#UGH. oh to be able to order my thoughts easily!

[jillsandwhichs]

Warm winter night

Chapter 9 to Joel Miller x Reader Smutshot Collection

Masterlist

Pairing: Joel Miller x F!Reader

Summary: You & Joel get snowed in your home due to a snow storm. While you're more upset about it, Joel takes advantage of the time you two have together

Status of your guy's relationship in this one shot: Married

WC: 2.7k

Type: NSFW

Warnings: Making out, Dirty talk, Breast play, Spanking, Hair pulling, Oral (F receives), Overstimulation, Unprotected P in V, Doggy style, Clit rubbing, He finishes in you & A bit of aftercare

A/n: Hi! Hope you all enjoy. Please check out my masterlist, there's a lot of stuff there. You can get to know me, you can see the rules of my blog and then you can see all of my fanfictions. You'll be able to find the previous chapters to this fic and upcoming ones. You'll also be able to find my Wattpad & AO3. Comments, reblogs & likes are appreciated. Thank you

"I can't believe we're snowed in." You exclaimed with annoyance. This isn't convenient at all, it is a massive bother. You had plans for this evening. You wanted to do some last minute grocery shopping and stop by the bank before it closes but of course, mother nature has to work against you per usual. Your husband, Joel, looked up from his book and watched as you paced from the sliding door to the living room, where he was sat.

The fireplace was going and it's crackling was satisfying but also a plain reminder of the fact it is Winter time - hence why you two are snowed in. You thought you two moving to Wyoming would be good but you completely discounted the fact snow would end up being an issue. You plopped down on the couch with a groan, arms crossed & your face pouty.

Joel was indulged in his book but he looked away from it, gazing at you. "Is the princess okay?" He teased and smirked at you. You scoffed and rolled your eyes. "No," you fixed your position, now sitting crisscross on the couch, "I am irritated." "So I can see." Joel snickered and closed his book, setting it on the end table and reverting his attention to fully focus on you.

There was just a lot you wanted to get done today and now all you'll be able to think about is the fact you won't be able to do any of it. You sighed deeply and glanced over at your husband who was already looking at you. "We won't even be able to order dinner tonight." You whined. "I'll have to cook." He laughed at you and pulled you into his arms, the two of you now laying together on the couch. "You let me handle dinner tonight, alright?" It's so sexy when he takes charge. "Ok baby." You responded.

Joel began to gently caress your legs, massaging them and getting you relaxed rather quickly. "You just need to relax babygirl, enough with the worryin'." Joel stated in a stern way to you. He isn't necessarily wrong. You can't help it. "I know," You nodded and let out a deep breath you felt you'd been holding in. "I love to just be in charge and get things done." "Trust me, I know." Joel snickered and was now massaging your feet firmly, getting out all the pressure and knots.

"It's nice like this though, you've gotta admit darlin'." "What exactly are you referring to?" "Us being snowed in together. Better than us bein' apart, yeah?" You smiled at his words and nodded. "You are right babe." There's no other person you'd rather be stuck with than your husband. Being with him is heaven's official blessing. "Ugh, it hurts." You referred to him pushing on your feet, trying to release the tension buried within them. "Oh hush it." He huffed out.

After he was finished with your feet, he let them go and gandered over at you. You looked into his eyes and sat up, laying back in his arms as you were just moments ago. He held you close and kissed the top of your head, his thumb rubbing up and down on your upper arm, calming you easily. "What's got you in such a mood?" You broke out into a laugh before glancing up at him, getting a close glance at his handsome, rugged face. "Nothin'. Can I not love up on my wife? Since when is that a crime baby?"

Oh Joel and his theatrics.

You giggled and kissed his chin, his scruff scraping against your lips. "Nothing is wrong with that, I was just curious." You snorted and placed your hand on his chest. It was rising up and down at a pace in which was comforting for you to feel. His heart was beating a bit quicker than usual but that's normal from time to time. Joel leaned down and pressed his lips to yours, kissing you lovingly. Anytime the two of you kiss it is as if sparks fly. It's your most favorite thing to do.

As the two of you kissed more, his hands swiftly moved to your waist, holding it. As he held you, you felt his fingers dig into your skin, earning a slight but evident moan out of you. "Joel," You stuttered, his hands now trailing down to your ass where he then squeezed it and left a vibrant spank on it. You giggled and as you did, he took his chance to slither his tongue into your mouth, kissing you more passionately now.

He pulled you into his lap and you immediately wrapped your arms around his neck, deepening the kiss as much as you could. His lips are soft and are exactly what you need. "Baby," You giggled, pulling away and resting your arms on his shoulders. "Hm?" He mumbled. "You're so hard," You gawked, being able to feel his dick beneath you - it is practically begging to be inside of you. "Can't help myself baby." Joel said simply before kissing you again.

As you two made out more, his hands went to the end of your tank top before he then removed it. You weren't wearing a bra beneath it, so your breasts came out, free and in need. Joel's mouth was basically watering before he latched onto one of your nipples, suckling on it with pressure and force that couldn't be matched. This was all escalating so fast but you didn't mind. Now all you wanted was Joel - and that cock of his.

Your hands ran erratically through his brown, messy hair as he went back and fourth between both of your tits, sucking on both and ensuring your arousal. You could feel a pool of wetness becoming of in your panties and it's yearning for Joel's touch. "Fuck babe." You moaned as he popped your nipple out of his mouth with a snicker. "I love doin' that to ya sweet girl." "Clearly." You panted, glancing down at your boobs which now had a glistening coat on them from where he was sucking.

You took off his shirt and threw it on the floor. You shivered from the cold but you ignore it as best as you can, knowing you'll be very warm here shortly. You are wet. It's crazy how easily Joel turns you on. He's hard, very hard, you can feel it between your legs pressing against you. You cannot wait to have him inside of you, fucking you as hard as he possibly can.

His chest pressed up against yours, your boobs meshing to meet his chest. "I want you." You moaned in between kisses. You are practically begging for him at this point. "I want you baby, and I'm gonna take ya." He then lifted you up into his arms. You giggled and held onto him. He was walking over towards your guy's shared bedroom. You figured the two of you were just going to make love on the couch but he clearly has a different plan in mind.

Joel tossed you onto the bed and you laughed, loving how rough he can be with you sometimes. You watched he pulled his brown leather belt out through the loops of his jeans and dropped it onto the along with said jeans. His boxers were still on as he climbed onto the bed, kissing you in a rushed manner, backing you onto the bed. Your head hit the pillow with a *ploof* noise and you slid your tongue into his wet, warm mouth once again.

You encased your arms around his neck, pulling him closer against you. As you two made out, you felt his hands amble down to your shorts where he then pulled them off along with your panties. You shivered due to the cold air hitting your pale body and he held you close, wanting you to feel safe and warm. "I'm goin' make a mess outta you." Joel murmured against your ear as he began to kiss and nibble it, traversing down to your neck.

His words and his touch... Oh they are immaculate. You laid comfortably against the pillow and fully gave yourself to Joel; He is free to do whatever he pleases with you and your body. His kisses went from your neck and suddenly down to your stomach where he took his sweet time. Those kisses he leaves on you were quick to relax you and have you ready for him. At this point, you can feel yourself pulsing with need and hunger for this man.

His fingers went from being pressed into your thigh to know going to your pussy where he stuck his index in your folds, feeling how wet you are. "Fuck sakes," Joel whispered, taking his finger up to his mouth and tasting you as if you were an appetizer before his grand meal, "So wet for me, hm?" He said with a cocky tone. "Baby, just please, do it already, I want you." You begged for him to just please you, to make you cum. It's all you want right now.

Joel chuckled and nodded. "Shh babygirl, don't worry, you're going to get exactly what you want." Whenever he says that, he isn't lying. Joel is the one man in this whole wide world who knows how to please you just right. He kissed more down your stomach until he reached your pussy. You were shaking at this point, shaking with need. All you want is for him to touch you, to please you in any way. "Oh," you moaned out as he started to kiss and bite on your inner thighs.

This process was slow, Joel knows it is. He takes him time with you, making you all wet and ready for him. He'll act as if he's going to finally start eating you out, then he'll pull away to kiss your lips or to nibble on your thighs. It's frustrating and that is exactly why Joel does it. "Fuck, please, just do it." You squeezed your thighs around his head, forcing him to stay in his place. This earned a giggle out of him before he then pulled your thighs off of his head and immediately began to lap at you relentlessly.

Now this is it. He'll make you cum over... And over... And over again, overstimulation at its finest. "Joel! Oh, holy fuck." You moaned out loudly as his tongue worked absolute wonders on you, making you squirm and causing your legs to shake like crazy. "Just like that... Oh..." You sighed softly, loving how fast and delicate he is with you. "Taste so damn good." Joel managed to mumble out in between suckles & licks.

He teased your clit repeatedly. Over and over again, he lapped and it and would wrap his lips around it, sucking it right up. It's too much. It feels so good. Your stomach is doing all sorts of flips & tricks currently. Your legs are shaking from the pleasure and before you know it, you'll be cumming on his face, just how he likes it. "Joel..." You panted out as he just continued to please you. Now it's becoming too much.

"I'm gonna cum." "Oh yeah? Cum for me darlin'." Joel stated in that low, deep, sexy tone to you. You love when he does that. "Oh fuck!" Your body then shook due to your orgasm as he rubbed your clit and licked at your tight, little hole. Vibrations and waves of pleasure coursed through your body like never before. "Okay, okay, fuck." You don't even know what you're saying, you aren't even in reality anymore.

He didn't stop. His thumb rubbed your clit as fast as it could go and his tongue was moving swiftly along your dripping cunt. You knew he'd do this. It's too much, too fucking much. "Baby!" You squealed as he kept it up. It was only becoming more and more intense. You seriously feel another climax overcoming you. "C'mon baby, you handle it, I know you can." Joel whispered to you. Well when he puts it that way, how can you deny him the pleasure of seeing you this way?

You know he loves watching you unfold under his touch. He gets off on it like he's some sort of a sadist. It's sexy, honestly. "You can do it baby, just take it." He egged you on. You moaned as he continued to rub your clit with haste and suckle all over your cunt - not a single crevice was left unlicked. "Doin' so well." The way he praises you... It's so attractive. No matter how much he does it, you still love it all the same.

Just a bit longer and you came again. You felt your fluids dripping down your inner thighs and onto your guy's bed. You don't even care, you are too blinded by lust and need to care. Joel chuckled and kissed your clit gently before finally pulling away. "Made you cum twice... How about a third?" He then flipped you onto your stomach and lifted your ass up to meet his pelvic area. He brought his palm down and gave it a proud smack, earning a squeal out of you.

Joel pulled down his boxers and his erect cock hit your ass. You could tell he is insanely horny, just as you are. "Look at how hard you got me babygirl. You did this." He squeezed your rear end and then kissed it (He's an ass guy). You giggled and bit your lip. "And I don't regret a damn thing." You whispered to him. He scoffed out a laugh before suddenly slipping his dick inside of you, pushing himself as deep into you as he could.

You knew you'd get a rise out of him, and that's exactly why you said it.

Your pussy is still sensitive but he continued nonetheless. His thrusts and pounds into you were relentlessly, just as his wet tounge was. He's big, so very big. Each time he moves into you, it's heaven on Earth. "Talk like that again, see what happens." Joel grunted out as he pushed himself deeper into you, hitting your sweet spot before pulling back, only to repeat this sensual process.

"You heard me Joel," You moaned out as his sudden pick up of pace, "I don't regret a thing. I love knowing that I do infact have some control over you." You giggled out. Joel scoffed and immediately snatched your hair up into his hand, pulling on it roughly as he slammed into you at a harder rate. "You don't have any fuckin' control over me, remember that." Oh you will.

Your mouth was agape as he fucked you, your hair being pulled and your pussy being destroyed. Joel can handle you, oh yes he can. "You're a funny girl sweetheart, to think that way." He then leaned down and kissed you. It was sloppy but meaningful. A string of spit appeared between both of your guy's mouth before he kissed you again and abruptly pulled away.

Your legs began to wobble and you could hardly hold yourself up. You felt your legs completely giving out beneath you. "No," He pulled your legs back up, "Stay in your fucking place." He ordered, which only made you turned on further. It's safe to say you love when Joel is in control. "I'm gonna cum soon, just stay put baby." He practically pleaded with you. You simply smiled.

His hands grip was now tighter and his other hand moved away from your hip to spank you. When he did that, it was ultimately your undoing.

Your body shook and you suddenly felt his hand swerve between your legs. He rubbed your clit as you came which caused your walls to clench around him furthermore, helping him bust deep inside of you. "Good fuckin' Lord, good girl." Joel whispered as he came inside of you, his semen seeping out of your hole slightly. You whined and held onto the sheets beneath you for support.

Eventually, Joel pulled out of you. He picked you up into his arms as if you were a ragdoll and he held you close. There is nothing more intimate than aftercare. He kissed the top of your sweaty hair and caressed your flushed cheeks. "You okay dear?" He asked you in a subtle whisper. "I am." You reassured him before kissing his cheek and clinging to him as if you are a spider monkey.

Joel snickered and patted your ass, standing up and holding you close. "Want me to run us a bath? Then I'll cook dinner and we can watch that stupid ass show you've been into." You laughed at his description of the show you've been watching and you nodded. "Yes please, I would love that."

You really would.

[copinghex]

Sincerely yours, me | T.S

Summary: Tommy receives anonymous gifts and letters. All the signs point to a single conclusion - he has a secret admirer.

The first gift was misinterpreted, as harmless as it could be, a man like Tommy wouldn't simply eat anything sent to him.

Sitting in the kitchen with a cup of tea, Polly waited for Tommy to get home. On the table, a delicate box from a nearby bakery and a letter caught everyone's attention, not only for the gesture but also the date.

If anyone would search for Thomas Shelby in city registers, all they'd find would be his army register, indicating his date of birth was 19th September, months earlier than the true date, a cold Wednesday morning of November. Whoever sent the gift was close enough to the family to not be fooled by the erroneous papers.

That day, Tommy entered the kitchen in quick steps, unconsciously or not, he always worked more on his birthday, not being particularly fond of celebrating.

“Is anything special about the age of thirty?” Polly asked.

“...no,” noticing the suspicious gifts on the table, Tommy reached for the letter, the envelope contained no information other than his own name, “who bought this?”

“No one, it was left at the door this morning,” she turned the box to show him the bakery’s name, “the place isn't cheap, they wouldn't leave it at the door without someone to collect it,”

“So someone ordered and left it at the door,” Tommy concluded.

“What does the letter say?”

The first thing Tommy noticed was the calligraphy, it wasn't neat nor horrendous. He could see the author tried their best to look nice.

Dear Tommy,

Originally, I was excited to write you this letter. Now that I have your cake and shall deliver it tomorrow, it makes me question if this was a good idea.

I believe birthdays are meant to be celebrated with those we have dearly. You seem to think otherwise, nevertheless, I hope you (and your family) enjoy the flavor I picked.

I wish I had bought you a gift as well, I had an eye on a pocket watch from a pawnshop in London, it'd seat nicely with a brown three piece you have, unfortunately my budget is not endless.

I hope you enjoy your birthday and wish you all the happiness, prosperity and good fortune.

Sincerely yours, me.

P.S I've taken notice I mentioned the cake spent a day in my house, if the thought ever crosses your head, do not worry, it cannot have spoiled, I kept it on the ice box all the time ♡

“So?” Polly questioned.

“Take a look at the calligraphy,” he handed her the letter, “does it look familiar?”

“Not at all, I can check in the books, but it's too neat to belong to any of our men, also there's a heart in the end,”

“Alright,” he sighed, “I want you to go to the bakery and ask who ordered it, then ask all the neighbors about the person who left it at the door, anything is useful,”

“Oh, for Christ's sake! I've things to do but to investigate a birthday cake!”

“Polly,” Tommy opened the box, “whoever sent this is watching from close, what do they plan to do with all this information? It can't be good,”

“Alright,” she sighed, “I'll ask, but I bet is nothing more than some of the neighbors’ daughters wearing her heart out for you,”

“Fucking finally,” John suddenly entered the kitchen, “Polly said we'd only eat when you arrived,”

“No one is going to eat,” he looked at the cake, the white topping could be easily deduced as vanilla while the bottom was chocolate.

“What?! Why not?”

“We don't know who fucking sent this, it can be poisoned,”

“Or someone wants to send a message,” Polly added.

“Or it's just fucking cake,” John argued, “ugh, forget it,”

As John left, Tommy threw the box in the trash, the light sweet scent rose up to his nose and looking superficially, it seemed like nothing but an innocently sent birthday gift. He wouldn't risk it though, if he was wrong about it, it'd be shameful to die over a piece of cake.

Weeks went by without further information, all the bakery was able to tell was that the person who made the order was a woman, nothing they hadn't already deduced. The dust settled, with no signs of danger or special dates coming by, nothing disturbed Tommy's routine.

The second gift was delivered by Scudboat, at the end of a shift in the betting shop he sneaked his head into Tommy's tiny office with a bulky envelope.

“Tom? I'm going home,” he said.

“See you tomorrow,” Tommy didn't lift his eyes from the papers on the desk.

“Someone left this on my desk today, it's for you,”

His shoulders dropped in a tired move, one more problem was everything he didn't need, “Who did? Did you see?”

“No, we had a full house today, I'm sorry, man,” Scudboat left.

First, a wooden horse fell from the paper. The delicate miniature wasn't bigger than a pocket watch, but the details revealed it was made by talented hands.

Dear Tommy,

Although throwing the whole cake away did offend me, I admit I'm the one at fault for this huge miscalculation, I have no enemies myself and yet, I'd be hesitant to eat something anonymously sent to my door.

Therefore, please accept this horse as a gift instead. It sat dusting up on my shelf for way too long, if you ask me, it resembles Monaghan boy.

Sincerely yours, me.

Tommy placed the miniature in the corner of his desk, it immediately set amongst his other belongings as if it was made to be there.

Slightly crumbling the paper, he fought the urge of ripping it apart, no harm was done and he couldn't find any subtle threats between the lines, but the thought of being observed made him tremble.

The possibility of someone being truly in love with him crossed his mind and was quickly shaken off. Tommy knew he wasn't lovable, at least not anymore, at most it must be infatuation from a stupid woman.

Putting the letter in a drawer, he carried on with his paperwork.

The third gift came three weeks later, when Tommy thought she had given up on him. A worn out bracelet he recognized from an Appleby fair, years ago he bought one for Greta Jurossi and managed to sneak up some more while the seller turned around to get his change. He remembered distributing them amongst her friends.

Those faces were all blurred in Tommy's memory now, shadows from a past that seemed so distant it felt like another life.

The envelope wasn't neat like the previous ones either, delivered by Ada herself, all she offered as explanation was an entertained smile and a “read the letter, Tom”

Relief washed over him learning that Ada was the one collecting information. The worry’s weight left his shoulders and then, the whole scenario felt as laughable as a joke.

Tommy,

It has come to my attention that my letters do you more harm than good. What a shame, I had planned to toy with you a while longer, but seeming it doesn't have the expected effect, I believe there's no option other than revealing myself.

I assure you I never intended harm and Ada was of great help in keeping an eye on you. Please, do not be upset at her, she was manipulated by having me watching Karl whenever needed.

Thomas, you are very dear to me, I've made it clear through the last few months, because of it, I'll be at the Garrison this Friday from 17:00 to 18:00, at the last table in the corner, we've never been complete strangers so you'll recognize me.

All I ask you is to not show up with selfish intentions, to mock me or satisfy your curiosity. I want to be someone close to you, someone you trust and perhaps like. If this possibility exists, come meet me, if your heart is permanently closed, I understand, but please do not come.

Sincerely yours, //////////

Tommy slowly put the letter down, the red scribbles where her name should be evoked sympathy within him. He imagined a simple girl, a silhouette between Greta's friends, switching pen colors and ruining the end of a tidy letter.

Lighting up a cigarette, he rubbed his tense brow, decisions that involved others were always harder and he doubted he'd get used to it someday.

He also couldn't deny curiosity was eating him alive, he needed to know who was sweet enough to look away from the atrocities he committed after France and still love the man he became.

Love, the word sounded so foreign to him he made a decision. He'd go to the encounter, even if he wasn't sure he wanted a relationship, having someone who loved him would be useful.

The week went by fast, around a quarter to five Tommy ordered everyone out of the Garrison, two cups and a whiskey bottle waited with him. He wouldn't define what he felt as excitement, perhaps satisfaction in finally closing that case.

Leaning on the counter, he stared at the doors, a hesitant shadow showed up on the glass panel, the knob moved down and a few seconds passed until she got in.

Her eyes widened seeing the pub empty, a shiver ran down her spine as her eyes met his squinted ones. She gulped, frozen at the entry. Tommy sized her up and his gaze softened, an afternoon tea at the Jurossi’s house years ago, he'd barely noticed her, apparently she had noticed him.

“You came,” she greeted.

“I was curious,”

“Tommy, I asked you to not-”

“Yeah,” he interrupted, “it was brave of you to keep me in the dark for so long,”

“It was barely two months,”

“Could've been much more if so you decided,”

“Why would I? You didn't see to enjoy my… admiration at all,”

Pouring them drinks, Tommy called her to the counter. She shyly smiled as he handed her a glass and made a tiny toast.

“It was clever,” he complimented, “I recruit clever people,”

“So this is business focused?” she looked down, disappointed.

“Amongst other things,” with his glass, he lifted her chin, “I think we can achieve great things together,”

[theesirenteller]

𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐫

divider credit @cafekitsune

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Chapter Four | Regálame un poco de azúcar

"Are you sure you don't need anything else?"

"Nah, just my laundry."

The dullness in Rio's voice had caused Beth to roll her eyes. She felt a certain type of 'ick' over his lack of playfulness with her. Her smugness quickly replaced her disappointment. But, that quickly diminished when a few slick thoughts raced through her mind. Due to the pair being seated across from one another in a booth, Beth was able to easily brush her moist hand across his thigh from underneath the table. " Actually, I left it in my dryer," she said in a soft-airy tone with a slight purr. Leaning in closer from across the table. Her breasts spilled over the black tabletop. Mick, who stood nearby, simply shook his head.

Rio's once-blank expression slowly began to change. His eyes slanted upwards as the corners of his lips peeled back into a smile. And then suddenly he began chuckling "Oh really?" he mused.  Beth giggled in response but Rio's chuckle grew into robust laughter. When he and Mick held eye contact, Rio slowly shook his head. The men shared a mental conversation where words didn't need to be spoken.

"No, a big fat juicy cheeseburger sounds even better right now." 

"Oh my god yes, and chocolate milkshakes but with whipped cream and chocolate-covered strawberries at the bottom." Epiphany existed out of the champagne room alongside Crystal.  Both dancers looked at the pair across the table. Vise versa from the opposite side. Despite Epiphany's smile dimming down, her mood was ruined. The sight before her wasn't something she needed to see…ever. It created a sourness in the pit of her stomach that replaced her hunger. As well as a foul taste at the back of her mouth. The sick part of all of it was that she had no reason to feel this way. They weren't anything. But, Epiphany couldn't shake the sick feeling.

"Oh hey guys," Crystal greeted with a bubbly tone and waved on her way to the bar. Epiphany gave the fakest smile she could muster as she followed along. She fought with everything in her to not look his way, and she did a pretty good job of it.  Epiphany made sure to sit on Crystal's side and wasn't facing the business partners and focused her attention on the bartender. She didn't have to look his way to feel his stare. Hell, she still could feel him even weeks after their last encounter. Or how she yearned to feel his long fingers fill her, drum her insides the way he would tap them against the table to a tune he only knew. 'Maybe he sprinkled some of that coke over his dick? that's probably what's got me hooked.'  She thought to herself. "I'll take vodka, orange juice, and light ice,"  she ordered.

"Hey uh…do you girls mind putting on some proper clothes or actual robes when outside the champagne room? You don't have to be naked around the whole building." Beth commented while puffing her chest out. Both Rio and Mick raised an eyebrow, a subtle signal of skepticism and amusement.

 Beth wasn't a fan of the men's wandering eyes. There was a reason she preferred the Detroit gangster to pick up his cut during the daytime versus the night. Less distractions. She could see Epiphany's topless torso through her mesh baby-blue robe and Beth was disgusted.  The girl left nothing for the imagination and Beth supposed that was to be expected of someone who did what she did. The strip club was too cheap for her taste as were the girls in it.

"Strip club by night, nunnery by day. Gee, you're an absolute visionary boss," Epiphany said sarcastically. It was the shared laugh between Rio and Mick that caused the ex-housewife's face to redden. 

"Look I know it's hard for you to tell the difference between-" Beth started but was dismissed by Epiphany's loud yawn. 

"Ugh, I need a cold shower and a nap." And with that Epiphany got up and strolled to the locker room sipping her drink.

"Looks like you got a lot to straighten out," Rio said to Beth. He then stood up and roughly patted her shoulder, "I'll be back for my cut," He and Mick departed from the side door.

Epiphany's hands shook as she stood in the room on the other side of the club. Her lips formed in a pout around the red solo cup. The cool-to-hot burn of her icy beverage numbed the back of her throat. She was used to her all-nighters at the club turning to a daytime double. But that mixed with her Karen of a boss and seeing the revolting sight of the cardigan wearer with the guy she had the hots for…just didn't mix well. " I don't like this shit" she whispered to herself.  It had been a while since a man who she had chemistry with was consistent with her. Rio wasn't at the club the majority of the time but he still managed to send her a text that always consisted of 'Have a good night champ.' or 'You have a good night?'. Then he'd call in the early morning hours of one to two a.m. and they'd talk. Icebreaker conversations about things like soggy cereal were better than fresh. They also liked The Weeknd's earlier albums and Mac Miller. Oddly enough, Rio adored Jazz music. Mostly live rather than CDs. Epiphany looked forward to their midnight conversations. Seeing him in person just felt surreal. In the present, Her annoyance was fixed with a hot shower and getting dressed in fresh clothes. Epiphany left the club in a denim mini skirt, pink Ugg boots, and an oversized mocha-brown fox fur coat over her white Henley top. The crisp fall air sent a feeling of refreshment through her as she walked along the street. The stiffness of the club depleted with each step she took away from it.

"You know green ain't really your color, Champ." She knew that familiar husky voice anywhere. Like a kiss to the side of her ear, it warmed the back of her neck. The burly tattooed man was in the driver's seat, but Rio sat in the passenger side with his arm out the window. His charming smile seemed almost taunting. The black G-wagon drove at the same pace she walked.

"Depends on the shade," Epiphany replied. Crossing her arms across her chest, she turned and faced the truck. Despite being feet apart, a level of intimacy was shared between the two of them. Their mirrored expressions of longing eye contact, raised brows, and playfully teasing smiles. Like a silent tango shared between the two. 

"So, where you headed?" Rio asked as he drummed his hand against the side of the car. 

"Wherever you're going." She smirked. 

"Está loca por ti, hermano." Mick snickered from the driver's seat causing Rio's smile to widen.

"Well come on then," He hopped out of the car and proceeded to open the backseat door. Epiphany smiled his way as she walked over to the car. She placed a soft but swift kiss on his cheek; which reached the corner of his jaw due to their height difference. Stan and Ruby had driven past the pair and the mother of two couldn't help but gawk at the scene with her mouth open.

"Stan," She hissed and smacked her husband's shoulder, "Did you see that? The hoodlum is getting frisky with the new bimbo. That's some straight foolishness." She shook her head with disapproval. Her husband chuckled in response as he pulled in around the corner," I thought the same thing when your girl started hunching with him. That's more normal than our council woman getting jiggy with him." Ruby shot Stan a side-eye but said nothing further.

Meanwhile, in Rio's car laughter was being shared. "No, pero piénsalo (think about it) What type of meat even is  two dollars?" Epiphany expressed before shaking her head in disbelief, "No me importa que no sea Carnitas or Pernil. (I don't care what you say, it's not pork or pulled pork)"

"It's an unbeatable deal. Maybe not all pork but it's got some pork in it…somewhere." Mick defended, "Don't downplay Arbys, you ain't built for that type of flavor kid."

Epiphany scrunched up her nose, "Definitely not. That type of flavor will have you ending up in a grave or dead in some gas station toilet."

"That ain't ever happened," Mick replied.

"Not yet." She smirked. 

"You're both taking this a lil too seriously." Rio laughed from the passenger seat.

"Like when Reyes Carnitas don't add extra jalapenos on your burger?" Mick muttered, giving his boss the side-eye. The trio continued to bicker, laugh, and roast one another's restaurant and food choices to Reyes Carnitas. Each of them ordered burgers with their preferred fixings and their conversation switched to MMA fights. Epiphany discovered that Mick was a pretty cool guy who was funny in his way. She figured he was the strong silent type but in a non-work setting, he was laidback and quick with comebacks to roasts or opinions. She couldn't help but admire the Brotherhood he and Rio shared.  They were more than boss and employee which was nice to get a glimpse of. As the group finished their Coronas, Mick gave Epiphany a head nod goodbye before he and Rio smacked hands. The man left in a separate black Mercedes that had been parked in the restaurant's parking lot.

Rio checked his watch before looking at Epiphany, "You ready to go, champ?" he asked. And once she nodded the pair left the shop. His hand rested against her lower back causing goosebumps to form across her skin. As she climbed into the passenger seat of the truck, her face grew hot at the feeling of his hand smacking against her ass. "Los jalapeños te pesaron!(the jalapenos got you heavy-handed)" she teased and the two shared a laugh.

"Where are we going?" She asked as she filed her nails during the drive.

"You'll see when we get there," he replied shortly.

"Are you taking me somewhere to end me for getting snappy with your old lady?" Epiphany teased as she looked over at him.

"Ha! You got jokes huh?" Rio laughed into his fist as he slouched back in his seat. His laugh could cure even the saddest of people. It was contagious.

"Too many sometimes," She replied with a grin.

The posh country club was the last place she expected Rio to spend his free time. It was far out of her league and looked every bit like a place Elon Musk would attend. The fresh scent of oak trees filled the air; that no doubt had been meticulously placed across the acres of well-structured land that could be seen from the high gates. Epiphany felt so underdressed in her attire. But she didn't let her discomfort show. Instead, she left her jacket in the car and walked in beside him with her head held high. His hand resting against her back gave her a sense of reassurance and a boost of confidence. Epiphany remained close by his side with a tight grip on the strap of her Chanel mini-flap purse. "Hello Mr.Cruz, Pleasure to see you again," greeted the man at the front desk as Rio checked in. His attention then shifted to Epiphany and he smiled at her "Hello, enjoy your afternoon."

"Hi, thank you." Epiphany replied politely. Once she and Rio were out of earshot, she teased"Cruz huh? One more piece solved in the mystery." He grinned slyly as he removed his Nike duffle bag from his shoulder to his hand. As he looked down at her through his dark lashes and amber eyes, he cracked a smile at the corner of his lips. "Two pieces…since I didn't take you for a golfer." she poked fun further. Her breathing started to get unsteady as he tilted his head down and leaned in closer to her. Nose to nose, chest to chest. Her eyes caught the glimmer of the diamond stud in the corner of his nose.

"I don't play golf," He whispered an inch from her lips. He sealed his words with a delicate kiss to her lips that made her mind go hazy. She felt a flutter in her stomach like a butterfly spreading its wings, "If you wanna know something darlin, all you gotta do is ask." he said in a low tone after his lips parted from hers.

With an inaudible exhale she opened her eyes and asked, "What's your name? All of it."

"Christopher Lorenzo Cruz." he smiled.

Something so simple held much weight to it. His sharing of those details with her required a certain level of trust. A layer of one of the many walls he built had been knocked down.

"That's attractive." Epiphany blurted out which earned her an amused chuckle from Christopher.

"Thank you. Keep it to yourself at work though, Champ." He replied. As he earned a nod of agreement in response, he grinned "My girl, I gotta get changed but order whatever you'd like at the bar." And with that, he patted her shoulder and went into the singular changing room.

'Christopher Lorenzo Cruz' Epiphany repeated to herself a few times as she walked off to the bar, smiling. 

Who knew watching a man play tennis could be seen as sexy? Well, it was indeed sexy. Epiphany watched Christoper from afar. She sucked the juice out of her Fuji apple as gazed at him. Her eyes rank him from top to bottom. He looked so delicious in his cream-colored club polo shirt and slightly baggy navy blue trousers. Her lips pursed against the flesh of the apple as the juice dripped down the sides of her lips and her eyes narrowed in on him. The sun buttered his tanned skin and the beads of sweat that trickled down the sides of his face gave his skin a luminous glow.  She couldn't but admire how quick on his feet he was. 

His opponent, an Asian woman who looked no older than sixty. As soon as the two stopped their game and shook hands, Epiphany raised her brow as she noticed four Asian men dressed in black walking their way. The men exchanged handshakes with Christopher and handed him a black envelope. The meat of the apple crunched in her as Epiphany watched him open it and a sly smirk fell to his lips. What contents were in the envelope itched her mind. But curiosity killed the cat so she didn't dwell on those thoughts for too long. Feeling eyes on him, Christopher looked up to the balcony. Epiphany had blew him a kiss to which he waved back to in response.  He then stuffed the envelope into his jogger's pocket before jogging off the tennis court. Epiphany and Christopher didn't reunite until a few minutes later. He came out in a fresh Adidas tracksuit and they'd shared coffee on the balcony. "Yo, have you tried the lemon cheesecake yet? It's dope-"

He was interrupted by Epiphany brushing her hand along his thigh.  Her thumb pressed down against his crotch and rubbed her fingers along his length. She leaned in close to him from across her seat, "I'd rather have you," she whispered before placing a kiss to the side of his cheek. The sharp stubble of his facial hair tickled her skin. The warmth of his breath sent tingles down the side of her neck as he chuckled in her ear. His hand grasped at the back of her neck, the edge of his nose brushed against the side of her cheek, "So, how you want it mama." 

"Surprise me." She challenged with a smirk and lewd glint in her eyes.

Epiphany hadn't expected to be brought to Christopher's apartment. She honestly thought he would take her to a hotel or do her in the country club showers, but she wasn't complaining. The moment she stepped into his loft apartment, The warm scent of bergamot and honey hit her. Despite the minimalist-industrial aesthetic of his place that consisted of black, brown, and various hints of the shade of honey; the place had a lived-in comfort to it. Casual elegance with an amazing view of the city. But, she had only gotten that view for the five minutes that it took to take off her shoes and coat; before she snatched up into his arms.

