#and the body typically wakes up in sleep just to roll over or adjust All the time and we tend to remember that

[crescendo-system]

Fell asleep listening to music and with an ice pack on my lower back

Woke up with the ice pack next to my head

Ummmmm

[solxamber]

Trash Novel Chronicles: Love Triangles and Royal Rumbles - Leona Kingscholar x Reader

When you get isekai'd as the male lead in the novel where your favorite character, Leona Kingscholar is the second male lead, all that's left to do is rewrite the romance!

Series Masterlist

You're just an average person, doing normal human things like eating, sleeping, and, of course, staring at your poster of Leona Kingscholar for three hours straight. Totally healthy behavior. People have hobbies, right? Some knit, some jog, and you…? You defend your fictional lion husband from slander on the internet. You’re practically a digital knight in shining armor.

The story that has consumed your very soul? Oh, just your typical Cliché Villainess Academy Novel: Revenge Edition™. The plot is so by-the-book, it’s basically a war crime against creativity. Female lead? She’s been in love with the male lead since he gave some boring welcome speech that apparently hit her so hard, her brain rewired itself into a romantic mess.

The villainess? Obviously in love with the male lead too, but her one and only goal in life is making the heroine’s existence a never-ending trainwreck of public embarrassment. And the male lead? Sweet summer child. He just wants to get his degree and avoid eye contact with all of these lunatics.

Enter: Leona Kingscholar, the second male lead. The man, the myth, the walking sarcasm machine. He’s there purely to fuel jealousy in everyone else’s love story, but for you? He’s everything. The brooding, lazy, hot second male lead who rolls his eyes at every plot point like he’s just as done with this novel as you are. He has better things to do, like nap, but here he is, dragged into this mess by proximity.

If it were up to you, he and the male lead would run off together, leave the heroine and villainess to start their own hobby club about emotional devastation, and the two guys would live happily ever after in matching beach chairs somewhere.

But no. Instead, you’re stuck reading about her fawning over him while Leona is just… there. Existing. The only thing keeping your interest alive.

And now? Now, your loyalty to Leona Kingscholar is about to pay off. The fan event of the century is just days away. It’s going to be glorious. A whole day dedicated to Leona—merch, fan contests, life-sized cardboard cutouts (which, let’s be honest, you’re ready to risk it all for). You've cleared your schedule, mentally prepared yourself for the inevitable squealing, and created a battle plan for acquiring the best merch before everyone else.

But fate? Fate’s cruel.

You’re casually defending Leona’s honor online as usual, battling some no-name troll who dares to claim that the male lead is "better written." (HA! You laugh in their wrong face.) But then—what’s this? A an likes your tweet about Leona! And not just any author. THE ONE YOU LOVE. The serotonin shoots through you like an adrenaline shot straight to the brain.

Your heart’s racing. You’re vibrating at a frequency only dogs can hear. You leap out of your chair like some majestic gazelle—or at least that’s what you tell yourself as you promptly trip over the plushie army that guards your floor.

Before you know it, you’re tumbling, body flailing like a noodle, bouncing down the stairs in what feels like slow motion. The world spins. Your merch shelves mock you from the distance. You land at the bottom in a heap, your soul floating just above your body.

"Is this… how it ends?" you wheeze, gasping for breath, more in shock than pain. As your vision starts to fade, all you can think is: I never made it to the Leona event….

And with that, you die. Crushed under the weight of fandom.

You wake up, and your first thought isn’t the usual, “Oh, I’ve been isekai’d into a new world, how fascinating, I’ll have time to adjust in a moment of peace and reflection.” No. You wake up and it hits you like a brick: Oh no. Female lead.

But then, a beam of hope breaks through the clouds of despair and shines down on you like a heavenly spotlight: Wait. Leona Kingscholar is here.

Before you can even revel in the thought of being in the same universe as your broody lion crush, reality smacks you upside the head. Loud voices are pulling you back to the scene unfolding right in front of your very eyes.

You blink. Hold on. This is not a bedroom, and this is definitely not a private moment to gather your thoughts like in every other isekai novel. Oh no, you’ve been thrown directly into the group project scene.

You know, the one where the villainess is sharpening her claws on the heroine while Leona watches from the sidelines like he’s two seconds away from a permanent nap? Yeah, you’re smack in the middle of it.

The villainess, looking as pissed off as usual, is glaring daggers at the trembling heroine, who is staring at you with those wide, teary eyes like you’re supposed to swoop in and save her from this verbal smackdown.

And that’s when it hits you: you’re the male lead. The original goody-two-shoes, justice-loving male lead who always stepped in to defend the heroine. The one who got suckered into every cliché moment, complete with sparkles and heroic speeches about morality and blah blah blah.

Not you, though.

You take one look at the heroine. She’s giving you this look like you’re her knight in shining armor, expecting you to throw yourself in front of her and deliver some dramatic monologue about kindness and decency. And you? You're mentally checking out of this scene faster than the speed of light.

Nah. You’re not about that life.

Your gaze drifts to Leona, sitting on the far side of the room, slouched over like he’s wondering why he’s being subjected to this emotional soap opera when he could be napping. His face screams "done," and honestly? Same. He meets your gaze, eyes half-lidded and bored, probably hoping you’ll do the usual male lead routine and put an end to this nonsense.

But oh no, today’s different.

You casually stroll over to where Leona is sitting, ignoring the drama unfolding behind you. With the swagger of someone who knows exactly what they’re about to do is going to blow some minds, you hold out your hand to him. "So, uh… you want to ditch this disaster and go take a nap? Or maybe raid the kitchens? I’m thinking we play hooky and pretend this never happened."

Leona’s eyes flicker with surprise for half a second. The male lead? The goody-two-shoes-moral-compass of the entire plot? The guy who literally lived to stop drama in its tracks? Is offering to blow off this whole mess? He raises an eyebrow, smirking like the cat who caught the canary.

"Didn’t think you had it in you," Leona drawls, but you can tell he’s already down for this. "Alright. Let’s go. If anyone asks, I’m gonna say you dragged me out."

"Deal," you say, trying not to look too smug. And with that, you turn on your heel, and with Leona at your side, you head for the door, leaving behind a shell-shocked villainess and a teary-eyed heroine who’s probably still processing the fact that her supposed knight in shining armor just dipped.

As you and Leona stroll out, you hear the villainess mutter, “What… just happened?” and you can’t help but grin. You may have just turned the plot upside down, but at least you’re doing it in style.

"Hey, Leona," you say, nudging him, "think we can find some of those fancy desserts in the kitchen? I’m starving."

Leona snorts, shoving his hands into his pockets. "If you’re buying, sure."

And just like that, the male lead and the second male lead walk off into the sunset—or rather, the campus courtyard—hand in hand with a new mission: Avoiding all future plot nonsense at all costs.

You’re not sure how you got here, staring at the over-the-top ball decorations like you’ve stepped into a bargain bin fairytale, but hey, life has taken a weird turn lately. You, of all people, are living out the plot of a novel so cliché it makes your head hurt.

But you guess that’s what happens when you get isekai’d into a second-rate villainess story. The only thing missing is a glass slipper and some woodland creatures to sing with.

And of course, surprise! The ball isn’t just some casual evening of sipping punch and avoiding the villainess’s death stares. No, if you don’t nail the ball, you don’t graduate. Because nothing says "academic achievement" like knowing how to waltz while dressed like a background character from Bridgerton.

So here you are, in ball lessons, where everyone is nervously pairing off while you’re trying not to roll your eyes into another dimension. The heroine, with her usual doe-eyed sparkle, gets paired with you first. And let’s be real: she’s either terrible at dancing, or she’s using this as an excuse to get you to hold her close.

But you? Oh no. You’ve read enough of this garbage to know where that’s going, and you have zero interest in playing out the “close embrace, sparks flying, almost-kiss” trope. Absolutely not.

As soon as the music starts, you decide it’s time to act. You let your feet stumble—deliberately, of course—and flail around like you’ve never seen a ballroom floor in your life. The heroine, bless her clueless heart, giggles like she thinks you’re just being cute, but you’re not about to humor this. When the instructor’s eyes lock onto you, you seize the opportunity.

"Oh no!" you say dramatically, throwing a hand over your forehead like you’re in some kind of soap opera. "I’m so bad at this. Could someone please teach me how to dance?"

You pause, glance around the room, and then lock eyes with Leona Kingscholar.

"Leona!" you shout, loud enough that the whole room freezes. "You’re the second prince! You must’ve had etiquette lessons, right? Teach me how to dance!"

The room collectively loses its mind. The heroine looks like you’ve just slapped her with a glove and challenged her to a duel. The villainess is staring at you like you’ve lost your marbles. And Leona? Leona’s expression is somewhere between utter confusion and why me.

Leona leans back, crossing his arms, visibly annoyed. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” he mutters, but there’s no denying the faint twitch of a smirk at the corner of his mouth when he sees the heroine and villainess get shoved into an awkward dancing pair together.

Despite his clear irritation, Leona steps forward, because let’s face it, he’s the kind of guy who’ll humor you if it means avoiding worse drama. You slide into position with him, and honestly? You’re in heaven. You can barely focus on your feet, too busy trying to hide your grin while you imagine all the drama this is causing behind you.

Meanwhile, the heroine and the villainess are floundering around, tripping over each other like they’ve got two left feet each. The villainess is grinding her teeth, and the heroine keeps stepping on her toes. It’s a glorious disaster.

Leona, despite his annoyance, is surprisingly good at this. He’s leading with the kind of effortless grace that makes you wonder how someone so lazy can still be so competent at everything. You’re definitely not staring at his sharp features while he dances, not at all.

"You do realize this is a waste of time, right?" Leona grumbles under his breath, his eyes flicking to the chaos unfolding behind you. "Why me, herbivore? You could’ve asked anyone else."

You just shrug, trying not to sound too smug. "What can I say? I have excellent taste in dance partners."

Leona’s brow twitches like he’s torn between smirking and rolling his eyes. "Yeah, sure. Whatever helps you sleep at night." But the smirk wins out, especially when the villainess and heroine fumble yet again, nearly toppling over each other.

You glance up at him, beaming. Leona Kingscholar might be annoyed, but he’s not stopping anytime soon. And you? You’re just here for the ride, watching the heroine and villainess self-destruct from the safety of Leona’s arms.

Ball lessons? Piece of cake.

You’ve been doing everything humanly possible to avoid the female lead like she’s a carrier of the medieval plague. You thought you’d be safe here, hiding behind your “I’m too busy and mysterious for romance” persona, but no—somehow—the more you avoid her, the more she’s convinced that you’re the dark, brooding, irresistible male lead she’s always dreamed of.

You know, the type who avoids emotional connections but secretly harbors a heart of gold. But the truth is, you’re just a guy trying to get through the day so you can swoon over Leona Kingscholar in peace.

It’s not like you’ve been subtle about it either. You’ve been dropping hints left and right, hoping the universe would give you a break and let the female lead fall in love with literally anyone else. But no. Somehow, everyone is ignoring your very obvious affection for Leona.

It’s like you’re stuck in a tragic comedy where the female lead falls harder for you the more you try to disappear, and Leona just… well, he’s just living his best life, completely unaware of your internal screaming.

Take the latest tea party, for example. You were just trying to enjoy some pastries, maybe steal a glance at Leona from across the table, when the heroine decides to make her move. She picks up a delicate slice of cake and holds it out to you, eyes sparkling with that innocent-yet-hopeful look that says, “This is our moment.”

You? You’re not having any of that. Nope. No way. You’re not about to be part of this rom-com narrative. So, without missing a beat, you casually take the cake from her and, in one smooth motion, turn and offer it to Leona, who’s lounging lazily next to you, looking like he’d rather be anywhere else.

Leona raises an eyebrow at you, clearly baffled by why you’re holding out cake like he’s some sort of royal who expects to be hand-fed. “What are you doing?” he mutters, looking suspiciously between you and the cake.

“Just thought you’d like some,” you say with a straight face, ignoring the heroine’s stunned expression. She’s sitting there, fork still poised in the air, blinking rapidly like you’ve just committed the greatest betrayal of the century.

Leona huffs, looking mildly irritated but mostly confused. After a pause, he shrugs and leans forward, taking a bite of the cake without even bothering to lift his own hand. “Whatever,” he mutters between chews. “Tastes fine.”

You nod, satisfied. Meanwhile, the heroine looks like she’s on the verge of tears, and the villainess is smirking in the background like she’s about to take out popcorn and enjoy the drama.

Later that day, you find a nice, quiet spot under a tree to relax. You’ve managed to avoid any major incidents so far, and for once, you’re not being dragged into some dramatic showdown. You lie back, close your eyes, and just let yourself chill. But, of course, the universe doesn’t want you to have peace.

Enter Leona.

Without a word, he flops down next to you, takes one look at your position, and decides—out of all the places he could sit—that your lap is the best pillow option available. You feel his head plop down on your lap like this is the most normal thing in the world. You stare down at him, completely dumbfounded, while he just closes his eyes and lets out a long, satisfied sigh.

“Leona?” you start, voice half bewildered, half amused. “You good?”

“Shut up,” he mutters without opening his eyes. “You’re more comfortable than the grass.”

You blink at him, not sure whether to laugh or cry. Meanwhile, the villainess strolls by, spots the two of you under the tree, and comes to an immediate halt. Her face contorts into a mix of disbelief and confusion, like she’s just witnessed something unholy. You can almost hear her mental scream of, what the hell is going on here?!

She doesn’t say anything, though. Just stands there, hands clenched, before turning on her heel and storming off. You don’t even care. You’re too busy reveling in the fact that Leona chose your lap as his personal resting place. If that isn’t a win, you don’t know what is.

And then, of course, there’s the infamous hallway incident. The heroine—who, by this point, you’re pretty sure has developed some kind of radar for finding you—comes running toward you. She trips over something (the air? her own foot? you don’t know) and launches herself straight into your arms in what is clearly an attempt to trigger some rom-com, slow-motion embrace.

But you? You’re not here for this.

With the reflexes of a seasoned avoider, you sidestep her dramatic fall, and she goes face-first into the floor. There’s a stunned silence as she lies there, unmoving, probably processing how she ended up eating dirt.

You glance over at Leona, who’s watching the whole thing with a lazy smirk, clearly enjoying the trainwreck. You give him a slight nod of approval, and he just rolls his eyes, a small grin still tugging at his lips.

The villainess, standing a few feet away, is laughing her head off. She’s doubled over, clutching her stomach, while the heroine’s dignity is scattered all over the floor. But you? You’re just staring at Leona, completely ignoring the chaos around you.

Somehow, despite all the madness, you can’t help but think: this is fine.

The day of the big spelldrive match arrives, and the heroine has never looked more confident in her life. She’s decked out in her team’s colors, standing tall at the edge of the field, waiting for you to join her in your usual spot. You know, like a loyal dog. A loyal, obedient dog who always does what she expects.

But not today.

Today, you roll up to the game decked out head to toe in full Savanaclaw merch. We're talking a custom jersey with Leona’s name on the back, a headband, face paint, and—just to really emphasize the point—a Savanaclaw banner tied around your neck like you’ve decided to cosplay as Captain Lion Fang.

You take your seat in the Savanaclaw section and immediately start hyping up the crowd like you’re getting paid for it. The heroine spots you from across the field and stares like she’s watching a crime scene unfold in real-time. Meanwhile, Leona’s already spotted you, and the smug smirk on his face tells you he’s LOVING the attention.

The game kicks off, and with each goal Leona scores, you’re going feral.

You’re screaming your lungs out, waving your banner around like you’re auditioning for some weird mascot gig. People are looking at you like you’ve lost your mind, but you don’t care. This is YOUR moment.

Leona, on the field, is living for it. Every time he glances your way, he adds a little extra flair to his plays, just to make you scream louder. He scores, and you’re on your feet, jumping up and down like you’ve won the lottery.

At this point, the heroine is practically catatonic. Her world is crumbling before her eyes. You can practically see her brain struggling to process what she’s witnessing: you, her loyal supporter, decked out in Savanaclaw gear and cheering for her rival.

“I... I don’t understand…” she whispers, her voice trembling like she’s been betrayed by the universe itself. “Why aren’t you cheering for us?”

You turn to her with all the nonchalance of someone who’s just ordered fries at a drive-thru. “Uh… Leona’s hot?”

It’s like you slapped her across the face with a wet fish. She stands there, frozen, her eyes wide, like she’s witnessing the fall of an empire. "B-But... you're supposed to support me!"

Before you can reply with another devastating truth bomb, Leona casually strolls over after winning the game, looking like he just walked out of a perfume ad. His hair’s tousled, a thin sheen of sweat making him look even more annoyingly handsome. He stops in front of you, smirking like he’s been planning this moment his entire life.

"Didn’t know you were my biggest fan," he drawls, voice low and lazy. “Gotta say, I’m impressed with your enthusiasm. Screamin’ my name like that… kinda hard to ignore.”

You open your mouth, ready to fire back with something witty, but what comes out is more of a high-pitched squeak, followed by, “Hahaha, Y-Yeah… you’re welcome?”

And then, the words that break you: “How ‘bout we celebrate with a nap?”

Your brain freezes. A nap? You? With Leona? Your heart is doing cartwheels while the rest of your organs are busy melting into a puddle. Your mouth is moving, but all that comes out is an unintelligible “Uhhuhmm.”

Leona chuckles, clearly enjoying how flustered you are. He reaches out, grabbing your wrist, and starts dragging you off with him—right in front of everyone. He doesn’t even care that the entire field is watching. He’s already made up his mind.

The heroine, meanwhile, is standing there in stunned silence, her brain fully blue-screening as she watches you and Leona disappear. She’s still processing the Leona’s comment when the villainess, who has been observing this whole disaster unfold, finally chimes in from the sidelines with a shrug.

“Well, as long as it’s not the heroine,” she says, flicking her hair back with an air of satisfaction. “This is fine.”

And off you go, being dragged to a nap date you’re definitely not mentally prepared for, your face burning hotter than the sun. Leona glances back at you, that smug smirk still plastered on his face. "You’re lookin’ a little red there. You sure you’re up for this?"

You sputter, tripping over your own words. "I-I’m fine! Totally fine! Nap? Cool! Casual napping! No big deal!”

Leona just chuckles again, clearly entertained by how much you're floundering. “If you say so. Just don’t pass out before we get there.”

Yeah. Don’t pass out. Easier said than done when the man of your dreams is casually dragging you off to nap like it's no big deal while your brain screams at you in ten different languages.

This is fine. Totally fine. You’re fine.

Maybe.

You were sitting with Jack and Ruggie at the cafeteria, chatting about nothing in particular—well, Jack was chatting. Ruggie was there purely because you promised to pay for his lunch. Still, you’d like to think that maybe, just maybe, he stuck around because he actually enjoyed your company. Maybe.

“So, any tips on how to deal with midterms?” Jack asked, ears twitching as he looked at you with that wide-eyed eagerness that only first-years ever had. He was honestly like a giant puppy, trying so hard to be good.

You leaned back in your chair, doing your best impression of a wise and worldly senior, which mostly involved pretending you weren’t sweating about your own midterms. “My advice? Caffeine. And if you have the chance to sleep, take it. Oh, and don’t forget to eat. I learned that one the hard way.”

Jack nodded seriously, committing it all to memory like you were passing down sacred knowledge. Meanwhile, Ruggie was on his third helping of food, barely acknowledging the conversation.

"Hey, if you're handing out wisdom, how ‘bout you tell me how to get free food more often?” Ruggie said between bites, shooting you a cheeky grin.

“Isn’t that already your specialty?” you shot back, eyeing the mountain of food in front of him.

He just laughed. “Can’t argue with that, but having backup plans never hurt.”

Before you could respond, you felt a shadow fall over the table. You looked up, half expecting it to be the heroine or some random classmate, but nope. It was Leona. Leona, who you were 99% sure had skipped class because he always skips class. And he looked… annoyed?

Oh no.

He ignored Jack and Ruggie completely, his sharp gaze zeroing in on you like you’d committed some grave crime. “Oi, herbivore,” he drawled, hands in his pockets like this wasn’t weird at all. “Let’s go.”

“Go where?” you asked, blinking up at him. Leona never approached people unless he wanted something.

“To the tree,” he said flatly, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“The tree?” Jack echoed, ears perking up in confusion.

Ruggie, on the other hand, was grinning like the Cheshire Cat. “Oho~ Someone’s in demand.”

Leona shot Ruggie a look that could’ve curdled milk. “Shut it, Ruggie.”

Your brain was still trying to process the situation. You were sitting here, minding your own business, giving sage advice about caffeine and survival, and now Leona was dragging you off to his tree like it was completely normal?

He didn’t wait for an answer. He just grabbed your wrist, yanking you up from your seat as if this was some kind of kidnap situation, and started walking toward the courtyard.

“Uh—Leona? What’s going on?” you asked, doing your best to keep up without tripping over your own feet.

Leona didn’t even look back. “You’re talkin’ too much. Need some peace and quiet.”

You blinked, thoroughly confused but not necessarily mad about being dragged off. It’s just… “Why am I involved in your nap plans?”

“’Cause I said so.”

Wow, cryptic. You were about to ask again when you reached the tree. The infamous Leona nap spot. He plopped down against the trunk and, before you could protest, pulled you down next to him. Without another word, he stretched out and—because apparently boundaries didn’t exist—rested his head on your lap.

This was… This was happening.

You glanced around, half expecting to see a camera crew pop out and tell you this was some elaborate prank, but nope. Leona was lounging on you like it was the most natural thing in the world, eyes already closed, arms crossed behind his head.

“Uh, Leona?”

“Shut up. M’ tryin’ to sleep.”

You stared down at him, your brain short-circuiting. This was the third time this week he’d done this. Just… kidnapped you for a nap. What was his deal? Was your lap particularly comfortable? Did you radiate some kind of sleepy aura? What was going on here?

Meanwhile, from the distance, you spotted her. The villainess. Watching. For the third time in as many days. And you could see it. You could see the moment she put the pieces together. Her eyes widened in slow realization, her lips twitching into a smirk. She knew. She finally knew.

When Leona finally woke up—after what felt like hours of you sitting there, too dazed to move—you were free. For now. He stretched lazily and gave you a casual “Thanks,” as if this wasn’t the most bizarre situation you’d ever been in, and you quickly scrambled away, making your way back to the dorms with your head spinning.

And that’s when the villainess cornered you.

Oh no.

There she was, leaning against the doorframe with a knowing look, her sharp gaze trained on you like a predator sizing up its prey. You swallowed nervously. She was about to confront you about the heroine, wasn’t she? This was it. This was the moment. Was she going to declare some rivalry? Challenge you to a duel? Confess to you? Make this whole thing painfully awkward?

She smiled, and it was not the evil grin you were expecting. “I’m on your side.”

You blinked. “…What?”

She pushed off the wall, stepping closer, her eyes gleaming with a new kind of intensity. “Leona. I know you’re after him.”

Your heart stopped. This was it. She was going to call you out and—wait, what did she just say?

“I’ll help you confess to Leona,” she said, matter-of-factly. “On one condition.”

You were staring at her like she’d just sprouted wings and started speaking in tongues. “You… will?”

She nodded. “Yes. If you help me become more influential than that heroine, I’ll help you get Leona to notice you more.”

You blinked again, processing her words. She wanted your help to outshine the heroine, and in exchange, she’d be your wingwoman? Wingwoman?!

You grinned, holding out your hand for a dramatic shake. “Hell yeah.”

She clasped your hand, her smile mirroring yours. "Consider it a deal."

And just like that, you walked away from the most unexpected alliance of your life, fully equipped with a villainess-turned-wingwoman and a new plan to win over Leona.

Honestly? Life was getting weirder by the day.

“Okay, so just to confirm,” Ruggie’s eyes glinted with mischief as he leaned back in his chair, arms folded behind his head. “You want us to sit through this poetry reading,” he said, drawing out the word like it was some cursed phrase, “and cheer for the villainess. And in return, I get all the food left over?”

“Yup,” you nodded, trying to keep a straight face.

“And Jack’s here because…?”

“I asked him nicely.”

Jack shrugged, tail flicking behind him. “I’m just here to help.”

Ruggie snorted, glancing at you with a grin. “This better be some damn good poetry then. And the food better be worth it.”

“Oh, trust me,” you said, patting Ruggie on the back. “It will be.”

Little did you know, this was going to be a disaster of epic proportions.

The poetry reading started as expected—with the heroine striding up to the front of the room, practically glowing under the dim spotlight. She cleared her throat, clasped her hands dramatically, and began.

“It was a night… much like tonight…”

Your first instinct was to cringe, but you held it in, glancing sideways at Jack and Ruggie. Jack was doing his best to stay stoic, but you could see his ears twitching in discomfort. Ruggie had his hand over his mouth, clearly biting back laughter.

The poem continued, painfully dragging on about stars and roses and something about “destiny’s kiss.” By the time she reached the end, there was a collective sigh of relief from the audience. You weren’t even sure what you had just listened to, but you knew it wasn’t good.

Jack… Jack was crying. You stared at him, horrified. “Are you okay?”

“It’s… it’s so bad,” he sniffed, wiping his eyes. “I didn’t know poetry could be this bad.”

Ruggie had his face buried in his hands, shoulders shaking with silent laughter. “This is better than I thought,” he wheezed.

You shot him a look, but even you had to admit, this was pure comedy gold. Poor Jack had no idea what hit him.

The villainess, bless her heart, was watching all of this unfold with a look of shock and confusion, but when it was finally her turn to read, she stepped up like a queen. Her voice was smooth, the words flowing like silk, and you couldn’t help but be genuinely impressed. She absolutely killed it.

The plan was working perfectly. You and your crew started clapping, cheering like you were at a rock concert. Jack, who was still recovering from the emotional trauma of the heroine’s poem, clapped too, albeit more quietly.

But just as you were about to get even louder, you felt a hand on your shoulder. “Oi, sit down,” Leona grumbled, pulling you back into your seat.

“What—?”

He didn’t offer any explanation, just kept you firmly seated next to him, his face set in a bored expression. You blinked in confusion but decided not to argue. It wasn’t like you didn’t enjoy sitting next to Leona… it was just weird.

And by the grin the villainess was sporting, it seems like everything went exactly according to plan. Both for her and you.

After the poetry reading wrapped up, you gathered the leftovers like you promised. Ruggie was already hovering around, practically drooling over the spread.

“Here, take it all,” you said, handing the basket over. “Deal’s a deal.”

Ruggie beamed, clutching the food to his chest like a treasure hoard. “Pleasure doing business with ya!”

Jack was much more polite, bowing his head slightly. “Thanks for the notes. They’ll be a big help.”

“Anytime,” you replied with a smile, watching the two of them head off. Ruggie was already halfway through a sandwich, talking a mile a minute, while Jack followed along, still looking like he might need therapy after the heroine’s performance.

That left you alone… with Leona, who had been standing off to the side, arms crossed, watching you with an unreadable expression.

“What?” you asked, half-expecting him to complain about something. He always had something to complain about.

“You mind explaining what the hell that was?”

“Uh… what do you mean?”

Leona’s tail flicked in irritation, his eyes narrowing. “I’m talking about you, whispering and giggling with that villainess all the time. What, you after her now that you ditched the heroine?”

You blinked at him, utterly baffled. “What? No, of course not. Why would I be after her?”

Leona’s jaw clenched. “You tell me. All I’ve seen is you hangin’ around with her, whispering, plottin’... I’ve seen how you look at her.”

It took a moment for your brain to catch up, but then it hit you like a ton of bricks.

Oh my god. He was jealous.

A slow grin spread across your face as the realization sunk in. Leona, Leona Kingscholar, was jealous. And over you.

Before you could stop yourself, you leaned forward and planted a quick kiss on his cheek. “You’re jealous~.”

Leona froze, his eyes widening for a split second before narrowing dangerously. “What?”

“You’re jealous,” you repeated, giddiness bubbling up inside you. You could barely contain your excitement. “You’re jealous of me hanging out with the villainess!”

Leona’s lips pulled into a thin line. “You’re imagining things.”

“Oh no, no, no,” you grinned even wider, poking him in the chest. “You’re totally jealous!”

Leona growled, looking thoroughly annoyed now, but before he could snap back, you quickly explained. “Look, I made a deal with her. I help her become more influential than the heroine, and she helps me… confess to you.”

Leona blinked, taken aback, his tail flicking behind him as if processing the information. Then, in true Leona fashion, his expression shifted from irritation to smugness in record time.

“Oh?”

You sighed, shaking your head. “Yeah, so you don’t have to worry about me chasing after anyone else.”

Leona stepped closer, his voice dropping low, that usual lazy drawl making your heart do a little flip. “Good. But just so you know, cheek kisses aren’t real kisses.”

Before you could ask what he meant, Leona leaned in and kissed you—properly kissed you. Your eyes went wide for a second before you melted into it, feeling the heat of his lips against yours. He pulled back after what felt like forever, a smirk on his face as he watched you try to catch your breath.

“There. That’s a real kiss,” he murmured, his voice dripping with smug satisfaction.

You stared at him, dazed, and then a sudden realization hit you.

You left your entire life behind, all for this moment.

And you were so, so glad that stupid plushie was on the floor, because this? This was totally worth it.

The heroine’s voice was as sweet as it was grating, like sugar poured directly into your ears. She fluttered her eyelashes at you, her smile stretched painfully wide. “So, I was thinking,” she began, twirling a lock of hair around her finger. “You would make the perfect knight for my family! Don’t you think so?”

You blinked, trying to figure out a way to escape. “Uh… I’m kind of busy with, you know, my own life?”

“Oh, but imagine!” she gushed, not hearing a word you said. “We’d be so close all the time—like, so close. You could protect me, and maybe… we could have a picnic under the stars? Very romantic, right?”

Your soul was trying to leave your body. You were pretty sure Jack’s ears twitched somewhere nearby, sensing your pain telepathically. And then, like a gift from the heavens, the villainess—your beloved accomplice in all things anti-heroine—made her appearance.

“Sorry to interrupt,” she said, stepping between you and the heroine with the grace of someone who had seen this movie before and knew exactly how to cut to the good parts. “But I need them for an urgent matter. A very important, not-at-all-romantic-but-very-necessary mission.”

You shot her a look of pure gratitude, but before she could fully rescue you from the heroine’s death trap of unwanted flirting, a shadow loomed over the scene. A very familiar shadow.

Leona.

Without saying a word, he strode up behind you and casually wrapped an arm around your waist, pulling you back against his chest with an ease that had your heart skipping a beat. He rested his chin on your shoulder, his sharp green eyes fixed on the heroine.

“Oh no, carry on,” he said lazily, but his tone was anything but. “I’m just here to see what my mate is up to.”

The heroine blinked in shock, her hands hovering mid-air as if she had no idea what to do with this development. “Y-Your mate?”

“Yeah,” Leona said, tightening his grip around you, his smirk downright feral. “So whatever little fantasy you’re cooking up about romantic picnics or whatever—cut it out. This one’s mine.”

You felt Leona’s lips brush against your temple before he leaned in and, in full view of the now-utterly-horrified heroine, kissed the side of your neck. Slowly. Possessively.

You could almost hear the villainess muffling a laugh behind her hand.

The heroine’s face turned several shades of red as she stammered. “B-But I—”

“You,” Leona said, his tone dripping with amusement, “can fuck right off.”

The heroine gasped, her hand flying to her chest like she’d been physically struck. “You can’t just say that to me!”

Leona raised a brow, looking thoroughly unimpressed. “I’m literally the second prince. I can say whatever the hell I want.”

The heroine opened her mouth to argue, but then realized that, no, actually, she couldn’t argue with the literal second prince staking his claim. She sputtered for a moment before storming off, no doubt to sob dramatically about her dashed romantic hopes.

Once she was out of sight, the villainess finally let out a snort of laughter. “That was beautiful.”

Leona ignored her, his grip still firm around you as he leaned down to whisper, “Next time, you won’t need her to help you out. Just say my name, and I’ll be there to deal with the pests.”

You stared at him, a little dazed from the whole whirlwind of possessiveness, public displays of affection, and telling someone to ‘fuck right off.’ “You really went for it, huh?”

Leona smirked, leaning in for another kiss. “Damn right I did. And don’t you forget it.”

Somewhere behind you, the villainess was still giggling. You were pretty sure this was going to be gossip for weeks.

But honestly? Totally worth it.

Graduation day—the moment where everyone’s future plans would be declared, and all the chess pieces would fall into place. Or, in your case, the moment where you’d cause absolute chaos.

The grand hall was filled with eager anticipation. Everyone was dressed in their formal graduation robes, students buzzing with excitement over their new titles and responsibilities.

Leona, as expected, lounged at the back like a lion who had better things to do, half-asleep. Villainess stood tall and composed, already plotting her return to her family's estate. Heroine was in full glowing mode, ready to take her place as the beloved of the Grand Duchy.

