#and he kind of half laughed then apologized before clarifying that no he is not a god.

[tojipie]

I love your prison bf toji series so much!! Also, in the newest installment of the series Toji says that Shiu has had a crush on the reader for a while? I’d love to see how this crush developed, how Toji found out and how Shiu dealt with his feelings!!

ughhhhgghgg i love this prompt so much :(( bless your heart you’re a genius <3

prison bf toji series linked here <3

context ! -> fic takes place very early on in reader and toji’s relationship. this is pre-prison and at a point where he hasn’t introduced him to his men yet :D hopefully this makes sense !

content: fem reader, brief piv smut, mentions of incarceration, objectification of reader by stranger, fluff, they make up dw ! jealousy, angst, unrequited love

purple hickeys bloom across your chest as toji makes his way from shoulder to shoulder, pinching bouts of delicate skin between his teeth while length ruts into you.

the drag of his cock is delicious, hitting that special spot at just the right angle from the way he has you laid out on the couch, both legs thrown over his shoulder with your head propped up on a cushion.

toji was always like this after securing a deal at work, soft, sensual, taking his time with your body as an act of celebration. half-empty glasses of champagne still lie on the coffee table where you’d left them, leaving rings of cool sweat on the glass surface.

“gonna cum,” he groans, pulling away from your neck with a pop and blowing cool air against the saliva-soaked hickey. you squirm at the stimulation, throwing your head back as your high creeps up on you t— was that a key in the door?

toji pulls out of you with unmatched speed, reaching for a couch cushion to shield his manhood. he rucks a throw blanket over your body with a string of curses, using his massive build to hide the silhouette of your body from view. 

“what’d i tell you about waltzing into my fucking house?” your boyfriend yells, staring down the suit-clad stranger with a look that screams blood-lust.

the smile that breaks out on the man’s face is nothing short of filthy, eyeing you up and down like a piece of meat

“awww didya get us a hooker boss-man?” he sneers, cigarette hanging from his lips. “could’ve waited till i showed up to start but i’m down for whatever.” he laughs, gingerly placing a pristine briefcase on the coffee table before taking your discarded bottle of champagne as a parting gift.

“don’t have too much fun, alright?” he teases, stepping out the door as quickly as he’d come in.

the two of you are speechless for several minutes, looking back and forth between each other, the door he didn’t even bother to close, and the mystery briefcase you’re not sure you want to see opened. 

toji sits up with a string of curses, stalking over to kick the door shut with a sigh. 

“that’s.. shiu,” he mumbles, clearly embarrassed. 

you sit up from your spot on the couch, letting the blanket guarding your modesty slip down to your waist. toji settles down on the opposite side of the couch, arms outstretched to let you climb onto his naked form. 

“handles money,” he clarifies, tracing abstract shapes onto your spine. “my cut from today is in the case.”

“do you trust him?” 

he nods, resting his head in the crook of your neck with a sigh.

you figure that’s all you need to know.

˚ ✧ ──────────────────────

the apology shiu gives you the next time you meet goes on for ten minutes. variations of “fuck i didn’t know” and “i’m so so sorry i really am” spill from his lips while he bows at your feet, forehead firmly pressed to the wood floor of your dining room.

toji sits at the head of the table, shoveling bites of dinner into his mouth in between heart laughs.

“mmf— tell her again i don’t think she heard ya.”

the truth is you’d kind of forgotten about your boyfriend's right hand after the incident was over. was the hooker comment uncalled for? sure, but judging by the saturated fear in the suit-clad man’s eyes you figure toji had done something to set him straight.

plus you’d both gone two more rounds after the initial embarrassment had died down, making up for the little roadblock on your path to an orgasm. 

“it’s okay, promise,” you say quietly, not entirely sure what to say at this point. the suit-clad man stands again, bowing to both of you with a sigh. 

“now give her our little present,” toji says, stalking over with his arms crossed. 

a sealed bottle of champagne— the same kind he’d so graciously swiped from your home— is placed in the palm of your hands before you’re able to question either of them. 

you shoot the other man a greatful smile, and shiu realizes he quite likes the feeling of your soft hand shaking his.

˚ ✧ ──────────────────────

toji’s annual new year party was a sight to behold. alcohol, dancers, and booming music was the typical atmosphere, though the event had taken a complete turn once you’d entered the picture. 

gone were the days of loose dollar bills and stray panties littering the floor, the smell of sex and smoke in the air.

in were the days of… a modest bar and fancy catering, much to his men’s dismay.

toji didn’t quite know how to throw a party that could be deemed “professional” but he figured not having strippers at the house might’ve been a step in the right direction. some of the guys even brought their wives this time, fun right?

and so, toji sits toward the back of the room, watching you socialize with a drink in hand, his best friend beside him. 

tension hangs in the air as both men watch you from afar. one with pride, the other with longing.

“do you want her?”

“… what?”

toji doesn’t elaborate on the cryptic question, peering at his friend over the rim of his glass.

shiu pauses, downing the rest of his drink as he thinks of what to say. a warm hand settles on the meat of his shoulder, letting him know it’s ok.

“yeah man, i do,” he admits, too ashamed to look up from the floor.

greed. the word that’d graced toji’s knuckles since the day he turned 19. black ink needled into a canvas of tan skin, bleeding into the rest of the tattoos like water flowing upstream. 

it fit him perfectly. it did then, and it does now. toji always gets what he wants, regardless of how other people feel. a man overcome by what he believes he deserves. 

the hug he’s pulled into isn't filled with malice. the threat of violence isn’t there, unlike the time toji had taken him by the collar and threatened to gut him like a fish over the comments shiu had made the first time he met you. 

this hug is.. soft. inviting. an embrace that tells him “it’s okay, i trust you.” the fact that toji hasn’t bashed his nose into his skull is a telltale sign that there’s no fault in feeling the way he does, so long as he doesn’t act on it.

shiu truly doesn’t know what to say other than yes, he does want you. he wants you to be the one he comes home to each night, he wants your soft skin on his, wants to spoil you and make you smile.

you were kind, attentive, shy at times. the complete opposite of toji and his brutish demeanor. a flower cradled in the hand of a dragon.

but you weren’t his, and you never would be. not when toji had been the one to sweep you off your feet, securing a place for himself in your heart that shiu could never fill. 

and that was ok. he was here for his job, not you. shiu was fine with you being oblivious to his feelings, in fact, it was better that way for the three of you.

that’s exactly why he breaks away from the hug as you pad over to their table, shooting you both an apologetic smile before heading over to the bar. as long as he’d still be able to catch a glimpse of you every now and then, he’d live. 

edit: forgot abt the taglist oopsies 🏷️

@honeybee54321 @m150-50up @kuryoomi @t4naiis @serendippindots @sillyalo @levixbby @powerrwa @tojishugetiddies @wheredidmycrowngo @unknownspecies @ushygushybaby @ebiharachan @hoshigray @crazychaoticizzy @denypipa @watyousayin @tempest1art @sakuraryomen01 @kariito-art @vkeyy @mxtokko @inumakiiz @rosieee491 @loveme-b4by @suguxo @namjoonsbuspass @tojis-luver @complexivelovely @dancingwithdeities @sunflwrsugar @catvader101 @ktsgrl @princessos-blog @4ut0p5y @swiftsongs-mp3 @mycocoapuffs @adrenepinephrine @na0koz @suguscape @jaswonder3 @bokutosprettylittlebimbo @getousrep @jeannieboys @darkstarlight82 @freebananabeard @vivian-555 @kentokaze @subarusuguru @aroxwq @i-literally-cant-with-this @emikokomura @moonriseoverkyoto

[therealmsdelulu]

Frights and Fractures☆

Prompt☆: Character accidentally gets hurt in a spooky attraction and a scare actor breaks character to help. From this: prompt list

Summary☆: When Spencer Reid gets hurt during a haunted house, the scare actor is more than willing to lose their job in order to help.

Pairing☆: Spencer Reid x gn!reader

Warnings☆: Injury (fractured ankle). Physch major hate(jokingly)Mentions of gaslighting(in a humorous way though)

A/N☆:: Guys be warned, a lot of my humor is shown through Y/N and I think I'm a comedian 😀 Also first Spencer fic!

W.C☆:1.3k

Halloween was always a favorite of yours. You loved everything spooky and you adored the fall season. Once you were 'too old' for trick or treating, you decided to sign up as a scare actor at the nearest haunted house.

You got paid a decent amount and it was a really fun job. You got to make people's day all while giving them a small scare.

Your character was a fan favorite. You played one of the nurses in the abandoned asylum. Most visitors liked you because you were attractive but there was a small fraction of visitors who appreciated your humor.

You were creeping around the long and eerie hallways searching for your next victim when your eyes fell upon a tall and slender brunette who was obviously lost and desperately searching for whoever he came with.

He was dressed in a black, oversized sweater scattered with spiderwebs and pumpkins. He was actually pretty cute from what you could see. You smiled to yourself before remembering that you were on the clock.

You followed him around for a few minutes before you decided to strike. You pressed a button on your remote which was supposed to cause a wheelchair prop to slowly roll across the floor, a tame spook to get started.

However, when you pressed the button it prompted the wheelchair to roll out onto the floor at a faster speed than it was programmed to, causing the man to topple over before he could even register what was happening.

You gasped quietly and covered your mouth contemplating whether you wanted to laugh or go help. Technically you weren't allowed to break character or interact with visitors outside of scaring them, but once you heard the man groan in pain you quickly approached him.

"Hey, you okay?" you asked kneeling down next to him.

"What just happen?" he looked around searching for the source of his injury.

"You got wiped out by a run-away wheelchair," you said quietly, biting your lower lip to stifle a laugh, not being able to say that seriously.

"How ironic," he half-smiled before attempting to stand up but he winced quietly.

"Don't move," you insisted and began to reach out to inspect his ankle but quickly retracted your hands. "Do you mind if I check it out?"

"Do you have any actual medical training?" he asked teasingly.

"I'm CPR certified," you shrugged flashing him a small smile.

"Knock yourself out," he said and you gently squeezed his ankle watching his face for any signs of discomfort. You pulled away your hand when you saw his small flinch.

"Sorry," you apologized softly. "It might be broken," you concluded even though you had no way of knowing for sure.

"Actually, it's probably a lateral malleolus fracture. That's the most common type of ankle fracture," he corrected you.

"And what exactly is a lateral whatever you just said?"

"It's the outer part of your ankle," he clarified flashing you a small smile.

"Are you a doctor?" you wondered how he diagnosed himself without even giving it a second thought.

"Not the medical kind, but yes,"

"Ooh, that's impressive," you said in genuine amazement. "So what do you do for work? Are you a professor or something,"

"I'm a profiler," he informed you.

"Really? I've always hated phsych majors, this is even worse,"

"How so?" he inquired, searching for even the slightest bit of context.

"I feel like psych majors are just training to be professional gaslighters." you explained, you were joking but there was a small hint of seriousness in your tone

"But you play a nurse in an asylum" he pointed out.

"True," you smiled, "I should ask to play a different character,"

"Did you know that clinical psychologists make up the single largest specialty area in psychology?" he asked you and you smiled at the way his eyes lit up as he spoke.

"Clinicians are psychologists who assess, diagnose and treat mental illnesses," he elaborated with a bright smile and you listened attentively as he spoke.

"Many individuals study psychology because they want to better understand themselves or those around them. Through learning psychology, you gain a deeper understanding of the many factors that affect human behavior." he added, moving his hands in dramatic motions as he spoke. You looked into his eyes as he spoke, genuinely paying attention to what he had to say, and as he finished talking he looked into your eyes as well maintaining the eye contact for a moment before looking away shyly.

"I'm rambling aren't I?" he asked with a shy smile.

"A little, but I don't mind." you flashed him a sweet smile. "Your voice is actually really calming."

"I'm not used to hearing that," he said quietly and flashed you a small smile of appreciation.

In the brief moment of silence that followed, you took the moment to take in his features.

He was the prettiest guy you had ever seen. He had soft, hazel eyes. A warm honey color with a slight hint of green. Your eyes traced the outline of his plump lips that were tinted a soft pink and he finally realized that you were checking him out.

"Were you flirting with me?" he asked, his cheeks a faint pink hue.

"For a profiler, you really suck at picking up social queues," you teased with a sly smile.

"I get that a lot" he said smiling sheepishly when your moment was suddenly interrupted by the sound of shouting

"Spencer!" you heard a deep, masculine voice yell.

"Reid?" you heard a more feminine voice yell.

"Over here!" he yelled and you discovered his name was Spencer. Suddenly, a group of 2 women and a man approached the two of you.

"We lose him for 5 minutes and he somehow manages to get hurt," the dark-haired woman said to the bald man.

"I think pretty boy did it on purpose," the bald man said gesturing towards you and the brunette man and a red-headed woman, wearing the most flashy and unique outfit you had ever seen, ruffled Spencer's hair.

"Looks like he's in good hands," the redhead said smiling at you.

"Well unfortunately, I'm not a real nurse." you smiled at the woman.

"Is it bad?" she asked.

"Lateral malleolus fracture," you and Spencer said at the same time and shyly smiled at one another.

"Right," the brunette woman deadpanned sharing a look with the man next to her. "And you are?"

"Y/N, and you three are?"

"Penelope Garcia," the red-headed woman introduced herself.

"Emily Prentiss," the darker haired woman said flashing you a small smile.

"Derek Morgan," the bald man introduced himself with a small, playful wink and Spencer rolled his eyes.

"Do you flirt with every one you see?" Emily asked with an eye roll of her own.

"So, I'm assuming you guys are profilers too?" you asked the group.

"Those two yes, I'm a technical analyst," Garcia explained.

"I feel extremely unsafe right now," you joked and Spencer shook his head with laughter.

"Unsafe?" Morgan asks tilting his head visibly confused

"Inside joke," you and Spencer said at the same time and began laughing even harder.

"You guys have been alone for like 5 minutes and you already have an inside joke?" Prentiss asked sharing a look with Garcia and curling her lips in a small smirk.

"My man," Morgan said with a smile patting Spencer on the back and you watched as his cheeks turned a faint hue of crimson.

"Are you done?" Spencer asked pretending to be irritated with the man even though he was biting back a smile.

"You should probably go see an actual nurse now," you suggested with a half-smile gesturing towards his ankles.

"Right," he said with a slight pout and it took everything in you not to kiss it away. Morgan and Prentiss began to lift him up making sure he didn't put any weight on his ankle and you blew Spencer a kiss as they walked towards the exit.

"Wait, Y/N?" Spencer blurted, he turned around and flashed you a small grin,"Could I possibly get your number? You know, In case I need a second opinion?"

☆My submission for the CM Meet Cute (or not) Challenge 📚☕️ by @imagining-in-the-margins

[knownangels]

deadly premonition (october prompt)

Maran sidles up to Xavier, who looks frustrated and uncomfortable in the massive throng of partygoers.

He nudges their shoulders together. Before Xavier loosens up, he stiffens full-body. Like a spooked dog, ears straight and tail perked. 

“Relax mate.” Maran raises his voice enough for his best friend to hear, and no one else. “Hey, d’you reckon there’s an iced cream flavor you’d toss over?”

Xavier barks out a startled, incredulous laugh. Several people turn to look at him, so naturally his ears go red. Maran fights a grin, fingertip grip on the ledge of proper, polite.

“What?” Xavier whispers back, somehow also shouting. “Maran. You’re joking.”

“Mine’s Pandyssian Plum, without a doubt.”

Xavier’s mouth does something funny before stretching into a grin. “I hear they don’t even ship those plums in from the continent. They’re just normal Tyvian plums.”

“Well they’d get a hole put in ‘em,” Maran says mildly, expression never faltering from graceful, host-of-the-party noble. 

Xavier bursts into another volley of laughs that peeter off with gasping breaths and a few shy apologies to the surrounding crowd. 

When the circus comes to Dunwall (base and low-brow and dirty and wild in the way that his father hates) every year, Maran sneaks out his third-story window and down to the outskirts docks. It’s at the filthy end of the city, where industrialization lingers in smog and coal pillars half the sky tall. 

But Maran loves it. 

The exotic animals from distant lands always make him sad, of course: even though the ringleader always assures his father when inspections and meetings about land fees and fancy ball fundraisers, Maran knows the truth is far uglier. He’s made friends with the acrobats. 

Years ago, actually, when they were around his age. They’d swap real stories of the life they led; Maran, his. Them, how to fool some of the game masters to actually get a prize; Maran, the pubs that would turn an eye if you looked a bit young. 

One of his favorite games had been this hole-and-mallet style thing. It consisted of violently bludgeoning tentacles of a kraken as they sprouted from the holes of a finely hand carved pirate ship. If you smashed enough of them, the gamemaster would bring out a little ceramic kraken’s eye. They were all handmade, too. His wife had been a clay artist, before they came to the empire; Maran could only imagine how many she made a week. He had a shattered kraken eye, shining keen and pretty on the bedroom mantle. She put an extra layer of pearlescent glaze on it because he asked. 

Sometimes minding Xavier reminded him of that game. Waiting vigilantly for some little anxiety or hint of embarrassment to appear — then smashing as quick as he could. 

Maran cups his elbow to do that now, imagining his hammer as it swings down. I’ve got you, mate. 

“Want to go dance, then?”

Xavier’s cheeks burn. “It’s…kind of improper?” 

Maran blinks at him. 

“We’re not married.” Xavier clarifies. 

“Xavier!” Maran yells, his turn to draw attention. 

It’s briefer than it had been on his friend, though: Maran is familiar and well-known nobility. Xavier has messy clipped hair and the aura of working class, the way his cuticles bend from stress-biting and his trousers have been visibly mended, no matter how no nice they were originally. Not to mention the size of the lad, the mad little gleam in his eye that not everyone is intelligent enough to appreciate. 

Unlike Maran. 

“I cannot believe you think I’d want to —“ he glances around, peeks over his shoulder, leans closer. “Waltz.”

Xavier smiles, but his brows are softly arched. “Well…that’s kind of your only option?” 

It’s what people do at these things, is what Maran means. And he’s right. It’s still just about the only acceptable form of social-event dance, because Dunwall’s utterly shit at adapting. She’ll rot into the sea before she sees change of her own will. 

“Of course it’s not our only option.” Maran dutifully nods and waves and exchanges pleasantries as he pulls Xavier from the ballroom. “There’s a party going on at the little dock, y’know? The one off the back garden. Invite only, a bunch of the employees get together during this annual shitfest.”

A bit more of him comes out now that they’re alone, cool air against skin from the swinging patio doors. They lope down the stairs in a giggling race, and then they’re off towards the far-off fence. The estate’s grounds are sprawling; it takes them time to stumble closer to the sound of revelry and genuine enjoyment of a party. 

I’m going to miss you, Maran thinks. It’s so sudden and strange a thought in that moment, no reason or rhyme to that sort of melancholy. He’s happy, he’s laughing, he loves Xavier to death and they’re about to spend what he hopes is the most memorable night of their lives shit-faced and together. 

Together is what matters. So that’s why: I’m going to miss you. 

It feels like a deadly premonition, a warning, and advice from his mother all at the same time. 

*

Maran can hear them talking out on the roof. One voice sounds as he hears it every day. One sounds like he could only grasp the entirety of it if he swum five leagues below the ocean and pulled it from the depths himself. 

Xavier’s voice warbles strangely. He imagines the sound of it would look a bit like the vortex you get if you swirl wine in the bottle. Maran prefers doing that to wine rather than drinking it. 

But he’s considering the latter now. And very seriously. 

It would be nice if just once he could hear what Xavier says. He gets jack all from Benji’s one half of a conversation. Emotionally constipated little prick.

He could march out and demand why. Of course there was a difference, that link between he and Benji, between he and Maran. No visits, no conversations, no signs on the wind or message in the stars. He tried not to be too sore about that. But it was near impossible. Most days, he figured he could understand what it would feel like to be one of those delicate ceramic eyes. 

Maran squeezes his eyes shut. He takes a deep, lingering breath and pretends it sticks in his lungs like honey. Lets them expand, push out all the empty loneliness. 

It wasn’t right to put the blame on Xavier. He repeats that to himself, gritted teeth slowly unclamping as his jaw loosens. It wasn’t right. Surely it wasn’t easy. 

Maran didn’t know much, but he wasn’t stupid. He pieced what he could together, from what little he knew.

He longed for just one more dance, though. 

Fuck. He’d settle for a waltz. 

[yibocheeks]

Wu Ming Promo Tour - Guangzhou Interviews (translations)

Some parts were difficult to hear on the recordings I found, these are the parts related to Yibo for the videos I could find. (Note that this contains some spoilers.)

1st Showing:

They start by asking Yibo to say "Happy new year, gong hei fat choy" in Cantonese, which he learns from an audience member.

Then it is audience Q+A. One audience member says this is her 4th time watching, and each time she will notice more details. One thing she is curious about is why Yibo doesn't spit out the shell when he eats the drunken shrimp.

Cheng Er: The small river shrimp from Ningbo can be eaten without spitting out the shell.

MC: Yibo do you remember how many you ate?

Yibo: It should have been...a lot. When you soaked it in the wine, it would still be jumping and then you put it in your mouth.

MC: Very fresh, so whether or not you spit out the shell, did you ever this discuss this? Or did it happen naturally

Yibo: We didn't really think much about this matter. It was also my first time eating it. Before eating, it was a bit hard to stomach initially.

MC: In the shrimp there was also the colour of red, what were your thoughts behind this?

Cheng Er: Some methods of making this dish will use fermented tofu brine, which gave it this colour. In our movie, it did also contribute to the imagery - even within a dark scene there would be this conflicting vibrance, where the red is reminiscent of blood, like the persistence and struggles of Yibo's character or the people of that time.

Another audience member says this is her 2nd time watching. The question she has is why Tony Leung and Wang Yibo's characters fought so fiercely, weren't they friends/comrades? Then she wonders about the camera perspective chosen at that time, was it to indicate that perhaps there was an enemy watching their fight?

Cheng Er: Yes, through watching the second time, you've answered your own question. Through your question it seems you've spoiled this detail for other people

The audience member: But we've all already watched it, how can it be a spoiler! (laughs)

Next audience member says this is her first time. When Yibo was on the truck with Tony Leung, she wonders why Yibo would make such a symbol with his hand. Then when she saw Tony Leung's slight smile, she wondered if they were making secret signals at each other.

Cheng Er: I think that it's because there were Japanese people there, in the second half of the movie Yibo tries to win Mori Hiroyuki's character's trust...I think you should turn your attention to the fact that this was a part where Yibo performed very well.

(audience chimes in their agreement)

MC: Many of our audience members have been scared by this smile of Yibo's. So in that scene, did you discuss with the director what kind of smile to use?

Yibo: Before filming that scene, I felt a lot of pressure. Because the director would tell me beforehand that we would film this scene, that I would have to prepare the gaze that I needed for that scene. Because Mr. Leung is also quite a bit older and it was a scene in the rain (audience laughs and Yibo bows and apologizes), because the rain was quite heavy and it was cold, so I didn't want us to have to film multiple takes because of me, so I felt quite a lot of pressure.

Next audience member says this is her first time to watch. She compliments Director Cheng Er and then asks Yibo when he had a crying scene, through what state of mind was he able to give such a moving performance?

Yibo turns to Cheng Er, likely to confirm which scene it is that the audience member is referring to.

Yibo: Are you asking about...(audience member clarifies, it is when he's reading the newspaper, the scene where Ms Fang dies)...ah I know (which scene it is). When I'm performing these sort of emotions, I would use my own experiences and emotions and listen to music to help find these emotions.

2nd Showing:

MC: Let's ask if our two leads have anything they would like to say to the audience.

