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thedemonknownasbilly · 1 year ago

Note

Awesome!

If you're willing, could I request headcanons for Aziraphale x Crowley x gender neutral reader where reader is chubby and insecure about their appearance?

Oh, Darling - HC for Ineffable Husbands with Chubby!Reader

Absolutely! Sorry for the delay, it was around midnight for me when I replied to the first anon, and I was just knocked out right after!

Ineffable Husbands x GN!Reader

Any and all pet names/compliments are meant as GN!

Mentions ED/Skipping meals (that’s more of a personal touch on my end as someone who is a bit curvier than average)

So let’s cover how they treat you separately, since as much as they try to be, they aren’t always attached at the hip.

Crowley

To be honest it took him a minute to even notice, ethereal (occult) beings don’t typically fuss or pay attention to “human flaws”

You guys would have met at the park bench, he was waiting for Aziraphale, and his was the only bench with a spot open.

“Could I sit here?”

“Hm?” He’d look up from his newspaper and will any blush on his cheeks to discorporate “yeah, yeah, he’s running late so I’m sure I’ll be leaving soon.”

You’d start talking to the ducks, and he was a goner, slowly joining in your conversation and just having a grand time with you.

When Aziraphale finally showed up, Crowley left you his number and told you to text him the next time you wanted to talk about anything.

He gushed about you and your knowledge of ducks to Aziraphale, who teased his husband over this crush.

After a good thousand texts, a few hang outs, and Aziraphale’s okay after a lengthy conversation, Crowley asked you out, and ofc you said yes.

He absolutely adores your curves, never seeing them as a flaw.

Won’t stand for any blasphemy you might have to say against it.

He will happily curl himself around you, slender fingers on your hips as he adorns you in kisses.

He notices some days you’ll shy away from his touch, and he never wants you uncomfortable.

But one day you had shied away all day, (he always kept track) he’d even say you were almost flinching from his touch.

This worried him, every situation he conjured in his head was that he had upset you or maybe that you didn’t even love him anymore.

So it certainly made you have to repress a sad giggle when you saw those sad yellow eyes look up at you as he asked, “is there another?”

“Never in a million years, my darling.” And with that he relaxed and sat beside you, noticing how you pressed yourself to the side of the couch.

“Then what’s with this, why won’t you let me touch you..?” He was always big on boundaries and respect, but usually he was given a sort of heads up, not just thrusted into a new rule.

“It’s silly…”

“If it’s important to you, it’s important to me.”

You’d go on to explain everything, how you’d always been the bigger kid, how the curves and rolls of your body often were topics of things your exes hated about you. The bullying, the lack of food, the unaffordable research on surgery even. “But even then, I’m scared you’ll realize I’m not worth the pain that a human comes with if I’m not attractive enough.”

Crowley listened intently, he always would, but he couldn’t deny that he hated what he was hearing. “Let me touch you, please.”

And when you shyly nodded, his hands were on your thighs as he surged forward and pressed his lips to yours.

“I don’t give two fucks about human beauty. You’re perfect for me.” He’d growl out as he moved to kiss down your jaw and neck, pressing his lips to every stretch of skin he could reach. “Think I give a fuck? Really? Ask Aziraphale how much we go to the Ritz, think to every time I’ve asked you. At first I figured it wasn’t your cup of tea. Not that you were treating yourself so downright wrong.”

You couldn’t help to giggle at that, and he looked up at you. “I would really like to go to lunch with you, and if it helps, we can invite the angel.”

Having Aziraphale there did help, he was enjoying his food without a care in the world for any leering eyes, and you did the same, blushing as your boyfriend adored you and his husband.

He was always there, especially now that he knew, always behind you when you stood too long in the mirror, hands on your hips as he’d whisper praises and compliments into your ear, making you repeat a few on the worst days.

Aziraphale

Once again, Aziraphale would hardly count it as the first thing he noticed. He certainly wasn’t the most slender figure himself even by human standards.

You two would meet at Maggie’s Record Shop. He was there to pick up something new and you were browsing for your favorite CDs to be on record.

He was thrilled to see Maggie have a customer and swore than if he had put a heart into his form that it would be pounding out of his chest.

He’d hurry to the Record Shop every time he saw you in the windows, finally after four run-ins, you introduced yourself to him.

You would be the only person regularly allowed into the bookshop.

Crowley had met you numerous times since, and he even encouraged his angel to ask you out. So Aziraphale finally did.

He soon found his favorite spot was to have his head on your lap, your fingers scratching against his scalp as you two would listen to whatever he’d put on the record.

He noticed one day though when you seemed to be fidgeting before he laid down, and it took him a moment to realize you were trying to make yourself look smaller.

“My darling, what are you doing?” He asked carefully, sitting beside you and placing a hand on your thigh.

Something about such a simple question and gesture made you break down, explaining how you wanted to be perfect, that you wished you looked more like Crowley did so that these treacherous thoughts would leave your mind.

Aziraphale was concerned, feeling a twist in his stomach as he carefully pulled you onto his lap, a position you tried to protest, but when he whispered out a “for me, please,” you couldn’t say no.

“My darling, having one of Crowley is more than enough. I’m quite happy to have you as you are, wouldn’t dream of asking you to change in any way.”

He’d listen to every thought you had, giving you all of his attention as his thumbs trace circles on your thighs and hips, and when you were done, he’d counter every argument with his own, explaining gently that he had truly never paid much attention to your own weight, that it was your soul and personality he adored.

“But you are quite gorgeous, I found myself aching to see you everyday before I got to know you. I’d sit right here at my desk, and wait, hoping you’d come back.” He would cup your face as he said that, “I’m not perfect by human standards either, I chose this form, why on earth would I make you change when certainly I could be in a better body for you as well.”

He always watched out for signs of those thoughts creeping back in, but everyday, he’d end it by kissing you everywhere before bed, murmuring praises and compliments against your skin like a prayer.

Ineffable Husbands

You had ventured into the bookshop on a rainy day, noticing a red and black snake perched on a sweater in the warmest spot he could be in.

“Aren’t you adorable?” You’d coo, looking around for anyone to ask before whispering to the snake, “can I pet you?”

At that the snake opened one yellow eye, looked you up and down and nodded, very human like you thought, but you carefully rested a finger against his head, between his eyes, and stroked down his body, watching as the snake seemed perfectly happy with such actions and melted back into the sweater.

Soon the owner emerged from the back, “oh I do apologize, I was fetching some lanterns incase we lost power.” He said, Aziraphale you’d learn his name was, he certainly had a small look of shock on his face when he saw Crowley allowing you to stroke him.

“So,” Aziraphale talked to the snake when you had left hours later, “I take it someone likes them?”

“Me?” Crowley slithered onto the floor and changed forms, “what about you excitedly prattling on and showing them every book of every topic they mentioned. You even let them take one home.”

“They’re bringing it back!” Aziraphale chuckled in an effort of protest.

“Oh, sweet love of mine, I think we both fancy them.” // “Indeed it seems we both do, I hope they spend more time with us soon.”

Months later, you had learned that Crowley was the snake from that day, not being horrified but instead it made you reach up without thinking and gently stroke his hair, if demons could actually melt he was certain he’d be a puddle on the floor of the bookshop, Aziraphale had gone to fetch you a new book, and Crowley trapped you onto the couch, seemingly having no joints as he curled himself around you as best he could; his head on your shoulder.

“Crowley, dear, can’t hog them to yourself now.” And Aziraphale sat beside you, hand on your waist (under Crowley) and a head on your shoulder. “I think it’s fair that we say, well, we like you. The both of us.”

You giggled at the obvious statement and turned to kiss him as his answer, hearing Crowley whine and giving him a kiss right after.

Within the next two months, you had also moved into the flat above the bookshop, which made it easier for your two loves to see just how much you seemed uncomfortable with yourself.

“When’s the last time they ate?” Crowley murmured one day, swearing that he hadn’t seen you eat all day, or the day before.

“A while, I’m worried.” With that, they both searched for you, not expecting to find you curled up under the blankets with tear stains on your cheeks.

“Darling, what’s wrong?” The with sit on the edge of the bed, Aziraphale’s hand stroking your hair and Crowley’s rubbing your back.

“Got in my head…” you’d murmur, striking concern within them as they soon encouraged you to lay in the middle of the bed, Aziraphale to your front and Crowley to your back.

Crowley’s hand never leaving your hips as he pressed kisses to you, “don’t hide from me,” he’d say when he felt you trying to will your body further into the bed. And when Aziraphale finally asked what was wrong, you told them everything from childhood, to today, “I just want to be attractive enough for an angel and a demon, like those other ones are.”

“My dear,” Aziraphale said rather seriously, “you are more than attractive enough, haven’t we shown that?” Crowley still pressing kisses made your mind seem fuzzy with bliss as Aziraphale kissed your lips, seemingly trying to pour every ounce of his adoration into it.

They would spent hours telling you about every part of you they loved, leaving no room for any insecurities, mentally or physically.

“I quite like you at this size, more for me to hold, just like with ‘Ziraphale.”

“And besides, while you may be human, we aren’t, I assure you, Crowley could pick us both up and not break a sweat.”

They’d take turns whenever an insecurity seemed to pop back up on bad days, whichever notice would help you for hours, making sure you never felt less than with them.

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starrconch · 4 years ago

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Hi! Can I request a Zhongli (back to when he was still Rex Lapis) x fem!Hydro Archon reader? Thanks in advance, can't wait to see what you come up with!

HYDRO ARCHON READER

★ Includes: Zhongli, female reader

★ Word Count: 1745

★ Master List

★ Notes: thank you for the request! I'm loving the archon readers lately, it's been fun learning about some lore :D Also exams who? Zhongli is too tempting and I may have gone a little overboard...

★ Edit: part two is here >:)

ZHONGLI

★ The archon war was just under a century ago and the water could still remember it. That’s what you loved about the water, it could remember anything it pleased and for as long as it desired, as it was almost as eternal as you were, being the hydro archon and all.

★ You were most renowned for your Oceanid spies that could submerge themselves into the water and listen in to anyone’s conversations. Whether it be a small puddle or an entire lake, they could do it.

★ You had sent one of your finest spies, Rhodeia, to the nation of Liyue being built from the ground up by the god of war. It was a place supposedly filled with prosperous trades and a currency called mora, which you wanted to find more about.

The waterfalls in your throne room gushed and spluttered as Rhodeia emerged from one of them, making her way over to you and kneeling before you. “My queen,” she began, “I’m sorry I have failed you.”

“Failed me?” You chuckled a little nervously. “You have done no such thing. Now, what do you have to report to me from Liyue?”

Something was wrong, you could feel it. The water outside of the room felt strange. It weaved through the air back to you, holding whispers of an intruder located nearby. It urged you to eliminate the possible threat and keep your people safe.

“I-” It pained your spy to utter her next words. “I got caught by the geo archon. He’s waiting outside to speak with you.” Tears formed in the Oceanid’s eyes. She’d failed you, her one job to serve as a spy and go unnoticed was gone.

“Hey!” You got off of your throne and knelt before your spy, wiping the tears from her already water-like body. “There’s no need for tears, you did as I asked and I am thankful to you for that. Everyone makes mistakes every once in a while. I will not punish you for it.”

“Thank, your highness.” She lowered her head and sank into the floor, becoming one with a puddle that sat below her.

Sighing, you got back onto your throne and called out to your guards, “bring him in!”

Rex Lapis was a sight to behold indeed. He wore a long white cloak with the hood up, adorned with several symbols in bronze that represented geo and war. Underneath, he wore a skin-tight black shirt that also acted as gloves, covering his fingers and the majority of his neck. Golden glowing veins trailed up his arms, a similar hue to his amber eyes which glowed almost as fiercely.

“Y/N, the goddess of justice, how very nice it is to meet your acquaintance.” He did not dare kneel, for he was in his own right just as powerful as you were.

“As is it to also meet you, Rex Lapis. What brings you here today without any notice of your arrival?”

“Well, you see, I found an Oceanid in the reflection of one of the ponds around Liyue Harbour and so I returned her to you. What I came here to ask was what information you needed.” He crossed his arms. His swaying motion gave you a chance to see his hair in a rat-tail flowing out of a hole in the back of his cloak.

“And you want to give this information to me willingly?” You raised a brow, tapping your fingers against your throne. Rhodeia was still in the room listening in, you could feel her in the water beside you. You could only hope that he didn’t want your best spy publicly punished in exchange.

“With a trade perhaps, if you’re willing. I shall give you the information you desire in exchange for a favour to Liyue if my nation should ever need help. Is that a deal?”

You paused for a moment to think the trade through. It seemed genuine enough, but it was strange how he didn’t want anything to do with Rhodeia. Maybe it was just his way of ruling, but you were thankful nonetheless. “Alright, we have a deal.”

Stepping down from your throne, you held out your hand for him to shake to confirm the exchange, which he accepted. The closer you got to him, the more you realised how good he looked from up close, making butterflies appear in your stomach.

“What would you like to know about Liyue?” A smile formed on his lips, forcing your cheeks to heat ever so slightly.

★ You asked how such a basic, lowly nation had suddenly become so successful and prosperous. Rex Lapis returned with the answer of everyone pitched in to make Liyue the way it currently is. It hasn’t just been him, the archon, putting in all the work.

★ When you had nothing left you could think of to ask, he left, warning you to not send any more spies his way and to just contact him instead to see him and ask him more information. But why would you do it when that way he could easily keep secrets from you?

★ After a few weeks of waiting, you sent a different spy into the grounds of Liyue with the intention of finding out more about this thing they called mora. Soon enough, they returned.

“Mora are small circles of gold that the citizens carry around with them to use in trades. This is so they don’t have to use personal belongings anymore and they can get food easily.” The Oceanid knelt deeply before you.

“And you didn’t get caught, correct?”

“Correct, my queen.”

Then who was standing outside, one foot in a puddle, waiting with your guards? Using your vision, you called a stream of water back to you to give you more information. From the whispers of knowledge you received, you concluded that Rex Lapis was the one visiting you once again.

“So, you know nothing of the man standing outside?”

Your spy looked up, confused. “No, my queen. I haven’t got any information on that.”

Humming in suspicion, you leant back on your throne. “We shall talk later, for now, have the guards bring in Rex Lapis.”

“Yes, my queen.”

The geo archon crossed his arms, more annoyed than the last time you two saw each other. “If you’d like to see me so much, perhaps we should make a proper contract to exchange information on a regular basis?”

“Perhaps,” you agreed. “You can start with this: how do you keep finding my spies?”

“It’s simple.” Rex Lapis began to pace back and forth as he spoke. “I made a contract with them.”

Your eyes widened in shock. Your spies had betrayed you? No, not all of them surely. Rhodeia would never dare. She was loyal. They were all loyal, weren’t they?

“When they get to Liyue, they seek me and tell me of your plans. In return, I will give you the information you require and they may leave my nation intact.”

How dare he. All you had wanted was information and the slight chance of seeing him again. You had to admit, your thoughts had lingered on him throughout your time apart, now you could do nothing but chide yourself. This was how you were rewarded.

“And for mora, why are you so concerned over my currency?” You watched as he outstretched his arm, a small coin-like shape appearing in his skin before dropping. He caught the circle that he no doubt recognised as mora.

“It’s not much of a concern, merely curiosity.”

After a moment of silence, the god of war spoke again, “if you’d like, I could integrate it into Fontaine. I’ve been dreaming of this invention to spread across Teyvat to make trades and contracts much easier.”

You were in no place to deny as he already had a firm grasp on your spies, but did you even want to deny him? How better to learn about this currency than to bring it into your home?

★ The two of you discussed back and forth what bringing mora into Fontaine would require, leaving you unknowing that you were indeed the first step for mora becoming a worldwide currency.

★ Years went by of Rex Lapis coming back and forth every month or so to replenish your stocks of mora. You loved to watch as he did so, the coins appearing in his body and then falling to his feet, letting you notice how exhausted it made him.

★ Always afterwards you invited him to dine with you to help replenish his strength and also exchange information about your nations. As the two of you grew closer, you began to realise that you were falling for him.

It was getting too much, your admiration for him, your desire to see and touch him. You needed it all and it was getting unbearable without his presence, but you had no idea if Rex Lapis felt the same way about you.

Your Morax. It was a little nickname you had given him from watching him produce all those coins, a mixture between Rex and mora. You began to imagine what he would look like if you ever called him that, so entranced with this thought that you didn’t hear him calling you name.

“Y/N?” He called a little louder, reaching out for your hand that had been swirling your tea in its cup. The geo archon had brought some along with him from Liyue for you to try. According to him, it was his favourite

You jumped at the contact, suddenly looking up into his amber eyes. “Oh sorry, yes?”

He chuckled at your flustered appearance, taking another sip of his tea. “It seems that another contract is in order.”

“Another? What for this time?” Had you done something wrong? If you had, surely he would voice his concerns.

“Would you be inclined to forge a contract together to be each other’s partner? I’ve heard it’s quite the custom among mortals.” He turned away, nervousness running through his body.

Your heart felt as though it dropped from its safety in your chest. Did you hear him correctly? Were you zoned out again and just hearing what you wished to hear?

You shot up from your seat and wrapped your arms around his chest, burying your face into the crook of his neck.

The vibrations of his deep laugh reverberated through you as he replied, “I shall take that as a yes.”

#genshin impact #zhongli #genshin zhongli #zhongli x reader #zhongli x you #hydro archon #genshin hydro archon #genshin headcannons #genshin scenarios #starrconch #genshin x reader #genshin x you

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babylooneytoonz · 4 years ago

Text

I Didn't Love Your Father - Tommy Shelby X reader

I have been putting off writing for Peaky Blinders for a long time now, just silently reading and enjoying the works by all you precious writers. But somehow I decided that I should go ahead and try to come up with a solution the Writer's block in my mind.

It might not be that good but I've tried writing something and ugh, do let me know if it's shitty as fuck. I might even consider doing a part two to this one maybe later.

Tommy is kind of an arse in this one. He leaves the girl who he had a history with and who loved him through thick and thin for Grace and when she is finally happy again, engaged to another man, Tommy realizes he loves her and wants her back.

Warning : Angst with a not so happy ending?

Gif - Not mine.

You felt like you had devoted your life to him – sticking with him in thick and thin, you had watched him grow from a young boy to a dark, vicious man, a man that could throw you under a running bus if it meant he got what he wanted. That is what Thomas Shelby had become now, and no matter how much you wanted to believe otherwise, he wasn't the man you had fallen in love with, before the war happened.

You still remembered the day Tommy and his brothers were supposed to board the train, the train that was to take them to their fate. You still remembered how you had waved him off, a boy, a boy you loved with all your heart – but he had returned, not as the boy you always knew him to be , but a man. He still looked the same, his blue oceanic irises looking down at you, but they lacked the warmth you saw in them before he had left. You often wondered about the horrors that he might have witnessed at the Somme but you never had the heart, or the courage to ask him about it. Not that he would have answered.

At first, you had thought that time would heal all the wounds – that one day, Tommy would wake up and maybe have a change of a heart, that he would just look at you and realize how you still were in love with him, even after all these years. You hoped he would realize how you had been waiting for him to come back to you, but he didn't.

Instead, he found her.

It was a low blow to you, when you found out about the barmaid that had Tommy's heart. Polly, even Ada, tried to comfort you, telling you that Grace had put a spell on Tommy, that he was not in his right senses, but you knew, Tommy wasn't in love with you anymore. Why blame a woman when a man couldn't control his desires for her?

So you had done what best you could do – try to move on. It had not been easy at first, but somehow you had managed to keep at bay the storm that wreaked havoc in your heart. You found yourself a man, twice as man as Tommy would ever be, who loved you for you and cherished you, so much so that he went down on one knee and asked you to be his wife.

You accepted. You deserved a man like him, not Tommy Shelby, who your heart still pinned for.

It wasn't until that nail-biting winter morning when Tommy suddenly had a change of a heart. You had decided to head home early that afternoon. Locking up the bakery early, you stuffed the keys into your purse and walked down the five minute path that led to your rented apartment in Small Heath, Birmingham.

As soon as you stepped into the familiar confines of the place you called home, your eyes fell on the not so good looking interior. The paint was chipped off at the edges and the mirror on your vanity had a massive crack. Taking your coat off and hanging it on the coat hanger, you locked the door and put the tea kettle on the stove on a light flame for the water to get boiled. Your fingers toyed aimlessly with the ring that adorned your ring finger, a tiny smile breaking out against your lips.

Suddenly, there was a knock on your door – more like pounding against your door in an urgent way. Your frown widened when you waited for a few seconds but the knocking, instead of dying down, started sounding even more frantic than before. Without wasting any more time, and a fear inside of you that your flimsy wooden door will splinter into two if the merciless pounding against it continued for two more minutes, your feet literally ran towards the door, pulling it open.

"Tommy?" A gush of air flew out of your lips, when the sight of the gaunt, blue eyed man caught your eye, his hair disheveled and messy, almost falling over his eyes. His eyes looked glossy, hazy and he reeked of whiskey. That's when you knew he was intoxicated. He lazily brought up his fingers to his lips, a lit cigarette plucked between his fingers as he look a long, lingering drag of it, the smoke bellowing out of his plump lips.

He waited a few seconds, wondering if you would invite him inside but it was as though someone had turned off the wiring to your brain. You kept standing there, looking at him blankly, unable to move or utter any word. That's when he took the cue, shoving past you and went into your apartment, leaving you still standing at the door, reeling from a sudden shock of seeing him at your door when you least expected it.

You swirled around, when the sudden realisation hit you. There he was, the man you loved, sat on your bed with a cigarette in his hand, pretending as though nothing had ever happened.

"Tommy, what's the bloody meaning of this?" Your arms flew around your frame, as though you were suddenly cold but the man in front of you didn't react. He just sat there, his body stiff, his shoulders almost drooping as he plucked the cigarette and shoved the butt into your ashtray, finally getting up from the edge of your bed.

You could only watch in a harrowed way as he speed walked towards you, his pocket watch dangling from the crook of his coat until he was standing inches from you, his eyes fixed on the ring on your index finger.

"Call it off."

"Excuse me?" You realized you were glaring at him now, your eyes reaching his lips as he looked down at you.

"You heard me. Call off the fucking engagement, to whoever it is. You think I don't see what you're doing ? You are fuckin' trying to get back at me aren't you?" You knew it was the alcohol talking. Because Tommy, the man he had now become, never spoke more than three or four words to you now.

Maybe in a parallel world, you would have been happy – happy that maybe he finally felt the same way about you and your engagement to another man had caused him to have a change of heart – but you had known Tommy Shelby all your life now and you knew what Tommy was feeling right now wasn't love. And even if it was, it was too late. You see the thing with Tommy was, he often wanted things that didn't belong to him. You were the best example of this – when he had you, he didn't want you. But now you were someone else's, Tommy couldn't bear it.

"Why? Did Grace leave? Is that why you are back?" You snapped at him, not failing to notice the sudden look of anger cross his eyes, only to take form of a distilled, simmering rage. You didn't know what you had just said as a come back was actually true, Grace had indeed left him and gone to London.

"It was you all along, it never was Grace. I thought I did but –" Tommy's voice cracked, only slightly, causing you to falter, wanting to reach out and hold him because he did look like a defeated man. It was funny how Tommy was saying it now, how he truly felt about you, but you knew how it was too late.

You still loved Tommy, with all your heart. But you two weren't meant to be. Not in this lifetime. You were never selfish, had never been selfish, and you couldn't abandon the man who took your hand in his when Tommy had thrown you out like discarded clothes.

"It doesn't matter anymore, Thomas." You flinched at the harshness of your own words and it didn't fail to come into your notice the sudden stiffness that came over Tommy when you called him by his first name, something you never really did. "You don't get to just bloody walk in and out of my life whenever you want, just because you are Thomas Fuckin' Shelby. I waited for you, for fucking years. You think that was a joke? Ey?" You pointed your index finger, stabbing Tommy's chest with your pointed nail when he didn't reply, his head almost lowered when he realized he didn't have the answers you wanted him to give you. "I cried myself to sleep every fucking night, Thomas. I wanted you, I needed you but you chose her. I waited for you patiently when you were fighting the fuckin' war, hoping you would come back to me but you didn't even look at me."

You pushed Tommy backwards, his weight surprisingly light as he almost stumbled backwards but regained his form. You moved away from him, pulling out a box of cigarettes from underneath your pillow as your fingers fumbled against the box to pull out a stick.

"You chose her, Tommy. Now who gives you the bloody right to just barge your way in here and try to claim me for yourself?" You hadn't realized when your lips had started trembling and hot tears had started skimming down your cheeks. Tommy let out a barely audible sigh as he brought his palms closer to your face, his reluctance to hold you pretty evident.

"I fucked up, I know that. You think I didn't fucking think about this? How you deserved to be happy after the fucking mess I put you through?" His voice was broken, his palms holding your face in his hefty fingers, cupping your cheeks.

"Well you didn't think well enough, Tommy." You whispered, almost choking on your sob.

"Love, I need you to give me a chance, to show you that I am a changed man, for you."

His statement caused you to flinch, your arms moving up to fix your hands on his palms that you shoved away, causing him to look at you with pain stricken eyes.

"You're mistaken, Tommy. Some people don't change. For anyone. And you haven't changed for me. You just realized I moved on and that is bloody bothering you." You croak.

You brought up the cigarette to your lips, inching the smoke and brought your hand down, moving two steps away from where he stood, his eyes burning a hole into yours.

"Tommy, we can't. We were never meant to be. You know it. Had Grace not left you, you wouldn't even think about me. I'm nothing but a second choice for you. And I refuse to be that." You forced yourself to look away, anywhere but his haunting blue eyes, the eyes that you knew could make you weak and destroy the wall you had built up around you. Bits of that wall had already started to crumble.

"So is this it, (Y/N)? Is this how we end?"

You looked up at him and realized that his eyes were moist. He brought up his hand to his face, pinching his nose and then ran his fingers through his obsidian hair.

You gave him a faint smile, lowering yourself against the edge of your bed as you brought up the cigarette to your lips once again, "We ended a long time ago, Tom. We ended the day you chose Grace."

Your words were like an arrow shot right through Tommy's heart, and at the same time, through your heart as well. It hurt you to see him, the man who never broke down in front of anyone, looking so lost, so forlorn, sitting by the edge of your bed next to you, his elbows resting against his knees, his face buried in his hands. You couldn't see his face, or his hidden eyes. Or he intentionally wanted to hide his weakness from you. You. You were his weakness.

Suddenly, he lifted his head up, craning it towards you so that he could get a better look of you and you saw his red, swollen eyes. He reached forward, slowly taking your hand in his, his fingers entwining with yours, reluctant at first, as he had expected you to pull your hand away. You didn't.

"You won't change your mind? Not even if I love you?" His voice was so raw, it made him the boy he had been to you, before the war had changed him.

You shook your head, slowly, squeezing his hand as he held on to it.

"It's too late for that, Tom. I have always loved you and you love me now –" Your words stopped at your throat, leaving you with your mouth agape, struggling to speak, " – but Chris is a good man, Tommy. He is a good man. I don't love him the way I have loved you but he was with me when I had no one to turn to, when I cried myself to bed at nights, while Grace kept your bed warm and mine was cold."

"Fuck." Tommy cursed, barely audible, looking down at the floor, his hand still holding yours, the grip tight, as though he was afraid of letting you go.

Finally, after what felt like ages of silence, which must have been a minute, he let go off your hand, your hand suddenly feeling numb and cold, due to the lack of his warmth. He stood up and cleared his throat, his eyes looking everywhere but into yours.

"Well then." He turned to look at you, which you felt was the last time. "Let me walk you down the aisle then, no matter how much it hurts me, I want to be the one to give you away."

"Jesus, Tommy –" You pressed your palm to your lips that were trembling uncontrollably now, not wanting to break down in front of him. Your tears caused him to clench his hands into fists, hanging loosely by his sides. When he could see those tears no more, he grabbed you by your arms, pushing you to the wall behind, your back hitting the wall with a thud, his hands placed on either side of you. You were taken by a surprise, your heart beating frantically inside your chest, so fast, it could have won over a fucking racehorse. Your gaze fell, unable to keep it fixed on his raging blue eyes.

"Look at me one last time then, before we go back to being strangers." His thumb came to rest on your cheek, stroking your skin in gentle strokes. Teary eyed, you rose your eyes, making them meet his once icy eyes, that had all the warmth reflecting in them.

"Let me kiss you one last time, love. For old times sake. The kiss we never got to experience, the one that should have fucking happened years ago." With that said, he took a step closer towards you, removing what little distance you both had left in front of each other, his arm snaking around your waist, pulling you closer, a weak yelp escaping your lips. You let your eyes close for a split second before craning your neck slightly upwards, your lips hovering directly over his plump ones as you brought them to his lips, giving him a bittersweet peck. Within seconds, what was meant as a peck turned into a raw and passionate kiss, mixed with the taste of your own salty tears, and probably his too. Finally, with much reluctance, you broke the kiss, placing a hand on Tommy's chest to keep him away from you and looked away as it was time for him to go.

"Goodbye Tommy, and try to stay out of danger." You gave him a weak smile, your deep longing for him and the pain it caused you hidden behind that fake smile of yours. Tommy took a step away from you and then another, reaching for his Blinders cap that was laying abandoned on the bed, lifting it up and flinging it to his head, all this while his eyes fixed on you.

With one last look, he walked up to your front door, his shoulders stiff, his hands clenched into fists by his side. When he reached the door, he paused for a bit, his hand grabbing your doorframe for support but he didn't turn to look at you.

"Don't let the fire fizzle out in you, love. It's this fire that I love about you, that makes you different. From anyone I ever met. It's this bloody fire that brings warmth to me. Don't let it fizzle out."

With that, he was gone. With that, you crashed to the floor, your knees scraping against the wooden floorboards as you let out the sobs that you had been holding in, like a tsunami.

Tommy meant what he said. It was Thomas Shelby that walked you down the aisle on the day of your wedding to Chris. He was there the entire time, seething, burning but had a smile etched to his face, watching the woman he loved get married to someone else. For the first time, he had voluntarily chosen to lose for you and maybe this was why you believed him when he said that he loved you.

It was on the day of your wedding that you realized Thomas Shelby really loved you, enough to watch you marry another man, just because you wanted to.

You blinked. The memory, although hazy, was still fresh in your mind. You turned to your left, your eyes falling on your one year old daughter sleeping soundly, her chest rising up and down as she slept. Chris died six months after your daughter, Rosemary was born. Influenza. Grace died, giving him a son, causing Thomas Shelby to marry Lizzie Starke, and you were happy for him. Neither of you met again.

You ran your fingers lightly over her tiny black hair, pushing them off her face.

"One day, when you are old enough, my love. I might tell you the truth of how I never loved your father. He was my friend and I loved him, but I was always in love with someone else. You are too young to understand, but I hope you find the man you truly love."

#tommy shelby x reader #peaky blinders #thomas shelby #thomas shelby x reader

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lils-writes-stuff · 5 years ago

Text

All That Remains

Spencer Reid x reader

summary: it’s the readers first day back on the job and the case has a huge plot twist

warning: normal criminal minds things, angst, sadness, gore, fun stuff

A/N: based on season 8 episode episode 14

“Oh my god, okay I know I’ve seen it before, but the ring is just so beautiful on you,” Penelope gushed as she held Y/N’s that adorned her new engagement ring.

The women of the BAU gathered around her on her first day back to admire the ring. Of course, JJ and Penelope had seen it at least once before, but it was a whole different experience seeing it on her hand.

It had been a total of three weeks since Y/N was discharged from the hospital and she was so excited to get back to work. She couldn’t deal with leave again and since she was fine mentally, all she had to do was wait until she was fine physically.

Spencer tended to her needs every waking moment he was home, much to her detest. He even thought about having her call her mother to stay with her until she was completely healed, but he revoked his idea when she gave him a not-so-loving look. But she was grateful none the less for his love and care for her. She was concerned about him though, sure she was stabbed, but he was the one kidnapped. After Spencer’s psych evaluation, he was deemed fit to go back to work. Y/N was very jealous when he got to go back.

“Thank you,” Y/N blushed as her hand moved to Blake to look at the ring.

“He really did a good job of picking it out,” she declared as she examined the ring.

“Who knew Spence had such good taste?” JJ remarked, making the other women laugh.

Spencer heard the last of the conversation and naturally gave his actual reasoning for his choice. “It actually has nothing to do with taste, I made a decision by averaging all of her jewelry together and using an equation to evaluate which rings--”

JJ coughed making Spencer stop. “Spence, I was joking, you did a great job.”

“Right,” Spencer smiled sheepishly.

“It’s okay, Bubs, I think it was really cool how you chose it,” Y/N reassured the man’s insecurities.

He smiled at the compliment and then turned to Rossi as his voice was heard coming down the steps.

“Okay, okay, I know I saw it at the hospital that day, but you have to let me see it again,” Rossi spoke quickly as he came over to look at the ring again.

Y/N laughed and held out her hand for him to see.

“It’s very you, Y/N,” Rossi commented as he looked at the ring. “Congratulations you two, again.”

“Thanks Rossi,” Spencer smiled at the man gratefully.

“Hey, you know what we should do?” JJ asked, gaining the attention of the rest of them. “We should have an engagement party!”

