#anyways I still need to do like every other race and class soon so I can get the fun dialog

[fandomrewrites]

Legends Chapter 8: Signets

Hello Riders! Sorry for the late update, I head to rethink a very important part of this chapter at the last minute because I didn't want to go with my original thought. Which meant deleting a section of what I already wrote and having to figure out a good place to put my new idea-after I figured out that new idea. Anyways, I hope you all like this chapter!

Chapters 22-24 in Fourth Wing Pairings: Xaden x Younger Sister, Liam x best friend Warnings: Mention of death, swearing, violence, *Big spoilers from the book series* Word Count: 9,894

Legends Masterlist

Signets usually say a lot about the rider. It's why I'm not surprised my signet is shadow wielding. I keep a lot of secrets, I need to in order to survive. But what do you need, (Y/N)? Whatever it is, I have no doubts that you'll be among the strongest. -Recovered correspondence from Cadet Xaden Riorson to (Y/N) Riorson

Once battle brief ends, I quickly pack up my things and rush out the door, the sound of my squad calling after me fading in the distance. Nyx and Aether are silent for the moment, waiting for me to reach my room.

I rush through the halls, mind racing. I know what's happening, but I don't want to believe it. It can't be true. I make it to my room and lock the door behind me, throwing my bag on the floor by my desk. "Nyx, please tell me my signet isn't what I think it is." I say through our bond. I need confirmation.

"I will not lie to you, Night Orchid." Nyx's velvety voice floats into my head.

"Please say it. I need to hear it, because if I don't I'll keep trying to deny it."

"You're an inntinnsic. You have telepathy to be exact." Nyx answers, voice strong.

"They'll kill me."I whisper aloud, falling to my hands and knees in shock. Knowing it's telepathy doesn't even register in my mind. I only focus on the fact that being inntinnsic is a death sentence and even though I usually put on a brave face, I don't want to die. Not yet.

"I will not allow them to harm you. I will destroy every human and dragon in my path if they even breathe wrong in your direction." Nyx assures.

"But-"

Nyx cuts me off, "You will learn to control it in secret. You are strong and smart, I would not have chosen you if you weren't." My breath hitches at her words, "No one will know except those you choose to tell, though I recommend keeping it to yourself. Now rest, you need it after developing your signet."

"I have still have one more class, and I'm already late." I try to argue.

"Skip, resting is more important at the moment." I don't argue anymore. I slowly stand up, kicking my shoes off and climbing into bed. I'm asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow.

*_*_*_*_*

I'm awoken by knocking on my door. "Go away!" I yell. I'm terrified of who could be on the other side. Of the possibility of the person finding out.

"(Y/N), open up." Liam calls back. I groan but untangle myself from my sheets. I hesitate, my hand hovering over the door knob. "(Y/N), come on." I can't ignore him, even though part of me really wants to.

I crack my door open, "Finally." I hear Liam's voice but his lips don't move. "Are you okay? You skipped the last class. And you missed dinner." He holds up a plate of food, "I brought you some in case you were hungry. Gods I hope she's alright."

I keep my mind carefully blank as I watch his lips move. Making sure the only words I acknowledge are the ones actually coming out of his mouth. "Thanks." I mumble. "I have a really bad migraine, it started in battle brief. Nyx said resting was more important."

"Did you go to the healers?" Liam asks, causing me to shake my head. "Maybe you should, they could give you something-"

"Liam, I love you. But all I want to do right now is eat and go back to sleep. So thank you again for the food, but leave me alone." I step back, closing the door in his face before he can say anything else. I hate being rude to him but I'm so nervous he'll find out.

I can't slip up, telepathy is more than just being able to read other's minds. I can project my thoughts into their head as well. One slip up and I'm dead. I sit down at my desk, beginning to eat the dinner Liam brought me as my mind races. I doubt Liam would tell anyone but I can't put that burden on his shoulder's.

Once I finish eating the food Liam brought me, I pace my room. Mind still racing, thinking of all the ways this can go wrong. "Enough, Night Orchid. You're driving me insane." Nyx huffs. "Burning alive sounds more fun than having to hear your worrisome thoughts. I already told you no one will harm you."

"You can't promise that, Nyx." I sigh, shaking my head. "You can't be with me 24/7. Carr snapped a kids neck the other day because he was an inntinnsic."

"That kid was weak, he showed his signet to everyone and was killed for it. You managed to hide it and will continue to hide it for as long as we live." Nyx growls.I groan in frustration, but I know I need to hide it or I'm as good as dead.

I bite my lip, closing my eyes and stepping into the library at Riorson house. I focus on the window with the comfy reading nook below it. Through that window I see the shimmering white light that represents Nyx's power. I slam the window shut, locking it, then open my eyes back up, keeping one foot in the mental library.

I need to block Nyx out or she'll try and talk me out of this. But I need to do this, I can't do this by myself and there's only one person I trust with this information. I pull my shoes on and rush out of my room, passing by Liam who sits outside of Violet's door. He quickly stands up when he see's me. "(Y/N)? Where is she going?" There's a pause between his thoughts, "Fuck, I can't leave Violet."

I ignore his call, climbing the stairs and heading towards Xaden's room. I knock once, then open the door before Xaden can answer. Xaden, Bodhi, and Garrick all turn to look at me.

"What is she doing?" Xaden narrows his eyes, his voice sounding in my head. Clearly, I'm struggling to block out all of Nyx's power.

"I need to talk with you. Now." My eyes are wide as I look Xaden in the eyes. My gaze flickers to Bodhi and Garrick, "Privately."

"Come on, 'cuz. It's just-" Bodhi starts, a playful smile on his lips.

"Out. Now." I glare.

"You can't just order them out of my room, (Y/N)." Xaden rolls his eyes.

My glare turns to Xaden, "I just did." I turn back to Garrick and Bodhi, "Now get out before I resort to violence."

Garrick stands up, "Well Chradh just told me to leave unless I want to get eaten by Nyx so…" He trails off, clapping Bodhi on the shoulder, "I suggest we leave."

"What did Chradh say to you?!" My eyes widen in panic. Logically, I know Nyx didn't tell Chradh anything. This is a secret she's keeping between me, Aether, and herself. But I can't help the panic that seeps into me. But somehow I control the power enough to not let my worries reach anyone in the room. Probably with Nyx's help.

"Exactly what I said," Garrick exchanges looks with the others, worry evident on his face. "He didn't tell me why Nyx would eat me, he just said to leave." Garrick shrugs. "What the fuck is going on? Is she okay?" His eyes are focused on mine, begging me to tell him what's going on, but instead of asking he pulls Bodhi with him, heading for the door. "See you in a bit, Xaden."

Xaden nods, turning to me once the door is shut behind Garrick and Bodhi. "Well?" He asks, eyebrow raised. "What is so secretive that she had to kick them out of the room?"

I start pacing in front of my brother, "Will anyone be able to hear us if they're trying to listen in or do we need to find some place where no one can hear us?"

Xaden's eyes narrow, "My room is warded so no one can hear what's going on in here with the door closed. What the fuck is going on?"

"Good, good." I mumble, "I got my signet today during battle brief."

"Okay? Why is that a secret?"

My lip wobbles, the minute I tell him there's no going back. I stop pacing, turning to look him in the eye, "You know why." I can't bring myself to say it out loud.

Xaden tilts his head in confusion, "A secret signet. She's panicked. Oh my gods, is she an inntinnsic?"

"Yes," I say, answering his unspoken question. I force the word through my mind, into his.

Xaden's eyes widen, "How did she? No, she can't be."

"I am. Nyx already confirmed it. I'm telepathic, inntinnsic." A tear falls out of my eye before I can stop it, "They're going to kill me, Xade." I say out loud, voice cracking.

"No." Xaden says, moving towards me and gently grabbing my arms. "No, no one will lay a hand on you. How many people know?"

I shake my head as more tears fall, "You're the only one I told."

Xaden pulls me into a hug, he presses my head against his chest as I sob. He slowly lowers us so were sitting on the couch. "You'll develop a second signet, no one will have to know about this." His hand brushes over my hair, trying to soothe me.

"What if I don't?" I choke out between sobs, "People will begin to wonder why I haven't exploded!"

"You will!" Xaden's arms tighten around me, my head tucked under his chin. "And if you don't we'll sneak you out of here, to Aretia. You'll be safe. I promise."

"Even if that works, how am I supposed to learn to control it? I'm already on the verge of going crazy from having to keep my mind blank so I don't talk to anyone!"

"I'll help you learn."

"How are you supposed-"

Xaden's voice floats into my head, cutting off my panicked question. "I'm an inntinnsic too."

I finally pull away from Xaden when I hear his thought, "What?" I ask confused, tears finally slowing down.

"I developed my second signet not too long after the shadows. I knew I had to keep it a secret because they'd kill me if they found out. I can't read thoughts but I can read intentions. It's a form of inntinnsic." Xaden pauses, "I can- will. I will teach you."

"Who else knows?" I whisper.

Xaden shakes his head, "No one. You're the only person I've ever told." I blink, shocked by this new information but happy I'm not alone. He reaches up a steady hand, brushing away the last of my tears. "Now the first lesson, you need to know is control. You already learned grounding, correct?"

I nod, muttering, "Carr taught us."

"That light that connects you to Nyx, there should be a line flowing from it. That's your signet. You need to block the flow from that line. That way you block the signet but not her full power." Xaden gives me clear instructions, making sure I understand every word.

I take a breath before thinking back to the Riorson library. I find Nyx's power and the line of magic flowing from it. I snap the door shut, blocking the signet from being used. "Okay, it's done."

Xaden nods, "Now you just need to get used to holding it all the time. You can't let it slip. And if it does you need to close it as quickly as possible." I nod in understanding.

*_*_*_*_*

It's an hour after curfew and I still sit in Xaden's room practicing my shielding. We've been talking and playing games, trying to distract me so I can practice holding my shields in place for everything. Spoiler alert, it didn't go very smoothly, but at least I'm letting it slip with someone who already knows what's happening. And the longer I practice the better I get.

"Okay," Xaden says, standing up and stretching his legs, "I'll walk you back to your room. I need to meet with Garrick and Bodhi."

"Are you guys doing a weapons drop?" I ask. Xaden told me about helping the fliers a while ago. They need more weapons to fight the venin so the marked ones have been making the weapons here at the school then periodically meeting with them to hand them over.

Xaden nods, "We need to leave soon so we can make it back in time."

"Let me come with you." Xaden opens his mouth like he's about to argue, "Please?" I ask. "I don't want to be alone right now, and it will be great practice."

"What if you slip?" There's a brief flicker of worry behind his eyes before he quickly masks it.

"Then I slip. I can't hide in my room forever. Nyx blocked me before, if I can't get under control quickly enough, she'll do it again." I reassure. Of course I'm nervous about others finding out, but I need the practice and I trust Nyx to help if I need it. Plus if I slip in front of Bodhi and Garrick I trust that they wouldn't say anything, though ideally they won't find out.

"Of course I'll stop you from using your powers if I need to." Nyx says to me, "I'll meet you on the flight field. It will be nice to fly with Chradh for one of these weapons drops."

I smile at her words, "Nyx already said she'll meet me at the flight field, so no arguing."

Xaden sighs, "Fine." He opens his armoire, pulling out two flight jackets. He holds one out for me. I grab it, slipping it over my shoulders. "There should be an extra pair of flight goggles in the pocket." Sure enough, I stick my hands in the pockets and feel the flight goggles.

"Thank you," I say, smiling once more. We quickly make it out to the flight field. Sticking to the shadows so Xaden can hide us if necessary.

Garrick and Bodhi are already waiting with the dragons, "How are you feeling?" Bodhi asks once he sees me.

"Better now. Sorry for how I reacted earlier. It was important." I say, looking between the two riders.

"We figured," Garrick replies, shrugging. "At least you're alright now."

"Let's go." Xaden says, stopping Bodhi, Garrick, and I from continuing the conversation. He runs up Sgaeyl's leg, settling on her back.

I run towards Nyx, mounting without issue. "Aether was worried, he wanted to come but for once in his life he listened." Nyx says once I'm settled.

I pull my borrowed flight goggles down, "I'm alright, Aether. I'll visit you tomorrow." I call out to him.

"You better." Aether huffs, making me smile. Nyx launches into the air, she allows Sgaeyl to lead the way, flying close to Chradh. It takes three hours to get to our meeting spot. It's the longest I've ever flown and my legs are starting to go numb. We are just beyond the wards, the magic is wilder out here. It's something you don't notice when you're not bonded.

"Stay." Xaden says, eyes meeting mine.

I scoff, but do as he says. That is until I see the fliers coming towards us. I scan the group, and immediately notice Syrena. "Syrena!" I yell, I quickly stand up, jumping from Nyx's back, rolling so I don't hurt myself.

I stand up quickly, rushing towards the flier, and fling my arms around her. "Wow, (Y/N). You've gotten even more beautiful then were when you were 15." She says, hugging me back. I may not be able to stand Syrena's sister Cat, But Syrena is amazing. She definitely got all the good traits.

Before I can reply, Xaden scolds me, "I told you to stay mounted."

I roll my eyes, pulling away from the hug, "I'm not a dog. And Syrena is a friend." I turn, looking at the other riders, "And any friend of Syrena's is a friend of mine." I lean forward, towards the other fliers and drop my voice to a whisper, "She has good taste, she likes me after all."

The fliers all smile at me, "This the infamous (Y/N) Riorson?" One of the fliers asks.

"At your duty," I playfully salute with two fingers. Despite the distraction, I've been doing really well with keeping my shields up. I only had one slip up during the flight, and luckily it was only into Xaden's mind. I take a moment to remind myself to keep a mental foot in the library to continue to block the power.

"No wonder Syrena talks so highly of you," Another flier says, "Older Riorson should take some notes." A playful smirk pulls at the fliers lips.

I shake my head, "I tell him all the time, he's just always so… broody." I poke Xaden's cheek on the last word. Bodhi snorts at my words and Garrick's lip turns up into a smirk.

Xaden slaps my hand away, glaring. "Here's the weapons, we'll reach out in a few weeks about another drop." Xaden says, bringing the conversation back to why we're here. There's four bags of weapons. Garrick, Bodhi, and Xaden drop the bags at the fliers feet. "We have to head back."

"Thank you." Syrena calls out as we turn away, heading back towards our dragons, "(Y/N)." I turn to look at her. "It's good to see you. Especially on a badass dragon like that," She nods her head at Nyx. "We all knew you'd amount to great things."

I smile, "Thanks, Syrena. It's good to see you too. Stay safe."

"We'll try."

*_*_*_*_*

As November turns to December, I make sure to practice with my telepathy every day. Because if I don't I will be greeting Malek sooner than I would like. I don't slip up anymore. My shields are incredibly strong, the strongest in my year. And I've been practicing reading minds without letting my thoughts enter the other person's. Which I've also excelled at, though it takes more focus than just shielding myself from using the signet.

I still haven't manifested a second signet which is making me incredibly worried. Xaden keeps having to reassure me that I will and nothing bad is going to happen to me. Nyx and Aether try to reassure me too, but I have my doubts. I mean why hasn't the second signet manifested yet? It's been a month since the first one showed up, and if it doesn't manifest soon people are going to start questioning me.

Currently the squad is in the gym, practicing hand-to-hand. Dain made mandatory practice sessions every Tuesday night to prepare for the Squad Battle. Not that Liam or I need it. I'm still undefeated in challenges and the only time Liam lost was to me.

Rhiannon and Violet are practicing together with staffs. The staff is far too big a weapon for Violet but it's a practice session so I say nothing. Rhiannon stops short from hitting Violet, "You're distracted tonight." Rhiannon says, backing away. Her gaze flickers to Liam who is sitting next to me carving a new piece of wood.

I have a book in my lap, a romance novel about a princess who falls in love with the knight tasked to be her personal guard. It's a cliche but it's cute. I go back and fourth from reading to watching the practice matches around me.

"But you're faster than you used to be." Rhiannon continues, "Whatever Imogen has you doing is working."

"As if there was ever any doubt," Imogen calls from the mat next to them. She has Ridoc pinned in a headlock. Jack and some of the members of his squad are a couple of mats over, also practicing. It's why Liam isn't practicing himself. And because Liam's out, I don't have a partner.

"You're taking it easy on me." Violet says. Sawyer and Quinn are circling each other, Emery and Heaton are coaching the new members we gained after Threshing, and Dain is watching the matches unfold.

Dain's eyes meet mine, "(Y/N). Join someone. We're here to practice, not read."

I roll my eyes, then look around the room before bringing my attention to Dain once more, "I'm sorry, is there a new squad member we magically acquired? Because if you haven't noticed, everyone is already paired up."

Liam smiles, but continues to focus on his carving and Violet. Dain glares at me, but before he gets the chance to answer I speak again, "Unless you're offering to be my partner, squad leader?" I smile innocently.

Dain's jaw ticks, "Fine." He gestures to the open mat beside Imogen and Ridoc, "Let's go."

I smirk, placing a dagger in my book then gently putting it on my chair. "This will be fun." I mumble, just loud enough for Liam to hear me. One of the reasons I've been practicing reading thoughts with my signet is so I can hear my opponents thoughts when fighting. If I can hear what they're thinking without sending my thoughts back to them, matches will be even easier to win than they already are.

I walk towards the mat, standing to face Dain, "Weapons?" He asks.

"I'm fine with anything. Or nothing." My smirk widens, "Choose whichever you think will help you win. I don't mind being at a disadvantage."

Dain rolls his eyes, "You're already at a disadvantage, I'm taller, stronger, and have more practice than you."

"Maybe so, but I'm faster and more agile."

Dain sighs, "No weapons. Just our hands."

"And mouths." I grin, "What makes you tick, squad leader?" I slowly start to circle him, "I'm very good at pushing buttons if you haven't noticed."

Dain takes a deep breath, clearly trying to make sure I don't rattle him. "Don't give her a reaction. That's what she wants." Dain's eyes follow me around the mat. "Are you going to talk or are you going to fight?"

I raise an eyebrow, "Have you never heard of a verbal battle? A battle of wits?" Out of the corner of my eye I see Garrick and Xaden enter. Xaden does a double take when he sees who I'm facing but doesn't interfere, instead he focuses on Violet saying something to her as he passes.

"This is hand-to-hand combat. Not a debate."

"True. But that doesn't mean I need to move first. Especially because the conversation is so… stimulating." I shrug, indifferent.

"She's so irritating. She's really not going to make the first move? She does this almost every match." I cross my arms, waiting for him to move. Dain's jaw ticks. "You're seriously just going to stand there?"

"I'll stand here all night, Aetos." I raise a brow in challenge.

"This fucking woman. I swear to the gods." Dain's frustration is palpable. Even if I couldn't read his mind, it's easy to tell he's annoyed with me. Good, just let that annoyance come out in the fight. But I know Dain is smart, and it's going to take a lot to get him to react. "Fuck it. Looks like I'm offense."

Dain moves quick, trying to kick my legs out from underneath me. But he's not quick enough. I uncross my arms, jumping out of the way, we circle each other before Dain moves again. I block his punch, interlocking are arms. I swipe his leg, making him fall to the mat.

Dain rolls away from me, quickly standing back up. "Still feeling confident, squad leader?" I taunt. We dance around each other again, throwing punches and kicks. Dain's a good fighter, but I know I'm better. Even without my secret signet.

I move my right arm up, blocking another blow. Then I switch, too quick for Dain to keep up. Instead of fighting on defense like I have been, I move to offense. I attack quickly, pushing Dain towards the edge of the mat. I aim low, sweeping his legs from below him. He lands with a thud. I quickly move on top of him, pinning him below me, in a tangle of limbs.

My grin widens as I watch him catch his breath, "Fuck me." He takes one more deep breath, "You're fast." He whispers. "I yield. Only because I need to get back to watching everyone else."

I roll my eyes, "Sure, that's the only reason why. Just admit I'm better than you." I tease, still not letting up.

This time Dain rolls his eyes, "Probably in more ways than one. Just let me up, Riorson."

I pout, "What's the magic word?"

"Fucking- Please." He says through gritted teeth.

"Actually the magic word was, 'you're right'. Technically though that's two words, three if you count the-"

"(Y/N)!" Dain scolds, still laying beneath me.

Our eyes meet, "Fine. Fine. I'll let you up." I stand up, offering Dain my hand which he accepts. When we look at all the other matches, everyone is distracted by either us, or Xaden and Garrick, who are currently sparring shirtless.

"Get back to work." Dain orders, "We still have another half hour." I reclaim my seat next to Liam as Dain goes back to watching the matches.

Rhiannon and Violet start back up again, but Rhiannon quickly sweeps Violet's legs from under her. "Shit, I'm sorry, Vi." She drops beside her. "Just relax and give it a second."

"And yet that is the rider Tairn chose," Jack sneers, "I'm starting to think he chose wrong, but considering I haven't seen you wield any powers, I bet you're thinking the same thing, too, aren't you, Sorrengail? Shouldn't you have twice the ability to channel with two dragons?"

I roll my eyes, it doesn't work like that with feathertails but of course no one but Violet and I know that. Liam and I stand, Liam puts himself between Violet and Jack while I hang back but make sure I'm available to do something if I need to.

"Simmer down, Mairi. I'm not going to attack your little charge. Not when I can challenge her in a couple of weeks and accidentally snap her scrawny neck in front of an audience." Jack folds his arms across his chest, "Tell me, though, you are getting tired playing nursemaid, aren't you?" His squadmate offers him a piece of orange, Jack shoves his hand away, "Get that noxious shit away from me. Do you want me to end up in the infirmary?"

"Walk the fuck away, Barlowe," Liam warns.

"She's only alive because of you," Jack spits out, eyeing Xaden who moved closer to the group.

"Right, because I'm the one who buried a dagger in your shoulder during Threshing." Xaden sarcastically replies.

Violet scrambles to her feet, finally gaining back her breath. "We could settle this now," Jack says, sidestepping Liam to look at Violet. "If you're done hiding behind the big, strong men." I roll my eyes at his words. Garrick steps towards Violet's left. Imogen has also inched closer, Jack knows he can't do anything with all of us around. "That's what I thought." Jack says, blowing Violet a kiss.

"You ran," Violet snarls, "That day in the field, you fucking ran when it was three on two, and we both know when it comes down to it, you'll run again. That's what cowards do."

Jack's face flushes. Dain mumbles, "For fucks sake, Violet."

"She's not wrong." Xaden says. Garrick laughs, and a smile pulls at my lips. Liam maneuvers Jack off the mat. Jack's shoes squeak against the floor as he fights, unsuccessfully to hold his ground, and Liam forces him from the gym.

Xaden flicks his hand, shutting the doors with his power, locking Jack out. "What the hell were you thinking, egging him on like that?" Dain scolds, marching towards his childhood best friend.

"Oh, now you feel like talking to me?" Violet lifts her chin in defiance.

Xaden steps in between them, eyes meeting Violet's, "Give us a second." Rhiannon and Dain step back.

Garrick walks towards me, pulling his shirt over his head, as Violet and Xaden begin a heated discussion. "Did you win against, Aetos?"

I smirk, "Of course I did."

"Wingleader Riorson," Dain calls, "She's just not used to the bond yet. She'll learn how to block it out."

