#and then you get woken up and try to Leave and everyones calling you evil for it. like. bruh he has consistently been the victim of bullshi

[girlwiththegreenhat]

having just made it to KITT vs KARR i stand by my point that KARR has done nothing wrong ever in his life

[littlepolinlover]

I have started a new fic for Polin. Not even the one I intended to start. I have absolutely no idea of what it’s about or where it’s going, but it’s going.

It’s modern AU set sometime after Colin and Penelope are married. Colin is a singer and she writes for a fashion magazine called Lady Whistledown (original, I know 🤪). I’m almost certain I’m gonna fuck it up and do some damage before making it all good again cause that’s how I’m feeling rn, but when it’s ready to be posted— I’ll post it in full on ao3.

“Ladies, do you mind if I borrow my darling wife for a few moments?”

“Colin if you try to shag her in the toilet while we’re still here– I will make sure you never have the children I know you’re aiming for.” Eloise threatens him, and he rolls his eyes at her, and reaches for Pen’s hand. She sets her glass of wine down and takes his hand and lets him lead her to their bedroom.

His lips descended upon hers as soon as she closed the door behind them. He spun them around so he could press her up against the door. She let out a tiny moan as his hand started to run up her thigh– stopping when her hand reached out for his. As much as she would love to continue this, they had company.

“No, Pen– I haven't gotten to touch you all day.”

“You literally accosted me in the shower this morning,” she laughed, pushing at his wandering hand. They really couldn’t. They had company present. There was no way in hell she was allowing that to happen. He could wait until everyone had gone home.

“And you made me late for my meeting, and the boys were giving me shit for it.” Colin pointed out and she shook her head at him, reaching for his hand and tangling her fingers with his. He was correct, essentially– she did make him late, but he started it.

They had barely woken up when he pressed into her backside, pressing his morning wood into her. And she wasn’t wearing clothes, as they had fallen asleep after a rather adventurous round the previous night.

He pressed into her, and she wasn’t inclined to not have a very good morning. Then, they were in the shower, and she was trying to shower, but the erection pressed into her backside again as she washed her hair, his lips on her neck, and she spun around and dropped to her knees. It was his own fault he was late.

“It was only a few hours,” she pushed them away from the door. She turned to open it. “It couldn’t have been that hard.”

He grinned at her, his eyes darkening a moment as he took their clasped hand and pressed it against the front of his trousers. “Do you have an idea of how hard it was today?”

“Colin!” She yelped as she felt the hardness of him underneath her hand. She could feel him pulse in her hand, and then she heard laughter coming from the kitchen and she regretfully removed her hand from his person.

“Maybe I can help you out with that later.” She leaned up and pressed a quick kiss to his lips. “I need to get back out there.”

“You’re just gonna leave me like this?”

Her laughter is all he heard when the door opened and then closed with her leaving him in the bedroom alone. She was pure evil that one.

[killiansprincss]

Timeless - a new Captain Swan AU

Timeless: When Zelenas time portal works, Henry wakes up alone in Storybrooke and must travel to the Enchanted Forest to get his family back. Only once he gets there he quickly realises its not like the one in his book, theres no Evil Queen and his mother Emma wasn't put through a wardrobe, theres a poster inviting the entire kingdom to her engagement ball, to Hook. What will happen once Henry gets them to break this new curse and get their memories back?

For all the Swifites and those who love her music, every chapter in this will be based on a different Taylor Swift song! This fic has been so much fun to write and I truly hope you enjoy it as much as I do and let me know if you would like to be tagged when I post a new chapter!

Link to AO3

____

'Cause I believe that we were supposed to find this

So, even in a different life, you still would've been mine

We would've been timeless

Storybrooke circa 2013

It was a Thursday afternoon in Winter, for Henry that usually meant going to Central Park to go ice skating with some friends from school, and if he was lucky his mom would let him order a Pizza if he was home alone and get to the next level of his favourite video game. That was what life was meant to be like, for Henry Swan who lived with his single mother. Except that’s not who he was anymore. That was a false life. 

He wasn’t Henry Swan, he was Henry Mills who lived in a town filled with Storybook Characters. Henry’s grandparents were Snow White and Prince Charming, his other grandfather was Rumplestilskin, his adoptive mother was the Evil queen, and his biological mother was something called ‘The Saviour’. And as crazy as it was, he wouldn’t have it any other way.

Except from just having woken up from the false life, he quickly realised he wouldn’t be able to just settle back into his similar routine as before, because his aunt was planning on enacting another curse to give her a happy ending by re-doing her life. Whilst he was confident that his family would win this and it wouldn’t happen, a part of him did wonder if she succeeded and had a redo on her life- what would happen to the town?

 He wanted to go with them, help save the Town, but of course he was told “you’re too young” or “you could get hurt” so he was left at the hospital with zero responsibility trying to console his grandma who had just had her baby taken away from her.  A baby that was his uncle, another strange quirk about this life.

He walks over to the vending machine to get a soda when the lights start to flicker. He rolls his eyes, thinking it just means the magic is acting up, his family is busy saving the day without him, as usual. He puts 2 quarters in the machine and presses B6, giving him a Mountain Dew, so he grabs it and takes a sip when the lights start to flicker again. He rolls his eyes again and walks back to the room where his grandma is crying. 

The lights in the room flicker more and more until the bulbs burst completely. Snow screams and Henry ducks under the table, he looks out the window and sees an orange fog coming towards them rapidly. 

“The curse! It’s here!” Leroy shouts from outside, Snow begins to cry more and more. 

No. Surely no. They failed? But heroes always win.

Everyone in the hospital is either crying or screaming. 

What was going to happen?

__________

Opening his eyes, and slowly regaining his senses, Henry can hear the soft hum coming from the heaters in the hospital. He opens his eyes fully and realises he’d been knocked to the ground and his head was thumping hard.

As he got up, he looked around and there was no sign of his grandma. He walks out of the room and into the hospital corridor and again, nobody was there. He takes his cell out of his pocket and dials his mom,

“Hey it’s Emma, leave a message.”

He tries his other mom. It rings and rings, and then nothing. 

He tries his grandpa even.

“The number you have called is currently unavailable.”

Where was everyone?

“Hello? Hello?” He calls out, but nobody is around. 

Henry walks around for a while until he comes to the conclusion that he is in fact, alone in Storybrooke. Whilst some teenagers would find this heaven on earth, being surrounded by no adults, free to do what he likes, Henry had a very different reaction.

Zelena’s time portal. 

The orange smoke.

The curse. 

It’s all coming back. His family somehow failed and now they were gone. No they couldn’t be gone, Henry was still here, his existence would be wiped out if they weren’t still out there. 

________

________

The Enchanted Forest (sort of)

‘Queen Snow and King David invite all the kingdom of Misthaven to the ball this coming Saturday to celebrate the engagement of their daughter, Princess Emma, to Captain Killian Jones’

The invitation was sent to everybody in their kingdom, whether they were noble or not. There were banners and posters all over the kingdom announcing the engagement. The story of Snow White and her Prince Charming was beloved by the kingdom and showed that even a commoner can marry royalty, including their daughter.

“I’m so excited!”

“Princess Emma is going to make a beautiful bride!”

“I heard he was pirate! A pirate marrying a princess! Can you believe it?” 

The kingdom was so excited, not many kingdoms allow commoners to attend the balls, only royalty or noblemen and women. The kingdom loved the royal family, and always wondered who would win the heart of the crown princess and it ended up being a pirate, which the kingdom did not see coming. Their wedding was just a few months away and the ball was the chance to see the happy couple together before the wedding.

____

In the Western Kingdom of the Enchanted Forest

“My dear Zelena, your magic has come so far. I believe you’re almost ready.” Queen Cora tells her daughter.

Princess Zelena had been training with the Dark One for years now, he was the most equipped in Dark Magic and had taught her mother when she was first married to Zelena step father.

“Rumplestilskin says I’ll be powerful enough to cast his curse any day now.” Zelena had a perfect life, a mother who loved her and believed in her power, and a mentor who trusted her with his life’s mission, and saw great things in her future.

_____

 Many years ago…. 

Being a pregnant woman who was unmarried was an awful fate. Especially for a miller's daughter who would amount to nothing in life.

‘Prince’ Jonathan. His child. When she didn’t bleed for a month she knew what that meant. It was his baby, but he was no more royalty than she was. What hope was there for her and her child?

But then fate showed her another way. Prince Leopold and his fiancée Eva. The girl was much younger than she was, and Cora thought she would be a bratty young girl. She was so wrong. Cora had never met a kinder soul.

Leopold found her on the road after Jonathan had abandoned her and took her into his castle. She was weak, and they nursed her back to health.

“Are you all right?” Eva stayed at her bedside while she regained her strength. 

“I-I think so. I can’t thank you enough for your kindness.” 

Eva smiles at Cora. “The healers say you’re with child. What is that like? I can’t wait until the day I get to be a mother.”

The girl was so young, Cora couldn’t imagine her being a mother. But then again, she was a princess, and a soon to be husband who would support her. “It’s exciting that there is life growing inside of me, but it’s also scary. I am doing this on my own and I have no idea how I will be able to support myself or my child.” 

“I have a cousin who is King in the Western Kingdom of Ashbourne. His daughter is a mere 13 but she needs a lady in waiting that will sort her out so she does not turn into such a young madam. They pay well and will help you with your pregnancy, and after you give birth, will be able to see your baby all the time. I will tell them you were engaged to a nobleman who died in battle, you will not be judged for being unmarried and they will care for you.” 

Cora couldn’t believe her ears. This princess, she didn’t know her or her story, why was she so eager to help? “Why me?”

“My mother taught me to be kind to everyone. When Leopold said he found you on the road and in pain, my heart soared.” 

__

And so Cora, no longer the miller's daughter, became a lady in waiting for Princess Charlotte.

Lady Cora. 

7 months later she gave birth to a baby girl. Zelena. The name of a goddess. And she was going to treat her like the goddess she was. 

Princess Charlotte was a handful. A brat at times but she was kind and had a huge heart. There was also the fact her older brother Henry would often come keep an eye on her.

Of course, the King would never accept his daughter's  lady in waiting to marry his son. Whilst Henry was only third in line for the throne, his father only wanted the best for his children in marriage. There was also the fact she was a mother already, the worry would she be able to give Henry a legitimate child of his own?

And so Cora told them a lie. She told them she could spin straw into gold and that is where she met the infamous Rumplestiltskin.

[lunarsun12]

Renjun Vs Haechan Part 1/5

Masterlist

Next Part

It has been a month, Haechan has been super clingy to Renjun. He always hugs him and calling him his ‘bestie’ which Renjun strongly denies but this time Haechan has took it too far. Renjun has woken up to Haechan hugging him, which Renjun gave a scream and kicked Haechan off his bed.

Haechan claimed, Renjun and him fell asleep watching a movie but Renjun knows well. He didn’t even hang out with Haechan. Which lead to huge commotion outside of Renjun room later on in the evening.

Renjun has decided to take matters in his own hand and he decided to form alliance with a certain someone.

Will Renjun be successful, who dared to confront Haechan?

Outside Renjun’s Room

Haechan: *laughs* WOW! You tried to take revenge on me! Nice try! I am literally untouchable!

Renjun: Just you wait! You will regret, that you will ever cross me!!

Haechan: *copies Renjun* You will regret it! Bahahahah

Haechan: Accept we are bestie and I will leave you alone

Renjun: NO WAY! I knew you stole my perfumes and blamed it on Chenle!!

Haechan: It wasn’t me, but I really love that wood toned! It’s so refreshing

After that statements, Haechan left an angry Renjun.

Renjun: Just you wait! I will make you regret it, that you ever messed with me!!

Renjun: I will create a chat, all of hyuck’s victims in the family! They will definitely understand the pain

Renjun Created Chat:

Hyuck’s Victims

Today 22:00

Renjun🌱: Hello, everyone! Apologise for the sudden creation of this chat but this is an emergency!!

Jisung🚀: I’m right here Renjun? Why am I here?

Xiaojun🦖: I saw hyuck in the chat name. I am scared…

Taeil🌙: I hope, he doesn’t try to put itching powder in my bed

Renjun🌱: I’ll explain soon, we need to wait for one more person

Renjun🌱: Why is he always so late, to everything!!

Hendery🦄: Sorry, I’m late! Was busy practicing my magic trick!

Xiaojun🦖: Again? Did Appa banned you doing magic indoors

Hendery🦄: You didn’t see anything!!

Taeil🌙: Hendery can speak? Like a normal person?

Xiaojun🦖: Wait a second, why are you speaking normally and not usually werid language

Hendery🦄: Renjun, said I have to talk normally to seek justice. For winwin!!

Renjun🌱: Right on cue, I gather you all today. To discuss an important matters. Regarding someone called hyuck!! My brother….

Renjun🌱: Time to put an end to Hyuck’s tyrant to us

Jisung🚀: Hyuck, hasn’t done anything to me only to Lele…

Renjun🌱: Jisung, you here for reason! Okay! Let me finish explaining!!

Renjun🌱: I am forming this group, to plan a big revenge on Hyuck. That will teach him to ever cross me again!!

Taeil🌙: That sounds wrong, he is only a kid!!

Xiaojun🦖: R-revenge on hyuck…yo Renjun…you shouldn’t do that. This will make our lives into hell

Hendery🦄: I heard from yangyang he tried to play prank on hyuck. Boom, instantly find himself next day locked out in his room in his underwear

Hendery🦄: Hyuck, shouldn’t be messed with

Renjun🌱: That why Jisung is here! He is the key to help us!

Jisung🚀: Me?

Renjun🌱: We can get Jisung, to say hyuck has formed a gang. To bully Jisung and all of you need to be the alibi

Jisung🚀: That is lying! Hyuckie will be sad!!

Taeil🌙: I’m out, bullying a child is darn wrong!! Good luck getting revenge in hyuck!

Xiaojun🦖: I can’t deal with another person after me. I am out, this territory is way to scary

Hendery🦄: I’m already on hyuck’s black list. I don’t wanna disturb him more…

Renjun🌱: C’mon you guys gotta help me! Pleaseee! I just need to teach hyuck a lesson!!

Renjun🌱: Hello guys??

After, everyone left the the chat. Renjun has no choice but to ask the second most evil person, hoping he doesn’t have to bargain with that person. He decided to text that person the next day for help. Hoping it will be smooth sailing

The next day…

Renjun and YangYang Private Chat

Renjun🌱: I can’t believe, I am asking you this!

YangYang🐑: What is it? This is new you are texting me voluntarily

Renjun🌱: I need your help, do you want get revenge on Hyuck?

YangYang🐑: Is that even a question?? Of course I will! I have been waiting for this moment

Renjun🌱: Finally, someone who isn’t afraid of Hyuck!!

YangYang🐑: Is it coming from you bro! I got the courage all I need!! You are so cool!

Renjun🌱: Thanks? Do you have any idea or something you got against hyuck. We can use against…

YangYang🐑: Hmmm, he got lot of enemies but recently I heard he pretending to be nice to Jisung. So he can pull the biggest prank yet!!

Renjun🌱: I knew him being nice to Jisung! Was strange, hyuck never be nice to someone for no reason!

Renjun🌱: How did you found out? You two practically hate eachother

YangYang🐑: I have my ways, I also heard he sleeps with stuff bear. He calls it Honey.

Renjun🌱: Wow, he made fun of Jisung for having his action figure this is funny but we need to figure out what prank he is gonna play. So we can get Jisung to snitch to Eomma

YangYang🐑: I know the perfect person who we can come too

Renjun🌱: That’s it?

YangYang🐑: Yeah…of course this our only option

Renjun🌱: No bargaining? Or asking for something in return??

YangYang🐑: Bro! It’s you! How can I ever bargain with you. You are my idol also please sign this…I want your autograph

[8-rae-rae-8]

To Save A Life - Ch.8

Graves x Roach

No criticism please

Tags under the cut

5.4k Words

[also on AO3!]

Hurt/Comfort, Canon Typical Violence, Roach has trouble talking, Graves knows how to save a life (shocking), Roach x Graves, takes place in 09, Task Force 141 as Family (Call of Duty), Author Has Never Played Call Of Duty, Quite a few people are dead already, I'm not killing them, preshadow company, Graves doesn't have his shadows yet, Young Philip Graves, Young Gary Roach Sanderson, Past Simon "Ghost" Riley/Gary "Roach" Sanderson, (that is only potentially I haven't decided yet), Graves is considerate and kind??, Coma, it's inaccurate though, Pre-Graves being evil, inaccurate coma, slow burn, disabled character, suicidal thoughts, references to depression, guns, shooting, dead characters, [Some may be added or changed]

[start]

Everyone was woken at the crack of dawn, though Roach had already been awake. They had to get the team to safety, that was the plan. The details were boring, especially for his own tired ears.

Graves' morning voice kept Roach entertained, with small coughs or grumbles occasionally. The tired, complaining sounds amused him more than they should have. Though, he could hear the occasional chuckle from Graves' team.

There was a single clap, which got the room quiet.

“We’re shadows, We're brothers. A family. Roach is our new guy, you will treat him like one of your own.”

None of the Shadows fought Graves on it, because it fit what they were doing. Of course the shadows would pester Graves over the fact that he'd taken a liking to Roach.

“Good. We're calling Roach our newest member then.” Graves declared. Quickly met with a few annoyed men. Unintelligible words around the room. All he could hear from a room off the back of the larger room was Graves' loud whistle to get their attention.

“It wasn't up for fucking debate! Now get your shit ready, we're leaving in 2 hours.” Graves left the shadows to it. From what Roach could hear, a few followed Graves, but were dismissed as soon as they walked up. It was quickly apparent that there was no option for failure today.

The steps of boots entered the room, followed by a sigh.

“Moving bases would be easier if you could hold your own, y'know?” Concerned exhaustion lacing the american’s voice. Graves was trying to poke fun, to lighten his own mood.

His eyes flickered open, making Graves stutter briefly. Apparently, he'd been under the impression Roach had been asleep. The best way to tease him, Roach decided, would be to roll his eyes in return. Giving just the smallest huff he could possibly muster to add to his playful annoyance. He immediately regretted it. Though, the small smirk on Graves' face made it felt worth it.

“You're exciting to be around.” Graves said sarcastically. With warning, he checked out Roach's wounds and redressed any that had opened. A hospital should be taking care of him, unfortunately it wasn't a luxury they had at the time. Graves took a liking to Roach, which meant he wouldn't leave him on his own. No man left behind. He'd deemed Roach one of his own quite quickly.

Graves must have seen something in him. There was potential, but not as much as before. Before, Roach never would have considered even being around this group. Now, everything was different. To his knowledge, his team was gone. And he'e been taken under these Shadows’ wings. Treated and cared for like their own.

It gave a familiar warm feeling, being part of a family. In a different way. These shadows seemed slightly more murderous than the 141, but these were certainly special circumstances. Why Graves was so persistent about keeping Roach alive, he didn't know. That didn't change how nice it felt to be cared for. He hoped it was care, rather than possessiveness.

He sucked in a breath when a tender piece of flesh was poked, eyes reflexively closing. His side. Graves must have been patching him back up there.

“It's okay, breathe.” The american encouraged. It wasn't exactly comforting. Still, it helped enough for him to draw in a breath.

There was a gentle pat to a less painful part of the skin, above the wound. Meant to try to wake Roach, or he assumed. Maybe Graves was just playing around.

“Move your hand for me, soldier.” Graves requested, in a gentle but firm tone.

His fist clenched once again, before loosening. He wiggled his fingers ever so slightly to show slight improvement. The pull of the skin didn't hurt the same as he had gotten used to the small movements.

He had past the typical time for the burns to heal over, but Roach had sustained a bit more problems than most. It stunted his healing, but not too bad. These next two weeks would likely be most important as his body would, hopefully, get movement flowing again.

“Can ya move your other one?” Graves asked, looking over to his other side. He quickly noticed the movements were in sync. Roach was, at least, able to move his hands.

“Try your feet.”

The scarring ended around his ankles, protected by the heavy duty leather. though his toes had some thermal burns from the heat in the steel toed parts of the shoes. Of course now the shoes weren't a problem, since he hadn't been able to get normal clothes, stuck in a hospital gown still.

Slowly, he managed to move his toes. But only that so far.

“You're doing great, soldier… You'll be on your feet in no time.” The american spoke, excitement lacing the words. Roach took that as meaning Graves was excited to have him around, excited to see him heal.

Of course he was excited too. He wanted to be able to do things. Graves' words weren't the same kind of encouragement that his captain had given, it was almost better coming from someone he didn't know. Almost. Roach still missed his team. His captain, his friends.

“We've gotta get you up,” Graves' boots shuffled against the floor, a small sigh coming from the man. From the look on his face, Roach could tell what that meant. Rather than carrying him on the stretcher, they'd be trying to get him to be able to hold himself up. To regain his abilities.

“I know it's not a good time, but we don't have the time to spare.” Oh, he must have been making a face without realizing.

Graves leaned away for a moment, crouched down. All he could hear was a zipper, then some fabric being put down near him. Clothes perhaps, or maybe more bandaging supplies. Deep partial thickness burns would need the redressings. Was Graves actually going to do that for him? Act as a nurse?

For some reason, that made his stomach churn. Graves helping him like this wasn't something he expected in the slightest. It wasn't something he wanted either. Roach wanted to help himself, though he could accept that he needed help.

“Gunna redress the burns, mkay?” That's what he assumed. Roach gave the closest to a hum that he could, a shaky exhale instead. Graves took that as an okay.

Though, his fists bunched up and he noticeably tensed, he still agreed with this. It was what they needed to do, for Roach to get better and for them all to get to safety.

“I don't have stuff for the pain, you're just gonna have to breathe.” Graves erred on the side of caution while sharing that, clear by his tone.

It wasn't much of a problem for Roach, he'd been through more with less pain management. He thought it was kind that Graves even thought about giving him medication, even though he probably wouldn't have been able to take it anyways.

Redressing the wounds was a tedious process. Graves didn't have to be as careful as he was. The hospital gown was removed with minimal struggle.

There were small blisters along parts of his skin, around his armpits, his collarbones and near his ribs. Roach watched as Graves' eyes softened by looking over Roach's body. It was clear he hadn't seen damage like this before.

“You're lucky I have a little medical training.” The american commented once while he pulled on gloves to keep as many germs away as he could. Something about the delicate care made Roach feel warm. Settling those nerves in his stomach.

He rolled his eyes slightly when Graves said that. A little medical training was at least better than none, Roach assumed. And if it made Graves keep being gentle, he'd take it.

Graves certainly was gentle. At every step, he was soft and gentle. Caring for Roach like a close friend, even though they were hardly friends.

Roach's skin was coated with what he could only assume was antibacterial gel, or just something to soothe the irritated skin. Either way, it stung at first before it went away. The blisters were left alone, while the rest of the scarred skin was being treated.