“Oh my gosh that is a great idea!” Penelope exclaimed, bouncing on her toes happily. “We can have little cupcakes made with rings and all the fun stuff.”

“And I’ll host it,” Rossi said happily, turning to the couple who were just watching the plan being made.

“Oh, Rossi, you don’t have to-”

“No, no, I insist, it’ll be a great time!” Rossi cut Y/N off from her protest.

Y/N turned her head to look at Spencer, wanting his input on the idea. Spencer simply shrugged, muttering a ‘why not’. The both of them knew he wouldn’t take no for an answer.

“Okay, sure, that’d be fun,” Y/N agreed with a smile.

“Excellent,” Rossi said with a nod.

“Guys,” Hotch said, nodding to the round table room.

-------------

“911 what’s your emergency?” The operator’s voice spook.

A pause then an inaudible mutter.

“Hello? What’s your emergency?”

“They’re gone,” The man on the other line responded. “My girls are gone. I need your help.”

“When you say girls, do you mean your daughters?”

“Yes.”

“All right, I need you to stay on the line, sir. Please confirm where you’re calling from.”

“1721 Hillcrest Drive, this can’t be happening.”

“What’s your name, sir?”

“Bruce. Bruce Morrison.”

“How old are your daughters, Mr. Morrison?”

“Thirteen and Seventeen.”

“When was the last time you saw them?”

“They went to bed around 9:30. No, wait, it was Monday. Sarah has a study group, so it was more like 10:00.”

“Sir, today is Wednesday. You haven’t seen them since Monday?”

“No. No, that can’t be right.”

“I’m sorry, sir, but it is. The police have been alerted, sir, and they’re on their way.”

“That call came in an hour ago,” Hotch said, stopping the recording.

The rest of the team sat in stunned silence as they listened to the message.

“How does a single father lose his teenage daughters for thirty-six hours?” JJ asked in disbelief.

“He doesn’t,” Rossi shook his head.

“His girls are gone,” Blake repeated the phrasing of Bruce on the phone.

“Yeah, that’s strange, he didn’t blame anyone,” Y/N pointed, agreeing with Blake’s silent question.

“And he doesn’t use any buzzwords first responders are trained to hear,” Derek added. “He never says missing, abducted, runaway.”

“Maybe that’s what they did, though. Maybe they ran away,” Penelope perked up. She didn’t like to hear the call, let alone have this happening in the first place, she was hoping for a better outcome then what everyone was thinking.

“There’s no history of that,” Rossi argued sadly.

“The likelihood of a stranger abduction in a neighborhood like this is rare. I’ve counted seven turns from the entrance to their driveway,” Spencer announced as he looked down at the map on the table. “No one just stumbled onto the house.”

“And where’s the mother? Could this be a parental child abduction?” Y/N asked, turning her head from Spencer to Hotch.

“Uh, doubtful,” Hotch sighed. “Exactly one year ago today, he made this call.”

With one click on the remote, another 911 call came up. The call was almost exactly the same as the one they had just listened to. Same phrasing, same tone, just replacing ‘girls’ with ‘wife’.

“She’d also been missing for two days before he contacted authorities, and she’s never been found,” Hotch said, stopping the recording.

“This man is either the victim of a serial offender, or he is one,” Rossi said.

“Please tell me this guy’s in custody?” Derek asked with irritation.

“The Salisbury police are at his home, and they’ve been there since the call came in,” Hotch answered.

“There are hard copies and tablet copies of both case files on the plane,” Penelope announced. “It’s a short flight to the eastern shore. There’ll be more when you land.”

The team gathered up all that they had on the round table and made their way to the plane.

-----------

“Bruce and Judy Morrison were well-liked and active in the community,” Y/N said as she looked over the files they had received on the plane.

Spencer sat down beside her, placing a cup of tea on the table.

She smiled and mouthed a thank you which he replied doing the same thing.

“Yeah, all signs point to them living a quiet life,” JJ agreed as she flipped through her own file.

“He’s a writer and a professor, and it looks like she got into real estate a few years ago,” Derek added as his eyes scanned over a page.

“ ‘02, before the market crashed,” Rossi established as he looked at the date.

“Well, ten years later, Judy had an affair with a co-worker. A Jeff Godwin?” JJ’s voice went off in question as she read the name.

“That was discovered in the investigation, but never made it in the papers,” Blake said, leaning in her chair so she could look at JJ.

“Bruce Morrison was a prime suspect, but they never found any evidence, and the affair wasn’t deemed enough of a motive,” Hotch clarified. “The university’s put him on sabbatical since then.”

“He’s been writing forever, and he’s been teaching since 1985,” JJ added, flipping through the pages of the file. “Transcript says he was grief-stricken and couldn’t handle the pressure.”

“Not many people could,” Rossi bargained. “The odds of this event striking the same family on the same day must be a million to one.”

“Mm, close enough,” Spencer hummed, not arguing with the statistic.

“Judy inherited money from her family, and it’s in a trust fund for the girls,” Blake assessed.

“Oh, jeez, please don’t tell me he got rid of his wife for money,” Y/N shook her head.

“Uh, bank records indicate he hasn’t touched the funds, despite the depleting supplemental income from the university,” Spencer eased the worry.

“Yeah, but it could be a combo platter. Revenge and profit,” Rossi argued.

“His wife cheated, and he retaliated in anger, that might not be a surprise, but that doesn’t explain why he would harm his own children,” Derek added, confusion evident in his voice.

------------

“The oldest daughter Sarah had a 4.0 GPA, but she didn’t apply to a single college back east,” Spencer began as he read from the page in the file in his lap. “She got accepted to Stanford early admission. Maybe her father saw going that far away as a form of betrayal.”

“The second one in a year,” Rossi’s voice posed over the phone. “First his wife of twenty-seven years fools around and then probably threatens to end the marriage. A year later, the daughter can’t wait to leave.”

“Abandonment could be the common denominator,” Blake agreed from her seat beside Y/N in the back of the SUV with Derek and Spencer.

“There is another possibility,” Derek interrupted. “Maybe Bruce Morrison didn’t do it. Did the family have any enemies?”

“The only person that could remotely be an enemy would be Jeff Godwin,” Y/N answered, her own mind forming possible theories.

“Mm, looks like he had a pretty solid alibi the night Judy went missing,” JJ’s voice said through the phone. “He was wining and dining with his own wife at a local restaurant.”

“So the only viable suspect back then was the same one we have now,” Blake said.

“All the answers are in that house,” Hotch said as they turned the final corner and came up to the house of the Morrisons.

The front yard was filled with locals as one SUV pulled into the driveway and the other pulled along the side of the street. The doors of the cars echoed shut as they exited the vehicles and walked up to the detective who was waiting for them on the front porch.

“Marty Friedman. Thanks for making the trip,” the detective said as Hotch and Rossi approached him first. “I’ve got search and rescue combing the woods and the Choptank and Wicomico rivers. We’re dredging all the way from here to the Chesapeake. I’m not letting this guy get away with this again.”

“Has he said why he took a day to call?” Y/N posed the question everyone had been wondering. Her hands were stuffed in the pockets of her navy coat from the cool air.

Friedman scoffed. “Claims he doesn’t remember,” he looked back to the window where Bruce was standing, inspecting the new visitors. “He’s been glued to his computer, maybe he needs new material for a novel.”

“We’ll work alongside your team if that’s alright,” Hotch said to Friedman.

“Whatever you need,” he responded with a nod.

The team followed the detective into the house. Y/N looked at Bruce as he eyed down Hotch as they walked into the house.

“Everyone take a room,” Hotch ordered and the team split up and walked amongst the house.

“Looks like Katie stayed in a lot,” Spencer assessed as he and Y/N looked over the young girl’s room. “She has her schedule of when she was gonna try new recipes.”

Spencer flipped through the colorful pages of the book with different recipes and fun sketches.

“She seems like a really sweet girl,” Y/N sighed as she looked through a journal. She then turned to her desk and pointed out some of the things she noticed. “Her charger’s here, but her phone is not.”

“Maybe it’s with her?” Spencer posed.

“Maybe, I’ll have Garcia track it,” Y/N said, pulling her phone out of her pocket.

“It’ll only work if it’s on,” Spencer reminded her.

“It’s worth a try though,” Y/N looked up to Spencer with sad eyes. Of course, her first case back had to do with kids, just her luck.

“If the girls had access to a phone and they were okay, they would have called for help by now,” Spencer said, giving her the same sad eyes she gave him.

Y/N’s thumb stopped typing, she knew he was right, but that guilty feeling in her didn’t want her to.

“Y/N.” Spencer’s hands reached for hers that held her phone. “You okay?”

“Yeah, it’s just-” she let out a shaky breath with a groan- “it’s just my luck that my first case back has to do with kids.”

Spencer looked down sadly, knowing the pain she was feeling.

“But it’s okay, it’s just because it’s the first case, ripping off the bandaid, you know? I’ll get back to being able to carpmentalizing it any second.” She shook her hands out after setting down her phone and the journal she was holding.

Spencer gave her the look. The look that said it’s okay to take a second, it’s okay to talk to me, it’s okay to not be ready all just yet.

“Stop that.”

“Stop what?”

“Stop being so understanding,” she laughed and pointed her finger at him. “I’m fine, I really am, it’s just gonna take a sec to get into the swing of things again.”

“Okay,” he smiled, reaching for her hand,and pulling her into a loving hug that made her heart melt.

-------------

Y/N’s eyes scanned over the box in the basement of the Morrison house. Shelf after shelf filled with buckets and old memorabilia of Judy.

“Wow,” Spencer mused as he walked closer to Y/N from his side of the room. “She had a lot of hobbies before she started selling real estate.”

“Yeah, family projects it looks like,” Y/N nodded. She turned to the shelf she had just been looking at boxes being held on it. “Devoted mom.”

On the boxes were dates written under the label ‘quilts’. The dates went all the way back to 1998, the years Sarah Morrison was born.

“You ready, Reid?” Derek’s voice called from up the stairs.

“Yeah,” Spencer echoed back. “You good?” He asked, turning to Y/N.

She nodded and he turned to head up the stairs.

Her eyes scanned over the boxes again, looking at the only one that was labeled with a name. On the box, it read; ‘Quilts, 1999-200, Katie’. Y/N made sure to keep that in mind for anything in the future and turned up the stairs to follow Spencer.

---------

“So what do you think?” Blake asked, turning to Y/N and Rossi, exiting Sarah’s room. The sobs of Bruce echoed down the hall after Hotch told him they had just found the body of Katie in a river. Sarah had still yet to be found.

“He’s sober, so this is raw emotion,” Rossi answered as the three walked down the hallway. “He lost his legs when Hotch told him.”

“The tears could be guilt as much as grief,” Y/N whispered as a reminder.

“Because that’s what we’re supposed to do when given that news,” Blake said as they rounded the corner and filed down the stairs. “I don’t mean to sound so cynical, but the man writes fiction.”

Y/N and Rossi nodded as they came to the last set of stairs. At the bottom stood Hotch and JJ, who had just gotten off the phone with Derek and Spencer who were at the scene.

“Any sign of Sarah?” Y/N asked, hopeful for a good answer.

“Maybe she’s still out there,” JJ said, just as hopeful as Y/N for a good report from the people on the phone.

“Doubtful, unless she’s found shelter,” Rossi acknowledged as they walked the final steps of the stairs. “It’s supposed to be in the twenties tonight.”

“Now that we’ve got Katie’s body, we should run scenarios for what really happened Monday night,” Blake said.

Hotch hung up his phone and looked up to the group around him. “That was the lab. Bruce definitely fired a gun at some point, there’s residue on the sheets and on the boots.”

Y/N sighed, not wanting to hear that news. “We need to get him to the station.”

The five of them turned as they heard the creaking of the floorboards behind them. At the top of the stairs stood Bruce, hearing the whole conversation.

-------------

“Alright thanks, Spence,” Y/N said, hanging up her phone and turning to Hotch. “That was Reid. He said Katie had skin built up under her nails. They’re on their way back from the M.E. right now.”

“We need to look for defensive wounds on him,” Hotch nodded, leaving the bullpen and entering into the interrogation room.

Y/N walked closer to the one-way window and watched as Hotch entered the room.

“Mr. Morrison, I need to ask you to roll up your sleeves,” Hotch ordered Bruce.

“What?” Bruce asked, turning his head sharply to look at Hotch.

“Please.”

Bruce sighed and rolled up his sleeve on his right arm, revealing small but numerous cuts on his forearm.

“I saw these in the shower this morning when I woke up,” Bruce said sadly, not making eye contact with Hotch. “I have no idea how I got them.”

“Did they happen during the fight?” Hotch asked, referring to the fit a neighbor had told them he heard.

“It wasn’t a fight, it was just parenting,” Bruce tried to explain. “Did the detective tell you about Jeff Godwin? You should talk to him.”

Hotch raised a brow in question at the man.

“He still coaches Sarah’s soccer team, even though it’s ridiculous.”

“Every time I ask you a question, you have this habit of deflecting attention onto someone else,” Hotch remarked, making Bruce become quiet.

Y/N rolled her shoulders, standing up straight as she watched Bruce’s body language, trying to decipher his emotions and behavior. When he stayed unresponsive, Y/N took that as the end of the interview and walked out of the room into the break room.

“Wonder Woman,” Derek greeted the woman as she walked in.

She let out a huff as a greeting back, clearly annoyed with everything that Bruce was saying. “Bruce Morrison wants us to talk to Jeff Godwin.”

“Convenient, since he just walked in,” Spencer said as he walked over to the two by the coffee station.

“Great just what he wanted,” Y/N sighed, moving into the spot next to Derek as he finished making his coffee.

As he moved over for Y/N to make her coffee, he picked up his phone that began to ring.

“Hey, Blake,” Derek answered as he stepped away from the coffee bar.

Y/N poured some creamer into the cup as she listened to Derek on the phone.

“Morgan, we need you to find Jeff Godwin,” Blake’s voice echoed through the phone.

“She isn’t the only one he thinks that,” Y/N sighed, taking a sip of her coffee.

“Uh, he just walked in,” Derek responded, turning to look through the window to Jeff Godwin who was standing in a room to the side of them.

“He did?” Blake mused.

“Says he heard we found Katie, and he’s worried about Sarah,” Derek said, relaying the conversation that Y/N had not heard yet.

“He also texted Sarah the night she went missing and then deleted the text.” Blake’s information made the three’s faces contort in shock and look to Jeff. “It looks like they texted a lot.”

“Really?” Derek said, some anger boiling inside him as he watched Jeff. Without having Blake respond, he hung up the phone and nodded for Y/N to come with him.

“Mr. Godwin,” Y/N greeted as she and Derek entered the room he was in.

“Mr. Godwin, why did you feel it was appropriate to regularly text a seventeen-year-old girl?” Derek asked, getting straight to the point.

“I-I’ve known those girls for a long time-” Jeff shook his head- “Way before anything happened between me and their mother.”

Y/N and Derek’s faces stayed unresponsive, waiting for him to get to the actual intent of why he was texting a teen.

“Look, I coach Sarah.”

“And you didn’t think to request a different team, you know, considering the circumstances?” Y/N asked, her hand not holding her coffee gesturing as she spoke.

“No,” Jeff shrugged. “My daughter plays on that team.”

Once again, Derek and Y/N stayed unresponsive.

“Look, Sarah reached out to me Monday night- God knows she needs a father figure--”

“Maybe the man her mother had an affair with…” Derek began taking a step closer to Jeff.

Y/N took a step also, becoming even with Derek. “Might not be the best person for that,” Y/N finished the statement.

Derek nodded in agreement.

“Look-” Jeff took a step of his own- “I just came in here because I had heard about Katie and I was worried about Sarah. Don’t treat me like a criminal.”

“Sarah deleted texts that the two of you shared,” Y/N said, turning her head to the side. “The same day she disappeared. Now that’s a little suspicious, don’t you agree, Morgan?”

“Mm-hmm,” Derek hummed in response.

“Hey- wait, okay,” Jeff stumbled, pulling his phone out of his pocket. “They’re all here. We agreed to meet in the parking lot of the convenience store on route 113.”

He turned his phone, showing the texts to Y/N and Derek. Derek took the phone from the man’s hand, putting it between the two of them so they could read it.

“Is this a regular thing for you?” Derek asked as he read the texts.

“Well, we’ve met there a couple of times recently, when she was really scared about what was happening with her and her dad,” Jeff responded.

“What was happening?” Y/N asked.

Jeff took in a deep breath, almost like he was afraid to tell them. “Bruce gets...violent when he drinks, and it’s been getting worse.”

Derek and Y/N turned their heads, silently saying for him to elaborate more on the topic.

Jeff let out a breath through his nose. “Sarah had every reason to be terrified. I mean look what happened.”

Derek and Y/N nodded, handing Jeff his phone back and heading out of the room. When they walked out, they were greeted with the whole team now, including Penelope on a video call.

“Is everyone there?” Penelope asked prompting Hotch to nod. “Um, this call came in on Monday.”

Before she continued, Hotch walked over to the door of the conference room and closed it.

“It was made on Katie’s cell, which is still M.I.A., the only 800 number she called was the local abuse hotline. She called there a few times in the last couple of months,” Penelope explained, pressing play on the recording. JJ turned up the TV volume.

“My name is Katie Morrison, I called last week,” Katie’s voice rang through the speaker.

“Yes, Katie, I remember you,” the operator on the other line responded.

“He’s at it again. He’s just going crazy. He’s really drunk.”

“Katie, are you safe?”

“Yes, hold on.”

“Hi, it’s Sarah,” Sarah’s voice came into the call. “We’re okay. I can handle this.”

“Girl’s open the door,” Bruce’s voice yelled next. “Katie, open the door.”

The sound of loud banging was heard next, making Y/N squeezing her eyes shut.

“I said open the door!”

When the recording stopped, Y/N opened her eyes and watched as Hotch asked to have the recording sent to his phone and took Rossi to the interrogation room holding Bruce.

-----------

Y/N watched through the glass as Bruce began to remember the night as the call was played to him. As it ended, he slammed his hand on the table, repeating the same words he said in the call. He looked up to the glass, on his side being a mirror so he was looking at himself.

He walked closer to it, his demeanor changing slightly as he looked at himself.

What surprised everyone behind the glass was what he said next.

“Oh my god, what a pathetic little cry baby.”

The rest of the team that was behind the glass looked at each other in confusion, continuing to listen to the man as he spoke.

“Ugh,” Bruce rubbed his eyes. “I was always right about you, huh?”

He was still talking to himself in the mirror. He then turned around, a smug smirk playing on his face as he looked at Rossi and Hotch.

“So you got old Bruce-y in a cage, huh?”

Rossi and Hotch didn’t respond, still trying to decipher who this was and what was happening.

“You think that’s gonna help?” Bruce walked around the two agents and back over to his chair. “It’s only gonna make him hide longer.”

When he reached the chair, he faced the two men again. “What do you wanna know?”

Rossi and Hotch stayed quiet again, not sure what to do.

When they didn’t give him a response, the man spoke again. “I’m gonna have to tell you ‘cause the baby’s got his pacifier.”

“Where’s Sarah?” Hotch finally asked a question.

“She’s learning a lesson,” the man responded with a shrug.

“What did you do to them?” Hotch asked.

In a mocking tone, the man responded, “What did you do to them?”

Not amused, Hotch and Rossi glared at him.

“I scared them that’s all. They need it,” he sighed.

“Why?”

“Because they’re spoiled, ungrateful little bitches who walk all over him any chance they get,” he responded.

“Wow,” Y/N whispered in amazement at the response.

“What happened to Bruce?” Hotch asked the question everyone had been wondering.

“He’s hiding, of course,” the man responded. “See… when he can’t handle it, I save his ass. Bruce’s problem is...he can’t handle anything.”

--------------

“So Bruce said Katie baked cookies Monday night,” JJ said, turning away from the board as Rossi and Friedman entered the room. “We found them in the kitchen, so that’s true.”

“And two of Sarah’s friends confirmed she never made it to her study group,” Blake continued, her voice slightly muffled from her cheek being pressed against her hand.

“And that’s because Jeff Godwin was in the parking lot with her from 8:15 to 9:30,” Derek added.

“And the girls called the hotline at 9:58,” Spencer finished the timeline.

“Detective, have your officers found either gun?” Hotch asked as detective Friedman walked up to the board to look at the post-it notes on it.

“No, but we’ve increased the search given where Katie’s body was found,” Friedman replied.

“Okay so, we’ve got residue, but we don’t know which gun or where it is now,” Derek said, his eyes trained on the floor.

“Okay, look,” Y/N said, raising her hands to stop anyone from talking. “Whoever that was in there said he wanted to scare them, not hurt them.”

“Katie was beaten over the head in the middle of nowhere,” Blake reminded her.

“You’re right,” Y/N gestured to her. “The altar could have lost his temper, or it could have been a horrible accident.”

“But getting the girls out of the house was planned. He said he wanted to scare them and had a gun to do it,” Rossi said.

“And then, he drove them somewhere,” Derek continued. “Bruce’s car had the same mud on the driver’s side floor that he had on his boots, but there wasn’t any in the backseat. SO three people drove somewhere, but only he came back.”

“And the DNA coming back from under Katie’s nails will tell us what we already know-- That Bruce Morrison did this. SO can I arrest him now?” Friedman said, antsy to put cuffs on the man he felt was responsible.

“Detective, you have sufficient evidence to make the arrest, but we still don’t have Sarah,” Hotch told him, eyes glaring at the man.

“Give us an hour, and maybe, he’ll tell us where she is,” Y/N said, an idea in her head forming.

“It's your call, but he could still help us,” Hotch said.

Friedman sighed. “Okay. One hour.”

So the team began their work, and they had to work fast.

“There’s no way for us to confirm a D.I.D. diagnosis yet, but we do know he has chronic alcoholism, Which can and has gone hand in hand with it,” Spencer explained to the team that was scattered amongst the conference room. “The interesting thing is his liver and pancreas wouldn’t have survived thirty years of that kind of abuse, so there must have been years where he’s gotten help.”

“He was in a program,” Blake shrugged.

“Eh, it would have to be more than that,” Spencer replied then turned to Y/N who had Penelope on the line. “Garcia, has he ever been on medication to help curb his drinking?”

“All I’ve got is a yearly physical, and that is it,” Penelope replied.

“D.I.D. usually stems from a history of sexual abuse,” Blake said slowly, hoping to give something to Penelope to help her.

“Okay, well, I’ve got nothing like that,” Penelope said. “All I have on Bruce Morrison is that his mother died when he was ten-”

“There’s your abandonment issue,” Rossi remarked.

“And he was raised by a single alcoholic father, and there’s no evidence of any prescriptions.”

“I mean, they look like the perfect family,” Spencer said, opening the file with family photos in it.

“Yeah, but she would have had to know about his drinking before they got married,” Y/N said as she peered over at the photos Spencer was holding. “So maybe, she helped manage him and kept his problem a secret.”

“She could have been the one that got the prescription,” Spencer’s lightbulb went off. “Garcia, can you run her medical history?”

“Yeah, hold on…”

They waited about twenty seconds before her voice was heard again.

“Okay, disulfiram. Am I saying that right? It’s for chronic alcoholism. She had a 90-day supply delivered four times a year for as long as I can tell. And it stopped coming a few months ago.”

“It makes you just feel nauseous if you drink,” Spencer explained the effects of the medicine.

“But she isn’t the one who had the drinking problem, he is. Garcia, who canceled it?” Derek asked the woman on the phone.

“Please hold while I dig.” She hung up the phone.

“Could that be the trigger? He goes after his daughters now that he’s off his meds?” Blake turned to look at Y/N and Spencer when she asked her questions.

Y/N’s eyes panned up to the TV that showed Hotch talking to Bruce. Then to Jeff Godwin in the other room. “That instability could work for us.”

She set her plan into action. Y/N had Derek get Jeff Godwin and bring him into the interrogation room with Bruce in it.

“Hey, I- I didn’t- Hey, look I didn’t agree to this,” Jeff stumbled as he came face to face with Bruce sitting in the interrogation room.

“Well, we’re looking for Sarah, and you’re the last ones to see her alive,” Y/N said, leaning on the metal table.

“Look, like I told you guys earlier, I had nothing to do with this. And Sarah’s afraid of him.” He pointed at Bruce when he spoke of him.

“You wanna tell us about your relationship with Sarah?” Y/N asked, moving her hands in a circular motion as she spoke.

“I don’t have one,” Jeff replied, after a pregnant pause.

Y/N’s eyebrows furrowed. “Huh, that’s strange. Why do you text her all the time then?”

At her words, Bruce sat up straighter, jaw clenching as he looked at a frightened Jeff.

“Jeff, come on, it’s not that big of a leap,” Y/N spoke nonchalantly. “Couldn’t have Judy anymore so you thought... Why not? Sarah looks just like her mom.”

Her words angered Bruce just like she thought they would. He pushed himself out of his chair and leaped for Jeff, but Derek intercepted him before he could touch him.

“I’m gonna kill that son of a bitch!” Bruce exclaimed as Derek pushed him back.

“Get him out! Get him out now,” Derek commanded the guard in the room to take Jeff out.

Once Derek had calmed Bruce (now his altar) down, he walked out of the room, leaving Y/N there standing on the other side of the table.

“Judy was gonna leave my boy for that scumbag,” the altar said, pointing to the door Jeff had exited.

“What’s your name?” Y/N asked as she watched the altar's body language.

“What’s your name?”

Y/N scoffed at his retort. “I’m Y/N, and you,” she nodded, her arms crossed as she stood tall.

“My name is Johnny, and I need a cigarette, Y/N,” Johnny placed his hands on his hips.

“Well, I might be able to help you out there, even though I don’t condone smoking, but I’m sure you’re stressed.” Y/N began to walk back and forth across the room.

“Oh, I’m not,” Johnny shook his head. “I just want a smoke.”

“Johnny,” Y/N scolded at the lie. “Come on. I know these teenage girls stress you out, no matter what you say.”

Johnny lifted his head up, a smug smirk as he looked at Y/N.

“How do you deal with it?” She continued her questions in hopes they would get him to tell her where Sarah was. “Do you like to, um...go out and shoot something?”

Johnny’s head cocked to the side and he shrugged. “Sometimes, but I don’t get much of a chance to do that.”

Y/N raised her brows in fake surprise. “Oh! I thought you did have a chance recently?”

Johnny chuckled and didn’t respond.

Y/N smirked at his none response and let out her own chuckle. “I think you did.”

Johnny’s head dropped as he continued to laugh.

“Now, you know, I’m just- I’m curious,” she laughed then pointed to the door with her thumb. “Then I’ll go get you a cancerous cigarette.”

Johnny smiled and gestured towards Y/N. “I like you, Y/N.”

Oh, that’ll make Spencer’s blood pressure go up, Y/N thought to herself.

“So…” Y/N trailed off, walking back and forth again as she changed the subject. “You took the girls somewhere to scare them...somewhere quiet, isolated…” She watched his reactions to what she said carefully. “Near the water?”

That got him to respond.

“I didn’t do anything but scare ‘em.”

“Oh, of course not.”

Johnny crossed his arms and came closer to Y/N as she stood in a dominant stance across the room.

“Do you have a place by the river?”

Johnny ignored the question. “Mm, pretty, and smart.”

Y/N gave him daring eyes, demanding an actual answer to her question.

“It’s not my place,” Johnny shook his head. “It’s not anybody’s place anymore.”

Y/N turned her head for him to elaborate more.

“I’ve taken them out there before, but this time…” He leaned forward, closer to Y/N this time (almost in her face) and whispered, “I got their attention.”

Y/N stepped back, nodding her head and nodded towards the guard to open the door.

“How about that cigarette now?”

“Not gonna let you pour cancer into Bruce’s lungs.”

The door closed behind her after she spoke and she could hear the tantrum Johnny was having. When she entered the bullpen, she saw Spencer standing in front of the glass. Arms crossed and lips pursed.

“Bub,” she whispered, gaining his attention. “You good?”

“Mm-hm, yep,” he nodded turning to her. “Just uh, you know, it was a little difficult not jumping through the glass to strangle him when he looked at you.”

Y/N chucked, her head dropping as she took a step closer to him.

“Spence, you and I both know that he wouldn’t have walked out of that room if he got closer to me.”

Spencer laughed as she pushed up on her toes to place a kiss on his cheek. He grabbed her left hand and brought it up to his lips, kissing the spot right beside her ring.

------------

That night, in the pouring, freezing rain, JJ and Derek found Sarah in the woods. She had a black eye and some cuts but she was okay.

Y/N had gone to the hospital to talk to Sarah with JJ. Letting her know what she would have to do and it was okay to back out.

Sarah seemed like a genuinely sweet girl and she took a liking to Y/N as she cried. When the three of them entered the precinct, JJ took her into the interrogation room, while Y/N stayed in the bullpen with the rest of the team.

“I have a bad feeling,” Y/N whispered as her stomach turned, something was off.

“What about?” Spencer whispered back.

“I’m not sure yet…”

As Sarah sat down, her two hands clasped together reached across the table for Bruce’s. His cuffed wrists stayed together as he held her hands.

“I’m so sorry,” Bruce said, eyes spilling with tears.

“Dad, you need help,” Sarah said softly.

Bruce let out a breath and nodded.

His eyes went up to the cuts and bruises on Sarah’s face and sucked in a sharp breath. “Did I do that?”

Sarah nodded and let a few more tears slip.

“I’m sorry,” Bruce apologized genuinely again. “I’m so sorry.”

Y/N stomach turned again, this time out of sadness. Instinctively, she reached for Spencer’s hand, needing a reassurement, and to know it would all be okay. He grabbed her hand, lacing their fingers together for a second, and squeezed it.

“What can I do?” Bruce asked Sarah, pleading agony in his voice.

“They say that if you tell them where mom is, this will all just-”

“But I don’t know. You know I don’t know,” Bruce cut her off.

��She didn’t just disappear, Dad,” Sarah sobbed.

When Bruce didn’t respond, only letting out a breathy sob, Sarah let out another crying accusation.

“Oh God, you killed her too didn’t you?”

“No, no, I didn’t,” Bruce shook his head.

“How am I supposed to believe you?” Sarah sobbed and started pointing to the marking Bruce, or rather Johnny left. “This--this is what you’ve done.”

Bruce just looked at the injuries sadly.

“You have hurt us all for a long time,” Sarah continued, her voice giving out at the end. She stood up from the table and began to exit the room with JJ.

Bruce pleaded with her to not go, but she didn’t listen and just left the room.

----------

Y/N walked with Sarah into her home, the mood of the house much different now compared to earlier in the day. The rain had died down from earlier, but it was still falling on the roof hard enough so it could be heard in the house. Sarah had an FBI jacket wrapped around her and Y/N had her signature navy petticoat tied around her waist.

“You cold?” Y/N asked, noting how Sarah wrapped her arms around herself.

“Yeah, a bit, the thermostats right there,” she pointed to the machine down the hall.

Y/N walked down the hall, turning up the temperature, and looked back to Sarah. “Should warm up soon.”

Sarah stood, staring at the floor as Y/N walked closer to her.

“You think you can sleep?”

“Yeah, I want to shower first,” Sarah pointed up the stairs.

Y/N nodded in surprise. “Okay. Uh… you sure you’ll be okay up there?”

The reason why Y/N asked this was because, after her brother died, she wouldn’t even enter that side of the house for months. So it confused her as to how she would be able to go upstairs and be okay.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine,” Sarah said reassuringly.

Hesitantly, Y/N nodded, her bad gut feeling coming back. “Okay, um, I’m gonna make us some tea, that sound good?”

“That’d be really nice, thanks.” And with that, Sarah made her way up the stairs.

Y/N nodded, letting her reassuring fake smile fall once Sarah was out of sight. Her eyes panned over to the table in the hall that adorned family photos. Behind it was a quilt she assumed their mother made.

The sound of her text messages startled her. She pulled her phone out of her pocket and looked at the text from Spencer.

All good?

“Oh Spencer, you always know when somethings up,” Y/N whispered to herself and replied with ‘not sure’.

About five minutes later, after Y/N had finished with the tea, she made her way to the dining room and set the cups down. Her phone went off again, this time a call.

When she pulled it out of her pocket, Spencer’s name lit up the screen.

“Hey,” she answered, her voice hushed.

“What’s wrong?” Spencer asked, worry clear in his voice.

Y/N sat down at the head of the table and let out a breath. “I don’t know, I’m not sure, but the feeling is back again. She’s just...too casual and almost cold since we got here.”

“It could be the shock,” Spencer replied.

“Yeah, I know, but she’s composed at the same time,” Y/N said, trying to explain Sarah’s behavior. “She has not mentioned Katie to me even once since we got here. I couldn’t go to the side of the house that my brother stayed in after he died.”

“She does have a point,” JJ’s voice said through the phone. “When my sister died, I couldn’t even walk into my house, let alone past her room.”

“Well, what do you think, Y/N, Sarah pulled it off?” Blake’s voice asked.

“It may be a possibility,” Y/N shrugged.

“It’s a very detailed plan,” Blake commented.

“What, she knew about her father’s condition and took advantage of it?” Spencer asked as his voice rushed as he spoke.

“She set up character witnesses like Jeff Godwin...to back up her fear,” Derek’s voice said, piecing together a theory. “She even got her little sister to make calls to a hotline. She manipulated us from the minute we found her.”

