#army fiancé

[myobsessionsspace]

Yoonnnngggiiii

💜

[lesbiansloveseokjin]

day 179/547 of seokjin’s military service

this selca was tweeted on 150223 with the caption:

There are lots of dust Everyone, please wear a mask when you go out

(Note: There was a yellow dust storm in Korea when this was posted. trans cr: Mary @ bts-trans)

[iceunhie]

— out of this world (and into another) : genshin impact

premise: you could've sworn the transmigration curse didn't have an effect on you... so what exactly are you doing here?! (alternatively, you tumble straight into your favorite video game; and you're kinda fucked)

...or, a genshin manhwa otome game inspired au.

act i: scaramouche, alhaitham, wriothesley.

↳ act ii: lyney, neuvilette, kazuha, kaeya. (next)

warnings. fem!reader but can be imagined as genderless if u'd like hehe, a shit ton of manhwa tropes in one, this is a hot mess aka not proofread all that much, half clunky half decent writing

a/n: as promised via the poll heh,, while i do plan to make this an actual au, im not that sure ^^; just the tip of the iceberg here tho!!

MAIN MASTERLIST | AU MASTERLIST (coming soon)

YOU — unsuspecting civilian turnt transmigrator

you've always been too attached to fictional characters for your own good.

yes, even the ones that are remarkably irredeemable (the power of a backstory is very formidable) and complex (complexity is a virtue!)

villains have always been destined to die, be cursed, or destined to curse others. it was heartbreaking, really. you've wished for a chance to rewrite their fates for them to find even a sliver of happiness, even when the fate of their plot says otherwise.

which is why when you find yourself awake into the game of your dreams, “Teyvat's Seven Stars”, like any lover of cliche novel and manhwa tropes, this is the time you think that maybe life wasn't so shitty on you.

....there's only one tiny, teensy, itty bitty problem here, actually.

you're not the protagonist. you're not even one of the protagonist's faithful friends and underlings that light protagonist's road to conquering the world and its men (and as of the 4.0 update, it's women); no, you're none of those.

you're a no name extra, and not to mention, a character involved with the game's main villain characters who are coincidentally the love interests of the game's black route!

[ unlock transmigration package: ultimate transmigrator's route ( ????? MODE ) ]

[ no ] [ yes ]

( 国崩 ) SCARAMOUCHE — the tyrant

“as of today, you will be engaged to crown prince kunikuzushi, who is her grace the shogun's rightful heir to the throne.”

when given approval to stare at your so-called soon to be husband, you expect the worst, mostly. the multitudes of character dialogue you've played through detailing his rather discourteous personality (which basically meant he was a huge asshole) don't exactly paint a pretty picture.

however...

who was this tender hearted looking scaramouche that ‘obliterated armies in the blink of an eye?’ the t in tyrant stands for tyrannical, not timid!

eyes like lighting framed by the longest eyelashes you've ever seen and an unfairly pretty face, comparable to a fair lotus. after fawning over his otherworldly countenance, a sinking realization of dread pools in your stomach.

oh, you are so screwed.

essentially tied to the indigo-haired ticking time bomb of a future tyrant due to the strong standing of your family for a period of until the main story starts, you're destined to never get crown prince scaramouche's affection, being his fiancée who scaramouche is arranged to for political means only.

not to mention, you're in an even more deadly position; of all the characters you switched souls with, it's the one that essentially dies by their own fiancé's hand because they were horrible to him! what atrocious luck!

frantic, you wrack up about three ways to survive.

plan a) win over the shogun's favor by being an appropriate partner unlike the original flavor of this body, who resorted to bullying the innocent prince and unknowingly digging their own grave or b) be a guiding friend to scaramouche as he learns the ways of the world and c) make sure you don't end up giving the protagonist a bad ending via his twisted personality.

weighing all these options, you decide to do all three in hopes to cement a life instead of a deathflag. prevention is better than the cure (aka: the protagonist) after all!

(you may also just want to spend time with your favorite character. having a time limit and a sign that says ‘i'll die in the future!’ should at least warrant you extra time to show some affection to scaramouche, at least.)

so, you do what anyone in your position would do: give affection! lots of it.

admittedly, it wasn't all flowers and rainbows. scaramouche—ahem, kunikuzushi—was very shy and reserved indeed, with his mother ei even worse off! (besides, who trains and studies all day and has to stop crying every time they were injured?! that was just too much!)

it was rather hard at first, the frigid atmosphere of the usually silent Tenshukaku Palace almost impossible to permeate. but with your amazing charm (read: deathflag radar) and social skills, you manage to let the members of the Royal family open up to you.

speaking words of praise in ei's cooking (a very difficult feat to accomplish), spending afternoons with your fiancé and teaching him ‘how to be a shoujo worthy male lead, name-version’ (very confusing to explain), and the cherry on top, driving away that vile teacher of his—the Doctor—once word got out that he'd been taking advantage of scaramouche as a political puppet king in the future. trauma enabler destroyed! look at your immeasurable powers!

(“you're not a failure.” clasping kunikuzushi's hands in yours as he reels back from you. damn that doctor.

his tears shot a wave of heartache through you. you can't bear to see your favorite in such suffering. “whatever happens in the future, i won't abandon you.

no matter what, i'll always be on your side, okay?”

kunikuzushi looks at you with something in his eyes—something like adoration. “do you promise that?”

“yeah.” you say without hesitation, the glow of the sunlight hitting your face so dazzlingly that kunikuzushi's eyes widen that his mouth hangs agape in awe. “i promise, kuni.”)

to your greatest delight, your efforts worked in your favor.

ei now spends time with her son, and though it's almost always just a tad bit awkward, you and the guuji yae miko get the two to strike up conversation, and overtime, kunikuzushi becomes more open to you.

(“[name], what kind of man is your type?”

“huh? well...” you think for a while. this was a great opportunity to say it, right? that life changing protagonist quote!

“to me, the only person i'll ever like the most is you, kunikuzushi.”

“do you really, really mean that?” and oh, he looks so cute—flustered and red from your words. worth it.

“yup! now, i made some shimi chazuke, try some—”)

(admittedly, lots of favoritism is involved.)

—and while you reap the fruits of your hard work, you spend warm, sunlit afternoons with ei at tea, even learning about other nations from scaramouche's aunt nahida and even befriended a few of his future affiliates—childe (though for some reason, kunikuzushi always pulls you away from him whenever he spots the two of you together), signora (she tolerates you, you think) and etcetera.

(“then, if i do well, can you kiss me on the cheek, [name]?”

you agree, much to his delight. scaramouche avoids the gaze of a certain pink haired fox eyeing him questionably. unbeknownst to you, he glares at the woman's scrutiny.)

unprecedented things unrelated to the plot happen too; like how your family, which basically only saw you as a political bargaining chip and an unwanted child they could get rid of easily—no longer sent you any demeaning letters demanding money once scaramouche found out....

(“they've been leeching off of you for how long?” so scary... is this was kunikuzushi is like when he's worried?)

(“...kunikuzushi, how long will you keep up that weak-hearted facade of yours? if they find out how.... dishonest you are....”

“i don't need the reminders of a foxy old hag that doesn't know her place. this is fine as it is.”)

(you don't need to know.)

but, you're nothing compared to the inevitable flow of the plot. inazuma is wracked with war, and it just so happened that you'd been unceremoniously kidnapped by a certain resistance leader's trusted general, used as a hostage bargain for approximately the majority of your life. in the worst moments in your dreary cell, there's only one thought in your mind.

....kunikuzushi's face, devastated when he tries to reach for you, before slipping away from him like sand— face morphing into an unbridled state of rage that's too natural, too familiar. when did he learn to make a face like that?

(they say the kingdom was wracked with thunderstorms all night that day.)

afterwards, fate doesn't make it kind for you.

years go by in the blink of an eye, with your capture fervently forgotten in the midst of the growing animosity of the two conflicting forces.

although you did hear that yae sent out a search party for you while at the resistance's base, the shogun's forces never reached you.

eventually, you got released secretly by sympathy of kokomi, the leader of the resistance, who felt pity for you getting caught in the crossfire. letting you go under the condition that you'd likely never meet any of the precious characters you've gotten to know and change was a heavy price to pay, but you didn't have any choice.

indeed, no matter how much you tried to divert the plot, your duty as an extra has ended, and you were even lucky to even be alive. you could only hope that your fiancé—ex-fiancé—took note of your lessons well, bidding farewell to inazuma as you hop on the boat to mondsdat.

by now, you at least hoped that scaramouche and the protagonist met, his true chance at happiness starting now that you were basically dead.

(even if your heart felt like breaking into a million pieces.)

....is what you thought would happen, but why is it that after three years from your supposed capture, inazuma was still at war?

“that crazy prince... he's still working to find his former fiancée... and he's razing almost every village apart looking for them!”

“—didn't the shogunate say that whoever finds her would receive almost 3 million mora?”

“the entire lot of them are lunatics, i tell you. all because of a missing person, too!”

what's more, why was it still going because of you?!

( 艾尔海森 ) AL-HAITHAM: the information guild master

to be fair, normal people don't really run into one of their favorite characters often after transmigrating.

but to be fair, again, you certainly didn't think you'd actually be in your favorite video game franchise caged in bed with essentially one of its main love interests.

eyes wide and unceremoniously looking—definitely not ogling— at the toned body that's currently enveloping you in its arms, the soft tuft of ashy gray hair caressing the crook of your neck, murmuring incoherent mumbles of—is that another language?

???????

you blink, looking down at the bare body currently embracing you. oh. oh.

you're an extra.

you're just an extra, but why are you in bed, currently being served breakfast by the most gorgeous man you've ever laid your eyes on, with a pretty view of the rainforests' canopy?

“you should lie down. if i recall, sufficient sleep is required in order for the human body to perform its basic bodily functions. although our partnership is temporary, to let you fall to harm is a situation i'd like to avoid as much as possible.”

“....what?”

“...?”

the guild master, al-haitham, is a character in Teyvat's Seven Stars that is heavily debated on whether he's technically a villain or not. in the game, he's the right hand of sumeru's leader, nahida, working as the overseer of the AKASHA, a guild that gathers information to the nation's leader. he's a pretty shady character—always working behind the scenes and very unfalteringly blunt—and a ‘villain’ for crown prince scaramouche's route, helping the protagonist escape his clutches.

he's often the subject of comedic ire, his banters with a certain broke architect always the highlight of any bonafide al-haitham fan.

