#There is no counsellors without Chris

[bugwolfsstuff]

The seven are a polycule

No the (Main Olympian) head counsellors* are a polycule. Have you considered that?

*For cabins like 1, 9 and 10 i'm referring to pre-lost trio, so Drew, Nyssa, Jake and Thalia if you pretend she's not a hunter anymore

[too-deviant]

The three weeks it took for Luke Castellan’s wounds to heal.

Pairing: Luke Castellan x Apollo!Reader

Summary: Luke comes back from his quest defeated and angry, and refuses to let anyone see him. But he still needs tending to. You are the lucky sucker who gets to do so.

Content: post-quest angsty luke, reader is awkward, i use the word under’t at one point because i think im shakespeare or some shit

Word Count: 7.6k

Notes: Pushing the agenda that lukes scar is gnarrly like it’s nasty !! not just some faint lil line. the boy was attacked by an actual dragon, like pls. also this hasn’t been proofread so sorry if it doesn’t make sense

part two

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The spring that Luke Castellan spent on his quest was a strange one for the residents of Camp Half-Blood.

For years, campers knew who to go to whenever they needed advice. When they needed help. They knew who to direct the new campers to when they stumbled over the boundary line — and knew they were in good hands. Luke’s hands. He was the big brother the whole camp needed, and not just because he was older than most of them. He just had that aura — and he was undoubtedly kind to everyone he came across. Not to mention the guy was insane with a sword, and had this boyish charm that anyone would fall for. Most campers, if not all of them, looked up to Luke Castellan.

So when he left, nobody knew what to do.

It was pretty tame at first, mostly just awkward. Especially in the Hermes cabin, with Chris Rodriguez in charge in his brother's absence. A Hephaestus kid had taken over the sword fighting classes Luke usually ran, which proved to do more harm than good because he wasn’t all that great at using a sword than he was at forging them, and most of Luke’s students were already better than him.

But nothing went wrong — at least for the first week.

But after the initial awkwardness wore off, chaos ensued.

Chris couldn’t keep the Hermes kids in check — once they realised he wasn’t as authoritative as Luke, they began to use it to their advantage. Everyone got pranked, the camp store was raided three times before Chiron decided to close it down for the meantime and dishwashing duty every night was not slowing them down.

You hadn’t realised just how much the camp relied on Luke until he wasn’t there to keep things under control. Fights broke out with nobody to step in between them, and more and more kids were showing up to the infirmary with injuries that they could take care of themselves — something Luke would’ve told them to do instead of bothering you and your siblings. It was actually unbelievable how much a group of about a hundred half-gods relied on the steady hand of one seventeen year old boy.

You couldn’t wait until he got back so you could finally get some peace and quiet.

Luke didn’t return to camp for two and a half weeks, and as the days went by, campers began to get uneasy. Nobody knew what his quest had entailed, or where he had to go, so the longer they went without news the more antsy people got. You didn’t speak to Luke much — maybe a few shared sentences to be polite — but you knew what he was capable of. You tried your best to reassure the campers, as did your brother Lee and the rest of the Cabin Counsellors.

You knew Luke would come back. You knew he would stumble down that hill with his head held high and meet the group of campers waiting for him at the bottom. You knew there would be a celebration, a party, and a lot of kids out past curfew. But you knew Chiron would let it off, because Luke Castellan was back.

Except that’s not what happened. At all.

It was a warm day, and you were helping some of your younger siblings make friendship bracelets by the lake. Your camp shirt clung to the sweat on your back and you peeled it off with a grimace whenever you stood, straightening out your shorts and checking on the next kid. They seemed happy enough to be in the sun — really, you should’ve been too. Child of Apollo and all. But apparently your father wasn’t feeling the love for you today, because while the rest of your siblings were thriving, you were seconds away from jumping into the lake just to cool down — even if it pissed off the Naiads.

Thankfully, when you stood up once more and looked over the horizon, you saw your brother Aden jogging towards you. You took the opportunity to hide under the shade of the trees by meeting him halfway, and greeted him with a breathless, “Hey.”

He spoke your name with a nod and a smile, throwing a thumb over his shoulder, “Chiron needs you in the Big House. Looked serious. I’ll take over here.”

“Oh, Okay.” You nodded, turning to the kids and telling them you’d be back as soon as you could, before marching your worn converse through the grass and up to where the house sat on the edge of the hill.

Chiron was in the doorway when you reached the porch, sat in wheelchair form and wearing a grim look. You paused, worried. He nodded at you, “Thank you for coming on such short notice. Usually I wouldn’t do this, but…desperate times. Follow me.”

You followed as he led you down the hall, brows furrowing, “What's going on? Is everything okay?”

He looked at you with a serious expression, saying your name lowly, “I need you to ensure that what I am about to tell you will never leave the walls of this house. Nobody needs to know about this until we have deemed it appropriate.”

“Of course.” You said immediately, folding your arms. You weren’t so warm anymore. “What happened?”

He straightened up, and stared, “Luke Castellan is back from his quest.”

That was not what you expected him to say. Dropping your arms to your side and stepping forward slightly, “What? Since when?”

“Ten minutes ago, give or take.” He replied, brows in a concerned furrow, “Mr D has taken him upstairs. He is injured.”

“Right.” You nodded, “I’ll go and—“

“Wait, child.” You stopped, one foot on the bottom step of the stairs, looking back at him, “You must know something.”

Chiron took in a deep breath, eyes glossed over like whatever he was about to say weighed heavily on him, “He is…not in good condition. On top of his injuries, Luke is unfortunately…not in a good state of mind. His quest has affected him, and he requested quite adamantly that nobody should see him until he is ready to see them. I will respect his wishes, of course, but he will still need someone to tend to his wounds. That will be you.”

“Me?” You’d never shared a full conversation with the guy. Maybe some small talk, a polite smile here and there, but you were hardly acquainted, let alone friendly. You told him this.

“Exactly my point.” Was his reply, head held high, “Luke does not want to talk to anyone at the moment, and I’m sure if any of his friends were to be up there, they would simply coddle him. You, on the other hand…”

“I’m a stranger.” You nodded, “Of course. Right. I get that. So, you just want me to patch him up, act like it never happened? I can do that.”

“Not exactly, my child.”

You raised a brow.

“Luke’s injuries are quite extensive. He will need around the clock care until he is healed enough. He will also need someone to bring him food, clean clothes.”

“Oh, so you want me to nanny him.”

He chuckled, but it faded just as quickly as it came, “Unfortunately, he needs it.”

You pursed your lips. It didn’t seem all that hard — it was just like having any other camper in the infirmary. Only this one, everyone was on the edge of their seats waiting for, and you weren’t allowed to tell anyone he was a mere fifty feet away from them, curled up in a bed in the Big House.

No biggie.

i. WEEK ONE

Chiron had ushered you up the steps as soon as your conversation was over, and given you directions to the room Luke was in. Your steps were slow and unsure — you’d never been this far into the Big House before, but Mr D stood idly outside one of the doors lining the second floor hallway, arms crossed and face taut. The floorboards creaked under the weight of your foot when you reached the landing, and he looked up at you.

“He’s in there.” He pointed to the door in front of him, “Careful, he’s a short fuse right now. All the medical thingamabobs you need are in there already. Keep your mouth shut about this.”

Then he slid past you and down the stairs without another word, and you were left alone in the empty hall. Blinking hard to clear your head, you stood a few measly steps toward the door, stopping just outside of it and leaning your ear against the wood.

Nothing tangible. Mostly just the scraping of wood against the skin of your ear, and once you had stopped moving, there was nothing. No mutters, no bed creaks, not even a sniffle. It unnerves you, but you wrapped a hand around the cold metal of the handle and turned it anyway.

Maybe it was because he had been gone for a while, or maybe it was because you never saw him that much when he was around, but you had to blink away the shock at Luke’s appearance. Minus the obvious injuries, he just looked different. His skin was tanned and rough, his jaw taut and his hair hanging messily over his forehead, longer bits curling around his ears after going uncut for so long.

He was sitting on the edge of a bed that had been tucked into the corner of the room. There was a window just above it, but a thin curtain had been pulled over it and blocked out the sunlight that was begging to shine on you. The room was dark, but light enough that you could see what you were doing when you walked over to the desk in the other corner and started shuffling through the medical supplies Chiron had left there for you. Not much, but enough for now. You could always get more later.

Turning, you finally made your way over to where Luke was hunched over, staring at nothing. When you entered his line of vision, his dark eyes slid up to yours, and he blinked. Then he sighed, straightened his back and gave you a look that said do what you have to do and then get out.

But you didn’t move, not for at least ten seconds. Because while Chiron had told you he was injured extensively, he didn’t mention the five inch long scar that ran down the side of his face, cutting through his eye. It was jagged and gnarly, sharp edges carving a path through his skin. It was red all around, and just from looking at it you could tell it needed work. It was fairly new, but he had left it long enough for it to heal over — a thin layer of skin stopping it from bleeding.

He raised his eyebrows at you impatiently, and you nodded, scooting back to the desk and grabbing what you needed before going back to where he sat.

“I, uh…I need to get closer.” You were afraid to speak, to break the silence of the room, but you did need to get closer to his face. You waited for him to turn slightly to his left, hitch a leg up on the mattress and face his scar in your direction. Instead, he just slid his legs apart, inviting you to step between them.

And so you did, albeit a little shakily. You didn’t know Luke well enough to consider him a friend, but you’d seen enough of him to know that he never acted like this. He was never this quiet — all eyes, slow movements. He was charming, always grinning, always offering a hand. His battle instincts and ADHD made him fidgety like the rest of them, but from where you stood between his thighs, he was as still as a picture. It unnerved you more than the scar on his face did. You’d seen nasty injuries before, you’d never seen this.

You picked up a gauze, doused it in rubbing alcohol, and started wiping the area. You started on the outskirts, but when you pressed over the edge of the injury, his brows twitched and you let out a weak apology before lessening the grip. You kept your breaths thin and your eyes on your hand, but he wasn’t looking at you anyway. He had drifted off again, staring at nothing, and you were scared to break him out of his stupor again.

“He’s a short fuse.” Mr D had said. But he didn’t seem that way right now, sitting back silently and letting you do your work on his face. He wasn’t much of anything, if you had to make an assessment. You really wanted to know what happened on his quest, and why he was gone for so long, but you also didn’t want to test Mr D’s words by asking.

“What happened?” He didn’t say anything, again. You pressed on, “I sort of need to know before I reopen it…just in case something—“

“A dragon.” He murmured at once. His voice was rough, like he’d just been screaming. Maybe he had been, and that’s why Mr D had warned you. But it seemed all his anger had dissipated in the time it took for Chiron to get you and explain the situation. Maybe. “Ladon. Poisonous bites.”

So he had been to the Garden of the Hesperides. Presumably to collect some Golden Apples. What for, you didn’t know. You weren’t going to ask. You just grabbed a scalpel, muttered a quiet, “This is going to hurt.”, and started cutting down the scar, following its path across his cheek.

Luke hissed hard, not expecting you to dive in so suddenly, and his hand reached out for something to grab. That ended up being your camp shirt, bunching at your waist from where he gripped it between his knuckles. You didn’t mind it, but when you put the scalpel down and started to clean the inside of his wound, he adjusted his hand so he was holding the side of your waist instead, eyes clamped shut and feet tapping the wooden floor. You paused momentarily, but you couldn’t let him breathe or else it would just hurt more when you went back to work, so you brushed it off and continued your rampage down his face until the whole wound was free of the dirt and grime he had let accumulate inside it while he travelled back to Long Island.

“Sorry.” You finally built up the courage to say.

“S’Okay.” He breathed, “My fault.”

You wiped it over one last time before taping a bandage over the top. You cut it into two bits so he could still see out of his left eye, before stepping back from between his legs and assessing your work. Once you had deemed it good enough, you picked up your supplies and headed back to the desk, feeling Luke’s hand fall from your side.

“Uh—“ You really wanted to leave the room now, “I know you probably don’t want to talk about it, but how long did you leave—“

“Three days.” He answered quickly. Chiron had probably already asked him that, and you felt stupid for making him repeat it.

You turned to leave, but then remembered what Chiron had said to you before sending you up to Luke’s room. You looked at him.

“Do you need anything from your cabin?” You asked, “It’s, uh, kind of my job to get that, if you do.” You turned to face him fully, “Oh, and are you hungry? Because I have to—“

“Just some clean clothes, thanks.” He quipped. It wasn’t looking like he wanted you around for much longer.

You were quick to leave.

It was hard coming up with an excuse as to why you were stealing clothes from Luke Castellan’s bunk, but you just told them there was a new camper in the Big House and Chiron had run out of spares that morning. They brushed it off, and you ran back up to Luke with the clothes bunched in your arms, and were breathless by the time you dropped them on the bed beside him.

“Did anyone see you?” He asked just as you were about to give him the privacy he needed to change.

You were facing the door when he asked, and turned to answer, but he was already pulling off the marred camp shirt he’d arrived in, revealing his very toned torso. You paused, eyes drifting, but quickly snapped them back up to his awaiting gaze. He didn’t seem to care that he was shirtless in front of you, but neither did most boys.

“No.” You weren’t sure how he would react if you’d told him the truth, even though it was harmless. He nodded and started to unbutton his cargos, and you were quick to turn back to the door and yank it open, “Okay, I’ll…uh, probably be back at…later. Bye.”

The rest of your week was rough to say the least. You had a lot on your plate, and it didn’t help when your siblings kept wondering why you were at the Big House three times a day and why you always made a second plate of food at mealtimes. Eventually, it got around that a new camper had arrived, and you were taking care of them. That's when the rumour mill started running.

“I heard they were older, like twenty or something. Apparently they’re super embarrassed.”

“Well, I heard they were injured super badly on their way into camp, and that’s why nobody’s seen them yet.”

“I heard they got violent when Chiron explained the demigod thing and now they have him locked away in the basement!”

So yeah, lots on your plate. You did little to dispel the rumours, not wanting to allude to the truth accidentally, but when you were the only one who knew the truth, it was difficult to hide from those who wanted it too.

But after a few days, you had developed a routine. Wake up, get breakfast, take food to Luke. Check his dressings while he ate and restock your med supplies if needed. Go to whatever task you were running that day, ignore anyone who asked about the new camper, go for lunch. Take lunch to Luke. Check his dressings. Dismiss curious campers. Go to dinner. Take dinner to Luke. Check his dressings. Dismiss curious campers. Lead the campfire sing-along. Check on Luke one more time. Go to bed.

It was a lot, to say the least. But you didn’t complain — if you did this top secret doctor work right, Chiron might make you cabin counsellor when your older sister Alina leaves after this summer.

And just as you had, Luke eased into the routine too. Every time you entered his room, with a polite knock, he would be perched on the side of his bed, legs open and inviting.

You wondered if he actually did this for you, or if he just never moved from that position.

Sunday morning was slightly different — as camp activities were more relaxed and you had more time on your hands. You strolled slowly to the Big House after breakfast — rather than your usual sprint so you weren’t late to Archery — and knocked politely on the door before cracking it open and heading for the desk. With a plate of food in one hand and a fresh bandage in the other, you made your way over to where Luke sat, readying yourself for another quiet twenty minutes of work. It was quite peaceful, now that you’d gotten used to it. More comfortable, less awkward.

“Hi.”

You blinked, almost dropping what you held, but Luke was there to grab the bandage from your hand as your grip loosened in your shock. He attempted a smile, but winced when it pulled at his scar, and chose to nod at you instead.

“Uh…” You put the plate down into the bedside table, straightening your shirt, “Hi.”

He’d never said hi before.

He didn’t say anything else after that, just let you do what you did, but your mind remained a whirlwind. He said hi. That’s a completely normal thing for him to do, and yet you were reeling from it.

Once you had changed his dressings, you headed for the door and allowed him to eat his breakfast. Your hand wrapped around the metal of the handle and turned it, pulling open the wooden door and stepping one foot into the hall before the voice sounded again.

“Bye.”

You chuckled this time, not looking back, “Bye.”

ii. WEEK TWO

It was an average morning, the blistering sun from last week finally fading and allowing you to walk comfortably outside. You never knew what your dad’s problem with you was last week, but you suspected that it had something to do with the cabin counsellor who slept on the second floor of the Big House with a bandage across his eye.

Like usual, you were heading up the stairs, breakfast plate in hand, ready to give your first checkup of the day. If Luke was healing like he should’ve been, you wouldn’t have to change his dressing at lunch, and you were crossing your fingers that he was.

Pushing the door open with your back, you walked in slowly and headed towards the desk like usual. You grabbed the bandage, made your way over to Luke and put the plate down next to his small lamp. Then you straightened up and put the new bandage under your arm, holding it in place while you moved to unwrap his eye.

Before you could, however, Luke was pulling the bandage from where it was trapped against your ribcage and held it in his own hands. You looked at him, and he gave you a weak smile, “Thought it’d be easier if I held it for you.”

You murmured out a thanks and smiled at him, keeping it there even as you peeled back the old dressings and revealed his still healing scar. Usually, it wouldn’t take this long for a demigod wound to heal itself, but because Luke had gone so long without nectar or ambrosia — or any form of medical help, that is — it was in worse condition. You had to scrape out the infected skin from it a few days back, and it left Luke blinking hard to try and hide the tears.

Nowadays he seemed to be better — not as broody as he seemed last week. But you always caught him drifting off, staring at nothing. You wondered if he was reliving it, asking himself what would’ve changed had he done it differently. Your guess? Not much — you’d read up on Ladon the dragon after finding out it was he who caused Luke’s pain, just in case there was something you needed to know before starting the healing process. He was vicious, not even Hercules could get past him. And while Luke was the best swordsman camp had seen in three centuries, even he would struggle going at Ladon alone.

Once you had redressed his face, you stepped back like you always did, your footfalls sounding out the same metronome as they did three times a day. You wondered if you would wear a mark into the floor from your constant repeating path — door to the desk, desk to the bed, bed to the door. You briefly thought that wouldn’t be possible, something like that would take years to indent, but then you looked back at Luke — his forlorn expression, the bandage across his eye and the bags under’t — and wondered how long it would be before he could build the courage to stand up from the bed, return to a camp that relied so heavily on his skill set, and take the weight of his failure with him.

He pulled the plate onto his lap and you don’t think you’ve ever seen someone look so sad while stuffing their face with bacon.

“Hey, uh —“ You started, hand on the doorframe in an attempt to look casual. You couldn’t just leave him like that, right? “Do you…know — uh, know where the spare practising swords are kept?” A measly excuse, but it had him looking at you again.

He swallowed his food before speaking, “The wooden ones are in these old boxes in the back of weapon storage, but I think the celestial bronze ones are kept in the Hephaestus cabin now.”

You nodded, tapping your hand against the wood. That didn’t work in the way you wanted it to, but you weren’t going to force it. So you turned, went to open the door and leave —

“Why?”

Nevermind!

You whirled around — not too eagerly! You didn’t want to scare him off, now — “Oh! Uh, some Ares kid snapped one in half the other day, we needed a replacement.”

Luke nodded. Shit, say something else. Get him talking!

“Odd weather we’ve been having.”

What?

His lips parted, and he had the gall to look amused, “Really? I hadn’t noticed.”

“Oh, yeah.” You breathed, humiliated. You pressed your lips together, ready to give up, until a thought came to you, “Hey, you haven’t been outside in, like, a week.”

Luke nodded, shadows falling across his face like the mere mention of the fact that he hadn’t been outside was a painful reminder of his circumstances, “Yeah, I, uh, don’t think I want anyone to know that I’m back yet. Not until I’m healed, y’know?”

You knew. You also knew that probably wasn’t the only reason he refused to let anyone know he was safe in the Big House, but you didn’t say that.

“Right, but —“ A breathy chuckle, “You need, like, sunlight. Fresh air.”

“I don’t wanna risk it.”

“Ok.” And that was that. You said goodbye, left him to his own devices, and didn’t mention the sun thing again for two days.

It was on Wednesday that you finally gave in. Now that you’d put the thought in your own head, you kept noticing the effects that being cooped indoors was having on Luke. His skin, once tanned and glistening under the sun, was paling by the hour. He winced whenever he had to straighten his back, and even though his scar was healing nicely, he seemed to be more sensitive to the pain of it than he was a week earlier.

So on Tuesday night you formed a plan, and on Wednesday morning at breakfast you put it into action. It started with asking Lee — ever so casually, of course — what the activities schedule was looking like. He started yapping about their cabin, and you waited patiently for him to bring up the Amphitheatre. Then, when he said the Apollo kids were training at two, you said —

“I thought we trained at twelve on Wednesdays?”

“No, that’s Ares and Hephaestus.”

“Oh, but don’t they train at four?”

“No, Hermes and Athena train at four.”

“Then who trains at ten?”

“Nobody.”

Bingo.

Luke was halfway through pulling on a pair of shorts when you burst into the room. He jumped, yanking them up the rest of the way before turning to look at you — his face was a mix of shock and unbridled anger until he realised it was you, then it softened into something calmer. But you saw him, even for just a split second, and the animosity in his gaze made you take a quiet step back. It was fearful almost — you’d seen him annoyed, irritated. You’d even bore witness to the Carden Cross Hot Cross Bun Incident of 2002,

(Carden Cross was this fifteen year old Ares kid. He threw one too many hot cross buns at the Aphrodite table and a then-sixteen-year-old Luke had wrung him out in front of everyone.

Nobody had ever heard Luke raise his voice like that, and Carden avoided everyone for a week straight).

but you had never seen such indignation in his gaze. It was gone in a flash, and you could’ve told yourself it was never there, but it was. You were hit with the humbling realisation that whatever Luke had gone through on his quest was more damaging than you could ever imagine, and no amount of fresh air would change him back to who he was before.

That saddened you, but then you realised he was shirtless again and all morbid thoughts went straight out the window. You grinned at him, “Sorry. But we don’t have a lot of time.”

He stared at you, then at your hands that were empty of breakfast food or bandages, and asked, “Time for what?”

“For some fresh air!” You sang, throwing in some jazz hands as if they would wipe the hesitant frown that had graced his features, “Put some shoes on, let’s go!”

He said your name softly, “I can’t go outside.”

You straightened up from where you had leaned dramatically into the room and sent him a blank look, eyes still sparkling, “You can. I checked the schedule, the Amphitheatre is free from ten till twelve and it is currently…nine forty-five. If we hurry, we’ll miss the post-breakfast rush.”

Luke looked a little more at ease now, but he made no move to put his shoes on. His body twitched like he was thinking about it, but when he couldn’t come up with a valid excuse to get out of it, he sighed and nodded, “Alright. Doctors orders, I guess.”

“Awesome.” You smiled, “I’ll let you get ready.”

It took some convincing, even after you’d gotten him to follow you down the stairs, to get him out the door. But a few firm words (and a couple of threats) and he was basking in the morning sunlight just as you’d planned.

Well — more like squinting painfully. Turns out, after a week and a half in a dark room, it takes a minute to get used to the sunlight again. You ensured nobody was around and took the long way to the Ampitheatre, letting out a content sigh when you knew you were away from prying eyes. Luke seemed more relaxed already, and you could practically see his muscles getting looser.

“Damn.” He muttered, hand over his eyes, “I needed this.”

“Yeah.” You spoke over an unattractive snort, “I’m an Apollo kid, I know a Vitamin D deficiency when I’m looking at one.”

“Alright.” He rolled his eyes at you, amused, and moved towards the steps. He climbed up two before turning and sitting, leaning back on his elbows and blinking at the sky, “Think your dad made it extra sunny just for me?”

“Probably.” You smiled, standing in front of him — but still making sure you weren’t blocking the sun from his face. “After some convincing from your dad.”

Luke’s smile faded. His eyes remained closed but his hands tightened into loose fists, “I don’t think so.”

Now you were desperate to change the subject. Your eyes darted to the wall, and the rack of swords sitting in its usual spot, “Hey, wanna swing some bronze?”

“Gods.” He let out a rough laugh, and you grinned in satisfaction, “Swinging Bronze. Haven’t heard that in a while.”

You nodded, glad he was back to being somewhat happy, “We thought we were so cool.”

“We thought it’d catch on.”

You shared a laugh, and Luke peeked an eye open, looking at you, “How come we were never friends back then?”

A meek shrug, “We weren’t really friends until a couple of days ago. That's if you even count us as that now.”

He just kept looking at you, and his gaze burned into your skin. You stepped back, closer to the middle of the arena space, “We never really spoke.”

He looked at you as if he was thinking hard about what you said, and what he was gonna say next. Apparently he came up short, because seconds later he was clicking his tongue and pushing himself up, joining you in the middle of the arena, “Alright. Let’s swing some bronze.”

You let out a shaky breath, nodding. This was going well. He was outside, he was laughing, he was about to pick up a sword for the first time since he’d angrily thrown his own at the porch of the Big House when he got back a week and a half ago.

He handed you a wooden practice sword, and you raised a brow. Usually the wooden ones were for first-timers, or younger kids. He shrugged, you let it go.

Despite the fact that you and Luke had been at camp together for five years, you’d never actually gone one-on-one in a sword fight with him. It was rare that Apollo and Hermes were paired together for activities, since they were the two highest populated cabins, but even when Luke was running the practice he always picked the people he knew the best for demonstrations. You lingered at the back, watching.

So you were slightly nervous, but you also didn’t want to show it. Sure, on any normal day Luke would reassure you with kind eyes and that Luke Castellan Smile, but he wasn’t exactly himself right now. You swallowed down your nerves, matched his stance, and swung.

Best Sword Fighter in Three Hundred Years — not an exaggeration. His moves were swift, calculated, and he stayed calm the entire time. It was as if he knew everything you were going to do before you did it, and had three counterattacks on the back burner for when you would strike. Your swords clashed every time you made a move and suddenly you realised why he wanted you to use wooden swords — the clang of wood was a lot quieter than the clang of bronze, it was less likely anyone would hear you fighting. It made sense, but you couldn’t focus on that when he was practically parrying your thoughts with sweat dripping down his temple.

