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gilbirda · 3 years ago

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How to confuse a Bat

Part 4 of my Danny is an Arkham Security Guard AU (og tumblr post)

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<< Prequel - Can’t have shit in Gotham || Clown around and find out - Sequel >>

“So… Are we going to talk about it?”

Tim sipped a bit of his apple juice pack. “About what?” He answered Dick.

“The… The brother. Daniel.”

“If you are going to suggest adopting him into the family because of his physical features, I will stab you in the eye.” Damian didn’t even look up from his fruit snacks, the ones Alfred insisted they carry just in case the mission prolonged more than planned.

Which it did.

Since apparently they were waiting until the siblings finished their shift to ask the questions. Damian thought it was stupid - just kidnap the siblings, interrogate and get on with the investigation! There are things at risk more important than their jobs!

Stupid Father. Stupid Grayson. Agreeing with Todd was usually foolish, but this could prove to be a very bad decision.

“That would be super funny, but their parents are still alive.” Nightwing shrugged, but a tiny smirk stayed on his lips. “I was referring to the green glow? In the kid’s eyes?”

“He’s 24, not a kid.” Tim grumbled. He didn’t like being younger than someone called “kid”.

“Cranky because you are half the size I was at your age, huh.” Jason smirked behind the thermos with coffee Bats had brought when it was decided they’ll meet the siblings in the morning.

Despite having the option of sleeping until they were to meet the Fentons, neither thought they would be able to. They did their usual patrolling and when it was close to the meeting time they decided to regroup and set camp on the roof of the building the siblings lived at, eat some food Alfred prepared and rest for a bit. Duke stayed behind with Alfred at the Manor.

Only Steph was unironically happy when Dick said it has been a while since they went on a family picnic.

“Green glowing eyes, anybody?” Dick decided to ignore the starting argument between Tim and Jason.

“I agree that is very concerning, but,” Batman sighed, “I think extracting information about their parents is more important right now.”

“Jay?” The man turned from where he was about to pinch one of Tim’s cheeks. “Did you feel any weird vibes from Daniel? Anything from the Pit?”

Jason caught his little brother’s kick with one hand, pondering the question and ignoring the protest from Tim to let his foot go.

“Not really. I wasn’t exactly paying attention, you know?”

“Yeah, because you were talking about your daddy issues.” Steph elbowed Bruce, who refused to comment.

“Oh, shut up.” He pushed Tim away from him, who did a flip and landed safely on both feet. Cass clapped softly at the display.

“Don’t feel ashamed, it’s more common than you think~.” Spoiler singsonged, dodging when the other man tried to punch her arm.

“Children.” Batman stopped the argument, secretly glad that they couldn’t see his slight blush or how his eyes had followed Jason since they met up earlier in the night.

“No, but really, that girl is amazing.” Dick munched on his sandwich, also looking at Jason.

“Her skills could be polished, but she got the advantage over Todd.” Damian agreed.

“Is that a compliment or a backhanded insult to me?”

“I wasn’t talking about the gun - which we should definitely talk about how she got that thing past the controls at Arkham; I was thinking more about her therapist skills. And her ability to make Jay sit still at all.”

“Nobody told me to expect resistance. It won’t happen again.” Jason crossed his arms. He was still thinking about how Jasmine managed to get him in such a position and how his heart raced with fear for a hot second.

He hated feeling helpless.

“Cranky because you talked about your feelings?” Tim elbowed him, jumping back when Jason turned to glare at him.

“Maybe we should do that.” Nightwing finished his sandwich and looked wistfully at the starless sky.

“Talk about Jason’s feelings?”

“No,” he shook his head but didn’t look at Stephanie, feeling everyone’s eyes on him. “If this Jasmine girl is so good that everyone at Arkham loves her, maybe we should talk to her as well. About feelings.”

A few cringed at the thought, well aware that talking about feelings took a lot of work.

“That is if she’s not secretly a mad scientist.” Dick shrugged with a tiny smile.

It wasn’t long until they saw the siblings turn around the corner and walk quickly to their apartment. Their building wasn’t in the shady parts of Gotham, but still the city at night wasn’t a safe place.

“Hm.” Was all Batman said to the group before all of them, one by one, jumped down the fire escape stairs and into the correct window.

Of course, they waited inside the living room with the lights off. They had to play the dramatics and the intimidation tactics. It was Bat-theory 101.

“Huh.” Was all the reaction they got from Danny, who didn’t look surprised to find them there after flipping the light switch. His sister, on the other hand, took a moment to adjust to the sudden light and then smiled brightly at the intruders.

“Yes!” She pumped her fist.

Daniel side eyed her. “You are a weirdo.”

“I am passionate, that’s different.” She ruffled his hair. “And look who’s talking, you weirdo.”

The young man rolled his eyes and closed the door, dropped his bag and hung the jacket, all without even glancing at the full set of super heroes in his apartment. Jasmine followed suit, but she constantly looked at the others with a tiny smile.

“Ok!” She finally addressed them. “We said we’ll talk and now let’s talk. I need my beauty sleep.” She dragged her brother closer to the heroes.

The bats looked at each other for a moment before Batman stepped forward.

“Did you know your parents have independent contracts with the government?”

“Yes.” Jasmine nodded carefully. She wasn’t lying, but she didn’t know where this was going. “They usually sell their inventions or patent them. Science isn’t cheap and even if we don’t agree with it, it’s money and it brings food to the table.”

Daniel snorted but didn’t comment further on it.

“Do you keep in touch with your parents?”

They tensed a little, but recovered quickly.

“No.” Daniel didn’t add further comment.

“Our parents… We still call sometimes, but after we moved out from home…” She looked down. She wasn’t lying here either, but there was more she wasn’t saying.

“Have they mentioned something lately? Any kind of new contract? Anything about an ex-government division?”

“What did they do now?” Daniel closed his eyes and sighed, looking resigned.

Bruce was hesitant for a moment. So far the Fenton siblings were cooperative, a bit withdrawn, but it was understandable.

“Are you familiar with the name ‘Ghost Inv-’”

“The fucking Guys in White?” Daniel's lips curled at the name. “What did theydo now?”

“Daniel-”

“Danny, please.”

Batman nodded slowly. “It has come to our attention that Jackson and Madeline Fenton have long term contracts with the GIW,” he searched Danny’s face. It didn't change expressions, so he knew about these contracts, “as well as their collaboration and expert opinion on some experiments.”

This was the key word. Danny and Jasmine froze. She had been drifting a bit from the conversation and let her brother deal with it as she admired the costumed guests, but she snapped back into attention as Bruce said the last word.

“What?” She asked.

“Experim-”

“We heard you the first time.” Danny narrowed his eyes. “What kind of experiments?”

“The kind you don’t want to know.”

“No…” Jasmine’s legs failed her and she let herself fall into the couch.

Her brother put a hand on her shoulder in support. “We knew this would happen eventually.”

“I hoped to be there and stop it.”

“I hoped they kept the experimentation at home.”

“So you knew this was happening?” Bruce really didn’t want to arrest these individuals. He liked them. Jasmine had been very nice to his son and handled Jason like no one else could.

“It’s… complicated.” Daniel… Danny made a face. “Our parents believe that ghosts can’t feel pain.”

There was a moment of silence.

“You said ‘ghosts’. As in-”

“Specters, apparitions, phantasms.” Danny interrupted Tim, making a gesture with his hand. “Keep up.”

“But ghosts don’t exist.”

“Ha! Wouldn’t that be nice?” Danny threw at Red Robin, the hand on his sister rubbing circles on her back. “Also, haven't you guys dealt with the paranormal before?”

“Unfortunately.” He conceded with a shrug.

“So you’re saying that the person we saw in the video was a ghost?” Batman stepped in before the argument could go further.

“Yeah.” He narrowed his eyes as he noticed Batman and a few behind him relaxed their stance a little. “Would that make it better for you? Make it easier to ignore?”

“Danny.” Jasmine said as a warning.

“No no, please, by all means, answer my question. Do you believe that because it is a ghost it’s okay to be experimented on? To be cut open and have your guts thrown around as you watch them do unspeakable things, feeling every second of it?”

All of them saw it. His eyes, which had been a cool and crystalline blue, were now glowing and green. Lazarus Pit green, like Jason's were shortly after being revived.

But Danny didn’t look consumed by the rage. He was angry, tense, and ready to fight - but his breathing was calm and controlled and the hand on his sister’s back was still there, seeking physical contact.

“Calm down. It was just a question.”

“Then answer me. It’s also ‘just a question’.”

Bruce lifted his hands to show he wasn’t a threat. It worked just a little. “No. It doesn’t matter which species someone is - if they have life or consciousness, they don’t deserve to suffer.”

Danny blinked and his eyes were back to blue, but he still was tense.

“So all these weapons and their work with the GIW…?”

“Yes, it’s to hunt and destroy ghosts.” Now it was the brother who let himself fall on the couch. “Our parent’s lives work.” His mouth twisted in disgust.

“And you don’t agree.”

“Of course we don’t fucking agree! Why would we, when -” He stopped himself. Hm.

Jasmine jumped in, taking one of Danny’s hands and squeezing it. “Our parents… They are really obsessed with ghosts. It is their whole lives! Everything they do, everything they make… it’s to capture, experiment on or kill ghosts.”

Bruce didn’t think he was the only one that caught the pained look in the young woman’s eyes as she said this. He wouldn’t be surprised if the siblings came from a neglectful childhood.

“While it doesn’t surprise us to see them work with the GIW, we didn’t believe they would go through with it. We had many big fights, around the time Danny and I moved out, about this topic. To make them see that it was wrong, that they should stop.”

“They are beyond help, Jazz. I told you. I told you.”

“Then what are we going to do?”

“You are not going to do anything.” Batman’s tone was final. “If you could tell us everything you know, we can-”

“No.” Danny’s eyes were green again as he looked up.

“No?” Nightwing tried really hard to not project how tense he felt.

“No. This is our problem. The GIW, our parents. The ghosts.”

“No offense, but you don’t have the means to deal with a problem like this.” Tim’s tone was controlled, but it let pass some of the judgemental disbelief. The siblings were smart, and probably trained, but they were still just a doctor and a prison guard.

“Full offense, but you don’t know what the fuck you are talking about.” The young man jumped to his feet, glaring with those unnatural glowing eyes. The lights in the apartment flickered for a moment.

Jason put a hand on his gun, ready to step in. Tim stepped forwards, eyes fixed on Danny’s.

“Ok, let’s stop.” Nightwing put a hand over his little brothers’ stomachs. Jazz took the chance and did the same with Danny.

“Danny. Your eyes.” She whispered, but they could hear perfectly in such a small room. So she is aware of what is going on with him.

Whatever Danny did to make his eyes stop glowing Jason could feel it this time, now that he was paying attention. The Pit inside of him echoed, withdrawing on itself, closing and closing until he could barely feel it. His mouth tasted like copper for some reason, as if some kind of memory.

He gasped.

“Hood?” Someone asked, but he couldn’t really say who. His attention was fully on the kid (not a kid , not a kid, his mind urgently told him) and how all hostility left him as they looked at each other.

Jason felt unnervingly seen, even with the covering helmet and the mask beneath. Danny, whatever or whoever he was, could see into his own soul. He was sure of it. It didn’t matter how.

“What the fuck was that?” he muttered, finally.

“You are not Dead,” Danny tilted his head, “but you are not one of the Living. What are you?”

Before Jason could say anything, Batman stepped between them, his dark and towering figure acting as a wall between them. Nobody dared to even breathe.

“What are you ?” Bruce used the voice. He was scared.

“Danny.” Jasmine took her brother by the shoulder to turn his body around and make him look at her. “I think they can help.”

Danny snorted. “How?”

“Batman has resources we don’t. The Justice League-”

“No.”

“Daniel-”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Danny, technically, we could appeal the Metahuman Rights Acts-”

“And technically I shouldn’t exist.”

“This could be our only chance!”

“Or they could make the situation worse!”

“Excuse me?” Steph lifted a hand, trying to follow the argument. The siblings turned to look at her at the same time. “How are you guys involved, exactly? I mean, they are doing really bad things to ghosts, but shouldn’t ghosts take care of it? Do they have someone that deals with these things?”

The question was good. After all, why did the siblings care so much for the ghosts? Sure they didn’t believe in their parents’ ideals, but still, if it was that big of a deal why did they consider themselves the only ones who could stop it?

“Oh yeah, the ghosts have someone working on it-”

“Danny…”

“- Me.” He said with the widest grin, and for a moment it looked like it had too many teeth, way sharper than they needed to be.

Jazz put her head in her hands, hiding the groan.

“Jazzy-pants, they are only going to get in the way with the detective-ing. Better rip that bandaid off right now.”

“Don’t call me that.” Her mouth turned down a little. “And I can see your point.”

“But?”

“The last time we barely made it, Danny. You can’t be everywhere all the time -”

“I told you I was working on it.”

“- and the GIW must have upped the security, especially if they are working with mom and dad.” She continued, ignoring him. And ignoring the bats as if they weren’t even there. “Sam and Tucker-”

“Leave them out of this.”

Jazz’s expression was pained. “Without their support our chances of success are lower.”

“I’ve trained since.”

“So did I! But it is not enough and you know it.”

The siblings glared at each other, waiting for the other to yield first.

Batman didn’t dare breathe, absolutely sure that if they remembered the bats were still here they would stop the argument - and stop giving them so much information.

"No Justice League." It took a moment to register that Danny was talking to them, probably because he was still looking at his sister's eyes. "If they get involved we walk away forever."

Batman really wanted to fight it - try to make them see that with a problem like this they didn't have a chance without help. Maybe insist that they were civilians, and use the usual spiel about them being their responsibility now.

But he couldn't find the breath to speak. Was it how Danny tensed, as if either option was equally disturbing? Or how Jasmine - Jazz - had a defeated air around her?

He had no doubt that if the siblings wanted to disappear, not even a god would be able to find them. There was just something about them, something inhuman and plainly other, that he was sure that they didn’t throw empty threats around.

"Maybe we should start over again. No Justice League, no threats, everybody calm." Dick was really trying.

"And no lying?" Jazz answered him, but her eyes were fixed on Danny's, as if asking for permission.

This was it. They were going to finally explain what was going on with them.

Danny nodded. "No lying." He finally looked at the bats in their living room, the sunrise coming from the window stealing away the mysterious aura around them. "You can lose the furry suits, guys. It's not the same effect under the sunlight."

Before they could protest at the comment, Jazz turned with an apologetic smile.

“I’m sorry, we know who you are. We’ve known for a while now.”

"And before you get all paranoid, we are not going to do shit about it." Danny turned as well, eyes narrowed. "We sure know the importance of a secret identity."

There was a moment of silence.

“We will meet again tonight. If you really know who we are, come find the Cave.”

“Hell no! I’ve got to work!”

“I didn’t know that ghost-adjacent champions needed to work?” Steph said, tired with the evasiveness of the siblings and really wanting to go home.

Danny crossed his arms. “Rent won’t pay itself. And I really like my job and would like to keep it, thank you very much.”

As he moved, Jason’s eyes noticed the scars that crept up his sleeve, an intricate zig zag of overlapping scars that mapped a rough landscape in what was once, probably, soft skin.

He didn’t need to be a detective to know what those meant. Danny was trained, dangerous and had glowing green eyes - that he was a warrior of some kind was not the question.

Instead, he wondered if he had paid the price of Justice, and how much it cost him.

***

Many hours later, after suffering their respective day job/school with little to no sleep - they teased Danny about having to work, but they had to maintain appearances too -, the night found Bruce, Tim and Alfred going through Jason’s footage at Arkham, as well as all the information on the siblings and the town they came from, Amity Park.

Now that they knew that Jasmine was not dangerous-

(“Not dangerous? She pointed a gun to my face!”)

- they could focus on the brother. They had dismissed him since on record there wasn’t anything of notice from him. Didn’t pursue education after highschool, no criminal records, not even a hospital visit; which was weird, since whatever reason that made Danny’s eyes glow shouldn’t be normal, or healthy.

Just in case they checked the Lazarus Pit activity. Any reported League operations, suspicious behavior from Ra’s, any connection to something that was related to death and made your eyes glow green.

“Dunno, maybe there’s something in the water from where they are from.” Jason had commented when the search proved fruitless and he got bored of it.

“That’s it!” Tim shouted as he picked up his tablet, furiously typing something on the screen and laughing when he did. He turned the tablet to show what he found, seconds before Jason opened his mouth to ask if he was okay in the head. “‘Local superhero Inviso-Bill saves the day!’” He read the headline of the newspaper showing on the screen.

“Superhero?” Bruce commented, but his mind was fixated on the blurry photo of a figure flying away from the scene.

“Great, more supers.” Jason groaned from the table where he was reading to pass the time until the siblings showed up - or not, some of them had the theory that the Fentons packed up and ran to deal with their parents on their own.

Not that Jason would blame them, but running into danger without backup to deal with estranged parents wasn’t exactly a smart move. Zero stars out of five. Wouldn’t recommend it.

“What kind of name is Inviso-bill?”

“The kind that bad press gives you,” a new voice echoed in the cave behind them. “Not very intimidating. I know.”

Batman turned, one hand ready on his belt… that wasn’t there. Because he was wearing his civilian clothes. Heart racing, he glanced at Alfred, who nodded and tried to sneak towards a filing cabinet that disguised batarangs.

“Dude, calm down. We wouldn‘t want you to have a heart attack now.” Danny relaxed his body on purpose, lifting his hands with his palms forward, trying to be as least threatening as possible.

“How?” Was the only thing Bruce could say.

This took Danny by surprise. “You haven’t figured it out yet? I thought you were the world’s greatest detective.”

“Self proclaimed.” Jason nodded in greeting at Jazz when she walked from behind her brother. The other waved with a wide smile.

“Hey, B?”

Bruce looks at Tim, who was showing him a picture on his tablet - a clearer photo of Amity Park’s own superhero, Danny Phantom. His eyes went back to the Arkham Guard, Danny Fenton.

Phantom in the picture was younger, more fresh, with a big smile on his face. And of course the white hair and the green eyes.

Danny was burned out and tired, with dark bags under his dull blue eyes that were brimming with shadows full of secrets, adding years to his expression.

“You are a superhero.”

Jazz made a face, but didn’t comment. Danny rolled his eyes.

“No. I am definitely not. I’m just a Security Guard at Arkham.”

“You were a superhero.” Bruce tried again. Danny didn’t say anything but the answer was obvious. “What happened?”

He knew it had been a bad move when Danny narrowed his eyes, the green creeping back into the blue, his lips curled into a silent growl.

“So… Do you have more-” Jasmine tried to move on with the conversation, stepping around her brother.

“Father! We heard the alarms and came as fast as-!” Damian came down running to the Cave, katana in hand, screeching to a halt when he saw the siblings.

“What’s going - woah!” Duke froze behind the child. He blinked a few times, eyes fixed on Danny. “Bruce? Is this… the guy?”

The guy, Danny said under his breath, amused.

“Duke, this is Danny. And his sister, Jasmine.” Bruce made a gesture, apparently accepting that this was happening.

But Duke only frowned and blinked, his lips pressed in thought.

“Something wrong?”

Duke tried to sound reassuring but his voice wavered a little. “He doesn’t look human.” A few seconds later he realized what he said and tried to backtrack. “I mean, there’s this weird vibe around him…”

“Don’t worry, I’m not offended. I’m not human.” Everybody saw Jazz tense as Danny said this with a calm smile. “Just out of curiosity, what can you see? I wondered what the only meta from the bat-clan would see in me.”

The hero used the moment it took to walk down the rest of the steps towards the batcomputer, where everyone was gathered, to think his words carefully. What he saw wasn’t easy to describe.

“It’s like… two pictures overlapping. Like these manipulated vintage ghost photos? But the… aura moves even when you're not moving. It’s weird. Are you… possessed or something?”

Danny turned towards his sister with a big smile. “Did you hear that, Jazz? I look like a ghost.”

She rolled her eyes, laughing at some kind of inner joke.

Damian opened his mouth, ready to protest and bring attention back to the fact that two total strangers somehow got into one of the most secret and protected places on Earth, when alarms started blasting from the computer.

Danny gasped, making a pained face.

“Danny?” Jazz asked, one hand on her brother’s shoulder. They weren’t looking at the Bats on the computer.

“I can’t believe this.” He murmured. “He actually did it.”

“What?” Tim asked, trying to pay attention to both the siblings and Bruce at the computer.

“Joker has escaped Arkham.” The man declared, drowning whatever Danny was saying to Jasmine.

“Of course.” Jason rolled his eyes. He sighed, jumping down the table and turning his head to crack his neck. “Let’s get going.”

“No.” Did Danny time his words with the moment the alarms stopped? If so, he would fit perfectly with the Bats’ dramatics. At least in Jason’s opinion. “He’s mine.”

The silence in the Cave was only broken by a group of bats flying away, as if they felt the air getting heavier.

“He’s dangerous.” Bruce tried to word it like it wasn’t an order for him to stay put. It didn’t work.

“Funny. So am I.” Danny did that smile that didn’t fit quite right in his face, eyes turning green and glowing even under the bright computer screens.

Jason saw his body tense, ready to run, and stepped in to stop him before Danny made a mistake. Green eyes turned to stare at him, once again the Pit doing flips and recognizing whatever Danny was. This time instead of calming it was terrifying, paralyzing, searching into his soul and pulling, evoking sensations he thought he wouldn’t feel again. Pure terror. Screams. Hopelessness.

Darkness gathered from the corners of the Cave, a strange freezing wind circling around them. For a moment Jason could almost see white strands in Danny’s hair when the breeze lifted it out of his face.

“You can come to the party if you want. But the clown is mine.” Danny winked as if they weren’t watching him with various panicked expressions, and did finger guns at his sister. “Be right back.”

He stepped back and disappeared.

<< Prequel - Can’t have shit in Gotham || Clown around and find out - Sequel >>

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nanaminokanojo · 3 years ago

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Play the Game | Nanami Kento X You | Part 2/8

collection masterlist

one - two - three - four - five - six - seven - eight

"Play the Game" Masterlist

The sun hasn’t even risen when Nanami came to consciousness as usual. It did not matter whether he was on vacation or working, he just automatically wakes up at the same time each and every morning without miss. It’s regardless of whether he slept enough or not. He saw no point in tarrying in bed – it was unproductive – and immediately got up without skipping a beat in his routine.

“You’re too vanilla,” he remembered you commenting when you stayed one weekend at his place in the city for an art symposium, having met him on the hallway on your way to bed after staying up all night playing video games. He just brushed your remark off with a grunt back then, but at present, he couldn’t help but muse over the fact that everything he did reminded him of you.

It was a bit light outside when he emerged from the adjoining bath of the guest room. He threw on a pair of grey sweats and a white shirt and grabbed a water bottle and a small towel on his way out of the room, mind set on going for a run. If there was something great about staying at Gojo Manor, it was the fact that it was surrounded with acres of grassland and forest with trails great for walks and jogs.

Nanami particularly grew fond of the path that led to the lake at the bottom of the hill where the mansion stood. There was a direct view of it from the balcony at the back of the structure, appearing like a jewel in the middle of the woods, and it had always been his favorite spot. The late former clan head told him it was man-made and has been there for more than a century that it became a natural feature of the estate. It was a spot in the property with a great history and great value to the clan, thus his gravitation towards it.

It’s her favorite place in the whole estate, too, he thought indulgently.

Inhaling deeply, he set out to the back doors that led to the patio and the walled gardens, starting in a slow jog before building his momentum as he reached open grounds.

And thus, his day began as such.

He came back from his run when it was already too hot, heaving deep breaths and desperate for a shower as his white shirt and grey sweats stuck to his body, drenched in sweat. His leg muscles ached, but it had been a good run.

Greetings from the staff met him as he reentered the manor which he returned with polite nods. He was headed to the stairs when he passed by the breakfast room and happened to hear Gojo talking to you. It went against his principles to eavesdrop in an evidently private conversation but he stayed rooted on his spot upon hearing you speak.

Despite your seeming foul temper upon leaving him the previous night, you seemed to have bounced back to your usual self, your tone sounding more jovial than usual. Your words were at odds to your tone as you told Gojo not to piss you off so early in the morning.

"Are you sure there's nothing going on between you and Kento?" Gojo asked just as the person in question was about to pass the doorway.

"It's really none of your business," you responded, voice devoid of any emotions. He did it, Gojo. He finally fouled up your mood.

"But I'm your brother!" Gojo protested, acting all dumb around you again. He just had that complex where you were concerned. He has always been very soft on you yet he was also fiercely protective. You hated his attention though. Yours was a strange dynamic.

"Worry about your wedding, will you? Geez. Don’t you have a luncheon to host?"

"Why did you kiss him then? On the mouth no less!"

Nanami’s heart skipped a beat, anticipation rising like cold water from his toes going up his chest. He wanted to hear what you had to say. Fuck principles. He needed his answers, too. It did not matter in what way he was getting them at that rate. He was secretly hoping you will say something a little bit more revealing about what goes inside your head given that he cannot just pry inside it even if he wanted to.

"Because I wanted to." You stated it so matter-of-factly that Gojo was at a loss for words for a moment. “Didn’t you hear me? I was dying to do that since he arrived.”

“You’re not serious, are you?”

“You tell me.” That’s becoming your signature line. “You won’t understand unless you kiss, Nanamin, too,” the tenor of your words turning fanciful. “He has such an alluring taste to him.”

What is this woman on about?

“Oh, god, stop it!”

"You should have seen the looks on your faces though. I was half expecting your eyeballs to roll on the floor. Wouldn’t that have been grand? It’s definitely shocking but a good subject for art if not a medium." At that, you laughed, the sound hitting Nanami like tinkling bells. It was such a happy sound that reminded him of better days although the thought that prompted it was utterly macabre. “Maybe that should inspire my next work. It would be like Munch’s The Scream, the next of its kind.”

