#NOT IMMEDIATELY THO . but certainly in the future .

[vaugarde]

everyone loves to say “get that man pregnant” til you actually get that man pregnant…..

[ozzgin]

I love your work! you have such a fun take on yandere's and I would love to see what kind of yandere hcs you could cook up for a host-club / paid to go on dates with you yandere ❤️ double points if you can make it so that the reader is never really one to cross a line or think the yandere really likes them...

If you don't want to do this prompt tho I completely understand ❤️

The idea makes me a little nostalgic as it gives me Ouran vibes. Also reminded me I've never played 'Men of Yoshiwara' past the prologue, which also has male courtesans ready to service you. In any case, it's definitely something I can expand on! :)

Yandere! Host x Reader

You've never considered yourself to be the type frequenting host clubs. Yet the loneliness is becoming noticeable and perhaps it's your lack of experience keeping you out of the dating scene. Mingling with paid professionals could prepare you for a future boyfriend. Except your assigned host has other plans in mind for you.

Content: gender neutral reader, inexperienced reader, obsessive behavior, manipulation

Ah, you definitely don't belong here. He can tell within seconds and he hasn't even reached the table yet. You're nervously readjusting the sleeves of your shirt - do you usually not wear such outfits? - and merely glance around the room for a brief moment before casting your eyes back down in sheepish modesty. Well, not necessarily a sight of unpreceded novelty. Many people are intrigued by the idea of a host club, so even just idle curiosity is enough incentive for one to end up among the charismatic crowd of paid affections. Today it's you who has stumbled into the hungry mouth of the wolf, and he happens to be the one to entertain you away from whatever unpleasantries are currently consuming you.

He gently stretches his slender fingers across your shoulder, a feathery touch light enough as to not startle you. You look up and acknowledge his presence, ready to stand up for introductions. His hold on you is firm, letting you know there is no need to leave the comfort of your sofa. "Now then, this isn't a job interview. You don't need to be so formal." He explains with a chuckle. You nod. Embarrassingly enough, your eyes are glued to his face for longer than what you'd consider polite admiration. A waste of good looks is your immediate thought. Surely someone as stunning as him could've worked as a model or actor. You suspect he isn't as enthusiastic to meet you as his voice leads one to believe, so the ability to pretend certainly isn't missing.

One peek at the table next to you, and the answer quickly presents itself. An older woman is inspecting the menu, surrounded by multiple bottles of champagne whose name even you recognize. You doubt the average acting career could provide this amount of luxury. The corners of your lips curl slightly upwards in a pitiful self awareness. Sadly for this guy, you're not a big spender. Whether he, too, is aware of this disappointing fact is impossible to tell. His handsome features remain cheerfully relaxed. "Tell me about yourself. What brings a darling like you here?" He inquires graciously, resting his chin on the back of his hands as he settles before you with an intent gaze.

You narrate your hardship: whether because of your looks or your awkwardness, something impedes you from having acquired a partner; and so the idea of gaining experience through less orthodox means came to fruition. Your host listens carefully, refilling your glass every now and then with a compassionate frown, lips parted in unspoken sympathy. Of course, he understands. Naturally. Once you're finished, he straightens himself in newfound determination: worry not, he will be your coach in love.

Thus begins the unusual partnership. You hadn't expected the man to readily agree to such a ridiculous request. A handful of visits have made it clear to you he's in high demand, most likely one of the top earners. Why would he waste his precious (and otherwise profitable) time with a humble customer like you? Maybe it's bad form to refuse lower paid offers too often, so he's keeping you for balance. You'll never know. His professionalism betrays no hint of annoyance.

You cannot help but marvel at his masterful lying. It becomes quite clear to you why so many people fall helplessly in love with paid hosts. Everything is executed with the utmost care for detail. The loving caress of the cheek he occasionally initiates, seemingly unprompted. The long, ardent stares into your eyes, as you must practice your eye contact. His hot lips brushing against your fingers while he spoils you with diminutives and sickly sweet words of appreciation.

You frequently have to remind yourself that everything is dictated by a contract. A code of conduct meant to be replicated for you and all other clients coming afterwards. How many other poor souls fawn over this alluring devil? You wouldn't want to burden him with an additional customer who forgets boundaries. You know your place too well.

Admirable manners. Frustratingly so. He wishes you'd just give in already and drop the shy act around him. You've caught his interest from the moment he spotted you in that cluttered, crowded room reeking of overpriced alcohol and solitude. Everything about you signaled blindingly clear: you're someone others can easily take advantage of. To think you would've landed right in his hands, to be molded as he pleases. The little sob story about being inexperienced with men, your clumsy attempts to follow along his flirts. Oh, you're just begging to be defiled. Again, and again and again, until there's nothing left of you. Then he'd caringly patch you back together and start anew. His very own corner of innocence.

The indecent daydreams are cut short when you proudly announce, during one of your dates, that you finally feel confident enough to pursue a genuine partner. You have booked a nice hotel room for this occasion; One last gesture of grandeur to show your gratitude for all the advice and love (even though it wasn't genuine). He's sitting on the edge of the plush mattress, dumbfounded, fiddling with the thick, ornate border of the bed runner. Huh? What the hell are you talking about? He's spent all this time getting to know you. What gets you flustered and bothered, what makes you excited, sad, anxious, angry, bored. He taught you how to come out of your shell. Why, so you can go ahead and waste yourself on some fucking idiot?

"My, aren't you eager. You haven't even had your first kiss." He says with a cheeky smile. "I think I can manage-" you want to say, but he quickly interrupts with a curt: "No one likes an amateur kisser". You're immediately silenced. His voice sounds cold, with a hint of anger in it. "I'm sorry, darling love, it's true." He resumes in an entirely different tonality, dragging his words with an eerie kindness attached to them. He tuts a little, turning towards you and patting his knees. There, there, don't look so deflated. If a simple observation like his hurt you this much, how would you handle the much meaner, downright heartless world out there?

Such is reality. Men are cruel and you had the bad luck to be born with a gentle heart. He delicately guides you to sit in his lap, cupping your burning face between his large hands. He knows this expression too well - you're humiliated. And thus, can he truly allow anyone else out there to see you so vulnerable like this? No, this kind of intimacy is reserved for him. You must understand. He has disciplined you to his liking, and simultaneously learned all the nooks and crannies of your being. It's too late to go back to a simple host and client relationship.

"Why don't you practice with me first, love?" He breaks the silence, placing his lips against your forehead in encouragement. You feel a sudden pressure faintly throbbing underneath you. "T-the kiss?" You ask hesitantly, trying to ignore the sensation and squirming in his tightening hold.

"Everything."

[greenorangevioletgrass]

tuesday in the park (a.d.)

pairing: divorced!art x reader

synopsis: your alone time at the park takes an interesting turn when a little girl breaks the quiet, but maybe... her dad is a good company.

warnings: language, smoking, mention of divorce, lily is an adorable lil oblivious cupid, sooo much tension tho, maybe smut in future parts? idk

notes: i am back and pathetic bitch boy art has officially given me a brainrot. this is also very self-indulgent and heavily based on my irl experience (except the fact that it's art, sadly) soooo... enjoy!

✨I do not have a taglist. Please follow @ficsbygreenorangevioletgrass and turn on the notification to get the latest update on my fics✨

City parks are fucking depressing. Especially the industrial type that’s square, and covered in concrete and has, like, four trees. They’re all well-manicured and hung with string lights, but there’s still barely enough greens to call it a park. And to add insult to injury, a Tiffany’s installation art currently sits at the head of the park—a giant diamond ring in a lush velvet box the size of a Range Rover. It’s gaudy as shit, and the massive Aston Martin billboard overhead is an assault to the eyes. You honestly have no idea why you’re sitting here.

Oh, right. It’s like 2PM on a Tuesday afternoon in some downtown office area, so there’s nobody else there. You can just sit and smoke and watch the water spout from the ground in pretty patterns. The steady rhythm of the fountain jets quiets the chaos in your mind.

Inhale. Exhale. As the fountain hisses and ceases, hisses and ceases…

And then suddenly… another pattern.

A pitter-patter. Like little footsteps. Quick moving, and then it stops. Right to your left.

You turn your head and see a little girl sitting right next to you. Her white sneakers look so small next to yours. She pushes a lock of dark ringlets off of her face as she watches the floor fountain in quiet curiosity and awe.

It takes you a moment to realize you still had a cigarette in your hand. You quickly stub it out as far from her as you can. “Uh… hello.” You frown at your own words, but how the fuck do you talk to kids in this situation?!

But the kid looks up and smiles at you politely. “Hello.” she nods and then returns her gaze to the water bursting in canon.

You’re even more confused. She doesn’t even seem deterred by sitting next to a stranger—willingly, at that. “Well, are you… are you alone?” 

“No. With my dad,” she answers, light as a feather.

“Oh, good. Good.” You sigh in relief and look around for any sign of a parent, adult, anyone looking for a missing child. “Where’s your—”

“Lily! There you are!” A man’s voice cuts through the dull noise of the city. You turn around to see him rushing over to the little girl, grimacing apologetically at you. “Sorry. I’m not a negligent father, I swear. I just… turned around and this little monkey’s run off.”

The little girl—Lily, apparently— giggles as her dad throws her a look, gentle but firm. “You said we could watch the water fountains, Daddy!”

“Yeah, but don’t run off like that…” He rolls his eyes, though you notice his sharp jaw twitching with a hidden smile.  And then, leaning into Lily’s ear but still loud enough within your earshot, “And you certainly weren’t supposed to invade this nice lady’s personal space—”

“It’s no trouble. I was just sitting here,” you quickly wave him off.

“Daddy, can I play over there?” Lily points at the streaming water at the center of the park.

The man pulls a face. “I don’t know, Lil—”

“Come on, Daddy…” 

“No way.”

“Just for five minutes. Please?” She bats her eyelashes, and you can immediately tell it’s her father’s Achilles heel. Because as much as you try to stay out of the conversation, you can hear the audible sigh coming from him, followed by,

“Fine. Five minutes, okay?”

The little girl bolts off to the fountains, tiny hands reaching out to the jet streams, testing out how strong it is. Figuring out the fountain pattern and stepping on each jet right as it shuts off, one foot after the other. It makes you wish it was socially acceptable for adults to do that, too. 

“You’re free to sit and watch her from here, if you want.”

He looks at you, like really looks at you for the first time. At your rolled-up button-down, the chain around your neck with a pendant he can’t see under your collar. But mostly at your kind eyes—weathered, witnessed, but somehow not judging.

He pushes his short blond hair out of his face the same way the little girl does, and the similarity almost makes you laugh… if you weren’t so worried about making a fool of yourself in front of this handsome man. “You sure? I… didn’t want to intrude.”

You shake your head softly and scoot over on the steps, allowing him just enough space to sit down.

He notices the stubbed cigarette between your forefinger and middle finger. “You got another one on you?”

It takes you a beat to realize what he’s talking about. “Oh!” You reach for your pack of Camel, and offer it to him, one cigarette stick already pushed out for easier access.

He takes it with a polite smile, but then pauses upon realizing he has no lighter either. “Um, do you mind if I borrow—”

You lean in as he puts it between his lips, one hand cupping the light from the breeze, and his heart stops at how close you are. Close enough to notice the gloss on your lips. Close enough to get a faint whiff of your floral perfume.

(And unbeknownst to him, your heart stutters a little, too, and you hope he doesn’t notice the way you fumble lighting your own cigarette.)

“Thanks, um…” he trails off. 

You tell him your name, and he repeats it almost thoughtfully. His tongue darts out to wet his lips, like he’s chasing the taste of your name as it leaves his mouth.

He nods. “I’m Art.”

He does look like it. The navy blue sweater hangs just right on his broad shoulders, understated but high-quality. The sleeves are rolled up to his elbows, showing a sleek black Piguet around his wrist. A simplicity to complement his refined features. His bone structure is cut like the gods, but the permanent frown etched between his brows, casting a shadow over his deep-set eyes, tells you that he is facing the troubles of man. And the awkward way he’s holding his cigarette makes him look like a boy. Of course, you can’t say any of that to him, so you settle with,

“Nice to meet you, Art.”

He can’t remember the last time somebody said that to him and meant it. And right now, sitting in this concrete park alone, he can see no pretense coming from you. No ass-kissing, no sizing-up, just a genuine kind gesture of a stranger. And it makes him so fucking relieved. 

“So what brings you out here?”

“Work, actually. A meeting,” Art replies somewhat vaguely. He’s not really keen on divulging the details of sponsorship and endorsement deals. Not when you don’t seem to know who he is. “Lily saw the park from the window and insisted we check it out when we’re done.”

“Ah, does she normally tag along with you to work meetings?” You ask with a playful glint, although the unspoken question of his whole situation is well heard. “She should. She looks like a great negotiator. Just saying.”

He chuckles. “Maybe she should. My, uh…” Art stops himself before he could say ‘wife’ because Tashi isn’t that anymore. Not his wife because they aren’t married anymore; not his coach either, because he doesn’t play tennis anymore. “Lily’s mom and I take turns every other week.”

And there it is. Your lips pull up into a soft line, not quite a smile but a gesture of understanding. “Must be tough.”

“Yeah. Yeah, it’s a lot of changes. But she’s doing okay, I think…” Art pauses, “I hope.”

You follow his gaze and look at Lily, who must be playing some kind of Indiana Jones fantasy scenario with the water fountains. Not an ounce of care in the world. “She looks like a tough kid.”

“She is.” Art smiles bittersweetly. “Anyway, you didn’t come here to listen to my sob story. What brings you to this park?”

The air that pulls both of you in releases, and you lean back on your elbows against the concrete. “Oh, I just finished work and I… needed some air.”

“What do you do?”

“I’m an interpreter.”

His eyebrows shoot up in interest. “Like the Nicole Kidman movie?”

“Exactly.” You point your half-cigarette at him, and share a tentative smile with him.

“Do you do, like… high-profile, UN-related assassination investigations, too?”

You chuckle, shaking your head. “It’s not nearly as cool in real life. Most of it’s pretty boring, like contract negotiations and focus group discussions…”

“But the stories you must’ve heard, right? Or do you just… zone out at some point?”

“Sometimes. Sometimes you end up shutting off your brain and go on autopilot.”

“But not today?”

You smile ruefully at him, and he knows the answer. You take a thoughtful puff of your cigarette. “It’s… a bit hard when they’re talking about… how they had to jump off of the ship and swim across the channel in the dead of night, because they would rather die in the open water—a couple of them did— than die working in the fishing vessel…”

“Fuck.”

“And I know it’s not really meant for me—they’re talking to my client sitting next to me. But when they look you in the eyes and speak to you…” you trail off, taking a long drag of your cigarette.

Art takes it as a cue for his cigarette, too, although he notices you tapping the ashes off one, two, three times. “Must be tough.”

You roll your eyes playfully at him for quoting your own words back to you. “Ah well, it pays the bills. Besides, I get to clock out at 2PM on a Tuesday and enjoy this…” you inhale through your teeth disdainfully, “beautiful, brutalist… Soviet-core park.”

He laughs, the real kind of laughter that throws his head back, and it warms your heart enough to laugh, too. “It’s bullshit, isn’t it?”

“It’s bullshit! And what the fuck is that horrendous giant ring doing here?” The two of you cackle over the installation art across the park. “And that billboard… it’s ridiculous.”

Art’s laughter dies down on his lips as he looks up at the billboard in question. The Aston Martin “Game Changers” campaign from last year. Fuck. Even when he’s completely separated from Tashi, her presence still looms over like a panopticon.

You turn to him with a smile still etched on your face, completely oblivious to the storm in his head. “What?”

But he looks ahead, too caught up in the hurricane to hear you. He just… looks up at the billboard, his face darkens.

Oh.

You feel silly for not putting two and two together—you’ve been staring at the billboard mindlessly for a good fifteen minutes, goddammit— so you tread very carefully. “That, uh… Lily’s mom?”

Art looks down on his lap, as if not daring to look at Tashi’s picture. Or at Lily, or at you. “Yeah.”

There’s no right word for it. There’s no coming back from this, nothing he can say can make this better, and he can’t help but kick himself for fucking up. What he is fucking up, he’s not entirely sure. But he’s not ready to end this conversation with you, not on such a weird note.

“I can’t imagine what it must be like…” because you can’t. Losing a spouse is hard enough, but to have it out there in the open…

“It’s tough,” he nods in confirmation, and you smile feebly at his attempt at a callback to your little inside joke. To the moment where things are fine, all things considered. 

