#NO MORE Though I will turn this train around so help me

[xoxochb]

percy was always ever so gentle when it came to you.

the same boy, yes, that won a fight against the god of war, spoke awfully to zeus, survived tartarus and back and had a kill count far beyond five thousand monsters.

though, when it came to you, it was incredibly easy to forget his reputation as a demigod. not that it had gained him privileges in camp, but often is was preferred to be seen as a real human being for once. and he was lucky you saw him like that through everything.

your tenderness towards him did not go unnoticed, the same with reciprocated. whether it was simple gestures like helping you bathe after a long day, waking up early to make you breakfast, soft love-making accompanied by sweet nothings or the warmth of his arms as you cry, he would always treat you with the most care.

his kisses, unsurprisingly, were just as loving as everything else he did. no matter if he was attempting to intertwine your bodies, devour you, or kiss you just because he could.

today, he had wanted nothing more just to kiss you because he was allowed to. training had been the same as it ever was, long and making his muscles ache. he’d even skipped both breakfast and lunch in order to sneak back to his cabin if only for five minutes just to check on you.

you were fine, of course, but that didn’t stop him.

the millisecond he had gotten away from his demigod obligations, percy had rushed his quickest back to cabin three to do nothing other than twine himself with you in whatever way he could.

you, happily, had obliged to take away his exhaustion of the day— you kiss him over and over and over.

peppered firstly over his face, landing at last to his mouth where you linger repeatedly. one of your hands plays with his dark locks, soothingly to ease off the stress of the day, while the other fists his shirt to keep his body against yours.

the aura of cabin three fills with soft moans, the swapping of saliva and rustling of sheets as both you and percy attempt to fit yourselves into each other.

“perce,” you murmur against his lips. barely audible or coherent as your brain has been turned to mostly mushiness of nothing.

“hmm.” percy doesn’t dare back any farther as his cold hands slip beneath your shirt, rubbing your side absentmindedly. “sweet girl.”

you stifle a smile to prevent breaking the array of kisses. “I.” kiss. “love.” kiss. “you.” your lips don’t leave again following this.

percy’s do, though. “I love— mphm— I love you.”

yeah, that’s doing nothing to help the grin that forces to grace your mouth. you’re forced to break apart when it grows wide and percy pulls back with a playful pout.

“I’m sorry I’m sorry, I know.” you cover your smile with your hand.

percy is quick to take your wrist, however, kissing the inside of it. “I want to see you.”

you peck his lips as an apology. “say something mean so we can continue.”

“me? say something mean to you?” percy shakes his head and moves your arm around his shoulder. “in my entire life, I can promise you, that will never happen, sweet girl.”

“well then you’re going to have to wait.”

“I can. I’m not sure about the rest of me.”

the bulge in his pants pressing against your thigh tells you all you need to know about that.

your smile reduces to a ‘seriously?’ look, and percy takes the opportunity to claim your lips again. smart, if you say so yourself.

but you had to pull away again minutes later because percy couldn’t stop smiling this time regardless..

[itzpookiepooh]

Who?

Mentioning a random name to him

You came home walking past Raf, who is sketching, kissing his cheek. He hums leaning into it his eyes closing, taking it in. You put a bag on the counter making him turn around to you.

“How was your day?” He asked with hazy eyes. You smile almost feeling bad for what you’re about to do to him. Almost.

“I went to training with Enzo and then we went to get lunch.” You explained putting away what you bought. Rafayel cocks his head back as you said the name so effortlessly.

“I’m sorry, who?” He asked crossing his arms and leaning on the counter.

“Enzo?” You question as if it were nothing. Rafayel blinks harshly at you like you had 3 heads.

“I’m sorry I’m just confused.” He says cocking his head to the side. “You come home talking about an Enzo who I never heard of or met! Then he takes you to lunch?” He asks in shock making you shrug.

“Absolutely not.” He stands up leading you to the door. He makes you put your shoes on and you turn to him.

“What are you doing?” You ask with your arms crossed. Rafayel gawks at you before mimicking you.

“We’re going out to lunch. I won’t be outdone by some random man you met at work.” He explains making you laugh.

“You’re pranking me aren’t you?” He deflates making you snort and nod. You both still go out to lunch and he complains to you how you’re giving him heart problems.

You and Xavier were spending the evening together. You were going to have dinner and catch a movie. He had been looking forward to this all day that he’s well rested. You both were walking down the street hand in hand, finger intertwined when he asked you about your day. You smiled brightly at him.

“It was good! I’m tired though, I went to the bookstore with Alexander and we chatted there for a bit.” You explained your day to him. He quirked his eyebrow at you. Who is Alexander?

“Who?” He asked looking over at you. You look at him with an innocent smile. “Alexander! He’s my friend.” You say cheerfully.

Xavier was confused since he’s never heard you speak about him. He was also upset that you spoke so cheerfully about him. He started to pout thinking about how ‘Alexander’ was able to make you smile like this.

“I’ve never heard of him.” He mumbles, his footsteps slowing down.

You chuckle watching him obviously become glum about the situation. You sigh, “We don’t get to hang out much.”

Your sigh sounded sad to him as if you were missing Alexander. You turn to catch a glimpse of his face when you froze and saw how sad he looked. You pouted feeling bad for your bunny before you stopped walking. He faced you his big eyes filled with sadness and confusion.

“I feel bad. I was just joking you don’t have to pout.” You say sadly as you hold his face. His body relaxes into your hands.

“I’m glad. I thought you rather be with Alexander instead of me right now.” He explained holding your hand that was on his face.

“I’d never want to be with anyone more than you Xavier.” You coo as you kiss his nose. The blush creeps up his neck and to the tips of his ears as he lets you hold him there.

Zayne was off today and wanted to treat you to an afternoon together. He missed you considering he worked overtime all week. As soon as he got home Friday he slept for over 12 hours. Today he was refreshed and ready to be with you. He asked how yesterday was for you as you both walked to the destined area for your date.

“It was fine. I went to get a sweet treat with Cassian so that was fun.” Zayne wasn’t usually the jealous type but sometimes he couldn’t help it. He tensed up slightly squeezing your hand.

“Did you now?” He tried to sound intrigued. You nodded softly. He decided to bite the bullet and ask.

“Who’s Cassian?” His voice not wavering. You turn to him and smile softly.

“My friend. I’ve known him for a while.” You explain to him as the walk turn silent once more.

You’ve known him for a while? How long is a while? He couldn’t be friends with you since adolescence because there’s only been Zayne and Caleb. The gears were turning in his head until he came up with the conclusion that Cassian is someone you met through your other friends or work.

“I can hear your gears turning Zayne.” You tell him. He looks at you waiting for you to continue.

“I’ve never heard of him so I suppose I’m worried.” He tells you making you quirk your eyebrow. “Worried?”

“Yes, I don’t particularly like sharing your affection. I also worry about your safety.” He says not looking at you as his ears turn red. You almost squeal at him.

“No one can take my attention away from you.” You tell him squeezing his hand in reassurance. You kiss his cheek softly as he melts into you.

You were visiting Caleb in Skyhaven this weekend and you decided why not trick him a little? He was out doing his training with the fleet today so what’s a more perfect time. Don’t get it twisted you had friends in Skyhaven however, making up a story sounded better considering you didn’t want to leave the house today. Caleb came home and he was still in his workout attire. He smiled seeing you as he asked how your day was.

“It was good! I hung out with Adrian today. We’ve been trying to reconnect forever.” You tell him as you laugh. Caleb’s smile falters as he stares at you.

“Adrian?” He asks moving closer to you. He’s never heard of this dude before and Caleb knew all your friends. “I’ve never heard of him.” He leans on the back of the couch behind you. You tilt your neck up to look at him as he looks down at you.

“He’s a friend I met through Simone.” You explain making him nod his head slowly. He licks his lips thinking to himself.

“What else did you guys do?” He asks his pointer finger tapping the back of the couch. You glanced at it before looking back at him.

“Had lunch but then he had to go so we’re doing a rain check for…” You check your watch, “Next week.” You smile at Caleb. He felt this nagging irritation.

“That’s nice.” His smile is tight lipped as he stepped away. “Maybe I’ll meet him next time.” His voice low as he walks to the fridge.

You were scared to tell him you were joking. Maybe this wasn’t the best person to play a prank on considering how he gets.

“Where did you meet him? Work or?” He asks fiddling with something in a drawer.

“Caleb.” You call to him as he hums in return not looking at you at all. “It’s a joke.” You say calmly, he turns to you as if he wasn’t just acting menacing.

“You’re not funny, pips.” He tells you shaking his head. You stare at him like he was crazy when he sits next to you pulling you in.

“You do know you can’t just kill people right?” You tell him as you eye him suspiciously.

“Who said he’d die?” He tells you as he snickers. You hit him with a pillow a few times to teach him a lesson.

“Okay! Okay! I’m sorry!” He yells shielding himself from your fluffy attacks.

Sylus usually doesn’t fall for your pranks. He can see right through you except for this one time. You made sure your prank was in line and perfectly executed. You came home from a mission and walked straight into Sylus’ bedroom. Sylus usually woke up when you came home from work so this was more than a perfect time. He was sleeping on his back, hands on his stomach, breathing softly.

You glided onto his chest peppering kisses on his face. He groans before stretching as you hear cracking beneath you. His red eyes flutter open and catch yours making him smirk. His hands fall on your waist as he chuckles. This was the best way to wake up a sleeping dragon. He half expected you to be late today so this was a great surprise.

“Hi sweetie. How was your day?” He asks his voice groggy from sleep. You were so close to calling the prank off but where was the fun in that?

“It was fine. I did so well today I got Damien to buy me lunch.” You smile innocently as you put your chin on the backs of your hands that lay on Sylus’ chest. His eyebrow quirks at your statement.

“Lunch?” He questioned almost as if he didn’t hear you say ‘Damien’. He lifts up slightly waiting for you to continue.

“Yeah. I was starving.” You whine to him. He blinks at you before replying.

“Are you still hungry?” He asks making you lift up off of him. You shake your head softly.

“Damien fed you well? Then should I do the same to Damien?” He asked you as if this were a loving question but you knew those eyes like no other. That tone had an underlying meaning to it.

“Uh—“ You stutter, Sylus chuckles before leaning closer, whispering in your ear, “I can make him disappear. Like that.” He snaps his fingers with a spark of his evol.

“I don’t think that’s necessary.” You laugh nervously as you push at his chest. He gets close to your ear again before whispering, “Next time you try to prank me make sure you’re not being watched.” His gaze shifts to the mechanical crow.

“Wait til I catch you.” You point at Mephisto and narrow your eyes. Sylus chuckles holding you close.