A particularly painful spot was touched, a light pressure. It sent shocks through his system, making Roach gasp slightly. His jaw ached as he moved, skin pulling. He hadn't moved much in weeks, it hurt. But it didn't hurt as bad as he expected. Sore, as an unmoved joint would be. And the tug of the skin burned ever so slightly.

There was a hand suddenly near his face, the warmth a comfortable sense of familiarity. He blinked, clearing his vision.

“Your jaw is all tight, keep moving it.” It was gentle instruction, not an order. Still, he felt inclined to do as instructed.

There was occasional encouragement as Graves continued to soothe and redress the burns. There were a few around his arms and legs that needed bandaging, while other burns were healing perfectly or completely healed already. It was the deep burns that needed the redressing. Each wound was cared for, as much as they could be with minimal medical supplies.

“I'm going to move you, okay? I'm gonna sit you up.” Oh how he dreaded hearing that. He knew it would hurt. Not just because of the burns, nor the pained joints, but because he was embarrassed he couldn't do it himself.

“No shame, I've gotta get you up to see your back. If it's not too bad, you'll be getting an actual change of clothes.” Graves informed him. That was actually a good thing, exciting, even. He'd be lying if he said the hospital gown was comfortable.

Reluctantly, Roach agreed. Taking a breath through his nose. The room smelled like disinfectants, he noted a similar scent on himself. From the antibacterial serum on his burns, probably.

“Good, soldier, keep breathing.” Graves firmly encouraged, his hand slowly pressing against the back of Roach's neck. Goosebumps rose under his touch.

His eyes closed tightly as he was slowly, and gently, lifted up. Suddenly getting tense when he was almost fully sitting. He couldn't keep going. The skin felt as though it was being split apart by a burning blade.

“You will keep going,” Graves ordered as he noted Roach's reactions. They had to keep going, there was no choice. “Just breathe, Roach.” He added.

And Roach did his best, though it all hurt. Sending little shocks through his veins. It was nowhere near the pain of the fire, yet it felt like it all over again. The scars weren't so bad looking on his back, but that didn't mean it didn't hurt worse. It hurt a lot worse.

His jaw ached as he forced it open.

“No..!” Roach rasped out. His voice was utterly destroyed. It was hard to tell he even had an accent in the first place. He sounded like a wounded animal. This was the first word he'd spoken since he'd been recovered from Shepard's cruel betrayal. The first thing he had the strength to say. There were quick gasps of breaths as he was supported in the sitting up position.

Graves' mouth hung open, both in disbelief and quick worry. He didn't want Roach to hurt, clearly. Though he didn't move, frozen in his place.

“I'm sorry, we need to get you up… keep breathing.” Was what Graves decided to say. It didn't help. It didn't help, not at all. Roach felt constricted, his throat burning as he tried to breathe through his mouth. It was uncomfortable, and harshly painful. There was nothing to compare the pain to. Nothing even similar.

Graves' silence was painful. He held Roach up with a steady hand on his upper back, where there were no burns.

“You need water.” He suddenly decided. It was uncomfortable to watch Graves twist around, while holding Roach still, just to grab him a water bottle. The water wouldn't fix his problems, it may ease them. That's what Graves was going for. If he could, he would take all his soldiers’ pain away. Unfortunately, that wasn't an option, so he settled for less.

“No…” Roach repeated, lip trembling ever so slightly. It sounded like he was trying to speak through a shredder. Like his vocal cords had been cut into as much as possible without severing them. He hardly was able to make a sound, but he was trying.

“It wasn't up for debate, soldier.” Graves was firm with him on this, loud to make sure Roach knew this wasn't an option. He twisted the cap off the bottle of water, while still holding up Roach by his upper back.

His eyes closed as he shuddered, wracking in breaths. There was a cool plastic bottle at his lips. His mouth felt so dry. From literal weeks of not consuming water through his mouth, because he had an IV in the hospital. That luxury wasn't there anymore.

“Drink, slow and steady.” He was ordered. Something about the firm tone helped to ground him, it gave him something to focus on that wasn't the agony his body felt.

Slowly, the bottle was tipped to his slightly parted lips. The rush of cold water made him shudder. Through pain, he let the water drip down his throat. Unable to swallow it just yet. It would come in time, surely.

“Atta boy…” Graves praised him. And it felt good. Good to be encouraged in such a way. He could do it, it was just hard. Incredibly hard. His body wasn't ready to take the step of completely swallowing on his own. He had already been rushed through parts of ‘healing’ today. Even said his first few words since the betrayal…

It was progress, not exactly wanted, but progress nonetheless.

When Graves pulled the water bottle back, Roach sucked in some breaths. Throat coated in the cold liquid, helping, for just a moment. Enough for relief. He believed that was as much relief as he would get for now.

“Did it help?” It was a gentle question, worry lacing the american’s words.

Roach gave a few blinks in response, as a yes. These small things felt so exhausting. The ache spread throughout his body, from not moving and from the tug of the skin by his burns.

“Stay awake, soldier.” Graves spoke in the equally gentle, but firm tone. The hand on Roach's back moved slightly, thumb brushing against the skin there. He was lucky enough to not have bad burns on his back, and parts where the skin was still pristine.

It was hardly enough encouragement to keep his eyes open. Slowly, and carefully, he was laid back down.

“I'm gonna redress you, but you need to stay awake.”

He was already trying as best as he could, his eyes following Graves' every movement. The hand on his back slowly being removed. He checked the scarring once more before he stepped away from Roach.

For a moment, he felt cold again. The warmth of Graves at his side slowly faded. His mind wandered as the room remained quiet for a few minutes. Had Graves left again? Did he lie about helping?

Then there was a small sigh of frustration, Roach heard it from the center of the room. He settled again, blinks taking longer amounts of time. Tired, so tired. Sleep was so so close. But being alone, it didn't settle his mind. Unaware of the rising tension in his body.

The steps got close again as there were clothes being unfolded. A hand touched the back of his head, and slowly lifted. There was something being spoken, that Roach couldn't fully comprehend. A sinking feeling in his stomach. Unable to hear what Graves was saying, he saw his lips moving but Roach only heard a humming.

“-oach, hey! Roach?? Come on, man, look at me!” It was quick, hurried words spilling from the american’s lips.

Had he stopped focusing? His chest felt tight, his head cradled in rough hands. Roach's chapped lips slowly parted. Body tense, rigid as if he froze.

“Come on. Look back at me, you keep zoning out… breathe in.” Graves instructed, those blue eyes peering into his brown ones. His hands remained softly holding Roach's head, fingers in his wavy hair. In a way, the touch was unsettling yet soothing.

With shuddering breaths, he took deeper and deeper breaths. It loosened the knot in his stomach. Graves continued to instruct him, giving Roach something to focus on. Stern but compassionate. The tone made his chest ache, his heart. It was so close to the way he'd been spoken to by the 141 men, by Ghost.

He let his eyes slip closed, to the gentle words Graves spoke. Though, Roach wasn't hearing Graves at all. It wasn't his voice, though it was his words. All in his head, no doubt. He heard Ghost's voice, his low accent etched with concern. The relief of sleep wasn't far away. It was so close… almost there-

“Roach!” The voice was back to that sharp american accent. Back to Graves. In a way, Roach was deeply upset by this. But he didn't have the time to dwell on who he'd rather be with. The answer would always be Ghost, and the rest of the 141. He wanted to dwell. For the team's voices to fill his ears again. Gentle voices, he missed their welcoming warmth. Sure, Graves had that southern charm that made everything feel welcomed. But it wasn't home. It wasn't his home.

The sound of Ghost's voice faded completely from him. Leaving a chill through his body. This was the worst time to deal with such a problem. There was no telling if they were still safe, if their position was known by the awful general Shepard.

His vision slowly came back into focus, as he realized a shirt had been pulled over his torso. Graves had even managed to put his arms. Good quality, deep brown t-shirt. Somehow, it didn't ache. Maybe it was because he felt so floaty. Not fully there. Roach didn't want to be there now. It all felt heavy, and not because of the new fabric over his torso, or the constricting feeling of his chest. But because he was without the people he knew he trusted.

Sure, he had his reasons to trust Graves, lots of reasons. His care, his protection, his gentle assistance. But it wasn't his team. It wasn't his team, or his friends, but he couldn't stop himself relaxing just slightly as he was guided back into calm breaths and clear vision.

“I gotcha, there. Look at me.” So gentle it was almost frightening.

Roach put all his effort into keeping his focus on Graves. Scanning his face with his eyes. The fresh scar on his cheek, the blond hair falling over his forehead, his chapped lips. He noticed how Graves would lick them every so often, to keep the dry feeling at bay. Roach would pester him about chapstick, if he could talk and if there weren't bigger issues at hand.

“Atta boy.” There were those words again. Said with the utmost sincerity, not mocking. Gentle, kind. Maybe a pinch of humor behind it.

“Next step is pants. You're fine with that?”

Oh Roach wished he could say no. Wished he could do it himself. He knew he was badly hurt, and very sore. There was no way he could do it himself. He could hardly move a muscle as is. Reluctantly, he gave a stiff hum. The best he could do. Moving his neck felt hard. Like he slept in the wrong position for days on end. Technically, he had. From the coma and all.

Graves was swift in making sure Roach was fully clothed. Made sure he was clean too. He hadn't quite understood why Graves helped. It wasn't guilt, or maybe it was. Roach only remembered after the fire, only remembered the slight talk on his radio as he went unconscious. Then Graves, his kindness as he helped him and got him onto american soil for better hospital care. Knew nothing about even the possibility of Graves' slight involvement.

It only took a few minutes to get Roach fully dressed, he even got slippers. Because actual shoes could harm the thin and burnt skin on his feet at the moment. It was better than nothing. In a way, it was refreshing. To be clothed and not feel exposed. In the slightest way, it was freeing.

“Looking much better there.” A gentle pat to his shoulder accompanied the american's words. It made Roach slightly tense before he went lax once more. He disliked the help, but he had accepted it, and now he felt much better. Physically.

His eyes moved to look at Graves, blinking softly as if to say thank you. To which Graves gave a nod.

“We're sitting you back up again. You need gear on, whether you like it or not.” Not gear. It was heavy, it would feel heavier against his unwell frame. It would rub against the burns. However, Roach got the impression it wasn't exactly a choice.

“We’ll find you a medic.. wherever we go.” Graves sighed. He seemed so genuinely caring over Roach's health. Something about it felt off, maybe it was the look of sympathy that Graves was displaying. Though, Graves seemed uncertain of where they'd be going in the first place. It added a knot to his already tied stomach.

“You'll be safe.” The american firmly spoke, practically sensing his fear. A hand was resting back on his neck, the warm touch was grounding.

With guided breaths and encouragement, and about three minutes time, Graves had Roach sitting up without his support. Perhaps due to the stiff joints holding him up and still. But he was doing it on his own. It didn't matter if it hurt, the joy overshadowed it.

“Goddamn, Roach, you got it.” Graves was impressed, taking a step back to look at Roach. To make sure he was stable.

His shoulders trembled slightly, but not much. With the anxiety of everything, that was likely to happen regardless. A heavy breath escaped him, though he didn't fall. There were small aches around his back and his sides as the skin pulled.

Graves gave a few claps as congratulations for Roach's effort. That, for some reason, made Roach crack a small smile. Lips upturned noticeably. He began to forget the panic he felt only minutes before, the knots loosening in his stomach with each breath.

“Hell yeah! Come on, let's see if we can get you standing now. We'll do gear from there.” It was all guided so smoothly. Roach could simply tell Graves had helped a lot of men in similar ways. Not perhaps burned, but definitely when recovering from battle wounds.

Warm hands and strong arms helped Roach to swing his legs over the side of the makeshift bed. Not the most comfortable thing. Somehow, being around Graves made it more bearable.

There was a small count down from three to one. Then he was standing. There was an audible pop as his knees settled. He shook slightly, as expected. Graves held him by his shoulders, giving the occasional look up and down to check his stability.

The movement was rough on his system. First flooded with dizziness, then waves of pain before it slowly subsided into something bearable. Walking wasn't something that could happen yet, Roach communicated that with unsure eyes and fearful glances.

Even in what could be a life or death situation, Graves didn't push.

“We'll use the stretcher to get you out then.” He decided, giving a small nod. It wasn't ideal, but it was their best solution. And best chance of keeping them all safe.

Slowly, Roach was helped to sit back down. Some of the ache fading away, only to be replaced by the heavy weight of gear being strapped onto him. A vest and a belt for a side arm so far, if Roach could move enough use it. For now it was a precaution. The vest sat uncomfortably on his chest. Graves seemed to pick up on it, and adjusted the straps on the shoulders.

It didn't feel as bad as it was slightly loosened, allowing a full breath. He got a closer look at the items. The gear was dark, but patchy, like it was hand dyed. Roach assumed it may have been. Perhaps to blend in better to the shadows. Like their name.

“There you go, soldier.” Graves said as he finished fixing the straps and tightness of the vest. Even though sometimes there would be no benefit to loose gear, it was better than nothing. In this situation, it was a plus.

Despite the weight of the gear, and the uncomfortable feeling of everything against the tender skin, it felt good. Good to be protected and in something relatively familiar. The side arm holster was a surprise though. In a way, it felt like the gear was protecting his fragile mental state. Protecting him from panic. He thought he'd feel the opposite way, but bare skin felt more constricting than the gear.

Roach let out a heavy breath, shoulders slowly dropping to a comfortable resting position. He felt better. Muscles loosened throughout his body, though his joints felt like they needed human WD-40 or a good scrub.

“That's it.” Graves said. There was his warm hand resting on the back of his neck again. Briefly, Roach allowed his eyes to close. Under the warmth, his neck felt loosened. Less sore.

Comfortable silence filled the small room. Simple sounds of breathing and the small whirr of the air circulation system.

It remained this way for a while, until there was a knock on the wall outside the room.

“Commander, you ready?” A voice spoke. Unfamiliar, but it carried the same welcoming tone that Graves had.

“Let's hit the road.” Came the enthusiastic response from Graves. Roach didn't want to have to leave this yet, but the hand was being pulled back and he was sitting by himself again.

A head poked out from the doorway, and they caught a glimpse of Roach. Uncertainty flushed over their face briefly.

“There's no room for the stretcher in the cars, sir.” Well, that was a predicament. Roach couldn’t walk to make it to the car himself, though that seemed like it wouldn’t be an issue with the way Graves was looking at him. Assuring him with a sympathetic look. They'd make it out, even with one or two men out of commission. It even appeared that Graves had helped through more rough stuff than that. Well, with his men. Not just in general. His hardened appearance was enough to solidify that idea.

There was a small grumble from the commander, no more than that and a wave to dismiss the shadow. Okay, maybe it all wouldn't be perfectly done. The determination remained in the american’s eyes. Graves focused his attention fully back to Roach.

Roach had looked away moments ago, in a slight attempt to give Graves and his shadow some privacy to talk. As if he couldn't hear everything. He had been paying attention too.

It took a few minutes to ease Roach back to his feet. He was yet to hold his weight fully, but Graves was there to help. Always, for some reason. He was sure he didn't need all that help, he still always got it. No matter what. It genuinely seemed like Graves had brought him into their team, the ‘family’ that the shadows were.

Without approval, Roach was sweeped off the floor. An oof sound bouncing off the walls of the small room, and a few minorly distressed breaths. The soft sound burned in his throat, spiraling him quickly into a coughing fit. His vocal cords ruined and pained, undoubtedly swollen on top of the pain.

Even while being literally held in his arms, Graves managed to grab the mostly full water bottle. There was a confused mumble of nonsense before Roach was sat back down on the bed. The coughs yet to subside, just adding to the rawness of his throat. His hands balled into firm fists, unable to keep his eyes from tearing up slightly. Coughing made his head jerk forward slightly as each cough strained his chest and throat for air.

This certainly had shocked the commander. He stood at Roach’s side with a water bottle to his lips at an instant.

“It’s okay,” Graves attempted to soothe, “Try to drink, water helps.” It hadn’t done a lot last time, but Roach was in no state to deny or complain. His chest heaving ever so slightly as he allowed the water to slip past his chapped lips. The water dripped back into his throat, unsure if he could even drink it normally. Swallowing felt purely like mini daggers along the full length of his throat. Water didn’t fix it like he wanted, but it did enough to pull the coughs to a minimum.

An apology was quickly given by the american, though Roach could hardly acknowledge it. The tiredness sunk back into his bones, deeply making itself present. This was a part of healing that Roach dreaded the most. The exhaustion of small tasks, or even no tasks. The day catching up with him although it only just started.

Unfortunately, there was no time to rest to make up for the exhaustion. No time.

Roach was lifted back into Graves’ arms. The shirt pressed under the gear rubbed against the sensitive skin, sending sparks to his chest. There was no option here to tell Graves of the problem. Bone tired and sore. Reasonably so, but it made his chest tighten ever so slightly. He just wanted to be better already.

They began walking, though it all began to blur in his head. Nothing coming to his mind, feeling quite blank. His body sloped against Graves while he was carried. He could feel the damaged skin chafing against the clothing at every point he was held by. Under the knees, his upper back. It was all sore. Blisters surely would appear in the next few hours if not a day. Either way, it was at the back of his mind. Not much surfaced. Between the pain, and the grounding touch Graves gave, his mind found a neutral ground. Where he wasn’t afraid, but the pain was keeping the floaty feeling at bay. Tenseness faded from him slowly as the movements stopped. Only to quickly tighten up again. It was quiet around. No one talking, no orders, no movement.

A loud whistle came from right behind him, Graves being the cause of the sound. From the few shadows he could see, they were quickly at attention. There didn't seem to be an issue, but Graves’ eyes were scanning their environment. No rustling, no wind, no steps of boots. And Graves looked suspicious of this.

“Everyone in their vehicles.” The commander spoke, low and cautious. The shadows did as ordered rather quickly, though Roach was then removed from the comfort of Graves’ arms. Away from the familiar warmth. His eyes swiftly scanned the shadow that grabbed him. A kind looking man, just not someone Roach cared to be around. Swiftly, all the shadows had gotten into their vehicles. Roach was even helped into one and buckled up. There was a brief moment of comfort. Sitting up in the backseat on his own, the scent of the clean leather filled his nose. A similar scent his captain’s desk chair had when it was freshly cleaned. It was a slice of home.

Broken from his thoughts, a loud scrape came from the exterior of the car. Then a few bumps. Caught up in the sounds, he didn't notice the figure sitting next to him. Eyes wide as he was trying to figure out the situation.

“Drive, Damnit!!” A loud order from a trusted voice. For just a moment, he believed it would all be okay. He believed they’d make it out (mostly) unscathed. There wasnt much to suggest otherwise, aside from whatever was the source of the metallic scrape. The bumping had an easy answer, Graves entering the car.

So, of course they’d be at least taken care of, if not safe. Right?

[end]

[jupote]

Chapter Two: Legend Creates A Time Paradox In The Name Of Arson

<- Chapter 1 Archive

It had been almost a week since being in Legends world. They were now in Skys Hyrule, in the Faron Woods to be exact. Sky said they were somewhere in the Deep Woods, which he thought was a very accurate name for where they were. The trees were tightly packed together and if it weren’t for Skys weirdly intimate understanding of the woods, they would’ve been ambushed a dozen times by now. 

Even though it had been some time since their fight, he and Wild were still on tense terms with each other, the lingering resentment from the argument carrying over even a week later. Legend felt terrible now that he's had time to calm down. They hadn't been particularly close to begin with but Legend knew he didn't want to leave the two of them on bad terms, especially not when Wild was their cook. Legend knew what he had to do to make it up to Wild and he knew how to execute it. Would he get in so much trouble for it? Oh absolutely; he would be surprised if Time or Twilight didn’t kill him on the spot for it. But would it be worth it to not be on Wild’s bad side? Of course.

“Hey Sky!” Legend called out to the skyward hero who was leading their group. Said hero slowed down, giving Legend a sleepy smile. Legend only felt slightly bad as he bothered him. He had been rudely woken up by the world switch, they all had been, but Sky needed the most sleep of the group. Along with being woken up, he was immediately forced to lead the group to a safer area, given that this land was his Hyrule. Luckily, the area they were in wasn’t too dangerous, just a hassle to navigate. Sky threw his arm over Legends shoulder, pulling the slightly shorter hero to his right side in a hug. That was something Legend would never get used to, how casually Sky was willing to give others affection. It was completely alien to most of them, aside from Wind and Time, who reveled in the free affection. 

It was no use trying to fight the affection, Sky was like a blob. Once he got his hands on you, it was impossible to get him off. Everyone has been a victim of Skys night time cuddles a handful of times, some even needing to be saved from the evil clutches of his warm hugs. Legend didn’t even try fighting to get out, knowing he’d need to use every act of camaraderie to get Sky to agree to what he wanted to do. “So Sky, this forest is pretty… forest-y, right? There’s trees and… and grass. And that’s some forest-y stuff if I’ve ever seen some.” He started.

Sky, the ever patient and calm person he is, nodded along. “Yeah, the deep woods are some of the best forests you’ll ever see. There’s a dragon in the Ancient Cistern, her name’s Faron, and she watches over Faron woods. Since the deep woods are close to her cistern she makes sure to keep the forest very foresty to keep it hidden. The first time I came down here I was overwhelmed by how green and lively everything was, nothing like Skyloft." He rambled, starting to lean on Legend as he started getting more fatigued. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, since this forest is so plant-y and so tree-y and there's a bushy-ness everywhere, why don't I help you make it less… green. Make it a little less dense?"

"And how do you suggest we do that?"

"Well, you see. In my world, we do this thing to help the forest. When it gets too dense and younger plants have trouble growing properly or monsters get too out of hand, we do a special… uh- ceremony to help lessen the planty-ness and tree-y-ness for the health of the forest."

"Oh? Does it really work?"

"It does! Apparently we've been doing it for centuries and the forests are completely healthy and new seedlings can easily find purchase anywhere!"

"You have to tell me what the ceremony is! I'm sure Faron would love to see the forest thriving and monster free!"

"Well, the ceremony is kind of dangerous. You have to make sure all animals get to a safe spot and set up safety precautions so the… ceremony doesn't get out of hand." Legend doesn't think he's fibbed this hard since his third adventure. Even then, you could hardly call what he did fibbing. Sky seemed to buy it though, he was completely immersed in this ceremony that Legend was offering.

"That should be easy. There's not a lot of animals down here aside from the Kikwi, but they'll happily move somewhere safe if we ask nicely. And for safety precautions then we could ask the others to-"

"No! I mean- we can't ask them to help! It's uh, it's customary for the- for the um…" Legend fumbled. Crap, I didn't think this far ahead!

Luckily he was saved when a voice popped up on Sky's left. "It's customary for the owner of the forest to entrust one or two people to the task. They have to meet every requirement and make sure the forest doesn't get destroyed. Isn't that right, Legend?"

Legend almost choked on his own spit as the voice of Four scared him pantless. (He never wore pants, but that's besides the point.) When did Four get there?! How long had Four been there?! He'd been there long enough to know what Legend was doing based on the look on his face. Legend would look into that later, he wouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth when the gift horse was three feet tall and giving him a mischievous glare. "Yes! How did you know Four? The owners' not even allowed to help, they have to trust the individuals to do a thorough job."

