#I was laughing so hard at her bringing up killing the goat insistently

[pearlycomplaints]

My favorite storyline of S2E7

Shauna’s insistence that they were gonna make her kill the goat.

Bonus:

[dynyamight]

here’s a concept: deku, a farmer boy goes out to the Wild West and encounters a cowboy kacchan. deku teaches cowboy kacchan to plant corn and take care of chickens. they then become close. after that they marry and are known at the “maize buckaroo duo.”

(this is so random hshshshsh. but the idea just sparked outta nowhere ;33)

i offer you, farmer!deku x cowboy!bkg you give concept. i create fanfic. ;33 i luv this idea & ilysm

—

When Midoriya registers the fast, loud gallops outside, hitting and snapping down on the ground, he ceases his movement, before smiling hard.

The Monday morning has just started, and already there’s excitement in his chest. Those familiar sounds gave him the absolute flutters.

However, that excitement drops. Daisy huffs, back kicking at the milk bucket in an annoyed fit. Midoriya hurriedly picks it up, before all their shared, hard efforts were to go down the hay. Literally.

“Sorry, sorry!” Midoriya urges the cow, quickly smacking his wet hands on the folded towel on his knee. Then, resting a short calm palm on her snout, he whispers reassuringly, “You did amazing, today. Let’s get you back on the field.”

After setting the bucket aside, Midoriya takes the rope around Daisy in one hand, and lifts open the gate with the other. Together, they slowly make their way out of the stables, more or less. Daisy steps on Midoriya’s heels, hurrying him up.

However, stepping outside, Midoriya already knows to turn to his left, instead of his right at the gated grass field. From the sounds he heard inside, he bets on seeing Dynamite, first.

And, sure enough, turning around the corner of the stables, the proudful stallion meets his eyes, neighing a loud greeting over his way. Midoriya halts Daisy and offers a small wave back.

There’s a small jolt from Dynamite, before he starts walking, at a quick pace over towards Midoriya. Finally, that’s when Midoriya sees Bakugou, riding on the back of the horse, the finest, leather saddle equipped.

Midoriya shakes his head, smiling up. “Surprising to see you, so soon. It’s not even sunrise, Kacchan.”

“How fucking rude,” Bakugou clicks his tongue, before stopping Dynamite’s steps with a small pull. He tips his black, cowboy hat down, though barely. “Not even a damn ‘morning’ my way.”

“You’re never one for pleasantries, anyway.” Midoriya teases, pointing at his hat. “You didn’t do a full tip, you know.”

“Tch, you ain’t special.” Bakugou huffs, “Be grateful.”

Taking a few steps forward, Midoriya pats the side of Dynamite’s face. “Good morning, boy! How are you, on this fine early day?” He holds in the laugh, glancing at the scowl Bakugou sends his way.

Dynamite doesn’t give any cues of delight. But, by the way Midoriya feels the stallion lower his head, and press firmly against his hand, it’s not too far-fetched to assume he loves the touch.

On the other hand, Bakugou swats at Midoriya, face twisted in disgust. “Gross! I don’t want that fucking creature’s juices all over him.”

Behind Midoriya, Daisy stomps on the ground. ‘The field, remember?’ Midoriya imagines her quip. And, from the wagging of her tail, she’s losing her patience. Quickly.

“Yeah, yeah.” Bakugou sneers aloud, speaking directly at Daisy, “Say whatever you want. But, I ain’t wanting your spoiled cheese on my damn horse.”

“That’s not what she’s upset about.” Midoriya deadpans. “And, what? Can’t handle milk, out of all things?”

“Milk that came straight out of her tit.”

“Where else would it come from? Trees?”

“Whatever, I just don’t want that shit on my horse, for fuck’s sake.”

Though, they couldn’t argue anymore about it. With a strong force, Daisy begins to pull Midoriya away, forgoing staying another second away from her beloved grass.

Fortunately, for Midoriya’s heart, Bakugou cues Dynamite to follow, trailing right next to them. “Damn, she reminds me of my hag. So fucking dramatic.”

“Your hag?” Midoriya questions, tossing a curious head over. “Is she your dog?” He guesses.

“My mom.” Bakugou corrects, nonchalantly.

Midoriya supposes the open expression of shock wasn’t concealed well, because Bakugou lets out a laugh, turning away with a fist to his mouth. “You’re such a mama’s boy.” He snickers. It leaves Midoriya red in the face.

It’s just he would never call his mother anything, but an absolute blessing. He loves her, dearly.

The moment they step onto the wide, open area of the field, Daisy tosses her head, wanting the rope around her neck off. Hushing her quiet and still, Midoriya loosens off the knot, allowing the loop to widen, and finally, pulling it over her head, free.

As Daisy trots away, passing through the sheep and goats, Midoriya’s surprised to see Bakugou pulling himself off Dynamite. Landing smoothly on his feet, leather boots shiny with clean spurs, Bakugou fixes his hat, showcasing more of his face.

His red meets green. “Nice farm you got building.” He compliments. “An improvement from before.”

Midoriya nudges him, with a dull elbow jab. “Stop, It looks the same.”

“That ain’t true.” Bakugou firmly states. “Two months ago, this place had nothing.”

“Well, it’s still not enough to open a public business.” Midoriya sighs, readjusting the straps of his brown overalls. ”I might have to pull out another loan, in order to afford some harvest equipment for my corn.”

“Tch, that’s why you should join the rodeos.” Bakugou insists, crossing his arms to his chest. “It’s the easiest way to make money, here. Good money.”

Midoriya looks back at Bakugou, unimpressed. “Says the state champion.”

Dynamite snorts, conveniently in tune to Midoriya’s mock. It causes a slight reddening in Bakugou’s face. He quickly turns back to his horse, munching on the grass. “Shut it.”

“Anyways, I’ll find a way. Rodeo, or not.” Midoriya continues, yawning in between his words.

“Geez, where’s your damn etiquette.”

“Left it back home. With all my sins and exes.” Midoriya teases, outright. And, despite the smack over his head hurting, Midoriya can’t help, but laugh. “I’m serious!”

“You’re so annoying.” Bakugou grumbles, digging one of his spurs on the ground. “Bringing up stupid shit.”

Midoriya shrugs, still rubbing the back of head. “I promise you, I was a lady killer, where I’m from.”

“Killing those poor, innocent ladies with your bad breath.”

Immediately, Midoriya raises a hand over his mouth, puffing out an air. Though, all he can smell really, is Daisy.

God, did that mean his breath smells like Daisy? The cow?

Bakugou rolls his eyes. “Gullible Deku.” He simply states. “Your breath s’fine.”

Midoriya groans, and he tries to smack Bakugou back over the head. Though, Bakugou dodges his hand easily, leaning away.

“Making fun of a farmer on his own bought land, is an insult to his pride.” Midoriya huffs, taking back his hand.

“What are you going to do about it?” Bakugou mocks, a grin forming against his lips. “Make me work? Not a chance.”

With a lightbulb feeling running through his mind, Midoriya absolutely loves the off handed suggestion. “Actually, yes! You can help me feed the chickens!”

Turning his heels quickly, Midoriya smiles at the absolute panic in Bakugou’s voice. “Hah? What the— No, I’m not!”

“Yes, you are!” Midoriya sings aloud, taking quick steps towards the gate. “C’mon, hurry up, now! Leave Dynamite out on the grass!” He calls out, as he opens the gates, and goes into a full sprint out.

By the time he reaches the stables, goes to his feeding cabinet, shelves crowded with plastic containers and bags of nutrients for his livestock and crops, and grabs onto the chicken feed, Bakugou has begrudgingly made his way inside.

“It smells.” Bakugou complains.

“Suck it up.” Midoriya laughs, before taking a plastic bowl off the shelves and setting it down on the counter. He pours the feed inside. “I bet the rodeos smell just as bad.”

“They don’t.”

“Well, you’re being paid to say that.”

Bakugou walks over to him, standing by his side. He leans on the counter, as Midoriya lifts the feed bag back into the cabinet. “If they did, I wouldn’t do them.” Bakugou states, narrowing his eyes. “Simple as that.”

“Whatever helps you sleep at night.” Before Bakugou can insist otherwise, Midoriya pushes the bowl into his hands. He holds back a laugh, when Bakugou almost drops it completely. “Now, let’s head to the coop, shall we?”

Clicking his tongue, Bakugou grimaces. “S’too fucking early for this.”

“Hey, you’re the one who showed up.” Midoriya reminds him, as they walk to the back of the stables, where the clucks of the chickens resound louder. “Which, if you don’t mind me asking, what’s with the sudden visit? Forgot to buy eggs, from yesterday's pick up?”

“Does it matter?” Bakugou questions, instead.

That takes Midoriya aback. “I mean, not really. But, we never meet on the weekdays.” He admits softly. He takes a moment away, to crack open at the tall, wooden gate at the end of the hall.

The chickens weren’t too active, thankfully. Several of them are still sitting perched and hidden inside the coop. Otherwise, only a few were already walking around outside the coop, clucking aimlessly.

Midoriya feels Bakugou lean close to him. When he looks, he notices a chicken had passed by Bakugou’s boots, with no pay to mind. However, Bakugou was visibly losing his mind.

“Don’t tell me you’re scared.” Midoriya smiles.

Bakugou scowls, glaring right down at him. “They got bacteria. Sick motherfuckers.”

For a cowboy, Bakugou has a keen distaste for getting unnecessarily dirty. It never fails to surprise Midoriya. “Well, just wash your clothes when you get back home.”

“I got other shit to do after, you know.” Bakugou growls.

“Again,” Midoriya sighs, “You’re the one who chose to be here. I’m simply utilizing you.”

As Midoriya leads Bakugou over to the coop, he grumbles under his breath. “Gonna have to pull another loan, if you want me working for your ass.”

Rolling his eyes, he ignores the silly comment, and instead gestures at Bakugou to start throwing the feed at the nearby chickens, surrounding the coop. When he stares back, confused, Midoriya remembers the guy’s not a farmer in the slightest. “Start throwing the feed.”

Bakugou hurriedly starts tossing small amounts. “I knew that. Thought you were gonna say something else.”

It’s hard to imagine what else an open hand in air would mean, but nevertheless Midoriya doesn’t argue. The chickens awake are already bustling over, surrounding the dropped feed in seconds.

Taking a handful from the bowl, Midoriya kneels down, going close to the small crowd of chickens. He notices some of them quickly waddle over to him, instead of feed dropped on the ground. The few that come to him peck at his hand, and it floods warmth to Midoriya’s heart.

“They prefer off the hand, huh.” Bakugou comments above him.

“I would like to think that they like me, but sure.” In seconds, the feed’s all gone, and the chickens wait around him for more.

“You should kneel down, too.” Midoriya offers gently to Bakugou, making sure his voice doesn’t startle the creatures. “Feed them off your hand.”

There’s an obvious hesitation, before Bakugou gets low, kneeling next to Midoriya.

One of the chickens tries to reach into the bowl in hands, in which he pulls it away quickly. “I’m getting fucking attacked already.”

“They’re eager.” Midoriya insists.

Dipping his hand into the bowl, Bakugou raises a handful of his own. He whips his head to Midoriya, glaring. “If my hand bleeds, I demand a lawyer to prosecute you.”

They don’t even hurt that bad. Though, telling Bakugou that would probably have him second guess everything. Hence, Midoriya shakes his head. “You won’t.”

Within a few seconds of only impatient clucking surrounding them, Bakugou finally puts his hand out. In seconds, the chickens start to peck at his hand, picking up all the feed quickly.

Midoriya stares at Bakugou. He’s cursing them out, demanding them to stop pecking so hard, for fuck’s sake. And, despite the apparent discomfort from the first handful, Bakugou goes for another handful, offering his hand once more.

Again, the cussing ensues, but it’s still all Bakugou’s free will. He could have stopped at the first hand, but he didn’t. Instead, he’s still kneeling next to Midoriya, feeding these silly, rambunctious chickens.

When Bakugou definitely had better things to do.

“Why did you show up?” Midoriya asks once more, standing up. The chickens have already departed, as Bakugou had tossed the rest of the feed from the bowl, out in the open. “You only buy my products on Sunday’s.”

“Why do you keep asking.” Bakugou reflects back, opening the wooden gate open for Midoriya.

Midoriya steps in front of him, back inside the stables. Once inside, hearing the wooden gate close, he turns around, facing him. “You know, I’m not letting you off, without hearing what’s on your mind.” He softly smiles.

Bakugou stares back at him. And, for an odd moment, his eyes scan all over his face, jittering, until they cease. “You’re making this a big deal, Deku. Just wanted to check up on the farm.”

Ah, that does make sense. “Oh my— Then, why didn’t you say that earlier!" Midoriya laughs.

Bakugou shrugs. “Again, it’s not a big deal. Now, where’s the damn sink?”

Midoriya leads them back to the entrance of the stables, where the sink was, alongside various cleaning supplies perched on shelves. They wash their hands, in silence.

They don’t say much either, when they head back to the grass field, to pick up Dynamite. Though, Midoriya doesn’t mind the silence. Bakugou has a limit to his social battery, and Midoriya has grown to know when it’s time to give him his quiet and peace.

After Bakugou sits back up on Dynamite, and they walk back to the open road, around the corner of the stables, he slightly pulls the reins, causing the stallion to come to a stop. It causes Midoriya to look up, wondering if the cowboy forgot something, back in the stables.

Instead, there’s a slight flush in his cheeks. He coughs loudly, clearing nothing in his throat. “There’s a rodeo this Friday.”

Midoriya waits for the rest, but instead Bakugou says nothing else. “Oh, uh, okay? Will you be participating?”

“Yeah.” Bakugou simply utters.

Again, nothing else is said. “Well, I wish you the best of luck, then.” Midoriya offers, despite the confusion in his mind.

“Are you—” Bakugou stops, inaudibly grumbling under his breath. “I mean, the rodeo ain’t too far from here.”

“Oh!” Midoriya’s genuinely surprised, “Who would have thought? That’s a shocker.”

“Yeah. You could go, even.”

“I’m not joining rodeos. No matter how many times you demand.” Midoriya laughs.

“No, to watch.” Bakugou corrects, though the moment he slips the words, it suddenly causes his entire face to go red. “Fuck, I mean, you could watch. Other riders, and competitors, or whatever the fuck.”

Midoriya can’t seem to understand where Bakugou’s coming from. This cowboy wants him, a new residential farmer, to watch a rodeo. A rodeo, which he has never seen in his entire life.

Though, if Bakugou’s asking, Midoriya’s heart will always simply agree. “I’ll go watch, then.” He reassures him, “And, I guess I’ll cheer you on, if you’re any good.”

Bakugou’s face calms, though there’s still a stiffness in his shoulders. “Cool.”

Midoriya thinks he wants to say something more, but instead Bakugou brings his thighs closer to Dynamite, squeezing him slightly. Instantly, Dynamite starts trouting off.

Before he can call out, Bakugou looks back at him. “Starts at 7 in the afternoon! Don’t be fucking late!”

And, just with a small kick, Dynamite starts racing off on the road, Bakugou leaving Midoriya only with his thoughts.

There’s not a lot of information about the rodeo, though Midoriya knows he will most definitely ask around for the rest of the details. Essentially, it’s a nearby rodeo, that starts at 7PM. Surely, there are others in town that know where exactly is the event.

Midoriya can’t help, but drift his focus away from the rodeo, and back to Bakugou’s distant figure. Against the morning sunrise, he looks so cool.

But, a farmer like him, attracted to a cowboy like Bakugou, is so embarrassing.

[piratewithvigor]

Stars

Chapter 4: 2013

In which our hero goes camping again

“Come on, we should be there soon, shouldn’t we?”

“Can’t you stop griping and just enjoy the walk?”

“How can I? You spent the three months before we moved here telling me about how dangerous this place is. Quizzing me on how to defend myself against 400 different species.”

“Aww, are you scared?”

“No!”

Kane couldn’t help but laugh. Daniel was terrified out of his wits. It was almost painfully obvious. Every time he thought Kane couldn’t see him, his eyes kept darting around the trees surrounding them. Inspecting the trees for things that might want to kill them. Which was fairly useless; everything in the Valley wanted to kill them, but nothing would dare. They knew they were under protection of the Undertaker and the creatures of the Valley respected such protection.

Even still, it just took one rogue beast to end both of them and turn them into dinner. They wouldn’t hesitate if they were hungry; the only vegan in the Valley was Daniel.

He took Daniel’s hand gently, doing his best to soothe his husband. Having had hardly any touches that weren’t meant to hurt him for decades, sometimes the gentler touches took Kane a little longer to get used to. Daniel was still the only one he could bear to touch for an extended length of time and certainly the only one he could bring himself to initiate such a touch with.

The gesture didn’t go unnoticed. Daniel exhaled softly as he squeezed a little.

He’d been excited for this trip. Hiking, camping; they were some of his favorite hobbies outside the ring. It was usually like pulling teeth to get Kane to want to come along. But he’d suggested this trip. The trip he used to take with his family on the first weekend of autumn. Spending the night in the woods of the Valley together, bonding. Kane didn’t talk about his family from before the fire too often, so Daniel was certainly not going to question why he brought it up then. Of course, at the time, the excitement had overridden the recollection that camping in the Valley was about equally dangerous as camping on a cliff face in the Grand Canyon. Except the danger was only held at bay by an unspoken supernatural promise.

So many questions from the Valley were better left unasked and just accepted.

“You’re gonna like it,” Kane promised. “It’s pretty. A lot of really soft grass.”

“I trust you.” Daniel wasn’t going to add that for as long as he’d lived there, he’d hardly seen any living grass, let alone really soft grass. Kane was excited, so he was going to keep his worries at bay. “You’re sure you remember the way, right?”

“Spent a night here every year for six years. I could find the clearing in my sleep.”

“Maybe, but that was thirty years ago.”

“Are you calling me old?”

“A little.”

“Take it back, or no s’mores for you.”

“That’s blackmail!”

“That’s life.”

“Okay, okay, I take it back.”

“Not good enough.”

Daniel exhaled in exasperation. “I’m sorry I called you old.”

“Thank you. I’m sorry I called you a goat.”

“You didn’t call me a goat.”

“I know. Now I’ve got one apology saved up for next time I do,” Kane grinned and avoided Daniel attempting a swat to the back of his head.

“You’re damn lucky you’re cute.”

“I know.”

Kane wasn’t exactly sure how he’d tricked Daniel into liking him. When they first met, they had some of the most awful fights Kane had ever been a part of. Both physically and emotionally. He hated Daniel at first. They would scream at each other until Kane was as hoarse as he’d been when he was re-learning how to talk. They were the tag team champions together and a formidable duo, but nothing like any other tag team Kane had been a part of. Everything felt wrong and off working with Daniel and it wasn’t because he felt like beating him more than their opponents. They just… had nothing in common. Except that they were both fueled with enough rage to be sent to anger management therapy together.

Kane had been gritting his teeth and hardly keeping himself from throwing Daniel through a wall every week. Until one week. The week of the trust falls.

“Daniel, just fall backwards, and Kane will catch you.”

“I will?”

He didn’t want to catch Daniel. Daniel didn’t want to be caught by Kane. Dr. Shelby was insistent. If they did this exercise, they might have a real breakthrough. Breakthroughs meant they could stop coming to these damn therapy sessions. Whether it was the promise of a breakthrough or the threat of having to do the exercise the next week, Kane wasn’t sure, but Daniel turned around.

“Kane, I trust you.”

He’d been stunned silent for a moment. Almost forgot to catch Daniel. But he didn’t. He caught Daniel’s shoulders easily and kept him from hitting the deceptively hard floor. The weight of a man who trusted him so completely so quickly was in his hands. He’d shoved Daniel upright to avoid letting him know his hands were shaking from getting so quickly overwhelmed with emotion. Dr. Shelby had been so proud of them. Moved them right on to the next phase of the exercise: working together. They were both instructed to catch some loser from the group. Even though they both put out their arms to catch him, he hit the floor hard as they pulled their arms back.

“Did you know that I wasn’t going to catch him?” Daniel had asked.

“Did you know that I wasn’t going to catch him?” Kane replied. A quiet smile had spread over Daniel’s lips.

“I think I finally understand you, Kane.”

They’d kissed for the first time that night. Still fought like cats and dogs, but in moments alone in the hotel rooms, they kissed. Sometimes they went further, sometimes they didn’t.

“We’re almost there,” Kane broke the silence, pointing with the hand that wasn’t interwoven with Daniel’s.

“Where? I don’t see any grass anywhe- holy shit…” The sight of the little clearing filled with lush, green grass seemed to take Daniel’s breath away.

“What do you think? Worth the hike?”

Daniel didn’t answer. Almost like he was dumbfounded such a soft place could exist within the harshness of the Valley.

“Daniel?”

“Very worth it.”

“You good setting up the tent while I gather the firewood?”

“Kane, I fucking swear, if you leave me alone in these woods, I will shit in your sleeping bag.”

One argument about proper firewood, one argument about tent raising techniques and three arguments about setting fires later, both of them were lying in the grass, watching the smoke from the dying fire rise into the night air.

“You shouldn’t be able to start a fire by hugging a log,” Daniel mumbled, snuggling up to Kane’s chest.

“I know.”

“How do you do that?”

“I don’t know.”

“It’s weird.”

“Can we change the subject?”

“Sure. To what?”

“Dunno. Know any good camping stories?”

“Well, there was one time I went camping with AJ and she needed to pee, but the bush under her was poison ivy and-”

“A different story!” Kane groaned, shuddering at the idea. Either because he didn’t want to know what happened with the poison ivy or because he didn’t want to know anything more about AJ than he already did. She was responsible for sending Daniel to anger management, so Kane owed her for that, but he didn’t want to know anything else.

“Okay, there was a time my family had a reunion at a campground and my aunt chopped up apples and tossed them in apple pie spices, then wrapped them in tin foil and stuck them in the coals of the campfire. Smoky apple pie filling.”

“Sounds tasty.”

“Should’ve told that story before so we could have done the same.”

“Maybe next time.”

He could promise a next time. He could swear that a year from then, he would still love Daniel. They would still be together. They could lie down in the grass and look up at the stars. They could marvel at how big the universe was and how miraculous it was that they found each other.

Far up in the night sky, a red star and one a little bigger seemed a little closer together.

[aboveallarescuer]

Daenerys Targaryen's tropes - A Mother to Her Men

This commander cares deeply about their men and exhibits it constantly. A mentor to the officers under them, they take a deep personal interest in their welfare and try to keep them out of harm's way. They would never say "We Have Reserves" unless they have absolutely no choice (and even then you can expect them to privately be torn up about it). Staff officers, engineers, and the Camp Cook will be treated with respect and made to feel as valued as the troops on the front line. However, they have no patience with the Glory Hound or the Obstructive Bureaucrat. They will never lay claim to their subordinate’s work, and will even downplay any credit that is due to them. They willown up to any mistakes, even those of their subordinates. In the latter case, they often follow up with treating their subordinate's mistakes as Career Building Blunders. When their followers are on the losing end of a battle, you better believe that No One Gets Left Behind. And when their subordinates actually die, they will remember all of their names and faces.

Gender flipped version of A Father to His Men with Dany.

Cares deeply about her followers and exhibits it constantly

Dany considered. The slaver host seemed small compared to her own numbers, but the sellswords were ahorse. She’d ridden too long with Dothraki not to have a healthy respect for what mounted warriors could do to foot. The Unsullied could withstand their charge, but my freedmen will be slaughtered. (ASOS Daenerys IV)

~

“...The slaves are weak from the march.”

“Freedmen,” Dany corrected. “They are slaves no longer.” (ASOS Daenerys V)

~

“No,” she said. “I will not march my people off to die.” My children. “There must be some way into this city.” (ASOS Daenerys V)

~

“Say the word, my sweet, and I will send you from this awful place. I will find a ship somehow and send you home. To Naath.”

“I would sooner stay with you. On Naath I’d be afraid. What if the slavers came again? I feel safe when I’m with you.”

Safe. The word made Dany’s eyes fill up with tears. “I want to keep you safe.” Missandei was only a child. With her, she felt as if she could be a child too. “No one ever kept me safe when I was little. Well, Ser Willem did, but then he died, and Viserys … I want to protect you but … it is so hard. To be strong. I don’t always know what I should do. I must know, though. I am all they have.” (ADWD Daenerys II)

~

Yesterday a wagon had been overturned and two of her soldiers killed, so today the queen had determined that she would bring the food herself. Every one of her advisors had argued fervently against it, from Reznak and the Shavepate to Ser Barristan, but Daenerys would not be moved. “I will not turn away from them,” she said stubbornly. “A queen must know the sufferings of her people.” (ADWD Daenerys VI)

~

“Go if you wish, ser. I will not detain you. I will not detain any of you.” Dany vaulted down from the horse. “I cannot heal them, but I can show them that their Mother cares.” (ADWD Daenerys VI)

~

When the gluttony was done and all the half-eaten food had been cleared away— to be given to the poor who gathered below, at the queen’s insistence— tall glass flutes were filled with a spiced liqueur from Qarth as dark as amber. (ADWD Daenerys VIII)

Refuses to forget her followers' names and faces and holds herself accountable for their deaths

“It was a cruel fate,” Dany said, “yet not so cruel as Mago’s will be. I promise you that, by the old gods and the new, by the lamb god and the horse god and every god that lives. I swear it by the Mother of Mountains and the Womb of the World. Before I am done with them, Mago and Ko Jhaqo will plead for the mercy they showed Eroeh.” (AGOT Daenerys IX)

~

Jhogo said they must leave her or bind her to her saddle, but Dany remembered a night on the Dothraki sea, when the Lysene girl had taught her secrets so that Drogo might love her more. She gave Doreah water from her own skin, cooled her brow with a damp cloth, and held her hand until she died, shivering. Only then would she permit the khalasar to press on. (ACOK Daenerys I)

~

“Your Grace,” said Ser Barristan Selmy, the lord commander of her Queensguard, “there is no need for you to see this.”

“He died for me.” (ADWD Daenerys I)

~

“Stalwart Shield shall not be forgotten. Have him washed and dressed for battle and bury him with cap and shield and spears.”

“It shall be as Your Grace commands,” said Grey Worm.

“Send men to the Temple of the Graces and ask if any man has come to the Blue Graces with a sword wound. And spread the word that we will pay good gold for the short sword of Stalwart Shield. Inquire of the butchers and the herdsmen, and learn who has been gelding goats of late.” Perhaps some goatherd would confess. “Henceforth, no man of mine walks alone after dark.” (ADWD Daenerys I)

~

“They are afraid for their children,” Reznak said.

Yes, Daenerys thought, and so am I. (ADWD Daenerys II)

~

Her freedmen were represented by the captains of the three companies she had formed—Mollono Yos Dob of the Stalwart Shields, Symon Stripe-back of the Free Brothers, Marselen of the Mother’s Men. (ADWD Daenerys III)

~

… but Daenerys Targaryen had other children, tens of thousands who had hailed her as their mother when she broke their chains. She thought of Stalwart Shield, of Missandei’s brother, of the woman Rylona Rhee, who had played the harp so beautifully. No marriage would ever bring them back to life, but if a husband could help end the slaughter, then she owed it to her dead to marry. (ADWD Daenerys IV)

~

“Who is Eroeh?”

“A girl I thought I’d saved from rape and torment. All I did was make it worse for her in the end. And all I did in Astapor was make ten thousand Eroehs.”

“Your Grace could not have known—”

“I am the queen. It was my place to know.” (ADWD Daenerys V)

~

No queen has clean hands, Dany told herself. She thought of Doreah, of Quaro, of Eroeh … of a little girl she had never met, whose name had been Hazzea. Better a few should die in the pit than thousands at the gates. This is the price of peace, I pay it willingly. If I look back, I am lost. (ADWD Daenerys VIII)

Her followers view her as their mother

“Mhysa!” a brown-skinned man shouted out at her. He had a child on his shoulder, a little girl, and she screamed the same word in her thin voice. “Mhysa! Mhysa!”

Dany looked at Missandei. “What are they shouting?”

“It is Ghiscari, the old pure tongue. It means ‘Mother.’”

Dany felt a lightness in her chest. I will never bear a living child, she remembered. Her hand trembled as she raised it. Perhaps she smiled. She must have, because the man grinned and shouted again, and others took up the cry. “Mhysa!” they called. “Mhysa! MHYSA!” They were all smiling at her, reaching for her, kneeling before her. “Maela,” some called her while others cried “Aelalla” or “Qathei” or “Tato,” but whatever the tongue it all meant the same thing. Mother. They are calling me Mother. (ASOS Daenerys IV)

~

Their eyes followed her. Those who had the strength called out. “Mother … please, Mother … bless you, Mother …” (ADWD Daenerys VI)

~

Daenerys Targaryen was wed, the guards on the pens had told them, laughing. She had taken a Meereenese slaver as her king, as wealthy as he was noble, and when the peace was signed and sealed the fighting pits of Meereen would open once again. Other slaves insisted that the guards were lying, that Daenerys Targaryen would never make peace with slavers. Mhysa, they called her. Someone told him that meant Mother. Soon the silver queen would come forth from her city, smash the Yunkai’i, and break their chains, they whispered to one another. (ADWD Tyrion X)

~

Hizdahr’s blunder with Grey Worm had cost him the Unsullied. When His Grace had tried to put them under the command of a cousin, as he had the Brazen Beasts, Grey Worm had informed the king that they were free men who took commands only from their mother. (ADWD The Queensguard)

~

“Is it true?” a freedwoman shouted. “Is our mother dead?”

“No, no, no,” Reznak screeched. “Queen Daenerys will return to Meereen in her own time in all her might and majesty. Until such time, His Worship King Hizdahr shall—”

“He is no king of mine,” a freedman yelled. (ADWD The Discarded Knight)

[belettewrites]

Some mountains and a dog part 4

previous | next | masterpost | AO3

cw: animal death mentioned

It was just before midday; they had been on the road for three yours, Jaskier on Roach and Geralt leading him. He had started doing that more, after the mountain. To show Jaskier that he was cared for; that Geralt hadn’t meant it, but did mean what he had said about wanting to apologize. And it was nice to see Jaskier on Roach, next to his and Geralt’s bags, as if he belonged with him.

Geralt had no doubt about Jaskier belonging with anyone; the bard was a mage, after all, and his own person, and was as free as a bird. He felt blessed to have Jaskier by his side – that Jaskier had been by his side for twenty years, and had chosen to stay there even when things had become shitty. Well, shittier. He had stayed when Geralt ran to find Ciri, he had stayed when it turned out that Ciri had powers, he had stayed to wait for Yennefer when it became clear that he wouldn’t be able to help much.

He had stayed and was still there, by Geralt’s side, cheeks sun-kissed and hair ruffled by the wind, laughing a laugh that was only meant for Geralt.

“Geralt!,” Jaskier suddenly gasped, turning him away from his thoughts, “Look, a dog!”

He smiled. Jaskier did this every time they came across a dog. “Geralt! Look at its tiny paws!” he would say, and Geralt would hum; “Geralt! Look at how soft it looks!” he would cry out in delight, and Geralt would hum. “Jaskier, look over there, the dog,” Geralt had said once, and Jaskier had taken his hand and squeezed it briefly before letting it go, a smile brightening his face.

“Don't approach it,” Geralt warned, “it's a shepherd dog and its job is to protect the flock. Don't want it to think you're a threat.”

Though Jaskier, even smelling magic like he always had ever since he had revealed his true nature to Geralt, didn't seem like much of a threat. But Jaskier’s safety was not something Geralt wanted to play with, so he looked over at the dog to make sure he wasn’t being threatening.

The dog had seen them and was watching them distrustfully. Especially Geralt; he was used to it, cats always hissing at him, but dogs usually were nicer. Though this one had to protect something, and there was nothing more dangerous than a dog with instincts telling him to protect something.

Geralt had once seen a dog turning on his own owner because the man was yelling quite angrily at his child, who looked close to tears. The dog, a big dog with long black fur, had growled, stepping between them. The child, unaware of what was happening, had hugged it, but their father had turned pale and after glancing down, had gone away quickly. Seemingly satisfied, the dog had licked the child’s hands, and Geralt had turned away, not forgetting how far the dog was ready to go to protect what was under its care.

So he was more than relieved when a voice called out:

“Charcoal! What are you looking at, you doof- oh!”

Jaskier dismounted Roach and straightened up, ready to defend Geralt against any prejudices.

But there was no need; the woman, when she saw them, smiled and waved her hand to say hello, the dog staying close to her, almost making her trip over it. It was almost weird, seeing another person here, when it had only been him and Jaskier for the last few days; how easy it had been, to forget about the rest of the world.

Jaskier waved back, seemingly unbothered by the sight of another human here, and Geralt relaxed as the dog turned its attention away from them. It was a big dog. "Fluffy" Jaskier would say, fur white and gray and black, its head bigger than Geralt's hand. It looked young; still in training, then.

The woman walked closer to them. She wasn't tall, but wasn't small either; red hair falling on her shoulders, freckles on her cheeks and nose. She looked – pretty, the kind of person Jaskier would have spent the night with years ago. Though he had stopped doing that well before Ciri; after his performances he would always come back to Geralt, smiling softly at him and stealing his ale. It warmed Geralt more than he could say.

