#NONE OF THEM HAVE CONFESSED SAVE FOR GALE

[littlegalerion]

....Moon took her friends to the circus only to find out that everyone present considers themselves "intimate" enough to take a "lover's test" with her...

Moon and Gale, at Karlach and Halsin:

Karlach and Halsin, in response:

[oriistar]

How about headcanons for how Wyll, Halsin, Gale, and Astarion would react to his shy gn crush confessing to him?

Reactions To A Shy Reader Confessing

Wyll, Halsin, Gale, Astarion x GN Reader

(separately)

Warnings: None, all fluff!

Wyll:

First of all, I'll just start by saying Wyll is such a sweetheart. Like actually such a cutie.

He's definitely a romantic! So if you get all flustered trying to confess your feelings for him? He'd be smitten with you.

Wyll is definitely the kind of guy to lay out his feelings outright.

He doesn't see a reason to hide them so honestly he'd probably end up confessing to you first if you're too shy!

But if you are the one to approach him? He's floored.

Watching you stumble over words or even try to just beat around the bush instead of outright telling him how you feel, he thinks it's adorable.

The way he's looking at you doesn't make it any easier either.

He's got this awestruck look on his face as soon as he realizes you're trying to confess.

Literally looks like he's just been shot with Cupid's strongest arrow it's so cute.

So as you're trying to confess he's just staring at you with eyes full of so much love and although its sweet, its also kind of intimidating for someone as shy as you!

How are you supposed to focus on choking out your confession when he's looking at you like that?

You can't for real, giving up midway through or he's gonna have to take over and let you know he feels the same way.

Although he'd love to hear you make it through the whole confession, he's very understanding of how nerve-wracking it can be!

Don't worry, he loves you so much already he'll just help you coax out your feelings later into your relationship because he is DEFINITELY asking you to be his partner right then and there.

Halsin:

Halsin is pretty old.

He's open about the fact that he's had many past lovers and committed partners.

He can smell your feelings for him a mile away. (Probably literally, the fuckin animal)

He's absolutely no stranger to confessions and he's probably so used to people approaching him to say they're attracted to him in some way.

So when you finally work up the nerve to confess your feelings for him, he watches you with a very amused look.

Of course he would never make fun of you! But he can't help but find it entertaining to watch you be so shy about it.

Despite all of his experience though he definitely gets butterflies in his stomach when you start with your (very rehearsed) confession.

He likes you a lot, adores everything about you, so when you're flustered and stumbling over your words he can't help but think about how precious it is.

Halsin is a very big man with very protective instincts. If it seems like your nerves are working you up an awful lot through this, he's definitely the type to scoop you into a hug and reassure you that you're not making a fool of yourself.

Although the hug would probably fluster you so much more than the initial confession.

He's patient too, so he won't cut you off or save you from what you're trying to say.

He'll stand there patiently with his arms crossed and smile lovingly at you while you clumsily say it.

He finds it very endearing, over all absolutely in love with all of your awkwardness.

He's also silent through the whole thing which, if you struggle to look him in the face while confessing, you might mistake his silence for rejection or expect him to have a disappointed look on his face.

Definitely doesn't help that now he's accidentally making you think the worst.

But don't worry, he'll give you the best bear cuddles of your life after he lets you know he feels just the same way of course.

Gale:

Ugh the love of my life!!!

Gale gets a lot of bad rep but he's such a gentleman, I love him.

I wouldn't say that Gale is shy like you but he's definitely a little hesitant to admit his feelings at first.

He's very much an 'all or nothing' kind of guy so if he's planning on confessing to you then it'll be properly planned out.

Honestly a little bummed out if you approach him first but only because he had this whole speech and stuff planned for when he finally decided to go all in LOL.

Absolutely overjoyed that you feel the same way though!

He's got a lot of self confidence issues (when I catch you Mystra 👊)

So seeing you all shy and nervous to tell HIM that you LIKE him? He's on cloud 9.

Might feed his ego just the slightest bit.

He's just shocked that you like him, let alone like him enough to be nervous to tell him.

He'll listen to your entire confession and commit it all to memory, no matter how many times you get sidetracked due to your nerves.

He doesn't care, he's just too thrilled that you actually like him the poor man.

I wouldn't say that Gale doesn't have any game, he says that he's had lovers other than Mystra so that must mean that he pulls at least a little bit.

He's definitely awkward about relationships at the start though.

He doesn't know if it's too much too soon or if he's not being forward enough with his wants. Definitely an adjustment for him.

I feel like his sheer excitement definitely has him pulling you into a tight hug, which he'll apologize for after since he didn't ask permission first.

He'd definitely want to spend the rest of the day with you after and will pout like a puppy whenever you have to go, poor thing.

Astarion:

We all know that Astarion is a little shit.

Right out of the gate he's teasing you relentlessly.

Due to his own trauma, he'll think you're trying to hook up with him before he thinks you're just confessing your feelings.

Definitely flirtatious about it and very much trying to make you even more of a nervous wreck than you already are.

Probably asks you if fucking vampires is some kind of kink of yours, which you'll scramble to deny and it'll totally make him smirk all smug and shit.

When he realizes you're actually just telling him that you genuinely like him, his attitude changes.

Astarion is very familiar with being used but to have someone like him for him? He doesn't really know what to say.

He's embarrassed and his face is already flushing red as he hears you out.

His heart is absolutely swelling with affection though.

He's liked you for quite awhile but would never dare to tell you in fear of rejection or the fact that you might just want a sexual relationship with him.

He'd probably get pretty shy about telling you he feels the same way too.

He thinks it's so sweet watching you stumble over your words.

I honestly feel like he might end up on the verge of tears, his eyes always look so wet in game when he's saying something genuinely affectionate to Tav.

He's not fully comfortable with casual physical touch but he might gently hold your hand after it all and run his thumb over your knuckles.

Generally very soft with you for the rest of the day but don't think his sass is all gone.

After your initial confession he'll probably ask you if you're actually sure that you love someone like him 😭

If you're lucky and your nearly fumbled confession touches his heart deeply enough, he might apologize for how he teased you when you first tried to tell him how you feel.

All of my writing is original work created by me. Please do not repost, translate, or alter them in any way.

[merbear25]

Heyo,

I hope you're doing great!

Maybe a situation where the fem! reader is very tall and strong, and she comforts Sanji after the Whole Cake Island Arc.

They confess their love to each other, and Sanji feels safe, hidden in the reader's arms 🥹

Ahhhhh, thank you for sending this in! I went for a mushy gushy reunion, so I hope you like what I’ve written for you. 💜💜

You couldn’t have fathomed something like this ever happening. Losing Sanji brought on so many unresolved feelings, which left you wondering if you’d ever be given the chance to tell him how you really felt.

CW: SFW, fem!reader, fluff with a smidge of angst

A love that was true (Sanji)

The whirlwinds of what his life had become were pulling him in so many directions. With the gale force of them growing stronger and stronger, at times it seemed as if they’d carry him off to the never ending sea.

The ground felt out of reach, but when you and his friends came for him, he felt tethered to the life he’d had—the one he wanted to return to. Seeing the extent of how much you all were willing to go just for him made Sanji never want to go a day without any of you again.

After the storm settled and the clouds cleared, the gentle breeze of a new day settled on him like never before. As he stood at the railing and looked out to the sea, he took a long drag of his cigarette. Going over to him brought on an unfamiliar nervousness: your chest tightened and your breaths were uneven.

Even with the chance of him getting taken again was next to none, the thought of losing him unearthed feelings which had been hiding unbeknownst to you. Your heart fluttered when he turned to look at you; the softness upon his face welcomed you closer.

“How are you feeling?” He asked with a tinge of concern due to your expression.

“I should be the one asking you that.”

Coming to his side, you placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. He returned your kind gesture. “I’m better than ever.”

A sigh of contentment left him. Timidly, you inched towards him, now more than ever wanting to be close to him. The serene look upon his face shifted. His cheeks speckled with a blush.

You nibbled at your bottom lip, trying to work up the courage to be more open with him. “I’m so thankful you’re back, Sanji.” You looked away for a moment. “I missed you.”

Your voice held more emotion than you anticipated, which painted a vibrant picture of how much he meant to you.

His grin grew wider and he had more of a pep in his demeanor, enamored by the tall beauty who was hinting at something far more personal.

“I missed you too,” he practically sang while taking your hands in his.

You giggled at his enthusiasm, but then his demeanor returned to its prior tenderness. He gazed up at you, admiring you for everything you were and everything he knew you as.

“Sanji,” you mused. “I can’t explain how terrified I was at the thought of losing you.” Your eyes batted at him from the sting of tears.

He wanted nothing more than to ease your woe-stricken heart. “I won’t be going anywhere. Not now, not ever.”

You nodded in response, going to wipe away the tear beading at the corner of your eye. Seeing you so distraught, so overcome with grief at the thought of him leaving gave him all the more reason to admit his devotion to you.

“I love you and I promise to never leave you again.”

His confession caused the rest of the tears peaking through to fall. “I love you too. I have for a long time.”

He wiped away the remainder of your tears before leaning up to kiss your cheek. “You’ve made me the happiest man alive by saying that.” 

With emotions still running high, the both of you held each other closely. Letting the warmth of your newfound love wash away the remnants of sorrow, you both simply desired to offer mutual support—saving the fiery displays of passion for when the tides finally settled.

[pagesfromthevoid]

Enchanted | g.d. | 3

Gale Dekarios x fem!reader

Word Count: 4.9k

Warnings: Smuuuuut baby (but also plot). Little bit of angst, Gale talking about blowing himself up

Author’s Note: Listen I know this is going a bit fast but I also just. Couldn’t prolong it. I love him too much.

Talk to Me! | Series Masterlist

This night is sparkling, don’t you let it go

I’m wonderstruck, blushing all the way home…

Gale had held his realization close to his heart for the time being. He had to, if anything because he simply needed time to process that the Fates had aligned enough to bring him and his bard together. The divine had not been kind to Gale in so long —yet, as it would be, they decided that Tav would be there to save him that day.

Even if he wanted to address it, to reveal how he felt and who he was to her, none of that was able to come to fruition once they saved Halsin. Of course, the Fates decided to be just as cruel as ever when Elminster appeared in the camp shortly after they saved the druid, breaking the news that Mystra wanted Gale to give his life to stop the Absolute.

Tav’s reaction was…well, it was incredibly reassuring, honestly. Heartbreaking, but reassuring. She had ripped Elminster a new one, yelling at the legendary wizard that it was not Mystra’s choice to have Gale off himself in her fucking name. That they would find another way to stop the Absolute that didn’t involve him dying. The tears in her eyes, the rage that radiated off her –Gale realized that even if she didn’t know he wrote that missive to her, she felt strongly for him.

And of course, even after Elminster disappeared from camp, they couldn’t settle down to discuss everything. Almost immediately, they had found themselves thrown into yet another quest –now moving them into an awful, shadow-cursed land that threatened to consume every single one of them whole.

Literally.

The shadows literally threatened to consume them.

As Gale trudged through the shadow-cursed land, his mind buzzed with conflicting emotions. The weight of his unspoken feelings for Tav bore down on him like the darkness that surrounded them. He stole glances at her whenever he could, drinking in her every movement, her every word, with a mixture of longing and apprehension. Amidst the palpable tension, he couldn't shake off the feeling that every step they took brought them closer to an inevitable confrontation, not just with the shadowy threats around them, but with the truths he had kept hidden.

Even with the help of the lantern and Karniss, the guide they had trusted to lead them, the trip felt far more perilous than it should have. Every minute they spent fighting harpers, or beasts, or shadows was another minute that they risked losing their lives. And, more so, he worried with every step and every fight that he would risk losing her again –and more permanently this time. The shadows seemed to whisper his fears back to him, amplifying the relentless doubts that gnawed at his resolve.

But no time seemed to be a good time to pull her aside, to admit to her that he was the one who sent that missive from Waterdeep. There was always someone else with her, and they hadn’t been able to make camp yet or else risk their lives with the shadows. They needed to make it to Last Light Inn in order to make camp, and truly there was no actual path that led to the inn safely. The urgency of their mission, coupled with the ever-looming threat, left little room for the heartfelt confession he yearned to make.

And then, naturally, when they did manage to find themselves at the Inn, they were ambushed. Naturally, they broke out in a fight that almost killed every single one of them. Even if they did manage to save Isobel, and even if they did manage to stop the shadows from consuming all the harpers –they had to fight to the last breath before they had properly rested and Gale thought truly, this might be the end of them. And naturally, they had to go find Ketheric Thorm and stop him now in order to actually stop whatever this curse was in this horrible place. The relentless onslaught of challenges seemed to conspire against any chance for a moment of respite, let alone a moment for personal revelations.

Naturally. Naturally. 

Gale wanted so badly to curse Tav’s incessant need to get herself almost killed in order to save others. He wanted to grab her by the shoulders, shake her and beg the bard to stop, and consider herself for five minutes. Consider how people –how he would feel if she died and they could not save her. Did she have no regard for herself? Did she have no regard for her own safety? 

But he couldn’t. 

Because the very incessant need to help and ensure everyone’s safety was one of the many qualities he admired about her very existence. 

Tav was kind, and loyal, and he was painfully in love with someone who had no idea it was him that wrote that damn note, that she had saved his life long before she was saving the lives of everyone around her. Watching her fight stirred every emotion inside of him –pride, awe, lust –and he couldn’t bottle it all up any longer.

When the fight had finally ended –when the blood was spilled all over the courtyard of the inn and his companions caught their breaths and all but collapsed against one another –he was resolved to give in. Orb be damned, he was going to tell Tav he loved her because he had to if they were going to keep on the way they were.

*****

“Hello! I am here on behalf of Gale of Waterdeep. He is requesting a private conversation with you, if you would oblige.”

Tav stared up at the image of Gale before her. It glowed with an aura that was unmistakably magic, though it was so drastically similar that from a distance, she was certain it was him when she approached.

“Oh, uh –yeah, of course. Where is he?”

The image of the wizard motioned towards a path outside of camp. “Just down the path. If you would like, I will happily guide you.”

She nodded, motioning for it to lead the way. The image moved freely, walking through camp without issue. Shadowheart and Lae’Zel both gave her strange looks, following Gale’s magical counterpart with their eyes as the two passed by. Tav simply shrugged in response and continued on her way, until the path was well out of camp and the image of Gale was replaced by the actual man.

He sat with his legs crossed, hands moving through the air as he manipulated the sky above him to form a night sky and borealis. Tav smiled softly at the sight, slowly sitting down beside him with her knees to her chest. 

“I love this time of night,” he explained as if answering the question she had not asked. “There’s an almost reverent silence that accompanies the peak of darkness, where you’d almost believe the dawn will never break. The cradle of eternity; the timelessness of lovers; the most beautiful of fantasies.” 

She watched him for a moment before looking back up at the sky. “It’s breathtaking. Is it your doing?”

He nodded once, but she could feel his gaze on her. “The curse is still present, of course. Just veiled and at arm’s length. Not a trick I can repeat often, but tonight…tonight is different.”