Xaden rolls his eyes, "You choose the oddest times to defend her, Aetos, and the most convenient times not to." I bite my lip, damn Xaden, go for the throat.

Xaden turns back to Violet, "Do us both a favor and put the fucking armor back on." He turns away from her. When Violet's eyes see his back, she gasps. Violet noticed the 107 scars littering his back. 107 scars to represent the 107 marked ones.

Xaden tenses for a brief moment before grabbing his shirt from Garrick's outstretched hand. They leave the gym together, not looking back in any of our directions.

*_*_*_*_*

It's the next day and Violet has pulled me into Rhiannon's room to talk with us. "So, what's up?" I ask when we're all seated.

Violet awkwardly rubs the back of her neck. "As you know, Tairn started channeling last night." Violet told us this at breakfast but we could all tell she was holding something back. "Something else happened but before I say I need to ask you a question." She looks me directly in the eyes.

"Shoot." I say, waiting for her to continue.

"Do Nyx and Chradh ever…" She trails off, "You know? Get intimate?"

I crack a smile, "You want to know if my dragon and her mate fuck? Of course they do."

Rhiannon smiles, but Violet's the one who responds, "Have you done anything because of that?"

"Wait? Did Tairn and Sgaeyl have sex after he started channeling?" Rhiannon asks.

Violet nods, "It felt like I was on fire, I'll never look at Liam the same."

I blink in shock, smiling faltering, "Did you and Liam-"

Violet cuts me off, "Gods no! But when I looked at him I wanted to." My shoulder's sag in relief. Liam and Violet can do whatever they want. I don't know why I'm happy that they didn't, but I don't focus on that. "I slammed the door in his face before I did something I would regret."

"So what? You want to know if I've ever done anything I regret because of Nyx's emotions?" Violet nods at my question. "Luckily no. The first time it happened, it woke me up in the middle of the night. I just got out of bed and went for a cold shower when I realized what was happening."

There's a brief pause, "The second time it happened, I locked myself in my room and handled things myself. I don't need someone else to please me."

"You didn't even go to Sawyer?" Rhi asks.

I shake my head, "Even though I enjoy my time with Sawyer, I'd feel guilty if we had sex because of Nyx's emotions. It wouldn't feel like I was 100 percent in control. And that's not fair to Sawyer."

Violet sighs, "That's what I'm nervous about." She pauses, looking down before looking back at Rhiannon and me. "Gods this is awkward… but last night after I slammed the door on Liam and told him to go to bed… I ran into Xaden." I raise an eyebrow waiting for her to continue, "We kissed. I don't even know what I was thinking."

"Well you weren't. At least not clearly." I shrug, "You find Xaden attractive, Xaden finds you attractive-"

"He does?" Violet interrupts.

"I mean… he didn't actually tell me that but I'm not dumb, and he's not either. He absolutely finds you attractive he just doesn't know when to admit his feelings… Fucking men." I roll my eyes. Most men never know when to admit their feelings, at least not until months, possibly years, of pining. "But anyways, your dragons emotions were adding on top of your own, it made it more difficult for you to resist, especially when the channeling is so new."

"I can't believe you waited this long to tell us." Rhiannon says. "And that's not judgment. Far from it. I'm all for you exploring… whatever it is you want to explore."

"Agreed, I approve. Xaden could use someone like you." I smile.

"I've been with Liam from the second I walked out the door this morning, and last night I was a little too discombobulated to put it into words." Violet rolls her shoulder, adjusting how she's sitting, "Between Tairn channeling and then everything else, it was just a night."

"Good point." Rhiannon says, then her smile widens, "Was it good? Tell me it was good. That man looks like he knows exactly what he's doing."

I laugh, "Oh gods, do I want to hear this? You know what? Just don't give details, yes or no?"

Violet's face flushes, "It was just a kiss… But yeah. He knows exactly what he's doing." Her brows furrow in thought.

"Second thoughts?" Rhi questions. "You look like maybe there are third thoughts, even."

"No," Violet shakes her head, "Well, maybe? But only if it makes stuff weird between us."

"I don't see Xaden letting a kiss become weird." I say.

"Yeah." Rhiannon agrees, "You guys are stuck together for the rest of your careers. Lives, too. Have you guys talked about what happens after he graduates?" Rhiannon turns to me, "Or you and Garrick for that matter?" She turns back to Violet, "Oh, I bet you get the choice of duty stations. Wingleaders always get to pick."

"He'll get to pick." Violet grumbles. "I will have to follow. Tairn and Sgaeyl haven't been separated for years. Her last rider died almost fifty years ago, and as far as I know, she flew wherever and whenever she wanted to be near Tairn before Naolin - his last rider - died in Tyrrendor. It's a two-day flight to that part of the border, depending on where he's stationed, so what are we going to do next year and the year after that?"

"He'll probably choose somewhere close so it's easier to get Sgaeyl and Tairn together. I don't know what Garrick and I are going to do." I reply.

"Not sure," Rhiannon shrugs, "Feirge said we won't be able to be apart more than a couple of days, so does that mean one of you always has to follow the other?"

I shrug as Violet answers, "No clue. I think that's why most mated pairs bond within the same year, so they don't have these issues. How am I - we -" She changes her words, looking at me, "supposed to stay competitive next year if we're constantly flying off to the front line with Tairn and Nyx? How is Xaden and Garrick supposed to be effective if they have to fly back here all the time?" Violet's face scrunches, "Xaden's the most powerful rider of our generation. He's going to be needed on the front, not here."

"For now," Rhiannon stares at Violet, lifting her brows. "He's the most powerful rider in our generation for now." She turns to look at me, just as intensely. She's indicating that Violet and I are going to be more powerful.

"What-" Violet starts but a knock stops her from continuing.

"Rhi?" Liam asks through the door, panic evident in his voice. "Is Sorrengail in there with you? Because-"

Rhiannon opens the door causing Liam to stumble inside. He catches his balance, eyes sweeping the room, stopping on Vi. "There you are! I went to the bathroom, and you disappeared!"

"No one's trying to assassinate her in my room, Mairi." Rhi rolls her eyes. "You don't have to be with her every second of every fucking day. Now give us five minutes and then we'll start walking to class." She pushes his chest and he retreats. His mouth opens and closes, trying to form an argument. But before he can, Rhiannon closes the door on his face.

"He's…" Violet sighs, "dedicated."

"That's one word for it," Rhiannon mutters, "You'd think that guy owes Riorson his life or something, the way he sticks to you like glue."

I look down avoiding eye contact, "He does." I whisper, "We all do." Violet and Rhiannon's gaze flicker to mine. The unasked question floating between us, "Don't worry about it. Story for another time." I wave my hand, brushing off the lingering looks.

Rhiannon hesitates but decides against trying to ask more, "Oh!" Her eyes light up, "Something happened with me last night, too."

"Do go on." Violet says, intrigued.

"All right," Rhiannon takes a deep breath, "I've only done it three times. Twice last night and once this morning, so be patient for a second."

"Of course," Violet says, nodding.

"Absolutely," I agree.

"Watch the book on my desk." Rhiannon says, nodding towards the book.

Violet and I both turn, focusing our gazes on the book. A minute passes but nothing happens, just as I start thinking that nothing will, the book disappears from the desk. My jaw drops open as I stare at the empty spot. Violet jumps up, whipping around to look at Rhiannon, "What the hell, Rhi? What just-"

I turn to look at Rhiannon as well, she's holding a book with a wide grin. "Is that the same book?" I ask, standing next to Violet.

Rhiannon nods, "I guess I can summon!"

"Holy shit!" Violet grabs Rhiannon's shoulders, "That's amazing! That's… incredible! I don't even have words for what this is!"

My smile stretches across my face, "Fucking brilliant!" I laugh.

"Right?" Rhiannon clutches the book to her chest, "I can only to it from a few feet away, and I can't go through walls or anything."

"Yet!" Violet and I say in unison.

"You can't go through walls yet." Vi continues, "Rhi. That's the kind of rare signet that's going to make your entire career!"

"I hope so." Rhiannon stands, putting the book back on her desk, "I just have to develop it."

"You will." I say. Minutes later, the three of us plus Liam are joined with Ridoc and Sawyer as we walk towards the academic building.

"I finished this for you." Liam says, handing Violet a wooden figurine.

It's Tairn, "That is… incredible. Thank you," Violet says.

"Thanks," Liam smiles, dimple popping. "I wanted to carve Andarna first, but I'm not around her as much, you know?"

"She's pretty private," Violet says.

"Unlike Aether, who always needs to be nearby. He's very clingy." I grin.

"You love it." Aether huffs.

"Of course I do." I reassure.

"Really, I love it. Thank you." Violet says again. The hallway clears as we walk closer to Professor Carr's room.

"You're welcome." Liam replies, he turns towards Rhiannon, "I'm starting Feirge next."

"Make sure to get her full badassery." Rhi jokes. Violet looks behind us, lost in her own thoughts. "We're going to be late," Rhiannon says, bringing Violet back into the conversation.

"Vi, can we talk?" Dain asks, coming up behind us.

"Now?" Violet asks.

Dain grimaces, nodding, "I tried to catch you after formation, but you disappeared pretty quickly, and after what happened last night, I figure now is better than later."

"It might be convenient for you to want to talk after weeks of ignoring me, but I have class right now." Her grip on her bag tightens.

"We have a couple of minutes, please?" He doesn't look at the rest of us, choosing to stay focused on Vi.

Violet glances at Rhiannon and I. Both of us glaring at Dain, "I'll be right in." We nod, Rhiannon turns around, walking into the classroom. I hesitate for a brief moment before following Rhi, and making sure to grab Liam to bring him inside the classroom too.

We wait just inside the door for Violet to finish her conversation with Dain. Once she walks through, her eyes scan the room. "Finally ready to join us, Cadet Sorrengail?" Carr asks.

"Yes, sir." She nods.

"Signet power?"

"Not yet." Violet shakes her head, we slowly make our way to our seats as Violet and Carr exchange words.

"I see." Carr clucks his tongue, "You know your siblings were both gifted by extraordinary signet powers. Mira's ability to manifest a ward around her and her squad has been an absolute asset to her wing, and she's been highly decorated for her valor behind enemy lines."

Violet forces a smile, "Yes. Mira is an inspiration."

"And Brennan…" Carr continues, "Menders are so very rare, and to lose one so young was tragic."

"I think losing Brennan is the tragedy." She lifts her bag higher, "But the loss of his signet was a definite blow to the wings."

"Hmm." Carr hums, "Well, it seems the Sorrengail line is blessed, even in a rider as… well, delicate as you are." What an asshole. "With Tairn having chosen you, we'll expect nothing but an earth-shattering signet from you. You can start with the lesser magics through your relic."

"No pressure." Violet mumbles.

"He had a very similar conversation to me when I started the class because of Xaden's powerful signet and Nyx being powerful." I roll my eyes.

"Don't stress." Rhiannon mutters back, "That's what I was trying to say earlier. You are Tairn's rider. And you Nyx's."

"What do you mean?" Violet asks.

"You're all worried about the integrity of the wing because Riorson might have to visit to keep his dragon happy, but Violet, he's not the most powerful rider of our generation. You both are. Bonding not only extremely powerful dragons but two dragons."

Violet looks at me in shock, "She's not wrong." I shrug, indifferent.

"Now let's begin." Carr says from the front of the room.

*_*_*_*_*

December has turned to January and I still haven't developed a second signet. It's been three months since I first started channeling which means I have three more months for a second signet to develop without people questioning me.

Violet is also still waiting for a signet to appear but at least she only started channeling last month. She still has five months before she needs to develop a signet. Ridoc can wield ice, a common signet but badass nonetheless. Liam has farsight, he can see an object or person from miles away. Rhiannon and Sawyer both practice their signets daily, and the growth in their power shows.

Xaden helps me with my telepathy as much as possible, usually 2-3 times a week. I've grown so used to shielding that I don't need to think about it anymore. I can easily infiltrate others minds without sending my thoughts to them as well. But I don't usually do this unless it's during a fight. The only person I practice sending my thoughts to is Xaden. No one else knows about my secret signet and I plan on keeping it that way.

There's no flight field today, the dragons have deemed it too cold. I'm not the biggest fan of the cold but I hate not having flight lessons. We'll need to know how to fly in all types of weather once we're out of the quadrant. Plus no flight field means I don't get to see Nyx and Aether.

I stand beside Liam, Ridoc, and Violet. Emetterio is calling out matches. Rhiannon is already on a mat fighting a first year from Second Wing. Sawyer is on another mat fighting a first year from Third Wing. "Mat seventeen, Jack Barlowe from First Wing versus…" Emetterio's brows raise, "Violet Sorrengail."

"Absolutely the fuck not." I say, eyes wide as I look between Jack, Violet, and Emetterio.

"No fucking way," Ridoc mutters.

"Finally!" Jack throws his hands in the air.

"Let's do this." Violet says, rolling her shoulders and heading towards the mat.

The three of us follow Violet towards the mat, "Tell me I can break my promise." Liam says to her.

My eyes narrow in confusion, "The third years are off doing third year things," Violet replies, "You can't get to him in time, but I know what it means to you to keep your word. Especially with him. Go ahead."

Liam turns towards me and Ridoc, "Guard her like you're me."

"You mean like I'm six inches taller and built like a bull?" Ridoc gives him a thumbs up, "Sure. I'll do my best. In the meantime, you'd better run."

"Quickly." I add.

Liam looks back towards Violet, "Stay alive."

"Working on it, and not just for my sake." Violet smiles at him, "Thanks for being a great shadow." Liam rushes out of the room at her parting words.

"He's going to try to kill you, you need to go for the weak spots. Knees, throat, eyes, and groin." I say before she walks on the mat. She nods in acknowledgment.

"Barlowe and Sorrengail," Emetterio calls from the opposite side of the mat. "Weapons?"

Jack bounces on the balls of his feet, "Anything she can hold in those puny hands of hers."

"No wielding," Emetterio reminds them, eyeing Jack. "Tap out or knockout earns you a victory." Jack is going to go for killing blows and we all know it.

Jack and Violet face each other. Jack only has one knife in his hand, "You're kidding, right?" Violet asks him, "Only one?"

"I only need one." Jack replies, a sadistic smirk on his face.

"Keep it clean." Emetterio warns, "Go." I watch with baited breath. Ridoc is tense beside me. Jack lunges for Violet, she slices her dagger across the back of his hand, earning first blood.

"Shit!" He jumps back, out of striking distance.

"Come on, Vi." I mutter.

Jack kicks out, aiming for Violet's midsection. She narrowly avoids the blow. "Bet you wish you could throw that blade, don't you?" Jack taunts.

"Bet you wish you didn't know what it feels like to dig out one of my knives, don't you?" She retorts.

Jack's lips tighten. He surges forward, using his strength and size to his advantage. He easily kicks Violet's dagger out of her hand. I suck in a breath, she needs to win this. She uses her speed, ducking and diving to swipe her other dagger at him. "Damn it!" He yells in rage.

Jack catches Violet off guard. He flips her over his back to the mat. He keeps her arm locked, thrusting his knife at her chest. Thank gods he doesn't know about her armor, it just saved her life.

"He's using death blows!" I call out.

"That's not allowed!" Ridoc shouts.

"Pull it back, Barlowe!" Emetterio bellows.

Jack has Violet pinned, but then she listens to my advice, kicking him right in the balls. He falls to his knees allowing Violet to stand up. Where the fuck is Xaden and Liam? "Tap out." Violet says, she picks up the dagger she dropped. "I can cut you open at any second. Both you and I know if this were real life, you'd be done."

"If this were real life, I would have killed you the second you stepped foot on the mat." Jack seethes.

"Tap. Out." Violet repeats.

"Fuck off!" He yells, throwing his dagger.

Violet throws her hands up, the knife lodges in her forearm, blood falling from the wound. "No throwing!" Emetterio scolds. My heart is beating fast in my chest, I swear I can hear it. Jack's fist slams into Violet's cheek. His knee rams into her stomach. His hands clasp her face. A scream, guttural and loud, rips from her lips.

"He's using his powers!" Ridoc yells. Ridoc, Emetterio and I all stop forward. They both try and grab Jack's arms to pull him away, but when they touch his skin, they hiss in pain, tearing their hands away. Violet shakily reaches her arm up, shoving her closed fist at Jack's mouth.

Jack jerks away, falling to the ground. But he can die for all I care, my focus is on Violet. I catch her as she falls forward, gently laying her on the mat. I feel a sudden surge of power as I gently cradle her face. I watch as the scrape on her cheek closes, then the knife wound on her forearm where Jack's knife once was.

"What the hell is wrong with him?" Someone asks from behind us. Ridoc is kneeling at Violet's other side, watching her wounds close in amazement.

"Oranges," Violet whispers. Her breathing is coming a little easier, but I can tell she's exhausted. "He's allergic to oranges." Ridoc relays the information to Emetterio and not a moment later, Xaden and Liam come through the door.

I look up at them, "She'll be fine. Or at least I'm pretty sure she will be." I look towards Ridoc then back at Violet, before finally looking back to Xaden and Liam, "My signet manifested… I'm a mender." Xaden's eyes light up.

For a brief moment I open my mind to him, "Focus on Vi, we can talk about this later."

Xaden kneels beside Violet, picking her up, "We'll definitely be talking about this later."

*_*_*_*_*

Liam

It's a couple hours before curfew, a week after Violet's match against Barlowe. She's gone to bed early because she's been training nonstop with Xaden. I knock on (Y/N)'s door, we haven't had a lot of time to hang out, just the two of us, since I've been told to watch over Violet.

She answers after a few seconds, "Hey," She says, looking past me, "Where's Vi?"

"Her room. Said she was tired, wanted to go to bed early." I reply.

(Y/N) nods, then grabs my wrist, pulling me into her room. "Xaden's been really working her. I'm not surprised she's tired. But she needs it."

I nod, "It's only going to benefit her in the end. She's stronger than she gives herself credit for but…"

"She's still not as strong as she should be as a rider." (Y/N) finishes for me, "What she lacks in strength she makes up in intelligence. If it wasn't for her weaponizing oranges she probably wouldn't had survived. Though I do wish she just let Jack die."

I chuckle, "Definitely would had made the rest of our lives easier." I sit down on the edge of her bed as she reclaims her spot against the headrest. "So, how's your mending practice?"

She rolls her eyes, "You know how it is. We sit next to each other in Carr's class."

Before I can reply her door opens, Xaden walks through. He pauses as he looks between his sister and me, "Where's Violet?"

"Her room, she went to bed early." I reassure. Xaden nods, his eyes lock on (Y/N). They're both silent but it looks like they're communicating. There's subtle changes in their lips and eyes.

Finally Xaden moves, he grabs the chair at her desk, "So… mending." He pauses, "I haven't gotten the chance to talk with you about it."

(Y/N) shrugs, "It's a signet."

I roll my eyes at the casualness of her words, "It's an exceptionally rare signet. One that's powerful and important."

"Exactly." Xaden agrees, "How's it coming along?"

"Fine, Carr wants me to start working with Nolon. Instead of going to the classroom, I'm going to be going to the healers quadrant. I start Wednesday." (Y/N) replies.

"You didn't tell me that, is that why he held you after class today?" I ask.

(Y/N) nods, "I'm not sure if I trust Nolon. I mean I'm sure he'll teach me fine, and what better teacher than someone with the same signet? But I don't know… he gives me bad vibes."

"Well, you don't need to trust him, just learn from him." Xaden says. "I'm glad the signet is working out for you. You're going to be in high demand. Once you graduate, Garrick is going to have to follow you whereever you're needed."

I involuntarily tense at Xaden's words. I know Garrick is going to do everything he can to keep (Y/N) safe, not that she necessarily needs the protection, but knowing that they're bonded for life…

Deigh huffs, "When will you admit you love her?"

I roll my eyes, "Of course I love her, she's my best friend."

"That's not what I meant and you know it."

"How's the farsight coming?" (Y/N) asks, breaking me out of my thoughts.

I nod, "Good." I pause, rubbing the back of my neck, "Actually, I wanted to tell you both something."

"What's going on?" Xaden asks, back straightening.

"I developed a second signet… I can wield ice. I've been practicing on my own, but I'm not very good yet. It only showed a couple of nights ago."

"That's amazing, Li!" (Y/N) exclaims, smile lighting up her face.

"Keep working on it in secret," Xaden says, "The leaders don't know about the marked ones second signets, it'll be used to our advantage when it really matters."

"But not all the marked ones get second signets, right?" (Y/N) asks.

Xaden nods, "Most do, but not everyone." He pauses, "We should all get to bed, it's getting late." Xaden stands up, walking towards (Y/N)'s door.

I stand up too, following behind him, "I'll see you tomorrow, (Y/N)."

"Goodnight." She says back, waving from her spot on her bed.

*_*_*_*_*

(Y/N)

February flies by in a blur. I'm still keeping up on telepathy practice with Xaden but now on top of that and my usual course work, I also am required to complete hours in the healers wing with Nolon to train my mending signet.

I've also been taking a lot of time to keep up with sparring practices. I've defeated everyone in the squad, and even got the help of some of the other marked ones to continue my training. Once it clicked that my signet being mending wasn't going to help me in battle, at least in the sense of fighting, I wanted to focus on my own strength without my signet. Well, without my second signet. My telepathy is still very helpful when fighting and keeps me at an advantage against my opponent.

We stand in formation as Captain Fitzgibbons reads off the death roll, "Sharla Gunter, and Mushin Vedie. We commend their souls to Malek." I shiver as a cold gust of wind sweeps past.

"Vedie?" Violet asks. He was a Second Wing first year.

"You didn't hear?" Rhiannon says, pulling her cloak tighter around her neck, "His signet manifested in the middle of Carr's class yesterday, and he burst into flames."

"He… he burned himself to death?" Violet's eyes widen.

Rhi nods, "Tara said Carr thinks he was supposed to be a fire wielder but it just overwhelmed him in that first rush…"

"And he went up like a torch." Ridoc adds, "Kind of makes you glad your signet's still hiding, huh?"

"Please, I was where Violet was not too long ago, and I was internally panicking the whole fucking time." I say, puffing warm air into my hands.

"You? Panicking?" Sawyer asks, "Unlikely."

I roll my eyes, "I'm just good at hiding it. Can't let anyone know my weaknesses."

"Smart to hold any weakness close to your chest." Nyx's voice enters my head.

"If you have any…" Liam mutters.

"You didn't just pick me for my good looks." I reply to Nyx.

"We chose you because you're brilliant." Aether says.

I smile. "Way to feed my ego."

Rhiannon waves her hand at Liam, "Exactly. He's known you since you were kids and even he doesn't think you have any faults. I'll say it again. Not. Human."

I giggle, "I'll take that as a compliment."

Rhi rolls her eyes, "I will say though, knowing what happened to Vedie, kinda makes me want to skip class today."

"No skipping class," Dain snaps, "We're weeks away from the Squad Battle and we need every single one of you at your best to win."

Imogen snorts, "Come on, Aetos, I think we all know Second Wing has that squad in Tail Section that's going to smoke the rest of us. Have you ever seen them sprint up the Gauntlet? Pretty sure they've been out there even though it's still covered in ice."