"Hmm. Good point…” Gojo mumbled, sidetracked, obviously sharing your sentiments on the idea of such grotesqueness, but regained his composure just as quickly. “It's not funny!"

"But it is." Your laughter subsided as quickly as it erupted from your throat as if it wasn't even there to begin with. Your capricious nature was surfacing once more, and if there was something that was more frightening than your strong, habitual liking for trifling with people, it was that. "So what if I have other intentions behind it? Are you gonna get mad at me or something?”

"Well, do you?!" Gojo sounded like a manatee on the throes of death.

“But what are you going to do, brother? Stop me perhaps?"

He of all people should know just how unstoppable you were when you have set yourself into doing something. “N-no –”

“And what if Nanamin has the same intentions? What will you do then?”

“Hey, that’s enough of you. I know you’re trying to trap me into saying something again.” He clucked his tongue. “I seem to be the only one who isn’t in on your games, and if it is one, I have to know. You’re just way too outrageous these days that I cannot tell what’s serious and what’s not anymore.”

Gojo took a deep breath, sounding distressed as he exhaled. “Is there something else going on?”

"Maybe,” you answered noncommittally.

"That's not an answer at all!" he snapped.

You clucked your tongue, sounding irritated. "Stop screaming, Satoru."

"Do you like him?"

“Is your emphasis on that word supposed to change its meaning?”

If Nanami’s heart was skipping earlier, it has now stopped completely, robbing him of air as it seemed to have affected his lungs, too. You were maddening, not only to Gojo but to him as well. It was evident that you were in your gaming mood again, and although you were only intentionally riling your brother, he was also directly in your line of assault.

Gojo sighed in defeat, mirroring Nanami’s feelings. “Y/N, please, just answer the question,” he whined.

“I guess.” There was a pause then you said, "I mean, what's not to like?"

"What?!"

“Like it or not, Nanamin is a very excellent specimen of the male populace. He’s fucking irresistible and that’s an understatement.” You scoffed. "Even you like him."

Your voice was followed by your footsteps as you neared the door. In a daze at your vocal expression of how you find him physically attractive, instead of backtracking, Nanami stepped forward and collided with your form, nearly knocking you off your feet. He was after all twice your size and a good foot taller than you.

"Careful," he said between deep breaths, one arm securing you by the waist while his other arm gripped onto the door jamb, the position making the veins and sinews of his arm rather pronounced.

“Speak of the devil…” You straightened up, not making any effort to hide the fact that you were checking him out. Your head turned towards the direction of the breakfast room, making him mimic the action only to see Gojo standing slack-jawed, watching what was unfolding before him with eyes wide with shock. Nanami could've sworn his best friend just went into a state of catatonia.

"Didn't see you there," you said, addressing Nanami, your blue eyes assessing him as if in suspicion.

"I'm sorry," he muttered under his breath, feeling the tips of his ears heating up. Before you could notice, he stepped aside, heading towards the direction of the stairs.

"Hey, Nanamin," you suddenly called, making him halt and turn his head to your direction. You were smirking at the direction of your brother as you said, "Nice ass."

He shook his head. It was really just a ploy to get to Gojo’s nerves, and he was your pawn.

The sound of graphite scratching on paper like a harsh slash of sword punctuated the impending absence of thought in your mind. Nothing mattered but the sight of your hand gripping a pencil as it created unintelligible strokes on the plain page of the sketchbook on your lap. It progressed to furious scribbling, your movements becoming faster, the sound dominating your corner of the room. Everything has been drowned out – the endless chattering, the sound of porcelain and silverware hitting each other in chaotic cacophony – heightening in a painful crescendo of auditory abomination and dying in the air, overwhelmed by the picture you were creating on the blank expanse of space.

“You must be so proud of your daughter.”

Scratch.

“Who wouldn’t be? It must be great to have geniuses for children”

Scratch.

“She’s just as famous as Satoru.”

Scratch.

Just like that, they didn't exist. The room was empty save for you and the view outside the window coming to life on paper. Your eyes darted from your sketch to the familiar yet equally exhilarating view just outside the parlor. Gojo was animatedly talking about something, easily excitable as always. His fiancée laughed on the side while Nanami was witheringly eyeing him, stoic as always. Shoko, who arrived the previous evening, also joined the group. All that was missing was Geto. You wondered if you should draw him somewhere in the sketch.

The image before you reminded you of those days when reality seemed far away, back when Gojo was still a student, exceptional as always but still young, not the renowned genius tycoon he was at present. His friends would always be around him, lounging around the manor like they hadn't a care in the world.

His crowd grew in number with Geto and Nanami being the two closest pals he had. Shoko joined in shortly in middle school. On the other hand, Utahime came during his university days, also starting off as Gojo’s friend and eventually becoming his girlfriend. Now they were about to get married and it seemed to punctuate all the changes that came with being the grown-ups that they are.

It scared you.

Fact is, growing up and growing old and the changes that come with it was terrifying. Even if you yourself were already twenty four, seemingly had your life together and appearing to have matured without a hitch, that wasn’t the case at all. Genius or not, your brother also had his issues even while he was rising to his current position in society.

The problem was within you, you knew it. That and the fact that you did not really know what growing means. Your work grew, matured like crazy. You didn’t think you yourself grew, stuck in those days when everything was relatively easier. At least then, you only had to worry about your classmates hating on you. Now a part of the public did.

Looking at Gojo and his gang, they’ve all handled that well, making you wonder how they did it. He is one of the youngest CEOs in the country, having built his business empire at just seventeen. Your future sister-in-law is a professor, Geto is a sought-after model and Shoko is a forensic pathologist. They were all great at what they did, struggled as well, but came out with perfect grace.

However, you think the best one out of them was none other than the object of your pining – Nanami Kento. The man made transitioning to adulthood look rather easy. Maybe it was because he had always been mature and held himself in perfect equilibrium. Sure, he was no Gojo Satoru, but he was innately intelligent and became one of the youngest barristers who held the position of a famous attorney’s partner. He handled controversial cases and is one of the best prosecutors in the country with a high winning percentage. His work aside, he seemed to have the least struggle out of everyone.

Your lips curled up at the corners at the thought of the man. Your gaze flicked to him from the sketchbook, sitting there with a beverage in his hand, the noon sun glimmering on his hair and the planes of his face, looking more laid back without a blazer on. He was dressed rather casually in a pair of khaki trousers and dusty blue button-ups, but he still looked smart. He always dressed that way which you found very attractive although seeing him in more casual clothes like that morning was another level of hot altogether. He’s quite a bit formal, making him seem monotonous, but it’s that consistency that you liked about him. It was only a bonus that he was devastatingly handsome with those sharp features and the suits made him look so sexy in that it left everything about his real physique to imagination.

One just could not get enough of him, at least you couldn’t, but you did see how his partner’s paralegal eyeballed him all the time. (You secretly wanted to gouge her eyes out.) That’s the kind of man Nanami was. He doesn’t speak much, but when he does, it leaves profound dents to one’s psyche. And man, was he hot in court! He’s fucking sarcastic when he wants to be, to the point of being vile, but one just can’t get offended with the kind of logic he has. Once he speaks his mind, one wishes he wouldn’t stop, but he does and leaves that person craving more, his hypnotic, deep voice a rare treat. He wasn’t big on actions, wasn’t expressive, but when he does something, it’s always with purpose and precision, never over the top and always with disciplined stoicism.

You chuckled quietly, your pencil drawing perfect strokes of his hair when you were pulled out of your trance.

“Yuuji!” you heard Gojo say, pulling your attention to the direction of the window.

You broke into a grin at the mention of the name, hurriedly getting on your feet and running out of the room, deaf to your mother’s protests against your unladylike behavior – the commotion foreign to the ladies in the room who moved with the minutest rustles. You made your way out to the patio, that familiar tuft of pink hair coming into your line of vision. You sprinted through the glass doors towards the person whose name your brother called, smile wide and genuine.

“You kept me waiting long enough,” you called out, voice louder than usual. You’re hardly ever giddy nor were you easily excitable like your brother, but Itadori Yuuji was a different story altogether. You loved the boy with a fierceness akin to a mother and were always ecstatic to be around him but suppressed it by acting gruff. You were crazy like that.

“That’s because you won’t help me with my final requirements,” he retorted good-naturedly, wrapping his arm around your shoulder and nuzzling the back of your head as if you were a fuzzy plush toy, making you drop your drawing implements. Well, you were considerably smaller than him, and he was probably the only one who could do that to you and get away unscathed.

You rolled your eyes, noticing how Gojo had picked up your stuff, looking at the page where it was opened. “You should exert yourself more. You’re no genius after all.”

“That’s mean!”

You smirked at him, your eyes straying to your brother who was smiling at your drawing. He had such a proud, fond look on his face that you couldn’t do anything but stare. He has always been ever since you first held crayons and drew him as a cat. “You even included Suguru,” he cooed, pointing at the missing person you included then proceeding to show it off to his friends. “Guys, look. My baby sister drew us.”

“Surprise, surprise,” you sallied, but you were happy that he’s always showing you off.

Utahime and Shoko stood beside him, also looking at the sketch. The latter raised a thumb at your direction. “Damn, kid. You’re really great at what you do. How do you make things come alive with just a pencil?”

You smiled awkwardly. “I –”

“Give it here,” Nanami suddenly butted in, hand reaching for the sketchpad which Gojo promptly handed him.

You felt Yuuji elbowing you while you stood there, observing the man who was in possession of your drawing.

Nanami blinked then, handing it back to you. “How come I don’t have a face?” he asked, expression expectant of your response.

Annoyed, you snatched it back from him.

“It’s obviously not finished yet,” Shoko commented, but she couldn’t have been more wrong.

It was not that you cannot, but you would never draw his face. Ever. You tried tons of times if the tens of pages of sketchpads at your apartment filled with different angles and parts of him would be a basis for that. You could draw everything else about him, just not his face. No amount of contemplation and practice helped you to know why, but you attributed it to the fact that you could not do his face justice, at least in the sense that you would not be able to bring it to life as Shoko said.

Finally, you said, “I didn’t feel like drawing your face.” You turned away, dragging Yuuji with you. The boy was still giggling like a hyena until you got to the second-floor balcony where you propped yourself up on the balustrade, looking sulky.

"You might fall there, you know," he commented, jumping up the marble balustrade to join you.

"I can say the same for you," came your quiet reply. "Where's Megumi?"

“He’ll be here before lunch.” Yuuji leaned close to you with a mischievous grin on his face. “What, or rather who, is that look on your face for?”

"I think you know the answer to that."

"Did you tell Nanamin?" He addressed the man just as you did and got away with it, too, for some reason.

"Tell him what?"

He scoffed playfully. "Are you seriously playing this game with me? I'm your best buddy. I know everything."

"As irritating as that is, it's true."

Yuuji pouted at you. "I heard what you did yesterday. Why do you have to make games out of everything?"

"That's how I communicate. I thought you knew everything."

Harsh as always, he thought. "Be a normal person for once and just tell him." His brows knit together. "Well, you're anything but normal," he mused aloud. “I meant that nicely.”

You blew a raspberry. "You're just as normal as I am if you claim to be my best friend. Which you are. No take backs."

Yuuji couldn't help but smile at that. You have always been a loner and you did not mind being alone. He was grateful you wanted him around despite that.

"But you should stop doing this. He wants you. It's obvious."

"It's not that simple."

"What isn't simple? If it's Satoru, he'll understand for sure if you just try to be honest. I'm sure he just isn't for it more because he doesn't know how you feel. I mean, if I were him, I'll also protect my baby sister from my male friends. That's just how it is."

You blinked, pivoting your whole body so you were facing him.

"Well, of course, Nanamin needs to fight for it, too," he was quick to throw in, rambling to himself when he suddenly felt you reach out towards him, gently running your fingers through his pink hair. He leaned towards your touch, smiling contentedly.

"Don't worry about me. I'm fine."

"I'm not –"

You narrowed your eyes at him. "Are you seriously playing this game with me?" you asked, mimicking his words earlier. "I'm your best buddy. I know everything, one of them being the fact that you worry worse than my mother."

Yuuji jumped off the balustrade, reaching out to grab you in a bear hug despite your protestations. Just like how you were with everyone else, you shunned his affection, but he knew better than to let go when you were saying exactly that. He found that trait of yours adorable.

"You're so irritating," you hissed, flipping your platinum white hair over your shoulder when you finally managed to get off his grip but he wrapped an arm over your shoulder nonetheless, undeterred by your words.

"You know you love me."

"Shut up."

Yuuji pouted. "You sound like Megumi."

"I heard that," the person in question suddenly spoke from the direction of the entry, his deep voice making you and Yuuji turn towards him. "They're calling everyone for lunch."

Yuuji followed behind as you approached Megumi, also one of your closest friends and practically your brother, keeping you in check more than Gojo ever can.

"Guess what," Megumi said to you as you walked beside him. In one of the rare moments you would see it, he grinned and you knew it wasn't because of anything good.

"What?" you and Yuuji, who thought the same by the look on his face, chorused.

"Nobara switched your name card with Miwa's. You're now seated next to your man candy. You're welcome."

“Isn’t that more of a perk for Miwa? She’s scared shitless of Nanamin, you know.”

The three of you laughed while Yuuji could just shake his head at the inescapable trouble that will follow. His only consolation was that it’s fun when it involves you.

What were the odds, Nanami thought to himself. He didn't have to look twice to see whose name it was on the card on the spot next to him. He exhaled loudly, unfolding the napkin and placing it on his lap. This could only lead to hullabaloo he was not exactly in the mood to deal with especially after you just told him you did not feel like drawing his face. You sure were mean when you wanted to be.

He surveyed his vicinity. Your father, the current head of the clan from whence your blue eyes came from, was seated at the head of the table, your mother to his right, while Utahime’s parents sat to his left. It seemed to have been the only formalities observed in the arrangement. From across Nanami sat Utahime and Gojo while on his right were a couple he only knew as cousins to the Gojo main family.

He was internally pinching the bridge of his nose. You really had to be the one seated next to him and right across your annoying brother, too.

The luncheon started without you. It wasn't a formal gathering after all except they were serving a full-course meal. It was more of a way to get everyone to know one another over the week for some reason he cannot fathom, and he was glad that only your father was the one who had engaged him in a conversation, mostly about work. It was easy enough to deal with.

"Where are Y/N and her friends?" your mother asked Gojo out of the blue.

Utahime, answering for the clueless person beside her, pointed towards the direction of the door to the banquet hall where you were leisurely walking towards your designated seat with Yuuji and Megumi. The former rounded the table to sit next to Gojo.

"Still managing to be late even when you're already at the venue, baby sis?" Nanami heard Gojo say as you assumed your seat. It was evident in the way his eyes shifted from Nanami to you that your tardiness wasn't exactly the problem.

You blatantly ignored his comment and turned your attention to Nanami. "Had a good run this morning, Nanamin?"

"Just so," he answered, side-glancing at you.

"Yeah. You looked super hot this morning," you said just as Gojo was taking a sip from his wine glass.

Megumi snorted when the older male started choking on his drink while Yuuji was trying hard not to laugh.

Nanami knew he would have reacted the same way except that he had been bracing himself for whatever you will say the moment Gojo opened his mouth. Of course you will use him in your counter attack. It's yet another game, not that he was less affected by your words.

"You should have seen him, Iori," you continued, addressing your brother's fiancée. "He looks so much less uptight in casual clothes."

It didn't escape Nanami’s notice how Gojo was looking at him. He looked about ready to drop onto the floor, but paid him no mind as he leveled his mouth to your ear. "Y/N, let's not make your dear brother snap, shall we?"

"Oh, sweetheart, maybe that's what he needs right now," you deadpanned, meeting his gaze squarely, your disposition unreadable as you let your eyes linger on him longer than was deemed appropriate.

Yuuji finally laughed, earning him a kick to the shins under the table courtesy of Megumi.

What it was about you that made everything else irrelevant and nonexistent when you’re that close to him was something beyond him. You always made him lose control, tempted him to break the rules. He only knew he couldn't act on it. Most of the time anyway. He also felt like laughing, oddly enough.

Utahime just chuckled good-naturedly breaking the tension. "Since the two of you are here, I should tell you that the final fitting for your clothes for the wedding is this afternoon. So, you better go together at the shop."

"Traitor." Gojo pouted at Utahime but nobody was really paying attention to him anymore. For someone so important to society with a flawless image, the closest people around him sure were good at disregarding him when they deemed it fit.

"Okay," Nanami said, looking at you for confirmation.

It was you who looked away this time. "I'm free."

"That's set then." Utahime clapped her hands and to Nanami she cheekily said, "Maybe wear something less formal."

At that, you grinned wickedly at him. So much for avoiding trouble with you.

-end of part 2-

*I used “you” here, but since my character is Gojo’s little sister who is established to be his female clone for reasons essential to the plot, she possesses the same blue eyes and white hair. I did not exactly want to create an OC (although technically, I did by describing Y/N), but I opted for the best of both worlds in this fic, leaning more towards the literary aspect of it as opposed to it just being reader/you-oriented. I hope this isn’t iffy to anyone, and yeah, i’m not being exclusive or whatever.

If you want to be included in the tag list, please DM me :)

Thank you so much for reading. Likes, comments and reblogs are deeply appreciated! Hope you enjoyed it.

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doodleimprovement · 3 years ago

Text

AHIT Victorian AU:: Act 2 : What’s All That, Then?

A fresh pair of eyes notice something that isn’t so new

(Drabble)

The village of Subcon was an… odd place. That’s what Bow had learned so far.

The people, the places, the fact that everyone avoided the forest like the plague (Hattie had told her that the forest was… weird, but hadn’t elaborated. She needed to ask about that)

They ran errands for Miss Carlile in the village quite often, and in the few weeks that she’d lived at the manor, she’d gotten to know the inhabitants in a general sense.

The Dwellers were polite but a bit off, with their masks never showing even the hint of a face. Hattie didn’t seem bothered, but Beatriz couldn’t help the suspicion.

Mister Graves was nice, rather laid back and easily amused, happily playing music for the girls when they came by his bench outside of the theater.

Mister Connors on the other hand, was loud, cranky, but loved to talk, telling the girls anything and everything about the next show going on at the theater.

But she’d noticed something a bit more immediate.

“Uh Hey, Hattie… Does Mister Graves… like Mister Connors?” Bow muttered to her sister as they sat across the avenue, munching on some bushbull dumplings that the grumpy older man had gifted them as thanks for running an errand.

“What?” Hattie gave her a strange stare “As in…. Really like?” She asked.

Bow nodded, and Harriet made a contemplative face, looking across the street “What make’s ya ask that?”

Bow followed Hat’s line of sight to where the two men were ‘bickering’ - at least, that’s what Mister Connors called it. It seemed a bit too casual for bickering, at least to her inexperienced eyes.

“Well… Have you seen how Mister Graves watches him?”

“Hmmmm….” Hattie contemplated.

The girls watched the two of them, and, as Connors turned around, Graves sly smile softened, and the man sighed and looked back to his guitar.

Hattie gasped, turning to Beatriz

“You are absolutely right!” She announced!

“ShhhhH!!” Beatriz panicked “Don’t shout it!”

“What, why?”

“Because I don’t think they even know,” Beatriz admitted, looking back at Mister Graves, who was casually strumming a gentle medley.

Hattie’s brow furrowed, looking over to Connors who was headed inside, but spared the other man the briefest of glances before disappearing behind the heavy door of the theater.

“Huh… well, we’re just gonna have to change that'' She grinned, taking another bite of her bushbull dumpling.

Beatriz wasn’t sure she quite liked that look in her siblings eyes.

#a hat in time #ahit #a hat in time au #ahit au #ahit victorian au #victorian au #ahit bow kid #ahit hat kid #ahit dj grooves #ahit conductor #bow kid #hat kid #dj grooves #conductor #antonia writes #antonias fandoms

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excuseme-howdareyou · 5 years ago

Text

Day 7: Nightmares | Time Travel | Mythology AU

........

"Bruce?"

Dick's voice was tiny and quiet and barely more than a whisper. Still, Bruce rolled over in his bed and blinked sleepily at the small boy standing in his doorway. His blanket was wrapped around his shoulders, making the short preteen appear even smaller buried underneath the mass of fabric, and the nervous look on his face made Bruce's throat feel tight.

Sitting up, Bruce rubbed the sleep from his eyes and chanced a glance at the clock. 4:27AM. "What is it, chum?" he asked.

Dick pulled the blanket tighter around himself. "I can't sleep," he admitted quietly.

Not entirely unexpected. The Manor was still new to him; it was a far cry from the circus and no doubt-

"I... I had a nightmare."

-and oh.

Bruce swung his feet over the edge of the bed and beckoned Dick to come closer with his arm spread out in gesture for a hug. The 12 year old needed no other initiative and launched himself across the room. He was almost a teenager, but Bruce was still able to easily pick the lad up and settle him into a tight embrace. Gangly elbows and knobby knees curled up and Dick was almost lost in the swatch of blanket, but Bruce held onto him -blanket and all- with as much tightness as he dared.

It had been two months since the death of the Graysons, one since coming here to the Manor. He did not have to ask to know what the nightmare was about.

One little hand squirmed out of the blankets to grasp tightly onto the sleeve of Bruce's nightshirt. He did not let go after that and Bruce did not try to stop him.

After all, Dick needed to be able to hold onto him to make sure he didn't fall too.

...........

The first time Bruce caught Jason in the middle of the night, he was standing on the kitchen counter in his bare feet, trying to reach the container of cocoa sitting on the top shelf. He was also cursing up a storm under his breath. ("Who the hell puts stuff up this high? Stupid tall people.")

"Late night snack, Jaylad?" Bruce asked with a smile and leaned his shoulder against the doorjamb.

Jason nearly fell off the counter in his surprise. "Bruce!" he whirled around, his hold on the cupboard door the only thing keeping him balanced in his haste," I was uhhh..." His eyes darted around the room nervously. Then his shoulders drooped in defeat. "Please don't tell Alfie I was standing on the counter."

Bruce couldn't help but grin. "It'll be our secret," he promised," Though I've learned it really is impossible to hide anything from Alfred. The man knows everything."

He and Jason had a running theory that Alfred could read their thoughts.

(It still hasn't been disproven, by the way.)

Recognizing that Jason still hadn't gotten his cocoa, Bruce walked forward and with his immense height easily reached up and grabbed the tin container. He handed it to a sheepish Jason, who jumped off the counter.

"So," Bruce continued by getting two mugs out of the cupboard as well," Had a craving for hot chocolate?"

Jason had the container on the kitchen island and pried the lid off. "No, I uhh..." he frowned, even as he reached in and grabbed the measuring spoon inside," Couldn't sleep, ya know? Figured a hot drink might help."

The smile slid off Bruce's face. He knew what 'couldn't sleep' meant.

"Wanna talk about it?" he asked.

Jason looked like he was about to blurt out his thoughts, but then changed his mind as he dumped a spoonful of cocoa mix into each of the mugs. "Nothin' to talk about," he muttered sourly.

Bruce knew from experience it was best not to press.

Doesn't mean he wasn't going to stay in this kitchen for an hour, drinking hot chocolate with his son. And when Jason toddled off back to bed, he seemed... calmer, more at ease. And when he yawned, wide and tired and Bruce caught a glimpse of that chipped canine tooth, he couldn't help but tussle that head of messy hair.

"Hey!" Jason protested.

"Goodnight, Jaylad," Bruce leaned down and pecked his lips on Jason's forehead," I'll be here in the morning when you wake up."

Judging by the smile on the boy's face, it was the right thing to say.

...............

Tim wouldn't tell Bruce when he had a nightmare. But he had certain tells that if someone looked, they could tell he was having a restless night.

It took Bruce an embarrasingly long time before he noticed it. He wanted to blame it on the fact that Tim lived across the street at his own house and so Bruce didn't see him after patrol was over. But even from the front steps of the Manor, it would've been obvious to see. And so it was actually Selina who brought it to his attention, one of her 'visits' to the Manor to see if she could rouse Bruce into a game of manor-tag. (Only this time she marched straight up to him and whacked him over the face with a sofa pillow)

"Go look outside your front window, you dense idiot," she frowned at him, then left for the night.

And that's how Bruce found out that Tim climbs up onto his roof whenever he can't sleep. How long he's been doing it, he doesn't really know and Tim wasn't telling. But Bruce could recognize that look in his eyes; the empty stare as Tim sat on the peak of his roof and gazed -almost longingly- at the driveway leading away from his house.

He didn't make a sound when Bruce sat down next to him, just glanced up then went back to staring at the road. Bruce wondered what he saw there. Or if... he was daydreaming about something he wished he saw there.

"Nightmare?" he asked.

"No more than usual," came Tim's reply and wasn't that just a stab in Bruce's heart?

"Wanna talk about it?"

Tim shook his head.

"Okay."

A few minutes passed before Bruce noticed that Tim was starting to droop. Whatever nightmares plagued him, exhaustion was still catching up to him. Without a word, Bruce reached over and tugged the teenager over into his side with one arm wrapped around his shoulders. Surprised but not fighting it, Tim tilted his head until it rested on Bruce's shoulder and yawned.

"Whenever you're ready, we'll head back to the Manor," Bruce told him.

Tim blinked up at him in confusion. "Really?" he asked," But I thought I had to be here in case Ms. Nefzger came early tomorrow?"

Ms. Nefzger, the housekeeper that only shows up every three days. Bruce felt a sweep of guilt that that was the reason why Tim was staying in this large house by himself; to keep up the ruse. "If it happens, then I'll deal with it," he said instead," Tonight, Alfred's got the guest room ready for you, then tomorrow you can chose which room you want for your own."