Cheng Er: I’m really grateful for such enthuasiastic movie fans. Thank you to the audience. Thank you to Wang Yibo's movie fans who have supported Wu Ming. And thank you to those passersby movie fans who are not yet fans of Wang Yibo, for your love of Wu Ming. I am very moved. I wanted to say a bit more on the previous question about Wang Yibo's performance. Because everyone (here) has actually seen Wu Ming, whether you're Yibo's fan or our movie's fan or just a passerby who happened to choose this movie, I believe that our cast's efforts, including Wang Yibo's efforts, will live up to expectations. We wholeheartedly filmed each scene and every scene detail. This includes Wang Yibo's efforts. He was very attentive, including that scene with Tony Leung in the rain, Yibo would be very uneasy. That rain was heavy, it would soak your clothes immediately. He and Tony Leung and the other actors had plastic wrap around their bodies, because the rain was so heavy. Yibo was very uneasy because he was worried that he might bother Tony Leung to have to refilm another take. So I said, yes there could be this issue, so why don't we prepare beforehand. Because of his preparations, we were able to film the scene within four takes, within four takes we were able to capture Yibo's demeanour and gaze in that scene. I'm very grateful for such a talented actor. Because you've all seen the film, I dare to say such a thing. Recently I don't even dare to say too much praise because (fans: praise him more!)...I hope that those who have actually seen the movie can sincerely spread their honest opinions about the movie's situation and quality.

Yibo: After hearing the feedback from the audience, I feel very moved. We worked hard to film a good movie to show to everyone. That the audience is willing to further discuss the details and characters within the movie and would be willing to rewatch it shows that our efforts have been seen, I'm very happy, thank you.

The MC asks them to share their thoughts now that the movie has been showing for a couple of days.

Yibo: I also feel moved to be able to interact with the audience like this.

An audience member asks Yibo what was a difficulty that he faced.

Yibo: Without exaggerating, I think everyday I felt a lot of pressure. You could say that this was the most pressure I've felt in my life up until this point. We would film from 3pm to 5-6am everyday in a very quiet atmosphere. My co-actors were all incredible actors, so I felt a lot of pressure, but this pressure also helped me to better fulfill my role.

MC asks if Cheng Er could see the pressure that Yibo felt, or if after filming that the pressure would be relieved?

Cheng Er: That wouldn't be the case, because once I appeared then he would feel pressure.

MC: So the root cause of this pressure is with you?

Cheng Er: Right. So although after filming he felt very content, but during the filming he was under pressure. I am aware of his persistent efforts, the way he immersed himself fully. The outcome that you all see in the film is through his efforts. So actually earlier I should have added another feeling that I have, towards Yibo I have a feeling of pride. I really feel proud for Yibo's performance.

A lot of audience members brought dolls to watch the movie and the MC points this out. Cheng Er and MC point out the dolls. They point out an audience member holding a doll. This audience member asks 1) What was the first scene or character that inspired the film for Cheng Er? 2) When filming the emotional scenes, which scenes moved Yibo?

Cheng Er: I remember clearly the first scene I wrote, which was 11 lines. "A crippled dog walks past the ruins." This was how I started writing the story.

Yibo has trouble following up after this and so the audience member repeats her question. The MC gives some examples and asks how he might have prepared himself.

Yibo: I would be very calm/quiet, like when I was reading the newspaper, in order to feel more troubled I might listen to certain music or think of more emotional situations to try to grasp this emotion. In the scene with Mr. Leung, it felt quite complicated, because it was another scene with Mr. Leung. I would prepare beforehand because I would be worried that my shortcomings might cause us to film multiple takes, so I felt pressured.

MC asks about the doll, the audience member shares that the doll is dressed up like Secretary Ye. Yibo nods. MC asks if this is a gift for Yibo, if it needs to be given to him and Yibo laughs. Audience member says she had originally just wanted to quietly check off a fan moment with her doll. MC suggests that she can hand the doll to the staff member to pass to Yibo so he can get a closer look at it. The staff member passes it to Yibo, who holds it for a moment before returning it to the audience member.

Next audience member makes note of how Yibo's character is cruel in some scenes, and asks why he wasn't cruel all the way to the end.

Cheng Er: So you want Yibo to be a villain from beginning to end next time?

(audience yells yes and Yibo smiles)

Next audience member asks about the fight scenes, were there any accidental injuries? (I can't hear her question very well in the video)

Yibo: We had practiced these fight scenes for a long time because we had to make them realistic, but I wasn't injured, thank you (for asking).

MC asks the two to give their final thoughts.

Cheng Er: I am very moved and excited. I'm very grateful to the audience and their supportive feedback. Everyone in the Wu Ming cast has wholeheartedly tried to make a sincere film. So everyone has worked together to bring something that is worthy of being shown to the audience. Even though Yibo says he wasn't injured during the fight scenes, say for instance...ah but don't be too (worried) this all happened in the past...for instance every night he would be able to film four or five takes of the long fight scenes, we didn't film it in cuts so it was very difficult. Yibo would film the fights from beginning to end, so towards the end his knuckles might be worn. He would go back to take care of it. He has a very hard-to-find and valuable earnestness.

Yibo: I am very happy to hear the audience's feedback, that everyone genuinely likes the movie and would think a lot about this movie. I'm surprised that everyone wants this villain role to last until the end. In some sense I've accomplished one of my own dreams. I've said from early on that I would like to try the villain role and in Wu Ming, in some ways I've been able to try this.

Other clips of final words:

Another showing where an audience member asks about the scene with Yibo’s scary smile, whether he had thought to imitate the Joker.

Yibo: I really like Heath Ledger’s Joker. So for you to compare me to him, I am very happy. But in that scene, we did not try to imitate or use any reference. That scene left quite an impression. After the first day of filming we weren’t able to keep any of the footage. I felt a lot of pressure because had filmed from afternoon until the next morning but were unable to use any of the footage. So under that pressure I returned to my room, then returned the next day to complete the filming with this feeling.

Yibo: After seeing so many people like the movie I feel moved. Before in our promos we spoke about exchanging sincerity with sincerity, and to be able to do so in such close proximity, I really feel grateful for everyone acknowledging my performance, I will continue to work hard.

Cheng Er: Honest feedback can help creators to improve and create better films, but one shouldn’t lie or spread malicious slander. From a different perspective, the opinions on a movie are not important and are irrelevant for society. So no matter how you lie or slander, I think it is irrelevant. One thing that is important that I want to mention, is that the habit of lying or being malicious is something that will fester. It will extend to other areas. Today you may have received money to spread lies about a movie, tomorrow you may say something else for the sake of profit. Just like what we just watched, for the sake of profit we might experience so much suffering. I don’t think that we should casually lie or be so malicious over a movie, because this habit will fester. Although these actions may be detrimental for Bona Film Group and for me, it really doesn’t matter, it doesn’t matter for the world. But once it festers, it will eventually harm the individual.

Yibo: Just like Cheng Er said, a movie is just a movie. Maybe after watching a movie you would be left with many thoughts, but you will still continue on with your life. With our movie we hope to exchange sincerity with sincerity. We wholeheartedly filmed this movie and sincerely hope that everyone may like it and sincerely appreciate it. Of course after watching the movie you can not like it, that's not a problem. Exchange sincerity with sincerity. Thank you.

[doevademe]

Nico remaining a catholic while being the son of the lord of hell (and the greek equivalent of Paradise) is just the epitome of irony for me.

That's why I propose the following prompt:

Some random homophobic: y'all are going to hell for your sin!

Percy and Nico share a look before bursting out laughing.

Percy: Been there, done that, bud. A little dark but welcoming when you know the owner of the place.

Nico: Actually got a room for me in a palace there, can't say the same for you tho.

"Why are we here again?" Percy asked as he squirmed uncomfortably. The church parishioners seemed to all be looking at them.

"Because it's my mother's death anniversary," he reminded him. "And for some reason, you decided to accompany me to mass instead of staying home."

"I wanted to support you, Ni," he said. It was the first time he could do something as Nico's boyfriend and not just as his friend. "I just didn't know this was an hour-long thing."

Behind them, an elderly lady shushed them. Nico turned and apologized in a hush.

The rest of the mass went by. Nico distressingly left him to have some white, thin food put in his mouth and come back to kneel. Percy couldn't say he understood, but he imitated Nico as well as he could.

He could see a man in his forties looking at them suspiciously.

Eventually, the priest named Nico's mother when talking about praying for the departed, and soon after the mass was over. Nico took his hand and led him out.

"I think mamma went to heaven," he said softly. "That's why I could never summon her."

Percy looked at him. So that was why he attended mass for her and not Bianca. Nico knew where his sister had gone after death, but Maria di Angelo was another story.

"It was a nice ceremony," he whispered, not knowing what else to say. "I didn't understand half of it, but it was beautiful."

Nico smiled and squeezed his hand.

"That couldn't have been easy for you. Staying still all that time and not understanding why people did things," Nico told him once they were outside. "But thanks for being respectful and... for being there for me."

Percy smiled and kissed him on the cheek.

"If it's important to you, of course I'll be there," he said. "So, that white wafer—"

"I knew it," someone said behind them. They both turned to see the same man that had been glaring at Percy during mass. "Don't you know your kind is not welcome here?"

Percy paled. Had he done something wrong? Was he embarrassing Nico in some way?

"What do you mean our kind?" Nico asked venomously.

"Perverts," he clarified, looking at them in distaste. "People like you shouldn't desecrate the house of our Lord."

Percy blinked.

Oh, so he hadn't done anything wrong during the mass. The guy was just a homophobe.

He let out a sigh of relief.

"I thought Jesus invited everyone to come to him, even sinners," Nico answered with a raised eyebrow.

"If they repent," the man said. "Only hell awaits those like you."

And Nico turned to look at him, raising an eyebrow. Percy stared back.

They both laughed.

"S-sorry dude, but I know for a fact that I won't go there," he said as the man turned redder and redder from anger. "The guy in charge kind of likes me. I have my own room in a palace waiting for me."

"That's sacrilege!"

Percy shrugged.

"I mean, down there is a little cold and drafty, but it's not as bad, and the dead don't feel the cold," Percy added. "If anything, I can say it's not the worst thing that could happen."

"You, though? I doubt you might get more than oblivion," Nico continued. "You're not God's brave defender. You're barely God's anything."

"You—"

"You're worth nothing, and you'll die alone and bitter," Nico said in his son of Hades voice. The man turned white as a sheet. "We're leaving, Percy."

The man stayed quiet as Nico walked ahead of Percy, their hands still linked, until they reached a Starbucks.

"Order anything you like," he said. "My treat, as thanks for going with me."

They didn't talk about that man, and Percy realized it was because he mattered so little to Nico.

"Why go to mass, if you know you're going to the Greek Underworld?" He asked once they were seated. Nico smiled sheepishly.

"It makes me feel closer to my mother," Nico admitted. "I feel like she's with me then."

Percy smiled and kissed his boyfriend, not caring who saw.

"I'm sure she is, Nico."

[bunnyanqel]

A Simple Favor (5)

[1]  [2]  [3]  [4]  [5]

Summary: In return for subbing in their D&D campaign, Lucas's cousin Aliyah asks for one simply thing: a date with Eddie Munson. Unfortunately, he's kind of an idiot and will have to do some groveling to get back in her good graces.

Warnings: nsfw content, MDNI, 18+, a dash of angst, oral sex, vaginal fingering, profanity, mentions of drug use

Dinner wasn’t gourmet—some seasoned rice, pan-seared porkchops, and hearty vegetables—but it was delicious nonetheless. He hadn’t been lying when he said he could cook, and she had to admit reluctantly he was halfway on his way to being forgiven.

But not without some good old fashioned groveling, complete with kneeling, she’d laughed as they lay on his bed. The couch hadn’t been nearly as accommodating for post-dinner sleepiness.

“You want me on my knees?” he asked, a strange current to words, almost like he was excited. But his eyes were dark and serious as Aliyah and he sat in his bedroom, sprawled across his bed.

Half-awake, she absently muttered, “Sure, sure,” and thought nothing when the bed dipped, springs creaking. At least until she cracked an eye open and saw Eddie had sank to his knees right there beside her, looking as pretty as an oil painting.

“Like this?” His voice was soft, gentle as he stared up at her with those big, brown eyes that never failed to make her heart race.

Case in point? Right now. She could feel its pounding, damn-near painful rhythm in her chest as she sat up, suddenly wide awake, the kegs of drowsiness knocked back in favor of white-hot claws of arousal. Her clit throbbed painfully against the seam of her jeans as she shifted, fighting a shudder that escaped as a infinitesimal twitch.

“Eddie, I was kidding!” she squawked but made no move to pull him to his feet or demand he get off his knees.

He simply was a work of art, all sweet innocuous eyes, pouty lips, and with the way his thighs were spread, there was nothing to hide the way his cock filled the fly of his jeans.

“Will you let me apologize?” His gaze was a heavy caress, making her nipples pebble despite the warm air, and she realized he was enjoying this. That he wanted this, and the idea punched the air from her lungs soundly.

Even though every part of her wanted to agree, she couldn’t stop herself from clarifying. “Are you offering because you want to or because you think you should?” If the latter was the case, she’d never forgive herself for wanting to agree. For wanting his tongue on her clit and his hair in her hands.

“Want to,” he said emphatically.

He watched her with unabashed hunger, his face steadily turning red, his eyes shiny and pupils blown so big they almost eclipsed the brown of his irises. He looked wrecked, and they hadn’t even done anything.

She pushed to her feet, unzipped her jeans, and shimmied them down her legs, allowing herself to fall back onto Eddie’s bed. A cloud of marijuana and Axe hit her in the face as she landed, half-raised on her braced hands to look down at him. Christ, he was so pretty between her brown thighs, staring back at her hungrily, like he was dying to get his mouth on her. Like he might die if she denied him. And who was she to stop a starved man?

“Go ahead,” she said in a voice that sounded much calmer than she felt. There was only the inkling of self-consciousness, her fear that her desire was splashed on her face, that vanished the minute he touched her.

His hands were warm and broad, sweeping long, brisk strokes up and down her thighs, teasing her. When she shuddered, hips twitching, he simply looked at her before he continued to take his time. Torture her. Every touch, the whisper of his breath so close to her pebbled little clit, the knowledge it was Eddie Munson that was touching her and that it was his hair tickling her skin made her feel breathless and fuzzy. And like she’d die if he kept moving at a snail’s pace, dragging out every second, driving her up the wall.

She clawed the sheets and fought the overwhelming desire to groan in frustration at the feather-light caress of his touches skimming up and down her thighs. If he didn’t pick up the pace, if he didn’t start doing something other than drive her crazy, she’d kick him in the face. Really, she would. Was he trying to kill her?

Just as she raised onto her hands again to demand more, the scrape of his thumbnails against the crease of her thigh-pelvis area made her jolt like she’d been electrocuted. How had she never known she was so fucking sensitive right there? That it was a direct line to her clit and her nipples, lancing through with white heat that made her fall onto her back.

Her pulse hammered in her ears as she felt movement against her thighs, not the prick of calloused fingers but instead the warm suction of a mouth trailing kisses closer and closer to her pussy. Excitement raced through her, and she whimpered as she blindly reached down and grasped a handful of Eddie’s wild hair.

And yanked.

“Fuck!” he cried out, but it wasn’t pain in his voice. Couldn’t have ever been mistaken for anything other than a man on the edge of losing his control sexually. “I was tryna’ take my time with you. Nice and slow.”

“Fuck that,” she rasped.

He pinched the fat on her hip, and a zing of arousal cut through her pussy. “S’an apology, y’know? Now I just can’t help myself.”

Before she could ask what he meant, her back bowed off the bed at the slight graze of a finger against her clit, hooking into the sopping gusset of her ruined panties and yanking them down with little finesse and almost entirely eagerness. Wam breath cascaded over her pussy folds, making her squeeze her eyes shut in anticipation, every muscle coiled tight, straining for his lips on her clit.

“Please, please, please,” she gasped out, desperate for his touch, for anything he’d give her if it meant she could cum. All the slow touches and the knowledge it was him had done nothing to ease her raging libido; instead, it seemed to have fed it and ratcheted it up.

He was in her face suddenly, a manic gleam in his eye, his face pinched tight with strain. His knees pushed her legs further out, parting her cunt lips, and she shuddered at the air blowing over it from the heating circulating the room. “Lady asks and she shall receive. At any point you wanna stop, just say Hellfire.”

She nodded and slid a hand along the back of his neck, pushing her chest against his. “I understand,” she murmured before she kissed him gently, softly, at odds with the near-violent desire coursing through her.

The kiss was slow and sweet and would’ve been chaste had it not been for the tongue that worked its way into her mouth, twisting and twining around hers.

A hand skimmed down her body, bypassing her breasts and hips in favor of her bared clit, and it was electricity that replaced her blood when his fingers brushed it. Her eyes rolled back into her skull as he stroked and pinched her clit, rolling it tenderly between the pads of his fingers.

He sucked on her tongue until she had to pull away and moan into his neck, clawing at him, trying to drag him closer as he rubbed at her clit. Her hips had a mind of their own now, jerking and drawing little circles, as he worked her over. Stars burst behind her eyes at the pleasure rushing through her, damn near stealing the oxygen from her lungs.

“Oh God, oh God,” she sobbed at the sheer intensity his touch was stoking in her. Her head lolled, resting on his shoulder, and she stared down at his hand between her legs. His fingers found her clit again and again, pushing her pleasure higher and hotter, making her keen loudly and tears brim.

“Not God, sweetheart, but close enough,” he whispered against her ear as he pinched her clit.

She couldn’t bring herself to laugh, not when her mind was emptying of everything except his touch and how her body was on fire because of him. The pressure on her clit, the rasp of his stubble on her forehead, the heat of his body—all of it would be burned into her soul. This moment, Eddie Munson making her pleasure-drunk with his fingers on her clit, making her stupid with it, would stay with her until she died.

Or until she got his cock inside of her.

Either one.

“E-Eddie, I’m gonna—fuck, fuck, uh, uh, uh!”

Words exploded out of her, sounding like the soundtrack of some cheap porno, but she couldn’t stop herself. She clawed at him, shaking and shuddering in his arms, her breath sawing in and out of her lungs at the intense, mounting pleasure. Sweat dampened the back of her T-shirt as he suddenly pulled back, but before she could cry out, she found herself being dragged to the edge of the bed, her legs thrown over his shoulders.

And his tongue was in her cunt, on her clit, batting it and circling it with single-minded focus.

She was soaking wet, feeling it pool in the crack of her ass, onto the comforter, but she was too far gone to care or even remember to be embarrassed. All she knew was he was going to give her an orgasm, that he was going to make the fire go away. That was all that mattered in the moment.

He sucked and slurped, the wet sounds of pussy eating filling the air, as she moaned and vocalized incoherently. Not words, just loud cries of pleasure, half-words, choked and stuttered through tight teeth.

“F-fu—oh! Uh! Uh! G-gonna—” She broke the words off as he gave a particularly sharp pull of her clit, and the pleasure broke over her. It whited her vision and robbed every sense she had, and all she knew was that pleasure. Eddie’s tongue. The smell of marijuana and Axe.

When she finally came back down, slowly, piecing herself back together, she became aware of being held. Of a hand stroking up and down her back, of the broken cords of some rock song behind hummed.

“Holy shit,” she croaked when she relocated her voice. It was a thin, dry rasp that scraped her throat when she spoke.

“How’re you feeling, sweetheart?” he asked gently as his hand quit rubbing her back and instead stroked along her arm, pushing aside the sleeve of her T-shirt. Pleasant warmth followed the path of his fingers.

“Good. Boneless. Thank you, Eddie.” It took her a second to gather enough energy to turn in his arms and she stared up into his eyes. Those big, brown eyes were surely going to be the death of her, she just knew it. “But what about you?”

“I, uh—” He stopped and his face went pink, his gaze shuttering a little. His bottom lip clamped between his teeth. “I kinda…when you…I did too.” His voice broke on the words.

“That’s…kinda of hot,” she admitted meekly. The idea that he was so turned on by her orgasm that he came in his pants was also an insane ego boost, and she smiled. “But for my next favor, I want milkshakes.”

He stilled for just a second, tensing underneath her, before he melted. “Is that right?”

She nodded.

Thank God for simple favors.

[cantfightmoonlight]

A light scoff broke from Chai lips as Ken left his question without an answer. The silence far more telling than any answer Ken might have given would be. A scoff that shifted into a deep laugh as he rolled his eyes over once more. "Which is precisely why I let her go. Believe it or not, I don't have a problem with her making her own choices. It's her life to live, not mine. Same with the others. My problem is when those others, including yourself, take a choice away from someone else or try to dictate how people should live their lives and what choices they should make. It wasn't your place to tell me to sit down. It wasn't hers to convince others to veto me from volunteering which she had done previously before she ran in after Bea and, I didn't have to oppose her either, but seeing that she had already veto'd me stepping in, I retaliated which was a conversation Anna and I had months ago. It's really that simple and, you can say time was not offered for us to sit down and discuss it, but I could also argue that we wasted far more time screaming with each other as to who cared about someone more than making a quick and rational call of 'oh a fae is being held in a iron coffin. Let's send a species whose weakness isn't iron in to save them. You fit the bill. Go.' But, the truth of the matter is vanity got in the way and people got hurt in the process. I had people who I cared about on the line too, but I didn't try pick a fight with you and I didn't try to get in between you and your girl either. And if I did, I would have apologized for it. Because that's kind of the decent thing to do when your actions negatively affect someone else," He rationally explained. But, as he watched Ken's voice grow dark as the other man jumped to conclusions once again, he had to hold back a blatant chuckle. "Judgmental pricks actually," He clarified. "But, it's interesting how that word is your first assumption?"

"I don't think of you as a monster, Ken. A pretentious asshole? Sure. But, as for the factors in the creation of hunters, I think the judgmental pricks comment still stands. Hatred, fear, extremism- it all ties back to prejudice and no offense taken given that I never said humans were fragile or weak nor are they they only species that can be. I said that I did not appreciate being treated as if I was such when I'm not. You took part in treating me like that, for the record, you know with the whole I'd like to see you try comments and acting like you could physically make me sit down. And, while we're on the subject, I'm not the only person in the room that felt like that and I'm not referring to only humans either. Bexley and a handful of others tried to voice their opinions and volunteer only to be shot down too, continuously underestimated and, well, you don't need Shakespeare to tell you that 'violent delights have violent ends'," He countered back.

Only when Ken made his take on the hunters, Chai shot Ken a blatant look of disbelief. "Are you being serious right now? I never said that it was alright for them to harm others, but that doesn't mean they deserved to die!" He shot back. "Your job is to defend the law for god sakes. Taking a life out of an act of self defense is one thing, but that is no where near the same as putting up a bounty on every hunter who stepped over the border's heads and offering up rounds of free drinks for those who do like Aaliyah and half the town did. Or are you honestly telling me that as a lawyer, you don't believe in the right to a fair trial? Grouping the hunters all together and dehumanizing them makes us no different from those who kidnapped Bea or Leyla or anything one else for that matter. And good. Then you know why I'd prefer not to have my morning surf interrupted by your face. Now, is there anything else or are you going to continue to stand there and act like I'm being unreasonable some more?"

Having no answer to that besides the probably unwelcomed 'because it's what I do', Ken responded with a simple shrug and nothing else. That thought was a direct resultant of his job, his lifestyle and mannerisms, it called for an attitude change for Ken to not order people around but that wasn't something that came easy.

"If she didn't want to do it, or was fearful of the potential harm she wouldn't have volunteered," he countered, "Anna made her own choice as did others." But he eventually nodded, "I agree completely. But time was not offered for us to sit down and make a list of who's the best fit and who should go, it had to be first one - everyone knew of the danger. Emotions, I'm told are what happens when people you care about are being hurt and mine happens to be anger." He said this all matter of factly, "People like me?" he voice grew dark, "Monsters, you mean?" Humans, hunters, monster, us, them, the lines blurred in a way.

