself known as she wasted no time inviting herself into his bedroom. He surprisingly didn’t seem too bothered, he actually allowed her to roam around. Diane’s eyes wandered the entire room, top to bottom. “Dar - rel,” she murmured to herself, the name rolling off her tongue as if testing the word out.

Darrel scooped her up in his buff arms, Diane’s legs wrapping halfway around his hip. He grinned down to her, a rare sight to see. “Darry,” he corrected in a quiet voice, allowing himself to form a bond with her.

Diane rested her head against his chest, nuzzling in closely. Her head fit snugly under his chin, providing a touch of warmth to her rather clingy approach. “Darry!” she squealed, finding amusement in being held so tightly by him. Her eyes caught sight of a small brown teddy bear, resting on a wooden shelf with various trinkets and trophies. She gasped, her eyes now fixated on the plush in front of her.

Darrel’s eyes followed hers, realizing just what she was getting all worked up about. He shook his head softly, “The bear?”

Diane nodded, extending a hand for the stuffed animal in an attempt to grab it. Her tiny arms could only go so far, the plush at fingertips reach. “Here,” Darrel said, using his own arm to retrieve the bear. He handed it to her, watching as Diane’s eyes sparkled with admiration. “You want it?” he then asked. Diane nodded her head almost immediately. Of course, she wanted it - it was a gift from Darrel and such a cute plush to suffocate with her love. “You can have it.”

Diane was overjoyed with the kind gesture, her shriek echoing throughout the house. Darrel chuckled, using his free arm to raise his hand towards the back of her head. He caressed her hair gently, pacing around the room. Darrel noticed the rolled-up newspaper from this morning in which he had yet to attend to, sitting atop his wooden desk. “Alright now, you uh… best head back and see your sister,” he suggested softly, setting her down as he reached for the paper.

Diane was fully against this idea, she was too fond of Darrel to just leave - especially to hang out with you. “No!” she spat out, an upset glint in her eye telling Darrel she wasn’t to be messed with. Her pout was enticing, only charming him further.

“C’mon, kiddo, you can stay with me.” he sighed with a smile that only seemed to grow from there, showing he wouldn’t mind the young girl’s company at all.

———————————————————————————

Walking into the dimly lit kitchen, Diane looked around in wonder as she shadowed Darrel’s every move. He held a hand out for her to take, in which her hand could only wrap around his pinky. Her other hand was occupied holding the stuffed bear she had been given. She dragged it around everywhere.

“How hungry exactly are you, kid?” he posed, masking his nervous voice with a dry chuckle.

“Very,” Diane exaggerated, poking her head beside Darrel’s leg to have a look at what was inside the refrigerator.

It was nearly empty, with only a few tuppers of leftovers and two cases of beer stacked atop of one another. Darrel quickly shut the door and looked around for something else the little girl could enjoy to satisfy her hunger. “How about some…” he paused as he scanned the kitchen counter, “Some fruit? You like apples?”

Diane gasped and jumped up and down excitedly, “Yes, I’m so hungry I could eat a hundred, Darry!”

Her cute exclamation earned a hearty laugh from Darrel. He ruffled through her hair and continued to rinse and slice the apple for her. “Apple slices it is then.”

As Diane chewed on a thin slice of apple, she couldn’t help but feel empathy for Darrel. She was a natural caretaker and sharing was her given talent. “Here, this is for you,” she spoke up softly, a fresh slice of the fruit in her small hand.

“For me?” Darrel scoffed as his grin reappeared on his face. “Well thank you, Diane. That’s awfully sweet of you.”

He took a bite of the slice and watched as her face lit up with that charming grin of hers. He was utterly flattered by the kind gesture.

———————————————————————————

Plummeting down to his seat by the lamp, Diane followed him with an excited gleam in her eye. She lifted her arms and with a heave, Darrel had placed her on one thigh, his hand holding her upright while the other grasped onto the fresh paper.

“I’m bettin’ you can’t read too well,” Darrel chuckled, his attention suddenly focused on the footsteps exiting his younger brother’s room.

“Darry - …” Sodapop began immediately, a flash of hesitation seen across his face. “Can she stay *just for tonight*? I already planned for this and everything. It’s just one night, come on.”

Darrel turned his head downwards to watch Diane’s big, fearful eyes, boring into his. He couldn’t say no. He’s grown to become fond of the little girl despite their short amount of time spent together. “If Diane can stay too…then I don’t see why not,” Darrel responded as he gently pinched her cheek with a convinced smile. It didn’t take much for him to have his mind made up.

Sodapop’s mouth was now wide open, a faint smile hidden beneath his shocked expression. He immediately began his way towards his bedroom door in which you stood in the doorway with a pleased expression. “Thank you, Darry - I mean it. You really are the best.”

“I’m sleeping here?” Diane asked.

Darrel’s nod of reassurance was what sealed the deal entirely. He gave a small rub to her back, soft up and downwards movements, “You and your sister, but that ain’t till later, honey.” His gaze shifted to the newspaper still fresh without the slightest crinkle or tear.

“Can you read along with me?” he asked softly, pointing to the tiny printed letters in black as Diane squinted.

“Hmm…” she started, her voice only a soft murmur now that she had been put on the spot. After a moment of silence, she shook her head in embarrassment, burying her face into Darrel’s chest. “It’s too hard,” she pouted against his body.

Darrel resumed his soft strokes on her back. “Hey - hey - it’s okay…I’ll help you. Does that sound like a plan?”

Diane slowly pulled away and nodded her head up and down to signal she would be comfortable with that instead.

———————————————————————————

Not even ten minutes into their reading session, Diane was already dozing off and finding it difficult to keep her head lifted. Darrel could sense her struggling by the way her entire body would jerk back upright every few minutes. “You gettin’ tired on me already, pumpkin?” he laughed softly and folded the newspaper before resting it on the table beside him.

Diane mumbled incoherent words as she forced her eyes back open. “So…” she let out a yawn and blinked back stray tears, “Tired…”

“Come on, your sister’ll get you all ready for bed,” he whispered as he carefully held her up in his arm as he stood from the seat beneath him.

Pushing the bedroom door open, Darrel caught sight of you and Sodapop huddled up together underneath the fuzzy blanket that draped over your bodies. Sodapop had already drifted off with his arm lazily placed over you. Your eyebrows arose once Darrel stood with Diane in the doorway. “Hey…” you whispered, scooting upwards on the bed.

A slight jab to Sodapop’s side was enough to wake him up so that he could let you up and off the bed. You could hear his groan slowly drowning itself out as his body readjusted to lay without you, face planted into the warm pillow.

Darrel held back a laugh as if not to wake him further - especially Diane. “I think she’s gettin’ a little tired,” he mouthed to you as he stepped forward, proudly showing her off in his arm. Her head was hunched over on Darrel’s shoulder as her body leaned against his bicep.

“Shoot…I’ll take her to sleep with me on the couch if that’s okay…?” you suggested as you extended an arm for your little sister.

Darrel nodded and reluctantly loosened his hand on her back so she could be transferred to lay in your arms. “Yeah, that’s alright with me. I’m sorry you and uh…Soda can’t have much of a ‘sleepover’,” he added with a dry chuckle.

As bad as he felt the need to protect his little brother, he knew the two of you were madly in love and he couldn’t put an end to your feelings. He had to welcome you the best he could - while still keeping a watchful eye on you, of course. If it weren’t for him and Ponyboy sharing a bed, the two of you could’ve slept in each other’s arms. Diane played a big factor in this as well.

“Pfft, it’s okay, I’m more worried Diane isn’t getting into all sorts of trouble or pestering you,” you responded. Hoisting Diane up, she stirred awake slightly.

“Pester? She’s been a joy to be around,” Darrel smiled, watching as the little girl was now back in your possession. He began walking for the door since it was, in fact, getting late. “Well goodnight, tell Diane too if she ever wakes up,” he finished with a proud smile.

As the night progressed, Diane slept soundly beside you on the couch. She had kicked off the blanket sometime during the night. The house was completely quiet except for the occasional crack of a leaf outside, or creak in the sofa. Diane found herself lying wide awake. It must’ve been late. She felt a deep fear from the human-shaped shadows that surrounded her in the living room, the quiet hum of the overhead fan adding an eerie suspense to the room. The quiet ambiance spooked her more than she’d like to admit. Diane swallowed hard and squeezed her teddy bear tightly against her chest. The sudden cracking sound from the ceiling caused a flinch among the poor girl. She leaped off of the couch in a second’s notice and walked until she opened the first door her hand could reach. She had recognized this room well enough - the shelves stacked with trophies and framed pictures, the small rug beside the bed, and the familiar scent of faded musk and wood. She crawled onto the bed, finding it a bit challenging since it was so high off the floorboards beneath her. She pulled on Darrel’s shoulder relentlessly. “Darry! Darry! I heard it move!” she whisper-shouted.

Darrel was both shocked and confused to see Diane nearly pounce on him in the middle of the night. He could barely register her frantic speech after being startled so suddenly. “What? Are you alright?”

“I heard something move! It’s the shadow, Darry!” she nearly hollered, fear evident in her tone.

Darrel rubbed his eyes patiently, “There’s nothin’, kid. Go on back to sleep with your sister.” He ushered her for the door, dismissing her pleading expression entirely.

“But I saw it!” Diane’s voice cracked, tugging at his heartstrings. It dawned on him then - this was nothing but a typical childish fear. No ‘shadow monster’ could ever harm her.

Darrel sighed, unable to take much more of her sweet and innocent gaze which had been fixated on him since the moment they met. “Come on,” he whispered, peeling the covers open for her to crawl in bed beside him. She scooted closer without second thought. “I ain’t gonna let no monster get you,” he whispered to further comfort her.

Diane snuggled against Darrel, feeling his arm protectively holding her. She felt safe in the confines of his embrace, learning that nobody quite understood her like Darrel. As her eyes found their way shut, she knew nothing could tear her apart from her newfound favorite companion. Surely she would be back again, for she had won him over using nothing but her charm.

[startrekfangirl2233-writes]

You Are My Soulmate

Bradley 'Rooster' Bradshaw x Reader

Status: In Progress

Last Updated: July 30th, 2024

Disclaimers: Female!Reader

A/N: This is a Soulmate!AU with a spin. Instead of having a single soulmark, a quarter of the population have multiple. Tinkerbell and Rooster are two of those people. I love Soulmate AUs, and well, the Top Gun Brain-Rot is still ever present, so here we go. This one is going to be a bit different for me, as I'm going to be trying out flipping perspectives within the chapters between Rooster and Tinkerbell (Reader's Nickname throughout the fic).

Themes: Angst, Smut, Soulmate!AU, Bradley is a bit of a dick, Rivals to Friends to Lovers, Unrequited Love (Slight, One-Sided)

Summary: You're ecstatic when you find out you have five soul indicators at midnight on the day of your twenty-first birthday, right before you start Officer Candidate School for the Navy in Rhode Island. OCS is so complex you can’t devote time to searching for your soulmate. On graduating from Officer Candidate School, Naval Aviation Command School, and Aviation Maintenance School at the top of your class, you are given the primary selection of detachment and travel worldwide as an Aviation Maintenance Duty Officer. The excitement you felt on your twenty-first birthday has changed over the past seven years, and you’re impatient to see who your soul is. After years of constant movement, it’s a relief to learn you have been assigned to run maintenance on a squadron’s planes out of Naval Air Station North Island. San Diego is sunny and gorgeous, an absolute dream after being stuck on an aircraft carrier in the middle of the ocean for the past six months. The Dagger Squad is a newly-permanent squadron based out of NAS North Island. Each member welcomed you to Miramar as a part of their maintenance crew with warmth and friendliness. Except for one pilot, callsign: Rooster. He’s the most unpleasant pilot you’ve ever met. He’s full of himself, cocky, arrogant, rude, and condescending. If only he didn’t feel so familiar. If only you didn’t feel so drawn to him. 

Bradley Bradshaw is sure he’s never going to find his soulmate. He’d been in mourning on his twenty-first birthday, still grieving the loss of his mother, followed by the loss of the only father he’d ever known, his Uncle Mav. It isn’t until Bradley is across the country at Officer Candidate School that he realizes he never received his soul indicators. Years later, and thousands of miles away, recovering from a plane crash, Bradley, now known as Rooster, jolts awake to the half-remembered scent of citrus and glistening hair in a thick braid. Without any other indicators, Rooster gives up. After all, who’d want a soul disfigured by something they loved? That’s when Bradley gives up. He sinks into the reputation of the piano-playing, mustachioed casanova and gives up on his dreams of finding a love like his parents had found in each other. And he’s content with his life until he runs into the feisty, loud AMDO officer newly assigned to NASNI. Something about her feels like everything Bradley’s been searching for, at least, if she weren’t completely committed to Bagman already. You can call him what you want, but Rooster doesn’t steal another man’s girl.

You Are My Soulmate on AO3

You Are My Soulmate on Wattpad

Prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2 - Tinkerbell

Chapter 2 - Rooster

Chapter 3 - Rooster

Chapter 3 - Tinkerbell

Chapter 4

Chapter 5 - Tinkerbell

Chapter 5 - Rooster

Chapter 6 - Tinkerbell

Chapter 6 - Rooster

Chapter 7 - Tinkerbell

Chapter 7 - Rooster

Chapter 8 - Tinkerbell

Taglist is Open!

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[bomberqueen17]

aight poll results

Huh I haven't really done a poll before, I kind of thought there'd be somewhere you could like, see the results. But no. I just have to scroll back and find the post. And since I made it not rebloggable I can't reblog it either, LOL.

So anyway. It's not quite-quite closed but there's more votes in it than I thought there would be, and I'm going to discuss it behind this lil cut here.