“Her writing suggested no empathy and no real emotional connection to the family,” Blake said, recalling the writing she had read earlier that day.

“Psychopathic tendencies,” Spencer remarked.

“Her wounds are more than superficial, but they could be self-inflicted, right, Y/N?” JJ asked the woman on the phone.

Out of the corner of her eye, Y/N saw Sarah enter the room.

“Baby, I know, I’m sorry I can’t be there for the dinner tonight,” Y/N said, quickly coming up with a cover for why she was on the phone. “But London and Jackson are there until Friday and I promise I will make it up to you when I get back.”

Y/N then turned to look at Sarah, acknowledging her presence. “You okay? I didn’t hear the shower.”

“Yeah, I just wanted my tea,” Sarah pointed to the cup on the table.

“Oh, I was gonna bring it to you, but it should be ready,” Y/N stood up and handed her the cup.

“Yeah, I’m still here,” she said, wanting to let them know she was okay.

“We’ll be right there, stay on the phone,” Spencer said quickly as Y/N assumed he was running out of the precinct.

“Baby, I gotta go,” she said and hung up the phone, watching as Sarah walked away.

When Y/N heard the water running, she walked down to the basement, remembering the tub she saw earlier. She took her flashlight connected to her holster out and walked down the stairs. When she reached the floor she walked straight over to the tubs of quilts, specifically the one with Katie’s name.

She pulled it off the shelf and moved it over to an empty table next to it. As she filed through all the blankets, she came across a real estate binder. When she opened it and flipped through the pages, she heard a gun click behind her.

“Why did you have to come down here?”

Sarah’s voice rang in the quiet of the basement.

Cautiously, Y/N turned around to look at her. In Sarah’s hand was the second gun they had been looking for.

“We’ve been looking for that.”

“It’s an old house, I know the best hiding places,” she shrugged. “But you, what do you think you know?”

“You put everything that went missing with your mother inside this box,” Y/N nodded to the box beside her. “1999.”

“Maybe my dad did it?”

“No,” Y/N spoke before she could even finish. “No, you chose this box because it’s the year Katie was born and everything changed.”

Sarah’s face formed a snarl as Y/N spoke.

“She was your little sister.”

“Katie ruined everything-” she took the last step so now she was level with Y/N- “and my mother let her.”

“Your mother loved you,” Y/N protested.

“Well, she loved Katie more,” Sarah seethed.

Y/N and Sarah stood in silence for a second.

“I should’ve cried for Katie,” Sarah scoffed. “I guess there are some things I just can’t fake.”

Carefully, Y/N’s hand reached for the gun on her belt, something she really didn’t want to have to do.

“You won’t do it,” Sarah said, taking another step closer.

“You need to back up- now.” Y/N’s voice was stern as she commanded the young girl.

“I can say my trauma kicked in,” Sarah explained. “PTSD.”

Her face then formed into fear, “I saw you with the gun, and I didn’t know what else to do!”

Then her face went back to normal.

Truly, Y/N was kinda impressed. “You thought of everything.”

Then, by the grace of whatever is out there, footsteps were heard coming down the stairs.

“Sarah put the gun down,” Derek said softly as he came up behind her.

“No, no, you don’t understand. She has a gun, she was going to hurt me,” Sarah used her plea.

“No, no, Sarah, It’s okay,” Derek reassured her. As he put his gun down, Spencer lifted his up and pointed it at her.

“Listen to me,” Derek said, holstering his gun. “I understand. It’s okay, Sarah. She wasn’t going to hurt you. I know you’ve been through enough. All right? I get it.”

Sarah let out a fake sob as Derek placed his hand on her shoulder. “Sarah, you’re safe now, okay?”

Sarah nodded and turned to Derek. “Okay, thank you.”

As soon as Derek pulled the gun out of Sarah’s hands, Spencer came up from behind her and cuffed her.

“What are you doing?!” She exclaimed as the cuffs came down on her wrists.

“You’re a smart girl, Sarah. Figure it out,” Derek said, taking Sarah out of Spencer's hands and led her up the stairs.

Sarah tried to plead as Derek took her up the stairs.

Y/N turned back to the book she had been looking at, opening to a page that held trophies from Sarah’s mom.

“February fourth, the day Judy went missing,” Y/N said as she read the date above the necklace.

“Trophies,” Spencer said as he got closer to Y/N. “If the detective Friedman had ever found it, she would have pinned it all on Bruce.”

“Damn, it’s almost impressive,” Y/N whispered as she closed the boom and brought it up as evidence.

------------

“The guests of honor!” Rossi exclaimed as Y/N and Spencer walked into his home.

The two chuckled and walked closer to Rossi to hug him. Rossi grabbed each of their faces, kissing them both on the cheeks.

“Dave, thank you so much for this,” Y/N said, taking Spencer’s hand as she thanked the man.

“Well, it’s the least I could do,” Rossi smiled, then turned and pointed to the room holding his own personal bar. “And I heard that there’s a special someone here to see you, Y/N.”

Y/N raised a brow in confusion then looked to Spencer, who had a smirk on his face.

“Remember the other day when you had to cover on the phone, and said something about London and Jackson coming to visit,” he beamed at the smile that formed on Y/N’s face as she put the pieces together.

“Shut up!” She laughed and rushed into the room, her best friend standing with her own boyfriend next to Derek, laughing about something. “London!”

When she heard her name, the dark-headed woman turned around and saw Y/N. “Y/N!”

The two met in the middle and hugged tightly, having missed each other so much.

“Oh my god, let me see it,” London said, pulling away from the hug so she could look at Y/N’s ring. “Oh, it’s beautiful.”

“I know,” Y/N sighed as London held her hand still.

“Now I just wonder when Jackson will give me one of those,” London laughed as her boyfriend came up next to her.

“Okay, no need to be hostile,” the green-eyed man said as he wrapped an arm around London’s waist. “Congratulations, Y/N.”

“Thank you, Dr. Avery,” she responded diplomatically.

“And to you too, Dr. Reid,” Jackson said, tipping his wine glass to Spencer as he walked up to the three, grabbing Y/N’s hand.

“Thank you,” Spencer smiled at the man.

The four of them had all hung out before. After another case the team had in Seattle, Spencer and Y/N stayed an extra day to hang out with London and Jackson. Y/N and laughed, making a comment about how she was the only one in the group who wasn’t a doctor.

“So how was your last case?” London asked. She loved to hear about cases and she repeatedly told Y/N that the team was the real life Scooby-Doo gang.

“A plot twist to say the least,” Y/N laughed, not wanting to go into detail. “I’m just glad it’s the weekend, and I’m just keeping my fingers crossed we don’t get called in.”

“I know that feeling,” Jackson agreed with a laugh.

Then, Hotch’s phone ringing was heard from across the room.

“No, not tonight,” Y/N groaned, throwing her head back. “One night, can serial killers just chill out for one night.”

Those who heard her comment laughed, but then Hotch reassured her worries.

“Don’t worry Y/N, that was Jessica, telling me Jack finished his homework.”

“Oh thank goodness.”

The night went on, Rossi had hired a catering service so the dinner was all little finger foods. Due to the cold weather, Rossi had made a dance floor in the bar room. Clearing out the tables that were in the middle of the room and leaving room for everyone to dance.

There was laughter heard all night as everyone danced and sang obnoxiously loud to the 90’s rock. It was a perfect surreal moment that made Y/N so happy. As she danced with Spencer, she pulled herself closer to him and whispered to him.

“I wish every night was like this.”

“It will be,” Spencer whispered back, placing a kiss on the shell of her ear as he spoke. “This is how we’ll spend every night we’re married, dancing, singing, and laughing until we can’t breathe.”

Y/N smiled, turning her head to place her lips on his. This kiss was meant to be a peck, but Spencer held the small of her back closer and let their lips dance together longer.

She giggled as she pulled away from him as Derek yelled “Get a room!” as he danced with a very drunk Penelope.

“I think I like the idea of us dancing till sunrise.”

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ji-yaaan · 5 years ago

Text

𝐅𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐬𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐲...

Yandere!Malleus x Reader Oneshot

Warnings: Mentions of death, blood, self harm, toxic relationships.

Note: Yandere time kids! \(óvò)/ time to debut as a yandere writer... Lolololol jk! But seriously, I think I enjoyed writing this too much- hmmmmm I don't know what to say anymore..... Anyways have fun reading ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Rain dripping down the skies. Heavens weeped their sorrows. Raindrops pitter-pattered on the glass windows, loneliness fills the room accompanied by a cold wind that gushed from the open windows. Ice cold raindrops hit your frozen face. How you wished to wail out your misery and despair...

Life is unfair...When was it fair? When you had the 5 seconds in which your escape from this endless nightmare was in the grasp of your hands? Freedom was in arm's reach, yet the so called freedom was a lie painted in sweet colorful rotten words.

"God... Is this a joke? Is this a test? Is this a Nightmare? Why have you forsaken me?" You questioned the heavens pouring down heavily. As if to mock you, a loud boom of thunder echoed up above, lightning lit up the dark grey skies for a brief moment...

Empty eyes filled with sorrows gazed up the heavens, unironically, the abyss stared back at their lifeless soul. You scoffed as the heavens ridicule you, a scornful laughter escaped your lips. Only to be interrupted by a loud creak of the wooden doors that rang across the room. "Hmmmmm? Y/N darling, what are you doing by the windows? See.... Look at you.... You're drenched and you might get sick..." A deep sigh escaped the fae's lips as his eyebrows furrowed from worry. "You really have a knack for getting people worried, my love..."

How disgusting "If you're really worried, you should've let me go by now..."

Is what you'd like to say, but why make it worse for yourself? Instead of a truthful answer, you simply stared at the man you loathed most... Malleus Draconia... The great man of The Valley of thorns... The infamous man who's part of the top 5 greatest mages... The powerful prince, who's heir to the throne... Just why must he stoop this low to abduct someone with the stupid excuse of true love?

A pair of peridot orbs that seemed to glow in the dark sent shivers down your spine. Those very orbs that stared straight down at you suffocating your chest. "I'm sorry..." You have to keep it together... You worked so hard to earn this man's trust and favor, you planned your way out of this mess... The show must go on The fae walked towards your direction, inching closer and closer. The air around you seemed suffocating as it became harder to breathe. The man you despised the most... the man you detested most... held your chin up to face him as he towered over your figure. Malleus brushed away a stray hair in your forehead. His peridot eyes that looked like gems allured you, they shone brightly despite the fact that both of you were surrounded by plain darkness. You felt small in his precence...

The fae held unto both of your cheeks as he placed a small gentle kiss atop your forehead. Almost af if it was done in a loving manner... He rested his forehead in yours, darting his gaze back unto yours. "I love you, my darling..." His eyes pierced your soul as a cold sweat ran through your spine. You were speechless, tongue was tied, no words escaped your lips. Growing paler by second, colors leaving your face. A shiver went down your spine as the dark fae held unto your neck, grasp tightening as moments pass. Your pulse and your heartbeat ringing in your ears, your brain was set in a frenzy as hands tightened around your neck. Caught up in a moment of hysteria, the lack of oxygen caused you to gasp for air, as you stared at the glowing pair of eyes inches above you. Your stomach churns, adrenaline rushed up your body. You forced yourself to say the words that left a disgusting taste in your mouth... "I love you too..." Your lips curved up forming a weak forced smile as a pair of lips devoured yours. A distinct taste of bitter sour berries spreads inside your mouth, like a deadly disease blooming in chaos...

Rays of warm sunlight lit the stagnant bedrooms. Buried in silken sheets and velvet pillows, cold fingers held you tightly in slumber. Like a nightmare that paralyzed your body, the fae embraced you closely, merley inches apart from one another. How you wished to wake up from this nightmare... Staring blankly at the ceiling, thousands of thoughts lingered on your mind. You wanted to disappear from this sick fate that bounded you to where you are. You closed your eyes, wishing when it opens, you're back in the safety and comfort of your real home.

Day after day, you struggled aimlessly under the grasp of the fae. You felt like life was taken away from your grasp, making you an empty shell of your former self. Smiles became meaningless. Laughter became dull. Your vision painted gre, colors began to burn out... The only thing that's bound to keep you breathing is the hatred you bore for the man you loathed. So you made yourself a show to put on. A mere act of rotten love, like a lovesick songbird chirping lies after lies. The fae believed the deceptive love you showed, drunk in his delusions. With each fables that escaped your lips, a nauseating taste lingers on you mouth.

Now you've come this far. You felt broken beyond repair. The once colorful life you've lived feels like a vivid dream you hopelessly graps on. No means of escape under clutch of the sickening man you despised. How ironic life can be.... Hope keeps us breathing, only to kill us at the end. But this time hope is not the only reason for you to be breathing. Seething hatred you bore against Malleus plagued your mind day and night. How you wished your hatred and insanity bore fruit...

Morning dew drops dripped from the lush leaves of the white rose petals. In the garden of the diasomnia halls, there you stood caught in a daze not knowing what to do. You sat down in the lonely table in the middle of the lonesome rose garden. White flowers adorned the scenery as you pick up your cup and took sip of your bitter tea. "How dull..." You flipped the pages of the worn out book in the midst of your fingers. You savor your sweet time indulging in your pseudo freedom while the fae is away.

In between the crumbling book you held, lies a small note stuck in between the pages. The note you've been reading for the past few weeks, contemplating on it's contents. A wicked smile plastered across your face as you peered unto the dagger that sat across the table. But your vision shifted to something far more interesting... The flask that accompanied the lone dagger. The flask with intricate designs and patterns that's bound to intrigue anyone. The very flask you stole from Malleus' study... "It's time..."

You took a last sip of the tea in your cup. The unpleasant taste still lingered in your mouth. You took the silver dagger beside the glass bottle, charmed by the metal adorned with dainty rose carvings. You sighed as you ponder on whether you're doing something right. "The right thing to do? What a joke..." A broken smile plagued your face as you look up the heavy skies threatening to pour at any moment.

The dagger in your hands pierced the smooth skin under your wrists. Scarlet hues dripped down your arms with each slash of the white metal. What a bore... None of this is painful... Has reality really became dull for you to be this numb to not even feel pain? How disappointing for yourself. Are you even human at this point? Oh right... You died once upon a time when you kissed the man you despised.

As the sunset melted in the dark grey skies, raindrops dripped from the heavens yet again. You felt like time was running out pointing the dagger in your chest. Metal prickling your collarbone, blood spilt unto your dress. A stab across the chest as sweet vermilion ichor gushed from your torso, staining your fingers bright scarlet red. The metal dug deeper under your flesh, followed by a wail escaping your lips.

"What are you doing!" An ear piercing scream echoed in between the thunders and rain. Malleus raced towards your direction with raging fury evident in his eyes. burning peridot orbs devoured your vision as the fae loomed over your figure. Crouching unto the muddy ground, Malleus asked again "What do you think you're doing?" Possessive chartreuse eyes piercing you deeper than the metal in your chest. A scoff left your mouth as a loathsome grin surfaced your face, a sneer ridiculing the fae before you. A moment of silence passed, but the fae's fury began to grow more with each passing second. Green flames devoured the rose gardens. The very flames that suffocated you. "You're a monster" you said under your breath as a mocking grin graced your lips.

"Then make me the monster that will forever be your nightmare my love..." The fae pulled the dagger out your chest as more blood gushed and pooled under you. "How foolish humans can be... Didn't I tell you? no matter what you do, you cannot escape from me. Even if you ran away to another world.. I’d find you wherever you’ll go. Now let’s stop this twisted game we’re playing before I change my mind." Green flames engulfed your figure for a brief moment. "ARGHHH!" A weep escaped your lips as you felt the pain from the flames burning the life out of you. The cuts in your wrists and your supposedly wounded chest is nowhere to be seen. Like a vivid dream that never happened.

You looked at your pathetic state sitting down in the muddy grass as malleus hend unto your arms. Pools of red blood stained your white dress. The rain wailing as the thunders roared in the distance. Green flames engulfing the rose bushes despite the raindrops pouring. You stared at the dagger in your lap that stabbed your flesh, yet the supposedly wounded places are smooth and flawless. No sign of scar or wound to be seen. Nothing...

You stared at the man before you. Towering over your figure, Malleus put a hand on your cheeks as he dries off the droplets that hit your face. Peridot eyes stared down at you. The anger and disappointment still present in his eyes as green flames swallowed the gardens. Oddly enough, this moment you felt nothing, just an empty void inside you, no means of escaping this nightmare. Nothing... Absolutely nothing... No fear, No remorse, No hatred, No Love.

"You cannot escape me, my darling. No one in this twisted world will love you as much as I do. I am your one true love and I hope you won’t forget that..." Threats that are masked by sweet sugary words like cheap rotten candies... How disgusting... "Are you sure about that My Love??" Mocking the fae with your words, you inched closer to close the gap that seperated the both of you. Lips mingled with each other, but instead of a sweet reaction from an innocent kiss, The fae violently reacted as he pulled away grabbing unto both your wrists.

"What did you drink?" Burning eyes that gleamed fury and anger... What a sight to see... The taste of bitter tea mixed with rotting flavors still lingered in your mouth. A wicked smile plastered across your face, you replied "I wonder what it was?" Sharp nails dug under your flesh. Scarlet liquids dripped across your arms. Eyes burning with rage stared down at you. Green flames that glowed surrounded the both of you. Booming thunders echoed up the sky. Loud raindrops hitting the grounds grew louder.

You reached for your pocket to hold out the note you were reading for weeks now. "Eternal slumber" 2 words made the great Malleus Draconia insane. 2 words that destroyed the pseudo world the both of you lived in. 2 words that set aflame to both of your twisted worlds.. 2 words that will set you free from this joke you call life.... Freedom tastes sweet.

"You’re not allowed to leave me... what have you done? Don't do this to me... stop joking around... Y/n you love me right" Eyes brewing with insanity darted their gaze unto you. The man drowning in delusion was drunken in madness. Pale hands made their way to your neck, ice cold fingers gripped your skin as black nails dug your flesh. "Even if I have to use every spell, every magic, I'll make sure to make you wake up and punish you. y/n you won’t escape from me." Tears fell from the fae's face as madness devoured both of your souls. Hands that gripped your neck tightly shook. As Malleus let's go of you. The fae embraced you rigidly, burying his face in the crook of your neck. A weep escapes his lips "Y/n dont leave me..." salty tears trickled down your neck. Alas, you cannot savor this victory for long.

A mocking grin graced your face for one last time. The sky seemed to settle down, but the flames burned brighter. Triumph....this was your sweet triumph... It's funny how you won but now you've lost so much. In fact, you've lost everything now, even yourself.....how sad.... Your eyes began to grown heavy, you simply felt tired. "Goodnight." Your eyes closed shut, never to open again. Unless with a kiss of true love, eternal slumber shall devour you.

The End....

HGNNNNN MALLEUS WAS THE EASIEST TO BULLY OK!? I wanted to do vil, but I'm sweating too much, I can't even think of a concept🤦🤦 oh wait I actually have one..... But that's for another day( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Hope y'all enjoyed this low quality yandere time!🥺🥺🥺🥺

Tagging: @ghostiebabey u said tag u if I make yandere content..... Shame on me for this😔✊

#twisted wonderland #twst wonderland #twst #malleus draconia #disney twst #twst fanfic #malleus draconia x reader #twisted wonderland x reader #twisted wonderland malleus #twst malleus #twst imagines

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albino-whumpee · 4 years ago

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Mareland

I´ve had the idea of simulation theaters for SUCH a LONG time, I needed to take it out of my system. Mare Land is a shop or “theater” that allows you to live to every single adventure you would desire. A bit like SAO but without, ya know, the part of getting stuck there. Hope you like it~ TW:// captivity, forced labor, mental manipulation and implied abuse, creepy whumper

“Glad to see you back” a boy with white hair greets you. He’s wearing a black, spotless dress-coat. Eyes clean you from toes to head with a sincere smile. “Excuse my rudeness, I’ve thought of you as one of our regulars” A gloved hand goes to his chest and the boy bends in reverence “It’ll be my pleasure to show you what’s on stock in this humble store of experiences” the boy bent up, white hair tied up into a half ponytail following the flow “now, shall we?”

The boy doesn’t wait for you and begins walking through the large corridor with neon lights that read “Mare land” on vibrant purple.

“My name’s Salarien” the boy announces glancing back at you for a second “I shall be the one to show you Mare Land’s attractions tonight” his eyes are like honey, but under so many neon lights they seem to radiate a dangerous red glow. “Mare Land was born for the purpose of enriching the guest´s life through simulated experiences. Providing them with singular emotions that would otherwise be never lived” The plain hallway, starts to get more and more doors. Each with a different frame and lock “Mare Land bases on the user´s experience tastes. Our gallery of experience rooms with their unique story telling is the broadest of them all, if I dare say so myself. We have more than 300 of them!” The boy promptly opens one of the doors and stretches his arm for you to see what´s inside. “I´m sure one of them most be of your fancy”

A room with a beautiful view of the sea from what seem to be jungle cliffs fills your vision. You can hear some birds and can not tell where the sky merges with the see. You feel an ache to run in the sand.

“Quite the view, right?” he asks before closing the door. He puts his fingertips together and walks to another frame. “If the guest wishes for a more silent scenario…” he opens the door to a desolated place. Looks like a warehouse with an improvised surgical table. Unused. As the subject is still on a box on the other side. Muzzled and tied. They glare at you with rage and a slight hint of fear before the door closes. “Every room comes with it´s unique habitants and world rules. Which should accomodate to your tastes and needs” the boy explains as he keeps walking. Signaling you to a door that says “in progress”.

As all the other doors, this one has a small window on the front. It´s foggy, but you can see a man with chains on his hand. You don´t get to see what´s tied to them, as Salarien begins to talk again. “No need to worry about privacy. We take those matters seriously and keep a close eye into keeping everything confidencial” You turn your head back as he talks, but he goes too fast to stare too long “And no worry about touching things that have been used over and over. As the memories are reset after the experience ends, everyone gets to feel a fresh start!” he says with a delighted tone.

You reach what could be called the office. With a singular door frame of white embedments and fine gold broidery. As he enters the door and you get in, you notice it´s but a simple office with a big metal door on the back. With no windows. A big lock restraining the entrance. There´s a black desk with two chairs of the same color. “Please, have a seat” Salarien sits behind the desk and takes out some papers as you sit down. “Now, then. What kind of experience would you like to have? We can arrange the room of your dreams. With you as the protagonist, the villain or the caring sidekick” He smiles reassuringly noticing a bit of tension on your shoulders “There´s always a way to get out of the experience and change if the guest so desires. A simple word or a simple gesture. The habitants can not leave their experiences, so there´s nothing to fear. Mare Land guarantees the safety and enjoyment of the guest to the maximum” he gestures with his hands as he talks.

You ask for their prices and an expression beyond delighted adorns Salarien´s face as he hands you a list. The cheaper ones are the protagonist experiences. “It´s not usual for guests to choose that road” he explains pouring tea on a cup he hands you. “Villains roads are lot more fun!” so the price is higher than the other two.

He walks you through some paperwork about confidentiality and payment after you decide to go for the sidekick road. He´s nothing but happy to see you sign them and simply walks you to your door.

“Please remember, the word´s Tollens. Once the word is said twice, you will be out immediately. Our staff will be more than delighted to show you the way out, once it´s done. For now…” he interrupts himself to open a door with a worn out metal cover “may your experience be delightful!” he says before you enter and hear a click on your back. The world, foggy until now, becoming clearer.

——-

When the clock hit midnight, the experiences were over. Wether the guest had desired it or not, they all were required to leave at that time. People with serious, mild or simple injuries would be helped by a medic team. The people that were wearing a mad smirk would be taken out accompanied. Those who could walk on their own were showed to the exit by Salarien himself. Always a bright smile on his face as he heard the guests gush about how much fun it had been and how much they were wishing to come back already.

After nobody was on the building, Salarien went back to the office where the door was now half open. Lock not to be found. The boy inhaled deeply and went through it. He heard the usual dry click of the lock on his back.

The spotless dress-coat slowly disappeared as he went deeper into a thick gray fog. A metal collar started to become visible as well as some bruises on his skin and wide eye bags. The boy stopped walking as he met his owner. Bowing at the red haired person seating on a white throne, with the same delicacy from before. Reminiscents of magic still on the waving fingers.

“Come” his owner told him. He was quick to kneel by their side. Feeling a hand passing through his dirty white hair. “I´ve been thinking about the improvements we could make on the experiences, Salarien. Look” the person showed the boy their journal. Filled to the very edges of the paper, Salarien read through it all and looked back at their owner with the same hollow eyes. The ginger was not surprised. Salarien wasn´t meant to show emotions in front of them without an order. “Am I not the best?” Neither was he allowed to talk there. So, he settled for nodding.

“The habitants never leave, isn´t that right, Salarien?” their owner repeated lifting their chin up to him see the smirk on their face. “Except you” they said brushing their thumb against the boy´s unexpressive face “Oh, and how handy! I couldn´t tolerate any of them for even a second! You´re a very good boy” Their voice filled with honest praise wasn´t enough to make the boy´s poker face sway “They just enjoy their dream and go home, but me? Mare Land´s owner? I get to enjoy all of them. Even so, I seem to only like yours” The person´s voice filled with cockyness as they rested their chin on their hand. Savoring on Salarien´s glare. “You may go to sleep now, boy” They commanded. Salarien rose up and bowed before walking away “Another day of work awaits” they said watching the boy curl up on the floor after connecting the chain on the the wall to their own collar. Falling asleep immediately. As every night.

—-

“Smile for me” their owner told them as to wave them goodbye on his way to work. Salarien put the fake smile he wore everyday at the store and bowed as the person shushed them away. The metal door connecting to the store opened.

Going through it, Salarien´s spotless dress-coat came back a as a smile was forced into his face, now cleaner than ever.

A black ribbon tied his hair, long to his shoulders. The boy touched it curiously. That was new. “A gift” a whisper told him from beyond the locked door. “Happy birthday, Salarien” The boy turned to the closed door.

“Thank you, my lord” he said as he bent down with a smile that hurt to fake “I´ll treasure it” he said on a cheerful demeanor. Even when he knew none of what he was wearing was real.

A whisper of a laugh haunted him as he went through the store. A magic key on their hand. They pulled a curtain besides the embroided door that was the entrance to the office and inserted the key on it. At the turn, the store was filled with screams. For just a moment, it was hell. The next, a quiet cemetery.

Salarien went to inspect on every door. The effect was that every habitant was knocked out and had no memories of the day before. He passed by one of their newer experiences. One with an albino boy. He was not sure if his owner had designed that experience with him on mind. Not that it mattered.

Salarien kept walking, checking on the hazel eyed boys, the winged creatures, the artic one, the demi human, the fox people and a long etcetera.

Salarien knew he was there, opening the store to new visitors because he had been the first of all. The first experience. So old and used, the owner would repulse the idea of sharing him. They had said it was his birthday, but that was just a foreign concept that meant nothing to him. As far as he could recall, he had had the same face, the same body, since forever.

He had wondered once why didn´t he just run away. He had all the keys, knew all the ways out, the timing, the perfect plan. But he had a feeling, that if he ever tried stepping just an inch outside the store, he would evaporate into dust.

And sent back to a very, very pissed off owner.

A human met his eyes at the store entrance and the boy hanged the smile on his lips as every other day. Bowing at the possible guest with a innate elegance.

“Good morning, mistress. Welcome to Mare Land, the store of incredible experiences”

#whump #writing #mareland #Salarien #rogue #captivity #Stockholm syndrome #mental manipulation #creepy whumper #tw implied abuse #collars #my writing #original fiction

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cottage-babe · 4 years ago

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Burning Scars part I (zuko x reader)

Chapter 1 | Next

Masterlist

So this idea has been stuck in my head for a while now... I think I've been watching too much Netflix :(

This is gonna be a slow burn I think, but bare with me guys. I've literally planned everything out already and we're gonna have lots of Uncle Iroh moments :) Who wouldn't want to hang out with him?

Summary: Y/n, a werewolf from a hidden village, comes across Zuko and Iroh after being exiled. How has fate intertwined the wolf's life into the avatar's destiny?

***This chapter takes place on Season 2 Episode 8, just after their fight with Azula.

___

Pain.

Pain is all Y/n felt.

It spiked into the soles of her feet, burned through her calves, and crept up into one of her thighs. Oh yeah, her thigh.

She glanced down at it and saw dark red gushing from it. The large animal bite that adorned it spread from her pelvis to her knee. The scar was going to be so very deep.

Despite her bodily pain, she kept running. She stepped on rocks, twigs, anything that layed on her unplanned path. She could feel bruises on her arms and stomach, but absolutely nothing would stop her. She had to leave this forest now.

It's kind of crazy how the place that was once her home could convert to something so terrifying. She used to feel at peace here; comforted by the trees that shielded her from the blind eye. But now, she feared what was lurking behind each branch; paranoid that someone was following her, but why would they? They had no use for her anymore.

A loud crack rumbled through the silent forest.

A storm was coming.

Oh, just my luck.

Fate, however, was on her side. She finally reached the edge of the forest, but stopped before her foot passed the border. She glanced around until she was met with the sight of two men. They seemed to be doing a weird dance; synchronized all the way down to their crouched knees. They wore deep brown clothes and the older one seemed to be injured as his shoulder was wrapped tightly with white bandages.

Y/n gazed down at her body. Spirits....

She forgot that she wasn't wearing any clothes. These human traditions seem to constantly slip her mind.

The old, wooden house a few feet across the sand was going to be her place to rest, but it seemed that the two men were camping there. And she definitely cannot confront them naked.

Maybe she could steal some clothes and find somewhere else to rest?

Yes, that would have to do.

While the boy's backs were turned, Y/n rushed into the cottage and tiptoed on the wooden floors. If they creaked, that'd be it for her. She grabbed the first bag she saw and ruffled through it. There was a pouch of money... a blue mask... Aha! A shirt! It was the same shade of brown that the two men wore and was extremely long.

When she threw the shirt over her head, she didn't notice how crowded her area was. Her foot moved slightly and knocked over a tea cup. It's shrill clinking made Y/n pause in fear. Maybe they didn't hear it...?

She was so so so wrong.

The two men made it inside the house at an astonishing speed. They held their arms at a threatening angle and had fierce looks on their faces. On the left was the old, injured one from earlier. He was chubby and shorter than the other man, and looked as if he was analyzing her whole life.

The one on the right was young and angry. He had a scar etched into the skin around his left eye. Y/n could only picture the pain he had gone through before it healed.

Well, the injury on her leg didn't really leave much of it to the imagination. But still.

Luckily, the shirt was long enough to cover most of her; it ended at around the middle of her thigh. She kept glancing between the two men, waiting for them to say something or attack her. The young one looked like he was going to kill her if she even twitched, so Y/n decided to keep still and wait for their first move.

The older one finally seemed to notice her blood covered leg and lowered his arms.

"You are hurt," he declared as he looked at the boy. "We must help her."

"No! She's trying to steal our stuff." Then the boy looked at the girl straight in the eyes. "Who are you and why are you here?"

"Now now, you never ask a traveler for their story, nephew. It'll come with time." The old man took a step toward Y/n and she flinched, trying to decide if she could make a run for it. "I'm just going to go through my bag to find my bandages, so I can wrap your wounds... and make you some tea!"

His bright, welcoming smile calmed Y/n and she walked backwards until her back hit the wall. The boy was still glaring at her while his uncle put a kettle on the fire.

Wait, was that fire always there? I swear it wasn't...

She didn't have much time to dwell on it as the old man patted the floor next to him; a signal for her to sit.

Y/n slowly walked over and sat down. She tried to bend her legs, but only managed to do so with the non injured one. The boy's uncle hummed as he took in her injuries.

"Lee, can you go and fetch me a bucket of water?"

The boy, Lee, presumably, was still watching the girls every movement. It almost seemed like he never blinked.

"Lee... LEE!"

Finally, he looked at his uncle in confusion.

"What?"

"Can you get me some water? I need to wash all this blood."

It seemed like Lee finally took in the severity of the girl's injury. He looked pale at the sight of the blood dripping onto the floor. He nodded his head and ran out to get his uncle's request.

"I'm terribly sorry for my nephew, he doesn't take too kindly to strangers." The old man smiled again. "I'm Mushi and that was Lee."

Y/n nodded her head in acknowledgement. "I'm Y/n."

"Hmm... I've never heard that name before, but it's beautiful nonetheless!"

Y/n cursed herself silently. How could she forget that her name wasn't... normal here with the humans. She could've made up one on the spot, like Jin or something.

Finally, Lee came back with a bucket of water. He hauled it over to his uncle, who had a cloth ready to be drenched. Mushi started to clean the blood around and on the wound; an action that made Y/n hiss out in pain. She bit tightly onto her hand to make sure no other noises would escape her. Mushi had an apologetic look on his face as he grabbed the white bandages off the floor. Knowing that the worst was over, she took a deep breath to relax.

"I was... bit by an animal." Y/n whispered.

Both of the men looked up in surprise; they probably weren't expecting her to answer a question they hadn't even asked.

"There's no animals around here that would leave a bite that harsh," Lee said with mistrust dripping from his words.

...there actually is. Like a lot.

Before she could correct him, Mushi intervened.

"What my nephew meant to say was: we're terribly sorry you had to go through that. Please, rest here for the night. A storm is coming and it's not best for travel."