If the air ebbed and flowed earlier, it must’ve just… froze now. You don’t even remember the cigarette in your hand until the ash falls onto your hand and you gasp at the sudden heat, putting it out on the ground.

“I’m sorry. I should get out of your hair—”

“Do you wanna get a drink some time?”

The question catches both of you off-guard, eyes blinking at each other in shock. He didn’t think he heard you right, and your mouth seems to work faster than the filter in your brain.

Your face runs hot, and you chuckle sheepishly. “Sorry. You probably don’t wanna hear that—”

“I do.” He’s not sure which question he’s answering. Maybe both? Definitely both.

“Oh! Um…”

And right in that moment, Lily comes padding over with squelching steps in her shoes, completely drenched but over the moon. “Daddy, Daddy, that was so much fun! Can we come back here? I see lights on the floor, and I think the fountain lights up at night!”

Art puts out his cigarette under his shoe, chuckling at his daughter,  “Baby, you’re soaked! Did you try to take a shower there or something?” immediately wringing water out of her hair.

“I’ll take a real shower when we get home.”

“Well, duh. But I don’t want you to catch a cold… come here.” He crosses his arm to grab the hem of his sweater and tug it over his head to put it on his daughter.

The girl looks thoroughly unamused as the clothing item falls halfway down her calves and the sleeves nearly touch the ground. “Daddy, this is ridiculous.”

You grin, and you can’t help but wonder how much of that sass came from Art. “Looks pretty chic to me.”

He nods at you, glad that you’re backing him up. “Thank you.” He then turns to Lily pointedly.

Lily half-smiles at you. “Thank you,” although she still isn’t quite convinced.

“I’m sorry, we really gotta go. But how do I, um…” he trails off. Gosh, he was hoping to do this out of Lily’s sight. Lily’s sight means Tashi’s sight, and he’s not ready for that talk just yet.

“Take my card.” You whip out a neat stainless steel case, and slides out a white-and-blue business card. Your name is printed in a sleek black font, right above ‘Interpreter’ in a smaller case. Your email and phone number follows.

His fingers brush against yours as he takes it, and he prays to God or whoever is up there that he doesn’t give anything away to you or Lily. Not a quirk, not a peep. Just two strangers connecting by chance.

“Thank you.” He nods evenly as he pockets the card, trying to contain the butterflies in his stomach—he’s always thought he was too old for that by now, but maybe… just maybe… “You have a nice day.”

“You, too.” You squint up at him under the sun, and then smile and wave at the little girl. “Bye, Lily.”

She waves at you as Art sweeps her up into his arms, and you don’t let yourself turn all the way around to watch them leave. Instead, with one final look at Art’s “Game Changers” billboard ad in the distance, you grab your pack of Camel and light another cigarette between your lips.

[tookthe-405]

VBS

Chapter 2: Damage gets done ~ hozier (MY LOVE)

DAILY CLICK🍉 DONATE ON

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a/n: again, sorry this took so long, life’s been stressful but I hope y’all like it <33 its long af tho

this is honestly just me messing around with happiness and then destroying it soon 😍

c/w: smut in future chaps!!, religious trauma, internalised homophobia, religious manipulation/abuse, implied abuse by parent

summary: you grew up religious without questions and in summer you would get send to vacation bible school. The camp always felt like prison to you, until a very interesting girl appeared.

7/22/2007 (sunday, week 1)

Readers pov:

10:02 a.m

The faces of the others were frozen as you trudged back to the hostel, which you couldn't blame them for. You don't see two girls with wet clothes here every morning, and the fact that you had to walk past the dining room to get to the stairs didn't exactly help you stay inconspicuous.

You and Ellie lost track of time a bit and were already too late when you noticed that breakfast had already started. The dining room doesn't really have a single door, the room was just completely open with no wall or door that could have protected you from being seen.

Giggles and agitated whispers immediately started as Ellie walked past the large room and down the corridor. Pastor Tobias' eyes pierced into back of your head as you walked past the hall.

Ellie found it all very entertaining and waved to a group of people who greeted her back with a laugh.

You, however, couldn't meet anyone's gaze, not your friends and certainly not Pastor Tobi's.

With your head bowed and your wet hair hitting your red cheek, you quickly fidget past all the spectators.

After 2 days, the events came dry from the lips of the people and you and Ellie could walk through the halls with a little less shame.

Or at least you did.

Ellie didn't think the whole thing was so bad. She said she didn't care and that it was worth it. That you hadn't done anything wrong, and she was right, you hadn't done anything bad.

But guilt was beggingly nibbling at your skin, hoping to be let into your brain where you would make up some fucked up mistake.

The singing of the choir and hazel next to you make it a little harder to think about all this, but not impossible. With your luck, you might dream about it. The whole scene in front of you, is so familiar that it feels like you are timely. The many children of different ages who sing their souls out to be enough.

Some of them are also really good, and some are good and love to sing. But they will probably not get any further than your little congregation, because it was explained to you from an early age that those talents you own are there to serve God and only him.

Acting out of free will would make you feel too guilty.

Your gaze rushes behind a shoulder to Ellie, and even she sings with it. Ellie seems to have made friends with a group of boys and girls a few days ago. She fits in pretty well, everyone looks like they don't feel like being here.

The short-haired girl catches your eyes and winks at you slightly, which makes you grin. She's so inserious, it's to laugh sometimes. With the same grin, she makes a small movement with her fingers and hands that looks as if she is composing something on an invisible piano. You understand that she just wants to tease you and show her a guitar-playing gesture.

"Don't do that!"

The hissing in your ear scares you, and you shake together briefly. After you have stretched your body forward again, and your shoulders feel like wooden boards, you give Hazel an apologetic look.

She unobtrusively holds a finger to her lips instead of telling you to shut up.

But her look is not as angry as she sounded, she admonishes you to stay out of trouble and you have to admit, that has often saved your ass.

When you were smaller, you wanted to try out almost everything, whether it was because of your quick trust in other people or because you just hated yourself too much to have any self respect left, no matter what it was, it almost messe up your life. Or rather your social life in church. And Hazel was like a warning hand that pulled you back again and again, saving yiuin the last moment.

When the piano music ends quietly and slowly, everyone sits down again, and a squeak sounds through the room. The piano that is played on every morning is old, but still sounds quite good. You could play all the hillsong songs and the old ones of your grandparents with your eyes closed if you had to, but Tanja does a good alternative job for you.

Your mother liked it so much, when the piano was played in the service that she thought it would be all the more beautiful if her daughter sat up there.

"Good morning everyone"

The older pastor leans against his narrow pedestal with the large cross on front and looks slowly through the rows.

"Personally, I find that 2 days are enough to get used to a life in nature and among themselves with God" he sighs tired for a short time as if he is already disappointed about something.

"Tomorrow you will go to the city with your assigned room partners and grou leaders and spread God's word”

Groaning resounds around in the room, most of pre teens who would rather do anything else than talk to strangers in the summer heat. Your group also has less desire, but this happens here every year like a kind of tradition, so you've been preparing for it.

"Not only that! The kitchen also prepares candied apples, which you can then all hand out nicely together!"

That was new. However, you understand the purpose behind it, you would also like it more to sit and listen here with a candied apple. In recent years, so many people have slammed the door in front of your nose that a few apples can't be bad.

"Hey girls" Louisa's voice makes you all look over your shoulder.

She kneels in front of you to be able to whisper better and more inconspicuously.

"You have kitchen duty this afternoon, please don't forget it and don't plan anything"

you all nod in Union.

"fuck"

"Kate!" Admonished hazel.

"What? It always takes like what? 2 hours?-"

"2 hours and 46 minutes" you improve her.

The four girls look at you confused.

"I stopped time last year out of boredom"

hazel grins at you, you twist your eyes but there is also a soft smile on your lips. You know exactly what's going through her head.

'That's so weird but just too sweet'

"I can't even remember the last time" murmurs naveah dreamy, her gaze rigidly on the ceiling.

"Probably because it was so traumatic that your brain simply deleted it for you" Kate dramatically her index finger against her head.

"It wasn't so bad, Kate exaggerates."

"I don't"

"my legs hurt all day"

Kate's and Mia's voices roll over and you smile. Hazel looks at you questioningly. You gambled with your shoulders.

"2 hours and 46 minutes Hazel..."

the girl shakes her head and her brown curls fall around her face a few times. "I thought it was okay"

Kate snorts. "Haze you would walk around in underwear in the snow if it happened in the name of the church."

"You wouldn’t?

11:38 a.m (sunday, week 1)

Three. You got 3 soccer balls shot in your face within 1 hour. You're not surprised that one of them was from Caleb, but the other two were shot by the same pretty black-haired girl, and it didn't look like she was sorry.

"What the…"

You stare at her and Caleb's backs during the water break and hope that it was just a coincidence, even if deep down you know that it wasn´t.

"Does he still not like you?" Naveah, sweating, picks up her water bottle while her eyes wander from time to time between you and Caleb.

You shrug, now more focused on Caleb fooling around with some guys.

The air in the gym was incredibly thick and almost unbearable, but the leaders still talked you into a soccer match. It was more or less Hazel's decision anyway and you guys do everything she does. The high windows let in the warm sun, whose heat wasn't particularly welcome right now.

The teams are mixed, meaning there are boys and girls on the same teams, aged 16 to 18. There weren't many, but enough to at least form 2 fair groups with even a few substitutions on the bench.

Ellie is nowhere to be seen , which doesn't surprise you, you regret ever saying yes to this, but you miss her in the disgusting, sweaty, narrow air. Her presence and her funny jokes would have been the only thing that could have made this a little less shitty.

"What's the deal with him anyway?" Naveah doesn't seem to let this go.

"We just don't like each other, that's just how it is sometimes."

She frowns.

"I don't think you can hate each other so much without a reason."

"I don't hate Caleb, I don't really care about him"

Naveah lets out a snort.

"Damn didn't know you could be a little bitchy too"

Caleb turns briefly in your direction and you take that as a sign to turn away and finally sit down for the next 8 minutes. Naveah does the same.

“I think everyone can be a little bitchy, you can’t like everyone and everything”

“Jesus could”

“Well im not Jesus”

she stretches her legs out next to you and sighs deeply.

"I know, even if this doesn't sound good, I sometimes find the principle of the church really fucked up. I try to love everyone, even people who do bad things to me, but it doesn't always work."

You're very surprised that she comes to you with this, but now that she did, you want to give her the best comfort you can.

"That's okay, naveah. We're neither God nor Jesus, we can do some things and we can't do some other. And we find a lot of things difficult. So Hate who you want"

naveah laughs and then becomes creepily serious again.

"Thanks, since you became friends with Ellie, you seem more relaxed to me."

Thinking, you try to remember your life before Ellie, but you can't. Before that everything was much more colorless, it didn't make as much sense as it does now.

"yes, I guess"

"no matter what Hazel says, you're right, Ellie isn't bad. How can a bad person make someone else this happy?"

12:24 p.m (sunday, week 1)

You haven't heard from Ellie all morning. It was almost as if she had completely disappeared, and if you're honest, you've had the feeling for a while that one day, she would just run away from here.

You wouldn´t hold it against her, but you would still feel dejected and left behind.

naveah and you talk a lot more after the game, she's more like you than you thought and you think she's good company. She understands your humor and you don't feel stupid or judged after every sentence you say.

It often happens to you that you wish for a world and reality in which it was always so easy to live. Where not every breath you take feels wasted.

You try very hard not to think about Caleb or your siblings back home. Homesickness seemed to catch up with you sooner or later anyway, but you didn't expect it to happen so quickly.

The summer heat was bearable, but it was still uncomfortable, so you spent most of your time indoors. Shortly after 12, Naveah suggested playing a few rounds of Uno with you, and since there was nothing better to do, you agreed.

"My father taught me uno, I can still remember that"

there is a very faint smile in her voice that touches your ears. She sounded a bit sad, as if she´s mourning that time of her life.

"I don't know your father at all"

you put a wish card on top of the pile of other cards. One round probably turned into a few.

"He's not really a christian, sometimes I think that's why he is the way he is"

"What do you mean?"

"He has a lot of emotions, he doesn't know what to do with them."

Christian parents are often very strict, as there are many rules in both parenting and the Bible that you have to follow. But since Naveah is talking about her atheist father, you don't really have a picture of what she really means, both your parents are religious.

"I don't understand exactly what you mean naveah…"

half of your brain is focused on the girl in front of you and the other half on the cards on the floor. Naveah moved around a little to sit down a little more comfortably, but this position didn´t seemed to free her from the emotional discomfort.

"Sometimes he doesn't know where to put all the anger. My mother doesn't help much with that either. Both of them know how to provoke each other, but only one of them knows how to deal with feelings."

"I still don't know what you mean? How does that affect you and your fathers relationship?"

It seems absurd to you how you talk about something like that while you're playing Uno, but if that's what she needs.

"Girls, lunch is ready and then you have to rinse off."

Louisa's voice flashes through the room and everyone moves quickly, but you make a mental note to talk to her about it later. You walk at a slow pace down the hallway and the other girls just rush past you. You remember how easy everything seemed to you at that age.

On the second floor you meet Jonathan.

“Hey you got wash up duity, don’t you?”

A dramatic groan leaves your mouth and you nod.

Joanthan is nice. You know his parents very well and you both grew up together as often as you saw each other at school and he was one of the only boys who wasn't interested in bullying girl for fun.

"Are you in the same room with Samuel?"

“Samuel and Austin, luckily”

You nod in understanding and see your group of girls whizzing past you out of the corner of your eye. Hazel turns to you briefly and gives you that grin and suddenly you know exactly what's going on here. An unpleasant feeling spreads through you and you try hard to ignore it.

"yeah… it's nice that you're still friends"

"I can't believe how long I've been able to put up with these two"

You giggle a little bit uncomfortable and think about the many pranks the three boys have pulled off. Both here in the camp and at school.

“Have you planned any new pranks?”

"hmm I don't know if I can tell you that" Jonathan grins at you.

"Well, if I hear something about a prank, I know who it was."

He shrugs and chuckles softly.

"Do you know what you're planning to do after the summer holidays? Now that we've finished school." you ask him.

He doesn't seem so sure about his answer.

"Not really, I don't know yet whether I want to stay here or go further away. Samuel wants to study in new york, I feel a bit left behind"

left behind. You know the fear of that as well.

"No matter what you decide, you have a future everywhere, time goes by either way"

he smiles at you and combs a few thick curls out of his face. You notice that he's looking at you longer than necessary.

"Hey would you like-" "Jesus where are they?"

You try strenuously to find Hazel's brown curls over the many people's heads, but they are nowhere to be seen.

"Sorry Jonathan, I have to find the others before they can no longer manage to save a seat for me."

you lie coldly to his face.

Without any further words, you quickly march through the many groups. You can feel his confused look burning at your spine, but whatever he wanted wasn't what you wanted.

You notice two things in the dining room.

Luckily Hazel secured a spot for you and Ellie is talking to the girl who shot a fucking ball at you. Twice.

Ellie's face seemed neutral, she was smiling slightly.

Jealousy overcomes you and you´re embarrassed at how quickly and unexpectedly it happens. Your cheeks redden and you feel very immature, like in middle school when you were mad that Hazel had other friends besides you.

You sit down in silence next to Hazel, who has already placed a plate at your place. Some pureed vegetable soup that you have to force down.

"What did Jonathan want?" Kate leans forward eagerly.

Unexpectedly, Jonathan is a good distraction for once.

"You're being so childish"

"Come on, we're just curious"

That's how it was always with the boys. No matter what people say, Christian girls are obsessed with boys, no matter how much the feeling of guilt trys to destroy that. For many, boys even come before God in terms of interest.

Not necessarily boys, but more the romance itself. The acceptance and recognition of being enough for a man.

Your eyes flick to Ellie, who is still talking to her about something seemingly funny. Of course you don't care.

“He didn’t want anything from me and even if he did it i would not care.”

1:14 p.m (sunday, week 1)

You are just waiting to be let into the kitchen. It's nothing unusual to take on kitchen duty in camp. It's a kind of thank you from the church to the kitchen for cooking warm food every day. Every girl's room gets a turn twice a year. After the girls' rooms have all been through to the second time, there are two more boys' rooms so that it doesn't get unfair. Ironic isn´ it?