And you? You stood at the podium, trying not to laugh. You knew what you were about to say would flip this graduation upside down.

One by one, people made their announcements.

When it was finally your turn, all eyes turned to you. The entire hall seemed to hold its breath, knowing the original male lead—you—was supposed to be the retainer of the heroine. It was all set, all according to plan, right?

Wrong.

You cleared your throat, glanced briefly at Leona who smirked lazily, and then made the declaration that would throw this script straight out the window. “I’ve decided to serve as Prince Leona’s right-hand man, personal secretary, and...well, whatever he needs.”

The silence that followed was glorious. Pure, dumbfounded silence.

King Falena, sitting in the front row, visibly blinked. Once. Twice. He tilted his head slightly, confusion written all over his usually composed face. “What?” he muttered, looking like someone just told him a desert hyena had enrolled in ballet school.

Leona, however, didn’t even open his eyes. He just smirked, crossing his arms smugly. “Told ya he’d choose me,” he murmured, almost too casually for someone who’d just stolen the original male lead’s entire plotline.

Falena’s gaze flicked between you and Leona, still processing. Then, slowly, realization dawned. He saw that look on Leona’s face—the one that said “mine, and I dare anyone to challenge it.” King Falena’s confusion morphed into surprise and then, with the subtlety of a royal diplomat, resignation. “Oh…” he whispered, finally understanding. “He’s down bad.”

Leona cracked an eye open just to catch his brother’s expression and grinned wider, like a cat who knew exactly what kind of bird it had in its claws.

Your parents, bless them, were in the crowd with expressions of supportive confusion. Your mother was squinting as if trying to work out if this was some sort of royal prank. Your father leaned in toward her, whispering loudly enough for the entire row to hear, “It’s a royal job, right? That’s prestigious?”

“Yeah, but… Leona?” your mom whispered back.

At this point, the heroine stood up, ready to throw a wrench into the works. “Wait! You’re supposed to be my—"

Before she could finish, the villainess, in all her dramatic glory, made her move. With the grace of a queen and the audacity of a mastermind, she stepped right up to the heroine, flipped her luxurious hair, and said, “Actually, I was going to ask you out.”

You blinked. Wait, what?

The entire room gasped. You could almost hear heads snapping toward the villainess like a collective whip crack.

Heroine’s mouth opened and closed like she was a fish drowning in air. “I—what?”

“Dinner. Candlelight. Maybe a picnic. You and me, a date. Sound good?” The villainess winked with such charm that even the professors in the back were wide-eyed.

Heroine blinked rapidly, as if trying to reboot her brain. “Uh… sure?” she squeaked, still reeling from the fact that her entire romantic arc had just gotten hijacked.

You stared at the villainess in pure confusion. “What just happened?” you whispered, looking at her for an explanation.

The villainess simply turned to you with a mischievous grin, giving you a sly thumbs-up like this had been part of her master plan all along.

You were still processing the fact that you were witnessing the greatest plot twist of all time. You returned a half-hearted, bewildered thumbs-up, unsure if this was a win or not.

Meanwhile, the professors up front were clearly on their last thread of patience. The head of the academy rubbed his temples, sighing deeply as if this whole day had aged him a decade. “That’s it,” he said, voice strained with exhaustion. “Everyone’s graduated. Just...leave. Please.”

And with that, the ceremony abruptly ended. You couldn’t help but laugh at the professor’s exasperation as the crowd started to disperse, still buzzing with gossip.

Leona slid up next to you, his hand casually resting on your waist as you walked out of the hall together. “So, my right-hand man, huh?”

You shrugged. “Figured I might as well make it official.”

Leona smirked, leaning down to murmur in your ear, “Just don’t expect me to go easy on you.”

You rolled your eyes, but your smile betrayed you. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”

And then he kissed you. In front of everyone.

King Falena, witnessing this public display of territorial claims, just shook his head with a resigned sigh. “Well, as long as it’s official…” he muttered, casting an approving glance toward you. “Congratulations, I guess.”

Your parents were still in shock, but when they saw that it was a royal seal of approval, they immediately switched gears. “A royal job!” your mom whispered excitedly. “That’s so prestigious!”

With that, Leona tugged you away from the chaos, his arm never leaving your waist as you walked toward the exit. You glanced back one last time to see the heroine still staring blankly at the villainess, who had now looped her arm around her like it was the most normal thing in the world.

The head of the academy, now red in the face, shouted after you as you reached the door, “I SAID EVERYONE GO, FOR THE LOVE OF THE GREAT SEVEN!”

You walked out into the sunlight, trying not to laugh, while Leona leaned in, his lips brushing your ear as he murmured smugly, “Looks like you’re stuck with me.”

And honestly? You wouldn’t have it any other way.

It was a day like any other, except you were meeting the villainess in her newly acquired estate. She had officially taken over as the head of her family, and the new title suited her all too well. The whole place screamed, I am in charge, with a side of don’t even think about challenging me unless you want to cry in public. You admired the aesthetic.

The villainess greeted you with her usual regal flair, sweeping into the room like she’d been born to dominate it—which, to be fair, she had. She offered you tea, which you politely declined, sensing that this wasn’t just a casual catch-up.

"So, what's new with you, Lady Villainess?” you asked, leaning back, fully expecting some grand declaration about her political conquests or business victories.

She smiled—a dangerous, knowing smile that made you immediately suspicious. "Well, I wanted to tell you something rather... unexpected."

You raised an eyebrow. Unexpected? Coming from her? That had to be good.

"I'm dating the heroine," she said casually, sipping her tea as if she hadn't just dropped the biggest plot twist since the whole 'villainess takes over' arc.

You nearly choked on absolutely nothing, mouth hanging open in sheer disbelief. "Wait. What?"

She smiled serenely, her expression the perfect picture of innocence—which made it all the more ridiculous. “Yes, darling. The heroine and I are officially a couple.”

You blinked. “The same heroine who couldn’t tell a poisoned apple from a regular one if her life depended on it?”

“The very same.”

“The one who gets lost in her own estate if she turns too many corners?”

“Yes, that one.”

You couldn't help it. The sheer absurdity of the situation hit you, and you burst out laughing. "Oh, that is rich. How in the world did that happen?”

The villainess leaned back, looking thoroughly pleased with herself. “Oh, it was simple, really. I realized I was always drawn to her... naiveté. And once I stopped trying to sabotage her every move, well, things just fell into place.”

You were still laughing, shaking your head in disbelief. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m happy for you two, but this is the best thing I’ve heard in weeks.”

The villainess gave you a mock glare. “Don’t act so surprised. I’ve always had impeccable taste.”

“Oh, impeccable taste, huh?” you teased. “I just didn’t expect it to lead you straight to a walking ball of sunshine.”

“Well, someone needs to keep her from wandering into traffic.”

Still snickering, you stood up. “Alright, alright, I get it. You’re a saint for dealing with her.”

“I know,” she sighed dramatically, “but love makes us do ridiculous things.”

"Tell me about it," you muttered, still amused. You waved goodbye and promised to catch up later, your mind reeling from this new, absolutely hilarious development.

When you got back to the palace, you found Leona lounging in his usual spot, sprawled out on a couch like a lion that had just taken over the whole savannah. He barely glanced up as you walked in, already sensing the amused energy radiating off you.

“You’re grinning like an idiot,” he muttered, rolling his eyes. “What happened?”

You plopped down next to him, barely containing your laughter. “You won’t believe this. The villainess is dating the heroine now.”

Leona’s eyes flicked open, and for a split second, he looked like he didn’t believe you. Then, slowly, a smirk spread across his face as he processed the information. “You’re messing with me.”

“Nope. Dead serious. They’re a couple now. In love.” You leaned in, grinning. “The villainess—ice queen herself—is head over heels for Miss Pure Sunshine.”

Leona actually chuckled, shaking his head in disbelief. “Well, I’ll be damned. Never saw that one coming.”

“I know, right? It’s the most chaotic thing ever, and I am living for it.”

Leona’s smirk turned into a full-on grin, which was rare enough to be considered a national treasure. He shifted, sitting up slightly. “You think we’ll get an invite to the wedding?”

You snorted. “Oh, you bet. I’m going to be front row just to see how she manages to keep the heroine from accidentally setting her own dress on fire.”

Leona’s laugh rumbled low in his chest, and he reached out, grabbing your wrist. “Come here,” he ordered, tugging you toward him.

“What? No, I’ve got work to do,” you protested weakly, but your protests didn’t mean much when he effortlessly pulled you into his lap.

“Work can wait. This is more important,” he grumbled, wrapping his arms around you in a possessive hug that made it very clear you weren’t going anywhere.

You sighed, leaning into him. “You just want to cuddle, don’t you?”

“I want you to stop running around and actually relax for once,” he retorted, resting his chin on top of your head. “Besides, it’s not like the kingdom’s gonna fall apart if we take a break.”

You rolled your eyes, but a smile tugged at your lips. “I should get a promotion. I’m basically doing all the work around here.”

Leona chuckled again, his grip tightening just slightly. “Yeah, well, don’t let Falena hear that. He might actually make you his advisor, and then I’ll never get any alone time with you.”

You snorted. “Oh please, you’d just kidnap me from work if that happened.”

“Damn right,” he muttered, his voice low and satisfied. “You’re mine, remember?”

You felt your heart do that annoying flutter thing as Leona’s possessive tone settled over you. Even when he was being a lazy lion, he made you feel like the most important thing in his life. It was comforting—and kind of hilarious, considering how little he cared about everything else.

The room fell into a comfortable silence, and for once, you actually allowed yourself to relax, leaning into Leona’s warmth. His arms tightened around you again, and you could feel the soft rise and fall of his chest as he started to drift off into a nap, his grip never loosening.

As you closed your eyes, you couldn’t help but think that, despite all the absurdities in your life—from slipping on a plushie to your best friend falling in love with her former rival—you wouldn’t trade any of it. Not for the world.

And as Leona’s breath slowed into the steady rhythm of sleep, you allowed yourself a small, contented smile.

Life was chaotic. But it was also perfect.

Series Masterlist ; Masterlist

Idia won the previous poll! Now for the next,

[sethsclearwater]

OMG plssssss do a part 2 to the blurb you just posted where paul is in his rut and reader takes care of him and he lets her be on top and she's just so sweet and cute about it and he's FINALLYYYYY able to relax and let her take care of him🥺🥺

you knew paul's rut was getting bad again before he did, all his subconscious adjustments and rolling back and forth in his sleep letting you know thanks to the fact that he almost always slept like a log and refused to move during the night.

one of your hands continued to gently scratch as his scalp while the other ran down his arm to squeeze at his bicep, "paul," you murmured softly.

he let out a soft groan, reaching his calloused hands up to rub at his eyes, "jus' need you to lay over here for me," you reassured, giving his arm one more squeeze before you were helping him get out from in between your legs so he could lay down next to you instead.

paul let out a heavy sigh, seeming to be waking himself up a bit more as he reached his arm out for you, helping you move over to straddle his waist, "you doin' okay down there?" you teased, giggling when he squeezed your thigh, the corners of his lips pulling into a small smile despite the stress written all over his features.

"all good," paul reassured, voice quiet as his gaze drifted down to where your (well actually his) shirt had lifted up to reveal your pussy that was currently dripping his cum down your thighs.

he let out a heavy, lustful sigh, his calloused hands running over your thighs, "you sure you're okay with being on top?" he asked, tearing his gaze from your aching cunt to look back up at you.

despite the desperation in his voice, you knew he genuinely wanted to make sure you were okay with it before you two went at it again, "positive," you reassured, leaning down to press a soft, sensual kiss to his lips, "let me take care of you," you murmured as you pulled your lips from his, waiting for him to give you a nod before you were straightening back up and lifting your hips so he could kick his sweatpants back off.

as soon as they were kicked down to the bottom of the bed, his cock was standing back at attention as it pressed up against his abdomen, the tip a bright red with more cum pooling at the tip. you had no idea how on earth his body managed to do it but you decided against dwelling on it, dropping one hand from his chest to gently tug his cock up so you could line it up with your entrance.

paul watched you carefully, sucking in a deep breath when he felt you swirl the tip of his cock against your entrance to lubricate yourself despite the amount of his cum you currently had in you already, "princess-" his voice was desperate, hands tightening on your thighs as he begged you to provide him some relief.

you were never one to deny him anything, dropping your hips to sheath his cock in your pussy. you let out a low whine at the connection while paul dropped his head back against the pillows with a loud moan.

"y/n please-" he breathed out, hands sliding up to your hips so he could help you. he rarely used your name during sex (or ever really), typically called you one of his pet names for you so you knew he must've been just as desperate and frustrated as you thought he was.

"i got it," you reassured, placing your hands over his to gently push them back down to your thighs. you left your hands on top of his, giving them a gentle squeeze before you were slowly lifting your hips back up, his cock dragging along your walls in the most delicious way possible before you were dropping back down, setting a slow, steady rhythm that had paul's eyes closing as he struggled to take it all in.

everything about it was different for him; having you on top and letting you set such a slow rhythm had his mind struggling to wrap around just how amazing it felt.

within a few minutes, you felt his hands tightening around your thighs, his breaths shortening as he neared his orgasm, "you can cum," you reassured, giggling when paul opened his eyes to look up at you, a small smile crossing his features when he realized you were just mimicking how he talked to you during sex.

"you gonna be right behind me?" he asked breathlessly, a playful undertone to his voice that had you giggling again as you nodded.

"right behind you big guy," you reassured, head dropping back with a loud moan when paul reached his thumb out to brush over your clit, the sensation having your walls fluttering around his cock like crazy.

he didn't seem to need to be told twice, dropping his head back as he allowed you to continue riding him, his thumb drawing slow circles against your clit as you continued dragging your hips up and down his length.

"so good," he groaned, breath catching when he felt your walls clamp down on him at the praise. it was getting more and more difficult to ride him as you tightened around him, both of you working to chase your highs and send the other to theirs.

you rolled your hips against his, the new sensation hitting paul like a tidal wave as his orgasm slammed into him. he let out a low groan as he met his high, his thumb pressing down on your clit in jut the right way that you came with him.

a loud gasp left your lips as you came, hips stuttering which had paul quickly sliding his hands up to them to help you continue to ride him as your orgasms washed over both of you, "such a good girl," he praised, cock throbbing as he coated your walls with his seed.

"paul-" you whimpered, hands sliding up to meet his as you sank down his length, letting out a whine when you felt the way his cockw as pressing against your overstimulated cervix.

"you're okay," he reassured, one hand sliding up your side to gently tug you down on top of him, "takin' such good care of me," he murmured, pressing his lips to your hair.

he helped you pull your hips up just enough to help his cock slide out of you, both of you beyond overstimulated from all the fucking you'd been doing over the past 48 hours.

"thank you," he whispered against your hair after a few moments, gently stroking his hand up and down your side as you slid one hand up to his shoulder to gently rub at the tense muscles there.

"you should let me do that more often," you whispered back, giggling when paul rolled his eyes but let out a breathy laugh none-the-less.

"whatever makes you happy princess," he muffled his chuckle against your hair, smiling when you squeezed at his shoulder and pressed a gentle kiss to his chest.

[moons-and-mobility-aids]

Marry Me

Pairings: Poly!marauders x disabled!reader Summary: Sirius talks in his sleep while using you as a pillow. Warnings: N/A, maybe slight jealousy Series Masterlist | Part 1 | Part 2

The soft glow from the wall sconces casts a warm light across your bedroom, a stark contrast to the chilling wind that howls outside the castle walls. It's well past curfew now, and you're tucked safely beneath your blankets, the room filled with the comforting presence of those closest to you.

Sirius lies beside you, his body heat a welcome reprieve. His body is a heavy weight on top of you, grounding you in this moment as his breath ghosts over your skin. He sleeps soundly, or at least appears to, the gentle rise and fall of his chest a rhythmic lullaby that soothes your racing thoughts.

On your other side, James stirs slightly, a small grunt escaping him as he adjusts his glasses on the bridge of his nose. His eyes are half-closed, not quite asleep but not fully awake either, caught somewhere between the realms of consciousness and dreams.

Remus sits propped against the headboard, a worn book resting open on his lap. He's been pretending to read for the past twenty minutes, but you know better. His gaze keeps flickering towards Sirius, who sprawls out across the mattress, somehow managing to take up more space than seems physically possible.

Despite his typically boisterous nature when awake, Sirius is a picture of tranquillity when asleep. His features soften, all bravado and bluster melting away to reveal the boy who exists beneath the layers of bravura. But even in sleep, there are some things Sirius Black can't hide.

"Gonna marry you," he mumbles, his words slurring together in the haze of sleep. His arm tightens around you instinctively, pulling you closer until there's no space left to claim. He burrows his face into your neck, his lips brushing against your collarbone as he repeats the vow like a mantra. "Marry you."

Your eyes blink open, the surprise momentarily stealing your breath away. A small smile tugs at the corners of your mouth; it's almost comical, really. Here he is, fast asleep, yet somehow managing to propose—or at least, that's what it sounds like—while clinging to you like a lifeline.

"Is that so?" James murmurs, having cracked open an eye at the sound of Sirius's muffled declaration. His voice is soft with amusement, eyebrow arched in a silent question. "Proposing in your sleep now, are you, Pads?"

A quiet snort escapes your lips, causing Sirius to stir slightly but not wake. "Seems like it," you whisper back, turning your head just enough to meet James's gaze. There's a glint of something in his eyes—amusement, certainly, but also something else, something he'd likely never admit to: a hint of envy.

Remus is less subtle in his response.

The rustle of pages signals the closing of his book before he grumbles, “When he used me as a pillow, I never got a marriage proposal.” His tone is dry, but there's a playful undercurrent that betrays his jest. His fingers tap against the hardcover in mock irritation.

One eyebrow quirks at him, a laugh threatening to bubble up and disturb Sirius. “Jealous much, Rem?”

His eyes narrow just a fraction at your tease, then he sighs, sinking further into the plush pillows. “Perhaps a bit,” he concedes with a wan smile. “Two years of him using me as a pillow, and not a single sleep-proposal. You’ve been with us for three months, and he’s already mumbling about marriage.”

Laughter rumbles in James's chest beside you, though his fingers still trace absent patterns on the back of your hand—a silent admission that Sirius's words have affected him too. "In fairness," he murmurs, more to Remus than to you, "he never proposed to me either." A pause. "Sirius Black—romantic, but selective, it seems."

Your eyes roll skyward, the barest hint of a smile playing on your lips despite the absurdity of their banter. "You lot are insufferable," you retort, fighting the urge to grin. "And for the record, he's asleep. It doesn't count."

"Does so," James retorts, a glint of mischief dancing in his hazel eyes. "He's never said it to either of us, asleep or awake."

"Exactly," Remus chimes in, arms folding across his chest as if to cement his agreement. The corners of his mouth lift into the ghost of a smile, belying the stern facade he tries to maintain. "Besides, I’ve let him drool on me more times than I care to admit. That’s got to be worth at least one proposal."

A soft laugh escapes you, more of a breath than a sound, as you glance down at Sirius. He's nestled even closer to you in his sleep, the rise and fall of your chest lulling him deeper into slumber. His hair tickles your chin, midnight strands splayed across your collarbone, and he looks so peaceful—so content—oblivious to the havoc he's unwittingly wrought.

"Perhaps I should wake him," you murmur, voice barely above a whisper, "tell him he's just proposed by accident."

The idea brings a smile to your lips, though a pang of guilt accompanies it. It seems cruel to disturb him when he's finally found some semblance of peace.

Remus lets out a long sigh, running his fingers through his tousled hair before resting his head back against the headboard. His gaze is fixed on Sirius, watching every telltale sign of sleep with an attention that speaks volumes about their bond. "Don't bother," he says, his voice a low rumble, almost lost amidst the crackling fire and soft snores. "He'll either deny it outright or claim he was dreaming about someone else."

Despite the casual dismissal, there's a hint of fondness etched into Remus's features—a testament to the depth of his affection for the man sleeping soundly between them.

James chuckles, shaking his head in disbelief. "No, he wouldn't deny it..." His words trail off, leaving an unspoken thought hanging in the air. James lifts your joined hands from beneath the blanket, cradling them in his lap as if they were something precious. He turns to you, emerald eyes reflecting the flickering flames, and gives your fingers a gentle squeeze. "But we do need to remind him when he wakes up. Just to see him squirm."

A chuckle spills from your lips, already imagining the way Sirius's face will flush when you confront him. He'll deny it, of course, but there will be that telltale blush, that sheepish grin—signs that he knows he's a little too transparent for his own good.

Sirius stirs beside you, his body instinctively seeking your warmth as he pulls you closer. His breath fans against your skin, carrying with it the softest whisper of words, barely audible above the steady rhythm of his heart. "Love you," he murmurs into the darkness.

Your chest tightens, and you press a kiss to his forehead, answering with a silent promise of your own. James and Remus stir on the other side of the room, their eyes meeting yours in the dim light. They've heard it too, the quiet confession that speaks volumes about the man they've come to regard as a brother.

Neither of them says anything, but there's an unspoken understanding that passes between you all. Sirius Black may wear the mask of a troublemaker, but beneath the bravado lies a heart that loves fiercely, wholly, without reservation.

And even though Sirius has yet to propose marriage to them in his sleep—or awake, for that matter—you know without a shadow of a doubt that his love for them is just as deep and unwavering as the love he holds for you.

"Seems we'll have to share, then," you murmur, your voice a soft balm in the chilly night.

Remus huffs out a quiet laugh, the tension finally draining from his shoulders as he settles down beside you. "Suppose so."

James plants a brief kiss to your temple before lying back down, his glasses askew on his nose. "Looks that way, doesn't it?"

With Sirius still slumbering against you and the other two boys nestled close, their shared warmth is a tangible shield against the world outside. The snow might be falling thick and fast beyond the tower windows, but here, cocooned within their protective circle, you feel warmer than any fire could provide.

Perhaps Sirius was onto something, after all.

[thespiderpig1999]

Idea for a gainer story (from my previous account):

“The Million Calorie Doughnut”.

There’s a pastry shop that sells a range of pastries including doughnuts; one secret item is called the Million Calorie doughnut.

It’s not displayed but if the shop owner wants to offer it to a customer then they will give it them free of charge.

One day a group of college athletes come into the shop, drunk and looking for something sweet. One of the jocks, Seb, is your typical arrogant jock - peak physique, cocky, bullies others, shows off his abs, etc.

The shop owner sees Seb and when the jocks go to buy a dozen generic doughnuts, he offers Seb the Million Calorie doughnut.

Since the jocks are all drunk, they don’t take it seriously and just thinks it’s another doughnut so Seb accepts it and eats the whole thing in one go.

The jocks return to their dorms, Seb returning with his roomie, Devon, and all go to sleep bloated from their doughnuts. But for Seb, something far more drastic was about to happen.

You see, one million calories is a lot. One pound of fat is equal to 3,500 calories. So, one million calories is equal to 285lbs of fat!

The next morning Seb wakes up, feeling heavier and weaker than normal. He assumes it’s just a hangover. He struggles to roll out of bed, waddles towards the bathroom mirror and to his horror … he has gained 285lb of pure fat overnight! On top of his original 170lbs, he now weighs a whopping 455lbs!

His gargantuan belly hangs over the waistband of his skintight boxers that are barely hanging together! His moobs are bigger than any women’s he’s ever seen! His ass is almost as wide as a door frame! His chiseled jawline has been replaced by a permanent double chin!

Seb returns to sit on his bed, it creaks from his huge weight. He looks at his morbidly obese body in the mirror and starts to explore his new body.

He grabs a handful of belly flab and gives it a jiggle, then he grabs one of his love handles and does the same. Even the slightest movement causes his entire flabby body to jiggle.

To his surprise he notices he’s grown a hard on whilst playing with his body. Was he turned on by his obese body? No he was an athlete, is an athlete?! Well not anymore? He could lose the weight! Could he lose the weight? Did he want to? His mind was all over the place, a mix between panic and arousal!

Suddenly he was interrupted by a large rumble… his enormous belly was rumbling. He was starving!

(The rest of the story would continue Seb adjusting to his new body and his friend’s reaction to his new form. Devon would return to the pastry shop and demand another million calorie doughnut, split it into thirds, eat one third, and secretly give the other two thirds to their other two jock friends, Max and JJ, so they all gain around 90lbs of fat. They all move into a new apartment together and all continue to fatten up).

[michealsbiggestfan]

🄿🄴🅃🄴 🅃🄷🄴🄻🄼🄰🄽 🅇 🅁🄴🄰🄳🄴🅁 🤍

warnings ⚠️

vulgarity + sexual themes + mentions of cheating

so, to be clear, there is angst but not between pete and the reader.

I was lying in my bed, sighing softly to myself. My relationship with Michael wasn’t.. the best lately. He was getting too close to Henrietta, honestly. And I knew Henrietta had never liked me— I can tell with all those glares and side-eyes.

I’m not sure if she’s doing it out of over-protectiveness for her friends, or because she is in love with Michael herself, but they were getting way too close for my liking. Me and Michael were in bed— we shared our college dorm.

I was in between Michael and Pete as I lied on the bed. Why was Pete there, you might ask? He didn’t have a college dorm yet, but he was saving for one. We were all 19, and he was getting close to moving out of that caravan that he lives in with his parents.

Anyways, he was in our dorm due to his mother getting drunk and arguing with his father again. They weren’t necessarily abusive, but they pissed off Pete, and he couldn’t sleep during their arguments, from what we knew. I was lying on my side with Pete behind me.

I felt a soft, gentle hand slowly move onto my hip. I was wearing a shirt-long, lace nightgown with small panties, so it wasn’t hard for anyone to touch me. I felt his hand and didn’t move for a moment as his fingers played with the strap of my panties.

Slowly, I rolled over to lie on my back and look at him. Michael was asleep, so I spoke quietly to Pete to not wake him up.

“What are you doing..?” I asked whispered softly and moved my hand over his, which was still on my hip.

“You know that Michael was kissing Henrietta yesterday?” Pete raised a brow at me, “He always does. Even infront of us all. Just not you.”

“Excuse me?”

I wasn’t sure how to feel about what he had just said. I had a feeling Michael was cheating, but it still hurt to hear, despite me not being too surprised. I looked away.

“.. if this is an attempt to make me break up with him, it’s not going to work.” I loved Michael too much to leave, “.. I love him.”

“You’re oblivious. I’m surprised Michael even wanted a conformist. Maybe he never really felt that way in the first place? Maybe he was after something else..” Pete suggested, which annoyed me a bit, “Sex, maybe? I’m saying that as his best friend.”

“Pete, let go of me.” I smacked his hand gently.

He let go, and held onto the pillow beneath his head, “Why would you stay with someone who doesn’t even reciprocate your feelings, or care about them? Typical pathetic conformist..”

“Don’t call me that.”

“I’ll call you what I want.”

“Pete..” He was pissing me off now, “Go to sleep.”

“Your ass is keeping me awake.”

“…” I went silent, “.. what?”

“Roll over.” He told me, looking me up and down.

“.. Pete..” I glanced back at Michael sleeping behind me, “.. no— I can’t—“

“I can show you what he does to Henrietta. Don’t you think he deserves a taste of his own medicine? Or are you a prude?”

It’s not like I wasn’t upset with Michael, because I was, but cheating felt wrong. Then again, he was also cheating on me.. it would make things even. With a small huff, I rolled back over with my back facing Pete.

I could sense him removing his boxers before he slowly slipped my panties off and gently slipped his arm underneath my knee, picking my leg up and holding it there. His other arm went around my chest as his hand landed on my mouth, covering it.

“Be quiet, or he’ll wake up. I doubt you’d want him to see you like this.”

He wasn’t wrong. I really didn’t. I felt like a slut, but I couldn’t deny that being held like this by Pete felt very nice and comforting. I felt him very slowly slide into me, making my body tremble as I tried to not whine out and alert the sleeping goth boy infront of both me and Pete on the bed.

Pete was staying still for a moment as his tip was inside, waiting for my tight pussy to adjust to his size. This was only my third time, considering Michael never did these things to me. Only once. Honestly, I felt a bit special that Pete wanted this with me, of all people. Me. He wanted me. Not Henrietta. Me.

As he started to move and thrust his hips into mine, I shifted my head backwards, whimpering quietly into his hand. He felt good. So fucking good. Better than that one time Michael did this with me.

“Feel good?”

I nodded against his hand.

“That’s good… you’re good… for a conformist.. your body is just.. perfect..”

I whimpered a bit more at the praise and tried to move my head around to look at Pete, but he grabbed my jaw and turned my face to stare directly at Michael.

“Look at him. Sleeping. Asshole doesn’t know how to give his horny little girl a good fucking.”

I did as Pete wanted, and stared at Michael. I felt myself getting closer, despite the fact we had only just started. Maybe it was the way he was speaking in my ear with such a soft and calm voice yet dirty tone.

“Call me, and I’ll slam your pussy anytime you need me to, since this dickwad won’t.”

I nodded my head to him again, now successfully turning my head around to look at him. As a split-second though, he kissed me, and I kissed back, both having our eyes closed as his tongue slid into my mouth, tasting me.

He let out small groans as he got faster and rougher, “You don’t mind me cumming in your cunt, right..?”

I shook my head. No. I really didn’t.

“You really are desperate, huh? What a jackass.” Pete glared at Michael before continuing to pleasure himself and me.

After a few more moments, I just couldn’t take it anymore. I moaned into his hand and arched my back, cumming on his pale cock, which seemed to trigger him to cum too. As he said, he pushed deep inside as he came, making sure he really filled me up.

He didn’t pull out for a few moments, and we both panted with eachother in sync. He moved his hand from my my mouth to pat my head.

“.. for a conformist.. you’re cute. Didn’t think I’d ever say that.”

For once, you and him were both glad his mother got drunk and picked a fight with his father that night.

[kilojulietsierra]

Finders Keepers - Capt Ronald Speirs x Nurse!OFC

Summary: Lt. Elaine Walker is apparently the only nurse in her unit not terrified of the new Easy Company CO. As such she gets to know him just a little bit better than anyone else.

Warnings: All of my content is considered 18+ only, slow burn, fluff, eventual relationship, secret relationship, not so secret relationship, flirting in the middle of a war, smoking and drinking, allusions to sex canon typical language, violence and events.

Disclaimer: this work is based on the HBO series Band of Brothers and is in no way meant to disrespect the real heroes of Easy Co.

~~~~~~

She woke up all but burrowed under the covers, warmer and cozier than she'd been in longer than she could remember. On the verge of sleep and waking something was nagging at her. Fighting to stay asleep she wrapped her fist tighter around the edge of the blankets, giving them a tug.

The blankets came freely and she burrowed deeper into her pillow. The one hand she had out in the cool air of the room reached out to the other side of the mattress and stretched out the stiffness. That was when she realized what had awoken her in the first place.

Cigarette smoke.

Reluctantly she cracked her eyes open, it was still dark, the night air was cool and quiet.

"Over here." Ron broke the silence. HIs voice was smooth and quiet, barely disturbing the darkness.

Once her eyes adjusted to the light Elaine saw the cherry red end of his cigarette, "Come back to bed."

"Go back to sleep." HIs voice stayed just as hushed as before, the end of his cigarette glowed brighter for a moment.

"I will." She stretched her entire body and chased after sleep once again. "When you come back to bed."

Across the room he huffed out a silent laugh and took one last, long drag on his cigarettle. In the dark his steps were noiseless and only the faintest shape of him was visible, a silouhette as he passed in front of the moonlit window.

Her eyes had slipped closed once again, only opening when the bed dipped with his weight. She sighed contently as he slid under the blankets beside her once again. Once he was settled he wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close. "You enjoy bossing your CO around Walker."

Eyes closed and a sleepy smile on her face she rested her head on his chest. "Technically, you're not my CO."

That earned her another huff, a laugh, or as close as it would get. "That so?" His fingers stroked up her bare back. "Pretty sure your chief is reporting to me while your unit is still attached to Easy."

She felt his eyes peering down at her, could imagine the look on his face. Keeping her own eyes closed she chose not to respond.

The next time he spoke the words were whispered directly in her ear, "That would make me your commanding officer," He ducked his head to place a kiss behind her ear, "Technically."

Laney chuckled and pressed herself tighter against him, dropped a kiss of her own against his chest. Followed quickly by her teeth nipping at his pec. "Wise ass."

Ron hissed a little at her sharp teeth, but only retaliated by rolling them over so he was on his side and her back was flush against his chest. "Thought I told you to go back to sleep." He whispered against her ear again,

She settled back against him and hummed. letting her eyes slip closed. "What woke you up?"

His arms around her and his face pressed against the back of her neck he kissed her there. "Just a dream."

"Same one?"

Behind her Ron only hummed.

During the day he was a man of few words for the most part. Being promoted to Captain apparantly hadn't changed that much from what she heard. But, here in Austria, especially with her, he would losen up some. One of those times, late at night, laying in bed together he had told her about his nightmares.

Most of the men had them, she knew that all too well. The boys that came into the aid stations, the hospitals, they all trembled, moaned, sometimes screamed in their sleep. She had seen it plenty of times. They would startle awake. Their sleep haunted, dreams of earth exploding, shells raining down, the images of their friends bloody and mangled beside them..

Captain Speirs was no exception.

"Go back to sleep." Rons voice was even softer as he pulled the blankets up closer around them and settled in.

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

"Captain Speirs, Sir?"

Speirs turned around, "What?" he snapped, already sick of people coming and asking him stupid questions.

"SIr, the nurse corps is asking where to set up." The soldier standing in front of him stared blankly as he waited for orders.

Speirs breathed deep through his nose and glanced out the grimey, half shattered window, "Take three men and clear a building across the street."

"Yessir." The boy left to do as he was told.

Less than an half an hour later, as he leaned on the back of the couch talking to a shivering, coughing Lipton, Speirs was once again interrupted.

