#When Issie was was standing RIGHT BEHIND HIM when he said it

[cryo-lily]

They’re basically siblings your honor.

[based on an actual in-game interaction of my buddy turning in a mission on Hoth]

Taskar grinned at the other miraluka who had begun to thank him for handling the matter she asked of the smuggler. “I know you can’t see it, but I’m just that awesome.” Taskar couldn’t finish that statement without a shit-eatting grin.

Behind him Isadola was having a small discussion with Lana waiting for him to finish up. Isadola stopped mid sentence as her happy demeanor quickly faded upon hearing her friend’s statement. Her head slowly turned towards her friend with a death glare beginning to cross her face.

 Lana pinched the bridge of her nose hanging her head, “Oh no…” the Sith letting out a heavy sigh, knowing what was going to happen next. 

Bowdaar noticed Isadola slowly stalking towards Taskar as he crossed his arms “I will say you had an honorable death” taking a step back as the other miraluka approached with anger written across her face.

“What do you mean-” Was all the smuggler could get out before a fist flew into his face causing his vision to go black briefly. Taskar was still dazed, blinded by the bright sun shining down on the arctic tundra he now found himself laid out on with an angry Isadola standing over him.

“Seriously? You smug prick. After everything in our childhood you still make those jokes? I should-” Isadola clearly miffed, was cut off by her wife trying to drag her away from the stunned smuggler.

“Darling please control yourself. You should know he didn’t mean it like that.” Lana had to restrain the angry woman from possibly harming her friend more.

Taskar could only laugh as he spat out a little blood getting up to his feet, before turning back to the other jedi who watched all of it. “If you ever need our services again you know who to call!” before turning back to his friend. “Did being trained by the jedi make you lose your sense of humor, Issie?”

There was a long pause as Taskar could almost feel Isadola shooting death glares at him before she responded again “You’re lucky we still have stuff to do…” Isadola mumbled as Lana finally let her go, trusting that she wouldn’t do anything rash again.

“Yeah I love you too, you grumpy bitch” Taskar grinned briefly at his friend as he pulled out a datapad to check what mission they had to start heading to next. “Come on, you can work out your anger at me by killing some pirates.”

[thebadboyfanclub]

Take Care Of Me, My Love (Aemond x Reader)

Hey y’all, how y’all doing? Ok let’s cut to the shit, I felt inspired and wrote this so. Enjoy!

Princess (y/n),

First of her name

The first child of Daemon targaryen

And the only child of Lady Mysaria

Princess of the Dragonstones and the rightful heir of the iron throne after Rhaenyra.

Well sort of, Rhaenyra had embraced her as her own since (y/n) never had a true mother, as soon as she was born Mysaria had fled the palace, leaving her daughter behind with Daemon who was delighted of how easily he had gotten rid of Mysaria, (y/n) never heard of her or from her until later on in her life when someone informed her that Mysaria had died. She then had Laena who was very graceful and kind to (y/n), no one could deny that she loved her, however when the twins were born only her father truly paid attention to her, she now had kids of her own and a very broody husband to manage.

When Rhaenyra wed her father Daemon she finally felt the true love and touch of a mother, (y/n) admired Rhaenyras strength and how she stood tall no matter the circumstance, she was (y/n)s mentor and Jace, Luke and Joffrey were such joy to be around.

When it was announced to her via her step brother Jacaerys that not only were they betrothed, Rhaenyra declared Jacaerys as the rightful heir.

(Y/n) felt like the world had caved in, she was the first child, she has been prepared for her duties since she was just a toddler, now she was told she could only be “the wife” and kings consort.

To say she was livid was an understatement, how dare they arrange a marriage without asking for her agreement, Jace might be content with being a mere player in Rhaenyras game but (y/n) felt her blood boil at the thought of anyone controlling her life.

So she did was she does best, in the midst of night she went and retrieved her dragon.

Ralla hatched when (y/n) was still a baby, a day after her first name day (y/n) hugged the egg and the first cracks started to appear. Since then Ralla and (y/n) were attached, especially on the nights when (y/n) felt alone.

Ralla was a fairly big dragon, she had grown to be bigger than Syrax and she got the nickname of “Ralla the Lady of Ice” she was white as snow and her fire breath was blue, stronger and brighter than most of the other dragons.

Up in the sky she could finally breathe, everything seemed so small from that point of view and sometimes (y/n) wished she could live on Rallas dragon back. She was flying in no particular direction until she heard wings of another dragon flapping pretty close

“īlon issi daor mērī Ralla”*1

She said as she lightly rubbed her dragon on the side of her neck. She leaned in and guided her dragon in a swift motion so she can circle and look for the mysterious visitor, although if she was being honest with herself she already knew who it could be.

“Ao kostagon dakogon yn ao kostagon’t ruaragon”*2

At that moment a dragon flew right next to her, spreading its humongous wings and almost hitting Ralla.

(Y/n) laughed at the failed attempt to scare her but was relieved to be in his presence, they exchanged a look and then she took it upon herself to guide them in the ground, somewhere that they wouldn’t be bothered or discovered by others.

As she gracefully landed Ralla close to the shore, her company followed. (Y/n) brushed her hair back in its place and fixed her dress once she came down of Rallas back.

“To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?”

“I heard the news, I wanted to wish the happy couple a long and prosperous marriage, may you be blessed with many offsprings”

(Y/n) groaned at the sound of that word. Marriage and kids was in her plans but not now and definitely not with Jace.

She loved him but as a brother, he was a good and honourable man, any other girl would kill to have someone as handsome and as kind as Jace. To (y/n) it felt wrong, especially since her heart belongs to someone else, that “someone else” was now standing there and wished her well in a future that he is not a part of. It almost made her throw up at the mere thought of it.

(Y/n) turned her back along with closing her eyes in order to soothe herself and collect her thoughts, her hands felt abnormally cold as she clapped them together and brought them closer to her chest in a way of seeking comfort.

“Happy couple… far from it. As he gets to rise to the throne I am told that I should be more than satisfied with being the kings consort. I am the first child of Daemon Targaryen, brother of King Viserys. I should be the one to inherit after rhaenyra”

“Rhaenyra won’t even be the one to inherit the throne my dear, my father has barely opened his eyes and my mother won’t rest until she sees Aegon on that throne”

She scoffed loudly. As she turned to face Aemond who had walked and stood right behind her as a result he now could be face to face with (y/n). As the wind blew a few strands of her grazed her angry face, her eyebrows furrowed as she looked at him through almost shut eyes.

“Aegon?! That idiotic fool who drinks his days away in addition of harassing half of the servants in the palace? He could never be king, he would destroy everything my uncle has worked for”

She claimed in a higher tone than usual. Aemond could only smile at her as his hands reached for her upper arms, letting his fingertips graze the fabric of her dress up and down.

(Y/n) let her shoulders sink slightly also taking yet another deep breath at a desperate attempt to put her anger aside. The feeling of disrespect and unfairness filled her soul with such hatred that made her brain go on fire.

“How could they do this to me? Betroth me without my permission and deny me what’s rightfully mine? Rhaenyra is King Viserys daughter, he is my uncle”

“Life is unfair I’m afraid, don’t fret over the iron throne yet. What I cannot get pass is your new… soon to be husband”

That’s when (y/n) could finally snap out of her rage. Hearing the bitterness spew out of Aemond as he let the word barely get out of his mouth forced her to realise how difficult this is for him. She studied his facial expected soon, his lips closed shut as his jaw clenched tighter, even his shoulders were tense. Her hand reached up to graze his cheek for a few seconds with the back of her fingers.

“I promise you my love that I will only let that happen when I’m cold in my grave”

She whispered to him, a promise she was determined to keep. She took one more step and let the space between them become a thing of the past, (y/n) rested her head on his shoulder Aemond brushed his hand through her hair and took in her addicting scent in.

Everything about her was intoxicating to him, it was the only way he understood why his brother was drinking so much, if he could he would also drown in her presence, let her consume his life and die while under her influence, if he had any word in it he wished his grave to be her arms.

“You are the one that owns my heart, my fire”

She reassured him once again. Aemond and (y/n) had developed a relationship that grew stronger as time went on, they were careful in sneaking away from everyone else since they were very aware of how their families would react to their relationship, his mother although kind she was always clear of how displeased she was with (y/n)s wild temper, on the other side her father and Rhaenyra despised Aemond due to the altercation that had occurred years ago that costed him his eye. They were very lucky about their cover up since (y/n) had defended poor little lucerys and for years she had nothing but negative things to say for Aemond.

What they had forgotten to consider was that they were both at a time in their life that marriage was becoming something their families had to take into serious consideration.

“I understand why they betroth you to him, yet I cannot help than feel anger. I once again come second”

Second… second. (Y/n) snapped her head up at that word, Aemond was expecting her to be bothered by his words yet to his surprise she was smiling up at him. He looked at her with a questionable look since he could not understand why she was pleased with the situation.

“What if we tell them that Jacaerys came second?”

“I’m afraid that I do not understand you dearest”

“I give you my maidens head, by morning we announce it to my father… together”

Aemonds lips curved into a smile, joining (y/n) on her mast plan idea. He had never dreamed of that possibility, well he had dreamed of it and craved it many times but would never dare to suggest it, he wanted (y/n) to come to him. Aemonds hands cupped her cheeks before he crashed his lips with hers moreover deepening to a passionate kiss.

“You are an amazing woman”

He complimented her in between kisses as he was finally allowed to do what he had only dreamed of. She giggled at his eagerness and responded with the same amount of lust radiating of her body as her arms were wrapping around his neck pulling him closer that they could physically be.

He laid her down carefully, making sure she was comfortable before his hungry self ripped of the clothes of her body, their eyes full of passion as their bodies followed the urge they had ignored for so long.

“Take care of me my love”

She whispered in his ear as he supported himself on top of her, her hair becoming one of other the dirt and her naked skin feeling the breeze and raised goosebumps.

Getting lost in each others arms and their bodies working together, it was a pretty chilly night however they managed to sweat as they to one another tightly. Their sounds could be mistaken for animals and the aggression mixed with the tenderness was something that would make the most filthy person blush. (Y/n) could not let him go even after their passion shimmered down, they stayed intertwined until the sun rose the first rays caressed their bodies, Aemond admired how her skin blisters under the sunlight during the early hours

“My treasure”

He called for her before hugging her once again, (y/n) was overwhelmed by pleasure and joy that made her almost forget that the guards are going to start looking for her soon and that’s if they hadn’t done it yet.

“We need to move Aemond, it’s time for us to face the world”

“Together, from this point on we do all of it together. I swear to you that you will never be alone”

*1 “we are not alone Ralla”

*2 “you can run but you can’t hide”

[marvel-sluts]

Hello! I have a prompt/request for you!

“how do you accidentally kill someone?!”

With either Legolas, Jace, or Alec! You decide :)

pairing: Alec Lightwood x sister! reader

warnings: swearing, angst.

summary: you accidentally kill a person while on a mission, knowing that Alec would be upset you waited to tell him.

a/n: I decided to do this with Alec, I hope thats okay. sorry it took so long for me to write this, I had so many requests. enjoy lovlies!

prompt list

*************

you and Issy were out on a mission, hunting down a ravener demon pack. there were more of them than the two of you had anticipated but the two of you insisted that you could handle it.

Izzy was fighting one of the demons, her whip flying everywhere. you were pressed up against a wall as a group of ravener demons came at you.

tightening your grip on seraph blade, you twirled it around you and attacked. you sliced your blade through ravener demons and plunged it into the last one, you pulled the blade out and was surprised to find it covered in blood, human blood.

you looked back at the demon, it falling and revealing a person behind it. the person was obviously trying to get away, not understanding what was going on but they were very scared.

you gasped, you were too caught up in fighting the group that came at you. you never bothered to check if anyone was around, and now someone was dead because of it.

Isabelle looked over to you, the pack now all dead. she saw the dead body and took in the horror etched on your face. she walked up to you and placed a hand on your arm, trying to comfort you.

"it wasn't your fault y/n, I didn't see them either." she said, "come on, let's get the body back to the institute."

the two of you transported the body to the institute and got somebody to bring it down to the basement, briefly explaining what happened.

you found Alec talking to Magnus, you decided to wait to tell him. knowing he would be mad, either that or he would tell your parents and that was arguably worse than just him.

that night saw you sat at dinner with him, Izzy, Clary, Jace and Magnus. Simon had some sort of meeting with his band, The Mortal Instruments or something.

"hey y/n, when are you planning on telling him?" Izzy asked, nudging your shoulder with hers.

"I dunno, maybe after dinner. he will be in a good mood then, right?" you ask, turning to her.

"let's hope so. he shouldn't put all of the blame on you though, I didn't see them either. do you want me to come with you?"

"no, I killed them. it's my fault." you say, looking back at your untouched plate if food. you felt too sick to stomach anything.

"hey, y/n. are you okay? you haven't eaten anything." Clary asked, smiling kindly at you.

"yeah I'm fine, I'm just not hungry thats all." you say, exusing yourself from the table and rushing to your room.

you collapsed on the bed, tears streaming down your face. the light from the candles dancing, causing shadows on the wall opposite you.

how did I kill someone? I'm supposed to be a shadowhunter, how will I ever prove that I'm as good a fighter as Alec and Issy now? these thoughts ran through your mind as you drifted off to sleep. a sleep filled with his face, the face of the man you killed.

that morning you woke up, still in the clothes you were in last night. you got changed into a fresh pair of clothes and headed to breakfast, managing to avoid Alec.

you hurried to the training rooms, hoping not to be seen by him.

"hey, y/n are you okay? you rushed out of dinner last night and no ones seen you since." a voice called.

you turn around and come face to face with your older brother, the one person you didn't want to see. "yeah I'm fine." you mumble, trying to avoid eye contact.

"I can read you like a book y/n, what's up?" he asked, placing a comforting hand on your shoulder.

"I sort of accidentally killed someone." you say quietly, looking up at him. the way his face changed was all the information you needed to know that he had heard you.

"you did what?! how do you accidentally kill someone?!" he exclaimed.

"when me and Issy were fighting the ravener demon pack, someone was standing behind one of the demons. I think they were trying to get away but me and Issy didn't see them. I stabbed through the demon and into them." you say sheepishly, trying to explain yourself.

"I'm head of the institute, how was I not told about this?"

"I said that I was going to tell you, I just didn't say when." you say, rubbing your arm.

"look y/n, it wasn't your fault. Issy didn't see them either, it could have just as easily have been her that killed them. okay? not your fault, at all." he said, pulling you into a hug.

"thanks Alec, I thought you would be mad." you say, your voice muffled against his chest.

"I'm not mad, but I will have to tell Mum. I don't think she will be the happiest with you." he said, wrapping his arms tighter around you.

you groan against his chest and pull away. "I have to go and train now, or Jace will kill me. I'm already late." you say.

"okay, and remember. it wasn't your fault." he said, patting you on the back and letting you hurry off to meet Jace to train.

[shabre-legacy]

@grandninjamasterren you seemed to really like that prologue for the story I’m considering working on again, so how about a bit from the first chapter of that same story. 

                                               SYLETRA

Syletra quietly slipped through the trees, taking care to keep her footsteps nearly silent. The 20 year old princess of a destroyed kingdom seemed to be born to the forest. Her black hair shone and danced with the shadows and her dark eyes seemed to emit a golden glow. She moved quickly but even as silent as she was, the beautiful horse following her was not. “ Shoo Ayasha, shoo” she hissed as she neared a clearing. The horse shook her head and nickered quietly. Syletra rolled her eyes and stepped into the clearing as the buskskin standing to the side turned his head and responded to Ayasha with a  loud snort.

 A young elf stood by the horse, checking the girth on a saddle secured to traveling packs. He glanced up and a hand in greeting. “ Sy, what are you doing here, I thought the temple had    devotions today.” 

    Syletra shrugged, “They are, Ascelyn. But as I have explained so many times, I’m not a priestess, so I don’t have to be there” 

    Ascelyn looked a bit sheepish. He scratched his head. “ You know I haven’t been able to remember those temple rules, they confuse me.”

    “You didn’t forget,” Syletra said, rolling her eyes at his pathetic attempt at deflection. “you just thought that I would be too busy with the rituals to remember the day” 

     Ascelyn sighed as he acknowledged her accuracy. “ya, maybe you’re right, maybe I just didn’t want anyone trying to stop me.” He snapped out slightly irritated at the delay of his plan. 

    Syletra stepped closer and laid a hand of his shoulder, “ Who said I was here to stop you? We’re coming with.” 

    Ascelyn’s smile that had just been starting to appear, narrowed in suspicion “Who’s we?”

    “Me and Issy, of course”

    “Issy, a priestess in training has permission to leave the temple?”

    “Well....Technically, no, but… you are like family and Jhaeros is like family and he is your brother and emotionally he is our brother. So...If anyone’s going to help you bring him home, it’s us”

    Ascelyn sighed, Sy was babbling, she only did that when making an excuse. “You’re running, aren’t you?”

    Syletra looked stunned that he would even think such a thing, but overdone, clearly an overdramatic fake at attempting to look sincere. “What... No...I would never” 

    Ascelyn crossed his arms and leaned against his horse, lifting his eyebrows slightly as he stared down Syletra, a small smirk on his face. “Yes, you are. You do want to bring Jhaeros home, but you are also running away.”

    Syletra’s entire body seemed to deflate, she leaned forward, Ascelyn moving to stand near her as Syletra’s forehead rested on Ascelyn’s chest. “ I guess, maybe, I mean since Jhaeros isn’t back yet, he clearly needs some help, but honestly the priestesses keep saying I need to ‘accept my destiny’ and  ‘claim my father’s throne’ and ‘ the people will follow you to war’, but I don’t want to be queen or lead armies to war. I just want to explore, and rest in the temple and run through the forest and not deal with any of that.”

    Ascelyn gently pushed her shoulders, causing her to straighten, “You do realize that we might have to fight to get Jhaeros back, that isn’t exactly exploring the forest. And you’ve heard the stories of my time away. The world beyond the temple is crawling with demons, they could show up anywhere we go, they Will try to kill us on sight. Sure you can handle that?”

    “Yes, It’s for family. Queen is something I have no desire for. I don’t want that responsibility, I just want my family back.” 

    “Ok then, we should get on the road soon, they tended to get worse when it got dark. Where is Issy meeting us.”

    Syletra smiled and clapped his shoulder “She’ll meet us in the glenn before the bridge.” She stepped away and gathering the reins, mounted Ayasha in a single fluid motion, speaking of years of practice. Ascelyn moved back and mounted the buckskin, a determined, but playful glint in his eyes. They turned their horses and moved out of the clearing. Their large, heavy, beautiful horses matching steps and skillfully weaving through the trees. They trotted into the glenn. The Temple Divine on one side and the bridge on the other. There in the middle stood Issobella, her beautiful black paint mare and the High Priestess of the Divine. The sun glinting off the gold of her crown and her dark cool amber skin. She stood proudly in her purple robe, with Issobella looking a bit embarrassed and a bit nervous behind her. A fierce, gorgeous falcon sat perched on Issy’s shoulder. Issobella’s warm brass skin contrasting beautifully with the pale blue riding robes of a Divine priestess. Her eyes shone like twin pieces of amber pulled from the fire, the braids she had her hair pulled back into emphasized her delicate features, yet somehow allowed the strength in her eyes to shine.

    The High Priestess stepped forward and Syletra seemed to shrink. She was absolutely sure she was going to be in trouble. Instead the High Priestess stepped to Ayasha’s side and placed a hand on her knee, “Are you certain that this is what you desire child? the world beyond our protections has become dangerous and you will face not only the dangers of the road and of demons, but also of those who call themselves king, should they learn you live and have no army to protect you.”

Syletra looked down at her from her perch on her horse. “I’m certain, high mother” She said respectfully “Jhaeros is out there and he is like a brother, I need to help bring him home”

The High Priestess sighed softly and reached into her pouch, handing Syletra a small, but ornate and heavy book. “Your mother sent this here before she had you brought here. She filled it with all the things she wanted you to know, but never got the chance to tell you. If you truly intend to finally enter the world beyond our small haven, you should have her wisdom with you.”

    Syletra nearly cried, there on her horse. Something from the mother she didn’t remember, written just for her, and the High Priestess’s blessing to leave. Maybe leaving her ‘destiny’ behind wouldn’t be as challenging as she had thought. The Priestess raised her hand and shimmering in the air appeared a sword and a simple but elegant staff. She gently waved her hand and the sword floated over and landed on Syletra’s pack, neatly slipping under the cords tying everything down and the staff seemingly secured itself to Raine’s pack near Issobella’s bow. She placed her hand on Syletra’s knee again. “May the grace of the Goddess be with you and her light show you the way”

    The Priestess moved away and turned to Issobella. Issy bowed her head slightly as she felt the Priestess place a hand on her shoulder. “High Mother” she murmured with respect. She looked up as the High Priestess gently squeezed, moving to gently grip her chin and lifting to look into Issobella’s eyes. “ You have been blessed by the goddess. Do not forget it and when you have wandered as far as you desire, there is a place here for you. The staff is a gift from all your sisters here, you will also find a few volumes  and a new falconer’s glove in your pack. Use these well, kill any demon who threatens you in the name of the Divine and make us proud.” She leaned forward and gently placed a kiss on her forehead. Stepping back she looked at the two girls she had raised from babies. Syletra on her palomino mare, her honey gold skin and golden eyes, strong and proud, black hair floating gently in a summer breeze, looking every inch the princess she was and Issobella, delicate features failing to hide her power and thirst for adventure and knowledge. They had grown up well and she was so proud of them. She feared for them, with the chaos the world had descended into, but she had prepared them and could not force them to remain, and by the Goddess, they had become for more than she had ever thought they could be. “ Good luck! You will both do great things and there will a place here if ever you desire to return. Be safe and may the goddess watch over you both.” She turned and headed back to the Temple, pausing long enough to call back to Ascelyn “ I hope you find your brother safe. Take care and try not to get my girls killed” She stepped out of sight, beyond the garden hedge, knowing that leaving the only real home those three had ever known would be hard enough without others around. 

                                                  ISSOBELLA

    Issobella watched the High Priestess walk back to the temple. She was a bit shocked that she had just let them go, she had thought that there would be a whole thing about training and responsibilities and duty and the dangers that existed beyond the boundaries of the temple protections, but maybe she understood the need to go after Jhaeros better than Issy thought. “Hey Issy, we need to go.” She shook her head to clear the fog, she raised her fist and Enya hopped down from her shoulder, Issy quickly raised her fist as Enya leapt into the sky. 

Issy swung up on Raine, settling the new staff within easy reach. She gently tugged at the reins, turning to face Sy and Ascelyn. “I’m ready when you are” 

    Ascelyn looked slightly guilty “You sure, Issy, I don’t know what we’re gonna find out there, or when we will be back, if we’ll be back. Sure you don’t want to say goodbye or something.” He smirked at her “I know how sensitive and sentimental you are”

    Issobella laughed at this, Ascelyn was always so concerned about changes. He tried to mask it, but he really hated them. When she had passed her first testing and was allowed to participate in devotionals, he had been thrilled for her and still sulked for a week after she had to limit how much time she could spend in the forest. “It may not work out Lyn, we might all die. But perhaps seeing how we survive will be the best adventure ever.” She spun Raine around and with a sharp “Hyah” clattered across the bridge and disappeared from view, leaving both Ascelyn and Syletra laughing behind her. “Keep up, slowpokes” 

                                                     SYLETRA

    Syletra shook her head as she giggled. “That girl, she sure loves the idea of adventure” 

    Ascelyn looked at her, somber and concerned, but a smile playing in his eyes. He was always such a happy and reckless man, but seemed a bit nervous and overly concerned. “You know, once we cross that bridge, we can’t go back, nothing is going to be the same ever again. You still good with that?” 

    Syletra nodded sharply. “You know I am.” She had to get out before someone changed their minds and tried to force her back into that whole ‘become the queen, go to war, do as you are told’ fiasco. She nudged Ayasha and took off across the bridge.

    Ascelyn sighed and leaning over, patted his horse. “Alright Xanadu, let’s catch up to my ridiculous sisters before something tries to eat them.” He gave him a nudge and Xanadu broke into a fast lope clattering across the bridge and passing right by Sy and Issy, before slowing to a trot as the three of them went up the same path as Vanora ran down all those years before and entered the world two of them had only ever heard about in books and rumours.

[winsister91]

FGA Daedric Princes (Part 12)

Summary: The group split up as Dean and Shannon take off for their mini vacation and the Sammys hold the fort at the Bunker. Heaven keeps a close watch...

Characters: Dean x Shannon (OFC), Sam x Sammy (OFC), Gabriel

Warnings: Fluff, Crack?.Pissy frustrated boys?

Word Count: 3821

A/N: Written by @sofreddie and @winsister91. Side project we’ve been working on. FEEDBACK IS GOLD!! We’d love to hear your thoughts as this was spawned from us trying out different writing and characters. We hope you enjoy! Somehow I survived the writing of the last chapter. Now it’s all about the slow calculated counter-attack ;)

Series Masterlist

SOFreddie’s Masterlist

Winsister91’s Masterlist

Shannon dropped her bag in the trunk and made her way to the passenger door of the Impala, climbing inside and carefully shutting the door behind her, “So, you gonna tell me where we’re going or…”

“I made some reservations,” Dean smiled proudly, “How does our own private hidey hole on the beach sound?”

“Really?” she beamed, her eyes lighting up with excitement as she looked over at him, “That sounds...awesome!” she laughed.

“Right?” Dean agreed, just as excited as she was, “So I was thinking we can get some booze, chill out on the sand...when it gets dark I’ll make a fire...properly scenic stuff.”

“You’ve got it all planned out, huh?” she smiled bashfully, “It’ll be nice to spend some time together. We haven’t really had a chance to just be, you know?”

“I know,” he nodded, “It’s been pretty non-stop, but...maybe this can be our thing once and awhile. An escape.”

“Well, let’s see how this goes first,” she laughed, “Who knows, you could get tired of me after spending so much time cooped up with nothing but me around.”