You held your own, though. You were quite impressed with yourself when you blocked his swipes and sidestepped his jabs. It was making him groan in frustration, and the edges of your mouth perked up. You didn’t realise how good you were at this.

Then Luke stumbled. He grunted, righted himself, and swung again. You blocked it, and he steadied his shoulders. You slowed, focusing on the way he heaved for breath, taking in gulps of air, while you were hardly breaking a sweat. The way he kept readjusting his grip on the hilt of his sword, and how his fingers shook on his free hand. He went for you again and you sidestepped him, making him trip up. He didn’t fall, but he did let out a long angry groan at his mistake, throwing the sword to the ground in frustration.

You flinched, “Luke.”

“This was a bad idea.” He snapped. He wasn’t looking at you, pacing up and down with his hands in his hair. “What the fuck is wrong with me?”

“You’re still recovering —“ You tried to reason, but he wasn’t listening to you.

“I’m the best damn swordsman this camp has ever seen. What the fuck is wrong with me? Why can’t I do this? Why —“

“Luke.” You stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. He looked at you, “It’s okay.”

“No it’s not.” He gritted through his teeth, “I fail one quest and suddenly I can’t do anything anymore? Yeah, that’s typical.”

You shook your head, “You just need time to get better.”

“I was better! Better than everyone else here, I —“ He paused, a faraway look in his eyes that unnerved you for a second before he was looking at you again, “I can hear people.”

You perked your ears up. He was right, you could hear the chatter of camp if you listened carefully enough — but it wasn’t anything to worry about. They were all doing their own tasks, far away from where they were. If someone was coming, it would be more clear. You told him that, but he shook his head.

“I need to go back. This was a bad idea.”

“Hey, it’s okay, we can go —“

“No, not we. Me.” He said firmly, a hard look in his gaze that he didn’t have before, “I’m going back. You’re staying here. And I’m never going anywhere with you again.”

iii. WEEK THREE

You hadn’t seen him in five days.

Chiron had pulled you out of Archery to ask about Luke — and why he had seen him storm angrily back into his room and lock the door. You just told him you thought it was best for him to find someone else to take care of him for the time being. You didn’t think Luke would want to see you again, ever.

All you wanted was for him to be his old self again. The guy you always saw helping out someone else with a smile on his face, the one who made others laugh and laughed with them. The one who waved at anyone who waved at him. The one who was completely oblivious to the flirting and just thought they were being friendly. The Luke Castellan who everyone gushed about, who everyone loved.

That man up there, with the scar on his face and the look in his eye, wasn't Luke Castellan. And maybe he never would be again, not completely. But he could come close — he could still smile, he could still laugh.

But you’d fucked all that up just by bringing him outside.

You didn’t know who Chiron had asked to replace you, because you never saw anyone else get up after breakfast with an extra plate. You didn’t see anyone sneaking out of the Hermes cabin with a pile of clothes. You stood in the fields for hours a day, watching those thin curtains stand stiff at the window, never to open. You thought you’d seen a shadow, but maybe it was your mind playing tricks on you.

The weekend came and went, and you spent the whole time worrying about Luke. Did this new person know that he preferred fatty bacon? Did they know that he liked keeping the curtains closed? Or would they just bring him a plate of pancakes? Ask him too many questions about his quest? Your mind whirred — would they make him worse?

No. That’s not what you were scared of.

Would they make him better?

Would they understand him more than you did? Would they coerce more words out of him? Would they even need to coerce him, or would he be comfortable holding a conversation with them no problem? What if he was better now than he ever had been with you?

You flinched when your name was called. Looking up from the bracelet you were crafting with some younger kids and meeting the eyes of Dionysus, “Sir.”

“Our, uh, special guest is requesting your presence.” He said with a stupid look on his face, “So get off your ass and get up there, I can’t stand his whining any longer.”

You did as asked with a slight roll of your eyes that made the six year old who was next to you giggle into their hands. It brought a grin to your otherwise down expression, unsure of what Luke wanted to say to you.

The room was dark when you cracked the door open — there was no response after you knocked, but you could hear him shuffling inside, so you went ahead and opened it an inch. It was a lot darker than it used to be — or maybe you too had gotten used to the shade after spending so much time there.

You pushed it open more, and there he was, in his usual spot on the edge of the bed. Head down, hands fiddling with something by his eye. He was muttering in frustration, and you stepped into the room in concern. The floor creaked, he looked up, and you gasped.

The side of his face where his scar sat was red with blood — you almost missed the bandage he was attempting to tie around it because it had been stained pink. His fingers were shaking and he pursed his trembling lips at you, “I can’t do it.”

You surged forward, immediately taking the fabric from his hands. He let them drop into his lap as you peeled it back and looked at the damage. You winced — not as bad as the blood had made it seem, but bad enough. The wound had reopened at the top, and the blood was dripping into his eye and along the curve of his jaw.

It took a few panicky minutes, but eventually the bleeding had stopped, Luke’s face was clean of blood, and you were staring at him in shock, your own fingers still red from the damage. He was avoiding your eyes, the only other thing he’d said to you being a strained thank you when you had stepped back.

“What —“ You were at a loss.

“I tried to change them myself.” He shrugged, picking at his fingernails, still not looking at you. “I’d watched you do it so many times, I figured I had it handled. Apparently I didn’t, because I woke up and it was freakin’ bleeding everywhere.”

“Oh, Luke.” You breathed, “Why didn’t you wait for someone to help you?”

“You never came back.” He said like it was obvious.

“What — so you’ve been doing this yourself for five days?” You asked, a shocked exclamation, “Chiron never sent someone else to help you?”

“He asked me who I wanted,” He shrugged, “I said you. You weren’t an option, so I did it myself.”

“You said —“

“I know what I said, alright?” He stressed, head in his hands now, “It was stupid. I was angry, hurt, whatever. It was at myself, but I took it out on you. I’m sorry. I don’t — “ His voice cracked, “I don’t know what’s happening to me.”

“Luke.” You murmured. You took a step closer, kneeled before him, and gently pried his hands away from his eyes so he would look at you. His expression was so…sad. So distraught. “What happened on your quest?”

And he told you everything.

iv. THE AFTER

Luke was ashamed to admit it — but he had no idea what your name was when you started looking after him.

Sure, he’d seen you around. You were one of the Apollo kids who spent more time in the infirmary than on the archery fields, but he was too good at his job to get injured. Hence why he didn’t know your name. He knew your face, he smiled at you and you would smile back. He was friendly with your brother, Lee. But that was about it.

That’s what made it so perfect.

You wouldn’t ask him about his quest. You wouldn’t try your hardest to get him to open up. You would do your job, and leave him to mope. That was all he wanted.

Until he learned your name.

And just from glancing at your smile — all awkward and nervous as you introduced yourself — he knew he wanted to be near you. He knew you were the type of person he could sit in silence with and walk away from it with a happy memory.

He thought he knew enough about you to determine who you were to him (a stranger). But he didn’t know your name, your voice, he didn’t know your touch or your smile — the real one you give when someone truly makes you laugh. Not the one he thought he knew.

He stood stiffly on the porch of the Big House — three weeks was all it took before Mr D was kicking him out, telling him to get a grip and face the music. Luke was ready; physically. His scar was nothing but that — a memory, faded into his skin forever. There was no other reason for him to keep himself hidden other than the fact that he wanted to. If it was up to him, nobody would ever bear the burden of seeing him ever again.

For weeks he told himself that his quest was pointless. He screamed it at the gods, at Chiron, at you. He cursed his dad every night for sending him on a path to failure and not even acknowledging it. He cursed himself for ruining the first chance he had at gaining his fathers pride in seventeen years — he sat in the dark, fists clenched, and asked himself what it was all for.

The five years on the run, the endless monster attacks, the relentless training, the offerings, the prayers. Would his life be any better had he just let that first monster kill him?

No. Because he wouldn’t have met Thalia, or Annabeth. He wouldn’t have seen the brighter side of being a halfblood — he wouldn’t have met his siblings, he wouldn’t have found his calling. He wouldn’t have experienced the joy of helping a new camper, of being the guiding hand he never got to hold.

But what of his quest? His mission for his father brought nothing but pain — a pointless trip, a humiliating failure, a deep jagged scar. For weeks he asked himself why he was given the quest in the first place, and for years to come he will question himself each and every day.

But each and every day he asks himself what the gods had ever given him, he would be reminded of the day he learnt your name. And he would tell himself had he not taken that trip, had he not fallen to Ladon, he never would have felt the searing touch of your fingertips on his skin.

So maybe it was worth it after all.

He stepped off the porch.

[kamaluhkhan]

TIME TO PRETEND

pairing: luke castellan x gn!poseidon!reader word count: 5k chapter summary: you're the eldest child of poseidon and the hero of the last great prophecy. you left your demigod life behind after defeating kronos. now, years later, you find yourself back at camp half blood for the summer.....which means dealing with luke castellan, and all that history (tension?) left unresolved between you. warnings: some nicknames for reader are based on female characters (mermista, sailor neptune) but they're still written as gender neutral. reader has tattoos. mention of alcohol + death (post-titan war). spoilers for the entire pjo (book) series, mostly references to the last olympian. timeline is all over the place but set in the early 2000s for vibes. no betrayal (au where chris was the one who sided w kronos and led the titan army) so slightly ooc luke <3 author's note: welcome to another product of my pjo hyperfixation !!! i wanted to finish the nemesis!reader series first but it's summer and i felt like reworking my tsitp series in a camp half-blood setting with bb luke. so prepare for childhood friends to lovers drama! summertime vibes! nostalgia! angst! would love to know what y'all think about this and if you want a part 2 so feel free to scream at me in the comments. otherwise, enjoy and thanks 4 reading 💙

♪: time to pretend by mgmt

YOU’VE GOT MAIL!

1 new message 

from: LukeNotSkywalker

to: Mermista86

subject: you are GETTING that record deal

Hey,

Your demo CD just came in the mail — and, Connor as my witness, I’ve already listened to it five times!!! 

It’s amazing. You’re amazing. The label would totally lose out if they didn’t sign you. 

Things have been pretty chaotic around here, with the summer term happening soon. Speaking of which: are you coming back? Chiron gave me the list of returning campers and counsellors this morning and said he hadn’t heard from you, so I thought I’d ask. I know you’ll be busy with the band, but if you get the chance, it’d be really great to see you.

Anyways, I’m leading the next Shield & Sword session, so I’d better go. Talk soon ;)

- L

FOUR YEARS LATER

TURBULENT WATERS? ALT-ROCK BAND MIDNIGHT SIRENS HIT ROUGH PATCH AFTER LEAD GUITARIST GETS INTO VIOLENT ALTERCATION 

the cover is the nail in the coffin: a blurry picture of you, an electric blue guitar forgotten at your feet, lunging forward into a crowd, with your bandmates on stage behind you in shock. 

you’d gone all this time without any major incidents, and one stupid chimera managed to burn down everything you worked for in one fell swoop.

“that’d be $8.50,” the cashier informs. 

you tear your attention away from the magazine, instead fishing through your pocket for some change. meanwhile, the cashier furrows their brow, leans down slightly to get a better look at you underneath your sunglasses and baseball cap. 

“hey, do i know you?”

“nope,” you say instantly, slapping a $10 bill onto the counter. “keep the change.” you gather your pile of necessary roadtrip supplies (slushies, m&m’s, and goldfish) before rushing out the door, your half-brother trailing behind you.

you slide into the driver’s seat, set each slushie in a cup holder, and hand the rest to percy once he’s slipped into the passenger side. 

“seatbelt,” you remind him. you shake your hair out after removing your baseball cap disguise. “i promised your mom i’d be responsible.” 

percy does as he’s told, though not without mumbling about how he’s practically an adult and a demigod who’s been in much more dangerous situations than a car ride up to long island. you just tell him to put on some music, even though he has a point. he’ll be 18 in august and you’re only five years older, but the fact is that you gave sally jackson your word. 

plus — you’re his older sibling, so gods forbid you let him get hurt. a seatbelt seems like a band-aid solution for one of the most powerful demigods out there, but still.

percy flips through a few radio stations while he sips his blue raspberry slushie. when he doesn’t find anything good, he opens the glove compartment and surveys your music collection before sliding a cd into the stereo. 

instantly, the familiar sound of david bowie’s voice eases the tension in your shoulders.

“good choice?” 

you nod and percy smiles triumphantly. you reach over to steal a few goldfish from the bag he just opened and ruffle his hair playfully, for good measure. 

you’re perfectly happy, driving along a long island highway while getting lost in the glam rock world of ziggy stardust, but it isn’t long until percy interrupts: 

“are you finally gonna tell me what happened, or do i have to read it from some trashy gossip magazine like everyone else?”

“well, your dyslexic ass can barely read so….”

you look over at him briefly, and laugh when you see him stick his slightly-blue tongue out to you. 

“at least my dyslexic ass is actually decent at ancient greek. luke told me you failed the reading test, like, a million times.”

your heart twinges at the mention of your old friend. 

friend.

if you could still call him that. 

thankfully, percy doesn’t give you much room to dwell on the past, too focused on your drama-filled present.

“so, what is it? you got kicked out of the band? lost everything? have nowhere else to go?”

you roll your eyes at his dramatics. “i did not get kicked out.” 

“then, what happened?”

“just the usual.” you shrug. “monster attack, mortals who can’t see through the mist. i tried to explain it away after — something about how i saw someone in the crowd attack another person and i stepped in to help. most people bought it, but the media loves drama and the label’s worried i’m a flight risk now. apparently, everything will blow over if i just keep a low profile for the next few months. so….no. i didn’t lose everything.” you take a deep, like when anyone other than children of poseidon are about to go underwater and they’re not quite sure when they can come up for air. 

“i just don’t really have anywhere else to go,” you finish.

“damn.” percy offers you a blue shark gummy (or whale - you and percy had already debated the shape of the candy that sally packed for the trip, and the jury’s still out). you gratefully accept. “well, i know it’s not the best reason, but i’m excited to spend the summer together.”

despite everything, you find yourself smiling. 

“me too, kid.” 

“it’d give me a chance to kick your ass in sword-fighting.”

“you wish!” you nudge his shoulder, both of you giggling. once the laughter’s died down, you glance at percy once more. “hey – did you tell anyone i was coming?”

percy shakes his head. “why?”

you take a long swig of your drink until you’re on the brink of brain freeze. 

“no reason.”

it’s just after lunch when you arrive at camp half-blood. 

you weren’t sure what you were expecting — maybe not some futuristic technological developments that had been discovered within the years you were gone, but definitely not for camp to look pretty much exactly the same as when you left. 

instantly, you find comfort in the familiar scenes: a dragon, peleus, guarding the magical borders; dryads and satyrs picking strawberries in the fields next to the forest; chiron standing near the central guidepost, greeting and guiding every camper in the right direction.

chiron smiles down at percy and practically does a double take when his eyes land on you.

“mx. l/n! it has been a while. are you here to drop off your brother, or do you plan on staying for the summer?”

before you can answer, someone appears behind him. 

“perce! hey!” 

“hey, luke.”

luke gives him a side hug, and percy shoves him away with a laugh when he ruffles his hair. it’s then that luke acknowledges you, though he looks like that’s the last thing he wants to do.

“i thought i’d never see you again. what are you doing here? ”

chiron turns to you expectedly. “i believe you have yet to answer that question of mine as well.”

“staying for the summer…” you adjust the shoulder strap of your backpack, uneased by luke’s cold demeanor. “i hope that’s okay.”

“of course!” chiron’s smile grows wide, eyes crinkling. “you’ll resume your position as head counsellor of cabin 3.”

“so i’m dethroned? just like that?” percy guffaws.

you nudge percy’s shoulder. “fulfill the next great prophecy, and then we’ll talk.” 

percy rolls his eyes playfully. luke, on the other hand, doesn’t seem to appreciate your tongue-in-cheek remark. his jaw tightens, and he suddenly finds a deep interest in the clipboard he’s holding.

chiron clears his throat, likely sensing the tension. “yes, well, i’m sure you remember how things work around here. if not, mr. castellan has been keeping this ship afloat. he's always here to help.”

“always.” luke smiles, but it’s elastic, threatening to snap at any moment. someone calls his name, and he walks away to deal with whatever chaos is waiting for him.

summer — age 15

you weren’t exactly conscious when you first arrived at camp half-blood. 

apparently, coach hedge, a satyr and protector, found you just in time and had to practically drag you up half-blood hill after a particularly gruesome fury attack. 

when you woke up and saw luke sleeping next to you in a chair, his curls overgrown and falling onto his eyes, you thought you had died and gone to elysium. 

you took in your unfamiliar surroundings. some sort of infirmary, with only your best friend next to you, the one you hadn’t seen in almost a year since you’d parted ways. 

then, you remembered what was happening before you passed out; it was more likely that you were being tricked into a false sense of security by that fury, who definitely planned on devouring you later.

with a newfound sense of urgency, you decided it was time to get out of there before it was too late. you were reaching for your knife when you felt a hand grab your shoulder. without losing a second, you twisted your body around, weapon at the ready.

whoever it was watching over you sure looked like luke. he was wearing a bright orange shirt and leather cord necklace with one clay bead. another point of difference was the jagged scar that cut across his left cheek.

“it’s just me,” he said, gently. “you’re fine here. you’re safe.”

you weren’t convinced, kept your knife in front of you to keep distance. “prove it.” you narrowed your eyes. “tell me something only luke would know.”

“you’re left-handed.”

“that’s a great observation,” you scoff.

“storm is your favourite x-men character.”

“that’s a very popular opinion.”

“your aunt would make us mango lassi after swim camp when she got home from work,” luke tries for the third time. “and, my mom - she used to call you ‘starfish.’”

your heart skipped a beat.

that was the confirmation you needed. 

the knife dropped from your hand, clattered on the wooden floor, as you pulled luke in for a hug. you were greeted by a familiar scent, that pear shampoo luke loved because it made his hair so soft, mixed with the smell of fresh pine trees. 

“it’s really you,” you mumbled into his shoulder.

despite sleeping for gods know how long, you were exhausted. you rested your weight into luke, but he didn’t seem to care.

“it’s really you. i thought i’d never see you again.”

“where are we?” you asked, breaking away to face luke. you ignored the wooziness you felt throughout your body; luke seemed to sense it, his grip around you tightening. “are annabeth and thalia here, too? how’d you get here?” your thumb traced the unfamiliar scar on his face. “what happened? are you okay —”

“i-i’ll answer all your questions, but you lost a lot of blood.” luke guided you to lay back down in bed. “we’ll explain everything. just get some rest.”

a third scenario entered your mind: this was all a dream. you’d close your eyes and when you opened them again, luke would be gone. you’d be alone again.

you couldn’t let go of luke’s hand, even as he tucked you back into bed. you tugged his wrist, silently urging him to join you.

“will you stay with me?” you finally croaked when he continued standing. 

luke looked at you, and you nodded once as final confirmation. then, he removed his shoes and slipped into the bed next to you. it was luke, all sweet pear and soft curls and strong heartbeat, and you held on to him in fear that he might slip away.

“always,” he whispered.

during the orientation video you were later shown, you learned that camp half-blood’s motto is keeping young heroes safe (mostly) for over three millennia!  

luke had used that word, too. safe.

chiron told you this was to be your new home as he walked you to the poseidon cabin. he told you that you were safe now, though you noticed how the word almost got caught in his throat. he gave you a sad smile you didn’t quite understand.

you did wonder, at first, if those words were true: this place, a home for you and other children of gods. somewhere safe.

and, well.

you came to understand chiron’s general melancholy a few weeks later, and every week after that. he was used to training and sending heroes off to their potential death, and you would be no different. stolen lightning bolts, deadly quests, cryptic prophecies. a pending war between divine forces you had been entangled with long before you knew. heartache and betrayal and loss beyond measure. 

but, there were other things, too. 

annabeth, fitting in perfectly at the athena cabin, continued being her genius self, leading her team to victory every capture the flag game. she was extra patient in helping you with ancient greek, especially after chiron had given up.

chris rodriguez, luke’s half-brother, would tell you jokes from across the dining pavilion, knowing that you hated sitting alone at the poseidon table. michael yew, son of apollo, taught you how to play guitar at the bonfire one week; you’d ask for more and more lessons until you could start playing on your own. charles beckendorf made you a celestial bronze sword that shone like that burst of light when the sun hits the ocean at sunset. it transformed into a ring that you would never take off, unless in battle. you might not have gotten along with mr. d, but you spent free time picking fresh strawberries with his son, castor. you made matching friendship bracelets with silena beauregard, who was really the only person you confided in, about how you maybe possibly felt something other than friendship when it came to luke. she told you about her crush on clarisse larue, the daughter of ares whom you would always partner with during sparring practice. you taught ethan nakamura, who didn’t have his own cabin as the child of nemesis, how to properly hold a sword. thalia’s tree stood tall at the top of the hill where you almost bled to death, protecting you and everyone inside the magical borders. you, annabeth, and luke would share a picnic there every thursday.

you had been on the run for so long, always looking over your shoulder for monsters, sleeping with one eye open to be one step ahead of death, jumping from one place to the next so quickly to avoid danger.

so, yes. 

it was nice to stay in one place, where you knew you were as safe as demigods could be. it was nice to spend your time learning and training and laughing instead of just surviving. 

it was nice to have a place to call home. and people to call it home with.

now 

the first week passes in the blink of an eye, and it’s like you never left.

tie-dye, volleyball, strawberry picking, kitchen duty, and cabin inspection. 

luke has everyone on a tight schedule — one, you notice, conveniently places the two of you at opposite ends of camp at all times.

still, you catch up with clarisse and the stoll brothers, spend time with annabeth and percy, say hi to pollux and katie gardner and others you vaguely recognize as five years older than what you remember. there are also a lot of faces you don’t recognize at all.

of course, you try not to think about the faces you wished you could see: friends you grew up with and would never have a laugh with again, younger campers you had trained who would never grow up. all lost because of the gods and the titans and a prophecy you never asked to be a part of. 

it’s a side effect of being back here; their ghosts are harder to ignore.

again — trying not to think about it.

anyways.

climbing wall, armory, sword-fighting practice, archery field, and free time on the beach.

to conclude: capture-the-flag, a friday night camp-half blood tradition.

you’re praising annabeth for her latest strategy that led to blue team victory when you notice luke. he was also on the blue team, but instead of celebrating with the rest of you, he’s speaking to someone who’s wearing a red helmet. they seem to be in a heated discussion, one that luke is not wanting to continue. his tells are the same, after all these years: the impatient tapping of his foot, his eyes searching for an out.

you give it to him.

“sorry, i need to borrow this guy.” you say, grabbing luke’s wrist. “camp emergency.” 

if the person said anything, you didn’t hear it, because you were already dragging luke away from the crowd, towards the armory shed. 

“what’s the emergency?” luke wonders, brows furrowed in concern. he has deep shadows under his eyes, too. keeping the ship that is camp half-blood afloat has clearly taken a toll on him. 

“you wanting to get out of that conversation. you’re welcome.” you wink at him; luke flushes, and you’re not sure if it’s because he’s annoyed, or if he's just flustered. “so, are you gonna keep ignoring me the whole summer?”

you put your helmet on one of the shelves and turn back to luke. you expected him to start removing his armor as well, but he doesn’t. he just glares at you, arms crossed over his chest.

so, he’s annoyed, then. 

“what do you expect?” luke hisses. “you can’t come back here and pretend that everything can be like it was when we were kids. things are different now, especially between us.”

you decide to take him up on his challenge. 

“oh? tell me, luke, what exactly is different between us?”

luke shakes his head in disbelief. you remove your chest plate, and that’s when the tattoo on your waist becomes visible. it’s a magnolia, like one of the flowers that bloomed on the tree outside may castellan’s house. 

something in luke softens, then. he sighs. 

“you could have at least given me a warning.”

he storms off, and you’re left half-armored, wondering what he meant by that.

you figure it out once a few of you settle down for a late-night, underground poker game, and you’re trying not to stare at luke’s hands.

it starts with you telling yourself that you’re just trying to predict what cards he’s holding, figure out if he’s bluffing, and if he’s about to lose everything he’d so confidently bet on. 

but then you notice the silver thumb ring that thalia got him for his 17th birthday. you notice an array of hair ties and elastic bands he keeps just in case a camper needs them, and woven bracelets given to him by his admirers. you notice how the tattoo on his wrist is covered. (it’s hidden well, but you know it’s there — you’d gotten one of a wing, the kind that might be found on a pair of magical red converse, at the same time)

you also notice the forest green painted on luke’s nails, the same shade worn by the person beside him.

van, the new head counsellor of the hephaestus cabin. you’d seen them at staff meetings, but you somehow did not notice that they were dating luke. 

he moved on — is that why luke needed a warning? is that what's changed between you?

it’s fine. whatever. so what if luke has a new partner? it’s not like the two of you were anything, officially. 

luke has a new partner. they’re wearing matching nail polish. they’re one of those couples.

well, van is also wearing a nickleback shirt and luke hates nickleback, unless that fundamental part of his personality changed, too. 

“yo, sailor neptune. you in or not?” travis brings you out of your daze, by using a nickname luke once called you.

back before becoming heroes, when you and luke were just kids, you’d watch cartoons in his living room on saturday mornings — x-men, she-ra: princess of power, teenage mutant ninja turtles, sailor moon. a lifetime ago.

you look around the table and see that everyone has been waiting for you to take your turn. even luke raises an eyebrow at you.