~~~

When the chief nurse came to them they were unloading the last of the supplies. "Captain Winters is requesting someone to report to company E CP, they have men there that need attention."

Elaine and the other nurses stopped what they were doing. One of them spoke up, "Why can't they just come here? We are almost set up."

The chief nurse simply stared back at them, "Apparantly they're too busy."

"Isn't that what medics are for?" Another girl asked.

"Will one of you please, just go report to Captain Speirs. Don't make me order you."

The girls all exchanged a look. "Captain Speirs, ma'am?" Even the nurse corp had heard the stories. Boys coming into feild hospitals and aid stations were full of them. The nurses had all heard of the infamous Captain Speirs by now.

"Yes, Captain Speirs. He's the Easy Company commanding officer."

Glancing amongst themselves the nurses remained silent. After a long, tense moment Elaine jumped down from the truck with a humph and grabbed her kit, "I'll go Teresa." She slung her bag over her shoulder and took a look around at the wide eyes staring at her. With a snort she added, "I could use a cigarette anyway."

Laney ignroed the snickering and whispering behind her as she jogged across the street. Stepping quicker at the sound of artillery screaming overhead. Once she made it across the street to the company CP she ducked inside as a shell hit somewhere nearby.

The men looked up as she entered. One of them standing behind the couch looked her over as he stood to his full height, "Aid station is set up across the way."

Laney squared up to the Captain from across the room, "I'm well aware SIr. I've been sent to see to someone here."

The man on the couch sat up a ittle straighter, fighting back a coughing fit. "See who?" A shiver rolled through him as soon as he finished talking.

With a snort and a hint of a smile Laney shrugged out of her satchel and walked over to the couch, "I'm willing to bet that'd be you Sargent." Kneeling down beside him she gave him a quick once over and felt at his cheek and forehead. "You should be laying down somewhere trooper."

"Exactly what I said." Speirs spoke up from behind the couch, his eyes meeting hers and his lips twitching the slightest bit as though he may smile if he weren't careful. "In the back. Let her take a look at you Lip, that's an order."

With a cough and a little help, Sargent Lipton got to his feet, taking the blanket with him. "Yes Sir."

Speirs nodded to Lip and then looked back to Laney, "What's your name, Nurse?"

Laney shot him a look, "Lieutenant."

"Your name is Lieutenant?" His lips twitched again.

"My rank." She wrapped Liptons arm over her shoulders and picked up her bag. "If you'll excuse us, Sir?"

Speirs' eyes were dark and he did finally crack the barest of smiles as he nodded his approval, "Lieutenant. Lip, get some rest."

"Sir." Lip nodded and together he and Laney headed for the back of the building.

At the door Laney tugged Lipton to a stop and turned back to Speirs, "Say Captain, got any cigarettes?" Lip jerked his head up to look at her in surprise.

Back in the main room Speirs met her gaze with an honest to God smirk, "Fresh out."

~~~

Later that evening, when Laney had finally finished with the officers and non-coms and their multitudes of 'minor' ailments they'd all been dutifully ignoring, she was surprised to find that Speirs was still there.

He sat in relative darkness, save for the one kerosene lamp turned down low in the corner. His eyes were closed and he was slouched back in his chair, one muddy boot kicked up on the desk. Laney thought he must be asleep so she stepped quietly past him.

"Lieutenant Walker." Laney stopped in her tracks, not questioning how he'd gotten her name, and turned back towards the desk he'd moved into the corner and away from the windows. Now his eyes were wide open but his posture remained the same. "Captain."

Speirs seemed to be studying her intently for a long moment. "How are the men?"

Taking a breath, forcing herself to relax, Laney kept her voice down to match his, "Wore out." She took a few steps closer, "To say the least."

He nodded. "A little out of uniform aren't you Lietenant?" His eyes held hers, a hint of something in them. He looked her up and down, taking in the state of her dress.

A pair of hand me down jump trousers and a four pocket jacket a size or two too big over layers against the cold. She carried a bag like a medic, noticeably emptier than it was when she arrived, a battered helmet with the red cross peeling on one side . He saw a pair of fingerless gloves tucked in the utility belt she had cinched around her waist and noticed that the brown leather was stained darker with blood.

Laney rolled her eyes and cocked her hip, "Well, Sir, a white dress and stalkings don't fair too well on the line."

Speirs chuckled. "Appreciate you taking care of them."

"It's what I'm here for." She spared him a smile. "How 'bout you Captain?"

"How about me?" Foot still propped on his desk he crossed his arms, smirking again like he had earlier.

"Need me to take a look at anything?" She nodded his direction for emphasis.

Speris shook his head, "I'm doin' just fine Lieutenant." He held her gaze for a moment and eventually bobbed his head towards the door, "Go get some rest."

"Yes sir." She hiked her bag higher on her shoulder and turned to leave, "Good night Captain."

"Good night Lieutenant." At the door she stopped, and dug through one of her jacket pockets until she pulled out a crumpled pack of Lucky Strikes. She tossed them to the Captain and chuckled when he had to quickly uncross hs arms to catch them. "Laney."

Speirs held up the pack of smokes in thanks, "Ron."

He watched her smile and then disappear out the door. Once she was gone he chuckled to himself and pulled a cigarette out of the pack and lit it. He was still smiling when he stuffed the pack in his pocket, recrossed his arms and closed his eyes again.

~~~

When Easy moved out of Haguenau, Laney and the other nurses hung back with the rest of the support staff. At least until they could receive word from Easy and the rest of the battalion that Sturzelburg was secure enough for them to enter. Once they had received the all clear they rolled in with their jeeps and trucks.

At the center of town they dismounted and it was Lieutenant Elaine Walker that was once again sent to the CP. After their group of nurses had linked up with Easy on the other side of the French/German border Lieutenant Walker had been designated the unofficial go between for the Nurse Corp and Easy Company. The other nurses were still hesitant to approach the Company CO.

They apparently weren't so scared of him that they didn't gossip about him plenty. Speirs, Nixon, Winters... Of course any of them would volunteer to go to Nixon or Major Winters in a heartbeat, bicker for the chance even. Captain Speirs on the other hand, well, Laney was the lucky one. Not that she minded all that much anymore, if she were telling the truth. Her interactions with the Captain were limited but they got on well enough. Quite well actually.

Laney approached a group of soliders congregated on the steps of one of the shops. "Any of y'all seen Captain Speirs?"

The lot of them stood up a little straighter. One with southern accent, much thicker than her own, spoke up, "Yes ma'am, he's clearing houses down that way." He pointed down the street.

With her thanks Laney headed down the street. She finally found him in the fourth house she checked. He was jogging down the stairs with a trayful of treasures. "Lieutenant Walker." Speirs spared her a fraction of a smile as he stopped at the bottom of the stairs.

Laney chuckled as she walked over to see what he'd found. "Captain." She plucked the silver tray dangling from one hand out of his grasp and studied it. Flipping it over and over watching the way the sun bounced off the surface.

"Have they set you up somewhere yet?" He moved to prop a hip on the table.

"Not yet. We just rolled in." She set the platter down and continued to peer through his newest collection. "You've been busy." Laney picked up an intricate, decorative hair comb and admired it. Her fingertips tracing the delicate, silver flower petals. It was the kind that was too pretty to be used.

Speirs huffed out a laugh, "I'll have the boys clear a house for you. Help you ladies get up and running."

"Thank you, Sir."

"Told you," He ducked his head slightly to catch her eye, "Call me Ron." He was grinning when he said it and he grinned a little wider when he caught her smiling down at the floor.

Laney looked at him out the corner of her eye, "Right... Ron." She turned to face him, still holding the silver comb. "How much of this stuff you sent home already?"

His face remained the same as he shrugged. "A little here and there."

She chuckled, "Mhmm, a little." Laney took one last look at the comb and set it down carefully back on the tray. "Who should I find? To get us a building?" She noticed the way his eyes flicked from the movement of her hands back to her face. The fact she could get away with snooping through his loot without retribution pleased her more than it should.

Speirs smirked, stood up straight and situated his grip on the tray full of treasures. "I'll grab some men."

"What about your treasures here?" She pointed.

His face sobered slightly, "We'll stop on the way." He nodded toward the second tray she'd left on the table, signaling for her to make herself useful.

When she reached for the empty tray a noise upstairs caught her attention, stopped her in her tracks. Her head tipped back she looked up at the floor above them. It was pretty obvious what the source of the noise was and Laney pulled her lips between her teeth, trying not to laugh. "Glad everyone else is enjoying themselves."

She walked towards the door where Speirs was waiting and she tried not to turn too red when her gaze met his for a second too long. She felt his eyes on her as she walked out of the building in front of him but him nearly getting ran over by the jeep broke the tension as she tried and failed not to laugh.

His scowl was half hearted but no less effective as he pointed her towards the APO.

Laney also couldn't help but notice the way the soldiers jumped out of his way or the looks they gave her as she followed him in. She was still staring them down on their way out the door when Ron sat his loot down on the counter for the private.

WIth one hand he set the two packs of smokes down and with the other deftly grabbed the comb off the tray to sneak it back in his pocket. "Laney."

She spun around and chuckled when he pointed to the tray she still held. Laney handed it over and stayed in the same spot as Ron conducted his business.

When he was done he turned to leave and had made it to the door, his hand settled on her back to guide her out when the private had spoken up.

Laney had stiffened slightly under his hand. He'd never touched her before and while it was unfamiliar it was not unpleasant. His hand stayed there as he looked back to the Private and had given him that unsettling smile. "Finders keepers." Rons fingers had flexed at her back as he'd said it and then he had ushered her out the door.

~~~

Laney had followed the low murmur of mens voices and smell of cigarette smoke down the stairs where battalion had set up HQ.

When she found the source Lipton was the first one to notice her, "Evening ma'am."

Speirs looked up from his cards, lips twitching as he gave her a nod.

Harry gave her a big smile, "Lieutenant Walker! Lovely night ain't it."

She chuckled as she stepped further into the room, "Isn't it past you boys bed time?"

"Mom said we could stay up late, as long as we finished our schoolwork and brushed our teeth." Harry giggled at his own joike.

Laney glanced around the table. Harry had quite the collection of bottles beside him, Lip a single bottle of half drank beer and the Captain had an empty bottle and a coffee cup in front of him, a cigarette smoldering between his fingers.

Speirs was the one to question her, face unreadable but his eyes searching hers, "What brings you by Lieutenant?"

Hands braced on the back of Harrys chair she shrugged, "Dropping of requisition forms, hard to get paperwork done furing the day." She held Rons gaze a moment longer before she broke away, "So, who's winning?" She looked over Harry's shoulder and gave him a consoling pat on the arm, "Obviously not Lieutenant Welsh here."

Harry groaned as Lipton laughed and Ron raised again. "I'm out." He dropped his cards face down on the table. "That's just plain rude."

Laney laughed and threw the other two men a wink. "Y'all stay out of trouble." She turned to leave but Liptons voice stopped her in the doorway.

"You play cards Lieutenant?"

She turned to look back at him, momentarily distracted by watching Rons hand shuffle the deck of cards. "Better than Harry." They all shared a laugh and she watched as Ron started to deal. Harry grrumbled but Speirs and Lip both smiled.

"Have a seat." Ron flicked his eyes up to hers as he dealt.

"Don't have any cash."

"Use Nix's." Ron had already dealt her a hand at Nixons empty seat. He quirked his lips into a smile, cigarette dangling between them as he spoke, "He won't miss it."

After a moment of hesitation she smiled, "Sure." and made her way around the table to take Nixons empty seat.

Lip stood up, "Care for a drink ma'am?" already on his way to grab her a beer.

"You can call me Elaine, you know that right?" Laney smiled as she sat down, and couln't help but catch the look on Ron's face.

He hid a smile by taking a long drag on the end of his cigarette, obviously pleased he was still the only one that got to call her Laney. Hands dealt, fresh cigarettes lit and a bottle of beer in front of her, Ron looked up and gave her smirk, "Ladies first."

A couple hours later Laney collected her most recent winnings with a giggle much to the disdain of the men around her.

"This is your fault." Harry stabbed a wavering finger in Liptons direction.

"Not his fault you're a shit card player." Laney smiled as she straightened out the dollar bills and added them to her stack. The couple beers she'd had were hitting her and she was enjoying herself.

Lip was glassy eyed and grinning as he collected the cards to reshuffle.

Ron had finished his coffee then had one more drink himsefl. His eyes were still sharp but he was slouched back in his chair and had run his hand through his hair enough it was hanging over his brow as it sometimes did. "Don't be a sore loser Welsh."

"Easy for you to say, she didn't take all your money." Harry groused as he scowled at his empty beer bottle.

"Not all of it." Ron smirked at her as she folded her winnings neatly and pushed back from the table.

"Wait, where you going?" Lip looked up mid-shuffle.

"Gentleman, it's been fun, but I think I'm gonna call it a night." Laney smiled wide as she pocketed the cash she had collected.

"Not gonna walk off with Nix's money are you?" Ron looked up at her, still with a smirk on his face.

"Like you said, he won't miss it." She pushed her chair in and waved them all a, "Good night."

Ron sat up straighter, "Where are you billeted?"

Laney leaned on the back of the chair, tipsy enough she had to think for a second, "We have a house, other side of town."

WIth a glance at his watch, Ron pursed his lips and snubbed out his cigarette. "It's late, I'll walk you."

As the two of them left the room Lip and Welsh exchanged a look, a long and knowing look.

~~~

The girls were exhausted, all of them sitting around the long, dining room table eating in silence. After the things they had seen that day outside of Lansburg, none of them had much to say. Or much of an appetite for that matter.

Laney was sitting about halfway down on one side. Staring at the meal they had scrounged together for themselves. She couldn't bring herself to eat any of it though. Not after that.

All of them startled slghtly at the sound of the heavy front door opening. They all seemed to hold their breath while they waited. A moment later Captain Speirs and Lieutenant Lipton appeared in the entryway. Both of them just as exhausted as the rest of them.

Their chief nurse stood up to greet the officers.

Lipton offered a brave attempt at a smile. Speirs merely nodded, "Ma'am. Can you spare one of the nurses?"

Teresa, the chief nurse, asked "Has something happened?" The fear of what else they could possible have found evident in her voice.

"Nothing ma'am." Captain Speirs removed his helmet and shoved his sweat soaked hair back, "Our medics are all still at the camp and, well," He exchanged a glance with Lip, "I'd just feel better if someone could take a look at a few of my men."

WIthout a single word every eye in the room turned on Elaine. With closed eyes she took a deep, fortifying breath. Then she pushed back from her untouched plate and stood on tired legs. "I'll go." She didn't spare a look at her fellow nurses as she walked past them all to grab her coat and bag from the hooks by the door. Shrugging into the jacket she turned to Speirs and Lipton, "Lead the way." The men both nodded and replaced their helmets on their heads.

~~~

If Laney thought she was exhausted after a day of assisting at the camp, then she was well and truly done for after the evening of taking care of the shocky servicemen.

There was no class or training they had been given to know how to care for the young men that saw the atrocities that had been found that day. She had done the best that she could but it felt wholly inadequate.

She had stopped in the sitting room of the home in use as the CP and dropped her bag and helmet on the floor by one of the overly ornate sofas before dropping herself onto it with a pathetic groan. Her intention had just been to sit for a moment, but then as she sat her muscles turned to jelly and her eyes became heavy. Almost without thought she stretched out to lay down.

Laney jumped awake a short while later with a start. Heart pounding in her chest and blood rushing in her ears, her eyes flew open. What had awoken her was the weight of a blanket settling over her. Once her vision cleared she saw that it was Speirs who was laying the blanket down.

"What's wrong?" She started but was cut short.

Speirs shook his head. "Nothing." and then put a firm, reassuring hand on her shoulder to keep her from sitting up. She had a fleeting thought that his eyes looked softer, almost sweeter than she'd ever seen them.

He was also closer to her than he'd ever been before. His hair was still a disheveled mess and his face looked as tired as she felt. For some reason, possibly the exhaustion, she did not argue or ask futher questions. Instead she closed her eyes and sunk back into the couch.

Before she drifted off to sleep again she felt the blanket as it was pulled back over her and the warmth of a hand smoothing over back.

When she woke she could tell she had not moved an inch, the blanket wrapped tight around her as she huddled on the couch that wasn't nearly as comfortable as it had felt when she first dozed off on it the night before. As she sat up the thin wool blanket pooled around her waist and every bone in her body ached.

Without much of a thought she draped the blanket over the back of the couch, collected her bag and helmet off the ground, and left to head back to the building where they had set up the hospital. It was when she ran into one of the other nurses in the street that she learned Hitler had committed suicide.

The end was in sight at last

~~~

Later, in the back of a jeep following along behind Easy company on their way to Berchtesgaden, Laney sat with with her knees bent and her boots braced against the back of the seat in front of her.

The country was beautiful and the morning chill in the air invigorating to their tired bodies and souls. For somethhing to do more than anythng she shoved her hands in the pockets of her jacket and tipped her head back, intending to take a nap.

There was something in her pocket she didn't immediatly recognize. At first she thought it might be a pair of scissors she forgot to put back in her bag. The touch of cool metal against her fingers led her to believe, but it didn't feel quite right. When she pulled the item from her pocket her breath actually caught in her throat.

In her palm lay the beautiful silver comb she had been admiring from among Captain Speirs loot back in Sturzelburg. The one with the intricate flower adorning the handle.

On reflex she cloesd her fingers around the comb and shoved it back in her pocket before the other girls in the jeep could see. The whole rest of the way to Germany her mind spun. Had he given it to her? When though? Surely she'd remember. Last she had seen it she had laid it carefully on the tray with the rest of his haul. He must of snuck it in her pocket. Then she remembered.

The night after they had found that camp, she had fallen asleep on the couch and woken up to him, Ron, giving her a blanket.

Inside her pocket she couldn't stop running her fingers over the intricate engraving on the body of the comb. She also could not stop herself from thinking about Captain Speirs.

Once they were in Berchesgarten everything went fast. Once the town itself was clear, an easy feat for the boys as it was mostly abondoned, the nurse corp got to work setting up the aid station in a floor of the hotel.

Laney hadn't seen Speirs since they arrived but she tracked him down easily enough that afternoon. She found him on a balcony of the hotel smoking a cigarette with his back to the railing and his thompson leaned up beside him. He looked up at her as she came out onto the balcony.

For a moment he looked like he was going to say something but with a smirk laney just leaned against the door and held the comb up for him to see. Instead of whatever he had been about to say he just smiled and dragged on his cigarette. "Where'd you get that?"

Her eyes flicked to the back of her head quickly before she put the comb back in her pocket. "That's what I've been wondering." She crossed the small balcony to lean against the railing beside him.

He held her gaze for a long moment. Smirking when she didn't look away from him. "Finders keepers."

Finishing the rest of his cigarette Speirs stood up straight. He was closer now and she had to look up slightly to look him in the eye.

Rather than say anything else Laney placed one hand on his jaw and stood on her toes to kiss him on the opposite cheek. "Thank you Ron."

When she pulled back Ron still had that easy smirk on his face as he gazed down at her. Rather than admit to anything he gave her a wink and headed back inside. At the doors he paused and turned back to her "We're down a medic."

Her blank stare was her only response.

"Easy is going up there." He nodded towards the Eagle's Nest and then back down to Laney. "Wanna come with us?" Speirs shrugged, "Just in case."

He was doing that thing again. Where his stare was dark and calculating but the very corner of his lips twitched like he was holding back a smile.

Laney slouched back against the railing, "Just in case." She repeated his own words back to him.

With a nod Speirs said, "C'mon." And so that was how she found herself in the back of a jeep as it climbed its way up the switchback roads of an Alpine mountain. Creeping ever closer to the supposed last Nazi stronghold.

At the top of the mountain the first few men of Easy company were at the door staging to enter by the time Laney jumped down out of the jeep behind Speirs. Halfway to the door Speirs put a hand to her elbow and stopped her in her tracks. "Here. Stay close," He left his hand on her a moment longer than necessary, "Just in case."

Laney snorted, "Yeah. Just in case."

Speirs gave her a nod, nudged her behind him and the others. After the first group of soldiers were through the door she followed them in.

For her part Laney just looked around. Keeping within sight of at least one of the men at all times. It was almost on accident that she stumbled upon the room with the three dead Nazi officers. She wasn't sure how long she had been standing in the doorway when Speirs appeared behind her.

She flinched a little, snapped out of her daze, but stilled when she felt his hand in the middle her back. He guided her further into the room so he could step past her and one by one kicked over the bodies, his pistol at the ready in one hand, though it was obvious he wouldn't need it.

As he knelt down by one of them Laney circled the room. She came to a stop in front of a desk to one side and decided to take a hint from the others, so she started rummaging. Not much caught her eye other than a silver cigarette case she found with the Nazi eagle on it and a set of fountain pens. The others could take the big stuff. At least this way she could say she brought something back with her.

When she turned back towards Speirs he was digging through the last German's pockets, but his eyes were on her and he had a smirk on his face.

Laney shoved her trinkets in an inside jacket pocket and shrugged, "Finders keepers. Right?"

WIth a nod he jerked something out from under the dead mans torso and stood up. Speirs took his own sidearm and slipped it into its holster before holding the luger up between them. As he walked back towards her he dropped the magazine out of a Luger he had apparently found, checked the chamber and slammed the magazine back home. "Here." He came to stand directly in front of her and offered her the pistol.

She must have looked as uncertain as she felt because he spoke up. "How many nurses you think get the chance to take a German officers sidearm home as a souvenir?" He nodded to her and gestured to the handgun again.

It felt strange in her hands. She was smart enough to know that the officer Ron had found this gun on had used it to take his own life. It felt wrong, but Ron was right. "You don't want it?"

He smirked, "I've got plenty." and took the Luger from her before grabbing her shoulder and spinning her around so he could stow it in her bag for her. When he spun her back around he kept his voice down, "Don't let anyone know you got that."

Laney nodded and without another word between them he led her out the door. At the door a loud, echoing pop caused Laney to flinch. Her hand jumped out to fist in Rons sleeve and she took half step backwards.

Ron tensed slightly but breathed out a sigh of exasperation, his right hand smoothing up and down her back as he coaxed her forward into the main hall. Where they found Malarkey swigging straight from a champagne bottle.

She couldn't help but laugh at herself as Ron sent the trooper out to guard the entrance until WInters could arrive. For a moment Laney couldn't help but get lost in his eyes and the way he turned back to look at her. There was something in them she couldn't put a finger on. She knew what she hoped it was and for a moment she felt her body lean in, caught the way those hard eyes softened, and then another loud pop had her heart jumping up into her throat again. Once again she flinched and grabbed ahold of Rons jacket, the front of it this time as she broke into giggles.

"Your boys are gonna kill me, I swear." She berated herself for being so jumpy.

Ron put his hand on her again and looked unmistakably irritated, "Not if I kill them first." He chewed on the inside of his cheek as he gave her side a comforting squeeze. When he saw her still smiling he relaxed a little. He heard Welsh and Nixon, their voices carrying well through the castle like halls. Eyes still just as dark, but with a little less murder in them, Ron spared her a grin. "Stay and celebrate?"

Her heart in her throat again Laney released her death grip on the front of his jacket and returned his smile. "I better head back. They were still setting up BAS when I left."

WIth a slow blink, as if to collect himself, Ron nodded and seemed to wait until the last possible second to remove his hand from her waist. He had just let her go when Nix entered the room to order all champagne bottles be rounded up for questioning, at once.

Laney chuckled and shook her head, "Y'all try not to have too much fun." She smiled at Ron and then turned to leave, patting Nixon on the shoulder as she passed by.

~~~

Ronald Speirs was not the kind of officer made to sit at a desk. He despised it and tried to avoid it at all costs. Now that the Nazis had surrendered however, he found he spent much more time doing exactly that than he did running into the fire. He'd prefer that.

He was leaning on his desk, staring at reports when there was a knock at his door. "Enter." He didn't look up when the door opened. He didn't look up until whoever had come into his office had gone a long moment without speaking. So, annoyed, he stood up straight to address them.

The sight of Lieutenant Elaine Walker in her dress uniform stopped him with his mouth hanging open. The scowl wiped right off his face.

She was biting back a smile by the time he squared himself away.

"Good to see you in proper attire finally, Lieutenant." If his gaze lingered a little too long anywhere she apparantly wasn't going to call him out on it.

"Glad you approve, Sir." She nearly chuckled as she stood before him.

It wasn't that Speirs wasn't used to seeing other nurses on the line in scrounged, patched, borrowed gear. It was also plenty common to see them running around in the more practical uniform of trousers and shirts. So common that Ron hadn't really stopped to consider the alternative.

"God, you are beautiful." He threw pretense out the window. The war was as good as over. They were safe in Austria.

To her credit, as surprised as she appeared to be, Laney laughed. Smiled bright with flushed cheeks. "Glad you finally noticed."

Speirs chuckled, leaned back to sit against the edge of his desk like he had been when she had first entered his office.

"Oh I noticed before but..." He trailed off, honestly not sure how to finish his thought.

Across the room Laney leaned against the doorjam, still smiling. "Amazing what a skirt and pair of heels can do. Isn't it?"

Ron licked his lips and looked down to the floor, chuckling softly. "Unless you prefer your girls in boots and baggy pants." She was poking fun at him now, enjoying her upperhand.

"Come up here just to torture me Lieutenant?" He looked back to her out the corner of his eye, doing his best to sound stern.

She stood up straight, "No Sir, but it is fun." Laney approached him and his desk. She came to a halt a respectable distance away. "The others are still too scared to talk to you." They shared a smile. "Came up to see if Easy was going to require our unit full time or if we could help out the hospital they have set up in town. They need help prepping wounded to relocate or ship back to the states."

Speirs sobered slightly and crossed his arms. "Don't think second Battalion will be seeing much action anytime soon. Surely the hospital needs you more than we do." He seemed regretful to say it, "I'll check with Winters, but I see no harm in it."

"Yes Sir, thank you." Laney nodded and stood up straight, gave him a small, sincere smile. "It's been an honor Captain. For all of us."

Speirs nodded. Looked her in the eye and returned her smile. With a final nod and a click of her heels she turned towards the door and headed to leave.

Ron decided to push his luck just a little further. He stood up straight and called after her, "Laney."

She stopped in her tracks and turned to face him, but didn't say anything. Just gave him that same, easy smile.

He closed the distance between them and appreciated the fact that even though his strides were purposeful she stood her ground. When he stood in front of her finally he looked her over once more and then settled his gaze on hers. He didn't say anything. He didn't have to.

By the time his hand had moved to cup her jaw, her gorgeous green eyes had slipped closed and her lips parted for him as soon as his mouth covered hers. He was about to pull back, keep it brief, when she moaned. A tiny, sweet little sound in the back of her throat and Ron decided he wasn't done yet. He slid his hand around from cupping her cheek to hold her by the back of the neck.

That action caused her to lean into him, her hands braced against his chest as their kiss escalated. Finally regaining the little bit control he'd let slip, Ron pulled away from her. Keeping her close with the hand still cradling the back of her neck.

WIth her eyes still closed Laney whined the slightest bit at the loss, the fingers of her right hand fisting into the fabric of his shirt. Ron had to close his eyes and breathe deep.

He allowed himself one more, a soft pass over her lips as he held her chin by his thumb and forfinger. This time when they seperated her eyes were open and she was smiling.

Her eyes locked on his for a moment before she licked her lips and chuckled, "I should go before they start to worry what you might have done to me."

All Ron could do was chuckle and nod. Then kiss her one more time.

"Ron..." She returned the kiss and then chased after another, "I really should go."

He hummed an affirmative just as he pulled her back into him. Smiling into this one, final, kiss as she started to laugh. "You better go."

Laney nodded, rolling her eyes a bit as she pushed away from him. "Y'know..." She backed towards the door, "It's only a five, maybe ten minute drive into town from here."

Ron wached her like a hawk as she backed away from him. Her pupils still dark and wide, her cheeks a pretty pink. He pursed his lips and nodded, "Good to know."

God help him and his unholy thoughts as he watched her wink and turn away from him to finally walk out of his office. He kept his eyes on her backside until all that remained was the sound of her heels clicking down the halls.

Mind spinning with the possibiliies he reached into his shirt pocket for his smokes and frowned when he came up empty handed. He swtiched and reached into his other pocket but no luck. He finally cracked a wide smile and laughed quietly to himself as he looked out the empty doorway. With a shake of his head he walked back around his desk and dropped into his chair, already formulating a plan to go steal them back.

~~~

Laney smiled up at him as soon as she opened the door. "Captain, odd seeing you here this late."

"Your friends downstairs think you're in some kind of trouble." Ron cocked his head at her, keeping up the charade of a disgruntled CO.

"Am I?" She leaned against the door and looked up at him expectantly. "Depends on if you used up all my smokes." He cracked a small smirk.

Laney stepped back, leaving the door open, and walked across her small hotel room to pick up a pack of cigarettes off the dressing table. She held them out at arms length and Speirs took the hint to come rest the way into the room.

He swung the door shut behind him and took the smokes from her. After a quick glance at the pack he looked back at her. "You didn't take any."

She shrugged, "Don't smoke."

Ron scoffed and tossed the pack back where she had grabbed it. Then he reached for the sleeve of her shirt. Tugging her closer as he looked her over.

She'd removed her jacket and tie, kicked off her heels and was walking around in stocking feet. Her hair was down too and Speirs realized he'd never seen it that way. It was a pretty auburn color and hung just past her shoulders.

Laney came easily when he pulled her to him, resting her hands on his torso as she stepped in close. Her voice was soft as she asked, "How long can you stay?"

His hands settled on her waist and pulled her the last little bit closer. "Awhile."

This time when he kissed her she stood up on her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around his neck. And this time he didn't have to stop.

~~~

Ron found he couldn't tell her no when she asked so sweet, voice soft and sleepy with her eyes fighting to stay open, for him to stay. She felt so good; naked and warm and relaxed as she lay beside him.

Laney had laid her head on his chest while he smoked a cigarette, her leg hooked over his and her fingers tangled in the chain of his dog tags.

He smiled when he felt her breathing get shallow and the unmistakeable twitches as she fought sleep. Ron switched his cigarette to the other hand and tipped her face up to his. His own eyes were growing heavy as he smiled at her softly, fondly. "I'll have to get up early."

She huffed out a snicker and pried her eyes open, "As long as you're quiet about it."

WIth a shake of his head Ron rolled his eyes and dropped his head back into the pillows, more relaxed than he'd been in too long. He took a long drag, hurrying to finish the last of the cigarette, "Oh you're waking up too, sweetheart,"

"No Sir." The humor in her voice was as thick as the exhaustion and the southern accent. "Not a chance."

Ron smiled around the end of his cigarette and let smoke roll out with his chuckle. He stretched one long arm out to snub it out in a dish on the table and tipped her face back to him as he settled into bed fully. "Darlin," He kissed her firmly and thouroughly and when he finished his sentence he did it a breath away from her lips, "If I wake up in bed with you I'm gonna have to have you again."

Ron kissed her again, before she could form a response and so it came out as a pleased little moan in the back of her throat. When he did pull away she was smiling, "I'll allow it."

God she made him smile. He had started to realize that, when it was just the two of them, he couldn't help himself. Especially now that they were kissing and falling into bed together. Speirs ran his fingers through her hair and cupped the back of her neck to kiss her once more, "Good night sweetheart."

Laney smiled into the kiss and her whole body seemed to melt, "Good night." She was asleep as soon as her head laid back on his chest and with a content sight Ron let his eyes fall closed and followed right behind her.

~~~

A few days later Laney was in a jeep with three other girls heading around the lake and up the hill to Batallion HQ. The hospital that had been set up was immediately flooded and was already low on supplies. They'd volunteered to make a run to batallion mostly just for an excuse to get out of the wards.

The nurse driving slowed down as they came to the guard gate. While the guard checked their papers Marge, the girl riding shotgun, pointed to a field ahead of them and off to the side. "Would ya look at that?" The guard let them through and they all looked where Marge was pointing.