Y/n paused. Stay here?

Well, this would give her time to process everything.

"Thank you so much. I hope that I can repay your kindness one day." Y/n bowed her head slightly.

Lee looked like he wanted to protest this, but one look from Mushi shut him up.

"No need. Your company is payment enough!" Mushi laughed as he waved his hand.

Y/n smiled back at the old man gratefully as he finished wrapping her wound. She is fortunate to have come across this pair. Well, one of them at least.

"Mushi, may I talk to you? Outside?" Lee whispered to his uncle.

Mushi and Lee walked out of the cabin and talked quietly. Y/n tried to listen in, but the sound of the pouring rain drowned out their voices. Huh, it's raining.

Y/n crawled to the corner of the room farthest from the fire and supplies. She hadn't realized it, but she was exhausted from today. Soon she found herself drifting slowly off to sleep, but her mind was still restless.

___

Y/n leaned on all four of her legs. Her fur was slicked back from the mud on the ground. The entire pack was surrounding her and her opponent; a tight circle being formed.

She looked at her brothers who were at the edge of the circle. They were equally as wounded as her, covered in mud, blood, and cuts. She met one of their eyes and he looked away; what was he shameful of? He's safe.

Y/n didn't even bother to glance at her parents. She already knew the disappointment and anger that would leak from their expression into her soul. She instead decided to focus on her opponent.

It was her sister. Born from the same litter, carried by the same mother, Ayano was her blood through and through. They grew up together, played together, and broke rules together. They were almost inseparable before this moment.

But oh, this moment had changed everything.

Ayano's eyes were dark. They held murder inside of them and seemed to bleed into the snarl that adorned her mouth. Her gray fur was just as matted as the rest of the fighters, but she was still Y/n's beautiful, compassionate sister. How, oh how, could these traditions put sisters against one another?

Their father howled and it caused the whole pack to follow his lead.

The signal to begin the duel.

Y/n could not fight her sister. She wasn't exactly sure if she could win, but she definitely didn't want to find out. This was her blood.

So instead of jumping at Ayano, she bowed her head. Her front arms bent to show her surrender.

She half expected Ayano to do the same, or show at least a sliver of mercy. But she didn't. Instead, she released a low growl that said: fight me, you coward.

Then, Ayano pounced with her teeth barred and her claws -

"Hey... Hey, wake up."

She opened her eyes and shot up in panic. Unfortunately, Lee was way closer than she thought and her head slammed into his. They both groaned out in pain and Y/n laid back on the floor to sooth her pounding head.

"Sorry, you just scared me," she groaned out.

Lee had a hand to his forehead and one eye was closed. "Whatever, just put these pants on and then come outside. Uncle wants to talk."

He through to trousers at her face then walked out the door, grumbling slightly.

Y/n was still catching her breath from the memory. It seemed like such a long time ago, yet it was only yesterday. Her hand drifted to her bandages; the blood had peeked through slightly, but nothing major. Who would've known that yesterday's Y/n would be so different from today's?

She slipped on the brown pants that Lee gave her and rolled up the bottom of them. It was obviously Lee's clothes and they were far too big for her. Then she saw a clean bucket of water a few feet away with a cloth on the side. They must've left it for her.

Y/n cleaned up her face and arms to her best ability. She didn't feel the best, but she felt better.

Then she walked outside to meet the fresh air and welcoming rays of sun. They beamed down on her skin; warming her flesh and a small part of her soul. Was this going to be the happiest she could be? Hopefully not.

Y/n looked off to the right and saw the two men sitting around a fire. They probably moved it out here so she could sleep better. The ground was still a little soggy as she walked towards the duo, but it still beat the pebbles she walked on before.

Mushi greeted her with a smile and a soft "good morning." Lee, on the other hand, was staring at her very attentively. When she met his gaze, his eyes formed a glare and a light blush spread across his cheeks. He looked away sharply towards the fire.

"I've made some more tea, since you didn't get to drink any last night," Mushi said as he poured her some.

Y/n bowed her head and accepted the cup. She took a seat near Mushi and sipped her tea.

Mmm this is so good!

She just about chugged the rest of her beverage; an action that would been embarrassing if she wasn't so thirsty. Mushi kindly gave her more and watched as she drank it slower.

"So," the uncle started, "Lee and I talked and we decided to offer you a ride to the nearest town."

Y/n's eyes widened as she heard his words.

"No, please, it's fine! You've already done so much for me, I can't accept this."

"Of course you can!" Mushi exclaimed. Then, he leaned close to Y/n to whisper, "and maybe we can think of a way to get Lee to smile on the way there."

She giggled and looked at Lee, who was glaring at the two of them with his tea cup gripped tightly in his hand.

Ok, maybe she'll stay with them just a little bit longer. Just a little.

___

I'm not a furry I'm not a furry I'm not a furry

Things will make more sense in the next chapter!

I'm probably gonna update once a week, so let me know if you wanna be tagged or something <3

Chapter 1 | Next

Masterlist

#zuko x reader #zuko #atla zuko #atla #atla fanfic #sokka x reader #sokka fanfic #x reader #avatar #poor zuko #prince zuko #zuko imagine #avatar gaang #gaang #gaang x reader #gaang kids

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daredevile · 6 years ago

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Illuminate [1/5]

Summary: James Barnes, an upcoming artist in Brooklyn lives a routine life. It’s all sunshine and rainbows until you show up at his building, hesitantly becoming his roommate.

Warnings: Not Steve approved language

A/N: Hey guys! It’s my first time writing an AU and this one’s for @ruckystarnes‘s summer of AUs. Nearly had a heart attack when I almost deleted this entire post just after finishing. Also, I apologise if it sucks. Hope you enjoy!

“Hello? Mrs Potts? This is Y/N. I saw an advertisement for your apartment, I would like to have a look if it’s still available,”

And that’s all it took for you to end up in front of a modern building, right in the middle of Brooklyn. Logically, you knew that the rent in this particular area would be sky high, however, desperation got the better of you. Before you knew it, a stylish woman dressed in white greeted you with a warm smile, her unwavering, straight posture resembled one of a businesswoman’s.

“You must be Y/N,” She waited for your assurance, stretching her hand out, “I’m utterly delighted to see you, it’s been ages since James had had a roommate,”

“Roommate? I thought I would be living alone,” Your eyebrows shot up. Sharing an apartment was already not too high on your list, but sharing an apartment with a guy, that was rock bottom.

“Oh no, honey, it’s mentioned on the flyer,” Mrs Potts noticed your hesitation, placing a hand on your shoulder as she guided you to the elevator, “Don’t worry, James is an absolute sweetheart. He’s quite easy on the eyes too,” She winked.

Hope filled your mind, and with Mrs Potts’ descriptions of James, maybe sharing a living space with him won’t be so bad after all. She continued rambling on about the apartment’s amenities, but all that whooshed out your head when you stepped inside the lavish area. The first thing you noticed was the abundance of paintings all across the apartment, some hung on the walls, some placed on the paint-splattered floor. You were completely mesmerised, recognising the classics—Picasso, Van Gogh, Monet—whoever James was, he must be filthy rich to afford all of these.

“James is out of town, he’s returning this evening,” Mrs Potts stated, watching you observe the art, “He’s an aspiring artist, and a great one too. Unfortunately, he hasn’t gotten his big break yet,” Her phone rang interrupting your conversation, “Well, what do you think? I mean, if I had known you were coming earlier, I would have asked him to clea—“

“I’ll take it,” You interrupted, “It’s great, thank you, Mrs Potts,” A wide smile erupted on the woman’s face upon hearing your words. She threw her arms around your shoulders, gleaming.

A couple of tiring hours later, you were done shifting your things into the apartment. Just as you plopped down on the couch with a satisfied sigh, the door burst open, revealing one exasperated James Barnes. He took notice of your presence with a curt nod before turning his attention to his phone.

“Um...hi?” You extended your hand, “I’m Y/N, your new roommate,”

“Hi,” Ignoring your hand, he walked towards his easel, preparing his art supplies.

Annoyed at his lack of communication, you turned your attention towards the masterpieces on the wall, “Did you do these? They’re amazing,” A look of awe displayed on your features as you faced his back.

“Yeah, yeah,”

“It must have taken forever,” You gushed, not paying attention to the phone in his hand.

“Mhmm, one second, Steve” James spun around, blue eyes meeting yours, “Hey sweetheart, I’m on a call, do you mind?” He gestured to his phone, a smirk forming as you blushed in embarrassment. He resumed his phone call, marching his way to his room.

“Ok, first interaction could have gone better,” You muttered under your breath, leaning against the wall. A soft, brown-furred kitten brushed past your feet, leaping on the couch with immense effort. You chuckled at him struggling before pushing his hind paws up, “What have we gotten ourselves into, Milton?” The cat cuddled against your arm, burying his head into your side.

The apartment glowed by the vivid pieces, each sporting its own story. The ones you didn’t recognise, the James Barnes originals, were quite random: a family at the park, a ballerina, a garden of flowers and many more exquisite pieces. Pieces of various sizes adorned by modern frames intricately placed on the walls. You hovered your fingers over one of them, ever so lightly grazing over the dried paint.

“Sorry, let me start again. I’m James Barnes,” His deep yet soft voice shook you out of your thoughts. His bright eyes followed your gaze, watching your fingers trace the texture of the piece, “A perfectionist who gets irritated when people touch his art, so please remove your undeserving fingers from the canvas,” The words quickly flowed out his mouth, piercing cerulean eyes observing your movement.

“Also, I’m not a big fan of crowds, so no parties, no loud, uncultured music, and,” He paused, focus shifting to the small creature, who was poking the plushy cushions on the couch, “No pets,”

“Excuse me? I’m paying half the rent. Milton isn’t going anywhere,” You retorted, frustration seeping through your body. You weren’t about to let a second-rate douchebag boss you around in your own house. You moved away, leaning against the paint splattered counter.

“Listen, sweetheart,” He stepped dangerously close to your form, a firm expression on his face as he spoke, “I’m the boss here. You either listen or beat it,” He placed his hand on the counter behind you, trapping your body between the table and himself. Your breath hitched at his proximity, he leaned closer, his nose millimetres from yours. In one quick motion, he swiped the coffee cup placed behind you and dashed into his room.

The cool Brooklyn breeze along with a perfectly made hot chocolate topped with mini marshmallows were the elements present that evening. James had requested absolute silence while he worked on his pieces, so you decided to hit the nearest coffee shop for a relaxing time with your friends.

“So, is she nice? Bitchy?” Natasha asked, sipping on her tea. She leaned against the velvet couch, perching her legs on the wooden table, “You better not ditch us for her,” She nudged Wanda’s shoulder, laughing at the immediate drop of your smile.

“Well, he is a jerk,” It was your turn to laugh at their awestruck faces, Wanda gasped in disbelief while Natasha snorted, “And don’t worry, I’m never ditching you guys,”

“No way! You’re living with a guy!” Natasha exclaimed, “Damn Y/N, never would have thought,” She clapped her hands.

“Don’t get excited, he’s just like the rest of them. Possessive, bossy and not to mention incredibly annoying,” You rolled your eyes, Wanda placed a comforting hand on your shoulder.

“Come on, you just met him today, I’m sure he’ll warm up in no time,” She sent a warm smile, hiding her laughter behind her mug.

“Yeah, and soon enough, we’ll be crying at your wedding,” Natasha added, dodging away from the cushions you were throwing at her, “Would it be a summer one? No, you seem like the winter type,”

You nearly spat out your hot chocolate at her remark, “What! Never,” You exclaimed, “He’s already on my hate list. And he doesn’t like pets. Come on, that’s already a red flag,” You defended, glaring at the two of them and their shit-eating grins, “And, for your information, I am the winter type,”

“Girl, I already know what’s gonna happen. Don’t you watch movies?” Natasha stated as a matter-of-fact, a mischevious glint in her green eyes.

“No, James isn’t that kinda guy,” You shook your head, scoffing at the mere thought of a cheesy, romantic relationship forming between the two of you.

“Then what kinda guy is he?” Wanda inquired, watching your demeanour slightly shift with your thoughts.

“The one that’s a pain in your ass,”

Milton shuffled across your lap, tiny paws carefully treading on the soft furs of the couch. His quiet meows resonated through the apartment, you watched his actions closely. Moving in with James did not take off in the direction as you would have hoped, nevertheless, you had no choice. Putting up with his demanding attitude would be a small price to pay until you found another place. Slowly, your eyelids began to droop, feeling heavy due to today’s tiresome events. A few minutes after sleep had conquered your mind, a loud ring echoed from the kitchen.

“Fucking hell,” You muttered, rubbing your eyes in frustration. The noise was coming from James’ phone, one that he had conveniently left behind. Just as you were about to answer, it went to voicemail.

“Hey, Buck. Lara came, she dropped off a box of your stuff. I’ll swing by tomorrow morning, alright?” A masculine voice spoke, you caught the underlying tone of pity weaved into it.

“Buck?” Your eyebrows scrunched together as you stared at his phone, curious.

“Is that my phone?” The sudden voice broke the silence that filled the air, making you jump. James leaned against the wall with an amused smile, placing his sketchbook on the counter.

You blinked at him, trying to form a reasonable excuse, “No...I mean yes, but I wasn’t going through it. You got a call, so I picked it up, it went to voicemail and I listened to it and you came,” You blurted, moving away from his phone.

A smile tugged on his lips at your rambling, “Ok stalker,” He smirked as you scoffed. To his surprise, the kitten gently brushed past his legs, James scowled before looking back at you, “Thought I said no pets,”

“Thought I said he’s staying,” You retorted, yearning to wipe that stupid smirk off his perfect face.

“Actually, you said, ‘Milton isn’t going anywhere’,” He playfully crossed his arms, horribly mimicking your voice.

“First, I do not sound like that,” You stomped your foot, attempting to hide the tiny tug of your lips, “Second, you’re an asshole,”

James immediately held his hand on his chest, “Oh sweetheart, that struck my heart and here I thought we were becoming friends,” He feigned hurt, blue eyes burning into yours as he burst out into laughter. You rolled your eyes, walking away to avoid looking at his charming smile.

To be continued...

#rae's au summer #rssummerofaus #bucky x reader #Bucky Barnes #bucky fic #bucky series #james barnes #james buchanan barnes #marvel #mcu

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hazellvesque · 2 years ago

Text

Some Kind of Miracle - Chapter 10

Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug

Rating: G

Pairing: Adrien/Marinette

Summary: If Marinette had her way, she would have had nothing to do with Alya’s latest celebrity crush. So how did she get roped into stalking him around Los Angeles? When fashion icon Adrien Agreste quite literally crashes into Marinette’s life, they have no choice but to put up with one another or risk ruining both of their potential careers forever.

An AU based on the iconic Disney Channel Original Movie, Starstruck.

Read on Ao3

Chapter 10 - Gravity

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Every time she passed by the glass sliding doors of the hotel room’s balcony, Marinette caught a glimpse of her reflection and flushed. She hadn’t meant to get so dressed up this morning, but by now it was too late to pick another outfit unless she wanted to up her stress levels by trying to coordinate a different combination of colors and accessories. And it was nearly impossible for her to be even more anxious at this point.

Her sundress was perfect for the weather anyhow. It was a simple garment, a pattern she had used and altered half a dozen times because of how versatile it was. She had adorned the pale mint green fabric with white polka dots that grew in size further down the flared skirt, giving it a poofy, almost princess silhouette illusion. The bottom hem fell just above her knees, the straps thick enough to be both cute and practical. It was one of her proudest pieces.

When she’d first packed it, she hadn’t anticipated that this was the occasion she’d be wearing it out to.

The clock read 8:30am. She still had half an hour. But she’d been awake and bouncing on her heels for ages. Finishing her second cup of tea, she paced around the kitchen of their hotel room, unable to calm herself down and not wanting to wake Alya.

As if summoned by the thought alone, Alya walked with her feet dragging out of their bedroom, already wide awake and dressed in a simple t-shirt and jeans. Marinette had been deep asleep when Alya and her mom returned from last night’s event, so Marinette hadn’t had a chance to hear Alya gush on and on about all the juicy details.

“Morning,” Marinette said cheerfully as she put her used cup in the sink. If nothing else, she hoped a calm conversation would keep her nerves down. “How was the party?”

“Fine,” Alya said blankly, shoving a breakfast pastry into her mouth.

Huh. Okay. Not quite the answer she’d been expecting.

“Did you meet anyone notable?” Marinette pried, intentionally leaving it vague and giving Alya an excuse to spill all the details. Of course, she already knew the answer to that question, but mindless excited blabber was one of Alya’s favorite pastimes, and it was Marinette’s full-time job as her best friend to indulge her whenever possible.

“Everyone was fine,” Alya shrugged.

Marinette frowned. “Did you have any fun?”

“Sure.”

“Okay, what’s wrong with you?” Marinette fought the urge to shake some sense into her best friend. From Adrien’s messages last night, she knew that the two of them had met at the very least. She had almost expected Alya to melt into a puddle of goo in her sleep and never revive to have a chance to recount her experience.

Alya chewed slowly and carefully considered her next sentence. “I signed a big scary legal paper, and I didn’t understand half of the words on it, and I don’t know what I’m allowed to tell you. But I...had fun,” she finished lamely.

Marinette bit back a smile. “Did you at least accomplish your mission? Can we stop stalking that model around now?”

The irony of her own words was not lost on her.

“We can stop looking for Adrien,” Alya said, talking through her mouthful of confections. “And even just saying that might have broken my contract so if he sues me you’d better help bail me out.”

“I don’t think that’s how it works,” Marinette laughed, highly satisfied with that answer, “but I’m glad you had a good time.”

Marinette’s eyes drifted towards the clock again. 8:35. She felt half-tempted to pour a third cup of tea just to give her hands something to be occupied with, but the jitters from the existing caffeine and the nerves were already creeping up on her, so she decided against it.

“So…” she began instead, looking Alya up and down. “You’re up early and already dressed, where are you off to? I thought your mom’s next dinner wasn’t for a couple of days.”

“The, uh, the mall,” Alya said far too quickly. “I wanted to go back and buy that dress I saw in that one shop we passed.”

“Right,” Marinette said slowly, a smile spreading across her lips. “Would you want me to come with you?”

Marinette already knew the answer to that too: “Thanks, but I’ll be fine on my own today.”

Adrien hadn’t been able to hold back on slightly bragging about his master plan. He’d assured Marinette that he’d have everything taken care of. Then he’d told her to meet him at the corner a few blocks from the hotel - the same place he had parked the car that first night - at their agreed upon time.

In just a few short conversations, he had built up an odd trust with her. So she left fate in his hands. And evidently, fate had found a way to distract Alya for the day.

“What about your mom?” Marinette asked.

“With how hard she worked last night, she’ll probably sleep until noon. If she asks, I’ll just tell her we were together, so it’s no biggie.”

If Marinette’s parents knew that the girls had broken their rules about staying together, that would be a different story. Luckily, unless someone failed to keep her mouth shut, Tom and Sabine would never find out she was planning on spending her day with someone who had been a complete stranger less than a week ago.

God, this was so unlike her. And that thought thrilled her.

The clock read 8:45am by the time Alya left the hotel in her cab, promising that she was a professional at the whole taxi/rideshare business by now and not to worry about her. Which left Marinette 15 minutes to make the leisurely stroll down the sun-paved street.

The weather was so perfect it was almost insulting - score another point to California. The slight breeze tousled her hair and skirt in just the right ways. Not that she was hoping anyone would notice, of course.

Rounding the last corner, she spotted him first. He’d dressed himself in a white short-sleeved button down shirt and simple dark-wash jeans. He was leaning against his driver’s side door, and if Marinette didn’t know any better, she could have sworn he was messing with his hair in the side view mirror before he saw her reflection approach.

Adrien whirled around to face her, a lopsided smile on his face, and her breath caught in her throat.

“Good morning Marinette. You’re right on time,” he said.

If you could frame sunshine, it would deeply resemble Adrien’s dopey smile first thing in the morning. His eyes crinkled at the corners as he greeted her, the brightness of the morning bringing out that startling, beautiful green even more. All of that, combined with the way his lean six-foot stature looked in clothes that fit him just right, and Marinette was a goner. At the very least, she thought she’d last a few minutes in his presence before completely succumbing to daydream-land. Evidently not.

She stood a little straighter and took a deep breath. “On time for what, exactly?”

“I am a man of my word. I told you that I would be your tour guide if you ever wanted to see the city. I hope you’re ready for a road trip.” He presented his hands towards his car like a gameshow host showing off a prize.

“Hmm, that’s interesting. Because I don’t remember actually taking you up on that offer,” she teased, biting back laughter as she walked closer to the car.

“Well,” he shrugged and ran a hand through his hair again, a bashful grin on his face, “that’s only because you said you couldn’t get away with it with Alya around. And, oh look, now she’s incredibly busy with Nino all day, which means-”

“You’re ridiculous,” Marinette bit her lip. “Do you go through this much trouble for all of your friends?”

“Only the special ones,” he walked around to open the passenger seat door for her. “Now let’s go, we’ve got a lot of ground to cover. If you still want to, of course.”

“I’d love to.” Marinette took a careful step inside, painfully aware of her flowy dress and how she’d have to sit with her ankles together all day.

In the daylight, Marinette noticed all the details of his car’s interior. Her eyes widened, taking in all the things she’d missed that night while she was fighting to stay conscious. It was an electric model, no doubt one of the more expensive ones on the market, and the center console’s massive screen was lit up with the name and artist of the song playing through the speakers. Not to mention, the entire car was spotless and smelled practically new. A massive floral sun hat sat on top of the dashboard.

“To hide your face,” Adrien explained before she had a chance to question his taste in accessories, “just in case.”

Marinette pulled her messy bun further towards the back of her head before fitting the hat over it. The pale straw and floral brim looked a little vintage, like something a posh woman would have worn in the 1950s. Checking her own reflection in the rearview mirror, she pulled a couple of curled wisps of her hair out from under the hat.

While she styled her hair, Adrien rounded the car and positioned himself comfortably in the driver’s seat. He waited until she’d finished checking her reflection before readjusting the mirrors so he could reverse out of the alley.

“It suits you,” Adrien said as he twisted backwards over his shoulder to look where he was going.

“Just be glad I like florals,” she hoped the squeak in her voice wasn’t blatantly obvious. Luckily, if her warm cheeks gave her away, Adrien’s focus was on the road behind them.

What was it about men driving in reverse that was so attractive? The combination of the intense focus and casual posture, maybe? It was somehow a universal constant and a worldwide mystery at the same time. But clearly, that was not the most important question to be asked at the moment.

“So I’m getting a tour of Los Angeles,” Marinette said. A statement rather than a question.

“Well, LA County,” Adrien explained, putting the car in drive and pulling onto the street. “You haven’t really left the city limits yet, have you? We could drive to Hollywood, Malibu, Beverly Hills. Anywhere you want to go, really. I was tempted to drive over to Anaheim and go to Disneyland but we really need a whole day just for that so I figured we’d start small. Anywhere in particular you want to see?”

“To be honest, I don’t know the difference between any of the places you just mentioned. Except Disneyland. There’s one back home, but...” you knew that already, she finished mentally.

“In that case, let’s definitely scratch that off the future itinerary. The castle here is a lot smaller, I’d hate for you to be underwhelmed.”

The destinations didn’t need to be extravagant to excite her. Her nerves were an untamable beast just sitting there in his passenger seat.

It was incredible how quickly her opinion had pulled a complete 180. Had she really been condemning Alya’s fawning just three - or was it four - days ago? Of course, that was before she’d actually met Adrien.

She wouldn’t be happy to admit she’d been wrong, but the smile that refused to wipe from her face would give away her true feelings eventually. She liked spending time with him, plain and simple. And there was a reason his face was plastered across the world. Good looks and a kind personality were a dangerous combination. Especially when the cute, kind boy was giving her an entire day of his attention for reasons still unknown to her.

“You know, it’s funny,” Marinette thought aloud. “I didn’t tell you that Alya was out today, you just miraculously knew.”

“Huh. That is funny,” Adrien played along. “Call it intuition.”

“Not to mention Alya told me she was going to the mall, but you said she was with Nino. I wonder if you had anything to do with that.”

“What do you mean? I’m sure he wanted to show her his mixtape or whatever it is he does to try and impress girls,” he said, and Marinette snickered. “And I totally didn’t ask him to do that so you could have a free day. I would never meddle like that. What do you make me out to be, some kind of troublemaker?”

“You? No, never.”

“Besides, they kind of hit it off at the party last night, at least from what I saw.”

Marinette’s brow furrowed, all jokes aside now. “Are you trying to set them up?”

“It didn’t start out that way, but if they do end up going out, I’ll be happy for them. Nino usually needs me to be his wingman if he ever tries to get out of his shell and actually flirt with someone. He’s not really good with girls.”

“Oh, but you are?” the words slipped from Marinette’s mouth before she had the chance to think about it.

“You tell me,” he kept his eyes on the road, but the smirk on his face made it clear that this was a challenge.

Marinette gulped, pointedly staring out the window. She was never one to back down from a challenge, though. So she answered honestly. “You give off this trustworthy vibe. Warm. Welcoming. Like you wouldn’t hurt a fly. Unless you wanted to.”

“I’m told I can be pretty destructive if the mood strikes. My dad’s assistant seems to think so anyway. But anything can be twisted and manipulated to look bad in the public’s eye. So I try my best to just be a good person.”

“Well, it’s working. The being a good person thing,” she clarified.

He let the silence linger between them for a moment. “So that’s a yes?”

His charm worked on this girl, that’s for sure.

“Yes,” Marinette said slowly.

Adrien relaxed further into the driver's seat, flashing Marinette another grin. The mood of the entire day seemed to shift just then - there would be no more doubting his intentions. That was the most shameless flirting she’d ever witnessed, let alone participated in. In every way but the title, this was a date.

Alya was going to kill her when she found out.

“Have you had breakfast yet?” Adrien asked, noticeably ignoring the mood he’d just created. “Because there’s this cafe in Santa Monica that claims they have the best crêpes the city has to offer, and none of my other friends can offer an authentic opinion to rival mine.”

“Well, obviously, we have to prove them wrong,” Marinette smiled. “Let’s go.”

A handful of upbeat pop songs and twenty minutes later, a blue slice of ocean and sand appeared over the horizon through the front windshield.

The two of them strolled into the cafe together, Marinette clad in her borrowed hat and Adrien inconspicuous in a pair of dark sunglasses. Up above the cash registers, three massive chalkboard menus with handwritten selections were posted on the walls. Glass cases across the counters were filled to the brim with baked goods.

“Alright,” Adrien lowered his voice playfully, “I need to hear your first impressions. Does this place give off the cute small-business feel that they’re going for, or is it blatantly obvious that they’re trying to be exclusive and trendy to appeal to the pretentious crowd?”

Marinette stifled her laughter with her hand, taking a good look at the pastries in the glass. “Everything is just...covered in sugar and icing. And so expensive.”

Her eyes scanned up and down the menu at the words ‘Coconut de Leche’ and ‘Apple Pear Cinnamon’ and ‘Peanut Butter Banana’ all accompanied with gradually rising price points.

“Nathalie would kill me for eating so much sugar,” Adrien agreed, “which is why I’m dead set on ordering the strawberry nutella flavor. Pick out whatever you want, it’ll be my treat.”

Marinette made a hesitant noise in the back of her throat. “You don’t have to-”

“What kind of all-inclusive tour doesn’t have meals provided? Don’t worry about it, I insist.”

The crêpes she’d typically eat at home were prepared simply with butter and sugar. She could stand in the highly decorated dining area for hours just trying to narrow down the options.

“Strawberries and nutella sounds good…” she mused. “I still doubt any of this stuff is worth the price, though. Two orders would cost as much as a week’s worth of breakfast anywhere else.”

And that snide comment is how Adrien ended up ordering a single plate of strawberry nutella crêpes to share and plucking two forks from the silverware counter before taking his seat across from Marinette at the small table. And as weirdly intimate as the idea seemed, it turned out to be a better choice considering how large the portions were.

“Cheers,” Adrien said, balancing a fork full of whipped cream and chocolate hazelnut spread and absolutely zero nutritional value.

Marinette returned the gesture, taking a bite of her only slightly healthier section.

The overwhelming sweetness coated her tongue and she had to fight not to make a face. Adrien, on the other hand, actually sighed in contentment.

��Oh my god,” he muttered with his mouth half-full at the same time Marinette shrugged and said, “They’re alright, I guess.”

Adrien took another bite and, thankfully, took the time to swallow before speaking again. “Don’t get me wrong, they’re not authentic or good for you in the slightest, but you can’t deny they’re good.”

“You’ve got a sweet tooth, don’t you?”

“Guilty,” he said, flashing her that lopsided smile again.

A swarm of butterflies frantically fluttered in her stomach. “My parents would love to have you around,” she sighed.

“Huh?”

Huh?

“W-what?” she sputtered. “No no no, not like that, I just meant like - around in the bakery. Someone who’s super enthusiastic about all the options. You know, my dad could go on about the benefits of using royal icing over buttercream for ages. And one time he went on a 20 minute rant about how important it is to sift flour before measuring-”

“I get you,” Adrien interrupted. “It’s like when my dad goes on tangents about how empire waists have been out of style since last decade and should have been gone long before then.” He took another bite of strawberry, then smiled softly. “I meant what I said before, by the way. I could absolutely send some of your stuff my dad’s way and let you know what he thinks.”

“And why would you do that for me?” Marinette asked, noting the way he not only ignored her embarrassing musings, but also graciously changed the subject.

Adrien tapped the handle of his fork against his chin, pretending to be deep in thought. “Aside from the fact that you’re incredibly talented? You could also thank me with free desserts.”

Marinette liked that idea very, very much.

---

There was no chance on earth that Marinette believed Alya’s boldfaced lie this morning.

Then again, there was no chance Marinette would guess where Alya’s rideshare actually dropped her off, either.

Part of her excuse was that she wasn’t sure what she was allowed to talk about. One thing she didn’t necessarily want to tell anyone about, at least not yet, was how Nino Lahiffe had returned to the desserts table as the party wound down, stealing the last mini cupcake and leaving a note in its place for her to find.

Hang at my recording studio tomorrow? Does 9am work for you?

The message was followed by what had to be the address to said studio, along with a phone number. The rational part of Alya’s brain screamed that this was a horror movie scenario waiting to happen. The part of her brain that really enjoyed Nino’s company last night won out though, which is how Alya found herself entering the address he’d given her into a rideshare app.

(She’d learned well enough already that cabs were far overpriced. And unlike Marinette, she’d planned ahead and gotten a service plan for this trip. A blogger was never caught unprepared to post.)

The run-down old studio was on the top floor of what looked to be a once successful production office that had fallen victim to time and budgeting issues. Still, the room was soundproofed, the light and air conditioning still worked, and Nino looked right at home amongst the old equipment.

He’d insisted she meet him here and continue their conversation from the party. Alya agreed, playing it as nonchalantly as possible, as if it were everyday that her celebrity crush’s best friend invited her to hang out one-on-one. No big deal.

Alya drew her fingertip through the dust on a nearby shelf. The white particles floated through the stagnant air, eventually settling on a box of outdated vinyl records.

“It’s not much,” Nino admitted. He stood behind an ancient looking (circa-2005) turntable, sheepishly fiddling with the brim of the red cap that he never seemed to take off.

“It’s…” Alya wracked her brain for the least insulting word, eventually setting on, “vintage. Classic.”

Nino brushed his hands across the dozens of control knobs. “I learned everything I know from these reliable old friends. Well, with the help of some online tutorials.” He lowered the needle onto the board and a low thumping tune drifted through the surround sound speakers.

“So I guess you bring girls up here often?” Alya raised an eyebrow at him,

Nino sputtered and coughed, waving a hand in the air as if blaming the dust. “No, it’s just, uh...I figured you’d see all the touristy stuff on your own so I wanted to take you somewhere more...unique?”

“Are you lying to me, Nino?”

He gulped. “Maybe.”

Alya stepped forward, careful to avoid any delicate looking buttons as she leaned on the turntable, looking Nino in the eye.

“I’m providing Adrien an alibi,” he admitted. “And if anyone asks where he’s been today, he can say he was with me. The keypad on the door logs the building entries.”

“So where is he really?”

“I’m actually not sure.” He thought to himself, it wasn’t technically a lie, since Alya didn’t ask anything about who Adrien was with.

This whole secret-keeping business was a lot more complicated than it seemed. Lots of technicalities.

“Oh,” Alya said, sounding disappointed.

“But I am sure that I would much rather chill with a cool girl like you than sit in my studio alone,” Nino said.

Alya stood a little straighter, only slightly bothered by how nice the sudden compliment was.

“You think I’m cool?”

“Well, that, and you did say you wanted to listen to my remix of that guitarist’s number last night.”

Now it was Alya’s turn to start stammering. “You remembered that? I mean - you already finished it?”

“Of course. I worked on it all night. Didn’t want to disappoint you after that pretentious speech I had about rhythm and vibes.”

Alya couldn’t help but laugh. With that, Nino pressed the play button on his laptop and his natural instincts took over, warping the tune like it was second nature as Alya listened intently.