So swift like a fox capturing its prey. One of his arms had wrapped around her waist, pulling her into his chest with a firm grip. So close that she could feel his heartbeat against her chest. Their bodies seemed almost made for each other with how in tune they were. Their tongues melt into one another's mouths. They spoke of her admiration for one another with their tongues rather than their words. Her legs slid up the sides of his body as Epiphany leaped onto him. Her hands grasped on his shoulders as his mouth indulged in hers. Enough to pull a gasp from her mouth. Kissing against each other hard with lingering kisses that left saliva dripping down their chins. The same hands that broke many bones now squeezed and caressed her ass with the same iron grip from underneath her skirt. The flimsy material of her rose-pink panties was torn off and discarded onto the floor along with her skirt. Just as she bunched up the crewneck and tugged it off his slender frame. Both of them left a trail of clothing down the dark hallway to the door of Christopher's room. The whole city skyline of Detroit was their audience from the surrounding glass of his bedroom.

"Por Favor ruin me Papíto," Epiphany begged him as he bit at her neck. The weight of his body pressed down into hers as she sank into the cloud-like mattress. Her hips desperately buckled up against his, " I miss you inside me," she shamelessly admitted as he kissed her all over her neck and breasts. His hot tongue lapped over her hardened brown nipple with a soft bite. Epiphany couldn't help to be greedy and needy, she grasped his long-length dick in her hand. 'Coñyo, his dick is so pretty.' she thought to herself as she stroked him with her fingers, admiring his smoothness. An ache in between her thighs made her feel every inch of it stuff her full. How they'd managed to get it all to fit inside her the first time was sheer luck and endorphins bliss. Carefully, appreciating every inch with a warm grip as their lips met once more. His hands caressed her neck, tracing her jaw as they kissed. Epiphany almost squirted on his sheets from the animalistic, Nearly lion-like groan that escaped from the back of his throat to her lips.

"Aw, que te pasa amor? Can't wait?" Christopher chuckled deeply against her lips followed by his tongue trailing along her neck. His hand covered hers as he guided the head of his cock along her slit; nudging at her clit. Her soft, needy moans were music to his ears. For a moment, just for a single moment in time...he needed to look at her. His warm hand grasped her jaw and neck, "Look at me Mamitá." His gold Cuban link dangled an inch from her chest. Christopher basked in her loveliness as their dark eyes stared into one another. A subtle smirk laid across his lips.

Nothing but their shallow breaths could be heard in the room. Epiphany suddenly grew nervous. Gulping as he edged in closer. This sinister look in his eyes made her clit throb like a second heartbeat. "Por favor," she pleaded with her big eyes. Her pleas were answered but not how she expected. His strength was the way he managed to flip and bend her over onto her stomach and knees with little to no hassle. Like he owned her. And he did. Epiphany arched her back like a cat as his palms slipped down her sides. She let out a sultry moan filled with glee the moment he plunged all eight inches of his length in its entirety into her soaked pussy. Her drenched center hugged his fatty length tightly. The filled feeling he provided made her pupils widen as that familiar endorphin high that cocaine usually provided was now replaced with an even harder hit of bliss. 

This time the feeling was mutual. This was some quickie in a bad bathroom or a drunken hotel hook-up. This was Christopher's dessert after a long day. The essence of 'Feng shui' lay between her lips. He stroked her deeply causing a stretch within her opening. His hips rolled off her plump and perky ass. Mounting over her tanned body with his own, He held her throat firmly in his hand with a firmer hold each time he ravenously jack-hammered Jack into her cunt that adorned his cock with thick, and warm, layers of her sweet nectar. Her pussy grew wetter around his length, taking him and swallowing him whole. Sending body-jolting shockwaves through their bodies and shaky breaths to release from both their mouths. Christopher's brows knitted together in fascination at the sight of her maroon-reddened cunt clenching around his shaft. A sense of arrogance ignited within him over the fact he was the sole reason for her eagerness, her downright need for his dick, the way her body curled up against him, and the muffled moans that came out her pretty mouth were a confidence-boosting sight. 

His body slipped off of her then he sat upright on his knees, spreading her asscheeks apart to reveal her sloppily soaked pussy. Glistening messily around his cock "Que lindá, that is the prettiest pussy I've ever seen mamitá," he smirked with a rough smack to her ass with both of his hands. He couldn't help but to palm at her soft skin as it jiggled against his palms, He then relentlessly pounded into her center of heat, working her wet folds open wider with the erratic, deep, thrusts that caused her to cry out. Lewd, squishing noises of their skin rubbing and bouncing off one another bounced off the windows. 

Christopher's cock was so deep that Epiphany could feel the pressure of his thrusts in the center of her chest. Heat rushed to her cheeks and the back of her neck as she clawed at his black sheets, "Fuck! A-aah fuck!" she nearly hated him. Hated how alive he made her feel. He knew every nerve to hit. Every beat, every tempo. He knew it all in a matter of moments. Like an animal eating her from the inside out he ruined her. He controlled her body with his stronghold to her waist; yanking her back so that she couldn't squirm away from the ravenous rath of his dick plunging into her pussy to split her open wider. The once tight muscles loosened and stretched like violin strings being strung. His relentless thrusts had turned to affectionate, sensual strokes that massaged the depths of her throbbing core. Every half a minute he'd pull his long length out and fuck into her with one rough thrust that hit the core of her bundle of nerves. And lord, it made the dancer sob loudly "Shh I know Mamita, I know." His deep voice comforted, sounding as refined as aged whiskey, "Ábrete más para mí, dame un poco de tu azúcar, amor." with a rough smack to her ass.  As if her body only worked on his command, Epiphany's hips shook violently causing her knees to dig deep into the mattress the moment that she messily came. Cumming felt like she had jumped off the edge of the highest mountain and dove straight into an ocean. Nothing but air filled her lungs, her chest tightened, and behind her closed lids she saw stars. Sharp needles and pins shot through her nervous system. Her soul smiled. Her hot skin felt cool. 

She slowly was brought back to life as he left love bites on her shoulders, back, and all the down to the top of her ass. His teeth sank into the smooth flesh of her left chest, biting her tenderly and then leaving hot, sloppy wet kisses in its place. Christopher was greedy, intimately greedy when he had something worth possessing. Worth fucking, adoring, worshipping, etc. Someone that he just clicked with, without words needing to be involved. The peak of heaven he brought her to didn't stop when she adorned his dick with her sweet nectar. Time slowed down in that moment and all he focused on was her. Riding out that Tsunami wave with her was the only goal. His tall frame overlapped her petite one, Epiphany felt his warm, sweaty skin against her back. She couldn't help but hold on tight to the side of his thigh, digging her nails into his skin for stability from his thrusts."C-chris…Chris mm-papí I can't," she whined and whimpered. Beads of sweat dripping down the sides of her face caused her dark hair to cling to the sides of her face, neck, and breasts. 'This is it, I'm gonna die' was all Epiphany could think as she blabbed protests between her moans. The crown of his cock continuously rubbed against her most sensitive spot and the rest of his length rocked hungrily into her wetness at a frantic pace that made her heart race.

His open-mouthed kisses against the side of her face felt like fire; with his fingers tangled in her hair. Gripping at it by the root with a firm tug that caused her head to tilt back, “ Sí, You can take it,” Sound of smacking flesh and his balls bouncing off of her skin echoed amongst their shared groans and cries. Drilling into her at an unrelenting tempo, massaging the deepest spots of her walls a sensual yet sinister tempo caused Christopher's jaw to tightly clench and eyebrows to crease. Her dripping cunt was in a perfect sink with his throbbing cock until both of their bodies shuddered. "Coñyo!" they both loudly groaned as they reached their peak. Both of their hearts stopped for two seconds and their world halted. Like an LSD trip; the stresses, tensions, and annoyance of reality and all ordinary consciousness functions were demolished and nothing but a weightless ease took over. The miracle of the naked existence of the sacred ritual of sex that brings out the essence of serenity was shared between them at that moment. Epiphany was filled with his seed that felt like she was filled with the warmth of the sun. Neither of them could move an inch. Far too busy basking in the frequency that buzzed between their bodies.

Two things Epiphany was sure about after that. One, he had high-quality dope. And the second, he had a higher quality dick. A sugary, tropical fruity aroma filled the air of his bathroom. Premo-grade Mary Jane straight from Cameroon was passed between the two of them in a skull-shaped bong. The two were seated on the floor of his black-marble step-in shower. Epiphany had her head rested against his shoulder as warm water sprinkled down their bodies. The 'mist' setting of his shower head allowed a nice sprinkle without the heaviness of being drenched. "I'm gonna steal the skull, sorry in advance," She said. Earning a chuckle from Christopher.

"You know people usually don't say what they're gonna steal," He passed the bong her way.

"Mhmm, well…it's either this or that very pretty gold clock on the nightstand." Epiphany replied, which caused him to shake his head. That infectious smile of his made her swoon.

"Nah, need that for business." he dismissed.

"Oh?" she turned her head and faced him with a coy smirk, "What's a pencil-pushing businessman need with a gun? Gold plated at that." she teased. Christopher side-eyed her before the two shared a chuckle. He the. reached his hand over and grasped her jaw before his lips softly pressed against hers. Slowly, sensually, and carefully their lips moved against one another. Playfully, he then bit at her bottom lip before pulling away to rasp,

"To keep you in line."

@lovedlover @niaaalovesficton @darqchilddaydreamz @nobodygetsza @spaghettificationandpretzels @fvckthisbxtchup

[salty-croissants]

Hi again! I’m about to send another request that’s absolutely tooth rotting fluffy: When their s/o finds out they’re ticklish. (with Rayman/Ramon & Bullfrog)

Thank you for the request ! 

This one was so cute , I really enjoyed writing it :D 

Hope it turned out okay ! 

Details : use of gender neutral reader ; 

established relationships ; 

no warnings needed 

Bullfrog 💚

Okay , let me tell you this : it’s not going to be easy to sneak up on him , given how Bullfrog is always careful and aware of his surroundings , so usually he 

finds out when you’re attempting to catch him off guard .

< Hmm ? What are you doing , dear ? > 

< Ack - dammit , I thought I got you this time ! > 

< Heh , if you wanted my attention you should’ve just said so mon amour ~ >

He would then make up for the failed sneak attack by showering you with affection , always encouraging you to try again and that you’ll definitely get him next time …

He’s just so sweet :,//) 

However , the one time you do actually go for it when he’s especially distracted , you’re going to find out that Bullfrog is , in fact , very ticklish …

… and you’re quick to take advantage of that information .

< Aha ! I got you now , honey ! > 

< Pfft - non ! Ayez pitié de moi ! ~ > 

< Nope , I don’t think I’ll have mercy on you … you’re mine now ~ > 

Bullfrog has the cutest laugh , and you can’t help but blush while you’re tickling him … 

He could easily free himself from you , but he simply adores to see that look on your face , and plus he really does feel happy in those little playful moments the two of you share , so he just gives in .

… but that doesn’t mean that he won’t get revenge later .

If you also happen to be ticklish , you won’t even be able to hear him coming , and before you know it Bullfrog is going to have you in his arms while going for the spots that he knows will make it impossible for you not to laugh …

Believe me , you won’t be able to leave for a while .

< Hahaha - sweetie , pleaseee ! ~ > 

< Hmm , what was it you said … ? Oh , right , I don’t think I’ll have mercy on you , mon cher ~ >

Rayman 🧡

Since he’s often focusing on work related things , it’s actually pretty easy to sneak up on Rayman without him noticing you .

Especially when you see him being very stressed out and worried about his shows or something that the Directors have said to him , your determination to see your boyfriend smile is what leads you to try and take matters in your own hands .

< That’s not right … that meeting wasn’t scheduled until next week … ugh , this is a problem … > 

Rayman gets lost in his thoughts a lot , so he won’t even realize that someone has entered the room … until it’s too late . 

< y/n , love ? What are you - > 

< Tickle attack ! > 

The moment you hear him laugh , you get a warm feeling in your heart : he really deserves to have a break from all the anxiety that being the face of Eden puts him through .

Rayman almost forgot what it’s like to be tickled …

He is incredibly sensitive , you could pretty much touch him anywhere and it would make him wheeze out loud .

Needless to say … it’s really cute ://) 

< P-please - hahaha ~

 I gotta finish this paperwork - >

< Don’t worry Ray , I’ll let you get to it … after we’re done here , that is ~ > 

He is really grateful to have you by his side to brighten up his day , and weather you’re also ticklish or not Rayman is going to be giving you extra attention as soon as he gets done with what he was working on .

After all , it’s the least he could do for his wonderful partner .

< Thank you , y/n , I really needed that … 

I love you so much ~ > 

Ramon 🖤

So , this man has become incredibly paranoid since all that’s happened in the past few weeks , so in order to catch him off guard you should strike when you and Ramon are cuddling together and he’s not expecting it .

< y/n , what is th - pfff — > 

< Hehe , now there’s that beautiful smile ~ > 

< Alright alright , you … hahah - 

You got me good … ~ > 

Ramon might not be quite as giggly as before , but you can still definitely get a few good laughs out of him , and being able to hear that sound again is something that never fails to bring you joy : 

you’re the only one who gets to see this soft side of him , hidden behind his current intimidating exterior . 

Ramon is glad to have a chance to return to some sense of normalcy thanks to your playful behavior , it really helps to ease his mind and have at the very least a glimpse of hope in the future . 

As soon as you finish tickling him , you can be sure that he won’t be letting go of you for quite some time . 

< I got you now honey … you’re not going anywhere ~ > 

< Aw man … well , can’t say I’m unhappy about that ~ > 

If you’re also ticklish , Ramon is going to have the time of his life to use his hands to make you laugh and giggle when you least expect it , and another thing that he’s also a big fan of is to leave trails of kisses on your most sensitive points … especially your neck . 

< *gasp* Ram - you can’t just — 

Hahahah ~ > 

< Mm … but I can , darling , and I will ~ 

You should’ve thought twice before deciding to tickle me … > 

< Well , if this is - haha … ~ 

If this is the result , I might wanna do it more ~ > 

[short-black-diamond]

Enemies/Hater #3 for Kunigami?

I know that man has a monster sized dick

AYO THIS COMBINATION IS DANGEROUS, you are playing with fire here, anon!!!

warnings/summary: smut obviously, Our hero looses his v-card~!, bullying, and fluff, also a lil confession scene, and you and Kunigami are huge dorks, also I'm putting one of my kinks in there (find out what it is!), and Oliver slander (I love him but I don't like his cheater-nature, so imma use it as a plot device)

again, this will be as vanilla as possible. or not.

word count: 5.1 k words oh man...✌💀😭

taglist: @kyuzra, @ann-teige, @loser-vxbez

---

Tea-kettle.

your father always called people who took too long in the traffic with their cars to drive around tea-kettles. When people acted like dumb children, when people got on his nerves...tea-kettle.

Simple, but sophisticated.

And, well, you took after your father.

You just had the biggest luck of having no other male than Kunigami as your new roommate for the new semester, and for the most part, it was nice with him.

Well, except for the part that his clothes were basically everywhere, and even in places they shouldn't be, for example worn and sweaty and stinky socks the kitchen?

But that was not the only ick he had. He was way too calm and tried to mansplain you over and over again with stuff you'd do with your girl-math.

And that would always lead to arguments. I mean, who cares if the coupon expired, the staff would close an eye on a sweet thing like you and done was the thing, so why did the orange haired guy have to mind your business?

"Jeez, can't you let me be for once?"

"You're not doing it right. The coupon has expired-"

"Why can't you mind your own business?", you'd say in an annoyed tone, with the male looking down at you, confused and also slightly irritated.

"Because it's not fair for the workers-"

"They were still ready to accept it, dude. I even told them before you came back with your pack of 'protein' chocolate bars."

And then he'd look to the side with a frown and a cute pout.

And, well, you've grown to hate him a bit because of that. When he was gone for practise or afternoon school, the apartment would be silent and pleasant, with you being able to clean up everything and even cook something nice as he'd come home.

But, as soon as he'd come in, he'd ask stupid questions like; "How much kcal does a portion of your food have?", "Is it oily?", "You cooked too much."

Ugh! Can't he let you be for once? You also don't ask him about everything!

"Stop asking me those questions, and just eat what I cook!", You'd exclaim in an annoyed tone, already irritated by the mere smell of his sweat (caramel*cough*Bakugo*cough*), and you'd huff.

And then, Kunigami Rensuke would have the audacity to ask you why you behaved like that, because he was just asking normal questions and he liked keeping a diet.

...yeah, would be hard for somebody who wasn't japanese and only knew how to cook cultural and traditional home-food.

and it is tiring. Having the same arguments over and over again.

And thus, you gave Kunigami the name "tea-kettle", leaving him dumbfounded at the nickname insult. whenever he asked you what you meant by that, you'd just huff and tell him that you were busy with somehting.

But, that was not the only thing that made you irritated and angry the whole time.

You had just broken up with your boyfriend Oiver, having him caught cheating on you with a blonde bitch who couldn't even hold a candle next to you.

And you were horny.

More than the average human.

So...you ordered a few dildos...which were pretty big.

...

Kunigami thought you were cute, but weird. Easily frustrated and pretty irritable. you were a feisty woman.

He didn't know why you'd always snap at him when he'd ask you simple questions. He always apologizes when you scold him for forgetting to do something or doing something wrong.

He doesn't know why you are like this. Even though you're a great roommate who loves a clean home and can cook, he doesn't like your attitude.

Not a single bit.

...okay, maybe a little. But most of the time, it irritates him as well. He's just glad that he could have a silent night because you were not a night owl...until you became one.

And he also had to listen to the noises you made...making him blush, and also move his member into a stiff position.

Kunigami had trouble deciphering your personality. He had trouble getting smart from your 'girl-math'?? and why you always yelled at him with his clothes.

He can't be blamed when they fly all over the place, he also forgets where he placed his belongings, but now he's the one irritated.

Now, since a month, he has to listen to you going dumb over fucking a dildo, having to listen to your moans, whimpers and gasps while you pump it in and outside of you.

and it was also you who said a month earlier that you didn't like dicks.

That you despised them. That they looked weird.

You said that dicks were disappointing.

But why were you riding one then? Did something happen for you to change your mindset?

...

It was a late afternoon when you came home to the apartment just like you left it, which meant that Kunigami wasn't home yet. Perfect.

You quickly went into your room, taking off your bottoms and then taking out the dildo you purchased just recently. It was bigger than the ones you were using previously, and you could also stick it to the ground or wall to ride it.

and just as you were done putting it into your awaiting vagina, Kunigami stepped in to your room. He leaned against the doorframe with his arms crossed, staring at you with a serious expression and a small blush as you tried to cover yourself in a haste while you yelled profanities at him.

you were embarassed to be seen like that, having a big cock inside you, and being caught by your crush roommate doing something explicit like that. But...it turned you on. you were an exhibitionist at heart, and getting caught in such a position, with your legs spread to have him see your pussy and thr orange dildo inside it...it made you wet.

"You said that dicks were dissappointing, so what is that?", he mused and took in your form. Your brows were furrowed, face red...from embarassent or pleasure? you were panting like a bitch in heat, and he also caught sight of the large silicone cock you had buried deep inside you.

"Not your dick, that much is clear!", you snapped back. you wanted to yell at him to leave the room. To blackmail him. but...you also wanted to see where this was going. He didn't look disgusted with you being horny. He didn't look disappointed...more...amused?..maybe also aroused?

He huffed in amusement before sitting himself down on your desk chair manspreading, making you ogle at his hard-on, which was way larger than the one you had inside of you. He nodded his head to your direction, smirking.

"C'mon, tell me. Why should my dick be disappointing?", Kunigami asked and slowly took his hands from his thighs up to his zipper. You gulped as you watched him like a hawk.

"hmpf! B-because you probably have a small di-", and gone was your voice when Kunigami took it out. too heavy to stand upright was the seven inch penis he held in his pants, thicker than a soda can, and veiny was it too.

Kunigami bit his lip as he blushed from your wide eyes. Kunigami had no idea what the fuck he was doing. Not a single idea.

He was the biggest virgin after all, but he knew from his friends that he had a rather large cock. However, you were the first one to actually see it. The first female, to be precise.

and, well, since you were a girl and also somehow his crush, Kunigami felt his ego and pride increasing every passing second your eyes lingered on his dick.

"Do I have a small dick, ____?", came out in a soft, deep tone. You took a shaky breath before closing your eyes and shaking your head no.

You were salivating, in your mouth and your pussy. His cock was glorious. it even looked big in his hands, which were also pretty big to begin with. you gulped down your saliva before you tore your eyes up to his face. "N-no...", you choked. You forgot about the cock which rested inside your pussy and just thought about his, your eyes widening and gasping when he drove his thumb over the head.

It looked amazing, just that single movement, with him rubbing his thumb around the tip of his head. "hnn...mm...", he whimpered and moaned as he slowly started to masturbate.

"Th-then why...of fuck...why do you hate me?", he gritted through his teeth when he applied pressure while rubbing himself. your eyes widened and you blushed even more.

You raised yourself to walk over to him and emphasize that you indeed didn't hate him anymore, but you forgot that you had somehting inside you, and you gasped when you felt the dildo drag his thickness along your walls.

Kunigami saw it. the way the dildo raised itself a bit while you were trying to stand up from your seat, how wet it was...he moved his hand up and down his dick once with force, and flinched with a whimper.

"ahh...I-I don't hate you...!", you moaned when you sat back down. But you raised yourself right again. If Kunigami made himself feel good, why shouldn't you?

"Oh yeah? ...th-then why are you a-*hiss*-always yelling??", he groaned when he saw you slowly riding the dildo. your boobs were jiggling with every rise and fall you did, and he also couldn't ignore the slapping sound which erupted softly. He gulped and sighed shakily as he flicked his wrist around his cock.

"mmh, because you never do what I tell you!...ah..hah...Your c-clothes are always thrown somewhere...oh...a-and you always forget to do stuff!", you exclaimed, speeding up your thrusts on the cock.

Kunigami hissed in pleasure when he pressed down on his dick head. His dick twitched painfully at the way you were assaulting the dildo. he was jealous that he wasn't inside you. He bit his lip, glaring at the orange dick.

"why is it orange??", he asked after he stopped jerking off for a moment. you somehow blushed even more. "...i...um...", you spoky shyly, looking at the ground in front of you.

And, well, he took it as a chance to stand up and walk over to youpushing you onto your back harshly. You gasped when his rough hands touched your soft body, and he hovered over you with a smirk, sitting on his parted knees and toes, your legs on his thighs as he brought his hand up and down his dick while the other one took hold of the dildo inside you.

"does it...remind you of me?", he asked softly, quietly, as he slowly took out the dildo. you held in your breath, not daring to say anything. you were embarassed, laying on your back with your legs over his and seeing him so...seductively...majestically...on his knees as he looks down on you.

Suddenly, you were filled up to the brim, knocking the air out of your lungs. Kunigami pressed the plastic cock into you with force, and you choked on your own breath.

"Come on, ____...answer me.", he says in a deep tone, and you could hear a hint of irritation but moreso desire in it. You averted your eyes shyly.

"yes...", you breathed out and looked at him. you felt bare, with no bottoms and you also decided to wear a low-cut, tight shirt with no bra. you had cute thigh highs though.

And Kunigami...well, like I said...he looked majestic, with his tight shirt, having sweated a little into it, making his abs and pecs more defined, along with his pants nearly getting torn open as they tried holding his muscular and flexed thighs covered. and then there where his arms, one being directed to your frame while the other held his member.

and...his eyes...his face...he looked so handsome...like a prince, or king...he was your hero.

He huffed in amusement before leaning more and more down, until he was hovering over your torso. his hands were now planted on either side of your head as you looked at him with wide eyes, feeling his hot, big dick against your stomach and the dildo inside you get sucked in by your pussy.

you gulped when he took a strand of your hair and kissed it. "Listen, ____...I'd...like to do it with you.", he spoke gently, softly, only for you to hear as he gazed at you through his lashes. he had a small blush on, even though he was literally jerking off to you in front of you a few moments ago.

your face heated up. you were surprised he even wanted to have to do anything with you. but, you should've seen it coming when he didn't call you disgusting and took his cock out instead.

"why?", you asked, feeling shy and vulnerable underneath him. His gaze on you was intense and you couldn't help but look away in embarassment.

Kunigami carefully put one of his large hands on your cheek and slowly directed your face to look at him. "Because...even though you have an attitude with me, you're actually a pretty sweet person...I mean", he spoke and took one of your hands and softly tracing his thumb on the back of it, "you clean up the apartment...you cook nice meals...and you're also a pretty chill roommate, although we often get into arguments."

you huffed in embarassment. "how dare you confess to me while I have a dick inside me and yours is hanging out?!"

Kunigami blushed as well. "I-I want to do it with you! And you asked me why! So I answered!"

there was a moment of silence as you two stared at each other, completely flustered. Then you brought your hands up to his face. he blushed once more. you frowned at him with red cheeks.

"then...l-let's do it...", you whispered before you kissed him. His eyes widened when your lips connected with his. Rensuke's eyes fluttered to a close as they rolled back and he kissed you back passionately.

you moaned against his lips when he parted the first kiss and opened his mouth, making out with you. his tongue rubbed and danced against yours, and you could taste some of the leftover soup he must've eaten which you prepared earlier.

While he was getting lost in the feeling of your mouths clashing against one another and your sweet moans, one of his hands started to wander as the other one held himself up above you. the one which wasn't holding himself upwards caressed your side, then went up to gently squeeze one of your bra-less tits, groaning against your lips when he felt the soft flesh spill out between the palms of his hands.

he kissed your nose before trailing his kisses south. his lips made contact with your jaw, then three kisses down your throat and neck, a few smacks against your pretty collarbone until he neared your boob.

your legs were wrapped around his hips and your arms around his neck. you were letting soft sighs and moans escape you when he did his ministrations.

it was silent. no words spoken as you let him do as he pleased with your body, and you were pleasantly surprised when he didn't start fucking you like you were some kind of whore, like Oliver did.

No. He treated you like his lover. Like his wife.

You sighed shakily. And then he stopped.

"Kuni-" "Rensuke.", he interrupted you, looking at you with fond eyes.

"...Rensuke...", you started then, in a trance as you looked at the handsome male above you. "why...why did you stop?"

He looked to the side sheepishly, a blush coating his cheekbones. "D-do you maybe have ...a-a condom? Don't wanna risk it...", he said quietly, shyly as he swallowed the lump of saliva.

You nodded then. 'of course! gosh, I'm so stupid!', you thought as you rolled to the side to take something from the drawer on the night stand. A pack of XXL (does that even exist?) condoms.

His eyes widened when you gave him a single pack while you took a few more with a red face. then you quickly tucked the rest away. "w-why...do you have a pack of condoms?", he asked. Last time he remembered, you told him you were single, so why...?

"I had a boyfriend named Oliver, but he cheated on me...", you mumbled as you laid there on your stomach, showing him your body from behind and even though Kunigami felt bad for you, he bit his lip when he saw your juicy ass and thighs.

"How dare he...!?", Rensuke seethed instead and ripped off the pack. your shoulder flinched as you listened to the sound of him taking out the lubed condom and hissing as he slowly put it over his dick.

"are you okay?", you asked softly over your shoulder, glancing at him. then you turned around completely with an angry face.

"WHAT THE HELL!?!", you yelled when he took off his clothes, which...landed all over the place...again...in a random room though.

He rolled his eyes playfully. "I'll pick 'em up later, sweetheart", he grumbled under his breath as you turned around on your stomach again and huffed in annoyance. However, you weren't prepared when you felt your ankles get grabbed and you yelped when you got pulled backwards.

your lower half was out from the bed, with your knees and feet on the ground, your hips at the edge and your upper body on the bed. you turned around again and glared at him. "what was that f-mmh!"

ye, he shut you up by kissing you. his hand held your throat as he made you look to the side and he kissed you passionately, pulling at your nipple with the other hand before releasing it and trailing his hand lower to play with your clit a little. He couldn't find it and massaged your pussy lips instead. but it also felt nice.

You moaned against his mouth when he finally found the nub though, and assaulted it by rubbing his thumb up and down on it, while applying pressure. His hand on your neck tightened, and the dildo you still head inside you got squeezed by your walls.

you panted and whimpered against his lips. He leaned his head back to look at you. He smiled while panting as well, and only now did you feel his dick rub against your butt. "does...can...could he make you feel like this?", he whispered and kissed your cheek.

you keened at his words and sighed. "No. n-never- ah!", you yelped and your back arched when he took off your dildo from you. You felt empty and whined at the loss. he chuckled as he looked at the slick-covered cock.

"My turn."

You blushed heavily at that.

He then placed the dildo on your bed, right in front of you, as he aligned his cock to your entrance. your toes curled inside your highs as you glanced behind you with a nervousness you didn't even feel when Oliver fucked you.

"d-do you think it'll fit?"

Kunigami looked up with a parted mouth before smiling fondly at you. "...I'll make it fit."

You "eep!"ed. how could he say something like that?!

"w-wait, have you had sex before???"

"Nope, but I hope you'll let me practise."

Your mouth stood open as you stared at him in disbelief and he chuckled nervously. "J-just relax-"

"THAT'S EASY FOR YOU TO SAY!", you yelled in fear and gripped the bedsheets tightly. Kunigami scoffed. "C'mon, I'm sure your ex had a big cock as well, no?"

"Not as big as yours...!", you retorted with an annoyed pout but you flinched when you felt the head of his penis press against your pussy. even though your legs where spread, you could feel him touch your pussy and your inner thighs, that's how big he was.

you started to have second thoughts. "H-how ab- AHH!", you yelled, when he pressed his head inside. you two took a minute to regain your breaths. you were surprised that it didn't sting as much as you thought, but it still hurt, but you liked it, somehow.

and Kunigami was having his face directed to the ceiling as his mouth stood open in a gasp. He didn't know that your pussy was so tight, even after you've been having that huge ass dildo inside of you. how was that even possible?

"S-...sorry, sweetheart! I-I...fuck...I c-couldn't help--ohhh...myself!", he exclaimed as he felt your pussy pulse around his head. he tried not to thrust into you or fall unconscious from the amount of pleasure he got. You were mewling on the bed.

It just felt so good, even if it pained you very much. "Please...wait a lil more...", you asked, but Kunigami wanted to keep going. He then called you the nickname you used as an insult on him.

"You're such a tea-kettle, y'know that?", he groaned as he leaned onto you from behind and right into your ear and stroked your thighs, ass, back and sides with his large, warm hands. you squirmed in embarassment and pleasure.

"w-what's that s'posed ta mean!?", you asked right afterwards but gasped when his fingers played with your nipples. "How about you fix your attitude 'round me, love?", he asked in a whisper instead before he kissed the back of your shoulder with closed eyes.

You hated him. More than you ever could. How dare he speak to you like that, hah?!? Makes you regret your life choices by pushing his dick inside of you and then having the fucking audacity to tell you to "fix your attitude"??? And also how dare he make you feel so special? Asking you for consent before he did something like putting his dick inside of you and then also respecting you for wanting to wait a bit to adjust?

What the fuck?

With Oliver it just went straight to fucking, but with Kuni- ahem, Rensuke...it was more like...making love.

you had to watch your tone around Kunigami. He was a good guy. you blushed and after a while, you put your right arm up to scratch his head.

"y-you can move now...", you muttered shyly and prepared to get knocked out with a single thrust from him, but you were met with a Ransuke who massaged your hips in order to distract you from the oncoming pain as he pushed his dick more into you with a tempo which was slower than a snail.

It nearly didn't hurt at all when he bottomed out, having had to ask you to spread your legs a little more so that he could fit inside you fully, but even that didn't help as there was still a bit less than half of him outside. Rensuke gulped before chuckling breathlessly.

Now, your walls were literally pumping him at this point, and he tossed his head back with a groan.

"h-how do you feel, pretty?", he asked as he looked at your upper body which lay on the bed. your eyes were closed. Peacefully.

He panicked. "_-____?!"

You jolted. "what?!", you yelped, feeling fuller than a thanksgiving turkey. You just wanted to rest, because you felt like you coud fall asleep like that. your knees started to hurt, though.

"Oh, thank god...I thought you were unconscious...or worse...!", he said in a scared tone and hugged you. your eyes widened.

Oliver didn't care for you like that. He just fucked you, and that was it. He didn't really take care after the sex. he just threw a wet washcloth at you and left.

You felt like crying. "I-thank you, Rensuke...", you spoke softly and moaned when his dick twitched. "S-sorry..."

You giggled before pressing yourself against his hips, biting your lip and moaning aloud when you felt him go deeper inside you, and Rensuke grabbed the sheets tightly as he grinded against your butt. He cursed a lot because of that before he grabbed your hips. "S-stop. stop it, please.", he begged, and you stopped abruptly.

"wanna stop completely?", you asked as you turned around, seeing his taller frame rise and fall rapidly as his head hung low. "N-no...just...c-can we...take a small break? and maybe do it on the bed?", Rensuke asked shyly as he looked up at you with a pained expression.

you were turned on. too much. You nodded silently and began to miss the fullness his dick gave you, feeling completely empty now. You shakily stood up and hugged his head, playing with his hair as he hugged you back, still on his knees. "sorry..."

"Hey, it's okay, baby.", you shushed him, and made him face you as you looked at him fondly...lovingly. "It's your first time, Rennie, don't want you to fuck me into oblivion, y'know? We can also cuddle if you want. Also thank you for telling me to stop. Many people pull through the act even if they don't like it. I'm glad you let me know."

your voice was gently, your fingers working wonders on his hair and head, and he sighed contently, hugging you tightly before he stood up, towering over you and gently pushing you back to the bed.

You crawled back with a grin when he smiled and crawled to you with a hint of mischiviousness. You bit your lip excitedly when his face neared yours. "You're just so pretty, ____...the most beautiful woman I've ever seen.", he said softly, and before you could react did he kiss you clumsily on the lips.

Seems like he never kissed anybody as well...was he a hardcore virgin? And your heart fluttered at his praise. you kissed him back with more passion, your experience letting you dominate the kissing as you felt him shyly open his mouth for you to enter with your tongue.

And you also took this as a chance to turn the tables. The moment you parted lips, you quickly pushed him back, making him land on his back with a "w-whoah!" as you sat yourself on his hips, his dick right underneath your slick, juicy cunt.

You glared at him playfully before you leaned down and started making out with him again, changing the angle of your head again and again to kiss him differently, and he caught on over time, and soon, your tongues danced together as you eplored each others bodies with your hands.

Rensuke was the first to part, panting as he had his eyes closed in bliss, and his legs twitched violently when you rolled your hips against his groin. he hissed. "f-fuck..!"

you keened at the pleasure, loving how nice the pussyjob felt which you gave him. "you like that, baby boy?", you teased as you drove your hips slowly and with much more pressure up and forward to the head of his dick, and he trembled slightly.