The smile Tim gave him reminded him so much of another boy with dark hair and blue eyes. "You mean it?"

"Yeah, Tim. I really mean it."

..................

It was the small parade of animals down the hall that garnered his attention.

First it was the damn turkey, leading the way with a ruffle of feathers. Then the click clack of Titus' claws on the hardwood floor, the sound preceeding the sight of his large head appearing. Through his open door way, Bruce then saw the shadow of his youngest son, right at Titus' side and holding Alfred the Cat in his arms, as the menagerie paraded past.

Equal parts curious and concerned, Bruce rose from bed to follow after him. He supposed he was lucky that Batcow wasn't part of the proceedings.

"Damian?"

Damian and his pets stopped. "Father?" Damian turned around, surprised to see Bruce standing right behind him.

"What's wrong?" he asked, noting that his son was still in his pajamas and slippers," Is everything okay?"

Damian opened his mouth, hesitated as if he wasn't sure what he wanted to say. Then, with a scowl, he announced," Just doing a patrol of the house, Father."

It didn't take a genius to realize that probably wasn't what he was really doing. "Mmhmm," Bruce couldn't help but smile fondly at him, then guessed," Couldn't sleep?"

Somehow not expecting his bluff to be called, Damian froze at the implication that he'd been found out so soon. "I..." he blinked," Maybe?" He held unnaturally still, as if half expecting to be sent straight back to bed.

Bruce was enough of an old hat at this by now. "Yeah, me too sometimes," he reassured him. He reached out and laid one hand on his son's shoulder, wanting to give him a hug but not wanting to disturb the cat in his arms. "What can I do to help?" he asked.

Damian stared at him in equal parts awe and confusion. "Umm," he fumbled for words," Well, sometimes... Richard would sit and watch Animal Planet with me?"

"You got it," Bruce smiled and gave his shoulder a squeeze before straightening up," Shall we get a snack first? How's hot chocolate sound?"

................

They were halfway through the 'Ice Worlds' episode of 'Planet Earth' when they were joined by a third person. "Rough night?" Jason whispered as he leaned over the back of the couch and saw Damian fast asleep snuggled between his father and Titus. Bruce had to tilt his head back to get a look at his second oldest and wondered when he'd come in.

"He couldn't sleep," Bruce answered back just as quietly, not wanting to wake Damian," Everything alright? What are you doing still up?"

"I'm a grown man, Bruce, I don't need a bedtime," Jason scowled at him, but it didn't last long as Tim appeared at his side and lightly slapped him on the back of his head.

"Stop getting so offended over everything," Tim scolded him, then turned to Bruce," He just finished his stakeout and came to harass me for my case notes."

Yeah, that sounded like Jason.

Just then, Jason noticed the duo of cocoa mugs on the coffee table. "Hey, you had hot chocolate without me?" he pouted.

Holding back a chuckle, Bruce told him," It's still in the same place as always, Jay." Then he couldn't help but grin," Need any help reaching it?"

The word Jason signed back at him would not be polite to repeat out loud. "Make me a cup too!" Tim whisper-shouted at his retreating back.

"Ooh, I thought I heard David Attenborough," and all of a sudden there was Dick on the other end of the couch, munching on a granola bar he probably had stashed away in a pocket somewhere. (At this point, Bruce was over questioning where he came from)

"Just don't wake your brother," he whispered and got a pantomimed 'lips-locked' from his eldest. It was all in vain though, for as soon as Jason returned -with two cups of hot steaming cocoa- he shooed Titus off the couch so he could take his spot. The dog's movement woke Damian, who blinked sleepily at the troupe all around him. Finally, his eyes landed on Jason, who'd taken Titus' spot.

"Todd," he grumbled, and the drawling way he spoke it told them he was only half awake.

Jason smiled at him," Heya Baby Bat," then gestured at him with his open arm. A moment later, Damian leaned over in the opposite direction of Bruce and was soon fast asleep on Jason's shoulder. Bruce wanted to be jealous that Jason stole his cuddling time with Damian, but couldn't deny how adorable it was.

(Dick thought the same thing, cooing at Jason and tried to hug his other arm, only to have Jason whisper-shout at him," Hey, don't spill my cocoa!")

A small form curled up on Bruce's other side and he looked down to see messy dark hair and sweet dark eyes. "Movie night?" Cass blinked up at him. 'Wasn't she at Barbara's tonight?' Bruce wondered, but gave up trying to guess. He was all too happy to wrap his arms around her shoulders (except where Tim was apparently using her as a pillow, cuddled up and sipping on his cocoa) and hold his only daughter tight.

"Yeah, family movie night," Bruce whispered back.

#batfamweek2020 #batfam #fluff #right in the feels #bruce wayne #loves his kids #is a good parent #batdad #Batman #comfort #dick grayson #jason todd #tim drake #damian wayne #cass cain #cassandra cain #nightmares #robins

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evengayerpanic · 4 years ago

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Harvest Festival [Spookstober]

Day 13 of 13 Days of Spookstober: The Haunting of Bly Manor.

Jamie plans to take Dani to the biggest Harvest Festival that the American has ever seen, and considering it's their first official date, she's determined to make sure that everything goes, well, perfectly splendid.

_________________

“You should try the Caramel Apple, it’s delicious.” Jamie smiled, offering the sugary confection over to Dani, a grin on her face as the blonde leaned her head down and took a small bite from the apple.

“Mmm.” Came the small moan from Dani, a smile coming across her face as she looked back at the slightly amused Jamie. The brunette chuckled a little, ducking her head towards Dani to kiss off the caramel that was fixed to her chin, and then kissing her candy-coated and sugar-crusted lips.

Dani froze slightly. “Aren’t you afraid someone will see?” She was worried, ever since moving to England, the American had yet to see another gay couple... At least in America, or the places that she knew, you could spot them if you knew where to look.

Jamie didn’t share those fears though.

“Let them see, it’s our first real date, I don’t care who knows.” She said defiantly, crossing her arm over her chest before taking Dani’s hand with her other.

Dani blushed, a slight tinge of pink, before glancing forward at the two children who were also munching on their candy apples, matching looks of delight on their faces. “What about the kids?” She whispered.

“Uh... Poppins. We’ve been together for six months, I think the gremlins already know, and don’t rightly care about if we’re together or not.”

Had it really been six months? Dani couldn’t quite recall... It had been a whirlwind between Bly Manor, and getting custody of the children. But it had been worth it, Flora and Miles were happier now than they had ever been.

So what if the craziness had meant that Dani and Jamie were living together, raising children and legally a couple before even having a proper first date.

She wouldn’t change it for the world.

“Won’t they get teased if any of their classmates see?” She worried. When Jamie had said they were checking out the kid’s school Fall Carnival, and that it would be their first date, Dani’s immediate worry was what would the kids think if anyone saw them?

Her and Jamie had different views on the schooling system. Jamie was all tough-love and perseverance, where Dani was fitting in and avoiding chaos.

Jamie wanted to be known as the kid’s guardian, she had fought hard enough for them to avoid the two winding up with a random third cousin twice-removed in Utah... She wanted to celebrate the fact that she won. She wanted to drop Miles off at basketball practice, take Flora to a Daddy-Daughter Dance (who cares if she wasn’t her Dad) and show up to parent-teacher night together with Dani, not apart.

Dani wanted their two children to live a normal life; they had been the strange children with the dead parents and au pair for so long that she wanted them to have a chance at normalcy. Normal was a Mom and a Dad. Not a Jamie and a Dani/sometimes Ma.

So Dani did the dropping off and picking up, Dani signed their permission forms, and Dani met with teachers on her lonesome to talk about why Flora drew two Mom’s for her ‘My Family’ picture, and why Miles had punched a kid for calling a girl in his class, a rude word for a lesbian.

Jamie planned the Harvest Fest date as a way to get past all of that and be a family for once in the dreadful little town that they had moved to after Bly.

“Have you met our children? I don’t think they’re going to let anyone talk badly about us... especially not about you.” Jamie teased, tightening her grip on Dani’s hand like she was afraid the blonde would pull away. “They love you too much!”

_________________

“And is this your Mum, little one?” A kind old lady asked as Dani and Flora made their way to a skeeball set-up right outside of a carnival tent.

Dani froze, heart on the line and wanting to pull Flora away from the awkward question, from the pain the child must feel at having that mistaken-

“Yes!” Flora answered, taking the skeeballs from the woman with a smile on her face. “Mummy said she would win me a teddy, but I thought I’d try first.”

The woman nodded her head, fixing Dani with a knowing smile as the girl started to try to roll the balls into the hole with an extraordinary amount of confidence for a child who hadn’t gotten a single one.

Dani tried to smile, but a pit had formed in her stomach that lasted until Flora was out of balls.

Dani wanted to take Flora and run, but the lady was grinning and turning to her. “Alright, I guess it’s Mummy’s turn.” She tried to hand the balls to Dani.

“Oh no, I’m terrible at skeeball!” Dani protested, confusion coming over the woman’s face until a voice sounded from a booth or two over.

“No, that would be my turn, ma’am!”

Jamie. Thank god. Dani wanted to hide behind her girlfriend, to take Flora and hide, but the lady turning to Jamie stopped her dead in her tracks with the next words she said. “Ah, of course.”

At the same time Flora chose to yell, “Mummy, I want the pink giraffe!” And Dani froze even further as the lady didn’t seem to recoil or get confused. She just handed the balls over to Jamie without protest.

“That makes more sense.” The lady lamented.

Dani turned to her, her freezing turning into genuine confusion as the lady continued, “I was curious why she looked nothing like you, it makes more sense now that I see she looks just like your wife.”

Wife?!

She nodded her head slightly, not sure what else to say until Miles did all of the talking for her.

“Oh, they’re not married.” He stated plainly, watching as Jamie set about trying to win his sister a stuffed dog on the prize wall. “Not yet at least.”

The lady nodded at him in understanding.

“I think soon though since Mum’s already gotten the ring for Ma.” He smiled, a cheeky grin over at Dani, before turning back to the game and giving Jamie pointers... The blonde left flabbergasted in his wake.

The ring?!

(It was used before the end of that night.)

#the haunting of bly manor #thobm #thobm spoilers #kind of au #13 days of spookstober #fanfiction #thobm jamie #dani clayton #dani x jamie #thobm dani #flora wingrave #miles wingrave #i kind of mucked the setting #i made it more 2000s than 1980s #needed gay marriage to be legal #happy halloween

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awhitehead17 · 5 years ago

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You Bring Us Together

Tim & Dick & Jason, Magic AU, They all have powers, brotherly Bonding, Humour, Injury, Insecurity, Big brother’s Dick and Jason, Tim over thinks too much.

Summary: They're family and they're all supposed to look out for one another. It's kind of hard to remember that when all his brothers want to do is kill each other, however when the situation calls for it, they can in fact work together and be a family. It's just unfortunate that one of them gets injured in order for that to happen.

A/N: This is done for ‘AU: Magic’ on my Batfam bingo card.

Also on AO3

Enjoy! :D

“Jason!”

The scream gets Bruce’s attention, causing to look up from the newspaper he was currently reading. He pauses, listening out for more shouts and waits to decide on whether he needs to go and interfere with whatever is going on. He takes a sip of his coffee, ready to go back to the paper

“Stop it asshole!”

He puts the coffee down and sighs. He takes a deep breath and lets it before calling out, “Jason, don’t set your brother on fire!”

Bruce knows exactly what’s happened without even needing to be in the room witnessing it. He knows because he knows his kids.

“It’s not my fault!” Comes the response. “The little twerp knows to not sneak up on me like that!”

“How was I supposed to know you’d be in this room? I don’t always know where you are!”

“That's a total lie and you know it! You always know.”

Bruce rubs a hand across his forehead, wondering where he went wrong in his life. He loves his kids, he does but sometimes they are a pain in the ass. In the room not too far away he hears a couple more screams and arguments between his middle two sons. One of them had clearly upset the other and now they’re fighting.

Despite what was going on in the room next door, Bruce stays in his seat and ignores the commotion. He’s learnt that sometimes it’s best just to let them fight it out. He’ll check on them and scold them in a bit when things have calmed down.

He was just getting back into reading the paper when he’s joined by another body. Bruce glances sideways as his eldest son comes strolling into the kitchen, picks up an orange from the side before joining him at the table.

Dick wordlessly peels the orange and starts eating the segments, after three he finally speaks up. “So, any reason why you’re in here instead of pulling Jay and Tim apart?”

Bruce hums noncommittedly, “I’ll deal with them in a bit, once they’ve calmed down.”

As if on cue, a loud crashing sound could be heard and another scream. Bruce continues to ignore it in favour of the paper, deciding that it was too early to be dealing with such antics.

Next to him Dick snorts, “Bet you wish you just stopped at one huh?”

Bruce shoots him an amused look with a raised eyebrow in question, “Just one? Most of the time I wished I never started at all.”

Dick looks at him for a moment before pouting, “That was mean.”

He doesn’t give Dick a verbal answer, only a smirk in response and goes back to his paper. He loves all his kids and they all know it, even if he was sometimes bad at showing it. He wouldn’t change his life now for anything else.

It goes silent between the two of them while they do their individual tasks. Bruce sips his coffee and reads the paper while Dick munches on the orange. After a while an audible sigh comes from next to him, “And once again I’m doing your job. You really ought to step up Bruce, you’re lucky I decided to come and visit this weekend. How do you guys all survive without me?”

“We have Alfred.”

Dick pauses from where he was getting up and considers his answer for a moment. He nods in agreement, “Yeah okay, I’ll give you that, but still…”

Bruce watches as his eldest chucks the orange peel in the bin and as he heads out of the room towards where his brothers were still arguing. There was another crash and Bruce lets out another sigh, he wishes he had something stronger than coffee in that moment. Kids. He loves them but they are most certainly a pain in the ass.

----

As Dick heads towards the room his brothers were in, he mentally prepares himself for the onslaught that’s about to come. He stops outside the door, rolls his shoulders back and grabs the fire extinguisher that’s placed outside of the room.

Since Jason developed his powers, they’ve taken to having fire extinguishers in every corridor of the Manor just so they can be on hand as Jason often lost control of his powers, they were helpful in managing the outbreaks.

He walks into the room and finds a scene that was familiar. Tim was crowded on top of the cabinet, shouting curses at Jason who happened to be on the floor shouting back up at him with his hands lit up.

“Come on Timbit! Just come down here I promise I won’t do anything to you.” Jason said after Tim called him something Dick doesn’t want to repeat. Why he doesn’t just teleport away Dick wasn’t sure, unless he’s injured somehow.

Tim’s powers were a little different, unlike Jason who had fire manipulation, Tim had teleportation powers, but if he was injured in anyway then he couldn’t use them. The only explanation for that is because they’re fairly new and Tim was still getting used to them, once he’s older and stronger then he’d be able to do more.

“Fuck off you liar. As soon as I come down, I’m toast. Literally!”

Without even being near his brothers he could feel their emotions and he knew straight up that Jason was planning something harmful to Tim as soon as he touches on the ground. Jason was lying and they all knew it.

His powers were different again, he was an Empath. He has the ability to read someone’s emotion by simply touching them, to a further degree he can manipulate them and a few other things.

“Come down here!” Jason yells, clearly losing his patience now.

Tim doesn’t move from his spot.

“Jason!” Dick calls getting both of their attention. “Put out your hands and let him down. Tim knock it off and get your ass down to the ground.”

Jason’s hands light even more as he turns and glares at Dick, “Oh I see how it is. You come running when he cries for help and makes me look like the bad guy but where were you when I needed help huh? Playing favourites much.”

Dick rolls his eyes, Jason can be so childish and this isn’t the first time they’ve had this argument. Dick sends him an unamused look, he holds the end of the extinguisher up and pointed at Jason, “If you don’t put your hands out I’ll spray you.”

His brother raises an eyebrow, “Wow, such a cold threat Dickie.”

“Just do it.” Tim pipes up his place on top of the cabinet.

There’s a beat or two as both Dick and Jason look at him. Blinking at the teenager who simply stares back and shrugs but doesn’t offer any further comments.

Jason turns back to Dick and lights his hands even more so there were small flames in his palms. “Is this challenge? I will beat your ass and once I beat yours I’ll beat his.”

Dick really wasn’t in the mood to be dealing with his brothers bullshit, or more accurately, Jason’s bullshit. This is the stuff Bruce really needs to sort out, not him.

He gives Jason a deadpan look and says, “No, not really,” before spraying him with the hose.

Dick isn’t going to deny that he didn’t enjoy seeing Jason getting doused with the foam, it was always fun to spray his brother but again he really shouldn’t have to do this. About a minute later he turns off the extinguisher and puts it down to the side before walking over to where Jason was coughing and spluttering. The foam was everywhere and he’d have to apologise to Alfred for the mess but that’s a bridge to cross when they get to it.

While he waits for Jason to get himself together movement catches his eye and he sees Tim starting to climb down from the cabinet. He waits until the teen was on the ground before addressing him, “Don’t even think about it.” He says sternly, halting Tim in his tracks on the way to the door. “Come here.”

He gestures with his hand to Tim who looks at him with wide eyes.

“Tim. Come here.”

The teen reluctantly walks over to him and once he’s in reaching distance he reaches out to grab Tim’s wrist to bring him in close. Dick looks over his brother in concern, “Where are you hurt? And don’t say you’re fine because you aren’t, you would have teleported if you were fine.”

Tim grumbles under his breath but slowly lifts up his t-shirt which was burnt black. Underneath, his pale skin was now a harsh pink colour and looking very sore and Dick winces at seeing it. From where he still had Tim’s wrist in his hand, he could feel his brother’s pain through his powers

Knowing that Tim wouldn’t admit it, he simply says, “That looks sore Timmy, go and see Alfred okay.”

“I’m fine, it isn’t my first burn.” Tim snatches his wrist out of Dick’s grasp and sends a glare in Jason’s direction. “There’s no need to bother Alfred over this.”

Dick rubs a hand tiredly over his face before giving his brother a stern look. “He’d rather you go to him than get some sort of infection or even be in pain. He’ll heal you in under three minutes. Now go.”

They stare at one another for a minute or two. Dick doesn’t back down and eventually Tim relents. He stalks away mumbling unhappily under his breath. Dick watches him go before turning around to face Jason with a disappointed look.

“You could have seriously hurt him you know,”

Jason glares at him, “He startled me. I jumped and reacted in defence and he was in the way. That’s on him, not me.”

“You need to be more careful with your powers.”

“Don’t have a go at me! It’s his fault in the first place for sneaking up on me when he knows he shouldn’t. Why aren’t you having a go at him huh?”

“I’ll have a word with him once Alfred has healed him alright. Just try and be more careful, please.”

Jason narrows his eyes before looking away, quietly and reluctantly agreeing. Again, this is the sort of shit Bruce ought to be dealing with, not him. It probably doesn’t help that they’re all stubborn mules that constantly butt heads but here they all were as a dysfunctional family.

He snorts, “Sometimes this is the reason why I moved cities in the first place, you guys drive me nuts.”

Jason raises an eyebrow, “Oh please, you would be bored if we weren’t here. We keep you on your toes, make things exciting.”

“You certainly do.” he agrees exasperatedly but fondly. No matter what he says he wouldn’t change them for the world. “Now that's been sorted I’m going to go check that Tim actually did go to Alfred and then have a word with him and then one with Bruce while I’m at it.”

-------

It was halfway through the battle when Tim sees Dick fall to the ground and not get back up again. He knocks the goon he was fighting to the side, whacking him on the head with his staff so he crumples to the ground unconscious before rushing over to Dick’s side. Sliding to his knees, Tim takes in his brother’s form and tries to work out what’s wrong.

“Nightwing? Nightwing!” He scans his brother’s body until he finally sees a small puddle of blood forming at the man’s hip. Being as careful as he can, he maneuverers Dick’s body so he was lying on his back so Tim could see the wound. He tries to not let panic seep in at what he sees.

He raises a shaky hand to his comm, “Nightwing’s down. A bullet wound in the abdominal area, not sure on the severity of it yet but its bleeding profusely. I’m going to try and slow it down.”

He starts getting bandages out of his belt and applying pressure to the wound, he doesn’t know if the bullet is in there or not but a quick glance at Dick’s back, it looks like it went straight through in what was hopefully a clean shot. But something else must have happened for Dick to be knocked unconscious. Tim hopes there wasn’t a head injury to pair up with the bullet wound.

He needs to move him, get him to Alfred who would be able to heal him, but there’s no way Tim would be able to teleport him in this condition. He’s prone to bleeding out before Tim could get them at the cave. Teleporting now would do more harm than good.

“I’m coming Red, don’t do anything ‘til I’m there.” Jason’s voice comes through on his comm and he frowns. What was he going to do beside try to not get shot or let Dick die? He’s not stupid.

What seems like years later, Red Hood was sliding down on Dick’s opposite side. Tim says nothing as he watches the older man do his own examination of the situation.

“I’m going to cauterize the wound, that should hold off the bleeding until you’re able to get him back to the cave.”

Tim blinks up at him behind his mask. “What? Hood, I can’t move him like this! He’s in too of a precious state, it could just end up doing more damage. And I’m not exactly experienced enough to move an unconscious body!”

He was still learning his powers. They hadn’t developed too long ago and Tim was still working out all of the kinks to them. He can barely teleport someone who is conscious let alone someone who is unconscious, he isn’t skilled or powerful enough to achieve that yet!

Opposite him Jason starts tearing away the Nightwing suit to reveal Dick’s bloody and wounded skin. If he wasn’t used to seeing this sort of thing, Tim would have puked. Jason rips his gloves off and lights his hands up, a small flame alive in the middle of his palm.

Tim swallows thickly, knowing what was about to happen wasn’t going to be pretty. He shifts around so he’s pressing Dick’s other side and arm to the floor to try and keep him in place just in case he wakes up and thrashes.

“As soon as I’m done I want you to take him, understand Red?” Tim swallows again and nods in acknowledgement but he refuses to meet Jason’s eyes, or at least the direction of his gaze as his brother was wearing his helmet.

“Red.”

Damn him, Tim thinks. He still refuses to look up, he grits his teeth and says, “Yeah I get it Hood. Just get on with it.”

Understanding what he needs to do is different from actually doing it.

“Right I know what you’re thinking and you’ll be fine, Dick will be fine. Quit thinking with that oversized brain of yours and just focus on getting your ass to the cave along with Dick.”

Tim finally snaps his gaze up, glaring at the man through his mask. “What if I can’t! I don’t know what’ll go wrong with my powers!”

A frustrated sound comes from Jason’s helmet. “Jesus Christ Red, nothing will happen. Do you know where you need to go?”

“How do you know that?”

“Do you know where you need to go?”

“Yes.”

“Then picture it and go there when I tell you to. Don’t think about anything else. Ready?”

Tim grits his teeth again to stop himself from commenting, instead choosing to nod and try to listen to what Jason was telling him. The cave. He needed to go to the cave where the medical bay was. He can picture it, knows the image off by heart. It’s an easy place to teleport too, or should be.

Jason places his hands on Dick’s wound and for a moment nothing happens but then his brother was awake and screaming. His body jerks and thrashes as it tries to get away from the pain but both Jason and Tim hold on, making sure he doesn’t move away from Jason’s hands.

Then like that it was done, and the lovely smell of burnt flesh hangs in the air. Once again, Tim wants to vomit but he’s able to keep control of his stomach before anything happens. Dick slumps back down on the ground, his body going limp and was breathing heavily, seeming like he’s fallen unconscious again.

“You need to go.” He looks up to find Hood staring at him as he puts his gloves back on, hands clear from any flame or fire. Tim blinks at him, digesting his words. “Red you gotta go.”

“Right, right,” Tim mumbles looking back down at Dick’s body. He grips his brother tightly and wills his powers up. He can do this. He can get them there. To the cave where Alfred was and where the med bay was.

He wills his powers up, letting them wash him as well as Dick and concentrates on the picture of the cave in his mind and powers himself there.

The landing could have gone much better. They sprawl out over the floor in a heap and in a tangle of limbs. Tim squirms away and shoots up looking at their new surroundings, he lets out a cry in relief when he finds that they are in the cave. He did it, he actually did it.

“Red Robin are you alright?” A voice with a British accent speaks out.

Tim turns to find Alfred rushing to them, he gestures to Dick’s limp body, “You need to heal him, quickly, he’s got a wound. Hood cauterized it but it needs proper healing. Please, just help him.”

Alfred doesn’t waste anymore time, he picks Dick off the ground like he weighed nothing and drops him onto the cot. Knowing his brother was now in good hands Tim slumps down to the ground and doesn’t move. A voice comes through his comm, letting him know the battle is more or less wrapped up now.

About an hour later Alfred tells Tim that Dick will be alright, once he’s had food, got some rest and sleep he’ll be good as new. Tim thanks him and appreciates how lucky they are that they have Alfred and even better that he has the ability to heal people. He’s saved their asses so many times it’s unreal.

Once Tim has showered and had something to eat himself he goes and sits by Dick’s bedside, watching his brother sleep. While today hadn’t been that bad it was still terrifying, it’s never nice when one of them gets injured. Then of course there’s the part with his powers, he had managed to teleport them both with no trouble. That’s great news because it means he’s getting more fine control over them but also now he’s getting stronger.

Tim’s brought out of his head when a hand lands on his shoulder. He jumps and looks around to find Jason grinning at him. The older man moves his hand off his shoulder and ruffles his hair before collapsing into the seat next to him.

“Told you, that you could do it,” he states simply.

Tim snorts and rolls his eyes, “Whatever.” Of course he was ecstatic over that fact, but he wasn’t going to let Jason know that.

“Confidence is key Baby Bird, stop using that too massive of a brain of yours to overthink everything and just get on with things.”

“Only if it was that easy.”