“If anything, you’ll be the one who gets fed up of me,” Dean laughed, “The only risk I got is getting addicted,” he tossed her a wink.

They drove along for several hours, music playing in the background as they took in the scenery and talked, about their lives, their dreams, and anything in between. 

“Tell me a secret,” Shannon asked, shifting to turn in her seat, facing Dean, her elbow propped on the back of the seat as she let her eyes wander over him lovingly.

“A what?” Dean laughed slightly, glancing at her briefly, “Well...what kind of secret?”

“The kind you’re scared to admit to anyone, including yourself,” she urged gently.

“Well, you apparently already know everything I’ve done,” he countered, “and you’re still here which makes you doubly insane might I add.”

“Well, you’re hot as hell, so that helps,” she grinned at him, “And yeah, I know what all you’ve done. But I don’t know what you think or feel or want.”

He chuckled, cheeks slightly pinkening at her first comment, before he thought aloud, “What I want…” he mumbled, “I’m not even sure myself… but I know despite all the crap we’ve all been through the last month, having you around has made me the happiest I think I’ve ever been, truly.”

“I haven’t done anything but managed to bring demons and Heaven down on your head,” she sighed guiltily, “I don’t understand how that makes you happy.”

“Well not that stuff obviously,” Dean chuckled, “But that’s not your fault. I’m talking about...your smile. Your laugh. Seeing you look after everybody. You and Sammy bitching each other out but obviously loving each other to the end of the earth. Your sass...Need I continue?”

“I’m happy too,” she smiled softly, “The four of us, after everything, it just feels like a family unit, like we all click and fit together somehow. And I know that’s cheesy as all get out, but it just seems right, like this is how it’s supposed to be, for all of us.” she shrugged, blushing.

“Can’t argue with that,” he said with a nod, “‘cause that's exactly what it is. Right.”

Sammy’s eyes slowly opened, her head heavy and groggy. Sam’s room came into focus and she couldn’t stop the smile that grew on her face. With a grunt, she sat up, the cold air hitting her skin and making her shudder. Pulling the sheets around her, she glanced about for her clothes, finding them scattered haphazardly around the room.

That’s when she saw the clock, it was 1pm and her eyes went wide.

“Shit!” she hissed, scrambling to get dressed. An afternoon wake up wasn’t exactly abnormal, but it usually came after staying up until after dawn. 

The Bunker was quiet as she paced the halls, a little too quiet, she passed by her own room and saw her game still sat on pause. Mentally telling her PS4 she’ll ‘be right back’ she went in search of coffee.

“Hey, Sleepyhead,” Sam said, smiling from the island as he was making a sandwich for lunch, “How did you sleep?” he automatically began making a second sandwich, knowing she’d be hungry.

“A little too well seemingly,” she smiled sheepishly, approaching the coffee machine and yawning heavily, “Where are them two?”

He chuckled lightly, “Would you believe Dean planned a romantic getaway?” he laughed, “They left a few hours ago. Said we could use some time to ourselves too.” he finished making the food, bringing the plates to the kitchen table, “Oh, and he said when they get back, we can take the car on our own trip.” he wiggled his brows excitedly at her.

Her eyes lit up at the food, before they narrowed, “Wait, they’re gone!?” she whined, “Shannon went up and left without saying bye to her wife!? I feel like I’ve been dumped…” she pouted.

“Babe,” Sam sighed, holding her hand in his own, “For what it’s worth, she didn’t want to go until after you woke up. But Dean was eager to head out and I figured you two would just catch up on the phone later.” he shrugged.

“Any other time, I’d have been awake,” she folded her arms in a fake sulk, “But someone went and...a-and….heh…” she blushed and smirked.

“You’re welcome,” he teased with a big grin, “What do those doctors know anyway? Should’ve just prescribed you a giant dose of Sam Fucking Winchester.” he chuckled.

“More…” she chuckled at her own thought before she could say it, “A giant fucking from Sam Winchester,” she giggled childishly, “But wait, did you say Dean’s letting us run away somewhere when they get back?”

“Baby, you ain’t been fucked...yet,” he smirked with a wink, “And yes. When they get back, we get to take the car and go where ever we want. So start thinking up a vacation.”

Her cheeks burned, brain going plenty of places that weren’t vacation ideas, “Heh...I...um...I’ll work on that later,” she rose from the table, “Right now, I got some gaming to catch up on.”

“You’re gonna make me jealous of that damn thing,” he pouted, pulling her into his arms and resting his chin on her belly as he looked up at her with his signature puppy-eyes.

“O-oh God,” she mumbled, “There it is. The famed puppy eyes, fuck! They really are effective…” 

“How about…” he thought for a moment before giving her an innocent smile, “You go play for a bit and later, you can make it up to me?”

“Oh I’ll play,” she smirked, “Yeah, and then you’re gonna see what a counter-attack from Sammy Fucking Kelly is all about, just you wait!”

His grin turned sinister as he nipped at her stomach and one of his large hands gave her ass a squeeze, “I look forward to it.”

There was a small whine in her throat as her blush spread down her neck. Mind racing, she already regretted her words, there was no way anything she could think of was topping what he had planned she figured.

Dean pulled up to the small seaside cabin, just as the sun was beginning its decline behind the horizon. He threw the car in park, looking over at Shannon who had dozed off close to an hour before. He smiled, deciding to grab their bags and ready the cabin, before coming back to wake her, guiding her into the cozy abode.

“Wow,” she breathed out, taking in the small but lovely space, the back wall all windows looking out over the water. She smiled, walking towards the window and watching as the setting sun cast warm colors across the water, “This is pretty impressive, Dean.”

“It is,” he nodded in agreement, standing by her at the window, “I’ve always wanted to do something like this…”

She tugged on the sliding glass door with a wide grin, stepping out on the small deck, “Come on!” she cheered, running down the steps and onto the beach toward the surf.

His eyebrows raised watching her jog ahead, he grinned loving the sight of her being so care-free. He jogged after her, catching up to her just as she reached the water, “You’re gonna get your clothes all wet,” he chuckled.

She turned, wrapping her arms around his waist and smiling coyly up at him, “I was under the impression I wouldn’t be wearing them long anyway,” she cooed, pecking his lips lightly.

“Damn,” he grinned devilishly, pulling her in for a deeper kiss, his own hands snaking around her waist, fingertips lightly tucking into the waist of her pants.

“Unless, of course, this was meant to be an innocent escape,” she teased, batting her eyes at him.

“And what aspect of me do you think has ever been innocent?” he countered, his hand ruffling her hair as he lightly bit his bottom lip, “You’re beautiful Baby.”

“You’re not half bad yourself,” she teased, “So I’m guessing we have to run to the store tomorrow, stock up the fridge and whatnot so I can cook for you,” she grinned, “So what do you want to do about dinner tonight? I’m sure you’re starving.”

“Nuh uh,” he pressed a finger on her lips, “You’re not doing anything but relaxing. S’about time I showed you my own cooking expertise.”

“Mmm, that sounds good,” she agreed, “I could get used to this whole ‘playing house’ thing,” she joked, blushing bashfully.

“Well good, ‘cause you’ll have to get used to it,”  he smiled, “You’re right though, we’ll need to go to the store so...takeout tonight?”

“Whatever you want, Dear,” she teased, kissing him once more.

“Dear?” he laughed, “Ok, darling.”

She scrunched her face in distaste, “Yeah, no...that’s just weird.” she laughed, releasing her hold on him and looking back over the water, “Maybe tomorrow we can go in the water? Swim a bit, ooh! We can walk the beach for shells!” she said excitedly.

“Sure,” he narrowed his eyes mischievously, pulling her back to him, “Or we can just go in the water now?”

Before she could answer, he had hold of her, spinning on his heels and falling back into the surf, dragging her down on top of him.

She squealed in surprise and gasped in shock as the water came rushing up to them once more, “Dean!” she giggled, slapping him on the chest, “Now we’re all wet.” she chuckled with a playful pout.

“I did warn you,” he shrugged, splashing the water like a child and laughing.

She grinned down at him, hovering above his lips, “Now we have to shower…” she mockingly complained.

“Well isn’t that just a pickle,” he bit his tongue playfully.

She leaned down, kissing him tenderly, pulling back with a happy sigh, “You do realize you’ve gone full romance novel, right?” she laughed, “Making out in the sand at sunset…” She moved to kiss him again, before a bigger wave crashed to the shore, washing over them abruptly, “Oh fuck!” she exclaimed, wiping the water from her face and getting to her feet, holding out a hand to help him up, her clothes and hair now soaked.

“That’s why romance novels are full of crap,” Dean joked, taking her hand and pulling himself up, and shaking the water off his face before grinning, “So how about that shower?”

“Uh...yeah,” she gave a small smile, blushing as she made her way back to the cabin. Her mind ran a million miles a minute. Did he plan on showering together? But that would mean he’d see her naked. Did she ask him to join her? She made her way into the house, grabbing her bag and looking around for the bathroom, her features betraying her nervousness as she nibbled on her lower lip.

Dean tossed his jacket onto one of the cabin’s small radiators, still chuckling softly to himself. He started looking around too, opening doors and peeking into the rooms. His eyebrows raised at finding the bedroom, a large queen sized bed which already gave him thoughts. 

With only one door left, a huge wet room came into view, “Wow…” he said, “Okay so...uh…” he looked at Shannon and suddenly felt shy, “You get first dibs.”

“O-okay,” she breathed out shakily, nodding at him as she passed to go into the wet room. She gave him one last glance as she shut the door behind her, letting out a long breath once she was alone, before going about her shower. She came out a short while later, freshly cleaned and dressed in her tank top and sleep pants, smiling sheepishly at him, “It’s all yours.”

He found his eyes lingering on her, the tank top tight and showing off every delightful curve. Composing himself, he nodded, “I, uh, found some takeout menus so go ahead and pick something.”

She nodded, watching as he disappeared into the wet room, his wet clothes clinging to his back, his muscles visible beneath them. She let out another shaky breath, shaking her head and composing herself as she went to peruse the menus. By the time Dean returned, she had settled on what she wanted.

“Hey, I figured this could work,” she handed him the menu with the notes on what she wanted. Her eyes lingered on him, looking so relaxed in the simple t-shirt and track pants.

“Works for me,” he said with a smile, mentally picking for himself and grabbing his cell. After placing the order, he went out to the car, grabbing some beers from the cooler he stashed on the back seat. He looked out over the beach as he made his way, chuckling to himself. If someone told him a month ago this is what was coming, he’d have never believed it. Stepping back into the cabin, his smile grew broader as he laid eyes on Shannon, holding a beer out toward her, “Drink on the deck?” he proposed.

She accepted the drink, nodding as she made her way back onto the deck, sitting in one of the chairs that faced the water. The sun was nearly dipped beneath the horizon, the outside growing dark, the sounds of the waves crashing the only noise around them.

Dean sat in the chair beside her, knowing he should probably be admiring the view, but he couldn’t pull his eyes away. “I know we pretty much just got here,” he said, “But what do you think? Think this could work as a regular escape spot?”

“You tryin’ to get a timeshare, Dean?” she laughed, looking over at him, “I think it’s perfect,” she admitted.

“Timeshare,” Dean scoffed, “Believe it or not, this place actually doubles as a hunter’s safe house. All I do is put the word out for everyone to stay the hell away.”

“This is a safehouse?!” she exclaimed, shocked, “Wow...y’all hunters got it made.” she whistled. “So wait...you own this place?”

“Trust me, the rest of them are dives,” Dean laughed, “Nobody really owns it, but it’s a favored spot. This is actually my first time here, word was some Hunter completely did the place up ‘cause he was fed up of having to crash in dumps.”

“Well if it’s a common house, then you can’t really keep people away, Dean. What if some hunter shows up because he needs a place to hide out?”

“They get some cash put in their hand and sent away to a motel,” he shrugged, “No one will show up, trust me.”

“I do,” she said, so simply and matter of fact. A knock at the door drew their attention and Shannon stiffened slightly, her eyes sliding to Dean in question.

“Huh…” Dean got to his feet, “Food comes real damn fast around here.” He ventured to answer the knock, his face dropping at the sight on the other side. 

“Heya, Dean-o,” Gabe smirked in greeting, holding up the bag of food, “You ordered some Chinese, right?” Dean narrowed his eyes suspiciously at the archangel, “Oh come on!” Gabe protested, “You finally got some time alone with your Sweetie...just checking that all is well.” he smiled, looking over Dean’s shoulder to see into the house, “Nice digs.”

“Everything’s just fine,” Dean growled, snatching the bag of food, “Now get lost.”

“So,” Gabe lowered his volume, “Tonight’s the night, huh?” he smirked, wiggling his brows and rocking back and forth on his feet.

“Are you-” Dean nearly shouted, opting to step out and close the door behind him first to try and keep Shannon out of earshot, “Are you fucking serious!? Cas was supposed to tell you feathery dicks to leave us the hell alone!”

“Oh, he relayed your message,” Gabe confirmed, “But, you know, Heaven’s agenda, bloodlines, yada, yada, yada…”

“You know,” Dean shook his head, completely done, “If you guys put as much effort into other stuff that you do with this, the world may not be so fucked!”

Gabe’s happy expression dropped as he narrowed his eyes at Dean, stepping into his personal space, “Now you listen to me, dick,” he said, raising a finger for emphasis, “Why do you think Heaven is so intent on continuing the Winchester line, hmm? Your kid...your kid, is gonna be the one to stop things that you don’t even know are coming. And I am that kid’s...let’s just call it a...guardian. So how about you stop being so self-centered and focus on the bigger picture!” he growled, his anger shining in his eyes.

“Y-you,” Dean looked at Gabe in shock, “You are gonna be...my kid’s Guardian Angel?” Dean couldn't hold back the titter in his voice, “That’s hilarious, poor little bastard.”

“Archangels don’t usually take these gigs, but with Winchesters involved,” he shrugged, “So you do your part and I’ll do mine,” he smirked, before snapping his fingers and disappearing.

“Dean?” Shannon’s voice could be heard calling to him from inside the house and he realized how concerned she must be.

Dean shook his head, still processing the new information before heading back inside. After they ate, they found themselves back on the deck, drinking the last two bottles of beers as the moonlight shine across the sand and water.

Sam made his way from Sammy’s room to the kitchen, having been trying to learn the game she was intent on teaching him to play. He quickly pulled out his phone, deciding to check on Dean, as things always seemed to pop up on them.

“Hey,” Sam said into the phone, “Just wanted to check in, see how things were going,” he said to his brother.

“Yeah, having your little brother ring up while you’re trying to have a romantic getaway really adds to the mood,” Dean scoffed on the other end of the line.

“Yeah, well I wasn’t too thrilled when Gabe popped in earlier,” Sam groaned in frustration, “Randomly dropped off some Chinese food and said you were a dick.” he huffed.

“Jesus fucking Christ,” Dean also groaned, “He came over here, spinning shit about bloodlines again…”

“Why haven’t we killed him yet?” Sam asked, exasperated.

“I’m not sure if that’s an option anyways,” Dean huffed, “Turns out he’s taking the job of being… my kid’s guardian angel.”

Sam’s eyes went wide, trying to decide which bit of information he wanted to tackle first, “Uh...ok, I have so many questions…”

“Ditto,” Dean agreed, “They’re recruiting for a role that’s not even available, but...as much as a dick Gabe is, at least...well...this supposed kid should be relatively safe having him as guardian.”

“I’m surprised you’re so calm about it,” Sam said, “I’d be suffering from performance anxiety at a minimum after that bombshell.”

“Okay don’t emphasize it!” Dean hissed, “We’re just...hanging out right now. Couple of beers, watching the waves, there’s no rush….right?”

“Really, Dean? You’re off on some trip, with a beautiful woman, alone, and you’re dancing around it?” Sam scoffed, “I swear, if I didn’t know better, I’d think you were gay.”

“You’re not the one with Heaven breathing down your damn neck and practically watching!!” Dean snapped, “You worry about you, I’ll worry about me, and I’m not gay!!”

“You’re right, I’m not,” Sam agreed with a laugh, “So you have fun with that.” he teased, “Oh, and Dean?”

“What!?” Dean groaned.

“If I were you, I’d triple check my protection,” Sam laughed, “You’ve got a trickster hell-bent on plans after all,” Sam said, ending the call with a smug grin as he made his way back to Sammy.

Dean shoved his phone back in his pocket, glancing at his bag. Specifically, the pocket he stashed the box of condoms in, he slowly zipped it open, seeing the box still there. Raising his eyebrow, he pulled the lid open and it was empty. “Son of a bitch!” he growled.

Sam came back to Sammy’s room, chuckling to himself with a grin as he sat back on the bed next to her, smiling as she paused long enough to slurp some noodles before returning to her game.

“What’s so funny?” she looked at him in curiosity before swiftly turning back to the game.

Sam proceeded to fill her in on his conversation with Dean, laughing almost to tears as he struggled to explain. “It’s just,” he paused to catch his breath, “I know it’s a sucky situation to be in, but from the outside, it’s almost hilarious. Especially seeing him freak out over the whole thing, knowing how much he really wants it.” he started chuckling again, before scooting down the bed to sit behind her, wrapping his arms around her and resting his chin on her shoulder as he watched her play, “Plus, it’s kind of nice to be out of the line of fire.” he admitted.

Sammy giggled in agreeance, leaning back into Sam comfortably, before her smile dwindled slightly, “Well...you say that,” she raised an eyebrow, “But Gabe showed up here too...he may not have said anything but...well, doesn’t that show we’re kinda still in the crosshairs a little bit?”

Sam’s eyes went wide, her words sinking in, as he quickly untangled himself from her, shooting off the bed and dashing to his room. Sammy could hear him shout from down the halls, “GOD FUCKING DAMNIT!! Gabe! You piece of shit!!”

Sam came marching back into the room, hopping as he was pulling his shoes on his feet, “I’m gonna run out real quick,” he said, somewhat out of breath, pecking her lips, “Be back in a few minutes.”

“Ooo!” Sammy jumped to her feet, “Let me come! I wanna buy some junk food.”

“Babe, we just got Chinese,” he laughed.

Her brow furrowed in confusion, “...And?”

He sighed, “Yeah, okay,” he relented, “Come on.”

SOFreddie’s Forevers:

@oneshoeshort

@winchesterprincessbride

@iamcmims

@roxyspearing

@reigningqueenofwords

@mogaruke

@ellen-reincarnated1967

@speakinvain

@shotgunintheimpala-blog

@atc74

@sterekloveaffairs

@winsister91

@mrs-meghan-winchester

@chook007

@growningupgeek

@goldenolaf25

@esoltis280

@hobby27

@sis-tafics

@arryn-nyx

@x-waywardaf-x

@shann-the-artist-moon

@sandlee44

@lucywinchester2000

@emoryhemsworth

@ohmywinchester67

@stanclub

@time-travel-bouqet

@buckysbrat

@papi-chulo-bucky

@captain-ak84

@find-sammys-shoe

@calaofnoldor

@donnaintx

Winsister91’s Forever Posse:

@sofreddie

@ria132love

@chicagolove88

@akshi8278

@sis-tafics

@younoeatcheeseyounobefat

@mandilion76

@supernaturalmagicfolk

@emoryhemsworth

@pheonyxstorm

@mrswhozeewhatsis

@itspronouncedsatanbitch

@the--real-wombat 

@xagateophobiax

@jensen-gal 

@castiel11235

@19agbrown 

@mogaruke

@nyxveracity 

@cole-winchester

@esoltis280

@internationalmusicteacher

@meganywinchester

@sweetness47

@roonyxx

@imperiusimpala

@lazinessisalliknow

@thisismysecrethappyplace

@choosemyname 

@dean-winchesters-bacon 

@hunterswearingplaid

@bella-ca

@rainflowermoon

@calaofnoldor

@scarletsoldierrr

@supernaturalonice

[varricmancer]

Written in the stars | 1

Pairing: Varric Tethras x Bethany Hawke

Word Count: 2,019 (A little short, but I’ve been super busy with work and I wanted to get this started. Hopefully it’s still good!)

Summary: When his best friend Garrett Hawke decides to follow his dream and open his own movie studio, Varric is more than happy to offer help in the form of a huge donation and ignore Garrett’s pleas for him to write them a script. Until he learns Garrett’s sister Bethany is meant to be their main actress. Varric may never feel worthy enough to act on his infatuation with the sweet girl, but he’ll do anything in his power to make her a star. 

Notes: A modern au! Obviously. Still set in Thedas, but it’s been fiddled with to adjust to my vision. Mages are still treated like crap. Val Royeaux is basically Hollywood and Garrett’s dream is to make his own studio right there in Kirkwall to rival theirs. This is only my second DA fic and my first time trying to capture the entire Kirkwall crew, so I’m a little terrified over how this will go. I’ll do my best! 

If there was one thing that he was certain all of Thedas knew about him, it would be never wake up Varric Tethras before noon. This is how he knew that whoever was knocking at his door at seven in the morning - only three hours after he’d finally gone to bed, mind you - was either an idiot or suicidal. 

He reluctantly left the warmth of his bed and threw on his favorite red silk robe before shuffling to the front door, where the soon to be dead person was now banging on it hard enough that he was surprised it hadn’t been smashed in yet. 

With a weary sigh, he flung open the door and the witty reproach he’d been preparing on the way there vanished from his head when he spotted the unrepentant grin of his best friend. 

“Hawke. To what do I owe the pleasure of your company this morning?” he drawled, letting the much larger man stroll past him so he could shut the door. 

Garrett shrugged and started walking towards Varric’s office, having been here so often he knew exactly where everything was. 

“Can’t a guy come say hello to his bestie?” 

Garrett went straight to the spare coffee maker that Varric had set up in there for late night writing sessions. He hummed loudly while he scooped out coffee grounds and filled the machine with cold water. 

“Uh huh. And why didn’t you use your key?” 

Varric settled into his highback brown leather chair that was starting to crinkle with age. His friend was up to something. He’d normally have it all figured out by now, but he was still only half awake. 

“That would have been rude.” 

“I see,” Varric snorts. Garrett throws a look behind him that said he knew perfectly well what he’d done wrong and wasn’t sorry in the least. 

“You realize, of course, that by waking me up mere hours after we last saw each other I am now honor-bound to kill you and everything you love.” 

“Then I hope you’re ready to die today, my friend.” 

“Damn that was smooth,” Varric grumbled aloud. 

Garrett chuckled as he started up the machine and pulled out a couple of mugs from the bottom cupboard. He was still humming obnoxiously loud, but Varric was too tired to protest. Instead, he slumped into his chair and closed his eyes, listening to the gurgling of the ancient machine as it began to fill the carafe.

Just when he was beginning to nod off, a steaming cup of black coffee was shoved under his nose. He supposed it was too much to hope Hawke would have mercy on him. He sighs sleepily and accepts the mug, slurping down the hot brew with practiced ease. Garrett pulls a chair closer to the desk and settles in with his own drink, studying Varric over the rim like he’s waiting for the caffeine to take effect before he strikes. 

“So,” Varric finally rumbles after the coffee had settled in his stomach a little. “What do you need? Money? Contacts? An alibi and an extra shovel?” 

“No to all of those, but I’ll keep that last offer in mind for the future,” Garrett grins. “I’ve done it, Varric.” 

Varric’s foggy mind couldn’t quite grasp what he’d supposedly done. Knowing his friend, it could be anything. He quirked an eyebrow in question, leading Garrett to lean forward with maniacally bright eyes. 

“My dream. I finally found the perfect place to open my own movie studio. I’d done a favor for the owner of the building and they lowered the price for me so I was able to afford it. It needs a little work, but it’s a start.” 

Garrett’s face is practically glowing with joy, and Varric couldn’t be happier for his friend. Ever since they’d met back in their college days he’d had to sit through so many rants during movies nights. “That’s the problem with those big studios in Val Royeaux, Varric. Everyone is too afraid to take risks anymore. It’s all about the money. When I get behind the camera, I plan to change the world.” 

“Shit, that’s great! I’m happy for you, Hawke. Anything you need, just ask. I can help fix up the place and buy equipment to get you started. It’s going to be a lot of work to get it up and running.” 

“Actually,” Garrett started slyly, “I had hoped to ask you to help with something specific.” 

“Which brings us to why you’re really here,” Varric grunted with a smirk. 

“Indeed. How would you like to be the first official employee of Hawke Filmworks? 

Varric chuckles. “I’m happy to slip you some cash or recommend some talented workers, Hawke, but I’m rather fond of being self-employed.” 

“Don’t worry! You can still work from home in your underwear most of the time! I need a scriptwriter, Varric. Who better to help me turn the entertainment industry on its ear than my best friend?” 

Varric scrunched his nose and huffed. “I don’t know about that, Hawke. I write adventure tales and stuff that’s basically shitty erotica. I don’t know the first thing about writing a script.” 

“Please! I will kneel and grovel. There’s no one else I would entrust my dream to. Varric, my dearest friend. My love for you has - “ 

“Andraste’s tits, shut up. And get up, you idiot,” Varric rumbled at Garrett, who had fallen dramatically at Varric’s feet, grasping his ankle like the drama queen he was. 

Varric sighed and rubbed his forehead. “I’ll think about it. I’d have to do some research. Are you sure you don’t just want some money? What would I even write about?” 

“I have some ideas! Don’t worry about that. We can work on it together. Beth is going to be a mage that overthrows the monarchy and becomes the country’s first elected leader. Imagine that! A mage in power! It will be a little more complicated than that, of course, and lots of political subtext. And there will be a love story with the former Prince...and DRAGONS!” 

Garrett had lost him after the name he’d mentioned, Varric’s chest aching as it usually did when her name was mentioned. 

Bethany Hawke, Garrett’s little sister. A beautiful and kind woman that was so far out of Varric’s league - though it didn’t prevent him from daydreaming occasionally. 

“Bethany is going to be in on it?” 

“Of course. The whole gang is. Bethany is going to be our lead actress, Marion is going to do her stunts. Carver is our sound engineer and whatever else we need. Issy says she’ll help with costumes. Aveline has agreed to come in and help too. I was thinking of calling her our Executive Producer. Meaning she gets to do all the boring sitting at a desk and making phone calls to hire people and secure locations, make sure we’re all doing our jobs. The lot mom.” Garrett chuckles. 