[Image ID: a screenshot of poll results showing 14.5% for the sweet summer children era, 85.5% for the older sea-dogs, 55 votes cast, almost four hours left in the poll.]

After making this poll I went back to my Just Write Some Scenes approach and noodled around some more. My first attempt had been to come up with this whole elaborate Save The World plot, and then try to introduce the crew to each other right at the start of it, and after tripping over that and falling flat on my face, that's when I reconsidered and made the poll. Mostly I just. Need other people to remind me that I'm not alone in the wilderness here, LOL. And you know the quite-contrary "I need advice but mostly so I can identify that when someone tells me to do the thing I don't wanna, that means there's a thing I didn't want to do, which means there is a thing I DO want to do, and now I can narrow down what it is" impulse, yes?

But it's gratifying to find that I've voted with the majority here.

So my main consideration here is that while I cannot really reuse any of the scenes I wrote as fanfic, I can absolutely carry over every bit of the character dynamics. The canon events, I can't translate. The fanfic character work, yes. (What that means to you, dear readers, is that I thus can totally just publish the fanfic at some point LOL, so I'll... try to do that if I can ever manage to become sane about it.)

I don't know that I've fully explained, here-- I fully have a 125,000-word fanfic already complete for this fandom. Like, it is 125,000 words long, and goes from before Master and Commander to... I'm at about the middle of Ionian Mission. That's book nine. And it's all the gapfills and everything from Tom's POV. And I have a few more scenes I'm still writing, but what I have is quite a novel already.

If I took the characters from their Master & Commander Book 1 era and file the serial numbers off and try to instead give them this plot, then I have to cram in every bit of the getting-to-know-you shit, and also worldbuild the whole setting, and then also have them save the world. It's not that I can't do this, but I have this huge shortcut where I've already been working with these guys (and you know how fanfic works, I've subtly warped them from canon because these are side characters the canon author did not devote all that much time to. There are several times when Mowett did something in the first book and by the eleventh or twelfth, Stephen firmly remembers it as something Pullings did, and the narrative treats him as correct, and I genuinely think that O'Brian forgot, unless he was trying to make a point about Stephen's memory issues that he then didn't entirely follow through on. It happens more than once. Also there are a number of occasions when the narrative asserts that Mowett was present for books when he was not; he does not appear in book 3 for example, but is afterward treated as though he'd been there. "They've been together since their youth!" they haven't been in the same hemisphere in six years. Anyway.)

I've been working with these guys for the length of a novel already. So what I can do, and what I think I'm going to do, is that I'm going to just pretend that I've already rewritten a serial-numbers-filed-off version of the first volume, and dive in at circa the book 5 section of the fic, and insert this adventure at that point. Which gives me a certain rank for each character-- Pullings and Mowett would be lieutenants with some seniority, Babbington would be a newly-made lieutenant, Aubrey has moderate seniority, his relationship with Maturin is fairly mature and has weathered some storms and come out well, he's rescued Maturin from torture, Maturin is slightly washed-up with the intelligence people and is addicted to drugs but recovering-- and from the fanfic side (spoilers for the as-yet-unedited-and-unpublished fic!), I've established Pullings in his marriage, given him his checkered career (Indiamen and transports), he has two children, and also he and James and Mrs. Pullings have worked through a bunch of their shit and figured out that they should all have a threesome sometime. But, crucially, they have not had this threesome yet.

So it's like-- a ton of deep character work, that I can just plunk us into.

(I haven't figured out a new naming structure yet so I haven't find-replaced and I'm just writing with the old names, which is hilarious the more I diverge from canon.)

It's not that I don't want to tell that first story, of them all meeting up initially, but I think it would be easier to go back and write a prequel after having done the Big World-Saving Plot.

Anyway-- some serial-number-filing notes here:

Aubrey is going to be a woman because then if I write her exactly the same it comes across wildly differently and I am absolutely dying to see what effect it has. Translating Jack's particular confused helplessness around women makes this new Aubrey into an extremely awkward lesbian and I love it. (Still fat, crucially. Still six feet tall. She might not be blonde, though, depending what I do with racial dynamics in this 'verse. Doesn't matter, as calling a woman Goldilocks is less hilarious than a man.)

Maturin is still a dude. They still have absolutely zero sexual chemistry, but profound deep interpersonal love. (This is bookverse, guys. Sorry the gay movie version is great but that's just not where I'm going here.)

Instead of having a lower-class accent and antecedents, I'm translating Tom into being somehow visibly biracial, which can give the same impediment to his being taken seriously for promotion as in canon, but also lets me tie this into the other books I've started in the land-based part of this verse. His mother is descended from mainland mammoth-herders, and I haven't decided what visual characteristics that gives him but it's enough that he gets called racial slurs occasionally. As in canon, Aubrey doesn't particularly notice these things, and cares only that he is competent.

Babbington is a trans dude so I have to figure out how that works in the worldbuilding but this is an extremely useful thing to have and will illuminate all kinds of awesome things for me. As a bonus, it can just be background established fact in the first book I write, and can be a plot point in the prequel if I do come up with anything cool in the worldbuilding, but if not it can just be a like low-key background thing in the prequel too. Who knows! It gives me a ton of material either way. Has potential to establish vivid character dynamics in a minimum of words, I think.

I was trying to solarpunk-ize solid-shot cast-iron cannons and seem to have independently mentally invented electromagnetic rail guns, so I have to research that somewhat but I think I have some good worldbuilding foundations based off that. !!! Exciting. I especially love the idea that the ships can collect and store potential energy that they can use either for propelling the ship without wind, or for firing guns, and so manoevering with sails still carries enormous tactical value because if you can get in position to fire your shots without having expended your generated power, you'll have much more success in battle; conversely, if you realize you're in a poor tactical position, instead of throwing your guns over the side as in the napoleonic era so you can flee faster, you simply empty your power generation banks into your propulsion to get the fuck out of there. And it makes it more solarpunk post-collapse-friendly by having tactics that can prioritize things other than massive loss of life, which doesn't hold with the dynamics of precarious population levels in the other books in this 'verse. Life was cheap in Europe in the 1800s but that doesn't work here. I love the idea of the "battles" being almost entirely manoevering, and it being plain impossible to have just yardarm-to-yardarm prolonged hammering except by rare circumstance.

So anyway that's where I'm at. So far. Stay tuned i guess? Thanks for reading this far, anyone who does. <3

[xx-thedarklord-xx]

i saw your tony/loki shipping post and it's got me considering it. do you have any recs?

I sure fucking do! (referring to this post)

Sorry this took me so long to get to, I had to go back through some of my bookmarks and refamiliarize myself with the ship. If anyone would like more recs just let me know!

Stark Fashion Statement by STARSdidathing | 10k, T Tony knows it takes a lot for Loki to play nice with Asgard. Mostly, it takes him wanting to secure an apple for Tony. Despite this, Tony is willing to hate everyone on sight, especially when he's forced to attend an event with Loki. But just because they're playing nice, it doesn't mean Tony is going to stand for an insult. Who says time on Asgard can't come with a little mischief?

(Do check out STARSdidathing Ao3 they have SIX HUNDRED completed FrostIron stories.)

Devoted to you by Draysmeria | 14k, E *part of a series* Tony Stark's beliefs were one of the best guarded secrets of all times. The thing was, if you asked Tony about it, he would say that in his opinion it had absolutely nothing to do with belief. Because he knew for a fact that his God and others like him existed. So, he did not have to believe in the elusive existence of a higher power but could worship and be devoted to a very real deity that had visited Earth regularly in centuries past. He had absolute Faith in his God and was devoted to him, addressing prayers and offerings to him regularly; his chosen God was Loki, god of Fire, Chaos, Lies and Mischief.

(I am fascinated and in love with the idea of Tony praying to Loki as a god. Loved loved loved the entire series.)

Exploiting Technicalities by pineapplesquad | T, 9k His blood ran cold the moment his seidr touched the other man. With unsteady hands he switched his earpiece to their private channel, fighting the panic rapidly crawling up his throat. “JARVIS,” he snapped, voice already shaking, “why are you piloting Anthony’s armor?” Loki didn’t care for the long pause before the AI finally answered. “Sir has activated a protocol that, when enabled, allows me to remotely pilot the Iron Man armor to continue the fight if he is to fall unconscious. My priority is now the safety of the team.”

(The emotional angst and pain of this fic hurt but it was a good kind of hurt.)

Never Let Go by STARSdidathing | T, 3k Anthony likes to hold Loki’s hand. And it’s not that Loki doesn’t enjoy it, quite the opposite actually– he just doesn’t understand it.

(It's just so soft and cute and after the angst of the last one, it's a soothing balm to the soul!)

The Einherjar’s No Good Very Stressful and Incredibly Difficult Job of Protecting Tony Stark by NamelesslyNightlock | T, 14k When the Einherjar notice that Tony Stark makes Prince Loki happier than anyone – or anything – else, they decide that protecting the mortal is a matter of complete importance, and put all of their resources toward the task. But… their job would be a whole lot easier if Stark would just stop putting his life in danger at every possible opportunity.

(Outside POV but it's just so good. I love seeing how others view their relationship and the idea of someone trying to guard Tony of all people makes me laugh because he does dangerous stuff all day every day.)

When You're Gone by NamelesslyNightlock | T, 5k DUM-E misses Loki almost as much as Tony does. This causes a problem when, after a longer than usual absence, DUM-E decides to go looking for him.

(It's just so cute! I adore when fics explore all of Tony's robots and the fact that DUM-E misses Loki is just adorable and I want more of it okay.)

A Little Unsteady by kipli | E, 68k *part of a series* After observing the battle at the airport between Captain America and Iron Man, Loki stumbles upon Tony Stark hidden away in the depths of a panic attack. Loki finds himself drawn to Stark in ways he’d not expected.

(Loved, loved, loved this one! I loved the sequel as well.)

So We're ... Friends by Loni4ever | E, 15k *part of a series* When Loki shows up on Earth two years after getting exiled from Asgard, what Tony expects is fights, casualties and attempts at world domination. What he gets instead is reasons to smile, answers about magic, and an unlikely friend in a certain prankster mage. ___ Or, 5 Times Tony and Loki Didn't Fight Each Other, and 1 Time They Decided To Fight Side By Side

(this was perfect. The way they showed the transition from acquaintances to friends to really good friends to best friends to omg I might actually love this idiot to dating to falling in love to HUSBANDS. I just really really loved this whole series and melted so many times)

[bougiebutchbinch]

Okay so I don’t think my ask went thru bc I sent a link to a fic and I forgot that Tumblr doesn’t like actual links on anon. Anyways, ignore this if you still received the other one! I saw this fic and immediately thought you’d devour it… but I saw someone else already sent it to you! (The professional dom one :3)

I cannot stress enough how much that fic makes me insane. I had to close my laptop screen no less than six times so I could walk away and gather myself before continuing on. Because holy crap. Anyway! I also read another fic that I thought you would like, however, it is a Scott/Logan fic. I’m not sure if you jive with that so I’m not going to link it here unless you’re chill with it. 

Top!Logan who mauls the life out of his very willing, very enthusiastic partners will always be something I will eat up like a fish deprived of water. I don’t have many mutuals who vibe with poolverine as hard as I do that I can send these to, so as the designated Top!Logan and Trans!Poolverine connoisseur of this corner of the internet… I am gently placing this on your doorstep. 

It is so solidified in my mind that Logan will try to devour his partners whole if they’re wanting and willing. He wants to bite and claim what’s his. But I also see him wanting that exact same energy back. If you will allow me to elaborate here for a brief minute:

Logan would want to feel like he belongs to someone else just as much as he wants his beloveds to belong to him. In this case, Wade. He and Wade are obviously matched in ways that others cannot even begin to comprehend. Wade matches his crazy, as Logan matches his. Physically, mentally, spiritually, these two are made for each other. 

That being said, Logan would be just as disappointed that he cannot be marked as he is that Wade cannot be marked—not for more than a few seconds, at least. But does that stop them? Fuck no. Absolutely not. 

The pair of them getting to it, approaching a state of mind that could only be described as delirious off one another, and Logan is holding the back of Wade’s neck, lifting him up a little so he can kiss his dearest, his beloved, his Wade.

It’s a biting kiss, more teeth than anything, but it’s loving. Wade knows it’s how Logan gets when he’s in the heat of the moment, but there isn’t anywhere else he’d rather be. But when Logan pulls back, he keeps Wade’s face close to his neck and shoulder and states with no room for argument or doubt… “bite.” And who's Wade to say no to him? Especially when he says it like that... the man makes a very compelling argument.

Anyway! Logan would want to be claimed in return. Their healing factors certainly get in the way sometimes, but they’re smart. They can get creative with it. It’s been ages I feel since I sent that ask about the dog tags… but I think you get the idea. They have options, and they have all the time in the world to figure out a way to make it stick. Logan is nothing if not loyal and hopelessly devoted to the people he loves. *^-^*

I LOVE ALL OF THIS TIMES A THOUSAND!!!!!

I'm sorry for not answering your previous ask - I get a lot of asks, but my spoon-level is VERY variable. I'm dealing with a lot of academic work on top of my already hectic and unpredictable work schedule! That + disabilities means that lots of EXCELLENT content gets buried in my askbox, because I just do not have the energy to scroll through some days.

It's not a comment on the quality of the content in any way, or my enjoyment of it! Just a miserable effect of The Disabilities Being Disabling. I can't change my inability to look at every ask - but I do genuinely apologise.

But GODDDD yes, I love that fic SO MUCH. It ate my brain, spat it back out, then ate it again.

I'm not into Scogan.... YET. But I could be convinced!!!

And - YEAH. I am just incapable of seeing Logan as anything BUT helplessly devoted in his love <3 man is so desperate to care for people and shower them with affection and bring them happiness - even if it's hidden beneath a very gruff exterior!