"I didn't know you knew about this ceremony Four! Is it really as effective as Legend says?"

"Incredibly so. The King let my grandfather do it once when he was younger and it was definitely interesting to watch."

"Really? Now you have to tell me Legend, I'll pass this information over to Faron and let her know that I'll gladly help."

Legend barely kept himself from tensing up as Sky volunteered to do it. Legend almost felt guilty for lying to their first ascendant but oh well. It couldn't be helped. "Oh uh, since you're friends with the owner of the forest then you can give permission for the ceremony! No need to bother such an important dragon for such a small ceremony!" 

Sky was deeply interested in the ceremony, no longer looking like he was about to fall over from exhaustion. He opened his mouth again, maybe to ask more questions but Legend beat him to it. "I'll tell you about the ceremony when we get to somewhere safe to camp, yeah? That way you can immediately assign someone or two to do it." And I don't have to worry that someone might eavesdrop and stop me. He wouldn't say that last part out loud as he looked at Four.

Four had the smuggest look Legend has ever seen on his tiny face. Sky nodded along, seemingly going along with the idea. He looked around for a few seconds before taking a sharp left turn, almost choking Legend as he turned with no warning. Legend let out an ugly squeak as he was ragdolled around against his will. "There's a little clearing over this way that the Kikwi Elder, Bucha, protects. We should be safe enough there for a camp."

"A little warning would've been nice, Sky," Legend growled and wrested his way out from under Sky's arm. The skyward hero laughed and loosened his hold, allowing his prisoner to escape.

"Sorry Legend, forgot I had you there. You're so comfortable to hold and didn't try getting out that I mistook you for a stuffed loftwing," he teased. Legend felt himself go red from embarrassment, looking away from Sky and he slowed his walking speed to be near Warrior. 

Warrior, the ever present thorn in his side, was quick to make fun of the shorter Link’s redness. "Did someone enjoy their cuddle time with Sky? If you wanted some cuddles you could've come to me, I've been told by the ladies that I'm extremely cuddly," the war hero teased. 

Legend choked on air and glared at him. “I am going to throttle you!” Despite his anger, Warrior only threw his head back with a hearty laugh, clearly unbothered by the threat.

It took until they were inside a hollowed out tree that they set up camp. A giant lump of grass and dirt sat outside the hole to the tree, which Sky started talking to. Legend didn’t want to question it. If Time could talk to a tree, Wild could talk to flowers and Four could talk to grass, Legend was willing to overlook Sky’s dirt friend. 

Even though it was still bright outside, Sky said he wanted to set up camp early and to give him some time to figure out where everything was. Legend was impressed by how fluidly the first of them lied.

As soon as he could, Sky dragged Legend to the outskirts of the camp, giving the shorter Link his attention. Four had seen them and ended up following them, the same smug look on his face as he noticed the predicament Legend had gotten himself into. 

“So about this ceremony you were telling me about earlier,” Sky started as soon as they were out of earshot from the others. 

“I see, i see…” sky hummed along thoughtfully. Legend could see the gears turning in his head, almost like he was trying to figure out what kind of ceremony it was. 

“Oh, right! The ceremony!”  With a grunt, Legend forcefully broke out of the near-chokehold Sky was slowly trapping him into. “Well, you have to be very careful with how you do it and how you go about doing this. The people you set for the job have to take extreme caution not to damage new parts of the forest or parts that are meant to be cleared up.”

“They also have to be vigilant and make sure the ceremony doesn't get out of hand,” Four helpfully added, adding fuel to both the metaphorical and physical fire. Legend nodded.

Legend and Four bounced off of each other as they elaborated, glorifying the ceremony and what it entailed. Just before Legend finally revealed what the ‘ceremony’ actually was, Sky cut him off. 

“You’re going to ask Wild to commit arson, aren’t you.” he didn't even ask. He stated it as if he knew what Legened wanted this whole time!

Legend stalled, caught in the line of fire as sky figured out his grand master plan. “Uh- no why- I wouldn't-! Where would- why would I ever-?!” He stuttered. He swallowed hard, trying to compose himself. The look from Sky- and Four’s uncontrollable laughter - were hardly helping his composure.

“Holy shit Legend! He figured it out faster than I thought he would!” Four howled, doubled over from the pure force of his laughter.

“H-hey! Shut up!” Legend hissed, cheeks red in embarrassment. He knew his plan wasn't the most thought out, but to think Sky was able figure out everything down to who he wanted to do it?! “Was it really that obvious?” Legend sulked, looking away from the sky and glaring at Four. 

“Not at first. When Four joined in and started backing you up is when I got a little suspicious,” sky did his stupidly patient smile at Legend. “Were you really going to ask me to let you burn an ancient forest, my ancient forest, and expect me not to say anything? Why would I ever agree to that, especially in front of everyone else?”

Legend looked around them, pointedly looking at how far away the rest of their group was. “But we’re not around everyone else?” he pointed out the obvious.

“Exactly. We’re not around everyone else. I'll buy you three hours, be quick. Im not getting caught in the crossfire and Im not taking the blame. I also expect half of every bet you win today.” Sky quickly and efficiently laid out his conditions. Four didn't even have time to calm himself down, the shortest link laughing so hard that sound wasnt coming out of him anymore. If Legend wasn't so shocked about everything he would've been worried that the smallest wasn't breathing. “Hey, Wild! Come over here!” Sky shouted, drawing over thee wildest hero. 

Wild perked up and seemed to automatically start moving before he noticed who was in the party. He grimaced but headed over anyway, shooting Legend a displeased look. “You need something, Sky?” He asked, standing as far away from Legend as possible. From the campsite, Legend noticed Hyrule peer over at their forming group. Thinking quickly, he waved Hyrule over before he could draw any extra unwanted attention their way.

“Oh no, I don't need anything,” Sky chirped cheerfully. “Legend and Four here do, though! Have fun you three!” And with that he was off, heading back to the main party. “Four,” he corrected, as Hyrule passed him at a jogging pace.

Legend and Wild awkwardly looked at each other, the tense air not being helped by Four’s desperate pants to catch his breath. “Dear Hylia, oh my Hylia, that was not real. I know that was not real,” he wheezed out. “Oh that- I needed that laugh, dear Hylia. Thank you for that Legend.”

“Shut up, Four!” Legend pleaded, embarrassment once again coating his face. 

Legend huffed and stood up from his place on the floor, cupping his hands to make his voice louder. “Sky! We’re going to get firewood! We’ll be back!” He yelled, motioning for Wild, Four and Hyrule to follow him. 

Wild looked on in uncomfortable confusion, gaze switching between the two links. “So uh, did you guys need anything, or…?” He asked, shifting his weight from foot to foot.

“What’s going on?” Hyrule asked, slowing to a stop. “What’d you call me over for?”

“Don't wander too far!” He faintly heard Sky yell back. 

“Hey wait-! We didn't agree to this!” Wild glared at Legend, stubbornly staying rooted in his spot. 

“Legend, at least tell us what you're doing,” Hyrule said with a frown and hesitantly followed his predecessor.

At Four’s insistence, Wild seemed to relax. At least if he and Legend broke into another fight, there'd be witnesses to prove he didn't start it. “Fine, but you better be quick. I want to make lunch before it gets too late in the day.”

“I'll tell you when we get there, don't worry. Quick, we’re losing time. We only have three hours.”

“Don't worry you two, you'll love it. Legend might get killed by Time and Twilight, but you'll love it.”

It was a short walk to the treeline of the forest, the thick greenery providing shade and cover from the rest of the party. That's where Wild stopped, stubbornly refusing to go any deeper. “This is as far as I'll go until you tell me what you're planning.” he glared at Legend. 

Four looked at Legend, looked at Wild, and seemed to burst as he put his fist to his mouth. Giggles could be heard around his hand, shoulders shaking with the suppressed laughter. 

“Is he ok?” Legend heard Hyrule whisper to Wild. 

“I’m- I’m ok, don’t-” a laugh snort spilled out from him. “Don’t worry-”

“Hyrule, do you have enough magic to cast spells now?” Legend interrupted.

Hyrule, while confused, nodded and cast a small flame spell. The flame flickered and danced at the end of his index finger. “I've had enough rest and potions, I’m fully recharged. Why?”

“Wild, you have your Slate on you, right?” Legend asked, ignoring Hyrule's question as he eyed the forest around them. They were not deep enough, the others would be able to quickly stop them if they started here.

“Yeah… I always do..” Wild shifted his body so the hip holding the Sheikah Slate was angled away from Legend.

“Do you have a flame weapon in there?”

Legend could see the moment their plan dawned on Hyrule. “Oh,,. Oh Legend don’t- Are we really going to…?” He asked, panic and disappointment in his voice. “Four, you know what he's planning right?!” He asked the smith, brows pinched in confusion. Four nodded in confirmation, a massive grin on his face. “Legend! How did you get Four to agree to this?! No, better question, how did you get Sky of all people to agree to this?!” 

“Hyrule, shush! Keep your voice down or they’ll hear us!” Legend hissed, looking over to see if the group had heard them. While they were far away, Legend wouldn't be surprised if the rancher had freakish hearing even in his Hylian form.

Wild, sick of being left out of the conversation, exploded. “Can someone please tell me what you're planning?! Legend drug us out to this forest with no explanation and I'm the only person here worried he's going to kill me!”

Four burst out laughing, unable to contain the sound any longer. 

“You’re worried that he’s going to what ?!” He howled.

“You’re worried that I’m going to what ?!” Hyrule and Legend both shouted at the same time.

Wild looked between the both of them, arms crossed in frustration. "First we had that fight a week ago then a week later he's dragging me into the woods with no explanation. I don't claim to be the smartest of the group, but I'm also not the dumbest."

"I'm not going to kill you," Legend sighed in exasperation. "I'm apologizing for starting that fight, not killing you. I got permission from Sky so don't worry about getting in trouble with him. And yes, I'll take the blame and the punishment Time and Twilight plan to dish out." 

The area was tensely quiet as he said that, Four gaining control of himself once the atmosphere turned serious. "You're… apologizing? By letting me burn Sky's forest?" Wild asked incredulously.

"Well, yeah. You don't have to, just thought you'd like to safely let out those pyromaniac urges. But if you don't want to, you can head back…"

"No!" Wild shouted, eyes wide with glee at the thought of causing fire damage. "I mean, I'll do it."

Legend nodded, glad he was at least willing to try and repair their relationship. "We have to go deeper in so we don't accidentally burn down this clearing but once we're far enough in you can go crazy. Sky said there weren't many animals living in this forest and monsters should be everywhere."

Wild started bouncing in glee, hand hovering over his slate to grab any fire weapon he could get his hands on. Hyrule awkwardly raised his hand, bringing attention to himself. "If you're apologizing to Wild, why are Four and I here?"

"He wouldn't leave me alone,” Legend shrugged, pointing a thumb over to Four.

"I needed to see how this shitshow went down,” Four grinned. “You should have seen him convincing Sky earlier, it was a complete mess. Plus it's not everyday you can help burn down a forest.”

“I thought you said you helped your grandfather when you were younger?” Legend asked, remembering what Four said earlier.

Four shot him a look. “I lied. Hello! I lied, you lied, we were lying ! You can just say you didn’t appreciate my help! I can take criticism. How would you rate my lying abilities on a scale of Wind to Time?”

Legend rolled his eyes at the smith, choosing not to comment on that. "And you're here,” he directed to Hyrule, “Because I thought you would want a hand in the damage. But just as I told Wild, you don't have to stay."

Hyrule similarly shot down that idea. "No! If Sky said you could then I'm more than willing to join in! I'm just confused on why you didn't ask Wind to join instead of me."

Legend looked at him as if the answer was obvious. "Winds a good kid but he would've ratted us out immediately. You at least would let us have fun before telling on us." As he explained he started walking deeper into the forest, waiting for the others to get the memo. 

The three of them followed Legend, Wild and Hyrule excitedly chattering about the best way to light a tree on fire. Legend looked around the area they were in, deciding they were deep enough. He turned around, opening his arms in a wide gesture. "We're here. Go wild, have fun.” 

“Hyrule! Come grab some kindling with me! No good fire starts without good kindling.” Four urged the traveling hero, grabbing his wrist and marching off to a random patch of trees. Just before he left, he turned to give Legend a look. A look that he could only assume meant that he needed to make a proper apology.

Legend internally sighed, knowing what he had to do. He turned around to look at Wild, finding that the Link was already looking at him. "I know this isn't the best apology, and nothing can take back what I said and did,” he started after a moment, when he was sure the other two wouldn’t overhear him. “I said some hurtful things I really should not have said, and that was wrong of me. I hope this can at least show that I'm sorry and that I want to try and fix our relationship, even if it's so we don't hate each other. We don't have to be buddy-buddy with each other, but I don't want us to act like strangers." He faintly heard the other two arguing over what was better, tree bark or dried leaves. He wasn't going to touch that argument: they were both wrong. Pine needles were obviously the best type of kindling. 

“Not going to join us? What, are you too old to participate in arson?”

Wild was quiet as Legend spoke, soaking the words in. “You’re right, you did say some shitty things. Things I would’ve never expected a teammate to use against one another,” he paused. “But I did do something stupid. You had every right to get mad at me and I should have accepted that.” He awkwardly kicked his foot, looking away from Legend. It was an awkward apology but at least they were talking about it. “I don’t forgive you yet, but please give me a few days. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to fully trust you but I think I can trust you enough.”

“That’s more than I expected. Thank you for being willing to try.” Legend smiled, glad they were able to reconcile, even if just a little bit. “Now, don’t you have a fire to start?” He teased, watching as Four and Hyrule made a pile of leaves, branches and what looked like bark.

Legend smirked, grabbing his firerod from his gear pouch. (A pouch that he hasn’t taken off for more than a few minutes at a time.) “Who said I wasn’t participating?”

–

Legend, Four, Wild, and Hyrule sat, covered in fresh soot and smelling of ash, in front of an enraged Time and Twilight. Sky, the mediator he was, was trying to calm the enraged adults while also keeping an eye on the pair keeping the fire at bay. The air reeked of burning wood, the smell so much more intense than an average campfire. Though that does make sense, given how much of the forest was still ablaze.

“Do you four have anything to say for yourselves?” Time asked, the harshest glare any of them have ever seen on his face.

Immediately three voices said, “It was Legends' idea!”

Time honed in on Legend, who was wearing a smug grin on his face. “Do you have anything to say for yourself, Hero of Legends?”

“Oh shit, he said the full name,” Wild murmured.

“Maybe we should just say sorry?” Hyrule asked Wild, who shook his head rapidly.

"Nope," Legend replied flatly, smugly refusing to say anything.

“You’ll be missed, Legend,” Four snickered with a sarcastic salute. Legend looked at Time and shrugged, setting his hands behind him and leaning against them. 

"'Nope'?! Legend, explain why half of the Deep Woods is burnt to a crisp! Why is Wild naked!? And Four, I thought you were supposed to be responsible!" Time's face was pinched in frustration as he scolded them all.

As Time was yelling, Legend leaned over to say something to the small group. "Ten rupees says I can get him to let us go," he whispered under the scolding they were given.

"Twenty says you can't," Four whispered back. The other two Links watched the conversation happen, both wondering who they should put their bets on. 

“Actually Time, I do have a reason,” Legend interrupted. “You remember a week or so ago when me and Wild got in that fight? Yeah, I wanted to make up for it.” Legend casually shrugged as if it didn’t admit to ruining an ancient forest for fun.

Times face softened slightly before hardening back into a glare. Everyone remembered that fight, it was one of the worst spats their team has experienced. “That doesn’t explain how you managed to rope Sky and Four into helping you!”

“Legend forced me to help him,” Four snitched instantly with a sidelong smirk at Legend.

Twilight let out an exhausted sigh, dragging a hand down his face as if that would get rid of the stress of the situation. “Awright, one of y’all best explain how this happened.”

“He promised the forest would be healthier.” Sky answered solemnly. Legend really had to applaud him, he was a flawless liar.

[userblaney]

do Not read this im just so disgustingly overstimulated im going to crash out

that was the worst fireworks display i have EVER seen and im so fucking overstimulated and my brother is actually the worst fucking cunt ive ever had the displeasure of meeting and some how I am the only bilingual among my siblings. which isnt saying anything because they straight up dont even fucking talk except for when they are playing dress to impress next to my head when i try to do my homework since i have to share a room with them at eighteen .and i havent gad a productive conversation with them in genuinely 3 years and my mum is blaming ME. for the traffic because i broight up the idea of going to the fireworks display in the first place wirh friends but my uncle wanted to tag along and i might snap in a bit because i have not been not in host mode for a month now. these are my blood relatives nothing is gonna happen if i speak english in front of them or if i wear jeans instead of a traditional dress oh my fuckkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk . i fucking hate my siblings ANDDDDDD MY SISTERS JUST COME INTO THE ROOM AND LEFT THE FUCKING DOOR OPEN AND WENT BACK DOWNSTAIRSSSSSS IM GOING TO THROW A BRICK AT HER HEAD. and i have so much fucking homework to do and i still need to write a cover letter because any "spare" (when im not in skl or outside. but im never outside bexause imnot fucking . ALLOWEDDDDDD) time that i have i have to be in the kitchen helping out because "that is my duty as a hostess" but my soblings havent lifted a FINGER and they are being praisdfor mediocrity. how the fuck do you want me to be a good student and a feminine person while treaatinf me like a fucking BITCH when i wear makeup and then also want me to ALWAYYYYYSSSSSS entertain my family and cook and clean for them AND my siblings . and you want me to get out of the jouse and get a job but you freak the fuck out when i actually attempt to do those things then you tell me i cant borrow money for a bus or taxi in the event where i actually do because i should have my own but you arent letting me and you keep all my bank statement and you read them and make me justify each purchase and. UGHHHHĤHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHi have a guy friend whos also bangladeshi brown and he said that he wouldnt wish being the eldest child And daughter in the bangla household on his worst enemy he was sooooo rigjt for that . and im not even a girl and the evil of jt . aka dysphoriais getting to me and eating me up but thats another issue . i fuvking hate my brother he doesnt attemp6 yo speak and my mum SCREAMED at me on the way home because i forgot the guy fawkes bullshit and i should tell my uncle the story of it in bangla but . idek it ib english . and then i told her that they arent mute . andthen shesaid . she doesnt expect them to know bangla they are too young . they are 14 and 10 or somthinf btw . at that age i had to take care of my siblings while we were home alone for weeks at a time and also take care of the house and cook for them because my parents were too busy having life threatening health problems or atte fing to those witj . that . and ive been sooòooooo nice about it . so nice about it . im nice to everyone even in school and online and at home but im literally going die and they are all calling me to eat the rice that . i made the Moment i got home from skl . along side the tea . wjen my fanily had just woken up and it was 12. and then they complain about the lack of time and MY laziness when i DARE to sleep in until 9am on a saturday 😱😱😱😱😱😱😱😱😱😱 . yes i know my dad works with uber lare into the night and my uncle misses hisr jids and so does my grandma and my mum is struggling with her mum seeting such harsh expectations and balancing uni and i soumd like a brat but its doing by fucking head in my brain is soooo fucking tured. and i have mocks coming up and im not allowdd to tell my siblings to leave the room because theyll just tell my dad whow jll be mad at me . becasue i have no gokd qualities to excerise why am i even studying . im s ooooooo done bye

[lordkingsmith]

Had another very fun dream last night. And got interrupted in the middle of it, so it ends on a cliffhanger this time through no fault of mine!

So there’s been a huge…thing going on. Some people are turning into zombies, some are gaining superpowers, some are evolving into other entities entirely. After a while people realize it’s not a pathogen or virus or anything, it’s bugs. Bugs are getting into human bodies alive by various means and infecting humans with different things. One bug per person, so if you’ve been infected by something, something else can’t get you.

This was explained to me in an exposition dump. It’s been several generations and now everyone’s sort of separated into different camps by bug type. Problem, there’s a new bug that wasn’t infecting anyone before and now is, and it’s unusual because it mimics every other bug ability. So whatever you get can be an absolute crap shoot. Then a few other bugs and arachnids begin doing powers when these species didn’t before. People begin panicking. The randomizer bugs are horseflies and the main dream character got bit and can turn into different versions of a flying leopard. As in, the character can control how far to transform at any point in time. I love this kid, very undiagnosed adhd.

They make their way to New Orleans, and then get chased into the bayou, where a village of other horsefly bit people are. Theres a scattering of other new bug types living there as well as these people are siblings, parents, cousins, friends, married to the fly bitten…that sort of thing.

So there’s this one house nobody’s allowed to get in but whoever’s in there technically owns the area but doesn’t want to be around anyone they’re just fine letting people camp out and be safe here.

There is an evil group who are technology and war based and their bugs were I think beetles? Anyway none of them were older than sixteen except their superior called Madame and I think there was a reason for it but I can’t remember.

Anyway one girl goes to the village and blows it up, and brings back a notable person who she couldn’t leave. She dragged this man through the water partially laid on debris. He’s been bitten by a rare and valuable bug and this makes him rare and valuable, so they took him. In the dream it’s Miguel O’Hara from across the spiderverse but as a teenager. Maybe barely 20 at the oldest. The girl tells Madame he’s a spider. I got the sense here spiders were some of the more powerful bugs and hard to survive from. I got the impression Miguel was the one who’d been in the house.

Where was the fly bitten shifter? Trying to find a friend of theirs. And I saw that friend among the group listening to the other girl who’d caught Miguel.

Anyway mid exposition dump I got woken up. But this was a fun dream! I loved this!! Lovely lovely dream~

If anyone wants to use it for ideas go for it~ I probably won’t

[pacifymebby]

Peaky Blinders Headcannons

Tommy

🌿Calls you his angel

🌿He comes across as stoney and cold, struggles to show his adoration, but it all comes out when he says thay word. "Cmere angel," "You're my angel," "behave yourself angel,"

🌿Sometimes he really does believe you were sent from heaven to save him

🌿Or to test him... He's so hellbent on protecting you, preserving your innocence, not letting you get close to the darker side of him and his business that he almost loses you

🌿You're always trying to soothe him, to get under his skin, heal him. You're not stupid, you've heard he's a bad man and you know it too

🌿But even bad men deserve love and you adore him

🌿So you keep trying to look after him. At night when he has his terrors you hold his head to your chest and let him fall asleep there, your hands combing through his hair. You'll fall asleep with him resting there like that and in the morning when you wake up, he's usually woken up before you and moved so that its you resting on him. His hands playing with your hair. You know hes trying to pretend the terrors didnt happen, but you let him pretened. Its slow work getting a man like Tommy to open up, the fact that he let you hold him at all is miracle enough for now.