For a moment, they simply watched each other with soft smiles. Sometimes, she wished that he was less captivating or sweet; it made life so much more difficult for her when she was trying to keep feelings for him at bay. But then he went and did things like this –created beauty in a place that was so broken –and Tav found herself further drawn into her feelings for him.

“This may be my last night alive,” he explained, though his voice was soft. “I wanted it to be under a canopy of beauty of wonder and with company to match.”

Her brow furrowed as she opened her mouth to argue, to remind him that she would not let him die but he interrupted her.

“I thought this place might bring me peace. I thought…it might make the weight of what I must do to feel a little lighter. But I am not so sure.”

“I refuse to believe that this is the end, Gale. I refuse to let you die for the promise of forgiveness from a goddess who cast you out.”

“Babe or crone, coward or hero…death is assured, Tav. If you knew the end was near, would you not want to ensure it had meaning?”

“Gale –,”

“I am terrified,” he interrupted once again. “I will not claim otherwise. My face could scarcely conceal it even if my words ought to deny it. There is no point in running from the inevitable; Better to meet it, on my own terms.”

“No,” she snapped at him, grabbing his hand in hers. Her heart ached, thinking that Gale had resigned himself to death even before considering the other options. Not that she knew what those options were, but they were better than dying. “Nothing is inevitable. Not when we face it together. You don’t have to die.”

“One moment with you could sate me for a lifetime, Tav.” It was as if he wasn’t even hearing her; that he was so certain of his fate that he was just reciting his lines to her. “And I am very happy you came here tonight, to share this with me.  I know this is all unreal, but I created it for you. You must know that you’re…that you’re very special to me.”

Of course she knew. He made it clear, even if he never explicitly said it. Gale cared for her –loved her, even, if she dared assume –and it showed in his actions every day. Perhaps she should have told him to stop sooner; that she wasn’t spoken for but her heart belonged to her poet. But it was hard to walk away from someone so warm, and caring. And after her own heartbreak, having someone who gave her everything he had even when she didn’t deserve it –she knew there was love for him in her own heart now too.

“If things were different, if you were still performing and we were home, I would have done things properly. I would have never written that note, I would have found you before all this. But time is short, and I…I need you to know that I was enchanted to meet you, Tav.”

For a brief moment, everything stopped. 

Gale was watching her expectantly, waiting for her to say something; to respond. But her mind was stuck. I would have never written that note. I was enchanted to meet you…

“You…it was you?” She managed to ask, her voice catching in her throat as she finally looked up at him. Tears stung the corners of her eyes as she fished her parchment out of her pocket, unfolding it. “You wrote this?”

He took the note from her, tears pricking his eyes too, as he read it over. He nodded slowly. “I listened to you sing every night for weeks, Tav. You know I trapped myself in my tower –but you don’t know that it was you that made me leave for the first time in a year. That when I left that day, it was to find you and tell you how much your music healed my broken heart. I’m just pleasantly surprised the kobold managed to actually deliver the note.

“You added lines to it the other night,” he continued, reaching up to take her face in his hands. His thumbs wiped away her tears as she leaned into his touch, still crying. “You asked me not to be in love with someone else –to not have someone waiting for me. Tav –I have been waiting for you. And if I’m going to live my last day, I need you to know that I am in love with you.”

Through tear blurred eyes, Tav took in every detail of Gale’s sincerity. The spark in his eyes as he looked down at her, with his own tears that threatened to spill. The adoration that filled his smile as he held her face in his hands still. He loved her; he was her poet, and he loved her, and Tav was going to lose him because of some petty goddess who wanted him to beg for her forgiveness.

Without thinking any harder, she surged forward and kissed him hard. Gale let out a small gasp of surprise, seemingly not expecting her to kiss him, but soon enough he was threading his fingers through her hair to hold her closer. Her arms wound around his neck, pulling him as close as she could get him without climbing into his lap –and even then, she was almost there anyway.

But he pulled away too soon, resting his forehead against hers. Tav’s tears hadn’t stopped, though she wasn’t sure if they were tears of joy or fear anymore. 

“I hope that wasn’t a parting kiss,” she murmured, pressing another one against the corner of his mouth gently. 

“Not if I have any say in the matter,” he chuckled, wiping her tears away again. “I want it to be perfect –to bond with you in the way that gods do…intertwining our spirits in visions of the Weave.”

Gale stood, pulling her up with him. She refused to let him go, arms still tightly wound around neck, keeping him close to her. “I don’t need illusions. I want the Gale standing right in front of me.”

“Are you sure?” He seemed surprised, brow furrowing as his fingers reached for her hips, holding her just as tight. “I could conjure up any sight you can imagine; some you probably can’t too. I could use the Weave to make us feel sensations beyond reckoning.”

He leaned in closer, his nose bumping against hers. “I could do more than woo you. I could wow you.”

She hesitated a moment, considering what he was offering. “I suppose you could show me, if that’s what you want.”

He squeezed her hips with a bright grin, then pulled away raising his hands in the air. Streaks of the Weave surrounded them momentarily, then they were standing in a room full of books and scrolls, with a piano playing quietly in the background. 

“How about a perfect night in Waterdeep, then?” He asked, reaching for her hand to guide her through what she could only assume was his home. It felt very much like a place that Gale would enjoy. “With the warmth of the fire in the hearth, and the spines of a thousand books greeting us.” He pushed the double doors open, exposing the balcony and the sunlight on the water. 

“I’ve seen this before!” She exclaimed, pushing past him to lean over the edge of the balcony. “I performed right down there, with the circus.” She pointed down to the courtyard below, where a stage had appeared. 

Gale wrapped his arms around her from behind, resting his chin on the top of her head. She leaned back into his embrace, sighing contentedly. “I spent many evenings listening to you from my balcony, Tav. Mesmerized by how well you pulled at my own heartbreak with yours. I couldn’t see you, but I could hear you.

“Some nights, I’d simply sit out here and get lost in the pages of a book while listening to your voice. It haunted my dreams, day and night. I had been so consumed with my self loathing and the orb that I feared stepping foot outside my tower —but your voice brought me light in my darkest days.”

Gale pulled her away from the balcony, beckoning her to the settee where he pulled her into his lap. Tav sighed, burying her face into the crook of his neck as he lifted the book that rested beside him. 

“One of my favorites,” he explained, opening it up to show her. “It follows the first thousand nights of a newlywed king and queen. They make an art out of touch, out of taste –perhaps we should take a page from their book ourselves. What do you say?”

Tav giggled, reaching up to run her nails over his jaw. “I don’t see a bed.”

“The stars will be our bed.”

Her brow furrowed for a moment as she shook her head. “Gale, this is beautiful, and I am wholly impressed by everything you can do –but I want you. The real you. Not some conjuring within the Weave.”

“Tav, I am nothing special in comparison to what I can show you –,”

“You are very special, Gale,” she scolded, pulling herself from his arms. “To me, especially. And I don’t want to experience anything with you that’s not real.”

He nodded, eyes softening as the tower disappeared around them and they returned to the field that they were truly in. “Then we’ll do it your way, my love. Whatever you desire from me, I will give you.”

Though, the devilish grin of his suggested he still had a trick up his sleeve as he waved his hand. She gave him a pointed look but nothing around them changed –except for the appearance of a very extravagant, four poster bed. Tav looked it over before grinning at him.

“For your comfort, of course,” he explained simply, guiding her backwards towards it. “I would be remiss if you had to lay in the dirt to be with me.”

“Perhaps I like laying in the dirt,” she teased, taking his face in her hands to pull him into a kiss. “Perhaps I enjoy getting a bit dirty.”

“You’ll have to prove that to me another night,” Gale countered, pushing her back onto the velvety sheets. For an illusion, it was still much more comfortable than any bedroll she’d lain on. “Tonight, I want you to feel my love for you.”

She fell back onto the bed, hitting the pillows and basking in the plushness that she hadn’t felt in so long. Sitting up on her elbow, she beckoned for him to join her and smiled when he didn’t hesitate to climb over her. 

Like a man starved, Gale pulled her in by her chin and kissed her passionately. This kiss was different from the one they had shared earlier in the night. This kiss was frantic and hungry, with every emotion the two had poured into it. He was kissing her like this was the last time he ever would –though if he had it his way, perhaps it would be. Tav parted her legs, hitching one over his hip to pull him closer to her. There was too much space between them; too many clothes. Her hands drifted down his chest, pulling the laces of his shirt undone as she went, exposing not only the expanse of his chest but the markings of the cursed orb that threatened to take him from her.

Hand dropping from her chin to unlace her bodice and pants, Gale pulled away from the kiss to trail hot, wet kisses down her throat and over her chest as the skin became more exposed to him. She squirmed some, trying to pull his shirt off as her own shirt lay open finally. He chuckled against her skin, his beard tickling at the base of her throat as he pulled back and pulled his shirt off and tossed it aside. 

Then he moved to hover over her, hands resting on either side of her body now as he looked over her naked form lovingly. Bare beneath him – she thought she should be shying away from his gaze, but she couldn’t find herself feeling anything less than adored –Tav reached out to ensure they matched each other’s nakedness finally. And when Gale was finally just as bare as she was, her tears threatened to return as she traced the markings on his chest. But he took her hand, flattening it against where his heart beat, and she looked up at him longingly.

“I love you, Gale,” she whispered. “Don’t leave me.”

“I won’t,” he promised, and she swore he meant it.

His mouth was on hers again with a new found urgency, his pointer and thumb holding her chin as he kissed her hard. His other hand, which was sitting on her hip, had begun to drift down. She shivered from the drag of his fingers over her skin before finally feeling how hard he was against her thigh. With a groan, she pulled her hands from his chest to touch him –to pull some sound from him. 

The sound he made went straight to her core, causing her to clench around nothing, as she slowly stroked him. Gale pulled his mouth from hers to kiss along her jaw, leaving hot, wet kisses along her skin. Her head fell back, allowing him to trail kisses from her jaw down her throat. Then his fingers flicked just barely between her legs, spreading them so he could better access her.

Her breath hitched in her throat, eyes closed as he ghosted his touch over her arousal. Gale kept his hand still, allowing her a moment to get used to his touch there before his fingers circled her clit gently. She keened, back arching off the bed as she chased his touch –her own touch dropping from him as she reacted. He dragged his lips from her throat over her collarbone, then down further until his tongue lapped at one of her pert nipples. Her gasp at the sudden sensation caused her hips to buck, meeting his hand in a gentle grind. The friction of his hand against her most sensitive place was overwhelming for a moment as she pulled at his hair again. Gale’s teeth grazed over her nipple now, nipping at it before he sucked it into his mouth. 

Satisfied with his work on one nipple, he bit down one more time before he switched to the other. His hand drifted down between her legs as he sucked and bit her, and Tav wondered briefly how she would ever do without him again if she lost him. She let out a gasp as he slipped a finger inside her with ease, being pressed into the bed as his teeth grazed over her nipple.

“Oh gods, Gale,” she begged, trying to move against his hand as he eased a second finger inside of her. 

He released her nipple finally, trailing wet, open mouth kisses down her body as he slowly pumped his fingers in and out of her. Her body writhed beneath him, and she could feel his grin against her skin as he moved further down her body, kissing her stomach and right above her core. Her fingers tangled in his hair, pulling at it as he sped up his fingers.

Then, without warning, his teeth grazed her clit and she gasped, unable to keep herself still as she jolted up. He sped up movement with his fingers, curling them up as he sucked and nipped gently at her clit. Her legs started to tremble as her hands ran through his hair, yanking it by the roots. 

“Fuck, please. I’m gonna cum, please, Gale,” she gasped, bucking her hips up. 

But he pulled his fingers away too soon, and she whined, body shaking. He pressed a kiss to her inner thigh, trailing his lips from her right thigh, over her clit once more until he reached her left. Then he repeated the process back —before finally, his mouth was on her like she was the last meal he’d ever eat. She cried out, stars spilling behind her eyes as she pulled at his hair again. He pushed his tongue deeper, devouring every inch of her that he could. His hands wrapped around her thighs, pulling her even closer to him. 

She started to move her hips to match his movements, pressing against his face to try to get any more possible friction. She was so close, if he just kept going –Tav groaned as he hit a particularly sensitive spot inside her. Her hands had become permanently attached to his hair, pulling as she begged him to keep going, to make her cum. Gale’s fingers returned as he lapped at her clit, pumping in and out at a steady, torturous pace. But then –he stopped. And Tav hissed in frustration.

Pulling his fingers from her –prompting a desperate whine as she fell back against the bed –Gale moved to hover over her once more. She grabbed his chin, slick with her, and pulled him into a heated kiss. He groaned into the kiss, licking into her mouth and allowing her to taste herself on his tongue.

“I need you,” he admitted, pulling from the kiss to rest his forehead against hers. His hips ground into hers, revealing how bad off he was for her. 

“I’m yours, Gale.” She took his hand and pressed it against her heart, holding it there as she bumped her nose with his. Her legs wrapped around his hips, drawing him in. “Only yours.”

Gale found himself between her legs once more, his aching cock in his hand as he stroked himself. His breathing was hard, ragged as he stared down at her naked body. Tav gazed up at him, empty and longing as he stroked himself at the sight of her.

“I need you to touch me,” she begged, reaching for him once more.

Suddenly, Gale was on his back with her straddling his waist. He was surprised for a moment, caught off guard by her new position. However, even with his hazy, lust blown eyes –the way he looked up at her made her stomach flutter and her heart skip. His hands found her hips, pulling her down against him and she grinded down against his cock, humming at the feeling of his hardness against her sensitive folds. He closed his eyes, catching his breath. She leaned in, kissing along his jaw, as her hand finally grasped his cock and lined it up against her. Gale sucked in a breath, and she could tell he was trying to savor the feeling and not rush it.

But she couldn’t take it slow anymore; she sunk down on him without question, burying him to the hilt inside her core with a deep moan and her hands on his chest to keep her balanced. Gale’s hands held her hips, no doubt bruising her, as he held her close to him. Now he truly wouldn’t let her move, savoring the feeling of her tight warmth around him. Finally, Gale opened his eyes, keeping her still for several moments as if he was trying to memorize the sight of her full of him. She tried moving, but he held her tight, cock buried in her while he basked in how tight she was. 

“Gale,” she moaned, reaching between her legs to drag her fingers over her clit. “Please.”

He flipped them over once more, bringing her leg around his waist. She groaned at the change of angle, but didn’t fight him as he started a steady pace. One hand held her leg against him while the other supported his weight over her, allowing him to kiss her hard as he pulled out. She whined at the loss, but then he was slamming back into her without warning and her whine turned into a cry of pleasure. Gale’s mouth captured her sounds, kissing her again as he set a steady, delicious pace. She moaned into the kiss again, hands reaching up to grasp his shoulders as he picked up speed. 