Every year it's the same, every year you can hear the boys crying and complaining when they're the ones who have to do it this year. Now was your day where you have to wash 200 dishes. The staff and managers involved.

Ellie isn't here yet. She can't really have forgotten it, Louisa reminded her not to do anything between 1 and 3 p.m. this morning.

"Okay girls, then let's get to work."

Lousia opens the door to the kitchen a little too enthusiastically with her key and everyone follows her limply. It's the same place with the same number of dirty dishes.

Washing the dishes yourself isn't that bad for you, it's the fact that this kitchen is so damn dark.

For some reason there are only 3 windows in the white, old room. The tiles on the floor are already old and a few edges have broken off, the potholes were noticeable on the sole of your slippers. It still smells like soup and detergent and you wonder who would want to spend hours doing something like that.

“Here” Hazel hands you gloves and an apron.

"Sorry I'm late" Ellie stands in the doorway, panting, looking for Lousia's gaze, but it still stays on you.

"Hey" she smiles at you… shyly?

You smile back and pull the apron over your head.

"Ellie… please don't let this happen again."

“I promise it won´t”

Hazel also hands her the things and Ellie doesn’t hesitate for a second. You're a little surprised that she showed up at all, but she seems a bit inergic to you.

"Okay, we'll divide into 3 groups and one will rinse while the other dries and puts thw dishes away," you almost order the others.

You grew up with a very tidy mother and a big sister, you know a lot about tidying up and organization. That's why no one hesitates and does what you said.

"I wanted to talk to you all day"

Ellie's rough voice loops into your right ear and you quickly grab the dishes and a sponge as a distraction and start to rinse.

"I'll rinse you dry"

Ellie seems surprised to have to pick up a plate but does as you say.

"Everything okay?"

What bothers you is how easy it is for her to read you.

“Yes, everything is perfect”

“It doesn’t seem like it?”

"That's your self Ellie?"

"Did anything happen?"

"No"

"Did I do something?"

"Ellie!"

You say her name a little loudly and Mia, who is standing across from you, turns to you briefly and smiles encouragingly at you.

No, that is completely wrong. You shouldn't be mad at Ellie, you should stand by her, she could be in distress or something.

You direct your gaze again, an embarrassing blush on your face.

As strange as it sounds, Ellie really looks beautiful in an apron. Her soft curves, her forearms that show off her fair, freckled skin and the black ink of her tattoo. She always has to pull up her sleeves no matter what she does.

"I just had a bad day okay?"

You take the next plate.

"Her name is Ruth"

Ruth. you imagine how the name would feel on your tongue, how it would taste. How it would taste on Ellie's tongue. Shaking, you banish the thought because the thought of a sentence where both Ellie’s tongue and taste appear, seems too dangerous to you.

"I didn't ask that"

"You didn't have to"

Nobody speaks for 10 minutes, there is complete silence. Your thoughts rush from one corner of your brain to the other. You didn't want to argue with her, you didn't want to be anything other than hers.

soon you realize that you have no right to be angry with Ellie. She can talk to whoever she wants. Strangely enough, it also seemed to make a certain amount of sense for Ellie that you were angry.

You Wonder why.

"I'm sorry," she murmurs next to you, a wet glass in her hand.

"You don't have to be, you didn't do anything, Ellie."

Your anger subsided, and your longing for Ellie's soft, warm voice grew.

"I haven't paid any attention to you all day."

"You don't have to-"

"But I want to. As often as I can."

Sometimes you think that she doesn't even notice what she's actually saying to you. That she's in a trance and doesn't even notice what's falling over her lips. How vulgar her allusions are, and how good they feel.

You turn around briefly, but no one seems to have heard.

"It's okay, don't worry about it now."

"I really am sorry though." Her hand rests gently on your back, but doesn't quite touch you. it is the gesture itself that counts here, but you can't help but think of her soft skin, of her many freckles that are certainly not only on her face.

"I know. Me too, I shouldn't have acted around like that"

her face shows how happy she was with the situation and you smiled too.

"I like your hair. It's really pretty braided" she whispers

her hands sadly turn back to the dishes and your gaze remains stuck to her for a while. But how could you not? who would ever want to look away from her?

"what did you want to tell me?" you ask her.

"how do you know that I want to tell you something?"

"you get really fidgety when you want to talk about something"

you notice so many things about her. how her leg fidgets slightly, how she keeps having to change her position and shifts her hips from left to right, how she bites her cheek, sometimes too hard.

"um... I had an idea"

"Ellie, no-"

"I haven't said anything yet"

the running water covers your voices, luckily, and no one notices.

"We're handing out these apples tomorrow and I thought to myself-"

you give her another glass and look into her soul.

"That's stupid and we're not 10 anymore, Ellie, what makes you think of something like that?"

Ellie takes the glass slowly and carefully, not breaking eye contact with you. Her eyes look hurt.

"Please explain it to me" you try to make your voice softer, more trustworthy.

"I don't want to be here. You don't understand, you're here every year and people love you. There's something wrong with me and I'm reminded of it every fucking day, I just want to show him what it's like to be treated like that"

you could hear the tears in her voice. You noticed early on with your brother that some people just don't cry, or at least don't like to. They express their tears differently, with Ellie it's her voice.

Her voice shows how she's feeling just as clearly as tears would have.

The kitchen is divided into two compartments. One is where they cook and the other is where they put the dirty dishes and clean them.

"How are we even supposed to get into the kitchen? And how do we know that they haven't already put the glaze on the apples? We don't know anything, Ellie-"

"Jesse's mother is volunteering to help in the kitchen. He said that he needs to help his mother to candy the apples this evening. But before that we can make a few changes."

Your mouth is slightly open. She has really thought this through. You hand Ellie another glass and stare at the door at the end of the room. No chance of her just getting in there. Louisa is a very nice manager but even that wouldn't gat an approve of her.

"How are we even supposed to get in there?"

CLINGGG

a high, loud noise bounces around in the air and you flinch so much that it hurts.

"fuck"

"oops" Ellie grins at you slightly after she has dropped the glass, you gave her to dry, on the floor.

"I'm so sorry, god I'm so clumsy"

Ellie gives you a whole scene, in which you don't have to do anything but hold back a laugh.

"Louisa, forgive me, it just fell out of my hand"

the other girls have to hold back a giggle too, even Hazel.

Ellie's high, dramatic voice sounded bad like a dying cat, but once again you were impressed by how daring she is.

"Yeah, yeah Ellie, clean that up. The broom is in the storage room"

Louisa presses the many keys into Ellie's hand and doesn't seem at all surprised.

"Thank you very much sister" for a moment you thought she was bowing.

„we’re not catholic Ellie-“

„But Mrs. I don't know where the storage rooms are"

„And I’m not married“ Louisa sighs

"Shit Ellie, I'm kinda enjoying this"

Kate grins at her and Ellie winks as Louisa gives Kate a warning look.

Ellie puts a strong, secure arm around you.

“Please accompany her”

Louisa waves her hands in the air between you two

“Sure” you reply like a robot

Ellie's arm pulls you towards the exit door and almost slams it behind you.

"first we ruin the glaze, then we can get the broom from wherever that was"

"in the storage room"

"whatever"

There are two doors to the kitchen. One that is in the washing up room and connects the two rooms and another that leads directly to the kitchen. The other entrance can be taken through the dining hall, and that's where you headed.

"if the pastor sees us, we're dead, Ellie"

you walk quickly but are still careful when you go around corners.

"I know, I think he wants to hang me on a scarecrow, I had a dream about that recently-"

you grab her arm and shove her back behind a safe corner.

"phillip"

"who the fuck is Phillip"

you press Ellie lightly against the wall because you are sure that sometimes she can't control her body properly. you peek around the corner slightly and see the orange hair.

"He's like the pastor's right-hand man, his best friend is also his roommate and his assistant."

"Pastors can have roommates?"

The orange spot at the end of the hallway slowly disappears like the light of a car on a dark night. This time you go first and Ellie follows you like a dog, she is also much quieter.

You feel 6 years younger and you like doing something you've never dared to do. Otherwise it was always the boys who played pranks and even though you never admitted it, you were always jealous.

Jealous of the freedom to behave like an asshole and not face any consequences. You wanted to have that laugh, that bond of having done something wrong together and to experience the big drama afterwards. To be praised for having done it.

"Shit, you like this, don't you?"

How can she read you so well?

"No!"

When you get to the door you stare at her knowingly.

"Yes you do, you're not as good as you always act doll. And I mean that in the best way possible"

"You're full of shit Ellie"

you let her pass you and the green eyed girl hastily tries to find the key.

"hey" you calmly touch her quick hands.

"calm down. don't stress Ellie"

her cheeks redden and her hands slow down.

"i really can't find it. fuck do you even have the key to the kitchen as a group leader?"

out of instinct you pull the door handle to use the key and the door opens.

"That was easier than i thought-"

Ellie puts the keys in her back pocket and carefully sticks her head into the kitchen. you keep watch so that no one walks by and tells on you. you quickly scurry after Ellie into the empty, warm room and smell the sweet air of the apples.

"the door has a fucking window" Ellie whispers in your ear and points at the door from where your friends are cleaning dirty dishes, the door that leads to Louisa who Is waiting for her keys.

goosebumps spread across your arms and legs and you are not sure if it is where Ellie is or the chance of being thrown out of the camp.

as you stand in front of the big pot you both breathe in out of reflex.

"It smells good, I even feel a little bad about ruining it"

Ellie watches the bubbling bubbles a little dreamily.

"Isn´t that actually vandalism?"

you ask thoughtfully.

Ellie almost laughs out loud and puts her hand over her mouth. You grab her arm and press even harder against her mouth so that she is really quiet.

"No, that isn't really vandalism oh my god you are innocent"

"Wow thanks Ellie, it was so enlightening"

you spend a while looking in the kitchen for something that might taste good and after a while Ellie finds vinegar that is probably decades old.

"that is so disgusting, remind me not to eat any of it"

Ellie's look confirms that somehow you'll have to eat it anyway.

"it will noticeable if we don't eat anything, just a small bite"

"Ellie what the fuck" you massage your temples with your thumb and watch her open the vinegar.

"not too much, okay?"

"yeah yeah"

In the end she used almost half the bottle to make it really gross. for an "extra reaction" she said. In the end you almost got caught by the pastor's right hand. In the end Ellie held your hand for exactly 4 seconds.

It was impressive how those 4 seconds stayed in your head for hours.

INTERACT WITH ONE OF THE LINKS UP THERE

Please post and repost a lot about Palestine especially right now. The videos shock me to my core and are really disturbing but people live these lives, these are children of someone. Please take your focus on the people in Palestine who are going thru hell. Help where you can

I really hope you liked this chapter, I will upload more after focusing more about palestine so it might take a while! Btw SO SORRY ITS THAT LONG

Taglist: @elliewilliamgfooc @bready101 @a-little-bit-of-everybody @vqxen @hersuniverse @nelzooo @shiimer @bellaramseysgirlfriend @sonthingwithl @vi0lentb3rry @elliewilliamsblunt @be3flow3r @adelaide013 @abbysbraids @mourningdovee

[nogenderbee]

hii, may I request akito, toya, tsukasa and rui x reader getting caught kissing by their parents please? (char parents)

Hello! Of course you can ^^ (also Rui's and maybe Tsukasa's parents may be a little oc) but anyway, I hope you enjoy!

Akito, Toya, Tsukasa, Rui getting caught by their parents

Tag List: @alicewinterway18 - come get your future star!

You had your loving time with your partner but unexpectedly their parents came in, in the worst moment possible...

⊱ Akito and you often had dates at his place, especially if he has whole house for himself

⊱ and today was one of these days! Although it was weekend his parents had something to do and his sister was hanging out with her friends, do you and your boyfriend decided to have s little date at his place

⊱ now you were cuddled into each other arms, spoiling another one in kisses from time to time

⊱ that's why it wasn't a surprise for you when he gave you romantic kiss, what surprised you though was his father who suddenly entered his room

"Akito, do your best bonów where coffee bean are-?"

"Top shelf, Ena put them there. Now can you leave us alone?"

⊱ to this day you didn't knew he could talk faster than he raps

"Don't be so aggressive, Akito. Now have fun you two, goodbye."

⊱ after his father left, Akito was obviously pissed at his father for ruining your sweet moment, so he may just be a little more protective today

⊱ Toya isn't the type of lover to just start whole make-out session with you, instead he usually gives you a little smooches whenever he feels like it

⊱ now you had one if your dates at your boyfriend's place where you just read some books he recommended you and enjoy each other company

⊱ he just finished reading a chapter in his book and decided to celebrate it by giving you a surprise kiss but in middle of his actions, his father suddenly came into his room

"Toya, I heard that today you received your test results-"

⊱ in this very moment your boyfriend was quick to stop his actions, he knew he won't be able the explain it well so he decided to act like nothing happened

"Yes, I got 100% so I assure you, you don't have anything to worry about."

"That's good. I have to go on work meeting now, so just behave."

⊱ in the end, you got whole house for yourselves do both of you agreed embarrassment was totally worth it, and it was funny to see how after his father left, Toya was blushing like z crazy, barely being able to focus back on his book

⊱ you and Tsukasa of you decided to come back to his place after your amusement park date so you could just cuddle and kiss a little more

⊱ when you came to his house, there was only Saki and she was practicing play on her keyboard

⊱ not even a second after entering your boyfriend's room and he was cuddled into you

⊱ by now he was already spoiling you with kisses, so a kiss here and there was normal for you at this point, but none of you expected his mom to come into his room

"Hello, I heard that you invited you partner so would you like some cookies-?"

⊱ by now Tsukasa was frozen, he only stopped kissing you and slightly backed away from you with tomato face

"Y-Yes, thank you mom..."

"I'll go bake some then. You have your fun, kids."

⊱ after his mom left he went back to cuddling you but he didn't started kissing you again immediately because of hiw emberrassed he was

⊱ his emberrasment doesn't last for long tho. A minute passes by and he's back to being affectionate with you

⊱ you often kept Rui company when he was working on his inventions, both so he won't be lonely and to get some affection from your boyfriend

⊱ today he had whole house for himself again so of course you visited him and this time he didn't worked on any of his inventions, instead all his attention was ok you

⊱ so now the two of you were laying on his bed, cuddled into each other, your boyfriend may not be the type to spoil you with kisses but he certainly did you more passionate ones from time to time

⊱ and meanwhile one of those passionate kisses had place, his mom came in

"Rui, neighbors are complaining about your inventions again-."

⊱ you certainly didn't expected this situation the fluster Rui but it did, and it certainly was beautiful view, but he did backed away and tried to act like nothing happened

"Ah, I s-sorry! I will work on that later then!"

"I hope so. And next time tell me when you invite someone..."

⊱ even tho he was emberrassed, he quickly returned to cuddling with you, but it may take him a while to go back to kissing you...

❉⊱•═•⊰❉⊱•═•⊰❉⊱•═•⊰❉⊱•═•⊰❉⊱•═•⊰❉⊱•═•⊰❉

[pansy-picnics]

No idea if they would since they all live in a castle but how do you think the uknighted parents each would deal with empty nest syndrome?