Jason opens his mouth to comment but he gets cuts off by a groan. Their attention moves to the bed as Dick starts to shift and his eyes open to look at them. A dopey grin takes over his face, “Hey guys, how’s it goin’?”

“How do you feel?” Tim asks him instead of answering. Dick blinks tiredly at them and takes a moment to answer.

“Tired, a little achy. I’m fine though.” He pauses as if thinking about something he looks down before looking back up. “Did Alfie work his magic on me?”

Tim nods, “He did. You got shot if you remember, we got you to the cave and he fixed you right up.”

Movement by his hip gets Tim’s attention and he finds Dick’s hand opening and closing, he reaches over to grasp it in both of his, holding it tightly.

“How did you get me to the cave?”

Tim goes to answer but he’s beaten by Jason, who stands up and clamps his hands on his shoulders. “Our little birdie is growing up, he got you to the cave by himself. I had to cauterize the wound with my powers but he got you here to Alfred himself.”

Dick blinks at both of them before another smile crosses his face, “Thank you Timmy. I’m proud of you. I would give you a hug but y’know, not right now.”

Tim shrugs, knocking Jason’s hands off as he does so, “It was nothing. I’m just glad you safe.”

Something else seemed to click in Dick’s mind because he’s giving them both a thoughtful look, “You guys worked together? To help me?”

Tim shoots Jason a confused look, “Uh kind of?”

“I’m so proud of you guys! You can work together, we’re family we all love each other really.”

Tim lets out a chuckle, hearing Jason do the same next to him, “Uh sure Dick.”

“Just this once Dickie,” Jason says, “I ain’t promising there won’t be no more fights after this.”

Dick pouts at hearing that but he seems to resign, “Fine, I’ll take the win while I can. We’ll work on it.”

They both laugh again and let Dick drift off back to sleep. Tim glances at Jason before looking away again, “Uh, thanks for today. It, um, it helped.”

“Not a problem runt. Like I said confidence. Perhaps we could work on it if you like sometime?”

Tim looks back at him with surprise, “Really? Sure if you want to.”

Jason grunts and nods, he stands back up and starts walking away. Tim figures he’s probably had enough feelings for one day. “I’m done for today, talk to you tomorrow about it.”

Tim lets him go without any words, he turns back to Dick’s sleeping body and smiles to himself, feeling stated in a way he wasn’t before. It’s something to look forward to at least, there’ll undoubtedly be hiccups ups along the way but it’s something at least.

#Tim Drake #Jason Todd #dick grayson #bruce wayne #Alfred Pennyworth #batfamily #humour #fanfiction #injury #insecurities #big brother dick #big brother jason #magic au #powers au #batfam bingo 2019 #over thinking

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21stcenturyhope · 5 years ago

Text

BTS Imagine // Royalty!AU with Jungkook

Jeon Jungkook

summary: you weren’t the typical lady who swooned at romantic gestures which really put a kink in your mother’s attempts to find you a suitable husband

genre: humour (slightly crack) & fluff

length: 1.2k words

You were going to rip out all your hair if your parents tried to introduce you to one more eligible nobleman.

You happened to be the youngest child of a duke and duchess. You were well past the age that all your older siblings were when they got married but you couldn’t bring yourself to care. You enjoyed being able to spend your free time as you wished without having to cater to someone else’s needs and feelings.

Your days rotated between devouring the finest delicacies prepared by your personal chef or reading the books in your massive private library. But what you most enjoyed doing the most was taking longs walks through the forest trails at the edge of your father’s expansive property.

Today was another day your parents had decided to play matchmaker, so you had snuck out earlier in the day to hide out in the woods. Armed with a picnic basket and some books, you had no intentions of returning to the manor until the sun had set.

What you hadn’t expected was for your peaceful day to be interrupted by a tangle of limbs and dark hair tumbling through the bushes.

You stared at the young man’s face whose head had just so landed in your lap. You wouldn’t admit it to him but you actually found him quite handsome. His eyes were closed as he was trying to regain his breath, almost as if he had been running from something. You allowed him two more seconds of rest before loudly shutting your book in his face, startling him.

“Can I help you?” You raised one eyebrow expectantly.

The young jumped right up to his feet, bowing and apologizing profusely.

“My deepest apologies. I wandered off and I seemed to have gotten lost. My mother might kill me because we’re supposed to meeting some important people today and-“

“By important people, do you mean the Duke and Duchess?” you interrupted him.

He nodded earnestly making you let out a huge sigh.

“My name is Y/N. The Duke and Duchess are my parents. I’ll take you where you’re supposed to be.” And to think you had almost gotten away from your parents’ awful attempts at setting you up.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lady Y/N. You can just call me Jungkook.”

You’d be lying if you said you didn’t notice the butterflies in your stomach when he flashed you his boyish grin.

It didn’t take long for you to find your way out of the woods and soon enough, your manor was in sight.

“Thank goodness you know your way around here, Lady Y/N.”

“Jungkook, please. If you refuse to tell me your proper title, I insist we drop the formalities entirely.”

Your initial impression of Jungkook was that he seemed shy but you couldn’t be more wrong. He opened up to you easily and once he got going, you were hit full force. Jungkook’s personality was actually quite playful and he seemed to enjoy teasing you quite a bit.

“Be careful what you wish for, Y/N. I might start getting ideas if we refer to each other so intimately.”

“I should have left you in the woods.” Normally, this would be the part where you would wipe the cocky smirk off whatever nobleman’s face for propositioning you like so but for some unfathomable reason, you actually enjoyed Jungkook’s flirting.

You brought Jungkook through the kitchen’s back door, swiping a few sweet treats for the both of you along the way. The two of you were still munching on your snacks when you brought him to the great room, assuming that was where your parents were hosting your guests.

And that was exactly where you found your parents along with who you assumed was Jungkook’s mother.

“Y/N, darling! There you are!” You winced at her shrill tone, expecting a lecture for disappearing into the woods. “Be polite and greet the queen.”

Shocked, you curtseyed like your old etiquette teacher had taught you while secretly cursing Jungkook for not telling you he was a prince. As it turned out, your mother was an old bosom buddy of the queen’s. In a desperate attempt to find you a suitable husband, your mother reached out to her childhood friend to arrange a meeting with the queen’s youngest son.

“I’m afraid I owe you an apology, Lady Y/N. My son seems to have disappeared and I will be unable to introduce him to you.”

Confused for a moment, you turned around only to notice that Jungkook had not followed you and had once again snuck away.

“Could you please excuse me for a moment, Your Highness?”

With her permission, you took a few quick strides back the way you had come. Throwing open the doors, you immediately noticed Jungkook sitting quite comfortably against the wall trying to muffle his laughter with his hand.

“You are such a traitor,” you hissed quietly at him. Throwing all proper decorum aside, you grabbed him by the arm and dragged him back into the great room with you.

“Is this your son, Your Highness?”

“Oh, dear.”

With such an introduction, you didn’t expect the queen to still consider you a suitable bride for her son. It didn’t matter how cute his smile was or how handsome his face was. You had made your peace that Jungkook was only meant to make a brief appearance in your life.

Wrong again.

“She really is your daughter,” the queen laughed as she spoke to your mother. “I think my son has finally met his match.”

You had never felt this affected by other suitors but you blushed at the idea of you and Jungkook being a good match. Jungkook took that as his cue to ask permission to speak to you alone. Your mother jumped at the opportunity and led the queen out to her gardens leaving the two of you behind.

“How do you feel, Y/N?” Jungkook asked, his doe eyes earnestly looking into yours.

You pretended to be clueless resulting in a strong nudge from Jungkook.

“Y/N, you and I both know why our parents arranged for us to meet today. I have never connected with another person so well and so quickly as I have with you.”

“Please tell me you are not proposing already.”

Jungkook couldn’t help but let out a snort at your horrified expression.

“No, I am not. But I am asking you to let me court you, Y/N.”

Truthfully, you felt the same way as him. You had never been good at meeting new people hence why you had turned away so many suitors. But with Jungkook, it was easy to be yourself and you didn’t feel the need to hold back no matter what proper decorum dictated.

Maybe it was about time you finally took a chance and opened up your heart.

“With one condition – I am not referring to you as Your Highness.”

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noona-clock · 5 years ago

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Look After You - Part 3

Genre: Regency!AU/Single Parent!AU

Pairing: Choi Minho x You (Female Reader)

Warnings: Mentions of death and some mature themes

Part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 | Words: 3,575

For the rest of dinner, Minho managed to not only keep your attention but he also amused you incredibly. He told you stories about the farmers and villagers here, all the scrapes he’d gotten into with the farm animals, and you had even ended up asking him about the new farming techniques and equipment he’d mentioned earlier.

You had no interest in farming, but you did seem to have an interest in listening to Minho talk. And, apparently, it didn’t matter what he talked about. (I mean, surely, you would mind if he talked about the debauchery of his past... but he didn’t bring that up more than he already had, so there was nothing to worry about.)

Once dinner was over, you heard one of the other guests mention that there would be card games in the library. You assumed the men would go into another room to drink... whatever they liked to drink, so before Minho had a chance to bid you goodnight, you put a gentle hand on his forearm.

“Would you show me to the nursery?” you asked softly, leaning in so he could hear you over the din of the guests.

A smile immediately tugged at his lips, and he nodded.

“Follow me,” he murmured before stealthily weaving through the people toward the door.

As soon as the two of you were out in the hallway, away from the crowd, you let out a soft sigh. Dinner hadn’t been nearly as bad as they usually were for someone as shy as yourself, but you were fairly sure that had everything to do with your dinner escort.

He began to lead you back upstairs, and when you were halfway up, you decided to break the silence.

“Thank you,” you said quietly. “For talking to me so much at dinner. I didn’t have time to feel shy, and I very much enjoyed listening to you.”

“Oh, good,” Minho replied cheerfully. “You’re very welcome. I told you, I’m happy to look out for you, as a favor to a long lost friend.”

You simply hummed softly, and the silence of the nearly empty manor settled around you as you continued to follow him upstairs.

Minho led you past your bedroom, up another set of stairs, and down the twists and turns of the hallways to the nursery. As soon as you approached the door, Minho paused.

“I can leave if you’d like,” he offered, brow furrowed slightly. “If you think you can find your way back to your room.”

“I believe I can,” you whispered with a grin. “I’m quite good with directions.”

Minho returned your grin before taking a step back and bowing his head to you. “I shall bid you goodnight, then,” he murmured.

Before he turned to leave, you found that words were forcing themselves out of your brain and through your lips.

“Thank you,” you blurted out. “Again. For... taking me here. And... confiding in me.”

It was quite dark in the hallway, but you could’ve sworn you saw his cheeks flushing.

And then the words continued; truly, there was no way for you to stop them.

“I admire you for the way you pulled yourself out of... that situation. How you turned your life around. I didn’t know you before, obviously, but you do seem incredibly content now. I hope you’re proud of yourself.”

...Where all that had come from, you weren’t quite sure. But the look on Minho’s incredibly handsome face was worth the slight awkwardness and embarrassment of your word vomit.

“Thank you,” he murmured a bit bashfully. “I can say the same for you. Not about the ‘turning your life around’ thing, but... I do admire you. I can see why your husband was so enamored with you back then, all those years ago. And why he continued to be so.”

And now it was your turn to be bashful.

You couldn’t bring yourself to thank him because the whole situation was just too embarrassing, but you did manage a “Goodnight, My lord.”

Minho returned your sentiment quietly before backing away and turning to leave you.

As you eased the nursery door open just a crack to look in on your girls, you couldn’t help but think about the genuinely good time you’d had tonight. Even though you’d been surrounded by people you didn’t know, you’d spent practically the whole evening smiling and laughing.

And talking.

With Minho.

It had been... nice.

The wedding the next day went off without a hitch; in fact, it was one of the most beautiful weddings you’d ever been to. Abigail made a particularly radiant bride, and Onew was an extremely handsome, extremely happy groom.

You had silently bawled like a baby during the whole ceremony.

After all the guests had seen the newlywed couple off, wishing them well on their month-long honeymoon, your mother had insisted on taking you and the girls into town. She had treated you all to some shopping (a new pair of gloves for you, a new book for Caroline, and a new doll for Louisa) as well as some tea and cakes.

You knew it was because she felt sorry for you, but... today, you didn’t mind her pity. You appreciated it, in fact. You’d known it would be difficult attending a wedding by yourself, the first one after your late husband’s passing, but you hadn’t realized it would be as difficult as it had turned out to be.

By the time the four of you arrived back at the manor, you were utterly exhausted. The shopping, eating, and all the emotions of the day had drained you. Your mother shooed you up to your room, assuring you she would take the girls up to the nursery and tuck them in.

Even though it was now the second night in a row you hadn’t put them to bed, you had to admit that you were very much looking forward to curling up in that luxurious bed and sleeping for about three days.

As usual, though, you awoke quite early the next morning, ringing for your maid and requesting a breakfast tray. You also somewhat shyly asked her to fetch Caroline and Louisa and bring them in here with you.

You knew it wasn’t quite proper, but you felt you’d barely seen and spent proper time with them since you’d arrived. You missed them! And you really didn’t think that was out of the ordinary! You were their mother, for goodness sake. If you weren’t going to miss them, who would?

About half an hour later, there was a single rap on the door before it burst open. Caroline leaped through the doorway and vaulted herself onto your bed.

“Mama!” she cried cheerfully as Louisa scurried in behind her.

“Good morning, my loves!” you greeted with a smile as warm as the cup of tea on your breakfast tray. “How did you sleep?”

Caroline snuggled under the covers next to you and let out a happy sigh. “Very well, Mama. The beds here are deliciously comfortable.”

A laugh sputtered through your lips as Louisa crawled onto the bed to join you. “Deliciously comfortable? Where on Earth did you hear that?”

“Cousin Sophie,” Louisa answered. “She said her Mama uses it, and she wants to be more sophisticated like her.”

“Well, I have to admit, the beds are deliciously comfortable,” you chuckled as the maid (whose name you had learned was Rose) set the tray across your lap. “What shall we do after breakfast, darlings? Now that the wedding is over, we can do whatever we want.”

“I want to go outside!” Caroline declared before stealing a piece of toast from your tray.

“I want to see the animals,” Louisa added. You gave her a piece of toast, too, and the three of you munched happily (careful not to spill any crumbs on the deliciously comfortable bed, mind you).

“All right, let’s spend some time outside and see if we can find some animals,” you agreed, nodding definitively.

It was truly a beautiful day outside. The sun, though still somewhat low in the sky as it was early in the day, was bright and beaming. The sky was the perfect pastel azure blue. The clouds were few, but those few were as puffy and fluffy as clouds could be.

“Where shall we go first?” you asked your daughters, holding each of their hands in yours and gazing over the breathtaking landscape of the estate.

But before either of them could answer, you saw a figure appear by the barn closest to the house. You knew right away it was Minho, and he obviously knew right away it was you because he lifted one arm and waved.

“Good morning!” he called out as he began to head over toward you.

Your heart -- Lord knows why -- began to beat just a bit quicker in your chest.

“Good morning!” Caroline replied, waving back and standing on her toes. Louisa simply clutched your hand tighter and brought her fingers to her mouth.

“Where are you off to this morning?” Minho asked once he got closer to you.

“Oh, we -- we just wanted to go outside,” you explained with a somewhat hesitant grin. You weren’t sure why, but you felt as if you were about to get in trouble. Minho was the manager of the estate; he might not want strangers just walking around.

“I wanted to see some animals,” Louisa added shyly.

“Animals?” Minho repeated, grinning down at your youngest daughter. “I hope by ‘animals’ you mean pigs and horses and cows.”

You glanced down at her, and she nodded quickly, a smile just barely appearing on the corners of her lips.

“Well, that’s perfect, then,” Minho announced. “I’m glad I ran into you. I know where all of those animals are. Would you like to go see?”

Louisa nodded again, and Minho held his hand out toward her.

You expected her to hesitate, but... she didn’t. She almost immediately slipped her hand out of yours and took his.

And, for the second time in the past few days, your heart melted.

“Are you sure?” you asked with a slightly furrowed brow, trying to ignore the melting heart thing. “I’m sure you’re busy, I don’t want to take you away from your responsibilities.”

“I am absolutely certain,” Minho assured you, shooting you a little smirk. “You’re staying on a farm, it would be a shame not to see it!”

“Thank you, My Lord,” you said. “Girls, what do we say?”

“Thank you, My Lord,” both of them said in unison.

“You are very welcome,” Minho replied with a delighted chuckle. “Come, the horses are in the barn.”

For the next hour or so, Minho led the three of you all around the farm, showing you the horses (and even setting the girls on top of one for just a minute so they could feel what it was like to ride one), letting you pet the pigs (even though Caroline exclaimed they were much too stinky and snorty), and introducing you to the cows.

“What’s that?” Caroline asked as you were stroking the muzzle of a particularly sweet dairy cow. Your gaze shifted to where she was pointing, and you saw a bull in a fenced-in pasture nearby.

“That’s Hercules,” Minho answered. “Our bull.”

“Why is he over there?” she inquired with a slight frown.

“Because he can be a bit mean sometimes,” Minho explained.

“Can we go see him?”

Your heart instantly jumped into your throat, but you knew Minho was an expert. He knew these animals probably as well as you knew Caroline and Louisa. If it wasn’t safe, he wouldn’t do it.

“We can...” he answered reluctantly. “But we can’t go inside the fence, and we should probably not let him get too close.”

Caroline nodded and reached for Minho’s hand, letting him lead her over to the fence. Louisa tugged at your skirt, and you bent to pick her up, carrying her as you followed.

As you’d expected, Minho knew what he was doing. He lifted Caroline up to stand on the lowest rung of the fence, standing behind her and holding her so she wouldn’t fall. He let her gaze at the bull for a while, and when it began to walk toward you, he gently pulled her back.

Minho then turned around to face you, his eyes lit up and his smile beaming. “How would you all like to see the gazebo?”

“What’s a gazebo?” Louisa asked as she clung to your neck.

“It’s like... a house, but outside.”

“All houses are outside,” Louisa pointed out.

“No, but this one doesn’t have walls,” Minho laughed as he began to walk toward another area of the farm. “Only a roof. You can see everything but you won’t get rained on. I promise you’ll like it.”

You were just about to turn and follow him once more when you noticed Caroline was still at the fence.

“Come, darling,” you called out. “We’re going to the gazebo!”

Caroline jumped at the sound of your voice, quickly pivoting and rushing over to you.

Minho led you toward the gardens near the back of the house, and when you turned the corner, you saw a rather large wooden structure in the shape of an octagon, painted white with a dark gray tiled roof.

“Wow,” Louisa gasped, and Minho turned around to smile at her.

“See? I told you you would like it.”

“You could have a tea party here!” Caroline exclaimed, jumping up into the air.

“A tea party?” Minho asked, looking down at her curiously. “That’s not a bad idea. Would you like to?”

“A tea party?!” both Caroline and Louisa shrieked.

“Yes, a tea party. I can ask Cook to make some cakes and biscuits and sandwiches, and we can have a tea party!” Minho beamed.

“Yes, yes, please! Oh, Mama, can we?! Please?!”

You hated to be a party pooper, but...

“You don’t have to --” you began quietly, looking somewhat guilty. He didn’t have to go through all that trouble for a silly tea party! Especially for someone he hardly knew!

“Nonsense,” Minho interrupted. “I want to. Your sister is now married to my brother, so that means my brother is their uncle. Which, in a way -- kind of -- almost -- makes me their uncle, too. And what else are uncles supposed to do but spoil their nieces?”

Caroline looked up at you with a look on her face far too mature for her age -- obviously something else she’d picked up from Cousin Sophie. “It’s true, Mama. Uncles are supposed to spoil their nieces. Think of Uncle Marcus and Uncle Sebastian.”

A soft chuckle escaped your lips as you thought of your younger brothers. Of course, she was right. They spoiled Caroline and Louisa rotten since they had yet to have children of their own.

You looked over at Minho, and even though you had already given in, the look on his face cemented it. His eyebrows were raised hopefully, his smile was optimistic and absolutely adorable. It was clear he truly did want to have a tea party with your girls.

“All right,” you relented with a grin.

Caroline and Louisa let out cheers, and Louisa wiggled down from your arms so she and her sister could run over to the gazebo.

“You wait right here, I’ll be right back,” Minho assured you, reaching out and briefly touching your shoulders.

Once he dashed toward the house, you followed Caroline and Louisa over to the gazebo -- and you ignored the fact that your heart was now beating a bit erratically from Minho’s touch.

You took a seat at the table inside the gazebo while the girls ran and danced around nearby. They exclaimed over the flowers and squealed in anticipation for the tea party.

You kept an eye on them, of course, but... after only a few minutes, you found your mind began to wander. Thoughts of Minho started swirling around, and before you knew it, you were imagining a life with him here.

Horseback riding in the morning. Tea parties every weekend. Greeting him when he returned home after a long day of working in the barn and the fields and the village. The girls already seemed to like him; surely, they would take to the idea of him being their father rather quickly, and --

A high-pitched, piercing scream suddenly filled the air, and all your daydreams instantly evaporated.

Nothing set your heart on edge like the sound of a child screaming.

Quickly, your gaze snapped to where Caroline and Louisa were standing -- okay, good. Both of them were still standing, neither of them was hurt.

You stood from the table, your brow furrowed as your heart pounded.

“Girls, what was --”

But then you saw it.

At first, you thought it was just a figment of your imagination. There was no way --

Then you heard the snorts and the heavy breathing. You saw the large hoof stamp heavily on the ground.

Yep. That was a real bull, all right. Somehow, Hercules had gotten out of his pen.

Obviously, your first instinct was to run over to Caroline and Louisa, but you thought that might set him off. You’d heard that bulls were only violent when provoked, and seeing someone rushing toward him would almost certainly provoke him.

“It’s all right, darlings,” you said in as steady of a voice as you could muster. You very slowly took a step toward them, keeping still and making sure not to make any sudden movements. “Just stay where you are. I’m coming to get you, but we must stay still. Do you understand?”

“Mama,” Caroline whimpered, though she didn’t move one inch. “I’m scared.”

“It’s going to be fine,” you assured her.

But was it? Hercules was still just standing there, facing the gazebo and snorting and stamping his hoof.

It was either going to fine or... all three of you were about to die.

You heard footsteps running toward you, and the thought flashed through your mind that you were about to die. Without turning your head, you shifted your gaze toward the footsteps. Rather than panicking about dying, you were relieved. More relieved than you’d ever been in your life.

Minho had returned, and surely, he knew what to do. He would save the day.

“Don’t move,” he warned, holding a hand out to affirm his words.

“I have to get the girls, though,” you breathed, your heart now hammering inside your chest.

“Just stay there for a minute. I’m going to distract him. Once I have him turned away, go and get them and take them to the back of the house,” Minho instructed.

You nodded. He certainly sounded like he knew what he was doing, so you took him at his word.

As Minho slowly began to move around to the other side of Hercules, you switched between watching both him and your daughters. Your chest was heaving with anxiety, of course, but you did what he’d told you to do: you stayed still.

Minho carefully caught Hercules’ attention, leading the massive bull to turn around and away from the three of you. He began to back toward the pasture, and as soon as the animal was facing fully away from you, you made a run for it.

You dashed over to Caroline and Louisa, grabbing their hands, and dragging them toward the house.

The second you stopped running, the two of them threw themselves at you, clutching your legs and burying their faces in your skirts.

“Oh, thank god,” you gasped, holding them as you leaned against the wall of the house.

You had never been more terrified in your entire life.

You stood there with Caroline and Louisa, catching your breath and letting them hug you for as long as they wanted. And before you knew it, Minho had returned. You had barely glanced at him before you were suddenly enveloped in his arms.

Rather than be taken aback by his embrace... you were relieved. His tight hold instantly put you at ease, and your eyes closed as you instinctively pressed your forehead into his neck.

“It’s all right,” he whispered, cradling the back of your head. “Somehow the gate got unlatched, but he’s back behind the fence. Caroline and Louisa are safe. You’re safe.”

“Thank you,” you murmured through the knot of emotion forming in your throat. “Thank you so much. I don’t know --”

“Mama,” Caroline interrupted in a small, pathetic voice. “It was my fault. I was leaning against the gate and I think I accidentally --”

“See? It was an accident,” Minho pointed out. “You didn’t mean to.”

“And remember what I say about mistakes, my love?” you said softly.

“They’re not mistakes. They’re lessons we have to learn from,” Caroline whimpered.

“It’s all right, sweetheart,” you whispered.

“We’ll have our tea party another day, yeah?” Minho said.

...To be honest, you’d forgotten all about the tea party.

And, continuing on the honesty train, you were no longer worried about the tea party at all. In fact, it was the last thing on your mind.

Right now, the thing you were worried about was... how good it felt to be in Minho’s arms.

As Caroline would put it, how deliciously good it felt.

Part 4

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124 notes · View notes

cordoniantrash · 5 years ago

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Once Upon Another Time

AU: In another time where the brothers Beaumont did not reach Cassandra in time, the waitress turned lady went back to New York to rebuild her old life. After finding an unexpected souvenir, she set off and joined her long lost family. Four years later, a newly divorced King of Cordonia arrives in New York in hopes of reuniting with his beloved. Instead of Cassandra, all he found was a postcard with the word Edgewater written on the back.

Hi! New series alert! So, this concept might be a little too over done, seeing as there are so many fics about this, but what the hell, I’m adding my own two cents in. This is an AU with a bit of cross-over (TRR and D&D) elements mixed in, plus my own headcanons on TRR MC’s family. Constructive criticism is very much welcome. Grammatical mistakes are my own.

Thanks to @thequeennefertipi for betaing!