[stephsageek]

An Update!

Here is the latest chapter for my Five x Lila fic, "Much Longer Than Six Years, Five Months, and Two Days."

A Preview:

Do international calls cost anything?

Deciding she didn’t care; Lila began to reach for the phone. She figured Five could afford the charges.

She felt more than heard when Five leaned over to look at some of the files she’d already gone through. She found herself breathing in the aroma of his cologne, something subtle that couldn’t be smelt unless you were very close to him. She liked it and always wondered what it was.

He snorted softly, his eyes crinkling as his smile widened. “This reminds me of when we were looking for your parents,” he murmured, flipping through a few pages, ready to dive in despite already working.

Lila smiled fondly.

That had been the second time they had decided to work together.

They’d bonded over long nights spent looking over phone books and making calls, drinking bad coffee and bickering. They hadn't even been looking for her parents specifically—just anyone left over from the old universe. Lila had been the only one willing to help—Allison had gotten what she wanted. Everyone else had given up and decided to just move on.

Everyone but Luther.

Luther had been frantic with worry for his missing wife and Five decided that the best way to help was to look for her himself.

Five had always been better at actions rather than words.

The three of them had worked around the clock.

But as leads grew increasingly fewer, Luther had begun to lose hope.

He'd since been devoted to fixing up the abandoned Hargreeves mansion. Desperate for something to take his mind off of Sloane.

Five had never given up.

He’d never given up on anything before—it was unlikely he ever would.

Lila turned responding to Five’s comment, “Yeah—me doing all the grunt work!” she teased grinning.

“I’ll have you know, I never asked you to make all the phone calls—”

“I always have to! You always end up pissing people off!”

“I do not!”

“Do too! Remember that one time you were on the horn with The Yard in London, and you ended up in a row with that one constable—what was his name? The one that sounded like John Cleese?”

“Constable Laurie and we were not in a ‘row’—we were just in a disagreement—”

“A disagreement where he called you a ‘nasty little weasel?’”

“He was the asshole that was making things difficult!” he argued.

“I believe, in his words, ‘a bossy little nobody from the states,’ was the one being difficult,” she smiled. “In his defense, for an intern, you were being very short with him at the time.”

“I can't help most people being ignoramuses,” he declared loftily, a smile still tugging at the corners of his lips.

“Not everyone can get along as swimmingly with you as I do,” she smirked.

He suddenly froze as if something had just occurred to him. He glanced down at his watch and winced.

“Shit, speaking of which…” he muttered.

“What?”

“I’m sorry, Lila. I’d love to go over this like old times but—”

“But, what?” she questioned. “Got somewhere you've got to be?”

“Actually, I do,” he shrugged helplessly. She noted the way he started rubbing the back of his neck uncomfortably. He looked oddly guilty.

“What’s this? Got a hot date?” she teased.

Five’s expression grew pained, and Lila felt her smile slip off her face.

His silence was deafening.

[f1crecs]

'Megaverse Monday - Week Four

if your fic is on this list and you don’t want it to be, please let us know and we will remove it immediately, no questions asked. we have contacted most of the authors on this list, but sometimes people fall through the gaps - just pop us a message🤍

have a pairing you want us to do next? please read the faqs and then head to the inbox.

don’t forget to give the authors featured on this list some love in the form of kudos, bookmarks, and comments

did you know that this fandom has one of the highest percentages of a/b/o content? join us as we celebrate the fandom’s incredible omegaverse works every ’megaverse monday. 🤍

Charles/Pierre

nsfw: colour me your colour by @francophonesfictions | E | 1.8k

In which Charles accidentally sends Pierre a nude picture, and he's not prepared for Pierre's reaction (which is to suggest that next time, Charles should send the pic on purpose.) I love the way this author captures the devotion and mutual yearning between Piarles. The writing style is so, so poetic and beautiful - not to mention mind-blowingly hot! If you've ever enjoyed the "pining idiots figure out their feelings after someone accidentally sends a nude" trope, then this is the PERFECT fic for you.

'“Pierre,” Charles gasps, “We can’t—” “Why not?” Pierre asks. “You already share your heats with Alphas you do not love.” Shocked, Charles says, “You think I don’t love you?” Pierre doesn’t say anything for a long moment, long enough to confirm it. “How could you—of course I love you, that is why—” he chokes on the rest of his sentence. “Why…?” “What Alpha could satisfy me after I’ve had you?”'

Lando/Oscar

the only thing i want this year by @oscarpiastriwdc | T | 8k Oscar’s plans to go home for Christmas fall through so Lando invites him to spend Christmas with the Norris clan. I really enjoyed the fact that it has all the tropes I love - teasing, humour, fake dating, twists, topped with perfect characterisation.

'“Lando, I’m fine spending Christmas by myself. It’s just another day and I’ll be home a week later.” Lando gasps in horror. “Christmas is not just another day. Food! And presents! Hot chocolate! Pie!” “All of which I can do once I’m with my parents.” “But you could have two Christmases! Wouldn’t that be cool?” “Some of us kept experiencing brain development after the age of six.”'

Fernando/Lance

nsfw: modern girls by venerat | E | 5.5k

Lawrence doesn't quite trust the alpha Fernando around his omega son, so he adds a condition to Fernando's Aston Martin contract that stipulates he must wear a shock collar that will activate if he ever touches Lance. He perhaps underestimated Fernando's determination and ingenuity. This fic is so well characterised, the way venerat's always is. The fic is Lance's POV and his somewhat laconic voice is spot on, as is the depiction of Fernando as seen through his eyes. And, also, it's just hot.

'He came to enjoy smelling Fernando around. He came to enjoy Fernando’s little brand of weirdness, which was a shock in itself, the way he carried himself like a big cat in the jungle, the way he wandered around doing whatever he wanted, the way he was clearly holding back from grinding out curses at the team as the season went on, while Lance tried not to descend into a pit of failure and despair.'

thank you to @singsweetmelodies, @welightitup & @lydia-petze for compiling this week's list 🤍

[danpuff-ao3]

@hprecfest 2/3: Days 11-20

Day 11: a dark fic

The Dreams We Forget (Are Those We Most Regret)

by Serpenscript. Harry/Severus. Rated: E. Words: 4,738. Rape/non-con. Forced infidelity. Obliviation. Mindfuck. Angst. Fairytale. Angst. 

Once a month, Harry Potter is summoned to the Ministry for personal Auror training. Afterwords, he never remembers what he learned….but he dreams of empty eyes and black hair.

It’s sad, it’s dark, it’s fucky, I love it.

Day 12: a WIP you're following

The Afterlight

by perverse_idyll (@perverse-idyll). Harry/Severus. Rated: E. Words: 45,661 (as of chapter 6). 

After surviving the Battle of Hogwarts, a long convalescence, and a short trial, Snape walks free and promptly vanishes from Wizarding society. Six years pass before he shows his face again. A lot can change in six years, and a romantically disillusioned and inebriated Harry hits Snape up for a friends-with-benefits arrangement. After all, they share an experience most people have never had: they both know what it’s like to be dead. Their liaison works surprisingly well until Harry’s reckless behaviour as an Auror leads to unethical practices and personal calamities, and things start to fall apart.

Listen, I don’t read many WIPs (I’ve been burned many times in the past), but PI???? I can’t stay away from a PI fic. I’m so obsessed already. I was SOOO hooked from the start. It’s AMAZING. Snarry done just how I like it!

Day 13: a fic over 100k

Nights of Gethsemane

by starcrossed. Harry/Severus. Rated: E. Words: 363,198. Dark. Angst. Torture. Rape/non-con. 

Harry is a prisoner of the Dark Lord and Snape, his prison guard. Completely cut off from the outside world, Harry struggles to hold himself intact as he is forced to rely on Snape for everything. Yet Snape may not be all that he appears….

This is one of the fics I’ve read most over the years. I cannot start this fic and pause while reading it, despite the length. If I’m going to read this fic, I’m going to INHALE it. 

The link above is AO3, since most people will prefer it, but I originally read it on LJ and recommend reading it there instead (the AO3 version has some formatting issues in places. I don’t think it’s egregious, but worth note). 

It’s also worth noting how friggin’ COOL this is. One, I love how true to Harry’s POV this fic is and what a very thoughtful consideration for his voice, as a teenager in a dire situation. It’s interesting how the story is told from such a limited POV, to then move onto the companion piece (Invictus) which tells the same story from Severus’ perspective. Then to read both side by side and see where they misunderstood one another, or made assumptions, or how they each viewed a situation differently, etc. This concept is one I love and what inspired me to do similar with my fics Contempt and Devotion! 

Livejournal Links: Nights of Gethsemane, Invictus, Release of Sisyphus

Day 14: a favorite series

Needs Must

by silvereye5 (@silvereye5). Harry/Severus. Rated: E. Words: 115,891 (incomplete). Works: 3. 

After Ginny Potter dies suddenly, Severus Snape is among those called in to help Potter juggle his new reality. As the other helpers fade away, a desperate and penniless Severus agrees to become the regular caregiver to Potter’s three young children. But Severus finds that the Potter household is not the sunshine and roses he’d imagined.

So many good ones out there, but it has to be this one! Deliciously angsty. A kidfic (which I’m a sucker for). Best of all is how imperfect Harry is in this story. So often I read about a soft and impossibly good Harry, so it’s good to see him as a bit of a mess and a workaholic, and his own flaws being showcased just as much as Severus’. I’m obsessed with it!

So it is

by Threadbear (@ogthreadbear). Harry/Severus. Rated: E. Words: 8,291. Works: 4. Background Harry/Ginny.

Harry Potter was getting married tomorrow. He was thrilled.

This series has so much I love. The infidelity, the angst! The breeding kink. The intensity and passion and hurt of it all. The mess of it. It aches so beautifully and I love it.

Day 15: the most recent fic you bookmarked

For I Have Found Salvation

by lumosatnight (@lumosatnight). Harry/Severus. Rated: E. Words: 7,117. Priest Severus. Muggle AU. Written for Snarry Auctoberfest 2023. 

Severus is a priest, and Harry is the parishioner who may just make him break his vows of celibacy.

Super spicy. Super sacrilegious. I’m still obsessed. Also seeing the gift notification on this one MADE MY DAY.

Day 16: a fic that made you laugh

Spy Glass

by suitesamba (@suitesamba). Harry/Severus. Rated: E. Words: 18,135. Spying. Voyeurism. Humor.

England wants to insure star Seeker Harry Potter and his fabulous broom. Enter Severus Snape, wizarding investigator extraordinaire, ready to calculate risk and assess value. Tailing Harry Potter turns out to be the job of his dreams, though he wishes it could be done without the disguise. A tale of a man’s obsession, another man’s obsession, and a heartwarming ending where everyone ultimately gets what they want – or what they need.

This fic is such a good time.

Old Dogs and New Tricks

by youcantseeus. Draco/Sirius. Rated: T. Words: 14,099. Humor.

Draco isn’t gay, he just appreciates a good looking man when he sees one. Honest! And Sirius Black is a good looking man.

This is my favorite Drarius fic! It’s funny. Draco’s voice is great. 10/10. What a good time this is.

Day 17: a fic that made you cry

Loose Ends

by Arrisha (@arrisha-ao3). Harry/Severus. Rated: E. Words: 9,865. Creator Chose Not to Use Archive Warnings. Heavy angst. Dark. Trauma. Mystery. Psychological horror.

I love you, Severus wants to say. But the timing is never right. 

DAMN YOU, ARRISHA. (But also ily.) If you’re gonna let anyone wreck your heart and soul, let her do it.

Day 18: a fairy-tale inspired fic

Red as Blood

by Likelightinglass (@likelightinglass). Harry/Severus. Rated: M. Words: 9,942. Vampires. Fairytale retellings. True Love. Snow White.

Once upon a time there was a strange and magical land. One filled with ordinary villages and ordinary people, a dark and forbidding Forest, and a castle shrouded in mist. In the castle lived an Evil King, whose court of Death Eaters did his evil bidding. And there was a curse. There was a curse, and a magic mirror, and a boy as white as snow. But first, there was a Huntsman.

I'm such a sucker for fairytale fics, and this was the first one that jumped to mind. Such a lovely story! I remember one year I read it during a hurricane when our power was out. I was worried about my Kindle battery draining, but I couldn't put it down!

Day 19: fic with the hottest smut

Warm

by perverse_idyll (@perverse-idyll). Harry/Severus. Rated: E. Words: 11,323. 

Severus still suffers the after-effects of Nagini’s venom, especially in winter. Harry knows just how to warm him up.

This might be my favorite established relationship fic ever. Not to mention, like??? Bottom!Snape?? And rimming???? And just????? Everything???? Sorry, fic too hot, brain no work. OBSESSED.

Day 20: a fic rated G

Lilac

by emeraldlove (@givereadersahug). Harry/Severus. Rated: G. Words: 1,366. Humor. Crack. Curses. Love Confessions. 

“You’re cursed,” declared Hermione. She dropped several books onto the table, scattering the flowers lying about, and took a seat. There were petals on the table and on the floor — especially on, above, under, and surrounding Harry.

It’s funny. It’s cute. It’s got flowers. I love it!

[tarysu]

please eplas epelapslpslapalspasl PLEASE if you could write a fan x idol tachi (more like hunting dog tachi fan) ITY WOULD BE SO COOL. I'm going to kiss you so much if u do atp lets get married

babe who do you think I'm?! I SEE UR VISION AND I WILL WRITE IT ALL 4 U. You're like my 2nd request it's crazy cuz I'm working on my first one as well. AND MARRIAGE?? I CANT CHEAT ON MY POOKIE (jokes lets get married).. whoever u are anon I WILL FEED YOU THIS CONTENT!! (live laugh love TACHIHARA 2024). He's literally my spiritual animal so let me do some good work for you babe silly silly fluff one shot Tw: i cuss too much mb , super super DETAILED writing (i love this sm)

this has to be the longest fic I’ve written while thirsting on tachi 𝐅𝐀𝐍 𝐃𝐀𝐓𝐄 || 𝐓𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚 𝐱 𝐅𝐞𝐦 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 !!