AUDJSJSD NGL I’VE KINDA BEEN HOPING FOR A QUESTION LIKE THIS BC!! they DO. and they are NOT good at it. AT ALL.

ukd are very adamant on giving their kids the freedom they never had growing up, so as long as they’re managing their own duties they’re basically free to do whatever (though eugene can be a Little overprotective sometimes he means well). of course bc ilmari’s adopted and isn’t of any royal blood they end up being the first to leave the nest… i’ve already discussed that vaguely here, so this time i’m gonna talk more abt ryder!!

being the eldest of the twins ryder is technically supposed to take on the throne to corona, and people have a LOT of high expectations from him, especially other nobles/those who were….less than pleased with rapunzel’s approach to ruling. he’s basically seen as the “light” of corona and has been held on a pedestal since he was very young, which leads him to repress himself and puts a lot of strain on his relationships for many years- especially with alina who’s often left in his shadow (and he doesn’t mind it per se!!! but he does feel like her life is pretty directionless, and she’s always been rather dependent on ryder bc of it).

all this to say, eventually on their 18th birthday everything boils over and leads to a nasty fight between the twins. they both kinda realize that they need to grow up and branch out in their own ways- and ryder in particular realizes that he rlly just needs to get Away for a while. so going to help edmund in the dark kingdom seems like a pretty good way to gain some new perspectives!!

after all the pressure she was under herself, rapunzel understands this more than anything…..but that doesn’t make it any easier for her (or cass and eugene, for that matter) to accept. :’3

idk if any of you guys watched steven universe future, but i think they’d all be like this final scene like. ALMOST WORD FOR WORD LMFAO

in fact as soon as ryder even suggests the idea to rapunzel shes awkwardly slipping out of their painting session and running to cass and eugene in TEARS and they cry for a good 3 hours but obviously they want to be SUPPORTIVE and STRONG for their BOY!!! so they pull themselves together and when he brings it up again at dinner they’re like. “omg thats great!!! ^_^” and ryder is just like ?????????

and ryders almost a little hurt that they seem so unfazed so he tries to prod them like. Aren’t you guys upset. but they don’t budge. and so obviously right at the end as he’s saying goodbye to everyone and they’re STILL nonchalant abt it he just bursts into tears like “WHY AREN’T YOU GUYS SAD IM LEAVING :(“ and IMMEDIATELY the three of them all jsut run to him BAWLING

ryder rlly enjoys his time in the dark kingdom actually. obviously edmund and the brotherhood have a Lot of flaws in their approach to ruling….but that’s not rlly what ryder needs anyways. i think they’re very goal oriented and focused on what they can do as a unit rather than what other people think of them, and that’s a lesson ryder definitely needs to learn. not to mention he brings a lot of color to the place (both in a literal and metaphorical sense).

alina pretty much stays in corona tho…which her parents certainly aren’t complaining about. i think he really needs some time to stand up and take on more responsibility without ryder stepping in for him. the twins wont be taking on the thrones anytime soon, but i think when they do, they’ll end up switching- so ryder will be the king of the dark kingdom, and alina will take on the role as queen of corona. alina’s always had deeper ties to her kingdom than ryder did…not to his fault, but the pressure he’s had put on him just made it hard for him to focus on the things that Mattered, yk? he’s ended up being very stuck in his status, while alina has been a lot more down to earth and has always felt a closer connection to the public, if that makes sense… :3

but ryder and ilmari still visit all the time, and ilmari will take over the library one day too…like, raps, cass and eugene haven’t been Perfect parents by any means, but they’ve never failed to make sure their kids know just how strong, capable and loved they are. even though it hurts to see them go (and poor alina definitely has to deal with their theatrics and coddling for YEARS while her older siblings are gone), it’s very clear that no matter where they go, their kids will always know their home is with them, yk??? they love their parents so much and it just makes me so emo😭😭😭

additionally, i think uknighted dream kind of do some equivalent of fostering long after their own kiddos leave the nest… the three of them do a lot of community work, they have a lot of programs instilled for struggling families and kids alike. they end up helping pretty closely with a lot of the orphanages, not only with funding but also by putting in their own work. they visit a lot, come to tons of events…they end up forming a lot of bonds with the kids individually, or occasionally take them in when there isn’t anywhere else for them to go.

sometimes they know these kids for years, sometimes only for a few weeks…but they always try to stay in contact with them regardless. and even when that isn’t possible, they never forget about any of the kids they’ve met….so by the time they’re all old and grey, they basically have hundreds of pseudo-kids and grandkids all across the seven kingdoms, and in a way, their nest never really feels completely empty 🥹🫶

[lollytea]

hunter baby fever haver so true. guy who is mentally furnishing a nursery before even having his own place. baby name book addict. hes comparing & crossreferencing BI & earth names as soon as children start to be a possibility

Fr I don't think he even particularly cared about kids at all until a certain point. Like his lukewarm reaction to little Philip in Hollow Mind, before he actually realized who he was? He was all like "Hm. Yes. That certainly is. A Child."

But then he starts his apprenticeship under Dell and suddenly he's exposed to kids every day. And he's put into situations where he needs to talk to them and understand them because it helps with the palisman carving process. And he was pretty awkward at first cuz he has barely had any interaction with children before this (King was the only child he knew, who happens to be very mature for his age) and kids are weird and bizarre and unpredictable and Hunter is a little out of his depth. But he gradually get accustomed to it and even warms up to being around them, even finding them endearing. So at that point he's like "Hmmm....maybe....maybe I'd like kids one day. Maybe....."

But then, but then, but THEN!!! But then he's at work one day and somebody lets him hold their baby and its all fucking over for him. It awakens the beast. He's not normal anymore. How can he possibly be normal??? How??? How can he continue to exist and live an indifferent life when babies are so fucking SMALL?????? WHAT THE FUCK!!!!!!! And then it just gets worse and worse and worse over time. He gets more and more comfortable with kids. He holds more babies. Now he's just insane about it.

And the thing is. Hunter knows he and Willow are too young for a baby. He knows neither are emotionally mature enough. He knows they still have so much growing up to do. He KNOWS okay he knows. So he's not begging for a baby. He has no intention of trying to have a baby right now. But that doesn't stop him from being in AGONY over the fact that it's gonna be several years before he can have a baby. His primal instincts are like. WANNA HOLD BABY!!! WANNA SQUISH BABY!!!! WANNA SMOOCH BABY!!!!!

Man is sighing wistfully over little baby clothes at the market and Willow's kicking herself for leaving him unattended cuz now he's gonna be in one of those moods tonight where he's whispering potential baby names in her ear when they're cuddling and she's had ENOUGH of it. She already wakes up every morning to twelve video links from Hunter of toddlers eating lemons and making funny faces or some shit because its usually in the middle of the night when his fever is the most potent.

Willow wants kids one day too. But she's also in very deep in her Flyer Derby thing. So while Hunter's idea of having children is the aftermath, Willow's mind immediately goes to the pregnancy part. And like. She has no intention of taking a pause from her athlete life yet. She's thriving.

Tho in fairness she does think it's kinda funny just how much of a menace Hunter is over this. He's just. Listen. If Hunter was never supposed to be a father, fate wouldn't land him with so many hobbies that could be utilized for future fatherhood.

An avid bookworm with an insanitable curiosity? He's 19 years old and reading parenting books for fun.

A tailor? He can sew, knit and embroider. He can MAKE little baby hats and mittens and booties and blankets. He'd probably be so excited to do so actually.

Woodcarver? He can build little wooden baby toys. He can make a mobile with little dangling palismen. He can build the goddamn crib itself and carve patterns into it of all of his and Willow's favourite flowers.

Like. He's spent a decade preparing. He's gonna be so ready when the time comes. But also you know that when the time DOES finally come and Willow tells him the exciting news, Hunter's euphoric celebration lasts for a total of four and a half minutes before he's like "Oh Titan....oh Titan, Willow, what if I'm a horrible father?"

He's a mess of a man.

[chiiyuuvv]

Hey~

I was wondering if you'd be able to write how xiker's members would react to y/n being insecure about being very chubby/ very slim (still healthy tho) to the point where y/n would want to change herself (but because she's insecure about how others see her and not because she really want's to) and how the boy's would comfort her, what they'd do etc.

You can choose whether you'd like to do it as a headcanon, imagine or anything else!

Thank you!💚🦊

WHEN YOU THINK YOU'RE OVERWEIGHT

• PAIRING — bf!xikers x gn reader (uses some she)

• GENRE — comfort, fluff, i dont think i implied the angst, comfort, comfort, comfort

• WORD COUNT — 758

• AUTHOR'S NOTE — i am so, so, so sorry about the long wait. True was, me and my team had no idea what to write 😭 but after looking up some coping skills, we got to writing. I just wanna say that you are beautiful just the way you are, fuck other people. And if you dont believe me, xikers certainly will ♡

MASTERLIST! – JOIN THE TAGLIST!

MINJAE ☆

Minjae could see on your phone various workout methods that guarantees losing lots of weight in 2 weeks or so

Was a little confused on why you were so interested in that so he decided to comfort you

It broke his heart when you kept calling yourself fat and chubby bc what?? No you arent

And since he knew the workout methods and supplements were a scam, he suggested that you worked out with him

Praises every little thing you do with a big hug and kiss ♡

JUNMIN ☆

Junmin felt a little chubby when he was growing up so he understood how you felt

After researching, he found that setting small goals really helps your mental being

So he decided to do just that

This week, you should at least eat a apple everyday

Next week, you would go for a 30 minute walk

Does everything with you so you dont have to feel alone ♡

SUMIN ☆

He'd be all ears

Hes kinda like minjae too; his baby?? Feeling fat???

But would still let you rant everything out without him interrupting

Wipes away your tears if you start crying

And when you're done, he would go on a rant about how beautiful you are, and even though you dont feel this way right now, you will feel this way in the future ♡

JINSIK  ☆

As soon as you open up to him, hes gone

Then you hear a big crash

Throws away (stomps and slams) your bathroom scale

Along with anything else that triggers you

Then would go on a long rant about how you shouldnt compare yourself to others ♡

HYUNWOO ☆

You told him when you thought he was sleeping because it would be too hard telling him when hes awake

Immediately sits up when you fall asleep, his heart breaking as he rubs your back

And then bolts out of the bed

Spends the next 30 minutes placing sticky notes in random places for you to find, using affirmations like "youre so pretty" or "you are worth it"

And when you see it the next morning you almost break down, hyunwoo restating the note over and over ♡

JUNGHOON ☆

Junghoon feels like hes not good at using his words and would accidentally offend you

So he creates a playlist

You know those body worship songs like i love my body by hwasa or any meghan trainor song?

Hes got them all in one playlist for you to listen too

And he even sings along ♡

SEEUN ☆

Seeun knew you werent one for exercising, so why not some yunmy healthy food to eat?

He knows hes not the best at cooking but he will try

And if not he'd recruit another member

Wont force you to eat all the vegetables but once he does figure out what healthy foods you like to eat. Its over

For dessert, he would hand feed you some fresh fruits ♡

YUJUN ☆

"What, no you arent." Would be yujuns first words but he knows words dont matter actions do

So with lots of kisses, he would drag you to the bathroom

Makes up a self care plan for you to do everyday, teaching you to love your body just like how he loves you

Speaking of love, he looks at you with so much love in his eyes, you feel like melting

And if you let him, he would kiss every part of your body, and pressing extra ones in the places you feel insecure ♡

HUNTER ☆

We all know how hunter journals his emotions just when hes about to go to bed

And so he requests that you do the same

Writing down your feelings makes you feel more connected to yourself, and pinpoints how you started feeling this way

And just like yujun, if you let him, he would kiss all the places where you feel insecure

And cuddles you, whispering in your ear that you are so beautiful and you should not think of yourself that way. And even if you do, hunter would do everything in his power to change your mind ♡

YECHAN ☆

Yechan thought you were joking at first

But his smile immediately drops when he finds out that you werent

Yechan would spend the next few days talking about self acceptance. Making you talk out your feelings and acknowledge your abilities

Would give examples on how this relates to him too, like when he was younger, he thought his rap was terrible

But would reassure you that what youre feeling will not last forever, and that you will see some happier days ♡

[olderthannetfic]

I'm the anon who sent the ask about finding it hard to trust former antis.

jmtorres says the following in the notes: "certainly not everyone has a responsibility to be friends with ex-antis, but if ex-antis get treated shitty for their former beliefs, will they have motivation to stick to their new community or will they think about going back to their old community?"

This gets at the heart of the issue: if a reformed anti is at risk of sliding back into their earlier pattern of harassment and fearmongering, I don't see why anyone needs to accommodate them unduly and centre their needs over those of their victims and the community at large. ContraPoints talked about something similar in a recent video that addresses the transphobia of Megan Phelps-Roper, a former spokesperson for the Westboro Baptist Church who went on to become one of their loudest critics. I'm not saying antis are exactly like bigots, only that there are parallels. And I'm not sure why people are assuming that exercising caution is going to be super-obvious and make the ex-anti feel bad. It's more like a private rule for me, something that makes my fandom experience a little better, like keeping difficult and unstable people at arm's length. I also assume that most people won't publicize that they used to be antis out of embarrassment, so privacy works both ways.

Also, there totally are things that ex-antis do that strike me as red flags. One thing is seeking authority by organizing community events, with all the gatekeeping that entails, immediately after their "conversion" or whatever. It's fine to be suspicious in that situation. Why is a former bully so keen to jump into a leadership role?

--

I think the trouble here is that "anti" covers everyone from active harassers to dumb 14-year-olds who parroted certain kinds of widespread "Porn Bad Tho" ideas before growing the fuck up.

I think it's hard to unlearn really heinous behavior but not especially difficult to get over dumb ideas once you have exposure to counterarguments.

For my own social life, I find that people who've dipped a toe in the anti pool are usually not ready to be on my level where at some social gathering, my friend is like "Ew, how can you ship Wen Ning. He's full of holes. It would all just... ooze out." and then I make this face

😀😀😀

while she goes "No. No. NO." and I outline the plot of my future epic.

Having swum in those waters recently usually makes people awkward around the uninhibited. Others not being embarrassed embarrasses them. So I won't end up being buddies, but I wouldn't assume they're going to backslide all that much.

[bathomet-writes]

plus-size reader headcanons!!

relationship: Romantic 2012!Turtles x GN!Reader (separate)

warnings: romantic, fluff, humor, sfw, headcanons

author's note: for anonymous!! 💕 i've never written for the 2012 turtles but HOPEFULLY this was good..im looking forward to writing more for them in the future tho

In general, your weight isn’t really a topic of casual conversation with the turtles. Unless you specifically bring it up, it isn’t a thing they talk about. You were you and there was nothing else to it! Who were they to cast judgment upon someone for their appearance?

I mean, look at them. They’re mutant turtles. 

But, they all make you feel more accepted than you’ve ever been. You can really be yourself around them! The turtles treat you the same as anyone else they know. 

….BUT

If you were to ever date one of them—

leo:

if you’re ever insecure about yourself, he immediately wants to know how he can fix it!

he’s very much a gentleman, almost annoying so lol

a family member made a sly comment? your mom is going to get a very stern talking-to 😡😡

a stranger made you feel bad about your body??

well……they’re probably in mortal danger 💀💀

he feels VERY protective over you......a surprise to no one

not that you need any special treatment or anything, but he’s at your every beck and call

leo’s not super comfortable with physical expressions of affection………

but you’re the one exception

lots of blink-and-you-miss-it smooches before running away!! 

if you’re both standing on a rooftop during patrol, he’ll work up the courage to plant a kiss on your cheek

[runs away giggling] that, he’s that meme

it’s a little weird, but incredibly sweet 💖💖

despite being a bit shy, leo’s a real goofball

only because he feels so comfortable around you

earning your trust is like..the most important thing he’s ever done

and he is going to take your relationship SERIOUSLY 😤😤

lots of space heroes marathons where he can have you all to himself (he’s kind of selfish about how much of your attention he gets lol)

donnie:

(for whatever reason) he’s the most chill about it than his brothers would be

donnie’s a smooth operator 😎😎

….at least he thinks he is

he’d try and be suave and give you a bunch of compliments and praise 😘😘✨

whatever you choose to wear, he’d be the first to mention how fetching you look in it 💖

if there’s a fictional character you somewhat resemble, he’d be lowkey really into them

changing his phone background, having many photos of them, making off-handed comments about how cute he thinks they look, etc.

he’s not nearly as smooth as he thinks he is tho

donnie’s experience in courting is…..let’s just say ‘sub-par’ 

you’ve seen how weird he can get when he’s head over heels (with his crush on april)

his crush on you is embarrassingly obvious to everyone, no matter how much he tries to play it cool

he certainly gets an A for effort tho 🥴👍👍

“Do you have…feelings for me, Don? Feelings that border on love?” 😏😏

…………😳😳💦

“Aw, sewer apples.” 

raph:

he’s a bit awkward around you at first…..

raph is used to roughhousing with the people he likes (mostly his family) so he’s nervous about accidentally hurting you or making you uncomfortable

for as callous and rude as he comes off, he’s a bit of a softie when it comes to you

NOT THAT HE GOIN’ SOFT 😤😤

and he doesn’t think you’re anymore soft or delicate…….nothing like that, you’re just too important to treat carelessly

he thinks about you constantly 😵‍💫😵‍💫

raph doesn’t realize it, but he kind of loves the way you look

not in a romantized, idealized way…but he thinks he’s being weird

the last thing he’d want to do is make you feel objectified

or that the only thing that matters about someone is their physical appearance

but….he can’t deny how flustered he gets around you!!

when he’s not a stuttering mess, he loves showing you off ✨✨

p shameless about throwing his arm on your shoulder or other affectionate gestures (hair tussles or noogies, all that good stuff)

will absolutely YELL at you if you ever said anything negative about your appearance

“Hey, if you ever insult my favorite person again, I’ll beat you up!”