“Excuse him,” the woman said, still smiling, “he thinks anyone that isn't me or my wife is a threat, but he’s a sweetheart.”

“It's nothing,” Jaskier replied, “I had a dog a bit like him when I was younger. Great with children, though you should've seen how he reacted when someone that wasn't us walked by.”

The woman laughed.

“Well, let me say, it is nice to meet other souls up here. I'm Violet.” she added with a smile.

Then she hesitated, glancing at Jaskier then turning her attention back to Geralt, and to his swords.

“Say, I don't want to sound rude, but- what are you doing here? I mean, there's no one here but me and my wife, and the occasional traveler. We have a beast that steals the sheep, but apart from that, I don't think it's the kind of place you'd expect to find lots of contracts. Or a court to play in,” she added after glancing at Jaskier's lute case.

“Geralt needed some holidays,” Jaskier replied at the same time Geralt said “Jaskier wanted to see the mountains.”

“What?” Geralt blurted out, freezing.

Jaskier turned to him, a soft look in his eyes. Violet watched them without saying anything, an amused smile on her lips.

“Geralt, you spent the whole winter being a teacher to- Fiona, and before that you spent the whole year hunting monsters and saving humanity. You deserved a break. Though, frankly, I didn't expect you to agree so easily.”

Geralt hummed. Jaskier didn’t know that he would agree to anything he would ask, though he was sure the other man was already aware of that, to some extent. Jaskier laughed, gently took his arm, and faced the woman again.

“See? The things I have to do?”

“My wife’s the same. I swear, she wouldn’t rest if I wasn’t there to remind her,” she smiled before adding, “Lila – my wife – and I are taking care of a sort of refuge for travelers, like you; eat lunch with us, and we'll see if we can ready a room for you, so you won't have to worry about sleeping in the woods tonight.”

“It's fine,” Jaskier started, “we-”

“You shouldn't,” the woman insisted, “there's something lurking around at night – it has killed two sheep already, and our old dog too, it- it wasn't pretty to see. My wife had to put an end to his misery, it was – rough.”

The pain was evident in her eyes, reflecting the loss of a life companion. Geralt saw Jaskier put his hand on Roach’s muzzle.

“So when you said there was no contract here-” Geralt tried to ask.

“Ah, well. It's just that, I'm afraid we don't have much coin to offer you, sir witcher. A beast, but no contracts,” she shrugged, though he could see she was tired.

Jaskier took his hand and squeezed it; Geralt tried very hard not to feel too warm at that, and hummed. His bard smiled knowingly.

“I'll take care of the beast,” Geralt said, “in exchange for lunch, and ale for my bard, if you have some.”

Violet smiled at them, a bit unsure but grateful nonetheless.

“Follow me, it’s not that far.”

She then started walking and they followed, still staying close to each other.

“I think we may have some goat cheese left,” Violet said, still in front of them, expertly avoiding stepping on unsteady rocks. “My wife makes them and they’re delicious – and I swear I’m not biased!”

Jaskier replied something; what, Geralt didn’t know. He let him carry the conversation like he always did, smiling and winking and actually caring about what was being said to him. Geralt was just happy to be there, Jaskier next to him. Happy to be known, too – he did need to take a break, after spending the whole winter teaching Ciri, and the beginning of spring fighting monsters. He would take care of Violet and her wife’s problem, they’d spend the night here, and they would go on the day after, pleased to be in each other's company. Maybe the life of a witcher could be sunny, too, sometimes.

***

“Honey? I found travelers that haven’t tasted your fine goat cheese yet!” Violet called out, a grin on her face as she opened the door of her house, the bells that were hung on it happily tinkling.

They had walked for ten minutes on a dusty road after finding Violet, the dog Charcoal running back and forth around them, always going back to her but lingering around Geralt in hope that he would pet him.

Jaskier knew that Geralt had a sweet spot for animals even if they didn’t always return it; he could think of at least three different occurrences where Geralt had looked absolutely dumbstruck when a dog had made its way to him before standing on his hind legs to beg for pets. On one occasion, a cat had made its way to their table when they were sitting in a tavern, and Jaskier would never forget how Geralt’s face had softened when the cat had allowed him to pet it.

Jaskier hid a smile when Geralt removed one of his gloves to pet the dog, who wagged his tail in obvious joy. Fuck, but bringing Geralt here had been a wonderful idea.

They were now waiting outside an admittedly pretty good-looking house, made out of dark stones that once must have been part of the volcanoes around them. The wood shutters looked old, but it seemed like someone had been carefully treating the wood with oil that would make it last longer, and it was overall obvious that the house was very well cared for – that it was not only a house, but also a home. Small, little violet flowers that Jaskier recognized as crocuses were growing under the windows, and it was absurd how much it made the place look welcoming and happy, as if an artist had put their brush here, adding a soft touch of color to an almost dark painting.

Jaskier was putting weight on his right leg since his left knee was still hurting him a bit – the bruise had gone from deep blue to pale yellow, but he avoided using that leg as much as he could, hoping that Geralt wouldn’t notice – though he had obviously failed at that, as Geralt had forced him to ride Roach earlier. It was something they did, now, Jaskier pretending that he didn’t want to ride and Geralt sighing fondly before helping him climb on the saddle.

“I’m surprised you even agreed to share it, honey,” a woman replied, short brown hair tied back by a black bandanna. She was almost tackled by Charcoal who in his joy to see her again had jumped on her. “Hold on, you doof, we’ve seen each other this morning.”

Violet was laughing again, and Jaskier smiled; it was good, to see people happy. It was good to see them with Geralt by his side, to let Geralt see that you could work but still let yourself be happy.

“Lila, this is Jaskier the bard,” Violet said, “and Sir Geralt. They’re quite famous, did you know? Sir Geralt said he’d take care of the thing that’s taking our sheep if we let him and his bard have lunch with us.”

Lila looked at them, squinting her eyes to see them better. Jaskier smiled at her, and Geralt – well, Geralt did his best, Jaskier assumed.

“Come on in, then,” she finally replied, “we wouldn’t want the stew to grow cold.”

***

The inside of the house was quite simple, but still showed that this place was a safe haven for both Violet and her wife and the travelers that apparently sometimes passed by.

“We’re not officially a refuge,” Lila explained as Jaskier helped her dress the table, “we just welcome people and offer them a room for the night – especially in winter, when it gets particularly cold outside.”

Jaskier nodded without replying anything. Lila seemed surlier than her wife but she still was a kind soul, ready to help. She reminded him of Geralt, in a way.

The room was nice; it was large, the windows letting the sun pour its light inside, brightening the place and making the floating dust look like sparks. There were plants hanging from the ceiling, and Jaskier saw that Geralt took a moment to admire them. It was strange, to see a house where a special thought had been put into the decoration – the places they were staying at usually didn’t care much for that kind of thing, and Kaer Morhen was more about practicality before beauty.

At the center of the room was a wooden table surrounded by two benches, one on which Geralt was sitting, listening to Violet who was animatedly talking, a dish towel in her hands, the dog sitting at her feet. Jaskier let his mind wander as he set down the pitcher full of wine but was brought back by the mention of his name in Violet and Geralt’s conversation.

“Jaskier and you, do I need to prepare two rooms? We have enough of them, it wouldn’t bother us.”

He tensed, but still pretended that he wasn’t listening. It would be weird, not sleeping next to Geralt after all these years – even at Kaer Morhen they had shared a room, Geralt not quite ready to let him go after barely escaping Nilfgaard and Jaskier needing the proximity of his witcher to be able to fall asleep. And they shared all the time on the path, to share warmth and to save coin.

But there were no threats here, no need to save their coin, and so Jaskier prepared himself for a sleepless night. It would be fine, not reading to Geralt, not braiding his hair before going to bed – it would be fine.

“Just one room will be enough,” Geralt replied, and Jaskier almost dropped the glasses he was about to put on the table. Well, that – that was nice. Maybe Geralt needed him close to be able to sleep, too.

Jaskier glanced up and met Lila’s eyes; she raised an eyebrow at him, clearly aware of his inner turmoil.

“Lunch is ready,” she announced instead of saying whatever it was that she had been thinking about Jaskier and his… feelings… for his traveling companion.

They took place on the benches, Jaskier and Geralt facing each other. Lila served the stew, and Geralt took Jaskier’s plate wordlessly, taking the carrots out of it and then giving it back to him. Jaskier smiled at his friend, and Geralt shrugged as if it were normal. Which it was, had been ever since Jaskier had said twenty years ago that he didn’t like carrots.

“So this beast,” Jaskier started, munching on his stew, “what does it do, exactly?”

Violet and Lila exchanged a glance, and Lila put her fork down, drinking a bit of wine before answering. Geralt had not stopped eating, though Jaskier had seen him discreetly hand Charcoal a piece of bread.

“It- takes the sheep,” Lila started, “and nothing else. Happens only at night, though, and Violet wanted to stay up but I told her that I’d rather not lose her to that thing. What are a few sheep next to my wife?”

Violet had blushed a little, but was fondly looking at her wife.

“There were footprints,” Lila went on, “but not ones that I could identify. Like, they look like ones of a wolf, but – they weren’t, not really.”

They all fell into a contemplative silence only broken by Charcoal’s loud breathing. Geralt slipped him another piece of bread, and Jaskier bit his cheek to prevent himself from telling him that he was teaching that dog terrible manners by rewarding him like that.

“How often does it happen?” Geralt asked, acting as if the big dog wasn’t lovingly staring up at him, hoping for more food.

“We don’t know,” Violet replied, her voice soft, “some weeks nothing happens, and then the next we lose two sheep and our dog.”

She looked up at Geralt, and Jaskier was stricken by the acceptance on her face.

“You said you would go and take a look, Sir Geralt, but there’s no guarantee that you’ll find it. But that would be okay – it hasn’t attacked us, and we know better than to go out during the night. And – you being willing to go already is – well, it’s-”

“What my wife is trying to say,” Lila cut in when it became obvious that Violet didn’t know how to end her sentence, “is that we’re already grateful that you would try to take care of it, and that even if you didn’t find anything, we would be okay. We’ve survived so far.”

Geralt nodded, and Jaskier found himself thinking about a song about two lovers, facing what Destiny was making them face, getting hurt and injured but always having each other and always going on –

Then he realized that it sounded a bit too much like him and Geralt, if him and Geralt had been lovers, and his ears grew hot.

“I’ll still go and see what I can do,” Geralt replied. “I’ll go tomorrow night.”

Lila nodded, and Violet smiled again.

“Now,” Violet started, “I was wondering, Jaskier, if you would be okay with playing something tonight?”

It had been a while since he had played for other people- well, okay, maybe not that long, but still. Playing for himself was okay, playing for Geralt was more than nice, but playing for other people? That was what had made Jaskier start to play, first for his sister who loved music but couldn’t sneak out to listen to music she actually liked like he could, then for bigger crowds. It wasn’t about being loved by his public, it was about people loving what they were hearing and forgetting about life for a while.

“Of course,” he smiled, “I’d be more than happy to.”

“He sings well,” Geralt said, and Jaskier blinked at him before feeling his face warming up.

“Why thank you, darling,” he managed to reply before turning to Lila. “Need help with something this afternoon?”

Lila looked at him with the same knowing look in her brown eyes that she had had earlier, and shrugged.

“Not particularly. Tomorrow, though?”

He grinned at her.

“I look forward to it. Now, tell me, I was promised a very fine cheese, made by the most talented cheese maker of the continent – her words,” he added while gesturing towards Violet, “not mine.”

Violet laughed and Lila stood up.

“I’ll go fetch it, it’s good with bread. If you haven’t fed it to the dog,” she added while glancing at Geralt, who froze on the bench. Jaskier burst out laughing, but still took his own piece of bread and broke it in half.

“Here, dear heart, take half of mine,” he managed to say, shoulders still shaken by his laughter.

“Hmm,” Geralt replied, which only made Jaskier laugh harder, losing himself in the mirth of Geralt’s golden eyes.

[notfeelingthyaster]

Imagine (Son of Hades! Percy; Godswapped! Big Three's kids (6/7) or (11/12)

House of Hades Pt.2 - In the Argo II

Hello darlings! Before reading this, there's at least other 11 parts - and I almost had to divide this into two - check on the masterpost - but don't be sad is ending :(

First - I have no idea if I'll divide Blood of Olympus in two because I hate the climax Rick wrote - so probably? Also not sure if I'll need an epilogue - we're not delving into TOA, though.

Second - I'll keep writing! I have a handful of ideas that I want to do next - and the next AU will have Female! Percy - so keep logging in!

Check on the warnings before proceeding, and good reading :))

To say that things are tense in the Argo II is downplaying the major depression the ship seemed to be sunk in since Perseus fell.

Leo and, surprisingly, Nico are the only ones who are able to get anything done in the first couple of days, but they aren't fooling anyone - the white eyes of the son of Zeus seem to be every day a little more bloodshot, and more than one fire happens without no explanation.

Annabeth didn't stop crying for a second - even throughout Will's examination of her and her brother - for at least 12 hours. Then she crashed for another 12 hours - and when Annabeth woke up, she was enraged.

She is going to bring the damned statue back to Camp - and then she will kick her mother's ass. That's her best friend, not collateral damage.

And when her dumbass of a best friend comes back, Annabeth is going to kick his ass too. How dare he fall - for her, not even his closest friend - into freaking Tartarus?

Frank is devastated - he and Piper are coping by planning the future - how they can spend the summer at Camp and live in Nova Roma, how they'll visit Perseus if he decides to go to college in the mortal world. It feels a little like denial.

Hazel and Jason are coping in the totally opposite way. Where Leo and Nico are fueling themselves with determination, Annabeth is anger personified and the other two went in the road of negation - they're both in a deep state of panic.

The sea became too dangerous to travel - the tides answering to Jason's turbulent emotions - and any metal on board keeps exploding or becoming so fueled with energy that no one but Nico and Hazel can touch it.

They pray together - for Neptune, Jupiter, Pluto, Letum, any god that Perseus ever helped (a lot of them) - for his protection. Jason holds evening prayers - just like in Nova Roma - and they offer anything, everything, for Percy to be alive. Everyone goes.

Except for Will, who is in a whole other league. The moment that he arrived at Camp, Percy was the one to settle him, and calm him, and take care of him. It was a side of him no other person in this ship had ever seen - Nico got in Camp in the worst timing possible, and all the others were pretty independent when they met Perseus.

But Will remembers - the nights with hot chocolate, Percy's warm sweaters, a pair of blue gloves messing his hair, the anxiety when the boy left for school, just for him to keep IMing Will every evening - and he misses Percy.

After the Labyrinth, the war, the losses, they reconnected - the prejudices against Percy's parentage long gone - and it felt like nothing ever changed.

It was Percy who helped him coming out for his mother. It was Percy that held Will after he lost Sibele - a daughter of Momus - to her injuries. It was Percy, always Percy.

Percy is much more of a father then Apollo - and much better as a brother then some of Will's siblings. So Will just locks himself up in his infirmary - and grieves. It's weird in such a hard mission to remember that Will is just fifteen and that he is a veteran of war.

The mood lingers, even when they start fighting regularly against the Apennines - and isn't this a whole other mess.

The mountain spirits are pissed - because Hades/Pluto and his wife are really pissed. It's Malcolm - the only one with a phone and a good connection to the internet - that tells them that the world started having earthquakes every few days.

The mortals are confused because most of these are not even close to the tectonic plates - and none of those cause turmoil at the sea. It's just Hades - mightly pissed his only son is beyond even his reach.

Three days in fighting the Ourae - who don't like having their mountains shaken over and over again - the sky also starts thundering. Coincidentally, it's July 30th - they've been traveling for twenty-two days - which also marks Thesmophoria - the greek festival of harvest.

But, alas, nothing is blooming. Persephone is as dangerous as her husband - and Demeter seems to follow her daughter's lead. With the Earth corrupted - the crops aren't growing.

Jason doesn't blame his matron - he is not really happy himself. Besides praying for Perseus' safety, he spends most of his days in patrol against boulders and rocks of all things.

Leo barely sleeps - too busy keeping the ship from falling apart - and Nico is, most of the time, right behind him keeping the ship steady. They try using canons and fail miserably. There's no way to fight against mountains - it's like Dom Quixote fighting against the windmills.

The others, even Will, rotate between fighting rocks and sleeping. Four days after Thesmophoria, Leo decides it's enough, turns the ship around, and solves to not cross the Apennines.

He just hopes Perseus can last another seven days.

Hazel - the only one awake, because this is supposed to be her patrol and Leo finds her the most reasonable out of all their friends, who would probably insist on keep fighting the freaking mountains - is praying. Like always.

Leo doesn't know how he feels about praying. His extended family was very catholic - they prayed for a god that they couldn't see or touch. But Leo met the gods - or, if Annabeth is to be believed, one set of them - and he doesn't like them.

They're petty children who have no care for the fate of their children - the ones who fight for them, go on their errands, keep them alive, y'know. Leo doesn't want to praise them. He doesn't think they deserve it.

But Hazel's prayers are answered when her venti, Tempest, appears aboard. Hazel tells Leo to go on without her - she'll be back soon.

He is concerned for her - like always. Of all new people, Leo seems to be the closest to her - his overall cheeriness and electric behavior are endearing to her, a light in these dark times. Sometimes, his smile makes her flush - just like Frank's did and still does.

Hazel mounts Tempest and the venti takes her, through mountains and hills, to a door. There's mist curling at her ankles and a chill in her spine.

She isn't very thrilled by meeting Trivia - Hazel heard stories of her greek son by Perseus, who seemed to hold the guy in high standard, but she knows gods. The goddess of magic wants something.

Trivia is an imposing woman - taller than Hazel, she has the same midnight skin as Perseus, though hers looks purple-ish, and her eyes are entire universes - stars bloom in her irises and twin moons rise in her pupils.

The goddess is fickle - she seems to be there and not, at the same time. Ghostly. There's three of them, then one, then five.

Trivia beacons to the daughter of Jupiter and she follows, the cursed little girl she is. The goddess offers her three options: Perseus, prone in the ground as she, Leo, and Annabeth battle an invisible foe, the two demigod installments at war, or the Argo II.

Hazel chooses the Argo II, but she promises herself, and the goddess, that she will save Perseus, and that no demigod blood will be spilled by other demigod's hand. Not again.

She will learn how to control the Mist. But Trivia is very mistaken if she thinks Hazel is going to become her acolyte. She remembers well what happened last time - she died.

The Argo II is traveling without much hassle - when they're crossing Monte Falterona, in the Campigna National Park, they are attacked by a new mountain spirit - and this one talks.

"Get Pluto his brat back, you useless halflings!"

Like the boulders the immortal is throwing at them will help. Leo screams this back at the mountain, who is not impressed at all.

Their next foe is in San Marino - a chimera. Most popular knowledge is wrong about those monsters: chimeras are not just goat-lion-snake mixes. They are an amalgamation of any three or more animals.

This one, in particular, is a very... candid mix of a Pyrenean chamois, a monk-seal, a mouflon, and a goose. Not very lethal or hazardous - just very angry. It's the first time they hear Annabeth laugh since Perseus fell.

While Malcolm is chasing and being chased around by an evil goat-goose-seal-weirdass deer chimera that he is fending off with an encyclopedia, the others can't even bring themselves to help. It's ridiculous - the thing is not even big. It's just ugly and it sounds like a honking clown.

Eventually, they get around to killing the clown chimera - it honks as it vanishes - and following route to Bologna. Frank tries to mutate to the chimera during the travel - to different levels of failure - which makes everyone laugh.

Thanks to their two encounters, the crew gets to Bologna at two in the afternoon.

Frank can't help counting the days as they pass him by. He is not the only one - he can see Annabeth muttering the time every now and then - but it feels like a countdown. Can Perseus survive one more week in Tartarus?

Even with the pressing worry for his lost friend, he can't stop thinking about Hazel and Leo. The two of them are thick as thieves - and Frank wants in.

But he knows it's wrong - Leo is a boy. Hazel is younger. Leo bares a power that could kill him. Hazel is his best friend. They're two people. - but he sees them flirting and can't keep his eyes to himself.

It's wrong. Soldiers aren't supposed to date men. Men who dated men are prostitutes, entertainers. Less. And two people at the same time? Outside of a bedroom? Preposterous.

Frank wishes he was more like Perseus. Perseus is all about duty: he would eventually marry Reyna. Or Annabeth, or other pretty and intelligent warrior, and have two point five kids with a picket fence.

But no. Here he is - midday, they are stopping for lunch, and he can't keep his eyes off Leo and Hazel - who are quietly chatting in the other end of the long table.

Frank ponders what would they think. Would the two be repulsed? Would they laugh at him? He can deal with laughter. Their disgust, however, would cut his heart in half.

Nico is in a very similar, and yet completely different, situation. He has been in love - or as close as love could be when you never dated the person - with Perseus Jackson.

He knows it's okay to be gay - he is friends with Will and Jake. He lives on CHB since he was a pre-teen. Perseus himself was - is - queer.

But the thing is, he'll never have a chance with him. Not the chance he is longing for gods know how long. He failed Perseus yet again - he let the demigod fall.

Perseus can have anyone. Perfect Annabeth Chase, Shrewd Reyna Arellano, Magic Alabaster Torrington, anyone. And he wouldn't have a problem with that - no. The problem is that he can't make a choice. Because he is in Tartarus.

Because Nico. Let. Him. Fall.

He isn't even sure if he let Perseus fall on purpose. A part of his mind knew someone would have to go. It was always meant to be Perseus. Did he purposefully let him go?

The rational part of his mind knew that if he tried to fly them off, all he would accomplish is falling into Tartarus with Perseus, probably dragging Annabeth with them.

But the guilt creeps into his heart - again, yet again, Perseus suffers for something he did or failed to do. He can't sleep. He doesn't know how anyone can eat.

A rock for him in these difficult times has been Jason. The son of Neptune seems to be as affected as Hazel or Annabeth - but Nico would never be able to rely on them.

Hazel has her own problems - a lot of them since Trivia appeared - and Annabeth is a painful reminder of everything Nico is unable to have.

Jason, however, is different. They had dreams of each other - something about their conquests, Nico didn't pay attention - and that apparently brought them close. Jason, differently from Annabeth, isn't a competition. He isn't vying for Percy's attention and love.

He is just a close friend - like Nico pretends to be most of the time - incredibly worried about the son of Hades. Nico would tell Jason about how he feels - but the militar roman's sensibilities might not be adjusted to the greeks' freedom yet.

Nico, however, is also not the only one with heart problems. Piper finds himself entranced by Annabeth Chase - even when she knows, she knows because of her powers, that Annabeth is painfully straight.

And Piper knows it's not love - it's the heat of the upcoming war and the hormones of being cooped up with just other teenagers for twenty days. She sees the blossoms of young lovers everywhere.

The yearning between Leo, Hazel, and Frank; Nico and Jason unconsciously sharing long-term crushes on Perseus; Will missing Jake and his parental figure;

She wishes she was more like Malcolm. Malcolm is asexual - besides being the only other transexual person on board.

Before this war spiked from nothing, the boy was just back from his mission for Hermaphroditus - a two-month search for a missing choker. He is still adapting to his body - it's bigger and broader and he doesn't have to wear a binder. Piper thinks it's amazing - he tells her it isn't that easy.

It's not a slow transition. One second your body is something - and then it isn't. One morning, the demigod caught him holding a red binder in his hands. Sometimes, she sees a shot of testosterone tucked in his pocket.

One day, he was a boy stuck in a girl's body. Then, he wasn't anymore. He has the body he dreamed of for forever - and it's difficult accepting it. Malcolm tells her is not exactly body dysphoria - is just difficult to conciliate.

Piper thinks after this, she'll get her body. After all of this, she deserves it - her body, all hers, with boobs and a killer jawline. Maybe then, it'll be easier to like girls as well. Maybe then, she'll shave half of her head and get a piercing. And maybe, a couple of tattoos.

But while this doesn't happen, she is whining to her asexual friend about her crush in his sister. Malcolm crushes her with logic - "Annabeth has only shown interest in men. She might be bi or pan or even a lesbian, but the odds aren't on your favor" - and she tries to put the blonde out of her mind.

Lunch, however, is a little ridiculous for her. As a daughter of love herself, that table is such a mess of yearning and pining and infatuations.

Malcolm seems to be the only rational - but even he is a little flushed. Piper totally saw that picture of Mitchell in his drawer last week.

She couldn't blame him really - her brother is hot. All demigods are - in very different ways of course, but their godly blood made them more or less otherworldly compared to mortals. Didn't matter their ethnicity, their gender, if they're disabled or not - they are all hot.

Piper, however, doesn't spend all her time freaking over hot people. She is a teenager with a friend who has a good connection to the internet, so she does that a lot - but most of her time these days is looking at Katoptris.

She's waiting for a vision of Perseus. Anything - just proof that he is alive, that he hasn't curled in a ball on whatever is the ground down there and went mad.

It doesn't come. She is looking at this ridiculous lunch table, eating vegetarian burgers, and waiting. Just as it seems like her dagger starts glowing gold - two monkey twins sweep down and steal it. And Leo's tool belt and Archimedes' Sphere.

Piper is really pissed. She wants this mission to end - she wants to find Perseus and stop Gaea, and that's her magical item. It's important. So she and Leo go after the twin monkeys.

Using one of the armory's javelin - for lack of a better option - they sprint over roofs and marketplaces. Bologna is a beautiful city - but they have no time.

They corner the twin monkeys, get their things back - and some things pertaining to a god of harvest - Triptolemus. Perhaps if they make an offer to him, Demeter and Persephone will be more cooperative. Maybe Persephone will be able to calm her husband.

Piper really doubts it. If she learned anything in the nineteen days she traveled with Perseus, is that he calls Persephone "Kore" or "Mater". The only other person he refers to with such open childish joy is his own mother, Sally.

The guy IMed both of them twice a week - enough that Piper knows their voices. While Hades isn't high in the demigod's list of people, his wife seemed to be at least number #2.

But they go back to the ship and relay their plan anyway. They set route to Venice. In the hour that it takes them to get there, they're delayed twice: once by the personification of River Ádige - which enabled them to pass until Jason helped with a small problem - and then by a couple of ventis - which Hazel sent off.

Frank, Annabeth, Hazel and Nico venture into the drowned city - Piper declines to go, saying that she is waiting for Katoptris to cooperate - being Nico the only one who actually speaks Italian in the ship.

The city is infested with anteater-like herbivorous monsters called katoplebones, which are pointedly not from the Greek pantheon. It's pretty rare for monsters to cross pantheons - and the Egyptians are pretty good in keeping them under lock and key - but sometimes, this happens.

They aren't capacitated to deal with those. Annabeth has half a mind to call the Kanes and demand an explanation. Pretty sure they were possessed by the gods to avoid this kind of situation.

She doesn't have much time to think - Hazel is quickly overwhelmed by the poisonous breath of the cows. Of course - is there anything in Egypt that isn't connected to snakes?

They find Triptolemus - who is not thrilled with their presence. Demeter - his mistress - and her daughter are distraught by Perseus' missing status - and he blames Annabeth and Nico for it.

Annabeth tries to persuade him - after all, they have Jason on board, and he is blessed by Ceres. Triptolemus - a very greek god - is not swayed.

"Your trickster words shall not fool me, daughter of Athena."

That's how Annabeth became a rosemary bush - good for memory and brainpower. Nico, when he tried to fight back, became a corn crop.

Mars is whispering in Frank's mind - he is not really fond of his father but uses his help to kill the evil Egyptian cows and get a python for the god's chariot.

He can't let Hazel die. He can't see the light go off her eyes - to see the same pain reflected in Leo's eyes. But Frank is so using Nico's stunt as a corn plant as blackmail material later. Not with Annabeth thought - she would stab him.

Triptolemus, pleased, turns Nico and Annabeth back to human and heals Hazel. Then, he tells them they have to eat barley cakes - so they can survive the poison needed to enter the house of the dead.

Proceeding south down the Adriatic toward Greece, a journey that should take about half a day, the crew of the Argo II is first accosted in Koper - a city on the coast of Slovenia - by four monocerus in the middle of the night.

Monocerus, in Leo's very succinct explanation, are "evil unicorns with big feet that can't fly and shouldn't be in a flying ship".

Whoever, the monsters apparently don't care where they should or not be - and Annabeth - still reeling for her time as rosemary - takes two of them out, keeping the horns as a prize. Nico takes one, who is so beat that leaves nothing, and Malcolm kills one with a handgun.

It's not the most practical weapon, because celestial bronze is not that easy to fabricate/find/obtain - so to use it in bullets that will explode and render it unusable it's kind of a desperate - but it's the first thing he could get - Malcolm's double tessen was being repaired by Leo.

Because yes - not only was the twenty years old able to fight with normal blades, he also fights with freaking fans made of iron.

After the run-in with the evil unicorns - Annabeth looks really cool covered in gold blood and curved silver horns in her hands - they proceed across Croatia.

It goes well for about thirty minutes - in Zadar, they cross paths with Sciron. Sciron is a bandit and outlaw, who - for some reason, is assisted by a giant predatory sea turtle.

While Hazel tricks him into throwing himself off the cliff using her new-discovered Mist, Jason talks to the turtle. It says its name is Chelone - that it's the turtle who took Aphrodite Ourania from the depths of the sea to the shores of Cythera - when she was still young, with remains of other goddesses in her anima - Innana and Ishtar.

He convinces the turtle to stop killing people - mainly by saying that he should hunt elsewhere, deeper onto the sea. It may become a problem for his father, but Jason has bigger issues right now.

They go to sleep, and Hazel dreams. She expects any god to come - but who comes to her is none other than Pluto and his wife, Proserpina.

Proserpina is shrouded in black, and her eyes are not green - but yellowish, like dead leaves. She talks - and tells Hazel that the Doors of Death are in the bottom of the Necromanteion - her powers over metal energy would guide her - and will be guarded by Pasiphae, vengeful of Pluto - and, by default, Perseus - for the lack of punishment for Minos.

Her husband is a silent presence by her side. He is not in mourning... probably. It's difficult to tell, as he is always in black. But his eyes hold a weight easy for Hazel to understand - he just lost a son to the abyss. No matter that Perseus might be alive - he wouldn't get back whole and safe.

Proserpina ends her dream by telling her to wake up Piper - the goddess is putting all her strength to send a vision of Perseus to Katoptris - they need one much more than her, seeing that they are able to interfere.

What Piper sees don't tell them a lot - Perseus seems mostly okay, with some sort of companion that Nico says it might be Iapetus, a brand new scar over his face and a bad limp.

It's the last they'll see of him until their eventual meeting face to face, but it gives them hope.

Annabeth herself has a dream - a dream that the Romans give the statue to the greeks. She sends an iris message to Rachel - so she can meet personally with Reyna.

Reyna, on the other side of the world, mounts her pegasus, Scipio, and leaves. Not only her co-praetor is in freaking Tartarus, but they are on the verge of two simultaneous wars. They need peace.

As soon as she is out of the roman range, however, she sends an iris message to Jason - telling him to go to their hero's place of rest - she had a vision from Mars. That she will meet them in Greece. Jason tells Leo to set course for Split, in Croatia. There's a roman scepter there.

Of all of them, the most capacitated for this mission are Frank and Jason, who are both educated Romans, and Nico, who can fly - a very good power to have in unstable ruins.

They're confronted by Favonious, who takes them to his master, Cupid, in Dalmatia. Nothing good can come of talking to the personification of love - such an old concept that the god has been reborn twice.

"Well, well, well"

"What do we have here?"

Jason falls onto the ground - "You think you found true love, haven't you? But alas, I was where you last expected me" - and he hates love, for that single moment.

"I shall give you what you want, Romans, if each of you is able to tell me - who do you love the most?"

Nico trembles - guilt is a difficult pill to swallow - and Frank visibly wants to bolt out of there.

"Oh, are you afraid? But there's no hiding in the face of true love"

Jason - always the brave one - gives a look at Frank. His friend never met the greeks. He might hate Jason after this.

But they need this scepter.

"Perseus Jackson"

Two heads whips in his direction - one unbelievingly, and the other distressed.

"Ah, love crafted in dreams - the perfect mix between me and my wife. Tell me, Jason Grace, was it bad when he looked upon you and saw naught but a myth?"

A laugh creeps upon Jason's spine, and he turns around. His blade hits something hard, and he is on the floor again.

"Such luck, to be able to even graze love. Perhaps yours is the purest of all - not yet tainted by failures and mistakes. On that note, why don't you go next, Nico di Angelo?"

Nico shivers - he... they have no time for that. That is unnecessary drama - to cause unnecessary problems.

A memory rushes to the front of Jason's mind - that quick chat with Reyna in Nova Roma. "The blond girl, Di Angelo"

Nico loves Perseus. It rushes to Jason now - the way that the younger boy stared adoringly at the son of Hades. The drunkness of his lovesick gaze. The despair when Perseus fell.

"Tell them Nico di Angelo" Cupid prompts "Tell them all about your guilt, your mistakes, the way you let him down, again and again, and again."

Nico floats a little off the ground. It's years of pain and sorrow that won't bring Perseus back.

"Will you fly off yet again, in the face of rivalry? Will you be my next servant - just like Favonious, consumed by jealousy, Nico di Angelo?"

Jason sees the memories. Nico screaming at Perseus. Grover reluctantly telling him about their adventures. The way he betrayed Percy - and a dozen more scenes he never saw from Nico's perspective, only Percy's, that made him unable to speak.