---

Twenty minutes later, after a fairly satisfying meal which Marinette admittedly could only enjoy a few bites of lest she give herself a stomachache, Adrien insisted they walk off all of the sugar and carbs by strolling down the beach.

Well, actually, he’d suggested renting bikes, but the pair both agreed they were neither properly dressed nor athletic enough to attempt that.

Conversation flowed naturally, which was a relief to Marinette. She’d assumed the two of them might come all this way and get stuck alone for hours only to realize they didn’t have much in common and their tourist-y day would slow to an awkward halt.

Instead, their complete lack of commonalities was exactly what fueled their ongoing discussion. Marinette couldn’t remember how exactly they’d found themselves on their current topic.

“Nope, I don’t believe it,” Adrien insisted. “No one is unphotogenic. The idea of good angles is entirely made up.”

“Says the boy who grew up in front of cameras,” Marinette pointed out.

Adrien shrugged. “So I have a bit of practice, sure, but I’d be nothing without the skill of photographers and lighting experts. They’re the ones who really make or break a good picture. Anyone who claims they’re a natural in front of the camera always has a team behind the lens making sure that claim can’t be proven wrong.”

“Well that isn’t really fair. It’s easy to look good when there’s a team of people helping you.”

“Sometimes you don’t need a team. Sometimes you just need a good hype man to get you feeling confident, and the rest comes naturally,” Adrien reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. The device was so familiar to Marinette by now that she had to stifle a badly timed joke about him losing it again. With a quick swipe, he opened the camera and gestured to Marinette. “Go stand at the edge of the water, I’ll prove it.”

Marinette nearly stumbled at the suggestion. “Who, me?”

“Yes, you,” Adrien said playfully. “It’s fun to be on the other side of this sometimes.”

Marinette took a few hesitant steps towards the water, her sandaled feet sinking into the sand and making her feel just slightly off balance. Feeling bold, she kicked off her shoes. Behind her, she could hear Adrien’s encouraging voice coaxing her to get closer so that the water lapped up just above her ankles. But her eyes were trained on the horizon. The expanse of sea water stretched on so endlessly it was almost hard to believe it was real and that she’d just flown over it, albeit on the other coast. The reflection of the sunlight on the waves in the distance nearly blinded her.

“Is the sun always so bright here?” she asked as stars danced in her vision.

“I guess so,” Adrien shrugged. “You get used to it after a while. Look this way for me?”

Marinette did as she was told, shyly glancing over her shoulder, glad to turn away from the brightness.

“The camera already loves you, you just have to act like it,” Adrien smiled his brilliant smile at her, which she returned earnestly.

Alya had dragged her into countless selfies in the past, but aside from a few token solo shots during holiday photos with her family, she couldn’t remember the last time someone took a picture just of her.

Meanwhile, Adrien was adjusting his stance, apparently determined to get a specific angle. “Now remember,” he called, “the outfit just accentuates the person wearing it. You own that dress, the dress doesn’t own you.”

“I’d hope so, considering I made it,” Marinette joked back.

Adrien lowered his phone slightly, his smile widening and sending all sorts of tingling feelings down Marinette’s spine. “I had a feeling, since it fits so perfectly. But remember, you’re the main attraction here.”

“Is this what your photographers say to you during photoshoots?”

Adrien snapped one last picture, then shrugged. “I know, it’s kind of ridiculous, but strangely enough it works sometimes. Here, look at this.”

He gestured for Marinette to come take a look. She quickly bent down and retrieved her shoes before falling back into a comfortable stride at his side. She hadn’t even really posed for the photos, and yet somehow, they’d turned out decent. There were a few in-motion shots of her walking towards the water, and a fun one of her shoe slipping off her foot that made her think of a certain glass-slippered princess.

One in particular, he had captured just as she turned around to sass him about her dress. Her mouth was open mid-sentence, but her genuine smile as she spoke looked more like one of those fake-candids that you’d see in catalogs.

“I’m impressed,” she admitted. “Though I still don’t know if I’ll ever be really comfortable getting my photo taken.”

“Most people aren’t. I used to do this for Chloe all the time, and then she got a little too comfortable, so I guess I have to take the blame for that.”

Adrien laughed almost to himself, like he had just remembered an inside joke. It was so oddly fond that it sparked another question in Marinette’s mind, one she almost felt embarrassed to ask, but the curiosity would kill her if she didn’t speak up.

“So you and Chloe are pretty close, huh?” she tried to come off casual. Not that she cared if there was something more between them, of course.

At that, Adrien laughed a little louder. “You could say that. Chloe and I have been friends since we were in diapers. My dad and her mom are ‘old college buddies’,” he emphasized the phrase with air quotes, “which I’m convinced is code for they used to date and refuse to admit it.”

“So if things worked out differently, you two could have been siblings,” the thought left her mouth before her brain could tell her to shut up.

Adrien made a strangled noise in the back of his throat, somewhere between disgust and amusement. “I try not to think about it, considering Chloe was practically in love with me when we were kids. I think she’s gotten over it by now, though. Besides, I could not deal with having Audrey Bourgeois as a mother.”

Marinette held in a sigh of relief - then internally chastised herself for feeling relieved - before continuing. “Is she really that bad?”

“Let’s just say I’m better off only having to deal with my dad and Nathalie.”

Marinette bit back her next question. By now, it wasn’t a coincidence that Adrien was skirting around any mention of his mother. Perhaps she wasn’t in the picture anymore, and the last thing Marinette wanted to do was dig up old buried conflicts. But her curiosity lingered regardless.

Adrien was still smiling at his phone. “Marinette, what’s your phone number?”

Well that snapped her out of her train of thought fairly quickly. “I already told you, I don’t-”

“I know,” Adrien reassured her. “No service right now. But in case you ever delete the messenger app I still have a way to send these photos to you.”

Marinette looked him up and down, skeptical.

“And to be honest,” Adrien continued, “I’ve never properly asked for a girl’s number before and I wanted to maybe try and succeed this time? Plus, you already have mine, and once you leave I can’t call up to your hotel room and I’d hate for us to stop talking once you get back home.”

Were her eyes deceiving her, or was he blushing? Her face was likely equally red, but she found her words eventually.

“You’ve really never asked a girl for her number?” she asked, taking Adrien’s phone and entering her number in his contacts. She quickly set the Cinderella photo as her contact image for good measure.

“Well I don’t date much, so no.”

Marinette froze in her tracks.

“Is that what this is?” she asked, her voice shallow.

“Hm?” he smiled, taking his phone back.

“A date,” Marinette said, hoping she didn’t sound as nervous as she felt. And as awkward as it was, her brain felt the need to clarify. It was one thing to shamelessly flirt back and forth and another to confirm it in words. “Are we on a date...right now?”

“Well let’s see,” Adrien counted on his fingertips. “I picked you up at your place-”

“Down the street, technically.”

“I insisted that I treat you to a nice meal-”

“Which was mostly sugar.”

“And we took a nice seaside stroll-”

“Still in progress, final opinions are still to follow.”

Marinette feared she had gone too far with the teasing, but Adrien was beaming at her, which only made her flush brighter red.

“Okay, well, what else do we need to do to qualify this as a proper date?” he asked.

Considering her own history of almost-relationships and failed crushes, Marinette wasn’t even sure herself. Though one specific thing associated with first dates came to mind that raised her body temperature significantly. Did she want to kiss him? Evidently, her traitorous eyes answered for her, glancing down at Adrien’s lips for a moment too long. Thankfully when she caught his eye, he hadn’t seemed to notice.

“I guess we’ll have to find out,” she played it off. “What else did you have in mind for the day, tour guide?”

“Let’s see where the day takes us, shall we?” Adrien reached out and offered his hand. With a shy smile, Marinette wrapped her fingers around him, marveling at how much bigger his hand was than hers.

Gently tugging her along, he led them up towards the crowds of Santa Monica pier.

---

Chloe Bourgeois didn’t think it was much to ask for at least one of Audrey’s assistants to answer the phone. Especially after she’d flown across an entire ocean to meet her mother halfway.

But she’d been calling at least six times a day with no reply.

Adrien and Nino had let her have her space, seeing how upset she was after phone call number fourteen. She spent the morning pacing around the Agreste house, feeling like an unwelcome guest both in the house and in her mother’s mind.

As much as she tried to hide her disappointment with parties and photos and stories about how much fun she was having, deep down, it was exhausting endlessly wishing for an outcome she knew would never happen.

“Chloe?”

Nathalie knocked politely on the doorframe despite the door to the lounge being open, and upon spotting Chloe, she gave one of her signature frowns. It was a look that held many meanings - usually disapproval at something Adrien said or did, often frustration about Gabriel’s approach at running his business. But this frown said even more. Nathalie had worked closely with Audrey and the Bourgeois family almost as long as she had been with the Agrestes. Audrey’s absence was to be expected, but that didn’t mean Nathalie was heartless. She understood completely how Chloe felt.

“Would you like me to order you lunch?”

“No, that’s okay,” Chloe sank further into the pillows of the loveseat, still adamantly holding onto her phone and hoping it would ring.

Nathalie lingered for another moment. “Well if you need anything, you know where to find me.”

She appreciated the offer. But right now, if Chloe couldn’t see her mother, she just wanted to be alone.

---

Five songs later, Nino was running out of ideas. He hadn’t made any plans past the initial remix or two, and Adrien had advised him that conversation would flow naturally.

Easy for him to say.

Alya peered up at him over the top rim of her glasses, her stare intent and just a bit off putting.

“Sorry if this is super boring, if you wanted to get food or something we could-”

“No, it's not that,” she said, “I actually had a question for you, but I didn’t know if it would be weird to ask.”

If it were any weirder than him inviting her to his studio seemingly unprompted, he’d be surprised.

Still, “Can I interview you for my blog?” was not what he expected her to say.

“What’s your blog about?” he asked. If the answer wasn’t amateur DJ-ing he wasn’t sure what help his knowledge would be.

“Well, it’s more of a fansite,” she hesitated, then muttered, “aboutadrienagreste.”

“Sorry, what was that last part?”

Alya sighed. “Okay, so I kind of have a blog about your best friend. Is that weird? It’s weird, isn’t it? I should have deleted it a long time ago and it’s not even really as popular as it used to be ever since I started doing my write-ups instead of posting pictures-”

“Hey, slow down,” he went to place a reassuring hand on her shoulder but stopped halfway through the motion, leaving them at an awkward hover hand standstill. “I don’t think it’s weird, I’m very used to Adrien having fans. Plus, we’ve all got our hobbies that we’re a little embarrassed about,” he gestured around the room.

Alya chewed her lip nervously.

“What are your write-ups about?”

“It’s just something new I’ve been trying. Talking about celebrity culture and stuff. You know, the laws around paparazzi and privacy, how famous people usually have secret social media for family and close friends, the ethics of childhood stardom. Stuff like that.” She didn’t give Nino a moment to react before prattling on. “I’ve only posted a few and they aren’t doing well. People just see my blog as a place to find out about Adrien, so I aim to please, but I want to do more than that. Like giving more genuine, thoughtful posts. But those lose followers, so I’m stuck doing something that’s not really that fun anymore just because it’s been my hobby for so long and I don’t know how to branch out.”

Nino stared. Alya stared back. Silence stretched across the room.

Then, Alya cringed and looked away. “That was a lot, sorry.”

“Don’t be. That’s amazing Alya, how can you think that’s weird? See, if I had a blog about Adrien while also being his best friend, that would be kind of weird,” Nino laughed. “But what you’re doing isn’t just blogging, it's journalism. And I’d love to be interviewed by you. Only problem is, I kind of don’t know how any of this works.”

Of all the things he’d said, that last part was the most surprising to Alya. “You’ve never been interviewed before?”

“Nope,” he laughed. “Maybe I should go blonde and constantly wear sunglasses indoors, that’ll get some attention.”

“I’m serious.”

“I am too. Nobody really knows who I am.”

“I do!” Alya said a bit too loudly. “...and there I go, being weird again.”

Nino paused. “So when I found you at the club and helped you back to your hotel?”

“Oh, I totally pretended not to know your name,” she admitted. By some kind of miracle, Nino didn’t get upset at all. In fact, he was still smiling at her.

“And here I was trying to make a good first impression with a cute girl, turns out she’s already aware of how much of a loser I am.”

Though she blushed at the ‘cute’ comment, she ignored it. Instead, she filed it away in her brain for later: cute boy also thinks I’m cute.

“Not true,” she said. “All I really knew was your name and your face. Which is hard to forget considering you wear the same thing every day.”

“It’s a statement,” he teased, playing with his hat again.

“And in any case, I don’t interview losers,” Alya said, opening the recording app on her phone. “So let’s start with the basics…”

---

Marinette and Adrien found themselves winding through crowds, attractions, and shops on the pier. And they were still holding hands. Which Marinette was trying her best not to spontaneously combust over.

If Adrien had any concern about being recognized by the large groups of people, he didn’t show it. Rather, he walked confidently with his head held high. The less he tried to hide, Marinette realized, the more he blended right in.

There were just as many interesting stores and attractions as there were peddlers and tacky merchandise designed to pressure tourists into dropping every cent. From fidget toys to phone accessories and everything in between. One particular stand, however, caught Marinette’s attention.

An older man went almost entirely unnoticed by the crowd as he tried to sell flowers. As they passed by, the man working the stall gestured insistently, practically shoving the individually wrapped floral stems at pedestrians who pointedly moved past, avoiding eye contact.

“Only five dollars!” the man hawked. “A beautiful rose for a beautiful lady!”

Mariette was fully prepared to try and blend in with the rest of the crowd and move on, but she felt a tug at her elbow. As she whirled around, she found herself face-to-face with Adrien with his head bowed slightly, a playful look in his eye, and a single red rose in his hand presented out to her.

“For you, my lady,” he said playfully, jutting his head at the seller. “The man insists.”

Marinette felt her jaw fall slack, not knowing whether she should thank him or laugh. To be fair, the whole gesture felt just a little over the top. So she settled on asking: “Are you really going to pay for that?”

Adrien laughed with her, straightening back up and wordlessly handing the man a bill from his pocket as they moved on.

“It’s no big deal,” he said, still insistently holding the flower out towards her. “You said you liked florals right? Just the pattern, or real flowers too?”

“I think roses are a little overrated,” she admitted, taking the delicate flower in her hands. “Beautiful, of course, but there are so many other flowers that deserve recognition. Like lilies. Or daisies. Or daffodils. And -” she clamped her mouth shut as Adrien shot her another lopsided smile. “What?”

“I’ve just...never known anyone to have such strong opinions on flower popularity,” Adrien said. “I’m impressed you remember the English words for so many of them. I still forget more uncommon words sometimes, especially considering it’s not everyday you sit around and chat about floral arrangements.”

“Well, thank you,” she felt an odd surge of pride. “I suppose I could have just been speaking French with you this whole time.”

“By all means, speak whatever you’re most comfortable with,” he insisted. “But I like hearing you speak English. Your accent is cute.”

Marinette charged on in her second tongue, pointedly trying to ignore how hot her face was. “I’m still so surprised that you got rid of yours entirely.”

“Not entirely. I let it slip when I’m negotiating sometimes. People find it charming.”

“Oh, I’m sure they do,” she replied, but he wasn’t listening.

He was staring at something straight ahead. A tall something, with neon lights illuminating its metal frame. The blue and purple glow reflected off his mischievous green eyes, while Marinette’s stomach plummeted. There was a lot that Adrien’s charming smile could convince her to do in this moment, but getting on a ferris wheel was where she drew the line. She clutched the rose in her hand hard enough to prick her finger on a thorn, and her sharp intake of breath finally caught Adrien’s attention.

Without hesitation, he reached down and took her hand, surveying the damage. “Damn it,” he muttered. “I should have checked for thorns before I gave it to you. Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” she shrugged. “It’s not a big deal-”

He lifted her hand to his mouth and pressed a lingering kiss to the back of it, quickly snuffing out any other words her brain was attempting to conjure up.

A sea of hundreds of people rushed by, but in that moment, Adrien was the only thing in crystal-clear focus. And his eyes refused to stray from hers, looking intently as she slowly melted under his gaze.

“I didn’t mean to make you nervous,” he said playfully, his hushed tone only making her lose focus even more.

For a boy who supposedly didn’t date much, Adrien knew exactly what he was doing. And Marinette found herself caught in his web, with no intention of trying to escape.

“We don’t have to go up there if you don’t want to. We can look at the other shops, or go find someplace for dinner, or…” he took a step closer, his eyes shifting down to her lips, “...whatever you’d like to do.”

If she stood on her tiptoes, it would take only the tiniest effort to close the distance between them. The idea was so tempting that she found herself rising to meet his level almost involuntarily.

Out of the corner of her eye, just over Adrien’s shoulder, Marinette saw a girl staring directly at them, the look on her face unmistakable. The phone in her hand, pointed directly at them, spelled even more trouble.

Marinette ducked quickly, hiding her face under the brim of her hat, cursing the girl and her camera and the fact that she was so close to-

“What’s wrong?” Adrien instinctively hid his face, looking anywhere but in the direction Marinette was facing. Was he really so accustomed to this that his first instinct was to hide from anything and everything?

“Cameras,” Marinette mumbled, and Adrien immediately sprang into action. His hand pressed against her lower back, guiding her further up the pier back towards the denser cluster of buildings. She cursed herself for how her heart fluttered in her chest at his touch. This was not the time to be thinking about that.

Marinette’s shorter legs struggled to keep pace with Adrien’s, but he kept her close by, moving his hand from her back to her arm and rushing her along, still careful not to lose her in the crowd. He spoke hushed and urgent. “Did they see anything?”

“I don’t think so,” Marinette replied. “I think I was quick enough. I don’t get how anyone can recognize you when there’s so many people out here.”

“You’d be surprised,” his voice took on a harsh edge. “I really can’t have a single day of peace, huh?”

He pulled on her arm, dragging her close behind as he ducked into an alleyway. Allowing Marinette a moment to catch her breath, he glanced around to check for prying eyes. After a full minute of no interruptions, he allowed the tension to release from his shoulders.

“I think the coast is clear,” Adrien sighed. “I’m so sorry about this, but we’re probably going to have to call it a night. I’ve got to do damage control in case someone got pictures. Here, I can call a private car to get us back to where I parked, then I can take you home. Plus, I can get dinner sent to your room as an apology. Let me make a few calls and I can-”

“Adrien,” Marinette interrupted. “Isn’t this a bit….much?”

“What do you mean?”

“Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate how kind you’ve been. But this is all just so elaborate and extreme. It seems kind of...unreal.”

“Oh, it is,” he laughed humorlessly. His eyes widened with the realization of how that sounded. “Not that I haven’t had a great time. But we could have had just as much fun without…all of this. It’s just what I’ve come to expect out of my life, always doing the most with everything just because I can. Or because I’m encouraged to, really.”

Marinette frowned slightly. “Don’t you get bored of it?”

“Every day,” he answered, a small smile sneaking its way onto his face. “But today I got to share it with someone new.”

“Well, you’ve been incredibly generous,” she said, her voice gaining a new confident edge. “Now it’s my turn. Can I share something with you?”

Reaching into her bag - fumbling through the dark and trying her hardest not to knock her elbows into anything or anyone - she slipped a folded piece of paper from her bag. She’d felt a bit silly carrying it around all day, but a moment like this wasn’t going to present itself again. Today was about taking risks, in more ways than one. So she slipped the paper into Adrien’s hand, only hesitating slightly before letting it go. Her eyes couldn’t decide whether to watch as he opened it or to avoid looking in his direction altogether, so she settled on glancing away toward the street, pretending to be on the lookout for anyone who may have followed them here.

“Is this…?” Adrien’s eyes widened.

“They were just a few ideas I had-” Marinette said quickly. “I mean, you did offer to show your dad some of my sketches, and if this isn’t his style I have a few more examples, but I know you saw this one and liked it so… yeah.”

She held her breath as his eyes scanned over the page from her sketchbook. She’d torn it out this morning and carefully folded it into a perfect square, waiting for the perfect moment. Just the thought of Gabriel Agreste seeing her art made her nauseous, but after the day she’d just spent with Adrien, her confidence had risen to a new extreme. Nothing any man could say would bring her down from the joy she’d already experienced. And if he ended up liking her designs, it’d just be the cherry on top.

“He’s going to love it,” Adrien breathed. “I promise. Thank you for trusting me with this.”

The thought occurred to her suddenly, that she was trusting him with more than just her passion. She was also beginning to trust him with her heart. And to her surprise, she wasn’t afraid of either of those things. She gave him a small smile, hoping she was adequately hiding the way her entire body felt alight.

“I don’t know about you, but I’d call this a pretty successful date, despite the unfortunate ending,” Adrien teased. He refolded Marinette’s sketch and slipped it into his pocket before taking her hand into his. “Here, let’s get you back home.”

- - -

Before they knew it, hours had passed, and Alya and Nino had moved far beyond the basics. The impromptu interview was clunky at first - Alya didn’t want to cross any boundaries, but the greedy fangirl in the back of her mind wanted to know everything. The proper friend at the forefront of her mind, however, wanted to respect Adrien’s privacy, and hew newfound fondness for her favorite celebrity’s reclusive best friend reframed her entire approach to the situation.

In the end, she ended up asking Nino a lot more questions about himself than she was expecting to. So naturally, the interview quickly melted into a conversation between new friends, so much so that Alya had sneakily reached down and stopped recording. She told her blog a lot, but not everything.

Nino wanted to be a music producer when he got older. He had a younger brother. He refused to wear Gabriel brand clothing because of a bet he and Adrien made as children. He was actually fairly fond of Chloe Bourgeois, and Chloe herself actually had a fair share of redeeming qualities if you got to know her, but that's another story for another time - this interview was about Adrien, after all. Wasn’t it?

At this point, Alya wasn’t sure which boy she was more curious about anymore.

The next question was rudely interrupted by Nino’s phone ringing. An old photo of Nino and Adrien, probably around middle-school age, popped up on his lockscreen. Nino answered the call right away, putting the phone on speaker.

“How’s it going, dude?”

“Really well,” Adrien sounded positively elated. “Thanks for the cover up today. I’ll be heading back to the house soon, can we meet up in half an hour?”

Nino hesitated, glancing up at Alya. It struck him suddenly that he wasn’t ready for this rendezvous to be over. And judging from the look on her face, neither did she.

Go, Alya mouthed at him with a reassuring nod.

“Yeah, I’m finishing up at the studio now,” Nino said aloud. “I’ll meet you there.”

“You’re a lifesaver, dude.”

“I know,” Nino ended the call with a small sigh.

Alya tilted her head at him. “You are a good friend, you know that, right?”

Nino said nothing in response, choosing instead to answer with a half-hearted shrug.

“Besides,” Alya continued. “It’s been a long day, and I’ve got to write down this interview to draft up a post soon, so I should get going anyway.”

A subtle, suggestive look passed between them. Over the past twenty-four hours, they’d already learned far more about one another than they had ever planned, and there were already multiple calendar events marked down where they’d surely be running into each other again. They were far past the need of exchanging pleasantries and polite hints - this was an odd, unexpected little bond that would continue to grow if they let it.

Alya quickly pulled up her rideshare app and scheduled her trip back to the hotel before heading towards the door of the studio. Just as Nino opened his mouth to say something - a goodbye or a thank you or a question of continuing their conversation - Alya stopped him with a gentle hand on his shoulder.

“You don’t have to tell me what Adrien was up to, I trust you’re covering for him for a good reason. Feel free to use me as a fake alibi whenever you need to,” she smirked, then walked out the front entrance.

- - -

Even after the mishap on the pier, Adrien insisted on walking Marinette to the door.

“What kind of gentleman would leave his lady to walk home on her own?”

“Oh, I’m a lady now?” Marinette teased as they rounded the corner, the glittering doors of the hotel coming into view. “How formal.”

Adrien laughed. “Hopefully next time we’ll be able to end things on a more positive note. That is, if you’re willing to give me another chance.”

As embarrassing as it was to admit even to herself, she’d been thinking about what next time might entail ever since they got back to the car. Nothing about this trip had been going to plan, and she was starting to relish in the chaos and spontaneity of it all. Being with Adrien introduced her to a new kind of excitement - a rush that consumed every part of her brain until she couldn’t think straight anymore. All she wanted was another unplanned adventure. And maybe, just maybe, to kiss the cute boy who she’d grown so fondly of. And as they slowed to a halt at the front door of the hotel, she thought it may just be worth it to try once more before the night was over. It would be one sure-fire way of assuring him that she definitely wanted to give him another chance.

A car horn blaring at the nearby intersection promptly distracted her from that thought, making her flinch while Adrien looked around nervously. Still on edge, clearly.

“Maybe a nice private dinner somewhere, next time?” Adrien suggested.

Marinette smiled. “I’d like that a lot.”

“Bonne nuit, Marinette,” he whispered, pressing his lips to her cheek softly. “À bientôt.”

Her breath caught in her throat. Any coherent words, English or French, vanished entirely from her vocabulary. With that, he turned away from her and walked off into the night.

Thankfully, this time, she hadn’t lost her key. By the time she trudged her way through the halls of the hotel and back to her room, her mind was racing. And she didn’t have anywhere to put all of the emotions she was feeling, she couldn’t even tell her best friend-

Who was sitting at the kitchen island waiting up for her the moment she opened the door.

“Alya!” Marinette squeaked, then cringed at her own guilty pitch change. “How was the mall?”

“Good,” Alya answered stiffly. “I uh… got the dress I was looking for. Where were you?”

“On a walk,” Marinette answered equally as stiffly. “Thought some fresh air would help with my headache.”

Alya was lying to her. But she was lying to Alya too. And a nagging thought in the back of her mind told her that both of them were equally aware of the other’s deception. And yet, neither of them were brave enough to break the facade, either.

“Do you think my mom will feel up for ordering takeout tonight?” Alya quickly changed the subject. “I’m starving.”

Marinette nodded, trying not to think of strawberries and hazelnuts, of private dinners and kind green eyes.

“Me too.”

#miraculous ladybug #ml fic #adrienette #some kind of miracle #my writing #me? taking two and half years to update my fic? it's more likely than you think #here's almost 10k in fluff as an apology for me being The Worst

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btshodown · 7 years ago

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Remember You (Pt. 3)

↳ You’re just trying to get by and stay the course, but Jin has other plans in mind for you. Maybe going to that party on Saturday wasn’t such a great idea after all.

Pairing: Seokjin x Reader Genre/Warnings: Fuckboy!Jin Au, Angst || Mentions of violence Word Count: 6k+

➭ Round of applause for me finally putting this out. :’) I won’t talk too much, but yeah, this is gonna be a 4 parter. Had to shorten it or I’d never would have posted it. You might want to read Part 2 just to recap since its been a while. Let me know what you think! <3

“Did you hear about it? What happened between her and Jin?”

“I heard he ran out crying half naked and she left with Yoongi in front of him.”

“No way! She left with one of his friends even though he was crying for her to stay? I always thought she was a little too stuck up, but now I know she’s just a bitch.”

“Yeah, I mean, how can anyone be so cold hearted as to leave someone like Kim Seokjin crying?”

A heavy sigh escapes you as you try your hardest to ignore your morning girl employees’ gossip about what happened two days ago, on Saturday night. After waking up Sunday morning in Yoongi’s place, you left him a note saying thanks (he was still sleeping) and made your way home to get ready for your mid-shift that day. Now it was Monday, and you had just finished talking to your manager Seoyoon about your new schedule availability; which were more morning shifts. She did seem skeptical as to why the change, since you were always so sure of staying night shift to avoid waking up early, and you had a feeling she was privy to the rumors; but ultimately she gently agreed to the switch.

Not only did this mean that you’d have to get your body back to a normal sleeping schedule, but you’d at least hardly ever work with Seokjin again. The only downside? You work with more of his friends since the mornings/afternoons were always the busiest customer wise and employee wise.

It was now noon and your little café just finished its morning rush and lunches for the buildings surrounding them, meaning that it was slow with very little to do besides gossip (prime example a few feet away at the dessert case) or clean the store. Which is what you began to do, but you could feel your nerves begin to crawl under your skin as you watch Namjoon make his way to you the moment he clocks in. It’s clear what his intent is when he stands by you and pretends to get the espresso bar ready for any drinks, but you stubbornly ignore him and go back to cleaning the counter despite it being spotless.

“So…Saturday.”

You knew it. “I don’t want to talk about it Namjoon-ah.”

He pauses in putting back the porta-filter for the shots, before recovering from your clipped tone to nervously pushing the shot glasses in a line. “I know, but I still want to talk to you about hyung.”

“Why?” you let out a sigh and finally turn to look at him as you set the cleaning rag on the counter to cross your arms. “What is there to tell me about him that I didn’t already figure out?”

“A lot, actually,” the younger, tall male besides you clears his throat to get rid of whatever nerves he had and looks you in the eyes, wanting to convey just how serious this was to him. “All I ask is that you wait for me after my shift is over so I can talk to you. There’s a lot about Jin-hyung you don’t know about.”

You try your best to decipher his stare, wondering if he was being sincere about this or if it would turn out to be some cruel joke Seokjin had planned for you. No doubt he was angry for how you made him look a fool in front of all his guests and you wouldn’t put it past him to do something to embarrass you as retribution. But unfortunately, Namjoon’s stare didn’t show any malicious intent; only genuine sincerity for whatever it was he going to tell you about Jin.

“Alright,” you say it in a sigh as you look away from him to grab the cleaning rag once more, going back to pretending you’re working. “I’ll wait for your shift to end then.”

Namjoon grins, allowing you to see his famous dimples all the girls gush about, and rubs his neck in surprise of you accepting. “Perfect, you won’t regret it, I promise.”

As you nod silently and make your way to clean the fridge in the back, you can’t help, but to feel something would go horribly wrong. Maybe not with you and Namjoon, but there was definitely something in the air that was making you uneasy.

It was nearing six now and you were just about to lose your mind with all the possibilities of what Namjoon was about to tell you. He finished his shift a little while ago and he began leading you across the street to this boba shop you and Yoongi frequented often. Even entering the familiar store and ordering your favorite milk tea could not keep you from wiping the sweat off your palms on your jeans; part of you honestly wanted to just forget about this and run out the shop.

He leads you to a table outside, even the fresh breeze passing by did little to calm your racing mind and the flipping in your stomach; sitting in front of you as he fidgeted with his drink. You take a rather large gulp of your tea to strengthen your resolve and hopefully come out of this unaffected. Hope being a very key word here.

“Jin-hyung is going to kill me for telling you this,” Namjoon suddenly mutters – your heart spikes faster in anticipation as you unconsciously still your breath – and heaves out a determined sigh before meeting your eyes, “but this needs to be said and all of us are tired of him being too much of a coward.”

Your brows scrunch together in confusion as you completely forget about your milk tea drink, your hands wringing together in nerves, “All of us?”

He gives a slow nod as he thoughtfully takes a sip of his own drink and licks his lips, no doubt building the courage to spill whatever secret he and his friends had been holding. It was frustrating, trying to be patient with the young man in front of you when all you wanted was to reach over and shake him by the shoulders, demanding to know what information he had.

“We all know about it, our group of friends. Jungkookie is still a bit new, but even he has heard about it all too,” he pauses again and looks away from you to stare at his hands clasped around the cup. “You do remember Jin-hyung from back at high school, right?”

The sudden question has you blinking in puzzled silence as his eyes meet yours again, inquiring with a raised brow. What kind of question was that? Of course you remembered Kim Seokjin from high school! The better question was who didn’t? His fuckboy ways escaped no one back then and his parties were infamous throughout campus.

“Who doesn’t?” you reply in a slight snort as you finally unclasp your hands to take a sip from your drink, your voice turning a bit distasteful at the memories. “Everyone who didn’t live under a rock knew who he was back then. I’m pretty sure there were rumors of him fucking all of the cheerleading squad and even some from the dance team. That’s not even counting all the parties he threw.”

A grimace passes through Namjoon’s face as he listens to your harsh words, but no defense for his friend came out of his lips – how could he when what you said was partially true?

“Okay, but do you remember him before that?”

“What?”

Your face said it all and a small flicker of smugness crosses Namjoon’s features at seeing your clueless expression. “Sure, you remember him from when he was most popular around the start of senior year; but do you remember him from before that?”

Did you? There was no question that the younger man’s question had you pulling out blanks; was Seokjin ever anything else, but a player? Try as you might, you couldn’t quite bring up a mental picture of him from before senior year – and it made you realize that up until then, Kim Seokjin was never a name you knew.

“No,” came your slow reply as your eyes don’t stray from Namjoon’s, demanding with your gaze alone for him to answer your question, “is there any reason for me to?”

“Only if you cared enough to know why he suddenly turned out that way.”

You suddenly realize why he and Seokjin were friends, how could you not when the young man in front of you was finally showing you his true cunning side? He was baiting you with his slick words and suddenly turned this conversation around so that it left you wanting to know just who Kim Seokjin really was when just a few hours earlier; you wanted nothing to do with him. As much as you wanted to feel bitter for this sudden turn-around, you could only let respect bubble inside you for Namjoon and cross your arms to stare at his cat eyed gaze.

“Fine, you got me. Who was he before senior year and why the sudden change?”

A small, crooked smile adorns Namjoon’s lips as he rests his forearms on the table and leans in, a glint of triumph in his slanted eyes. “We’ll start from the beginning then. Do you remember Jaebeom, Park Jaebeom?”