✦ ─ ˗ˋ ୨୧ ˊ˗ ─ ✦ the hunting dogs command respect not only within the nation but also internationally. Their popularity is a natural consequence of their remarkable abilities, as they have become heroes known for capturing the most dangerous criminals worldwide. These super soldiers, strictly crafted into humanity's weapon by the government, are the labeled faces of justice across the country. However, the 5th hunting dog remained a figure that never made a public appearance. As crazy fans speculated about the appearance of the 5th hunting dog, some had already become devoted admirers of a figure who hadn't even shown their face to the public. Yet, you were among them. A dedicated hunting dog fan, you collected nearly all of their merchandise – and by "all," you meant every piece available. You weren't any different from the other hunting dog fans, you were just like them. Kicking your feet and squealing into your pillow, your whole family thought you'd gone a bit crazy. There's a little secret behind how you became such a devoted fan, and it all traced back with an encounter six months ago at your college entry. a massive terrorist attack unfolded on your way to your college entry. You were pulled into the chaos when one of the train carriages exploded right next to yours. At that moment, you genuinely believed it might be the end of everything. The harsh reality hit you hard – you had just secured acceptance into a prestigious college, a dream your parents had worked tirelessly for, and now you found yourself teetering on the edge, facing the possibility of being pulled into death. It was a gut-wrenching situation. Before you could grasp the situation, just as you were on the verge of falling off the train, someone swiftly pulled you out of the carriage. It was a heart-thumping moment, and as your heart raced, a sense of relief washed over you – you had been saved, and it was none other than the 5th hunting dog. His hands gripped onto his chest as he leapt with you to safety. The memory remains vivid, the sensation of his touch and the brisk breeze tousling your hair still etched in your mind. You find yourself among the luckiest fans, having witnessed Michizou Tachihara eye to eye during a rescue mission. In fact, you were one of the fortunate ones personally rescued by him. Before you knew it, everything became a blur and a daze. Tachihara had no time for idle chatter, he swiftly left you in the care of the medical staff. It was unfortunate, a bit of a bummer really, that you couldn't even express your gratitude to him. It might sound a bit exaggerated, but in your eyes, it was honestly like love at first sight. As soon as your worried relatives came over to pick you up, the first thing you did was excitedly gush about the 5th hunting dog and how utterly cool he was. Even after getting home, after dinner, and even after a long, warm shower, there you are – rolling in your bed, squealing and eagerly detailing the interaction with someone on the other end of your phone. For days, for weeks, for months, it became a continuous cycle of hyperfixating on the 5th hunting dog – his ginger spikes, his fresh scent, his amber eyes, and that sharp look. You could lose yourself for years thinking about someone like him, but the nagging doubt persisted – would he come and rescue once more? If you were to encounter him once again, you'd make sure to express your gratitude for him saving your life. Of course, that's assuming if you manage to encounter him once more.

. . . . . .

. . . . Well, that brings us to the present. It's a cold morning, the second term of college has begun, and you feel utterly exhausted. Lying sprawled in your bed, you can hardly muster the energy to get up, and your phone timer has been ringing for more than 30 minutes.

You were awake, and so was the entire household. The sound of your mother storming into your room reached your ears, and before you knew it, your whole blanket was flying off. You were now facing the wrath of a drill sergeant; your mother, fierce and easily annoyed by the smallest flaws.

You didn't bother to look up, instead burying your face in a pillow, your words muffled and barely audible.

"10 mwore mwinutes…" "20 mwore mwinutes.." "5 mwore minutes.." Your mother had reached her limit; flames were clearly visible in her eyes. With a firm grip on both your feet, she pulled you down to the ground with full force. "12 mwore mwi- FUCK!! OW!!" The thud was loud, and your siblings peeked from the door. They weren't concerned for you, but they were certainly worried about themselves. If they didn't get moving, they might receive the same forceful drag your mother just delivered to you. Your mother pulled her sleeves up.

"AIYAA! BREAKFAST IS ALREADY GETTIN' COLD!" She placed her hands on her hips, observing you, her daughter, rubbing your nose from the impact of the thud. With no other option, you had to get up and get ready. In the shower, massaging your scalp with bubbles, you found your mind drifting towards your assignments and the workload for your majors. you had missed quite a few important lectures. It wasn't a major concern, though, as your friends would always send over notes. The downside? Some had handwriting resembling cave drawings, making it a struggle to decipher. Others had the most unreadable handwriting on earth, with each letter barely legible. Yet, you had somehow managed to cope with these alien notes for the first few months of college. You weren't failing your studies, to be honest you were quite motivated. Why? Because you thought of your handsome saviour all the time. Every single moment of motivation seemed to be fuelled by thoughts of him. The impact he had on you was so significant that you ended up daydreaming the most foolishly romantic scenarios with him.

Even in your rush to eat breakfast, his amber gaze occupied your thoughts. As you pondered the interaction more deeply, you couldn't help but wonder: What would have happened if he never came to your rescue? How expensive would your funeral casket be? And who would attend your funeral? But those are just thoughts of what might have been if he never came around. Running down the streets of Yokohama, you accidentally bump into a thug. Both of you tumble over, and your bag drops, creating quite a scene. The thug, looking pretty livid, glares at you.

you are scared shitless. Before you could even form an apology, he spoke ahead.

"Watch where you're goin', asshole," he spat on the ground, unmannerly as it was. That set you ablaze, but beneath the rudeness, his fierce gaze sparked a sense of familiarity. It reminded you of someone softer, though it was hard to tell since he was pretty fucking rude. The thug left shortly, leaving you annoyed and in quite a foul mood. As you picked up your bag, you made your way to the train station. However, the streets were more crowded than usual, and you thought it would be better to find a shortcut. Yokohama wasn't unfamiliar territory, you had lived here your whole life and were practically born in the city.

Yet, an uneasy feeling crept in, maybe because you found yourself walking in the sketchiest alleyway, but it being marked as the quickest route on the map so you had to trust it. Being late was your own fault, but facing your mother's wrath at home was not an option. So, you opted for the quicker route to get to college.

Yet, it felt like someone was walking every step behind you. You didn't dare to look back. Was it a hallucination? Or just the sound of your heart pounding loudly? Before you could even react, turning around, some creepy ass man was darting his dagger toward you. Miraculously, it flew out of his hand and landed against a hard brick. You froze, breaking into a cold sweat. Seeing the blade fling, you knew you had to make a run for it. You had no plans of dying today, especially not at the hands of some creep.

"..THIS BITCH-" The creep's words were abruptly cut off by a loud thud. He got kicked so hard that the brick wall he landed against cracked. ouch.

Luckily, you hid behind a barrel, fortunate enough to witness the scene unfold. It was the thug. That face was far too familiar, even from afar. It was the 5th hunting dog you had adored completely for the past few months. Sure, that damn bandaid was barely a disguise to hide his features. You… giggled. Like the dumbass you were, you couldn't help it. Tachihara's skin shivered, and the first thing his eyes landed on was you, giggling and peeking out of your tiny hiding area. He was ready to ignore it and head off since he had just finished his job. Idly rubbing the bandaid over his nose, he was snapped back to reality by the feeling of someone behind him.

You!

There you were, smiling and giggling like an idiot, seemingly eager for this moment to see him again.

"Oh… my god… YOU'RE THE 5TH HUNTIN' D-" Michizou had to cut you off quickly before his cover was blown. Michizou dragged you to a more secluded area, just the two of you. He sighed, relieved that your words didn't spill more before his cover could be blown. His hand covered your mouth, and you were pure red, all your focus on him.

After a moment, he took his hand off.

"Can you keep it down, will ya?" He spoke in a more polite manner now that he was discovered. The moment he took off his hand, he probably regretted it.

"Oh my god.. I'M LITERALLY YOUR BIGGEST FAN! OH GOD.. I NEVER THOUGHT I'D SEE YOU AGAIN SINCE THE LAST TIME YOU SAVED ME! IT'S BEEN SO LONG AND GOSH AGHH.. THIS WAS SUCH A MESSY ATTIRE TO FORMALLY APPROACH YOU AND EXPRESS MY GRATITUDE TO YOU.. I JUST CAN'T BELIEV-"

And he shut your mouth again.

"..Fuck, you talk a lot, don't ya?" He looked at you with a sour expression, a mix of bittersweet emotions. He appreciated the praise, but you were undeniably loud. And definitely quite the talker. You were melting on the spot, your hot breath against his palm. He could feel your breath condensing on his skin, and it was not exactly pleasant. Holy shit, he swore right in front of you. Strangely, you seemed to consider that hot as fuck.

Michizou decided to keep his hand on your mouth until you calmed down. After a few moments, he only had his eyes on you. Sure, he remembered you… oh, he really did. Only because you were that crazy bitch who argued back and forth with the register at the convenience store when he was doing some errands for Teruko. But of course, he also remembered your face when he saved you. "Will ya shut up if I take my hand off ya?"

The position was awkward and uncomfortable, your back against the brick wall, completely pinned by Tachihara with his hand covering your mouth. In response, you gave him a nod, showing compliance. He was a little worried you'd start talking a lot, but luckily you didn't. But sooner or later, you did start talking again. God, you also talk when you're super nervous.

"I'm so sorry! I just felt a little relieved and pretty fuckin' excited.. AH FUCK! Don't mind my profanity, I can't really go on about my day without cussin'!"

And he regretted it once more. Eventually, Tachihara grew sick and tired of the repetitive cycle of your talkative behavior. He bluntly told you to shut the fuck up, but your excitement made it impossible for you to take him seriously. Before he left, you offered a small token of gratitude for saving you not once, but twice—a letter. It had been tucked away in your pocket for some time, kept just in case you happened to bump into him. And that letter also had your number.

. . . . . .

. . . . You kept your guard up all the time, knowing that it takes a lot of effort to get a reaction from Tachihara. It's not that he was aloof, he just had a resting bitch face most of the time you interacted with him. Aware that he was in disguise as a mafioso and often walked in your area, you poked and doted on him, fuelled by the excitement of meeting him. Of course, you complied and were careful not to expose him most of the time. You were a harmless fan, driven by excitement. tachihara knew that he'd probably also feel the same way if he discovered his hero was around him all the time, you maintained boundaries. After all, you were aware that he was just a humble soldier doing his job. He got used to your presence, the constant doting, and even the times when you got on his nerves, albeit in a playful way. However, he couldn't be in Yokohama most of the time; as a hunting dog, there were periods when he would be away from his role as a mafioso. And that absence could last for a long time. That left you bored and devoid of excitement, but you still appreciated the fact that he listened to you. You learned that he had a busy schedule as a spy infiltrating the mafia, oblivious to the mafia part because, well, you were a bit dense in that regard. You had a special request for the 5th hunting dog, but you doubted he'd fulfill it. It was for your birthday, and considering he was a busy guy out there kicking ass in the world, you weren't too hopeful. Feeling careless and a bit stupid, you reminded yourself that you were just a fan, nothing more. As the clock arms neared 12 am, your birthday was nearly over, and what sucked even more was that your family was far too busy to celebrate the age you were turning. You were cooped up in your blanket, slumped on the bed frame. Closing the lamp, you were ready to head off to bed. The moment you laid your head on the cozy pillow, the window lock unlocked by itself. Frozen, sitting up, you saw Tachihara. Your heart lit up, his whole figure shining in the moonlight.

Dressed in his his military attire , clean and impeccable, complete with his cape and hat, he stood outside your window. His fingers adjusted the brim of his hat before he spoke; THE 5th hunting dog was right outside. It looked like he had indeed made time for your request.

Your fan date.

He sat on the edge of the window, and you were amazed that he had actually come, waiting for you. Considering the amount of excuses he probably had to give just to grant one request.

“Seriously? You didn’t even fuckin’ dress up? C’mon, we’re headin’ off somewhere.”

You felt a little embarrassed since you hadn’t actually expected him to come.

“Hey, I didn’t think you’d come at all, so I thought-“

“Not a word, get up and get movin’.”

He reached his hand out, but you were too busy being dazed in his amber gaze. Eventually, you stood up to hold his gloved hand.

He took you by the hand, and suddenly, you felt yourself falling. On the very top floor of your apartment, he held you close. You were screaming like an idiot as you both fell, the sensation akin to a roller coaster. It was surreal, and you couldn't quite believe it was happening.

He swiftly landed on the garden ground, your heart pounding out of your mouth.

“Y’know..you could’ve just knocked at my door..”

You smiled, enjoying the rhythm of the wind blowing against you both.

He turned his head to you.

“That’d be pretty fuckin’ lame,” he said in a cool tone.

Lame?

“Wouldn’t wanna bore out the birthday princess, wasn’t my entrance up to your fuckin’ taste?”

You did have a thrill for action, but you couldn’t help but just laugh. You were nervous for this, but he was right. He really had a keen eye.

“Well-..uh, thank you for really makin’ an effort.”

Michizou really did make an effort. It wasn't something he'd normally do, but occasionally, for his number one fan, he would.

“Consider yourself a lucky fan.”

With one swift move, he leaped into the air, jumping on wire stands. Your stomach dropped, but it was amazing. He brought you to all kinds of stores, bought you meals because, well, he was a dirty rich guy anyways. And he even snuck you into the Ferris wheel, bypassing the lines with ease.

