#Mia Winters week
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On Mia Winters, misogyny, and abuse
As should be pretty obvious by now, I love Mia Winters. I honestly think sheâs one of the most compelling characters in this whole damn franchise.
But let me make clear: you donât have to love her. Miaâs canonically done a lot of shady shit in her time, and her relationship with Ethan has real problems. There are perfectly viable interpretations where the only thing really holding it together is his own denial. Only I never seem to get to read any of those takes, because the most common characterisations Mia gets in fic are an irredeemable monster, or a cardboard cutout who exists only to be written out as quickly as possible. And to write Mia out to that degree doesnât just do her character a disservice, it does Ethan a disservice, and a big one.
The amount of Mia-bashing I see out there in this fandom turns my stomach. Itâs not just the slash fans whoâd rather ship Ethan with another dude. I have seen Mia loudly bashed in tags on het or gen fic in which she does not even appear. I have seen male fans reviewing these games on youtube who treat her the exact same way. But itâs never more frustrating than when that hate comes from the same fans whoâll turn around and talk about characters like Chris or even Lady Dimitrescu (she who canonically abuses her and murders her servants, and, yâknow, eats people without a shred of remorse) like theyâre perfectly forgivable and have done no real wrong. And donât get me wrong: I love Lady D, but I love her because sheâs magnificently evil. Mia? Miaâs a whole lot more complicated.
But to really explain why this hate makes me so uncomfortable, Iâm going to have to start with the start of Resident Evil 7, and Miaâs very first scenes in this whole franchise.
Let me quickly summarise the opening of that game. A man whose wife disappeared without explanation suddenly gets a message about her whereabouts. He travels to an isolated location, breaks in, and finds her. She denies ever sending him that message, and seems incredibly distressed that heâs there at all. They fight. It ends with him sinking an axe into her neck and shooting her several times with a handgun. But see, he didnât do anything wrong! It was all self-defence! She started it! She was acting crazy!
If you didnât spot it, the whole opening of RE7 reads uncomfortably like a story about a woman escaping an abusive relationship, then being tracked down and murdered by her ex.
Obviously, I am not here to tell you Ethanâs abusive. Heâs not, weâve got no reason to imagine he is. He was legitimately acting in self-defence.
But the fact the first thing Ethan has to do in this game is find the balls to kill his own wife â that a whole new era of Resi games has opened with a sequence so easily read as a sympathetic justification for how a man might perfectly innocently track down his missing spouse and "have" to kill her â that made those opening minutes into by far the most uncomfortable part of this whole franchise for me. Shit like this really happens. I mean it, I will track down the fucking statistics on women who are murdered after trying to leave an abusive partner if I have to.
What happens to âMiaâ in the opening to RE8 isnât much better: it's as textbook a fridging as any Iâve ever seen. Yes, itâs a fridging that gets retconned away later when she turns up alive, but the fact thatâs even possible speaks to just how awful and confusing her death is. The game opens with Miaâs violent murder at the hands of this seriesâ longest running âheroâ, and the event is framed entirely in terms of how awful it is for her husband. That's as frigid as a fridging gets.
The eventual reveal that the real Mia was just trapped alone in a cell being experimented on by a madwoman for god knows how long doesnât actually make it better. The horror Mia goes through in both these games is a footnote, barely explored.
I bring these events up not to condemn the RE franchise, not to say that including these sequences was unconscionable, or that violence against women can never be shown in a horror title. A quick glance at my tumblr should demonstrate how much I adore these games. Tropes like fridging become problems only because theyâre so ubiquitous they can come to define almost the only roles women get to play, not because any individual example is necessarily grounds for outrage. If anything, thereâs just as much to analyse in all the hate thrown at characters like Ethan Winters (or his predecessor, Jonathan Harker) as a archtypical examples of sexism against men â backlash against the very idea of a male character in the disempowered role of horror victim, usually reserved for women.
But with this context in mind, my god is it uncomfortable to see people talk about Mia as irredeemable monster who deserves to suffer more. People who will valorise the likes of Chris Redfield, who didnât even bother to stop to tell Ethan thatâs not Mia, yet talk about Mia like being shot to death in her own living room was only what she deserved. That is just a whole load of yikes.
And given that both games open with Mia being violently killed by a male protagonist (twice in RE7, with the player in control), it sure is convenient how so many people have managed to âfindâ the evidence that proves sheâs the real villain. You donât have to think too hard about Chris Redfield as a violent maniac or Ethan Winters being forced to kill his own wife if itâs okay to inflict violence on this woman. âYes, but she shouldnât have done [X]âŠâ or even âBut what if sheâs the real abuserâ is a narrative that gets thrown at real women in abusive relationships all the time â especially when the man is a friend of whoeverâs casting judgement, or even a celebrity. Real world examples of this shit in the wild run the gamut from wild fan-takes on The Shining âprovingâ that actually the abused wife was the ârealâ abuser all along, right up to the ongoing hate campaign against Amber Heard. People donât want to have to think badly of someone they admire, and will take any excuse to shift the blame. The stakes are infinitely lower when weâre talking about fictional characters, but the same pattern plays out.
And look, I do get it. Itâs easy to go into these games and come out with a negative opinion of Mia. Sheâs the one who lures you into danger in RE7, acts all innocent, and then comes at Ethan with a chainsaw â and when you finally find out her big secret at the end, it turns out she was working for the people who created Eveline from the start! Youâre really not given a lot of reasons to invest in Ethan and Miaâs relationship before sheâs suddenly coming at him with a knife, and the fact she never does get to come clean to him in canon leaves a bad taste in the mouth.
Itâs really easy to go into RE8, note all the glaring signs that Ethanâs relationship with Mia isnât healthy, and draw your own conclusions about a woman we donât hardly even see again for most of the runtime of the game. Half this goddamn fandom still seems to think Heisenberg is actually a lycan, ffs â most of what people think they know about Mia is more meme than fact, and the rest is pretty surface level. Basic media literacy is not exactly high out there in the tumblrweeds (let alone the rest of the internet).
But as for the idea that Miaâs responsible for all the horrors Ethan went through, people seem to forget that Mia herself went through so much worse. Ethan spent a day in the Bakersâ property, and a day in the village. Mia spent years trapped in the Bakersâ property, and days at least imprisoned in Mirandaâs lab, knowing exactly how much danger her family were in, helpless to save them. Sheâs no innocent herself, but ye gods has she already suffered for her crimes.
So with all that out of the way, well, whatâs the actual âevidenceâ that Mia herself was abusive? No-one's coming into this one without some bias, but letâs at least give it a fair shake.
Right upfront, I want to recognise that in both fiction and reality, women can be abusers, and men can be victims. Abuse in heterosexual relationships is far more likely to occur with the man as the abuser, but the reverse does happen, and the fact culture at large can be so eager to cast the woman as the villain doesnât make it any easier for the real male victims of abuse to get recognition and help. Society as a whole is still just really shitty about enabling or excusing real abuse.
But the idea that Mia was abusive has very little to back it up. Whatever you make of âherâ interactions with Ethan at the start of the game, the fact remains: thatâs not Mia, and the fact sheâs acting so strangely is meant to be our clue that something much bigger than a little marital strife is going on here. Knowing all this doesnât really make the scene where sheâs violently executed less disturbing, but you canât miss the hints we donât yet know the full story.
So the question becomes, is there any evidence that the real Mia was abusive? Iâve dug into this one a bit before in my post about trying to figure out the timeline of exactly when Mia was replaced, but there are no definitive answers as to how long Miranda's been living in their house. To summarise a long post (and a surprisingly lively timeline of events from the days before the game begins): the most likely intent seems to be that Mirandaâs been posing as Mia for less than a week, though a lot of the vibes of the scene give me the impression itâs been several weeks at least. Ultimately, thatâs going to come down to your own interpretation.
The Mia mentioned in Ethanâs diary who blew up at him at the hospital could be the real Mia, but more likely isnât: you canât really use her to argue anything definitive, one way or another. The Mia from the flashback where Ethan gets the call from Roseâs doctor is the real Mia, but if you think getting upset when your husband brushes off your obvious distress over your daughterâs health makes you abusive, then nothing I say here is going to convince you otherwise.
The only ârealâ evidence that Mia might be a problem is one line you might hear from Ethan while taking Rose to bed, and it is admittedly a red flag: your motherâs scary when sheâs angry.
And to anyone whose whole hatred of Mia has been built backwards from this one line â especially anyone whoâs grown up in a dysfunctional household themselves â hell, I get it. It is one really yikes thing for Ethan to say about his wife.
But in Miaâs defence, I can only point out that, well, yes, canonically, she is scary when sheâs angry.
Oh, did I say angry? I meant fucking possessed.
And if Ethanâs bringing up the spectre of that time, even subconsciously, maybe that should be an even bigger clue that the Mia in this house right now isnât Mia.
But what really shows this line for what it is is that weâve seen the real Mia angry. Weâve seen her cold fury at Eveline, daring to go right back to asking âcan we be a family now?â within hours forcing Mia to assault her own husband with a chainsaw. Weâve seen her frustration at Ethanâs own denial, and weâve seen her stalk out of the room when he blows off an important conversation for a call from work. Weâve seen her advance on Chris after he shut her down, demanding, Where is my husband? Where is my daughter?!
We have never seen her angry without real justification. Her anger is neither violent nor disproportionate. Itâs consistently purposeful, focused, and contained. There is nothing scary about the real Miaâs anger, unless youâre threatened by the very idea she might have something valid to be angry about.
There is evidence of tension in the Wintersâ marriage from before Mirandaâs arrival, but it takes a very different form â most evident in the flashback scene where Ethan receives the call from Roseâs doctor. Far from Mirandaâs brusque, dismissive copy of her, the real Mia is anxious and depressed, scared of what Roseâs results might reveal. Here, Ethanâs the one brushing her concerns aside (âWe talked about this [âŠ] Rose is fine!â) He recognises there seems to be something Miaâs not telling him, says they should talk about it, but then immediately brushes the conversation off when he gets a call from work, while Mia storms out of the room.
You can certainly read Mia as a hypocrite here, getting angry at Ethan for not knowing things sheâs deliberately kept from him. But itâs Ethan who decides a call from work is more important than a conversation with his wife â someone who is obviously distressed, canonically still on a regime of drugs after the traumatic events of RE7, very likely suffering PTSD along with Ethan, and maybe even some form of postpartum depression. We donât know anything about Ethanâs work, so thereâs no point in speculating about how much he âneedsâ to take that call. Miaâs no clear villain here â quite the opposite.
Personally, I tend towards taking this scene as evidence that Mia has tried to talk to Ethan about what really happened to him, but hasnât managed to get him to face the truth. For all that Ethan supposedly wants to talk about the past, itâs a defining plot point that heâs badly in denial himself.
Or they could both be at some fault here: Ethan unwilling to face the truth, while Mia is reluctant to force him to face something she knows will hurt him and bring him distress. Even when Mia says outright that she âtried to keep this a secret, butâŠâ to Chris at the end of the game, the implication is as much that sheâs tried to keep it a secret from people like Chris, who might decide Ethan is dangerous. Sheâs lied to protect him before, and if sheâs still lying to him about her past with the Connections, then the fact that knowing the truth will hurt Ethan is obviously among her reasons. Protecting Ethan has always been among Miaâs top priorities â even at her own expense.
The only other real hints we get about Miaâs inner life come from the glimpses of her we get in Donnaâs domain. But Iâm hesitant to read too much into these, given how unclear it is how much is just a manifestation of Ethanâs own anxieties. If anything, the âMiaâ in these scenes almost seems to have some far worse secret than simply having not told Ethan something he really ought to have put together on his own, and Iâd kind of love to see that explored too â at least as long as that goes somewhere more interesting than round umpteen of âand thatâs why Mia sucksâ.
But my point here isnât that you have to read any of these scenes the same way I do. I do think itâs important to recognise that nothing written for a game like RE is truly character-driven; scenes exist to serve the plot far more than to reflect consistent character motivations or hold up to fridge logic (which, letâs face it, is the real reason for most of Chrisâ horrific behaviour in this game, let alone anyone elseâs). The result is rarely super consistent, and leaves ample space for multiple interpretations of anyoneâs motivations. Regardless, the idea thereâs any hard evidence that Ethan and Miaâs relationship is dysfunctional, or that whateverâs wrong is Miaâs fault alone, is going to be incredibly hard to justify.