The moment he mentioned your old high school crush, you knew that whatever he was about to tell you was far from what you were imagining. That name hadn’t even crossed your mind in years; you couldn’t even fathom how it was relevant to Seokjin. Just what in the hell were they all hiding for all these years?

“Honestly hyung, you need to stop drinking, it’s getting ridiculous.”

Yoongi stares exasperated at Jin’s drunken body slumped over his couch, frowning with irritated concern as he eyes all of the empty vodka bottles on his coffee table. Once upon a time Yoongi had been in this very situation, back when he could barely afford to pay his rent and finally giving in to his pride to let Jin help him financially until he found a better job at the café. It seemed like they switched positions and it was now his time to help his friend out of his destructive spiral.

He just wished that he was better with his words.

“Fuck off,” Jin slurs in a grumble as he reaches for another bottle, but scowls when it gets taken out of his grasp. “Give it back, s’mine.”

Yoongi ignores his friend’s demands as he walks over to his liquor cabinet to put away the bottle, deciding that he wasn’t going to let this continue anymore. He knew why Jin suddenly began getting drunk every day; he was sure nearly everyone in the city knew why since word spread of your little argument on Saturday. If he was being honest with himself, part of him was also angry with his older friend for causing your tears that day. You had become a part of his close knit circle just as much as Jin and the other guys were, so seeing you so broken and having to hear your sobs in the night tore him apart.

But as much as his anger for Jin grew, so did his guilt for harboring his own dark secret from him. He wanted to confess to Jin, he really did, he just didn’t know how to.

“What does it matter if I drink so’more! Y/n already hates me so there’s n’point in quitting,” despite the raw bitterness and vehemence in his tone, Jin looked pitiful as he rolled his neck against the couch, looking up at his ceiling.

The black haired male in front of him scowls as he feels the final strings of his patience snapping and stomps over to his blonde haired friend to grab fistfuls of his t-shirt. “Can you hear yourself? You sound so pathetic! Honestly, you can only blame yourself for how things turned out hyung and you need to realize that so that you can get off your ass. Do something about it!”

Seokjin lets out a grunt of anger and sloppily smacks Yoongi’s hands off of his shirt, glaring back at his friend as he stumbles up onto his feet to tower over him. “Dun talk to me like that, you brat! ‘Specially when you took her side over mine!”

“I’m taking her side because you’re the one in the wrong!” Yoongi knew that yelling back wouldn’t solve anything and arguing with a drunken Jin was useless, but he just couldn’t hold back anymore. All the guilt, the anger, and the frustration were boiling over; there was no way he was able to rein it in any longer.

The drunken male scrunches his face into a grimace of remorse, before it slipped back into a frown as he messily pushes his friend back; refusing to admit to his mistake. “If yer were really my friend, you’d be on m’side no matter what! ‘Sides, I didn’t do shit! She was justa fuck!”

A loud crack echoes in the room as skin met skin, interrupting Jin before he could say more as he lets out a yelp of pain and falls back on the couch. He lets out a groan of agony as he spits out blood onto his cushion, tainting the cream color with splotches of crimson caused by Yoongi’s fist. But before anything else could happen, Yoongi angrily grabs onto Seokjin’s shirt and drags him back onto his feet; his black eyes narrowed into furious slits.

“Don’t you dare talk about y/n like that,” he hisses out venomously through his teeth, ignoring the pain pulsing all over his knuckles. “She’s not one of your fucking play things to throw away once you’ve gotten your fucking dick wet.”

The older boy lets out a growl of anger once his world stopped spinning and without a second thought, he throws his own fist at Yoongi’s cheek. Another crack of skin is heard, followed by a string of curses and the heavy thud of both male’s bodies hitting the wood floor. Despite being drunk, Seokjin was able to hold his own against his friend as they grunted angrily and threw in more punches and elbows; both trying their hardest to render the other immobile. In the end, the older male manages to pin Yoongi underneath him and makes sure to keep a tight grip on his shirt as he plants himself on his stomach, his breath coming out in heavy pants.

“You fucking dick,” he slurs out in a labored breath as his eyes narrow into a glare, “I can’t believe you fucking punched me! Over a damn girl you didn’t even know existed until I told you about her! Wassit worth it you brat? Hitting me over someone you barely know?!”

Yoongi swallows down the copper he felt was left on his tongue before answering his older friend, much too incensed to feel any residual fear left in him to speak the truth. “I know her hell of a lot better than you do. In mind and body.”

Jin pauses, feeling the liquor in his system very slowly begin to fade away as he loosens his hold on Yoongi’s shirt in his confusion, but a cold dread slowly began to wrap around his heart. “What?”

“Y/n and I had sex, Jin. More than just once. We were friends with benefits for nearly a year now and you know what? She felt fucking amazing every single time.”

The moment Jin let go of Yoongi’s shirt and he saw the broken expression on his friends face, he knew he fucked up; but just as an apology was on his tongue, Jin’s expression contorts into fury as his fist connects with his cheek again. Yoongi stays silent though, feeling the guilt and anger churn inside him as he lets the older male shake him in rage.

“What the fuck,” Seokjin’s soft reply is filled with emotion before he tightens his grip on Yoongi’s shirt, feeling his head spin as his voice rises. “What the fuck! You out of everyone fucking knows exactly how I feel and you’re telling me you were fucking her?! This whole damn time?! You fucking piece of shit!”

All is quiet, save for Jin’s furious, ragged breaths as he waits for his friend’s response, but none comes as Yoongi openly avoids his gaze. The act only makes his blood boil as his fingers latch onto his bruised jaw, relishing in Yoongi’s hiss of pain as he forces him to look at his face.

“Tell me why,” Jin grits out venomously, feeling himself sober up from just his fury alone, but with the sobriety also came the onslaught of emotions he was running away from and the blonde felt his heart seizing up. He suddenly didn’t want to look at the male beneath him anymore. “You know what, fuck your damn excuse. Get the fuck out of my house!”

Yoongi didn’t offer an apology – he couldn’t bring himself to say the two words because he knew they wouldn’t matter, not now – and instead pushes Jin off of him to comply with the demand given. Seokjin stumbles onto his feet and begins walking over to his kitchen, but pauses to stare at the younger male, feeling the acid of betrayal scorch every nerve ending until he swore he felt it reach his lungs.

“I should have let you fucking become homeless.”

Yoongi pauses at the door, feeling his heart tear open at the statement and the pure hatred that it was delivered in – he suddenly had an epiphany in that moment, of how you didn’t need to be in love to feel heartbreak. He wasn’t sure if his friendship was salvageable, nor if he even deserved to try to salvage it really; so with his guilt constricting his heart and lungs, he silently closes the door behind him.

With a wince at feeling the air hit his bruised face, he takes out his phone and taps onto one of his contacts he had on speed dial; slowly making his way to his apartment as he places his phone onto his ear. Once he hears the familiar voice from the other line, he lets out a shaky breath and stuffs his free hand into his jean pocket.

“I fucked up…badly.”

You weren’t sure whether to be happy for the interruption or to be angry with whoever decided to call Namjoon right now. Granted, he didn’t tell you much past him retelling how Seokjin was before senior year – he was in drama and choir of all things! It made your mind spin with all the possible outcomes that lead to Jin turning into the man he is today. How was it conceivable that a drama and choir student transformed into one of the most infamous fuckboy’s in all of the school in under a year?

And how did your embarrassing old crush fit into all of this?

“Fuck, are you serious hyung? How did it get so bad?”

Hearing the younger boy’s distressed tone brought you back to the present as you glance up to see him stand from his chair; half-drunk boba tea forgotten. Seeing his brows furrowed as he rakes a hand through his brown locks brings a sense of dread into your stomach, washing over like the calm before the storm.

Namjoon stays quiet a few beats, presumably listening to the story the other man was retelling him before speaking worriedly. “Where are you now?”

Just as you were going to ask the brunette what was happening, the familiar chime of your ringtone catches your attention; it was a ringtone you had specifically assigned to someone and the fact that he was calling you now made you nibble on your lip apprehensively.

“Hello? Seokjin?”

You feel Namjoon’s gaze sharply cut into you the moment his name enters the air – it made your hand tremble as you nervously listen to the heavy panting on the other end of the line, waiting for a response.

“Since when have you and Yoongi been fucking y/n!”

Your breath lodges itself inside your throat as your blood turns to ice in your veins, your mind wondering on how he could have possibly found that out – Yoongi and you were very discrete when it came to your agreement of helping each other out. It honestly was such a stupid decision that came up when you couldn’t sate the carnal hunger you felt all those months ago; not minding if Yoongi took care of it at the time, anything to just tame the burn. Surprisingly, he caved in very easily and it wasn’t until after the first time that he sheepishly confided that he had been thinking about it – college was kicking his ass and he had needed a stress reliever, but no time to go through the process of picking someone. From then on, your hanging out usually consisted of food, sex and then binge watching shows. Nothing more and nothing less; neither of you were worried about catching feelings.

But that was neither here nor there, and it took a second for the ice in your veins to quickly melt and get replaced with a fire that rapidly scorched your chest.

“That’s none of your fucking business, Seokjin,” you hiss into your phone as you try your best to not break the damn thing from the fury you felt. “Who I decide to sleep with is none of your concern, especially when you fuck anything with a vagina and a heartbeat.”

You ignore the choke you hear beside you, completely forgetting about your coworker in favor for waiting for a response through the other line, but all you get as an answer is the soft slur of a curse being muttered. The fury you felt before doubles and the heat you feel incinerating your chest is almost too much to bear – he was drunk, again, and worse now, you figured out who was talking to Namjoon. The beginnings of a headache began to pound away at your temples and it only fueled your body to move on its own as you grab your bag, before power walking toward Yoongi’s apartment.

“Ah! N-Noona wait!”

Ignoring the scuffs of a chair and heavy footsteps, you talk into your phone again and let your anger slash through the line in hopes that it would somehow hurt the drunk man on the other side. “I can’t believe you Kim Seokjin! You’re such a hypocrite and a liar! I swear to you that if you hurt Yoongi because of this, I’ll personally go over your house and return the damage. I don’t even know why you’re so angry about this, ugh!” By the end of your rant, you couldn’t contain the grunt of pure frustration and swung your arm out, narrowly missing Namjoon who had long put away his phone.

“Of course you don’t,” you hear him scoff out softly, “you would never know why unless I stamped the answer onto your forehead. Sometimes I wonder why I even bother talking to you when you’re just as stupid as you were in high school. Nothing has changed.”

You stumble over a crack in the cement from the shock and hurt his words dug onto your heart, but you swallow down the hurt and instead let your anger coat your tongue. “I’m surprised you even remember me from high school considering you were always shit faced. Besides, who ever told you that I even wanted you to talk to me? I had been fine and happy until you decided that somehow I needed your poor excuse of a friendship in my life.”

You hear a loud exhale of air through the receiver, along with the shift of clothes as he presumably moved. “Whatever. Go fuck the rest of my friends for all I care.” With that, you hear nothing as the line goes dead.

Feeling the warm touch of someone’s hand enclosing around your wrist makes you realize that Namjoon was still beside you and that you had been staring down at the screen of your phone, frozen for too long. You try your best to swallow the growing lump in your throat, along with the tell-tale burn of tears gathering around your eyes and let out a shuddering breath. You should not be letting him make you feel this way, as if you’re the one in the wrong and implying that you were the kind of person to stoop so low as to go around sleeping with a circle of his friends as payback.

Maybe Jin was right, you were stupid because for the life of you, you couldn’t figure out just why he was so angry about it all and why you even cared.

“Hey,” Namjoon’s voice is soft and you know that he can tell you were affected before you could compose yourself, “hey noona, look at me. You okay? What happened?”

You avoid his gaze as you try your best to discretely wipe your eyes and clear your throat, hoping he won’t notice the waver in your voice. “I’m fine, Namjoon-ah. Don’t worry, Seokjin is just…he’s an idiot that doesn’t deserve my time of day.”

You can tell that he’s not convinced by the slight furrow of his brows as he lets go of your wrist, but you simply put your phone back into your purse before resuming your walk to Yoongi’s apartment. It wasn’t terribly far – 3 blocks at most – so getting there wouldn’t be a huge hassle; especially now that Jin had called you just had to get some answers.

“Anyway,” you inhale deeply before letting it out and giving Namjoon a glance, “I’m going to check on Yoongi, you coming with?”

He only nods and lets out a soft “yeah,” silently walking beside you as you guys make your way to Yoongi’s. You know Namjoon has questions about your phone call, but you’re grateful for his silence anyway; besides, he’d hear everything by the time you got to your destination.

“Here, leave this against your face for 15 minutes.” You hand over the make-shift ice pack you made for Yoongi, using a Ziploc bag and wrapping it in a small hand towel. Your teeth latch onto your bottom lip to nibble on as you hear your friend let out a soft hiss of pain as the compress touches his jaw. There was no way you could deny that Seokjin did a number on him; the bruise was so dark now and stood out so angrily against his pale skin.

“I can’t believe you guys got into a fist fight…,” Namjoon mumbles out as he gives the male next to him a critical eye, but then that stare turns to you as soon as you take a seat on the coffee table in front of Yoongi.

He didn’t need to say anything for you to know the question that was burning on his tongue; you simply return his gaze, urging him silently to ask whatever he wanted to. Yoongi remains quiet throughout the drawn out silence, partially due to the pain and mainly to do with the fact that he just felt tired. You knew him long enough to know that this whole fight was tearing him apart from the inside and it made the guilt churn in your stomach uncomfortably. While you held no wrong here for the decisions you made with your friend, there was something about it that made Yoongi feel like this and you were going to find out no matter what.

“So uh,” Namjoon coughs awkwardly into his long sleeve, averting his gaze between yourself and the black haired male in front of you, “you and Yoongi-hyung have been, uh, y’know…”

“Fucking?” At his poor attempt to hide his choke, you let a small smile grace your lips as a small chuckle falls out of you before you could stop it.

“Yeah,” he clears his throat once more before regarding your bruised friend with something akin to disappointment, “and I’m guessing you let that slip past Jin-hyung and that’s how the fight started?”

Yoongi lets out a sigh and simply nods his head, finally meeting Namjoon’s eyes; the guilt was easily palpable in his gaze. “I couldn’t hide it anymore and I guess with everything that he said it just…it got me angry so I told him because I wanted to hurt him.”

“Okay, that’s where I’m confused and a little angry,” you quickly interject before the tall male diagonally across from you could say more. Your tone and pursed lips said it all and with their shared look of guilt, it only fueled the irritation pricking your skin. “Yoongi and I did nothing wrong and quite frankly, it was no one’s business, lest of all Jin’s, on what we were doing. So I don’t understand why you’re making it seem as if Yoongi hurt Jin.”

The silence stretches on as you wait for either male to answer your question, letting the air become stifling as both avoid your gaze. Just as you were about to cry out in frustration for them to tell you something, Yoongi finally speaks.

“Because Seokjin-hyung likes you y/n.”

The room becomes quiet yet again as you listen to his words before a laugh escapes your mouth in disbelief; surely he was joking right? There was that the notorious playboy liked you of all people. Your heart and mind just wouldn’t let you believe something that could easily shatter you if it turned out to be a lie, but you choke on your laughter as you see their grim faces.

“You…this is a joke right?”

You look over to Namjoon as he shakes his head and picks at his nails, not able to look you in the eyes. “This is what I was trying to tell you earlier. Jin-hyung has liked you since high school, since before he became the asshole he is now.”

“But you had never really paid him much attention,” Yoongi continues as your brain slowly short circuits, giving you a rueful smile at your blank stare, “and he would always get so jealous whenever you’d gush about Jaebeom. He’d bitch all the time about how he was a jerk and he never knew why you would fawn over someone like that, but not give him the time of day.”

At this, your younger coworker heaves a sigh and rolls his eyes, leaning back into the couch to give Yoongi an exasperated stare, presumably remembering the past. “Remember that time when he went on nearly an hour rant about how Jaebeom’s hairstyle made him look like a douche?”

“Don’t remind me,” the black haired male grumbles, absentmindedly rubbing at his bruised, cold jaw before removing the ice pack altogether, “I can almost hear his bitching all over again.”

“Wait, hold on,” you finally find your voice as your brow knits in irritation, gaining the gazes of the two men before you, “are you seriously trying to tell me that it’s my fault Jin turned out to be a fuckboy? Just because I liked someone else that wasn’t him?”

The simmering anger was clear as day on your face and it made Namjoon wince, because honestly, you had the right to take offense to what they just told you. By no means were you at fault for the actions Jin took, those were all his mistakes alone.

“We’re not blaming you, moron,” Yoongi grumbles as he pokes your cheek and leans in closer to you, eyes serious. “Jin’s an idiot and got so jealous that once Jaebeom graduated, he came up with the stupid idea of becoming just like him. He figured that if he turned into the guy you liked, you’d finally pay attention to him.”

Your tongue feels like sandpaper in your mouth and you try in vain to comprehend just what the hell Seokjin was thinking back then. The idea itself was ludicrous and judging by both male’s stares, they knew it too; but there was a lingering, unwanted ache in your chest. You knew it wasn’t your fault that Seokjin turned out this way, letting his envy transform him into something he wasn’t, but just the thought of a young, dorky Jin turning into a fuckboy just to gain your attention…it made your heart twinge. Were you wrong for feeling sympathetic?

“Hey,” your friend nudges you after your pregnant silence, letting his hand squeeze your knee to gain your attention, “you feeling alright? Or did the hamster in your head fall off the wheel?”

It took you a moment to catch his playful taunt, but after a few seconds you’re quick to smack his arm with a poorly disguised laugh. You knew he was only teasing you to release some of the tension in the room and your small smile let him know you appreciated it. Honestly, it was a lot to process and at this point in time, it left you wondering what your next course of action should be.

“My hamster is up and running, thank you,” your tone is dry, but as the seconds tick by, you’re dragged back into your thoughts.

Namjoon interrupts you before you could get very far though. “So…what are you gonna do?”

“I don’t know,” you reply in a mixture of a sigh as you rub your eyes in frustration. “I honestly don’t want to do anything. I appreciate you guys telling me this, but I would rather have Jin himself tell me all this.”

Yoongi shrugs and leans back on his couch, crossing his arms loosely as he side eyes you. “As much as I agree with you Y/N, Jin-hyung is honestly too much of a little bitch to ever fess up.”

Both Namjoon and you hide laughs, letting out a strangled noise as you give each other a smile. You shouldn’t have found your friend’s words amusing, but honestly, he knew Jin better than you did and the tall male across from you couldn’t find the words to protest them either. Plus, despite the new information, you were still very much upset with the male in question.

“In all seriousness though…,” Namjoon starts off slow, almost as if hesitant to bring out your anger, “I know Jin-hyung hurt you, but I would recommend talking to him if he doesn’t speak up first.” At your grunt of dissatisfaction, the male is quick to continue in a stutter. “N-Not saying you have to, but just that I know how he is and even though he makes himself to be obnoxiously confident, he’s really bad at expressing himself.”

The room turns silent again, but only for a few seconds before you let out a combination of a sigh and a whine. “Whatever, I’ll think about it okay? But can we please not talk about this anymore and just order some take-out? I kinda haven’t eaten since the morning and I’m starving.”

Your coworkers give each other a glance, but ultimately seem to come to a silent agreement to let the conversation of Seokjin go. You knew that sooner or later you would have to confront Kim Seokjin and get answers for everything he’s done, but for today, your heart was still raw from the hurtful words he threw at you. And with the glances the males gave you as the night progressed, they also knew that you were pushing back your tears and putting on a brave face of laughter and teasing.

So for tonight, you would let yourself enjoy the company of Yoongi and your new blossoming friendship with Namjoon; ignoring the dull throb in your heart as you did so. Then when you were alone in the comfort of your room later, you would let yourself drown in your emotions to figure out just what the hell you discovered today. Because with the small snippet of Jin’s back story, it began to slowly change your opinion of who you thought he was. There was so much more to Jin that you had yet to learn and you stupidly wanted him to teach you; just not right this instant.

Right now, you just wanted to stuff your face with pizza and worry about everything else later.

#Fuckboy!Jin #kim seokjin #bts fic #Jin fic #Bts #So this is more of a filler I guess #The next chapter will be the final one promise #It'll also have some make-up sex so keep a look out for that #;)#Let me know what you guys think!#Hopefully the last chapter won't take me too long to post

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thewitchwithoutvoice-blog · 7 years ago

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REINTRODUCING

Aoi Shibunuri

“If I told you about her, the princess without voice, what would I say?”

Hello everyone! Aoi has gone through a bit of a change, and by that I mean she’s an entirely different race now. She was a Raen but I just wasn’t really...feeling it. I tried giving Midlander a go for a few days and holy biscuits does it feel amazing. Also Hyurs...under appreciated. So, I already posted one of these for the Raen Aoi, but I can’t for the life of me figure out how to edit the post itself so I will be reposting it instead of reblogging so that it isn’t a nasty block of text on top of another. There won’t be any changes really, expect for some physical changes. She’s still the same person, just a Hyur now. Thank you for taking the time to read this ^^

NAME: Aoi Shibunuri

AGE: Twenty-Six

RACE: Hyur (Midlander)

GENDER: Female

SEXUALITY: Demisexual

DISABILITY(s)?: Yes, she is mute from birth.

MARITAL STATUS: Single

SERVER: Balmung

physical appearance ––––

HAIR: Dark brown. Slight wave near the ends of her hair. She had shorter hair but it has grown quite long since. It has reached a bit past her hips currently. She likes to keep it down most of the time but sometimes styles it with the casual half up half down, sometimes a half french braid, leaving the rest to flow down her back. If she’s working, she likes to tie it up into a bun or a ponytail.

EYES: Watercolor gray, depending on lighting, they can look endless and pitch dark.

SKIN TYPE: Darker shade of caramel with very soft skin and vitiligo from head to toe. She has flecks of moles here and there throughout her body. She enjoys bathing in oils so she has a healthy glow to her skin.

HEIGHT: Five feet Two inches

BUILD: She has a small amount of tone to her body, a bit thin with wider hips and a full top, an hourglass figure to be precise.

DISTINGUISHING MARKS: Head to toe, she has Vitiligo. She has two beauty marks on her face and then one on the edge of her lower lip on the left side.

COMMON ACCESSORIES: Flowers, she enjoys having flowers in her hair and always seems to have fresh ones. She usually has her nails painted with rings adorning her hands. She always has one special ring she does no take off for any reason other than in her home, she was told it was her mother’s. Anklets, the prettier the chiming bells, the more skip to her step. Occasionally, she’ll wear a necklace, but not too often. She carries a satchel with medical supplies, herbs, potions, inkwells, gauze, quills and her journals. She also carries a one-handed wand on her person at all times in case of emergencies.

personal –––-

PROFESSION: Wandering healer/conjurer currently. It has been about a year and a half since she retired from the Adders as a combat medic. If she isn’t wandering, she always takes the time to visit home…Gridania. The Central Shroud is one of her favorite places to be, she’ll often mediate there, gather herbs and supplies, or enjoy being around the greenery.

HOBBIES: Reading, her head is always in a book. Her home is filled with books, stacks here and there in messy piles. She enjoys taking care of plants, much of her home is filled with them so often she will be watering them and possibly getting more (even though she knows she shouldn’t). Aoi enjoys dancing, she can get lost in it, but it is something she does when she is alone. Aoi plays the harp as well, she learned at a young age and finds it soothing when she feels stressed or anxious.

LANGUAGES: Common and Sign Language

RESIDENCE: Her home is a small apartment that she occasionally visits in between her wandering, she is not one for having large homes, she enjoys having a smaller space. It is filled with plants and books, in a corner, she keeps her large harp so that she can entertain guests. (But really...oocly I was given one by a friend in Shirogane but icly, I like it in the Lavender beds as she very much loves Gridania).

FEARS: Drowning. She never learned how to swim because she was so caught up in her studies while growing up, and whenever she was prompted to, she brushed it aside. She has other tiny little fears such as neglecting her duty of traveling around and healing and caring for others. She is not a big fan of insects such as spiders, anything creepy crawly makes her uncomfortable. Heights make her extremely uncomfortable as she can be clumsy, that and she feels dizzy being in high up places. She doesn’t like the feeling.

relationships –––-

SPOUSE: N/A

CHILDREN: N/A

LOVE INTEREST(S): It is...complicated.

PARENTS: Both mother and father are deceased. She was raised by her aunt from a very young age of about a year old.

SIBLINGS: She has no brothers or sisters, she grew up as an only child.

OTHER RELATIVES: The only living relative that she is aware of, is her aunt.

PETS: She has none currently, but she won’t easily admit that she kind of thinks her plants as pets.

traits –––-

extroverted / introverted / in between

disorganized / organized / in between

close minded / open-minded / in between

calm / anxious / in between (depends on situation)

disagreeable / agreeable / in between

cautious / reckless / in between (depends on situation)

patient / impatient / in between

outspoken / reserved / in between

leader / follower / in between

empathetic / unemphatic / in between

optimistic / pessimistic / in between

traditional / modern / in between

hard-working / lazy / in between

cultured / un-cultured / in between

loyal / disloyal / in between

faithful / unfaithful / in between

additional information –––-

SMOKING HABIT: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess.

DRUGS: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess.

ALCOHOL: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess

possible hooks –––-

- If your character is an Adder or was associated with them, she was a combat medic for them before she retired! She will most likely approach you if mentioned, badger you if you are taking care of yourself and properly getting rest in between missions or shifts.

- If your character is mute or selectively mute and knows sign language (or just knows sign language in general), she will automatically approach with clear excitement in her eyes and a big smile! Her main form of communication is through writing, she does not meet many who know sign language so when she does actually meet those that do, it is a shock to her, a happy one!

- She is a wandering medic, so she is always aiding those that are in need of assistance, be it healing, child birth, or a serious injury, she will approach, very worried but ready to get to work immediately.

- These are just some thoughts I’m throwing out there, situations that I think my character would respond to, to give an idea (it’s super early and I haven’t slept..so they are not the brightest ideas). I am open-minded, if you are interested, don’t even hesitate to throw some of your ideas out there too, I would love to hear what you have to say as well! Working together to come up with an awesome hook or plot is the best part! ^^

what I’m looking for ––––

- Honestly, any kind of contacts! Be it friendships, job offers, rivalries, etc! I mentioned above that I was also looking for an RP FC so, if any of you are in need of a healer (additionally an alchemist, gotta level that up for RP purposes, same for botany), shoot me a message and give me some information about your FC and what you’re all about!

- I mentioned that I’m an open-minded person, so if you got ideas, shoot them my way, I love seeing what people can cook up, and it helps give me an idea of what I can too depending on the person(s) that approach me (character-wise, like personalities, backstories, what sort of plot you’re informing me about and how Aoi would fit into it).

✓ Will do temporary incapacitation, temporary imprisonment, walk-ups

✓ I don’t mind doing RP that is a bit dark, I like being pushed in different directions and it’s fun to explore. Things revolving voidsent (very little knowledge of it though, if you have the patience to give me some lore tips and pointers, I don’t mind one bit), drugs/violence/alcohol/language, I don’t mind at all, as long as it comes naturally with roleplay.

- As for longterm RP, I am not too sure about it, one way to find out is talking to me about it and giving me an idea of what you had in mind (especially if they involve long-term incapacitation, long-term imprisonment, or long-term disfiguration).

- I don’t mind lore bending at all, not one bit, as long as it isn’t anything too crazy or displaced. It is fun to be creative! So as long as it works and flows nicely with everything.

✗ I will not do ERP or anything involving rape. I don’t at all mind having my characters naturally building a romantic relationship (comes along with roleplay, fan of slowburn sort of stuff), but ERP is not my cup of tea so I’m putting this out there now, don’t ask me later, my mind won’t suddenly change.

oocly, I am –––

I am a fairly chill roleplayer, I enjoy in-game roleplay but I don’t mind at all if you would like to use Discord as well. It’s very convenient! I enjoy all sorts of RP as I mentioned above, if you would like fast-paced, I will do my best to keep up and adapt, I am more of a paragraph roleplayer and enjoy putting in a lot of details into my posts, but like I said, I can adapt, I’ve been roleplaying for about 11 years, I’ve been all over the place.

Don’t worry about responding to me asap or roleplaying with me constantly, like I said, I’m a laid-back person, plan with me, gush about characters and stuff, take your time. There is no rush, after all, we’re all here to relax and have fun! So if anything is troubling you, don’t hesitate to approach me about it!

I am on CST, and am usually on most of the time, my sleep schedule is all over the place so I’ll be on during the day, afternoon, night…like I said…jumpy sleep schedule. >w<

you can contact me via ––

Tumblr Messages!

Discord: Aoi Shibunuri#4857

In Game: Aoi Shibunuri

PS: Totally didn’t nab this from my friend, @ijazrahalffxiv, *sweats*, I don’t really know where he got this template from so the mysterious template shall continue it’s journey onwards!! Thank you for your time :D

#repost #ffxiv hyur #ffxiv #ff14 #balmung #balmung server #balmung rp #lfrp #lffc #race change #hyur #female hyur #hyur midlander #ffxiv rp

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grither55 · 3 years ago

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The Princess and the Peasant - (An Azula Epic) - Chapter 119 - Back to the Royal Barge

Azula opened her eyes as she let out a loud yawn with her arms stretching out above her head.

While a content smile graced her lips as she found herself gazing down at her girlfriend's adorably yawning face in her robed lap.

"Good morning peasant." Azula remarked with another resounding yawn as she smiled fondly down at her drowsy pet.

"Good morning…Azula-sama." Elle answered in mid yawn with her head resting against her girlfriend's robed belly.

While a bashful smile formed on her lips as she peered up at Azula's looming face as the woman smiled down at her.

All the while as a blush developed on her cheeks when she felt a hand lower into her hair.

And then she sunk forward with her face falling into the older girl's stomach while the princess's hand petted her head.

"How are you feeling this morning?" The princess questioned in a cold voice that contrasted her affections as she lounged on her bottom with her little girlfriend underneath her palm.

While she watched with callous amber golden eyes as the girl hugged onto her night gown covered belly.

"A…little run down…but otherwise okay." The handmaid replied in a murmuring voice with her face hiding in the woman's belly while her girlfriend's palm petted her head.

All the while as she smiled contently with her body sprawling out in the taller female's lap.

"That is good to hear." Azula muttered in a pridefully moody voice as she relaxed on her pillows while she held her companion in her lap.

While her possessive eyes flickered with a momentary hint of fondness as she gazed down at the younger girl's once again yawning face.

"Azula-sama?" Elle pondered shyly with her eyes gazing back into the older woman's belly while long fingers ran through her hair.

"Yes Elle?" The princess asked with an attentive edge to her stern voice while she stared down at the girl's lovely face.

Just before she observed the teenager roll over in her lap with the back of her head coming to rest upon her robed thighs.

While strict amber golden eyes now gazed dominantly down into timidly lovestruck amber eyes.

All the while as the younger female blushed under the older woman's authoritative stare.

"I…I just wanted…to tell you that y-you…you look so divine this morning princess. L-like a goddess rising up in the heavens over me." The handmaid stammered in a timid voice with a heated expression on her cheeks.

While the princess found herself unable to fight the wide smile that was pulling onto her lips after hearing those worshipful words.

All the while as a tiny blush now formed on her proud cheeks while her fingertips now caressed her little beloved's blushing cheek.

"Oh peasant…you really know how to flatter your goddess." Azula spoke with an affectionate undertone to her voice as she shook her head while a gratified smile adorned her regal lips.

While she coiled a fingernail in her dark hair as she stared back down at her pet's lovably bashful face resting against her belly.

"I-it's not flattery princess…it's the truth." Elle stuttered in an overwhelmed voice as she twiddled her thumbs while her girlfriend smiled down at her.

"Elle…" The princess sighed with the barest hint of a moved smile on her ruthless lips while she held the girl's smiling face against her night gown covered belly.

While sat there on her pillows with her small girlfriend laying in her robed lap.

All the while as she found herself inexplicably savoring every moment that her young beloved spent in her lap.

Not too long after that…

The welcoming scent of morning tea flowed into the air of the morning camp.

While the three highborn women now gazed fondly back at their young friend as she passed each of them mugs of tea.

"Thanks for the tea little sister!" Ty Lee spoke with a cheerful smile as Elle smiled back at her.

"Yeah. Thanks, little sister." Mai stated with a twinge of fondness permeating her voice as a small smile formed on her lips.

"No problem oneesans." The handmaid responded in a joyful voice as she poured herself a cup.

"I hate everything…but I don't hate you Elle." The markswoman commented in a reflective voice with her cup in hand while her tawny eyes gazed in appreciation back at the younger girl's smiling face.

While the acrobat and the princess turned to gaze back at the weapons expert with knowing looks in their eyes.

All the while aware that the other woman knew that she would part ways with them upon their return to Royal Caldera City.

And yet…neither one of them had the heart to shatter the young girl's joyful mood by saying so.

"I don't hate you either Mai." Elle replied in a warm voice with her loving amber eyes gazing back at her friends as she moved to join them.

All the while as the princess watched through the corner of her harsh eye as her girlfriend took a seat on the log beside her.

While the younger female smiled up into the older woman's strict amber golden eyes.

And then the teenager shyly slid her fingers over the princess's own.