"It's okay Nico... I.... I get it."

It's painful to utter these words - it's almost like he is giving up Perseus. But they have a war to get through - and then, when the other demigod is back, they can figure this out.

"P-Perseus Jackson"

And then it's Frank's turn. But Frank is as pale as a ghost - he seems to be close to vomiting.

"It's a costly thing isn't it, looking at the true face of love. Now it's the turn of the brave son of Mars. Will you tell your friends easily, or shall you be a coward like the son of Zeus?"

Frank doesn't talk. Jason doesn't understand why - it's Hazel, isn't it? Is it because of Nico? He mentions talking to the son of Zeus, but Di Angelo doesn't look at him - the Cupid knew very well how to play his game.

"Come on. Tell them - tell them of whom you think before you sleep and who dominates your first thoughts every morning."

"You don't scare me"

"Oh, I scare you very, very much. Face me. Be honest."

"H-Hazel. Levesque."

"That's just half my question, little half-blood. If you want to lead the roman legions, you must answer it fully."

"I love H-Hazel. She is the one I think before I sleep and when I wake up."

"Still hiding. You're not strong enough, Frank Zhang."

Frank tries to charge at the wind, but it just mocks him. It's weird seeing Frank crying - it looks like the world is crumbling at his feet.

Jason, yet again, doesn't understand. Nico is also confused - he looks between the Romans as if he never saw any of them before. But then it dawns on the son of Zeus.

"Not only my sister. That's why you keep gazing at them, isn't it?"

All the fighting and denial leave Frank at once. His sword clangs in the ground.

"I love both Hazel and Leo. Together." He spits out, still trembling. "That's the truth. Are you happy now?"

"I wouldn't say Love always makes you happy. It can make you incredibly sad, sometimes. But you have faced it now. It's the only true way to conquer me."

Cupid appears - in a flash of white wings. It might be the god Jason hates the most - his eyes seem to penetrate his very soul. There's a scepter in his hand.

"Only a true child of Mars Ultor can yield it. It's your destiny, Frank Zhang."

Then he promptly disappears. The demigods look at each other - there's a flurry of emotions deep inside their chests. Frank looked at both of them, waiting for an attack, or for them to start fighting.

"No one has to know" He starts "I'm s-so-..."

He doesn't end. There are copious tears rolling through his face - his cheeks are a deep shade of red. A sob escapes his throat.

"P-please, p-pleased-don't t-te-tell anyone." Frank sobs, and it's such a jarring sight that both Nico and Jason rally to reassure him, leaving their own issues aside.

"There's nothing wrong with loving two people at once. No one will have a problem with it, Frank - fuck, this isn't Nova Roma. Most of us are greek."

"Hazel would hate me though. This is unnatural- I- I can't."

"You don't know that. Hazel loves you, Frank"

But the son of Mars just keeps crying until they both promise not to tell another soul what they saw. It's enough for the weird atmosphere to return.

Midway in the trek back to the ship - a six-hour walk - Nico is too riled up to safely fly with two people and none of them being too fond of air right now - Frank summons enough power to ask the question.

"So... uh... hm... Perseus?... like, uh, I can see the appeal-... but... both?... forget I asked, just....uh oh, sorry."

Jason and Nico pointedly avoid looking at each other. It's very bizarre - Jason knows a lot about Perseus, but now he knows Perseus also from Nico's perspective - and this is all messy.

They go back to the ship, relay to Annabeth that they got the scepter, and immediately go back to their cabins - to cry, to scream, to think.

It's been a day and a half - and they're still eleven hours off Epirus. Leo is pissed - because not only their three heavy-hitters are pissed at something and won't communicate, and they're of course.

Emerging from the infirmary for something other than to eat and mend people is finally Will - at least. He takes patrol in place of Nico - the boy quietly mumbled at his friend that they had a run-in with Cupid. Will can imagine how that went.

He doesn't have a clue about Frank - but Jason and Nico? They have the same long-lasting crush on Perseus - everyone on board knows that. Except, apparently, for each other. And Perseus - because his mentor/kind of brother/bother figure is a dumbass.

When they're passing through the coast of Albany, they're attacked by Khione - who is still very pissed her ex-lover's son doesn't want to spend eternity frozen with her. Leo ends up being sent away - for the distress of both Hazel and Frank and the anger of his best friends, Piper and Jason.

Piper ends up stabbing Khione - while Frank transforms into the giant dragon and burns her - making her unable to freeze them. Eventually, she runs away.

Leo, however, wakes up on an island. There's a sad girl at his side - she is using a modern blue dress, and there's a crown of black flowers upon her head.

"You were not the one I was expecting."

The son of Hephaestus wants to scream. Well, he didn't want to be whatever here is either! But her face is so sad - her gaze down to her bare feet. She seemed to be crying. He settles for asking who is her.

"I... I am sorry. My name is Calypso. This is Ogygia."

It startles him. Mainly because he has heard this name before around camp - wasn't she supposed to be freed?

"What happened to you?"

The immortal girl relays her tale - how she got freed for a year, and then the war started. The gods - Zeus - didn't trust her not to turn against them. So they locked her up - she was not the only one. Leto, Themis, Rhea - good titans or their offspring. Locked away.

She, after a year of freedom that Perseus got her, was back into her old shackles. Calypso is waiting for him for months now - but she thinks he forgot her.

So Leo tells her what happened - the bits he knows anyway. Juno/Hera, Nova Roma, the mission. Calypso seems calmer. They stay together for a while - friends it seems.

Calypso tells him about her year - about how she wanted to explore the world. She tells him she wanted to join Artemis' hunt - but, courtesy of Odysseys, she is no maiden.

He tells her about Hazel and Frank, Perseus, and the love hexagons he doesn't even know he is in - omitting the part that he is now in Tartarus. They talk about Festus - Calypso tells him about how his father is good to hear - how he came to visit, sometimes.

A week passes, maybe a week and a half. Leo vows to take Calypso off the island once the war ends, and she believes - once, a hero as brave as Leo made her the same promise, and stuck with it through the end.

In Cancun, Africa, Jason and Nico are having daily audiences with Auster, the Roman god of the south wind, in connection with the Seven being able to proceed on their way to Epirus - seeing that their ship is all broken and they have no Leo.

Auster is indolent and seems increasingly disinclined to cooperate with Jason and Nico: he dislikes the son of Zeus, and the wind never had a good relationship with the sea. Annabeth also tries her hand at it - but it's rebuffed at every turn. Piper is prohibited from entering the palace because of her magic voice.

Jason and Nico - even though they aren't speaking to each other - have for a long time admitted they don't fit completely at either camp. Jason is still too militar for CHB. Nico is too old for CHB. Both are too free with their personal lives for Nova Roma.

Auster agrees to meet with them and tells them to commit to one side - greek or roman. They deny it - they're both. The gods are both, they have been thrust in a war of both sides, they commune with gods on both aspects and they ask them to run errands for both pantheons. They have the right to be both.

Auster is not happy with this - mainly because he believes they should keep the sides separated. But it's the first time Nico and Jason agree on something - and they fight together for it. No god has the right to define those petty things when the demigods are fighting their war.

Auster merges with his greek counterpart Notus - an amalgamation of both his carefree and his militar side - and sends The Seven on their way when coerced by the threat of a hurricane and a typhoon.

He sends them to Valletta, Malta, where they find the Argo II fully repaired and in the harbor. In the port, on a small cafe, there's Leo - sitting and raging internally against the gods, who once again, fucked up something.

They trade stories, and Leo just rages more. He isn't sure how Perseus didn't ally himself with Kronos in the first war if that was the bullshit he had to deal with every day.

First Khione, then Zeus locking Calypso up, then this Notus guy - they are a week and a half late. Is Perseus still alive after nineteen days in the Pit? Is he sane? Did he tried to get out - and they weren't there?

It's with a shocking gasp from Annabeth that they realize that Perseus's birthday is in three days. They have been traveling together for thirty-seven days now - and they have to get Perseus out of Tartarus before the 18th, at least. Is the minimum.

It takes them a day to get to Epirus. There are enough monsters in their way to start a menagerie - Gaea is actively trying to stall them, so there must be a reason. Perseus might be alive.

Arriving at the Necromanteion, which they learn is just a very fancy name for catacombs, Hazel, Frank, Leo, Annabeth, Will, and Piper descend into the ruins, leaving Nico and Jason - who are both completely useless under the earth - behind with Malcolm - who, since Arachne, is pretty much claustrophobic.

They eat the barley cakes to protect themselves against the toxic potion they must drink in order to enter the temple. It's difficult to swallow poison - it burns as it goes down.

The mist tries to confuse them at every turn - Hazel diverts it. Her power over metal energy guides them - she can feel the basis of the building, way down where they are.

Katoptris burns in Piper's hand. It shows her Perseus' face - he looks cadaveric, shrouded in death. Sometimes he flickers, like a ghost - but he is alive, and heading to the Doors just like they are.

It's enough to spur them forward. Perseus is doing the same journey - from a much difficult side. They will meet in the middle.

Earthquakes strike the caverns, making part of the floor collapse. In a side, Piper and Will, surrounded by monsters in all sides. In the other, Frank, Leo, Hazel and Annabeth. The son of Mars doesn't think twice - the scepter.

He uses the Scepter of Diocletian to summon ghostly Roman soldiers, and as a Legatus Legionis, he does have the power to command all of them. It would be more controlled if he was Praetor, but the actual Praetor is Perseus, and so, in his absence, Frank will have to do.

The tunnel collapses. Hazel. Leo. They might be dead - but Frank can't panic right now. They are alive. They will protect each other, they have Annabeth Chase with them. Hazel controls the mist - everything will be just fine.

Anger grew in his chest. Those are his friends, his... his loved ones. This freaking ruin don't get to kill them before Frank summons enough courage to submit himself to the ridiculousness of telling them.

Hazel wants to cry - they left Frank behind. He might be dead - they might be all dead. Leo isn't much better. For all that Zhang seems to hate him, his infatuation with the Canadian never disappeared.

Annabeth however, is practical. She tells them Frank will be fine - the guy can transform into a dragon. Or a chimera. Probably a poisonous one, after the stunt in Venice. He has an army - it's okay.

Pasiphae is a bitch. Leo hates the woman - she reminds him of Aunt Rosa. Or Juno. Or Lady Muddy herself. He and Annabeth let Hazel do the majority of the talking - but both of them bristle as the Doors shake.

An unauthorized presence. Perseus actually did it - they have twelve minutes, in accord to Annabeth - who Leo knows better than to doubt - to open the Doors. Or he is dead, lost forever.

"It's a pity Gaea needs a son of the Earth and a daughter of the Sea... But none of you are children of the Underworld or the ocean, are you? Not even the acolyte of Trivia."

Everything indicates that she'll open the door herself - but Annabeth can't risk she whisking Perseus away to Gaea before they can reach him. So she sneaks past with her cap while they fight.

Pasiphae goes down to Hazel's illusions. Annabeth opens the Doors, before cutting the chains as Hazel and Leo distract Clytius. Perseus stumbles out, a giant tiger in his heels.

Leo didn't think he would ever see a harsher picture. The tall boy was still muscular - but gaunt as if he hadn't eaten since the fall. There were scars everywhere.

He couldn't look more - Clytius is threatening Perseus, but both Annabeth and the tiger stay in his way. Trivia appears - but they aren't truly winning until Piper, Will, and Frank are able to reach them through Hazel's magic.

Will goes immediately to Perseus' side - there's panic in his eyes. Leo can't see much this far - he hopes the son of Hades isn't dead. Piper and Frank fight alongside them. Annabeth is still hovering protectively over her best friend's prone body.

There's not much need for help - between Hazel and Trivia, the bulk of Clytius powers are unusable. The shared power of Piper (love is never where you expect it), Frank (and his undead soldiers), a very angry Annabeth, and Leo is just overkill.

They win. Will is feeding Perseus ambrosia - there's something really wrong because there are tear tracks in the blonde's face. Leo comes closer - their friends follow.

Perseus is destroyed. He looks like he has been through hell - there's a scar crossing his face and his eyes are sunken in. But that's not where it stops.

Leo's gaze goes down, to the ragged clothes that are barely recognizable - the sweatpants he was convinced to wear to go underground, the once-green sweater - and sees what is missing.

Where Perseus' leg once was, there's a metal one. The boy is curled in the fetal position - his metal leg sticks out like a sore thumb, and it looks like he might cry if he wasn't so dehydrated. The tiger nudges its head against the boy's leg and growls at them, but it doesn't attack.

"I... I can't touch him. I touched him and he started panicking... I... We have to take him back to the ship. He is stable, but..."

Frank picks up Perseus in a bride-carry - a month ago, he wouldn't be able to do it. But now, he is stronger - and Perseus must weight ninety pounds wet.

The tiger follows - when they cross to the daylight, they can see it's not a normal tiger. Annabeth - with a distraught look in her face - tells them it's a skeleton tiger. Probably a saber-tooth.

They go back on board - Piper goes up to call Nico, so he can fly Perseus into the ship. He does, but the expression in his face is so crushing Leo almost wishes they had delayed it by destroying property and landing the ship on the street.

The mood of the ship is yet again somber. No one wants to leave the infirmary - but Will forces them to rotate, so as to not overwhelm Perseus. Hypocrite - he is living in there.

Leo, Malcolm, and Piper - the least close to Percy, even though they are friends - let the others take the bulk of the shifts. Annabeth, Nico, and Jason almost get into blows about it - she wins on the fact that she knows Perseus longer.

It's difficult to IM both Rachel - who is a minute away from depression since he fell - and Lady Persephone. It's even harder to tell Sally - they leave the task to Annabeth.

They harbor for two days, waiting for Reyna. She appears from the sky during dinnertime - her horse has to be euthanized almost immediately after a run with the spirit mountains.

They talk - and end up deciding that she will take the statue back to Camp with Malcolm, the most resourceful out of them. Percy would be the logical solution - taking him out of Gaea's reach - but the son of Hades would probably be unable to shadow travel so soon.

While this happens, the others will set course to Athens - to stop Gaea and destroy the Giants. For now, they eat.

Midway through their meal, Will comes into the board - everyone knows what it means. Perseus is awake - on his birthday to boot. They take their food to the infirmary - to see the boy looking at the ceiling.

He gives them a faint smile, but no one misses the way he curls into himself any time there's someone a little too close. Perseus relays his tale - it's heavily edited, Annabeth can tell.

But he tells them about the leg - but not how he lost it - about the tiger - the name is Small Bob, but he doesn't talk about Bob - and about the firewater - but not how he got the injuries.

Small Bob never leaves Perseus's side. The demigod insists that he wants to go outside - he ate enough ambrosia and drank enough nectar that even some of his scars are gone. Not the one in his face though. Will let him go - but Annabeth thinks that he just asked out of courtesy.

He doesn't have green eyes anymore - they darkened to a point they can't distinguish his pupil. They observe as he sits calmly in the deck, metal leg sticking out, and strokes the head of the tiger, who is acting more or less like a giant house cat.

None of them miss the tracks of tears across his face, or the look he gives the night sky - it's bittersweet.

"Bob says hello"

[thejakeformerlyknownasprince]

What if the Animorphs could use magic-like, in addition to the morphing?

All her life, Cassie’s dad has treated raccoons and ferrets, the occasional goose or hawk.  And for as long as she can remember, he’s treated other things too.  There was the pine marten with tiny horns that the long-fingered man with the scars on his face brought from under his coat.  There’s the seahorse that buzzes up to their door on the regular, gossamer fins beating hummingbird-fast at the air as it hovers five feet off the ground.  There are winged foxes and antlered rabbits and animals for which Cassie has no comparison.

Walter never comments on them directly.  Instead he skids the Venetian blinds closed and pulls out his other kit — the one with bone needles and spools of spider silk and not a trace of metal throughout — and gets to work.  Cassie can’t remember how she learned never to comment directly on these night customers.  But she knows.  She does not mention them aloud.  Most of all, she does not thank them or ask for favors.

They never pay in coin, these visitors that step over the back threshold and never come when there is road salt on the ground.  It doesn’t matter.  Every stock share Walter and Michelle buy proves to be lucky; every item they store in the downstairs refrigerator never spoils.  Michelle can heal animals at the Gardens that no one else can save.  Cassie’s parents are careful never to ask for these gifts, or indeed express any opinion on them at all.  Their night visitors bargain exactingly, mercilessly, without quarter.  The only recourse is not to bargain with them at all.

Tobias doesn’t believe he’s a changeling.  Not really.  He’s pretty sure that’s just something his aunt says to excuse how little she cares about him.  That doesn’t stop him from leaving a capful of her Rodda’s clotted cream on his windowsill every night, especially because he wakes every morning to find the cream gone.  Just in case, he tells himself.  Just in case his real family is out there somewhere, keeping an eye on him.

Jake has no thoughts on magic or fae.  If asked he’d shrug and casually disbelieve.  But he listened all the same when his Grandpa G whispered the secret to controlling a golem, to making life of clay.  To destroying that life with a press of the thumb.

Marco learned not to count anything out he hasn’t seen disproven with his own eyes.  Eva lit candles for the Virgin Mother and for the ancestors, for Rihannon and Guabancex and the Holy Ghost.  Marco doesn’t always honor the old rituals, but he also doesn’t cross still waters or take favors from strangers.  He always cleans spilled salt and keeps a tiny iron knife tucked into one pocket.  He wears his underwear inside out and spits on the floor after wishing good luck.  He hedges his bets.

Rachel’s heard of the old gods, of course she has.  They were the fascination of her entire primary school year for a full week, just after unicorns and slightly before everyone became silly amateur witches.

Andalite culture frowns on superstition, and so Ax does as well.  Outwardly, at least.  That means not telling anyone how thoroughly, how casually, Elfangor has always believed in magic.  It means not thinking of the still pool of water, the silver knife, the other scrying tools from eldritch andalite culture… and the way his brother would, just sometimes, know things it was surely impossible for anyone to have seen.

“I put no faith in magic,” Marco says, when Cassie tells them about her dreams.  “I don’t trust it, and neither should you.”

«Fine, then.»  Tobias glares at him.  «Explain how we had the same dream, about the same voice, every single night.  Go ahead.  We’re waiting.»

Andalite magic isn’t like Earth magic, they’ll come to learn.  And sometimes the magic and technology are hard to tell apart at a glance.

It was just a long-distance call, Ax insists when they find him.  He doesn’t know how they talked to a whale.  He can’t explain why Tobias, but not any of the others, would have received that call.  Surely it doesn’t mean anything.  Technology only looks like magic, when viewed from a distance.

Tobias sees the rabbit disappear when it enters the unnaturally round circle of mushrooms.  But he’s hungry, and he’s tired, and the rabbit is fat and white and moving slow.  He doesn’t pull up from the dive in time.  Instead he follows it inside—

And hits the ground on two stubby-toed feet, strong human arms thrown out for balance.  He’s naked, but that seems incidental.  He’s human.  He hasn’t been human for almost six months.

Mostly human.  There are feathers on his arms and along his back.  He sees through hawk eyes and hears with hawk ears, a raptor’s head on top of a human body.  He thinks of ancient Egypt, of that god with the ankh, when he imagines how he must look.

And then he staggers back several steps, all the way to the edge of the suddenly-vast circle of mushrooms, at the sight of the beings who approach.  Their leader is a tall man made even taller by the enormous antlers that sprout from his head.  Behind him walk trees who are also teenage girls, goats upright on two legs, an entire court of half-human half-other beings.

Tobias’s whole body is cold with fear.  He tries to fly, but his wings cannot lift heavy human bones.  Tries to speak, and a hawk’s harsh cry comes out of his mouth.

“Come, little hunter,” the king who is both stag and man says.  “Dance with us.”

«What will you give me if I do?» Tobias asks, finding a different voice.  A stupid and brave thing to say.

The king smiles.  “An answer to one question.”

Tobias doesn’t ask what’ll happen if he refuses.  He’s no fool.  So when they start to dance, he joins the flow of their bodies.

His body moves with grace and speed impossible to him.  There is no music, other than the endless eerie wails of the other dancers.  The dance rages around him, drags him down into dizzy undertow.  He can either keep up, or he can be crushed underfoot.  Those are the only options.  He dances.

It’s been no time at all.  It’s been years.  Exhaustion sets in.  Hunger.  Thirst.

But Tobias is no fool.  He refuses their cordials and fruits, their temptations of hide and bone.  The glistening pomegranates and airy cakes are easy to ignore.  The fresh-killed snake, the blood-warm fox… Those are much harder.

Once, they bring before him a plump, struggling rabbit.  It’s enormous, fat and juicy and still kicking, and he feels himself weaken.  But just before he swings his enormous beak forward to rip at the flesh, he catches a hint of its true reflection in the eyes of the river-maiden who holds it.

It’s not a rabbit.  It has the seeming of a rabbit, but even now he can hear its cries.  Close to rabbit cries, close… but not quite.

Tobias rears back.  He doesn’t see what happens to the not-a-rabbit, because he chooses not to.  And it’s easier after that, so much easier, to refuse the haunches and marrows that they try to pass his way.

Maybe that’s why they throw the net over him.  Darkness and pain cage him in.  His inner hawk panics, screaming and breaking bones against its sides.  But a half-remembered bit of lore surges to the front of his human mind.

He morphs.  Speed is of the essence, and he twists down to the shape of a garter snake he has never acquired.  The net tightens, so he grows large.  Becomes one of the hork-bajir that haunt his nightmares, with blades to slash the net.  So it becomes sticky and dense, and he becomes a spider who can scuttle along its lines.  It grows heavy enough to crush him, so he surges upward and out as a stegosaurus.  It ensnares him with clever knots, and he grows human fingers that he might untie them.  It weights him down, so he goes hawk to fly free.  It becomes fibers that abrade and embed, so he takes on andalite shape to slash the bindings to pieces.

After that, the net falls away.  He stares around the clearing in all four directions at once, seeing them now for what they really are.  His chest is heaving, his tail blade trembling.  He’s desperately tired, but here is no place to sleep.

The woman whose hair drags clear the ground steps forward.  She presses a hand against his cheek, and just like that he’s the human-hawk again.  Only the andalite stalk eyes remain, along with the taloned feet of a hork-bajir.  The world around him remains vicious and savage and beautiful.

“You have entertained us well, little changeling,” she says.  “You may go now.”

«Wait—»  Tobias knows it’s stupid to argue, but he also knows it’s even stupider to leave here with a bargain unresolved.  «My question.»  He takes a breath, filling human lungs nestled between andalite hearts.  «What am I?»

The woman laughs, a tinkling sound that fills the clearing.  “My dear boy, there’s no need to ask us directly, not after we just spent all evening answering you.”

And just like that, Tobias is a hawk.  Or something with the seeming of a hawk.  He sits on the ground just outside an ordinary circle of mushrooms, the rabbit he followed mere inches away.

He watches it leave.  He’s not hungry for rabbit anymore, and suspects he might never be again.

Little changeling, she called him.  And he cannot help but wonder what might’ve become of the boy he replaced, remembering the not-a-rabbit’s helpless cries.

“Fuck it,” Marco says.  Only it comes out like “f-f-f-f-f-fuck i-t-t-t-t” because his teeth are chattering so hard.  They ended up somewhere covered with ice and snow and devoid of life except for polar bears.  No.  Scratch that.  They’re nowhere.  This place might as well be the surface of the fucking moon.

Which is why he’s gone just crazy enough through some combination of hypothermia and desperation to be trying this now.  His fingertips and toes are already grey-white with frostbite at the edges.  Ax is upright for now, but has already collapsed twice.  They’re fucked.  Utterly and completely fucked.

Unless, of course, Marco can coax fire from ice.

The theory behind it is perfectly sound.  Take a beam of sunlight, direct it through a curved lens — in this case a chunk of ice floe that Ax carved with his tail and Marco shaped with what little heat is left in his hands — and that’ll generate heat.  Generate enough heat, and the kindling should ignite.

Only, if you stop to think about it for half a second, that’ll never work in an environment as cold as this one.  If Marco stops to think, he’ll remember that the tiny pile of kindling will burn up in an instant if it even combusts at all.

The kindling is a pile of hair, blond and brown, black and blue.  And a single crumpled feather, striped in brown and gold.  A small, sad pile.  But also: A sacrifice.  An evocation.

It shouldn’t work.  It shouldn’t.

Cassie is murmuring something that Marco elects to ignore.  Because Marco doesn’t believe in astrotheology.  He doesn’t believe in pyromancy.  He just needs to believe in reality.

The sun’s own light casts through the fragment of glacier in his hand.  The concentrated seed of its power rests squarely in that nest of hair.  Don’t move, Marco wills his aching, cold-numb hands.  Don’t move.  Focus.  Breathe.  Don’t move.  Believe.

Smoke curls.  Jake makes a noise, cutting himself off.  Marco imagines his own mind, focusing in a beam just like that weak Arctic sunlight.  Imagines it bending into a pure, strong core with the power of that ice.  The world fades away.  The cold recedes, or maybe that’s just the final stages of hypothermia setting in.

The hair puts up a tiny curl of flame.  The flame gutters and grows.  It races along strand after strand.  The smell is something animal and awful, but the fire is growing.  It’s becoming red at the edge and blue at its core, hotter than the meager fuel should allow.  Marco’s teeth are clenched so hard they cannot chatter, his whole body clenched around where the dying skin of his hands presses with unforgiving power against the ice that kills it.

The flame grows.  It grows.  It’s not possible, and that very fact seems to add strength to its stubbornness.

It’s candle-sized by now.  It could illuminate a lantern.  It’s throwing shadows and glow onto Cassie’s face where she crouches across from him, still chanting.  It’s a fistful of flame.  It’s a campfire.

The hair is gone by now.  Even the ice is melting away, every drop of water that hits the flames becoming like oil in its power.

Marco sits down, hard, on the now-slushy ice.  Jake is leaning forward, laughing, crying, tears frozen to his face.  Rachel thrusts both hands at the flames, fingers starting to unfurl from their painful permanent clench.  Even the frostbite on Cassie’s nose and Ax’s stalk-eyes is visibly healing, another impossibility even with the hearthfire now flowing strong between them.

“This,” Marco whispers, sunning himself in the heat of cannot-be, “is insane.”

Cassie steps out into the daylight beyond the barn, half-startled as always by the shock of its heat.  She isn’t like Marco; she doesn’t need explanations or words.  Her father has always just focused on using whatever works, without trying to apply her mother’s formal empiricism.  Sometimes the creatures bring themselves in for healing, and usually when they do they don’t look like any animal that has ever appeared in one of Michelle’s zoology textbooks.

Sometimes Walter sits out all night with a deer’s head cradled in his lap, a snake wound through both his hands, or one of the beings who is neither mammal nor reptile sheltered by the curve of his body.  He wills, on those nights, and sometimes a broken-legged deer will run free or a fatally ill snake will roll healthy from his palms when he’s done.  Whenever that happens, whenever the will succeeds, he’ll come inside with a few more white hairs, slightly more of a limp in the creeping arthritis of his knee.  That’s the reason Cassie isn’t allowed to join her father on those nights, isn’t allowed to help beyond her mother’s methods: needles full of cortisone, needles trailing twine.

It’s also the reason she doesn’t know how this works.  She suspects that her father doesn’t know either — Walter’s the type to shrug and say they can either explain the molecular structure of water or they can fill this water trough that’s empty now, and only one will ensure the horses remain healthy on a day this warm.  So maybe not knowing isn’t a hindrance, not when it comes to willing wellness to travel from her body into another.

The being she holds in her hands has certainly never appeared in any of Michelle’s books.  Which is part of the reason that Earth’s weak yellow sun, giver of both cancer and trees, can do nothing for her.

Aftran needs kandrona, needs the rich light of her homeworld.  Cassie has no kandrona to give.

“Please,” Cassie whispers.  She holds the fragile little body toward the sky, an offering to Sol.  “Please, just hold on for a little while longer.”

Aftran doesn’t answer.  Aftran cannot hear her, cannot see the brilliant star that warms them both.

Cassie can feel the weakness inside of Aftran, the hunger.  Tonight they’ll take her to the sea.  Tonight they’ll give her whale DNA, and a new chance at life.  She only has to make it that long.

She’s not sure when the trance begins, or how long it lasts.  Later, she’ll have no memory of her knees giving out and her shins hitting the dirt, or of the hours she spends with her hands raised toward the sky in supplication.

It’s Aftran who wakes her.  Aftran who sends a jolt of something through the connection they’ve shared ever since their minds were briefly one.  It jars Cassie and causes her to topple over.

Aftran is strong, scrunching and stretching fins as she basks in the glow of a sun she shouldn’t even be able to see or feel.  Cassie is weak, joint-aching and head-pounding as she fights unconsciousness.  The feeling is so overpowering, so painful and unlike anything she’s experienced before, that it takes Cassie several seconds of lying on her side fighting even to breathe to recognize this as hunger.

Not hunger, famine.  The dangerous kind that leaves her body screaming for sustenance, devouring its own fats and muscles in its desperation to find more fuel for the fire that keeps her alive.  Cassie has grown up secure, with a full refrigerator and loving parents.  This ravening full-body ache brings to mind her great-grandmother’s stories of sharecroppers so desperate as to devour earthworms and hay seeds.

But Cassie has it easy.  She is on her own planet, and she is a child of plenty.  All she needs to do is crawl the ten feet to her parents’ vegetable patch.  To rip the first of the row of carrots from the ground, rolling the dirt off between her palms before she eats it.  Stealing the sun’s sustenance from this plant that has worked so hard to store it.

She is human.  She cannot make her own energy from suns’ light like Aftran.  To be human is to murder and devour just to stay alive.  But to be human is to choose, at times like these, to share the plenty that surrounds her.

Aftran rests on the back of Cassie’s wrist now.  Stronger than she has any right to be.  Cassie rips the life from another carrot, and stops for a moment of gratitude before she begins to devour.

Rachel takes time to gather the supplies.  A mason jar emptied of jam.  Nails and tacks and razor blades, sharp nasty iron and steel to keep evil at bay.  Sea salt and rosemary to purify and protect, layered inside the jar overtop.  And then, last of all, several ounces of her own urine.  To mark it as hers, old-school the way that wolves do.  The lid sealed with wax from a black-tallow candle, wrapped with red ribbon to keep the magic inside.  She buries it at the edge of her yard, whispering invocations to Aphrodite and Ares as she does.

She can’t take it with her, especially not when she morphs, but she can create a bubble the length and width of the property.  She can carve out a space for herself and her mom, Sara and Jordan, that no yeerk can enter.  She has power.

She tests it one time, calling Mr. Chapman to come pick up Melissa at her place.  Smiling, lips pulled tight with glee and anger, she watches him get to the edge of the property line and… stop.  

Watches as his head shakes, his body shifts, and he comes no further.  The spell holds.  The yeerk leaves.

And then comes the day when Melissa herself freezes at the edge of the yard, an expression of confusion on her face.  She leaves, after a while.  Only it’s not really her leaving.  Not anymore.

Rachel doesn’t feel so smug about the spell, after that.

«Please be quiet,» Ax says, after the fourth or fifth time Jake asks Cassie in an undertone how much longer this is going to take.  «I am not confident in this process, and cannot do with distractions.»

They stand at the edge of a waterfall deep in the California woods.  It’s not much, less than ten feet tall, but that’s not what’s important.  What’s important is the place, and the harmony of that place.

What’s important, Ax knows, is the entropy.  Water eroding rocks, breaking down walls.  Trees broken apart by murmurations of termites and fractals of rot.  Nature building and pulling down, creating and destroying, allowing no rest but in rhythmical motion, chasing everything out of one beautiful form into another.

Entropy is a release of cosmic energy.  That’s what Elfangor taught him, anyway.  And if he does it right, if he feels this place — water in his hooves, wind in his fur, seeing and feeling and becoming a part of that steady joyous death — he can harness and direct some small fraction of that energy.

The energy flows out of him, and down the bond.  He thinks he can feel it.  His strength becoming Tobias’s, Tobias’s pain becoming his.

“Is it working?”  Jake loses patience again.

«I believe it might be,» Ax says.  He reaches out, all four eyes closed, and takes Jake’s hand in his.  A second human hand, strong and blunt and warm, wraps around his other wrist, as Cassie takes hold.

His shorm is not here.  His only family on this planet is in the yeerks’ hands.  They are hurting Tobias right now.

Rachel and Marco are on a rescue mission.  Jake and Cassie and Ax are here, having walked for hours in the wrong direction, standing by a destructive stream.  Keeping Tobias alive.

Jake sinks to his knees, gasping hard.  Cassie is making a small noise in the back of her throat, one that has no words.  Their strength flows through Ax, and away.  The power in their joints, the sight in their eyes and the succor in their limbs, drains away.  Every heartbeat, every breath, leaves them and does not return.

No one asks if it’s working now.  There are tears running down Jake’s face, his hand trembling in Ax’s as it squeezes hard enough to grind bones.  But they don’t let go, and they don’t end the spell.  They send strength down the bloodline, down the lines more powerful than blood, until one by one they fall into the icy current when they have nothing left to give.

“I don’t believe in magic,” Marco says, but he uses the same tone as when he says “I don’t believe in aliens.”