Despite understanding where he was coming from in his explanation, Ken saw threads of defense as well, which that too he understood. All he had to do was think back to the precise throw of the knife and Chai's anger-filled words that were repeated now and things grew clearer. "People like me aren't the only factors in the creation of hunters, hatred and extremism are too. But if you want to pin that on supernaturals, go right ahead. But no offence Chai, fragility and weakness aren't exclusive to humans, if you've grouped those traits with the species then well, you're the one doing humans a disservice." Most were also quick to forget that some supernatural species started of as human but it seemed futile to bring that up now though, Chai was set in his opinions and Ken wasn't set in changing that, because really what was the point? He could divulge that he had run-ins with hunters, the most recent had him seek out this town but his kind were not innocent either, another fact he knew thanks to his sire. "I know people like me are without blame either, but it's alright to you that these 'bad guys' as you have labelled them, harm others? If I recall correctly, a human was also taken and tortured, I don't think the hunters cared who they were hurting." Now he did laugh, adding a shrug to mix as he spoke, "Think of me as you wish, others opinions on my character don't faze me. I know how I come off."

[sweetainwen]

Deadly Valentine [KNJ]

Summary: when her friend with benefits never wanted to just be that from the moment he realized his feelings.

Pairings: Yandere!fwb!Namjoon x fem!OC (you can think of her as Y/N)

Disclaimer: this story is fictional, so each character is not as described in it. I do not own BTS or any K-pop group who will appear in this fiction.

Warning: mature content ahead, yandere, cbsession, manipolative namjoon (i’m scared myself), slight smut, fluff, killings, Yoongi’s short appearence 

Word count: 5.2k+

Do not romanticise this.

A/N:

it’s my first time writing on tumblr, english is not my first language so i apologize for any grammatical errors and typos.

Happy Valentine’s day!

ENJOY!

The air was different these days.

Red was the dominant color, a few heart-shaped objects to take up space on the streets, hallways apartments and houses.

The preparations of roses, chocolates, teddy bears and other gifts for the person you loved or were interested in were the thought of many people around the shops.

Valentine's Day was just around the corner.

It was a special day. A day in which you could express more love to your other half or have the guts to speak your feelings to your future one.

It was a more romantic way to confess. It felt almost magic.

And that was what Kim Namjoon was going to do on Valentine's day for the person he craved for. His magnificent, intellectual Valentine: Kang Jiyoung.

With her almond-shaped dark green eyes, the color inherited from her spanish mother, tan skin and hourglass-shaped curvy body, she could attract every person around her. But what enchanted people the most was the way she spoke and acted.

When she liked or disliked something, her straightforwardness would come out, but in kind words and never in a harsh manner. If you needed a hand, she was willing to lend it according to her abilities and limitations.

She was soft-spoken and trustworthy. It was hard to find someone like that, which is why he felt lucky.

 He was now watching her enjoy her coffee during her break from work, seated on a bench of the company's terrace with her back facing him.

They worked in the same company but with different tasks and on different floors.

She was an advertising designer while he managed sales and marketing.

There weren’t many chances to meet each other, however, that fateful day marked the beginning of other coincidental meetings.

“Excuse me?”

Stepping out of the elevator onto his respective work floor, a feminice voice reached his ears and shifted his attention, finding her jogging towards him while holding work papers to her chest.

“Yes? Do you need any help?”

“Have you by any chance seen Mr. Choi? From the advertising section? In his fifties, he always wears a colorful tie and hat. And he never stops laughing.”

Namjoon frowned at her description of the man, finding it a little bit amusing. But it was also the best one to be able to identify him, because everyone knew him for his eccentric self.

If you were a new employee, they would tell you what she said now.

“Oh! I saw him in the entrance lobby.”

Her smile appeared immediately and with a slight movement of her head, she thanked him, who smiled back, before heading for the lift while Namjoon resumed his walk.

At first he hadn't noticed, but then it happened often.

They would catch each other in the corridors, outside the company entrance and even on the stairs. The conversations were pleasant and quiet, it was his heart that had started to get noisy.

“Something happened?” he inquired as he seated next to her, a coffee cup between in fingers, getting a sigh as his first response.

“Fatigue and stress. As usual.” Jiyoung took a sip of her coffee, gaze still fixed on the view in front of her.

“Maybe dinner and a nighttime walk in the park can ease your mind?”

She was now looking at him, a mischievous glint in her eyes. “Again?”

“No. Just food and a walk,” he clarified with a shake of his head and a sweet smile adorning his face, which did not go unnoticed by Jiyoung's keen eyes.

Simple and straightforward. The first time he had gathered up his courage to aske her out on a friendly date, he had used those same words. He'd even been nervous of her rejection, but her knowing smirk had made him realize otherwise.

And they would ended up in bed after going out.

Namjoon watched her hum, eyes up to the sky, as if she was considering the proposal, and he chuckled at her funny face.

“It can be done.”

“You just checked your mental agenda of available days?”

She grinned cheekily, “I had to in order to have free time with you.” His heart rejoiced at those words and she glanced at the time on her wristwatch before looking at him again. “My break is ending soon. See you tonight then.”

And after winking at him, she walked off, leaving him with a lovesick smile on his face and heart impatiently waiting for her.

Her smile... The corners of her oh so beautiful and inviting lips turning up...

Her eyes… those dark green orbs watching every movements with a thoughtful glance, as if they wanted to know you deep inside…

He was going crazy.

Like now as he pounded into her, legs wrapped around his hips, on her own bed. Sweat beads rolling down from their temple, neck, chest. Groans and whimpers along with smacking sound of bodies against each other filled the silent apartment.

Arms around his neck, her hands clutched at his hair, pulling at them, thrusting her hips forward to stimulate their bodies further.

His hands firmly on her hips, rubbing his thumbs over the tender skin before pulling her closer to him, his length hitting the right spot, making their eyes roll back.

She lifted herself and connected their lips in a passionate kiss, tongues interwining with each other in a sensual dance as his weight fell upon her.

His chest met hers and he could feel her erected nipples and goosebumps over her body along her walls tightening aroud his shaft, letting him understand how good she was feeling underneath him.

“Shit! Why are you so good at this?” she breathed out erratically, a whisper sending more jolts of pleasure through his heated body and getting a low, deep, guttural chuckle out of him as he put more power behind his thrusts.

“Then let me hear even more how much I make you feel good.”

His teeth nipped at her lips and traveled down to graze over her exposed neck before slightly biting her sensitive spot, causing her to scratch down his bare back as a shaky moan escaped from her.

They weren't just satiating their sexual desire, no, they were binding two souls together through it.

Encounters of lips, intense looks, genuine smiles, attentive and affectionate hands.

He hadn't planned to end the night that way. He'd only invited her for dinner and spent a few hours together, nevertheless the temptress had been convincing, making him fall at her mercy, again.

And now, as she looked at him with eyes clouded with lust and they reach their climax together, Namjoon could also see love in them, filling his heart with insane delight and a sense of belonging.

Kang Jiyoung was the one. He was sure of it.

“Do you have plans for Valentine's Day?”

He was lying on one side on the bed, his arm over her head on the pillow as he stroked her hair and gazed intently at her side profile, the blankets covering their naked bodies.

It was the next morning. Jiyoung let him sleep in her apartment as usual, she didn’t have a problem with that. They’d wake up, smile, say good morning to each other, dress themselves after a shower and go to work in separate ways.

The last action was her decision. Jinyoung hated rumors.

She didn’t want anybody to think they were together, because they weren’t. Theirs was just sexual attraction.

That was was Jiyoung thought.

She glanced at him, perplexed by his question: - What? You too? –

“Only a few days left. It’s february.”

She gasped, eyes wide open at his response, “Oh, crap, dude! Is it valentine's day already?” She rubbed her face with her hands, inhaling deeply. “Now I undestand why people keep asking me that. I totally forgot about it!”

Namjoon giggled. He had a hunch that she had totally erased it from her memory. He’d notice her having a confused expression at her colleagues inquiring about her plans on that day, but it was normal.

From what he could tell, she wasn't a very romantic person and she didn't even care much about Valentine’s Day. Or she just hadn't found the right one.

He was here now, so she could ease her mind.

He followed her with his eyes as she got out of bed and walked over to the dresser on her left, still naked.

“I presume you’re free then.”

“Well…” she took out a new pair of simple black lingerie and turned around with a hand on her hip. “I don't see why I have to have plans. It’s just a day like any other. You don't have to be romantic just that day, you can be romantic all the time or once in a while. It’s just business, a way to make more money. “ at the end of her explanation, she brought the palm of the hand with those two pieces of underwear between her fingers up. The fingertips of the other grazing lightly against it back and forth to emphasize the last word before opening her closet near the dresser to pick a beige tailleur.  “The more people buy, the more money comes into the cash register. That’s what I think.”

“Indeed. You’re not wrong.”

“It doesn't include me, though. It won’t stop me for having fun,” Jiyoung smirked, but Namjoon frowned at that, confused. “It’s just like any other day, remember? I don't give gifts to those I relieve my stress with”

As she exited the room, Namjoon's face had darkened, his hands balled into fists and his heart in turmoil.

Oh, she didn’t just voiced that out, did she?

It was like a sharp blade piercing his heart.

As the days passed, her words were still lingering in his head and it was worse during work.

He believed it was going well, that she would feel something for him at one point. She trusted him, this was a good start, yet he wasn’t making any other progress.

And as he was waiting for her to have a little chat at the end of the outdoor stairs of the building, he witnessed her laugh heartily at something her co-workers had said through the glass door, walking side by side towards the exit.

He desperately wanted to rip that bastard’s head off.

He gritted his teeth and clenched his jaw, hand clutching the handle of his briefcase while diverting his gaze from them.

“Namjoon! How come you're still here?” her gentle and delicate voice reached his ears, earning his attention. “You will catch a cold!”

His eyes shifted to the man who was walking with his back to them before his brown orbs met green ones again.

“I was waiting for you.”

“Me? Do you want to hang out now?” He nodded and she smiled. “I love crepes. Hope you don't mind eating one.”

He froze, caught by surprise by her different attitude. The edges of her lips were tugged upwards in a soft smile, not a wicked one.

Her tone of voice was understanding, gentle. As if she knew he just wanted her company.

He smiled.

After putting their briefcases in their respective cars, they had gone to get crepes and found themselves walking around aimlessly, talking about progress at work and even making jokes.

Moments like these were what bound people together the most. You could understand at least part of the personality of the person in front of you, make it your own and act accordingly.

An important exchange to help you have that person by your side for a long time. What they liked and didn't like, what they believed in or didn't believe in, their morals.

Every step was essential. And if you wanted to take one towards the beginning of love, you had to be ready.

And he was. He longed for an eternity with her. Too much of a fairy-tale style? It didn’t matter. Dreaming of a happily ever after like in storybooks wasn't a crime.

It just showed that you had a belief in forever. Something that had been lost over time due to the fickleness of people.

But if you knew to play your cards, the game was in your hands.

He looked at her with eyes brimming with adoration as she looked around, a residue of Nutella left on her bottom lip after she finished eating her crepe.

His hand moved instinctively and his thumb ended up on it, wiping it off and then bringing his thumb to his mouth, licking off the remains of that sweet food.

Her astonished gaze was on him after that gesture, stopping both of them in their tracks.

A sly smirk tugged at his lips, orbs wickedly expressing his intentions.

Jiyoung smacked him on his shoulder, both getting the giggles after that.

And when their laughter died down, only the chatter of people was surrounding them whilst staring into each other’s eyes. They were not speaking, as if they were figuring each other out with a single glance.

“You are gorgeous when you laugh. I hope you’ve been told that,” he blurted out with a smile that grew wider.

And Jiyoung’s heart clenched with awareness. She could see it, she was not stupid. The light of hope for something more.

“Yeah. I get that a lot.”

She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, eyes darting all over the pubblic place to avoid his, feeling self-conscious.

𝚆𝚑𝚢 𝚗𝚘𝚠...?

Namjoon was a good friend, the perfect friend. He was a open-minded person and for that reason she could talk to him without biases involved. He would give you advice, different points of view on the question spoken…

You would think there were plenty of people like him, but there weren't. He was unique.

That was why she wanted to be friends. Well, leaving aside with beneficts. That was a plus and it just happened. A talk about their interests at his house, a take-away dinner on his coffe table, sitting on his couch. Glances, then a kiss and clothes on the ground.

But now, upon discovering how the situation was taking a turn she had no wish for, perhaps it was best to stop. For both of their sakes.

Maybe it would have been better not to start this.

She inhaled deeply, looking into his tempting, brown orbs again, “Namjoon… uhm… I want to… clarify something. I thought it was an obvious thing, which is why I didn't mention it.”

From her tone of voice and the way she was scratching her neck, he could tell it was a serious talk. And Namjoon also had a guess about what she was going to talk about.

His heart pounded with distress at the different things she could say.

“We are both aware that we are friends with benefits. There is no romantic attachments. But I also know that people's feelings can change. I've noticed how you've been acting differently, so I have to ask...” A small, uneasy smile spread over her face, “Do you have feelings for me? Because if so, to avoid...” She bit her bottom lip whilst looking down pensively, trying not to use the wrong word to describe a future scenario. “hitches of any sort, it's better to end it. Stay away from each other until the feelings begin to... fade.”

She looked at him again, waiting for his verbal answer, but all she saw was his furrowed brow and blinking eyes. And her hands started sweating.

“What? Friends with benefits?” her breath hitched, pupils restricted and hands freezing. “Are we not too old for that? I feel like a teenager now.”

And he broke into a chuckle and a playful smile, making Jiyoung almost lose her balance, but he was ready to support her by holding her arms with his hands.

“You fucking bitch! You scared me!” she spat out angrily, feeling relief after knowing he was just joking, pulling away from him. “I thought you-! Ugh! And no! We’re not old!”

“You should have seen your face. It was hilarious.”

She sulked, “Shut up!”

“I’m curious though. Although it's personal, I wanted to know if it's a previous relationship of yours that ended badly that makes you talk like this.”

He had spoken slowly, seemingly with a calm voice and relaxed body, yet he had a fire of rage inside at the mere thought of someone who had hurt her psychologically and physically in the past.

He would find him and teach him a lesson.

She hummed, tilting her head to one side, “You can say so. But it’s not just that. No one says it but there are, like... rules when you're with someone. Unspoken rules. And for that reason, I felt like a mouse being chased every second by a cat. Freedom is really important to me, so I have always been the one to end a relationship.” she shrugged. “Maybe I’ll change my mind over time, or I’m just not meant for this kind of things. We’ll see. I hope your view of me hasn't changed.”

“Why?” he frowned, perplexed. “You cherish yourself, your opinion and will. A lot of people feel the same as you. I'm aware that this society still doesn't accept this fact when it comes to women, but screw it!“ he moved a hand up in the air at the end, as if to shoo away a fly, before cupping her cheeks and softly putting his forehead against hers, not taking his eyes off her. “ You are important. Everything about you is important.”

“So… you were not mad at me because of what I said that day? About me having fun?”

Uncertainty could be detected in her voice.

It was understandable. His behaviour was a bit cold. Especially in sexual matters. They would just talk, a few hugs, but when she would want to have more, he would deflect the situation. They haven’t done it since that day, so she thought it was due to her words.

It was.

But Namjoon couldn’t tell her that, he didn’t want her to leave him. He couldn’t even tell her that it was doing it on purpose and her reactions were just what he expected.

“Of course not! I’m just stressed these days. And don’t fret…” he the corner of his lips had stretched so wide that Jiyoung could clearly see his dimples. “If I catch feelings for you, or you catch feelings for me, we will stop.”

His thumbs brushed gently over her skin and kissed her, and for a split-second, Jiyoung swore that she saw the whole galazy in his eyes.

And it took her breath away.

Had she really seen wrong? No love involved? Maybe she was aging faster than normal and as a result her eyesight had been failing? Probably.

“Now that we have that settled, are you free tonight?”

She snapped out of her trance and blinked, “Oh! I’m going out with my friends. It’s been a while since I last saw them. Since tomorrow is my day off, I wanted to see them.”

Namjoon hummed and nodded, moving away from her, “Then tomorrow night you’re mine.”  he smirked. “I missed you a lot.”

She smirked back, orbs twinkling with malice. Oh, of course he missed her!

“I can’t wait then.”

It was originally supposed to be dinner out, but her friends had decided to include the nightclub a few blocks from Jiyoung's house to end the night.

It had quickly become known for its efficient service, and they had never tried it. So they had taken advantage of the opportunity.

Jiyoung, knowing that she would end up drunk out of her mind and with a man in bed every time she entered such places, had decided to decline. However, her friends had reminded her that being together again, with work and all, wasn't always possible, so they wanted to have some fun now that they could.

They had also added that her friend wouldn't mind if she went with them, it was just a girls' night out.

Jiyoung had only rolled her eyes at their words.

They had come to visit her one day and had caught Namjoon kissing her on her doorway in the hallway of her apartment floor. And she had explained what was between them.

Although, when they happened to see him, they always said how he was completely into her and that she should go for it, because a man like that wasn't easy to find. The response was just a sense of denial that led them to feel sorry for him, given how much efforts he was putting into it.

But there was nothing they could do about it. It was her life and they could only give her advice. It was up to her to decide whether or not to follow them.

And now Jiyoung was sitting at the bar with her fourth glass of alcohol between her fingers, watching the others dance with someone already eating their faces.

“We want to be with you,” she mimicked their voices, grimacing with her mouth and then pouting. “Such beautiful friends.”

And she gulped down her drink in one go.

“Did your friends ditch you too?”

The loud voice because of the blasting music came very close to her ear and she turned her head, finding a man with feline-shaped eyes staring at her with an amused smile.

Sitting on the stool next to her, he too with a glass in his hand, eyes sparkling likely from being tipsy.

She sighed, placing a hand on her chest melodramatically, “Unfortunately, yes. Saying that they would have fun with me, but leaving me behind as fast as they are with those guys.”

The man chuckled at her performance, taking a sip of his drink, “Don’t fret, madam. This humble man will keep you company if you want him to. And- ” he glanced at the dance floor, eyes focusing on the men entertaining themselves with Jiyoung’s friends. “-the guys who are going to get their freak on, are my friends, my lady.”

She fakely gasped, “What a small world, sir!”

She snorted out a laugh, cheeks that began to take on a red tint from the alcohol.  

They made a toast and exchanged playful glances for their encounter.

They talked for they did not know how long, laughing at a few jokes, the alcoholic drinks starting to kick in. Until, completely wasted, they ended up in her apartment, their lips devouring each other as they reached her bedroom.

The ringing cell phone suddenly woke her up. Her racing heart and the headache from the hangover made that sound deafening. At the exact moment the ringtone ceased, she opened her eyes and looked around, realizing she was in her room.

Then she stared at the digital clock placed on the nightstand next to her side of the bed, but furrowed her brow when she didn't see it. So she turned around and saw it on the other side.

Had she switched sides where she slept? Since when?

It was only at then that she became aware of a figure beside her and her naked body. She grunted and cursed herself mentally. It was to be expected that it would end like this. Maybe she needed to lay off the booze.

Turning on the bedside lamp, she decided to get up, wear her undergarment still on the ground and drink some water to dehydrate herself along with a painkiller for her headache.

Should she tell Namjoon? It seemed the right thing to do. She respected him and didn’t want this to become a secret. She sighed.

While opening the drawer in the bathroom where the medicines were kept, she noticed her hands. Her pupils trembled, trying not to freak out at that red liquid on them. Jiyoung looked around, trying to figure out where it was coming from, until she decided to go back to the man in her bed.

Kneels on the ground and a lump forming in her throat, she took a better loor at his face, noticing it was the same men she had met at the club.

It looked like he was blissfully sleeping. But something was wrong. She couldn't hear him breathing, not even a little. His chest was still, his whole body was.

She shook him lightly by the arm, “Hey, are you okay? Can you hear me? Can you wak-”

The light barely illuminated the room, as only one was on, so she didn't notice the strange black shadow on his neck. She gulped, dismissing the horrible thought that was taking shape in her mind and giving heed to another less frightening one. Like a birthmark.

Yes, probably a birthmark.

However, when she decided to turn on the other lamp to get a better look, the sight before her was gruesome, giving life to what she feared.

It was not a birthmark, but actually blood that had leaked from a cut jugular vein. His neck was awfully halfway open. Her eyes followed those trails of scarlet liquid that had run down his chest, until they reached his stomach completely disfigured by deep gashes that have formed a hole in it. The weapon had violently penetrated the flesh, almost showing the intestines. The floor had traces of that crime too.

Jiyoung began to hyperventilate, hands to tremble, face to turn pale and heart pressed by fear, shock and disbelief, falling backwards on the ground. She couldn’t breath. Her head exploding.

It was a nightmare! It was not real! It couldn’t be! It fucking couldn’t!

Her ears felt like they were ringing, everything was muffled, even the incessant cell phone ringing. All she could hear clearly were her irregular breaths.

He was dead! He was dead! He was dead! This stranger had died in her house and she couldn't remember shit!

What was she supposed to do? How had this happened? Why here? Why her? When had this happened? Why didn't she remember anything? Was she so out of it that she couldn't?!

Tears began to roll down her face, dreading the consequences this would bring on her.

“Jiyoung! Are you home? You left your door open! What’s going on in your head?!”

Namjoon’s worried voice echoed cloud and clear in her apartment, frightening her even more.

𝚆𝚑𝚢 𝚗𝚘𝚠?! 𝚆𝚑𝚢 𝚒𝚜 𝚑𝚎 𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚗𝚘𝚠?!

Everything was a blur and her heart had gone berserk. She couldn’t move. He would think she was the culprit, everyone would think she was the culprit!

It would be her downfall. Her life would be destroyed. A stigma attached to her.

And when her name was called, so close, disbelief distinctly audible in his voice, she knew it was over.

Turning her head, their eyes met. Then Namjoon shifted his attention to the man.

“I… I don’t know what happened.” her voice cracked, orbs fixed on the dead body again. “I woke up. I… found him like this. I… I’m… I… I don’t remember… I…” she sobbed, more tears coming out uncontrolled.

Her vision was blurred, but she still managed to notice Namjoon kneeling in front of her and cupping her face in his hands, thus blocking her view of the body.

“Hey, hey, hey! Look at me, Jinyoung.” he was gentle, eyes glossy, caressing her cheeks to soothe her. “Now we’re going to clean this up now, ok? You didn’t do anything. It was an accident.” his forehead was now against hers, never losing eye contact.

“I’m scared, Namjoon.”

A faint whisper. Anxiety, terror, helplessness. Namjoon’s heart wept at the state she was in. Hiding this crime was wrong, but she was his Jiyoung.

His life.

“They haven't fixed the security cameras yet, have they?” she shook her head furiously, lips quivering. “Then we’re lucky.” he smiled faintly. “Do you have any large black trash bags?”

“What…?”

“I need them for the body.”

She nodded, blinking her tears away, “Yes. Yes, there are.”

“Good. Wear something now, it’s cold.”

And the disposal of proofs began.

Namjoon wrapped the corpse in the blood-soaked sheets along with his clothes and the knife used to kill him which was found under the bed. He put it in several trash bags, using tape to keep them in place. He later carried it over his shoulder towards the emergency stairs, tossing it in his car trunk and left.

Jiyoung instead started cleaning the room with what was most effective in removing stains like those.

The sun had now risen and after washing up, she was now sitting on the living room couch, an ID card in her hands taken from the wallet found on the floor. The man's.

Min Yoongi.

She killed Min Yoongi. A son, maybe a father, boyfriend, husband.

Guilt creeped in.

Hands appeared in her line of sight, taking from her fingers the card that reminded her of the sin she had committed, placing it on the coffe table.

“I killed someone. My hands… the blood…”

Namjoon wrapped his arms around her, shushing her tenderly. He rocked her from side to side, trying to calm her down.