“Oh, gods, Gale,” she sighed as he trailed kisses down her throat again, taking a moment to rest his head in the crook of her neck. “Sweet hells, I love you —I-I love you so much. I’m so close —please —,”

His hips stuttered as she clenched around him, his grip tightening as his pace became more and more frantic. Tav wasn’t prepared for how hard her orgasm hit her, but when it did, she cried out his name and begged the gods for mercy. It was overwhelming, and wonderful, and every second he was still buried inside her was the only divine intervention she’d ever need. And as the warmth of his own climax filled her, Gale buried his face in the crook of her neck. Catching his breath as he came, her hands tangled in his hair once more, coaxing every last ounce of him into her. She was writhing under him, overstimulated from her own climax as well as his now. But he didn’t want to leave her warmth; he wanted to stay buried in her forever.

Eventually, he did pull out, rolling off of her and onto his back. She didn’t let him stray, however, and hitched her leg over his waist again and laid her head on his chest. Gale’s arms snaked their way around her, holding her close to him as his breathing began to even out. 

And then, she started humming softly, her own eyes closing as Gale trailed his fingers up and down her back.

This night is flawless, don't you let it go

I'm wonderstruck, dancing around all alone

I'll spend forever wondering if you knew

I was enchanted to meet you…

[galeorderbride]

Hey lovely!

I have a fluff / angst fic request if that’s OK.

Orin targets a companion at the Elfsong Tavern but luckily, it’s not Gale. F! Tav’s emotions are all over the place and Gale comforts her.

It’s pretty much a “What if she got you?” scenario.

Hope that’s OK 😊

Love this idea! Ask and you shall receive! I hope you like what I’ve put together for this request :)

Rating: T (Angst/fluff; Tav has a panic attack due to crowd claustrophobia + Orin’s antics)

Coupling: Gale x F!Tav

Words: 2.1k

Fic below the cut:

Orin’s Fourth Torment

Crowds are best for villains. Anonymous and clustered, both sheltered in the safety of many and isolated when targeted. Normally, the Elfsong Tavern was busy, but never crowded. Nights full of shouting regulars and barstools scraping against aged hardwood. Such a frequent occurrence that Tav grew used to the sounds after several stays in that shared room on the second floor.

Tonight was different. Tav, Gale, Karlach and Wyll returned from a long day of being harassed by Orin and her doppelgängers, drowning in stress and trying to hide their fear. All of them wanted a good, long rest. But upon arrival, Elfsong was flooded with city dwellers. Pouring all the way out the front entrance, throwing around coloured ribbons, the same ones hanging above doors and windows. A festival of some kind, a celebration important enough to attract a wider audience rather than the drunken faces that had grown familiar.

Tav would’ve just navigated the crowd and climbed the stairs to their room in any other circumstance. But after being tricked by Orin and assaulted by doppelgängers at a wine tasting, she was nothing short of anxious, impatient and irritated. Ready to cry at a moment’s notice as all the traumatic experiences of this months-long journey bubbled up from the pit of her stomach.

Gale, the saving grace to calm her soul at every turn, hooked his arm around hers. He inched close, saying in her ear, “Worry not, love. I’ve seen even bigger crowds than this at the Yawning Portal during Elient festivals. Gods, the cooking competitions are the worst for it! All we have to do is push through, it never lasts for as long as you may think.”

He was a beacon of light at the worst of times, quite literally as he illuminated the Shadow Cursed Lands on their first night together. When he confessed his love for her, they spent an evening shrouded in a poetic tapestry of stars, fresh air and intimacy. Tav locked into those thoughts, using them as a crutch to get through the bumbling crowd and up to their shared room.

“Come on soldiers!” Karlach exclaimed, “Follow me, I’ll break through the mob with these shoulders no problem. Nothin’ a little heat won't fix!”

Wyll’s brow raised in amusement before he followed her into the crowd. Gale went next, with Tav at the back, their hands entwined together to stay close. Left with standing room only, pushing through the flood of bodies who didn’t notice or care about them. The bar wasn’t all that large, Tav thought, she could see the top half of the steps from where they all stood.

Some steps in, a drunken man fell between Tav and Gale, splitting them up. Tav stumbled around for a moment, giving the man an obvious stink eye as they pushed past him with hard elbows. This frustration didn’t last long, though. In the corner of her eye was a woman, the familiar bloody, blonde braid swaying behind her as she slid the blade of a curved knife around her jaw. A malicious smile crept across her face, shifting from one part of the room to the next, like no one else noticed her but Tav. Panic and fear set in, her heartbeat loud in her ears, and time felt slow. None of her companions were close, all lost in the crowd, and Tav grew frantic.

Orin’s maniacal laugh boomed in Tav’s ears as she began to run, mumbling Gale’s name under her breath. The tavern felt miles long, impeded by the pilgrimage of party goers all trying to find the best place to enjoy the raucous music. Tav felt herself nearly float between bodies, hitching her ankle weirdly and falling backward. Vision tunnelled with panic and apprehension. Hardwood hit her back, head hitting the floor and looking up to see Karlach and Wyll hovering above.

“Hellsfire, Tav, are you alright?!” Wyll asked as he lowered his hand to her, helping her up. Upon standing, she realised she was at the steps, leading to the upper level.

“Gods, Tav, you look like you’ve seen a ghost!” Karlach pointed out.

“I’m not sure I haven’t,” Tav said, searching around the room for Orin to find nothing. Just the same crowd of party goers, blood red Bhaalspawn now nothing but a figment. Until she realised there was still a missing piece.

“Wait,” Tav continued, “Where’s Gale?”

He wasn’t standing with them, no poetic and lilted voice to lecture them on the importance of cohesion in a crowd. What frightened Tav the most was that, upon looking into the barrage of people, his glowing staff didn’t stick out. Charged with lightning magic that could be spotted from a mile away. Nothing. Tav stood on her toes, craning her neck to try and see across the entire room, but still, no Gale.

None of them saw him, Karlach using her height advantage but still came up with nothing. Tav felt the drum of her heartbeat once again, faster this time. Enough to kickstart a heart attack as the image of Orin’s violent smile fought back to the front of her mind. The last few times they saw her, she appeared in the body of her victim. Was this the final taunt from her? Taking the one Tav cared for most?

No, not today. Not ever. Tav killed the avatars of gods. Slain shadow cursed monsters a century into their torment. That Bhaalist was nothing, and Tav promised to make her death slow when she caught up to her. Chosen or not, clearly she and her companions made short work of another. With those thoughts, Tav’s anger fuelled alongside anxiety. Driven to push herself back into the crowd and search for Gale, or Orin. Wyll and Karlach called for her to stop, but she ignored them.

Shoulders bumped and rutted into Tav’s upper body, from rib cage to neck depending on height. Bobbing back and forth between people, Tav became too small for the crowd. Trying to ignore her heavy breathing and tightening chest as she gazed into the crowd, calling for Gale. Every face in front of her blurring into one, large feature melting into one another. Loud voices shouting into her ears, some chiding at her in flirtatious drunk-talk that made things all the more overwhelming. But finding Gale was at the forefront, Tav had to push away all other discomfort.

She found her strength a little, adrenaline coursing through her system as she began to push forward. Hard, fast, using the entirety of her strength to get a look at every face that crossed her path.

“Gale?!” Tav called, turning her head back and forth. Nothing in that corner.

She moved to another corner, and cried out again, voice cracking with tears. “Gale?!”

Nothing.

“Gale?!” Tav screamed this time, carrying over the heads of the crowd.

Still nothing.

The entire tavern must’ve been covered, and Tav began to let the worst sink in. Her back hit the wall, close to the front doors. Tears fell down her face, following the nauseating sound of Orin’s laugh echoing in her ears. She was there, permeating the room with touchless torture.

Tav let her body slide down the wall, weakening in the fluctuation between rage and terror. Stuck in the little, empty corner of misery as the endless song of Orin slammed into her ears. Her face fell into her palms, wet tears staining skin, salty and humiliating. Images of what might happen to Gale under Orin’s capture spiralled in their mind. Forms of bleak, guttural violence that would deeply harm but never kill. Leverage, a way to lure Tav further into her clutches. Visions of blood and viscera, and the faded nightmare of his agonising screams, so vivid that Orin had to be putting that in her head.

In her state of dread, a hand wrapped around her wrist. Large and tight, Tav jumped out of panic and poised to strike the assailant. Fist up and ready to smack the arsehole who decided to grab her in a dumb, drunken stupor. Until she heard that voice.

“Tav, my dear, it’s me! Are you alright?”

Gale’s face appeared before her, big, brown eyes wide open with concern. Tav was frozen in place, questioning if she’d passed out and was hallucinating him in a hazy dream. Tears staining her face, the feeling of his grip on her wrist, the details of his expression. Orin’s laugh had ceased. This had to be real, he had to be there in front of her.

“G-Gale? Is that really you?” Tav asked, voice shaking with suspicion and social exhaustion.

“Yes, why wouldn’t it be me? I’m sorry we got separated, my love. When that man fell between us, I was pushed toward the kitchen. I couldn’t find you in the crowd so I went around the outside and came in through here,” Gale explained.

Tav didn’t speak, she just jumped into a full hug. Arms wrapped around Gale as they both sat on the floor, in the midst of a wild crowd. Cracking beer bottles and shouting voices. Words weren’t enough, Tav needed to be in his embrace. To remind herself that her one shelter from the horrid world was still with her. Gale could see she was struggling, locked in fear for his safety. His heart swelled with worry, wondering what happened for one of the strongest people he’d met to fall to the ground and cry.

“Come, love. Let’s go outside and take some air. Get some quiet,” he said, lifting her up and leading them outside of the tavern.

Moonlight softened the blow of chaos within the bar. Passersby still swayed in joyous excitement, chatting and running about. But compared to the inside of Elfsong, this was complete silence. Crickets chirped in the background, and Gale moved her to an empty bench just beside the entrance. He held her close, arm wrapped around her waist and free hand playing with the loose hairs around her neck.

“Tell me what happened, Tav. You’re safe with me, I promise,” he said, planting a small kiss on her cheek. Tav’s eyes closed, forcing back more tears filled with a mix of relief and upset.

Tav explained Orin appearing in the crowd, taunting her as she lost sight of their companions. Calling out for Gale, almost passing out from panic as Orin’s laugh vibrated through her. Gale listened intently, increasing horror in his eyes as he let Tav admit how afraid she was that he’d been taken somewhere horrible. The entire time, they held hands, Gale squeezing on and off to remind her he was still there, alive and well.

“I’m sorry,” Tav said, sniffling as a few tears lined her eyelids again, “I thought she’d taken you away. And I felt so powerless to do anything. If she had grabbed you, I wouldn’t even know where you’d be! And the awful things that would happen…gods, why am I even saying that?!”

Gale pulled her closer, rocking her back and forth as he peppered little kisses at the top of her head. “Shh, it’s alright, Tav. I’m here. None of that happened, I’m safe with you. And even if she had tried to take me away, I trust with my entire heart that you’d have rescued me in time. With the same zeal and ferociousness I’ve seen you be since the beginning of this journey.”

Fear began to settle into calm, Gale’s comfortable embrace like a warm drink on a cold, wintery day. Seated on that bench, hidden from the coarse noise of the inner tavern. Eventually, they’d have to go back in, but not now. For the moment, they could just enjoy each other’s presence. Taste the early night air and smell the salty brine from the nearby dockyard. Gale thought to himself that this was almost like Waterdeep. Near enough to memories of sitting outside the Yawning Portal and taking in the breeze, preparing to return home. One day, he hoped to bring Tav with him there. To experience all the beauty of his home city, danger free. To be as boring and overly affectionate as every other couple.

Gale lifted Tav’s chin up with his index finger, hovering his lips against hers with baited breath. They kissed softly, cuddled up together. Welcoming each other back to that safe space where, for a moment, no one could hurt them. Fingers locked together, the taste of spearmint lining the tip of Tav’s tongue. All the panic fading away, replaced by the desire to fall asleep in his arms.

He left the kiss to say, “You’ll have to try a lot harder to get rid of me. Not even a Bhaalspawn could pull me away from you.”

Tav chuckled, rubbing their nose against his flirtatiously. “I’d like to see her try.”

[blackjackkent]

Quick conversations with Shadowheart and Gale since they both got little exclamation points over their heads after the chat with Kagha.

"I know that look. You're wondering why I was in pain before. Let's just clear the air about that now. It's just an old wound that hurts me from time to time. Nothing to be concerned about. It's nothing to do with the tadpoles at least, in case your imagination is in danger of getting away from you. It's just...something I have to live with."

"Are you *sure* it's not connected to the tadpoles?"

"Positive. You can trust me on that."

"How badly does it hurt?"

"Quite a lot, if I'm being honest. But it always passes quickly, so I can manage."

"What's the story with that odd little artefact you have?"

"There's no story. None that you're entitled to hear, anyway. Just forget you ever saw it."

"What do you think of all that's happened to us so far?"

"We've been through quite a lot, with likely more to come. Care to narrow it down a little?"

"You must have thoughts about our little stowaways."

"Must I? Thinking about it won't help. We know what to do, so let's do it. Find a way to rid ourselves of these things. Personally, I think finding this 'Halsin' is our best bet. I'm not to hopeful that a gith creche will actually prove our salvation, but worth keeping in mind."

"What will you do, if we actually manage to remove the tadpoles?"

"I suppose we'd go our separate ways - not a slight on your company, of course."

"Where would you go?"

"Home. Baldur's Gate. There's someone waiting for me there. Someone I have to reach, as soon as possible."

"Seems personal. I won't pry, if it's not something you want to talk about."

"Thank you. And you're right, it's...a delicate matter. Not something for light conversation."

"How am I holding up, in your estimation?"

"I must admit, you've been a surprise, and not an unpleasant one. Kindred spirits are few and far between for me. Besides, you saved my life aboard the nautiloid. How can I do anything but sing your praises?"

"We should get to know each other a little more."

"Must we? No harm in a little mystery, don't you think?"

"You don't want to talk about yourself?"

"I should hope not. Have you ever heard the people who want to talk about themselves? I'm doing you a favor."

"You're deflecting. Are you hiding something from me?"

"Say for a moment that I was. Do you think your blunt approach would get me to confess?"

"I suppose not. We can let the matter rest for now, if you'd rather."

"Good. I like you, and you did save my life. I wouldn't want to sour things between us - not while we need each other."

Interesting. It is mindbogglingly clear that she is hiding something, or many somethings; I suspect Hector's told them all most of his history at the monastery but he knows VERY little about her in return, and she's making it plain she wants to keep it that way. In return - Hector is cautious about her.

I was a little worried that Hector and Caden were both too similar in their attitude of general kindness and generosity but Hector definitely does not have Caden's almost naive instant trust of everyone he meets. He is just a little too far out of his depth to feel like he can let his guard down with someone who won't do the same. He likes Gale and Wyll quite a lot but Shadowheart and Astarion have some work to do before they earn his trust - and Lae'zel had it but has pissed in her chili so she has a long way to go.

--

"Tiring business, isn't it? All this travelling and adventuring. Why don't we take a little break? Allow ourselves a few moments of rest. Gives me a chance to talk to you about something, well, rather important."