“…..Wait, I’m your favorite person?” 😳😳

“WHATEVER.” 😤😤😡😡

mikey:

you sometimes feel a little conflicted about hanging with mikey

because he’s very prone to hugging

not that you like his hugs, they were just a little more enthusiastic than you’re used to getting!!

and they last for a while

you’ll get hugs for minutes, even hours if you’re not careful

it’s nice….if not a bit strange

with an amused smirk, you interrogate him while he’s somehow playing video games in front of the tv

while also hugging you??

“Am I just trapped here forever?”

without looking away from the tv, he nods

“Yup, trapped in my hug prison!” 😄😄

..he’s just secretly really into hugging you

mikey’s usually an open book about his emotions but he’s VERY shy about the subject

boy can’t handle his feelings!!

you’re just too nice to hold onto, hugging you is so much better than hugging anyone else

if you bring it up he just gets v flustered…

“IT’S NOT WEIRD TO WANT TO BE CLOSE TO SOMEONE 24/7!” 😖😖

giving him a big hug will shut him right up 💖

taglist: @saspas-corner

[bonkutoe]

fukutora hcs bc theyre funny

- fukunaga shohei #1 lover of badddd bad bad bad movies. terrible films. not good. we're talking sharknado snakes on a plane willys wonderland velocipastor that one thanksgiving slasher film that i cant remember the name of rn (dont think abt the mechanics of it being a thanksgiving movie too hard). generally not a movie enjoyer i think but most certainly clocking in for shit that is Not Good

- tora is baffled every time but definitely not opposed to it (this guy loves cuddling on the couch i think he hits the fake yawn arm around shoulders maneuver like. regularlyyyy and fukunaga doesnt even pretend to think its silly anymore)

- "shohei this movie doesnt even make any sense" "🤷"

- tora the hugger from behind of All Time he is finding any possible excuse. "u look cold" or "makin up for lost time" or "i have practice in an hour plsss plssssss just let me have this PLSSSSSSS" (he uses that one in particular a lot) (fukunaga wouldnt have said no in the first place) (he thinks its cute so he doesnt say anything abt it)

- repressed-as-hell hs tora did not quiteee know what to do w whatever tf he had goin on so he didnt get the guts (ha) to say anything until a couple years after graduation (which he then said over text bc yokohama -> tokyo = long distance)

- fukunaga conveys thoughts in as few words as possible (which is fucking awesome btw if fukunaga has no fans it means ive died) BUT in order to preserve the meaning it sometimes takes a second to respond

- tora did Not have a good time attempting to navigate this when he was trying to confess

- bro immediately started freaking out to yaku "DUDE WHY DID I DO THAT THAT WAS SO STUPID" "omfg its fukunaga give him a second. impatient ass" "I THINK IM DYING" "jfc"

- meanwhile in tokyo fukunaga was staring at "i rly like u dude" trying to figure out if tora meant like (homie) or like (w/gay intent)

- fukunaga only ever calls tora by his full government given name when he is Displeased. tora used the pan he needed for dinner tn so now he has to wash it? taketora. tora rearranges his living room w no warning? taketora. doesnt even say it in a mean/angry tone or anything j matter of fact as all hell. honestly i think if fukunaga was ever genuinely angry abt smth hell would probably freeze over

- tora does get extremely pouty abt it tho. "shoheiii what did i do :(" "the pan" ".......OH FUC—"

- when tora first moved to yokohama he got a cat bc of course he did he graduated from nekoma. tf else was he supposed to do, get a dog? (maybe in the future)

- very very fluffy very cute very sweet tuxedo girl. her name is "destroyer" (yes really) he calls her badass on the reg and she is sooo cuddly w him. fukunaga finds all of this extremely funny

- in fact when fukunaga starts visiting suddenly destroyer doesnt gaf abt tora anymore. worse than pain of death in his opinion it is So Not Fair. first thing fukunaga does after he meets the cat is send a pic to the old nekoma gc "top 10 cats that like me more than they like their owners" tora throws a pillow at him "i RAISED her from a BABY" "did u rly" ".....NO BUT IT AINT RIGHT"

- after theyve been together a few months toras thinkin abt how fukunaga used to Never Talk Ever and he makes a joke "ha i guess i learned how to speak BODY language am i right. right shohei. thats funny right"

- fukunaga calls him taketora for a week. tora retires that joke permanently and they never speak of it again

- tora morning person fukunaga not-exactly-a-night-owl-but-doesnt-love-being-awake-at-5:30 person. one time fukunagas in yokohama for the weekend he wakes up at 6 annoyed as hell (tora got up at 5 and left for a run) bc wtf his pillow literally got up and walked away. falls back asleep wakes up again at 10 tora made not only coffee but pancakes too AND heated them up for him hes immediately like ok nvm this is fine actually no complaints (<- still gets annoyed when his human teddy bear ditches him)

- TORA BABE SAYER. hey babe thanks babe i missed u babe. but it took him foreverrrrrr (forever) to get comfortable actually saying it instead of thinkin inside so there was also (and still is) a lot of dude (romantic) bro (romantic) man (romantic).

- fukunaga doesnt like saying pet names or anything (but to be fair does he like saying ANYTHING most of the time) but does not mind being called them at all (that's a lie he thinks it's awesome and so so so sweet but when tora asks if it's okay he says he doesn't mind)

[jackdaniel69nice]

@kaytaygay Asked for some todoroki and tokoyami so here you go~

To get right down to the meat of it todoroki and tokoyami are very similar, they can seem cold or unfeeling and then turn to just as hot and rageful, although dark shadow is more angry then Fumikage. Their odd ways of speaking makes them stand out and they can be overly blunt. They both have experience in restraining parts of themself, specifically their quirks but also their feeling. Finally they have a connection, as Fumi points outs, as being the successors of Endeavor and Hawks.

In the beginning of MHA todoroki was extremely closed off and never used his fire. For as much of a powerful presence he had, Fumi and shadow had very little interaction with him he and didn’t register him as a threat. Once todoroki started using his fire he also opening up and that cold demeanor disappeared. I would imagine their friendship started through small interactions that showed their similarities and opened up for a closer relationship.

Tokoyami sits right in front of todoroki in class so it’s easy for them to speak to each other, especially for dark shadow because they wouldn’t get caught by the teacher. Todoroki was more confused by a sentient quirk than most people due to his lack of socialization but that is also what made it so easy to move past. He just assumed this was some other thing he had no idea about that was completely normal and rolled with it. Dark shadow gets so bored in class and will pester todoroki if they can slip past Fumi. It’s certainly noted that at first shadow was wary of shoto’s fire power, but shoto is such a calm presence they never felt like they were in any danger.

Conversations between fumikage and todoroki are simple and easy. They usually spend most their time together just enjoying each other’s company in silence. There are times one of them will go on a tangent about their interests and the other will listen happily. Dark shadow will often start a conversation when they are around and Todoroki enjoys dark shadows excitement. Todoroki doesn’t have many hobbies so he likes to join on games tokoyami and dark shadow will play like cards or board games, he gets really confused and loses every time but it’s still fun to watch shadow and Fumi bicker. I would have to say the best arrangement is when Midoriya is also part of their hang outs because you have two hyper characters and two calming ones and they even each other out. Tokoyami has to often play the parent tho and make sure the other three don’t get into trouble (he usually fails).

One of their conversations topics is their mentors . Both of them have big shoes to fill from endeavor and hawks and will talk about the future. Todoroki inevitably talks about how his dad treated him and tokoyami has to play therapist again (he likes helping his friends, it’s his calling). He understands the stress of having a strict parent who wants their child to perfect. He reminds todoroki that even if endeavor is trying to be better, that doesn’t make his past actions are ok and it’s normal to be angry about it. “Mental scars don’t heal so easily.” Todoroki likes asking tokoyami for advice after that. I do think shoto has panic attacks from ptsd and early on no one had any knowledge about this (eventually everyone will have ptsd but shush) except tokoyami and he immediately started grounding techniques for him. After tokoyami rescues hawks from dabi, he gets triggered by shotos flames and todoroki has to return the favor.

In general tokoyami and dark shadow are surprisingly close to todoroki because their personalities mesh so well (they are autistic your honor). By the time the provisional license roles around todoroki and tokoyami are good friends because in the survival training ova todoroki refers to him as such.

[ohtomatotome]

Getting There is Half the Fun

Word count: 6.8k 

Recipient: @violettduchess as part of the Ikemen Prince Gift Exchange hosted by @ikemenlibrary and @sunnyikemen

Characters: IkePri Keith Howell and MC (Emma), established relationship

Prompt: Something fluffy and lighthearted, maybe a trip together. It would be fun to see something not go according to plan and how they handle it. SFW, a little bit of spice.

Triggers: N/A

Content Warnings: Alter!Keith makes a couple of appearances, young children, kissing, depression, mention of sex (not depicted), mention of marriage. It is all fairly tame; just heaps of fluffiness.

Author's Notes are at the end of the story

“Isn’t this the most whimsical thing you’ve ever seen? What a vivid imagination this artist has!” 

Emma’s delighted tone caught Keith’s attention immediately. He came over to see the painting she was admiring. The couple were browsing decor in a shop situated near the crossroads of Rhodolite and Benitoite, filled with fine exports from sea-faring merchants. The framed piece in front of Emma was done by an artist who hailed from the border between Obsidian and Achroite.

Keith came to stand beside her and pointed at the painter’s signature, explaining, “I’m a little familiar with this man’s works. He doesn’t depict make-believe or fantasy. All his paintings are based in nature, and he paints them on site. This … oh, this piece is certainly not imagined…” 

His voice trailed off in a wistful sigh. She gave him a questioning look. She had never seen him go all gooey over art before. Stars and herbology, yes. But a painting? There was something special here, she could tell she was about to uncover another secret treasure buried in Keith’s heart. Emma nodded, encouraging him to continue.

The glimmer in his golden eyes sparkled brighter as he explained the natural phenomenon known as the Aurora. Astronomers theorized the shimmering ripples of bright green are waves of light bouncing off the particles in the sky, or maybe they are chemical reactions happening at the cosmic scale. 

“How I wish I could glimpse it with my own eyes, even if just for a moment.” The enthusiasm that had fueled his explanation soon was replaced by a tone full of yearning, his dreamy gaze on the painting once more.

“But why can’t you?” 

“The lights are only visible near the north and south poles of the planet. I would have to go many days worth of travel just to see even a smidge of them. And even if I was in the right place, I’ve heard the conditions have to be just right: low humidity, no clouds whatsoever, no wind, a crescent moon is best… in short, unless one lives in the perfect area and searches the sky every night of their life, seeing an Aurora in one’s lifetime is not likely. It’s like trying to hunt the rare and elusive white stag of Jadean legend.”

Emma waited until Keith was exiting the shop to secretly purchase the painting with her own money and arrange to have it shipped to the palace in Jade. Few things had ever made her lover’s eyes fill with the hungering ache she just witnessed. Even if he would never see the sight with his own eyes, this artwork would have to suffice.

Then she began to wonder: Why couldn’t he plan to see it in the future? What’s stopping him? What if she were to put the plan in motion herself, and surprise him?

—-------

An invitation arrived for the royal family of Jade, requesting a representative of the governing body to attend a special conference hosted by Achroite in the north.  As soon as Keith offered to go, Emma saw this as her opportunity to enact her plan. Skillfully, deceitfully, and delicately, she plied various tactics and reasoning for letting her accompany him. 

Keith didn't quite understand the motivation behind Emma's attempts at joining his journey north.  However, he wasn't going to deny her when there was such bold determination in her warm eyes. He was never any good at telling her 'no'.

Triumphant at her victory, Emma packed her trunk and bags with thoughts of dancing green lights in her head, only to be outshone by the spark in her prince's eyes when his wish was granted.

—-----

The fastest travel route was straight north through Obsidian. That also made it the most dangerous. Keith wasn't about to put Emma's life in danger to save a few days of travel time.  He planned a route northeast by carriage to the sea port in Benitoite, sailing north on a luxury cruiser, and then west by carriage through the mountain pass to Achroite.  

He looked over his map and itinerary one last time, a soft smile hiding the growing confidence he felt each time he examined his plans. It would be their first time traveling so far, and would be a test to how well they can bear the burdens of a long journey with limited resources. Keith had decided this trip would be the perfect opportunity to prove to Emma that he was capable, reliable, and could take care of everything.

His usual companions of gloom and self-doubt had been visiting more often during this year of peace. The period of calm also meant there was less necessity for Alter!Keith to make an appearance and save the day. However, that absence made it all the more poignant when Emma would cajole him out simply because she wanted to spend time with him. 

With lots of time on his hands, the anxious voices in Keith’s head ran rampant without an exterior distraction to keep them silent. But now? Traveling to the conference was just the thing to challenge himself and keep the depressing thoughts at bay.

He patted the side of the carriage before climbing aboard with a smile, "Easy travel, good roads, and plenty of time to relax along the way. Why, we could almost treat this like a vacation!"

—-------

Famous. Last. Words.

'Vacation' would have been the absolute last word to describe the comedy of errors hounding every leg of their journey. 

The first thing to go wrong was one of the carriage wheels broke as it hit a deep run left by the late summer rains. It happened right inside the Jadean border before stepping over to Benitoite. The only living souls around were all busy in the rye fields. After convincing one of them to put down his scythe long enough to talk, Keith discovered with dismay the small group of people he was looking at was the entire village. It was a very isolated place that relied on every able body to help with the harvest. That group included the wheelwright: Keith and Emma's only hope of getting back on the road before dark.

Keith offered to take the wheelwright's place in the field. The hardy villagers barely held their skepticism behind polite faces. 

"The wright can thresh twice as many sheaves of rye as anyone else.  You'd be taking one of our hardest workers. Besides, t’is no time to be gabbing about.  Lookit those rain clouds headin’ this way. Our work’ll have been wasted if we can’t get the rest in the barn before the drops fall. Beggin' yer pardon, but a prince ain’t no replacement for the wright."

Keith wasn’t about to take ‘no’ for an answer. Spurred on by necessity and the desire to impress Emma – and perhaps the bruised pride of being passed over without even a chance to prove his worth – he picked up a scythe and jogged to the row needing mowing. 

He shrugged off his coat and went right to work, speaking over his shoulder to the wheelwright, "I'll do your share here if you fix the wheel. And I'll pay you triple the usual amount. Do we have a deal?"

He never broke his rhythm as he talked, taking a broad arcing swing, smoothly slicing the stalks in front of him,  and moving forward with a quick grace rarely shown by the first prince of Jade. Muscles rippled across his back as each successive swing gave him more confidence. The villagers were shocked into silence.

"Y-Yes, your highness. Thank you!" The wheelwright touched the brim of his hat in courtesy, amazement on his face. Emma glanced sidelong as the villagers who now all raced to pick up their scythes and attempt to keep up with the prince. 

Tales of Keith's kindness and willingness to help commoners with even the most mundane tasks had spread across his kingdom long before this. However, the additional detail of how strong and muscular he was never accompanied the rumors. 'He sure showed them! Well, that ought to fuel their gossip through the winter," she thought giddily to herself as she headed towards the end of the field to help with tying the sheaves. Emma was pleased and vindicated on her prince's behalf, proud that his people had found new respect for him. 

—-------

After that encounter, it was supposed to be smooth sailing. Quite literally. Only … the mishap with the wheel and then the afternoon’s rain muddying up the roads put them far behind schedule. They missed the luxury cruiser. It disembarked from Benitoite the day before they reached the docks. 

With a sullen face, Keith booked their fare on a north-bound merchant ship. Emma knew that face too well: it meant he was disparaging and beating himself up inside. She knew it would do no good to convince him right this second that he couldn't control the weather.  She'd wait until they had a quiet moment together to soothe his nerves.

The trouble with that plan was that peace and quiet were impossible to find on that busy ship, not to mention privacy. They shared sleeping quarters with the crew’s family, swinging in hammocks at night and sitting elbow-to-elbow with eight noisy people below decks during the day. 

There was one moment of peace, though. It occurred above deck at night when the sea was glassy smooth and the crew wasn’t throwing mouthfuls of curses at one another. Keith hugged Emma from behind, whispering just a tad louder than the wind whistling past them, “I don’t know how I’d get through this ordeal without you. But at the same time I feel like the worst person alive for bringing you on such a doomed voyage. I'm sorry you’re with a jinx like me.”