“It was an accident. You would never do it intentionally.”

He kissed her head, closing his eyes. And Jiyoung burst out crying, holding onto him tightly.

“Please, please, please… Don’t leave me… Please…”

“I already called to have my day off. I’m here. I won’t leave, darling.”

She fell asleep between his arms whilst his fingers were stroking her head. He tightened his grip on her and a smirk formed on his lips.

The attachment of one person to another had various forms. And this was one of them.

Feeling grateful, fear of losing the one person who had helped you during an unexpected and frightening moment.

You also had control over that situation. The person would see you from a different point of view. A guide, a helper, a lifeline.

Creating a bond of complicity. A strong, unbreakable connection. Maybe love.

He knew she would give in to her friends' request, making his job easier. He also knew she would wake up with the ringtone of her phone.

But no one would know that he had made a copy of Jiyoung's apartment keys. That he had waited patiently to get in and ruin the man who had dared to sleep with his Jiyoung after making her inhale chloroform to prevent her from hearing the atrocity going on. That he had heard the man's muffled screams caused by his hand over his mouth as he penetrated his flesh with the knife. That he had buried the deceased person under meters of soil in the woods.

If you knew how to play your cards, the game was in your hands.

Namjoon took out his phone, looking at the date and time.

February 14.

9:30 am.

He laid his head on hers, an euphoric feeling pervading his body.

“Happy valentine’s day, sweetie.”

Silence attended that eerie, out-of-place whisper.

[btsqualityy]

I Choose You

Taehyung x Reader

Genre: ABO (Alpha/Beta/Omega) dynamics, crushes-to-lovers, kind of a soulmate!AU (it’s based on their scents), fluff, and smut

Warnings: Oral sex (Male and female receiving), unprotected sex, dirty talk, soft Dom!Taehyung, impregnation kink, and creampie 

Author’s Note: This fic is based on a prompt from the Spring Fest “Spring Will Come Again” hosted by @bangtanarmynet! I hope you guys enjoy it!

Prompt: Every Spring Fest, the unmated Alphas had to choose a mate but when Taehyung felt a pull, he didn’t expect it to lead to you.

“Come on!” Taehyung whined loudly. “Just tell me!”

“You know that I cannot tell you who is participating in the Mating Ceremony Tae,” Jimin giggled. “It’s against pack rules.”

“Alright, well just give me a clue,” Taehyung tried to bargain. The two of them were sat outside in the territory that belonged to their pack, deciding to enjoy their lunch in the newly nice weather.

“You know, to be an Alpha, you have no sense of patience,” Jimin laughed.

“And for you to be an Omega, you have no sense of loyalty to your best friend,” Taehyung pouted.

“Oh God, he’s pulling out the pouts,” Jimin groaned playfully. “If you’re so impatient about not being able to know who’s participating in the Ceremony beforehand, then why are you even doing it?”

The Mating Ceremony was an age old tradition in Taehyung’s pack that occurred every year, right at the start of the Spring Festival. For people who still believed in soulmates, the Mating Ceremony was an unbiased opportunity for those people to find the one that their soul desired. The Omegas and Betas would gather together, with their faces hidden, and it was up to an Alpha to use only their sense of smell to find the scent that they liked the most. 

Of course, a lot of people felt that scents weren’t the only important thing when it came to building the foundation of a relationship as time has passed but it was still an honored and revered tradition nonetheless. 

“Besides the fact that literally everyone that I know has found their mate during the Ceremony?” Taehyung huffed. “The fact that I’m almost 26 years old and haven’t found my mate yet.”

“Oh please, you say that as if you’re old and if you’re old, then I’m old,” Jimin said as he rolled his eyes. “And I’m definitely not old.”

“Well, you say that because you’re not alone,” Taehyung pointed out. “My parents found each other 27 years ago, Yoongi hyung found you three years ago, Joon hyung found Aareum the year before that, and hell, even Jin hyung found Jungkookie last year. Too long, didn’t read, I’m gonna die alone if I don’t do it.”

“I feel so bad for your future mate because you are so fucking dramatic,” Jimin laughed as he reached over and stole a French fry off of Taehyung’s plate.

“You’d have time to warn them if you’d just tell me who’s joining this year,” Taehyung tried to persuade him. “Come on, what’s the point in having the Head Omega as your best friend if he doesn’t supply you with useful information?”

“Oh, and here I was thinking that I was your bestfriend because I’m your platonic soulmate,” Jimin scoffed. “Look Tae, the entire point of the Mating Ceremony is to let your heart and your nose do the deciding for you. If I tell you who’s participating and who’s not, it’ll cloud your judgement and then the whole thing will be moot.”

“Ugh, fine Mr. “I wanna be ethical”,” Taehyung sighed as he stood up from the table. “I gotta go and finish up my gift for the Ceremony so I’ll see you later.”

“See you later, Pouty Pants,” Jimin giggled as he waved his hand and Taehyung began to walk around the territory. He wasn’t lying when he said that he needed to go finish working on his courting gift, but he figured that it wouldn’t hurt to take a walk around the pack’s territory before he did.

Taehyung’s pack was pretty tight knit, though it was considered to be considerably larger than the other surrounding packs. Even though Taehyung’s family weren’t the ones who founded the pack, his great-great-grandfather was one of the first members to join the pack so Taehyung‘s family line literally had stakes in the very beginning of the pack. 

Growing up, Taehyung had been pretty well known around the pack but after he presented as an Alpha, it was as if he were a celebrity. Every unmated Alpha, Beta, and Omega seemed to be after him and admittedly, he had enjoyed the attention for the last few years but now, he was ready to find his mate, settle down, and start a family.

Just as Taehyung walked around the corner that separated the school building and the doctor’s house, he collided with a figure that had literally rushed into him. 

“Hey!” Taehyung yelped, gasping when the papers that the person had been holding fell down onto the ground. 

“Oh my gosh,” you whispered, bending down and beginning to pick the papers up. Taehyung bent down as well, helping when he realized who you were.

“Y/N?” He called and you looked up at him, your eyes widening when you realize who he was.

“Oh Taehyung, I’m so sorry,” you apologized, bowing your head to him.

“No no no, it’s ok. Don’t worry about it,” he assured you. “Just let me help you with these.”

“I already ran into you, you don’t have to,” you tried to say but Taehyung just cut you off.

“I want to,” he chuckled and you just decided to let it go as the two of you finished picking up all of the fallen papers. Once you were both done, you stood up straight and Taehyung handed the small stack of papers that he had collected over to you. 

“So, where were you off to that has you in such a rush?” Taehyung wondered with a smile. 

“Well, uh, the start of Spring marks the halfway point in the second half of the schoolyear for the pups so I was in a rush to get their progress reports finished,” you explained and Taehyung couldn’t help but to smile at how shy you still seemed to be around him. 

The two of you knew of each other from around the pack and you went to school together, being as though the two of you were born in the same year. Because of that, you both had a lot of mutual friends but the two of you never hung out much because you were really shy and seemed almost scared of Taehyung so he always made sure to give you your space. 

“Ah, you do work in the school building,” he chuckled.

“With the seven to nine year olds,” you smiled. 

“I remember, I remember,” he nodded. “Well, besides that, how are you?”

“Good, good,” you replied. “Busy as ever this time of year, but good. How about yourself?”

“I’m good, just preparing for the Spring Festival, ” he told her. 

“Oh, are you doing the Mating Ceremony this year?” You asked and he nodded his head. 

“Are you?”

“I’ve never done it before and I don’t think I’ll start now,” you giggled. “It’s not really my thing.”

“What, finding your soulmate isn’t your thing?” Taehyung teased.

“No, I meant that not being picked by anyone wouldn’t be my thing,” you clarified. 

“Oh please, somebody would definitely choose you,” Taehyung said. “I know that we don’t talk much but anyone can see that you’re a good woman and a great Omega. I bet that any Alpha would be proud to have you be their mate.”

“Oh,” you uttered in surprise, and Taehyung couldn’t help but to feel a little sense of pride at how flustered he had made you. “T-Thank you Taehyung.”

“You’re welcome,” he grinned. 

“W-Well, I have to go,” you murmured. “See you around?”

“Yeah, see you,” Taehyung agreed but he didn’t know if you’d even heard him because you were already walking, almost running, away from him.

.....................................

Even though the Spring Fest was being held during the first week of April, Taehyung had made the decision that he’d be participating back in December of the previous year and this was because he wanted to make sure he had enough time to prepare his courting gift. A courting gift would show his future mate that he was serious about them so it took Taehyung a lot of thought to decide what he wanted to give his future mate. In the end though, it was actually Taehyung’s mother who helped him. 

He off-handedly mentioned that he was trying to figure out a gift and she ended up giving him his great-grandmother’s engagement ring. It was a ruby that sat on a nest of gold diamonds, with a gold band to accompany it. Taehyung was familiar with it because it was a family heirloom and he was so honored that his mother trusted him with it. 

When the first day of the Spring Fest arrived, Taehyung made sure that the ring box was nestled safely in the pocket of his slacks before he checked his appearance in the mirror. Wanting to look his best, he settled on a button up dress shirt that was a deep maroon color and paired it with black slacks. He added a few simple accessories like a few rings on both hands and earrings but he skipped any necklaces or bracelets, wanting to makes sure that nothing would get in the way of someone being able to smell his scent. 

“Let’s go find our mate,” Taehyung whispered to himself, making sure to fix his hair one last time before hurrying up and rushing out of the front door of his house. 

The Mating Ceremony was to be held in the large flower garden that was towards the back of the pack’s territory. The logic behind it was that finding your soulmate amongst beautiful things would help your relationship with said soulmate be beautiful as well. 

When Taehyung got there, he immediately spotted Jin and Jungkook sitting together on a bench so he walked over to them. 

“Hi Tae hyung!” Jungkook greeted him happily. 

“Hi,” Taehyung replied. “You guys came for moral support?”

“You know it,” Jin nodded. “You look really good Tae-ah.”

“Ready to find your soulmate?” Jungkook wondered.

“Thank you, and hopefully,” Taehyung sighed heavily. “I’m so nervous.”

“Don’t worry hyung, all you have to do is trust your nose,” Jungkook told him. 

“Kook’s right, you know our senses will never purposefully lead us wrong,” Jin added. 

“Thanks for the advice guys,” Taehyung chuckled, reaching out and ruffling Jungkook’s hair a little. Suddenly, a voice erupted over the loud speakers that had been placed around the garden. 

“The Mating Ceremony is about to commence,” the voice that Taehyung recognized as Jimin announced. “If you are offering a gift, please get into position.”

“Well, that’s my cue,” Taehyung said.

“Relax and don’t worry,” Jin advised him. “Just...let it happen.”

“Ok,” Taehyung nodded before turning around and walking over to a large wall of white roses. Falling into line with several other Alphas and Betas who were also participating in the Ceremony, he waited with baited breath as another line of Omegas and Betas stepped into the garden and walked over to stand right in front of the wall of roses. 

Every Omega or Beta had a veil or mask over their face so that they couldn’t be seen, and their own choice of outfit but most of them were dressed pretty formally, just like Taehyung was. 

“Alphas and Betas who are presenting gifts, you know the rules,” Jimin spoke up again. “No sneaking a peek at anybody until you offer them your gift and they actually accept it, no trying to force your gift upon anyone who makes it clear that they do not want it, and trust your instincts! Happy finding!”

Taehyung then closed his eyes, taking a deep inhale in order to smell the air around him. He picked up a few scents here and there, with hints of chocolate and mint but none of them especially stuck out to them. He then opened his eyes and they slightly widened when he saw some of the Alphas and Betas already offering gifts to some of the Betas and Omegas who had been waiting. He had to admit, it kind of shocked him because it was seemingly so simple for them but not for him. Deciding to follow everyone’s advice and trust his senses, he shut his eyes again and took another deep breath it, and that was when he smelled it.

The initial wave that hit his nose was reminiscent of tangerines, and then that was mixed with the scent of berries that seemed to almost intermingle with the tangerine scent. Those were two very typical scents, especially for Omegas, but what really caught Taehyung’s attention was the scent of pink champagne. It was something that he had never smelt in a scent before and before he could even realize it, he was moving towards the source of the scent.

When he realized that he had stepped up to the person that the scent belonged to, he took a second to look over them. It seemed to be a woman, who had on a flowing white dress along with a small matching white veil. Taehyung reached out and extended his wrist towards their nose for them to be able to smell his scent clearly and when the woman let out an appreciative hum, Taehyung’s heart clenched because this was it. He had found the one. 

Taehyung reached into his pocket and took out the ring box, extending it towards the woman. The woman then reached out and took the box from it, a soft giggle coming from her as she did so.

“Thank you,” the woman said and Taehyung’s eyes widened because he recognized the voice, he just couldn’t remember where from. When the woman reached up and lifted the veil back from her face, Taehyung wanted to kick himself for not immediately recognizing who the voice came from. 

“Hi,” you smiled. 

.....................................

“I cannot believe that I didn’t know that it was you,” Taehyung huffed.

“Well, that’s kind of the point Taehyung,” you giggled from your spot on his bed. After the ceremony had ended, Taehyung invited you back to his house so that the two of you could have some alone time.

“I just didn’t expect this,” he said as he sat down next to you.

“Are you...upset that I’m your mate?” You asked wearily and Taehyung immediately shook his head.

“No!” He exclaimed. “Even though we don’t talk much, I know that you’re amazing. Hell, Jungkook raves about you all the time. I also meant what I said the other day.”

“W-Well, that’s good,” you replied shyly. “By the way, I’m sorry for not talking to you much over the years.”

“Ah, don’t worry about it,” he shrugged. “I just figured that you were shy and I don’t mind that.”

“It wasn’t shyness, though,” you blurted and his eyebrows rose. 

“Really?”

“The truth is, I’ve had a crush on you since you presented,” you confessed. 

“Y/N, that was almost 10 years ago,” he gasped in surprise. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

“Because I never thought that I had a chance,” You chuckled. “For years, every unmated Omega and Beta and even some Alphas have been after you. When you look at them and then look at me, I’m not as interesting or as beautiful when compared to them. I don’t know, I just don’t think that I measure up.”

“Hey, don’t say that,” Taehyung admonished you. “You’re gorgeous Y/N-ah, and the sweetest person I know.”

“Really?” You deadpanned.

“Absolutely,” he nodded. He could tell that you didn’t believe him though, so he decided to be honest. “You wanna know something?”

“Hmm?”

“I’ve had a crush on you too,” he admitted, making your eyes widen. “Not for as long as you have, but at least two years. I just never made a move because you seemed so shy around me and I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable because I figured that you just weren’t interested.”

“Seriously?” You gasped and he nodded. “We’re a big pair of idiots then, huh?”

“Definitely,” he laughed as he reached over and grabbed both of your hands in his. “It’s a good thing that we both decided to participate in the Ceremony then, huh?”

“Another confession? I only joined because I was hoping that my Omega would be able to say to your Alpha what I’ve never been able to bring myself to say aloud,” you told him. 

“And what is that?”

“That I want to be with you, Kim Taehyung,” you replied. Taehyung felt his Alpha preen at your confession and it wasn’t that Taehyung had doubted the validity of the Ceremony but actually being able to feel the connection between the two of you only solidified everything for him.

“I want to be with you too Y/N L/N,” he smiled. “Can I kiss you?”

“Please,” you giggled and Taehyung let go of your hands to set his hands on your cheeks, leaning forward and pressing his lips to yours. The kiss began soft at first, the both of you feeling a little nervous since this whole thing was so new.

It wasn’t until you laid back on the bed, pulling Taehyung down along with you that the two of you became more comfortable, you opening your mouth and allowing his tongue to slide against yours. Taehyung set his hand on your thigh, gently tracing random shapes with his fingertips as you kissed each other passionately.

“Y/N, I have to ask you something,” he murmured and you pulled away from his lips to look up at him. 

“What is it?”

“Are you a virgin?” He wondered and you felt your cheeks warm up immediately. “I’m not trying to be intrusive or anything, I just want to know so that I can gauge how comfortable you are.”

“Do you remember when I dated Xiumin?” You asked him and he rolled his eyes.

“That dickhead? Yeah,” he huffed.

“I lost my virginity to him.”

“Well, I can’t say that I’m in love with that piece of information,” he admitted.

“I only dated him because I was trying to get over you, which sounds really bad when I say it out loud,” you laughed. “That was around the same time that you were dating Jisoo.”

“Ah,” he said as he set his fingertips over your lips to silence you. “We don’t mention that forbidden name.”

“Ok, sorry,” you giggled. 

“So, if I told you that I want to have sex with you tonight,” Taehyung began, making your lower half clench around nothing. “Would you want to?”

“Yes,” you rushed out. “I want to.”

“Good, because I want to too,” he smiled before leaning down and kissing you again. You moaned into his mouth when he moved over so that he was on top of you, his lips never leaving yours as he did so. He then trailed his lips downwards, licking and sucking on the skin of your neck. 

“Ohh,” you sighed in pleasure, reaching down and tangling your fingers in his hair. Taehyung pulled away and reached up to grab your hands, untangling them from his hair and holding your wrists firmly when he placed them back down on the bed above your head, holding them there. 

“You keep these here for me, ok?” He asked and you could tell from his tone that he was both asking for permission and clarification. 

“Ok,” you whispered and he smiled. 

“Perfect Omega,” he murmured as he went back to kissing your neck and you had to clasp your hands together because you were too tempted to reach down and touch him again. After he had left a few marks on your neck, he brought his hands up and grabbed onto your breasts which made you gasp.

“As beautiful as this dress is Y/N-ah, I think we should take it off now. Yeah?” Taehyung suggested and you nodded your head rapidly. He moved off of you so that you could sit up and he moved around the bed on his knees so that he was behind you. He reached out and pulled down the zipper on your dress, and you reached up and pulled the dress down off of your shoulders. Once your arms were out of it, you got up onto your knees and pushed it down your legs and onto the floor. 

“Fuck, you’re gorgeous Y/N-ah,” he muttered huskily as he took in the sight of you in your stark white bralette and white lace panties. Your Omega preened at his praise, making your cheeks warm up.

“Really?”

“Really,” he smiled, moving back around your body and leaning down so that he was face to face with your breasts as he reached out to grab ahold of them. “I’m so fucking lucky.”

“I’m the lucky one,” you whispered as he pulled the material of the bralette to the side, causing both of your breasts to fall out. Without another word, he leaned forward and sucked your nipple into his mouth. You couldn’t help but to fall back on the bed, Taehyung falling along without a problem and not letting up on the onslaught that was his tongue.

Once your nipple had stiffened to a peak, he switched over to your other nipple and gave it the same treatment. You could smell your scent from in between your thighs, the notes of berries and pink champagne becoming stronger and stronger the wetter you became. 

You knew Taehyung could smell you too, because you could feel the outline of his hard cock against your inner thigh. 

“Fuck, Alpha,” you whimpered. “Wanna suck you off.”

“Whatever you want baby,” he agreed easily after pulling his mouth away from you, sitting up and reaching down to unbutton his slacks. You sat up, watching with hooded eyes as he unzipped them, pushing them down a little bit so that he was able to pull out his cock and your mouth literally watered at the sight of it. 

Taehyung’s cock wasn’t enormous, but it was definitely longer than average and it looked to be thick. You reached out and wrapped both of your hands around his length, and you felt yourself become wetter when you realized that you couldn’t even wrap your hands around him completely.

“Fuck, I can smell you baby,” he grumbled and you moaned softly at the pet name. “Do you like what you see?”

“Mmhm,” you nodded, leaning forward and wrapping your lips around the head of his cock. He exhaled harshly, looking down to watch as you did your best to take as much of him in your mouth as possible. You actually managed to do pretty good, doing your best to breathe through your nose as you sunk down closer and closer to the base of his cock. 

“Oh fuck,” he huffed. “Such a good girl, taking Alpha’s cock down your throat.” Bringing your hands back up, you stacked both of them on top of each other as you jerked him off while suckling on the head of his cock. 

“God, that feels good. Makes me want to fuck your throat,” he grumbled. “You gonna let me do that one day baby? Gonna let Alpha use your mouth?”

“Mmm, yes Alpha,” you gasped after releasing him from your mouth, your spit acting as lube as you continued to jerk him off. 

“Fuck, lay down for me,” he instructed you. “I have to taste you.” You didn’t hesitate to follow his instructions, laying back on the bed and resting on your forearms as you watched him push his slacks and boxers down and off his legs before he moved onto unbuttoning his shirt. 

He wasn’t overly muscular but you could still see the outline of what would be a six-pack, and your inner Omega loved the fact that your Alpha would be able to protect you if need be. 

Taehyung laid down on his front in between your legs, pulling your panties to the side before leaning forward and licking a stripe up your pussy, from your slit up to your clit. You gasped, your thighs involuntarily coming to together but Taehyung’s hands came up to push them back down. 

“Be still and let me make you come baby,” he whispered and you nodded numbly. He then went back to licking at you, making you whine and squirm underneath him. 

“Huh, holy shit,” you gasped, your chest beginning to move up and down quickly as your orgasm approached you. “Please don’t stop Tae.”

“Mmm,” he moaned against you, shaking his head back and forth over your clit which made his tongue do the same. 

“Do that again,” you requested and he obliged you, shaking his head back and forth rapidly and you felt your orgasm winding to it’s end in your abdomen. “Fuck yes, I’m gonna come.” Your head fell back onto the bed and just as you closed your eyes and felt yourself about to tip over the edge into ecstasy, Taehyung pulled away from you. 

“What?” You whimpered as you opened your eyes, looking down at him. 

“I want you to come on my knot,” he told you. He reached out and grabbed the band of your panties, pulling them down your legs and throwing them onto the floor. He then settled himself in between your thighs, leaning down and letting his cock rub against your clit. 

“If you want me to come on your knot, you shouldn’t do that,” you whimpered.

“You could come like this?” He wondered in awe and you nodded your head. “We’re gonna have to test that out one day.”

“We have the rest of our lives for that,” you promised him. 

“You got that right,” he smiled, moving his hips so that he could slide inside of you. You wrapped your legs around his waist, your hands gripping onto his arms as he slowly opened you up. 

“Fuh, fuck,” you stuttered, your eyes fluttering closed at how good he felt inside of you, stretching you out in the best way.

“God, you’re so tight but you’re opening up so well for me baby,” Taehyung grunted, making sure to push his hips as close to yours as he could so that he could go as deep as possible. “You really are my mate, huh?”

“Yes,” you whispered, your mind barely being able to comprehend his words because the feeling of being completely and utterly clouded all of your senses. He continued to roll his hips against yours, his cock dragging against your walls as he did. 

“You have no idea how much I’ve wanted this, how much I’ve thought about this,” he muttered. “I’d see you walking around the territory all shy, keeping your eyes low so that people wouldn’t approach you and all I could think about was that you were the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen and how much I wanted to fuck you with my knot.”

“Mmm, knot,” you slurred, making Taehyung smile because of course knot was the word that you caught. 

“I’d watch you with the pups, teaching them and being so gentle and patient with them and my only thought would be about how I wanted to fuck some pups of my own into you so that you could be their mother,” he groaned, his hips stuttering slightly when he felt your walls clench around him like a vice grip. “Oh, you want that? Want Alpha to give you some pups?”

“Fuck yes,” you moaned wantonly, moving your own hips so that you were fucking back onto him. “Want your cum, want a pup.”

“I’ll give it to you baby,” he swore as he began to fuck you faster. “Alpha will give you anything you want.”

“W-want you,” you whined as you felt your orgasm quickly building back up again. 

“You have me baby,” he chuckled deeply. “You always have, I think.”

“A-alpha, g-gonna c-c-come,” you managed to utter as your body moved up and down the bed, the force of Taehyung fucking you literally moving you on the bed. 