Disclaimer: I don’t own the characters, Pixleberry has that privilege, title for both the series and the chapter titles, plus the epigraphs are from Sara Bareilles’ discography

Pairing: Liam x MC

Warning: swearing

Words: 2755

Prologue: Manhattan

You can have Manhattan

‘Cause I can’t have you

Cordonia International Airport, four years ago.

The room was too bright. All harsh fluorescent lights and bare white walls. Its image brings to mind a hospital rather than an airport. A woman was sitting on a chair waiting for a flight to New York. A few feet away, men wearing black suits were casually leaning against a pillar. To a casual observer, nothing was amiss, not that they’d look around. Most of the people in that waiting area sat transfixed, either looking at some of the large TVs stationed around the area or else looking at their phones. It felt as though the whole room was standing still. It was, after all, the night that their crown prince was made the king.

For Cassandra Angeles, however, the world was spinning. It was barely an hour ago that she was escorted (with too much force) out of the Royal Palace and was ordered to go back to New York.

I left my flower on the bathroom counter, she thought, I should have taken it with me. Her gaze fell to the floor, eyes not seeing what was in front of her. Thoughts of what happened to the flower she’d worn in her hair tumbled through her head; did they throw my flower out? Did he? He’s probably too busy right now.

She remembered his shy smile, the way he carefully placed the flower in her hair, his sure hands helping her brush stray grass from her skirts, the way their cheeks had hurt from smiling too much. Those three words.

Cassandra breathed out a sigh. In the cool air-conditioned room, she felt numb.

A final thought lopped into the jumbled mess in her mind:

Did he really believe those photos?

An announcement blared from the speakers.

Cassie looked up as the PA announced her flight number. She could feel the stare of the two bodyguards standing a few feet away. With a sigh, she rose and took hold of her belongings. She took a deep breath, gripped her suitcase handle, and walked towards the boarding gate.

A moment later, the brothers Beaumont rushed to the waiting room only to be greeted by an empty seat and two burly bodyguards.

Back at the royal palace, the newly crowned King received a phone call. An hour later he set in motion a series of events he hoped would clear Cassandra’s name.

New York felt like a dream to Cassie. Surreal and hazy ‘round the edges. Not quite there. The city had always been home to her; now it felt unsteady. Home was somewhere else now. There had been moments when she felt that she was dreaming; that she would wake up and find herself back in her bed in Cordonia, Maxwell knocking on the door ready to drag her along to another social function.

After months and weeks spent in luxury, being back in her old life felt strange. It didn’t quite fit. Bills she had ignored for months resurfaced. Huffy landlords had to be placated. The carefully ordered world she made for herself collapsing and leaving ruins in its wake.

Amid all this chaos, Daniel became a welcome refuge. Her old friend had offered her a place to stay and a shoulder to cry on. After seeing her red-rimmed eyes and her hastily packed bags, he had mercifully kept from asking questions.

In the weeks that followed her return, Cassandra would wait every day for Liam and the others to contact her. A week passed.

Then a month.

Nothing.

Cassandra had entertained the thought of contacting them herself, but every time she tried, her last sight of the ballroom would always flash in her mind’s eye. Her heart would clench and fingers would hesitate before she’d put the thought away. In the back of her mind, a persistent whisper asked where is he now?

The start of the second month was when anger began to surface. Had they just discarded her? Was this all that she was now? A scandal to be buried and forgotten? Her stomach would roll and she’d feel sick at the thought. Was Drake right all along?

The third month came and with it, was desperation and countless what-ifs. As Cassie tried to establish order once more, placing one foot in front of the other, they would dog her very steps and whisper doubts into her mind. Cassandra had taken to visiting her grandmother’s grave when it got too much. Burying herself in the past just to escape a different set of memories.

It was after one of those visits when she received a phone call. Her heart jumped and her fingers shook. Could this be it? Her heart sank when she saw the caller id. It was from Daniel.

“Hey, Danny.”

“Cassie! You busy?”

“Was about to head back, actually. Why?”

“Well…” Daniel paused, “a package came for you. Looks fancy.”

Her heart jump-started again. Cassandra stood still at the gate of the cemetery. She swallowed. “D -- did you see an address?”

“Hmm? Oh yeah. That’s the thing. It’s from the UK.”

Her eyebrows shot up. “The what now?”

She can almost see him roll his eyes. “The UK Cassie. Focus! Anyway, I’m very curious and I got a shift in an hour, so don’t open it until I get back!”

Cassandra rolled her eyes. “It’s my package dummy. I open it anytime I damn well please.”

“Ugh. You’re so British when you say that. But you’ll tell me what’s in it yeah?”

“Yeah yeah. Got to go. Bye!”

The package was just a package. Cassie had expected some grand old box with how Daniel said it was fancy. The contents were rather typical. Two tins of cookies, or biscuits as her gran would insist back then, all of them Gran Cece’s favourites, a well-knitted scarf, a nice woollen hat, an old postcard of some grand English manor and a letter.

The last one was strange.

The stationery was high end. Plain but elegant with clean blue lines and woven writing paper. A subtle scent wafted from it. Lavender. It was familiar, Cassandra mused, recalling instances in her childhood, (back when her parents were still there) when she saw similar papers clutched in her grandmother’s hands. She had been fascinated by the pretty blue of the envelopes and had asked her Gran about them. Gran smiled, small and sad, and said they came from her sister. That had been the end of it.

It was only when she grew older, after the screams and the twisted metal and the smoke and the knock that changed everything, that she realized they weren’t alone after all. Somewhere across the pond was family, and somewhere further east was her father’s whole past. On days when she got particularly lonely, she would daydream. Cassie had then decided that she would go and see the world. Meet her family wherever they are, her Gran Cece at her side. Then Gran got sick, Cassie got swamped in college and work and those dreams fell to the wayside, only to be revived by a pair of warm brown eyes and a trip to a small Mediterranean country.

After munching on some cookies, Cassie opened the letter. Who sends letters these days? She thought bemused. God, even the writing paper’s fancy.

My dearest Cassandra,

I know you might not remember me, and you might find it strange that I am only just contacting you after all these years. I’m terribly sorry about that. Your grandmother might have mentioned me from time to time, but if she hasn’t, then let me introduce myself to you now. My name is Clara Sinclaire-Harper and I’m your grandmother’s sister.

I’m sure you have questions. I’ll be more than happy to answer them although if you also want nothing to do with me and your grandmother’s past then I understand. The reason I’m writing to you now is to extend an invitation to you. I’ve heard of the unfortunate happenings a few months ago in Cordonia. My dear girl, I’m not here to bring you criticism or anything of that sort. What I’m offering you is an escape from that unfortunate incident. Should you wish it, you are more than welcome to Edgewater, our family’s estate here in England.

You are my blood and our family has been separated long enough. I understand if you are reluctant to trust a letter sent to you by some stranger. If you want to talk or to simply ask questions, attached to this letter is my personal contact information. I’ll be eagerly awaiting your reply.

Sincerely,

Aunt Clara

Cassie was still sat on the couch, cookie crumbs on her lap when Daniel came back from his shift.

“Please tell me you haven’t been stuck in that position for hours.”

Cassandra stirred. “Hhmm?”

“Earth to Cassie!” Daniel said over the sound of cupboards opening. “It’s my turn to cook tonight. What’re you in the mood for?”

“Oh. Uh. You pick Danny. I think I’m gonna lie down for a bit.” Cassie said preparing to get up.

“Nuh-uh sister. Sit the fuck down.” He makes his way to the couch. “What’s wrong?”

Cassie handed him the letter and looked out the window. She watched from the corner of her eye as Daniel’s mouth dropped in shock.

“Holy shit.”

“Tell me ‘bout it.”

“Did you know anything about this?”

“Kinda? I mean, I sorta knew we had family across the pond. And I think she helped with the funeral expenses back then, plus you’ve met Gran so…” she shrugged, “I guess I shouldn’t be surprised?”

“But where has she been all these years?”

“In England you dummy,” Cassie said while rolling her eyes.

“Pft. You know what I mean.”

“I don’t know. Should I ask her that? It’s not too rude is it?”

“She’s practically inviting you to ask! Plus she owes you some kind of explanation. Grandma Cece died two years ago, where was she then?” he paused. “Are you gonna call her?”

Cassie sighed. “I mean, I gotta right? After dinner though. I need food to face this.”

It took two rings before she answered.

“You’ve reached the private line of Her Lady Harper, Countess of Edgewater. May I take a message?”

“Oh, um,” Cassie paused her lady? Countess? What the actual fuck? Silently she scrambled for the etiquette lessons that Bertrand dictated. After taking a deep breath she continued. “This is Cassandra Angeles. The erm, Countess is expecting me.” The last part sounded like a question. Cassie cringed.

“Oh, of course! Please hold for a moment.”

“Uh, yeah. Sure.”

Cassandra fidgeted. A beat of silence then a voice.

“Hello?” The accent was smooth, polished, aristocratic and heart-achingly familiar. For a moment she remembered warm arms and chamomile tea, a tinkling laugh and a smile just for her. Then she was back in her shared apartment in busy New York talking to an aunt that she’s never met.

“Cassandra? Are you there?”

“Oh yes. Sorry ‘bout that. Um, I’m here yeah.”

“I see,” Cassie can hear a hint of amusement in the otherwise pleasant tone. “I’m so glad you decided to call. Did you like the package I sent you?”

“Oh, it’s the least I could do. I, uh really liked those. And the scarf! Was really nice.” Cassandra wanted to bang her head on the wall. Why am I so bad at small talk? Why are we doing small talk?

As if sensing her thoughts Clara (Aunt Clara? Lady Clara? Her Ladyship? What the fuck am I supposed to call her?) said, “I assume you’re calling not just to thank me for the package?”

“Erm no. I just – that is, I’m, uh, wondering if you’re really my aunt?” Why did you start with that?

Cassie heard her laugh through the phone, the sound so eerily familiar, “Oh that. Well, I’m technically your mother’s aunt. Grandaunt would be a more appropriate title, wouldn’t it? But it’s such a mouthful not to mention it makes me sound like some old withered crone! You can just call me Aunt Clara. Or even auntie! I’ve never been called auntie,” she paused, “unless you don’t want to of course.”

Cassandra cleared her throat. “I’d, um, I’d like that very much. Calling you auntie I mean.”

“Oh, that’s such a relief to hear! Now dear, unto other questions, yes?”

“So how was it?” Daniel asked, nearly buried under his pile of pillows. Cassandra plopped down and snatched the nearest pillow she could reach.

“Apparently there was some drama when Gran got pregnant with my mom. My great-granddad threw her out of the family and married her sister to their family friend so she couldn’t go after Gran. Then, get this, the guy that Auntie got married to? He just kicked the bucket, that’s why she’s suddenly contacting me right now. Crazy, huh?”

“What even is your family Cassie?”

Cassandra let out a laugh and said, “Tell me about it.”

“So does that mean you guys are actually crazy rich?”

“Heh. Here’s the thing. My Aunt Clara? She’s actually… kinda is titled?”

“What?” Daniel had bolted out his cocoon, scattering pillows across the small room.

“She’s a countess in England?”

“You’ve got blue blood, is that what you’re saying?”

“I mean, ish? Dad’s a nurse and the rest of his siblings’ in the Philippines if that’s what you’re asking.”

“No, what I’m saying is that you’ve got a lady for an aunt! Does that make you her heir?”

“What? No. I’ve got cousins. They’re gonna be her heirs.”

“So, what now? Are gonna be one happy family?”

“She, uh, kinda invited me to stay with her. At the family estate. God, that sounds so weird.”

“Are you gonna accept?”

“I – I’m not sure.”

Shanghai, China

Meanwhile, amid all the glitz and glamour of an engagement tour, the fragile bond between a father and his son is torn apart by a conspiracy.

New York, the next day

Cassandra stood in front of a mirror, head bent, both of her hands flat on the bathroom counter. Her gaze pinned on two pink lines.

What do I do? Do I tell him? How? It’s gonna be a scandal! Oh, he’s gonna hate me. If he hasn’t already.

I need to get away.

I need –

She raised her head and met her eyes at the mirror. Cassie fished her phone from her purse.

“Hey, Auntie. It’s Cassie. About that offer…”

The JFK, two days later

Cassandra Angeles looked up as the PA announced her flight number. She finished typing her text to Daniel, took a deep breath and took hold of her belongings and walked towards the gates.

On the other side of the landing strip, a royal jet had just landed.

UN Headquarters, night time

King Liam of Cordonia stepped out into the balcony. The ceremonies have been finished and obligations dealt with. He was finally alone. He looked at the New York skyline. On the surface, the city looked the same as it was months ago when he first arrived in New York; Wide-eyed but resigned to his fate. Liam, however, had changed from the man he was then. The Liam that returned was even more at a loss than his past self.

I always thought I’d return here with you.

The thought of seeing her again, however angry she might be, was the only thing that kept him together all throughout the tour. Let her be angry with me if that’s what it takes. Just let me see her again.

His (their) friends have long since gone to Los Angeles in search of Tariq. For Liam, it seemed like this was the first time in this whole tour that the group had seemed united. He felt a faint flicker of hope. Maybe now that they’re here, they might find her. After all, he thought, it wouldn’t be too suspicious to run into her here.

Madeline had been suspicious but there was nothing she could do, yet a small voice in his mind added. After all, there had been no sign of Cassie, no contact, not that he’d blame her; Their friends had no inkling of where she’d gone, even though Drake had asked around her old bar and Bastien and his team yielded little results. This confession would mean little if she’s not there.

“Where had you gone?” he whispered. No one answered him.

I know its a bit wordy but if you guys wanna be tagged let me know.

#series: once upon another time #emgee tries to write #playchoices #trr #trh #liam x mc #king Liam x mc #choices: stories you play #choices trr #choices trh

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inyournightmares97 · 5 years ago

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Her Dowry (Part 2)

The handsome Mr. Park Jinyoung is proud, haughty and says exactly what he thinks. He doesn’t need anyone meddling in his life… much less a spoiled and rich young heiress who is shamelessly in love with her own fortune.

Can two such selfish people ever find comfort in each other?

Warnings: Regency!AU, pretty much a Jane Austen fanfic with GOT7 lol. Angst, Fluff, some attempts at me being posh and using big words that might seem cringey. Please don’t ask when I’ll update because I’m trying my best!

Word Count: 4.2k

Read Part 1 here!

“There is no need to be too careful with those,” you called out to the footman in a breezy tone. “Feel free to drop them if they are too heavy.”

The carriage transporting Mr. Park Jinyoung’s belongings arrived late in the morning. You had been taking a walk with your dog after breakfast in the front gardens, when you noticed the full carriage rumbling up the stone pathway to the large manor. The footmen were currently struggling to take the suitcases up to the guest rooms. You stood to the side among the rose bushes and watched in displeasure. The little Pomerian on a leash beside you noticed your distress, and pawed at your skirts desperately.

“Come here, Snowball,” you cooed as you picked up the little fluffy white dog. She panted at you happily and licked your arm. “Do you see those packages there? They belong to Mr. Park Jinyoung. Now, we don’t like Mr. Park. So whenever you see him, I would like for you to growl at him and make it clear that he’s unwelcome here. Understood? What are you going to do?”

Snowball yipped at you happily.

“No, growl!” you ordered firmly. The little Pomerian merely blinked up at you, her tongue hanging out of her mouth in a cheerful pant. You sighed and patted her on the head. “I really should have gotten a bloodhound like Jackson but what could I have done? You were too adorable.”

Snowball licked you again and you laughed, putting her back on the grass. She danced about your feet happily. You spent a few minutes letting her attempt to jump in order to take a treat from your hand and clapped when she reached the required height. Snowball was munching on her biscuit, when the clip-clop of a horse riding up the stone path became audible.

Mr. Park Jinyoung had arrived on horseback. You watched silently as he rode up to the front of the manor, a classically handsome figure in a simple yet fashionable jacket. He dismounted gracefully and his dark eyes turned to you. You straightened while he approached you with a gentle smile and a polite bow.

“Miss Lim,” Mr. Park greeted you warmly. “I see you are out on a stroll. Isn’t the weather lovely this morning?”

“It was. I’m afraid a rather ugly dark cloud is passing by at the moment,” you commented drily. Mr. Park’s eyes flickered up towards the clear sky. His lips curled into a handsome smirk when he understood that you were not referring to the weather.

“Perhaps a dark cloud now and then is inevitable in life, Miss Lim.”

“I suppose it is. The important thing is that the cloud learns its place and does not ruin everyone’s fun by raining down upon them,” you quipped.

You were interrupted by a sudden tug at the leash in your hand. Snowball had darted forward and was now sniffing eagerly at Mr. Park’s shoes. You tried to pull her back in horror but Mr. Park Jinyoung only laughed. It was a very charming laugh, you had to admit, but a detestable one all the same.

“And who is this?” he chuckled, reaching down to pick up Snowball. She licked at his hands happily and you sighed. Stupid dog. Mr. Park laughed again as Snowball yipped at him. The corners of his eyes crinkled up fondly when he held her up to look at her. How could such a horrible man have such a mesmerizing laugh?

“Her name is Snowball,” you replied.

Mr. Park smiled as he set her down. “I see. A noble name, indeed.”

“Hardly. I named her such because she's round and white, as is evident,” you replied, tugging on Snowball’s leash to pull her back. She let out a small whine and pawed at your skirts sensing that she had upset you. “And I’m sorry to say that I don’t appreciate other people touching her. She’s a very delicate dog. I would prefer that you did not attempt to play with her.”

Mr. Park raised an eyebrow. “I am not ignorant of the fact that you clearly dislike me for some reason, Miss Lim. But asking me not to touch your dog is rather childish, is it not?”

You bristled. How dare this man! Not only did he insult your musical talent before your entire family but he also had the audacity to call you childish? How could a man who was relying on your hospitality and proclaimed himself a gentleman speak to you in such a rude manner? You glared at him and pressed your lips together tightly.

“Then perhaps I am a very childish woman, Mr. Park. You will have to excuse me. I am afraid you interrupted my morning walk. I am sure the housekeeper would be more than pleased to show you to your rooms.”

Mr. Park sighed. “My apologies. I will take my leave, then.”

You turned away from him and pulled Snowball along behind you, waiting until Mr. Park had disappeared inside the manor to pick her up and cuddle her to your chest. “There will be no more licking Mr. Park, do you hear me?” you scolded the little dog in a hushed voice. “If you lick him once more, you will not get your daily treats.”

Snowball whined and nuzzled her nose into your hand in apology.

“Dear, will you be going down to the assembly rooms this evening?” your Father asked you during lunch. You had spent most of the meal glaring at Mr. Park Jinyoung while he ate, and listening to Colonel Jackson rant about some of the antics the officers in his regiment indulged in. You were too busy brooding over your absolute hatred for the man who sat across from you to notice that your Father had spoken to you.

“Sorry, Father. I could not hear you over Jackson’s babbling,” you snapped.

Your Father chuckled. “I was only wondering if you intended to go down to the assembly rooms for the assembly this evening, my dear. It should be a lovely opportunity for Mr. Park to become acquainted with the society here at Portsmouth. The three of you had better go and have a dance or play some cards to entertain yourselves. Surely, it cannot be very enjoyable to spend your evenings here with me.”

You smiled at your father. “I like spending evenings here with you very much, Papa.”

Father chuckled. “Yes, but a young woman like you had much rather go and interact with the society in town, or you shall become an old maid before you know it. And it is our responsibility to introduce Mr. Park to the society here.”

Jackson smiled and nodded. “Of course! We certainly cannot miss the assembly. I will introduce you to some of the officers, Mr. Park, they’re all extremely fine fellows and they play an excellent hand at cards. The society here is almost equivalent to that in London. We lack nothing. And I’m certain you may find a beautiful woman or two to tempt you into a dance!”

Mr. Park nodded with a smile. “It sounds very pleasant. I should be delighted.”

“I will call for the carriage to take us there this evening!”

You huffed and folded your arms across your chest in irritation. You didn’t want to go to the assembly rooms. This was all because of Mr. Park. You gave him one final glare to which he responded with a simple, smug smile.

The assembly rooms were where the cream of society gathered on scheduled evenings to gossip, gamble, dance and flirt. Colonel Jackson’s regiment was currently in town so there were a significant number of officers crowding the card tables this evening. Beyond the card rooms was the dining room where tea and supper was served, and beyond that was the ballroom for dancing. Everyone was dressed very fashionably but you were evidently the best-dressed woman in the room. You smiled to yourself as you smoothed down your expensive silk dress with your gloves.

Jackson was instantly distracted by his fellow officers at the cards tables, and he persuaded a very reluctant Mr. Park to join them for a game. You merely greeted the officers politely and then moved onwards to the supper room.

“Oh! Miss Lim!”

You turned with delight at the familiar voice. The woman who hurried towards you was one of your best friends; Miss Kim was dressed very prettily in a light pink dress and she wrapped her arm around yours eagerly as soon as she saw you. You smiled back at her.

“Oh! What a relief that you are here, Miss Kim! I thought I was going to have to spend the evening alone and miserable.”

She giggled. “Of course I am here! My brother is in town for some business and I simply had to come and visit my dearest friend. I was going to call on you tomorrow if you did not come to the assembly rooms tonight. Oh! But we must sit down and talk. How could you not even write to me about your brother’s wedding? It was so shocking to have to see it in the papers!”

You followed her eagerly to a pair of vacant seats. “I would have written to you if I’d known myself,” you replied bitterly. “I was completely unaware that Jaebum was even courting anyone. He merely wrote to say he was engaged and then two days later, he and his bride had arrived from London with her family in tow. Oh! It’s so unpleasant and painful! Miss Park smiles far too much and her brother is the rudest man I have ever met!”

Miss Kim’s eyes shone. “Ah! That Mr. Park! I have heard that he is very handsome.”

You pouted at her. “If you flirt with him I shall never forgive you.”

“I would never! You know that I have eyes for no man other than your brother, Colonel Jackson. I do sincerely hope that if he should decide to marry someday, you would not allow me to find out through the papers. I really may just die of heartbreak!” she cried dramatically, before the two of you burst into giggles.

Miss Kim had been harboring a fancy for your brother for years now but he never showed her any affection beyond what he would show any other woman. She took the rejection surprisingly well, so you doubted whether her affections were very serious. “Oh! But there is a surprise for you here tonight!”

You blinked. “Oh? And what might that be?”

“Mr. Choi Youngjae is here,” she told you with a teasing smile. “That kind, gentle soul whose heart you constantly trample upon with your leather slippers. I would not be surprised if he came here tonight in the hopes of meeting you. Perhaps he will attempt to propose again!”

Your smile fell. “I should hope he does not. It was difficult enough to persuade him not to do so last season. An official proposal should only serve to embarrass us both.”

Miss Kim looked at you sympathetically. She loved you, but it was difficult for her to understand your behavior.

“Do you really have no intention of accepting him? He is such a good and kind man. Everyone in society loves him and he seems to care for you greatly. He is among the few other eligible men in town. And you are always so determined not to go to London for the season and meet new men. Where will you find a husband if you insist on locking yourself up away inside your home like this? A man is not going to come knocking at your front doorstep.”

You bit your lip. “Then I shall not get married.”

“But why?” she insisted. “Come to London with Mother and I next month. I insist. There are so many wonderful men and I shall have my brother introduce you to them all.”

“Oh? And if there are so many wonderful men then why do you still pine after Colonel Jackson?” you teased.

Miss Kim flushed. “Oh! True love is another matter entirely, my dear. Perhaps I should have been successful in my love if his sister had been a little kinder to me and done a better job recommending me to him… but we are not all so lucky,” she sighed as you laughed. She was constantly bemoaning that you did not do more to draw your brother’s attention to her. “How can you laugh at my despair, you terrible friend?”

You smiled. “Because I do not believe that you are truly despairing, Miss Kim.”

“Well, then!” she stood up, playfully offended. “I shall take my leave now. It is my intention tonight to extract a dance from Colonel Jackson without your help and I will be grateful if you should refrain from interfering. I would rather not end up an old maid.”

“He is at the card tables. You will have to tie him to a pair of horses to drag him away from there. Good luck, Miss Kim!”

Miss Kim giggled and hurried away to the cards room, hoping to find a seat at the same table as Colonel Jackson. You smiled at your silly friend. She had already lost a good amount of money to your brother at the card tables in the hopes of capturing his attention, but Jackson only laughed at her and took her money and never asked her to dance.

You were watching Miss Kim disappear into the next room when you heard a pair of elderly ladies talking at a table nearby. They were sipping their tea and looking at you with distaste. As is common with elderly women who are hard of hearing, they spoke so loudly that it was impossible for you to not overhear their conversation.

“Look; she has come alone again. How terribly inappropriate for her to attend such social events without a female chaperone. Does her father think it is appropriate to send her here with only her brothers? A young woman who has only been out in society a few years?”

The other woman scoffed. “For shame. That girl will find herself in a scandal soon enough. Nothing good comes of letting a young woman with a fortune of a dowry run about in such a loose and careless manner. Who would marry her? She has never had any decent gentlewoman to teach her how to behave. ”

You took a deep breath and clutched your handkerchief. Your eyes flickered sharply over to the elderly women, who fell silent the moment they realized that you were glaring at them. Disgusting creatures. They were so old and withered and wrinkled that they had nothing to do but comment on other women. It was not the first time they had said such things about you, nor the first time that people had commented on your lack of a female chaperone for these events. Your mother had passed away while giving birth to you and you had no aunts, no close female relatives to take you under their wing. The only woman available to accompany you to social events had been your governess; and she had left once you were too old to require one.

You merely glared at the women and turned back to your cup of tea. They could only dream of owning the amount of money that you possessed as your dowry. You knew better than to be affected by their envious words.