She leaned into him, turning her head so the breeze wouldn’t snatch her words away, “Darling. There’s no such thing as bad luck. Where you go, I go.  And that’s that. I love being with you, no matter where it is or what is happening.”

—-------

Finally having landed just east of the mountains bordering Achroite, Emma thought they could relax at last. A coach was hired easily, and they were well on their way through the mountain pass. That's when they heard a series of muffled THUMPS behind them. 

Alarmed, Keith had the coachman stop the horses as he took a look at what made the noise. Almost every one of Emma's bags were on the dusty road, clothes strewn about.

"Wha….what happened?? How….?!" She felt like crumbling onto the rocks and crying.  How could this trip get any worse? She bit her lip to stop the wobbly tremble that threatened to bring tears to her eyes. 

The coachman came over and looked at the shredded leather casings of her bags, nodding, "Oh yah, this is old leather. It's no surprise that the salt air on your sea trip had weathered it and made it too brittle to withstand much more abuse. S'too bad, it is. But there's an expert leather worker just ahead."

They wearily gathered up her belongings and did their best to stuff it into Keith's luggage. His was supple, well-treated leather that showed no signs of damage from the sea voyage. Emma inner thoughts were cruel for the ride to the village, reminding of the gulf between their backgrounds, status, and financial situation. Feelings of inadequacy crawled angrily across her heart. 'Of course. Of course the poor little orphan girl has crap for baggage – why would someone like me ever need to travel? No one expects someone like me to ever go beyond her front door.’

Fortunately, the leatherworker was home. Unfortunately, he was forced to watch his young children because his wife was recuperating from a severe illness at her sister’s. He met them at the door bouncing a screaming baby in his arms while a toddler on unsteady feet clutched his pants leg. His face was apologetic, “I’m awful sorry, I am. But with the missus gone, I can’t leave the house. I tried keeping ‘em in the workshop with me one day to see if I could get any work done, and it was a disaster, heh.”

Clenching her fists in frustration, Emma took a deep breath while trying not to despair. “If you can’t repair my pieces, do you have any luggage completed that I can buy right now?”

He shook his head, “Nah, I don’t do my business like that, makin’ stuff that might sell ‘someday’, I only take on jobs that will pay me when the work is done.”

Both Keith’s and Emma’s faces were crestfallen. They knew they could buy luggage once they get to the capitol city, but it was still a long ways to go and her belongings were getting dustier and dirtier by the mile. They muttered their thanks, turning to go, when the leatherworker suddenly made a sound like he just remembered something. “By any chance is what yer needin’ is just the fastenings? Like the straps around the bags and such? Because I do have those ready-made.”

“Yes! Yes, that’s what broke. That’s all I need replacing!” Hope filled Emma’s voice and face and she stepped up the stairs again towards the little cottage. Emboldened by this promising possibility, she brushed up her prettiest smile and offered, “How’s this? I’ll watch your little ones while you repair my baggage, and we’ll pay you twice the going price.”

The man blinked, glanced past her to where Keith was still waiting by the coach, as if to silently ask ‘Are you okay with this arrangement, buddy?’ 

She turned around and gave him an optimistic ‘thumb’s up’ gesture with a big nod to encourage him t agree, “Right, my dear?”

Keith was gazing at his beloved with open admiration. He nodded, “Absolutely. That’s a wonderful idea.”

They sent the coachman off with enough gold to ensure he’d come back to get them later than evening. While the leatherworker took the ruined luggage into his workshop, Emma introduced herself to the children.  Besides the baby and the toddler she had seen at the door, there was also a 5 year old inside. Hours went by as the couple played games, told stories, and fed dinner to the kids. Both of them had wildly giddy sweet thoughts running through their heads of how capable and adorable the other one looked in this parenting mode.  It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say ‘baby fever’ had taken root that very day. From this moment on, Keith in particular was prone to falling into daydreaming about their future family.

—------

At long last they reached the Achroite castle without further mishap. As they unpacked, weariness settled in. The long journey and many unforeseen hardships were at last taking a toll on the young couple. Keith took a seat on the bed, resting his back against the headboard. He patted the space on that mattress next to him, gently calling “Emma? Come take a rest.”

“But I’m only halfway done with putting away my things…” is what she said, but her heart wasn’t in it. She was in the middle of pulling out another sweater from her bag when she felt warm hands glide from the top of her arms, down to her hands, freeing the fabric from her grasp. Keith set the garment on top of the luggage just as Emma’s shoulders slumped. She turned to face him and sagged against him with a sigh, while he bent his head to place a kiss against her hair. She gave no resistance when he led her to the bed.

The sky darkened as they lay on top of the crisp sheets, snuggled together in a drowsy heap. “We can’t fall asleep…” her drowsy voice was muffled against his shirt, “...or be late to dinner.”

“...we won’t…but, hmmm…” Keith’s lethargic murmur turned almost sour, “what if …  would it be the worst thing in the world … if we just stayed in bed?”

Emma squinted a bleary eye at his face, trying to discern if, in fact, Keith had already dozed off for a second and allowed Alter!Keith to slip into consciousness now. That reply sounded an awful lot like something the other one would say. Oh, what did it matter? She was too tired to really care which one was beside her at the moment; she loved them both equally. 

However … it would be rude of them to be absent at the first gathering of the conference. And then they’d have to make apologies to their host, which was not an attractive prospect. Prince Matthias didn’t seem the sort to forgive easily, no matter how small the slight. She didn’t want to be the cause of an international incident right at the beginning of their stay. 

“Nnghh… no,” She struggled to rouse herself into a sitting position, and jostled his shoulder in an attempt to keep him awake. “We have to get ready.”

Moody citrine eyes opened to give her a scathing look. Well, that made it clear who was at the forefront now. “Don’t ya think he’s earned a rest?”

Emma expected any sort of objection from Alter!Keith, but not this tactic. His words gave her heart a warm squeeze, just as they did any time he showed consideration for his other side. She also realized he knew about this weakness of hers. Was he trying to exploit it for the sake of a nap? She rolled away off the bed and went to one of her open trunks for a fresh gown.

“Tch. That’s sweet of you to show concern. But it’ll mean more trouble for us later if we don’t get moving now. Decide which one of you is going to be on the surface for this meal. It will be lots of socializing and politics.”

Suddenly deja vu from mere moments ago danced over her memories as a warm presence moved behind her and hands slid down her arms. This time, however, they belonged to a very handsy prince. His words gusted hotly over her ear, “Mmm, I’ll stick around long enough to help you undress. He really oughtta be present for the boring – I mean, important stuff.”

—-------

As much as they yearned for one another’s intimacy through the week, the conference schedule kept Keith busy all day, and social obligations kept the pair busy in the evenings. By the time they were alone and could have enjoyed one another in private, exhaustion demanded it was time to sleep. 

A few times Keith had asked Emma how she had kept herself occupied during the day, and received very predictable answers such as; visiting the town market, strolling in the conservatory and greenhouse, socializing with the other noble ladies. And reading, of course. She never went into detail of any of the sights she had visited or conversations she had had. Usually Emma was full of chatter about the things that had filled her day. Keith decided not to pry and merely attributed her quietude to the demanding schedule rather than her being evasive on purpose.

What Emma was actually doing was reserving a cabin rental and preparing for the most romantic and memorable viewing of the Northern Lights ever! The cabin would have the groceries stocked and firewood ready by the time they arrived. All they needed to do is show up and enjoy a few days' rest away from the hustle and bustle of the conference. This was the real reason Emma had begged to come along on the journey in the first place. 

After that hellish trip north, they needed a relaxing break now more than ever. Her chest warmed at the thought of being able to give her beloved prince a special memory like this. If only nature and the heavens would cooperate to give them a once-in-a-lifetime show, that would make it truly perfect.

The night before the conference ended, Keith heaved a sigh as he began to fold clothes to go back into the bags. 

“Darling? That was a rather heavy sigh. Is anything the matter?” Emma’s sweet inquiry washed away the layer of fatigue that had covered his soul. He paused to look over at the bed where she was flipping through a cookbook of traditional Achroite foods. With a book; in her natural habitat. Keith’s soft smile was full of adoration at this comforting sight. He often wondered how it was possible for the simple act of looking upon her in repose was enough to give him his own sense of calm. 

—---------

It reminded him of the first time he had encountered the odd phenomenon, on her first visit to the kingdom of Jade:

As he showed her around the palace, she asked to see his personal chambers. Worried had plagued him, thinking it would be awkward beyond measure and she’d find fault with everything. However, when he watched her step among his belongings, inquisitive fingers trailing over the spines filling his many bookshelves, eyes lighting up at seeing the keepsakes decorating his bedside table, he realized with surprise that his anxiety had been utterly unfounded. In fact, the sight of her in his room, among his things, gave him a deep sense of peace. 

A warm blanket of contentment and resolve settled around him in that moment, as if he was being told ‘this is right, this is good’. It felt so very natural to have Emma there at all hours of the day and night. Having her near was a balm like no other. He had mused on the mystery of it: If he was struggling with a letter at his desk or fretting about an upcoming meeting with bureaucrats, all it took was to look up for the fraction it took to see her with a book perched at his window seat or sitting on the couch. His heart was eased instantly. Her presence was a wonder drug to his perpetual paranoia. Wherever Emma was, that was ‘home’ for him.

He floundered without her presence. His soul required her like a tree needed sunlight. 

Alter!Keith was in the same situation, though for different reasons. He needed Emma to stick around because her deciding to stay sent the message that he was worthy of notice, of love. That he deserved to exist.

Neither side of him could never admit this to her, though. His reliance on her would only highlight his ignomy and patheticness. How utterly weak would he appear to her if he confessed he needed her just to get through a day without a panic attack? 

—------------

Her miraculous effect was the reason he hadn’t required much persuading to allow her to join him on this trip. Prince Matthias was an imposing figure whose presence in a room was nearly as oppressive as Prince Chevalier’s. Keith was glad to have his own personal ball of sunshine to help him survive the stressful conference. Without her warm kisses in the morning and her sweet voice at night, he was sure his nerves would have been frayed beyond measure before he returned to Jade. 

He basked in her soothing oasis a moment before answering her question, “It feels as though there hasn’t been a moment of true rest during this excursion. I realize it wasn’t intended to be a relaxing getaway, but it would have been nice to just have a day to spend with you. To sleep in and enjoy breakfast in bed, or stay up late trying to glimpse the Aurora, or have the leisure to browse their castle’s extensive library. And now we have to be back on the road tomorrow. At the risk of sounding petulant … it isn’t fair. I’m bone-weary, Emma.”

By the time her name was on his lips, she had gotten up and moved to stand beside him, small arms around his thick torso, forehead pressed to his broad shoulder. He soaked in her serenity for a few heartbeats, nearly crumbling under the immense gratitude he felt for her love and support. 

She broke the harmonious silence first, “Isn’t it a good thing, then, that we don’t have to go home just yet? We can extend our trip a little longer.” There was a playful lilt to her words, obviously inviting him to inquire into her meaning. 

Keith turned within the circle of her embrace to face her with a quizzical lift of his thick eyebrows, “Did the royal family invite us to stay past tonight? I hadn’t heard of this.”

She shook her head and pressed her lips together in a smile that was eager to burst forth with the news. Emma was determined to keep the surprise until the last moment when they arrived at the cabin tomorrow. Then she realized his anxiety might burrow needlessly under whatever cute evasions she gave now with a smiley ‘Just you wait! You’re going to love it!’. Wouldn’t it be less cruel to tell him now instead of risking him worrying himself into a fit? Why not give him the choice: divulge the secret, or be left in the dark?

She grinned impishly up at him, “Oh, we are staying in Achroite for a little while longer, but not as Their Majesties’ guests. Would you like to be surprised? Or shall I tell you all about it now-o-OHH!”

Keith had picked her bodily off the floor in a bear hug, squeezing her last syllable into an excited squeak as her feet left the floor. He laughed heartily as he spun her around with ease. “Emma! Give me all the details. Packing can wait!” 

Energy recharged as he held his beloved ray of light within his arms. He could hardly believe his amazing luck. Had she really planned something to help him relax before they started the arduous trek back home? He lowered her to the bed, brawny arms pressing down the mattress on either side of her, face bearing down on her with a smile sanguine and imploring.

She giggled at his lack of princely composure and laced her hands around his neck, drawing him down for a quick kiss, “You know the days I've been going into the market and village? That was to prepare for three days of relaxing at a cozy little cabin just an hour’s ride north of the castle. It’s stocked with food and firewood and everything we need. And the best part?” She paused to land a little peck on the tip of his nose. “It’s the perfect place to watch the Aurora.”

Emma paused, holding her breath for his reaction.

She finally had to exhale because he was silent for so long. “Darling? Keith? Are you not excited for the trip?’ A moment ago she was ready to dissolve into happy giggles, but his reaction now had her nibbling her lip.

“...You planned all this? By yourself? For me?” His questions were hushed, awestruck. 

With a slow nod, Emma resumed her smile, “Not just for you. For us. I’m going to be there as well, silly!” 

She finally giggled as she watched his face change from surprise to delight. The grin on his handsome face was dazzling, but she only glimpsed it a moment before he leaned down for a kiss, which she gladly returned. He trailed little kisses down her jawline, and she continued answering his questions between happy sighs. “And … you know, it wasn’t too much trouble to prepare. After all, I should get some practice, don’t you think? I’ll need to know how to plan much greater events … at some point in the future…” 

Keith caught her hint squarely in the chest, and was glad to have his face hidden in her neck so the blaze upon his cheeks would be unseen. Inwardly he berated himself for the thousandth time for not having the guts to clear the way for Emma, a commoner from Rhodolite, to become his wife and Queen of Jade. He couldn’t propose until he knew the path would be easy for her. Yet he wasn’t going to start the official process until he was sure that was what she wanted – that he was what she wanted. It was a catch-22 that was a sure way to spiral into despair if he thought about it too long.

Of course the two of them were madly in love, and they spoke in terms of ‘always’ and ‘forever’ when expressing their feelings. 

But they hadn’t ever sat down and plainly discussed the future. 

What Emma just said now was the closest either of them had ever come to a proclamation of their intentions for marriage. He couldn’t swallow the fact that he had been too feckless to say something before Emma. Now that she had been brave enough to be the first one to break the ice, he couldn’t hesitate any longer. But oh, how he loathed for her to see his face like this: sweaty, nervous, pathetic!

He moved his lips to her ear, giving it a quick kiss before whispering with a tone that flowed with love and hope, “It’s my dearest wish to put you in that position, Emma my beloved. I didn’t want to come across as presumptuous. Or … maybe I simply lacked the courage to speak to you about it before. Or … or –”

He was interrupted by her hands dragging his face up and her lips seeking his. She kissed him long and hard, not letting go until several seconds had passed, then huffed out, “Keith. I’ve felt you wanted to marry me. I could tell in every action, every look, every touch. But hearing you say this? Hearing that you want it just as much as I do, just as much as I always thought you did? It puts my heart at ease to know, with certainty, that you feel the same as I do.” 

She held his cheeks firmly as he tried to look away, forcing him to return her gaze. He saw nothing but kindness swimming in her eyes. She waited a beat longer, holding his gaze before continuing, “And that’s enough for now. You don’t need to rush into … well, anything. The wheels of monarchy creak along slowly. You don’t need to do it alone, though. I’m here to help, to support, in whatever way you need. And that’s all there is to it. Alright?”

The corner of his mouth quirked up in chagrin, already finding another fault in himself no doubt. But he nodded regardless because he believed her. A feeling of triumph and pride soon overtook his usual shame. This conversation was a true breakthrough! She wanted to marry him! He wanted to marry her! With elation, he leaned in to kiss her deeply, eliciting a moan from Emma. As his lips left hers and he began to nibble down her neck, he asked, “This cabin, you said it quite a ways from here? Does that mean it’s isolated? Not in a village? No neighbors?”

Fingers roved through his sandy hair as she gasped at his adventurous kisses plunging down her collar. She endeavored to think and answer at the same time, “Mm-hmm. I think so. I didn’t – hmm ah! – didn’t see any other buildings around.” 

She was about to follow up by asking why he wanted to talk about this now, when there were obviously other things the two were thinking about. But suddenly she felt Keith smiling against her cleavage, and he glanced up at her with a devastatingly hungry look, saying, “Good, then there will be no one close enough to hear us. We can be as loud as we want.”