Varric’s fingers began to twitch with the need to grab his pen. His mind was suddenly filled with images of Bethany as a warrior mage, her silken black hair flowing in the wind as she gazed deep into the viewer's soul with her striking amber eyes. She’d strike down her foes with her powerful magic, and give the people hope with her gentle smile. 

And...Hawke said a romance. Would she giggle over stolen moments? Stare up at her lover passionately as they towered over her? Would she sigh or moan when the Prince- who looked remarkably like Varric in his mind - pressed kisses to the little mole on her collarbone? 

Varric gulped and forced himself to focus, feeling guilty for thinking such things about his friend's sister right in front of him. 

“Bethany does realize that a role like that, especially with the way mages are still treated even here in Kirkwall, would bring a lot of attention to her? And not all of it good. She could be in danger.” 

Garrett nods. “We thought of that. I was going to hire an actress, but she said she wants to do it. She thinks if we can tell the right story, it might help change the way people treat mages. Aveline is going to hire someone for security.” 

Varric sighs. “If she’s going to put herself in the public eye like that and basically draw a target on her forehead, I’ll do it. I’ll feel better if I know I have some control over how she’s portrayed.” 

Garrett reaches over actually pulls him into a hug, slapping his back harshly in excitement. 

“You’re the best, my friend. I feel much more confident knowing we have you in our corner. And I know Beth will be happier knowing you’re helping too. She would have been sad if I’d had to tell her you’d said no. And you know that Bethany Hawke sad is a bad thing. Flowers wilt, crops perish, stars fall from the sky.” 

Varric scoffs. “Like you didn’t know you’d get me to agree eventually.” 

Garrett smirks and stands up. “I’ll leave you to your rest then. Come by later to check out the building. I’d appreciate your opinion on where to start.” 

“Oh, now that he’s caffeinated me he’ll let me sleep,” Varric grumbles as he follows his friend to the door. Garrett laughs and pats his head. 

“You know you love me.” 

Varric shrugs and grins as he opens his front door and kicks Garrett’s ass outside, literally. 

“Yeah, yeah. Send me the address. I’ll take a quick nap and come by with some food. Sound good?” 

“Perfect! Later, Tethras!” 

Varric waits until his friend has safely driven away before he closes his door with a sigh. What he’d actually agreed to was finally soaking in. He’d avoided interacting with the extended Hawke family as much as possible the past few years. They’d questioned it a few times, especially considering he’d once practically lived in the Hawke home he’d been there so much. 

However, being tempted so often by someone he could never have had gotten too hard to deal with. There were so many reasons he could think of for Bethany to never even consider him an option. He was older than her, with an often bitter and jaded outlook on life and relationships. She was literal sunshine and was so kind and gentle that it was like she’d walked right out of a fairy tale. She was stunningly beautiful, tall and shapely. He was...well, a dwarf. Though he admittedly took more care with his appearance than many of his kind. They were complete opposites in so many ways that there was literally no reason for them to ever be together beyond one - That Varric adored her and would do anything to make her happy. 

Unfortunately for him, what would make the entire Hawke clan happy was for him to apparently attempt writing a script for the ages. 

Varric yawns and scratches his belly as he trudges back to his bedroom and the comfort of his blankets, visions of warrior mages with gentle amber eyes floating through his head. 

[flora-jimin]

Petals In The Wind

Pairing: Writer!Jin x Botanist! Namjoon

Genre: Fluff| Very light angst | Smut

Word Count: 6.3k

Prompt: Cherry Blossoms

Rating: 18+ (bc of the smut, thats about it)

Summary:  Jin, a young writer in Seoul has always had problems writing in the Spring. He can’t seem to find any inspiration, even in the season where many others write of love and flowers in bloom. Everything changes when he meets a young, handsome aspiring botanist named Namjoon.

A/N: @kimlinebiased Hey honey! This is your gift uwu. Also I know the prompt was Cherry Blossoms but I suppose I got a little carried away with the plum blossoms too, huh? Please enjoy and let me know what you think c’:

AO3 Link

Kim Seokjin never considered Spring to be one of his favorite seasons. It rained too much for his liking and despite the fact that it gave him ample opportunities to flourish and write, the artist found that the very concept of Spring was overrated and overused. Jin believed there weren’t many things that could inspire him to actually finish his work in Spring, and that the season would just be a dead zone of sorts as far as his writing went.

Until that day.

He had been in a cafe he frequented often, staring at the blinking cursor on his screen. It had been taunting him for over two hours now and Jin was calling it close to quitting when he saw him the first time. Half-lidded eyes drifted over to the window, not expecting anything to really catch his attention when he saw a man standing beneath a tree.

Jin stared at him, watching as the tall man in a brown coat stood beneath the pre-bloomed tree, his eyes calm and serene as he admired the soft pinks of the cherry blossom buds. His hair was an ash blonde, with the wind sweeping his bangs over his forehead. Jin watched as his eyes slid closed, his face still tilted up towards the tree, as if he was taking in all the energy the unbloomed tree had to offer.

The author wasn’t aware how long he sat there staring at the man, brows furrowed at how hard his heart thumped.

He wasn’t doing anything. He was just standing there under a cherry blossom tree. It wasn’t even in bloom.

...he was beautiful.

“Hyung?”

“Aish!” Jin startled, putting a hand to his chest as he watched his close friend and fellow writer Taehyung sit down across from him. He sent Jin an apologetic smile, barely stifling the small laugh that bubbled out of his chest from how easily he could startle his hyung.

“Ah, you rascal! Didn’t I tell you about sneaking up on me?!” Jin barked, pointing a finger in Tae’s direction. Taehyung only widened his smile, sliding over an Americano to soothe his hyung’s embarrassment.

“To be fair, I did say hello, but you seem very intent on staring out of that window so I left to get us drinks and you still didn’t notice me.” He explained, fingers tapping around the little alpaca logo on the cup in between his hands.

“Why are you staring so intensely out of that window, by the way? Looking for some inspiration?” Tae pressed, his own eyes drifting out of the window to see the unbloomed tree. Jin frowned and looked out of the window again, brows pinching together when he noticed the man from before wasn’t there anymore.

His shoulders slumped without him noticing and he let out a slightly disappointed sigh.

“Ah...he’s gone…” Jin trailed off, the disappointment evident in his voice. Taehyung blinked and looked out of the window, confusion all over his face.

“Who?” he inquired. Jin snapped back into reality and blushed, looking down at his keyboard.

“Aish, why are you such a nosy junior? Don’t you have some writing to do yourself?” He huffed, clearly deflecting attention away from himself. Taehyung took it in stride, taking a long sip of his Americano.

“You’re right. Maybe I should find someone to dreamily stare out of a window at, too. Just like you, Hyung~”

-4 Days Later-

Jin stuck his hands deep in his pockets as he walked home, unable to get the image of that smiling man from the other day out of his head. He couldn’t figure out why that simple image of the man under the unbloomed cherry blossom tree had left such an impression on him. Tae had playfully made fun of him at every possible opportunity about how he always seemed to be gazing out of windows as if he were looking for someone.

Jin realized the absurdity of it all, constantly looking for a stranger he had never met before. Besides, Seoul was huge and it wasn’t like he’d easily find him again.

Or so he thought.

As he rounded the corner, making his way to the building his studio was located inside, he saw that familiar coat again. He paused, seeing the man had stopped in front of the tree just outside of Jin’s complex. A light bulb went out in his head, and Jin remembered that the tree outside the buildings were also blossoms of some sort.

The man was gazing up at the hot pink flowers with a small, dimpled smile, his hands in his pockets. Jin walked up to him, standing beside him.

“They’re pretty.” Jin was the first one to start conversing. The way the other man jolted, told Jin he hadn’t even noticed the writer had walked up to him in the first place. Putting a hand over his heart, the man turned towards him, eyes wide behind the black frame of his glasses.

“Sorry I scared you. My name is Kim Seokjin. I live in this complex.” Jin suppressed a chuckle as he extended a hand to the other man. Having relaxed his rapidly beating heart, the man shook his hand, sending him a small, dimpled smile.

“Kim Namjoon. I’m not trespassing, am I? I saw these plum blossoms and I wanted to enjoy them a bit before I continue my walk, but I don’t want to disturb anyone.” He shuffled, glancing around to see if there were any angry residents that didn’t want him there.

“What? No, no, you’re not trespassing. Not many people stop and stare at these flowers. They’re around for a long time compared to Cherry Blossoms, so no one gives them too much of a thought. I just thought it was interesting that you were giving them such attention.” Jin explained. It was a half-lie, but he couldn’t exactly tell this stranger he had seen him out of a coffee shop window and had been unconsciously thinking about and hoping he’d bump into him again. That would be a bit more than uncomfortable, no doubt.

Namjoon stuck his hands in his pockets, looking up at the hot pink petals.

“Nature is beautiful year round. All of these blossoms should be appreciated and admired. Not just the fleeting ones like Cherry Blossoms.” He mused, closing his eyes and taking a deep inhale, the fragrant scent bringing a smile to his face again.

Jin felt his heart skip for a moment, and bit his lip, looking up at the brightly colored tree.

Time and time again, he walked past this tree, thinking nothing of the blossoms. But now he took everything in. The blossoms were small, though there were many of them in number, painting the branches with a lovely, vibrant hot pink color. Every time the wind blew, the two got a sweet whiff of the aromatic flowers.

It brought a smile to Jin’s face without him noticing.

After what seemed like a peaceful eternity, Namjoon rolled his neck, turning to Jin.

“I’ll be leaving now. Thank you for not calling me some kind of flower-sniffing weirdo.” Namjoon bowed. Jin blinked in surprise, only managing a small bow and a muttered ‘oh, goodbye Namjoon-issi’ before he watched the man walk away.

“....Shit, I didn’t get a number.” Jin cursed, a frustrated hand moving through his hair. He drug himself into his complex, fishing his keys out of his pockets. After he let himself into his apartment, he shuffled over to his window, sitting by the table he’d set up near it.

His fingers tapped against the table for a minute or two, trying to figure out what he should do now that he’d blown his chance to ask Namjoon for his number.

The writer still couldn’t place what it was about Namjoon that made him so interested to know more. Idly, his gaze drifted out of the window as the sun began to set, falling on the form of that familiar plum tree.

Something went off in his head and he sat up, moving to grab his laptop out of his bag. His foot tapped as he opened it, creating a blank document. A wide smile spread across his lips as his fingers began to fly across the keys. That day, Jin wrote a short story of a mysterious, yet gentle man bathed in the light of the sun, surrounded by the lovely scent of plum blossoms.

-2 Days Later-

“Woah, Hyung, this is really good!”

Jin sat back in his chair as Taehyung read over his work in the coffee shop. The younger man’s eyes flew over the lines, absently taking sips of his iced latte every now and again. Jin shuffled slightly, worried his work would come off as cliche and overused.

Tae finally reached where Jin had left off with his writing, sitting back in his chair and finally making eye contact with his friend.

“Where did this come from, Hyung?” He inquired as they both stood up. They exited the shop after Jin tucked away his laptop, intending to meet up with a few more friends for dinner. Jin wrapped his fingers around the strap of his carrier bag.

“I met someone. I guess...I got inspired after meeting him.” He mused. Taehyung stopped walking in front of him abruptly and the taller man nearly collided with his back. Tae whirled around, his puppy-like eyes narrowed curiously.

“You got a boyfriend? When? Why didn’t you tell me?” he pressed.

“What are you talking about? I don’t have a boyfriend!” Jin huffed, gently pushing him to get him to start walking again. Taehyung blinked, a confused frown coming to his face as he began walking.

“But...you said you met a guy…” He trailed off. Jin sent him a look out of  the corner of his eye,ignoring the blush to his cheeks.

“Yeah...He was the one I saw in the shop that one day I was staring out of the window. I saw him again a couple of days later and got to talk to him a bit. I guess I felt inspired after that.” He told him hurriedly, glossing over the fact that he had been secretly hoping he could bump into Namjoon every day since he first saw him. Taehyung hummed, tapping his chin.

“That’s so weird… reading your writing, I figured you’d fallen in love or something.” He mused.

Jin nearly tripped over his own two feet.

“L-Love? I didn’t say anything about love in my writing-”

“You didn’t have to. It’s fairly obvious with the way you’re describing things that you’re fond of this nameless character you’ve created. Plus, I’ve never seen you write so vividly, hyung.” He teased, ducking away from Jin’s hand as the older writer moved to flick him.

“Yah! Are you saying I’m not normally as descriptive, you brat?!” He snapped, brow twitching when Tae sent him a toothy smile before disappearing into the restaurant. Jin muttered something about annoying hoobaes as he walked in after him.

“Hello. Table for two?” There was a waitress that greeted them as soon as they walked in. Jin and Taehyung bowed politely to her before the oldest spoke.

“No, we have a reservation for 7pm, it should be under the name Min Yoongi?” he informed her, watching as she nodded and told them to hold on a moment. She perked at the name and nodded.

“Right! The party of seven! Come, follow me.” She beckoned them to follow her as she tucked two menus under her arm, making her way deeper into the restaurant. Tae and Jin exchanged a look.

“Seven?”

Nethertheless, they followed her until they saw a familiar head of burgundy hair. Yoongi was seated at a both, idly talking to Hoseok, another close friend of theirs. The waitress left the four men alone once they were seated.

“If I knew you were going to take us to such an expensive restaurant, I would have brought more money on me, hyung.” Taehyung complained, shooting the man across the table from him a pout. Hoseok smiled, settling his chin on his cheek.

“I talked him into it. I wanted to celebrate since our Yoongi got his first collab.” He beamed.

Yoongi’s cheeks went a light tint of pink as he looked away, flustered.

While Taehyung and Jin were writers, the other members of their close friend circle had taken up different occupations.

Yoongi was the second oldest of their group of friends, and he was a self-made producer, having taken up a music major. Hoseok was a dancer, and he and Yoongi also collaborated on tracks the latter was working on. Yoongi taught Hoseok how to produce music, and even how to rap, and in return, Hobi taught him how to dance and gave him crucial feedback on his work.

The two missing members of their group were Jimin and Jungkook. Jungkook was studying Computer Science while Jimin was currently taking Ecology and Biology classes so he could learn the basics in his journey to become a veterinarian.

Which made six.

“By the way, the waitress said something about a party of seven? Are we eating with someone else?” Jin inquired. Yoongi nodded, sipping from his glass of water.

“Right, you haven’t met him. Jimin made friends with someone in his Ecology class and he practically begged me to let him come eat with us today to see if we liked him. Of course, Jimin and Jungkook are bringing him, so I’m not surprised they’re late.” He hummed, earning a snicker from the other men at the table.

They held off on ordering until the other men joined them and after around ten more minutes, Jimin’s voice cut through the idle chit chat the four men at the table had begun. They startled as the small Busan man nearly collided with the table, dragging along two men with him.

“I’m so sorry, I overslept!” Jimin panted, releasing both of the men’s arms in favor of putting his hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath. Jungkook put a comforting hand on his back, seemingly perfectly fine with his run while the man beside them both put his hands on his hips, panting as well.

Jin nearly dropped his glass of water when he noticed the man panting beside them.

“N-Namjoon?” He inquired, eyes wide.

Namjoon turned to him, sending him a wide smile.

“Oh, Seokjin! It’s nice to see you again!” He bowed, moving to slide into the booth beside Jin. The writer shuffled over to give him room, swallowing nervously as Namjoon held his gaze. The moment the man sat down, Jin got a strong whiff of something distinctly floral, and idly he wondered if Namjoon had been admiring any more blossoming trees.

“You can just call me Jin. You know Jimin and Kook?” He inquired. The two men in question slid into the booth on the other side, eyeballing Jin and his interest in Namjoon. Taehyung watched on smugly.

“Ah, yes. I’m in the same Ecology class as Jimin as a Teacher’s Assistant. I’m studying Botany, but my professor talked me into being a TA and that’s how I met Jimin. He insisted I come out to dinner with him and some friends and Jungkook came to pick us up. And well...here we are.” He chuckled. Jin nodded, heart thudding in his chest over how handsome Namjoon was, especially up close. He hadn’t gotten much time to admire the man the past two times he saw him, so Jin figured he’d take this third chance to do so.

“That explains why you were so interested in those blossoms before.” He blurted before he could stop himself, mentally cringing. Namjoon didn’t seem to mind, nodding in agreement.

“I’ve always really loved being outside and being around plants and such so I guess Botany was the first thing to come to mind when it came to choosing studies. I’m hoping I can learn, and then teach others the true beauty of the plants around us, y’know?” He began talking intimately about his studies, and Jin listened diligently, his nervousness ebbing away as Namjoon disarmed him with that gentle floral scent, and the sophisticated, relaxed tone of his voice.

“Am I missing something?” Jungkook inquired, eyeing the two and raising a brow when he noticed they were off in their own little world.

Tae grinned behind his menu, side-eying Jin and Namjoon.

“Jin-Hyung found his inspiration.” he whispered, a knowing smile on his face.

-After Dinner-

“Hobi-ya, why do you drink if you can’t even hold your alcohol?” Yoongi grumbled, taking Hoseok’s arm to make sure he didn’t fall. Red-faced, Hoseok only sent him a wide smile.

“Cuz...I know my hyung will take care of me.” He grinned, drawing laughter from the other men in the group. Yoongi rolled his eyes half heartedly, but held him a bit more firmly as they spilled out into the night.

“I can drive you home, though my car only fits four more people…” Jungkook mused, tapping his chin.

“Shotgun!” Jimin cheered before Taehyung could claim the spot, drawing a pout from the younger man.

“How do we decide who doesn’t go?” Yoongi inquired.

“I can just walk home. It’s not far.” Jin offered, not wanting the boys to start arguing when he could just as easily walk. Taehyung perked.

“Oh! Namjoon-ah, you said your apartment was in that direction, too, right? Maybe you and Jin can walk together?” Taehyung suggested, smiling in such a way that came off as harmless and innocent to Namjoon, but to the other five men who knew Tae well, it was nothing less than mischievous.

Jin sent him a wide eyed stare, about to protest when Namjoon nodded.

“Sure. I like walking, anyway.” he hummed, nodding in the direction that they had to start walking. Jin sent Taehyung a sharp look, but the younger writer only waved cheekily.

“Enjoy your walk! See you soon, hyungs!” He called to their retreating forms, putting a hand on his hip as they watched them disappear from sight. Jungkook put an arm over his shoulder, cocking a brow.

“So what’s going on with that?” He inquired as Jimin helped Yoongi keep Hoseok from falling. Taehyung turned and started walking towards Jungkook’s car with the others in tow.

“I’m just giving Hyung the opportunity to get to know Namjoon-ah better~”

-With Namjin-

Namjoon and Jin walked in comfortable silence for a few minutes, just enjoying the night air in Seoul. Namjoon was the one that broke the silence after a while.

“Thanks for not making fun of me for my work.”

Jin blinked in confusion, looking over at the man.

“Why would I make fun of you?” He inquired, brows pinching up together. Namjoon brought his hand to the back of his head, ruffling his own hair as he tried to find the right words.

“I guess I’m used to people telling me I’m wasting potential by having an interest in botany. You wouldn’t believe how many people told me I was a lesser man for how often I enjoy blossoms. I even started to smell like all the flowers I work with.” he mused, letting out a humorless laugh. Jin frowned.

“Why? Why are they being so rude? So what, you like blossoms and plants?! That gives them no right to belittle you! As much as people go to Cherry Blossom festivals, how dare they try to insult you for taking an interest in them-”

Jin’s tirade was cut short by Namjoon putting a hand on his shoulder.

“It’s alright, Jin. I tune them out, anyway. I appreciate you getting so passionate to defend me even though you’ve just met me.” He bowed, a small smile on his face. Jin shuffled, face slightly hot with embarrassment at how carried away he’d gotten. He noticed the smile on Namjoon’s face looked slightly...lonely.

“My apartment is down this street, so I’ll head off, now. It was nice seeing you again, Jin.” Namjoon bowed and Jin gathered his heart, not wanting to make the same mistake he made the last time he’d parted with Namjoon.

“Hey, can I get your number? I don’t mind you talking to me about your botany interests, as long as you’ll humor my boring literature talks.” He joked, bringing out his phone. Namjoon chuckled lightly, bringing his own phone out so he could exchange numbers.

“I love reading, don’t worry. Text me when you get inside, alright?” Namjoon slid his phone back into his pocket and Jin nodded, waving farewell to him.

Jin’s smile fell a few minutes after he’d parted from Namjoon, remembering the lonely tone of his voice and the small, forced smile from before. He didn’t understand why anyone would go out of their way to torment someone over their dream. Especially since Namjoon had spoken so passionately about his fondness for blossoms.

Jin shot Namjoon and the others a message as soon as he got in, disappearing into his bathroom for a shower.

Namjoon’s sorrowful smile stayed in his mind as he held his head under the spray. He still wasn’t sure what it was about the blonde had him so invested in him so fast, but what he was sure of, was that he hated seeing that bittersweet smile on the younger man’s face.

When Jin dried off after his shower, he opened his laptop and wrote about a lonely man, standing alone in a field of flowers.

-3 Weeks Later-

Jin rubbed his sweaty palms on his jeans as he walked up to Namjoon’s apartment. It was Spring Break for the aspiring botanist and Namjoon had persistently asked Jin to help him out with setting up some new plants in his home. Jin agreed to it without missing a beat. Not only would he get some alone time with Namjoon, he got to help him do something he had also began to take interest in through their recent friendship.

Jin checked his phone a few more times before knocking on the door that matched up with the directions Namjoon had sent him. There was a shuffling behind the door before it swung open, the disheveled botanist appearing in a flash. He blushed when he realized it was Jin, running a hand through his hair before sending him a smile.

“Hey. Sorry about the mess. Come in, Hyung.” He beckoned Jin to follow him inside.

The first thing the writer noticed was the smell.

Namjoon’s house smelled exactly like he did, a gentle mix of floral scents that created a sort of calming natural perfume. Without realizing it, Jin felt his shoulders relax and a small, calm sigh leave his lips.

Namjoon heard it, glancing back apprehensively.

“Are you allergic to any plants or flowers? I should have asked first, I-”

“No, it’s fine. I was just thinking about how calming it was. You always smelled so nice, but now I see your house smells just as comforting,” the older man confessed, his cheeks hot with embarrassment. Namjoon smiled shyly.

“T-Thanks. I’ve never had anyone say that to me.”

He motioned for Jin to follow him, leading him into the kitchen. There were some hanging plants sitting on a few spread out newspapers on the table. The blinds were open, with the natural light pouring into the kitchen and bathing everything in a gentle glow. Jin felt like he’d been punched in the chest, completely losing track of thought as he stared at Namjoon.

The younger man noticed, looking up from the planters he’d bought to go with his new plants. He shuffled under Jin’s gaze, waving his hand to catch Jin’s attention.

“Hyung? Are you alright-”

“You’re beautiful, Namjoon.” Jin blurted. Namjoon blinked in surprise and Jin went beet red, looking away, muttering a curse.

“S-Sorry, forget I said anything. W-Where are we putting these?” Jin inquired hurriedly, motioning to the colorful plants on the table. Namjoon set the planter he had in his hands down, moving around the side of the table to stand beside Jin.

“Hyung...do you like me?” He questioned him bluntly. Jin froze, staring at him like a deer in headlights. He stammered a bit, breaking eye contact after ten seconds that felt like forever. Namjoon took a step closer to him, crowding him against the kitchen table.

“Answer me, Kim Seokjin.”

Jin sighed in defeat.

“I...I guess I do. I saw you a few weeks ago through a coffee shop window by chance, near an unbloomed cherry blossom tree and I haven’t really been able to get you out of my mind since then. I promise I’m not some kind of weird stalker or anything-” Jin paused when Namjoon put his hands at either side of his hips, effectively caging him in.

“I like you too, hyung.”

Jin could swear his brain went offline for a moment or two. He stared dumbly into Namjoon’s eyes, heart thudding at the way the botanist’s cheeks went its own shade of red.

“I invited you here because I wanted to spend some time alone with you. I didn’t expect you to like me. I’m not the most interesting person in the world, you know…” he trailed off, but Jin placed a hand on his cheek, making him focus on the older man.

“Don’t say that. To me, you’re one of the most interesting people in the world. Before I saw you, I couldn’t find any inspiration in Springtime, but since I met you, I’ve written more these past few weeks than I have in the past month or two. You’re a humble, beautiful person, Joon, that’s just part of why I like you.” He told him, speaking a bit more boldly than before. Namjoon looked like he was at a loss for words, clearly flustered.

“Hyung?”

“Yes, Joon?”

“Can I kiss you?”

Jin responded by pulling Namjoon closer, pressing their lips together gently. His eyes slid closed, feeling the heat rolling off of Namjoon’s body from their proximity. They separated after a moment, though Namjoon didn’t move his face too far from Jin’s. They both cracked their eyes open, noticing how flustered the other was from the simple kiss. Jin’s eyes flicked down to Namjoon’s lips for a moment and the younger man closed the distance again, initiating a series of small, chaste kisses, each getting a little bit longer and intimate than the last. Namjoon’s hands moved from the table near Jin’s hips to dangle over his shoulders while Jin settled his big hands on Namjoon’s waist.

They separated after a few minutes of the slowly escalating kisses, both of them breathless and panting as they pressed their foreheads together.

“So...is it fair to say we’re dating?” Jin inquired, cocking a brow hopefully. Namjoon smiled, nodding as he leaned over to give the writer another kiss.

“I’d say that’s about right.” He confirmed, finally breaking away from Jin’s personal space. He moved to pick up one of the hanging planters he’d bought, looking at Jin with renewed energy and a wide, dimpled smile.

“Let’s get these plants up, shall we? Maybe we can see about more of those kisses after we’re done?” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively and Jin snorted, putting his chin on his palm as he stared fondly over at Namjoon.

“Bold of you to assume I won’t kiss you while we set this up anyway.”

Namjoon smiled and beckoned for him to follow him into the living room.