"D-don't call me baby boy...! ....but...feels good...", he gritted through his teeth as he felt his orgasm approach. You narrowed your eyes at him with a smirk before you took his dick gently, holding the heavy schlong up as softly as possible, with him looking at you confused through his blissed out face.

He didn't have to ask you what you were about to do though, because you just raised your hips, putting his dick at your entrance, and then lowering yourself again slowly. And this time, his dick went in fully. you had a belly bulge. Kunigami wanted to cum right then and there.

He moaned shakily when he felt your pulsing walls again, placing his hands on your waist this time as he leaned forward and kissed you. "mmh, y'make me cum..."

"I hope so...'m close too, y'know?", you answered and took one of his hands, placing it on your throat. He raised his eyebrow. "felt good when you did this...do it again. But apply some more pressure...here.", you said softly when you placed his thumb and middle finger on either side of your pulse points.

he frowned with a blush. "I-I only did it in the heat of the moment, ____-"

"And I loved it. Please do it again?"

He looked at you for a moment before he sighed. He then thrusted upwards, up into your g-spot and put slight pressure on your throat, cutting off your air support little by little.

your eyes were glazed over a bit as they fluttered and you began raising and lowering yourself on him. He applied more pressure and you groaned, feeling the air leave your lings, and your vagina pulsed around his dick, making him gasp sharply.

In less than a second, you were back on your back now, with him still being inside you, you gasping for air as he left your throat to stabilize himself before he began thrusting into you, knocking out the air from your lungs like that as well.

you scratched his muscular wrists with your nails as you mewled and gasped and moaned at the feeling of his dick pumping in and outside of you. He was panting above you, and he reveled in the view of you.

Lost, but looking up at him as if he was some sort of divine person...like he was a hero...

He groaned loudly before he adjusted his legs and spread them a bit more a part before he swiveled his hips against yours in a slapping motion. "Oh shit...fuck! Y're so tight...hnnnghh~...", he whimpered as he tried keeping up his ministrations, and you were gasping and moaning.

He wanted to cum so fucking badly...but he wanted you to orgasm on his dick first. he then looked down from your face, to your jiggling tits with each thrust he made -he smiled dumbly at that- before his gaze travelled more downwards to where your pussy and his dick met. your pussy was glistening with your own juice, which allowed Kunigami to go into you much easier.

He put his finger on your clit and swiped it around quickly as he felt like he could cum any second now. And it also didn't help any more as he felt you gasp sharply and whine at his fingers.

Everything was so...loud. The slapping of skin against skin, and the wet sounds of your juice and his dick rubbing around inside you, the rustling of sheets as you kicked your feet around in pleasure, the bed creaking with Kunigami's thrusts, and the sounds which you and Rensuke made.

you came first with a cry of his name, squirting as you did so, and Kunigami's mouth stood wide open as he watched you, while cumming into the condom inside you.

He and you were a panting, sweaty mess.

"uh...d-did you two have to do it in my room?", came the shy voice of Ness, your new roommate. He was a blushing mess when he saw you two, but you noticed his boner (which he poorly hid), and so did Kunigami.

---

bwahaahahah

I hope this was good enough, and I will read it again after some time.

Read you in the next post! Requests are CLOSED (...until I say they're open again)

[stellar-constellations]

An Alliance (Part 7)

        

        Fem! Spy! (Y/N) x Yuri Briar

        Parts: One, two, three, four, five, six, current part, eight, nine, ten (to be continued when Spy x Family has more Yuri content!)

        (Y/N) is given her own backstory that is important for the story!

        The setting for this story is based off West and East Germany's (because Spy x Family is heavily based off Germany in the 1940-1950) laws (or at least replicated to the best of my abilities since it's unknown what time period Spy x Family is exactly in, we'll go with 1950 for the sake of this story). 

        Historically-accurate women misogyny and mistreatment! Only small comments and historically-accurate laws (replicated to the best of my ability). 

        The story, plot, and settings might not match up to the Spy x Family manga as it's not completed and the manga is still being crafted.

        This series contains spoilers for the manga and anime!

        The alarm rang and I groaned, covering my head with the sheets as Yuri got out of bed and turned it off.

        "Ugh. I have a killer headache." He groaned.

        "Then come back to sleep with me... You can miss a day..." I muttered.

        "You're a bad influence..." he sighed.

        I felt the covers lift and was surprised when he actually climbed back into bed.

        Oh? Am I gonna get to sleep in?! I thought, excitement taking over me. 

        I sighed happily—glad to be able to sleep in—especially after last night's events. I carefully tested the waters, wrapping my arms around Yuri and digging my face in his chest to block out the sunlight from the curtains. He hugged back, making me even happier as I felt myself starting to drift back to sleep.

        "WAIT!" he screamed loudly, jumping out of bed and looking at me like I was a virus.

        "Really, Yuri?" I whined.

        "YOUR CHARMS MAY WORK ON OTHER MEN, BUT I AM NOT LIKE THEM! I WON'T BE EASILY FOOLED BY TEMPTATIONS, YOU TEMPTRESS WITCH!" he wailed loudly, pointing an accusatory finger at me.

        "What the hell are you talking about...?" I muttered. 

        "Your spells of enticement won't work on me! I have work!" he shouted.

        "Ugh. I can't believe you're actually going to work with a hangover, you goodie-two-shoes." I whined, tearing up in my eyes. "And you're dragging me with to a job I don't get paid for. That's just mean, Yuri." I pointed over, shoving my face in his pillow.

        "You do get paid for it! And you can't use those charms on me— wait, a-are you actually crying...?" he muttered. 

        "No..." I spoke, my voice muffled in the pillow as I breathed in his comforting scent to lure me back to sleep.

        "H-hey! Stop crying and get ready!" he scolded, picking up the covers from me.

        "You're mean..." I mumbled to myself, getting up and stretching my arms. 

        "Y-you're so damn oblivious." He spoke, his face flaring up.

        "What's gotten you excited?" I questioned, wiping the tears from my eyes as I started to get over not sleeping in.

        "I'M NOT EXCITED!" he shouted. "And when you stretch in the mornings, y-you should cover your bottom half, or at least get a longer nightgown, or pants." he mumbled softly. 

        "Oh." I spoke, looking down at my legs then smirking evilly once I realized what he meant. "Yuri's a pervert, huh?"

        "I AM NOT! YOU FLASHED ME WITHOUT CONSENT!" he screamed.

        "And I'll do it again, but worse if you keep yelling at me this early in the morning." I spoke calmly as his face bursted into red.

        I was worried he'd turn blue by the way he'd stopped breathing for a second. He regained his senses, coughing into his palm and looking away.

        "You're such a brat, just hurry up and get ready." He ordered.

        "Or we could stay in bed all day. Together." I emphasized, smirking as he screamed.

        "You're the pervert here; not me!" he shouted, running to the bathroom and shutting the door. 

        I quickly changed, brushing my hair and laying down on the bed, waiting for Yuri to hurry up. He walked out and I immediately smiled.

        "So, Yuri. You have a thing for crying or something?" I chuckled. "Funny with your job with torture and all."

        "NO!" he shouted, his face getting red.

        "And you like thighs best?" I teased more, taking a wild guess as he screamed loudly, grabbing a pillow and chucking it at me.

        "SHUT UP!" he shouted. 

        I laughed, catching the pillow and hugging it to my chest, enjoying his reaction as he screamed at how stupidly lewd I was.

        "It's okay, Yuri. I don't mind that I caught you staring. You're my husband after all." I teased. 

        "I SAID SHUT UP!" he yelled, red in the face.

        "I'm supposed to know what makes you tick. Besides, you're cute enough to let it slide." I chuckled, loving this way too much.

        Maybe I am a sadist.

        He covered his face with his arm, looking away from me.

        "What? Did you enjoy the view?" I questioned, deciding to leave it as the final teasing comment as his face went even impossibly redder.

        He coughed into his arm again, taking a deep breath and staring at me blankly.

        So what if I did?" he questioned. 

        "I...what?" I spoke, my heart beating fast.        

        "So what if I did?" he repeated, taking a step towards me.

        "Ah! No! Teasing is my thing!" I exclaimed as his eyes lit up evilly, covering my vision with my pillow, afraid of how red my face would be.

        "What? Once I respond back, you decide to get shy?" he questioned.

        He pulled the pillow down from my face. Seeing him closer to me as my heart beat faster and my mind to malfunction. 

        "Ah!" I yelped quickly clutching onto the pillow tighter and covering my face with it again, only for it to be ripped down from my field of vision again.        

        "I think that's not far. Don't you deserve a punishment?" he questioned, getting closer to me

        I screamed loudly, shoving the pillow in his face and shaking his hand off me, running out of the bedroom and screaming: "YURI'S A HUGE PERVERT!"

        "What?! You're the one that started it first! I just gave you a taste of your own medicine!" he declared, chasing after me. 

        "YOU MADE ME ENHALE APHRODISIACS OR SOMETHING!" I screamed, running around the apartment to get away from him.        

        "I DID NOT! DON'T GO SCREAMING AROUND THE APARTMENT SAYING THAT!" he yelled.

        .

        .

        We made it to the agency and clocked in, walking down the many hallways. 

        "Second-lieutenant! Mrs. Lieutenant!" we both turned around, confused.

        Am I Mrs. Lieutenant? That makes me sound a little old.

        "Morning, Lieutenant!" we both spoke, saluting.

        I think I'm getting accustomed to their traditions. I thought, smiling proudly.

        "The boss wanted you to interrogate a potential spy in interrogation room four, Mrs. Lieutenant. He said for you to specifically act motherly, possibly to bring their guard down or something." The Lieutenant spoke.

        "Yes, sir." I saluted. 

        "Second-lieutenant, you're in charge of watching the investigation." The lieutenant spoke.

        "Yes, sir." Yuri saluted. 

        "Report back to the boss afterwards. You're both dismissed." Lieutenant spoke, handing me a packet.

        Me and Yuri nodded, then walked down the hallways as I scared through the document.

        "I'm going to show you how good of a mother I can be for our kids." I teased, stretching my arms.

        "Don't you ever say that again." He deadpanned, a disgusted look on his face. 

        He led the way to the room and before opening the door, I slapped his hand gently. 

        "Not yet. Just trust me when we're in there, alright?" I spoke. 

        Yuri looked at me confused, then nodded.

        This isn't the first time I played the mother role. I've used the skill to bring out information from others whilst their act their weakest. It's dirty, but I think I can bring down this person's guard. 

        I knocked on the door three times, then walked in as Yuri looked at me, intrigued to see what my methods would be. 

        "Hello, hun. You're Zeni Houston, right?" I questioned, taking a seat in front of the man.

        The man was young and timid, looking around nervously. 

        Oh. I got this.

        Yuri sat on the sidelines near the transcriber as Zeni nervously tapped the desk.

        "Don't worry, I don't plan on hurting you. Believe it or not, I'm not a fan of violence much." I smiled, forcing my voice to be soft and not projecting. 

        "Then why are you working here?" he quickly retorted.

        "I'm here to find the truth about this war and about the government." I responded.

        "The government lies!" he shouted, then covered his mouth. "Sorry, sorry!" 

        "No, no, love. It's okay." I smiled as Yuri huffed, sitting back in his chair and crossing his arms as I briefly looked at him, before focusing my attention back to Zeni. "I'm aware the government lies, but I like to pay special attention to the information we're given, from the government, from Westalis, and from the people I interrogate such as yourself. In order to... even out this cracked ground we're tip-toeing on, I need your help."

        "Really?" he questioned.

        "Of course." I hummed, tapping my finger lightly on the desk to mimic his actions from earlier. "Do you have any nicknames?" I questioned. "I don't really like the awkward atmosphere around us."

        Zeni shook his head: "No. I don't have any nicknames."

        "Can I make one for you?" I questioned. 

        "I mean... I guess?" he muttered, hesitate.

        "What do you think of Zen-Zen? Or just Zen. Or Ni?" I suggested. 

        "I think I like Zen best." He smiled nervously.

        "Alright, Zen. Now, is it alright if I ask you questions about your home life? You're allowed to keep personal information private, but if you do decide to lie to me while answering any questions I have, I'll know and I will unfortunately have to take you to my boss." I explained. "Do you understand?" 

        "Yes, ma'am." He gulped. 

        "Very well, Zen. Let's get started." I spoke, placing my hands on my lap to make myself appear smaller and motherly in hopes of making him open up. "Did you have both parents growing up?" I questioned. "If yes, are one or both still alive?"

        "Yeah. They're still alive." He nodded.

        "Are they split or are they together?" I questioned.

        "They're still together." He answered. "Twenty-eight years now." 

        "That's quite a while. Was their relationship healthy? For example, they rarely fought in front of you two and they spent time alone together such as going on dates." I suggested.

        "It was fairly healthy." He answered.

        "That's lovely. I didn't have both parents around growing up, but if they were still here, I would visit them every weekend." I confessed. "How about you, Zen? How often do you visit your parents?" I questioned.

        "Mostly for the holidays, but every now and then I stop by and say hi. My parents live far up on the East side of Ostania while I live here because of my job." He answered.

        "I see. What do you work as?" I asked.

        "I'm a constructor. To be specific, I fix the houses and buildings that were destroyed from the bombings." He spoke, becoming skittish as he mentioned the war.

        "Oh! Why didn't you tell me sooner?" I questioned. "If I'd know that, I would've congratulated you! I'm really thankful of the hours and dedication you put into our country. That field uses a lot of math, but I'm really bad at it, so I think it's really special that you're able to use those complicated formulas to help house people and communities alike." 

        "It was complicated at first. I went to a university so I could study it since I was bad at it too." He admitted sheepishly. 

        "I see. What university did you go to?" I questioned.

        "Garten University." He spoke.

        "Garten University? As in, the one where you need a GPA over 4.0 to even fill out the application sheet?" I spoke, gawking at him.

        This guy? A scrawny, wobbly, 5'4" man working in construction and having a degree in mathematics? He sure is something!

        "Yeah. It's a little embarrassing." He sighed.

        "How so?" I questioned.

        "Because people naturally assumed I snuck in or paid my way through since I don't look like somebody who'd work in the construction field." He admitted.

        "To be honest with you, Zen, I really thought you worked in Foreign Ministry or as an accountant doing paperwork. It shows that I should've listened more when they say 'don't judge a book by its cover'." I laughed, getting Zen to slip up and chuckle. 

        He's warming up. Good.

        "I'm really impressed that you've made yourself such a successful person, really. That's a lot of dedication and patience to do what you do, I'm really proud of you." I smiled, causing Zen to fluster up.

        "T-thank you, ma'am, but it's really nothing." He stammered.

        He's not used to compliments. I can use that to get info out of him.

        "Do you have any siblings?" I questioned.

        "No. I'm an only child." He answered.

        "Woah, that must've been lonely, huh?" I asked.

        "A bit, but I had many friends I'd go outside and play with." He spoke.

       "What did you like to do with your friends? I liked to ride my bike with my friends growing up." I confessed.

        "I liked to play tag with my friends. I also enjoyed playing cops and robbers, w-which is a bad taste of irony now." Zen chuckled nervously, clamming up in his shell.

        "Yes! I used to play that too." I spoke, faking my enthusiasm to keep him open. "I was always the fastest runner when playing, yet I always tripped and got caught." I laughed. 

        "I was always the one calling out 'time out'." He admitted, flustered. 

        "Oh. So you're the one making the game harder than it needs to be." I joked, then laughed. "That's okay, we all have our limits, at least you knew yours." 

        "Yeah." He smiled.

        "Now. What was your first job?" I asked. "I helped a nice woman in my hometown bakery for some change when I was six. I even learned how to make her chocolate chip cookies." 

        "I'm more of a peanut butter cookie type." Zen smiled. "I worked in a bike shop when I was eleven—it was my dad's bike shop actually."

        "Ah. It wasn't in your ideals to take over?" I questioned.

        "It blew up in one of the bombings." He spoke, a sad smile on his face. "But luckily, me and my family were visiting my grandparents at the time it happened, so we didn't get hurt." 

        "I see." I nodded. "Do you enjoy your current job now?" I questioned.

        "Well, I like to build the buildings, sometimes I can even upgrade the buildings from the original design with a little imagination and signature from my boss and the employer, but it's sad to see the after result of war. Sometimes, I'd find dead bodies inside the rubble. I can't stand the smell of dead things, but the sight of it makes me puke my guts out." He admitted, a sorrowful expression on his face.

        "It's never fun to see what us humans have created." I sighed. "What company do you work at?" I questioned. 

        "Bau des Herzogs" Zeni spoke.

        “Is there any coworkers or employees you hate there? Such as your boss, a coworker who complains too much; stuff like that?” I questioned. "Or perhaps the other way around? Someone having it out for you?"

        “No. I don’t really talk with the other employees. I feel a little out of place since I’m so young compared to them.” He admitted shyly.

        “Ah. I feel that one.” I laughed. “You live alone?” I questioned.

        “I have my cat that keeps me company.” He smiled.

        “Aw, cute! What is it’s name?” I asked.

        “Dough...” He mumbled, embarrassed. “I-I picked the name when I was thirteen and decided to keep it when I got older!” 

        He’s certainly quick to avoid looking stupid, I thought and smiled.

        “It’s a adorable name! I should ask my husband to get a cat or dog.” I spoke, lying.

        I heard Yuri let out a choked splutter, before coughing, making Zeni turn his attention to him and the documenter, immediately making him quiet.

        Damn. I thought. I was doing so good too.

        “Do you have a girlfriend?” I questioned. “Or a boyfriend, I don’t judge.” I quickly spoke.

        He looked at me weird—probably confused on why I would ask if he had a boyfriend since our times are pretty homophobic towards that—before speaking. 

        “Ah, no… but there’s a girl I’ve been crushing on for a while.” He confessed.

        “Really? Is she pretty?” I questioned.

        “I like to think so. But what I like most about her is that she’s really kind. Like, kind enough to if you ask her to help you look for your dog, she would search until sunset then go back home and grab a flashlight to continue looking.” He rambled.

        “She sounds lovely. I wish you the best.” I smiled. 

        Nothing. He‘a absolutely innocent. Which dumbass decided to even reported him?

        “Alright, Zen. We’re pretty much done here.” I spoke, leaning back in my chair and stretching my arms.

        “R-really?” he questioned. 

        “Yeah. You’ve innocent. You haven’t lied to me once.” I shrugged my shoulders carelessly. 

        “How do you know?” he questioned.

        “What? You wanna confess and make me look like I fool?” I spoke.

        “N-no, ma’am! I was… expecting to die… honestly.” He admitted, squeezing his fingers together tightly. 

        “I told you, I don’t like violence. And besides, you’re an innocent person, I have no intention to hurt you.” I sighed.

        Yuri stood up from his chair, flabbergasted as the documenter looked shocked himself.

        “(Y/—“ Yuri immediately stopped himself from saying his name. “Ah, Mrs. Lieutenant!” he exclaimed. “Y-you can’t be serious! H-he did something to gain enough suspicion to be reported; he’s guilty!” Yuri spoke.

        “You’re stupid.” I spoke bluntly, causing everyone to look at me even more shocked.

        “Second-Lieutenant, with all due respect, I believe in innocent until proven guilty. Zen here hasn’t done nothing wrong, he’s just a shy and timid person whose single—that is what got him reported, because people aren’t allowed to be themselves and they aren’t allowed to keep secrets in fear of the government.” I rambled. “Zen is innocent, and if you have a problem with my verdict, we can skip together hand-in-hand and talk with the boss about this as we kiss and make up.” I smiled, clapping my hands. “Would you like that, love?” 

        “I mean... N-no…?” he muttered, face red as he looked down at the ground.

        “Very well. I’ll lead you out, Zen.” I spoke, opening up the door.

        Zen followed, nervous as Yuri quickly tailed us, not daring to keep us out of site.

        “Do you have a ride home?” I questioned Zen as we navigated throughout the hallways.

        “No, ma’am.” He answered.

        “We’ll get a taxi called for you.” I spoke, walking down the halls and to the front office.

        I told the office clerk to call a taxi as I waited outside with Zen to make sure he was safe here. Yuri didn’t seem happy as he leaned on the brick wall with his arms crossed and glaring daggers at Zen. 

        “Ignore him, dear.” I quickly spoke. “He just wants my attention.” I teased as Yuri huffed, angry at my comment.

        I made small talk with Zen before the taxi finally arrived here. 

        "Bye, Zen! Have a safe trip and good luck on the girl, hon." I waved as he hopped into the taxi, waving back before leaving.

        I immediately turned my attention back to Yuri, smiling as he looked at me angrily. 

        "Something wrong, love?" I smirked.

        "You want the ice cream sample, or the whole document?" he questioned.

        "I don't know. What do we have the time for?" I questioned. 

        "The whole fucking document." He grumbled. "First, you kept calling him pet names. Second, you extracted absolutely no information and even let him leave. Third, your approach was soft and held absolutely no threat. Fourth, what are you gonna tell the Director? And fifth, I know he didn't use it, but you gave him the option to withhold information." Yuri explained, using his fingers to exaggerate. "Would you like more? That was the first paragraph of the six pages."

        "And here's my argumentative essay to your thesis." I frowned. "First, I used those names to trick his brain to thinking we're close. Second, I received no suspicious information because not everyone that's brought into the office is a Westalis spy. I didn't recognize his name, face, or voice, and I, not you, would be the one knowing if he was a spy since I was one. Third, my approach was like that because I was assigned the motherly role straight from the Director. If I used violence or threats, it would've clammed him up with information he wouldn't release; because he'd be scared that once you hurt him for some info and he spills, you'll hurt him for some more. Fourth, I'm gonna tell the Director straight up that Zeni Houston is innocent. And fifth, I gave him the option to withhold information because it's a psychology trick. If you give someone one option they don't like; they're less likely to do it rather than give them two options that could benefit them." I took a deep breath, done explaining. 

        "Alright. Now, let's see what the boss says about that." Yuri spoke, grabbing my arm roughly. 

        I pushed down the anger in my gut, deciding it'd be best to just follow him. 

        If the Director gets mad, and I die, then I guess I die. Though, it would really suck, especially after I told Twilight how I want to live and have a family. I thought, resisting the urge to smile at the irony if the situation did come to be that. 

        We made it to the office, knocking on the door and hearing confirmation almost immediately. 

        "Hello, you two!" the Director greeted cheerfully as me and Yuri both saluted, saying our own hellos. 

        "I got the info from Zeni Houston, and I've come to the conclusion that he's innocent." I spoke.

        "That's great— wait, huh?" the Director immediately replied.

        "I've also sent him home." I added.

        "Huh?!" the Director exclaimed. "Y-you just did that without permission?!"

        "I did. There a problem to that?" I questioned. 

        "Well... yeah?!" the Director blurted. "Completely out of line, not to mention your life is on the line for this!" He spoke.

        I looked at Yuri, seeing him glare at me with a smile, happy that he was right.

        "I'm aware." I responded, ignoring the audacity that he'd believe I've forgotten that. "Sir, I did exactly what you wanted me to do; I interviewed him and stayed in a motherly role just as you requested. I held no bias in this situation, nor did I ever resort to unnecessary violence. I never once recognized or suspected him as a member of WISE. He never lied once, he was honest and willing to cooperate. This was just simply a normal citizen being report due to their closeted nature and timidness; I'm sure this isn't the first time it's happened, though I doubt you and your men are smart enough to have enough common sense to come to the conclusion." 

        "You have balls. They're imaginary, but they are there." The Director spoke, then laughed, a smile on his face as I chuckled at the random comment.

        "I'm sure you can request the transcription from the transcriber there. I assume the room was bugged with a secret camera too and microphone too, so you can check that out if you don't believe me." I suggested.

        "I'm a little mad, but I'm a little impressed too. I'll look over the footage just to make sure, though. No hard feelings." The Director smiled.

        "Of course, sir." I smiled. 

        "Good work. Now, anything else?" he questioned. 

        "No, sir." I spoke, looking at Yuri.

        Yuri looked shocked, devastated, angry, and frustrated all at once.

        He's even more cynical than me, and that's shocking since it's me.

        "Come on, love." I spoke, grabbing his arm and dragging him out of the Director's office. "We have work!"

        "I can't believe you, brat..." he grumbled. 

        "What?" I questioned as we walked down the hallway.

        "You got out of trouble scott-free! I don't think I'd even be able to get away with that!" he grumbled, keeping his voice down to not alert our co-workers of the argument. 

        "I'm just good at making two and two work." I smiled. "It's a pretty useful skill I learned." 

        "Yeah! And I'm mad it worked!" Yuri hissed.

        "Aw. Don't worry, love. It'll rub off on you...maybe..." I mumbled the last bit to myself. 

        "Huh? Say something, brat?" Yuri challenged. 

        "No, sir." I answered.

        .

        .

        THIRD PERSON POINT OF VIEW! (Author's note: I found the internal dialogue in this chapter to be hilarious and there's no way I could cut it out!)

        It's been a week and a day since (Y/N) met Yuri. In that time, (Y/N)’s already exhausted of SSS work. Interrogations, collecting data, stopping shootings, and even another assassin attempt on the minister feels just too similar to working at the Westalis Intelligence for her liking.

        Yor called and asked if Yuri could tutor their daughter, Anya Forger. Yuri agreed, and (Y/N)’s being forced to follow since he still doesn't trust her alone.

        To say Yuri was excited to see his big sister was an understatement, he was absolutely bouncing up and down the walls, skipping on the way and almost tripping on his face if it wasn't for (Y/N) holding onto him. 

        I wonder, if my siblings were still alive, would they be excited to see me like that? (Y/N) thought. Doubt it. Plus, if it was Yuri’s level, it’d be really creepy. 

        They made it to the familiar building and door. Yuri slammed the door open, causing (Y/N) to stare, shocked. Why the door was unlocked, (Y/N)’s not sure if idea if it was brute strength or a flimsy lock but it sure opened.

        “I’m at your service, sis!” Yuri shouted loudly.

        “Ack!” (Y/N) exclaimed, shocked at his boldness and audacity to just do that in a building where others live. “Sorry for not knocking!” she immediately bowed.

        “Oh! No worries! You’re both family after all! It’s good to see you both!” Yor smiled.

        “Nice to have you back, Yuri and (Y/N).” Loid greeted.

        “Hmph.” Yuri sighed, giving Loid the cold shoulder.

        “Anya, this is my little brother, Yuri. And this is (Y/N), Yuri’s wife, so my sister-in-law.” Yor introduced.

        The kid was small. There’s no way she’s six. But she has really cute eyes and hair. I like her weird cone accessories, though I’ve never seen them before. Is this the new generations sense of fashion? (Y/N) thought intensely.

        Anya seemed to have cold feet, hiding behind Loid’s feet, yet spoke: “I’m Papa’s daughter, Anya. Nice to meet you.” She spoke, a slight childish tone and mispronunciation of words.

        Aw! Cute! (Y/N) thought. Even though she’s not Twilight’s biological daughter, I can tell that she does think of him as one! That’s so cute! Would my children be this cute?! I hope! Obviously not with Yuri, he’d probably be a really confusing father. I don’t ever see him actually getting married to anyone, I’m just “married” with him so I can live. I hope I’d find someone to actually live soon though.

        Yuri stared intensely at the little girl, his racing thoughts consisting of “the devil spawn of Loid” and how jealous he was that she got to see Yor everyday.

        “I think I have heartburn…” Anya sighed, her face showing disinterest and displease

        Oh. Did I scare her? I’ve heard I give off a scary vibe to people, but children usually always loved me? Was it Yuri that scared her. (Y/N) looked over at Yuri’s judging face. Oh, definitely. I’d be scared too. Just waking up to that face scares me. She thought, joking with herself as she resisted the urge to laugh at her mental joke.

        “Oh, no! Are you okay? Maybe you should rest up a little before we study.” Yor spoke.

        They were led to the living room and sat on the couches. (Y/N) sat at the end as Yuri sat in the middle of her and Yor. Yor kindly poured tea for them as Loid and Yuri talked, (Y/N) letting them take hold of the conversation.

        “So, how have things been at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, you two? The recent peace talks must’ve been tough to handle.” Loid questioned.

        Let’s pump for some intel, Loid thought. 

        (Y/N) looked at Yuri, expecting him to lead the conversation just like last time.

        “Mm, yeah… I guess…” Yuri paused.

        I was the one pretending to be the minister that day. Afterward, even the SSS must’ve figured out they’d been duped by “Twilight.” The circumstances demanded it, but that was a huge risk we took. Loid thought intensely as he smiled.

        Is this pissant mocking us over all the heat we took from the opposite party? The conference was delayed because of a terrorist attack! I’m not going to let you make me look bad in front of my sister, you despicable bastard! Yuri thought, his face noticeably disinterested and frowning.

        Man. The atmosphere is so awkward. I wanna go back to sleep… (Y/N) thought, staring back and forth at Loid and Yuri. Sucks I can’t, I’m wrapped around Yuri’s finger and doing this stupid SSS work. I should’ve retired earlier when I was a spy, then I wouldn’t be acting buddy-buddy with these guys.

        I have to be careful! Loid thought.

        I have to make myself look good! As a diplomat, to fall into this role. Yuri thought.

        Maybe I can convince Yuri into letting me cook tonight, but it’s unlikely since he’d think the seasonings are poison. (Y/N) thought, clueless to the internal battle these fierce rivals were having.

        “Did the incident lead the government to make policy changes?” Loid questioned.

        Of course you’re digging for info, Twilight. (Y/N) thought, mentally sighing. Always thinking about work. Why doesn’t he bud out before his curiosity leads him into a grave?

          "I couldn't be more proud of the hard work my ministry did to ensure the talks ended safely." Yuri spoke. 

        "Yeah, it was some hard work but we managed. I'm just glad nobody got hurt badly." (Y/N) smiled, hoping to throw Yuri off of Loid's trail so he won't know that Loid is a spy.

        It's dangerous though, if I act too buddy-buddy, me and Loid would both be exposed. But if I keep silent, Yuri might suspect of something. Or perhaps he'd be dumb enough to ignore it since Yor's here. However, I don't want Loid to suspect I'm doing real work with the SSS; sentencing spies to death and all, though that much can't really be helped since my life is on the line. I'm basically considered a double-agent... just with extra steps. (Y/N) thought intensely, adverting her gaze to Anya. 

        Anya seemed excited, clenching her fists, looking back between (Y/N), Yuri, and Loid.

        Papa versus Uncle Yuri versus Auntie (Y/N)! Spy versus secret police man versus double-agent! Uncle Yuri doesn't know who Papa is, but Auntie (Y/N) does! And Papa doesn't know Auntie (Y/N) is a double-agent! But Papa knows Uncle Yuri's identity, and Papa knows a bit about Auntie (Y/N), but so does Auntie (Y/N) knows about Papa and Uncle Yuri. Is Papa winning or is Auntie (Y/N) winning?! Anya thought, excited as she looked around. 

        "Well, someone's feeling better. Time to start studying." Loid spoke, causing Anya to deflate. "I don't want to be in the way, so I'll run some errands." Loid smiled, sitting up.

        A fine chance to work on my other missions. Loid spoke. 

        But who won?! Anya thought, shocked as she watched Loid stand up. 

        "Okay, should we get started?" Yor suggested. 

        (Y/N) looked down at the notebook on the table in front of them, mentally groaning. 

        Ah. Biology. I never understood what the hell the Handler was trying to tell me when she tried teaching me it... (Y/N) thought.

        I said I'd do this because I'd do anything Yor asks, but am I really going to sit here and tutor her husband's dim-witted child. Lucky little brat, getting to spend every day with my sweet sister... I'll hit her with some hard ones and introduce her to the pain of the real world... Yuri thought, scribbling math problems down onto the notebook.

        "Yuri, love, I think that's a little too hard. Not even I understand it." (Y/N) spoke, tilting her head to look at the paper better.

        "Oh, really?" Yuri questioned, turning his attention to his "wife". 

        Did she not go to school or something? What an idiot... Yuri thought.         

        Anya scribbled down her answers to the equations, giving the paper back to Yuri.

        "What?! You got every one of them correct?!" Yuri shouted. 

        "Heh heh heh." Anya chuckled, smirking proudly.

        "Wait, really?!" (Y/N) shouted.

        A-am I really that stupid?! (Y/N) thought in her head. How did I keep being a spy? Why am I an SSS agent now? What the hell?!

        "Then what do you even need to study for?" Yuri questioned.

        Oops, that's right! I can't cheat on the day of the midterm, so I need to study for real! Anya thought. 

        "Oh... that was just dumb luck." Anya responded nervously.

        "Oh... I guess... that makes sense... does it?" Yuri mumbled the last bit to himself, a little confused.

        Ah. So I'm not all that dumb? (Y/N) thought, mentally sighing relieved. 

        Yuri and Anya continued studying as Yor watched nearby. (Y/N) leaned her head on Yuri, watching intently as she tried to piece together what Yuri was trying to teach Anya. Yuri almost jumped, before remembering their fake-act, then decided to let it slide since Yor was watching intently, mentally cheering in her mind of how glad she is that Yuri is happy (who really isn't, but Yor doesn't know that). 

        "No! That's completely wrong! You're not so bright, are you?! Get your act together, kid!" Yuri shouted, pointing his free shoulder to Anya to not disturb (Y/N) much.

        "Yuri! You need to be more supportive!" Yor scolded. 

        "Yeah, be nicer." (Y/N) agreed. 

        A kid won't look forward to studying and won't study on their own if they get discouraged... (Y/N) thought, remembering how she had to tutor her little brother in English, extremely frustrated how he couldn't understand what she understood. Now that she's way older, she could've been able to properly teach him with the knowledge she's gained of children and life.

        "I don't want to see Anya get expelled. Please Yuri, I'm counting on you." Yor spoke.

        Yuri went crazy in his head as (Y/N) tuned out, annoyed at the sibling-affection.

        Rub it in that I'm an orphan, will ya? She thought, resisting the powerful urge to punch Yuri in the gut. 

        "By golly, I am going to work so very hard! I am going to become an umperial skoller and be an important person, and take care of my be-love-id Mama forever!" Anya spoke, clumsy making speech mistakes as (Y/N) mentally cringed at it (despite knowing that she does it very often too).

        Umperial skoller? Sounds like an ultimate roller-skater! (Y/N) thought, daydreaming.

        What a fine child! How can she be so virtuous here?! And what's an umperial skoller? Yuri thought. 