[eraserbread]

Hi there (●’◡’●)ﾉ

So, uhm, I've been constantly thinking about this scenario (pls excuse my poor english, it's not my first language lmao)

It's a widow!reader (fem pronouns) who's still isn't over her husband yet, she dreams about him, still cooks for him, and even touches herself thinking about his own touch on her skin. Her sad silly brain isn't much of work right now, not even with her new job.

This new job where the tired blond-haired man (aka our beloved Nanamin 😔❤) was designed as her responsible to teach the company rules and productivity. Finding it oddly cute when she asks the same thing more than once because the amount of info makes her confuse, when she isn't used to the fuzzy and rapidly rhythm of the office and ends up bumping into anyone that also wants to use the printer or get a coffee. Always trying to stay closer to her to make sure she's safe with a one mind thought: "Just taking care of the newbie"

But this "Taking care" certainly didn't evolve him waiting for you outside your apartment building to take the same train with you, certainly helping you when you needed. Enjoying the "friendly" lunch you packed him to thank his guidance, making him crave more of your cooking. When you share more of your deceased husband with him, crying on his shoulder for comfort that he heartily offers you.

Though, one night, this "comfort" turned into something more, which was him taking you to his place after drinking and crying your problems out. He clearly didn't expected her perverted nature to show so freely after a few drinks with coworkers. Begging on your knees to "make her forget about this sadness" which, as a good friend, he does.

Taking you on his bed with the most mind blowing sensations ever, leaving our poor widow craving more of his touch that he calls "just helping a friend in need"

But again, just a thought- ʕ； •`ᴥ•´ʔ

- from Coffee ☕

hi sweet coffee this is perfection thankuthanku for trusting me with your vision. i've been thinking about ken and his little widow all day holyssihff. please send me more of these ideas

kento's never been a liar. he's told variations of the truth on occasion, perhaps to dull a reaction, or to run from it himself, but that's as far as it goes.

yet he finds he's lying to himself more than not, and, as cruel as it sounds, he knows it's your fault.

but, how can it be the fault of the shy, little clumsy new girl? i mean, you can hardly log into your computer without his trusting gaze over your shoulder nodding you through it. you're prisoner to his praise, to his hard body hovering behind you as you're scrolling through wordless spreadsheets.

the night after you completed your company-mandated training with him, kento lied to himself again and thought the lingering look you had on his reddened lips was just a hoax. after all, you're so very innocent—plagued, too.

he remembers the little passing statement you made about switching jobs after your husband's death. he nodded you through it, and kept it in his back pocket when he needed to remind himself to give you grace.

but, how does giving you grace lead to waiting up for each other once the five o'clock bell rings, promising to be neighbors on the train ride home?

and what grace entails pressing your loose, drunken body on his mattress, alcohol still so prominent in his veins as he tugs helplessly at your pants? he wants to be between your thighs—you want him there, even when you're drunk, you act the same around him, just less apologetic.

he smiles thinking about how you crawled to him on your knees just minutes earlier, so flushed and hot—burning with need and vocal about the fact that you couldn't stop thinking about him.

it stems a little deeper than friendship—or co-workership... if that's even a thing. it becomes a need, a normal part of your day. now, your pining is reciprocated. he's face-to-face with the black lace panties you wore with him in the back of your mind.

he's so incredibly deliberate as he takes the soft lace between his fingers, studying the hitch in your breath as he peeks under them. the goal is to hold back—always. kento is often rudely reminded of his own strength and stamina in times like this, and you were a delicate flower blossoming under his hot breath.

so he digs his fingers in your thigh, whispering, "will you let me help you?"

[sentryluvs]

“Between the Stacks” Bob Reynolds (Sentry) x reader

summary: Bob sneaks out for some fresh air and meets you at a bookstore near the old Avengers Tower.

tags: Fluff, Bookworm! Bob, Bookstore owner! reader, Bob is the cutest awkward bean, set after the events of Thunderbolts*

These are chapters three, four and five ! you can find the first chapters here

003. The invite

One rainy evening, Bob lingered around after the store closed, helping you with chores like: cleaning tables, organizing bookshelves, stacking carts ect.

This had become a routine for him: escape the tower and visit you on your shifts, help around when the store was crowded, eat with you on your breaks, bring you the home-made food he would cook. And be overally very involved with you.

These actions slowly made you realize that you may be in love with this cute dork. You two had grown very close these past weeks, you noticed how he became more confident around you, even sneaking flirty comments here and there. He even took you to eat at the restaurant besides the store after one of the many closing shifts you spent together. This made you think and wish deep inside that he felt the same way.

A small blush coated your cheeks as his black shirt lifted while he finished stacking the remaining -but very heavy- chairs like they were nothing. This gave you a view of his well formed abs, a few drops of sweat dripping down as he set the chairs down with a grunt. He palms his hands and turns to look at you

“This should be it…” He said while straightening his pose. He slouched a lot to conceal his presence so you never imagined he would be the type to work out. You didn’t mind though but you couldn’t help to think jokingly What kind of work must he have?.

“ I uhh.. wanted to ask you something,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck.

You looked up, curious. “Sure, you know you can ask me anything ” You said sincerely.

“Would you…like to visit the WatchTower? I can get us in. It’s kind of a mess, still under construction, and very chaotic sometimes” He said while thinking about the constant bickering between Alexei and John, daddy-daughter fights between Yelena and Alexei, Yelena and Ava roasting John, John picking on him for the minimum but getting his ass beat in the training room anyways and Bucky constantly breaking the dishwasher for washing his arm in there, seriously, who does that?

“But… it’s special to me.” He finished and waited for your response expectantly.

You grinned. “I’d love to.” Guess you’ll finally see what kind of job has your loverboy ripped.

The next morning, you met infront of the store and Bob walked with you to the Tower. Suprisingly, it was very close. You guys made it in, you noticed how nicely he greeted the receptionists, construction workers and janitors, thanking them for their service, he trully had the kindest hear.

He pressed a random button on the elevator, and you guys arrived at a floor that contained an exhibition dedicated to the old Avengers. He led you around sharing stories about the building’s history, about the heroes and their mistakes. He was very passionate about the whole thing, it made your heart warm.

Bob took you to another floor, through the quiet, echoing halls, now talking about the newer heroes who reside here.

Finally, in a lounge overlooking the city, he turned to you, his voice trembling.

“There’s something you should know. I’m not… just Bob. “ In other circumstances you would laugh, but this seemed like something serious

He continued “There’s a part of me that’s dangerous. I’m Sentry. Sometimes, I’m the Void.” As he said this, you could swear his eyes quickly turned gold, then grey, then back to the dark blue you grew to love. Ah, so that’s it, he’s a heroe. Your heroe. You thought.

Bob took a step foward, now fully facing you, his eyes never leaving yours, filled with something you can’t fully describe.

“But when I’m with you, it’s quieter. I feel… safe. human.”

This time, you took the iniciative and reached for his hand, you tried to ignore how he slightly flinched, aparently not used to skin contact. He was terrified of hurting you, and would never forgive himself if something ever happened.

“You are human, Bob. And you’re not alone. Not anymore.” He was mermerizing

He squeezed your hand, relief and gratitude in his eyes.

After that, you guys went back to the shop, and spent the evening together. And before the sun set down, he had asked you to be his girlfriend.

You said yes, and iniciated a kiss that felt like a thousand fireworks lighting up in the sky at the sound of your love.

He was no longer alone, he never was.

005- Secrets, revealed

Two days later, Bob took you to the Tower to have coffee together in the lounge before your afternoon shift, holding hand and talking about trivial things when suddenly a group of loud people walked in. Two men, The Red Guardian and the US Agent, formerly known as the second Captain America bickering over a football tournament score, two girls who you would assume are Ghost and Black Widow discussing mission reports and a man you could recognize as the ex-winter soldier now congressman James Barnes. You could only guess these group of people are the New Avengers.

Alexei stopped short, eyebrows raised. “Bob? Who is this lovely lady?”

Bob flushed, but didn’t let go of your hand. “This is… my girlfriend Y/N” He looked at you with reassurance and love “She works at Tower View Store.”

You waved, cheeks warm. “Hi, very nice to meet you all”

Ava smirked “So this is where you’ve been sneaking off to.”

Hearing that made Bob’s ears feel on fire “You- you guys knew?!” Now feeling a little ashamed.

“Of course young Bob!” Alexei boomed “We figured you wanted time alone, and so we did not ask before. We did not want to make uncomfortable”

John grinned, patting Bob’s back “Well, it’s about time, Reynolds.”

Bucky just gave you a friendly nod. “Welcome to the madhouse”

Yelena, meeting your eyes with a look of approval, smiled, genuinely.

Bob looked at you, then at his team. For the first time, he didn’t feel like he had to hide.

He smiled

006- Epilogue

Bob Reynolds no longer hid his bookstore visits or his relationship. Tower View Store became your shared sanctuary, a place where he could just be Bob, not Sentry or the Void. Occationally, the Thunderbolts dropped by, pretending to browse while keeping an eye on their friend, or actually buying from your recommendations. Their visits brought more costumes, a win win situation.

One evening, as you closed up together, Bob squeezed your hand.

“Thank you. For giving me a second chance.”

You smiled. “You gave yourself one, Bob. I’m just glad I get to be here for it.”

Outside, the city buzzed with life. Inside, between the stacks and the stories, you and Bob found something steady-a new beginning neither of you had dared to hope for.

The end.

Special chapter is titled “Yelena’s Discovery” and can be read as a stand alone too! Will be published soon. Thank you all for your support🫶🏻.

[paramythas]

𝐂𝐑𝐘𝐏𝐓𝐈𝐂 𝐀𝐒 𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑, 𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐒𝐄 𝐏𝐎𝐑𝐓 𝐌𝐀𝐅𝐈𝐀 𝐁𝐎𝐘𝐒... Though Neo isn't really bothered- if there's going to be a show, then she'll appreciate the front row seat. It's only to be expected they won't reveal their tricks so easily. What she isn't expecting, though, is the static-wracked shout that overwhelms the low-level chatter in the room.

The gravity-manipulator is here-!

It's followed by the sound of something thudding, massively, against what she knows is thick steel- and then the sound of that steel coming clean off whatever mechanism opens and closes it. Ah, she thinks, lips twitching in amusement, that'll be my cue. Turning to the two Port Mafia members, she jerks her head toward the truck, signaling for them to hide- behind it, under it, doesn't matter. They'll want to be out of the way for this. In the scramble of people running for weapons- dropping cargo in the process which, really, no professionalism at all- their movement toward the truck goes unnoticed.

Neo's doesn't, but she doesn't want it to.