Any assertion that Ethan and Mia are somehow on the verge of divorce also needs to be weighed against the masses of evidence of how much they love each other â the number of times Mia has said she loves Ethan, up to and including (yes, Iâm bringing this up again) how ready she is to die for him in RE7. Her speech to Chris at the end of RE8 states explicitly that being together with Ethan and Rose is the only thing that matters to her. âMia, Iâm sorry, I love you,â are some of the last words Ethan ever speaks â and I canât help but read into how the moment he finally pushes Rose into Chrisâ arms so they can get away with him weighing them down is right after he learns that Mia is alive, and thus implicitly that Rose wonât be alone if Ethan doesnât make it. And good god does that scene break my heart every time.
Itâs worth recognising that the fact Ethan and Mia love each other doesnât inherently mean their relationship is healthy, or that you have to love them together as much as I do. Like I said up top, you donât have to like Mia, and you donât have to justify not liking her if you donât. I would genuinely like to see fics where Mia and Ethanâs supposedly-necessary break up feels in character. Where Ethan loves her but just canât deal with the resentment and the fallout over all the lies she told him, where he's been clinging to his 'happy ending' with Mia after surviving the Bakers so hard he can't face the fact things just aren't working, or where heâs having to face that their relationship only ever really worked because she was away so much. It will break my heart, but fiction is allowed to do that.
But god, it would be nice if people could just take the bashing below an eleven around this place. The number of times Iâve had to sigh and back-button out of reading something, because yet another author has decided to project their own hatred for Mia onto the husband whoâs still reeling from watching her being violently murdered in front of him⊠it gets fucking old, yâknow?
I would really like to think that in the year of our lord 2024, fandom would be a bit past this thing where they bash the canonical female love interest in the name of shipping the hero with another dude. People will bend over backwards to try and cast Heisenberg and Chris as guys who really care about consent and worry about Ethan getting hurt, because heaven forbid anyone be caught shipping something slightly problematic. And yet misogyny still somehow gets a pass.
You do not have to love Mia. You donât even have to like her. But ye gods, the hate she gets is baseless and absurd.
Hasn't this poor woman suffered enough?
(And on that note, I promise I am finally done soapboxing in defence of Mia Winters, thank you for bearing with me for this long.)
#Mia Winters#Ethan Winters#mithan#Resident Evil Village#Resident Evil#Resident Evil 7#RE lore#meta#Mia Winters week
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doodles :3
#ethan winters#mia winters#resident evil 7#resident evil 8#resident evil#i donât think ethan would say âdamn bitch you live like thisâ but it was all i could think about when going through the guest house#anyway#heâs so pookie#also i havenât gotten any further cause my power went out for a week but like whateverrrr#<further in the game#my art#mithan
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womens rights and wrongs
#mia winters#resident evil 7#resident evil#re7 fanart#re7#for a rlly fast thing i was gonna scrap half way thru im very proud of this :3#i think she is so neat *spins*#blood#drawn teeth#ask to tag sorry AHHHGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG i love . you#also im gonna start finally posting old art to twt and inta this week but i fucking HATE CROSS POSTING its hard (is just a baby)#ill add those to a pinned post later tho
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oh boy oh boy whats this? more re7 ?!
#resident evil 7#mia winters#ethan winters#resident evil#eveline re7#this is the first finished art Iâve done in weeks#it looks rough#art
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POV
You're about to fucking die
#this has been a long week but these idiots have kept me going#cassamia#mia winters#cassandra dimitrescu#cw eyestrain#cw bright colors#cw blood#my art
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late night wips. hi mia winters hiii twirls my hair
#my art#resident evil#wip#shoutout to cuptoasts ethan winters video for now getting me fixated on re7 and 8#i remember watching some videos on re7 back when it came out and thought it was neat but didnt think much of it#but now I Get It. I Get The Vision#ethan and mia in particular have just been pinging around in my brain for the past few weeks#i enjoy them
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resident evil village complete edition is out now on apple music (who knows when it will come out proper)
guys it has 135 songs AND Shadows of Rose
#resident evil#resident evil village#ethan winters#mia winters#karl heisenberg#alcina dimitrescu#the hilarity of starting to rewatch village (markiplier i wanted to laugh as well) this week#and this being announced#yes i did scream about this to zannolin what of it
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jesus christ I'm literally a hawaiian shirt wearing abba listening dad right now
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thinkin about klavquill
(the audience boos)
#guys i spent 3 hours today cleaning the dorm bathroom Thefe was so much hair on the ground being a woman is so miserable why is there so muc#AINT no way 3 girls can shed so much hair#i smell nothing but bleach and cleanser and#i did my laundry too and im so tired but i need to work on my direct examinations for mock trial#where r the amta girlies âŠâŠ Guys what the fuck do I write for these my group is MIA#i just want to write klavquill i am losing my mind#trying to write shorter oneshots that i can actually focus on bc CAYA needs Focus and im so exhausted constantly#and i can not even finish those âŠ#winter break pls come soon pls pls pls holiday rarepair week pls release ur prompts soon so i have a will to live#unfortunate: writer can not write#i like making posts and just complaining about college experience in the tags im so tired im so fuckijg tired#Arizona iced tea my beloved#canât even go to the campus Starbucks ALL RHE FUCKING WHITE GIRLS ARE THERE. I AM A WHITE GIRL. BUT I DONT COUNT#I NEED MY MATCHA LATTE OATMILK LIGHT ICE COLD FOAM AND WARM BROWNIE :(#anyway my roomie and i bought a massive bag of cheese yesterday that will be my dinner
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Resident Evil 7 and Mia's secrets
(Oh, did you think I was done talking about Mia? Not even close! >D)
Coming into this fandom late, I was surprised that popular fanon has it that Mia never does come clean to Ethan, post-RE7. Sure, RE8 depends on Mia not having told Ethan he died in Dulvey, but that has nothing to do with her own past with the Connections (and far more to do with Ethan's own denial, but that's a whole other thing).
Myself, Iâd taken it as given that the scene where Ethan learns the truth must have just happened off-screen. Because, disappointing as that omission is, the whole damn game is leading up to it.
And having replayed RE7 lately, I realised there'd be no better way to explain my take than to catalog every time the game spells out to us that Ethan knows Miaâs keeping secrets and wants answers, and that Mia herself wants to come clean.
Heck, itâs just about the very first thing we learn about them.
âEthan... You were right. I did lie to you. I shouldnât have, butâŠâ
Ethan's not actually stupid, and Mia's secrecy has obviously strained their marriage for some time. And as soon as Ethan finds her, heâs asking questions.
Here, heâs mostly asking who did this to you; it's way too early for real answers. But then Eveline takes control, shit goes down, and next we see her, itâs in her recorded message from the âMiaâ video tape.
âThereâs so much you need to know.â
When Ethan finds Mia again under the old house, heâs angry and has every right to be, and he doesnât pull any punches.
âI always wanted to tell youâŠâ
But Miaâs memoryâs still a mess, and Lucas interrupts. Ethanâs next chance to ask questions comes in the boat, and he wastes no time.
âYou had something to do with this, didnât you?â
Miaâs a little more defensive here, but sheâs not lying about the holes in her memory. The gameâs gearing up for the big reveal anyway, and the writers arenât about to let her spoil it early.
If you choose Zoe instead of Mia, Ethan spends the boat ride asking all the same questions, only louder.
âI knew Mia was hiding something.â
But in the end, what do we get?
Whoever you choose, Ethan only gets a few brief moments with Mia after she frees him from Evelineâs mould, and no explanations are offered. But if you do pick Mia, then we end with Ethan flying away with her in the helicopter, saying only, âMia's back and she wants to start over,â and Iâm left going, wait, what? Havenât we skipped something here?
In defence of the fanon consensus that Ethan never finds out the truth, that does seem to be the âcanonicalâ intent â at least inasmuch as there's this one throwaway bit about Mia not wanting Ethan to know buried in a bonus text file only available with this one overpriced DLC for RE8. Thatâs it, thatâs as much explicit recognition as this thing ever gets, one way or the other. And fucking hell, but that's a let down.
Even if we assume that Miaâs desire to come clean goes away once her memory comes back, why would Ethan just stop asking? Heâs been asking questions the whole damn game â was clearly asking questions long before the game began! Knowing that Eveline was controlling people doesnât explain what Mia had to do with it all. Now heâs suddenly all, âkilled the bad guy, saved the girl, everythingâs fineâ? Was all that âa door closedâ bullshit supposed to be him accepting heâd never get answers? Why?
There are workable ways to spin Ethan never finding out. You could suggest he just accepts that Miaâs memory is gone (hell, for all we actually see of the ending, Mia genuinely might have lost her memory again after Eveline sucked her back into the mould). After all the trauma Ethanâs been through, you could also suggest heâs gone directly into denial, refusing to face anything that might threaten his âhappy endingâ with Mia. You could even suggest that that bit with Eveline saying 'I can make him love you' is her actively wiping Ethan's suspicions away. There's some lovely, subtle horror in any of these possibilities â I would genuinely love to see all of them explored in fic! But none of them actually come through in the ending we get, and that omission is the single biggest issue that makes that conclusion to RE7 unsatisfying to me.
The whole damn game has been building up to the big confrontation where Ethan finds out the truth and (eventually, if not immediately) finds a way to forgive Mia, so we can still have our happy ending. As much OTT hate as Mia gets, the game is consistent in portraying her as someone who is painfully aware of how bad sheâs fucked up, regrets it, and is committed to doing everything she can to protect the man she loves from the fallout of her mistakes.
I cannot overstate how willing Mia is to die to save Ethan, from the very moment she realises she's infected. She does die to save him if you choose Zoe over her. It's so much of why I ship them do hard.
But most frustrating of all, denying Mia the chance to come clean denies her any chance to explain herself. How did she get involved with the Connections? Did she know from the outset who she was working for? Did she genuinely buy into the idea they were finding ways to win wars without losing soldiers on battlefield, that the human casualties of all their work was worth it? If not, why did she keep working there? Was she slowly frog-boiled down to the deep end, did they have dirt on her, did she fear they might kill her if she tried to leave? What excuses did she make to herself as the months or years went on?
It's possible Miaâs the kind of hypocrite who doesnât care about the human casualties of her employer, just as long as she and hers are okay, but nothing we see from her sells me on that interpretation. And even if she ever was, it's even harder to believe she's still that person after all she's been through.
It aggravates me that the games never gave us answers, not just because I want explanations that cast Mia in a sympathetic light, but because not giving us answers leaves this huge hole in her character. I'd even take explanations that cast her in an unsympathetic light, as long as it all ties together.
It irritates me even more because, even if Capcom wasnât up for giving Ethan and Mia the big emotional confrontation they deserved, the solution was so simple: let Ethan find Miaâs diary on his way out of the ship. The whole goddamn franchise is filled with diaries and documents where characters lay out their backstories and motivations in ludicrous detail â why does Mia never get one? Just give us a handful of entries dated over the years, laying out her own feelings and anxieties about the job sheâs doing. It wouldâve been so easy!
It irritates me nearly as much that, even in the few corners of this fandom sympathetic to Mia, no-one seems to be very interested in answering these questions in fic or shared headcanons (and if there are examples out there I don't know about, please do link me to them!) How much did Mia know about what she was getting into when she started working for the Connections? Was it the job she kept telling herself was just until she could find something better, only for that âsomething betterâ to never come along? Did she have stains on her record that made it hard to find another job? How much of her lying was a misguided attempt to protect Ethan, and how much was simply about protecting herself? There's so much to explore here!
This is also where I mention that I've already put my money where my mouth on this one, and written up my own take on Mia's backstory, and how Ethan might have found out the truth. You don't have to agree with my version, of course â I mean it when I say I'd love to see other people's ideas too. Heck, I'd even be up for versions where Ethan ultimately can't forgive her, just as long as people come at it from the angle of looking at Mia as a character, not just a one-dimensional-villain.
But of course, I'd still prefer to think about versions where these two do find a way to make it work. It takes a lot to make me ship het this hard, but these two stealth-badasses have pulled it off with style.
#Mia Winters#Ethan Winters#mithan#Resident Evil 7#Resident Evil Village#Resident Evil#Mia Winters week#RE lore#meta
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people who interacted w the resident evil post my requests r open btw..... wink wonk.......
#i only really care abt winters saga rn tho my apologies..........#need to watch playthroughs of 1-6 but i am lazy !!!! and they do not have my girl (mia ^_^) in them (to my knowledge)#ok goodnight party people#also person in my inbox i have not forgot about u ive just been doing volunteer work this week booooooo. ok goodnight fr sorry i ramble whe#n im tired
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Hoping to get my Christmas pfp done tomorrow and to queue posts for next week!!