Cassie asks her father, her grandmother, and her mother’s grandmother more questions.  She pretends it’s idle curiosity, any time her father asks.

Rachel finds that coven she once thought so silly.  They teach her to write names on willow-pulp paper and freeze them underwater, to drag minds away from the forces that might otherwise take hold.  “Melissa,” she whispers, “Melissa Andrea Chapman,” and she prays it will work this time around.

Anyway, they kind of win.

The first person to appear to him is an unfamiliar woman with rough-cropped hair.  No one Jake knows, or no one he remembers, anyway.  But she wasn’t on the dead, drifting hulk of the Rachel a second ago, and now here she stands.  So the ritual must have worked.

“I’m sorry to disturb your rest,” Jake tells the ghost.  “I just…”  He looks down at the drying clay still smeared across his hands, the familiar characters in cascading rows across his arms and across the metal of the deck.  It’s earth, farther from the Earth than any precious quantity of dirt has ever been.  Just like him.

“I wouldn’t have come if I didn’t choose it.”  She crouches in front of him, placing an inexplicably warm hand over his.  “I’m Jondrette.  You saved my life at the battle under the garment factory.  You should’ve killed us.  Instead you called off your forces, told us to run.”

“You died anyway,” Jake says sadly.  “You owe me nothing.”

“Not before I returned the favor.”  She smirks, proud of herself.  “Visser Three would’ve killed you in that hospital garage, had we not shot him from behind.  I owe you nothing,” she agrees.  “Because you’re going to die anyway.”

“I’m scared,” he confesses.

The Blade Ship, and the thing it became, are gone.  He rammed it.  Shattered shrapnel floats past through the Rachel’s failing gravity.  He won, and all it cost was everything.

“I don’t think I want to die anymore, but…”  Jake laughs, harsher than expected.  There’s no one to lead here, no one to impress.  “It’s a little late for that now, huh?”

«It’s all right to be scared,» Elfangor says, when he appears.  «You’ve done well.»  He looks andalite and human, standing guard over Jake’s death as Jake once did for him.

Jake nods, and Elfangor returns it as a bow.

«You’ve honored us all, and it was an honor to serve with you, my prince.»

This new ghost causes Jake to surge several inches off the deck in horror before he falls back, lacking the strength to stand even in this reduced gravity.  “Ax,” Jake gasps.  “Ax… No.  You?”

«It’s all right,» Ax says.  «You killed it.  You honored me.  The ritual of mourning is complete.»

“I wanted to save you,” Jake whispers.

«And you did.  Rest, Prince Jake.»

«You were feared by your enemies, beloved by your cousins.  No higher praise can be spoken of any warrior.»  Arbron, when he appears, is the same strange duality as Elfangor: all andalite and all taxxon, all at once.

Jake wonders if it’s a nothlit thing, if Tobias…

No.  Tobias and Marco, Jeanne and Menderash and Santorelli, all made the escape pod in time before the collision.  Jake has to believe that.  He has to.

«Rest,» Ax says again.  «It’s time.»

“He’s right, you know,” a new voice says, and for the first time Jake feels his eyes prick with tears.  “It’s the easiest thing in the world, once you let yourself go.”

A familiar arm slips around him, and Jake lets himself lean against his brother’s shoulder.  “You’ll stay with me?” Jake asks, hating the weakness in his own voice.  “You’ll stay?”  He doesn’t know how long he can keep up the ritual.

“‘Course,” Tom says.  “No getting rid of me now.”

The specter shapes crowd the room by now, crouching close or standing by.  All here, if Jondrette is to be believed, because they chose to be.

It’s harder to breathe, now.  Harder to see, darkness blurring his vision.  Tom is warm against his side, but Jake is bitterly cold.

“I don’t want it to end,” Jake slurs.  Falling asleep never hurt this much, and the dreams that awaited him on the other side were rarely kind.

“It doesn’t.”  She’s already grinning when she appears in front of him, like this is the greatest daredevil stunt ever pulled.  “We go on.”  Rachel gestures around to the crowd on the bridge.  “Aren’t all of us proof of that?  Nothing is ever lost.”

“Go on to where?” Jake can’t help asking.

At that she laughs.  “Like I’d spoil the surprise.  C’mon, I’ll show you.  Let’s do it.”

She grabs his hand and yanks him forward.  Or maybe that’s Tom, shoving him from behind.  Or Ax’s smile, eyes only, pulling him in.

A small strand of space-time goes dark and coils into nothingness.

[yinyangswings]

Single Parent AU

So I was kind of inspired by @musicfeedsmysoul12 headcanon of the Havenfall is for Lover’s MC being a single mother. As I also like that AU I decided to give it a go. I tried to keep it as different as I could to musicfeedsmysoul12‘s which is here.

It’s a bit long so I’m placing them in the Read Below

Mackenzie

The kid is a 9 year old non-binary kid who has a minor seizure condition. Their parents' whereabouts are unknown. They were taken in and adopted by MC. They love MC and her family for taking them in, though sometimes they wonder if they’re a burden for MC.

It is later discovered that their parents are part of Code Black, but abandoned them due to their condition. They have a hard time forgiving them for that.

Mac can sense when they are going to have a seizure. If she’s nearby she’ll make sure they know to lie down. MC is super appreciative of it.

She did this even before MC knew about her being a werewolf

Mac is really nervous at first to date MC because of them. Not because she’s dating someone with a kid, she doesn’t mind that. But because she doesn’t want the kid to think that she’s taking her away from them.

Mac asks JD for advice so she doesn’t misgender them.

Hugely appreciated by them.

Beau makes off handed threats towards the kid. It doesn’t end well.

Not even the Beast is amused by that. And she doesn’t even like the kid.

They and Mackenzie bond over comic books. Mac is so pleased to have another person to geek out on comics with.

Do they cosplay? Hell yeah!!!

While both MC and Mac are good parents, Mac is definitely the stricter one of the two. Though she’s not as good as MC is against the puppy-dog eyes.

Especially when the triplets and them use it against her in the future.

Mac’s parents absolutely love them. They are their first grandchild. Doesn’t matter if they aren’t biologically related. GRANDCHILD.

Annabelle loves the kid and is a protective older sister.

No one messes with them. No. One.

Damien is protective of them too, though he shows it more in a ‘I’m annoyed older brother’ kind of way.

He may act annoyed to have them following him around, especially if Annabelle is nearby, but threaten them and there is one angry werewolf glaring and growling at whoever is dumb enough to do it.

They call her Mom in the middle of the third season. They get the biggest hug from Mac, to the point they don’t think Mac is going to let go anytime soon.

That protectiveness is ten-fold after that. No one gets close to that kid without Mac knowing.

When Grace comes back, she tries to bring them to Code Black, but they vehemently refuse. They’re already where they want to be and are home. They are even more adamant about it when they find out their bio parents are a part of the Code Black.

This does cause a bit of tension because they don’t know what their parents are capable of, and whether or not they’ve unintentionally endangered the entire town. And they’re terrified that MC and Mac will leave them eventually because of their condition.

Mac is quick to reject that idea, and says as far as she’s concerned, they’re part of her family. Her pack. They aren’t going anywhere.

Elmer gets used to seeing them coming into the station while MC is working, bringing dinner for Mac, because their mom worries.

He finds it extremely cute and he usually chats with them if they wind up waiting for Mac

They are super excited when they find out MC is having kids. And they’ll be the best big sibling. Granted they did not take into account the werewolf genes. Seriously, they are the oldest of the siblings and still the shortest. They are not amused.

They are perfectly fine with getting bitten and becoming a werewolf. This is their pack, of course they want to be fully a part of it. They don’t know how the whole medical condition would play into it though, so they’re waiting a little bit and researching.

Diego

The kid is a 10 month old little girl that looks exactly like MC. She’s the result of a one-night stand for MC and the father doesn’t want anything to do with her. He’ll pay child support and that’s about it (and even that is like pulling teeth).

Grace insists she’s the favorite aunt (though MC likes to point out she’s the only aunt).

Diego is her doctor, though she does have a pediatric doctor to go to. His necklace is a favorite thing to latch onto by the curious 10 month old. And she has quite the grip.

She also really likes his sunglasses. It’s only after Diego is revealed to be a vampire to MC that he lets her actually hold onto them. Now they are almost always covered in baby drool.

Diego takes longer to accept being with MC because he worries about endangering MC and her daughter, but the 10 month old is apparently just as stubborn as her mother and really likes Diego and makes her opinions known.

MC found it adorable and hilarious the first time she made him hold her where it wasn’t a check-up. He looked like a deer caught in headlights.

Dada is her first word, directed at Diego. The vampire basically breaks down when she says that.

Because Diego doesn’t need to sleep, he tends to be the one who gets to her first if she wakes up at night.

He sings lullabies to her in Spanish.

Once he finds out (through Victor) that MC has a daughter, Antonio makes it very clear to Victor and the other lackies to stay away from the infant. It’s not like she can protect herself and he wouldn’t go that low to get revenge on Diego.

Grace has a really hard time trusting her niece alone with Diego after she returns. Diego understands it, but it doesn’t make it any less painful.

Her crying for him from Grace’s arms does not make it easier either. MC sneaks her out for some ‘daddy time’ with Diego, something both of them enjoy.

There is a temporary truce when she gets a really bad fever and MC convinces Grace to let Diego check on her. She’s not thrilled, but her love for her niece overrides her distrust of vampires.

Dracula begins to have an interest in the girl when he’s looking for and locates Diego. She looks so much like a woman who had managed to escape his clutches centuries ago.

This terrifies Diego. He debates leaving them to protect MC and her, though he realizes quickly that Dracula will try and take her whether he’s there or not if he decides she’s worth his time.

Dracula makes comments about making her a future bride when she’s older which pisses Diego off and terrifies him.

When they’re on the run from Dracula, they run into her biological father. He makes several choice comments to MC about their daughter, implying that it’s likely the little girl isn’t even his to start off with. Diego gets really, really angry at that.

Dracula uses her as bait against Diego and MC.

She likes Eva a lot. First meeting with Antonio after everything that had happened in season 1-2, she pukes on him.

And Diego laughs about it every chance he remembers.

MC struggles a lot with not drinking her daughter's blood right after she becomes a vampire.

It terrifies her with the very idea of accidentally killing her daughter for her blood. Diego is vigilant and ensures the two aren’t alone together after MC is transformed for a little while.

Playing ‘doctor’ with Diego when she’s a little older, which means Diego has to endure being wrapped up like a mummy with toilet paper. MC finds it adorable.

Spike is rather protective of her and incredibly patient with her for being a hellhound.

They are both adorable together and heart attack inducing when Spike occasionally teleports with her holding onto him.

First time that happened sent both Diego and MC into hysterics.

When she’s older, she says she wants to be a doctor. No, Diego doesn’t cry.

Much...he gets choked up a bit about it.

Diego and MC agree to let her choose when she’s old enough if she wants to be changed into a vampire.

JD

The kid is a spunky 7 year old girl who was adopted by MC. MC and her mother were in a relationship but her mother died in an accident. MC took her in after the grandparents and father stated they didn’t want custody of her. The father was because he had a new family, the grandparents because their daughter died going to pick her up.

She has severe abandonment issues over this.

She hides those issues through sarcasm.

Her favorite color is pink, but she yearns to have a leather jacket like JD. She eventually gets one and it’s her favorite thing ever.

JD gives her the nickname Punky Pink, or PP for short. She does not approve of the abbreviation.

JD tries to keep everything with MC as casual as possible and tries to not be a parent. Because this is MC and she has a kid. And they are not a good parental figure. At all.

That is evident with her coming to the bowling alley after school and the amount of trouble they get both of them in.

She loves their wings. JD HAS WINGS. HOW COOL IS THAT?!

She was very, very disappointed that the books have misrepresented them.

You’re supposed to have a goat head. And cloven hooves.

Who says I don’t have the hooves?

Those boots.

She makes a report about JD for school. Thankfully it was a creative writing project so no one really suspected she was telling the truth.

It did result in a teacher conference however. JD was very amused when they found out through MC.

JD has the paper framed and keeps it in their room.

Her mother’s grandparents are complete jerks to her, and say they wished she had died instead of her mother which just breaks her. And it pisses JD off.

They make sure to let those assholes know what they think of ditching that little girl. Doesn’t even care if they get in trouble with Mac.

After that, they take her on a really long drive on their motorcycle, and they talk about people being jerks, but that doesn’t define her or them. And she has MC that loves her to death and everyone in town who loves her too.

JD is usually just called ‘JD’ by her, though this is usually met with confusion

“We need to call your guardian.”

“Well there’s Mom and JD? Which one do you want?”

“Is JD your other mom or your dad?”

“Yes.”

She doesn’t put up with misgendering bullshit and has gotten into fistfights at school for it. She doesn’t get into trouble with MC for it though and JD is very touched over it.

Hikari and Grace battle on who is the best aunt.

It does not help when Gwen joins in.

The Facestealers wind up being nightmare fuel for the seven year old, and she has to sleep curled up to MC for several days. One day she falls asleep and just clings to JD, who at first tries to get her off of them, but basically relents when she winds up having a death grip on their sleeve. Only time Razi doesn’t get annoyed and scolds JD for not doing work.

Nessie is enraged with the girl and MC getting in the way of her and JD. She attempts to kill her and MC because of her belief that both of them are taking JD from her.

Lucifer takes an interest in her and manages to talk to her once without JD or MC present. She had been out exploring when he found her. JD is not happy when they find out, because Lucifer makes sure they know he was near her and close enough to where he could touch her.

JD almost has a panic attack and gets really angry, scaring her and making her think she’s done something wrong and that they’ll leave because of it. It takes several people to convince her that that’s not the case and that they aren’t angry at her.

JD makes it very clear afterwards to their dad. He’s not allowed near her. Not now, not ever. Do not touch her, do not look at her. There will be hell to pay if he comes near her again.

She panics when JD gives up their freedom for MC. Like she’s curled up in her bedroom, crying.

Rip Van Winkle did not know who he was messing with when she fell under the spell right in front of JD. Pure burning chaos.

Razi

The kid is an eight year old girl who is deaf. She is of Asian descent. MC had been dating her father before he died in an accident when she was six. Her mother had passed away years before, and with no other direct blood relations, MC adopts her so she doesn’t become another statistic in the system. Though she can’t hear, she knows sign language and can read lips. MC and Grace learned how to do it when MC was with her father. The others in HifL learn as well.

JD learns the words that an eight year old probably shouldn’t know. They state it’s good for her to learn the colorful language too. Razi is not amused.

Because she’s deaf, Jonas’s music doesn’t affect her, which is a relief to MC and Razi. Though it does lead to a few panicked moments in later seasons, such as when Baba Yaga makes her appearance.

She ships MC and Razi so hard.

She and JD make bets on who cracks first. JD now owes her several boxes of candy.

She has a personality like Mabel Pines which is both hilarious and tiring for Razi and MC

She gets along with Razi pretty well.

She’s always trying to play matchmaker for MC

She had already been calling MC ‘Mom’ for a little bit prior to the beginning of the whole series, but started calling Razi ‘Dad’ respectfully in Season 3. No. Razi doesn’t cry. He swears he doesn’t cry.

He does. He totally does and JD has photo evidence.

JD offers to babysit her a lot so MC and Razi can have alone time. Usually they say no, but JD figures what Razi and MC don’t know/notice, won’t hurt them. They usually go around town on their motorcycle with her. They make sure she wears a helmet of course. Because safety!

Razi is terrified about Baba Yaga ever going after her. Cue him finding out who Baba Yaga is and how many times she was left alone unknowingly with the child eater.

He does not take it well to say the least.

It is revealed that her mother was a kitsune who fell in love and married a human but was later killed, and she takes after her mother in regard to a long time span. She is unable to transform into a kitsune, she will live much longer than any human, and aging will slow down once she reaches adulthood.

This is a relief to the Nassar family, especially Razi, as they won’t have to see her grow old and die, because it is something that he wouldn’t be able to handle.

Roshni and Rahim love to tease Razi with how protective he is over the girl

Roshni convinces Rahim to put fake press on tattoos on the side of the girl’s face and says she took her first tattoo like a champ just to mess with Razi. Razi nearly has a heart attack.

Roshni and Rahim are the best aunt and uncle.

She is the best big sister to Roxie. Very protective of her and is usually following her around everywhere.

Maybe not as protective as Razi is to the both of them, but dang close.

Vanessa

A two year old bio boy for MC. She had been in a relationship with him, but unfortunately he was killed by a mugging gone bad. He’s a very quiet boy, to the point where people don’t notice him until he makes a sound.

MC is really protective of him.

He is a very curious boy, and tends to wander a lot. He’s also in that phase where he tries to taste everything.

Which has Vanessa panicking because she has way too many things that are deadly that he keeps trying to put in his mouth, Oh God.

And she hasn’t really had to deal with kids, at least that young. At least not in a long time. And now she has to protect this boy and his mom. Stress galore. So she isn’t sure about this relationship

Equally MC isn’t sure about being with a woman who literally hunts mythical creatures and endangering herself and possibly MC and her kid

They do begin to bond by Vanessa introducing him to anime and manga. She keeps it completely age appropriate and he seems to enjoy it.

She pledges to protect him and MC from the Dracula brides.

Eventually she gets the hang of parenting, though she still leaves a lot of it to MC

Antonio

The kid is a ten year old boy who was adopted by MC. His parents were not good people and he was pretty much abandoned by them. He is very protective of MC and Grace and has anxiety with them possibly leaving him.

He promises Grace to look after MC, even though he’s ten and has the strength of a wet noodle.

Antonio did NOT know that MC was a guardian to a kid. Heck the kid was asleep in the back of the truck when Antonio kidnapped MC in the first place.

This complicates things quite a bit. He can’t go through with this. If he couldn’t face Eva if he used MC’s blood to resurrect her, Eva would never forgive him for orphaning a kid.

Igor becomes very interested with the boy initially, not realizing he’s adopted. If Antonio isn’t going to kill MC because he grew a conscience, the boy should be fair game.

Igor’s threat against him lessens once he realizes that the boy is not blood related to MC. Doesn’t mean he’s not below using him as bait against MC and later on Antonio. Antonio is not pleased.

He is sarcastic as hell and doesn’t mind making digs on how old Antonio is, despite the fact Antonio is perfectly aware of how things work in the modern era.

He found some of Antonio’s attempts at making movies. He will not name names or give any hint of his resources. Much to Antonio’s displeasure.

Diego finds this hilarious. So does Eva.

He’s really patient with Eva and doesn’t mind showing her what or how technologies work. Unlike Antonio, she’s been dead for 500 years. Kind of a big technological gap to learn from.

When MC’s blood is poisoned, he offers Antonio his blood in the meantime.

Antonio rejects the offer, even though he appreciates the sentiment.

Antonio is in charge of answering questions about history later on. This is both a good thing, but also a bad thing when the textbooks get something wrong. MC has to remind both of them that ‘my mom’s vampire boyfriend’ is not a resource to use in papers.

“This is completely inaccurate. What research did this ‘author’ use and where did they get it?? It’s total crap.”

“Remind me to not show you any books about the explorers. Especially Cortes.”

“Why?”

“Er...no reason.”

Thankfully word gets around pretty quickly and Frankenstein as well as the Cult of Blood leave him alone for the most part. The Cult of Blood snatches him along with MC, but that is basically to keep her compliant.

He doesn’t like Victor at all. Don’t ask him why, he just doesn’t.

Antonio is protective of the kid, even though they act like mortal enemies in the beginning. It’s like Diego and Antonio, only if Diego was shorter and can’t speak a lick of Spanish.

They run into his parents unintentionally and he sees them before anyone else. He hides the fact he spots them, but wanders away to have a chat. It goes about as well as to be expected.

It results in him getting a smack across the face from a very angry mom and a warning from the dad. MC is not happy when he gets back to them with scratch marks across his face.

It takes MC quite a long time to convince Antonio that he can’t kill them, even if they’ve earned it.

Antonio will say things in Spanish around him just to mess with him. It’s fun until the kid starts learning Spanish. And then he has to explain to MC why she was informed that he called the kid an ass.

He blames Diego, who neither confirms nor denies it

After Igor, Frankenstein, The Master, Cult of Blood, and Benedict he tells Antonio he needs a really good vampire therapist.

He’s only half-joking

He also thinks he might need to start making a will at the rate this is going because he doesn’t know if he’ll make it to age 15.

He says this as a joke, but that absolutely terrifies Antonio.

Antonio pretty much plans for the kid to become a vampire when he’s a little older.

[fixxofvixx]

BLOODRIGHT - VAMPIRE JAEHWAN AU - CHAPTER 7

Yay! I actually finished a chapter lol. I inadvertently went down the manga/manhwa rabbit hole and just now dug myself out haha. I regret nothing~ But I have some cutie/fierce vampire jaehwan for you!

I hope you enjoy and let me know what you think!

🧛‍♂️🧛‍♂️🧛‍♂️🧛‍♂️🧛‍♂️

"Have you really killed people before?" You asked him quietly, not confident of the outcome. He looked at you, conflicted emotions written on his face. After a while, he answered softly.

"Yes."

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

Your heart thumped hard in your chest. You knew the answer already but to hear him directly admit to you that he'd killed before somehow felt different.

"Y/N," you looked up at him to see a guilty look on his face, "I need you to understand that I don't just roam the streets killing people."

Gathering your courage, you asked another question.

"May I ask what happened?"

"Would you think less of me if I tell you that I'm afraid to say?"

"Afraid? You?" You never thought that fear was any part of Jaehwan's vocabulary.

"You've begun to lose that look of fear when you're around me. It's not completely gone but it's slowly disappearing. But I'm afraid that if I explain, we'll end up back at the beginning."

"I think a part of me knew already. I mean, you've lived for several decades. I would be a fool not to think that something like that happened. But I.....I would l-like to know more. If t-that's okay?"

"I told you before I'm an open book for you. But, you're right, I have lived for a long time. When I was barely 100, there was a war between two royal families. Another family sought to take over our territories and people. I fought along the soldiers we employed. We even had some humans who were allied with us fighting as well. And, of course, the other family had vampires and humans. I will spare you the details of the specifics of war but I admit I have the blood of others on my hands. I'm ashamed to say that I don't even know how many."

You had kept your eyes on his face as he explained and you could see the regret and sorrow there. Without thinking you placed your hand on top of his head, gently running your fingers over his hair. Jaehwan smiled slightly and then you realized what you'd done. You gasped and removed your hand, ready to profusely apologize.

Before you could, though, Jaehwan took your wrist and guided your hand back to his head.

"Don't stop on my account."

"B-But....."

"I like it." You blushed at his words but continued what you were doing. He closed his eyes with a look of contentment. It was easier with his eyes closed now.

"Did I scare you......down there?"

"With Mr. Timms?"

"Mmhmm..." For a vampire who didn't sleep, he sounded awfully sleepy.

"Not really. I was thankful more than anything."

"That's good." You removed your hand from his head and a look of sorrow flashed over his face for a split second.

"What room is this?"

"My room." He stood and stepped back so you could see the entirety of the room.

"Why did you bring me here?"

"I.....I have no idea." He smiled and laughed slightly. You couldn't help but think that he had a nice smile. It seemed to be contagious since you ended up smiling in return. It felt strange to smile so easily.

"Your smile is pretty. You should do that more often." A heavy blush darkened your cheeks and you lowered your head in embarrassment. "But it angers me that it's tarnished by this bruise."

His fingers lightly grazed over the still-throbbing bruise on your cheek. It hadn't been the first time you'd received a blow from that detestable cane but you hoped it would be the last.

"It will fade."

"Yes, well, I would still like to apologize for not being there sooner."

"But.....you still came." You gave him a tiny smile and he nodded, accepting your final word on his apology.

ONE WEEK LATER

"A party?"

You were in the kitchen with Penny. One of the kitchen staff had offered to teach you how to make some desserts when she came to find you.

"Well, not technically a party.....it's more of a gathering of elder vampires. They typically get together every few years to see who can brag more about their so-called accomplishments."

"Oh, will they be staying here?"

"Most of them will. They might stay two or three days, especially the ones that travel a longer distance. The location is different each time they meet and now it's Jaehwan's turn. He tried to refuse but they insisted."

"Why did he want to refuse?"

"Jaehwan is very......protective of his people. He doesn't like people on his turf, in his castle. He doesn't trust a lot of them. And....if I were to guess correctly...he wants to protect you."

"Me? Why?"

"The vampires who attend these sort of things are....shall we say...snobbish bastards with no sense of decency."

"Penny!" You'd never heard Penny use that type of language before and you didn't know how to react other than shock.

"Well, it's true! Those old goats think they're royalty and have to answer to no one. They like to throw their weight around and pretend that they are above everyone else. Jaehwan doesn't pander to their games. They try to push him but they know they can't match the strength of a royal vampire."

"Are they.....mean to him?"

"That would be the understatement of the century. Ever since Jaehwan was born, they have tried to bully him around. But, as you well know, Jaehwan isn't a fool. And they hate him for it."

You mind raced with the thoughts of a young Jaehwan being bullied by the older vampires. The thought sent a pang of hurt through your heart, not to mention anger. Penny must have noticed and patted your shoulder gently.

"Don't let it concern you, dear. Jaehwan is very tough and stubborn. He wouldn't want you to be sad for him."

You smiled and nodded. You were grateful for Penny. In the few days that you had been here, Penny felt more like a mother than the one you grew up with.

"Enough of that! You need to finish your desserts! I expect one when your done!"

"You can eat them?"

"Of course, sweetie! We don't need food but we still enjoy it." Penny winked at you and then bustled off into one of the other rooms. You looked back at your desserts and smiled.

A few hours later, you held a tray containing various desserts that you were fairly confident of. You carefully trudged up the steps towards Jaehwan's room. One of the staff members said he was there.

Although it was about midnight, you knew he was awake. He was always awake. Ever since Penny mentioned that vampires could still eat food, you wanted to gift Jaehwan with the desserts you were making. You made sure to save Penny some, though.

Walking down the hall, you heard odd sounds coming from Jaehwan's room. But it didn't sound like Jaehwan. It almost sounded like someone was in pain. Approaching his room slowly, you saw that his door was partially open. Peeking around the door you found a frightening scene.

Jaehwan was facing you but another person was standing in front of him. A woman, with long black hair and elegant dress. Her head was thrown back in pain. Her eyes were shut and she looked as if she was holding back the screams that should be coming from her. Jaehwan had one arm around her waist and another around her wrist. His fangs were embedded in her arm. He was feeding. The realization of what he was doing sent chills throughout your body. You dropped the tray and ran. You heard Jaehwan call your name but it only caused you to run faster. You headed up the stairs towards your room and spotted Penny.

"What is it, dear? You look like you've seen a ghost!"

Not in any state to carry on a conversation, you bolted past her. Sprinting up the steps, you made it to your room and locked the door. You slid down to the floor, your legs unable to withstand your weight. You brought your knees up to your chest and cried. You screamed when you heard a knock on your door.

"Y/N?" Your heart seized when you heard Jaehwan's voice. "Y/N, can you let me in? Please?"

You couldn't speak. Your throat contained nothing but sobs. He knocked once more but then it was silent.

••••••••

Jaehwan placed his head on the wall beside your door. He could hear you crying. It tore his heart in two. He knew he shouldn't have asked for a blood donation but he hadn't fed in two weeks and he needed something. He heard movement beside him and looked up to see Penny. Her arms were crossed over her chest and she looked pissed. She crooked her finger in a gesture to follow him and he obeyed. Maybe Penny would have an idea of what to do....if she let him live, that is.

Once they reached the end of the hall, Penny turned and leveled him with a glare.

"What did you do?"

"I....I asked for a blood donation. She.....she saw..."

"Dammit, Jaehwan! Have you completely lost all sense of reason?! She was doing so good! She was smiling so much! What were you thinking?! Why ask for a blood donation? She signed the contract, didn't she?"

"Penny....I...can't....she's so....fragile. What if it hurts her too much and she doesn't want to be my donor anymore? Or what if she starts to hate me?"

"Well, you've already succeeded in scaring her. You should have just asked her first. You need to talk to her."

"She isn't going to open the door."

"Then you'll kneel in front of her door until she does!!" Penny huffed and walked down the hall. She was right, of course. He should have asked you.

Sighing, he walked slowly back to your room. He silently prayed that you would open the door. He could easily break the lock but that would make matters worse. When he reached your room he listened but couldn't hear you crying anymore. He only heard the occasional sniffle. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and knocked. He heard your startled gasp and he internally kicked himself again.

"Y/N, could you please open the door? I would like to talk to you. I promise I won't come in." He heard you shuffle and hope soared that you might open the door. The door handle jiggled and the door opened but only a sliver. He saw you on the floor, head down, huddled in the corner next to the door jam. He moved slowly and lowered himself to the floor. He sat next to the door but didn't try to open it. He would let you do that.

"Y/N, please don't cry."

••••••••

You looked at Jaehwan, sitting on the floor, very unlike a typical image of a prince. He wore a look of guilt and you were confused. He wasn't mad at you for interrupting?

"I'm......sorry....f-for interrupting...."

"No, y/n, it's me who should be sorry. I have no excuses. I didn't mean to scare you."

"Is she your girlfriend?"

"No, she's one of the members of a blood donation group for vampires."

"Blood donation group? B-But.....I thought...." Did he not want yours? Maybe it didn't suit his tastes?

"I know. You are my donor. I should have come to you but I hadn't fed in almost two weeks and I didn't want to burden you since you had just arrived."

"But I signed the contract."

"I know and I am eternally grateful, I just....."

"Is...does my blood....not suit you? I heard vampires can smell blood. Maybe mine doesn't smell good?"

"Oh, you have that completely wrong. Well, partially. Vampires can smell blood but, believe me, yours smells like the most exquisite banquet you can imagine. I just wanted you to be comfortable here first. I don't want to speak ill of them, but the blood donation group members can't compare to yours."

"Oh....um, she....looked like she was in pain."

"Ah...well, that is part of it. I can't control that."

"Does it hurt a lot?" A sudden new fear grasped your heart. You had obviously considered that someone biting into your skin wouldn't feel good.

"It wouldn't for you. Maybe like a needle prick at first and then I can control what you feel."

"Control what I feel?"

"Yes, whether it be happiness, sadness, or anger. I can control what emotion you feel." You nodded at his explanation. Your heart easing a little at his calm manner.

"Thank you for explaining." You wiped the last traces of your tears from your face and took a deep breath.

"Do you want to try?"

[lay-d-l]

Zoyalai Modern AU

This spring I joined @grishaversebigbang and for whatever reason I signed up as a writer. Not a very smart idea it was very stressful and I don’t even like it that much, but y’know, next year, I’ll be ready. 

I worked with incredibly talented people who are, generally the sweetest human beings you could meet. 

Materialki:

@someofgennie x

@edmeom x

Corporalki:

@shelbychild

Fic summary: Zoya was living day for day, not caring really, not after him. After she bumps into a guy at her favorite coffee shop, her life gets interesting again. Will she let herself feel again?

you can find my fic here *it’s not there yet, so if you wanna see it, keep reading*

It was a wet Tuesday morning; it had been raining all night and I wasn’t feeling like going out. But things happen 24/7 and that means reporters, like me, work 24/7. I wiggled out of bed and went to the bathroom. Seeing what I saw, I groaned. It's Zoya's-Famous-Bed-Hair. Once, in junior year, I woke up late and didn't have time for hair and makeup. So, naturally, I put on the first thing I got my hands on and ran out. Which is usually okay, right? Yeah, well Os Alta Speciality School has uniforms. Though, they’re not like Ketterdam ones. In Ketterdam, it's regular pants-shirt-jumper; in Os Alta they wore keftas. That's not the point, though; the night before, Genya and I were out, partying, so I wore clothes from last night's party. The principal suspended me for the day. This morning, I braided my hair, took my laptop, and left for the Dragon Scale. Dragon Scale is a coffee shop just around the corner from my apartment. Since I started drinking coffee when I was fifteen I have always gone there; it felt safe. Mostly because no one, not even Genya, knew about it. Just like every other day, it was almost empty. One person at the counter and a few others scattered in the back. I went to the counter and Anna, the barista, smiled at me. "The usual?" she asked. "You know it," I smiled back. "Could you bring it to me though? I have a lot of work today." Not turning from the shelves she said, "No worries." With that I went to sit by the window. I liked looking at people as they passed by, even when it's not a busy day. I opened the laptop and started writing: the elections are nearing, are you ready to decide between our two competitors? Is it going to be the cunning Petyr or the sly Nikolai Lantsov? I was never into politics, but Shelby, my publisher, insisted I write about this year's election. I love my job, I really do, but this is incredibly boring and the campaigns don't start until a few weeks from now, so when Anna brought my frappe, I looked to the street. I was like a less smart Sherlock Holmes. Meaning I can't really deduct, I just notice how people walk and dress, or if they have any ticks. Like if their left shoulder is lower than their right one. There was a woman in a hot pink coat, which was an unusual choice considering not many people wear bright colours at this time of year. A pig tailed girl who had stuck a lollipop to her mother's jacket. And a guy who was trying so hard not to be seen, but who obviously failed. With nothing else to do I packed my laptop, took my cup and went out. As I was turning to say bye to Anna, I bumped into a wall. I said, "Really? Couldn't have told me I'm going into a wall???" She started laughing hysterically. "What?" "Sorry to disappoint, but I'm no wall." I turned around. He definitely wasn't a wall. "Witty remarks are really unnecessary." I said. He put his arms up in surrender. "I am sorry that I bumped into you though." “Don’t worry, it could have been someone not as pretty as you.” “Thank you, I think. I’m going to go now. Bye Anna!” as I was walking out I heard Anna talking to the man.