It truly felt like a date, holding hands and engaging in small talk – the kind of experience you never had during your youth. You had always wondered what teenage girlhood felt like, with crushes and holding hands with boys. But here you were, holding hands with none other than the finest hunting dog.

Treated like a client, yet strangely satisfied, you found yourself dozing off as Michizou took you home just before dawn. Planting a gentle kiss on your forehead, the finest hunting dog carefully laid you on your bed.

A soft snicker escaped him as he glanced at all the hunting dog posters adorning your walls, particularly amused by the one featuring Fukuchi's shirtless physique framed. In that moment, the boundary between fan and idol blurred.

you were already planning to enthusiastically recount the memorable date when you woke up—an unforgettable birthday etched in the pages of your fangirl heart.

the fifth hunting dogs number one.

[mischievouslittlecreature]

Part 16: Because You'll Be Together

Fandom: Inception

Pairing: Robert Fischer x OC

Summary: Things go from bad to worse in the second and third layers of the dream.

Word Count: 4,183

Notes: Warnings for depictions of violence.

Previous Chapter • Series • Fic • Next Chapter

Chapter 5: Matryoshka

“Am I boring you?”

Robert blinked, starting from where he’d been staring into space at the hotel’s bar, a glass of water settled in front of him. Head turning he stared, owl-like, at the beautiful blonde woman sitting beside him. 

“I was telling you my story,” she said. “I guess it wasn’t to your liking.”

He stuttered, unsure of what to say. The last thing he wanted to do was be rude, or hurt her feelings, but he was also pretty sure she hadn’t approached him just for conversation, if the way she was looking him up and down was any indication. He shifted uncomfortably, looking around, he hoped subtly, for Alice. Where had she gone? He couldn’t remember. “Um, I…have a lot on my mind,” he mumbled to the woman. He didn’t even know her name.

She giggled, continuing to talk to him, and rested her hand on his arm. Rober tensed, his eyes darting away from her and scanning anxiously for Alice, all while trying to gently and subtly pull his arm away from where the blonde’s hand had rested on him. 

“Listen, I’m flattered, really, but I have a girlfrie–”

“Mr. Fischer? Right?” 

Oh, thank god–

He glanced over at the man in a business suit approaching him, and cringed. A headache was building behind his eyes. The last thing he wanted to talk about was business. 

“Pleasure to see you again. Rod Green from marketing,” he held out a hand to Robert with a smile. Robert just stared at him, then turned away, gaze scanning over the crowd of people in the bar. He missed Alice. Where was she? 

Rod Green From Marketing huffed and dropped his hand, turning to the blonde. Oh, good. Maybe they would hit it off and leave him alone. 

“And you must be?”

“Leaving,” the blonde said. Rod Green From Marketing nodded understandingly. Robert let out a breath of relief until she descended upon him again and he had to fight back the urge to scream. A napkin was pressed into his chest. “In case you get bored,” she smiled. He glanced only fleetingly at the numbers she’d scrawled onto the napkin as he set it on the bar. 

“Must’ve blown you off. That is unless her phone number really is only six digits,” Rod Green From Marketing pointed at the napkin Robert had tossed away. He glanced back down at it, eyes scanning over the numbers and snorting. “Funny way to make friends, someone stealing your wallet like that.”  

Robert’s brows furrowed, fumbling for the inner pocket of his suit jacket and finding it empty. He scoffed, head snapping around to where the blonde had disappeared to.

“Goddamn,” he sighed. “The wallet alone’s worth at least five hundred–”

“About five hundred dollars, right?” Rod Green From Marketing asked. “Listen, don’t worry about it, my people are already on it as we speak.”

Robert shook his head, trying to understand what he meant. Perhaps he had misheard him when he said he was from marketing. “I’m sorry…who did you say you were?”

“Rod Green from marketing.”

How cruel did a parent have to be to call their child ‘Rod?’ He hoped it was short for something. Rod Green From Marketing slid down into the seat next to him and smiled.

“But that’s not true at all, is it?”

And it was then that he was introduced to Mr. Charles. 

∗ ∗ ∗ 

“Loyal man, isn’t he?” Eames said with a knowing smirk, still disguised as the blonde, but using his normal voice as he sidled up to stand beside Alice where she was watching Robert and Cobb talk at the bar from around the corner. 

“Eames, that was mean,” she chastised softly, even though it would be lying to say that she wasn’t very touched that even in his dreams, Robert undyingly devoted to her. 

“Just needed to make sure we didn’t have another Dylan Sayers on our hands.”

She cringed at the mention of her no good, cheating ex-boyfriend. “Robert would never do that.”

Eames hummed in agreement. “I can see why you were hung up on him for so long.”

Alice shot her friend a soft look and he smiled at her.

“I like him.”

“I’m glad. I always thought you would.”

Eames patted her on the shoulder. “Right,” a wicked look entered his eyes. “I’m gonna go have some fun with Saito.”

“Do you enjoy terrorizing billionaires?” she asked with a laugh.

“Yes,” Eames said, deadly serious.

“Don’t let me stop you.”

He grinned at her, squeezing her shoulder and disappearing towards the elevators. She gave one last glance to Robert and Cobb at the bar, forcing herself to trust Cobb to keep him safe, and stepped away, walking briskly through the winding hallways, keeping her eyes open for any projections. Just killing time really before she needed to go meet up with Ariadne and Arthur upstairs. From the corner of her eye, she spotted Peter sitting in a chair, glasses perched on his nose while he scribbled something onto a paper in a folder. Her eyes narrowed at the projection. She’d have to let Eames know that he was here. 

She did another lap of the ground floor, then headed towards the elevators, crossing her arms as she waited until they opened with a ding.

“Fancy seeing you again.”

“The projection of Peter is in the lobby,” she said in greeting. Eames nodded.

“On it.”

“Fifth floor, right?”

“Yep.”

“See you in a bit.”

They traded places, her in the elevator and him outside of it, and she punched the five on the panel, her fingers tracing over the gun she had tucked in the back of her pants as she was carried steadily upwards. Hopefully when the doors opened she wouldn’t be faced down with any projections.

She let out a breath of relief when the doors opened to reveal no one, and stepped into the hallway. The other elevator opened with a ding a moment later and Arthur stepped out with Ariadne in tow. Alice smiled tightly in greeting to them, and they began to walk down the hallway together.

“Having fun?” Alice asked Ariadne as they waited. 

“Hasn’t entirely been what I expected,” she admitted with a laugh.

“Sorry about the projections. I really didn’t think they’d be a problem.”

Arthur shrugged. “We can deal with it. Wouldn’t even be that much of a problem if there wasn’t the threat of falling into limbo,” he muttered the last part under his breath as they rounded the corner. 

The elevator on the far end of the hall dinged, and Robert stepped out with Cobb right behind him. He hesitated at the sight of Arthur and Ariadne, fearful until Cobb ushered him forward,

“They’re with me. Go on.”

Alice stepped out from behind them, and Robert's face smoothed out in relief, looking like he was resisting the urge to rush towards her. As he and Cobb approached them, he glanced from door to door, examining the hotel room numbers next to each one. He came to a stop at room 528, nodding at Cobb and taking a step back. Alice went to him, and he gently touched her face. 

“Are you okay?”

“Mhm,” she nodded. “Yeah, I’m okay,” she rested her hands on Robert’s arms. “I’m glad Mr. Charles found you.”

There was a bang as Cobb and Arthur broke down the door to the room, and she took Robert’s hand, guiding him into the hotel room with her. Arthur swept into the bathroom, and came back with a PASIV case in his hands. 

“Mr. Charles!” she could see Arthur internally screaming when he called it out to Cobb. She bit her lip to keep from smiling.

“Do you know what that is, Mr. Fischer?” Cobb asked Robert.

“Yeah, I think so,” Robert said.

“They were trying to put you under.”

Robert’s eyes darted to Alice, confused. “I’m already under.”

“Under again,” Cobb explained. 

“What do you mean, a dream within a dream?” Robert looked between them. Alice nodded. 

“It’s possible. In rare cases.”

Arthur suddenly shushed them, and there was a click as a keycard was used on the door. The moment it swung open, Arthur and Cobb descended upon the projection of Peter, grabbing his arm and bringing him to his knees.

“Uncle Peter?” Robert asked.

“You said you were kidnapped together?” Cobb asked, snatching the keycard out of Peter’s hand.

“Well, not exactly. I was kidnapped with Alice. They already had him. They were torturing him,” Robert said. 

“And you saw them torture him?” Cobb asked. 

It was a fascinating thing, to watch as the realization dawned upon Robert, and how, in turn, the projection of Peter began to fall in line with what Robert thought of him.

“The kidnappers are working for you?”

Peter looked down at the floor in shame. “Robert…”

Alice stroked Robert’s back as she watched them talk. At least it was unlikely any animosity they built between Robert and Peter would last long outside of the dream. So long as things didn’t get out of hand. 

“Fischer Morrow has been my entire life. I can’t let you destroy it,” Peter was saying. 

“I’m not going to throw away my inheritance, why would I!?” Robert’s voice rose.

“I couldn’t let you rise to your father’s last taunt,” Peter said. 

“What taunt?”

“The will, Robert. That will? That’s his last insult. A challenge for you to build something for yourself…by telling you you’re not worthy of his accomplishments.”

Robert turned away, pressing his fingers to his eyes like he was trying not to cry. “What, but that he was, um,” he stammered, finally spitting out the word. “Disappointed?”

“I’m sorry. But he’s wrong. You can build a better company than he ever did,” Peter said. 

Holy shit, it was actually working. 

From behind Robert, she shot Cobb an ecstatic look that he briefly shared before approaching Robert, mumbling to him softly, explaining how they needed to enter Peter’s subconscious together to find out what he was hiding. 

Two layers down, one to go.          

Robert agreed with only a little encouragement from Cobb and a nod from her. The trust in his eyes as he looked at her made her heart twist. Rolling his sleeve up like he’d done with her dozens of times, he sat down on the bed.

“See you in a minute,” Alice kissed his cheek and he nodded, eyes fluttering closed as Cobb slid the needle in under his skin. He caught Robert gently by the neck as he went limp, lowering him to the bed. 

“Whose subconscious are we going into exactly?” Ariadne asked. 

“We’re going into Fischer’s. I told him it was Browning so he’d be a part of our team,” Cobb said as they all began to pull the IV spools from the PASIV. Alice stretched out next to Robert, stroking a few tendrils of dark hair away from his forehead. He was so beautiful. So sweet and gentle and trusting.

He didn’t deserve any of this.

She swallowed hard, that invasive idea reentering her mind that after this was all over, he would be upset with her. 

God, what if he broke up with her? 

“You alright?” Eames asked, resting a hand on her shoulder, noticing the look on her face. Alice sighed miserably. 

“I’m a terrible girlfriend, Eames.”

“Don’t go having second thoughts on us, now,” he gave her a squeeze, handing her an IV. “It’ll be fine.”

Breaths a little shaky, she nodded, curling up on the bed and sliding the IV into her arm with barely even a wince, and closed her eyes. 

∗ ∗ ∗ 

It was cold, the wind that skated along the icy mountain top biting at her cheeks. Beside her, Robert was squinting at the fortress in the distance, balancing carefully with his ski poles. He reminded her of a puppy, sometimes. With the wide-eyed way in which he took things in.

“Robbie.”

His head snapped around to look at her. Alice smiled kindly. 

“Come on, everyone else is down this way,” she led the way on her skis, silently thankful for all of the winters she and Robert had taken ski trips in the Alps. Cobb was already giving orders by the time they came to a halt beside him. 

“Who guides Fischer in?” Eames asked.

“Not me. If I know the route, everything could be compromised,” Cobb shook his head.

“I’m with Robert,” Alice said sternly. Cobb nodded, like he hadn’t considered she’d go anywhere else.

“I still want a second pair of eyes with you.”

“I designed the place,” Ariadne offered.

“No, you’re with me.”

Alice raised an eyebrow, curious about why Cobb would be so adamant about wanting Ariadne with him. Maybe because she was the youngest of them. And he felt that he was responsible for her. 

“I could do it,” Saito offered. He looked much better, now that they were a few layers down. But that wouldn’t last. Alice wished it could have been Eames going with them, but he was needed to help deal with the projections. Cobb began to brief Robert while Eames gave Saito instructions on the route. 

“You’ll have us covered?” Alice asked, head tilting to Cobb. He nodded.

“I promised you, didn’t I?”

She nodded. If all went well, she wouldn’t see him again until it was all over. Rolling her neck from side to side, she followed Robert and Saito on her skis down the mountain, gliding over the soft white snow. It was foggier than she would have liked. And too cold. She didn’t really understand why Ariadne couldn’t have put the fortress on a nice, tropical island instead. 

They finally hit a point where they couldn’t continue on their skis, the terrain too steep and rocky. Alice scowled as Saito handed her a bundle of rope after she’d undone the bindings connecting her boots to her skis. It wasn’t so high of a drop that they’d die if they fell, but it wouldn’t be pretty or pleasant either. She hooked herself to the rope.

“You’ve got to be kidding,” Robert gaped at her. She shot him an apologetic look as she helped him with it.

“I’m not particularly thrilled about it either.”

The climb was tedious and nerve wracking. The wind was howling in her ears, snow whipping across her face. 

The entire mountain suddenly shuddered, and Alice froze, staring upwards. There was a rumbling, and then a rushing sound that she realized with shuddering horror was the sound of quickly traveling snow. Above her, the line of rope suddenly slackened, and when she looked up it was just in time to see Saito use a knife to slice through the rope.

“Wait–”

The rope gave way completely, and then they were falling to land hard on the bed of snow beneath them, sliding half down the hill, rolling and tumbling over and over. Just barely missing getting buried in the mini avalanche that had roared past them. Alice ended up face down in the snow, sputtering and cursing as she tried to flail herself free. 