“we're expected to work together by lord kusanali's decree in the duration of investigating the hivemind project the lord suspects the baron siraj is partaking in.”

right, that one scene in the game where al-haitham needed to go undercover to infiltrate a coup de etat staged by one of the factions against nahida... right... what.

you were that extra! the one that fell in love with him and pined for his affection!

(“well, i get that part, but does sleeping together really have to play a part in this...?”

al-haitham gives you a mere quirk of the lip, tilting his head. “we do have to play the part of a married couple in dire straights, do we not? this cover is more efficient.

...besides, i don't have anything to complain about. you're certainly better company than kaveh.” )

in truth, al-haitham wasn't bad company. far from it. aside from the internal giggling and fangirling (you) and the incredible stack of books (alhaitham) that you have to see more than the grey haired man on a daily basis, the two of you work out a rapport that stems from memories of the body you transmigrated in.

he's nice to be around, surprisingly considerate when he wants to be—he tells you about the books he always reads....

(who even reads ‘20 Tongues Language Memorization Guidebook: A Basic Overview of Vocabulary and Terms’ for enjoyment?

the content makes your head run in circles because of how complicated it is; but who wouldn't like to listen to an extremely attractive man overexplain to you with a calm and pretty voice?)

...is generous enough to provide meals and cook dinners that have you crying tears of gratitude because you know how awful yours compares (it was either too bland or too seasoned; al-haitham is surprisingly picky when he wants to be)

(you assigned al-haitham the title of “absolute s-tier husband material”— his capabilities are out of this world!)

by chance, you once gave al-haitham a little tidbit of information that proved to be valuable later in the investigation—courtesy of your avid game knowledge—when you two had been lost to the psychological illusion magic cast by siraj when you two finally broke in his estate.

(“whatever happens, if siraj messes with your mind, just make sure to think of me instead of anything else.” al-haitham lets his hand find yours.

“you once asked me if i trusted you, [name].”

“....” you're treated to one of al-haitham's rare smiles, one that warms you up from within. “i do. so don't let yourself get hurt.”)

however, your temporary partner had faltered for once, flinching when siraj took the form of his old grandmother who'd passed to exploit al-haitham's mind, hesitating and frozen in place while siraj inched ever closer to finding out his weakness.

and you couldn't stand it, the character you cared for—the al-haitham that always had a plan, always knew how to stay calm, had looked so unsure and hopeless.

(“wake up, al-haitham!”

with you cradling his face, al-haitham stares back at the only constant in the memories of his grief, eyes meeting yours. “you don't have to do it all alone. i'm right here, aren't i? believe in me.”)

your (fake) husband snaps back to reality, finally allowing enough time to apprehend siraj and put a stop to his malicious project.

(“thank you.” al-haitham tells you solemnly. it hits you that this may be the last time you may ever see him. “i'm grateful that you brought me back to y— to my senses.”

there's a sincerity in your voice that rings from your heart. “anytime, al-haitham.”)

you thought that was the end of it.

defeating siraj meant you two no longer had to associate with each other, but somehow, to your great surprise, al-haitham doesn't stick to the plot at all. you were sure you didn't interfere with the game, though?

for some reason, al-haitham doesn't erase himself from your life, unlike the original route's flow.

in fact, he's become... easy to run into, a constant in your otherwise mundane life. he takes you out to lambad's tavern for an occasional drink, says he's lending you his headphones when you find yourself overwhelmed by the city (you were never good with noises) and even helps you out as you vent your problems to him.

(the day after, said problem conveniently disappears. how strange....)

and most of all, allowing you to enter his personal space... leaving kaveh's jaw dropping when he accuses al-haitham of having a lover.

“you're always going who knows where with them! what else is there to figure out?”

“...we are merely friends.”

“a friend that you let into your personal library? do they know that you still keep the ‘fake’ ring in a box inside the closet?” kaveh laughs. “nice try, al-haitham.”

(after all, kaveh could never unsee the way al-haitham's eyes softened at the feeling of the head on his shoulder lean onto him, with you no doubt asleep. he even took his headphones off! kaveh has never seen him actually take them off in order to keep the person who's sleeping on his shoulder as undisturbed as possible.

in fact, kaveh doesn't think he's ever seen al-haitham be this touchy or considerate with anyone this much before.

.....and most importantly, kaveh would never forget the way al-haitham, a man who found no merit in politeness and preferred bluntness, a man who preferred solitude rather than company—deliberately getting close to someone—pressing a fleeting kiss on the crown of your head.

kaveh blinks. it seems even the throes of love can reach even the most unconquerable of peaks....)

( 莱欧斯利 ) WRIOTHESLEY — the monster duke of the north

“—i need you to gather information on duke wriothesley. serve him undercover as one of the prisoners of the fortress.”

the duke of meropide—a man swamped with terrible rumors. they say he was exiled from the nation due to murdering his entire family. they say he possessed a face worthy of the title of a beast— grotesque, littered in scars. they say that any who end up in his estate, the iron prison of the north, meropide, never saw the light of day again.

(“only criminals of the worst kind are fated to be sentenced there. nobody returns, so we've stopped questioning it...” )

so to say you're not fearing for your life that bad right now is a massive understatement.

“now, mind telling me how you were able to sneak into the most impenetrable prison in all the land, miss prisoner?”

how did it end up like this?

so you wake up and find yourself in jail. lovely.

seriously, of all the places you can transmigrate into, why did it have to be fontaine?! Teyvat's Seven Stars chapter 4's main starting point, the nation of justice is littered with dark themes and high difficulty capture targets.

.... such is the case with the man in front of you. unlike what the rumors of him say, duke wriothesley paints a rugged yet dashing picture of a nobleman, even if he was —if you recall— one of the hardest capture targets to conquer in the game.

a villain character who you played once during one game route, acting as the driving force during one of the love events of one of the protagonist's other love interest, lyney. duke wriothesley almost assassinates lyney's younger brother, freminent, leading lyney to rally up a certain group to bring the nobleman down.... a typical side character villain, who's existence was added as late as 3 patches away from lyney's.

(even inazuma would be better than this! at least the tyrant route could be avoided, and let's not mention the easy sumeru route as well...)

“well, miss prisoner, cat got your tongue?”

in summary: fortunately for you, the body you transmigrated is in the position to spy on the current affairs of the fortress of meropide, with courtesy and with permission of one of Fontaine's leaders, neuvillette. unfortunately for you, it seems our dear monsieur wasn't able to inform wriothesley beforehand, leading to the current situation.

aka, you're pressed dangerously close to wriothesley's chest, with a knife at his throat and his hands pinning you against the wall, noses almost touching. you're not sure if this is even the kind of tension that two people who are trying to kill each other are supposed to have...

(“i'm an ally!” you sputter out. wriothesley raises an eyebrow at you. “monsieur neuvillette sent me.”

“how am i supposed to trust you after i saw you slinking around here, knife at my throat?” he replies, eyes narrowing. “i know that i'm labelled as a beast, but i don't really know what came over that pretty little head of yours when trying to sneak into my chambers.”

what does he take you for?! “...are you accusing me of something indecent?!”

“just saying — i've met lots of prisoners with your excuse, my lady.”

“i'm prepared to use this knife, you know.”

“hah.” wriothesley grins. “how aggressive. more aggressive than most. do you want me that bad?”

“stop twisting my words!”)

in any case, you hate wriothesley. you know he's one of the characters in Teyvat's Seven Stars and is a villain for one of the easy love interest routes in the game, but his personality is... a real piece of work.

you'd rather the protective and kind kazuha, or even the charming and elusive lyney! why did it have to be him?

not only did he not believe you, he even told you to prove your authenticity! you're just glad that his assistant sigewinne had been there to vouch for you — you're not sure if you'd even be on your two feet right now if she didn't.

so now you're stuck constantly on your feet, running to and fro — helping the dark-haired man record new prisoners, establishing trading routes to the main city of Fontaine, and treating other prisoners of the fortress with sigewinne.

your biggest surprise by far, though, is just how... different the duke is from the rumors. his scars were merely battle scars of honor (to which sigewinne rolls her eyes, “your grace, please stop trying to look cool”) he got from various succession fights, not scars to show how he was cursed to turn into a beast. he has a love for tea, but always seems to have a cup of your favorite blend with him when you feel tired after a long day of working (laboring) for him and the estate.

(“your daily report of new convicts, your grace.”

“-this is the tea you like, your grace. i've prepared it in advance.”

“you're very adamant on proving yourself. aren't you sick of such tasks by now, miss prisoner?”

“no.” wriothesley's expression screams 'why not?' on it. “ it's because of my own misjudgement of you.”

“...elaborate.”

“i may have had unnecessary prejudices on your conduct thus far. but you're... not like what the rumors paint you out to be.” you say sincerely. “you're more amazing and incredible than anyone else. i truly do admire you.”

wriothesley's expression; you couldn't decipher it. “i see.”)

he's battered, but caring. sigewinne makes you watch (in horror) as she doodles cartoonish looking characters on his face when he's asleep — wriothesley never fusses, only an exasperated sigh to his assistant. he's harsh with his tasks and duties, but is the first to rush you into sigewinne's infirmary to tend to you after you pass out from overwork.

(“don't worry, [name]. the duke may not look it, but he's very gentle!” sigewinne giggles. humoring the little girl who was the first to show you actual decency in this place, you try to nod. sigewinne doesn't seem convinced.

“i'm serious! after all, compared to other people who've snuck into the fortress, you're the first he's treated this way.” she says cheerily.

“what does that mean?” you can't help but scoff at that. “so he just works someone to the bone from the get go?” you shudder. damn production zone...

sigewinne blinks. “ oh no, not like that. it's just that he's never been so lenient before. in fact, when you fainted, he even gave me the order to prioritize treating you over anything else.”)

well, this wasn't exactly what you thought you would be doing when you transmigrated into your favorite game, but you suppose you can take it.

besides, you'd miss a certain duke otherwise. life truly is full of strange twists....

a/n: thank you for making it this far! if anyone asks why wriothesley's was short, listen, this was completely impulsive and i was out of inspiration LOL, but i do hope you enjoy! look forward to new parts though hehe :3

@ ICEUNHIE: do not repost translate or plagiarize my works.