No, she welcomes the eyes that turn her way as her 'crowbar' returns to being Hush, as she dips behind the open canopy a tall, dark-clad man and reappears a tiny, pink-and-white clad oddity. Some of the scrambling bodies halt to stare in slack-jawed surprise, then it clicks in an instant how the man they all seem to be so afraid of must have found them. Guns train on Neo- firing without hesitation- only to be met with the shattering of glass. A whistle sounds from overhead, where Neo has thrown herself into the air, drawing Hush's blade as she hooks a leg around one of the pipes crossing overhead. Haloed by one of the floodlights like a small moon, she adjusts her position carefully and uses the pipe as a foothold to launch herself at the nearest body like a bullet.

It's hard to hit a body as small as hers, moving as fast as she does, with small arms fire. Harder still when she slips in and out of her illusions like a ghost, using them to help her deliver debilitating blows and blocking her back with her umbrella's canopy, which bounces bullets off of its dense surface with ease. What's worse (for them, at least) is the steady sounds of someone else advancing from the other side, meeting ever-nearing gunfire and reducing it to nothing but screams and the sounds of panic. It's delightfully chaotic, though she does have to spend more time than she'd like keeping the enemy operatives away from the truck.

And while Neo's forte might be one-on-one combat, the people in this world are slow in comparison to herself, never mind others she's fought before. Not all that strong either- Neo's ability to throw them around despite her size seems to startle more than one of them. It's funny but, all in all, a little pathetic. Hearing the cries from the other side of the door finally come to a halt, she heads toward it despite the previous warning from Hiraku, twisting herself into the air elegantly to dodge the pieces of the door as they fly inward.

She lands in front of Chuuya at the now-empty doorway in a bow with her parasol open against her back- stopping the explosion of something more high-caliber as it's fired at her back from a grenade tube. Straightening, she sends a Jabberwalker at the offending crony without looking back, tilting her head at the mobster in front of her.

Her face is expectant, rocking forward on her toes as she peers up at him, ignoring the groans and garbled cries of the wounded behind her.

(Not to mention the sickening sound of a man being pared apart like an orange.)

Come on, her expression says, mismatched eyes glinting, tell me how good I did.

When they arrive, both Fumihito and Hiraku hop down to join the rest in unloading cargo. Despite being the eldest of the trio by at least a decade or two, the older man looks to Hiraku more than anyone, taking subtle cues of where to go and what to do.

The younger man catches Neo's look as well, not immediately returning it with an answer, but not for blowing her off or not knowing so much as being careful to wait until they're clear enough it won't be a problem to speak even in hushed tones.

"Now we just wait to move. You'll know. I'd give the doors we came in through a wide berth until then."

It's a cryptic answer, for the time being, but it wouldn't be for long.

Neo and his guys were in without a hitch, which meant they were on to phase three.

Having a better fix on the location they were searching for, the rest was going to be... maybe not easy, per se, but within the day, their enemy would either be dead, captured, or scattered, probably a healthy mix of all three in various degrees.

When the fire-fight starts, he's sure Neo will be able to take full advantage and sew some extra chaos, but first they're going to need a big, loud distraction to kick things off.

Car lights illuminate the tunnel entrance as they come to a stop and Chuuya steps out, casual and unbothered by the guns that end up pointed his way or the demands shouted across the yard at him, demanding who he is and advising him to turn and go back to wherever he came from.

That, of course, happens in the 16 seconds or so before the guards posted at the front figure out that his being there is deliberate, as he continues to walk forward like he doesn't hear them, and the 11 or so seconds after that before they figure out exactly who he is.

One of them manages to shout into a radio, "Intruders! The Gravity Manipulator is her--" before a sniper's bullet from somewhere in the dark finds its mark perfectly, dropping the guards like heavy stones in an instant.

"Now then..." he growls, self-assured. idly resting a hand over the top of his hat. "Let's get this party started."

One well-placed kick scatters the barricades just ahead of him, and he trusts well enough the rest of his men will be arriving shortly, armed to the teeth and ready for war.

He doesn't stop to wait, striding down the tunnel unafraid of any security measures or other gunmen that might be readying themselves for him as if he's taking a stroll at the mall. At the end of the long corridor is another door, more heavy and armored than the unassuming barricades at the front, but for him, its no barrier at all.

One well-placed kick makes a massive, visible dent in the metal, the seam of the door warping and gapping.

It's mostly a warning for his own people to clear out of the way more than it is the enemy, waiting a few seconds before giving it another kick that sends the entire thing flying off the hinges and across the room with an earth-shattering BANG, clipping and toppling over a parked cargo truck as it flies.

Any second now, someone is going to start firing, and already his Gravity cloak is ready to catch every bullet that comes his way.

[louis-quatorze]

snippet

Wrote this out in notes on the train for the Discord, where we were discussing Aldo's theologian friends being even gayer than he is. it's too much of a little thing for me to put it on Ao3 but I did want to store it somewhere visible, so.

Vincent gingerly stepped out into the small garden, exhaling softly. High-level theology had never been an interest of his. At some point it all just got too abstract, and ultimately, he was a man of action. Endless discussions just made him restless. But, as he was constantly reminding himself, he was Pope now, and that came with responsibilities. There needed to be a theological plan for the Innocent papacy. Which meant he had to take this all seriously. 

Another reminder that, as dangerous as Kabul had been, it was so much more straightforward. 

A peal of laughter cut through the air, interrupting his thoughts. 

“You are such a liar, Jogi! Don’t think I won’t ask Karol myself.”

“Well, then it depends on whether he likes you or me more.”

Another burst of laughter. Vincent had been working with Aldo Cardinal Bellini for five months at this point and he’d never heard him laugh. He’d kept him on as Secretary of State based on the late Holy Father’s fondness for him and his need for someone who knew the Vatican, and had found him, as promised, diligent and dedicated, professional. What he hadn’t found was the warmth that his dear Thomas had promised, the sense of Aldo as a person and not an instrument. He was invaluable in the first months of Vincent’s papacy, but reserved, a mystery still.

But there were people who made Aldo laugh. 

The symposium had mostly been of Aldo’s design, and Vincent had left him to it. He had the contacts and interest. He’d known that Aldo was once a theologian, a promising one, before moving to the diplomatic service. He’d read Aldo’s file and knew the way the late Holy Father had described him. Somehow, though, Vincent hadn’t fully considered that Aldo might know these men beyond a list of names and publications.

His curiosity got the better of him, as it frequently did, and he pushed away from the column he was hiding behind, turning to see his Secretary of State sitting around a small wrought-iron table with two men. One was large and ruddy-faced, with a swoop of blond hair going white over his forehead, holding a cigarette languidly like an old Hollywood star. The other had a lined, narrow face, white hair streaked with gray cascading to his shoulders and a smirk playing at his lips. Their red zucchetto and clothing marked them for cardinals, which meant Vincent should probably have remembered them from the conclave, but it was all such a blur in his head. 

The long-haired one noticed him first, raising his considerable eyebrows, causing Aldo to turn. He rose, the mirth slipping off his face. “Your Holiness.”

Vincent raised his hand, gesturing for Aldo to sit back down. He’d worked him down to Vincent in private, but Aldo was always so aware of protocol. “My apologies, I don’t mean to interrupt.”

“Nothing to interrupt, we’re just gossiping,” said the blond, a lilting, amused tint to his voice.

“Pieter!” Aldo snapped, huffing softly at the other man’s nonchalant shrug before smoothing down his cassock and turning back to Vincent. “Your holiness, let me introduce Pieter Cardinal Vandroogenbroek and Joachim Cardinal Löwenstein.”

“Charmed,” said Cardinal Vandroogenbroek, gesturing with his cigarette, and Vincent couldn’t help but be amused at the contrast between Aldo’s perpetually wound energy and that of his friends. He recalled their names from the dossier Aldo had passed to him last week. A former professor of theology, an Archbishop Emeritus from southern Germany, both thorns in the side of previous Papacies. Not easily intimidated, then. Aldo’s friends. Curious. 

“Come, sit down,” said Cardinal Löwenstein, waving at the remaining chair. “We’ve heard so much about you.”

Vincent felt suddenly nervous. He was no theologian. He didn’t know these men, their clear history together. But they were intriguing, in their connection to Aldo and their obvious effeminacy. It was something he got a glimpse of with Aldo on occasion, in the roll of his eyes or an acerbic comment to his secretary, but it was hard to get past his reserve. So he took the offered seat, arranging himself as neatly as possible. “Have you?”

Cardinal Vandroogenbroek took a drag of his cigarette and peered at Vincent curiously. “Well, dear, you are the Pope.”

“But more importantly, you’re keeping our Aldo employed, which is a good thing for us all.”

“Excuse me?” Aldo said, looking mildly affronted. 

Cardinal Vandroogenbroek patted Aldo’s shoulder reassuringly. “The world couldn’t handle you bored.” 

“Hmph.”

“How are you finding the circus?” Cardinal Löwenstein asked Vincent with a kind, conspiratorial smile.  

“The cir…oh.” Vincent laughed softly, amused at the impertinence. It was not a terrible description of the Vatican. “It’s…well…”

“Awful?” Cardinal Vandroogenbroek drawled. “We’ve never been sure whether Aldo is a martyr or masochist, staying like he does.” 

“Some of us,” Aldo said waspishly, although there was a smile at the edge of his mouth, “want to do more than sniping from the cheap seats.”

“My seats are never cheap,” Vandroogenbrook replied archly, and Aldo’s smile broke through.

Vincent smiled as well. There was a warmth, a camaraderie, that was palatable at the table. This was a hostile place, in many ways, but Aldo had carved out a community in it anyway. And maybe he could do something with that.

[brown-little-robin]

oh shoot I just realized I forgot my ceramics post for tuesday. it has been such a weird bad week yall

[binders-and-beanies]

Fucking loses my job for the second time in a month I guess

[mad-hunts]

barton was thankful that kat didn't ask him about what might be going on any further, because if he was being honest... he didn't particularly want to talk about how he had been hallucinating that morning. but in any case, barton took a deep breath in as he started to think about training with kat. he was hoping that he wouldn't get his arse handed to him today during their session — especially considering that he was a boxer. but the doctor supposed it was too early to make a judgment call about something like that.

barton just had to tell himself that this didn't mean he was suddenly turning into a vigilante who'd work with the police, which for all extents and purposes? that was about the last thing he wanted to do. barton was simply becoming an executioner of sorts, but his targets were going to be drastically different. and although that was a very clinical way to look at it, putting himself into that mindset was something that barton thought would help him through this; so it was necessary. the community would get something out of it by having one less 'bad guy' running around town and he would, too, through satiating his bloodlust.

barton's smile became more genuine whenever he heard kat call their son 'little guy' then. her tenderness towards ellis was endearing to him, understandably, and he listened to kat talk about what their plan should be intently. barton came to the door and swung it open once more soon enough, ❝ alright, kat. that sounds like a good plan to me. i'll be sure to wish matilda, louis, and ben good luck on their finals because this upcoming friday is their last day of college. ❞ he was just about to grab the edge of the door until he remembered that he was forgetting something; and that was giving kat her 'good morning' kiss.

barton ran over to her afterward, placing a soft kiss on her cheek only to give her a little wink, ❝ sorry, baby, i just didn't want to break our tradition of me giving you a 'good morning' kiss. though i'm sure you don't mind it. what would you rather have more, french toast or huevos rancheros? ❞

Kat wouldn't press the issues. She simply would keep an eye on him to be there when he needed her most. Being supportive to Barton at this point was as natural as breathing air. It became her default ever since they had a family together to care for.