Out in the field Easy Company was doing morning PT. Even from this distance Laney could recognize Ron standing at the front of the formation. As their jeep came closer they could hear him too.

Back in the jeep they had slowed to almost a crawl, all of the girls staring on with no shame. Marge spoke up, "Man what I'd give to be down there."

"Doing pushups?" the girl driving asked.

"No, on my back under one of those paratroopers." Marge joked, eyes still fixed on the company as they kept up their pushups.

"Jesus Christ Marge." Laney and the girl beside her both laughed.

Marge continued, "Have you seen some of these guys? I mean I can see their muscles from here."

Down on the field Speirs was yelling again. He had the men holding on an up and apparantly some of the replacements weren't performing up to his standards. From their spot on the road the nurses could see the backs of some of the men shifting, the strain of holding that position for too long too much on them.

Claire, usually one of the quieter ones, spoke up. "I'm half scared of him, but boy that Captain Speirs..." She didn't finish her thought beyond that.

Claire was a new addition to their unit, she hadn't been around for the early days when Speirs was more often covered in sweat, mud and blood. She only knew the clean cut, squared away Captain.

Up front Marge snorted, "I don't know what's got him in a mood today, but I tell you what, I'd let him yell at me like that all he wanted."

Laney laughed, "Marge you got somehin' wrong with you, y'know that right?" She knew it was the replacements that were grating on him. He had complained about them the night before. The newest of them had barely seen real combat and as far as he was concerned that meant they'd never be good enough. The training they'd received before shipping out was nowhere near enough and it showed.

"All I'm sayin' is, if he wanted to... he could." Marge winked at them all and left the rest up for interpretation.

Again Clare surprised them all a little, "I'd just be happy if he came in to get stitched up, even once. Just to see him with his shirt off."

She was glad none of them were looking at her when she had to bite her lip to keep from smiling. "You said the same thing about Nixon, and Major Winters."

"And Bull, and Lieutenant Lipton." Marge added on with a laugh. "But come on Elaine, you sayin' you wouldn't want to get some exercise with one of those strapping, young men?"

The jeep was moving again and Laney spared one more glance at Speirs, up on his feet again and giving orders. "I can't stand push-ups."

The girls all laughed and continued on towards the HQ. Laney thought to herself, still fighting back a smirk, she wasn't one to get overly crude or share gratuitous details with the girls, but there was a little part of her that would get some real enjoyment out of wiping that smirk off Marge's face.

Marge and Laney were two of the four nurses that still remained of their original unit and so they had known eachother since the beginning. They were good friends, but certainly had their differences. Marge had never hidden that she liked certain things about her men, and enjoyed certain activities in the bedroom other girls would balk at.

Laney knew this about her and one of these days she fully intended to ruin Marge's daydreams about Captain Ronald Speirs.

Her friend Marge had made poor Claire blush so red the other night Laney thougt they might have to get the poor girl a bag of ice and a rosary. Recounting a story of a rendevous she'd had with an RAF pilot that involved some ropeburns, plenty of bruises and if Laney were honest, if a man had said the things to her that pilot had said to Marge, well... she would have pistol whipped him. That was Marge though, she liked that kind of thing.

When Laney sat there in that jeep and thought about being with Ron the the last few weeks, especially the night before, she smirked.

He'd been waiting in her room for her when she'd come back from her last rounds of the night. She found him sitting in the chair by the window with his boots up on the sill and a cigarette in his hand. He hadn't even said anything when she came in, just watched her as she kicked off her heels and walked over towards him. WIth one last drag on his cigarette he tossed it out the window, then reached out for her waist and pulled her down onto his lap.

"Hey." She leaned down to kiss him. It was almost habit already.

His kissed her back and gave her hip a squeeze. Watching her as she immediately settled her weight into him and closed her eyes. "Tired?"

"Mhmm." was her only response.

Of his own accord Speirs began pulling the pins from her hair until he could comb his fingers through it. For such a violent and intimidating solider, with her he was a gentle man. Sure he'd given her a swat on the ass here and there if she talked back and he could certainly manhandle her around the bedroom, but he'd never hit her or hurt her, she knew that. They'd tease eachother, he'd whisper things in her ear that made her cheeks bloom red but he'd never disrespect her.

As she had sat there in his lap, his fingers combing out her hair Laney couldn't help the feeling that overtook her. The way he looked at her so intensely, so intently. He was a hard man, all muscle and backbone, no fear of death. He was a leader of hard men. An animal. A killer. Yet, as she leaned down to kiss him she had felt his hand so soft and careful at her cheek, his rough thumb stroking her delicate skin.

She was certain then and she was certain now, she was falling in love with Captain Ronald Speirs. The only reason that didn't scare the absolute hell out of her was because she was fairly certain he was falling in love with her too.

~~~

Laney lay in bed on her stomach, snuggled in blankets and her arms wrapped around the pillow where she rested her head. She was beyond comfortable and watched with a slight smile on her face as Ron reassembled the handgun he had just meticulously cleaned.

He sat on the couch across the small apartment from her, wearing only a pair of trousers he had pulled back on and his dog tags. His hair a dishevelled mess, a cigartte hung from his lips and smoke rolled out his nose as his steady and practiced hands moved through the pieces of his sidearm until it was whole again. Shiny, spotless and in perfect working order. He blew out a puff of smoke as he worked the slide back and forth a couple times, then squeezed the trigger and let it snap forward with finality. His thumb released the hammer before he set the .45 down on the table and grabbed the cigarette from his mouth to knock the ash off into a tray. "You're staring." His voice was soft and low and he grinned without looking her way.

Laney smiled wider and stretched slightly under the sheets. "You're fun to stare at."

Speirs snorted out a laugh as he reached for the rag and jar of polish also on the table. "Why don't you get some sleep sweetheart?" He prompted as he popped open the tin of polish and swiped the rag through it. Setting the tin down and picking up one of his boots.

"Mmmm, not all that tired yet." Finally Ron looked up at her, barely turning in her direction, with a hint of a smirk on his face, "Sayin' I didn't wear you out enough?"

Laney giggled and felt her cheeks flush. "Oh that's not what I'm sayin' at all." She bit her lip when Ron gave her a smile and a wink. "You just shine your boots and let me enjoy the view." He snorted out another chuckle and went to work polishing his boots while Laney burrowed in deeper and did just that.

She didn't think she'd ever get tired of seeing him like this. Half naked, skin still glowing with a sheen of sweat in the lamplight, scars and hard earned muscle on display certainly, but also relaxed, smiling, teasing. She also found she enjoyed when she got to watch him in his element, even when it was something as simple as getting himself squared away for the ceremony tomorrow.

"Ron?" Laney broke the silence a bit later.

"Hmm?" Was his only response. "You have any books to read?"

"Tired of the view already?" He poked at her as he worked a brush back and forth over the leather of a boot.

"No just askin' is all." She caught the look he gave her, a sideeyed smirk, and she bit her lip.

He had mentioned before how he liked that her southern accent got a little thicker when she was tired. Proof he had worn her out after all. Attention back on his boot Ron answered her, "Had a couple one of the boys loaned me, gave 'em to Lip the other day though."

Laney groaned a little disappointed.

"Just down the hall."

"I'm not gonna just knock on his door in the middle of the night." Laney scoffed.

"He's not there." Ron examined the boot carefully before going back to it, "Filling in at the checkpoint tonight." Laney stayed silent for awhile, weighing her options. "Just put some clothes on and go get one." Before she could respond Ron tossed his other boot at her, it bounced on the bed right in front of her and he grinned, "Either that or lend a hand."

She didn't see Ron stop what he was doing to watch her. Didn't see the way his eyes tracked her the second she was out from under the covers, as she walked to pick up the shirt draped over the back of a chair and then buttoned it as she padded to the door on bare feet. It wasn't until she was at the door that she stopped and caught him looking.

He gave her an easy smile for being caught out. "To the right, door across the hall."

She felt silly as she snuck the short way down the hall in nothing but a collared shirt. At the door she stopped and listened for a long moment. When she didn't hear anything she knocked softly and waited again. When there was still silence she twisted the doorknob and poked her head inside.

The room was dark so she had to flip the light on and a part of her still expected to accidentally wake up Lieutenant Lipton. That was not the case however and all she found was empty room and after some searching a small stack of books on a table by the bed. Carefully she picked one up and turned to head back out the door.

Only to be stopped dead in her tracks by the solider himself standing in the door. "Ma'am." For Liptons part he looked more embarrased the Laney did. His eyes darting everywhere but her.

"Lieutenant," Laney gave a smile and shuffled her feet, "Sorry to snoop, but..." She held up the book, "Tryin' to find somethin' to read."

Lip nodded meeting her eye finally, "Not a problem." He unslung his rifle and gestured to the stack of books, "To be honest with you though, the other one is better."

Laney chuckled at the awkwardness of it all and nodded, taking his advice she switched out the books and moved to sneak back out of the room. "Night Lip."

Behind her Lip smiled, "Night Elaine."

She lingered in the hall until she heard his door shut, and then she scurried across the hall and snuck back in to Ron's quarters. She barely had the door closed before she was laying into Speirs. "Why didn't you tell me he would be on his way back?"

Ron looked up, confused at first, and then chuckled. "Laney..."

"I'm glad you think it's funny!" She continued as she stalked across the rooms towards him, "I had to hide in the hall until I knew for sure he had his door closed. So, he didn't see what room I went back to!"

Still grinning Ron set his boot down on the floor and tossed the rag on the table. "Come here." He waved her over and she came, even though she was scowling. Once she was close enough he took her by the hips and pulled her down to straddle his lap. Ron held her there and gave her a kiss, "Baby," he gave her another kiss and then caught her eye, "Shirt you're wearin' still has my bars on the collar." He reached up to tug at the collar of his shirt for emphasis, unable to hold back his shit eating grin.

Laney turned bright red again. "Oh my God, wipe that stupid smirk off your face!" She smacked him in the chest, "I could literally kill you right now." She twisted her neck, first to look down at the bars in question and then to the shoulder to see for herself, the screaming eagle patch, the combination as good as a dead giveaway.

Ron just grinned and and pulled her to him for another kiss. "Looks good on you."

"I'm serious." She mumbled against his lips.

"So am I." He continued to kiss her, his hand at the collar slid up the side of her neck and carressed her there.

She relaxed a little, let herself sink further into him. When she pulled back her eyes were softer, but she still grumbled, "I'm mad at you."

Ron chuckled and dropped both hands back to her hips , "I know." He tugged her hips tighter against his own and kissed her slowly, "Someone must have relieved him early." With another soft, slow kiss he looked her in the eye, still with a smirk on his face and promised her, "Lipton won't say anything sweetheart."

Laney smacked him half-heartedly on the chest with the book. "Would you care if he did?"

Licking his lips he held her gaze, "Would you?"

He kissed her again, neither of them needing to answer the question outloud, before she laid down on the couch beside him, tucked her feet into his lap and picked up the book. Ron stroked a hand up her long, bare leg and watched her for a moment. Taking his turn to the enjoy the view, more than appreciating the sight of her in nothing but his shirt, captains bars and all.

"Boots aren't gonna polish themselves trooper." Laney admonished from behind her book, a smirk evident in her voice.

Speirs grinned and gave her calf a squueze before reaching for his boot and polish again.

That next morning when Laney woke up she was warm and comfortable in bed, light shining through the windows and Ron sitting next to her on the edge of the bed. He had his hand on her back to coax her awake. "Time to get up sweetheart" His voice was hoarse, like he hadn't got enough sleep.

Laney groaned and squinted against the sun. "What time is it?"

Ron repeated, "Time to get up." then gave her another shake.

She grumbled again, and wondered how late he had stayed up the night before. She didn't remember, but she must have fallen asleep on the couch. Which would mean Ron must have carried her to bed. That thought made her smile and she rolled over, stretching out her tired muscles and looking up at Ron.

He was freshly shaved and his hair was combed. His eyes still tired but his face looked soft, at ease. "You look good." Her half awake brain betrayed her and she let the words slip out aloud.

Ron smiled, breathed out a quiet chuckle, and leaned down to give her a quick kiss. "Sweet. You still gotta get up."

Laney chuckled a little at herself as she sat up with a groan. Her new position put them face to face and she smiled. "I'm up."

"Mhmm." His eyes looked her over before he kissed her again. With the last pass of his lips he reached up to the collar of his shirt she still wore and unpinned his insignia. "Need these." He stood up from the bed then and turned to go to the mirror.

"Here," Laney stopped him as she crawled out from under the covers. She took the pins from him and straightened his collar before she snapped them into place. FIrst his infantry insignia and then his captains bars. As she adjusted the bars Rons hands settled low on her hips, and then he slid them down to cup her ass with a smirk. Laney returned his smirk and looped her arms around his neck.

They stayed that way for a moment until Laney broke the silence. "Why'd you let me sleep so late?"

Ron pulled her closer, his eyes darted all over her face until he settled them on hers. "I like keepin' you here long as I can." When that made her smile he gave her one more kiss. "Get dressed. I'll call you a jeep up."

~~~

Laney sat at the end of the couch reading a book she'd got second or third hand from one of the girls. One hand kept the book balanced on the armrest while the other rested on Rons chest. Her palm tucked inside his partially unbuttoned shirt with her fingers stroking idly back and forth as she read.

Ron laid stretched out over the length of the sofa, his head in her lap and his eyes closed. He'd dozed off with a cigarette still smoking in the ashtray.

It wasn't even midnight yet when pounding on the door startled them both. "Captain!" Bang! Bang! Bang! "Captain Speirs Sir!"

Laney's heart thudded in her ears as Ron shot up from her lap, "Jesus Christ," He laid a hand on her thigh as he stood up, "Stay."

Ron got off the couch and strode to the front door. "What?"

"It's Grant Sir, he's been shot. It's real bad Sir."

"Fuck. Give me a minute."

"Sir!" "

What?"

"I think it was one of our own guys." Speirs swung the door closed and went to grab his jacket and cap.

"Ron, what's going on?" Laney had walked out to the entryway behind him and was watching Ron with wide eyes.

He grabbed his gun belt off the chair, "Someone's been shot. Stay here."

"Jesus...I'll come with you." Laney moved to grab her jacket but the tone of his voice stopped her cold.

"No."

"Ron, I can help. I should go."

"No!" Ron stopped her as he strapped on his gun belt, "I said stay here."

Laney shrunk slightly, but did not argue. This was Captain Speirs, not Ron, giving her an order "Okay."

Once Ron made it down to the jeep and saw Grant however, he changed his mind. He grabbed the private that had driven the jeep up, "Go get Laney. Now!"

"Laney, sir?"

With one hand holding the plasma bottle for Doc Roe he grabbed the private by the collar with the other, "Liutenant Walker. She's upstairs, in my quarters. Go get her, now!"

As soon as the private returned with Elaine in tow her mouth dropped open at the sight of the man now laid on a stretcher on the hood of a jeep, "What the hell happened?" Without waiting for an answer she jumped in to help Eugene.

"He been shot." The cajun deadpanned as he tried to start an IV.

"God...." Laney stared at the mangled side of the boys head for a moment before she grabbed for Roe's bag and dug for a bandage, She turned to Ron, "The surgeon, they're set up at the school in town."

WIth a short nod Ron hoisted her up onto the hood of the jeep and turned to the privates, "Find Talbert, tell him where we're going."

In town the men had carried Grant inside while Laney ran to find the surgeon. She had found him asleep at his desk with an empty bottle of schnapps still in his lap. Throwing rules and regulations out the window she all but drug him to the gymnasium.

Where she stood there and watched Ron hold his young Sargents hand. "Jesus,"

"What?" Ron looked up at the surgeon.

"He's not gonna make it." The surgeon mumbled around a cigarette.

Roe questioned, "You can't operate on him?"

"Not me, you'd need a brain surgeon." The doctor pinched the bridge of his nose already walking away, "Even then I don't think he stands a chance."

Laney stood beside Doc Roe and watched their faces fall, watched Ron clench and unclench his jaw. As the surgeon walked away she breathed deep and caught Rons eye, "Ron."

He looked up, eyes hard and jaw set, even as he still stroked a thumb back and forth over Grants unmoving hand.

"There's a hospital, a German hospital, in the next town. A real hospital."

~~~

Unsure what else to do, Laney had gone back to Rons room and waited. She sat in the dark, in a chair in the corner of the room, and stared out the window until she heard the door knob turn.

Rons eye's were cold and distant when he walked through the door. His frame rigid and his stride very much that of the stoic commander and not his somestimes causual swagger. His eyes jumped to her briefly but did not stay. He first shut the door behind him and turned the lock and then unbuckled his gunbelt to hang it on the hook.

Speirs did not speak as he walked over to the table beside her and grabbed a cigarette from the pack he had left there.

It was when he raised the lighter to the end of the cigarette that she noticed the red on his hand. "Ron, there's blood on your hand."

She reached out to grab his wrist but he carefully tugged it away from her. "Let me see."

"It's not mine." His voice was low and as cold as the look in his eyes.

"Grant?" She probed, looking down at her own hands briefly. She did not think the blood was his either.

Ron inhaled a deep drag off the cigarette and finally spared her a look, "Kraut doctor says he'll make it."

Her gaze slid back to the blood on his hand, "Did they find the guy?"

He did not answer right away. Instead he walked to the wash basin and scrubbed the blood from his hands, cigarette hanging from his lips the whole time. Ron didn't even bother drying his hands before he shrugged out of this jacket, tossed his cover on a table and unbuttoned the top buttons of his shirt. Finally, as he sat on the bed to unlace his boots, he paused and leaned his elbows on his knees. "Yeah." After a moment he resumed unlacing his boots, "We found him."

Laney watched, mesmerized as Rons hands flew through the laces. The steady, back and forth motion of him unlacing first one boot and then the other gave her something to focus on. Rather than think about the blood on his hands. Once his boots were off and tossed towards they're normal spot Ron leaned his elbows on his knees again and hung his head. "MPs have him."

She did not expect the wave of relief that poured over her. Laney stood up then and moved to stand in front of Ron. She carefully, with a featherlight touch, stroked a hand over his dissheveled hair. She couldn't describe how grateful she was that Ron had not done something to the man. As much as he certainly deserved it. There was no doubt in her mind that Ron would murder the man for what he had done to Grant. The problem was they weren't on the front now, something like that couldn't just be written off as a tall tale anymore.

Ron hummed slightly at her touch and so she thredded her fingers through his hair and combed it back from his face. After the third or fourth pass he sat up straight and with one last, long drag he pulled the cigarette out of his lips. He tipped his head back to look up at her and with the hand not holding the cigarette he pulled Laney closer.

Unsure what else to do she combed her fingers through Ron's hair one more time and spoke softly. "Should try to get some rest."

His eyes closed briefly as her fingers passed through his hair and then he opened them again and nodded. He said nothing as he stood up. He moved to step away from the bed and Laney but he stopped, his hand still on her hip, and leaned down to press a kiss to her temple.

Later, in the early morning hours, once Laney had finally fallen asleep, Ron laid in bed and smoked the rest of his pack of cigarettes. The whole time he had stared at the far wall, seeing nothing, and stroking his free hand over Laney's bare shoulder.

~~~

"How come you've never asked?" Ron interrupted the silence one evening, letting smoke roll out through his nose as they lay in bed together.

"Asked what?" She had to tilt her head up to look at him from where she lay on his chest. Her thumb absentmindedly stroking a scar low on his hip from a machine gun round he'd caught while still a platoon leader with Dog Company. His second purple heart.

He looked down at Laney, eyes soft behind the hair hanging down over his brow. "If the stories are true."

Laney put her head back where it had been, her ear resting over his steady beating heart. "Well," She started out, "The way I see it, you shooting one of your guys is...unlikely, the Germans though. I figure that's probably true, whatever number it actually was."

His hand strocked up and down her back once before he settled it low on her hip where it had started. "That's it?"

She pushed herself up on one elbow so she could look him in the eye. "Am I wrong?"

Ron took another drag on his cigarette and turned his head to the side to exhale the smoke away from her. When he met her eyes again he reached up and swept a strand of hair out of her face. "What would you think of me if it was true?"

Laney plucked the cigarette from his lips and leaned across him to put it out in the bowl he'd been using as an ashtray. Though his hand smoothed over her bare back as she did so he looked less than pleased when she settled back next to him which just made her grin. "Little late to ask that now, don't ya think?" She leaned down to kiss him but pulled back before they could get carried away again.

They'd been in Austria long enough now Speirs was getting used to having a warm bed to sleep in everynight and a beautiful woman to share it with. There'd been plenty of times during their time on the line and then travelling through Germany when he'd wondered why she never seemed uncomfortable around him when so many others did.

These last few weeks when they'd been spending more time together, getting closer, sleeping together, the thought had been nagging at him more. "Kept expecting you to bring it up." He sat up a little further against the headboard, reached up to push some hair behind her ear and pulled her down to kiss him again, a little longer this time.

With a deep breath Laney licked her top lip and made certain he was looking her in the eye. "Ron," She paused to kiss him again, "You smoke like a chimney, you're a kleptomaniac,"

Ron snorted, "Kleptomaniac."

"You enjoy terrifying people, a little too much if we're being honest, you have no sense of self-preservation," She paused and tipped his chin back towards her as he had tipped it up and away to stare at the ceiling. Once he was looking at her again she added one final thing, "and you have this tiny little scar on your face right here." She poked at it, teasing, "But that's kinda growing on me."

His eyes were hard when he arched his brow at her, waiting for her to make her point, but the hand on the small of her back was still gentle as he stroked it up and down the base of her spine.

"These are all things about you that bother me."

Ron rolled his eyes again and shook his head.

"The fact that you are a soldier that has to do things, that has to follow and give orders, that I... and people like me could never imagine living with... that will never bother me. Doing what you had to do to survive this thing and to be a good solider, that will never bother me."

He didn't say anything at first. Just held her gaze intently. When he did speak it was under his breath, "Kleptomaniac." Followed by a snort of derision which just made Laney giggle as she settled back against his chest.

"That's the one that got you?" She toyed with his dog tags as she chuckled to herself.

With one arm wrapped around her waist to hold her firm he responded, "If it bothers you why don't you give it all back?" He pinched her side, taking the opportunity to tease her back. Ron knew good and well she had a stash in her foot locker of the trinkets he'd been acquiring for her. Including the silver comb wrapped safely in a silk scarf.

Raising up again to look him in the eye she feigned outrage, "Now Sparky, there's no need to be drastic."

"Oh," Ron nodded dramatically at the drop of the nickname, "I see how it is." He cracked a smirk and flipped her over onto her back and kissed her while she laughed. "Well, for the record..." He waited for her to focus up, "You snore."

Her eyes flew wide, "I do not!" She shoved at his chest and shoulders, his laughter only stoking her irritation.

His muscle and bodyweight was no match for hers and so he continued to keep her pinned down, one hand keeping her hands at bay. "You do too, sweetheart. Mouth open and everything."

Laney struggled to get a hand free or any sort of leverage to push him off of her, even as Ron began kissing from her collar bone, up her neck to her ear. She had calmed down quite a bit by the time he sucked her earlobe into his mouth. When he heard her let out a soft sigh he kissed behind her ear and whisperd, "But that's ok, it's kind of growing on me."

She was giggling again and as soon as he released her hands they were on his back and pulling him closer.

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

This time when she woke up the sun was peaking through the windows and Ron was still in bed with her. He'd fallen asleep with his arms around her and had kept her pulled close the rest of the night.

Laney could barely remember ever sleeping so good as she had the last month or so. Whether she came up to the house he and a few other officers had commendeared or Ron snuck off to the hotel in town where her and the other doctors and nurses were staying. Nobody that knew batted an eye anymore. It all felt a little surreal if she thought about it too much. Where they were, how they'd come to be here and what had brought them together. Something else she tried not to think about was what would happen when the 101st got shipped off to the Pacific and Ron would leave. Part of her sometimes feared that would be the end of this.

"I can hear you thinking." Rons voice was rough and gravelly. It often was when he first woke up. Too many cigarettes.

Laney scoffed and closed her eyes, pushing back into him and snuggling as close as she could before he'd have to get up for the day.

Behind her Ron coughed and then twisted her around until she was draped over his chest, her leg hooked over his waist and his hand stroking her thigh. "What's on your mind?"

For a long moment Laney didn't answer him. Ron just held her close and continued to play with her hair.

After she took a deep breath Laney shuffled up a little higher so her face was burrowed against his neck. The stubble on his jaw scratching pleasently against her temple. "You're going to stay in the Army aren't you?"

Ron took a deep breath of his own and when he answered his voice was stil rough, his lips brushing against the hair at the crown of her head. "Yeah." He nodded and then dropped a kiss there. When she didn't repond further, Speirs added. "That's what you're thinkin' about."

It wasn't a question and so she didn't say anything.

"Sweetheart, look at me a second." Ron kissed the top of her head again before tipping her chin up to look at him. "It's where I belong."

Laney was annoyed that her eyes were burning and she had to fight back the tears, "I know." She closed her eyes, trying not to embarass herself.

"Will you wait that long?" HIs voice was almost a whisper and Ron didn't even try to make her look at him.

Her eyes snapped open though as she twisted her head to look at him, confused.

"Until I get back from Japan?" His expression was unreadable and he continued on in her stupified silence. "I'd prefer to buy you a ring, do the church, class As, white gown and all that." His lips twitched but he fought it and kept going, "If you don't wanna wait I understand. We can always find a chaplain. I'm sure I can find a ring that'll fit but I figure you'll give me hell if I steal our wedding rings."

"What the hell are you talking about?" It came out much more aggressive than she meant but Laney was sitting up now wideeyed and staring at Speirs like he was delusional.

Licking his lips all he could do was smile, pry his eyes away from her exposed breasts as he sat up and leaned back against the headboad. The sheets pooled in his lap. His smile grew a touch wider when he watched her eyes dart from his face to the spot where his dogtags hung against his chest, then lower and then back. Once she was looking at him he clarifed, "Would you rather get married now, before Easy ships out to the Pacific or do you want to wait until I'm back? Do everything the right way?"

Laney could not stop staring at him blankly. This was not how she imagined this conversation going. "Don't you think you should be asking a different question first, Captain?"

Ron knew the title was a dig, payback for the trouble he was putting her through.

"Oh no, I already know the answer to that question sweetheart."

He looked so smug she wanted to smack him across the face. But as she sat there in bed glaring at him his words sank in, really sank in. Once she started to smile she couldn't stop it. Even as she shoved her finger in his face, "Ronald Speirs, if you steal me a wedding ring I will kill you. Do you understand me?"

Breaking out in laughter Ron reached for her and pulled her so that she straddled his lap. "Understood." He pulled her in for a kiss. Keeping her there until his hands on her hips coulld pull her tight and close. His chuckle was almost a growl when she rocked her hips against him once only for her to slip away and shake her head at him.

"No sir," She crawled off his lap, batted his hands away as she tugged the covers up around her, "You're still in the army so no funny business, you have to get up and report to PT." She pushed and shoved him out of the bed with laughter and a smile on her face ear to ear.

Accepting his fate Ron stopped at the edge of the bed and leaned over her. "Laney,"

Her smile softened as she looked up at him, eyes darting to the side as he twined his fingers through hers.