Only for her smile to grow when she felt the woman respond by setting her hand on top of her own.

While the two noblewomen watched the couple with amazed expressions in their eyes.

While the princess and the handmaid turned their gazes to the morning sunrise.

All the while as the team quietly sat there in peace as they listened to the sounds of the forest wildlife wake up all around them.

And with that the group spent their time watching the rising sunrise in relative quiet.

While Azula let out a relaxed sigh as she took a calming drink of her tea.

Just as the princess spun her head around when a flicker of light flashed before her eyes.

Only for her amber golden eyes to narrow into a strict glare when an innocent giggle resounded into her ears.

Before she turned to cast a cold stare at her serving girl.

While she watched with slight surprise in her eyes to see that the girl was pointing her new camera back at her with a bright smile on her lips.

All the while as the two other highborn women turned to their little sister with bewildered looks in their eyes to see that she was playing with her new camera.

"What are you doing Elle?" Azula questioned in a strict voice that almost verged on a mother attempting to show patience with her child.

"I was able to charge the battery with a solar powered battery charger and now I can use it to take pictures of you Azula-sama!" The handmaid chirped in a lovable voice while the older woman scowled coldly back at the camera.

All the while as the two noblewomen listened in amusement.

And not a moment later another flash of light resonated before the irate princess's eyes while she sat glaring back into the camera.

While a proud glower graced her regal cheeks as the princess tried her hardest to squash her feelings for the younger girl.

All the while as the acrobat giggled with her hand over her mouth while her royal friend turned to glare at her through the corner of her eye.

"You and your little peasant toys." The princess grumbled with arms folded over her robed breasts while she held her tea in her hand.

Only for her stony amber golden eyes to glare back at the teenager when she heard the girl let out an adorable squeal.

All the while as she fought to refrain from showing even the slightest bit of interest in her eyes over the mechanics of the foreign invention.

While Ty Lee and Mai leaned in to gaze in from over their little sister's shoulder with looks of curiosity in their eyes.

"Look oneesans! I took a picture of the princess!" Elle cried out with a bright smile on her lips while her big sisters found themselves unable to resist smiling as they looked closer.

Only for the two noblewomen to gaze down with their eyes agape in awe when they found themselves looking at a small fine screen with a strikingly lifelike image of Azula on display!

While the prideful princess found herself unable to resist turning to glance in the direction of the three with her brows arched inquisitively.

"This…is a photograph of Azula? It looks…just like her." Ty Lee spoke in a marveled voice with her mouth open in awe while she stared down at the image of the princess's regally stony face.

"It really does." Mai stated with a rare tone of fascination seeping through her usually monotone voice while she gazed down at the screen in amazement.

All the while as Azula furrowed her elegant brows in begrudging curiosity before she leaned down to peer over her girlfriend's shoulder.

Only for her cold amber golden eyes to widen in disbelief when she saw a stunningly accurate image of her composed face from just moments ago.

'So, this…is a photograph of me…' Azula thought as she sat back in her seat with her amber golden eyes still gazing down at the image in wonderment.

While she found herself pondering what it would look like to photographs of her royal portrait lining the walls of the palace once she becomes Fire Lord.

Perhaps she will be the first Fire Lord to have her image put on display as a photograph?

All the while as her lips began to curve into the barest hint of a gratified smile.

"S-she's so beautiful." The handmaid swooned in a voice similar to a lovesick schoolgirl while the older woman held her head high with a confident smile now adorning her beautiful lips.

"Of course, I am peasant. There is no woman grander than me." The princess scoffed with an arrogant smirk adorning her lips while she watched her pet gush under her controlling gaze.

And then not even a second later her smirk grew even larger when the teenager pressed the button once more.

While the teenager squealed with a hand on her cheek as she beamed back at the older girl's smiling face.

All the while as the royal woman set her cup of tea down as she sat back with a pleased smile on her lips.

While she gracefully crossed her arms over her breasts as her young admirer began to take photograph after photograph of her royal likeness.

All while the acrobat let out a cheerful laugh from where she sat beside the couple.

While the markswoman gazed on with a fond sigh escaping her amused lips as she watched the handmaid gaze dreamily at the princess as if she was a goddess descended from a higher plane.

"O-oh my what a lovely queen." Elle stuttered with a bashful smile on her lips while Azula smiled proudly as she sat captivatingly before her.

"That's right girl. Worship your queen." Azula spoke with a spoiled smile gracing her sophisticated lips while she swelled with even greater pride under the young girl's lovesick gaze.

While she posed her body in her seat as if it was her throne as she haughtily studied the fingernails on her open palm.

All the while as her content smile grew when the camera flashed yet again.

While the two women observed from the sidelines with humored expressions in their eyes.

All while as a blonde blur began to excitingly move about to and fro before the seated Fire Princess.

While the princess still gazed on with her crimson lips curved into a satisfied smile.

And so, it went as the minutes began to pass by while the teenager leaped about taking pictures of the woman from every conceivable angle.

While Ty Lee and Mai watched the duo with their eyes conveying their amusement over their little sister's antics.

Until the princess stared out of the corner of her merciless amber golden eye when she took notice of sweat on the younger girl's brow.

All the while as the hyper girl continued to squeal as she leaped to the side as she took another photo of her older girlfriend.

"That's enough Elle. You can take more photographs of me later." The princess commented in a cold voice while her ruthless eyes still gazed back at her handmaid's exhausted brow.

Only for another light to flash before her eyes as she let out a sigh.

While she watched her servant, girl hop around her with her domineering eyes following the girl's every move.

"Elle." Azula remarked in a stricter voice with her stony eyes staring back at her pet while the girl skipped around her.

All the while as the two noblewomen still watched with entertained looks in their eyes.

Only for the three older girls to gaze on with concern suddenly flashing in their eyes when the girl abruptly dropped onto her knees on the log beside the seated princess.

"Oooh I feel dizzy." The handmaid groaned as her big sisters gazed on with worry in their eyes.

Only to find herself letting out a moan when a strong hand reached out to grasp a hold of her shirt.

Just before she let out a squeak when she was forcefully pulled into a seated position beside her master.

"Careless peasant! That's because you got drunk last night! Now sit down! And stop hopping about!" The princess barked in a severe voice while she pulled the moaning girl down beside her.

"Y-yes princess." Elle moaned in an obedient voice as she leaned down to seek solace in the older woman's robed lap.

And then she fell face first into the princess's curvaceous thigh.

Just as she felt a powerful hand lower into her golden hair while callous amber golden eyes stared down at her from above.

"Just settle down girl." Azula commanded in a frigid voice with her hand in her pet's hair while she held the girl's woozy face against her thigh.

Before she began to run her fingernails through her young servant's soft hair while she stared down at the girl with a possessive gleam in her stern amber golden gaze.

"Azula's right Elle. Maybe you should take it more slowly this morning." The acrobat advised in a sisterly voice with a concerned frown on her kind lips.

All the while as the small girl nodded her head as she lay with her face propped up on the older girl's thigh.

"Yeah kid. You can take all the photographs of Azula that you want when you are feeling better." The markswoman spoke with an ever so slight thawed edge to her voice.

While she glanced down at the serving girl through with an observant expression in her icy tawny eyes.

"What a troublesome little thing you are." The princess sighed with a shake of her head while she sat back with her palm resting in her mumbling young girlfriend's hair.

While she continued to pet the girl's relaxing head as she listened to the girl let out adorable murmurs that she found pleasing to her ears.

All the while as a refined smile pulled back onto her regal lips.

And then she took another content drink of her tea as gladdened sigh escaped her full lips.

This little girlfriend of hers certainly could be a handful.

And yet…she would have it no other way.

About forty-five minutes after that.

Saro and Nako were going about their morning activities as they began to pack up the camp.

While Mai and Ty Lee stood up to help them.

All the while as not a single one of them so much as dared to even comment on the snoring girl who now slept face first in the princess's lap under the woman's hand.

While the ruthless princess stared on with a terrifying stare in her conquering amber golden eyes that prompted her subordinates to gaze away in fright.

Only for the cruel princess to turn her merciless eyes to her captain's tent when she saw someone exiting the flap of the tent.

Just as all but Azula gazed on in humor when Jiao emerged with a spent expression adorning her exhausted face.

All the while as the seductress let out a groan as she made her way out with her hair hanging over her fatigued blue eyes.

Before the captain stepped out into view behind her.

While the others gazed on in disbelief as Zoi released a blissful yawn.

All the while as she smiled smugly back at the now aggravated faces of her fellow highborn women.

"I don't know about all of you. But I had a wonderful night." Zoi remarked with a smile on her lips while her princess's amber golden eyes narrowed into a fierce glare.

While the acrobat and the markswoman also glared back at her with annoyed looks in their eyes.

"How could I? With the sounds coming from your tent keeping me awake all night." The markswoman replied with her tawny eyes glaring slits back at the other woman's smirking face.

All the while as Jiao yawned as she made her way out beside her lover while the princess still glared back at the two.

"I suggest you avoid testing my temper this morning or that will be the last night that you spend with that girl for the remainder of this war. Now make yourself useful Zoi and start packing up. We depart camp in one hour." Azula commanded in an imperious voice while the other woman nodded her head in understanding.

"Of course, princess. I will get right on that." The captain agreed in composed voice as she made her way through the camp after her younger lover.

Just before she stopped to reach out to cup the seductress's chin in her hand.

While the younger woman turned to gaze back up at her warrior lover while the older woman cracked a smile down at her.

"Jiao…" Zoi trailed off with a sliver of a softened edge to her voice while her younger lover peered back at her.

And then she leaned down over the shorter woman while her lover gazed back into her stoic golden eyes.

Before she placed an affectionate kiss on her younger lover's cheek.

While a smile now pulled onto Jiao's lips as she leaned back into the warrior's mighty womanly arms.

"Zoi." Jiao murmured with grudging affection lacing her stubborn voice while she felt Zoi wrap her powerful arms around her.

"Thanks for last night." The captain spoke with an affectionate undertone to her voice while she held her partner against her chest.

"Don't mention it Zoi." The seductress sighed as she traced her fingertips along the older woman's robust arms.

All the while as the warrior allowed herself to smile as she momentarily stood holding the younger woman into her breasts.

While the rest of the camp went about their business as they began to pack up for their ride back to the royal barge.

All while the princess still sat gazing down at her young girlfriend with a controlling amber golden gaze that masked her feelings for the innocent girl.

And then one day later…

The oceans waters glimmered in the distance.

And the royal barge was now just beyond a long wooden bridge.

While Team Azula gazed out at the ocean upon the horizon with unmistakable relief in their eyes.

All the while as they proceeded across the bridge.

While Saro and Nako rode on their komodo rhinos with Zoi and Jiao proceeding along in front of them.

While the princess and her three companions now walked beside their steeds at the back of the group.

Their young friend had requested that she had wanted to walk with them the rest of the way instead of ride the komodo rhinos.

And like always the three aristocratic women had been unable to deny their innocent friend.

The highborn women now walked alongside their young companion while the girl strode with her headphones hanging over her shoulders.

While the trio listened curiously to their friend's music as yet another song began to play.

All the while as the small girl padded beside the tall princess while the woman stared down at her through the corner of her cold eye with an icy stare.

All while as Azula's ear perked up as she listened in mild interest to the beat of the song.

While Ty Lee and Mai walked along with their eyes gazing on as they too listened to their little sister's foreign music device.

Only for all three of their eyes to widen when they realized that it was a song about love and friendship.

While a bright smile now adorned Elle's lips as held onto the straps of her backpack while she walked beside her taken aback princess.

"When the night has come. And the land is dark. And the moon is the only light we'll see. No, I won't be afraid. Oh, I won't be afraid. Just as long as you stand, stand by me. So darling, darling. Stand by me, oh stand by me. Oh stand, stand by me. Stand by me." Ben E King sang in a flowing voice while the Fire Nation women listened in a strange sense of captivation.

Their young friend had yet to even say a word.

And yet all three of them already understood what the teenager was trying to say.

It was…the girl's way of letting them know that she was glad that she was with them!

And just like that the three highborn women could only stare back at their pure-hearted companion's gently smiling face.

"If the sky that we look upon. Should tumble and fall. Or the mountain should crumble to the sea. I won't cry, I won't cry. No, I won't shed a tear. Just as long as you stand, stand by me. And darling, darling. Stand by me, oh stand by me. Oh, stand now, stand by me. Stand by me. Darling, darling. Stand by me, oh stand by me. Oh, stand now, stand by me, stand by me." The singer sung as the teenager smiled happily back at the three older girl's moved faces.

All the while as the Fire Nation women walked beside their komodo rhinos with their eyes staring fondly back at their innocent friend.

"Elle…" Ty Lee trailed off in a touched voice with a joyful tear in her eye.

While even Mai found herself unable to resist cracking a small smile as she gazed back at the younger girl.

All the while as the teenager joyously hummed to the music while Azula gazed imposingly down at the girl with callous amber golden eyes.

"Oh, stand by me princess, oh won't you stand by me princess, stand by me." The handmaid sang along over the end of the song in a lovable voice as she skipped beside the princess while the much taller woman attempted to glare down at her.

While Azula fought to squash the tiny sliver of a blush that nearly formed on her proud regal cheeks.

All the while as her two noble friends gazed on in amusement from behind her.

While Ty Lee giggled cheerfully as she beamed back at the younger girl.

While Mai eyed the teenager fondly with a thawed expression in her usually harsh tawny eyes.

Only for the mighty princess to cross her arms over her breasts while her girlfriend still smiled up at her.

All the while as she rolled her intelligent amber golden eyes as she let out a pompous snort.

"Foolish peasant." The princess scoffed in a prideful voice with her cold eyes staring down at her serving girl's adorable face.

"That's so Azula-sama." Elle answered in a happy voice with her amber eyes beaming up at the older woman's scoffing countenance.

While the two noblewomen still stared affectionately back at the younger girl's sweet face.

All the while as the powerful princess still scowled down at her handmaid with her ruthless amber golden eyes conveying a possessive stare.

While the captain momentarily glanced over her shoulder alongside her confused partner with a small smile curving onto her lips.

While the pilot and the soldier glanced back at the girl with expressions of amazement in their eyes.

Just before they turned away knowing that it was unwise to gawk at their crown princess.

And with that the team continued to make their way across the bridge.

All the while as the three Fire Nation women now stared back at their young friend with a look of appreciation in their eyes.

And even though they didn't say it.

Each of the three girls were glad that they didn't lose their gentle friend.

It was only a short while after that…

The royal barge sat docked upon the shores of the ocean while Team Azula now gazed up at the ship in relief to see that the puppeteer had not destroyed it.

"It's…intact." Nako stated as she breathed a sigh of relief while Saro marveled alongside her.

While the four highborn women stared up with their eyes expressing their disbelief.

All the while as the teenager peered up with confusion in her amber eyes while the seductress stood warily behind her warrior lover.

'She didn't destroy it…why?' Azula thought with her tyrannical amber golden eyes staring up at the royal barge while she watched soldiers rush down to greet them.

"Princess! Princess! There was an attack while you were away! We…we had casualties!" A soldier advised in a hurried voice as he dropped down into a low bow alongside his comrades.

"I am already aware of that soldier." The princess responded in an imperious voice as she stared on with wrathful amber golden eyes.

While her sharp amber golden eyes caught sight of an abandoned merchant vessel laying upon the beach in the distance.

All the while as she noticed that the sand on the far corner of the large beach was stained red with blood.

While she turned to share a vengeful look with her captain as they silently took in the blood-stained beach.

All the while as the two firebenders glowered at the memory of their twisted enemy.

While the acrobat and the markswoman exchanged an uneasy look.

And just like that the Fire Nation women clenched their fists over the reminder of the loss of their people to the demented woman.

And then the highborn women began to make their way aboard the ship with their young friend following after them.

"C-casualties Azula-sama?" Elle inquired in a mousy voice as she gazed up at her master's harsh face with a look of sadness in her amber eyes while the woman just scowled down at her.

"It is nothing for you to concern your little mind over girl." The princess remarked in a cold voice with her amber golden eyes staring down at her pet's cutely worried face.

While the petite girl hesitantly nodded her head as she gazed down at her feet with a sorrowful expression in her eyes.

While many Fire Nation soldiers stood in flawless formation as they watched their Crown Princes step onto the ship.

While the Dai Li stood alongside them gazing on emotionlessly back at their princess's ruthless face.

Just before the princess turned to her team as her merciless eyes surveyed their faces.

"All of you except for Zoi and Saro are dismissed." Azula ordered in a much stricter voice than before while her subordinates nodded their heads in understanding.

While Elle bit her lip as she was pulled away by Ty Lee.

While Mai followed after them as she still glanced around the ship with a spark of paranoia in her eyes.

While Jiao and Nako made their way to their rooms behind them.

Just as the army swallowed fearfully when Azula's perfection driven amber golden eyes finally turned to stare imposingly back at them.

While Zoi and Saro now stood faithfully in military formation behind their angered princess with their heads straightened in reverence to her authority.

While a great many of the Fire Nation soldiers sweated beneath their helmets under the princess's brutal stare.

All of them fearing that they would be punished horribly for failing their unforgiving princess.

"And you call yourselves soldiers." The princess began in a frigid voice with her amber golden eyes glaring back at the intimidated faces of her subjects.

After facing the wretched puppeteer in battle personally.

She was well aware that common foot soldiers couldn't even begin to compare to an opponent of Silah's caliber.

But even so…

There was no way that she could allow such a tremendous failure to go unpunished.

"This pathetic display is absolutely unacceptable! From this moment forward each and every one of you will repeat your training from dusk to dawn. Until I say otherwise. Do I make yourself clear!" Azula commanded in a supremely authoritative voice while a regal scowled graced her imposing features.

While a flicker of delight flashed in her controlling amber golden eyes as she watched every person in her army fall to their knees in submission.

All the while as her callous eyes glanced over her shoulder to see Zoi and Saro kneeling on the floor behind her with their heads bent in a display of deference.

While a pleased expression flashed before her eyes as she gazed from one soldier to another as she listened to her subjects cry out in affirmative.

"Yes, Your Highness!" The Fire Nation army called out in unison while the princess's frozen amber golden eyes stared imperiously down at them.

And then the stoic princess turned to walk away without saying another word while her amber golden eyes glared ahead once more.

Silah…

She is going to find that woman.

And when she does…

She will make her scream for decades to come!

All the while as the captain watched her princess depart with a scowl of her own on her lips.

'Even if it is the last thing, I do…this monster will not get away with killing my people.' The captain thought with her golden eyes taking on a stonily focused stare once more.

And with that the royal barge set sail into the ocean's waters to their next destination.

The seat of Clan Zanoda.

Later on, that day…

The three highborn Fire Nation women were now relaxing in the royal lounge as they tried to put the previous day's events behind them.

While their servant friend stood beside her princess as she tended to her needs.

Although it went without saying that it was easier said than done.

And so, the two nobles were now watching as their adopted sister stood behind the royal woman massaging her shoulders.

While the princess smiled contently as she relaxed in her plush seat with her handmaiden girlfriend smiling at her from over her shoulder.

"Azula do you really have to make Elle work every moment of the day?" The acrobat questioned with concern in her voice.

While the markswoman let out a snort already knowing the answer to that question.

"It doesn't bother me oneesan! I am honored to serve Her Highness in any way that I can. I am her handmaiden after all. It's my job!" The handmaid chirped with her dainty hands massaging the taller woman's shoulders.

While a bashful smile came over her face when her master turned to gaze over her shoulder with a pleased grin on her lips.

"Oh, quit being so dramatic Ty Lee. I am simply doing as the girl requested." The princess spoke in a regal voice as she rolled her eyes while she sunk back in her lavish throne.

All the while as she savored the sensation of her little servant's loving hands dutifully kneading her neck muscles.

While the two noblewomen stared back at the strange couple with bewildered looks in their eyes.

"Requested?" The markswoman asked with mild curiosity in her monotone voice.

While she gazed back at her innocent little sister with a fond gleam in her tawny eyes.

"Elle has expressed a desire to serve her queen in a higher capacity. She wishes to serve me all day and night. And so…I have decided that I am going to keep her on hand at all hours of the day." Azula commented in a beyond spoiled voice with her lips pulling into a haughty smirk while her serving girl smiled at her from over her shoulder.

All the while as she took great delight in how both of her childhood friends stared back at her devoted servant girl in disbelief.

While the two nobles' big sisters resisted the urge to smack their palms against their faces.

"Little sister…why would you tell Azula that?" Ty Lee sighed with a shake of her head while Elle beamed back at them.

"Being Her Highness's servant is not something to be taken lightly oneesan. Azula-sama has even assured me that if she has an order that she will give to me before any of the other servants." Elle quipped in an innocently prideful voice while her big sisters stared incredulously back at her.

While the princess gazed smugly back at her two lifelong friends bewildered faces.

"How lucky for you kid." Mai replied with a sigh while she sat back in her seat staring back at the young girl's sweet face.

Yet even so.

She knew by now that there was no point in arguing with Elle when it comes to serving Azula.

It was plainly apparently that Azula made the girl happy.

And as her big sister…that was enough for her.

"Indeed, it isn't. And that is why I like this one. She sees me for the goddess that I am." The princess boasted with her beautiful lips curved into a content smirk while her handmaiden smiled proudly behind her.

"Azula-sama?" The handmaid queried in a lovably loyal voice as she peered at her master's gorgeous face while the woman turned to gaze back at her.

"Yes servant?" Azula answered in a cold voice that contrasted her attentiveness while she gazed back at the girl with possessive amber golden eyes.

While her callous gaze watched curiously when the lovely girl developed an adorably shy countenance.

All the while as the two noblewomen glanced curiously back at their little sister's cutely bashful face.

"Can…can we take a group photograph together?" Elle requested in an abashed voice as she kicked at an imaginary pebble for the three highborn women gazed back at her in confusion.

All the while as an expression of moved emotion came over the eyes of the acrobat and the markswoman.

While the stony princess arched an elegant brow as she sat back in her soft throne with her bewildered amber golden eyes gazing back at her small girlfriend.

"A group photograph?" The princess asked in a cold voice that masked her slight curiosity while her serving girl excitedly nodded her head.

While the two nobles listened with looks of interest in their eyes.

"Mhm! You set a timer on the camera and then we all pose for a family photo together! It's like posing for a painting but it only takes minutes to do it!" The handmaid exclaimed in an eager voice while the older girls gazed on in fascination.

"Ugh. So, in other words another group hug." Azula scoffed with annoyance lacing her seeming cruel voice while the acrobat smiled brightly beside her.

All the while as the markswoman let out a sigh while the teenager's innocent eyes gazed back at them.

"Aww! That sounds like a lovely idea Azula! We should totally take a photograph with Elle!" The acrobat said in a cheerful voice while the princess scowled at her.

While the two noblewomen watched with amusement in their eyes as the teenager began to tug on the scowling woman's robed sleeve.

"Can we please take a group photograph together Azula-sama?" Elle pondered in a puppylike voice while Azula sat glaring at her from over her shoulder.

"Tiger monkey…" The princess growled in a domineering voice with her amber golden eyes narrowing sternly back at her excited girlfriend.

"P-please Azula-sama! Please! Please!" The handmaid whined as she pulled on the older woman's arm.

While the two noblewomen chuckled over their little sisters' antics.

Only for blue flames to spark to life in the royal lounge not a moment later.

"Fine! We'll take your stupid peasant photograph!" Azula barked in a pompous voice while she listened to her small girlfriend let out a begrudgingly adorable squeal.

While Ty Lee smiled as widely as can be beside the sighing Mai.

"Yay! We're going to take family photos together!" Elle cried out as she thrust her arms above her head while Azula rolled her brilliant amber golden eyes at her.

"I don't suppose I can say no to this?" The markswoman inquired in a deadpan voice while she sat up in her seat.

Yet even so she still found herself staring back at the girl with a spark of fondness in her eyes.

She knew well enough that her time among the team was coming to a close.

And that she had to make the most of the time that she has left with the girl.

"I'll go set up the camera! It should only take a moment!" The handmaid shouted to her friends as she scurried over to her backpack while the older girls watched her dart off.

While the princess let out a sigh as she sat watching her serving girl with a coldly protective amber golden eye.

All the while as the smaller female dug through her backpack with an exuberance that the three older women found endearing.

And shortly after that the teenager set out the camera on an ornate stand while the three Fire Nation women now gazed curiously back at the machine.

Just before the trio turned towards the door when it opened up not even seconds later.

And the captain walked in wearing casual clothes.

Only for Elle to smile warmly back at the warrior while the older woman offered a slight smile back at her.

And that was all it took for her three highborn friends to know what the girl was going to say before she even said it.

All the while as Mai groaned under her breath in anticipated aggravation.

"Zoi! Come join us! We were just about to take a team photograph!" Elle announced in a joyous voice while the older woman blinked as she stared back at her in confusion.

While the princess tapped her boot on the floor as she scowled back at the younger girl.

All the while as the acrobat still smiled in the direction of her adopted baby sister.

"A team photograph you say?" Zoi repeated in an undertone of perplexity while the teenager rapidly nodded her head.

While her stony golden eyes glanced over the younger girl's camera with intrigue flashing before her eyes.

"Or don't." Mai stated dryly with a snort while Zoi just turned to smile tauntingly in her direction.

"That's right! I'm learning how to take a photograph with my new camera." The handmaid declared in a lovably proud voice as she puffed out her chest while she fiddled with her camera.

While the warrior found herself unable to resist smiling once more.

While the acrobat released another giggle as she smiled brightly.

"Since I can see that it will make Clan Saolin miserable. It would be my pleasure." The captain responded with a smirk on her lips as she strode over while her fellow noblewoman glared back at her.

"Okay! Now we all need to go line up over there in front of the camera!" Elle informed in a helpful voice while her highborn friends listened inquisitively.

"Whatever. Let's just get this over with." The princess scoffed as she stood up from her seat while her cold amber golden eyes followed her little girlfriend's every movement.

While the acrobat and the markswoman stood up to follow after the princess.

All the while as the captain curiously made her way over.

"I get to stand by Azula-sama!" The handmaid declared in a worshipful voice as she scurried after the older woman's heels.

While the princess glanced over her shoulder with icy amber golden eyes as she watched the younger female scamper over to her side.

All along as she turned to stare back at the camera with a flicker of hidden interest in her eyes.

And soon after that the acrobat cart wheeled over to stand beside the princess while she beamed at the teenager.

"So how does this work Elle?" Ty Lee questioned with a smile on her lips while Elle smiled brightly back at her.

"Well, it's sort of hit or miss since we can't see the picture before we take it. So, we just have to hope it turns out well! If not, we'll do it over." Elle explained as she slid in closer to her princess while the older woman stood with her arms crossed over her chest above her.

While Azula let out a sigh under her breath as she regally posed herself as if she were standing before the royal painter.

All the while as she gazed down when she felt her girlfriend's head press into her side as the teenager smiled widely back at the camera beside her.

Just before she turned to glance to her right when she felt the acrobat slip her arm around her shoulder.

While Mai moved to stand beside Elle.

Only for Zoi to bump her aside with her hip.

While she now glared back at the older woman's smirking face as the warrior smugly stood beside the joyful handmaiden.

"I don't want to stand beside you. I was going to stand beside Elle." The markswoman stated with snap in her voice while the princess rolled her amber golden eyes.

All the while as the smaller girl blushed as she stood between her four friends.

"Too bad. It's not my fault that you are too slow Mai." Zoi remarked with a taunting smile on her lips as she stood beside her adopted sister while the other woman glared back at her.

"Alright everyone! Look at the camera!" The handmaid advised in a chipper voice while her princess stood scowling over her.

While the princess stared back at the camera with callous amber golden eyes as the acrobat smiled from where she leaned on her shoulder.

All the while as the captain and the markswoman stood glaring back at one another through the corner of their eyes.

"Don't touch my shoulder Zoi." Mai complained with her tawny eyes glaring back at the other woman while the princess glared at them through the corner of her eye.

"Then get out of my face Clan Saolin." The captain replied with her golden eyes glaring back at her fellow noblewoman's scowling face.

While Azula's amber golden eyes started to flash with a spark of aggravation as she glared back at her feuding subordinates.

All the while as Elle and Ty Lee still smiled on each side of her.

And not a second after that…

The camera made repeated clicking sounds while the highborn women turned to gaze in fascination back at her.

While their young friend smiled adorably from where she stood with her head tucked in at the princess's robed side.

And a few moments after that.

"Let's see how they turned out!" Elle called out as she ran off to grab the camera.

While the Fire Nation women found themselves staring on curiously as they watched the girl collect the machine.

And soon after that the highborn girls crowded around their companion as they watched in amazement as she operated the device.

Only for all of their eyes to stare down in astonishment when they saw a lifelike image of all five of them on the small screen.

While Zoi in particular gazed on with the highest level of awe in her eyes since it was the first time that she had gotten a chance to check out the camera.

While the princess's regal lips parted in bewilderment as she surveyed the photograph of her and her team.

It was a picture of Elle standing happily beside Azula while Ty Lee balanced herself on the princess's shoulder.

While Zoi and Mai stood glaring back at each other as if they were about to tear each other's throats out.

All while Azula looked as if she were about to shout at her subordinates in anger.

Only for the four older girls to turn to their young friend clicked her tongue.

"Azula-sama…you weren't looking at the camera like I told you to do and you were making a funny face." The handmaid commented as she chewed on her lip while the princess glared down at her.

All the while as the three noblewomen gazed in amusement at their leader's irritation.

"Did you just call my face funny?" Azula asked in a stern voice while she stared icily down at her lovely handmaiden.

"And Zoi and Mai…you two look like you are about to kill each other. Ty Lee is the only one who was actually looking at the camera." Elle spoke in a gentle voice while Ty Lee smiled proudly back at the two other women's deflated faces.

"Sorry Elle. I'll try to ignore Zoi next time." The markswoman assured while the captain glared back at her.

"This is such a fascinating invention Elle. Can I have a look at it?" Zoi pondered with interest lacing her voice while Elle nodded her head.

And then the teenager handed the older woman the camera while the warrior gazed down at it in awe.

All the while as the princess and the two other noblewomen still gazed at the invention with marvelment in their eyes.

"And all of the photographs that you take are held inside that little machine?" The acrobat queried with wonder in her voice.

"Yep! You push the two buttons there to cycle through all of the photos that are stored on it!" The handmaid instructed in an informative voice while the team gazed on in amazement.

While Zoi began to push the buttons to cycle through the photographs.

All the while as the three other highborn women stared on from over her shoulder in fascination.

Only for the captain to raise a brow when she saw a photograph of her princess on the digital screen.

And then she clicked the button once more.

Only for yet another photo of her princess walking down a forest path to appear.

And then another after that…

And another after that.

And soon enough the teenager stood blushing while the three noblewomen gazed down in puzzlement at what seemed to be hundreds of photos of their princess.

All the while as Azula held her head high with a haughty smirk on her lips taking clear delight in the younger girl's worship.

"I-I like taking pictures of Azula-sama." The handmaid stammered adorably while her big sisters listened in humor.

"We can see that Elle." Mai answered with a slight fond edge to her monotone voice while she gazed back at Azula's smirking face.

Only for everyone to turn to Zoi when she let out a surprised sound.

While the warrior now gazed down at the camera with her mouth in the shape of an o as she turned to the younger girl's reddened face for an explanation.

While the princess now leaned down with her amber golden eyes staring curiously down at the screen.

Just before she arched an elegant brow while she turned to peer down at her tomato-faced girlfriend.

All the while as the markswoman and the acrobat turned to their little sister with a certain level of amusement in their eyes.

The picture in question was none other than a close-up photograph of Azula's robed ass.

"Evidently so. From all angles." The captain remarked with a smirk on her lips while she gazed teasingly down at the younger girl's overwhelmed face.

"T-that wasn't me. S-someone else took that photo." Elle sputtered in a lovable voice while her friends gazed pointedly back at her.

"Really servant? Now I find that hard to believe. Considering that you are the only one who has been playing around with that peasant toy of yours." The princess spoke with her beautiful lips curving into a conceited smile while she watched her pet struggle to defend herself.

"Oh, just leave the poor girl be Azula." The acrobat commented in a supportive voice while the royal woman just smirked down at the younger girl.

"You know Azula…when you become Fire Lord that would make for a great royal portrait." The markswoman taunted with a widening smirk while the princess briefly glared at her through the corner of her eye.

All the while as poor Elle stood with her cheeks as red as can be.

"Indeed princess. That truly would be something for the history books." Zoi snickered with entertainment in her voice while her princess just glared back at her.

While Ty Lee gazed chidingly back at her fellow noblewomen.

Before the royal woman sighed as she turned to gaze down at her confuddled serving girl with an amused gleam in her amber golden eyes.

"If any other servant were to check out my body, I would have them banished or put to death." Azula snorted with her arms crossed over her breasts while she loomed over the embarrassed girl.

"S-sumimasen Azula-sama. I-it's just that you are so magnificent. I-I can't help looking at you." The handmaid responded in a beyond abashed voice while a smile formed on the princess's regal lips as she held her head even higher.

"I know I am. Relax Elle. You are my girlfriend. I have already told you that you are allowed to look." The princess stated with a captivating smirk on her lips while she savored the way her serving girl shook under her domineering stare.

"C-can we just go back to the group photograph?" Elle sputtered in a helpless voice while Azula stood smiling arrogantly over her.