🌿He's killed for you, he thinks you don't know but you do. Of course you know, he's done it so many times, too many times to hide it. The first time it happened you put it down to coincidence. The man who groped you in the Garrison, he was an unpleasant man, exactly the type of man you could imagine would get himself into a fight he couldnt win. When he got stabbed with a broken bottle in a bar fight no one had been surprised. But when it keeps happening? Its hard to ignore the fact that any man who so much as looks at you for too long seems to end up dead or blind.

🌿Is haunted by dreams of you dying, morbidly convinced hes going to lose you, that youre going to be stolen from him. This is why hes so possesive.

🌿 Nothings going to happen to you because hes not going to let you out of his sight, there will always be peaky boys guarding Tommy's angel. But...

🌿 If something does happen to you, Tommy's calculating the cruelest revenge, the slowest most painful method of killing. Hes militant about it. He'll hunt them down. But he'll be so caught up in planning his revemge that instead of being gentle with you and holding you/comforting you, he'll sit at your bedside with a face of thunder, holding your hand too tightly, his mind far away, plotting the finer details of revenge. He will not sleep until the bastard who harmed his angel is dead.

🌿 He doesn't involve you in business at all, if he had it his way he'd keep you at home in the country forever, never let you leave the sanctuary of the home he's built for you.

🌿And why would you want to? Your doting Tommy has done everything he can to craft a little piece of heaven on earth for his little angel.

Alfie

🐻 You're far too young, precious and pretty to be sitting in this old mans lap but

🐻 Theres nowhere else youd rather be

🐻 An unforgiving brute to everyone but you, his "ziskeit" (sweetness). He goes 0 to 100 and then straight back down to 0 for you. By this i mean, he's threatening a man's life in one breath, evil in his eyes, cold and cruel with all that sadistic humor mixed in, but then upon turning to see you've slipped into his office by mistake, he drops his tone, speaks to you calm and quiet and soft.

🐻 Has a habbit of beckoning you over to him so that he can whisper instructions for you. He loves how obedient you are and how delicate you look when you tread soft and quick/nimble across the room to be by his side.

🐻 "shikseleh, go wait outside for your old man, thats a good girl, you wait for me and I'll come find you as soon as i can" "patience ziskeit, will you do me a favour? I want you to go find olly for me right, and you tell him, that i told you, that if he doesn't come get this selfish little bastard out of my office I'll kill him...."

🐻 Sending you on your way with a little pat on the cheek only to stop you as you get to the door... "wait a minute, wait... I forgot something very important didnt I... Don't swear..."

🐻 He knows he can't protect you and he doesn't want you to be too innocent - after all hes a dirty old man and there are things he wants to do with you that innocent girls just can't do...

🐻 But he likes to pretend you're innocent and hes determined to keep you good so there are rules. Alfie loves rules.

🐻 No swearing, no answering back, you're to do as you're told by him, youre not to speak to the men in the bakery (they aren't even allowed to look at you) and if you're going to sit down? Well you must sit in your old mans lap.

🐻 He hasnt had to kill anyone over you yet but thats only because he strikes the fear of god into everyone he meets. No one in their right mind would lay a finger on you. The men in the bakery know to turn their heads away and avert their gaze when you walk in looking for your old man.

🐻 He has thought about it many times however... What he'd do if anything were to happen to you. Thats why he wakes you sometimes in the middle of the night, his fingers stroking your cheek, his lips skimming your hair. He'll lie on his back, the weight of your sleeping body on top of his, his fingers tracing down your spine, your head held in the palm of his hand. And he'll hold you all night, thinking about the violence hed commit if anyone ever even threatened you.

John

🌼 Brings you flowers all the time, buys you so many pretty things. He doesnt think he's good enough to win you over with looks/charm and personality so this is how he tries to attract you. With gifts.

🌼 But you adore him, and you don't need all these gifts to attract you to him because youve only ever had eyes for him.

🌼 He's a little insecure, so he's always getting into fights over you. Nothing serious really, but if anyone dares to observe how beautiful you are, John takes offense. "She's too good for me aye? That what youre saying?" "Reckon you'd like to try a piece of my girl?"

🌼 Calls you all manner of sweet little pet names but his favourite is "little flower,"

🌼 You bring out the child in him, he's boyish and careless with you, will play fight, sneak up on you and make you jump just to hear you shriek and jump into his arms. Will chase you and sling you over his shoulder when he catches you.

🌼 Can't take his eyes off you, you really really ruin his cool. His brothers and sister take the piss and he often finds himself embarassed and blushing because they've caught him watching you again.

🌼 Worries about you, worries you will get hurt because of his deeds with the peakys, naively thinks he can protect you from everything.

🌼 When you are hurt he's both full of guilt/shame and desperate for revenge. Whoever hurt you is going to pay with their life... But his first worry is you, he won't leave your side until youre better, or unless you manage to convince him to go.

🌼 Is always always big spoon, even when really hes the one who needs hugging. He likes to wrap you up in his arms, hold onto you and bury his face in your neck. This way when hes hurt you wont know hes crying (you know but you let him pretend)

Arthur

🍂 Kind of whipped?? Dotes on you completely, his brothers think its imasculating but he just worships you.

🍂 Anything you want or need, he'll get/do/give

🍂 Knows he should do more to protect you from business but feels hopeless to do so.

🍂 More than this though he wants to keep you safe from himself... He tries to keep a distance from you, and when hes angry he wont see you, he'll avoid you... Which you hate...

🍂 He has it in his head that youre more innocent than you are until one day you catch him when hes feeling violently angry... Hes in the most tumultuous mood, his brothers pissed him off and he's all riled up on snow...

🍂 Hes storming down the night time street, going to find a whore to use up all his anger on before he goes to meet you... Just so he can calm down... Really hes doing it for you...

🍂 But you catch him and tell him to take it out on you... You tell him not to hold back but he does, he can't do that to you...

🍂 But now youve been together so long and he knows he wont hurt you... That you like it when hes violent with you. He'll be so rough with you, he'll choke you, slap you, throw you over the table, treat you so harsh, but he'll always say the sweetest things to you. He'll fuck you real hard whilst grunting the most complimentary and gentle things. "Youre my fucking cherub darling, my fucking little cherub..."

🍂 He. Has. Killed. So. Many. Men. Over. You. So many. Even before you were his, if he saw someone look at you, or flirt with you, or just talk about you, he'd cut in and tell them to watch their tongue. Hes been known to lose his temper over almost nothing, beat a man half to death over one glance.... But you, in your own fucked up way, kind of love that.

🍂 Likes to take baths with you, in the bath hes gentle with you. Will sit between your legs and have you wash his hair, your fingers massaging his scalp make him feel so calm.

🍂 You are the only person who can really calm him down and dull his pain.

🍂 He calls you his angel, his saving grace, because he believes youve been sent to save him, to heal him.

🍂 Lets you hold him when he's calmed down from a rage and is upset, lets you see him cry but isnt shy about telling you it bothers him. You are often big spoon at night, wrapped around him comfortingly. He will take your hands and bring them to his lips, kiss every one of your fingers and hold them close to his face.

Bonnie

🍀 You are his little dove, he hasn't used your real name since the day he learnt it, you have just always been his little dove.

🍀 Tries very hard to keep his innocent dove away from the peaky blinders. You haven't met them yet and Bonnie doesn't intend for you to.

🍀 He just feels so protective of you. Youre much smaller than him, he can pick you up with one arm and your hand feels so small held in his. The thought of you being in the same room as the blinders sends a shudder down his spine. Youre too good, too precious.

🍀 Always holding your hand, whenever he has the chance. Always doing things for you, making sure youre okay. He's absolutely obsessed with how small your hands are in comparison to his.

🍀 Even before you were together he felt protective over you. He would walk you wherever you needed to go, or give you rides on his horse. He socked another lad at the camp once for pulling your hair and trying to tease you.

🍀 It took him absolutely forever to admit to anyone that he actually had feelings for you...even though it was very obvious. He gets far too shy and blushes around you. He thinks the world of you and can't believe his luck. Hes absolutely giddy with pride whenever hes with you.

🍀 Is so sweet, picks you wild flowers, brings you little gifts. He made a little wooden crusifix for you once and threaded it onto a piece of string. Its not the most glamorous jewlery but you never take it off.

🍀 Always holding your hand, playing with your fingers. Likes it when you wear his jackets and shirts. Especially when he has to leave you and go to do work for Tommy. He feels as though having his jacket around your shoulders lets him keep holding you even after hes gone.

🍀 Hasn't killed for you yet... Would kill for you in a heartbeat...even tommy shelby.

🍀 Is nervous for you to see him fight in case it scares you, or makes you scared of him, because youre timid and because you were scared of him when you were younger and before you were friends.

🍀 But he also feels really proud when you come to his fights, he wants to impress you and make you proud.

🍀And he especially likes when you patch him up afterwards and carefully kiss his bruises.

🍀 Dreams of running away with you, the two of you going to live in a vardo together, far away from the peakys, somewhere safe, travelling together, always alone together.

🍀 Desperate to put a baby inside you, tells you all the time.

🍀 There were signs at first which you supposed you missed, but once you're together a little while he has a real soft dom side to him youre not expexting. He's determined to stamp out any insecuroties you might have, praises you all the time, always telling you how beautiful /pretty/adorable you are and...

🍀 They're never said out loud but he has rules for you. They aren't like alfies rules, they're not as jealous. But,

You have to look after yourself, he reminds you when you need to eat, he likes to be the one who washes your hair, he doesn't like it when you leave the camp on your own and especially doesnt want you going into birmingham without him.

🍀 When you look back you realise he always had these rules for you, he'd never let you off on your own, he'd always been over protective... And you also realise youd always complied amd been good for him... You don't know why.

🍀 Absolutely will not sleep unless hes holding you, likes to feel your body pressed against his with you sleeping on top of him. Will play with your hair and draw patterns on your skin. Unless its the night after a fight in which case youre permitted to hold him instead.

Isiah

🐀 Knows he shouldnt but definitely starts fights to try and impress you

🐀Is always a little bit paranoid that if he lets you hang around with finn and michael, one of them will steal you away from him.

🐀Over protective, puts on a front of being a fighter who's tough and quick tempered, but is actually just very sweet and in love with you.

🐀Is quite cocky, always flirting with you, really enjoys showing you off... Very tactile, always touching you. He is especially tactile around you in front of his friends and you know this is because he wants to remind them that you belong to him.

🐀Asks you who you love/who you belong to on a regular basis, multiple times a day. He'll catch your hand as youre leaving the room, pin you down in bed or up against a wall, get all up in your personal space and ask you... Won't let you go until you answer him so sometimes you stall on purpose

🐀And sometimes you hmmm and give him the wrong answer just to see what he'll do...

🐀Poor boy feels he has to prove himself and so usually you end up getting fucked real hard, only allowed to cum when he asks you the question again and you give him the right answer.

🐀Doesnt have to prove he's a man because he's so sure of himself in that specific way. Which is hot... You like the fact he lets you be big spoon sometimes, that he lets you cling onto him and nestle in as close as you can. Secretly he likes the feeling of being held.

🐀Does have a bit of a temper, will get angry with you if you've been flirting with other men, sulks if youve spent a lot of time talking with Michael or Finn. Doesn't like when you join in their teasing of him... Has plenty of ways to punish you for it later. Isn't gentle.

Michael

☘️ When you first met you thought Michael was just a mummys boy. You thought he was too soft for you...

☘️ My god were you mistaken.

☘️ Michael has an underdog complex worse than Tommy Shelby, he is ALWAYS trying to prove something. That he's a man, that he's a bad man, that you're his girl, that he's good enough for you...

☘️ Sometimes he speaks too harshly to you when hes in one of his moods but when he sees the hurt in your eyes he apologises, makes you come to him so he can kiss you and stroke your cheek. He never tells you he's sorry though and you always know hes going to do it again.

☘️ But you kind of like it like that. You like hos angry streak, it excites you, you want to know how far he'd go if you pissed him off. He wouldn't kill you, youre almost certain of that.

☘️ And besides you have the temper to match... If he ever slapped you he knows you'd hit him back twice as hard. Sometimes That is the only thing that stops him hitting you... Not his deeply ingrained principles about hitting girls.

☘️ You watch him change, no longer soft and easily bullied, but fierce, just as cruel, just as rotten as the rest of them... Part of you is sad to see his sweet side leave him but another part of you, and not a small part of you, finds it hot, exciting.

☘️ You like pushing him to his limits, arguing back until he snaps. You like seeing his temper flare and youll do anything in your power to make him snap.

☘️ He's unnaturally loyal for a peaky boy, at first you don't believe it when other people tell you they've seen him turn girls down because of you, then you think it's just a phase, he's got that new love obsession. But after awhile you realise his obsession with you is all consuming... He won't cheat on you because to him theres no point in fucking someone who isnt you. He wouldn't get any pleasure or satisfaction from dominating and owning someone else... Only you...

☘️ You argue and fight a lot, you both have sharp tempers and the relationship looks toxic... It probably is toxic, but you don't care. You set eachother on fire, breath life into eachother. You like getting into trouble with Michael. It started as partners in crime, the two of you against the world, and in many ways it is, youre ride or die, no one can come between you...

☘️ Except you love to make him angry. You love to push him over the edge so that he grabs you by the throat and squeezes, choking you whilst he tells you youre his, "you belong to me so be-fucking-have yourself you ungrateful little brat"

☘️ Youre spoilt because he spoils you and he loves to remind you. Hes proud that he can. He was raised a gentleman remember and he knows exactly how to treat a woman. When you're good you get showered in gifts and praise and kisses.

☘️ He likes to control you completely, down to the way you wear your hair and the clothes you dress. He tells you what to put on in the morning and if he doesnt like what youve chosen he demands you change.

☘️ And this is where his softer side comes out... If he doesnt like what youre wearing he demands you change, but he's the one who changes you. He undresses you, he helps you into your new outfit. If he doesnt like your hair he takes it out gently and fixes it the way he wants to see it. He wipes your make up off, tells you you look too much like a whore... His words are always so harsh but his actions so gentle and caring.

☘️ When hes done he'll say something like "there, thats better," and kiss you sweetly.

☘️ Hates it when other men talk to you, most men don't because theyve seen what has happened in the past but Tommy has no respect for Michael and no respect for your relationship. He doesn't even really find you attractive, but he will touch you, flirt with you, try to make you blush, just to piss his cousin off. And it works. And you'd be lying if you said you didnt try to encourage that behaviour because when Michael has something to prove...

☘️ Its delicious.

[bye-bye-sunbird]

Offering | Yan!Xiao x Reader

Summary: In the middle of Liyue's darkest period of terror, the legend of a bloodthirsty Yaksha terrorizes the land. The little village you grew up in is growing weaker as raids continue, and you become the victim of their despair and superstition. So they offer you as a sacrifice for the Yaksha to take.

CW: Stalking, General yandere behavior, mentions of violence.

“The one who makes blood pour like rain over the fields”. That is what you and everyone you knew called him.

You were taught to believe that even speaking his name out loud was the same as wishing death upon your people. That he was a bloodthirsty demon, that he was death incarnate, the product of sin and everything evil.

But no one told you how beautiful he was, not one tale mentioned his eyes that gleamed like yellow stars haunting the night.

Had you known the fate your so-called people chose for you, you would have whispered his name and let the most beautiful being in the world bring its carnage upon them.

You smile bitterly at the darkness of your own thoughts, maybe you deserved this fate after all.

Your people feared you too, deemed you a curse long ago when you had your first encounter with the Wind Yaksha. "You were marked!", they said as you were being tied down, "He chose you back then, and by denying him you will end up dooming us all!". Your pleas for mercy fell on deaf ears as they dragged you outside your house. You promised to leave the village and begged to be given the chance to survive on your own. They were condemning you, you screamed, amidst chants of "Get her out of here!" and "Cursed child!". The faces of all the people who knew you since you were born twisted into demonic disfigurements as your tears clouded your vision and you lost consciousness. By the time you had woken up, he was there. Staring right into your soul.

No fair trial for the wicked, it seems.

Your lips tremble as a few more tears stream down your face. Right, I am about to die. How awful would it be that your last thoughts are of the traitors you once called friends and neighbors. You force your eyes open once more, looking directly at the monster in front of you, the moon shining on his back as your sole, silent witness. If you were to die now, you wanted the last thing you see on this wretched, cursed land to be beautiful.

"I guess this is it." you mutter, incapable of stopping your voice from breaking "It's been weeks now, I think."

His eyes travel towards the ropes that painfully tie your wrists. You must be imagining things, as you almost see anger and pity swirl in his eyes. You hold your breath as he steps towards you, and flinch as he nails his bloodied weapon on the wood floor.

He approaches carefully as if you were some type of wounded animal. You were, deeply. The unfairness of it all made your blood boil.

"I remember when I first saw you." your voice stops him in his tracks as words blur out of your mouth. You didn't know if you were trying to distract him to stay alive, or just wanted to speak your mind before you were gone. "I went beyond the gates to pick mushrooms. I had never done that, you see. I knew the rules, I knew there were too many dangers beyond the village's borders, I knew that I was too weak... And I can stand hunger, but not children's tears. And the little boy two houses next to me cried of hunger, and no one else seemed to do anything about it."

Tears build up until you have no choice but to close your lids, you couldn't speak more, and you didn't need to. He knew the story very well. Saving you from the attacks of monsters and delivering you to the village's entrance had not gone well for you.

Of course, things could have been better for you had he not made his presence around the village known. After that little incident, sightings of him became more and more frequent, as if he was, somehow, waiting for you to come out again. You learned of the gifts left on the village's entrance, which often remained untouched out of fear. Sometimes the gifts were comprised of food and medicinal plants. Other times, corpses of beasts that used to terrorize the village.

But you didn't leave the village again... Until now that is, but that was not voluntarily.

When you open your eyes, you find the Yaskha untying the ropes off your wrists, without touching your reddened skin. You notice that the gloves on his hands had small, scattered marks that gave them a slightly rough appearance. They were the hands of someone used to wielding a weapon, no doubt. You think about the lives that he has ended with them, and how easy it would be for him to tear you apart, should he want to.

You dare not to move as you watch him looking at the dents left on your skin. Almost imperceptibly, his thumb slides over the red mark on your wrists, and the other fingers follow the same motion. The sensation was the same as if a bird's wing gently brushed your skin. His eyes travel back up, seemingly unable to hide how elated he is to have you this close. His gaze shines as he studies your face up to its last detail. A sick feeling stirs on your stomach at the eerieness of being watched so thoroughly.

"You won't hurt me," you realize out loud in a sad tone, "but you won't let me leave either, isn't that right?"

[frogtanii]

warm.

it’s too warm, was your first waking thought as you sluggishly waded through the mound of blankets that encompassed you to get a breath of fresh air (you assumed bokuto and kuroo were the culprits for your warm and fuzzy hellhole). your eyes first fell on the television playing the credits to the second or third pirates of the caribbean movie on mute, the remote haphazardly thrown somewhere to your left as though the person who did so left in a hurry.

speaking of people, there was no one left in the room as you slowly joined the land of the living. a part of you suspected everyone had gone to bed but atsumu or akaashi would’ve woken you up if that had been the case.

belatedly, you recognized voices coming from the front door and your still sleep-addled brain lit up. oh! you thought. food must be here! untangling yourself from the blankets proved to be an exhausting feat because by the time you were done, your body was covered in a sheen of sweat underneath oikawa’s sweats and sakusa’s hoodie.

ugh, gross.

you began to make your way towards the door, the blood rushing through your head preventing you from hearing the details of conversation but knowing atsumu, he was just haggling for a lower price even though you told him repeatedly, that isn’t how pizza places work tsum.

as you drew nearer to the commotion, you started to pick up on the heavy tension in the air, leaving you extremely uncomfortable. you had no idea what the cause of it was but you did know it was making most of the boys upset, who, by the way, hadn’t noticed you creeping around just yet.

a feminine voice rang out from outside the doorway and though you were still attempting to gain your hearing, the sound sent chills down your spine. it sounded saccharine, sweet, familiar, and oh so evil.

even with a head full of cotton, you figured now wouldn’t be the best time to reveal yourself, what with the clear discomfort permeating the atmosphere, but your big fat mouth apparently had other plans.

“‘tsum, just let the poor pizza lady go,” you muttered, the beginnings of a headache making itself known at the back of your skull. you were a little too caught up with the dwarf banging at your head with a sledgehammer to notice the shock that everyone in the room turned to look at you with.

a gentle hand grasped at your forearm, whispering something into your ear before attempting to pull you back to the living room, but that same familiar voice from the door kept you planted where you stood.

“oh, the princess finally makes herself known,” meiko sneered, her face finally coming into focus, striking you with pang of fear straight through your heart. “funny, i thought i left you speechless the last time we... ‘talked’.”

“ya shut yer fuckin mouth,” atsumu lunged at her but was stopped by sakusa’s arm around his waist, successfully holding him in place. meiko just giggled, taking a step into the house, her heels clicking as she glided across the hardwood floors.

in the back of your head, you noted that meiko looked unusually beautiful, her makeup flawlessly done and her outfit complementing it perfectly, almost reminiscent of how she used to be before... well, just “before”.

you watched the boys unconsciously angle themselves as a protective wall around you, the person holding your arm (who you now realized was koushi) pulling you in tighter until your back was resting against his chest.

a part of you couldn’t help but feel a little suffocated but the other, more self preserving, bit felt irrationally safe and protected around these boys. it was nice... or it would’ve been if meiko wasn’t taking herself on a tour around the house as though she hadn’t been living there for almost the past year.

“you all can tone down on the guard dog act. i’m not here to fight,” she said as she pretended to wipe dust off the island. “you’re not?” bokuto’s skeptical voice rose up from behind you, one of his hands finding yours underneath the massive sleeves of your (sakusa’s) hoodie.

meiko shook her head with an empty smile, her perfectly painted red lips stretching unnaturally wide. “no, of course not! i’ve just come here to collect.”

the boys collectively tensed around you, akaashi whispering for kenma to go find yachi and quickly. as he slipped away, you made eye contact with sakusa who gave you an imperceptible nod that you assumed meant one thing — keep her talking.

“collect what?” you asked, your voice coming out weaker than you wanted, but you hoped she didn’t notice. she cocked her head as her eyes snapped to you as if she’d forgotten you were there, but judging by her growing smirk, you knew that wasn’t the case.

“my boys of course!” meiko clapped gleefully, clicking her way over toward kuroo to run her hand over his bicep, laughing when he jolted away from her touch. “they’ve always been mine, you know that don’t you?”

it felt like a cold bucket of water had been dropped over your head. you felt frozen again, the same feeling of dread creeping up your spine as it did when meiko attacked you. in turn, you barely noticed kenma’s return who whispered something to sakusa — an action that didn’t go unnoticed by meiko.

“what’re my boys talking about? are you plotting against me?” she pouted, scooting closer to the pair. kenma visibly paled and moved to hide himself behind sakusa’s broad shoulders. “we aren’t doing anything, meiko.”

wrong answer.