[master-jarrus]

Oh yeah, in the news of a fanfic writers life

I got so focused on school I totally forgot that I finally got answers to what’s going on with my back!

Turns out the bike accident I had a sixteen made my lower spine unstable and the disks bulge

And the “wings” that I feel attached to area are a mix of my brain no longer processing the pain/my muscles overcompensating to try to balance

The doctor suggests a neurosurgeon but says it doesn’t appear to be urgent since now I can usually slap a heat pack on it and be fine

[velvet4510]

Thinking about all the parents of the Fellowship during the events of the War of the Ring.

Thinking about Saradoc & Esmeralda Brandybuck and Paladin & Eglantine Took, none of whom have any idea where their sons are.

Thinking about the Gaffer, seeing a creepy hooded Man asking for the whereabouts of his son’s boss and then hearing that said son’s boss’ house has been raided and his son is nowhere to be found.

Thinking about Bilbo, knowing that his dear nephew is going into danger because of his own actions so long ago and might never return.

Thinking about Glóin, having to come home to his wife in Erebor and tell her their son is facing life-or-death danger for the first time.

Thinking about Elrond, the wise part of him knowing what must be done vs. the paternal part berating himself for sending his beloved foster son into such peril and wondering if he’ll ever be able to look his daughter in the eye again if her fiancé doesn’t come back.

Thinking about Thranduil, finding out that his only child has entered the war with the very same enemy that destroyed his father and 2/3 of his army.

Thinking about Denethor, trying to protect and defend his entire kingdom while constantly wondering why his favorite son still hasn’t come home.

Thinking about all those parents, having to spend month after month with absolutely no idea if they will ever see their sons again.

[aces-and-angels]

verified by 90-ghost follow asmaa @asmaayyad & on instagram (asmaa_ayyad98)

moots/lovely lurkers- lend me your ears (or eyes- y'all get it) and allow asmaa to introduce herself in her own words:

"hello I hope my message reaches you well i am asmaa ayyad from gaza, specifically khan yunis, i am 25 years old, i am trying to save me and my family from the war of extermination that is happening now (a/n: asmaa graduated from the university of palestine in 2021 and went on to study/train to become a practicing lawyer) we lost our home, our friends and some of our relatives, I have also been living far away from my fiancé for two years, I cannot reach him because of the increase in the coordination price and the closure of the crossings and borders (a/n: asmaa lists feras_lbrahim in her insta bio as her fiancé) please i want you to help me by publishing for me and standing by my side, as i am now struggling alone to save an entire family i wanted to contact @/90-ghost but he does not respond to me (a/n: since asmaa sent me this message, 90-ghost has been able to get in touch/share her posts) i would be very grateful to you if you helped me"

asmaa's family consists of 8 members- all of whom led beautiful lives prior to the war. asmaa's older brother, dia, was looking forward to his own wedding. instead of experiencing such a joyous day, his life was shattered after his home was destroyed by the israeli army.

to lose a home- all your valuable possessions- your memories- in an instant is something that cannot be fully understood unless you've gone through it yourself. in asmaa's own words (read & share full post here):

"in addition to the pain, oppression and suffering that displacement causes us, there is a material aspect that no one talks about or mentions or mentions in the media. every place we move from to a new place requires transportation from 1,500 to 2,000 shekels... and despite this amount, you cannot transport all your belongings. this is in addition to the costs of setting up the tent again and trying to return what you lost of your things and belongings. displacement kills us more than death, it drains our health, our money and everything we own... displacement is another war that is harsher than this war of starvation and extermination... displacement is a hidden killer. how many people have been martyred because they do not have the price of displacement? the price that saves them from death! how many people have lost their dignity because of it?! oh god, have mercy on us and our situation 🙏💔"

asmaa's family has already lost so much- friends, loved ones, their cat, timur. they are living in a nightmare they cannot wake up from. the decision to evacuate is not an easy one to make nor is it one for the rest of us to scrutinize. it's what asmaa + her family have decided is the best path forward

please support my friend however you can-- the smallest actions can make the biggest impact

if all you can do is share- then share. follow asmaa to get the most up to date news regarding her family. tell someone you know about asmaa's story. allow others who may be able to contribute more find asmaa so her family may get to safety

and if you can give little more, please visit the link below 🖤

cw: photos of destroyed buildings + deceased cat (timur) included in the campaign

[nymphea0]

Monsters and His Love

Oneshot Story

Yan! Leon winston x reader

Warning : Mentions Of smoke, Force power, light mature scene, Torture scene, Bloods, Cropse body.

Be careful with what you read, minors are prohibited from reading this.

Manhwa : Try Begging

: Adult Manhwa (19+)

Author: Libenia | 리베냐

Artist: ABYSS

Word Count : 2,9K Word.

Hallo.. is neva agains, hope your days fine and good, so soon i will update some long story in Quotev, i will share the links if the story was half done made, so keep wait love🦋🦋.

might have some bad grammars, correct me if there are any mistakes in the words in the story I wrote. Anyways i hope you all enjoys my story, love.- Neva🦋🦋

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Captain Leon Winston, a vulgar monster clothed in the skin of a stoic and elegant noble. He was a pathetic bastard who only raged at the smell of blood from the torture chamber.

Leon, has been through many things in his life, starting from the death of his father, to a spy who doubles as his maid, Sally Bristol or her real name is Grace Riddle.

Everything that Leon goes through must always be with Grace. Leon will probably always talk about, Sally this and Sally that.

You, you are the daughter of Marquess Von Alderve from the Alvonseh family, the Alderve region.

The Marquis family and the Count family have had a relationship for a long time, Closeness like friends.

From the results of that relationship, it spread to the present, You and Leon.

You and Leon are childhood friends until now, You went through hard times together, But all that changed when you accidentally saw Leon kissing a little girl at a summer resort, having eyes between blue and green, so contrasting, Turquoise eyes, even Leon shared the ice cream he bought especially for the girl.

Since that little incident when you were little, you were not as close as before with Leon.

You could not possibly forget that girl, until you met her again, who doubled as Leon's maid.

Leon did many things, since he was a captain, and a noble, there were many things he could do, but all of that only ended with him covered in blood in the torture room from the victims or Leon called it a wild rat or something from the lower class.

.

.

'Puk'

You put down the newspaper you were reading, again... the issue of the nobility and the revolutionary army faction.

Drinking tea disinterestedly, you looked out the window of your room, now you have entered the mature age of 21 years.

Even Leon was engaged to the grand duke's daughter, Rosalind, though you weren't sure if he even cared about the relationship, since he was so obsessed with Sally or... his enemy's spy.

'Tak'

'Tak'

'Tak'

Damn!, you knew right away whose shoes and footsteps were those!, Leon!.

The man you least wanted to meet!.

Your relationship wasn't as close as it used to be, yes when you were still children, you fell in love with him, with Leon, a normal, sweet boy, but that changed from the incident at the summer resort, to the same girl you saw at the resort doubled as Leon's maid.

You saw more and more that there was no chance there, even when you saw how unenthusiastic Leon was with his fiancée, Rosalind.

So since you were 11 years old, you had made the right decision not to get close and fall in love with Leon.

"What were you thinking that seriously?"

A deep baritone voice right beside you, you could even feel his warm breath on your ear and neck.

It must have always been like that, Leon since he was little, always like that, talking in your ear or just an inch of your face.

"No, just thinking about hospital matters nothing more"

Leon looked at you from the side, you were beautiful, very beautiful in Leon's eyes, your bright purple eyes, hair as dark as night, really made him want to do bad things to you.

No, not now, not yet.

Sitting right in front of you, taking the glass of tea you were drinking, he drank it as if it was no big deal.

You just stared at him uncertainly, but you let him.

Only Leon was a stranger who could easily enter and exit your room, well it's always been like that since long ago.

"Why don't you want to join me? It'll be safer if you're beside me, you know that right?"

His arms were crossed, looking at you, with his usual look, his hair that was always neatly arranged really showed a captain and a noble.

"I'm not interested in joining the noble faction or even the revolutionary faction, both have a greater impact than profit"

Looking towards the window, not wanting to look at the person in front of you.

"You know that-"

You cut off Leon who hadn't finished speaking.

"I might as well get married soon, since father died, mother insisted on marrying me to one of the nobles"

You didn't see Leon's expression, thinking he was just giving a disinterested reaction, too bad, Leon's expression was the expression when he found out that his maid Sally Bristol was a spy, Grace Riddle or the expression when he was betrayed.

Betrayed and in pain!.

"Do you accept it?"

His tone wasn't as friendly as before.

"I'm still thinking about it, I don't think it's a bad idea"

Leon looked at you who seemed, or very uninterested in interacting with him, since when were you like this?

Asking once again, Leon looked straight at your face.

"From which family?"

"Not really sure, but I think from the Earl noble family"

Earl nobles, Nobles with hereditary titles who still have the same blood as the royal family.

"Is that so..."

That was the last sentence before Leon go  from your marquess residence.

.

.

.

"ARGGH!"

"Aakhh!!"

"Mercy! Help!!! Sorry! Capt-"

Blood splatters, and human bodies in the torture chamber.

Leon, covered in blood up and down his body.

Losing Sally Bristol or Grace Riddle might have had its own impact on him, but hearing you who was going to marry someone he didn't even know who it was... that was a different case.

His heart... hurt, it hurt so much when you said it without the slightest restraint!.

Walking up the stairs, Leon entered his study, sat down near his desk, slowly untied his tie, leaned his head on the chair.

Eyes gazing far away, Leon still remembered when you first met him, when you were both 8 years old.

.

.

Count Winston residence.

Leon, 8 years old.

His father was always excited when he talked about the marquess noble family.

There in front of the entrance, Leon saw, a man who was the same age as his father was chatting enthusiastically with his father, who Leon knew his father and the man or marquess had the same vision and mission about the order of this world.

That's where Leon saw, a little girl, beside the marquess man, had hair as dark as night, but her eyes were... amethyst eyes, unusual eyes.

"Leon come here"

His father bowed and introduced him to the girl in front of him.

Smiling very sweetly at him, Leon's heart beat fast.

From there, the two of you became close.

2 months, was the time when the marquess and count families met at the Summer resort, Leon talked a lot with you, full of enthusiasm, until when you asked permission to go to the bathroom, that's where Leon saw a girl, brown hair, and turquoise eyes, Leon was interested, he even shared his first kiss with the girl.