“yeah.” you clear your throat and throw some chips into the centre. “i’m in.”

you have decent enough cards to keep you in the game, and you’re comfortable that you can play the odds in your favor. the stoll brothers are good liars, you know that, and so is luke. malcolm pace is good at strategy, but thankfully not as good as his half-sister annabeth. pollux, who had invited you to the game, already folded along with butch, the son of iris who has a rainbow tattoo on his bicep to prove it. beside you, lou ellen, daughter of the hecate, contemplates her next move. clovis has fallen asleep, true to their title as head counsellor of the hypnos cabin. you can’t get a read on van, but they keep raising the stakes so confidently, and you’ve always liked a good challenge.

soon enough, it’s only you and van in the bet. when it comes time to reveal your cards, you curse yourself for overplaying your hand.

“good game,” van says to you as they collect their winnings. “you really had me going there.” 

“yeah.” your smile is strained, but it’s there nonetheless. “tried my best.”

“guess the curse of achilles doesn’t help as much in poker as it does in capture the flag.” 

“excuse me?” you raise an eyebrow.

luke, who had one arm casually draped around van’s chair the entire game, pulls away. “van, maybe don’t —”

“it’s not like it’s a secret, luke. they’re the prophecy kid, everyone knows they bathed in the river styx to be able to fight kronos. it’s camp legend.”

other than you, luke, and van, everyone else is occupied with something else. connor busies himself shuffling the cards, while lou ellen, malcolm, and pollux get up for more drinks. it seems like butch and travis have their own bet going to see who can balance the most chips on clovis’ forehead without waking him up. 

van waits for an answer. you’re a little queasy, and it’s not from the wine pollux managed to snag from his dad’s office. you’re suddenly faced with the reality that your life is reduced to a legend. you try your best to swallow that feeling, of being made into a greek tragic hero while your heart is still beating, and your life is still a mess.

“that’s relevant, why?”

“just that some people might consider the invulnerability thing an unfair advantage in physical competitions like capture the flag,” van explains. “increased strength and all that.” 

“that would mean nothing without a good strategy,” you counter.

“that’s what i said,” luke grumbles. 

you recognize van now as the person luke was arguing with earlier. it must have been about this. 

about you. 

“okay, y’all were best friends, so luke is obviously going to take your side.”

you’re not sure what stings more: friends or were. 

“although, he never really talks about you, which is weird because you’re, like, famous in and outside camp.”

ouch. that definitely stings the most. luke winces slightly, almost like he feels it, too.

“alright, alright,” connor interjects, shuffling the cards in his hands. “another round?” 

you’re the only one who decides to call it a night. everyone says goodbye; even van, who’s blissfully unaware of the effect their words had on you. luke avoids your gaze. the game continues without you.

percy’s snoring provides enough cover as you sneak into your shared cabin. you try to sleep, but it doesn’t come easy. 

you feel the spot underneath your rib, the one spot you’re truly vulnerable, ache.

summer — age 17

for the first time in your life, you couldn’t breathe underwater. you were swimming in acid, and your skin was melting away.

at least, that’s what it felt like to bathe in the river styx. achilles could have mentioned that, but all he gave was a cryptic warning about anchoring yourself to what makes you mortal.

you really tried at first. you thought about your friends at camp. you thought about percy, about your aunt back when she was still around. you even thought about may castellan, burnt cookies and saturday mornings.

the pain was too much, though. 

you were forgetting where you were, who you were. with every passing second, you were dissolving into nothing.

“if you wanted to go for a swim, you should have told me. i would have worn my swimsuit.”

luke’s voice echoed across the waves. you tilted your head up to see him sitting on the dock above you, his feet dangling into the water. he had rolled up his jeans to just above his ankles so they didn’t get wet, but his shoes were still on, which was a bit strange. the sun made his eyes look like burnt amber, his teeth sparkling as he smiled at you. 

okay. cool.

you were at camp. it was mid-afternoon, free period. the two of you had been at the edge of the lake, until you became impatient and jumped in, fully clothed. behind him, you could see that annabeth, thalia, and percy were waiting for you on the shore. they were each wearing orange camp shirts, which was also strange; you couldn’t remember a time when you were all there together, as campers.

“we better go, sailor,” luke said, amusement laced throughout his words. “come on. those cabins aren’t gonna inspect themselves.”

luke extended his hand to you. when you hesitated, he added:

“i can’t do this without you. will you stay with me?”

you reached up and grabbed luke’s hand.

always.

you emerged from the water, catching your breath as you collapsed on the sand. 

“oh gods. are you okay?”

your cousin, nico diangelo, son of hades, knelt down next to you. he tried to check your pulse, but you waved him away. your eyes searched for luke, but he wasn’t there, despite feeling the ghost of his hand in your own. 

oh.

you weren’t at camp; you were in the underworld. it was nico’s idea for you to take on the curse of achilles so that you’d be strong enough to face kronos. 

“did it work?”

you got up, a bit uneasy on your feet at first. nico helped steady you, his hands cold on your skin.

you felt….stronger wasn’t the right word. you felt adrenaline coursing through your veins, like you could swim across the biggest ocean without pausing once. like you could defeat an entire army and not break a sweat. maybe even take down a titan or two while you're at it.

you needed to see luke again, to meet him and the others in manhattan before it was too late.

“let’s hope so.”

now

you always loved mornings at camp half-blood. the beach was particularly beautiful at sunrise, the water peaceful.

the morning after that impromptu poker game, you need that peacefulness to wash over you. you’re awake after a rather sleepless night, deciding to go for a quick run before breakfast. you get dressed and grab your mp3 player, as quietly as you can to avoid waking up percy (who, truthfully, could probably sleep through a hurricane anyways). 

you jog from one end of the beach to the other. you set a steady rhythm, somewhere between the beat of your music and the sound of waves gently washing over the shore. when you make your way back down to where you started, you notice someone sitting nearby.

luke doesn’t say anything when you first sit next to him. he’s wearing a dark blue hoodie over his usual orange shirt, a cigarette tucked behind his ear. you imagine that he confiscated it from a camper on the way here. 

“morning,” he finally whispers, eyes fixed towards the ocean. 

you shiver, and not just from the cool morning air. you’re reminded of the last time luke spoke to you so softly, the last time you’d caught an early morning sunrise together. such a contrast to where you are now.

“morning,” you finally reply. 

as the sound of waves fills the silence between you, luke surprises you by taking a lighter out of his pocket. he lights the cigarette and takes a puff. then, he hands it to you. 

it’s such an odd, though not unwelcomed, gesture. a peace offering, you figure, but it’s just so not luke that you can’t help yourself.

“is golden boy luke castellan, offering me contraband? what planet am i on?”

the hint of a smile creeps onto his face. “like i said: things are different now,” he echoes his words from the night before, but this time you don’t sense any hostility.

you take a drag of the cigarette. your fingers brush against his when you return it to him.

you decide to offer a peace offering as well, and present to him one of your earbuds — he accepts. you have to slide across the sand to move closer to him, but he doesn’t seem to mind. 

i’m feelin’ rough, i’m feeling raw / i’m in the prime of my life….

as the song plays, you glance to see luke nodding along, tapping a finger on his knee to the beat. he lets the cigarette smoulder in his other hand.

we’re fated to pretend / to pretend / yeah, yeah, yeah….

when the song is over, luke turns to you. 

“new group?” he brings the cigarette to his lips, then gives it back to you.

“kinda.” you inhale, letting the smoke warm your lungs before explaining. “this is considered they’re breakthrough album. they’re from connecticut, actually.”

“oh, yeah? guess that’s where all the talent is from.”

luke bumps his shoulder against yours knowingly. you feel your cheeks heat up at his praise, his witty sincerity.

this is familiar — you and luke, at the beach, sharing music. it’s familiar, and for a few moments, you can act like there isn’t a wall between you, of unresolved feelings and harsh words. you can pretend that nothing has changed.

“you know, nickleback are from connecticut, too. which means you just called them talented.”

luke coughs on some smoke as he exhales with a laugh. “what? no i didn’t!”

“in a roundabout way. i always knew you were an undercover fan,” you tease.

“i have better taste than that.”

“do you?”

“you’re fucking with me,” luke deadpans.

you crack a smile. “yeah, i’m fucking with you.”

“gods, you scared me for a second,” he laughs, and you can’t help but follow. luke glances at you and the sunshine highlights his smile, his dark brown curls, the ever-changing color of his eyes. golden, radiant. 

you shiver again, looking away. before you know it, you feel something draped across your shoulders.

“i’m not sure van would like it if i was wearing your hoodie.” you joke, but your words are laced with a bitterness you hope luke doesn’t catch. unlucky for you, luke still knows you too well, whether he likes it or not.

“you don’t get to do that.”

“do what?”

luke scoffs. “be jealous.” 

“well, you don’t get to tell me how to feel.”

“so, you are jealous?”

you exhale sharply; you can practically feel the wall between you two reappear.

“it’s too early, lu. and i’m too hungover to deal with this.”

there’s nothing more left to say. you get up, throw his hoodie on the sand, and walk back towards your cabin, the beach and luke further away with every step you take.

it makes sense that way: you were always the one to leave first.

[shebreathedherlast]

Daughter of the Sea

Part I

Done For

Luke Castellan x f!reader

Summary: You wanted glory but Luke already had it. You have no option but to take it from him.

Word Count 1.3k

TW: Violence, weapons, blood

. .・゜゜・・゜゜・．. ･ﾟﾟ･｡. .・゜゜・・゜゜・．. ･ﾟﾟ･｡. .・゜゜・.

Tearing through the forest your legs carried you as fast as you could go. This was the day. You needed this win. The wind flew through your hair as you ran. You were in enemy territory now, and that meant you had to be on high alert.

As an unclaimed half-blood you needed a way, anyway to prove your worth. And since camp offered glory you figured you might as well take it. You would've long ago if it wasn’t for Camp Half Blood’s designated golden boy, Luke Castellan. In your mind, he could be labelled by anything besides “the golden boy.” Luke was overwhelmingly competitive. He fought hard to earn the place of the “best swordsman at camp.” But even harder to keep it.

Living in close quarters with him for a little over a year, you had learned Luke’s best and worst qualities, and he did have many bad qualities.

For one Mr. Golden Boy, all but self-assumed the role of head counsellor. He just saw an opportunity for power and took it without question. When you thought about it, it did make sense. Luke wanted control because being a half-blood, a tool for the gods was all but a freeing life. You never had any say, no control, no power.

Luke might have enjoyed power, but you craved it in your very soul.

. .・゜゜・・゜゜・．. ･ﾟﾟ･｡. .・゜゜・・゜゜・．. ･ﾟﾟ･｡. .・゜゜・.

Your sword rang out with a clang when it met your opponent’s blade. You would earn glory, even if you had to claw it from between the fist of Luke himself.

With another swift blow, your opponent was down. Sprawled on the ground, trying to regain his breath. The boy, Chris, was supporting his body weight by placing his elbows on the ground beneath him. You had disarmed him and now you were holding your knife against his throat.

“They should call you the wraith, with the way you sneak up on people.” Chris said, a chuckle muffed by his inhale of breath.

“That sounds so extra.” You shiver, “Not my style.”

A voice flitted through the air behind you, “That sound’s like it’s exactly your style, Chaos.”

You groaned in annoyance. “I was supposed to hunt you down, Castellan, you took all the fun out of this.”

Luke rolled his eyes at you. He contended with a raise of his brows, “Well, it looks like I was the one who caught you by surprise.”

You laughed at that. Did Luke really believe he could sneak up on you? “I could hear you coming from a mile away with your loud footsteps. You’re about as subtle as an elephant, Castellan.”

By now Chris was shifting his weight to get up. Noticing this, you pulled a knife from your boot and threw it in his direction. Chris froze, knife pinning his shirt to the ground.

“Stay down Chris.” Was all you said before turning your attention back to the boy in front of you. Christ obeyed, not moving an inch, in fear that your patience would wear thin. After all Luke could handle himself right? It wasn’t a hidden fact that for the better part of an entire year, you had been on the hunt for glory… specifically, the same glory that made Luke Castellan the camp-proclaimed “Golden Boy.”

“I’m going to enjoy humbling you, chaos.”

You scoffed, “In your dreams Castellan.”

And with that, your weapons clashed. Metal against metal, blade against blade. You had sparred with Luke many times before, he claimed you were the only one who could actually “put up a fight.” Every other time Luke had bested you. Your fights would last hours on end, each of you refusing to let the other assume victory. But, he always had this ability to fight without emotion. Anger never made him sloppy. You on the other hand. You used your anguish and pain to fuel you. It was both a blessing and a curse. You had the drive to fight till the end, but your rage could make you careless. Not today. You would keep your head on this time. You would win glory, one way or another.

He had his sword pointed to your chest, in response you raised your knives to push against his blade. You spun out of his reach and delivered a kick from behind. Luke stumbled forward as he tried to regain his stance. You wasted no time in lightly sinking your blade into his bicep. He hissed in pain.

“Chaos,” Luke groaned at the painful contact of your knife.

You snickered, “Ready to give up Castellan?”

He faced you head-on this time, “Never.”

Luke brought down his sword with such force, you thought the ground might have trembled. You held your daggers against his sword, preventing the weapon from piercing your skin. But he was stronger than you. Your arms weakened and he saw this as an opportunity to push down harder. Realizing this, you attempted to evade the sword, tumbling to your side, but the blade cut the flesh of your shoulder. Blood seeped out from the wound, coating your orange camp shirt in a deep crimson.

You drew a sharp breath, instinctively pressing your hand to the injury.

“That was way deeper than the nick I gave you.” You said through gritted teeth.

A brief look of concern filled Luke’s eyes before they glassed over with a dim look. His eyes darkened when he remembered that you wanted his glory.

“Get up and fight me, Chaos. Don’t you want my glory?” He taunted.

Your hand slid from your wound, readjusting the blades in your hands. “I will have your glory, Castellan, even if I have to kill myself trying.”

Luke’s eyes drank in your appearance. Eyes wild, hair falling from your ponytail. Knives in your grasp. And the determination radiating off you. This time was different from almost every other. You were determined to beat him, and loss wasn’t even a possibility. You and Luke always fought, both with blades and with words. And though he tried, he couldn’t deny that he started to find your anger increasingly more…attractive.

You swept his legs from under him, fighting for dominance as you straddled his waist. He wrested you off his frame as you grabbed his arm with the sword. You shifted your weight on his body as you reached for Luke’s sword. And at this, you could’ve sworn you had heard him inhale sharply.

Luke finally managed to push you off of him. He stood, holding his sword to your throat. The prospect of glory was fleeing from you and you would not accept it. You needed it, you craved it. With one last effort, you dropped your weapons, placing your hands on the belly and top of the sword. Luke stood fixed, too bewildered to calculate his next movements. The metal dug into your palms as you twisted your arms, disarming Luke in his confusion. You elbowed him in the shoulder, hearing a pristine popping noise before tackling him to the ground and pressing your forearm to his throat.

“Yield.” You spoke, breathlessly.

Luke simply nodded, seeing as he was defenceless and now his limbs were rendered useless.

A victorious smile reached your lips. You lifted your body off of his and reached the blue flag. Taking it in your bloody hands you ran to the boarder of the teams, firmly placing it on the soil of the read team.

Your fellow teammates let out a victorious yell. Even the conceited ares champion, Clarisse gave you a nod of approval. Near the lake a halo blue tridant appeared over your head, claiming you as Poseidon's child. You had achieved much more than glory. You had been seen by your father. After over a year of trying to earn your godly parent's favor, you had finally given your father something to be proud of.

As Luke and Chris walked back from their assigned station, they could see the glorious smirk that painted your features.

Yes, after that encounter Luke Castellan was definitely done for.

----

A/n This will become a series.

[megalony]

Resemblance- Part 7

Thank you all for the lovely feedback on this Evan Buckley series and for all the ideas you've been sending in, they really help.

I hope you will all like this part, thank you for waiting while I finally got round to finishing this part.

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Series Taglist: @lunaroserites @swanshells @moonlovers34 @bartkevicius03 @btskzfav @papafritafria @shortchubbybibi @essienoe @capswife

Series Masterlist

Summary: When Evan introduces (Y/n) to Eddie, she resembles someone he used to know. And he can't help himself when he's around her, leading to frightening behaviour.

Enjoy.

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

"I don't understand…"

Tilting his head back, Evan ran his hand across his jaw and down the back of his neck. His nails scratched into his skin enough to draw blood and create deep indents into his skin. Deep rouge lines appeared like cracks in his pale skin and dragged down beneath the collar of his shirt.

He could feel the doorframe digging into his back right near his spine, but Evan couldn't take his eyes off of Chris.

Then twelve year old looked the smallest Evan had ever seen him. He looked fragile, fractured, panicked. And Evan couldn't blame him.

His eyes raked over Chris, watching as his legs slowly swung back and forth with the heels of his feet disappearing behind the bed, hitting whatever games or toys he had hidden under there. Both hands were clenching around the bed cover and his body was leant forward like he was about to flop down onto the floor.

His chin was tilted down into his chest but his eyes were staring up through his lashes, locked onto Evan like he was a beacon.

"Where's dad going?" Chris sounded awfully young when he said that and it brought a shiver tearing down Evan's spine.

With a sigh, he pushed off the door frame and trudged across the bedroom. He thought it was a good idea to try and talk to Chris here, at home, and then get him to pack. And it had to be Evan who had to explain. He couldn't trust Eddie to explain without breaking down or giving up and trying to talk everyone out of this idea.

But they had all agreed.

Eddie had found a programme he could work with. It involved staying on a ward and entering therapy group sessions and one to one sessions with a counsellor. He would be around doctors twenty four seven and if he agreed and they thought he might need medication, they could do that too.

He couldn't go back to work yet anyway, Bobby had signed him off on leave and he couldn't go back to work without having an assessment first to clear him.

He knew he was lucky. (Y/n) didn't want to press charges, she didn't want the hassle that would entail and it felt cruel. Despite everything Eddie had done, he needed help and charging him wasn't going to help him.

All that was going to be on file was a domestic incident. It was Evan's way of having security. If Eddie tried anything ever again, they would already have it on file that he had been involved in a domestic incident so they had some sort of proof if they ever needed it.

"He… he's coming back, right?" Chris didn't give Evan chance to respond to his first question. "Mum left us, she didn't wanna come back."

He watched Evan plonk down on the bed next to him and reach out to slide one hand up and down Chris's back. His other hand brushed across his jaw again as he tried to gather his senses.

"Your dad would never leave you if he didn't have to, and he will always come back to you. He doesn't wanna go."

Evan knew this was going to be hard. He knew the moment he told Chris that Eddie had to go and he had to come and stay with Evan, that Chris was going to panic. He didn't want his dad to go, he would revert back to the memories of his mum leaving and when she came back, it was clear Shannon wasn't sure if she wanted to be in Chris's life permanently or not. And then she died, she ultimately left and he could never see or talk to her again.

Chris didn't want that to happen with his dad. He couldn't lose both parents, he had to have his dad around, he didn't want to be apart from him.

"Then why's he going? Where's he going that I can't go too?" His dad had brought him down here to LA from Texas.

When Eddie needed a fresh start away from his overbearing family and away from the memories of Shannon, he brought Chris with him. He couldn't bear the thought of his parents looking after Chris and being apart from his boy. Why was this time any different? Why couldn't Chris go with him this time?

Evan took a deep breath and shuffled back an inch on the bed so he could twist to the left. He wanted to be able to look at Chris when he told him what was happening, he wanted this to go smoothly and he didn't want Chris to panic. This was his nephew, the kid he looked out for and cared about as if he were his own son. Evan never wanted to hurt him or have anything else hurt Chris, he wanted to shield him from the world.

"Your dad… he's- he's going to stay at a facility for a while, in a hospital. At the minute, it might just be for a month, but it could be longer, and you can't go to a hospital with him, buddy."

"He's sick, like grandma?"

The fear in Chris's eyes had Evan's chest shuddering and he let out a trembling breath, doing his best to stop himself from shaking all over. He knew Shannon's mum had battled cancer and eventually lost. He knew Chris barely got to know his grandma before she died and that was why he was closer to Eddie's parents, they were the only grandparents he had left.

"No, no no buddy he's not sick like that I swear."

"Then why's he going to hospital? Buck, why?"

"Chris… you know the phrase die of a broken heart? Well it's true, scientists don't actually know how or why or have a name for it, but sometimes when people lose the one they love, their heart gives up. They can't carry on and they die from heartache."

Chris nodded. He was with Evan so far. He didn't know that was true, but he knew Evan was full of random, fun and inquisitive facts about almost every situation possible. He was always telling Chris something new.

"Your dad's got a broken heart. He misses your mum, and he's not gonna die from it, but he needs help. He's not well in his mind, he's made some bad choices recently and we want to get him help so he can come back to work, and come back to be with you."

Evan wholeheartedly believed in the phenomenon that people died of a broken heart when their loved ones passed. He had seen it. He had seen couples pass away after the other one died. He had seen parents wither away and fade when they lost their children. The mind gave up trying to continue and the heart couldn't beat on its own anymore. He had seen it in animals too, it was real.

And right now, Eddie was heading that way. He was lovesick after someone he lost. It didn't matter that Eddie's relationship with Shannon had been turbulent and broken and estrangled. She had been the one for Eddie and now she was gone. His heart was still beating strong, but his mind was fragmented from loss.

If he didn't get help he was going to hurt himself or do more damage to Evan and (Y/n) and Chris and everyone around him. He was going to hurt them all and if he pushed things too far, none of them would ever recover.

"What did he do?"

Evan didn't want to say. It seemed wrong, everything inside of him was crying out for him to gloss over this, to tell Chris the moderated version of events. But Chris was twelve, he understood a lot more than people gave him credit for and he deserved the truth. He deserved to know what had happened because he needed to see how unwell Eddie was and why he needed help.

If Chris knew what had happened, then he would be the reason Eddie got help. Chris would want Eddie to get help and Eddie wouldn't be able to refuse or back out if hs son told him to get better.

"You know (Y/n)?"

"Your girlfriend?"

"Yeah, well, she reminded your dad of your mum… a lot. And it upset him, he started to think she was alive again. He uh, he had a breakdown the other night, and he hurt (Y/n) by accident. I don't want him to get any worse or hurt himself, do you get what I mean?"

There was more, there was so much more that Evan wanted to say. He didn't want Eddie to hurt (Y/n) again, he didn't want Eddie to frighten her more than he already had. Or to pin her to the wall or force himself on her or smash her through a door or try and lock her in her own home and take her hostage.

Evan wanted to keep (Y/n) safe because he loved her to the end of the Earth and he wasn't going to let her get hurt or let her walk away from him to save his friendship with Eddie.

Eddie was the one causing all this mess, he was the one who needed help and right now, sat here with Chris, Evan could see things through a different perspective.

He could see the person Eddie was. A kind soul, protective of those closest to him, striving to do the best he could for his son, wanting to help people and look out for them. He could see Eddie struggling, wanting the old life he had, wanting someone to love him the way he had felt only once, with Shannon. Feeling so broken and desperate that his mind played tricks on him and made him do anything to get his girl back.

He could see all of that because Chris loved his dad and he knew Chris was Eddie's world.

But when Evan was at home, when he had (Y/n) in his arms, all he could think of was how cruel Eddie was.

He had forced himself on (Y/n). He had frightened her. He got so blindly drunk that he let himself into her home, locked her in and then tried to pin her down and hold her hostage. He attacked her when she denied him and tried to get him to see the truth. He fought her so hard that he knocked her through a glass door and caused her to aspirate.

He shell shocked (Y/n) and almost made her break up with Evan because she didn't want to come between their friendship. And despite being influenced by grief and drowned in sorrow, there had to be part of Eddie that knew what he had done. Because he cried. He said sorry. He begged for forgiveness. He could see in the daylight that (Y/n) wasn't his wife and he had no right to do what he did, even if part of Eddie didn't remember everything he had done.

There were two sides to every story, and Evan was trying to see this from both sides, but it was hard.

"Is she okay?"

"She's okay, I promise. And your dad will be better once he's got help. I said you can come and stay with me and (Y/n), so you can still go to school and I'll always look after you. But if you'd rather stay with your grandparents in Texas, I can always make that call for you. It's your choice, buddy."

It was always going to be Chris's choice, but it was never going to be Eddie's choice.

If Eddie wanted his son in his life, he had to get help. If he didn't, Evan would let Athena take matters further. He would go to social services and explain what had happened. They wouldn't let Chris stay with Eddie when he had attacked someone and held them hostage in a drunken rage.

But if Eddie got help, they would do this informally. Chris would stay with whoever he chose and it would be like a mini vacation, just staying with a friend for a while. No social services involved and Eddie would get Chris back as soon as he was better.

When Eddie made Evan Chris's guardian in his will, he made Chris his responsibility. It was Evan's duty to look out for him and if he thought or saw that Chris wasn't safe, he would do what he could to protect him.

It seemed like a better choice for Chris to stay with Evan and (Y/n). They had a spare room downstairs behind the living room, it was small but it would do just fine for Chris to stay with them. He could bring any of his games and books and the loft was close to his school, his friends and his Abuela. But if Chris would feel safer going to Texas, Evan would try and make that happen.

All he wanted was for Chris to be safe and looked after, he didn't want him to go but if he wanted to, Evan wouldn't stand in his way.

"If I stay with you, can I visit dad?"

"You can see him every week."

***

When the sound of tepid, tender footsteps caught his attention, Evan cast a glance over his shoulder. His lips immediately curved up into a grin and his nose crinkled when he looked across at (Y/n).

She one of his oversized jumper on that pulled down over her hands making her look like a child in their parent's clothes, but it was a somewhat sweet look. Both her hands were rubbing up and down her arms and scratching through the thick material of her jumper.

The smile on her face was one that made Evan's stomach pool with adrenaline and had him wanting to melt on the spot.