“Go ahead so that I can knot you gorgeous,” he encouraged you. You reached down and set your fingertips on your clit, only managing to make two circles on it before you were coming. Your thighs spasmed and clutched around Taehyung’s waist, the rest of your body shaking on the bed from how forceful your orgasm was. 

“T-Tae,” you whimpered, your body shivering even after the crest of your orgasm had passed. Taehyung leaned down, pressing soft kisses against your face that were in stark contrast to how he was still fucking you. 

“So good for me baby,” he whispered. “Came so prettily for me.”

“Kiss me,” you pleaded weakly and he just smiled at you before pressing his lips against yours. The force coming from how hard he was thrusting into you caused your mouth to fall open and Taehyung didn’t hesitate to stick his tongue inside, exploring around.

You literally felt his cock pulse inside of you and before you could pull away in order to ask, ropes of his cum flooded into you. His knot inflated immediately afterwards, making you moan as it forced its’ way inside of you. 

“Holy shit Y/N-ah,” he panted as he hid his face in your neck, collapsing on top of you. “I don’t think I’ve ever come so hard in my life.”

“Me either,” you admitted with a giggle. “I loved it though.”

“Me too,” he muttered as he pulled himself up so that he could look down at you. “I know this is probably a weird thing to ask given what we just got finished doing, but you accept the fact that you’re my mate right?”

“Tae, of course,” you smiled. “My Omega would hate me if I rejected you and you know our wolf side doesn’t lie.”

“I guess I just wanted to know if it was as strong for you as it was for me,” he mumbled and you placed your hands on his cheeks, making him look down at you. 

“You’re my mate Kim Taehyung,” you told him. “I knew it and felt it the moment that you gave me your wrist and I smelled your scent.”

“I knew it too,” he smiled. “I’ll give you your bite in the morning, I’m just too tired right now.”

“No complaints from me,” you laughed. “Coming so hard can definitely take a lot out of a person.” Taehyung then laid his head down on your chest and you reached up, setting your hands in his hair as you began to play with the sweaty strands.

“I’m so glad that my Alpha chose you,” he muttered sleepily and you could feel the goofy smile spread onto your face before you leaned down and kissed the top of his head. 

“Me too Tae,” you sighed in contentment. “Me too.”

[marwritesgood]

Only You | S. Basset

Pairing: Simon x WOC!Reader

Timeframe: Season One

Summary: While Y/n prepares to leave London, Simon is confronted by Philippa.

PART ONE

masterlist

A/N: One more part after this :)

Y/n sat with the eldest of her cousins in the drawing-room. Despite the number of workers present and eligible, young Elizabeth begged her older cousin to braid her hair before she left. Y/n could not resist her sweet smile. She also knew she would miss Philippa’s children terribly, just as she would Philippa.

“There you are!”

Y/n and Elizabeth jumped at Philippa’s abrupt call. 

“I’ve called for a carriage as you requested, my dear,” Philippa began as she sat with her niece and daughter. She could no longer bring herself to hide her concern and sorrow. “Though I hope you know there is still plenty of time to reconsider your decision.”

Even if it were at the very last moment, if Y/n were to say she wanted to stay, Philippa would be ready to call it off in a moment’s notice. 

“My mind is decided, aunt Philippa,” Y/n responded monotonously. She intentionally averted her eyes from her aunt. Philippa knew her niece far too well. Y/n’s best chance at concealing her genuine emotions was to avoid looking her aunt in the eye.

Truthfully, she was terrified. Y/n had become accustomed to floating through seasons with no intention of marrying anytime soon. The prospect of finally accepting a marriage proposal, to a man she had no sincere desire to marry, was frightening. She could not let Philippa know for fear that she would convince her to do otherwise. 

“Lizzie,” Philippa whispered to her daughter. “Dear, please join your siblings in the other room.”

Y/n sighed defeatedly. She should have known better than to think she could keep anything from her aunt. Her cousin exited the room in a half-done braid, leaving Y/n to stare at her hands while her aunt studied her intently.

“You must understand the magnitude of what you plan to do,” Philippa said worriedly. That is what she feared most of the situation. She could not bear the thought of Y/n being miserable because of a decision she made in the heat of the moment. “I know you are hurt, dear, but you do not have to leave so soon.”

Y/n sniffled, taking her aunt by surprise. She could no longer hold back her tears. Not after the exhaustingly painful week, she had endured. 

“I do, aunt Philippa,” Y/n cried, laughing bitterly. Philippa’s brows knitted together in both confusion and concern. “I cannot bear to stay in London another day... The longer I stay here, the harder it will be to leave.”

Philippa frowned, lifting her hands to wipe Y/n’s tears away. She had not yet found out what happened between her niece and Simon. All she could conclude was that Y/n’s heart was broken finally again.

“He admitted to courting Miss Bridgerton,” Y/n explained. It pained her to recount what Simon said the night before, but she felt it was the only way to put rest to Philippa’s attempts to keep her in London. “- and he admitted he intends to marry her.”

Philippa inhaled sharply, closing her eyes tightly as she did so. Though she did not have an incredibly close relationship with Simon, she always believed him to be a good man. A man who cared deeply for her niece. 

Glancing back to her niece, Philippa pursed her lips and pulled Y/n into her arms, hugging her closely. As she cried softly into her shoulder, anger began to erupt within Philippa. Y/n was the last person she deemed worthy of such heartbreak.

“The carriage will be here before evening,” Philippa informed Y/n, who was grateful that she would no longer keep her from leaving. “I have one matter to attend to, but I will be home before you to leave.”

Y/n nodded before returning to her younger cousins. Once she left, Philippa called for a carriage to take her to the Danbury estate. She had more than a few unkind words to offer the Duke of Hastings.

***

Simon found himself, yet again, standing idle in the maze’s centre outside the Danbury estate. He had barely any rest the night before, so he headed straight to the maze once there was sunlight.

Before he could leave, however, of Daphne being introduced to Prince Friedrich reached him. Thus there ruse was no longer necessary, subsequently leaving Simon in dire need of a moment alone with his frustration.

If he had only told Y/n the truth the night before. If he had only kept her from leaving. If he had not rejected her in the first place. Perhaps he would not be in the situation he was in. 

“Your grace.”

Simon’s train of thought was abruptly broken when a worker approached him. He turned to face the man, eyebrows raised. The worker held his hands behind his back.

“You have a visitor waiting for you in the sitting room,” he explained. When Simon remained silent, the worker specified who it was. “... Lady Bennet.”

Simon’s heart began to pound. He nodded and returned inside with haste. Philippa Bennet, though kind and friendly by nature, could scare him half to death. Simon remembered watching how she would fearlessly berate and humiliate any man who so much as treated Y/n less than kindly. 

He never imagined he would be one.

Once he was inside, he halted outside the entrance to the sitting room. There was no telling how Philippa would treat him, especially after the way he had treated her niece before. Simon took several deep breaths before he cautiously entered the room.

“Lady Bennet,” he greeted as he walked in, his head bowed partially in shame and partly in fear.

“Your grace,” she responded, her tone sharp and piercing. 

She stood from her seat and glared at the duke as he made his way in. She spoke previously to Lady Danbury, who left just moments before Simon entered. It wasn’t until the worker exited the room, closing the door behind him, that she began to raise her voice. 

“You can be of no loss to understand why I am here.”

Simon remained silence, which provided Philippa with as much of a response as she needed.

“My niece just informed me today of your revelation to her at the gala,” she stated, referencing to him admitting to courting Daphne with the intention of marrying, which was not the truth. “I assume you have an explanation, your grace... Otherwise, you truly are the deceitful, heartless man I never imagined you would become.”

Simon winced at the description. It resembled too much of his father, which was the last kind of man he ever intended to become. Philippa raised her brow and remained silent, waiting for the explanation she knew would eventually be provided.

“I was dishonest,” he confessed, his expression overcome by the shame and guilt he been burdened by for the past week. Philippa remained puzzled, though relieved that there was more to the story than what her niece was led to believe. “My courtship of Miss Bridgerton was all an act... To help attract more suitors for her, and to improve my image in the public eye.”

Philippa folded her arms. While she was glad to hear that he was not actually courting another woman after Y/n, she was still angered by what he had done. Not to mention the immense pain it inflicted upon her niece.

“I assume you lied to my niece as a means of upholding your ruse?” 

He was taken by surprise, having expected her to scold him for his stupidity, just as he believed he deserved. His expectations were not necessarily misguided. Philippa intended to do just that. However, she first sought clarification.

“Yes,” Simon admitted sheepishly.

“I heard from Lady Danbury that Miss Bridgerton will soon be courted by Prince Friedrich... Does this mean your lie will no longer continue?”

Simon nodded, causing Philippa to sigh. Her line of questioning made incredibly clear to him how unnecessarily reckless he had been with Y/n’s heart. She was astonished by his foolishness. He could tell.

“I am deeply sorry, Lady Bennet-”

“I do not care for your apologies,” Philippa hissed, causing Simon to sink back. “You are to explain this to my niece yourself... She must hear the truth from you.”

Though Philippa was desperate to race home and tell Y/n the truth, she knew there would still be heartache on her behalf. Only Simon could indeed amend the issue.

“I cannot,” Simon cried, before inhaling sharply as he went to complete his sentence. “-I cannot bear to face her... I imagine I am the last person she wishes to speak to.”

“You are mistaken, your grace,” Philippa said flatly. He could not have been further from the truth. “I have often, particularly now, struggled to understand why... but she cares for you. Very much so. Even despite all the pain, you seemingly continue to cause her.”

“That, I struggle to believe,” Simon mumbled.

Philippa scoffed. It was a wonder Y/n was in so much pain. He seemed to consistently underestimate just how much she cared for him. She pondered for a moment, thinking of the best way to clarify to Simon the extent to which Y/n loved him.

“This is her second season,” Philippa stated, slowing her speech just to make absolute sure Simon could understand her point. “-and she has yet to be married... why do you think that is?”  

He stared blankly at Philippa, which only infuriated her more, though she continued, despite it.

“I was incredibly confused when I received a distraught letter from my sister at the end of last season,” Philippa began. “-She informed that Y/n had received 3 proposals... all from, what she described as, honourable men.” 

Philippa studied Simon’s reaction closely, hoping he would catch on soon. He was taken back. During Y/n’s first season, he feared the day she accepted a marriage proposal. 

“My confusion was then, of course, put to rest when I remembered Y/n confiding in me about her affections for you.”

Simon furrowed his eyebrows in disbelief. It was not possible, he believed. After he turned Y/n away following her confession, he assumed her feelings would fade. 

He deemed his love for Y/n inevitable because loving her was easy to do and difficult to avoid. But he believed loving him was a challenge; a chore. He saw himself as broken. Haunted by the trauma inflicted upon him by his father. His vow to never marry was, truthfully, not the only reason he rejected Y/n.

Simon did not believe Y/n truly loved him. He struggled to imagine anyone could.

“You cannot possibly insinuate that I-”

“You idiotic fool!” Philippa blurted, interrupting Simon from, yet again, downplaying just how much Y/n cared for him. “Forgive me, your grace, but she confessed her feelings to you, did she not? Thus surely you must know how much she cares for you... you must know, Simon.”

He was dumbfounded. Overwhelmed by the prospect that Y/n’s love for him was true, tears stung the corners of his eyes. Philippa could not believe it. She knew of Simon’s past, but she was shocked to see how much of an effect it had on the poor duke. How unwilling he was to accept that he was loved. 

Sincerely and unconditionally.

“She intends to leave London this evening,” Philippa sighed sadly. Before she spoke again, she moved closer to Simon, looking him in the eye intently. She felt sympathy having understood why he acted the way he did, but she would not let him continue to do so. “If you truly care for my niece, you will not allow her to leave today without knowing the truth... She deserves as much after all she has done for you.”

Philippa exited the room briefly afterwards, leaving Simon to contemplate how on earth he would earn Y/n’s forgiveness and her trust.

***

Lady Danbury was puzzled as she watched Philippa Bennet rush out of her estate hastily. They had shared a brief conversation before she left, just as Simon arrived in from outside. Philippa had informed Danbury of Y/n’s plans to leave London and accept Mr Graham’s marriage proposal. 

While she knew the situation was tense, Lady Danbury sat with ease, on the outside seating area towards the left side. Of the many roles she played in her life and society, the matchmaker was one she most enjoyed. 

She hummed to herself as she took a sip of her earl grey tea, amused by the thrill of the current situation. Once Philippa’s carriage was out of sight, Lady Danbury began to count backwards from twenty. As she reached one, the sound of Simon’s quick-paced footsteps became increasingly loud.

“What seems to be troubling you, your grace.”

Most would have been startled by how Lady Danbury spoke with her back to Simon, but he had grown used to her being a step ahead of him. In fact, that was the very reason he found himself turning to her.

“I presume you already know,” he answered as he sat in the chair beside her.

Danbury chuckled, placing her cup back on the table before turning to her pseudo-nephew. He loved him as her own son, but she was far from oblivious to his flaws. 

“I expected you to be eager to follow Lady Bennet.”

“Quite the opposite, my lady,” he frowned, glancing down at his hands that could not seem to stop trembling. For most of his life, he carefully considered every decision he made to ensure perfection. This was unchartered territory.

Simon half-expected Lady Danbury to laugh, or to smile warmly at him before offering her advice. She had done just that for as long as he knew her. 

However, Lady Danbury did not respond in such a manner. She scoffed loudly before gripping her cane and turning to Simon with a disappointed glare. 

“Well then you are a fool,” she spoke harshly. 

Simon’s eyes widened. If he were not already sitting, he likely would have stumbled back. Despite his apparent shock, Lady Danbury was not fazed. Instead, her glare grew more intense. 

Similar to Philippa, Danbury was subject to Simon’s countless confidences regarding his feelings for Y/n. She was past waiting excitedly in anticipation for the two to finally be united. Now, she was irritated at how long it was taking Simon to act on his affections. Mostly after Y/n had already made clear hers.

“You care for her, do you not?”

“I do,” Simon answered, not a moment after Lady Danbury spoke. 

Silence fell amongst them. Danbury’s eyes narrowed in both confusion and frustration. Was it not clear to Simon what he needed to do? She held her cane with both hands. Simon sighed.

“That is precisely why I cannot go to her,” he explained. Lady Danbury groaned audibly, prompting Simon to further clarify his defence. “After all the pain I have put her through, do I not owe it to her to give her peace?”

“She will not have true peace until she knows.”

Simon averted his head slightly, his posture slumping down significantly. Lady Danbury began to realise that there was more to it than he was admitting to. 

Simon looked out towards the maze’s direction, and all he could think of was her, and the night before. All he could see was her expression when he lied about the nature of his relationship with Daphne. Not to mention how she walked away from him crying, and the way he let her go.

“I... am terrified,” Simon whispered, his voice shaky. Danbury inhaled sharply, before looking at him intently, remaining silent all the while so that he could continue. 

After a moment, Simon turned to face her. His eyes were glassy, and the wrinkle on his temple deepened as he furrowed his brows. He was no longer trying to defend himself. No longer trying to uphold a ruse or a confident demeanour. 

He was exhausted from doing so. All he wanted was to fix what he had broken.

“Every attempt I have made at explaining myself only seems to hurt her more,” he frowned. “She is leaving today because she seeks to be away from me... and I will honour her wishes, so as to not subject her to any more pain than I already have.”

It made sense to him. He had no luck when it came to making amends with Y/n. He felt incapable of fixing anything. It was clear that, as well as happiness, he was also incapable of giving her peace. And she deserved that, at the very least. 

“And then what will you do?” Lady Danbury questioned, curious to know the extent to which he believed what he was doing would fix anything.

“I... will wait,” he replied, confident in his response, leading Danbury to worry. He did not have the luxury of time, and it seemed she was the only one out of the two of them who knew this. “When she is ready to speak to me, I will explain the truth to her... and hopefully by then I will be able to do so in a way that does not hurt her.”

“Simon,” Lady Danbury said gently. She knew she was right to have called him foolish. However, Danbury realised that he was foolish out of his love for Y/n and lack of trust that he could love her. “She is not leaving London because she seeks to be away from you... She is leaving to accept a marriage proposal.”

Simon’s blood ran cold. He felt as though the wind had been knocked out of him. Before, he sat content in the comfort of knowing he had time to wait. Now all he could sit with was the terror of uncertainty.

“Your life decisions have been largely based on fear and on vengeance, but you do not have to continue to live this way,” Lady Danbury said, reaching out for his hand and taking hold of it firmly. “However, you cannot do so if you continue to deprive yourself of what brings you joy.”

She had held onto these words for a very long time after Simon announced he would not marry or have children. Danbury had always hoped that Simon would have a heart change eventually, but it was clear that they were running very short on time.

“You deserve an abundance of happiness and of love, just as anyone else in this world does, your grace,” Lady Danbury said with conviction. She was ashamed; it took her so long to realise how badly Simon needed to know this. “But you will only receive as much as you pursue. So allow me to ask again; what will you do?”

Simon lifted Lady Danbury’s hand and kissed it affectionately- his way of thanking her for, yet again, talking sense into him. Without waiting another moment, he raced towards the stables in search of his horse. 

***

Philippa stood sadly as she watched Y/n say goodbye to her cousins. Significant time had passed since she arrived home and Simon still had not arrived. However, despite the dire circumstances, she refused to give up hope.

As Y/n pulled away from her cousin, Elizabeth, she turned to Philippa, who stood between her and the carriage. Her bags had already been taken into the carriage. Everything was in line for her departure. All she had to do was say goodbye to her aunt, yet somehow that seemed to be the most challenging step.

“Aunt Philippa,” Y/n said cautiously, after noticing her sorrowful expression.

“You do not have to go,” Philippa cried, reaching her arms out and placing her hands gently on her niece’s shoulders. She did not care if she sounded like a broken record. “Please, my dear, if you possess even an ounce of doubt, you mustn’t go.”

“I have already made my decision,” Y/n replied, trying to comfort her aunt, who she knew was only concerned for her well-being. She wanted desperately to put Philippa’s mind at ease. “He is a good man... I will have a good future with him.”

“But you do not love him,” Philippa argued. Y/n quickly realised just how much her aunt had rubbed off on her. She could not yet figure out whether that was a good or bad thing.

“I cannot be so naïve as to base my choosing on love,” Y/n criticised.

“Yes you can,” Philippa insisted.

“How can you be so certain?” Y/n inquired, trying her best to refrain from scoffing at the irony in her aunt’s argument. “You are married to a Lord. You will never need to worry about bearing financial burdens, and it is because you accepted the proposal of a man mama matched you with.”

Y/n expected this would end her aunt’s argument against her marrying Mr Graham. 

“Your mama did not match me with Lord Bennet,” Philippa confessed, taking Y/n by great surprise. “Your mother asked me not to tell you at the time, but... Lord Bennet and I met during one of our visits to London. We remained in contact for the better half of my first season, and we eventually married because I fell pregnant... with Elizabeth.”

Y/n’s internal conflict increased significantly in intensity. She always admired the love shared between her aunt and her husband. She always admired the life they had together. However, she also accredited this to her mother’s strong-willed matchmaking and stubbornness.  

Her aunt noticed her reaction and sighed. She reached out and took hold of her niece’s hands, gripping firmly. Philippa had been saving that revelation for when her niece was grown enough. It frightened her how quickly that moment arrived.

“I know that the odds have always been stacked against women like us... but that does not mean we settle for men who do not care for us,” Philippa posited, challenging what Y/n previously believed to be true when it came to love and marriage. “You are allowed to prioritise what you want in a husband as well as what you need.”

Y/n’s heart began to pound. She had craved to hear those exact words ever since she prepared for her first season. If only she had heard them before she found herself in the situation she was in.

“You deserve to be with a man who you love and who makes you happy,” Philippa added, causing Y/n to flinch. She knew where her argument was headed. “A man like-”

“-Like Simon?” Y/n questioned in annoyance.

Philippa sighed, answering her niece’s question. 

“I know that you hoped it would be his proposal I would be accepting... I hoped for the same,” Y/n sighed. Having her aunt as her confidante meant their hopes for her future coincided—all except this time. “But I have waited for too long. I cannot keep putting my life on hold out of hope that he will have a change of heart... and that he will show up at the last minute on a white horse. I cannot do it.”

“Then disregard Simon for a moment,” Philippa said. “- and answer me this, will Mr Graham make you happy?”

Y/n scoffed. She could not keep relaying the same message to her aunt.

“I have told you, marrying him will guarantee me a good life-”

“I have no doubt that he will provide you financial stability,” Philippa interrupted.

Y/n was startled. Until then, all she was focused on was securing a promising future for herself. Until then, all she equated that it was a future free of any financial burden.

“But will he make you happy?” Philippa asked, narrowing her eyes. “When you are forced to endure his arrogance, his ignorance and his temper daily. When you are inevitably made to bear his children, thereafter reduced exclusively to their mother and his wife, and are no longer your own individual person. When it dawns on you that you will be stuck in this position for the rest of your life... Do you truly believe you will be happy?”

Y/n could not answer her aunt. Philippa knew her answer. They stared at one another, each with an expression far different from the other. While Y/n was started and frightened, Philippa remained concerned yet hopeful that her niece would finally change her mind.

Before either of them could speak, a worker approached Philippa and beat them both to it. 

“My lady, the carriage is ready for Miss Y/L/n’s departure.”

Y/n was quick to turn away from her aunt. She glanced at the other worker who stood by the carriage, holding the door open for Y/n to enter. She turned back to her aunt, who visibly feared what she was about to do next.

“Goodbye, aunt Philippa,” 

Y/n pulled Philippa into her arms and hugged her tightly. She knew her aunt was still very much worried and concerned for her. However, she hoped that Philippa would cast them aside for just a moment, and let her see this through.

When Philippa hugged her back and smiled wearily at her as she walked away, Y/n knew she was doing just that. And for that, she was extremely grateful.

As the doors to Y/n’s carriage closed, she closed her eyes and braced herself for the future she was going to commit to the day after. In an attempt to forget what her aunt had said to her, Y/n waved goodbye once before looking away. 

She glued her sight to the road ahead, refusing to look back to the street behind her, or the gates to her aunt’s home.

The very gates Simon would ride through moments after, only to realise that Y/n had already left. That he had spent so much time hesitating and waiting for the right moment, he missed his opportunity to see her before she left.

That he was too late.

NEXT PART

@deakesthegreatest @smol-grandpa

[randomshyperson]

Left Behind - Chapter 6 - Once a Promise, Always a Promise.

Gif was made by my official gif maker friend @abimess

Summary: The one where you lived in the apartment under the Maximoff family in Sokovia, or, your journey as a Sokovian civilian to Avenger.

Warnings: (+16) Violence, fighting, cursing, civil war environments, abuse of power, assault, torture, underage kissing, psychological torture, substance use, mention of assault/fighting of children, smut, kissing, teasing, insinuation of sexual and moral harassment, verbal offenses.

Words: 4.753k

A/N> It's been 84 years... I just hope someone still reads this haha Let me know what you think

All Works Masterlist || Read on AO3 || Series Masterlist

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Chapter 6 - Once a Promise, Always a Promise.

When you wake up, you get your ass beaten up by an unknown woman.

You awaken all at once, advancing against the woman who was watching you sleep. Her surprise only lasts a second, however, as the next she returns your blow and knocks you to the ground, a gun pointed straight at your face.

Wide-eyed, you realize where you are and raise your hands.

"Sorry, sorry." You can quickly. "I thought I was in the lab again. Who the hell are you by the way?"

The woman raises her eyebrow at you.

"Cap, get over here before I shoot her."

And the next second, a blond man is running into the area of the ship where you are, looking worried.

"Let's all calm down, okay?" He asks as he sees the gun extended, and waits for the woman to put it down. You sigh lightly, rising to stand up.