“You’re more than welcome to, Hyung.”

-1 Year Later-

“They aren’t picking up. Should we stop by Jin and Namjoon’s apartment?” Hoseok turned to the others, his hand on his hip as he lowered his phone from his ear. Yoongi pursed his lips for a moment before shaking his head.

“We should leave them be.They did just finish moving in together. The cherry blossom festival will be going on this whole week, they can join us some other time.” He told the younger men, turning to look towards the festival in question a few blocks down. They could already smell the food and hear the music being played, even from this distance.

Jimin and Jungkook’s eyes lit up as they all but broke out into a mad dash towards the festival with Hobi quickly following just as eagerly. Taehyung and Yoongi stuck to walking casually behind the excited trio, watching on with fond smiles.

“Those two...you think they’re doing something dirty right about now?” Tae inquired bluntly. Yoongi hummed wistfully.

“Honestly, I’d be surprised if they weren’t.”

-Namjin’s Apartment-

“Hyung...hyung, hurry up-”

“I will not.”

Namjoon groaned in frustration, unable to help the way his body reacted as Jin pressed his lips against his pulse, kissing and nipping at the skin. He wouldn’t be content until a dark mark had bloomed against Namjoon’s neck on this side to match the one under his jaw he’d left earlier.

He had crowded against Namjoon’s left side, their legs slightly intertwined as he stroked the younger man at a nearly agonizingly slow pace. They had been at this for nearly half an hour, rubbing against one another, leaving love bites of varying sizes and colors on whatever they could get their lips on, hands roaming every inch of heated skin they possibly could. Jin had thought it fitting to scatter both cherry and plum blossom petals all over the floor and sheets like the hopeless romantic he’d become and now was treated to the lovely sight of the light and dark pink petals sticking to various parts of Namjoon’s body.

Who wouldn’t take their time with such a gorgeous view like that?

Jin could, however,  tell Namjoon was getting tired of the pace, if the sharp, defiant nip to his bottom lip was anything to go by. He met Namjoon’s eyes, a thick brow arching in amusement, but he obliged him, feeling around the nightstand for the lube they’d dropped inside of it earlier while unpacking.

The tips of his fingers brushed it and he pulled it out in one fluid motion, triumphantly wiggling the bottle at Namjoon. The normally patient botanist spread his legs eagerly, though he looked away from Jin, a rosy color decorating his cheeks. Jin sat up, kissing Namjoon’s cheekbone as he coated his fingers in the cool liquid.

Jin’s fingers rubbed small circles over Namjoon’s quivering hole, smearing some of the lube over his pucker before he slowly pressed his index finger inside. Besides the small exhale above him, Jin heard no resistance from Namjoon, so he continued, sliding the slick digit in and out, taking note of how tight the younger man was.

“Relax for me, baby. I don’t wanna hurt you.” Jin cooed, his voice gentle as he kissed at Namjoon’s collar, muttering other sweet nothings to slowly ease the younger man. It worked, and after a minute or two of slow stretching and gentle words, Jin had all three of his fingers inside of Namjoon, stretching and curling them ever so slightly.

“H-Hyung,” Namjoon breathed, unconsciously rolling his hips back towards Jin as he loosened more and more for the writer. Jin’s lips curled up, that sense of pride arising again. He hadn’t done much, but already Namjoon had that soft, pleading tone in his voice. With a curl of his fingers, Jin only hummed in response.

“Yes, Joon? Is there something you need?”

“I want you, hyung.”

Jin wanted to tease him more, he really did, but when he looked up and saw Namjoon’s half lidded eyes, so full of love and lust for him, he felt like he’d had all the wind knocked out of his chest. Slowly, he pulled his fingers out of the younger man, grabbing more lube to slick himself up.

While he was stroking himself, Namjoon moved from below him, pushing him so he was sitting instead. He opened his mouth to protest, but Namjoon straddled his waist, gently knocking Jin’s hand away in favor for grabbing his cock himself.

“Oh? You’ve never ridden me before~” Jin chimed, holding Namjoon’s hips and rubbing soothing circles against his skin as the younger man slowly seated himself in Jin’s lap, closing his eyes as he felt every inch stretching him.

“You were taking too long.” He breathed in response, wrapping his arms loosely around Jin’s neck. He raised his hips until Jin nearly slid out of him before sitting back down in one fluid motion, groaning as he felt himself loosen with every roll of his hips.

Jin’s fingers laced into his hair, pulling Namjoon down for a sloppy kiss. He rolled his hips up every time Namjoon brought his down, meeting him in the middle and groaning against his lips as the younger man rolled his hips just right.

“Jin! O-Oh fuck, yes.” Namjoon swore, a small bead of sweat rolling down his temple.

“Y-You’re doing so good Joonie. Look at you,” Jin pressed his forehead against Namjoon’s looking into his eyes as the slap of skin against skin rose in volume just like their moans and panting. Namjoon pulled his hair at one point, the intense focus in his eyes from earlier clouding over and leaving him with a lewd, wanton expression.

Jin let out a small ‘fuck, Namjoon’ before he cupped Namjoon’s ass, gently lifting him off of his cock and dropping him back onto the bed.

The blossom petals bounced from the weight, sticking to various parts of Namjoon’s sweaty skin as the botanist blinked in surprise at the whirlwind of motion. He sat up on his knees, frowning at Jin in disapproval.

Jin didn’t bother answering, instead hooking one of his arms under Namjoon’s knee, oh so slowly pushing his cock back into Namjoon’s wet heat. Namjoon groaned, arching his back slightly as he hooked his arms around Jin’s neck, letting himself go as the older man reestablished their pace from before.

Jin pressed his face into the crook of Namjoon’s neck, the normally comforting scent of flowers that followed the man wherever he went now serving as more of an aphrodisiac, driving Jin mad.

“I love you.” It slipped out of Jin’s lips before he could stop himself. Namjoon’s moans caught in his throat, and Jin couldn’t tell if it were from the sex or the gentle confession. Either way, he peppered Namjoon with more and more kisses.

His neck, the underside of his jaw, the corner of his lips.

“Hyung, please. Faster, faster!” Namjoon groaned, his eyes slipping closed. Jin sat up, holding both of Namjoon’s legs open and apart as he thrust into him, drinking in the sight below him.

Namjoon’s brows were pinched up, his face turned away from Jin, though the older could still see the blush decorating his face. His skin was slightly shiny with sweat, the petals stuck in his hair and clinging to his skin as he started to arch his back from the pleasure.

He looked beautiful.

Jin gripped him tighter, suddenly quickening his pace as he watched Namjoon with half lidded eyes full of love. Apparently he’d struck something delightful, if the way the younger man pulled at the sheets was anything to go by.

“Hyung! J-Jin, please please do it again-fuck!” Namjoon cursed, unconsciously clenching around him as Jin obliged him, thrusting at the perfect angle. Jin released his hold on Namjoon’s legs once he wrapped them around Jin’s waist, desperate to keep him as deep as possible. Jin turned Namjoon’s face, making him look up at him as he fucked him, feeling his own hips stutter at the sight.

“L-Look at me Joonie.” Jin’s voice was low, slightly breathless and Namjoon almost missed it over the sound of the bed creaking, his own moans, and the fireworks that had started not too far from their home at the Cherry Blossom Festival. Namjoon looked up at Jin, the sheets balled up in one of his fists as he reached for the older man’s hand.

Jin laced their fingers together, feeling that heated coil in the pit of his stomach wind itself tighter and tighter the closer he got to his release. They gripped each other’s hand tight, never breaking eye contact as Jin’s thrusts lost their rhythm. Namjoon panted, thighs quivering around Jin’s waist as his cock leaked onto his stomach. Jin took his hand away from Namjoon’s chin, stroking Joon’s cock as quickly as he could, lips quirking when he saw how desperate Namjoon was for his release, thrusting into his closed fist desperately.

“Hyung I’m-”

“C’mon, Joonie. I’ll cum with you baby.” Jin cooed, rolling his thumb over Namjoon’s weeping cock head, watching him with hearts in his eyes. Namjoon loosened his grip on the sheets, pulling Jin down for a deep, sloppy kiss. They moaned against each other’s lips, and after a few more wild thrusts, Jin spilled himself inside of Namjoon, drinking in the sound of Namjoon’s muffled, slightly higher-pitched moan as the younger man came all over his fist and his own stomach.

Jin broke the kiss after he was sure he’d milked every last pearl of cum from Namjoon’s cock, slowly moving to get off of the younger man. Namjoon kept him from going too far, panting as he looked up at Jin, a dimpled, tired smile brightening up his face.

“I love you too, Jin.” he cooed, cupping Jin’s cheek. Jin’s heart stuttered for a moment as stared down at Namjoon, kissing the tip of his nose as a gentle smile came to his own face.

They cleaned up, showering to get any excess petals and sweat off of them before climbing back into their bed, cuddling under the freshly changed sheets.

Namjoon fell asleep first, curling into Jin and tangling their long limbs together as he tucked his face against Jin’s collar. Jin ran his fingers through his hair idly, taking in the serene look that graced Namjoon’s sleeping face. He kissed his forehead, closing his eyes as a smile came to his face.

Tomorrow, while Namjoon tended to his bonsai plants and wrote up a new lesson plan for the Ecology class, Jin would sit at the window, filling each page of his writing with words of love and beauty.

All while enjoying the sight of scattering blossom petals in the wind just outside.

Maybe Spring wasn’t so bad, afterall.

[missmarrypotter]

Tommy ain’t always right, You know!?

Finn Shelby x OC (Olive)❤️

I'm just so in love with this boy, Finn is an angel!!

WARNING: making out!? but more fluff i think

English it not my first language so please excuse my mistakes.🤗

She grabbed her Jacked and rushed out of the office. The look she shot Thomas Shelby before stepping outside was full of disappointment and blankness. She didn’t wait for any respond.  “You need to be a man … bullshit he does ..” she mumbled to herself, running through the hidden, dark and smoke filled alleys of Birmingham. It was much colder than she thought, the fresh air of the night burning in her lungs from running.

“Finn!!!”, She almost shouted at her Childhood Friend who was about to disappear behind yet another corner.

“Finn fuckin Shelby!! Wait.”

He stopped right there, turning around. He Looked tired. But when he recognized her he put on a smile, waiting for her to reach him.

“Olive, what’s with ya!?”, he was quiet amused seeing her breathless like that. “Why did ya run!?”

“Cause those legs ya got there are like twice as long as mine ..” she explained gasping, pulling him into a hug.

He hugged her back, stroking her dark brown hair carefully.

“Did anythin happen? Ya alright?!” He asked, tensed and sounding slightly worried. He relaxed when she shook her head, sighting in relief. She interrupted the hug and took a step back.

“ I was in the room as well when ...ya know.. that talk with Tommy and stuff   ” she told him, looking right into his blueish green eyes, waiting for his reaction.

He looked down at his feet, his jaw clenched. He looked kind of ashamed and guilty at the same time.

Silence. Just for Seconds but it felt like hours. Finn fumbled around with his hands while Olive nibbled on her chin long hair.

“I liked what ya said back there” She cleared the silence, scratching the back of her head.

He looked at her with lots of confusion in his eyes.

“ Wha .. are ya shitting me!?” He asked, not really believing what he just heard.

He thought Olive would react completely different. He thought she would scold him for losing his virginity to some whore Lizzie, Aunt Polly and Linda rented for him. She grew up in a brothel herself since she was 6 years old. Madam Adley found her that age and adopted her into her family. Schooled her. Fed her. Sarah Adley had no children on her own so her Ladies were her family. Her daughters. She treated them all very well. Her business was for the high society only. For rich Men and Women to forget and enjoy themselves. Olive herself had worked there for a year when she turned 16.

To secure her loved ones safety Madam collaborated with the Peaky Blinders. They kept violent lovers away and made sure everybody paid and in return the girls gave some informations about their clients or their Bodys to the Blinders.

Through that Finn and Olive met at the very young age of 7. They soon bonded and the Shelbys became the girls second family. She proved herself trustworthy very quick and her big green eyes, her open, loving nature as a child and later her charming smile and her feminine curves were often very helpful to interact with new allies or enemies. She had a very sharp mouth if she had to and never lost her words. But she could also be as quiet and nondescript as a mouse so no one would notice her like today in the office. They even allowed her to stay through family meetings since no private conversation she witnessed had ever met a third ones ear. They loved her and she loved them. Apparently some more and in a different way than others. Tommy decided to employ her as a gift for her 17th birthday. She was good with customers and numbers and that way they were able to look after her. Win Win Situation for everyone. Finn secretly was very happy about that. So his Olive didn't had to do these humiliating things anymore. He never thought he would ever in his life have sex against payment himself because the thought of someone buying his girls body made him sick so many times. Buying a person like some object just sounded so wrong to him even if it seemed to be normal for his brothers. He always imagined his first time a completely different way. With someone he loved. Someone who wanted him. To be honest he always thought it would be with her. But he was too shy to make a move. He always thought he wasn’t good enough for her. Not manly enough. Not experienced enough.

If only he knew she wished the same thing.

But since she had to help her Mother out back then to safe her Business, she felt dirty. She was happy to help, she always was. On the other hand she didn't feel good enough for the boy she took a liking in anymore. So she never made a move as well. But now she had to say something. She had to tell him how much of a man he was to her. Has always been.

Out of the sudden she smiled. She just happily smiled at him, giving him chills.

“I don't want it like that ever again, tom.

Not when they don't even want to do it , expect for the money.” She repeated his words from earlier, taking his hands.

“It made me so fucking happy when you said that.” She whispered squeezing his hands, taking a step forward.

A perplexed Finn gently placed his chin on the top of her head.

“ But Tommy was right when he said that everyone gets tired. That everything these days is for money. That i need to be a man” he muttered into her hair, placing a little kiss there without even realizing it.

“But you are a man, Finn”

She loved the shelby boys a lot. But She honestly never would have wanted to trade with any of their woman. She wanted someone she could rely on. Someone she didn't have to fear about not coming home because he picked unnecessary fights that started people and himself getting killed . Someone who didn't yell all the time. Someone who wouldn't keep secrets from her. Someone who would never look at another woman the way he looked at her. Someone who would never cheat. Someone like Finn.

She got up on her tiptoes, nuzzling her face into the crook of his neck, hugging him as tight as she could. He placed his hands on her back, pressing her body against his.

“Tommy was right that there is an empty space to be filled now that John is dead. And yes everybody gets tired someday.But that does not mean you have to become like them. There is nothing wrong with not fighting everything, anytime, at any cost. There is nothing wrong with wanting love instead of a quick fuck. Because so do i .. ”

Her last words were almost too quiet to hear them, but he did. She gently kissed his cheek  before she let him out of her squeeze, taking his hands once again. He Was speechless. Did he hear it right!? Did she mean that she wanted him or just true love in general!?

His breathing was too slow to see any movement on his chest but his heart did the exact opposite. It was about to explode.

“And even though it might sound crazy …. Tommy ain’t always right, You know!?. Not everything is for money. True love ain’t . He should know that better than anyone.. god that sounds like such a cliche” she laughed, letting go of his hands. But as soon as she did so his right hand was right back around her wrist, pulling her closer while he placed his other one on her cheek, caressing it gently with his thumb.

“Good. Cause i don't have any fuckin money .. but i luv ya so much”, he whispered into her ear. His voice was raspy and slightly shaking from nervousness and the freezing aerial. Both of their hearts stopped right there, both holding their breaths.

He laid his forehead against hers, brushing her nose with his, their lips almost touching.

As he managed to respire again his hot breath brushed over her ice cold lips. Now there were Goosebumps all over her body. She wanted to say something. She wanted to say those words back but her vocal cords wouldn’t allow it. Instead her hands just grabbed his soft cheeks, closing the small gap between their lips. Out of the sudden her whole body seemed to warm up. By the touch of his soft lips. By his hand clawing into the hair of the back of her head in response while his other hand found its way to her hip, holding into her tight. Their Lips seemed to perfectly match up. Their movements slow but impassioned. Finn Tasted like whisky and cigarettes while Olive tasted more like plums and black tea. It was a perfect combination. Soon things heated up. Finn had her pinned against the wall of some house, his hands on her bum to hold her up. Her thighs were wrapped around his waist, the right hand gently tugging his hair while her left one softly scratched his neck. The desire they both kept a secret for a quiet long time finally turned into something real.

Finns tongue slid over her bottom lip, before allowing them a break to take a breath. Both were heavily panting when they heard a suggestive whistle.

It was Isaiah. Standing there with his hands in his pockets, grinning from one ear to the other.

“Well if the two of ya are done swallowing each other we could head to the Garrisons like we planned, aye!?” he teasingly said.

“Ough i totally forgot…” finn said, setting Olive down. Both of them fixed their hair and cloth as much as possible before walking over to their friend. Isaiah laid his arms around his mates still grinning widely.

“Finally guys, finally!” He laughed.

Finn and Olive shot each other a approving look.

“Well we know ya going to tell everyone about this Issy, so please make sure to tell Pol, Linda and Liz as well so they don't feel the need to rent my boyfriend a whore ever again, yep!?”

“I totally will sweetheart, everything for my love birds” he assured.

At the Garrisons everyone congratulated them like they've just announced their wedding or something. They were really sweet and supportive. Tommy, Arthur and Polly each gave them a speech about the birds and the bees and how they would support them if Finn would get her pregnant anytime soon but that they'd prefer if there was no need to. It was really weird but fun at the same time. When the Garrisons cleared up Tommy offered to drive the two young ones home. They gratefully refused. A walk home, just the two of them would be perfect now. They said goodbye to everyone, leaving hand in hand. Finn walked her home to Madam Adley's house, never letting go of her hand. As they arrived he walked her to the door. He leaned against the frame of the big wooden door, letting go of her hand. She turned to face him. She had the happiest expression he had ever seen on her.

“I love you too , Finn.”

He softly smiled, pecking her nose.

“I know. But you saying it …. Feels damn awesome, Luv” he chuckled. She jokingly rolled her eyes at him, fumbling around with his jacked.

“I'd love to have company while sleeping tonight, Finn” she mumbled, slightly smirking.

He slightly blushed, brushing some hair behind her right ear.

“ Sure can do, Babygirl” he just smirked and kissed his girl lovingly. Then he picking her up, carrying her inside.

Things went a little different than actually planned. Madam and some of the girls were still awake and insisted that instead of doing god knows what they should join them for some drinks. They did. So everything that happened tonight was one of Olives sisters vomiting, Sarah Adley offering Finn to come by anytime as long as he treated her daughter well and 6 bottles of wine being destroyed. After that both of them just fell into bed, immediately falling asleep in each others arms. In the morning both of them just stayed in there, trying to sleep their massive hangover away. Honestly it was kind of a good start in their relationship. Things would happen sooner or later so why rush in. The important thing was that their relationship was  clarified and official now and everyone supported them. The future would settle the rest.

[stefanreyes]

As he sat on his couch and stared at the door which Angie had just shut behind her with the loudest bang when she left, he didn't quite understand how it had come to this. How it had gotten so bad that she had decided to just up and leave. Granted he had always known she was having a hard time getting used to the town and living in the midst of supernaturals which she was terrified of. But he had somehow always hoped that she would get used to it -- they were all in a way human after all. And he hoped her love for Belle would make her stay if nothing else. 

Even now, with her having walked out after their huge argument, he knew she loved their daughter no less. But fact remained that Belle was a witch, a witch who was beginning to show powers beyond a terrified human’s comprehension. And nothing was made better by her accidentally losing control and  showing her mother a percentage of how destructive she could be and what she could grow to become. That fear and her mistrust in him had driven her away and he knew he had no one to blame but him, for he was the one who had hidden his true self from her for years, bringing her into the world of supernatural in the worst way possible with no warning whatsoever when he had several opportunities to do things differently. 

His thoughts were interrupted by his phone vibrating, Issy on the other end, but he didn't answer -- instead deciding to text her instead. 

Stefan: Sorry Issy, I can’t make it tonight.  Stefan: Raincheck?

He was fucking up their evening, their first date which was supposed to be special. It was an evening he had been waiting for ages, but he didn’t know what else to do. He was in no state to be going on a date right now. Besides, his daughter was asleep and he had to stay with her. But god, Issy deserved better than this shitty text for cancelling their date. He knew she would understand if he explained what was going on, but honestly, with these texts? He just sounded like an asshole who decided to stand her up for no reason. He only waited a few moments before he followed it up with couple more texts to her. He could only hope that she would understand that he needed his best friend right now. 

Stefan: But can you come over? Stefan: Please. Stefan: I need you. 

He wasn’t sure how long afterwards it was that the door opened, the smallest forced smile was on his face as his eyes fell on the blonde. “So, Angie is gone.” he told her before taking another sip from the bottle of vodka he held in his hand, the bottle who’s company he had sought as he waited for her to arrive. Saying it loud made it seem all the more real. And he was at a loss as to what to be doing without her. How he was supposed to take care of Belle by himself. “She’s gone. She left. I finally managed to scare her away. So, let’s drink to that.” he said raising the bottle, before chugging down some more vodka. 

( @isabellecresswell )

[childofthemoon86]

@francisandtheworldweek Day 2: Victorian era

Third time’s the Charm

Pairing: (pre)FrUk, implied past Frain Characters: France, fem England, America, Canada, fem Spain (mentioned) Rating: k+ Word count: 3520 Cross posted on FF.net Summary: Life hasn’t always been easy for Francis, but when he finds himself forced to hire a new governess to care for his boys while he works, things may just be about to get a whole lot more complicated. Note: Based on the same au as this post I did for FrUk week. 

