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champion-leon-imagines · 3 years ago

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Chronicles of Galar - Prologue 1: Taiko Hirebayashi

Some Info beforehand. This is going a pretty long fic with several chapters. But the chapters are somewhat different than normal fanfictions. Because they are just in chronological order but some of them are not actually connected to each other and some may have a greater timeskip than others. Imagine it like a readable diary of your adventures with just the mention worthy adventures added. But be careful, because this story is like a HELL OF A TOOTHROTTING-FLUFF fic. The main pairing is of course You x Leon. A side Pairing is Taiko(OC) x Raihan and a mentioned Pairing is Leiko(OC) x Piers Although, you won’t have to deal much with Leiko. But Taiko will get a bigger role since she becomes your best friend. Oh and if you wanna look for the Fic and it’s parts, make sure to follow the tag: Chronicles of Galar. Now enough Chatting, here is the introduction of the first character: My lovely tsun Taiko! And don’t forget: This is NOT proof read. English is NOT my first language. So please be gentle with mistakes.

[Prologue: Taiko Hirebayashi]

[9 years before the timeline in sword / shield]

“Taiko, honey. Don't run too far away from the camp. The wild area is teeming with Pokemon. ”, a woman, around her late 20s to early 30s with purple hair that was tied in a pigtail, spoke in a warning tone. She wore glasses and petted a Flareon, her loyal partner Pokemon. "Yes, mommy.", a 9-year old girl with fiery red hair replied cheekily. "And stop using this word, please. Did you learn that here in Galar? Please just call me mother. ”, she corrected her daughter. Ever since the holiday in Galar began, the child seemed to have increasingly adopted the linguistic peculiarities of the inhabitants of this region. "Okay, mother.", Taiko muttered and rolled her eyes in slight annoyance. She didn't thought it was that bad, because she loved everything in Galar. Much more than at her home in Ecruteak City, in Johto. Her mother was one of the dancing geishas at Ho-Oh's temple, which was why Taiko was promised an Eevee for her 10th birthday as a starter Pokemon. Like all geishas, she should learn the art of meditation dance one day, in order to command the awe of the holy phoenix pokemon. But now they were here, in Galar, enjoying a few days of vacation.

Taiko quickly got bored, however. In her tent, she started to felt shut in. Her toys were only entertaining for a short period of time. She wanted to explore the wild area and see Pokemon! No matter how much her mother told her not to.

The young redhead sneaked out of the tent, while her parents were talking to an employee of the Pokemon Rangers, because a wild Dynamax Pokemon attacked the Lake of outrage nearby. Therefore, a warning was issued to all traveling coaches and tourists to stay away from this lake in any case.

If that didn't sound like an adventure ..

Without even thinking about it, the girl simply ran through the wild area. Lake of outrage was relatively in the middle of the area and her parents' camp was quite far to the south, at a popular campground for out-of-towners. Because there were only weak Pokemon running around, which did not pose any danger to hikers.

So Taiko just had to walk south, right? ... But she didn't knew where the south was.

The extroverted redhead remembered her days in the scouts camp, which had taken place near Cianwood City. She remembered that moss grows on the northern side of trees because they are often in the shade due to the rays of the sun on the other side and the moss can spread there. So Taiko examined the surrounding trees and based on the position of the moss, she quickly knew where north was. She nodded proudly and then strutted north, full of energy.

Meanwhile in another part of the wild area.

“Pokeball, go!” an 11 year old boy with dark skin, casual clothes and a red headband that hid most of his hair, shouted. The pokeball hit a small, white spherical pokemon, which was vaguely reminiscent of a slug. The dragon pokemon Goomy. The ball wobbled three times before stopping and trapping the Pokemon. "YES!" the boy smirked and put himself in a victory pose, which, of course, nobody could see because he was alone. Shortly afterwards, he took his Rotom smartphone out of his pocket and took a picture of himself and his latest catch. Then he opened a social media page that was similar to Facebook.

'Look, I caught a Goomy! The dragon tamer Raihan has struck again! : D Soon nobody can stop me, so take a good look @Leon! I will be champion before you!'

With a grin, Raihan tapped 'Publish' and waited for the many likes from his friends and “fans”, as he liked to call his followers. It took less than 5 minutes before his best friend and rival had already made a like and comment.

'Wow, congratulations @Raihan! This Pokemon is totally rare! Unfortunately I haven't seen one yet. But don't be too early! Who will be champion first is still to be decided! '

Raihan grinned and replied, in his cheeky way. 'You have to find the stadium for our decisive fight first! XD I have enough time to train my Pokemon. '

The young man put his smartphone back in his pocket, he knew that Leon never accepted his provocations and therefore it was a waste of time to wait for an answer. “Come on, Vibrava. Let's see if we can find more cool Pokemon! ”He said to his partner Pokemon. The green, dragonfly-like Pokemon nodded eagerly and flew over the area, while Raihan grinned and followed his companion. He just loved looking for Pokemon in the wild area.

Back to Taiko. The young redhead was already regretting her spontaneous ideas and had to admit: she was lost.

This part of the wild area was so heavily overgrown by dense forest that hardly any sunlight penetrated through the thicket and consequently the moss grew on all sides of the trees. So it was impossible for her to determine in which direction she had to go.

"...MUM? DAD? DO YOU HEAR ME? ”And then she gave up and called desperately for her parents. Why the hell was she always so .. stubborn and had to give in to her curiosity?

The girl fell on her knees and began to cry. She was just too spontaneous and didn't think about the consequences. Now she was here in an unknown area, far away from her parents and who knows what else was lurking in the dark thicket?

A bush near her began to jiggle and that frightened the little girl. She stopped her emotional outburst and looked frightened at the bush. She crawled a few feet back from her almost sitting position and shivered as the rustling increased. Taiko swallowed lightly, trying not to make a sound to attract the attention of this unknown creature in the bush.

Suddenly a small, white rabbit pokemon rolled out with some somersaults. It had a kind of red fur in the shape of a plaster on its nose and its long ears wiggled and twitched as it straightened up and looked around. Taiko looked at the little Pokemon, which noticed her now too. It looked back. Neither of them moved for a few moments until Taiko blinked several times.

"How cute ..", she beamed and crawled forward on all fours. The little Pokemon stopped and tilted its head slightly as it watched the humans movements. "Scor? Scorbunny!" the little creature said. Taiko knew that Pokemon could only say their name, so now she knew the species. So that was a Scorbunny! She had never seen it before. Was it a regional Pokemon from Galar?

"Mmm, I think I have some candy somewhere …" the redhead mumbled. At least the situation calmed her down enough to forget about her outbreak minutes before ... She searched her pockets and actually found some fruit gums made from red haban berries. A very sweet type of berry that was perfect for sweets. Taiko smiled and offered the Pokemon some fruit gums. "Little one? You're are hungry, aren't you? ”She asked.

Scorbunny bounced closer and sniffed the girl's hand. Probably a first approach as to whether it could trust the person. As it took a fruit gum on its paws, it sniffed the gelatine again and stuffed it into its mouth. Taiko giggled as the Scorbunny gleefully chewed the fruit gum and then happily hopped up. "Scor! Scor Scor Bun?"

Taiko didn't knew what the Pokemon was trying to tell her, but from it's hopping around and staring at the fruit gums, it was obvious. It wanted more candy. The redhead smiled and gave Scorbunny a few more fruit gums. This time the Pokemon was braver and patted Taiko's hand with its paws before pounding on the fruit gums. Taiko had to laugh gently when Scorbunny let 5 fruit gums disappear into it's mouth at once and chewed contentedly. "You remind me of me." Taiko giggled.

Scorbunny finished snacking and as a token of gratitude, leaned it with its head on her arm and cuddled up to her. Taiko blinked slightly in surprise. Who could have guessed that wild Pokémon would approach humans so quickly? So obviously love goes through the stomach. Taiko smiled again and ruffled Scorbunnys fur behind it's ears. The Pokemon let out a satisfied purr and closed its eyes.

After a while, the Pokemon hopped onto her lap. This action surprised Taiko and she put both hands around the Pokemon. "It's so trusting .. it definitely belongs to someone ..", the redhead sighed, disappointed. She would have liked to keep the Scorbunny to herself. The two lingered like this for a few minutes until Taiko noticed that she was still in a quandary. She still didn't know how to get back to her parents. And the Pokemon was certainly not a sign back.

Slowly, the girl got up and let Scorbunny on the floor. “Go, your trainer is probably already worried about you.“ Taiko smiled and gave it a few last fruit gums before she continued on her way.

For the next 10 minutes she already missed Scorbunny .. She sighed softly to herself and stopped to lean against a tree. "Scorbunny ..." Taiko's eyes widened when she heard the Pokemon's call and turned around. Scorbunny was a few meters away from her. Taiko didn't even think for a second that it might be another Pokemon. It MUST be the same ..

When the Pokemon saw the girl kneel down, it ran into her arms and snuggled against the redhead's chest. Taiko straightened up and hugged the Pokemon. "You probably missed me too ..?", She asked and as if Scorbunny wanted to answer, it's nose nudged her fist when she raised her hand in front of it. Taiko smiled. "Then let's find a way back together." Scorbunny nodded and climbed onto her shoulder, where it made itself comfortable.

Taiko went on for a while, she didn't know how long, but it was already getting dark. Her parents were probably worried ... Then suddenly a huge lake was before her. Scorbunny sniffed the new surroundings and then tensed up with a menacing growl. The redhead swallowed at this cautious behavior. "The Lake of Outrage ...", she realized then. She wanted to run in the other direction when suddenly a giant Pangoro blocked her way. Apparently she had invaded it's territory because it looked angry. And aggressive.

The redhead stepped back, startled, and tripped over a thick branch. She fell on her bum and held her aching foot after she fell on it with her weight and cried out in pain. Pangoro seemed angry at the noise and stepped closer. It's dangerous threatening gesture made the girl's blood run cold. Scorbunny growled loudly and jumped in front of the girl as if it wanted to fight Pangoro.

"No..! This is an evolved Pokemon ...! It's too strong .. ” Taiko warned, but Scorbunny tried to attack with a double kick and jumped on the evolved Panda Pokemon. Pangoro held up Scorbunnys leg with one paw and tossed it back so that it landed in the mud next to the girl. "Scorbunny!" Taiko shouted distraught and took Scorbunny in her arms when Pangoro came closer and raised his paw for a blow. The redhead closed her eyes tightly and tears ran down her cheeks. "I don't want to die yet ..."

"Vibrava, dragon rush!", a boy's voice penetrated her ears and Taiko looked up when something enveloped in a blue aura slammed into the menacing Panda Pokemon from above in full speed. Pangoro was staggered by the recoil and Raihan jumped in front of Taiko, ordering his Vibrava to make further attacks. "Super power, now!"Raihan ordered, causing Vibrava to launch a wave of attacks on the Pangoro. The fighting Pokemon appeared to be extremely robust and put up with all attacks. "Damn it, well then we have no other choice. Vibrava, use sandstorm! "Raihan shouted. Then he turned to the girl behind him. "Cover your mouth and nose!"

Taiko nodded and pushed the scarf, that her mother had given her over, half over her face. Vibrava created a dense sandstorm that made the entire area so opaque that you couldn't see anything. It was only when Taiko felt someone put a hand on her shoulder that she recognized the outlines of the boy, who helped her. "Let's get out of here before the storm subsides," he said. Taiko tried to get up, but a strong pain in her leg made her fall back to the ground.

"Ouch .."

"Hey, are you okay?" Raihan asked, holding her to keep her from falling again.

"I must have broken my leg when I tripped earlier .. I can't step .." the redhead sighed in frustration. Raihan blinked for a moment and saw his Vibrava land on his shoulder. He knew the sandstorm wouldn't hold up the enemy Pokemon much longer. An idea occurred to him without further ado and he turned his back on the girl while he knelt down. “Climb on my back. I'll carry you. ", He said.

"T-I can't ask that of you ..", Taiko mumbled and shook her head vigorously.

“Come on, my tent is not far from here and the storm won't hold back Pangogo for long. We have to get out of here. ”, the young trainer explained and Taiko probably had no other choice. She sighed and climbed onto his back, the Scorbunny clinging on her shirt and holding onto her as the boy carried her away from the lake.

It really didn't take long, a maximum of 10 minutes, until the boy reached his tent and gently laid the young girl on his sleeping bag.

"Here we are. Uhm. What's your name anyway? ”The boy then asked with a smile.

"T-Taiko and what's your name?"

"Raihan. Are you a Gym Challenger too? " Raihan asked and saw how the Scorbunny had snuggled up with her and was sleeping. The redhead shook her head. “I'm not from here and I'm only 9 .. My parents and I are only here for vacation. I live in Johto. “, She then explained.

“Then why were you alone at Lake of outrage? It's not an approved campsite at all. On the contrary, it is strictly forbidden for travelers to enter here.“

"Uhm .. well .. I was curious because I was bored in the tent and .. then I somehow got lost ..", the redhead explained, embarrassed, and tugged on a strand of red hair. Raihan just looked at her before he laughed. This reaction offended Taiko now that she thought he was making fun of her situation.

"Hey, that's not funny, I was really scared!" She said with a pout and turned away with slightly flushed cheeks. Raihan wiped a tear of laughter from his face and grinned slightly before winking at her. "Sorry, I didn't laugh at you. Just .. I've done so much nonsense too. When I was 5, my father was camping here with me too and I saw a Trapinch and followed it to Lake of outrage too. My father had to save me from a wild Gyarados in the water. And I was just thinking that I was having a deja vu when I saved you, ”he admitted with a laugh.

Taiko blinked slightly.

"Uhm ..", she just wasn't quite sure what to say to that. "Thank you for the rescue ..", she said quietly, but still slightly offended, and turned her head away from him.

"You are welcome. But let's take care of your leg first. ", Raihan said and got a first aid kit from the corner of his stuff. Taiko lingered as quiet as a mouse, a rarity with her otherwise extroverted personality, when Raihan exposed the leg by lifting her pants up the affected leg and pulling down her socks to inspect the damage. “That looks bad. No wonder you can't walk. ", He said and took a rag that he moistened with a kind of disinfectant spray. "That could burn a bit now," he warned her.

The redhead bit her lip and squeaked softly as he placed the rag on the wound on her leg. Raihan smiled and praised her for how bravely she got through this action. She even had to laugh a little when he confessed that he had screamed like crazy when he was injured and his father wanted to treat him with the stuff too. She didn't know why, but somehow Taiko didn't feel so helpless anymore.

She watched spellbound as he expertly cleaned the wound and treated it with a bandage. "You don't seem to be doing this for the first time," she said then. Raihan blinked and then looked up at her as he kneeled in front of her to put his foot on his lap.

"Yeah. I have a clumsy best friend. His injury rate is pretty high when he's got lost. I don't even know how often I've been bandaged his falls and grazes. ", Raihan said thoughtfully and Taiko giggled. “Sounds like me. I am also at risk of injury. A miracle it was only the leg. ", She sighed. Raihan smiled and put her leg down again.

“You would certainly get along well. He exudes the same positive energy as you. ", Raihan said, whereupon Taiko went a little red in the face. However, she didn't know why. "I exude positive energy?" She asked.

"Sure, of course. You can see that just by how Scorbunny has taken you to its heart! I thought to myself that it wasn't yours when you said you were only 9 and not from here. So it's a wild Pokemon, but it behaves like you've been training it for years. ", The boy remarked, whereupon the girl's cheeks turned even darker. "Uhm .. I'll take that as a compliment .." she whispered, slightly embarrassed. "It was one." Raihan winked and was amused by the shy behavior of the girl. At the lake she had behaved differently. Then there was a short silence between the two of them until Raihan reached for his smartphone. For once, he wasn't interested in his social media activities. “Which campsite are you at? In the east or in the south? ”He asked.

"Uhm .. south?"

"All right." Raihan smiled and started dialing a number.

"Who are you calling?"

“Mr. Pascal. He is practically the lessor of the campsite. Your parents surely miss you. So I'll give him our coordinates so that someone can come and pick you up. Because I can't carry you the way to the campsite. ”At this comment the redhead blushed again and turned away slightly. “Your last name would still be helpful to find your parents more easily. "..Hirabayashi."

Raihan called and talked to Pascal for a few minutes until he had passed on all the informations. About the aggressiveness of the Pokemon at Lake of outrage, about the injured girl and also their whereabouts. Then he thanked him and hung up. “They can't send a rescue team out until tomorrow morning because they'd have problems finding us and transporting you. I told them that you can spend the night with me in the tent and that you are safe. ", Raihan said. "Uhm .. but you only have one sleeping bag." Taiko spoke. "But that doesn't matter .. I can sleep on the floor."

Raihan sighed.

“There is no way of letting a girl sleep on the floor. You sleep in my sleeping bag, I sleep on the floor. " He said.

"Never."

"Well, then we'll both sleep on the floor if you don't give in." Raihan shrugged his shoulders, whereupon Taiko rolled his eyes. "Then give in.", She said and shrugged her shoulders. Raihan grinned slightly and folded his arms behind his neck.

"Only if you sleep in my sleeping bag." Was the devious answer. "To what extent is that giving in for YOU?" Taiko asked now and crossed her arms in front of her chest. The two just looked at each other for a few moments before Raihan sighed in defeat. "Well, let's make a compromise.", He said, which made Taiko sit up and take notice. “It gets darn cold here at night anyway. If we cuddle up a little ... together, we can both sleep in the sleeping bag and the body heat prevents us from half-freezing to death. "

His suggestion made Taiko look shocked. He wasn't really serious, was it? She didn't know this boy at all. But now that he said it, it was actually quite fresh. "..."

"You can of course also become a living Vanillite if you prefer that.", Raihan said and spread out the sleeping bag. "Okay, okay. It's only for one night. ", She gave in, whereupon Raihan had to laugh again.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

The next morning, Taiko's parents and some of the wild area staff members went to the location of forest that Raihan had described for them. It wasn't long before they found the tent, which was guarded by a Duraludon. “This is Raihan’s tent. It has to be. " Pascal remaked, before Taikos parents ran to the tent. "Taiko ?!"