Next day, I was sitting in the park, trying to write something on the elections but it was a no go. I was closing my laptop when I felt someone sit beside me. I looked to my right and saw the guy from the coffee shop. “What does ‘Z’ stand for?” “What are you doing here?” I asked, “Are you following me?” “No, I was walking, and I saw a familiar face, thought I say ‘Hi’. What does ‘Z’ stand for?” “It stands for Zebra.” “Really?” “No, of course not, it stands for Zoya.” “Oh that’s a nice name, is it yours? What does it mean?” “Yes, of course it’s mine. It means ‘life’”I said. “And you are?” “Nikolai.” he looked at his watch, “As much as I liked this encounter, I must go now.” “Bye?” He bowed to his waist, “Farewell.”

I snoozed my alarm three times, but it kept ringing. Then I realised it's not a regular alarm, it's a Genya alarm. "What is it, Kostyk?" I said into the phone. "Oooh!" she exclaimed, "Kostyk, that sounds nice. Not used to it though." "I know that's why I said it. What's the rush?" "It's Saturday." "Oka-" "ARE YOU TELLING ME YOU FORGOT OUR WEEKLY MEETING???" "Don't yell," I said. "Of course I didn't forget, you'd kill me if I did. I just didn't think it'd be this early." "Early?" she asked, "Zoya it's 11:00 in the morning!" "Oops? Okay, well, I'm obviously awake now, so what were you thinking of doing?" I asked. "The Zoo! Winter is coming, and I want to see all the summer animals before they stop going out." "Sure, meet you at the park in two hours?" "Yeah, love you!" she said, and hung up. I got up and went to the kitchen and opened the fridge. It was empty, guess I forgot to go to the store. So I decided to go to a bakery down the street, hoping they still have something warm. Luckily for me, they did. I bought two dollars worth of mini-whinnies and got back home. It was a relatively sunny day, so I sat at the balcony. And for a Saturday, it wasn't really busy. Besides Genya days, Saturdays are usually the farmers market days too. Most people don't have time to buy groceries during the week. I looked up to the Grand Palace. Tourists always said it was the most beautiful building in Os Alta, but I could never see it. It's not ugly, I just found the Little Palace more interesting. The Grand Palace is like any other palace ever, with big towers and shiny roofs, I can see that in any place that had a royal dynasty. But only we have a huge library with a fountain next to the royal Palace. I looked at my watch and yelped, I'm gonna be late!, I thought. I changed from my sweats and tee, and put on jeans, a jumper and boots, In case it rains. Took the leather jacket and keys from the hanger and ran out. The park wasn't far from my apartment so I walked. When I got to our usual meeting spot, Genya was already there. I waved apologetically. She rolled her eyes: "At least you're here, let's go!" "Fine, fine, I'm going!", I laughed. We sat in her car and went to the zoo. During the ride we talked about what we did during the week, how's married life and how's David in general, but all that was dropped the moment we walked through the gates of the zoo. First we saw the birds; pigeons, eagles and those funny colored ones that sing. Next animals were sheep, llama and deer. Their cages were around a pavilion that had horses and ponies you could ride, but those are mostly for kids. Few years back, Genya asked if we could ride but they wouldn’t let us. She said “it wasn’t fair that only kids can do fun stuff…” and continued to tell me how when she has kids they will be free to do whatever they want. We walked next to the deer cage. David loves them so every time we’re here we tend to stay a bit longer. Today we saw there was a new addition to the family. On the cage it said she was a doe named Lola. Next stop were the ostridges and the emus, we skipped those, mostly because one ostridge bit me a few years back when I tried to feed it. Genya got it on camera. On the other side of the sidewalk were the bison, and we always acted as if they were the flying bison from Avatar: the Last Airbender. We named all of them Appa. The seals were sleeping so we went to the reptiles instead. Most of the snakes were also sleeping, as was the aligator so we decided to skip the hippoes too and went to see the wolves. Though they didn't pay attention to us as they were eating. The monkeys were mostly shitting onto their hands and throwing it at each other… The petting zoo was empty so we had all the little goats to ourselves! When I was a kid, and my mom still my mom, I tried to take one of the goats with me home, but I couldn’t carry it alone so it stayed in the petting zoo. When we got to the bears most of them were in the water, but there was one who went in circles around his pond, like he was trying to catch fish. Lions were lying around, hyenas were laughing at the visitors, which is not creepy at all… At that point we got tired and went to the big pond where the ducks and the swans are. I sat on a bench while Genya bought ice cream. “Strawberry?” she asked. I just nodded. "So," she started, "you're not seeing anyone, right?" I choked, "What?!" "Are you seeing anyone?" "Where is that coming from?!" "David recently got together with a childhood friend and when he got home, he said you'd like him and that you should go on a date." she said, casually. "Genya, you know I'm not the one for dating…" She touched her eye-patch and looked away. "I know, but just try? I mean, just meet with him, then decide what to do. Not everyone is like Alex…" I sighed, "Sure, wh-" "REALLY?", she exclaimed. "Yes, chill. Who is he?" "Oh, oh… I have no idea. David just called him Sobachka, but-" "Genya…" "But he can't be bad if he's friends with David. If you don't feel like staying, I'll pull you out." "Okay, Pinkie Promise?", I asked, and she smiled, "Cross my heart, hope to fly!" We threw the rest of our cones to the ducks, passed the safari animals, and finished this year's last visit to the zoo. Next to the zoo is an empty parking lot that has a small adventure park. Ever since I befriended Genya, after the zoo we go to the ferris wheel and the bumper cars.

Since I agreed to go on a blind date I decided it was best to do it in a familiar setting. So I told Genya that I wanted it to be in a coffee shop near my flat. I put on my battle armor, jeans and a sweater, and went out. The streets were empty, even for a weekday. I went into the shop and looked around to see a familiar face. Anna, behind the counter, Gennie in the corner, drawing probably. I sat in my usual place next to the window and waited. Anna came by the table. “Hey, what can I get you?” I looked up, “Nothing yet, I’m on a date…” “That’s a new one, how did that happen?” “I was out with Genya and she suggested it. And it’s Genya, she thinks he’s good, and she would not stop until I said yes so I’m here to see what happens.” She smiled, “Well, I’m sure it can’t be that bad.” “Yeah,” I said and looked behind her, “Gennie’s calling for you.” She turned around, “Oh, I better get that, she’s trying out a new technique.” Then she left. The set time was 17:00, I came a little earlier, just in case. I took my phone out of my pocket to see the time. He’s late. Door opened and Nikolai came in, he looked around and rolled his eyes when he saw me. He came and sat at the chair opposite of me. “Honestly Zoya, is it not tiring to follow me? You could just ask for my number.” I scoffed; ”Don’t flatter yourself I’m here for a date.” His eyes widened, “Come again?” “You thought you were-” “You’re a friend of David’s.” “What? How do you know that?” I asked. He scratched his head, “I, oh Saints…” “You’re my date, aren’t you?” “I would seem so.” I frowned, “Hey, don’t look so pissed I didn’t know either.” “Do you want to do this?” I asked. “I don't see why not.” he said. “I have no expectations, we sit and talk. If we click, cool. If not, we had an interesting afternoon. Deal?” He put his hand out. I shook it; “Zoya Nazyalenski, nice to meet you.” “Nikolai, my pleasure.” he smiled. Anna came by again, “This, it’s hilarious.” she said. “I’m glad I’m not the only one who thinks that.” Nikolai replied. She laughed; “ What can I get you?” “I’ll have a Frappe.” I said, “ What do you want?” Nikolai looked at me, then at Anna, “I’ll have what she’s having, and a plate of biscuits.” Anna nodded, “Coming right up.” “So,” I started, “do we start again, or do we just continue where we left off?” “We continue, can't pretend like you’re not my biggest fan.” i laughed, “Yeah, keep telling yourself that. On another note, how do you know David?” “We lived in the same neighborhood when we were kids.” he said, “One day, when we were 8, there was an explosion in his garage. I was playing in my backyard when it happened, I came running to see what happened, to see if he was okay. Spoiler alert he was, but I think he burned his eyebrows off.” “What happened?” I asked eagerly. “When?” I sighed, “What caused the explosion?” “Oh.” he looked confused, “I don’t know. I never asked. And how do you know David?” “I’m afraid my story isn’t so interesting, we met at highschool.” “You went to the same school?” “Yes but we were on different courses. I took journaling, he took engineering. He wasn’t social, I barely knew him before my best friend, his now wife Genya, worked up the courage to ask him out in junior year.” “Yeah, he definitely wasn’t a social butterfly. I was really surprised when I heard he was getting married.” “But I didn’t see you at the wedding.” I stated. “My father got sick, I couldn’t come” “I’m sorry to hear that.” he smiled; “I’m not, he’s an ass” “Who’s an ass?” Anna came with our order. “His father.” “My father” we said at the same time. I looked at him and smiled, he winked at me. “I see where you get it form” He gasped; “you didn’t” “I did.” Anna facepalmed. “I can see this is going great, so I’m gonna go.” “Thank you Anna.” Nikolai said. She waved him off. “Since we’re basically playing 20 questions, what else do you want to know?” I asked. He looked out the window, “Cliche, but, what is your favorite season and why?” “Winter, because there is nothing better than a wool jumper. My turn. Why does David call you Sobachka?” “This got very personal, very fast.” “Oh,” i said, “I’m sorry, you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.” “No it’s okay, no one is ever that direct with me.” he said and ate his last biscuit. “Why? Is it because you’re in this year's elections?” “I thought you didn’t recognise me.” “Oh please, I’m writing an article about you and the other guy” “Huh, he really is ‘the other guy’” he said. “So, are you going to tell me what’s behind your nickname?” “Right, ugh, I’m not my father's son, my mom cheated. Not many people know this. The ones who do call me Sobachka, y’know, like a dog.” “That’s rough buddy… So it doesn’t bother you?”I asked. “No, not really.” I chuckled, “Not many people are like that.” Indeed they are not.” he looked at his watch, “This has been fun, but I’m afraid I must go now. I would like to see you again.” “I would like to see you too.” I smiled.

I was walking down the stairs when I heard my phone ring. “Hello?” “Hi, is this Zoya?”said the voice. “Yes, and you are?” I sighed as I got to the bottom and went to check my mailbox. “Is my voice so plain to you that you do not remember it?” “Nik, it’s not like I have your number saved in my phone. How may I help you this fine evening?” “I was wondering if you are free tonight? For a stroll in the park.” “We saw each other two days ago!” “Please? I need a friendly companion.” he paused, “We’ll eat doughnuts?” “How dare you use doughnuts against me?! Of course I’ll come. Meet in front of the Little Palace fountain in an hour? “Done. I’ll see you there.” I smiled fondly. “Bye Nik.” During the past few weeks I have been seeing him more and more. One Saturday he and David tagged along on our weekly meeting. I got out of the building and went across the street. There were lots of cars so I decided against calling a taxi. It wasn’t a long walk to the Little Palace, but I had to go to the Library first. There weren't many people in the Library so it was a quick stop. The Librarian, Kuwei, is a friend of Nina’s so I paused to chat with him, but he had work to do so I left him to it. When I got to the fountain, Nikolai was already there. I kissed him on the cheek and sat next to him. “What’s up?” He picked up a bag and gave it to me, “Doughnuts first.” “Honestly I don’t know how can someone not like you.” I said and took a bite of the doughnut. “So good…” “Me or the doughnut?” he asked. “What?” “You said it’s good. Me or the doughnut?” “Oh,” I laughed, “definitely the doughnut!” “HA-HA, very funny. Look I didn’t want to ask you, but I really need help with my speech.” I wiped my mouth to get rid of any leftover sugar and took out a notepad out of my bag. “Sure, what's it about?” “Well, this showing is supposed to be about children. Their education, the schools, hospitals, even orphanages.” he rubbed his neck. “That’s great, children should be taken care of, we know that first hand.” “Yeah, but I don’t know how to phrase it. I thought you could help with that.” “Of course. You’re gonna tell me everything that you want to say, we’ll write that down and work our way from there.” We were working on the speech until the sun went down. I looked up at him and said:”It’s getting late, I should go…” Nikolai scratched his head, “Yeah, no, of course, we’ll see eachother on David's birthday, right?” “Yes. This has been fun, I’d like to be more involved with your campaign if you’ll have me.” “You’re always welcome, always.” he hugged me, “I’ll see you in a few days. Bye Zoya.” “Bye Nik.”

“Botkin is making a reunion.” “What, when?” “I don’t know, some time after today.” Genya said. “Hold on, how do you know that?” “Didn’t he call you?” “Not that I know. Wait let me check,'' I took my phone from the table and looked at my phone log, “Oh, right I do have a missed call from an unknown caller. But do I really have to go, I mean I’ll see everyone I like tonight.” Genya sighed, “Zoya, it’s a party, you are going, you are going to have fun.” “But-” “End of discussion.” “EnD oF dIsCuSsIoN” I mocked her. “Oh, piss off. Just don’t be late.” “That’s you Kostyk. Gotta go, love you!” I ended the call. We are celebrating David’s birthday tonight, I had to go and buy him a gift. A normal person would have done that by now, but I just love to do everything last minute. I dressed up, took my wallet and went out to the hardware store. It started to rain during the taxi ride, I was, naturally unprepared for that, thus making me a bit damp when I entered the store. One of the older workers came up to me and said:”A bit unexpected, isn’t it?” “You have no idea.” I replied. “How can I help you?” “It’s my friend's birthday, and he likes to repair regular household items, or just make up new things, so i thought to buy him a new tool kit because his old one is really worn out and probably very rusty or just damaged.” “Right.”he said, “Would you like a completely new tool box, or separate objects and a tool box?” I looked around, “Well, if it were for you what would you get?” “Is there a price range?” “Not really, no. But let’s not make it more than a weekly paycheck.” After a series of isles and relentless explaining of different brands of the same monkey wrench, he recommended a box with wrenches of all sizes, seven different screwdrivers and some kind of special doorknob key that is also in different sizes and very useful. When I bought the tool box, I went to the liquor store to buy Genya’s favorite wine, but the rain hadn’t stopped. I was dripping wet when I came to their apartment. I knocked, twice, when David opened the doors, he went in for a hug, I put my finger up “No, no, we’ll do that when I’m dry.” He shrugged. “If you say so.” “HAPPY BIRTHDAY!” “Thank you Zoya, come on in.” he let me through.I pointed my finger at Genya, “See, not late! And not the last one to get here.” “Not to burst your bubble, but you are the last one.” it was Mal. I looked around, Mal and Alina were on the couch, Nina sitting beside them. Toyla was on  the armchair next to the couch. Tamar and Nadia were on the loveseat opposite the couch, near the kitchen. Leoni and Adrik on the floor beside them. Genya was on a stool, her back turned. “No I'm not, Nik isn’t here”. I took off my jacket, and sat on the edge of the couches arm rest.. “Nikolai isn’t coming, his father got worse. Didn’t he tell you?” “No…” I took my phone out of my pocket, “I really need to get this serviced, don’t I?” Nina raised a glass and said: “Yes, yes you do.” I stuck out my tongue to her, “Shut up.” “To change the topic, Zoya, are you going to the reunion?” Leoni asked. I groaned. “Yes… But I don’t really want to.” “Why is that that?” “I don’t like people from highschool, plus, half of them hate me because I acted like a bitch. “ i said, “You all are enough for me.” “That’s cute.” Adrik said. I smiled, “Yeah, cute. And honestly what can we do there and not here? I mean the only highlight of that reunion is Botkin.” Genya looked at me, “Zoya. You are going. You can Ask Nikolai to come with you.” “I doubt Nik would say yes. It’s a highschool reunion full of people he doesn’t know.”   “You’d be surprised.” said Alina. “And with that comment we conclude this topic...” I said.

“That’s enough talking about food, It’s making me hungrier than I already am.” David said after an intense discussion of ‘Are Waffles Better Than Pancakes’. If you ask Nina, they are. Though, for Nina, waffles are better than anything. David stood up, “The boys and I will go to Jess’ to get pizza, you try to be nice and leave some wine for us, okay?” We started to laugh, “We’ll do our best.” said Tamar. “Oh, do you think Darina’s working?” asked Tolya. “Why?” asked Mal. “Well, she likes to draw, if she’s working, we could ask that she draws David with ketchup on one pizza, and write ‘HAPPY BIRTHDAY’ on the other.” “Huh, could be fun.” said Adrik, as he went after the others and walked out of the flat.   “Bring umbrellas, it’s still raining!” yelled Nadia after them, “Idiots…” she muttered. I looked at Genya, “Kostyk.” “What?” “Go bring out the good wine.” I said. “Ooh, yes, bet! Alina, with me, we need to find the wine.” They stood up, and went to the kitchen. "Okay," Tamar started, "so there's this game Tolya and I used to play as kids, when the boys get back do you want to try?" "Yeah, sure." I said and turned my head towards the kitchen, "Girls, Tamar has a game idea, come here!" They stumbled back to the living room. Alina sat down and asked "What's the name of the game?" "Um, I don't really know? We always called it Nervous Breakdown, cause no one would believe Tolya, but I think it's called Werewolves." she said. "Oh! Oh! Oh!" yelled Leoni. "I think I know that game, but we called it Mafia. You played it with cards?" Genya sighed, "That's great and all, but we don't know how to play." "True." I pitched in. "Okay, so this is kinda complicated so no interruptions and questions are after I explain how the game works, cool?" Tamar asked. "Yes mom." we said in usion. "Genya, go grab the cards, rest of you sit around the table." When Genya got back and sat down, Tamar started to take the playing cards. She started explaining: "Point if the game is to find out who's the werewolf. We sit in a circle. Everybody has a card that's in front of them, that's your card and there's a card in the middle. After you see what's your card and  what role are you playing you put it down and don't touch it. You put your hand next to it and close your eyes. Then when I say your role you wake up and do your roles part "Since it's seven of us there's eight playing cards. Two Jokers, they're the werewolf, they change the middle card with anyone's card and touch the person who's card they changed. But they touch with the card not the hand. Nod if you understood." We all nodded. "Then there's a Queen, she's the helper for the werewolfs, she wakes the same time as them and does nothing during that time, but when we all wake she tries to convince the rest of us that she's the werewolf so we'd kill her instead of the real werewolf so that the werewolfs would win. "Then there's the Jacks, he's a psychic, he can see anybody's card and the middle one, but he doesn't touch and he can't see his card in case it's been changed during the werewolf time. "Next up is King, he's a thief. He changes his card with anybody's card and touches the person who's card he changed. And then there's the Aces who are villagers and do nothing." she finished. I looked at all of them one by one and started laughing. Everyone was throwing a fit, there were a lot of spilled drinks. "No joke now, I think we could try, but everytime someone makes a mistake we drink!" Nina said. "You're gonna be the first one!" We started laughing again. And after a few more useless tries, we got serious. They all had so many questions that took a long time answering, boys got back with food before we could even play. So as we ate, we tried to convince them to play, but it was useless since they were drunk off their minds. To be fair I wasn't much better. We spent the night eating and drinking. Mostly drinking. And eating. It was getting late, most of the group left. Alina, Mal and I were still at the flat. David and Mal were talking in the kitchen, Alina was in the bathroom. Genya and I were on the floor.“Zoya?” “Yeah?” “You’re drunk, right?” asked Genya. I looked up and back down, the room was wobbly. “Yeah, definitely.” “Do you like Nikolai?” “Of course I like Nik, he’s a great friend.” She shook her head, “Do you like Nikolai? Like, like-like.” “Oh…” “Well?” “I- no. Maybe, how does one know that? Is there a test I can do online?” Genya started squealing, “HA! I knew it!” She turned toward the kitchen, “I raise my bet to 20 dollars!” But I didn’t hear that. I was thinking of Nikolai, of his face when we see each other.

I came home from Genya and David’s. I showered and put on my pajamas. I fell asleep. I woke up. My phone was ringing. It’s election day. I fell asleep. I woke up. I tried to write. I tried to eat. I fell asleep. I woke up. I got another text. “We won the election. -Nik”. I fell asleep. I woke up. I failed to write. I failed to eat. I fell asleep.

When I finally decided it was time to get out of the house, I went to Dragon Scale. It was extremely windy outside so I put on a beanie. When I walked in, my head was bowed, I went full face into someone. “I’m so sorry.” I said and continued forward,when someone took my hand. I turned around and saw Nikolai. “Zoya.” “Hi.” “Why didn’t you answer my calls? Genya said you were alright but you scared me to death!” I just stared, "Zoya, talk to me!" "Can we go and sit?" I asked. He followed me as I  went to the corner booth and sat down, Nikolai a few steps behind me. "I got really drunk at Genya and David's. And I said something to Genya. And I got scared, because if it's true it might end bad for me, just like last time." "What are you talking about?" "i was in many relationships, but none were very serious until I met this guy, it was years ago, when I was in highschool. He was older than me, and I really liked him, at the beginning. But as it went on I realised he was being toxic. It… escalated." "Ecsalated how? Did he hurt you?" Nikolai asked. "No, not me, but Genya. You know that eye-patch she wears?" He nodded. "He did that, I don't know how, I was at work when it happened. I asked her to tell me but she refused, I just stopped pushing." I bowed my head. "Zoya." I looked up. "Nik, if I were to tell you that I was in love with someone, what would you do?" "I tell you that I'm happy for you and that he is an extremely lucky guy." He looked kinda sad. "And what if I told you that I'm in love with you, what would you do?" He shot up in his seat. "What?" I smiled, "I'm in love with you Nik." "I-" "Do with that what you will, but I don't want it, this, to ruin our friendship." "I'm afraid it did." He got up, leaned across the table and kissed me.

Next month was full of TV screening and restless nights as Nik and I wrote his speeches. But Botkins' reunion was soon, so he would take a few days off to have fun. I spent every free moment with Genya and Alina, shopping for the reunion. As much as I didn't want to go, shopping was fun. Genya found a dress in the same shade as her hair and Alina found a bodysuit in black and gold. I had a really hard time finding something I like. But the day before I found a perfect dress in victorian blue. Nik wore a gray suit and had this beautiful waist coat. When we got to the ball room in the Little Palace, it was already full, but we kept close to the outer ring. Most of the people were dancing, even Genya and David, but I went to talk to Botkin. "Mr. Botkin." He turned to face me, "Oh, Zoya dear, how has life been treating you?" That was his signature line, "Good. I just wanted to see how have you been doing?" "Never better dear." he looked behind me, "Now go off, there's a handsome young man waiting for a dance." "What?" I turned around and saw Nik. "Oh, thank-" he was already off to talk to someone else. I walked towards Nik. He bowed, "May I have this dance?" I looked around, nobody seemed to notice us. "Yes, yes you may." The music changed to a slow dance. We twirled around, and around. Once we stopped, I realised we were alone on the dance floor and there was a light on me. I turned to face Nik, but he was kneeling on the floor. "Nik," I said carefully, "what are you doing?" He took a box out of his inner pocket and opened it. Inside was the most beautiful emerald I have ever seen. I knew what it ment. “Would you do it?” he asked. I looked up at him, puzzled, "What?" "Well, y'know…" "No, I don't." He sighed: "Make me the happiest man alive. Would you do it?" "Yes." He got up and hugged me, I thought I was going to fall over, when these balloons started falling from the ceiling. I kissed him. "I love you." I said. He smiled, "I know." And kissed me again. When all the balloons fell, Genya came through. "Do you like it?" she asked. "What? Wait, how do you know?" "Oh silly we all knew." I looked around to see my friends standing around us, laughing. Mal said: "We had a bet on when are you getting official." Tolya raised a hand, "I won!" "You lot are unbelievable! Come one, you are being punished, this is a group hug!" That night ended up to be one of my favorites.

I didn't want to wait. We booked a venue for our closest friends. Genya bought me my wedding dress for "being strong, and being my best friend". It was a floor length dress with long sleeves. Top of my hair was in a bun, while the bottom part flowed in the wind. Alina even bought me a crown. I was walking down the aisle when someone came bursting in. I turned to see who it was. "I don't know why am I surprised, you always were a bitch." Genya answered, "What do you want Alexander?" Nik ran down to me and took my hand, "That's him?" he whispered. "Yes, stay here." I told him. "What do you mean "what do I want"? Isn't there a part when I get to the object?" I looked at him. "Alex, if you do not walk out right now, I'm gonna call the cops." "They didn't stop me then, they won't stop me now." "Ugh, you're so full of yourself." I said. Long story short, the cops stopped him. We continued with the ceremony. The priestess looked at me, then Nik and said: "If you went through that, on you wedding day, you can go through anything. Are the vows really necessary?" We shook our heads. "Then, I pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride." And oh boy did he kiss me.

We're at McDonald's. And we're celebrating. Genya took her milkshake and stood up. Everyone followed her. "For our friends, may they have a long, happy life. Cheers!" There was a long choir of cheers going around. I sat back and looked at Nik and his Happy Meal, "Is it too early to get a divorce?" He looked me and said, with his mouth full of french fries: "Why'd gou go dhat?"

[writethehousedown]

We've Got Time To Kill, Baby (Kyara) - Zyan

A/N: day two is here! And I decided to go to the Hurt/Comfort route. Don’t worry, it does have a happy ending. Ish. Sideblog is @dollalpaca !

Summary: With their senior year comes the typical question of ‘what are you doing to study afterwards?’ and Kiara is starting to feel stressed out as months pass and she doesn’t have an answer.

TW - anxiety and general self loathing.

When she was in fifth year, Kiara rarely saw the seniors stay through the entire evening, or just appear sometimes - legend had it not even the teachers cared whether you came or not, and sometimes not even them bothered to give classes, unless they were the assigned tutors for the internships.

She hoped and prayed that would be their case, not only because she wanted to spend more time with her friends outside school hours and live her last year to the fullest, but due to the fact that Kiara had no clue whatsoever of what to study after High School, and it was starting to stress her out. Everyone else seemed to have their shit figured out; Priyanka was going to be a primary school teacher, Tynomi would study law, Juice had already begun training for the physical education admission exam, and of course Kyne would go on to be a mechanical engineer - she had the brains for that, she’d be great at it.

As far as options went, Kiara was completely blank - she had no drive for anything, well, she did have a couple hobbies, but none of them were carreers she could pursue in college and excel at. And it’s not like she could take a year off to find out what she could do, in this time and economy? That wasn’t an option. She had to study something, even if it was just a teaching career, she couldn’t waste her time.

Her anxiety looms at the back of her mind everytime another teacher asks what are they going to follow once class ends, sometimes reminiscing when they were barely twelve, trying to get used to High School life, running around the hallways and playing football and voleyball, sometimes breaking windows and fluorescent lights with their games.

Though Kiara remembers those times with fondness, she’d rather not be reminded of it shortly after almost snapping at her own teacher because she has no idea what she’ll do and she’d prefer if he just did his job and taught them about geography.

The bell echoes through the hallways, indicating the start of their second recess and the end of another dreadful class of Spanish. Kiara somehow managed to not bang her head open against the desk everytime the teacher spoke - it’s not that the class it’s boring, it’s just so that she’s painfully mysoginistic and thinks she’s funny when she’s not.

“What did she say about an essay? I zoned out,” Kiara asks, turning to see Rita, who, unsusprisingly so, has all the class written down in her agenda. Rita cocks a brow, and without saying anything lets Kiara take a photo of everything she wrote down. “Thanks, love,” she says, blowing a kiss on her direction.

“Sometimes I think you befriended me just because I let you copy my homework without saying anything,” Rita teases, packing her stuff back into her bag. Kiara gasps, faux offended.

“Hey! You’re more than just an escape goat for when I don’t do homework,” Kiara protests, “with that reasoning, I’m only dating Kyne because she does my math tests for free.”

“The fuck you mean free? I’ve been telling you since last year to pay me in cash or I’ll break up with you,” Kyne butts in the conversation, perching herself against Kiara and Rita’s shared desk with a brow cocked. Kiara rolls her eyes with a sly smile.

“If I take you out for dinner on Friday instead of having you come over and order take out like we always do, will you forget my debts?” She inquires, fluttering her eyelashes and giving her a sneaky smile, knowing fully well she can get away with anything when she looks at Kyne like this. And sure enough, Kyne’s annoyed expression soon is replaced with a grin, accepting the proposal - only if she gets to choose where they’re going.

Rita, knowing she’s third-wheeling, rises from her seat and goes up to Scarlett - who, despite being well over 30°C, brought their set of mate - and strikes up a conversation with them and Priyanka.

Kyne quickly sits where Rita was just moments ago, scooting the chair closer and easily lacing her fingers with Kiara’s, but before they can continue their conversation, Boa and Starzy burst into the room with huge smiles, annoucing loudly that their biology teacher isn’t coming, so they can go home early. There’s a collective sigh of relief, because they had a presentation today and no one actually finished their presentations - well, except for the know-it-alls of the class, that is.

“Anyone wanna go to the park and drink mate?” Scarlett exclaims as they’re leaving, their pink flask poking out from their backpack as she trottes up to meet the girls. It takes about a second for everyone to agree, and even less time to convince the doorman to let them go.

It’s as easy as that - no one cares about what they do anymore, if admittedly half of them are eighteen already, they should know how to take care of themselves. That’s a lie as big as a house, but hey, they get to leave and come to school whenever they feel like it, so they’re not complaining.

It’s barely 5 p.m., and the sun is still shining up in the sky. April is suppossed to be the start of Autumn, but when has Autumn ever existed in the north of Argentina? Perhaps it’s global warming, perhaps it’s that Pachamama just doesn’t want them to get a break from the heat - whatever it is, they find themselves sitting on the grass under a large tree, and sooner than later they sent off the boys to buy something to drink (either alcohol or juice, they’re not complaining) because they’ll be damned if all they have to drink is Scarlett’s scorching hot mates.

“You all are just fucking cowards,” Scarlett says, pulling out their set and preparing themselves another mate.

“Just because you’ve burnt your tongue so many times you’ve lost all ability to feel anything, doesn’t mean we wanna go that same route,” Ilona deadpans, though just a minute later she’s asking Scarlett to prepare her one too.

The conversation flows easily between them, and from time to time they cheer the boys on their improvised game of football (though they do wonder where did they get the ball from on the first place) before laughing when one of them falls to the ground - which is fairly often.

“Sometimes I find it hard to believe that one of these airheads is applying for med school along with me,” Rita comments, sipping on the mate when it’s her turn.

“Wait, what?” Kiara says, turning to look at Rita. “Which one of these dumbasses is applying to med school with you?” She asks, baffled, and Rita proceeds to explain how Samuel had approached her during summer to ask where is she applying for med school, and when he found out they were aiming for the same college, he had decided they had to study together once the applications opened.

Kiara blinks repeatedly, once, twice, until she’s just blankly staring at Rita for a second longer than intended. Before it gets uncomfortable, she makes a quirky joke about being sorry for whoever ends up being Samuel’s patient if he manages to get into med school, and she sighs in relief when they giggle and move on.

It’s not that she doesn’t trust them enough to tell them about the anxiety that bubbles up in her stomach when she thinks about the future, the fear and guilt that consumes her at the thought of being a burden to her parents while she figures out what to do with her life, being one more mouth to feed in such difficult times — it’s just that, she doesn’t want to bother anyone with her feelings, so she keeps it all in, hoping it’ll eventually go away.

They spend almost all evening long together, and Kiara is thankful that they don’t bring up the future again.

***

The sun is setting when they say goodbye, and Kyne insists to walk her home - it’s not unusual for her to do so, if she practically lives in her house, anyway, but as they walk with their hands intertwined, Kiara feels a different air surrounding them. Like a heavy tension.

“Kiki?”

“Hm?”

Kyne comes to a stop, inevitably stopping Kiara too, and gives her a look Kiara is all too familiar with, making her shiver immediately - oh no.

“You’ve been acting weird lately, is everything okay?” She asks softly, tentatively, and Kiara’s heart sinks. Oh no. This isn’t happening.

She knows that technically she can confide Kyne with everything, that she’ll help her as much as she can with anything she needs, because that’s what couples do. But Kyne has always known how her future will be, at which college she’ll go and all she has to do to achieve her dreams. Between the two of them, she’s the one with more clarity, so getting her to understand her problems would take a lot of words and emotions Kiara isn’t quite ready to unveil.

So she plasters on a smile and nods curtly.

“Everything’s great. I’m good,” she lies through gritted teeth, but Kyne can clearly see through her facade, cocking a skeptical brow as soon as the words leave Kiara’s mouth.

Kyne squeezes her hand, coming closer to her. “You’re a terrible liar,” she says, smiling gently. “If we buy bizcochos on our way to your house, and we eat them on your garden, would that cheer you up?” She offers, making Kiara smile. It’s such a silly, tiny thing, but Kyne knows it always cheers her up, so she accepts, and they roam around the town to get to the only bakery that bakes tasty bizcochos, in Kiara’s opinion.

They barely speak, because Kyne knows to not push Kiara to speak when she doesn’t want to, and right now there’s not much Kiara can say without getting choked up.