“oh, we both know that isn’t the case kiyoomi. i’m not a fucking idiot.” meiko’s voice filled with venom before moving even closer still. you felt your heart beating rapidly in your chest, your hand gripping bokuto’s even tighter.

what if she brought some kind of weapon to the house? what if she hurt you? what if she hurt them?

before you could think, you were standing in front of the group, the boys calling out your name as meiko’s face lit up. “so the precious little princess wants to take a stand! let me have it then, huh? let me see what all the craze is about!”

despite the fear thudding in your chest, you stood tall, glaring at her with your head held high. “the boys are not yours, meiko,” you declared, her mouth instantly opening in protest but you refused to let her speak.

“they aren’t possessions or objects you can own and treat like shit. they are people, real living, breathing people and they aren’t mine either. they have full reign to do what they want, when they want, to make their own choices and decisions. and you know what? they didn’t choose you or me. they chose themselves and their happiness over any bullshit you or i could try and sell them. so please, for the love of god, get your shit together, put it in a box and take it to fucking therapy.”

by the end of your impromptu speech, your chest was heaving but you felt good. really good. adrenaline was rushing through your veins and you felt powerful. out the corner of your eye, you noticed osamu and daichi standing at the bottom of the stairs with something akin to awe on their faces.

yeah bitches. take it all in.

unfortunately, while you were basking in the feeling of badassery, you completely missed meiko’s eyes lighting up with pure, unadulterated,

rage.

you faintly heard someone call your name before you were taken to the ground by meiko leaping at you like an animal. the two of you scrambled about on the hardwood, her hands yanking at your clothes and leaving scratches on your skin but you were sure as hell giving her a run for her money.

you finally managed to get on top of her, pinning her arms to the ground but that wasn’t before you gained a hard elbow to the side and a bruise to your face. meiko thrashed and shook in your hold but you were not wavering, trying to keep her entirely still for...

well, for what exactly?

almost as though they were on cue, you heard the sound of police sirens wailing in the distance, growing louder as they drew closer to the house. underneath you, meiko’s eyes widened before she began fighting even harder than she’d done before, her erratic movements making it much more difficult to keep your hold on her.

luckily, you had extremely muscular men at your disposal, one of which (osamu — even though he was a dick, he was still incredibly muscular dick) held down meiko’s arms as the lapd stormed the building.

the police officers easily retracted meiko from your arms and cuffed her, taking her to the back of the cop car, despite her loud and insistent threats on you and everyone you love.

very disney villain-esque.

a kind looking officer helped you to your feet and walked you out to the porch where he began to ask you and the boys a few questions. you answered them honestly and you were genuinely proud of how well you were handling the whole situation when—

“bubs, you’re shaking.” sure enough, when you looked down at your hands, you were twitching uncontrollably, the reality of the events that just occurred finally sinking in.

you were just attacked. again.

you and your friends were threatened.

meiko was sitting in the back of a fucking cop car.

“what the fuck,” you whispered, eyes staring unblinking at your palms. the same officer mentioned something about shock, prompting all the boys to gather around you; atsumu pulled you in between him and sakusa, wrapping his arm around your shoulders, kenma and bokuto took hold of your quivering hands, sugawara and oikawa sat off to the side watching you with blatant concern, and kuroo and akaashi spoke to the officer in hushed tones.

the man nodded and shook their hands before shooting you a pitying smile and heading back to the car where meiko was waiting.

“it’s over angel, ‘s over,” atsumu muttered into your hair, pressing kisses to your forehead in between each phrase. you leaned into his touch but you refused to take your eyes off meiko who was watching the whole scene from the backseat, her eyes wide with anger, hurt, and confusion.

you didn’t bother dwelling on it, instead focusing on evening out your breathing and looking at the car drive over the horizon. you heard yachi’s soft voice calling everyone inside, atsumu lifting you up to your feet and walking with you, never once taking his hands off of you.

still, his words echoed in your head, even as yachi spoke of the end of the hyper house, even as the boys brought you to your room, and even as they all automatically cuddled around you in an attempt to get you to sleep.

it’s over. it’s all finally over.

you couldn’t keep the grin off your face if you tried.

℗ poker face

it’s over

series masterlist

(●’◡’●)ﾉ

an - OK THE TITLE IS MISLEADING THE STORY IS NOT OVER YET SKENSM (there are 2 more official story chapters before all the endings :3) also m not the biggest fan of this chapter?? so i’d love to hear what y’all think <33 don’t forget to feed me!!

taglist - if your name is in bold, i cannot tag you

@boosyboo9206 • @geektastic84 • @elianetsantana • @trashy-simp • @infinitebells • @6mattsun9 • @suhkusa • @katsulovee • @kotarosbabygirl • @fucktheworlddude • @insomniacwreck • @calumsfringe • @saltylettuce • @chai-blu • @al3x1ss • @hawksyoongi • @jooleuuh • @loubells • @kissungjae • @liberhoe • @tetsurocore • @animeoverdosee • @duhsies • @saiKishaircLip • @afire24 • @premiyagi • @kit-kat428 • @doctorspencereid • @daphnxy • @kyomihann • @maer-333 • @sinoflust19 • @peteunderoos • @peachiikichu • @iidanotlida • @yongboxerrr • @kac-chowsballs • @tanakaslastbraincell • @memorableminds • @risjime • @starry-magicshop • @sugavwara • @smuttyanimeslut • @kiwibirbs-library • @haijkk • @airybnb • @crybabygumi • @iwaisa • @decaffinatedtealover • @notameera • @kawaii-angelanne • @rintarovibes • @urlocalsimp • @keiarma • @shrimpypenis

the rest of the tags will be in the replies!!

[helloalycia]

The Wrong Lifetime — Epilogue // Wanda Maximoff

chapter fourteen | story masterlist | main masterlist | wattpad

author’s note: the final part is here! thanks again to everyone who stuck around with this fic, i really appreciate it 😊💗 now enjoy!!

The sound of a rooster crowing pulled me from my slumber and I groaned when I realised I definitely wasn't getting back to bed anytime soon.

Quiet laughter came from beside me and I didn't have to open my eyes to know that Wanda was finding my disgruntled self entertaining.

"I said yes to the chickens," I mumbled tiredly, not opening my eyes as I stupidly thought it would let me contain my sleep for a little bit longer, "but I should have drawn the line at the rooster."

Her fingers grasped my shoulder as she rolled over to hover above me. I squinted through my tired eyes, seeing the amused smile on her lips as she looked down at me. Despite how much of a morning person I wasn't, I appreciated how beautiful she looked with bed hair and a nightie.

"Shut up," she said jokingly, and I closed my eyes again. "You love them."

I rolled my eyes beneath closed lids. "I'd love to cook them, sure."

She slapped my shoulder gently. "Don't talk about Nikolai, Vanya and Sonia like that!"

A smile ghosted my lips. The first thing she'd done when getting the damn chickens was name them the most Sokovian names she could think of – I shouldn't have expected anything less. Though, now it meant she was extremely attached to them.

"My apologies, love," I mumbled.

She hummed disapprovingly before putting her whole body weight on top of me and hugging me. I sighed contently, resting an arm around her waist and appreciating the feeling of her so close to me. I could have fallen back asleep in this position if it wasn't for Wanda's wide-awake, curious self. Why did she have to be such a morning person?

"So, what are your plans for today?" she asked, fingers scratching against my shoulder blade tenderly.

I exhaled calmly. "I'm going to attempt to fall back asleep right now... then I'll let you know afterwards when I wake up."

She didn't say anything after that, and I was stupid to believe I'd gotten away with it because she suddenly got up and straddled me, jumping up slightly and startling me awake.

"Wake up!" she ordered, too hyper for my sleepy self.

I groaned, rubbing my eyes and finally opening them to see her looking down at me with a grin, hair falling around her face. There was a hint of annoyance in my expression as I narrowed my eyes, but she ignored it as she rested her hands on my chest.

"I hate you," I muttered.

"You're up now, so let's do something," she insisted, making me roll my eyes. "We should go on a walk. It's pretty outside. The sun's rising and it'll be fun!"

The sun's rising because its bloody dawn and that damn rooster crows at the same time every day, leaving me disgruntled and annoyed.

But of course, I didn't have the energy to explain that to Wanda, so I simply shook my head and closed my eyes. "Maybe tomorrow, Wanda."

She suddenly leaned down, jolting me slightly and making me open my eyes. She was inches away from my face as she pouted.

"Not tomorrow, now!" she exclaimed loudly, before leaning forward and peppering kisses all over my face.

I sighed, keeping her stable by resting a hand on her waist, but not appreciating the fact that falling asleep would definitely be a challenge now.

"I love you, Wanda, but please keep it down," I said quietly, still not used to her energy so early in the morning.

"Tell me what I can do to wake you up," she said sternly, stopping kissing me and sitting upright again.

"Absolutely nothing, love."

"Oh? Nothing?"

I hummed and closed my eyes again, getting used to her weight on top of me and deciding I could probably fall back asleep if she was quiet long enough. Wishful thinking, of course.

Her fingers found mine and she slowly lifted my hand, putting it underneath her dress and on her thigh. I knew what she was doing – it was cute – but it wouldn't work.

Not even bothering to open my eyes, I said, "Wanda, darling, we've been together for three years. I am able to resist your charm, believe it or not."

"Really?" she asked challengingly, letting go of my hand and resting hers on my shoulders. "I don't believe you."

Before I could counter her with a response, she leaned down and began nibbling on my ear softly. It was a sensation I was familiar with, but I refused to let her get her way, so I ignored her stubbornly. She knew me too well though, as she let go of my ear and trailed kisses down my neck before sucking on the skin sensually. Admittedly, I was a lot more awake then I was thirty seconds ago, definitely aroused by the gorgeous woman on top of me, but she couldn't win this. Not when she was playing very unfairly.

"Wanda," I said with a warning tone, squeezing her thigh and signalling for her to stop.

I should have figured that would provoke her even more, as she manoeuvred herself so her knee was now pressing between my legs. I'm ashamed to admit that I gasped into her shoulder at the sudden pressure, and judging from the quiet laugh she let out, she was very much aware of the effect she had on me.

"I told you you couldn't resist," she said knowingly, raising her head from my neck so she could meet my eyes.

Hers were darkened with pleasure and mischievousness, darting to my lips. I glared at her.

"I really hate you."

She shook her head, tongue wetting her lips, as a playful smirk stared down at me. "No you don't. Now lose the nightdress, moya lyubov' (my love)."

I tried to retort, but she closed the gap between us, lips capturing mine in a heated kiss. I definitely didn't mind being woken up like this...

—

After actually getting out of bed, I reluctantly agreed to go on a walk with Wanda, strolling around our premises and making the most of the countryside we lived in. As much as I didn't want to admit, I was glad she'd dragged me outside, since the morning stroll only made me appreciate our home more.

When we returned, Wanda went to her studio whilst I made us some tea in the kitchen, hoping to warm us up after the slight chill in the Autumn air. I joined her soon enough, smiling when I saw how involved she was with her work in no time. The studio was big enough for her to make a mess and it not seem so messy since it was spacious enough. I shouldn't have expected any different – Wanda couldn't tidy up to save her life.

"One day I'm going trip over your things," I announced as I stepped over some loose materials by the door, teacup and saucer in hand.

She chuckled, though her attention was still on her painting. "When that day finally comes, I'll clean up. Promise."

"Of course," I muttered sarcastically.

I stopped behind her and studied the painting she was working on. It was a close-up of a flower bed, with intricate details being put in the flowers themselves and ladybirds flying around. Wanda sensed my presence and accepted the tea from my hand, smiling at me gratefully before blowing on it to cool it down.

"Is this that commission you got last week?" I asked curiously.

She nodded, unaware of the paint streaks on her face. I rested a hand on her shoulder and pressed a kiss to the top of her head, smiling at how adorable she was.

"The guy is paying double for me to put twelve ladybirds in the painting," she explained with amusement. "He wants to be able to count every single one."

I snorted with laughter. "Wow. That's very strange."

She shrugged, though I knew she was thinking the same. "A commission's a commission... is it evil if I only put eleven in?"

I laughed, nodding. She glanced up at me with a bright smile on her lips.

"It's very evil," I told her, before squeezing her shoulder.

She grabbed my hand on her shoulder, holding it comfortingly. "D'you want to do some gardening later?"

"Sure. I've just gotta do some work on my manuscript first. The writer's block is real."

"Of course," she said, giving me a knowing look. "Best-selling authors don't just become best-selling authors without putting in the work."

I rolled my eyes at her comment, but a smile played on my lips. "I'm leaving now."

She chuckled and I pressed a kiss to her cheek, trying not to get paint on my lips.

"Good luck with the writing," she said as I began to leave.

"And you with the painting," I called back.

Today was nothing special – probably a regular day when it came to Wanda and I's lives – but it made me smile. If the past three years had taught me anything, it was to be grateful for the mundane.

After Wanda broke things off with Y/B/N, it took a while for both of our families to recuperate. In their eyes, Y/B/N had broken things off because he wasn't interested in Wanda anymore, hence our parents' reaction. And Wanda's parents were upset because they believed it was her fault that Y/B/N wasn't interested, hence their reaction.

Our relationship with the Maximoffs was inescapable though, since Y/B/N and I were authors of theirs, so we had to mend what was broken. The only person who knew the truth about Wanda breaking it off with Y/B/N, apart from me and him, was Pietro. He didn't know why, but he knew that it was Wanda's choice.

After things calmed down between our families and everybody's anger had faded, around about the time that my second book was released, I'd saved enough money from the sales to buy a place of my own. With my father's help, I was able to buy a cottage in the countryside – the perfect place for privacy and to do my writing.

It was surprising that I got help from my dad, since I half expected him to be against the idea. But he was so proud of me for achieving all I had that he was happy to help. So, I got my own place and the first thing I did was invite Wanda to live with me. Nobody really saw it as more than two friends living together, especially since Wanda had started selling her paintings under a male pseudonym. Her parents were only reluctant because they wanted her to get married, but after she told them that she didn't want to and stood her ground, they left her alone.

I think they realised that they couldn't exactly stop her, and if they tried to, they'd lose their daughter in the process. So, to Wanda and I's excitement, we were moving in together...

"Are we there yet?" Wanda asked for the millionth time.

"Terpeniye (patience)," I told her, and felt her smile beneath my hands that were covering her eyes.

"Nice pronunciation," she commented, and I couldn't tell if she was teasing or not.

We finally stopped before the cottage and I was buzzing with excitement. I'd chosen it with Wanda in mind, a surprise for her, since I knew she'd only ever wanted to live in a place like this. What better way to give her that then now with me?

"Okay, this is it," I announced, removing my hands from her face.

I stepped beside her, leaning forward to see her reaction. She was raising her eyebrows with surprise, taking in the appearance of the front of the cottage. It was in a lovely field with tall trees and colourful flowers surrounding it. Vines had overgrown the bricks, but it looked stunning and I hoped Wanda would think the same.

Her lips curved upwards into a grin of disbelief. "This is it? This is ours?"

I pulled the key from my pocket and held it out towards her. "It is. All ours."

She laughed wholeheartedly, jumping up with excitement before grabbing the key and pulling me into a hug. I laughed alongside her, returning the hug, before pressing a kiss to her cheek and motioning to the door.

"Do the honours and I'll show you around," I told her with a smile.

She was practically beaming as she moved to the door, opening it. Her excitement only intensified when she saw the living-room it extended into, a large fireplace in the centre of the back wall and the furniture already in place.

"We can change the décor," I told her as I showed her around. "This came with the place, but we can change it up to however we want."

"I love it."

I intertwined our fingers, admiring the sparkle of delight in her blue eyes as she looked around the place eagerly. That was the look that made this whole thing worth it.

"You've not even see the best bit," I said, before tugging her into the hallway. "There's a kitchen and our bedroom and of course, a study for me, but this is the bit I know you'll love."

She watched with curiosity but allowed me to skip the other rooms and show her the room that I envisioned as her art studio. It was a spacious room, filled with random, old furniture from the previous owners, but I ignored it and stepped further inside, facing Wanda.

"This can be your studio!" I exclaimed, motioning around me. "Look, here can be where your desk can be." I pointed to the left wall, the space in front of it. "You can get some shelves put here for your supplies. And here–" I pointed to the space before the window at the back, "–is where you can paint on your easels. The natural light will be perfect!"

She followed my every move, hanging onto my every word, and nodded along with a joyful expression.

"I can't believe you've already thought about it," she admitted.

"Come here," I said, waving my hand for her to join me. She did and I wrapped an arm around her waist, stopping before the window. "You see that?"

"The perfect view," she realised, eyes wide as they took in the view of the garden, which I planned to show her next. "It's beautiful."

"You can paint everything there," I said with a nod. "The trees. The flowers. And this place isn't far from the train station, so we can take some day trips, too."

She leaned into my side gratefully. "Y/N, I love it. All of it."

My heart fluttered as she said that, it being all I wanted to hear.

"We can also get the coop for the chickens you wanted," I reminded her, before pointing out the window. "Right there. We'll get fresh eggs and they're cute – what's not to love?"

She pulled apart, arms still laced around me, and I waited to see what she thought. Her eyes twinkled in the sunlight coming from the window, matching the smile on her lips. Then she moved forward quickly, kissing me hard and leaving me no chance to react before she pulled away.

"I have no words," she said softly, caressing my cheek. "I'm so grateful."

My face was warm as I smiled shyly. "I'm glad. You know I'd do anything for you."

Her smile widened as she leaned in again. "Thank you."

Moving in with her was the best thing to happen to me, and my dream of being published had come true, so that was saying a lot. We both knew we could never get married and be together in public, but this was the next best thing. We had our own little slice of heaven to merely be, and it was perfect. She could paint as much as she liked and I could write as much as I liked, the two of us making a living and not having to rely on husbands we didn't love.

The only people who knew about the truth of our relationship was Steve. I knew I could never trust my family with the truth, knowing liking women was very different to becoming a writer. So, I was content with them living in denial about why Wanda and I lived together. Wanda was the same with her parents, but it was a few months into moving in when she decided she wanted to tell Pietro.

I was obviously hesitant, since Pietro was a standup guy, the reason I was even as successful as I was, but I wasn't sure if he'd be okay with discovering his sister liked women and I was the one she was with. Wanda was certain he'd understand though, since he was her twin and would only want the best for her. Plus, according to her, he loved me, so he wouldn't have a problem with it.

He was her twin at the end of the day, and nobody knew him better than her, so I trusted her to tell him and decided we could do it at dinner, inviting both him, Steve and Peggy over. Peggy didn't know about Wanda and I either, but I wanted to tell her, so we decided to do it together...

"We've been here three times and it still makes me jealous how peaceful it is," Peggy complimented as the five of us sat around the kitchen table. "No annoying neighbours. No nosy townspeople. It's perfect."

"Thank you," Wanda said with a friendly smile. "That's why we love it, too."

"Are you all finished?" I asked, standing up to grab mine and Wanda's plates.

"Oh, please, let me help," Pietro offered, about to stand up, but I shook my head.

"It's okay, I've got it," I politely declined, before stacking the plates together to take to the sink.

I glanced at Wanda and she gave me a knowing look before clearing her throat and looking to her brother.

"Piet, can you help me with something in my studio?" she asked him casually. "There's a lightbulb I can't quite reach."

He nodded and wiped his face with his napkin. "Er, sure." He looked to everyone else. "If you'll excuse me."

The two of them left the kitchen, leaving me with Steve and Peggy. I distracted myself with putting the plates in the sink before popping the kettle on, knowing they'd want tea.

"Dinner was lovely, Y/N, thank you for tonight," Steve started, easing the tension he knew I was feeling. I'd told him my intentions before inviting them and he was completely okay with the idea. "You and Wanda seem to be more and more comfortable every time we come here."

I leaned against the counter as I smiled gratefully at him, knowing he was giving me an opening to tell Peggy the truth.

"Yeah, we are," I said, eyes flickering to Peggy's as she watched on with interest. "We, er..."

My mouth went dry as the words I'd practiced in the mirror this morning escaped me. I'd only ever told Steve about Wanda and I, and that was by accident. I knew Peggy wouldn't judge me, but it was still terrifying to admit.

"Y/N, sweetie, are you okay?" Peggy asked, a hint of concern in her voice.

I nodded, swallowing hard. "Yes, sorry..." I just had to say it. No more overthinking. "Wanda and I are together. As more than more friends. I'm in love with her."

Peggy raised her brows with surprise, barely believing it, but then she glanced at Steve and knew I was being serious. I let out a breath of relief, glad that I'd finally said it.

She stood up from her seat and I was half-afraid she'd leave altogether, but she didn't. She walked to me and pulled me in for a hug, squeezing me gently.

"Thank you for trusting me with such an important thing," she said, pulling away and smiling at me gently. "I guess it makes sense. You both compliment each other well and make each other happy. It's beautiful to see."

"Thank you," I said, returning her smile. "That means a lot coming from you."

She nodded and glanced at her husband. "I take it Steve already knew."

He raised his hands in defence. "Hey, I basically figured it out myself!"

She rolled her eyes playfully and I couldn't help but laugh.

"He did," I backed him up. "And he was the only person to know, so I owe him a lot. He gave me the support I wanted when I had nobody else."

Peggy smiled endearingly at Steve before looking to me with kind eyes. "Well, now you're not alone. You have me, too."

"I know. I'm glad."

"Does anybody else know? Or is it just Steve and I?" she asked hesitantly.

"Just you two," I explained. "My family would never understand. Especially with Wanda and her history with my brother. Same with her family. But she's actually telling Pietro about us now. I can only hope he'll take it well."

Peggy was certain as she said, "I'm sure he will."

I made tea for all of us and joined Peggy and Steve at the table as we waited for the Maximoff twins' return. Eventually, Wanda returned with her brother in tow and judging by the smile on her face, I could only hope it went well. Though I noticed the tear streaks on her cheeks and joined her side with mild concern.

"Are you okay?" I asked, grabbing her hand, but I didn't get chance to hear a response as I felt myself being lifted off the ground.

"Y/N!" Pietro exclaimed in my ear, hugging me from behind. "Welcome to the family, sestra (sister)!"

He set me down and stepped beside his sister, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and tugging her close. A grin was directed my way as Wanda's cheeks dusted pink. She was glowing with happiness, her brother's opinion mattering the most, and it warmed my heart to witness.

"I see things went well," I noticed, before smiling at Pietro. "Thank you, Pietro. It means a lot to have your support. Though you know this doesn't make me your sister, right?"

"Yet," he pointed out, making me sigh. "You know, I always suspected you had the hots for my sister, but I could never be sure."

Now it was my turn to flush with embarrassment, especially when Steve and Peggy laughed from the sidelines.

"Wanda's happiness is all that matters to me," he continued, looking to his sister with a genuine smile. "I'm glad she picked the right Y/L/N."

I chuckled awkwardly, eyes falling to a nervous Wanda. "Me and you both, mate." He laughed, patting me on the back, and I gave him an appreciative nod. "Seriously, though, thank you, Pietro. Your approval means a lot."

"No problem," he said with a shrug. "I'm always here if you need me."