#Iâm like a lil MIA when it comes to my stuff#I will reblog memes and others post til the end of time#but Iâve been plotting#planning#school is almost over!! then I get to go on break#I never got a job tho so Iâll have tons of time#sad I didnât get a job tho kind of needed it thank god I got a scholarship this year Iâd be screwed#but yeah hoping to get stuff done!!#Iâve been building a lot which is odd for me but itâs been fun#but yeah I miss my sims#I miss editing and writing#but after this week Iâm done guys!! for winter break then starts back up in January#also landslide!! itâs still be thought abt I have the first couple scenes planned out and storylines figured out#I miss those guys#kk thoughts
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Links Meet AUs List
A lot of AUs get lumped together with Linked Universe, so I wanted to make a list comprising any and all original Links Meet AUs I could find! Please let me know if Iâm missing something, you want your AU to be removed, a link is broken, or if you know an AUâs status so it can be moved to the correct dedicated category.
DISCLAIMER: Please pay attention to the content warnings on some of these AUs! I havenât personally read every AU so I donât know what some contain, but if an AU has something you donât vibe with, there are more than plenty of others that you will love on this list! Please be respectful and kind to everyone! This list is both for archival purposes and to appreciate the creativity of the community!
Additional Notes: Some AUs have dedicated Tumblrs, some can be found through original tags, some are only on ff.net or ao3, etc. I have a separate list for AUs limited to Discord/DMs that I have not included here unless I receive permission to do so! Also, if something is separated by ||, that means that theyre 2(+) separate AUs by the same creator in the same tumblr⊠if that makes sense LOL. This list is Always Updating so be sure to keep an eye out for any new AUs!
PUBLIC
âą A Link to the Present
âą Across the Galaxy
âą Ageless Soul
âą Bonus Links
âą Branching Timelines
âą Chain as Cryptids
âą Chained Spirits
âą Chains of Time
âą Courage of Ages
âą Culture Shock
âą Deuyâs Links Meet
âą Dimensional Links
âą Dreamverse AU || Identity Fraud AU
âą Echoes of Courage
âą Exodus
âą Fallen Heroes
âą Garden of Heroes
âą GodLinks
âą Hearts Linked Together
âą Heroes Spirit
âą House of Heroes
âą Kings Comic
âą Limited Hero
âą Link and the Links || Soldier Poet King
âą Link Between Links
âą Link Rejoin
âą Linked Across Dimensions
âą Linked Arena
âą Linked By Illustrations
âą Linked Dreamscape
âą Linked End
âą Linked History
âą Linked Keys
âą Linked Maze
âą Linked Spirit
âą Linked Through the Centuries
âą Linked Universe
âą Linked World
âą Linkâs Fun Road Trip
âą Little Links
âą Magicâs Wake
âą Meowmixâs Linked-verse Journey
âą Minas Linkverse
âą Monstrous Fusion
âą Names of Courage
âą Realms of Hylia
âą Recalled
âą Rifts in Time
âą Sisterâs Linked Meets
âą Suncaster
âą Tangled Chains [Lou]
âą Team Timeless
âą That Broken Promise
âą The Hyrulian Valhalla Saga
âą The Links We Share
âą The Phantom Timeline
âą The Sacred Realm
âą Too Many Links [Zee]
âą Train Whistles and Wedding Bells
âą Unchained AU
âą Winter Links AU
PRIVATE
AUs where the info is limited to Discord, DMs, and/or friends. Not typically published/shared publicly. Permission is asked to acknowledge these AUs here before posting.
âą A Linked Week
âą Fractured Timelines
NON-LINK BUT THEY STILL MEET
Crossovers with Zeldas, Ravios, Ganons⊠pretty much the exact same thing but with other characters.
âą Lots of Ravios
âą LU Ravioverse
âą Strangers Across Eras
âą Voice of Wisdom
âą Wielders of Wisdom
LINKMEET LITE
Links meet, but itâs not the focus of the story/in the background (example: a world where all the links exist at the same time but the focus is on one specific character/the others dont come up much)
âą Father of Time
âą Royal Reads
INACTIVE/DEAD
An AU qualifies for the inactive category when: 1.) its been 2+ years since an update and 2.) itâs unfinished; or, 3.) the creator explicitly stated that they were discontinuing it. LMK if one still has a pulse!
âą Into the Zeldaverse
âą Link and the Links
âą Linked By Time
âą Linking Together
âą Misfortunate Monsters
âą Tangled Chains
âą Zelda in the Multiverse
UNSURE/MIA
AUs where I am unsure of the status and thus need to contact the creator, the creatorâs deciding where to go with it, or I canât locate the original page. This is mostly for me- consider this kind of like a âto doâ list. Any insight is welcome!
âą Bagelâs AU (N/C)
âą Birdoâs AU (U)
âą Cottyâs Linkverse (N/C)
âą Chain Reaction AU (Nuked)
âą Factorialâs AU (N/C)
âą Fortuâs AU (N/C)
âą Hyrule Bound (N/C ; Iirc there was a fanfiction but I canât find it anywhere)
âą Link Madnessâ AU (N/C)
âą Mintyâs Linkverse (U)
âą Missing Links in Time (U)
#legend of zelda#the legend of zelda#link meets#link meets au#tloz#tloz au#zelda au#legend of zelda au#link meets au list#jaymellos link meets list#link meets list
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Finally got Crimson Snow.
I can see my new wife in person <3
(Also just look at how pretty the title screen is)
#ehehehe she will kill me many times and i will thank her#crimson snow#scary lady#ex girlfriend#not to be thirsty one main but#god the Ex can gut me any day of the week fuck#here me out#Me; Mia Winters; and Scary Ex#Like I'm sorry but FUCK the Scary Ex is so hot
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Copia on ICE! ~ part one ~
Cardinal Copia x Female Reader ~ At what would probably be your final Winter Olympics you needed to focus on realizing your dream of winning gold. You definitely didn't need to start a whirlwind romance with world famous speed skater Copia Emeritus...
~ I commissioned @enjoy-my-swearing to bring speed skater Copia to life so please take a moment to appreciate her amazing work (especially the butt sparkles) ~
Warnings: a vague understanding of how the Winter Olympics actually works also their ages are obviously gonna be a little funky so just roll with it, angst, fluff, smug copia, fingering, dirty talk, lots of kissing, nsfw, 18+ only mdni, about 15k words
âElegantâŠgracefulâŠsoft.â
Your coachâs words echoed in your head as you skated across the ice. Reminders of how figure skaters should appear while they perform. The music to your short program reached its crescendo in your head and you pushed yourself into your first jump, quickly leaping into the second as you landed. You spun towards the stands with your arms extended out, smiling towards all the imaginary people looking on. Â
âDo you think heâs into fisting?â
âJesus Christ Terzo!â You slid to a stop in front of where your friend and roommate was lounging against the rink wall staring at his phone. âWhat the hell?â
âIâm just asking!â
âBut why are you asking me when you should be asking him?â   Â
âI will but you know, one needs to prepare themselves for every possibility.â He glanced up from his phone with a smirk on his face. âLike fisting.â
âHow about you keep your possibilities to yourself.â You skated to his side, placing your elbows on the low wall while you gave him a stern look. âAnd stop saying fisting.â
âFine, fine.â His phone screen lit up and Terzo grinned at whatever was on there before he quickly typed out a response. When he was done he turned and gave you a quick grin. âHave I ever told you that you are my favorite person?â
âYes, but you only tell me that when you have bad news or you want something.â Terzoâs grin wavered a bit but his phone lit up again and he giggled at whatever he saw on it. âJust spit it out Terzo.â
âWould you mind terribly if I left early?â
âHow early? We still have the rink for a few hours.â
He winced, glancing at his phone again before sheepishly meeting your eyes.
âNow?â
âNow? Terzo, you need to practice!â
âSĂ, grazie coach, I know.â He pushed off the wall and skated around you to the opening. âIâve been practicing for weeks. Months.â You watched as he grabbed his blade covers and went to sit on the bench where heâd tossed all his gear. âYears!â
âThatâs the point Terzo! We do all this practicing for a reason, to get to where we are today.â You grabbed your own covers and followed him out of the rink. âYou do remember weâre at the Winter Olympics, right?â
âWeâre at the Olympics?!â Terzo gave an exaggerated gasp and you rolled your eyes. âAmica mia, I know this. How can I forget when youâre covered in feathers.â
Glancing down at your costume you let out a sigh. Swan Lake hadnât been your first choice of song for your short program, mostly because you knew your coach would lean into the swan aspect way too much. White feathers decorated the fabric from your chest down to the short skirt. When you looked at the ground you could see a few feathers had fallen off and were scattered over the floor. With a huff you crossed your arms and looked back to glare at Terzo.
âAt least Iâm covered in something. Your costume is 80% lace. Does that even meet the regulations?â
âOmega liked it.â
âOh well if Omega likes it then thatâs all that matters.â You both glared at each other for a few beats before you sighed and trudged over to sit by him on the bench. âIs he a snowboarder?â
âHockey.â
âWell Secondo will be pleased at least.â
âEh, he plays for Sweden.â At that you winced, Terzoâs older brother was the head coach for team Italy and probably wouldnât be thrilled Terzo was sleeping with someone from a rival team. âYou should see him, cara mia. Wide shoulders, thick arms and an ass to die for.â
âThat sounds like most hockey players.â
âNo no, heâs not just a hockey player. Heâs the captain.â
âThe captain? Then why the fuck are you still here? Go get him!â
Terzo laughed, leaning in to give you a quick kiss on your forehead.
âI knew youâd understand.â Â
He bent down to start untying his skates and shoved them along with the rest of his things into his gym bag. You tried not to feel a pang of jealousy as you watched him work. Terzo was so much more carefree than you were, something you really appreciated in the last few years. You were still recovering from a knee injury when you first met him and his humor and kindness had done wonders for you. It also helped that as soon as you had met his older brother you basically had been adopted into the family.
Primo was a member of the curling team and while it wasnât the most popular sport his success made him fairly well known. He had spent most of his life acting like a father to his three younger brothers. Their actual father, Nihil, had been absent for much of their life. If you asked any of them they would state that Primo was the head of the family and wouldnât bring up Nihilâs name at all.
Secondo was the second oldest, an imposing and stern man to anyone outside his close circle of family and friends. He had spent most of his life playing hockey, one of the best goaltenders that the sport had ever seen. His nickname was Bone Daddy although few dared call him that to his face. The design of his mask was that of a terrifying skull, a design he had claimed had been used by Emeritus family members from long ago.
Although you were pretty sure the story he told you about the family running a Satanic Church was completely made up.
His terrifying reputation on the ice was enhanced by the fact that under his mask and helmet he painted his face with the same skull design. Secondo reveled in pulling his mask off to startle members of the opposing team and referees alike. He probably would still be tending goal if he hadn't injured his shoulder years prior. Now he was the head coach of the Italy team, skull makeup still proudly worn every game and oftentimes in between.
The one brother you hadnât met yet was Copia. Although with as much as the media loved to talk about him each Winter Olympics you were surprised you hadnât. Copia was one of the most decorated athletes in any Olympic sport. You had been hoping to run into him at some point, mostly just so you could meet the entire family, but deep down you could admit there was another reason: Copia Emeritus was gorgeous.
The entire family was to be more accurate, but Copia was the face that had the habit of popping into your head when you were daydreaming. It didnât help that he seemed to be everywhere right now. With what was being touted as his last Olympic Games it seemed like every reporter was clamoring to interview him. Youâd seen his face across a majority of the magazines littered around the Olympic village lounge area and you really hoped Terzo never found the one you had already swiped to look at later.
Your musings were interrupted when Terzo zipped his bag closed and stood up, seemingly looking around for something. You snorted when you realized what he was missing.
âYou left your coat in our room, remember?â Terzoâs shoulders slumped and he groaned. âSomething about âgiving everyone a showâ while we walked here?â When he grabbed yours that youâd thrown over the rink wall you got up as well. âHey, no thatâs mine!â
âPer favore, amica mia?â He got distracted by his phone beeping again and after a quick look he turned to you even more desperate. âOmega wants to go sightseeing and then go back to his room afterâŠâ
âAnd youâre dressed like that.â  He nodded at you while he pouted and really, that shouldnât work as well as it did. âOk, fine! You might as well take my sweatpants too, donât need the entire town seeing your ass hanging out.â
In short order you had your friend bundled up and ready for his date. It was cute to see him continually checking his phone, youâd never seen Terzo so excited about a date before. You were about to go back out on the ice and start practicing again when the doors at the back of the stands opened and a figure blocked out the light.