"We're going to win," Cianna, the squad executive officer, proclaims, "Sorrengail here might slow us down on the Gauntlet," she wrinkles her nose, "and probably in the wielding department, too, at the rate she's advancing-" I narrow my eyes in a glare.

"Gee, thanks." Violet deadpans, crossing her arms.

"But Rhiannon's skills more than make up for that." Cianna continues, "And we all know Liam, (Y/N), and Heaton are going to decimate on the mat for the challenge competition. That only leaves flight maneuvers, which from what I hear, (Y/N) is doing incredible at. And whatever the wingleaders come up with to judge this year."

"Oh, is that all? Man, I thought it was going to be hard." Ridoc says, sarcasm dripping from his lips.

Dain glares at him, "We're down to eleven of you," he glances at the group, "Thirteen of us in total, which puts us at a slight disadvantage against a couple of other squads, but I think we'll manage-"

We lost two of the new additions last week when the smaller one's signet manifested in battle brief. They both froze to death in seconds, nearly taking out Ridoc. It was a perfect opportunity for me to practice my mending. I healed Ridoc's frostbite in seconds, which he was very thankful for. Now Nadine and Liam are the only two left from the group we acquired after Threshing.

"But in order to manage, I need you guys to get to class." Dain nods at Violet, "Especially you. A signet would be great, you know. If you can make that happen." I roll my eyes, yeah because it's that easy.

Xaden walks up to our group, "She's going to miss Carr's class today." Sawyer clears a path for him, stepping closer to me.

"No I'm not." Violet shakes her head.

"She needs to go," Dain argues, "I mean, unless the wing has more pressing matters for Cadet Sorrengail, her time is best spent developing her wielding skills."

"I think we both know she's not going to manifest a signet in that room. She would have already if that was the key." Xaden glares, "And yes, the wing has more pressing matters for her."

"Sir, I'm just not comfortable with her going a day without at least practicing her wielding, and as her squad leader-"

"For Dunne's sake." Xaden interrupts. He reaches into his pocket and takes out a pocket watch, holding it in his outstretched palm, "Pick it up, Sorrengail." She glances between the two before stretching out her own hand, holding it above the watch.

"You got this." Rhiannon encourages.

"Let her concentrate." Sawyer chides.

The watch plummets to the ground, but Violet snaps her hand back, yanking the watch towards her. She catches it with her left hand. "See? She's practiced. Now, we have things to do." He places a hand on her back, guiding her away from the squad.

Taglist: @littleemissperfecttt @galaxystern08 @thegirlwiththepurpleshelves @lagrandeourse @justannadahfanfictor

[4doras]

밤 (NIGHT POEM) ౨ৎ⋆˚｡⋆

accepting a crush starts with a poem ⊹♡ 

bestfriend.chenle x f.reader 

genre. fluff 

wc. 1.3k

a/n. on a nct drive rn… finally writing for my bias ଘ(੭◌ˊᵕˋ)੭ 

you and chenle had been friends from the second you two were born, you basically spent your whole life by each other's sides. 

first day of school? you were in the same class. holidays and vacations? you were both at the same hotel. 

the two of you were inseparable. 

– 

it wasn’t a doubt that chenle was good looking, and even someone like you, his best friend, couldn’t deny it. 

every year on valentines day, you would watch as girls gave him chocolates, standing nearby, but not too close so you wouldn't interfere with the interaction. your chest always tightened at the sight. 

but he was your best friend, and that's what everyone envied. 

chenle was so sweet; he never forgot important dates, he always helped you if you needed, he always came over when you needed him, no matter the time. he always had your back, and you had his. 

– 

lele, i need your help  you need me to come over??  yeah.. sorryyyy  it’s okay :) coming over rn!! 

it was terrible how much you relied on him, but also, it was even worse how he wouldn’t stop helping you. 

not long after he sent the text, you heard a pattern of knocks on your door. you knew it was chenle. 

– 

“so, what do you need help with?” he sat next to you, getting comfortable in his chair next to yours. 

“it’s for english, i need to write a poem.” you sighed. you were good at english, you loved writing, creating your own craft, but despite poems also being part of english, you just couldn't write them. 

chenle already knew that you were no good at writing poems and chuckled. “well, we better start now, then.” he leaned towards the desk, dragging his chair closer to it. “do you have any plans? or a start?” 

“yeah, i started a bit, i wanted to do one about romance because we were doing analysis on stuff like that.” you opened the document where four sad lines laid. 

red and pink painted streaks in the sky,  people expressing their love, though never me,  i hold in my breath, hoping my face doesn't lie,  when will my love be free? 

“you’re such a liar, y/n… it's good.” his eyes were glazed in surprise. 

you knew it wasn't that good and chenle could really help you. 

“thanks, but i can’t think of a way to continue it.” you groaned, running your hands through your hair. “it’s seriously impossible.” 

“i’ll help you with that,” he smiled, fixing a small piece of your hair. “don’t worry.” it was awful how your heart raced everytime he did that. no matter how many times he did it, it still made you go crazy. 

– 

it was the morning after, chenle was sitting with his friends, studying for an upcoming test. 

“i can’t believe you blew us off for y/n. what happened to bros before hoes? i mean, y/n isn’t a hoe but y’know what i mean, right?” haechan blabbered, completely unfocused on the practice test he was supposed to fill out. 

“it’s fine, haechan. chenle was just spending time with his future girlfriend.” jeno teased. 

it was clear to your friends that you had an underlying crush on chenle, but it was clear to chenles friends that he had one too, on you. 

“she’s not my future girlfriend, she doesn’t like me like that.” he huffed, his passive aggressiveness being put out on his laptop's keyboard as he typed out his answers. 

“she literally relies on you, asks you for help anytime she needs it, calls you lele? what sort of ‘friend’ calls you lele?!” haechan argued, garnering a few stares from others in the library. 

“you are being way too loud, haechan.” jeno shook his head before continuing. “anyway, i think you should confess, chenle. and soon. honestly, now’s a really good time. I mean, you literally helped her with a love poem for her english class.” 

“well, yeah i did help with the poem, but it being related to love doesn't have to do with anything! and confess? what if she rejects me? what if she says she’d rather stay as friends? what if she hates me after it and we're no longer friends?” hearing himself, he started to sound like haechan. “are you trying to make me lose a friendship?” he said, much quieter than before. 

“chenle, calm down. firstly, you’re chenle, as much as i hate to say it, every girl wants you. secondly, have you seen the way she looks at you? she looks at you like you made the world just for her. y/n is in love with you, you can’t tell me otherwise.” haechan ranted, voice oddly tainted with anger. “please, for the love of god, please confess to y/n.” 

–

chenle held a small slip of paper in his hands as he paced up and down his room, looking away from it and reciting a few lines before looking back at it, an annoyed groan every once in a while when he messed up or forgot his words. 

“i’ve liked you for a while and i just didn’t know how to tell you…” he mumbled under his breath as he awaited your arrival. he let out a big breath he had been holding in, breathing in a long breath, and then letting it out again. 

– 

ding dong! his bell rang. he hesitated to open the door, rethinking if he should just send you back and forget about ever confessing, and his crush on you as a whole. 

“hi,” you took your shoes off before entering. “what’d you need me for?” nothing was different about the house, it looked as if he didn’t need you to help him with anything, really. no sprawled out papers, no computer set up with a document on it, nothing but a stressed looking chenle. 

“well, i like…” he paused between his words, thinking about whether or not to continue. “i like you, y/n. i’ve liked you since we were kids, and i never knew how to tell you.” he watched as your face fell. “and i don't wanna stress you out, you don’t have to like me back,” which was true. you didn’t have to like him back, but it would hurt his pride. a lot. “but i needed to tell you. i don’t know what's gonna happen to our friendship after this, but i hope that, if you don't like me, we can still be friends.” he admitted, huffing as he finished. 

his lips fell into a flat line, eyes shining as he waited for your response. the house was so silent you could hear the ticking of his clock. 

but it finally came to you. 

why did your chest tighten every valentines day? why did you feel ever so slightly jealous every time you saw another girl flirting with him? now you knew it wasn’t because he was your best friend and didn’t want to lose him to someone else, it was because you liked him. 

“i like you too, chenle. i wasn’t sure about my feelings either, but i felt so upset when i saw other girls with you, when i saw girls giving you gifts during valentines, i would just get so… jealous? i just couldn’t accept my feelings because you’re my best friend, but i’m sure about them now.” 

neither of you spoke after exposing your true feelings about each other. the silence was awkward, yet comforting, like you needed it. 

– 

a smile spread across chenle’s lips, “you really like me back?” he took you into his arms, wrapping them around you. 

“mhm, i do.” you mumbled into his shoulder, taking in his warm scent. 

nothing mattered anymore, all that you cared about was the fact that you liked chenle, and chenle liked you back. 

“i love you, y/n.” 

“i love you too, chenle.” 

[bm571158]

Free Now LN4 (Part 5)

"Oh God, you're not calling to say you're coming back and want to stay here again are you?" Flo groaned into her phone as she answered a call from her brother.

"Hi Flo, yeah I'm great thanks... how about you?" Lando teased. "Do you greet everyone like this on the phone or is that just reserved for me?"

"You only ever phone me when you need something." She sighed. "So don't give me that shit. What do you want?"

"I don't want anything." He told her. "I was just calling to check in."

"I don't believe you." Flo told him. "Why are you calling to check on me?"

"I uh... I wasn't so much checking on you." He admitted sheepishly.

"Ah... look there it is. I knew it!" Flo laughed. "Go on, what do you want?"

"I don't want anything." He protested again. "I just wanted to check if Lottie was okay? I've been texting her but she's not replied. I haven't heard from her for a week actually."

"I didn't know you two were texting." Flo couldn't hide the surprise in her voice. "What's that all about?"

"I... we...." Lando floundered as he looked for the words. He hadn't thought through the fact that checking up on Lottie via Flo would expose the fact that he'd been talking to each other. "We've just been chatting here and there. She needs a break from only having you for company every now and then I'm sure."

"Rude." Flo snorted. "I'm fantastic company, first of all. How dare you? You're the one who invited yourself into my house for the week anyway. If you didn't want to be there you didn't have to come."

"I never said I didn't want to be there." Lando let out an exasperated sigh. "This isn't why I called you anyway. Just answer my question."

"Where are you anyway?" Flo asked, straining her ears to hear the noise in the background of the call.

"At the airport." Lando sighed. "Not heading to you, don't worry. But Lottie, is she okay?"

"Uh..." Flo paused for moment to consider her answer. "She's.... She's struggling a bit I think. I don't know exactly what was said at that hospital appointment but she's been pretty quiet since. Don't take it personally, Lando. She's just got so much going on..."

"I'm not taking it personally, I was just worried about her. That's all." He sighed. "I'm going to have to go, they're calling for our flight. Can you just ask her to call me?"

"Where are you going?" Flo asked.

"Starting the trip out to Australia." He yawned. "Going to do a couple of layovers on the way. Try and cure the jet lag. Just tell her to call me, it doesn't matter what time it is."

"Why are you being weird?" Flo asked, still puzzled by his sudden insistence that he needed to speak to her friend.

"I'm not being weird." He sighed. "Just do it, please? She's been a good friend to me. I just wanted to check she's okay. You're not exactly reassuring me she's okay, either."

"Alright." Flo agreed reluctantly. "But don't hold your breath. She barely says two words to me at the minute and she's living with me. I don't think she's going to just phone you up for a chat because it'll make you feel better."

"I've gotta go, just let her know I called. Okay?"

"Alright, bye Lando." Flo told him as she ended the call.

Lando was left running through the airport to catch the flight, but it didn't stop him from having another attempt at phoning Lottie as he did. It cut off and went to voicemail and he knew she'd declined the call again.

He was ushered into his first class seat to start the long journey to Australia ahead of the first race of the 2025 season, sinking down into the seat heavily. He pulled out his phone and quickly typed a message to her before he switched his phone off for the flight.

Thinking about you, Flo said things weren't going so well? Just boarding a flight to Dubai but give me a call later? I've missed having you to wind me up and call me out on my crap. Take care of yourself, Lottie.

Speak to you soon.

He waited for the message to send, popping up that it had been delivered, before he switched the phone off and shoved it back into his pocket. Then he settled himself into the seat, getting comfortable for the first part of the long flight, trying to ignore the uneasy feeling in his stomach at the thought of heading out there to race, even if it was a few weeks away as yet.

He didn't think he'd ever felt less excited at the prospect of getting back in the car at the start of a season. Usually by this point he'd be desperate to get going again, but all he could think of was how much he wished he was at home, tucked up in the safety of his apartment where he didn't have to pretend that the disappointment of last year wasn't still eating away at him.

*****

"Hey! You're up!" Flo greeted Lottie cheerfully as she came back inside that evening. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine." Lottie answered, her voice quiet and she didn't look away from the tv.

Flo hesitated for a moment. It was clear from Lottie's tone that she was anything but fine, but she didn't know if she was going to achieve anything by pushing it. She'd tried that before on the way home from the hospital in an attempt to find out what had been said and that had just led to her hiding away in her room and refusing to talk to her.

"I'll go put the kettle on." Flo suggested. "It's freezing out there. I need something to warm me up. Then I thought maybe we could get pizza for dinner."

She didn't hear an answer from Lottie, if she answered her at all, as she walked away into the kitchen and filled the kettle up to boil it. She stood there, making them a cup of tea each, wondering what she could say to broach the subject of whatever was going on with Lottie in a sensitive way.

She'd leave Lando to it if she wasn't so worried that he'd say something stupid and insensitive and make the whole thing worse. He'd surprised her by phoning to check in on Lottie at all, it wasn't like him. He didn't mean to be so absent and wrapped up in his own little world, she was sure and their mum always told them, but it was very much the way things had been. Formula One had completely consumed his life, and as a result it was unusual for him to be aware enough of what was going on with the rest of them to be calling to check in.

Although Flo supposed she was perhaps just as bad. She hadn't even realised that while she'd been out of the house working, Lando and Lottie had made friends to the point that they were calling eachother to chat. She couldn't help but wonder when Lando had said Lottie had been a good friend to him what exactly was going on there.

She picked up the two cups of tea and made her way back through to the living room. She wouldn't have been that surprised to find Lottie having disappeared to avoid making conversation with her when she got back, but actually she was as still sat where Flo had left her, staring blankly at the tv.

"Thanks." Lottie mumbled as Flo passed her the mug, sitting down next to her on the sofa.

"Lando phoned me today, he wanted to check in on you." Flo said, deciding she was just going to go for it.

"Huh?" Lottie looked at her blankly.

"He thinks you're ignoring him." Flo raised an eyebrow at her. "Said he has called you a few times and left you messages and you don't call him back. He's worried about you."

"I'm f-"

"Don't you dare finish that." Flo interrupted her before she could repeat the standard 'I'm fine' answer that she always gave. "You're quite clearly not fine, you've not been fine all week. You've barely said a word since that hospital appointment to be honest. Do you want to tell me what's going on? I'm worried about you."

"It's fine, really." Lottie protested, taking a sip of her tea. "Neither of you should be worrying about me. I know I'm still here and you probably want the space back so you can have some peace and quiet, I'm sorry. I can-"

"Don't you dare offer to move out." Flo shook her head. "That's not what this is about. You've been so quiet I'd barely know you're here half of the time, and to be honest I've quite enjoyed having some company. That's not what I'm saying at all, I'm just worried about you, mate. What's going on?"

"It's fine." Lottie repeated again, the words just falling out of her mouth on autopilot. "I just... I don't know, it wasn't good news like I was hoping it was going to be I suppose. It'll be fine, it's just messed with my head a bit. It wasn't what I wanted to hear."

Flo was so relieved that she was actually talking, it took a moment for the words that she was saying to sink in. "What did they say?"

Lottie took another big gulp of her tea, delaying answering the question. She didn't want to say it out loud, she didn't even want to think about it. She just wanted to pretend that none of it was happening, that it was all some kind of horrendous nightmare that she was due to wake up from any second now. But it wasn't, and as she said the words out loud to Flo it made it even more real.

"Nothing is healing the way it's supposed to be." She said quietly. "They need to do more surgery to replace the metalwork in my leg. It's come loose and it's not going to hold it. I've got to go through all that all over again."

"I'm really sorry, Lottie." Flo said quietly, shuffling across the sofa until she was close enough to wrap an arm around her friend. There was nothing she could say or do that was going to make the situation any less shit, so it was all she really had to offer.

"Maybe it'll be fine." Lottie offered, it was the same thing she'd been telling herself on repeat since she found out, trying  to will it in go being true. "Maybe I'll have this done and it'll all heal up and that'll be the end of that. If it all started healing up the way it was supposed to, I might be back on a horse by the end of the season."

"Lottie." Flo sighed, because her friend was being beyond delusional if she really thought that was ever going to happen. "I think we might need to be a bit more realistic here, if you could walk from here to the stairs without looking like you want to throw up you're in so much pain then surely that would be good start?"

"I don't want to be realistic. I want my fucking life back." Lottie cried unhappily, the tears she'd done such a good job of concealing from Flo all week now threatening to spill.

It caught Flo by surprise, it was the first real outburst of emotion she'd seen from Lottie since the accident had happened. Even though out the months she'd spent in hospital she'd somehow managed to remain ridiculously upbeat about everything, reassuring everyone that she'd be absolutely fine and back to normal before they knew it. But it seemed the weight of what had happened might finally be catching up with her.

"I know." Flo said softly. "But as much as I wish we could, we can't go back in time and stop this from happening. Let's just think about one thing at a time. You don't have to have it all figured out right now."

"I can't do this again, Flo." Lottie shook her head. "The only thing that has kept me going was the fact it's supposed to be getting better, that I'd nearly made it to the point that I could start getting back to normal. Now I've got to start from scratch all over again?"

Flo was quiet for a long time, trying to think of something she could say that might make this better, but she knew there wasn't anything she could say. "I know." She nodded. "But you made it through once, you can do it again."

Lottie didn't answer her, drinking the last of her tea and just staring straight ahead at the tv, an unhappy expression on her face.

"So." Flo decided to change the subject. "I didn't know you and Lando were friends?"

"I don't know if we are friends." Lottie shrugged. "We just spent a lot of time watching crap tv together and talking about what a shit year last year was."

"Sounds pretty like friends to me." Flo raised an eyebrow. "And anyway I don't think he can really say last year was crap for him. He nearly won the championship!"

"Ah he'll get over it." Flo waved a hand dismissively. "It's Lando. He always thinks everything is the worst thing in the world and then a day or two later he's back to making ridiculous jokes, playing golf and whatever else it is he does these days like nothing ever happened."

"He seemed pretty upset about it all when he was here."

"Honestly, he'll be fine. I fully expect not to see him again until Silverstone now the season is starting. He has a bit of a tendency to just disappear and forget we all exist when he's concentrating on racing." Flo told her. "Don't worry about him, you need to worry about yourself."

"I don't want to think about me." Lottie sighed. "I'm so sick of thinking about this."

"I know, but hopefully you'll get a date to have the surgery soon and then you can get on the road to recovery again." Flo reassured her. "It's just a little temporary blip, that's all."

"Yeah, maybe." Lottie agreed reluctantly. "I'll call Lando later."

"He's on a plane somewhere on the way Australia, I wouldn't worry about it." Flo shrugged. "He'll be pissing around playing golf with Carlos and doing god knows what else."

"I should still call him back... I wasn't ignoring him I was just..." she trailed off, not really sure what she was going to say. She was definitely avoiding him and his questions about how she was doing.

"You're allowed to say you were ignoring him, he's my brother I know, but even I know he's annoying." Flo laughed, getting to her feet. "Right, I'm going to go and make us some dinner!" She announced, heading off into the kitchen.

Lottie pulled out her phone and sent a quick message to Lando while she remembered, suddenly feeling incredibly guilty for how long she'd been ignoring his messages for. He'd been nothing but nice to her, even with all his own struggles going on.

Sorry I didn't call you back. Things have been a bit all over the place. Good luck in the race. I'll be rooting for you.

She thought nothing else of the message, until she was laying in bed that night and her phone started ringing. It was three in the morning, but she was laying there just staring at the ceiling again, finally fed up with shifting around in bed trying to make herself comfortable enough that she might actually get some sleep.

"Hi, Lando." She picked up the phone with a yawn.

"Shit, sorry. It's the middle of the night isn't it?" He suddenly realised he should've checked the time before he called. He'd just been so excited when he landed and saw she'd finally texted him back, the first thing he'd done when he got to the hotel was call her, without considering the fact he was now halfway across her world and there was a time difference.

"It's okay, I couldn't sleep anyway." Lottie told him. "Where are you, anyway?"

"Dubai." He yawned. "I need to end up in Melbourne but I'm doing a bit of a stop over here. I've got some sponsor stuff I needed to do and I was hoping it might help with the jet lag a little bit."

"How's that going for you?" She asked.

"I don't even know what time it is here to be honest." He yawned. "What are you doing awake in the middle of the night?"

"Some muppet phoned me and woke me up." She laughed quietly.

"Oh my god I'm so sorry." Lando apologised very quickly.

"It's fine, I'm joking. Really." She reassured him. "I was awake. I was trying to find something I haven't already seen on Netflix to entertain myself for a bit."

"I'm not sure that I believe there's anything on Netflix that you haven't seen at this point."

"No, I know." Lottie sighed.

"Why can't you sleep?" Lando asked.

"Ah come on, I didn't text you so we could talk about my fucked up sleep schedule." Lottie told him. "How are you feeling about the race coming up?"

"I don't want to think about that." Lando sighed. "Now, stop changing the subject. What's going on with you?"

"Nothings going on." She told him sharply.

"Yeah, because that's the reaction of someone who's absolutely fine." He couldn't fight the urge to roll his eyes, even if she couldn't actually see him. "Flo said you'd been weird since your hospital appointment, so tell me. What did they say?"

"It's fine." Lottie sighed. "I'm just not healing the way they thought it would. I just need to have one more surgery and then it'll all be fine."

"You don't sound like someone who thinks it's all going to be fine." He said slowly. He wished he was there, that he could see her face and get a better read on how she was feeling. It was so hard to know through the phone if she was actually as sad as she sounded.

"What if it doesn't work?" She asked quietly. "What if it doesn't work, they can't fix it and this is it? What if I really am never going to be the same again?"

The way her voice broke as she whispered the final part felt like someone had stuck a knife in his chest. It was so unfair. His fucks ups had all been his own fault, but he'd got another chance to have another go, even if he didn't deserve it. Hers had been a freak accident, nothing she could've done, and she was going to be dealing with the repercussions for life.

"One thing at a time." He said softly. "Get the surgery done, let's assume it's going to work if they said it will. We worry about what happens if it doesn't if we get to that point."

"You make it sound so simple."

"I know it's not going to be easy, but you just have to keep going." He reassured her. "I think what you need is something to look forward to when all this is done."

She laughed quietly. "Why do I feel like you're about to suggest something absolutely idiotic?"

"I would never. You're clearly spending far too much time with Flo." He laughed. "I was just going to say once they've fixed you up and you can travel, why don't you come with me for a race weekend. Anywhere you want. Or you could come visit me in Monaco? Clearly we need to get you out of Flo's house and away from her for a little bit. Her company is making you crazy."

"Poor Flo, she's been nothing but kind to me. I don't want to get caught up in some kind of Norris sibling rivalry." Lottie laughed quietly.