Strange, he felt he had lost something, but Leon didn't know what.

Since the resort, Leon felt you distanced yourself from him, distancing yourself and almost as if you didn't want to interact with him.

.

.

.

Exhaling, releasing smoke from his cigar.

Looking at the table, a framed photo of you and Leon, at the Belvelhera restaurant, 19 years old, you smiled so beautifully there, just passed the practical exam to enter internal medicine, unfortunately, the glass frame was stained with Leon's love fluid.

Emotions, passion, and possession, Leon reaped with many beats of his frustration.

You've driven him crazy! Even Grace lost to you!.

Leon thought Sally or Grace was so attractive because of her beautiful face and unique eyes, like you who are beautiful and unique.

Leon did many things to the woman, torturing her, forcing her and so on, but Leon did not cross the line to sleep with her, only biting her neck or kissing her lips, even though every time Leon did that, his heart ached.

Why did he just realize this? His junior always tenses when you look at him or just call his name, he thinks it's a normal reaction when the weather is hot.

Chuckling softly, Leon covers the glass photo frame with his black handkerchief grinning.

"Damn... what have you done to me... my lady"

.

2 weeks, is the time Leon didn't meet you, the reason is simple, Leon is afraid of losing control of himself, from before until now, when he sees Sally Bristol or Grace Riddle sweeping, cleaning the floor or doing maid work.

Why does he always think dirty things about you? Even though you're not by his side, seeing Sally as you.

Doing many dirty things, wanting to push you to your limits, begging or rebelling, which one will you choose... Leon really wants to know that.

Crazy huh, he's crazy, crazy about you, why can't he even realize quickly, from being tense, always thinking dirty things about you when someone like Sally/Grace or a woman who has unique eyes passes by him.

Leon stared at the pile of prisoners of revolution, bleeding, tortured.

And he even met Grace Riddle again, the woman tried to double as his maid again, well of course it was impossible

.

.

You are currently walking with the son of the Earl, this man is handsome, but unfortunately he honestly said that he has fallen in love with someone else.

Well you think his courage and honesty are commendable.

"do you like it?"

Vincent is the name of this man, holding a bouquet of roses, you just smile formally and nod at him.

"This is beautiful"

Too bad, you didn't see from across the street, in a 5-star elite restaurant, Leon was staring at you smiling beautifully by another man!.

.

.

Leon for 2 weeks spied on you with that country man, laughing smiling beautifully, holding the man's hand, Leon almost wanted to kill and torture the man!.

Too bad his frustration was vented when When he saw Grace Riddle, pulled her, and kissed her roughly on the lips, his brain mistook Grace for you.

Unfortunately, you accidentally passed them and found them kissing! Awkward! Of course, you and Vincent quickly left the restaurant room.

Damn! Damnit!! You saw him! You saw him kissing another woman!.

You must have considered him impure and dirty!!.

.

.

Leon spent his day and night in frustration.

Instead of getting closer when he tried to interact with you a lot, you actually moved further away from him!.

You even let that country bumpkin from the earl family kiss your cheeks!.

Enough! The problem with Grace Riddle is no longer there, so why should Leon hold back from seeing you with another man?

.

.

Leon Winston's residence.

Master bedroom.

In bed, fast asleep, a woman, both hands cuffed to each bedpost, naked, many kiss marks, and love fluids, puffy eyes, because of crying.

Leon, sitting on the sofa facing the bed, smoking his cigars, wearing only a shirt and long black pants.

His captain's jacket uniform has been forgotten on the floor.

He took your virginity, damn... you even took his virginity too.

See right? As Leon expected, you are perfect for each other, inseparable.

How evil you are to want to be separated from your true love.

.

.

Putting out his cigars, Leon, took a small black whip.

Walking slowly to the bed, his leather shoes made a very loud sound! You even woke up.

Staring at Leon in fear! You don't want to be slept with anymore! Your body hurts and you want to rest!.

Why is it like this? Leon kidnapped you, took you to a foreign country and married you by force!

Staring at Leon who was holding a long black object that looked like a whip, you shook your head.

"Leon!! Please... no more.. I don't want to"

Leon just grinned and wiped your tears slowly.

"Why cry my love? You will be safe because I am with you"

Kissing your forehead softly.

"You are for me, and I am for you, you are crazy for me, and I am crazy for you, my love"

Kissing your lips, devouring them with passion, and ownership.

"I want to keep making love to you my love, until you don't think about the world, but me"

On top of you, opening his shirt, his chest, arms and neck are full of scratches from your previous actions.

"Because my love, you are for me, and I am for you, we mean to be together"

.

.

.

*Source Image : Pinterest

*Source Image : Pinterest

*Source Image : Pinterest

©️Nymphea0 2024 ,OG story, Project Dark Manhwa Character Story.

Tag list; @snowflakes666 @nerdygoateepeanut @blurryperrtymoonlight @luminethebest @scenicelixir @n4muqr @cannyyyyy @athena-roy @sirenetheblogger @thehopingfairy

Please dont steal my work, or use without my permissions, Always be good people Dear. Much love, Neva🦋🦋.

[i-am-baechu]

♬ Summary: The world knows that they’re a couple but Jungkook can’t stop himself from telling everyone that Y/N is his girl. While Y/N can’t help but love her drunk fiancée even though it's embarrassing. 

♬ Pairing: Established relationship; Jungkook x reader 

♬ Rating:   Pg - 14

♬Genre: Established relationship, comedy, and fluff

♬ Part of, ‘ His Fan Girl

♬ Playlist: Espresso - Sabrina Carpenter

Y/N looked at the mirror and frowned. She turned towards Jin with a nervous look, “Is this too much?” 

Jin looked at her through his glass and shook his head, “You look perfect.” 

They were all getting ready for Hoseok’s listening party. Jack In The Box was a huge change for Hoseok and she was excited for him. Throughout the whole process, Y/N would send little gifts to him and even showed up during filming. Jungkook melted at the fact she was so supportive of his brothers. It made him love her even more. 

Today was the party and she was nervous. She wasn’t used to meeting with other celebrities let alone be in the same room with them. She talked to Hoseok about it and told him that she didn’t think it would be a good idea for her to be there...she didn’t want to embarrass anyone. Hoseok told her that was nonsense and begged Jungkook to get her to say yes. After Jungkook begged her, she finally said yes (it also helped that he ate her out but that's just a minor detail). 

Y/N played with the end of her skirt and glanced at Jungkook who was on camera with Hoseok. That was another thing that made her so nervous. The cameras. Jungkook made it very clear that they wouldn’t film her but her voice will be heard in the clips. It was a nerve wrecking thing to think about for her. She knew this was Jungkook’s life but it was still hard. 

Y/N looked at herself in the mirror and stared at herself. She was wearing a simple white dress that had bows on her shoulders. Her hair was how she usually had it. Nothing crazy. Jungkook glanced at her and frowned when he saw that familiar face. He got up after talking to Hoseok and made his way to her. She looked up when she felt a hand on her shoulder, “Hey...”

“Hey babe. I know that face, what’s wrong?” 

“Just nervous. I’m going to be with other celebrities, it's crazy to think about it.”

Jungkook rubbed her shoulder gently and kissed the top of her head, “You're the only star in my eyes. There's something else bothering you.”

She frowned and nodded her head, “The cameras.”

“They won’t film you, I’ll make sure.”

“I hope Army likes my voice.”

Jungkook rolled his eyes at this, “They love you just as much as I love you.” 

She glanced at Jin who was talking to Jimin with the camera following them. She let out a sigh and then looked at him with a smile, “I heard Eunwoo was coming. That’s good for me.”

Jungkook frowned at this, “Why?” 

“He’s the only person I know.”

“You know bts...talk to them more.”

She let out a small laugh and shook her head, “Are you jealous?” 

“No, you're my fiancé. I have nothing to be jealous about.” 

The party started and Y/N watched from the sidelines. Watching Jungkook avoiding everyone was funny but it was very Jungkook. She took a sip of her water and smiled when she saw him dancing with Hoseok. 

She was going to walk away but stopped when she saw Eunwoo. She smiled to herself and walked towards him, “Eunwoo, it’s been awhile.”

He turned around and smiled at the short girl, “It’s been awhile. I hope you liked the flowers I sent.”

She smiled and glanced down at her glass, “I did. Thank you for congratulating us on our engagement. It meant a lot.”  

“I heard your interview, you did a good job.” 

She frowned at this and nodded her head, “Thank you, it was nerve wracking. I think it could’ve been better...”

Eunwoo shook his head and placed his hand on her shoulder, “You put too much pressure on yourself. It was good.” 

“Y/N.” She turned around to see Jungkook walking up to her with a glass of champagne in his hands. She let out a small laugh when she saw his buzzed out face, “I was missing you.” 

He wrapped his arms around her waist as Y/N patted his head gently, “I missed you too.”

Eunwoo smiled and brought his glass up, “You guys are cute.” 

“Thank you. I’m going to get him to drink some water now.”

“Good luck with that.” 

She walked towards the bar as Jungkook never let go of her waist. It was awkward but somehow she did it. She kissed the side of his head and smiled, “How much did you have, babe?” 

“Not that much. Why are you talking to Eunwoo? I missed you around my arms.” 

“Am I not allowed to talk to him?”

“No, because I missed you.” 

She made him sit next to her and let out a small laugh when she saw his pout. She pushed some hair back and brought the water towards him, “I missed you too. Now drink some water.” 

“I’ll do anything for my girl.” 

She felt her face flush and shook her head, “Don’t drink too much. Okay?”

“Okay.”

An hour later, Y/N was talking to Jin about Eunbi when she felt a gentle tap on her shoulder, “Are you Y/N?”

She turned around and her eyes widened when saw who it was, “Jessi?” 

She smiled at her and nodded her head, “You look so young. You're also hot.” 

Y/N’s face turned red and she bowed at her, “T-Thank you for the compliment...How did you know I was Y/N?” 

“Your fiancée won’t shut up about you. I wanted to see with my own eyes. He’s right, you are hot.” 

Jin let out a laugh and looked at Y/N, “Someone’s in trouble.” 

Her face dropped and glanced at Jungkook who was talking to a group of people. She looked back at Jessi with a nervous face, “Wh-What is he saying?” 

“My girl is so hot” and “she's the love of my life” that’s it really. He did say that this dress makes your body look good. I agree with him.” 