Sometimes, life is easy. The day goes by like a good summers breeze, everything flows neatly together like an uninterrupted stream. Other times, life is oh so hard. You feel like the weight of the world is pressing down on you, judging you. Even the simplest of things become herculean tasks, and one wrong move is all it takes to be drowned by the rapids. Francis suspects today is going to be one of those days. “Alfred get dressed! Our guest will be here any minute!” He scolds the boy again, that’s three times this morning now. He watches the boy huffily stomp back to his room, slamming the door shut behind him, before returning his attention to the mirror, making last minute adjustments to his cravat and waistcoat. There, now at least he looks presentable, if only the boys were so easy to manage. He spots the boy’s door open again, and this time Alfred finally emerges wearing the clothes Francis had set out for him. Behind him, Matthew slowly trails out. “Matthew, come here mon chou.” Francis smiles as his son makes his way over. With one hand he directs the boy to stand with his back to him, and with the other, he grabs a comb from the desk, quickly getting to work sorting the boy’s bedhead. “I don’t get why we have to get all dressed up.” Alfred complains from the side, before Francis pulls him over and gets to work on his hair too. “Because,” Francis reminds, frowning slightly as he concentrates “it’s important that we all make a good impression.” Finally satisfied, Francis let’s the boys go for the moment, with strict instructions not to get dirty before the guest arrives. While they disappear off into the house, Francis heads for the parlour, checking everything is in order on the way. Really, he knows it’s not strictly necessary for the house to be in perfect order, or for the boys to be so tidy, but he really does want to make a good impression. Of course, he hasn’t exactly told the boys just who is coming, but he suspects Alfred knows. Or at least he hopes that’s why the boy’s been acting out so much lately. Ever since his dear wife died of scarlet fever nearly two years ago, he had been relying on Isabella, their governess to care for them. She had been a good friend, a really good friend and comfort after his loss. Or so he thought, until he found out she was pregnant with another man’s child. As much as it pained him, he had to send her away. For the sake of his boys, he couldn’t be seen to have a governess maintaining relations with another, let alone one who is pregnant. He still hopes she’ll be okay… But now, after three weeks alone and work demands at the factory picking up, he has no choice but to hire a new governess. He was careful in his selection. They had to be smart, good at taking care of such a large house and two young children, and above all else, they must understand their boundaries. Francis won’t be burned again, he’s suffered enough pain. So here he is, anxiously awaiting their arrival. As the grandfather clock chimes ten, three short knocks come at the door. Right on time. Quickly he opens the doors, smiling coldly, he greets, “You must be Alice, correct?” Before him stands a young woman in her early twenties, dressed in a simple white blouse and long green skirt which, Francis berates himself for noticing, brings out her forest green eyes, and her long blonde hair is tied up in two simple pigtails. “Yes sir.” She agrees with a slight bow of the head, and Francis can’t help his smile turning warmer. She clearly knows her place in society, just like he wanted. Still, there’s something in her eyes that makes Francis curious. She doesn’t smile, keeping her face neutral, but it almost feels like she’s frowning at him just from the depths of her eyes. Turning away, he looks back into the house, sighing at the lack of children in sight. “Boys, come here for a moment.” He calls into the parlour, waiting patiently for the sound of two pairs of feet to come running. Once the children are within sight, he ushers them over with a wave of the hand. “I want to introduce you to your new governess,” he smiles, turning to the young woman in the doorway, “Boys, meet Alice. Alice, meet my children and your new charges, Alfred and Matthew.” “Hello, Alfred. Matthew.” She greets in the same neutral tone. As expected, Matthew shyly ducks behind Francis’s legs to hide, he’s always been slow to warm up to new people. But Alfred’s reaction is more unexpected as he curls his hands into fists and angrily stomps his foot. “So your just going to replace Issy? Like you replaced mum?” Al cries, face scrunched up in hurt. “No, mon chou, that’s not-” Francis tries to explain, but Alfred isn’t for listening. “Why do you always have to take everyone away from me?! I hate you!” Before Francis can get another word in, Al throws off his good coat and runs up stairs, the sound of a door slamming comes shortly after. He sighs, placing a hand on Matthew’s back, before returning his attention to Alice. “I’m sorry you had to see that, Alfred has been having some trouble adjusting since I sent their last governess away.” Something like pity flashes across Alice’s eyes before being buried beneath cold indifference. “It’s quite alright. It’s only natural that it will take time for the boys to get used to me.” “Yes,” Francis agrees slowly, before shaking himself out of his stupor, “Anyway, please come in.” He steps aside with Matt still attached to him, letting Alice in before noticing the time. “Merde! Is it that late already?” He panics, if he doesn’t leave now, he’s going to be late to the factory. “There is a list in the study of everything you need to do. If I am not back by six, only make dinner for the boys.” He tells Alice, before turning to kneel by Matt. “Matthew, be a good boy while I am gone, and try to get along with Alice, Alright?” Quietly, Matt nods, before Francis hurries to depart. Now alone with Just Matt, Alice directs her stare to him and demands, “Show me to the study so I may begin.” X Francis sighs tiredly. It’s late, nearly nine o’clock, far later than he planned to return home. On the plus side his textiles are booming, but managing all of the demand from just one factory is almost too much. And he really could have gone without those five accidents today. He really does pity the children that work so hard for him, but that’s just how things are. He made a promise long ago that he would do everything he could to keep his sons from such a life, and if that means working others to the bone, so be it. When he finally returns home, he stands in shock at just how, clean, everything is. He had thought the house was tidy before he left, but he never realised how much dust had built up in the place. Even when Isabella was here, the house never looked this good. It’s also suspiciously quiet. “Alfred? Matthew?” He calls, but the one who greets him is neither. “Welcome home sir.” Alice nods, coming from the direction of the kitchen. “Where are the boys?” “Asleep.” “At this time?” Francis is shocked, they never go to bed when he tells them. “Yes. Alfred was disobedient, so I punished him. And Matthew chose to stay quiet rather than come to me when his brother started the fire, so I had to punish him too.” “Fire?!” “Yes,” Alice repeats, sounding annoyed, “In the back garden, he then attempted to hide in the old oak tree. He refused to come down for several hours, so I sent them both to bed without dinner.” Francis’s mouth opens and closes, before he sighs heavily, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I will have a word with him. He really is a good boy you know, they both are.” Rather than comment, Alice switches the subject, “Would you like me to draw you a bath before dinner?” “Ah, oui, merci.” Nodding, she disappears, leaving Francis to go check on the boys. The sound of sniffling can be heard through the door, and Francis sighs sadly again as he enters. “Oh ma chérie.” He breathes at seeing Al sitting by the window, trying to not cry, but his eyes are still clearly red and puffy. He can see Matt silently watching from his bed to the side too. “What happened? Alice said-” “I hate her!” Al cries, voice sounding chocked, “Why’d you have to bring her here?” “Haa, you know why. I need someone to look after you two while I’m gone.” “But Issy-!” “Isabella can’t come back. Please Alfred, just try to get along with Alice. For me, please?” When Al only sniffles and looks away, Francis turns to Matt, “And Matthew, why didn’t you tell Alice Alfred was misbehaving?” “I don’t like her.” Matt whispers, as if he’s afraid she’ll hear him, “She doesn’t smile, she only shouts at us, and when we told her we were hungry, she sent us to bed.” “And the fire?” “I was just trying to have some fun.” Al protests. “Alright. No more fires from now on, you know that’s dangerous. Now come on, let’s see about getting some dinner in you two.” Francis leads the boys down to the kitchen, where he finds Alice starting to prepare food. “Alice, the boys have something to say to you.” He looks to them expectantly, and begrudgingly they apologise. “Good, now would you make them some supper as well?” She frowns at them slightly before nodding, “If that is what you want sir.” “It is.” “Very well. Your bath is ready, dinner should be served once your done.” “Good, now boys, be nice.” Before Francis can leave, Alice turns to him, “Will you be needing any assistance?” “No, just leave a fresh set of clothes out for me, that will be all.” “As you wish sir.” X Dinner wasn’t what Francis had expected, but at least the boys seemed to be trying to get along with Alice. Or maybe they were simply too hungry to cause trouble. Either way Francis is relieved. Over the course of the next few weeks they settle into a new routine, and, thankfully, the number of incidents goes down, but Alfred and Matthew still seem distant around Alice. Francis knows he can’t force them to get along, but he really does wish things would be better. Maybe they just need more time. And for a while, things remained the same, stagnant. Until one night on All Hallows’ Eve. Francis returned home early for once, something Alice clearly hadn’t planned for. When he arrived, he was surprised to find the house in complete darkness. Curious, he headed up to the boy’s rooms, shocked to find it locked, and even more so to hear his sons crying inside. Hurriedly, Francis found the spare key in the study, and through the door open to find his sons huddled together on Al’s bed, crying and shaking. “Boys! What’s wrong, what happened, where’s Alice?” But no matter how much he asked, neither of his sons could give him a coherent answer, so Francis was left with no choice but to go looking for the one who should be caring for them. “Stay here, I’m going to get to the bottom of this.” He knows Alice has a tendency to be strict with the boys, but she has never broken his rule against striking the children, and he can see no sign of injuries, so something else must have frightened them. But as he wonders the house, he feels a strange chill run down his spine, and has the foreboding sense of being watched. He makes his way to the kitchen, but still no sign of Alice. But as he turns to leave, he hears the screech of a chair, and turns just in time to see it flying through the air, straight for him. Francis ducks and the chair sails over his head, but before he has time to process what’s happening, another two are mysteriously launched at him. He dodges one, but the second hits his back, knocking him to the ground. Winded, he shivers suddenly feeling ice cold, and a voice he thought he’d never hear again whispers, “why did you betray meeee?” Confused, he looks up, only for his blood to run cold and the colour drain from his face as he comes face to face with his deceased wife. “Why did you betray meeeee?!” She screeched, snatching a knife from the counter, and plunging it down on him. He closes his eyes and braces for the pain, but, it never comes. After a few tense seconds, he peaks an eye open to see his wife, or rather her ghost, frozen in place, knife dangling mere inches from his neck. Her mouth and eyes hang open in a soundless scream, and it’s then that he notices just how transparent she is. He can see right through her. Snapping out of his shock, he scrambles back until he hits the wall behind him, staring in terror. Then he notices something else, a thin green light, crackling like that strange new electricity, is wrapped around the ghost’s body like a rope. Then, he hears a voice, one he knows is very real, and very much alive. “Run Francis! I can’t hold her much longer!” Francis wonders how he never noticed her before now, but there is Alice, leaning heavily against the kitchen doorway, the dark lit by the glow of her eyes. “Run! Run to the children!” Had Francis more of his sense about him, he might have noticed how out of breath and tired Alice sounds, but at that moment, all he can think about is getting away, away and to find his precious boys. So he ran, scrambling to his feet, he dives through the pantry, out to the parlour, into the hall, up the stairs, and down the corridor to the boy’s room, all the while cursing how big the house is. He bursts in, and launches himself at the pair, still huddled together where he left them. He holds them close as his heart races. Below, a pained screech rings out, and a terrible crash clatters throughout the house as a blinding white light seems to emanate from the very air itself, before everything falls horribly silent and darkness returns. It takes more courage than Francis ever thought himself to possess before that night to lead his boys out and down the stairs, determined to get them out. But before he opens the front door, he turns to look towards the kitchen. Taking a breath to steady his nerves, he tells his sons to wait for him here. Quietly, he slinks into the kitchen, where everything is worryingly still. But no ghost is in sight, and, if he had not been looking, he might not of heard the shallow breathing by the pantry. “Alice!” He hurries over to her, finding her lying amongst the vegetables. “It’s okay,” she tells him weakly, and for the first time, she smiles, “Your safe. Your all safe,” before passing out. X Birds chirp in the trees by the house as Francis paces by Alice’s bed, his boys sitting outside listening in. Alice, the governess he so carefully picked for his sons, after last night, she can only be one thing. She must be a witch. But can witches be good? Francis may not be the most religious of people, but even he knows that God disapproves of witches, they’re work is the devils work after all. She did save him, of that much he’s sure. But to what end? To think, a witch living under his roof all this time. That he trusted her to care for them, for his boys! But… every time he thinks of kicking her out, of running to the nearest church to deal with her, he remembers her smile, and his heart aches at the thought of any harm coming to that gentle look. When she starts to stir, he halts his pacing. He knows what he has to do, and no matter how much it pains him, he has to know just what she intends to do. “Alice?” “Mmmhh….” “Alice, wake up.” She slowly blinks awake, confused eyes falling on him, before she suddenly sits up, “Sir!” Francis holds a hand out to stop her, frowning coldly down at her. “I have questions, and by God’s grace, you will answer me truthfully or so help me-!” He cuts himself off, blowing a breath out his nose, before restarting. “Are you a witch?” Alice looks away, her gaze falling to her hands folded in her lap. “Yes.” Francis knew it to be true, but hearing her admit it is still a shock. “What happened last night?” Slowly she looks up to meet his gaze, her eyes cold and swirling with a depth that’s almost terrifying to look at. “This house, from the first day I came here, I knew it was haunted. A vengeful spirit had been trying to bring harm upon you. You were supposed to be out late, you shouldn’t have returned before the ritual was done.” She frowns, “But you did.” “Ritual?” Francis doesn’t know if he should sound shocked or disbelieving. “Yes, to purge it from the house.” “And you were going to do this with the boys around?” This time he knows he sounds aghast at the idea of putting his boys in such danger. “No, I kept them out of harms way. I locked them in their room, I’d been warding it for a few weeks, no spirit can enter there now.” “This is ridiculous.” Francis shakes his head in disbelief. Alice looks away again, quietly mumbling, “I know you probably don’t believe me, but I was doing this to protect you.” “By putting my life in danger?!” “No! I never meant for you to be put at risk. The vail between the worlds is at it’s weakest on All Hallows’ Eve, the closer it got to then, the stronger the spirit became. I had to stop it, and last night was my best chance.” “… why?” “Eh?” Confused by the sudden change in Francis’s tone, Alice looks up. “Why did you do this? Why not just leave? A smart woman like you, I’m sure you’d find someone else to hire you. Wouldn’t it have been easier for you?” “I…” Alice frowns, unable to keep looking at Francis, she turns her head away, a blush tinting her cheeks red and her hands bundling the sheets in her fists. “What?” Francis blinks, “I didn’t hear you.” Alice mumbles something again, but it’s still to indistinctive for Francis to hear. “Sorry? Please, speak up.” “Because I have feelings for you!” She blurts, her face bright red and eyes slammed shut in embarrassment. Francis can only stare in shock, he had no idea she felt that way about him. All this time, he had been so determined not to fall for another, he never thought about how Alice might feel. “I… I couldn’t just walk away, and I couldn’t turn a blind eye. Not when I… cared so much for you.” She sighs, tears falling down her cheeks of their own accord. “But I know nothing can ever come of these feelings, so I tried to forget them, to push them away. But, that only made it hurt more every time I looked at you. I-I’m sorry things didn’t go how I planned, just please, please don’t hate me.” Francis continued to stare, mouth working, but no sound coming out. But the longer he stood there, watching Alice cry, the more his heart twisted painfully in his chest. And rather suddenly, he realised, he wanted to make those tears go away, he wanted to take all her pain away. He wants to see her smile again. Gently, he lifts a hand to her cheek, rubbing his thumb over the tear tracks, smiling softly he whispers, “I don’t hate you.” He watches as those words cause a glimmer of hope to flash in her eyes, and his heart twists more at the look. Sighing softly, he gives in. Francis is no fool, he knows exactly what this feeling is, he’s just been trying to ignore it, but really, how can anyone ignore love? Slowly he leans down, and, in a single breath, kisses her. It only lasts a moment, but when he pulls back, he sees that beautiful smile again, and that makes it all worth it. Perhaps it’s as they say, third time’s the charm.

[abelhayward]

I got these feelings for you | Abex

Who: Abel Hayward & Alexia Connors @littlelexvc

When: Wednesday, November 14th 2018. 

Where: Creed II premiere 

Notes: Fluff, just a lot of fluff and feelings.

Triggers: anxiety, nsfw-ish

Abel rubbed his hands together as he waited to see Lex and gave people smiles when they passed him. He let out a breath as he tried to keep calm, but good thing she said that she liked him a lot? He rolled his eyes when he felt his phone vibrate, knew it was his mom telling him about her taking Issy home since it was a school's night.

Lex wove through the waves of people, holding the top of her dress in place as the tape the girl in the fashion department had put there was starting to lose it's tackiness and she really didn't feel like having a nip slip in front of all of these people. She saw Abel waiting for her and smiled, despite her apprehension about the conversation they were probably about to have. When she finally made it to him, she went straight in for a hug. "The movie was fantastic."

Abel looked up to see her walking towards her and returned the smile before he returned the hug. He felt a wave of relief wash over him when he heard her. "Thank you, I was worried that I wouldnt fill in the previous actor's shoes but I was able to do so." He replied, kept his hands on her lower back and pulled away slightly. "You look." He took in her dress and her look before he met her eyes. "Amazing." He swallowed hard as he looked at her and gave her another smile before he looked around then back down at her. "I found a place where we can talk."

Lex let herself linger in his arms for a moment too long, pulling away after she knew he had gotten a good look at the dress, and the girls. "I know I do," she chuckled, awkwardly crossing her arms in front of her, "You look pretty damn great yourself." She shifted her weight, her nerves beginning to show in her body language. It wasn't normal for her, but then again she hadn't been in this sort of a situation for a really long time. "Well, lead the way, then."

Abel shrugged off his coat and wrapped it around her shoulders, hoping it was okay. "Thank you." He replied as he looked at her and nodded before he turned around, did a head nod towards one of the wait staff and pulled back a black curtain. He headed towards a nice, inviting room and shut the door behind her once she was in.

Lex settled into his jacket, thankful for the gesture. It was freezing in New York that night, and she was really regretting not asking for a jacket of her own to go with the dress. Following him into the side room, she started pacing. She just couldn't stop moving. Somehow that made things better, for her anyway. "So..."

"Soo..." Abel started to say as he watched her pace and slipped his hands into his pockets as he leaned against a wall. "We both like each other, a lot and like I said. Im not gonna force things, we can go at a slow pace if you want, we can end whatever we're doing, now. If you want and go back being best friends." He was focused on her needs and what she wants, instead of forcing things onto her or focusing on his needs & wants. "I want you to feel comfortable with anything that we do, Lex."

Nodding as she listened to his little speech, Lex kept walking. It felt like if she were to stop moving she would just fall over, and then her boobs would be everywhere and that’s not even the good kind of boobs everywhere. “We can’t really go back, though. I mean, I know me,” she could feel herself starting to ramble, but just like she couldn’t stop her feet she couldn’t stop her tongue. “I wouldn’t be able to go back, anyway. And I do like you, a lot. But the last guy I dated, he was in med school and we broke up because he didn’t have time for me anymore after five. years.” She finally paused to take a breath, finally able to stand still. “And with all of this,” she looked around the room, gesturing to the fancy clothes, “it seems like you won’t have too much time either.”

Abel agreed, they couldn't go back to be just friends. "I agree, I wouldn't be either." He pipped up before she started to ramble, making valid points and pushed off of the wall when she stopped talking.  He took her hand gently, guided her toward the couch that was in the middle of the room and he sat down to look up at her. "Which, I get it, I do. " He paused as he ran his thumb across the back of her palm. "However, when I was in LA, I wished you were there with me. In Miami, I wished you were there with me. Even in Atlanta, I wanted you there with me. That's why when I touched down in Philly, I grabbed the first train ride I could so I could see you. Another reason why I didn't leave until mid-morning the next day but." He licked his lips as he gathered his thoughts. and met her eyes. "I'll have time for you, because of Im not like your ex. When Im done, with the press tour for Creed II, I'll be back to you in a heartbeat and Im actually staying in New York until I have to leave again next week." He chewed on his inner cheek a bit. "I want you to come with me. Im not asking you to drop everything for me, believe me. I don't want to be the reason why you lose your job or your place because I wouldn't be able to live with myself. Like I said, we can go at a slow pace, if you want."

Lex listened, though she couldn't really look him in the eyes. Feelings were weird for her, really weird. She'd tried her best since she and Jordan had broken up to not feel them anymore. After the first half, she sat down beside him, crossing her arms in front of her again to keep everything in place up there. "Coming with you isn't exactly moving slowly, Abel," she smiled half-heartedly at the wall and leaned back against the back of the couch to think. "And you just said yourself that you still have more press stuff to do, and then you're only going to be home for a week before leaving again. And we both know I can't just leave work for however long you'll be gone, even if I wanted to."

Abel nodded when she pointed out. "I guess its not." He said softly as he listened to her, took off his pinky rings and rubbed his hands together after he pocketed them. "Yeah." He bit down on his inner cheek. "Then I'll be home for good, but that doesnt solve what to do right now." He let out a sigh as he ran his hands over his face and ignored his heart sinking. "What are we gonna do, then?"

"Are you okay with where we are right now?" she asked quietly, trying to figure out where they could go from here while he was going to be out of town for a while. She could see that he was just as nervous as she was, though, so she sat back up and gently put a hand on his knee. Taking a deep breath, she said, "Because it doesn't seem smart to change things until your life calms down a little."

Abel felt her hand on his knee, which made him want to hold it but he wasn't for sure if he should. He opened up his mouth, closed it and looked down at the ground before he looked back at her. "Im okay with is as along you are." He whispered. He gently shook his head at her words. "No and its not only gonna change for us, but for Issy too."

Lex found that it was easier to look at the hand she'd placed on his knee than to actually look him in the eyes. She didn't know if she'd completely messed up by saying that or if he really did agree with her. "Be honest, please. Don't just say what you think I want to hear," mumbling towards the end, for all she knew he hadn't heard any of it. "I know. That's one of the reasons I'm.. dammit I'm really anxious about this."

Abel listened to her and swallowed some as he turned towards her. "I wanna be with you, Lex. If that means keeping things as they are right now, then we keep doing the friends with benefits and once I'm home, home. We can always take baby steps and see where it goes." He said as he looked at her. "I am too."

Lex kept her eyes down as she listened to him, refusing to let whatever emotions she was feeling show on her face. "Okay, I'm okay with that if you're sure you're okay with it. And if you're okay with things possibly changing for Issy."

Abel nodded as he kept his hands to himself. "I'm sure I'm okay with all of it, Lex." He said softly. "I dont want to force you."

"And I don't want you to do something you're uncomfortable with either," she sighed, squeezing his knee gently before finally looking up at him. "I promise, I would never let myself be forced into something I don't want."

"I promise, I wont do anything that's uncomfortable with," Abel said as he made eye contact with her. He nodded shortly after she said that. "And I promise, I wont force you into doing something that you dont want to do."

"Well, now that that's settled," she smiled softly, kissing his cheek before standing back up and adjusting the front of her dress to make sure the tape was still sticky. "You should probably get back to the party, people will be missing you soon enough."

Abel smiled softly when she kissed his cheek and looked away when she was adjusting the front of her dress. He looked back at her with a smile as he stood up and looked at her. "Yeah, well. They can wait."

Lex cocked an eyebrow at him, watching him quizzically as he stood. "Oh?" she chuckled, taking a step closer to him. "I hope you have a good excuse prepared."

Abel smiled when he took a step closer to her and nodded. "I do, believe me." He said as he kept his hands at his sides and adjusted his coat on her.

"Care to share? I'm intrigued," Lex grinned up at him.

"My parents was talking to me about taking my daughter to Disneyland," Abel said as he placed his hands on her hips as he looked down at her. "And we lost track of time."

"I guess that's a good enough excuse," she murmured, closing the rest of the gap between them, and wrapping her arms around his neck. His jacket fell off her shoulders and onto the floor, but she didn't care.

Abel raised an eyebrow when he heard her. "Wanna give me a better excuse?" He wrapped his arms around her, leaned down and rubbed his nose against hers.

Lex shook her head, "I don't think I could give you a more believable one, really." She could feel the redness creeping up her neck and onto her cheeks, the stress of the situation finally subsiding.

"I'm sure you can," Abel said softly as he looked at her and gave her a soft smile before he pecked her lips.

Lex kissed him again. ”I think you just want to keep me here for other things,” she teased, pulling him closer and pressing her lips to his. She knew they wouldn’t be able to stay hidden away for long, but she would take advantage of the moments they were able to steal.

Abel let out a soft chuckle when she spoke and shrugged a bit. "I mean," he glanced down and ran his finger down the side of her breast. "I would be up for it if you are or we can wait until we're at my old apartment." He returned the kiss as he darted his tongue across her bottom lip. He had a feeling someone was looking for him, but he didnt want to leave yet.

Lex’s skin shivered under his touch, and she grinned up at him. “They look pretty great, don’t they?” She chuckled and shook her head, kinda disappointed with the realization that she wasn’t up for the adventure she had suggested. “As much as I don’t want to wait,” she murmured against his lips before trailing kisses around his jaw up to his ear to whisper, “I don’t know that I could stay quiet.”

"They truly are, but I also know that they look great outside of your dress," Abel said with a grin as he looked down at her.  He couldnt help the smirk that spread across his lips when he heard her and nodded as he silently agreed. "Fair enough and I know for sure I wanna make you vocal."

Lex could feel herself starting to blush, which was not something she did. She instantly thought of something that could spoil the plan they had just made, and just blurted our, “Where is Issy tonight?”

"She's with my parents back at the house. Hence why I suggested my old apartment, since I have a key to it, still." Abel said as he looked at her and brushed back a piece of hair.

Lex nodded, her brief worried slowly transitioning to a confident grin. “Well then, what do you say we get out of here? At least, as soon as you get done taking pictures with important people.”

Abel grinned as he nodded and kissed her lips. "I'll make it quick, promise." He whispered softly.

Lex smiled, nodding her head and pulling away from him to pick up the jacket that had fallen on the floor earlier. She dusted it off before handing it back to him, “You better put this back on before you go back out there.”

"Yeah, you're right but the minute we're alone, I'm gonna put it on you again," Abel said as he grabbed the jacket and slid it on before he started to fix it. "How do I look?"

“I’d rather you be taking clothes off of me at that point, but okay,” she smirked, looking down to double check that everything was still in place on her dress. She gave him a good look and grinned, “Like some Greek god. It’s kind of infuriating.”

"Baby, the minute we walk into the apartment, I'll be taking off your clothes. We might even fuck around the place." Abel smirked. He glanced down at his clothes, then back at her and gave her a grin. "I do have amazing muscles, so theres that."

“Good,” Lex laughed, satisfied by his answer and convinced her boobs weren’t going to jump out of her dress before their time. “Believe me, I know. And so does everyone else at this event. We all saw the movie.”

Abel chuckled a bit. "True, but someone does have a closer look at them than anyone else." He said as he looked at her before he kissed her cheek. "Where should I meet you?"

Lex grinned, laughing softly. “A few blocks down? Far enough that there won’t be cameras. We can take a taxi from there to your place.”

"Sounds good to me." Abel said with a soft smile. "I'll text you when I'm heading down there and in the meantime, you can wear my other coat that I brought with me." He reached down and dug out the ticket. "Here you go."

Lex took the ticket and smiled, “Thank you. I’ll see you then.” She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before walking out of the side room, back into the party.

Abel nodded as he watched her leave, adjusted his jacket and headed out into the party shortly after she did. He noticed one of his friends, whom he knew for a while and talked to a few of the guests who came to the premiere.

[falling--in--place]

Original Fic Fest: Day 2

It’s romantic relationship day for the @originalficfest! Thank you again to the mods for setting this up! I’ve seen so many cool post from other authors! 

I have two relationships I want to showcase today. First is James and Thomas. I really love these two, and this is an excerpt from Rage:

The entry way was breathtaking. Pale pink cherry blossoms interspersed with red honeysuckles lined the walls, and vases of crimson lilies and blue and green dahlias made a pathway toward the living room; it created the most intoxicating scent. It was an incredible display meaning beauty, happiness, passion, and commitment respectively.

James was standing to my left still awestruck. I smiled at him and nudged him forward. His eyes glistening, he started slowly forward. I followed closely behind him, heart racing, hands trembling. James was like a brother to me, and seeing all of this done for him made me love Thomas all the more. As he turned to the living room he came to an abrupt halt, and I bumped into his shoulder. He reached down to take my hand.

Peering over his shoulder I saw why. Red and pink peonies and purple and pink sweet peas covered every surface. Sweet peas were his favorite. Gus and Cassidy were standing on either side of the doorway across from us. Gus was fidgeting with the sleeves of his jacket, and had tears rolling down his cheeks. Cassidy looked like she had been crying most of the day, and her damp lapels seemed to confirm it. They both dipped their heads to James before pushing the door open. Thomas was standing there with a shy smile. His charcoal grey suit looked brand new. His hands were in his pockets, but it didn’t hide his jittery fingers.

I squeezed James’s hand once before letting go. He turned and gave me a hug, squeezing me tightly and whispered, “check out the neighbors my ass.” I kissed his cheek and grinned at him.

“What are best friends for?”

He swiped at his eyes before turning around and walking further into the room. They both walked slowly and deliberately, meeting halfway. Thomas took his hands, and smiles nervously. Ellie and I slipped a little further into the room, but stayed out of the way. I saw Ms. Claudette sitting in a chair in the corner of the room and gave her a small wave.

“Do you remember how we met?” Thomas practically whispered.

“I do,” James said with a laugh. “I called you an entitled jackass after you spilled coffee all over V and tried to make her pay for it.”

“It was a rough day, but I did apologize for that,” Thomas said with a grin.

“You still owe me a skirt,” I mumbled.

He flashed me a smile, before stepping in closer to James.

“That day was one of the best and the worst days for me. I very nearly lost everything, but then I met you. Granted, at first it was my rage at your audacity that kept me going, but then I ran into you a few more times, not literally thank the gods. I started to notice how kind you were to everyone around you, even me. How your smile lit up the room. I think your eternally optimistic view of the world started to rub off on me.”

He looked down, his voice had started to quiver. He was rubbing the pad of his thumb slowly back and forth over the back of James hand.

“You forgave me and convinced Vanessa not to murder me when I asked for your number. You’ve taught me how to cope with the stress of my job. You’ve taught me how important empathy is. You still love me even when I forget those things and lose my temper. James, having you in my life is more than I could have ever hoped for.”

My heartbeat sped up, and goosebumps spread across my skin. Tears were threatening to spill over as I watched the most heartwarming love sweep over my best friends face. Tears had started to slowly slide down his cheeks. I could hear Cassidy and Ellie sniffling, but I was too transfixed by James to glance at them.