Mr. Park Jinyoung entered the supper room just as you were finishing your tea. He seemed slightly lost and uncomfortable. You smiled to yourself at the sight of him looking around blankly until he finally spotted you. Your smile fell when he made a beeline for you and took the empty seat beside yours.

“Miss Lim,” he greeted you politely.

You raised an eyebrow as you sipped your tea coolly. “Is it not extremely inappropriate for you to sit beside an unmarried woman such as myself at a social gathering? I believe propriety demands that we be accompanied by a chaperone.”

Mr. Park raised an eyebrow. The bored tone of your voice indicated that you did not truly care about the absence of a chaperone, but were merely attempting to find some fault in him.

How could a woman as beautiful as yourself could be hiding so much hatred inside? It seemed impossible, but your words only became more poisonous with each conversation you shared. He sighed.

“I am afraid it would be much more improper for me to approach anyone else at this gathering, since I have not been introduced to them. You and Colonel Jackson are my only acquaintances here. I am certain that I shall cause less offence by sitting with my sister’s new family than by approaching someone who does not know me at all.”

You sighed. Unfortunately, Mr. Park was not wrong. “I suppose so.”

Mr. Park smiled. “And is the purpose of a chaperone not merely to ensure that a young man and woman do not cross the boundaries of ordinary acquaintance? I am certain there is no danger of that here.”

You gave him a sharp look. “Certainly not. Although I wonder why you do not choose to stay by my brother’s side; he is surely the more pleasant company.”

Mr. Park sighed again, a hint of discomfort appearing on his handsome features once more. “Colonel Jackson’s company is excellent but I have no desire to lose more money at the card tables. Gambling has never caused me much enjoyment. I prefer not to push my luck, what with me having so little of it in the first place.”

“One would not look at your face and deem you a man of meagre luck, Mr. Park.”

Mr. Park raised an eyebrow and his dark eyes twinkled. You were irritated at how handsome he was and how aware he seemed to be of his own god-given charms. There was no use denying that Mr. Park Jinyoung was extremely attractive. However, once one overcame the deceptive barriers of his perfect face and handsome countenance, it was not difficult to identify Park Jinyoung’s many flaws.

“Is that a compliment, Miss Lim? I am flattered.”

“Not as much of a compliment as you might imagine, Mr. Park. I tend to place more importance in aspects of a person that cannot be covered by luck; such as manners, good-breeding and most importantly, benevolence.”

Mr. Park laughed. “Benevolence! Surely?”

“You do not believe me?” you demanded. “Or do you think my own character to be so lacking in benevolence that it is absurd for me to expect it from others?”

“Indeed; I have no idea how benevolent you are.”

“Let me assure you that I am extremely benevolent!” you insisted firmly. “A necessary quality in a woman who possesses as large a dowry and such excellent prospects as I! A woman with such a large fortune and natural beauty must do everything in her power to share her gifts with those less fortunate in this world.”

“I see you are very inclined to charity, then.”

“Indeed. We live in a world where beauty and a large dowry are the most powerful things any woman can possess.”

Mr. Park Jinyoung's smile suddenly changed; the curve of his plump lips was more forced than it had been earlier. He nodded silently. There was a brief and unpleasant silence which was interrupted by the arrival of another gentleman at the tea table. The only person in the entire city of Portsmouth before whom even Mr. Park was preferable.

Mr. Choi Youngjae.

“Miss Lim!” Mr. Choi greeted you politely and kindly, with a bow. His manners were impeccable and he was always well-spoken and kind, but his sudden appearance made your stomach turn. “It is so wonderful to see you here this evening. Please; allow me to convey my apologies at being unable to attend your brother’s wedding. I was detained in London.”

You smiled politely at Mr. Choi. “Of course Mr. Choi; I am certain that my brother understands completely. There is no need for your apology.”

Mr. Choi smiled hopefully. “Yes. Thank you. I was wondering, Miss Lim, whether-”

“Mr. Choi, have you yet had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Park Jinyoung? He is the younger brother of Miss Park; or should I say Mrs. Lim now, the woman whom my brother has had the fortune of marrying. He is staying in Portsmouth for some time on business. Mr. Park, this is Mr. Choi Youngjae. A good friend of mine and a businessman who often comes to Portsmouth to do his business,” you explained hurriedly.

The two men shook hands politely and exchanged perfunctory greetings. Mr. Choi’s eyes were fixed on you and you knew that he was hoping to speak to you alone. You could not allow that to happen. You quickly rose from your seat and gave the two gentlemen a polite smile.

“Well; since you are now acquainted, I hope that you will find some topic of conversation suitable to both of you. I am on the lookout for my good friend Miss Kim, so I will excuse myself,” you curtsied politely and hurried out of the dining room.

The two men blinked after you in surprise.

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Park Jinyoung could not help but feel a little pity for Mr. Choi.

The young man had evidently approached in the hopes of obtaining your attention, but you had hurried off and left him to converse with a near stranger. It only took a few minutes of conversation with Mr. Choi for Jinyoung to determine that the man met all of your expectations in a person. Mr. Choi had manners, good breeding and plenty of benevolence. He heard of Mr. Park’s hopes to avail of certain business opportunities in the shipping industry and immediately offered his assistance.

“I would be very glad to see you at my offices soon, Mr. Park!” Mr. Choi said welcomingly with a large smile. “We would have a much easier time discussing business there than in this noisy environment at the assembly rooms. I am based out of London for the majority of the year, unfortunately, but I do travel to Portsmouth often. How long do you intend to stay here?”

Mr. Park bit his lip. “I do not know; I am currently residing at my sister’s home on the Lims’ estate. If business goes well then I may need to look for some more permanent residence so that I do not impose upon their hospitality. If not, then I shall return to London to stay with my mother.”

Mr. Choi nodded. “Indeed; I look forward to furthering your acquaintance in either city.”

“May I ask if you are closely acquainted with the Lims?” Mr. Park asked curiously. Although he did not want to interfere in your personal business, he felt extremely curious about your evident desire to avoid such an amiable and harmless young man. It was one thing to detest Jinyoung, but what problem could you possibly have with Choi Youngjae?

Mr. Choi blushed at the sudden question but there was something disappointed in his expression. “Ah; I have never had the pleasure of meeting Lord Lim himself, but I am acquainted with Mr. Lim Jaebum in passing and have also had the pleasure of losing to Colonel Jackson at cards. As for Miss Lim, well, I uh, I happened to meet her while she was in London a few years ago and we have continued our acquaintance since then. She’s a very charming and beautiful young woman.”

Mr. Park nodded. It was clear to him that Mr. Choi Youngjae was interested in you. He cleared his throat and smiled. “Well, am I to believe that some sort of congratulations will be in order in the near future?” he wondered.

“Oh! No; that is, I don’t think Miss Lim has any such inclinations,” Youngjae admitted. His cheeks flushed red fiercely. “She has told me quite firmly that she has absolutely no intention of marrying and leaving Portsmouth to live far away. I… I had rather hoped that she would compromise but the truth is that my estates and business are primarily located in London and there is nothing much that can be done about that. I do travel down to Portsmouth a few days in a year but that is…”

Jinyoung blinked. “I suppose it’s not sufficient for our spoiled young Miss Lim.”

Mr. Choi’s eyes widened. “Oh!”

“Surely, Mr. Choi, you cannot be so blind to the fact that the woman you are pursuing is indeed rather spoiled?” Jinyoung demanded. “She speaks to people just as she pleases and has no qualms boasting of the size of her dowry in public!”

Mr. Choi Youngjae smiled. “I see you do not understand Miss Lim very well yet.”

“Don’t I?”

“Indeed you don’t,” Mr Choi replied. “It is human nature for us to be proud of what we have, Mr. Park, especially when deep down we know that there are many other things we lack. Miss Lim has been deprived of a great many things that most young ladies have. I suppose we may let her have her dowry, at least.”

Jinyoung frowned.

What could a rich and beautiful heiress with a loving family possibly lack?

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#got7 #got7 scenarios #got7 scenario #got7 fanfiction #got7 regency #park jinyoung #got7 jinyoung #got7 jinyoung scenarios #jinyoung scenario #jinyoung regency!au #jinyoung angst #jinyoung fluff #got7 angst #got7 fluff #got7 imagines

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archiveofidentityconstellations · 5 years ago

Text

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) Batfam Miss Congeniality AU ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

“Steph, we need your help.”

“Okay, we’ll go over it one more time,” she says, tucking her phone between her ear and shoulder and drying her hands on a dish towel. “First separate the whites from the colors. Now, I like to wash my whites on cold, I like to think it makes them look a little fresher, but—”

“It’s not laundry,” Tim interrupts. He sounds a little nervous. “It’s, just, uh, could you get here please?”

“Have your measurements changed?” demands Bruce the minute she steps into the cave.

Stephanie’s gaze goes straight to Tim. He sends her a pleading look. “No,” she answers, graceful and gracious and patient as a saint. “Why?”

Bruce hums, typing away and doesn’t bother to respond.

Stephanie’s eyes meet Tim’s again, not as patient.

“A beauty pageant?”

“With scholarship opportunities,” Tim finishes. “You’re at Gotham U, so it’s perfect.”

Steph munches on a french fry (her treat for coming to the manor). “Why not Cass?”

“Cass doesn’t do well in front of cameras,” answers Bruce before Tim can open his mouth. “Besides that, pageantry takes a certain...capabilities.”

“Did you just call me a whore.”

“No, it’s—” Bruce cuts himself off. “A contestant requires pertinent social skills and you may be considered...charming.”

“Aww,” coos Steph. “That was just like pulling teeth.”

Bruce goes back to typing, ignoring her and probably sulking. She grins, taking a victory sip from her drink.

“So besides that fiasco,” Tim says in an undertone. Bruce huffs. Tim ignores him. “What do you think?”

“Sure.”

“You’ll do it?”

Stephanie shrugs. “So long as I get to keep the shoes, I’m down.”

Tim smiles at her, a small, proud thing and she doesn’t know how he does it, but his smiles make her feel proud of her too.

After all, it’s a beauty pageant, not rocket science. How hard can it be?

Beauty pageants are hell.

“Stand up straighter,” Barbara commands. “You need to look smooth, like you’re gliding.”

“How about I just bellyflop and dolphin slide my way down the stage, that would be smooth,” Stephanie suggests.

For some odd reason no one finds this as hilarious as she does but, well. Stephanie flips her hair and pretends to smile at a camera. Everyone’s a critic.

and then it all goes funny and wrong and they’re taught the meaning of family through stopping a murder and choosing the best eyelash glue hooray!

#batfam #Stephanie Brown

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miraculous-ladybec · 5 years ago

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Strong Girl Bong-Soon AU

In which Marinette, as Ladybug, is hired to protect Adrien with her superpowers.

Being the son of a world famous fashion designer was tough enough, but becomes dangerous when cryptic letters arrive at the Agreste mansion threatening Adrien’s life if his father doesn’t comply with their wishes.

Even though he hates to, Gabe figures hiring the local superheroine was his best bet at keeping his only family left alive. Plus maybe an opportunity to learn her identity for Hawkmoth purposes.

Adrien already has a huge crush on Ladybug so he’s more than okay with having a personal bodyguard for once

Marinette agrees, of course, because she “must protect all parisians”, at least that’s what she tells Tikki. We all know she wants more time with Adrien, and keeping him safe is top priority.

Adrien is allowed to be at school without protection because he’s in public and under the surveillance of his teachers and school security, so he has time to talk to Nino about how excited he is to see Ladybug all the time now (at least, more than he sees her as Chat)

Marinette figures this is a good way to learn more about her crush, even though she’ll have to be careful not to reveal too much about herself

She tells her parents she’s gotten an after-school job babysitting for one of her teachers for the next few weeks, in hopes that the authorities will find the people who are threatening Adrien by then

She goes after school to the Agreste Manor where the place is practically on lockdown mode. Adrien isn’t allowed to do photo shoots for the time being, and he’s definitely not allowed out of his father, Nathalie, or Ladybug’s sight.

She and Adrien are left alone in his room since Gabriel is always working, and he doesn’t handle stress very well (clearly)

At first, both parties are super awkward and giggly with each other. Mari is a little more confident behind her mask, but still blushes fervently if Adrien even looks at her for too long.

They find they can pass the time by playing through all of the games Adrien has in his arcade of a bedroom. Some of them multiplayer, some of them not. When they play single player games, they make a combination of their names for the playable character to be called. They trade off control while munching on snacks and making strategies in game.

Once Marinette calms down around him, she learns that Adrien has a lot of dorky interests that she finds rather endearing. She browses his collection of Shojo Manga and they even watch some anime together.

Of course, Adrien has to be careful not to make too many jokes or be flirty with his Bug. He can’t have her figuring out that he’s Chat Noir, and she’d be furious if she learned she was hired to protect someone who truly could protect himself.

The days go by and no more suspicious notes are left by the manor, so Adrien is cleared to go back to photoshoots, so long as Ladybug goes with him to keep watch. Luckily during this time, there haven’t been many Akuma attacks

Marinette doesnt complain about being toted along on photoshoots because she could watch Adrien all day, and she’s also super interested in seeing all of the designs being modeled.

The photographer instantly notices how “Senior Adrien is looking exceptionally happy these days” to which Adrien blushes, knowing full well that he shouldn’t be enjoying having a full time private bodyguard so much, given the circumstances

But honestly, he’s just happy that for the first time since his mother passed, he can come home and know he’ll have someone to talk to and spend time with who will smile genuinely around him and listen to his problems

Marinette notices Adrien looking happier in class and can’t help but hope she’s the reason why

That day after school, Marinette rushes to the manor to find Adrien asleep on his bed when she gets there. She sits on the edge of his bed with a manga to read, while she watches over him, but he reaches out in his slumber and pulls her over to him.

Blushinette

Mari let’s him spoon her while he naps and she finds herself drifting off being smothered by the smell of his sheets and cologne around her

ALARMS

There’s a break in at the manor, the power has been shut down internally.

Both teens wake up at once, not having enough time to process the position they had both been in, before Mari is in protect mode.

She curses under her breath about not having night vision like Chat, but Adrien supplies his cell phone flashlight

Full emergency shutdown goes into effect and all of the manor doors lock automatically with the backup generator, locking Ladybug and Adrien in his room, and hopefully anyone else out.

Ladybug decides it’d be safer for Adrien, and everyone else, to try to evacuate the manor and let the authorities swarm in to catch the intruders.

She uses her lucky charm to bust open Adrien’s bathroom window, and carries him bridal style to the safest place she can think of on the spot, her family’s bakery where he can hide in the back.

(Mari quickly detransforms and recharges Tikki)

She goes back to get Gabriel and Nathalie to find the perpetrator tearing apart Adrien’s room

“Looking for something?” Sassinette

She apprehends the intruder rather easily, since she’s used to fighting superpowered Akuma victims, and goes into full interrogation mode

She manages to learn that it’s an underground mafia trying to scam Gabriel out of money, by threatening at first, but that this mission was to actually capture and try to ransom Adrien off.

And she’d played right into their hands

In the case that she left with him, several men were waiting outside to follow her to wherever she hid Adrien, and they found him right where she left him

Of course her parents tried to protect the boy, but backed down when faced with real weapons

She hands the scumbag over to the authorities, now in full rage mode. If there’s anything Marinette hates more than liars, it’s people who put her friends and family in danger.

She steals the guys phone and manages to track it back to the headquarters of the mob, finding that they’d prepared for her to possibly come, but not expecting the level of ferocity to come out of such a usually peaceful heroine

Ladybug hands their asses to them for touching Adrien and even THINKING about harming her parents, and leaves them all bloodied on the floor when she calls the cops to come get them

Adrien is beaten up slightly from fighting back against them to the best of his abilities. He’s strong for a young teen, especially with his fencing training, but he’s no match for multiple full grown men with guns.

Ladybug takes him to the hospital to be checked over, he took a knife to the gut at one point in his struggle and she can’t help but feel like it’s all her fault, letting maybe a little too much Marinette show through while she kneels next to his hospital bed crying. Assuming he’s asleep, she detransforms to let Tikki rest after all the fighting.

He’s not asleep

She quickly passes out in the chair next to his bed

Of course Adrien is really injured, but it’s not nearly as bad as she perceived it to be. It’s not a deep cut, and it didn’t puncture any organs. He bled out a little and needed stitches, but it’s definitely not life threatening.

He suddenly finds it so easy to connect the dots between his lady and his princess now that he knows the two are the same.

Plagg makes an appearance finally to say “I told you so” as Adrien realizes he’s had feelings for his classmate and friend all along, pushing them down to maintain his love for Ladybug. But now that he knows they’re the same, he’s never letting her go again, so long as she wants him too.

He eventually doses off and has sweet dreams where Ladybug and Marinette are interchangeable in the most romantic of settings

Mari wakes up around 4 am and transforms back, heading home, unaware that Adrien discovered her secret.

The news the next morning show that Ladybug uncovered a major terrorist group that was behind all of the mob violence and the threatening of local celebrities and politicians

Mari feels awful and decides to fake sick to stay in bed, she manages to turn into ladybug around 3 pm to go to the hospital to see Adrien.

He’d actually been sent home that morning, so she swings by the manor where Mr. Agreste thanks her for her help and let’s her know she can go since it’s all been taken care of. She sees Adrien and that he’s doing fine and feels much better learning he’ll be able to return to school the next day provided that he doesn’t develop any symptoms around his injury.

Mari goes home, unable to sleep, she stays up making a new shirt for Adrien since “his old one must have a hole in it now”

This new shirt is a very soft sky blue material with a chest pocket with his initials embroidered on the inside. She stitches her signature on the internal hemline of the shirt after adding some final tweaks to make sure the striping across the chest is the same as his old shirt was.

She finally passes out with three hours left before class

Marinette wakes up late again and runs to school with her present for Adrien in hand

Just as predicted, he’s in his seat when she gets there. His eyes are glued to her from the moment she trips through the door.

He even tries to bolt from his chair to catch her, but the pain in his abdomen keeps him from getting up completely.

Mari waits until everyone has asked Adrien how he’s doing at lunch before approaching him with her gift.

She stutters way less than usual given that she’s spent the better part of two weeks getting to know him more

He opens the gift and starts tearing up at how thoughtful this girl is and “when did she have the time to do this?”

Unable to control himself, Adrien pulls a very stunned Marinette into a hug and whispers “How did I get so lucky as to have an angel like you in my life?”

Later at patrol, Chat decides he’s going to reveal himself to LB

They’re sitting on a roof together when he tells her how much he admired what she did to take down that mob group by herself and that he wishes he could have helped

She jokes about how he really should have been there to help, but she managed on her own

He gets serious, then tells her how much he appreciates what she does

LB brushes it off since it’s “Chat flattery”

But he looks her dead in the eyes, holds her hands and finally

FINALLY

Detransforms

“Do you get it now? Everything you did for me is more than I could have asked. You risked so much for me and singlehandedly saved my life.”

She’s stunned

“I love you, Marinette.”

She’s MORE stunned

“I-I love you too, Adrien.”

“BUT IF YOU EVER PUT YOURSELF IN HARMS WAY AGAIN WITHOUT TELLING ME YOU’RE CHAT NOIR FIRST—“

#this went on for longer than it should have #miraculous ladybug #chat noir #ladynoir #marinette dupain cheng #marichat #adrienette #ladybug #adrinette #miraculous AU #adrien agreste #strong girl bong soon

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post-itpenny · 5 years ago

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Final Business

Some Mafia AU that went on for way long than intended so I apologize for the length. Tagging @clownsgobeepbeep and @grotesquegabby since a few of yours make cameos.

Maggie sat at the little desk outside her boss’ office nervously tapping her fingers. She heard a soft jingle as a tiny figure stepped out, she gave Amaranthus a smile and tiny wave. The little girl returned so in kind before giving Maggie a suspicious look.

Maggie snickered and pulled a small paper bag from her purse, inside of which was a large cinnamon roll which she ripped in half.

“Normally I prefer these for breakfast.” Maggie giggled as she gave half to Ama, “but today is special I think.”

Ama munched on her half of the pastry, pausing on occasion to let her cat Mune lick some of the frosting from her fingers.

Maggie scarfed down her half of the pastry, her eyes flicking to the door of the office ever so often.

“Why is today special?”

Maggie turned to Ama at the question. “Well today I have to ask your dad for a really, really big favor that’s why. This cinnamon roll grants courage.”

Maggie spoke with such certainty that Ama took a moment to stare in awe at the remains of the treat in her hands before quickly eating the rest.

“Daddy is really nice, you don’t need to be sc-scared.”

Maggie gave a tight smile, the whole ruse of being a secretary felt silly and she was absolutely certain the kid had some awareness of what her dad did for a living. Until moments like this that is.

Maggie gave the little girl a thumbs up before going to the office door and giving a knock.

“Enter.”

Maggie found her boss seated behind his desk filling out some kind of paperwork. She hated calling him boss if she was honest with herself but that was what Blueblood was. Besides, part of her was worried if she continued to call him “ass” in her head that one day it would accidentally slip out.

“Good morning Miss Bryne I believe today you were on desk duty.”

Maggie straightened her shoulders. “Yeah well about that, sir I need to ask-”

Blueblood looked up, Maggie never started off by calling him “sir.”

“What do you want Maggie?”

“I need the day off.”

“Now?”

“Its an emergency.”

Blueblood frowned, waiting for her to elaborate. Maggie however kept silent, refusing to look away first.

“So you’re not going to even tell me why?”

“No, not now at least it's a family emergency.”

“You do know I did a background check on you yes? Miss Bryne you don’t have any family.”

Maggie flinched at the observation but refused to back down. “If you did as thorough a check as you claimed then you would know that's not entirely true. Sir I need the day off. I will owe you double the favor. Hell, I’ll do the next couple jobs free if it makes you happy.”

Bloueblood sneered, “best not considering you could stand to dress more professionally.” He eyed her scuffed boots and worn clothes. Something very obvious now that she wore a new boa.

Maggie rolled her eyes but held her tongue, she needed this too much to blow it in the name of getting the last word.

Blueblood arched an eyebrow, surprised at her lack of sarcasm. “Fine then, double the favor and I would appreciate some form of proper explanation after. Tomorrow I expect you here bright and early.”

Maggie sighed with relief and turned to go, “thank you so much-”

“Also, stop feeding my Angel so many sweets. She gets plenty already with all the tea parties she has.”

Maggie scoffed, “oh let the kid live a little. No childhood is complete without a little sugar rush.”

Before he could argue she was out the door.

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

She had been saving for years, putting aside every penny she could spare and watching the housing market like a hawk.

At long last, there was just enough.

Maggie’s better paycheck had helped immensely, something that made her question why was she being paid such a small wage to begin with. But Magpie sunk a large portion of her savings in as well and bought a small cottage that sat in the country nearly two hours from the city.

Magpie had an armed guard nearly 24/7, Maggie couldn’t be there to make sure her adopted mother was alright. When he was finally let in on the plan Vespers saw to it himself to help cover the signing fees and drive his aunt to the real estate office himself. Now here he was driving her to one final stop, one last piece of business.

The Godfather’s manor never felt so cold and unwelcoming to Magpie. This had been her childhood home, now it was a cave draped in finery. Her brother stood outside the door to the Godfather’s office, he looked so angry.

Magpie arched a questioning brow, what could she have possibly done to him personally to earn such a look?

Inside Blackwood sat waiting surrounded by guard, the blind old woman next to him as stoic as ever.

Magpie suppressed a shiver. Bridgette Bryne had always been next to her grandfather’s side, the two had always needed each other but Magpie knew how much they truly did not get along. Such an odd relationship.

“My dear Magpie,” Blackwood warmly greeted, “it's been quite sometime since you’ve visited us Angel.”

Magpie kissed his offered hand before stepping back. “Good day sir, I deeply appreciate you seeing me on such short notice.”

Blackwood sighed, “I understand how upset you must feel losing Maggie, Ms. Bryne herself was quite frustrated were you not Bridgette dear?” Blackwood asked the woman next to him.

Bridgette gave a mournful nod but nothing else, though she was blind her eyes somehow managed to land on Peregrine at the back of the room.

“However my darling Angel,” Blackwood continued, “I must ask why such dramatics?”

Magpie felt a cold sweat break out on the back of her neck. “Sir?”

Blackwood gave a thin smile, “you came to tell me you were leaving yes? Don’t think you could hide buying a house of all things.”

“Magpie gripped the cuffs of her coat sleeves. “Sir I have long desired to leave the city altogether you know this. I have already arranged for Joseph and Vega to take over the care of the shop and I find that I am no longer useful to you anyways. What's more with Jack’s crew running about I’m only a liability to you my dear Blackwood sir. I felt this would be the better arrangement.”

“But you seem to be under the impression I would allow you to leave my dear Angel.”

Magpie frowned, she was afraid of this. It took so much begging to him for her to retire, even more to find an arrangement that allowed her to leave the manor. Blackwood was a manipulative and greedy one no doubt. A control freak till the end.

“Sir I serve no purpose to you. My last act of service was caring for Ms. Bryne’s granddaughter-”

“Which you did quite wonderfully. I’m afraid the girl’s own rash behavior caused this consequence.”

Bridgette hummed in annoyance, “she certainly didn’t get it from me.”

Blackwood cleared his throat to pull the attention back to him. “I never formally dismissed you from service to your family Magpie my dear. While I am upset to have lost one perfectly good asset I refuse to lose another.”

“You have a funny way of treating your valuable people if I may be so bold, sir.” Magpie deadpanned.

Blackwood grinned, it was not a good thing. “Ah there it is. So this is where the little bird got her sass. Oh but I do take care of what is valuable my Angel. I shall reacquire Maggie in time don’t you fret and when I do she shall come directly back to her grandmother for training again. Blueblood will either drive her out or toss her aside quickly no doubt. A harsh lesson in obedience but a solid one.”