—----------------

Their first evening at the cabin was full of excitement. The snug little building was cute and clean, if a bit sparse. There was a distinct sensation of ‘playing house’ for the couple as they went about getting the bedroom ready, cooking dinner, and getting the hearthfire going. 

While they ate, they talked over all the misfortunes the trip had entailed: Broken wheel, missed ship, horrible sea voyage, ruined luggage, lost time, and extra expenses. Yet when they remunerated all the bad things, they were able to point out good things that came out of each predicament. The rye was harvested in record time, Keith’s good reputation was solidly implanted in that village, the wheelwright was able to afford much-needed upgrades due to Keith’s generous payment, Emma’s baggage was now better than ever, the leatherworker was able to afford the expensive medicine his wife needed. 

There wasn’t anything positive they could come up with to say about the merchant ship, until Emma suddenly remembered, “There was that night you held me from behind, keeping me warm and whispering the sweetest things in my ear. Remember? On the deck? The night sky was full of stars. The steady sound of the prow sloughing through the sea will stay in my head forever, just as that memory will. I remember thinking: ‘It doesn’t matter if I’m on a floating palace or a rickety fishing boat. As long as Keith is with me, I’m content and I’m where I need to. All I need to be happy is Keith.’ And I don’t think I would have encountered such strong, resolute determination if I hadn’t been in that situation. The foul odiousness of that ship contrasted so starkly against the purity and strength of having you next to me.”

Keith wanted to cover his face with his hands to hide his blush. He really couldn’t stand the way she heaped compliments upon him, and had the audacity to say it with such a sincere smile! He quickly turned the conversation back to reflect on her merits. “You were amazing with those children. I would never have thought to strike a bargain like that, nor could I have done that all by myself. You’re a natural. I loved watching you holding the baby…” he cleared his throat and barreled on, switching the subject, “That just goes to show that you are the one who cares about helping people, and are resourceful, and reliable, and kind, and capable. And everything I wish I was.” 

With a self-deprecating smile, he reached across the table to hold her hand. She squeezed his, ready with a rebuttal to help buoy his self-esteem, “Darling. You are all those things. Hasn’t this trip shown that? Together, we can overcome anything. I couldn’t have done any of this on my own.”

Keith had to admit that he was only able to jump into action when the wheel cracked because he was intent on keeping his Emma safe. In fact, the desire to prove himself capable in her eyes was the driving motivation for enduring all the mishaps on the trip. If he had been by himself, there’s no telling how well he would have fared. But with Emma there to support him and be the reason he needed to ‘man up’, he knew her words were true: together they could overcome anything.

They had decided to go to bed early and wake up a little after midnight because the locals had said that was the best time to view the Aurora.  Due to the odd hour, it was Alter!Keith who unexpectedly awoke in the middle of the night. He walked to the door that led to the balcony and looked through the window at the sky. Grumbling, he let the curtain fall closed again and climbed back into bed. Emma stirred awake at the movement, sleepily calling out, “Keith? Is it time to go outside?”

“It’s me, not him. And no, there’s nothin’ worth looking at. Whole damn sky is covered with clouds. If it had been the right conditions, I woulda let him switch over because I know he wouldn’t want to miss it. But ...” He moved closer and wrapped an arm around her hips to pull her flush against him as he continued in that gravely sleep-soaked voice, “I think I’ll let him sleep a little longer. You, though, aren’t gonna get much sleep tonight, sweet cheeks.”

—-----------------

Long after the sun had risen, the couple slept late to thoroughly enjoy the laid-back schedule. Keith was first to arise; he noticed the new pink marks the other man had left on her skin in last night’s pleasures. He sighed regretfully, more for having missed the chance to enjoy her himself than for missing the Aurora.

That night they resumed the same pattern as before, with going to bed early and planning to wake up after midnight in hopes of seeing the dancing lights. Luck was on their side that night! The humidity and wind were just right, the sky was clear of a single cloud, the moon was just a tiny sliver. Keith excitedly woke Emma, then wrapped themselves in thick boots, hooded cloaks and then in more blankets before settling on the bench outside on the balcony. The mountains were visible on either side, and the broad flat valley and its bubbling river spread out before them, creating the perfect stage for the heavens to put on an unforgettable performance. 

“Oh. My. Word. It shimmers like a magic trick!” Emma breathed the words, mesmerized.

The couple sat transfixed, silent for nearly twenty minutes as the bright green glow warped into misty shapes, faded, and lit up again as vertical shards of light wavered across the sky. 

She snuck a peak at Ketih’s face, which was awash in the verdant hue of the Aurora. His eyes sparkled, a childlike look of wonder writ across his features. He noticed her staring, and looked her way at last with a wry smirk, “You’re supposed to be watching the lights, my dearest. Not me.”

“I’ve got two eyes. I can keep one of them on you while I take in this amazing sight.” She grinned and snuggled closer to him, to which he responded by wrapping an arm around her waist to impart more body heat.

“It would be a shame to waste even one of your precious eyes on me. You can look at me any time. But this rare phenomenon is something you may never see again.”

Her cheek nuzzled his shoulder as she gazed skyward once more, letting out a contented hum, “We could always come back here? This would make a cozy spot for our honeymoon.”

Keith’s hand flexed tightly around her hip at the word ‘honeymoon’, mirroring the way his heart was squeezing. He softly muttered, “Or sooner than that,” as his thoughts drifted to the little jewelry box stowed away in one of the shelves of his dresser back in Jade. 

It contained his great grandparents’ rings. They were originally part of the collection of family heirlooms, but had never been treated like the great ornate pieces of the crown jewels because they were not that impressive. There were modest gold bands with a few small green gems. Their unassuming beauty and elegance reminded him of Emma. His grandparents had had a fairytale romance full of joy and love, a rarity for royals.  Ever since he had decided he needed Emma in his life, he had hunted them out of the collection, tucking them away for the eventual proposal.  Keith hoped that maybe just by wearing them, his grandparents’ legendary luck in love would rub off on him and Emma. He pictured himself sitting out on this balcony in the near future, with a ring in his pocket, waiting for that perfect moment. 

He had been a standstill for too long, fettered by indecision.

Soon it would be time for him to finally take action.

(This is the daytime view the couple would have had from their balcony in Achroite)

Author’s Note: This story was partly inspired by my own recent failed attempts to watch the Northern Lights with my husband, lol. With Keith’s love of astronomy I thought a rare cosmic phenomenon would be on his bucket list, especially being situated so far away from either of the globe’s poles. I had the entire story outlined and was well on my way with the narrative before Keith’s route was released. Of course I started reading it the say it was out, but I was only on chapter 20 at the time I finished writing this, so if anything is wildly OOC for him or Alter!Keith, I apologize. However, it is very satisfying to see that as I got that far in his route, most of the inner thoughts and outer reactions I wrote for him were things I later on saw in his route. Yay! It’s so nice when that happens. I really hope @violettduchess like this. Thank you for asking for Keith; he is a true treasure. I had so much fun taking on this assignment for the exchange.

[aihoshiino]

just read chapter 153 and then your thoughts on it and. i am chewing. screaming. hikaru kamiki, the (absolute traumatized disaster of a) man that you are. that entire chapter immediately catapulted him into the spot of one of my faves (tho tbf, i love all onk characters)

also, while reading your thoughts, specifically the part about aqua/ai and ruby/hikaru parallels,,, if those are on purpose/meant to foreshadow things,,, that would bring up the possibility that, uh, ruby might pull a hikaru on aqua, so to speak. i mean, it's conjecture on my part, i could be wrong, but, uh. the signs. they are certainly there. maybe i'm misreading them. but they're there.

HE'S SOOOOO UNWELL... I've been prodding and poking at The Idea of kamiki basically since we started getting concrete info about him so seeing a lot of the stuff I'd been hoping would be the case re: his characterization and relationship with Ai actually turn out to be true has been soooooo satisfying. As disappointed as I am it took us this long to actually get around to dealing with him, I defo agree he is Up There in terms of OnK characters I'm having a ton of fun rotating. I just love it when an anime dilf is evil and mentally ill.

AS FOR WOOBY... I definitely think this is foreshadowing for where the AquRuby drama is going to go, in that we're gearing up for her to be hit with an 'I can't love you the way you want me to love you' truthbomb like Kamiki was from Ai. We'll probably get an Oshi no Joker moment from her but I think she'll ultimately come out of it a lot stronger, accepting that even if Gorou -> Aqua can't love her the way she's clung onto, he's still here and he does still love her - as do all the other people in her life.

In general, a lot of these generational parallels between Ai's social circle and the main cast are about correcting for the mistakes that the prior generation made - how, uh, effectively this is actually pulled off when it comes to B-Komachi is definitely YMMV (i love ruby but she is god's most annoying nepobaby and she doesn't even know it) but it feels pretty obvious to me that this is being telegraphed with the Hikaru parallels, especially with the really heavy handed Moving On Towards The Future theme that's been hammered in the last few chapters.

[bobbydagen24]

Do you think Branch did just go Straight to Living on his own after his Grandma Died? or do you think there was some period of time inbetween where he either lived with other Trolls? or was at least looked out for by other people?

this is something I find confusing to think about as I feel the first and third movies do certainly imply that he had no one and had to Raise himself

but given his age ( he looked like he was still a Toddler in the flashback to Grandma's Death or at most 6 or 7 ) I find that kinda Hard to believe.

like maybe at first he could have possibly been placed in the care of other Trolls and only moved out when he was a young teenager and went to Build his Bunker?

or maybe he did just go straight to living on his own but he had adults looking out for him to an extent like bringing him food and whatnot on a Regular Basis?

IDK I Just find it a touch Hard to imagine a Toddler being able survive on their own practically knowing nothing

plus him being surrounded by adults who would have literally Done nothing to try and Help them like I Know Branch was seen as an oddball

but I think that especially in the immediate aftermath of the Bergen escape the Trolls would have been a Touch more understanding and wouldn't just leave a young child entirely to their own Devices.

kinda Hope there's more clarity on this in the future like maybe it is mentioned Branch had some sort of Foster parents ( and siblings cough Kismet lol cough ) for a certain period of time when he was too young to live on his own.

or at least we hear about or get to meet some Troll who took care of him from a Distance when he was a kid Bringing him supplies and whatnot

I mean I could maybe Buy young Traumatised Branch adamantly wanting to be on his own and the other Trolls Respecting his wishes

but still not leaving him entirely to the wolves and looking after him from a Distance ya know.

in TBT Branch said after Grandma Died there was no one left to take care of him which would still be Technically true but the foster parents angle would explain a lot of things in his backstory.

also I Just think it'd be sorta cute as a plot point tbh like imagine if in a future special or film we briefly saw an older Troll or Trolls approach Branch

looking to see how he's Doing Given that he's now Re-joined society and Reconnected with his Family and Poppy and his Bros find out

these people did take care of him for a while after Rosiepuff's death and Branch is kinda embarrassed and tense when they start talking with his Bros and Poppy

because he doesn't want them Hearing about how he used to be when he was a kid when he was grey and Traumatised and whatnot.

tho the foster parents aren't trying to embarrass him they are just light-heartedly sharing stories about what a sensitive and quiet cute kid he was and how far he's come since then.

and how they lost touch after he went to live on his own and became a Paranoid Recluse tho they did see him at a few social events he crashed to warn them about Bergens 😂😂😂😂

IDK what do you think?

[stanurines1mp]

Honor

Pairing: Byakuya Kuchiki x Fem!Reader

type: angst

an: im back loves! i have also just recently finished Bleach and let's just say I am obsessed! Byakuya is defo my top 5 fav Bleach men and here's a little something about him. he's so smexy i want him to obliterate and desecrate me with Senbonzakura heh. also this angst may not be that angsty idk but yuh lets go. dont forget to follow me on Tumblr and Wattpad. and share or comment :) enjoy!!