Taiko blinked, she was still half asleep when she yawned and snuggled into something warm. This warmth moved slightly, from which the redhead woke up. She wiped away the sleep on her eyes and then saw how she was snuggled up against Raihan, her legs tangled and his arms pressed her to his chest.

The girl quickly broke away from him and Raihan woke up too. "Woah?"

The redhead ignored him and let her mother hug her tightly.

"What kind of things are you doing?" Her mother scolded her. "I'm sorry .. really .." the girl apologized and was then pulled into a hug by her father. "Never do that again," he said then. "You're hurt, aren't you? I'll carry you back. ", He said then and wanted to pick her up. "Wait, dad ..!" Taiko stopped him and then turned to Raihan. She made a beckoning hand gesture that signaled him to come closer. "Thanks again for everything, Raihan. I hope to see you again. ", She smiled and hugged him goodbye. Raihan smiled and hugged back. “Well, if you ever want to visit Galar again, you are always welcome. Until then, I'm champion and you can visit me in my palace. ”He laughed. "The champion lives in a palace?" Taiko asked and her eyes widened greatly.

"I dunno, but definitely!", Raihan laughed then, whereupon Taiko had to laugh too. "Well, see you at some point, hopefully. And take care of yourself, you risk-of-injury. ", He said teasingly.

Taiko was then carried back to the campsite and was even allowed to keep Scorbunny.

And what should she say?

5 years later, she set foot in Galar again after her divorced mother wanted to start a new life over there and Taiko seized the opportunity and followed her to see the cute boy from back then again.

#Chronicles of Galar #Leon #leon pokemon #pokemon leon #pkmn leon #champion leon #raihan #pokemon raihan #gym leader raihan #raihan pokemon #Leon x Reader #Pokemon #pokemon sword and shield #pokemon shsw

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artemisia-black · 3 years ago

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#1, #3 (from D&D), #25 (from Pietas and D&D), #29 :)

Thanks you for the ask ♥️ It means so much when people ask about my work

What’s your favorite character(s) to write for?

I love writing Sirius. I love how complex he is. He’s capable of being mean (telling Aeliana she’s not his type), so loving (any scene with Harry), shrewd and diligent. He’s too proud to ask for work but will happily cover himself in dung to prune Lily’s Roses. I love him making penis jokes with his Owl and how he loves his Kneazle. And how he insults Reg at every turn but has still taken him in. I just bloody love Sirius Black.

Do you have a favorite scene you’ve written from [Fanfic Name] story/chapter?

It has to be the Pancake scene with Harry. I wrote it as a deliberate juxtaposition to canon. When we first meet Harry in PS he’s made to get up and cook for Dudley. In D&D this is the first time we see Harry at home so I wanted to show him being taught to cook in a loving way. Being spoiled by his mum and slightly neurotic Godfather ( I loved adding the detail of Sirius being protective about the oil because he’s not a reckless Godfather and I will die on this hill lol).

What scene in [Fanfic Name] took the longest to write? What was difficult about it?

In D&D the scene between Aeliana and Sirius in the suite took ageeesss. In the first draft, they gave into quickly, so I had to refer back to their character docs ( a spreadsheet I keep about their motivations) and rewrite large parts of it. They are stubborn and proud, plus attracted to each other that it was a challenge getting it write.

In Pietas it’s a current scene between Aeliana and Leone, which gives some insights into why they are entertaining this match. It’s so tricky to get right lol

What part of the writing process do you enjoy the most? (Brainstorming, outlining, writing, editing, etc)

I love editing. Genuinely the best part for me. First draft is always a hot, hot mess and the editing process helps me bring it up to code. I love it 😻

#sirius black #harry potter fanfiction #my writing

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honeyandhondewberries · 4 years ago

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can you write about Leon, Raihan, and/or Piers getting flowers from their crush?

this one is CUTE HOW do you people think of such CUTE THINGS??

I did little pieces for all the boys bc this was just so CUTE

Impatiens, Daffodils, Daisies (PiersxReader, LeonxReader, RaihanxReader)

Piers:

Hears a knock on the door, groans loud enough for whoever is on the other side to know they are Not Welcome

Opens door ‘What do you-‘

Shit

He really wished he wasn’t so pale, because then it wouldn’t be so easy to see the pink in his face

Scratch that, flaring red

Because there you are, with your disgustingly sweet smile and a… bouquet?

‘I was in the market,’ you say with that stupid shiny smile. ‘And I bought these because they reminded me of you!’

Flowers? Him? That’s a first.

'They’re just gonna die,’ Piers mumbles. Hopefully him constantly pushing you away will give you the hint that he definitely wants you to stay

‘They’ll live for a little bit if you take care of them,’ you say, frustratingly unperturbed by his grumbling. “These ones do well in the shade – they’re hydrangeas and impatiens.’

You giggle. You giggle. Your stupid giggle is a melody in his ears. How do you so perfectly harmonize with everything in the air with that stupid giggle?

'Impatiens,’ Piers repeats. ‘Ha ha, very funny.’

‘I thought so,’ you say, offering your most charming – and most smug – smile

Piers turns before his face gets even more red.

(he doesn’t turn quickly enough)

‘Well um…’ Piers mumbles. ‘Thanks, I guess. Marnie will like ‘em.’

‘Oh,’ you say again. ‘I got some for her too.’

How do you do this? How do you care about him and the things he cares about? His face is as pink as these flowers.

The flowers for Marnie are apparently called ‘Bletilla.’ Piers would never remember those names if it wasn’t you that was telling him

‘Thanks’ he mumbles again, looking certainly out of place holding two colorful bouquets in his arms.

You’re turning, waving goodbye, still with that shiny smile

Piers fumbles. For someone who’s so often in front of crowds, being in front of just you always makes him stutter

‘D-Do you,’ Piers mumbles, ‘I’ve just put some tea on…’

You seem to understand, just as you always do, what he’s trying to say

When you nod, he lets slip a smile, and you do too.

Piers quickly forces down the corners of his mouth, but when he guides you into his house, they seem to perk right back up again.

Leon:

Flowers on his doorstep isn’t an uncommon occurrence

Sometimes they’re from his mum though, so he always makes sure to check the tag

These ones are pretty... Daffodils and carnations – his favorite flowers. How did they know?

The only person who’s ever asked about his favorite flower is…

Leon’s alone in his house, but even then he tries to hide his smile when he reads the tag

It’s from you.

Of course it’s from you.

His hidden smile slips into a big one – huge and shiny and a little doofy, he’s embarrassed at how easily you affect him, even when you’re not around

You had tried to be so sly when you asked, rocking so simply on the balls of your feet

‘Sooo,’ you had asked, drawing out the word like a piece of stretchy chewing gum. ‘You must get a lot flowers, huh?’

Leon already knew where that was going, so he set his chin on his fist and leaned closer, just to see that cute little blush creep into your cheeks.

‘I’m just curious!’ you had spluttered, already outing yourself before you could even ask.

‘It’s true. I think I’m most excited though when I get daffodils and carnations,’ he had hummed, raising an eyebrow at you.

You had nodded, eyes flicking to the side as you tucked away that bit of information

At the time, all he could think was a steady stream of ‘you’re so cute you’re so cute you’re so cute’

That’s all he’s thinking now, too, when he imagines what your silly little grin must have looked like when you sent these

He’s got it bad

He’s got it so, so bad for you

You occupy his mind many minutes of every day, and now that’ll increase ten-fold whenever he looks at these flowers on his counter

Maybe he could invite you over, just so you can see how he’s proudly displaying these flowers as openly as he can

He pauses when he reaches for his phone

A twang of excitement pulls in his stomach

As does a bundle of nerves in his chest

Even when you’re not around, you do such a good job of making him nervous. Him. Nervous.

He types something out, erases it, types something else out, erases it.

What will make you smile? What will make you blush and bite back a giddy grin, just like he’s doing now?

He gives up and just sends a picture of your flowers sitting on his counter.

He wanted to say something clever, something charming and alluring, but all he could think of is

‘got some flowers today :)’

That was pretty lame.

Hopefully that’s hint enough, though

Apparently it is, because Leon swallows a squeal (him, a grown man, squealing alone in his house) when you immediately reply

‘Ooo, those are nice. Bet they’re even more beautiful in person’

Leon sends a reply, sets his phone down, and hides his face in his hands.

He’s got it so bad.

Raihan

‘So, does he love you, or does he love you not?’ Raihan teases

‘You don’t even know if it’s a guy,’ you retort after a quick jolt of surprise.

Raihan watches in smug amusement as you try to hide the daisy petals you were plucking

You’ve never been very discreet, but Raihan loves it

‘But now I know you weren’t just plucking petals,’ he hums

His heart thumps when you blush, when you bashfully turn your head and grumble

‘C’mon, who is it,’ Raihan asks, tugging on your sleeve. ‘I won’t tease’

Probably.

Really it depends on who you were plucking petals for.

‘Rubbish,’ you say.

He playfully begs and pleads, but you won’t budge.

When you tell him to give up, Raihan wonders if now is the time to tell you

He’s been thinking it for a while now (since the second he met you, actually)

At first it was just because you’d look great with him on his social media platforms

But now he almost wants to keep you for himself

That’s why he brought you up to this hill overlooking Hammerlocke, so no one could cut into your time together

He’s mulling it over in his mind, how to finally confess, how to make it charming and suave, only to pause when you hold out the daisy stem

It’s got one petal left.

‘He loves me,’ you say quietly.

Raihan’s gaze flicks between your eyes and the single petal

Do you…? Could you?

‘But I guess that depends on if you count the last petal or if you count after the last petal,’ you say quickly when he doesn’t respond.

You’re retracting the daisy stem, only to pause when Raihan lightly pulls the stem from your fingers

‘I’d say it counts,’ he says. He wanted to make this charming and whatnot, but he’s feeling a little vulnerable himself.

He tucks the daisy stem behind his ear.

‘How do I look?’

‘Good,’ you say. ‘It fits.’

‘I think so too,’ he says.

His fingers comb through the grass, the daisy petals

His hand finds yours, and you lace your fingers together

‘I’d even say he loves you too.’

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piers-supremacy · 3 years ago

Text

For context— this takes place in the past. This isn’t apart of any main plot. It’s just a fun establishment thingy I was inspired to write while I had time.

Cw: examples of emotional manipulation.

Dierdra quietly tapped a finger on the table cloth, weaving along the threads with her eyes. There was the faint sound of electronic voices coming from the living room, quiet snoring, and the apparent tick of a clock.

A chair scraped across the ground in front of her. Dierdra’s shoulders leapt and her eyes met the person holding the back. A white hot mug was set in front of her, the steam tickling her face.

“It’s good to see you, D. It’s been such a long time since the last I saw you. You were so small then!” The brown haired woman chuckled as she sat down.

“Heh, yeah, s’pose so. What’s this?” Dierdra pointed to the mug in front of her.

“It’s tea, love. It’s alright if you’re not thirsty. It’s polite to cater guests either way.” The woman sipped from the mug she had for herself, “Well, down to business then. Have you had experience babysitting before?”

“Nah, I’m an only-child. The closest I got was watching an old friend’s little sister. That was only for an hour, though. I was thirteen then. Been awhile.”

“Oh, alright. Well, perhaps I can stay here the first few times you watch them. Just so you get the hang of it.”

There was a shuffling that covered up the television in the other room for a moment.

“Mum! Can you change the channel?! Hop texted that Leon’s gunna be on TV!” A small girl leaned into the kitchen, she had a comically oversized grey sweater that was most likely made by her mother.

“I’ll be there in a minute, Gloria. I’m having an important conversation.”

A little boy ran next to the girl in the doorway and slid on his socks, “We don’t have a minute! Come on, please?”

“Mum said in a minute!” Gloria snatched her brother’s knitted hat roughly, and threw it across the living room.

“Agh, Gloria!” As the boy ran to grab his hat, his foot caught on a wrinkle in the carpet and he fell forward. The woman across the table shot up, the chair she sat in screeched across the floor.

“Gloria! Get Victor's hat! Now!”

All three of them disappeared into the living room. Leaving Dierdra, who was squeezing her lips together to hide her amusement.

Dierdra turned back to the untouched tea, which was no longer steaming.

“Well, at least it won’t be boring here.” Dierdra stated to herself.

Dierdra tuned into the sounds around her again, this time focusing mainly on the snoring. She glanced under the table where it came from to see a sleeping Munchlax. She cooed at it, prompting to take a picture with her phone, upon looking at the screen her notifications had blown up. 10 calls and an unending list of texts.

“Shit…”

‘Where are you?’ ‘Why aren’t you responding?’ ‘For fucks sake you’re with another guy aren’t you?’ ‘Pick up now or I’m going to your location.’

Dierdra’s heart shot up into her throat, as her fingers tapped away to respond.

‘No, no, baby. It’s ok, I wouldn’t do that to you. I’m just in a job interview. We can meet back at my house if you want?’

‘A job interview? In Postwick? Whatever, just say you don’t love me.’

Dierdra dug her fingers into her scalp as she read that over, unsure of how to respond.

‘I do love you and I’m at Gloria and Victor’s. I thought I already told you where I was going?’ Dierdra tapped her foot in place as the text lit up as ‘read’ but after that, no typing, no response.

‘I’ll be home soon.’ Dierdra typed.

“I’m very sorry about that,” Dierdra nearly jumped out of her skin as footsteps came back out from the living room, “—Dierdra, honey, are you alright? You’re shaking.”

“Yeah, yeah. It’s fine, uh-“ Dierdra shoved her phone back into her jacket pocket, “Where were we?” The woman’s eyebrows knitted together, but allowed the conversation to continue as normal.

“Well, I had asked about your experience. To be honest I don’t really mind that part. You’re the only one who has time to watch the twins.” She rounded the table to draw herself and the chair back in, “Though, I am curious on a few other things... I don’t mean to pry, but I’m confused. I don’t have much to give you for pay. Wouldn’t your father be more equipped for that? I’m sure you’re used to a lot more. I’m surprised you would settle for something like this.”

“No... No, this is fine. My dad’s cut me off anyway. He’s not around. It’s fine. This is close to home, only a few hours a day while you’re at work, good weather. It’s whatever.”

“He’s... cut you off? What about Aoife? She never struck me as someone who would cut you off.”

“It’s complicated. My mom and my dad don’t share wealth, and what my mom makes isn’t enough to pay for the college my dad’s forcing me off to.”

Dierdra stared into the dark brew inside her mug. She picked it up and swirled it around a bit, watching it whirlpool. It spilled over the side, and dripped down onto the Munchlax who promptly woke up from the cold.

“Ah, I’m sorry!” Dierdra chuckled remorsefully as she watched the Munchlax shuffle away into the living room. That was when she noticed a brown tuft of hair, hiding behind the door frame.

Dierdra’s face shifted to a devilish grin. She stood up slowly and turned to face the woman still sitting. “Besides, I know these kids. I’d rather wrangle these punks than be stuck in some stuffy day job any day of the week.”

Dierdra ducked into the living room roaring loudly at the two. Both kids screamed, as they stumbled past each other to circle the couch. Dierdra hurdled herself over it to pursue them. Victor squealed and Gloria giggled as they ran past her, into the kitchen, and out the front door. Dierdra followed but stopped at the kitchen table.

“Am I hired? Is it cool if I start today?” She asked through baited breath.

The woman leaned her head on her hand, and rolled her eyes with a smirk.“Hurry up, they’re getting away.”

Dierdra chuckled.“Thanks, ma’am,” she said as she ran outside.

#Dierdra AU

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imjeralee · 4 years ago

Text

Comfort in Despair: Chapter 14 - D R E A M I N G

Leon x F!Reader

Disclaimer: Do not own Pokemon

Summary:

Galar is rich in folklore and tales of the supernatural.

As a Pokemon Researcher who specialises in ghost types, this is a great opportunity for you to investigate and learn more about the paranormal.

Along the way, you meet Leon (in the most awkward way possible) who becomes embroiled in your adventures.

^ Basically this story is about ghosts :/

Rating: General/Teen

Notes: This chapter features a binary message

@marydragneell - here is the latest update

D R E A M I N G

…

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…

There’s a strange noise in the bedroom.

Opening your eyes, you struggle to see properly in the darkness of the room; Rosie’s bed stands opposite yours and you see it is empty. She is not in her bed but in fact, standing in the middle of the room in her pajamas, her Teddiursa doll discarded at her feet.

“Rosie?” you mutter groggily, sitting up and flipping on the switch of your bedside lamp, dispelling the darkness. “Rosie, what are you doing?”

Your little sister does not answer and continues to stand and sway, her eyes half-closed.

Sliding out of bed, you hurry towards her and grasp her gently by the shoulders.

“Rosie?”

Her mouth moves but her voice is very soft; as you strain to hear, you make out, “Live morf su reviled tub, noitatpmet…”

Puzzled, you can only shake her with a little more force in an effort to make her snap out of her stupor as she mumbles and mutters but to no avail, “Rosie!”

The unresponsiveness of the little girl is worrying so you quickly leave the room and slip into your parent’s which is down the hall to the right. You open their door wide and say, “Mum, dad!”

Following your cry of distress is a groan.

A tussle of the covers.

The silhouette of your father pokes out from the sheets. “Wh…what’s wrong?” he says, voice thick with sleep.

“It’s Rosie. I think she’s having another fit.”

Immediately, your mum and dad rise from bed, cursing under their breath as they follow you back into the bedroom you share with your little sister, only to see that she’s fast asleep in bed with her eyes closed and Teddiursa in her grip.

You blink in confusion, and expecting yourself to be scolded, you bite on your lip worriedly but your parents give you a reassuring pat on the shoulders and head over to Rosie’s bed where they sit on either side.

“Rosie?”

Your little sister stirs awake and opens her eyes groggily.

“Hiya sweetie, you okay?”

Whilst you stand in the doorway, Rosie fiddles and fidgets with her doll before she shakes her head.