"I love you and I am going to marry you."

~~~The End~~~

[emma23]

Waking shadows:

Poe dameron x reader

————————————————————————

Poe Dameron had seen a lot of strange things during his time with the Resistance, but walking through an ancient temple on some forgotten planet, searching for a villain from a bygone era trapped in a dream for 500 years? That was definitely a new one.

The air was thick with dust, the temple walls echoing with an eerie quietness as Poe led the way, blaster at the ready. BB-8 rolled beside him, beeping nervously.

"Relax, buddy," Poe muttered, though he wasn't feeling all that relaxed himself. "Just an old legend. How dangerous can she really be?"

According to the stories, you had been a powerful force user—one who walked the line between light and dark with dangerous precision. In the end, your enemies couldn't defeat you outright, so they trapped you in a never-ending dream. For centuries, you slumbered in the hidden temple, waiting for someone with the strength to awaken you.

And, of course, Poe Dameron, never one to back down from a challenge, had volunteered for the job.

As Poe approached the central chamber, his heart beat faster. The stone doors groaned as they slid open, revealing a grand hall. In the center of the room, a large crystal floated, suspended in midair, casting a faint glow over the room. Inside the crystal was a figure—your figure. You appeared peaceful, almost serene, your body surrounded by a shimmering mist.

"That’s her," Poe whispered to himself. He was struck by how… not monstrous you looked. In fact, you were beautiful, with your face relaxed and your hair gently floating around your head like you were submerged in water. But looks could be deceiving.

He took a deep breath and placed his hand on the crystal, feeling the cool energy pulsing beneath his fingertips. "Alright, let’s wake you up."

With a quick press of a button on his wrist communicator, a soft hum filled the air as the crystal started to crack. The mist surrounding you began to dissipate, and Poe stepped back, eyes wide as the crystal shattered into a thousand tiny fragments.

Your eyes fluttered open.

You gasped, stumbling forward, disoriented from centuries of sleep. Poe caught you before you fell, his hands steadying you as you blinked up at him, confusion evident in your gaze.

"W-Where am I?" you stammered, your voice hoarse from disuse.

"You're free," Poe replied, still holding you, but his grip was cautious. "I’m Poe Dameron, pilot with the Resistance. I just... well, I woke you up."

You blinked, your brows furrowing as you stared at him. "Why?"

Poe hesitated. "Well, we need your help."

You laughed, a low, bitter sound. "You woke me up because you need something from me? Typical."

Poe's jaw clenched, but he didn't let go of you. "Look, we can skip the whole ‘I’m the villain, you’re the hero’ bit. I’m not looking for a fight."

"Then why are you still holding me?" you shot back, your voice dripping with sarcasm.

Realizing he still had his hands on your arms, Poe let go quickly, stepping back. "Sorry. Didn’t want you to fall."

You raised an eyebrow, rubbing your arms where his hands had been. "Thanks, I guess. But if you’re expecting me to save the galaxy out of the goodness of my heart, you’re in for a disappointment."

Poe crossed his arms, leveling you with a steady gaze. "I don’t believe in the whole ‘good or evil’ thing. I’ve seen people make the wrong choices for the right reasons."

You snorted. "Is that your way of saying you trust me?"

He shrugged. "Maybe. Depends. Are you planning on trying to kill me?"

You tilted your head, pretending to think it over. "Not today."

"Good enough for me."

Days passed, and though you and Poe had started off on rocky ground, the tension between you slowly shifted into something else. The more time you spent together, the more you saw beyond the Resistance pilot’s cocky exterior. Poe was surprisingly patient with you, especially when you struggled to adjust to a galaxy that had changed so much in your absence.

One night, after a particularly close encounter with a squad of stormtroopers, the two of you found yourselves alone on the Millennium Falcon, the tension between you palpable as you argued over the next steps of your mission.

"I still don’t trust you," you snapped, pacing back and forth.

Poe leaned against the wall, watching you with a faint smile. "Yeah, I got that."

"You think you’re so charming, don’t you?" you continued, glaring at him. "Just because you’re a hotshot pilot, you think everyone will fall in line behind you."

Poe raised an eyebrow, his arms crossed. "You think I’m charming?"

You faltered, your cheeks burning. "That's not the point!"

Poe smirked, pushing off the wall and taking a step closer to you. "Maybe not, but it’s interesting that you think so."

You scoffed, turning away to hide your embarrassment. "Just—leave me alone."

But Poe wasn’t done. "You know," he said, his voice softer now, "knowing the dark doesn’t make you a monster."

You froze at his words, your breath catching in your throat. Slowly, you turned to face him, your eyes meeting his. "What do you know about darkness?"

Poe’s expression was serious now, all traces of teasing gone. "More than you think."

For the first time, you saw past the cocky grin and the easy-going attitude. There was something deeper there—something haunted. You swallowed, suddenly unsure of yourself. "Why do you care?"

"Because I see you," Poe said, stepping closer until he was right in front of you. "You’re not the monster everyone says you are."

Your heart pounded in your chest, and for the first time in years, you felt vulnerable. "You don’t know me."

"Maybe not," Poe admitted, his voice barely above a whisper now. "But I want to."

Before you could stop yourself, you closed the distance between you, your lips crashing against his in a kiss that was filled with all the frustration, confusion, and longing you had been trying to deny.

Poe’s hands slid around your waist, pulling you closer as he deepened the kiss, his lips warm and soft against yours. You could feel the electricity between you, the undeniable pull that had been building for days. It was intense, overwhelming, and yet somehow, it felt right.

When you finally pulled away, breathless, you stared up at him, your heart racing. "I—"

Poe pressed a finger to your lips, silencing you with a smile. "Don’t overthink it."

You couldn’t help but laugh, shaking your head. "You really are infuriating."

"And yet, here you are," Poe teased, his eyes sparkling with amusement.

You rolled your eyes but couldn’t fight the smile tugging at your lips. "Yeah, well... you’re lucky I’m stuck with you."

Poe grinned, pulling you back into his arms. "Oh, I’m counting on it."

[despicablebisexual]

(I Just) Died In Your Arms by Cutting Crew

part 1, part 2, part 3

Jotaro Kujo x Ex-wife!Reader

The fallout of the previous night occurs.

warnings: cheating, heavy angst

Jotaro had spent all his life cursing his ancestry for dealing him the worst cards possible. First, he’s seventeen and has to fight an ancient vampire that his great-great-grandfather didn’t defeat, then he has to mentor his teenage uncle about being a responsible stand user, and even then he’s required to keep coming back and fighting for more and more.

It wasn’t fair then and it isn’t fair now.

But all thoughts of bad luck are stripped away when he wakes up in your bed with you curled up on his chest. For a second, he believes that he woke up twenty-six again and the last six years without you were all a bad dream. Any second now, Jolyne should come running in as fast as a five year old can, and demand breakfast. Of course, when he looks around the room he’s in and realizes none of his personal affects are there, his heart breaks a little and he adjusts back to the harsh reality.

Despite the headache demanding he lay back down, he decided to do something nice for you and make you a cup of coffee. He tugs his arm from under you and rolls his eyes with a smirk as you whine at the loss of his body heat in your sleep. When he stands from the bed and realizes he’s still naked from last night’s… activities, he pulls on his tight boxers before heading out towards the kitchen. It’s dark and gloomy outside, heavy clouds getting ready to release a serious rainstorm by the looks of it. In the distance, thunder rumbles. Another classic, pop-up tropical storm, typical Florida weather.

Jotaro stands in your kitchen and squints his eyes at the coffee maker. He’s trying to make sense of it as he puts a mug underneath. He presses a button that looks like it should start brewing, but frowns when the machine turns off. He hits the button again and it starts up, the little screen lighting up. He presses another button, but this time only hot water dispenses. Shutting it off quickly, he grits his teeth. In frustration, Jotaro bangs the side of the machine. The hot water starts again and he hits the off switch again.

“Piece of shit…”

He toys with the idea of buying you a new coffee maker when the doorbell rings. Jotaro casts a glance over to the doorway. From the kitchen, one can see the front door that’s right next to the archway. Jotaro turns back to the light on the stove that reads 8:21 AM. Who the fuck was ringing the doorbell this early on a Sunday? He intends to ignore it, shrugging it off as just some door to doors salesman, but it rings again and is now accompanies by an incessant knock. Not wanting some inconsiderate asshole to wake you from your much needed rest, Jotaro strides over to the door and opens it up without even bothering to check the peephole.

“What do you want?”

A tall guy wearing a navy blue fireman’s shirt and work pants stood at the door. Both of the men furrow their brow as they take in the other. 

**********

You woke with a groan, a sore feeling making itself known in between your legs and in your head. You rolled out of bed and entered the en suite bathroom to quickly get some headache medicine to help your throbbing head. The small pills went down easily with the help of water from the sink, and you sat down on the bed for a second.

Jotaro isn’t in the bed, but you don’t worry for once, as you can hear him messing with the coffee machine in the kitchen. The events from last night replay in your head a million times over and you can’t stop the smile that forms when you think about it. It wasn’t a promise or another set of wedding vows, but being reunited with him last night gives you newfound hope that perhaps things can be different this time. Your inner romantic takes full control of your thoughts as you flop onto your back.

Your momentary giddiness is cut off when you hear a knock at the front door. You mentally freak when you think of it being the Williams’s returning Jolyne already. You throw on a loose night shirt that was haphazardly laying by your laundry bin and pull your underwear back on. It was a little gross, but you could shower and change into actual clean clothes later.

Your feet are loud on the floors as you speedwalk to the door, but it’s too late. Jotaro has already intercepted the door and is staring at the last person you want to be standing on the other side of it. Both men turn to you with wild eyes.

“Y/n?”

“Anthony,” you test, his name suddenly like poison on your tongue.

Anthony stands at the door in utter disbelief. Shame washes over you immediately as your boyfriend of two years looks at the semi-nude forms of you and your ex-husband. It’s very, very easy to understand what transpired last night. Both of your necks are littered in hickies, the stench of sex hangs over you two like a cloud, for christ’s sake Jotaro answered the door in only his underwear, and with the way he manhandled you last night, there was surely hand shaped bruises all along your lower half: all extremely incriminating evidence that you two had spent the evening enjoying each other’s presence. And between all of that, you hadn’t even thought about Anthony once last night.

“Why are you here?” you croaked out.

Anthony is wordless as he holds up a to-go container from your favorite breakfast restaurant.

“The boys and I got breakfast after our shift.” His eyes tear up. “I wanted to make it up for missing your big night last night.”

He looks between you and Jotaro for an uncomfortably long time. You have no words or excuses and feel like a coward when you can’t even meet his eyes. You can hear the noise of two years of your life flushing down the drain.

“Guess you didn’t need me there, huh.”

“Anthony, wait–” 

Anthony shoves the breakfast into your outstretched hands, stopping you from getting to him as he turns and walks back down the driveway. You try to chase him out the door, but stop as you realize the futility. He gets in his car quickly and drives off without even a bat of his eye. You’re standing in the sprinkling rain now holding the food with tears in your own eyes as you watch him drive away. Your knuckles turn white with the way you grip the bag, feeling like the world’s biggest idiot. Two years gone like that, all because you were selfish and thought you could have one night alone with Jotaro.

Jotaro.

You had forgotten all about the other tall man as you chased Anthony out the door. Turning back to look, he’s no longer standing there. You run inside, shut the door, throw the food down on the counter before heading back into your bedroom.

In the bedroom, Jotaro hurriedly pulls on all of his clothes. He’s already putting his jacket back on when you burst in.

“Where are you going?”

“I’ve got work to do.”

“You’re not staying?”

He pauses as he glances at you from the side of his eye. You’re freaking out and he can tell.

“No. I’m heading out of the country again to go check on someone in Italy. Stand business.”

“What about Jolyne? Don’t you want to see her again?” 

“I think I’ve fucked up enough things around here for you already.”

“So that’s it?! You come and fuck me and then you leave again?”

You’re full on spiraling at this point. Both of the only men you ever loved are walking out the door within minutes of each other and you can’t help but take in the familiar feeling of being left alone again.

Jotaro stares into your eyes with that cold, calculated expression he wears when his walls go up. You try to move to be closer to him, but he closes his eyes and shakes his head. His hands direct you a step back to create space between the two of you.

“I shouldn’t have approached you last night. It was a mistake.”

A few tears slip down your face and Jotaro fights the urge to wipe them.

“It was a mistake?”

He sighs and looks away. “Why didn’t you say you were seeing someone? He seemed like a nice guy. You need someone to take care of you.”

You look down at the ground, feeling even more ashamed when even Jotaro admits Anthony was good for you.

“I–”

You fail to come up with a proper answer and Jotaro moves past you to leave the house. You cry silently to yourself for a second before chasing after him. His hand is on the knob of the front door when you stop him.

“Because I want to be with you, Jojo.” Your tears shamelessly run down your face. You’ve got to look like a child the way you cry about wanting something.

His hand rises to cover his stupid face with that stupid hat he always wore. Unbeknownst to you, he’s averting his eyes because every single alarm bell is ringing in Jotaro’s mind yelling at him to stay where he is. Stay with you. You’re good for him. You belong together. 

But the voice reminding him that he left for your and Jolyne’s safety, although quieter, is the one he listens to. 

“We’ve been here before, y/n. You know how this story goes.”

He opens the door and is met with no resistance from you. A cab is miraculously already waiting outside for him. He enters it and the driver speeds off quickly. He doesn’t look back once.

Yeah. You had been here before. Just another time you messed everything up. 

[jazeswhbhaven]

WHB AUs: Cain's New Sibling

The young devil sighed, setting his bag on the floor of his room after just having arrived back in Hades. Unexpectedly, his father and current King Leviathan had gone into labor earlier than planned. Cain's new sibling wasn't due for another month or so according to Morax, but it was Lucifer who predicted that this would be a short and easy pregnancy compared to last time.

"Short and easy." Cain scoffed, and tossed the contents of his bag onto his desk most of it being trinkets that the twins made for him before he left. He was just now getting adjusted to having to be a big brother to two half-devils Aelia and Kamaria. Their father's were Mammon, the ruler of Tartaros and Satan, ruler of Gehenna also Cain's other father. This new half-devil...would share the mother as the twins; the descendant daughter of Solomon, Astra.

This is what ultimately bothered Cain in the first place. The conception of this new life had nothing but bad faith in meaning. This child's existence was nothing more than a petty point to prove between his two fathers who were no longer together intimately. Although Astra wasn't aware of how Leviathan's body worked in terms of creating devils, this was still a risk and it still happened.

"It seems, I'm the only one who knows better and I'm not even an adult devil yet." Cain mumbled to himself as he continued to organize and clean his room. He'd have to go and see his new sibling soon, not knowing if he or she would even look like. He could only imagine they'd be similar to the twins, absence of horns, less devil like features.

"Your highness, His majesty Leviathan has been expecting you." Foras stood at the entrance of Cain's room, bowed in a ninety degree angle. After a few moments he straightened up to wait further instructions or to be addressed by the younger devil.

"Fine, I'll be there. Thank you, Foras." Cain said flatly, exhaling deeply as he reached for a stray hair tie to fix his hair into a high ponytail. He then walked out past Foras, making his way to his father's bedroom only to be stopped by the noble.

"They're in another room, the new nursey that was built while you were away."

"A nursery?" Cain paused and turned to meet the other devil's gaze. "What for? I slept in father's room."

"His majesty thought it would be best that the child has her own room." Foras looked uneasy relaying the information, but Cain ignored it for now.

"I see. A girl then." Cain stepped to the side of the hallway, allowing Foras to lead the way to the nursey. It wasn't too far from Leviathan's room at all, in fact across the hall with a lavender tinted door and a gilded doorknob. Foras knocked, being met with the tired voice of Leviathan.

"Come in, but be quiet. She just went to sleep."

The door opened on it's own, Cain walking in first as he observed the room. It looked like any typical nursey he'd see in a catalog except there was a miniature coffin sat in the far left corner surrounded with a sheer purple canopy. The other décor and baby items followed the same color schemes of pastel purple, lilac, lavender and gold. In the right corner, sat Leviathan, holding the infant who was turned toward his chest, her hair peeking from the blanket she was swaddled in. A pale lavender color with notes of blonde waves.

"Strange." Cain uttered out loud, causing Leviathan to grimace at the observation.

"Strange? That's all you can say?"

"What do you want me to say? Beautiful? I haven't seen her face yet. Just the top of her head."

Leviathan got up from the chair, carefully walking the infant over to her coffin bed before setting her down and speaking to his eldest child without facing him. "Stay here for a while and watch her. She should be waking up soon for feeding. I have to contact Morax to schedule another check-up."

Cain rolled his eyes but silently agreed, not bothering to meet his father's gaze as they passed each other. The door closed, leaving the two in the room. He could finally see her facial features, surprised to see that barely any of Astra's attributes transferred over. The infant looked like a mini-Levi, right down to the fluffy eyelashes and sculpted lips. The only thing she inherited seemed to be a small amount of her mother's skintone, a light tan reminiscent of Beelzebub's.

"Your hair though, is the most strange." Cain muttered quietly, reaching out to stroke his younger sister's hair. She squirmed, her eyes slowly opening and locking in on Cain immediately. Her eye color was nearly as pale as her hair, making her look even more unique than initially.

"It seems father doesn't have a name for you, since he keeps calling you "her" "she". I'll name you Lumi."

The infant coos, spitting small bubbles in response to her brother's voice. Cain carefully took off her blanket, taking a look at her tiny hands and legs squirming about in her bodysuit.

"Lumi. You are small compared to my baby photos. But I can tell you're going to be just as big as I am. You just need more time to grow."

She spits and babbles in attempt to reply back to him, kicking her feet in excitement as her eyes widen. Her hands reach out wanting to be closer as Cain brings her to his chest. In response, Lumi nuzzles her face into him and clings to his shirt a swirl of emotion coming over Cain as he can hear her tiny heartbeat steady. When he looks at her he realizes she's asleep again but refusing to lessen her grip on his clothes.

"Lumi...don't worry. Big brother will protect you always. Even if the adults around here are too stupid to do anything. I'll be here." Cain says while kissing the top of her head.

"Where is she?" Leviathan demanded as he returned to Lumi's empty room. "Foras..."

"I'm already on it your Majesty, it seems that his highness Cain has taken her away."

"To Gehenna?"

"No, to his room. I assure you everything is fine."

Leviathan squints his eyes, wondering if he should hang his subordinate for even suggesting that everything was 'fine' based on his judgment. Instead he shoves the other devil out of the way, hellbent on going to his son's room and investigating. Once he arrived, he walks in without bothering to knock, his gaze suddenly in surprise as he sees the room is also empty. As Foras comes from behind him, Leviathan's gaze locks in on Cain's coffin. He strides toward it, opening the top quietly as his widen to see that Cain is sleeping with Lumi clinging his chest also sound asleep.

"You see your Majesty? I believe Cain couldn't fit in her coffin so he brought her here."

"Obviously. Leave."

Leviathan coldly dismisses Foras, who silently nods as he retreats to give his King and his family their space. Now alone in his son's room, he reaches down to stroke the top of Cain's hair and down to Lumi. After a few moments he exhales, reaching down to pick up the two of them effortlessly in his arms and carry them to his room. He stares at his coffin as it opens on it's own and he gets in, positioning himself comfortably with his children. Eyes heavy with sleep, he continues to stroke the top of Cain's head eventually lulling himself to slumber.

[maviscat123]

Riley Crenshaw woke up and rolled over in bed. And when Riley Crenshaw rolled over in bed, it seemed as if the entire world shook. The gray-skinned rhino with the single horn adorning his snout, fairly typical for his species, was massive both in height and weight. As he sat up and yawned, he stretched, popping his back pleasantly. He glanced over at the empty side of the bed his ex-wife used to sleep on and frowned a little. He was amazed Marie could stand his bigness, in more ways than one. In all the years they'd been married prior to the divorce, he'd heard nary a peep from her about how much the bed shook whenever he so much as slightly readjusted his position. He told himself it was just because he had been a good man but in reality he knew it was just because of another part of him besides his belly that was big. A good man he was not, in the end, considering her reasons for divorcing him. Good men didn't cheat in their wives with other men, or live in a false marriage wherein they pretended to be straight.

But that was over and done with. Besides, although the divorce itself had been bitter, Marie had since forgiven him, and he also had custody of their children. Well, the ones not already grown up and out on their own. He stretched again and got out of bed, wandering into the large bathroom where he flipped on the light. He took a shower, dried himself, and then exited, and admired himself in the mirror as he brushed his teeth. His body build at first appeared fat but, while there was some of it, mostly concentrated in his middle, a great deal of the rhino's girth was in fact muscle. He just looked flabby because he was lazy and didn't work out very much. His tendency to break gym equipment meant that meeting the demands of his weekly exercise regimen was next to impssible. Fortunately, the boys down at the Monochrome, his current gym, were understanding of his careless strength, Chad the wolf and Trent the stag in particular. His thoughts turned to Chad. At this, the towel wrapped around his waist began to rise a bit. Now that he was single again, Riley was free to date, and one of these days he needed to hit up that buff wolf instructor for a night out and perhaps a bit more.

His stomach grumbled. Finishing up in the bathroom, he went and dressed. He could hear Clarissa, their maid, waking Timothy and Ashton a few rooms over. They were twelve and fourteen respectively, and soon like their brothers and sisters would be off to high school and eventually college. Riley found himself wondering how in the world he and Marie had had so many children as he finished putting on his business suit and adjusted the bowtie which sat daintily at his neck. Adjusting it gently with a thick finger, he then left and went downstairs to find both boys scarfing down cereal at the breakfast table.

"What have I told you two about eating too fast?" he said sternly but softly.

"Sorry, Dad," said Timothy Crenshaw sheepishly. He ate a little slower.

Ashton Crenshaw by contrast just shrugged and kept right on eating at his usual pace. Timothy was the typical "good boy," and if Marie were still around he would've been a momma's boy for sure. Not that Riley minded. Ashton, though, was going through a rebellious face his father didn't understand. Did he blame Riley for the divorce? Or was he just being a spoiled little punk, as Riley himself had been at his age? Well, except for the spoiled part. Riley didn't know and didn't really care, as he had to get to work. He kissed each son goodbye in turn. Timothy giggled and kissed back on the cheek, whereas Ashton, of course, jerked away and made a show of gagging. Giving his eldest remaining son a gentle bop upside the head with a small smile, Riley put on his topcoat and left. Clarissa would ensure the boys got properly dressed and sent off to school. In the meantime, he went to work.

God, he wished it was the weekend already, and it was only Friday! It wasn't the stuffy suits he had to wear, but rather the boring office environment, legions of yes-men, and long, unproductive staff meetings. Not much ever seemed to get done at Crenshaw Shoes, Inc. lately. And that Friday was no different. More useless meetings and more boneheaded suggestions about how up improve their products to keep up with the competition. Riley had started the company with endorsement money from his time as a wrestler, when one of his major sponsors had been a big shoe company. His employees were well meaning but so incompetent that he really wished he'd been able to nab those two identical twin squirrels who interviwed for joint personal assistant jobs a few years ago. And not just because of their worth ethic. Sadly, that arrogant prick lion Stapleton had managed to get them. Riley just knew Stapleton was having three-ways with the Durants all the damn time.

But no matter. He had his own squirrel. His other favorite person down at the Monochrome. And that was another reason he wanted to get out of work more eagerly today. Because today was Friday which meant his Friday massage from Edwin down at the gym. Followed thereafter, most likely, by a snack of wiggly squirrel.

Eventually, work ended in the early evening. Leaving things to his assistant Cantlemere - Riley noticed with some sadness he tended to delegate important duties now more than he did them himself - Riley left the building. It was already dusk, the sky a soft orange color.  He drove to the gym in his luxury Hummer, the only vehicle on the market capable of containing and carrying him. He drove himself, have never needed nor wanted a chauffeur. He took a parking space in a lot down the street from the Monochrome Gym, and then exited the vehicle, casually strolling down the sidewalk until he reached the gym's entrance, and went inside. Due to the lateness of the day, the afternoon crowd was already leaving but the evening crowd, people like himself who got off of work around this time, would be coming in soon, and Riley prided himself on beating most of them here to have first dibs at his favorite masseur.

"Hi, Edwin," he said as he entered the massage parlor room at the back of the gym. He'd already changed out of his business suit and into a tight purple speedo which barely fit him and left nothing to the imagination as far as his male attributes were concerned.

Edwin Grimaldi was waiting for him as usual. The black-haired, reddish-furred squirrel teen grinned happily as his favorite customer entered. He was very lean-bodied, almost stick thin, but was damn cute and looked adorable in his own little speedo. He had been Riley's favorite masseur ever since the rhino's first day at the gym. He gave fucking great massages, one of his many rather interesting talents.

"Hi, Mr. Crenshaw, er, uh, I mean Riley," Edwin said a trifle submissively. The teenager was still having difficulty figuring out whether to be formal or informal, and it didn't help that the huge rhino honestly didn't care what the squirrel called him. "Hop up on the table and we'll begin."

Riley didn't exactly "hop up" - he'd break the table if he did that! - but did his best, and soon lay stretched out for Edwin's ease of access. He sighed and relaxed. Even before the massage had started he was feeling better after his hectic day at the company. He watched as Edwin went about setting up his usual array of oils and lotions and finally pulled the little wheeled cart containing all of them over. He grabbed two bottles at random, one in each hand.

"Scented or unscented?" he asked.

"Unscented," said Riley. "I don't wanna go home smelling like strawberries and cucumbers."

Nodding, Edwin set the scented bottle down and upended the unscented one, splurting a thick glob of white skin cream into his palm which reminded Riley of cum. The sort he might splurt if he got lucky with the masseur tonight. And he usually did. He smiled as Edwin nimbly climbed onto his back and slapped his hands together, rubbing the slick, oily cream between them, before planting his hands onto the rhino's shoulderblades with a wet, stick "plap" and setting to work. Riley murred and shifted beneath the young rodent as the cream was rubbed and smeared all over his bare back, Edwin not missing a single inch. Then the kneading and rubbing began, and Riley's relaxtion was complete. He groaned with delight and sprouted thick wood in his speedo, pressing against the cushioned table, as the squirrel dutifully worked out all of the kinks and knots in his customer's muscles.

"Wow, you sure have a lot of knots back here," Edwin observed conversationally, a tone of concern in his voice. "Rough day at the office?"

"No more than usual," said Riley. "More like just a long, dull, stressful week in general. It's really only when I come here and see you guys that I can really and truly cut loose and relax and, well, be myself." He chuckled. "Not only do these massages of yours relax me... rrrff... damn, Edwin, but you are better at this than you look... but also this place helps bring out my, well, let's say, inner predator."

Edwin chuckled. "Inner predator, huh?" he said as he worked around the nape of Riley's neck, using his thumbs. "I'd say so. Considering how many times you've eaten me over the past few months." After a pause, he hastily added, "Uh, not that I mind, of course."

The rhino chuckled, himself. He knew the squirrel loved getting eaten by him, ever since that first time. And indeed Riley had made sure to shove Edwin into every single one of his orifices at least twice since then. He'd eaten other patrons and customers at the gym, too, but those muscular guys, while fun and filling, tended to be a bit of a chore for him to get down. He much preferred guys like Edwin, thin and lanky. They were just an all around easier meal.

"Hey," said Edwin, "you know, now that you mention it, if bringin' out your inner predator is what you're after, maybe the gym isn't the place to do it if you're really looking to, uh, y'know, really cut loose?"

"What do you mean?" asked Riley, curious.

He knew of no other place in town that catered to voraphiles. Maybe one or two clubs, but those tended to get raided by the police due to the amount of digestion without reformation that went on there. With a few exceptions, Edwin's former friends included, the Monochrome Gym had an excellent track record of repeat business because they reformed their eaten customers and employees, and were certainly the only business in the city that was actually certified to perform vore. Said certificate, with an "A" rating, was even displayed near the front for everyone to see now that vore was becoming mainstream and the gym didn't need to be so discrete about the type of perks it offered besides exercise.

"Hold on," Edwin said, halting the massage. He slid off of Riley and hopped down to the floor.

Riley was annoyed but sat up, watching as Edwin went to where his clothes were hung up, and he took an envelope out of the pocket of his shorts. It looked quite fancy, with am embroidered logo on the front that read "Wildfire Labs." From within the envelope, Edwin removed a letter typed on an excellent piece of expensive stationary, and handed it to the rhino, who took it and skimmed over it. It read, "Dear potential customer. We here at Wildfire Labs are at the forefront of science and technology, and in particular vore research. It is our founders' strident goal to study the act of consuming another living creature, in an environment which is safe for both predator and prey. This weekend, the 18th and 19th respectively, Wildfire Labs will be performing an experiment to determine the effects of competitive group vore. We are searching for volunteers. If you read this invitation and are interested, please contact Wildfire Labs by phone or E-mail or better yet come down to our facility personally. If you sign up, more details will be given the day of the experiment. Hope to see you there. Sincerely, Fernald Grimaldi, PhD."

The name was handwritten in clumsy but workable cursive, and, reading the last name, Riley looked up at Edwin questioningly.

"My dad gave me those," the squirrel said. "Wildfire is doing this in cooperation with the gym and so Chad has me handing them out to customers. I wasn't supposed to read it, but since it was my dad who delivered them, I got a little curious..." He grinned shyly. Of his father, he quickly added, proudly, "He's a really smart scientist!"

"I bet he is," said Riley with a smile. He slid the letter back inside the envelope and then put it aside onto the cart for later. Then with a grin he grabbed Edwin and pulled him over and dragged the squirrel into his lap and kissed him softly on the lips. "And that smartness really rubbed off on his boy, too."

At this, Edwin blushed and snuggled close to Riley, and then gave a little cry as suddenly the rhino reversed their usual position, and pushed Edwin facedown onto the table and got on top of him. The squirrel groaned at Riley's weight pressing down onto him. Riley pulled Edwin's speedo down and off, tossing it aside, and gave the squirrel's ass a nice little slap before grabbing the bottle of unscented massage lotion, squirting some of the cream into his hand before turning and giving the bottle a hard squeeze and causing the entire rest of the white goop to "splut" against Edwin's bare back.

"Hey, what are you doing?" asked Edwin with a giggle.

"Just thought I'd return the favor for a change is all," Riley replied.

"Besides," he added softly, "got to lube you up!"

"What for?"

"You know what for," Riley said with a wink.

"Aw, Riley, again? You're insatiable!" giggled Edwin.

Riley began to smear and slather the cream all over Edwin's back and down over his ass, giving his shoulders, lower back and especially his butt a good workover with his strong hands, causing the thin rodent to shudder with delight at being on the receiving end of a massage.

"So, uh," moaned Edwin, "are you gonna go...?"

"I haven't decided yet," Riley admitted. "I'll have to think about it."

When there proved too much cream for one side, he turned Edwin over and did his chest and belly as well, and was pleased to find that the teenager's cock was hard. This too was smeared with the cream. He gasped and moaned as Riley's fingers encircled his lotion-slicked cock and began to slowly masturbate him. His narrow hips bucked as the strong hand gripped his young manhood until finally he gave a squeal and added his own cream to the lotion smeared over his belly. Riley leaned down and kissed him on the lips, and then Edwin used his feet to rub over the bulge of rhino cock in Riley's speedo, making him moan. Grinning, Edwin worked his toes into the waistband and started working the swimsuit off of his lover. With a chuckle, Riley assisted him, and used one of his free hands to pull off the speedo, tossing it to the floor. As he did so his huge cock flipped out and slapped against Edwin's smaller one, the head drooling thick gobs of pre.

Gripping the edges of the table to brace himself, Riley maneuvered his hips until his cockhead found Edwin's tailhole, and then with a grunt, the big rhino shoved it inside. Edwin threw back his head and cried out as he was penetrated by that massive member. It wasn't the first time and wouldn't be the last, but it always hurt a little going in at first. Riley cooed softly into his ear to sooth him, and then started to move his hips back and forth, working his cock in and out of Edwin's rear, going deeper and deeper each time as the squirrel's anus clenched tightly around it. The massage table creaked and rocked back and forth. It would've collapsed under the force of Riley's exertions, but fortunately, it had been specially reinforced for big guys like him. Beneath him, the squirrel gasped and writhed, holding onto his big lover's muscular arms for support as he had his brains fucked out.

It didn't take long. Soon Riley gritted his teeth and growled as the force of his climax ripped through him and into Edwin, his thick rhino-cock pumping jet after jet of hot thick seed into the used ass of the massage boy. Edwin moaned in delight, and was rewarded with a sloppy, affectionate French kiss from the big rhino as Riley extracted himself delicately, his cock leaving the squirrel's ass with a "pop," creamy cum dribbling from that well-fucked orifice.

Now came the best part. As their lips left each other, Riley licked his as he eyed Edwin's lotion-drenched form. Nothing needed to be said between them. The squirrel grinned and nodded. With a grunt, Riley got down off the table, but left his throbbing cock lying along the top, between Edwin's slightly spread legs. Edwin erfed and looked down, watching as the urethra yawned open, dribbling cum. Dutifully and eagerly the squirrel lifted his legs, knees to his chest, and brought his feet to Riley's cockhead and slid his toes inside. This had the effect of making the rhino growl in satisfaction and then suddenly the cumslit slammed down on those toes and with a sucking motion Edwin's feet were pulled in to the ankles. He gasped and giggled, his young squirrel-cock already hard again. He liked it when Riley consumed him this way.