“I want to wake up to you every morning. Fall asleep next to you every night. I want to stand in the bright shine of your empathy and compassion every day. I want to listen to your worries and soothe your fears. I want to grow old with you, and build that small cabin on Oasis Lake. I want all your tomorrows.”

Thomas’s voice started to quiver even more. Tears were spilling faster, and it looked like he had started squeezing James’s hands. My breath hitched as I failed to keep the tears back. Thomas reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, vivid purple stone. It was an oval amethyst, jaggedly cut in half. Thomas bowed his head slightly.

“James would you do me the honor of binding your soul to mine for the rest of our days?”

“It would be my honor,” James breathed as he placed his hands gently on either side of Thomas’s face. He leaned in slowly and kissed him. Thomas’s arms slid around his waist and pulled him closer, holding on to him tightly.

I was the first of the rest of us to move. I sprung to my feet, whistling while I clapped. The others followed suit, and when Thomas and James broke apart, Thomas was blushing, but I had never seen him happier. I ambled over to James and pulled him into a hug.

“I’m so happy for you,” I whispered, squeezing him harder.

“Thank you,” he said back. I held on to him a moment longer, but had to let go for everyone else to have a turn.

The second one is Gus and Cassidy. This happens fifteen years before the start of Rage. I decided to write this out for this fest. I think I will write a lot more of their story sometime soon, but for now, the proposal: 

It had been a long day, but Gus had seemed so excited to have dinner she couldn’t bear to say no. At least it was cooling down. The setting Harvest sun not quite as harsh as Torrid was. She wished she had time to shower, but she was running late as it was. The park Gus wanted to meet in was in neutral territory. They wouldn’t have to worry as much about prying eyes. The last several years had been rough. Neither of them were able to get their races to understand. They hadn’t meant to fall in love after all. They didn’t even know the sort of chaos it would bring.

When the park came into view, she wasn’t even sure what she was seeing. There were lights strung up over all the trees. They twinkled pale blues and yellows. An archway had been erected just inside the gate. Snap dragons flourished at its base, with lilac and trumpet vine weaving through the wooden spokes. She took a deep breath and held is as she stepped under the beautiful arch. There were candles and snap dragons everywhere. Vibrant colors made it all the more lovely by the twilight.

Randle stepped forward to pull her into a tight hug. Her cousin’s presence here explained having so many off season flowers looking so lovely. He held on a little longer than normal for fairies. When he stepped back his eyes were shining.

“You’re a very lucky woman, Issy. I’m always on your side,” he said softly as he led her over to a table she hadn’t seen before.

Cassidy trying to ask him what was going on, but he shook his head slightly and pulled out a chair. She sat down, looking wide eyed around the park. So much had gone into this.

Gus stood near the entrance of the park mostly shielded by a tree. The look of awe on Cassidy’s face made everything worth it. Without her cousin’s help, he wouldn’t have been able to create this for her. He watched Randle get her settled into a chair and slip out of the park. He took a deep breath and walked out from his hiding spot.

She was breathtaking as always. Her golden hair was piled on top of her head. She would say she looks like a wreck, but this was how she was the most beautiful to him. He ambled over to her, his smile portrayed more confidence than he felt.

“Gus… this is beautiful,” she said softly.

“I’m glad you think so, it looks like I’m off to a good start,” he replied. He dropped to one knee and took both of her hands in his. “The last few years with you have been incredible. Even with only stolen moments and secret dates, it’s been the greatest part of my life.”

“Oh Gus, I love you,” she breathed.

“I want all of my days to be spent with you. Run away with me Issy. Run away and affirm me.”

“It could never work. I love you deeply, but the fairies will never condone an affirmation.”

“It could. Randle has been helping me. We can slip out into the woods outside the city. It would take a few days, but we could make our way to Kadence. Randle found a witch that earned the attention of Raffe. She could help us.”

“Raffe? The gangster that owns almost all the docks in Hearth? How can anyone associated with him be of any meaningful help for us?”

“She has connections that could help, plus she already has a reputation for being bold and defiant.”

“I… is it really possible?” she asked tentatively.

“It is if you want it to be. Run away with me and make me the happiest man in existence.”

“Yes,” she laughed. “Yes, let’s do it! When can we leave?”

“Right now. Randle packed a bag for you and will meet us at the wall tonight.”

He pulled her close and kissed her softly, promising himself that he would always do right by her.

Tagging: @justanotherstarlitnight, and @silenciawrites 

If you want to be tagged/untagged let me know!

[viking-raider]

The Immortal Sky - Part IV

Summary: Henry tracks down people that could help him find you, not realizing just how close to you he is. You make it outside the wall of London, entering the wild expanse between it and Bristol.

Pairing: Henry Cavill/You

Word Count: 8,000

Chapters: I II III

Warning: PG-13 - Future!AU, Dystopian!AU, Language, Abuse of Power, Angst, Mentions of Violence and Drugs

Inspiration: I’ve always wanted to write a futuristic fic!

A/N: I would love to thank @wondersofdreaming​ for being a lovely beta and brainstorm buddy! You’ve kept me sane so many times! Please, Tell Me What You Think!!

“What do you know about Michail Keagan, Mr. Parker?” Henry said, sitting across from your twin brother's Supervisor at his assigned place of work.

“He's a fucking loser.”

The Supervisor laughed, shaking his head at the table between them. “He might spend a whole hour here for his shifts, other than that he's missing in action. I've reported him to the Council of Daily Operations numerous times, but they don't care because he still clocks in, despite it only being for that one hour.”

“So, he knows how to cheat the system.” Henry nodded, chewing on his lip, frustrated.

“Him and that equal loser friend of his, who's supposed to be working for us, but got himself transferred to his family's hole-in-the-wall restaurant.” Parker huffed, rolling his eyes.

“What friend?” Henry frowned, leaning against the table on his elbows.

“Theodore 'Teddy' Wang.” Parker replied. “He's a dishwasher for Wang's Take-Away.”

“Thanks.” Henry said, standing up and extending his hand to Parker, then made his way to the Chinese restaurant.

“Hi, how can I help you?” Jinyu asked from behind the register, smiling as Henry stopped in front of her.

“I'm looking for your son, Teddy Wang.” Henry replied, glancing behind her.

The smile on Jinyu's face melted away, she could tell by the way Henry looked and held himself that he was part of the Marshals Council. “He's not here today.”

Henry sighed, pressing his palms to the nicked counter top and leaned all his weight on his arms, bringing his piercing blue gaze to hers. “Mrs. Wang,” He said softly. “I'm not here to arrest your son, even if he's doing something that warrants it. All I want from him is answers to my questions. It's that simple, unless you and your son want to make it complicated.” He explained to her.

Jinyu stared at Henry for a long time, before rolling her eyes and pointing to the beaded curtain behind her. She knew if she didn't comply, Henry could make a load of trouble for her back at the Council, and she, her family and their business didn't need that. Henry nodded his head to her and stepped around the counter, parting the rattling beads as he stepped into the back of the restaurant and found Teddy there, doing what he was always doing; washing dishes.

“Teddy Wang?” He said, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Yeah, who wants--” Teddy started, setting the plate in his hand down and turned towards Henry, drying his hands on his filthy apron. “Oh shit!” He yelped, seeing the imposing Henry, and spun around, tripping over his feet, before catching himself on the edge of the sink and bolting out the back door of the restaurant.

Sighing through his nose and dropping his arms, Henry went after Teddy, quickly catching up to the kid in the trash filled alley, trying to scale a chain-link fence. He easily reached up, grabbing the back of Teddy's shirt and yanked him off the fence, before slamming his back against the grimy wall of his parents' restaurant.

“Look, I ain't got nothin'!” He barked at Henry, squirming.

“Is that so?” Henry smirked, deciding to have a little fun on Teddy's expense. “That's not what I heard.” He shoved a hand into the front pocket of Teddy's faded jeans. “Oh, what's this?” He grinned, pulling out a small, dime-sized bag from the pocket, a sky-blue powder inside of it.

“That's just Naproxen tablets, they must have gotten crushed.” Teddy gulped, looking like a caught sheep.

“Right.” Henry laughed, opening the bag and dumping it out onto the wet ground, then rubbing it out with the sole of his boot.

“Oh, come on, man!” Teddy whined, slumping back against the wall. “That's expensive.”

“Really? I thought Naproxen was only five creds?” Henry replied, tilting his head at the boy.

“One cred is too expensive down here, you'd know that, if you lived in this hell hole too.” Teddy sneered at him. “Marshal.”

Henry smirked at Teddy. “I wanna talk about Mikey Keagan.” He said, cutting to the chase.

“Oh fuck that!” He snapped, shaking his head. “I am getting tired of being roped into their fucking issues.”

“Their?”

“Yeah, their!” Teddy spat. “Mikey tries to rope me into his Running operations and his sister, the last time I saw her, she held me up at knife point, until I told her where her brother went.”

“When was this? That she held you up?” Henry asked, not buying his story about you holding him at knife point.

If only he knew.

“Eight or nine months ago.” Teddy replied. “Mike got into a fight with his parents about becoming a Runner for Jaxon Quinn, over in Sector Three of Bristol, and went down to the Thirty Sectors to stay with a friend. Issy comes by, a week later, and holds me up, until I tell her what friend he's staying with. Gave her shortcuts around the gates and everything.”

“What's the friend's name?” Henry asked, narrowing his eyes as he processed the story.

“Fynn Penmark.”

Henry looked Teddy over. “I'll let you off for having the Sub-Blue. But, if I ever find out you're in possession of it again, I'll make sure you're banished so far outside the walls of London, you'll be on a different fucking continent.” He threatened, pressing Teddy to the wall with a palm to the chest.

“Got it?” He hissed.

“Got it.” Teddy gulped, licking his lips and nodding his head, like a bobble-head.

“Good.” Henry pushed off of him and headed through the back door of the restaurant again.

“Hey, mister!” A boy on the street corner called out to Henry as he was unlocking his car.

“What!” Henry barked back at him.

“You lookin' for a girl?” He asked, and described you to him.

“That's her.” Henry nodded at him, leaning back against his car door. “What do you know about her?”

“What's in it for me?” The boy asked.

Henry chuckled, shaking his head. “What's your name, kid?”

“Oscar.”

“Well, Oscar.” Henry sighed, rubbing his forehead and carding his fingers through his hair. “What do you want for the information?”

Oscar looked around him and pointed back to Wang's Take-Away. “Lunch. She already got me breakfast to see if any of her family was home.” He confessed.

Henry half smirked at the little boy and finally recognized him, so you had been in the area within the last three hours. “Fair enough.” He agreed to Oscar's terms. “Information first, then lunch.”

“She's looking for her brother, says he's in some kind of trouble, didn't say what.” Oscar told him, fidgeting. “Then, she told the Chinese lady to give me some food, got some for herself, then left.” He pointed to the East, toward Sector Twenty-Nine's gate. “That way.”

“All right, kid.” Henry sighed, satisfied with the information and pushed off the car, going back into the restaurant and let Oscar get some food and a drink, before heading towards Sector Twenty-Nine's gate.

He figured you were going to go find this Fynn Penmark's flat, to see if your brother was there, or what Fynn knew about Mikey's whereabouts. Henry gave you credit, you would make a damn good Marshal with the level of forward-thinking and intuition you had going on, in the case of finding your brother. He was also relieved to know that his own intuition about your brother being in some kind of serious trouble was all so right.

Now, to find you and learn the rest of the facts on the matter.

It took some doing, but you finally found out where Fynn Penmark lived. But, as you approached the opening in the wall separating Sector Thirty and Thirty-One, your heart started to race and pound, hands shaking and palms sweating, it became hard to breathe. You stopped and pressed your hands to your face, trying to push back the terrified tears that streaked hotly down your cheeks. You felt like you were breaking loose.

“Are you okay?” A voice nearby asked.

You started, stumbling away from the concerned looking woman. “Stay away from me!” You barked at her, gasping for air.

The woman looked wildly at you, palms held out to show you she meant no harm, but stayed where she was standing. You stared at her, taking huge lungfuls of air, trying to fight off the dizziness clouding your brain and the bright, blinking spots in your eyes. Your tears finally stopped, but your hands still shook, and you could breathe a little bit easier.

“I'm sorry.” You apologized to the lady. “It's been a hard day.”

“It happens.” She replied, lowering her hands. “Do you need to get somewhere?”

“I know where I'm going, thank you though.” You assured her, even if it was possible she didn't mean you any harm, you weren't going to risk it, like you had the last time you were in these Sectors.

“I hope you find what you're looking for.” She told you, honestly.

“So, do I.” You nodded to her, politely.

You waited for her to go back about her business, before finding the opening and slipping through it, careful not to cut yourself again. Eric gave you point by point directions to the shabby building that Penmark lived in. You weren't surprised to find the lift in his building was broken, so you found the stairwell entrance and started mounting them to the twelfth floor.

“Flat 1283-A, Ms.” Eric's voice said through your headphones.

You found the dented and scuffed up door of Fynn Penmark and pounded on it, until he finally opened it. It took everything you had not to just burst out laughing. “Are you Fynn Penmark?” You asked, biting the inside of your cheek.

“Who wants to know?”

He was gangly, face pockmarked from severe acne, that he was still clearly suffering from, his greasy black hair fell to his shoulders, his filthy clothes might have fit properly, if he weighed more than a kilogram, and with the slightest intake of air, you could tell he hadn't showered in a while, he smelled ripe.

“I'm looking for Mike.” You told him, breathing through your mouth.

“I don't know any Mike.” He said, then slammed the door in your face.

Rolling your jaw, you started pounding on his door again.

“Look, bitch.”

“Call me a bitch, and I'll crack your head open with your own door.” You growled at him, heated. “I'm looking for Mikey, he's my brother. My twin brother.”

Fynn looked you over, then cracked a smile. “Oh, I see it now.” He chuckled, leaning against his door. “I haven't seen Mike in a week.”

“Do you know where the idiot's gone?” You asked him, folding your arms over your chest.

“His new handler, Knox Monroe, picked him up from here, as I said, a week ago, to take him to Bristol.”

“How long does it take to get to Bristol?”

“Depending on your transportation, anywhere from three hours to two days.”

“How do you take the three hour trip?” You asked, lifting a brow at him.

“Have someone with a car pick you up and take you there.” He laughed, still smirking at you. “And I'm sure you don't. So, you'll be walking, and that's the two day option.”

“Doesn't seem so bad.” You sighed, frowning at the thought of walking that far.

“Are you stupid?” Fynn snapped, suddenly agitated. “Have you ever been outside the wall? Have you ever seen outside the wall? It's not rainbows and puppies out there. It's a barren fucking wasteland with pocket groups, that are more like feral wolves than humans, that would jump you, rob you and leave you for dead; if they didn't kill you in the process.”

“Have you been out there?” You asked him, chewing on your lip.

“Countless times.” Fynn nodded. “I make the run to Bristol, at least, once a month.”

“Can you take me?” You asked him, hopefully.

“No.” Fynn shook his head at you. “I've already made my run for the month and I don't take tag-alongs.”

“Can you tell me how to get there?” You tried to persuade him.

“Why is it so vital for you to go after him? He'll be back in a couple months.”

“Because, something bad is going to happen to him, and I have to warn him, before it happens.” You told him, desperate.

“Like, what?”

“Can you help me or not?” You snapped at him.

“All right, fine.” Fynn huffed back, rolling his eyes at you. “Come in.” He sighed, pushing the door open for you.

You hesitated for a moment, but stepped into the trashed flat. Fynn pushed some stuff aside until he found an electronic pad and pulled up a map he used to get from London to Bristol, the most efficient and safest way he could, when he did have to walk there. You watched him fuss over it for a few seconds, before holding his hand out to you.

“Mobile.” He grunted, rolling his eyes again and snatched it from your hand. “I'm giving you my best directions there, with a couple of notes, should you need to stay somewhere. Whatever you do, and I mean whatever you do, do not travel at night. I marked several places along the way you can stay at safely or get supplies from, just show them this.” He pulled up a logo on your mobile, his interlocking initials.

“They'll know I sent you and accommodate you, for free, and know you can be trusted.”

“Thank you.” You sighed, taking your mobile back.

“Hey, Mike is a good friend, and he's saved my ass more than once. So, I'm just returning the favor.” Fynn sighed, rubbing his face. “I wouldn't want Mike bashing my head in for getting his sister killed, that's for sure.”

There was a strong knock on the door and Fynn got up to check the peephole.

“Fuck, it's the Marshals.” He snapped.

“Big fellow, shoulders wider than the door, curls and beard?” You asked, your adrenaline pumping.

“You know him?” Fynn asked, shocked.

“You can say that.” You gulped, glancing around. “Please, you have to hide me. If he finds me here, he'll stop me from saving Mikey.” You pleaded with him, clutching at his cold hand. “Please, Fynn.”

“Fucking Christ, you Keagans are a wily bunch.” He huffed, then directed you into his bedroom. “Be quiet and don't touch anything.” He said, pointing a finger at you, before closing the door and rushing to answer Henry's incessant pounding.

“What the fuck do you want?” Fynn barked at Henry, almost able to look Henry in the eye, glaringly.

“High Marshal Cavill.” Henry said, flashing his badge in Fynn's face.

“And?” Fynn huffed, unperturbed, he had dealt with far scarier people, both High Marshals and Crime Bosses before, and wasn't afraid of Henry.

Henry could see that Fynn wasn't frightened by him and his tired blue eyes darkened, before he grabbed Fynn by the shirt and launched him backwards into his flat, then stepped inside himself, kicking the door closed behind him. While Henry didn't usually employ rough tactics and overly abuse his power as a Marshal, he wasn't wholly immune to it either, he still had his flaws and prejudice from his status as a high born and position in London.

“Fynnch Oliver Penmark.” He growled at the Runner and looked around the utterly trashed flat, a scowl of disgust on his face. “Rumor has it, that you're a Runner.” He said, settling his eyes back on Fynn, who was using the cluttered coffee table to pull himself up.

“Vicious rumors.” Fynn huffed, brushing himself off. “That dumb brain at my work place has it out for me, so he keeps trying to report me to the Council of Daily Operations.”

“You certainly don't spend much time at work.” Henry countered. “What were you again? A floor licker?”

“A Janitor.” Fynn barked, scowling. “I don't want to spend all my time in a hostile environment. So, I do enough hours to appease those blood thirsty bastards at the Council, and get paid.”

“We'll see how long that'll last.” Henry replied, folding his arms. “All I have to do is give them one word and they'll cut you off and you won't have this hell hole to keep you cozy in anymore.”

“What do you want, mate?” Fynn sighed with a growl, he was starting to think you weren't worth the trouble Henry wanted to make for him.

“I had a visit with a friend of yours, Teddy Wang, up in Sector Twenty-Eight.” Henry said, pushing aside some trash by his foot. “He told me that you might know something about Mikey Keagan and his sister.”

“I haven't seen Mike, in a week, and I've never met his sister.” Fynn replied, taking a seat on a clear spot on his couch.

“Funny.” Henry hummed, frowning at him. “I had a little informant tell me that she was seen coming this direction, to see you.”

“Well, either that informant lied to you or she's lost her way. Because she's not here or has she been.”

“I doubt you would tell me, if she was.”

“Look, if giving you information on her would get you out of my place and my business, then I'd give it and her to you. But, I don't know where she is and I haven't seen her.” Fynn told him, annoyed. “You can look around, if you want.” He said, motioning around his pig sty.

Henry glanced around with a dirty look, then looked back to Fynn. “I know you're lying to me.” He hissed, his gut was screaming. “So, you either tell me, or I'll make that call right now and arrest you on top of it.” He warned Fynn, taking out his mobile.

“Jesus!” Fynn barked, jumping to his feet. “Fine! She came by an hour ago, looking for her brother, and said she was afraid something bad was going to happen to him, if she didn't find him and warn him about it. She wanted to know when I saw him last and I told her, just like I told you, it's been a week since I saw Mike.”

“What did she do with that information?” Henry asked, lowering his phone.

“She asked if I knew where her brother went.”

“And, where is Mikey?”

“Bristol.” Fynn said, deflating.

“Bristol.” Henry repeated, sighing. “What is Mikey doing in Bristol?”

“I don't-”

Henry grabbed Fynn by the shirt and yanked him against him, narrowing his glowing blue eyes. “Out with it, Slum.” He growled, harshly.

“He's a Runner.” Fynn yelped, now he was frightened of Henry. “He's been a Runner for the last two years, and he's going to Bristol so he can be trained as an Adjutant Runner for one of the top Crime Bosses of Bristol, Jaxon Quinn.” He babbled out, his eyes huge. “I gave her directions on how to find him there and she left soon after, to start that way.” He added without Henry prompting or threatening him.

“Fuck.” Henry barked, pushing away from Fynn and storming out of his flat, cursing all the way down the hall.

“You can come out now.” Fynn huffed, opening his bedroom door a few minutes later.

“How could you tell him all that!” You snapped at him, punching him on the arm.

“Oh, chill your heels.” He growled, rubbing his arm. “He thinks you're already gone and doesn't know the route you'll be taking. Besides, he's a High Marshal, he's not going to leave the wall for some girl. The Councils wouldn't allow it and even the craziest and most determined Marshals have enough sense not to chance it.”

“I could have just given you away, after all the trouble the asshole gave me.” He added, sourly.

“Thanks.” You grumbled under your breath.

“Hey, when you see your brother again, tell him he owes me for a change.” He called after you.

“Tell him yourself.” You snapped over your shoulder and slammed his door shut.

“She's fucking stupid.”

Henry growled, every muscle in his body was wound up and tight as he thought of you crossing the desolate waste outside the London Wall to Bristol. The danger that laid between there and London, and the even worse danger that lived and functioned inside the city of Bristol itself.

“She's out of her mind!” He kept mumbling, all the way back down to the car. “She's going to get herself killed!” He sighed, running both hands through his hair and making a bigger mess of his wild curls.

“What!” He hissed at his mobile rang through his car's AI.

“Is that how you address your Supreme?” Reyes asked, stiffly.

Henry groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. “No. I'm sorry, sir. It's been a horrible morning.” He apologized.

“That Slave of yours keeping you up at night, Cavill.” Reyes laughed, his voice suggestive.

“Not exactly.” He huffed, spent.

“Well, either way.” Reyes sighed, sounding just as tired. “I need you to bring her in for her formal interview. The Council of Clerics have finally started the trials for the Trafficking.”

“Ugh.” Henry groaned, slumping in his seat. “Mother fucker.”

“Henry?” Reyes said slowly, hearing the sound of his voice.

“She's gone.” Henry admitted, regretfully. “I woke up this morning to her, gone. I've been trying to find her all day.”

“You lost her!”

“If you want to put it that way.” He mumbled, picking at his nails and feeling like he was getting scolded by his mother.

“Where is she?”

“Well, if I knew that, I would have her, wouldn't I?” He snapped back, forgetting himself for a moment.

“What have you been doing all day!?”

“Following every lead to find her that I could, Dylon.” Henry defended himself, exasperated. “I've been to her family home, her work place and even her twin brother's workplace, along with every one of their friends'.”

“And?” Reyes screamed, veins bulging from his forehead and neck.

“My latest Intel says, she's on her way to Bristol, to find her brother, Michail.” Henry sighed, his temples throbbing. “She believes he's in trouble, since he's an Adjutant Runner for Jaxon Quinn.”

“Are you telling me, your Slave, has a twin brother, that's a member of a top Crime Boss's business? The same Jaxon Quinn, that funds Twist's Trafficking?”

Henry swallowed, thickly. “Yes.”

“You realize, she's not only a top witness to Twist's operations, but Quinn's as well. She could help us bring him down, Henry! And you let her get away! How did you not know this to start with? Don't, don't fucking answer that. You know, if she gets there and Quinn realizes who she is-”

“He'll kill her.” Henry replied, his voice weakening.

“Has she left for Bristol yet?”

“As far as I know.” Henry replied, depressed on the matter. “I plan on going after her, Dylon.” He added, he had already made the choice to go after you, he didn't care what Dylon or the Councils said on the matter.

“You know, I can't officially back you in your decision to chase after a Slummer, Henry.” Reyes sighed, leaning against his desk and rubbing his own throbbing head. “But, as your friend and someone that wants to take down Twist and Quinn, you have my full backing.”

“What are we going to say when I don't come in for work, for however long it takes me to find and bring her back?”

“I want both of them, Henry. I want her and her brother. She's a witness and he's a conspirator in Quinn's business.” Dylon told him, bluntly. “I'll tell them that you are quite deeply undercover, trying to gain more info.”

“I'll need to go home and take Kal to Charlie's. I'll just tell him, I'm going undercover for a long while and will be back, when I crack the case.”

“That sounds fine.” Reyes nodded, squeezing his eyes shut. “Don't fuck this up, Henry.” He said, then hung up.

“Thanks.” Henry sighed, rolling his eyes.

You were careful as you made your way to the wall, knowing Henry was probably still lurking somewhere nearby, looking for you. You tried to stay in as well populated areas as you dared, hoping to dodge anyone working for Traffickers or getting spotted by Henry.

“Hey, do-”

“Fuck off.” You snapped as a guy approached you, not wanting anything he had to say or wanted from you, and picked up the pace of your walking.

It was starting to get late, after it taking all day to piece your way through the Sectors and follow your brother's footsteps. You probably would have been out of the city by now, if Henry hadn't showed up at Fynn's flat and took vital time interrogating him about you. You wondered how furious he would be to know how close to you he was in Fynn's place, and still didn't manage to catch you.

“We'd have to see each other again.” You mumbled to yourself.

The chances of seeing Henry again were probably pretty slim. After being gone for a little while, he would give up on trying to find you and go back to work for the Marshals and his life. A deep part of you throbbed though, you felt bad for leaving him like that, especially after everything he had done for you. He could have been an absolute monster and treated you like the Slummer that you are, forcing you to wear a Ownership bracelet and making you his proper Slave. But, Henry had been a complete gentleman to you, taking care of your every need and whim, it was almost like he had become your Slave. Then, the charging of several hundred credits to his account for the backpack and mobile, and the dress and jewelry for the party.