There was shouting in her comms link, but she ignored it, too busy spitting snow out of her mouth and trying to remember which way was up. 

So they’d missed the first kick. That was alright. Just had to make sure they didn’t miss the second one.

Arms suddenly wrapped around her, hauling her up and out of the snow. Panting, she met Robert’s very annoyed eyes, leaning against his arm while she caught her breath.

“Thanks.”

He looked her over, making sure she was okay. When Saito reached for his arm, Robert snatched it away, rounding on him and snarling.

“Couldn’t someone have dreamt up a goddamn beach?” he shouted. Clearly he shared her previous musings. “Huh?” he shoved Saito away from him childishly. Not that Alice could entirely blame him for the outburst. She was of a similar mood, after all. Rubbing her gloved hands over her face, she groaned and hauled herself to her feet. 

“Which way?” she asked Saito. He pointed, and with a nod she began to walk, the three of them picking their way carefully down the mountain to the entrance to the ducts Ariadne had told them about. Saito rushed to it, pulling at the grate that covered it and then gesturing Robert to him, opening up the pack strapped to Robert’s back and pulling out some explosives. 

“Do you know how to use these?” he asked Alice. She nodded, taking them from him and attaching them to the grate. “You rich boys and your lack of knowledge on complex explosive mechanisms,” she tsked teasingly, handing Saito the detonator. They ran around the side of the building so they were safely shielded from the blast before he pressed it, a small burst of fire ripping the metal open. 

“Okay, here,” Alice pulled out her gun and put it in Robert’s hand. He eyed it warily, but took it, weighting it carefully in his hand. “Just in case.”

They climbed one at a time through the small hole the explosion had made, up the metal tube that would lead them into the air ducts and into the facility. They only made it a few steps before Saito doubled over, beginning to cough. 

“You okay?” Robert bent over him as he hacked blood up into his hat, pointing in the direction they needed to head towards. Alice rested a hand on his back, frowning at how much blood had come up.

Please, no. We’re so close.

“Come on, Saito,” she said. He finished coughing, waving them away from him and leading the way to a ladder. Saito made it up the ladder before collapsing on his hands and knees, taken by another bout of bloody hacking. Alice looked down at him, then up at Robert.

“It should just be up that way,” she said, pointing.

“We can’t leave him,” Robert protested. She sighed. Much as she hated to admit it, he was right. And a far better person than she could ever hope to be. 

Together, they heaved Saito up, carrying him through the tunnels with them. 

“Almost there…” Alice tried to comfort him when he groaned in pain. “Okay,” she could just see the vent they’d need to open to get to the strong room.

“We’re here,” Robert reported into his comm. 

“You’re clear, but hurry. There’s an entire army headed your way,” Cobb answered.

“You go ahead, I got him,” she said when Robert hesitated, looking worriedly at Saito. He crept towards the entrance to the duct, beginning to fumble with it and push the grate out of the way. Alice grabbed Saito a little roughly by the front of his coat, heaving with all her strength to get him into a sitting position.

“I’m going to check your wound,” she told him. He nodded weakly, while she undid his coat and pulled it aside, wincing at the bloody mess she was met with.  

“Fischer, it’s a trap! Get out!” her head snapped around at the sound or Ariadne’s voice over the comms. She whirled towards the open duct Robert had gone through, hand at the holster on her hip, realizing with a dreaded drop of her heart that she’d given her gun to him. 

“Saito, give me your gun,” she held out a hand to him. He scrambled, body writhing with pain even as he reached for it. From behind her, she heard a familiar voice. Slow and gentle. With a French accent.

“Hello.”

Two gunshots followed it, and she had to bite back a scream. A third cracked out a moment later, and then she was wrenching the gun from Saito’s hand and tearing her way through the duct, just in time to see Mal drop like a stone after she was shot in the shoulder. Ariadne was screaming to Eames from over the comms, but she didn’t really hear it, running to where Mal–the projection of Mal, more accurately–was laying on the ground. Even in pain from the shot to the shoulder she tried to raise her gun at Alice.

She shot her between the eyes before she even got the chance. 

She didn’t bother sticking around to stare at her, instead racing away, clicking the safety back on the gun and tossing it into the duct to Saito before scrambling across the room to where Robert lay splayed out on his back on the floor, eyes closed.

“Robert?” she gave him a small shake. “Robbie?” fingers trembling so violently it took a few tries before she was able to undo the fastenings of his coat, she pushed it partially aside, fighting back tears at the sight of the two bloody circles in the front of his white shirt. 

There was the thunder of footsteps racing in behind her, and then Eames was there, moving her gently out of the way with his hands on her waist. He set the defibrillator he was carrying down on the floor, helping her to get Robert’s coat off the rest of the way so he could attach the pads to his chest under his shirt. 

“Eames…” Alice choked out, tears filling her eyes, panic beginning to set in.

“It’s alright,” he said calmly. “We’ll just hook him up and revive him, yeah? No big deal.”

She nodded, biting her lip. There were two more sets of footsteps running towards them.

“What happened?” Eames asked as Cobb and Ariadne raced in, his voice much harsher.

“Mal killed Fischer.”

Eames shot Ariadne a glare at her terminology as Alice started to sob. 

“I couldn’t shoot her,” Cobb mumbled, staring at Mal’s body, then looking back at Eames and Alice on the floor with Robert. “There’s no use in reviving him. His mind’s already trapped down there. It’s all over.”

Eames froze. “So that’s it, then? We failed?”

“We’re done. I’m sorry.”

Alice’s entire body seized, lurching over Robert, hands reaching out to stroke across his beautiful face. “No. No, no, no, no, no,” she said, over and over again. Desperately, she looked up at Eames, pleading. “Eames!?” please, do something.

He looked at her mournfully. “I’m sorry, Ace.”

She rounded on Cobb, rising from the floor and flying at him, hands beating at his chest furiously. 

“You said we were clear! You said you had us covered! You fucking asshole, you promised me!” her voice raised to a screech, even as Cobb caught both her wrists in one hand. He tried to hug her, lips moving with words that she suspected were meant to be comforting. But she just shoved him away with a furious cry, turning her back on him with her head in her hands, staggering over to Robert’s body and crashing to her knees beside him. 

“It’s not me that doesn’t get back to my family, is it?” Eames mumbled. He glanced at the safe. “Shame. I wanted to know what was gonna happen in there. I swear we had this.”

“Let’s set the charges,” Cobb said. Alice felt Eames touch her shoulder.

“Alice.”

“I’m not going,” she said numbly. If she died here, she’d go down to limbo. But that would be okay, because that was where Robert was, now. They could be together there. Maybe even someday they’d find a way out.

Ariadne was arguing with Cobb and Eames. 

“There will be enough time down there,” she was saying. Alice raised her head. “And we will find him. As soon as Arthur’s music kicks in, just use the defibrillator to revive him. We can give him his own kick down below.”

Alice stared up at her with hope as she explained her plan. She looked back at Eames and Cobb. 

“Saito will never make it, will he?” Cobb asked. Eames grunted and shook his head. 

“Cobb, come on. We’ve gotta try this,” Ariadne begged. 

“I’ll go with you,” Alice said, like it wasn’t obvious. Eames pulled a PASIV out of his pack. 

“Go for it. If you are not back before the kick, I am gone with or without you,” he warned. 

“She’s right. She’s right,” Cobb grabbed the PASIV and stood. Alice scrambled to her feet and followed him. “Come on. Let’s go.”

They set up the PASIV on the floor near Robert. 

“Can I trust you to do what needs to happen here? Mal’s gonna be down there,” Ariadne questioned Cobb. 

“If he won’t I will,” Alice said, rolling up her sleeve. 

“I know where to find her. She’ll have Fischer,” he said.

“How do you know?”

“Because she wants me to come after him. She wants me back down there with her,” he looked at Alice. “I’m sorry.”

“If you help me get him back, I’ll think about forgiving you.”

His eyes lowered, and she felt a little bad. But not enough to take it back. 

She laid down on the cold floor, head turned to stare at Robert’s lifeless body, throat constricting with more unshed tears. This wasn’t the end.

She wouldn’t let it be.

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[vennilavee]

hii!!! oh my gosh i just finished reading six of cups and i NEEDED to send you something because it was sooooo AMAZING!! genuinely one of the best fics i’ve read in sooooo long, i was at the edge of my seat the entire time. i kid you not my heart was racing from start to finish and i was devouring everything you wrote. you are so so so talented! the way you built up the tension and uneasiness in the fic was phenomenal. the little hints being dropped along the way for the audience to catch made me follow the trail like it was catnip. even though i already knew what the twist was supposed be, it didn’t make the climax of the story any less gut wrenching. SOO SO SO SO GOOD!!! i felt so terrible reader. knowing that she was so paranoid and was like prey being cornered and trying to seek comfort and shelter from a man that she loves not knowing that she’s falling straight into her own demise: UGHHH NO WORDS!!! i had so many questions that came up reading: why did gojo kill all those women? what did he mean that he was doing it for suguru? was suguru an accomplice? he seemed genuinely surprised that gojo was the killer? i wonder if reader is alive but i have a feeling that suguru himself would be the one to kill her :((( AND MEI MEI !!! there was a very very very brief moment that i thought that she herself might have been the killer LMAO but i’m scared for her now too!! ugh i’m sorry this message was too long but i just needed to come in here and gush to you about this story because i will honestly be thinking about this story for weeks now, especially with halloween coming up. thank you so much for sharing this remarkable work with us 💛💛💛💛

I AM GOING TO DIE FROM THIS ASK...thank u so much<3

when i was writing the fic, one thing i wanted to do was be Vague about gojo and geto but also make it known that they had a history and i wanted to make it more reader centric than anything else and leave it up to imagination!! gojo says he did it for geto to prove his Devotion to him and at first geto was taken aback by what he'd done. geto wasnt an accomplice initially but once he realized what gojo'd done, he became one bc he didnt stop him. who knows if he killed reader hehehe

also this ask gave me an idea for another similar but diff fic for halloween so thanks!! tysm for the feedback I CANNOT BELIEV U

[vgilantee]

thank you for the tag, caro!! i haven't written in a while, so some of the fics are... decently old. but any excuse to self-promote with no guilt haha! also it will become very apparent how much of a multi-fandom blog this is lmao

okay... last 10, let's do this (also... little bonus at the end for the start of my cody smut wip hehe):

double the relaxation (SMUT!) - Ethan Landry x Reader x Chad Meeks-Martin

Work was exhausting and you knew, walking through the door, that both your boys were home already. you were later home than usual, and they were no doubt going to smother you with questions about why, and you didn’t think you would be prepared for that. You were used to being tired after work, but after dealing with several too many difficult people you were tapped out.

dorm room antics - Ethan Landry x Reader

You had everyone’s timetables memorised, all of you did. It was one of the first things the four of you did at the start of each semester; you sat down and learned each timetable so you always knew where each other was throughout the day. It was how you knew that Chad would be out of his dorm. 

Worlds Apart prologue - Neteyam Sully x Reader

Never before had someone been placed in cryogenic hibernation while heavily pregnant. It was considered dangerous, highly risky for both the parent and the child. But billions of dollars had been invested into your mother’s avatar, and she was considered one of the best biochemists on Earth. So, after many months of warnings, she was placed in cryo whole her avatar was set to grow in the final of the six year flight to Pandora.

Love Lost - Neteyam Sully x Reader

From a young age, it was clear that you would spend the rest of your life by Neteyam’s side. He was your best friend, the first person to treat him as just another kid and not the first born son of the olo’eyktan. 

200 mile (per hour) club (SMUT!) - Tangerine x Reader

You wedged your phone between your shoulder and ear as your partner, Evaline, spoke about the nuances of a cartoon they had gotten really into while the pair of you had been in Japan.  “Listen, Ev,” you handed the teller your crumpled yen notes with a smile - asking for a ticket to Kyoto - as you spoke down the phone, “I love you and am happy to listen to you talk- Arigatou Gozaimasu- to you talk, but can this wait until after I’m done?” Despite being partners, they were the one to stay in whatever hotel room you were set up in and work as your handler. 

dear devoted delicate - Xavier Thorpe x Reader

Once a month - sometimes twice if you were incredibly unlucky - you were kicked out of your room for two days while your roommate had a handful of her younger cousins over.  Before Nevermore, you loved the full moon. Now you had a love-hate relationship. You still loved the moon itself, but you never enjoyed showing up at your friend’s dorm, backpack over your shoulder and sleeping bag tucked under your arm, sheepishly asking if you could once again sleep on their floor.

Soft Focus Fog Chapter 1 - Lily of the Valley - Benedict Bridgerton x reader

Despite how hard you had tried to fight it, your father had finally managed to send you to live with your aunt, uncle and cousin for the social season or until you were married - whichever came first.  Your aunt had been the one to travel out and collect you from your family home, stating that your cousin was away for the end of winter for some classes, and with her husband out of the house on business for over a month, she was more than happy to travel and get out of the lonely house. 

Soft Focus Fog Chapter 2 - White Dianthus - Benedict Bridgerton x reader

You were sat in the drawing-room after breakfast reading, keeping your aunt company as she worked on a needlepoint when the doors were pushed open, and in rushed Edith, travelling cloak still on her shoulders. Your aunt quickly stood to meet her daughter halfway, pulling her into a hug. As Lucia leaned back to properly look at her daughter’s face, you could see just how much Edith had grown to look like her mother.