She bowed at her and gave her a nervous smile, “Thank you. I’ll be right back.” 

Y/N gave Jin her water and ran towards Jungkook with an embarrassed face. Jessi turned towards Jin and let out a small laugh, “She’s cute.” 

“She is.” 

Jungkook looked at Y/N and smiled, “My beautiful fiancé is here.”

Hoseok let out a laugh and patted Jungkook’s back, “I know I see that.”

Y/N frowned and looked at Hoseok, “How much?”

“Four glasses.” 

She glanced at Jungkook and then back at Hoseok, “He got drunk that fast?” 

“Well, he didn’t eat anything until the party started.” 

Y/N sighed and shook her head at this. She turned towards Jungkook with a frown, “You promised me you wouldn’t drink a lot.” 

“My cut off was four. I’m still here. Not drunk, just tipsy.” 

“You’ve been telling people that I'm hot...I’m taking you home.” 

Jungkook frowned at this and shook his head, “I have to take a picture with hyung. Also, you are hot. I want everyone to know.”

She shook her head and felt her face red, “You told Jessi that this dress makes my body look good.”

“It’s a sin to lie.”

She let out another sigh. Jungkook tipsy just means he’s more clingy and that’s not a bad thing, normally. It's a bad thing now because they weren’t with just the members or in their house. They are with other people, people who are famous and basically his coworkers. 

“Go take your pictures and then I’ll take you home.” 

Jungkook turned towards Hoseok and smiled, “Let’s go hyung.” 

She watched them walk off and she shook her head at him. She saw Taehyung making his way to her and she smiled but her smile quickly dropped, “Jungkook’s telling everyone that you're the hottest thing he has ever seen.” 

“Lord save me.”

[cedarmoonzz]

Hello! I was wondering if I could request a small continuing to your Ford fic? I really enjoyed it and tugged my heart strings. I love you work so much and if your able to do that without any issue, I'd love that!😭💜

yes! i love that six fingered cartoon dilf with every fiber of my being!

once more to see you •｡ꪆৎ ˚

continuation of: between the bars followed by: slow like honey

fandom: gravity falls

ship: ford x reader

content: angst, stanford's poor attempt at comfort lol

summary: when your fiancé’s episodes of paranoia spiral out of control, you come to a difficult realization.

You’ve always seen yourself as someone grounded in logic. Pragmatic to the bone, you’ve relied on reason and science to navigate life, finding comfort in facts and the concrete reality they bring. But lately, that sense of security has started to unravel. 

The cabin was frigid, its icy air wrapping around you like a shroud, seeping into your very bones despite your efforts to ward off the chill. The socks you wore—a secret purchase made without Stanford’s knowledge—offered little warmth, though they  greatly softened the sound of your steps as you quietly drifted from the bedroom to the kitchen, then to the closet, nursing your third cup of coffee that night. Each breath you took was quick, shallow, as if the cold air was stealing it away. As you finally settled at the desolate kitchen table, a wry thought flickered in your mind: could the layers of plywood and fiberglass beneath you truly muffle the frantic beating of your heart, hiding it from your fiancé’s ever-watchful ear? In your own, the rhythm pounded, echoing like a circle of drums, impossibly loud in the oppressive stillness of the cabin.

Stanford’s paranoia didn���t burst into your lives all at once; it crept in quietly, almost imperceptibly, like a shadow growing longer at dusk. It all began when he developed a peculiar fascination with triangles—a simple, geometric shape that, in his hands, took on a life of its own. He transformed the cabin, once a place of warmth and refuge, into a gallery of trigonometric stained glass, each piece more elaborate, more intricate than the last. At first, you found it endearing, even charming, and you laughed it off as just another of his harmless quirks. You told yourself it was just Stanford being Stanford, his brilliant mind forever chasing new ideas.

But as the days turned into weeks, the triangles began to multiply. Their sharp, precise edges cast strange, fragmented light across your home, turning familiar spaces into something alien, almost unrecognizable. You began to notice how the once-welcoming cabin now felt distorted, its atmosphere thick with an unspoken tension. And yet, you didn’t see it for what it was—not at first. You didn’t want to see it. You told yourself it was just the glass, just the way the light hit it, just the way Stanford was channeling his creativity. You ignored the way your stomach twisted with unease, dismissed the creeping dread that settled in your bones.

You shook your head, trying to banish the haunting thoughts that swirled in your mind. There was no time to dwell on what had already happened; what mattered now was moving forward. Rising from your seat, you made your way to the bedroom you and Ford once shared, a space now overshadowed by his office chair, which had become his sanctuary. You reached into the closet, your fingers brushing against the familiar fabric of your thick army jacket. The worn texture offered a rare comfort, a tangible reminder of a time before everything had shifted. As you fumbled through the pockets, your hand closed around a pack of cigarettes—an old habit you had left behind during your second year of graduate school. A fleeting wave of nostalgia washed over you, mingled with regret for the time lost. You slipped the pack back into your pocket and donned the jacket, its sturdy fabric promising some semblance of protection against the biting night winds and the snow that still whirled outside the closed window.

Your gaze then fell upon your boots, left carelessly on the closet floor, caked in mud from past forest excursions with Stanford. You reached down, lifting them with a mixture of sentiment and practicality. With the boots in hand, you carefully descended the stairs, each step deliberate to avoid the creaking floorboards. At the kitchen door, you set the boots down and slipped them on, their familiar weight grounding you in the present. Quietly, you opened the door, the chill of the night air meeting you as you stepped into the darkness, ready to face whatever lay beyond.

You stood on the porch of your home, clad in baggy sweatpants, an oversized coat, and your old brown army boots. The cold night air wrapped around you, but the weight of the familiar clothing offered a small measure of comfort. You instinctively reached into your pocket, a gesture that felt oddly nostalgic, like reconnecting with a part of yourself that had been missing. Pulling out a cigarette, you brought it to your lips, and then you fumbled into your other pocket, searching for a long-abandoned lighter. Your fingers brushed against the cold metal as you hoped to find one still with fluid.

After a moment of fishing, you finally found it. With a deep breath, you shut your eyes, the cigarette resting between your fingers as you brought the lighter to your face. The small flame flickered to life, illuminating your face in the darkness as you lit your former vice. You’d given up smoking years ago, recognizing it as a bad coping mechanism, though it had always managed to calm your nerves better than any of the so-called remedies Stanford had suggested—yoga, green tea, or otherwise. Stanford had never missed an opportunity to chide you about it, yet in moments like these, when the world felt overwhelming and uncertain, the familiar warmth of the smoke provided a fleeting solace, a small rebellion against the chaos of your thoughts.

You couldn’t shake the image of your fiancé from your mind. The one person you had always relied on as your rock, your steadfast partner in all things logical and real, now seemed a stranger. He had become obsessed, shining a flashlight into your eyes, searching for something hidden in the depths of your pupils. Each time that harsh beam flickers across your eyes, it chips away at your sense of reality, leaving you to wonder if his strange behavior is a sign of something far darker lurking beneath the surface. The familiar comfort of the cigarette seemed almost to mock the confusion and dread that now defined your days, as if trying to find stability in a world that had become increasingly alien.

“[Y/n].” Ford’s voice sliced through your reverie, its suddenness filling you with an indescribable anxiety. The feeling was sharp and unsettling, a gnawing presence that you couldn't quite classify as rational or otherwise. It wrapped around you like a cold fog, clouding your thoughts and intensifying the sense of disorientation that had already taken root.

He stood behind you in the doorway, the light from behind casting a soft, almost ethereal glow around him. From this angle, you might have thought he looked perfect, a vision of calm and composure that seemed untouched by the chaos of your shared reality. The gentle halo of light made him appear almost otherworldly, a serene figure caught in a moment of stillness.

Yet, his appearance betrayed a different story. His hair was frantic and messy, a wild tangle of curls that seemed to reflect his inner turmoil. The bags under his eyes had deepened, etched by sleepless nights and relentless stress. Despite the disarray, there was a softness in his gaze, a look of tenderness you had missed with all your heart. It was a fleeting reminder of the warmth and affection that once defined your relationship, now overshadowed by the encroaching distance and disquiet that had come to dominate your lives.

You had tried so damn hard to stay quiet, to remain out of his way. You'd let him overwork himself to the bone if that’s what he wanted, even though it felt like a slow erosion of everything you once knew. You’d had the argument too many times to care by now, the words always seeming to fall on deaf ears. All you wanted was to avoid the inevitable confrontation, to give him space, even as his obsessive behavior grew ever more unsettling. 

"Stanford," was all you said in response, your voice barely more than a whisper. You lifted the cigarette from your lips, the smoke pooling around you like a hazy veil. As you exhaled, you cast a glance up the staircase, the familiar sight offering no answers, only a silent reminder of the space between you both.

“You’ve started smoking again,” he observed, his tone carrying a note of quiet surprise. The statement lingered in the air, the drifting smoke accentuating the distance between you. It was as if the sight of the cigarette in your hand was a reflection of the changes he could no longer ignore.

“Didn’t think you’d notice.”

The cigarette met your lips once more. You took a long drag, the smoke filling your lungs as your eyes remained locked with his. In that moment, it felt as if time itself had frozen, leaving you both suspended in the delicate space between old familiarity and the evolving distance that now defined your relationship.

“Of course I would,” he said, his voice carrying a soft tinge of regret.

You dropped the cigarette into the snow, watching as it hissed and sizzled against the cold ground. With a decisive step, you crushed it underfoot, pressing it into the snow for good measure. The smoldering embers were quickly extinguished, leaving only a faint trace of smoke lingering in the frosty air.

“Sorry,” was all you could manage to utter, the word feeling woefully inadequate in the weight of the moment. It hung between you, a simple apology for the complexities that neither of you could fully address.

“It’s cold. You’ll catch your death out here,” he muttered, his voice laced with a blend of concern and weariness. He stepped aside from the doorway, making way for you with a gentle gesture. The warmth from inside seemed to beckon, a stark contrast to the frigid night air.

You looked into his eyes, and he stared back, the moment stretching between you as if everything else had come to a halt. The world outside faded into a blur as snapshots of your relationship flickered through your mind—moments of laughter, shared dreams, and fleeting happiness. With each memory, you found yourself questioning what had gone wrong, what could have been different, and what measures you might have taken to alter the course of events.