"'Rather important', no less? All right, go ahead."

"We've been on the road together for a while now, haven't we? Survived some perils, overcame some obstacles. Ever since you were kind enough to free me from that stone, I've seen you demonstrate remarkable guile and courage. The way you defused the tension between Zevlor and Aradin. The way you got Kagha to release the girl. In short: I've grown to trust you."

"That's very gratifying to hear."

"The reason I make a point of saying this is that I've grown confident enough to tell you something I've yet to tell another living soul. Except for my cat. You see, I have this...condition. Very different from the parasite we share, but just as deadly."

"What kind of condition?"

"The specifics are rather personal, but suffice it to say that it is a malady I have learned to live with, though not without some effort. What it comes down to is this: every so often I need to get my hands on a powerful magical item and absorb the Weave inside."

"Your illness causes you to consume raw magic? I'm going to need the details."

"I can say no more on the matter. Not now, anyway. Just trust me when I say it's all of vital importance. It's been days since I last consumed an artefact - since before we were abducted. It's only a matter of time before my craving returns. That is why I turn to you. I need you to help me find magic items to consume. It is vital. Dare I say it, critical."

"Where do you suggest we find the artefacts you need?"

"We've already done the finding. In fact, you have one in your possession. You know for yourself how hard won such an item was, and it will be no easier when even more are required to assuage my hunger. There will be danger involved - or great cost."

"Why exactly would I risk either of those things for a wizard I barely know?"

"Valid question. If not out of the simple goodness of your heart, then perhaps your own self-interest might be sufficient motivation. Having a wizard like me around is quite the boon when facing the perils that stalk these lands. It will be far harder for me to assist you if I can barely stand upright. Please - trust me. Your help could be the difference between life and death."

[WISDOM] Use your tadpole. Seek the danger at the heart of Gale's request.

Narrator: You become one with Gale's mind, and you can feel something sinister oppressing you. It's...inside of you, a mighty darkness radiating from your chest. You could try to push further, but your hold over Gale feels brittle. It won't be easy delving deeper without him noticing.

Decide not to risk it.

"So? Do you agree?"

"Very well. I'll help you manage this condition of yours."

"Thank you. I see my trust in you was not misplaced! I'm sure we won't have to look very far to find what I need: Faerun overflows with magic-infused treasure. As do our packs, as a matter of fact. We've such an item already in our possession, primed for the moment the need arises. I hope I can count on you."

Hm. Well, okay, he did trust Gale fully right up until this moment. I think I am discovering that other than cruelty the other thing Hector hates most is people keeping secrets. I think a secretive nature isn't really something he ever had to deal with at the monastery and it unsettles him considerably.

Very curious what's up with this "condition" since there's clearly more to it than Gale is telling us. But nevertheless - it feels important that all the tadpole-ites stick together for now, so Hector will do his best to keep him functioning as needed.

[hexblooddruid]

@thedragonagelesbian

Okay so I played ahead to the party in Bryn's current save just to see who would hit on her, pre poly mod. It was everyone except for Gale but Karlach's confession bowled Bryn over. Even when Bryn's like "hey sorry I made plans with someone else", Karlach is still just so sweet, vulnerable, and charming Bryn can't help but say yes to her.

And I always imagined Bryn's post game situation as she goes to Avernus with Wyll and Karlach. Astarion eventually joins them and there's no way that doesn't turn into a polycule.

This got me curious enough to get the poly mod and now that I've finally caught up on in my write up that I go further in her save and first long rest out the bat Karlach is confessing her feelings for Bryn. It's exactly what Bryn needs to hear on two levels.

First her current LIs are two of the most emotionally withholding, "no i will not talk about how i truly feel" men in Faerun (Bryn can't judge, she's the exact same). So to have someone so open and honest was so refreshing and it made Bryn utterly fall for her in that moment. They lately have been spending more time together, and really having fun exploring together.

Secondly, Bryn needed the reminder that life is good. She went to bed the previous night feeling all right despite everything but still woke with the anxiety bubbling up. Her circle will be looking for her. Even if she wanted to go back, she's forever marked by the Hag and knows it won't ever be the same. Soon she and the others will go try to save Halsin. Bryn's been lucky that none of the other Emerald Grove druids have recognized her circle's insignia on her armor but she knows that he would.

She needed that reminder from Karlach that yes, they are alive, they have each other, they are doing good. Life is good! Karlach says to her "you're saving me" and she really saved Bryn in that moment.

And for Karlach, I think it's seeing Bryn at that low point is what pushes her to express how she feels, just as away to help her in the way Bryn's helped her. She talks to Bryn afterwards and reassures her that yes, she's been touched by darkness but she still has her light, that Karlach can see it.

[tenderandalsotired]

In Another Life

Astarion/OC! tav

Tag : ANGST, Love confessions, Yearning, Sort of unrequited love

Also on AO3

Astarion needs to see Orienes after he read the news about her marriage with Gale on Baldur's Mouth.

Among crates and chests on the cargo deck of the ship that headed to Waterdeep, Astarion sat inside one of the crates. The one that he could get in had holes on the side to let the air circulate. He was wondering why he subjected himself to all of this because of one person.

The thin thread that connected them together had been cut off. He should forget her already.

None of this would happen if it weren’t for that damn gazette.

An old edition of Baldur’s Mouth gazette was floating on the wastewater stream in front of him while he went through his life as usual. It floated toward the end of the sewers, where all the debris from above piled there. Astarion would never care about the old gazette if the picture on the front page didn’t catch his eye.

It showed him two familiar faces: a charming man with silky brunette hair who came with a dazzling smile. Standing beside him was a female tiefling whose short, wavy hair was white like sunlight. The big headline above the picture read The Heroes of Baldur’s Gate Ring the Wedding Bells

He waded across the wastewater and grabbed that gazette. He didn’t care that the foul odor was going to cling to his clothes for days. Luckily, the content inside was still readable, as the ink hadn’t been dissolved by the water yet. After he had gotten out of the stream, Astarion sat on the floor and read the gazette.

The Heroes of Baldur’s Gate Ring the Wedding Bells

People rejoiced in the union between Paladin of Tyr and the great wizard - Orienes and Gale, both the heroes who saved us from the invaders; The Netherbrain and Mind flayers, announced their marriage after having been in a relationship together for quite some time.

According to our source, the couple will return to Gale’s hometown, Waterdeep, to hold the wedding with only friends and family members invited.

The rest was information about them that he knew already during their journey.

The sharp pang struck right at his heart that he thought had gone numb. Another time that he felt like this was when they told the group about their relationship.

“You istik can do whatever you want as long as this nonsense doesn’t interfere with our traveling.” Said Lea’zel. She glanced at the couple for a moment and turned her back to go back to her tent.

Shadowheart didn’t seem surprised at all about the revelation. “I knew something happened between you two by the way Gale was looking at you.”

Karlach and Wyll were the ones who were happy with their relationship. The Blade of Frontiers gave them best wishes, then there was the giant tiefling. “That explains those sparkling eyes and red cheeks of yours, Orienes! Congratulations, guys!” She said cheerfully. “I also want this to happen to me as well! If I ever meet one, I’m gonna hug them so tight while riding them-”

Wyll cleared his throat to stop her from speaking the full sentence.

He felt he needed to say something. Something that a person like him would say, a sly and cunning vampire, the role that he was playing right now.

He blurted out those teasing words. “I understand why you want to be with Gale. Next to Wyll, he’s the other man in here who looks like a prince in a fairy tale that a girl like you would have dreamed of.”

Orienes pouted. “Is it wrong to like someone because they are kind-hearted?”

“Not at all, darling.” A drop of sarcasm trickled into his words to make this performance look believable in the audience’s eyes.

Even though he fell in love with her for the same reason.

He had always believed that people were inherently selfish. No one did anything without expecting something in return. But Orienes’ existence proved that he was wrong. Even he tried so hard to hold on to his belief that no one is pure, not even the paladin of Tyr.

In the moment Orienes rejected that blood merchant drow, who asked her to make him drink her rank blood in exchange for some potion, his belief collapsed immediately.

She could force him to do it. They were just strangers. sharing the same fate of having a tadpole in their heads.

“I…” Astarion hesitated. He didn’t know how to express his gratitude without sounding sarcastic.

“Something wrong?”

“No, I just want to say… Thank you for not forcing me to drink that drow’s blood.”

“Isn’t it the right thing to do? You also didn’t want to do it either.”

“Some people might not do the same as you. They will make me drink her blood. and I just need to endure it. Just like everything I have done in the past.”

“What have you been through?”

She was holding his hand the entire time he told her about his past.

The vampire elf therefore chose to do the right thing, sacrificing a life under the sun that didn’t have to live in fear because of her. He still remembered her plea to him not to complete the rite of ascension vividly. “I know you think this will set you free, but it won’t. This power will trap you, just like it trapped Cazador.”

Orienes rushed to hug him after he had finished killing his master. His body was soaked with blood, but she didn’t seem to be disgusted by it at all. She just kept comforting him for the entire time they were there. “I’m really proud of you, Astarion.”

He wrapped his arms around her small frame tightly for a moment and released it. He knew he couldn’t hold onto this light.

Since then, he has buried his feelings for Orienes deep in his heart and watched her smile and laugh from afar. He knew those smiles and laughs weren’t for him.

The news was like a key to Pandora's box, letting his feelings that he had suppressed overflow.

Before he knew it, he was now at the cargo desk, blending with these shipments.

After sitting in the crate for quite some time, Astarion got out of it and stretched a little bit. He turned his head around, looking for today's meal. When he had seen a rat run past him, he caught this unfortunate vermin instantly, snapping its neck and sinking his fangs into it without delay. He fed off rat blood throughout this journey.

It didn’t fill your stomach, but what could be done? If a ship crew started to disappear one or two, others would notice about it and start to get suspicious. They would probably be on a hunt for the culprit.

“If you really must drink blood, may I ask that it be the blood of an animal? or even our enemy blood?”

“Animal blood and enemy blood? As you wish, darling.”

He snorted as he reminisced about those old days.

——————————————————————————

When the night fell, Astarion crawled out of the crate and sneaked out of the warehouse after he had observed the surroundings, making sure the route was clear. He searched for a place that glowed brightly in the night because the only place that could be lit up at this time was a tavern. A place where drunkards from every class could mingle with each other. Their loud chatter mixed with lovely music that came from a bard.

What a lively atmosphere!

It was also a good place to find information.

“You’re looking for Wizard Gale? You mean Gale Dekarios? Gale of Waterdeep?” A nobleman whose Astarion forgot his name asked. He was already drunk, as he had coaxed him to drink pint after pint of beer, tricking that man into thinking he would pay for it because “he liked him” and getting the information he wanted before fleeing. “But I understand why you asked something like that. I know you’re not from here because of your accent.”

“You got me there.”

“Everyone in Waterdeep knows about the Dekarios. There are few families that can afford a manor with a tall tower. The manor also became more notable with a ceremony they had.”

“And the ceremony in question is?”

“It was a wedding! Gale that you asked about? He just got married to The Savior of Baldur’s Gate,” the nobleman said, raising a finger and asking for more beer. “I’m going to be honest with you. I was quite surprised to learn that the Dekarios family allowed their beloved son to marry a tiefling. I suspect that with the title she has, along with all the good deeds she did, plays a part here.”

A smile appeared on the vampire elf; however, his ruby eyes were empty.

“I have to excuse myself a little bit. You know, relieve myself.”

“Feel free, pal.”

Astarion laughed at the word ‘pal’. - a pal that was going to leave him facing the bill alone.

True to what the man had said, when he came out of the tavern, amidst houses and buildings, there was the tall tower standing beside the beautiful manor. He kept walking along the street until he reached his destination. The moon above casted a pale light over a manor, and therefore all the plants and flowers that are beautifully decorated around the house can be seen. Let everyone know that a celebration had been held here.

A light shone through the window of the tower. showing that someone was still awake.

Astarion knew who was up there on the tower.

Because of the nature of his kind, though Astarion didn’t want to meet Gale or any of his relatives at all, he had to wait outside the manor, waiting for someone to invite him inside. He couldn’t sneak in like he did back then, when he still had a tadpole in his head.

He knocked on the door and waited patiently.

Behind the door that was opened slowly was a maidservant who greeted him drowsily in her sleepwear. the young woman spoke to him in a sleepy voice. “Who are you?”

“Go fetch your mistress. Tell her… an old friend pays a visit.”

She looked at him from head to toe. deciding whether or not she should let this stranger come inside.

“If I’m going to commit a burglary or assault you, I wouldn't bother to knock on the door and wait for someone to invite me inside."

The maidservant was silent for a moment before speaking. “I’ll tell the mistress”

She led Astarion to the living room and excused herself to go upstairs.

Inside this big living room, where Astarion sat on the sofa, waiting for her, bookshelves were put here for guests to read, killing some time. He chose to stare at the fireplace instead. A blazing flame danced in front of him, its light reflected in his eyes.

“Astarion?”

He turned around to see her.

Orienes was in a white cotton nightgown with long, puffy sleeves. Her wavy, white as snow hair that used to be short now was shoulder-length. Those white flame eyes went big when she saw his face. She raised her hand to signal the maidservant to return to her bedroom so they could talk in private. “How did you get here?”

“By ship.”

“And you don’t…”

“As long as I don’t touch the water directly, I’ll be fine. Why are you still standing like that? Come sit with me!” He said it as if he were the owner of the house and not her. She did what he told her though, sitting down beside him.

“I saw the lights in the tower were still on. I guess that’s Gale who is still up there.”

“You know him; he just had an idea for a new spell.”

“And left your wife to be alone in the bedroom.” Astarion clicked his tongue lightly. If he were him, he would never let her sleep alone like that.

She just smiled at him. “Only tonight, Astarion. The other time, he would just come to sleep with me as usual.”

“Is that so?”

She nodded.

He examined her face again. There was no trace of unhappiness in it. No tiredness or melancholy at all. She wasn’t lying.

Astarion hated that he expected her to suffer for a moment.

“And about the wedding, I’m sorry for not inviting you. I tried asking them to let me hold the wedding at night, but Gale’s family insisted that it must happen during the day.” This time, Orienes’ smile revealed a hint of exhaustion.

“It’s fine. Even if the wedding was held at night, you probably won’t be able to track me down anyway.”

“I don’t think so. There are not many places in Baldur’s Gate where you can live, and if what you said were true, I could just ask Wyll to help me find you as well. But I don’t believe you came to Waterdeep just for this, right, Astarion?”

The crackling fire was the only sound that was heard in this room. Silence became the answer to her question.

“I can’t believe it! You really wanted to come to my wedding!” She laughed brightly.

Astarion knew she was waiting for his snarky reply, just like what they had had in the past while traveling to find a cure for the tadpole. But at this moment, the vampire elf didn't want to hide behind a mask any longer. He decided to speak his mind with as much sincerity as he could.