Magpie blanched, horrified at how serious he was. But Blackwood was still smiling. “What’s more my darling Angel you can’t possibly leave now given your recent promotion.”

“What promotion?”

“Well I can’t possibly be around forever Magpie. It has been my intention for years that you would be the perfect fit. You have a generous nature and are very calculating. But you and I both know the coldness underneath that fa-sod. A perfect fit indeed.

Magpie stood in shock, processing this new information. No wonder her brother was so angry.

Magpie started laughing.

It was a loud, hysterical laugh. Blackwood’s smile quickly slipping from his face.

“No you fool of an old man. I can’t stand you, why on Earth would I want to replace you?”

She continued to laugh as she turned to leave, only to be stopped when three of Blackwood’s men drew guns.

The laughter stopped but Magpie still did not turn to face him.

“Please by all means, go ahead and shoot.”

She took another step.

The man to her left pulled the trigger.

BAM!

The man collapsed, brains blown out. Magpie stock still with her gun still pointed in his direction.

Where she had even drawn the gun from did not matter, she didn't even look to the man when she shot him.

The other two gunmen backed away, Magpie looked over her shoulder with a giggle, she had a cold but mad look in her eye.

This is what Blackwood was so desperate to keep.

His Angel of Death.

“Such a bastard,” she hissed. “You never let me off my leash unless it was to maw your enemies. You kept both my little bird and I on tight funds so we could never gain any financial independence. You expect me to admire and adore you and fear you all at once. How stupid. The only thing you can truly hold over me you allowed my brother to send packing into the hands of a devil but far, far out of your grip.”

Blackwood paled, looking to Peregrine who stood with his arms crossed and just the slightest smirk.

“My deepest apologies sir, you did tell me to deal with her as I saw fit. Maggie was a liability.”

Blackwood looked from one sibling to the other, perhaps… just perhaps… they were more coordinated than he thought.

Again Magpie laughed, “shoot me I don’t care. But you know I’m faster than any of your men Blackwood. If I die you come with me.”

The words hung in the air.

She was right and they all knew it.

Magpie walked out the door gun in her hand, her brother did not follow but did give just the tiniest smile on her way out.

Mission accomplished.

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

Vespers had been waiting in the car, he did not see his aunt tuck a gun into the band of her skirt. All he saw was a tired older woman he had been tasted to drive to the bus station with her bags.

“I’m really sorry I can’t come with you like planned Aunt Pie,” Vespers sighed. “I have some unexpected errands to run tonight.”

Magpie smiled and gave her nephew a kiss on the head, “it’s quite alright Vessy dear. I won’t be alone. By the way, some parting advice for you. Please do yourself a favor and talk to that D’Vitt boy. The worst that can happen is he isn’t interested.”

Vespers blushed in embarrassment as they arrived at the bus station. Almost not noticing Maggie come up to the car and help Magpie out.

“So I can’t stay the night but I’ll take the last bus back so I can help you get settled.”

Magpie smiled and hugged Maggie tightly, the two carrying Magpie’s bags as they boarded the bus together.

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

At the D’Vitt Casino no one was aware of the drama that had occurred at the Blackwood estate. They were just aware that one Blackwood was now walking towards the bar where Stellar D’Vitt had been speaking with the bartender.

He frowned at the white-haired figure that approached, “what the hell are you doing here?”

Vespers gave a cheeky grin. “Well I have been running errands all evening and finished my last one not too far from here. Figured I would stop by and grab a drink before calling it a night. Mind joining me?”

Stellar sneered, “whatever you’re after you won’t find it here.” With this he walked off leaving Vespers alone at the bar.

The bartender watched in mild amusement as Vespers sat down with a tired sigh, “it’s Harley yes? It's been a long day friend, what do you recommend?”

Harley shook his head with a smirk as he reached for a glass.

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lastbluetardis · 6 years ago

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And Babies Make Five and Six (8/16)

Summary: Sometimes the things we want the most stay just out of reach. But after an extra helping of heartache as they try for a third baby, James and Rose are blessed with double the joy.

Trigger warning for infertility for select chapters–this is one of those chapters.

Ten x Rose AU

This chapter: NSFW (not very explicit), 10,300 words (another long one)

We’re finally at the climax of the story! This chapter was so hard to write, in more ways than one. I rewrote this approximately ten million times, and I’m really proud of it.

Betaed by the marvelous @chocolatequeennk. This is also for @doctorroseprompts and actually for a real prompt this time! It’s for the domestics prompt (yeah yeah, I know it’s not in the TARDIS, but it’s still life at home).

AO3 | TSP | FF | Perfectly Matched Series

Ch1 | Ch2 | Ch3 | Ch4 | Ch5 | Ch6 | Ch7 | Ch8 | Ch9 | Ch10 | Ch11 | Ch12 | Ch13 | Ch14 | Ch15 | Ch16

James took the lead on planning their trip to Paris, and by the time December first arrived, he’d booked a hotel suite and arranged a flight for them.

December passed in a blur. For Rose, she was busy scheduling holiday shoots and arranging her team’s holiday vacation schedules. For James, he was swamped with frantic students panicking about their final exams.

But finally it was time to drive to Scotland to celebrate the holidays. They only arrived on Christmas Eve this year; it was the soonest Rose could take off work, considering she was taking off the week after the New Year.

The combined giddiness of being in the Scotland manor and the impending arrival of Santa Claus made it difficult to get the girls to go to bed. They were wound up during the final Christmas film of the night—How the Grinch Stole Christmas!—and they asked to watch another movie all throughout their bedtime routine.

“You know the rules,” James reprimanded as he oversaw Sianin’s clumsy attempts at brushing her teeth. He stepped in to help with her molars when he saw she was content just to brush her front teeth.

“But Daddy!”

“But whatty?” he whined, grinning when she giggled through a foamy mouth of toothpaste. “Rinse and spit.”

He then guided her to the room across the hall from the master suite, where Rose was tucking Ainsley into the full-sized bed that the girls would be sharing. Sianin took a running leap and jumped on top of her sister.

“Santa’s comin’ Ainsley!” she shrieked, bouncing excitedly.

“I know, Sian,” she answered, her eyes lit up in excitement. She turned to face James. “D’you think he’ll like the biscuits we left out?”

“Definitely,” he said, eager to scarf down the biscuits that were on the coffee table as soon as the girls were asleep. “But it’s time to sleep. And remember, no presents ‘til seven.” He pointed to a clock on the wall, where Rose had put a sticker of a Christmas gift on the ‘7’. “Right, Sian? Seven o’clock.”

“Seven o’clock is present time,” she parroted, wriggling under the covers. “Coffee then presents.”

James and Rose shared a laugh, and they fussed with the blankets, making sure each child was comfy and warm enough.

“Goodnight,” he whispered, leaning over Sianin to give Ainsley a kiss. He then kissed Sianin’s forehead. “I love you both.”

“Night, Daddy.”

He stood from the bed and watched Rose kiss their daughters, then flicked off the light and shut the door.

They retired to the living room to place the gifts beneath the tree and munch on the plate of biscuits. Just as they were about to call it a night and head to bed, knowing tomorrow morning would come way too soon, they saw headlights through the front window.

A few minutes later, the front door of the manor opened.

“It’s started snowing!”

James and Rose walked to greet Donna and her family. Flecks of snow were in her hair and she was positively glowing. Married life was suiting her well.

“Maybe Ainsley and Sianin will wake up to a white Christmas,” Rose mused. She stepped forward and offered hugs to Donna, Lee, and Wilf, and a tight smile to Sylvia. Even after all these years, the woman still put her on edge. But she seemed to be in a good mood that night. “Merry Christmas, everyone.”

“We’ve g-g-got a bit of n-n-news,” Lee said excitedly, wrapping his arm around Donna’s waist.

“We’re pregnant!” she cried, giggling.

Rose’s heart dropped and she heard a dull ringing in her ears. James stiffened beside her and she hoped he had the good sense of smiling.

“Oh, that’s wonderful!” Rose said. Her cheeks hurt as she forced a grin across her face. Her mouth felt dry.

“It’s funny, we weren’t trying or anything,” Donna said. She passed her hand over her flat belly, and Rose felt slightly nauseous to watch Lee rest his hand atop hers. “It just sort of happened, y’know?”

Rose felt a hand fumble for hers, and she reached out to twine her fingers through James’s. She squeezed, and her nose burned with welling tears. It wasn’t fair that Donna got pregnant without even trying.

“Congratulations.” James’s voice sounded slightly hollow, but in their elation, Rose doubted Donna and Lee even noticed.

“You still have all of your old baby things, don’t you?”

Rose turned her attention from the happy, expecting couple to Sylvia. For the first time in Rose’s memory, Sylvia looked proud of her daughter.

Her words finally sank in, and Rose’s stomach knotted, knowing exactly where Sylvia was headed.

“Why don’t you donate it to Donna and Lee?” Sylvia continued. “Money’s a bit tight for them, what with the new mortgage and all…”

“Mum!” Donna hissed.

But Sylvia kept speaking. “…And you obviously don’t need it anymore.”

Tears welled up in Rose’s throat, making it hard to breathe. James’s hand was clenched so hard around hers that it hurt, and she knew her grip was just as tight. She wanted to snap at Sylvia that that was none of her damn business, but she knew if she opened her mouth she was going to burst into tears.

James, however, seemed slightly more composed. His voice was hard when he asked, “And what makes you think Rose and I are done having more children?”

Sylvia blinked. “Aren’t you?”

“No,” Rose whispered, and she squeezed James’s hand one last time before she slipped hers out of his grasp. She turned and walked passed Robert, who was looking at her so sadly that it made her first tear fall, and she moved down the hall to the master bedroom.

She paced around the room as she pressed the heels of her hands into her eyes, willing her tears away. She only had a few seconds before James would come find her. She could currently hear raised voices from the front room, and she had half a mind to go back out and tell them there were children trying to sleep just the next room over.

Thirty seconds later, a knock sounded on the closed door.

“Rose?”

“Yeah, come in,” she called, wiping at her eyes.

James slipped into the room and shut the door behind him. He stepped up to her and wrapped her into a hug. Neither of them spoke, and a few minutes later, another knock sounded on their bedroom room. Donna’s voice came from the other side. “Can I come in?”

James looked down at Rose, and when she nodded, he called her in.

Donna slipped through the door then latched it behind her.

“I am so sorry,” she said, her face tight with worry. “I didn’t realize Mum would say that. We didn’t know you’ve been trying for another baby… Even still, she shouldn’t have said that.”

“Thanks,” James said.

“I didn’t mean to make you feel badly about…” She gestured vaguely at her stomach, and Rose gave her a small but genuine smile.

“Don’t. This really is wonderful news,” she said sincerely. “A baby will change everything, but it’s such a good change.”

She stepped up to enfold Donna in a hug, then started asking when she was due and how she was feeling.

The snow had continued overnight, and though not much accumulated, there was a fine dusting of white coating everything the next morning. Ainsley was entranced at the sight, and they watched the sun rise through the tree line and sparkle across the fresh snow.

But the excitement of snow dimmed when they saw the pile of presents beneath the tree, and by the time all of the gifts were opened, the snow had melted in the morning sun.

Christmas passed in the same manner as previous years, though it seemed like tension had settled over the house. Whenever somebody congratulated Donna and Lee or asked them about the baby, Rose could feel everybody’s gaze flicker to her and James. She wanted to shout at everybody to mind their own bloody business, but instead, she actively engaged in the conversation about Donna’s pregnancy with gusto, forcing down her bitterness as she did so.

Luckily Ainsley and Sianin didn’t realize anything was amiss, and their presence was one of the only things keeping Rose from going mad.

It was finally time for her and James to head to the airport for their flight to Paris.

James felt on edge for the first day of their trip. After he and Rose checked into the honeymoon suite he’d booked for them, they decided to sightsee. Donning jackets, hats, and scarves, they stepped out into the chilly Paris street and started to walk, with no real destination in mind.

His hand brushed against hers, and he felt something unclench in his stomach when she fumbled to twine their gloved fingers together. She gave his hand a squeeze as she stepped closer to him and rested her head against his arm.

“It’s amazing here,” she marveled, her breath puffing out in front of her face. She looked up at him and flashed him a genuine smile that went all the way to her eyes. His lungs hitched at how beautiful she looked. “Thanks for suggesting we come here. We needed this.”

He nodded mutely and leaned down to press a kiss to her forehead.

It was impossible to not feel the romance of the city. The beauty of the old architecture was everywhere, and all of the restaurants seemed to be designed for couples.

The day of their anniversary, they went shopping for nice dinner clothes to wear that night. James found a smart-looking suit rather quickly, and he shivered when he saw Rose’s eyes darken when he stepped out of the dressing room to model it for her. She hadn’t looked at him that way in so long. While they hadn’t made love yet on their trip, James was hopeful that tonight would be the night.

After purchasing the suit and giving their room address for delivery, he walked with Rose to find a dress for her. They spent the next two hours in the shops, and James felt a little bad that he had no opinions, but he thought she looked fantastic in everything.

When she eventually decided on a little black dress that would complement his suit, James excused himself for a few minutes.

“Loo break,” he lied smoothly, and he pecked a kiss to her cheek and slipped out of the store. He wandered across the street to a jewelry store to pick up the order he had placed a couple weeks ago. He pocketed his gift to Rose, then joined her in the shop, where she was finishing paying for her dress.

Their evening was perfect, and James couldn’t have been happier. Rose was delighted when he showed her the earrings he’d bought for her. Platinum metal had been worked into the shape of a rose, with a diamond set into the center.

“Oh, these are beautiful,” she gasped when she opened the box.

“They’re a new design,” James said. “When I saw them, I couldn’t resist.”

“They’re absolutely wonderful.” She carefully took them out of the box and put them in her ears. When they were secure, she rocked onto her toes and pecked a kiss to his lips before turning away from him. She moved to her purse and reached into a side pocket, where she withdrew an envelope.

He took it from her and pulled out two pieces of paper. Admission tickets for Palais de la Découverte, a science museum right there in Paris.

“I know we said we wouldn’t have a formal itinerary,” Rose said as he scanned the back of the tickets for the various exhibits, “but this looked like something you would love.”

“Thank you,” he said earnestly. “But what about you?”

She furrowed her brows. “What about me?”

“It’s our anniversary,” he said. “Surely a stuffy old science museum won’t interest you.”

“And you’re saying the stuffy old art museum we toured yesterday interested you?” she shot back.

He felt his neck grow warm.

“Well… the art was pretty,” he said sheepishly. “But you loved it so much and listening to you explain everything to me made it much more fun and interesting.”

She smiled softly at him. “You do know I feel the same way when you talk science to me, yeah? I love seeing you get all excited. I know we have vastly different interests and different definitions of what we call fun, but as long as I’m with you, anything is fun.”

James’s heart fluttered in his chest, and he fell in love with his wife all over again. He stepped up to her and wrapped his arms loosely around her waist as he ducked down to press his lips to hers. She smiled into the kiss, and he couldn’t help but smile back.

“Thank you very much,” he whispered, pulling back from the kiss to look down at her. “I’m really excited. They’ve got a planetarium! I haven’t been to one of those in years!”

“I’ve never been,” Rose said, seeming to catch onto his enthusiasm.

“What?” James squawked. “How have I been your husband for eleven years and not taken you to a planetarium before?”

“Dunno, but we ought to get going. The taxi’ll be here soon.”

He nodded and pressed a parting kiss to her forehead before he stepped away from her. He grabbed her coat from the rack and held it open for her. When she fastened all of the buttons, he offered her his arm and affected a posh accent to say, “Dinner awaits, milady.”

She giggled and looped her arm through his. “Lead the way, good sir.”

He guided her to the taxi he’d called for and helped her into the back seat before he walked around to the other side. They were driven fifteen minutes across town to an elegant and expensive-looking restaurant. The floors were a dark, glossy tile with a long, narrow rug that spanned from the front door to the host’s desk.

“Reservation for Tyler-McCrimmon,” James said as they approached.

They were taken back immediately, and James admired the restaurant’s interior. Chandeliers hung across the ceiling, bathing the restaurant in a soft, yellow glow. The tables were spaced far enough apart to give illusions of privacy.

James pulled out Rose’s chair for her before he sat across from her.

The ambience of the restaurant created a quiet intimacy for them, and when they weren’t holding hands, their legs were intertwined beneath the tablecloth. The wine they drank made them warm and bubbly, and when they swayed together on the dance floor, they stole kisses until they couldn’t stand the need for propriety anymore. They paid for their meal and waited in the lobby for their taxi.

As the driver took them back to their hotel, they snogged in the backseat until they were broken apart by an awkwardly-cleared throat. James paid the man then wrapped his hand around Rose’s and guided her back to their room. As soon as the door closed, Rose pulled him down for a kiss. They snogged lazily against the door for many long minutes, teasing each other with kisses and touches until they were both aroused beyond coherence.

When he suspected Rose was going to suggest they go to bed, James began kissing his way down her chest, then he dropped to his knees. He heard her inhale sharply, guessing his intent, and he smirked to himself as he hiked up the skirt of her dress and slipped her knickers down her legs.

“You’re beautiful,” he mumbled against her hip as he kissed and nipped his way to her inner thigh. She parted her legs for him, and he pressed one last kiss to the seam where her thigh met her hip before he moved his mouth to where she was wet and throbbing for him.

It barely took any time at all, much to James’s delight. As he licked and sucked and caressed her in all the ways he knew she loved, she cried her appreciation and her pleasure, until she finally lost herself to her orgasm, panting his name as he worked her though it.

Her thighs trembled and her chest heaved, and James felt relieved. He guessed he hadn’t lost his touch after all. And when they eventually stumbled to bed, kissing and pawing at each other’s clothes, he settled between her thighs to give her another orgasm. When they finally joined together, he coaxed a third orgasm from her before he followed her in bliss and pleasure.

As she lay beside him, boneless and out of breath, James felt more at peace than he had in a long time.

The rest of their trip passed with them both in good spirits. They didn’t make love every night, but James wasn’t too bothered, not when Rose was looking at him like he hung the stars for her as they played tourist around Paris.

The made love on their last night in Paris, and similarly to their anniversary night, James worshipped Rose and her body until she tipped over in pleasure three times.

Upon coming home, James was relieved that the tenderness between him and Rose remained. They had regular movie date nights after the kids went to bed, and even if they didn’t make love after every date, they often snogged like teens on the sofa during most of the film.

Rose seemed happier than he’d seen her in months, and her attitude was infectious. The new year seemed to bring with it a new start for him and Rose. They rekindled the spark that had been missing, and it felt like the weight of the world was no longer on his shoulders.

When Rose’s period arrived a week and a half later, they weren’t surprised. She’d reached peak ovulation the day after Boxing Day, and what with the busyness of the holidays, they’d only managed to squeeze in one round of lovemaking before traveling to Scotland.

However, it seemed to shatter the illusion they were under, and once again, their intimacy cooled. James wanted to cry when he saw himself and Rose falling back into their regular routine. Wake up, get the kids ready, a kiss goodbye—if they remembered—go to work, collect the kids, come home, have dinner, have family time, put the kids to bed, go to bed. Repeat. They rarely had a date night until Rose entered her fertile cycle. They didn’t make love any other time, either.

James stopped initiating sex outside of her ovulation cycle, knowing he would be shot down nine times out of ten. His confidence in himself and in their relationship was all but gone. As the end of February approached, bringing them back to Rose’s fertile cycle, James found it difficult to engage in sex.

Despite himself, he couldn’t help but think that Rose didn’t want him anymore. Their anniversary had convinced him otherwise, for a brief period of time, but obviously the magic spell was broken, and Rose was back to being indifferent to him. He hated it, and he hated himself, and some nights, he hated Rose too. He wished they’d never started trying for a third baby. Maybe then his wife would still be in love with him.

oOoOo

Rose didn’t bother putting on pajamas, as she knew they would only be coming off later that night when James came to bed. She was two days in to her ovulation cycle, meaning they were due for another shag.

But when James came to bed nearly an hour later, he went through his usual nightly routine then turned off the light. It wasn’t unusual for them to shag in the dark, but it seemed like darkness was becoming the new normal for their lovemaking sessions.

James crawled into bed and leaned over to press a kiss to her lips. It was chaste and static, with just lips and no tongue or movement of their mouths at all. Rose reached up and twined her fingers into his hair to deepen the kiss as she tried to tug him closer, urging him on top of her.

“Wait, Rose, no,” he said, pulling away. “No, Rose. Not tonight. I’m really not in the mood.”

Rose dropped her hands and had to bite back the protest. She was ovulating. They only had a small window of opportunity before she became infertile again, and they had to make the most of this time. But he’d said no. She would not force him to have sex with her when he didn’t want it.

“Okay,” she said softly. All of a sudden, she felt exposed by being so naked. She wished she could get up and put on at least a t-shirt, but getting out of bed to put clothes on felt too awkward. James had seen her naked hundreds, if not thousands, of times, and she hated that she felt so uncomfortable around him right now.

She swallowed down the acidic taste in the back of her mouth and rolled over to try to go to sleep. But sleep didn’t come as swiftly as she wanted. She couldn’t help but feel so defeated. It was almost three years since they decided to try for another baby. But it was only recently, within the last year and a half or so, that she’d really felt the heartbreak of their failure. Of her failure. Of her body’s failure. James never said anything to indicate it, but he must be getting frustrated with her. He wanted another child so badly, but she was keeping it from happening and he was just too nice and polite to tell her.

But if he wanted a baby so badly, he should know that they needed to have sex when she was ovulating for that to happen. Then a thought struck her that made her insides go cold. What if he just wasn’t attracted to her anymore? Wouldn’t that explain why he didn’t seem interested in sex anymore? Why they made love—no, shagged—in the dark? Why he got it over with as quickly as he could? Why he’d just rejected her?

Rose squeezed her eyes shut against a swell of tears as she worked on convincing herself that her soulmate still wanted her.

The following day, Rose worked out how she could try to woo James. She made arrangements with Robert for him to pick the girls up and keep them for the night. After work, she went to the grocery store to gather the ingredients for the dinner she’d planned for them.

When she got home, she cleaned the house and put the girls’ toys in the box in the corner of the living room. With a half hour to go until James was off work, she quartered potatoes on a baking sheet and seasoned them before slipping them into the oven and setting the timer for an hour. She then went to get a quick shower so she could shave her legs and feel clean and fresh when her husband got home.

She wrapped her hair in a towel then moved to her dresser to find the matching bra and knickers set that James particularly enjoyed. It was a lovely dark plum set that he had given to her on last year’s birthday. The bra did wonders for her breasts by accentuating her cleavage, and the knickers were so comfy, despite the skimpiness of it.

With her underwear on, Rose moved to blow dry her hair until it fell in soft waves around her shoulders, then she reapplied her makeup with a light hand. After that was done, she moved to her closet and picked out a soft cotton dress that clung to her curves nicely.

Feeling rather pretty, Rose skipped to the kitchen to get the rest of dinner started. She seasoned the salmon and green beans. When the timer reached fifteen minutes left, she took it out and put the salmon and green beans onto the sheet. She slid the food back into the oven.

James was due home any minute, but she wanted to give him a minute to freshen up if he wanted to before they sat down to dinner. As the food cooked, she worked on lighting candles around their home as she picked up her iPad and made a romantic playlist.

But the oven timer went off fifteen minutes later, and James still wasn’t home. She kept their food in the oven to stay warm as she went to see how much longer James would be.

“Dinner’s getting cold,” she texted, sending a winking kiss emoji.

It took a few minutes, but finally he replied with, You and the girls start without me.

Her heart fell. “The girls are at your dad’s. I thought you and I could have dinner alone tonight.”

I’m not done here. Sorry. Save me a plate.

Rose set her phone down on the table with more force than necessary as she scraped her fingers through her hair. She felt hurt and annoyed, but more than that, she felt humiliated and rejected. She’d tried so hard to make a perfect night for her and James, but he didn’t want anything to do with it or her.

Feeling stupid, she blew out the candles and turned off the music before walking down the hall to get out of her nice clothes. She washed her face of makeup and changed into her comfiest pajama set, which incidentally included one of James’s shirts. It had stopped smelling like him a long time ago, but she still loved wearing it.

Deciding to not waste the food she’d made, she plated her dinner and put a second serving on a different plate, which she set in the microwave for James for whenever he decided to come home.

After she finished her dinner, she packed up the leftovers and stuck them in the fridge for tomorrow, then grabbed a carton of ice cream and settled onto the couch to let one of her favorite movies soothe her aching heart.

But not even The Runaway Bride could help, especially when she remembered why it was a favorite of hers. It was one of their go-to date night films, when she and James decided they wanted a quiet night in together. They both knew the movie by heart, and James would often act out the scenes—quite terribly and with outrageous accents—just to make her laugh.

Tears filled her eyes at the memories of James quoting the more romantic moments of the movie, to which she would usually catch his lips in a kiss and they’d spend the rest of the film making out on the sofa. She ached to get back to that. It was what she wanted for her date with James tonight. A nice supper together, maybe dancing together if a song they both liked dancing to came on, then a movie together on the sofa.

Even if they didn’t get around to making love, that would’ve been fine. She just wanted to have a romantic night with James. But it seemed he didn’t want to have a romantic night with her.

The ice cream sat as a hard lump in her stomach and left her feeling half-nauseated. She set the carton to the side and swiped at her stinging nose as her first tear fell. James had to have known this was a date, and still he didn’t want to come home.

Her chest hurt at the realization that her husband wasn’t attracted to her anymore. He couldn’t even bring himself to have sex with her anymore, outside of ovulation. But judging from the night before, he was even putting that off as much as he could.

Tears streamed down her cheeks and it felt like she couldn’t breathe. Sobs ripped up her throat as she tried to figure out why James didn’t want her anymore. He’d said time and time again that she was all he would ever want, but he obviously was wrong.