"Ah you'll get used to it, we're like this all the time. Mum hates it." He chuckled. "What do you think?"

"Maybe." She yawned. "We'll see how things go, I guess."

"Exactly." Lando agreed. "But think about it, I think you need something to look forward to. I'd like having you here too, someone needs to put me in my place."

"I can do that on the phone if you need me to." She joked.

"I know." He laughed. "But I'd would be much more fun if you were there to do it in person. Just think about it and let me know. I can sort you out the passes and I'd really like to have some company."

"You sure you're doing okay?" Lottie asked, wondering if his insistence that she should visit perhaps had more to do with the way he was feeling about the start of the season than an actual desire to see her.

"I'm fine, no need to worry about me." He said firmly. "I'm going to go, you need to get some sleep. I'll call you back in a day or two when you've had a chance to decide when you want to come and visit and we'll sort it out. Okay?"

"Okay." She agreed. "Goodnight, Lando."

"Good night, Lottie."

[stunningtoredorsweetheart]

Singles' Night

VTM OC Writing: Dottie

Word count: 899 words

TW: blood

A VTM drabble set in Dottie's first month of her unlife post embrace

The Limelight Nightclub was absolutely packed with people. The discounted entry for single patrons certainly boosted attendance that night. It was Phoenix's idea, of course. What better way to reach eager patrons looking for love than hosting a Singles' night before Valentine's Day.

Dottie found herself bouncing back and forth between tables to serve drinks. Her black mini skirt swished as she raced between tables to keep up with orders. For the most part, she was serving up glasses of blood. It was a Kindred bar after all.

A few patrons bought drinks for people they fancied across the room. It was fairly successful flirting strategy if the other kindred didn't have a restrictive diet. Dottie couldn't help but cringe when that Ventrue lady gagged when she tasted the blood she delivered to her table. How was the Gangrel guy hitting on her supposed to know she could only drink the blood of golf players?

Thankfully, the orders slowed as soon as the DJ started playing and kindred were luring potential lovers with them to the dance floor. Just as Dottie was walking over to check in with Duck at the bar to see if they needed anything, a bald-headed gentleman waved her over. It was Chandler.

Chandler was a new regular at the club. He had been at the club nearly every night these past few weeks. He seemed to have picked Dottie as his favorite server. Chandler liked to talk Dottie's ear off talking about crypto currency and psychological hierarchies. In his life, he was some sort of business advisor/motivational podcaster. He made a killing of off online classes and hormone supplements. His customers, as far Dottie had heard, still haven't seen the business success he promised. At least he tipped well.

"Oh, hi, Chandler!" Dottie greeted him with a chipper customer service smile. "Come here, baby. I have a deal for you," he said with a smirk. Dottie sat down in the seat across from him. His bald head gleamed under the club lights. "Are you offering me a job?" Dottie questioned.

"Better. I'm offering you a career."

"What kind of career?"

"I'm starting up a modeling company. You'll do a photoshoot a day and then you'll livestream for a couple of hours."

"What will I be modeling and why do I need to be livestreaming?"

"You'll be modeling for subscribers and then taking questions from fans."

"That didn't really answer my question. How would I be paid anyway?"

"You'll be paid based on how many subscribers you have. Plus, you'll get a room in my mansion to stay in, so room, board, and blood is included."

Dottie glanced at his hungry smile. That beard of his seemed to bring his fangs out in sharp contrast. She furrowed her brows. She didn't like how we wouldn't give her a clear answer on what kind of photos she'd taking. Why would she need to live in his haven, too?

"I don't think that would be a good fit for me, but thanks for the offer," Dottie replied cordially as she stood up from her chair. "Wait, before you go, have a drink from me," He offered as grabbed her hand.

"Don't you mean have a drink with me?" Dottie corrected.

"Don't tell me you've never had vitae before? " He teased.

"You drink the blood of other kindred?"

"It's better than any kine blood out there. Everyone who's had my vitae says it's amazing. It feels great to give it, too.

"C'mon, try it," he said as he unbuckled expensive watch and stretched out his wrist to her.

Duck glanced over at the pair and their eyes widened. They frantically began waving at Phoenix.

"Isn't that diablerie?" Dottie replied puzzled.

"No, baby, that's requires draining the donor all the way. There's nothing in the traditions that says you can't have a little taste," Chandler countered with a grin.

A fist cracked against his bearded jaw before Dottie could reply. Phoenix yanked Chandler out of his chair by his collar. There was a fury in their eyes that she'd never seen before. Even with problem patrons, Pheonix was cool headed and polite, yet firm.

"If you ever step foot in this club or talk to any of my waitstaff again, I will break every bone in your body" Pheonix growled.

"Got it, " Chandler squeaked as they let him go.

Chandler dashed out of the club at lightning speed with sheer terror on his face.

"We need to have a chat," They sighed as they ushered her into their office.

"Did I do something wrong?" she panicked.

"No, you didn't do something wrong, but he was trying to," They reassured as they brushed their brown curls out of their face.

"Why was he offering me some of his blood?"

"He was trying to blood bond you, the bastard."

"Blood bond?"

"Don't drink from another kindred. Never drink from them three nights in a row. You'll be compelled to love and obey them. Before you know it, you'll lose your free will."

"Should I call the sheriff on him?"

"It's not illegal, Dottie, but it ought to be. "

Phoenix paused before opening the door and turned to back to her.

"Just promise me you'll never let someone blood bond you, okay?" They spoke low and gravely.

"I promise," she answered softly, in a voice just above a whisper.

[crystalelemental]

Okay, Class of Heroes. I think I have broken in. I now have Understanding of some things.

I was right: you need to take the early classes first. The spells you acquire are based on leveling up, and you DESPERATELY want two people on Mage to learn offensive spells, so you can clear out all the enemies that are super physically tough. Spells kick unbelievable ass, one-shotting pretty much everything except for that one enemy that may as well be a game over screen. So that's a positive.

I have also figured out a truth. Never buy from the shop. Ever. Alchemy creating your weapons for you is just infinitely more beneficial. It's time consuming! It takes forever to find stuff! But it's well worth it. In the time it took me to be able to afford one (1) weapon from the shop, I achieved enough material to get an axe, some knuckles, and a sling. So now my team went from every fight being a bit of a slog trying to muscle through even basic enemies, to annihilating most opponents. I'd like to get the club for my Celestia Priest, but I need wood.

I'm now at level 4. Leveling is slow business, but we're infinitely more established than the first team. I still see stats drop sometimes, but it's mostly been based on race. Like, the Bahamoon dragon girl lost some Wisdom because her tradeoff is physical bulk at the cost of magical, and the game said no to putting too many bonus points in that. Which feels like bullshit but whatever. The other is Vit on the Gnome. They are destined for frailty, I suppose. I don't regret it though, losing those points on level isn't nearly as devastating as not having them, given how it impacts base HP. It sucks to lose the points, but it's still a good trade. Spell slots also upgraded at level 3, giving me access to tier 2 spells. So now my Gnome can cast a shock-type spell. My Human mage can too, but she gets less casts until level 4, when the spell slots catch up and she gets four casts.

Now, this is something I looked up, but apparently spells stay. Like, if I switch from Mage to Priest? All the Mage spells are still available, but I can learn Priest spells as I level on that class too. I believe I lose some spell slots on whatever type of magic I'm not currently majoring in, but I assume that's the purpose of the higher-tier classes, where they tell you that you can retain such and such spell list. I haven't yet obtained any Psionics, I am curious because that sounds like buff magic and we do not get more than 4 casts, so I'm kinda worried they won't be worth it. But who knows, maybe the buffs are absurdly powerful to offset limited uses.

Oh, and I found a map of the Novice area. Apparently there is a minimap, you just have to find the item in the dungeon to unlock access. Which. Alright. I'd like to just be able to see, but this is fine.

Anyway, finding my stride. Still messing around in the Novice dungeon, but fingers crossed we can start making progress soon. Like, actual progress.

[dinoshimaaa]

This December

You’re studying in a cafe, alone, until the seat in front of you is taken by a handsome stranger. (fluff, uni au)

masterpost - sher's bday

tag: @souglias

-

The local university cafe has long been a popular choice to study in. The prices are reasonable, the drinks are fire, and the atmosphere is condusive. Hence the reason why it gets crowded so quickly, and also why it takes hours before one can find an empty spot in it. Essentially, it becomes a race between all students to see who can run to the cafe after classes the fastest and get a comfortable spot of their own.

Today, you get the wonderful privilege of having a cozy, corner seat of the cafe all to yourself. Professor Dainsleif had wrapped up his lecture rather quickly today, dismissing all students early, while muttering something about “not getting paid enough” before leaving the lecture hall.

It’s still minutes before many other classes will be dismissed and soon the emptiness of the cafe will be replaced with soft chattering and the rustling of students moving around, trying to find every spot they can. You quickly collect the hot latte you ordered and go back to continue your art assignment, making sure to milk the peace in this cafe while you still can.

Sure enough, many other students come into the cafe at the same time and all tables are filled within five minutes. There are still a couple of empty chairs that latecomers can claim (one of which, you realise, is the chair sharing your table) but they would have to share their spot with a stranger. Bad day for introverts.

Half an hour goes by while you diligently work on your assignment, and the chair in front of you remains unoccupied. Students leave the cafe and new customers come in, but no one has touched the empty chair yet. You are secretly relieved that you are peacefully left alone to concentrate on your work.

That is until a ginger-haired guy walks in, a foxy grin on his face. Observant eyes scan the entire cafe, looking for a vacant spot, and they land on your table. At the same moment, due to you being alerted by the cafe door opening, your head is raised and he makes eye contact with you.

He glances at the empty chair at your table before looking back at you, and immediately you know what he wants. You look back down and pray to be mistaken, but alas he approaches your table anyway.

“Is this spot taken?” his grin stays confident. You have no choice but to shake your head.

“Great,” he whispers to himself, rubbing his hands with glee. Plopping his bag on the floor with a loud ‘thunk’, he begins to take his laptop and study materials out, ready to do the same as every other student in this cafe.

It’s no big deal— you can just continue with your work. Conversation isn’t needed, and he seems busy with his own thing anyway. You keep your eyes glued to the sketch you’re almost completed with. And you would’ve been just as productive before, if it weren’t for the glaringly obvious looks from your tablemate to the paper you’re drawing on.

Slowly, you raise your head. “Is something the matter?”

“Your art is… odd.”

You snort, amused and insulted at his comment. Not even an introduction— he went in straight for the kill. “Was that a compliment?”

“I hope it sounded like one,” he grins again, “Your style is quite different. The colours you use are dull, not quite colourful and not quite monochromatic; the angles you choose are really unique too. I guess art majors are just really weird in general.”

“You know what they all say about art majors,” you mumble, noticing his widening smile from your peripheral vision, “Quirky and talentless. People only care about STEM nowadays.”

“STEM comes from art,” the guy rests his head on his right palm, “Without human creation, we will never learn about the different laws of the world. Nor will we ever have the chance to play around with advanced technology.”

You look up to psychoanalyse him, while he looks back at you with a big smile (you genuinely cannot tell if it’s a cunning smile, or a confused smile, or both. You don’t know how that is possible). “You don’t look like someone who would say thoughtful stuff like this,” you say softly, hiding the judgement in your words. “Where’d you copy the quote from? You don’t look like a psychology major.”

“Close,” he laughs, “Sports science. I want to become a sports instructor and teach little kids from all over the world on how to play sports. And the quote was inspired by my sister. She’s crazy about art— she’s only in middle school, but she’s got the talent. I think she’ll learn lots from you.”

You raise an eyebrow, surprised. Taking it as a cue to continue, he goes on, “I think you two would get along pretty well, honestly. Next time we meet, maybe I’ll tell you more about her. Hopefully it won’t be because we have to share a cafe table again, haha.”

Against your will, conversation flows between the two of you naturally. You converse in hushed whispers, but that does not stop you from excitedly rambling about your current project and him returning insightful and cheeky comments. Amidst the peace and quiet of the cafe, where majority of the customers are studying alone or with a familiar buddy, two strangers talk like they’ve known each other for years.

The guy leaves, eventually. Your heartbeat goes back to normal (you hadn’t realised it spiked during that hours-long conversation with him) and you finally catch your breath after talking for so long and so quickly. Hoping to return to a productive state, you turn back down to your work, only to find a scrawl written at the top of the paper.

9xxx xxxx

childe

text me ;) i’ll send you art memes

Huh. When did that get here?

-

Omake:

You

hi

cafe gingey

omg

no way

YOU SAVED MY NUMBER

You

yeah i might regret it

we talked for so long that my latte went cold btw

cafe gingey

LOL skill issue

You

good talk though

can’t believe your brain is big enough to hold philosophical thoughts

cafe gingey

had to impress you some way sorry babe

“Moooom! Big Bro Ajax is kicking his feet and giggling on his bed while looking at his phone again!” Tonia’s groans can be heard getting further away from his room door, making Childe laugh again. A flush creeps up his neck, both from embarrassment and from talking to you online. He couldn’t believe he actually had the courage to slip his number to a girl he talked to in the cafe for the first time, and was in even more disbelief that she saved his number and chatted him up afterwards.

Whatever, he thinks, raising the phone to his chest. Who cares if his mom and sister tease him for this? As long as you didn’t know that he rambled about your encounter to his sister after dinner, who was confused and tired at his excessant fanboying as he went on and on about how cool you were. You didn’t need to know that.

[thewritetofreespeech]

Hello! Can you please write angst with Mammon who was a giant asshole towards MC in the beginning but soon became infatuated with her. But when he finally asks her out, MC rejects him saying that she hates him for being a cruel asshole and calls him a monster. After that he goes right back to being a self centred scumbag but never gets over her.

This is my first time asking for a request so I hope I didn't mess this up. But I really am a sucker for Mammon angst 😩. Please ignore this request if you don't want to do it. 😇😇

Mammon + Reader rejection

Mammon took a deep breath through his nose. Wiped his hands on his slacks. Then straightened his back.

Ok, he was ready.

He had been planning to tell [Y/N] how he felt about them and ask them out on a date. He figured it was time. Trying to ignore them or brush them off didn’t seem to quell his feelings, and every day they seemed to be getting stronger and strong. Which led him to being more and more irritated with them that he couldn’t make it go away. So, he figured that he needed to confront his feelings and [Y/N].

Walking into an open classroom where [Y/N] was getting ready to leave for their next lesson, the demon puffed up his chest and came over to them, “hey [Y/N]!”

“What do you want Mammon?” They asked in a surly sort of tone, but with a brow furrow that just made his heart race.

“What? Is that anyway to speak to the Great Mammon?!”

“I have to get to class.”

“Wait don’t go!” Mammon urged. Reaching out to stop them, but not actually touching them. “I mean…I’m willing to let it slide, since I’m such a generous demon. In fact, I’m even willing to take you out next Friday to this show I got tickets for.”

“No thanks.”

The demon balked at their refusal, but quickly regrouped. “I don’t think you understand. This is a VIP experience. The club owner gave them to me because I’m so awesome.” He wanted to let them know that he was admired by others. “So, what do ya say? I can pick you up at your room at 9.”

“I said no thanks.” [Y/N] repeated.

Mammon clicked his teeth and growled. “Why not?!” He was really trying here. He was being nice and generous and they still didn’t want to go out with him.

“Are you serious? You mean besides the fact that you’ve been treating me like I’m some house pet since I got here, or some dumb human despite getting better grades on the tests than you?” He flinched at that. That was…harsh. “You’ve never treated me with an ounce of kindness since I got here. If you acknowledge me at all. Now I’m supposed to be grateful your inviting me out for a night? No. Besides the fact that I don’t trust you, I’m not going to spend my night with someone like you. So can you please just let me go to class?”

The demon felt like his heart was breaking. A new sensation, since he wasn’t aware he had a heart to break. It really hurt.

“F-F-Fine!” He shouted back. Because when he was hurt, he got angry. “See if I care! I tried to do something nice for you, but this is how you’re going to act then I don’t need ya! I’ll find someone else, someone better, to go out with and they’ll appreciate what I’m trying to do for them!” He stormed out of the classroom and down the hall towards the exit.

It hurt. It hurt so much. He’d been rejected before, by nearly everyone, but being rejected by [Y/N] hurt like never before. He needed to get out of here. He needed to get away.

Out of the school and into the courtyard Mammon shifted into his demon form and literally flew away from the school. He didn’t come back home for a few days. And when he did, he was his usual scummy-older brother self to everyone. Especially [Y/N]

[justauthoring]

Precious To Us [2]

In other words, you’re Seijoh’s manager.

This chapter, Oikawa’s fangirls.

A/N: Here it is! The second part! I had one person request an idea (thanks @minigranger) and I definitely plan on writing it soon but I love the trope of manager vs. fangirls that I can’t help myself. As usual, please send in ideas :)

Listen, Oikawa’s fangirls are mean.

They just are.

It doesn’t really matter to them that you’re a first year, if they’re supposed to be your seniors, they would probably still be bitches even if you were their seniors and in second/third year.

They seem to think Oikawa’s theirs, even though, of course, he isn’t and if asked, he definitely would deny.

And they see you as a threat.

A big, big threat.

Who gets to see Oikawa everyday? You. Who gets to see him practice every day? You. Who gets a front row to seat to every one of his games? You. And who does he flirt with? You.

It doesn’t matter if you reciprocate the flirting or not -- which of course, you don’t -- they’re jealous and they blame it all on you.

Honestly, the first month of managing is fine. 

Now that you know who Oikawa is and you’re around him more, you do notice the fangirls, but they don’t really bother you and you’re too focused trying to learn the ropes to really care about their constant presence. 

You know you’ve heard some of the other members, namely the third years, complain about them.

About how annoying and distracting they were when it came to practice, or just the mere fact that Oikawa seemed to revel in the attention and love.

You’ve heard them, but you don’t really say anything otherwise because they’ve never done anything to you so you don’t really care either or.

Besides, even if you do think it’s tad bit pathetic, you can’t deny they’re devoted and you guess, in some ways... good for them?

But when you don’t stop being manager, and the rest of the team, namely Oikawa, don’t get sick of you like they all expect them to, and a month passes and you seem to just be thriving, getting a long with everyone, and finally getting the hang of everything?

That’s when they attack.

You’re already late.

And even if you know none of the boys or even the coaches will be upset with you, you do like to be punctual and you absolutely hate being late. So, you’re rushing, practically sprinting through the halls as you try to gather your bearings and organize everything you need to.

You’re already thinking of what drills Oikawa will have the team do, and what you can do to help. Maybe you could bring up some of the notes you’ve made? You’re not a hundred percent on the terms, but Iwaizumi has been helping you, and you’re sure you’ve picked up on a few of the techniques and things you think the boys could improve on.

You didn’t want them to think you’re imposing, but this was the job of the manager wasn’t it? They always reminded you you were more then just a water girl, and that they greatly appreciated anything advice you had for them from an outsider point of view, so maybe--

Landing with a loud thud, a groan leaves your lips as you feel your chin smack against the concrete floor beneath you. It takes you a second to gather your bearings, baffled at how you were suddenly on the ground, and trying to ignore the pain at having bitten your own tongue. But the second you hear laughter, you realized exactly what had happened and your head turns around to stare at the three girls stood above you in bafflement.

They’re laughing at you, quite loudly and obvious mocking you, but your eyes narrow in bafflement when you realize you’re positive you’ve seen them before. You just can’t place your thumb on it. They’re not in your class, one of them doesn’t even seem to be in your year, and you don’t think you’d remember some random face you’d passed in the hall, so--

That’s right. You’ve seen them hanging around Oikawa before, and the one older girl had even snuck into practice one day.

Slowly pushing yourself to your feet, you move to gather your stuff, only for it to be kicked out of your grasp.

“What the--!”

“Listen.”

You blink when the older one, clearly the leader or whatever, is suddenly directly before you, barely a breaths away, glaring down at you.

“You need to quit being manager for Oikawa-san’s volleyball team.”

And your eyes widen, baffled, lips parting as you shake your head; “I don’t--”

“I think you perfectly understand,” the girl behind her sneers, eyes cold.

“We don’t like how close you were with Oikawa-san.”

“And we’re sure Oikawa-san’s sick of seeing your ugly face every day.”

You’re stunned silent. Honestly, you’re not really sure what to say.

“We’ll give you till the end of the week,” the head girl smiles, but it’s a sickly sweet, filling you with dread. “Okay?”

She doesn’t wait for you to respond before her and the other two are walking off, clearly proud of themselves if they way they walk and hold themselves is anything to go by.

It’s takes you five minutes to gather yourself before you start making your way to the gym again for practice.

Part of you wants to just skip and go home but you know the boys would be concerned, more then they probably already are given how late you are, and really, it would just cause more issues in the end anyways.

Besides, you’re never one to skip anyways.

You don’t cry. You’re not really sure why because you definitely want to, but the tears never come and then you’re suddenly in the gym and everyone's rushing towards you in concern, questions leaving their lips rapidly as to why you were so late.

You brush them off, and it almost works, before Iwaizumi takes notice of the dried blood on the corner of your lip that you’d regrettably missed when cleaning yourself up earlier and the scrape underneath your chin.

“What happened to your chin, Y/N? You’re bleeding.”

He steps towards you, but you brush him off.

“I just tripped is all. Bit my tongue.”

You smile and hope it’s enough to convince them, but even if Iwaizumi looks like he wants to argue, Oikawa’s already pulling him back onto the court.

“You’re so clumsy, Y/N-chan! You really do need to be more careful!”

Some of the boys laugh and you do too, forcing yourself to pretend like everything’s fine even though you can physically feel yourself shaking.

But even as he’s being dragged away, Iwaizumi is still eyeing you and you don’t let him grow anymore suspicious then you can tell he is. You send him a soft smile, and then turn, making your way over to the coach to see where you can help for the day.

And it continues on like that for week. 

By the next day, every seems to have forgotten you being late and only Makki makes a teasing comment about the cat themed bandaid on your chin to which you begrudgingly shove him away with a shrill “it’s the only ones we have!” and you seem more like yourself then you had the day before that by the second day, even Iwaizumi has relaxed.

By the end of the week, even he seems to have forgotten about it.

But you haven’t. 

And it being the end of the week has you scared.

Kindaichi seems to notice your weird behaviour in class, especially now that the two of you tend to stick together now that you’re acquainted. But you brush him off every time he asks, saying you just felt ill.

He seems to believe it fine.

Luckily for you, nothing happens.

You’re on edge all day expecting something to happen, but nothing ever does.

Aiko, the third year and clear ring leader of that little group, never approaches you. In fact, you don’t see her once all day, which that in itself isn’t odd since you’re in different years, but you had expected to see her lackies -- either Makoto, a first year like you, or even Nami, a second year.

But you don’t.

By the final bell, you’re relieved.

It was just a mindless threat. It didn’t mean anything clearly, and they had just been poking fun, and honestly you were fine with that -- so long as you didn’t have to deal with them again.

You’d just have to be more wary of the fangirls. Maybe they weren’t as kind as you thought you were, and clearly they thought you posed some kind of threat (even though you definitely didn’t) so you’d just keep it in mind and--

“I’m pretty sure we told you by the end of the week.”