"I'm sorry I attacked you, Miss." You ask as soon as you are on your feet, and massage your shoulder, which hit the ground hard when she knocked you down.

"It's fine, you just got beat up anyway." She teases, making you give a short laugh.

You were about to ask if they could let you off the ship anywhere, but a low groan of pain beside you caught your attention.

Just then you noticed the man lying on the stretcher next to you a few feet away, a large wound in his rib. You are also able to notice the rest of the ship, there is a man piloting a few meters away, and two men sitting further ahead, talking to each other.

"Hey, I can help." You stated immediately, but as soon as you moved, the woman stood in front of you, looking at you with suspicion and defiance, and you swallowed dryly. "I-I can heal him." You clarified, but the woman only changed her posture when the man next to you touched her forearm.

"Can you do that?" He asks you, and you nod. You wait for the woman to take a step back to approach the man on the stretcher.

"Hey, are you guys sure of this?" The man lying down asked uncomfortably, and you raise your hands in the air.

"Hi, I'm Y/N, I won't hurt you, I promise. "You guarantee it." Can I heal your injuries?" You ask and wait for him to confirm.

The wound is deep, but you have dealt with much worse.

"How did you do that?"

"It was nothing." You say as you put your hands down. His skin was completely intact again.

"This sure is cooler than lightning, huh, Thor?" Commented the blond as he sat down on the stretcher, clearly feeling better. The long-haired man at the back of the ship looks at you curiously as he stands up, and when he notices his colleague completely healed, he looks impressed.

"This sure is an interesting skill for a mortal." He says to you, and you don't know exactly what to make of those words, but you don't have time to comment, because he is already approaching to introduce himself. "My name is Thor Odinson, god of thunder."

You frown.

"G-god of thunder?" You repeat confused. "Sorry, is that some kind of joke?"

The woman next to you giggles, moving to sit on the stretcher next to the man you healed. The blond man in front of you looks slightly offended, but his expression softens immediately.

"I understand that at first, mortals may be incredulous at such a..."

"No, I just thought the title was funny." You interrupt the blond man, surprising him. "You guys are the Avengers, aren't you? My master has already told me about you."

“Your master?��

It is the other blond guy in the blue uniform who asks. You mentally repress yourself.

"Damn, sorry." You say. "It's what I used to call the soldiers and doctors who gave me orders."

"Your files say that you disappeared in Sokovia when you were younger, and what we found at the base were the records of the experiments they did on you." He adds, and you twiddle your fingers nervously. "I just want to make sure you're not going to try to bring the plane down with everyone inside."

The attempted joke is enough to make you smile, but you are beginning to feel overwhelmed. You really were free. After all this time, the idea seemed almost absurd.

You try to control your emotion at once, and the man seems to notice, because his expression softens immediately.

"Hey, come have a seat." He asks, signaling to one of the empty chairs, and you obey. "My name is Steve Rogers, and I promise you're safe now. Hydra will never hurt you again."

You nod frantically, feeling the tears in your eyes. But you try to normalize your breathing, not wanting to cry in front of strangers.

"I'm sorry, I just... I've just been trying to get away for so long." You confess next, wiping your eyes quickly. "It's weird to think I succeeded."

"We are going back to the Avengers tower now. Is there anyone you would like to get in touch with?" He asks, and his words make your stomach sink.

"Yes." You say. "But I have no idea where they are."

"Who? Your family?"

You give a short laugh.

"Yeah, I guess so. They were..." You start trying to remember exactly. You didn't even know how long it had been since the time you saw the twins at the Hydra base. You had no idea if they were alive, but you wanted to believe they were. Taking a deep breath, you continue. "They were my friends. Wanda and Pietro, we grew up together. They... I saw them once. When I still had the serum in my head. I..."

Seeing your difficulty in organizing your thoughts, Steve interrupts you by touching your forearm.

"It's okay." He says. "We'll find the twins."

"So they really are alive?"

Steve smiles.

"Yes." He answers and you feel your body relax all at once. "They ran away, I imagine they were scared, but we'll find them."

You gasp, unable to control your tears. Neither Steve nor the rest of the Avengers seem to care.

When you calm down, Steve introduces you to the rest of the team.

You are not exactly happy to meet Tony Stark. The mention of his last name makes you frown, because you know it was a Stark bomb that blew up your home at Sokovia, but when you accuse Tony, he seems really upset.

"Well, I guess you can get on the list of people who hate me then." He grumbles and you cross your arms, the whole team sensing the tension in the air.

"You could at least apologize for blowing up half of Sokovia with your weapons." You retort angrily, and the man rolls his eyes, not getting up from the armchair you were in.

"Sure, no problem. I'm sorry, kiddo. Happy?"

You clench your jaw, but before you can say anything, Steve steps forward.

"Tony, try not to be a jerk, okay?" The captain speaks and the other man lets out a wry laugh. "Have at least some respect for the girl's story."

"I have respect, Captain." He assures as he stands up, looking impatient. "What I don't have is time to revisit the past while our enemies get more and more powerful." He says and you frown in confusion. "I've already banned weapons production in the industries, and we've already taken on Hydra in that place. Now we can move on, because I need to get back to the compound and understand exactly what that thing is."

He speaks and finishes by signaling to the opposite side, and it is only then that you notice the shining scepter on the far side of the room and let out a surprised exclamation, taking three steps backwards.

"How did you guys get this?" You ask horrified and the team looks at you curiously.

"Have you seen the scepter before?"

"Of course I have!" You reply. "That's what gave me the healing! The damn stone went through my chest."

Thor steps forward, looking at you in surprise.

"So Hydra were able to decipher the scepter?

You laugh humorlessly.

"If by decipher you mean press the scepter against my chest while preening me in an iron chair, then yes." You reply, but take a deep breath to calm yourself. "A yellow stone came off as soon as the scepter touched me. And well, it went right through my skin. When I woke up, I could heal. But whatever it is, it killed all the soldiers who were holding me."

Thor seems to consider your words as Steve tells you that he is sorry for what you went through in Hydra.

Suddenly you remember where you first saw him.

"The man on the bridge!" You exclaimed, surprising him, but you were getting your memories gradually, and your heart was racing. "You are Captain America.... My god, where is Bucky?"

"Great, another fan of the metal arm." Tony comments sarcastically, but no one seems to care.

Steve looks at you with a frown.

"Is he safe? Is he free? Can I see him?" You ask promptly next, and Natasha chuckles.

"Hey, calm down." Steve asks and you swallow dryly, trying not to feel so overwhelmed with so many memories coming back at once. "How do you know Bucky?"

You blink in surprise.

"He...he didn't talk about me?"

It takes a second, and then Steve's eyes widen.

“Oh my god, you’re the guardian!

"I am what now?"

Steve lets out an incredulous laugh.

"The guardian." He repeats as if you were going to understand what he meant.

Natasha clears her throat.

"Captain, perhaps you'd better explain." She asks and Steve gestures quickly.

"We've been looking for you for months." Steve then adds, causing you to widen your eyes in surprise. "Bucky he... he's been trying to find you since he escaped. But he didn't know your name. All he knew was the nickname you got from the soldiers. The golden guardian of death. It's been our only tip to find you."

"I thought it was just golden guardian." Clint adds next, Nat makes a noise of agreement.

"No, I'm sure it was just Guardian of Death." Thor comments, but you are barely listening to the teasing, feeling your thoughts racing.

Steve raises his hands to your shoulders.

"Thank you so much for saving Bucky." He says before hugging you. You feel your neck heat up at the sudden contact, but do your best to reciprocate.

Steve lets you go then, smiling.

"He's going to be so happy to see you."

"Where is he?"

"At the compound." Steve replies. "He cannot attend field missions, it's part of the pardon. It's too much bureaucracy to explain now.."

"I think he's just lazy." Tony adds wryly, making the Avengers giggle.

And Steve's smile dies briefly.

"What's with you today, anyway, Stark?"

Tony sighs impatiently, finally rising from his armchair.

"I'm sorry if I'm not reacting in the way you consider proper captain, but I'm concerned about getting to work soon." He says as he moves toward you two. “I need to find out what this thing really is.”

"No, Stark, you won't touch this." It is Thor who announces, and all the avengers look genuinely surprised.

"I beg your pardon?" Stark retorted, but Thor didn't hesitate before he looked at you next.

"Describe to me again how you got your healing, mortal."

You sigh lightly.

"They locked me in an iron chair and brought the scepter." You narrated. "But they lie me on the chair next, and I could only feel the metal against my skin, and then I saw a yellow light. Something went right through my chest, and then right through." You say. "I blacked out for a second, the room was completely empty like a vision. When I blinked, it was back, but all the soldiers holding me were dead. And then they knocked me out."

"Before you said you saw a yellow stone?"

You nodded in agreement.

"I dreamed of this memory for several days." You clarify. "I was back in the room, but this time I watched myself. I saw when they put the scepter to my chest, and when the golden stone came out and went through my skin. It was the stone that released the wave of energy that killed the soldiers .I don't know why I didn't die too."

"A single blow that killed a group of soldiers at once." Thor mutters more to himself than to the rest of the teams. "It's decided then, no mortal must touch this. It's clearly far more power than anyone should have."

"This is ridiculous." Thor accused the next moment, making the team look at him curiously. "You can't just deny knowledge about something like that and..."

"Why are you so insistent on this, Tony?" It's Steve who asks suspiciously. Tony sighs, and gives a short laugh.

"You guys are unbelievable, you know." He says. "I'm trying to find new alternatives to our problems."

"What problems?" Steve asks with a confused grimace, and Tony rolls his eyes, looking nervous.

"Our enemies, Captain!" He snarls. "In case you haven't noticed, it hasn't been too long since we faced an army of robots coming from a hole in the sky!" He accuses. "We don't have the power to face this kind of thing. The scepter is exactly what I need to prevent the worst from happening."

"Where did that come from, Tony?" Steve retorted confused.

Stark gave a short laugh, rolling his eyes.

"I don't have time for this." He grimaced and moved to grab the scepter, but Thor stood in the way, arms crossed. "Really?" Tony impatiently charges, but Thor doesn't move. Stark clenches his jaw before declaring angrily. "I had a vision, okay? I saw all of us, defeated. Defeated because we didn't have the power to win. And I... I could have prevented it."

The avengers look as confused as you are, and remain silent. Tony sighs and runs his hand through his hair.

"It was New York again, but this time the enemy won." He continues, visually upset. When he lifted his face in Steve's direction, his look was angry, but his eyes had tears in it. "And you told me that I could have stopped it."

“I wouldn't do that.” Steve says. “If we ever lose, I wouldn't blame you, Tony.”

Tony gives a short laugh.

“Wouldn’t you really?” He retorts. “I’m pretty sure you would, cap.”

Steve takes a step forward, his eyes soften as he looks at his friend.

“I promise you, Tony. If we lose, we lose together.” He declares. “That’s what being an Avengers means. I’m sorry if I was not clear before, and made you feel any different than this or…”

“Stop it!” Tony angrily interrupts. You flinch because you think you saw a familiar red light in his eyes. “Cut this sentimental crap, Steve. I’m just trying to do what’s necessary here.”

“Back off, Stark!” You order as you noted how he has moved his wand to the scepter, he seems surprised by the action too. You move in his direction as he takes two steps back, looking irritated. You gave him no time to answer however, as you raise your hands over his head and touch his forehead with your fingers before he can complain.

Immediately, you can feel the remnants of magic on Tony's head. You don't recognize it at first, but as your own magic removes the other energy, you sigh slightly. It feels familiar, but you don't know why. The energy is still harmful though, probably due to the intention of the one who cast it, but you manage to clean it all up.

You succeed because you coordinate your magic to wipe the other energy like you usually clear and heal wounds, and it seems to work, because Tony raises his hands to your wrist, his wide-eyed eyes soften and he looks almost startled.

"I'm sorry." He asks and swallows dryly. You remove your fingers from his forehead completely, watching with curiosity. He takes a deep breath, blinking several times as if waking up. "I'm sorry, everyone, I... Damn, it was like a horrible dream. I need to lie down for a minute."

And with that he leaves.

You don't ask questions anymore, because Steve is going after him, and you are trying to figure it out why you still feel the unknown magic tingling at your fingertips, as if it is trying to merge with yours.

//-//

You cry when you see Bucky again.

He lets out a disbelieving laugh, and then he's running up, hugging you tight.

Your conversation is long and intense, and is almost mostly made up of gratitude.

The other Avengers seem very happy to see the whole interaction, especially Steve.

Tony isolates himself in his room as soon as you arrive, and Thor looks upset. He and Bruce discuss something, and then they go to talk to Tony.

You don't pay attention because you are listening to Bucky tell you about getting all his memories back, and living with the Avengers since you helped him. He was now free from Hydra's control, and was pardoned by the state on condition that he was no longer the Winter Soldier.

Nat also added in his narrative the information that he and Steve were "making fondue" and the joke made him laugh with red cheeks but you didn't understand what that meant.

You are very happy to see him, but you can't help but think that he was not the one you wanted to find when you were free.

When he introduces you to the rest of the compound, and to your room, you hug him in appreciation, and you both exchange a knowing look, finally acknowledging that you are safe.

//-//

Your first night in the compound is a strange one.

After meeting the whole team, who were polite despite having fought you a few hours ago, you received a full meal and then locked yourself in your room.

But you were not used to having such a soft bed, not even before Hydra, so sleeping seemed kind of impossible.

Figuring that the Avengers wouldn't mind you taking a late night stroll, you left your room.

"Are you lost, girl?" A female voice suddenly sounded making you jump in fright. It was Natasha Romanoff, or as she introduced herself earlier, Black Widow.

"S-sorry, ma'am." You retorted clumsily, and the woman raised her eyebrows at you. "I can't sleep."

"First, I'm not old, so don't call me ma'am." She commented wryly, and you tried to smile. "Second, I know the feeling. If you want, I can distract you."

Your last social conversation with a woman happened a long time ago, and then you find yourself asking:

"Are you inviting me to have sex?"

Nat lets out a surprised laugh, crossing her arms.

"Where did that come from?" she asks, and you scratch your neck lightly.

"Sorry, I learned how to talk to women from television shows that Hydra soldiers watched in the labs. Bad references. What did you mean by distracting me?"

Nat laughed, impressed by your words.

"I meant like have some tea and tell a story." She clarifies, not sounding the least bit upset. You put your hands in the pockets of the pajamas you've been given.

"R-right. That sounds more appropriate." You mumble with flushed cheeks, eliciting another laugh from the woman. As you begin walking side by side, she comments.

"You know, I think I'm going to have a lot of fun with you around here. You are just as awkward as Steve and Bucky."

You end up hearing a story about agents in Budapest, but it seems Nat doesn't tell the whole story. It's nice, though, you missed talking to someone.

"That thing you did earlier with Tony, that was really cool." Nat remarks after a pause in silence.

You take a sip of your tea after shrugging, but she seems inquisitive.

"How did you know it was Maximoff who messed with his head?"

You almost choke at the sudden mention of the name and Nat's watchful gaze makes it impossible to disguise. You sigh.

"I... They are my friends." You confess looking down at the cup, "Or they used to be."

Raising your gaze to Nat again, she only seems curious to know, and you shrug slightly, deciding to trust her.

"We grew up together in Sokovia." You count twirling your fingers on the handle of your cup, "They were the only family I had in the orphanage. And well, it was for them that I broke into a Hydra building."

Nat listens to your story intently, and you swallow dryly before continuing.

"When they captured me, the serum, it... well, it didn't exactly leave me conscientious." You try to explain. "It was like pushing all my memories away, my mind would become completely empty."

“"Is that what they did to Bucky?" Nat questions and you shake your head.

"No, they used electric shock on Bucky." You return with a grimace. "With me, they couldn't hurt me permanently, so they needed something that would make me obey without me being able to heal. It was like being drunk, I guess, only much worse."

“I’m sorry.”

"It 's fine.” You say with a sad smile. “I was dumb enough to go there, i knew the risks.”

“Don’t say that.” Nat asks with a serious voice. “It’s was not your fault they torture kids.”

"And whose fault is it, then?" You retorted, upset, with yourself more than with Nat or anyone else. "My friends for being stubborn idiots? Of Stark for throwing a bomb in my building? I'm tired of looking for reasons to justify what happened to me. Nothing is enough, and I just want to see my friends."

Nat sighs lightly, and raises a hand on the table to reach for yours. You want to hold back the tears, but they are already falling before you can do so.

"I promise we will find your family." She assures you tenderly, and you feel your heart soar at the possibility.

You nod in understanding, taking a deep breath to stop crying.

Nat squeezes your hand, and it takes a moment for you to speak again.

"Wanda." You begin, and almost sob. It has been a long time since you have spoken that name. "She... She must have gotten her powers the same way I did." You say trying to remember everything you witness in Hydra at that moment. "I remember the soldiers talking about the twins being the only ones to survive the stone besides me."

"From Shield records, we know she can manipulate energy and Pietro can run really fast." Nat informs as she releases your hand. She sits thoughtfully for a moment."Maybe because you all got the magic through the same source, you can heal what she can do to Tony's mind. But that's not really my area, maybe you should talk to Thor as well."

You sigh lightly, wiping away the remainder of the tears falling on your face.

"I will." You say. "But I want to find Wan-the twins first." You correct yourself quickly, hoping Nat doesn't notice your flushed cheeks. She does, but says nothing.

"Try to get some rest." She asks as she picks up the teacups. "We have a party coming up, and then Thor is supposed to return to Asgard. I imagine you will want to have a little chat with Bucky before you return to Sokovia."

"I would go back to Sokovia right now if you ask me." You mutter making Nat chuckle lightly. "But I don't want to disturb any of you. I've waited for a long time, I can wait a little longer."

When Nat turns around after putting the glasses in the sink, she has a soft expression.

"You are not a nuisance here, kid." She assures with a smile. "We've just been caught a little by surprise with a new person, but it will be a pleasure to help you find the twins." She says and then has a mischievous expression. "I shouldn't tell you yet, but Steve is pretty excited about the whole thing. He wants you and the twins to join the team eventually."

"Really?" You ask in surprise and Nat just mumbles in agreement, still smiling.

She turns around on the countertop and before she leaves, she turns to you.

"If you ask my opinion, you seem to care a lot about both of them." She says. "I think that no matter how much time has passed, or if they are fighting on opposite sides, she will be happy to see you."

You swallow dryly, looking away.

Nat smiles one last time before leaving and you twiddle your fingers nervously, sitting for a while at the table before returning to your room.

With much to think about, you are surprised that you fall asleep almost instantly as you lie down.

//-//

The Hydra serum is still in your system.

You realize it in a rather embarrassing way actually.

After waking up on the couch, you went to the kitchen.

Bucky tells you that all the team is having a meeting and they will join you two soon, so you just lay against the wall while he reads the newspaper out loud for you.

The Avengers stay in the meeting room for a long time, and don't seem very pleased when they leave, but Tony seems intrigued.

You are surprised that he comes to talk to you as soon as he sees you.

"I didn't thank you for yesterday, kid." He says with a smile. "Whatever you did took away that bad feeling. Now I can work without having to hide that I'm trying to help."

You didn't quite know what to respond, but it didn't matter because Tony was patting you on the shoulder before smiling contentedly at the rest of the team.

"While I figure out a way to decipher the stone, which won't be hard since I'm incredibly smart." He begins his speech, causing the group to let out debauched laughter. "You guys can get busy with whatever old people do for fun. Except you Thunderlord, I'm going to need your help in the lab."

"Wow, Tony Stark asking for help." Thor teases and you watch the interaction with a smile on your lips, moving to join the table. "What a little magic doesn't do to your head, heh?"

"Don't tease me, Thundercat. I'll throw you out of this building, and you won't get any breakfast." He says with false seriousness and you laugh lightly as you pour yourself a cup of coffee. "Hey, kid, give me some too?"

"Ja, Master." You respond mechanically, perhaps even a little sleepily. The Avengers look at you with curiosity and confusion as they see you mechanically pour the coffee, and hand it to Tony, who looks shocked.

"He is not your master, kid." It is Natasha who breaks the silence, and you blink in confusion looking around for a moment.

"R-right." You say. "Sorry about that, Tony. Old habits I guess."

Tony thanks you for the drink, and you think the subject is going to die, but then Natasha keeps looking at you.

"Hey, Y/N, come over here." She asks and you move immediately. Shit. Natasha raises her eyebrow. "Take two steps to the left." Your body obeys. “Now to the right.” She asks and you obey again. This is terrible. The widow looks at you impressed.

"That looks bad." Tony quickly mocks before waving for Thor to accompany him to the lab, justifying that they should get to work soon.

Nat continues to look at you incredulously, but then Steve gets up from the table as well and snaps his fingers in front of your eyes, making you jump in fright slightly. He assumes a worried expression afterwards.

"You are obeying our orders as if we were your masters." He says. "Let's go see Bruce in the lab, he'll want to run some tests."

When you reach the lab, and Steve explains to Bruce what happened at breakfast, you are not surprised that he puts needles in your arm. You hope the news will be good when he finishes assessing your blood.

//-////-////-////-////-////-////-////-////-////-////-////-////-////-////-//

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[kaunis-sielu]

Fire Dogs: 6

Steve pulls Grant’s hand off of your arm then steps in between you and Grant.

“Fawn are you okay?” He asks softly.

“I’m okay,” you assure him and he turns his gaze onto Grant.

“I thought I told you that you were to leave her alone.” His voice is low and furious, “And not only do I find you here, harassing her, putting your hands on her but you’re also telling everyone that she’s an Omega even though you know she doesn’t want people to know.”

“What’s it to you?” Grant sneers and you almost pity him. Steve, externally seems calm but you can feel the rage.

“You’re going to leave Fawn alone. You’re not going to tell anyone else she’s an Omega, you’re going to think she’s a Beta and if you do come across her you’re going to treat her with the respect she deserves.” Grant seems to be fighting the Alpha command, he grits his teeth and sweat starts to form on his brow. You know he won’t beat it though, your knees have practically buckled at the power behind his command. You see why they call him a True Alpha.

“What if I don’t?”

“I’ll kill you. Omega protection laws say that as her Alpha I can defend her in anyway I might need to.” He warns and while Grant pales Steve continues, “Now, you’re going to apologize to Fawn, you’re going to leave her alone and I’m not going to have to remind you again.”

“Sorry Fawn.” You nod then Steve turns him around and gives him a little shove and Grant meanders away from you.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Steve asks turning toward you.

“Yea, are you?” When he looks at you quizzically you clarify, “you were so angry.”

“You could tell?”

“I could feel it.” The slow smile he gives you causes your heart to race.

“Oh Honey,” he breathes pressing his forehead to yours. You can feel his breath slide across your cheek and you sigh softly as you close your eyes. Something wet hits your cheek and you pull away from Steve and look up at the sky as the clouds break.

You’re practically drenched in a matter of seconds,

“Rain! Steve rain!” You cry tilting your head back, a smile stretched across your face as the rain pours down on you. Finally, you’ve been waiting for this rain to knock down the fires and it’s finally here.

But no more fires means no more Steve. Your smile falls off of your face as quickly as it bloomed. “Rain.”

“Honey,” Steve says looking concerned.

“No more fire means no more you.” You choke out and he gently gathers you in to him.

“Shh, we can talk about it. This might not knock out all the fire.”

“But if it does,”

“We figure it out.” He soothes, “dance with me?”

“What?” You ask not moving your head from where it’s pressed to his chest. He takes your left hand gently in his right and puts your right hand up on his shoulder while wrapping his left arm around your back then he starts to sway.

It’s soothing, the way he slowly sways and hums. The rainwater is cool as it falls but you find that you don’t care at least not until it gets chilly.

“You wanna head home?”

“Yes, can, can you sleep with me again tonight?”

“Yea Honey.” You round the car and slide into the passengers seat before Cooper licks your face.