“I had a bad dream…” she mumbles quietly.

“What happened, sweetheart?”

“…I saw a….a man,” she says, struggling with her words, pointing to the empty corner of the room. “Standing over there, staring at me. He wanted to take me away.”

…

Rosie is five years old.

She’s a smart child who likes dolls and playing tea parties with her Sinistea and Cutiefly, and she has told you and your parents many times that someone is trying to take her away; though she never explains who or what, she describes this unknown entity simply as a 'man’.

Your parents are ghost-type researchers and heavily invested in the supernatural so instead of going to the police to report this, they take you and Rosie to visit a spirit medium who lived far away from Laverre Town. This medium informs your parents that Rosie can see and hear spirits and for that reason, spirits are attracted to her. She tells Rosie to ignore them, not to respond to spirits or else risk drawing attention to herself. Essentially, they are drawn to her like a Venomoth to a flame.

The medium also predicts that you too, will soon be able to heed the spirit’s calling one day.

To your parent’s dismay, she becomes too terrified to speak of this entity which is after your sister, and cannot divulge anything more except it’s evil and not belonging to this world and asks your family to vacate your premises at once.

With no luck and no help, your parents have no choice but to take it upon their own hands to investigate and apply surveillance on Rosie on a twenty-four seven basis.

It’s usually at night-time when bizarre incidents happen, however.

And you hear the noise again at exactly three am.

As you hold your breath and listen, the sound of nails scraping against a board grows louder and louder.

Sitting up, you glance over to see Rosie missing from her bed once again and on this occasion, she is not in the room at all and the door is open. You quickly peel the covers off and rush outside into the cold landing; your attention is grabbed by the little sounds of footsteps and so you peer over the banister where you see Rosie’s pale form idling through the hallway and towards the front door which flings open as she nears.

“Mum!! Dad!!” you yell, as you trample down the stairs. “Rosie, no!!”

She leaves the house, and as you leap off the last step and to the doorway, the front door violently slams shut in your face, the walls of the house trembling in its wake.

Your parent’s bedroom light goes on and they bumble out. “What’s wrong?”

“Rosie went outside!” you yelp, trying your hardest to open the door with the keys but the handle is stuck, as though someone on the other side is holding it down. “It won’t open!”

Your father curses loudly before he joins you, trying to open the door before he angrily thumps a clenched fist against the surface. The door still does not budge and so he rushes to the kitchen where the backdoor is.

“I’ll be back soon! Don’t leave the house!”

Mum nods and as you begin to sob and wail, she brings you into her arms and you clutch onto her, scared and confused by the entire ordeal.

Outside and you can hear your father shouting, his voice muffled and growing distant.

“Rosie! Rosie, where are you?”

In the house, you sit down in the lounge with your mother where she asks you calmly to explain what happened. You tell her you woke up at three am because you heard the noise again and you tell her what the sound reminds you of: nails scraping against a chalkboard. Then you saw that Rosie had left the room and so you went out and heard footsteps downstairs. You saw the front door open and she went outside. She didn’t acknowledge you, as though she was in a trance.

Your mother nods and thanks you for your bravery and encloses you in another hug, and you huddle together for a while until the front door opens and dad enters with Rosie in his arms.

You both rush over at once with relief.

Rosie is fast asleep in dad’s arms, seemingly unharmed yet he looks troubled.

“Look,” he says, lifting the back of Rosie’s shirt to reveal claw marks on her skin.

….

“You’re getting all worked up for all the wrong reasons,” says Graves. “It was probably just a wild pokemon. Could’ve been a Drifloon or Drifblim trying to steal your little girl away.”

“We live in the suburbs, there are no wild pokemon in a two-mile radius.”

Graves sighs in response. “It could’ve been your Haunter or Sableye. You saw claw marks, right?”

“Haunter and Sableye have never harmed my family, and they were with me the entire time.”

You and Rosie play together in the living room with Sinistea and Cutiefly whilst Graves and your father sit on the leather recliners, watching the football game with beers in hands. Dad is clearly stressed, his eyes are dark and dull due to a lack of sleep. Mum prepares food in the kitchen. Graves will be staying for dinner.

You’ve never liked him.

He has an aversion to ghost-type pokemon although you and your entire family have a high affinity for (and are thus drawn to) ghost-types. Rosie doesn’t like him either and he often tries to win favor with the two of you by handing out candy. He is unfortunately your father’s best friend and thus your ‘uncle’ and since he's watched you grow up, he inevitably becomes your ‘godfather’ after Rosie’s birth.

Graves is a police officer and with his trusty Growlithe and Manectric, he quickly rose through the ranks to become Inspector of Laverre Town. He is also apparently seeing a woman called Ellen whom you've never met before but from what you gather, they have a strained relationship.

He and your father never get in each other’s way but Graves doesn’t believe in the supernatural and you wonder how they could have been friends for such a long time.

“Let me show you something,” dad says, when it’s half-time.

“But the Primarina Divas are about to come on!” Graves complains as busty, buxom women in blue and white cheerleading outfits come cartwheeling onto the pitch and the audience on TV cheer and scream raucously as they begin their routine.

“Get over here, Chris,” dad says. He’s standing at the door that will lead to the basement.

“Fine…”

Dad glances at you and beckons you to follow so you get up, dusting your palms and knees. “Rosie, go help mum in the kitchen.”

“Okay, sissy,” she says with a giggle, getting up with Cutie and Sinistea, waddling over to the direction of the kitchen.

You follow dad and Graves down the stairs; dad tells you to be careful on your way down as the stairs are steep and when you arrive at the last step, you and Graves stare at the massive pokemon that’s being held inside a glass container.

It’s a Dusknoir.

“I put an advert online if anyone was interested in trading and someone answered it,” dad says as he stops beside the glass container, “I reckon Dusknoir can help with what’s been going on lately. I’ve asked Haunter and Sableye…unfortunately none of them can help me. They don’t know what it is so I’ve resorted to this. Dusknoir should be able to help.”

“…Dusknoir?” Graves says with a brow raised, before he treks over and stops by your father's side.

The pokemon is conscious of your presences, its single red eye rolling left and right between Graves and your father, before it lands on you. And it stares, planting its large hands flat against the surface of the glass as it hovers in the air.

You gulp and take a step backwards once you feel the intensity of its unrelenting stare.

“…Dad?” you croak, but your father has moved to his desk, moving away some old cassette and video tapes to pick up a leather-bound journal which he flips open.

“Yeah. It's known that Dusknoir receive transmissions from something in the spirit world. My theory is that this 'something' is trying to take Rosie and with Dusknoir’s help, I’m going to find out what it is. I could use Dusknoir to communicate with it.”

"Communicate with it?"

"Yes, it receives signals and I've been trying to decode what type it is. I've been trying all sorts... Binary, morse code, satellite radio waves-"

“Dad!” you exclaim.

“What is it?”

“….I think you should release it,” you say quietly, “….It doesn’t look very nice.”

Dad chuckles and walks over to you, patting your head affectionately. “It’s okay, dear. Remember that ghost-type pokemon look scary but they are just lonely and misunderstood creatures, that’s all.”

“Uh, does the wife know?” Graves utters, and dad nods.

“I’ll be conducting experiments down here.”

“…I can’t believe I’m saying this, but…why don’t you just ask Rosie what it is?”

“She doesn’t know, and I’m not putting my daughter in danger,” dad replies; he returns to his desk, puts down the journal and goes through his papers before he picks up a small black device which you can see is a radio.

Graves sighs. “Well…be careful,” he murmurs.

…

Since Dusknoir has joined your father’s pokemon team, albeit being encased in a glass container for the time being whilst he conducts research, you no longer hear the odd noises and there are no more incidents.

You find Rosie playing in the basement one day. She isn’t allowed in dad's laboratory without adult supervision, so you quickly rush downstairs before either your parents could find out and scoop her up and off the ground, her dolls falling out of her grip.

“Ahh, dolly!” she cries, reaching out for them.

You sigh and bend down to quickly pick them up with one hand whilst the other is wrapped around her waist tightly. “Rosie, what are you doing here?”

“He wants to play with me!” she exclaims, pointing to the glass container where the Dusknoir is.

You follow her gaze to see the large Gripper pokemon staring at you and your sister with its hands flat against the glass. It’s silent but its red eye beadily follows your every moment, watching.

You quickly look away from it, an uneasy feeling settling in the pit of your gut. “Don’t come down here on your own,” you tell Rosie, but she merely giggles.

“It’s okay, sissy,” she says with a giggle, before she glances at Dusknoir and goes, “Beep boop beep boop,” and she continues for a while but alternating between the noises.

“What does that mean?”

“You mean…Beep boop beep boop...?”

“Yeah.”

“It means…come play with me.”

“Huh?”

“He taught me,” she says, pointing to the massive Dusknoir.

“Can he even hear us?”

“Of course he can! But he’s been in a bad mood lately. Beep beep boop boop boop!! That means, ‘I only play tea party, sorry’!”

“And what does, ‘what do you want with my little sister’ mean?”

“Hmm…” Rosie ponders before she says, “Beep boop boop beep beep beep," and again, she continues reciting an extremely complicated and elongated message.

Once she finishes, Dusknoir emits a loud, aggressive roar and slams his fists against the glass repeatedly; you step backwards with fright and with Rosie in your grip, you hurry up the stairs and close the basement door shut behind you.

…

Days pass and Rosie goes to school and you go to school and when you come home, it’s warm and welcoming. Your mother is in the kitchen and she smiles and it’s the most beautiful smile you’ve ever seen and she makes you a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and if you knew any better it’s the last one she will ever make for you and she asks you to take one to your dad who is in the garage and chatting to some neighbours and when it’s almost dinner, you both go back into the house and help set the table up and mum asks about school and how it’s going on and she asks you if there’s any cute boys and you shyly think about one particular lad in class who has caught your eye and when dad tries to joins in, you and mum tell him it’s girls only and you laugh and Rosie joins in, wanting to know what’s going on and then it’s time to eat dinner and you’re sitting down at the table with your family and looking around, at their smiling faces, and you look at your plate to see your mum’s made your favourite food and dad’s eating his steak with his weird protein shake again and mum is scolding him whilst Rosie sticks her tongue out with distaste because there’s vegetables on her plate and -

Screaming.

You’re awoken in the middle of the night by screaming.

Glimpsing over, you see Rosie’s bed is empty.

This isn’t like the normal nights.

Overwhelmed by a sense of dread, you exit and pass your parent’s room; neither your father or mother are inside.

Downstairs, the basement door is wide open and flashing lights flicker from within.

Screaming.

That’s where it’s coming from.

I’m here, you want to say. I’m here.

Each step is heavy, the cold wood under your feet is unwelcoming and chilling to the core. Your house is foreign to you.

In the basement, you make your way down to see the glass container has shattered and a massive swirling vortex of black, blue, purple and white has appeared in the middle of the space.

Dusknoir is halfway inside, feeding the wriggling bodies of your father and Rosie into its mouth.

Your mother lies on the ground, unconscious.

Confused and shocked, you rush towards the huge pokemon.

Stop!!!

Your voice is drowned by the noise. It turns to you, its single red eye flashing before an unseen force knocks you off your feet and your back hits the floor, your head slamming hard against the concrete ground.

You wake up when something cold splashes on your cheek and you wrench your eyes open before you sit up with a gasp, glancing around.

It’s quiet.

Your mother sits on the basement floor, her gaze empty.

Dusknoir is gone.

“Mum!” you exclaim.

She slides her eyes to you as you crawl over to her and grab her by the shoulders.

“Mum?”

She does not respond.

You let go of her and glance around the cold and dark basement. “…Dad? Rosie?? Where are you??”

“Gone,” your mum utters, “They’re gone.”

As you glance at her in bewilderment, she lifts herself off the ground and pads to your father’s desk.

She goes through the papers that have become strewn over the floor and mumbles and mutters and utters under her breath incoherently. She shakes her head repeatedly as she bunches the papers in her hands, muttering ‘no, no, no’ and ‘my baby, my poor baby’ over and over again.

You call out to her but she doesn’t respond.

Therefore, you silently pick yourself up off the floor, leave the basement and phone Graves.

You didn’t know what else you could do.

Graves arrives and it’s almost dawn. He’s brought his partner with him and he enters the house to see you at the door and your mother is surrounded by your father’s papers and obsessively skimming through them whilst seated on the sofa and when he asks what happened, your mother’s ramblings don’t appear to help but when you try to interrupt, Graves isn’t interested in what you have to say or add to the conversation. He leaves your mother in the lounge then heads to the basement, alone.

You sit with her, watching her hysterically pour through the research.

Whilst his partner stays in the lounge with you and attempts to strike up some meaningless small talk, Graves returns empty-handed.

He's confused.

They converse silently and routinely throw you and your mother concerned glances before they split up; Graves checks the rest of the house, inspecting the kitchen, dining room, the bathroom and all the bedrooms upstairs.

He thinks of all sorts of logical reasons why your father and Rosie have disappeared in the middle of the night.

It could have been…

A nasty spat between spouses.

A break-in.

Your mother is the only person who saw what really happened.

He sees that the two of you are badly shaken yet unharmed and drives you to Laverre Police Station to officially take testimony. A search subsequently begins but their outcome is not successful.

When it’s finally your turn to speak to Graves, you have sat in the police station for hours and when you’re brought in the room, it’s intimidating but you tell him what you saw in the basement; Graves stares at you silently the entire time, eyebrows scrunching and lifting everytime you detail how you saw the Dusknoir with your father and Rosie in its clutches and putting them into its mouth when they were still alive.

He remains quiet, doesn’t ask you any questions, doesn’t interrupt. The pen remains untouched by his notepad.

“Kid,” he says, after a pregnant pause following your explanation, “your mother’s said something entirely different.”

It takes a while to register this.

You sit in silence as Graves regards you intensely for a moment before he gets up to leave.

A kind-looking woman with glasses is beckoned in and she plops herself down in Graves’ seat which he has kept warm for her. She adjusts her frames, propping up a manila folder in front of her before she scoops out some documents. She asks you questions which are a little strange because they’re personal and unrelated but you soon realise it’s to assess and revaluate your current mental state. She even has your school records. Unfortunately, the more she asks and the more she doesn’t make any progress with your interrogation and you’re clean but you’re not exempted yet.

Perhaps you have a disturbed mind or Dusknoir devouring your father and sister is a metaphor for a sadistic murderer who has kidnapped them?

“After all, if the public finds out a pokemon had devoured two people, there would be madness.”

And due to the horrific nature of the crime, you had mentally blocked or changed some aspects?

“Why don’t you believe me?” you asked, “Why doesn’t anyone believe me?”

Raising your voice, you slam your bunched fists on the iron table and yell, “What’s wrong with you??? What’s wrong with all you?! I’m telling the truth!! Why won’t you believe me?!”

You receive no satisfactory answer, your words are taken with no seriousness and you and mum are informed to go home whilst the initial investigation goes underway.

“Mum, why didn’t you tell them what you saw? They think I’m lying.”

When you look at her, all the colour has left her face and you begin to feel you no longer recognize her.

“They won’t believe us,” she utters, “We’ll get your father and Rosie back ourselves.”

Stunned by her words, you can only nod limply.

You’re expected to go to school in a few days. By then, your father and sister’s disappearance have hit the tabloids. Everyone whispers and looks at you, in the school, the neighbourhood….you get stared at when you walk through the halls to your next class, you end up sitting alone in the cafeteria during lunch, even the teachers are careful around you. People think they were murdered.

There is nothing about Dusknoir.

And often, you wonder to yourself if it truly was a nightmare.

You miss your father and sister terribly and your mother inevitably begins to obsessively investigate; she spends much of her time in the basement and rarely eats, drink or sleep.

As the days passed, you become used to seeing her less and less often around the house and though you want to help, your mother brushes you off, asking you to focus on your studies.

Soon, the upkeep of the house falls in your grasp.

You make it a habit to go out to the supermarket and buy food by yourself, dragging a wheeled shopping bag with you each time when you go during the weekends, heading to the ATM when you were strapped for cash.

You look up recipes online and learn how to cook meals for yourself and your mother, leaving food for her on the desk. You eat on your own in the dining room, sitting at the large table, surrounded by three empty seats.

Graves visits as much as he can; he usually talks to your mother but sometimes he sits with you in the living room to watch football whilst your mom slaves away in the basement on her own. He tells you her appearance is turning haggard, which you are aware of.

Worried about her behaviour, you look up various kinds of available therapy which you think will benefit her, spending many late nights on your laptop browsing online and calling up various clinics to enquire but the costs are going to be high so you decide to secure a side gig tutoring some kids to pay for your mother’s treatment, placing an advert online which you didn’t think would get noticed.

Inexorably, your grades begin to fall as you balance your newfound hustle and school. That cute boy in class no longer occupies your mind. You come home late in the evening from your work, exhausted. You stop smiling and overall, you’ve mentally aged.

At night, you lie awake in your bed and glance over to Rosie’s empty bed where the sheets and pillows are unwashed, and you think about that night and you think about it a lot; you wish you could’ve done more and you begin to hate yourself for not paying enough attention to your father’s research and what he was trying to accomplish with Dusknoir. You should’ve done more to help your father. You should’ve studied alongside him.

Rising from bed, you make your way downstairs to the basement where your mother is, hunched over the desk with a black device in hands.

It’s dad’s radio.

“Mum?”

“Yes?”

You walk up to the desk, where you see your father’s old notes which have been collated into his journal with the leather-bound cover. You pick it up and open it, flipping through the pages where you see his handwriting and hold the book to your chest, closing your eyes. There is also a family photo in his study which you pluck out from the stand and hold gingerly in your hand.

On the verge of tears, you croak out, “I want to help. Please tell me how I can help. Please. Talk to me.”

Finally, she swivels round in her seat when she hears you sobbing and for the first time in a while, she embraces you.

She says, “We need to get a Dusknoir.”

Since it started with Dusknoir, your mum entrusts you with this task so you upload another advert and put up a Phantump you had caught beforehand in the PC box and send it on its way to the Kalos GPS.