It’s significantly darker when they arrive to Kiara’s house, and, naturally, her parents haven’t arrived yet from their jobs, and her little siblings are fighting for the remote - Kyne says hi to Marisa and Alan before they sneak off to Kiara’s room to get changed from their sweaty uniforms.

They settle on Kiara’s little garden, her mother’s pride and joy when Kiara was a child, when life was easier and she wasn’t so self-conscious about the economical crisis going on and money wasn’t as tight. Sometimes, just sitting there and eating any type of snack brings her memories of planting all kinds of flowers with her mother once spring arrived - carrying with it warmer days, flowers in bloom and the need to use mosquito repelent almost all day long.

She’d do everything to go back to those days.

It seems that her yearning shows through her expression, because Kyne silently takes her hand again, stroking the back as she nibbles on her bizcocho, her gaze absent-mindlessly wandering around. Kiara gives a heavy sigh before she speaks.

“I have no idea what I’ll do with my life,” she admits in a whisper, Kyne turns to see her almost immediately, giving her hand another squeeze, prompting her to go on. “Everyone has their shit figured out when it comes to their future, and I just— I don’t know yet. I don’t know what I’ll study, if I’ll study, if I’m just going to get a dead-end retail job to independize myself; I don’t know. I don’t know if I’ll ever know. And it’s starting to stress me out.” Kiara rubs her eyelids with her free hand, sighing in exasperation.

“Not everyone has their shit figured out, Kiki, that’s not true,” Kyne says after a moment of silence, and Kiara rolls her eyes slightly, but Kyne continues before she can say anything. “Really, who has anything figured out? We’re seventeen, living in a thirld world country with an economical crisis that never really leaves. It’s a lot of pressure.”

Kiara lets a half-hearted laugh at Kyne’s comment; of course she always knows what to say, how to read her between the lines.

“But you do have your shit figured out, you’ve said you’ll be an engineer since we were thirteen. Haven’t you already applied for the scholarship at UNSTA?” She asks, trying to prove a point, but Kyne chews on her lower lip and looks away briefly.

“No, not really. I don’t even know if I’ll be an engineer anymore.”

Oh.

Kiara frowns slightly, tilting her head to give Kyne a better look. “You don’t?” She says softly, wondering if she heard wrong. But Kyne nods slowly, much to Kiara’s surprise.

“I just… I don’t feel like my heart’s in it, you know? And my dad always says I shouldn’t study something that doesn’t make me happy, because I’ll either do nothing with it or end up dropping out,” she explains, and now it’s Kiara the one that squeezes her hand as a comforting gesture.

“Why didn’t you tell me? I could’ve—” she stops mid-sentence when Kyne turns to look at her, a brow slightly cocked. “Oh,” she muses when it hits her why she kept this to herself. She didn’t want to bother anyone.

Just like Kiara didn’t want to bother anyone with her own feelings.

She blinks repeatedly, before she manages to say something. “I guess we’re on the same boat.”

“Yeah.” Kyne shifts slightly, until she’s facing Kiara. “And, y’know, we could, like, work together to get on a different boat. A nicer one,” she proposes, smiling gently. Kiara returns the smile, breathing in deeply.

“I think we can, yeah,” she breathes out, fidgetting with Kyne’s fingers, chuckling bitterly. “God, we’re seventeen, we should be worrying about what party are we gonna crash this weekend, not— not what if we fail in life once High School is over,” Kiara grumbles, and Kyne giggles shortly. “We’re such idiots, too - I should’ve probably told you sooner, it would’ve made things easier.”

Kyne clicks her tongue, scooting herself closer and planting a chaste kiss on Kiara’s lips.

“Yes, probably, but you know us; we’re the bests at being uncapable to talk about emotions and keeping things a secret. No wonder why it took so long forus to get actually together,” she jokes, making Kiara laugh shortly. Her gaze becomes softer, lacing her fingers with Kiara’s as she sighs. “I still want you to promise me you’ll tell me when something is bothering you, yeah? You can always tell me anything,” Kyne says earnestly, and Kiara wonders what did she do to deserve such an amazing girlfriend.

“I promise,” she says, “For example, now I feel like these are enough feelings for one day, and I’ll much rather prefer if we went back to eating bizcochos before I cry.” Her upbeat tone makes Kyne laugh, but she still pulls her closer and steals a quick kiss from her, resting her arms on her waist.

“Whatever you say, babe.”

tags: argentina hs au, hurt/comfort

[isauntervaguelydownwards]

In the Mirror, a Photo

Penny gives Simon a photo, and it makes him a bit introspective

or: what makes the Humdrum out of an ordinary boy?

Fill for COC2019 day 24 prompt: reflections

Simon

The thing about the Humdrum is that you start taking things far more seriously when the bad guy looks like you. Ask me, I’d know. 

I mean, of course I took things seriously before it stole my face, but - it felt remote, somehow, when it just was an intangible thing. Then it stole my face and I felt violated, that this thing terrorising our world would wear my face while doing it. 

When we then defeated it, when I lost my magic and the closest thing I’d had to a father figure all in one swoop, I was so numb I didn’t reflect much on anything, really. Not until quite a lot of time had passed, and Penny gave me a photo someone had taken of me and her in our first year at Watford.

What first struck me, looking at that photo, was how absolutely tiny I was. When I asked Penny about that, she just laughed; we were all tiny back then, Simon. I still don’t think everyone was that tiny.

The Humdrum was, however. He, it - whatever, he was that tiny. And so lonely. 

I think that’s what really got to me, not just the death of the Mage and Ebb and Magick, but that he was so small and so lonely. He looked like a tiny thug - I guess that means I did, too? But above all else, he looked small and lonely. Bouncing and throwing that ball back and forth - I’d had one just like it, or maybe the one he had was the one I’d had, I’m a bit uncertain of how it all worked. He had the ball and he was very good at catching it, too, because he was just like me - all alone. 

I guess the biggest difference between us was that he ate magic. Looking at the photo, I could see exactly where he came from, why he’d turned out like he did. It could just as easily have been me, and that’s not a truth I like thinking about.

“What’re you thinking about?” Baz said behind me, and I only twitched a little. Despite standing in front of the mirror, and I’d guess he’d been home for quite a while, I really hadn’t noticed him.

“Oh, hi Baz,” I replied absentmindedly. I held up the photo, waggling it in his direction. “Just, reminiscing I guess.”

“You’re being ridiculous, that’s what you’re doing, Simon,” he scoffed, coming up behind me to wrap his arms around me, leaning his chin on my shoulder. It was a steep learning curve, adjusting to the wings, but we’d managed to get around them. “You never would’ve turned out like him, no matter what.”

“How can you say that? You don’t know that,” I said, eyes downcast. It’s not like I wanted to convince him he was wrong, but - I thought he needed to know what he was getting into, even if we’d been together for quite a while by now. “What actually stopped me from entirely becoming him?”

“Well, first of all, you’re much cuter than he was,” he replied, shaking me a little. I couldn’t help but snort, and by the noise he made that was what he was going for. “And, secondly, do you for a second think Bunce would’ve let you become evil?”

“What if I hadn’t met Penny, though? What then?”

“Simon, you befriended the goat herder at Watford, the woman no one else even paid mind to. And you did that before you knew Bunce.” Baz shook his head, pulling me closer to him, nestling his head down on my shoulder. I was a good three inches shorter - at least - but he insisted that standing stooped was perfect if it meant he could inconvenience me just a little. “You’re incapable of being anything other than kind - by Crowley, you’re dating me and I tried to kill you! - and you being the Humdrum, or trying to bring about the end of the world, well, that’s as likely as Normal pigs flying.”

“I hope you’re right,” I said morosely. I could’ve heard him rolling his eyes, considering how hard he did it. 

“I’m always right,” he said cockily, before kissing me until I was dizzy. 

[everlarkficexchange]

Unmasked ~ Fourteen

Written by: ~ M ~

Prompt #88

Rating: E (Explicit) This fic will contain consensual sexual content; mild language; discussions of injuries, illness, and amputations in a historical setting; discussions of miscarriage; discussions of minor character suicide; references to non consensual sexual situations.

My thanks to the moderators of @everlarkficexchange for always running an entertaining event, and for playing along with a little fun and mystery. Also my thanks to everyone else who has offered up their inbox for submissions. I appreciate everyone’s enthusiasm for this story. There are still several chapters to go, so if you volunteered to help post and have not yet, there is still a chance I will need your help! Please enjoy the fourteenth chapter of this adventure. Previous installments can be found here. Regards,

~ M ~

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

~~ Chapter 14 ~~

That night, I do seriously consider, as mad as it sounds, greeting Peeta in nothing but the mask I wore to the masquerade. I go so far as to strip down alone in our room and put the thing on. Then I realise how ridiculous I look and consider that he might laugh or worse, and put my night dress right back on and hide the mask.

Then I wait… and wait… for him to come to bed. I fume and huff and read. I am about to go in search of him when the door opens and he limps into the room. His movements are the most labored and careful I have seen them yet.

“Where have you been?” I ask and he stops, his shoulders slumping as I rise to my knees on our bed, fists planted on my hips.

“Ah. You are awake. I’ve been in the stables, assisting Joe and Charles with a mare who has been ill,” he says and hobbles over to his chair.

“In the stables?” I ask and fly off the bed.

“Yes,” he answers, doffing his coat and vest, then lowering himself to the chair. I stand before him, furious at his distance and the way I feel in this moment as he rubs his thigh, furious with him and at the sick mare for commanding his attention.

Good lord. I am jealous of a horse for she has received more touches from my husband than I. Truly I have sunk to astonishing depths here.

“And what is wrong with your leg?” I ask, crossing my arms and giving him my darkest scowl.

“It is made of wood?”

“No husband, what is wrong with it is that you have been working too hard and neglecting your health. Take off your trousers.”

“Madame I do not —“

“Take off your trousers this instant, or I shall fetch the shears and do it for you!” He stares at me a moment, his blue eyes wide, astonished. Slowly, he removes his boots, his eyes not leaving mine as I tap my slippered toe to show him my impatience.

“Oh for heaven’s sake,” I mutter and reach for his trousers. He makes a noise of distress as I help him with the garment, but they are off in a flash along with his undergarments, and I kneel before him. I hesitate then, as it strikes me how close I am to…him.

Oh Lord and mercy, I start blushing and completely lose my thoughts as he thankfully adjusts his shirt and hands to keep himself covered. I started so brave and now find myself unsure. He clears his throat and I tuck my hair back behind my ear before reaching for the contraption that keeps his leg attached. I skim my fingers over it and examine the straps, at a complete loss as to where to even start.

“Have you done this before? Removed a man’s leg?” he asks and my eyes leap to his. He’s smiling slightly, although I can see that he is in pain and I cannot help but laugh a little.

“If I say yes will I be met with your fury or your disapproval?”

“Most likely with my jealousy of the man,” he says and my cheeks warm at the idea that he might be jealous of anyone I paid such intimate attention to.

“I am guessing here. Perhaps some assistance, sir?” He leans forward and shows me how to remove his leg. I set it aside and scowl at the cloth padding that provides cushion between flesh and wood. It is stained with blood and Peeta winces as I prod at the chafing and blisters on his skin.

I begin to feel ill. It is much worse than I thought. Mother and Prim would be better at this, given how much more experience they have in healing. I barely know where to start and need a few deep breaths to order my thoughts. But I refuse to summon either of them. Peeta is my husband and I will care for him.

“It is not that bad…is it?” he asks. I turn my scowl to him.

“Not that bad?” I rise and ring for Mary. She must be close as she answers almost immediately.

“Yes ma’am?”

“I need a healing kit as quick as you can, Mary…and perhaps a light repast from the kitchens.”

She glances past me at Peeta then and hesitates. “Is Mr. Mellark injured?”

“Not severely, but that may change should he decide to be obstinate.”

Mary hides her smile and vanishes as Peeta protests. “Are you calling me obstinate?”

“Indeed I am, husband.” I retrieve the wash bowl and a sponge then sit before him, spreading a drying cloth beneath his truncated leg. I wash the affected area then and glower at each tiny wince of his until he grips the arms of the chair and ceases to show any reaction at all.

Mary returns then with the kit. She brings Sae with her, carrying a tray of food. Slices of bread, pears, goat cheese and honey.

“I apologize for keeping you both so late, but I’ve also need of my sewing kit and several scraps of fabric. I believe they are in the drawing room right now, if one of you could fetch them.”

“Allow me,” Sae insists and both of them leave.

“That thing is useless,” I say with a nod towards the soiled piece of padding.

“That thing prevents splinters or from it being worse than it already is.”

“What were you thinking? You cannot continue like this!”

“And what is my alternative? To whine and complain? Allow others to shoulder the work intended for me?”

“You live in a house of healers, Peeta. To leave these small injuries to fester is both an insult and a poor decision.”

“You have had much bigger wounds to heal. I will be fine,” he says and I can argue with him no more or I might truly lose my temper. How could he not see how irresponsible it is for him to have left this uncared for? That is precisely what led to my father’s amputation, only Peeta does not have much of a leg left to amputate.

“Shut up and eat your pears,” I say. He sighs but does as I order. At one point, he offers a bite to me as well. I take it and thank him. He feeds us both, one morsel at a time, as I finish washing him and then carefully dry his leg.

I set to work crushing together herbs to make a paste for him as he watches me. “This should draw out any infections that may have already taken root and assist in healing the blisters. In the morning I can coat it with an oil that will soothe the chafing. You need a padding with a more open weave, and I think mayhap a sleeve to both hold the padding in place as well as protect your skin from these straps will help. Tomorrow, Mother and I can concoct a paste that will help prevent this from happening again if you insist on being so stubborn.”

“Thank you,” he says and all I can manage is a nod. “You have a talent for this. For healing.”

“My mother and sister are better at it. It is far easier to kill than to heal.”

“And yet you are not a killer either. You hunt only what you need, kill only what is needed. You are more a grower, a cultivator, a provider.”

I pause and scowl at him. “Flattery will not make me less angry with you.”

“Why are you angry? Have I disappointed you in my work? In the fulfillment of my duties?”

“Not in regards to this house and estate.”

“Then in what, Katniss?”

“Had you left this untended much longer, it would have gotten infected, and then what, husband? Would you have taken your silent suffering to the grave?”

“I would leave you with no complaints, I should hope. You would be an exceptionally wealthy and independent widow,” he says it so easily without a trace of self pity or sarcasm that it angers me further.

“I beg your pardon?”

“One of the things I tended to while I was in Capitol before our wedding was having a will drawn up. I signed it the day after we were married and sent it back to my solicitor. It names you the sole beneficiary of our funds should anything happen to me. You will not be left dependent on the Mellark family, nor anyone else for that matter. You can cease being angry at the idea of my passing.” I stare at him, agog for a moment. “Is that not what you wanted?”

It is precisely what I wanted, and he knows it. I work on his leg, gently spreading the paste and apologizing for its chill when he hisses slightly. I cannot meet his eyes, overcome with the knowledge that he so readily saw to such a detail, without my asking or reminding him of the reason I sought out a marriage in the first place, and that he did so before we had any sort of agreement between us at all.

“I have a copy of it and can show it to you if you do not believe me, madame.”

“I suppose I am expected to throw a gala party to celebrate your death,” I mutter.

“Some cultures do so. Why not embrace that?”

“Mourning is a fine time to adopt a new culture!” I practically snarl and he sighs, scrubbing a hand over his face as though he cannot even bear to look at me, but would rather look at his palm. Or the ceiling, as when he removes his hand from his face, he tips his head back to rest on the chair and speaks more to the crown moulding than to me.

“There’s no need for sarcasm, Katniss. We both know you would be better off as a widow.” If he tells the truth about the will, then he is correct objectively speaking, and yet something inside me screams in agony at the very idea of having to bury him, of never seeing his smile nor hearing his laugh ever again.

“I would not.”

He laughs bitterly then and lifts his head to look down at me. “You’ve barely been able to look me in the eye the past few days, and I cannot blame you. I am as disgusted with myself as you must be for my weakness in nearly yielding to misguided temptations, for how close I came to breaking my promises to you.”

“What the devil are you talking about?” I secure the bandages on his leg and stand to clean up the mess, too distracted in my rage to actually have any awareness of what I am doing.

“You’ve no idea at all, have you? The liberties I took…when you believed me to be someone else. How much I wished for the way you looked at me that night to be real and… for me, not another. I should burn in Hell or at the very least self hatred for my actions and feelings. Then yesterday with your corset…I nearly took advantage of you! What sort of monster does that?”

“That is ridiculous!”

“It is not ridiculous. It is abhorrent.”

“No, it is ridiculous! I have barely been able to look at you these past days, not because I was angry with you or feared you, but because I’ve barely been able to keep from ripping your clothes off!”

The words fly between us and he sits back as though I had slapped him. I too step back, astonished at my own admission and brazen words.

“What did you say?” He breathes the words and I groan. How humiliating, to just throw such words out into the air. He is too surprised by them. Madge must have been wrong. I move to focus on cleaning up my supplies rather than focus on my careless words, but he reaches out, grasping my wrists. “No. Wait, do not go. Katniss.”

I do not know what comes over me, likely insanity or perhaps simply fatigue. I pitch forward and our lips collide together. His mouth is still opened and our teeth connect painfully, as do our noses, making me jump back and wince. He stares at me, wide eyed as I blush furiously. How stupid of me. I think I may have gotten worse at kissing since my first.

“Why did you do that?” he whispers, his hands still holding my wrists so that I cannot escape.

“I do not do a thing that I do not wish to,” I spit the words out because I am so tired of fighting, so tired of pretending that everything is fine, all is well, and that I am not ready to scream or tear my hair out with frustration. The weight of everything that has happened since spring presses down on me, culminating in this fresh degradation. I cannot even manage one decent kiss.

“You wanted to kiss me?”

“That is what I said.” I shiver slightly as he slides his hands up my arms, up to tangle into my hair as I stand bent awkwardly over him. His thumbs caress over my cheeks.

“And what do you want right now?” he whispers the words, his voice deep and curling through my body, settling as an echo in my blood as it thrums through my veins. EVer so slowly, it dawns on me that Peeta is not looking at me with disgust, nor even with dispassion but rather with great care. I am not sure if I move towards him or if I let him pull me down. Either way, I am drawn to him. Down to his mouth as our lips touch in a tentative caress, folding together in a warm embrace as we stand still like that. My muscles shake with the effort of holding this pose, of noting everything in this moment.

The familiar and comforting scent of his body, magnified in heat. The feel of his steady, rapid exhales caressing over my cheek. The softness of his lips against mine and the heat simmering beneath our touch. I moan and let go. Why should I refrain from kissing him? I have wanted this for so long now. We are married, bound to one another until death tears us apart. Before that happens, I wish to live as a married woman, fully and completely. I wish to know the secrets between husband and wife – between Peeta and I.

I kiss him as I have longed to do, pressing my lips closer to his, lifting my hands to hold his in place on my neck and jaw. Warmth spreads through me, such incredible warmth that I shiver with it. Our mouths move together, somehow familiar already, perhaps because I know him now.

My knees weaken as the kiss continues and I shift to sit on his lap, my legs moving and stuttering with my uncertainty. I’ve no idea where to move nor what to do. I flounder until he pulls his head back. “I am not certain how I should… I am trying not to hurt you.”

“Come here,” he whispers. Letting go of my neck, he guides my legs until I am seated astride him, my knees pressed close to his hips and his warm palms caressing my calves, up to my thighs as I resume kissing him, combing my fingers through the soft curls of his hair, sliding them over the broad planes and angles of his shoulders, down his chest to feel his heart beat beneath my palms. Its steady beat pulls me deeper into the kiss.

Just as I am wondering how he would respond to my tongue in his mouth, he moves his lips, down my chin, lower still as he kisses his way down my neck. I move, restless and spurred on by the delicious feeling of his lips on my skin, of the delightful shivers that wrack my body and the heat growing heavy between my legs, demanding an answer. He murmurs my name, his hands caressing over my back, up to unbutton then drawing my night dress off my shoulder, giving him access to more of my skin.

“Yes, please,” I plead, scarcely knowing what I am agreeing to, but I am caught in a fever and know that only Peeta holds the cure.

“Do you feel pity for me, Katniss?” His question teases a smile from me and a feeling of lightness flutters in my heart.

“None, you obstinate bastard.”

“Duty to your marriage?”

“Heavens no, not now. Duty is for the pious and the righteous.”

He kisses over healthy and scarred skin. His hands grip my hips and pull me down. I gasp at the feeling of something hard pressed to my intimate skin, beneath the fabric of his shirt still caught between us.

I have seen a handful of naked men, although never in an aroused state. It is sometimes inevitable with a healer for a mother. While some part of my mind knew that for copulation, a man’s sexual organ would become engorged as an animal’s does, I have never been impressed with the sight of a flaccid one, to be honest, and had no idea of how such an odd looking organ could incite desire in a woman…or anyone for that matter.

Feeling the reality of Peeta, however, hard and present, insistent and pressed tightly to my own sex, is another matter entirely. A small spark of fear, curiosity, and yet mostly desire, dances to life inside me. I am overjoyed at the evidence that Peeta does in fact desire me. I find further relief and also torment in the movements over him as I discover exactly how such a thing could incite desire in me.

“And this is certainly not pious, husband,” I whisper and tear at his neckcloth until his shirt gapes open for me. I grab hold of his hair to pull his head back that I might taste his skin as he has tasted mine. He must enjoy it as I kiss and suck at his neck, if the curses and moans he releases, his tightened hold on me, are any indication. I smile in pride to myself. It appears that I am improving at this seduction business.

“Tell me to stop. I will stop if you demand it,” he whispers then curses as he buries his face against my breast. His exhales burn through the fabric of my nightgown, caressing over my heated skin and a stray thought of his mouth there has my breasts feeling heavy, the peaks tight and aching. “But God in heaven I do not want to stop.”

I push myself into him, heady with the groan I receive and lost in pleasure as his hands slide beneath my nightgown, his palms scorching, soothing, and pleasing all at once, guiding me to a place I do not know and desperately wish to experience.

“You would make me wait longer than I already have, husband?” He laughs against my skin, lifting his head to smile up at me with swollen lips, flushed cheeks, and wide, darkened pupils. “I will not allow you to stop now, Peeta. You have denied me our wedding night for too long.”

I take his mouth with mine then, sliding my tongue past his lips, uncaring if he is shocked at my boldness. His moan vibrates across my tongue along with his taste as his arms tighten around me, holding us together as I writhe, seeking release for this pressure mounting in my core. A brief flicker of familiarity in the movement of our kiss seeps through the haze of desire and need, a calling out of a memory and a taste and scent that tickles the brain. It whispers of starry nights and exquisite kisses shared between red stained lips.

No, not now.

I do not want the intrusion of a third party in my thoughts as I kiss Peeta. I stiffen in his embrace, but before I can break the kiss, there is a knock on the door and it opens.

“My apologies for the wait, Mrs. Mellark, I had a bit of a time finding it. Picked up Miss Primrose’s first then saw the fancy stitching and knew it couldn’t be yours,” Sae says as she enters and I leap from Peeta’s arms, hands frantically repairing my appearance as she takes note of our faces, the way we cannot look at one another and the way we shift clothes back in place to hide away kissed, flushed skin. “And my apologies for interrupting.”

Sae’s smile is as poorly disguised as our activities. She sets the sewing kit down on a chest near the door, curtsies, wishes us a good night, and leaves us in awkward silence. How humiliating, to be caught in the act of mauling my own husband. Undoubtedly the entire household will hear of this by dinner time tomorrow. The mere fact that Sae and others will know exactly what we are doing behind our doors now cools the ardour that so recently burned through me. Her knowledge saps my body of desire and replaces it with fatigue.

“I am…going to sleep now,” I say and move towards the bed. “In the morning, I will design a better sleeve and cushion for your leg.”

“As you wish, madame,” he says, his voice hoarse. I settle in the bed and he does not move.

“Would you cease being obstinate?” After a few moments of him moving about, tending to the fire, the room darkens. Then I feel the bed dip as he joins me.

“Satisfied, wife?”

“Perhaps a little, husband,” I mutter.

He releases a sigh, sounding beleaguered as he moves and wraps his arms around me. “Better?”

I shift to find a more comfortable angle, my backside brushing against him as I do. He sucks in a sharp breath and I pause. Push back into him and grin at the feel of him still hard. His response to me tonight gives me courage to ask something I need the answer to.

“Do you desire me, Peeta?”

“You’ve no idea,” he whispers, holding me tight so that I might feel him and his kisses as they whisper over my neck, up into my hair as he inhales and then releases his breath in a tortured groan. “But you were right. In my efforts to avoid you and the temptation you present, I have exhausted myself. I would not last ten seconds before humiliating myself and disappointing you.”

“So you admit to avoiding me?”

“Please understand, it is not meant as an insult to you, Katniss,” he says. “I am…used to being unwanted. A bastard is never truly wanted. Neither is a cripple. I am both. Even when it seems I am close to earning acceptance, something always arises to remind people of what I am.”

I lay still then, contemplating his words for a moment. He says them with no trace of self pity or sadness but rather states them as a fact. “Has this anything to do with the letter from your family a few days ago?”

His body turns rigid against mine and I know I have struck upon the truth. “Amongst other things.”

“Bad news then?”

“In a manner of speaking. We are expected to present ourselves at Vale House at our earliest convenience,” he tells me in a sardonic tone.

“The Marquis cannot be bothered to attend our wedding but we are to answer his summons at the drop of a hat? Why did you not tell me?” I ask and Peeta turns me in his arms to face him, his hand caressing over my cheek.

“Your father and your family need you right now, Katniss. I would not ask you to leave them under such circumstances. Therefore, it is not our earliest convenience and the Marquis will have to wait. I have already told him so.”

“That does not change the way he has ordered us about!”

“I like it no more than you, but he has provided us with a generous income as a wedding gift—”

“A start! It does us no good if we mismanage it in the coming years.” Peeta lets go of my face and shifts uncomfortably in the bed.

“It would be one visit, Katniss. I would not enjoy it any more than you. One visit to bow and curtsy and pretend that we’re eternally grateful and then he would leave us alone.”

“How can you be certain? What is to prevent him from–”

“Read it,” he says, rolling away and lighting the lamp. He retrieves a letter from the drawer on his side of the bed, shoving a few scattered papers back in before handing me the letter. “He makes it quite clear he sees our marriage as a chance to be well rid of me, since my time in the infantry did not do the job.”

I snatch it up, eyes darting over the words. My skin crawls at the domineering tone and veiled insults – at the implication that Peeta would never have managed to convince anyone to marry him anyways and so it is lucky that Sir Robert eloped, thus leaving me available to manipulate into a marriage with Peeta. The implications that I was not good enough for Robert, but Peeta is an acceptable substitute that I should be grateful for. I am not sure how he manages it, but the man simultaneously insinuates that neither of us are good enough for the other and also that we should both be grateful we were fortunate enough to find someone to marry us at all, all while congratulating himself for raising Peeta to the point that he no longer needs a father. The message is clear. Come visit and be grateful and then never bother me again.

“Who did Robert elope with anyways? The queen of Panem?” I say and at this, Peeta laughs.

“Not even close.”

“Well this pompous ass makes it sound like he did. At least tell me I was left for the daughter of a Duke, a minor princess.”

“No, the Marquis would have rejoiced in such a thing, not tried to hide it,” Peeta says and I wait for a real answer. He sighs and runs a hand through his hair. “You remember I told you that my mother worked for the Marchioness’ birth family?”

“Yes,” I say, impatient to hear the truth.

“That means that once I was living as a Mellark, I was invariably dragged back to that estate along with the rest of the family.”

“Why?” I ask, astonished that they would demand such a thing of Peeta. To be forced to return to a place so full of both happy and miserable memories for him must have been devastating.

“To prove that the Marquis is merciful and generous because he provided for his bastard? To control Lady Tabitha through humiliation? Remind me that I was forbidden to so much as speak of my birth mother anymore and why? Perhaps to remind me that with a snap of his fingers, I could be back in the kitchens or worse. Or to use me as a warning for everyone else in his circle of influence that he could do the same to them as he had done to my mother and I. Who knows how truly twisted that man’s cruelty is, for surely I do not. But that is not the point. The point is that…Robert was already used to visiting there and with my presence as his brother, there were now…new friends and playmates he was forbidden before. We were careful never to be caught of course.”

“His aunt then, or perhaps a cousin,” I guess and Peeta sighs.

“Were it that simple, although he did have a brief romance with one of his cousins. That was the trouble. Robert was always in love with someone, convinced that she was the only one for him. It was impossible to tell fondness from infatuation from real love where he was concerned. I think… in a way, he was desperately seeking the sort of love and affection he was denied as a child, always expected to act like a lord before he was even a man.”

I glance down at the pillows beneath us as guilt rises in me. At the callous and business like marriage I proposed to him. I was attempting to be honest and instead perhaps hurt him more than I had realised. No wonder Robert ran away with someone else. He knew that I did not love him even a little.

“I suppose he asked this unsuitable girl whom his father now wishes to hide to marry him at some point in the past?”

“She refused Robert’s proposal, insisted she could not bring him down so. It left them both broken hearted. The Marquis purchased my commission shortly after and I had no choice but to leave. At first, Robert’s letters to me showed his pain, but they gradually grew increasingly optimistic, and by the time I returned, Robert seemed to have recovered from the heartache. He was back to his old self, falling madly in love at every dance.

“Then he started courting you, and I thought… I thought there was no chance for him. How could he not develop a real love for you?” Peeta says it so tenderly that a strange sort of giddy feeling permeates my body, all the way to my fingers and toes. His belief that Robert would not be able to keep from falling in love with me suggests more about Peeta’s feelings for me than it does Robert’s, in this case. “But I knew of your family’s situation and the real possibility that it was Robert’s fortune not himself you were truly interested in. I thought to protect him from disappointment or from falling in love too fast by accompanying him on every outing, but in the end it did not matter. He was clearly not over his former love and ran off with her the night of the masquerade, although I’ve no knowledge yet of the details how exactly that came about. I am simply sorry that you were left hurt by it.”

“You still have not told me who she is, Peeta,” I say rather than confront the lingering feelings in my chest at the memories of those last few days in Capitol.

He takes a deep breath and releases it. “Delilah Cartwright…Delly.”

I stare at him, unblinking. He’s waiting for a reaction, and yet I’ve no idea how I should react. I search through feelings and attempt hurt. That no longer seems to fit. In truth, the only thing hurt by Robert’s elopement was my pride. My vanity. And perhaps my sense of control over my life.

But… I did not love him, and I have no way of knowing if I would have come to love him. There is also the fact that it matters little if I would have. I am married to Peeta, and as much as I try, I cannot summon any regret over the outcome, despite my lingering misgivings about the methods.

I finally manage a shrug. “Is there a bargain price for family members on those excellent boots she makes?”

Peeta blinks twice and then his lips curl up in a fragile smile. Ridiculous the way my heart flutters at this small expression of hope on his visage.

“You are not angry?”

“I am perhaps…confused about a few details,” I say and then a massive yawn halts my next words. I am exhausted as well, apparently. “But you can remedy that in the morning. For now, you will hold me and you will see to your health or you will regret it. I have grown rather fond of you, husband.”

“Rather fond of me?” I nod and close my eyes, prepared to sleep.

“Yes and I am now used to having you about. You can be most helpful at times. I will be quite aggravated if you die on me due to your own stubborn neglect. Such an inconvenience. And you will not even think of doing something so ridiculous as sleeping in that chair, ever again.” I crack one eye open and catch him smiling down at me. “Unless you are drunk.”

He laughs, extinguishes the light and wraps me up into his embrace. “I would not dare over indulge nor die prematurely for fear of your retribution, wife.”

“Good.” A smile stretches across my lips and I am grateful for the darkness, for surely my expression is quite feral in that moment. “Then rest with me. There is always tomorrow, husband.”

To be continued….look for chapter fifteen on the blog of @stjohn27

[straykidsramblings]

helplessly. [yang jeongin]

yang jeongin x fem!reader feat. ‘00 line | high school!au

word count: 5.7K

genre: fluff

summary: Jisung is the worst person in the world to have find out about your crush, but, apparently, he’s also the best.

High school is infamous for being dramatic, tortuous, and a little bit crazy, but [name] [last name] was proud to say that her high school experience consisted solely of the last attribute. She had the '00 liners (as they so loved to call themselves that) to thank for that. At the very least, she was grateful that her life was never boring and that she always had Jeongin and Seungmin to keep her grounded. Unfortunately, it seemed as though the other three shared enough crazy to make up for Jeongin’s, Seungmin’s, and [name]’s rationality. Today, much like the rest, was full of events that [name] [last name] would have never expected to occur if she was not friends with one, Jisung Han.

The two of them were waiting for the other four in the room their photography club used, avoiding the ceaseless noise that the cafeteria offered. The six of them would always have lunch in their clubroom. Lunch, after all, was a meal best enjoyed in quiet. Unfortunately, Jisung had a knack for ruining that. This time alone, he had managed to scare [name] by throwing the door wide open and dashing inside. Her heart skipped a beat, but, after realizing that it was just Jisung, she resumed reading.

“So,” Jisung chirped, taking a seat on the desk in front of [name], “rumor has it that somebody has a little crush on someone else in our friend group.”