        "I'm going to make you some tea and sweets, Anya!" Yor spoke, excited and heart-touched 

        Ooh. Please be brownies. I'd steal one. (Y/N) thought, still daydreaming.

        To love my sweet sister so much... No, get ahold of yourself! This girl is trying to still Yor from me! Don't be taken in! But still... maybe... Yuri thought it over in his head, the process of teaching Anya and how happy Yor would be. 

        "All right, I will teach you." Yuri spoke. 

        Time went on as (Y/N) eventually dosed off, still leaning on Yuri as he did his best to ignore (Y/N) and focus on Anya's tuition.         

        "No, look, you made a mistake." Yuri spoke.

        "Oh no!" Anya exclaimed. 

        "The grammar here gets very complicated. You don't need to parse the whole thing. Just focus on the verb." Yuri pointed out. 

        Anya seemed exhausted, her brain frying the longer she went on.

        "Do you not like studying?" Yuri questioned.

        "I hate it. Do you like it, Uncle Yuri? Are you a weirdo?" Anya questioned.

        "Don't call me 'uncle'. And when I was young, I hated myself for how useless I was. I wanted to be able to help myself sister. And I studied really hard so I could. I felt like I grew an inch taller each time I answered a question right. I loved that feeling. I worked hard at language skills... because I thought that if I could speak well, I could become a lawyer or a journalist and make the world a better place for my sister. I worked hard at chemistry and biology... because I thought that if I mastered anatomy and medicine, I could heal my sister if she ever got hurt or sick. I worked hard at math and psychics... because I knew they were the root of everything that affected the safety and comfort of my sister's life. Ultimately, I decided to become a diplomat, but I still rely on all those powers I developed back then." Yuri explained in a buck-load. 

        "Powers?" Anya spoke.

        "A great man long ago said it best. 'Knowledge is power.' That's what you need to understand if you want to be someone great. Knowledge is everything. It's the whole enchilada." Yuri explained.

        "Knowledge is... a swole chihuahua?" Anya commented, scared. 

        "No! A whole... forget that part!" Yuri sighed.

        "If I study hard, can I make medicines?" Anya questioned.

        "Yes! Exactly!" Yuri encouraged. 

        "Can I build rockets?" Anya questioned.

        "That's right!" Yuri cheered. 

        "Can I conquer the world?" Anya smiled.

        "That's... well... I... I guess? Is that what you want?" Yuri spoke, mumbling the last part to himself as he looked at Anya suspiciously. "Do you get it now? Never mind the next test. Focus on the triumphant you of the future!" Yuri explained. 

        "I get it now!" Anya smiled.

        "Focus on the sweet smile on my sister's future lips!" Yuri cheered. 

        "Okay, sure!" Anya boasted.

        "Now let's answer this next question!" Yuri spoke.

        It must've been hours they went at studying. (Y/N) woke up from her nap at their rowdiness and watched from the couch as they laid on the ground, panting and out of breath at the intensity of their tutor session.

        "Well? Have you mastered that grammar now?" Yuri questioned, out of breath.

        "What's a 'grammar?'" Anya questioned, out of breath herself.

        "Okay, this was a massive waste of my time!" Yuri shouted. "Come on, (Y/N)!"

        (Y/N) stood up, relieved as she stretched.

        Good! Any longer of her butchering grammar, and I would've blown... (Y/N) thought.

        Now I see... I'm the one who needs to be studying here. I have nowhere near enough power. If I'd have more knowledge myself, I would've captured Twilight that day! I could've put an end to the Western threat right then and there! I'm still powerless to protect my sister... to protect my country. Yuri thought.

        Ah. Can we eat now? I'm hungry, but Yor's sweets don't smell appetizing. (Y/N) thought.

        Good call, Auntie (Y/N)... Anya thought, reading (Y/N)'s mind. 

        "I'm sorry, Yor. We have to go now." Yuri spoke, putting on his coat and walking out with (Y/N).

        "He's still as impatient as ever, I see." Yor sighed. "And after I worked so hard to make these cookies from scratch..." 

        Yuri ran into the apartment so fast, slamming open the door and eating every last thing on the plate before closing it the door and leaving.

        "Mmmm, so good! Blech—" Yuri was cut off by puking noises. 

        "Oh my god! Yuri, are you okay?!" (Y/N) screamed in the hallway. 

        "He ate every last one of them! I guess I'll make a new batch." Yor spoke.

        "No... thanks... my tummy's really full..." Anya lied, making excuses to avoid eating Yor's cooking. 

        .

        . 

        Back to first person point of view!

        I watched as Yuri listened intently into the bugged room, narrating what's going on as I wrote down the information I'm fed.

        "Sounds like the target just entered the room. Three people. The two guys in the back are big guys. They're avoiding the door and window. Pros, from the sound of their footsteps." Yuri spoke.

        Impressive, I wouldn't be able to tell whose trained and whose inexperienced just by listening to their footsteps! But I have bad hearing so.... my thoughts wandered off before I quickly forced myself back into the present.

        "Conrad just sat down on the sofa against the back wall. They made the deal." Yuri confirmed. 

        "Okay..." The Lieutenant started, "We're going in, Yuri. (Y/N), you're coming with me." 

        "Roger that!" me and Yuri spokes standing up from our chairs as Yuri removed his headphones.

        We forced our way into the room as the lieutenant pulled out his SSS badge, scaring Conrad badly.

        "State Security Service. You're under arrest on suspicion of espionage." Lieutenant explained. 

        "Dammit!" Conrad exclaimed, scared as he turned around to the window and opened it, turning around. 

        I watched from the window as he ran into Yuri. Yuri karate-chopped his back hard as he grabbed Conrad's hand, holding his arm in a very uncomfortable and no-doubt painful position. 

        "Good evening, Mr. Traitorous Trash. I've reserved our finest jail cell for you. May I escort you to the precinct?" Yuri beamed. 

        .

        . 

        We got into our next mission as Yuri got promoted to the title "Lieutenant" instead of "Second-lieutenant". It made me very prideful knowing he was making progress to the future he wanted (before I scowled knowing that he wanted me and other Westalians dead or locked up in said future). 

        "Excellent work, Lieutenant Briar. You too, Mrs. Briar." The head of the SSS spoke.

        "Thank you very much, sir!" Yuri and I acknowledged. 

        I didn't do anything, but sure. I thought to myself.

        "I have another assignment for you." The head of the SSS spoke. "Are you aware of the recent spate of books and articles being released in the West that mock and slander Ostania? A bunch of lies and conspiracy-theory nonsense. Vulgar garbage, all of it." 

        Yuri glanced at me as I gave him a quick glare back, our quick and silent banter going unnoticed by the boss as he continued to speak.

        "And a lot of them are printed by Ostanian blackmarket presses before being sold to the West. This man's name keeps popping up among their articles." The boss spoke, pointing at one of the names. "Franklin Perlin, age 39. A newspaper journalist during the previous administration. He was arrested and found guilty of aiding anti-government extremists. I want you to follow him, secure evidence of his crimes and find out who's paying him to write this trash." 

        "There are no shortage of morons in the West who believe the nonsense he's peddling. I want him gone before it begins to influence the public opinion around here." The boss ordered.

        "Yes, sir!" Yuri beamed as I simply nodded.

        "Don't you think you're working Yuri a little too hard lately?" The lieutenant behind us spoke.

        "I second that idea." I agreed, respectful to keep my tone and posture in check for the man.

        "Don't worry, I can handle this! Selling out his own country just to make a few bucks... it disgusts me that this scumbag is out there breathing the same air as my beloved sister!"

        Oh, Yuri. What will I do with you? I sighed, having the incredible power to keep my inner thoughts to myself. 

        Not even an hour later, Yuri and I found ourselves listening to the microphones in Franklin's house that another SSS agent set up, recording information down and sharing our data together as we shared a desk. 

        "You both really dug into the details of this guy." The lieutenant spoke.

        "You can count on me, sir!" Yuri smiled as I resisted the urge to topple over on the desk and sleep.

        "You've both pulled two all-nighters in a row. Let someone else take care of the rest so you both can go rest." The lieutenant explained.

        "C'mon, this is nothing!" Yuri persisted.

        "Is it?" I sighed as I removed my headphones (Yuri looked over at me, giving me a look, but I was too tired enough to care or try to read his emotions at the moment).

        "Really? "On the 7th at 8:07, subject goes to work. Has lunch at the restaurant Fjord and orders lunch set B...'" the Lieutenant paused, taking a moment to process the word. "Fjord? Yor?" 

        Yuri twitched, finding himself to be caught.

        "You're tired, Yuri. Go rest." The Lieutenant sighed.

        "I'm not. That always happens." Yuri explained. 

        Yuri went quiet, listening into his headphones. 

        There must be something going on. I thought to myself. While I am curious to know, I don't want to pick up the headphones and do more work.

        "(Y/N), you should go clock out. I'll meet you at home, okay, love?" Yuri smiled, patting my shoulder. 

        "Are you sure?" I questioned.

        Yuri? Leaving me on my own to be alone? Without him for once? What's going on? I thought to myself. Could it be, he's worried about my health? I thought to myself. Or he thinks this mission will be too dangerous and doubts my strength and perseverance... I thought, finding myself jumping to conclusions and getting upset. 

        "Don't worry about me; you're still new around here, so you shouldn't be working as much as me, especially since you're a lower rank." Yuri spoke, giving me a reassuring smile.

        That sounds insulting coming from you, I thought to myself. But if he really persists, then I supposed it'd be wrong for me to go against my husband's "wishes" I thought.

        "You better be safe." I sighed, standing up from my desk.

        I took the opportunity to prove to the lieutenant that we were a couple and kissed Yuri's cheek. 

        "I'll let ya take the care, so don't worry about taking the bus. Love ya!" I smiled, walking away from the awestruck Yuri and confused lieutenant. 

        "Never been kissed by your wife?" I heard the lieutenant speak, followed by Yuri shouting: "With all due respect, sir. Shut up!"

        I grabbed my bag from a locker inside of the Director's office (the Director is still trying to figure out a place for a women's locker room, but we need to find the space and more women to join us). I walked to the bathroom and changed my uniform into a casual oversized gray sweater and black jeans. 

        I walked to the lobby, clocking out and exiting the building. I made it to the train station and noticed a familiar face working one of the stands. I got closer to the tobacco stand, standing right in front of the man and smiling.

        "Franky?" I smiled.

        "(Y/N)? Hey! You're alive!" Franky beamed. "I thought something happened, I haven't seen you in so long!" 

        "Aw, man. It's been a hectic few months. How've you been, man?" I smiled, leaning on the stand's dirty counter.

        I can spare a few minutes. I thought to myself. It's a good thing Yuri isn't here, he'd kill us both if he found out I was interacting with a spy!

        "Ah, still single. Unfortunately..." he huffed. "But what about you? I heard from Loid that you got a husband now?" Franky spoke.

        Ah, he wants to know about my mission. We can't talk about it here, Ostanian cameras and microphones are everywhere, so we're going to have to be discreet.

        "He's very loving and... hectic. I work in his office now! He works for the Foreign Ministry." I spoke, giving him a quick wink that the camera's in the station wouldn't be able to see or detect (the cameras are quite terribly quality, hopefully in the future we receive better and more reliable photos and videos). 

        "What?!" Franky exclaimed, then cleared his throat. "How'd you meet?" 

        "Ahaha, funny story." I smiled, a smile not friendly at all. "Some... old friend... at the old workplace introduced us. I liked my husband so much I started working in the same office as him, except I have a bit of a special contract cause I'm a woman (spy)." I gritted through my teeth.

        "So they know?" Franky spoke, shocked.        

        "Yes, but I just have some major good luck now a days." I smiled.

        "Wow... You talk to Loid recently, or your old boss?" Frank questioned.

        "I've been seeing Loid around lately, we're in-laws!" I beamed. "But, I haven't talked to the boss yet, I'm sure they heard of my retirement, yeah?" 

        "Not sure. They didn't disclose it to me." Franky sighed. "But, hey. I'm really glad you're doing okay." 

        "Yeah. Hey, I got to get hoe before my husband, but I'll make sure I visit you soon, man. I'll see you later!" I spoke, waving bye as I walked away from the tobacco stand and to a ticket stand instead to purchase my train ticket.

        I purchased my ticket, deciding I'd stop by the store to buy some dinner ingredients, then walk the rest of the way home. I boarded the train, looking out the window until I noticed a woman sit next to me.

        "(Y/N)." She spoke, her face holding no smile.

        I didn't recognize her face due to her changing her appearance in public quite regularly, but I certainly recognized her voice.

        "Miss... Metal?" I smiled nervously, unsure of what I'd call her on this train.

        This is my first time meeting her in public, let alone after I quit... I thought, sweating bullets.

        "I'm disappointed; I thought you'd stay in the workplace longer." Miss Metal spoke, otherwise known as the Handler.

        "I apologize... I ran into some complications." I muttered.

        I felt guilt pierce my heart. Here I am, working with Ostania, the side that murdered my family in cold blood. Even though my mother left me when I was very young, the Handler seemed to take her place (at least in my eyes). The Handler gave me a roof, clothes, food, and helped me study; even though it was all to become an emotionally-detached spy, I still found myself seeing her as the closest thing to a mother figure.

        "You're in a good situation, right?" Miss Metal spoke.

        "Yes, Ma'am. I have a husband now." I spoke.

        "My, you've grown. Is this husband also the one working in Foreign Ministry?" she questioned.

        Damn it, to be expected. Of course Twilight wouldn't keep our promise, work always came first before relationships and friendships... I thought. This is the end, if she doesn't kill me on this train, then I'm going to have to throw away all my cups and food in case of poison, and buy new bedsheets in case of more poison! I'm going to have to check the air vents for lethal gas, and I'm going to have to check the apartment three times and more for any cameras and microphones.

        "Yes, Ma'am..." I admitted disappointedly, my heart racing in fear. "I'm... also working there, but you know that, huh?" 

        "I've known." She whispered, her tone sending chills down my spine. "You still have your... telephone... correct?" she questioned. 

        My spy gear. I thought to myself.

        "Yes, Ma'am." I nodded, keeping my eyes adverted to my lap.

        "Stay in contact. Keep me updated on your work, and I'll give you some information. After all, we may be rival companies now, but we can still help each other, yes?" she spoke, giving me a cold smile.

        "I..understand, Ma'am..." I muttered.

        "I'll be expecting a voicemail once you've reached home. Thank you for your cooperation." She spoke, getting up from her seat as the train stopped. "And... you're doing good, kid. This is going to be worth it." She sighed, giving me enough time to turn and look at me, before walking out of the opening exits.        

        I never got swaddled in affection as a kid. Even before the war happened, I forced myself to grow up quick. I had to, that way I can take care of my family. Living in such a poor town such as Luwen with five kids really affected my dad's wallet. My older brother was in a rebellious phase, so he saw no point in helping out with our situation. My older sister had a condition that affected her socially and sometimes neurologically; she could barely get a job and the jobs she did get she couldn’t keep it for long. My two younger brothers were too young; still looking to explore the world, still trying to figure out what new games to play, they wouldn't understand the concept of money and labor if I even tried to explain it. I, however, always had a second-conscience inside my head. I was raised street-smart and taught myself how to be book-smart. I was the only one with the clearest mindset to earn money.

        Even though it was exhausting having to work during the days, school myself in the afternoon, cook and clean at dusk, then sleep still dawn, only to get back to work; I wouldn't change it for anything. My father was always working, there was barley ever a time I actually spent time with him, but I could understand why he was so absent. He never tried to hide anything from us; not about the cruelty of the world, the need of money, or his feelings. He was an open man that would do anything to protect and raise his children to the best of his abilities; I only wish I could be able to return that favor.

        So I never received a lot of hugs or kisses or hand-holding or even supportive words; so I cried when the Handler told me I was going good (whether she meant it or not) because she was the closest thing I could ever experience to a mother's love; or to any real love in general now. 

        I should've known I wouldn't be able to hide for long... I thought to myself, staring out the train's window with my teary-eyed vision. It was stupid to think I would actually get away from this war. I don't have anyone to blame but myself, I'm the one that did this to myself. I was the one that forced my way into the Westalis military, I was the one that accepted the hardships of becoming a spy, I was the one that turned my back against my own side so I could save myself, and now I'll be running back to the ones I ran from. What other choice do I have? They'll kill me if I don't accept; at least they were kind enough to make a proposition for me. 

        Now I'll be turning my back against a side that did their best to accept and bring me in despite knowing exactly who I am and what I've done, except this time, I've found myself backstabbing someone I genuinely started to grow caring for.

        I zombie-walked to the store, picking out a lot of products and buying it with my own money as I walked home with bags of food. I cooked a big feast for Yuri and I, including his favorite meals that I know of and waited for him at the door. I felt bad for betraying him like this, especially after I started believing I was finally making progress.

        "Oh? You're actually still here? I thought you left for the West, to be honest." Yuri admitted as he walked through the door, then started sniffing the air. "I thought I told you to rest!" Yuri groaned, sending me a glare.

        "You deserve to come home to a good meal." I smiled, walking behind him and taking his coat, hanging it up on its designated hanger, right next to mine. 

        "What are you planning?" Yuri questioned, eyeing me suspiciously.

        "Jeez! I can't do something nice for you? You've been overworking yourself a bit, I just wanna make sure you're being taken care of!" I huffed, crossing my arms. "Now let's go eat, before it gets cold!"

        I pushed him into the kitchen, watching as his eyes widened at the sight of all this food.

        "Wow, you made all of this?" he questioned.

        "I told ya I wanted to treat you..." I mumbled, ignoring the heat that started to creep onto my face. "Consider it a thanks for everything you've done to me and everyone around you." 

        I adverted my eyes, expecting to hear some harsh words spat at me or a rant about how "suspicious" and "lethal" this meal is. Instead, I felt a hand rest on the top of my head before he ruffled it slightly.

        "Thank you, (Y/N). This means a lot for me. Been forever since I've been welcomed home." Yuri smiled sincerely, a newfound glimmer in his ruby eyes.

        "You deserve it, Yuri." I smiled back.

        You don't deserve me, not after what I've done. I thought to myself, thinking of the message I sent to WISE's HQ.

        This is Vixen. I've returned. I've got intel on the mission's of Ostania's State Security Service. I have infiltrated the forces and am currently working with them. They are aware of my connections with WISE; however, they believe it's all in the past and that I'm actually working with them. I have everything under control and am waiting for your orders.

        For there to be peace, sacrifices must be made, no matter if it's family, friends, love, or someone's life.

        Parts: One, two, three, four, five, six, current part, eight, nine, ten (to be continued when Spy x Family has more Yuri content!)

        Want more Yuri content? Check out these headcannons and one shots!

        Yuri Briar x Sick! Fem! Reader

        Slightly mean! Yuri Briar x Fem! Reader

Yuri Briar x Fem! Reader headcannons + other fandoms!

        Have any requests? Check my masterlist to see the characters I write for: Masterlist (Please request, I have too much free time and too little fics).

[dr-spectre]

I've had some time to go over my initial thoughts about the switch 2 and I wanna discuss them.

I do like the bigger joy cons but I'm not sure how to feel about an all black look with coloured highlights on the connectors and control sticks. It reminds me of those RGB lights that some pc gaming handhelds have and I always found them kinda tacky. Also why is the red now orange? I don't like it, make it a nice hot red instead. It's common knowledge that red on black is one of the most pretty colour combos of all time. I hope the other colours that eventually come out do change the entire controller and not just change the highlights.

I am worried about the sticks due to well, you know, and i am praying to the gods that the joy cons have actually good control sticks that don't break down easily. How the hell does my Wii Nunchuck from 2007 have no stick drift, yet controllers made 10 years later break down so easily?

I love the chunkier look of the Switch 2 because I always thought that the Switch was a bit too flat and it didn't have enough grip to it. An 8 inch display sounds lovely even if it's gonna be an LCD panel.

Although there are these annoying bezels UGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WHY NINTENDO WHY!?!? YOU GOT A FAT ASS PANEL! USE ALL OF IT DUMMY!!!

Now about that backwards compatibility... I got a few questions.

1. Will the system transfer process be easy and will it transfer EVERYTHING?! I'm talking saves, miis, photos, games, etc. Everything. It better be easy and stress free as possible, i wanna be able to put my Switch 1 to rest and not have to pick it up ever again.

2. Will we be able to use Switch 1 joy cons with backwards compatible titles and have all of their features intact? There are some experiences like Ring Fit Adventure and Labo that will be unplayable on Switch 2 unless you can use Switch 1 joy cons. Nintendo, i swear to god, if you lock us out of those titles and not give us the option to play them i will be very VERY mad.

I am very relieved that backwards compatibility is a highlight of the console and that Nintendo is actually not gonna abandon their old hardware like they've done time and time again. They can be very stubborn and stuck in their ways, it's actually really frustrating that it took them until the Switch to realise that MAYBE HAVING A PROPER ACCOUNT SYSTEM THAT CARRIES OVER TO OTHER DEVICES INCLUDING PURCHASES IS A GOOD FUCKING IDEA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

NEXT! Let's talk about the elephant in the room, new Mario Kart.

Firstly, oh my god the models are so lovely omg I'm so happy they changed up their looks.

Bowser and DK looking extra silly, we love to see it.

The animation and details look really good too. They got that nice squash and stretch.

I will say, i don't know if it's because of youtube's shit compression or how the gameplay is shown, but the graphics don't seem to have had a noticeable leap in quality, the game looks like it could run on the Switch 1 with ease. It seems like they are going for a different art style and i respect that. Then again i cannot make any major judgements on the footage shown because it only lasted for 10 seconds.

What really interests me about this new Mario Kart is that there isn't going to be just 12 racers, but potentially 24!!!!!!

If you're gonna evolve Mario Kart then this is not a bad way to do it, it's gonna increase the chaos and expand the track design. And it looks like the tracks may be actually expansive and larger in scope but we'll have to wait and see.

24 racers means that the character roaster has to be pretty damn big in order to reduce repetitiveness. However, i don't wanna see another Mario Kart 8 situation where a lot of the roaster could have easily been alt costumes, so i wanna see some changes...

MAKE THESE GUYS SKINS FOR BOWSER JR! I DONT CARE IF THEY HAVE DIFFERENT WEIGHTS! THESE FREAKS SHOULD NOT TAKE UP NEARLY A FULL ROW!!!

Make them costumes that don't fill up character slots... please... Nintendo don't be fucking stupid for once in your existence.

Leave these babies behind in Baby Park.

Don't get rid of her... Please. She's my goat, my MVP, my smingus chungus, my bingus smungus, don't get rid of one of the best non Mario characters from the series.

Add these creatures as optional costumes too.

Speaking of these fellas... Since i talk about Splatoon a lot, i can't help but bring up the fact that now we have a new console on the horizon and due to Splatoon's massive popularity, i wouldn't be surprised if Nintendo shadow drops a Splatoon 4 announcement this year or the next. Splatoon 2 did get shown during the Switch's reveal and released in the launch year so maybe by the end of the year, we could have something on our hands...

Then again, certain elements of Splatoon 2 such as the hero mode THAT I DESPISE WITH ALL OF MY HEART AND SOUL!!!!!.... and content did suffer due to Splatoon 2 being rushed. So maybe don't announce Splatoon 4 this year, please? We can wait, we'll be patient.

In terms of a first party launch lineup i wanna make some predictions and copium picks.

New 3D Mario game

Metroid representation, either a cross gen release of Prime 4 and or a bundle of Prime 2 and 3.

F-Zero representation, a new game FINALLY after the positive feedback from 99, or a GX re-release.

A Wii Sports/ 1 2 Switch like casual game

A new IP

A new Kirby, either 2D or a follow up to Forgotten Land

Something Fire Emblem related

The last thing i wanna talk about is the third party support, I'm not gonna say much but i guarantee a lot of third party companies are gonna be HUNGRY to port their PS5 and Xbox series games to a much more powerful handheld, so I'm gonna list off some games that i would absolutely love to see on the Switch 2.

If Nintendo wants to repeat the magic of seeing Skyrim on a portable tablet then i think one game in particular would fulfill that same shock or even surpass it.

And that game is....

If they can do it, if they can somehow find a way to make it run on Switch 2 and show gameplay of this thing... oh my god, it'll make peoples jaws drop. It's launching on the damn Xbox Series S, I'm sure with some programming magic it COULD run on Switch 2.

[rpf-bat]

"i know it's your favorite" with joeleksi? 🥺🖤

Oh hi Giulia! This one wound up only being 684 words, but I hope you’ll like it anyway! 🖤

Joel’s head hurt as soon as he woke up. He opened his blue eyes, and the sunlight shining through his window, only made the shooting pain worse.

The clock told him it was nine in the morning…he’d gotten home from the bar at 3, so that meant he’d gotten about six hours of sleep.

That’s more than usual, honestly, he thought to himself, as he sat up in his bed.

A wave of nausea swept over him, and he grabbed the trash can from his bedside, thinking for a moment that he was going to be sick.

Thankfully, the wave passed.

Ugh, he thought miserably, as he stood up to close the curtains, why did I drink so much last night?

He’d gone out for drinks with Joonas and Aleksi, at one of their favorite bars in Helsinki. A couple fans had come over and said hi, but for the most part, they’d been able to enjoy themselves peacefully.

A sudden, loud chirp from his phone, made his head ache even more. He saw that he had a text message from Aleksi:

Hey. Did you get home okay last night?

Yeah, I did, Joel replied, quickly switching his phone to silent mode.

How are you feeling? Aleksi asked.

That damn menace probably knew exactly how Joel was feeling! He was the one who kept urging Joel to stay a little longer, to not go home yet….Joel could never resist those big blue puppy-dog eyes, so he’d stayed, and ordered more and more drinks.

I’m hungover af, Joel texted back. He was probably getting too old for this shit.

Aleksi was only twenty-five, so his body could bounce back from a night out easily. But, Joel was going to be thirty this year, and right now, he felt every bit of his age.

On my way, Aleksi replied.

Huh? Joel stared down at the message, not comprehending. Why is he coming over here? To make fun of me?

He shuffled over to his closet, and threw on a NIN T-shirt, not wanting to answer his door shirtless. He knew he should probably shave, as well, but he simply didn’t have the mental bandwidth for that at the moment. Instead, he laid down in his bed again, and hoped that the room would stop spinning.

Twenty minutes later, he heard a knock at his door. He grumbled as he got up to answer it.

“Here you go,” Aleksi greeted him, smiling. Joel realized after a moment that he was holding something out to him - a McDonalds cup.

“I got you a McCafe caramel latte,” Aleksi explained. “I know it’s your favorite.”

“Oh my god, thank you,” Joel grunted, practically snatching the cup out of his hands. He sipped noisily from the straw, feeling a little better as soon as the caffeine hit his tongue.

“Don’t worry, I asked for oat milk instead of regular,” Aleksi assured him. “I know you’re trying to cut back on dairy.”

“You’re amazing,” Joel said appreciatively. Half of the drink had already disappeared down his throat.

“I got you a breakfast sandwich, too,” Aleksi said softly (was he trying to keep his volume down, to avoid making Joel’s headache worse?). “Figured something greasy would make you feel better.”

“You’re the best friend a man could ask for,” Joel sighed.

“Oh, I wasn’t doing it because I want to be just friends,” Aleksi smirked.

“…Huh?” Joel blinked. His brain circuits still weren’t working as quickly as they should.

“Don’t you remember what you said last night?” Aleksi asked.

“…No?” Joel blinked, confused. Last night was a total blur to him.

“You told me you had feelings for me.”

Joel choked on what was left of his coffee.

“Wh…What?” he spluttered. He’d felt that way about Aleksi for a long time, but he’d never meant to say so. Certainly he would only be rejected…right?

Aleksi reached up, and grabbed him by the shirt collar, pulling him down to his level.

“Why don’t you invite me in?” Aleksi whispered into his ear. “And I’ll show you exactly what my feelings towards you are.”

[haruchiyos]

to preface, this is going to be chronologically ordered and mostly a word vomit of thoughts, I apologize in advance

okay, the set up here is amazing. this choice in tragic (but misunderstood) prophecy really brings out the worst in him -- in the best way possible. He's cruel. He's arrogant. He's emotional detached. All this combined with the strength he has to back up that arrogance... mm, this man has me in a chokehold already.

"But he sees in the corner of his eye Kaiser’s state, sitting in the kind of stillness that you see before a battle, bent over at the bottom of the altar." "The people do not know what causes their successor to turn so cold, as biting and harsh as winter itself. His quicksilver smile rattles bones, his sword is cutting like blood in snow."

What spectacular imagery here. Ugh, also a great example of saying a lot with very little. You also widen the scope of your world for the literal reader through this minor perspective shift, of which demonstrates the manner in which Kaiser is viewed outside of his trusted entourage.

"He takes pride in your wide-eyed gaze, your sharpened attention, but the lack of fear on your part grates at him. God-killing, they had called the blade. Yet you don’t shy away at all."

Incredibly cinematic. and wow what an interesting choice in reader. an immortal, ugh I love such promised tragedy that lies even in just their difference of lifespan.

 “Would it help for you to press your sword against my neck once more?”

HAHAH fucking get him babe

"It’s an easy decision, but a hard conversation."

oh the brutality in this statement. Noel is such a great character to reign over kaiser (both within the manga and this fic). You've translated his resolute, impassive, and authoritative aura from the manga and translated it perfectly into this au.

"Ness rests his cheek on his hand. “Man, that sounds like she wins twice.”"

girl this aint about you !!!!!!!!!!!

"“Nah, I agree,” Reo leans back in the booth. “Kaiser’s a lot of things, but a loving husband is a bit much.”"

this made me cackle

Okok anyways, the sparring match was phenomenal. Reader's controlled stillness and kaiser's earnest. ugh what an interesting pairing. It's very difficult to write action heavy scenes without feeling repetitive or reading too "telly" so to speak. But you've nailed the balance off show not tell, as well as shaped it with great flow of diction. additionally the clear power imbalance between the two of them is so great. yes kaiser may be able to best reader in hand to hand at some point in the future, but thats on the grounds that reader is barred from using her magic, which is very much not the case atm. its subtle and I also find it super fucking attractive that 1) kaiser knows / recognizes this and 2) he's not threatened by it. They are such great foils to one another. also the explanation as to why reader doesn't bow was *chefs kiss*

"He takes one look to the side of him and his eyes find yours immediately. It must be some sort of fighter’s sense, you think. For him to have done it so easily."

my heart skipped a beat

"“The title ‘your highness’ doesn’t apply to this nation because strength is valued most. I am heir to the throne not because of the blood running through my veins, but because Noa deemed I the strongest — not just in body but in mind, not just in physical strength but in adaptability.”"

oh wow, there is so much subtle world building packed into this omg.

"... Not because you’re unknowing, or because of some godly pride, but because you have never been lesser.” "

oh id fucking fold right then and there

"He smells like the grass of the field and the winter air and the heavy musk of sweat, and when you shove him off, it feels like your hand meets the hard rock of an unruly ocean."

this almost reads like prose. great grounding through appealing to the senses (something seldom seen within fics). its vivid. its gripping. its immersive.

HELLO SAE??????? why is it kinda hot that he's a bit omniscient in this scenario. how does he know these things,,,,,,, and when he whispers to reader I got butterflies (I do not usually thirst for this man so thats saying something). Im so curious of how -- like noel -- you've translated his complexities from the manga into your world, what part of his past prompts his coldness and calculating nature in this au like soccer did in the source material? Your grasp of all three of their characters (kai, sae, noel) is so grounded and multifaceted. they feel tangible

"And with none of a prince’s grace, with movements that feel more fight than dance, he drifts along the floor with you."

I love this moment

""Nah,” Oliver leans back. “I think that’s just foreplay.”"

also love this, but for more crass reasons

THE MIHYA MOMENT !!!!!! you can just tell that this is a big moment for him. this feels like a shift in their finally. judging by his reaction, its almost as if he's already addicted to the intimacy of the name

"Blessed. That is not a phrase Kaiser would have ever used to describe himself. But coming from you, he can almost believe it. Almost hope to have a little more than he’s ever had. "

oh gods hes being humanized. save me please before I fall more in love with this man

"“Is this a decision that you are making for yourself, by your own hands? That is entirely for you?” "

hes so observant, what a great recognition of agency on his part

not tied to a specific moment, but I also want to point out the risk you took here with how you wrote reader. reader here has a lot of character. there is distinct personality that is not typical to that of the self insert genre. in most cases self inserts are as generalized / neutral as possible to be able to appeal to a wide audience, and yet your reader still feels easy to connect to despite having prominent and unique traits. I applaud you for walking that line so well (also so much forethought to factor in sorceress as a means to identify her, rather than the impersonal y/n or name)

"“Mm, and you’re gonna give me one more.” "

im gonna lose my mind

"He tilts his head with a grin so cocky that if you weren’t so blissed out you might just punch him. "

so true queen

"You want to roll your eyes, but then he has one hand tapping against your clit, the other gripping either side of your cheeks. “You begged so pretty for me earlier when I had my mouth on you,” he rasps. “What happened to that?” "

im gonna lose my mind pt 2

"He wants you- needs you to feel the way he feels. Needs to have you lying in his bed, thinking only of him and how he makes you feel. "

there's that lovely disorganized attachment of his. ugh he's so obsessive it makes my head spin. the yearning is palpable

"For once, he lets himself feel – to have something that is wholly his. to know and be known. To give and know you will receive. Not an offering at an altar but a hand in his"

oh we love to see steps in the direction of healing. "to know and be known" hits hard in general.

"“Then why,” you ask, genuinely, “did you ask me to stay?”"

!!!!!!!GET HIS ASS

I second the bisexual shidou agenda

"You will die by the hands of the one you love most. So, it truly was this feeling, after all. Love. An aching thing, something so undoing. An open wound that can only be tendered by you. "

this feels straight out of a publish novel

"His hands are lightning quick, sitting up and moving to your neck to check your pulse, only exhaling and relaxing once he feels it. "

another great show dont tell. demonstrating his panic through action/ behavior rather than describing his internal experience/thoughts. very cinematic

"“So she lends you her loyalty, and you take advantage of her. And you dare put yourselves above us?” "

!!!!!!!GET HER ASS. nothing slips past him, he's so observant

" “A life of such simplicity is not befitting of a woman like her.” "

when his pride extends to her >>>>>>>

"“I’m quite fond of her. I hope for her an easy life.” "

okay maybe I do like this goddess......

"His voice is soft, as it always is with you now. "

oh what a great way to wrap up his character evolution. the contrast between his brutalist persona at the start compared to this culmination of learned tenderness is a very satisfying payoff. a demigod brought out his humanity

"...And like in every life, you find your way back to each other, every time. "

oh im gonna sob, how can you hit me with this right at the end

in conclusion, thank you for reading through all my incoherent blubbering; and above all, thank you for pouring such love and time into this piece -- it really shows.