A few days later, someone answers your advert and you receive a Dusclops through the GPS which evolves into a Dusknoir in process.

Satisfied that you’ve made some progress, you head to the basement with Dusknoir’s capsule in hand, wanting to show your mother. To your surprise, she’s moved from her seat and is clutching the radio in hands, smiling widely.

“Mum?”

She spots you and the smile widens, “They’re alive!” she exclaims.

You can only stare at her, stunned.

“Listen,” mum switches the radio, rotating the small, rounded knob as carefully as she can and you watch the little dial move across the screen.

The crackling static of white noise fills the quiet basement until your mum reaches eighteen ninety-eight hertz and the radio fizzes into life.

“…..hello? This is- ….I’m in a dark place, and….…”

It is your father’s voice.

As your mum grins at you, you rush over, eyes wide. “Dad? Dad! We’re here!!!”

“….I think I’ve been stuck here for three days…”

“He can’t hear us,” mum explains when your face falls. “This is a spirit radio, dear. It only works on this frequency, it picks up transmissions from the spirit world, and it’s picked up your father! He’s alive! Alive!!!”

Alive.

Stiff with shock, mum envelopes you into a hug and sobs and wails with laughter.

It’s been a while since you’ve seen her happy.

“Mum,” you utter, “I…uh…I got the Dusknoir.”

“Excellent!” mum cries as you hand her the capsule which she holds close to her chest.

“Mum…promise me you won’t do anything stupid,” you say, and she nods but somehow you don’t believe her.

…

“Mum, I’m home,” you say wearily, locking the front door behind you and removing your shoes.

You step inside the lounge only to be met with silence.

“…Mum?”

The lights are still on.

You had gone to work for four hours.

She is possibly in the basement, you think, and so you creep down the stairs only to see it is empty. She’s not in the basement, where could she be?

Your search does not last long as you breeze through the lounge and into the kitchen which is in uproar; the stools have been knocked over, there are various cassette and video tapes lying all over the surface of the counter along with an opened dusk ball. Dad’s radio lies on the floor beside a screwdriver and some scattered parts. You spot his journal and the family photo, which has fallen out from the pages.

“Mum?” you call as you pick up the journal and the radio, your voice echoing in the empty house.

“Mum?”

“Mum!”

“MUM!!!”

“…Mum?”

“Mum, please…”

“Not you too.”

Did your voice always sound so sad?

…

Professor Magnolia and Sonia enter the ward.

A girl in a white gown sits at a table with a Sinistea and Cutiefly perched on her shoulders, staring morosely at various untouched chess pieces on the surface. Her eyes hold no life, her hair unkempt, her face a grim portrait of melancholy.

There are other patients but they walk around aimlessly or yell or wail and talk to themselves and Sonia huddles close to her grandmother, wondering why she is in such a scary place.

They don’t come to Kalos often but Magnolia had received an emergency call from a Police Inspector called Chris Graves.

“She ran all the way to the police station,” Graves says, sighing. “I didn’t know what to do with her so I put her there for a while. Maybe she’ll feel better.”

“I hardly think so, Mr Graves. This girl needs proper care.”

“Listen, she had a mental breakdown…and, um…I’m her godfather…so legally, I…I’m supposed to take her in but she doesn’t want to live with me and I don’t wanna force her. I’m paying for her treatment and I’m not offended or anything ‘cos I’m not good at this stuff, I’m not fit to be a dad in any way,” Graves tells her during the phonecall, “And I know you’re her mother’s mentor and so I thought….you might be better to…I dunno, talk to her.”

“Where are her grandparents?”

“They’ve passed away. She has some relatives but they don’t want to take her in. Too much hassle, and the medication’s expensive too.”

Magnolia and Sonia walk up to this girl at the chess table, and says her name.

She looks up, her tired and sunken eyes meeting theirs.

“My name is Magnolia. I’m a Professor from the region of Galar. This is my granddaughter, Sonia. She’s the same age as you,” Magnolia gestures to Sonia who offers you a meek wave.

“Hi….”

“I’m your mother’s mentor so I knew her well, and I’ve been informed about your circumstances. Would you like to come with me?” Magnolia says, “…Would you like to live with us?”

Indifference slowly dissolves to shock as this woman called Professor Magnolia and her doe-eyed granddaughter Sonia stand before you. The chess pieces on the table blur together as you emit a quiet sniff, the corner of your eyes leaking with tears.

...

In the hospital, Leon remains by your side.

Some people came and went, namely Magnolia, Sonia and Chief Inspector Graves. He was your godfather. Who knew?

You're only allowed one visitor at a time and Leon has made it quite obvious to everyone that he will be the one to stay by your side as the two ladies came and went due to the ungodly hour, and Graves has left to talk to Chairman Rose and the Ghostbunkers and he won't be coming back anytime soon.

Leon has faithfully stayed with you as you were taken to hospital and he sits on the chair by your bed, waiting for you to wake up. You’ve fallen unconscious since you were brought in and the doctors say your condition is stable despite the blood loss and you will make a full recovery very soon. It's good news and Leon holds your hand tightly in his, closing his eyes. He silently thanks Arceus that you're unharmed and prays that you will wake up soon.

However, the door is suddenly thrown open and a blonde-haired young man in black enters the room unannounced, his head wrapped with a plethora of bandages whilst a Joltik is perched on his shoulder with a little bandage tied around its body.

"Chuck!" he yells loudly, and Leon turns round to face the newcomer.

The two men regard each other; the blonde looks at Leon, who's still donned in his torn shirt and his cape appears to be missing and although Leon doesn't quite appreciate the intrusion and the unwelcome noise, he says calmly, "Chuck? I think you've got the wrong room..."

"No, no, that's just my nickname for her, for duckie. I mean chuck. Wait-" the blonde keeps correcting himself until he says your name.

"Who are you?"

"I'm so sorry, I should've introduced myself first," the blonde tidies his act up, lowers his voice and closes the door quietly behind himself, "I'm Jace. It's nice to meet you, Sir Champion."

Jace.

So this is Jace.

Leon has seen his testimonial on your blog and you've mentioned him once or twice. Now he can finally put the name to a face and this is Jace. He must be older than the both of you and he is not bad-looking; he's tall with a thin frame, sharp jaw and chiselled features. One can tell he is friendly from a simple glance.

However, quite the opposite occurs: a surge of discomfort flits through Leon's mind when he realises you and Jace are friends and you are close. Close enough that you have nicknames for each other. The champion's expression doesn't change despite this fact though he tenses in his seat and he clinches your fist with more force than before.

The pit of his gut suddenly bubbles with an unquenchable uneasiness he hasn't experienced before; it's different. It's new, and most unbecoming. Initially, Leon ponders if it's the tension he feels before a battle...but this is indeed a wholly different sensation.

"It's nice to meet you too," Leon does his best but ultimately ends up forcing a smile at the blonde, "And there's no need to be so formal. Just 'Leon' is fine-"

Jace wheezes a little.

"-and you were with her at the art gallery, right?"

"Yeah," the blonde replies, nodding vigorously, "Sir Champion, I mean, Leon...she didn't have to take the case. She knew you had spoken to Rose and you had put in a good word for her, and it's not in her heart to turn down a client."

Leon lowers his gaze. "...I know."

"Rose isn't happy. He says we violated the terms and conditions because I used Joltik and that counts as pokemon battling, which isn't allowed on the premise. But I had to. I had to protect myself and chuck."

"I'll talk to Chairman Rose. Don't worry, I'm sure he'll come around. Thank you for protecting her, Jace."

"You're welcome..."

The room settles into silence; Jace is clearly intimidated by Leon's presence and it's then he sees that the Champion is also holding your hand very tightly.

And then there's the note on the door that says 'One Visitor At A Time'.

Three's a crowd and so Jace utters, "Right, well then, I imagine she's in good hands since you're here and all, so I'll...I'll be off now. Goodnight."

Leon nods.

Without much further ado, the blonde wordlessly leaves the room, closing the door behind him once more.

Leon is left with you and you alone, and that's the way he likes it. Upon Jace's departure, his gut loosens up and the strange swirling and jittery feeling ebbs away in a second and finally, he is able to relax. He swivels round in his seat to face you, leaning over to sweep away a loose strand of hair that's lingering over your closed eyelids. You look peaceful and he wonders what you're possibly dreaming about.

Hopefully, it's a pleasant dream.

…

#pokemon #pkmn #pokemonsword #pokemonshield #pokemon sword and shield #leon #dande #reader #reader insert #leon x reader #Leon x you #jeralee #fanfic #fic #archive of our own

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ask-the-crimson-king · 4 years ago

Text

Tales from D&D: The Campfire Song Song

[It is I, your friendly neighborhood Hermit back with another tale from D&D. And this one is... Certainly a saga. LONG POST AHOY.

IT IS ONCE AGAIN FROM MY CURSE OF STRAHD CAMPAIGN! The characters, in brief, are:

AETERNUS -- Goliath wild soul barbarian, played more like a golem than a goliath. Stoic, remembers almost nothing of his past. ARAZEL -- Blood angel (aasimar x tiefling hybrid) bard, has a patron because he used to be a Warlock and the player wanted to keep the patron. Very much a Bard. Has tamed a fucking dire wolf who is now named Boris. He is a good boy. LEON -- Human time domain cleric, worships a god of time called Tempus. Old retired soldier sent out into the world because his god has plans for him. CALEB -- Vampire desperado gunslinger, a vampire hunter who wants revenge against the creatures who turned him and killed his family.

In the last session, the players had made it to the Old Bonegrinder and met the three hags living there. Thanks to a Fifth Nat 1, the hags became hostile because Arazel mentioned how he had a pet dire wolf and the hags thought he was sent by Strahd.

I told them at the beginning of this one, “If you can talk your way out of this encounter, I’ll let you level up right now instead of waiting for Friday.”

What the fuck happens right after I say that?

Arazel fucking crits on persuasion and the party is now LEVEL FOUR! HURRAY!

Caleb is dealing with the two sisters upstairs, his gun is mentioned, and then Arazel’s player says, and I quote,

Arazel had also purchased a pastry, and Aeternus ends up charging upstairs and Arazel turns to him and says, "Hey Pebbles, eat this okay?" Aeternus made the con save, so instead of having weird dream visions, he instead felt this weird sense of nostalgia that he cant place his finger on. Seeing the cakes were safe, the rest of the party all pay for a cake themselves and they all. fail. the save.

So they get to fall into a pleasant, dreamlike state, for 1d4+4 hours... and OF COURSE I roll a 4. So eight hours of them being in this trance. Arazel, Leon, and Caleb, all conked the hell out. Which meant Aeternus was alone with this Night Hag who was now cackling.

And so he asked the witch what was in the cakes, and she simply said “some very rare and exotic ingredients. it is an acquired taste.” aeternus then took many hints, scooped everyone up, and left with Ismark (Kolyana and Ireena were waiting outside in a cart, not trusting that place one bit, but Ismark went in to help guard the party and keep an eye on Caleb.)

They run back to the cart and Kolyana is asking what happened. Aeternus explains the situation with the cakes, and Kolyana then facepalms. He says,

"You didn't eat any, did you?" "I did, why?" "Those are dream cakes. they're popular in Vallaki -- you'll see why." "I do not dream." "Everyone dreams, my boy. daydreams, plans for the future, or-" "I have nothing to dream about." The cart goes quiet before Ismark speaks up. "What do you mean?" Aeternus then says, "I remember nothing but war from my past." "A miserable existence, then." "Heh, makes you sound like a barovian," Kolyana says with a snicker. "We're all miserable bastards."

More silence.

"You really don't remember anything?" Ismark then asks. "Nothing but war." Aeternus shakes his head. "How old are you?" "... I do not know. I have been wandering for some time, but I know I am quite old." "I don’t remember any wars in our recent history. You don’t seem to be old enough for any of those." "Definitely not," Kolyana agrees. The cart is silent, and Aeternus goes quiet.

Hours pass, and the cart is pulled off to the side of the road. Ireena and Valerie, a Vistana woman they had met, (who owned the cart), go off to build a fire, while the rest stay back in order to wait for the others to come out of their trances.

When they do awaken, the world is darker. More grim, more miserable. The mists seem to cling to them, and they long to be back in their dreams.

Arazel awakes with a start, drawing out his magic string and wrapping it around Leon's neck while a thin knife hovers at Caleb's throat. Kolyana, Ismark, and Aeternus all stand to try and apprehend him as he asks, "What the HELL happened to me?" "You were dreaming," Aeternus tells him. "We didn’t do anything to you." "Put the weapons away, you're around friends here," Ismark says, his sword half out of its sheath. Slowly, Arazel backs down, checking his wings to see if any feathers are out of place. Boris looks up at him expectantly, and Arazel takes him to the fire as the rest of the party files out of the cart.

They all go and head down to the fireplace, and enjoy a nice thick stew. Some of the vegetables are freshly picked from the lands around them, although they are thick mountain-dwelling plants. They are a bit higher up in elevation, though more surrounded by foothills instead of mountains.

They enjoy their dinner and Kolyana asks them what they saw in their visions. Leon goes first, recalling his home. recalling the people he loved, the community fostered, everything. It felt warm. It felt safe. But that wasn't here anymore. Kolyana gave him a small reassuring pat on the shoulder before Arazel spoke up.

"I saw my mother." "Your mother?" Aeternus asks. "Okay, well, here's the thing. My mother was this holy angel, and my father was a damned and hated tiefling. And my father kinda dipped on me when i was younger. My mother served a very holy god who didn't want to be sullied with such a sinful abomination," he then gestures to himself, "and so my mum had to leave me." "Wait, wait, your mom left you because her god said so?" Caleb asks. "Well yeah but I mean I get it. if she didn't then she would've lost her powers, and-" "That’s pretty selfish of her." Caleb shrugs. "sorry, man." "Not really. I’m sure any parent would do that." "I can tell you, as a father myself, I would never do that to my children. No matter who the god was. I'm sorry you had to go through that," Kolyana tells him, giving Arazel a meaningful look.

“And what about you, vampire?” the old man asks. “What did you see?”

"I saw my home. I saw the old homestead. I saw my parents, and my siblings. It was nice." Before Kolyana responds, a conspiracy of ravens descends from the sky. one lands on each of Aeternus' shoulders, cawing. The three Barovians all gasp.

"What fantastic luck," Kolyana mutters. Arazel is tempted to have Boris pounce on them, but Kolyana quickly says "DO NOT ATTACK THEM! That would bring nothing but doom and misfortune. Ravens are symbols of good luck, not evil. At least not here."

Arazel shrugs, and tosses a piece of his stew at them. They caw and hop off the giant's shoulders, peck at the food, then flutter off into the night. The party all decides to settle in for the night, and this comes my FAVORITE fucking part of the session;

Dream Chats with Strahd!

(Yes I’m bending the lore a bit but it’s for the rule of cool okay)

I bring each of the players into the Special Corner (Discord call, we have a D&D voice chat and then Special Corner for 1-on-1 with the DM) one by one.

First in was Arazel.

Arazel feels the presence of his patron. He feels a warm, golden glow about him, even if he cannot visualize Sanguinius himself. He soon finds himself within a hall. It seems to be that of a cathedral. Polished stone, nearly gleaming, is under his feet. But everything feels... a bit fuzzed out. Just barely out of focus. He sees a lectern at the end of this great hall, with, what 40k fans would recognize, as the BA symbol, inscribed into it.

And then he hears a very familiar voice, and sees a very familiar figure walk out from behind a pillar.

Familiar dark clothing, familiar face, familiar dark eyes.

It is Strahd von Zarovich, and he has come for a chat.

And he doesnt greet arazel with hostility. He says that he is impressed with this place of worship, and that he knows very little about Arazel’s patron. But he would love to learn more about him, and about Arazel himself. Arazel asks “why are you here?”

Strahd takes a sip from his glass before he says, “You and your compatriots all fascinate me. So I want to learn just a little more about you. How you think, what your morality is." He shrugs, and then explains that he does not have too much time to speak. An invitation will be given -- soon, though he does not know when -- and tells him it is within Arazel’s best interests to accept it. He wants to be able to have an open, honest chat with him and his friends.

He also asks that he does not discuss this meeting with anyone. A measure of trust. Arazel agrees, and Strahd disappears.

Next up, Caleb.

Caleb is dreaming of his homestead. He feels grass beneath his feet, but none of his family is here. Everything around him feels fuzzy, blurry. The only crisp image is of the homestead itself. Strahd appears to him as well, coming out of the homestead, and says similar things to what he told Arazel, namely the reason for his arrival and his interest in him and his friends. However, he also remarks on how similar the two of them are, referring to their shared vampiric nature. Caleb says,

"Actually we're probably very different. I think we became who we are through very different ways."

Strahd agrees, but he offers a solution to Caleb's little bloodthirst-issue, (which luckily has been able to be curbed thanks to Leon being generous), and potentially knowledge about his abilities. Caleb recently gained the ability to be able to shift into bat form, and he thinks he may have other skills locked away.

An invitation is mentioned, along with the same condition. He cannot tell anyone of this meeting.

Caleb, begrudgingly, agrees. Strahd vanishes once more. Interestingly, Strahd does not mention how one of Caleb’s current goals is to go into van Richten’s tower to find the old hunter in order to find a way to kill Strahd.

But we’ll get to that.

Then we go to Leon.

Leon appears within an old library. The books around him are nothing more than vague shapes, and there is a musty smell from the bookshelves. Ahead of him is a strange device, a piece of machinery made of many different concentric rings, which he realizes must represent the different planes of reality. It slowly moves, casting around shadows as an unknown light source dances around the room. This is a representation of how Tempus views reality and its many potential timelines, he realizes. Just a very, very simple model, but it resembles the one from his own church.

Enter Strahd, a warm smile on his face.

“I’ve been waiting to speak with you for some time. You and I have much to discuss.”