âTerzo that guy looks like he could break you in half.â
âFuck I hope so.â He pulled you into a fierce hug before starting up the stairs. âDonât wait up!â
âI suppose Iâll need to take your bag back to our room?â Â
Terzo turned and flashed you a grin before making it up to Omega and practically launching into the guyâs arms. Omega held up a hand and you waved back, lowering it with a sigh when the two men went out the door and left you alone.  You turned back towards the rink, shooting a glare at the two huge bags youâd now have to lug back to the village. Well, no use worrying about that now, you had two hours left to practice and you were determined to get your routine perfect.
Anything less than that wouldnât get a medal around your neck.
Hours later you were exhausted and desperately wanting to be out of your costume and back in your room. Easier said than done considering you had to lug both yours and Terzoâs things back with you.
âGoddammit. Ugh!â You straightened up, lifting Terzoâs bag and slinging it over your head as you turned. âHe better be the lay of the centurâshit!â
As you turned to head towards the exit you ran right into a solid something. You immediately took a step away but with the extra weight hanging off your back you kept going, falling backwards and landing on your ass. With a groan you let your head fall back onto the ground. The man you had slammed into was laughing, a deep chuckle that reminded you too much of Terzo. You heard fabric rustle and then felt a hand touch your knee.
âIs uh, everything okie dokie?â
âYeah, Iâm fine.â With a groan you started to sit up, flailing a bit until the man grabbed one of your hands to help. âYou know you shouldnât sneak upâŠoh.â
Copia Emeritus was mere inches away from you.
His brown hair was combed back, flecks of gray catching on the fluorescent lights. There was some dark makeup around a familiar set of eyes, one green and one white. A carefully groomed mustache sat above a full set of lips. Your eyes couldnât help but trail down his body, the jacket was emblazoned with the colors of the Italian flag. Below that he seemed to be wearing a uniform, tight fabric hugging his hips andâ
âSneak up on?â
âThighs!â
Damn it. You dropped your head into your hand with a groan.
âDid you hit your head?â
âUh, yes?â The man crouched down again, a gloved hand pulling your own away from your face. When you dared to look at him he was smirking, another familiar feature shared with your friend. You decided to try for indifference and hoped he bought it. âCopia?â
âCopia.â He placed a hand on the back of your head, his fingers probing through your hair. You tried to swat at his hand but he easily grabbed it with his free one. âQuit that, Iâm trying to make sure you arenât hurt.â
âIâm fine! Itâs fine.â Copia pulled away, holding his hands up in surrender. You ignored the little pang ofâŠwhatever after he did so. Instead you focused on pulling the bag straps off your shoulders and trying to get up. Sheepishly you met Copiaâs eyes, scrunching your nose up at the amused look on his face. âCould you lend me a hand?â
âOh now you want a hand, eh?â He chuckled at your grumbling, taking your hands and easily pulling you to your feet. âUpsy daisies.â
âDaisy.â
âIs that your name?â
âNo, itâsâupsy daisy. Not daisies.â When Copia gave you a confused look you groaned and turned around, glaring down at the bags. There were more feathers from your costume resting on the ground and you quickly knelt down to grab them. âDamn it.â
âWhat is this anyway?â You looked up at him as you picked up the feathers, narrowing your eyes at the fingers wiggling your way. âYour clothes.â
âItâs my costume.â
âCostume for what?â
âIâm a figure skater.â
âAh, so you probably know mio fratello, Terzo.â
âUnfortunately.â You chose to ignore how handsome his smile made him look, standing up again with a handful of white feathers. He kept eyeing your costume, looking up and down your body with what you hoped was appreciation. âWhat?â
âYou are uh, una paperina?â
âHuh? Yeah. You know, Swan Lake.â Copia was biting his lip, looking to be about two seconds from laughing. Ok so, not appreciation. âWhat now?â
âNothing, itâs nothing. Just remembering Terzo covered in feathers when he skated to that too.â
âItâs a popular song.â
âSĂ, I think everyone skates to it at least once.â
What the fuck?
âAnd? Itâs a good song!â
âPaperina, I didnât say it wasnât.â
âSkating to Swan Lake is a lot more difficult than skating in a circle.â
Ha! That got him. Copiaâs eyes narrowed as he crossed his arms over his chest.
âIs it now? Have you ever watched speed skating?â He huffed when you shook your head. âI think if you watched you would change your mind.â
âYes, well Iâm busy right now so Iâll take a rain check.â You turned and knelt down again, shoving the feathers in a pocket of your bag and then slinging the strap over your head. âItâs late, Iâve gotta get back to my room.â
âDo you turn into a pumpkin at midnight?â
âWhat?â As you stood up you couldnât stop yourself from wavering on your feet again, but this time Copia kept his hands to himself. âWhat are you talking about?â
âAh, doesnât the swan turn into a pumpkin if they arenât back home at midnight?â
âYou are mixing two very, very different fairy tales.â Copia shrugged, seemingly unbothered with fairy tale lore. As you reached down and picked up Terzoâs bag your balance shifted again but you moved away when Copia reached out to steady you. âI got it!â
âHas anyone ever told you how stubborn you are Paperina?â
âOnce or twice.â You took a few steps to the side to go around Copia but he moved to block you. âHas anyone ever told you how annoying you are?â
âOnce or twice.â God, even his smile was annoying. And handsome. Damn it. âIâm actually looking for my brother.â
âHe left a while ago with some guy.â
âOf course. Hockey player?â
You couldnât help but grin, it was clear Copia knew his brother well.
âThe captain of the Swedish team in fact.â
âHa! Secondo is gonna love that.â He looked down and motioned towards Terzoâs bag. âIsnât that his?â
âIâm taking it back to our room for him. Apparently. Hey!â
âAllow me.â He easily tugged the bag out of your hands, grinning in response to your narrowed eyes. âWhereâs your coat? Itâs too cold out there for Swan Lake.â
âTerzo needed it more.â At Copiaâs raised eyebrow you just shrugged. âHis costume has a lot of lace.â
âAh, should have known.â He sighed and set his brotherâs bag down, bringing his hands up to the zipper on his hoodie and quickly pulling it off. âWear this while I walk you back.â
âI donât need your escort or your hoodie.â
âYou are unfortunately getting both Paperina so chop, chop. Letâs go.â
You both stared each other down, although his look was much more amused than yours was.
âFine, whatever. Gimme.â His little smug grin had you gritting your teeth. It was unfair that he looked this good. Once you had his hoodie on and zipped up you held your arms out. âHappy?â
The look he gave you then was definitely appreciative. Lingering long enough on your face that you hoped he thought your red cheeks were from the cold and not your blush.
âMolto felice.â Copia easily swung Terzoâs bag over his shoulder and gestured for you to go ahead of him. âYou first Paperina.â
The walk back to the Olympic Village was mostly quiet. Once or twice you thought you heard him singing softly under his breath but he stopped whenever you glanced his way. You were trying very hard not to stare at him. Copia carried himself in that confident way athletes at the top of their game had. It made you self conscious and you immediately straightened up, pulling your shoulders back and correcting your posture.
It had been a while since youâd been at the top of yours.
The large lounge area on the main floor was still mostly full. Athletes from all sports and countries getting to know each other or sitting quietly on their own. Four years ago youâd be down here with them, finding new friends and connections. You couldnât afford that this year though, not with so much on the line.
âPaperina?â Copiaâs voice dragged you from your melancholy thoughts. You expected to see an amused look on his face but instead he looked almost concerned. âAre you alright?â
âYeah, yes. Iâm good. Actually this is good.â  He raised an eyebrow when you held your hands out for Terzoâs bag. âI got it from here.â
âTerzo already bitched at me about how far away his room was, let me help.â
âNo itâs fine, really.â Copia sighed, seemingly understanding he wasnât going to win. âThank you for your help though.â
âItâs nothing. The least I could do, uh, since my brother left you.â
âIâm not mad, it was for a good cause.â
âSĂ, a hockey captain.â You stared at each other for a moment, long enough that you started fidgeting under his stare. âHave a good night Paperina.â
âYou too Copia.â
He gave you one last smile before turning and heading off, disappearing into a crowd of Canadians. With a sigh you began to make your way towards the elevators for your section of the dorms. Terzo was right, your room was far away. But it was nice to be able to room with your friend. You knew Terzo had thrown his family name around, and probably a little money, to make it happen. It made times he did stupid things like tonight more bearable.
Still, it didnât stop you from dropping both your bags down in front of your door with a curse aimed his way. Another curse left you when you noticed the sock on the doorknob. You started knocking on the door sharply, turning your hand to hit it with the side of your fist when nothing happened.
âTerzo!âÂ
There was muffled cursing behind the door and the sound of something being knocked over before it opened and your friend shoved his head through the opening.
âSĂ?â
âWhat are you doing?â
âWhat do you think Iâm doing? Didnât you see the sock?â You flinched back when Terzo yanked it off the doorknob and swung it in front of your face. âIâm having sex!â
âGood for you, why are you having sex in our room? I thought you were going back to Omegaâs!â
âAh well, you see his roommate had already claimed the room. So. Here we are.â Terzoâs grin turned into a grimace when you twisted his nipple. âAi! I just got that pierced!â
âI donât care! I am tired, I am cold and Iâm dressed like a fucking swan. Let me in.â
âI am begging you to go away.â
âWhere am I supposed to go?!â
âI donât know! Go mingle downstairs! Show off your feathers.â He jerked back, slamming into the door to get away from your fingers. âStop pinching!â
âStop being an asshole!â
âAmica mia, please. Omega.â Terzo gestures towards the door in that hopeless way he did when he was struggling to find the right words. âI like him.â
âLike like?â He rolled his eyes but gave you a quick nod. Goddammit. âAlright! But just tonight though!â
âSĂ, sĂ. Just tonight.â Terzo tugged you in for a quick hug, pressing a noisy kiss into your temple before pulling away. His hands lingering on your shoulders as he looked down at your chest. You were about to tell him off for staring before you realized he was looking at the hoodie. Copiaâs hoodie. âWhere did you get this?â
âYour brother came looking for you and took pity on me.â
âMaybe he just didnât want to be seen next to that costuâow, ow! What did I say! They are healing!â He hissed at you as he pressed himself back into the door, his arms crossed comically high on his chest. âAre you two friends now?â
âSure, weâre best friends. I think weâll room together at the next Olympics.â When Terzo started waggling his eyebrows you groaned. âShut up.â
âThis is his last one, amica.â You gave him a questioning look but Terzo just shrugged. âThatâs what heâs been saying at least.â
âAnyway, how long do you need? Five minutes? Ten?â
âYou did see Omega, right? Try five hours.â You wrinkled your nose at the thought and Terzo gleefully continued, âHe likes to switch too. Is thisâŠis this what love feels like?â
âTwo hours. No, stop pouting. You have two hours Terzo before I break the door down.â
âFine. Deal.â He opened the door again and grabbed the bags, quickly tossing them inside before spinning around with a grin on his face. âGo make some new friends while I make some babies.â
He laughed at the horrified look on your face, taking advantage of it to slip back into the room and shut the door. The sound of the lock clicking was loud in the empty hallway. You sighed and shoved your hands into your borrowed hoodie, looking down at it for a moment and then freezing when you saw the feathers peeking out from below.Â
âFuck.â
The lounge was thankfully a little quieter when you got back down there. No one gave you any weird looks at least. You found a seat close to one of the big fireplaces and settled down, letting the heat wash over you. Hopefully no one would bat an eye if you fell asleep, it certainly wouldnât be the first time an athlete had been locked out of their room for one reason or another.