FORSAKEN BY ALL THE GODS.

info: prince!kaiser x f!reader, enemies to lovers, fantasy au, arranged marriage, eventual smut. afab reader w she/her pronouns. reader has an established backstory and is not weak, reader’s appearance is nondescript. reader calls him “mihya” as they get closer. oliver and karasu are bffs in this lol. maybe some angst if you squint. happy ending!! plot is balanced with comedic moments. 

synopsis: You will be killed by the one you love most. That line from his prophecy has haunted Kaiser his whole life. Against it all, you stand before him. Will you be the one to rewrite fate itself?

word count: 14k (please don’t let this scare you, i promise my writing is efficient) 

a/n: this might be my magnum opus, i promise i poured my best dialogue and writing into this and it shows. if you consider reading like so seriously i will love you forever. also the smut is huge just like his cock <3 or my heart

Kaiser has been forsaken thrice fold. First, by his parents. His mother is said to be a beautiful woman that captured the hearts of all. His father could not bear her ultimate betrayal: leaving, causing him to wither away to nothing.

Kaiser guesses that this aspect of her runs in his blood after all.

The second and third time he is forsaken happen at once.

On the night that Kaiser is, by royal decree, anointed successor to the throne, he does as tradition dictates. He approaches the golden temple at the top of a mountain and mirrors the prophet within, sitting cross-legged in front of them.

The prophet gazes into the distance. And then, like a man possessed, they speak.

Lone Emperor who covets the throne, You will be killed by the one you love most.

Kaiser swears he feels even his heart stop at that. Cold rushes through him, the chill of it colder than anything he had felt at the front lines of war.

Forsaken by all the Gods —

The prophet stops, staring into the distance with a frown.

The silence is deafening. Noa, despite tradition, interrupts the ceremony and approaches the prophet, clicking his fingers in front of their face.

“The prophecy?”

The prophet’s eyes widen with fear. “I- I cannot.”

“What, are you afraid?” Kaiser scoffs. “The prophecy is bad as it is, it can’t get much worse than that.”

“No, I mean I cannot. The — the Fates! They’ve stopped speaking to me!”

“Excuse me?” Kaiser’s scowl is evident, and Noa swears that in any other situation, Kaiser would’ve moved for his sword and set his blade ablaze.

It speaks volumes that all he does is stare right at the prophet, fear barely contained in his eyes.

The prophet grips at Noa’s hand, forcing his gaze. “My lord, please believe me. This — in the history... it has never happened before. I swear it.”

Noa whistles, and the guards outside come rushing in. “Seize them,” he commands, and they stare at each other for a moment.

To seize and capture that  which is considered holy? Is that not blasphemy?

Noa cares little, almost removing his sword from his sheath to do it himself. “What are you all waiting for?”

“My lord! I swear to you!” The prophet grapples towards Noa in spite of their hands being held behind their back, the guards barely catching them from falling to their knees. “The fact that I would admit this at all shows my loyalty to you!” The prophet gasps, breath coming fast.” I could have pretended, could have given a false prophecy. I did not. That’s the choice I made. That is all the proof you need.”

It’s convincing enough that Noa hesitates, taking a deep breath in. But he sees in the corner of his eye Kaiser’s state, sitting in the kind of stillness that you see before a battle, bent over at the bottom of the altar. 

At that sight, Noa makes a single motion with his hand for the prophet to be taken away.

The room clears.

“Kaiser, I —” 

Whatever comforting remark Noa might have made dies in his throat, because Kaiser laughs, a bitter and broken sound, that he would in the future rarely have his walls down to ever reveal again. He hides his eyes behind his hand and he laughs.

“Of course, my prophecy would come to something like this.” He drags his hand down across his face. “Forsaken by all the Gods.”

“It doesn’t matter.” Noa says it with conviction, and it’s enough for Kaiser to face him.

“Master?”

“You will still be the successor to the throne. As is your destiny.”

“My destiny?” Kaiser jabs a thumb to the now-empty seating. “We just heard my destiny.”

“What the gods have declared has nothing to do with me. I declare you the next to rule. That is all.”

Noa presses a hand to the crown of Kaiser’s head. “No one will know what transpired here. A tragic prophecy is a given. It is meant to be a trial of sorts, after all. Mine, too, was unpleasant. Though not nearly as dire.”

“What was yours?”

Noa breathes in deeply. “A twisted rivalry with a twisted man. One that was to be all-consuming to me.”

Kaiser scoffs. “A rivalry. Just train and win.”

Noa lets the comment pass, staring out of the temple and past the mountains. “The rivalry came and went. At the time, I felt it was the worst. I could not eat, sleep, or breathe without the thought of what he would do next on my mind. But I was lucky, that it passed.”

He motions for Kaiser to take his arm, bringing him back up to standing. “Yours will pass too, I’m sure of it.”

Kaiser waves his hand, gesturing at Noa to let go of him. It’s easy to say, easy to have faith when it is not your life that balances on the precipice.

Forsaken thrice: once, by his parents. Another, by the Gods. And third, by his own future lover. Kaiser curses the Gods and the Weaver for such a fate, for something possibly worse than death is looming over him.

You will be killed by the one you love most. That line has haunted his very being to this day.

~

The people do not know what causes their successor to turn so cold, as biting and harsh as winter itself. His quicksilver smile rattles bones, his sword is cutting like blood in snow.

The prophecy is on a need-to-know basis, and Kaiser has never been crueler. He trains, harder than ever. Enough that when an unmovable sword is found at the rocks of the ocean, he trains until he is able to pull it from the bank, wield it with one hand. Rumor has said it might take three men to carry, or that the night sky that shimmers across it is strong enough to kill even a god. His sole retrieval of it is proof to the people of his strength and stature, but compassion and love are rarely a topic of conversation with his name.  

He focuses on his work. He does not take lovers. He barely sees others as friends. And he most certainly does not take a bride.

~

You appear before the throne and you do not bow. The scowl on Kaiser’s face at this says enough.

“You dare-”

“You have the sword.” You ignore Kaiser entirely, setting your sights completely on Noa.

The silence that follows is as large and wide as the ocean, but your gaze is sharp and keen, never faltering once until Noa speaks.

“Water sorceress,” Noa addresses you coldly, “or that’s what you told our people.”

“Yes.”

“You are not the only sorceress of water. Yet your power is second to none.” Noa stands, stepping down the stairs with heavy, thumping footfalls until he’s standing right in front of you. “They call you the water’s mistress, in the neighboring lands.”

“They do.”

He begins to circle you, like a hunter might before striking a deer. Standing next to you, his deep voice clear right next to your ear, he eyes you curiously. “They’re all wrong, aren’t they?”

You don’t answer. Noa takes that as answer enough.

“A power like that. Do you think me stupid?” He observes you, checks you visually for weapons, watches your hands to ensure you don’t call magic forth.

“Demigod.” He about spits the word from behind you, and yet all you do is tilt your head to catch him in your eye’s view.

“You are as well-informed as they say.”

“I am as logical as they come.”

“We are the same in that regard, then. So let’s get straight to the point.” 

Noa returns back to the throne, seemingly satisfied with his observing, gesturing at you to continue. 

“You have something belonging to me. A sword, heavier than most. Ancient, yet sharp. It is said to look like it contains a night sky.”

“The blade you’re speaking of was found by us, it is ours to keep.”

In the short silence that follows, Kaiser swears there must be irritation on your end, but you don’t show it. Instead, you take a deep breath in.

“The blade was thrown out of the heavens and spat out into this realm during a war between Gods.”

“Is that so? And how can you prove it’s yours?”

“I can wield it, unlike your people, who do not have the means to wield a sword as such.” You state simply.

Like rose grown blue, the impossible becomes possible. You can feel the divinity and the power that comes off the sword in waves the minute it’s unsheathed, your eyes widening. The ring of it is as familiar to you as your own skin, how could you not have felt its presence sooner? But Kaiser is fast, much faster than you expected, faster than he should be with a sword of that weight, that magnitude. Before you can turn your head, cold silver kisses your neck.

“This blade, sorceress?” He comes around from behind you, stalks around you just like his Master had, sword pointed like it may just draw blood from you at any moment. When you finally see his face, his sneer is wicked.

He takes pride in your wide-eyed gaze, your sharpened attention, but the lack of fear on your part grates at him. God-killing, they had called the blade. Yet you don’t shy away at all.

“Say we return the sword to its rightful owner,” Noa calls back your attention, “what would you offer us in return?”

“Offer in return? This sword does not belong to you. It is returned, as it should be.”

“This sword, with its divinity, could harm even a god.” Kaiser presses the blade closer to your neck, gleaming metal against your skin. “It protects this nation. What if the gods forsake us? If we return it to you, what would protect us against them then?”

“For what reason would they do such a thing?”

Kaiser barks a laugh. “Of course, there would be no criticisms from one of them. Water sorceress, demigod. Tell us, who are you, truly? What do your people call you, up there? No matter.” He lowers the sword, but leaves it unsheathed, its heavy weight balanced in his palm. A threat that at any moment, he may change his mind. “Those titles mean nothing to me. I have been forsaken, demigod. So know, I trust not even the gods.”

You sigh. Foreseeing a troublesome future has its cons, you suppose. Your queen would smile if you told her such.

“You ask for something with power in equal to or more than the blade. You asked me for my titles. I shall give you both.” The sleeves of your dress shimmer as you move them, and it’s in this moment that Kaiser notices they are not sleeves but water itself, cradled around your wrists like armor. “The Gods had bestowed on me the title Sword Maiden, and I offer myself and my services to you until the end of your line.”

That shocks the room like a bucket of cold water.

You turn to Kaiser, who stands beside the throne. You step forward once, and water rushes underneath that step, descending in waves over the floor as if it goes through it, a magic they have never witnessed prior. “You say the Gods have forsaken you? Let my presence be proof to you that they still watch over you.”

Kaiser scowls, “What sort of cheap trick is this?”

“My domain is truth. I cannot lie.”

“Oh, please.”

Your eyes narrow at him. “Would it help for you to press your sword against my neck once more?”

A goddess who cannot lie. Noa’s faith lies in logic, but he’s not one to look a gift horse in the mouth. His gaze flits between Kaiser and you before he seems to settle a decision in his mind.

“Until the end of Kaiser’s line.” Noa negotiates.

Kaiser’s gaze snaps to Noa. “You’re taking her up on this?”

You almost frown. “Fine.”

Noa quirks an eyebrow at you. “That simple?”

“Human lives move quickly.”

Kaiser eyes you curiously. “What happens when you lie?”

You blink at him. Once. Twice. Is that… almost a flustered look you have on?

He readjusts his grip on the blade. “Speak, sorceress.”

“Wh-What do you want me to say?!” You grip at your dress nervously, and that has him even more curious.

“I’m waiting here,” he sing-songs playfully.

“Before the lie can leave my voice, my neck swells up like a balloon, and chokes me.”

He smiles wickedly. “Demonstrate.”

Gods, if it wasn’t immoral, you could wring his neck right now.

You think, for even a moment, a simple lie. And in seconds, you’re almost suffocating on nothing, and Kaiser laughs. Laughs. A full laugh, bending at his knees.

“Oh gods, you’re like a pufferfish!”

You let go of the lie, taking heaving breaths. “Just because I have water capabilities does not mean I am a fish.”

In the midst of the conversation, Isagi leans against Noa’s side, a soft conversation full of worry.

“You’ll have to explain her presence to the council,” Isagi tells him, blue eyes wide with hesitation.

“Right, and your suggestion?”

“I have thought about it, considerably. If you say you hired her, with a force as powerful as her, the other nations may think you are to wage war. So… Given the heir’s… reputation,” Isagi’s gaze flits nervously between you and Kaiser. “If he is willing, she may be a good fit.”

Noa sighs. This, this exact theory, has been a conversation with the other members of his team for months. That a wife by his side would make him seem less chilling, make the transition to a new heir easier on the public, prevent outroar. It is one thing to feel that Kaiser keeps a nation safe, and another to love him as a ruler.

It’s an easy decision, but a hard conversation.

“Kaiser.”

He whips around, ceasing his antics quickly. “Master.”

Noa looks like he is about to say something to him, but hesitates, turning to you instead. Isagi nervously steps away from the dais, returning to his position.

“Goddess,” this time, there is no malice behind Noa’s words. “I accept your offer. However, your presence in this nation and in this castle must be explained appropriately. Should I bear you the title of my successor’s betrothed, would that be a title you’re willing to bear?”

Kaiser’s back straightens. “Excuse me?” he utters low.

“You do not have to bear children,” he specifies. “And you do not have to truly be wed.”

A goddess, to be betrothed to a mortal, as princely as he is, is a serious affair. Kaiser slides his gaze to Isagi, with the audacity to even suggest such. And yet, you seem to ponder it like a simple question.

“I see. As long as the sword is in my presence and protection, how you communicate with your nation is none of my concern.”

“So be it, then,” Noa agrees quickly. “I’ll have our people show you to a room.”

You nod, and are whisked away. The throne room, as if knowingly, empties quickly, guards rushing out to leave Kaiser alone with Noa.

“You made this decision for me,” Kaiser spins to face Noa, spits his words through gritted teeth. “I have been clear. I will take no brides.”

“You believe the prophecy made a choice for you.”       

“The prophecy bears no mercy. Or do you wish for my death so eagerly? If so, take your sword out and do it your damn self.”

Noa lets him speak, heave his words out until there’s silence once more.

“She cannot lie,” Noa says softly. “She cannot lie to you, Kaiser. And she is a goddess, a divine being.”

“Demigod,” Kaiser corrects.

“She is divine, and she cannot lie. She is correct, to this end – that as long as she is here, the prophecy cannot come to be. For she has not forsaken us.” Forsaken you, goes unspoken. “She could be good for you, if you allowed her to be.”

Kaiser lets out a canned laugh. “Ha. How can the divine ever understand us?”

Noa stands. “You’ll have plenty of time to find out.”

Kaiser taps his hand against his sword hilt. “You really will not move on this?”

Noa shakes his head. “She is too valuable to lose, and you have a reputation for cruelty. The solution is nothing short of perfect.”

The logical comes above his feelings. Kaiser knows this, even if he hates to come face to face with it.

Noa walks out of the throne room, leaving Kaiser to his bitterness.

“Shitty master,” he mumbles under his breath to no one.

~

It’s jarring to all the guards, the way you don’t even stand let alone bow when Noa knocks to enter your room. But Noa cares little for things like that, if you’re truly offering what you’ve said.

“Perhaps I was too hasty, in presenting the solution before giving you the facts.” He hesitates before you in the reflection of your vanity. You don’t respond, barely even look at him as you unclasp your jewelry, laying it on the table.

“He will not love you.” Noa tells you after a breath, his surefire eyes finally meeting yours.

You give him a curious gaze. “That is likely for the best. I would outlive him, after all.”

“It is, truly, on a need-to-know basis. To tell you this-”

“The prophecy, I presume you’re referring to,” you interrupt, turning to face him.

The shock rolls quickly off him. Divinity does have its mysteries, he supposes. “You already know.”

“I asked the water, why he is so quick to believe he is forsaken. They told me that he lives under the burden of a prophetic trial. That is all I know.” You stand, moving to unzip your dress only for Noa to hastily pull a partition screen across the room and turn around.

“The water, it speaks to you?”

“It does. Though it’s worth noting that it does not make me all-seeing.” Your voice carries over the partition with the ruffle of clothing. “The queen of the Gods, who sees all fates – she is the only one who is truly all-seeing.”

You come out in a nightgown, folding the partition back. He chucks you a robe that you catch easily.

“You should learn the ways of this world if you want to pass as a simple water sorceress, especially before the banquet.”

You frown. “The prince is my betrothed, is he not? Will he not handle it all?”

The idea you present sparks in Noa’s mind. “Brilliant. I’ll have Kaiser and some of the other members of our team show you the ropes. Good night, sorceress.”

You nod to him, and the door clicks shut.

~

“She’s a what?”

Oliver slams his metal cup of beer down, rolling the dice once more.

“A demigod, Oliver. Gods, are you that drunk already? Keep up.” Karasu grabs at the dice as Oliver moves his pieces.

“Can you all shut the fuck up? What happened to need-to-know basis?” Chigiri slinks himself over to their table.

“We’re need-to-know.” Karasu jabs a thumb at himself and Oliver.

“They are, actually, need-to-know.” Isagi puts a gentle hand on Chigiri’s shoulder, settling down next to him. “Because she’s never been human in her life.”

“And now we’re supposed to, what, teach her to be human? Is that a thing we can do?” Chigiri twirls a strand of hair between his fingers, tapping the end against Isagi’s cheek.

Oliver snorts. “What, like a class? Some of us have never sat in one of those, you prissy little shits.”

“She can’t dance, for one.”

“Get Kaiser to teach her. Isn’t he her betrothed?”

That has Oliver almost spitting out his drink, choking on it in coughs. “He's her what?”

Chigiri scowls in his direction. “Dude, are you listening at all?”

“If she’s really his betrothed, none of us should be teaching her.” Oliver warns genuinely. “He’ll cut down everyone here, before he lets us touch her.”

“It’s just an excuse,” Isagi waves his hand, pulling out a leather-bound bind of notes. “They’re not actually together.”

“Oh, you actually got that motion to pass. Shit.” Karasu remarks admirably.

“It must be so tiring,” Bachira sighs happily, falling into place next to Isagi, “to have to actually care about what other people think.”

“The optics, Bachira,” Isagi smacks the end of his pen across Bachira’s nose, and he makes an oh! sound in response.

When Kaiser walks in, the room almost goes silent. He’s used to it, of course. Hearing only the way his footfalls come heavy, boots thumping into the stone floor as a drink is placed right in front of him immediately.

The room slowly fills back with noise as he shoulders off his coat, wrapping it around the chair before sitting. But only his table is still strangely silent.

He flits his gaze over the group. Usually, they’re the first to kill the silence in the room, yelling about the game or a duel. He looks at Isagi, specifically, who seems the most nervous. “Something you wanna say to me?”

“Uh…”

Chigiri sighs, killing the tension. “We’re deciding who gets to teach her how to dance.”

Kaiser quirks an eyebrow. “The demigod?”

Chigiri nods, and Kaiser takes a long gulp of his drink, popping it back down and twirling the top of it with his fingers. “I’ll do it.”

“What?” It’s Isagi’s turn to be shocked, sitting up straight.

Kaiser exhales audibly. “None of you could handle her. She could cut you with water the moment you accidentally step on her.”

It’s not an insult, really. They know this too. That this is Kaiser’s brand of protection, to add insult to injury just to keep others out of harm’s way. But they play his game.

“Think we can’t dodge fast enough? A bit demeaning, don’t you think?” Oliver’s grin is wicked, making straight eye contact with Kaiser, who only draws his eyebrows in at his direction.

“You think that god-killing sword is gonna save you?” Karasu asks.

“I don’t have the sword anymore.”

“What?”

It stings more than it should, he thinks. The sword that he thought chose only him, so quickly released from his grasp. But his strength is his own, he holds fast to that. 

Kaiser glances at Karasu. “Those are the terms. She marries me, she gets the sword.”

Ness rests his cheek on his hand. “Man, that sounds like she wins twice.”

Chigiri scoffs at that. “She’s a demigod. Being down here is probably like being in the sewers to her.”

Kaiser stands abruptly, pushing his drink aside, his coat billowing as he wraps it over himself once more.

“Where are you going?” Isagi yells, but he doesn’t answer.

“He gone for real?” Oliver elbows Karasu. “I’m too drunk to tell.”

“Yeah, man. He’s gone”  

“Great.” Oliver slaps a piece down. “I’ll bet 50 bucks right now they get married for real.”

“What the fuck?” Chigiri tilts his head back against the wall, staring at the ceiling like it might give him some reprieve.

Karasu laughs, “Okay, I’ll play. I’ll bet 20 that they try to kill each other.”

“You’re just a hater.”

“Nah, I agree,” Reo leans back in the booth. “Kaiser’s a lot of things, but a loving husband is a bit much.”

“She’s a goddess. He’s literally already betrothed to her.” Oliver takes another swig. “Y’all ain’t gonna marry a goddess if she was given to you? Damn, put me in his place, I’ll do it right now.”

~

Kaiser trains, every morning, from sunrise to noon.

You only know because most of the rooms in the palace outlook to a self-contained field. You see him, often, because of this, even if he doesn’t speak to you. As you walk down the corridor, in your classes with Isagi about the current climate of the nations.

“It is useless for me to learn this,” you tell him. “In a few short millennia, the border of the nations will undoubtedly change. And we will have to relearn it all again. What is the use? Why war at all over something so insignificant? Just have a conversation about it.”

Isagi makes a pointed, bored expression at you for this, and then pretends like you didn’t say anything at all.  

At the end of class today, you press your elbows to the open windowsill.

Kaiser is there, sparring with Ness. Ness is quick, agile, fleet-footed and runs circles around Kaiser so much so that it almost makes it difficult to keep up.  

Kaiser approaches him at bone-breaking momentum, launches strike after hardened strike. He’s shirtless, bandages wrapped around the bottom of his torso, and his body is streaked with sweat. He’s strong, clearly. Broad shoulders clear now from when they were hidden under layers of clothing the first time you met him, the muscles in his arms flexing and relaxing with each step of the friendly duel, hair dipped in saltwater blue.

You know what he looks like, now. You get a sense why Fate brings you here.

He looks like a hero.

The kind that Gods covet, watch from their merry clouds. It’s no wonder that he’s burdened by a prophetic trial, with a face as cutting as his sword, his hair framing his face and flowing. 

He takes one look to the side of him and his eyes find yours immediately. It must be some sort of fighter’s sense, you think. For him to have done it so easily.

You give him the space you think he might be asking for. You turn away.

~

He approaches you one night, just before sunset. Karasu had just finished an etiquette lesson with you, setting away forks and knives. Whatever he sees on Kaiser’s face makes him move quicker. He nods once to Kaiser, and then hastily leaves.

“You’ve been making yourself quite at home here, demigod.” Kaiser traces the lace outline of the tablemat, every ridge under his calloused finger.

“I vowed myself to your kingdom to the end of your life. I’m simply doing what is asked of me.”

“And you’re all ready for the banquet, I’m guessing?” The sentence is almost mocking as he approaches you.

“It’s just a ball, is it not? I’ve been told I’m just to stand there and make pleasantries.”  

Kaiser chuckles, more bared teeth than sweet. “It is, arguably, the worst part of being so-called royalty.”

“You’re taking this much better than I thought you would.”

"To say no to a goddess' proposal would be the greatest blasphemy, no?" 

"From what I've seen, you have not minded sacrilege much at all."

“Marriage means little to me. Disillusioned, perhaps, with the prophecy.” He waves his hand like he speaks of something meaningless. But you see it clearly. Before he had even allowed himself the thought of love, it was taken from him. “Your power is great, your presence ensures the continuation of myself as an heir and successor. Even I can reason with that.”

He's right in front of you now, so close you can feel his body warmth.

“Does it bother me?” He shrugs. “Sure. As far as I’m aware, you are no wife of mine. But a protector of this nation? For that, you are an indispensable ally.”

He looks out the window, towards a coming sunset. Something indescribable on his face, like grief and guilt all in one. He takes a deep breath in and out, inhaling the peace and exhaling the heaviness of his heart, before facing you again. “A war is coming. No one believes me, but I can feel it, as steady as a river’s current. Until then, I’ll make my peace with you.”

You nod. “So be it, your highness.”

That has him stepping back, more incredulous than you’ve ever seen him, body tensed and frowning. Maybe he should’ve expected it, given the way he’s just dismissed you. “Your highness? You hadn’t questioned my lineage before, but now you dare to do so?”

You stare at him blankly. “You are a prince, are you not? Isagi says that’s what princes are called.”

One side of his mouth upturns in relief, and he bursts out a bright laugh. “Is that what they teach you in those lessons Isagi gives? Oh,” a hand runs through the front of his hair, “I thought my own wife-to-be would dare insult me.” 

You scoff. “I have no need for that.” 

“The title ‘your highness’ doesn’t apply to this nation because strength is valued most. I am heir to the throne not because of the blood running through my veins, but because Noa deemed I the strongest — not just in body but in mind, not just in physical strength but in adaptability.” He says it proudly, like fact, like a knowing so deep within him that it turns pride into faith. “A title like that is something used by the Itoshi brothers, let’s say,” he comments airily. “Their throne is carried by a bloodline.” 

He turns on his heel, only looking back when he realizes you don’t follow.

“You don’t know how to dance yet, do you?”

You lean your hip against the table. “I can dance.”

“Come, then. If you’re to be my wife, it’ll be an embarrassment if you don’t at least act like it.”

You follow him to a ballroom – a stunning, wide area with a looping chandelier, curtains that weigh down in arches over each floor-to-ceiling window.

He swoops you from your distraction with a hand around your waist, and the physical contact shocks you so greatly that orbs of water swirl in your hands.

Kaiser only raises an eyebrow at you. “This is a dance, not a duel. Or do the gods do it differently?”

For a man who was so passive to you, he holds you so close that your chest to chest, you can feel each breath he takes against you. When he steps with you, his movements are slow and deliberate, never inefficient. He moves not with fluidity, but with each sure step. Pulls you forward, then pushes you back. Circles you, spins you around.

It’s exactly like when you see him train. Like steps to a kata.

“I thought you said this was not a duel.”

“These are steps to a classic waltz, demigod.”

“You have no fluidity to you.”

Kaiser scoffs. “Should I apologize? With the prophetic curse hanging above me, I haven’t taken a dancing class.”

“It doesn’t have to be.”

“Hm?”

“The prophecy. It doesn’t have to be a curse.”

He stops, separating himself from you, scowling.

“This session is over.”

“Kaiser-,”

“What?” He snaps. “You, of divine nature. You want to tell me how to view my prophecy?”

“I do not say this out of pity, or out of some sort of higher knowing.” You say it with conviction. “As heir to the throne, a throne that is currently being held by Fate itself, maybe I shouldn’t be saying this at all.”

“And yet?”

“To know your fate is to be able to defy it.” And maybe it’s just an effect of your divinity, but it rings like a bell, like truth itself. “Your prophecy may have made a wound, but you are the one who cuts it open. You are a man who wields a sword that cannot, should not be able to be wielded by anyone but the divine. Does that not say something? About you, about your capabilities?”

“And yet you took it from me.” 

The silence that follows is thick with indecision. Kaiser lets the uncomfortableness sit, rejects every heartwarmed statement you make with a roll of his shoulders, like water off a smoothened rock, replaced with only his anger. “I trained for weeks before I could lift that sword out of the riverbank. Yet it is yours, now, simply because you are supposedly its rightful owner.” 

Conflict runs through your face so clearly, he wonders that even if you could lie, whether it would mean anything at all. He watches as your hand reaches into a conjured puddle of water that floats in the air, and out comes the divine sword.

You hold it in your hand with an ease that he has spent months capturing. It strikes envy in him like a branded sear. 

“My role here is technically to secure the sword. I have no need to wield it.” You hold it at the bottom of its handle, directing the top of it to him. “If you swear you won’t lose her, I can set a compromise of sorts.” 

“You think I’d agree to a compromise?” 

You open up your palm, and a bracelet appears. “This will help you keep the sword in a pocket dimension we can both access. If you’re willing to place it there to secure it when you’re not using it, I’ll return her to you until the end of your line.” 

Huh. A safe-keeping place is a more neutral proposition than he had thought you’d come up with. To have her back kills the fight in him, and he accepts begrudgingly, testing the magic in his hands until it becomes natural. 

“For the record, Kaiser, I have not always been worthy of it.”

Something about the way his name slips off your lips has him keening. “Worthy?”

“I stayed true to my course. I was given a title. And then I could wield the sword, presented to me by my queen.”

“Your queen. Heir to the throne.” He laughs bitterly, knowingly. “You’re a princess.”

“Despite your mocking tone, I’ll have you know that title of mine is of the highest regard. I don’t take it nearly as lightly as you do with yours.”

“That’s why you didn’t bow or kneel. You take what’s meant to be yours without a second thought. Not because you’re unknowing, or because of some godly pride, but because you have never been lesser.” He flicks a finger between your eyebrows. “What a spoiled thing you are. Can you even fight?”

Something in Kaiser takes pride in the way you frown more deeply, it’s almost like a pout. It’s almost… 

“Well, I definitely wasn’t sitting idly in the war between Gods.” 

“I’ve never seen you train.” 

“That’s because you’re always on the training grounds.” 

“Oh? You won’t show me?” 

“I’m giving you space. I’m no wife of yours, no?” There’s a sting to it when you say it, having his words thrown back at him. 

“Duel with me. Tomorrow.” He spins you, lets you out of his hold before bringing you back in. 

~

He begins to meet you, day after day. A duel first, and then a dance. The dichotomy would be distasteful to any other, but you of divine blood do not even flinch at his request.

He may be displeased to have you, but his mouth cracked as wide and wicked as a cat’s at the prospect of a fight.

“Go on, then.” He takes a blunt, wooden sword, throwing it in your direction. “Or do you only fight with magic?” He teases. 

You swing the sword, rotating your wrist with ease. “Do you forget yourself, prince? I am half divine, you will surely lose. Are you sure you want to go through with this anyways?” 

His mouth widens, more teeth than smile. “Bring it.” 

You know, the moment you defend against his first strike, that a singular hit from him on the battlefield must be deadly. He is surefooted, his whole weight bears down in every move. He doesn’t let you breathe once, much faster than you would’ve thought with someone of his size and height. 

Kaiser was almost right about one thing, that the divine adds to your magic more than your physical strength. With enough training, in just simple hand-to-hand combat… He might have the potential to beat you. 

But not today. Today, you have him pinned to the ground, makeshift blade to his throat. 

“You’re awfully close,” he gasps out slyly. And it’s in this moment that you notice, too, how right he is about that, how you can feel his heartbeat underneath yours, his chest against yours with each exhale. 

“What?” He grins wide, “afraid you’ll miss?” 

By all the Gods, you want to knock the living daylights out of him. He notices your anger in that hesitation, your conflict between doing what is right and what you want, and flips you over, swapping your positions until his hips are pressed against yours. 

Something about your shell-shocked face makes him stir. 

“First rule of fighting, sweetheart,” he runs a hand through his hair before planting it next to your head, leaning into you close. “Never get distracted by your opponent.”

He’s closer than he was before, admiring the way you look under him, your hair splayed along the ground and the sweet fire of irritation in your eyes. Is the heaving of your chest from your anger towards him, or from something else entirely? 

“When Gods fight, there is not nearly as much prattling.” You grit at him. He smells like the grass of the field and the winter air and the heavy musk of sweat, and when you shove him off, it feels like your hand meets the hard rock of an unruly ocean. 

~

It is during dances that he speaks to you. Not at first, but slowly, like a river that streams into the ocean. You tell him tales about the Gods, about your friends, about wars and petty arguments. And he starts to answer you, more often than not, with every question you might have. 

“I have wondered about something.” 

“Hm?”

“The sheathing. It prevents even me from detecting the sword’s divinity.” 

“Huh, so Nagi really wasn’t lying.” 

“Nagi, who is always with Reo?” 

Kaiser nods. “They say Nagi was once sought upon by a god for his talents, a god who was constantly sending him dreams. But he grew tired of it, so he found a material that prevents even the gods from finding him so he can sleep in peace.” 

The conversation often leads to the prophecy, a bitterness like licorice on his tongue. Even if he skates around the topic, you don’t let him hide from it, cutting straight to the heart of the truth.

“You can live in the cold bitterness you’ve put yourself in, Kaiser,” you tell him, one of these nights. “Or you can live, and maybe even possibly die, warmed by a life you truly felt was worth living. Your own choices. Not because of a prophecy, or because of Noa, or even in spite of me.”

But despite it, he doesn’t move away. Because it is the only time he has you to himself. He sees you, always, with Isagi and Oliver and Karasu and Chigiri. How you have molded into their lives with simplicity, sit with them at meals and have easy conversation despite knowing nothing, in a way that he has never once allowed himself to enjoy. What does it say about Kaiser? That he can't stand your presence but he can't stand your absence even more? That he would rather have a biting argument with you than leave you to your own devices? 

It's during duel and dance that he comes as close as he can to touching you. If he did anymore, it would become something he doesn't have the heart to name without unease settling in his gut.

~

On the day of the banquet, Chigiri sits you down in your vanity, braiding your hair back in his hands.

“The queen of the Gods, her lover, a friend of mine… He used to do this for me too.”

Chigiri silently appreciates that you don’t ask him why it is him that helps you with this. That divinity doesn’t hold the same notions this world does.

“He would-,” you laugh softly to yourself. You’re stunning like this, Chigiri can’t help but notice. A goddess, most casual as can be. “He would say that I was useless at it, actually. You two might’ve been good friends.”

“Me? Friends with a god?” Chigiri finishes the braid, tilting your head in his hands to admire the way the braid crowns around each side.

“Of the Fae, actually. A beautiful man he is. You would fit right in.”

That stops Chigiri, has him taking a sharp intake of breath, smiling at you through the vanity’s reflection. “Thank you, princess. Though you would do good to be more careful during this banquet to compliment anyone.”

You smile softly back. “Ah, yes, my betrothed who will not love me might get jealous. Gods are not so different than people, in this regard.”

“Is that so…”

~

It’s when you meet the Itoshi brothers at the banquet that you begin to understand why Isagi gave you all these lessons.

Where Kaiser is muscle and sword first, more fighter than prince, Sae and Rin are the opposite. They have a grace befitting of royalty. Instead of heavy footfalls that you can hear even in the blanket of snow, they are light-footed, conscious of it in the echoed ballroom.

Though you suspect, from the way Sae grips Kaiser’s forearm as they shake hands, from the way Kaiser regards Sae, that he is somehow just as strong of a fighter. That royalty is an illusion Sae and Rin put on, for peace’s sake.

Something indescribable flits over Sae’s face as you curtsy in front of him, but it’s gone in a moment, replaced with his nonchalance.

“The betrothed of the banquet. We are most pleased to make your acquaintance.” Sae bows his head to you, and Rin follows in his stead.

You smile, something beaming and sweet. “The pleasure is all mine.”

“Would you mind, Kaiser?” Sae’s eyes only leave yours for a glance, to check in at Kaiser’s now furrowed look. “I’d like to take your wife-to-be for a dance.”

Kaiser’s back straightens, a hardened gaze with gritted teeth. But he says nothing. You swear Sae almost grins.