Leon asks why he is here, and Strahd explains what he had told Caleb and Arazel -- though he also adds he wants to learn a little more about him, here and now. He wants to also extend the offer for Leon to learn more about Strahd himself in a sort of private talk, and expresses interest in learning more about Tempus and Leon's nature and relationship. He asks Leon to tell him a few things, and Leon agrees to tell him a bit about his past -- his life as a soldier, the village he had settled within, how he found Tempus, that sort of stuff.

Then Leon cuts right to the point, saying, "Why are you really asking me this? I don’t like to associate with bad people."

"Well I wouldn’t call myself bad. I have made my mistakes, and I am no saint, but I’m not a horrible person." Strahd shrugs. "I ask because I’m fascinated by you. By all of you, honestly. You're quite the interesting little crew."

He mentions the invitation, but also gives a different message.

"I know Caleb is going to be going to van Richten's tower. I want you to stay behind in Vallaki when he does. I will send my invitation then. Our conversation will be a little more... private, for lack of a better term, then the one I shall have with all of you."

He gives the same terms -- that Leon cannot tell anyone of this meeting -- which Leon agrees to, and Strahd disappears once more.

Last but not least...

Aeternus.

Aeternus doesn't dream, but his mind does come to a daydreaming-state. He comes to one of the few scenes he remembers. A field, with the rubble of a broken house nearby. Nothing else is clear, or even blurred. It feels like he’s standing on the edge of a vast void.

Strahd appears once more, commenting on how grim this place was. Aeternus is on edge at the appearance of the vampire, but simply replies, "this is all I can remember."

"Oh, I know. All you remember is warfare. But even then, of no clear battle. Just fragments of death and misery. A shame, really." Strahd sighs. "I know of a way for you to begin remembering all you had lost. My libraries may hold some of the answers you seek, as do I."

Aeternus is quiet. Before he speaks, strahd smiles.

"Petting that wolf made you remember something, didn't it? And the cake you ate? You remember something about a raven, too."

Aeternus is caught way off guard. Strahd has, somehow (rule of cool and plot reasons) gotten into his head. He goes on guard, but Strahd puts his hands up.

"I can offer answers. I will be sending an invitation, soon. I do not know when. But I need to be able to trust you. Tell no one of this encounter."

"How can i be able to trust you?" Aeternus responds with a grunt. One hand is on his axe. Strahd chuckles. "Caleb wants to go to van Richten's tower. Go with him. There is something waiting for you there."

And then he disappears, and that is where the session ended.

#very long post #sorry about that #D&D stories #tales from D&D #moonclaws dm bullshit #i need to come up with a D&D tag #D&D

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alystayr · 4 years ago

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Playlist musicale 2021 (1/2)

Liste des chansons (playlist 2021 - part. 1)

Mise à jour : 30 juin 2021

playlist 2020 (part.2), playlist 2020 (part. 1)

playlist 2019 (part.2), playlist 2019 (part. 1)

playlist 2018 (part. 2), playlist 2018 (part. 1)

playlist 2017 (part. 2), playlist 2017 (part. 1)

playlist 2016 (part. 2), playlist 2016 (part. 1)

playlist 2015

0-9 #

AC/DC - Demon Fire (2020)

Bryan Adams - Summer Of '69 (1985)

Alabama Shakes - Hold On (2012)

America - A horse with no name (1971)

Angèle - Balance Ton Quoi (2018)

Archive - Fool (2002)

Jean-Louis Aubert - Bien Sûr (2019)

Asaf Avidan - Different Pulses (2012)

George Baker - Little Green Bag (from Reservoir Dogs) (1969)

Band Of Horses - No One's Gonna Love You (2007)

The Beatles - Strawberry Fields Forever (1967)

Jeff Beck (feat. Imogen Heap) - Blanket (2007)

Bee Gees - Stayin' Alive (from Saturday Night Fever) (1977)

Chuck Berry - Darlin' (2017)

The Black Keys (cover John Lee Hooker) - Crawling Kingsnake (2021)

Black Pistol Fire - Morning Star (2016)

Black Pumas - Colors (2019)

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - What Ever Happened To My Rock And Roll (2001)

Black Sabbath - God Is Dead? (2013)

Blind Melon - No Rain (1992)

Blondie - Heart Of Glass (1978)

The Blue Stones - Black Holes (Solid Ground) (2015)

The Blues Mystery - Back to the Dirty Town (2013)

Blues Traveler - Run-Around (1995)

Blur (Feat. Phil Daniels) - Parklife (1994)

David Bowie - Survive (1999)

Jacques Brel - La chanson des vieux amants (1967)

Brigitte - Battez-Vous (2010)

Francis Cabrel - Peuple des fontaines (2020)

J.J. Cale - Durango (1997)

CAN - Vitamin C (1972)

Cats on trees - Sirens call (2013)

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Distant Sky (2016)

Tracy Chapman - Give Me One Reason (1995)

Joe Cocker (cover Randy Newman) - You Can Leave Your Hat On (from 9½ Weeks) (1986/1972)

CocoRosie - Did Me Wrong (2020)

Cœur de pirate (feat. Loud) - Dans la nuit (2018)

Leonard Cohen - Hey, That's No Way to Say Goodbye (1967)

The Cranberries - Animal Instinct (1999)

Creedence Clearwater Revival - Fortunate Son (1969)

Sheryl Crow - If It Makes You Happy (1996)

Eddy de Pretto - Bateaux-Mouches (2020)

Lana Del Rey - Chemtrails Over The Country Club (2021)

Depeche Mode - Freelove (2001)

Détroit - Null And Void (2013)

Dinosaur Jr - Freak Scene (1988)

Dire Straits - Expresso Love (1980)

Eels - Earth To Dora (2020)

Eminem (feat. Anderson .Paak) - Lock It Up (2020)

Endless Boogie - The Artemus Ward (2013)

Piers Faccini - Foghorn Calling (2021)

Mylène Farmer - Fuck them all (2005)

Léo Ferré – Les anarchistes (1969)

Feu! Chatterton - Monde Nouveau (2021)

Foo Fighters - Walk (2011)

Maxime Le Forestier - Saltimbanque (1975)

Foster The People - Sit Next to Me (2017)

Franz Ferdinand - Michael (2004)

Fugees - Ready or Not (1996)

Peter Gabriel - Mercy Street (1986)

Serge Gainsbourg - Requiem Pour Un Con (1968)

France Gall - Evidemment (1987)

Genesis - Invisible Touch (1986)

Girls in Hawaii - Found in the Ground (2002)

Goldfrapp - Ooh La La (2005)

Jean-Jacques Goldman - Comme toi (1982)

Grand Corps Malade & Louane - Derrière le brouillard (2020)

Juliette Greco - Le p'tit bal perdu (1961)

Greta Van Fleet - Age of Machine (2020)

Guns N' Roses - Sweet Child O' Mine (1987)

Bill Haley & His Comets - Rock Around The Clock (1954)

PJ Harvey - Dress (1992)

Murray Head - Say It Ain't So Joe (1975)

Heartless Bastards - Revolution (2020)

Bernard Herrmann - Taxi Driver (theme) (1976)

The Hives - Hate to Say I Told You So (2000)

The Hollies - Long Cool Woman (In a Black Dress) (1971)

Hollywood Undead (feat. Hyro The Hero) - Comin' Thru The Stereo (2021)

Romain Humeau - Echos (2020)

IDLES - Mr. Motivator (2020)

Interpol - Stella Was A Diver (2002)

Iron Maiden - Hallowed Be Thy Name (1982)

Michael Jackson - Black or White (1991)

The Jesus And Mary Chain (Feat. Hope Sandoval) - Sometimes Always (1994)

Quincy Jones - Soul Bossa Nova (1962)

Kaleo - Backbone (2020)

Kansas - Dust in the Wind (1977)

The Killers - Caution (2020)

The Kills - The Search For Cherry Red (2020)

Kings Of Leon - The Bandit (2021)

Kiss - Heaven's On Fire (1984)

Lenny Kravitz - Are You Gonna Go My Way (1993)

Kyo - Le Graal (2014)

Led Zeppelin - Since I've Been Loving You (1970)

Liars - Sekwar (2021)

Limp Bizkit (Feat. Lil Wayne) - Ready To Go (2013)

Louise Attaque - La plume (2000)

Mad Season - Wake Up (1995)

Manu Chao – Clandestino (1998)

Laura Marling - What He Wrote (2010)

Memphis Slim - Born With The Blues (1972)

Metronomy - Walking In The Dark (2019)

Mickey 3D - La mort du peuple (2005)

Steve Miller Band - Jet Airliner (1977)

The Mission - Wasteland (1986)

Moby - Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad? (1999)

Mogwai - It's What I Want To Do, Mum (2021)

Moondog - New Amsterdam (1997)

Morcheeba - Sweet L.A. (2018)

Motörhead - Till The End (2015)

Jason Mraz - I'm Yours (2005)

Muse - Supermassive Black Hole (2006)

Nine Inch Nails - The Fragile (1999)

Nirvana - All Apologies (1993)

Noir Désir - Aux sombres héros de l'amer (1989)

Claude Nougaro (cover Chico Buarque) - Tu verras (1978)

Oasis - D'You Know What I Mean? (1997)

Of Montreal - The Past Is A Grotesque Animal (2007)

The Offspring - Why Don't You Get A Job? (1998)

Panaviscope – Sham (2020)

Pigalle - Dans La Salle Du Bar-Tabac De La Rue Des Martyrs (1990)

Pink Floyd - Us And Them (1973)

The Police - Synchronicity II (1983)

Pomme (cover Mylène Farmer) - Désenchantée (2020/1991)

Iggy Pop - Dirty Little Virus (2020)

Portishead - Chase The Tear (2009)

Portugal. The Man - Feel It Still (2017)

The Pretty Reckless - My Bones (2021)

Queen - The Miracle (1989)

Queens of the Stone Age - Go With The Flow (2002)

The Raconteurs – Broken Boy Soldier (2006)

Rammstein - Du Hast (1997)

Chris Rea - The Blue Cafe (1998)

Red Hot Chili Peppers - Suck My Kiss (1992)

Lou Reed (cover The Drifters) - This Magic Moment (1995/1960)

R.E.M. - What's The Frequency, Kenneth? (1994)

Renaud - Mistral gagnant (1985)

Rival Sons - Too Bad (2019)

The Rolling Stones - Star Star (1973)

Royal Blood - Typhoons (2021)

David Lee Roth - Just Like Paradise (1987)

La Rue Ketanou - Le Capitaine de la Barrique (2014)

Olivia Ruiz - De Toi A Moi (2003)

Santana (cover Fleetwood Mac) - Black Magic Woman (1970)

Shocking Blue - Venus (1969)

Simple Minds - Mandela Day (1989)

The Sisters of Mercy - Emma (1987)

Slayer - Raining Blood (1986)

Sasha Sloan (feat. Sam Hunt) - when was it over? (2020)

The Smashing Pumpkins - Disarm (1993)

Patti Smith - Rock N Roll Nigger (1978)

The Smiths - Barbarism Begins at Home (1985)

Sonny & The Sunsets - Too Young to Burn (2009)

Regina Spektor - One Little Soldier (from Scandale) (2019)

Spoon - The Way We Get By (2002)

Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band - Backstreets (1975)

St. Vincent - Los Ageless (2017)

Stereophonics - Bust This Town (2019)

Sub Urban - Cradles (2021)

Superbus - Mes Défauts (2010)

James Supercave - Better Strange (2016)

Taylor Swift (feat. Bon Iver) – Exile (2020)

System Of A Down - Spiders (1998)

Téléphone - Au coeur de la nuit (1980)

Têtes Raides - Tam Tam (2007)

Charles Trenet - Je chante (1937)

Tool - Schism (2001)

Tina Turner - The Best (1989)

U2 - Angel Of Harlem (1988)

Van Morrison - Country Fair (1974)

Laurent Voulzy - Rockollection (1977)

Tom Waits - Wrong Side Of The Road (1978)

Weezer - Beverly Hills (2005)

The White Stripes - Hotel Yorba (2001)

Amy Winehouse - Fuck Me Pumps (2003)

Woodkid - In Your Likeness (2020)

Wovenhand - Crook and Flail (2016)

Shannon Wright - Division (2017)

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Heads Will Roll (2009)

Yes - Roundabout (1971)

#Musique #Listes #Playlist #2021 #Rock #Pop #Electro #Blues #Metal

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bitsandbobsofwriting · 3 years ago

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Suppose the Gang™️ live together. Who does which chore? Who makes messes and who nags? & ukw you can add characters like Will, Mithian, Daegal, Kara, Morgause too!! (If you don't want to that's fine :)

(Headcanon Masterlist) (Full Masterlist)

OHOHOHOHOHO I like this anon, lots of crack potential, thank you :D

Ok so. Lets say they all live in the same apartment complex, and become buddies through that (because upwards of 15 people living together is... too many lol). Arthur lives in the nicest, biggest apartment, the penthouse, which is where they all hang out (much to his annoyance) most of the time. Eventually they all get keys to each others' places which is a huge annoyance because like... that's a LOT of keys they all have to carry around.

Anyway.

Merlin and Will are roommates, shortly joined by Gwen, and then Elyan a little while later, after he returns from travelling. Mordred and Daegal live with their uncle, Iseldir, who is the only sane one and tends to stay out of everyone else's way. Percival, Gwaine, and Lancelot share, and are across the hall from M+W+G+E. Leon lives on his own because he has his life together, and prefers having his own space to living with friends, but has also lived in the building the longest. Gaius also lives alone, but he's Merlin's uncle, and is a retired doctor or nurse or something, so he's always being woken up at God knows in the morning to treat various injuries and illnesses. It can literally be needing to tell them anything from "Take a paracetamol and fuck off" to "Jesus Fucking Christ what do you mean he accidentally ate half a kilo of rat poison call a fucking ambulance??". Mithian lives in the building next door, in her own penthouse, and Kara and Morgause live in their own apartments downstairs. Morgana used to share with Arthur, but as much as they're still on good terms, they argued all the time and it was annoying, so she eventually moved in with Morgause.

Gaius tries so hard to stay away from all the weird ass youngers that congregated in his apartment building, but they're all so stupid, and he finds himself looking after them more often than he'd care to admit. He doesn't like... make them meals or anything, but he gives them all mini medkits and looks after them when they're sick. Though with lots of sarcasm and general attitude. Iseldir is the same, but he's a little more removed. He'll occasionally show up to offer sage advice or a helping hand if Mordred/Daegal ask for it specifically. People sort of forget he's there most of the time, but he did save Leon's life once when he was a victim of a hit and run right outside the building.

Merlin, Will, Gwen, and Elyan’s place is like... halfway between messy and tidy. It never gets ridiculous, because Will+Gwen won’t let it, but Elyan and Merlin are fairly messy. You’d think that Lancelot, Percival, and Gwaine’s place would be messiest, purely because of Gwaine, but he’s actually the neatest of them all. Though that isn’t because Gwaine is a neat person, like Lance and Percy are, it’s because he has barely any belongings, and all his shit basically never gets taken out of his suitcases and moving boxes. The others reckon it’s something to do with him hiding from his family maybe? Or an ex? Always being ready to run? But they don’t pry, they just hope he sticks around. Arthur’s place is a MESS and he refuses to tidy, despite it making his life so much harder because he never knows where anything is. Leon’s place is always tidy of course, as is Mordred, Daegal, and Iseldir’s place, and Gaius’ place. They’ve no clue how the girls in the building next door live (very cleanly, or very messily, depending on the mood they’re in), because other than Gwen and Mordred, no one else is allowed access.

The best food is always found in Merlin, Will, Gwen, and Elyan’s place. All of them, bar Will, can cook: Merlin because his mum taught him, and he’s always been pretty self sufficient, Gwen because she was the cook in her house growing up, and Elyan, because both Gwen taught him, and he learnt how to cook all sorts of interesting foreign food when he was travelling. Leon cooks well, but boring-ly, as does Gaius and Iseldir. Arthur can’t cook at all, and actually ends up going to M+W+G+E’s place pretty much every night, to the point where they set a place at the table for him automatically, and if he doesn’t show up without a warning, someone will go check on him.

Will and Arthur have never got along, but like... they keep it on the down low because neither of them are prepared to give up on the rest of the friend group just to avoid the other. But also... once Arthur sees how fiercely protective Will is of his friends, especially Merlin, and once Will sees Arthur punch someone for groping Morgause and Morgana at a bar, they both lay off. They’re secretly rather fond of each other actually, not that either of them would admit it.

Daegal and Mordred kind of idolise Merlin a bit, which everyone thinks is super weird because other than his ability to cook, the man is a bit of a disaster. He’s mid way through medical school and is a mess for it. But you know, he tries to look after them, tells Mordred to shoot his shot with Kara (who he’s been communicating with posters stuck on the inside of his window, because their rooms are across from each other), and teaches Daegal bits and pieces of first aid.

Morgana, whenever she comes over, Gwen, and Merlin are naggers when it comes to Arthur’s untidiness, but no one else really cares, and Morgause just rolls her eyes at it all. Merlin and Gwen meet up maybe once a month to sneak into his apartment and tidy everything up, and he simultaneously hates and loves it. Lancelot nags Merlin into looking after himself, especially when Merlin is in turn nagging everyone else to look after themselves. Lance will pop over when he knows that Merlin has been studying six hours straight without a break, or has spent a whole afternoon helping Arthur out with paperwork (Arthur has him paid as a part time personal assistant or something, so it’s not like he’s working for free), to make him stop and nap and rehydrate. He and Gwen tag team “looking after Merlin”.

Everyone’s like... least favourite thing, is when Arthur and Morgana’s father comes to visit. He’s always an arse, and though the others don’t really see him, except maybe Merlin if he happens to be working at Arthur’s when Uther visits, Arthur and Morgana are always in foul moods for days after he leaves. He always manages to spark arguments between the two of them, which Morgause somehow ends up involving herself in. He’s a bit of a xenophobic twat as well; he’s been pretty cruel to Daegal, Mordred, and Iseldir in the corridor, and the only reason he’s not cruel to Merlin is because he hides his accent/takes care to never speak his native tongue around the man. Everyone always bands together to fix everything when he goes though. Merlin, Gwen, and Elyan will take over Arthur’s massive kitchen and cook a feast and everyone will come and they’ll eat and drink and have Mario Kart tournaments on his huge TV.