Evan realised a second too late that he had been staring for a while when (Y/n)'s lips rolled together and her head tilted down to hide her blush. He could stand there and drink her in forever if he had the time.

"What're you boys making?"

(Y/n) moved over to the island counter and leaned forward, arching her back out as she folded her arms over the countertop.

She would admit that Evan looked very appealing in his 'Kiss the Cook' apron which was dark black with a spatula on the front and lots of red and pink kisses dotted all around the front. He had a short shirt on which showed off the way his arms flexed when he moved around the kitchen and his lips creased lovingly when he smiled. Even from this distance, (Y/n) could see the stubble painted across his face and it only made him more appealing.

Then there was Chris. Stood beside Evan like his apprentice chef, a ladle in one hand and a taste-testing spoon in the other. He had a smudging of orange at the corner of his mouth and a cheesy smile on his face that creased his eyes so much he could barely see.

"Lasagne," Evan finally responded, clearing his throat and swiping his tongue out over his lower lip which had suddenly gone very dry.

The steam from the cooker made a shiver roll down (Y/n)'s spine and she realised it was making Evan a bit tense, his arms were straining against the short and rather tight sleeves of his shirt. And a trickle of sweat rolled down his cheek and traced along the vein in his neck.

"Smells good,"

Her eyes cast over the cooker and the worktops, taking in how much effort they had put into making a simple lasagne, making it anything but plain. The white cheese sauce had been made from scratch and so had the bolognaise, the only thing store-bought was the pasta sheets. But (Y/n) knew Evan could make those sheets if he was in a proper cooking mood.

"Want to taste test it?" Chris waved the spoon in his hand towards (Y/n), begging her with his eyes to come over and test their work of art.

Every day off Evan had, he and Chris had been cooking together. They had made cottage pie, homemade pizzas with homemade sauce, they even ventured into making ratatouille which had been a success.

Both of them had done their best to make Chris feel at ease and comfortable while he stayed with them. Of course he had stayed with Evan before and Evan knew all of his routines, but this was different. He had never stayed with Evan for a long period of time, except for when Eddie got shot a few years ago and they had stayed at Chris and Eddie's home that time.

It seemed to be going well. Chris was settled in after the first day and they all had their routines. (Y/n) picked Chris up from school, Evan dropped him off when he wasn't at work. Chris helped with the cleaning, they had a lot of movie nights and cooking together and they were trying to plan two days out a week, whether that was going out to the zoo or just for a walk in the park.

Chris was happy and settled with them and that was all that mattered.

"Of course I do."

(Y/n) grinned brightly and headed over to the boys. She rested her hand on Chris's shoulder and her other hand clamped down on her hip. When she lifted her eyes, she caught the way Evan was looking at her and the way he swiped his tongue over his lower lip which had her shivering.

She leaned down so Chris could hand her the spoon to test the bolognaise. "You two could open up a restaurant, you know." She ruffled Chris's hair and took a step back so they could start layering up the lasagne in the dish.

"Alright, wanna go set up a game before tea?" Evan leaned back against the counter once the dish was in the oven.

He patted Chris's shoulder and watched him hurry out the kitchen towards the living room. He had been here two weeks now and he was doing great in adjusting to such big changes.

Once he was off, (Y/n) turned towards Evan and narrowed her eyes when she noticed the quirky smile on his lips. But when he leaned his right hand on the counter and looked down at his apron, her shoulders sagged and she couldn't help the giggle that left her lips.

"Oh, I see." She murmured quietly, looping her arms around his neck and pushing up on her tiptoes so she could press a chaste kiss to his lips.

She felt Evan's arms circle around her waist, his hands flat out against the middle of her back while he pulled her chest flush against his. She could feel each breath he took, deep and slow but when he stooped down for another kiss, she noticed his pulse quickening. He couldn't seem to help but smile into the kiss, especially when their lips parted and his tongue darted into her mouth, fighting for control.

Her nails scratched lowly into the back of his neck, raking across the short hairs before reaching up to knot her fingers in the curls at the top of his head.

When they pulled apart, (Y/n) let her cheek rest on his shoulder while her hand came down to drag her fingertip slowly across his cheek. She couldn't help the smile that danced across her lips that peppered tender wet kisses against Evan's neck.

"What's that look for?" Evan spoke softly against the top of her head, realising he was swaying them from left to right as if they were having their first dance at their wedding.

"Hm?"

"That melting look." He reached up to drag his thumb across (Y/n)'s cheek and near the corner of her eyes.

There was something tender in her eyes and the way her lips quirked up to one side made her look so adoring and sweet. Evan wanted to know what was going through her mind right now, he wanted to know what was making her smile like that so he could see that look more often.

"You're really good with him, you're a natural." The way Evan was with Chris was what made (Y/n) smile like that. Seeing him get defensive and protective over Chris was one thing, but to see him around him was something else.

To see the way Evan always tried to listen and understand or how he got Chris involved in everything made (Y/n)'s stomach pool with adrenaline. Evan made sure Chris didn't feel left out, that he did all he was capable of, he helped him with homework and calmed him down when he didn't understand the work and got confused. He always stayed calm and she had yet to see either of them fall out. Their dynamic was sweet.

"Thank you." He chuckled softly and tilted his head down to kiss the top of her head.

It wasn't the first time Evan had heard that. He was always babysitting his friend's kids, he had always been first on the list to look after Chris and Maddie knew Jee loved Evan the best out of all their family.

(Y/n) knew he was good with kids, he had a personality that radiated with them and he could always get on their level and understand and listen and be patient. And he was a beaming, enthusiastic person that could light up a room so of course kids levitated to him. But it was lovely to see Evan day in and day out with Chris rather than just seeing glimpses of him with kids for a few hours here and there.

"You'd be a great dad." She murmured the words so quietly into his neck that he almost misheard her. But when her words registered in his ears, his smile turned beaming.

He pushed back against the counter and spread his legs so (Y/n) could stand between them. He slithered his hands down to hold (Y/n)'s hips and he tilted his head down so he could look at her properly. He felt (Y/n)'s hands graze down from his neck to rest against his chest, her fingers slowly scratching into his shirt that she seemed to be focused on.

"Oh yeah? You thinking about us having kids?"

The thought made Evan smirk, he couldn't help it. It was the same way he had looked and thought about (Y/n) when he saw her having a mini tea party with Jee a few weeks ago. He loved that (Y/n) was integrated into his family, that everyone loved her and she made the effort with Jee, one of the most important kids in Evan's life.

He knew (Y/n) would be a great mum and of course they had talked about it, they were engaged now after all.

"I'm late."

"What?" Evan's smirk changed into a smile and his nose crinkled upwards as his lips parted. "What are you late for?" They didn't have any plans that Evan knew about.

But when (Y/n)'s head dipped to one side and her lips pressed together with a deep breath, Evan's lips formed an oh shape.

A shudder jolted down his shoulders and along his spine and his hands tightened on (Y/n)'s hips until his fingers were almost puncturing through into her hips. He stood up straighter, pushing off the counter while he held his breath, hoping this wasn't some kind of joke or a trick being played on him.

"Really, w- how late?"

(Y/n) kept her eyes on Evan's chest until one hand left her hip which tingled in his absence and she felt his fingertips gripping her chin. He tilted her head back and leaned down until she finally let their gazes interlock.

She hadn't been sure how happy Evan would be about this, the timing wasn't great, she knew that. It hadn't been long since the ordeal with Eddie who was still in the hospital in the middle of his recovery. They had Chris staying with them, things weren't right at the station now that the core team knew what had happened. No one knew how to regulate and get back to a sense of normality.

But she couldn't change it, all she could do was wait to find out if she was actually pregnant or not. It could be a false alarm, but she wasn't so sure.

"Enough… I was gonna wait another week to be sure, and do a test. You okay, w-what are you thinking?"

A gasp tumbled past her lips when Evan's hands slid down her thighs as quick as lightning and he hoisted her up. Her arms moved to lock around his neck again and she held her breath, biting down on her lip as she hooked her legs around his waist to secure herself on his torso.

She had never seen such a broad smile on his face and the look in his eyes was one that (Y/n) could drown in. She could already feel her lungs about to pop and adrenaline was swarming throughout her body that was turning numb.

She thought Evan would be apprehensive because of the timing and the situation. They were looking after Chris, they didn't know how long he was going to be here with them. A baby meant they would have to look for somewhere a bit bigger to live. They had only just gotten engaged, they weren't even married yet.

But this reaction showed he was more than overjoyed at the thought of having a baby and (Y/n) was almost worried that if it turned out she was just late, telling Evan was going to be disappointing.

"I think you're gonna look gorgeous with a bump."

***

A sigh tumbled past (Y/n)'s lips as she looked up at the clock on the wall while her nails raked up and down her thighs.

Maddie was late.

If she didn't get here soon, Chris was going to miss his visit to go and see Eddie. For almost three weeks since Chris had moved in with them, he had been going to visit Eddie at the hospital twice a week. He went on a Wednesday after school which Carla took him for the visit, and then he went on a Saturday afternoon and had a bit longer to spend with his dad.

It seemed to be doing them both some good, Chris didn't feel so confused or lost when he still got to see his dad and he could see that Eddie was in fact doing okay. He was consolidated that Eddie wasn't about to die or disappear on him. And Eddie calmed down when he saw Chris, he had his reason for continuing with the programme and to get himself better.

If Evan wasn't able to take Chris to one of his visits, either Carla or Maddie had been stepping in to help. Maddie was always offering to do whatever she could to try and help, she had dropped (Y/n) off to her own therapy sessions quite a lot too.

(Y/n) jumped back against the sofa cushion when her phone started to buzz on the coffee table.

It was Maddie. Maybe she was parked outside ready to take Chris and bring him back later this afternoon. Maybe she was finally on her way and was ringing to say she wouldn't be long and to get Chris ready.

"Hi," She breathed down the receiver, moving her other hand to rake through her hair as she sat forward and slumped her elbows onto her knees.

"Hey, I know I'm supposed to be taking Chris today but Jee's been throwing up and now she's having a meltdown. I don't think I can take him."

(Y/n) felt like she was going to be sick. What was she supposed to do now? Evan was at work and so was Chimney, Hen and Bobby. None of them would be able to come over and take Chris there and it wasn't as if Chris just needed to be dropped off and picked up.

Because he was under eighteen, Chris had to have supervised visits, he wasn't allowed to be left at the hospital. He could be left in the room with Eddie for a few minutes at a time as long as someone was right outside the door and able to look through the window. Whoever took Chris had to stay there with him for the entire visit.

How was (Y/n) supposed to do that? Would it be good for Eddie if she turned up right in the middle of his recovery? Was seeing (Y/n) going to set Eddie back?

Something deep down within (Y/n) told her that Eddie wasn't going to make progress or do well if he saw her right now. She could set him back miles in his progress. But if she didn't go, Chris was going to miss a visit. He needed these visits, he needed these few hours to be with his dad and keep that connection. And these visits were what Eddie was living for, he would break if he missed a visit and had to go a week without seeing his son.

"It's okay, I'll sort it."

"Are you sure? I don't want to let him down-"

"No, no you're not, don't worry. Just ring me later so we know how Jee is, will you?" (Y/n) couldn't believe the calmness that tangled through her tone and masked the panic bubbling up inside of her.

She didn't want Maddie to feel bad or panic about this when she was clearly worried about her own daughter. As long as she let (Y/n) and Evan know later if Jee was alright or not, there was no need for Maddie to panic.

"Of course I will, thanks."

(Y/n) began to tap her phone against the palm of her hand before she looked back up at the clock. There wasn't time to call round and see if she could find someone else to help her out. If she wanted Chris to keep this meeting and not be late or miss out on any time with his dad, she was going to have to take him now.

She was going to have to see Eddie.

She hadn't seen Eddie since the night he took her hostage in the flat. The last memory she had of him was Eddie pinning her to the wall. His hot breath on her neck. His rough fingers scratching up and down her thighs. Pulling her shirt and yanking on her underwear. The feeling of his heavy body crushing hers when they fell into an abyss.

A shudder crawled down her spine and she realised a tear had traced down her cheek at the memory.

She brushed her hand across her face and stood up, feeling her head start to spin and her stomach churn as she turned towards the small box room at the back of the living room. It was poxy, barely bigger than a cupboard, but it was the only spare room they had in the apartment. And it was easier for them all to stay here than for the couple to move into Eddie's home for the time being.

And Chris didn't seem to mind the small room. He had put posters on the walls and the door, his games and books were neatly lined up beneath the bed. There was a tv on the desk that was squashed between the foot of the bed and the wall. And Evan had stuck up hundreds of glow in the dark stars to the ceiling because Chris's new obsession was space.

(Y/n) tried to stop herself from shaking as she rapped her knuckles on the door and gave it a gentle nudge.

"Hey, you ready to go?"

Chris was sat on the bed, jacket on, backpack beside him with a few books and drawings that he wanted to show his dad. He turned off the tv and grinned, nodding his head enthusiastically.

"Is Maddie here?"

"Um, no, Jee's not well today so I'm gonna take you. If that's alright." She slid her phone into her back pocket and started to rub her hands nervously up and down her hips.

She was surprised to watch Chris's smile broaden and he nodded, bouncing up to his feet like a kangaroo before he reached out for her hand. He had grown fond of (Y/n), he was starting to refer to her and Evan as his aunt and uncle and he was more than willing for her to take him today.

It didn't seem to dawn on Chris that (Y/n) tagging along might stir up some memories and problems for his dad.

(Y/n) hooked her bag on her shoulder and once Chris had his bag and shoes on, they headed out the apartment. She let him swing their hands back and forth, rambling about one of the new tv shows he had started to watch. He was a lot like Evan, once he learned something new he loved to ramble and spill every detail and new fact he had learned. And (Y/n) was more than happy to listen to him.

Her hand absentmindedly moved to her stomach that was churning and rotating like a washing machine. She was going to be sick. Her throat was turning dry and the muscles were tightening and closing off, rubbing together awkwardly. Everything was bubbling and fizzing in her veins and she could feel the shakes setting in her system.

It didn't take long to reach the hospital and as soon as they pulled up, (Y/n) felt her fingertips turning numb and her arms began to shake.

"I uh, I don't know where we go honey, you're gonna have to guide me." She held her hand out for Chris who happily entwined their fingers and took the lead.

"It's not far, dad's on the Daffodil ward." Chris found all the different ward names rather amusing, but he wasn't fond of the name of his dad's ward.

Although he thought the ward itself was lovely. Lots of large feature walls dotted around, a clear white tiled floor with flecks of sparkles and black spots glazed on top. Bright lights and skylights built into the ceiling, and all the visiting rooms were lovely.

Plush chairs, books, music, windows looking out onto the gardens and the room he got to visit Eddie in was spacious and they got to be alone.

(Y/n) let Chris drag her through the main entrance, head to the stairs and up to the second floor. All the while, her free arm bound across her waist like an iron bar to try and prevent herself from being sick.

God, if (Y/n) really was pregnant, the baby was going to be doing summersaults and it was turning (Y/n) green at the gills.

She didn't want to be here. She didn't want to be doing this. Seeing Eddie was going to bring the nightmares back and it was only going to cause problems for Eddie. But they didn't have a choice. Chris needed this, he needed to see his dad and Eddie needed the stability and comfort of being around his son.

And if Eddie saw (Y/n), it might put all his hard work to good use. He would have to control himself and the thoughts he had when he was around her. Eddie would have to remind himself that this was (Y/n), a completely different person to his wife. She wasn't Shannon, she didn't belong to him and he couldn't kiss her or hold her or be close to her. Eddie would have to start seeing reality and this would give them a rough guess at how well Eddie was doing in his recovery.

If this meeting went well it would prove that the programme was working for Eddie. If it went south, it showed he needed more concentrated help or a different method of treatment to get his mind back in order and control the impulses he had whenever he saw (Y/n).

"Over there." Chris leaned his head on (Y/n)'s arm and pointed to the reception desk once they walked through the bright yellow doors to the Daffodil ward.

(Y/n) forced her feet to move and pushed herself over to the desk which took her weight when she slumped her hip against it.

"Hi, we're here to visit Eddie Diaz."

"Of course, room two, as usual. Go through lovey." The receptionist smiled across at Chris and gave him a little wink which told (Y/n) she was usually on shift whenever Chris came to visit his dad.

Every pulse of her heartbeat vibrated through (Y/n)'s skin and thumped horribly in her ears. Her lungs expanded to the max, pushing out against her ribs as she realised she couldn't release or take in a new breath. Sweat started to form like crystals glistening on her skin and her palms were slick and grubby with sweat.

Each step closer to the door had (Y/n)'s body breaking out in shakes and a quiet murmur stuck at the back of her throat when Chris let go of her hand and pushed open the door.

Why couldn't she just wait out here for him?

Eddie wasn't a danger to Chris, he was going to be a danger to (Y/n) if she walked in that room. He would be fine to be alone with his son for their session, it would do them both some good. But (Y/n) had to go in, she knew she did. This was her moment to prove to herself that she was okay, that she could stand up for herself and be around the man that had attacked her more than once.

She could see how well Eddie was doing in his recovery and try to get them all back onto a normal track.

If she and Evan were going to get married, Eddie had to get used to her being with his best friend. Eddie had to get better for (Y/n) and Evan to be able to move on. They had to get Eddie back on track if they really were having a baby and if they were going to tell him that they were having a baby.

And (Y/n) instinctively knew that they were going to have to tell Eddie if they were pregnant, while he was in this facility. There was no way they could let him recover and get settled back at home to then break the news. Telling him they were getting married and possibly having a baby was going to send Eddie into another spiral.

It would be best to tell him while he was here so he could be monitored and looked after and if the news set him back in his progress, it wouldn't matter. Because he would be here and be helped and pushed to get back on track again.

Terror pulsed through (Y/n) like she was a boombox when she shuffled over the threshold and quietly shut the door behind her.

Her eyes locked on Chris as he dumped his bag down on one of the chairs and bolted across to the plush leather sofa in the middle of the room where Eddie was sat.

Eddie slumped forward and deadlocked his arms around Chris, letting out a breathless laugh as he pulled his son between his legs, crushing him into his chest. His lips pressed against Chris's curls and he squeezed him tight, swaying from side to side.

"There's my boy! You okay? How are you doing?" Eddie pressed a sloppy kiss to his cheek and pulled back enough to look at him. He cupped Chris's face and kissed his temple.

"I'm good, I missed you."

"Oh I missed you too."

Chris looped his arms back around Eddie's neck and reeled him in for another hug which elicited another laugh from deep within Eddie's chest.

But when he opened his eyes and lifted his gaze towards the door, every part of Eddie's body went rigid. His heart hammered itself into his ribs like it was trying to impale itself on his bones. His blood turned thick and cold and gloopy in his veins like it was clogging up and becoming stuck. His muscles went taut and stiff and locked in place when his eyes set on that familiar figure.

That long glossy hair. Those deep swirling pools in her eyes. The dip in the middle of her lips and the way they were plump and lively. How she had both arms wrapped around her waist in that anxious habit he remembered so well.

Every nerve in his brain started to misfire. Wrong signals were sent every which way, his arms tensed and relaxed continuously. His feet began to tap against the floor, his lungs stuttered and had him gasping for breath.

"Hi Eddie."

Just her voice was enough to restart his blood rushing throughout his body and Eddie couldn't help the way he gulped and closed his eyes for a second or two longer. Revelling in the sound of her voice and the way she said his name like it was sugar on her tongue.

"Hi."

He sounded breathless and somewhat confused which (Y/n) could understand and relate to. She leaned her shoulders back against the door, staying as close to the exit as she could in case this meeting went south. She didn't dare step forward, she didn't want to be close enough to Eddie that he would be able to reach out and touch her. She didn't want his gaze on her, let alone remember the feeling of his rough hands groping and pulling at her.

As she stared across at him, she fidgeted from foot to foot, anxiously trying to decipher something. The way Eddie was looking at her was confusing her.

Looking at her like that, did he see (Y/n)… or Shannon?

[lettersfromaphrodite]

[00.00]

― pairing : Han Jisung x fem! reader ― content warnings : smut, fluff, royals au, vampire au, Han is a vampire, reader is a vampire Queen, mentions of blood, unprotected sex, medieval settings as always // I used some of the Black Desert Online cities’ names because I don’t have enough creativity to come up with brand new names. ― word count : 5.863 ― notes : if you don’t know, a Queen can rule while being unmarried and if she ever decides to marry, her husband won’t automatically become King, but simply be referred as the Consort Prince. ― notes : ⚠️ This fic will appear on BOTH Royals and Vampire Series! ⚠️

― notes : this fic looks familiar?it is! I’m reposting ALL my works on this brand new blog and therefore please, bear with me! as always, askbox is open and feedbacks are always welcome 💌

🧛‍♂️ VAMPIRE! STRAY KIDS SERIES

Chris // Changbin // Jisung // Hyunjin // Seungmin // Minho // Felix

👑 ROYALS! STRAY KIDS SERIES

Chris // Changbin // Jisung // Hyunjin // Seungmin // Minho // Felix part one | part two // Jeongin

The amount of wealth you slowly accumulated during the centuries allowed you to realize one of your biggest dreams: an entire room dedicated to a giant pool filled with thermal water, inside one of the private underground rooms in your Castle. You still remember Felix’s face as you announced him about the prospect of setting up a room just for a Victorian-style spa, and of course, the four golden waterfalls at the respective corners of the tub were not something you were willing to give up.

Slowly, within the years, that room became your favourite one and you spent most of your time in there; therefore, Felix – your Royal Counsellor, knew exactly where to find you anytime you were neither in the throne room nor in your private quarters.

And today was definitely not an exception.

«The Royal Council had a meeting,» Felix announced, elegantly walking in the room with his hands behind his back.

«Without the Queen? Now, that’s treason.» you remarked, raising your eyebrow while sipping blood from a golden chalice. «What did they say to make you run here?»

«Apparently, you need to get married.» he dramatically announced, faking an innocent expression as he tilted his head, his fluffy white hair moving along as he shifted his gaze to the left with a sudden amused smile at the memory to what happened to your first and only husband.

«I’ve been running this Kingdom on my own for more than 800 years,» you slowly savoured another sip of blood, shifting your position in the water in order to sit more comfortably, «what could have happened to make so weak to the point of needing a man?» your gaze burned into Felix’s gentle one, finding there the same sight of pure love and submission that had been there every day since the day you turned him, centuries ago. From the moment you had saved him from certain death, Felix had loved you in the most innocent way, seeing you as his saviour and therefore, immediately submitting to your power not only as a Queen, but also as a woman. 

«The Kingdom of the West wants us to give up the City or Epheria to them.» Felix referred you what they had been talking about during the meeting. An annoyed, exasperated sigh escaped your lips as you were about to answer the obvious: only an idiot would give up a port city as big as Epheria, when Felix interrupted you again, «They threatened to conquer Calpheon if we don’t.»

«What?!» you asked in disbelief, «Are they planning to cut us out from every western resource?»

«The Council…» Felix watched as you carefully placed the golden cup of blood on the floor and far away enough so that it wouldn’t mistakenly fall into the water. «…said we could ask for help to the Kingdom of the East. King Changbin not only is powerful but also unmarried.»

As you immersed yourself even further in the water so that only your face remained outside, you had to admit to yourself that probably, it would have been the best thing to do.

As much as you hated the idea of submitting to a man and therefore depend on him, your priority has always been thinking about your Kingdom and the people who lived in it. Probably, this was the main reason why you managed to turn a small and helpless Kingdom into one of the largest and most influential realms.

Calpheon, however, was a big and lively city, its geographical position in the centre of your territories made it particularly coveted; you managed to conquer the city with extreme fatigue not more than two centuries ago, and since then, you had to always pay particular attention to the number of soldiers assigned to the city’s protection. Cases of attempted invasion by external realms were not uncommon, but you were more than determined to defend what you conquered and therefore, if you managed to get the Kingdom of the East’s alliance, it would have been impossible for someone else to conquer it.

As for King Changbin, it was certainly not the first time you killed a vampire, you could eventually get rid of him as soon as he got too annoying for your tastes. The victorious smile on Felix’s lips slowly grew wider as he saw you mentally fighting with yourself before eventually, giving up.

«I will immediately send them a letter.» he added, before excusing himself and letting you quietly finish your bath.

As expected, King Changbin’s reply came few days later.

«Why is he sending his emissary?» you mumbled in disbelief, re-reading his letter as both you and Felix sat on your bed. Felix shrugged, his lips slightly tainted from the blood he sipped from one of your expensive chalices; despite you were confused with why King Changbin wasn’t personally coming, you smiled with adoration at the boy sitting with crossed legs in front of you.

Felix’s soft white hair was in stark contrast to his deep crimson eyes; however, the innocent look he had anytime he drank blood made him somehow look some sort of angelic. You reached out with your thumb in order to collect the driblet of blood threatening to fall from his lips before sucking on your tainted finger.

«You’ve been a vampire for more than 800 years and you’re still a messy eater,» you chuckled, «oh, Lixie, you’re such a baby.» you chanted, smiling softly at Felix, which simply stuck his tongue out.

If you were to be honest, you expected the East Kingdom’s emissary to look like a lot of things: an old man, a grumpy bishop – even more annoying than the one admitted in your Council, but definitely, you didn’t expect him to look like a hot, young boy with dark blonde hair and a constant unbothered expression.

The Council had a meeting few hours after Jisung’s arrival and, surprisingly, he didn’t come to sign the marriage’s papers. 

«My King wants me to stay for a bit and send him some reports if this marriage is worth the effort.» Jisung’s gaze teasingly locked with yours, and you felt your cheeks heating up.

«Worth the effort?» you immediately answered, but he simply nodded at you in a polite way; with an annoyed scoff, you placed your chin in the palm of your hand while raising your eyebrow, silently waiting for him to explain himself.