warnings: ANGST(heavy on the angst), death, blood, maybe cringy (reader calls him Byakuya-sama bcoz im obsessed w that idea even tho i dont typically write honorifics in my fics), Byakuya lowkey demanding and smexy (highkey smexy). i think thats all. lemme know if i missed anything :)

~~~

As head of the noble Kuchiki clan, Byakuya had his honor to preserve. Nothing and no one will be exempted if they dare taint his pride. With such a responsibility, he knew just as well that he had to live carefully, aware of each action of his in fear of ruining the sacred name bestowed upon him. 

The only time he had ever let himself slip was when meeting his wife, Hisana. But it came to bite him back in the neck with the event of her death. And not fulfilling her dying wish was a taint in his honor. 

He couldn't let that be. 

So despite the objections of others, he sought the young girl called Rukia, only to find her thriving in the Academy. But that was it. 

He wouldn't let anyone or anything else cause him a slip-up.

He wouldn't listen to his emotions. 

Only to his pride and honor as the head of the noble Kuchiki clan. 

That's what he promised himself. 

But even the great Captain Byakuya Kuchiki couldn't foresee the future. 

Maybe if he did, he wouldn't have decided to visit the pond in the Kuchiki mansion's compound on that day. 

But because he couldn't, that's what he did when the morning sun had crept up the Soul Society's horizon. It was his routine, something to keep him in check as if a constant reminder that he was honorably trapped under the duties of the clan. 

He was enjoying nature's morning warmth that relished over his skin. His white scarf wrapped softly around his neck, his hair held up with the kenseikan; all a reminder of his position. 

And as a man with such responsibility, he's made it his duty to be well-informed regarding the staff at the mansion along with his squad members. With such knowledge, he was more than surprised to see your figure by the pond. 

With his past days a routine cycle, he knew that no one would be there. Except on days when the pond demands a cleaning. But when it came to feeding the aquatic creatures, only he was responsible. 

And his surprise didn't just come from seeing your figure perched over the edge. No, it also came from the fact that he had never seen you before. And the fact that you were wearing a black Shihakusho, indicated that you were, in fact, a Soul Reaper. 

If you had business with him, a Captain, it would make sense for you to meet with him at his office. But certainly not the Kuchiki mansion.

So why were you there?

And who were you? 

He knew each and every member of the staff that served his family and he knew each and every member of his squad. 

So, who were you?

Your Reiatsu was average, not showing any signs of danger to him or anyone. You had your Zanpakuto in its case safely by your side. Your hands were knitted together at your back, your eyes almost void as you stared into the pond. 

Your lips were relaxed, your mind focused solely on the peaceful way the fish swam in the water. And he could tell that you weren't aware of your surroundings when he finally made the decision to approach you. 

Remaining his guard at a high level if in any case, you were an enemy infiltrating the clan. Your chest was heaving as you breathed at a calm pace. And for some reason, the fact that you immediately didn't notice him there made him feel rather, awkward. 

For almost all his life, the mere feel of his Reiatsu would gain everyone's focus on him. 

He's never had to make his presence known. 

Still, what choice did he have?

"Who are you?" His words slipped out rather rushingly as if begging to be heard and acknowledged.

And sure enough, it did bring you out of your reverie. Eyes following the voice, you were met with the tall man, his grey eyes narrowed slightly. Realizing the identity of the man, your eyes widened and the upper half of your body immediately lowered into a bow of respect. 

"Captain Kuchiki!" You let out.

"I asked you a question," he simply replied rather coldly. 

"L/N Y/N! I've been assigned to the noble Kuchiki clan!" You informed briefly. 

That's right.

He remembered the head of his staff at the mansion informing him of the new additions. And he remembered reading the names of said staff, thus remembering the name L/N Y/N somewhere in the documents he was given. 

Right, you were meant to be the clan's new caretaker. 

He didn't expect you to be so...

Young. 

"My job is to serve the Kuchiki clan, Captain!" You added, your body still bent in a bow. 

"Stand up straight," he ordered and you heeded his words. Eyes intimidatingly staring into yours, he said, "As a servant of the Kuchiki clan, you may call me Byakuya." 

No, that was wrong.

What the hell?

It was supposed to be Master Byakuya. 

Not just his given name.

That's much too familiar.

And you realized that with the way your eyes widened again.

"I'm sorry, Byakuya-sama, but I'm not really comfortable with that," you objected politely.

Now it was his turn to be shocked. 

Though his eyes gave very little away. 

At least you were smart enough to understand the difference between you and him. 

"What are you doing here? As a caretaker, you have your own room," he simply let out, barely any emotions following. 

Just as others had said, he indeed was a cold man.

"I was just admiring the scenery, sir. I'm sorry if it's out of line," you said, eyes on the ground. 

He could tell how tense you were at the moment. Gaze glued to the grass-filled lawn, fingers fidgeting over your Shihakusho, and your shoulders were stiff. He supposed it was a greeting lacking warmth. 

"It's alright," he said. "You can stay here."

Your body relaxed almost immediately. He could tell by your sudden confidence to look him in the eyes with the brightest pair of your own. A smile tainted your lips widely, showcasing your happiness.

"Thank you, Byakuya-sama!" 

It was odd but he was fighting the urge to let the small grin creeping up his lips. Too used to his stoic act, he managed through it. And you stood there all the while he fed the fish in his pond, even offering to help him. But he was nowhere near interested to share his routine with anyone. 

Though that soon changed the next morning when he saw you standing by the pond. 

The same manner, the same spot. 

And you were there again, morning after morning after morning. 

You provided him a silent company day after day, he actually found it rather nice. 

And you certainly enjoyed the mornings since you began your duty at the mansion. It was an honor to spend such moments with the head of the clan. 

Since the 6th Division Captain was truly a strong man, he seldom fell victim to any sickness which rendered you useless since that was your job anyway. But when he did get sick, it would affect him terribly. In the past, it's happened before and sure, he'd always fight through it but it would take at least days if not weeks for him to get well. 

That was why he was shocked to hear that he had been healed only overnight.

His eyes had opened to meet the view of his bedroom ceiling. On his right, perched on the floor was his adopted younger sister, Rukia. Her eyes feigned worry but such a sentiment dissipated the moment their eyes met. 

"Brother, you're up," she chirped with relief. 

"What happened?" He softly asked, voice heavy and tired.

"You got sick," the young girl answered.

"How long has it been?" He did not remember spending days lying down, being tended to. 

"You got sick last night. You've been sleeping ever since Ms. L/N healed you. I should go get her," Rukia gasped, her hands about to push herself up but was stopped by Byakuya's fingers wrapped gently around her wrist. She turned, watching with worry as he got up. 

"No need. I'll go find her," he said.

Despite his sister's objections, he went anyway. Searching for you, he walked to the one place he knew he'd find you. 

Just as expected, you were standing by the pond. 

A small smile had been drawn up your lips. It was not one Byakuya was estranged to. He'd seen it on you all too many times. 

But for some reason, he never cared to have it wiped away from his field of vision. 

He approached you and just like that day of your first meeting, you didn't care to notice him. But in contrast to that day, he didn't feel awkward or ashamed to make his presence known. 

"Y/N," he called.

A voice so soft in the light of the darkened sky called upon you, how could you not turn? So you did, met with a rather loose picture of the man you were used to. 

"Byakuya-sama," you softly smiled. "You're up. How do you feel?"

"Different," he answered, hesitant in his own voice as he scanned over his body. "What did you do to me?" 

"I healed you," you frowned, confused at the question. "That's my job, sir."

Your answer was not enough for the man to have his questions satisfied. Taking slow and intimidating strides towards you, your body glued frozen to your spot. But you weren't scared. 

"I rarely get sick. But when I do, it's terrible. It would take days if not weeks to heal me-"

"I know, Byakuya-sama-"

"Don't interrupt me!" He let out sternly but there was a slight hint of childish irritation. 

"I'm sorry, Byakuya-sama," you mumbled gently, gaze falling to the ground while your hands fidget nervously. 

"As I was saying," he continued, using a finger of his to hook under your chin, guiding your gaze to meet his under the starry night. "How did you heal me so fast?" 

"It's my Zanpakuto's ability, sir," you answered promptly. His brows rose questioningly, a look of curiosity obviously flashing through his grey eyes. His lips remained still, the silence an offering for you to answer his silent inquiry. "It's the power to manifest things." 

Processing your words, his mind began to work around to understand them. He got the gist of it but such a power seemed quite rare. He's never heard of anything quite like it. 

"What is the name of your Zanpakuto?" 

"Her name is Amaterasu," you answered with a smile, appreciative of his curiosity. "She's quite powerful but really quite useless in physical combat. If I were to join the Gotei 13, I might be of help in Squad 4 but other than that, I might have some trouble," you sheepishly shrugged.

"You keep referring to your Zanpakuto as her and she as if it was your friend. Why?" His tone sounded both confused and slightly condescending but you took no offence to heart.

You pondered your thoughts. You knew the answer to his question but you weren't sure if it was something you wanted him to know. 

Especially with him just getting better from the sickness, you wouldn't want to trouble him with a sob story of your boring life. And it seemed as though he knew just how your mind works with the way he used his finger to bring your eyes to his again. 

You hadn't even realized how close he had gotten. You wondered if he realized it too or not. Either way, his grey eyes bored deeply into yours, a certain sentiment you weren't sure of its origin taking place in his orbs. 

"I asked you a question, didn't I?" He let out, a slight mix of gentleness and demand swirling behind his tone. 

"R-Right, Byakuya-sama. I'm sorry," you mumbled. "It's because, to me, Amaterasu isn't just a sword," you sighed, eyes painted with nostalgic despair. At this, Byakuya's eyes widened slightly, losing the composure he was strongly holding. "She was my first friend," you said, biting your inner cheek with embarrassment. "I've always been alone but when Amaterasu was first awoken, well," you breathed out softly. "I could always talk to her. Amaterasu isn't just my weapon. She's my friend."

Byakuya watched as your lips gently curl up in an unknowing smile. But he knew that your smile was one different than what he was used to each morning. Tonight, at that moment, your smile had yet to reach your eyes. And your eyes still remained that sullen despair.

"Pathetic, aren't I?" You humorlessly scoffed, tears threatening to flood out of your eyes.

He didn't understand it at the moment or maybe he did but refused to believe it.

Either way, he didn't like that you'd think he'd say such a thing about you.

His hand under your jaw slowly lifted up your face. With your eyes meeting again, you couldn't help but get lost in his eyes. 

The way his grey orbs held a glint of comfort that you were foreign to yet found yourself addicted to. And the way his hair was falling over his complexion, messy yet controlled despite not having his hairpins.

You could only let yourself be engulfed.

Still, you were almost all too aware, sensitive to the skin of his finger that sweetly caressed your cheek, eliminating your fallen tear in one fell swoop.

A small, barely audible gasp escaped your lips, surprised at his action. You wondered if he was aware but it seemed like he was. And maybe, in your heart, you secretly longed for this. For his comfort. For his touch.

Oh, aren't you just head over heels for your superior?

"Show me," he carelessly whispered. Your eyebrows twitched in confusion, allowing him to add, "Show me her ability."

"Wh-What?"

"I'm curious," he simply replied.

"Oh," you let out softly. "Well..."

More than the fact he could sense your hesitation, he could clearly see it. "It's an order," he added, causing you to frown.

"Does that not count as abusing your power?" You let slipped out, only realizing once the question ended. Struck by fear, your hands immediately clasped over your mouth as you gasped. "I'm so sorry, Byakuya-sama!"

You apologized over and over again. The sight of you in such a frenzy amused him. And maybe it was the late night's air or the aftereffects of his sickness but he couldn't hold back the chuckle he let out.

And by whatever God that was listening in to your heart's requests, you thanked them. 

You thanked them for bestowing such a sound upon your ears. 

Sure, your eyes displayed surprise but your heart swelled with warmth as the melody of his chuckle passed by your ears. 

"Why are you so hesitant on heeding my wishes, Y/N-san?" His head was slightly tilted, eyes reached by that barely visible grin that you noticed tickled his skin. 

"I just don't understand what you wish to see, Byakuya-sama," you replied hesitantly. 

"I'm curious at how your Zanpakuto can heal others so quickly," he said simply. 

"Well," you stammered, fingers going to scratch at the back of your neck. "It does not work on myself and I can't heal an injury if there is no injury."

His eyes narrowed as he took in your words, mind turning gears to reach a solution to fulfill his own request. 

Well, no one said Byakuya was a man who easily gave up. 

"I see," he hummed aloud. Shedding no warning, he took a step forward, almost too close in the distance between you two. 

Widening eyes and stammering words, you gasped, "B-Byakuya-sama!"

Lacking any sense of hesitation, Byakuya's right hand held firmly on the hilt of your Zanpakuto. He unsheathed the sharp weapon from the case that hung by your side. 

Too late for objections, the head of the clan slashed his left palm with the blade of your sword. Warm crimson-colored substance began to ooze out, staining the pale skin of his hand, ultimately falling to the ground, drop by drop. 

"H-Have you lost your mind, sir?! This is not funny!" You let out, too shocked to even process his actions. 

"You wanted an injury, now you have an injury," he simply said. Holding out his hand, he casually tipped his head, "Here. Heal me."

"Byakuya-sama!" You frowned. "You're crazy!" 

"Maybe. But you shouldn't let your Master bleed, should you?" He rose a brow daringly, causing you to let out a scoff. 

Letting out a defeated sigh, you took the sword from the man's hands. Gently, you gripped the hilt of the weapon with both your hands. You twisted it so the edge would face downwards as the hilt neared your lips. In a small whisper, you let out its command. 

"Breathe, Amaterasu."

And Byakuya had no idea if he should look at you or your sword. But since this was all happening due to his curiosity, he decided to focus on the Zanpakuto's release. 

He watched as the blade you held slowly dissipated into the light until even the handle was gone. Instead, both your palms were radiating the similar light that he saw earlier. 

And it was like whatever God was there had granted him the slow-moving time to allow him to properly, truly watch you and your Shikai. 

He knew the transformation was anything but slow. 

But it seemed like the process was meant to purposely allow his view of each and every passing second. 

Then, you opened your eyes and directed your palms to his wound. 

As if time was intentionally moving slowly for the moment between you and him, he was intent on watching everything. 

From the way your eyes had been lighted up by the radiance near your palm to the way his wound began to close, flesh regenerating due to the light you let out. 

And soon, it was as if he had never cut himself. 

You clasped your hands together again and closed your eyes for a moment. When they opened, your sword was already back in between your palms. You sighed, inserting it into the case. You looked up at the man, seeing how his eyes scanned intriguingly at his healed palm. 

"It's an amazing power," he murmured, causing your cheeks to flush with heat.

"You didn't have to hurt yourself like that, Byakuya-sama," you lowly let out. 

"I'm sorry for that," he apologized sweetly. "It was the only solution I can think of," he pursed his lips, letting his hand fall to his side. "Can I ask you something?" 

"Hmm?"

"With such a powerful healing ability, why weren't you assigned as Captain Ukitake's caretaker?"

"You ask me that as if I'm the one who assigned Shinigami to their jobs," you let out, a tone of sass pairing your words. "But, I initially was. Captain Ukitake refused my treatment. He said I'd be better off helping others."

"I see," Byakuya hummed. "In any case, I'd like to thank you."

"Thank me? What for?" 

"You healed me," he said with risen brows as he took your hand in his. "Twice."

And maybe it was the way his voice silkened out of his lips. Or the way his eyes doted into yours under the night's sky. Or the gentleness of his touch on your hand. Or the proximity that you could barely call a gap shared between you two. 

But you couldn't fight the smile creeping onto your lips. 

"Of course! It's my duty to protect you, Byakuya-sama!"

And maybe it was the crease formed under your eyes as you closed them. Or maybe it was the sound of the small giggle you let out as if he had said something amusing. Or maybe it was your smile that showed all kinds of sincerity. 

Either way, he realized something. 

Something about him. 

Something about you. 

It wouldn't be good for him to have fallen for his servant, right?

Well, it didn't matter. 

Because no matter how badly injured he was in battles, Byakuya would refuse wholeheartedly on receiving treatment from the 4th Division. All because he wanted to hurry up home to see you and be healed by you. 

Most of the time, he'd first meet your nagging but then you'd heal him either way. It was such an occurrence that at one point, you had stopped being shy around him. 

Still, it wouldn't be good for him to have fallen for his servant, right?

And regrets would soon fall through on a night that showered the Seireitei with an empty sky. 

Byakuya's eyes immediately shoot open, meeting the view of his bedroom ceiling. His body tensed, chills rushing throughout his skin. His body straightened to sit, his head turned in the direction of the doors. 

A loud commotion was heard from the outside, his eyes widening at the realization of the situation. Standing up, he grabbed his Zanpakuto and slid the doors open. 

He sensed the Spiritual Pressure of the intruder and began to head there. But his heart skipped a beat in panic upon realizing the Reiatsu that accompanied the intruder's. 

Just as his heartbeat increased, so did the pace of his run. And he found himself not too far from your favorite spot, his eyes wide and shocked, frozen by the sight. 

You were holding onto your Zanpakuto fiercely, your stance ready for combat as you swung your sword in an attempt to slash the intruder. And before Byakuya could fulfill his duty as your protector, everything flashed before him all too quickly. 

Maybe he could shrug it off as just a nightmare. 

But how could he? 

When he himself could feel your presence slowly disappearing from him? 

Too caught up in the moment, he hadn't even cared enough to arrest the intruder, only just killing the man on the spot, letting his emotions run free, escaping his pride and honor because that man had tainted his pride. 

He tainted it by stabbing you right in a vital spot, rendering you helpless as you fell to the ground, blood emitted by your coughs and your wounds. 

If only Byakuya was fast enough, he would have stopped the man before you could do anything. If only Byakuya was fast enough, he would have had time to catch you in his arms. 

But he wasn't. 

So he had to pick you up from the ground and lay you over his legs. Your head was placed softly above his palm, your left hand under his on your stomach despite the blood that had stained your skin. 

"Y/N? Y/N!" He called, but you were barely able to open your eyes. 

You fought hard for it. 

To see him. 

Just as you could feel him. 

By his touch. 

By his Reiatsu.

By his soul. 

And by his heart. 

Slowly, your lids fluttered open, allowing him one last view of your eyes. 

"Byakuya-sama," you whispered out, cut off by another blood-emitting cough. 

"Shh, don't move," he cooed, about to stand up but you stopped him. 

"It's too late," you weakly hiccuped. 

His eyebrows were stitched together in a frown before he shook his head. "No-"

"It is and you know it," you breathed out. 

"No," he let out again, firmly. "I refuse-"

"Byakuya-sama, please listen to me for once," you weakly chuckled, your heart hurting each time you moved but it didn't matter. 

You just wanted another moment with the man. 

"Y/N-"

"You're different than what others had said," you smiled tiredly, a hand slowly going up to caress his cheek while pushing his fallen strands away from his complexion. "People say you're uptight and cold but you're not like that at all, are you?" 

"Please, save your strength-"

"Can you let me talk?" She let out a small chuckle of amusement, a trail of blood leaking out of her lips. "You changed my life, Byakuya-sama."

"I'm sorry," he cried, letting loose that part of himself he's fought so hard to keep inside. 

"Whatever for?" 

His cheeks were tainted, tears embracing the outermost part while his heart felt the twisted pain for the second time again. 

He's felt this before. 

And he swore to never let himself feel it again. 

That's why he refused to feel anything.

Yet somehow you got to him. 

Somehow, you made him feel. 

You made him fall in love again. 

Only to snatch it right out of his hands. 

"How can you still smile?" The question audibly escaped him. 

"Because I'm with you, Byakuya-sama," you softly whispered as you fought the urge to close your eyes. "Thank you so much, Byakuya-sama."

His head lightly shook, his nostrils flaring with that same grief that had once eaten at him. 

"Thank you for keeping me company. With you by my side, I could never feel lonely again."

His eyes fluttered, lips parted emptily, no words able to escape them as his throat itched with pain. 

"Why did you fight, Y/N?" He suddenly asked. "You said it yourself. You're not a good fighter."

"Because," you coughed out, eyes meeting his again with a soft beam. "It is my duty to protect you, Byakuya-sama."

What more could he say?

"Can you, stay here while I look at the scenery?"

A gasp slipped out of him, his eyes flying open to see you looking to your left where the pond remained. Even with the pain he knew you were feeling, you still managed to tingle a small smile on your lips. And though it was small, it reached your eyes. Your saddened yet somehow bright eyes. 

Right.

It was that smile of yours.

He remembered when his days got better each morning he'd wake up, a small hint of excitement swarming his heart as he would head to the pond. 

Because then he'd see you. 

And you'd be there. 

As always.

Only always didn't last forever. 

Because you were gone. 

And his mornings were spent alone. 

And he was alone. 

Byakuya Kuchiki was a man of honor. 

But that night stained his honor crimson with the memory of your blood.