“I’ll return her back to you.” He says it like a favor, and Kaiser is only held back by Karasu’s hand on his shoulder.

“It’s just one dance, Kai,” Kaiser looks at Karasu, then to you, and then back to Sae. He barely nods once.

“Are you sure?” You ask him.

He scowls. “What do I have to be worried about?”

Well, it’s not like you want to anger him further. You let Sae take your hand, leading you to the floor.

“I almost didn't think you were who you said you were, when I saw you,” Sae tells you, breaking the quiet of the dance. 

You lean back so you can see his whole face, your confusion clear. “Your highness?”

“When I had heard of you, they told me that waves flowed off your dress like water itself holds you sacred. Yet here you are, as regular as can be.”

Sae twirls you away from him, then brings you back into his arms. “They say you shook the earth with a single step. Where is all that power you were said to hold?” He holds you close, watching your every reaction with his crystal gaze. “This place. They’ve placated you, tamed you.”

He brings his mouth to your ear, the body warmth of his entire chest seeping into yours. “If you were mine, I would never force you into a box you didn’t belong. I’m not afraid of you. I’m not afraid of Kaiser, even with his god-killing sword.” He spins you again, capturing your waist. “If you were mine, I wouldn’t be afraid to demonstrate your power to the world.”

“Sae.” He looks at you in a way that feels meaningful. You don’t know the pleasantries of this nation or his in-depth, but you know, somehow, that this feels like this is something you should shield from. 

“Oh? No honorifics already? We’re that intimate, are we?”

To fight is one thing, but this is something entirely different. Being able to hurt others with a play instead of a sword, you’re not sure if you can shield others from something like that.

As the song ends, Sae takes your hand, brings it to his mouth to kiss the back of it. “Consider my proposition, princess. Before your marriage solidifies, and becomes something you can’t escape from.”

With his hand on the small of your waist, he brings you back to Kaiser dutifully. Kaiser links his arm with yours immediately, before any of you can spare a goodbye.

“What did he say to you?”

You hum. You get the sense that maybe…

“Nothing of importance,” you tell him instead.

“Hm?” He tilts your chin up to meet you eye to eye. “Is my own betrothed keeping secrets from me?”

“He said I don’t seem all that powerful.”

That makes Kaiser smile, not something sweet but with teeth bared, like a wolf. “He hasn’t seen you in action.” He pulls you in, hand wrapping to the back of your neck, a slow and deep whisper. “Do you want to show them?”

“Weren’t we both told that’s inappropriate? Isagi said the optics could make your allies scared.”

Kaiser rolls his eyes. “Isagi this, optics that. Our country has always been about the brawl and brave. Let the nations fear us, then. I, with my cruelty and a god-killing sword. You, a sorceress second to none. It’s a pretty picture, is it not?”

He straps his sword to his back and brings you to the middle of the room, and as the guests of honor, the crowd gives you both a wide berth. He circles you, just like you practiced. Makes you center stage.

“Go on then, princess.” He lets go of your hand and bows, sweeping his arm out. “Show us who you really are.”

“Kaiser,” you whisper. “We have very clear orders-”

“I make the orders, not follow them. So make your choice, princess. Wasn’t it you who said that it is worth living a life warmed by your own choices? Tell me, then. Do you want to show them? Or do you want to play nice?”

This play, to have ego and pride dive head-first into a situation, is so very human. And yet-

You let water overcast your body from your waist, let it roll off in layers like waves into the floor. Anyone who has had experience with magic can see your ultimate control over it, how the floor isn’t wet at all, how the water was conjured from nothing. Your hair is silken with dampness, framing your face like gloss. Gasps and awes from the audience makes Kaiser grin even wider.

“There we go.” Kaiser reaches behind him to unsheath his blade, and the galaxy within swirls. He spins it in his hand, and it’s almost like he’s never been happier.

In seconds, he strikes at you. Your hands move up instinctively, blocking the blade with a stream of water. The sound it makes, divinity against divinity, is like a low bell. The floor beneath you shakes with the strength of the strike, water dispersing around your feet in cascades to cushion the impact. You hear screams of shock, a glass breaking.

“Kaiser,” you grit, but all he does is widen that wicked, quicksilver grin.

And then he laughs, stepping away and sheathing the blade back. He holds one hand out to you instead.

“Next time, I want a duel in front of everyone. But this time, I guess a dance will suffice.”

You exhale gratefully, taking his hand in yours and retracting your water. “Let us dance, then.”

And with none of a prince’s grace, with movements that feel more fight than dance, he drifts along the floor with you.

~

Isagi collapses into the booth, a palm pressed to his eyebrows. “Our allies thought they were about to fight each other.”

“Can I cash in on my bet now?” Karasu rolls a skewer stick between his fingers. “Because they might’ve almost killed each other.” 

“Nah,” Oliver leans back. “I think that’s just foreplay.” 

Isagi opens his eyes to find Chigiri and Bachira standing before the booth. Chigiri’s not meeting his eyes, his mouth perching to one side in a way that squishes one of his cheeks. 

“What happened?” 

“They’re gone.” 

“Ha?” 

“We had one drink. One.” 

Oliver has the audacity to laugh, hand over his mouth. “Don’t worry, Isagi,” he pats him on the back. “I’m sure they’re just fucking around.” 

In another corner of the hall, royals speak in low tones. 

“We can just take her if you like her,” Shidou tells Sae with the sweetest smile a man like that can muster. “No need to ask poor little Kai-Kai.” 

Sae says nothing, eyeing you quietly as you step out of the hall. 

~

You are sitting at the edge of the ocean, letting the slate-crested waves wash over you, when he finds you. 

“You can dry me in a moment’s notice if I am to sit with you, right?” He says it almost reluctantly, even though he’s here anyways. He’s dropped his off coat somewhere along the way, and there’s something so naked about seeing him in just a shirt. He almost seems softer, without the harsh lines of battle-ready clothing or the fur that drapes around him, relaxed in a way he wasn’t in the banquet hall. 

You smile. “I can keep you dry whilst you're sitting.” 

He relents, then. Allowing the strangeness of sitting on wet sand without getting wet. 

“Was the banquet up to your expectations, then, Kaiser?” 

Expectations. He’s had none of a party like this. Being allowed to dream is a privilege, and privileges were not granted to him.

“You are officially my wife-to-be,” he says instead. “Shouldn’t you call me something a little more intimate?”

You gaze out into the horizon for a moment, and something in your eyes unfocuses, like you’ve gone somewhere else and then returned. “Very well. I shall call you Mihya.”

It strikes a chord in him, like a teaspoon hitting a glass. “Mihya? Where did that come from?”

“The water.”

“She speaks to you?” 

“She says in another life, you are given a nickname like that.”

“Another life…” He lies down in the sand, watches the streaks of sunset in the blueing sky. 

“Ask then, Mihya,” you lean over him slightly, until all he can see is the sky and the way your features soften. “The question we both know is on your mind.”

He almost wants to reach out, hold your cheek in his hand. It’s a foreign feeling to him, so foreign it almost feels like unease – to want to extend a gentleness like that to another person. “Won’t you just tell me?”

You breathe in the sea-salt air, and breathe out a heart-warmed truth. “The prophecy does not hold you captive in another life.”

Kaiser, for once, lets himself dream. Of a different life, where he is unburdened by a prophecy, and burns brightly.

~

“It would seem strange if you weren’t together, with all the other guests in the palace.” That’s what Oliver tells you as he gestures for you to take his arm, leading you to Kaiser’s room. 

It’s both plainer and more furnished than you thought, like someone who isn’t him had chosen the furniture and the color of the walls. But the items in the bookshelves seem well-loved, items taken out and put back haphazardly, scrolls and books placed back half-way. The bathroom door opens with a flood of light.  

“You’re here.” It’s rare to shock Kaiser in a way that doesn’t make him immediately reach for his sword.

You turn to look at him, taking in his half-dressed state. “Were you expecting some other woman?” 

“Oh, so you’re the jealous type?” 

He almost wants to laugh at the clear discomfort on your face. Gods don’t tease, he’s guessing? 

The bed gives way to you as you take your place. “I hear it’s common for princes to take many lovers.” 

The moonlight spills over the bedsheets as the room darkens, and you summon the sword to float right above you, looking into it. He joins you, wanting to see exactly what you’re seeing. 

“It’s not a night sky.” Your voice is so soft in the blanket of night between you both. 

“Hm?” 

“Inside the sword. Your people say it looks like the night sky. It’s not. It’s a galaxy.” 

He reaches his hand out, tracing over the glass along the middle of the weapon, a silent remark for you to continue. 

“At the beginning of all worlds, the first-ever contract was made between the first-ever forces, and with it, this sword was said to be conjured out of the galaxy. And so, a part of the galaxy at the beginning of all worlds was contained in this sword.” 

The stars in the sword move within like they’re responding to your words, borne witness to all the events. But instead of watching them, you turn to him. 

“You have held and wielded a primordial piece of this world. It has allowed you to hold it, granted you its blessing.” 

Blessed. That is not a phrase Kaiser would have ever used to describe himself. But coming from you, he can almost believe it. Almost hope to have a little more than he’s ever had. 

The sword disappears with a movement of his hand, and he rolls to lean over you. Silence drops like a curtain. The only sound he knows is your breath and his. 

During a fight, his feelings can almost be mistaken for adrenaline. But even under the shadow of the moon, with the cushioned silence between you both, the way you cut straight to the truth rings like a silver bell.

He can’t hide from you. Or maybe. Maybe he’s tired of hiding at all.

He is a man who has only known war and battle, was born and bred into it. War-forged, is what they call men like him. His hands know weapons, know how to kill.

He does not know if they know how to love. And yet-

He cups your face, and drinks you in.

He kisses you with caution, like you might melt from his grasp if he held too tightly. Presses his lips against yours slowly. He runs his hand gently over your hairline as he parts from you. 

Is this okay? He wants to ask. But instead, he says: “Tell me what you want.” 

You wrap your arms around his neck, your lips brushing against yours when you answer: “You.” 

And then he kisses you like a man starved, never known by this feeling that gets caught up in his throat with every noise of yours he swallows. 

“Is this… is this what you want?” You try to ask as you part from him for air, but he presses his mouth to the space behind your ear instead, laying kisses down your neck. “Is this a decision that you are making for yourself, by your own hands? That is entirely for you?” 

That makes him stop. But when he looks at you with a surefire gaze… 

He knows it, undoubtedly. That this, for once, is his. 

“There are no lovers,” he tells you between kisses, to your shoulder, down your collarbone, to your breastbone. 

“What?” 

“I take no lovers.” He unclasps your bra, lets the material fall from his hands to cup your supple flesh. “I’ve never been princely, after all.” 

“You- Kai-” 

He runs his thumbs across both your nipples, admires how they perk up at his administrations, flitting his gaze between them and your face as he brings his mouth down over one of them. 

He presses kisses down your body, cups your heat in his hand like he’s begging you to respond, like he’s saying let me have this. The inside of your thighs is soft as cream under his calloused hands. His thumb moves along the outside of your underwear, from your slit up to your clit with his fingers pressing tentatively against the fabric until you’re grabbing at his wrist. 

“You’re so tense,” he teases, pressing a kiss to your cheek. “Want me to take care of that for you?” He runs the knuckles of his hand over your clothed slit, bumping into your clit with his thumb until your breathing gets heavy, your hands gripping his shoulders. 

“Kaiser,” you breathe, and he clicks his tongue. 

“That’s not what you call me, baby. Not anymore.” 

“Mihya.” 

“Mm,” he slides his fingers into your panties from the side, a huff of breath leaves him at the wetness he finds. “Good girls get rewarded, you know?” 

Heat coils hot deep in your stomach. He can’t take the restriction, pulling your panties down and revealing your core to the cold air. He lets his slickness pool on his fingers, collects it before bringing it to your clit. It’s like a drug, watching the way your face gives way to pleasure, how your body arches into him. 

“Mihya,” you gasp again, like a chant, a prayer. Is this what the gods feel like, to be asked of? 

“Let me watch,” he says it like a demand but it aches with desperation, a thing he won’t admit outside these four walls. He presses with more confidence now, slides one finger into you, then two. There’s little resistance with the way he’s riled you up, long fingers pressing into you until he reaches something that has you making a broken moan so pretty he can’t help but tilt into it again. 

“I want to see it,” he tells you. This is something he makes happen to you, with his own hands, his own words, his own body that shares its heat with yours. That notion alone runs arousal straight through him. Your panting breath, the way your body shakes with each swipe against your clit. 

“I want to see you fall apart in my arms.” He whispers, and you respond in kind. You always do to him, don’t you? He’s been seen too surely by you, now it’s his turn. Your body tenses entirely, tightly, gripping him as he grants you reprieve. A soft whine leaves your mouth along with something like his name, and the rough pad of his thumb circles over your clit until you crash, coming around his fingers. 

He swipes a thumb over your cheek, allows himself the gentleness that he’s held back for so long with you. 

“One more, okay?”

Your eyes widen. “Mihya,” this time it’s like a warning, but the way you say his name is so breathy it has him pressing a hand over his pants. 

“Yeah, say my name just like that.” He shuffles down until his mouth is pressing to your stomach, just above your mound. Then again to the inside of your knee, trailing up until the inside of your thigh, his breath ghosting over the sensitive skin there. 

“You’re-, wait, we just- I just” 

“Mm, and you’re gonna give me one more.” He kisses your clit first, like a promise, and then he laps at your core generously, from the bottom of your slit all the way to your clit, his flat tongue against the whole of you. Every drop of slick from your previous orgasm is taken in by him with each moan he makes against your core. If he had known this feeling was going to enter his life, that it would’ve felt like this, maybe he would’ve readied himself better for it. Instead, he finds himself starving at the table where it’s served. The taste of you on his tongue wraps him in a heady pleasure, but it’s every sound he takes out of you that has him pressing a little more insistently, tongue laving over you. 

“Pl-please,” your words break between gasps, and it has him lapping into your clit with more pressure. 

“I can never say no to you, can I?” he mumbles between your legs. And then he’s flipping you over, hoisting you onto your knees and skimming his hands over your rear and thighs before diving in again. Your face is pressed into the pillow, hands grabbing the sheets. Kaiser almost seems dazed as he moans into your cunt, swollen and wet like a siren’s call, hands wrapped so tightly around your plush thighs that it feels like it might bruise. 

“Let me taste,” he mutters, mouth still lodged into your cunt, like that isn’t what he’s already doing. “Come on baby, give it to me. Let me taste it on my tongue.” 

Your hole clenches and flutters around nothing as another orgasm rocks through you, your breath coming short as you break apart on his tongue with a whine. 

He flips you over again, and the look on his face takes your breath away. Your slick shimmers on his mouth as he trails his tongue over his lips, like he’s addicted, like he can’t get enough. He tilts his head with a grin so cocky that if you weren’t so blissed out you might just punch him. 

“There something you want, pretty?” He leans over you, hand to the bedpost, and how broad and tall he is becomes that much more obvious. You let yourself look, at the way his tattoo drapes over his arm, run your hands over the muscle of his torso down to his v-line. You hear a sharp intake of breath as your hand moves lower, running under his loose sleep pants to the base of his cock. 

He grabs your hand in his, bringing it over your head and circling both your wrists. “Ask.” 

“You-,” your eyes narrow and you huff at him, but it only makes him smile. “Won’t you just-” 

“Nuh-uh.” 

“I could cut you down here.” 

He drops his pants, pumping his cock once and then sliding it along your slit. “You could. And then who’ll give you what you want?” 

You want to roll your eyes, but then he has one hand tapping against your clit, the other gripping either side of your cheeks. 

“You begged so pretty for me earlier when I had my mouth on you,” he rasps. “What happened to that?” 

The harsh look you give him under those fluttering lashes of yours makes something stir in his gut, arousal shot through his veins, pupils wide. He plays with you, warm hands against your skin and between your legs, the soft skin of his cock sliding between your thighs until you’re gasping in his hold again, grinning like a battle won. 

“Please, Mihya,” you sigh. 

“Mhmm. Please what?” 

“Please- please fuck me.” 

He gets off on it, watching you yield to him, spreading your legs, dripping your hot slick onto his cock. He presses the head against you, petaled folds opening up to receive him as he slides into you slowly. Just the first few inches is so thick inside of you that your hands wrap around the muscles of his arms, nails digging in. 

“Shh, baby, you can take it,” he hushes your little whines, tracing your hairline with such gentleness it contradicts the way he pulls out of you just slightly only to push in again. 

“You’re- oh,” your body gives into him, even more so when he brings his hand down to tap on your clit, his mouth over your neck, to the side of your mouth, until he’s kissing you and taking in every noise you make. It’s almost a distraction, helps your body to relax so he can press into you deeper. You think you feel every inch as it enters you, all the way until the hilt, until the head is pressing deep inside of you and his hips meet yours.  

He lets out a rough, deep moan against the expanse of your neck, breath coming short as your walls tighten around him. 

“Fuck, baby. You gotta let me move.” Your arms wrap around him tighter, a whimper falling from your lips as he tilts his hips up to plunge into you again. It’s hard and slow and deep and if it wasn’t for his grip on you, you might’ve hit the headboard. But he’s careful about it – more than you might’ve thought he’d be. Pressing your body into the bed as his hips meet yours again and again. 

“It feels so good,” you tell him, and it has him pressing a kiss to your cheek in return. Makes every moan you make that much sweeter, to know it’s out of your pleasure, to know it’s because of him. 

“Good girl. Tell me again.” 

“Feels- you’re so big, so- please, I need-” Your walls can barely clench down onto him with how he feels inside of you. Chest to chest with him, the contact of skin on skin-

“You drive me insane,” he grumbles it into your skin; a confession, exacerbated with each thrust of his hips as he picks up the speed, until he’s slamming into you with a kind of strength that has you seeing constellations behind your eyes. He wants you- needs you to feel the way he feels. Needs to have you lying in his bed, thinking only of him and how he makes you feel. Heat pools in your core until you’re arching your back, and he knows it now – knows it like the back of his hand. 

“Give it to me.” It’s a command, a need, if you listen closely enough. “Come around my cock. Show me.” 

“Mihya, it’s so much, it’s so so much.” It’s treacherous, the way it works through your body, being on the brink. 

His thumb is slick over your clit, pressing just a little more, until your thighs are tightening under his unrelenting body. “Come for me.” 

You chant his name until the words start to become nothing in your mouth, until you’re breathless, until your whole body tenses under him and his hold against you gets that much rougher and your walls clamp down and then your body shakes as you come. You almost scream, only silenced by his lips on yours. He comes quickly after that, his eyes never leaving yours, taking in how you look underneath him as his cock gets more sensitive and paints the inside of your walls. He doesn’t stop, doesn’t slow until he feels your body start to relax under his. 

You can barely process coming down as he’s kissing you again, deeply and with force, like he’s etching the memory of you into his mind and onto your lips. 

For once, he lets himself recognize – how tiring the emptiness has been, to be devoid of this feeling and instead be filled with the fear that it’ll be turned against him. For once, he lets himself feel – to have something that is wholly his. to know and be known. To give and know you will receive. Not an offering at an altar but a hand in his, not a prayer but a soft word spoken in return. Kaiser does not want something as untouching as approval or attention from the divine. But he does want your waist in his arms, your forehead against his.

“Just like this,” he whispers it, a kiss placed to your forehead. You don’t know what he means, too tired to ask. 

This is exactly what he’s always wanted. Just like this. 

~

Not unlike a parent, Noa notices the closeness of your relationship. In touch, in stolen glances, in longing. A private conversation with him over afternoon tea is not unique, but the heaviness that weighs on him is. 

“As the goddess who cannot lie, I have to ask you.” The hardened look on his face makes you straighten your back, putting down your teacup. “You know, that I have to ask.”

Silence sits between you both like a shoe about to drop. 

Noa yields. “Has he truly been forsaken by all the gods?”

You are strangely silent as you look at him, then away, then back. 

“Answer me, demigod.”

“I don’t know.”

“What?”

“I. Don’t. Know. I have told you before, that I am not a seer, or an oracle. Water holds memory. I can see the past, I can even see other lives parallel to ours, but I cannot see the future. This is the limit of my power.”

“You are of divine nature.” 

“I had said what I said at our first meeting, and that has not changed. As long as I am here, the Gods have not forsaken him. For I have not forsaken him. Is that not enough? How many Gods would travel to your realm, vow themselves to a human kingdom? Even if it is I alone that stands before you, is that not enough?”

Noa sighs, more exasperated than you’ve ever seen a serious man like him. “He deserves more, that boy. For what he has been put through.”

“All greatness comes with a price. All heroes face tragedy. He, no matter how much you may care for him, is not the exception to that.” You tilt your head, like a cat with curiosity. But unlike that sweetness, your words are cutting. “You made him a ruler. You made him a hero. So, stand by that. Or does it make you uncomfortable? To consider the role you, too, have played in his life?”

Noa, of course, has thought about this too. Had he not chosen Kaiser to rule, would he have had the prophecy weighing on him like a second shadow? 

“If the prophecy holds true, you will inevitably leave him.” Noa swallows, hand flat against the table. “He will inevitably be forsaken, even by you.”

“Then why,” you ask, genuinely, “did you ask me to stay?”

~

In the weeks that follow, you learn exactly why. Like Kaiser had predicted, talk of battle comes. 

“We suspect a neighboring nation wishes to wage war with us.” Noa looks out to the slate-blue ocean from the window of the war room. 

“A man who wants control of this whole world,” Karasu huffs. “There’s never a lack of them, is there?”

“He thinks himself a god. Or that’s what Sae has told us.” 

“You’re sure Sae’s information checks out?” 

“Shidou and Otoya like to visit neighboring nations for uh… fun, let’s say,” Chigiri rolls his eyes, then plants his face in his hands. “He said something along the lines of “you don’t wanna know how they found out” and “Shidou sleeps with both men and women, so it’s been cross-checked too.”” 

“And then we asked him about war,” Isagi throws his notes down on the table. “He said, and I quote, ‘I already have more land than I know what to do with. What could another few acres give me? What a hassle.’” 

“The enemy are bold to come for us first.” Kaiser frowns considerably. They are possibly the one nation blasphemous enough that would not blink at the thought of fighting a god. “There’s something we’re not seeing.”

Isagi nods in agreement. “We still don’t know the reason they’re coming here first. It could be the sword, or the goddess.” Isagi frowns. “I told you not to make a scene at the banquet.”

Kaiser gives him a curious look with a smile he fails to hide. “The point of a banquet is to wow the people. The people were wowed, were they not?” 

“It could be, it could not be,” Noa kills the conflict there. “That information would have been made public regardless of the spectacle. It could even simply be the throne itself they seek. An army like ours could parade into the neighboring nations and lay waste, our people are used to much harsher weathers.” 

“Or maybe he means to make a statement,” Karasu shrugs. “If he wants to be a god, maybe he means to punish the disrespect we’ve shown.” 

“What do we actually know?” Chigiri taps the map of this nation splayed across the table.

“We know he wants to take control of this world, and we know his plan includes something from us.” 

“He knows once he controls the world, he has to take care of it, right?” Oliver rests his jaw in his hand. “As in, it’s not just about buying the house, it’s about cleaning it too. The plan – it has to be bigger than this, no?” 

“Won’t happen once we kill him here. So as far as we know, there are three things we have that he could want: the sword, the goddess, the army.” Chigiri holds up his fingers as he counts. 

“So we’ll meet him with all three at the front lines. Fear does not wield us, after all. Only strength.” Kaiser says it like a mantra. You suspect it might be exactly that. 

~

“What a pleasant surprise to see you again so soon, princess.” 

As an ally, Sae arrived on the day of battle without question. He is much different from the first time you saw him, chainmail armor wraps tight and sleek around his body, clearly of a weight underneath his clothing. He stands straighter, shoulders broader, badges clipped to his outer jacket. It’s clear to anyone who looks at him, that it’s almost like he was born into them – meant for them. 

“You’re both on the front lines then?” 

“Idle hands,” Kaiser starts.

“Devil’s workshop.” You finish. You hear a horse galloping, then a voice. 

“There’s something wrong.” The people give a wide berth as Oliver arrives, with a sleek black mare that’s obedient as can be. “The majority of the enemies’ troops are not in front of us.” 

All of you turn to look, but it’s on the front lines that makes it most difficult to tell where the crowd begins and ends. 

“I did a rough head count from the tower. This isn’t the count we had observed just the other day. They’ll die easily, like this, against us. And I don’t mean that from an egotistical standpoint. I think these men are here to die, meant to die. It serves to mean –” 

“This is a distraction.” 

Karasu appears at your side, with an utmost silence only he is capable of. “They’re headed for the main castle, from around the edge of the border.” 

You and Kaiser look to each other with a whole silent conversation, and Sae sighs. 

“Go on, then.” 

You turn to Sae immediately, with a seriousness he doesn’t expect. “You’ll be unprotected.” 

“We chopped liver to you, girl?” Shidou sneers. 

Oliver drops down from his horse. “I’ll take over here.” 

“Your care for me is truly touching, princess,” Sae’s voice lilts touchingly, almost revealing how much he likes it. “But you swore a vow to this kingdom, so go fulfill it.” 

Even in the middle of a war, it gets Kaiser all worked up, his chin jutting as you both run back to the palace. But Sae understands duty, stands by it. It’s what makes him worthy of his own title in his own kingdom. 

Oliver waits until you’re both out of sight before turning to Sae. “Did you really plan to steal her?” 

“Well,” Sae shrugs. “Did you plan on letting her go so easily?” 

~

Your water runs in cascading waves through the whole of the palace, like the ocean itself comes rushing through the walls. It knocks all the soldiers down as you and Kaiser run through, and he picks up any stragglers with ease.  

“The throne room?” Kaiser slams the hilt of his sword into the guy behind him, and he collapses instantly. 

“It is the safest room.” 

“That makes no sense. If you knew anything about our people, you’d know we never hide ourselves there in a battle.” 

“Go anyways,” you tell him, as another man gets thrown off his feet. “Go, Kaiser!” 

He takes one final look at you, at the strength that you hold in your hands, and then he runs. 

The man he finds sitting on the throne has black hair cut blunt to his chin, a white mask over one side of his face. Kaiser unsheathes his sword, pointed straight and true. 

“That throne doesn’t belong to you.” 

“It will. Along with that sword you’re holding.” 

Kaiser chuckles, the kind that has madness interlaced in it. “If you wanted the sword so bad, you could’ve asked for a one-on-one combat duel. I haven’t had a satisfying fight in a long time, I’d be happy to lay the sword as a winning prize.” 

What must be the man’s most elite fighters drop down from the ceiling, crowding in on all sides. 

“Ah, I see,” Kaiser stands straighter, reaching behind him to unsheath his second sword. “It is your capabilities that do not match mine.”

When they come for him, it’s clear to even the heavens that he is exactly as he is fated – a force to be reckoned with. He moves like a spider-spun silken web, capturing each of them blow by blow. His swords cut like butter through them with impressive speed and strength. His breath comes fast and hard when he finishes, sweat dripping down his back. 

“I see now, prince,” the man approaches him, and it’s closer up that he realizes he’s simply in a suit, no armor. “Why they praise you, despite your blasphemy. You, a prince famous for cursing divinity at a whim’s notice, are a powerful ally. Kneel before me, then, and I’ll cease this all – let you join our cause in a war against the gods, in stealing their divinity from them. I’ll even forgive this transgression of bedding one.” 

“Me? Kneel?” The canned laugh that Kaiser lets out echoes. “I kneel to no god, let alone a man who wants to become one.” 

“So be it, then.” 

Kaiser hears something above him. By the gods, what’s with this guy and ceilings? Is that why he wants to fight here? A dust of something shimmers down, he pulls his cloak over himself- 

From the doorway, you throw your water across the room, shielding Kaiser from whatever it may have been. And in the same moment, a poof of shimmer bursts over your own head and tumbles down around you. 

“That’s the problem with you gods, isn’t it? You always think you’re infallible.” 

You cough, falling to one of your knees. Dread fills inside of you, like a faucet you can’t turn off. You can’t move. How is that possible? 

The man taps two fingers to the top of your head, and your world goes dark.

~

When you blink your eyes open, the first thing you’re aware of is the way your vision swims. Your mind feels clouded, stuffed with cotton. You press your palm to your head, and even that feels muted. 

“I’ve made her mine now. She’ll do exactly what I say. Does that make you upset?” Is what you think you hear, through the ringing of your ears. “Let’s see you put that god-killing sword to good use then, shall we?” 

“It’s. Magic.” You spit out the words as your hands press into the ground. Your legs cramp from the way you’re forcing them to stay down. “Mihya. Run, please.” 

“Awh, worried about me?” Kaiser teases as he logs the odds. There is no water that swirls around you, so it begs to reason – you can’t call it. The only weapon you have is a dagger. 

Kaiser tilts his head until his neck cracks. “Have some faith in me, princess. I’m not afraid, even against you.”

He breathes, in and out, until the calmness of battle seeps into him, raises his sword pointed right at you. “I’ll win, even against you.” 

And then he reveals that cocky, surefire smirk. “You should worry more about not dying yourself.” 

When you launch at him, it is without mercy, makes him realize how your kindness seeps into the way you fight. His weapon is bigger, larger, and he uses it to keep you at arm’s length, to wrap around towards the enemy. But he sees his problem almost immediately. Like a puppet on strings, you’re protecting the enemy. 

He knows it, the moment the prophecy solidifies into place in his mind. That feeling of being lost on a path, gone with the reigning down a light. The final puzzle piece in the picture. 

You will die by the hands of the one you love most. So, it truly was this feeling, after all. Love. An aching thing, something so undoing. An open wound that can only be tendered by you. 

For once, the prophecy is not a curse but a guiding starlight. He corners you with strike after strike, until you’re as close as can be to the enemy. And then he approaches you with no defense, lets you strike at him. In the same breath, his sword lands behind you and takes off the enemy’s head. 

None of the fight felt as clear as this moment, when your blade presses into his heart. 

He collapses, right in front of the throne with you on top of him. The throne that should be undoubtedly his, belonging to him as heir. Tears fall from your face before your mind can clear. Like you know, soul to soul, as his lifeform slips through your fingers. He brings his hand to cup your cheek, as he had wanted to do when you laid like this above him in the sand. 

“I did not expect a death so gentle for myself.” 

His smile is so bittersweet that it aches all the way to the bottom of your heart. His hand slips down from your face as you finally come to. 

“You will not die on me.” You gasp out, a statement said with so much conviction that the silver bell of truth rings in return. You call to your water immediately, a stream so fast it cuts into your skin but you don’t care. 

A magic that can only be done once. You take the divine sword from the ground, aim the blade carefully at yourself – your own soul. Only this sword can make a cut like this, with the hand of the divine. You slice your wrist, and instead of blood, pure golden lifeforce pours out. 

You separate your divinity from yourself, and you feed it to him. It will not turn him divine. You are only half-divine yourself, after all. What you can give is not nearly enough to turn a man into a God. But it will hold his soul in this world, let you do an unspeakable magic: an exchange of divine power for life, a process long enough for the water to heal his heart back together again. The hand you lay against his mouth shakes more and more with each second that your golden blood pours into him, but your other hand lays steady as ever over his heart, until you feel it beat once, twice. Hear him spurt out a breath. 

You collapse on top of him before you can see him open his eyes. 

~

“I see the prophecy has been completed.” 

When Kaiser wakes, there’s a split second where he thinks he might’ve just ended up wherever souls go at the end of their line. There’s what must be a full-fledged goddess standing right over him. It’s only your warm body splayed across his chest that tells him otherwise. His hands are lightning quick, sitting up and moving to your neck to check your pulse, only exhaling and relaxing once he feels it. 

Golden threads extend down the sleeves of the goddess’ arms. He’s seen the paintings. Fate itself stands before him. 

“How could you do this?” He makes his disdain clear, lacking any respect one might give to the queen of the gods herself. 

“I am sorry.” She answers immediately, and that makes Kaiser’s eyes widen just slightly. “Your grievances, you may relay them to me, if you wish. There is a bigger picture at play here, bigger than you or the water sorceress or even myself. The threads of fate are not woven selfishly.” 

“You gods up in your clouds play with the lives of mortals. That has always been written in history. But to her? To one of your own?”

“She is more one of mine than most. The heir to the throne of the Gods, I would’ve entrusted her with my life. It’s why she complies with Fate in every life, without complaint.”

“So she lends you her loyalty, and you take advantage of her. And you dare put yourselves above us?” 

“Heavy is the head that wears the crown. Heavy too, are my hands, that weave the golden threads. You and her are one of many that have suffered by my hand. For that, there is no apology I can give. What I can give, well… Would you like to hear your full prophecy, prince?”

Lone Emperor who covets the throne, You will die by the hands of the one you love most. Forsaken by all the Gods but one, Re-emerge, awaken, as the ruler you are meant to become.

In any other circumstance, he would be eager as ever to finally hear the full prophecy. But his eyes are only on you, your slumbering state as he holds you in his arms. 

“What will become of her?” He asks quietly. 

“She will be a water sorceress, as she had initially been.” 

“She will die, then? Like a human does?”

“All things die, hero.” Hero. That’s what he is now, having been trial-passed. The title burns like bourbon down his throat. “Even the divine dies. But yes, she will die as a human, and be reborn again as the cycle permits.” 

“A life of such simplicity is not befitting of a woman like her.” 

“Who says it would be simple? Besides, she has gone through the trial of the divine once before. Don’t you have faith she could do it again?” 

The trial of the divine. He had not known such a thing prior to you. But if anyone could pass it, it would be you. 

“I will make her my wife. I care little for the words or respect of the gods, even a queen like yourself. But it is my duty to inform you. If she will have me, I will wed her as has been planned.” 

“The prophecy is complete. What happens now is too inconsequential for me to put effort into. However…” she watches you, teartracks streaked down your cheeks. “I’m quite fond of her. I hope for her an easy life.” 

In a blink, her form disappears. 

“Kaiser!” Oliver’s voice echoes through the halls, taking big leaps with Noa to his side, skidding to a halt when he finally finds you both. 

“The goddess-” 

“She lives,” Kaiser cups your head into his chest. “Though she is goddess no more. A trade. Not a fair one by any means.” His thumb traces across your cheek, a state of his so vulnerable it renders Oliver speechless. 

Noa approaches the threshold where Oliver does not dare. He rests his hand on the crown of Kaiser’s head. “Another chance at life is the greatest gift, and she has granted you as such. That is a debt you’ll never be able to repay her for..” 

“I’ll spend the rest of my life trying, then.” 