«The effort, obviously, would be risking a war against the Kingdom of the West.» he added, but before he could talk further, the bishop interrupted him.

«Maybe you should write a report to your King and ask him how long you should extend your stay.» you uncomfortably shifted in your seat at how rude he had just been to your guest.

«Remind me why do we need a Catholic icon when we’re literally walking corpses.» you mumbled, leaning towards Felix which simply looked at you in an almost scolding manner.

«Well, because at least three quarters of the people of this Kingdom are not.» he mumbled back, reminding you once again that, even if he was the most obnoxious man you’ve met in almost a millennium, you still somehow needed his presence.

Vampires and human got somehow along with each other, even if cases of vampires murdering people due to their hunger weren’t uncommon. However, during the years, people slowly got used to the idea of having a vampire as their Queen and most absolute authority and so, some people started to willingly offer their blood to vampires, instead of letting them kill people in order to feed.

Jisung politely smiled at the bishop, imperceptibly raising his eyebrow, «Forgive me, your Grace, but I know exactly how to behave, since I’ve been serving my King for as long as I can remember,» despite the fact that he kept a gentle tone, his eyes were narrowed, and the bishop furiously blushed in embarrassment.

«He shut him up so easily!» you whispered to Felix, as the both of you shared a surprised look. «I like him already.» you mumbled again before raising your voice for everyone at the table to hear you loud and clear.

«At least, we’ll have some entertainment.» Felix remarked, commenting on how in almost a millennium, occasions to feel honestly amused eventually started to decrease.

«If all the problems have been settled,» you glared at the bishop which was refraining from meeting your stern gaze, «Jisung will remain for as long as he needs.»

The citizen of your country deeply respected you and they meticulously followed your rules, knowing that eventually, your forgiveness wouldn’t have been something easy to obtain.

Over the years, however, your hatred remained particularly focused on a very particular guild and so, as you were looking at five wanted criminals being harshly pushed on their knees, their wrists tightly handcuffed behind their back, you smirked in victory, not bothering to hear their pathetic excuses to defend themselves.

«For what concerns me,» your voice echoed through the throne room, «I consider you guilty of all the charges that have been made.» you moved your hand towards the captain of the guards which immediately understood.

Immediately, the criminals were dragged away from the throne room and escorted to the dungeons where eventually, they would either die or become a tasty midnight snack.

«Did you notice the seal embroided on their cape?» Felix whispered, politely leaning towards you from his standing position; you nodded, your eyes still focused on the writhing men being dragged away. There was no way you could forget; there was only one Guild which used two crossed axes as their symbol, and it was the Guild which almost killed Felix centuries ago.

«This is why, I want them gone.» you suddenly turned your head towards Felix, smiling softly at him before leaning in and gently head-butting your forehead against his; the two of you giggled, an exchange which didn’t go unnoticed to Jisung’s eyes, watching the two of you from a close distance.

It was not uncommon for people to mistaken your relationship with Felix; your eyes met Jisung’s across the room, and you immediately understood he was studying the two of you, trying to figure out the bond the two of you were sharing.

Although days passed by rather quickly, you never expected to find Jisung’s presence so enjoyable and entertaining; you spent most of your days showing him around – both the Castle and the Kingdom, and he always seemed positively surprised anytime by how many things reminded him of his Kingdom, therefore unexpectedly praising you at random times and making you advert your gaze in a sort of embarrassment you didn’t understand. 

Jisung was clever boy, a few centuries younger than you were; you learned that as much as you did with Felix, Changbin was the one that turned him. Him and Changbin were actually good friends during Jisung’s mortal life, but eventually, Jisung got ill and Changbin decided to turn him into a vampire – of course with the boy’s approval.

Anytime Jisung talked about his King or his Kingdom, you could see a sense of pride and affection in his eyes, and you smiled anytime, glad to know that you weren’t the only one blessed with a faithful and loyal counsellor.

By the way Jisung talked about his friendship with Changbin, you found it easy to see yourself in his King; you knew that Changbin would have burned the world to ashes for Jisung if needed, exactly as you would have done for Felix.

Jisung, unexpectedly, was also very talented in giving you mixed feelings; he was undoubtedly attractive, and he thought the same thing about you, but he acted in a way no one in your Kingdom has ever dared to. Jisung would occasionally answer with sarcastic remarks, giving you the impression that he wanted to challenge you but honestly, he was only trying to get under your skin; you quickly catched up with his game of his, entertained and intrigued.

Therefore, the tension between the two of you inevitably started to grow to the point where anytime you were alone in your carriage and he was looking at you as if he would have wanted to devour you, you had to focus on the small talk you were having, in order not to move from your position and sit on his lap.

Sometimes, you had the feeling that you and Jisung were having a sort of competition, playing a game where you had to make the other give in to your mutual desire first.

Jisung looked breath taking dressed in white, you thought, walking towards him as he was politely waiting for you in front of the wide glass door leading to the garden.

«If I may ask, your Majesty,» despite your authorization to drop the formalities, he kept referring to you by your title; a normal act which, however, escaping his lips always seemed incredibly provocative. Jisung politely offered you his arm, and you gladly linked yours with his, content about the small touches you shared. «I was wondering why you and Felix seemed to be so close.» he wondered as the both of you slowly strolled through the extensive and blooming garden of your castle during a spring afternoon.

«Why, are you doubting my loyalty?» advertising your gaze from Jisung’s attractive features, you prevented an amused giggle from escaping your lips, «Can you keep a secret?» you felt Jisung’s eyes on you at your sudden whisper, «Felix was the first human I turned, long ago. I was barely over the new-born phase when I managed to save him from the grasp of death,» your eyebrows knitted in a momentarily sad expression at the bittersweet memory of that night, Felix’s pained screams sometimes haunting your nightmares even after all these years. «We were both thieves back then, when eventually, we were so thirsty that we sucked both a Duke’s and his wife’s blood, before stealing their titles, moving to the Capital and living their expensive lives.»

Jisung listened carefully while glancing at you every now and then. «Did you steal the former Queen’s life, too?» he wondered, and you laughed at his innocent question.

«I didn’t need to. I simply convinced the King to divorce and marry me instead.» you explained with a smug expression, opening your expensively decorate fan, a mere act of pretend, since you were immune at the temperature as much as Jisung was. «You’d be surprised about how a young girl could manipulate an old man; with the false promises of exchanging sexual favours for a title, he easily subdued. What a pity,» you cooed, not doing anything to change the unapologetic tone of your voice, «He couldn’t stay alive to see the sunset that evening.» even by a quick glance, you could feel the curiosity that Jisung’s eyes were showing, along with unspoken questions.

«Killing a vampire isn’t easy, I know,» you explained, your hand slightly tightening around Jisung’s firm arm, «This is why I've been poisoning him for months, thanks to Felix’s help. He died as soon as he touched the bed; the potion was created to have the same symptoms as a heart attack. I nominated Felix as my one and only Royal Counsellor, and I guess we simply grew even closer… I consider him as my little brother, and he sees me as his saviour.» you confessed, looking ahead of you with a sincere and content smile, «I believe Felix is the only one who gave me his love without asking for something in return.» 

Jisung attentively listened to your story, fascinated but also not completely surprised by your wit; even if no one knew the details of your ascent to the throne, everyone knew about the vampire Queen that managed to turn a small and helpless Kingdom into one of the largest and most important ones, all by herself. Therefore, the unexpected threaten to your Kingdom was, to others, a more than rich occasion to become even more powerful.

«I don’t understand why you shared such an important secret with me,» Jisung provoked you, leaning dangerously against your ear, «I could always tell someone else.» you stopped walking, a knowing smile adorning your lips as you stepped in front of him with a small graceful movement.

«You probably wouldn’t like to underestimate me, Han Jisung.» you ignored the crimson shadow flashing into his eyes, as you delicately closed your fan in order to hold on it with both hands behind your back, before taking another imperceptible step closer and pressing your chest against his. «I’m not afraid to get my hands dirty.» you whispered, and Jisung held your gaze; something you were definitely not used to. Beside Felix, everyone was scared of you to the point to advert their gaze immediately – some didn’t dare to look at you in the eyes in the first place, and the fact that Jisung’s mischievous and provocative gaze was burning into yours made something into your soul spark into a foreign sensation you haven’t felt in centuries.

Jisung was challenging you: not your authority as a Queen, but as a person. He loved to see how you reacted every time, to see you always on the verge of losing yourself to your instinct and desires but somehow, always managing to refrain yourself from doing so; Jisung wanted you and he hoped, deep inside, that someday you would forget about the etiquette.

With your chest pressed against his, you had the sensation that anyone could cut the tension between the two of you with a knife; it was obvious that you were attracted to each other, but he was an emissary from another Kingdom, while you were somehow being tested for your attitude and whether your Kingdom was a valid choice. Even if you wanted to abandon yourself to these new and definitely addictive feelings by easily closing the gap between your lips and let Jisung take you right there, behind a bush of roses in full bloom, you knew that your Kingdom was in danger, and so you needed Changbin’s help. Therefore, sleeping with his emissary wouldn’t have been a great move.

«Believe me, Your Majesty,» Jisung’s eyes shifted between your lips and your eyes, tentatively licking his lips as you felt his fingers sliding on your corset until they stopped at your hips, «Neither am I.» his hold was tight – not enough to hurt but enough to feel his fingertips firmly holding onto your waist; your breathing quickened, your corset accentuating the rise and fall of your chest. 

Jisung’s gaze alone almost made your knees weak, and the mere thought of how his touch would feel on your bare skin made all the long forgotten carnal desires immediately spark once again in a new and lively flame.

However, you were more than a young and naive girl and so, with a polite smile, you eventually detached yourself and the two of you went back on your peaceful afternoon walk. 

«You could always sneak him into your chambers, it’s not like you’ve never done it.» Felix commented as the two of you were sitting on your bed that same evening and you finished telling him about your somehow blooming feelings towards Jisung. «What was his name, again?» he added, looking at the ceiling while leaning back and propping his weight on his hands, «Seungmin? Well, you know who, the midnight snack.» Felix winked at you, and you threw a pillow at him.

«It’s a little bit different, this time,» you sighed, «He’s not the gardener, I literally have to marry his best friend.»

«I still don’t see the problem.» Felix shrugged, and you wished to be a little more like him.

Eventually, the small conversation you had with Felix did wonders to your ego and therefore, a week later, Jisung was quietly walking next to you, your arms brushing against each other’s every now and then; even if you were probably too close despite the minimum distance your etiquette imposed, neither of you cared. Your destination was once again the garden, the protagonist of your early afternoon walks and in order to get there, you had to walk in front your private chambers doors.

As soon as you were almost in front of the familiar white and golden door, Jisung quickly backed you against the wall with a sudden move, taking advantage of the white marble pillar partially hiding your bodies from indiscreet eyes. Instinctively, you had grabbed onto his arm so that now, while your back was pressed flush against the wall, your right hand was gripping his bicep and your left hand was pressed against his chest. You were strong, and therefore you could easily push him away whether you didn’t want to be so close to him or weren’t completely sure about it; Jisung would have accepted your choice.

As your eyes shortly admired his delicate features, the hand on his chest travelled upwards, now resting on his shoulder and close to his nape; in return, Jisung was holding your waist once again, before slowly raising his right hand until he moved a wild strand of hair behind your ear.

Without a word being shared between the two of you, Jisung’s fingertips gently caressed your cheek; it was a soft, almost imperceptible touch and you were sure that if your eyes were closed, you wouldn’t have noticed it so easily. Despite his skin being cold, you somehow felt as if the path his fingertips were slowly tracing was burning, slowly setting your soul on fire with such an innocent movement. 

Jisung���s eyes kept boring into yours as his fingers went lower, caressing your jaw, your neck, until they eventually came to a stop on your collarbones, lowering just enough to hover above the line of the middle of your breasts, as much as your corset allowed him to.

Despite your desire and the fact that you were tempted to lower your gaze and follow the path of his fingertips, your gaze never faltered from his, finding the sight much more entertaining. Jisung’s eyes never showed you any trace of lie, and this time, you could see lust and desire slowly cloud his gaze, at the point where his eyes gradually turned from a warm brown to a deep and bright crimson red.

Neither of you dared to say anything, both too afraid to break the small bubble that had built itself around the two of you; Jisung’s face inched closer, to the point where his lips where hovering above yours and you could almost savour the taste of his lips.

The hold on his nape tightened, and you were about to close your eyes, certain that he would have closed the gap and finally satisfy your mutual desire when suddenly, Jisung took a step back, a smug expression on his face and his crimson eyes making him look even more attractive.

Jisung was provoking you once again, and you knew that it was his way to show you his intentions while hiding between his gestures the silent question of how far were you supposed to go. Rising an eyebrow, you scoffed, wondering if he would leave you hanging also during other more intimate situations, the desire to find out lighting up into your soul.

With a quick glance, you looked to your left and to your right to see of someone was in sight. Just to be sure, you repeated the action: once, twice, three times, until you took a step forward and pressed yourself against Jisung’s chest - which actually looked surprised for a moment, before quickly sliding his left hand on the side of your neck, almost as if he was waiting for you to initiate the kiss so that he could deepen it and pulling you closer.

«I’m not going another day without knowing what you feel like underneath me.» you mumbled, your voice breaking the silence and giving you the confirmation that it was real.

That afternoon, instead of going for a ride on the countryside with Jisung in order to enjoy the gentle spring afternoon breeze, you rode Jisung on your wide canopy bed, his nails sinking in your waist and his mouth firmly attached on an invisible and always different path from your lips, to your neck, to your breasts.

As cliché as it was, you and Jisung fit like puzzle pieces also in the bedroom, Jisung submitting naturally to your dominant behaviour and making you want to reward him in return, all because he was always so incredibly good for you that, for a moment, you wished you could marry him instead of Changbin.

A month had gone by since the day you first made love, and you and Jisung didn’t bother to hide the development of your relationship; the fact that Jisung and Felix grew close as well made your heart swell.

There was a small plan building itself in your mind, a small possibility which would have let you keep both boys as close as you needed, and you hoped to have the King of the East’s benevolence; even if you knew that eventually, you wouldn’t give up so easily, you never did.

As days went by while you were diligently scheming, the moment where you were holding a Royal Council while both Changbin and Jisung were sitting in front of you eventually arrived.

«I was thinking that King Changbin should focus on getting the Queen of the South’s favour.» you suddenly spoke, «and maybe, ask for her hand in marriage.»

Everyone’s eyes were suddenly on you, while Felix simply rolled his eyes with an amused scoff; during the years, he got used to your dramatic behaviour to the point where he simply enjoyed the others’ reaction, since he already figured out what you were about to say.

Needless to say, everyone was pretty shocked by your sudden proposal; King Changbin was looking at you with his brow furrowed in confusion, even if he quickly put the pieces together as he briefly glanced at Jisung, looking at you with his eyes as wide as the moon.

«I was wondering about blessing your emissary with the pleasure if marrying me. He’d be Consort Prince, our territories will be united and we could still expand our reign; opportunity we’d immediately lose if me and Changbin got married.»

Somehow, your theory was incontrovertible, and Changbin agreed with an amused laugh - completely aware of the situation between you and Jisung, thanks to the fact that he often read about you in the latter’s report letters.

For the first time in your life, you didn’t find revolting the thought of being married; probably, because Jisung was your husband. The wedding ceremony took place a week after Changbin arrived, so that the two of you could enjoy the innocent and surprised look Jisung had plastered on his face as he was nominated Consort Prince.

«I’ll leave him in good hands,» Changbin joked, about to walk back on the carriage ready to bring him back home.

«Yeah, about that,» Felix’s answer came before than yours, «come check on him once in a while.» he mouthed at the King while suggestively pointing at you with his index finger, action which made Changbin and Jisung laugh while you harshly grabbed Felix by his left ear.

«I didn’t hear that,» you laughed, trying to keep a serious expression, «care to repeat?»

As Felix was pretending to wince in pain, you felt a strange and pleasing sensation in your soul. During your existence, you and Felix had always relied on one another and somehow, it felt disorientating but also nice to know that you could count on someone else which seemed to love you just as much as you did.

Jisung easily rolled the two of you around on your now shared bed, his hard length pressed against your inner thigh; it was something you were used to, Jisung would roll you on your back so that you’d immediately roll over once again because you were the one in charge and Jisung has always made it clear that he was more than willing to submit to you.

However, this time, as your back met the soft mattress and your wrists were trapped in Jisung’s hold, you didn’t move, looking at him expectantly, waiting for his next move. Keeping his gaze, you tilted your head on your side, baring your neck in a silent sign of submission; this time - for the first time in your life, you were more than willing to let someone else take control, and you knew that it was a special exception you were willing to make only for Jisung. He did the same you as soon as your marriage was announced, baring his neck to you only for you to claim, willing to be yours for eternity.

Jisung’s lips immediately attached to your neck in order to kiss and lick at your unmarked skin, and as soon as his hands left your wrists in order to spread your legs a bit wider and lifting them higher around his waist, yours flew into his now messy blonde hair, tugging and pulling while trying to guide him wherever you wanted to feel his lips more.

«Not so fast,» he murmured, grazing his fangs along the skin of your left breast, «don’t forget who’s in control.» you suppressed a moan at his audacity, completely aware about the fact that due to the continuous teasing that Jisung’s neglected length did anytime he brushed against your folds, you were so wet that you eventually coated part of Jisung’s length.

Jisung’s fangs drew a pattern along from your left breast to your left hipbone and you were about to go crazy because of that sensation, wanting him to actually sink his fangs in your neck as soon as possible, marking you as his.

«Don’t forget I could just take control, once again.» you whined even if you didn’t really want to, while trying to lift your hips in order to get more friction. Jisung took his time to answer, gradually licking and kissing his way back to your mouth.

«You will not,» he simply smirked, his lips hovering above yours and his crimson eyes matching yours; he reached down, pressing the tip of his length against your folds and moving it with slow and teasing movements, spreading your wetness around even more. «You’re enjoying this way too much.» something in Jisung’s tone made you want to whisper him to ruin you, but you refrained from doing so, opting instead from closing your legs around his hips as he carefully pressed inside you only the tip of his length, making you instinctively clench. Jisung’s moans were addictive, and you wondered how loud and demanding he could get now that he was in charge.

«Can you do it, or do I still need to potty train you on how to pleasure me?» you teased, knowing what Jisung’s next move would have been and your breath was ragged and uneven due to anticipation.

«Watch your mouth,» Jisung’s hand covered your lips while a smug smirk was plastered on his face, «or you don’t get to come.» with that, he buried himself inside you with a deep and quick movement of his hips, and you closed your legs behind his waist as tight as you could, in bliss from the sudden stretch and from finally getting what you wanted.

Even if he was in charge, Jisung was still a gentleman and he patiently waited for you to adjust to the sudden stretch and therefore, allowing him to move while his head was buried in your neck – his fangs teasingly grazing at the skin, and when you did, you regretted the fact that you waited so much to let him take control in the first place.

Submissive Jisung was an intoxicating experience, he would be willing to do anything to please you while meticulously and obediently following your orders but you had to admit, dominant Jisung was just as mind blowing; he’d still do anything to please you but this time, following his own rules.

Just like that, you discovered a new and addictive side of Jisung: the one that liked to restlessly pound into you, bringing you close to your release and suddenly slow down his pace or stilling his hips while being buried deep inside you – enjoying the sensation of your wetness repeatedly clenching tight around his length and also, enjoying your reactions as you writhed underneath him, trying to move by yourself in order to finally come, movements which were always prevented from Jisung’s firm hold forcing you to keep still, everything while he praised you and ordered you to suck on his fingers or had his hand loosely wrapped around your throat.

«You look like a Goddess,» he praised, sucking at the skin of your neck as a particular harsh thrust made you choke on a breath you forgot to take.

As his thrusts increased speed, he tilted his head to the side, baring his neck in a silent question; the moment your fangs sinked into the side of Jisung’s neck, you came together, your bodies sweaty, your breath ragged, and matching content smiles. Jisung carefully rolled around - sliding out of you in the process, letting you finish feeding from him, whimpering in pleasure at the feeling of your tongue carefully lapping at the skin of his neck to clean it from any further trace of blood.

When few minutes later, you and Jisung were cuddling under the blankets, you mindlessly caressed his marked neck, and his arms tightened around you, affectionately kissing your forehead.

«I owe Changbin a lot.» you heard him sigh, content.

«I’m glad you know.» you smiled against his skin, and you chuckled together before eventually, falling asleep.

Both you and Jisung groaned to the sudden light that hit your bodies.

«Wake up, little fuckers,» you heard Felix’s deep voice say as the two of you brought the blanket on top of your head with a coordinated movement, in a useless attempt to prolong your sleep, «pun intended.» you heard him add, immediately followed by Jisung’s breathless and sleepy laugh.

«Lix, close the windows,» you groaned. «It’s snowing.»

Felix turned towards you, which now were sitting on the bed while rubbing the remaining traces of sleep from your eyes. «It stinks in there, you horny teenagers.»

«You’re just envious,» you heard Jisung joke, and you were glad that they got along so well to joke so much with each other.

«Come here, let’s cuddle.» you opened your arms towards Felix which immediately joined you while remaining on top of the covers, saying that he “didn’t want to be traumatized for the rest of his life, since it was still kinda long,”, comment which made both you and Jisung burst out laughing as you laid there, cuddling to the two people you loved the most.

Eventually, exactly 184 years after you got married, you let Jisung mark you, proof that you were now completely equal; Jisung didn’t belong to you anymore, you belonged to each other.

all works © lettersfromaphrodite

Do not modify, repost, translate or plagiarize my stories. I only publish my works on tumblr & AO3.

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[a-french-coconut]

Leeluke

Camp is… well it’s a lot of things. 

It’s great, the safest place of earth, perhaps maybe Olympus but they’re not allowed there- once again a proof that gods don’t care about them and why should they take it, why let them use them as pawns in their cruel games- excepts for specials occasions, for demigods like him, Annabeth, Lee. It’s great to settle in one place after years of moving around in the country. It’s great to sleep without one eye open, without tensing at every noise in the darkness, hands rapidly reaching for a weapon. It’s great to fit in, to find people like him. 

Luke is truly happy when he sees Annabeth hanging out with the Stolls, when she rants about architecture and mathematics to her older sister, Helena, who listens to her with a wide smile, entertaining her more than Luke himself never could. He’s even happier to spend lazy afternoons in the strawberry fields with his wonderful boyfriend, Lee, or teaming up with him to destroy Castor and Pollux at volley ball. 

Those are nice aspects of Camp Half-Blood, the ones Luke wouldn’t trade for anything (“is that so ?” croons his voice, echoing in his mind. He doesn’t listen.) 

Then, well no place is without faults. Since Kylie left for college one month ago, Luke has officially taken up the mantle of head counsellor of Cabin 11. Which is a very good thing because bless his sister’s soul but she had nothing of a leader. Weak-willed, soft, easily swayed by whines, unwilling to stand her ground for hot water privileges and careless about cabin inspection. She might have been a good thief, an excellent one even, but it’s all she inherited from their father, Hermes. Not an ounce of manipulation in her, not a speck of stubbornness. The cabin was a mess when he arrived three years ago, and while it’s still is, there’s now a semblance of order in the anarchy. Thanks to him, of course. (“You could do so much better than rotting here, for ungrateful gods” he hums. “so much potential, wasted.”) 

It’s him that’s been making sure that scraped at least a two, bribing whoever was doing the inspection with smuggled goods, promises of alliances at Capture the Flag or simply a good old threat. 

It’s Luke that greeted the new campers, flashing them a smile and stealing some essentials from the camp shop as a welcome gift. Make sure everybody ate, showered and got back safe and sound at night ? Luke, frantically counting every head, every 25 campers living under Cabin 11’s roof. Place to sleep ? Him again, laying sleeping bags on the floor’s most clean patches, because all of them do not fit in the 14 beds of the cabin. 

Coordinating with Lee, to make sure none of his campers die from a food allergic reaction ? Still him, noting down with care Chris’ incapacity to eat raspberries or Joelle’s distaste towards chocolate. 

All in all, he is familiar with his new duties when Kylie pats him on the shoulder, wishing him good luck before dashing out of Camp, the Grey’s taxi waiting for her. He doesn’t expect things to change much, apart from attending counsellors’ meetings. And now that he’s part of the group, maybe he can convince Chiron to let him extend the cabin. He doesn’t understand why Kylie didn’t ask the old trainer, surely he would accept. (“So much misplaced faith.” The titan laughs, lurking in his thoughts. “How much time before you understand ? They don’t care about your kind, demigod.”) 

----------------------

“No ?” He repeats, incredulity lacing his voice, as he watches Chiron sighs tiredly after he denied his request. “Chiron, with summer coming, there’s bound to be new demigods and the cabin is already so crowded we can hardly breath !”  

“My dear boy, I’m afraid there is nothing we can do about that, except wait for the gods to claim their children.” The centaur patiently says, with a monotone voice, as he spewed out for the hundredth time the same speech. “The other gods would not take kindly such a change, they might see it as demonstration of superiority from your father.” 

He’s gotta be kidding. Right ? Gods cannot be that shallow, they can’t be so vain as to be bothered by that. (“they don’t deserve to rule this world, let us fix that.” He whispers and Luke might think he’s right.) “Chiron, there’s 25 kids in the cabin right now. Five, including myself and Chris because it’s obvious he’s my brother, are Hermes’ kids. The other twenties are either unclaimed or children from minor gods, like Ethan and Alabaster. Some of the unclaimed have been here for months. Samantha can grow plants, Martin can shapeshitft, it’s clear who their parents are.” 

“What’s your point Luke ?” Theo, counsellor of Ares, speaks up. “Just deal with it, like Kylie used to.” 