"Yes, you're right." She agreed the sooner the training the better and having him gain a new identity too would help him along his newfound path. He wouldn't be a criminal and not entirely a hero either by dynamics. He would be something else.

She shook her head at the mention of Ellis. "I fed little guy just before I came to find you. The rest of the kids should be up soon to be ready for school. I'll get their lunches made while you work on breakfast so they're not late. And we can have your stepfather watch Ellis after so we can train."

[seumyo]

BAKUGOU KATSUKI ✰ THE DRESS CODE

Bakugou was in a bad mood.

It was stupid, really. Absolutely stupid. But he couldn’t help the scowl on his face as he approached your desk.

“Oi,” he snapped, crossing his arms. “What the hell are you wearing?”

He had taken his time this morning, making sure the maroon shirt he picked out was one he actually liked. It wasn’t over the top or anything—just a plain shirt with a white skull on the back, paired with some casual black pants.

But it was the principle of the matter. You were supposed to match. That was the whole damn point.

The UA student council had this dress code specifically to celebrate Valentine’s Day. Maroon for those who’re in a relationship, blue for those in a situationship, green for those in the “friend zone,” black for those who are admirers from afar, and the plain school uniform for those who are more inclined in their studies to even bother with romantic relationships.

Was this your way of subtly denying him as your boyfriend? It wasn’t like you two were in hiding—and it’s not like he doesn’t mention that you two are seeing each other whenever someone pesters him about it.

You looked up, eyes wide and innocent. “Huh? My uniform?”

Bakugou’s brow twitched. “Yeah, I can see that. Why?”

You blinked, clearly not understanding what he was getting to. “Because… it’s Friday?”

“Did you forget what today is?”

You stared blankly at him, confusion written all over your face.

“...Friday?”

“Valentine’s Day!” he barked, causing a few of your classmates to glance over in amusement. He jerked his thumb at his own shirt—a simple red tee with a black skull printed on the back. “Maroon’s for people who are dating. Thought we were gonna match.”

You felt as though your soul just left your body.

“Oh... oh.” Your hands flew to your mouth. “I... I didn’t know! You never told me!”

“Didn’t think I had to. It’s common sense.”

“And you don’t even like Valentine’s Day! So... I thought we weren’t doing the dress code thing...”

That was true. But still! He was adamant on making you look like the one in the wrong here.

“Well, I am,” he pouted. So subtle it could be mistaken for his signature grimace. “And I heard from Ears that you were planning on wearing maroon, you idiot.”

“I told her—I was thinking about it, though.”

Bakugou’s shoulders sagged, the irritation draining a little. “Yeah, well... I went and did it. Thought it’d be obvious we’re together if we matched. You had a shirt with a golden dragon on the back, too, right?”

Your heart fluttered, your gaze finally meeting his. He remembered. The realization hit you like a ton of bricks—Bakugou Katsuki, the loud, brash, and unapologetically stubborn hero-in-training—your boyfriend, wanted to show off your relationship. Publicly. On Valentine’s Day.

A moment in history!

You didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

Instead, you jumped to your feet. “Wait here!”

Before he could argue, you bolted out of the classroom, leaving Bakugou standing there, baffled. He turned to find his classmates blatantly eavesdropping.

Mina’s eyes were practically sparkling. “Awww, Bakugou, you wanted to match with [Name]?”

Kaminari snickered. “Dude, that’s so cute.”

Kirishima grinned, throwing an arm around Bakugou’s shoulders. “You really have gone soft, man.”

Bakugou’s eye twitched, and he shrugged Kirishima’s arm off roughly. “Shut it, Shitty Hair. I just didn’t wanna look like an idiot wearin’ maroon by myself,” he grumbled. “And Sero’s wearing green—‘nd I don’t see anyone picking on him!”

“Cool it, man,” Sero laughed, shaking his head. “The incident still stings.”

“We salute you, brave soldier,” Kaminari replied.

Mina sighed dramatically, resting her chin on her hands. “Young love...”

His cheeks turned crimson. “Mind your own damn business!”

Before his embarrassment could escalate, you came running back, slightly out of breath, with something red clutched in your hands. You unfolded it and slipped it on—a maroon cardigan. It hugged your frame just right, with allowance to spare, the color bringing out the warm shimmer in your eyes.

You looked at him, your fingers fiddling with the buttons. “I had this in my locker. Does this work?”

Bakugou stared at you, his irritation disappearing like a factory reset process. You looked... cute. Really cute. But he wasn’t about to say that out loud. He cleared his throat, shoving his hands into his pockets.

“Yeah... s’fine, I guess.”

Your face brightened, a smile breaking across your lips. “Really?”

He looked away, his voice gruff, though there was no heat in his reply. “Whatever.”

Their moment was interrupted by Mina’s dramatic squeal. “And they say romance is dead!”

Kaminari gave a thumbs up. “Didn’t think Bakugou could be such a romantic.”

Kirishima laughed. “Man, who knew you’d be such a softie?”

Bakugou’s eye twitched, and he spun around, his hands sparking. “One more word and I’ll kill all of you!”

His classmates laughed, not the least bit intimidated. They could see right through him—Bakugou Katsuki was completely, undeniably, head-over-heels for you.

Turning back to you, his voice softened, his anger dissipating. “C’mon, let’s go. Cafeteria had those stupid snacks you wanted.”

Your smile never wavered as you followed slightly behind him.

“Happy Valentine’s Day, Katsuki.”

“Yeah, yeah... Happy Valentine’s Day.”

Bakugou hopes the next Valentine’s Day to come is when he can properly match with you. He won’t let you forget this time around.

SEUMYO © 2025. PLEASE DO NOT REPOST, PLAGIARIZE, MODIFY OR TRANSLATE.

[cursingtoji]

the cardio machine i want is on the cardio machine

cw: gym rat toji x loser!gf - size kink, sweat kink (?), toji is a big old meanie. loser!gf series: geto gojo nanami.

loser!reader who, like a million other sedentary people on new year’s eve, said “new year new me” and proceeded to enroll at the local gym.

gym rat!toji who knew how things are in the beginning of the year, so the first week he arrives one hour earlier than usual to avoid all the lazy fucks that won’t last two months.

of course he makes a few mental bets on the ones that would quit and how long it would take, you included.

it’s easy to spot the “i don’t want lift weights cause i don’t want look jacked” type of girl.

at the breaks between one set and the other he looked around, not surprised to see you slowing down the treadmill after running not even two whole minutes.

sometimes he caught you staring at him through the mirror, not an uncommon occurrence amonst the women there, though you surprised him one day by tapping his shoulder after he finishing his weighted squats.

“can you… give me a few tips?” he looked so intimidated, from up close his shoulders looked like a wall, he stared at you from above, dark green eyes seemed to be heavily judging you, “never mind this was a bad idea, sorry” you turned around, grabbing you bottle and running off the gym.

by the time you managed to gather the courage to show your face back there two whole weeks had passed.

“consistency is the key you know” you were distracted looking down your phone while slowly walking the treadmill when the handsome man appeared beside you, the sudden presence destabilized you.

before you could become the viral video of the week when inevitably a gym employee decides to post the security footage of your ass rolling off the active treadmill, toji wrapped one big arm around your waist and pulled you to the stable floor.

“you caught me off guard the other day” he said completely unfazed by saving you from a life of embarrassment, “then you disappeared.”

“yeah i didn’t know if i wanted to come back anyways, i haven’t see any results so far” you pulled the hem of your shirt down.

toji snorted, “‘course you ain’t seeing results, sweetheart, you don’t lift.”

“well, it’s hard…” toji rolled his eyes, there was always an excuse.

though he also did a new year’s resolution of being more patient, for his kids primarily but teaching a cute thing like you could be a good exercise too.

soon enough, toji was correcting your form, texting you asking why you haven’t showed up to the gym and ringing your bell incessantly when you complained about muscle pain and said you wouldn't go that day.

“it’ll feel better once you start to move” he explained, resting on your door frame when you opened the door on your pajamas.

“let me alone, just today” you whined.

“you asked for my help now go put on something without cartoons on it” he waited for you to turn around and slapped your butt. it had been only one week he was coaching you but there was already a weird intimacy due to the fact he was pretty much always looking at your body and touching you.

to correct your form. obviously.

"what do i have to do today, coach fushiguro?" you asked from your bedroom through an ajar door which allowed toji to get a peek at your pink underwear and cute ass.

"cardio, bicycle first. get some blood flowing on those sore muscles" he tilted his head and raised his eyebrows watching you bend over to grab a biker shorts at the lowest drawer then holding back a laughter at the grunt of pain coming from you.

"once it gets better i can teach you other types of cardio" he walked around your kitchen examining your cabinets and stuff you kept in your fridge. needless to say it was all junk.

"can't wait" you replied sarcastically, failing to understand the meaning.

it took a few more days till you got used to toji's training, then he decided to focus on your upper body.

"such a simple movement, how do you manage to get that wrong?" he raised from the bench he was sitting behind you watching your form through the mirror. you almost dropped the weights at your feet when he came close. it was almost scary how much bigger than you he was especially seeing it throght the mirror. his right hand wrapped around yours on the dumbell and his bicep touched your arm as he pushed your arm closer to your body, "tuck your elbows in, straight your back" his free hand pushed your shoulders till they were touching his chest.

how come he smelled so good, so... musky and...

"are you even making any force?" he lowered his head, his reflection looking annoyed. so you decided to ignore the sudden heat between your thighs and flex your arm the way he taught you.

and just like he promised, when you were consistent enough and handling a good 5 minute run he decided to show you a more pleasing cardio.

"toji please~" you whined, thighs burning from riding him, you were using his rock hard abdomen as a support, but still.