[name]’s head snapped up from her literature book, fully prepared to refute any rumor Jisung had crafted. The grip on her book tightened as she slowly met his gaze from her seat.

“Can you believe that someone broke our sacred policy of ‘no romance’?” Jisung scoffed, crossing his arms over his chest in fake disappointment.

“Jisung, I don’t know what kind of stories you’ve thought up, but do not think for a minute that I like one of you,” [name] assured him. She was lying through her teeth, but there was no reason to let Jisung know that.

Yet, somehow (probably because they’ve known each other the longest out of their friend group), he knew. He suddenly seemed even more intrigued in [name]’s facial expression. It was then that [name] knew that she had messed up.

“Oh,” he pondered, bringing his hand to his chin to stroke his nonexistent beard. “What is this, I sense? A sudden need to defend yourself even though I never said that you were the one with the crush?”

“Well… I am the only girl in our friend group,” [name] attempted to fix her rookie mistake. “It would make sense for rumors to say that I have the crush. If any even existed—Jisung, this is ridiculous!”

“Au contraire, my distressed friend!” Jisung clicked his tongue three times. “Boys have feelings too. It’s perfectly conceivable for one of us to have a crush.”

She knew that, but she needed a scape goat. It appeared as though her scapegoat had just jumped out of the window.

Before she could get another word in, the very source of her distress entered their clubroom. The light scent of cotton candy hit her nose as the youngest male in her friend group sat himself on the desk to [name]’s right. His brown eyes glanced between [name] and Jisung as if trying to decipher what they could have been talking about. [name] could already feel herself staring at him, Jeongin Yang. Simply his presence managed to distract her from any previous topic her mind was on.

“What’s going on?” Jeongin asked with an innocent smile that made [name]’s stomach do flips.

“Well, [name] here—“

“Was wondering if you all wanted to do something this weekend!” [name] interrupted Jisung. “Cause, you know, it’s been a while since we’ve done anything fun, and, with all of this stress from school, I think we deserve it.”

Jisung’s eyes widened as he slowly put the pieces of the puzzle together. As he looked between [name] and Jeongin, she knew he knew. She cursed herself mentally, but Jisung could be dealt with later. Jeongin was the person she needed to be careful around.

Jisung brought a hand up to his mouth, exaggerating the surprise on his face in an attempt to draw Jeongin’s curiosity. Thankfully, his efforts were in vain.

“Yeah, that sounds like fun,” Jeongin agreed, directing his smile to the girl in front of him. “What’d you have in mind, [name]?”

She tried to ignore the beating of her heart as she stammered. “I, uh, well…”

“She’s letting me, yours truly, handle it,” Jisung interjected as he jumped off of the desk with a flamboyant bow. “And I have many plans for us.”

[name]’s Jisung intuition was flaring; oh, that boy was most definitely up to something. The smirk he tried so hard to hide revealed all of his intentions. She shot him a warning look, but he chose to ignore it. His gaze was focused on Jeongin, searching for an answer of some sorts. However, Jeongin was smarter than Jisung gave him credit for. Well, that, and it was no secret that Jisung was the most mischievous crazy in the group.

“I don’t think [name] would actually let you plan our hangout considering the fact that, last time, she had to pick us up from jail,” Jeongin reminded the other two.

“It was only holding! And I still think visiting the swim club at night was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made,” Jisung defended himself, crossing his arms over his chest indignantly.

“You should consider yourself lucky that [name] had a girls’ night out and didn’t get dragged into your mess.”

“A mess that you went along with.”

“Okay, guys,” [name] interjected, knowing that, if she let them argue, they would continue for hours. “So, Saturday. Let’s say we meet up at the park by Seungmin’s apartment at… 9 tomorrow morning?”

Jeongin chuckled which only made her heart flutter. Even though she’s heard that sound so many times before, it still had such a powerful effect on her. She truly was helpless.

“You, Seungmin, and I will probably be fine, but do you really think the rest of them will willingly get up before 10?” Jeongin teased his older friends.

[name] pursed her lips. “Okay, so… we push it back to noon and get lunch first?”

“Sounds like a good start! I’ll take over from there,” Jisung insisted. “Maybe we can get pineapple on our pizza.”

The peculiar suggestion made both Jeongin and [name] raise an eyebrow but for different reasons.

Having been best friends longer than the rest, Jisung and [name] had crafted their own “secret language” as Jisung liked to call it. He prided himself in the fact that he had created most of it (which is probably why the words were quite strange and, well, extravagant, to say the least). But “pineapple on pizza” (as strange as it was) was their way of saying, “I have a plan!” This phrase was most commonly used when Jisung had come up with a prank or when they needed to come up with escape plans after the pranks failed and Seungmin was pissed. With this knowledge, [name] began to worry. She sighed, staring into Jisung’s eyes in an attempt to figure out what he was planning their day would look like. With the information he now had, she couldn’t trust him not to make some elaborate scheme that would end up with Jeongin avoiding her for the rest of their lives. But best friend code was best friend code, and best friend code trumped everything else.

“I don’t know about pineapple on pizza, but, if you’re not gonna get us killed or in jail, I guess I’ll let you decide what we’re doing,” [name] sighed unenthusiastically.

Jisung was unbothered. “Great!”

“What’s great?”

Seungmin’s voice from the doorway interrupted the flow of the conversation (much to [name]’s relief). Seungmin, Felix, and Hyunjin had all finally arrived, carrying lunch and snacks for everyone. Jisung almost knocked over a few desks in order to reach the three faster. [name] grimaced. She had been ruined the moment she had first replied to Jisung.

“Alright, spill,” Jeongin chuckled.

“Spill what?” [name] asked, turning her [eye color] gaze from the loud group of boys to the boy who made her heart beat so loud she was sure he could hear it.

Jeongin gave her a suspecting look. “I’m not that dumb, you know. You and Jisung are always planning pranks, so what’s going down on Saturday? Can I be a part of it for once? I promise I’ll keep it a secret.”

It was [name]’s turn to laugh (mostly from relief). “No, we’re not planning a prank for Saturday. We really just wanted to hang out.”

Jeongin didn’t buy it, and she knew that. He crossed his arms over his chest, glaring into her soul as if it was visible to him. [name] elected to avoid eye contact in case any nervousness surfaced on her countenance. She pretended to be heavily invested in whatever the group of four boys by the door were whispering about, but, in reality, she couldn’t stop thinking about how intensely Jeongin was looking at her. The fact that he had styled his hair differently today didn’t help her. Normally, he was just considered “the cute one” with his apple-like, refreshing innocence and cloud-like, soft bangs.

Well, today, Jeongin had decided to part his bangs to the side, revealing the forehead that [name] had no idea would affect her in such a way. Who knew a forehead could make a such difference?

Finally, Jeongin relented. He motioned for the other group of four to walk over with the food; [name] could finally breathe properly. With Jeongin’s attention diverted elsewhere, [name] chanced a glance at the taller boy. His smile was contagious, spreading to [name]’s own countenance. She wondered if he would ever smile like that for her.

Lunch flew by faster than [name] would have liked, but it was hard to keep track of time when the cute boy next to her was so distracting. Who could blame her? Hearing the sound of the bell signaling the beginning of their next class, the club members swiftly cleaned up any major crumbs and threw away their trash before running off to their respective classes (or elsewhere). Having already taken the required electives to graduate in their previous years, Jisung and [name] went home earlier than the others in the group. They were walking side-by-side on the sidewalk when [name] eyed Jisung.

“So,” the girl began with a skip in her step. Turning her head to the left to look at him (Jisung always insisted on walking next to the road), her best friend seemed a little bit too excited. “Care to explain why you pulled a ‘pineapple on pizza’ on me earlier?”

Jisung wiggled his eyebrows at her. “You’ll find out on Saturday.”

[name] elbowed him. “Nope, that’s not how pineapple on pizza works! I trust whatever plan you claim you have, but you have to spill all of the details. Otherwise, it doesn’t count.”

Jisung sighed in defeat. “Fine. I’ll tell you. So, to get you to finally tell Jeongin that you have feelings for him—“

“I do not.”

“Whatever you say, doll. Anyway, the other boys and I are going to help you two get nice and cozy. You know, going to a theater and subtly have you two sit next to each other, you both go for the popcorn at the same time, and bam! Sparks fly! We could go to a ferris wheel and force you two to get your own pod so you can have a little privacy, if you know what I mean. Or you could go the dramatic route, and we can go to a haunted house, and you can act all scared, so he’ll save the day and sweep you off of your feet. Heck, we could even take a trip to the beach, and you can offer to get us shaved ice only to be hit on by a bunch of narcissistic flirts, and then Jeongin could get all jealous and be like, ‘Hey, back off! She’s mine.’”

“Yeah, I don’t like that last one. I don’t like any sort of involvement with narcissistic flirts, and I don’t really think that it’s healthy to confess to someone when he’s jealous…”

Jisung jumped up, pointing an index finger close to [name]’s face. If it was anyone else, that person would no longer have that finger, but, with Jisung, this kind of behavior was typical.

“Aha! So, you admit that you like Jeongin.”

“…I was just saying that as a general statement, not specifically to Jeongin. I haven’t admitted anything.”

[name] kicked at the pavement, the sound of her old shoes scrapping against the concrete (she needed new ones anyway, so no harm done). The scenarios ran across her mind like an old movie. While the idea of finally being able to tell Jeongin about she felt was enticing, she did not really trust Jisung, Hyunjin, Felix, and Seungmin (three out of four were known as the crazy ones) to be able to manage it all without everything falling apart. There was also the fact that Jeongin could completely reject her, thus leaving her heartbroken and dejected and awkward. That was not an ideal outcome. But [name] had decided long ago that the issue of her heart had to be dealt with in some manner, some time soon. At least, that way, she’d be able to have closure on the matter.

A scene of her and Jeongin watching the city at night from the top of the ferris wheel crossed her mind once more. It definitely seemed ideal in her mind, but would reality produce the same scenario? Or rather, would Jisung produce the same scenario?

“Okay,” [name] finally agreed much to Jisung’s surprise. “But you cannot leave me alone entirely. I won’t know what to do if I’m just alone with him. That would be so embarrassing and awkward, and it would seem like a date, and I don’t really want to put him in that position.”

Jisung reassured her with a flippant wave of his arm. “Not to worry, we’ll be there for you the whole time. Just promise that you’ll wear something nice.”

Despite planning on listening to his advice, [name] rolled her eyes as she quickened her pace back to her house. Unfortunately, Jisung followed right in step with her. And, even more unfortunately, he followed her all the way back to her house. After all, they were next-door neighbors. That may have the best and worst thing about their friendship.

On Saturday, [name] woke up to the sound of Jisung’s ringtone. She didn’t even know she had fallen asleep. She spent most of the night before worrying about what Saturday would look like, but, apparently, blankets have this innate magic that can coax people to sleep (especially multiple blankets at once).

“Hello?” [name]’s voice drawled as she propped herself up on her elbow lazily. She was still under the seduction of the warm blankets.

“Dude, please do not tell me you just woke up. It’s almost noon already, sleepyhead! Hyunjin’s up before you,” Jisung yelled through the phone.

The news shocked [name] awake as her [eye color] eyes flashed towards the clock on the nightstand. Sure enough, it was 11:45. She jumped out of bed and ran to her closet, pulling out potential clothes and throwing the others onto her bed. Jisung was still yelling into her ear.

“The only people we’re waiting on are you and Jeongin ironically enough,” Jisung chuckled. “Don’t stress about it too much, and just make your way over here as soon as possible. I can’t promise where the four of us will be, but we’ll make Jeongin wait here for you. Just think of it as phase one.”

His voice sounded cheerful which only irritated [name] more.

“Absolutely not! Jisung, you butt! You literally live right next to me, and you didn’t even bother to check on me?”

[name] was fuming until she finally found a decent outfit that still managed to match her style. Throwing the clothes on, she ran to the wall mirror and checked to see if her hair needed adjustments. While she worked through her bedhead issues, she checked to see why Jisung hadn’t responded to her last question. Unsurprisingly, he had hung up to avoid the confrontation.

“Typical Jisung,” [name] growled as she grabbed a pair of shoes to match her outfit.

Her eyes flashed towards the makeup in the corner of her room, typically untouched unless the occasion called for it. Did today’s occasion call for it? After all, makeup in moderation never hurt anyone, and Jeongin was worth looking nice for. [name] bit her bottom lip as she debated with herself. Finally relenting with a huff, she grabbed the products she wanted and applied them as fast she could in her bathroom. While not an expert, she managed makeup fairly well (Jisung would let her practice on him when they were bored), and even she couldn’t hide the smile on her face when she looked in the mirror. With just that little touch, she felt confident enough to make her way out of her front door.

[name]’s feet carried her as fast as they could to the original meeting spot--the park next to Seungmin’s apartment. For years, their group had been coming to the park and hanging out; thus, this made the park the automatic meeting grounds. However, when the park was within her [eye color] eye’s view, she noticed a considerable lack of people at the park. In fact, the only person waiting there was Jeongin.

He hadn’t seen her yet, his fox-like eyes gazing down at his watch. [name] instinctively hid behind a large tree trunk. Her heart skipped a beat (or two), and he was the reason. Taking shallow breaths, she attempted to calm herself but to no avail. The thought of Jisung helped her though because, once she remembered how Jisung mentioned he had a plan, all of her nervousness turned to absolute rage. 

She took a deep breath and growled as she pulled out her phone and called her partner-in-crime. It didn’t take long for him to pick up.

“Jisung, where are--”

“Why are you hiding?! Go get him already!” Jisung demanded through the speaker in her phone.

[name] immediately examined the area around, searching for any indication of a lurking Jisung. Unfortunately, he had been accustomed to hiding well in order to watch his pranks succeed or fail. He was good.

“I can’t go out there by myself,” [name] hissed. “If you can see me, why are you hiding? This is supposed to be an all of us outing, not--” It finally registered with [name] what exactly Jisung had had in mind. She vaguely remembered that he had mentioned it while she was in a state of panic. “You were going to leave us to go on a date! The one thing I told you not to do!”

“Well, we figured the best way for you two to bond would be if you just kinda, sorta went on a date,” Jisung answered timidly. “Just don’t keep him waiting any longer or else he’ll get suspicious!”

She growled, but the thought of going on a date with Jeongin won her over. “Fine!” [name] finally consented. 

While she was upset that Jisung would pull this kind of stunt, her stomach had butterflies at the thought of going on a date with Jeongin. With deep, soothing breaths, [name] reminded herself of how pretty she looked just minutes earlier, how much confidence she felt swelled up in her. She liked her outfit, she liked her hair, she liked her makeup, she liked the boy: today would be great! And with one final preparing breath, she stepped out from behind her wooden shield.

“Jeongin!” she called out, strolling up to him.

At the sound of his name, Jeongin looked up from his phone. A bright smile appeared on his lovely features.

“There you are, [name],” Jeongin exclaimed. “I was just about to call you. I was getting worried.”

“Wor-Worried?” [name] stammered. “Well, you know, I just kind of, uh, accidentally slept in. In my defense, Jisung could have very easily woken me up.”

“Speaking of Jisung, do you know where he and Felix are? They told me to wait here for you, but I haven’t seen them since,” Jeongin pondered, glancing around the immediate area. He suddenly recalled, “Oh, by the way, Hyunjin and Seungmin won’t be able to make it. They said something about being emergency fill-ins for a baseball game?”

[name] nodded slowly. Was this really happening?

“Yeah, I haven’t heard anything from Jisung since he told me not to keep you waiting,” [name] said, playing with her fingers. It wasn’t a total lie, but she still wouldn’t meet his gaze.

Jeongin hummed when the sound of [name]’s phone went off. Fishing out her phone with an apologetic nod towards Jeongin, she checked the lock screen.

JiScrat: Hey, Babochka! I’m really sorry, but I completely forgot to tell you that Felix and I have supplementary lessons today, so we won’t be able to make it. Have fun with everyone else though! I’ll send a picture of the day I planned.

[name] was ready to curse that boy (How lame of an excuse is that?!), but she remembered Jeongin standing next to her and refrained herself. She cleared her throat and forced a strained chuckle. 

“I have just been informed that Jisung and Felix forgot they had supplementary classes, so I’m guessing that they won’t be joining us either...” 

[name]’s voice trailed off, quiet as a whisper. Pursing her lips, she kept her gaze toward their feet. As much as she wanted to see what kind of expression Jeongin had on his face at that moment, she couldn’t bear to look. Her fear won over her desire.

“Looks like it’s just you and me then.”

At the sound of Jeongin’s reply, [name] shot up. He didn’t seem upset or uncomfortable at all. Granted, they had been friends for a while now, but, with the situation playing out like this, anyone else would’ve at least been suspicious! Instead, the boy simply smiled at her. [name] felt like time had stopped in that moment. She stared with doe-eyes. He had parted his hair again; it suited him a little too well. Jeongin had to prompt her out of her trance with a question.

“Did Jisung ever tell you what he had planned?” Jeongin asked with a tilt of his head. 

“Kind of,” [name] admitted, pulling up her phone once more. She opened her chat with Jisung, hoping that whatever previous texts they had shared weren’t too embarrassing. At the very bottom of the page was the picture he had promised. “He sent a picture.”

Jeongin moved to stand behind her, only causing her heart to flutter. She hated how easily he affected her, and she was terrified that he would notice her loud palpitations. He peered over her shoulder to look at the picture with her. [name]’s grip on her phone tightened, her breathing turned shallow. Her mouth was dry.

“Let’s see... picnic by the Han River,” Jeongin read off of the screen. “Sounds like fun, but I didn’t exactly bring food.”

“Me either,” [name] managed out. Getting those words out at the very least helped her find her voice. “Maybe we can pick something up?”

“Ramen?” Jeongin suggested as offhandedly as he could. His voice faltered just enough to give him away.

[name] giggled at his childlike excitement. No matter how grown up he looked, Jeongin was still Jeongin. “Yeah, sounds good!”

The two began their walk to the Han River, figuring it would be easier for them to find a convenience store closer to their destination. Maybe it was because [name] was so used to Jisung that she didn’t even notice Jeongin maneuvering his way to the roadside of the sidewalk. It was little things like that and him matching his pace with hers that only made her fall for him more. 

The Han River wasn’t terribly far from the park, but, then again, time flowed differently when Jeongin was around. By the time the river had come into view, the two were so lost in a world of their own that they almost forgot to eat. It took a not-so-subtle text from a person who was supposed to be in supplementary classes. The familiar notification sound caught her attention. She came to a stop on the sidewalk, Jeongin naturally stopping next to her. 

“Why is Jisung texting me? He’s supposed to be in class,” [name] muttered under her breath with a huff. Jeongin chuckled quietly at her irritation.

JiScrat: Hey, Babochka! How’s the date going? Is Jeongin treating you properly?

[name] hid her phone as quickly as possible as the rush of heat hit her cheeks. Jeongin tilted his head questioningly as he stared at her. 

“Are you okay, [name]?” he asked, a slight pout on his lips as [name] turned away from him.

“Yeah,” [name] lied through her teeth. “Yeah, just peachy.”

Jeongin raised an eyebrow at her response, clearly unconvinced. “So... what did Jisung say?”

“He, um, well, he,” [name] stammered. She met his eyes for only a second and realized that she didn’t want to lie to him. “Well, he just asked how the picnic was.”

“I don’t think an innocent question like that would’ve gotten that kind of response out of you,” Jeongin countered, crossing his arms over his chest. 

“Yeah, you’re right,” [name] admitted. She fiddled with the closest thing she could, her fingers. “Well, you see, he kind of phrased it differently in a really weird context, and I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable...”

Her companion smirked, a smirk that only his older college friend, Minho Lee,  could’ve taught to him. “What? Did he call it a date?”

[name] stared at him with wide [eye color] eyes. “...did you see?”

Jeongin laughed out loud, returning to his innocent personality. “I guessed right. Calling this a date doesn’t make me uncomfortable.”

“It doesn’t?”

“Why would it?” Jeongin shrugged. His contagious smile never left his face. “Come on, we can treat it like a real date. I’ll treat you to ramen, and we can ride bikes up and down the Han River.”

He extended his arm towards her which she hesitantly took. Her heart was racing at the simple contact, but she did her best not to show anything. With a small smile, [name] accepted his offer, finding their paces naturally syncing to each other.

They found a convenience store fairly quickly (they are supposed to be convenient, after all) and bought plenty of snacks for their little picnic, not forgetting Jeongin’s important ramen, of course. Jeongin made sure to grab the corn chips he had been craving, the kind that Hyunjin always shared with him. With a giggle, they were on their way to the park when a thought occurred to [name]. 

“Jeongin... how are we supposed to picnic if we don’t have a blanket to sit on?” she asked, raising an eyebrow at the boy who walked to her left. 

Jeongin hummed, scanning the park with his fox-like eyes. They twinkled when a solution came to his mind. “How about we just sit on the stone steps that lead down to the river?”

[name] rolled her eyes but followed the boy to location he had in mind. It would have to work. On the bright side, everyone else was smart enough to bring blankets to sit on, so they were all on the grass. This way, the two had some form of privacy. 

Carefully setting their feast on the steps within arms reach, the two began to eat. It didn’t feel awkward, probably because of the numerous times the two of them had eaten lunch together before. If anything, it felt more intimate than usual as the two were allowed to focus solely on each other instead of Jisung and Felix being loud in the background. The thought brought warmth to [name]’s cheeks. That was the point of this accidental date, for Jeongin and [name] to be alone together. And truth be told, she did feel significantly more comfortable than at the beginning of their date at least.

“I feel bad for the others,” Jeongin commented in between corn chips. “They’re really missing out.”

“On what? Eating junk food and sitting on hard steps?” [name] questioned with a knowing smile. She took a bite of the ramen between the two of them, the warm noodles nearly melting in her mouth. 

“No, getting to spend quality time with you,” Jeongin responded. 

[name] nearly choked. She did her best to play it cool, make it seem like she was normal, but the rapid heart pounding in her chest told a different story. 

“Although, I guess I’m also glad they’re gone, so I can have you to myself.”

When did Jeongin gain the confidence to say such things? Was it Minho’s effect?

“We don’t usually get to talk as much as the others,” Jeongin recalled with a regretful glance. “But I like being able to spend time with you like this. It helps me get to know you better.”

And suddenly, [name] forgot what it meant to be casual and couldn’t stop focusing on the fact that Jeongin was so close to her. She did her best to eat, but it was hard when he would watch her for a second and chuckle to himself.

“You know, you’re kind of a messy eater,” Jeongin commented. He raised his hand to gently brush away the crumbs of corn chips from the corner of [name]’s mouth. 

[name] was fully prepared to retort to his comment and would deny any accusation otherwise (most likely from Jisung), but she felt helpless when Jeongin smiled. As much as she didn’t want to get her hopes high, she couldn’t help but wish that he only looked at her like that. 

“Is there something on my face?” Jeongin asked, tilting his side to the side. 

[name]’s [eye color] eyes widened. “Nope, no, you’re good. I was just, uh, thinking, you know?” She was screwing things over for herself; she had to think of something else to talk about. “So, why bikes?”

“What do you mean?”

“Why would we ride bikes up and down the Han River? I mean, it’s kind of a specific idea.” It was meant to be simple smalltalk to fill in any awkward silences, but his answer had caught her off guard.

Jeongin’s brown eyes lingered on her for a second longer than normal when he shyly averted his gaze to the steps. His voice was quiet, barely above a whisper.

“It’s my dream first date.”

[name] furrowed her brows, tilting her head to the side. “Well, why would you want to waste that on me? Shouldn’t you save something that special for someone special?”

“We-Well... why can’t you be someone special?”

“Because I’m [name]?”

Jeongin groaned, hiding his face in his hands. “Why are you so difficult?!” With a pout on lips and his cheeks red from embarrassment, he faced her once more.

“I’m trying to tell you that I like you! I’ve been trying to get you to realize that this whole time! I want to go on a real date with you, go on a picnic, and ride bikes,” Jeongin confessed, running a hand through his hair. “And I don’t think I’ve been trying to hide my feelings for you, but, wow, you’re really clueless.”

[name] struggled to comprehend the truth behind Jeongin’s words, and the pieces of the puzzle slowly came together. So, when Jisung first confronted her about one of the people in their friend group liking someone else... he was talking about Jeongin liking her? He did seem genuinely surprised when [name] had indirectly admitted that she liked someone and was even more surprised when he figured out that it was Jeongin. And then this whole set up date happened... Jisung, you sly dog.

Jeongin hid his face in his hands again, muttering to himself. “This was definitely not the way I wanted to confess. I was supposed to tell you after the bike ride. Gosh, I really goofed--”

“Jeongin,” [name] called out to him.

He met her soft smile and kind eyes, and his heart skipped a beat in his chest.

“I like you too.”

A wave of relief crashed over the both of them as the reality of their situation panned out before them. Then, [name] let out a healthy laugh, causing the boy to jump back in response.

“What?”

“A couple of days ago, Jisung had come up to me and said that someone liked someone else in our friend group,” [name] confessed, “and, at first, I thought he had figured out that I liked you. But now, I’m guessing that he found out that you liked me which also explains why you were so curious about what we were talking about.”

Jeongin’s lips formed a pout as he furrowed his brows. “He overheard me telling Felix and made a mad dash for the clubroom, yelling for you. You can understand why I was concerned.”

“Oh, yeah, trust me. I get it,” [name] agreed with successive nods. She let a small laugh before pursing her lips. “So, should we clean up and go rent bikes?”

Jeongin returned her smile as he jumped to his feet. He extended his hand to her. 

“Shall we?”

“Mission accomplished, boys!” Jisung cheered as the ‘00 liners watched Jeongin and [name] from a grove of trees. His eyes beamed with pride as he straightened his posture. “As always, my plans never fail.”

Seungmin rolled his eyes as Jisung’s words floated in one ear and out the other. “[name]’s still gonna kill you, you know?”

Jisung scoffed. “You’re just jealous that you’re not Jeongin.”

Seungmin didn’t reply as he directed his sight back on the young couple. The sound of Hyunjin munching on banana chips filled the second of silence between the group before Jisung’s phone went off. Recognizing the distinct text tone, Jisung prepared himself for a verbal beating from his beloved best friend.

rama-rama 🦋: thank you.

Genuinely surprised by the short but sweet text, Jisung clutched at his heart. Felix peeked over his shoulder.

“Wow,” the boy commented, “that’s weird.”

rama-rama 🦋: but you’re still a butt.

“Oh, there it is!”

Despite the strange way that Jeongin and [name] ended up confessing their feelings for one another, the two did have Jisung Han to thank.

[xanth-the-wizard]

Random Mountain Encounters (1d100)

(More Random Encounters on Tuesdays! If you like my work, consider supporting me by leaving a tip at my Ko-Fi Page! Image credit: x)

An interesting challenge, but overall I think a successful one! Here are my Random Mountain Encounters (#1-5). Try them out in your campaign and let me know how it goes! Check out all my Other Encounters! See you next week for Desert Encounters!