“Yes, I wanted to come to your wedding, Orienes. I wanted to see you in a bridal gown, holding a bouquet, and walking down the aisle, saying your vow to a man who has your heart in front of your stupid god, while I was sitting there at the bench, thinking why my past self was such a fool to not care about anything beside my own end, and letting the light slip through my fingers. When I realized this, it was too late.” He forced himself to smile for her.

After hearing what Astarion had said, Orienes was speechless. Once she finished contemplating, she reached out to cup his cheek with her hand. The touch made him tremble slightly. The warmth of her skin started to spread throughout his cold body. He was so sure that this must be like when sunlight hit the skin.

“Astarion…”

“Don’t, Orienes, don’t pity me.”

“No, all I want to say is, thank you for letting me know.”

No one would ever see this side of him except her.

Astarion turned away from her, adjusting himself a little bit and returning to play his role as usual. “I think I should go. I don’t want to trouble you any longer.”

"Stay for a night. In the morning, I’ll ask Gale to create a portal for you to travel back safely.”

“I don’t think that would be a good idea, darling,” He spoke in his honeyed voice. His finger twirled her white hair. “Especially if he knew someone visited his beautiful wife at night.”

The sight of her being bashful always delighted him.

“If you insist, I won’t prevent you.”

They walked down the long corridor to go to the front door, passing through many rooms without a single word being spoken. Orienes stopped at the threshold as Astarion walked to the outside of the manor. He turned to her to say goodbye.

“Are you really going to be fine?” She asked with concern.

Astarion pretended to roll his eyes. “If I could survive living under Cazador’s thumb for two hundred years, this trip shouldn’t be a problem for me.”

She only smiled back.

“Thank you, again, for listening to my rambling words.”

“It’s nice to let it all out, isn’t it?”

Silence would occupy this area again if Astarion didn’t start speaking once more.

“I hope that… in another life, I’ll be the one who stays by your side.”

“I hope so too.”

[maegalkarven]

Also all the party banter Mort has.

Karlach being absolutely sure Mort died because Gortash betrayed him and Mort failing to convince her otherwise because how do you admit you've died from your own immoral experiment done wrong? Mort being fiercely protective of Karlach but also trying to excuse Gortash's actions and jokingly calling it "being stuck between two of your best friends in a fight". Karlach almost burning him alive at that comparison. Mort not being brave enough to confess he is guilty of probably more atrocities than Gortash because he can't stand the thought of Karlach hating him.

Gale being curious about Mort's magic and his strange affliction. Mort dodging questions because NO WAY he tells anyone he's Myrkul's Chosen.

Funnily, Wyll being the first person Mort trusts to tell about being a follower of Myrkul. Baring his soul to the man about whole truth of his existence and bracing for the impact: for the hatred, disgust, for Wyll to kill him right there and then.

And recieving a hug and a promise what they'll find a way to save Mort. What he won't have to kneel to Myrkul in fear of what would happen if he didn't. Mort, not yet ready to defy his god and creator, but relieved to have someone in his corner none less.

Astarion being the only one (till the end of act 2) who knows about Mort's involvement and downright creation of the Absolute. Him being entrusted with this information because Mort feels utterly alone and needs someone he can share thoughts with, and also "who will believe you, Astarion? Who would believe a vampire spawn?"

Them tentatively growing closer. Them starting to CARE for each other.

Mort and Shadowheart's conflict over Ketheric turning away from Shar and to Myrkul. Mort loving what Balthazar did to the Temple of Shar and Shadowheart - despising it. Them bonding over serving something BAD and helping each other to overcome this bling faith of theirs.

[eirikaanemo]

Divine Protection

Venti x GN!Reader

1.3k Words

Warnings: You get hurt

It started out as a very simple and easy commission. You decided to drag Venti along anyways because he’s been whining dramatically at you recently about how little time you’ve been spending with him. He gets to spend time with you and get some money to pay off his bar tab. Sounds like a great deal, right? Right.

At the beginning he jokingly swears to keep you safe. “I swear to protect my fine companion against any foe that may await us!” He proclaims loud enough for the whole street to hear. You smile at his antics and nod. “I’m sure I’ll be perfectly safe then,” you reply. “I trust you.” His bright grin at your words warms your heart.

You’ve had somewhat of a crush on him for a while now, but have kept it quiet. He’s a good friend and you would hate to lose him because of something as silly as an unrequited crush. So for now you will simply enjoy spending time with him. It has been a while since you last spent time with just him, so you have to admit you get where his earlier whining was coming from.

The commission starts out well. But then it goes wrong, horrible wrong, very, very quickly. The two of you are surrounded by a horde of enemies. There are too many for the two of you to take on yourselves. Not to mention how some of them would have taken you some time to address on their own. You do your best to hold them off and find a way out, but the two of you don’t last long. Venti isn’t able to use his bow as effectively because they’re too close. And you can’t take care of everything by yourself.

At this point, Venti is desperately trying to find a way to get out of the situation without blowing his cover. Then he hears a cry of pain. He turns and the world seems to slow around him. One of them got luck and managed to hit you. You tumble to the ground and struggle to get up. It’s obvious that their strike to your ribs did some serious damage.

All caution lost to the wind, Venti changes forms in a brilliant flash of light. He’s not just angry, he’s furious. How dare they hurt you! How dare they even touch one under the protection of the thousand winds. The bright flash causes you to close your eyes, but you can feel the wind howling and swirling around you. You blink, clearing the black spots from your unfocused vision, and squint to see Venti.

He’s no longer in his usual green colors, and he’s no longer on the ground. High in the air there is a figure in white and gold with turquoise accents. A white hooded cape stretches out behind them, turning into wings as it flares out. It takes you a moment to recognize the figure as Venti. You’ve never seen him so angry or so powerful before. While the winds whirl and rage, you’re in the eye of the storm, untouched by the harsh gales. It’s over almost as quickly as it started. The winds still to a slow and calming breeze.

When you try to sit up a spike of pain makes you gasp before you close your eyes and lay back down on the ground. You hear Venti fall to his knees next to you and feel him place one hand gently on your chest and the other gently on your stomach. The cool, smooth feeling of anemo energy flows through you, easing your pain and healing your wounds.

Once you’re healed, his hands move. One grasps your hand and the other caresses your head. “I’m sorry,” he apologizes. “I promised to protect you and failed to keep that promise.” You open one eye, then the other, gazing up at him from the ground. “What do you mean?” You ask him, sitting up. “I’m pretty sure I'm still alive, after all.” As you get a better look at him, you take better notice of his outfit. It seems familiar somehow, like you’ve seen it somewhere before.

Then you remember, it matches the outfit Barbatos is wearing in one of the cathedral stained glass windows. Oh. “You have some explaining to do, mister,” you tell him. But you can’t find it in you to really get upset though, he did just save your life after all. He sighs and gives you a small, lopsided smile.

“I suppose this was going to come eventually,” he admitted. “As you may have noticed, I’m Barbatos. I prefer to go by Venti though, and would rather be incognito as a bard than be known to be the anemo archon. With me around with that much authority, it would be too easy for me to make my people no longer free.

“Some call me irresponsible, lazy, and say I’m not doing my duty, but I’ve been here when Mondstadt has really needed me. My people are important to me, as is their welfare. And that is why I stay away. So I need you to promise to not give me away, okay? I trust you, but I just want to make sure.”

“I won’t give you away,” you promise. “I may not understand all of your reasons, but what I do understand makes sense. Don’t worry about me, I’ll keep it quiet.” He sighs again, this time in relief. “Thank you, that means a lot to me.” Venti confesses. Then he perks up like he got an idea and gives you a little smirk. “I should give you a thank you gift! Close your eyes!”

You’re confused, but curious enough to go along with his plan, so you close your eyes. He cups one of your cheeks with his hand and presses a soft kiss to your other cheek. It tingles a little bit once he pulls away. You can feel the heat spread across your cheeks as you open your eyes. Suddenly your lap looks very interesting.

“Awww,” he teases you. “Are you blushing? That’s adorable!” He strokes your cheek with his thumb, reminding you that he can feel how flustered you are. ”Did you like that? I can do it again if you want,” he whispers, leaning over so he can whisper in your ear. It’s almost too much for your poor heart to bear.

When you go to bury your face in your hands, he moves his hand from your cheek to your chin. “Hey, none of that,” he chides you as he tilts your head up to face him. His eyes dance with laughter as he gives you a soft smile. “I quite liked it too! Here, let me do that again-” he cuts himself off as he gives your cheek another peck.

He presses kisses all over your face, showering you with love and affection. Somewhere in the middle of his barrage of adoration he turns back into his Venti form. Eventually he pulls back for a second and stares into your eyes. “Can I kiss you?” He inquires. “Isn’t that what you’ve been doing? You can keep going if you want,” you respond. He shakes his head.

“That’s not what I meant,” he says as he glances at your lips before looking back into your eyes. “I meant ‘can I kiss-kiss you?’” This time it’s your time to smile gently as you place a hand on the back of his neck. “Yes,” you murmur. “I think I would quite like that.”

When you finish the commission and get back to Mondstadt, it’s much later than you’d expected. But when Venti gently squeezes your hand that he’s holding, you’re reminded of just why that is and give him your best smile. And he smiles right back.

[teamhawkeye]

Odds for Anna x John! Hehe :P

i should have seen this coming LMAO - touche

1.how did they first kiss?

In fic-verse that goes along with the game's main story, John kisses Anna after waxing poetic about how similar they are and how they're meant to be together when he has her down in his bunker for "confession", haha

Otherwise, in the prequel AU Anna kisses John after a very thoughtful and relaxed date night when she's finally understanding the depths of her feelings for him. 3.how did the relationship start?

"It's complicated" is the best description, haha. They both are on opposing sides of the conflict in Hope County but begin to try and meet each other halfway, sorta. The Collapse happens and they're committed to each other at that point and just go on from there

Otherwise, in a pre-canon AU, they meet in her home town and antagonize each other for a bit after a one night stand but eventually begin to reciprocate feelings for one another and have a long distance relationship going for a while 5.do they have roommates?

Pratt and Sharky and Faith are the closest things to "roommates" they have when they all live together at Seed Ranch after leaving the bunker 7.do they have kids?

Yes! 5 kids: Elena, David, Gale, Michael, and Meryl

9.do they act different in public and at home?

Anna does. Even after the Collapse and no real face to be saved when they're together, she's not big on PDA outside the comfort and safety of their home. John meanwhile makes himself out to be a bigger asshole and villain in public than he is in private 11.sleeping habits?

John develops a cuddling habit that Anna is very much not on board with at first, haha - she eventually comes around, but she still can get tired of feeling caged when he holds her too tight 13.favorite sexual activity?

i'm censoring myself and not answering that here to keep the rest of this semi-wholesome LMAO 15.what habits of the other drives them crazy?

They're both stubborn to the point of being exhausting, but Anna is slightly less obstinate - John's unwillingness to budge drives her up the wall, while Anna doing the exact opposite as requested just to spite him drives John crazy 17.most trivial thing they fight over?

Whether the dog gets to sleep in the bed, lmao. that is a big stupid fight they have in my fic series that Anna wins every time 19.who does most of the cleaning?

Anna is more consistent about cleaning, though John does his share's worth 21.who calls up the super/landlord when the heat’s not working?

Anna is more likely to try and fix anything herself that's not working, Collapse or not. John would want to call someone but be more impressed that Anna can handle whatever's broken and bring it back around 23.who steals the blankets?

John. no doubt about it, haha 25.who does the groceries?

John. He always has had more money but he also prioritizes having some range of what's stocked up in the kitchen - that translates over into doing most of the bartering with traders in the verse where the Collapse has happened. 27.who leaves their stuff lying everywhere?

They're both guilty of this, but neither are that messy so it's usually just leaving a book or jacket in one room and then going to another one without it 29.what do their cupboards or shelves look like?

John likes to maintain appearances, so every shelf and cupboard houses plenty of something. This becomes less superficial over time as they begin to build a life together, and instead of just "things" being on shelves to take up space, it's often pictures or mementos of their family or the two of them and their time spent together or is fully stocked with food and supplies to make sure everyone is well looked after 31.what do they do when they’re away from each other?

John is miserable LMAO - he definitely mopes and just waits for Anna to come back. Anna misses him, but she doesn't have a giant thundercloud over her head like John does - she'll go about her business and you might be none the wiser until she finally is able to be back in his arms again and telling him she missed him 33.how do they refer to the other in public? how do other people refer to the other? (i.e. “my partner”, “ask your father”, ”dad and papa”, ”how’s your wife?”, etc)

My boyfriend/girlfriend or husband/wife towards each other, your mother/father or mom/dad to their children - they're pretty traditional when it comes to that 35.how often do they go on dates?

Pre-Collapse, they try to squeeze in a few when they're developing feelings for each other but trying to remain on the down low. Post-Collapse, they definitely make a point to try and have one or two date nights a month, just spending time together somewhere around the Ranch's property away from the kids or others.

Prequel AU, they try to have date nights at least once a week, though it gets tough when John returns to Hope County after his business in her hometown concludes. 37.do they celebrate birthdays, valentine’s day, anniversaries?

Yes! Anna may make a show of being reluctant about it at first, but she's thrilled to have reason to celebrate holidays again after so long of skipping them to avoid the painful memories they brought back. 39.how do they spend christmas and new year’s (or equivalent family gatherings)?

Holidays are spent with each other and their family, eventually, in any verse. Anna comes to Hope County for Thanksgiving and Christmas in the prequel AU and Post-Collapse, they spend holidays with their children and friends both in the bunker and topside at the Ranch. 41.what would they do if the other one was hurt?

Both of them would do everything in their power to keep the other safe and get angry and want to retaliate against the one who hurt the in the first place. Anna develops a bit of a cooler head about this as they get older, but John is forever "touch my wife and you die" 43.do they know how the other takes their coffee/tea?

Yes - they both bring each other drinks and meals over the years and know how the other likes their food and beverage just as well as they know their own preferences 45.do they friend/follow each other on facebook/tumblr/livejournal/skype/etc?

In any verse, no, because Anna has never been on any of them 47.how do they make up after a fight?

apologies come first, from whomever was in the wrong, and then it's quality time spent together. whether that's just sitting in comfortable silence, going somewhere together, having sex...it all depends on what the fight was about and how serious it was or not

[seasonsofeverlark]

Amazing and Corny

Author: @hutchhitched​

Prompt: Corn Maze [submitted by @sunsetsrmydreams​]

Rating: T

Summary: Stressed over classes, Katniss gives in when her friend Gale insists she join their group of friends at a corn maze. Somehow, she finds herself lost with Peeta, the golden boy she’s admired from afar since their freshman year of college. As a thunderstorm rumbles overhead, they find their way out of the maze and discover each other, too.

Author’s Note: Thanks to @mandelion82​ for the extra set of eyes.

____________

Katniss Everdeen looked around her, wondering how in the hell she’d been dragged along on what her best friend Gale Hawthorne insisted was an adventure. As far as she was concerned, this qualified as a misadventure more than anything else. She didn’t have time for this, anyway. Only six weeks left in the semester, and she was at a damn corn maze an hour from the middle of nowhere.