It’s a harsh thud, you don’t fall to the ground like you did last time, but you do thud against the lockers which dig painfully into your back. And regrettably you let a small cry in response, which pales in comparison to the cry of pain that leaves your lips when one of them grab a chunk of your hair and tug, hard.

Pushing at the hands that grab at you, you spin, not surprise to see the same three as before, sneering down at you.

Aiko spits down at you. “Clearly you didn’t listen.”

“I’m not gonna just quit,” you whisper, feigning the confidence to speak up for yourself. Your eyes narrow up at her, even though your heart is racing madly against you chest, and shake your head adamantly. “I love managing the volleyball team, and it’s not even because of Oikawa-senpai! I love being will all the boys, and I won’t let you--!”

“You really are just a slut.”

You’re stunned silent, lips left parted.

“Listen, I gave you a week, you didn’t listen.” Aiko scoffs, shaking her head as she brushes her hair back, glaring down at you. “I’ll show you what happens when I don’t get my way.”

She strikes you hard, across the cheek, and naively, you think that’s it. You can handle some punches and kicks, because you really don’t want to give up the one thing that’s made you happy for the first time in a long time. Even as the hits continue, and your body starts to ache, you think,

I can handle this.

But still, you end up skipping practice that day. You blame it on the fact the fact that you just didn’t want to have to explain why you looked so battered and messed up, knowing this time no amount of lying was going to get you out of this one. Because, really, it wouldn’t just be Iwaizumi suspicious this time -- all the boys will be, and then they’ll probably talk to the coach and...

and, it’s just to much a fuss for you. So, you skip, sending a text to Oikawa explaining that you weren’t feeling well and you’d be back Monday and to please apologize on the coaches behalf for you.

But you don’t go back the next day.

When you open your locker the next Monday, your homework that you’d finished during lunch to previous day to get a head start is ruined. Completely and wholeheartedly ruined.

And when you glance around, the first thing you see is Makoto from across the hallway, smirking at you.

But you don’t have any proof.

So, you suck back the tears that threaten to fall, and sulk to your first class where you know the teacher will be less then pleased.

And of course she isn’t, but she simply sighs and tells you that if you don’t have it in by tomorrow, she’ll have to give you a failing grade. 

Embarrassed and upset, you walk to your seat, ignoring Kindaichi’s watchful gaze as you sink into your seat.

But it only gets worse from there.

The second class starts, a note is tossed onto your desk.

You eye, confused, glancing around for who threw it, only for everyone to be faced forward, before glancing briefly at Kindaichi’s whose watching your curiously.

Slowly, you open it.

Is it true you actually slept with all of the volleyball team?

Laughter echoes, but when you look up, there’s three girls staring at you, all mockingly.

Kindaichi leans forward, trying to grab the note but you pull it from his grasp, avoiding his gaze.

He cannot see that.

And when the class ends, you narrowly avoid Kindaichi who calls for you, rushing out of the class, only for someone to bump into you the second you make it out, shoving harshly into your shoulder.

“Slut.” The voice sneers.

Your lips part, and you glance up, feeling your vision blur, but when you glance around, you suddenly notice the looks everyone’s giving you, and the way they laugh and sneer at you.

But what really makes you break is when you turn, feeling like everyone’s against you, and find Kindaichi staring at you with parted lips, obviously confused, and you just can’t hold it back then, turning without another word, and running off.

The day continues like that, and after lunch, which you spent alone hidden in a bathroom stall, you see Iwaizumi and Oikawa ahead of you, smiling when they notice you.

They look as if they want to talk, but you know then you absolutely cannot like that happen, for multiple reasons, so you turn around quickly, running off in the opposite direction despite the way they call after you.

You don’t go back to practice like you said you would.

And neither do you Tuesday.

When Wednesday rolls around, and every laughs at you when you walk pass them in the halls, or sneers at you, or looks at you like you’re the most disgusting thing, you go to the office when you realize you can’t handle this any longer.

No matter how much you love being on the team and managing the boys. 

Little do you know, in class, Kindaichi notices the odd coloured paper in your hands and curiously, maybe even worriedly (because there’s a sinking feeling in his gut) peers over your shoulder as subtle as he can, lips parting when he reads the header.

Permission to quite a club form.

“I think Y/N’s going to quite the team.”

It’s the first words he says when he enters the club room that day, and it makes everybody pause.

Silence echoes, and slowly, unsurely, Yahaba shakes his head; “what-what are you talking about, Kindaichi? I thought Y/N said she just wasn’t feeling well, which is why--”

“I saw the form this morning,” Kindaichi shakes his head, “I know what I read.”

Oikawa shakes his head. “Y/N would’ve talked to us first if something was upsetting her. She wouldn’t just--”

“Haven’t you guys heard the rumours going around?”

It’s Kunimi who speaks this time, his voice the similar drawl it always is, but if you look at him close enough, it’s easy to tell that he’s concerned. Upset even. And he looks disgusted as he speaks, eyeing Kindaichi first, almost knowingly, before turning to the other boys.

Iwaizumi’s brows furrow; “what are you talk--”

“I think someone’s been bullying her,” Kindaichi frowns. “It started at the beginning of the week. Y/N came in with her homework ruined, which I thought was weird, because she always is so careful with her work and makes sure it’s done early. And then someone tossed this note onto her desk but she wouldn’t let me read it, and she wouldn’t talk to me or even look at me all class. Then, when class was over, people were... well--”

“There’s a rumour going around that’s she’s slept with all of us.”

It’s Kunimi who finishes it, Kindaichi’s face beet red, which quite a few of the boys mimic seconds later when Kunimi finishes.

But Oikawa? Oikawa just looks pissed.

“What?”

Kindaichi blanches, looking absolutely terrified; “I thought you knew! I didn’t--”

Oikawa storms past him, Iwaizumi quick to follow, and then Mattsun and Makki are right behind them. The first and second years glance at each other, before slowly following them, and sure enough the third years are heading straight for the gym, to which none of them are surprised to find you there, a form in your shaky hands as you stare at Coach Mizoguchi.

You turn to them with wide eyes, clearly having hoped to finish before any of the boys started practice. But Mizoguchi looks relieved. “Thank God you boys are here,” he breathes, standing up to which you try to stop him, but he isn’t listening, “Y/N wants to quit, but I really think she should talk to you first,” he’s looking directly at Oikawa, “she won’t tell me why. And please Y/N,” he turns to you, “I think you should reconsider.”

“We’ll talk to her,” Oikawa cuts in, voice oddly low before you can say anything.

Mizoguchi smiles, nodding at you before making his way over the gym obviously in search of Irihata. Instantly the tension thickens when you’re left alone with all eyes directly and solely on you.

It takes a second to find the words. “I’m sorry I didn’t talk to any of you about it, but I...” And your voice falters, even you can’t help the way your voice quivers. “I think it’s best if I just quit.”

“You’re not quitting.” It’s Iwaizumi who speaks this time, and his voice is so firm, so sure, even if you’re not sure how to argue against it.

“But I-I--”

“You don’t need to quite,” Oikawa shakes his head, stepping towards you and pulling the form from your grasp with ease. You watch with parted lips as he simply rips it right in front of you, tossing it aside without much care, before glancing back at the rest, namely the other third years, turning back to you. “Now, tell us, who told you you had to quit?”

And your eyes bulge. How did he--

“Kindaichi and Kunimi told us about everything,” Iwaizumi starts, moving towards you, as your eyes fall to the first years, watching the way they both, even Kunimi, stare after you in concern. “We know someone’s been bothering you, so, just tell us.”

“We’ll help you,” Watari adds with a smile, hesitantly speaking up.

And you pause, unsure. But then you stare at them all watching you carefully, and see how all of them care so much, more then you ever thought they did and you’re reminded of why you’d refused to quit in the first place. Reminded of how much you love managing the volleyball team and no matter how much you were scared and hurt, you didn’t want to lose it all.

Lose them.

“It’s... It’s a few, three actually, of Oikawa-senpai’s fangirls,” you mumble, voice low, head turned downwards. “They... They don’t like how much time I spend with him, so they... they told me to quit and when I refused, they...” You don’t need to finish.

There’s a pause, before a slap echoes. 

“Somehow I knew this was your fault, Shittykawa.”

“Ow!” Oikawa cries, “Iwa-chan, it’s not like I...” But he seems to pause, lips parting as he glances down at you, his heart breaking slightly at the tears in your eyes.

Stepping forward, he pulls you into a hug, and you let him; “I’m sorry, Y/N-chan, I didn’t know they were hurting you.”

“It’s not your fault.”

“It kinda is,” Mattsun comments, stepping forward as he smiles down at you, ruffling your hair. “It’s easier to blame him anyways.”

“I agree,” Makki laughs.

And even you find yourself laughing lightly.

“Really, Y/N-chan? Even you too?”

“Sorry.”

Then, everyone turns serious; “I’ll talk to them,” Oikawa frowns. “What they did isn’t okay. I won’t let them get away with it. They’ll never bother you again, Y/N.”

And you’re surprised by how serious he is.

But things do get better.

Aiko never bothers you again, nor does any other one of Oikawa’s fangirls.

Oikawa even makes her apologize, and even you have to admit the absolute mortification on her face makes everything a lot better.

The boys try to stop the rumour, but it’s easier said then done, though, the fame of it all does dwindle and you’re not snided in the hallways so much anymore.

It’s kind of hard to when you usually have one of the third years walking you to and from class anyways.

Besides, they’re your friends, and even if everyone else hates you, they don’t.

And that’s all that matters to you.

[sapphosthoughtsandwritings]

if it’s not too much to ask please please please could you write more avengers x teen!reader? I adore the one with fear of the dark and was wondering if you could do something similar? Like either the avengers comforting the reader or just something with lots of hugs and cuddles? Thank you!! <3

Stage Fright - Avengers x anxious!teen!Reader

Summary: When your presentation for class goes terribly wrong, your team mates come to rescue you and take you home.

Warnings: depictions of anxiety, panic attack, a few cuss words

Type: angst, ends with fluff

Word Count: ~2.5k

A/N: MY FIRST REQUEST, very exciting!! I am so so glad you liked my work, and I hope you enjoy this one as well!! <3 I also have quite a few more ideas for teen!Reader fics, so this definitely won't be the last piece like this!

(Y/l/n) = your last name

(f/d) = favorite drink

You’d been dreading this day for weeks now. Clutching the straps of your backpack, you let out a deep sigh, walking up to the doors of your school. You didn’t like school to begin with, but the building seemed much more intimidating today. Making your way through the halls, you were grateful that you got to school early, you hated pushing through crowds of people.

“Hey, hey (Y/n)!”, a voice called from down the hall. You recognized it almost immediately. “Hi Peter, what’s up?”. You were happy to see him, maybe talking out your nervousness would help. “Oh, you know, just the same old stuff. Sure am tired though”. “Well, if you don’t sleep then you will be tired”. “Like you’re one to talk (Y/l/n)”. You only rolled your eyes and stuck out your tongue at him, evoking a chuckle from him. “How about you? How are you doing?”. “Ugh, not great. I have to present that project today. Not particularly looking forward to it”, you huffed, looking down to the ground as your anxiety increased at the thought of presenting alone. “Hey, I’m sure you’ll do great. Most people don’t pay attention to presentations anyways”, he assured you. You popped your knuckles, still feeling just as nervous. You knew he was right, but that didn’t stop the fear surging through you. “Yeah, I know. I just don’t want to do it. Maybe if I wait long enough, there won’t be any class time left for me to present”, that was your hope, and your only plan to get out of this without panicking in front of the whole class. “Maybe, well regardless, I hope it goes well”, he offered you a sincere smile. “Yeah, I hope so too”. “Well, I should probably head to class, see you at lunch!”. “Right back at ya, Parker”, you waved gently to him as he disappeared down a hallway.

You made your way to your first class, deciding to read a bit before class started. Nothing you did eased the gnawing anxiety in the back of your mind though. Your first two classes were easy enough, but it was hard to focus, your mind racing with intrusive thoughts. ‘What if my voice gives out? What happens if I start crying in front of everyone? God, the whole school will hear about it. Everyone will stare at me, whisper about me every time I pass by them. I can’t do this, I just can’t’. By your third class, you’d bitten your nails down to blood, your lips suffering the same fate, cracked and split open. You almost considered skipping, but you’d worked hard on this project, you couldn’t let that go to waste. So, taking your seat in the back of the class, you tried breathing techniques, anything to help calm your senses. Your leg bounced so much, you swore the floor would give out under your foot.

The teacher turned out the lights, letting people present their projects voluntarily. You calmed the tiniest bit. If someone randomly kept volunteering to present, the class time was sure to run out before you even got the chance to stand up. Throughout the class, you were on edge, chanting silent prayers in your head. You weren’t very fortunate though, as everyone presented quickly, making it apparent that you were going to have to present no matter what. “Alright, who hasn’t gone up yet?”, your teacher called out, looking at her grading sheet. ‘Oh my god, please don’t see my name. Please tell me I don’t exist. Let me just disappear. I can’t do this’. “Oh! (Y/n) still hasn’t presented, come on over and I’ll pull up your project”, your teacher chirped.

Your heart pounded painfully hard in your chest, slowly standing up on jelly legs, keeping your gaze down as you walked to the whiteboard. You couldn’t possibly do this. You were going to die. Every mission you’d ever gone on seemed so miniscule in this moment, as you looked out to your peers. It was too dark to see most of their faces, which only made your situation worse. Your teacher pulled up the project on the projector, gesturing to you to start presenting, as she clicked her pen, ready to write down every mistake you made.

Letting out a jittery breath, you clasped your sweaty hands together and began talking. You were shaking so badly, it was like an earthquake had erupted inside of your body. You could feel the tears threatening to spill past your eyes, leaving a hard pain in your throat. Your chest hurt, and your breathing was becoming more erratic. But you had to finish, you had to get this over with. Just as you were on one of the last slides, a voice called from somewhere in the class, “Hey, pipsqueak! Speak up, would ya? We can’t hear you back here!”. The comment elicited a few snickers, which your teacher hushed quietly, but the damage was already done. The room was suddenly shrinking around you, as your chest tightened even further. You bit your lip, trying your best to compose yourself, attempting to push down your anxiety, but it only pushed back up more violently. “(Y/n)? You still have a few slides left”, your teacher said, but you didn’t hear her. Instead, your fight or flight instincts took over, and you raced out of the classroom, tears now breaking free, streaming down your face. You headed to the nearest bathroom, locking yourself in a stall, your whole world crumbling beneath you.

Leaning against the door, you slid down, breath caught in your throat, fighting to get out, but to no avail. Instinctively, you brought your knees up to your chest, clutching at the seams of your pants, letting out choked sobs and broken coughs. There was only one thing you could think of that might help you, and that was your teammates. You pulled your phone out of your pocket, continuing to shake violently, as you clicked the emergency contacts, thumb pressed to the first person, which just so happened to be Bucky. You lifted the phone to your ear, barely hearing the ring, despite your call volume being all the way up.

Bucky saw your name pop up on his phone, panic surging through him. You never called, it made you too anxious. He answered instantly, “(Y/n)? (Y/n), sweetheart, are you okay?”. His sudden panic mixed with your name caused both Steve and Sam to stand by him, all of them mentally preparing for an emergency. You wanted to reply, but all that came out was a squeak, as your fist collided with the tiled floor, your oxygen levels becoming more scarce by the second. Bucky put his phone on speaker, letting all three of them talk to you. “(Y/n), doll, you gotta breathe okay? Through your nose, count on your fingers”, Bucky stated, trying to keep his voice steady for you. “Yep, deep breaths (Y/n), you’ve got this. You’re gonna be okay”, Steve reassured you. After about 10 minutes of the three of them gently coaxing you out of your panic attack, you calmed slightly, leaving you crying quietly.

“We’re almost back at the compound, we’ll come and pick you up in about 20 minutes, okay?”, Steve said, giving no room for protests, although at this point you weren’t going to object. You wanted to go home. “Okay, I guess I should get back to class then”, you murmured, realizing that you’d probably been gone for over 15 minutes now. It was weird no one came to look for you, but you weren’t complaining. “If you aren’t ready to go back kid, that’s fine. We can stay on the call as long as you need”, Sam mentioned, his voice sounded beyond concerned. You had a bad habit of not taking care of yourself, especially in times of crisis. “No, I’ll be fine, gotta go back to get my stuff anyways”, you were dreading going back. The whole class would be focused on you for sure, not to mention the faux sympathy from your teacher, something that would surely cause another flood of tears. You just wanted to go unnoticed, for everyone to ignore your presence. “Alright, if you’re sure”. “I’m sure, I’ll see you guys soon”, you weren’t sure, but you had to convince them, you knew too well that they’d cause a scene at the school if things got worse. “Okay, stay safe sweetheart, we’ll be there as soon as possible”, Steve stated, before Bucky reluctantly hung up the phone.

Letting out a deep sigh, you pushed yourself up, groaning slightly as you forced your stiff body to move. You stepped out of the stall, silently thanking the universe for not letting anyone walk in during your breakdown. You looked to one of the mirrors, finding a disheveled figure staring back at you. You grabbed a paper towel, dampening it in the sink, and gently washing the dried tears off your face. You fixed your clothing and washed your hands, before making the godawful trip back to class. There was only 5 minutes left for the class, but that was more than enough time for shit to go wrong. You stood outside the door for a minute, taking a moment to compose yourself.

Turning the handle slowly, you eased your way past the door, the lights now on. Just as you expected, all eyes turned on you, but most turned away quickly, looking back to their friend or their phone. That lifted your nervousness a bit, as you started to head back to your desk, but your teacher had other plans, as she cleared her throat, motioning for you to go and talk to her. You cussed quietly to yourself, could this day get any worse? You dragged your feet over to her desk, biting your now scabbed lip. “So, your project was very good, therefore, I’m going to give you a 90, but I have to dock 10 points for your presentation”, she spoke quietly and sternly. Your face grew hot with her words, tears swelling in your eyes again. She was taking points off for something that you couldn’t control? It pissed you off to say the least. You only looked away from her desk, nodding slightly, knowing better than to open your mouth. “Alright then, you can go and pack up your things”. You walked quickly back to your desk, putting the few things you had taken out back into your backpack, before the bell rang for lunch. Dashing out of the class, you headed straight for the front of the school, more than ready for the day to be over. You’d email your 4th period teacher later on what work you missed out on. On your way, you made sure to text Peter, letting him know everything that happened, and that you wouldn’t be there for lunch.

You only had to wait for a few minutes, as Sam walked through the doors, spotting you quickly and walking over to you. “You alright kid?”. “Yeah, I’ll be fine, jus’ want this day to be done already”. He nodded, following you to the front office, signing everything to excuse you for the day. He kept a close eye on you the whole time, a protective hand placed on your shoulder. Stepping out of the building, he led you to the car where Bucky and Steve awaited. You got into the back seat, Sam sitting in the seat next to you.

“Hey doll, you feeling alright?”, Bucky quizzed, angling his body to look at you. “Yeah, ‘m glad you guys offered to pick me up though. Don’t really think I could’ve lasted another class”, you fidgeted with your hands, you knew your nerves wouldn’t calm for a while, but at least it was manageable now. “We’re always here for you, kid, no matter what”, Sam assured you, patting your shoulder softly. “Mhm, you can always come to us, even if we’re on a mission. Our job can always wait, your well being is more important than anything”, Steve added, looking briefly to you in the rearview mirror. “Thank you for that, you guys are the best”, you smiled bashfully. “No need to thank us, jus’ doing what’s right”, Bucky stated. “So, whatcha feel like doing when we get back?”, Sam asked. You thought for a moment, doing anything social sounded horrible at the moment, and the weighted blanket in your room was calling your name. “How ‘bout a pizza and movie night?”, you inquired, knowing they’d all like the idea, hell the whole team would probably join in. “Sounds good to me”, Steve mused, he always liked time for the team to bond. “Me too”. “Me as well, I’m starving dude”, Sam quipped, causing all of you to chuckle.

It didn’t take long to get back to the tower, all of you heading inside, you going to your room to set your stuff down and to change into something more comfy. After changing, you grabbed your weighted blanket, wrapping it around you, heading back down to the common room. Word must’ve spread fast, cause the whole team was gathered there, everyone sitting in a designated spot, except for Tony, who was currently ordering pizza over the phone. “Hey, there they are, rough day at school?”, Natasha asked, giving you a warm smile. “Yeah, not the greatest”, you huffed out a small laugh. “Well, in that case, you get to choose the first movie draga”, Pietro looked up at you from his spot on the floor. You hummed in response, before placing your decision on one of your favorite comfort movies. Clint started to look it up on the various streaming services, finding it almost instantly. “This one, right?”. You nodded happily, making your way over to sit between Steve and Wanda. “Hey, kiddo, you want a drink? And I’m guessing you want some extra garlic breadsticks too, right?”, Tony asked, holding his phone away from his mouth slightly. “Uhh, I’ll have a (f/d), and duh, of course I want garlic breadsticks”. “Yeah, what type of question is that?”, Pietro chimed in. Tony scoffed at him, rolling his eyes, but continued placing the order.

Wanda opened her arms next to you, allowing you to curl into her side as her arms wrapped softly around you. You stretched your legs out, Steve placed them on his lap, gently rubbing his thumb over your calf. Your nerves were finally winding down, as Clint pressed play on the movie. Wanda kept an arm wrapped around your back, her other hand resting gently on the side of your head, making sure to keep you close. The pizza arrived shortly after the movie had started, and you grabbed as much food as you wanted. You deserved it after the day you had. After the first movie finished, and the team voted on a new movie to watch, you felt yourself begin to drift off. You couldn’t have imagined a more perfect setting, comfort and warmth surrounding you. You didn’t make it far into the second movie before you fell asleep, listening to the sound of Wanda’s heart beating, the events from earlier that day flooding away, leaving you to sleep peacefully, knowing that you were safe and sound.

[eleanorfenyxwrites]

WIP Wednesday

LQR & LJY [Another double length post 😊]

[Beginning]

“You do still have lessons, because you must continue to learn to cultivate. However, most of your lessons will be with me from now on, and I will only be teaching you. It will not be the sorts of classes you are accustomed to. I will give you problems to solve, questions to answer, things to memorize like you do now in your group lessons, but we will do these things while I work and you assist me. You will not be asked to sit still and be quiet all day long, you will be allowed to move as much as you’d like, and to ask me any questions that come to your mind because you need not worry about interrupting others.”

Jingyi blinks at that. There’s no way anyone is allowed to learn like that. That’s impossible. Plus there’s no way Lan-xiansheng understands just how many questions Jingyi has every day, so many of which go unanswered and how many more go unasked in the first place. He wouldn’t be offering this if he knew the truth, which means that Jingyi must have deceived him in some way. He feels panic clutch at his chest at the thought but he does his best to hide it; it’s everything he’s ever wanted since he was old enough to realize his parents weren’t coming back for him, but he’s dismayed to realize that getting it all at once actually sort of…scares him.

“Yes Lan-xiansheng,” he agrees anyway because that seems like the safest thing to do, and it’s not like he doesn’t want all of this. He just doesn’t understand why he’s suddenly being given it, or how permanent (or not) all of it is. It doesn’t seem like something he should be allowed to have, and as soon as someone realizes as much they’ll take it all away again. That’s what happens to things that are too good to be true - they don’t last. He doesn’t get to keep them.