"As are we," Peggy added, before looking to Wanda. "Both of you. Anything you need, ever, just let us know. It's what we're here for."

"Thank you," Wanda said for both of us, and when she looked my way, I knew she was thinking the same thing I was.

We were lucky that the most important people in our lives knew the truth about us and were supportive. We couldn't have asked for anything more.

—

As promised, after spending the morning on my manuscript and Wanda with her commission, we went into the garden to do some gardening. And by we, I meant I was doing it as she attempted to help out beside me.

"Hey, I think there's something stuck here," Wanda said, fingers stuck in a pot of soil.

"Then pull it out," I said like it was obvious, trying not to laugh.

I continued to rake the plant beds before me so I could eventually plant some vegetable seeds when Wanda's adamant voice spoke up again.

"I think you should check it out, Y/N, I can't seem to get it."

"Wanda..."

"Come on!" she insisted, and I sighed dramatically before dropping my rake and heading towards her.

Kneeling down beside her, I took a peek in the plant pot and put my hand in, rooting around until my fingers found something metal.

"It seems to be a ring," I realised, pulling it out and dusting the soil off it. "Maybe the suppliers of the soil dropped it in accidentally. Or maybe a bird dropped it in the pot without you realising..." I chewed on my lip with thought. "Huh. Well, here you go."

I gave it back to Wanda and prepared myself to stand back up, but Wanda groaned and facepalmed.

"What's got your knickers in a twist?" I asked with an amused smile.

She looked up at me through parted fingers. "It's my ring."

"How many times have I told you to stop wearing rings when we're gardening?!" I said questioningly, shaking my head. "Stuff like this always happens!"

She rolled her eyes and looked up to the sky. "Why am I in love with an idiot?"

"Wanda–"

"It's for you," she said, holding out the ring.

I furrowed my brows. "Well, why didn't you just– wait." My eyes widened as I realised what she was implying, feeling stupid for not realising sooner. "Is this– are you– huh?"

Wanda swallowed nervously before clutching the ring tightly and meeting my gaze. "I've been in love with you for a long time, you know that," she said softly, her accent thick with emotion. "The time we've spent here in our little safe haven has been the best of my life. And I... I know we live in a world that won't let us be together. But that hasn't stopped us."

My heart was hammering in my chest as Wanda offered me a small, nervous smile. We'd never talked about marriage since we were so content in our little bubble, but clearly she'd thought about it without me knowing. I guess I had, too. But I never expected either of us to do anything about it.

"I know we can never really be married, but what is marriage if not a union between two people who are in love anyway? I mean, we basically already have that." She snickered to ease her nerves, then licked her lips shakily, eyes tearing up. "I'm asking you to marry me and if you say yes, I'll know you're my wife and that's all that'll matter... so Y/N Y/L/N. Will you marry me?"

I didn't even need to think about it. Wanda was the love of my life and just like she'd said, the past three years had been the best. We could never truly be married in the eyes of the world, but she'd be my wife and that would be enough. She'd always be enough.

"Of course I will, Wanda," I answered, tears of happiness slipping from my eyes.

She raised her eyebrows. "Yes? You said yes?"

I laughed, nodding, and leaned forward to kiss her. She returned the favour, salty tears mingling between our lips, but it didn't matter because she was going to be my wife and that's all I could think about.

Our smiles broke the kiss and I wiped her tears away with my thumb before pressing another kiss to her lips.

"Here, let me put this on you," she said between laughter, hands fumbling as she tried to find mine.

I put out my hand and let her slide the ring on my finger. It was a simple silver band with a small, elegant gemstone sat on top, perfect for someone like me who didn't like anything too flashy.

"It's beautiful, Wanda, thank you," I said, smiling through my tears.

"I've been wanting to ask you for a while, but I wasn't sure you'd say yes," she admitted.

"Are you joking? Why wouldn't I?" I asked with an exploding happiness in my chest. "I'm so bloody in love with you, Wanda Maximoff."

She laced our fingers together as she nodded in agreement. "That's good. Because I'm in love with you, too."

And when she said that, it wasn't unlike anything she'd told me before. If she wasn't telling me she loved me, she was showing me in all sorts of ways. But this was different... this was the first time she'd told me as my fiancé. And then she'd soon be my wife. And it made me realise.

I'd spent so long thinking that if we were in a different life, we could have had it all. But we were getting it all now, so maybe, just maybe, this wasn't the wrong lifetime after all.

FIN.

[crazyotakugal]

Soaring Hearts

Hawks/Keigo Tamaki x Reader Fluff Lemon

Authors Notes:

Thank y’all so much for all the support!! I’m so glad you enjoyed the story and like I said, here’s part Two!! I hope y’all enjoy!!

It’s been almost a month since your “encounter” with the Number Two Hero. You’ve been catching up with your family, seeing the sights, and wondering about your meet up with Hawks. Of course, you haven’t told anyone about meeting Hawks and the events that followed. However, there’s always the unexpected…

Part Two:

CHANCE ENCOUNTERS

“ Come on, y/n! You gotta check out this place next!” Your cousin, Fuyumi, waved you over to yet another sweets shop.

It was a nice day today and Fuyumi had the day off, so she decided to take your sight seeing/shopping. The district was actually really cool and had a variety of different shops, but you really didn’t have much money to spend. Since your dad ditched you, things have always been tight. If your uncle, the number one Hero, had not paid for your trip, you wouldn’t have been able to visit. However, you’d never tell your family about your financial situation.

“Oooohhh!! They have that awesome cake and milk tea!! Let’s get some!” Fuyumi grabs your hand and starts to drag you into the shop.

“Umm, Fuyumi, maybe we should slow down?” You really couldn’t afford it, but didn’t want to hurt her feelings.

“Oh no worries! Dad’s covering everything today! He insisted!” She beamed.

“Uuuuhhh…” You were at a lost for words.

You just decided to go along with it and allowed yourself to be dragged along. Despite your uncle’s attitude, he was actually a really kind person. You remember your mom calling him a monster and saying he was evil, but you just didn’t see that.

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

You and Fuyumi were sitting at a table with a neon rainbow checkerboard tablecloth and a pink vase with white daisies inside. The place was really nice for being a sweets shop. It was cutesy kind of place with different kinds of teas and sweets and the atmosphere was relaxing. You just went with whatever Fuyumi ordered. She seemed to be really happy and enjoying hanging around you. To be honest, you were really having tons of fun and you were really happy you came to Japan.

Even your encounter with Hawks.

Even if it was just a fling and as much as it made your heart ache to want to see him again, you knew your best chance was on a screen versus in person. You didn’t regret spending the night with him, but you felt bad for how it ended.

~~~ FLASHBACK ~~~

It was either really late at night or very early in the morning when you had woken up. It was really dark and you were tempted to slip back into the lull of sleep. However, you had to pee really bad. Your body felt stiff and heavy. Nature calling, you rub your thighs together, feeling a sharp pain shoot between your legs, and a stickiness there.

‘Huh? Too early for my period.’

You try to shift to get up, but something was wrapped around your waist. It didn’t feel like your covers. It was warmer and heavier. As your brain slowly started to wake up, you realized the thing around your waist was connected to something heavy pressed against your back. You try to wiggle a little bit and whatever was around your waist tighten.

You felt a lump in your throat and carefully turned your head. Holding your waist was Japan’s number two pro hero! His gold locks even messier then normal and he looked absolutely breath taking asleep. You very carefully slide away from Hawks without disturbing him, gather your scattered clothing, and tippy toe into the bathroom.

After a few minutes, you emerge from the bathroom, fully clothed. You glance over at Hawks sleeping form, feeling regret for leaving like this bubbling inside you. However, you weren’t going to put yourself through that. Even though what you two had shared was amazing, you weren’t going to kid yourself into thinking that there was anything there. You wiped a few tears from your eyes and quietly left his apartment.

~~~ End F/B ~~~

“Y/n? Hey, y/n, you there?” Fuyumi is waving a hand in front of your face.

“Oh! Oh I’m sorry!” You laughed. “I guess I was spacing out.”

A waitress comes over to your table, setting down your orders and leaves with a bow. The tea smelled amazing and the cake super delicious!

“I’m sorry, Fuyumi, what were you saying?” You take a sip of the yummy tea.

She takes a bite of the cake and swallowed it, “I was saying that there’s this big charity party that dad wants us all to attend tonight and was asking you if you had a dress you could wear?!”

You choke a bit on your cake, “What?! No! Noooo! I don’t have anything to wear that fancy! I really don’t need to go, I mean I’m just his niece!”

Fuyumi makes a slight pouty face, “But you are family! It’s for the family’s of that Camino incident, so it’s for a good cause! Dad even said we could go pick out new dresses!”

You feel really uneasy about that,” That’s not necessary! Really!”

Fuyumi just smiled at you, “Really! Don’t worry about it!”

Even though you were still getting to know Fuyumi, you knew her well enough to know there was no point to arguing with her once her mind was set. You just take a bite of your cake as she beams knowing she won.

~~~~~~

After the sweets shop, you were dragged to a few clothing stores. Fuyumi found a few dresses she liked/bought, the one she finally chose for the evening was a navy blue tie back dress that had silver glitter at the hem slowly decreasing almost non existent to the waist, almost like a starburst effect. It looked amazing on her. In fact, a lot of stuff did.

You found a few things you looked for everyday wear and lingerie, which she bought you despite your protests, but nothing you felt confident in or really suited you. Finally, Fuyumi dragged you into this one store with all kinds of clothing. That’s when it caught your eye. It was an off the shoulder dress with loop sleeves, form fitting torso with lace up front. There was a satin bow at the waist, the bow resting on your hip. The skirt flared out into two layers, the top layer was sheer parted down the middle with tiny little diamonds (not real) that ruffled at the edges. The second layer was a satin material with the same diamond accents that came down to your ankles. It was your favorite color and the price wasn’t bad at all!

“Oh wow, y/n! That’s perfect! You should try it on!” Fuyumi beamed as she snatched the dress and pushed it and you towards the dressing room. A few minutes later, you came out with it on. It fit you perfectly and you couldn’t hardly believe it was you in the mirror.

“Y/n! You look beautiful!” Your cousin smiled at you, causing you to blush a little.

‘My little sparrow is so beautiful.’

You remember the last time someone called you “beautiful” and remembering that night made you turn bright red.

~~~ Later that night ~~~

Just as you thought, it was an extremely classy affair. There were ton of big time heroes there as well as a lot of influential names. You didn’t know everyone, but Fuyumi had no problem filling you in. She looked so pretty in her dress. Natsuo and Shoto of course didn’t show up. Fuyumi was squealing about all the hot and available guys at the party.

“Oh there’s dad!” Fuyumi grabs your arm and drags you over to where your uncle was.

He, of course being number one, was surrounded by a bunch of people. He looked really annoyed, but put on a front. Occasionally, shaking a hand. Once he saw Fuyumi and you heading his way, he excused himself and to meet you halfway.

“Hey, Dad! This things really great isn’t it?” Fuyumi smiles, as always, trying to be the sweet daughter.

“Fuyumi. Y/N. You’re both looking very nice this evening.” He gave a tiniest, quickest smile.

Fuyumi beamed at the compliment and gave even a little twirl. A waiter came by and offered you three a colorful drink in a tall glass with a cherry on top. Endeavor declined, but you two each took one and thanked him.

“Um, Uncle, thank you very much for the dress,” You bowed, careful not to spill your drink.

“Hey there, Number one! You sure are popular!” A familiar voice rang, making your heart stop.

You lift your head up, to see none other than Hawks standing next to your uncle, with his hand on his shoulder with his usual grin on his face. He, like the other pro heroes there, was wearing his typical attire.

“Ugh, Hawks, let me introduce you to my daughter, Fuyumi, and my niece visiting abroad, Y/N,” Endeavor holds a hand out gesturing your way causing your heart to stop.

‘Don’t be dumb, Y/N! It was a one night stand! He probably doesn’t even remember you!’

Hawks smiles at Fuyumi warmly, gently taking her hand, but there’s a split second of surprise and recognition when his eyes turn towards you. Your breath catches in your throat as he smiles, takes your hand into his, and brings it to his lips. You feel your face turn bright red.

��Nice you meet you, Y/n,” He says with a subtle hint of sarcasm. He was acting like you’d just met, but he definitely recognized you.

“Oh my God! Is that the number one and number two pro heroes together!” Someone yelled from the crowd.

Fuyumi grabbed your hand and hurried away so you two weren’t caught in the poparatzi fire. You glanced back at Hawks, who was still looking at you as you were being led away. The crowd of reporters encircled the two heroes.

~~~~~~~~~

After the craziness with the reporters, you’d lost sight of Hawks. You’d spent the rest of the evening being dragged around by your cousin, talking, eating, and drinking. It was actually lots of fun. You got to meet a lot of new people and eat a lot of delicious food.

A little tipsy, needing some air, you excused yourself from your cousin who honestly was too engrossed in talking to this guy to notice you leave. You found a quiet place in the outside garden. The cool air felt nice on your hot skin and the scent of the flowers around you was relaxing. You sat on a bench by a fountain, closed your eyes, and took a few deep breaths. As you started to cool down, the breeze was starting to make you shiver a little.

Suddenly something soft and warm is placed on your shoulders. Your eyes shoot open and you see Hawks standing there with a gentle smile on his face, he’d placed his jacket over you. Seeing him so close to you, made your heart race and you felt a ping of guilt.

“Little Sparrow a bit chilly?” He reaches and brushes a stray hair from your burning face.

Hearing him say that nickname, flustered you because images of that night came flooding back. You felt the familiar spark of desire start from just that little touch. The memory of how those hands felt touching you made you shiver slightly.

“I, um, I…” You stutter out.

He tilts his head slightly, “hmmm?”

You bow low, “I’m so sorry! About leaving like that I mean!”

Embarrassed you ramble on, “It’s just, um, I’ve never done that type of thing. Not saying I regret what happened, but…I didn’t know what to expect afterwards and panicked and…I’m so sorry I left and didn’t say anything…”

You’re afraid to look up, but a gentle hand on your chin, turned your gaze upwards to meet his. Those wonderful lips of his gently covering your own. At first it starts slow, but then gradually becomes more passionate. One hand wraps around your waist as the other cups the back of your neck, keeping you in place. His tongue sweeps over your lips and you grant him access to your mouth without hesitation. All the desire from that night reawakening as that kiss makes you melt.

When your lips finally part, both his hands cup your cheeks bringing your face forward so your forehead was resting against his. Your noses almost touching, both your eyes shut, and you both a panting for breath. Just from that kiss, you could tell that you probably were already soaked down there. Your eyes locked when you opened them. Desire burning so brightly behind his gold orbs.

You looked so beautiful to him right now. The dress you were wearing was absolutely amazing on you, your lips were red and swollen from his assault, and your cheeks were flushed. That morning, he felt sad that you had left and he hadn’t gotten your name or info. That night has been fantastic and he didn’t know what it was about you, but he just felt so drawn to you. Sure, he’d had experience with women and had some fun in his younger years. Despite the rumors about him, he didn’t go around jumping from woman to woman. That was way too risky for one, but shallow one night stands weren’t his thing.

“Y/N,” He breathed before kissing you again. His hands starting the explore your body over your dress.

“H…Hawks!” You gasp as his lips start placing kisses down your neck. Hearing your name from his lips completely overwhelmed you with need.

His arms lift you up bridal style and he flies up high onto a balcony. The door’s unlocked and Hawks carries you into the dark room. It looked like someone’s office, there were shelves with all kinds of books, a couple of couches by a fireplace, and a large wooden desk.

Hawks carries you over and gently lays you down on one of the couches, his jacket acting like a pillow, and leans over you. His lips once again taking yours captive. He uses one arm to support his weight above you as the other slides up your leg bunching the skirt of your dress higher and higher. You gasp against his mouth when you feel his fingers press against the damp cloth between your legs.

“Oh!” You toss your head back as his fingers slowly start to circle the wetness there.

“I see my lovely sparrow is still so sensitive,” he murmurs as he kisses your shoulder, his fingers dipping beyond your soaked panties.

“Keigo!” You cry out and you feel Hawks shutter above you, feeling how wet you already were for him and already crying his name.

He couldn’t handle it anymore. He gets up off of you, you hear the sound of a belt buckle being undone and the sound of rustling clothing. You give a surprise squeal as you feel your panties being pulled off you. Hawks pushes your skirt all the way up to your waist and settles himself between your legs. Before you can say anything, he sheaths himself into you with one thrust. You can feel him fill every part of you, once again stretching you.

“Ahhh!” Your body shudders as you cum just from the sensation of him utterly filling you.

“Did my sparrow just cum from me just putting it inside?” He says with a cocky tone as he starts to move, “You really are made for me! Fuck! You feel so good!”

You dig your nails into his clothed back as your rocked into ecstasy. You look up at Hawks; his face twisted with pleasure and his beautiful red wings completely spread out above the two of you. Your tangle your fingers in his blond hair and bring his lips crashing down onto yours.

The sounds of moans and slapping skin fill the room.

“You’re so hot and wet! It’s like heaven inside you!” He breaths, never halting his thrusts, “God Sparrow, you’re taking me so wonderfully. You’re just the perfect fit!”

You start to feel that wonderful familiar knot start to build again. Hawks thrusts start getting a little rougher and deeper. A film of sweat covering both your bodies. His length hitting the entrance of your womb over and over again. The pleasure is just as intense as before that you feel your mind slipping away.

“Keigo! I’m gonna…oh God! I’m gonna!” You sob out, feeling yourself about to tumble down that peak any moment.

Hawks grabs your hips in his hands and pounds into you mercilessly. He burned the vision of you in his mind. Your h/c spilled all over as your head thrashes about, you withering underneath him with absolute bliss plastered on your face, and those lovely lips of yours swollen, parted, quivering as you start to reach your peak. That lovely dress of yours bunched at your hips giving him a wonderful view of himself being swallowed by your lovely pussy.

“Y/n, cum for me! That’s it! Cum for me sparrow!” He urges, pushing his hips against that spot a few times, his cock hitting your cervix, before you finally tumble over.

“KEIGO!” You scream, tossing your head back as your orgasm hits you. You cling to the couch as it washes you over. He holds his grip on your hips as he pounds you.

Hawks loses it when he feels you clamp down onto him, cumming around his cock. Your hot fluids gushing all over him. A few sloppy thrusts later, he’s calling out your name as he fills you to the brim. Another climax hits you as feel his dick twitching and filling you. You both lay there, panting afterwards.

You both hold each other on the couch, bodies still connected. Hawks still breathless, placing occasional kisses on your shoulder. He didn’t want to leave your warmth yet. After a few more minutes of holding you, mumbling soothing words, Hawks slips from your depths. He watches as your combined fluids seep from your opening slightly and catches your soft whimper once he left you.

Hawks sits up and gathers you in his lap, holding you to his chest. You smelt amazing. Like a sweet dessert. Your h/c was soft and your skin as well. It felt so nice holding you like this. You laid your head on his chest and gave into him holding you. His fingers gently stroking your hair. You didn’t want to be parted from him yet. You wished time would freeze and you two could stay like this. He smelt like rain. His warmth radiating from his body into yours. You feel a bit of sleepiness come over you.

“We should go before someone comes in and we get in trouble for staining their expensive couch,” Hawks whispers in your ear, bringing a bright red blush to your face.

You get up on your unsteady legs and straighten yourself up. You look around, a bit panicked, for your panties that you’d been wearing, but couldn’t see where Hawks had tossed them too. Your face turned bright red thinking how horrifying it would be if someone found them.

“Looking for something?” Hawks smiles at you, holding the bunched up lace garment in his hand.

“H…hey!” You feel your face burn even hotter. “Give those back!”

You go to try to snatch your panties from his hand, but of course he’s too fast for you and easily dodges. You go to try and grab them again, but this time he catches your wrist, pulling your body against his.

He smiles down at you, giving you a playful wink,”Consider these my hostage so you don’t go disappearing on me again.”

You make a pouty face at him and playfully punch him in the chest. He simply laughs it off.

His lips brush yours as he stuffs the material into his jacket pocket and lifts you up again. He effortlessly leaps down the balcony, safely with you to the ground. He gently sets you down on your feet. You feel his hand cover yours then sliding something between your fingers. It was his card, but at the bottom was a hand written phone number. You look up at him again and he reaches to brush a hair from your face. You looked absolutely adorable at that moment, looking up at him with big, questioning eyes.

“I don’t usually give out my personal number, but I’m willing to make an exception for you my sparrow,” He grins, ” However, now that I know you’re related to the big guy, I can easily hunt you down too.”

You give him a look and mumble under your breath, “You can try.”

He’s taken aback for a moment, then bursts into laughter. You were just too cute. He couldn’t help himself, wraps an arm around your waist, and kisses you deeply before he finally steps away from you.

He flaps his wings and takes off a few feet into the air. Small red feathers raining down all around you.

“Until I see ya around, Y/N!” He grins before taking off into the air. Leaving you looking up at the night sky as he disappears.

~~~~~~~~~~

So that’s it for part two!! Thank y’all so much and I’ll be working on part three soon. :D

[neonacity]

LUCID | NCT DREAM ‘00 LINE X READER | CH.6

LUCID DREAMS - A TYPE OF DREAM WHEREIN THE PERSON IS AWARE THAT THEY ARE CAUGHT IN A DREAM WORLD.

Summary: It was supposed to be a harmless, professional transaction. You were to tutor a group of boys, get your pay at the end of the day, and go home to your loving fiance. Kids aren’t supposed to be dangerous, right? So why, then, are you caught up in a web of madness that slowly makes you feel like you’re in a living nightmare?

NOTE:This is a yandere plot featuring NCT Dream ‘00 line which means there will be mature themes in the story as well as obsessive, toxic behavior. If you’re a minor, please refrain from interacting. If this isn’t your thing, then just scroll and skip. In no way am I condoning anything written here— this is not love, this is obsession—nor do I think that any of the people mentioned here will act any way like in this story. This is purely a work of fiction.

Genre: yandere, horror, suspense

TW: abuse, obsessive behavior, toxic relationships, suggestive scenes, stalking, possible kidnapping, mental health. Age gap–though nothing dramatic. Everyone is of legal age, drugs, slight smut for this chapter but nothing graphic, questionable consent (?) I guess? Creepy, creepy, creepy! This will be updated as the story goes along.

CHAPTER 1 | CHAPTER 2 | CHAPTER 3 | CHAPTER 4 | CHAPTER 5

“EVERYONE HAS A DARKER NATURE. EVERYONE. GOOD MEN FEAR IT, AND EVIL MEN EMBRACE IT.” - JAMES ISLINGTON

The silent hum of the air conditioning filled the space like a foreboding chant. Nothing else but the sound of the hospital machinery and random noises outside pierced the stillness of the room as you stared, unseeing, at the green and orange numbers that blinked on the monitor above the bed. 