There’s also kind of a running joke about Arthur almost or actually dating almost everyone in the group. He and Leon had known each other for years before they knew anyone else, and won’t expand on the friendship they had previous to everyone else showing up. There was a weird tension between Arthur and Lance for like... the first week after he moved in, then it happened again with Gwaine. He and Gwen had a relationship for maybe a year before they realised they were besties and it was weird. He and Mithian had a short lived romance where they both went “meh, no thanks” after maybe a week. He checked Elyan out a handful of times in full view of everyone when they first met, but nothing ever came of it. The only thing that’s lasted more than that year with Gwen, is the obvious thing he has for Merlin. That Merlin also has for him. That both of them are entirely unaware of. Pretty much everyone in the building has money on it now, even people in other apartments who aren’t part of the group. Gwen, Will, and Elyan both really want it to happen, because they won’t have to witness Merlin mope every time Arthur brings a date home anymore, and really don’t want it to happen, because Merlin will move upstairs and they’ll have to start paying more rent.

ANYWAY!!! The whole apartment complex is a MESS but... none of them ever consider leaving because they kind of love it. Half of them are on the same casual football/rugby/pub quiz team. Arthur gave a few of them/would give any of them jobs at his company. They don’t want to leave behind Elyan’s cooking, or Gaius’ odd brand of caring, or Iseldir’s fortune cookie advice, or Morgana and Morgause’s judging, or Gwaine’s ADHD induced bouts of learning to play the drums at three in the morning. It’s just all very special, and homely, and lovely.

Whew, that’s a lot!

I know that’s not exactly what you meant anon, but I hope you enjoyed it nonetheless!! :D

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beautifulletdownfics · 5 years ago

Text

‘someday, someday’ :: tumblr edition, #23

“Home grown Rock to the rhythm, and bop to the beat of the radio You ain't got the slang but you got the face to play the role You can play with me And all the bros Try for the courage and try for charity's tight clothes She got a hat and all he has is his asshole She'll be a' boppin to me”

Harry had the radio up almost obnoxiously loud as we made our way down the M6 toward London.

He held the steering wheel steady with one hand as he sang along to the Kings of Leon song. I was thinking about all the moments Georgie and I were told off for playing this song too loud in my living room when we were in high school. Harry knew the lyrics much better than I was able to recall and I found myself barely able to keep up with him.

He looked happy and relaxed, he’d given his mum a long hug before we left her house and she was coming down to London to see her children at the end of January. Anne gave me a hug as well and told me not to let her son eat all the gingerbread in the car on the way home.

The song changed and I sat up further in my seat, “Yes!”

Harry’s eyes left the road to momentarily look at me with an easy smile, “You know, I would have bet my life on you being a Lily Allen fan.”

“What self respecting young English person isn’t?”

“You are incredibly musically compatible with my sister, it’s a little scary,” His eyes went back to the road but Harry’s smile remained.

“I remember being like ten or eleven when this song came out,” I told him, “And I was meant to be learning Mahler’s 5 and instead I was trying to play the horn and sax parts in this song one after the other.”

“As in, at the same time?” “Playing a phrase and then swapping to the other instrument to play the other, yes,” I laughed, “It’s not really possible, not it you want to keep up with the song at least.”

“What’s Mahler’s 5?” Harry asked, “Sorry, I have no idea about … He’s a composer, right? I want to learn this stuff.”

“Harry,” I said quietly, feeling my tummy drop with feeling at him wanting to learn about music that mattered to me but knowing that it wasn’t particularly cool, “You don’t need to … It’s not everyone’s thing—”

“—I want to learn about your thing,” He interrupted quickly, “I want to be able to enjoy it too and talk about it with you. Can you play it?” “Play it?”

Harry passed me his phone, “It’ll be on Spotify right? Or Youtube? I want to hear what you were learning when you were … ten.”

He said my age like it was something he couldn’t quite believe, and adulthood had also given me an understanding of how strange it was for a ten year-old to be learning an orchestra suite. But it hadn’t felt strange to me at the time.

“Gustav Mahler,” I started slowly, thumbing through Spotify to find what I was looking for, “He was a German composer in the 19th and 20th centuries. He’s a touchy one sometimes because people don’t like that he took certain liberties and … borrowed themes and techniques from other composers but really I think he was just inspired by the giants around him.”

Harry listened quietly, “And ‘5’ I’m guessing is a symphony?”

“It is,” I replied, having found what I was looking for I waited for a moment before pressing play, “Are you sure you want to listen to this? Your music was much more fun.”

“I want to hear it,” He insisted firmly.

“Okay,” I let out a deep breath, “So, Symphony No. 5 was written 1901/1902 and it’s beautiful. He was recovering from a haemorrhage of some sort … I can’t remember what,” I trailed off nervously, unsure why I was feeling so scattered by the thought of doing this with Harry, he reached over and ran the palm of his hand down the back of my head and held it at the base of my neck for a moment in a calming motion, “He used to do this thing … He would have the key of the movement be ambiguous and flow from something ridiculous like C# Major to a D Major by the finale, it’s called ‘progressive tonality’ and in his day people hated him for it … Now it’s used by nearly everyone, especially in pop music.”

“You mean in the 19th Century people didn’t like key changes?” “They hated them,” I confirmed. Harry’s understanding was simplistic, but he’d cottoned on to the main gist of it.

“I’m putting a key change in every single song I write from now on, Mahler’s my man.”

I laughed, “People thought it was a messy deviation,” I explained further, “They wanted the movement to close neatly in the same key so they felt like the suite was resolved. A change of key felt like leaving something behind or … Unfinished business.”

“So they were all very Type A,” Harry joked.

“Composers are all about control, which is a beautiful juxtaposition to musicians who are all rebels and want to put their own flare on things,” I grinned, “If everyone played straight music wouldn’t make you feel anything.”

Harry pulled his hand away from me and pointed to the phone, he wriggled back in his seat like he was getting comfortable, “I’m ready. Play me a symphony.”

“The whole thing?” “Of course,” He reached forward and made a few adjustments to the sound system.

The first movement started and by the tenth note from the first trumpet I dropped my head back and closed my eyes. It was one of my favourite openings to a symphony, which was definitely biased to my love for the sound of a trumpet leading an orchestra. I knew what it felt like to have the power of all those instruments behind you, knowing they were waiting on and listening in on you to know their queue. To feel the orchestra push up under me was when I felt strongest, happiest and most alive.

At the end of the first suite I opened my eyes and looked over to Harry. I couldn’t read the expression on his face.

“Are you bored?” I asked, “We can change it.”

His arm came out to touch my shoulder, “No, I’m listening. Don’t touch it.”

I watched him for a second longer, before settling back into my spot, not quite believing Harry could be as interested in what I loved as he was. It felt oddly wonderful to be sharing it with him.

For the next hour we sat with the symphony playing, I liked the fact that Harry let it play, he didn’t talk over it or think of it as background music as classical was so often reduced to. By the time the fifth and final movement came to a close and the car was filled with silence I was picking at my nails nervously waiting for Harry to say something.

“Wow,” He cleared his throat when his voice had been a croak, “It … It really makes you feel things, doesn’t it?”

My shoulders relaxed instantly at hearing the deliberative tone of his voice, “Tolstoy said ‘Music is the shorthand of emotion.’”

Harry’s eyebrows raised slightly, “He got that right. There’s so much power to it, I feel like I’ve been missing out. I felt like I was going to cry for about three quarters of it. It’s so … strong … It’s powerful.”

“Someone else said something about how classical music is the best, cheapest, mind-altering drug in the world,” I added.

“See if they marketed it like that …” Harry trailed off with a a laugh. “That was beautiful though. Play me another.”

I thought for a moment about where to take him next, “You’re going to need tissues for this one.”

When I started recognising the area in London where Harry lived he surprised me by turning down a different street and eventually pulling up at a line of shops. It had just turned 6pm and there were a number of restaurants with people going in and out periodically.

Harry picked up his phone and was searching for something on it which he eventually found and showed me.

“Let’s get some takeaway, I don’t have anything at home. Here’s the menu, it’s my favourite pizza in London,” He dropped the phone into my hand and waited while I had a look through.

“I’ll eat anything,” I eventually told him, “Just pick your favourites and we’ll share.”

Harry nodded and took the phone back, scrolling around for a moment before holding it up to his ear as he called in the order. I had expected that we would go in to order, but as soon as Harry was greeting whoever answered his call it clicked into place that he was avoiding the extended time in a public place. I didn’t like to think it had anything to do with my being with him and as though he could read where my head was at as soon as Harry hung up he reassured me.

“They’re lovely,” He said, “I order from them all the time. They’re just … A bit much to wait in front of for twenty minutes. You’ll see when we go in.”

Harry spend the wait time quizzing me on what my New York wishlist was for our trip. We hadn’t spoken about it really since we had exchanged gifts the evening before. I still felt quite daft for the coffee table book I’d given him and the thirty pound, token M&S voucher.

He was sprouting off names of places and all the best things to do with such excitement I couldn’t help but think that the trip was as much for Harry as for me. He was practically buzzing beside me, the joy at thinking about how to share one of his favourite places with me was evident. I tried not to think about the expense involved, or the fact that we hadn’t put any labels on our relationship yet. Everything pointed to that happening soon though.

When twenty-five minutes had passed Harry cracked open his door and told me to follow him.

He started walking up the street a few steps ahead of me and I laughed as I took in his gait in a new way.

“What?” Harry turned back to look at what I was laughing at.

“You walk like a pigeon,” I told him and poked his arm accusingly.

“Your mind is a crazy place, Nina Lawrence,” Harry told me with a happily doubtful look on his face. “Tell me, how am I like a pigeon?”

I laughed again, “You know how ducks and ... Well, all birds I think. When they walk they like, move their head forward a bit,” I demonstrated but put a stupid pout on my face while I did to make him laugh.

He did.

“What?” Harry shook his head as he looked down at me.

“Yeah,” I nodded, feeling more comfortable, “They can’t take a step without their head moving forward too. You walk like this,” I rocked my head up and down while taking the biggest steps I could muster. “But like, in fast forward,” I waved my hands to show him how much faster it was when he did it.

“I don’t walk anything like that!” He defended himself quickly, crossing his arms over his chest and frowning at me.

“Ah,” I drew out playfully, “Yes, you do.”

“You’re just grumpy ‘cause you have the legspan of a toddler!” He accused.

“I’m just saying,” I jabbed his side before pressing my whole body against his side, he draped his arm over my shoulder and dragged me back towards him.

“So sensitive about walking,” Harry shook his head fondly and kept me against his side as we started walking again at a painstakingly slow pace.

One might say a little too leisurely. When I looked at him though I quickly realised his snail pace was deliberate.

“Harry,” I laughed.

“What?” he feigned ignorance. He was swaying us back and forth across the mostly empty footpath, we were getting nowhere but something about the streetlights on my face, Harry’s scent all around me and his arm across my shoulder had me letting him hold me there instead of pulling away like I might normally have done.

Eventually he evened us out and we walked at a comfortable speed, but Harry kept his arm lazily around me, “These guys try to marry me off to their granddaughter nearly every time I go in so … And maybe tonight after that little performance from you I might finally oblige them.”

He dropped my shoulder as we got to the door of the Italian Bistro, Harry opened the door and held it there for me to walk though. Inside was small and a touch dark, but it smelled delicious and there was a comfortable crackle of people talking and laughing at their tables.

The large, open wood-fire pizza oven was at the front of the restaurant, making the whole area toasty and warm. Harry walked around me to the counter, holding up a hand to an older man towards the back of the room.

“Alright, Sam?” He said to him, then turning to the young guy manning the oven, “Hiya, I’ve got a pickup.”

“Mr Harry,” Sam had limped his way up to us, “It’s a beautiful night for the greatest pizza in the world!”

“It sure is,” Harry agreed, shaking his hand and then pulling out his wallet to pay, “I’ve brought you a new customer.”

Sam’s attention turned to me, standing a step behind Harry, “Hello,” I said.

Harry turned back to me and put a hand on my back, “This is Nina, Sam. Neens, Sam makes the best pizza in London.” “The world!” Sam corrected, taking my hand and holding it out in front of me, “You’ve brought your lovely lady to me … Now, tell me, you’re a film star?”

“Me?” I cried in shock, shaking me head quickly, “No. No … I’m … I’m not, I’m nobody … I—”

—Nina’s a musician,” Harry told him slowly but held a hand up to his own chest straight after, “Not like me though. She plays in an orchestra. She’s a virtuoso.”

Sam’s eyes lit up, “Virtuoso! Bella! Italia’s greatest Maestro Giuseppe Verdi was born in my home town, Le Roncole. Do you know of him?”

“I do,” I confirmed with a smile, “His operas are magnificent.”

“Ah!” Sam closed his eyes for a moment in wistful happiness, “Listen to Verdi and forget time has passed.”

Harry was looking delighted at the exchange, three pizza boxes were balanced in the palm of one of his hands while his other was still resting comfortably on my back. I felt him grab at the material of my jumper and tug it gently.

“We’ll be back again soon, Sam,” Harry said, “Thank you for dinner.”

“Ah,” Sam waved, “Next time you bring your lady in, sit down at a table like a proper date!”

“I’ve got a table at home,” Harry grinned.

“But no Sam!” Sam yelled back happily, making a few heads at tables turn our way.

Harry was laughing and shaking his head as we approached his car outside.

“I can see what you mean about waiting for the order inside.”

“He’s a character,” Harry agreed.

It took less than five minutes to get back to Harry’s house, which was dark from him having been away for the week. He led me through the front door, flicking on a few sets of lights and then moving through to the kitchen. He put the pizza boxes on the bench and moved around to fix a few things up like move a plant out of the sink of water he’d left it in and crack the window for some fresh air.

I slid up onto one of the stools and started flipping open the pizza boxes in front of me.

“I’m hungry,” I said, “And this smells delicious. Do all that later, come eat, Harry.”

He turned to face me from the pantry doorway, just as he was about to say whatever was on his tongue he paused and looked at me for a few seconds.

“What?” I asked, tugging my jumper and sitting up a little taller at his inspection.

“I quite like you sitting in my kitchen being bossy,” was all he said.

“Oh,” I replied dumbly, my confidence hitching for a second but then Harry moved over and pulled himself up next to me. “Well, you’re lucky I haven’t made a comment about how presumptuous of you it was to just assume I was going to stay here tonight.”

“Stay here? Who said anything about you staying here?” Harry took a comically large bite of pizza and looked at me down his nose, his eyebrows high but eyes dancing with mirth. “I’m driving you home after this. There was no presumption here, just being a nice guy and feeding you.”

I picked up my own piece and kicked his foot with mine.

“If anyone’s been presumptuous here it’s you, Miss Lawrence,” Harry continued gleefully.

“I hate you sometimes,” I told him, reaching down to feel for the floor before slipping out behind him, “Would you like a drink?”

“Help yourself, by all means,” Harry waved his hand across the kitchen with a huge smirk on his face, a smudge of tomato paste across the top of his lip he pulled away with his thumb.

As I filled two glasses with water at the tap I tried my best to give him a menacing glare. Harry pretended not to notice and continued to feed himself without saying anything further.

Just before I was able to get back up into my seat, Harry swivelled around and trapped me between his thighs. When he kissed me it was slow, but powerful in the way it seemed to overwhelm me in the moment. His arms were all the way around my waist and hooked into my sides snuggly, my hands moved up and around his shoulders. I found myself sinking into the feeling of our chests pressed together, and the pressure that came from Harry holding us as one piece. After a few moments, one of Harry’s hands came up to my face to hold me closer, but he had obviously forgotten about the apple Laykn threw. I winced and pulled back from him sharply when his fingers got a little too close to my bruised cheek.

“Shit, Nina,” Harry reached for me to come back towards him immediately, his lips smacked together, “I’m sorry. I didn’t think. Let me see it, sorry. I won’t touch it.”

My eyes were watering from the tender flesh having been interfered with, but I swallowed most of it back, “It’s alright. Shocked me is all.”

“Are you sure it’s okay?” He murmured, his eyes inspecting it with a guilty shimmer, “Do you have a headache at all? Dizzy?”

“It’s okay,” I ghosted my fingers across the skin below where the low, throbbing pain ran through my cheek. “I think it’ll hurt for a few days yet.”

“I’m sorry,” He said again.

“Don’t be, I was enjoying that kiss,” I leant back against his chest and waited for Harry to lower his lips back to mine.

He hummed against me for the first moment, then carefully took me back into the same position as before. Our mouths dancing as our bodies sank together. Harry’s hands sank lower down my body, rounding the curve of my arse and holding it after a lovely, encouraging squeeze. I could feel him growing hard between us through his trousers, which was a snag my brain kept getting ensnared on as I told myself to focus on the moment.

“Neens,” As though Harry could sense my head was elsewhere, he pulled back for a moment to inspect my face, “Do you trust me?” He asked, breathless and switching his eyes between my eyes and my lips.

I nodded at him quickly, not really thinking about what he could’ve meant until the three seconds after my response, when Harry’s eyes hooded and he swallowed thickly. He came back to me and captured my lips in his hotly, swirling his tongue with the perfect amount of pressure over mine.

“Trust me still?” He hurried out, giving the hip he had a grip on a squeeze, his other hand pressed over my collarbone just below my shoulder.

I nodded again and felt my chest expand with an involuntary breath as his hand started down my body, curving neatly around the side of my breast instead of traveling straight down over it like I immediately wished he had.

“You’re so beautiful,” He told me quietly.

I nodded again. Sure my words wouldn’t work, it felt like everything inside me was churning. Harry leant down and kissed me, slow and careful, as though he was trying to sort something out in his head. When he pulled away, there were two frown lines between his eyebrows as both his hands rested where my hip bones sat.

“What are you thinking?” Harry asked.