The cock pulsed, making ravenous slurping motions which pulled Edwin in to his knees, and then his thighs. Riley grasped him by his lotion-slicked sides and pulled him, and his cock, up off the table. Making hem both go vertical, he had but to release his hold on Edwin - no difficult task; holding on to him with all that cream was hard enough! - and the squirrel's slippery form combined with the inward sucking motions of the cock made the massage boy seem to simply slide down right out of sight almost. One second he was there, in up to his waist almost, and then suddenly he slid down in to his armpits with a loud "schlurk," fluffy tail forced up against his back. At this, Riley cried out and came again, his cum bibbling up around Edwin and lubing him further. Deep inside of that hungry shaft, Edwin's own cock shuddered and he added his second batch of seed to the mixture, wiggling in delight as the pulsating cock held him.

Eager to get his cock's meal over with now that he'd cum twice, Riley reached down, grabbed the top of Edwin's head, and shoved him the rest of the way inside, forcing his arms to stick up and point out of the drooling cumslir, visible only from the elbows up. They wiggled. Riley grunted and flexed his cock, which drew the twitching arms in with only two bucks of his hips, and then Edwin was gone and the greedy cock "burped" out some globs of cum mixed with massage lotion. As his balls filled out with the squirrel's trapped and wiggling form, Riley let out a deep sigh of satisfaction.

"Ah, you always know how to fill my balls out, Edwin," he said, giving the swollen sac a loving grope as the trapped rodent began gurgling away already.

That made him remember the letter, and after he had sufficiently recovered, and his balls hung fat and heavy with a new load of fresh rhino cum, Riley stepped over to the cart and picked up the envelope. He examined it, particular the Wildfire Labs logo, and thought about their offer.

"Hmm," he thought aloud. "Could be fun. I think I will go after all."

~*~

Riley was unable to make it the following day. First thing he did Saturday was to take care of the very severe morning wood he'd woken up with. He'd jacked off in the shower for what felt like a eternity before painting the walls with what had been Edwin only the previous evening. It all washed down the drain. Then he'd needed to fulfill some fatherly obligations to Ashton and Timothy, in particular taking Timothy to a water park he'd been excitedly wanting to go to for several weeks, and while the Wildfire experiment sounded like something Riley couldn't resist, who was he to deny his youngest son? And as for Ashton, well, he'd wanted a trip to the mall after the water park, and again Riley couldn't say no despite how insolently his older son had requested it.

However Saturday evening he did call Wildfire. To his annoyance, no phone number was provided on the card Edwin had given him, however it was easy enough to find them in the phonebook. After dialing, he sat there on his bed as the phone rang. Finally someone picked up and he heard a male voice say, "Hello, Wildfire Labs."

"Yes, I was wondering if I could speak to someone regarding your competitive group vore experiment?"

There was a pause. For a second Riley wondered if he'd said the wrong thing, been too forward or even called the wrong Wildfire Labs. But then the voice said, "One moment," and his call was transferred.

A second male voice picked up. "Zeryx speaking."

Riley made a face and wondered what kind of name 'Zeryx' was, but didn't say anything. The guy's name was what it was. "Hello," he said pleasantly, "I'm Riley Crenshaw and I'm interested in your, uh, experiment. Particularly in learning any more details about exactly what you meant by competitive vore."

"Who referred you?" Zeryx asked.

"Edwin Grimaldi," Riley replied.

"Ah, Fernald's son," the voice said with a chuckle. "Good kid. Anyway, Mr. Crenshaw, I'm afraid I can't give too many details out over the phone. All I can tell you now is that it's something of a contest consisting of eight people. However, if you sign up and come down to the labs tomorrow, everything will be explained in detail before the contest begins."

"And what if I don't like what I hear?" Riley asked, who was curious if he'd be able to back out past a certain point or not. Not that he wanted to, or was afraid, but the businessman in him preferred having escape clauses and failsafes. He did not want to be trapped in something he couldn't escape from.

"Unfortunately once you commit to the experiment and arrive you won't be permitted to leave until it's over," said Zeryx. "However, you'll be well compensated for your time, whether you win or not."

"I don't need money."

"That isn't what I meant Mr. Crenshaw," Zeryx said, a hint of playful mischief in his voice. Riley wondered what he meant, but then remembered it was a vore study, and grinned a little. "And also, you have our guarantee that the vore itself will be of the non-fatal variety. So what do you say, Mr. Crenshaw? Are you interested?"

Riley considered it. He disliked not being able to back out once he was involved, until it had been seen through. When he wrestled, at least they let you call time out. And besides, the entire thing was quite vague and mysterious and that tended to spell trouble if the wrong people were involved. However Edwin had been the one to turn him on to this thing, and he knew Edwin would never trick or mislead him. But what if the Wildfire people had lied to Edwin? Then again, the squirrel's father worked there, didn't he? If Edwin's father were anything like his gentle and honest son, then Wildfire and this Zeryx person were most likely completely on the level.

Becoming politely impatient, Zeryx added, "I should mention there are only eight potential constestant slots, and five have been filled already."

Riley grumbled, disliking this extra pressure. Apparently Wildfire was hard up for participants. Finally he made up his mind. "Fine," he said. "Sign me up."

"Excellent," said Zeryx, and somehow Riley could almost feel the guy's grin.

They then exchanged goodbyes and hung up. Sleep came quickly that night. A long and hard day of dealing with his kids tended to wear him out the more and more he got into middle age. As he drifted off into dreamland, the rhino's thoughts again turned to the possibility he was somehow being tricked. He hadn't become such a successful businessman by being a sap, after all. Although he basically believed in the overall good nature of people, it was still always wise to at least entertain the notion that something was afoot, and be ready for any tricks. And ultimately Riley decided he would be. If these Wildfire people were on the level, fine. If not? Well, he'd have a few surprises for them. Soon he was sleeping soundly.

~*~

Sunday, Riley's Hummer pulled into the parking lot at Wildfire Labs. It was a two-story brick building whose only outward unusual feature was the modern triangular glassed-in front lobby which projected outwards. Well that and the signs. One was at the front when you pulled into the parking lot. The second, larger one was on the side of the building itself. Both said "Wildfire Labs" and had a stylized flame symbol.

Riley found a parking space and got out, observing that except for the vehicles in the parking spaces reserved for employees, there were only seven other cars in the parking lot: a station wagon, a Mercury, a Ford pickup, a Volvo, a van, a Volkswagen and an old International pickup that had seen better days. He observed each one had some kind of sign hanging from the rearview mirror, of the type used by handicapped drivers. However instead of the unviersal symbol for the handicapped, these signs had the Wildfire logo on them. Overnight parking, he concluded.

Pocketing his keys and going inside, he found the brightly-lit, all-glass lobby empty. Where were the seven others? Even the front desk was devoid of anything. But then a door opened in the back and a tall, good-looking ram in a white lab coat emerged. He was well muscled, handsome and had dark gray fur. Underneath the lab coat he was wearing jeans and a muscle shirt. Riley guessed he was one of the scientists.

"Riley Crenshaw?" the ram asked. Riley instantly recognized him as Zeryx. The ram extended a hand and Riley gripped and shook it, making him wince a little. "Damn strong handshake you have there, Crenshaw. Or can I call you Riley?"

"Whichever you prefer," Riley said, releasing his hand.

"Riley it is, then," said Zeryx. He gave his now freed hand a shake and another mild wince before continuing. "We try not to be too formal here at Wildfire. Now then, first thing's first." From the pocket of his lab coat, he produced one of the signs with the Widlfire logo on it, and held it out to Riley. "We'd like you to stick this on the rearview mirror of your car, which I assume is that great big beast of a Hummvee out there."

"That's the one," Riley said, and took the sign. "Be right back."

He left, put the sign on his Hummer's rearview mirror, and then returned. Zeryx was still waiting for him. Riley stood before him expectantly, arms behind his back. To his amusement, he absolutely towered over the ram, very nearly dwarfing him in height and sheer girth. However, unlike some others, it didn't seem as though Zeryx were the least bit uneasy about the huge rhino. Riley guessed this was because creatures larger than even himself had been to this facility before.

Riley went with Zeryx through the door the ram had come out of which opened onto a long hallway lined with doors. They went through one of them seemingly at random and into a plush executive office which Riley assumed was Zeryx's. Here, there was a brief but tedious registration process. Riley was given multiple forms and documents to peruse and sign. He read them all. Including the fine print. He noticed Zeryx was growing impatient and occasionally glancing at a clock on the wall. Apparently most of the other participants just skimmed through the papers and signed without actually reading everything, but businessman Riley never signed anything he didn't thoroughly read and reread.

Fortunately, though, he was a fast reader, and soon, having decided Wildfire was on the level after all - the documents were primarily just insurance for participants' families in case something went wrong - Riley has finished and returned the signed papers to the ram.

"My, you sure took the time to really read those through," said Zeryx as he put them into a folder and then slid them into his desk drawer. "Now, if you'll follow me."

Zeryx stood and again Riley followed him out of the room and down the hall, this time to an elevator. There was no call button, merely a card swiper. The ram used a Wildfire ID card and slid it through the device, which beeped, and the elevator opened. It was quite large and unlike most elevators didn't groan and creak under Riley's weight as they stepped on, again supporting the rhino's theory that bigger men than he had come here before. Dragons most likely. They took the elevator to the second floor, which opened onto a waiting room. Here, Riley finally beheld his seven other fellow contestants, all males, lounging in chairs. A few were reading mazines. Others just sat there looking bored.

There was a horse, a deer, an elephant, another ram, an otter, a zebra and a bull. Except for the deer, they were all quite big and buff, even the otter. The elephant immediately turned and looked at Riley with a hint of antagonism in his eyes, making the rhino realize he was the second largest specimen here besides himself. He wore a T-shirt and slacks. Riley ventured a guess that he owned the old, tough-looking International truck.

"All right," said Zeryx, clapping his hands together. "Now that our eighth and final contestant has arrived, I'm sure you're all just dying to know the specifics of why you're here."

"About damn time," said the horse. He was big and beefy and had a long blonde mane, giving him the appearance of a surfer. His attire consisted of dress pants, shirt and a loosened necktie, with mirrored sunglasses pushed up onto his forehead. "I just wanna know when we can get to the eating part." He grinned and licked his lips as he eyed the deer.

The deer had short antlers despite his seeming older. Apparently he had them regularly trimmed and sanded. With his dainty glasses and sweater vest he seemed quite meek. He shivered a little at he big horse's gaze. As for the others, the zebra was lean and looked like a runner or other type of athlete. He was one of the ones reading a magazine. The otter was barely sitting still, clearly impatient. That left the bull and the ram. The bull also wore glasses and had a studious look about him despite his great size, which of course paled next to Riley, whilst the ram seemed like the youngest one here; his demeanor and dress, consisting of baggy pants and a loosefitting shirt, suggested a college student.

"Now, now, Jake," chided Zeryx of the horse. "When the time comes, you'll get your chance. Now, let me introduce everyone. Jake Ditmeyer there is the overager horse and the deer he's sizing up for supper is Conrad Funderburke." At this, Conrad the deer became even more nervous. Riley pitied him. "Dorian Castlewood is the zebra, Alejandro Ravello is my fellow ram over there, Ramone Peters is the bull, the otter has a real name but insists everyone call him 'Scratch' and Masten Wade is the elephant there. Everyone? This fine specimen here is Riley Crenshaw."

"Hello," they all said with varying degress of enthusiasm. Everyone except Masten who simply grunted and returned to his magazine.

"You can all put your reading material down now, because now that Riley is here we can finally begin."

There were grumbles and everyone stood, the ones who'd been reading tossing their magazines down on the low table in the middle of the room. Zeryx led the through a door - the only other way in or out besides the elevator - and took them into a large, high-tech laboratory that was completely white and sterile-looking. Acting much like a very enthused tour guide, Zeryx explained that here was one of the many laboratories where Wildfire's efforts to explore vore were done. There were banks of computers, different complicated-looking machines and in the center of the room was a big model of a DNA strand on a square pedestal.

Also in the room was a very large horse in a tightfitting button-down shirt and even tighter slacks, with a cell phone clipped to his belt. He looked like an absolute dish. Next to him was a short, middle-aged squirrel with black hair wearing a lab coat, slacks and dress shirt and striped necktie. Immediately, Riley pegged this fellow as Edwin's father, and grinned. The family resemblance was unmistable.

"This is our resident genius Flare Starfire," Zeryx said of the horse. "Wildfire Labs is his baby."

Riley had to resist a chuckle at yet another highly unusual name. But he held it back. Flare went around shaking everyone's hands.

"Yes," he said, "I started Wildfire a few years ago with my partner Cinder, who won't be joining us as he's sleeping off a couple of taurs. It began as a way of researching vore in a controlled laboratory environment. No longer do we need to awkwardly and potentially fatally experiment with better ways to make vore enjoyable for all participants. Here at Wildfire, everything is totally controlled amd micro-managed to get the best possible results."

There were a few murmurs. Riley nodded. Zeryx next introduced the squirrel scientist, confirming the rhino' suspicions.

"And this is one of our biochemists, Dr. Fernald Grimaldi," he said, patting the squirrel on the shoulder.

"Grimaldi, eh?" said Riley. "I know your son."

"Oh?" said Fernald. "How well?" He grinned a little.

"Intimately," Riley dared to venture. Then with a little smirk, said, "He's a wiggler."

There were some more murmurs and a couple of chuckles, and Fernald nodded and grinned approvingly. Clearly, he had no problems with his son being in a gay vorish relationship. Riley liked him immediately. Liked all the Wildfire staff so far. Especially Flare. Although the big horse seemed a bit reserved, he was very to-the-point and had an honest face.

"Well, here's hoping we have some more wigglers here today besides Fernald's son," said Flare, and coughed, spreading his hands to get everyone's attention. All eyes were on him. "You're all here because of Bracker v. Rand. If you haven't heard of it, it's a rather important court case concerning the outcome of the trial of one William Rand, a pred who ate the entire Bracker family without knowing how to reform them. They all died."

He let that sink in for a moment.

"Rand was found guilty of second degree murder and also had his pants sued off by Mr. and Mrs. Bracker's surviving relatives. The fallout of this case has been absolutely monumental, and right now, the courts are trying to determine whether or not vore should be legal, even with reforming. Now, Wildfire's reputation precedes it, and we've been called on by the court to demonstrate how vore can be an enjoyable and pleasurable experience, provided the prey is reformed, and we need audovisual data as evidence, which is why you're all here."

"I thought this was a contest," complained Jake.

"It still is. And I'll explain the rules in a moment. But first I just wanna make it clear to you all that your experiences will be recorded and used in court by the pro-vore side of the argument. You eight, and the other eight who preceded you yesterday, will help determine the law and make history."

There were a few uneasy looks, particularly from Conrad.

"And don't worry if you don't know how to reform your prey," added Fernald. "We'll take care of that."

"We here at Wildfire have thought of everything," added Zeryx with a confident grin.

"Now, the contest is simple," continued Flare. "You'll be divided into two groups of four and put into two separate rooms. Zeryx, Fernald and myself will monitor you from a control room. Each of the four in either group will try and devour his opponents and only the strongest... or hungriest... will prevail. It's going to essentially be a free-for-all. Wrestling, sex, whatever will help you enjoy yourselves and better dominate and consume your opponent. After that, the two remaining predators will face off against one another in the final round to determine the winner."

He then asked if they had any questions. There were some murmurs but eventually it was cleary no one had any. Least of all Riley. He was sizing the others up and determine which if any of them he could overpower. He figured he could take almost all of them except for Masten, and hoped that the elephant wasn't going to be in his group.

"All right," said Fernald, reading off of a typed sheet of paper in his hand. "Riley, Jake, Conrad and Scratch in the first group. Alejandro, Masten, Dorian and Ramone in the second. Group one in Room A and group two in Room B."

He turned and pointed to two doors, and the two different groups headed towards them. Riley led the way in his group, opening the door and entering. The room had plush carpet and aside from another door that Riley guessed adjoined the two rooms and a camera mounted on the ceiling, it was entirely featurelss. The adjoining door had no knob or handle, Riley noticed. Jake, Conrad and Scratch entered after him and then the door swung shut of its own volition with a slam, and there as an audible click. Next door, they heard a similar slam, trapping the second group. A suddenly nervous Scratch gave the doorknob a little tug to no effect.

"It's locked," he said pointlessly.

A voice came over the intercom. Zeryx's. "Okay now, strip off all your clothes and get to it, gentlemen. And by the way... the eating can't begin until the first guy shoots his load off."

"I'm still uneasy about this whole sex thing," said Conrad as he started to undress. The others did the same. "I mean, I just came for the vore. I'm married for Christ's sake!"

So was I, once, Riley thought, and toyed with asking the deer what he was doing here, but then remembered the invitation hadn't explicitly mentioned homosexual contact. Riley guessed Conrad was here either for the potential prize or possibly just out of curiosity, wondering what it'd be like to eat or be eaten. Although it was plain to Riley that this poor fellow was going to be the first to go in their group. Since there was nowhere to hang their clothes, after everyone stripped naked, they just tossed their clothing and other belongings to the floor. , and for a moment everyone stood awkwardly, unsure of who ought to make the first move. Each one of them was erect, hard as a rock, even the shy and ostensibly heterosexual Conrad.

In a control room elsewhere in the lab, Flare, Zeryx and Fernald sat watching the two groups on two large television screens mounted on the walls. Flare was reclining in a large plush executive office chair. Fernald was sitting at the controls while Zeryx stood behind him wearing a headset mic. On the second screen, showing Room B, Masten the elephant was grabbing Alejandro by the back of the neck and forcing him to his knees, making the ram open wide and take his thick cock past his lips as much as he could, the nearly table leg-sized member stretching the ram's maw wide and bulging his throat. Ramone and Dorian were nearby, and the bull had the zebra up against the wall and was forcibly kissing him as he forced his cock up the tight equine ass, pumping in and out of him. Dorian groaned and writhed, whilst Ramone simply grunted, although occasionally he would glance back at Masten.

Taking his headset off, Zeryx said, "I think those two are going to be the main contenders in the second group." He pointed at Masten and Ramone. "Wade and Peters. Look at the way they're sizing each other up."

"Indeed," said Fernald. "I don't expect much from Castlewood and Ravello. They're already prey. See how they submit to their predators sexually."

Flare however turned his gaze to the first screen showing Room A, wondering when someone in the so far less proactive first group was going to make a move. He focused on Riley. While he was impressed by the rhino's size, he seemed very reserved, not as outwardly aggressive as Masten and Ramone or any of the others. Was he just a gentle giant, or was his calm demeanor hiding something darker? The big horse, Jake, seemed like he might prevail, as well, or at least pose a challenge to the rhino. Whereas Flare's two colleagues had already called the two main contenders in the second group, Flare was unprepared just yet to name Riley the surefire winner of the first.

"Hey," said Scratch suddenly, grasping at the nape of Conrad's neck and dragging the deer over. "Suck my cock."

"Eeew," said Conrad. "I'd rather not."

"I said suck it, damn it, none of us can eat or be eaten until one of us blows our load, and my stomach is empty."

At the mention of empty stomachs, Riley felt his own growl. He'd skipped breakfast because of this. Deciding it was time to quit farting around, the rhino crossed the smallish room in two steps, politely motioning Jake aside and then roughly grabbing Scratch, yanking him around and making him release Conrad. He didn't like bullies. The muscular otter seemed surprised and blinked stupidly.

"I have a better idea," said Riley, "why don't you suck my dick?"

"Wha--?" cried Scratch.

He forced the otter to his knees much as Masten had with Alejandro. Then seizing him roughly but harmlessly by his spiky hair, he made the otter open his mouth and forced the bulbous, drooling head of his cock into Scratch's mouth. The otter's efforts to protest were muffled completely and Riley groaned aloud as he pushed more and more of the thick cock inside.

He felt someone come up behind him, and glance back. It was Jake. Grinning, the horse began to push his flared cockhead underneath Riley's tail and between his large gray asscheeks. The rhino didn't protest. He wasn't all dom, after all, and rather liked horses. He nodded his approval and closed his eyes with delight as the thick horse-cock plunged into his depths. Jake wrapped his arms around Riley's middle and began thrusting his hips, slowly fucking the bigger rhino as Scratch mewled and sucked Riley off. Conrad stood apart from them, watching with wide eyes, unwilling to join in, but still unable to look away. He started touching himself, and as the pace of the threesome's little love-train picked up, the deer was soon full-on masturbating.

"Seems someone's bi-curious," Zeryx said in the control room, indicating the voyeuristic Conrad.

"Yes, some married men tend to be," Ferald said, and he ought to know, having an ex-wife and a son of his own. "I'll bet you anything his wife knows nothing about this and he won't ever tell her."

Back in Room A, Riley gave a sudden grunt and clenched his tailhole around Jake's invading member, and Scratch's eyes widened as the rhino's climax hit, pumping what seemed liked gallons of semen - at least a little of which was probably still what was left of Edwin - into the startled otter's mouth. Scratch struggled to swallow, but a lot of it just squirted out from the corners of his mouth and dribbled down his cheeks and jawline. Observing this from over Riley's shoulder, Jake gave a laugh. Scratch glared up at him with annoyance and continued drinking down whatever he could. Behind Riley, the horse kept right on pumping his thick cock in and out of the rhino before finally hitting his own climax, arching his back and nickering with delight, giving unto Riley the wonderful feeling of hot jets of thick cum flooding into his bowels.

Riley took a moment to relax, closing his eyes. "Ahhh," he sighed. "Well, that may not make me the winner just yet, boys, but it certainly is a good start."

"Well, now the first group can begin the true competition," observed Fernald dryly. He sat back in his chair. The front of his dress slacks was tented massively and he squirmed a little.

Leaning over him, Zeryx chuckled as he looked at the squirrel's tented trousers. "Turned on by our work as usual, eh, Doctor?" the ram teased. His big hands reached down and started undoing the squirrel's pants.

"What about the experiment?" protested Fernald meekly as Zeryx freed his throbbing erection from within the confines of his pants and underwear.

"The cameras are recording everything," said Zeryx, and then dipped his horned head down into Fernald's lap, slurping the squirrel scientist's maleness into his drooling maw. "Mmm...!"

Still sitting nearby, Flare glanced over at his two subordinates and shook his head. This turn of events was hardly surprising. The vore experiments always had this kind of effect on the scientists observing them, and this wouldn't be the first or last time Zeryx took the lead and goaded a mostly willing colleague into just forgetting about their work and getting down and dirty right there in the control room. Having witnessed such antics before, the big gorse looked away from them, and focused his attention on the second viewscreen.

In Room B, it was actually Dorian who came first in that group, the splurting his thick seed as his ass was rammed thoroughly by Ramone. Realizing this meant the vore portion of the contest could begin, the bull opened wide and wasted no time in grabbing hold of the zebra's head and proceeding to stuff it into his maw. Observing from nearby, Masten glowered. He didn't like the bull starting before he did, and looked down. Alejandro was still sucking on the thick elephantine cock, unaware that Dorian had ejaculated and was now beginning to get eaten by Ramone. Putting his huge hand on the back of the ram's head, Masten urged him to suck harder and put more effort into his work. He didn't need to cum. He could just pull the ram off of his dick and begin devouring him, but he didn't want to start on Alejandro just yet. Instead, he would save him for last. He kept his gaze steeled on Ramone as the bull started stuffing live, squirming zebra into his mouth. Soon, Masten though. Soon.

In the control room, Flare found the performance of the second group thus far to be quite impressive, but lacking something. As he turned and looked at the first viewscreen, though, ignoring the pleasured moans of Fernald as he got his dick sucked by Zeryx, and trying to ignore his own erection growing inside of his pants for the time being, he noticed the first group had not yet begin voring each other, and focused his attention especially on Riley. It occurred to Flare that the difference between the two groups was that the second one was more concerned with rushing into things, whereas the first one seemed more about taking their time. The horse was of the opinion this was a fine approach. It would make the eventual vore that much sweeter when it finally happened. And judging by the way Riley was beginning to eye his fellow volunteers, it was finally about to.

In Room A, Conrad, still furiously beating his own deer-meat, was the third to climax, gasping as his medium-sized cock shot a single thin squirt of seed through the air to splatter onto the carpet. He collapsed panting against the wall. Thus far, Scratch was the only one of the four in Room A who hadn't cum yet. Riley would see about changing that momentarily, however. For his first victim, though, he had entirely other ideas, turning and looking at the deer and barely seemed to notice as Jake extracted himself from his ass. The room by now had a faint aroma of sweat and maleness to it. Riley breathed it deep through his flaring nostrils. He loved that smell. It was one reason why he loved the gym so much. It reminded him of his wrestling days.

He released Scratch, who stumbled back into a sitting position, coughing and spluttering, leaving the rhino-cock bobbing gently in the warm air, glistening with otter saliva and still drooling pre. The cumslit opened and closed hungrily, making the otter yelp a little and start scooting off.

"Aw, don't worry, hon," Riley cooed, "you're not the first. Instead, I think the first one of us to bid Wildfire Labs adieu ought to be the one who so far hasn't done a hell of a whole lot to participate."

All eyes were on Conrad, who was still tuckered out from his orgasm. Riley guessed the poor deer didn't get to cum all that often, and so that one piddily squirt he called a climax left him thoroughly panting. He looked up, blinking, as Riley came over. With both hands, the rhino grasped his sides and roughly but harmlessly lifted him off his feet as if he were nothing. Better to go ahead and get the least qualified participant out of the way right at the start, he reasoned.

"Hey, wait...!" whined Conrad.

"Time to join in on the fun, Conrad, my boy," Riley said, and leaned his head back and opened wide.

"Wait, aaahh...!" cried the deer.

He was upended and shoved headfirst into that cavernous, yawning mouth. His glasses were knocked off his face by the fat, drooling tongue which slobbered thick drool over his startled face. His vision was a blur of tongue and teeth and then finally he was plunged into darkness as his short-antlered head passed into the throat. Outside, Scratch, still sitting down, and Jake, who stood off to one side, watched as Riley swallowed, sucking the weakly struggling deer in to his middle. Jake briefly entertained the idea of starting on Scratch while Riley was busy but was too mesmerized watching the rhino eat.

A second gulp and he was in to his waist. The thick tongue curled up between Conrad's legs and toyed with his spent cock, bringing it to life again as the slick tip teased his balls. The deer shuddered and came again, but not much. However Riley's only reward was his prey's frenzied squirms of pleasure. Having obtained this, he released the deer, hands falling to his sides, and threw his head back, mouth yawning wide, and simply allowed gravity and his throat's powerful muscles to do the rest. Before the amazed eyes of Scratch and Jake, the limp legs of the deer slid down and out of side and Riley's already ample belly stretched out a bit more. He gave a soft burp.

"Mmm, ah," he said, turning to the otter and the horse. "I love the thin ones. It's always the thin ones that slide down the smoothest." So saying, he gave his bulging belly a slow, sensual rub. The other two observed his cock was still hard.

Leaning forward in his seat, Flare propped his chin up on his folded hands and smiled. Riley was already on a roll. In Room B, Ramone was still struggling to choke Dorian down and Masten still hadn't made a move one way or the other with Alejandro, who was still slurping and worshiping the elephant's huge dick, but in Room A, Riley had already swallowed his first victim. As he'd predicted, this in that room were beginning to heat up and get a hell of a lot more interesting now.

Nearby, Fernald gasped as he came and Zeryx stood back up, squirrel-cum dripping from his muzzle, and then Fernald was out of his chair suddenly and on his knees, unzipping and pulling down the ram's jeans. Thick ram-cock spilled forth and was immediately slurped into Fernald's eager mouth.

Back in Room A, Riley turned to his two remaining companions, who had now become his competitors. The contest was on. Scratch hopped to his feet and he and Jake exchanged uncertain looks. Riley simply stood there with his arms crossed as his huge belly gurgled noisily around its recent addition, whose struggles had already ceased. It wasn't yet satisfied with the light snack. It wanted the full meal. And the rhino was staring right at it. He slowly smirked and made a show of licking his chops. Boasting and showing off had always been a large part of wrestling, as it helped to not only get the audience pumped up, but to showcase your superiority to your opponents.

He sized them up. Jake was the only one he was certain was going to present a real challenge. Scratch didn't seem like he'd be much of a problem. In a way he pitied them and was jealous of the second group which had more muscleboys in it, particularly that big hunk of elephant named Masten. Riley licked his chops again, eager to get these two over with so he could move on to the real meal, the real challenge, Masten. He figured even if Masten defeated him, it would be a worthy defeat... and if he won? Oh, how the thought of that huge elephant packed tightly away into his stomach made his still hard cock twitch and his belly gurgle loudly.

Suddenly Jake and Scratch made their move, interrupting Riley's thoughts, and both of them rushed at him at once. It seemed they'd decided to join forces to defeat him, to give themselves more of a chance at winning. But Riley knew that even if one of them were to beat him and devour him somehow, neither of them stood a chance against Masten. Whoever won would certainly be in for a surprise.

As they ran at him, Riley crouched low. The smaller, faster otter was first to get to him, and Scratch attempted to jump onto the rhino and knock him down. Instead, Riley only staggered back a bit from the impact and remained standing. Scratch, muscular through he hs was, was absolutely knocked silly and fell flat on his ass. Then came Jake. He attempted to seize Riley's shoulders but the rhino grabbed his hands and locked their fingers together, so that each was squeezing the other's hands. They struggled. While smaller than Riley, the horse was bigger than the otter and so his larger bulk presented more of a challenge, and the two spent the better part of two minutes straining and grunting as each attempted to overpower the other.

As the struggle went on however, Jake began to get the sinking feeling that the huge rhino was only toying with him and trying to wear him down to make him an easier meal. And he was right. With sudden, effortless ease, Riley pushed on him and released his hands. Jake staggered back, but Riley prevented him from landing on top of the still stunned Scratch by grabbing his arm. With a grunt, he yanked the surprised horse back and lifted him up, wrapping his huge, muscular arms around Jake's middle and pinning the horse's arms to his sides, in a massive and powerful bear hug.

"Gotcha," he whispered.

He flexed, using his rock hard muscles to crush the wiggling horse against his massive chest and fat belly. Jake cried out in a mixture of pain and, to Riley's surprise and delight, pleasure. He licked Jake's chest to taste and calm him, and felt the horse's erection against his belly. He bucked the big equine up and down using his arms so that Jake was essentially forced to involuntarily dry-hump the rhino's broad tummy, until with a cry of pleasure, he came, shooting his cum in thick gushes over that broad expanse of fat and splattering some onto the huge chest as well. When Riley stopped, the spent horse was limp and unmoving in his arms, thoroughly worn out, outclassed and dominated by the rhino with the simplest method of overpowering someone. As big as he was and as muscular as he appeared to be, Jake struck Riley as being pretty lightweight. Yeah, he was big and tough but didn't work out and so despite appearances wasn't in shape.

By contrast, Riley appeared slow and fat... and while he was both of these things, he had carefully built up muscle to back it all up, and stayed physically active. He worked out enough to stay healthy and retain his physical prowess, but was lazy enough to keep his big fat belly which he'd come to enjoy so much, despite having originally gone to the Monochrome Gym to work it off. He had worked off a lot of his body fat but liked his big tummy. He wasn't sure why. He just did. With a contented sigh he released Jake, allowing the horse's limp form to slowly slither down the big, cum-coated belly to fall to his hands and knees on the floor at Riley's feet. He knelt there panting for a moment before Riley decided it was time to tuck him in.

Before he could move to consume him, though, Scratch rose to his feet, having recovered from his collision with Riley in the meantime. Deciding Jake wasn't going anywhere for the moment, Riley stepped around him and came running at Scratch. He tackled the otter, who, surprisingly, pushed back, digging his heels into the carpet. Riley was impressed, but he should've expected as much from a guy with a low center of gravity. Deciding that trying to push the otter back as he had the horse was useless, Riley let go and lurched back, and when Scratch predictably came at him again, he used the otter's momentum against him, and lifted him like nothing. Turning him around, he chuckled as he tucked the struggling otter under his left arm and sighed. He held him there whilst Scratch struggled and kicked uselessly, unable to break free, until finally after a few moments he'd expended his energy and hung limply panting as Jake had done.

Turning he found Jake still down on the floor panting and showing no signs of recovering anytime soon. Confident in his victory, Riley breathed deep the smell that permeated the room. The rich stink of sweat and sex, undeniably male. He loved it. Now his mind turned to how he ought to consume his two defeated opponents. His once more hard cock made him consider stuffing one of them down inside of there, and he considered Scratch, who he was already holding, but decided that he wanted a larger meal for his cock than the otter. He then shifted his grip so he was holding Scratch lower and let him slip down until he was kneeling behind him, head leaning against one of the large ass cheeks.

Scratch was beginning to recover when he realized exactly where he was, and he jerked back, but Riley's big hand held him fast, and guided it up underneath the rhino's swishing tail until the otter's lips came in contact with Riley's puckered anus, which, to Scratch's shock, opened hungrily to admit his muzzle. Riley groaned in absolute delight as he arched his back and pushed on the back of the otter's head, shoving his entire head inside with a soft fleshy sound, the tight tailhole sealing around Scratch's thick neck. The otter's hands, free, flew up and grasped at the big butt, fingers scrabbling against the rough gray flesh before pressing the palms against them, pushing, trying to yank his head free, but the tailhole only gripped tighter.