“Thanks Coop. You good boy.” You tell him and Steve starts the car then heads for home. Steve reaches over and offers you one of his hands, which you happily take and leave in your lap. It’s been nearly three weeks at this point and you’re not sure how you’re going to feel when he leaves. You’ve heard that it can be excruciating for an Omega to be without their Alpha but Steve technically isn’t your Alpha.

It’s still raining heavily when you get back home. You and Steve cook dinner together after he showers and you change into something dry. As you eat you talk a little about your day, how your drawings were approved and that printing will start soon. Steve is proud of you, a welcome feeling after Grant.

Your heart sinks when Bucky comes home early.

“Fires look like they’re all out.” He says with a grin and you have to blink away your tears before either man notices. Cooper does notice though and he comes over to you putting his head in your lap. You pet him absentmindedly while half listening to Steve and Bucky talk. They talk about the fire, the rain and when the subject of their trip home comes up you have to leave the room. It makes you too sad to think about them leaving.

You take Cooper out, grabbing the umbrella that you keep by the door on your way out. You don’t fool yourself and think that Steve hasn’t noticed your change in mood or the tears gathering on your eyelashes but you need a moment. You let Cooper run around in the rain, one of his favorite things to do, and you let a few of the tears fall.

You’re so conflicted on what to do. You’re 99% sure that Steve is your Alpha. The one Alpha for you, with how he makes you feel, and how he treats you and the fact that you can feel his emotions are all signs that he’s probably your Alpha. You’d be completely thrilled if he didn’t come from New York. If he wasn’t the True Alpha of his pack. But none of those things are true. He is the True Alpha, he lives in New York City, and you live here.

“Hey,” Steve says quietly from just inside the house. “You okay?”

“I don’t know.” You admit not looking at him,“I wanna be but I don’t know.”

“Wanna talk me through it?”

“I’m just really conflicted. I know in my gut you’re my Alpha, but you live there and I live here and I like it here. I like the smallness, the woods and the mountains. I can’t ask you to move your whole pack, and shouldn’t you being my Alpha be enough? Why isn’t it enough? Is there something wrong me with me?”

“Nothing is wrong with you.” Steve assures you, “all of your feelings and thoughts are completely valid. If it makes you feel any better I know in my gut you’re my Omega. I’ve known since you opened the door. The pack and I will do whatever you need to be happy, no Alpha command needed.”

“I can’t ask you all to move here. How big is your pack?”

“All together around fifty.”

“Fifty! Steve! That’s huge!”

“Why don’t you come to New York with us? You and I can go upstate? See if we can find somewhere that’s close enough to the city but quiet enough for you?”

“I’m scared Steve.”

“Of what?”

“You know the last Alpha I had. What if this doesn’t work and I’ve moved my whole life to the other side of the country?”

“Do you own this place?” You nod, “then keep it. If it doesn’t work you still have a home but if it does we have a vacation place.”

“Would you want me to stop taking my suppressants?”

“If you want to. I know it’s easier to have kids when you’re not on them.”

“You’d want kids with me?”

“I want it all with you Omega. I want the bonding. The marriage. The family. I want all of it.” You’re floored by his admission you finally turn toward him and throw an arm around his neck pulling his lips to yours. Steve is gentle when he pulls your body flush against his, he’s warm and solid against you.

“I’ll come to New York with you. Are you sure you could live outside the city?”

“For you? Yes. Easily and happily.”

“Can we bring Cooper?”

“Of course. Are you gonna be alright traveling with the three of us?”

“Yea. I think I can manage.” You tell him with a smile, “when do you want to leave?”

“I don’t know, I’ve got to talk to Sam and Bucky. I’m sure they’ll wanna get back as much as I do but we have to be sure the fires are out for good. Maybe three days?”

“Okay, you might need to talk me down again. Get me out of my own head.”

“I can do that.” He promises, “you’re sure you want to go?”

“Yes. When I think of being left here without you it fills me with such dread. But I might get nervous about meeting your pack and about being on the east coast in a huge city.”

“The pack is going to love you. You don’t need to worry about that. Can I check your ribs again?”

“I suppose. Come on Cooper!”

“He’s soaked.” Steve says and you glance over at a very muddy Cooper.

“Yea, he loves the rain.” You’ll need to give him a bath before bedtime, luckily he loves bath time almost as much as he loves the rain. “I’ll have to give him a b-a-t-h. He loves them and will lose his mind when I say the word.”

“Ah.” Steve gives you a little half smile, “want help?”

“Only if you’re ready to get drenched again.”

“Bring it on.”

“Hey Cooper, wanna take a bath?” You say and as promised loses his mind barking and dancing around you excitedly. You let him in and he bolts downstairs.

Steve helps you give Cooper a bath and as you predict you’re both completely soaked by the time you’re done.

“Who got a bath? You two or Cooper?” Bucky teases as you and Steve go past him in the living room.

“Cooper, give him a hug.” You tell the dog who runs over to Bucky and still soaking wet jumps up into Bucky’s lap and throws his body onto Bucky’s torso.

“Awe Cooper!” You and Steve laugh as Bucky debates if he wants your dog off of him or if he’s just going to let it happen. He finally surrenders and hugs Cooper back as you and Steve head upstairs.

After Steve checks your shoulder and ribs he seems pleased with how you’re healing. Cooper sleeps with Bucky instead of you and honestly it’s kind of nice that you and Steve have the bed to yourselves. It would be even nicer if you could relax.

“Steve?”

“Hmm?”

“Will you tell me about the pack?”

“Can’t sleep?” You hum softly in response. So you drift off to his voice telling you about his pack.

The next three days are busy, you get things together for your trip to New York. You use as much of the perishable food as you can and bring other stuff to the food shelf in town. You pack up all of your book stuff, some of your clothes and whatever you’ll need for Cooper. You and Steve decide that you’ll drive your car with Cooper and some of your stuff then Sam and Bucky will drive the truck with everything else that you want to bring out and their stuff.

It’s weird locking up your place for what could be the last time. But you think that you’re ready, Steve is watching you out of the corner of his eye while he talks to Sam and Bucky. He gives you this sweet smile when you come walking down the sidewalk, Cooper on your heels.

“Ready to go Omega?” Steve asks and you nod, both his friends share a pleased look then both head for the drivers seat. A tussle breaks out, Sam getting Bucky into a headlock but Bucky is able to muscle his way out of the headlock and throws Sam to the ground before jumping into the truck with a triumphant yell.

“Is this going to be a bad idea?” You ask an unamused Steve.

“They’ll be fine. I’m more annoyed with them, I just know they’re gonna embarrass me on this trip.” He says as you walk to your car together, he opens the back for Cooper then buckles him in and joins you in the car.

“Maybe I should’ve ridden with them to hear the stories.”

“Absolutely not.” Steve says lightly, “besides you wouldn’t really leave your Alpha all alone would you?”

“Not unless I have to.” You admit and he takes your hand. He presses a kiss to the back of it and gives you a soft smile. You’d let him mark you right now if he was a normal Alpha you realize with a start, your anxiety spikes at the thought.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, I just, this is big ya know? I’ve been this fiercely independent fake Beta for like 18 years or so? And now I’m leaving that life behind.”

“You can still be an independent fake Beta.”

“No I can’t,” you admit, “I didn’t renew my prescription. I have a week left.”

Tag list:

@memyselfandmaddox @thefanficfaerie @patzammit @dsakita @dramadreamer14 @killcomet @thesassmisstress @andahugaroundtheneck @loving-life-my-way @thefridgeismybestie @dumblani @im-just-another-monster @mywinterwolf @giggleberts @biskwitmamaw @geeksareunique @paintballkid711 @lumar014 @also-fangirlinsweden @connie326 @inkedaztec @eralen @valsworldofcreativity @strangersstranger @blackwidownat2814 @sky0401 @winterbuckystan1917 @dontbescaredtosingalong

[youare-mysonshine]

heavy || bucky barnes

Summary: reader’s mental health has been taking a decline and bucky is there.

Requested: No

Pairing: TFATWS Bucky Barnes x reader

Warnings: talks of mental health, depression, anxiety, angst, cussing.

Word Count: 3.2K

A/N: Hey guys, I’m back I guess lmao. I’ve really been struggling with my mental health lately and I guess I kinda just wanted to put it into words, something productive? And I’ve been feeling our angsty emo boy bucky barnes. Most of you might’ve followed me for my Oscar fics but I kinda wanna branch out and I thought this would be a good time to do so. Anyways, I know that some of you have inboxed me or messaged me and I haven’t responded and I’m sorry. But I just want you all to know that if you’re struggling, I’m always here to talk. About anything, always. So, I hope you enjoy this. I might’ve cried while writing this lmao and I also might’ve ended it on such an awkward place but, i’m still getting used to writing again. (Flashbacks are in italics)

————

Bucky didn’t miss the dark circles under your eyes. He didn’t miss the way you sort of slouched as you approached him. He didn’t miss the way that your smile didn’t really meet your eyes.

“Hey,” You said in a breathless voice. “Sorry, I’m late. I got held up.” You said as you took a seat across from him in the booth. Held up. It was better than telling him that you were thinking of just not showing up at all. In the end, you knew that you couldn’t do that. You couldn’t just blow off your new friend who you had so enjoyed spending time with. So, in a rush, you got dressed and made your way to the small, quiet diner that you two had taken to frequenting together. Bucky Barnes was an enigma if you’d ever met one. The way that you had met was rather.. cliche and something straight from a story.

You had been trying to lay off of the caffeine for a while, realizing that you had nearly gone through an entire packet of 32 k-pods that you had just purchased. You realized that you might’ve had a problem. You had been going pretty strong with staying away from caffeine for the time being, until you passed by a coffee shop and got a whiff of coffee. You just couldn’t help yourself; you bought a cup of coffee. It was when you were walking down the street, holding the cup of coffee in one hand, looking down, that you didn’t see someone walking right in your path. You had collided into what seemed like a solid wall and the impact had caused you to squeeze the cup of coffee in surprise, the warm liquid burning your hand, staining your clothes and the other person. You had realized it was another person you had crashed into when you heard them let out a low cuss.

Bucky’s grumpy self had been fully prepared to tell you off for crashing into him, having just left his therapist’s office, but when you looked up at him with those bright eyes of yours, a million apologies spilling from your lips a mile a minute, he swallowed whatever harsh words had nearly sprung forth. He had apologized as well; both of you had been at fault. Bucky had been going over his session with Dr. Raynor that morning, completely lost in his own mind, and you had your eyes trained on the ground, something that was a bad habit of yours. The shock of realizing you had bumped into a man, a really really handsome man with the brightest blue eyes you had ever seen, had made you temporarily forget that you had practically scorched your hand with the coffee, and that you had gotten it on him as well.

“I’m so, so sorry.” You said once again, quickly averting your eyes from the handsome stranger’s face. Instead you focused on the smushed cup in your hand and the stains on his leather jacket. It just made you feel even terrible. “I, I can pay for you to get your jacket cleaned, if you want. Really. I wasn’t paying attention and I just, for whatever reason, squished my cup and.. I’m sorry.” You said, kind of breathlessly.

“It’s.. it’s alright.” His voice was like the coffee that you had been drinking. Smooth and rich. It was deep, something that reverberated deep in your chest and had your stomach fluttering with butterflies. “I wasn’t paying attention either. Really, it’s fine. And don’t worry about my jacket. No harm, no foul.” He said. “You should, uh, you should take care of that hand. Hope you didn’t burn yourself too bad.” He gestured to your hand, still clutching the cup, with one of his own gloved hands.

“Oh, I’ll be fine. It wasn’t that hot. Thank you, though. And again, I’m really, really sorry.” Sparing one, seemingly, last glance at the handsome stranger, you side stepped him and began to walk away, tossing the empty cup of coffee in a trash can on the sidewalk. But you didn’t get very far because that deep voice called out to you, halting you in your tracks.

“Can I buy you another cup of coffee?” Bucky’s mouth had opened and spoken the words long before his brain could even catch up. He didn’t know why he had asked you that, but something in his gut was just telling him too.

“What?” A look of total bewilderment had crossed your face and he had seen it.

“I just, well I thought that, since I bumped into you, I could make it up to you by buying you a new cup of coffee. If you wanted, I mean. You don’t have to say yes if you don’t want to. I don’t wanna make you uncomfortable or anything.” Bucky clarified, hand stuffed in his pocket, waiting for your answer. For a few seconds, you simply stood there, unsure of what to say because surely this wasn’t happening? The last time that you had gone out with a guy was.. well, shit, you didn’t even remember the last time. The little voice in the back of your head, that anxious, paranoid little voice, was telling you not to go off with a stranger. You’d watched too many episodes of Criminal Minds and other true crime shows and documentaries to know that situations like this never turned out well. However, you didn’t get a bad feeling from this particular man. He seemed just as awkward and slightly frazzled as you felt. So you agreed.

“I’m Bucky, by the way.”

“Y/N.”

That had happened about two months ago. Ever since then, you and Bucky had formed a strong friendship. Your first time getting coffee with him had been awkward, as were the next few times that you had seen one another. But things got easier. Becoming friends was easy. You kind of fell into this routine, almost as if you two had known each other your whole lives. That was why Bucky telling you who he really was had been terrifying for him. He carried around guilt and shame and just contempt for everything he’d done. Everything The Winter Soldier represented, and when he told you, he figured that you would think the same. He had asked you meet him at the diner that had now become your spot and and you remember how he nervously wrung his gloved hands together. You remember when you asked him what was wrong and he didn’t verbally respond but he took off his gloves; the right one first and then the left, revealing a shiny black metal hand, golden lines intricately placed.

He told you then. Maybe he didn’t tell you everything but he told you who he was and he had braced himself for you to get up and storm out. Or, to yell at him and tell him how much of a monster he was. But, it never came. Instead, you reached out and placed your hand on top his. Not his real hand, but the metal one. You didn’t say anything. You just gave him that smile that was quickly becoming his favorite. Sometimes, silence spoke a thousand words. To Bucky, you had become kind of a respite for him. Even in the late nights or mornings when he woke up after a nightmare. Or after a particularly hard session with Dr. Raynor. He had closed himself off from other people except you.

Bucky might not have known it, but he gave you the same level of comfort as you gave him. You found yourself craving his presence. Every time you were around him, you couldn’t help but to smile or laugh. In the time that you spent together, your mind was clear and free from all your worries. It all evaporated into thin air. Your mind, usually so active with all sorts of thoughts and worries, could finally rest when you were with Bucky. You could sleep. You could get up in the morning without that stress and anxiety drowning you. It was okay. It was great.

Until it wasn’t.

“No problem, doll.” He said, gloved hands clasped under the table on his lap. “I already ordered. Got your usual. Hope that was alright.” He added, to which you nodded absentmindedly.

“Yeah, yeah. That’s fine. Thanks Buck.” You said, mustering up a half hearted smile that didn’t reach your eyes. It was like even smiling drained the energy from you. You were exhausted. Not even just physically but mentally and emotionally. You had been having such good days for a while now, since meeting Bucky. You felt like maybe you would finally be alright but.. this feeling of hopelessness, the feeling that nothing was quite right, it was heavy. It weighed you down. It suffocated you. You wanted to be alone, but you also couldn’t stand to be alone because when you were alone, you were just stuck in your head and being in your head was the absolute worst place to be.

The intrusive thoughts had started. They told you that you would do nothing but weigh Bucky down. That he didn’t need someone like you in his life, someone with clear problems of their own, when he was going to therapy trying to better himself. Even if it had been mandatory for him to go. You wanted to push him away, save him from yourself, but you also couldn’t stand the thought of losing him.

Bucky noticed the shift in you. Normally when you two met up, whether it was at the diner or anywhere else, you would usually talk his ear off. Not that he minded, he was content to just sit back and listen to you. Sometimes, you’d tell him about a new book that you had started reading. You had just started reading the fifth Harry Potter book and you were trying to get him to read them. You’d tell him about your day. You’d ask him how his day went, how it went with Dr. Raynor, though you never pushed for more information. You always let him share if he was comfortable with it and he appreciated that. Sometimes you teased him for being such an old man.

The food came soon after you had arrived and sure enough, Bucky had ordered your usual. It sent a pang through your heart when you realized that he had memorized your order, down to the extra syrup and whipped cream on the pancakes. Bucky always liked to make fun of you for ordering the same thing when you came to the diner. No matter what time it was, you always ordered the pancakes with extra syrup and extra whip cream, with the strawberries on the side. Secretly, though he found it adorable.

Today, you had barely even taken more than a few bites and that was what really let Bucky know that something wasn’t right. You kept your head down, eyes on the pancakes and you cut them up, bringing a few up to your mouth and chewing slowly, but you mostly just moved them around your plate with the fork in your hand. Bucky himself had barely taken only a few bites of the food he’d ordered for himself, but it wasn’t for lack of appetite, it was because of the growing concern. His bright blue eyes were now a stormy grey, kind of like the clouds that you see during a heavy storm. His brows were furrowed, giving him an appearance almost as if he were angry.

“You alright, Y/N? You’ve barely eaten your food and normally you finish before I do.” He attempted to joke, to bring about that smile that seemed to always fill him with warmth. He half expected you to look up at him with that cheeky little smile, a mischievous look in your eyes and say “You know, I would be offended by that, but I know why you eat so slow, Buck. I completely understand. You don’t want your dentures to fall out.” But it never came.

You don’t know what it was. Bucky asking you if you were alright or if it was simply all the pressure of just.. everything, finally breaking, but you could feel the hot tears in your eyes. They blurred your vision until you couldn’t really see the plate of the pancakes in focus. The dam had finally come apart and you couldn’t hold it in anymore. You set the fork down and buried your face in your hands, your shoulders lightly shaking as you began to cry. All Bucky could do was stare for a few seconds, alarm written all over his face. Alarm and distress because he had no idea what just happened and if he had done something to upset you.

“Woah woah, hey. Sweetheart, hey. What’s wrong?” In seconds, Bucky was out of his side of the booth and scooting in beside you. You felt the comfort of his warmth, you felt his arm tentatively, almost hesitantly, slide around your shoulders and anchor you to him. You shook your head, attempting to calm down, to stop the tears but the more you tried, the more they seemed to come.

“I-I’m sorry, Bucky.. I.. I’m sorry.. I-I’m fine. Really.” You said, sniffling. It was apparent to you both that you were not alright and he really just wanted to get to the bottom of it. Or at least attempt to comfort you. But doing that in the middle of a diner with other people around wasn’t ideal.

“Hey, my apartment is only a short walk away. Come on, let’s get you out of here and somewhere more quiet.” You didn’t protest. You just nodded and slid out of the booth after he did. Bucky took out his wallet and placed a few bills on the table, paying for the uneaten food, and then quickly led you out of the establishment. He kept his hand on you, almost like an anchor. Whether it was to reassure you or himself, he didn’t know and you didn’t mind either. It was probably the only thing that kept you from retreating inside of your mind and giving in to the panic that so desperately wanted out.

You didn’t even realize that you had reached his apartment until he had led you up the stairs and you were standing behind him as he unlocked the door. He allowed you to step in first and then quickly followed behind you, shutting the door as he did so. You didn’t really get the chance to take in his apartment because he had ushered you to sit on his couch while he knelt in front of you.

“Alright, you’re scarin’ me here, doll. What’s wrong? Did someone hurt you?” The sheer look of concern and slight panic in his face and those pretty eyes of his made the waterworks come back again. You shook your head, your face scrunched up in anguish. Hot bullet tears fell from your eyes and left a wet path in their wake down your cheeks. Bucky wasn’t one to pry; he hated it when people tried to pry into his life and he didn’t do it to you, but he couldn’t stand the sight of seeing you cry. He couldn’t stand the sight of your once bright eyes and cheery smile just.. gone. You eyes were sad and your lips were pulled into a frown. “Talk to me, baby.” He practically pleaded.

“I just.. I don’t.. I don’t know how to explain it, Buck.” You cried. “I-I.. I just feel like..” You let out a frustrated cry when you couldn’t find the right words but Bucky was patient. He reached a hand up, cupping your cheek and wiping away the tears that kept falling. “I don’t feel.. happy. Everyday I wake up and I just, I feel fine for like a few seconds and then everything just comes crashing down on me. I can’t ever stop thinking. I can’t sleep at night. I’m tired. I’m tired of feeling like this, Bucky. And I feel fucking crazy. Sometimes I feel like you don’t even really like me. I feel.. hopeless, like nothing is ever going to be okay. I might feel okay for a few seconds but then it just goes away.” You explained, though you were sure that you probably sounded like a raving and ranting lunatic. “Before I met you, I liked being alone but I also hated it because when I was alone, I would just overthink and overthink and overthink about every fucking thing. If it wasn’t one thing it was another just giving me such bad anxiety and.. I don’t know what to do anymore, Bucky. I’m just tired of feeling like this. Feeling like nothing is ever going to be okay, like I’m never going to be okay. I just feel.. alone.”

His heart was well and truly broken. In the two months that he’d known you, he hadn’t known how badly you had struggled with your mental health. He hadn’t known the war that you fought within your mind, and how bad it had become. You were such saving grace for Bucky; you saved him from the wars inside of his mind. The constant feeling of guilt that he fought with on a daily basis, and now.. he just wanted to do the same for you. He wanted to shoulder some of the pain that you carried, the pain that seemed to be weighing you down. Both of his hands now cupped your cheeks so delicately, as if you were the most precious thing in the world to him. His blue eyes were shining, looking at you with not pity, but something like.. understanding. If anyone knew what you were feeling, it was Bucky.

“You’re not alone.” His smooth and rich voice was so soft, so gentle that it brought on a new set of tears. “You’re not alone, sweetheart. Not anymore. You know why? Cause you got me.” He said. “I know what it’s like to feel hopeless. To feel stuck in your head. To feel like nothing is ever gonna get better. I felt like that in Wakanda. Sometimes.. sometimes, we need help. And I know I’m not one to be talking considering that I don’t really like talking to my therapist or even going,” That roused the smallest of smiles from you. “I’m here. You know that, right? I’m here. You got me and I’m not going anywhere. I promise. I don’t care if you have a million bad days. I don’t care if you feel like you’re bothering me. I’ll be there every time.” You two have gradually gravitated close to one another until your foreheads were pressed together. Bucky was still knelt in front of you on the couch, his hands still holding your cheeks. Your eyes were closed and you could feel his warm breath fanning your face. The tears had stopped falling but you were still sniffling softly. “You’ve helped me. Even if you don’t know it. You’ve helped me.” He was whispering. There was no one but you two in his apartment but he was still whispering the words meant for only you to hear. “Now, let me help you. Please.”

“Okay. I trust you, Bucky.”

[goblinmatriarch]

Flufftober 2022: day 2

“Bollocks,” Trent says, putting down his tea.

Ted glances over at him from where he is helping Georgie pour pancake batter into the pan, but quickly returns his focus to the small child and the hot stove.

“Everything alright?” he asks, then, “Oh, wait, no, that’s too much– Georgie, just…alright, well that will be the mega-pancake then, won’t it?”

Trent allows himself a grin at Ted’s helpless tone, then recalls that it’s this kind of distracted soppiness that has caused him to muck up his schedule for the day.

“It’s fine,” he sighs. “I forgot my father was coming in town today. He wants to take Georgie to the Natural History Museum, which means I need to collect her from school instead of the childminder, so I can bring her to meet him.”

“Well that sounds fun,” Ted says cheerfully. He nudges Georgie. “Doesn’t it, Georg-erina Ballerina.”

Georgie scowls up at him. “My name is Georgiana, not George-erina,” she says, shoving her hands on her hips.

Ted’s hand flies to his chest, but he’s still holding the spatula, so he thwacks himself in the side of the face with it as he says, “Sincere apologies, Georgiana Baller-ana.”