She just wanted her husband back. She wanted it to be like it was before when they were so in love with each other and they could make each other happy. Before she was beaten down every month as she failed to get pregnant. She didn’t want to feel this broken anymore, and more than anything, she wanted James to want her again.

Meanwhile, across town, James finally shut down his computer and gathered up his bag and keys. It was dark when he stepped outside, and his gurgling stomach reminded him of how late it really was. At least there would be a plate of food waiting for him when he got home, even if his daughters weren’t. His dad must’ve asked to take them for the night. Thinking back, James remembered his dad telling him he’d wanted to take the girls to a play. He thought it wasn’t until next month, but he shrugged to himself. He must’ve gotten the dates wrong.

The house was relatively dark when he got home, minus the light from a lamp in the living room and the glow from the TV. He heard the familiar dialogue of one of his favorite movies, and an ache of longing lodged in his chest. He and Rose hadn’t watched that movie in longer than he could remember, and he wondered why Rose would choose to watch that particular movie, especially when he wasn’t there to watch it with her. Unless the movie wasn’t as special to Rose as it was to him. That thought sent a stab of pain through his chest.

He sighed and set his keys in the dish and moved to heat up something for supper. His stomach rumbled when he saw the plate of salmon in the microwave. While he loved dinners with his daughters, he enjoyed when he and Rose ate alone and could cook adult food that the girls wouldn’t touch. There were times when he or Rose would make two different meals, but that was often too time-consuming and thus they were left eating foods compatible with a child’s palate.

As the meal heated up, James turned to leave the kitchen, but he stopped when he noticed the candles on the table. They were half-burnt down. He glanced around the kitchen and saw Rose’s iPad hooked to their stereo.

A heavy weight settled into his stomach. That weight hardened when he walked to their bedroom and he saw a dress and his favorite lingerie set on the floor.

“Oh, shit,” he whispered, realizing that Rose had intended for them to have a date night. And he’d mucked it up. “Shit!”

He shed his work clothes and pulled on casual clothes before going to apologize to his wife.

“Rose, I…”

The sight that greeted him nearly stopped his heart. Rose was bent double and wracked with sobs on the sofa. The sound of her gasping breaths restarted his heart and made it pound throughout his body as he rushed up to her. He felt numb as his brain frantically came to conclusions as to why she was crying so hard, and he prayed that his daughters were okay.

“Rose, what is it?” he asked, rushing up to her. He moved the carton of melted ice cream from the sofa cushion so he could sit down beside her. “What happened? What’s the matter?”

Impossible though it seemed, she began crying harder when he wrapped his arms around her. His body was shaking as he tried to get her calm enough to tell him what had her so upset.

“Please, you’re scaring me,” he whispered.

Rose gasped in a breath and manage to choke out something that sounded like “you don’t want me”.

“What?” he asked, sure he misheard her.

Rose drew in several shuddering breaths and sniffed hard before she whimpered, “I don’t know why you don’t want me anymore! It hurts so much.”

James’s eyes burned and his stomach roiled. What did she mean he didn’t want her? He would always want her.

“Rose, love, calm down,” he said. “Breathe for me. Deep breaths. And tell me again. Why on Earth do you think I don’t want you?”

“You didn’t want to come home for our date!” she wailed, her face crumpling again. Before he could tell her that he didn’t realize she’d planned for them to have a date, she continued. “Because you don’t want to have sex with me because you’re not attracted to me anymore.”

James clenched his jaw. “Excuse me? I don’t want to have sex with you?”

Rose sniffled and rubbed her hands across her face.

“You’re the one who doesn’t want to have sex with me,” he snapped, his voice cracking as his eyes stung with tears. “Unless you’re fertile, that is.” The insecurities James had been harboring for months reared up. “The only time you ever initiate sex anymore is when you’re ovulating. I’ve just become a bloody sperm donor, Rose! D’you know how that makes me feel? It makes me feel like my wife doesn’t love me. It makes me feel dirty and used!”

His voice had risen in volume as his hurt and loneliness from the last six months surfaced. But when he saw Rose’s face crumple again, he knew shouting wouldn’t help anything. She was hurting, too.

He inhaled deeply until he didn’t feel like shouting anymore, then he rested his hand at her knee.

“It hurts to feel used, Rose. You haven’t wanted to make love with me unless it was at a time you could’ve gotten pregnant. I know we’re trying for a baby, but it’s so hard to want to have sex, or to enjoy it, when it feels like I can’t pleasure you anymore.”

“What?” Rose asked, frowning. “You pleasure me all the time.”

“I don’t, actually,” James retorted. “You hardly ever orgasm when we make love. For the past few months, you’ve rejected my advances, and so I got nervous to even ask, which is why I stopped initiating sex. I thought you just weren’t into it anymore. But then when we did have sex, you wanted to focus on me, and that made me feel even worse because it was so obvious you didn’t want to be having sex.”

“That’s not true,” Rose said quietly.

“Well how was I supposed to know that?”

She shrugged and sniffled, and rubbed the back of her hand across her nose. James leaned forward for the box of tissues and he grabbed a handful. As Rose blew her nose, he stood and told her he was going to get them a glass of water.

When he entered the kitchen, the reminder of their blown date night made his stomach twist. The smell of his reheated dinner made him feel sick, even though he’d been famished when he got home. He ignored the microwave and instead grabbed two glasses from the cupboard and filled them with water from the pitcher in the fridge.

When he returned, Rose had turned off the TV and was mangling her tissue between her fingers.

“I’m sorry, James,” Rose murmured as he sat down beside her. She took the glass he offered to her and brought it to her lips for a small sip. “I’m sorry I’ve been blind to your feelings. I’d been so caught up in conceiving another baby that I didn’t think of you, and that’s awful of me to say, and I hate that it’s true.”

James sighed and Rose turned her head to meet his gaze. Dark shadows were under his eyes, and he looked so much older than she had ever seen.

“I feel like it’s my fault that we’ve struggled to conceive,” he whispered.

“No, James, it’s not—”

“But that’s how I feel,” he interrupted. “I felt like it was all down to me. I’m the one with the sperm, so obviously it’s my fault that we’re not getting pregnant because your body is fertile and ready to go. My sperm are the ones failing.”

Rose sucked in a sharp breath as anger swelled up inside of her. But my body isn’t ready to go, she thought bitterly. Not always. Not like yours is.

“How dare you,” she hissed, feeling hot tears prickle behind her eyes again. “How dare you!”

James blinked over at her in confusion, which made her anger spike, bringing with it all of the feelings of inadequacy she’d been harboring.

“Your body doesn’t live on a fertile cycle,” she said. Her hands were shaking so badly that she thought she might spill her water. She reached over and set it on the end table. “Your body is always fertile! But me? I have a five-day window to get pregnant. Five days, James! So how dare you say that my body is ready to go. It is not ready to go, and that kills me. I’m the limiting factor here. It’s my bloody fault that we only have a few days a month to try and make a baby, and if it didn’t happen, we had to wait another month to try again. And that was all my fault!”

Her tears spilled over, and she turned away from him as she tried to brush them away. But when James touched her shoulder and whispered, “Oh, Rose,” there was no stopping them. She hugged her middle as she tried to breathe, and when his grip on her shoulder tightened as he tugged her to him, she willingly went into his waiting embrace.

“Oh, Rose,” he whispered again, and she heard the anguish in his voice. “Rose, I am so sorry. I didn’t even think of it like that.” He wrapped his arms around her more tightly, tucking his head so his face was nestled in her shoulder. She clung to him, shaking as she tried to control her tears, and for a few silent minutes, he held her and rocked her gently as she cried for all of the hurt she’d been pushing down for too many months.

“For over a year now, I’ve felt so guilty,” she rasped. “Since the fertility tests. I only have a brief window of time to conceive a baby. And I kept failing you.”

His arms tightened around her. “No, Rose. No. You did not fail me. You could never fail me. Never ever. God, Rose. I had no idea you’d been pressuring yourself like that for so long. It wasn’t all down to you, love.”

James continued speaking softly to her as her tears fell, and Rose melted closer to him. Finally opening up to James and having him so vehemently dispel all of the fears she’d harbored of him resenting her lifted an enormous weight off of her chest.

Once her tears stopped, Rose pulled back and wiped her eyes dry. She sniffed against her running nose, and she turned away from him to find a tissue. She blew her nose noisily and tried to slow her breathing.

“Let’s finish our water then go to bed,” James suggested after they’d been sitting quietly for a few minutes.

While Rose was tempted to take him up on this offer—she was so bloody tired—she couldn’t. Not until they’d finished talking.

She shook her head. “No, we’re not done with this conversation yet. You said you felt guilty for a lack of conception.”

James dropped his head and muttered, “It doesn’t matter now. I was being insensitive and selfish.”

“Doesn’t matter,” Rose said. “You’re still hurt.”

James sniffed hard. She kept her head on his shoulder and rubbed her hand soothingly up and down his thigh as she waited for him to speak. But when he still wasn’t saying anything, she prompted, “You said you felt like it was your fault we weren’t conceiving. Which is ridiculous, just so you know. None of this is your fault. Okay? None of it.”

“How is it not?” he murmured miserably. “You and your eggs are perfectly healthy—”

“And you and your sperm are perfectly healthy,” she said, reaching out to take his hand. “We’ve been tested. We’re both healthy.”

“But—”

“No, James,” Rose said firmly. “I won’t let you do this to yourself. I won’t let you take the blame for something that isn’t your fault. Okay? If I’m not to blame for not getting pregnant, you aren’t to blame either.”

He sniffled and pressed his fingertips into his eyes, and she let him compose himself.

“James?” she asked tentatively. “Earlier, you said… you said you felt like just a sperm donor. That I made you feel like that.”

Rose watched his body tense up as he stayed silent.

“James, love, I never ever thought of you as just a sperm donor,” she said fiercely. “Hey. Look at me.”

Rose waited for a few seconds, and James finally exhaled shakily and lifted his head. His face looked shut-off and cautious, and Rose hated it.

“James,” she whispered. “Please believe me. I’ve never thought of you as a sperm donor. How could I? You’re my husband, and my soulmate. You’re the father of our children. I could never demean you like that.”

James’s muscles all loosened at once as he sighed.

“Yeah, I know,” he murmured quietly. “But Rose… it killed me to watch you being so passive when we had sex. You just… lay there. And when you started faking… I thought I’d… I thought I didn’t satisfy you anymore. And that you hated our sex life… hated sex with me. And that that’s why we only began shagging when you were ovulating, because you couldn’t bear to be intimate with me anymore.”

“No,” she said immediately, her heart breaking. “No, James. That’s not it at all. Oh, God.”

She scooted closer to him until she could wrap her arms around his shoulders. He let out a whimper and hauled her closer to him. His fingers clenched into her shirt and his stubble scraped across her cheek then ear as he buried his face into her neck. Her back twinged as it was awkwardly stretched, and so she leveraged herself into his lap and then cradled his head to her shoulder as his tears fell. They were hot and wet against her neck, and her eyes prickled in response to his pain.

“Oh, James.” She stroked her hand down the back of his head, hoping her fingers in his hair would calm it as it usually did. She turned her head and pressed her lips to the side of his head and kept them there as she murmured, “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

She didn’t think it was possible, but he managed to cling to her more tightly. The sounds of his stifled sobs broke her heart, and she let her own tears fall as she finally realized the agony he had been in for months.

“James, I didn’t hate—I don’t hate our sex life. Never.” She begged for him to believe her. “I had just gotten to the point where it felt like a chore. Like a means to an end. And I should have told you how I felt, but I didn’t know how. I’m so, so sorry I’ve made you feel inadequate, or like I was using you. Please believe me when I say that you are more than adequate.”

“I got so scared you didn’t want sex with me because I couldn’t pleasure you anymore,” he whispered raggedly. “And that you went through the motions when you were ovulating because it was necessary in order to make a baby. Then I thought maybe you were angry with me for not being fertile enough to get you pregnant. It’s all just been so hard lately, and I’ve been so, so scared, Rose, and I didn’t know what to do.”

She thought back to the times they’d been intimate over the last six months when it had seemed as though James had lost his attraction to her. She remembered all of the times he’d made love to her quickly, achieving orgasm in just a few minutes. While she hadn’t been in the right state of mind to take pleasure from their coupling, she loved watching him enjoy himself. There was nothing quite like holding him in her arms, feeling him moving inside of her, hearing him gasp her name as he reached the pinnacle of pleasure and spilled himself inside of her. She loved that moment, sharing that ultimate moment of intimacy and love with James.

So when he’d seemed to rush to get there, it had broken her heart. She’d thought he didn’t cherish their intimacy the way she did anymore.

But apparently she’d gotten it all wrong. She’d made James feel used and unloved. And in turn, that was how he made her feel.

“James, I never once thought you were unsatisfactory in bed. I love making love with you.”

“But I can’t make you come anymore,” he mumbled.

“That isn’t you, love,” she said softly. “I swear. You’re so wonderful and attentive to me. I’ve just had trouble enjoying sex because I felt the overwhelming pressure to conceive a baby. But believe me, I still loved watching you enjoy sex.”

“It was so hard to want to make love when I knew you didn’t want to,” James said. “Making love with you is something we do together. It something that’s just ours. And then you didn’t want it anymore, and that hurt. But of course I would never force you to make love when you didn’t want to. But then you didn’t even want to cuddle or kiss on the sofa or anything.”

“I thought I was being rude,” she whispered through numb lips. How had she misread this whole situation so completely? “I thought it was rude of me to want to make out with you but not make love afterwards.”

James sighed. “Your distance made me feel like you were upset with me. Upset that I wasn’t getting you pregnant, or that I was just being a rubbish husband and lover.”

“No. I was never angry with you for not getting me pregnant. It was kind of the opposite, actually,” she admitted. “I was angry at myself for being so infertile all the time, and then for failing even when I was fertile.” She took a deep breath, then continued, “And then I thought you just… I thought you weren’t attracted to me anymore.”

James lifted his head so fast that it cracked against Rose’s jaw. She rubbed the smarting area as she met James’s bloodshot gaze.

“How the hell did you come to that conclusion?” he demanded, wiping his eyes.

Rose shrugged. “I told you. I felt like I was failing you. And, well, I managed to convince myself that you thought I was a failure, too. I thought you’d been angry with me because I couldn’t conceive a baby, and I also thought you’d maybe just… I dunno… gotten bored with me. Between all of that and my feelings of failure, it was hard to enjoy our intimacy, or to feel like you were enjoying it.”

“Rose.” The hurt and betrayal was tangible in his voice. “You are the love of my life. You’re my soulmate. My wife! I promised to love you and cherish you and be your best friend for the rest of my life!”

“Even so, I could feel the apathy, James,” she rebutted. “It felt like you were indifferent to me and to our relationship, and it broke my heart.”

“I never meant to make you feel…”

“But I felt it anyway,” she interrupted.

James looked like he could argue, but instead, he worked his jaw for a few seconds. His shoulders slumped as he exhaled deeply.

“You’re right,” he said quietly. He reached up and cradled the side of her head in his hand as he leaned up to press his lips to her temple. “I am so sorry I’ve hurt you, Rose. I’m so sorry I made you doubt my love and devotion to you and our relationship. I promised to support you no matter what. Yes, I’ve been upset at our lack of conception, but never once was any of it directed at you. How could I possibly ever get upset with you over something like this?”

Rose shrugged and leaned into his chest again. She felt a little daft now, hearing him dispute her fears with such conviction.

She breathed in the smell of him and listened to the faint sound of his heartbeat. He wrapped his arms around her and they sat in silence for a few minutes, just holding each other. It was nice, Rose thought. It had been ages since they’d had a cuddle together.

She rubbed her fingertips through his arm hair as she steeled herself for her next thought. All of this hurting and heartache came about mostly from a lapse in communication, but also at their mutual stress and frustration of trying and failing to make a baby. She wanted another child so badly, but not at the cost of her relationship with James.

“I think we should stop trying for a baby,” she suggested quietly. “At least until we’re back in a good place. Because where we are right now, it’s not good. I’m so sorry, James.”

“It’s not all your fault,” he murmured, kissing the top of her head. “I should’ve spoken up sooner. But I kept holding onto the hope that each month would be the month when we’d get pregnant and everything would be all right again. I kept convincing myself over and over and over again.”

“I know. I told myself that, too.”

They sat quietly together for a few long minutes, just holding each other.

“I think you and I should go away together,” James murmured a few moments later. “Just you and me. So we can focus on being us again. Without the stress or pressure or expectation of pregnancy, and without the distraction of the girls.”

“Okay. Yeah, that sounds nice,” Rose said. “We can see if Mum or Dad can come stay with Ainsley and Sianin. Your term ends the week after next. We could plan to leave then. That Saturday, maybe?”

James shook his head. “Mother’s Day is that Sunday. I want you to be able to spend that day with Ainsley and Sianin. We could leave later that night, or the next day.”

“Let’s see if my mum or your dad can watch the girls that soon, first,” Rose said. “We may need to wait until after Sianin’s birthday.” She pecked a kiss to his jaw, then slid out of his lap. “But we can figure all of this out later. C’mon. Let’s go to bed.”

James nodded and pushed himself up. He grabbed her half-empty glass of water and downed the rest of it before putting the glasses into the sink. Together, they double-checked that the doors were locked, then they made their way down the hallway. Out of habit, Rose glanced into her daughters’ bedrooms, even though they were empty and the beds were made.

When they got to their bedroom, they moved around each other as they readied themselves for bed. Rose finished first and crawled under the blankets and listened to James brush his teeth. A few minutes later, he emerged and walked around to his side of the bed, where he slipped under the covers.

“Nighty night,” he whispered, his minty fresh breath puffing against her face as he leaned over and pecked a chaste kiss to her forehead.

He then rolled over and hugged the corner of the duvet to his chest.

Rose stared over at him, feeling a little lost and disappointed. After the conversation they’d just had, and how he’d held her in his lap for most of it, she anticipated a little more warmth from him. Though she supposed she shouldn’t have expected anything else. This was part of their routine. They each stayed on their own side of the bed and exchanged perfunctory kisses with each other before rolling away from each other. She hated it.

She wanted to go back to the days where there were no sides of the bed because they cuddled too close to distinguish where his half of the mattress ended and hers began. She wanted him to snuggle into her side if only for a few minutes before he would sleepily roll away, but have his leg kicked out so his foot was near hers. She yearned for those nights where they stayed up far too late just talking to each other.

But it had been months since they’d had that. She racked her brain, desperately trying to zero in on the moment it all fell apart, but she couldn’t.

Their eleventh anniversary was fine—perfect, really—but it was a fluke. They’d gone back to bad as soon as they returned home. Ainsley’s birthday… James’s birthday…

She grew more frantic as she skipped backwards in the months and her memories with James were still so cold.

Tears threatened, and she blinked them away impatiently.

“James?” she whispered, hoping they could cuddle for a bit before trying to sleep.

But he stayed on his side as he mumbled, “Hmm?”

The sight of his back remaining facing her broke her heart, and her tears fell.

“Never mind. Goodnight,” she whispered. She rolled over onto her side to have some semblance of privacy as she cried.

She curled into herself and tried to swallow her sobs, but it felt like she couldn’t breathe. She sniffled to clear her clogging nose and cringed at how loud it was in their quiet bedroom.

“Rose?” James shifted behind her, and then his body was pressed along her back. “Rose, love, what’s wrong?”

The endearment and the concern in his voice, coupled with the way his body was curled around hers, made her face crumple. Her lungs were screaming for air, so she gasped in a breath and exhaled out a sob.

“Oh, Rose. Shhh. C’mere. It’s okay. It’s okay. C’mere.”

He leaned away and tugged at her shoulder. Rose readily rolled over and she buried her face in his chest as her tears streamed down her cheeks.

“No, it’s not okay,” she whimpered. “What happened to us, James? Why are we so broken?”

“We’re not broken,” he whispered, rubbing her back slowly. “We’re just…”

He fell silent, and the fact that her husband, the person who seemingly knew every single English word known to man, couldn’t come up with a different word than ‘broken’ set her off again.

“Hey,” he murmured. “It’s okay. Breathe. Just breathe. We’re gonna be okay. I promise. We’re not broken. We’ve just lost our way a little. But lost things can always be found again, especially if two people are looking for it together. Because you and me, we’re still the best team there is. Eh?”

The confidence in his voice reassured her slightly. If James believed they could be fixed, and find what they’d lost in their relationship, she would trust him. More than that, she would work with him to get them back to good again.

She sniffled and draped an arm around his waist to hug him to her.

“I love you more than anything, Rose,” he whispered.

She squeezed her hand into a fist around his sleepshirt and held him tighter.

“I love you, too, James.”

He nuzzled his nose into her hair and pressed his lips to her forehead.

“What did you want to say earlier?” he asked.

“Just wanted a cuddle,” she answered.

He stiffened.

“And you didn’t think you could ask for one?”

The hurt in his voice was palpable, sending a dull ache through her chest and down into her stomach. She shrugged.

“I thought you were still angry with me.”

“Oh, Rose. No. I’m not angry with you. I never was. I just feel exhausted. And… and a little empty.”

Rose squeezed him and rubbed her hand across his back before she made to move away.

“Sorry. I’ll let you sleep now.”

But he tightened his grip around her. “No. Please. Can we keep cuddling for a little bit?”

Rose relaxed back into his embrace and nodded.

They were quiet for a few minutes, just holding each other and content to listen to each other breathe. The quiet intimacy was nice and relaxing; they hadn’t had that in far too long.

They both eventually drifted off to sleep, still twined together. Rose awoke sometime later to James shifting beside her. He pulled his arm out from under her neck, and he flexed his hand a few times.

“All right?” she mumbled, rolling onto her back. Her neck spasmed from the awkward position it had been in, and she slowly turned it from side to side.

“Pins and needles,” he answered. He let out a long, slow sigh and tugged the duvet up to his chin. He rolled over onto his side but angled his body so that his bum was close to her hip. “Nighty night.”

Rose patted his hip and closed her eyes to get more sleep.

She didn’t awake again until her alarm went off. Her mind was groggy and confused; she felt like she could sleep for a few more hours yet. She heard James shuffling around behind her and groaning softly as he woke up too.

She grabbed her phone and silenced the alarm, then sat up.

“How’d you sleep?” James mumbled.

She glanced down at him and saw his eyes were still closed, but he’d turned to face her and was hugging the duvet to his chest.

“Like a rock,” she said. He heaved out a sigh and his hair fell into his eyes as he arched his back. Rose stroked her fingers through his hair as she asked, “How’d you sleep?”

“All right,” he said. “Had some odd dreams. Dreams where it felt like I was awake, so it didn’t feel like I slept.”

“Well, you’ve still got some time before you have to be up. Go back to sleep.”

Rose leaned down and pressed a kiss to his cheek before she rolled out of bed and got ready for the day.

Things were better with James than they’d been in months; however, a stiffness had settled over them. It felt like they were tiptoeing around each other, making sure they were being careful and cautious to not upset the other. Rose was frustrated. She knew it would take time and effort to get back to the comfortable relationship she’d once had with James, but there had been a tiny piece of her that had hoped everything would have magically fixed itself. It was daft, she knew, but still she’d hoped.

“Dad said he could come stay with the girls starting Mother’s Day Sunday night,” James said after they put the girls to bed.

“Good,” Rose said. “Where are we going, by the way? We ought to figure out hotel arrangements if needed.”

“I was actually thinking we could go up to the manor in Scotland?” James suggested. “So we’re not too far away, and we won’t have to worry about hotels and eating out for all meals. It’s somewhere familiar, and it’s a place we won’t get distracted by sightseeing. We can just focus on us. What do you think?”

“Sounds great,” Rose said, making a mental note to ask her boss for time off.

Lindsey was more than willing to let Rose have the week off.

“You’ve been pulling overtime left and right,” she said. “Take a break.” After a short pause, her boss lowered her voice and asked, “Is everything all right, Rose? Did something happen?

Rose shrugged and said, “I don’t want to talk about it. James and I are okay, but we really need to take a break alone together.”

Rose worked hard to finish up all of her in-progress projects, and she assigned one of her teammates to act as the boss for the week. By the time she was due to take her week alone with James, she had all of her work wrapped up and would start with fresh assignments when she got back.

Mother’s Day finally came, bringing with it a colorful bouquet from James, and cards that the girls made.

“Happy Mother’s Day to the best mother on the planet,” James murmured, pressing a kiss to her temple as he ushered her to sit down at the kitchen table. “There’s no one else I would want to be raising my children with.”

Rose smiled at him and inhaled the perfume of the flowers he’d bought her. The girls then sprinted into the kitchen and vied for their mother’s attention.

“Come here you two,” Rose giggled, scooping them both up, glad that they were still small enough to fit in her lap at the same time. She hugged her girls tightly and pressed kisses to their hair, feeling so much love and joy for the two people who were responsible for making her a mother. “Oh, I love you both.”

“Love you, Mummy!”

“I love you too, Mummy!”

Rose rocked her daughters gently and rested her chin on Ainsley’s shoulder as she looked at the cards her girls made for her.

Robert and Jackie joined them in the afternoon for a late lunch barbecue, and once everyone was fed, James and Rose took their leave.

“We’ll be home next Sunday,” they promised, hugging their girls tightly. “Love you lots.”

Giving their daughters a final hug and kiss, James and Rose loaded their suitcases into their car and drove off into the setting sun and hopefully towards a regeneration of their marriage.

<-- Ch7 | Ch9 -->

#ficandchips #doctorroseprompts #dwfic #doctor who #ten x rose #au #ten x rose au #james x rose #soulmates #my fic #and babies make five and six #perfectly matched series #lemons #themes of infertility #here it is!!!#i really hope y'all like it #and i'd love to hear what you thought of this chapter

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