In the midst of that frozen silence, a question slipped from your lips before you could even stop yourself: “Ford, are you still in love with me?” The words hung in the air, unexpected and raw, their weight adding a new layer of complexity to the already tense moment.

His head snapped towards you, eyes widening with a shock that seemed to crystallize in the cold night air. His gaze pierced into yours with a fierce intensity, as if your question had struck a chord deep within him. His eyebrows knit together in a furrow of confusion and apprehension, while his mouth tightened into a thin, resolute line. The change in his demeanor was palpable; his posture straightened as though he were bracing himself for a storm.

With a determined stride, he marched to stand beside you in the snow, the door to the house slamming shut behind him with a resonant thud that echoed through the night. The two of you stood together, the moonlight casting a ghostly glow upon the snow, which reflected a bluish light that danced across the scene. The snow-covered ground sparkled faintly, but the surrounding darkness clung to you both like a shroud.

He stared down at you as you stared at your feet, standing only an arm's length away, the proximity intimate and charged. For a moment, the world seemed to hold its breath. The only sound was the soft shushing of dormant branches swaying in the wind, their gentle rustling mingling with the quiet stillness of the night. The cold air wrapped around you both, creating a palpable silence that stretched between you, broken only by the occasional whisper of the wind through the snow-laden trees.

His hand reached out, fingers closing gently around your chin. With a deliberate motion, he angled your gaze upward, drawing your eyes away from the snowy expanse at your feet and into his. The touch was firm yet tender, guiding your focus to the depth of his own eyes. It was just like he used to do moments before he pressed his lips against yours.

Your eyes met his, and in that brief, suspended moment, you saw the glistening, unshed tears pooling in his gaze. They shimmered in pale light of the moon, their potential to fall betraying the fragile veneer of his composure. The raw, unguarded emotion in his eyes was a stark contrast to his usual facade, revealing a depth of sorrow and vulnerability that seemed to unravel the very essence of his being.

“Don’t you ever ask that again,” his voice cracked, the words trembling as they escaped his lips. He leaned forward, resting his forehead gently against yours, the closeness both intimate and overwhelming. In that tender contact, you felt a deep ache, missing his touch more than you had admitted to yourself. The warmth of his skin against yours, the vulnerability that he seldom showed, was a poignant reminder of what you had longed for but also feared.

Your breath caught in your throat, the tightness nearly choking you as emotions surged within, rendering you on the brink of tears. Frustration twisted inside you, mingling with a deep-seated ache as you grappled with having surrendered so effortlessly to the solace of his presence. The warmth of Ford’s touch, so familiar and comforting, had shattered your defenses with an almost unbearable intimacy.

In that raw, exposed moment, you recognized a profound truth: you loved Ford with a depth that went beyond reason. You understood him completely, and you would remain steadfast by his side. Even if it meant losing yourself in the process, he would always draw you in. It was a certainty you could not escape.

[danikamariewrites]

In Enemy Hands

Mob!Azriel x reader

Warnings: kidnapping, guns, violence, a lil murder but nothing graphic, not proof read

Azriel knew. The heavy feeling in his gut twisting and turning as he paced the driveway.

The mini convoy pulling up had him stopping, his eyes widening at the sight of the damaged Range Rover Cassian was driving. His heart clenched at the destruction.

It was rare Azriel let his men see him in this worried state. He was doing a good job of keeping his mask in place, but Azriel felt like he needed to scream. Like he was going to drop to his knees and let this feral thing inside him out.

Rhys silently stepped up next to his brother, clasping his hand on Azriel’s shoulder. As soon as the cars stopped Azriel pulled away from Rhys to inspect your car. Cassian had already given Az a full report of the damage and how you were taken. He just needed to see it with his own eyes.

Azriel frantically searched the car for any clue that you could’ve left. “Az there’s nothing in here,” Cassian says gently.

“No,” Azriel roars, whipping around to give Cassian a deadly glare. “There — she has to,” Az fumbles over his words.

For the first time since he was a child a tear slid down his cheek. For the first time since he was a child Azriel felt fear.

Anger quickly mixed itself in. Azriel quickly sees red. His breaths were bordering on pants as he cast a pained look at your car.

“I am going to kill every single one of them.”

You push your chest against the ropes keeping you to the rolling chair. All that does is slowly spin you in a circle. You pull at the duct tape binding your wrists to the arms of the chair.

Even though your whole body ached from the collision you fought. And you’d keep fighting.

The door squeaks open as Beron stands over you. He's supposed to be a myth these days. Living out his exile in a quiet town, cut off from his family.

When Eris overthrew his father to become head of the family he showed Beron mercy. Something he never showed any of his sons. The fact that Beron was in the city, and with a small army backing him, meant trouble.

“Eris might actually kill you this time,” I break his brooding silence. “Do you not want to live, or are you just itching for round two with the head of the Vanserra fam—” your words melted into a piercing scream as Beron gave your knee a hard kick.

Pain blinds you. Thanks to the crash you’re pretty sure your knee is somewhere between dislocated and broken. Focusing on breathing through it you regain your composure.

“The bastard that took my spot is weak. Your boyfriend even weaker. I know they owe each other. And the pretender has no one, you were next on the list.”

You groan, absorbing the information. Nesta was good at laying low then. And you’re not a rat.

“Finacé.”

Beron gives me a disgusted scowl. “Fiancé now. Do you not get the newsletter out in the suburbs?” You shoot him a shit eating grin. Beron’s growing rage tells you to quit it with the quips.

“The title doesn’t change anything. My plan is already in motion.” Your heart skipped a beat.

“Aahh the facade does crack.” He grins. Your glare turns murderous. “If you hurt Azriel you won’t have to be afraid of the family’s. Just me.” Beron lets out a cackle as he leaves you to your pain.

It’s already been a full 24 hours and Azriel hasn’t slept. He angrily paced the house as Eris ran point, commanding men to watch Beron’s old hideouts. To comb the city and leave no stone unturned.

Rhys and Cassian have been taking turns to try and ease their brother’s anxiety. Mostly it was to make sure Azriel didn’t run off to take Beron on alone.

Right when Azriel was about to implode Eris ran into the office to report that you’ve been found.

“I have a man on the inside with Beron. We need to move now to catch them off guard, I’ll explain on the way.” Azriel didn’t wait for Eris to finish before he was out the front door.

When the warehouse comes into sight Azriel has to restrain himself from jumping out of the car. “Remember,” Eris’s stern voice sounds down the comms. “Wait for the signal.” Azriel rolls his eyes, knowing that command was targeted at him.

They stay out for almost an hour before Eris’s informant gives the signal.

Entering the building Azriel almost threw up his heart at the sight.

Once Atlas finally gained your trust you let him cut you loose and help stabilize your knee. Thanks to the pain you had to put your weight on him.

Shuffling out of the room you were hidden away in being out in the open made your heart race. Some guards patrolled the upstairs, a few weaved between the stacked pallets.

Atlas dragged you behind a stack of boxes to send a text to Eris. “Stay here.” Atlas whispers. You make yourself as small as possible. Pressing you back against the boxes as you watch Atlas cut through the room to silently cut down those foolish enough to side with Beron.

A second person took down the men upstairs. Silently laying them down as their bodies went limp in his arms.

When Atlas returns you immediately push yourself up, leaning your weight on him again.

Halfway through the warehouse angry footsteps sound from behind. Followed by the click of a gun. Atlas whipped around, shoving you behind him.

“Beron, you don’t want to do this.” He said, raising his gun. The laugh that escaped Beron sent painful chills through your body.

“Enough games. Where’s the boy? Or is he not brave enough to face me?”

“Eris will be here soon enough.”

The two stare each other down. Neither wanted to shoot first. Atlas pushes you, silently asking you to hide and leave him.

Turning as quickly as your knee would let you hobble down the center of the room, aiming to dive behind another stack of boxes.

Two shots sound behind you. One followed by the thud of Atlas’s body. The other right next to your foot. You let yourself fall, putting your weight on your uninjured side.

Beron grabbed you by the back of your neck, hauling you to your feet.

“Any second.” He panted into your ear. Beron’s arm wrapped around your neck, his gun pressing into your temple.

The door slammed open to reveal Azriel, Eris, and the rest of their men. You let out a small sigh of relief at all the familiar faces.

Your eyes meet Azriel’s rage filled ones. “Beron,” he roars. “Let her go!”

“When I have you both where I want you?” You claw at Beron’s arm attempting to loosen his grip.

Azriel was struggling with what to do. He wants to shoot Beron but he was petrified of hitting you by accident. If he moved, Beron would likely kill you.

Eris opens his mouth to threaten his father when a gun goes off. Beron howls and Eris rushes forward to pin him. Everything plays out in slow motion for Azriel. Once he realizes you fall he runs to you.

Azriel scoops you to his chest, rocking you and running his fingers through your tangled hair. “Y/n, oh my sweet y/n. I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry.” Azriel keeps repeating the apology. You cling to him, breathing in his comforting scent.

He pulls away from you to look you over. Tears prick at Azriel’s eyes when he sees the small gash on your forehead and hurt knee. “Oh my angel.”

“I’m ok, Az.” He shakes his head pulling you back to his chest. Picking you up bridal style Azriel briefly talks to Eris. The next time you look up Azriel is buckling you in the car, never taking his arm from around you.

Az doesn’t let you walk in the house, carrying you tight to his chest again. Bringing you to the spare room you see the family doctor is already set up. An hour later she determines your knee has a bone bruise and the cut on your forehead just requires neosporin and a bandaid.

Before the doc leaves Azriel brings you to the bedroom, helping you change and tucking you in with a heating pad.

You stare at him holding his hand. “Sit, love.” He does as you say, the tears he’s been holding back finally falling from eyes. “I’m so sorry,” he whispers again. “I’m so sorry I failed to keep you safe.” You shake your head at him.

“You brought me home. I’m with you.” Az nods. “I brought you home.” He says more to himself than you.

He stays by your side for days. You can’t even get out of bed without Azriel supporting you or carrying you where you want to go. You let him for his sanity.

Weeks later, you get up without Azriel beside you for the first time. Your knee still hurts a little but you keep moving through the pain.

As if he could sense what you’re doing, Azriel pokes his head in. You smirk at him. “Hi Azzy.” He blushes slightly at the nickname.

“What are you doing up so early?” You roll your eyes playfully. “Can’t I get up and have breakfast with my fiancé?”