Georgie giggles at the slapstick comedy, but she is still Trent’s child. “Baller-ana isn’t a word,” she says, in a ‘well, actually’ kind of tone that makes Trent’s heart swell.

Trent watches them for a moment. He had rolled his eyes at Ted’s insistence on a hearty breakfast every morning, but Georgie seems to enjoy it, and Trent has to admit, he has far more energy now that he’s started consuming something besides tea before 11am.

He’s forgotten the problem again in mooning over the two of them, and if that isn’t the problem itself in a nutshell…

“It is nice, but I forgot and scheduled a meeting this afternoon. It’s fine, I can just–”

“I’ll do it.”

Trent pauses, his mug of tea still held in midair. Ted looks over his shoulder at Trent and flushes. “I don’t have to. I mean, I would understand if—” He straightens and turns to fully face Trent. “I can see why that might not be the best solution.” He swallows awkwardly, spatula still clutched in his fist, and Trent’s heart squeezes. “Probably gonna want to have a conversation with your dad before I go all Greg Focker.”

Trent furrows his eyebrows, and Ted clarifies, “Meet the Parents.” 

Trent laughs. “Funnily enough, I missed that one.”

“What?” Ted jokes, back on safer ground. “You weren’t lined up at the movies for the premiere? It seems right up your alley!”

“I have had the conversation, though.”

Ted is helping Georgie flip the mega-pancake, so he distractedly says, “The conversation about Meet the Parents? Oh!” He turns abruptly as he takes in Trent’s meaning. Georgie squeals in outrage, and the mega-pancake loses all structural integrity, the gooey batter top of it sliding off into the pan, causing the cooked bottom to break in half and fall on top of it.

“Ted!” She wails. “You ruined it!”

“Now, Georgie, there ain’t no such thing as a ruined pancake!” Ted says, turning back to the pan with one last look at Trent. “It’ll still taste good, and,” he lowers his voice to a conspiratorial whisper, “we can just cover it in berries and syrup.”

Georgie giggles, mollified, and Ted turns back to Trent, who smiles and says, “Georgie mentioned you to my parents the week you gave her those biscuits, and then again after the fete, and...” He blushes slightly but forces himself to admit, “By the time I told them we were dating, it was…not a surprise.”

Ted grins hugely, one of those slow grins that crinkles up his eyes and twitches his mustache and creates a hopeful, vulnerable warmth deep in Trent’s belly.

Trent smiles dopily back at him for a moment, then Georgie exasperatedly shouts, “Te-ed! The mega-pancake will burn!”

Ted jumps theatrically and says, “Well, goodness gracious, we can’t have that!” and everything is just as it was before, except then Ted casually adds, “So then what d’you reckon? Should I bring Georgie to meet her Granddad?” 

And Trent smiles and easily agrees.

@flufftober

[futurewriter2000]

Dysfunctional - pt. 1

A/N: I'm just bored.

XX

Growth is something only a little amount of people know about. Nobody truly wants to grow but they do, whether they choose to or not, through time they change.

And so as a bad man finds a bible, a good woman finds her power.

Who were you in the eyes of most people? - A question that always floated in the back of your mind. Like a pebble in your shoe, the one you could never get rid of. It was the main question that bothered you all years through Hogwarts, up to a point where you pushed it so far down and completely transformed it.

Who are you in the eyes of yourself?

Foolish question that oddly worked wonders for you and your transformation. You change your mindset, you change yourself right? At least that's what all those Muggle books had been telling you.

All Hogwarts dug their interest in you all of a sudden but you haven't thought much about it. For you, it was as if nothing had changed. You thought you didn't interest anybody and that was what made you keep yourself on the right path to focus on you and the little moments life has to offer.

"I can't believe that's her." Sirius leaned over, staring and smiling.

"Wave a whole banner, don't you." Remus retorded, rolling his eyes.

"If only she wasn't a Slytherin- by the way, how could she had got sorted into Slytherin. Since our interactions had always been so... civil and well... she posed no threat what-so-ever. I'd always imagined her being in a Hufflepuff." James added, meanwhile Sirius sat down and grabbed himself a toast.

"She lives not far from us." started Peter and all eyes turned to him. "(Y/n)." he felt the need to clarify. "I had heard loads of shouting in her house... since we lived there, everybody knew her family situation."

"Rich and spoiled?" Sirius rolled his eyes, taking another bite in his toast.

"Rich and... strict... very strict father and mother..." Peter mumbled, looking at his bread.

"Oh, that's right. Met her father once- loud old sod." James looked back, looking at you laughing with some of other Slytherins- the bad kind that caused his heart to be swallowed by his stomach. "Always so angry..." he continued, looking at you until your eyes met and he quickly turned away.

"She's got nice hair." said Sirius as all of them furrowed their eyebrows at him. "It's just an observation." he shrugged.

---

You had been starting to hang out a lot with the wrong crowd of Hogwarts. Everybody started to notice... everybody started to say they were corrupting you and the changes they noticed were quite massive.

You started talking back to the teachers. Something you have never thought of doing, since your shyness was a large part of your childhood personality. But that was just it... you weren't a child anymore, were you?

You were going out of the classroom when somebody rushed right into you, spilling the coffee in your hand all over you and your books.

The boy's eyes widened as he continued to look at the stains that were starting to show all over your uniform.

"I am so sorry, (Y/N). I swear, I didn't mean to- I just- you appeared out of nowhere-" James started to apologize. You were only staring down, staring at him, then back down and just as James was preparing to be yelled at, hexed at or cursed at you let out a laugh.

"Well hell..." you smiled up at him. "Finally a reason to get a new robe." you let out another laugh, meanwhile James only stood there.

"You're not... mad?"

"Well, being mad wouldn't really do us much favour, would it now?" you picked up your books that weren't that much damaged as you thought they'd be. "Shame for the coffee tho. Can't really function without it."

"Coffee?" he repeated. "You're mad about the coffee?" he started to feel a bit relieved.

"I don't joke about coffee, Potter. You should know that." you wiped the books with the sleeves of your uniform. You started to take off the robe so that you would only stand there in front of him with your shirt, tie and skirt. Only then James started to realise how much your body has changed since the last time he had seen you. Your breast, specifically, where he could see your finely shaped lace bra through the coffee stain. He felt his cheeks go red, radiating through his faint freckles and you couldn't help yourself but to smile.

"I'm so sorr- rry." he muttered again, taking off his robe and offering it to you. "Here. Take it."

"Oh, nice. A Gryffindor robe." you took it and wrapped it around yourself. "Though, I always imagined stealing it." you winked and he let out a laugh.

"Would fit your house perfectly."

"Theft?" you questioned. "No. Not a trait for Slytherins."

"No?" he grinned, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back. "If it's not their trait, then whose is?"

"Mine." you winked again, grabbing the bag from the floor as James grabbed your books. "Now, imagine a Slytherin coming into the common room with a Gryffindor robe. God, I'd piss them all off."

James started to laugh. "You hate your own house?"

"Oh, God no." you let out a laugh as you started to walk beside him and notice him looking at you, observing you. "I just find this house thing rivalry real funny." you said, finding him still staring. You stopped and turned around. "What are you staring at Potter?"

"You, clearly." he pointed out bluntly. "It suits you so much better than me and it clearly doesn't even fit you."

You started to laugh. "Well, don't get jealous over it. I'll give it back to you when we reach the dungeons."

"Oh, you can give it back later?"

"Why?"

"Because you can see everything through the stains. Why do you think I offered it to you? Plus, you said you wanted to piss off Slytherins and I'd like to piss of Slytherins as well."

"A common interest."

"Exactly."

"Though, I think they'll live, knowing I wear a bra and that I have... a body. Maybe they'll finally stop thinking I'm half mermaid or something." you started to joke and so did James. "If I really wanted to piss them off, I'd use a tie because a robe looks like any other robe, really."

James was the one that stopped now, shoving the books he held into your arms and untying his tie.

"No way, you're doing that. I was joking."

"I'm not." he smiled with his teeth and pulled it over his head. He untied yours and pulled it over yours, exchanging it for his own, Gryffindor tie. "Tell me how it goes. " he said just before he left, lifting your tie in his fist. "I'll keep on to this- just in case I don't get mine back.

"Alrighty!" you shouted after him.

---

It wasn't until the next day when James was drowsily eating his breakfast before his practice. You came from behind and scared him half to death. His toast flew from his hand and all eyes flew to the two of you. You squeezed between him and the red-head, completely dismissing her presence as you gave James a cheeky smile.

"Want to know?"

"You made my toast fly away." he siad drowsily.

"And you made my coffee make love to the floor. Now do you want to know?"

"How are you so chirp this morning? It's not even seven?"

"Got up at 2am. Had like two coffees since then. Anyway. Do you want to know?"

"Two in the morning? Hell, why did you get up so early- that's not even early... that's like late. And yeah, I do want to know." he started t wake up to the news.

"Been studying all week at night and now I sleep in the noon and am awake in the night. Fun." you chirped.

"Okay- tell me what happened?"

"The looks- oh, my God, you should have been there when I walked it. It was like I murdered their entire family."

"No-" he let out a laugh.

"Mulciber came to me." you started to talk in a more drama-spilling tone and James got excited.

"I thought the two of you were like friends."

"Us? Maybe in another dimension but like-

' *flashback*

"What the hell are you wearing?" he stomped to you and grabbed you by your tie, to which you shoved away in a second.

"Haven't you seen this new trend? I think it goes with- you are what you eat." you started to tease, turning around like a fashion model as you placed your hands on your hips. "Or in this case, you wear what you eat and I eat coffee every day, any day." you winked.

"And the tie?"

"You like?" you continued, seeing the little jealousy burn in his eyes, except you knew far well it wasn't jealousy. It was possessiveness and you'd rather go to hell than be anybody's property. "It's from my new beau." you fanned yourself, wrapping yourself in his robe and peeking through it. "A prince on white horse came to me today-"

"Be serious, (y/n)."

"I am dead serious." you pouted playfully. "He rushed on his horse and knocked me down, spilled my poor coffee all over me. It was like love at first sight. He scooped me into his arms and said 'Oh, dear! How could I have hurt this beautiful creature.-"

"You really didn't say that?" James interrupted the story telling, laughing as the other's who were surrounding you laughed with you.

"I did. Now let me go back."

- "He didn't say that!" Mulciber rolled his eyes. "Don't tell me you're shagging a Gryffindor?"

"I'm not." you started to get more serious. "And if I would be, would it be such a bad thing doing one? I mean, you only live once, why would it be wrong not taking a taste of all four cakes." you teased again, causing him to grow redder in his pale skin.

"You stole it."

"It was pleasantly exchanged."

"Exchanged?"

"A tie for a tie." you smiled.

"Why don't we go, eye for an eye?"

"Because nobody wants to give their eye, silly." you continued.

"You really annoy me, you know."

"I do and I really do not care. I only want to go to my room and take a nap."

"I will find out, you know!"

"I don't care!"

"Who was it?!"

"Dumbledore!"

*end of fashback*

"You're crazy." James continued to laugh.

"A little dysfunctional but not crazy." you winked and got up.

"And my things?"

"Do you got mine?"

"No, I didn't think I'd see you this early."

"Well then... guess they are mine now." you leaned forward, an inch apart as both of you continued to grin at each other, not another word spoken. You didn't dare to look anywhere else than his hazel eyes, such a wonderful mixture of green, brown and yellow. It amazes you how somebody can have such a wonderful eye colour. He didn't even only have one colour but three. "Pretty." you said, still smiling and pulled away, jumping back on your feet as he turned to you, smiling.

"Wait!" Sirius spoke before you could leave. "When did... when did you become best friends?"

"We didn't." James answered and you looked down at him, raising an eyebrow and feeling amused.

"No. We just made blood bond nobody else could break." you spoke mysteriously, putting your elbows on James' shoulders and placing your head on top of his, staring at Sirius. "And now we will secretly plan the end of the world. Muahahah." you joked, standing back up as the others laughed. "See you later Potts." and with that you were gone as the other watched you.

"What... just happened?" Remus started laughing, amazed.

"They made a blood bond." Sirius pointed his finger at you disappearing.

James started laughing. "Maybe now I can ask her about what she does with her hair for you." James got up and winked at Sirius.

"Oh, would you? I really want to know." Sirius stood up and started to walk behind him. "Just... say it's for Lily or something."

James started laughing again, then realising. "Oh, shit!" he turned around, searching for the red-head that was sitting beside him. "She was telling me something when (y/n) appeared. I totally forgot about her."

Sirius started laughing loudly, tapping James' shoulder. "Good luck getting her attention now."

[storytellerofuntoldlegends]

an icarus and his sun: chapter 8

A/N: hello i have returned!! this chapter was weirdly difficult for me to write, but from here on out i think the writing will go much smoother! but unfortunately i do have classes to be worrying about soon, so who knows how much time i will have to write. but still!! very excited about this fic and how you guys will react to upcoming events >:) (plus i added some implied nature wives (katherine and shelby) to this bit so this fic is basically turning into me making empires smp gayer) also check out this stunning art of chapter 5 by @artanogon! and if you wanna make art of this fic, you absolutely can, just be sure to tag me so i can see it!

Warnings: depression of the heartbreak variety, past violence

AO3 Link - Tumblr Masterpost

-

Jimmy was trying his hardest to not be mopey as he helped Katherine with rebuilding. He knew that he had promised that he would help her- but his own confusing feelings about Scott, his lack of building know-how, and the dejected look Katherine had as she looked at the slight crater where her castle used to be had Jimmy feeling far out of his league. But he put on a brave face- he needed the distraction, after all.

They began with filling in the crater, mostly silent as they moved dirt over with their shovels. Then once the ground was level, they could begin with setting up the framework of the castle. They spoke more to each other then- but it was mostly Katherine telling Jimmy where to put the support beams. Jimmy wanted to say something, anything to break the tension and melancholy air- but he couldn’t think of a single thing to say to Katherine that didn’t lead back to the tragedies they had experienced. Jimmy wished that Joel or Lizzie were there- but they were off gathering more materials for Katherine’s castle, and probably wouldn’t return until nightfall. So until then, it was just Jimmy and Katherine, silently stewing in their respective sadnesses.

Luckily- or maybe unluckily- someone much more chipper than either of them came along. Jimmy almost didn’t recognize her at first- but quickly realized that the figure approaching them was the mushroom gnome queen, Shrub. Or Shelby-she had said they could call her that too. She was dressed far more casually than she had been at the ball, a polka-dotted red kerchief tied over her head, brown overalls over a green shirt, and red boots with white polka dots. She had a bag slung over her shoulder, and Jimmy could see the tops of mushrooms peeking out of it.

“Um- hello! I- I wanted to offer some gifts from the Undergrove, maybe they could help with rebuilding! Or they could just look pretty- or just be a peace offering- or a gift of sympathy for what happened,” Shelby rambled, seeming just as skittish as she had at the ball, but was less afraid and more excited. Katherine set down the beam she was holding, and gave Shelby a small smile.

“The gift is much appreciated, thank you. It was nice of you to stop by- I apologize for the appearance of the Overgrown. Usually it’s prettier here,” Katherine said, looking over her lands for a brief moment before focusing back on Shelby.

“Oh! Well, what I saw of it at the ball, your empire is lovely! I’m sure it will be back to its former glory soon… if you’d like, I can help! I’m good with plants and I’m not a bad builder!” Shelby offered with an encouraging smile. Katherine practically glowed at the praise of her empire, and smiled back.

“I’d love to have your help- it’s just been me and Jimmy working all day, and most of our time was spent filling in the crater. Some extra hands would definitely help things go faster,” Katherine replied, gesturing at the land around her. Shelby beamed back at her, setting down her bag of mushrooms.

“Then I’m more than happy to help! We gnomes are small but mighty, just tell me where to lug these beams around and I’ll do it!” she chirped. Katherine blinked in slight surprise at her eagerness, but looked over to the stack of beams beside them.

“Well, there is one that needs to go across those two over here for the entrance. If you’re as strong as you say, then maybe you can help Jimmy with getting it up there- I’ll set some scaffolding up so you guys can reach it,” Katherine explained, going over to where two beams were upright and doing just that. Jimmy watched her set up the scaffolding for a moment, until he felt a pair of eyes on him. He turned and looked down to Shelby, who quickly looked away once she realized she had been caught staring.

“Is everything okay? You seem jumpy,” he asked, brows furrowed in confusion. Shelby chuckled nervously.

“Oh. Well- you see, gnomes can’t swim. And I’m kind of afraid of the water and water related things because of it. But you and the ocean lady seem like really nice people! So… sorry for being jumpy. It’s a habit,” she admitted sheepishly. Jimmy let out a good-natured laugh.

“I mean you’re right to be spooked by Lizzie, she can be scary when she wants to be- but most of the time she’s very nice! And trust me, there is not a single threatening thing about me,” Jimmy said, tone turning a bit rueful at the end of his statement. Shelby frowned.

“The guy with the goggles and his friend sure seemed to think otherwise, why else would they bother you like that?” she asked. Jimmy blinked in surprise at that.

“You… you think Fwhip and Sausage are afraid of me?” he asked in disbelief.

“Well… not afraid, but definitely threatened. I’ve seen it before, back where I came from. You’re someone who won’t bow to people easily, and people like them don’t like that,” Shelby explained with a shrug. Jimmy considered this for a moment.

“Huh. I guess… I never saw it like that before,” Jimmy said, a small smile coming to his face.

Their conversation was ended by Katherine waving them over, and Jimmy and Shelby picked up one of the beams to carry over to where the scaffolding had been set up. Shelby was surprisingly strong for her stature, and carrying around the beams and placing them where they needed to be was much easier than before she had arrived. It was less quiet with Shelby around too, as she cheerfully asked questions about their empires, as well as sharing some things about her own empire. But then there was one question that caused Jimmy’s blood to freeze in his veins.

“So you said that Joel and Lizzie were getting more building materials, but what about your partner? Is he with them too?” Shelby asked, and for a moment, Jimmy was confused.

“My… what?” he asked.

“The elf guy you were dancing with at the ball! You’re very cute together, by the way,” Shelby continued, completely oblivious to the tension in the air her statement created. However she soon noticed Jimmy’s pained expression, and it was her curious smile changed to a concerned frown.

“We uh. We were never together. And he betrayed us,” Jimmy said stiffly.

“Oh- oh I’m so sorry. You guys had just looked so happy together, I had just assumed- I’m sorry,” Shelby rambled, and Jimmy gave her a weak smile.

“It’s alright. I guess I was kinda happy- but it was never real. Not for him, at least,” Jimmy replied, throat feeling tight. He hadn’t really meant to burden all of his issues onto Shelby, but his mouth was moving a little faster than his brain was at the moment, and he couldn’t hold back his words.

“Well- well then that guy is missing out! You seem great, and he gave you up for what, tactical gain or political advantage or something?! He doesn’t deserve you!” Shelby declared, hands on her hips as she smiled up at Jimmy confidently. If someone he barely knew had so much confidence in him, then why shouldn’t he? Jimmy smiled back at Shelby.

“Maybe you’re right,” he conceded. Shelby gave him a half laugh, half playful scoff.

“Of course I’m right! Now c’mon, this castle isn’t gonna rebuild itself!” she chirped, heading over to the stack of beams. Jimmy could only stare after her for a moment, dumbfounded. Katherine seemed just as amazed by the gnome’s boundless positivity, a smile growing across her face.

“She’s spirited,” Katherine murmured. Jimmy chuckled.

“Yeah, you two are like birds of a feather,” Jimmy murmured back.

"We both are definitely nature-oriented," Katherine added with a chuckle. She looked at Shelby fondly for a moment, until her expression turned into a frown as she noticed something in the sky. Subconsciously her hand started reaching for Jimmy’s, and he took it as he looked up to the sky with her. Two figures were flying in- and the tension in Jimmy’s shoulders relaxed ever-so-slightly when he recognized them as Pearl and Gem. But he still gave Katherine’s hand a gentle squeeze all the same.

“What’s going on? Are we under attack again?!” Shelby asked anxiously, coming over to stand beside them and look up at Pearl and Gem flying in.

“Don’t know yet- they weren’t directly behind the explosion… but they are allied with the people who were,” Katherine said apprehensively. Shelby looked down from the sky, frowning in concern- and upon noticing Jimmy and Katherine’s joined hands, she grabbed Katherine’s other hand with a comforting smile. Katherine flushed slightly, but smiled back at Shelby gratefully.

“Please don’t be alarmed!” Gem shouted as she came in for a landing. Frankly, that didn’t make Jimmy feel any less alarmed.

“We aren’t allied with Fwhip and Sausage anymore. We don’t want any part of what they’re up to,” Pearl clarified, landing beside Gem.

“Really?” Jimmy asked warily. Gem looked to Jimmy with an open, pleading expression.

“I meant what I said when we told you that we didn’t know what Fwhip was up to. He left myself and Pearl completely in the dark, while Sausage and Scott were the only ones who knew about the full plan. But even then, I don’t think those two had the full picture, they looked surprised that we hadn’t known about the TNT. The point is- Pearl and I were tired of being part of an alliance that lied to us, and lied to us to hurt others! Katherine- if I had known what was going to happen, I would have never gone along with it and would have tried to put a stop to it,” Gem explained, turning her focus to Katherine as she spoke.

“So… you two are… on our side then?” Katherine asked slowly. Pearl gave her a gentle smile.

“If you’ll have us, yes. We also figured you could use our help rebuilding,” Pearl replied. Katherine looked to Jimmy, as if she was asking for his opinion. Jimmy blinked, and looked at Pearl and Gem. They seemed… candid, at least. But after Scott… Jimmy wasn’t sure who he could trust anymore besides his steady allies. However, they weren’t Scott. And furthermore, it really wasn’t his call to make. It was Katherine’s.

“It’s your empire, Katherine. If you don’t want them here, then just say the word. But you won’t get a fight from me if you do want them to help,” Jimmy said gently. Katherine smiled, and looked back to Pearl and Gem.

“I would absolutely appreciate your help. We’ve almost got all the framework for the castle set up- but having someone with wings help us out with some of the taller parts would be lovely,” Katherine said. Pearl beamed, and Gem clapped her hands excitedly. Gem came closer and Katherine let go of Shelby and Jimmy’s hands to talk over building plans with Gem, Shelby following after her and listening as well. Pearl, however, walked over to Jimmy with a mildly timid expression.

“Pearl?” Jimmy asked.

“There’s something I think you should know,” she blurted. Jimmy blinked in surprise, tilting his head to one side in confusion.

“I… okay,” Jimmy said semi-apprehensively. Pearl took a deep breath, like she was unsure of how to continue.

“Gem and I just came from a meeting with the Wither Rose Alliance. Well… it wasn’t much of a meeting, Gem and I broke off ties with the alliance pretty quickly and then left. But… there’s a… there’s something about Scott,” Pearl explained slowly. Jimmy tensed, swallowing nervously.

“Oh?” Jimmy asked, trying to keep his tone neutral.

“Like I said, Gem and I didn’t stay long so I don’t know for sure- but there was something off about Scott. He just… didn’t seem himself. I think he was just as unhappy with Fwhip as we were with him. I… I just know he meant a lot to you. And I think you meant a lot to him too. I just… I don’t want to get your hopes up, but maybe… maybe you should give him a chance,” Pearl continued. Jimmy’s mouth fixed into a firm line.

“It’s a nice thought… but I don’t think I can trust him anymore. Not after everything that happened,” Jimmy said, throat tight as he tried not to cry. Part of him really wanted to hope that maybe there was some sort of misunderstanding, that Scott really did care about him- but Jimmy couldn’t afford that kind of hope. Pearl nodded in understanding.

“That’s fair. Like I said… just thought you should know,” she said, before walking over to join Katherine in her discussion for the build. Then Jimmy- only feeling ever so slightly useless now that Katherine had so much more help- swallowed the tears that thinking about Scott caused, and joined them.

-

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