Hot, Hot Mess for an Angel Chapter 1 - Adrian Chase x Reader

Whenever people asked what your job was, you would always shrug and say “freelancer”. Which wasn’t entirely inaccurate. You would travel from state to state, taking up work. It just happened that your job could also be described as “hitman-for-hire”.  This was how you ended up on Waller’s radar. She never interfered with your work, but she had made it clear that you were very much being surveilled constantly, and it would be easy to stop you.

carmine red varnish - Bradly "Rooster" Bradshaw x Reader

You always cherished the days Rooster could spend with you. Sometimes you didn’t know how long you could have him, all to yourself. But you selfishly took that time, grasped in both hands. The pair of you weren’t together, not in an explicitly defined relationship. If someone asked, you would say you were friends, but there was an unspoken something more. So often, on his first day back from a mission or a job, he found his way to your place.

finish what he started (SMUT!) - commander cody x medic!reader

You shuffled around the tiny apartment as quietly as you could, grabbing your small bag and shoes trying not to wake the man snoring in his bed. He was barely an acquaintance, you only knew him as a classmate before. But you had been stuck on the Negotiator for far too long, a mission that had lasted three standard months and with frustrations you couldn’t relieve on an ever-awake cruiser.

tagging: @websterss @solarluvs (i know you're in the middle of reposting your fics, so pick your faves!)

Creator Self-Promotion

Rules: post the first lines of your last 10 fics you posted. If you have less than 10 fics posted, post the first lines of all your fics.

"But K, I don't write but I still create can I still play?"

Post your last 10 pieces and give us a play by play. What was the inspiration? Any fun facts you can share with us?

Anyway let's get on with it

1. Fishing for Compliments - Merman!Crosshair x F!Reader

A sigh passed the young woman’s lips as the sun began to disappear beneath the waves. The waves rocked her quaint vessel as if it were a mother soothing her child. Her meal as well as a plate of identical food remained untouched as she kept her gaze to the depths. Every ripple of its surface a reminder of the mounting minutes that her company kept her waiting.

2. Drop Me a Line - Wrecker x F!Reader

The young woman stifled a yawn as she continued to work the mass of dough to her standards to be plopped into pans to bake. She continued working the dough sparing glances to the chrono on the wall as the sky outside began to lighten with the sunrise. Her pulse spiked when the chrono was checked again. She abandoned the lump of dough as she snatched up a pastry box. The bell chiming as the door opened and closed.

3. Budding Romance - Rex x F!Reader

“And you’re sure you’ll have them there.”

“A bit of faith would be nice, Anakin.”

4. Skin in the Game - Wrecker x OC (Rina) (18+ Please view responsibly)

Wrecker was on the hunt. Thankfully the Marauder held only a few spaces to hide away as he searched the ship. His target tucked away by the sensors. Vibroblade twirling between his fingers while his idle gaze stared at the screen. The demolitions expert took a breath, hoping to find answers.

5. Hair Support - Tup x Reader

The days of the Clone Wars tended to drag on in between assignments. Thankfully, the Republic saw it fit to dispatch your research team with a clone legion escort to ensure the lush jungle planet would not eat you and your colleagues alive. It was in the sweltering heat of the afternoon that one of your study binges was interrupted. You shook your head knowing who dared tread into your tent.

6. Interrogations - Echo x F!Reader (18+ Please view responsibly)

The former arc trooper sighed. Another fruitless attempt at slipping free of his bonds. The chair he was bound to chilled any amount of exposed skin. The room kept dark to prevent him from gathering his bearings. He bided his time, waiting for the tell-tale clicking of his keeper. It was a whisper at first but grew louder as the automatic doors parted.

7. Personal Tastes - Hunter x F!Reader

Strands of meat sizzled and spat as she flipped the tangled mass. Her work distracting from the pair of eyes watching you from the doorway. Her culinary tasks from the staccato chops of a knife to peppers to the accented clink of a mortar and pestle offered a calming tune.

8. Just This Once, Everyone Lives - Rex x Reader

Your bottom lip remained captured between your teeth as the speeder came to a stop. The building looming over the city streets twinkled in the night. A beacon for personnel to gather while dressed to the nines. A hand curled around yours, smoothing over your knuckles.

9. Keep Away - UniversityAU Wrecker x Reader

You filed out with your fellow undergrads as your last class for the afternoon let out. the professor's voice offering mention of the end of the first sprint. You traversed amongst the student body's current before veering off to a corridor. The current loosening its grasp the closer you ventured toward the sanctuary of paper and ink.

10. Nothing Fight - Crosshair x F!Reader

It could be easy to say Clone Force 99 had a culture separate from the sea of clones. Clone medics would be reassigned in the blink of an eye and nat born medics often assigned whoever pissed off the higher ups. This led to your current long term assignment. Having a medic on board being the main reason one of your patients was released to his squad early pending observations.

NPT - @photogirl894 @rain-on-kamino @tecker @techs-stitches @littlemissmanga @annwayne @fakegingerrights @merkitty49 @moodymisty @starrylothcat

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[eudaem0niic]

first time ~ kurt kunkle x reader (28k reads on wattpad!!🫶)

pairing: kurt kunkle x fem!reader

warnings: 18+, smut, mild pain kink, female receiving oral, penetration, gore, language

wc: 5.1k

note: this is an ongoing fic, updates might be added slightly later than wattpad updates (username: eudaemonic)

Backstory

You and Kurt met on a late night spree drive home. You had had a rough night, in which your boyfriend dumped you with the last words he said to you being "I don't regret cheating, fuck you", so you weren't really looking for anything. All you wanted was to go home and sleep off the post breakup slump you were experiencing.

Kurt, who at the time was your driver, seemed to continuously stare at you and, even in the dimly lit car, you could see in his eyes that it wasn't a malicious stare, nor a creepy stalker stare, it was more like something he saw triggered an emotion he'd never felt before. To him it felt euphoric, almost unreal. But in between his spurts of glances, he noticed the hurt in your face, or maybe he just saw the mascara which, unbeknownst to you, was streaked down your face. "Hey, are you- are you okay? Its just from here it looks like you've been crying.." He let out a short, almost relieved breath. It was as if he was trying to talk to you for a while but only just built up the confidence to do so. You let out a short chuckle. "Not really. My boyfriend cheated on me, then ditched me." He looks back with a frown. "Oh shit, he sounds like a dick. You don't deserve that, your like, insanely beau- i mean, your crazy pretty, he must not know what he's just lost." He stops at the red light, turns to look at you and gives a kind, inviting smile. You finally get a full view of his face, and he's cuter than you expected. His hazel eyes were half hidden by his even browner hair which, although was quite greasy, was styled in a way that cradled his face shape. His smile was slightly lopsided, giving him an almost cartoony image. And so far, he seemed like a kind-hearted and warm person. You smiled. "Thanks, your pretty cute too, Kurt." At this his face turned bright red, he had never been complimented before.

Conversation ceased from then on, until you wiped your smudged mascara and tears, since your surprisingly attractive driver had changed your mood, and climbed into the front. You caressed his now speckled pink cheek, then held his hand, which was on the gear. "So, Kurt.." You made eye contact and smiled at him to reassure the anxious look he gave you. ".. do you have a girlfriend by any chance?"

Six months in

You step up to your door, rummaging in your bag for your keys after a long day of work. You didn't expect Kurt to be there because even though he has a key, he rarely uses it since he doesn't live with you and you are normally in when he comes around. He also frequently works weekdays quite late, so seeing him dashing around cleaning for whatever reason came as a surprise. Upon hearing the door open, he looked up and grinned. "Oh hey babe!" He says ecstatically as he runs up to you to hug you. The height difference between you and him means he towers over you when he hugs you, sometimes he even picks you up. You hold on tightly to his waist as he too grapples onto you. You take a moment to inhale his smell. As always, he smells of cherry vape and aftershave. "I missed you so much." He says with a devoted tone. You chuckle. "Kurt, baby, you saw me yesterday. But i missed you too." You look up at him and smile while he kisses your forehead.

"Hey, I-uh, thought maybe, if you're not busy, we could go out tonight? Like- ...like a date? It's okay if you can't it's just.. your favourite movie is on in the drive-in tonight, I thought you might wanna go see it?" You smiled at his thoughtfulness. He's the only guy you've dated who hasn't just used you for your body. "Absolutely." His face lit up with glee, and he ran to grab his outfit that he had already planned. "Now I'm not dressing too casual but not out-to-dinner type fancy either. I bought us some matching stuff but you don't have to wear it if it's too cringey or anything, love." He walked out of the bedroom with his outfit and the matching accessories he got you both, which were a handbag for you and a matching belt for him. You gasped in awe at how pretty the bag was. It was a lilac leather bag with golden chain handles, and the belt was the same lilac leather, but with the gold chain on the side. "Oh Kurt, you really didn't have to! I love them, and you." You stand on your tiptoes to kiss him but he notices your struggle and intention, and he picks you up in a hug. Your legs grapple around his waist, while your hands go through his hair and you kiss him. His arms around you hold you tighter as to make sure he doesn't lose his grip on you. You place your head on his shoulder, and wrap your arms around his neck. Thankfully, he gets to the sofa before starting to lose balance. He runs his fingers through your hair before he lays down, with you laid on him.

There are thousands of thoughts running through both of your heads, majority of these thoughts were similar. They consist of mainly how lucky you both believe you are for meeting the other. It's a perfect relationship, you both found each other in hard times which you helped the other get through. Once Kurt admitted that before he met you, he was in fact planning a fame-seeking killing spree, which was a lot to take in, considering how innocent and kind he is to you. For Kurt, all of this was new. You were his first girlfriend, first person to compliment him, first non-family member to hug him, first kiss and maybe, he hopes, the girl who he has his first time with. He is the happiest he's ever been when hes with you, and you are all he ever thinks of. He zoned back in from his thoughts, and noticed you were asleep. "The movie isn't till late anyways." so he set an alarm, wrapped his arms around you and slept.

The drive-in

As Kurt turned into the parking lot, you saw the adverts on the large screen. You hadn't seen your favourite movie, Labyrinth, in a long time. You barely even recall telling Kurt it was your favourite movie. He pulled into a perfect spot, and pulled out some food from the back of the car. "I brought your favourite foods too, babe." He smiles, proud of himself for planning all this secretly. You smile back, to make sure he knows you are proud too. He isn't the greatest for understanding positive expressions other than a smile, just a symptom of his childhood neglect. Although it was forecast to be warm, it was surprisingly cold. Upon one of Kurt's frequent gazes at you, he notices you shivering. "Here, you can come sit on my lap if you want, hon." You climb over the things in between you and him, and sit on his lap. He wraps his arms around you, and rubs his thumbs against your waist in circular motions. His cold but smooth lips collide with your neck, and he makes a few marks before laying his head on your shoulder. He chuckles. "How did i get so lucky? It's insane." this makes you blush, and butterflies hit the sides if your stomach vigorously. You share the same viewpoint, it was as if he was destined to be working late the night you tumbled into his spree.

You were an hour and twenty minutes into the movie when you felt something against your thigh. "Um.. Kurt? Is that.." You turn around to see his deeply embarrassed face. "Oh babe don't get embarrassed!! Its okay, it's natural, nothing to be ashamed of. I'm not gonna judge you, it just sorta shocked me." You give him a reassuring smile and turn your back to the movie to hug him, trying to calm his embarrassment. "I-i'm sorry if i made you uncomfortable, i didn't mean-" you stop him from saying any more. "Kurt, love, its natural. You didn't make me uncomfortable, nor do you need to apologise." He sighs, as if letting out the shame he felt. He hugs you back tightly, then looks at you and says, "Do you wanna.. go back to your seat? You don't have to, its just.. y'know.." you chuckle. "Baby I told you it doesn't matter, it happens. I'm staying here. You give nice hugs." He lets out a smile you've never seen before. It's like a smile of acceptance. He's never been given this much reassurance over anything. He really loved you, it was something irreplaceable. You turned back around to watch the movie.

By the end of the movie, it had went down. You knew bringing it up again would embarrass him, so you forgot it ever happened and held his hand as he drove back to your house.

The sleepover

When you both got back to your house, you and Kurt sat down together. He went to check his phone, and upon opening it, furrowed his brows. You looked at him in concern. "Babe, what's wrong?" He lets out a sigh of frustration and says "Shit. It's my parents. They're arguing again." You look at him in disbelief. "Holy shit, its been happening so much recently hasn't it? Are you sure it's safe to go home? You can maybe stay here if you'd like? We haven't had a sleepover yet." His face lit up again. "Yeah, thats a good idea baby." You smiled wide, and hugged him tightly.

You and Kurt had never spent a night together mainly because, even though Kurt is a grown adult, his dad Kris refused to let him. This time was only different because he had reasoning, and it may well be the first of very few unless Kris changed his opinion on it.

After a while of cuddling on the sofa, Kurt went to have a shower. His hair got shockingly greasy very quickly, so he had to have a shower on the morning and on the night to minimise the amount of grease. While he was in the shower, you decided to take your tights and underwear  off. You had a large waist, and everything was always tight. You didn't think anything of it, as its what you normally do when you get home from a night out. It wasn't long before Kurt came back in from the shower and sat next to you again. You laid your head on his shoulder, and he put his hand on your thigh. He once again did the circular thing with his thumb, he knew it gave you butterflies. You stared up at him. "Kurt.." He looked down at you, curious. You led your eyes to your tights and underwear on the floor, then looked back up at him. There was a silence as you read the gobsmacked expression on his face. He wasn't sure what to say. You put your hand on top of his, which was still on your thigh.

"You- you want me to..?" He stuttered, still almost completely speechless. "Yeah Kurt, I do. If you want to of course-" He cuts you off as he pulls you into a passionate kiss, while slowly sliding his hand up your thigh. He props your head on the arm rest while he turns you into a laid down position. His hand slowly but surely reaches your clit, placing pressure on it that makes you squeal, although it was muffled because of the fact that your mouth was still covered by Kurt's. For a virgin, he was surprisingly good. He was about to move his hand lower when you pulled back from the kiss and said, almost breathless, "Not here," you panted, "bedroom." You went to get up, but he slid one hand behind your back, and one under your legs and carried you there.