“He'll get over it.” You said, shaking your head. “He's a High Marshal, for fuck sake! He probably makes all that in a single case.” You huffed, rolling your eyes.

But, it didn't stop you from feeling bad for leaving him, without a single word.

“Take a right.” Eric's voice said, cutting into your train of thought.

Grunting, you took the quick right at his instruction. As you rounded the corner, you saw, several meters in front of you, the opening in the massive wall that encompassed the city and its citizens. The opening was one-third the size of the meter wide metal and rusted panel, a strip of dying light filtering through the four meter thick wall. Just a kilometer beyond that, was the first place you would be able to find shelter in for the night, then come first light, you would be on your way towards Bristol and your brother.

“Hey!” A harsh call barked behind you as you approached the gap.

You slowly turned and felt a hard lump form in your throat. It was a Beta Marshal, and he looked pissed. “Me?” You squeaked, pointing to yourself, sheepishly.

“Yes, you!” He hissed, face starting to go red with his anger. “Get away from the wall!”

“Why?” You asked, narrowing your eyes at him, heart pounding.

“Because, I said so!”

You took a deep breath in and out, turned on your heels and dashed for it. The Beta Marshal screamed for you to stop and come back, but you ignored him. You dove into the opening and shimmed along it, going as quickly as you could, having to turn sideways in a couple of places to get through. The Marshal was still yelling at you, wedging himself into the gap to chase after you.

The light got bright and brighter, despite the sun setting lower and lower, as you struggled through the opening to the outside world, until you finally popped out on the other side, a cool breeze rushing passed you, fresh and clean. You turned back to the hole and saw the Beta Marshal panting about halfway, then made a dismissive motion with his hand and started back inside London.

You were home free now.

“Eric, where's the first safe house?” You asked, grinning and feeling victorious, despite the hundred and eighty-five kilometers between you and Bristol.

“Head straight for an hour, Ms.” Eric replied a moment later.

With Kal taken care of by his family, Henry returned to the Marshal Headquarters, intent on following after you, but knowing he needed better information on how to navigate the world outside London to do so.

“Henry.” Martin grinned as Henry entered his floor in the headquarters. “How are you?”

“Not in the mood.” Henry growled, folding his arms over his chest. “I know you have a Runner in your lock up, Lukas Hadwin.”

“Um,” Martin blinked up at Henry, then turned towards his computer and typed the name into his computer. “I do! He was arrested two months ago and is awaiting trial with the Council of Clerics.” He confirmed, turning back towards Henry.

“I want him brought to a private interrogation room on my floor, in the next five minutes.” Henry told the Alpha Marshall, then turned on his heels and marched back up the three floors to his office, needing the walk to calm down some of his anger.

Four minutes later, Martin shoved Lukas Hadwin into the private interrogation room on the High Marshall's floor, and handcuffed him to the table.

“Get out.” Henry barked at Martin, throwing the door open, startling both Martin and the Runner.

“But, Hen-” He started to protest, but his blood froze in his veins seeing the look on Henry's face. “High Marshall, he's my arrest, so he's my responsibility.”

“I outrank you, Sidwell.” Henry growled back at him, the anger he had managed to walk off started boiling again. “So, when I tell you to get out of my fucking interrogation room, I mean, get out.” He hissed.

Martin licked his lips, sheepishly, his mouth drying up. “Of course, High Marshall.” He croaked, edging around Henry, for the door.

“Mr. Hadwin.” Henry said, reaching up to the camera in the corner of the room and turning it off. “According to your extensive file, you're a high ranking Runner for a Bristol Crime Boss.”

“Total bullshit.” Lukas barked, trying hard to keep the angry and outraged expression on his face, despite shaking in his jail issued trainers. “My bitch of an ex-girlfriend reported me to the Council of Marshals, telling you corrupt pricks that I was a Runner, because I broke up with her and refused to pay her flat fees.”

“Is that so?” Henry replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “Then, what's this?” He asked, dropping an open file on the table and pointed to a section of it. “Says you and another known Runner were arrested in 2864, for possession of a large cache of Sub-Blue. Your little partner in crime blabbed about how you both worked for a lucrative Crime Boss, running the drugs between Bristol and London.”

“Was he lying?”

Lukas glowered at the report, but didn't answer Henry's question; which only increased Henry's blood pressure. Grabbing the back of Lukas's neck, Henry slammed his face onto the metal table, cracking the screen on the file, and rested an uncomfortable amount of his weight on Lukas's neck.

“Was he lying?!” He yelled, directly into his ear.

“No!” Lukas cried out, squirming, fruitlessly.

“What Crime Boss?” Henry continued to yell.

“Benji Hernandez!” He squealed, whimpering.

Henry pushed off of Lukas's neck with a huff, he had heard about Hernandez, he had heard about all of the big time Crime Bosses that ruled Bristol like the Council of Clerics and Royals ruled London. But, Hernandez was the cream of the crop. His family was credited with establishing Bristol and bringing it to the level, almost on par, with London through deep waves of crime, selling every drug they could get their hands on or manufacture themselves, their number one seller was unsurprisingly, Sub-Blue.

Many Crime Bosses and groups had tried dethroning the Hernandez Family, and all had failed. They had too much money, too much power and their followers, all across England, were loyal, to the death. A massive turf war had broken out several years back, the first conflict of the sort since the end of the fourth war. It had mainly broken out and was confined in Bristol, with pockets of skirmishes in London and the other major city of England, Chester, before finally being squashed. Dozens of people were killed and maimed in the four month long battle, and the Hernandez's kept their throne and were still stronger than ever.

The Hernandez's family, friends and their most distinguished workers were the only ones that lived in Sector One and Two of Bristol, everyone else lived in Sector Three to Sector Fifteen.

“How do you get to Bristol?” Henry asked, pacing around the table.

“It depends.” Lukas panted, rubbing the back of his sore neck.

“On?” Henry pressed.

“The size of the load.” He replied, groaning. “If it's a small load, I'll walk there. If it's a large load, then we'll be driven from a checkpoint outside London to Bristol and back.”

Henry quietly paced around the room, brooding on his next course of action. He knew, for a fact, you wouldn't be driving to Bristol, or knew someone, other than your brother, who was already gone, that could drive you there. So, you had to be heading for Bristol on foot. He debated how he would follow after you, he could take his car to find you, sure he could reach you faster that way, but the moment he managed to get out of the wall with it, his car's on board locator would alert the appropriate channels and they'd go after him.

Especially since going after you wasn't authorized and being done quietly. Leaving Henry with the same option you had been saddled with.

Walking

“How do you get from London to Bristol?” He asked and leaned against the table, across from Lukas.

“There's two routes to Bristol.” Lukas sighed, knowing if he didn't tell Henry the information he wanted, the High Marshal would no doubt beat it out of him. “One is only used if you have a car, because pit stops are few and far between, and you don't want to be caught out there alone, especially at night. So, staying in the moving protection of a car is the best way for that path, since it's longer.”

“The other?”

“The other, is the one that's usually used by Runners that are walking between the two. It's shorter, by several kilometers, but slightly more dangerous than the car route, since it runs through several mini-towns that people, who were either banished or choose to live out there, populate. Some of them and the mini-towns are friendly and benevolent, but most are not. So, if you don't know what ones to stop in, chances are, you'll end up dead and stripped clean of any valuables they can take back into the cities and trade for goods.”

Henry gulped thickly, and felt a cold sweat break out on his skin as he battled the anxiety of you being out there, alone, for so long. He knew it was critically dangerous out there, but hearing Hadwin talking about it and the things between the two cities made it abundantly clear it was even more dangerous than he thought.

“Are you all right?” Lukas asked, seeing Henry's scruffy face steadily grow pale.

“I'm fine.” Henry growled, getting a handle on himself. “How do you know this other route, you used to walk there?”

“It's been used by thousands of Runners, for years.” Lukas laughed, shaking his head. “But, it was recently refined by another Runner.” He added, tugging on his cuffs. “Fynn Penmark recently compiled a map of safe places that Runners can stay for the nights and buy supplies.”

What were the chances? Henry thought.

“You'll be giving me that map.” He told him.

“I can't!”

Lukas squeaked, frightened at the thought of a High Marshal having the map showing him where Runners were coming and going from, the places they stayed and people that aided their operations.

“They'll kill me, if they find out I gave it to you!” He protested.

Henry leaned across the table, bringing his face close to Lukas's. “Look in my eyes and ask yourself, if you think I give a fuck?” He whispered, his tone cold and calculated.

“Now, give me the directions.”

Lukas gulped and nearly peed himself from the energy brewing off of Henry, who didn't pull back as he gave him the directions for the route. Henry looked over the map, making a legend of the symbols Lukas had made along the way, marking places to sleep and get supplies, as well as places that should be avoided at all costs. Once he was satisfied and sure the Runner wasn't lying to him and had told him all he knew, Henry stepped out into the hall and by Martin, not exchanging a single word with him.

Returning to his flat, Henry felt the quiet throughout it, without Kal's barked greeting and you either watching tv or listening to music. He missed those noises and being greeted by the both of you as he got home from work or wherever he had gone. Sighing, he grabbed a bag and stuffed a few items into it, a change of clothes, a small medical kit and a few other things he felt he might need, then checked to make sure his service weapon was still secure to his hip. Knowing it was getting cold out, Henry took off his coat and shirt, and pulled on his base layer HAMR, long sleeve shirt to wear under his black, knit sweater, before pulling his lightweight down jacket back over that.

Slinging his backpack over his back, situating his beanie on his head and zipping up his coat, Henry went back out the door, locking it up and rode the lift down to the ground floor. He knew a place in Sector Four with a large enough hole in the wall that he could squeeze through and start his journey to finding you.

Taking his best guess and trusting his gut feeling, Henry made his way to one of the first safe houses on the map, that you would likely stop in for the night. He just hoped he could get there before you left. But, you had an almost five hour head start on him already. Since, he had to spend so much time pulling information out of Hadwin, plus the nearly a two hour walk around the wall to get to the closest point to the house, and where you nearly had a straight shot to it, then the hour to the mini-town.

Within an hour of you both leaving Fynn's flat, Henry had entered the Marshal's Headquarters to interrogate the known Runner, Lukas Hadwin, on how to get to Bristol, and you had reached the opening in the wall. While you finally reached the safe town and your room, Henry had been grilling Hadwin for a tense hour. For the next two, you took a much needed rest, and Henry finally finished juicing Hadwin for every bit of info he had, including the map Fynn had given you for the trip. He then rushed home, taking Kal to Charlie's and packing a bag to follow after you.

Henry wasn't afraid of the nearly three hour walk to the house, in the middle of the night. He could easily protect himself, both with his weapon and his hands, it was you that consumed all of his worry and fear. You had nothing to protect you, other than your wits, but those would only get someone so far, before running out and getting you severely injured, or killed.

“Please, just keep her safe until I can reach her.” He said out loud, looking up at the inky black sky and twinkling stars.

“That's all I ask.” He sighed, walking faster.

You were exhausted after running around London all day, running from Henry and a Beta Marshall, then walking non-stop for a solid hour to reach the first safe place on Fynn's map, just as the last rays of sunlight died behind the horizon.

“Who are you and what do you want?” A hard looking woman behind a makeshift counter asked as you entered the decrepit building that was marked as a safe place.

“I'm a friend of Fynn's.” You told her, approaching the counter and showed her Fynn's logo off his map.

“I guess you want a room then?” She asked, turning her back to you and grabbed a key off the wall behind her.

“I do.” You replied, sheepishly.

“This way.” She rasped, disappearing through a doorway.

You gulped and followed after her, following her down a long dimly lit hallway with rows of doors on either side. She stopped by a door in the middle of the hallway and jammed the key in the lock and opened it. Pushing it open, she handed you the key and went back down the hall, leaving you alone. You leaned into the room, flicking on the light and finding it bare, only furnished with a bed, a single chair and nothing else, not even a window.

Sighing and figuring it was better than nothing, you stepped inside, closed and locked the door behind you, even shoving the chair up against it, for added security, before sitting down on the squeaky and dingy bed. Shrugging off your backpack, you unzipped it and pulled out a package of food you'd brought with you, slowly munching on it, before making sure Eric woke you up as soon as it was light out, and laid back on the bed; using your pack as a pillow. But, it took you a long time to fall asleep, the room was cold and there were scratching noises happening all around you, making you paranoid. But, eventually your exhaustion won out and you fell into a fitful sleep, dreaming of your brother dying and Henry's voice calling out to you.

The time seemed so short, when Eric's voice sounded in your ears, and in reality, it had only been a mere two hours. Now, unknowingly, three hours ahead of Henry, you woke groggily and sat up, rubbing at your face, as you got up and pulled your backpack on. You removed the chair from your door and went down the hall to the front desk, finding the same lady there.

“Do you have a bathroom?” You asked her through a yawn and handed her the room key back, your bladder screaming.

She pointed to a door on the other side of the room and you went inside, grimacing at the filthy condition of it, but you really needed to pee, so you made do with it. Emptying your bladder, you looked at your map and found a supply store a mile up from you and headed that way, hoping for something decently hot, and was overjoyed to find a brewing coffee pot. You showed the supplier Fynn's mark, then filled a reusable cup with the hot brown liquid and roamed around as you sipped at it. Taking a couple more things of food, refilled your water bottle and pieced together something for breakfast.

“Thanks.” You smiled at the supplier as you finished your breakfast and refilled the coffee cup, before getting back on your way.

You made sure to follow Fynn's advice and the map, keeping your eyes to yourself and walking as quickly as you could to avoid trouble or attracting any unwanted attention. Everyone else around you did the same, there were very few people just standing around, those that were, begged for credits to buy things or trying to sell something else.

But, you ignored their harks and kept walking.

Once you were clear of the mini-town, you dared to have Eric put on some low music, the eerie quiet of the area playing on your anxious nerves as you headed for the next safe place, four hours to the north of your location. You decided to walk there as quickly as you could, then decide whether or not you could risk walking the extra two hours to the next one after that, without risking your own safety. Even though the sun had only just risen, you didn't want to play it risky or get cocky. If you did, and got yourself in trouble, you wouldn't make it to Bristol, hopefully in time to warn Mikey about potentially being in trouble, as Quinn's Runner.

“I'll make it, I know I will.” You assured yourself, pushing down the fearful anxiety. “I will.” You repeated, stubbornly, clenching your hands into fists. “I have too.” You added even softer, weakening to some of that concern.

“Have you seen this girl?” Henry asked, approaching a hard looking woman and showing her a photo he had taken of you and Kal, not that long ago.

“No.” The woman replied, shaking her head.

Henry narrowed his eyes at her, knowing she was lying through her missing teeth. Had he been in London, he would have simply slapped his badge on the counter and she would have sang like an Opera singer on opening night. But, he wasn't and that move would have sealed her lips up tighter than a crab's shell, and probably gotten him into a heap of trouble, wasting more of his time.

“Fine.” He sighed, turning away from her and heading back outside.

Glancing around, he spotted an elderly man standing at the corner, hands held out to every person that walked by him.

“Hey, old timer.” He said, walking up to him.

“Credit for a sandwich?” The old man asked, reaching his hands out to Henry.

“How about a sandwich for some information?” Henry asked, pulling a sandwich out of his pack. “Have you seen this girl?” He inquired, showing him your photo.

“Yeah, saw her super early this morning.” the old man replied, scratching his scraggly beard. “Just as I was setting up here, after first light, maybe three hours ago.”

“Looked in a mighty rush to be somewhere.” He added, nodding to himself.

“Thank you.” Henry thanked him and let him have the sandwich, plus an extra sandwich, just to be nice to the poor man, then started power walking away, knowing he was on the right path to find you and that the gap between you was steadily closing.

“I've got you now.” Henry smirked to himself.

[isisisak]

Not only do Isak and Even own The Chair™ but also The Drawer™. Just a drawer where they shoved everything they didn’t know where else to put. Bills, birthday cards, coupons for the locan burger place, a few coins of spare change, weed and so on and so on. 

The latter was the reason the boys and Isak were rummaging through that chaotic little flat right now. Because Isak could have sworn they still had a joint laying around somewhere. Even was off working at KB and Magnus and Mahdi came over to play fifa and smoke (they were simple to please). 

“Look in there.” Isak instructed Mags as he looked into their nightstand (because yeah... not letting the boys near that one). After Mags opened it Isak heard him make a disbelieving sound.  “Hva faen? You guys have been living here what, two months? How can you be this messy?” Mags started to shovel things at Mahdi. “Shut up! You’re messy.” Ok, this was admittedly a weak return because the boys all knew Mags’ place was the neatest anyone had ever seen. 

“What’s this?” Came Mahdi’s intrigued voice from behind Isak who looked over his shoulder as he was on the way to check under the bed. Mahdi was holding a thin, dark blue book. “Oh, that’s Even’s sketchbook.” Mahdi loaded what he was holding onto the tablet he was standing beside and started to flip through the pages. Isak had a little smile on his face thinking of Even’s little doodles that were in there while he looked around the room to find a spot he could search in next. Every few pages there were life-like looking drawings that bled Isak’s mind because they looked so real, but mostly Even didn’t have the patience for those.

“What the fuck?!” At Mahdi’s exclamation Isak’s head whipped around because as it happens, he had just remembered one real life-looking drawing of himself. One real life-looking drawing of himself, naked.

Isak scurried over to the other two boys (which didn’t take long, considering the flat was small and his legs long).

To Isak’s relief Mahdi, and now Magnus too over Mahdi’s shoulder, weren’t looking at his naked glory but at a life-looking drawing of Mahdi himself. Mahdi with a huge open grin on his face. Isak remembered telling Even wow, I can hear his laugh when I look at this.

“What! Even drew you? What the fuck, it looks so good, man!” Magnus craned his neck to look closer at the pencil drawing. “Yeah.” Was Mahdi’s breathless and stunned reply. Isak grinned. His chest filled with secondary pride. Yes, his perfect, hot, cooking, funny, caring and sunny boyfriend was also freaking talented.

“There’s also one of you, Mags.” Isak said and nudged Mags, because people gushing over Even? Sign him the fuck up.

So, they ended up going through the sketchbook (after Isak had made sure that that drawing wasn’t in there anymore and Even had put it in a safe place as promised) and Mags lost it for a good twenty minutes when they came across his.

When Even came back from his shift Mags hugged him (for too long, if you ask Isak) and Mahdi clapped his back enthusiastically, both at the boys grinning widely at a confused Even.

Even said they could keep them and as soon as the boys went home, both of them sent a photo of them drawings on the closet door in Mahdi’s room and on a pin board over Magnus’ desk.

Which of course let Jonas, who had been on a date with Eva, to reply:

Jonas: ??? Magnus: EVEN DREW US!!! Mahdi: Ja! Even my man, thanks again. Looks so incredible

Jonas: What? Did he have enough of Isak’s face? Isak: -_- Mahdi: that boy is too ugly to draw Isak: 🖕

Even: ooohhh you should see some of those drawings I did of Isak………. Jonas: 😏 😏

Mahdi: 😏 😏

Magnus: 😏 😏 😏 😏 😏 😏

Isak: 🖕 -_- 🖕 Even: bby :((((( Isak: the fingers were for the others Even: <3 Isak: <3 Magnus: WHIPPED Mahdi: aren’t you in the same room? Jonas: dorks but so …. Even you drew Mahdi and Mags, ja? ok thanks for the love

Even: haha I drew you too! [pic of the drawing of Jonas] Jonas: woah Magnus: YESSSSSSSSS Mahdi: right? mad talented Jonas: wooooahhhhhh Even <3 <3 Even: <3 Isak: stop sending Even hearts Jonas: shut up, Issy im his muse I can send him hearts Even: hahaha my dear muse, you can have your drawing too if you want to Jonas: FOR REAL?? Mahdi: I have never seen J use capslock Isak: that’s bc he’s against CAPITALISATION hah Magnus: 🙄 Mahdi: oh boy that was weak Isak: WHAT! That was fucking brilliant Even: hahahaha I get it Mahdi: we all get it it’s just not funny Jonas: Even just thinks its funny bc hes so whipped Magnus: WHIPPED Even: keeping the drawing Jonas: noooooooo

[thedragontamerying]

Stand By Me

Chapter two is up and it’s almost four pages longer than Chapter one. From here on a lot of the chapters will probably be much longer than the first one. I hope you enjoy!

Tagging: @insomniasix @theyearofdiamonddogs @ffxv-ocs-unite

Ch 1 : Ch 3 | [Masterlist]

                                          Chapter II : The Hunt Is On

After pushing the royal Regalia for over an hour, the five friends finally reached Hammerhead. The King had informed Noctis before their trip about his old friend’s, Cid Sophiar, mechanic shop and urged his son to make a stop there on their adventure. Now, with their vehicle incapacitated and them covered in sweat and sand, they were all glad to have this knowledge. The five took a moment to catch their breath by the car before a blonde woman with grease marks caught sight of them. “Hey there! y'all kept a girl waiting.” The woman walked over to the car, throwing a smile at Prompto. Artemisia saw her friend melt, a goofy, flustered look on his face. If her charming drawl wasn’t enough, her smile finished the job. Or her unstandard mechanic uniform, that probably helped too. As long as she was able to help with their car though, Artemisia could care less about her clothes.

“Now, which one’s the prince?” The woman looked around the group. She let out an “Aha!” once Noctis stood up from the ground and into her line of sight. “Hello, your Highness. Congrats on your wedding!”

“Not hitched just yet.” Noctis sheepishly replied, looking around awkwardly when she continued to gush over the engagement. Ignis apologized for their late arrival when the woman told them that they “best save their apologies for paw-paw” before introducing herself as Cid’s “grease-monkey” granddaughter, Cindy. As on cue, an older man’s voice called out “Roll ‘er in while I’m still young!”

The old man, Cid, made his way to the car, seeming to inspect it as he talked. “Didn’t your daddy tell ya? She’s a custom classic, not some beat-up ol’ clunker.” Cid looked up at Noctis, his lips straight and his eyes scrutinizing. “Prince Noctis.”

“Uh… yeah.”

Cid shook his head at Noctis’ reply. “Prince. Like they took your old man and kicked the dignity out of him.”

“What?” Noctis was taken back by such a harsh claim. Ismene had informed Artemisia about Cid before they had left and his attitude lives up to what the older woman said.

“You’ve got a long way to go, son. And that slackjaw's gettin’ you nowhere fast.” Cid ran his hand over the hood of the Regalia, before tipping his hat and walking towards the garage. “She’s gonna take a while. Y’all get her in and run along.”

Everyone stood there a bit baffled at the old man’s temperament. Artemisia shrugged sheepishly when Prompto gave her a questioning look. Cindy broke the silence, letting out a long sigh before looking back at the others. “Y’all heard him! Let’s get moving.” Artemisia and her friends groaned at having to push the Regalia again while Cindy made her way to the garage.

While helping align the car correctly for maintenance, Artemisia had noticed Cid giving her a look; one similar to the one he gave Noctis. She fiddled with her fingers nervously before looking back at Cid with a raised eyebrow. “You Issie’s kid?” It took a moment for Artemisia to realize that he was referring to Ismene.

Pretty sure Ismene never agreed to that nickname.

“Um… yes?” Artemisia wanted to slap herself for that familiar reply. Now she knew how Noctis felt as Cid looked her over once more before giving a light hum and turning to focus on the car, not going into the subject more but also not lightening the hard gaze. She looked around in a slight panic over what that look meant before following the others who were outside the garage. Once everyone had left the doors came down to a close. “Now we play the waiting game.” Ignis sighed.

“Never liked that game.” Prompto hummed.

“Never any good at it either.” Noctis teased his friend.

“Neither of you are.” Artemisia shot back at the prince, earning a slight pout from him.

Starving from the long and hard trip so far, the group started to make their way to the restaurant nearby before the gas pump caught Prompto’s attention. “Wait, what’s a gil?” Prompto pointed to the currency signal on the pump confused.

“It’s the currency used outside of Insomnia.” Artemisia answered her friend’s question earning an enlightened “Oh!” from him.

“Speaking of which,” Ignis motioned for everyone to gather around, “We’ve expended the last of our funds on the repairs. I suggest we confer with Cindy.”

After discussing their choices with Cindy, the mechanic offered to pay the group if they were able to take out some creatures that have been causing trouble in the area, along with giving them some money for housing. Artemisia pulled out her map and had Cindy direct them to the location where the creatures known as reapertails were commonly found. Thanking Cindy for the help, Artemisia then shared the information with the others before they went on their way. The crew took care of the vicious animals easily and once they were done Noctis’s cellphone rang.

“So what did Cindy say?” Prompto asked once Noctis finished his call, obviously excited to talk about the woman.

“Needs us to find some Dave guy.”

“He went missing?” Gladiolus added, a hint of concern in his voice.

“Not missing.” Noctis reassured. “Said he’s holed up in that shack.” He pointed over to the nearest shack over the hill and the group made their way over. The shack looked abandoned, no other person in sight besides the five of them. Though there was nothing off putting about the building -- it was just a simple storage shack -- Artemisia couldn’t help but feel a bit uneasy. “What’s this?” Something caught Noctis’ attention and he made his way over to the furthest corner of the shack. The others were looking around seeing if they could find anything else left behind, unknowing of Artemisia’s silent panic as her eyes darted around the area. Between the loose wood planks that made the walls around them she saw movement; slow and cautious, but walking with purpose. Stalking.

A quick rustle was all Artemisia heard before she snapped her head back behind only to see sharp canines jumping at her throat. “Watch out!” She quickly jumped and rolled out of the way of the coming attack. The vicious sabertusk ran past her towards the surprised Noctis with a small pack behind it on the attack. Gladiolus was the first to react, guarding Artemisia from another sabertusk using his greatsword to hold the beast back from biting down on his face. Artemisia materialized her crossbow and shot the beast down with a swift shot to the head. Prompto had run over to help Noctis while Ignis covered their backs from any stragglers.