"one more minute, come on" he looked at the watch on his wrist and slapped your ass, "haven't i prep-ed you good enough?" his thumb rubbed your bottom lip then pushed in meeting your tongue, where you tasted yourself in his digits one hour after he ringed your bell and said he was going to reward your good discipline, but he had to strech you first.

"good girl" you felt his abdomn flex when he raised from his laying position on your bed, "now leave it to daddy" he pecked your lips and quickly changed positions, putting a pillow under your ass and rolling his neck to start his cardio of the day.

[fandoms--fluff]

Hideout

Wife reader x Bucky Barnes

Summary: your husband and a bunch of strangers show up at your house in the middle of the night.

Warnings: John walker, swearing

A/n: The car they have is a mini van instead of the van they had in the movie, so with actual seats and that stuff - so minor change, that's all.

^the car seating plan

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Where are we going?" Ava asks, being the third person in the last ten minutes to ask Bucky this. "We'll be there shortly" He grounds out, the same response he's given the last two times.

John is about to say something but is quickly stopped by the glare wielded his way from Yelena. From the past three days of knowing him, she's gotten used to knowing that whenever he opens his mouth, something stupid comes out. Every. Time. And every time, it looks like Bucky is that much closer to pummeling him.

Another fifteen minutes later and Bucky pulls the van into a dirt road leading away from any civilization. Ava and Yelena look out the rear window as the main road is getting further and further away.

The two women glance at each other in concern of where they're heading and how Bucky isn't telling them anything about it. "This seems more like a kidnapping than staying under the radar" Ava finally says when Bucky continues driving deeper into the forest.

"I'm sure the winter soldier knows where we're going and what he's doing. We're fine." Alexei says with a hefty laugh as he's watching from the window beside him.

Bucky meanwhile lets out an aggravated sigh to himself, but he doesn't say anything since in just mere minutes, they'll arrive at the location. The location of which feels like he hasn't been to in way too long for his liking.

And that location is a cabin. A cabin that Tony had set up for his wife during the blip so she wouldn't have to put on any kind of act by being around others all the time. That woman just so happened yo be you, Y/n Barnes.

You're an ex. shield agent that helped Steve with finding Bucky after the events of Pierce and Hydra still being active, as well as the whole project insight fail. Bucky and you caught feelings for each other after some time of finding him again and through the events of the team splitting up and fighting against Thanos, both times. After the second time and all the tragedy, you guys decided to get married. Not that it didn't come with hardships, like the whole therapy thing and having to forgive himself and make amends, and the flagsmashers. But all in all, you love each other.

Which is how you find your eyebrows furrowing as you hear a rusty sound of a car driving along the path towards the cabin. That wasn't normal. Your husband always comes home on his bike, only a car a few times, but those times he alerted you. This time though, you got no communication from him that says not to worry.

So, you immediately turn the light off in the living room and grab your gun from the holster on your thigh. Yes, you may be alone out here, but it doesn't mean danger can't find you. Plus, this is what you were trained for.

You silently move through the pitch black house, the only light coming from the headlights of the car illuminating the halls from through the windows. Sticking to the shadows, you make your way outside through a hidden door at the side of the house.

The gun with your finger on the trigger is held firmly down to your right side as you trek silently to the corner to get a glimpse at who's in the car.

"What is this place?" Yelena asks when Bucky turns off the ignition and pulls the keys out. Instead of answering, Bucky just gets out of the car and puts his hands up after closing the door.

"I know you're there. It's me." He calls out to, appearance wise, no one. This makes everyone still in the van look at each other with confused gazes before unbuckling their seatbelts and getting out of the mini van as well. Except for Yelena right away, she stays to wake Bob up. He had nodded off an hour ago in the drive, his head rested against the small window to his left.

You come out of your hiding spot behind the corner of the house with your gun held in front of you, your legs spread in a fighting stance. That is until it's confirmed that it's in fact your husband and no trick.

Paying no mind to the other people coming out of the car, you holster your gun and go over to him. Bucky quickly wraps his arms around you and holds you close to him. He rests his head on your shoulder as he breathes in the light scent of your shampoo that's still lingering from the shower you took this morning.

As Yelena and Bob emerge from the beat up mini van, you and bucky pull apart from one another to face the group of them who are now acting as though they weren't just watching what happened.

You scan over everyone and the last person, your face twists in something someone can only call as disgust. John Walker. "Hey, Y/n, long time no see?" The man at least has the decency to be weary and nervous, scratching the back of his neck. "Could be longer" You say sharply before taking your eyes off him, and just stare at the group as a whole instead.

"Wait, who is this?" Yelena is the one to speak up. "This is Y/n. My wife." Bucky smiles softly, the most genuine look on his face they've seen on him as he looks at you.

"You have a wife?" Several versions of this questions rise from the group, but get off from a glare he sends their way.

"Hey. Nice to meet you guys, I guess" You look back up at your husband before to them again. "Who are you exactly and why do you look like you just went ten rounds with a tornado?" You ask with a raised eyebrow as you take in how disheveled they all look.

"It's best we explain inside." Bucky says. You let out a puff of air before nodding after a moment and taking a key out of your boot. You head to the front door and unlock it, your husband by your side as the rest of them follow inside.

You turn the lights on as Bucky closes and locks the door and enacts the security system that runs through the house and property. "This way" You say and lead them to the living room. As they take a seat, all basically bursting with confusion still, you go over to your husband.

"Why the hell didn't you tell me you were coming, Buck!?" You exclaim in a hushed whisper. "I didn't have any way of communicating you. And I was a little pre-occupied" He glances at the people in the next room over. "I was worried about you" you finally say. "I didn't know what was happening. All I knew was how you bailed on your congressman meetings and had apparently gone rogue."

"I know, and I'm so sorry, darling. But I promise, I'm alright, and we'll tell you everything that happened" Bucky says and presses a kiss to your lips. You melt into it for a second before remembering about the occupants in the next room over.

"Come on, mind as well get this over with." He says quietly into your ear and wraps your hand in his. He leads you to the living room and to in front of the fireplace to face everyone.

"Alright, this is Alexei, Ava, Yelena, and Bob." Bucky introduces them to you. "And him as well," he quickly nods over to John, not wanting to draw too much of your attention to the man that you loath. And boy, does Bucky understand, but nows not the time.

Yelena does a little awkward wave. "Alright. Would someone like to inform me what the hell exactly happened?" You cross your arms and lean against the fireplace mantle.

They all glance at each other before Yelena sighs and sits up straighter, starting to summarize everything that happened to them up to when Bucky met them and blew up Alexie's limo. At that you look at your husband with a raised brow before Yelena continues, the others popping in at times as well.

Once everyone was finished explaining the events leading up to them arriving here, you pinch the bridge of your nose and quietly groan. "Valentina? As in the same woman from three years ago, is behind this whole thing?"

You get multiple nods and 'yeah's from the group. "Wonderful. Well, next time you plan to see her, bring me with. I have a thing or two to say...or do" the ex spy in you is coming out.

"Does he usually fall asleep like that" you're attention is drawn to Bob who is asleep with his head resting on the back couch cushioning. "Uh, he's been through a lot." Ava says.

"Okay, yeah," you sigh, "Well, down the hall are some bedrooms. You guys look like you need to clean up and some sleep yourselves." You point down the hall to your right.

"Thank you" Yelena nods, the rest of them saying thanks as well before standing and going down the hall. Though John goes over to lift Bob. "Don't bother, he can stay in the couch, he seems peaceful" you tell him, trying to fight off the growl even though technically the man was doing something sweet (ish).

He relents and nods, not wanting to get into a fight with you at this time, knowing he won't win. You go over to the younger man and have him lay down more comfortably on the couch with a pillow, as well as draping one of the throw blankets over him.

"Though if you break anything, I will personally come after you" you call down the hallway before going upstairs to your bedroom with Bucky.

"You're very authoritative. It's good, they actually listened to you" he says once you guys get to your shared room.

"That's cause I'm such an amazing person" you smirk. But a moment later, you smack your husband upside the head. "What was that for?" He asks, surprised at the action, not like it hurt that much anyways.

"For worrying me. And for the stupid shit you did" you say before kissing him softly.

[himasgod]

Hi hi, i saw that requests are open so can i ask for Diasomnia reacting to reader being a dragon rider like the Targaryens please? Reader’s dragon is also super aggressive to anyone that isn’t her rider.

DIASOMNIA X READER

Where you are a dragon rider

Malleus literally blinks twice when he sees you flying in on a dragon just as big or even bigger than him.

I mean… how come he wasn't warned there was another powerful dragon in the region?!

He stands there, arms crossed, watching you land, your cape flapping and the dragon breathing fire as a warning.

"Interesting creature…"

…and you can't tell if he means you or the dragon.

He tries. He really does. He approaches you with all his fae princely elegance, but the dragon immediately blows smoke out of its nostrils.

"Don't worry. I'm used to being feared… though they don't usually bare their fangs so quickly."

A little offended, but even more intrigued

He's fascinated that you can control such a temperamental creature. He looks at you with respect and mild infatuation.

"Could it be that you can control this dragon too…?" he says, pointing at himself with a smile 💀💀

He's amused when the dragon roars at him if he tries to get too close to you.

"Are you that jealous, old friend? Can't you see I just want to talk to your rider?"

The best part is when you stroke his arm, easing the tension, and Malleus gives the dragon a triumphant look as if to say, "She's touching me, and you can't help it."

He's not bothered that the dragon doesn't want him around. In fact, he takes it as a romantic challenge.

"In time, he'll accept it… just as I've accepted that my heart burns when I see you."

10/10 rizzler Malleus.

Sebek watches you descend from the sky with that imperial air, wrapped in fire, ash, and the wind blowing… and the first thing he thinks is:

“A WARRIOR WORTHY OF SERVING MY LORD MALLEUS!”

Seriously he's so impressed he's speechless for a few seconds.

Which, considering it's Sebek, is quite a feat.

The way you control that enormous beast with a single command, the way the dragon turns its head to follow your every step… it's terrifying, majestic, and wonderful for his sense of honor and discipline.

A flash of flame two feet away from him. Your dragon barks a warning that leaves him paralyzed, his hair standing on end and his pride trembling.

BUT… then he tries to get closer. Like a good bodyguard knight, he wants to make sure you're not a threat to Mal. He takes one step. Another. And then…

“U-UNACCEPTABLE!! HOW DARE THIS CREATURE THREATEN A FAITHFUL SERVANT OF MALLEUS-SAMA!?”

It takes him weeks to stop yelling at the dragon.

But he keeps trying. With his chest puffed out, he tries every diplomatic method he knows to get close without getting charred.