âPaperina?â You groaned and looked up into the face of Terzoâs brother. âWhat are you doing down here?â
His clothes were different, you could see the blue of his skating suit peeking out at his neck and at his wrists. He had reapplied the makeup around his eyes too, as well as covering just his upper lip. It probably would bother you more if Terzo didnât regularly wear skull makeup during his routines. The Emeritus family was interesting, you had to give them that.Â
âYour brother and the hockey captain were there.â A flash of irritation washed over Copiaâs face so you quickly reached out and grasped his hand. When he glanced down at it you immediately let go, watching as he flexed it afterwards. âItâs fine, I gave him two hours.â
âYouâre going to sit here for two hours?â
âYes, itâs ok. Iâve got the fire and I can take a little nap.â You flinched when a few guys started shouting at something playing on a tv nearby. âIâm good.â
âYouâre too nice Paperina, that stronzino doesnât deserve you.â Copia held both of his hands out to you smiling when you just stared at them. âLetâs go, you can come with me.â
âCome with you where? Hey!âÂ
He had reached down and grabbed your hands, easily pulling you out of the chair and ushering you ahead of him towards the door.Â
âIf youâre gonna just sit somewhere you can sit and watch me skate in circles. How about that?â
He looked cocky and sure of himself, exactly how youâd expect an eight time gold medalist to look. You bit your lip as you thought it over. Speed skating had never been a sport you sought out to watch. Skating in circles was boring, no one could convince you otherwise. But you couldnât help but glance down at his legs, at the sweatpants you knew were covering that tight uniform. The tight uniform over those huge thighs.Â
At least the scenery would be nice.Â
âHow long will this take?â
âEh, usually I practice for three hours.â
âI gave Terzo two.â
âWe both know heâll beg you for one more so just sit here like a good little Swan Lake and watch, okie dokie?â
âUgh, fine.â Copia raised an eyebrow when you shivered, the hoodie of his not doing much against the cold of the rink. Your thin costume underneath didnât help either. âIâm fine.â
âDo you ever get tired of pretending to be fine?â
His question stunned you long enough you didnât even protest when he pulled his coat off and threw it over you. Copia was grinning when you yanked it off your head, watching as you situated it over yourself for a moment before he headed towards the locker rooms. You tried very hard not to watch him go but it was near impossible and you were too tired to care. After a few minutes of looking around you couldnât help but burrow deeper into his coat, his cologne clinging to the fabric. You allowed yourself one deep inhale, your eyes closing briefly while you tried to pinpoint the brand.
âAcqua di Gio.â You flinched, nearly slipping off the bench at Copiaâs voice. âArmani.â
âI know itâs Armani.â
Your voice came out a little harsher than you wanted but luckily he just seemed amused.  After you had settled back into your seat you managed to look him over. Gone were the sweatpants, he was now just in his sleek skating suit and it was clinging to every dip and curl of muscle on his body. You didnât even bother looking back up at his face, you knew by now heâd be smug as all hell. Instead you noticed a styrofoam cup in his hand, finally meeting his eyes when he held it out towards you.
âHot cocoa. To warm you up.â You timidly reached out and took it, not even minding when his gloved fingers lingered against yours. âUnless you want more of my clothes.â
âFuck off.â His chuckle was starting to become one of your favorite sounds and this was ridiculous, you barely knew him! You needed to get some distance and clear your head. âGo on, show me how well you can skate in a circle.â
His only answer was a smirk as he backed away a few steps before heading towards the opening to the rink. He pulled the covers off his blades, tossing them to the side before shooting out onto the ice. There were a few others already out there and it was fascinating to see them give Copia space, a sign of deference you supposed. He nodded their way but didnât say anything, just started to go through a series of stretches while you all looked on.Â
Despite the public setting it felt very private. Terzo had been sharing a lot of little anecdotes about his brother since youâd both arrived at the Games. Information you wouldnât hear about in anything official. You knew that Copia had been having problems with his knee, that it had been obviously bothering him more and more. Heâd only received one gold in the last games when he normally would get it in all of his events. Since then he hadnât competed much, a few European tournaments here and there.
According to Terzo he was saving himself for one last Olympic Games, this Olympic Games. Copia was determined to go out at the top of his game. With the way the media and even his brother had depicted him, an extremely serious athlete that seemed to live on the ice it was strange to look back on the last few hours and how he acted. He was far more carefree than you expected. Quick to joke around even if it was at your expense.
You had a feeling Paperina didnât mean what you thought it did.
Your thoughts were interrupted by the distinct sound of skates gliding across the ice. It was louder than what you were used to but as you looked out towards the rink you easily figured out why. Copia was a blur as he moved across the ice, his powerful legs pumping him towards each corner. It was then heâd lower one side of his body down, his fingertips grazing the ice and keeping him balanced until he was through.
âHeâs something else, isnât he?â
You smiled at the man that sat down next to you, someone you had looked forward to seeing as soon as you had arrived at the Olympic Village.
âHi Primo.â He gave you a warm smile, knocking his shoulder against yours. âDid you come to cheer him on?â
âIt seems thatâs what he brought you for, hmm?â You rolled your eyes, hunkering further down into Copiaâs coat. âI didnât realize you two knew each other.â
âWe just met actually, a few hours ago.â
âThick as thieves already then, Iâm not surprised.â He ignored the questioning look you gave him so you shoved your elbow into his side. âCareful now, Iâm an old man.â
âHe just feels bad. Terzo kicked me out.â
âI warned you not to room with him.â He shook his head but he was clearly not surprised at Terzoâs antics. âA snowboarder?â
âNope, hockey. The captain of the Sweden team.â
âSecondo is going to kill him.â
âGood, then Iâll have the room to myself.â
It was Primoâs turn to elbow you and when you looked his way he nodded towards the rink. Your eyes immediately found Copiaâs as he leaned against the wall. He had taken his helmet off and his hair was all over the place. You could see how flushed his cheeks were already, his breathing heavy from the laps heâd put in.
âI donât know, looks like you might have some company.â
He didnât give you a chance to say anything back, but you were too dumbfounded to say anything anyway. Primo waved at his brother before giving your leg a squeeze and getting up. His movements were a little slower than you remembered but you knew when it was time for his event heâd be gliding across the ice just like heâd been doing for years. There was a reason heâd led the Italian curling team to so many podiums.
You took a long drink of your cocoa, a little disappointed it had lost most of its warmth. Copia was still looking your way when you glanced at him although you couldnât read the expression on his face. The eye contact was lost when one of the other skaters stopped by him and you let out the breath youâd been holding when he looked away.
This was ridiculous, you were acting like some love struck teenager. You needed to get a grip. Neither one of you could afford distractions right now. Both of you skating with the same goal in mind but for very different reasons. As if on cue your knee twinged slightly and you slowly stretched it out in front of you. It was fine, it was going to be fine. Youâd gotten silver in the last two tournaments youâd done leading up to this year's Olympics. It was fine.
You were fine.
âHey.â
âGoddammit.â The man next to you was the same one that had been talking to Copia on the ice. You took a quick breath and glanced up at him. âUh, whatâs up?â
âIâm supposed to give you this.â He thrust another styrofoam cup towards you so you quickly set down the empty one you had been holding. âAnd this.â
In his other hand was one of those large soft pretzels that every concession stand on the planet sold. The kind covered in salt and butter. They were your favorite thing to get whenever you needed something quick to eat. You eagerly took it from the manâs hand, muttering a thanks when he nodded and then started walking towards the locker room.
Back on the ice Copia was doing laps again. Everyone else had left so it was just him out there, although he was acting like he was fighting off a handful of other skaters. His movements were truly mesmerizing. Even from your seat you could see his muscles move, see the concentration on his face as he made lap after lap.
He slid to a stop right in front of where you were sitting, catching your eyes as you took a huge bite of the pretzel. Part of it was sticking out of your mouth as you watched him. It was too late to try to be ladylike about it so you just ate it how you normally would.  Copia held up a finger, gesturing at his wrist briefly. One more hour then. You nodded at him, saluting him with the rest of your pretzel and finding way too much joy in the sound of his laughter echoing from the rink.
âIs your knee ok?â Â
You were on your way back to the dorms, snow starting to softly fall around you. Copia had taken his hoodie back but you were still wearing his jacket. His cologne had probably permeated your costume at this point and you were stuck between liking the idea but also dreading the distraction it might bring.
âItâs good, feels good to walk.â You let your face fall into the neck of his coat, trying to hide your smile. âHow about yours?â
âEh it will be fine. A nice massage, some ice and it will be good as new.âÂ
âI didnât realize the clinics were open this late.â
âIâll be massaging it myself, Paperina. That is unless youâre offering?â
âNo! No Iâm not.â He snorted and was shaking his head when you looked at him again. âWhat?â
âYou donât have to be so scandalized. Whatâs a little knee massage between friends huh?â
âSo weâre friends?â
The automatic doors of the building slid open and you couldnât help but start to walk faster. Copia easily picked up his pace to match yours, following you all the way to the elevators towards your section of the dorms.
âIs that what you want? To be friends?â
There was no denying the charged air between you two. The attraction between you both had been building ever since he had taken Terzoâs bag from you. You couldnât help but take a step back though, wincing when a brief look of disappointment appeared on his face.
âI donât think we can afford to be anything else.â You knew your face showed your own disappointment and you didnât bother trying to hide it. Your fingers twisted nervously where they were hidden in the sleeves of his coat while you debated on saying what you wanted to. Fuck it. âAt least for right now.â
âRight now?â His smile was back as he walked towards you. It grew slightly predatory when you started to back away, only stopping when your back hit the wall by the elevator doors. âThen when can that change?â
âAfter our events. We canât get distracâoh.â Copia had pressed forward, resting his forearms against the wall by your head. He had showered in the locker room but there was still the slight smell of sweat on him. His head dropped close enough you felt his lips brush ever so slightly against your cheek. âCopiaâŠâ
âOur events then. After we get gold, yeah?âÂ
âYes. At least I hope so.â
âDonât worry Paperina,â Copia stepped back, smiling smugly as he held your gaze. âIâll give you one of mine if you donât.â Â
Thankfully the sock was gone when you got back to the room. Â
You quietly opened the door, peeking in but not seeing anyone inside. They must have been able to go back to Omegaâs room. You took advantage of the emptiness, quickly shucking Copiaâs coat and tossing it over a chair. The next part was your costume, you had to be extra careful removing it. The last thing you wanted to worry about doing was losing more damn feathers. Â
The shower felt heavenly and you got it as hot as you dared. The scent of Copiaâs cologne that was lingering on your skin washed off quickly but you tried not to dwell on it. It was obvious youâd be seeing him again. He certainly didnât seem like the type to give up easily, much like his brothers. You snorted thinking of his last comment. The Emeritusâs were a cocky bunch, but it was with good reason.
You took a deep breath and tried to clear all of the Emeritus brothers out of your mind. It was tough like usual to get all the hairspray washed out of your hair but once you were done you allowed yourself to just relax and lean against the wall. Looking down your body you watched the soap slowly fall over your skin and down onto the tile. Your eyes fell onto your knee like they usually did when there was nothing covering it and it made you wince like always.
It wasnât so much that you thought it was ugly, to you it was a mark of survival. Not that it was necessarily a life threatening thing. In reality a fall while doing a jump could have gone far, far worse than it did. But landing on your knee had been excruciating. Laying out there on the ice in front of thousands of people had been excruciating. However the two years you had spent rehabbing it had been worse.
The multiple surgeries, the constant appointments for physical therapyâŠÂ It felt like you had practically lived at the hospital for those two years. But you had been determined to come back from it. You were too young to let your dream go. Your eyes were drawn to your knee like always, to the scars that ran along the sides. The doctor had jokingly said that shorts and short skirts might not be in your future and it had taken so much willpower not to punch him. Â
Your scars were proof that you had survived the injury. That you hadnât let it stop you from pursuing what you had been doing since you were a kid. Since you could even stand up on skates. This is what you had always wanted to do, what you had dreamed of. The Winter Olympics were the pinnacle of that dream. You were determined to get on that podium this year. You wanted to show everyone that nothing would stop you from getting there.
Copiaâs face appeared in your mind then. You could imagine his smug grin as he teased you. You thought of the way he smelled, the way he covered you in his scent by loaning you his coat. You thought of his body in his uniform, how powerful his legs were. He could probably hold you up easily, maybe push one of his knees between your legs and let you straddle his thick thigh.
Your head fell back against the shower wall, a little zing of pleasure running through you at the thought. Almost absentmindedly you placed your hand on your stomach, rubbing it over your skin in a few circles before letting it slip down further and into the thatch of hair between your legs. You thought of grinding against Copiaâs thigh, your feet probably not even touching the ground because he was holding you up so high. Â
Two of your fingers rubbed tight circles over your clit as you fell deeper into your fantasy. Copiaâs fingers were thick, it was obvious even with them hidden under those gloves. They were thick and theyâd feel amazing stroking inside of you. You brought your other hand to your cunt and rubbed across your entrance. A moan punched out of you when you pressed two of them inside. There was barely any resistance you were already so turned on just by thinking about Copia doing this to you.