“The food,” I thought of the pizza getting cold.

He smiled, “Pizza is really good reheated. Everyone says so.”

“I’m not thinking anything else,” I managed to get out clumsily, eliciting a small laugh from Harry.

He steadied himself with a rough cough and a second of diverting his gaze away from mine, “I think that’s a good thing for you, Nina.” His fingers delicately came up to trace the outside of my face, “You get so caught up in this brilliant mind of yours you back yourself out of what’s happening in front of you. I wanna help you to not think so much and feel this with me … Can I? I promise it will be amazing,” Harry’s lips pressed to the shell of my ear and I stumbled closer to him from the sheer intimacy of it.

“What do you want, Harry?” I asked.

“You,” He replied urgently, though his voice was low and quiet. “I want you.”

“You’ve got me, Harry.” I smiled, somewhat bravely, latching my hands around the base of his neck gently.

His breath hitched, “I swear to God, Nina, tell me we should stop and I’ll go back to being the perfect gentleman,”

“I don’t want to stop,” I slipped my hands underneath the material at Harry’s neck, sprawling my fingers out across his back. I pulled him down into another kiss, pressing myself closer to his chest.

“Your hands are shaking, Neens,” He grabbed at my wrist and pulled it down, holding my own hand out in front of my face. My eyes focused in on my trembling fingers. “Why are you scared?”

“I’m nervous,” I corrected, “Not scared. Like, good nervous, you know?”

“Good nervous,” Harry repeated slowly.

“I don’t want to fuck this up,” I continued faintly.

He let out a quick breath, “You’re not gonna fuck anything up, Nina.”

“Well, what are you stuttering about then?”

Harry smiled fondly and shook his head, if anything looking embarrassed, “I don’t want to do anything you’re not ready for. But I don’t want you to be too shy to ask for what you want.”

“I want you,” I waited for a beat before scrunching up my nose at him.

“Yeah?” He kissed me firmly.

“Yes,” I mumbled when our lips broke apart from my single nod in confirmation.

Harry watched me, but only for a second before his hands found my sides and his lips descended on mine again. I felt his warm palms move up underneath my shirt and slowly move up, keeping his grip firm in a comforting way. I moved my hands back to behind his neck, liking the way it forced his chest to press on mine and his thighs to tighten around my hips.

“You’re so beautiful, Nina,” He murmured against the skin on my neck, “So. Damn. Beautiful.” He kissed further down with each word.

“Harry,” I breathed, if only to get him know I liked him being where he was.

“Fuck, babe … Slow, yeah?”

I tightened my arms around his neck, and sucked in a breath when one of Harry’s hands smoothed further up my chest than it ever had before. I almost thought he was going to hesitate for a minute, but he pushed his fingers up and traced the skin along the underside of my breast, underneath my bralette, running his knuckles back along it each time.

I pulled his chin back up to mine, and directed our mouths together, letting Harry steer us into an unhurried open mouth kiss that stirred warmth through me just as he moved his hand to cover me fully. I couldn’t help the way my body seemed to move my chest against him even more, but our lips tore apart when I moved my hips up and against him, feeling the outline of him completely.

“Upstairs,” He mumbled, his hand slipping out from my shirt, “We’re not doing this in my kitchen.”

“Lead the way,” I told him softly, taking a step back only to have Harry immediately jump down, press up against me and kiss me hard again. After a moment he took one of my hands and started skipping his way up stairs, dragging me along behind him.

He marched us right up to the door to his bedroom and by the time I walked in ahead of him I was struggling to keep my laughter at Harry’s urgency in. It wasn’t until I turned back to watch him follow me in that I was unable to contain the giggles.

“What?” He demanded gruffly, yanking his jumper and shirt up together all the way up over his chest before his head disappeared and he nearly crashed into me. His tattoos were right in front of me then, and I trailed my eyes over them, smiling at the Give Way sign; Harry’s reminder in humility, to let others in first. It was then I also noticed the texture of his skin, and the hairs on his chest, the small roll of skin at his lower belly and the way his stomach was indented slightly just next to each of his hip bones. They were all signs that he was in shape, but there was a bigger element of what I saw that recognised it was just Harry. All these beautiful markings on his skin and intricacies to his body that were now only mine to see.

“In a hurry?” I managed to blurt out when Harry’s fingers reached for both my hands and intertwined our fingers.

“Yes,” He replied simply, but I then saw him think better of it, “But also no, not at all.”

I laughed again which had Harry squeezing my hands and then pulling me up against him again. His bare collar bones were at eye height for me and I placed a kiss on each one before looking back up at him. He brought our hands slowly around my back and when I didn’t announce any discomfort at the move Harry placed his forehead carefully against the undamaged side of mine.

“You’re something else,” Harry said under his breath.

He dropped my hands at the same time he captured my lips in another kiss, and as the kiss progressed and Harry’s hands found their way back up and under my shirt my own traced the toned panes of his back, feeling where his muscles moved as he explored me. Just as my hands were making their way around to the front of his belt, Harry’s lifted together and he broke our mouths apart long enough to tell me to put my arms up.

My jumper and shirt were peeled off expertly and I sucked in a breath at the feeling of my tummy meeting Harry’s bare skin. He was looking down at my chest, his chest rising and falling in shallow, quick breaths.

“No, let me,” He said, reaching for where my own hands had gone behind my back to pull apart the clasps holding my bra together. Harry lent down to place a delicate kiss against the lace of the cup on my left breast, “It’s pretty, but I’m gonna need it to bugger off.”

“Chivalry is not dead,” I said dryly, jumping when I felt his fingers snapping the material free, he pulled the garment off to the side without breaking eye contact with me.

“Don’t get mouthy with me,” He returned with a smile, still not looking down at me as he nudged my knees and walked forward into me, my legs didn’t understand what he was doing though, and Harry ended up nearly toppling over me. His arm wound strong around my back and pulled me against his chest as he walked towards the bed. I could feel the skin of my chest meet his, all the softness of me meeting his firm body. “Get up,” Harry said simply, finally looking down at my naked chest as I shuffled up onto the bed in front of him.

“Stop staring,” I told him, watching his face and waiting for his eyes to meet mine again.

When they did his smile was sultry and made my insides coil, he crawled up next to me and when he reached my eye level he stopped and looked back down at me greedily, “I absolutely will not do that.”

I raised my left hand and ran the knuckles across his stomach, over his belly button and to the other hip. It sucked in under my touch and I found myself unable to stop watching it happen. After my third swipe across he leant away for a moment to stop my movements with a wide palm, he held both our hands against his skin.

“You really can’t keep doing that, I’ll embarrass myself,” Harry said into my ear, his skin was warm, and his eyelashes scrapped lightly against my cheek as his breaths came out in ragged puffs, not staying in any rhythm I could learn. The pads of his fingers started moving over my chest and felt though they were made to be there, slow and skilled. Nothing felt rushed, or like it was a means to an end.

Harry sunk back onto his elbows, propping them up somewhere just below where my shoulders were and with the movement came a deepening of the warm fizzing running through me. He pulled back and frowned, like I might’ve been pulling him away, instead of just in a different direction. I moved my fingers down his wrists, feeling the veins on the backs of his hands and slipping my fingers through his; all while slipping his palms down to my hips again.

Harry paused there, and I felt him hook his fingers around the top of my jeans, his eyes holding mine unwavering, "Neens."

Harry's thumbs traced up passed my belly button, instead of replying I pushed my hips up off the mattress, giving him permission to undo the button and zip. He grunted his way through pulling the jeans down and over my hips.

"Sit up for me," His voice cracked slightly, moving up off me and sitting back on his thighs.

I could feel my chest moving up and down when I sat up in front of him, Harry slowly leaning forward and peeling my jeans all the way down my legs. I set my eyes on the beaks of the swallows on his chest, holding my breath when he threw them to the side and then lightly traced his hands back up the length of my legs. I let out all my air slowly once Harry's palms squeezed on the top of my thighs, my body almost completely bare to him.

"This isn't a very flattering position," I said, still avoiding Harry's eye and thinking there was no way he would be able to deny noticing the bad angles; my tummy bunched, back curved and breasts falling free against my chest.

Before I could look up, Harry leant forward and pressed his forehead to mine, trapping my body between his arms when he rested his palms flat on the bed behind me, “Nina, there is literally nothing about you that’s unflattering right now.”

“Not even my bruisey face?” I mumbled quietly, transfixed by the look in Harry’s eyes, the one that was full of a desire made my nerve endings stand on end.

He shook his head and his hair fell over his forehead, “Not even your beautiful, bruised face.”

I almost had time to smile before his lips were on mine, slow and careful but just the right amount of urgency. Just a moment later our bodies were entwined again, pressed together with tangled limbs and breathing out of sync. I fumbled for a few moments, regaining a sense of where my hands should go and what they should be doing to keep Harry moving against me like he was, and to keep eliciting the little noises of encouragement from him.

And that’s what he was, encouraging. Harry took his time, directing my hands in the right directions, moulding our bodies together in the right ways. His breath whispered against my cheek, my breasts, my stomach; “You’re beautiful. Fuck, yes, keep doing that. Neens, you ‘kay?” Then, there were the giggles, the ticklish spots and the logistics that didn’t work out. Harry’s teeth flashed my way and he said, “Let’s try that again.”

But it was Harry, and it was me, and nothing felt forced or overwhelmingly awkward. Our growing confidence with each other’s bodies was a tangible thing between us, with my movements becoming increasingly teasing as Harry took his time making every part of me feel good. My hands kept playing at the waistband of his jeans, fingers exploring the skin just below it, blushing at the way he forced his hips closer to mine with each touch from me.

I rang my fingers lower again, feeling the rougher hairs below and after a series of other little questions that came in the form of lingering gazes and fumbled, hesitant touches, Harry stopped and sat back with his hands covering the skin of my inner thighs, “Lie back.” I did as I was told without thinking very much, Harry pushed up on his arms and then stood at the base of the bed. Clumsily, he pushed down his jeans and stepped out of them. I watched him quietly, taking in the rest of Harry’s body as it was revealed to me, he stood in just his dark underwear. Strong thighs and long, slim legs took a step closer to the bed and I released Harry was trying to get me to look up at him.

“Hi,” He smiled brilliantly, “How are you doing there?”

“Good,” I spoke under my breath but Harry heard me.

“Are you okay if I take these off, or would you prefer I …” He trailed off with his fingers stuck just beneath the elastic waistline when I was more than a little taken aback by Harry being so forward in his questions, “I’ll leave it for now,” He decided, not missing a beat as he crawled back up the bed to me.

He kissed my nose lightly before pressing his lips firmly against mine. His hands ran up and down the length of my sides while he slowly started putting the weight of his body back against me now that the barrier of his jeans was gone. Feeling him firm beneath the fabric of his pants sent a rush down my body that settled and twisted at the base of my stomach.

I broke out kiss and trailed my lips over the skin of his collarbones again, opening my lips wider and smiling against his warmth when I felt Harry shudder through his next breath.

“Neens ...”

“Harry,” My lips moved almost up to his ear when I felt his hands round over my bum, squeezing a little tighter with each kiss I placed on him. His palms moved around to the inside of my thighs and gently started moving them apart, “Harry,” I repeated his name slowly.

He looked up at me from under his lashes and raised his eyebrows at me as he kissed his way down my tummy, his fingers lingering at my nipples. I closed my eyes involuntarily, trying to breathe through the moment.

Harry’s voice called me as he hooked his index fingers around the material at the seam of my underwear, “Nina? Can I?”

I struggled through a nod as I watched him, bringing my fingers down to hold his hair back off his face and tracing them along the redness flushing his cheekbones.

“Words,” He said urgently, “Nina, words, please.”

I tried to bring my legs together where his chest was lightly pressed against me, but it was in anticipation not shyness, “Yes. Harry.”

“We can stop, we don’t have to do everything all at once, it’s okay,” He was being serious, but I could feel him everywhere and I wanted to feel him even more.

“No,” I shook my head softly, “No. Harry, I want this now. Please,” It was my turn to say.

His movements were quick then, he tugged the garment down over my legs with little regard for where it ended up on his floor. I watched in awe as Harry settled his elbows on either side of my hips and pressed a kiss to my bikini line, just at the top of my leg.

“You smell amazing,” He said, not giving me a chance to reply before his mouth covered me.

Harry was slow in his movements at first, letting me settle into the realisation this wasn’t going to be a rushed job on his behalf. He seemed to be confident with a general idea for what felt good, I murmured to him, my hands reaching for the parts of him I could touch. With my hands latched around his wrists he built and took away pressure with annoyingly good technique.

“Harry,” I lifted my shoulders off the bed to reach for his head, pushing the hair off his forehead and holding his cheeks in my hands when he lifted his chin to meet my eye, “I’ll come if you keep going.” He grinned, a small laugh falling from his lips and I felt it where his chin rested against me, “Good. That’s the idea.”

“I ... I mean.”

“Nina, relax, yeah? This isn’t a race,” Harry said slowly, smiling to himself when I jumped at the feeling of his fingers running over where his mouth had been. “Does it feel good?”

“Yes,” I breathed, my hips jumping with the new sensation.

Harry kept a hand between my legs but rose up with the other, siding up to me and burying his head in my neck. He rose it to watch my reaction has he slowly slid a finger into me, curling it up as he brought it out again. My breath was laboured and he caught my mouth in a hot kiss, grinning against my lips when I broke away to let out a quiet moan.

“Shut up,” I huffed.

“You are so incredibly sexy,” He told me, sinking his finger back into me and finally working the hood of my clit again. His pressure was perfect and he wound a leg across my hips to keep me still. “Let me have it, Nina,” he kissed me again and worked all his movements a little quicker, encouraging me to give in to the feeling swirling through me.

I let out a cry as I gripped Harry’s triceps, surrendering to the dizzying rush and feeling the pleasant explosion through my core. Harry kissed at the corner of my mouth, gently continuing to work his fingers before bringing them slowly up my sides.

I lay still for a moment, watching Harry wordlessly watch me. He looked flushed as well, his eyes low but clear as he peppered kisses over my face. I locked my arms around his neck and pulled Harry down for a long kiss, loving the feeling of my breasts pressed against his chest. When I moved my legs to lock around his waist Harry took a shallow breath in between his teeth but I didn’t let him pull himself away from me.

Lost in the kiss again, the feeling of Harry’s hands moving back to my hips, his hand slipping between my legs to gently swirl again.

“Harry,” I tried to close my thighs, feeling sensitive as my body reacted to him again, the slow build rising again. “Harry, stop teasing.”

“I’m not teasing,” He smiled against my cheek, “I want to feel you.”

“Take your bloody pants off then,” I breathed hastily, hesitating as my hands ran down his chest and stopped at the waistband.

Harry laughed and rested his forehead against mine, “Fuck.”

For the second time he left me alone on the bed, I let out a quick puff of breath as he skirted across and ducked into his ensuite. He returned with two condoms, the square packets resting between his lips as he walked back and quicker than I had time to register, dropped his pants and stood back to smile at me.

“Two?” I asked.

“Can you imagine if there was something wrong with the first one?”

That made me laugh, because there wasn’t an ounce of insincerity in Harry’s voice.

“Happy?” He put condoms to the side where he would be able to reach them and then joined me on the bed again.

“Endlessly,” I replied, tilting my head up for a kiss. I reached down for him and pressed my lips against his chest when my fingers wrapping around him made Harry tense everywhere. I don’t think he had expected me to be so forward.

He held himself above me, resting his head on my shoulder while I slowly pumped him, paying attention to what made his breath hitch and where was sensitive for him. Harry’s hands bunched in the duvet and he swore under his breath, lowering his hips to meet mine and press our naked bodies together for the first time.

“Are you good?” He asked sweetly, his words barely separated from each other.

“Are you?”

“You’re literally killing me,” Harry replied, lazily rocking against me, “You didn’t answer my question though.”

“I’m great.”

Harry laughed at my chirpy response, “You’re a shit.”

“Harry,” I said, feeling his slightly damp forehead press to mine, his grey green eyes watching me with a fire behind them, “I want you,” I reached up and pulled a condom back between us.

He waited only a second before pulling back and sitting up on his knees, not noticing how my eyes flirted all over his body. His strong shoulders hunched over as he peeled the condom over himself, his chest taught and moving up and down more urgently than normal. When I felt him look back at me I couldn’t tear my eyes from his hands, holding this hard length and squeezing it once.

“Now who’s staring,” Harry whispered, kissing my stomach on his way back to my head, “If you ever look at me like that in public I swear to god …”

I kissed him, loving that he had one hundred percent delivered on his promise to get me out of my head and make me feel good. I felt fearless with him, lust the drug that my mind needed to leg go of the hangups and overthinking my brain was conditioned to fall into.

As Harry settled between my legs and ran his mouth along the shell of my ear and down my neck he said my name over and over, and I could hear myself saying his back. I felt him press his head against my chest so he could look down between us as he lined up to slowly push forward and slip into me.

I took in a long breath at the feeling, holding it where an unpleasant stretching rose through me. Harry held still, urging me to breathe out, telling me he wasn’t going to move.

“Tell me when,” He said, “Tell me.”

I held onto his chest tightly for a moment, waiting for Harry being inside me to feel comfortable. His fingers found my nipples, distracting my mind from one part of my body with pleasure at another. It worked, and slowly a rushed throbbing started where I felt him, the need for Harry to move pulling up and causing me to sigh deeply into his touch.

“Harry, go, move.”

Harry bit his lip firmly and kept his eyes on me as he started slowly swivelling his hips, watching for tells on my face that one angle felt better than another. It felt fantastic and I didn’t know where to settle my hands, so they reverted to the tracks they had been trailing earlier. His breaths came out in short, full puffs and I was pleased Harry was keeping us in missionary for our first time together; learning and feeling a body was best this way.