“I don’t know how I let you talk me into something so stupid,” she grumbled, but Gale just knocked his shoulder against hers and laughed.

“Oh, come on, Catnip,” he chided. “It’ll be fun. Besides, I hear a certain someone might make an appearance, and I know how tantalizing that can be for the young co-eds such as yourself.”

“Shut up,” she snapped and immediately blushed the same shade as the sugar maple across the road. Ducking her head to hide the distinctly scarlet hue her cheeks had flamed, she crossed her arms over her chest and shrunk in on herself. Besides, who talked like that? Apparently Gale when he was messing with her.

Peeta Mellark. That’s who Gale meant, and her stomach fluttered at the possibility he might attend the evening’s event. Peeta was friends with Delly Cartwright who knew Annie Cresta who dated Finnick Odair who was friends with Johanna Mason who her traitorous best friend happened to be dating. It was not her favorite relationship of his.

“Relax. He might not come. Anyway, it’s not like you’d talk to him if he was here. You haven’t managed to yet the entire time we’ve been on campus together.”

Katniss hung her head because Gale was right. Peeta seemed to be friends with everyone at Panem State, the mid-level public university in the Midwest she and her friends attended. Everyone, that was, but her. It wasn’t that he hadn’t tried. She’d run into him multiple times over the past two and a half years, but every time she clammed up, unable to speak and overwhelmed by his warmth. As far as she was concerned, Peeta Mellark was amazing. She adored his affable nature and the corny jokes he told. Her family always called them groaners, but he’d often joked he was practicing for when he became a dad. Peeta shone like the sun, and she paled in comparison.

And that made her feel even worse. Peeta had dad jokes, and Katniss quaked at the thought of future children. She wasn’t even 21 yet, and she didn’t understand the tendency of those around her who had baby fever. At least that was one thing Gale’s girlfriend had going for her. Johanna Mason didn’t seem to have a maternal bone in her body.

“But what if he does?” she mumbled and scuffed the toe of her shoe in the dust.

“Peeta?” At her nod, he sighed. “If he shows up, you might want to actually speak to him. At this point, it’s obvious you’re uncomfortable around him. He’s even asked the group if he did something to offend you.”

“He is offensive,” Katniss groused. “He’s too bright and shiny. Too nice. Too charming. I mean, give the rest of us a break. We can’t live up to his golden boy perfection.”

Gale rolled his eyes and looked over her shoulder. “Hey, Jo,” he called. “Delly, Peeta, Finn, Annie. Good to see you.”

Katniss’ stomach dropped to her feet. There was no way he hadn’t heard her. No possibility that Peeta Mellark hadn’t witnessed her confession that she thought his perfection was rivaled by none. How in the world could she play this off? She needed a place to hide. She was just about to bolt when Gale grabbed her forearm and tugged her against his side.

“Stay put,” he growled under his breath. “You avoiding him is ridiculous.”

Katniss elbowed him in the ribs, but he only acknowledged it with a barely audible grunt. Instead, he turned to his girlfriend and kissed her, which devolved into a filthy, open-mouthed, possibly pornographic grope fest that only ended because Finnick wolf whistled.

“Get a room! We’re here for the corn maze, not a tryst with a corn cob.”

“I don’t know. I think the corn might be jealous of Hawthorne’s cob,” Johanna retorted and turned her lascivious grin on Gale. “Later, lover,” she promised.

“Gross,” Katniss mumbled, and Peeta snorted. He hid his mouth and covered the chuckle with a cough, but his eyes sparkled mischievously when he glanced her way.

“Let’s go,” Finnick said, enthusiasm practically vibrating out of him as he led the way to the corn maze entrance. He purchased tickets for their group of seven and then tugged Annie into the maze. Katniss trudged along at the back of the group.

It didn’t take long for them to spread out, the couples drifting away from Katniss, Delly, and Peeta as the duos held hands and snuggled together. Delly and Peeta chatted companionably, while Katniss glowered and tried not to feel like a third wheel. Peeta attempted to engage her a few times, but she brushed off his efforts and stopped paying attention until they were fairly deep into the maze.

“Uh, Delly, do you have any idea where we are?” Peeta asked, shocking Katniss out of her stupor.

The night had cooled, humidity and the threat of rain making the air seem colder than it should. Katniss glanced upward and blanched at roiling clouds and lazy lightning sparking in the atmosphere. She shivered involuntarily and shifted closer to the other two.

“Not a clue,” Delly answered cheerfully. “Let’s try this way.” With that, she was off, leaving Peeta and Katniss in her wake. They stood together in semi-stunned silence before Peeta turned to her with a sheepish expression.

“Well, alone at last,” he said in an attempted joke that fell flat.

“We need better friends,” Katniss sighed. “The whole lot of them are terrible people.”

Amused, Peeta returned, “I feel like that says something about us, that we’d both choose crappy friends and allow them to, first, talk us into a corn maze on the night of a predicted thunderstorm during a really busy time in the semester and, second, abandon us like this. It feels like a plot to a bad horror film or something.”

“Horror or Hallmark?”

Peeta ran a hand down the back of his neck nervously and cocked his head. “What do you mean by Hallmark?”

“Oh, you know. Those corny movies where a woman goes back to her hometown and reconnects with some hot guy who convinces her the country is more wholesome than the city and she forgets all about her job and friends and the life she’s built for herself,” Katniss explained. “They always make me so mad. Like the female lead isn’t smart enough to have made decisions for herself, and she has to be saved by the noble, hot stranger who’s got it all figured out. It’s mansplaining at its finest.”

“What if the guy’s right?”

“Why? Because he’s hot and feels an inordinate desire to protect a woman who doesn’t need his help? If anyone ever tried that with me…” Katniss trailed into silence, unsure what the rest of her threat actually was. It wasn’t like she didn’t appreciate help; she just wanted help from someone who understood she could do it by herself, even if that wasn’t necessary.

Peeta studied her carefully, his expression unreadable, and she wondered if she’d offended him, somehow. He licked his lips and tugged the collar of his jacket up under his ears before speaking.

“Well, that explains some things.”

She bristled immediately. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I mean,” he sighed, clearly dejected, “it makes more sense why you haven’t given me the time of day the past two years.”

Katniss gaped at him, completely taken aback at this statement. It took her a second to form a coherent thought, but she finally managed to stammer, “Wh-what?”

Peeta’s mouth twisted into an expression of misery. “You seem to hate me, and I have no idea why.”

Flustered, she blurted, “How does that have anything to do with hot guys from small towns? I— You’re— Yeah, hot. You really are, but… I’m so lost.”

Peeta flushed, his cheeks flaming red, and he stubbed his toe into the ground and refused to look at her. “It doesn’t matter,” he mumbled. “I shouldn’t have brought it up.”

“Brought—?” Katniss stopped herself and held up her hands in surrender. Gently, she prodded, “Peeta? What are you saying?”

He shook his head and hunched his shoulders, shielding against the chilly weather and his disappointment. “I’m sorry. I don’t want to be that guy,” he whispered.

“What guy?” she asked, using every ounce of her strength to quell her frustration.

He lifted tortured eyes and answered softly, “The guy that seems to think he’s entitled to a girl’s attention. The one that mansplains. The one who takes over the room when he walks in. I’ve never intended to do that, but you’ve always shied away from the popular crowd. You have every right to ignore me if you want. I didn’t mean to imply that you owe anything to me.”

“Oh,” she breathed. “Oh, that makes way more sense than… Well, than anything I was thinking.”

Curious, he asked tentatively, “What were you thinking?”

“I was trying to figure out how you were the hot, small-town guy luring me away from the city,” she laughed, and he grinned a little.

“Well, you did say I was hot.”

“You are hot,” she sputtered. Peeta coughed to cover a pleased smirk. His response was so soft, she almost missed it.

“Thank you.”

“I wouldn’t ever try to insinuate you weren’t smart enough to make your own decisions.”

The tips of his ears burned red, which she thought was about the cutest thing she’d ever seen. She opened her mouth to speak when her phone interrupted them. Grimacing, she tugged it from her pocket and glanced at the screen.

“Oh, hell,” she muttered.

“What?”

“Gale,” she offered in explanation. “He wants to know where we are.”

“We’re in the corn maze. Where else would we be? Is everybody else done or something?”

She nodded to affirm. “They’re all waiting at the picnic tables. Even Delly’s there. They have cider.”

They glanced around them and realized they still had no idea where they were. Katniss hadn’t been paying attention as they wound into the maze, and Peeta had clearly followed Delly’s direction. In short, they were lost. Katniss glanced upward, as a few fat drops of rain spattered around them.

“Would it be corny to say I’d rather be lost in here with you than anyone else?” Peeta asked, his lips quirked into a crooked grin.

“Oh, I don’t know. There’s a crop of freshmen on campus. Wouldn’t you rather be with one of them?”

Peeta’s eyes twinkled. “Punny.”

“Same to you.”

“You’re amazing,” he laughed, and they grinned at each other, content to joke about their predicament. Seconds later, the sky opened, lightning flashed, and they both jumped. “We need to get out of here.”

Katniss extended her hand to him. “Together?”

“Together,” he agreed as he took her hand.

They walked quickly then, alternating right turns with lefts until they began to see a pattern. Corn stalks guided their way as they wound through the maze, hopeful they were on the right track, as rain poured from the heavens. Soaking wet, they clung to each other, a lifeline in their confusion. They hadn’t seen anyone else for several minutes, and Katniss started to shake—from cold, anxiety, and frustration.

“It’s going to be okay,” Peeta assured her. Letting go of her hand, he shrugged off his jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders. When she protested, he insisted. “I’m all right.”

“I thought you trusted me to make my own decisions,” she retorted, but her clacking teeth and shivers undermined her argument.

He wrapped his arm around her and guided them down another corridor. “I do. I promise, but your sense of direction is as terrible as mine. Let’s get out of here, and then you can go back to resisting my advances.”

“Have you been making advances?” she asked, curious.

“Since the moment I saw you across the room. You have no idea the effect you have on me.”

She’d have to ponder that once they’d escape the maze. She was too cold, too disoriented, and too woozy from the heat of his jacket and arm curled around her. The stress of the semester had been weighing on her more than she’d thought, and there was something really compelling about allowing someone else to take charge.

“Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you,” Peeta sputtered as they rounded another corner and spied the flags marking the maze exits. His curls were plastered to his head in dark blonde waves, and he looked absolutely miserable in his soaking wet navy blue Henley and dark washed jeans.

“Wait,” she pleaded. “Wait.”

Peeta stopped immediately and turned questioning eyes to meet hers. His willingness to take her seriously without question made her smile. “What’s up?” he asked, rubbing her arms to warm her.

Katniss reached for him, grabbing his sopping shirt and tugging him to her. Their lips met as thunder rumbled above them, and she leaned into his heat. He wrapped his arms around her, cradling her to him and increasing the pressure of his mouth on hers. They stood there, tangled together, until an echoing boom of thunder shook them apart.

“Electrifying,” he murmured as lightning flashed.

Katniss giggled and burrowed into his chest. “Such a dad joke.”

“They’re coming out my ears.”

“No. Stop. That was terrible.”

“I can’t help it. They just pop up when I least expect them.”

“So corny,” she grinned.

“So amazing,” he corrected and grabbed her hand. “Let’s get out of her, ditch our friends, and get to know each other.”

Katniss nodded. At the moment, there was nothing she wanted more.

[celestialflamesme]

| OF TATTOOS AND SOULMATES | A GaLe One-shot AU | Fairy Tail |

Ships: Levy McGarden x Gajeel Redfox

My contribution to Gajevy Day! @luna-chan00 Job completed!😁

......

7 year old Levy McGarden was curious, and naturally, a curious kid would end up in the restricted section of the library at 3 am (Way past her bedtime....)

Droy shuffled his feet nervously, "Lev, are you sure we should be doing this?"

"Of course I'm sure! And the real restricted section is over there!" The bluenette pointed over her shoulder to a suspicious looking shelf, "Uncle Macao and Wakaba always borrow books from there and Porly-san yells at them!"

"Then why did she tell you not to come here?" Jet sassed. (Boys were mean, why couldn't they just encourage her thirst for literary enrichment?!)

Levy puffed her cheeks in irritation. "That's what we're here to find out, Jet! Now hold tight or I'll fall!" She caught hold of the nearest book (It was heavy and old, hence the best kind!) and jumped off the ladder making the boys squeak. (Ugh, Boys....)

"What's it about? Oh! Oh!" Both Jet and Levy gave Droy a look, which made him lower his tone to a whisper, "Do you think it's Gramp's secret bean soup recipe?"

"Well, maybe?" Levy sighed. (She didn't have the heart to tell him that Gramps used plain canned soup for his 'Ultra Secret Super Bean Delight'. After all, Natsu was eating all his beans now...)

She blew off the dust on the leather binding. Carefully opening it, Jet held the torchlight as she read the title out loud, "Soulmates ."

.......

15 year old Levy read enough books on romance and witty tall men (Everyone was taller than her now...) with gentle smiles and twinkling eyes to finally have conjured up an exact image of what she wanted her own soulmate to look like.

She had her fingers crossed her tattoo would be a sweet soliloquy from a famous play, or maybe something simple and shy like a "Hi!" or maybe a "You're the prettiest girl I've ever met..."

As for his persona however, he'd have chestnut brown hair that he combed through, a passion for books, a vivid vocabulary, a soft look reserved just for her, would be 5'2" (just tall enough for her to rest her head against the crook of his neck) and have oceans for eyes-

Gramps sweatdropped as he read her list. "That seems a little oddly specific, Levy. Are you sure you didn't meet him yet?"

Levy frantically shook her head. "I still haven't got my tattoo, Gramps! But I bet he looks just like this!"

"Two hundred jewels says you're wrong!" Cana slurred. (Levy had absolutely no idea how she always found every place Gramps hid the drinks in. At 17, Cana was quite the force to be reckoned with...)

"Why we gotta write about what we want in our mates?" Natsu groaned, doodling what Levy wryly registered as the outline of a dragon..... Classic Natsu.....

Erza was surprisingly silent, keeping to herself for most of the project, while Gray had quit it altogether and chose to brawl with Elfman instead.

Jet and Droy, flustered, had both written Levy as their soulmate. (She was honoured, really, but she'd grown up with them. If she like-liked them, wouldn't she know by now?)

"Because, Natsu, your soulmate does not have to be your life partner." Erza now had her attention on Gramps. Levy leaned towards the discussion too. "Not everyone finds what they are looking for in their soulmate. Not everyone truly knows what they even want until they find it. And you are not obliged to fall in love with your soulmate. Love is accepting someone's flaws and your own and learning to live in harmony and for the future."

"Well said, Master!" Erza nodded reverently. Levy sighed, already lost in her thoughts. In two days, her tattoo would appear, the first words her soulmate would say to her, the only way she'd ever find him.