You barely have any recollection of how you managed to find yourself in the hospital, but you do remember brief memories of Taeyong picking you up from the floor you found yourself crumpled on after you got the call. You remember seeing Jaehyun's parents at a brightly lit corridor and his mother pulling you into a hug as she broke down and his father telling you how his son hasn't woken up since he was brought to the emergency room.

You remember your heart breaking in shock, mind too numb from the godforsaken pills you have been taking and your own injury. So many times you wondered to yourself if you were still caught in one of your nightmares, but every time you tried to break free from it, you're slapped back with the reality of how all of this is real.

Your fingers gently tightened on Jaehyun's hands now as your gaze landed on his face. He looked so peaceful, like he's just sleeping, that you almost wanted to bend over and try to kiss him awake. You don't even have any idea what time and day it is already, but you have barely left his side since you were brought to him. The nightmares and sleeplessness? They're barely a problem for you anymore because right now, you're entirely not resting at all unless your body forces you to crash from physical exhaustion. Even then, you usually only sleep for about two to three hours at best to make sure that you never miss a moment with your fiance.

"Severe traumatic head injury. He was lucky enough that the airbag shielded him from the worst of the impact."

The words of his attending doctor echoed in your head again like a faraway voice. You could only remember bits and pieces of what he said to his parents back then as he reported his findings, but you caught enough context for you to draw a picture of the situation. You remember Jaehyun's mother asking the chances of her son waking up again, her voice barely holding up from her emotions. 

"I cannot promise anything, Ma'm. I'd say he has a 60 percent chance. He's fighting."

And he is. You know Jaehyun inside out. He might be unconscious now, but there is no way he is giving up. Not from something like this. 

"Keep fighting baby…" you whispered in the stillness of the room as you lifted his hand gently to your lips to kiss. "I'll wait for you. We still have a wedding to do."

The slight creaking of the door barely made you look away from his sleeping face. You only did at the gentle sound of a throat clearing, your eyes slightly widening as you recognized the man who just walked inside the room. Taeil had the same mildly shocked look on him as he stopped on the  other side of the bed across from you. 

"You…"

"Are you a relative of the patient?" He asked now as he tucked his clipboard under his arm. You simply nodded, watching him quickly glance at the numbers on the monitor before his eyes settled on you again.

"I'm his fiancee."

That made him raise his brows slightly. He pulled a pen now from the pocket of his coat to quickly write something on his file. "What a coincidence. Not a good one obviously. I'm sorry to hear about him. Mr. Jung, right?"

You swallowed. You didn't want to acknowledge anything that he just said so you tried to divert the conversation instead.

"You're not his doctor. Why are you…"

"Oh. He was turned over to me today. I am one of the resident neurologists here but he had to be moved to me because his first doctor has too much in his plate already. Don't worry, I was briefed properly about his case."

Your gaze followed Taeil as he bent over to check Jaehyun's oxygen level as well as the other wires attached to him. You don't know what to feel about him taking over, but at least you already know him previously.

"Are there any changes? Positive ones?" You asked in a frail voice that Taeil definitely didn't miss. You told yourself to not act silly and ask questions that probably do not have answers yet, but you couldn't help yourself now. The man seemed to think over his words first, noticing your state, before calmly giving his reply.

"No particular ones, but the fact that there are no negative developments is… something. I will have to request for some tests to be done on him again tomorrow so we can see if there are positive changes in his brain."

Neutral. Not good, but at least it's not bad either.

"How are you? I was about to check on you again. Is your head okay?"

You were still thinking over his words that you barely caught his question. Looking up, you tried to scramble for an answer to give. To be honest, you haven't given proper attention to your own injury since this happened. You would even only remember to take your medications on your clearest, less anxious moments, which, honestly, isn’t a lot. 

"I'm uh… the wound has closed. But the headaches. They're still there."

He simply nodded. "Any other side effects?"

You didn't immediately answer. You didn't want to sound whiny, but it's not like you're going to lose anything by telling him the uglier parts of your recovery. You swallowed to try and dislodge the slight blockage in your throat.

"Nightmares…" you said now, voice soft. You briefly remembered the last one you had back in the manor before you woke up to the bad news and you felt your stomach turn again. "Lots of them. Hallucinations sometimes…"

The doctor watched you carefully and you know he is trying to compute things in his mind despite his face remaining calm.

"Have you been keeping to your schedule with your medications? Are you taking too much?"

You firmly shook your head no to his last question.

"No, I haven't been overdosing. But… I've been skipping my pills the last few days because of...because of this."

"How have you been feeling since you started missing your dosages then? Do you remember?"

That made you actually stop and think about it for a moment. Now that you are paying attention, you did notice how the nightmares have calmed down slightly. Even the hallucinations are almost gone. You frowned slightly to yourself.

"A bit… better actually."

Taeil took his time to observe you a bit more before writing something on a new page of his clipboard.

"You must have had severe reactions to the mixture of pills I gave you. I'm going to prescribe you new ones and ask the nurses to pick them up and bring them to you here. Can you promise that you'll try and take them though? You really need them to fully heal."

You nodded and gave him a slightly sheepish look.

"I will, thank you very much."

Taeil dug his hands into the pockets of his coat and gave you a gentle smile.

"Well, that's it for today. I'll come back tomorrow to give you updates about Mr. Jung." He had already turned and started walking away when he suddenly stopped to look at you again.

"Oh, and another thing. Please try and get some sleep. Recover… and then focus on helping your fiance."

******* You didn't really know what woke you up. Stirring from your sleep, the first thing that registered to you was the sound of distant traffic mixed with the gentle chirping of the morning birds from outside the window. A warm feeling radiated on your cheek and made the back of your eyelids glow red.

You flickered your eyes open and immediately rolled away to escape the ray of sunshine that slipped from the open curtains and shone directly at your face. You easily evaded it as you moved over to the other side of the bed which was empty and cold from the night before.

That was when you finally remembered that you were back in your home, in the same bedroom you share with Jaehyun. The day before, his mother offered to take the responsibility of watching over him so there was a sudden change of plans that finally gave you the reason to check back into your apartment after so long. If it were you, you would have preferred not leaving your boyfriend’s side until he wakes up, but you also knew that your future mother-in-law wanted to spend time with him so you relented. 

Of course you weren't thrilled to be home alone, especially with Jaehyun not being there, but the comfort that a real mattress provided—over the small couch you used to sleep in back at the hospital—is definitely a welcome change for your body. You even tried to take your medicine properly, the new ones that Taeil had provided, in the hopes of getting knocked down fast. Your adrenaline and anxiety had been fueling you in the past days, but you know from the way your heart thumped and your hands shook that you need a solid rest.

And you got it. You still feel a little groggy now but your body is definitely lighter and your head clearer. The nightmares didn't even come, and while they were replaced by total darkness or dreams in white that still made you anxious, you are willing to take those anytime over the graphic ones that you used to have.

You gently sat back against the headrest of the bed now and reached out for your phone to check the time. It's barely 7AM but as expected, Jaehyun's mom has already provided you with updates from the hospital. He’ll have some tests taken today as Taeil advised and then they’ll hear more about his progress. From the looks of it, she seems still set on watching over her son, which means you still have at least today free to yourself.

You quickly typed a reply to her and sighed. You’re thankful that even though you weren’t related by blood, his parents have always treated you as if you were their own. Having a family is not something you’ve really experienced in your childhood, so that’s something you’ve always appreciated about them. That is also the reason why you wish for the best out of this situation, because you also couldn’t bear seeing your fiance’s mother and father heartbroken. He’s their only son, after all.

A quick look around your room left you feeling empty. The last week has been so hard that it felt longer and now you’re struggling to find your normal pace again. In an effort to bring yourself to focus, you decided to pick up your phone once more and started flipping through your calendar to check your schedule. It didn’t take long for you to frown when you realized the upcoming dates there. You’ve plotted important academic schedules in advance and one quick look at it told you how much you’ve obviously missed in the past week. You’ve been so lost in the mess of everything that has happened that you’ve entirely forgotten about your job at the manor. You realized that they didn’t even call you once to ask about your absence, probably because they also know about the situation, but even that is not enough excuse for you to entirely fall off the radar.  

Biting your lip, you quickly scrolled through your contacts now to look for the number you need. Your thumb hovered over the call button momentarily, but you eventually pressed it anyway. Your eyes wandered towards the clock on the wall, hoping silently to yourself that it wasn’t too early for you to call.

“Rosewood Manor, how can I help you?”

You straightened on your seat.

“Hey, Taeyong. It’s me. Sorry if I called so early.”

The other boy seemed to have been taken slightly by surprise by the way he fell silent at the other end of the line. You tapped your finger against your knee, waiting for him to speak again.

“Hi. No, it’s fine. Work started for me about an hour ago. Are you okay? How’s things on your end?”

You nibbled guiltily on your lower lip and finally got off your bed to walk over to the window. You pushed the curtains open and stared at the slight snowfall that had started falling on the ground. You’ve missed so many days of reporting to them but the first thing he does is to check if you’re fine.

“I um—things are still the same. My boyfriend’s still at the hospital.”

“Oh… I’m so sorry to hear that.”

“Look, I want to apologize. I haven’t really reported to work and I didn’t even call about it. It’s just that—things have been so crazy lately, but still that isn’t an excuse for me to just not show up.”

Taeyong, however, was understanding as always. You were about to go off for another round of apologies when he gently cut you off. 

“Hey, it’s fine. We know you’ve been dealing with a lot lately so we also weren't expecting anything. Don’t worry too much about it.”

“But, the boys’ examinations and portfolio review is happening in three days and I haven’t really checked in with them. How are they doing now?”

“Oh...that. Well, we actually tried looking for a temporary tutor to help out but I...uh… I think he isn't really cutting it. Maybe because he isn’t the one who started the program with them. But he’s a big help still.”

“Oh god, I’m so sorry about that. I should have at least—look, I can drop by today and just try to fix things.”

“Are you sure? You really don’t have to. Don’t you need to be at the hospital?”

You started going around your room now, trying to gather the scattered papers and files that you’ll need. It’s a good thing you woke up early so you still have time to prepare for work. “My boyfriend’s mother is the one watching over him today so I have the day off.”

“And your injury? How is it?”

Your eyes landed on the new bottles of medicine sitting on your bedside table.

“Better. I’m feeling so much better.”

You heard Taeyong sigh in relief over the phone. “Thank god. We were so worried about that. Well, you really don’t need to go, but if you have time, I guess doing it today won’t hurt. It will help us a lot.”

A small smile tugged at your lips now and you switched the phone over to your other ear as you started arranging your bag. “Thank you so much for being understanding. I need a distraction anyway. I’d rather work than stay home alone… Thanks for not firing me.”

That made him laugh a little. “I’ll tell the boys that you’re coming over. Oh, and be careful on your drive here. The roads are a little bit slippery today because of the snow.”

“I will, thank you. I’ll be there by 9.”

******* “Noona!”

You have barely finished arranging your materials on your desk when the door to the room burst open and ushered an anxious-looking Jisung inside. You looked up quickly at him, only barely catching Chenle wobbling with his crutch before your vision of the entrance was blocked by Jisung’s tall frame. His hair looked swept up as if he ran and there was a slight flush staining his cheeks. He stopped right in front of you, stopping just in time for him not to topple you over.

“Hey, Jisung how are—” You tried to give him a smile but he was quick enough to grab your hands between his.  

“Are you back? Are you really back for real?” He pressed now, eyes wide as he tried to bend over to look closely at you. He looked like a puppy, the only missing thing being a wagging tail to complete the look. You couldn’t help the brief laugh that passed over you as you tried to calm him down.

“I am. For the day, yes. Sorry I missed so many of your sessions.”

“We thought you left us,” Jisung continued, his lower lip protruding just a bit. Just then, Chenle had finally reached the two of you, a slightly embarrassed look on his face. This is actually the first time you saw him again since the day the two of you had your accident and you’re glad to see him healthy despite his broken leg.

“Hi, Chenle. How are you?”

The boy scratched the back of his head and looked away slightly. “Fine… I’m sorry, noona. I wasn’t able to visit you when you stayed with us. I’m really really sorry about what happened in the forest.”

You tried to give him a reassuring smile and freed one of your hands from Jisung’s hold to ruffle his hair. The action seemed to have calmed him down a little because he finally looked at you again, a small apologetic smile on his own lips.

“Don’t worry about it. It’s not your fault. But be careful next time, okay?”

“Are you going to be our tutor again, noona?” Jisung pressed once more and you turned your attention back to him. To be honest, you’re still not sure how your schedule will turn out after this, but you couldn’t really bear to break the poor boy’s heart at the moment.

“Yes… I’m here to teach your big brothers today for their tests though. We’ll have to schedule you and Chenle’s lessons again. Is that alright?”

A brief look of disappointment flashed on his face but he was quick enough to pick it up. Jisung smiled and gave your hand a squeeze.

“Okay. We can wait. It’s good you are back, Jaemin-hyung was so—”

“Yah, don’t hog her by yourself. You’ll scare her away.”

A new voice made the three of you look back to the doorway. Haechan smiled at your little group as he strolled casually into the room followed by Jeno and Jaemin. The three of them joined your crowd and you felt Jisung finally let go of your hand as he stepped away to go over to his brothers’ side.

“Hi. Sorry, I only returned now. Taeyong told me that you—”

You weren’t able to finish what you wanted to say as Haechan gently stopped you mid-sentence. He leaned his head to the side, eyes briefly scanning you from head to toe. Unlike Jisung, he looked calm and only barely excited.

“It’s fine. We knew you’ll come back. How are you?”

“Oh… I’m good. My head is better. I haven’t had the chance to thank all of you for taking care of me when I was here.”

“How about your boyfriend?” It was Jeno who asked this time and you quickly turned to him to address his question. Your eyes briefly slipped to Jaemin who was standing behind him before you could even speak though, and for a moment you had the impression that Jeno was shielding him—or blocking him from you. You blinked a little bit in confusion, wondering if it was just your imagination that was making you think that way.

“He’s still… still unconscious,” your smile dropped a little but you tried your best to keep your voice casual. “We’re getting more tests for him. His doctor said that he isn’t showing bad signs at least.”

“I’m so sorry to hear about him,” Haechan said with compassion and you gave him a grateful look. Your gaze settled on Jaemin again, however, who for some reason had barely looked at you since he came into the room. You know that he can be quiet and reserved at times, but there is something in the air around him that makes you slightly worried. He’s so still, but the way he carries himself makes it seem like he’s so strung up at the same time. It also doesn’t help that Jeno seems to be almost pushing him back from view.

“Hi Jaemin… How are you?” You tried to gently ask him to make sure that he is okay. He didn’t look at you at first, but when he finally did, you felt yourself freeze a little. His eyes looked dark and almost emotionless when he met yours and there were shadows under them as if he hadn't slept properly for days. He didn’t even answer and just simply stared, his gaze blank and accusing at the same time.

Haechan casually glanced over his brother and chuckled. “Our Jaeminie here has been sick for the past couple of days so he’s a little out of it. But he’s going to be fine now,” he put a hand over the other’s shoulder and gave it a slight squeeze as if to calm him down. “Right, Jaemin? We’ll try our best to go to class today since noona is finally back, hmm?”

Jaemin, however, didn’t even seem to hear him. He continued staring at you the same way that kept you pinned on your spot.

“Are you leaving again?” he finally asked and you almost felt goosebumps rise on your skin. It didn’t sound like a question… but more of a threat. You swallowed.

“I’m going to have to arrange my schedule till things get better…” you answered carefully, as if you’re navigating dark waters. That didn’t seem to cut it for him, unfortunately.

“So you’re not leaving. Forever?”

You blinked. To be honest, you’ve been thinking of quitting and just finishing the rest of the month if things didn’t improve, but you don’t think that’s the right answer to give at the moment.

“No… not for now,” you finally managed to say. You watched as Jaemin seemed to visibly relax, his stiff shoulders loosening under Haechan’s grip. He didn’t say anything after that, but he at least looked away, seemingly more satisfied with your words.

“Great. I think we should get to work,” Haechan broke the silence and looked around the room as if the tension you were feeling was just something only you could feel. He nodded towards Chenle and Jisung then. “You guys go back to your own classes. You’ll have your share of noona once it’s your turn.” He then glanced at you, smile still in place. “Should we start then?”

You nodded. “Is Renjun still not back?”

“Not yet. He’s going to be here tomorrow though,” Jeno answered as he took his seat on one of the desks.

“I see…”

Haechan also found his spot, but not before you’ve noticed him urging Jaemin to do the same. Playfully, he took the pencil you’ve arranged on the desk and started tapping it against the wood of the table.

“Don’t worry. We’ll tell him you’re back. I’m sure he can’t wait to have his lessons again~”

******* You looked over the window for the third time in the last fifteen minutes and sighed. The day had been busy with you trying to catch up on the boys’ lessons that you barely even noticed the state of the weather outside. When you finally did, it took you by surprise when you saw how much of the ground was covered by snow—one look at it told you that it is at least a feet deep by now. Your first instinct was to try and maneuver your car out of the lot before your tires get entirely buried in it, but then you remembered that you promised to wait for Taeyong to come back before leaving the manor. The butler requested for you to temporarily watch over the manor while he tries to do some last minute errands back in the city, but it’s been two hours since he originally promised to come back. You eyes glanced at your watch now, then back at the quickly darkening view outside. 

“...severe snowstorm has blocked some of the main roads in the city at the moment. Expect heavy traffic and don’t forget to drive safely.”

You turned to the television now to catch the last of the rambling dialogue of the reporter about the weather. You’ve been debating on whether to call Taeyong or not to check on him, but you didn’t want to seem impatient to go home when you only really wanted to make sure if he’s safe. From the looks of it, he’s stuck somewhere because of the hale, too.

You were on your way to get your phone from your bag to at least try to shoot him a message when you suddenly heard it ring. Getting it just in time, you almost sighed in relief when you saw his number there. You quickly took it and went over to the window to answer it to make sure you get some proper signal.

“Hello? Taeyong?”

“Hey. Finally. I’ve been trying to call you for the last hour, thank god it finally connected.”

“Oh, sorry, my phone’s in my bag. I think the signal’s getting bad because of the snowstorm. Where are you? Are you okay?”

“Yeah, about that, I’m still stuck in town. The traffic’s so bad here because a section of the main road is blocked. Road maintenance is supposed to come thirty minutes ago but I think there’s a delay because there are other roads they are working on.”

Your gaze drifted back to the television where scenes of the same blocked avenues were being flashed. “Yeah… the news says the same.  Are you safe though?”

“I am. I’m really sorry for making you wait. I’d tell you to drive back and not wait for me anymore but I don’t think you’ll also make it home in time with all this traffic going on. I don’t think it’s going to be safe. Do you mind waiting for a little bit more? I’ll tell you once the roads are better.”

You thought it over quickly, a frown settling on your face. You really want to go home, but he’s right. There’s no point in trying to drive back if you’ll only find yourself stuck in the roads for hours. Not being a big fan of night driving yourself, you can already imagine the stress waiting for you if you add a snowstorm to the mix. As much as you wanted to leave, you’re left with no choice, at least for the moment.

 “I can… I’ll just wait for you, I guess. Do you want me to do anything here while you’re gone? Dinner for the boys?”

“Oh no, no, you don’t need to do that, that’s not part of your job,” Taeyong sounded abashed when he said that. You stepped away from the window then and took a seat by the fireplace that Jeno started earlier. Half of your concentration was on the news which has now shifted to a different set of reports also caused by the snowstorm. “They’ll know when to go down and eat. Don’t worry about them. Where are they right now?”

“Ah, I think they went back to their rooms? I did tell them earlier that I’ll try to wait for you.”

“I see. Yes, I think that’s better. Don’t worry, I’ll keep you updated. If things don’t get better, I think I’ll have no other choice but find a hostel here and wait for the weather to calm down. You can stay there and just ask for help from any of them. You can stay in the same room just in case.”

You didn’t quickly react to the offer. Instead, your eyes flickered to the doorway of the room before refocusing your attention back to the conversation. It’s not like you have anything against spending the night again at the manor—you’ve done it before, after all—but it’s honestly not really something you’re comfortable to do again. Maybe it’s because you’ve never really been okay with overstaying at strangers’ houses but your gut feel is also telling you right now that it shouldn’t be your top option regardless of the situation you are in.

Still, you didn’t want to come off rude to Taeyong, not when he is only being kind to offer you temporary shelter while being stuck in the middle of nowhere himself. So instead, you went against your initial doubts and offered him your thanks in return. It’s just Plan B that he’s proposing after all. 

“I will. Keep me updated though if you need anything you think I can help with.”

“Thank you and I will. I have to go now though. Please make yourself at home. I’ll try to call again after an hour.”

“Okay. Take care.”

You put your phone down now with a worried frown as you heard the line drop. You couldn’t believe this is happening the first day you got back to work but it’s not like you can really blame anyone for it. The only good thing is that you’re sure Jaehyun is being taken care of right now so that is at least one thing off your shoulders. You didn’t really need to rush anywhere, not especially to a vacant home. Leaning back against your seat, you tried your best to relax as your gaze travelled around the room once again. You deliberated on sending a text to your mother-in-law to tell her about your situation but decided against it, not wanting to worry her more. You sighed. For now, you guess you didn’t have any other choice but to wait.

You did try to distract yourself by watching the news for a few more minutes before finally giving up on it. With resignation, you picked yourself up from your seat again and turned the television off. For a moment you simply stood in the middle of the room, trying to figure out what to do with your time when your gaze settled on the door again. Everyone retreated to their own rooms after they finished with their lessons so it means the house is pretty much yours for exploring if you wanted to. You toyed with the idea for a little bit, before finally resigning yourself to it. It’s not like there really is anything else left for you to do, and Taeyong did say you can make yourself feel at home if you wanted to. With a sigh, you finally turned on your heels to leave the room and peered silently into the hallway. It was deserted as expected, but still your eyes travelled left and right to check if there’s anyone out and about at this hour. It was only after you made sure that you were alone when you finally allowed yourself to step into the corridor.

Of course, you have a plan. You’re pretty much sure that checking out the rooms on the first floor is acceptable since it’s where you’ve been rotating your classes so you’re going to stick to those areas. You remember finding a library there once and you focused on finding your way to it to maybe check out some of the books in the collection. 

It did take you about five minutes to finally find the place you were looking for. For some reason, the sections in the manor always confuse you no matter how many times you try to memorize each one, probably because of how big and similar-looking they are on the outside. You’ve already tried four doors when you were finally welcomed by the familiar-looking bookshelves at the fifth one. You sighed and gave one quick look around the room before slipping yourself inside after making sure that you’re alone.

There will probably never be a time when you won’t find yourself fascinated by anything in this grand home. If the architecture of the mansion is not enough to convince anyone how rich the family is, their book collection is enough to assure that at the very least. You’ve only ever taken a quick glimpse of it once during one of your lessons with the boys, but one look of the titles in their shelves is enough to make any literature major excited. You looked at the floor to ceiling collection now, your fingers gently running over the spines of the books you could reach with a small smile on your face.