~

It’s only in the aftermath, that you find out how deep in you truly were.

Kaiser takes a big inhale of the winter air. It’s fresh and cold. And with him, the nation breathed a breath anew, and the trial laid in ashes under his feet.

You’re facing the horizon of the sea when he finds you. 

In the catch of the light, sometimes he swears he sees the divinity that had shimmered off of you before. It’s almost hard to believe, with the ring of water that floats around you, that it had ever left you at all. 

“What are you doing?” His voice is soft, as it always is with you now. 

“Relearning the water.”

“What does it say?”

“That I am still its mistress. Still a sorceress,” the water around you drops into the wet sand. “That its loyalty with me is not dependent on divinity.”

He places a hand to the back of your neck, easing out the tensions there. “But?”

You smile weakly. “I have to strain to hear her now.”

“Guess we can’t do that spectacle again for our wedding.” He cracks a smile, something to ease the ache. “Water holds memory, right?” 

“That, it does.” 

He grabs your hand, pulling you up and towards the waves. You yell for him, but the ocean crashes loudly around you both, and he drags you into the water anyways. Once you’re deep in enough that the waves drape over your knees, he pulls you in close. 

“Let her bear witness, then.” He whispers it against your lips, brushing your hair away from your face. He kisses you, deep and with so much heart you might burst from it. 

A prophecy unfolded, a fate changed, a life saved. 

There’s a part of you that can feel an oncoming future. A sheathing that can block even the eyes of Gods. God-killing weapons that have descended from the heavens themselves. A potion that can cause madness in the minds of the divine. A war between mortals and Gods is coming, you’re sure of it. 

But not in this life. In this life, you are a water sorceress, and he is a trial-passed hero. And like in every life, you find your way back to each other, every time. 

author's note: ohmygod THANK YOU FOR READING PLEASE tell me what you think!!! this is my longest fic ever so i really hope you enjoyed

extended author's note -- know that this is an incredibly realistic note about the perception of love that will take you out of the fantasy lovey-dovey space. it's a disclaimer for the parts of the fic i romanticize and how u should not romanticize them in real life, as well as some notes about kaiser's characterization if you're interested

[rubywithin]

Guardelia Cloak 1

(Opponent) "This is the end of your reign Solis, I attack with Flame-Lizard Axe!". (Solis) "I guard with Emerald Shield, nice try but now it is my turn". -Sigh- why do they always show these battles....why are people so into this game? -Cheers- everyone here is so easily amused and it's such a pain! (???) "I see you also don't care for these public battles Fernie!" (Fernie) "Yeah I don't care about some masked guy with a bunch of fancy cards no one can even get!". It was weird how Miguel also hated these pro's as I saw him play the game a lot. I once played the game but just didn't get into it, after school I decided to check out some shops. Apparently some new Guardelia shop opened which probably meant I had to listen to people go on about the game even more. (???) "Oh hello young lady are you here to check out the new shop?" I shook my head and tried to walk away. (???) "Oh don't be shy, if you are a beginner let me give you this card to start with!. (Fernie) "Oh thank you" I looked at it and I have no idea what this card even was.

-Sigh- I guess I should go in and buy in at least one pack....I bought it and it was a bunch of support cards. And one monster...I guess this was cool but it's not like I have a deck to pair it with. I then made my way out of the shop and on my way home I saw the guy who gave me a card and....Miguel for some reason. (???) "I have decided to retire and I want you to inherit my deck! I have heard about your skill and think you are worthy..." -smack- (Miguel) "Pro's like you annoy me and I don't need a hand me down deck!". I...I can't believe he just smacked something out of the guy's hand, I ran over to help him! (Fernie) "Are you okay Mr?" (???) "Yeah...thank you miss, you are very kind". I asked him what happened and he told me about the interaction, I was a bit shocked but not surprised....Miguel did say he didn't care for public battles. But to disrespect someone like that was wrong...(Fernie) "Can I borrow your deck?" he nodded. I decided to go after Miguel and challenge him to a battle....along the way I added some the cards I got to the deck!

I was able to catch up to Miguel....okay deep breath and (Fernie) "I..I challenge you to a battle...". (Miguel) "Huh you want to face me? I thought you didn't care for Guardelia!". He was right....it was a game I played as a kid with my brother....then he became obsessed with it and left to become a pro. His name never came up so I always thought his goal was dumb....but right now I wanna beat Miguel with this deck he disrespected! (Fernie) "Do you accept or not?" he then agreed to my challenge and we went inside a nearby diner! We both ordered something to eat, (Miguel) "If you win I will apologize to the man from before but if I win you pay for my meal!" (Fernie) "Ugh sure thing" we both shuffled our decks and drew our opening hands. I was a bit rusty....(Miguel) "I will start, I call forth Guard Statue as my ace and I place an effect card!". Ace....right I have to summon a level 1 monster as my ace first, (Fernie) "I call forth Pearl Mage as my ace then I summon a Bronze Mage!".

I remembered I was able to summon another monster alongside my ace as long as it was also level one! I still felt nervous what if I had remembered wrong though?...(Miguel) "Relax I will remind you of the rules if you need me too!" (Fernie) "Thanks Miguel, okay I attack your ace with Pearl Mage!" Bronze Mage wasn't strong enough to get a successful hit but he may be useful later! (Miguel) "I take the hit, now how much did you bet on that attack?" (Fernie) "Bet? don't I just do 1 damage..." then it hit me the life system. Players were supposed to have 50 stones and would wager them on an attack hitting. I forgot I didn't have a set on me..."I don't have a set of stones with me sorry". (Miguel) "I see, then let's just try and keep track then, the 1 damage stands though!". A player had 20 lives, guess this is a rough start, (Miguel) "I evolve my ace to Lance Statue and summon a second one and they both attack your ace!". (Fernie) "I block the ace's attack with Emerald Shield!" he revealed his bet stones....it was 2 on the ace and 3 on his other monster so I went down to 17 lives. Okay Fernie let's show him what you are capable of!

[sunriseverse]

trying to articulate something about recent danmei vs earlier danmei but it just keeps coming out sounding as if i’m condemning earlier danmei and that is NOT my intention so i’m just going to give up and call it quits on that.

[sometimesanalice]

This makes me so happy to have this little full circle moment! I had been following you for awhile before I decided to try my hand at writing the most fluffy, indulgent Christmas fic imaginable, and I remember thinking "Oh I hope she sees this and likes it". And I so vividly remember getting your reblog notification and reread it like 20 times in a row. It meant EVERYTHING to me! (I also remember the DREAD when after 4 hours of being posted there had been zero hits on it because tumblr ate it in the tags and I in a panic spent the next 2hr trying to figure out how to fix it, anywhooo)

more for you!

More often than not, he was texting you throughout the day. - ugh why is he so sweet?? def double and triple texting too 🤭- OH ABSOLUTELY. He is sending her whatever is on his mind (or whatever makes him think of her) without qualms! Like what even is this whole "double text is cringe" thing, Bradley cannot be bothered. If that man is in it, he is IN IT.

Or did it make you look like you were trying too hard? She was basically a callgirl after all. - NOT THIS BEING EVEN FUNNIER NOW AFTER THAT POST PLSSSS (also my go to last minute costume is always the white night shirt with the pink ear plugs and mask so same same)- you can thank yourself for this little add in, lol. I snuck it in after you sent me the post because I thought it was so amusing, and something that a stressed out anxious girl brain would come up with.

PPS. I liked that thing you did with the shower head) // Also I just ordered a new shower head for my place, one with a fancy handheld and everything) // (PS. can’t wait, I’m more than happy to product test) - SCREAMING BECAUSE THERES NOTHING LIKE A RETRACTABLE SHOWER HEAD!?! AND HER TALKING ABOUT THE PERKS OF WFH!?!!- their whole text convo was a spur of the moment decision! I didn't have it in my notes at all as an idea and I loved how it came out! They're just both so CHEEKY! But I really wanted to show them outside of how anxious they were both feeling, as like a glimpse of why they work together and are worth rooting for.

You were even watching a few vintage ones in nice condition on Ebay to give him for Christmas. - and we all know they have the CUTEST christmas!!!- we dooooooo! 🥰 but also why do I want to write them another Christmas fic?

What you wore didn’t matter. But whatever you wore, you were going to have a great time with Bradley and the people he cared about. And that was the only thing that mattered to you. - this is so sweet and i also love that it carries through to their relationship in the christmas fic?- this was something that I was really anxious about! I wasn't sure if I could capture that same sense of Them after nearly a year? So that you think it still feels like Them is something that makes me so happy!

There was only one thing you needed that you didn’t already have, and you knew just where you’d be able to find it. - it’s the mustache, it’s gotta be the mustache- 'twas! lolololol. She definitely thought about drawing one on with an eyebrow pencil, but she opted to make a quick stop for one that wouldn't smudge all over her face. Miss Ma'am was thinking about those potential make out sessions!

Halloween was Mickey’s favorite holiday and there was nothing more he loved than going all out on a theme. It didn’t matter if it was St Patrick’s Day or National Cheeseburger Day, he always committed. - there’s no way FANBOY doesn’t go ham for every holiday yes headcanon confirmed- MVP for most spirited is DEFINITELY him! He loves an excuse to go OTT for literally anything and everything.

His costume had earned him more than a few wolf whistles when he had stopped to get gas. He’d simply shot them a wink and a smirk as he’d strut past them to go inside and pay. - BECAUSE HES A SLUT (affectionate)- THE BIGGEST STRUTTING SLUTEST MAN

He grabs one of the plastic syringes from the bowl that says free shots and sips it down easily, trying not to grimace at the ratio of tequila to cranberry cocktail, and then dropping the now empty syringe in the hazardous waste bucket that’s placed next to the bowl. - this is such a vivid description!?! the whole party is so well described tbh! like ma’am did you scour pinterest for halloween party decor???- maybeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee (but also that halloween party I went to also had syringe shots and I knew Fanboy would have been all over it, lol)

but he was starting to think that maybe he might be deeper in this than you were. He was trying not to let his mind spiral about why you didn’t want him to pick you up, but the only thing he kept coming back to was that maybe you wanted a way to make an easy escape if you weren’t having a good time with him or his friends. - oh sweet boy no! oh this hurts man! bradley it’s okay she’s not out the door! she def fell first- I loved getting to revisit this spiral Bradley? Like in the Christmas fic he is so quick to internalize everything (like its not his fault that he's allergic, poor thing!). But here they're still early enough where they don't want to seem like a bother to the other person? They're at the stage where things either get serious or they slowly fall apart. And they both like each other so much, but don't want to scare the other away by coming on too strong. I love that in this and in the Christmas fic they're both always on the same page without realizing it.

Bob’s homemade chef’s hat is glowing lightly from the inside and showing the silhouette of a little rodent. - agreed, it’s either 100% homemade or he spent way too much money on it at disneyland lol- do we think he has an annual pass? lol

Bradley had thought about floating a couple’s costume when he had invited you to come with him, but he pivoted at the last moment, not wanting to put pressure on you to agree to commit right away. - okay i love what she goes as, but like bradley being too scared to ask to have a couple’s costume?!??- I still love the fact that they almost had a couples costume without talking about it. That in all her anxious chaos that she contemplated the Sandy costume (bad girl sandy + good boy danny? swoooooon)

“Oh, we know. You moon after her with those big cow eyes all the time” she teases, nudging her elbow against his ribs. - his big cow eyes!!! all i’m picturing is that gif of him in class looking all excited and then two seconds later maverick comes in- YOU KNOW THAT IS MY FAVORITE BRADLEY LOOK

“You won’t what? Wait, Fanboy, come back,” Rooster calls after Mickey. He sees Payback dressed as Marty McFly coming down the stairs, and catches him. “Reuben, hey, what’s in the fridge?” - plssssss this is so funny, i love the easy dialogue with the team! it’s so neutral! and payback as marty!?!!? JADORE! and poor payback is tired of eating dry sandwiches!!!- I debated how I wanted to approach Bradley's POV, if it was going to be a past/present combo or just purely in the moment. And trying to weave that fade in/fade out of people in a party atmosphere was something I really tried to capture without it being like a magic disappearing act.

You’re shifting a little on your feet under the attention, there’s a small shy smile on your face and you have your pretty eyes already trained on him. - SWEET GIRL IS NERVOUS AWWWWWW- she issss! I can imagine she gave herself a little pep talk in the car before she got out, like "he likes you, they like you, you like all of them, you got this!" But still there's that moment as she hovers in the door way (probably checking out Bradley's legs, there was a lot of upper thigh on display), where she's like anxious about fitting in with all of them.

A flash goes off, the light bright behind his eyes. - THE LOCKSCREEN THE LOCKSCREEN!!- THE LOCKSCREEN THE LOCKSCREEN THE BIT THAT HAS HAUNTED ME FOR 9 MONTHS! I loved exploring this because in the Christmas fic it's just a cute couple moment, but in this one getting to learn its the first time they exchange I love yous, so OF COURSE it's extra special to bradley!!

“I knew the shorts would make my ass look good,” he says with a shrug that send you into a fit of giggles. - smug little shit ugh this would so do it for me- I love him, I love him, I love him.

“Summer lovin’ happened so fast and all that.” - YOURE KILLINGGGGGGGG ME STOP WITH THIS HE IS SO CORNY 🤭🤭🤭- NERDDDDDDDD

“Would now be a bad time to tell you that I love you?” he asks, threading his fingers through beltloops to pull you in closer to him. // “While I’m wearing a tank top with a six-pack dressed up as you? Seems a little narcissistic, does it not?” He’s never seen your smile this big or this bright before. - this is so sweet and so cute and fits for this conversation based on everything we know about them?- they're so cute I can't. and I love where they end up in the Christmas fic, they're my holiday favorites.

I also read this one probably just as much as I read the Christmas fic reblog, and its even better now because now I get to call you a friend!! 💖

Seeing Double

Summary: Two weeks had felt like more than enough time to come up with something. And now you’re costumeless and in a panic less than a couple of hours before you’re supposed to be meeting your boyfriend’s closest friends. You’re ready to call it quits when you’re suddenly hit with a burst of inspiration.

Pairing: Bradley ‘Rooster’ Bradshaw x Female Reader

Length: 6k

Warnings: fluff, allusions to smut, and Bradley Bradshaw in short-shorts (minors dni)

(This fic is a one-shot that is set before the Oh Christmas Tree, but you can read it on its own! Enjoy 🧡)

Looking at your closet, filled with everything and yet absolutely nothing, you’re beginning to realize just how totally and royally screwed you are.

The thing is you’d had time. More than enough time, in fact.

When Bradley had first invited you to go with him to this Halloween party, two weeks had seemed like plenty of time to concoct the perfect costume.

And then the more you’d thought about it, the more you’d overthought it, the more annoyed you’d gotten for overthinking it. A vicious spiral that not even hours of searching on Pinterest had helped to pull you from.

One that had left you costumeless for a party that was supposed to start in less than two hours with all of your boyfriend’s friends.

Fuck.

It was one outfit for one evening. You should probably be more concerned about Ciara from Marketing and her not-so-subtle scheming than what you were going to put on your body for the next five or so hours.

As you a sift through your perfectly color coordinated clothes, dragging hangers across the closet rod as if you’ve been personally victimized by the wardrobe you’d bought with your own money, you can’t help but wonder if you might have some self-sabotaging tendencies.

Bradley Bradshaw had snuck up on you when you were least expecting it. And what you thought was just going to be some summer fun had quickly turned into something more.

More often than not, you were thinking of him.

More often than not, he was texting you throughout the day.

More often than not, you were sharing a bed with him at night.

The last three, almost four, months had flown by in a summer haze and you liked Rooster more than any other man you had dated in the past.

You might even love him, but that was something you were keeping close to your chest for now. It felt too soon to be feeling the way you did about him.

He was more than just the pretty face and easygoing smile that had swayed you into giving him your number. He was more than just a fun night out and some no-strings-attached-yet-mind-blowing sex that you had tried to convince yourself it was.

He’d made it impossible for you to try and keep it casual in the way that he’d thoroughly swept you off your feet. You’d given up trying to keep him at arm’s length after your fifth date with him.

If you couldn’t beat him, you might as well join him. And so far, it was a gamble with your heart that was paying off.

Which was probably why you had given yourself the world’s worst mental block trying to figure out a costume to wear.

You’d met a few of his friends, like Natasha and Jake, during the nights he’d taken you to the Hard Deck. He’d told you that after one of their missions earlier in the year, the members on the squad had been in high demand. But this was the first time you’d be hanging out with them all at once.

So yeah, you were more than a little nervous about this evening.

And you didn’t just want to make a good impression, you wanted to absolutely charm and delight them. These people were so important to him, they were his family. They mattered to him and he mattered to you.

You pull out a black cocktail dress and debate whether you could pull together a Breakfast at Tiffany’s look with the pearls your grandmother had left you. It was a classic for a reason, right?

Or did it make you look like you were trying too hard? She was basically a callgirl after all.

The formfitting little dress goes back on the rack with a little more force than is necessary.

It’s just a causal get together, so why are your palms sweating?

You eye a silky pink slip dress and think about pairing it with one of your overpriced sleep mask. But you think you’d look less like you were flirty, thirty, and thriving and more like you forgotten to get dressed after rolling out of bed.

There are still a couple of cozy plaid button ups that you’d brought with you from home, but unless you carried around a roll of paper towels all night, it was an idea that might get you a more than a few perplexed looks. And there was nothing worse than having to explain your outfit for it to make sense to people.

Or worse, you’d be the one cleaning up spills all night.

You wanted your effort to look effortless.

Cool but not try hard. Thought through but not over the top.

You remember seeing some friend of a friend’s post from last weekend where she was dressed as Kim Possible. Green pants and a black top feel very doable. And she’d looked very cute and low maintenance, which was just the kind of vibe you were going for.

Remembering a pair of green khakis your sister had somehow talked you into the last time she came to visit, you go to your dresser and yank out the drawer you think they’d be in and toss it on the floor. You’re over trying to keep some semblance of order, that’s a problem for future you to deal with now.

Digging around in the pile, you will a flash of olive green to appear before your eyes. And when the items formerly nicely folded drawer and nothing but a heap of wrinkled, olive green-less chaos, you’re hit with the realization that the khakis that had seemed like a bad idea when you’d first gotten them had felt like a bad idea every time you looked at them and they’d ended up in the donation pile during your last closet purge.

You flop down and take in the carnage.

Half open drawers, random tops and skirts flung on your bed, the perfect rainbow of your closet now some technicolored disarray.

You’re almost afraid to pull out your phone to look at the clock, that pressure growing in your chest keeps getting worse. You can almost feel each individual second as they tick by. Glancing down you see that there’s a new message from Bradley, one that you missed in your frenzy to find something, anything to wear tonight.

Bradley, 9:52 AM: That wake up was worth the extra pushups I had to do for being late.

Bradley, 11:10 AM: Did I leave my shirt at your place this morning?

You, 12:22 PM: I’ll check when I get home and let you know. But I’m sure it’s there since I vividly remember the way you took it off last night.  

You, 12:23 PM: And you only have yourself to blame for those pushups. (PS. I told you what time it was before I got in the shower, you were the one who invited yourself to join. PPS. I liked that thing you did with the shower head)

Bradley, 2:37 PM: As I said, worth it (PS pretty sure the only thing I heard you chanting was my name. Also I just ordered a new shower head for my place, one with a fancy handheld and everything)

You, 3:04 PM: I guess I’ll have to wake you up with my mouth more often then. (PS. just curious how many settings does it have? Asking for a friend.)

Bradley, 3:10 PM: Jesus Sweetheart, I’m up next to do a hop… (PS more than enough, and by enough, I mean 7)

You, 3:10 PM: 😘 (PS. can’t wait, I’m more than happy to product test)

Bradley, 3:11 PM: Yeah, I bet you are...

You, 3:11 PM: (Want to know the best part of working from home? I can get off any time I want. Have fun flying with that hard-on, Roos.)

Bradley, 3:12 PM: Baby, you’re killing me here

You, 3:12 PM: Fly safe ❤️

🔴 Bradley, 6:14 PM: Just got home, I can’t wait to see you tonight. What time should I pick you up? You might have to come down though, I don’t know if they’d let me in...

Skimming the previous messages from earlier in the day helps relieve some of the anxious energy that was thrumming in your veins. Because he’s just so Bradley.

He hadn’t been the only one who got to work late this morning. You’d actually worked from the office that day, but it had been more fun to tease him from your desk than draft the internal communications you were supposed to be working on.

The original plan had been to work a half day and then leave early and figure out your costume situation. But then you’d been pulled into an emergency PR meeting on your way out the door for one of the company’s biggest clients and had got home much, much later than you’d planned to.

You’d spotted Rooster’s shirt crumpled on the floor by the foot of your bed, from where he’d shucked it off the night before, the second you’d flown into your bedroom. Now it is carefully draped against the back of the soft blue tufted chair in the corner of your room. It was a colorful patchwork of beach themed vignettes in soft corals, teals, and dark blues. In addition to the palm trees and foliage, there were also planes and ships on it.

It was one of your favorites because you always felt like you were finding something new on it every time he wore it.

He’d told you once early on when you’d first gotten serious, after you’d teased him about his seemingly endless supply, that he’d even gotten curious one drunken night and looked up the resale value on some of his favorites and was shocked at the numbers. That it had taken him a month to put one back on because he didn’t want to ruin any of them on accident, now that he knew what exactly his father had left him.

You knew how much Bradley valued his collection, what they meant to him. You were even watching a few vintage ones in nice condition on Ebay to give him for Christmas.

Letting out a ragged sigh, you look back at the pile on the ground.

You’ve always prided yourself on being a problem solver. And the one time you needed to spring into action with a pivot plan is the one time you’re at a complete loss. You felt paralyzed by indecision and the kind of pressure that only you could put on yourself, which made everything that much more frustrating.

How you had kept the novelty six-pack tank top you’d taken home from a White Elephant exchange, but donated the green khaki pants was beyond you.

Out of the two, one would have been much more practical in this particular moment.

You pick it up off the floor and feel the fabric between your fingers. It was surprisingly soft for something that you’d expect to feel like sandpaper no matter how many times it got washed.

That tank top had never seen the light of day, yet always seemed to make it through your yearly purge unscathed. Probably solely on the fact that it made you giggle whenever you saw it. You always forgot about it, but it was a happy surprise when you pulled it out from where it was tucked away in the back of your dresser drawer.

You let it fall back onto the top of the pile.

Your thumbs hover over the keyboard of your phone as you try to figure out what to say to Bradley, as you look back and forth between your mountainous mess and the empty text box.

You know you could call him and he’d pick up before the third ring. You knew you could text him and he would reply the moment he could. And you know, if you told him you were stressed about meeting all of his friends and wanting to impress them, to impress him, that he would understand. He’d tell you- in that soothing way of his- to not worry about it, that you could just wear whatever made you comfortable, no costume necessary.

He’d probably even ditch his own so that you weren’t the only one there in normal clothes, even though he’d been dropping teasing hint about his for days now. He was so excited for tonight, you didn’t want to bring the vibe down before you’d even arrived.

You close your eyes and allow yourself a couple moments to reset.

What you wore didn’t matter. But whatever you wore, you were going to have a great time with Bradley and the people he cared about. And that was the only thing that mattered to you.

You could throw on your little black dress, or a red and white striped sweater with a pair of glasses, or some skintight leggings and a leather jacket. But it didn’t matter because it was all going to end the same way: with you tipsy and giddy and in Rooster’s bed.

Already feeling much better you open your eyes again.

You’re greeted again with those perfectly sculpted abs of that silly little tank top that still sits on top of the mound of clothes on your floor. But out of the corner of you eye, those cheerful colors adorning your chair in the corner wink out at you.

The glimmer of an idea settles over you like stardust.

It’s on that the more you sit with, the more perfectly solidified it becomes in your mind. Oh, you can see it so clearly now.

It’s an idea that makes you feel like you could bubble over in excitement.

You shoot off a quick text to Rooster and set about grabbing all the things you needed. You’d be a little late, but not terribly so. Fashionably late.

And you’re hopeful it’ll be worth the last-minute change of plans.

There was only one thing you needed that you didn’t already have, and you knew just where you’d be able to find it.

Just a quick little pit stop on the way to the party.

On your way to Bradley.

When Rooster parked in front of Fanboy and Payback’s place he shouldn’t have been surprised to see the Spanish-style house they rented together absolutely covered in every type of decoration imaginable.  

He’d heard Reuben moan and groan about it enough over the last few weeks.

Halloween was Mickey’s favorite holiday and there was nothing more he loved than going all out on a theme. It didn’t matter if it was St Patrick’s Day or National Cheeseburger Day, he always committed.

They’d all be pulled into the argument about whether or not a faux body bag filled with empty bottles should be strung up on the front porch. Fanboy lost that one by a mere two votes. And Bob had been the one to broker the peace by suggesting they make some ghosts to hang up instead.

Dozens of glowing pumpkin lanterns hung from the trees outside and lined the pathway up to the front door. The bushes were wrapped in fibrous looking cobweb material as lights flickered and flashed underneath them. There was a fog machine hidden somewhere because wisps of smoke were curling and crawling along the lawn. Custom gravestones littered the yard along with a few well-placed plastic skeletons. The front of the porch was filled with more pumpkins of various sizes and shapes and colors as well as those truce ghosts and a few oversized bats swaying in the chilly October night breeze.

Rooster wasted no time letting himself in the glowing entryway, rubbing his arms as he hustled to get inside. Normally he ran warm, but he’d been covered in goosebumps from the moment he’d gotten out of the Bronco.

His costume had earned him more than a few wolf whistles when he had stopped to get gas. He’d simply shot them a wink and a smirk as he’d strut past them to go inside and pay.

He looked damn good.

But there was only one person he’d wanted to show off this outfit to.

He didn’t know how it was possible but the inside was even more decorated than the outside of their place was.

There were stands and strands of colorful string lights in black, purple, and orange strung across the ceiling covered by gauzy black fabric. There were more cobwebs covering every exposed bit of the walls and flameless candles lining the floor of the hallway. And there was a mix of eerie forest sounds playing under the Halloween party soundtrack that Coyote had been roped into making for the night.

Bradley follows the hundreds of little plastic spiders decorated the wall leading him to the living room. And almost collides with someone as he rounds the corner.

The shorter man he’d nearly taken out had on an overly bleached and spiked wig with a goatee and was wearing more neon orange flames than any one person should be allowed to wear.

They were both eyeing each other waiting for the other person to lob the first comment.

Rooster sees the way Mav’s cheeks are twitching as he takes in the length of the shorts he was wearing and just how much leg he had on display.

“Yeah, yeah. Let’s hear it, old man,” he snorts, reaching out and taking the drink from Mav’s hand and taking a swig from the mostly empty bottle before passing it back.

“Did they lower the drinking age and I missed the memo, kid?” Mav tosses back easily, pointing to Bradley’s clingy, red Rydell High School t-shirt. “Don’t need a Class A misdemeanor on my record, that file is already big enough on its own.”

“Laugh it up, Flavortown,” Bradley snorts, “You on your way out?”

“Yeah, just wanted to swing by for a minute before I go over to the Hard Deck to help Penny out for the night. She sent me with some treats too, they’re over on the table. Where’s your girl? I was hoping to see her before I left.”

“Oh, uh, she’s meeting me here. Said she got caught up in a last-minute meeting,” Bradley says rubbing the back of his neck. He was trying not to over think the text you’d sent him. “So what’s Penny dressing up as?”

Mav uses both hands and gestures to his costume, face flat.

“No shit,” Bradley laughs.

“Amelia hustled the both of us,” Mav says shaking his head fondly. “I’m telling you, kid, teenagers these days are a scary bunch.” He takes the last swig of his beer and passes the bottle to Bradley, patting him on the shoulder. “Make sure you and your girl try the candlestick cakes. The realistic ones are the ones that Penny made.”

“And the others?” Rooster asked with a smirk.

“Let’s just say I’m a better pilot than I am with a piping bag,” he says with a self-deprecating laugh. “Happy Halloween, Bradley.”

“See you on Sunday for brunch.”

He and his godfather exchange a hug before Pete strides out the door, giving him one more pat on the back before he leaves.

Rooster makes his way further into the living room and goes to check out the food situation and to grab a drink in hopes that it’ll help settle that anxious coil in the pit of his stomach.

He waves over to Fritz, Yale, and Omaha, who are dressed up as the Sanderson Sisters, as he makes his way to the dining room. Fritz has his arm draped over his wife’s shoulder who is dressed like a black cat and they’re all gathered around the keg in the kitchen like it’s a cauldron.

Under a display of floating candles, Fanboy and Payback’s dining table is filled to the brim with all kinds of party food. Breadsticks that looked like fingers, a charcuterie board being clutched by a skeleton, a carved pumpkin puking some kind of tasty looking dip, and rice krispies with an ungodly amount of red dye number forty wrapped up in plastic on Styrofoam trays. And of course, the candlestick cakes. It was obvious which one’s Penny had made and which were Mav’s handiwork.

He pops one in his mouth, making a mental note to text Penny about how good they are.

Off to the side there was a homemade cooler shaped like a coffin and a witch’s cauldron bubbling away with dry ice filled with something potent, if the patriotic punch from the Fourth of July was anything to go by.

He grabs one of the plastic syringes from the bowl that says free shots and sips it down easily, trying not to grimace at the ratio of tequila to cranberry cocktail, and then dropping the now empty syringe in the hazardous waste bucket that’s placed next to the bowl.

Checking out the inside of the cooler, he sees it’s been stocked with a good variety of beers and ciders, he even spots your favorite which he knows you’ll be excited about.

That is whenever you get here.

Bradley pulls out his phone from the back pocket of his tight-fitting shorts to see if there’s any new message from you yet.

No ETA, no update, no on my way. Nothing since his last text nearly forty minutes ago. He’s tempted to shoot you another one, but he doesn’t want to come across as overbearing.

Rooster knew you were a bit anxious about tonight, even though all his friends really liked you, but he was starting to think that maybe he might be deeper in this than you were. He was trying not to let his mind spiral about why you didn’t want him to pick you up, but the only thing he kept coming back to was that maybe you wanted a way to make an easy escape if you weren’t having a good time with him or his friends.

He was worried that you might have one foot out the door.

You’ve met most of his friends now, just at different times and never all at once.

After the Uranium Mission, their team quickly became very in-demand. Getting requests to join other training contingents, classified trials and testing of new tech in development, and smaller specialized missions. It’s very rare now that they’re all in the same place at the same time. It always feels like there’s always someone missing, they’re always going and doing.

His team has always been good about finding ways to let off steam.

Although, he’s been less frequently found behind the piano bench of the Hard Deck since he’s taking on a more starring role in your bedroom. His friends would tease him on base about keeping you to himself. But he wouldn’t apologize for wanting to spending all his free time with you than the people he already spent the majority of his days with. Bradley doesn’t want you to feel like he’s trying to keep you away from them, he just would rather soak up all of your attention than share you with everyone else.

He liked that you were his girl.

Sighing to himself, Rooster puts his phone back in his pocket and walks back out to the living room before anyone can accuse him of sulking.

Callie and her fiancée are dress up as Velma and Daphne and chatting away with Bob over by the fireplace that is filled with skulls and thick pillars of candles. Bob’s homemade chef’s hat is glowing lightly from the inside and showing the silhouette of a little rodent.

He watches as Fanboy in his Hamburglar costume heading over of the bathroom with a trash bag looking more than a little suspicious. Bradley is sure he has more than a few pranks up black and white striped sleeves tonight.

“Where’s your Sandy, Danny?” Nat asks, sliding up to him and passing him a beer.

“You know, I don’t actually know what she’s coming dressed as. She never gave me any hints,” he admits, taking a small sip as he takes in her costume. She’s got fluffy bunny ears on and her nose is painted pink. The only thing missing from her Lola Bunny ensemble is the basketball.

“Oh?” He can tell Phoenix is trying to school the surprise on her face. “I just figured with you wearing that and all.”

He just shrugs, his thumbnail picking at the label on the bottle.

Bradley had thought about floating a couple’s costume when he had invited you to come with him, but he pivoted at the last moment, not wanting to put pressure on you to agree to commit right away.

“Is she on her way?” Nat asks, looking at him out of the corner of her all too keen eyes.

“Hopefully, if she doesn’t change her mind,” he says ruefully.  

“Why would she do that? Did you do something to piss her off?”

“Not that I know of. I know I’m reading into things, but I was supposed to go pick her up and she texted me last minute saying that she’d meet me here instead. And I don’t know what to make of it, it just isn’t like her.”

“Is that why you’re standing here look like a sad puppy? You know I’ve never been able to get through those ASPCA commercial without them getting my credit card information. Can I read the text?”

“Sure, have at it,” he says, unlicking and handing over his phone to her. “Uh, just the last few though.” He tacks that last part on quickly and she just gives him a pointed lift of her sharp eyebrow.

He feels dumb watching Nat skim the texts, he knows he’s overthinking things. But he also knows he’s not going to feel better about any of it until you get here and he can see your face.

“She said she’ll be here, Bradshaw. I don’t know how else you’re reading into this, but I imagine the mental gymnastics must be getting tiring.”

Bradley huffs a laugh, because she’s right.

As always.

“Yeah, I know,” he sighs, running his hands through his hair, “It’s just- I really like her, Nat.”

“Oh, we know. You moon after her with those big cow eyes all the time” she teases, nudging her elbow against his ribs. “But I’ve also seen the way she moons after you too, so relax.”

He can’t fight the small smile that works its way onto his face. The idea of you watching him the same way he knows he looks at you when you’re not looking at him makes his chest fill with warmth.

Nat peers around him and he spins to see who’s just arrived.

“Jesus, Rooster. Aren’t you worried about your dick falling out of those? They’re indecent,” Jake drawls, looking every inch the action hero he thinks he is.

“Please,” Bradley says with a roll of his eyes, “You wish you could pull these off, Bagman. If you got it, flaunt it.”

“I’m flaunting plenty,” Jake counters as he flexes. His shirt is unbuttoned all the way to the waistband of his pants. Although, Bradley is pretty sure Indiana Jones at least had sleeves. “Once your girl sees these abs she might be my girl by the end of the night.”

Seresin shoots him a wink and struts away, the plastic whip on his hip bouncing with every step. Rooster just shakes his head after him, watching as he high fives Javy, who is dressed as The Rock complete with a fanny pack and chain around his neck, in greeting by the sliding glass door that leads to patio.

“I still can’t believe you use to date him,” he ribs Nat lightly.

She plucks his beer out of his hand, claiming it as her own in retaliation. “Me neither,” she grunts, but he hears the hint of affection in her voice.