Mira refused to show anyone her tattoo, which was weird, was it something horrible? Erza, ever the knight in shining armour, offered to slay whosoever dared hurt the She-devil ("Intentional or otherwise!") and Levy had a few spells in handy for the occasion too, but Mira was a tough nut to crack.

Cana's had been surprisingly short and mundane. "Another!" It had said. The card mage simply laughed when it appeared, grabbed her water bottle (probably spiked) and promptly passed out 15 minutes later.

Oh, she just couldn't wait!

"What the everloving God Serena?!"

"What'd you get Levy?" Erza chose to ignore her swearing (Thank Mavis!) in favour of leaning for a closer look at the cursive script.

"The shrimp is mine."

The shrimp is mine.

The shrimp-

The shrimp-

The SHRIMP?! OF ALL THE THINGS HER SOULMATE COULD SAY, HE CHOSE THE SHRIMP IS MINE?!

She waited for this her whole goddamn life and this is what she got?! The Gods were laughing at her, she bet. Ughhhh.....

"Maybe he just really likes seafood?" Cana snickered. "I can picture it. Your hands brushed as you reached for the last piece. Your heat skipped a beat. You knew in your heart-"

"Shut it." Levy muttered, embarrassed that she made such a big fuss over nothing.

Lisanna squealed, "Oh I know how we can make you forget this! How about we prank the boys again? Your last prank with the food-colouring was really off-the-wall, Levy!"

Well, Gray covered head to toe in feathers and pink glitter did sound promising.....

......

19-year-old Levy had just about had enough of soulmates.

Natsu- of all the people, NATSU (No offense to Lu-chan, she was soo happy for her!) had confessed his crush on Lucy. And their first meet was something out of a fairy tale too, Natsu being the Prince (or dragon) that brought back the Princess to his castle only to live happily ever after...

"If only my Prince was good with directions..." She grumbled to herself.

"Levy, are you sure you want to do this? Remember what Gramps said? You have to let fate do it's thing...." Jet worriedly remarked.

"I am letting fate do it's 'thing'! I'm only quickening the process." Levy grinned at her teammates.

"This is the seventh sea-food buffet we've been to in 3 days! And we didn't even get to eat any!" Droy complained. Levy sweatdropped.

"Just 32 more and we're done for the month," she reopened her life-sized bullet map to recheck. Can't be too sure.

"Look what we have here!" She stiffened and turned to face the gruff voice.

3 men dressed in varying black and grey attire looked at them like they were meat and nothing more. She felt a shiver crawl up her spine as she gauged the area for exits but found none in sight.

Team Shadowgear couldn't take them on by themselves! She was already tired and she bet Jet and Droy were too! Maybe if she made a big enough distraction, both of them could-

"Oi, you get the fledglings!" a final voice barked out, and Levy felt her blood run cold at the red eyes that stared back at her, "The shrimp is mine."

The next few minutes were a blur. She couldn't find herself to talk, no matter how much her brain screamed at her to say something, anything to save herself from the situation. Maybe he'd recognise her and tell them to leave his soulmate alone. Something, do anything!

As black spots took over her vision, she finally muttered, through the intense pain she felt in every fibre of her being, "Don't....Jet, Droy, please..."

......

[everlarkficexchange]

lying in the bed we made (if it wasn't us)

Written by: @archersandsunsets

Prompt 26: the night before the Quarter Quell, in the sleepless dark, Katniss and Peeta allow themselves to indulge in the bittersweet dream of a future they’ll never have together (“if it wasn’t us, what would you do?” “I’d want to marry you” “tell me”) [submitted by @rosegardeninwinter]

Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Angst

Word Count: 2,918

Rated T.

Author’s Note: Dedicated to the lovely Cate, who has become an invaluable friend over the last few weeks. This is for you, but don’t say I didn’t warn you!

Title from the song, Lying in the Bed We Made by Arrows to Athens. I’d highly recommend listening to it while reading, volume low—it’s very Everlark.

She refused to let go of his hand, insisting he could shower in her room. Convinced that if a door shut between them that night, it would lock and she’d have to spend the night without him.

In return for his obligation, she let him shower first, after he helped her out of her dress. Then, she sat on the bathroom counter in her slip, watching the steam curl towards the ceiling. While Peeta shampooed, they chatted idly about the reactions of the Capitol citizens to the baby bomb like it was a conversation mundanely brought up over breakfast.

“You really think they bought it?” 

“Of course,” Katniss replied, picking at the pins in her hair that were holding her elaborate updo in place, “I’m pretty sure you could convince Effie that a potato sack was fashionable if you really tried.”

Amidst the patter of the water, she heard him snort. “You give me too much credit. Effie would never wear brown, unless maybe it was mahogany.”

A smirk turned her mouth at his joke, and a thought slipped into her mind.

Is this what it would be like, if we got married?

Katniss’s hand stilled on the pin just above her ear she was toying with.

Where had that come from?

Distantly, the water cut off in the shower, but Katniss didn’t look up until she heard the curtain slide back. Peeta had fastened a towel around his waist, and, balancing on one foot, was reaching for his prosthetic. 

“Do you need help?” It felt like a stupid question the moment it left her, but it was either that or stare into space thinking… about her own thoughts. Or, stare at Peeta. None of which were her first choice.

Not that there wasn’t something to stare at regarding Peeta. And if they were actually getting married, she’d have an excuse to.

“Oh, no, I’ve got it.” He smiled sweetly at her, and she watched while he easily attached his prosthetic and stood. All without losing his towel.

She’d asked him countless questions about it before, the nights they’d spent on the train and the mornings after, but Katniss found one she hadn’t asked yet. “Do you miss it?”

His eyebrows crinkled, confused. “What? My leg?”

“Mmhmm.” Katniss’s hand found its way back into her hair. Back into the damned pins. 

“Sometimes.” He shrugged. “After the first Games, I… missed it a lot, I guess, because it hurt a lot. Phantom pain, they called it. Because my body wasn’t adjusted to losing a part of itself. But now… it’s just a leg, really. And losing it kind of saved my life.” He winked at her. “Someone decided they couldn’t live without me, I guess.”

For some odd reason, Katniss laughed at that. “Oh, that’s the reason, huh?” She’d missed this side of him. Even if he was technically making her laugh at his expense. Not that she blamed him for that, given the circumstances.

Peeta stepped over to stand in front of her. “That’s what I’ve been told. By our fans.” He was still joking, still lightening the mood from her dark question. From the darkness of the night ahead.

He adjusted his towel and then took her hand, entwining their fingers. He nodded towards the shower. “Your turn. Do you want me to stay?”

Katniss didn’t think about it. She nodded.

“I just have to get these out,” she complained, using her free hand to pull at one of the pins. “You’re lucky all they have to do to you is put some gel in.” She ruffled his wet hair, which was already beginning to dry in ringlets from the heat in the room.

Peeta chuckled. “Let me.” He reached into her hair, and with one tug a lock of her hair fell from its hold. Then another, and another, until the hairstyle had been reduced to a pile of pins on the counter, and her hair fell in a dark, wavy curtain down her shoulders.

When Katniss looked up, she found the expression on Peeta’s face to be unreadable. This time, he was the one staring, eyes wild in a way that no one had ever looked at her with before. But still, underneath it all, she saw the familiarity of his love for her.

It didn’t make her squirm this time. Instead, it felt right.

“There,” he said, voice low and soft. “Much better.” He allowed himself to twist a piece around his fingers before dropping it. He seemed to come back to himself, because he blinked and straightened. “Um.” He cleared his throat. “Sorry. I’m just going to… get dressed really fast. I’ll be right back, okay?”

“Okay,” Katniss replied.

“Okay,” Peeta echoed, then he disentangled their hands and left the bathroom, shutting the door softly behind him.

In the steam of the moment and the room, Katniss remembered what Haymitch said Peeta had done for her by confessing his love before their first Games. What felt like forever ago now.

“He made you look desirable!”

To the people of the Capitol, of course. But to Peeta…

She already had been.

…

Hands entwined, they laid in the darkness. Silent, in case the other was able to get even a little rest tonight, though that was impossible. 

Tomorrow was the first day of the rest of their lives—and if either of them had their way, it wouldn’t be both of them leaving that arena.

Just one. 

Once again, their greatest ally was also their greatest enemy: each other.

At first they lay on their backs, their hands in the space between, both lost in thought. Then Katniss rolled over to look at him. 

His eyes were closed, but he was clearly awake. The flare of his nostrils on an exhale was proof. Still, Katniss didn’t look away. The moonlight from the open window spilled grey across the room, the sky’s hue casting bluish shadows over everything. Over him, too.

She let her eyes trace the outlines of his face. The slope of his nose and the curve of his lips. His eyelashes. The freckle underneath his eye. The wrinkle in his brow. She knew without asking that he was deep in thought.

A small, nostalgic voice inside her whispered, “I wish we had more time.”

As if on cue, Peeta’s eyes blinked open. Then his attention was on her, and Katniss shifted to accommodate him while he turned onto his side, mirroring her. Without speaking, they switched hands, curling them up between them.

He dipped his head down to brush his nose against her forehead. Then she felt his lips there, and heard his sigh as he settled, eye level with her.

His voice was ragged and sad when he whispered, “I wish we had more time, too.”

Katniss blinked. Had she said that out loud? She must have. Somehow, it wasn’t as embarrassing, here in the dark. Here, so close to him, with no guilt to feel about Gale, no more goodbyes to say.

It was just… true. Because even if her heart wouldn’t allow her to admit it, she loved Peeta Mellark in her own way.  In whatever way she could. She always had. She always would. 

Until her last breath.

Even if the idea itself scared her to her core.

“If it wasn’t us, what would you do?" 

The question spilled out.

There was a beat of heavy silence between them before Peeta spoke.

“I’d want to marry you.”

Somehow, his answer didn’t surprise her. She had known he would have wanted to be with her, that he was someone who still believed in marriage and happily ever after and sunsets and hope. That much was obvious.

It was that fact that kept her sane, now, so close to the end. Something to cling to in her final moments, maybe. The idea that he would live out all of those wonderful things with someone else. With anyone at all. Because he would be alive.

Usually, the idea would bring an unwarranted frisson of sadness over Katniss at the thought of Peeta with another girl. Not for any particular reason than that she would be sad to… miss it. Then, the swift return of duty and obligation would follow, because she owed that to him, owed him a life and so much more, for his loving her and saving her. But not now.

Instead, Katniss felt something else at Peeta’s simple declaration.

Curiosity. For a life she would never get to see, would never admit she wanted to know about except for here in the darkness, lying in Peeta’s arms.

“Tell me.”

His hesitation spoke to his surprise. “Really?” His lips turned up slightly at her soft spoken request, the tone of his voice rising in disbelief. And teasing, she noticed, but regarded with the same familiarity as on the Tour; she was used to it by now. “You want to know a besotted school boy’s fantasies about marrying the love of his life? With you as the bride?”

“Mmhmm.” She nodded. “I do.”

“Wow, you’re serious.” The humor faded from his voice. And, because Peeta could never deny her, even if he didn’t understand her, he said, “Okay.”

Katniss waited for him to begin. Patient, she took her time watching him while he gathered his thoughts. He had the same wrinkle in his forehead as before, but the lines were softer. His ideas, surely were lighter than whatever he had been pondering before the start of their conversation.

“Well, for starters,” Peeta said, “You wouldn’t wear a thirty pound wedding dress made of pearls and feathers that catches on fire when you twirl.”

A laugh made its way out of Katniss’s throat. “How kind of you. What would I wear, then?”

“Anything you want.” A pause. “You’d look beautiful no matter what.”

It was the kind of comment that on any other night would have made her uncomfortable, or wish he’d take it back. Because it wasn’t true, and because by saying it out loud she was hurting him. But tonight, she allowed herself the absence of guilt that would usually accompany her blush.

Tonight, she let him see her in a way she’d never seen herself. Despite the ways she’d wronged him in the past.

Worthy of his love.

“Sorry,” Peeta’s apology brought her back. Probably because she didn’t say anything.

“Don’t apologize,” she told him. “It’s okay.” She squeezed his fingers. “Then what? Go on. Keep talking about our wedding.”

He rubbed his thumb over her hand. “Alright. If you say so.”

“I do.”

The words echoed in her head when she said them, their significance revealing itself. All this talk of weddings… 

I do, I do, I do.

A beat passed between them before Peeta picked up where he left off. “Of course, we’d go to the Justice Building and sign papers. Prim would be there, and your mother. My family… probably wouldn’t attend.” He sighed. “Except maybe Auric.” The middle Mellark brother. “Delly would be there, too.”

“Delly?” Katniss asked.

“Yeah,” Peeta replied, “I’ve known her a long time. We used to play together when we were kids. She used to tell people I was her brother. She’s one of the only close friends I still have.”

One of the only close friends I still have. Katniss thought for a moment about Gale, nostalgic. Wishing they would have been able to maintain what they had. Wishing it wasn’t so complicated. It wasn’t hard to imagine why Peeta would have lost friends. But she didn’t want to think about it. Peeta was so kind. For greed and self-righteousness to steal his friends, was cruel.

“I’m sorry,” she said.

Peeta shook his head at her. “Don’t be. They weren’t real, anyway. Delly is. That’s why she stuck around. Now, where was I?”

“We just signed papers at the Justice Building,” she supplied.

“Right, right.”

“What happens next?” 

Peeta shot her a look, one that asked her if she was serious. “You know what happens next.”

Katniss resisted the urge to roll her eyes. “What?”

“A toasting.” Peeta’s voice went soft, dreamlike. “We have a toasting.”

And suddenly, Katniss wasn’t a seventeen year old girl being sent to her death tomorrow morning for the second time. She wasn’t an instigator, forced to torture the boy that was in love with her with Capitol engagements in the slim hopes it would appease the rioting districts. She wasn’t the girl who had volunteered for her sister in a fight to the death.

She was no one. She was eleven years old, watching Peeta Mellark take a beating to give her some bread. To save the life of a dying girl.

She was cold, soaked from the rain and the memory, remembering the loaves as they landed in front of her. Remembering the heat that scorched her underneath her coat when she picked them up. 

“A toasting,” she repeated in a whisper, voice hollow and haunted.

“Yeah,” Peeta said, and he must have noticed the change in her demeanor, her body language, because he pulled his hand from hers to run it down her arm. “Hey.” He tilted her chin up, and she let him.

A shiver passed over her body.

“We don’t have to talk about this,” he said, “if it makes you uncomfortable. I know…” He took a deep breath, “I know you never planned on getting married.”

“It doesn’t make me uncomfortable.” She didn’t even think before she spoke. “I just…” She felt incredibly stupid, because here he was comforting her when she was the one who made him talk about his dream wedding—which would never come true, now.

What kind of monster was she?

“I was thinking about the bread,” she whispered.

“Oh,” Peeta said, realizing. “Katniss, you know… we’re even. You don’t owe me a debt, or anything. I’m serious.”