He probably loved to dirty talk, he probably loved describing all the things he planned on doing to you. Your fingers pumped faster imagining the filthy things he would whisper in your year. Things he would do to you if you only asked. Youâd more than ask, youâd beg for it if you had to. You couldnât help but admit to yourself that you wanted everything. His mouth, his fingers, his cock...
You wanted it all.
The next few days went by in a blur.
Both you and Terzo were focused on practicing for your upcoming events. You each had a short and long program to skate, the combined scores of both decided your final place in the standings. Despite the importance of it all Terzo did manage to skip out a lot to meet up with Omega. You had met him a few times by now as well and you had immediately liked him. He was just the kind of partner Terzo needed. Honestly he was the kind of partner you wanted.
Of course thinking about partners had your stupid mind drifting to Copia. You hadnât seen him at all since that night, only catching glimpses of his face on the tv screens or the odd magazine laying around the lounge and cafeteria. It wasnât like you expected to spend all your time with him, but it made that whole night feel surreal. Terzo hadnât been super helpful about the whole thing. With romance on his brain he had started going on about all these elaborate scenarios featuring you and Copia. Olympic themed dates and Olympic themed gifts. Â
The Olympic themed wedding talk was the last straw and you had demanded he leave the room for a bit that night. You knew he had planned on doing that anyway, Omegaâs team was practicing and watching him play had become Terzoâs favorite new thing. Well, that and fucking him probably. So with the room empty it was time for you to do something you always did before events, especially after your accident at the last Olympic Games. It just wasnât something you enjoyed in any way, shape or form.   Â
You hated reviewing training footage. It was frustrating going over your previous performances and pinpointing where you had made mistakes. Where you had turned a triple axel into a double. Where youâd missed the timing on a jump. Where youâd stumbled on a landing.
Where you had fallen and nearly destroyed your career.
In your coachâs defense he never made you watch that one again. Rewatching that was something you did on your own. Terzo always hated it and would call it self destructive. That was part of the reason you were alone in your room tonight. He had seen you break out your laptop and left to meet Omega earlier than planned.Â
Youâd been surprised he wasnât out with Copia celebrating his brotherâs win but Terzo had said Copia wasnât much for celebrating until the games were completely done. Of course when that thought crossed through your mind you immediately blushed. The memory of that night with him was something you had been replaying a lot, especially the ending and the deal you had made.Â
Before you could talk yourself out of it you searched for the race he was in today, quickly hitting play when it came up. Not surprisingly the announcers were talking about Copia most of the time. Even if it wasnât his last Olympics he was still the most well known athlete there, the most decorated. You watched as he warmed up and briefly chatted with his fellow racers. He looked so at ease, like he wasnât about to race his heart out for one of the final times in his career.
You really envied him. He had so much pressure on him but just looking at him smiling on the ice you would think it was just another day. Even though you knew the result you found yourself holding your breath as everyone waited for the race to begin. When they took off Copia easily got to the front, quickly putting distance between himself and the others. The camera stayed on him and you got to see the muscles of his legs flex and move up close. You could see the determination in his eyes, the lights in the arena reflected off both but especially the odd white one his family was all born with.
It was always strange to you when something so important, so pivotal to someoneâs career was over in just a few moments. Copia crossed the finish line with ease, one arm pumping briefly into the air as he flashed a dazzling smile to the crowd. The camera panned briefly to where his brothers were seated. Terzo looked ridiculous in his big faux fur coat but it made you smile to see Omega swing an arm over his shoulders. There was more between your friend and the hockey captain than just an âOlympic Village flingâ, that was obvious.
Primo looked proud like he always did, no matter how well his younger brothers did in their events. Next to Primo, looking stern but proud, was Secondo. He was dressed in one of his typical three piece suits, clapping and cheering with the crowd. The camera soon panned away and back onto the ice. Copia was standing patiently next to the second and third place winners but you kept noticing his eyes darting out into the stands. You knew he had seen his brothers, family was always seated around the same area, so you were curious who he seemed to be looking for. He almost looked disappointed after taking a final scan of the crowd before being ushered onto the podium.Â
The thought crossed your mind briefly that he might have been looking for you but that was ridiculous. While Terzo had invited you it had seemed a little too much to go watch Copiaâs race. You hadnât really sorted out exactly what you were feeling towards him. Obviously physical attraction but there was something else there, something that made your insides flutter when you thought about him.Â
Watching him at the top of the podium, handsome and beaming as the gold medal was slipped over his head didnât help. He shook hands with the official that gave him the medal and then his fellow athletes before standing tall again. The camera panned up to the Italian flag hanging higher than the others, only going back to Copia when his national anthem started playing.Â
You watched as his lips moved, mouthing along to the lyrics being played. His makeup was slightly smeared from sweat but it did nothing to detract from his handsome features. When the music swelled he appeared to be full on singing, his throat bobbing as he did so. Your mind went back to when you were walking to the dorms in the snow after watching him practice. His shoulder knocking against yours, his coat warm over your stupid costume and the smell of his cologne embedding itself in your brain.
There was definitely something more there.Â
An abrupt knock on the door had you pausing the video, the screen freezing right as Copia was looking directly into the camera.
âWho is it?â After no one answered you focused back on the screen again but another set of knocks echoed through the room. You groaned, figuring it might be Terzo trying to get back in. The knocking continued as you unfolded your legs and hopped off your bed. âTerzo I told you to make sure you had your key!â
You unlocked and flung the door open, ready to bitch at your friend some more but the face on the other side was not your roommate.
âPaperina.â Copiaâs eyes swept over you, making you immediately self conscious of the old, oversized sweats you were wearing. âNo feathers today?âÂ
âNot today, no.â You fiddled with the zipper on your hoodie while you let your eyes wander over him. He was wearing all black, a color that definitely suited him. Your eyes couldnât help but linger on how his tight jeans clung to his thighs and when you finally glanced up he was pleased as hell about it. âTomorrow is the short program.âÂ
âAre you ready?âÂ
While you desperately wanted to say no and that you were scared out of your mind you squared your shoulders and gave him the most convincing smile you could manage.
âYes, yes I am.â You both stood there for a moment in silence, staring at each other. After what seemed like an eternity you finally snapped. âWhat is it? Iâm busy.â
âAre you?â He pushed off from the door jam and looked around you into the room. âDoesnât seem like thereâs much going on.âÂ
âIâm watching my old routâhey!âÂ
Copia easily walked around you, strolling into the room like heâd been there a hundred times. You glared at his back briefly before deciding to just shut the door. When you turned your eyes looked on, horrified as you watched him look down at your laptop screen, a wild grin breaking out on his face.
âYou know Paperina, you could have come today.â He grunted as he dropped onto the bed, stretching out in front of your computer. âI told Terzo to bring you.âÂ
âLike I said,â You stomped over to your bed and grabbed your laptop away from him. âI was busy. Am busy. So you should go.âÂ
Copia sighed as he rolled into his back and tucked his hands under his head.Â
âI was a little disappointed you didnât come.â  His admission had you freezing next to the little desk you were setting your laptop on. âYou couldâve seen the whole thing up close.â
âI told youââ
âSĂ, sĂ. Busy. I can tell.â He was grinning when you spun around to glare at him. âYou shouldnât be cooped up in here all night.âÂ
âIâm not cooped up, Iâm getting ready for tomorrow.â
âPaperina, how many times have you done this routine?â He turned onto his side and propped his head up on one hand. âWatching old videos wonât help.â
âYes, they do. I can see where I messed up and fix it.âÂ
âWerenât you there though? You know where you made the mistakes already. What does torturing yourself by watching them do?â
âItâs not torture!â
âThen what is it?â His voice was gentle as he watched you, the concern evident as he spoke. âHow many times do you need to see them?â
âAs many times as it takes.â
âYouâre just going to be more nervous for tomorrow.â
âLook, youâre not my coach or a figure skater so donât come in here trying to tell me how to prepare.â
âAh yes, what do I know? I just skate in circles.â He groaned as he sat up, his eyes not leaving you. âI do know that dwelling on past mistakes wonât help you. No matter what sport youâre in.â
âLook, I need to watch them.â
âPaperina, you havenât given me a good enough reason why.â
âBecause I canât fuck up again!â Your eyes stung with the tears building up in them but it was too late to stop now. It felt like the knot that had been building in your chest since the accident four years ago was finally unraveling. âCopia, I canât. This is my last chance. In four years Iâll be too old to compete against anyone here.â
You werenât sure how long you stared at each other but it was long enough for your breathing to calm and your tears to fade. As you were about to ask him to go he pushed himself off the bed and clapped his hands together.Â
âWe need to get you out of here.â
âHave you been listening to anything Iâve been saying?!â
âSĂ, I heard all the bullshit you told me.â He looked around the room, letting out a little noise when he saw his coat hanging off your chair. âWeâre going out.â
âNo, Copia I canât.â
âWhat did you just say?  âThis is your last chanceâ? That means itâs also your last chance to enjoy yourself here.â
âI am enjoying myself.â When he raised an eyebrow you groaned and shook your head. âWhat would we even do anyway?â
âCelebrate.â He gave you an exaggerated pout when you just stared at him. âMy gold medal isnât a good enough reason to celebrate? Coming with me is the least you could do Paperina.â
âWhat do you mean?â
âI saved you a spot and everything. Kept hoping Iâd see you in the stands...â Copia sighed dramatically and shook his coat out before he held it up for you. âRemember what we talked about the other night?â
Hopefully the look on your face didnât make it obvious you had been practically only thinking about that.
âWe agreed on after our events.âÂ
âIt is after an event though.â
âYes, one event, Copia! You have three more medals to compete for and I have two skate programs.â
âJust a small celebration then.â You rolled your eyes when he pouted again. âPer favore.âÂ
âHow small?â
He grinned and tossed his coat at you before looking around the room. He let out a triumphant noise when he saw your boots, grabbing them and thrusting them at you as well.
âVery small. I know just the place.âÂ
âWe canât be gone long.â He nodded as he rocked back on his heels. âAnd no funny business.â
âPaperina, I will be completely serious. I wonât even smile.âÂ
You snorted as you dropped your boots and shoved your feet into them. His coat was next and it was as comfortable as you remembered when you pulled it on.
âSo. Where are we going?â
âI canât fucking believe you.â
Copia hadnât stopped smiling as soon as youâd seen where he was taking you. The building hadnât been too far from the Olympic Village, a few blocks and you found yourself staring up at an old ice rink. You looked on in disbelief as Copia walked up to the glass doors and peered inside. The place was obviously closed but after a few knocks on the door an older man had come up to let you both in.
âYouâve got two hours Emeritus, thatâs it.â
âGrazie, plenty of time.â Copia turned and held his hand out for you. âPaperina?â
Copia led you through the building, seemingly unbothered by the lack of lights. His gloved hand was warm and in the dark you let yourself look down at it, trusting him to guide you where he wanted to go. When he gave it a squeeze you looked up, noticing you were in front of the skate rental booth.
âCopia, what are we doing here?â
âWhat does it look like?â He let go of your hand and walked around the counter, disappearing for a moment before coming back with an armful of ice skates. âHere these should fit.â
âIce skating is our job! Why would you want to come here on your night off?â
âBecause ice skating should be fun and you need to remember that.â He came around the counter and took your hand again. âWhen was the last time you had fun out on the ice?â
It was startling to you when your mind drew a blank. Even the times youâd been out there practicing with Terzo all you remember feeling was stress. You resisted when he tried to tug you towards the rink.
âWhat if we get hurt?â
âDonât do any triple axels and I think youâll be fine.â When you stayed put as he tried to go to the rink again he sighed. To your surprise he dropped his skates and turned around, coming right into your space and cupping your cheeks. âPaperina, I promise that you will have fun.â
You closed your eyes for a few seconds, letting the heat from his hands and gloves warm your cheeks.Â
âI want a pretzel.â
Copia let out a bark of laughter, leaning forward and resting his forehead against yours.
âI think the concession stand is closed.âÂ
âThatâs the price. One pretzel.â
âOkie dokie. Iâll see what I can do.âÂ
You ended up with two pretzels and that fluttering feeling in your chest getting worse.Â
After banging around trying to first find the pretzels the next problem was sorting out how to heat them. Copia had been attempting to get the little heater rack going when the owner had stomped over with an exasperated look on his face.Â
âReally, Emeritus?â
âThe lady is hungry!âÂ
The man had grabbed the two pretzels and disappeared into the back. While he worked you and Copia had made your way to the rink, throwing your coats over the wall and sitting down to get your skates on. They definitely werenât as nice as you normally wore and you tried not to think of how clean they might be, but it was actually helping you relax a bit. You hadnât skated in a rink like this since you were a kid first taking lessons. There was zero pressure here, just you and the ice.