He’s warring with himself between doing everything he can to ruin this now before he gets used to it versus wanting to cling onto it for as long as possible so he can enjoy it before it all crumbles out from under his feet. Unfortunately his instinct for self-preservation has always needed some work so after a long pause he blurts out, “Lan-xiansheng, why aren’t you punishing me? Is it..I mean do I have to wait until later for Hanguang-Jun to tell someone else everything I did so they can do it instead of you? Can we do it now instead since you already know what I did?”

“You want to be punished?” Lan-xiansheng asks and if Jingyi didn’t know any better he’d think he sounds surprised. “For what?”

Jingyi shifts a little bit, absolutely sure that this is a trap but equally sure that he’s going to blunder right into it like he always does. The aunties do this to him all the time, trick him into admitting to things that even other children do but don’t get caught and punished for, and he hates it but he’s never figured out how not to do it. He just talks and ends up admitting to everything without even trying, and it scares him sometimes, like just opening his mouth is enough to get him into trouble.

“I was disrespectful to you,” he starts with a sinking heart. “I ran away from the aunties. I broke curfew. I broke into a house. I stole food. I made Hanguang-Jun break curfew to take me home. I know that Hanguang-Jun said last night that I’m not in trouble but that’s not right! It’s..Hanguang-Jun doesn’t lie! He doesn’t ever break rules which means he doesn’t lie, but how can what he said be true? How can I have broken so many rules and not be in trouble when I’m always in trouble?”

“Hanguang-Jun breaks rules.”

Jingyi’s racing mind screeches to a halt and he stops twisting his hands together in his lap to blink at Lan-xiansheng, uncomprehending.

“What?”

“Hanguang-Jun breaks rules. As does Zewu-Jun, and as do I. No one in this Sect is perfect. It is impossible to follow every single rule perfectly at all times, and it is not expected that anyone will do so.”

Jingyi blinks a few times as he tries to make that…make sense. That can’t possibly be right. Why have all those rules then if they’re not all supposed to be obeyed all the time? Why punish people for breaking them if it’s expected? Does that mean Hanguang-Jun has been punished? Lan-xiansheng?!

“Jingyi, look at me.”

Jingyi looks up sharply from blinking down unseeingly at the floorboards to meet Lan-xiansheng’s intense stare.

“The reason you are not in trouble for your actions yesterday is because you were in distress, and even though I am sure that you were aware of every rule you broke as you broke them, you still behaved that way because you were afraid and upset. I do not believe you did any of those things because you were gladly defying the rules, but rather because you saw no other option that you could bear.”

Jingyi blinks furiously again at that and wonders for a frantic moment if he isn’t actually still asleep and dreaming this entire conversation.

“If I had to guess I would also think that your behavior for the past months has been for similar reasons. You have told myself and Hanguang-Jun that you disrupt class because you do not understand the material and find sitting still to be unbearable no matter how much you try. In that case, being punished later for causing a disruption is a consequence that is not as upsetting in the moment as the pain of sitting still and quiet is, and so it is the only acceptable alternative.

“You are not the first naturally loud person to step foot in Cloud Recesses, nor will you be the last. It is such a consistent issue despite how much you dislike and fear punishment that I can only conclude that it is something you have little control over at the moment, and that no one is helping you attempt to find that control. If that is the case, it means that it is not your fault but the fault of those who should be teaching you and have not been.

“I will not punish you any further for these behaviors unless I see that you take delight in breaking these rules, rather than feeling compelled to do so because the way your mind works is incompatible with the standard way we teach the other disciples.”

It really does all sound far too good to be true.

Because that’s it. That’s it exactly. The only thing missing is how good it feels to get attention - any attention - instead of being ignored and discarded, but Jingyi doesn’t feel a need to share that reason; it’s too embarrassing. It’s enough that Lan-xiansheng seems to understand, somehow, what it’s like in his head. He doesn’t want to break the rules, he doesn’t want to be bad, but he can’t seem to help himself when the alternative means doing things that make him feel like he’s going to crawl out of his skin if he doesn’t fix the problem immediately. Only fixing the problem means moving, wiggling, asking the questions burning in his mouth. All things that no one wants him to do.

“I can see on your face that I am correct.”

“Yes, Lan-xiansheng,” he manages and scrubs his sleeve hard over his stupid wet eyes. “Thank you.”

“You do not need to thank me, Jingyi, this is my responsibility. Now - I wish to re-teach you everything that you have struggled with so far, and that is why I have asked you to tell me what you struggle with. It is not so that I can hurt you, or so that I can ask why you do not understand basic concepts at your age. I know why you don’t as I have just established, I only need to know what I must teach you. Can you tell me?”

And Jingyi - finally willing to begin to trust that if Lan-xiansheng were trying to trap him he would just say so - tells him. Everything.

[Previous] / [Next]

[pondwatr04]

Who Obeys Who?

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3

~F!Mc~ Word Count: 4,494

Summary: After Mc’s latest brush with death, Lucifer has placed various rules to ensure her safety. However, the independent human will soon discover that the brothers have become increasingly possessive/protective over her, to the point where she begins to feel suffocated. In the heat of the moment during a particularly bad fight, Mc uses the power of her pacts and accidentally harms the brothers in the process. Anguished over this and the brothers’ behavior, she runs away and seeks a way to break the pacts, for their sake and her own!

Warnings: Mention of death, brief violence, aggressive scenarios.

It was no secret to anyone that the 7 Lords of Devildom were fiercely protective of their little human, however this was something that Mc was still adjusting to. Back in the human world, Mc was never really the center of attention or had particularly protective family/friends, and was quite content with the sense of freedom that came with such a life.

However, as the brothers began to grow closer and closer with her, their desire to guard the new member of their family also swelled. At first, she found this behavior somewhat endearing; it warmed her heart to know that such powerful and feared demons cared so deeply for her, a mere mortal human. With this new sensation of the brothers at her side, Mc felt safe in Devildom, despite the multiple times she had almost lost her life.

That was until she had a particularly bad run in with several lower demons at RAD once a day. Mc had left her classes mid-session to use the restroom, the hallways were silent and empty as everyone was seated in their classrooms. However, when she was making her way back to class, three lower demons jumped out and began attacking her, beating her nearly unconscious.

In between the grunts and deafening blows the demons dealt her, she could hear them shouting something about how she was making the Demon Lords soft, that her presence was ruining their reputation as fearsome, cruel creatures.

However, it was over as soon as it started; the demons left her gasping alone on the cool, tiled floor. Soon after Mammon (who had been in the process of skipping class) discovered her battered body and called his brothers for help. Although Mc hadn’t sustained any serious injuries, she was quickly raced to the nearest hospital and made a swift recovery with the help of Solomon and Simeon’s healing abilities.

In the days after the incident, Mc was feeling suprisingly unscatched, both physically and mentally. Despite how worried sick the brothers were, she was simply happy that the whole ordeal was over and done with, the perpetrators promptly beaten and jailed. However, Lucifer had decided this was not good enough for Mc, or rather, him.

==================================

Mc sat nervously at the dining table in the House of Lamentation, all the chairs filled with their respective brothers. Lucifer had called a “family meeting” earlier that day during RAD classes and had stressed that everyone must be there.

At first Mc hadn’t been too worried about the sudden order, but simply watching Mammon anxiously bounce his leg from next to her with his chin resting gravely on his palm, had her suddenly reconsidering. Everyone instantly perked up as Lucifer cleared his throat from the end of the long table.

“In light of… recent events...,” he begins his gaze sweeping from brother to brother, eventually landing firmly on Mc, making her jump slightly. He pauses for a moment, huffing slightly.

“...I have decided that there is an urgent need for new rules regarding Mc, more specifically on how to ensure she remains safe in her time at Devildom,” he announces.

“What do you mean ‘new rules’,” Mc questions, eyebrows furrowed slightly.

Lucifer shoots her a quick glare after being interrupted before continuing.

“I mean that as of today, you cannot be without an escort when leaving the House of Lamentation under any circumstances-,” he says as Mc rises quickly from her chair.

“What?! I need an escort?-'' she exclaims, hands placed definitely on the table before her.

“-That includes walking to and from RAD, walking between class periods, and anywhere else outside of the House of Lamentation,” he continues, ignoring Mc’s sudden outburst.

“That ridiculous, I can handle walking myself perfectly fine-,” Mc shouts.

“You will be required to have your D.D.D on you at all times, and you are not permitted to leave the house after 8pm,” he states coldly, staring down Mc. “All of which are effective for an indefinite amount of time.”

“This isn’t necessary, Lucifer! I know what happened last week, but that doesn’t mean you can just start making me follow all these crazy restrictions!” Mc pleads, desperately looking around the table at the brothers for any semblance of support.

However, they all avoid her gaze, a few of them taking sudden interest in the intricate carvings that adorn the side of the wooden table.

“It is necessary, Mc,” Lucifer says matter-of-factly, crossing his arms. “I know that you’re a very independent person, but these rules are for your own safety.”.

“I’m sorry Lucifer, but I won’t allow myself to submit to this-,” Mc begins defiantly.

“-You will follow these rules. This is not something that is up for discussion, Mc!” he bellows, causing everyone at the table to flinch at the sudden aggression.

“And that goes for all of you,” he commands, pointing accusingly at his brothers. “You all are to make sure that she adheres to these rules, you understand?”

They all exchange quick glaces between a fuming Mc and Lucifer’s stern expression. They all nod slowly, reluctantly submitting to Lucifer’s will. Mc flops angrily into her chair, teeth clenched as she festers silently in her own wrath.

As much as she wants to, she simply can’t win against Lucifer, especially not on this one. Seeing that none of the other brothers came to her aid, she decides she has no choice but to swallow her pride. Biting her tongue, she nods slightly along with the brothers.

“Then… that is all that I need to say,” Lucifer says, his composure restored as he rises from his seat. “This meeting is adjourned.”

In the days after Lucifer's declaration, Mc begrudgingly followed each rule. Although she was still fuming, she offered no further protest on the matter, electing to just wait until Lucifer decided these restrictions were no longer necessary.

After a while, Mc began to not be particularly bothered by these rules. Although she valued her occasional moments of solitude, having the brothers escort her from place to place proved to be somewhat enjoyable. Additionally, having her D.D.D on her at all times wasn’t too much of a hassle, and it wasn’t like she had many places to be in Devildom after 8pm.

However, Mc began to feel more concerned with the brothers’ behavior as more and more questionable moments occurred between them. She first took notice of this somewhat alarming shift in behavior when Mc was conversing with a new friend from her Curses and Hexes class; another demon, obviously.

Mc was always eager to make new friends, especially since she rarely had the chance to talk to any demons outside of the seven brothers. Her and this new demon had randomly sparked up a conversation when he had asked her for a spare pencil. He had noticed it had a design on it that originated from a popular movie franchise that he was also interested in, so the duo became engrossed in discussing the topic long into the class period. Even after the bell rang, they continued absentmindedly laughing and chatting with one another.

This caused Beel, who had recently begun waiting for Mc outside of each of her classes to walk her from period to period, to peek his head in the room worriedly. The redhead immediately noticed the lower demon and how he was leaning against Mc’s desk, deep in conversation with his human. Anger quickly sparked in the pit of his abdomen, prompting him to stalk swiftly towards the duo.

He planted a solid hand on Mc’s shoulder. “The bell rang, Mc. Let’s go to your next class,” he grunts, refusing to acknowledge the surprised demon beside him.

“Oh, it's okay Beel. You can go without me, I’ll be leaving after I finish up here in a second,” Mc says cheerfully, waving Beel on without much thought.

In response, his grip tightens every-so slightly on Mc’s shoulder, digging into the fabric of her uniform. “No. I have to go with you Mc,” he says firmly.

“Beel, seriously, it’s okay,” Mc responds in a quizzical tone, eyes flickering between his face and his hand on her shoulder. “I’ll just have my friend here walk me instead. Your class is on the other side of campus anyway, so you’ll be late if you wait for me.”

“I don’t care if I’m late. I’m not going to let you be alone with some other demon, Mc,” he growls.

Both Mc and the lower demon gape at Beel, taken aback by his sudden aggression.

“Beel! Don’t be rude! You don’t need to worry about him, he’s oka-,” Mc exclaims.

“Mc. I’m not leaving you with him,” Beel repeats, this time finally eyeing the fidgeting lower demon sitting across from him. He wilts slightly from Beel’s piercing gaze, feeling as if he’s somehow made a grave mistake by simply talking to Mc. Mc shakes Beel’s hand from her shoulder, rising from her desk to confront him head on.

“Beelzebub. I’m telling you-,” Mc begins before she’s abruptly interrupted by Beel grabbing her wrist and tugging her towards the classroom’s exit. Despite her protests, he managed to make it halfway to her next period before Mc finally wrenched herself from his grip. The other demons in the hallway disperse, fleeing to their classrooms after sensing the dangerous arua the Avatar of Gluttony was emitting.

“What the hell Beel?” she pants, rubbing the angry red skin on her wrist. She eyes him, feeling increasingly uneasy; what happened back in the classroom...it was completely out of character for him. He never spoke to her, or anyone in that way, let alone put his hands on her like that.

“Lucifer said you can’t go anywhere by yourself,” he explains, placing a hand on his neck while shame begins to replace the wrath within him.

“Yeah, I wasn’t going by myself. I said that my friend was going to walk me instead,” Mc shoots back.

Beel frowns, “You can’t trust any demon you meet, Mc. You don’t know if you really would be safe with him.”

In the back of her mind, Mc knows he’s half right; she simply didn’t know that demon well enough to confidently say he wouldn’t try something the moment she was alone and vulnerable. However, she wasn’t upset that Beel questioned his integrity anymore, she was upset that he didn’t even take a moment to consider her feelings on the matter. He simply ran off with her without a second thought, completely disregarding her ability to judge a person’s character on her own without him or one of his brothers weighing in with their own cynical opinions.

They stood silently for a moment as Mc stewed in her thoughts, the hallway empty, its air turning stale around them. Before she could give a proper retort, the sound of the school’s bell rang around them, indicating that they were now both late for class. Mc clenched her firsts angrily.

She then turned sharply and stalked to her next period, allowing an uneasy Beel to accompany her from a distance. Once she entered her classroom and slammed the door behind her, Beel began the trek on his own class. When the next period ended, Mc found Belphie waiting outside to escort her in place of Beel.

Despite this concerning event, there was a brief lull in the brothers’ display of possessive behavior; whether that be because they finally realized that they were suffocating Mc with their antics, or because Mc had been more careful about complying to Lucifer’s rules.  However, this moment of peace was soon to be interrupted.

After Asmo accidentally spilled wine on Mc during a visit to Ristorante Six, he had vowed to take her shopping for a whole new outfit, even though it only really stained her blouse. When Levi caught wind of the excursion, he decided to tag along to go window shopping for some newly released Ruri-chan merchandise.

That weekend, the trio made their way to the bustling shopping center at the heart of Devildom; the majority of the day was very lighthearted and served as a much needed break from school and the crushing protectiveness of the brothers. They all spent hours browsing and trying on clothes in Majolish, laughing as Asmo forced Levi to briefly explore his fashion sense with them. After they finally left, Mc and Asmo struggled to carry the various bags filled to the brim with clothes and accessories while Levi happily snapped pictures of the exasperated pair, offering no help as he uploaded the photos to Devilgram.

After some more teasing, Levi finally slid his phone away before reaching to take one of the heavier bags from Mc’s hand. Mc gladly accepts the aid, shifting her weight forward to lean towards his extended hand. However, her shoe briefly caught the raised surface of a slightly out-of-place tile in the pavement, causing her to trip mid-step. Before she could sprawl across the floor below, she collides into a passing demon, falling face first into their chest.

“Hey! Watch it-,” the demon shouts, falling backwards from the force of the impact.

Mc instantly removes herself from the demon. “Ah-, I’m sorry! Are you okay?,” flustered from the embarrassing spectacle she’s caused. She offers a hand to the fallen demon, smiling politely as they glare at her from the floor.

“My apologies, I accidentally tripped, and you just happened to be in front of me...,” she says quickly as they begrudgingly reach to take her hand.

Before their palms can overlap, Levi moves in between the two, slapping the demon’s hand away from Mc’s. Shocked, the demon sharply pulls back his hand, hissing from the insult.

“Levi? What the fuck was that for?” Mc gasped, Levi’s expression startlingly contradicting the joyful demon he was moments ago.

“Don’t fucking talk to her like that,” Levi snarls at the demon, shoving Mc behind him despite her protests. “Stay the fuck away from us.”

At a loss for words, Mc desperately looks to Asmo for help. Rather than stepping forward to mitigate the situation as he so often does, Asmo simply moves to pick up the fallen bag and plants himself next to Levi, ignoring Mc’s aghast face.

“Guys, calm down! It was my fault, I was the one who bumped into them!” Mc exclaims, moving in front of the pair with raised hands.

“Yeah, what the hell? It was just an accident-,” the demon begins, moving to return to a standing position. Before they can get themselves completely upright, Levi shoves him to the ground.

“Levi-,” Mc yelped at the sudden display of violence. This time, she places a hand on the two advancing brothers’ chest, glaring at them both.

“If you two don’t knock this shit off right now, I’ll use our pacts to command you to stop,” she warns, hoping the anger in her tone masked the fear she felt creeping its way into the corners of her mind.

Levi clicks his tongue in frustration, reluctantly taking a step away from the terrified demon. Asmo slowly follows, never taking his eyes off them.

“Fine,” Asmo mutters. “But it would be in your best interest to leave, and never show your face around us ever again,” Asmo spat at the demon, his usually pristine face twisted into an irritated grimace.

The demon immediately takes off in the other direction, leaving the trio alone in the street. Before Mc could scold them, they both link their arms around her’s and stomp away.

“That was out-of-fucking line, guys!” Mc exclaims after a moment of stunned silence. The pair flinch a little but continue tugging her back to the House of Lamentation wordlessly.

“That was… that was absolutely ridiculous! It was just a simple mistake, and it was my fault! There was no reason for you guys to blow up on them like that!” she says, whipping her head from side to side in an attempt to read the faces of the two demons.

“Why’re you acting like that demon running into me was some kind of assasinaton attempt?! You guys didn’t used to be this… unreasonable…” she trails off, desperately trying to get Levi or Asmo to meet her eyes. “...What the fuck happened?” she asks the pair.

“I’ll tell you what the fuck happened, Mc,” Levi finally retorts, clenching his teeth as he lifts his head to look at her from behind his violet hair. “You… you were almost killed... not even a month ago. And if you think we’re just going to let something like that happen again then-”.

“But they weren’t trying to kill me!” Mc thundered, shaking with anger. “You both totally overreacted!”

“We can’t be too careful, Mc. I’m sorry we upset you, but I’d rather that than risk you being murdered!” Asmo admits, gripping her arm desperately.

“There was no danger, Asmo!” Mc yells. “Why can’t you two understand that?”

Levi and Asmo exchanged troubled glances.

“Mc, we’re just trying to do what’s best for you…” Levi pleads, Asmo nodding.

“This is what you think is best for me?! Just tearing off with me the moment I interact with any demon aside from you guys?” Mc scoffs, struggling to wrap her mind around the ridiculousness of the whole situation.

The two demons are silent, festering in shame and frustration. They avoid her eyes, struggling to produce a proper retort.

“I decide what is best for me, got it?! Because clearly, you guys have lost all touch with reality!” she continues, beyond caring about softening her insults.

Although the brothers wanted to argue back, they both elected to bite their tongues for the rest of the walk home, hoping that Mc would eventually calm down and come around to their point of view.

However, when they finally arrived home Mc ripped her arms from their grip, storming to her room while Asmo and Levi frantically tried to apologize from behind her wake. She slammed the door in their faces; they knocked the wooden surface as they pleaded for her to let them so they could make it up to her.

After a while of fruitlessly calling to her, they finally gave up, leaving Mc alone to quietly sob in her room. She refused to speak to the pair for a couple days afterward, but eventually gave up on attempting to hold a grudge on the demons she loved so deeply. She tried to drop her guard around them once again, but still couldn’t shake that uneasy feeling that had been clouding her mind ever since that day.

==================================

Although Mc found these instances incredibly peculiar (alarmingly so), she still gave the demon brothers the benefit of the doubt. She understood that they cared for her fiercely, and that this could lead them to act aggressively; but she could not wrap her head around why they were starting to disregard how Mc felt. They had begun to handle her like a delicate piece of artwork; something to be admired from within a protective container, never to be touched by outside hands.

Despite this, she decided that for the time being she would simply grin a bear it all while she gave them a chance to calm themselves, hoping they would all eventually return to their normal selves. However, this was not the case as Mc would soon realize after she had forgotten to walk home with Mammon after classes at RAD.

As per Lucifer’s rules, Mc was to be accompanied by one of the brothers to and from school. After much pestering from Mammon, she agreed to make walking back with him a daily occurrence. The two would meet in the garden at the center of RAD’s campus and make the journey home together, chatting about their day. However, Mc had completely forgotten about this agreement one day.

Mc has a bad habit of becoming lost in thought, forgetting the world around her as she silently listens to music through a pair of tangled earbuds. Mc was often accompanied by at least 1-2 demon brothers at once, so she doesn't often get much time to simply explore her own thoughts without interruption. This, coupled with her bad habit of becoming detached from the present, caused her to simply walk straight to the House of Lamentation without the thought of meeting Mammon even crossing her mind.

She had gotten home before any of the others, and absentmindedly slumped into bed after changing out of her RAD uniform. Lazily rolling over, she reached out to pick up her previously discarded D.D.D and earbuds, music still faintly playing. She clicked on the screen to turn off the music and noticed she had 9 new notifications while her phone was on silent. There were 6 text messages from Mammon, and 4 new missed calls. Mc sat up in bed to read the texts:

“Oi! Where the hell are ya at Mc?” - 19 minutes ago

“Are you coming or not? Did ya forget about me?” - 16 minutes ago

1 missed call.

“Did ya walk home with Asmo instead of me? That hurts my feelings, ya know.” - 15 minutes ago

1 missed call.

“Hey! Respond to my calls… you’re startin’ to worry me”. - 12 minutes ago

"If you’re worried that I’m mad, I’m not! Just text me when ya get home safely, OK?” - 11 minutes ago

2 missed calls.

“That's it! You better call me back right now, or I’m gonna start freakin’ out!” - 6 minutes ago

Mc drags a hand over her face, annoyed by his gross overreaction. Mammon has always been the clingy type, something she had gotten used to and eventually found somewhat endearing. However, this was just too much…

Before she could even begin to return his calls, the door to her room burst open, swinging on its hinges and slamming into the wall with a loud bang. There in the doorway stood Mammon, sweaty, panting, and obviously very distressed. Alongside him stood Satan, Asmo, and Belphie, all looking slightly less disheveled but with equally concerned expressions. As soon as they laid their eyes on her, relief immediately flushed all other emotion from their faces.

“Wha-”, she began, but was swiftly cut off when Mammon leapt towards her to clutch her shoulders.

“What the hell happened Mc?!” he exclaims, shaking her before embracing her firmly. After a tense moment, he quickly peels himself from her form, his flushed face mere inches from her own as he continues his volley of questions.