“I know.” She wasn’t sure she agreed with him completely, she would always owe him in her mind, but she knew he was too kind to collect. Too in love with her to do anything about it. How could you repay someone for saving your life? But, it wasn’t about the debt. It was something else. And she didn’t know what. She didn’t have the time to figure it out, either.

Silence bridged the gap between them, while Katniss tried to wrap her mind around her emotions. No words between them. But she felt Peeta’s eyes on her. Soft, understanding. Waiting. He was always waiting, for her.

“Peeta…” she began. Barely audible.

“Hmm?” 

“Thank you.”

“What?”

“Thank you, for saving my life, with the bread. I have to say it, even if…” Even if we die tomorrow. Even if I die. Even if you live. Even if, even if, even if.

“Shh, hey, Katniss—” Confusion colored his tone, but still, he tried to reassure her. Like he always did.

“—And I’m sorry. I’m sorry that you don’t get to have your dream. That I can’t love you the way you deserve. That I’m—”

In a brush of movement, Peeta had moved, until his forehead pressed against hers. Katniss thought he might kiss her, but he didn’t. Instead, his lips moved an inch from her own, his voice came rough and trembling, he cradled her face.

“Please don’t say that,” he said, soft and pleading and pained. “It’s not your fault.”

“You deserve better.”

“No, I don’t.”

“Yes, you do! You deserve everything, Peeta Mellark.” And I can’t give it to you. I wish I could. I wish… She couldn’t bear to look at him, but couldn’t bear to pull herself too far away from him, either. 

Because she needed him. In more ways than he would ever know. She pulled back, and closed her eyes.

His hands still held her tenderly, though their foreheads were no longer pressed together. “I have everything I’ll ever need right here.” He didn’t miss a beat.

Katniss couldn’t say she was surprised. Or that his sentiment didn’t flatter her—or didn’t sting, because he was talking about her. In a way no one else had ever talked about her. In a way no one else ever would.

Not after tomorrow.

“Katniss, look at me.”

She did.

“You…” For a moment, it seemed as if the eloquent, sweet, Peeta Mellark had gone speechless, until: “You are everything. I love you.”

Even if, even if, even if…

I do, I do, I do…

I wish, I wish, I wish…

I love you, I love you, I love you…

All the words she could never say. Could never mean. Could never…

“I know,” she told him. The fight went out of her, and she opened her eyes. Her voice was nothing but a whisper. “I know.”

When could she stop hurting him? When could she give him something other than phantom pain—pain for parts of himself, gone forever. Would it hurt less, when she was gone?

With the conversation over, they shifted into more comfortable positions to try and get some rest, to hold each other. As Katniss lay her head on Peeta’s chest and he wrapped his arms around her, as they clung to each other in the silent, deadly dark, Katniss allowed her mind to wander.

One last time. 

Would this have happened anyway? she wondered. An echo of everything Peeta ever wanted. An echo of desires she wasn’t allowed to have.

It was a strange thought, disconnected from reality, barely formed.

Would we have happened anyway?

She knew that now, she would never know.

[imaginefan]

Preferences: the reason why they cry in front of their girlfriend the first time With Geralt, jaskier, yennefer, stiles stilinski, isaac, Draco malfoy, dean winchester, sam winchester and gale from hunger games

Geralt Of Rivia 

Geralt never cried and you had never seen him cry, but there was a time that you saw him close to tears, he hadn’t been back in a few weeks you assumed there were a good few jobs out there that needed taking care of. Jaskier had gone with him so you weren’t too worried about him but it was only a moment before that changed.

The door to your small cottage burst opened and you looked to find that it was Geralt, he seemed winded which was rare and Roach (who you could see behind him) was tied haphazardly. “Geralt what-?” Geralt pulled you into a hug and you pulled back taking his face in your hands. “Geralt what’s wrong?” 

“A witch showed me something.” He answered and it was then that you caught the glisten in his eyes.

“What did she show you?” You asked.

“You. Dead. She told me that it would be true by sundown.” Your eyes cast out to the window as the sunsets.

“I’m fine.” You answered your thumbs gently running over his cheeks soothingly. “I promise, now there’s one other thing that we need to talk about.” 

“Hmm.” He hummed as he leant forwards his head resting on your shoulder.

“Where did you leave Jaskier?” You asked and you heard him groan as he realised that he would have to travel back to retrieve the bard.

Jaskier

There had never been a time when you hadn't seen a smile on Jaskier’s face so when you opened the door to the downcast Bard you didn’t really know what to do, you let him walk into your house, you waited for him to talk but when he made no attempts to you started a conversation. “What happened? Where’s Geralt?” You asked.

“I don’t know.” He answered a single tear slipping down his cheek as his hands covered his mouth before rubbing over his whole face “somewhere having the best time of his life.” 

“Now what makes you say that?” You asked walking over to crouch in front of him where he sat.

“He told me that I’m the source of all his problems.” He answered and you looked at him and frowned.

“He said that?” You asked.

“Not those words.” He answered and you nodded.

“That sounded tame for the witcher that we know.” You muttered before taking his hands in yours. “We know that none of that is true, the witcher manages to get himself into his own trouble, you don’t control his speech or his actions.” 

“Hmm.” He hummed.

“I do fear that you are spending too much time with him, you're starting to sound like him.” You joked and Jaskier smiled “I’m going to start dinner come join me when you are ready.” 

Yennefer

You didn’t know what had started her episode but you woke up to find that she was not in bed, you looked over to see that she was in fact on the balcony facing away from you, you assumed that she knew that you were awake though. You got up and walked over to her, you looked over to see that she was trying to hastily wipe away her tears. “Bad dream?” You asked.

“More like a bad memory.” She answered truthfully and you nodded.

“We all have our fair share of those.” You nodded before looking at her “no need to be ashamed of yours.” 

“Are you not going to ask?” She asked.

“What the memory was?” You asked and she nodded. “You’ll tell me if you want to, I trust that you’ll come to me if you need to. So how about we just go lay down, we don’t have to talk but sometimes it helps when there’s someone there.” 

“You speak like you know.” She said and you nodded.

“Guess you could call it a bad memory.” You answered. 

Stiles Stilinski

Stiles was an emotional person, probably one of the most emotional people that you had met but there were a few things that scared him more than anything, the first was losing his best friend the second was losing his Dad and they were both happening at the same time and you were the only person that he could turn to.

The knock at your bedroom door made you frown, none of your friends had said anything about coming over “Come in!” You called as you turned away from your desk and towards the bedroom door, you were faced with Stiles tears in his eyes, you stood up immediately “What’s wrong?”

“I… I don’t know what happened.” He said as you led him to the bed and sat him down before sitting next to him. “They got my Dad.” 

“Who?” You asked.

“Chimaeras.” He answered.

“He’s… He’s okay though?” You asked.

“I don’t know, I don’t know anything. We were okay, I was going to tell him what happened.” 

“What are you talking about?” You asked. Stiles launched into a story about what happened to Donovan almost as if he was scared that you would walk away from him. “Scott didn’t listen to you?”

“It’s Theo.” Stiles answered and you nodded.

“Sounds about right.” You muttered. “You want me to come to the hospital with you?” 

“Please.” He said softly, so soft that it broke your heart. You gently wiped the tears from your face and gestured for him to give you a minute to change.

Isaac Lahey

Isaac had a hard life and you knew that but you didn’t realise how hard it actually was until he came to your house bruises around his neck and down his arms. You frowned as you looked at him. “What happened?” You asked. “Who did this to you?” 

“My Dad.” He answered quietly, your eyes widened. You slowly reached out waiting for him to take your hand, when he did you guided him to the bed and sat him down.

“Are these the only ones?” You answered as your eyes moved over the ones that you could see. That was when you saw his body start to shake, you looked up and saw the tears running down his cheeks as he shook his head, his hand moved down to lift his shirt where there were more all in different stages of healing, you almost cried yourself.

“I can’t go back.” He confessed and you stood up wrapping your arms around him.

“Don’t worry I’m not going to make you.” You promised.

Draco Malfoy

You were the only person that Draco trusted enough to talk about this with, but he was scared, it took a while but he realised that everything that his family was doing and what they stood for was not what he wanted but there was no point in voicing that to them. 

You were sitting in the Slytherin common room late one night when he appeared at the door “How do you do it?” He asked.

“What are you talking about.” You muttered as you scribbled down some notes.

“You're nothing like the others in this house.” He answered.

“You mean my attitude towards He Who Shall Not Be Named?” You asked.

“Mmm.” He hummed.

“Not everyone in this house shares the same view as him you know, it just so happens that most purebloods end up in this house.” You muttered.

“What if a pureblood doesn’t believe in it?” He asked.

“I wouldn’t know I’m not a pureblood.” You answered. “As you so often remind me my parents are muggles.” You finally looked up at him and you saw the tears in his eyes. “You're scared.” 

“I’m not-” 

“Then talk to me when you are ready, to be honest.” You cut him off turning away.

“Why would you offer me that after everything that I’ve done?” He asked.

“You seem like you need to talk to someone.” You answered. “Sometimes it’s easier to talk to a stranger.” 

“Stranger?” He asked.

“Well we’re not friends, just find me when you’re actually ready to talk.” You said as you cleared away your stuff and headed off.

“Anytime?” He asked.

“Yeah sure.” You nodded before you were gone.

Dean Winchester

Now as weird as it sounds Dean cries a lot more than you’d think, due to the job that he had there were things that he sees that leave a lasting scar and there was nothing that you could do to protect him from it.

One night you walked into your shared bedroom in the bunker and was faced with Dean sitting with his head in his hands “Dean? Are you okay?” You asked as you closed the door behind you.

“I don’t know.” He answered.

“What’s going on?” You asked.

“I just… Every time that we seem to get rid of something or someone, there’s something worse waiting around the corner and it doesn’t seem like we’re really doing anything, people still die or get hurt.” He explained and you nodded.

“True.” You said softly as you took his hands gently rubbing circles on the back of them with your thumb. “But that doesn’t mean that what you are doing is not worth it, you’ve saved far more than you’ve hurt, there will always be something waiting for us and there will always be people in danger and sometimes it feels like none of it is worth it but I promise you what we do matters.” 

Sam Winchester 

Sam much like his brother was not scared to show emotion but he could be more public about it than Dean ever was and the first time that you saw him cry was when he showed up after Dean was sent to Hell.

There was a knock on the door and you walked over and opened it “Sam?” You asked, he looked at you and you could see that he had been crying, that he still was. “What happened?” 

“Dean is dead.” He answered you moved forward in seconds wrapping your arms around him and pulling him into the house.

“What do you need me to do?” You asked.

“Just stay with me.” He pleaded.

“Always.” You nodded.

Gale Hawthorne

Gale came to find you after the Reaping, you’d been expecting that he would need someone to talk to after all you were there too and one of his best friends volunteered for the games.

“She’s going to be okay you know?” You smiled as he sat next to you.

“You don’t know that.” He dismissed wiping the stray tear from his face and you sighed.

“We know that she’s going to be okay. She’s the strongest person that I know besides you.” You said, your hand gently squeezed his before you attempted to stand.

“Wait, where are you going?” He asked and you smiled.

“Someone should probably make sure that her mum and sister are okay.” You suggested and he stood.

“I’ll go with you.” He said.

“If you're sure.” You said as you turned in the direction of Katniss’s house and headed off.

[dirtylimericka]

this has absolutely nothing to do with this blog, but i’m feeling nostalgic. i was poking around on an old blog where i’d saved some interactions with an android oc, leo, that i had in highschool and awh my heart...

the excerpt is with a do.n.na no.ble. leo finds her upset, she tells him that she “feels blue”, so he asks:

"How is it possible to feel a colour?"

--

She smiles at him, just a little. “Metaphorically. Blue’s sad. Well, it means sad. Generally seen as a sad color. Got that association. Probably ‘cos water and tears and all. So that’s where it comes from. Blue. Sad. Common expression.”

She stares off a moment longer, and then, sighingly, tries to compose herself. “…You been alright, Leo? ”

--

"I have been— 'alright'. My systems are stabilizing, but a full repair is taking longer than I estimated.” He pauses. A low whirring comes from somewhere behind his eyes. “What colour do you associate ‘happy’ with?"

--

“Ah, yeah, boys your age are really that impatient, gearin’ to go again the moment your broken ankle’s been cast. ” And before he can react to the quip as being literal – “-As per example, 'course. But no matter what’s been hurt or broken… healing always takes time, alright? ” 

An auto-repair function would be nice, however. She knows the likely cure for her emotional exhaustion ( curl up to someone dear, weep, and have her hair stroked ), but she knows none she can turn to. He might not have even raised a finger at the enemy in his days within the war, but she’s sure Wilfred will finally grab the shotgun if he finds out her travels with the Doctor hurt her, and that man is none she can turn to, either. If it weren’t for him becoming laden with guilt should she ever confess to the pain she’s experienced alongside all the wonders, then it’s solely the factor that he likely wouldn’t take so well to her asking him to hold her. 

“ … Yellow, I think. That’s cheery. Sun. Lots of flowers. Gold sort of counts, too. Money makes a man happy, generally. Might just be why lots of girls go blonde. Try to say that way they’ll make you the most happy you’ve ever been. So … yeah. Yellow. ”

--

"Yellow." A happy colour. How colours made people feel anything was beyond his programming, but the fact that they did was enough for him. "Do not leave." 

With some difficulty, LEO’s legs worked into a run and he vanished down the street. Ten minutes later, he ran back up to the step where Donna sat and dumped an armful of objects in front of her. A plastic bottle, a can, small toy truck, and three crumpled pieces of paper. All looked—and frankly smelled—like they had been picked out of a trash bin and all were the same colour. Yellow.

"Now you will feel happiness."

--

She should have known, of course, and might have had a suspicion when he bolted. It is the simplest solution, and the one best in line with his former question, so, when he returns, she is not entirely surprised. Her eyes still sting, though. It is now not because she’s sad, but because he seems to care. He probably doesn’t, however. She assumes it’s programming. Seems to is yet still enough for her. That half a year when Lance had seemed to, she had been very happy. Her laugh is slightly sniffing. 

“Well, that’s a bit big of a demand to make there, buster. ” She accepts his offerings, though. They reek, very much, but she nonetheless sorts them within her lap: paper, that she neatly folds, within the can, can, to the bottle’s side, in the truck’s loading bank, and the truck, her hands upon its contents, atop her legs. If she cries, he probably won’t understand she’s happy. She tries to smile instead.  

“…Thank you. ” 

There was also this unrelated bit that made me laugh:

Donna: “You don’t worry, Skinny. Even if you got a gun on you, I’d have cracked you in half by just blowin’. Spaceman’s got his length on him, but you’re just… actually a teensy bit of physically nothing, aren’t you? ”

LEO: "I am capable of withstanding wind-speeds up to sixty-five revkors… You do not look physically capable of releasing such gale force from your lungs."

And anyway the point of this post is that I forgot about it and finding it again has both warmed my heart and missed this roleplayer and my OC. I hope that wherever that Donna is, they’re doing well. Re-reading these old threads made me smile. It’s bittersweet, good memories.