WellâŠCopia and his thighs too.
It was unfair how good he looked in those jeans. You tried not to stare but that only ended with your eyes wandering elsewhere. He had some random band tee over a long sleeve shirt. His gloves were still on as well as the dark gray scarf heâd been wearing since he showed up at your door. He looked good, he probably looked good in everything. He probably looked really good in nothâ
âHereâs your damn pretzels.â
You grabbed them when the owner thrusted them in front of your face, setting one down next to you and biting into the other. He and Copia appeared to be having a somewhat heated conversation but you chose to ignore it and focus on your food. Copia was right, you needed to enjoy your time here. And not just here at the rink but during the entire two weeks the Olympics were going on. You were so lucky to have this chance and while you didnât want to mess it up, you also wanted to look back on it fondly no matter what happened.Â
âOkie dokie, two hours!âÂ
Copia plopped down next to you, grabbing the second pretzel and taking a bite.Â
âHey thatâs mine!â
âThese actually arenât bad, Paperina.â You took a big bite of your own and glared at him. âNot going to help me get into my suit tomorrow but eh, oh well.â
âYouâll still look good, donât worry.â As soon as you realized what you said you froze, sneaking a glance at him and sighing when you saw his grin. âDonât.â
âYouâll look good too. Bellissima.â He shoved the rest of the pretzel in his mouth and then pulled the skates on. âI canât wait to see you in those feathers again.âÂ
âWait, youâre coming?âÂ
âI wouldnât miss it for the world.â You hid your pleased smile by leaning down and getting the skates on although when you sat up he was still watching you. âItâs the next event anyway, Iâll want to collect on our deal.âÂ
âTechnically the short program is part of one event, one medal. I still have the long program.âÂ
Copia walked in front of you and held his hands out, a gesture you were getting used to. When he had pulled you up and helped steady you on the unfamiliar skates he leaned in closer, his handsome face taking up your vision.
âI think we can bend the rules a bit again, donât you?â
Being on the ice with Copia was a blast.
While you both agreed on no racing or jumping it wasnât long before you were squealing and shoving your way past him to get to the end of the rink first. Luckily you were both still getting used to the new skates, in Copiaâs case they were a lot different than his usual ones so it gave you a good advantage. Your triumphant whoop at hitting the end of the rink before him was drowned out by you screeching when he grabbed you and dug his fingers into your sides.
âNo! Copiâahh! Stop, stop!â You were laughing despite your frantic protests. Finally pushing him away and out of reach. âYouâre just jealous Iâm better on the ice than you.âÂ
âPaperina, if I had my regular skates on Iâd be able to lap you twice before you hit the end.âÂ
âWhatever helps you sleep at night, handsome.âÂ
You skated away so you wouldnât have to see his smug grin but also to hide your blush. There really wasnât a point in hiding your attraction to him anymore, but that didnât mean you needed to make it easy on him. You were nearly half the rink away from him when you heard him coming up behind you. The sounds of his blades sliding across the ice was loud and you werenât surprised to see him blow by you. But instead of turning the corner to show off his speed he suddenly threw his arms out and then leapt into the air, executing a near perfect jump, spinning and landing with a flourish.Â
Copia stayed where he was as you skated up to him with a stunned look on your face. You were both surprised and irritated he had managed to pull it off so well. Of course youâd seen his brother do it plenty of times but that was his area of expertise. Copia wasnât a figure skater.
âHowâŠhow did youâŠ?â
âDo you need me to show you how the move works?â He held up his hands when you glared at him. âI grew up with Terzo, Paperina. Iâd practice with him sometimes.â
ââSometimesâ huh?â You shook your head in disbelief, beginning to skate closer to him. âIs there anything you arenât good at?â
âKissing.â
His answer startled you enough you tried to stop and ended up losing your balance. Copiaâs hands shooting out and grabbing you around your waist were the only thing that kept you upright. You found yourself placing your hands on his shoulders as his own slid further around you and rested at the small of your back.Â
âKissing?â
âSĂ. Iâm terrible at it.âÂ
âOh. Well, thatâs a shame.â He nodded solemnly, the twinkle in his eyes the only thing giving away the joke. âYou should try to get some practice in.â
âWill you help me, Paperina?â
You wanted to say yes, you wanted to shout yes. But you really didnât need to say anything, it was obviously what you both wanted right then. You leaned in at the same time as Copia, your lips touching gently against each other for only a moment before the movements became more intense. Copia kept one arm around your waist but the other he slid up to cradle the back of your head. You wrapped your own arms around his neck and pushed your fingers into his hair. When he urged your head to tilt to the side his mouth opened over yours and you let out a tiny moan when his tongue pushed inside.
As you flicked your own tongue against his you pressed yourself as close to him as possible. Kissing on ice skates was definitely not ideal and you nearly bit his tongue when he tugged you closer and you almost fell. Copia pulled away with a growl, both of his hands going down to grip your ass as he gently pushed you backwards. You couldnât take your eyes off his already swollen lips but when your back hit the side of the rink you glanced up to meet his mismatched gaze.
He took his hands off your ass and used one to cup your face, the other pressed against the concrete wall that was on one side of the rink. It looked like he was going to say something but thought better of it, his mouth lowering once more to yours. This kiss was immediately hot and dirty, your tongues fighting each other for some unknown prize. A deep groan vibrated in his chest when you nipped and sucked on his and he pressed his body even harder against yours. Â
When you started to lose your footing on the ice again Copia shoved his knee between your legs, pushing it against the wall. He gripped your hips with both hands and lifted you, propping you up so his strong thigh was basically the only thing keeping you upright. The muscle pressing against you and the heat from his leg along with the friction against your core had you whimpering into his mouth. Copia pulled his mouth away from you and leaned his forehead against yours once more.
âI knew youâd be like this.â He tugged your hips back and forth to rub you against him even more deliciously and you panted into his mouth. âSo responsive for me. I bet youâre already wet too.â
âWhat about you?â Copia groaned when you reached down and rubbed his hardening dick through his jeans. âLooks like Iâm not the only one.â
With a growl he kissed you again, nipping at your lips and tongue. His mustache tickled your skin and you knew youâd have to apply extra makeup tomorrow to hide the redness. Honestly you didnât care what he did at the moment, you just wanted him to keep kissing you. You had one arm wrapped around his neck for balance but you pushed your other hand back into his hair, scratching at his scalp and enjoying the way he groaned at the contact. When Copia pulled one hand off your hip you expected to feel it delve into your own hair but instead his warm palm covered your breast and it was your turn to groan when he rubbed his thumb across your hardening nipple.
If it wasnât for the sudden blast of music blaring across the speakers you probably would have let him fuck you right there on the ice. Copia pulled away, a violent series of Italian curses falling from his lips. Thankfully he helped keep you steady because at the moment your legs were in no shape to keep you on your feet. You chose to cling to his shirt and bury your face in his chest to try to catch your breath as you felt him jerk his head around looking for the culprit. When the music stopped you heard the voice of the owner over the intercom.
âTimeâs up Emeritus! Take the lady to bed at least!â  Â
You snorted against Copia, smiling when you heard him laugh too. He was keeping a firm grip on you, one hand rubbing up and down your back when he felt you shiver. It had little to do with the cold though. Your body was still coming down from the pleasure that had built up inside of you and when you moved you could feel Copia was still slightly hard. He hissed when you moved against him again.
âQuit that, we have an audience.â
âYou started it.â
He laughed again, cupping your face so he could tilt it up and you could meet his eyes.
âI didnât hear any complaints from you. Just âOh Copia, yes Copia. Hey!â He barely caught his balance when you pushed him away, his arms flailing wildly as you started skating towards the exit. You had just placed a hand on the wall to step out of the rink when he came up behind you, his hands finding your hips and pulling you back against him so he could lean down and whisper into your ear. âYou will be saying that to me eventually, Paperina. I promise you.â
He helped you step out of the rink, his hand not leaving the small of your back until you were at the bench where your things were. Copia knelt down in front of you and batted your hands away so he could untie your laces and slip the skates off your feet. You flexed them when they were free, happy to have them out of the unfamiliar skates. When Copia took your right foot in his hand you gasped. It turned into a quiet moan when he began to dig his thumbs into the sole and massage the tightness out.
âOh! Right there.â You bit your lip to try to keep all the noises you wanted to make from escaping. Copiaâs fingers were magic, not that you should be surprised. âYes, Copia thatâs perfect.â
âSee? Only took a few minutes.â Â
When you realized what he meant you couldnât help but laugh, shaking your head at his antics. He switched to your other foot with a grin and gave it the same attention before finally pulling away to get his own skates off. The owner was waiting for you at the front and thankfully didnât say anything as you slipped by. You knew your hair was probably a mess, not to mention how swollen your lips were. At least the coat Copia had on was long enough to cover his crotch. By how stiff he was walking it was obvious he was still a little hard and you smiled smugly as you walked ahead of him.
âYou owe me Emeritus.â
âSĂ, sĂ.â Copia finished talking to the owner and then jogged to catch up with you, quickly grabbing your hand when he did. You couldnât stop yourself from leaning into him a bit, especially with the air having gotten colder. âSo, did you have fun?â
âIt was ok.â Â
When he gasped dramatically you tucked your head into his arm for a moment to try and warm up your nose. He clicked his tongue and stopped, tugging at his scarf to release it. When he started wrapping it around your neck you suddenly couldnât meet his eyes. The act felt intimate, much more so than what had just happened in the rink. Copia leaned in to kiss your cold nose when he was done.
âIâm going to have to buy more clothes soon if you keep taking them all.â You were about to respond when you noticed a familiar looking ribbon under the color of his shirt. Copia caught you looking and smiled, grabbing it and then pulling it out so you could see. The gold medal he earned that day shone under the streetlamp and you tentatively reached out to touch it. âYou donât get this one, Paperina.â
âYouâre right, Iâll be getting my own soon.â
He grinned, shoving the medal back under his shirt and then taking your hand again. The walk back to the village was quiet. The only sounds coming from the snow crunching under your shoes and the occasional conversations from people passing you by. The lounge was still busy despite the hour and Copia kept you close as crowds of athletes moved around you both. He didnât let go of your hand when you got into the elevator or even when you got to the door of your room, giving it a quick squeeze as you shoved your key into the door.
âIs Terzo here?â
âNo, he said heâd be staying with Omega tonight.â
âAh, young love.â You smiled, looking down at your hand in his until another squeeze had you meeting his eyes. âWill you be ok by yourself, Paperina?â
âI will lock my door and not let any strangers in, I promise.â
âTsk, thatâs not what I meant. I donât want you ah, âreviewing the tapesâ.â
You winced, feeling a little guilty because for some reason you had debated on doing that. But no, Copia was right. That wasnât going to do you any good.
âNope, straight to bed for me.â
It was on the tip of your tongue to invite him in and the more you thought about it the more you wanted it to happen. But it was already late and there was no way youâd get any sleep with Copia in bed with you. He gave you a small smile before bringing his free hand to his mouth and tugging his glove off with his teeth. When he was done he brought it to his scarf and started to tug it loose from your neck. You thought he was going to pull it off at first but he just pushed it away enough so he could cup your cheek. His thumb brushed along your bottom lip and you couldnât help but stick your tongue out and touch his skin. Copia groaned and crowded you back against the door.
âIâm trying to be good and follow your rules here but you are making it very difficult.â
âYou already broke the rules by coming here in the first place.â
âEh, more like adjusted them a bit.â He sucked his full bottom lip between his teeth while his eyes dropped to your own lips. âIt was worth it though, sĂ?â
âYes, thank you for doing this.â Â
Copia smiled and dropped a kiss on your forehead.
âWeâll get to do this again tomorrow night, yeah? After your event?â
âI told you, itâs just the short program. Thereâs no medal tomorrow.â
âBut itâs important. Right?â When you nodded he cocked his head to the side for a moment. âFifth place or better.â
âWhat?â
âYour scores, if you get fifth place or better weâll have another date.â Â
You thought about it for a moment and then nodded. Fifth place or higher would put you in a good position before your long program later in the week. Your combined scores, as long as you skated well, would put you in contention for a medal. You desperately wanted gold but you were starting to realize any medal would be amazing. A great achievement after your injury and the long recovery. You just wanted on that podium, thatâs all. It was doable and after tonight with Copia you felt like youâd make it up there.