“Of course,” he whispers, cupping your cheek. Azriel has been trying not to hover since you’ve fully healed. You can see the hesitation in his eyes as his other hand twitches to wrap around you.

Wrapping your arms around his shoulders you lean into Az. “Will you carry me downstairs?” You press soft kisses to his soft skin to butter him up. Azriel relaxes, scooping you to his chest.

Maybe letting Azriel hover for a little while longer won’t be such a bad thing.

[dark-frosted-heart]

Gilbert’s secrets from his takeover

I tried to get them all but I don’t know how many there are in total

Spoilers and rough translations below

He took over a country that produced honey because the kid he picked up loved it, and stimulated the economy

Supposedly improved the taste of those terrible army rations and the soldiers shed tears of gratitude

He developed a new form of medicine on the spot when his fiancée caught a fever. Walter: You advanced technology by another 100 years

With the rumors of how much he adores his fiancée, Obsidian merchants have started importing goods from Rhodolite

He's working on some sort of cryopreservation to keep his fiancee's sweets as long as possible

Roderich's weapon was made by Gilbert. It's so important to him that he never lets it go, even holding it in his sleep.

As a child, a friend from Rhodolite taught him how to use a sword. Said friend then beat him so brutally which made Gilbert avoid using swords

Recently set up a workshop dedicated to producing handmade clothes and jewelry for his fiancee.

Recently, a new part of his nightly routine is asking his fiancée to remove his eyepatch for him.

Back when he was a kid, his mother used to read him a lot of fairy tales about a prince dancing with his beloved, so he learned to dance for when that day came

[minimiance]

Heyy

I love the idea of toxic! Price ♡ and was wondering if u could do Price x college student reader who's relationship is like almost a forbidden relationship cuz of their age gap or cuz Price is army man whos killed people.

Reader can be like an innocent bunny or a wannabe bad girl looking for trouble

₊˚♡˚˖ I love ur works and feel free to ignore this! ⁺˚♡˚

I was listening to greedy by tate mcrae & diet mountain dew by lana del ray while thinking of all the cod boys and feel like Price would fit greedy to a T

Oh my gosh yes?? (sry it took me so long to get to this i have been sooooo busy icky)

But like imagine bragging to all your friends. You’ve got this older boyfriend in the military. High ranking too, a demanding man who holds your waist just a smidge too tight when in public with you.

And your friends laugh and giggle and listen in awe when you tell them that he’s amazing in bed. That you never knew you could cum so hard until he got his hands on you.

You always tend to leave out the small parts that your friends call “red flags.” Like him being a little too controlling over who you’re around, how late you’re out, where you go. Because he wants you safe is what he always says.

The first (and last) time you had screamed at John, calling him an over controlling dickhead, he had shown just how little he could care. Didn’t pay an ounce of attention to you, ignoring you, brushing you off when you said you were going out. Effectively showing you how much you depended on him. The funds you had for going out suddenly gone, the little gifts he would get you disappeared, the small kisses and loving gestures completely gone.

It took all of a month for you to crawl back into your Captains arms, on the couch while he soothed and rubbed your back. Calling you his sweet girl and asking if you were ready to be his again.

Holds your hand so sweetly while he pounds into you :( kisses all over your face while muttering into your ear about how your his. His sweet girl only, that he was all you needed. And you nod and babble along with him as you agree.

He leaves your legs absolutely quaking with how he pummels your pussy as you scream for him. Has you calling him sir and captain in bed because he loves the power dynamics.

Shoves a ring on your finger when you cum around his dick, telling you to let everyone know that he was your fiancée now.

Because John Price IS a greedy man, and when he wants you, he plans to own ALL of you :(

[tiredfox64]

I have a request/idea for a thing:

What if the Reader has a mutual pining situation going on with one of the meaner MK kharacters (I’d say Bi-Han, Shang Tsung, Reiko, or Quan Chi would be good for this—whoever you want, honestly!) but neither person has the guts to say anything, until FINALLY the MK kharacter just can’t handle it anymore and practically breaks down the Reader’s door in order to confess. Then sex happens.

Pining not Pinning!

Yip notes: You know damn well I was gonna pick Reiko. That’s my scary man right there. My fiancé is so mean to him tho. Also I tried but I think I suck with that romance trope.

Pairing: Reiko x Afab reader

Warnings‼️: NSFW, biting, perhaps a bit of masochism there is some pain, vaginal sex

General Shao needs the best of the best. Reiko is one of his best soldiers, he didn’t become lieutenant by doing nothing. Reiko knows that he is on top. He basks in the glory of being Outworld’s finest soldier. But will he play nicely with someone who is just as great as him?

Well, maybe, that is for you to decide. You are the next best thing for Outworld, General Shao will tell you that. That means Reiko has his eyes on you in more ways than one.

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There have only been two instances where a woman has left the Umgadi. Those ladies would be Li Mei and you. Of course, you left not out of shame or to avoid punishment. You left because you didn’t want to protect the royal house. You wanted to protect all of Outworld. That’s why you joined General Shao’s army. He was more than happy to accept you in, seeing that you had the skills of a warrior. He also found your desire to protect all of Outworld commendable.

You quickly rose in rankings and earned yourself recognition. A female in the army who is beating upcoming soldiers? How could the people of Outworld not talk about you! And they talk and talk and spew many thoughts about you possibly overpowering a certain lieutenant who constantly wears war paint. You know damn well who they are talking about and he has heard.

All that talk led the lieutenant to you, huffing and puffing like a mad bull. Reiko knew you joined the army but he never expected you to rise in rankings so quickly. The idea of anyone being better than him doesn’t work in his mind. Which is why you two had to spar.

“What?” You questioned the general.

“Reiko has requested to fight you since you have been surpassing everyone else.”

 Speak of the devil here comes the bastard. You could see he was mean mugging you even from a distance. The closer he got the more you saw the fury that swirled in his eyes. Your eyes shifted between General Shao and Reiko. Each glance at Shao sent a message that said “Are you fucking with me?” because what made him think springing this on you was smart.

Once Reiko was next to you, he started sizing you up. Have you ever seen a snake examining its food before eating it? It’s just like that except Reiko won’t bite your head off, hopefully. Shao luckily pushed Reiko away from you since that display of aggression was embarrassing. He commanded you to get ready to spar. The other soldiers shall be watching and learning.

“I knew you joined our numbers, but I never would have imagined that you were capable of being a true warrior.” He taunted you.

“I’m full of surprises. You seem to be the same way since I’m surprised you want to fight me so badly.”

“Why? Are you afraid to lose to me?”

“Not really, I’m just worried you have a few loose screws.”

Alright enough chit-chat about how he is fuckin unstable. Put your fist up and show him a good fight. A good fight is like good sex to him.

FIGHT!

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Punches, kicks, left hook, right hook, haymakers, suplexes, piledrivers, me oh my I think I heard something crack!

How y’all two doin, alright? No? Oh I bet. You two look awful. You got drool dribbling down your chin and his rat tail manbun is messy. Both of you need to take care of your hands because your knuckles are torn up. Don’t forget to remove the shuriken stuck to your ass. Your back hurts, huh? Yeah, that won’t be the last time Reiko breaks your back—HUH?!?

General Shao had to pull you two apart the second he saw blood dripping onto the floor. He can’t have his best soldier out of commission. You took a few seconds to catch your breath and wipe the sweat from your forehead. Just as you expected, Reiko would be a tough battle. You knew he’d leave you breathless and a sweaty, drooling mess.

You decided to be a good sport and accept that this fight was a tie. You held your hand out for him to shake.

“You put up a good fight, Reiko. It was an honor to figh—”

He walked away without saying a word. You were left stunned with your hand still out. With the way Reiko was stomping away, you could tell he was all huffy. Well shit, the one guy you admire and have the hots for probably hates you now. Fuck!

Ah, but you got it all wrong. You turned that man on so much that he had to walk away from you. I told you a good fight is like good sex to that man.

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Now begins an endless tango of confusing emotions and miscommunication.

From that day on you fully believed that Reiko hated you. Everyone believed that after his hissy fit of an exit. If anyone tried to discuss the fight or you in his presence, he shut that down immediately. Nobody could even speak your name around him because he’d get agitated. That’s the last thing anybody needs him to be before training starts.

You did your best to make amends even though you didn’t start the fight. You made an effort to get closer to him by doing little things like asking for help with training or cheering him on. And it worked…and it didn’t work at the same time.

He’s back and forth with his acceptance of you.

The truth is…Reiko is a dumbass. He’s a clueless fool when it comes to emotions and no one can blame him. He was raised to only think about fighting. So when a strange emotion such as love, which is already a confusing emotion, is felt inside a man who thinks love is felt when he kills someone it’s no surprise that it’s incomprehensible.

You on the other hand knew you liked Reiko. You’ve known for a long time. What wasn’t there to like about him? Sure, he could be a little scary and very rough. But he was a remarkable fighter, taking hits like they were nothing. He fought for all of Outworld and wanted the best for it. You always found that honorable and looked up to him. All that admiration slowly spiraled into a crush that grew the more you saw him. Soon those sky-blue eyes that could be as light as milky white didn’t strike fear into your soul. You started to become thankful that he wore that overly exposing uniform. It’s got you fanning yourself. You ain’t the only one feeling hot.

Reiko had no clue why he got so hot with you around. His cheeks grew warm but not warm enough to bring color to his cheeks. Even if some color blossomed in his cheeks, his war paint would hide it. He got so twitchy too when he’d watch you fight. He’d rub the back of his neck or itch his arm even though he wasn’t itchy. He didn’t know what to do with his body.

The one thing you caught onto was his gaze. It was intense and his eyes followed your every move. When you’d accidentally make eye contact it felt like you were staring at each other for minutes, hours even. Nothing would be said but some part of Reiko hoped that his eye contact would tell you how he felt even if he didn’t know it himself. You’d look away the moment your face started to burn as you grew flustered. But your mind couldn’t believe that. You thought he hated you. So instead, you told yourself you were getting so scared that you grew embarrassed from being scared of him. That doesn’t make sense but you couldn’t make sense of anything.

Some of your Umgadi sisters who you still talked to had encouraged you to tell him how you felt. You didn’t have the same obligations you had before, maybe the army isn’t so strict when it comes to their soldiers being in a relationship. Oh, and they gave you the usual “the worst he can say is no” bullshit.