“Nina,” He murmured after a few minutes of being lost in each other’s bodies, “I’m not … You feel so good. I can’t …”

“Don’t hold it,” I told him, hating there was any trace of doubt in him. He felt where I was bringing my hand down between us and overtook it with his own, circling around my clit and looking at my face to see my reaction. “Fuck, you feel so good. Come for me again, Neens. ”

His name fell out of my mouth unintentionally when Harry changed the rhythm of his hips and his fingers at the same time, and orgasm came over me quickly when the feeling mixed with hearing Harry’s own pleasure and having his slick body move with mine.

He swore through his own orgasm and I shut my eyes at the sensation, the hand that wasn’t between us coming up to hold the hair at the back of my mouth. Harry easily directed my mouth to his and into a languid kiss, pulling out of me slowly but keeping the full body contact.

I could feel my own heartbeat in my ears as he pulled away, a content look on his face as he watched me for a second. I pulled my hair away from my face and shoulders to try to get some cooler air on them feeling none of the sleepiness I knew I should be. Harry’s watch had me feeling invigorated and bulletproof.

“Shower?” He asked slowly, licking his puffed lips and drawing a circle on my hip bone as he waited for a response.

I nodded and sat up onto my elbows, “And then pizza.”

“Oi,” Harry called to me as he rolled off the bed and stood, reaching for a few tissues and removing the condom, “No food talk so soon after me being inside you please, there has to be a grace period! Surely.”

That made me laugh, and as I darted passed him into the shower he made a swipe for me but missed.

The straps of Harry’s singlet was all tangled around my neck when I woke up.

The front was twisted over my shoulder leaving my chest cold and exposed to the cool air where the duvet had slipped down. I rolled over onto my back and tried to fix it all, shimming down to try to get myself further into the warmth. My thighs and arse ached pleasantly but there was a muted panic somewhere inside me, however small.

“Mmm, Nina,” Harry’s previously still form beside me rumbled to life, albeit slow and delayed in his movements. When he turned to face me, his eyes were closed and puffy from sleep. He wore a wide smile though, and a strangled hum gurgled from his throat, “Hi, g’mornin’”

“Hello,” I managed, sounding embarrassingly polite. I tucked my hands across my chest and underneath my arms, trying to cover myself adequately.

Under the covers Harry’s palm found the back of my thigh, he pulled it towards his body and forced it over his hip, “Don’t be so far away. It’s too early for that.”

“Yes, hello. Good morning,” I laughed nervously, suddenly every bit awake.

I was acutely aware that Harry had slept in nothing but a pair of thin, cotton pants. Last night’s boldness that had allowed me to be like this with Harry felt frail, the light of a new day had me trying to shimmy away from him.

I needed a moment to breathe.

“Nope,” His grip tightened and he pushed his chin into my neck when I pulled back more convincingly, “You’re not going anywhere. You’ve got nothing today. Nobody is expecting you anywhere.”

“I have to pee,” I thought on my feet, fingers sprawling out on his bare chest in a feeble attempt at creating some distance between us.

Harry hummed against my skin, “Okay ... But I’m gonna peek at your bum as you go.”

“Rude,” I choked out.

I felt the turning up of his lips over my collarbone and the fingers of the hand that rested dangerously close to my bottom fanned out as wide as they could, the tips of three of them pushing between my legs dangerously close to my core. My breathing hitched.

“Go on then,” Harry huffed out dramatically, rolling on his back and covering his face with a heavily draped forearm, “Leave me, see if I care.”

I shuffled myself away as quickly as possible, bracing myself for the coolness outside the duvet but hurried by the promise of a closed door and some space in Harry’s bathroom.

The tiles were heated, and had I been in a different mind frame I might have appreciated it, or rolled my eyes at the silly extravagance to some of Harry’s house. But right now I shut the door and sat down, leaning my back against the sink and vanity unit. My arms were cold, and my feet as well, but I was less concerned about that and more concerned about there being only so long before Harry started wondering what on earth I was doing in here.

I tilted my head back and stared at the bathroom lights above me, trying to pull all the pieces of my thudding heart, my racing head and my awkward body back together into one person.

One functioning human being.

I hadn’t heard the door open, “Who’s a functioning human being?” I jumped at his voice, almost going to stand up but realising quickly there was no way to pretend I’d actually come in here for any real purpose.

“Why are we on the floor?” Harry sat down directly in front of me, his face neutral and looking every bit like my sitting on his bathroom floor could be completely reasonable, if only I could supply him with the answer.

“Hi,” I gently nudged his leg with the heel of my foot.

“I’m pretty happy I was right about you running away, and I didn’t just open the door to you on the loo,” He smiled gingerly. “Would’ve been awkward.”

“I didn’t run away,” I tried weakly, not believing it myself so hardly expecting Harry to dignify it with anything close to belief.

“Do you like my heated floor? My mum thinks it’s completely unnecessary,” He flashed my his dimples and pulled my leg up over his knee, “Something else that’s completely unnecessary is you freaking out about last night.”

I felt myself go bright red and I looked back up to Harry’s light fittings, “I’m so …"

“So what? So ... Hungry? Cold? Beautiful? In need of a cuddle? What?” His voice was gentle, and I knew Harry was slowly talking me away from any self loathing thoughts I was entertaining.

“Mortified,” I settled with finally. “Why can’t I be a cool, aloof girl who’s just ... Cool? Not bothered by anything and not going over sex with a guy she’s really into to pinpoint all the times she probably did something embarrassing or—”

“Stop,” Harry let out one quick, breathy laugh, “You’re stunning, Nina. Last night was incredible and I can’t bare the thought of you worrying over it,” he pulled his hair back over his head roughly, “I’ve been thinking about what last night would be like for months.”

I blushed and shrugged one shoulder.

Harry frowned at me, “Nina, I thought you were beautiful within ten seconds of seeing you. My attraction to you hasn’t been progressive, I mean, it has, now that I know you better I feel like I’m gonna burst half the time. But that initial spark was instantaneous for me. I’m a twenty-seven year-old male, Neens, it doesn’t take much.”

I felt a burst of humour fill my chest, “Doesn’t take much?” I repeated, my voice slightly raised, “Thanks a lot, Harry!"

“No!” He cried through a laugh of his own, leaning forward and grabbing at my waist, his forehead fell to my shoulder and his fingers ghosted up my bare arms, “No, that’s not what I meant! I ...”

He was laughing so hard he couldn’t get the words out and in an instant he had filled me with a silly joy that thirty seconds ago I would never have known how to get to. I settled into his touch that felt just as comfortable and wonderful as the night before.

“You’re such an idiot,” I chastised playfully, planting my palm on the tile floor next to us and raising myself up only to plant myself down straddling his lap.

“I’m not!” He insisted loudly, “I’m a man besotted!" Harry wrapped his arms around my middle and swayed me into a warm hug, “Have I distracted you from your self doubt enough to score a few more hours in bed?”

“Probably,” I pressed a kiss his cheek, “Yeah.”

“Excellent,” Harry declared, and I had no idea how but suddenly he had planted his feet and was pushing up into a squat with me still attached to his hips. Harry grabbed the backs of my thighs and then turned around and started back into the bedroom.

“Harry! Oh my god,” I yelled, wrapping my arms around his neck and struggling to find any part of him to hold onto. “Put me down!”

“The more you wiggle the greater the chance that I’ll drop you,” He laughed, gripping onto my thighs tighter.

By the time he dumped me on the bed my sides hurt from laughing and also trying to keep myself from falling. Harry landed on his back beside me, clutching his lower stomach and working at catching his breath.

Eventually, I started getting cold, and crawled my way back up to the pillows to slip in under the covers again. My eyes closed almost immediately and I felt my heart rate slow down as my body relaxed; sleep was close.

“‘Morning Cuddles’, Rule Number One," Harry's lips pressed against my ear, "No sleeping until cuddle position is assumed.”

“Hmm,” I hummed, keeping my eyes closed but letting Harry move my limbs around so I was tucked under his arms with my legs woven through his. Our chests were pressed flush against each other and I tried not to think about the feeling of Harry’s bare skin against my exposed shoulders.

“You’re not really going to sleep, are you?” His breath moved a few loose hairs around my face and I squirmed through the tickle.

“Harry,” I warned sleepily, “You just said I could sleep once we were in the cuddle position.”

“Yeah,” He nodded, slipping his warm hand up under my shirt at the same time, his finger spread out across my lower back, “But Rule Number One of ‘Sleeping In’ is that if there’s a really handsome guy in bed with you, you don’t get to sleep, you have to tell him a secret.”

“You just made that up,” I accused. “Are you always this chatty in the morning?”

“Yes,” Harry answered proudly, “Now, tell me a secret.”

“Harry.”

“Nina,” He tightened his hold on me, lightly digging his fingertips into the flesh of my sides.

“Fine,” I huffed, twisting around so I was on my back and opening my eyes to think. Harry adjusted to my movement fluidly, moving his hand from my back onto my stomach, I sucked in a breath and let it out slowly, “When I was sixteen I deliberately missed a flight home from a performance in Munich so I could make our with one of the cello players.”

“You played international hooky at sixteen?” Harry pretended to be horrified.

“Badass, I know.”

He practically rolled his eyes at me, “I’m calling your parents to tell them right now.”

“What’s your secret then?” I whispered against his lips after I’d pressed a kiss to them. He ducked his head back in to catch my mouth again, humming happily when I pulled on the hair at the back of his neck. “Tell me a secret, Harry.”

He pulled back then, roughly pushing his hair off his face to down at me curiously, “A secret? Hmmm,” His lips pressed back against mine, “You’re pretty.”

“No,” I moved my face to one side so his next kiss landed on my cheek, “I told you a proper secret!”

Harry groaned and leant his forehead down on my chin for a second, when he pulled back after thinking his eyes were softer, and less playful, “I’ve never felt like this about someone before.”

It felt like everything inside me stopped, and I couldn’t move my eyes away from his unfaltering gaze, “I ... I ... What?”

He smiled, “It’s true. It’s not … It’s not been like this before for me. I’ve never ... Felt so much for another person before.” His words were whispered like if they leaked to anyone else before I heard them a code might be broken, “I wish I’d known it could feel like this.”

I wriggled my toes for something to do, not entirely sure how far Harry’s train of thought was going to go, and if it was my turn to say something back. Even if it was my turn, I wasn’t entirely sure what I should say. Harry’s face was contorted in thought though, and he didn’t seem bothered by my keeping quiet.

“Nina,” He called softly, I must’ve been further into my thoughts that I’d realised, “Neens.”

“Sorry,” I mumbled, kissing his nose quickly to show I was back. I watched as his neck contorted with a heavy swallow, and his eyes blinked shut just a touch slower than normal; he was nervous. I pulled my fingers through his fringe slowly.

I was startled by the sound of my phone going off behind me.

"Turn it off," Harry groaned.

I flopped over to reach for where my phone had ended up on the floor, "It's Ryan," I said to the room as I read the name of my section lead in the orchestra. I had no idea why he would be calling me in the middle of our two weeks break for Christmas and New Year.

"Take it," Harry said behind me, "He wouldn't be calling if it wasn't important."

"Ryan, hi," I cradled the phone up to my ear, a flurry of worry spinning through me.

"Hiya Nina," He responded, "How's your break going?"

"It's good," I replied, "Aren't you meant to be in Toronto with your family?"

"I am," Ryan responded, "It's pretty early here ... I got an email from the marketing team about you and I thought I should call at chat it out with you."

"Okay ..." I said, Harry's foot pressed into my lower back, reminding me he was there. I leant back and hooked my arm around his leg, settling on my elbow. I chanced him a look and he gave me a questioning smile.

"They've been approached by the BBC Classical Music magazine with a request to do a profile on you. The admin board have approved it, and they think it would be great for you to do it."

"The BBC ... Why would they ..." Ryan laughed, "Because you're an ace player who has an interesting story. The request has come from Angela Hastings who I know quite well, she'd do a good job of it. It would be great for your career at this point."

Harry waved his hand in my peripheral to get my attention, he had a deep frown and a worried expression on his face, 'What's this about?' he mouthed at me.

"If you said yes she could come and meet you our first week back," Ryan continued filling in my silence, "They've got a tight turn around because something's fallen through. The orchestra would like it out before the summer season program is announced, in time for when sales start."

"Can I think about it?" I replied finally, watching Harry try to decipher what the conversation had been.

"Of course," Ryan said without hesitation, "I'll forward you the email so you can have a look. Read a few of their past profiles and let me know what you think."

"Okay, thanks Ryan," I said, listening to him say goodbye and then hang up.

"What was that about?" Harry asked me quickly, sitting up in front of my with a mighty worried look on his face.

"The BBC's classical music magazine wants to do an artist profile on me."

He appeared to be calculating something in his head for a moment, "Well, that's a good thing, right? What did Ryan say?"

"He seemed to think I should do it," I told Harry who still looked concerned, "I kind of want to ask my dad about it ... What do you think?"

Harry thought about his response for a moment, running a hand across his bare chest, "I mean, I had a panic when I heard you say the BBC ... I assumed somehow something about us had led media to your job and shit had hit the fan."

"Oh, Harry," I shook my head at him, "No ..."

He smiled at me suddenly pulling on my elbow until I collapsed onto the sheets beside him, "Well, this is cool! Google the magazine, let's have a look at it."

Harry shuffled so he was lying on his tummy mirroring my position next to me, his shoulder pressed against mine and his neck craned over so he could watch my phone screen over my hands. We read the email Ryan had just sent through first, following a link through to the staff writer's page.

The page was taking a little while to fully load and Harry pressed a warm kiss to my earlobe while we waited, "Are you hungry? I'll make you breakfast after this."

"I want the pizza," I said, turning my face towards his and shutting my eyes when Harry captured my mouth with his and kissed me softly.

“Can we be properly exclusive?” He asked suddenly.

I frowned, but Harry leaned in and sucked my bottom lip between his, deepening the kiss quickly and smoothly. The arm closest to me slid across my back and down to my opposite hip, squeezing it in a torturously comforting rhythm.

“Harry,” I leant back my head when Harry's lips started working around the skin below my ear. “I thought from last night you were all about me answering things.”

“I am,” He breathed, hiding his face in my neck and staying still, “But I didn’t mean to just blurt that out and you frowned and we were in the middle of something else.”

“I was surprised! We were in the middle of something else, ” I told him, “And I … I figured we sort of already were.”

“Yeah, I suppose.”

"You suppose?" He didn’t move or say anything for a painful amount of time, “Harry?”

“Hmm?”

“You’re hiding.”

“I am.”

“I wish you wouldn’t.”

"Sorry," He breathed unevenly against my neck, and when his head came back up his lips curved up into an unstable smile. “I’m worried about this conversation.”

"Why?"

"Because I want to lock this down but it's ... It's complicated," He fell onto his back away from me and let out a dramatic breath, seemingly annoyed at himself.

"Can we specify what you're referring to when you say ‘lock this down’?" I asked, frowning when I thought about what he had said more, “And ‘it’s complicated’.”

“My life,” Harry said vaguely, watching his ceiling vacantly, “It’s not just a matter of me being like ‘hey I’d like you to be my girlfriend’ … That wouldn’t be fair to you because there’s a whole underbelly to my life that’s completely abnormal and ends up hurting everyone in my life in someway. Life changes for the people in my world once they’re in it.”

I wasn’t sure what to say to him, but watching the way Harry had seemingly disappeared right in front of my eyes was heartbreaking. He wasn’t engaging with me at all, and he ran through what he was saying like they were lines he’d memorised after rehearsing them dozens of times over. I wasn’t used to seeing Harry doubt himself around me like this and I took a deep breath, knowing what he needed from me was strength, not my own softly spoke doubts back. We’d ruin each other like that.

“It’s not what it used to be, right?” I asked.

“No,” He replied but there was no optimism in his tone, “But at any moment it could go back to it. It’s the Catch 22, if what I’m putting out there reaches more people that’s good for my career but destroys my personal life.”

“Why do you think that is?” Harry sighed, “Nothing every has a good enough foundation. My family are different, obviously they’re not going anywhere, but that isn’t to say it hasn’t been and isn’t still tough for them. But new relationships don’t last because they haven’t had the chance to mature at all. They’re not established enough to weather press and speculation and the lifestyle.”

“From what you’ve told me you’ve deliberately avoided having new people in you life who fall into that category.”

“I have.”

“Well,” I started, “I”m here … So … I guess you’ve messed that bit up.”

Harry turned his head and looked up at me, “You’re here.”

I nodded, and shrugged, “I’d really hate to not be here.”

“It really can all turn to shit, Nina.” “So can anyone’s life, Harry. People’s lives turn to shit everywhere, all the time.”

He watched me blankly for a moment, “Who are you and what have you done with Nina.”

I smiled and plucked his hand off his chest to hold it up to my mouth, “Some guy called Harry came along and convinced me he thought I was pretty awesome … At some point I suppose I’ve started believing him. Harry,” I paused for a moment, “Real life isn’t up on stage … That’s a fantasy world, it’s constructed and you can’t always trust what happens up there. Sometimes you get really good and so well rehearsed at being the version of yourself that got you there—to the top—that you forget about who you were before life became a show. It’s the world you exist in off the stage that matters the most, you’ve got to make that guy the one you want to do life with because eventually he’s all you’ll have. I’m sure you know this but sometimes—”

“—We need reminding,” He finished for me. “Nina, if I’d had half the sense you have when I was twenty-one, who knows what I could have spared myself over the last six years.”

“Just wait until I’m old like you, imagine how wise I’ll be,” I grinned at him, happy to see a little light back behind his eyes.

“I hope I won’t have to imagine,” Harry replied, hitching himself up on an elbow, “I’d like to see it for myself. I’d really like us to be a thing … I want this to be a proper relationship. Can we do that?”

I placed my hands on either of his cheeks, holding his face just far enough away from mine so that my eyes could focus on his comfortably, “Yes, we can.”

Hello Dear Reader,

It would be wonderful if you could drop me a line about what you thought of what you’ve just read! Check out my Someday Someday tag for all things Hina & lots of silly little extra bits xx katey

#1dff #fic: someday someday #hina #harry styles fanfiction #one direction fanfiction #harry styles fic #harry styles story

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