As long as you skated well.
âFifth place or better. I can do that.â
âYou will do that, Paperina.â He squeezed your hand one last time before letting go. âIâll be there to cheer you on.â
âOh, Copia no. You donât have to do that.â
âI actually do, Primo is making me. Ai!â He grunted when your fist connected with his shoulder, laughing and grabbing your hand when you tried to do it again. His mustache tickled the back of it when he dropped a kiss there. Copia grinned as he dropped your hand, reaching out to tap the tip of your nose. âBesides, thereâs something important I have to see.â
âYeah? Whatâs that?â
He moved back a few steps and winked, the grin still fixed on his face.
âThose feathers in action.â
To say you were worried was an understatement.
You just needed to get above fifth, thatâs all. Fifth or higher and you had a chance just like Copia had said, just like you had been repeating in your head all morning. Hardly anyone came back from a lower place than that after the short program. Itâs not that you would give up if you got below fifth, but getting a medal at these games would be near impossible at that point. So. Fifth or better. Â
Terzo had managed third, a fact that he had been crowing about since it happened. The men had skated that morning and while you should have been practicing you ignored your coachâs recommendation and came to watch Terzo perform. Omega and Secondo both had games that morning so it had been just you and Primo. The eldest brother had probably been the loudest out of anyone else in the crowd as Terzo worked his ass off skating to his music.
To the surprise of no one Terzo had chosen an ABBA song.
âPaperina, you look nervous.â
At Copiaâs voice you jumped, nearly losing your balance. He reached out and grabbed your hands, not letting go until you were steady again on your feet. You quickly looked around to see if anyone had seen you but thankfully everyone was busy either talking to the skater that had just performed or cleaning the rink. When you looked back at Copia he was grinning.
âWhat are you doing here?â
âI told you I was going to come.â
âYes but you should be in the stands, not back here.â He shrugged like it wasnât a big deal, reaching out and fingering one of the feathers at your waist. You had another quick look around, wincing when you saw your coach glaring at you. âQuit that.â
He hissed when you slapped his hand away from your costume and shoved his hands into his pockets. A reporter sidled closer and you sighed. It would have been easy to spot Copia even if he wasnât wearing a bright green, white and red tracksuit that didnât say Italy all over it. You wondered what story the reporter would come up with.
âRemember, fifth or higher.â Â
âYes, yes I know.â
âBut first is better, yeah?â He brought a hand up to his neck and pulled his medal out from yesterday, the gold catching on all the bright lights in the arena. âYou see? Gold.â
âItâs not actually gold you moron.â The reporter was definitely interested now and you noticed another one whose interest had been piqued. âPut that thing away.â
âFine, fine. Youâll be begging to see it later though.â Â
âI will scratch your eyes out if you wink at me again.â
âYouâre very aggressive, Paperina. Is it the nerves?â He reached out and grabbed one of your hands, rubbing his thumb back and forth along the back. âWhat do you have to be nervous about? Youâre going to do amazing.â
You stopped glaring at the reporters and met Copiaâs eyes. His gaze was steady as he watched you, his thumb still rubbing your hand. He was wearing gloves like usual, these ones black leather and the material was warm against your cold skin. You took a deep breath and straightened your shoulders.
âIâm not nervous.â He smiled and gave your hand a squeeze before letting go. âI can do this.â
âI know you can.â Â
You nodded, trying to give him a confident smile and hoping you pulled it off. When you glanced back out over the ice it was empty and the announcers were gearing up for your routine. Your coach popped up in the corner of your eye and took a deep breath trying to clear your head. This was it. You hadnât spent years preparing for this to blow it at the last moment. Before you headed over to your coach you looked back at Copia and tried to give him a confident smile.
âWish me luck.â
âI would say âbreak a legâ but that would be very bad, donât do that.â He just laughed when you glared at him. Copia took a quick look around before stepping forward so no one else would hear him. âI want to celebrate with you later, Paperina. Donât mess it up.â
You sighed when you heard a few cameras click, knowing they caught the intimate moment. Copia didnât seem to care, turning to give the photographers a smile before looking back at you. The announcers called your name and your coach came up to urge you toward the rink. With one last look at Copia you moved away and took a deep steadying breath.
Messing up wasnât an option, you wanted to celebrate with him too.
You ended up third.
When the music had ended and you stood out there in your final position you had been so overcome with emotion. So much hard work, so many long hours and now it was finally over with. Well, at least the short program was. Youâd be back out there for the long skate in a few days. That was something to worry about later though, preferably tomorrow. Tonight you planned on celebrating and pushing all your other worries out of your mind.
You also planned on burning this damn costume too.
As flowers and stuffed animals rained down on the ice you eagerly skated off and were quickly whisked away by your coach. Then came the usual song and dance of watching the judges post your scores, more screaming and crying and finally giving a few interviews to the various reporters milling about. By the time you were done with it all the last skater had competed and you had gotten the confirmation about your third place finish. The sense of relief you felt followed you all the way to the locker room where you quickly threw your track suit over your costume, grabbed your things and headed out.
Right as you were messing with your phone to try and see where Terzo had gone off to a pair of strong arms wrapped around you from behind and you were lifted off the ground.
âAmica mia! You did it!â You let Terzo swing you around a bit before spinning in his arms and hugging him back. âI told you!â
Your emotions were getting the best of you so you just clung to your friend a little tighter for a moment, feeling so thankful for him. You didnât let go until a throat cleared nearby and when you looked to who had made the noise you were met with Copiaâs pleased smile.
âWell done Paperina.â You smiled back, fighting the urge to run into his arms. Your adrenaline was still high from performing and it felt like electricity was sparking along your skin. With Copiaâs eyes on you the feeling was even stronger. âI knew you could do it.â
âThank you Copia.â When he pulled an arm from behind his back you felt your cheeks pink at the rose he held in his hand. You pulled away from Terzo and shyly walked over to take it from Copiaâs fingers, your own twitching a bit when they made contact with his warm gloves. âDid you buy this or pick it up off the rink?â
âI stole it from that idiot that got first.â He grinned when you rolled your eyes. âShouldâve been you, Paperina.â
âWhat did you call her?â Copia shot his brother a glare and you turned around to look at Terzo. âPaperina?â
âZitto, Terzo!â
âWait, whatâs going on?â You looked from brother to brother, Terzo looked on the verge of laughter while Copia just continued to glare at him. âItâs just because of my costume, Terzo. Swan Lake.â
âSĂ, but Paperina doesnât meâhey, what the fuck?!â Terzo snarled at Copia after being hit in the head with the stuffed bear. âSheâll find out eventually!â
âFind out what?â When neither brother said anything you growled and walked over to your things. âWhatever, Iâm going back to my room.â
âNo, wait!â You stopped when Terzo called out, raising an eyebrow when he gave you a sheepish look. âI was actually hoping to have the room to myself tonight.â
âOh come on! Where am I supposed to sleep then?â
Both you and Terzo turned to stare at Copia when he cleared his throat. Â
âYou can stay with me, Paperina.â There was that fluttering again, your heart feeling like it was skipping a beat or two. He wandered over to where the bear had landed and then came to exchange it for your gear bag. âDidnât I say weâd be celebrating?â
Copiaâs mouth was latched onto your neck before the door to his room was closed.
âNo, noâah! No marks. Not where people can see them.â Â
He pulled away with a growl, capturing your mouth again instead. As his tongue roughly toyed with yours he brought a hand to your thigh and lifted your leg up to wrap around his waist. It gave him enough room to start grinding against you, his sweatpants doing little to hide his hard cock. You whimpered when it pressed between your legs, the thin material of your tights doing little to block yourself from him.
âI could probably sink into you right now, couldnât I?â You nodded weakly, thunking your head back against the door when he ground even harder against you. âI could rip these tights open and have you screaming my name.â
âYes! Copia please.â Â
You could see him smirking through your half lidded eyes, the intense pleasure of him rubbing against your cunt making it hard to keep them open. His hands started fiddling with your skirt, the feathers rustling as he pushed it higher up your stomach. Â
âWill you be wearing this again?â
âWhat?â You blinked at his question, not sure what he was getting at. âWhat do you mean?â
âIâm about to rip it off of you, is that ok Paperina?â He was barely done with his question before you were vigorously nodding your head. With a growl he had his hands at the top of your tights and the room filled with the sound of ripping fabric. You shivered when the cool air hit your exposed flesh, moaning when he dragged a bare finger through your cunt. âCazzo, so wet for me already.â
He added a second finger, rubbing them up and down between your lips. The slick sounds of them moving seemed so loud you were worried that anyone walking down the hallway would hear it. When they teased at your entrance you let out a loud gasp, a loud bang echoing around you when your head fell back against the door again.
People would definitely have heard that.
âYou are so responsive, so beautiful.â The tips of his fingers pushed into you slightly before pulling out. He repeated the motion over and over again, going deeper each time. âI canât wait to fuck you with my cock.â
âThen do it. I want it.â
Copia growled and slammed his mouth against yours right as he pushed his fingers in as far as theyâd go. You moaned into his mouth, thankful that it muffled you at least a little bit. His fingers worked in and out of you hard and fast as he kissed you heatedly. You wrapped your arms tight around his neck, pushing up on your toes a bit so the angle of his thrusting fingers was a little better. He started rubbing them harder against your inner walls, catching at the spot inside of you that had you pulling away from his mouth and nearly wailing in pleasure.
âJust this tonight, we still have a few events left after all.â He kissed you again, this time the kiss a little softer but no less passionate. As his fingers on one hand continued to fuck you he brought his other hand close and started rubbing his thumb against your clit. âIt will be worth the wait.â
âIt betâoh, oh it better be.â
âTrust me, Paperina. Iâll make sure it is.âÂ
You couldnât do anything else but nod, the pleasure becoming nearly unbearable as you reached your peak. He knew exactly how to work you, exactly when to apply more pressure and where. Your fingers buried themselves in his hair as your climax hit, your mouth open in a mostly silent cry against his shoulder. It took a few moments for you to come back to yourself and when you did it was to Copia making quiet moaning sounds.
When you blinked your eyes open you looked down to see his hand flying over his cock. The sight of it had more little thrills of pleasure rippling through you. He whispered your name and you looked back up at his face, meeting his odd eyes. You slipped a hand off his shoulder and moved it down to his cock, wrapping your fingers around the head as he continued to pump his shaft. His moans became louder as you both worked him over until his cock twitched between you, his hot cum shooting out the tip.
Copia cursed quietly in Italian as you stroked him through it, making sure every last drop left him. It had dripped onto his pants and you noticed streaks across the feathers of your costume. You had to bite your lip to keep from laughing at the sight, instead moving to press a deep kiss into Copiaâs lips. He hummed happily into your mouth as you tangled your tongue with his briefly before pulling away, his lips curled up in a familiar smug smile. You glanced down at yourself and his eyes followed, looking over the ripped tights and the cum stained feathers. When he let out a wistful sigh you put a finger on his chin to tip his head back up.
âWhatâs wrong?â
âNothing, Paperina.â He shrugged and then leaned forward to kiss the tip of your nose. âIâm just going to miss this costume.â
Part Two Coming Soon! (leave me a comment if you'd like to be tagged đ)
I wrote a little ficlet describing Terzo and Omega's meeting as well: Shooting His Shot
A/N: Did I write this because I became obsessed with the thought of Copia's thick thighs in a tight speed skating outfit? Yes, obviously. I hope you enjoyed it! Let me know if you'd like to see more from this little universeđ
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#my fics#my writing#cardinal copia x female reader#copia x female reader#the band ghost fanfiction#ghost band fanfiction#cardinal copia fanfiction#copia fanfiction#the band ghost fanfic#ghost band fanfic#copia x reader#cardinal copia x reader
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snippet from thing I am working on
her combat training was going great and her arms training was doing better. she was improving and because she was doing better it meant less makeup and less bruises. less things to hide from Ethan (she didn't want to think of the times he grazed a bruise by accident and she flinched. and how hurt he looked for it) considering the world she felt confident... it was only a matter of time till the next major outbreak shook the news then just as quickly all information would be choked coming out of BSAA and other such places and she could see it. That thought that fear reflected on her coworkers faces. On the faces of people on the streets.
#resident evil#fanfiction#ethan winters#mia winters#it set pre 7 (ending with Mia going to find evie on the tanker)#and i am so rusty with any and all forms of creative writing it is unreal#it has a title that i am not happy with#it will be done anytime between next week/ month/ year/ decade#perfectionist completionist at heart
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