“Kylie didn’t do shit.” He hisses at the boy who scowls. “And my point is that either the gods claim their kids or I’m doing something about it, whether they like it or not.” 

“You can’t go against the gods like that, Luke.” Brianna frowns, picking nervously her nails while looking at the roof. “They aren’t going to like it.” 

“Then what ?” He snaps at the daughter of Aphrodite who recoils and refuse to meet his gaze. “What do I do Brianna ? Nothing ? I let my siblings sleep on the floor ? I let the cabin goes to absolute shit ? Mhhh ? What do you suggest ? What do you all suggest ?” He scans his crowd, all six counselors and Chiron.  He can’t believe them, cannot believe the leniency , the lack of upsetting in front of their situation. 

Why don’t they care ? Why are they happy with being stuck here, afraid of saying the wrong things, afraid of getting cursed because they hurt the pride of those gods ? (“And don’t you want to fix that ? I can help you overthrown them. I can bring you justice.”) 

It’s Chiron that answers him. “Mr. Castellan, you must understand that the issues you are addressing cannot be solved. Not by the way you are proposing. I’m afraid you have to find another solution.” 

The underlying warning is clear. He can’t go against the gods (“Oh, you can.” The titan whispers.). Is this why Kylie didn’t do anything ? Did she try like him and got the same answer ? If so, he can understand why she quit. No that he’ll do the same, by the gods no.  He’s done letting them dictate his life, dictate Halcyon Green and Thalia’s life. 

(“Tell me your plan.”) 

He flashes Chiron a thin smile. “Will do, Chiron. Now if all of you don’t mind, I gotta go. Biggest cabin to run and all that stuff.” He dashes out of the room before they can stop him. 

----------------------

A war between gods. 

A full blow-out conflict that will inevitably bring demigods into the fight. (“There are always casualties in grand changes like this.” ) He doesn’t want his friends to get hurt. (“I can make sure they will be safe.”) 

He needs to think about it. (“When you realize I am the best choice, call upon me. I will be there, waiting.”)

Luke’s not naive. If there is any chance those he cares about come out unscathed of the war looming on the horizon, if he accepts the titan’s offer, they must be on his side. And there’s the catch, he’s not sure they’ll follow him. 

Annabeth won’t, she’s too obsessed with the idea of pleasing her mother and sees Chiron as a paternal figure. 

In his cabin… He can convince the unclaimed, the minor gods’ children and some, if not all of his siblings. 

“Hey.” A voice, Lee’s, says behind him, and soon enough, his boyfriend’s head in on his lap. “Hannah told me about the meeting.”

Luke scoffs, looking down to meet Lee’s face. “I can’t wait for you to be counselor after summer. At least someone there is going to fucking care except me.” 

Lee frowns and Luke is once again hit by how little he looks like a son of Apollo. Brown curly hair instead of blond, green forest eyes instead of blue, Lee Fletcher takes everything after his mother. That’s until you see him with a bow, shooting five to six arrows at the same time. “Nobody even tried to help you ? Really ? That sucks.” His boyfriend grins at him. “Don’t worry, next fall I’ll back you up.” 

Luke laughs and leans down to give him a quick kiss. “Thanks Sunshine but I’m afraid the two of us aren’t going to change things around here. We need, I don’t know, something more radical.” 

“Radical ?” Lee raises his eyebrow, tilting his head with an amused smile. “It’s not like we can riot against the gods, Luke.” 

“Why not though ? How else can we make them understand ?” 

“Luke, my love.” Lee replies with worry. “It would get people hurt, our friends and siblings hurt. I’m all for making changes but I’m drawing a line at getting those I love hurt.” Lee cups his face, fingers dancing softly on his skin. “I’ll die before letting all of you close to danger.” He kisses him slightly, his lips have a sweet taste of strawberry, probably because Apollo had strawberry picking earlier in the morning. Not that Luke is complaining. “So drop the idea of rebellion or whatever, okay ?” Lee says when he pulls back. “It’s no good.” 

“Everything you want Sunshine, I’ll do it.” Luke relents, mindlessly playing with his boyfriend’s curls. “Anything for you.” 

Maybe with Lee on counselors meeting, it will be enough to do something. There’s no need to provoke a war. Summer is going to be tough but as soon as Hannah leaves in September, Lee will help him. 

----------------------

As predicted, summer kicks his ass. Ten more kids came back, increasing the numbers to 35 campers, in a cabin meant to house 15 at best.  

When finally, the forest turns a lovely shade of orange and red, when the summer kids leave, with some of the year rounders going with them, testing their luck in the real world because this one doesn’t care about them, Luke is more than ready to harass the other counsellors until they agree to help him. 

And yet, despite Lee backing him up, despite it being clear that they are living in terrible conditions in Cabin 11, despite all the talk about how they are one big family that should be united, not one counsellor sway on his side. 

Victor from Demeter shrugs when he comes to him, Katie Gardner peeking curiously from behind the cabin’s door, and doesn’t have the will to change things. “We’re good with what we have Luke, maybe you should try that point of view.” He says, more interested in the flowers on his garden than in what Luke has to say. 

Theo from Ares stands his ground, stating that those are Luke’s problems and he should find a way to deal with alone. Behind him, Clarisse La Rue scowls and sharpens her spear, and Luke has a feeling that Theo won’t be counsellor very longer. Good, that guy can die for all he cares. 

Annabeth supports him of course, but she’s eleven and the others don’t take her seriously. Never mind that she’s been there four years, that’s she’s more skilled than any of them, she’s a child and that is all they see. 

Simon from Hephaestus and Brianna aren’t keen on doing something against the will of the gods, and both of them are leaving next year. “Sorry, Luke, but I ain’t going to be here next year so…” Simon shrugs unapologetically. 

And Chiron explains with the same patience and same infuriating tone that it’s not possible to do what Luke wants to do. 

Fine. Fine. 

He tried the nice way. 

“Hey Silena ?” He calls the daughter of Aphrodite. “You have a minute ? I want to talk to you about something. Meet me at the stables in ten minutes. I’m bringing some of my campers.” 

(“You were right, I’m ready to do your plan. There’s no other way.”)

----------------------

The following summer, Percy Jackson stumbles across the borders of Camp Half-Blood and by the end of August, Luke poisons him and leaves Camp. 

When Silena tells him that Lee locked himself up for two weeks in his cabin after he learnt about his actions, his heart breaks and doubt seeps his way into his heart. (“He chose his side, Castellan. He’s the enemy now.”Kronos whispers in his mind. “There is no love to hold for a foe.”) 

A fog clouds his brain, blurring all but the fact that Lee chose to stand against him. 

“Just make sure you stay in his good books Silena.” He tells her, ignoring the shock on her face. “It’s all we need from him.” 

----------------------

There’s nothing worse than hosting a titan. 

Nothing worse than seeing your body slay demigods, while you are locked away, a spectator to the actions of Kronos.

He’s in New York City, standing on a bridge.  He’s watching demigods fighting on the other side and by the gods, they are losing. 

A hellhound appears out of the shadows, dragging a corpse with him. It’s a boy, an archer with orange t-shirt.

Blond, blood-stained hair, blue eyes looking into the void as the monster eats his flesh. Oh gods, oh by Hermes, please don’t let it- He winces as a supersonic whistle echoes on the river. 

No 

It’s the Apollo Cabin standing on the other side of the bridge, getting slaughtered by the titan army. 

No 

Lee’s there. Lee must be there. 

“I’ll die before letting all of you close to danger.” 

There’s no way Lee left his siblings to fight without him. He has to stop Kronos, he cannot let him cross the bridge. 

(“Your efforts are useless Castellan.” Kronos taunts him. “You cannot stop me.”) 

Thanks the gods, Percy Jackson can, standing his ground against the titan lord, allowing the Apollo Cabin, Lee, to retreat to safety. 

“Percy ! The bridge !” A boy yells from the cables supporting the bridge. “Use your powers !” 

He knows him, Michael Yew. Why is doing that ? There’s no way he can get back on the ground if Percy breaks the bridge. There’s no way Lee would allow him… 

“I’ll die before letting all of you close to danger.”

When Percy breaks the bridge, it isn’t Kronos’ scream of frustration that echoes, but Luke’s scream of grief and pain when he realizes that Lee is dead, and he has now idea how and when. 

He’s granted Elysium.  While he isn’t sure to deserve it, he won’t question the judges’ choice. 

It’s beautiful but vast, how is he going to find Lee in this- 

“What the fuck are you doing here ?” Someone hisses and when he turns back to see who, he faces Michael Yew snarling at him. “You don’t deserve to be here.” 

“The judges deemed it otherwise, Yew.” He replies and the son of Apollo scowls, clearly not agreeing with that decision. “Look, Michael, I’m sorry about-“ 

“Save your breath because I won’t ever forgive you.” Michael cuts him off, still glaring at him. 

“Okay, fair enough.” He concedes. “Can you just tell me-“ 

“You wanna know about Lee, don’t you ?” Michael guesses, and rightfully so. “He would not have wanted to see you anyway.” 

“How did he die ? And when ?” He asks, not picking up on Michael’s formulation. “Please, I- I just need to know if it was quick.” 

Selfishly, he wishes Lee died in some mortal accidents, like a car crash. 

“Last summer, battle of the labyrinth, head caved in by a giant.” Michael says curtly. “Dead because of your stupid war, like a lot of us.” 

“I need to tell him sorry. Can you-“ 

“He’s not here anymore.” Michael interrupts him. “Castor ? Remember him ? He also died at the labyrinth by the way. Anyways, I searched for Lee too when I arrived down here and he told me he had chosen rebirth.” 

Luke’s heart falls like a stone. “He’s gone ?” He chokes up, because if Lee is gone, then he died thinking Luke didn’t love him anymore. He died viewing as- what did Lee think of him after his betrayal ? A monster for hurting his family ? Lee was always big on family. Yeah, Lee thought he was a monster. 

“Whose fault is that ?” Michael grumbles, shooting him a glare. 

“Lethe ? Where is it ?” He asks the son of Apollo. 

“Leaving so soon ?” Michael tilts his head, just like Lee did, and Luke can’t take it. “Yeah, not like I’m welcome here.” 

“You’re right about that.” The other boy snorts, pointing a direction with his head. “Go that way, you’ll find the river.” 

Luke nods, smiling in spite of himself at Michael’s advice, “try not to fuck up that life !”, before heading towards where the other boy directed him. 

Who knows ? Maybe he can make it to the Isle of the Blessed, like he told Annabeth.  

Plus, there’s still a chance to meet Lee in another life. In a nice, mortal life where they can live old and happy. 

Granted, the odds aren’t in his favor but he’s sure he can make something out of it. He’s pretty good at getting things his way. 

He cups the white water from the river in his hands and brings it to his mouth. 

----------------------

There are nicer ways to meet someone than bumping into them and spilling their beverage on their clothes. In the bright aspect, you can be sure you got their attention ! 

“Dude, really ?” The guy whines, looking mournfully at his stained sweatshirt. “Mondays really suck.” 

“Sorry.” Oliver winces. “Please, let me buy you coffee to make it up.” 

“Eh.” The guy checks his watch before shrugging and giving him an easy smile. It suits very well Oliver thinks. “I guess I can be late for once, the office won’t mind. Who do I got to thank for this ?” 

“I’m Oliver.”

“Nice to meet you Oliver, I’m Nathan.” Nathan smiles again, seemingly not that bothered by his ruined attire. 

“I’m calling you Sunshine.” He blurts out and why did he do that ? Call a complete stranger Sunshine ? No matter that the name just fits, that it rolled out of his mouth naturally, he can’t say that. “Because, hum, you’re way too happy for a Monday morning and for getting late to work.” 

“But I get to meet you, Oliver.” Nathan grins, his brown eyes- with specks of forest green in it if you look closely- sparkle. “It makes up for it, I think.” 

“Come on.” Nathan nudges him playfully, gesturing towards the coffee shop. “Tell me more about you while you so generously buy me coffee.” 

This was supposed to be a sad ending... but I hate sad endings so it evolved into a happy ending lol. Wanted to write Leeluke because I've seen a lot of it and I really like the pair <3

[daffodilsinspring]

CLARISSE WHUMPY/HURT/COMFORT/CASUAL PROMPTS

these prompts are based in my non-canon verse where all the campers live and no one dies, and camp jupiter and camp half blood meet peacefully, and silena isn't the traitor(these are all my opinions and ideas and i don't mean any harm by them)

Feel free to write them or use and adapt them in your personal fics(just please tag me if you do!!!)

she goes to party , with a friend she has outside of camp(post sea of monsters and during the titan's curse) - her drink is drugged and luckily she gets away before anything could happen(however nit without a few bruises) - only her friend she went with knows and a guy she met at the party who drove she and her friend home(she realises later that the boy's family and her's are in a business partnership) - she only told silena after silena's persistence on her avoidant behaviour.

She's from a fairyly wealthy family so she's skilled in piano and knows 2 different languages - she plays piano one day in the big house-thinking no one will hear, but micheal yew walks by and sees her(i canon they have a rivalry and relationship like her and percy) - he at first asked her if she's faking it(she proceeds to ask him if he wants a dagger in his eye) - he begrudgingly commends her skills and spreads the secret to the rest of camp much to her anger and annoyance(i canon that michael lovess to gossip)

silena and clarisse are chatting and silena brings up tantulus from sea of monsters when he temporrarily replaced chiron - clarisse shivers and says the guy was a creep , silena asks her waht she means - clarisse just glosses over that tantulus had said some wierd things to her one time when she was getting something from the big house and how he touched her face telling her she'll look prettier with her hair down - clarisse jokes that it's part of the reason why she left for the quest so fast - silena is taken aback cause she didn't know about this and clarisse speaks of it so carelessly, and feels kinda guilty as the other campers thought clarisse was being a kissup to tantulus as he made it clear he only tolerated her when he was there, looking back on it, clarisse never actually 'kissed up' to tantulus and was just doing what she usually does and it was kinda mean to blame her for tantulus treating them badly

some campers wonder how chris could ever date clarisse(as she's always dressed in armour and always ready to fight someone) - another camper mentions that clarisse has great proportions tho(pervertedly and lewdly - they kinda then start a debate spiralling into other girls' at camp and their looks) - silena,will and katie overhear and decide to prank and publicly humiliate them with the help of conner and travis

Clarisse and Reyna reguarly spar when the camps have joint team bonding exercises together

she sometimes vape to let the steam off, only will and silena and chris knows, will makes her promise not to over do it and reguarly threatens her with telling chiron(he knows being a demigod can be tough especially as head counsellor like clarisse and knows her personal life is hectic too so he understands why she does it)

She encouraged nico to join back camp after the battle of manhattan - saying he needs to brush up in his fighting skills and get some meat on his bones(he reminded her of her younger siblings)

[somewhereinthepines]

How do you think Kaylee and Caleb think about Ryan and Chris? In ASB, Kaylee was trying to subtly push them together a bit, so I got to wondering how they view Ryan liking Chris and their dad liking Ryan. This sent me down a mini rabbit hole of thoughts that somehow led me to thinking, "Does Chris have something like a knot like in popular werewolf fiction?" I honestly can't remember how I got to wondering about that, and idk how it'd even work either, lmao.

Then, from that thought, I naturally jumped to the next randomised one, which was wondering about how Chris spent the year when Ryan wasn't there? The tapes he has of Ryan wandering around and staring into space got me thinking that maybe he'd watch those sometimes? They have eachothers phone number, too, so they call like they did a bit in ASB. It was just interesting to think about in the context of GP because the nature of their relationship is different. Chris has his obsession, and Ryan atm isn't quite on the same level rn, but he's still pretty fixated on Chris. With these things in mind, I just wondered how it might change how Chris feels/reacts to Ryan's absence during the off-season of camp.

Then, finally, I thought, "What if Ryan stayed with Chris during the off-season?" Idk what the circumstances would be, but Ryan just doesn't go home or doesn't live with his family anymore? I was thinking about what they'd do, obviously with Chris's parents around, he can't bring Ryan to the house. So they'd be at the lodge, or at least Ryan would be. It leaves a lot of room for potential domestic fluff or smut. Without the campers and counsellors around, Ryan would truly be in the wolfs den. I'd imagine Kaylee and Caleb might visit more without the noisy campers and nosy counsellors there.

i’d say, that they prob don’t think about it too deeply. like, ryan’s crush is pretty clear to everyone, who bothers to inspect his and chris’s relationships for more, than 2 minutes. but while kyalee thinks, that it’s fun and might be good for chris, i feel like caleb sort of avoids the topic. and not bc the hates the idea of it, more so, bc it’s very awkward lol. i mean, he’s the older out of the 3. he views ryan on the same level as kyalee, like as someone, who’s clearly younger than him. and his sister has a habit of having new, non-serious crushes pretty often. so he might assume, that ryan is the same in that regard. like that he’s confused or smth. and then, chris is his dad, who he considers to be good-natured, but a bit lame. not to mention, that ryan is around the same age category as them, and learning that your father is a ‘dirty old man’ surely doesn’t help, haha. so yeah, caleb would try to not dig too deeply into it. and nope, chris doesn’t have it, haha. i mean, in human form surely not. in werewolf one, he prob does, haha. but i struggle to imagine ryan surviving such an encounter tbh. 

ah, that’s a good question. i imagine, that chris has a lot to do around the campground, even when no one is around. then, he and the rest of the hacketts prob try to track down silas and all that business as well. but i feel like, chris doesn’t really believe, that they would ever find him. one would imagine, that it’ll be travis, who low-key gave up on everything, when in fact, trying to kill silas is in part of what keeps him going. compared to this, chris has a more cynical view on it. at least, in my fanon, haha. i guess, i always picture him as a guy, who really wants to help others, but considers himself to be beyond help. or maybe, not even worthy of it. i mean, i feel like while fandom adores fawning over travis’s situation, no one ever considers why chris had to be the one, who runs the camp. i don’t think, that it was a gift from his parents. i actually, assume that he was ‘trusted’ (read conditioned) into that position, bc travis was always a scapegoat of the fam, but in a way, he was ‘let go’. he could do whatever, bc no one cared all that much, which is still pretty bad, don’t get me wrong. but with this in mind, and added fact, that bobby is clearly the favorite child, it would mean that chris was automatically put into position, where literally no one, but him could ‘inherit’ the hackett’s quarry. and where he had to be the one to have a family, and be ‘the ideal man’ or whatever. all eyes were on him, bc there were things expected from him. nothing was expected from bobby. and in a way, from travis as well, but for different reasons clearly. with this being said, i don’t think that chris had it ‘worse’ than travis or smth, it’s just that he had to suffer through different sorts of parental pressure and most likely abuse too. travis has a stockholm syndrome toward his family, and chris was basically conditioned into filling the role, that no one else could. sorry, tangled up, haha. 

but like with all this in consideration, it’s fairly easy to imagine why he would get so obsessed with ryan. and yeah, he for sure would rewatch the tapes, and enjoy phone talks, that they have. he never had anything like this before. a thing to truly look forward to. his kids are adults, so in all fairness, they no longer need him like they used to, and i feel like chris gets very aimless, when there is nothing for him to do, no one to care for, bc he has no idea how to live for himself at all. and yeah, in GP ryan’s and chris’s levels of obsession are a bit different. i suppose, partly bc chris’s mental state is also worse, than it was in ASB. he tries his best still, but cracks are starting to show more and more often. as for how he feels, when ryan is not around for months, i think that it’s a tricky question. chris is party terrified of himself and what he can do, so rational part of him says, that it’s good that ryan is far away from him, and that it might be better if he never comes back. but then, he also always longs for him to be back all the same. need vs care. obsession vs common sense. chris is very morale dualed, haha. esp when it comes to ryan. but i feel like, he’s prob one of the rare kinds of characters, who can overpower his own selfishness more often, than not. like, if i had to put all my supermassives otps into situation, where they had a choice to basically keep their ‘better half’ with them or have a chance to let them go with hope, that they can do better, that it would essentially be better for them, only chris and andrew would be capable of smth like lmao. everyone else, ryan included, would have the ugliest tantrum imaginable. even john with a similar level of self-hatred as chris, wouldn’t have been able to stop himself from being terribly selfish and keep andrew, no matter what it would have taken. this is partly why chris was okay with ryan killing him in WCA. he just assumed, well, it would be better for ryan. kinda a dick move tho. like ryan killed people for him, and he then, asks him to shot him lmao. 

and oh, funny enough, i had un-used plot, where ryan gets kicked out of the house by his mother. idk, where his grandparents are. maybe, they don’t exist in that au or they’re not close. so as result, ryan literally has nowhere to go. he asks kyalee and caleb, if they can hook him up with some temporary place, until he finds a job and will get out of their hair. but naturally, they call him an idiot and say, that he can just stay on the campground during that time, chris won’t mind. i imagine, that ryan would ask them to not tell chris why he’s here, make up some story. it also leaves a lot places for humor, bc ryan is city kid, he doesn’t know much about life in the country. but chris be there to teach him. so yeah, they would spent a lot of time together. just two of them. kyalee and caleb would also indeed have a chance to hang out with ryan more often, show him around and such. for a while everything will be alright with the world. which is smth that i really about the quarry tbh. their set-up is so deceptively cozy.

[fablesuntold]

@dollhidden sent: “wait. did you hear that?” From Laura Kearney to Max Brinly.

There was only one thing worse than crashing your car in the middle of the night; crashing your car in the middle of the night, in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by creepy woods that emitted all sorts of strange noises.. only to be confronted by an even creepier cop afterwards. What an odd chain of events, right?

This road trip down to Hackett’s Quarry wasn’t at all what Max had expected it to be. A peaceful drive under the soft moonlight was apparently too much to ask for. At least he had fellow camp counsellor at his side; Laura Kearney. Without her? Max was sure he would’ve just given up and begged that cop to arrest him just so that he could get a few hours sleep in a cell rather than having to deal with the repercussions of a busted bumper and being lost. Fortunately, the car hadn’t been too damaged in its collision to the tree and with a fair warning from said creepy cop, they were back on the road as if nothing had happened.

There was one thing still playing on Max’s mind though.. why had the cop been acting so sketchy? And why had he attempted to detour them further from the camp? In fact, if it wasn’t for Laura’s quick thinking and tricking him into pointing out Hackett’s Quarry on their map, Max figured they’d still be driving around in circles now.

Just when he thought their problems were over and they’d arrived safely at their destination, a new one soon emerged; the place was locked up tight.. no sign of Chris Hackett anywhere. Shit. That’s what they got for arriving a day earlier, huh? So much for getting an early start on unpacking and finding the coziest room before the other camp counsellors arrived.

‘Wait, did you hear that?’ Laura’s voice was but a murmur in the background, his full attention on the cabin door as he tried and tried in futile to pop open the door. “Hear what?” Grunted out as shoulder impacted the wood again, Max groaned and took a step back with his hands held up in surrender. “The only thing I hear is the voice inside my head saying ‘maybe we should’ve listened to that creepy cop after all and went to the motel he pointed out.’ Now we’re stuck out here..” And the cold was unforgiving. “..Think Mr. Hackett will mind if we bust open that window?” Eyeing the nearest window to him, Max couldn’t help but to seriously consider the option.

[bugwolfsstuff]

I know Nyssa, Drew and Jake are no longer counsellors but i'm too attached to the Head Counsellors + Chris family so i'm hc that they still do everything with the group and the lost trio are just unofficially the babies of the family

The lost trio have no fucking clue about half the things they joke about and at this point they're afraid to ask

[be-side-my-self]

I'm just going to add, maybe Anon will see this because I am thinking about them quite often.

One day I want to write Chris/Abi too because it can be easily seen.

The idea actually came from the fact that in Chris sleeping room in the lodge are drawings of Chris and Abi, obviously drawn by a child.

So, Chris is keeping the drawings at a place where he can see them and where others can see them.

But even more important... the drawing of Chris done by Abi is in the secret survaillance room:

He put it in a place where others won't see it.

That makes it look like it's something special. Of course arguably it could just be a reminder of his own humanity. Or maybe he just likes to have something Abi made for him close but also hidden because of how it can be seen... like by weird shipper people.

But that is not all.

There is something fun when you take the dialog between Emma and Abi in Chapter 1 and listen to it with the idea of Abi having a crush on Chris.

But it's hard to tell how Emma would react to a confession like that and it's obvious that Abi is not comfortable to share a lot about herself.

So, maybe Abi is just somewhat playing along because it is easier.

I especially like the double take Abi does when she asks "what is wrong with E-Mail?" especially when communicating with an older man? And we know that Chris uses E-Mail.

There is another thing that made me wonder since the very beginning. All the counsellors call Chris, Mr. H to his face. Even if he is around. He seems to be very okay with his employees doing that.

Abi calls him in this scene Mr. Hackett.

I think this is the only time anyone does that... I think when she talks about him later she says Mr H again.

It's also interesting, that depending on what you let Nick say to Abi, she looks at him like he is pretty annoying.

He can give Abi a whole "Well, actually..." speech.

Yes, this can be avoided of course. Just one of many possibilities and interpretations.

Anyway, of course all of this can be explained differently too and in before people say I am ignoring canon, I think Abi/Nick, Abi/Emma and Abi/Jacob are cute too and I get them all.

The one one of those three that is even close to "canon" is Abi/Nick. And even that is questionable. but who cares. Canon has nothing to do with shipping.

Anway... if not for those hints in "canon" I would have never even started to think about Chris/Abi.

Also I want to point out how potentically tragic Abi/Chris can be.

It's so much fun to think about how many problems they would face and how much pining there could be without daring to even start to act on any of those feelings?

I love shipping.