Riley licked his lips, frowning a little. Scratch was short but his beefy build gave the otter very broad shoulders. He worked himself back and forth while simultaneously lowering himself down over the kneeling form of the otter, and as he struggled, Scratch hunched his shoulders up, and with a sigh of delight and relief from Riley, the broad shoulders slid up inside easily. Now it was smooth sailing, and all he had to do was sit back and let his weight bring him completely down over Scratch's trapped form. Grasping his thick cock, he did just that, and Scratch effectively disappeared up inside of Riley as the big rhino's ass lowered down and landed against the floor with a muffled thud. Riley relaxed a little now and stroked himself to the otter's struggles, his cock leaking steady precum now.

In the control room, Flare had unzipped his pants and was casually stroking his massive equine member as he observed Riley's performance so far. Very impressive. Not all that surprising, given the rhino's history as a wrestler and much larger size as compared to his three so-called opponents. But still entertaining to watch Riley take them one by one. Flare rather liked that Riley was saving the largest of the three, his own fellow horse, for last. Nearby, Zeryx was lifting an unresisting Fernald out of his chair and opening his maw wide. The squirrel didn't struggle as the big ram slid his head inside of his mouth and began to devour him.

Flare chuckled. As usual, their horniness from observing their experiments was getting to them and causing them to want to engage in their own vorish play. Between this and the two groups of contestants, Flare realized, it was turning into a vore extravaganze here at the lab. Speaking of which, taking his eyes off of the ram swallowing the willing squirrel, and still idly stroking his horse-cock, Flare glance at the screen showing Room B to see how the second group was doing.

Ramone continued gulping down the struggling, squirming form of Dorian, Masten watching with great interest as the big bull swallowed the zebra to his middle, tossing his great horned head back and yawning his jaws wide to take in his hips. Meanwhile, Alejandro was still worshiping and kissing the elephant's big cock, having his head stroked by Masten's big hand. When Ramone had swallowed Dorian to his thighs and was beginning to turn to face the other two, the zebra's legs sticking out of his mouth, he was caught completely off guard as the elephant's trunk wrapped around him like a thick octopus tentacle, pinning his arms to his sides. He tried to scream but Dorian was filling his throat and prevented him. As he was lifted off his feet, the bull coughed, trying to dislodge the zebra instictively, either by finishing swallowing him or by regurgitating him.

Masten brought him closer and squeezed hard with the trunk. With a lurch the zebra slid out of the bull's mouth a little, and, grinning, opened his great tusked maw and let Dorian's feet enter it. The squirming form of the zebra was expelled from the mouth of the thwarted bull, right into the eager maw of the elephant! Dorian's head exited Ramone's mouth and he blinked at the sudden brightness of the lights, only to then find himself slipping backwards down Masten's throat. He gave a little cry as the elephant's jaws shut and he gave a great swallow, and the bulge of the twice-swallowed zebra slid down to disappear into the elephant's pudgy tummy. Then, with a burp, Masten reopened his mouth and used his trunk to tilt Ramone back so his feet entered the mouth, as Dorian's had, having realized the way the bull's horns pointed there was not way he could eat him headfirst.

Ramone struggled and fought as his feet and legs entered the dark cavern of Masten's gullet, the trunk guiding him right into his destination. The big broad tongue slid out to help him in, slurping over his thin-furred muscular body. Below, Alejandro was still suckling on the cock, and with a grunt, Masten experienced his second orgasm of the day, and Alejandro eagerly drank down the thick cum. As the flow tapered off, the ram stood, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, and watched the horned head of the bull vanish into the elphant's mouth, shoved in by the tip of the trunk, which also went past the thick lips. With an "glorp," Masten pulled the trunk out and reached for Alejandro with it, even as the broad bulge of Ramone was going down his throat.

He took the ram by the arm. "Well, son, since you did such a great job of suckin'  my cock, why don't we let it return the favor?" He grinned broadly.

Alejandro chuckled nervously and was then guided once more down towards the the mammoth elephant-cock, the drooling slit yawning open to accept the ram's curly-horned head. He gave a muffled cry of surprise as he was crammed facefirst into it. Watching this, Flare was very pleased. He'd been eagerly awaiting the cock vore portion of things. He gripped his cock harder and began jerking it in earnest. Zeryx, who until then had been preoccupied with swallowing Fernald, noticed as well and turned, kicking squirrel feet and bushy squirrel tail hanging out of his open mouth.

"A lovely development," said Flare. "I was hoping they'd get around to cock vore sooner or later."

Zeryx finished swallowing Fernald, the last of the bushy tail vanishing past his lips. He gulped hard and burped. His stomach swelled out, but not all that much, considering the squirrel wasn't that big. He then sighed and say down in Fernald's chair.

"Crenshaw's anal vore was quite the fun turn of events as well," he said after catching his breath. He looked at the screen showing Room A. "And unless Ditmeyer pulls off a miracle in there it really does look like Crenshaw is going to be Wade's final opponent."

"Yes, indeed," said Flare, easing off on his cock, holding off until the main event as he kept his eyes on the second screen for now, wanting to see Masten's final performance before he went to face Riley.

The huge elephant grunted and moaned as he stuffed the struggling, muscular form of Alejandro into his cock, which was stretched massively around the ram's form. It took large gulps, sucking Alejandro down slowly but surely towards the pachyderm's waiting balls. When the ram was in up to his waist, Masten bent down and took him by his ankles and then lifted him up so that he was upside down. Unwilling to simply release him and let gravity and his cock's swallows do the remainder of the work, Masten grinned confidently and, keeping his hold on Alejandro's ankles, shoved him down hard, giving a loud cry of predatory pleasure as the ram disappeared into the cock to his calves in one swift plunge. Now Masten let go of the ankles, as they and the feet were essentially all that was visible of Alejandro outside of the monstrously engorged dick.

He stood up and leaned against the wall and relaxed, rubbing over his swollen belly, which had already begun to gurgle and digest Dorian and Ramone as their pitiful wiggles died down. His huge cock bucked up and down in the air, flinging precum this way and that, as Alejandro's weakly kicking feet disappeared down into the urethra, which closed after the ram's toes with a soft "glurp" and a sigh from Masten. In the control room, Flare watched as the bulge shaped like Alejandro traveled down the cock and then filled out the already large balls massively so that they sagged down onto the carpet. Masten's steadily leaking cock shuddered and returned to its original size.

Turning and looking at the camera, Masten burped and said, "Okay, I'm done. When do I go to the other room?"

Zeryx turned away from the first screen, put his headset back on and and spoke into the mic. "Your final opponent isn't done yet, Mr. Wade. We'll let you know when he's ready. Until then, you just relax and digest your three-course meal, big guy." He chuckled.

Back in Room A, Riley stood up and stretched a bit. Scratch's lower extremities had almost completely disappeared up the big rhino's ass. Only his feet and tail tip remained, clenched in between the broad asscheeks. With a grunt and a flex of his anal muscles as he arched his back, Riley completely sucked the otter's feet and tail inside with a soft schlucking sound. Finishing his stretch and feeling good and rested, he then returned his attention to his final meal, Jake. He couldn't rightly call the horse an opponent anymore. It seemed like Jake had finally given in, because he simply sat there looking defeated.

Riley slipped his hand down over his considerable belly, inside of which Conrad had finally stopped squirming and Riley could hear the loud gurgles signalling digestion, and groped for his erection. He found it and gripped it tightly. Inside of him he could feel Scratch making his journey through his bowels towards his final destination in the stomach. There, he'd meet up with Conrad, or whatever remained of him, and the two would turn into a thick, nutrient rich soup together to nourish the big rhino's body. As for Jake, Riley had other ideas for him. He jerked his cock slowly as he approached the sitting horse. Hearing him, Jake turned and his eyes boggled at the huge tower of fat and muscle looming over him.

"Time to go, horsie," Riley said softly.

Jake leaped to his feet as if to attack again, but Riley was deceptively fast, having anticipated this. A harmless blow to the horse's midsection drove the wind out of him, and he doubled over, wheezing and falling onto his knees. Riley regretted having to resort to such violence, but he was uninterested in struggling with the horse again. As Jake bent over, Riley took him by the back of his head and forced him to stoop down towards his loins. At the same time, he angled his throbbing maleness up, the cumslit gaping wide, thin strings of precum connecting the two sides like spittle. Jake gave a single muffled cry of protest and then his long equine snout was inserted with a "flumph." He looked quite silly kneeling there with half of his face inside of a cock.

He tried to pull himself free but his muzzle was caught in the inextricable pull of the cock's interior. Releasing his head, Riley balled up his fists, muscles bulging a bit, and grinned. Then he closed his eyes and flexed his dick. With a "schlurp" and a muffled scream, Jake's entire head was drawn in, and the ravenous cock didn't stop there, the already impossibly stretched cumslit working over the horse's broad shoulders with ease, as if they were nothing. Now it was easy going. Still using naught but his own hungry cock, Riley kept grunting and flexing, the cock slipping its way down the horse's muscular kneeling form, lubed by pre which slid in rivulets down the naked equine's body as he slowly disappeared up into the seemingly all-consuming cock, bulging it hugely with his form. To those in the control room, it appeared as if the horse's upper body had been encased in a latex bodysuit it was so tightly fitted to him, and so easy to see every detail of that trapped form.

What Riley did next was incredible. Whereas Masten had needed to grasp his prey's legs to lift him up for the next stage of his meal, Riley simply clenched his fists tighter, gritted his teeth, and gave a sudden forward thrust of his hips, and the cock lifted itself, partially consumed horse and all, up into the air. Jake's legs flailed around uselessly in the typical manner, and the rhino-cock began making lewd, slurping, gulping motions, swallowing that kicking, powerful body down in further.

The outline of Jake's head disappeared past the base of the shaft and entered the balls, bulging them out a bit with his snout. The bulge of the snout could be observed to open and close its mouth in a futile, soundless scream as it was pressed up against the interior of the sac. The bulge of the shoulders soon entered also, and Riley's balls began getting larger as more and more horse was emptied into them. The ravenous dick gulped more strongly, almost to Jake's waist. Riley, without opening his eyes, reached down and took hold of Jake's massively swollen horse-cock and pressed it against his taut tummy so it wouldn't be bent painfully backwards upon being consumed. A few seconds later, the stretched maw of the dick slid seamlessly over them, and Riley chuckled and gave Jake's pert ass a smack before it vanished into the slit.

Now, the urethra clamped Jake's legs shut, tail between them, and those strong limps pointed up, hooflike toes pointed right at the ceiling as though the horse were diving, and in a few smooth, liquid motions, they slid down and out of sight entirely, the cumslit slipping shut behind the tips of his toes like a sated beast's mouth, pre dribbling out like saliva. The tapering bulge of those swallowed legs slid gradually down until they disappeared past the base of the cock, and all of the consumed horse was deposited into Riley's balls. Only then did Riley relax, unclench his fists and open his eyes, and sigh in satisfaction, chuckling and giving his cock a stroke as if it were a beloved pet that had just fed.

Inside the balls, Jake struggled to no avail, before finally, exhausted thoroughly, he gave in and settled down. A thick "squelch" sounded the beginning of the stallion being churned into rhino cum for his predator. He liquefied and would be released the next time Riley had an orgasm. Which, considering he'd now won his first round, might be any moment now. He turned and leaned patiently with one hand against the wall.

"Okay," came Zeryx's voice over the loudspeaker. "Time for the final round!"

Riley turned and faced the door which adjoined the two rooms. There was an electronic "beep" and it slid open to reveal the hulking form of Masten beyond. The huge elephant stepped through with some difficulty due to his size, and approached the rhino, trunk swaying a little, hands balled into fists. His eyes were ice cold and intimidating, but Riley had taken on tougher opponents than this by pachyderm before. With a small smile, he gave a curt little bow, and then rushed at his approaching opponent. Masten did the same. Riley threw his shoulder into the elephant's ponderous gut, making Masten grunt, but then the thick trunk reached down and wrapped around Riley's head suddenly with a powerful gentleness, and started guiding his head towards the tusked maw as Masten grabbed his arms and held them, actually lifting the rhino off the floor!

In the control room, Zeryx stroked over his packed, gurgling belly as he watched. Flare leaned forwards in sudden interest as it looked like Riley had been totally outclassed. Regardless of who won, though, he was immensely turned on, more than ever before, his fingers going from teasing his cock to outright gripping and stroking it. Back in the room, Riley gritted his teeth as his head entered the mouth and the gray lips sealed around his throat. His horns scraping along the roof of the elephant's mouth didn't seem to bother Masten much, and the thick tongue slid underneath his chin and began to guide him towards the heckong, dark throat beyond.

Riley was unwilling to go peacefully. He'd never been anyone's prey and wasn't going to start now. He struggled harder. Unable to break Masten's grip, Riley decided to use his mass against the elephant, and suddenly lunged himself forwards into the throat! Masten's eyes went wide and he staggered back at the sudden forward momentum, lost his balance, and fell flat on his back. In the process, his grip on Riley's arms loosened, and the rhino wrenched them free, planting them firmly on the floor and tugging his head free of the mouth. His face and head dripping with the elephant's thick saliva, Riley strained and grunted as the trunk attempted to pull him back. Suddenly he felt Masten's cock poking at his large rump, and got an idea.

Tilting backwards, he pressed his tailhole against the cockhead, and groaned out loud as it spread him easily and started to slide in. Masten gasped as he did so, and his eyes became slightly glazed. The trunk loosened as Masten seemed to consent to letting his meal get fucked and filled with cream before being eaten, but Riley had other ideas. Like him, Masten was visibly worn out. He intended to wear him out even further. He grabbed at his own cock and jerked it slowly as he moved himself up and down on the mastadonian maleness filling his huge ass, moving his huge bulk up and down surprisingly easily using just his thickly muscled legs. Masten responded by thrusting his own gargantuan hips, pushing his dick upwards and into Riley. Perfect, thought Riley as he wiped some of Masten's saliva off of his face with his free hand.

In the control room, overcome by his arousal at watching the display, Flare got out of his chair and crossed over to where Zeryx sat. The ram was pulled out of his seat and made to bend over the control panel as the big horse shoved his thick equine meat into his tight rear end and began banging him in earnest. Zeryx moaned out in delight at this new development.

Meanwhile, it wasn't long before Masten experienced orgasm, arching his back and bellowing out in pleasure as he came, shooting his thick load up inside of Riley, who jerked his cock one final time and shot his own load, formerly Jake the horse, now in liquid form, in a large geyser which splattered over Masten's chest and also on his face. The rhino sighed as he halted his thrusting and simply sat astride the elephant's lap as Masten lay there panting and covered in sweat and cum. Masten's trunk slid off of Riley entirely and flumped limply to the side, and that was when Riley knew he had him. Getting off of Masten, Riley reached down and offered him his hand. Masten hesitated and then took it. Riley made as if to help him stand, but his other hand grabbed at the back of Masten's neck and he lowered his head, opening his mouth wide... and wider... and wider still!

The top of Masten's head slid into the rhino's hungry, drool-lined mouth, Masten grunting in annoyance and disapproval. However, he was so worn out from the thorough fucking Riley gave him that he barely even resisted as that impossibly massive maw descended over him, tight and stretchy. In seconds, the rhino had engulfed the elephant's entire head, trunk and all, heedless of the big, blunt tusks, and his lips sealed tightly around the thick neck. Even as Masten's big hands flew up and tried to pry the thick lips off his neck and free himself, Riley was settling back into a squatting position and getting comfortable for what was going to be quite a tough, but not impossible meal. He started to move his mouth down, pushing down using his muscular legs and great weight, and with painstaking slowness, like a great anaconda swallowing its huge prey, the rhino's tightly-stretched, mouth worked down the massive body of the elephant, who was still too tired to really struggle.

It took almost a full two minutes for Riley to consume his massive meal. When he was at Masten's waist, he used every single ounce of strength he had remaining to stand and rear his horned head back, tossing the elephant into the air, Masten's legs kicking weakly. Now Masten simply slowly slid down inside of him due to his great weight and the power of gravity. The great belly, filled with the still squirming forms of Dorian and Ramone, gave Riley the most difficulty, but he managed, which impressed Flare as he watched from inside the control room, still slipping it to the moaning Zeryx. The rhino's body ballooned outward massively, almost comically, with the huge size of the elephant, making Riley that much larger, and he sealed his lips behind the huge feet and his stretched mouth returned to normal, and he took that final gulp to send Masten completely down inside of himself, and then let out a huge, rolling, wet belch.

"Well that was pretty much expected," said Zeryx huskily as precum leaking from his ram-cock as Flare pounded him. He groaned and shot his load all over the control panel. "Aw, shit, not again!" he cried in mild annoyance. "That's the fifth fucking time this week!"

Flare chuckled and closed his eyes, gritting his teeth as he came, flooding Zeryx's tight ass with his thick horse-cum. He laid panting against the ram for a few moments. After recovering, he pulled himself free and stood back a bit, catching his breath. As Zeryx settled back into the chair once again, he adjusted his headset. On the viewscreens, Room B was totally empty except for discarded clothes. Room A also had discarded clothing but also one very, very full rhino.

"Well done, Mr. Crenshaw!" Zeryx said breathlessly, grinning. "It appears as though you've won our little contest!"

"Now what?" Riley inquired casually, then burped.

"Just wait there a moment and we'll get to you in a minute or two... we've, uh, kind of made a big mess of the monitoring station here."

Zeryx grumbled and started hunting for something to wipe all the cum off of the expensive scientific equipment with. Flare groaned a little and eased his still sensitive member back into his pants and zipped up. Adjusting himself a little, he then went over to the recording equipment to make sure everything that transpired in the two rooms had been successfully captured. After satisfying himself that it had, he took out the two DVDs onto which footage had been burned and turned to Zeryx.

"Okay, make sure these get to our guy at the lawyer's office so they can be entered into evidence. I'm sure this, along with all the other sessions we've got recorded, will be more than enough to persuade the judge that vore is harmless fun."

"Right-O," said Zeryx, and took the DVDs, putting them into two unmarked keepcases.

"I'll go and see to our winner," said Flare with a grin.

He left the control room. In Room A, Riley was sitting down, grinning happily as he massaged his massively bulging gut, which gurgled loudly. Masten was going to take quite some time to digest. The door opened, and Flare entered, holding something in his hand, a piece of paper which Riley took to be a check.

"Have fun?" the horse asked. "You look pretty stuffed."

"I am!" chuckled Riley. "You guys mind if I relax here for a bit before I go home?" he asked. "That big fella is gonna take a mighty long time to break down, and I kind of can't fit inside my car with this big of a gut."

Flare nodded. "Sure you can. We have residence areas for the employees which we sometimes let guests use. You can sleep off your meal there. No sense in you lying on the floor." He smiled.

"Right, and, uh, if I'm staying overnight, can I use your phone, as well? I'd like to call my maid and tell her I won't be home until tomorrow morning."

 

"Of course. Oh, and here is your reward for winning the contest." Flare offered the piece of paper to Riley. So, it was a check after all.

"Ah, no thanks," said Riley. "I'm pretty well off already. Don't need any extra money." He smirked. "But I will take a night out with you, if that's okay."

At first he expected Flare to be surprised but then the horse nodded and grinned, pocketing the check. "How does this Friday sound?" he asked softly.

"Perfect."

Rising with some difficulty, Riley thanked Flare and was given directions to where he could go and rest comfortably. As he left, he pondered what he and Flare would do on Friday. Dinner most likely. Yes, though, Riley, dinner sounded sublime. With Flare as the main course. He licked his lips.

[lucydixon]

Firestarter, Chapter 4

10k Znation x Original Female Character

Summary: Operation Bitemark heads for Virginia and Torch gets cagey.

CW: Swearing, Cannon typical violence, Zombie apocalypse typical weapons, Violence, Death

Virginia

The sun went down and the truck kept on rolling through the night, stopping only once to refuel and have Garnet and Warren switch turns in the driver’s seat so the other could sleep.

Torch had already gotten as much sleep as her body would allow and was having trouble keeping herself occupied. Back at the refinery, she had the freedom to wander around the building or anywhere else whenever she wanted. Now, she couldn’t even stretch her legs and there was nowhere to go. She hadn’t had a moment to herself since she’d run into this group of strangers and it was not an easy adjustment.

When she’d been alone, she’d spend hours blasting music in one of the rooms on the top floor whenever she was bored. There was a good few milk crates full of CDs and tapes that she’d collected over the years. The girl would thrash around the room, screaming along at the top of her lungs along to the music.

That wasn’t really an option in the back of the pickup truck, not that she had her boombox or any of her albums with her in the first place. She hadn’t had time to go back in and grab any of her things from the refinery before leaving.

10k was the only person awake other than herself and the driver.

They stared at each other for a good ten minutes before either of them spoke.

“Y’ain’t tired?” she asked softly

“Not really.” He shrugged, maintaining her stare and grateful for the lack of lighting as his cheeks warmed. “Are you?”

“Nah,” Torch shook her head “had my fill. You ain’t goin’ crazy just sittin’ there?”

“Why would I?” 10k frowned “are you?”

“I ain’t used to bein’ stuck.” She sighed “Can’t go nowhere and I don’t know what to do with myself. S’too quiet.”

“I get that.” He shrugged. “I usually like to wander around if I can, take out some Zs. But we don’t have the ammo for me to be picking them off while we drive and it’d just wake everyone up.”

“So ya just sit?” The girl cocked her head to the side.

“Mhmm,” he hummed. “Is that what you’re gonna do now? Just sit?”

“I ain’t too good at keepin’ still.” She readjusted her seating position as if to emphasize her point

“How long do ya reckon it’ll take ya to get to 10 thousand?” She asked, surprised by how good it felt to actually speak to a living, breathing, person after so much time in isolation.

“Years.” 10k shrugged, cracking a smile, thrilled that the pretty girl who seemed to hate everyone wanted to stay up and talk to him “it’d go a lot faster if you taught me how to make one of those flour bombs.”

“You wish.” She scoffed, smirking slightly “you’d burn yourself.”

“I would not.” He groaned “you’ve gotta show me. That was the coolest thing I’ve ever seen.”

“Ya would.” She nodded “‘Sides, flour’s a level two, maybe two and a half with the sugar. Best pray y’ain’t standing nowhere close if I’m fixin’ to set off a level three.”

“What’s a level 3?” The boy looked beyond amused.

“Only had to do it the once, but it was crazy enough that I damn near killed myself.”

“That just makes me want to see it more.” 10k huffed, still smiling, “If flour’s a two and three is so crazy that you won’t even tell me, what’s a level one?”

“Far as I see it, a level one is anythin’ from a flashbang to a stick of dynamite.” Torch shrugged, trying to keep her voice low so she didn’t wake anyone. “Level one’ll still kill ya if you ain’t careful with it.”

“Are we actually the same age?” He asked her after a long pause. Unsure how it could possibly be if from the sounds of things, she’d lived so many different lives while all he had was before and after his Pa died.

“I guess?” She pulled her knees to her chest “I ain’t really sure how old I am or how long it’s been since it all fell apart, but before, when ya said I’d had to have been close fifteen, that sounds about right.”

“It’s been three years.” 10k muttered, “so that makes us eighteen.”

“Could be out buyin’ cigarettes if they still sold ‘em.” Torch nodded thoughtfully. “Joinin’ the military or drinkin’ in Canada.”

“I always wanted to go into the military,” He confessed, sinking into his seat slightly. “What did you want to do?”

“Always been too focused on not dyin’ to think about it.” She shrugged, feeling the sudden urge to flee. “My daddy was military ‘fore I was born and it didn’t do nothin’ but rot his insides.”

What the fuck was she doing?

“M’goin’ back to sleep I think.” Torch muttered, turning away from him while his smile fell.

“Oh, okay.” 10k whispered, wondering why she’d shrugged him off so abruptly.

In the morning, Torch wouldn’t even look at 10k, opting instead to stare at her boots or her hands. While Doc and Cassandra chatted next to her. She could feel his eyes on the side of her head and tried not to think about it but she just couldn't stop.

She’d never had the urge to divulge so much information to a person in one sitting before and was struggling to understand what made him so special. Maybe it was because they were the same age and she’d never really been around any kids her own age apart from at school, which she missed far more often than she went.

Or maybe, he’d just been nice to her and it had short circuited her brain.

She didn’t realize that the truck had rolled to a stop until Doc rested a hand on her shoulder and she jerked away, wide eyed and confused.

“We’re stopping to try and make contact with CZ.” the old man told her, brows furrowed in concern “You okay?”

“M’fine.” She muttered with pink cheeks before hopping down onto the pavement.

Torch had to steady herself against the lip of the truck bed, stiff after sitting for too long.

Addy had been working on a fast food restaurant speaker for at least half an hour before Torch decided to cut out and see if she could find anything useful. After confirming in Philadelphia that the man existed when he’d helped them with the diversion, she’d lost interest in the effort it took to get ahold of him. The girl didn’t know her ass from her elbow when it came to electronics and badly wanted to get away from the chatter, still nowhere near used to being around so many people.

It wasn’t hard to slip away from the group. They were all exhausted and starving, focused on their own thoughts. She’d barely spoken in hours and that only made things easier for her. She didn’t think to let anyone know where she was going. It’d suck to be left behind and all, but she barely knew these people and it would save her the trouble of having to decide whether or not she wanted to stay with them.

Her mama always used to say ‘always stand near the door so you can leave before you get left.’ and Torch carried that with her all her life.

She ducked around a corner and wandered the streets in search of anything she could bring back in hopes that she’d lose the kid-killer vibe and put off a new one.

Back at the truck, an hour later, 10k was standing on the roof, holding a satellite dish over his head while Garnet repeatedly spoke into the speaker.

“Charles Garnet, calling northern light. Come in Northern light, do you read me? Citizen Z? Are you there?”

“Yes!” The familiar voice crackled through the speaker and they all slumped over in relief “This is Northern Light. Citizen Z, hitting you back.”

“Thank god.” He sighed, “We’ve been trying to make this work for hours.”

“What are you broadcasting on?”

“Uh-” Garnet cleared his throat, looking around. “Frenchy the french fry. One of our team, Carver, she jerry-rigged a drive-thru camera.”

“Addy Carver?” Citizen Z’s voice came quickly, tinged with excitement.

“Yeah,” Garnett nodded, confused

“Is she there? I wanna say hi.”

“Uh- Okay” He tilted his head slightly before turning to the group “Addy, you’re up.”

The girl went to the speaker and conversed with their eye in the sky while the rest of them looked around.

“Where’s Torch?” 10k asked, not seeing her, while Doc did the same, looking puzzled.

“I dunno,” The old man frowned, starting to feel worry tug at him. She still seemed to think that he thought of her as some kind of killer and he wanted the chance to make it up to her after thinking about it long enough. “Think I should go look for her?”

“I think she’s mad at me.” The kid shrugged, chewing on his bottom lip, he’d go if he wasn’t stuck holding the dish. “I don’t know what I did.”

“Wherever she is, I’m sure she’s fine. I’ll go look” Doc reassured him despite the unease on his face “Keep an eye out for any smoke.”

“Puppies and Kittens!” Warren called out, grabbing Murphy by the back of his coat and shoving him towards the truck. “We’ve got to go.”

“Wait!” 10k let the satellite dish fall to the ground, hopping down into the bed while everyone scrambled to get into the vehicle “Torch isn’t back yet.”

“Back from where?” Warren started the truck, rolling forward despite not having an answer. “Where’d she go?”

“I don’t know.” The kid frowned, looking around.

“I was just about to go looking.” Doc grimaced “Think we can wait on her?”

“We can regroup on the other side of town.” Garnet reassured him “We’ll find her.”

“I vote we leave the firestarter behind and hightail it outta here,” Murphy interjected, earning him a thump to the back of the head from Cassandra.

“We’re not leaving her behind.” 10k snapped, sounding angry for the first time since they’d picked him up.

“Just keep an eye out for her.”

Everyone’s heads were on a swivel as they combed the streets for her, accumulating quite the trail of Zs behind them. Every minute they waited to leave put them more at risk, but nobody seemed to be ready to pull up stakes. The girl had proven her value from the jump and they needed all the muscle they could get if they were going to get Murphy all the way to California.

“There!” Addy shouted suddenly, pointing towards a nearby second-story window their missing groupmate was scrambling out of after spotting the truck outside. “Torch!”

Torch looked down at the rolling truck and the sea of Zs behind it with wide eyes. She had half a second to make a decision and opted to jump, hoping her timing was right and she’d land on the truck and not the pavement.

Everyone held their breath and Warren did her best to slow down, trying like hell not to leave the girl behind no matter how stupid it had been to wander off.

Her boots hit the roof and she stumbled, narrowly avoiding going over thanks to 10k and Doc, who grabbed her by the arms and yanked her into the truck bed.

“You got her?” Warren shouted over her shoulder, still going slow until she saw a thumbs up in the rearview and floored it, jostling everyone in the back.

“Shit.” Torch breathed, pulling herself out of the tangled mess of limbs and propping herself up against the truck wall “Thought I was a goner there for a second.”

“I’m glad to see ya girl,” Doc sighed, shaking his head “but what the hell was so important that you had to run off?”

Everyone looked at her expectantly and she started to feel real stupid.

“I was lookin’ for stuff.” With burning cheeks, she turned her pockets out and three dozen lighters clattered into the metal truck bed. They sat in a circle, staring at the absurd amount of colorful devices, and they all started to laugh.

Once the laughter died down, Torch shrugged a backpack off of her shoulders and dug around inside.

“Is there more in there?” 10k asked with wide eyes, trying to sneak a peek.

“Nope.” She laughed, far warmer than she’d been since the night before, which he chose not to acknowledge. “Found some other shit though.”

“Food?” Murphy stuck his head out the back window and looked at her expectantly.

Torch just smiled and tossed a granola bar at him, watching as it hit him in the forehead, then landed on the truck bed.

He scrambled to pick it up and tore it open, moaning once it made it into his mouth.

“Where are we goin’?” She asked, dumping the rest of her haul out so they could divvy it up “Y’all get ahold of Citizen Z?”

“Virginia.”

The girl froze.

“Virginia?” She asked, looking pale “Why the hell are we goin’ south? California is West. Why ain’t we goin’ West?”

“There’s a helicopter at a military base down there.” Doc explained, looking at her with concern “Are you alright hon?”

“Fine.” She snapped, crossing her arms over her chest so they couldn’t see her hands shake.

10k watched her stare out at the road for a few minutes before standing and watching the opposite direction, wondering what’d gotten her so shaken. She said that she was from Georgia, but she had only told him it was too hot to stay down there. Now, It seemed like she was running from something.

This girl was giving him whiplash with her mood swings but there was something about her that kept drawing him in closer.

The further south they went, the more Torch started to fidget and by the time they made it to Virginia, she’d gnawed her fingernails down to the skin and her bottom lip was well past bleeding. Nobody called her out on her behavior despite casting not-so-subtle looks at her throughout the ride.

When the truck finally stopped in front of the base, Torch lept out of the truck and walked straight over to a couple of Z’s approaching, eager for the chance to burn off some of the anxious energy.

“Not exactly what I was hoping for.” Garnet sighed, taking in all the bodies

“When are you gonna learn to stop hoping for things,” Murphy grumbled

“You better hope not,” Warren jumped in “Cause that’s the day we leave your ass on the side of the road.”

“Halt!”

They all pulled their weapons and aimed them at the man who was blocking the door, his own gun raised.

“Who goes there?”

“Sergeant Charles Garet, National Guard. This is Lieutenant Roberta Warren, also National Guard.” He nodded to Warren

“State your business.”

“We're on a high-priority mission” Garnet explained “To get this man to a CDC lab in California.”

Murphy waved awkwardly.

“We were sent here by an Intel officer with the NSA to see General McCandles. We need help finding Transpo. We were told he has a helicopter?”

“Yeah,” The man tugged at his collar, and Torch zeroed in on his clammy face. “He’s got a chopper. But, General McCandles is a very busy man. He’s got the entire East Coast under his command.”

“Ain’t nobody got shit under command nowadays.” Torch muttered to 10k, leaning back against the truck, newly splattered with gore And seemingly fine all of a sudden. “Somethin’ ain’t right. This guy’s cracked the fuck out.”

“He can’t worry about some raggedy-ass group of civilians on a suicide mission.” The man continued, “I suggest you move on before the dead find you.”

“Nothing raggedy-ass about this group of civilians, Sir.” Warren spat “And this man has important information about a vaccine for the zombie virus.”

The man huffed in annoyance before approaching the group, squinting at Murphy’s disgruntled appearance.

“He smells like a damn Z.”

“You don’t smell so good yourself.” Murphy retorted “Septic tank.”

The man’s upper lip twitched.

“Are you gonna help us or not?” Garnet asked, sounding like he was very much done with the back and forth.

“Five bucks he asks for drugs.” Torch turned to 10k.

“What are you gonna do with five bucks?” He sounded amused.

“Burn it?” She shrugged and he laughed softly before turning his attention back to the negotiations.

“You want to see the general?” The man asked “You’re gonna have to pay a tribute. Gesture of goodwill to show him you’re serious.”

“What kind of tribute have you got in mind?” Garnet sighed tiredly.

“Our medic has been MIA for over a year. We need painkillers, Antibiotics, anything you’ve got.”

Everyone turned to look at Doc.

He nodded tightly before sighing and saying he’d grab his bag.

“I’ve got aspirin, tetracycline, cipro” Doc threw his bag down on top of a barrel before riffling through it “That should knock out almost any infection.”

The two had a silent standoff until Doc admitted that he had Oxy.

“The oxy.” The soldier said far too quickly. “We need painkillers.”

Doc huffed and dug out one pill, placing it in the waiting hand.

“Do you want to see the general or not?”

Torch scoffed.

“This is the last of our supply,” Doc told him firmly.

Then, he gave the man three more and he promptly threw them all in his mouth.

“That’ll do.”

“Hey!” Doc exclaimed

“Boom.” Torch told 10k, who was scowling at the man but only a little because she was back to speaking to him and her mood seemed to have improved “Told ya.”

The man hurriedly chewed up the pills and flexed his neck, swallowing hard.

“The general will see you now.”

“You two stand watch.” Garnet nodded to Torch and 10k before taking the rest of the group up to the door.

They wound up only letting Doc in, so the rest of them hung around the truck.