“I really thought something bad happened to you!” he cries out, silvery eyebrows furrowed. Mc opened her mouth to explain but was interrupted once again.

“-and why didn’t ya answer my calls? I got so worried that I even called Asmo, and when he said that you weren’t with him, I totally freaked!” he says, his eyes wandering to inspect her body; still expecting her to be harmed in some way.

Mc pushes the babbling demon off of her as she explains, “I’m sorry, I had my D.D.D on silent, so I didn’t see any of your texts.”

As Mammon tumbles to the foot of her bed, Asmo quickly takes his place next to her.

“Mc! You can’t do that to us again! We really thought some other demon got to you!” he sobs, wrapping his arms around her , dramatically burying his face in the crook of her neck. Satan turns his back to them to make a call on his D.D.D, presumably to let the others know that Mc is safe and sound at home.

Overwhelmed by the sudden attention, Mc struggles to pry the weeping demon off of her. She looks to Belphie to help as he’s usually the brother that grants her the most freedom in situations like these. Meeting her gaze, Belphie moves forward, his facade of indifference faintly cracking.

“That doesn’t explain why you didn't wait for one of us to walk with you. You know you’re not supposed to go anywhere by yourself, Mc,” he says with a sigh, running a hand through his hair in an attempt to feign exasperation.

Mc glares at him; she half-expected him to be on her side, to scold Mammon and Asmo for their dramatic antics as he so often does.

“I’m sorry guys, I totally forgot to wait. I guess I just got so lost in thought that I didn’t realize I forgot about Mammon,” she admits, chuckling awkwardly at her rather anticlimactic explanation. Satan turns to face them as he places his D.D.D back into his pant pocket, frowning at her words.

“Well, it's a good thing that you at least went straight back to the House of Lamentation, because if we didn’t find you in your room, Lucifer would have asked Diavolo to form a royal search party for you,” he says, his hand cupping his chin thoughtfully.

“What?! A search party?” Mc exclaims, becoming more exasperated by the second. “Isn’t that a bit much? I mean… I was only unaccounted for for less than half an hour, right? Doesn’t that seem like overkill to you?” she questions, attempting to face Satan as Asmo and Mammon fuss over her.

Satan and Belpie, who normally jump at any chance to criticize Lucifer’s decisions, simply shook their heads.

“No, it’s understandable. We can’t afford to give you the benefit of the doubt anymore,” Satan sighs.

“Huh?” Mc says, completely vexed by his explanation.

Satan moves to place a hand on her head, his palm lovingly stroking her hair despite the troubled expression that lingers on his features.

“You better start working on your apology, because Lucifer and the others are on their way back now,” he says, only half-joking. “And from what he told me, Levi and Beel had been tearing up every inch of RAD’s campus looking for any trace of you.”

Before she can argue about the matter any further, the sound of 3 pairs of footsteps thunder against the hallway’s stairs and towards her room. The other brothers burst into her room, followed by another flurry of questions and quick embraces. After a while of explaining and apologizing, Mc finally managed to quell the fears of the brothers.

Later that afternoon, they all sat down to have dinner together, the brothers continuing to fuss over an annoyed Mc. Although this ridiculous incident hadn’t ended in complete disaster (aside from the scolding of a life-time from Lucifer), it still worried Mc. She could understand, to an extent, their protectiveness over her, especially after the most recent attempt on her life. However, she was only unresponsive for less than 30 minutes, and all of them had flown into a panic; it was completely out of character for most of the brothers.

She poked at her food, still sore about the lecturing she had received. Hopefully, this was the last incident for a long while. Little did she know, it would get much worse.

==================================

Thank you for reading part 1! Can you tell this is my first time ever writing fanfic? lmaoo

Let me know if you guys wanna see more, because regardless I plan on making 2-3 more chapters! Comments, suggestions, and reblogs are much appreciated!

Tags: @obey-mes-treasure

[robininthelabyrinth]

CQL-verse! The characters have the same age gaps between them as their actors and actresses! Wwx and Jyl are the same age, jc is 5 years younger than them. Lxc is 3 years younger than wwx&jyl and lwj is 3 years younger than him. Nmj is two years older than wwx&jyl and nhs is 8 years younger than him and the same age as lwj. (1/2)

Meng Yao is 2 years older than nhs and jzx is 2 years older than MY. I'm leaving the Wen Sibs out of this because otherwise WN would be the same age as wwx and WQ would be 4 years younger than him. But hey! If you want to go with that, go crazy! I was thinking more of Yunmeng Sibs focus, but I will be happy with anything! (2/2)

ao3

Untamed

Nie Mingjue hated the Wen sect to the point of death and war, but he had always had trouble hating sad and gentle Wen Ning.

Wen Ning was technically his peer – there were only two years between them in age – and therefore capable of the same sorts of responsibilities and duties towards righteousness as Nie Mingjue, meaning that he ought to hate him as much as all the rest. But at the same time, Wen Ning was only part of the main branch family indirectly, a ward of Wen Ruohan; he was constantly suppressed and even tormented by Wen Chao, the eldest son of that family. If anything, it seemed almost as if he’d been brought into the family just to act as the family’s scapegoat, the inferior copy that was so hapless that he made that self-indulgent hedonist Wen Chao appear somewhat competent in contrast.

Nie Mingjue couldn’t imagine treating any of his own cousins that way.

He and Wen Chao were often compared, both being about the same age, and their young brothers were of similar age as well, both of them only fourteen; this juxtaposition made sure that every single person in the cultivation world talk of them in the same breath. Nie Mingjue always came out the better in the comparison, and Wen Xu the same for his, which in the minds of most people balanced out, but which caused Wen Chao no end of rage. He knew he couldn’t take out his anger on the talented Wen Xu and so took out on poor Wen Ning instead.

Nie Mingjue hated the Wen sect.

He did not hate Wen Ning.

Wen Ning, who should not be here.

“Please,” Wen Ning said, nearly in tears, as he threw himself down to the floor in front of Nie Mingjue. He’d burst into the room in the inn Nie Mingjue was staying at, the guards that no sect leader could do without no matter what they wanted following close behind in alarm until Nie Mingjue had waved them off with a gesture; he’d been panting so hard that he’d only just now caught his breath. “Please help this useless older brother do one good thing with his life.”

Alarmed, Nie Mingjue reached out and caught Wen Ning by the shoulders, pulling him to stand and even forgetting himself enough to reach forward with a sleeve to dab away the tears staining the other man’s face.

“What is it?” he asked, feeling anxiety curdling in his gut. He’d spoken with Wen Ning before during the discussion conferences, both when he was younger and even, in a few stolen moments, after he became sect leader; he knew Wen Ning had a steady personality, if a weak one from all the bullying he endured, and that he was not given to unnecessary hysterics. If he could tolerate Wen Chao’s endless torment with a faint smile and a don’t worry sect leader Nie once you’re used to it it’s more funny than anything else, then what could make him act like this? “What is that you need help with? I do not understand.”

Wen Ning looked tired. He always had, his health had always been poor, but now it seemed worse than ever; there were circles under his eyes, and Nie Mingjue had no idea how he’d managed to get away from the Nightless City to come find him. The town he was currently in was close to the border the Qinghe Nie shared with Qishan Wen, but it was still an effort, especially for someone like Wen Ning. He might be a member of the Wen family by name, but his freedom was significantly curtailed, and it wasn’t only because he was sickly.

“My little sister is going to be attending the lectures at the Cloud Recesses,” Wen Ning said.

“The - Lan sect lectures?” Nie Mingjue repeated blankly. It was a stupid thing to say; of course it was the Lan sect’s lectures, who else would give lectures at the Cloud Recesses? And yet, at the same time – “The Wen sect hasn’t gone to them in generations.”

“Sect Leader Wen asked A-Qing to look for something,” Wen Ning said. “I don’t know what. He talks to her more than he talks to me, when she’s treating him with acupuncture and other such things – he only wants blood relations treating him now, so she’s passing along what she can do, the doctors all say she’s talented – he told her something, I think, but I don’t know what, he doesn’t talk to me…and she doesn’t talk to me, either.”

“She’s sixteen, they’re like that,” Nie Mingjue said, trying to offer comfort, but he didn’t like the sound of that – Wen Ruohan growing reliant on the medical skills of a teenager, talking with her as if she were an adult…it didn’t speak well to the Chief Cultivator’s state of mind. “So she’s going to go spy on them?”

“She is. And maybe more. There’s – there’s something back in the Nightless City, something Sect Leader Wen is refining in order to increase his power. Whatever it is, it’s powerful and evil.” Wen Ning looked paler than usual, somehow. “It was something that was kept in a cave near our village when we were younger, once. Sect Leader Wen took it away to study, and it made something go crazy, I got hurt, and my parents – anyway, it doesn’t matter. I can’t go near it without losing my senses, so I really don’t know anything about it. But I know that Sect Leader Wen only has a piece – and the Lan sect has another.”

Lan Xichen had never mentioned such a thing, but then again, he wasn’t really old enough that Nie Mingjue would expect him to know everything about his sect – he was after all a full five years younger than Nie Mingjue, three years younger than Wen Ning; he was still only seventeen, having only just graduated from his uncle’s classes the year before. He was only very technically sect leader, in the same way Nie Mingjue had only been technically sect leader after his father’s death, although unlike Lan Xichen Nie Mingjue had fought his way to step up to the task for real early on. He himself was only barely considered an adult at the age of twenty-two; it was no surprise that in the Lan sect, which had Lan Qiren to rely on, Lan Xichen might not know it all.

Or perhaps he knew, and simply didn’t say. Each sect was entitled to its secrets.

“What are you thinking?” Nie Mingjue asked.

“I’m thinking that my sister is constantly afraid for me, even though she’s younger than me,” Wen Ning said solemnly. “I’m thinking that she will break her own principles into pieces to protect me. I’m thinking that she’ll find whatever it is, or find a hint to it, and then Wen Chao will take his forces to burn the Cloud Recesses to the ground in search of it.”

Nie Mingjue could see that.

He didn’t want to, but he could.

“My brother is attending those lectures,” he said blankly. Nie Huaisang was there right now. He could be in danger – no, he would be in danger. Nie Huaisang wasn’t a good cultivator, and at fourteen, he was just a baby. Nie Mingjue had sent Meng Yao with him, nominally as his attendant, but in fact to get the benefit of the classes himself and also bully Nie Huaisang into actually learning something – he’d brought Meng Yao into the Nie sect after Jin Zixuan, full of guilt over how his father had treated a boy only two years his junior, had sent him a letter beseeching him for help following Meng Yao’s public and humiliating rejection from Jinlin Tower – but Meng Yao was only sixteen, of age with Wen Qing; what could he really do?

Moreover, sending Wen Qing and not Wen Xu, even though Wen Xu was the same age as Nie Huaisang and Lan Wangji, indicated that Wen Ruohan didn’t want his more promising son to get involved in whatever it was that he was planning, or maybe in whatever consequences followed. If Wen Chao really were to try something violent, they couldn’t afford to have a weakness already there…

“I need to get A-Qing out of the Wen sect,” Wen Ning said, and Nie Mingjue turned to look at him in shock. “Permanently. I’ve begged her to go, but she won’t leave me, she won’t leave our family of the Dafan Wen, but she has to. Something bad is going to happen soon. I know it. I don’t mind trading my life for hers, but she has to live.”

“Is there any way you can go to the Cloud Recesses as well?” Nie Mingjue asked, his mind already racing. He’d long ago given up on helping Wen Ning because he knew the other man wouldn’t turn traitor against his family, being an upright and filial child, but if his family had reached such a depth of corruption as that, then it was only right to leave them behind. If Wen Ning was finally accepting that, maybe there was something he could do. “You’re sensitive to the – whatever it is. Right? Maybe Wen Qing can suggest bringing you around to help her find her way to it.”

“How would that help?”

“It gets you somewhere safe, while I can rescue Dafan Wen – without a threat to you or to them, your sister would have no reason to insist on staying,” Nie Mingjue said, though it wouldn’t be him, exactly, that did the rescue – he’d need a firm alibi lest Wen Ruohan use it as an excuse to start something with his Nie sect. He might have prepared for war as much as he could, but the Wen sect was still stronger; if war broke out, he needed to make sure that he had the moral high ground.

Luckily, Wei Wuxian, that walking calamity of a head disciple of Yunmeng Jiang, had of late developed the habit of wandering over to visit various other sects, including Qinghe (and Nie Mingjue in specific), at his leisure, and no one ever would think to blame him for such a strange thing as a subsidiary sect of distant Wen sect cousins disappearing.

After all, Wei Wuxian had no reason to know or care about the Dafan Wen, and everyone knew he abjured politics completely, violently and repetitively, so as to make no mistake about anyone who might otherwise see him as competition for the Jiang sect’s true heir, Jiang Cheng. The five-year gap between their ages kept them from being compared – you couldn’t expect a child, and at fifteen Jiang Cheng was still very much a child, to keep up with an adult just turned twenty like Wei Wuxian – but there had always been whispers given everything with Cangse Sanren, and Wei Wuxian had had to work very hard to put a stop to them.

Wei Wuxian’s wandering habit had started back when he’d been trying to find Jiang Yanli a new fiancée to replace the engagement he’d broken by fighting with Jin Zixuan, however shameful it was for him to fight with a boy two years his junior. It was for that that he had come to Qinghe to meet Nie Mingjue, leading to them hitting it off as friends despite Nie Mingjue expressing that he had absolutely no interest in getting married to Jiang Yanli, or indeed to any nice young lady at all; then, in turn, Nie Mingjue had brought him to the Lan sect to meet Lan Xichen. They’d gotten along as well, although the most notable outcome of that visit had been little Lan Wangji developing a crush on his elder brother’s new friend while Wei Wuxian remained blissfully oblivious. His wanderings had continued even after Jiang Yanli and Jin Zixuan had found their way back to each other, affianced once again through their own choice rather than their parents’.

Said parents had not yet been informed of this new situation, as they were waiting for the right time to mention it. Or perhaps more accurately, the right situation to exploit with it…

Now, Nie Mingjue thought. Now was the time. It would work perfectly.

And not just as a distraction.

“Are you sure…?”

“I am,” Nie Mingjue said. “Whatever it is, Wen Ruohan must be kept from obtaining all of the pieces; he’s already too powerful, and more power will only make him more arrogant. I’ll speak with Lan Qiren. Once I take the Dafan Wen back to the Nie sect, your sister will be able to testify to whatever it is that she was asked to search for, which will give Lan Qiren the evidence he needs to get his sect’s approval for retaliatory measures. Moreover, using Wei Wuxian to help me will force Jiang Fengmian to support me as well; there’s no way he’d ever refuse to back him to the hilt.”

“The Jin sect –”

“Will join us,” Nie Mingjue said, thinking of Jiang Yanli and Jin Zixuan’s yet-to-be-announced engagement. Once Jin Guangshan realized that he would be pulled into the same boat as the rest of them whether he wanted to or not, any resistance he had would crumble like a structure made of sand being beaten down by the tide. “They won’t have a choice. Is there anything else I should know?”

“There’s a child,” Wen Ning said, biting his lips. “Around the same age as your brother or my sister, or maybe the Jiang sect heir, I don’t know, around that. He helps Sect Leader Wen with whatever he’s doing.”

“A child helps him?”

Nie Mingjue didn’t like the sound of that.

“I don’t know. Some secret his family knows, I think…his surname is Xue.”

Nie Mingjue frowned.

“I don’t know much about him,” Wen Ning added. “Only that he has some history with the Yueyang Chang clan. Bad history.”

“That’s a good start,” Nie Mingjue said. He realized that he hadn’t yet released Wen Ning’s shoulders, and gave them a small squeeze before doing so. “Thank you for bringing this to my attention. I will do everything I can to help you.”

Wen Ning looked at him with admiration in his eyes, making Nie Mingjue feel a little hot under the collar.

“Thank you, Chifeng-zun,” he murmured, and Nie Mingjue shook his head.

“Call me by name,” he said, and tried to smile. “You’ll be here a lot in the future, if all goes well.”

Nie Mingjue hated the Wen sect, but he didn’t hate gentle and sad Wen Ning.

He didn’t hate him at all.

[apricotgojo]

hello love! I got bored and thought of this. So it’s the readers bday and they like Adrien. Adrien like the reader and marinette hates that he does. So like reader is planning on throwing a party bc it’s their birthday so marinette decided to throw a party on the same day at the same time. And since reader is kinda new, everyone decided to go to Mari’s party. So that happens, but when Adrien gets to readers party, they’ve done gone batshit crazy, like screaming, crying, smashing things, idk just losing their shit. Not like in anger, they’re just really hurt by it. No hawk moth tho😩 hawkdaddy go on vacay or sum🤺🤺 Mk sorry this is long and it’s late and I’m kiiinndaaa drunk and in da feels anyway bye bye

HELLO ANON! SORRY FOR THE LONG WAIT BUT HERE IT IS! I never thought that i would have to write about mean marinette but here i am LMAO. i hope you like it bb <33

Pairing: Adrien Agreste X Reader

Warnings: Swearing. 

Tags: angst, Marinette is a bitch in this oops, alexa play pity party by melaine martinez. 

“Love, Adrien.”

“Wow, that’s really cringey Adrien.”

“Shut up plagg, I need to confess to her some way or another.”

Adrien Agreste is sprawled out on his bed and he just finished writing a birthday card for you. Yes, it was quite cheesy but he decided that today was going to be the day he confesses his feelings towards you. He’s had his eye on you ever since your first day of school and you’ve both gotten closer to each other, flirting constantly but never making a move. Needless to say, he was head over heels for you and was too much of a pussy to ever admit it. But tonight was the night.

You invited him over to your house for your birthday party along with your other classmates and he didn’t even think twice to agree – especially since his dad is at a fashion expo in Spain. All he wanted was for you to have the best birthday party you could possibly have. You really meant a lot to him.

  his thoughts disappear when all of a sudden his phone beeps.

 ‘Y/N’S PARTY WILL BE HELD AT MY PLACE SO WE CAN SURPRISE HER, DON’T MENTION ANYTHING TO HER. 7PM ! DON’T BE LATE! ~Marinette’

  ‘Sorry, can’t come tonight.’ You frowned as you stared at your phone, seeing a text from Marinette. You and her weren’t really that close to be honest but you still wished for her to come and have a good time. You sighed and plopped down on your bed. It’s your sweet 16th and you wanted it to be perfect. You hoped that enough people would show up. It was your first birthday here in Paris and although you haven’t been here for a while, you thought that you already made close connections with your classmates, especially a certain blond.

All you wanted was for him to show up mostly, maybe tonight you could make a move. Maybe tonight you could possibly hold his hand, maybe dance with him, maybe give him a kiss on his soft cheek or a small peck on the lips-

Your face heated up at that thought and a grin appeared on your face. You hugged your pillow and quietly squealed. Tonight was the night and nothing could possibly ruin it.

Or so you hoped.

 Everywhere was decorated with fairy lights, balloons and glitter. Music was already playing and there were drinks and snacks for everyone to enjoy. You were wearing the outfit you’ve been planning for ages and you were sitting down, leg bouncing as you wait for people to arrive.

Did you get the time incorrect? you did mention to everyone that you’re meeting up at 7pm. It was 7:15.

Maybe they were running late? But how could it be that all of them were running late?

You furrow your eyebrows and grab your phone. You go on Instagram to see if anyone posted anything about their whereabouts.

Kim was live.

You click on it and see him walking through a crowd of people.

“Marinette, this party is amazing!” you hear him shout.

“Thanks Kim.” You hear her say.

Your jaw drops Anger starts bubbling inside of you.

Kim turns the phone up and shows Nino on the dj stand. He waves to the camera.

“Adrien! say hi to my live.” Adrien appears next to Kim. He was caught off guard. He smiles sheepishly and waves at the camera awkwardly.

Your phone drops out of your grasp and tears start rolling down your cheeks furiously.

 Adrien was looking everywhere for you. it was already 8pm and he was wondering when you’d show up. He held your gift and note close to his chest, he wanted to personally give them to you.

“H-hey Adrien..” The voice of Marinette makes him turn around to face her.

“Marinette! Where’s the birthday girl?” He asks, furrowing his eyebrows.

Marinette stares at him for a moment and nervously chuckles. “oh- well- she uh- she can’t make it!” He shrugs and laughs again. “did you get something to drink? We have pomegranate juice, peach lemonade, spr-“

“what do you mean she can’t make it? Why the hell is the party still going?” Adrien questions, looking around in disbelief.

“Adrien i-“

“Marinette, your plan is totally working, can’t believe everyone fell for- “ Alya stops speaking when she notices that Adrien is in front of her and purses her lips.

Adrien stares at Marinette for a moment, narrowing his eyes and shaking his head. “On her own birthday? Marinette, this is so not like you.” He was disgusted by her actions.

“Adrien wait!” She calls out. “I can explain.”

“I don’t know why you did this, or what the hell is wrong with you but this was really low. I’m out of here.” He glares at her before walking away from her.

 You were out of control. You cried, you screamed, you threw everything you saw in front of your eyes until you fell on your knees, sobbing.

You couldn’t believe Marinette would do this, you couldn’t believe everyone would do this to you, especially Adrien.

You thought you’ve grown close to the people in your class but you were wrong. They didn’t show up to your birthday party, they lied to you. Your heart was broken.

You held your knees close to your chest as the music lowly played behind you. It was mostly drawn out by your sobs and sniffles.

You hear footsteps approaching you and you look up, with red puffy eyes and see a familiar blond through your blurry vision.

It was Adrien. You look away and sob even harder at the thought of him seeing you like this, with everything destroyed around you. Why did he come here? Did he want to taunt you further?

He kneels down next to you and rubs your shoulder, moving you to his chest and causing you to nuzzle your face there.

“I hate this. I hate today, I hate Marinette.” You mumble. Maybe hate was a strong word, but you didn’t care at that moment.

You look up at him. “Why did you come here Adrien? Do you want to make me feel even more embarrassed than I already am?” You croak out.

He shakes his head. “Please, I swear to you Marinette told me that your birthday party was moved to her place, she told everyone that.” He sighs and shows you his phone so you could see the message Marinette sent him.

“Fucking bitch!” You exclaim and hide your face in your hands again.

“Hey, hey. I got here as soon as I found out she was lying. All I wanted was to celebrate your birthday and make you happy” He says quietly.  “I’m so fucking sorry that this happened.” He says and rests his head against yours in a comforting manner.

You look up at him and wipe your eyes, sniffling. “Well, there’s nothing I can do now. It’s ruined.” You mumble and sigh. “I thought Marinette was my friend you know?” You mutter.

“I know.” Adrien nods and looks down. He stares at the card in his hand and bites his lip, his heart racing at the thought of giving this to you.  “Maybe this will make you feel better.” He says, a small smile twitching on his lips as he hands you the envelope.

You widen your eyes and look up at him as if hesitant to open it. You open it though and you begin to read it.

Ever since the first time I saw you, you absolutely took my breath away. Ever since the day I first saw you, I thought to myself that I have to get to know you better. I did. And that may have been one of the best decisions of my life. You have a beautiful mind, a beautiful soul and a beautiful heart. To be honest, I think I keep falling for you every day. Happy birthday Ma belle, i hope you have the best one yet.

Love, Adrien.