He speaks to it as if it were a troop:

“Listen to me, scaly creature! I seek no harm to your rider! I am here to protect her in the name of honor!”

He fails. Mostly.

The dragon hates him, especially because he screams so much and has such intense energy.

Still, Sebek respects you greatly. He says only someone with an unbreakable will and a soul forged in fire could tame such a beast. He even starts training harder to “be worthy of a dragon rider.”

Sometimes he gets jealous of the dragon tho.

“Why can that creature always be by her side and I can't?! It's not fair, damn it, it can't even speak like a decent knight!”

Over time, Sebek begins to see the dragon not just as an obstacle, but as a symbol of your power. And while he'll never bow his head to the creature, he will accept that it's part of your honor, your life, and your heart.

Silver sees you fly for the first time when he wakes up to the sound of wings. He looks up, half asleep… and gasps.

It's like seeing a dream. A colossal creature soaring through the sky with fire behind it, and you riding it like a goddess of war.

When you land and walk with that serene air, while your dragon protects your back like a jealous guardian, Silver feels something inside him…

as if he's recognized your soul before. As if he's already dreamed of you.

"You're like the legends my father told me when I was a child…"

He tries to get closer. With calm steps, without raising his voice, with soft eyes.

But your dragon doesn't allow it. He steps between you two, growls… and immediately throws a flame at the ground a few steps from Silver.

The funny thing is that Silver doesn't get angry. He just bows his head and apologizes, respectfully.

"I understand… you're looking out for her. And that's okay."

Of course, every time he sees you, your dragon watches him as if evaluating him. Silver stays still, let it smell him, doesn't defend himself. He's willing to slowly earn your trust.

In fact, there's a precious moment when Silver accidentally falls asleep near you, and your dragon… doesn't attack him.

He lets him be. He watches him, even shades him with one of his wings.

When you wake up and see that, you realize your dragon has silently accepted it.

If there's ever a battle, Silver is ready to fight by your side. He won't ride your dragon, because he respects the sacred bond you have, but he will walk in your shadow, sword in hand, confident that you and your creature are the closest he's ever come to the fantasy he dreamed of as a child.

Lilia sees the dragon snarling, breathing fire into the air, and you sitting on its back as if you were on your throne. And his first reaction is,

"How cute! Look at those sharp little teeth! And that temper! I love it! He does look like Malleus when he was still in his shell, baby boy~"

The dragon blows a flame at him, and Lilia… laughs.

“Ohhh, you sure know how to give a warm welcome! You're so polite!”

Unlike the others, he doesn't get offended or frustrated. he treats it like a game.

Sometimes he even brings the dragon fresh meat as an offering, though she only drops it from a safe distance.

“Now, now, don't be so cold. I promise I won't eat your rider… unless she wants it.”

Please tell me I didn't just write that.

But seriously, deep down, Lilia admires you greatly. Your bravery, your connection with a wild creature, your strength and grace… he finds it all fascinating. And yes, sometimes he casts flirtatious glances at you from afar while your dragon jealously watches

"Do I also have to win over your guardian to win you over, my dear?"

[landoughnut]

Pit Stop Staring

♡ masterlist - request

♡ pairing - lando norris x mechanic!fem!reader

♡ summary - lando notices you during a pit stop, gets distracted and stares at you, and embarrasses himself on the radio being aired as he gushes over you, but with a little push from Zak, he makes his move on you!

♡ warnings - fluff, BLUSHY and nervous lando, love at first sight, a pinch of jealousy, Zak's a wing man, lando being cute and STUTTERINGGG hehehe

♡ w/c & a/n - 1.86k | #ilovetommy

Today was your first day working as a mechanic during an actual race, and you couldn't be more excited. You'd just finished your months of training and you felt pretty confident in yourself, so you weren't too nervous.

The McLaren team was more than welcoming when you first started, although some were a little apprehensive to have a girl working with the heavy tires, you proved them completely wrong and quickly gained their admiration, making friends with some as well.

As for the two papaya drivers, you had only briefly met Oscar about a month ago while leaving a meeting. He told you he was happy to be working with you soon, and he thought you will do amazing. You spoke shortly before he was being called off by someone, but he said goodbye and wished you best of luck.

The other driver, Lando, you had unfortunately not met yet. You heard quite a lot about him, and people said he was kind with a great sense of humor, so you crossed your fingers and wished you were able to catch him and introduce yourself. You also had seen some edits of him on your feed, not that you would tell anyone that, but you couldn't deny that he was quite a looker.

Back to today, though, you were waiting to see the bright papaya cars pull into the pit stop for their tire exchanges. After some laps, the first one to pull up was Oscar, and you and the others quickly got to work with a successful change in just about 2 seconds.

You beamed as he drove away and got a high five from your mechanic friend, Tommy, and he grinned at you, "That was great! And your first time too! You'll be putting me out of my job soon," he laughs.

You shake your head and poke his side, walking back to the garage, "Don't be silly! I did learn from the best," you say and give him a dramatic wink.

"Ha. Ha. You flatter me," he pats your head. You just push his arm away and turn your head to look at the race stats.

Oscar is in a good fourth place currently, and Lando in second, four seconds behind Max. You watch the race for about three more minutes before you hear that Lando was told to box next lap, so you and the mechanics rush out to the pit once again and prepare your gear.

A few moments pass before you can spot Lando's bright helmet in his car coming closer. He finally arrives and pulls up into his spot, while doing so, he glances around and his eyes land on you.

His mouth drops open slightly and he whispers a little, "Wow." Everyone does his tire change just as fast as Oscars, but Lando was still staring at you, who he thinks might be an angel sent down from above just for him.

Wow, he thinks to himself again, you have to be the most gorgeous person he's ever seen. He doesn't even realize that everyone has cleared the way for him to exit the stop until he sees you tilt your head and he hears his race engineer's voice, "Lando! GO! What are you doing, mate?!"

That snaps Lando back to reality, and he quickly drives away, now in last place due to how long he was there. He feels his neck and cheeks heat up in embarrassment. There's no way he would have a chance with you after that.

"I-I'm so sorry, she was s-so beautiful, and she looks like an a-angel, I-I got distracted," he stutters quietly to Will, his race engineer.

"Oh my- Lando this is being aired, you can't say stuff like that, mate!" Will sighs but he can't help but laugh a little bit. However Lando does the opposite now, he chews his lip like he's about to cry of humility, since now he knows you just heard him say that and you were the only girl there, so you know he had to be talking about you.

Back to where you were, you laughed at the radio message, curious to who he was stuttering over. Tommy's eyes bulge as he hears it, head whipping toward you.

You look at him and furrow your eyebrows, "What?"

He just blinds at you before yelling, "Lando Norris said you're beautiful! And look like an angel!"

"What? No he didn't?"

"Are you- who else would he be talking about?!" Tommy puts his hands on your shoulder and gently shakes you.

"Uhh," you laugh and glance at the other mechanics who are smirking and you and raising their eyebrows up and down. "I don't know, there are some women team members right over there," you point to the side.

Tommy just drops his head down and shakes it, "No. He was talking about you!"

"But.. I'm.. well, me? Just an average new mechanic," you look down at your uniform, "in some very unflattering working clothes."

Tommy just steps back and crosses his arms, "First off, don't ever say you're 'just you', because you're my best friend here," he whispers, so the others won't hear him, and you giggle. "Second, the clothes may be a little unflattering but you're still a very pretty girl," he smiles at you.

"Awhhhhh, Tommy! Who knew you were such a sap!" You hug the boy in thanks and he reciprocates it as you walk to the garage once again.

"So are you going to ask him out later?"

You almost choke on your breath, "What? No! Of course not! Are you crazy?"

He rolls his eyes, "Come on, he was just stuttering. Lando Norris was stuttering over you, if that isn't love at first sight then I don't know what is," he shrugs.

"Tommy!" You slap his arm, "We are done with this conversation."

"But-"

"End of discussion!" You huff, turning on your heels and walk away. Leaving your friend to rub his face in defeat.

When the race ended with Lando placed seventh due to the mishap from before, he hopped out of the car and rushed over to Zak.

Zak pulls the boy in for a hug and ruffles his hair, which was quite the opposite reaction Lando had thought he would see, since he cost the team points.

Once he lets go of Lando, the only thing he gets out of his mouth is, "Who was that?"

Zak lets out a laugh and tries to keep in a grin, "Who? Her?" he nods over to you, standing while chatting with Tommy again. Lando frowns as he watches you two.

"Are they dating?" he asks the older man.

"Hmm," he pretends to think about it, "yes," he nods. Of course he's only kidding, trying the get a rise out of the British boy.

"What?" Lando's head snaps to the man, looking utterly devastated. Zak starts laughing loudly, looking at him, and thinks this is what the human version of a kicked puppy would look like.

"I'm only joking, buddy, why don't you go and ask her?" Zak pats Lando's shoulder.

"U-uh I don't know...."

"Oh, come on! You're Lando Norris!"

The boy sighs and looks at you longingly. That was until you glanced over at him and he quickly turned back to Zak, his face now turning red again at being caught. "What about no work relationships?"

Zak sighs and shakes his head, "Listen, I'll talk to people about it and I'll make it work, okay?" He smiles and Lando lets his lips twitch into a tiny smile. "Now, go get your girl!" He turns his shoulders and pushes him forward a little bit.

Lando blinks fast and his heart races as he nervously makes his way over to you two.

You don't notice but Tommy does and bites back a teasing comment. "Lando Norris! The legendary man himself!"

You look to your right and see the boy bouncing slightly on his feet, twisting his hands and he looks back and forth between you both. "H-hi," he whispers to you, his ears turning red at your kind gaze.

"Hi! It's nice to finally meet you," you smile at him.

Tommy nods, "Yeah, and nice radio message today, man, real smooth," he chuckles.

Unbeknownst to you, Lando now wishes the floor would swallow him whole. "Uh, y-yeah, thanks?"

Tommy just laughs, "Oh! I think someone is calling me, gotta go!"

You watch him walk away, and Lando glares at him. "Did you hear someone calling him?" you ask.

"No, but, um, I-I'm sorry for today, a-and I didn't-"

You quickly shake your head and smile, "No! Don't apologize, really! I'm honored!" You put your hand on his arm, causing him to tense. You quickly remove it and apologize, "I'm so sorry! I should have asked-"

"N-No!" Lando says, and Zak drops his head into his hands as he watches the scene from afar. "You can touch me anytime! I-I mean- bloody hell- n-not like that! I mean you can if you wa-" he slaps a hand over his mouth before he can embarrass himself and more.

You just blush as you watch the boy, you find it endearing, to be honest, you've never had someone act like this with you before. "Lando! Please, don't worry, I think your rambling is cute, and... you yourself are cute too," you put your hands behind your back.