He dropped you on the bed and leaned over you. He pulled you in for another kiss, then he slowly went lower. He reached your neck and paused for a few seconds. You knew what he was doing immediately. He was leaving his mark on your neck. He then proceeded lower, and when he reached your chest, he began to unzip your dress. You got the message, and helped him pull it off, as well as your bra. You were now fully naked, while Kurt was simply shirtless. You were contemplating undressing him, but decided he would do it in his own time. He started lowering his lips again, reaching your breast. While he kissed the right one, he cupped the other in his hand and gripped it tightly. You let out a quiet moan, which shocked you. He lifted his head and chuckled in a low tone. "Pain slut, huh?" It was you this time who was speechless. You'd never seen this side of him, you didn't even know it existed. But you liked it. He smirked, and continued. As he reached your groin, you held on to the bedpost tightly. He was a virgin, but you could tell from what has already happened that what was about to happen wouldn't portray that in any way.

You felt his warm breath hit your clit. It was a strange sensation, almost like a tingle. He looked up at you lustfully with a smirk painted onto his pale pink lips. He looked back down at you and slowly went downwards, continuing to kiss your groin. It only took a few seconds before he reached you, soft moans roughened as he went from kissing to licking. His tongue seemed like less of a virgin than Kurt himself, it guided its way around your folds, hitting all the most sensitive areas with raw vigour. There was a fine line between the skill level of oral. On one side, there was being so terrible that it seems like you are just struggling to find the actual opening, and on the other side it's like theres a map of the folds engraved into your mind. Kurt was, surprisingly, the second one. You gripped tighter onto the bed frame as his tongue confidently wrapped his way around your folds and down to your entrance. His tongue mimicked the circular motion his thumb was doing on your hips and thigh earlier in the night, and it had just the same effect on you. "God. You are-" you were cut off by your own moans, "-you are good for a virgin" while saying this, you let out what you could of a laugh. His eyes came upwards to look at you, still making circles inside of you. You gripped the bed tighter, and let out a loud, shaky moan.

It wasn't long before you noticed him slowing his pace. Once it had slowed to a moderate speed, he began kissing again. He followed his previous path up to your lips. When he reached it, you tasted yourself on his throbbing tongue. He then went on to kiss your neck again, leaving more hickeys. After catching your breath, you rolled both of you over, so you were above him. You began to grind on him, holding the bed frame that was behind his head. Unhesitatingly, he pulled off his trousers, and threw them on the floor beside the bed. Just before he took off his underwear, you saw that he was getting a boner again. But this time, he didn't seem embarrassed, he looked confident, as if he didn't care. As his boxers came off, you saw his dick, and you were surprised to say the least. It was huge. He laid back and placed his hands on your hips. "Just making sure, you want this, don't you?" you nodded, still in too much awe over the length to speak. The second he got your confirmation, he didn't waste a single second and picked you up by your hips, because he could tell you were still exhausted from before. He placed you back in between his legs, allowing you to mount yourself upon him. You smirked. "Ready?" he nodded, excitement and curiosity slightly showing in his face. You began going up and down slowly. A throbbing pulse-like feeling hit your insides. Grunts emerged from the depths of Kurt's throat as you sped up. He gripped tighter on your waist, leaving marks on you. Short, breathy moans came from your mouth in groups of four or five. You held onto his shoulders, as if about to fall off a cliff. He was immense. Every time you moaned, which happened frequently, you grabbed his shoulders tighter. His groans were hoarse, as if his throat was dry. It wasn't long before you noticed him getting sloppier and slowing a bit. His groans slowly became moans, getting louder and louder. You knew what was happening. Seconds later, a warm fluid shot up inside you. It came as a shock, and you jumped a bit. He finished, and you noticed he was completely drained of energy from his droopy head. You leaned upwards, causing his dick to fall onto his lower belly. You laid on him, head on his chest. He ran his hand through your hair and kissed your forehead. He hugged you tightly and closed his eyes. You let out a small smile and did the same as him.

Morning after

You wake up to a warm breath next to your ear. You turn around to see Kurt fast asleep, face almost touching yours. You smiled contently and kissed his forehead. He mumbled as his eyes fluttered open. '"Hi babe, you okay?" you say in a high voice. You didn't know what you expected to get back, but god it sure wasn't what you got. "Hey babe, i'm good. Just tired." his voice was deep and rough. Deeper than usual. It was strangely attractive. "Well I'm not surprised, you fucking rearranged my organs." you said with a light chuckle. He lets out a proud smirk, he was surprised that he did so well for his first. 'God, I wish my dad wasn't so uptight, I'd have moved out by now if he let me.' You stay silent in thought for a moment. 'Stay here. With me. And don't ask your dad, just tell him. You're twenty-three, Kurt, he has no control over you anymore.' You push his hair out of his eyes and smile. 'You know what? You're right! Should we go tell him like.. now? Once we've gotten dressed obviously,' he chuckles lightly, 'can't go out butt naked.' You giggle and climb out of bed. Turning to the wardrobe, you pick out a comfy outfit. It's Saturday, and you thought you could have a lazy day with Kurt. He grabs yesterdays clothes from the floor and gets ready.

You both get in his car, it was closer and you were tired. His parents house wasn't far away, but it was isolated from the world. It was hidden behind a small field which was half dead and had no life whatsoever there. The house wasn't in the greatest condition either. All it was was a small bungalow, majority of which stunk of weed. The only room that didn't really smell of it was Kurt's room. He never let his drug addict of a Dad in his room, so it never smelt of his narcotics. The living room stunk of alcohol too. Another perk of living with burnt out, depressed, middle aged pricks. You grab his hand as he pulls onto the curb. 'You ready for this? There's no rush, babe.' He takes a moment to ponder, and nods. You both step out the car and meet at the edge of the path, look each other in the eyes, grab the other's hand and walk up to the door. You go to knock, but Kurt just walks in. 'Dad! We need to talk to you.' his dad turns, startled by the sudden entrance. 'No knocking, then? Huh.' he looks at us as if we were piles of dirt. He then smiles and you see a idea perk up in his small, drugged-up mind. 'So.. did you take his v-card last night? Huh? Huh?' he laughs at his immaturity and nudges you and Kurt. Kurt whacks his dad's arm. 'Dad, stop it. We are here to say.. i'm moving out. I'm gonna start living with my girlfriend.' His dad looks at him, baffled. Suddenly, an anger you've never seen before floods his face. 'Boy, you don't even know how to take care of yourself. I'm the main income. Fuck, all it takes is one shitty driver to knock your car and i'll be the only income. You need me, Kurt.' His voice got quieter as he spoke. You smiled politely, 'Actually, Kris, both me and Kurt have stable jobs. If one of us gets the sack, we still have the other to keep us on track while we look for a new job. He's gonna be fine with me.' This sent Kris into a rage. 'He will NOT be alright with you! I'm his dad, I know whats best for him, and its sure as hell not you! Get out!' Suddenly, he stormed at you. Kurt's face dropped, and he stepped in the way as quickly as he could. He knocked his dad to the ground, pinning him down while he yells. He tries hitting Kurt, but it's no use. He slowly gives up, and Kurt lets go. He hesitantly crawls back up, maintaining furious eye contact with you. He grunts and pulls a sour look, looking you up and down before shrugging and walking away. Kurt stutters as he shouts at him, 'S- so is that a yes?' 'Do whatever the fuck you want.' was the only response he got as his dad walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge for a beer. Kurt sighed, his short temper wearing out as he grabs hold of your hand and leads you out of the house. He slams the door behind you both after flipping off his dad.

He quickly wraps his arms around you.You notice tears hit your shoulder, and look up to see what was wrong. 'Hey, hey, it's okay. You did it. I'm so proud of you. I know that took a lot.' He holds you tighter while you comfort him, and you both stand in each others arms for a moment. You tapped his back and signalled to the car. He sniffled his nose and nodded. As the car pulled away from the drive, you saw Kris running towards the car, hammer in his hand. He hit the back window with a harsh force. Glass covered the back seats, the boot, and the area at the back of the car. Kurt spun in his seat, a look of shock and anger rose up into his face. He looked away angrily for a moment, paused, and grabbed his gun from the arm rest. 'Kurt, don-' he cut you off by grabbing your arm with an aggression you never expected from him. 'Stay out of this.' He looked back at you for a second, and turned to his car door. You reached for his arm again, shaking with fear, but he was out of the car before you could get to him. You turned swiftly to where he was now storming towards. Kris saw him behind him, and ran towards your window. As he aimed the hammer towards you, you closed your eyes and covered your head to brace yourself. Almost immediately, you heard a thud on the ground and a loud, pained grunt. 'You know what dad? I'm sick to death of you treating me like I'm your fucking little kid. I'm an adult, and I know how to act like one. I'm tired of dealing with your bullshit, your drunken pickups from shitty ass clubs miles from here, your lack of caring until you need me, honestly, i'm just sick of you. You gave me nothing as a kid, you kinda learn how to care for yourself when your mom is a prostitute and your dad is a drug addict. You know, I don't think i've needed you since I was fucking five. I've hated you my whole life, i'm only acting on it now because i've realised you never did shit all for me, you just acted like you did. I'm done with your bullshit. You won't ever come near me or my girlfriend again, and i'm gonna make sure of that right now.' By now you had opened your eyes, and were watching Kurt stand over his dad, who was cowering on the ground. Slowly, he aimed the gun at Kris. You slammed the window, screaming at him to stop. He ignored your yelling and continued pointing it at him. He wasn't shaking or twitching like he normally does. He was visibly confident in what he was doing, and it was showing how long he had been waiting to do this. You decided to stop trying to stop him, you knew it was no use, yet your eyes were moving back and forth between the shaking man on the floor and the boyfriend who you thought you knew. You watched Kurt stare into his dad's horrified eyes with a look that seemed almost psychopathic. Tension and horror built up inside you as you watched him slowly pull the trigger. Suddenly, you flinched, and when your eyes reopened you saw Kris laid on the floor, blood surrounding his lifeless body. Kurt looked back at you, a look of terror and regret on his face as he realised what you had just seen him do. He hesitated for several moments before zoning back in and rushing towards his car door. 'We- we need to go.' 'Kurt; what the fuck did you-' 'We need,' he turned the engine on, 'to go.' He sped along the road and dashed through traffic to get to your house. You could barely get a word out about what just happened, so you sat in silence.

Cars honked aggressively at Kurt's speed, their even angrier drivers cursing and flipping him off. 'Fuck you too, cunts!' He yelled out of his momentarily open window. Tears welled in your widened eyes, shaking as you turned slowly to look at him for the first time since he shot Kris. He looked at you swiftly before looking away, then he peered over again. 'I-' he let out a deep breath, 'I'm sorry you had to see that, it won't ever happen again. I love you, okay?' he shot you a quick attempt at a reassuring smile before reaching for your hand. You couldn't move away, you were still frozen in devastation. The rest of the ride blurred in your mind; you zoned out and didn't hear anything else. What you had just seen happen changed everything. Your head was flooded yet empty at the same time. Who was Kurt? Or, alternatively, who was he becoming and what would it do to you?

Change of plans

Kurt's cold hand grabbed your shoulder and shook you to try pull you out of whatever reality you were in. His hand seemed strangely unfamiliar, you weren't sure you recognised your own boyfriend anymore. 'Babe, get up, we need to get in the house and think about this.' You twisted yourself around swiftly. 'We? What part in this did I have?! I sat and watched my boyfriend, whom I thought I knew, kill his own father after begging him to stop and suddenly it's we?! What the fuck, Kurt? Who are you? Give me one good reason why I don't walk away and tell the cops right now.' At this, his face changed. It was less of a concern for him and more of an concern towards you. He was shocked. 'I- well- because I love you, I did that for you.' You scoffed. 'I didn't ask you to do that. You did that on your own accord.' He fumbled around for a moment and grabbed your hands. 'I- I did what I thought was right- I didn't want him to hurt you- I care about you!' You let out a deep breath, and try to calm yourself. You don't know how or why, but you somewhat understand why he did what he did; he didn't have anyone there for him his whole life, and he had just faced a scenario that made him suddenly terrified of losing you. The anger, confusion and shock you had simmered and you let in a bit of empathy.

'Kurt. There were other ways of protecting me.' 'I- I know but I was scared! I wasn't thinking straight. You have to believe me!' He tugged at your hands desperately. 'Kurt, I believe you,'  You take another breath, 'I just don't understand why you didn't do something else.' He looks down, you weren't sure if he felt guilt or if he was confused by his actions. 'I wasn't thinking straight,' His voice was less erratic and more relaxed, 'I was scared, angry, upset, it was just- I didn't know how to react. My first reaction was to protect you.' 'You still killed someone, Kurt. That's like, one of the worst crimes you could do.' He covers his face with his hands. 'Shit. I know. I'm so stupid. Why didn't i just fucking drive off.' You take his hand from his face and hold it tightly, with your other hand on top. 'I'm not sure what I'd need to do to stop you from being put in prison, but I'm going to try to prevent it. I don't care what happens to me, if you are willing to do what you did for me, I'm willing to do this for you.' He looks up at you, his face a jumbled up mix of relief, joy and surprise. 'Babe I can't- I don't want you being in trouble too. It's safest for you to-' You cut him off with a swift kiss. 'I don't care what's safe and what isn't, I'm doing this for you. No matter what it takes, babe.' Part of you couldn't believe you were doing this, but it was obvious. You were head over heels for this man, and he was the most amazing guy you'd ever met. It was a once in a lifetime experience you weren't planning on losing. And as long as you had any say in it, you most certainly wouldn't lose it.