10k disappeared and came back a few minutes later to find Torch sitting on the roof of an ambulance, Flicking a lighter on and off over and over while her legs dangled over the edge and her eyes scanned the horizon.

He climbed up next to her and slid a five-dollar bill next to her before wordlessly setting up his rifle to pick off the incoming stragglers.

Torch picked it up and laughed.

“Where’d you get this?” She asked, shoving it into her pocket.

“A wallet.” He shrugged, firing. “Took it off a Z”

“1,090”

“1,091”

“1,092”

“Okay, what’s going on with Doc?” Addy asked after a while.

“Guys, if we don’t get out of here soon, things could get ugly.” Mack came speed walking towards them, motioning towards the increase in Z’s approaching.

“Oh, you mean uglier?” Murphy scoffed, bouncing his leg impatiently.

“Do you guys hear that?” Cassandra held a hand up and they all stopped to listen.

Sure enough, Torch could hear distant screams.

“Hear what?” Warren asked, confused

“I don’t hear anything.”

“Shhh.”

They all looked up at a fan several floors above, which seemed to be the source of the screaming.

“That sounds like Doc.”

Torch frowned hard.

Garnet grabbed the soldier by the collar and shoved him up against the wall, threatening him with his gun until the man finally relented and led the rest of them into the building.

“Don’t let anyone up.” Garnet told Torch and 10k “Man, or zombie.”

“Yes, Sir.” Torch gave him a mock salute.

“I don’t have a real good feeling about this.” Torch hopped down to the hood of the ambulance while 10k fired the occasional shot. “I’m gonna do a lap of the perimeter.”

“You sure we should split up?” He glanced down at her for a moment.

“It ain’t splittin’ up.” She rolled her eyes “I’m just goin’ round the corner. I’ll start shoutin’ if anything goes down.”

“No, you won’t.” He muttered to himself, shaking his head with a small smirk after telling himself to keep a close ear out for a scuffle, sure that she wasn’t the type to ask for help.

Torch rounded the corner and spotted two Zs up ahead. She pulled a couple of throwing knives from her belt and felt the weight of them in her hands. She reared back and hurled one at the Z closest to her and grinned when it landed and the body dropped.

The commotion drew the attention of the second, who was dropped just as quickly.

She retrieved her knives, wiping the blood off of them using the closest Z’s shirt before digging through their pockets.

Her fingers wrapped around a paper carton of cigarettes and she closed her eyes in elation before immediately placing one between her lips and lighting it.

“That’s the stuff.” She sighed happily as she stood.

Torch could still hear 10k firing around the corner and Doc screaming from inside the building, so she figured that she had the time to continue her lap at a leisurely pace.

There wasn’t much else to be found on the dead. By the time she was climbing back onto the roof of the ambulance, she was on her third cigarette.

“Want one?” She slid the pack over to 10k, who stared at it for a moment before nodding.

He seemed a little off once he started smoking and when he missed a shot, Torch thought there might be something wrong with him.

“Y’alright?” She asked softly, then louder when he didn’t so much as flinch. “10k?”

She waited another minute before nudging him with her boot.

“Hey.”

He jumped a little, then fired, dropping the Z he’d missed before.

“Huh?” He finally turned to look at her, puzzled by the concern in her eyes “Did you say something?”

“You good?” She frowned “Got all spacey and shit.”

“Yeah,” He sighed, “cigarettes just remind me of my pa. He used to make me light them for him.”

“My daddy smoked too.” Torch hummed, able to understand the association on a completely different level. “Like a chimney, all my life. I used to steal ‘em and bury them in the woods.”

“Trying to get him to quit?”

“Somethin’ like that.” She frowned, leaving out the fact that she’d hidden them so he couldn’t burn her with them when he had a bit too much to drink, which was always.

Once the Z’s stopped coming, the pair sat in the back of the truck, ready, but quiet until the group filed out of the building, one man short.

“What happened to Doc?” 10k asked before Torch could find the words, his brows pulled together

Warren walked up to the side of the truck and rested her arms on it, eyeing the boy with a look so full of sympathy that Torch knew exactly what she was going to say before it came out of her mouth.

“He didn’t make it.”

10k sat back on his heels, looking stunned and Torch felt so fucking bad that she rested a hand on his shoulder, surprising herself a little.

She felt a pang of sadness in her own heart for Doc. He’d been nothing but kind to her from the second they’d crossed paths, and she liked him. But, to 10k, Doc was practically a surrogate father figure, and losing him after spending the last half hour thinking about his dad seemed like a cruel joke.

“Zombies.” Addy sighed, palming her bat.

“I got it.” Torch sighed, hopping down from the truck, and grabbing for her knives.

“Oh god,” Mack muttered, looking at the approaching Z “Is that.”

It was Doc. He was covered in gore and limping in their direction.

The sadness in the air was palpable and Torch felt herself freeze. She wasn’t sure that she could put him down and that scared her.

“Someone’s gotta…” Garnett started, looking pained.

“I’ll do it.” Warren stepped up.

Torch looked up at 10k and watched him avert his gaze, staring down at his hands.

“Steven ‘Doc’ Beck,” Warren said softly as she drew closer, raising her gun “I give you Mercy.”

She fired once but missed and for a second, Torch thought she’d imagined it, but Zombie Doc jumped out of the way and screamed.

“What the hell Warren?” He shouted, “You trying to kill me?”

Everyone looked back at him in surprise.

“You’re alive?” Warren cocked her head to the side.

“Damn straight I’m alive.”

A startled laugh fought its way past Torch’s lips and soon, they were all laughing.

“We thought you were dead!”

“Well, so did I.” Doc threw his hands out. “Some numbskull threw a grenade down the elevator shaft I was stuck in.”

“Here.” Warren shook off a bandana and handed it to him.

“Come on” Doc rounded on her, going in for a hug “Give me a kiss baby”

They all laughed a little louder, piling into the truck with smiles on their faces.

Once the initial shock had worn off and Doc had gotten most of the blood off of him, 10k was staring down at his hands again, deep in thought. Torch watched from the opposite side of the truck bed flicking her lighter repeatedly.

“You know kid” Doc nudged him gently “I’ve been thinking about what you told me about your dad and how you wished he knew that you did the right thing, giving him mercy like you promised.”

“Yeah?” 10k looked up at him, looking almost hesitant.

“Well, I just want you to know, your dad knows what you did for him.” He rested a hand on the boy’s shoulder “And he knows that you did the right thing. You kept your promise.”

10k nodded and muttered a thanks. He got that faraway look in his eyes again but only for a moment before he perked up, pulling himself to his feet to stand watch, as he usually did.

“And you,” He turned to Torch. “I really am sorry about the other day.”

“It’s fine,” She shrugged with pink cheeks. “Ain’t like it was far-fetched or nothin’. I get it.”

“It was wrong of me to assume.” Doc insisted, nudging her with his boot in an attempt to get her to meet his gaze “I know you’re a good person.”

“I really ain’t.” Torch shook her head. If only he knew the things she’d done to survive “But we’re good.”

“I don’t believe that for a second.” He frowned “I’ve only known you a few days, but I can see it.”

The girl pulled her knees into her chest and averted her gaze, staring out at the passing scenery with a furrowed brow.

[atwooozi]

gojo x oc

Chapter 18: Promise?

summary: Ai wakes up at Gojo's place after a long night, surprised to find herself still there. As she groggily stumbles through her morning routine, Gojo’s carefree and teasing nature contrasts with her exhausted state. Gojo, freshly out of the shower and looking effortlessly composed, offers to make coffee, revealing small nuances about their growing connection as they banter.

genre: modern AU, slice of life, comedy, eventual romance, eventual smut, some angst

A/N: Gosh, once again I'm sorry for the inconsistency. My poor kitty got sick and then I did right after so I took a week off from editing to recoup. Hopefully, nothing else gets in the way as I continue posting from here on out.

Anyway, the song for this week is Sugar Magic by tonun . I feel that this song suits this story so well. It's so light and fresh while at the same time being a little bit bitter.

READ ON AO3

Ai groaned as she woke up. Her body–especially her neck–was aching all over, thanks to the awkward position that she fell asleep in. She opened her eyes, expecting to see her room. To her surprise, she was met with anything but that. 

Ai was still at Gojo’s place. She had fallen asleep after they finished watching that awful movie. She was curled up on his comfy couch, covered in an amazingly soft blanket, and Gojo was nowhere in sight. 

She carefully got up and stretched, her joints letting out popping sounds as she moved. While some of the soreness was gone, she still had a dull ache on the side of her neck. 

What time is it? 

Ai yawned as she padded her way over to where she left her bag beside the dining room table that still had the box of pictures sitting on top of it. 

When she dug through her things she found her phone. The time read four-thirty in the morning, and the battery was almost dead. She groaned and ran a hand through her hair. She was still on Gojo’s stupid schedule from when they were doing reshoots two weeks ago. Around this time if she were still in Kyoto she would be dragging herself to the car with Geto and Junpei in tow as Gojo finished getting his makeup done. Even though the experience was fun there was a part of Ai that was thankful that this assignment was close to being over. 

“Ai-chan’s awake!” Gojo smiled as he made his way over to her. “You look scary when you wake up.” 

From the looks of it, Gojo had just gotten out of the shower. His usually fluffy hair was damp and his flawless skin had a nice sheen to it. Not to mention the soft-looking towel that was draped around his neck to catch the remaining droplets of water from falling onto his very simple, but somehow sultry outfit. Ai had never realized how a black compression shirt and gray sweatpants could look so nice before–or maybe she was just tired. 

She was probably just tired.

“Earth to Ai-chan~” Gojo sang as he flicked her forehead playfully. 

Ai frowned at Gojo and swatted his hand away. She wanted to say something back, but her brain was still adjusting to being awake after only a few hours of sleep. If there was one thing she disliked about Gojo it was the fact that he was such a morning person. 

“How do you have so much energy?” Ai mumbled as she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. 

Gojo smiled as he pulled Ai up gently by the wrist. “I’d like to think it’s because I’m so pretty that I don’t need that much beauty sleep.” 

Ai couldn’t help but roll her eyes, causing Gojo to laugh. “I would say something but I can’t think properly right now,” she muttered as she lightly slapped her cheeks, trying to wake herself up. Unfortunately, it didn’t help much. 

Gojo ruffled Ai’s hair. “C’mon, I’ll make you some coffee,” he said as he led the way to his obscenely beautiful kitchen. 

It was clean with sharp lines and almost monochromatic, except for the colorful magnets and pictures of Megumi and Tsumiki that covered the fridge door. The kitchen resembled something from a fancy restaurant, rather than the typical Japanese home. The decor somehow fit Gojo. The man was anything but typical, so why would his home be? 

Ai took a seat at the counter and rested her head on the cool marble surface. It made her shiver, but it felt somewhat refreshing, waking her up some. 

“How do you take your coffee, Ai-chan?” Gojo asked as he put fresh coffee beans in the grinder. 

Ai sat up, now excited for the fresh coffee he was making her. The smell of freshly ground beans filled the air–it was heavenly. She was used to the cheap instant coffee that she would unceremoniously make herself, just to get her caffeine fix, but despite the ungodly hour, she felt like she was in the lap of luxury. The more she thought about it the harder it was to remember that last time she was able to just sit and relax with a cup of coffee.

“I like a spoonful of sugar and lots of cream.” 

Although Gojo had his back to her, she could feel his light and cheerful energy. She found herself fascinated with the way he easily moved around his kitchen to get mugs and turn on the tea kettle.  

“Gojo–” 

“Satoru,” he corrected as he pulled a pour-over coffee maker from a high cabinet. 

Ai blinked as she watched him, any objections she had were now gone. She was worried that the meal he made her the other day was a fluke, but she was starting to quickly learn that Gojo was more competent than she thought.

“Do you like coffee, Go–I mean, Satoru?” Ai asked as she curiously watched him. 

Not many people had pour-over coffee makers if they didn’t particularly care for coffee. It felt like a silly question, but Gojo didn’t seem like the type to enjoy more bitter flavors given his obvious sweet tooth.  

Gojo looked over his shoulder at Ai and shrugged, a gentle smile on his face. “It’s more Suguru and Gumi-chan’s thing,” he explained as he poured the boiling water over the freshly milled coffee grounds. “I started drinking it because Suguru did.” 

Ai chuckled and smiled to herself. “Were you trying to impress him?” she joked. 

“Yeah,” Gojo answered honestly. “I thought he was so cool so I forced myself to drink coffee when we’d hang out. It’s not my favorite thing, but I don’t hate it.”

“Does Geto know that?”    

“No,” Gojo said, turning to her with a wink. “So let’s keep that between us, ‘kay?” 

Ai nodded. “‘Kay.”   “Here,” Gojo said, placing a mug of coffee in front of Ai. “You can add the cream yourself.” 

Ai nodded as she took the mug into her hands. When she looked down at the cup it smelled delicious, almost chocolatey. She poured the cream that Gojo had placed on the counter into the cup until the liquid turned a lighter brown color.  She blew on gently as she brought the cup to her lips and sipped it. 

“Well?” 

Ai almost whimpered. “It's so good…” 

Gojo wore a smug smile as he watched Ai. “I'm glad you like it,” he said as he brought his cup to his lips. He took a sip and sighed. “Suguru makes fun of me for all the sugar I use…” he said thoughtfully. A silence washed over them both as they sipped on their drinks. It felt almost too domestic to Ai. While she loved how natural it felt, it felt equally unsettling. She couldn’t let herself get used to this. They only had a finite amount of time together left. She needed to remember that.   

“I need to go home,” Ai stated as she sat the mug on the counter. 

“Why?” Gojo pouted. “Today is our big interview day anyway. Just stay.” 

Ai shook her head as she stood up. “I can't do that. You think Geto won't notice if I wear the same clothes twice?” 

Gojo hummed in throught before answering. “You’re right, stupid Sugu notices everything .”

There was a brief silence before Gojo decided to open his mouth again. 

“Can't you just borrow something of Tsumiki’s?” 

Ai narrowed her eyes at Gojo. “No, you clown.” 

Gojo groaned as he circled around the counter. He immediately went slack and he leaned against Ai, causing her to almost topple over from his weight. He wrapped his arms around her much like a child would do when they didn't want their parents to leave for work. “But I don't want you to leave…” he muttered as he buried his face in Ai's still messy hair. 

“Gojo–”

“ –Call me Satoru,” he pouted as he nuzzled his face deeper into Ai’s hair. “Pleeeeease…pretty please.” 

“Satoru, I'll be back later.” Ai sighed as she hesitantly rubbed his back. 

She was still unsure how to interact with him. Gojo was so touchy and affectionate, it was almost overwhelming. He was the most touch starved person that she had ever met. 

“Can I come with?” Gojo looked at Ai with pleading eyes. “I'll behave. I promise.” 

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“Ai-chan,” Gojo called from her living room. She could tell just from the tone of voice that he was bored. 

Ai groaned inwardly as she hit her head against her bedroom wall with a gentle thud. She was afraid to answer him, but she couldn’t leave him alone either. The fact that he went quiet was almost more unnerving than his constantly calling for her as he looked around her small apartment. 

“...What?” She called out reluctantly. 

She squeezed the moisture out of her hair with a towel while waiting for him to respond. When he didn’t respond her heart sank. 

Did he die? 

Hesitantly, Ai peeked out of her room to look into her small living room. Satoru was standing in front of her bookshelf holding a picture frame while smiling to himself. She let out a sigh of relief and quickly ducked back into her room and went back to fixing her hair. Hopefully, the bookshelf would keep him occupied for a while so she could finish getting ready.   

Ai swore that she got ready in record time. Blow drying her hair would take too long, so she had to settle for her natural waves and light makeup. She wore a soft, light-blue turtleneck and simple, loose-fitting pants. Since they were going to be at Gojo’s place to conduct the interview, she figured she could dress a bit more casually.

Gojo glanced over at Ai with a gentle smile on his face. He had been skimming through one of the books on her overcrowded shelf. “Do you write in all your books?” 

Ai furrowed her brows and walked over to stand next to Gojo as she inspected the careworn novels she had collected over the years. 

“Not all of them…” She said as she picked a book off the shelf, skimming through the contents. The pages didn’t have any of her little scribbles in the margins or colored reading tabs. “The ones I haven’t read yet, for example.” She grinned as she looked up at him.  

Gojo chuckled and put the book he was holding back. He nodded towards the frame he was holding earlier. “Is that you and your mom?” 

Ai nodded as she reached for the picture. She ran her thumb over the glass as she looked down at it–it was a picture from her high school graduation. In the photograph, Ai wore a red hakama that had been in the family for a few generations, as her mom stood proudly next to her in front of the school gates.

“You looked pretty,” Satoru said as he looked over Ai’s shoulder. 

She felt her face flush and her heart flutter at Satoru’s compliment. Ai never thought that she was bad-looking, but to get a compliment from someone that other people saw as beautiful felt exceptionally nice. 

“Your head looked bigger then, but I think you grew into it,” Gojo chuckled. 

Ai jabbed her elbow into Gojo’s stomach, causing him to groan. She put the picture down back on the shelf carefully. “Do you just say whatever comes to your mind?” 

Gojo rubbed where Ai had jabbed her elbow and pursed his lips. “Only with certain people.” 

Ai sighed as she went to grab her keys and slip on her shoes. “Let’s go. I don’t want Geto or Junpei-kun to get there before us.” 

Gojo obediently followed Ai after he slipped on his shoes. She was surprised he didn’t fight her on leaving. She thought she’d have to drag him out of the apartment.

“Do you really think they’ll get there before us?” Gojo asked as Ai locked the door behind them. 

Ai looked him point blank in the eyes. “Your friend is a demon and I think he lives to torment me.” 

Gojo shrugged, still appearing as carefree as ever. “Suguru? He’s an angel.” 

Ai couldn’t help but chuckle at Gojo’s response. “Are we talking about the same guy?” 

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 Somewhere near the Omote-Sando station Geto Suguru was waiting for Yoshino Junpei to meet him. Just as the younger man walked up to him Geto couldn’t help but sneeze.

“Are you getting sick, Geto-san?” Junpei asked curiously as he adjusted his face mask.

Geto rubbed his nose and sniffled. “If you gave me your cold I’m making you pay my doctor’s bill.” 

“B-but I just got here…” Junpei stuttered. 

Ghetto narrowed his eyes and looked around the station suspiciously. “Someone must be talking about me…” 

Junpei scratched the side of his head as he stood next to his odd, yet handsome companion. “I’m sure it’s all nice things, Geto-san.” 

Geto smiled, causing his eyes to morph into crescents but instead of it being disarming it was rather unnerving. “It had better be…”

⨯ . ⁺ ✦ ⊹ ꙳ ⁺ ‧ ⨯. ⁺ ✦ ⊹ . * ꙳ ✦ ⊹⨯ . ⁺ ✦ ⊹ ꙳ ⁺ ‧ ⨯. ⁺ ✦ ⊹ . * ꙳ ✦ ⊹⨯ . ⁺ ✦ ⊹ ꙳ ⁺

As Ai and Gojo walked into the train station, Gojo kept glancing Ai’s way. Even with his glasses obscuring his eyes she could feel his stare on her. It made her heart tremble. 

“What?” she asked, exasperated. She couldn’t take it anymore. 

“You wear a lot of blue.” Gojo pointed out as he put his hands in his pockets. 

Ai glanced down at her outfit. Gojo’s comment had caught her a little of-guard. “I like the color blue.” 

Gojo nodded as he looked ahead, looking for the train. “Yeah, it’s nice.” 

Ai furrowed her brows and glanced at Gojo. “You always wear black or white.” 

“That’s because it goes with everything.” Gojo pulled his glasses down and winked at Ai. “I think you should try red though.” 

Ai wanted to question Gojo further but they had to get on the train. She’d have to ask him about it another time.

⨯ . ⁺ ✦ ⊹ ꙳ ⁺ ‧ ⨯. ⁺ ✦ ⊹ . * ꙳ ✦ ⊹⨯ . ⁺ ✦ ⊹ ꙳ ⁺ ‧ ⨯. ⁺ ✦ ⊹ . * ꙳ ✦ ⊹⨯ . ⁺ ✦ ⊹ ꙳ ⁺

 When they arrived back at Gojo’s place, the sun was hanging bright in the sky. It shined brightly through the floor-to-ceiling windows. It was truly a beautiful view of the city, but at this level she couldn’t help but feel disconnected from the people on the streets. They looked so small, like ants. 

“Home sweet home,” Gojo said as he stretched and sat himself down on his large luxurious couch. He sat himself in the middle and let his lanky body stretch fully, taking up as much space as possible. He let his head fall back, hanging over the top of the couch to stare at Ai with a smile.   

Ai set her bag down at Gojo’s dining room table and took a deep breath. She wasn’t sure why she was so nervous now. She and Gojo had been alone many times now, but this time felt different. No one could interrupt them. He had purposely cleared his schedule for today’s interview. She pulled out her notebook as well as her laptop. If she forced herself to work then maybe that would ease her nerves a bit. 

“Ai-chan,” Gojo whined and got up from the couch. “Stop working and pay attention to me. You can work when Suguru and Junpei-kun get here.” 

Ai glanced up from her laptop, trying to keep her composure. “I’m just trying to be prepared.” 

Gojo rolled his eyes dramatically and flopped back onto the couch, making a big show of being ignored. “You’re so serious, Ai-chan. You need to have some fun.” 

Ai couldn’t help but smile at Gojo’s dramatic display. He seemed to always know how to lighten the mood when she was feeling stressed. “I’ll have fun after the interview. I promise.” 

Gojo shot up and wore a goofy grin as he looked Ai’s way. “You promise?” 

“I promise.” 

Gojo started to hum to himself happily, fiddling with his phone. He was probably playing his Digimon game. Ai turned her attention back to her laptop, trying to focus on what she was writing. 

A few minutes later, Geto and Junpei walked through the door. Ai looked over with a frown. “You have a key?” 

Geto wore a mischievous smile, his eyes turning into those all too familiar smug slits as he spun the key around his finger. “Jealous?” 

Ai rolled her eyes at him and tilted her head to look at Junpei. “Junpei-kun, get away from the evil man.” 

And just like that, for no reason whatsoever, Geto sneezed. 

Junpei stepped away from Geto and quickly bowed to Gojo before he made his way over to Ai. Geto stuck his tongue out childishly at Ai as he walked into the common area.  

“Took you guys long enough,” Gojo said as he lazily got up from the couch. 

“Our train was delayed,” Geto sighed as he started to get his camera set up. 

Junpei was still a bit under the weather from what Ai could tell. He had always been pale and his under-eyes a little darker than most, but he looked different enough for Ai to notice despite him wearing a mask.  

Ai frowned as she stood up and instead of greeting her kouhai, she pressed the back of her hand to Junpei’s forehead. “No fever…but you still don’t look well, Junpei-kun,” she sighed as she looked at him. “Are you sure you’re up for this?” 

Junpei gave a firm nod. “I’m fine, senpai. Just a bit tired, that’s all.” 

“Ai-chan!” Gojo whined, “I think I have a fever too.” He whined wanting to be the center of attention. 

“Let me see, Satoru,” Geto said as he held his hand out to check Gojo’s forehead. 

Ai chuckled as she watched Gojo gently swat Geto’s hand away with a frown. “But you were fine earlier.” 

“Earlier?” 

Shit…

“When did you get here, Senpai?” Junpei asked, concern evident in his voice. “Were you waiting long?” 

As Ai panicked to come up with something to say she could feel Geto’s piercing gaze and it sent a chill down her spine. “I don’t think she left,” he said simply. 

“Wha–” 

Before Junpei could even get the word out Ai waved her hands as if trying to put out the imaginary fire that she had started. “A-anyway…Junpei-kun, let’s get you set up to take notes, okay?” 

Geto finished setting up the camera and looked over to Ai and Junpei. “If you need a break, Junpei, just let us know.” 

If Ai was alone, she would probably cry. Even though Geto was a demon, at least he was nice to her kouhai. It truly warmed her heart. 

Junpei shook his head. “I’ll be okay.” 

Ai wanted to object but decided to trust Junpei’s judgment. “Alright, if you’re sure.” She handed over her notebook and pen. “Take notes for me today. Leave the camera stuff to Geto, okay?” 

She couldn’t help it. Ai didn’t want to baby Junpei, but she wasn’t going to let him do anything too physical, like helping Geto with the lighting. Hopefully, note-taking wouldn’t be too much for him. 

Ai took a deep breath and turned to Gojo who had sat himself on the armrest of the couch, seemingly pouting as he played with his phone. “Are you ready, Gojo?” 

Gojo looked up and flashed Ai a smile. “Let’s do this.” 

[fatedefyd]

   LITTLE MUSE FACTS !

   ( instructions :  fill out the questions about your muse, repost, and tag as many people as you want ! )

1 )  what does your muse smell like ?

   Back in his enforcer days, this overgrown housecat used to use scentless soaps ; this was mainly to give him some slack when higher-ups would complain about his  ‘ natural smell ‘ . 

   That being said, after Azure leaves heaven, there is a notable difference when it comes to his smell !  He smells of fresh grass clippings from finally getting the chance to be out in the wilderness for long periods of time, and he also smells of metal from his constant armor sharpening or cleaning.  

2 )  how often does your muse bathe / shower ?

   He used to bath pretty much daily to keep up appearances, but since his departure from heaven, Azure bathes every 2-3 days so he can build up his fur’s natural texture and thickness again.  And if it’s scalding, he’s gonna be in there a long while and just soaking in the heat. 

3 )  does your muse have any tattoos or piercings ?

   Currently, he has only his ears pierced !  Since his ears are already pretty much lost in his mane, they’re simple, small, gold huggie hoop earrings.  He doesn’t plan to get more in the future, but he could probably be talked into getting more.. as for tattoos, being covered in fur doesn’t work in his favor, so he doesn’t have any at the moment.

4 )  any body movement quirks ? ( ex :  tapping heel, shaking knee )

   It’s all in the tail, honestly.  If it’s flickering about ?  He’s either very excited or agitated ( or both ).  If it’s limp as he walks ?  He’s a bit down in the dumps.  Typical cat behaviors tend to apply to him no matter if he’s a big or small cat lol.

5 )  what do they sleep in ?

   Azure goes shirtless and only wears his briefs / trousers to bed.  The guy has too much fur as is, and he gets warm very easily, so a sheet + undies / trousers are his go-to sleepwear. 👍

6 )  what’s their favorite piece of clothing ?

   Probably his cape !  It’s the one article of clothing that he’s kept since his enforcer days AND during his time in the brotherhood, and even makes small adjustments to it when / if he becomes emperor !  It’s seen better days, but he wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world, as it’s become a sentimental item that symbolizes his perseverance and the events he’s more or less survived. 

7 )  what do they do when they wake up ?

   Takes in his surroundings, gauges the situation, and depending on the result Azure will either relax or tense up right after.  He tends to go about getting dressed, making something to eat, and then tries leaving his resting / living space cleaner than when he used it ; guy’s got a routine that he keeps to for the most part in most iterations. 

8 )  how do they sleep ? in what position ?

   In the typical cat-like fashion, his position tends to change as time passes and they can get pretty ridiculous.  He usually starts out on his back, but has a bad habit of rolling over a lot, accidentally kicks people out of the bed if Azure isn’t cuddled up to them, and scratches up walls or furniture when he stretches out. 

   He tends to be quite a light sleeper, most days ; but when there are times when he’s been pushed to his limit or has put serious strain on his powers and abilities, he sleeps like the dead.

9 )  what do their hands feel like ?

   His hands are freaking HUGE, and they’re used to getting into scuffles and fights and all-out brawls ; his paws are calloused and scratched up, but they are still capable of gentle gestures and tender grips. 

   tagged by :  @falsementor  /  @stcries​    tagging :  idk yoink it from me !!

[oukido]

You are the only one who doesn't dream.

And you don't know if Red has these nightmares because he has had nightmares and sleep issues since he was a child. If they are worse lately, you can't tell because nothing has changed.

But you do notice that you don't dream at all. You were prone to a lot of cerebral garbage at night, or brief haunts about driving, but nothing exceptional.

Which is why when this one comes to you, it stays.

You are sixteen, your feet sinking into the sand, and that smooth sensation of Cinnabar Beach swallowing your ankles as you look to the sky is real.

You remember the eruption in 2011. It was two years after you'd taken Viridian and made it yours. Cinnabar exploded, and you saw it from Daisy's porch. You and her were drinking tea. She was talking about the new person she was dating and you were making your typical somewhat protective assessments, but you couldn't find anything wrong with him.

And you remembered the ground groaning, and the rumble under your feet. Daisy spilled hot tea on her arm.

And you both turned to see the jet of black smoke and flame explode into the air.

You watch the same jet from the other side, the shores of Cinnabar, as the island is covered in ash.

The rolling black wave of smoke barrels towards you.

You watch the shapes of people as they are pulled under it, running, screaming, and it washes over you plunging you in darkness again.

And you feel cold, like the entire world has been ripped from you in one fell swoop. You've felt it before, holding on to that thing's claw.

You feel wet shapes rush past your ankles, and look down to see the distorted shapes of dead, boiling fish popping from the heat as they roll over your knees.

You feel yourself knocked over by the force of the blast this time.

Somehow... this is your fault.

Somehow... you know this is your fault.

You feel the dead start washing over you as you start clawing and trying to swim.

But you're being pulled under and something is smiling behind your face.

And you can wake up, because it lets you.

The memory is still fresh in his mind. It's one of those things he won't ever forget. Because how could he ever forget?

The sky dark, choked with ash and smoke. The way the ground shook, how the water flooded in from the shore. The buildings of Cinnabar were always visible on the horizon when you looked out across the ocean from Pallet, and its volcano towered even higher. And how it was all gone in an instant. Nature is terrifying like that, isn't it?

Green can almost, almost think this is just a regular nightmare. It wouldn't be his first time having a nightmare about that day. It wouldn't be the last, either.

But the chill that grips his bones tells him it isn't.

He hasn't been sleeping all that well. There's this persistent itch under his skin, a throbbing in the back of his skull, a burning behind his eyes. Red worried, because of course he did, and Green, in all his pride, tried to take on more than he could handle. Oh, did he try his damnedest but there were some things that were far beyond his ken. So vicious and brutal, and he knows vicious and brutal, but not like this. The things he handled were never evil. This was.

In this dream he tastes smoke, ash, chokes on filthy water and blood and rot, but it's nothing compared to that crushing, suffocating sense of guilt, the agony that buries itself in the marrow of his bones and just won't leave. He's drowning and he can't stop.

You know, he's never been a very good swimmer.

Maggot-infested eyes stare back at him beneath the depths. It's time to wake up.

Green jolts awake, sweaty and shaking, coughing on water that isn't there— probably just his own spit. He feels around wildly, blindly, his eyes still bleary from sleep, and his hand knocks against the familiar body next to him. Eevee is scampering up from the end of the bed to burrow into his neck.

He gasps a few times, letting his eyes adjust.

"Fuck."

[cafemilk-tea]

Sleeping In

❒ pairing - evelyn x mingyu

❒ word count - 1.0K

❒ synopsis - sleepy mornings with mevie

❒ warnings ⚠️- slight suggestive content. read at your own risk. MINORS DNI.

❒ 🏷️ @justmochi @ateezjuliet @itzy-eve @billboard-singer @cosmicwintr @kimhyejin3108 @cixrosie @enhacolor @allthings-fandoms

The morning sun had just started to filter in through the curtains by the time Evelyn had worked up enough energy to peel her eyes open, squinting as the harsh lighting flooded her vision instantly. Her eyes adjusted to the room after several rounds of constant blinking, catching herself drifting in and out of sleep a few times.

Rolling onto her back slightly, she lifted her phone up from the nightstand to check the time before putting it back down quickly. It was just past eight in the morning, her typical wake up time. It didn’t matter if the group was on a rest period or not, she was almost always guaranteed to wake up around the same time. These days it was a little harder to stay awake simply from the fact that her body was just tired.

She turned back over onto her side, using this quiet time to herself to admire the man sleeping next to her. The way his lips stuck out in a pout like they always do. The way he looked so relaxed with his face pressed to the pillow and breathing heavily out of his nose.

Evelyn reached a hand out and placed it against the side of Mingyu’s face, rubbing her thumb gently over his cheekbones. He looked so content, so peaceful, so happy to finally have a moment of just rest after their busy schedules.

Just as her eyes started to flutter close again, his arm draped across her waist, pulling her in a little closer causing her eyes to shoot open in surprise. She wasn’t expecting him to wake up so suddenly.

“How long have you been awake? What time is it?” Mingyu’s voice was deep in the morning, mumbling against the pillow. He hadn’t opened his eyes yet but she could tell he was soon to wake up.

“Not long, maybe five minutes ago and it’s almost eight-thirty,” She hummed, retracting her hand from his face, “You should go back to sleep, you need it.”

“I can’t when I have a pretty girl staring at me,” He smirked, finally cracking his eyes open to meet hers.

Evelyn’s face flushed at his comment, a smile forming on her lips. Mingyu’s hand moved up to her lower back, using his fingertips to draw circles on her skin. She shivered at the feeling, partly due to it being a little colder than when they had fallen asleep last night and the other being the fact that she was bare and his fingers were sending goosebumps all over her skin.

“How did you sleep last night?” He asked, using his palm to rub the rest of the sleep out of his eyes.

“Great. I won’t lie though, my ass is definitely still sore,” Evelyn snorted, turning her head into her pillow out of embarrassment, “I'd be surprised if there aren’t handprints.”

Mingyu barked out a laugh, tightening his hold on her waist and pulling her body flush against his. He pressed a kiss to her forehead before setting back down onto the pillow. Evelyn slipped her arms around his torso, snuggling into his neck.

“You were being naughty,” He trailed his hand down the curve of her spine, chills rushing through her body as he lightly grabbed at a cheek, “Teasing me while I was working out. Naughty girl.” He squeezed her cheek before bringing his hand down against her ass, only not as hard as the night before. Evelyn gasped at the sharp impact, the dull sting settling back in again.

“I couldn’t help it,” She smirked into his neck, nipping gently at the skin, “You were looking too good like that; all muscled up. The more I stood back and watched, the more I couldn’t wait any longer.”

Mingyu hummed at her words, smacking his hand down again before bringing it up to rest on her side, letting her work at his skin. She kissed at the newly formed bruise, loving how quickly she was able to do it in the first place.

“I’ll get you back, don’t worry,” She rested her cheek against his chest, his heartbeat keeping a steady rhythm.

“Oh yeah? How so,” He raised an eyebrow, curious for an answer. He tugged her up onto his chest, making space in between his legs for the rest of her body to slide in.

Evelyn giggled against her new position on his chest, drawing random shapes on his peck with her nail, “I guess you’re gonna have to find out one of these days.”

“Whatever you say,” He wrapped his arms around her, hugging their bodies together, pouting his lips at her when she lifted her head up from his chest, silently asking her for a kiss.

“We have morning breath, it’ll be gross.”

He continued to pout at her until she eventually caved and moved up his body, hovering over his face. She connected their lips quickly, pecking them a few times before she pressed a kiss to his cheek.

“You are so beautiful,” He smoothed his hands up and down her back. It’s almost been a full year since the two had gotten together, yet they make each other’s heart flutter every single time.

Her cheeks blushed at the compliment, moving to bury her head in the junction of his neck and shoulder. She was beginning to feel tired again and knew it was minutes before she would fall back into the world of dreamland. She shivered against his body, trapping her arms in between their bodies to keep them warm.

“Cold baby?” His voice was quiet, taking note of the shivering body against his own. A small hum left her mouth as she slipped in and out of consciousness, struggling to keep her eyes open.

With the awkward angle that he was in, Mingyu reached down for the comforter that had somehow fallen off of them and pulled it back over the both of them. His arms tightened around her body, locking in as much heat as possible. While he was naturally a warm body, Evelyn was the complete opposite and the slightest chill could make her teeth chatter.

He kissed the top of her head before resting his cheek in the same spot, “Sleep well Evie.” The two fell back into comfortable silence as they drifted back off to sleep in each other’s arms.