"Me? Really? You think I'm c-cute?" He lets out a nervous laugh in disbelief.

"Is that so hard to believe?" You frown.

"I... guess not.. but you're.. you! W-way out of my league..." he trails off.

"You have to be joking!"

He just looks down at his feet and smiles, his body slowly untensing as he feels a little less nervous. It's not that he's stuttering and blushing because he's scared of you, he's just never met someone so... perfect.

He slowly raises his eyes back up to look at you, "Well... then would you m-maybe want to... get dinner with me later?"

Your smile widens at the hopeful look in his eyes, you pinch your arm once, just to be sure this is really happening and not a dream. "Of course! Oh, I'd love to, would you like my number to send me the details?" you ask him.

He nods and pats his pocket for his phone, "Oh! I left my phone in my driver's room... but if you have yours, I'll give you mine?"

"Sure," you nod and hand him your phone, watching as he creates a contact for himself. "Well, I do have to go back, I promised my friends to hang out for a bit after the race but I'll see you later," you tell him.

He smiles at you, "Alright, see you!"

You turn around, walking to your friends who were giggling to themselves, watching the whole thing.

Lando is left in his spot, practically lovestruck, "What a woman," he whispers to himself dreamily.

He jumps with a yelp when he feels a hand on his shoulder, "Well done, kid! You got yourself a date!"

Lando turns to look at a way too excited Zak Brown, "Yeah... I suppose I did."

[xylusbible]

canonically obsessed loser caleb x afab reader

💫 word count: 1.8k

💫 content warning: 18+ MDNI, pwp, smut, cunnilingus, strength kink, caleb’s big muscly arms (BARK!)

💫 xybb notes: hihi ! i wrote this at 2am specifically because of caleb’s dialogue after massaging his shoulder or arm in interaction mode - “(talking about his arms or shoulders) they can bare more weight than you’d think” idk if it was an innuendo, but i sure took it as one ! hope you enjoy :3 (also i’m very gay and usually write queer pairing ships, so i haven’t written hetero smut in YEARS so bare with me. if this is horrible i’m so sorry ;-;)

[orange & mdni dividers by @cafekitsune), moon divider by @enchanthings, caleb banner by me]

caleb seems to have some sort of obsession with holding you in his arms. any chance he gets, he has his hands around your waist, tugging you closer, or pulling you into his lap to cuddle you close while you’re watching a movie together. and at the end of the movie when you inevitably fall asleep as usual, he loves getting to pick you up princess style and carry you to bed.

another thing he seems to have an obsession with is your legs and specifically, your thighs. he loves to hold them in is hands, massage them over his lap, have them wrapped around his head..

you don’t mind any of it one bit, because if there’s one thing you seem to have an obsession with, it’s caleb’s arms. he works out almost every day and weight training is a part of his regular routine. you love to ogle the slight veins that bulge out around his biceps and hold onto them whenever you get the chance.

today, he comes back from the gym while you’re in the kitchen eating a snack. he drops his gym bag on the floor by the front door, before making his way over to you. he wraps his arms around your waist from behind and pulls you towards his chest, before leaning down to kiss your temple.

“welcome back, colonel,” you tease as you set down your food to hold his arms around you.

“hey there, pipsqueak. get up to anything interesting while i was gone?” he asks in return, a soft smile on his face.

you shake your head. “nothing interesting. just watched some tv and made a snack.” he hums in acknowledgement.

you move to turn around in his arms so that you’re facing him, and take the chance to place your hands on his slightly swollen biceps.

“how was your workout?” you ask as you run your fingers along a vein near the inside of his right elbow. he lets out a soft laugh at your obvious admiration.

“good as usual. i’m sure you can tell, but i worked on arms today,” he says with a slight smirk.

“i could definitely tell,” you say with pursed lips, as you squeeze at his arms a little.

“how much is it that you can bench press again?” you ask cheekily.

“275,” he says proudly, flexing slightly under the light touch of your fingers. you hum happily in approval.

“that’s why you love to lift me up as if i’m as light a feather,” you say, biting your bottom lip a bit as you look up at him. he nods and tightens his grip on your waist a bit.

“it gets easier every time. wanna see?” he asks. before you can respond, he’s moving his hands down to your thighs and lifting you up quickly, easily. you let out a small yelp of surprise as he places you legs over his shoulders, and walks you both over to the nearest wall.

“caleb!” you scold, not loving the height that he’s holding you up to. thank the gods you have high ceilings in your apartment. but even though you’re annoyed, you can’t help but be a bit turned on by how easy it was for him to place you in this position. these days, lifting you up was a regular occurrence for him, and you never had too many complaints about it.

he smiles up at you from between your legs.

“see?” he says. you’re only wearing a long t-shirt and underwear, so as he says it, you can feel the slight wind of his breath on your inner thighs and you can’t help but squirm a bit in his hold. luckily, his hold on you stays firm and confident.

“okay i get it, you’re so cool and strong, babe. now please, let me down,” you say.

“i would, but you just look so good from this angle, pipsqueak,” he says.

you blush, knowing that he’s not seeing much but the lining of your underwear.

“you can see me from this angle closer to the ground,” you whine. he laughs, sending a slight shiver up your body as his breath tickles your thighs again. he finally decides to give you some mercy and walks back over to the kitchen, so he can set you down on the counter.

you sigh in relief and move to slide off the counter, but caleb stops you with his hands.

“ah, ah, ah.. i moved you closer to the ground, but i wasn’t finished enjoying the view,” he says before getting down on his knees in front of you, his hands moving from your waist to your thighs. he moves to spread them apart, and you let out a shaky breath.

“i could see the wetness starting to seep through your panties, love,” he says, and you let out a small groan of embarrassment. he chuckles softly before holding eye contact with you as he moves his face forward and starts to lightly kiss at your thighs.

you let out a quiet gasp as his thumbs dig in a little deeper into your skin.

“you had your snack.. can i have mine?” he asks with a teasing smile. you roll your eyes at the stupid joke, but nod anyways, knowing you’d never turn the opportunity down.

“nice,” he says, like a complete loser before he moves his hands up again to place on the waistband of your underwear. you lift your hips up slightly so he’s able to tug them down and off. once they’re tossed over his shoulder, he moves back in between your legs, moving his hands back to your thighs and hooking them over his shoulders once again as he places his head right in front of your cunt.

he waits for a few seconds, as if he’s committing the view to memory (like he hasn’t seen it hundreds of times now..) and you hold your breath in anticipation before he finally moves his face forward to kiss at your lips. you let out a harsher gasp this time, moving your hand to thread in his hair.

“i haven’t even done anything yet, and you’re already this reactive,” he teases. you tighten your hand in his hair in annoyance and he lets out a huff of a laugh before finally diving in completely, kissing at your clit this time. you let out a moan easily, relieved to feel the full pressure of his lips up against you. he uses his tongue to lick a path from your hole back to your clit and you tilt your head back at the feeling.

(caleb’s always been good at giving head, considering he seems to enjoy it just as much or sometimes even more than you do.)

he starts to eat you out with pure vigor, licking at your clit like an overeager dog, before circling his tongue around and inside your hole. you moan loudly, happy to be devoured by the man you love the most. he takes his time with you, rubbing circles into your thighs with his thumbs and plunging his tongue into you as far as he can go.

he eventually uses his evol to move your back down onto the counter so he can pull your hips forward and get even deeper. you clench his hair in your fist and let out a wail, breathing out harshly as he takes you apart piece by piece. he spreads you open wider and moves one hand from your thigh to where his mouth is, gathering some of your slick with his middle and ring finger before moving his tongue back up to your clit and plunging his two fingers into you easily. you thrash in his hold.

“oh my god.. caleb!” you moan out loudly, not able to control the volume of your voice when you’re feeling this good.

he flexes his tongue to make it firmer as he uses the tip to flit back and forth over your clit while he scissors his thick, long fingers inside of you. you shake in his grip, moaning in staccato as you’re not able to handle the influx of pleasure.

“fuck caleb, please” you moan out, not even sure what you’re begging for.

he moves his face back a bit but continues using his fingers.

“what are you begging for, princess? aren’t i already giving you everything?” he asks mockingly.

you whine out.

“w-wanna cum, caleb, please,” you moan out helplessly.

“you sure? it hasn’t been that long.. you know i could do this for hours,” he teases.

“please, caleb, please,” you beg as he curls his fingers upward to stroke along your g-spot. you choke on air at the feeling.

“okay fine, since you’re asking so nicely,” he says, before moving his face forward once again.

he gives it his absolute all this time. not willing to stop till you reach your climax like you asked. instead of just licking and tonguing at your clit, he sucks. slurps like it’s his favorite meal, like you’re the best thing he’s ever tasted.

tears well up in your eyes as you get closer to your climax. you can’t help but repeat his name over and over again like an omen, and it only fuels him to work harder. the grip he has on your thigh is bruising as he thrusts his fingers into you faster, while absolutely devouring your clit.

your voice gets softer and softer, barely being able to speak anymore as you reach your peak. he presses the tips of his fingers against your g-spot firmly one more time before you’re letting out a strained scream as you cum hard. his pace slows as he continues to stoke and lick you through it, until your thrashing and squirming away from his hold from overstimulation. he gets the hint after a minute and slowly slides his now soaked fingers out of you, and lays one last kiss on your clit before pulling back completely. he stands up from the ground and smiles at the sight of you—a limp puddle on the counter, panting heavily. you look up at him and make eye contact right as he lifts his 2 fingers to his mouth, and sucks your slick off of them before bringing them back out of his mouth with a pop! and using the back of his hand to wipe off his mouth.

“delicious, thanks for the meal,” he says cheekily, wiping his hand on his shirt.

you groan in annoyance. (because seriously, how can someone this hot be such a loser?)

[moyazaika]

blood in the water.

m! yandere prince x gn! knight reader ♡ mdni 18+

cw — blood, betrayal, obsessive themes, lack of autonomy and unbalanced power dynamics. 2.4k wc.

a/n — well well well

you can barely make him out through the mist.

a heavy and decadent cloud of perfume rolls over the warm waters of the royal banya; makes it difficult to chart your course to where your prince is. you narrow your eyes, glimpse the outline of his frame, solid and familiar, beyond the swirling haze that's descended over the pool's surface.

"moy knyaz," you clear your throat. my prince; the title rolling off your tongue like honey. "i've arrived with the supplies you asked for."

he spares you a glance over his shoulder, the movement causing gentle ripples in the water around him. you think briefly, like a fool, that he will wade to the edge of the pool to meet you where you stand. you lower your head, gaze drawn respectfully low.