You were about to check out the rest of the collection on the other side of the wall when something in the middle of the room caught your attention. You didn’t really catch it at first because of the shadows that concealed it when you first came in, but you could pretty much discern the outline of a blanket covered standee now from where you stood. You frowned. Taking careful steps, you closed the distance towards it to try and figure out what exactly it is that you’re seeing.

A closer look revealed it to be an easel covered with white cloth. You could see the outline of the canvas where the blanket falls over it while shadows of colors peeked out into the thin fabric from the surface it was covering. How odd… you knew that Renjun had a different art room for his paintings so to see this now here in the middle of the library seems uncanny.

You didn’t know how long you remained standing in front of it, too. You know you should have walked away—after all, the white cloth hiding it away from plain view means whatever is on that canvas is not meant for everyone’s eyes to see, but you simply couldn’t tear yourself away from it. It’s as if there was a silent force asking you to pull that cloth to reveal what’s underneath, the inclination so strong that you could almost hear its voice breathing down next to your ear, unrelenting until you do what it says.

The next thing you know, you had your hand attached to one end of the fabric. You stared at it now, wondering last minute if you should go ahead or not. You swallowed and glanced around one last time around the room. If you’re alone… it wouldn’t hurt if you could take a peek, right? Nobody will know. You just have to see, then cover it back again. Before you could even think about it too much, your arm was finally moving on its own as it gently tugged at the covering. You watched as it fell gently on the floor, like a bodiless ghost melting into the shadows on the ground.

Your eyes couldn’t make out what you were seeing at first. The dim lighting of the room wasn’t helping at all, but you were sure that it was a woman’s silhouette that was staring back at you from the canvas. Colors swirled around her, like some unknown mass trying to drag her back into unknown depths. Shapes and tones jumped from the picture, but her form stood out from the rest, gracefully twisted as if she was in the middle of trying to fight and succumb to it at the same time. You frowned. Taking a step closer towards it, you tried to study its details under what little illumination the lamps above afforded you.

That’s when it all happened simultaneously. Your heart stopped beating the same time your eyes widened as they finally focused on what’s in front of them. It’s as if the ground suddenly vanished from underneath your feet and you were falling, falling, deep into the abyss despite your body being frozen in fear and shock.

You know this painting. You’ve seen it before. It was the same one by Renjun, the one that you saw on your first day working in the manor.

But it was different now. Instead of the unfinished state that caught your attention before, everything about the picture now is in sharp focus. The lines on the woman’s nude body, the hands—which you thought were simply dark swirls dragging her back—and her face twisted beautifully in pleasure and madness stared back at you like a nightmare.

But it was not those which truly shook you to your core. It’s the realization that it was your own face in the portrait that was staring back at you, silently screaming for you to run away.

You stumbled back in shock. Your chest felt tight as you tried to grasp for air while your hands fumbled to find something to hold on to keep you from crashing on the ground. Before you could even take another step, however, something hard hit your back and you felt strong arms wrap around your waist like a vice. You have barely realized what was happening when you felt someone lean over your shoulder, lips pressing against the shell of your ear.

“Isn’t it beautiful? You’re the perfect muse, don’t you think?” Renjun asked softly as he pressed a gentle kiss to your temple.

******* You didn’t know how long you stayed frozen in his embrace. For a brief moment you thought you were dreaming again until you felt his arms slowly tighten around your waist. As if a jolt of electricity shocked you, you immediately turned to push him away as you scrambled to put some distance between the two of you.

Renjun didn’t seem the least bothered when your eyes finally focused on him. He remained on his spot, his gaze on you unwavering. You, meanwhile, were shaking from head to toe, the vision of the painting still branded vividly in your head.

“Renjun—what’s this?” you managed to stutter as you pointed at the artwork in the middle of the room. You couldn’t even spare to look at it again while he merely gave it a casual glance.

“It’s you. I’ve been working on it for a long time. I was about to show it to you but it seems like you couldn’t wait for it yourself.”

You felt nauseous. A part of your rational mind was slowly losing it as you tried to process his answer. Something's not right. Something is so terribly wrong.

“Why—why did you do this?”

Renjun simply stared at you and leaned his head a little bit to the side as if he was only mildly curious of your reaction. Your stomach turned even before hearing his answer.

“You said it’s beautiful.”

“This is not right—!”

“I came home because they said you were leaving for good,” he continued speaking softly, effectively cutting you from what you were about to say. The hairs on the back of your neck stood on end and you took another step back as you watched him get close to his artwork. You watched in horror as his thin fingers lovingly ran over the corners of the canvas. “Jaemin almost lost it… It’s a good thing I got here on time.”

And just like that, everything seemed to have clicked into place. The glances, the touches, the words that seemed to have a different undercurrent under them… they weren’t just fragments of your imagination. Every little thing that has gnawed at you from the inside came into crystal clear focus and you felt your knees go weak from the weight of it all. It took every fiber of your being to try and keep yourself steady now, your legs moving on their own as they took small backward steps away from the boy staring at you now with dead eyes. You couldn’t breathe, but it was the last words he told you that finally snapped you to run.

“I don’t think you’ve realized it yet. But no, you cannot leave. Ever.”

You didn’t know where you got the energy for it but in seconds you were flying out of that room and running blindly down the darkened corridors. Your blood pumped noisily in your ears and your chest felt like it was going to split from the sudden exertion you put on it, but you didn’t stop, not even looking back as you tried to put as much distance between you and the library. You didn’t even know where you were going. All you’re focused on is to find the exit and leave the house as soon as possible.

A loud bang that sounded off to your right startled you and you screamed, the force of your shock making you whip around and almost lose your balance. Before you could even hit the floor, however, a pair of hands caught you and you immediately turned, grasping at the chest of your rescuer.

You froze. Haechan smiled down at you as he tried to steady you on your feet.

“Haechan,” you gasped as you took fistfuls of his shirt and tried to shake him in your panic. “Renjun—he’s—please, help me. He’s after me—” you gasped out, almost out of your wits. You’re on the verge of a total breakdown that it almost escaped you, the way he simply smiled down on your shaking form. It was only when you felt one of his hands gently caress the top of your head that reality slapped you in the face again. You suddenly stopped struggling in his hold, pupils shaking as you watched him study your features lovingly.

“Shh… it’s fine. I got you,” he whispered and you could swear ice pricked you from the inside. A slight movement to the right made you turn your head and you saw Jaemin lean casually against the banister of the stairs, his face serene. He gave you one quick look before a gentle smile finally lit up his features.

“Has it started?” he asked and you felt Haechan’s hold on you tighten.

“It has.”

You didn’t struggle. It was as if any trace of fight you had left you in that moment and you let your hands fall limply on your sides. Haechan also loosened his grip on you and you stared at the two boys blankly, your chest heaving as if fighting for air. They didn’t move from their spots and simply followed you with their eyes as if relishing the fear and realization flashing in your face.

Trapped.

You’re trapped.

You’ve always been.

You didn’t even realize that your legs had started moving again on their own as the pieces of the puzzle started to fall together in your mind. You were only shaken from it when your back finally hit the front door, the cold metal of the knob pressing against your spine. Jaemin and Haechan remained on their spots still, even as you blindly reached out for it from behind.

You were expecting it to be locked, so you were a little bit surprised when you felt it give way under your hand when you tried to turn it open. Just before you could even entertain the idea of escaping, however, any trace of hope you had quickly died as you turned and came face to face with Jeno standing right in front of the entrance. He didn’t look the least surprised seeing you there, as if he was waiting for you in the first place.

You eyes took in his calm countenance before slowly moving to stare downwards at what he was holding by his side. Your gaze locked on it in fear, and that’s when the flight response in you flared up again.

Jeno’s hunting rifle shone dully in the light of the entryway, his pale fingers wrapped on its handle.

“There’s really only one place you can run, noona, but I won’t advise it,” he said evenly and you felt your blood freeze in your veins.

“After all, no matter where you hide, I’ll still find you in that forest.”

It happened all at once. You broke into a run, your body screaming at you to go faster as you heard gunshots pierce the air.

---

CHAPTER 7

A/N: Good lord, I wasn’t expecting I’d finish this today but I got one large iced coffee and well... things happened. Anyway, enjoy! Let’s hope the format won’t mess up this time. T.T Finally, all hell broke loose~ <3

Tag list! 

@negincho, @jhornytrash, @jaeminhyuckiii, @jungwoosswhore​, @jsturkey, @aj-7, @pukupukupawpau, @tomiesgirlfren, @vsszn, @those-winternights, @xsnelly, @lihyuck, @laheyspizza, @miyeux27, @haoshitt, @mindofthescattered, @huangberryyy, @d1nne, @choppedupcactus, @neokat​, @yutasnabi​

[ziracona]

For the record what /should/ have happened at the end of Inquisition is Solas is going to break some of the veil to restore magic and power [[not somehow inexplicably be going to nuke the world?? To death?? Like I’ve been in the fade as a human a dwarf an elf and a qunari we were all just fine??? Or letting the old gods out again??? Which was the whole reason it went up?? Like..:Anyway]], enough of it to change how the world works, which will eternally upset the power structures in Thedas, and then use that power to lead an army to restore lands to the elves, since they’ve been thrown out of even the shitty reservations Andraste gave them.

He should have been awake for centuries, trying alone to fix things in better ways and failing, driven to isolation even among his own, in the burned wreckage of his good intentions, not awake for one year and viewing everyone he sees as not a real person [[Boring and unlikable motivation??? I mean I’m glad they had him change that by the end, but? It’s like a boring ‘intellectual bro’ failing that kind of guy would give his D&D pc. Also doesn’t really fit his characterization in-game? Like damn bro for someone who didn’t see anyone as people most of the time you sure cared if we delivered flowers or made life better for the mages]]. All of that would be in line with history of the game! The knights who tried to protect the Dales during the Exalted March of the Dales were all followed by a wolf companion? Him, trying to help. Trying to save them again. Let him have lived in the ashes of every attempt for centuries. Let him have been pushed and drained, not just woken up and still somehow feeling the most qualified around for every choice after seeing his last choice broke things in half.

He should have tried everything else and given up after a string of ‘I’ll act and make it better, I’ll act, and make it better,” all falling to a memory of “he ruined it, he caused this.” Alone for centuries. Chosen to do the only thing he could and go all the way, accepted dying alone and dying as the villain as inevitable, and decided to at least make that worth it to himself once, and leaned hard into the “I’m big and bad and doing this alone.” Become an expedient force of destruction carving out lands and a chance for his people, becoming everything, to draw blame from the elves onto himself, and pursued the most expedient from A to B path forward possible, despite the carnage, to assure the results he knew would be best, even if he knew it would probably also get him killed alone, and painted the villain forever again. Because nothing else had worked, and it was too late to back up after everything lost. We could have had a fuckin Sword of Damocles and DA could have knocked it out of the park ripping off Code Geass twice in one series and they just biffed it so hard!!

EDIT: OH and I should have been able to see that if my little Qunari did nothing, the man would die alone succumbing to his eons old fate one last time and ending in his biggest fear, still trying to, and sort of doing, something deeply good, for which he will be hated for all time, while my guy had the power to save him from that. But knowing if he tried to help, he would himself be seen as a beacon of evil and all he’d sacrificed to gain, in chantry reforms, in freedom for Mages, in lives for the elves of Orlais, in perception of the Qunari, would be turned against them and called into doubt and leave them in the ashes of his good intentions. And fighting should have broken out full scale at the end of the game, and he should have been able to, instead of either choice, abominate himself into a dragon by calling on his bloodline, and go out shielding the guy from a falling mountain or something just once at the start of a war Zhuzhi Lang style and been at peace.

[avengerscompound]

Small Gods: Lazy Mornings - 1

Lazy Mornings:  A Captain America Fanfic

Lazy Mornings Masterlist | More Small Gods

Buy me a ☕ Character Pairing:  Steve Rogers x F!Reader

Rating: E

Word Count:  2361

Warnings: Mentions of injuries.  (smut on series)

Synopsis: Steve Rogers has trouble taking time for himself.  When his friends set him up with a person with a very unusual skill, perhaps he can learn that the quiet moments are just as important as everything else.

A/N: Reader is a minor god.  Idea expanding on the one in my fic Lazy Sundays though it’s a completely different story (just same minor god x steve).

IF YOU WISH TO BE TAGGED IN THIS LET ME KNOW.

Chapter 1

Steve was on edge.  The Avengers had just come to the end of a very long, and very grueling mission.  With the lack of sleep, niggling injuries, and stress of battle, that would have been enough to have him anxious and exhausted just by itself, but Tony had insisted that they have a party to unwind while Steve still had government agencies to liaise with, paperwork to fill out, and people to question.  So instead of getting his work done so that he could sleep off his injuries and actually unwind, he had to be ‘on’ as the public figurehead of Captain America for a bunch of strangers while he was still running on less than four hours of sleep and had a cracked rib.

As he made his way through the large, open room, Steve became aware of a strange phenomenon.  The people around the door were in full party mood.  People were dancing, talking animatedly, and playing games of darts.  But as Steve moved through the room, the mood got more relaxed.  There was less dancing and more just talking and sharing drinks.  The level of the music dropped so it was more muted and even though the song never changed it somehow felt like it went from an upbeat dance number to a soothing ballad.  The light changed in the room too.  Closer to the elevator bright-colored disco lights cutting through the dark.  Whereas, by the windows, there was a soft diffused gold light, almost like early morning light coming through a gauze curtain.  By the time Steve reached the couches that were set up on a platform against the windows on the far side of the room, everyone was just lazing back on the couches, casually drinking in the soft light.

Thor, Bruce, Wanda, and Clint were all sitting together with you.  Steve didn’t recognize you, but the soft glow in the room seemed to both highlight you and make you seem like you were in soft focus. You had a slightly ruffled look like you’d woken up recently from a very good sleep.  Clint was practically curled up next to you like a cat.

“Steven!”  Thor boomed, making everyone near him jump in surprise.  “Come here, I have someone I wish for you to meet.”

Steve tried to hide the frustration that suddenly bubbled up inside him.  His friends had been trying to set him up with people for months and months now.  He’d been on countless blind dates with people he had nothing in common with, and even more dinners with surprise guests he was forced to be on with.  He hadn’t expected it from Thor and he resented the fact that even after such a grueling few weeks he needed to now play a round of the dating game.

Thor got up and approached Steve, clapping him on the shoulder as he gave your names.  He leaned in, bringing his lips to Steve’s ear.  “You may feel the urge to pull away.  Resist it - for me.”

Steve sighed and nodded as you looked up at Thor.  “You’re not staying?”  You asked.

“Not tonight,” Thor answered.  “I wish to celebrate.”

You gave him a small nod.  “Well, you know where I am if you need me.”

“I do.  Thank you,” Thor said, letting Steve go and heading back into the party where Tony was talking animatedly with Hill.

Steve took a seat near you.  Clint looked up at him with hooded eyes, like Steve had just disturbed his sleep, but not enough to properly wake him up.  There was an odd feeling of lethargy around the couches.  Not in a bad way exactly.  Just an overly relaxed sleepiness that made Steve wonder if they’d been partaking in marijuana before he’d gotten here.  Along with the sleepy-looking Clint, Wanda had her legs tucked up under her and was staring absently out the window, while Bruce was relaxed back with a goofy looking smile on his face.  It strangely had the effect of making him want to get up and leave in case he’d forgotten to do something.

“So what do you do?”  Steve asked as he resisted the urge to go back down to the office and get his work done.

You smiled and shook your head like you found the question funny.  “I like to paint,” you say.  “And I make a mean breakfast.”

Steve looked at you puzzled.  He’d never come across someone who answered that question with their hobbies rather than their job.  He wondered if you didn’t have one and were embarrassed or if you did something you didn’t think Steve would approve of.  The thought you were a HYDRA agent passed through his head and he looked over at Thor.  “How do you know Thor?”  Steve asked and Wanda started to giggle.

“We run in similar circles,” you say.  “Though I admit, I do not know him well.”

“She’s not HYDRA, Steve,” Wanda giggled.

That knowledge made Steve relax a little and you smiled at him.  “You’re holding a lot of tension, Captain Rogers.”

“Please, call me Steve,” he said.  “We’ve been on a mission for weeks now.  It takes a lot of me.  Everyone really.”

You placed your hand gently on his forearm.  He normally didn’t like when strangers invaded his personal space like that.  He’d had a fair amount of sexual harassment since becoming a supersoldier.  However, there was nothing even flirtatious about the moment.  It was genuine and kind and made him relax even more.  “It can be hard to let it go,” you said.  “But you are done, and now you can take the weight off your shoulders.  No need to carry it tonight.”

Steve tilted his head.  “Are you a therapist?”

You chuckled again.  “I guess - of a sort,” you said.

Steve was perplexed by the vague nature of your answers and couldn’t help thinking people were hiding something from him like this was some big trick.  Though he couldn’t see any reason why Thor of all people would be the instigator of such a trick.

“Will you relax, Steve?”  Wanda chided.  “She’s just a girl Thor thought you’d like.”

Steve tried to do as he was told.  He had to admit that it wasn’t easy though.  You definitely had a calming influence.  Despite the loud music and drinking happening in the rest of the room, at the couches, it was like a slumber party.  Bruce looked as relaxed as Steve had ever seen him, his whole body open and still as he talked calmly.  Clint dozed on and off, waking to join in on the conversation and then dropping back off to sleep again, while Wanda was giggly, and about an hour in she said she was going to go to bed and paint her toenails.

Whatever it was that was affecting the others, Steve could feel it too, but in the middle of what was a raging party, Steve was unwilling to completely relax.

“You don’t like it here much, do you?”  You asked.

Steve shrugged.  “I don’t mind a party sometimes, but no… not today.”

“I bet it’s been a long time since you’ve had a home-cooked meal,” you mused.  “Would you like to come back to my place?”

“No,” Clint whined as Steve balked.  “Don’t go.”

“I don’t… that’s probably not a good idea,”  Steve said.

“I meant for dinner, Steve,” you said.  “I promise, no funny business.”

Clint sat up and stretched.  “You should do it, Steve,” he said.  “Live a little.”

Steve looked at Clint and Bruce who were both nodding in approval.  He sighed and gave a small shrug.  “I guess I’m coming then.”

You got up and offered your hand.  “Come on, I won’t bite.”

He let you lead him out of the Tower and down into the street where you flagged down a cab.  “I don’t usually do this,” Steve said, as he sat in the back with you.

“I know,” you said.  “That’s why Thor set us up.”

“You’re not…” he stopped, not sure how to ask the question that was swirling in his mind right now and have it not come out as either offensive or judgmental.  “Are you a sex worker?”

You smiled and shook your head.  “No.  I like my bed though.”

“Why are you being so vague then?”  Steve asked.

“I can tell you if you really want to know,” you said.  “But Thor thought you might fight it more if you knew.”

Steve tensed up and shifted away from you a little.  “Do the others know?”

“Oh, yes,” you said.  “And I know you don’t know me well enough to trust me, but I promise what it is, won’t hurt you.  I’m not evil or malicious.  I am not here because I have to be or I’ve been paid to be.  You truly have just been set up with a woman.  And I am that.  I like you and I just want to take you somewhere you can relax and just enjoy a comforting meal.  That’s all.  If you don’t trust your friend on this, just say.  I’ll tell you.”

Steve looked you over, trying to see the lie or the trick.  All he could see was genuine kindness.  He gave a nod.  “Okay.  Will you tell me eventually?”

“Of course,” you said.  “When we’re both sure of how we feel about each other, I’ll tell you.”

The cab pulled up at a block of apartments on the upper west side.  It was a large pre-war building, the kind that has been romanticized in hundreds of films and costs more than most people could dream of earning to live in.

He followed you in and the two of you rode the elevator up to your floor quietly.  The tall ceilings and recessed walls of the hall brought him right back to his childhood.  You let him into your apartment and for a moment Steve felt like he’d stepped into a storybook.  The light was soft and diffused, filling the room with a hazy golden luminescence.  The furniture all looked inviting and cozy, the deep soft-looking couches all had cozy mink throws on them and a collection of fat plush cushions.  There were a few large bookshelves both filled with a mixture of books and board games.  Your TV was large but not obnoxiously so, and your coffee table was littered with candles, magazines, and books.

“Get comfortable,” you said as you headed into the kitchen, leaving him alone in the living room.

Steve took a moment to look around your apartment.  There was something about the room that reminded him of the way he and Bucky decorated.  You had a different taste to either man.  Steve was more into straight lines and dark wood, and Bucky like black and chrome, whereas you seemed to lean more into creams with splashes of color here and there.  However, like with him and Bucky, you had a mix of old and new.  Steve liked to keep things from his past whether they be actual things he had owned or just items that reminded him of his mother or times with Bucky.  The things you owned seemed to go back further than what he owned, but there was a lot that seemed to center around the nineteen-twenties.  Though they didn’t stop there.  There were items representative of various decades littering your apartment.  From depression-glass bowls to porcelain animals from the sixties to a lava lamp and a small collection of Pez Dispensers.

Steve noticed a copy of the Hobbit that looked remarkably like the copy he got when it came out.  Picking up several books he noticed that many were first editions.

He went and sat down more confused about who you were than he had been before.  You came out with a tray and placed it on the coffee table in front of him.  Each was laden with pancakes, eggs, hash browns, and fresh fruit.

“It’s a little late for breakfast,” Steve said, looking at you with his eyebrow raised.

You shrugged.  “I’m good at a few things, but this is the one that’s quickest,” you explained.  “Otherwise we’d be up for a few more hours while I cooked.”

“Breakfast food it is,” he said and started to eat.  You took your plate and sat back, crossing your legs under you and balancing your plate in your lap.  “You have an interesting collection,” Steve said, gesturing to one of your bookshelves.

“Thank you.  I try not to get too sentimental about what I keep and let go,” you said.  “I know it’s a little eclectic but there are some things I just can’t let go of.”

“How long have you lived here?”  Steve asked.

“A long time. Practically forever,” you answered

Steve wanted to ask you what you did for you to be able to afford living here but knew that would meet the same vague answer - so he let it drop and ate.  The food was good.  Warm and sweet and full of fat.  It wasn’t long until Steve began to feel sleepy and content.  You took the plates back away and when you returned to the living room, Steve was practically asleep on the couch.  You came over and gently touched his arm.

“It would be more comfortable in bed,” you whispered.

“I don’t… I never sleep with women on the first date,” he replied, sheepishly trying to fight the drowsiness pulling him down.

“I have a spare room if you want it,” you said gently.   “Though I just mean sleep.”

Steve stood slowly and followed you down the hall.  You opened the spare bedroom.  “This is my guest room.”

“And your bedroom?”  He asked, part of him wondering if you’d drugged him.

“The end of the hall,” you replied, taking a few steps toward it.  He followed you down and as he stripped down to his undershirt you changed into a soft pair of pajamas.

He climbed into the bed with you and you wrapped him in your arms.  As he drifted off to sleep, he thought how strange it was that he felt as comfortable as he did right now.

// NEXT