[1] A metal shack shimmers in the light, inside you discover a hideaway for Ice Gnome Guards. They are playing cards and are willing to make bets with anybody [2] It is migration season, thousands of goats are making their way up the mountain. To pass through them is truly a foolish task [3] The remains of an abandoned city lies quietly in a valley between two great mountains. Evidence for the city’s collapse is not well hidden and perhaps even a bit devious in nature [4] Rumors say at the very top of the mountain lies a golden egg. Yes you heard me right, an egg made of gold. I don’t know who laid it so don’t ask! [5] Friendly Stone Golems patrol the mountains in order to help smaller beings climb to the top. They cannot speak and often throw giant boulders for fun. This can be lead to serious misunderstandings of course [6] All of the mountain peaks are covered in snow, all but one. The odd one out is home to a dormant volcano that is home to a civilization of merfolk. Yeah, I don’t understand it either [7] Birds in these cliffs have grown to the size of lions due to their lack of competition when it comes to hunting prey. They are intelligent and offer wisdom or mockery depending on their mood [8] You discover the cavern of a ghoulish green furred beast that is plotting to attack a nearby town and ruin their festival. This information is easy to discover as there are plans strewn about all over the place [9] Nearby two Ancient Dragons loudly argue over a borrowed book completely unaware of your party’s existence [10] There is a dimensional rift cracking through the stone of the mountain range, gravity occasionally reverses, spontaneous magic effects occur, and otherworldly beings appear without warning [11] A dedicated chef and their protégé are hunting a Yeti. The meat is said to be a delicacy. The chef will offer a grand reward to the party if they choose to assist them. Perhaps you may even be invited to dine with the Monarch who ordered it [12] You discover bodies encased in ice scattered around the path. Was this an accident or an attack? Better be careful either way [13] KABOOM! An explosion in the distance as two high level adventurers duke it out. Have them inspire your players or potentially even guide them [14] A ski resort operates on a hidden slope, it is run by Goblins who desire rare metals [15] Hidden among the sparse trees and shrubbery are large ice cocoons freshly opened [16] Shit! A near fatal slip leads to the discovery of an abandoned mineshaft within a deep ravine [17] Harpies. Just some classic Harpy encounters. They want to either eat the party or eat their rations [18] The mouth of a cavern sings sweetly, it’s quiet but insistent and impossible to ignore. Choose a random player, they are hypnotized by the sound [19] After a long night’s rest the party discover they have been separated mysteriously [20] A lone monk sits peacefully atop of the peaks. They claim to have mastered the art of reversing time [21] Howling can be heard every few hours. The source of this terrifying scream can be traced to a Dragonborn Barbarian who refuses to wear a shirt. They believe shouting into the heavens will bring them closer to the spirit of the planet [22] Due to a magical accident hundreds of years ago the mountains radiate elemental energy. Random combustion is not uncommon and neither are Elementals [23] An infectious fungus is spreading across the mountain peaks. If it is not stopped, it will grow to cover the entire range and beyond [24] Broom race season has just begun! Witches and Wizards are flying all around the place without any concern for nature or the party. Watch out for Fireballs! [25] Awoken from sleep, an eager creature excitedly attempts to pass on words of wisdom to travelers. They get a little too excited and start panicking when trying to deliver their speech [26] In the middle of the night a bear has dug into the party’s packs and has stolen the most hilarious item possible. Be it drugs or someone’s underwear. Perhaps both? Fuck, please let it be both [27] Animated objects have escaped from a neglectful master and have built a small but pitiful society. Surely a new home would suit them better [28] Buried deep within the mountain lies an army of undead, your players happen upon this after a small collapse [29] Shattered statues of gold litter the snow, neglected by time. They appear to be adventurers rumored to have gone missing a few months before [30] These alps are home to unpredictable creatures known as Shadows. They are seemingly intelligent but often attack without warning. Your party discovers a village [31] A powerful spirit guardian visits the party and attempts to lead them to their destination. They either take on the form of a four headed deer or a small white fox [32] It’s finally time. Choose one of your players at random, their bag is actually a Mimic. They’ve been keeping quiet for quite some time, but decide it’s finally time to make their escape [33] Atop the highest peak is a pool of clean spring water. Rumors say that those who drink from it will find their true love within a week. It is a well sought after ingredient for potion making [34] Atop the highest peak is a pool of black liquid. Rumors say that those who drink from it have visions of the future. It is a well sought after ingredient for potion making [35] Medicinal herbs grow all around the sierra, they are believed to be able to cure any illness. But they are guarded by poisonous ants who use it to feed their queen [36] Every few weeks a strange light emanates from the mountains in the dead of night [37] Abandoned minecart rails run through entire range and can offer a quicker, but more dangerous, way to travel [38] A stoic Troll lives near the base of the mountain, they know where the party needs to go to finish their quest. But they will only give directions if they can make the beast laugh. They haven’t laughed in almost a century (This can either be really difficult or really easy to achieve) [39] Tireless exploration has lead your party to the cave of a horrendous beast. Describe it in the most haunting and visceral way possible. That way, when they discover it’s a Pokémon they will probably threaten to fire you as their Dungeon Master but it’ll be so worth it [40] Nomadic Bards offer a detour through the mountains. They claim to know a, “Secret Tunnel” [41] Explorers stumble out of a crypt, at first glance they seem to be wounded but the truth is much worse… [42] Intricate traps litter the mountainside to the point of it being ridiculous! The trappers are actually really enthusiastic Cryptid Hunters [43] Shield surfing you say? The God of shield surfing challenges the party to a race offering valuable treasure if they win [44] Within the mountain is a dwarven forge and after a serious accident molten metals begin exploding out from the natural vents and caves. Watch your step! [45] At the base of the mountain lies a restaurant known as, “The Lost Souls Cafe.” It is run by disguised demon lords who love to gamble souls for rare rewards. The bartender quietly warns all who enter to leave before it is too late [46] Beautiful crystals line hard to reach cliffs. If your players are fortunate enough to collect some they will unfortunately discover it begins growing on exposed skin [47] A giant demon known as the Nurikabe blocks the path, it is nearly impossible to pass without employing magic or trickery [48] Rock insects have infested the entire range. Their camouflage allows them to be nearly invisible, watch your step of face their wrath [49] Wounded and dying of exposure, a warrior lies slumped in a pile of snow. She is incredibly strong and is hunting a Warlock who they have sworn to kill. Or perhaps, the person they are hunting is a villain your party has met before [50] Strong winds threaten to force the party off the side of the mountain. Is it the wrath of nature or perhaps a supernatural entity? [51] A squadron of patrolling Samurai ride upon Velociraptors. They are not friendly [52] One of the player’s voices echoes loudly in the valley. The strange thing is, the voice echoes even without any words being spoken [53] The mountains are alive and have large wounds. If the party isn’t careful they may they will face deadly consequences. But the opposite is also true, if the party are able to heal the wounds the mountains may help them on their journey [54] Fairies dance around a roaring waterfall. They act friendly and offer to heal the party, but beware.. They like to trick people into taking leaps of faith [55] Numerous quarries line the mountain range. Villages are littered throughout, all of them are hanging upside down like stalactites [56] A never ending fire burns within a crater. Travelers often come here to collect the flame [57] The only effective means of travel is a long winding road that forces the party to walk in a single file line. It is not much of an issue until something decides to attack [58] Deep within the blizzarding alps a lone peak is laced with flames. It is home to an ancient Dragon and a Sorcerer who worships and protects their master [59] Roll for which player who is going to be kidnapped by a Giant. Have fun! [60] A range of glass mountains shine brilliantly in the light. They were discovered a few days before replacing a large portion of the western coast. Their reason for existing is unknown [61] ZAP! A young spunky witch has accidentally shrunk the party. In a panic she puts them in a pocket dimension within her walking dresser companion. Surely things will be fine, right? [62] Out of nowhere bump into an invisible object. While trying to investigate they may discover a door that leads to an abandoned magical college. Rare magical treasure can be found within but something seems to have made this place their new home… [63] Clouds swirl around the peak, they are dense and have an almost unnatural appearance to them, as if they were stairs leading up to the heavens [64] Avalanche! The party are now trapped in a monster’s den. For a more dramatic challenge, all but one player is unconscious [65] A sickly looking child is wandering alone in the cold, they speak incoherent gibberish. If the party help this child and let them travel along, after reaching a safe destination they will reveal themselves as a spirit of the mountain, rewarding the party with blessings or treasure [66] The mountain pass is long but not too difficult to traverse. However, this specific path is looping over and over again without end [67] Flail Snails emerge from the mountain. They are dangerous but can be easily tamed [68] A meteor blasts through the summit, the debris rains down upon the party. It is quite deadly if they are hit. The crater is smoking and is home to a new mysterious plant [69] Hidden above are small hornet’s nests, be careful not to disturb them for the main hive is home to giant hornets who are not afraid of fighting [70] Within the rubble of a destroyed altar rests a tome with the title, “Hand of Fate” [71] Broken down on the road, a snobby noble offers to pay the party a large sum of money to help the noble and their servants to an important meeting. It takes place in a week and is important in solving interspecies relations [72] Smoke blows up from a dozen chimneys atop a bizarrely shaped house. It is home to a shy alchemist who collects rare materials from the alps [73] While climbing the mountain, the hard rocky surface suddenly begins cracking and weakening as the surface has turned into chocolate [74] Clockwork animals occupy the area. They act like regular animals… All except for Archimedes the glitchy owl. A loud creature that claims to have been created by a space demon [75] Civilians are traveling all throughout the mountain pass. With all of their belongings they venture toward a developing city in the valley. It’s a great/safe place to make new connections [76] Civilians are traveling all throughout the mountain pass. They claim it is a great land of opportunity and wealth, but something much more sinister is afoot [77] Select a random Goosebumps book, this is the new monster/obstacle the players must face [78] Spider webbing covers the entrance to a cave. Within the webs a sign reads, “Fortune readings in exchange for beautiful cups or tankards.” Sounds trustworthy enough [79] You discover a hamlet constructed out of trash and broken tools. Aloft in this pile of garbage, a Goblin’s eye cracks open. “Come have a look. One gob’s trash is another gob’s treasure.” They are a bit of con-gob so be quite careful [80] A camp of miners ask your party to sit down and join them for drinks. They are fascinated by the life of adventure your party leads [81] Poisonous mist swirls around the sierra, be careful not to lose consciousness while it seeps through your skin [82] Built into the side of the jagged stone, a Monk Temple sits peacefully amidst the storm [83] Bound to the mountain, a hellish warrior slaughters anyone who enters their domain. They are horrendously powerful and would wipe out any unsuspecting low-level party [84] Hosting a prestigious singing competition, a Purple Dragon with a tie and top hat invites all to watch this once in a lifetime event. Gods, Spirits, Giants, Beholders, etc.. are all participants [85] A campfire burns brightly on the side of the road, no one is around. Food is roasting, bottles left unopened, treasure left untouched. Do you search for those who set up this camp or take it for yourselves? [86] The party stumbles upon a murder scene and are framed for the crime by corrupt guards who came to investigate the death of a famous hero. The situation seems far too convenient [87] Frozen in ice a monstrous beast is slowly thawing, it’s power is equal to that of a Tarrasque but it does have the dumbest name in the world [88] Mimics as large as houses, disguised as, you guessed it. Houses. They lie in wait, hidden in plain sight among other buildings of an abandoned city. A storm is brewing and the party needs to take shelter. Hopefully they don’t wander into the wrong house [89] Introduce a new or reoccurring cult from your campaign. One of the members is infusing with a demon and will become a powerful antagonist that will continue to be a problem for the players in the campaign [90] The world’s worst rogue has been stalking the party. They want to kill the party or go on an adventure. The choice is yours, but they HAVE to be lovable. A new child to adopt [91] “Oi! You’ve come fer blood, haven’t you?” You are handed a flyer for a Colosseum nearby [92] A misguided entrepreneur has built their new Fast Food restaurant on a summit. They got the place for cheap but business is… Not ideal [93] Throw a Legend of Zelda boss at the players! Some suggestions: Bongo Bongo, Volvagia, Stallord, Stone Talus, Lynel [94] Struck with lightning, an unlucky party member’s eyes begin to glow as they have gained newfound powers. They’ve been selected by a powerful deity to carry out a prophecy [95] A deserted alchemy lab wanders the wilderness, it is sentient and left without a purpose [96] Thrown from the top of the mountain, a wooden chest filled with cursed magic items has been disposed of, never to be found again. Well until you rolled this random encounter [97] The party meets a high level party of badasses. They are kind of jerks and act as secondary antagonists on this journey up or through the range [98] Treasure map! No tricks, no traps. Just some sick loot [99] Let’s try out a traditional encounter. Find a cool monster (preferably displaced) and let the party fight it or perhaps help calm it down and lead it somewhere safe [100] Hidden away from the rest of the world, an observatory keeps track of planetary movement, stars, and unusual phenomenon. The observatory is run by a secret organization that watches over the world. Grand secrets reside within the somber halls

[kwrittink]

DCLXVI

Pairing: MIN YOONGI X READER (demon!Min Yoongi au) Genre: SMUT/(FLUFF?)

Words: 5,960

Warnings: Edging, cum denial, language, explicit sex, unprotected sex.

Your name: submit What is this?

You don't know how you ended up accepting this to happen in your home. Well, it's Halloween.

- I invoke you, ye holy one! Regal and majestic! Glorious splendour! Mighty arch-daimon! Denizen of chaos and Erebus, and of the unfathomable abyss! Haunter of sky-depths! Murk enwrapped, scanning mystery, and guardian of cults! Flame-fanning terror darter! Heart-crushing despot! Satanachia of daimons! Invincible Lucifer! - a girl dressed in a black poncho or something, friend of Taehyung, was standing on the middle of your living room, on top of a black cloth that had a pentagram and other unidentified things drawn on with white paint, surrounded by little electric candles, chanting those words in a weird voice, while all the lights were out, and as rain fell heavily outside the building. You looked boredly to your friend Taehyung, which looked specially trilled with the whole thing. My easily impressed baby. You scoffed lightly, shaking your head.

As soon as the girl finished - you couldn't remember her name to save your life -, a thunder boomed outside the window, and all of you jumped surprised, Taehyung screaming really loud. You threw a pillow at him, so he would shut up. The woman laughed loudly, and you gave her points for the creepy impersonation, even if you weren't scared at all. At least Tae is having fun.

 - Did someone got murdered? - Yoongi's bored voice startled you once more, mostly because of his proximity, since you didn't heard the door opening and he only spoke after sitting beside you. He chuckled at your reaction, throwing a snack bag in your lap. 

 - No, but you casually appeared just as we were summoning a demon, so I don't think is a coincidence. - you joked, and Taehyung chuckled. 

 - I don't doubt it either. I mean have you tried to wake him up? - Tae joked too, and Yoongi chuckled - rather darkly - by your side, making you hold back a shiver. Not really the time to be turned on by him, really.

 - Maybe that's why another demon didn't appear, you guys already have him. - the girl said, and you scoffed. Yeah, right.

 - Well there are better ways to wake me up than shoving me and throwing water at my face, you know? - he cocked an eyebrow at you, and you mirrored his expression. 

 - Ah but the thing is, you live with Taehyung, so you better take care on what you wish for. - you grinned, and Yoongi sighed, leaning back on the couch you were sitting.  

 - Yeah but you practically live with us there, so maybe you could do a favor once in a while - he said, pressing his tongue on the inside of his cheek, and you knew he was joking, but that didn't stopped you from blushing and hitting his arm. Like I wouldn't like to do that in the first place.

After they left - after a lot of booze and candy, because deep down you were all children - you went to sleep, and actually had some really fucked up dreams - be it because of all the weird stuff that was told or done -, but there was one that you remembered quite clearly, even after you woke up. 

I was in a bed - I don't know if it was my bed - and was really sleepy, felt my body heavy. You thought, going to the kitchen to pick a mug of coffee. Then I heard his voice. Yoongi's I mean. You sipped on the bitter beverage and scrunched your nose, not wanting to put any sugar on it due the excess of it the previous night. “-Do you know what you got into, little Y/N? - he had said, and only then you opened your eyes, landing on his own, but that at the time sported a crimson color, so red it actually looked like blood. You had opened your mouth to speak, but wasn't able to express anything, and he smirked wickedly.  Pressing a finger to your lips, he leaned very close, so close you could even feel his breath fanning in your face. - Oh I'm going to have so much fun torturing you... But to be honest, I bet you'll like it too.” You shivered hard, remembering the moment you jolted awake, still feeling the pressure of a finger in your lower lip. This is crazy.

 - What's crazy? - you heard Yoongi's voice right beside you, and almost jumped out of your skin, tumbling on the stool you were sitting. 

 - Fuck Min Yoongi, you almost killed me! How the hell did you got in? - you asked, and he chuckled, holding on your hips to help you balance. 

 - By the emergency exit of course. By the way, you should leave that window locked. - he said, and you clutched your chest, ignoring completely how his hands felt nice, even through the shirt. Let's not think about how they'd be nice on my bare skin, in other situations.

 - I'll lock it very well. What are you doing here so early thought? -  you inquired, watching as he made himself at home, picking a mug and filling it up with coffee, opening the fridge and fishing a muffin from the inside.  

 - I couldn't sleep, actually. Taehyung and that girl... Well they probably were sacrificing a goat for our lord Lucifer, because I can't fathom how that girl made some of the noises she did. - he said, and you bursted into laughter, because oh of course Taehyung fucked that girl. I should have predicted that.

 - Oh well. If you want to, you can sleep on my bed, I just turned off the AC, should be still chilly. - you offered, and Yoongi sighed leaning on the counter right beside you, pondering. - I could even cuddle you, if you ask politely. - you joked, and he cocked an eyebrow at you.

 - Yeah, I could, but only if you wake me up nicely. - he threw you a smirk, and you rolled your eyes again. 

 - Back at it again? Not so funny the second time, Yoongs. - you scoffed, and he chuckled, nodding. 

 - I'm sorry, I thought I didn't told that one yesterday. Anyways, I didn't came here to cuddle, as tempting as it looks like. I just wanted to hang out with my baby. - he said, patting your head lightly. You swatted his hand away, laughing. 

 - Yah, fuck you, grandpa. I'm only a year younger than your old ass. - you dissed, and he laughed, walking behind you, to the sink. 

 - I'll show you the "grandpa", little Y/N. - he muttered, but you heard it, and felt your insides churn with the pet name. Did he always called me that? I never noticed before...

The two of you settled on watching some shows and eating junk food - since Taehyung decided he'd spend the day with his witchy babe - the whole afternoon, and you were a bit jittery because it was actually the first time you and Yoongi hanged out just the two of you. And he did noticed it too.

 - I think this is the first time in three years we watch something that we don't have to stop so much because of Tae's comments. - he scoffed, as you were walking back to the couch, bringing just-made popcorn in a bowl. You chuckled, sitting at the other side of the couch, munching on the salty treat. Very welcome, since the overload of candy yesterday. You unpaused the show you were watching, some scary and gory movie that Yoongi insisted on watching, since it was still Halloween time.

It started raining somewhere along the afternoon, and became a little chilly, but you were too lazy to pick a blanket, even thought you shivered a little. 

 - Ah I'm cold. - Yoongi said from the other end of the couch, and you looked at him, nodding. 

 - Me too, but I'm too lazy to pick the comforter. Can you? - you asked, and Yoongi groaned, looking over to you, pouting.  

 - I'm more lazy and older than you. Can't you just scoot over and cuddle me? - he said, and you chuckled.

 - Aren't you just saying that because you're scared of the movie? - you teased, and he rolled his eyes at you, reaching for your feet, pulling it towards you. You didn't budged, so he grimaced, turning back to the television, giving up. You chuckled, scooting closer to him, leaning on his side. 

 - Oh okay, don't pout so much, oppa. You'll get more wrinkles. - you continued teasing him, because hey, that was your defense mechanism. You didn't wanted to look so interested, since he probably didn't think of you of more than a friend. Yoongi looked with the corner of his eye at you, a corner of his lips curling up.  

 - I know you don't resist me as well. - he mocked, and you scoffed, muttering "as if" while he wrapped his arms around your shoulders, turning and pulling you so your side was leaning on his chest. One of his hand went to cradle your head, fingers twirling on your hair. You frowned, looking up to him - trying to hide a shiver that rolled down your spine with the action -, that stared back clueless. 

 - What? My hands are cold. Did you wanted me to put them somewhere else? - Yoongi provoked you, smirking. Oh yes I did. You thought, but rolled your eyes at him, turning your head back at the movie.

-Do you like this, little Y/N? - you heard Yoongi ask, but you didn't knew what he was talking about, since you couldn't see anything. You were about to ask, when felt something wet and warm on the inside of your thighs. Gasping, you tried to reach down, close our legs, only to find out out were completely restrained. Yoongi chuckled darkly, voice right beside your ear. - Writhing so much already, and I haven't done anything yet... - he said, and you breathed out hard, feeling the tip of his tongue trace the outline of your ear. His hand gripped your neck lightly, moving down quickly to your chest, fingers caressing lightly the skin between your breasts, and trailing down further. You panted, feeling his fingertips sliding down your stomach, and going closer everytime to where you needed him the most...

 - Yoongi... - you felt yourself say, opening your eyes, pushing a little away from your friend's body. Damn, one thing is to dream about Yoongi while he's away, but pretty fucked up when he's right beside me. You thought, embarrassed as you noticed a certain throbbing feeling on a region south of your body.

 - What, what happened? - your sudden movement startled him, and Yoongi was probably sleeping too, since his voice was a little hoarse. You breathed in deeply, scratching one eye sleepily.  

 - Sorry, I just had a dream and got startled. - you said, not looking at his face, and he groaned. 

 - I dozed off too, I dreamt I was hugging a teddy bear... - he said, and you giggled, looking at him. Yoongi wasn't aware, but the way he was looking at you and how his voice sounded - that purr so similar to what you heard on your dream - was doing things to you. 

 - Are you calling me fat, Min Yoongi? - you inquired, while getting up. He wasn't having none of this, pulling you back from your shirt, and you fell heavily on his chest again, snuggling close. 

 - Yah, I meant you're cute, small and warm, not because of anything else. Now sit down and sleep. - he said, and you chuckled at how whiny and cute he got when sleepy. So much different of the demon image Tae painted of him, maybe Taehyung just doesn't know how to wake him up, and I know how irritating he can be sometimes.

 - Ah, I was just teasing you, gramps. But wouldn't it be better if we take this to the bedroom? It's more comfortable there. - you said, and saw Yoongi slowly peel his eyes open to look at you, a smirk forming in his lips.

 - Are you trying to seduce me, Y/N? - he asked, and you blushed hard, regretting your words. Maybe, if it's working...

 - I'm just saying, because I don't want to have you whining because you ended up with back pain, gramps. - you said, this time succeeding in getting up. - Besides, it's already late and if Tae haven't came to say a thing yet, it maybe means he's in for another long night. - you explained, and Yoongi nodded, getting up too. 

 - If I go back and they're at it still, I might kill him. - he said, half-joking, but you knew how awful it was trying to sleep when your roommate was having really loud sex. That's why I don't have one after all.

You went to your room, and asked if he wanted to take a shower or something. He said he'd go after you, and you chuckled, calling him a pig and saying you'd wake him up if he fell asleep without taking a bath. 

 - Do it nicely, little Y/N. - he joked, and you entered your bathroom, ready for a hot shower, since it looked the night would be chilly. 

After you got out, he went in, asking you to save his spot, and you chuckled, joking you'd keep it warm while he showered. You intended to wait for him awake, but as soon as your body touched the warm spot he left in your matress, you felt yourself dozing off. No much later, you started to dream. 

-You like this? - you saw Yoongi's eyes through the mirror, the red of his irises making your shiver. His hand cradled your head - much like he did on the sofa earlier -, pulling the hair by the roots, the sting making you hiss, but the pain wasn't anything uncomfortable - on the contrary -, while you focused on his other hand, traveling across your hips to pull you close to his body, the heat of the bathroom making your skin stick to each other. - Do you want me to touch you, Y/N? - he purred against your ear, and you whined, nodding as much as his hand allowed you to. You saw Yoongi's smile on the mirror, hand sliding down your damp skin towards your heat, and out closed your eyes, gasping lowly as his teeth sank to the soft skin of your neck. - Look at me... I want to see your begging eyes. - he grunted, and your eyes snapped open, landing first on his face then on his hand, that inched closer towards your wetness. You reached back, touching his hip, wanting to urge him to go faster, but realized he had a light salience on the spot you touched. Taking your hand away, you saw on the reflection a bunch of letters ratted on his skin. "DCLXVI". Frowning, you asked yourself what it meant, and looked up at him. Yoongi was grinning at you. - Pretty, isn't it? Do you know what it means? - he asked, and you were about to ask about it, but then his fingers reached your core, and you felt electrified.

You woke up with a gasp, feeling your inner walls clench around nothing once, and breathed out harshly, trying to calm down. This is getting out of hand. You thought, running your fingers through your hair, frowning as you realized it was wet. I don't remember washing my hair. You were about to pick your towel, when you heard the bathroom door unlock, and instinctively threw yourself at the bed, covering your flushed face with the comforter, holding your breath to keep quiet. You didn't knew why you were acting like that, but you knew that after that last dream you couldn't look Yoongi in the eye at the moment. 

 - I said I save my spot, not steal it. - he muttered giggling. - Well at least I can change without worries. - he said, and you tried to stop your facial expressions, but couldn't stop from asking yourself why he didn't bring his clothes to the bathroom. 

But I guess a little peek won't hurt... You chanced opening one eye, knowing it was wrong to spy on your friend, but the curiosity got the best of you. Won't do any good to those dreams I'm having, but... Your eyes landed on his torso, and you were kind of disappointed he was able to put on the sweatpants you borrowed - well they were Taehyung's, from when he used to sleep there sometimes - him. But still was able to bask in the sight of his incredibly white skin, that glowed with the low light of the lamp on your bedstand.

Then you saw it.

 - Hey, they say it's not polite to spy on people while they're changing. - Yoongi smirked, turning to look at your face, and you couldn't pretend you were sleeping again, since he pushed your shoulder, turning you to your back. Your eyes landed again on the letters at his hip, and he followed your gaze. 

 - Oh, were you looking at this? - he asked, and you stared back at his face, heart racing.

 - Did you always had this tattoo? - you asked, and he nodded. You proceeded to inquire him if he had ever shown you that.  

 - Have you ever saw me shirtless besides today? - he asked back, and you gulped. Well yes, in my dreams where you were about to fuck me - I hope. You shook your head no. 

 - Are you sure? - he inquired, and you sat up, while he sat down right in front of you, eyes boring in your face like he knew something. You shook your head again, and he snickered. 

 - Well... Do you know what it means? - he kept with the questions, and you slowly shook your head, denying. For some reason you felt like it was familiar - not because you saw it at the dream -, like you had seen something like that before. - Really? Those letters doesn't make any sense to you, in any way? - he pushed, and you wondered why he didn't just told you the meaning already. But why do they look so...

 - They're Roman numerals, isn't it? - you managed to speak, and Yoongi smiled at you. 

 - Good girl. Now, what number does it make? - he asked, and you looked at his hip again. "D" stands for 500, if I'm not mistaken... "C" is 100, "L" is 50, "X" is 10... "V" is five and "I" is 1. Adding them..." You swallowed hard. 

 - Do... Why do you have the number of the beast on your hip? - you asked, no higher than a whisper, suddenly feeling your whole body numb. Yoongi just shrugged. 

 - You tell me. What color my eyes were in your dreams? - he shot back, and you gasped, because there was no way he could know about that. Only if he's... You scoffed, that couldn't be real. Those kind of things don't exist, right? 

 - No, no. Those dreams are because I like you, you're just messing wi- you slapped your mouth shut, eyes widening at what you just said. Yoongi chuckled, looking at you through hooded eyes - a look you had just dreamed so far.  

 - Well if that wasn't the most nonchalant confession ever... - he said, and you got up, hands covering your face, embarrassed till the last hair on your head. I just confessed to Yoongi. Oh shit.  Yoongi pulled one of your arms away from your face, and manhandled you till you were back sitting, this time on his lap - straddling him - face inches from yours. 

 - Hey, I like you too, don't worry. - he said as nonchalantly as you had earlier, grinning at your face. You felt like your head was about to explode, and you felt like the gap between the two of you closed each time more...

 - But first - he started, parting ever so slightly from your face. - I need you to say something to me. - he spoke, voice low, the usual purr giving you goosebumps.  

 - What...? - you asked, barely whispering. His fingers went to touch your chin, eyes trained on your lips. You felt like there was an electric current passing between you two.

 - What am I, Y/N? Deep down I know you know, and you believe it. So say it, and I'll give you what you need. - he proposed, and you opened your mouth. You felt a little silly, because you didn't wanted to believe those kind of things existed, at least not like the way they were always painted. But then you were reminded of something that girl said the previous day, as soon Yoongi arrived your house, right after the supposed "demon summoning".

 “- Maybe that's why another demon didn't appear, you guys already have him.”

As the understanding fell on your face, Yoongi smiled almost like he could read your thoughts. 

 - That's why? - you weren't stuttering this time, voice low. - Yesterday we couldn't summon a demon because you were already a demon here? - you asked, and thought you sounded ridiculous. But then Yoongi's eyes flashed red, and your breath hitched.

 - Took you long enough, Y/N. - he muttered, leaning all the way down to press his lips on yours.

At first you were still shocked, and to be honest, the slightest scared. But as soon the tip of his tongue licked at the seam of your lips, you found yourself closing your eyes and melting into his touch, lips opening to allow his entrance. Yoongi hummed against your mouth when your hands found the nape of his neck, his own pulling your waist closer to him. He bit at your lower lip, and you groaned at the small pain, while Yoongi took the chance to explore deeper into your mouth, hands pressing at your hips, and you took the hint to grind on his crotch, moaning lowly as your core came in contact with his growing bulge. 

 - Does that feel good? Wouldn't it feel better if we got more... Comfortable? - he spoke against your lips, and you didn't had to wait for him to say nothing more, as you reached the hem of your shirt and pulled it off in a swift motion. Yoongi grinned, leaning to bite at the soft skin of your neck, one hand trailing up your hip smoothly, going to grab your breast, pinching the nipple almost painfully, and you gasped. You grinded on his now hard girth, whimpering at the pain and how it actually bring you pleasure. 

 - I love how eager you're being... Are you always this eager, Y/N? Or is it just for me? - he asked, and you nodded, but before you could place your hands back on his neck and kiss him again, he pushed you into the mattress, knocking the air out of your lungs, as he pressed his body against you, hips rolling deliciously on your own. He licked at your lips, then bit them again. 

 - I want to hear your words, kitten - his voice was so dark, it made you shiver hard. He mouthed at your neck, nibbling ever so softly, and you were in a state of arousal that you couldn't even think properly. Humming impatiently Yoongi clawed his fingers at your sides, grabbing the waistband of your booty shorts, yanking it down harshly, together with the panties, in a quick movement. Pulling your legs to one side, he swatted at your ass and you yelped, blushing at how the shock and the pain made you even more wet. 

 - I still didn't heard your answer, babygirl. - he grunted on your ear.  

 - Yes! Yes Yoongi it's just for you... I-I'm so wet for you, only you - you almost vomited the words, a hand gripping at his dark hair desperately. Yoongi smirked, satisfied with your whimpering answer, and crashed your lips together again. He too gripped you by the hair when your free hand came in contact with his neglected hard-on, putting on a good amount of pressure, enough to make his jaw clench and distract him from kissing you. You stared at him, his eyes back to the dark-coffee color you knew all-too-well, pupils blown with lust, perhaps mimicking yours. You needed to make him break his facade, and seeing him react like that to your touches gave you more confidence. 

 - Let me touch you, Yoongs... I want to taste you so bad... - you muttered, cupping the side of his face. He bit his lip, leaning back towards the wall, eyes trained on you. 

 - Come here then, little girl. Show me how bad you want me then. - his voice, oh his fucking voice, was reduced to a whisper, eyebrow cocked and a light grin on one corner of his mouth. You put yourself on your hands and knees fast, crawling towards him till you reached his sweatpants, kissing his chest and stomach, all the while hooking your fingers at the waistband and pulling it down slowly.  - Now Y/N, don't tease me so much. - he said, and you looked up at him, a soft smile towards him.

 - You teased me a lot, Yoongi. Let me have a little fun, would you? - you sassed, and he scoffed, seeming surprised, then shrugged. 

 - Just be warned that you don't get to complain on the consequences. - he said, and you shrugged back at him, trying to sound nonchalant, but your body buzzed with the thought of making him lose his cool and fuck you so senseless you'd feel him till the next week.

Not really rushing, you peeled the clothing from his waist, marveling at how the skin there was even more white than the rest of him, and you could see the thick veins that outlined the V on his hips, to converge where you soon brought your undivided attention. When you freed his member from its restraints, Yoongi audibly breathed out. It stood proud and throbbed with need, and your mouth watered, wanting to swallow him whole - or at least the most you could. Looking up again, you felt your whole body flush at the sight of Yoongi's red eyes staring you down, tongue darting out to wet his lips. 

 - Well, you said you wanted to taste it, what's taking you so long? - he said, a menacing undertone tinting his speech. You opened your mouth and leaned down, not taking your eyes off him, kitten licking the very tip of his dick, watching his body tense. Fighting the urge to smile, you twirled your tongue around it once, to then take the head whole, sucking harshly at him. You felt the salty taste of his precum covering your tongue, and hummed, taking more of him in. 

 - Your pretty mouth feels so good, little Y/N - he hissed, and you bobbed your head, ignoring the soft gag feeling when his tip hit the back of your throat. Using your hands to grip the rest you couldn't swallow, you felt a burning feeling inside as soon you heard him release a strained sigh, hands going to the back of your head, at first just an encouragement, but then he grunted, clawing at your scalp. 

 - Fuck babe, let me - he held your head still, hips jerking up and you hummed deliciously as he slid in and out your mouth. Yoongi hissed, a string of curses following, and you held your breath as much as you could, looking at him teary-eyed. He threw his head back, making a "hah" right before pulling himself out of your mouth. 

 - Damn little girl, you look so good fucked out like that, I could cum all over that pretty mouth of yours - he sighed, grinning as he ran his fingers through your hair, and you smiled at him, sniffing. - But I need to be inside of you so bad, so why don't you turn around and get on your hands and knees? - he proposed, and you bit your lower lip, quickly moving to position yourself as he pointed out. 

  - Oh this view is so great! - Yoongi said, and you felt the bed dip, as he kneeled behind you. - I could look at it all night, so pretty and wet for me... - you whined as his hands rubbed on your buttcheeks, squeezing and spreading them. 

 - Yoongi please d-do something, I ca- you were about to plead, but his hands came down with force, slapping your ass with a sharp sound, reducing your little speech to a trembling whine.

 - I told you kitten, you don't have voice to complain about the consequences of teasing me. - he growled, the sole violence in his voice making you clench around nothing. He soothed the sting with a caress, only to have his hands trail up your spine and grab a handful of your hair, yanking it towards himself, making you yelp. 

 - Now here's what we'll do. I'll fuck the soul out of your body, but you have to tell me whenever you're close, and I'll stop, because you won't cum until I say so - he leaned down to whisper against your ear, cock sliding between your cheeks with ease, due you being dripping wet already. - And if you cum without permission, I'll continue fucking you till you cum two more times, and I don't care if you're crying because it's too much. Are we clear, Y/N? - he said, and a shiver shook your body violently as you nodded. A swat on your ass made you gasp surprised. 

 - Talk to me, Y/N. I said I wanted to hear you say it, babe. - he demanded, and out swallowed dryly.  

 - Y-yes, we're c-clear, Yoongi. - you stuttered, and he muttered a "good" before letting your hair go. You didn't had much time to brace yourself before he slammed into you, ripping a strained grunt from your throat at the sudden invasion, your insides aching and clenching in pleasure. Yoongi slapped your butt again, grabbing a handful of your cheek.

 - You're so tight around me, fuck! - he groaned, not giving you enough time to adjust to his size before pulling back, only to slam back down, taking a hard and deep pace, that made you roll your eyes back. You felt spiraling quickly to your orgasm, and knew you had to warn Yoongi, but was still pondering what option was better. Yoongi thought, wasn't going to be fooled, and giving a particularly hard slap to your already cherry-red buttocks, stopped his movements, pulling out completely. 

 - This one is just for a test, huh? Next time you're going to tell me how close you are, okay? - he said in an amused voice, relishing on how you liked when his hands landed on your ass. You nodded, basking into the burning sensation his fingers left.

You ended up telling him about how close you were everytime, but it had been almost half an hour on his little game of torture, and you were already pressing your face on the matress, trying to muffle your moans that had turned into screams practically. Yoongi was really having fun with that, scoffing as he teased you, purring about how you were so good to him and how well you were taking him. You sniffed, already on the verge of tears, gripping the sheets by your sides. He's really a demon. You sighed frustrated and sensitive, waiting for the little shock when Yoongi slammed back inside you. 

 - You've been so good, kitten. I should reward you. - he said, and without notice manhandled you so you were laying on your back, positioning himself between your legs, as he pushed them open wide. You looked shocked at his figure towering over you, gasping as he leaned to bite at your nipple, twirling his tongue around the hardening bud. You were about to ask him what he was going to do, when he entered you slowly, reaching deep - dragging a low moan from you -, before starting at a quick and hard pace, making your loud moans stutter.  

 - That's it, just let me hear your sweet moans, such music to my ears... - he spurred you on, eyes fluttering as he pounded for what you were worth, grabbing at the back of your knees so hard you knew you'd have bruises the next morning. But I don't give a flying fuck, thought.

He hit a particularly good spot inside of you, that had you seeing white, and you opened our mouth to try and warn him on how close he was letting you go, but Yoongi leaned down to kiss you, sucking at your lower lip eagerly, as he improved the speed of his hips. 

 - Now I want you to come for me, babygirl. I'm so close, all you have to do is cum and milk me... - he said, and your breathing became even more laboured, and you nodded, tongue sticking out to meet the tip of his own, in a light caress.  

 - C-close so close, please let me cum Yoongi, please - you begged, and he reached down between your bodies, touching your clit, making harsh circles, sending you into a frenzy as you convulsed beneath him. It only took the first hard clench of your walls to tip Yoongi over the edge, and he came too, pulling you flush against him as he spilled his hot seed inside of you.

You both panted extenuated, your limbs giving up on functioning, eyes threatening to flutter close. 

 - Holy hell fuck me - you breathed out hoarsely, and Yoongi scoffed as he pulled you to his chest, after moving to lay by your side. 

 - We'll have plenty of time for that later, I'm pretty tired right now, babe. - he retorted, and you snickered, snuggling closer to him. 

 - Oh so that means you're not just a incubus that will haunt my dreams and feed from my energy and then leave? - you asked, and he snorted, pecking your lips amused. 

 - What kind of low-life kind of demon you think I am? - he smiled smugly, and you shrugged. - Nah, now you'll have to put up with me for the rest of your life. Besides, your soul is mine. - Yoongi said, and for a second you almost believed him - his eyes flashed red and he used a creepy tone on his last phrase, but ended up laughing. 

 - Well then, it's going to be a hell of a ride. - you joked, and saw him roll his eyes. 

 - It will, if you keep doing those innuendos. You're spending too much time with that Jin dude. - he said, and before you could protest he shushed you, holding your head against his chest, urging you to close your eyes and sleep. You chuckled against his skin. Oh well then. You drifted to sleep quickly, as the rain fell outside your window.