While the three noblewomen gazed back at their adopted sister with amused looks in their eyes.

Before the captain passed the camera back into the younger girl's hands while the princess still stood smirking beside the teenager.

And not long after that…

The highborn women and their young friend were back to posing for yet another photograph.

While Azula stood with her chin held high with all the posture of true royalty.

All the while as Elle stood shyly with her head leaning into the older girl's side.

While Ty Lee still stood with her arm around the princess's shoulder.

All the while as Zoi stood with her arms folded over her chest.

While Mai stood gazing on calmly alongside her.

And finally, after a series of a several more photographs one turned out right.

The photograph of Team Azula that was now on the display now showed Azula standing proudly with Elle holding onto her elbow.

While Ty Lee smiled cheerfully from where she leaned on the princess.

And Zoi gazed back at the camera with a small smile on her normally stoic lips.

And Mai herself had allowed her usually monotone expression to give way to a slight smile.

All the while as Elle smiled sweetly from where she stood leaning into the princess's elbow.

While Azula stared back at the camera with her regal lips ever so faintly curving into the barest hint of a smile.

It truly was a rare moment for Team Azula.

In which they all felt content to have made it through their many harrowing ordeals.

And for the moment they were just glad that they had made it back to the royal barge safe and sound.

And even more than that.

The four highborn women were unable to deny that they were even more relieved that their innocent companion was still with them.

And for Team Azula.

That was a victory.

Elsewhere in a dark Fire Nation forest in the dead of night…

A Fire Nation soldier was currently running for her life.

She ran with her agape in terror as she madly sped through the tree line.

While she periodically glanced over her shoulder hoping that she had escaped her pursuers.

Until after running for what felt like an eternity.

She finally stopped to catch her breath as she balanced herself with a hand on a nearby tree.

All the while as her bangs stuck to her exhausted face as she turned to gaze behind her once more.

Before she finally breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that she had managed to outrun her assailants.

'I have to get a message out! I must tell someone about…that thing that I saw! The crown princess! The Fire Lord! Anyone! Someone will believe me! They…they have to!' The woman thought with a panicked expression taking over her fright-stricken face.

And then she pushed herself off the trunk of the tree as she moved to sprint away.

Only for her eyes to grow wide in shock when she felt something pierce her from behind.

While she shook on her wobbling feet as she gazed down with widening eyes to see that a hand formed of shadows was now penetrating her rib-cage!

'How…did they catch up with me?! I…could have sworn that I outran them!' The soldier thought with her eyes closing shut as her arms fell down to her sides while she fell backwards.

All the while as the seemingly alive shadow smoothly retreated from her chest as she fell to the ground with her mouth frozen in a state of horror.

And not a moment after that the soldier dropped to the ground lifeless with her armor clanging upon the forest floor.

Just before the shadowed hand withdrew into a mass of shadows that was swirling along the base of the tree.

And then the living shadows slithered off into the dark of the night.

And just like that the ominous living shadow was gone as quickly as it had come.

Leaving behind only the corpse of the lifeless female soldier laying unmoving on the forest ground with her face suspended in an expression of perpetual terror.

#Azula #avatar the last airbender fanfiction #ty lee avatar #mai avatar #femslash

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wreckthelist · 7 years ago

Text

at first sight: meeting Rach @ Harold Pinter stage-door

Ask me if I believe in fate, for all I’ve railed against its faults and failings, and I’ll still say yes.

I was browsing tumblr (I’ve been on here far too long, but it’s an asymmetrical symbiotic relationship, if you’ll pardon the expression.)—and came across a post on the ongoing run of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf at the Harold Pinter. It’s here, I thought. Just right here. And Luke Treadaway too at that. For how long I’ve loved his twin, Harry, I’ve been meaning to watch him live in action. Not to mention Edward Albee and I go way, way back. Oh sir, way back.

This is only one of the three sources I used comprehensively (or, more accurately, obsessively) for my IB English Higher Level Paper 1. The running themes of fiction vs. reality, illusions vs. real life, which unite Albee’s celebrated work, Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire, and Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman—those I can (sprinkling present tense for extra emphasis and dramatic effect, no less) never get enough of and those which has stayed with me through these formative years, seeping themselves into my thoughts, my fiction framing, and the way I approach stories and character-writing. They’re my forefathers, those that came before, those that have stayed, and those that would always be with me.

Open up Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf and you’ll hear me go on long monologues back to those days when I drudged through daily timed (Ready. Get set. Go! And you thought English’s a breeze. It isn’t.) open-ended essay questions in class, scouring my brain for text extracts, juicy quotes, and relevant themes—all the more better if present in the three texts. Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf was, and still is, my cup of tea. The dysfunctional relationships—the Dean’s daughter and the wimpy History university professor; the pretend gentleman of a Math (sorry, Nick—Biology!) university professor and his blond mousy wife—juxtaposed against each other, the young and the old, made fascinating, animated, and alive, when seen actually acted out in engrossing and hypnotic fashion by Imelda, Conleth, Luke, and Imogen. It’s alcohol numbing senses and humans playing psychological mind games and stimulating the worst in each other. It’s wordplay and emotional manipulation of the cruelest kinds and secrets spilled without second thoughts for consequences. It’s blood and gore and scars without physical, bodily harms and long, twisted monologues on the eternal battle between the young and the old, and history and science. It’s debates and confessions and lies on love and what it means to be by each other’s side as husband and wife in a relationship. It’s self-aware illusions masqueraded as truths, story-telling to its most sordid effects, reality warped as fantasies and words told and retold so often they became real. It’s manifestations of two joined minds of history that never did exist and a person, a glue to the relationship, that they wished (fervently) would exist.

“Martha: Truth or illusion, George; you don't know the difference.

George: No, but we must carry on as though we did.”

Martha: ’tis the refuge we take when the unreality of the world weighs too heavy on our tiny heads.

God, I loved it. I still do. I swallowed all that up. Mix it in with a hint of time in Willy’s fantasy escapades and we’ve got my favourite (and signature) approach to writing—in episodes and through a nonlinear timeline.

What’s true. What’s not. Why must we continually fool ourselves, despite knowing so, to go on living? What’s escapism and believing, investing so heavily in a fantasy?

Then there’s the talk of academics. University professors. Drinking. Oh, god. I know. I know. It’s all in there. It’s all in there.

I’d never been to (or in) Harold Pinter before that Monday, when I got that fateful email about [REDACTED] which, looking back, would be one of the great regrets of my life—but how could I? When you had to choose between flying home and [REDACTED]—out of my homesick heart, what would you have done????

To this day, I still feel like I turned down [REDACTED].

But whatever. This is not about [REDACTED] [REDACTED].

This is about the play, about the actors, about that fateful stagedoor, about the conversations that ensued afterwards, and about one particular UCL girl.

The production design was impressive—that compressed, tight-knit set (which Rach’s already described as inducing that very innate claustrophobic sense the play was supposed to instill in its audience. Oh yea, you’re not there for comfort. No. These aren’t your friendly neighborhood parlor games.) of George and Martha’s house. From the door (I still remember the details. That, or because I snuck in a last-minute photo before I left, out of sheer awe that I finally got a chance to watch that play that became my life—overstatement? Hyperbole? I think not.—live and brilliantly acted.) to the books adorning the walls-as-shelves on the left and right of the stage, the couch in the middle of the way between the door and the rug , the art pieces, the rug (later Nick’s and Martha’s sensual dancefloor, to George’s numbed dismay and Honey’s dizzy drunk mind). There’s even a fireplace, stage left. And a workdesk, stage right.

Lamps worked, as actors turned them on and off throughout. Music flew in and scenes happened before you, with no escapes of the yard outside or the bar as offered by the film (We did watch the film in English class. Bless. I do realise I have to thank Mrs. McCarthy for changing my life.)

After the play, came the stagedoor. My first ever (imagine that. In March. How far I’ve come.) I wasn’t sure. But it was Luke Treadaway, and I had to.

There’s a few (too few) of us crowded around that stagedoor, shivering in the cold. Rachel was the one Asian, another familiar face I saw. Luke came out, beanie and checkerboard/lumberjack jacket, passable as an ordinary Brit wandering the streets. No one would’ve spotted him. He said ‘yes,’ to requests, and tried signing again when my pen didn’t work the first time (I didn’t even bring my Sharpie—what an amateur. And I had them—him and the others—sign the programme. I should’ve asked for the ticket, keeping in mind how much I travel. Then again, amateur hour. A mistake not to be made twice.) I asked for a selfie, and the picture turned out damn adorable (because he was pointing at me and smiling, and I treasure it to this day). Rach asked for a selfie. Afterwards he lingered around and asked, “Anybody else?” We all said, “No,” and “Thank you,” and he left, another figure rounding the street corner.

It’s those little things an actor does that stays with you. Luke is incredibly sweet for having done that, just as Jack O’Connell was for turning my ticket the right side up before signing (ugh. You have to love him.) and taking the time to ask me, “You mind if I use your pen for a bit?” and returning me the pen.

Later Imelda came out, signing everything with a flourish and voicing (loudly) her refusal to understand social media hype.

“Why’d you do this play?” some girl asked her, and, one’d have to give her credit for that frankness (we’re not going for interview quality answers here), because she answered simply, “Someone asked me to,” before disappearing into her car and into the night.

Conlenth came and signed and went. There was nothing much there, except us telling him how great he was.

Imogen was one of the major reasons I came, aside from the play itself. My alternate tag for her is ‘sunshine,’ because her smile to me is exactly that, so you could imagine my disappointed surprise when she did not show.

Rach and I gushed about Luke, about his sweetness. We talked and talked. I’ve no idea—it has indeed been awhile—how I got the conversation started. But I did remember talking first. Maybe it was about asking her if she’d read the play before. If you’d read her side of this story, I too am not one to start conversations, but that moment just felt right.

(Like when I caught eyes with the Korean girl at the Sons gig.)

It’s hard to explain. It’s serendipity. It’s fate. It’s just something that happens. Something that just is. Something that you just know.

And with her, my hunch turned out to be for good.

We exchanged Facebook, I think—or was it Instagram too, on our walk back to the horses at the Haymarket streetlights (oh, how I’ll miss it. Good ol’ Londontown. I’m further away from you every second now.) And somehow I found her on Instagram.

And we hit it off, we did.

We made plans. Got to her place and binged on Sainsbury’s discounted Ben & Jerry’s (was it Phish Food?) and chocolate lava cake (good times.) and watched Branaugh (that 1993 version) and a bit of the Joss Whedon one (me having too many pieces of Rach’s delicious fudge in the process—mhm.)

Chatted about my romantic misfortunes (I give up. It wasn’t even romance.), obsessions, and life. She’s the most receptive, reassuring listener and I turned into my extroverted, fast-talking self so quickly around her. It’s like we’ve known each other longer than we did.

Now we’re in touch via Facebook, and Tumblr. And I can say, with guarantee, that while long-distance relationships may not work, long-distance friendships can last. I’ve carried on the same lines with my other Malaysian friend for 4 years (and met up with her twice in the UK), and this one with Rach, I truly believe and hope it could and would last.

Because we get each other. Because she understands. She’s there for me, and I promise with all my heart I would always be there for her.

And if it’s any proof of fate, I’ve been writing and am publishing this a day after Luke Treadaway’s birthday.

#theatre outing #personal #who's afraid of virginia woolf?#Luke Treadaway #imelda staunton

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aiimaginesbts · 8 years ago

Text

House of Cards: Chapter 3 (M)

Taehyung x Reader, with Jungkook

Genre: Smut, a little angst, slightly fluffy

Warning: Infidelity. Please avoid if this is not for you.

Word count: 5,020 words

Chapter 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 (Final)

Disclaimer/Copyright

The neighbours were definitely wondering why you were doing a spring cleaning in the middle of November, the sounds of you vacuuming the entire house breaking the silence of the normally quiet Friday afternoons. You had left work a little early to clean your apartment, even though there was not much to be done since you always kept the place spick and span. First impressions are important and from the short conversation you've had with Jungkook earlier, you'd deducted that he seemed like a nice guy, so you were eager to have him move in. Especially since no one else had answered to your ad.

The house was perfectly tidy, nothing out of place and not a speck of dust to be found anywhere. Brushing your hands happily, you took the small bag of trash and opened the front door to get rid of it. You were greeted by the back of a young man leaning against the railing in front of your house. The rattle of the door opening caused him to turn around in surprise to face you. You were not sure if your gaping mouth was due to the astonishment at finding someone outside your house, or if it was amazement at facing someone so good-looking.

A moment of silence passed as the two of you stared at each other, then the man said, "Are you y/n?"

"Yes," you confirmed. "And you are..."

"Jungkook," he finished your sentence for you. "I was the one who called you earlier." He started to offer his hand for a handshake but you shook your head and held up the bag of trash to show him the reason you had to decline the offer. "Oh, let me take care of that for you."

Eyes wide open at his words, you shook your head and jerked the bag away. "No, I can't let you do that!" Without thinking, you had engaged this handsome man in a bizarre contest of getting the trash. He reached for the plastic bag, his hand following it as you twisted and moved to get it away from him. His reflexes were a lot better than yours, and in no time the trash was in his hand and his body had trapped yours against the wall beside your door.

"One bag of trash doesn't make your place a sty, you know," he teased, his face a scant few inches from your own flushed face before he walked away to get rid of it. You were still leaning heavily against the wall, trying to catch your breath and cool yourself down when he returned.

"Thank you," you breathed, glad that you were able to make the words come out sounding perfectly normal, not like he had the ability to knock the wind out of you.

"No problem," Jungkook flashed you another brilliant smile and held up his hands. "I know I'm a little early, but can I go in? I need to wash my hands now."

"Oh, yes, of course," you mentally kicked yourself for not inviting him in and motioned him to follow you inside. Leading him to the kitchen, you pointed at the sink. "Make yourself at home. I'm just going to change out of these real quick," you motioned at your work clothes.

"Sure," he nodded and turned on the tap to wash his hands while you hurried into your bedroom to change into comfier clothes. At first you were tempted to put on fancier clothes than the ones you would usually wear at home, then you reminded yourself that he was supposed to be your prospective roommate, not your date. So you slipped into an oversized tee and black tights after washing your own hands in the bathroom.

Entering the living room you immediately spotted Jungkook sitting on the one-seater sofa, looking at the photos you had hung on the walls with interest. Upon hearing your return, he wrenched his gaze from the frames and stood up. "Just admiring the pictures," he said.

You grinned at his sudden shyness, feeling more confident now that you were in your home and he wasn't too close to you. "Were you waiting for seven o'clock so you could knock on my door?" His straightforward nod accompanied by an "I don't like being late," resonated with you. "Would you like a drink, or would you prefer to see the house first? Not that there's much to see, there's just the extra bedroom left."

"Save the best for last, so I'd say see my room first," he answered. Your heart jumped a little at his words that relayed his certainty of taking the room, even as your mind tried to work out what he meant by saving 'the best for last'. You were tempted to ask but you told yourself to calm down and show the man the extra room.

"It has an attached bathroom, so you can have your privacy," you informed him as you opened the door to the extra bedroom. "You're welcome to use everything in the room and make any changes that you'd like, just inform me if you want to make holes in the wall though," after gesturing to the bed, wardrobe and other smaller furniture that adorned your spacious guest bedroom, you chanced a glance at his face to see his reaction.

You were glad to see that his eyes were darting all over the place, eyeing the room with excitement. "I love it," he gushed. "I can't believe that with this price, no one has rented this room yet."

"Why? Is it too cheap?" You asked nervously, and he laughed at your panicked tone.

"No, no," he assured you with his hands held up in a gesture to correct himself. "The price is very reasonable, really. You can ask anyone around here if you don't believe me," he said confidently at your doubtful look. "It's just it's really hard to get a place to rent in this neighbourhood. The cheaper places have all been grabbed by the college students, and all that's available are in the upper class neighbourhood, and the prices are crazy. I'm lucky to get a room as nice as this."

He managed to placate you, because even if you did place too low a price on the room, as long as it wasn't ridiculously cheap, you wouldn't have raised the price if it meant that Jungkook would take the room. For some reason, you liked him immensely, even though you'd only met him for less than an hour. "Well - I take it that you're interested?"

He chuckled and nodded. "Definitely."

"Then why don't we talk about the details? It's not much so I'm sure we can get it settled quickly."

"Eager to chase me out already?" His question was teasing and cheerful.

"No! You can stay as long as you like." Even though you knew he was joking, you couldn't help yourself from making sure he did not feel less than welcome. You could see him grin at your naivety out of the corner of your eye, but you ignored him apart from telling him to take a seat in the living room while you made tea.

"So," you began after setting down the tray bearing a teapot, two cups and a bowl of sugar, "the rent is as I've stated in the website, but other than that, I do have some preferences that I hope you can take into account. I don't mind you bringing people over as long as you don't crash the place, and try not to let it get too messy."

"That's it?" He asked in disbelief. "That's no problem at all. When can I move in?"

You laughed at his eagerness. "Don't you have anything you'd prefer me to do, or not to do?"

He shrugged. "You're the landlady. You should be able to do whatever you want to do in your own house."

Giving him an exaggerated shudder, you said, "You make me sound like a crone. How old are you, by the way?"

"From the looks of it, I think I might be older than you," he wiggled his eyebrows and grinned, making you roll your eyes in amusement. "I'm twenty-one. Doing my final year in SH University."

"Hey, that's where I graduated from!" You exclaimed excitedly. "What course are you taking?"

Before you knew it, you had spent almost two hours chatting with Jungkook, getting to know your new roommate better. Then his eyes strayed to the clock hanging among your photos. "Oh wow, it's almost ten already. Time really flies when you're having fun. I'm sorry for taking up your Friday night."

If it was anyone else, you might have tried to lie and say that you had a thriving social life, but if he was to be your roommate, eventually he would find out what a loser you were anyway. "I don't have plans for today. I'm usually free on Friday nights," you told him truthfully. "But I won't keep you here, I'm sure you have better things to do."

To your surprise, instead of getting up like you expected him to do, he leaned back against the couch and wiggled on the cushion, giving you a show of making himself comfortable. "The best deal I've got for tonight is right here."

You shook your head and smiled, not believing him for one second. A young, gorgeous guy like him should have his weekend full of parties and dates. "We can always hang out here when you move in. I'll be here throughout the weekend, but if you want to move during the week, normally I'll be home around seven or eight."

"I'll come tomorrow with my stuff," he said.

"Don't you want to spend your Saturday doing other things?" You asked in astonishment, not expecting him to agree to move in so soon.

"Like what?"

"I don't know, go on a date maybe?"

Jungkook pursed his lips, as if toying with the idea before shaking his head. "Nah. I'd rather get all my stuff into my new room, then I can force you to spend the weekend with me, since you said you're free." Ignoring the blush that heated your cheeks at his flirtatious words, he lifted his hips up to pull an envelope from the back pocket of his jeans. "I almost forgot. Here is the three-month deposit that you requested."

Taking the envelope from him, you opened it to count the money inside. "You could have given it to me later. How are you so sure that you would be taking that room?"

He shrugged and smirked confidently. "Maybe I just have good instincts."

True to his word, he brought his possessions with him in his car the next day. There wasn't much, yet you insisted on helping him carry everything upstairs, despite his protests. The next few weeks were uneventful, mostly consisting of work for you and classes for him, and adapting to each others' schedules and habits. You stayed home most weekends like you always did, even before he came along. Jungkook on the other hand, spent some of his weekends out of the house, and some indoors with you, watching movies or letting you bully him into watching dramas occasionally.

The new routine wasn't hard to get used to, as Jungkook proved to be an easygoing and friendly person - someone you couldn't help liking and feel comfortable around. The weeks seemed to be moving in a cycle that you enjoyed, and you thought that it would remain the same for a while, at least until Jungkook moved out at some point in the distant future. However, a tiny little detail slipped your mind. A detail in the form of a tall, rich secret lover.

It was another Friday night that you were spending at home, alone this time because Jungkook was out with his friends. You weren't sure if they were at a party or doing something else, but you were glad that he was living a fun college life, even if it meant that you had no one to watch this new movie with. You were doubly glad that he was not home when your phone rang and Taehyung's name flashed across the screen. Putting your mug of hot chocolate down on the coffee table, you picked up your phone, making sure to not answer the call too fast.

"Hey, Y/n," Taehyung's deep voice called when you answered.

"Hey, Tae."

"Can I come over?" You had no idea why, but he sounded chirpy and excited.

Biting your lip, you looked at the clock on the wall, debating whether you should say yes or no. The last time you talked to Taehyung was weeks ago when he came over, just before you put up your room for rent and you didn't want to tell him then, afraid that he would offer you his money instead, something that you never wanted to happen. Having an affair with a married man was already weighing heavily on your conscience, to take his money, even if you were just borrowing from your ex-boyfriend, would make you feel like a prostitute. You meant to tell him about your new roommate at some point but things got so comfortable with Jungkook it felt like he had been staying with you forever and you hardly talked to Taehyung anymore so it completely slipped by you.

Forcing all the uncertainty from your mind, you answered, "Sure, I'm home now."

About twenty minutes later, there was a knock on your door, and you raced to open it, unsure of why you were in such a hurry in the first place. Taehyung was looking relaxed in a black tee and Bermuda shorts, leaning towards you with his arm braced against the frame of the door. "Hey," he said his usual greeting with an easy smile.

"You're in a good mood," you remarked as you stepped aside to let him in.

"I can spend the night here today," he declared and it was only then that you noticed that he had a backpack slung over his shoulder.

"How come?" Having Taehyung sleep over was extremely rare; almost unheard of.

"She's gone on a work trip," Taehyung explained. "And I have work to take care of during the weekend so she couldn't make me go with her. But that doesn't mean I can't spend tonight with you." Taehyung's loving gaze took out the sting that you felt at the reminder that his jealous wife always brought him with her everywhere, making it even harder for you two to meet.

You smiled back at him and took his hand to lead him to the bedroom, but he stopped you in your tracks. "Can't wait, huh?" He chuckled. "We have the whole night to ourselves, let's watch a movie first. Have you even eaten dinner?"

Your eyes flicked to the clock. It was barely eight in the evening. Jungkook wouldn't be back for a few hours yet, that was if he was even returning for the night. You had time. "I haven't. Have you?"

"Nope. Let's order take out and eat while we take in a movie. I miss spending actual quality time with you."

Taehyung definitely had a way of keeping himself in your heart that overrode your guilt about sleeping with a married man. It was hard to let the first and only love of your life go when he said sweet things that caused you to melt faster than butter left in the blazing sun. "Sounds good. What movie do you have in mind?" He dug around the inside of his bag to pull out an Interstellar DVD.

Sex with Taehyung was divine and you loved him to bits, but you missed hanging out with him like you used to in university. Between the two of you scarfing down the pizzas, all the food was gone in a blink of an eye. Both of you enjoyed the movie and spent the next hour discussing and debating the possibilities and plot holes of the movie. Before you knew it, midnight had struck.

After quickly putting away the dishes and pizza boxes, you ushered Taehyung into your bedroom, where you could lay on the bed without worrying that Jungkook would catch you with Taehyung. You stared at the ceiling, distracted until you noticed that Taehyung was propped up on his right elbow, his eyes glinting from the light that came from your windows, the only source of light in your dark bedroom. You turned to your side to face him, returning his affectionate smile.

"I don't understand how you could be the most beautiful woman in the world even after so many years of knowing you," he complimented, sending butterflies fluttering inside your stomach. He reached out his left hand to tuck your hair behind your ear. "Even now, no one can compare." You knew that he meant his wife and a small triumphant feeling rose in your chest at the flattery.

When he moved his hand to cup the side of your face, you scooted closer to bring your lips to his. The kiss was slow and thorough, not rushed like it usually was these days. Taehyung sighed contentedly and slid his hands slowly against your sides towards your waist, pulling your body to press against his. He pushed his hips to meet yours, unashamedly letting you feel his half-hard erection as he parted your mouth with his tongue.

Moaning into the kiss, you let him explore your mouth with his tongue as you brought your leg over his body, wanting to bring him as close to you as you possibly could. You tugged on his shirt, bringing it up to his chest and he broke the kiss to pull it off swiftly before locking lips with you again.

"Taehyung," you whispered in between kisses, trying to slip your hand into his shorts and underwear to touch his cock. He got the message immediately and you lifted your leg just long enough so he could pull them off, leaving him completely naked. You struggled to pump him with your hands while rubbing it against your clothed core at the same time.

"Looks like someone has been missing me," he teased before nibbling on your bottom lip.

"So much," you admitted. "Don't you miss me?"

He pushed you to lie on your back and climbed on top of you. "Every single day." With that, he started sucking gently on your neck, but not hard enough to bruise you while kneading your breasts over your shirt. You were glad that you usually forgo bras when you were at home. Your sensitive nipples hardened against his palms at once, and Taehyung, noticing this, lowered himself down to take a covered nipple in his mouth to suck. Moaning his name, you ground your hips against him, seeking for some relief.

It was nowhere near enough and in no time you had pulled your own shirt off so he could lavish your breasts with attention directly. Taehyung worshipped your breasts, kissing and nipping them lightly, licking and sucking your erect nipples, causing you to bury your fingers into his hair to push his head into your chest. His ministrations were sending waves of heat down your body that soaked your panties.

"Taehyung, please," you begged, "I need you." You reached for your shorts to take them off but he beat you to the punch, dragging them down your legs so you could kick them off, sending them flying to who knew where. However, instead of filling you up like you were hoping, he wrapped his hand around the shaft and slid it up and down your dripping slit. You whined in frustration and tilted your hips up in an attempt to force him inside you but he pulled away before leaning down to press the head against your clit.

The pressure drove you even higher up the wall, giving up all semblance of control by grabbing his cock yourself. You slid your hand back and forth over his length, the movement pushing him against your sensitive nub even more. Pleasure built inside you at a frightening pace, but just as you were about to come, he pulled away. Your cry of irritation at the loss of contact was cut short when he replaced the tip of his cock at your core.

Taehyung hissed at the tightness of your pussy as he pushed himself inside slowly until he was buried to the hilt. Being the considerate lover that he was, he gave you some time to adjust to the invasion before moving his hips, leisurely at first, then speeding up as he increased the momentum. His name fell from your lips with every thrust, all your limbs wrapped around him to try to keep yourself anchored as he steadily fucked you to oblivion.

The friction of his cock moving back and forth against your walls caused a coil of pleasure to tighten inside your stomach. You barely remembered not to leave any marks on him so you focused on pressing the pads of your fingers on his back instead when the thin rope connecting you to your sanity snapped. Screaming his name as your orgasm burst through you, Taehyung's own grunts were registered somewhere in the back of your mind when your constricting walls sent him over his own high. Both of you moaned loudly as his hot cum filled you deep inside.

He braced himself on his elbows so he didn't crush you under his weight as pants replaced the moans that were filling your room before, trying to catch your breaths. When your breathing had slowed down to something that resembled normalcy, Taehyung pushed himself off of the bed, pulling you with him by the hand.

"Come on, let's get cleaned up so we could go to bed."

For the first time in a very long time, you didn't wake up alone in your bed. It surprised you at first when you opened your eyes to feel a warm presence behind you and look down to see an arm wrapped around your waist. Then you remembered that Taehyung spent the night with you, and it made you smile to yourself like a young schoolgirl all over again, before his cock, although flaccid, made you ache for him. So you shifted your hips back sneakily, grinning to yourself when you heard him moan against your ear as the movement roused him from sleep.

"Morning, y/n," he mumbled, his voice, which was even deeper than usual, sent more spikes of arousal down south. He buried his face into your neck, moaning softly before he addressed your ass grinding his cock which was at half-mast now. "Just what do you think you're doing, you naughty girl?"

"What do you think I'm doing?" you asked teasingly to match the rolling of your hips.

"Trying to get into trouble, that's what," he chortled, then sighed, tightening his hold around your middle so that it was difficult for you to continue arousing him. "Sorry my love, but I'm just too tired."

"Oh, okay," you said, pouting slightly. You'd wanted to make the most of this rare opportunity, but you understood his hectic work schedule that left him exhausted most of the time.

You weren't sure if Taehyung heard the disappointment in your reply or saw the pout, but he said, "Well, if you could get me hard and ride me, I wouldn't say no to that."

Heart slightly lightened at that, you twisted your body to give him a kiss before shimmying yourself down to level your face with the bulge that was growing more visible in his boxers. He got on his back to make it easier for you and lifted his hips to let you take his underwear off. It was still a little limp, but quickly hardened at the touch of your hand and within a few minutes of having your warm mouth sucking him off, he was fully erect.

Your name coming in moans from his mouth was extremely satisfying. To know that this beautiful man was falling apart because of you made your core drip with need. At first, he raked your hair gently with his fingers as you ran your tongue all over his length, softly guiding you to take his shaft in your mouth, bobbing your head up and down repeatedly. He let you continue for a while, savouring the sensations of your pink muscle rubbing the sensitive underside of the head in between swirling around it, lightly poking at the slit, until he decided that he was getting too close to the edge. His fingers curled into a fist to pull you off of him by your hair.

"Mmm, that was so good, baby. Too good," he cooed. "Can you ride me now?"

Nodding eagerly, you pushed yourself up to straddle his hips, stopping only to pull your panties off, leaving both of you naked. However, before you could lower yourself down onto him, he stilled you by placing his hands on your waist, then brushed the tips of his fingers against your skin, making a trail from your waist to your soaked pussy. You squealed when he started fingering you, making sure that you were wet enough to take him. The lewd sounds of his fingers pumping your pussy that was already sopping wet with anticipation made you close your eyes in a mixture of pleasure and embarrassment. Satisfied that there was enough lubrication, he shifted his hand back to your waist so you could sink down on his length.

Both of you groaned in pleasure when he filled you up completely. You didn't waste much time, bracing your hands on his chest to stabilise yourself as you impaled yourself on his cock over and over again. Loud groans and grunts punctuated by the sharp sounds of skin slapping against skin filled the room, driving you and him towards your highs. Taehyung slid his hands up to your breasts which were swinging with every thrust to squeeze them, flicking his thumbs across the hardened nipples, making you arch your back in pleasure. Soon he could feel you tightening around him, a tell-tale sign that you were about to come, and sure enough, with a cry of his name, your insides started pulsating against his cock. He pumped into you from below rapidly to join you in your orgasm, his grunts and the warmth that suddenly hit your walls told you that he had released inside you.

He caught you before you could crumple onto him and flipped you to lie byhis side. After you caught your breath, you headed to the bathroom to pee and decided to take a shower right after. Taehyung decided to wait until you were done to get in to clean himself instead of joining you. You quickly dressed yourself in t-shirt and shorts, then headed out into the living room, the tinkling sounds of the water from the shower cut off when you closed the door behind you.

You almost got the shock of your life at the sight of Jungkook bustling around in the kitchen, making toast and coffee. You had assumed that he had spent the night elsewhere. Tossing a worried glance at your bedroom door, you tried to sound nonchalant as you said, "Good morning, Jungkook."

His back was to you so you couldn't see his expression when he said, "Morning," in return, but your nervousness didn't encourage you to be patient so you forged ahead, "When did you get in?"

"Last night."

"Really? What time?" You asked, sitting at the counter to watch him spread some blueberry jam on his toast.

"Around 12.30 maybe."

You bit your lip. Somehow you must have missed the sound of him entering the house, but most importantly, considering the thin walls and how loud you were being last night, Jungkook definitely heard the sounds of your lovemaking with Taehyung. Not only last night, but this morning as well. You wished a hole would open up in the floor and swallow you whole.

Then you reasoned; I'm a grown adult. Jungkook doesn't know who Taehyung is so to him we were just having consensual sex. There's nothing wrong with that at all, so why am I worrying? Although you told yourself that was the logical way to look at it, you couldn't help your heart thumping in your chest when Taehyung came out of your room, already fully dressed and carrying his bag, ready to leave.

"Oh? Who is this?" Taehyung stopped in his tracks when he saw Jungkook.

"Uhm, this is my new roommate, Jungkook," you made the introductions. "Jungkook, this is Taehyung." You dearly hoped that the younger boy wouldn't notice your failure at mentioning how Taehyung was related to you.

The two men shook hands before Taehyung placed his palm on your back, saying, "I have to go. I'll talk to you when I can." Nodding to Jungkook tensely, he quickly made his way out of the apartment without waiting for you to see him out.

Jungkook and you sat in silence for a while after that, him munching on his toast and you sipping on your coffee. Then he broke the awkward silence by asking, "So... is that your boyfriend?"

"Ah, yeah, well," you answered, throwing in a non-committal shrug to cover your lie.

He noticed your discomfort right away. "Hey, you're old enough to do whatever you want, don't feel bad about it." There was no easygoing humour in his words though, which confused you as to his feelings on the matter, so you decided to take him at face value.

"You sound... ahem," he cleared his throat awkwardly at his poor choice of words, "happy with him, but I think he should take you out more. You spend too much time by yourself at home." He wagged his index finger at your after doing his dishes, his usual playful self making a reappearance before he disappeared into his own room.

Ah, if only it was that simple.

#btssunshinenet #bts writing squad #armiesnet #noonanet #bts scenarios #taehyung scenarios #jungkook scenarios #bts smut #taehyung smut #bts angst #taehyung angst #jungkook angst

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