Tears start rolling down your cheeks again, but this time it was because of his sweet words. Your heart finally felt whole.

You look up at him with glistening eyes and give him a wobbly smile.

He smiles sheepishly at you. “Will you go on a date with me?” He asks.

You didn’t even answer, you just leaned in and placed your lips on his.

It was small, but you felt fireworks burst inside of you.

You pull away and watch him flutter his eyes at you, his cheeks glowing red.

“Does that answer your question?” You ask.

He chuckles and kisses you again.

Maybe your birthday wasn’t so bad after all.

[slytherwrites]

Dedicated Interest - pt 1

Costume Innovation

The moment when a Class 1A member became interested in you would be days into the second year of school when you actually approached them after the second year lunch. With your notepad in hand and confidence spurred on from Power Loader himself supporting the redesigns, you head towards your target: Momo Yaoyorozu.

You’ve seen her fight—you’ve seen all of the future heroes fight. Support Class students are encouraged to watch Hero Course students in order to gain inspiration. Over the winter break, something in you had the urge to fix many of the hero students’ costumes—particularly the ones in Class 1A. They seemed to need your help the most.

The cafeteria is massive. But the tall girl isn’t hard to spot. With her long, black hair and confident, but charming voice, you’re able to locate her pretty easily. Getting her away from the girls she’s walked in with is the hard part.

But you don’t stop. In fact, you just go for it. It’s now or never, afterall.

“Yaoyorozu,” you ask, “can I talk to you for a minute?”

“Oh yeah, sure!” She replies, “don’t wait up for me guys. I’ll be there shortly!”

You lead her out into the hallway. The noise of the cafeteria can still be heard, but it’s muted enough so you two can clearly hear each other.

“Have we met before..?”

“Not formally,” you reply, “I’m one of the Support Class students, L/N Y/N. I was watching a bunch of the students compete and I was inspired to do costume redesigns.”

You pass her the notepad. A barebones sketch of her is underneath a more detailed drawing of your suggested hero outfit. With inspiration from both her summer and winter costume, it gives more strategic thought to her hero costume than there was before. There is an open back with an easily detachable front that can optionally be worn with a cloak. Elbow pads and knee pads provide joint protection, as well as shoes that’ll support her instead of the heeled boots she’d been fighting in. The cutouts are strategically placed, with spots on her thighs, lower legs, back and stomach. There still is an element of modesty, as her breasts aren’t halfway out all the time anymore and it’s all in her original color scheme.

“This is…” She pauses. You can’t tell what’s on her mind.

“Sorry if I overstepped my boundaries, I promise not to bother you anymore!”

“This is ingenious!” Momo replies, “Tell me, when do you think you could have this made?”

“Oh umm… I would have to get you measurements and source the materials, but that shouldn't take too long. A week, maybe two tops? Nothing new’s being innovated, it’s just a matter of taking it from my notes to an actual thing…”

“Sounds great.” She takes the pencil you keep clipped on your notepad and writes down her number, “I need to get to lunch but I’m free this afternoon for measurements. Text me!”

“I will!” You take the notebook, clutching it against your chest. Yaoyorozu was the right person to start with.

===

You immediately added Yaoyorozu’s number after lunch and now you’re getting a ping from it.

Yaoyorozu: Hey, I’m free anytime from 4:30-6:30pm. What time works best for you?

You look at your clock now. 4:30’s coming up soon. A number of your classmates are still in the 2-H Workshop, but it isn’t so busy that you wouldn’t bring in another person—that’s only when Hatsume’s working, as she’s a safety hazard in and of herself.

Y/N: Now’s fine! I’m in the 2-H workshop. It’s in the east wing.

The chatter of machinery and the lyrics to some pop song trail along in the background. You’ve mostly tuned it out, so Yaoyorozu has to tap on your shoulder to get your attention.

“Y/N?” Her calling you by your first name gets you out of your daze and you reply, “Oh, hi Yaoyorozu!”

You turn to face her. A bit of heat heads to your face as you see Yaoyorozu’s skin tight outfit. She certainly isn’t uncomfortable in her skin.

“You like my outfit? It’s designer—part of Mount Lady’s recently dropped workout line.” She replies, “I thought I’d wear something closer to my skin in order to get proper measurements done.”

“Oh yeah. That’s smart. Let me grab my tailor’s tape and a sticky note!” You rummage through your school bag for spare supplies, pulling it out and pushing your classwork aside, “Here it is! Now we’ll start from the top down, getting all of the measurements and then you can be on your way.”

“Sounds perfect.” Momo stands straight, arms and legs shoulder width apart. She’s obviously done this before.

As you hum along to the music, Momo watches you. You don’t notice, but she stares at you, dedicating every little detail to memory. Something in her wants to replicate everything you have for herself. Though, as you stand up and put your tape measurer down, she coughs and clears her mind of it’s racing thoughts.

“So… what were you working on?”

“Schoolwork, nothing much.” You admit, “Just some back to school safety briefings—as if most of us didn’t come in during the winter to continue our projects. You probably don’t want to hear about it.”

Momo proves you wrong, “What other projects do you have going on?”

“Oh uh… well, Power Loader’s gave us a robotics project to work on and I’ve been specializing in costumes so I’ve been trying to create a list of heroes and hero students to make improved costumes on. You’re the first I’ve actually been able to do hands-on work for though… That’s for this, by the way!”

“How could I refuse?” Momo asks, “Your improvements and overall design is better than what I could’ve come up with on my own.”

“I guess…”

“May I ask,” Momo says, “How did you come up with this design?”

“Mostly by watching your trainings, as well as current pro hero costume trends.” You repsponds, “Most female pro heroes have their legs exposed in some capacity, but don’t have any sort of knee protection—which I think is stupid. And if we do knee protection, we need elbow protection. And I’d advocate for more coverage in order to have protective plating underneath the suit, but since you need your skin out, I had to limit it to specific areas. And the cloak came really handy for that! Plus I could have it cover your back in order to let you conceal items you create and have you… I’m rambling, aren’t I?”

“No, no! It’s fine.” Momo replies, “I find this fascinating. Please continue!”

“Well… I’ve noticed that in a pinch that you’ll lose your top and then have to make yourself new clothes. But since your shirt is magnetic and can be put back together, you can save… materials as well as use that space for other things.” You continue with a laugh at yourself, “I don’t really understand how your quirk works, but I hope this costume will work…”

“I convert fat lipids into other atoms and release them from my skin.” Momo explains, “but I think your idea will work.”

“Let’s see.” You reply, “Well, I think that’s all I need from you. Thanks for sticking around and listening to my rambling, Yaoyorozu.”

“Call me Yaomomo. My friends do, anyway.” She tells you, “Text me anytime!”

“Oh uh, cool.” You tell her, “I will.”

She eventually leaves you to your devices, but you don’t leave her thoughts. In fact, you are steadily taking up a large portion of her thoughts as she contacts her house staff to start construction on a wing in the manor to give you the biggest, best laboratory possible.

[yknati]

Y/N moved to Daegu to start over after the death of her mother. Unfortunately, a randomly observed murder thwarted her plans. Kidnapped by the mafia, she also reunites with her old high school friend, Min Yoongi. But shortly after their union, he has to fight with a new group of unknown assassins who will soon make his life hell....

Black Swans Heart Pt. 3

Yoongi POV:

Flashback:

With a deep sigh I got out of the seat. My driver opened the door for me, I took my bag and got out. I wanted to get back in and drive home.

"Have fun at school Mr. Min", the driver bowed, got back in the car and drove away. School...more like torture...being tied to a chair for 6 hours and being bombarded with technical terms can probably be hardly fun.

Plus it wouldn't do me any good anyway. Because my future has already been decided. I, Min Yoongi, should be Black Swan's next mafia boss. I was only 20. I still wanted to enjoy my life now...but I couldn't...every day I had shot training, self-defense, torture methods and all the other things that a mafia boss needs to be able to do. And then school?! I didn't even have any fun here, and that was already my second year. I still had three years ahead of me.

Although there was one.

Her name was Y/N and she was in parallel class. We did a few subjects together and even did a presentation together. She was the only reason I somehow wanted to go to school. Slowly I made my way forward. A lot of other students walked past me but no one paid any attention to me.

'If they knew I could have them all killed...' I kept thinking that to myself.

With a bang I opened the front door. Small groups lined the hallways, but some were alone, like me. I made my way to my locker before a slight giggle stopped me. Turning, it said Y/N.

Again and again I had to admire her for how well her school uniform suited her. My gaze lingered on her face. In the two years we've known each other I've never seen her sad or crying. And today was no different.

"Tell me, didn't you even notice me? I've been following you since you walked through the door," she bucked my arm slightly.

,,Sorry, I was thinking...is there anything today? You're kind of glowing even more than usual," I smiled slightly when she looked at me.

"Nah, I'm just happy to see you," then she hugged me. Just like that. My pulse was racing. I was afraid she heard my heart beating as she pulled away from me.

"Come on, let's go, the first lesson is about to start and we still have our shoes on...", she happily hopped past me to her locker, which was very close to mine.

Y/N POY:

Lunch break:

I quickly said goodbye to my friends because I wanted to sit down with Yoongi again today and tell him something important. I went to the playground with my lunch. Yoongi was sitting on a bench at the edge of the basketball field. As always, he wore headphones.

I marched towards him, heart pounding, but gave no sign. At least I hoped so. When I sat down next to him, he opened his eyes and turned off the music.

"Hey, with me again today? How did I deserve this honor?" he grinned at me so sweetly that I felt my heart melt.

"I'm sorry I couldn't be with you on break all week. It's just...Kimmy just broke up with her boyfriend and of course we were all there for her," he helped himself to some of my snack as, as always, he didn't have any himself. He just gave a slight nod itself.

'Ok Y/N, now... tell him, come on.... dare... just say: Yoongi I've fallen in love with you.... that's easy!!!' I was so busy that I didn't hear Yoongi.

"Hey Y/N? Are you okay?" He gently held my forearm.

'OH GOD I'M GOING TO PASS OUT!'

"Yes-yes...all good. I was just thinking about which girl would suit you," I smiled awkwardly at him.

'WHY DID I SAAAAAAY THAT??!!!'

"Hmmmm...I think you're the only girl who wants anything to do with me. So I would say you" he looked at me thoughtfully.

Omg did he really just say that?

,,W-because we're talking about stuff like that........Yoon..Yoongi...I...I like you...a lot....maybe I love you too..... "I narrowed my eyes as the last sentence slipped from my lips.

Yoongi POV:

I was speechless...that's exactly what I always wanted. Then why can I move more and tell her I like her too.

But then it came: "Y/N...me...well I...I like you too....a lot...well actually since we did the project together last six months..."

I must have been red now, but at least she looked me in the eye again.

"Really?" Touched, she clutched her chest. After nodding, I hugged her again. But this time I hugged back. She smelled so good. The school bell rang and everyone headed back to class. But we stayed seated.

"I love you sooooo much," Y/N pulls away from me only to kiss my cheek afterwards. My body responded naturally as I leaned forward and kissed her on the mouth.

Her lips were so soft. They fitted mine like a key to a lock. When we pulled away from each other, we just looked into each other's eyes.

We didn't care that we were now missing class.

We just enjoyed each other's company.

[1kook]

dreamy

—pjm x (f) reader

summary; You try to not let it get to you, but Jimin is so cool and you want him to be your boyfriend so bad. warnings; ANGST lol, fwb, reader is very :(( rating; mature (18+) bc tiny smut lol  misc; small smut scene, a happy ending <3 wc; 2.5k

notes; i have to post on #JIMIN’s bday or else i cannot live with myself anyway here’s me trying to fit an entire novella plot line in less than 5k words clap for me except maybe don't bc its not proofread anyway hbd jimin <3

Jimin is a nice guy, but you doubt he’d make a nice boyfriend. He fucks you hard and fast, just as you like, but hardly goes out of his way to sprinkle in any other requests. He’s got a one track mind, doesn’t dwell too long on what you say or how you’re feeling. Doesn’t matter because he’s just supposed to be a fuck buddy, the hot guy you met at a party, so you don’t let it phase you. But, well. Jimin is dreamy.

Sometimes he holds your hand while he eats you out and it sends your thoughts into a frenzy, makes your heart pound a little too fast to brush it off as just arousal. He’s got this gorgeous smile, plush lips framing pearly teeth, and when he flashes it your way, it makes your knees weak. Tells you you’re pretty when he picks you up from class, always holds your hand on the way to his place for your routine fuck. Cute and nice like an angel, but just like an angel, he hardly gives a shit about anyone’s feelings but his own.

He laughs when you ask him to hang out that weekend.

“What, like a date?” he snorts, bare chest glistening from his post-fuck exertion. You're pressed against his side now, circling his pretty brown nipple with your finger. “That’s corny.”

You try to not let it get to you, but Jimin is so cool and you want him to be your boyfriend so bad. “Yeah, silly right,” you murmur, ear pressed to his heart. It’s calming and soothing, a slow thrum that contrasts with your own racing heart.

He’s not one for dates or for romantic things like that. But neither is he some player, a cheater, a two-timer. You can count the number of times he’s slept with someone who wasn’t you in your weird fuck buddy relationship, and all four of those had been when you first started sleeping together and only when you had been out of town. You’re no saint either, so you try to understand. He was just horny, liked getting his dick wet, and sometimes he couldn’t wait for you. Understandable, you tell yourself, but your heart hurts a little bit when he begins snoring without really answering your question.

See the thing is, you really like Jimin. It’s been a little over a year now since you’ve met, so you’ve had plenty of time to learn all about him. He doesn’t like pancakes for breakfast, prefers them for lunch actually, and laughs when you tell him that’s weird. He’s got this really dorky laugh, something between a bell and a whistle— it depends on the situation. Sometimes, Jimin likes when you play with his hair, and other times he doesn’t. He’s a sweet boy, you know he is, so why won’t he settle down?

You hate to attribute it to some past trauma, some “my girlfriend broke my heart when I was seventeen” mess, but the more time that passes you begin to believe it’s true. Jimin was a tough nut to crack, and the longer this drags on, the longer he ignores your feelings, you begin to doubt you will ever see them fulfilled.

Maybe you should end this now before it’s too late.

You don’t stay for breakfast the next morning, simply kiss him goodbye at the door like always. He’s older than you, about two years, so he doesn’t go to school anymore, just chills at home all weekend. “I’ll see you soon?” he grins, low-lidded eyes tracking the movement of your mouth as you bid him adieu. You never give him a solid response, figure a guy like Jimin will forget about you soon enough.

Then, suddenly, it’s been two weeks and he doesn’t reach out. Yeah it hurts, but it’s better than having confessed to him and losing him all at once. You’d rather this ending than the one where he terribly rejects you, breaks your heart into a million pieces, and throws you away. Still, it hurts.

Jimin was so cool. He was smart and confident, had a snappy sort of attitude that he liked to use now and then. He could be mean in bed, lick your cunt until you cried and call you a stupid girl when he wanted to. But that same tongue had snapped at a guy who was trying to pressure you into bed with him at a party. That first night you met, where you had sillily followed him home after his dashing intervention, you had thought it would be nothing more. Just a fling, just a fuck.

But then he was in your bed and in your head, twinkling eyes and cocky grin trailing after you everyday. He was so pretty and so suave, made you feel good even when he was being mean. But you suppose most cocky men like Jimin are like that. They know they don’t disappoint, even when they’re not really trying.

Jimin doesn’t call or text. You don’t see his car pull up outside your campus anymore. He’s gone and that’s that. You cry a little (see: a lot) and pretend you’re over him. You definitely don’t think about his soft laughter or his hands on your chest. Nope.

So that ends.

Or so you think.

Your friends say you’re mopey and sad, too down for someone who wasn’t even your boyfriend. It’s true, which sucks, but they honor your admittance by taking you out to a bar that night. It’s supposed to be chill and relaxing, just some drinks with the girls to soothe your aching heart. But the name of the bar reminds you of something, of someone you can’t reach anymore, and you don’t even know why. You’ve never been here before, never even knew this place existed. But everything about it brings you back to Jimin, like you’re in his space now, and you’re unsure why.

It reminds you of his laugh, his smile, to the point you swear you can hear it, right beside you, down the bar, to your left—

He waves.

There’s this look he used to give you every time he picked you up from your last class, this mix between adoration and lust that made your skin tingle with excitement. It’s not there now, in fact, it’s replaced with the complete opposite. It’s, like, the meanest look he can muster, something akin to a scowl. He smiles, but it’s so plastic-y and fake, it makes your head hurt. He’s so obviously unimpressed with you, probably because you ghosted him before he could ghost you. Maybe his pride is hurt and looking at you grosses him out. Maybe he just hates you.

Either way, eleven pm rolls around and you’re crying in the bathroom. Your friends are out on the floor having fun and singing karaoke. They think you’ve gone inside because you got your period, because that’s what you’ve told them. You don’t know how to explain that your ex who isn’t really your ex is out there looking at you like you’re a piece of gum stuck under his shoe. They’ve never even met Jimin. Why? Because he wasn’t your boyfriend. Who meets their friend’s fuck buddy? No one.

You sniffle, press a balled up tissue against your eyes in a feeble attempt to save your makeup. The bar isn’t that small, but neither is it huge. There’s only a few bathrooms in the back, and you’ve been hogging one of them for some time now. Someone knocks on the door, and you don’t even get the chance to ward them off before the crappy knob jingles and the door bursts open.

“Come on,” he grumbles, “you’re not the only one who’s gotta piss—“

He pauses, meets your eye through the mirror in surprise. “I’m sorry,” you blubber, hurriedly washing your hands in an effort to avoid his gaze. Jimin lingers at the door, which has long since fallen shut, and watches you with the eyes of a hawk. Your hands tremble and shake, fumble over the towel dispenser three times before you’re hastily making your escape. “Sorry,” you mutter again, head downcast as you move around him for the door.

Just as it cracks open, the music from outside filtering in, he slams it shut with a flat palm. You flinch, close in on yourself as he steps behind you. “What’re you doing here, doll?” he murmurs, deep yet careful. Tentative. “You don’t like bars.”

You know you don’t like bars. You didn’t know he knew that. “I’m with some friends,” you explain, jump when a hand touches your shoulder. “I— I’ll leave soon.”

A second attempt for the door is thwarted by Jimin. “Don’t,” he startles, breath heavy against your ear. “Don’t leave again…” he sighs, forehead against your shoulder. And then, quietly, “why did you leave me?”

Your heart syncs up with the music outside, thunders in your ears as you purse your lips. You don’t want to talk about it now, don’t want to confess to these emotions that drown you. Especially not when he’ll never understand nor will he ever care. It’s best to leave it as is, you convince yourself, slowly shrugging him off.

“We don’t want the same things,” you reply, eyes burning with the need to cry like a baby. But it’ll weaken your argument, make you look like the sentimental girl you know he won’t like. “It wouldn’t work anyway.”

The hand on your shoulder jerks you around, makes a gasp catch in your throat when he crowds you against the door. He’s got that same glare on from before, the one he had sent you across the bar earlier, and it makes your lower lip tremble when it’s this close. “You never asked me what I wanted,” he hisses.

It is then that you realize it isn't anger or disgust, but frustration that paints his features. It’s pure, unadulterated confusion and distress on his pretty face, furrowed brows and narrowed eyes pointed your way. You don’t know what it means, don’t know what he wants. “I,” you choke, weakly covering your face with your hand before he can see you crumble. “I just wanted you.”

Jimin deflates, steps closer until his body is pressed against yours, hands on your shoulders. “And you have me, doll,” he murmurs, bumps his nose against yours. “Always have.”

You shake your head, choke on a sob that bubbles up your throat. “No, not like that,” you stress, losing yourself in the emotions you spent so much time bottling up. “I wanted more.”

Jimin shushes you, guides your head into the crook of his neck where you paint his skin in dark mascara tears. “Is this about the date?” he sighs, patting your head gently.

“It’s more than just the date,” you cry, fists curling into the material of his shirt until it rumples beyond repair. He doesn’t understand.

Jimin nods, let’s you cry and sob until you’re feeling better and someone else is pounding at the door, yelling at you two to get a proper room. You don’t want a room, you only want his heart. 

He takes you home again, helps you out of your shoes at the door because you’re still sensitive and quiver like a leaf when you walk. His bedroom is familiar, smells like him and his detergent. You miss it so much, want to savor it once more. Something in your gut says this is the last time, this is just Jimin getting one last fuck out of you before he really abandons you.

So you cry when he sits down on the edge of the bed. He hasn’t even said anything, hasn’t even taken his socks off yet, but you’re already a mess.

And of course he’s there to catch you, tugs you between his legs to look up at you as if you’ve hung the stars in the sky. “Don’t cry,” he whispers, reaching up to brush away your tears. But it’s not your fault that he looks like that right before he’s going to break your heart.

He’s so cool, even when you’re falling apart in his hands. “You don’t want me,” you sniffle, let him guide you onto his lap. “You just want to fuck and that’s it.”

Jimin leans his forehead against yours, warm breath washing over your skin. “I never said that,” he murmurs. “We’ve been over this.”

You huff. “Well you never said you did either,” you snap, rubbing at your eyes.

You cry and cry some more, until your sobs subside and you’re left with the hiccups afterwards. Jimin maneuvers you beside him, lets your hair spill across the sheets as he lays you down. They smell just like him, make your head spin when he kisses your cheek softly. “I want you,” he confesses. “I want this.”

You shake your head vehemently. “No, you don’t,” you sniff, but you’re not so sure. It’s what you’ve been telling yourself for the longest. Hearing him say otherwise sounds weird, even if he’s saying what you want to hear. “You don’t.”

Jimin catches your hand in his, pins it to the mattress. “I want you to be mine,” he adds, swallows your cries of denial with his lips. He kisses softly, and for the first time, it feels like he’s paying attention to you. Not your body or your lust, but your heart. “Had me feeling like shit when you didn’t come back. Like I lost something big.”

You still cry when he kisses down your neck, over your chest. His hands pull your clothes off, carefully like you’re a present for him to unwrap. Those plush lips you love so much drown you in kisses, over your tummy and your mound, until they’re buried between your cunt. “You’re mine,” he husks out, hand entwined with yours.

His eyes are dark from down there, long lashes blinking up at you as he dips his tongue in the places you crave him most. It brings you to a shuddering end, has you whimpering his name into the empty air until your toes are curling and you’re coming against his mouth. Jimin has never shied away from you, and doesn’t know, sits up with a hazy look in his eyes as he wipes his face with the back of his hand.

Jimin wastes no time undressing, pushes off that sexy jacket until his lithe body is coming into view, thick thighs and lean abdomen. He slides right into you, holds your knees to your chest as he fucks you like never before. It’s slow and sensual, makes you shiver when he says your name in that low register of his. “Don’t leave again,” he whimpers, cock throbbing between your walls. He’s desperate today, ruts like you’ll slip right between his fingertips. It’s funny because you're the same way, clinging onto his shoulders until you’re practically glued together.

You come and so does Jimin. He pants against your ear, feels so warm and heavy on top of you. He doesn’t say much more that night, just plays with your hair. But he asks you on a date, mentions something about a carnival. “Yes,” you respond right away, because, well.

Jimin was dreamy. Maybe he’d be a good boyfriend.

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