"ah, sweet knight." you can hear the smile in his gentle words; that familiar lilt of felicity, all soft at the edges. "there you are; i was almost beginning to worry," he hums. "whatever took you so long?"

"apologies for the delay, my prince." you rest a hand over your heart, imbue as much sincerity as you can in the action. "i will ensure that it does not happen again."

you'd never been in the bathhouse before, so it was difficult not to feel like a stumbling fawn. you'd never had any reason to be in this wing of the palace; seeing as you were the prince's knight, and not one of his personal attendants—and yet, you contemplated quietly, this time he'd called specifically for you.

(the thought of it makes you feel strangely special.)

"very well.” he concedes. “you have brought what i asked for?"

"yes, my prince." you nod, hold out your hands over the edge of the pool. present to him upon your palms, folded neatly and perfumed in his favourite scent, the silver silk he uses during his trips to the bathhouse. you wait, expectantly, for the feel of his fingers swiping the washcloth from your hands—and yet, it never comes.

"dorogaya, you do not intend to keep me waiting any longer, i hope?"

you blink, head still lowered out of respect. "i'm sorry, my prince. i do not quite understand."

"eyes up, sweet knight, and clothes off." he says slowly, enunciating each syllable as one does when speaking to a child; "it seems," he sighs softly, "that i am in need of your ministrations tonight."

never one to go against his words, you raise your head, albeit reluctantly. almost immediately, you meet his tar black eyes. his gaze heavy and stifling, as he observes you lazily over his shoulders. you can't help that your attention drifts down to the prominent corded muscles of his back; the strong, solid shape you only just manage to make out through the soft, dreamlike mist.

he smiles at you so kindly, then, as if he is understanding of your appraisal; the curl of his lips feels dangerously close to an invitation to dip into something far deeper than these waters.

"you are already late," his voice, deceptively gentle for how low it is, brings your attention back to the task at hand, and out of your shameful reveries. you swallow nervously, as he turns back; the air in the banya feels colder, then, when your prince's eyes are no longer trained solely on you. "please, luybov moya. do not make me wait any longer."

my love, my love, my love; how gently he calls for you from the water.

the affections fall from his lips like sweet nectar, and you are so helplessly caught in his tenderness that there are no more questions to be asked, even if they weigh heavy on your mind.

your shirt is the first to go. the intricate buttons of your tunic difficult to undo with shaking fingers. trousers, next. stepping out of the fabric as it falls at your feet. working to loosen the lace of your boots.

tentatively, you dip your toes in the water. it's warmer than it looks. a welcome reprieve, though, from the chill of being undressed. the hair on your skin stands on end when the prince speaks up.

"clothes off," he repeats softly, without sparing you so much as a backwards glance. "i will not repeat myself."

"ah," you look down at the flimsy undergarments you still don; the scrap of decency they provide in maintaining a facade of respect in the presence of the tsar's son. thin fabrics that hide the skin on your back, marred by grotesque scars from previous battles waged and lost and won in the name of your beloved prince. and yet—albeit with trembling hands, you reach for the hem. "understood, moy knyaz."

you let yourself sink into the pool, as it envelopes your bare body whole. it's nice, and warm. welcoming, you think to yourself.

you nervously wring the silk in your hands as the gentle undulations of the water naturally push you closer to the prince; and you're silently grateful for the mist of the heavy perfumes and steam that descends over the banya and nips at (as well as obscures) your scarred skin.

perhaps it is because of this veil that it takes you so long to realise your prince is covered in blood.

you still in your movements—taking in the swirling ink-like clouds of deep red in the cerulean water around him; the spray of dark blood over his jaw, and the muscles of his chest; how it drips, thick like sweet nectar, from his hands—held out towards you.

"moya milaya," he murmurs, watching you through low lashes. his eyes are black like heavy tar. you find yourself stuck—sinking into the quiet darkness before you; "won't you purify me?"

you reach out, closer, press the silk against the inside of his wrist, right above his pulse. you delude yourself into thinking you can feel the steady thrum of life through the touch; but all you're met with is his warm skin, slick with blood. it smears when you wipe it, stains the fine fabric of the washcloth.

"your highness, are you—" your eyes flicker up to meet his, but your hands don't slow in their pace as you scrub him free. concern pulls the edges of your heart and everything threatens to unravel in the absence of an answer. "are you alright? were you hurt? has the physician allowed you to—"

"i am fine, sweet knight. the blood," your prince's lips curl into a knowing smile, "none of it is mine."

"i don't understand, moy knyaz. forgive me for my ignorance, but who did—" you blink, desperately searching his impassive face for an answer. "our enemies? conspirators against the tsardom? an assassination attempt? because i was never made aware of—"

he places his hand over your own. the touch is careful and light, merely a suggestion—

you still immediately.

realise, with dawning horror, that you've scrubbed his skin raw. the blood pools in the water, your insistent, frantic efforts leaving the skin of his forearm all angry and hot and red—markers of blossoming pain. tense muscles, and all. the silk looks as if it has been drenched in ink.

"not of the tsardom," the prince says lightly, 'but enemies still; and i already know you were not informed because i ordered it so."

the threads your heart was hanging on by are pulled too strongly, too soon. everything comes apart. a sense of betrayal, and then a deep-rooted shame, washes over you. you swore you would follow this man to the ends of the world; and yet, he does not even trust you in his darkest hours?

you wish to sink into the water and never resurface from its depths. beg, silently, for the fog to swallow you whole beneath the weight of your prince's gaze.

"apologies," you manage shakily. "i have failed to protect you, my prince. i understand that you find me incapable of serving you for any longer. as your humble knight, i shall—"

"hush."

fingers skimming up your neck, resting at your jaw. the impossibly soft way the prince forces you to meet his eyes, so kind in their own right. so full of mercy.

"bednyazhka," he whispers under his breath. you poor thing. "you worry far too much. it will be the cause of your undoing, one day."

"it is worth it for you, moy knyaz. i would gladly lay down my life for you."

"yes," he murmurs. "of course, that is what you would think. a shame.”

"apologies, i..." you frown. "i do not understand."

he smiles ruefully. "no. of course, you do not." his fingers fall from your face, and you find, shamefully, that you mourn the touch far more than you should. instead, they brush against your knuckles; raw from hours of combat training. he runs his thumb over the broken skin. "seven, sweet knight. this is the number of attempts made on your life in the past week."

you had...

you swallow nervously, coming to terms with the news. the urge to say something overwhelms you (strangely, an inclination to defend yourself) but the words evade you. your throat closes up.

you had no idea.

(find solace, at least, in not needing to wonder about the sorry sort of fates they must have met at the hands of this man before you.)

he swipes the washcloth from you, continues speaking in hushed tones; "our enemies grow restless as we prosper. they want nothing more than to hurt me. previously, i have not had to worry about this, because of you."

"and now?" you whisper.

"and now, luybov moya, my enemies rejoice." he takes your trembling hands in his own, inspects the blood from his skin that now stains yours by carefully turning over each and every finger in his palm. "they have found a way to hurt me." he confesses, "because of you."

the touch is feather light. barely even there.

"do you understand, my sweet knight? you are the reason i prosper, and yet, devastatingly so, the sole cause of my ruination."

the gentle undulations of the water around you has lulled you into a false sense of security. you feel safe in this moment, knowing your prince is in such close proximity. the two of you stand close enough for you to feel the heat of his body against yours; breaths in sync, breathing the same perfumed air in—and out.

in—and out.

you almost think you've misheard the prince when he speaks again.

"and this is why i have decided," he says softly, "that you will never pick up a sword again."

his words instantly break the fragile tranquility of the moment like a delicate thread that's been pulled at for far too long—an inevitable snap that still manages to hurt. you shake your head, affronted by the mere thought of such an absurd idea.

perhaps this is some sick jest. surely, he must know? the value of your sword? what it means to you?

you swore an oath to protect the tsar's son. it is an insult to your very being should you fail to uphold this royal promise. you have already let him down enough.

"i can not be of no use to you, moy knyaz."

"that will never be the case." he smiles. "i have many uses for you in mind, moya milaya."

how can he say it so affectionately? my sweetheart falling from his lips as he takes from you the one thing you can never bear to part with.

"but i have always fought!" you protest. frantic, desperate laughter bubbles past your lips. it sounds wrong and forced even to your own ears. he drinks it in, all the same. "i have always wanted to protect you. it is my purpose and duty and—"

who am i without it?

"yes, and i will always cherish you for it, but now, your fight is over."

your prince has always been the most beautiful man in the tsardom to you. out of an unwavering loyalty, you have followed him through the darkest snowstorms and to the most desolate battlefields. you have raised flags in his name and stared down the barrel of your gun to an innocent child for his legacy.

despite it all, he has only ever been your prince; and you, his most trusted knight.

in this moment, though?

the man before you is unrecognisable. he has forgotten who you are.

"the purpose of my life is fighting." you repeat, hoping to remind him of what your sword represents; a plea for him to let you keep it. "it is why i live. it is what i promised to forever do, until the very end of my life—i exist to serve you.”

"and you will." the prince assures you keenly, presents you with a reminder of his own. "there are other ways to serve."

ah—

so this is what you've fallen to.

"you cannot do this," you cling to him. dig your nails into his skin, forgetting the sheen of blood that already lies there; like a thin film. some impossible barrier separating your reason from his actions. "please, my prince. you can't."

please don't turn me into an accessory.

"my sweet knight," he gently pries your hands off of his shoulders, brings your wrist to his lips. he kisses away the blood on your skin as if this display of affection will wash you clean of your shame. "there is nothing you can do to stop me. it has already been done."

it dawns on you laughably late. of course, this is the true reason he called you to the bathhouse; why else would he be waiting for you? what other purpose for your presence—when he's never needed anyone else to purify him?

how foolish of you to think yourself an exception. the silk washcloth floats in the pool's water that gently ripples from all your shaking. it takes effort to hold yourself together and string the words you wish to say into anything even remotely sensible.

yet, you fall short, even then.

"why?" your strength is futile; any attempt to wretch your hand out of his hold fails. his fingers stay wrapped in place, careful not to bruise you with their strong hold—yet completely unyielding to your every effort. "i don't understand."

why would you strip me of who i am? why would you strip me of who i have always been?

tendrils of dark blood swirling in the warm water around you, your prince only smiles adoringly in response. his black eyes are so impossibly shallow as he watches you fall apart before him; and yet you find yourself drowning in them all the same.

"why would you do this to me?"

this is the first time you will hear this answer from the prince, but you already know—

(even whilst he peppers dozens of soft, sighing kisses into your wrist and up your arm, over your shoulder and down, down, under)

—you already know it will not be the last.

"because i love you."