I’ve been going through your stuff and I’m like particularly fixated on the Chris Abi fics you did ?? It’s so good ? I would have never thought about this pair but now I’m so thirsty for more

Oh man - this whole ship came about thanks to @be-side-my-self

At least for me it did - I never gave it thought before then. But I had a lot of fun experimenting with them, because Abi is probably my second favorite female character after Laura. Emma and Kaitlyn come close though - to be honest I like the girls a lot more than the boys, they just seem to have the potential for more interesting storytelling! 😅

I'm hoping to pop my 2 Chris/Abi pieces over to the AO3 at some point. It's a long line of things I need to get on. I also have another Abi idea cooking tbh, but - again - something I need to get on.

Thanks for the kind words, anon!

[call-me-yin]

quick FamilyEcho of the werewolves, who infects who and when, because I can never remember all of them off the top of my head

blue boxes are unavoidable, pink boxes are dependant on player choices

I checked the wiki and every bit of ending text I could find, so I'm fairly confident these are all correct, but feel free to say something if you see an error

fun things I realised while making this:

Abi is the only counsellor who is guaranteed to be cured if she gets infected

not counting individual QTEs, Dylan has the most opportunities to be infected, two of which are caused by his hand being bitten

Caleb has the most guaranteed infections, while Silas has the most potential infections

Dylan and Kaitlyn are the only counsellors who can be infected by Silas, meaning they would be the only ones still infected if Caleb died and Laura failed to kill Silas

it would be impossible to get an ending with everyone infected, as Abi will always be cured and Ryan cannot survive without killing Chris, curing everyone Chris infected

Dylan can be infected again after losing his hand, but it will not grow back. this is either because he doesn't stay infected long enough to turn, or maybe werewolf regeneration simply isn't strong enough

Dylan is the only counsellor who can be infected twice in the same playthrough, and also the only one who can be infected by the same werewolf at different times

if Jacob is infected, he can actually survive having his head crushed in a bear trap

an infected Kaitlyn can survive being crushed by a storage container

Nick is the only counsellor who can infect an NPC, that being Bobby, however Bobby will always amputate his finger to prevent infection

Laura, Max and Emma are the only counsellors who can infect other counsellors

Max is only counsellor guaranteed to infect someone, and the only counsellor who can potentially infect multiple people

Abi, Dylan, Ryan and Kaitlyn can never kill anyone while in werewolf form. Abi and Ryan are cured too soon, Kaitlyn is infected too late, and Dylan seemingly stays in/near the scrapyard after turning

Emma and Dylan are the only counsellors who can be infected by more than one werewolf, meaning they're also the only ones who can turn at various times

Dylan will only turn in-game if infected in Chapter 5, meaning Emma is the only one who can turn at various times during the game

Ryan is the only counsellor whose survival is dependent on being infected. infection can save multiple characters from various failed QTEs, but Ryan is the only one guaranteed to die unless infected

Laura is the only werewolf that can potentially infect someone while still in human form, and consequently the only one who can infect someone with consent

if Dylan and Kaitlyn are not infected by Silas, every character could hypothetically be cured by killing only Caleb. unfortunately this wouldn't work in-game, as Kaylee always dies, Chris can only die before Caleb, and surviving the Hackett House forces Ryan and Laura to confront Silas

by the same logic, the main conflict could be over as early as Chapter 3 if Caleb were caught or killed

[kitkatscabinet]

Ohhh I have a Dylan x reader request where the reader replaced Laura as nurse supervisor (as a favor to Chris who is a family friend) but she mostly stays in the room and doesn’t open up to anyone since she’s shy but closed to others (similar to Nick). But Dylan kind of fell for her the first time she arrived and has been trying to get her to open up to him every day since they met and she’s slowly accepting him and also fall for him.

Ok so I am not a shy person at all, but I do have a lot of anxiety so I hope the two kind of translate.

Also I keep taking requests for Dylan for my mlm and enby audiences, while it may not be confirmed canon that he is gay I am still uncomfortable writing for a female reader at this point in time

Genre: fluff

Word count: 1079

Placing what must have been your 100th band aid on a scratch likely caused by a branch of some sort, you sent the kid off on his way and sighed in relief as you were once again alone. You enjoyed helping to fix the kids up when they needed it but you weren’t very good at socialising and it had been a very long day. Kids were easier than adults though and you had promised to fill in for Chris as a favour. You only got about 20 minutes of alone time before the door was opening again, looking up to see what was needed you felt your breath hitching at the sight of Dylan, oh no attractive people were even harder to talk to.

For some reason he had been coming to visit you at least once everyday since you’d been introduced to the other counsellors and you had no idea why. It wasn’t like you were a very good conversation partner, you could barely even get through a sentence without stuttering. Your throat always seemed to dry up or you would say something completely stupid and embarrass yourself. You weren’t able to hide your slight whine at his appearance not missing the way his expression fell a little at your reaction. Shit, now you should probably apologise but the words just wouldn’t make their way past your throat.

“Is this uh, a bad time” he said, clearing his throat in what appeared to be nervousness.

“No!” you yelled out as he turned to leave, mortification filling your veins as your shoulders came up around your ears. The action caused Dylan to smile fondly but you were too busy averting your gaze to notice. It hadn’t taken Dylan long to figure out you tended to hunch in on yourself like that when you were really overwhelmed and he found it adorable. Like a little turtle, his adorable little turtle, deciding to give you some time to calm down he waited at the door for a while before slowly stepping closer.

Taking a seat on the bed across from you he asked you how your day was and was delighted to find you responding with ease. He had found out your favourite colour yesterday and was planning on getting your favourite movie today, hopeful that that would lead to a bigger discussion that would still be easy enough for you. Apparently, that had been the right thing to ask as your nose scrunched up in thought and you eventually answered, asking him in return. Dylan left the building with a pep in his step, today marked the first day you had asked him a question of your own accord. He was definitely growing on you, that was enough of a victory for a while.

Following Dylan’s leave you had slammed your head down on the desk, groaning at the pain and in embarrassment for your behaviour. Why Dylan kept wasting his time trying to converse with you was a mystery. He was so nice and kind and funny and you were a shy loser that could barely string together a sentence in his presence. That was how Chris found you a few minutes later face down on a desk with your hand curled around the back of your head as you groaned.

“You ok kiddo” he asked, softly closing the door and walking up to you.

“No” you moaned out into the wood

“What happened, I’m sure it wasn’t that bad” he tried to soothe, surprised to find the slight tears gathering in the corners of your eyes. “Woah, woah back up. Explain what’s wrong”

“Dylan” you simply said before realising how that came across and grabbing Chris’s arm before he could kill the person who had put the most amount of effort into getting to know you, the person you definitely had a crush on now. “Wait not like that, he didn’t do anything wrong.” You blurted out. Taking in your expression and mannerisms Chris finally worked out what the issue was, huffing in amusement he decided it was time to have a little chat with Dylan.

Dylan was shitting bricks to say the least, he had been called into Mr Hackett’s office seemingly out of nowhere and now he had been sitting in front of the man in silence for what felt like hours. “So, what seems to be the problem Mr H” he asked, hoping his nerves weren’t obvious (they were).

“Tell me about you and my assistant nurse” he started ominously, and boy that did not bode well for him.

Hearing a knock on the door you looked up in bewilderment as it stayed closed, getting up you walked over to open it and were surprised to find Dylan standing there looking more nervous than you had ever seen.

Opening your mouth, you were interrupted by Dylan saying your name in an urgent tone, blinking owlishly you eventually pulled him inside. Sitting him down on the bed, you noticed your hand was still linked with his and tried to pull away but he wouldn’t let you. Your eyes were even wider now as you stood awkwardly in front of him shifting nervously from foot to foot.

“So, uh. What are you doing here” you finally managed to ask, breaking the silence.

“What, I can’t come to see my favourite counsellor?” he asked, but his grin wavered slightly more than usual.

“I’m your favourite?” you croaked, looking away, unable to deal with the softness in Dylan’s eyes.

“Of course, you are” he said gently before taking a deep breath “I really, really like you” he admitted. And you felt the world stop for a second as your breath hitched.

“Why” you blurted out “I’m just me, I can barely even leave the building or talk to other people without getting embarrassed.”

“That might be true for now” Dylan admitted “but you have a lot of great qualities that you don’t give yourself enough credit for. You’re good with the kids, you’re kind, you’ve always indulged me even if it was hard for you,” your heart was near pounding out of your chest now as Dylan continued to list the qualities you had that he thought were amazing. Eventually your heart couldn’t take it anymore and you tugged him into a crushing hug, you weren’t sure how long you stayed there but you knew Dylan made you feel safe, and that you really, really liked him too.

[dngrs-untld-hrshps-unnmbrd]

Werewolf Bites and Hot Summer Nights

An AU in which Laura and Max can’t find Hackett Quarry and end up at the Harbinger Motel, before becoming camp counsellors for the summer. Max is moody and secretive and Laura keeps bumping into the grumpiest sheriff with the cutest puppy dog eyes, and when he gives her his number ‘just in case’ a girl can’t help but drunk dial him one night. Cue overprotective and jealous Travis. And shouldn’t the officer get a birthday kiss?

Banter | Enemies to Lovers | Battle Couple | Smut

Start with Chapter One

Chapter Ten

Travis stared down the barrel of his own service revolver at a defiant Laura. With an irritated flick of his wrist, he pulled his loose tie off, looped it around his neck and started knotting it again. “I was distracted. I would have stopped you under normal circumstances, just so you know.”

“What distracted you about these circumstances?” Laura asked without lowering the weapon.

“The pretty girl half undressing me in my own damn station.”

“You think I’m pretty?”

He gave her a scathing look. “You know I think you’re adorable.”

“Flirt. I want a shotgun.”

Travis took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Fine. One shotgun. Regular bullets.”

He stood up and headed through to the room he used to store weapons, wondering if he was making a terrible mistake by taking her out there with him.

Laura surveyed the array of shotguns with a determined expression, and Travis knew there was no use arguing with her. Either she was going out there with him, or she was going out there alone.

No way was Laura going out there unprotected when there were werewolves roaming around. 

The only other choice he had was locking Laura up against her will. He imagined pulling her hands behind her back and marching her to one of the cells, but he didn’t have the heart.

You’re soft on this girl, Hackett.

He swallowed hard and pulled a shotgun down for her.

New plan. Keep Laura and the counsellors safe until dawn. As soon as everyone was inside the lodge or safely on the island, he’d head back out by himself. 

Travis stood close to her while he explained how to hold the gun, how to reload, how to store it safely. He was surprised how confident she looked with the weapon.

“Have you done this before?” he asked.

She smiled up at him, the shotgun resting comfortably in her hands. “Why, do I look like I have?”

She looked sexy, that’s all Travis knew. Someone he wouldn’t want to mess with if she was out for his blood. He remembered how she’d looked a moment ago pointing his own gun at him, her expression fearless.

That shouldn't have given him a semi-erection. 

He cleared his throat. “If a werewolf attacks you, fire. It won’t die, but it will back off while we get to safety. Don’t point that gun at anything you wouldn’t fire at. And don’t blow your own toes off.”

“Got it. When this is over, I’ll buy you a beer.”

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. I’ve been hunting this wolf for six years.”

She smiled at him. “That’s because you didn’t have me to help you.”

He had a sudden image of them back to back while werewolves circled around them. One of them was Silas, and they shot him dead. Chris, Kaylee and Caleb came back to him. 

Impossible?

As he gazed down at Laura, he felt a spark of hope.

He held a stern forefinger in her face. “No overconfidence. It’s as dangerous as hell out there. A shotgun will protect you, but only if you’re fast enough to pull the trigger. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes, sheriff,” she replied, but she was still smiling up at him.

Travis picked up his homemade silver bullets and showed them to her. “These are filled with silver, and they’ll kill a werewolf. We’re only going to use these if we find Silas.” 

“How will we know that it’s him?”

Travis rolled the bullets around in his hand. He’d seen Silas a handful of times before. He was so much bigger than his family when they were turned, and his flesh was pale in the moonlight. “I’ll know. C’mon.”

They went out to his car and climbed inside. Before starting the engine, Travis reached across her into the glove box and pulled out the jar of blood. “This is non-negotiable. Wipe some on your face. It will mask your scent from the werewolves.”

Grimacing, Laura twisted off the lid and did as she was told. “This is so gross and unsanitary.” She flipped down the sun visor and examined her face. “How do I look?”

Like an ancient queen ready to do battle. “It doesn’t matter how you look as long as you’re still alive in the morning. Give it here.”

Travis painted his own face with blood, wiped his hands on his pants and started the engine.

Laura gazed silently out the window as they drove along, the shotgun resting over her lap.

A werewolf.

Max was a werewolf.

She would never have believed it if she hadn’t seen it with her own eyes, which she supposed was why Travis had done things the way they had. The things that Max had said to her as he was changing…it was like he hadn’t been able to control his mind as well as his body.

“You smirked at him,” Laura said, staring straight ahead.

“What?”

Laura knew Travis was only pretending not to understand her. If she hadn’t been looking right at him at that moment, she would have missed it. He’d been so detached, so professional. Max was railing at him, telling him he had no right to call her Laura, yelling so many horrible things at both of them. It must have riled Travis’ temper. It must have riled his jealousy, too.

“You heard me. You smirked at Max.”

Travis’ fingers flexed on the steering wheel. “I don’t know what you're talking about.”

Yes, he did.

“When Max wakes up in the morning, will he remember what happened?”

Travis considered this. “Some of it.”

Laura rubbed her forehead. “Oh, Jesus Christ. I didn’t want him to find out like this.”

“He sounded like he already suspected something was going on between us,” Travis pointed out quietly.

“Suspecting and knowing are two different things. You didn’t have to look so goddamn proud of yourself.”

“Yes, I did.”

“Why?”

He glanced at her as he turned off the road into the camp. “Because it’s you.”

Laura felt a fizz of pleasure. If they hadn’t both been covered in blood, she might have leaned across and kissed him. Even though he had smirked. 

They parked in front of the lodge, which was eerily silent. No campers laughing and no cicadas to break up the night. No screaming, either, which was probably a good sign.

Unless everyone is already dead.

Don’t even think it, Kearney.

“What’s the plan, Sheriff?” she asked, forcing herself to sound positive as she got out of the car.

Travis glanced around, checking the road and the woods for signs of movement. “We go into the lodge. We check the cabins. If we can’t account for all the counsellors, we’ll do a sweep of the quarry and get everyone to shelter or onto the island.”

“And if anyone’s bit?”

“We lock them in my car and get them back to the station. And we keep quiet. It’s easier to hide from these things than to escape.”

He pressed the radio on his shoulder. “It’s T. What’s your position?” No reply. He tried again, and then dropped the radio with a muttered, “Ah, shit.”

“Do you think something’s happened to them?”

“They could be out of range or their radios have broken. Or they have their hands full.”

Travis examined her, his brows drawn together. Then he propped his shotgun against the car and reached for her neck. Laura blinked as he picked up the chain of her necklace and moved the clasp to the nape of her neck. His expression was soft and he touched her gently. 

“There,” he murmured, settling the chain into place. “That’s better.”

“Now we’re ready?” she asked with an amused smile. They were both covered in blood, but heaven forbid her necklace clasp was showing. She supposed he’d given into the same impulse that had made him brush the dirt from her face the first night they’d met.

Like he thought she was pretty, and he couldn't resist touching her. 

“Now we’re ready.” He picked up his shotgun, his expression hardening and his eyes growing dark and determined. “Stay close.”

Inside the lodge, all was silent. They went methodically through all the rooms on each of the floors, but they were all empty.

Laura grabbed Travis’ arm as they were on their way out. “Look. Blood.”

She pointed at some drops just inside the door.

Travis’ lips compressed into a thin line and she could tell from his expression and his tight shoulders that he had a grim feeling about what they were doing.

The two of them walked side by side down the dark path to the cabins, each of them scanning the forest, their shotguns at the ready.

“I can’t hear anything,” Travis murmured.

“Neither can I.”

“I don't like it. We should have heard something by now. Gunshots. Yelling. Dad and Bobby on the radio.”

“Maybe everyone’s on the island,” she said hopefully.

Travis didn’t reply. It sure was eerie to be walking through nothing but silent moonlight knowing that nine people and at least two werewolves were nearby.

The back of Laura’s neck prickled. “Do you feel like we’re being hunted?”

Travis paused and glanced around them. Nothing moved. “Just keep that shotgun ready.”

Laura didn’t need reminding.

All but one of the cabins were locked up tight, and the open one was empty.

As they stood by the big tree in the middle of the clearing, the silence was nearly overwhelming.

“I don’t like this,” Travis murmured again.

Laura had to agree that nothing about tonight was good. Not finding dead bodies and werewolves was almost as bad as finding them.

He was still peering into the darkness, but Laura felt Travis reach for her. “I’ve got your back, okay? No matter what happens.”

His fingers brushed hers, and she grabbed hold of them and squeezed. “I’ve got yours, too.”

He turned and gazed down at her in surprise. Then his mouth quirked in a smile. “I hadn’t actually thought this far ahead. My plan was to track down some of the counsellors and have you help them over to the island while I went looking for Silas.”

“You’re not heading off alone without me,” she said quickly.

“I know,” he said simply, glancing at their intertwined fingers.  

He didn’t want to be alone anymore than she did.

“We should check the island," she suggested. "Maybe everyone figured out it’s the safest place to be all on their own.”

“Good idea,” he murmured, and rubbed her knuckles with his thumb before letting go. “Let’s head through the—”

They heard yelling in the distance. Harsh, masculine cries.

“This way.” Laura started running before Travis could react, and he took off after her.

They raced along the path through the darkness. The shouting died away, but up ahead, something was struggling in the trees, high up in the air.

Laura skidded to a halt in surprise as she saw a man hanging from a rope by his ankle. Two figures stood beneath him. A big man in a trucker cap and a skinny man with white hair.

“Jacob?” she called.

Jacob peered at her upside down. “Laura? Why are you covered in blood? Never mind. Just get me the hell down from here before these crazy assholes kill me.”

“They’re not going to hurt you,” Laura assured him, and Mr. Hackett glared at her like he wanted to say otherwise. 

Oh, fun. Travis' family. 

“Goddamn kids,” he growled under his breath. When Travis arrived at Laura’s side, Mr. Hackett gave his son a filthy look.

Bobby suddenly pointed at Laura and exclaimed, “It’s her. It’s that girl from your car, Travis. Ma said you’re not allowed to see her.”

Travis grabbed his arm. “Bobby, keep your damn voice down!”

“I’m telling Ma! Ma said that girl is trouble and you—”

There was a snarling sound from Laura’s left and she instinctively turned toward it and raised her gun. Was it snarling, or was it someone calling out for help?

Shit, what if she shot one of the counsellors just because they were out of breath and panting?

Bobby was still yelling when a dark shape erupted out of the bushes and launched itself at him. Bobby cried out, and suddenly the huge man was plastered across the ground beneath one of those nightmare creatures that had attacked Max.

“Laura,” Travis shouted, and she understood what he wanted. She was closer than he was and had a clear shot.

Laura aimed at the werewolf’s back and pulled the trigger. There was an almighty blast, the gun kicked in her hand, and the creature reared in pain. Then it scampered off into the woods.

In the silence and smoke that followed, Travis stared at her like she was the most beautiful sunrise he’d ever seen.

A moment later he snapped out of it as Bobby moaned in pain.

Mr. Hackett knelt down by his son. “Are you bit?”

“I don’t know,” Bobby whimpered. "It hurts."

“Ah, could one of you cut me down?” called Jacob.

Laura turned her face up to him, her heart pounding wildly. “Are you sure you want to come down here where there are werewolves?”

“Where there are what?”

She found the rope tied to a tree, loosened it, and let Jacob down as slowly as she could. Which wasn’t very slow as he was heavy.

As he stood up and brushed himself off, he said, “We thought it was bears with rabies or something.”

“Has anyone been bitten?”

Jacob nodded. “Nick was scratched. The others went to the lodge to get some bandages.”

“I was just at the lodge. There was no one there.”

“Fuck.”

Laura stared at his bare chest. “Where are your clothes?”

“Huh?” Jacob glanced down at himself. “Oh, I was swimming with Emma. She’s on the island.”

“You need to get to the island, too. It’s the only safe place. Go, and stay there until morning.”

“What about you?”

“I’m staying with Travis. Don’t worry about me. I’ve got this.” She hefted the shotgun in her grip.

Travis was kneeling down by his brother. “Laura, the island is safe. Are you sure you don’t want to…”

He trailed off as he caught her glare, and nodded. They’d already sworn what they were doing tonight.

They had each other’s backs.

As Jacob jogged off toward the island, Travis and Mr. Hackett helped Bobby to his feet.

“Don’t whimper, son,” Mr. Hackett told him. “You’re not bit. You’re just scratched.”

He watched as Travis looped Bobby’s arm around his neck and shouldered the man’s considerable weight.

“You said you got scratched,” Mr. Hackett reminded him.

Travis shook his head. “It’s nothing. Help me get him to the car.”

Laura picked up Travis’ shotgun and followed the men back to the lodge.

At Travis’ car, he threw his dad the keys. “You drive. Laura, get in the front. I’ll keep pressure on Bobby’s wounds in the back.”

It was another awkward drive to the Hackett residence, only this time Bobby was whimpering in the back and telling Travis that his shoulder hurt, with Travis murmuring occasionally, “I know, Bobby, I know.”

At the house, Laura stood back as Mrs. Hackett fussed over Bobby, ordering Travis to lay the man on the sofa and blaming him for Bobby’s injuries.

Laura ground her teeth together and glared at the woman while Mr. Hackett got to work bandaging Bobby up. She’d left Travis’ shotgun in the car but she’d kept hold of her own, not trusting Travis’ parents one bit.

After a few minutes, Mrs. Hackett turned around and noticed her standing by the door.

Her furious glare cut to her eldest son. “What the hell is that girl doing here, Travis?” 

Travis had been rubbing the back of his neck and looked up in surprise. “What? Oh, don’t worry, Ma. Miss Kearney knows about the curse. She saw her boyfriend get bit tonight.”

Laura registered distantly that when he was talking to his Ma, Laura did have a boyfriend, and she was Miss Kearney again. Bobby had claimed that Mrs. Hackett had told Travis to stay away from her. Everyone in this family bent over backwards to keep this horrible woman happy.

Mrs. Hackett started exclaiming at the top of her voice. “Travis, we said no outsiders. How many times do we have to tell you?”

“It’s too late for that now. And be more grateful, Miss Kearney saved Bobby from getting bit.”

“I don’t care if she saved the Queen of goddamn England!”

Mrs. Hackett marched toward Laura, but before she could reach her, Travis stepped in front of Laura and barred his mother’s way.

“Back off, Ma.”

A bony finger was shaken in his face. “Don’t you tell me what to do. You step away from that girl, Travis. You step away right this second.” 

“I won’t. She’s been helping me tonight and I won’t allow anything to happen to her.”

“Oh, you’re protecting her, are you?” Mrs. Hackett asked, her tone dripping with sarcasm. “The sheriff is protecting the pretty, helpless little girl, is he?”

“Laura—Miss Kearny isn’t—”

Mrs. Hackett glared past Travis at Laura. “Harlot. Don’t think I don’t know what’s really going on. A mother always knows. This man has responsibilities to his family. He hasn’t got time to go running around town after you.”

Apparently this mean old woman scared Travis, but she didn’t scare Laura. She shrugged casually. “Maybe he makes time.”

“Laura,” Travis growled over his shoulder.

“You can smirk at Max but I can’t say one word to your mother?” Laura hissed at him under her breath.

Mrs. Hackett’s outrage doubled.  “What did you say young lady?”

“I said Sheriff Hackett makes time for me. But I can say more if you’re so curious about us. Your son’s been the perfect gentleman to me all summer. If I was living in North Kill, I’d make sure he knew I’d say yes if he asked me on a date.”

Travis went very still.

This wasn’t something she was saying to annoy his family. She meant every word.

Going on a date with Travis. What universe did that reality belong to? One without werewolves, probably.

This next part? This was to annoy his family. His mother in particular.  

Laura gave the woman an overly sweet smile. “Of course, my idea of the perfect gentleman might be different to your idea of a perfect gentlemen considering what a harlot I am.” She looked slowly up and down his body, an admiring smile on her lips. “Doesn’t he look handsome in his uniform?”

Travis swallowed hard, and if there wasn’t blood all over his face, Laura was sure she’d see that he was blushing. “Laura, please.”

Please what? Please stop? Probably, but she didn’t want to stop. His family treated him like trash and maybe they’d appreciate him a little more knowing how much he was giving up for them.

"Maybe I'll ask him on a date myself."

 “Setting your cap at my son when you already have a boyfriend? I knew you were a slut.”

“Ma, shut up,” Travis snapped.

Mrs. Hackett threw her hands up in disgust and Travis flinched away from her.

Laura saw the flinch as if in slow motion. There was nothing violent about the way Mrs. Hackett had moved, but Travis had reacted like there was. Like he’d learned to be afraid of her hands.

“You hit him.” The words burst from Laura’s mouth before she understood what she was saying.

Laura had seen Travis flinch when Mrs. Hackett had shouted at him the last time they were here.  

She’d even seen him flinch at a memory when they were drinking together in bar. He was remembering himself as a nine-year-old boy. One who made mistakes and got thrashed by one or both of his parents.

Laura narrowed her eyes at Mrs. Hackett. “You horrible, nasty old woman.”

Everyone turned to stare at her. Mrs. Hackett with cold fury. Mr. Hackett with impatience. Travis with apprehension. Even Bobby raised his head on the sofa.

Laura pushed past Travis so she could stand in front of Mrs. Hackett. “You hit your son? You used to hit him as a child, didn’t you, and you still hit him now he’s a grown man.”

“You mind your own business, young lady.”

“I’m making it my business,” Laura seethed. “Travis is too loyal to say anything to you or to stop you, but I’ll say it. Only a nasty old bitch lays her hands on her children in anger. Leave. Travis. Alone.”