After quickly killing the sabertusks, everyone took a moment to calm down from the adrenaline rush. Gladiolus helped Artemisia up as she tried to steady her rapid heart beat. She was more than capable of defending herself as were the others, and she’s been exposed to combat almost her entire life but Artemisia still couldn’t help the panic that filled her mind and heart with each new battle. She at the very least was able to mask her panic in a layer of silent composure.

If you were one second later If you were faster you could have stopped it if you had noticed sooner you need to knows these things faster that’s why you’re here you should have told them earlier that you heard something why didn’t you say something you should have said somethi--

“Is everyone okay?” Gladiolus’ voice broke her train of thought. The others stated that they were good and unharmed before Gladiolus focused down at Artemisia. “You okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

Gladiolus narrowed his eyes at her as Artemisia’s own darted back and forth from his eyes and the floor. He knew she was lying, but he knew that if he pushed the subject or called her out on it she would only deny it more and become more reclusive. Gladiolus decided to save his breath and move on, suggesting that they try the shack just across the road. As they approached the smaller shack they saw another pack of sabertusks, potentially from the same pack that attacked earlier. The creatures were growling and clawing at the door of the shack, trying to break it open. Whether it was Dave or someone else in there, the monsters were set on getting to them. This time the crew had the advantage with the element of surprise, being able to take down the creatures with relative ease.

“Who’s out there?” A voice from behind the shack called out before opening the door, revealing a man with a hunter vest and a slight limp in his step. He appeared to be injured.

“Well look who’s here, the man of the hour.” Gladiolus said as everyone’s weapons dematerialized and they approached the man. “Dave, right? Been lookin for ya’.”

Dave groaned a little in pain as he leaned against the door frame. “Didn’t mean to trouble y’all. Been stuck her’ on account of my sprained ankle.”

“Here, let me take a look.” Artemisia walked over to the man with some gauze in her hand and helped the man sit on the porch of the shack. Dave thanked her for the gesture as she rolled up his pant leg to see his ankle. From what little medical knowledge Artemisia had the sprain didn’t look severe, with just some swelling indicating that there was an injury.

“Funny things them varmints.” Dave chuckled before sharply intaking air when Artemisia wrapped the gauze around his ankle. It was tight, but she insisted that the pressure would keep the swelling down. “I gave them hell, but couldn’t finish the job. Still one mean mutt about.” The man looked at the group around him, taking everyone into account. “Well, y'all don’t look much like hunters, but what do you say? Put that puppy to rest for me?”

Taking a moment to think it over, Noctis agreed to the task. Grateful, Dave informed the team about the creature they were hunting, a dualhorn, and where he last saw it. After giving what information he knew, Dave wished them luck, signaling that they could leave. “Wait, what about you?” Artemisia asked. “You’re injured. Do you need us to take you back to Hammerhead? It would be dangerous for you to go back by yourself.”

“Thank you, but y'all needn’t worry ‘bout me.” Dave said, breathing a bit easier with the pain in his ankle already starting to subside. “I called a couple of other hunters when I got stuck here. They were gonna take care of these pests, but then y'all took care of that. They’ll be here any minute to come pick me up.” Despite their worries Dave continued to insist that he would be fine and that the aggressive dualhorn needed to be taken care of soon. So the crew took their leave to continue the hunt.

The sun had started to set while they were traveling to the location Dave told the group about. Ignis suggested that they make camp for the night and continue the hunt in the morning, which everyone was quick to agree with. It had been a long, hard day, what with pushing a car for several miles in the sweltering heat and then having to run around more in said heat and kill some rabid reapertails and sabertusks; they were in need of some rest.

They found the nearest Haven and began to set the equipment. Ignis had set up the makeshift kitchen with all the needed pots, pans and utensils. Ignis was the designated chef for the trip; no one else could compare their cooking skills to the man. Gladiolus took care of pitching the tent, something that came almost second nature to him with how often he camped for fun; a sentiment that not many others in the group could share. Artemisia lighted the campfire while Noctis and Prompto helped arrange the chairs and find some nearby ingredients for Ignis. The blonde cheerfully snapped photos of everyone as they did their task, getting a few selfies in; although he almost gave Artemisia a heart attack when he got especially close to the fire during a selfie with her. By the time Ignis had prepared dinner for the night it was already dark out and everyone was resting in a chair by the fire.

After dinner was finished, everyone found something relaxing to help them wind down from the hard day. Ignis was washing the dirty dishes while Gladiolus was engrossed in one of his books. Noctis and Prompto were preoccupying themselves by the tent and Artemisia was curled up in a ball in her chair overlooking the fire. Her muscles were lax and her stomach was full from a delicious meal, add the mesmerizing dance of the flames from the fire and it was no wonder why her eyelids felt heavy.

A light hum pulled her attention away from fire and towards Prompto as he skipped over to the chair besides her’s and sat down, exaggerating his movements as he stared at her with a big grin on his face. Artemisia stared back at him, confused but unfazed by his actions. He continued to silently stare at her with that bright smile of his until she finally caved. “What’s the look for?” She giggled tiredly.

Prompto’s smile grew a little bit now that she had her full attention on him. “Who was the lady back at the Citadel? Someone you work with?” Prompto didn’t know much about the royal family or those who serve them, so it was no surprise that he didn’t recognize Ismene. Really the only Citadel person he knew besides the ones in front of him was Cor, but he was always willing to learn.

“Councilwoman Ismene Aetius, royal Tactician to King Regis.” Ignis declared, a cup of Ebony in his hand as he joined the others by the fire.

“My mentor.”

Prompto’s eyes lit up in awe. “Whoa! So she’s your teacher? You’ve always talked about her but I’ve never gotten the chance to actually meet her.” Prompto leaned back against his chair as he stared up at the stars. “Guess that explains a lot though. She left a bit of an impression on me.”

“When you’ve done as much as her that comes easy.” Noctis joined in on the conversation, sitting in the last available chair. “Dad says that there’s no one better in Insomnia when it comes to battle plans and politics.”

Gladiolus let out a deep chuckle. “Yeah, my dad said she was a monster on and off the battlefield. Lots of behind the scenes work that he’s not even sure about. But it always came in handy when they needed it.”

“Wow!” Prompto leaned forward on his chair towards Artemisia. “So does that mean you guys work with the Crownsguard? Or the Kingsglaive?”

Artemisia waved her hands in front of her. “No! No! No! Well, at least not as much as you’re thinking.” Prompto looked expectantly at her, waiting for an explanation. She glanced over at the others, seeing that they were also waiting for her to go on. “Before the Wall, the Tactician was in charge of military planning and such under the King’s supervision. But since the military has officially been disbanded the position has been more focused towards politics and other Council affairs. We don’t really work with the Crownsguard since they’re focused more on the internal protection over the King. But every once in awhile we... collaborate with the Captain, but I think that’s only when Ismene’s really bored.”

Gladiolus couldn’t help the knowing smirk on his face. Memories of his dad unexpectedly receiving ‘refined’ reviews of his orders, causing him to chuckle lightly.

“And our involvement with the Kingsglaive is very small.”

“But aren’t the Glaives considered military?”

“They are in a sense. They’re skilled soldiers without question and are strong enough to be considered an army of their own, even for their small numbers.” Artemisia assured. “From what I understand Ismene did participate with the Kingsglaive more when it was first organized but there was some... disagreement between her and Captain Drautos. I guess the Captain felt as though she was demeaning his position over the Glaives. The King agreed that the Kingsglaive would be able to operate under the Captain just fine and reserved the Tactician for emergency procedures.”

“Really? I didn’t expect the Captain to be someone to feel threatened when it came to his job.” Prompto questioned. Gladiolus seconded his feelings. “Heard it was quite the headache.”

Artemisia shrugged to both of them. “I don’t think the two of them have ever gotten along. Ismene says she doesn’t trust the Captain.”

“Why?”

“She says it’s a gut feeling, and that her gut has never been wrong.” Even Artemisia wasn’t really sure about Ismene’s reasoning, and she never questions her. Drautos was professional and somewhat authoritative, as many working for the royal family usually are, but he was always pleasant in conversation and pretty fair in judgement. While the two adults agreed to the King’s decision and to act like professionals around each other, there was always an obvious tension between them. “Anyway, the most I’ve interacted with the Kingsglaive is delivering orders to them if no one else could. Like, before we left I had to deliver some guy his reassignment orders because the Captain and Ismene were too busy to.”

“Reassignment?”

Artemisia shrugged, reaching for her cup of water. “I guess the guy tried playing hero and his punishment was guard duty or something.”

Prompto let out a small noise of contemplation before the excitement came back in his eyes. “I still can’t believe that your job is so important! I mean, I knew it was a big deal but not like this. All these years and I never knew. And you're going to be in charge of all of that soon!”

Artemisia choked a little on her drink, feeling a sudden weight on her shoulders. “Y-Yep…”

“Let’s not get carried away.” Ignis chimed in. “It’s still a time to come before then.”

“No reason to rush things.” Noctis yawned, stretching his limbs. Him, Gladiolus and Ignis had known and worked with Artemisia long enough to know how the pressures of her future responsibilities weighed on her mentally, even if she never voiced it openly. While they hoped that this trip could possibly help with her anxiety and self-esteem, they didn’t want her potentially self-destructing from the stress. This was going to be a work in progress.

“Well, I can’t wait to see you in action.” Prompto hummed once more before pulling out his phone and sinking into his chair. In the years he’s gotten to know Noctis and the others, Artemisia was always more reserved, which left the rookie Crownsguard at a lost to her duties.  It also left him acutely unaware of her nervousness; he never saw a reason for her to be stressed. He’s always seen Artemisia as resourceful and extremely intelligent, after all she would always help him and Noctis with school or anything else if Ignis wasn’t available. In his eyes, she was more than capable.

Can’t wait to see you in action imagine how disappointed he’ll be you’ve spent so much time reading battle tactics than actually practicing them like Ismene said you should Gladio always offered to help you train but no you wanted to read about plant toxins instead when was the last time you practiced with your daggers what if you get in up close combat and you don’t remember how to use your daggers or what if the others need you for backup and you don’t know how to stab anymo--

“Welp, I think I’m going to hit the hay!” Artemisia, after tapping her fingers vigorously against her cup, abruptly stood up. “We’ve, ah, got a dualhorn to tame tomorrow and we’ll need all the rest we can get. So, uh, night!”

Prompto wished her goodnight as she scurried to the tent. Noctis, Ignis and Gladiolus shared a look before letting out a small, collective sigh.

This was going to be a long work in progress.

“You do know the difference between ‘tame’ and ‘kill’, right?”

Gladiolus asked Artemisia as the group traveled towards the dualhorn location. After having to convince Noctis to get up, the group had the breakfast that Ignis cooked before they packed their equipment and left the campground. While the group was still wearing the lighter wear of their Crownsguard uniform, the heat didn’t feel as intense since they’re bodies were properly rested and not suffering from exhaustion.

Artemisia cocked an eyebrow at Gladiolus, questioning why he would ask such an odd thing. “Yes…”

“Then you know that we’re doing the latter.”

Artemisia glanced away from the taller man with a small pout, muttering something under her breath.

“Artemis…”

“We could just herd it away from the area…”

“Right, and we’ll leave it with a good whack on the nose and finger wagging. That will show it.”

The others couldn’t help but chuckle at the two’s bickering. “As admirable as your intentions are Artemis, we need to put the beast down for good.” Ignis stated. “We can’t risk it hurting any more people.”

Artemisia agreed with a sigh, knowing that they were right. Noctis and Prompto shot her sympathetic looks, understanding her displeasure at killing an animal since the three were known animal-lovers. “Speaking of which, what exactly is a dualhorn?” Prompto asked. Growing up in Insomnia meant that they were only exposed to certain animals, which left the rest of the animal kingdom only accessible by books for those who didn’t venture out from the Wall. Luckily, Artemisia had experience with both books and the wildlife.

“Well, it’s fairly large and has two large horns, as the name would imply.” Artemisia explained, always eager to share some knowledge. “It’s got some natural armor plating on it that makes it hard to injure even with modern firearms.”

“Sounds like a nice challenge.” Gladiolus smirked.

“It’s strange, though. They’re not the kind of animal you want to cuddle with -- that’s for sure -- but they’re not particularly aggressive without reason. Unless it’s mating season…”

Gladiolus snickered. “So you mean the guy is just frustrated?”

“It’s not their mating season… Unless it’s sick or has behaviour issues, there’s really no reason for it to be this aggressive.”

After walking for several more minutes, the party heard a loud deep cry in the distance. Following the sound they came upon their target.

“Over there! That’s it, right?” Noctis gestured towards the creature. It was indeed very large, several feet taller than even Gladiolus, with some signature tusks and some fur on it’s back on top of tough, armored skin. It stomped around, thrashing wildly as it roared; Artemisia thought she noticed some strange dark gas emanating the animal, but it was hard to tell with its rapid movement. This was the culprit they were looking for.

“Huh... That’s a dualhorn?” Gladiolus looked over the animal. Artemisia could already see the excited glint in his eye at the promise of a good fight.

“Yes, but not your run-of-the-mill breed.” Ignis stated.

Artemisia nodded. “There’s definitely something wrong with it.”

The two shared a knowing look. “We best make quick work of it.”

The dualhorn continued to thrash around as the crew came closer to it. Noctis ran in front of the group, but was pulled back by Ignis. “Wait a sec’.” Gladiolus gestured for everyone to stand behind him, his greatsword resting on his shoulder. “What? Scared, Big Guy?” Prompto teased, standing between Artemisia and Noctis, who still had Ignis securing him by the shoulders. “You should be too. Thing’s vicious.” Gladiolus looked back at his friends, stabbing his sword into the ground before staring back at the dualhorn. It had stopped it’s wild movement and was now staring at the group quietly.

“You sure? Looks tame to me.” Prompto said, earning an agreed noise from Noctis. Artemisia noticed the dualhorn start to grind its feet into the ground, a quick huff coming from it before it started walking towards them. “Guys…” Artemisia warned, backing up a little. The massive animal then broke into a charge. Ignis shouted “Look out!” and Prompto started to scream as the animal grew closer. Right when it seemed the creature was going to crush them, Gladiolus quickly, but strangely casually, ripped his sword from the ground and sliced at the beast’s exposed leg and abdomen, sending it falling on its side just inches away from them.

Prompto and Gladiolus shared a high five as Prompto cheered and Noctis complemented Gladiolus’ quick actions. That is until the dualhorn rolled itself back onto its feet, angrier than before. “It’s not over yet!” Ignis broke their premature celebration, guarding them as they got their bearings and drew their weapons forth.

“Ready for round two? Bring it!” Gladiolus challenged the beast, being the first to charge back into the fray with Noctis closely following him.

Yes, please antagonize the enraged giant…

Noctis and Gladiolus attacked the dualhorn head on; Gladiolus having its attention for the most part until Noctis’ warping started to annoy it. Ignis attacked its blindsides, backing up his comrades on the front lines while keeping his attention on distance between the beast and the crew’s long range fighters. Prompto and Artemisia fired their weapons keeping a safe distance from the dualhorn. Though Prompto admittedly was closer than Artemisia, who couldn’t help but worry about that small detail. His pistol was better at dealing damage than her crossbow, but at least the arrows were an annoyance to distract the beast to give him an opening for his bullets.

For a bit it seemed like their tactic, ‘annoy and conquer’, seemed to be working. The dualhorn’s movements were slowing down and Gladiolus’ greatsword was breaking through its tough skin. That is until it let out a roar and started rampaging around the area, kicking and thrashing its tusks around, effectively knocking back Gladiolus and causing Noctis and Ignis to disengage to avoid injury. With those three temporarily gone, the dualhorn focused its attention at the two firing at it and charged at them. They both jumped out of the way, but Prompto found himself up close with the beast. A great disadvantage for him and an easy kill for the dualhorn. Prompto dodged the dualhorn’s stomping feet as he continued to fire, aiming for any weak spots on the animal’s head. Noctis warped back into the fray to help his friend, but his sword wasn’t able to do the same damage as Gladiolus’. Ignis checked on Gladiolus, who was a bit bruised from being thrown back but not terribly injured, before running to Noctis and Prompto, trying to back them up.

Artemisia watched her team try to reorganize themselves before she looked down at her crossbow. The dualhorn’s hide was too tough for her arrows to do any damage, and the other’s longswords and daggers only seemed to annoy it rather than injure it. While she knew Gladiolus was far from done, there was no way they were gonna kill this thing soon if he’s the only one that can really hurt it. She summoned her other weapons, replacing her crossbow with a pair of daggers.

Gladiolus was about to run back into the fray of things before Artemisia ran up to him, stopping him in his tracks. “I think I have an idea.”

A risky idea, but it’s an idea.

The others were slowly being caged in by the beast’s tusks when suddenly Artemisia came flying at its side, sending it stumbling back. Her daggers broke through the dualhorn’s armor and was drawing blood. Gladiolus, putting those muscles to good use, had used the flat of his sword to throw Artemisia at the hulking beast. The added velocity had been enough for her daggers to break through. But now it also left her dangling onto the side of a very angry and injured dualhorn, that now started bucking to get her off. The thrashing was causing her daggers to edged down the animal’s side, making it harder for her to stay on but also causing the daggers to deeply slice its side. More blood gushed out of the injured dualhorn as it roared out in pain.

Gladiolus followed it up by slamming down his greatsword onto the its tusks, breaking the one closest to him. The impact made the dualhorn stumble before it started to tip, falling on the side that Artemisia was stuck on. Noctis called out her name before warping to her, saving her from being crushed under the dualhorn’s weight. With the dualhorn’s now exposed under belly, it was easier to take it down with some swift cuts and strong bullets, with Ignis’ daggers delivering the killing blow.

With the beast finally put down, the group took a moment to breathe. Noctis was looking over Artemisia, making sure she was alright after her ride. Her glasses were crooked and her hair a bit frazzled, but overall she was good. “Thanks for the save, Noct.” She thanked her friend as she fixed her appearance. Noctis helped her stand up -- the dualhorn’s thrashing left Artemisia a little disoriented -- and they rejoined the others by the fallen animal.

“You two alright?” Ignis examined them, looking for any injuries.

“Well Artemis might topple over any minute, but I’d say we’re good.” Noctis teased looking at Artemisia who was swaying a little.

“I am perfectly fine.” She just barely caught herself from falling on her rear with a quick step of her foot. The others chuckled a little.

Gladiolus held his hand up. Artemisia took a moment to realize that it was an invitation for a high five, one she took after her mind stopped spinning. “Nice job there.”

“That was awesome! The way you just flew in and then Wham! And then you broke its horn off and...” Prompto cheered, excitedly retelling the whole event with comedic sound effects and enthusiastic body movement.

“It was impressive, but let’s try to refrain from throwing each other again. I suggest we leave such movement to the professional.” Ignis said, directing at Noctis who shrugged back.

“I don’t know, looked like she was having fun.”

“Noct, I will puke in your shoes…”

Noctis’ phone began to ring, interrupting the playful conversation. From the sounds of it, it was Cindy calling. She informed Noctis that the Regalia was finally fixed and ready to drive again once they were ready. With a quick goodbye, the phone call ended and the group was heading back to Hammerhead.

They were making their way back to the garage faster than they had when they left it. But along the way they heard a cry for help from an injured hunter. After searching for a couple of minutes, they were able to find and help the hunter get to safety with some other hunters who took him home. This did, however, take some time and put the group behind schedule on their way back to the Regalia.

“It’s rude to keep a girl waiting,” Prompto teased. Noctis stopped, looking back at his friend with a raised eyebrow and a small smile.

“You better apologiz--” Prompto’s goofy smile suddenly dropped to a look of terror as he point at sky. “W-What is that?!” Everyone looked at where he was pointing to see a giant, even bigger than the dualhorn, bird-like creature swooping in low to the ground directly above them. Everyone dropped to the ground to avoid the bird’s feet that dangled just a little off the ground. The velocity of the bird caused the wind to pick up, sending sand and dirt into everyone’s faces. Despite that, Artemisia watched the creature in awe. She’s only read about these, commonly known as “Live Hurricanes”; to see one in person was almost too good to believe. It flew through the air with the elegance of any other bird, but with such strength and power that was unique to it solely. A true master of the sky.

Once it had glided back to higher altitudes, she was one of the first to get back onto her feet, unconsciously following it for a few steps.

“That thing is like half bird, half storm, half airship!”

“You realize that’s three halves…” Gladiolus corrected Prompto who was still cautiously close to the ground.

“That would explain its size.” Ignis articulated.

Noctis hummed. “Awesome in every sense.”

“Definitely.” Artemisia seconded.

[couldbebluer-blog]

AYCSTB Excerpt

Hi all! I know that I’m possibly the world’s slowest fic updater, but I wanted to post an excerpt to make sure you all know that I’m working very hard (yet slowly) on the new chapter! This particular sneak peek is a little angsty but I Promise it won't last<333 I hope y'all enjoy!

***

Tuesday, 22:20

“Eskild? Can I come in?”

He hears some shuffling behind the door, before it cracks open slowly. Eskild’s hair is sleep rumpled, and he squints at Isak, not unkindly.

“What’s going on, princess?” he asks groggily, and Isak’s chest tightens at the word. He pushes Even’s voice out of his head and musters a tight smile that is more like a grimace.

“Can I come in? I could use some guru advising,” he says, scratching the back of his head. “It’s okay if you wanna sleep or anything, it can wait until tomorrow.”

“No, it’s fine Issy, really,” Eskild says. He steps back from the door and allows Isak to shuffle inside before closing the door gently.

Isak stands there for a moment while Eskild crawls back onto his bed, the lamp on his bedside table a soft yellow light. Eskild pats the spot next to him, cooing at him.

“Come here, baby Jesus,” he says knowingly, and Isak goes, crawling on the bed and lying on his stomach next to Eskild. Eskild shifts and smoothes Isak’s hair away from his face, and Isak relaxes into it. As much as Eskild jokes about being Isak’s adopted father and guru, he’s the closest thing Isak has to a paternal figure. His mother was wrapped up in her mind the majority of his life, which he doesn’t blame her for anymore, but was still true. His real father was too absent too often to contribute any parental guidance and love to Isak’s life as he grew older. He’s learned not to be too bitter, to not linger on the sourness that came with remembering the last years spent in his childhood home; he tries to think fondly of the time where his mother was present, and his father was still in love with his family, and the way Isak would walk between them, one hand in each of his parents’, and how he would scream in delight when they would swing him in the air.

Eskild was there for him at the point where he needed someone most. His mother had retreated into her mind, and his father decided he could no longer deal with the burden of his imperfect family. Eskild took him under his wing, offered him a place to stay when his home life got to be too much. Eskild taught him how to accept himself, guided him through the shitshow of coming out of the closet, and firmly told him what was and wasn’t acceptable to say about others. He parented Isak, taught Isak more about life, nurtured Isak into who he was today more than his biological parents ever did. Isak can’t ever forget that.

“What’s going on?” Eskild prompts, looking down at Isak.

Isak sighed, shifting so his arms were folded underneath his head. “I don’t know. You know how I went on that date- well, how I hung out with Even before class on Sunday?” he waits for Eskild to nod before continuing. “Well, it was going great, like really well, until we left the cafe.”

“What happened? Did he do something?” Eskild asks, and Isak can hear the frisson of anger in his sleepy question. Eskild sits up a little straighter in bed, more alert. Isak is quick to assuage his concern, though.

“No, no, he didn’t do anything bad. It was this asshole, Erik,” Isak says, sighing and pressing two fingers hard to his brow.

“Who?”

“He’s in my year, you probably don’t know him,” Isak tells him. “But he’s been giving me shit about this naked modelling stint, which is annoying but something I can deal with.”

“You shouldn’t have to,” Eskild argues. “He doesn’t have a right to be a dick to you over that.”

Isak shrugs noncommittally. “It’s really no big deal. But yeah, after Even and I left Tryvge, I left my sweater on the chair, so I guess Erik recognized it as mine and ran out to give it to me.”

Eskild hum, waiting for Isak continue. Isak appreciates him for not interrupting as he so usually does.

“But when he came up to us, he started saying gross things about me,” Isak grimaces at the memory, cheeks hot with shame. “He was saying shit about how since I model naked he wasn’t surprised I leave my clothes around, and how Even must have been on a date with me because he thought I would put out because I let people see me naked. And, like, how he should be careful because I might be sleeping around with the other art students, or something.”

“Fuck, Issy, I’m so sorry,” Eskild murmurs soothingly, pushing his fingers through Isak’s hair methodically. “What happened after that?”

“Even told him that Erik had no clue what he was talking about, and then we both left. But he was really distant after, and has been for the past couple of days. And I just,” Isak breathes out shakily. “I don’t know what I did wrong.”

“Baby,” Eskild says, “You didn’t do anything wrong. Erik was a fucking asshole to you, and maybe Even just feels bad for being part of the reason Erik continued to pick on you, since Erik was making those comments about you being easy.” Eskild spits out Erik’s name like it’s a slur.

“I don’t know,” Isak pushes the heels of his palms into his eyes. “Maybe he just doesn’t want me anymore because of what Erik said. Maybe he thinks I’m easy.” Isak’s mouth tastes sour after he says it.

“If he’s the good guy you’ve been saying he is, I’m sure that isn’t the case, okay?” Eskild shakes Isak’s shoulder a little with conviction. “And if he is, then he’s not worth your time. I’ll go find you a nice journalism major instead.” When Isak laughs at that, Eskild smiles. “Art boys can be drama anyways, I would know.”

Isak raises an eyebrow at Eskild half heartedly, but lays his head down on Eskild’s shoulder.

“Oof, you have such a heavy head,” Eskild complains. “I can’t have you bruise my porcelain shoulder. I show this shoulder off a lot, you know.”

“I bet,” Isak scoffs, but scoots down the bed a little. He drops his head heavily back on Eskild, this time on his stomach. He laughs when Eskild wheezes behind him.

“Do you want me to puke on you? Jesus,” Eskild coughs, pinching Isak’s ear hard. “These cute curls do a good job of hiding your big head.” “Don’t be mean to me, I’m going through a boy crisis,” Isak grumbles into his stomach. He hears a sympathetic noise from Eskild.

“It’s okay baby gay,” Eskild sighs. “Everything will work out fine.”