“Hey, you two look great! Do you need anything?” Mickey asks enthusiastically. His shifty eyes and overly wide smile instantly making Bradley edgy.

“Where’d that trash bag you had earlier go, Fanboy?” he asks warily.

“That’s for me to know and Javy to find out about later,” Mickey says slyly.

Rooster and Nat exchange a look.

This was the thing he was worried about when Cyclone had announced the news earlier in the week that they’d all tentatively have the next couple of months off through the new year. A well-earned break. No extra assignments. No extra transfers or additional training seminars.

Mav had told him in confidence that there was one small deployment that might get approved near Thanksgiving and that he was going to pull some string to see what information he could find out about it. Bradley was hoping that you might ask him to come home with you and meet your parents, so he had his fingers crossed that his name was left off that list.

The mood on base was already light. Mickey and Javy had started a series of pranks against each other that had slowly been escalating over the last few days. And Rooster knew that this extroverted bunch would be leaning in at full force and cutting loose tonight.

“Can you do me a favor, man? Can you hold off on the pranks for an hour, I don’t want you guys to scare her off the second she walks through the door.”

“She’s met us, she knows how we are.”

“I think that’s that point,” Nat quips.

“She likes us and we like her, so what’s there to worry about?” Fanboy asks rhetorically.

“Not all at once,” Bradley mutters.

“Lighten up, Rooster! I’m sure she’ll get here soon. In the meantime, go have some of the Potion of Peril punch that I made. I promise we’ll be on our best behavior. I won’t even ask her to grab something from the fridge for me,” Fanboy says that last part with a concerning laugh as he scurries away.

“You won’t what? Wait, Fanboy, come back,” Rooster calls after Mickey. He sees Payback dressed as Marty McFly coming down the stairs, and catches him. “Reuben, hey, what’s in the fridge?”

“Mickey has been collecting all of our empty jars for weeks now. He filled the damn fridge with jars of heads. It scared the shit out of me the first time I saw all of them. I haven’t been able to find the open container of mayo for days, and I’m tired of eating dry sandwiches.” Payback lets out the biggest sigh and rolls his eyes before he leaves them making his way over towards Coyote and Hangman still by the patio.

“See, Nat? This is what I’m worried about. We’re a lot, in more ways than one.”

Bradley pulls out his phone again, probably for the fifth time since he’s arrived and begins working on a text to send her. There’s nothing wrong with a little heads up and if he can get a little update from you then he’ll consider it a win.

“Well, if it ain’t Rooster,” he hears Hangman call out from across the room.

“We just did this, man,” he tosses back, not bothering to look up from his phone.

“Hey! Bradshaw’s girl has got a better set of abs than he does!” someone else calls out.

That gets his attention.

“What the fuck are you guys talking about?” he grunts irritably, as he tries to put his phone back in his pocket.

He doesn’t get a response because Phoenix is already turning him towards the entryway, the room erupting in a series of hoots and hollers as the rest of the party takes notice of your costume.

You’re shifting a little on your feet under the attention, there’s a small shy smile on your face and you have your pretty eyes already trained on him.

Hangman wasn’t kidding when he said you had a better set of abs than him.

You’re wearing a pair of frayed light blue denim shorts with a truly impressive screen-printed washboard stomach is on full display tucked into them. Over that you had on the Hawaiian print shirt he’d left at your place on accident this morning, it was one of his favorites with all its bright colors, along with a pair of sunglasses dangling from the pocket.

There was no mistaking who you’ve come dressed up as, not with that striking press-on mustache you were wearing.

It’s all he can do to just stand there and stare at you.

You’ve always been so damn beautiful, and even with a felt mustache on your face, you can make his heart pound away in his chest. Not to mention, he really likes the way you look in his shirt.

Your face lights up as you take him in too. Your eyes sweeping over his two-sizes-too-small shirt and the white short-shorts that left nothing to the imagination.

There is such fondness on your face he can’t believe how he’d let himself get so twisted in knots.

He forgets about all of his friends and their commotion as he struts over to you taking your face between his hands and kissing you. You make a little noise of surprise that he uses to his advantage to slip his tongue into your mouth.

When one of his friends catcalls them, he waves them off with one of his hands, and then drops it down to your ass to pull you in closer to him.

A flash goes off, the light bright behind his eyes.

He can feel the laughter bubbling out of your chest before comes out of your mouth, even he fights to tamper down his own amusement in favor of kissing you more.

Pulling away Bradley gently takes your chin between his finger and thumb turning your head left and right to admire your costume of choice, up close and personal.

“I gotta say, sweetheart, you’re really working that mustache.”

“I get your attachment to it. I think I wear it pretty well,” you say looking very pleased with yourself. You reach up and affectionately brush your fingers along his own.

He’d thought about shaving it off for the sake of his costume, but ultimately couldn’t go through with it. And now he’s really glad he didn’t.

“It’s not just that ‘stache you’re wearing well,” Bradley says low just for her, toying with the hem of his shirt draped on you. “You know I like the way you look in my clothes.”

He can’t help up enjoy the way you’re getting bashful under his appreciative gaze and compliments.

“I had to make sure you got the shirt back somehow,” you say with a smile.

“So it can end up on the floor of my bedroom instead?” he teases, kissing your cheek.

“I like the sound of that, and not just because my bedroom looks like a crime scene.” He cocks his head at you, but you just shake your own at him in response before continuing, “But I’m letting you know right now, the mustache is staying on when you have your way with me.”

“You have yourself a deal as long as you share your routine with me,” he murmurs, running a finger down the line of the faux abs of your tank top. “Can’t say I remember seeing these this morning in the shower. I’ve got a girl to impress, so I’d be happy to show you how grateful I am for any tips and tricks.”

“Think you’re doing just fine in those short-short of yours,” you reply, taking a step back to give him a thorough once over, “What inspired this eyeful of an ensemble?”

“I knew the shorts would make my ass look good,” he says with a shrug that send you into a fit of giggles. He’s ready to skip the party all together, in favor of appreciating how good you look outside of your costume. Your eyes are dancing with amusement and he finds himself wanted to admit more, “And because, you know…”

He thought his costume idea had been pretty witty, but now he felt a little sheepish because he didn’t want you to think he was being corny. Sure the shorts had been the thing that sealed the deal, but he’d picked good boy Danny Zuko for a reason.

“No, Bradley, I don’t think I do. Will you explain it to me?”

“Summer lovin’ happened so fast and all that.”

“‘And all that’, huh?” And there’s that look of your, he was absolutely putty in your hands when you looked at him like that. “Ok, ok, but I need to know,” you pause for moment, and look up at him with a very serious expression, “Did you have yourself a blast?”

He watches as you bite your bottom lip trying not to laugh at your own joke.

And in that moment, he just knows.

The sureness had been taking up residence in his bones since he’d first convinced you that trying to keep it casual with you wouldn’t cut it for him.

“Would now be a bad time to tell you that I love you?” he asks, threading his fingers through beltloops to pull you in closer to him.

“While I’m wearing a tank top with a six-pack dressed up as you? Seems a little narcissistic, does it not?” He’s never seen your smile this big or this bright before.

He knows. He knows. He knows.

Rooster pulls you back in for a deep kiss.

“I love you too, Bradley,” you murmur against his lips.

He kisses you until he can’t keep the smile off of his face.

“Hey, Bradshaw!”

Surprised, he pulls away from you to see Nat waving him over. He takes your hand, ready to take you over with him.

“No, not you. The better Bradshaw,” Phoenix announces as she points at you, crooking a finger and holding out a shot syringe for you.

You pull him to you, giving him one more quick before floating over to join Nat near the kitchen.

He’s feeling more than a little dumbstruck in that moment.

And not just from the sight of your shapely legs in those cutoff jean shorts.

Bradley’s feet feel cemented to the wood floors beneath his black hightop converse as he watches you throw your head back in laughter at something Nat says.

He doesn’t want to get ahead of himself, but he thinks his last name looks good on you.

You smile wide and beaming, your eyes shining as you turn to look at him from across the other side of the room.

Yeah, it looks really good on you.

Happy Halloween, Friends! This little moment has been living in my head since I posted my first ever fic on here, 'Oh Christmas Tree'! I'm so glad to finally release it to share with you! Thank you for reading!

If you want to find out what happened next for these two, just follow the link above!

If you're curious about what all of their costumes look like, you can see them here!

You can read more of my stories here!

Taglist:

@gretagerwigsmuse @sehnsuchts-trunken @notroosterbradshaw @tongue-like-a-razor @laracrofted @bradshawsbitch @starryeyedstories @top-hhun-main @startrekfangirl2233 @callsign-viper @teacupsandtopgun @shanimallina87 @angelbabyange @oneelleandaneye @mizzzpink @cornishkat @alana4610 @20th-centu-fairy-girl @pono-pura-vida @donttouchmycarrots @eg-dr3amer3 @whaledots-blog @a-beaverhausen @hangmanscoming @mandolin22 @theweekndhistorybook @lilpeekabooze @high-bi-imgonnacry @ahintofkiwistrawberry @ruewrote @spiderman-stilinski @jayniebop @my-soulmate-is-mycroft @imaginecrushes @keyrani @chicomonks @artemissunn @mayempress @eddiemunsonreader

[wri0thesley]

It’s me again… I’m annoying you again with my half awake thoughts. Ugh thinking about oral 🫠 From Thoma insisting that you let him pleasure you please and how he falls apart having your attention (and mouth) focused on him. Or Childe (I’m sorry) just being far too rough and hard because he’s sooo excited and you feel so good. AND UGH he absolutely prefers it in risky situations it makes it so much. BRB creating a detailed list of where they best like their cum on you (I’m gross)

And. AND please this is haunting me. Eating Yae Miko out at her shrine??? How teasing her voice is and how she knows you can do better than that. Or Lisa on her desk, legs wrapped around you to keep you in place... Meowwww

jade you are never annoying me with ur thoughts ever. thank u for always giving my genshin brain rot something to bounce off of. i cannot Not Think about them

cw: not sfw, minors dni. oral sex, fellatio. reader is afab; one gendered term ("princess") is used in childe's blurb. squirting. kind of exhibition-ismy in miko's. bondage in ayato's. mentions of non-human features (knots, inhuman tongue) in gorou's. ft: thoma, childe, yae miko, lisa, diluc, ayato, gorou

Thoma, who loves being able to use his mouth on you. He's torturously slow; clearly enjoying himself, making pleased, satisfied noises in between the slow laps and licks of his tongue, grinding himself against whatever he's closest to in order to provide friction to his own untouched cock. He lives to serve; that includes on his knees, and nothing pleases him more than your hand tangled in his hair and your hips canting up to his mouth and your over-stimulated voice pitching and keening as he leads you up and over more orgasms than you ever even realised your body was capable of. Thoma, who, when the tables are turned . . . smiles at you and says you don't have to. Who flushes so prettily when you brush your cheek against the slick head of his cock, who can hardly contain his own moans when your tongue drags across the slit of the head. Who blushes and gasps and whimpers and is pushed over the edge so, so easily when he looks down at you and sees how adoring your gaze is when your eyes meet his.

Childe, who may not have the most experience in this matter but certainly makes up for that in enthusiasm. Who drags his tongue over you with little finesse but ardent fervour; who notices when you jerk underneath him and likes to go back to that point. If you're not whining and to the point of tears, why even bother? Childe considers all things a competition; a fight for victory. And he intends to be victorious over your orgasm, too - if you do not come in his mouth, what good has he really been here? If you squirt, be prepared - once Childe knows, he certainly won't be satisfied using his mouth on you ever again unless he makes you do it over and over. Childe, too, who gets . . . a little too invested in you, when it's your mouth sealed around his cock. Who perhaps pushes his hips too roughly; bumps the head of his cock against your throat and loves to see you gag on it, the cute noise that escapes, the widening of your eyes. Who croons; "Oh, princess - too big for you?"

(He does like risky situations, of course; loves pulling you into a disused alley between crates in Liyue Harbor and pushing your shoulders. Adores bidding you crawl beneath his desk in the Northland Bank. Lets his hand brush your thigh under a table in a restaurant, and perhaps slips it between them, bemoaning that the waiter is coming back any moment now so he can't simply bury his head between your legs. Adores a public celebration after one of his debt collecting missions has gone smoothly; under a tree, a patch of grass just a little too close to where he last spoke to a group of treasure hoarders for you to not be on edge--)

Yae Miko, who plays with your hair whilst you're buried between her thighs. Who laughs softly when you profess anxiety that you are profaning the holy shrine, and simply quirks an eyebrow as she says; "Oh, but you're servicing your Guuji, are you not, little one? I can think of nothing more fitting for a place of worship than your pretty mouth between my legs." Who insists you don't wear underwear beneath your clothes when she takes you with her to the publishing house, and allows herself the slow luxury of using her mouth on you when she ought to be in a meeting with a group of editors waiting outside her office, who are instead currently being treated to you muffling your whimpers with your hand and Miko wetly kissing bare skin as she insists; "Now, now, little one. Let them hear you." If you're very lucky, you may even get to pet her ears whilst she's making you see stars. She occasionally makes soft remarks about how much the Raiden Shogun would like you, she's sure . . . the Shogun has always had a taste for sweet things, and Miko can think of nothing sweeter than you--

Lisa, whose eyes are kind when you're locked between her long, stockinged legs - who praises you with every breath in a tone that suggests she's patronising you, just a little. Who makes soft, pleased little noises in between your licks - who adores having you look up at her for her approval. And in turn, when she comes on your face and pushes you away . . . she wipes a thumb over your wet mouth and 'tsks' at you. "So messy," she chides. "And in the library, too." When the tables have turned, and she's in between your legs, the power dynamic does not change. It's clear she knows what she's doing; as knowledgeable as this as she is in all things. The noises that come from her are downright obscene; it's really a lucky thing it's after hours and Jean is locked in her own office, because Lisa does not feel the need to muffle how much she's enjoying the taste of you on her lips. Of course, she's still a librarian above all else, and rules that apply to you do not reply to her - when your whimper of her name breaks the air as she comes, she pauses to look up at you with a wicked smile on her lips. "The library," she tells you, in utter sincerity, "is no place for noisiness. . . must we swap places again, so I can find a way to quieten you down?"

Diluc, whose mouth and breath are hot against you - who keeps looking up at you to check that he's doing it right, he's not being too rough. Who needs you to tug on his hair sometimes to ground him, or he loses himself completely - who gets carried away in his desperate need to be needed by you and needs the pillow of your thighs either side of his ears tightening as a reminder to slow down. Diluc, too, who goes all-over flushed red to see your own pretty face between his legs, on your knees - who tries to bite back his whimpers and groans and maintain face but can't quite manage it. Diluc, who loses control once more just as he's about to come and his hips begin to jack-hammer into your mouth, cock twitching wildly, whimpering out breathless apologies about how he needs this even as he's surging thick spurts of his come down your throat. Who tenderly wipes your mouth when he's done of where his release has pooled at the corners and whispers to you how grateful he is.

Ayato, who loves nothing more than seeing you squirm . . . and you do squirm so beautifully when he takes his time over you. When he ties your wrists to the bedposts with silken ribbons and presses your ankles apart. He so rarely gets to spend leisure time how he wants it . . . so when he does have it, what better way to spend it than with his tongue dragging across your slick folds, teasing you to the edge but never quite letting you topple? Unfortunately, there's no telling when the Yashiro Commissioner might be called away to attend to urgent business, and even if he's currently buried with his mouth in your cunt, he cannot leave anyone waiting for too long - but you'll be a sweet obedient darling for him, won't you? Simply lay there until he returns? Oh, he forgot to untie you? You're so wet and turned on and needy you can barely breathe, and he's wiping his mouth and calling to Thoma he'll be right out? Well . . . no matter. You'll live.

Gorou, who eats you out like an eager puppydog; whose tongue is longer and flatter than an ordinary human's, whose tastebuds are more sensitive . . . and who laps and drools and licks at you like you're the most delicious thing he's ever tasted. Who doesn't register that his tail is thumping in time with his heartbeat and his ears are flickering wildly - who doesn't realise that he's whimpering and whining as he does it. Gorou, who is utterly lost in the ecstacy of what you taste like and has to be physically pushed away when you get so sensitive you can barely breathe, and whines about that too. When you use your mouth on him . . . oh, he can barely control himself. He's rutting into you with his hips stuttering wildly, his mouth dropping open to show sharp teeth and a lolling tongue, his eyes heavy-lidded and dreamy. Oral isn't always enough for him; he feels his knot start swelling, and there's nothing he would like more than to end the night with his entire length stuffed as deep into you as he can go.

[loolingz]

pls let me indulge in being fwb with sae, but he ends up falling for u first and just keeps it to himself for the longest time :(( i feel like one day he’d “accidentally” let it slip that he wants more with you while ur fucking, n he tries to play it off like it’s no big deal but on the inside he’s so nervous he’s scared you off ugh </3

nonnie YES!! tysm for this, oh my god! he’s scared to tell u bc usually its fucking with no feelings, i love him!! enjoy it, and asks are always open! 

he was in trouble.

he'd known he was for weeks. when you came over to his house in a nice frilly outfit to attempt to wow him — which, of course, you did — he knew. if only you knew what was going through his head when you two were having fun with each other.

"oh," your breathless voice pleads. "sae, please," the way he hums against your skin has you squirming in his grip, tightening around his fingers as he kisses your neck and shoulder ever so lightly. as sae stretches you out with his fingers, your thigh-length skirt does nothing to protect your lower half. your blouse was rendered worthless at this point, owing to the fact that it was no longer on you. when the two of you first met, it was flung over his shoulder someplace. he enjoyed littering  you. you enjoyed the sensation of his teeth. it was a win-win situation for everyone. or so you thought. you were unaware of his lingering touches and delicate movements.

a third finger slips inside of you, and you’re ashamed about just how much it affects you. it’s hard to stay quiet when he has his way with you- he knows your body too well by this point. his mouth focuses on that sweet spot on the junction between your neck and your shoulder. It’s the spot that can easily turn your sighs into moans. his thumb circles your clit and draws little mixed-up shapes in order to keep your toes curling and that fire in your belly burning. it’s downright evil the way he’s able to make you this wet. it’s like he wants the whole world to  hear your arousal as he works his magic on your pussy. but you’re not entirely  a saint right now.

after all, you are the one with your hand around his dick, aren’t you?

the growl he gives after a particularly harsh tug on his dick is satisfying. there’s precum coating your fingers. he’s making a mess of himself while making a mess out of you. but even the space between your thighs grows wetter and wetter, you can’t help but find yourself eyeing his frustrated face with a certain confidence. if the only way to get back at him is a couple of well-timed strokes then so be it. you’ll have him putty in your hands in no time at all.

this wasn’t the first time the two of you had... “mutually pleased” each other. Nor was it the second, or third, or fourth time. in fact- any chance he got, he’d simply send you a text message and have his way with you to his heart’s content every chance he got. even still, you always felt like you never quite had a good grasp on how to get him off. his dick felt all too large and heavy and hot in your hands. the mere memory of it being inside of you, stirring up your insides, was enough to send your heart racing. though you’re doing something right. you always do. he’s always the first one to grow close to his orgasm.

but he always makes you cum first. every single time.

when his hips begin to buck in time with your strokes, his fingers start moving inside of you faster. much, much, much faster. he stops peppering your neck with thousands and thousands of little tiny nips and kisses and marks just to claim your lips once more. he’s swallowing your moans, keeping you quiet as the lazy scissoring motion he was previously using on you moves to something more focused and deliberate. his long fingers curl deep inside of you, digits finding your the spot that makes you see stars and prodding at it again and again in a way that’s just not fair.

it’s so hard to focus. it’s so hard to keep your eyes open. they flutter and flutter in an attempt to keep your mind intact, but it’s just so  hard. your mouth drops open to let out another moan, and this you just know is a little too loud for comfort. but you can just feel the smirk he gives you against your skin, and you just know sae isn’t opposed to his claim in front of others. but you can’t think about that right now. your mind is on sae and sae alone.

that, and the way he’s about to make you cream all over his fingers.

his unoccupied hand moves up from its resting point of holding on to your hips. he traces and teases your skin as he trails his hand upwards until it finally reaches its destination- your chest. his hand gropes at your breast, twisting and teasing and twirling an overly sensitive nipple in between the rough pads of his fingers tip. you’re starting to see stars.

and that thumb. oh, god, that thumb. you don’t know how he does it. how he’s always able to bend you to his will, over and over again. because that thumb. that thumb on your clit is cruel. it’s so cruel, and it’s so mean. it’s what causes you to break away from his kiss with a startled gasp and a sudden shriek. the pit at the bottom of your stomach is growing. you feel hot- hot all over, and sae was not helping. the tickle of his hair against your shoulder as he whispers nothing but filthy words of praise in an attempt to coax you into an orgasm is sending you into overdrive. his breath against your ear, the way he breaks you down into a whiny little mess, and that  thumb.

“you just cum for me, got it?” he’s growling now. low, deep, and all too husky for your poor fucked out brain to process. “wish we had more than this. wish we were more than this. ‘want you so bad..” 

his eyes widened at his confession, quickly adding a line about your pussy holding tight on his fingers, trying to play off what he had just said.

this sae of yours- this green eyed, red haired sweet boy of yours is downright filthy behind doors. he’s dirty in all the right ways. tainted in all the best of the word, and it’s all for you. all for your body. all for your pleasure. all to drive up you up, get you drunk off his touch, and keep going until you can’t even stand. or pass out. all for your love.

whichever comes last.

in a last-ditch effort to ensure he experiences what he’s putting you through, your grip on his cock tightens. you’re pumping it furiously, working your hand in the way he’s taught you all those weeks ago when it was your first time together. you’re moving with purpose, with vigor, and with passion. his breath hitches loudly, and he’s humping your hand faster and faster. but there’s no time to taste the victory. his retaliation is swift, and his retaliation is punishing. because in just seconds, he’s practically ambushing your pussy

at this point, you’re reduced to tears. all you can do is nod and beg and whimper as you try to clench down on his fingers, chasing your high. your legs are shaking, and at this point, sae is the only thing keeping you upright. every breath you take is overcome with nothing but gasps and squeals as the coil in your stomach tightens and tightens. god, you’re so close. how does he do it? how does he always manage to take you to new heights that you’ve never been before?

“could give you so much more than this,” he whispers again and the sloppy chants of ‘yes, yes, yes, yes-’ fall out of your mouth in pretty little bows, dolled up just for him. “cum for me.”

and you do.

it happens with a start- the coil in your belly snaps, and your mind goes numb. you let out a loud cry as your cunt clenches around his fingers, but sae swallows it quickly with a deep kiss before he starts to cum himself. he forces you to ride out your orgasm with him, white-hot ropes cum shooting out of his dick with every little groan that sneaks out his mouth. his thumb slows down, not quite abusing your poor, oversensitive clit anymore, but it still feels like torture. you don’t want him to stop. not now, not ever.

the quiet gasps of air you let out are all the forest hears in the aftermath. sae’s lips brush against your shoulder, your neck, and your lips over and over again as he catches his own breath. the smile you give him is soft when he finally meets your eyes. But it’s not until you offer up a silent nod does he finally give a small smile back.

and as wordlessly as the two of you started, he sinks down to his knees, hikes a leg over his shoulder, and gives you his tongue in all the right ways.

“then make me yours, sae itoshi.” 

[snzyflowrr]

More OC stuff. snzer: Molly

CW: sneezing, stifles, mess

Molly and Emilia set off on their trip. Both of them were very excited. It was going to be a very long drive, their tiny car practically filled with all their luggage. 

Emilia was driving, music blaring. They appeared to be in the middle of nowhere. “Are you sure you know where you're going?” Molly asked.

“Course I do,” Emilia scoffed. “At least she does,” she gestured to her phone which was giving her directions.

“Just making sure,” Molly rubbed at her nose. 

Her nose had been itching for what felt like hours, never seeming to be satisfied by her rubbing.

“It would be very bad to be lost in the middle of nowhere,” Molly said, scrubbing her nostrils.

“Don’t jinx it!” Emilia chastised 

“I’m sorry I j-just Hih-GtChxxmpt!! Sorry, I had to sneeze,” Molly sniffled.

“Bless you,” Emilia said. “Trust me.”

“I d-do Hih… sorry… hih-TchHxXmpt!!! Guhh… Hih-TCHgxXchtt!!!” 

“Bless you, bless you,” Emilia said 

“Sorry, my n-n-nose itch-itches Hiih-TXCHHxxXmptt!! HIH-TCHGXxchh!!! Ugh, so itchy.”

“God bless you, darling,”

“Thanks,” Molly chuckled. She scrubbed her nose very hard. No matter what she did the tickle wouldn’t go away. A few minutes passed, and Molly was able to keep the sneezes at bay. It soon became too hard to attempt to hold back, and she had to succumb to the fit.

“I’m gonna s-sn-sneeze again… HIH-TchXxmpptt!! HIH-TCHxXGnpptt!!! Huh… huh… huh… HUH… HIIH-TCHGNXxtcheww!!! Ugh, fuck,”

When Molly gave in to this set of sneezes. Snot exploded out of her nose and covered her hands and chest.

“Oh god, Emilia, do we have t-tissues anywhere?!”

“Yeah, in the back, I think. Bless you, by the way. You sure are sneezy today.”

Molly unbuckled her seat belt to riffle through some bags in order to find some tissues. The urge to sneeze was building in her nose, about to reach its peak. She tried to hold off until she found tissues to safely sneeze into.

Her breath caught in her throat, making her chest heave up and down as she scrambled to find tissues.

“I think they might be in my bag; try checking there.” Emilia suggested.

Molly's chest which was already being bounced by the movement of the car where now jostled tremendously as Molly tried to fend off her sneeze attack which was about to break through the surface 

Molly’s tickling reached unbearable levels, she was forced to give into a volley of desperate sneezing which she stifled between her fingers.

“HIIH-tchxxgmtt!! HUUH-gntxxmmpt!! HIIH-tchXxGmptt!!” Molly moaned as more and more snot slipped through her fingers and onto her heaving breasts. 

“Bless you, my gosh.” Emilia said.

“Ugh, I c-can’t find them anywhere… huh… and I n-need to sneeze a-again… HUUH… HIIH-TCHxXgnncht!! God I can’t s-stop HUUH-TGxXxcheww!!” 

Just then, as Molly opened one of the side pockets on Emilia’s bag, she found a whole box of tissues unopened.

“Found them,” she said and sat back down in her seat.

Molly hurriedly opened the box, taking out a handful of tissues and pressing them to her nose as another spell of sneezes overtook her.

“HIIH-TXHCHcheww!! HIIH-TCHgnnxmpt!!! HIIH-tCHHXcheww!!”

Molly convulsed into her tissues, snot immediately dampening the tissues. Molly crumpled it up and placed the soaked tissue in her lap. 

“Bless you, poor thing,” Emilia cooed.

“The tickle won’t be g-go a-away… HIIH-TCHHSHcheww!!!” Molly sneezed again, expelling more and more mess and her nose became more clogged with each fit.

It seemed to never end. Molly took tissue after tissue out of the box. She blew her red itchy nose or sneezed uncontrollably. No matter how much she sneezed, the itch stayed in her nose begging for release every time. 

Sometimes she thought it was over, but then her nose would start up again, and she’d be thrust into another fit. Molly was stuck in a cycle of never ending sneezing.

Molly placed tissues in her cleavage, so she could easily grab them when needed. Tissues nestled in between her two voluminous bouncing breasts, both moving vigorously with the turbulence of the car and the power of her sneezes. No matter her efforts she still left a shiny layer of mess on her bobbing chest. 

Molly's breath heaves as she pulls her stash of tissues out of her cleavage and sneezes vigorously into them filling them with snot.

“TXHCHHchheww!!! GUUHH.. HUUH-TCHXXchheww!!!,” her nose squelching into the drenched tissue.

“Bless you! Jeez, Molls, you’ve been going at it for almost an hour. Do you need me to pull over?” Emilia asks worriedly.

“N-n-no nothing we can do but wait for it to stop,” Molly said, placing her tissue into the ever-growing pile forming on her lap. “My allergies are b-bad this time of y-year… HIH-TXHchheww!!” 

“Blesses. We’ll eventually need to stop. You’ve sneezed over a hundred times in less than an hour, and you don’t sound like you're stopping anytime soon.”

“We’re in the middle of nowhere, there isn’t a place t-to s-stop HIIH-TXHccHhcheww!! Guhh… HUUH… HIICH-TCHXHHNgcheww!!” 

Molly reached for a tissue to see it was her last one. She blew her nose into releasing a waterfall of mess and placing it on her pile. She had used up a whole tissue box in less than an hour; that had to be some kind of record.

But the tickle in her nose was persistent and before she could think of anything to do, her nose exploded into itchy sneezes.

“HUMP-TXCHH-TNXXCHHH-TCCHHSSHEW-TCHHxhheww!!!” 

Molly sneezed all over her chest, completely drenching her breasts in mess. Snot still leaked from her nose as she looked for something to wipe it on. The only thing she could use was the skin-tight tank top she was wearing.

The top barely covered her breasts, but she pulled it up to her nose, and once again sneezed intensely causing her chest to heave vigorously. 

Somehow these sneezes were even messier than before and completely soaked the top of her shirt, leaving a dark wet spot on her cleavage. But she didn’t care. She was so desperate for the release of the sneezing fit.

As more spurts of sneezes burst from her, her top became damper until it squelched when Molly pressed her face into it.

“It's so messy, I c-can’t control it,” heaved Molly as more sneezes escaped her.

“I found a rest stop we can go to and get you more tissues,” But Molly was too busy sneezing to answer.

When they finally arrived at the rest stop. Molly had been sneezing for about an hour and a half.

“You're Going to set some kind of record,” Emilia said.

When Emilia returned from the store, she was carrying three boxes of tissues with her and a packet of Benadryl.

“T-t-thanks,” Molly hitched gratefully, taking the tissues from Emilia. This was going to be a long road trip. 

[2000sangel]

hiiiii (*´︶`*)ฅ♡ wonderful writing ! could we maybe have some hcs/a scenario of a Madeleine Cookie and a reader who struggles with insomnia/constant exhaustion ? thank u !

hello! i'm glad you like my writing! here you go, I don't know much about Madeleine so he might be a little ooc but i don't think there's much content of him anyways? so this is my interpretation ;' enjoy!

Madeleine x Reader with insomnia/exhaustion

Exhausted, that's the word you felt like was most appropriate to describe how you had been feeling for days on end; as Madeleine's right hand man, your duties had always been taxing, if not a bit repetitive, and struggling with insomnia didn't help you get them done quickly.

But lately it had been especially hard to focus on them because of how late you were falling asleep, and how early you would wake up to make sure everything was in order, retreating only once the sun was completely set.

Madeleine, as the caring and attentive partner he had always been, hadn't failed to notice the bags under your eyes getting bigger and your tired voice and body language; trying to get you to go to bed earlier, even if you were just going to lie there for hours, didn't seem to work, and always ended up in you insisting that it was all useless and you would've preferred to get something done instead of staring at the ceiling until sunrise.

So on one particularly rainy day of that week, he decided to give everyone a day off from training which meant that both of you would've been free to relax until the next day.

He sighed when you still went to open your wardrobe, trying to decide on an outfit to wear. Your fatigued eyes scanned the clothes for what felt like an eternity to him, until you settled for a cream colored blouse and high waisted pants;

"That's an overly formal outfit for what's supposed to be our day off."

He joked, but you just rolled your eyes.

"Why even take today off? Because of the rain?"

He shrugged, cuddling into your shared bed's warm blanket. You shook your head at him and began changing out of your night clothes.

"Wait- the rain's not the only reason, I…"

He trailed off.

"…You?"

"…I wanted us to be able to relax and spend some time together for once… since I've noticed how tired you are, so don't bother wearing anything fancy, just come back to bed."

You felt your cheeks grow warmer at his words, which somehow managed to remind you of the pains you had been getting since you stopped even trying to fall asleep at a decent hour.

You thought of how nice it would've been to fall asleep and then wake up into your lover's strong arms, well rested and ready to go.

And plus, you hadn't failed to notice how he started staring at you with his puppy dog eyes, typical of when he really wanted or needed something from you.

"…Ugh, I guess I'll try, just for you." You smiled and threw your clothes back into the wardrobe, climbing back into bed right afterwards.

Madeleine beamed, wrapping his arms around the small of your back and bringing you closer to his chest; you could feel him smiling when he kissed the top of your head.

His familiar scent and the sound of the rain softly hitting the windows were definitely helping you relax, and your eyelids started getting heavier.

When Madeleine noticed, he sighed contently and began whispering anything that came to his mind to you; he remembered you telling him that his voice had helped you fall asleep faster in the past.

"Do we even really need to work until late at night…? Maybe we get tired from it easily now because we're getting old."

"Oh shut up… you're old."

You lightly pinched his side, which elicited a laugh from him.

"Don't you dare start a tickle fight right now."

"Hmm…maybe not now…but be prepared."

You both went on jokingly bickering and whispering to each other, until Madeleine could see you clearly struggling to stay awake. Your eyes were barely open and your responses had been reduced to simple hums or nods; so he yawned and cuddled closer to you, if it was even possible.

"We should sleep now, don't you think?"

"Mhm..."

He chuckled and started playing with your hair until you drifted off, which was when he allowed himself to do the same.

--

You heard a sound, not really registering where it was coming from at first, nor who was making it. With your dreams still replaying in your head, you rolled over and opened your eyes, just to find out that the other side of your shared bed was empty.

"Madeleine...?" 

You sat up and looked around in search of your boyfriend, who came running in your room shortly after, holding a tray with food and a glass of water.

"Rise and shine! Did you sleep well? Sorry I left you in bed all alone," he handed you the tray and kissed your forehead, "I wanted to make you something to eat."

"Thank you, you really didn't need to though," you smiled at the way he decorated your plate, "What time is it?"

"It's around two in the afternoon." He climbed back into bed and snuggled on your side.

"And it hasn't stopped raining yet?"

"No, looks like this was meant to be a lazy day."

You enjoyed your meal while listening to Madeleine brag about his cooking skill; though you couldn't blame him, he really was a good cook and you loved it when he made something for you.

For the first time in a while, you noticed you actually felt well rested enough, and it was all thanks to Madeleine, who happily obliged when you asked him to put his head on your lap so you could play with his hair -returning the favor, since he had done that for you earlier- while you read a book you had recently gotten for yourself, but hadn't had the time to read. 

Now you could finally relax with your boyfriend without your eyelids constantly feeling heavy, at least for a day.