Mrs. Hackett reached out and grabbed the shotgun that Laura was holding. “How dare you? Get the hell out of my house.”

Laura wasn’t going anywhere. The two of them struggled back and forth for the weapon.

“Let go of this shotgun, missy!”

“No, you let go.” Laura was too stubborn and too damn angry. She was also a little bit afraid of what Mrs. Hackett was capable off if she let go of the gun. The next thing she’d know, she’d probably have a stomach full of buckshot.

Mr. Hackett was yelling. Bobby was yelling. Travis was yelling. All the noise made Laura struggle even harder.

The gun went off in her hands.

One moment Mrs. Hackett's face was contorted with rage.

The next moment she didn’t have a face. She was teeth and jaw and eyeballs and a mass of raw flesh.

So that’s what the inside of someone’s face looked like, Laura thought in surprise as Mrs. Hackett crumpled to the ground. She could feel that she was going to be horrified later. That she was going to be appalled by what she’d just done. Guilt-ridden and sickened. 

But for now, there was only blood and shock.

And eyeballs. Mrs. Hackett still had her eyeballs. That was the creepiest thing of all.

There was a howl of rage and grief from the other side of the room.

“I’ll kill you,” Mr. Hackett seethed, pulling out a handgun and aiming it at Laura.

***

*kills Constance every chance I get* for Travis 😌

CHAPTER ELEVEN

[lettersfromaphrodite]

[10.40]

― pairing : Changbin x fem! reader ― content warnings : fluff, implied smut, angst with a happy ending, royals au, Changbin is a King, reader manages to time travel 700 years in the past, medieval settings //  there’s a huge Placebo lyrics quote, ring a bell if you find it ― word count : 5.419

― notes : this fic looks familiar?it is! I’m reposting ALL my works on this brand new blog and therefore please, bear with me! as always, askbox is always open and feedbacks are always welcome 💌

👑 ROYALS! STRAY KIDS SERIES

Chris // Changbin // Jisung // Hyunjin // Seungmin // Minho // Felix part one | part two // Jeongin

Tightly clutching your bag a little closer to your side, you hurriedly tried to walk back home without getting even wetter, your pastel pink umbrella unfortunately not doing a great job of shielding your body from the heavy downpour.

Walking home turned out to be a real challenge, since the rain almost made it impossible to see, and you momentarily cursed yourself because you could have stayed at work a little bit more and wait for the rain to stop; you loved working at the local museum and probably, enjoying the thunderstorm from another point of view would have been incredibly better.

Cars were speeding home, and the few people you met in the streets were in the same state as you were: desperate, drenched, pissed off at the weather. You were about to take the final turn at the crossroad in order to get back home, when a narrow alleyway on your left suddenly caught your attention, looking suspiciously dry, considering the fact that it had been raining for hours.

What really caught your attention, however, was the faint white light that was floating in mid-air right in the middle of it; strangely enough, the light seemed to pulsate as soon as you thought about approaching it, almost as if it somehow could hear your thoughts and directly react to them.  

Furrowing your brows, you closed your umbrella, placed it on the side of the street, and slowly started to take few wary steps forward; you’ve been living in that city since you were born and, on top of that, you’ve been walking the same streets every day to go to work and not even once you saw that alleyway. Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary, but the mere fact that the floor was dry - there was no sign of rain despite the alleyway not having any kind of roof, provided to intrigue you, and so, you stood there, your palm slightly outstretched towards that bright white light which was still peacefully floating around, swirling around your hand.

As if something came over you, you found yourself outstretching the palm of your hand, and the white light immediately rested on top of it; the ground seemed to open beneath your feet, making you fall in a bright white light. You felt like you were falling for what seemed like minutes, the sensation of not being able to get a grasp on reality pervaded yours senses and making you feel both powerless and frightened, since all you could see anywhere you turned was that warm white light.

Eventually, your fall met its end as you met a soft, wide canopy bed.

«Who are you?!» a deep and raspy voice shouted, and you mirrored the boy’s action, frightened, as you watched with unfamiliarity what seemed like a room belonging to a castle from one of the tales you read as you were a child.

You woke up with a groan; glancing at the window, you deduced that it was still the middle of the night. You sighed, plopping back on your bed, finding ridiculous to have the same dream since you unknowingly managed to time travel.

It’s been a month since you managed to time travel 700 years in the past – literally falling into King Changbin’s bed, and it’s been a month since you’ve been living undercover as a Princess coming from a faraway land, thanks to his royal counsellor’s unexpected suggestion.

Surprisingly enough, Changbin immediately believed you when you told him you came from the future – he couldn’t really do otherwise since you showed him your now broken phone along with what was inside your bag. You being the Princess added to the fact that you came from another timeline inevitably meant that you and Changbin spent every day together; you quickly learned that despite his stoic behaviour, once he was far from the public eye, Changbin was a child at heart.

He was always asking you many different questions about your time and he would marvel like a child at your curious stories: skyscrapers, planes, phones… Changbin’s eyes would be always as wide as the moon with stupor, asking you an improbable number of details, and this was one of the many reasons why you loved to spend your days with him.

The fact that Changbin was an exceptionally fun and kind boy and so handsome to put you in a state of awe were all bonuses you never failed to silently appreciate.

A figure that puzzled you was his royal counsellor; a man around fifty years old, always looking at you with a kind of bittersweet, knowing expression. He’d spend half of his days secretly teaching you about proper etiquette and customs and traditions of that time, so that nothing could give away the truth.

Sometimes, his answers made you think that he came from the future as well, but you weren’t certain about it. You didn’t want to ruin everything, especially since you didn’t know if and when you could go back home, and so you always kept silent and hid those doubts for yourself.

With another sigh, you settled for tossing and turning in your bed until eventually, you managed to fall asleep once again.

«The Princess will ride with me.» Changbin announced, noticing the panic flashing through your eyes at the mention that you had to ride a horse.

Of course, in a somewhat medieval era, almost everyone could ride one, but in 2020, it wasn’t that common anymore. Your grateful eyes met Changbin’s amused ones and he briefly winked at you before his royal counsellor politely bowed in front of you, claiming your attention, before reaching out in order to help you up.

«If you need to distract yourself,» he hastily whispered as his hands held your waist, «singing “Take on Me” by A-ha, always works..» you petrified for a second, confused by his suggestion but also now absolutely certain that he as well came from the future; without any further explanation, he quickly and effortlessly lifted you up, so that now you were sitting sideways in front of Changbin and between his strong arms.

«I should teach you, sometimes.» Changbin’s lips grazed your ear in his usual teasing manner, «But I enjoy this too much.» you instinctively rolled your eyes, turning your head and looking away from him, fighting the bush tainting your cheeks. You did not have any further time to try to search for his counsellor’s gaze since Changbin started to ride as soon as he was satisfied with your position, and therefore you had to focus on clinging on him and preventing yourself from falling off his black horse. Despite the fact that you were terrified to fall, Changbin’s strong arms never faltered, and his laughter surrounded the two of you as you muttered a quiet «Show off.» as he was holding the reigns with one hand and the other was holding your waist, pulling you against his strong chest. Neither of you said anything as one of your hands tentatively reached out to intertwine with his, who simply returned the action.

Changbin’s interest towards you was obvious, and you knew yours was as well; he was unmarried – he quickly explained that he did not need a bride to claim his position as King, so you never felt like you were crossing boundaries anytime your lingering touches occasionally became a little bolder but still, he never kissed you, or touched you inappropriately.

Even if the both of you often found yourself so close your noses were almost brushing – especially when you both had to practice ballroom dance, he never closed the space between the two of you, even if desire was evident in his eyes. Somehow, you had the sensation that Changbin did not completely trust you yet, and you couldn’t exactly blame him, but for some strange reason, deep in your heart, you found yourself wanting to win his trust – and his heart as well.

You quickly learned why Changbin never completely let his guard down around you few hours later you left for your horse trip. As Changbin – along with few of his most trusted army officers, were crossing a path surrounded by trees, a threatening group of bandits jumped out of nowhere, with the clear intention of attacking them, and to kill Changbin.

Needless to say, you were frightened and opted to cling to Changbin’s side, trusting him with your life while keeping your eyes tightly closed; recalling the counsellor’s bizarre advice, you really found yourself trying to silently sing your head in order to shut down and distract yourself from the noise of swords clashing against each other and pained groans of people being killed. Changbin’s arms instinctively hugged you closer, and if you were a little less in a panic state, you’d notice how his arms held your waist in a completely different and slightly more intimate way and hiding a new, different emotion behind it.

«Breathe.» Changbin’s gentle voice whispered in your ear, and you managed to hesitantly open your eyes just to look at him; in the moment your teary eyes met his worried ones, he leaned in to press a lingering kiss the side of your head. «It’s okay now.» he whispered again, and you nodded, doing your best of trying to relax into his arms.

The group of bandits had been neutralized, and your group resumed your travel towards the village you were originally headed to.

No matter how much you tried to, you still could not sleep and so, that’s how you found yourself in the inn’s cosy hall, staring blankly at the wall with your chin placed on the palm of your hand; even if you were doing your best to forget, your mind was definitely not listening to you, and yet kept thinking about what happened few hours earlier. You were so engrossed by trying to force your brain to listen to your will, that you didn’t notice the chair next to yours being moved, only for a familiar figure to sit on it.

«Did it work?» the royal counsellor asked, and you moved your head just to look at him, wordlessly and with an extremely sad expression, before resuming your action of staring at the wall; you nodded with furrowed brows few moments later, and you fell into a comfortable silence.

«Would listening to my story help you to get distracted?» he asked, and you nodded immediately. Apparently, he managed to time travel exactly as you did – touching a strange white light during a heavy thunderstorm, and since then, he never came back.

«I can’t go back?!» you panicked, your head snapping towards his at the mention.

«A “portal” opens every six months, you can go back anytime you want.» he answered, explaining you that he simply didn’t want to go back. He arrived much before you did; in fact, he was only twenty back then, just like you. «I didn’t leave anyone behind in our world,» his soft voice explained, «the thirty years I spent here were much more entertaining.»

«Thirty years?!» you exclaimed, much closer to a yell than to a whisper, and he laughed at your expression. «No wonder you suggested me to sing along to 80’s music.» you added with an amused frown.

«Changbin pretended to fall in that ambush to see if you were really honest with your story on time travelling.» he added, explaining that it happened the same thing with him, back then, while Changbin’s father was the King. «There are people trying to kill him on a daily basis-»

«I hope now he realized he can trust me.» you cut him off, shaking your head as if it could get rid of the sensation being in the middle of bloody conflict. He nodded, and once again, you fell into a comfortable silence which didn’t last too much, since he was also naturally curious to know how much his world had changed, and so you sat there, explaining 30 years of important discoveries to a runaway from your time.

«You’d be surprised to know that Madonna is still making music.» you said, and he gasped, making you giggle; you tried as well to describe to him how music trends changed but it turned out to be more difficult than you thought, especially because you refused to sing, since you couldn’t sing to save your life.

«Sometimes I thought about introducing them to pop culture.» he admitted, and you raised an eyebrow in interest. «It’s still too early.» he quickly added, shaking his head.

«Did you ever try to introduce some… inventions… earlier than they were originally discovered?» you asked, curiously.

«Every time someone manages to travel back… They somehow change history, even if it’s just a single minute.» He sighed, answering with a brief nod, «Since I’m a physicist and a historian, and I thought about introducing new things that could improve everyone’s lifestyle quite a lot when I first arrived… Let’s just say that changing history is a risk I don’t want to take.» he smiled, tilting his head to the side «And you shouldn’t, either.» you were about to ask him what he meant, when he suddenly settled for changing the topic.

«Go talk to the King,» he said «It’s late, but he’s still up.» you nodded, adverting your gaze. After the two of you politely exchanged your goodnights, you walked back upstairs, heading towards Changbin’s room instead of yours.

Hesitation had the best of you and you stood there, your hand raised in mid-air while contemplating if joining a man in his room in the middle of the night was the best thing to do considering the time period you were living in; with a final sigh, your instinct had the best of you, and Changbin’s raspy «Come in,» made you take a final slow, deep breath before going in. 

Changbin seemed genuinely surprised to see you enter the room, but definitely not displeased; you tried to concentrate anywhere but on his frame, deducing he probably decided it was not worth to get dressed since he was still leaning against the small balcony of his room while being shirtless and his pants were hanging low on his hips. Changbin turned towards you, the moonlight reflected on his honey coloured skin and his dark hair making him appear somehow ethereal, and you accepted his invitation to join him, happy that you could focus somewhere else but on his toned body.

«Couldn’t sleep?» he asked, a smile adorning his pretty lips, his back leaning against the balcony and his head turned towards you, which were facing the opposite way.

«Things like that don’t happen in my time.» you nodded, «I hope you got the confirmations you needed.» you added, glancing at him with a stern gaze.

Changbin scoffed, «You can’t exactly blame me, Princess.», his raspy voice never faltered from the gentle tone he had always used with you; with a sigh, you found yourself nodding at him, understanding that his position required him to trust the less people he could.

«I’m gonna have nightmares for days.» you admitted with a weak whine, and Changbin chuckled in response. You let his gentle touch pull you to his body, and all the shyness that you felt until a moment before, vanished as you felt Changbin’s strong arms gently snaking around your waist; you let him gently and slowly rock your bodies to the side to the rhythm of a song he was quietly mumbling, and you found yourself getting lost in the feeling of drowsiness as your head was placed on the crook of his neck and your hands were on his firm chest.

«I have troubles sleeping, too.» he admitted, his voice barely above a whisper. «We should share a bed, tonight.»

Despite the fact that you perfectly knew that back in those days, your behaviour would have been considered quite outrageous, you nodded without hesitation, and few moments later you and Changbin were laying on your sides, your back pulled against his chest and his arm tightly wrapped around your waist while your fingers interlocked under the soft blankets.

You and Changbin sleeping together quickly became a daily habit, and the rumour spreaded between the Court as quickly as wildfire. 

Changbin never tried to do anything to you – despite the time period he kept saying that he respected you enough to wait for you to start any kind of intimate action, even if he was undoubtedly attracted physically and emotionally to you; the rumours, however, were on a whole different level, and people already started to wonder about a possible heir.

Needless to say, you panicked every time, terrified of how even kissing Changbin could mean changing history in a somehow irreparable way. You knew you had to go back to your world in few months, and you also knew not to get too attached to Changbin, but he made it so hard not to fall for him that sometimes you’d be looking into his eyes, wondering why no man in your world has never been capable to make your heart race like Changbin could.

«You have to explain something to me, Princess.» Changbin said one day as the two of you were relaxing under a gazebo in the Castle’s garden. You curiously tilted your head towards him, ignoring your heart picking up pace as your gaze locked and you saw mischief in his eyes, meaning he definitely was up to something. «If I wanted to make you mine, what would I have to do?» you blushed furiously at his words, definitely not expecting this kind of confession on a Thursday afternoon.

«Do you mean, in the future?» you asked in disbelief, not making eye contact with Changbin but suddenly deciding that the drawings on your teacup were incredibly interesting.

«Of course, yes.» he said, and as quickly as you could, you glanced at him before carefully choosing your words.

«Well,» you sighed, «first, you’d have to take me on dates…» and so, you spent the next hour explaining how relationship worked in your time, explaining that couples weren’t strictly and necessarily arranged by social status, and arranged marriage were non-existent anymore. You’ve had few boyfriends, and you weren’t a virgin anymore; knowing that Changbin also wasn’t, made his natural surprised reactions more funny and possibly even more cute.

«So… Can this be considered a date?» Changbin excitedly interrupted you, and you nodded at him. Changbin’s happy smile was unparalleled, and without realizing, you found yourself smiling back at him, sharing the same shy yet genuine happiness.

Changbin definitely take the concept of “dating” seriously; for the following months, you went on dates almost every day, he’d always take you to visit new places and you found yourself having fun, aware that as your fingers naturally interlocked as you were walking, your heart was also naturally melting in order to solidify once again in Changbin’s safe hands.

«I’ll show you something,» you said as you furtively sneaked in Changbin’s private room one sunny Friday afternoon. Changbin curiously looked up from the documents he was signing, and for a single moment, you forgot about your original plans as you effectively noticed how good Changbin looked dressed in white. «But it must remain a secret.» you added, explaining that not a single soul had to know about it, especially the royal counsellor.

Wear your most comfortable clothes!» you added, before quickly walking out of his room in order to get changed as well. You made sure to wear the denim jeans you had when you travelled back into the past, right under two cotton skirt, their cotton fabric not being too heavy to wear at the same time. Changbin patiently waited for you in front of your room, still confused at your behaviour and questioning why you were carrying a round bag along with you, but you remained as vague as you could, leading him through the Castle until you arrived at the stable. Turning towards him you asked him to take you to the largest field he knew, and he furrowed his brows, even more confused. «Come on!» you giggled, and he nodded with a sigh.

Changbin complied with your request and, approximatively half an hour later, you arrived to a nice flower field, far away from the city enough to show him what you wanted to. As his black horse was now busy eating some grass, you happily took some deep breaths, happy to finally breathe some fresh air; you turned once again towards Changbin, which was still looking at you as if you had gone crazy.

«This is a way to have fun in the future.» you said, giggling at his expression before walking up to the bag you carried along, in order to take out a ball made of fabric and leather sewed together. It wasn’t exactly cute, but you explained that in your age, they were made with different things, and beside the ugly looks, it was still practical – you didn’t want to admit that you attempted to play soccer in your room and almost destroyed half of the furniture.

You have never been an expert about it, so you quickly explained few basic rules of soccer to Changbin, which curiously listened to you.

«You have fun… kicking a ball?» Changbin’s confusion made you stop for a moment, questioning if it really was a good idea since back in your time, you quite despised that sport but now that you were 700 years in the past, it seemed much more entertaining and funny than you originally thought. Changbin seemed to notice the change in your behaviour, and quickly asked you how were you supposed to create said doors while you were in the middle of nothing.

«This is why I told you to change.» you said, before pointing to the jacket he was wearing over his shirt. You never thought you’d see Changbin blush, and yet you found out that it took less than you thought: in the same moment you started to untie one of your skirts, he tried to stop you, asking an embarrassed «What are you even doing?!» you stopped at that, double taking the fact that the same man which held you every night like it was the most natural thing in the world now was blushing like a high-schooler.

«Relax, I’m not naked.» you giggled, and proceeded to take off your skirts until you were dressed in your denim jeans, a white cotton shirt and a leather corset.

“I wonder if I could pass for a steampunk cosplayer,” you thought, giggling to yourself as you re arranged your skirts on the field to delineate the area where to throw the ball, and asked Changbin to do the same with his jacket and the bag that contained the ball since few moments earlier. Changbin’s eyes, however, were locked on your legs; you understood his stupor, since women were still wearing gowns and even showing an ankle resulted somehow outrageous, but you saw his curiosity slowly turn into lust and hunger as his eyes travelled on your body.

Contrarily to your expectations, you had fun playing with Changbin; the two of you kept chasing each other between playful screams and laughters and while trying to snatch the leather ball from the other’s feet. You learned quite soon that Changbin played dirty, taking advance of the fact that he was stronger to hold you and move you as you pleased while he took possession of the ball.

«What is it?» he laughed, his arms snaking around your waist as you yelped in warning, already knowing what was going to happen. «Why are you going that way?» he then proceeded to ask, effortlessly lifting you up and placing you behind him, as he stole the ball. You never let him win easily, so you just jumped on his back every time, already knowing that trying to approach him would be useless, he’d move you out of the way every time. Changbin alternated playing dirty to actually let you purposely score, kissing you on your forehead while he praised you.

«You let me score that,» you panted, crossing your arms in front of your chest with a smile.

«No one can testify that.» Changbin shrugged, reciprocating your smile. Changbin loved to play dirty, and you definitely realized when he managed to tackle you down, so that you were laying on the grass, right under him.

«If I kissed you now,» he said, still panting due to the afternoon spent running and his heartbeat hammering against his ribcage, «does it makes us a couple? Can I be yours?» you smiled, happy that Changbin was taking this so seriously, and nodded. Changbin leaned down and kissed you, capturing your lips in a slow and passionate kiss. His lips made you forget that you should have gone back to your time and actually, you found yourself reconsidering your own choice, aware that Changbin would have been more than happy if you decided to stay; you kissed for minutes, which felt like small fragments of eternity, before eventually resuming your game.

The two of you went on like that for hours, until the sky slowly started to turn red and orange, meaning that the sun was about to set, and you both dressed yourself once again – Changbin helped you to fix your gowns, before he helped you up on his horse. This time, you decided to mimic Changbin’s position instead of sitting sideways, and he gave you a small lesson on how to ride a horse, his chin on your shoulders and his arms caging your frame as his hands rested above yours on the reigns. It took you all of your efforts to focus on what Changbin was saying and not on your hips pressed flush and moving together to match the horse’s pace.

«Do you know what day is it?» the royal counsellor’s voice said, welcoming you on your daily lesson about etiquette. You hesitated, but eventually shook your head, admitting that since you arrived in the past, you quickly lost track of days; the only thing you knew, was that in two weeks the portal which had to bring you back home would have appeared.

«Changbin should have died tonight.» he said, and your gaze locked; you paled up, realizing that what you feared had indeed happened. Despite the warnings, you still acted like a fool, and history had changed. Was it for good? Was it for bad? You didn’t know, of course. The only thing you knew is that you majestically fucked up.

«I’ll go back.» you said, your trembling voice mirroring the state of your heart. «Don’t tell Changbin about the fact that he-» you trailed off, not wanting to finish your own sentence, and saw him nodding at you.

«You think you’ll go back to your time?» Changbin asked, caressing your back as the two of you were once again sleeping together in the desperate attempt to fight your insomnia yet another day; you hesitated, convinced that your heart stopped for a moment, but eventually nodded against his honey coloured skin.

«Somehow, me coming here avoided your death,» you admitted, breaking your own promise. «I don’t want you to die, but I’m afraid I’m changing history too much.» you admitted, and Changbin hummed, interlocking your fingers together above his chest.

«There’s a legend we have, which you probably know as well,» he said, and you looked up to meet his soft gaze. «It’s the red string of destiny.» the naturalness and the love that his tone held while pronouncing those words was enough to make you skip a beat and you nodded once again, and Changbin smiled at you. With slow movements, Changbin rolled the two of you around, so that you were laying on your back and he was partially hovering above you.

«No matter what, I will find you again, Princess.» he smiled as he gently traced your features with his fingertips. «So you’d better wait for me, in the future.» the tenderness and intimacy of the moment made you lean up and close the space between the two of you, and so that’s how you and Changbin made love for the first time: sharing soft and gentle kisses, choked moans, languid touches and eternal promises and confessions of love.

Even if it was raining like crazy and he was drenched from head to toe, Changbin saw you off when time came for you to go back into the future, his arms holding you tight as he was kissing you for the last time.

«I love you.» he admitted for the first time and you were glad he was holding you close to his body, otherwise the rain would have absorbed his confession.

As quickly as you appeared, you disappeared, and Changbin weakly knelt on the floor as he felt his heart being torn apart at the vision of the bright light disappeared, carrying you with it.

There was only one certainty since you came back to the future: you were late for work.

Two years had passed since you came back and you developed this strange habit of being late for work every single day. On top of all, work became much busier since you came back, and some days you were grateful you knew your way home by heart, since sometimes you were so tired you didn’t even focus on where you were headed since you were too tired to even think.

Two years passed, and still, you would find yourself searching for Changbin almost anywhere, hoping he’d show up as a costumer, hoping to meet him in the crowd, anything. Even if sometimes you wanted to go back, you refrained from doing it; after all, you never knew if Changbin would still be alive in his time. You believed in him, and you knew he would have found you and so you waited, aware that you would have spent your lifetime waiting for him, if you needed to.

Another day went by and as you were about to take a turn leading into the alleyway where you lived, you bumped into someone; politely excusing yourself, you didn’t look at the stranger in the eyes – even if you mentally appreciated his cologne for a moment, when a way too familiar chuckle made you stop in your tracks. Your head moved at the speed of light to meet the stranger’s eyes, only to find Changbin’s warm gaze looking at you.

He looked exactly the same, yet so different, you thought.

This Changbin was standing in front of you while wearing light blue ripped skinny jeans and a black leather jacket over an oversize grey sweater, and he looked incredibly hot as well, even if he was not wearing typical King’s expensive clothes anymore.

«Are you…» you trailed off, and he nodded at you.  

«I told you I’d find you, Princess.» he smiled, and it was enough for you to throw yourself in his arms; he held you close, relief washing over him for having found you, and for you to have waited for him.

«I need an explanation.» you mumbled, still muffled by the fact that your head was still buried in his clothes. Changbin laughed, before detaching from you.  

«It’s literally me,» he explained. «Me and my royal counsellor talked about what happened and eventually decided that faking my death would have been the best thing to do and so we… Jumped into the portal six months later. I waited to adapt to the new – to your world, before coming to look for you, and well, here I am.» Changbin scratched the back of his head while his right arm was still holding your waist. «I still have some troubles with technology.» he admitted shyly, and you found yourself laughing at the incredulity of everything he said, few tears of happiness escaping your eyes.

«Come on, Princess,» Changbin chuckled, delicately wiping your cheeks with his fingertips. «I didn’t time travel to see you cry.» he joked, and you shook your head.

«You’re alive,» you smiled, before kissing him with a brief peck of your lips, your heart feeling incredibly lighter by the fact that you finally reunited with your boyfriend from another time.

«Of course I’m alive,» Changbin’s gentle voice answered, «Soulmates never die.»

all works © lettersfromaphrodite

Do not modify, repost, translate or plagiarize my stories. I only publish my works on tumblr & AO3.

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