The least he can say is no. The worst he can say or do is laugh at you and call you pathetic. Or he might slap you in the face thinking you’re crazy for having a crush on him. OR he could tell General Shao what you confessed, and you might be kicked out of the army due to an “inappropriate” relationship with someone higher up.

No, fuck that! You’ll die with this crush of yours under lock and key and shoved in your heart. You can’t risk anything, especially since you believe Reiko hates you. The thought of him rejecting you or making fun of you breaks your tough heart. You’ve never liked or admired a man so much before and you’d like to at least be near him.

So go ahead, scream into your pillows, and wrap yourself in blankets while yelling how it’s just not fair. Why did you have to love a man who hates your guts?!

And now stop all that noise because you don’t know the truth.

You consumed his mind, clouding his ability to think straight. He tried to use that as a reason to hate you but he couldn’t. He couldn’t hate your strength and dedication. He couldn’t hate that smile you would sometimes crack when another soldier did something stupid or silly. He couldn’t hate how your eyes, no matter the color, let the sunlight illuminate them beautifully. He couldn’t hate how perfect you were in his eyes. You were someone he wanted.

But Reiko couldn’t just say it out loud randomly. Remember, he has no idea how love works. Did he actually like you or was his body just being hormonal? Was he just being a horny pervert even though he is way past that stage in life where random things would make him hard? He would never forgive himself if that were the case. Being in love might be less embarrassing.

There were only two people Reiko was willing to talk about this with: General Shao and…Rain? Yeah, Rain can be a strange choice but who else other than Shao could Reiko talk to?

He started going to Rain about those strange feelings and observations he was making. He treated the High Mage like a therapist and Rain wanted to throw a book at him. The conversations only helped, or in Reiko’s eyes made things worse, because he realized more and more how much liked you. The conversations would go like this.

“She looked amazing today during training. She barely broke a sweat even after facing ten of my men.”

“Wow, that’s impressive.” Rain would say sarcastically while flipping through a spell book.

“…her grunts made me feel something…I wanted to hear her gasp more.”

“…”

“…”

“Do you see this scepter in my hand, Reiko? Okay, now ignore it as it’s coming towards you.” Rain would lift his scepter and use it like a baseball bat to tell Reiko to get the fuck out of his room! Three out of five times he would. But at least he was the one to tell Reiko that he was simply just a man in love. Good! So not a pervert…maybe.

Shao was really no help. Rain did more by just sitting there. Shao was quick to shut Reiko down when it came to his feelings. He saw how his second-in-command was getting distracted more because of you. He would kick you out of the army if you weren’t such a useful asset. He was forced to steer him away from you. He knew Reiko would listen to him without hesitation.

So he started messing with him. Shao told him this was all a trick. Your nice attitude was meant to throw him off his rhythm so you could surpass him. Soon, all the soldiers would be listening to you instead of him. It worked a little. Reiko would get agitated again and push himself to train harder, be better. Oh but you would somehow fight your way into his heart by being a sweetie only towards him or by actually fighting him. And then he goes back to that dazed state where his mind is on you and he stares at you till you shiver.

Then Shao lied straight to his face. He wanted Reiko to think you hated him. He went on and on about how you must hate him because Reiko wanted to fight you for no reason. He disrespected you by fighting you even though that was an honor to you. Because Reiko was still so clueless about how love worked, he believed the general. He is much older and is supposed to be wiser, what he says must be true. But if that were the case why would you want to be near him? Why would you come to him for help if you believed he disrespected you? Nice try Shao, you failed again. Your lieutenant is loyal, not braindead.

He gave up. Shao didn’t try to hide that he didn’t want Reiko getting close to you. You two already had a connection going without knowing. All that was left to do was to have someone confess. But Shao said no. Even now, yes now, Shao was telling Reiko not to pursue you.

After training one day Shao takes Reiko to his office to command him to stop. Stop his feelings for you and be the soldier he was before you joined. There will be no argument about it.

“I don’t want you getting close to her, Reiko. Don’t make me regret letting her join my army.” Shao growls.

Reiko listens to Shao, he always listens. If General Shao tells him not to pursue you, even though he is starting to lose it a little, he won’t pursue you. He will continue his night like he usually does.

He lets down his hair from its bun before he washes away the day’s stress. The warm water cleanses him of sweat and war paint while relaxing his tired muscles. His hands travel down to scrub the soap against his body and his mind begins to wander. He wants to be close to you. He wants to feel your skin against his again. He wants to hear you pant and groan without the need to start a fight.

The shower grows steamier and his body grows hotter. Was it the water or his mind doing that, who’s to say? Oh but that mind of his truly can’t be contained because he starts to wonder what it would be like to have you with him in the shower. To see the water drip down your body and to watch the soap flow down every curve on you. What would you two do in there? The possibilities are endless. Would you be shy and have your back to him? That’s not a bad outcome, it would just mean a surprise for you. Or would you be looking at him the whole time, letting your eyes tell him what you want? If so, it wouldn’t be a surprise if you kept looking at him as you kneel before him. You would look him right in his eyes as your hands, deadly yet so soft, start to stroke his hard cock as your tongue begins to—

Woah! Yeah, Reiko is painfully hard. He has only himself to blame yet he will pin this on you. He has to wait for it to go down while he bangs his head softly against the shower walls. Once it’s soft, or at least semi-hard, he wraps a towel around his waist and tries to wipe the smeared war paint off with another towel. Don’t think that stuff comes off easily it is made to last through the day.

Reiko keeps wiping the black paint off as he walks through the halls of the barracks. As he starts to think that he has his emotions and desires under control—HE JUST CAN’T TAKE IT ANYMORE! The confusion! The eyes of other soldiers! The fact that everyone is telling him not to say anything to you BECAUSE THEY HAVE SO LITTLE FAITH IN HIM AND ARE TRYING TO TRICK HIM!

That does it! He throws down the towel in the middle of the hallways before turning on his heels and walking towards your room. The war paint was not fully off so it looked like he lightly used a black eyeliner pencil around his eyes. It was hot you’ll see in a second.

Reiko wastes no time on knocking or even turning the doorknob to your room. You had only five seconds before your door was kicked in. In those five seconds you heard quick wet footsteps up to your door almost like someone literally stepped out of the shower and walked to your room. It started off light then grew heavy before a BAM.

You’re in the middle of doing your skincare routine because screw letting your pores be clogged with sweat and dirt. You see in the reflection of the mirror to see Reiko standing in the doorway. Your mouth falls open from the shock of the door being kicked open to being even more shocked that he has only a towel wrapped around his waist. He’s huffing as he slams the door shut behind him before making his way towards you and only then do you react. You turn around and try to keep your distance because you have no idea what he is mad about now. Did General Shao talk about you? Did someone taunt him? Did it even have anything to do with you?? You had no clue.

“W-wait! What?! What did I do now?” You whine as you leap onto your bed with the idea of using it as a barrier between you two.

It fails because he is quick to move to the other side of your bed. You are so scared you drop onto your bed with a little bounce. You clutch the top of your bathrobe together like they were an imaginary set of pearls. Your eyes stare up at Reiko as he creeps closer. His hands suddenly grab your face and you are a bit surprised it’s not rough enough to bruise you. And then he said it.

“I like you…I think I love you. I love the way you fight. I love your need to serve all of Outworld. You are the woman I need. Ever since we fought I knew I needed you by my side.”

“…”

“…”

“…oh…”

There is this awkwardness that takes over the whole room. You don’t say much because you are unsure of how truthful Reiko is. This could be a trick. Someone could’ve snitched and this was his way of humiliating you. But would he really go through that with only a towel on, his war paint nearly wiped off, and his hair down as it still drips with water? He is just as vulnerable in this situation as you are. You are two vulnerable lovesick fools who took too long to say something. Now that love and admiration have come dripping out.

“Are you…being serious?” You are not trying to be mean, you are genuinely asking.

His eyes narrow in anger and for a second you feel panic rising in you. But then he kisses you. It’s messy and rough and yet it feels so good. Your lips are soft compared to his slightly damaged rough lips. One hand stays on your face while the other slides to the back to hold your head. Your breathing grows heavy as the passion chokes you both before he pulls away. You look into his eyes and you know that his intentions are true.

“Any more stupid questions?” He asks somewhat aggressively, which is natural.

You nod your head no. Reiko leans back in and kisses you more, passion driving his actions. His kisses are not perfect, but you still love them. You’re not perfect with your kisses either. His body begins to press against yours until your back is pressed against your bed. His hands touch you with great curiosity and hunger, knowing where he wants to touch you but savoring every feeling beneath his fingertips. Though you hate to stop this beautiful moment as your bodies begin to heat up there is an important fact you must share if this tension is gonna break soon.

“Wait, Reiko, hold on,” you place your hands on his chest to push him back a little, “I’m a virgin.”

“So am I.” He replies casually because why should he be ashamed? He spent all his life fighting and winning battles. Do you think anyone’s gonna shame him for not having sex before this point?

There is much to talk about with this new relationship but that must wait. You two need to release that tension that has been building up for a while now. Make sure to take it slow.

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The moans and groans of virgins can be so sweet. Skin-to-skin contact is exhilarating when the need to love one another runs through you. Oh yes and the fact that Reiko was pounding into you.

You two tried to take it slow. You especially wanted to take it slow once you saw what was behind that towel. Six inches is nothing to sneeze at. But it was the fact that it was thick and had a curve to it. That’s what made you question if it would even fit. He would make that fit, slowly but surely.

Look, he tried to do it slowly and gently but the moment the tip went in it was hard to hold back. His hands gripped your sheets as he stretched you out. The pain you felt was dull and almost pleasurable. You let out little gasps as you took in more of his cock. Your pussy clenched around him, making it even harder for him to stay calm. Reiko struggled to hold back. Your body was like a drug, and he wanted to chase that high that your warm pussy was giving him. The moment you gave him the okay his mind went blank and he started thrusting.

Whatever Shao told him before was forgotten. What did he advise him about? Reiko can’t recall. All his mind could focus on was the pleasure and heat of your body.

And now, Reiko has you right where he wants you. Beneath him and at his mercy. Except it wasn’t like before when you two fought. He doesn’t want to put you beneath him to teach you a lesson about how he is better than you. He wants you beneath him so he can give you the greatest pleasure a man could give to his lover. And that’s how he will show you that he is better and on top. Sorry, he’s competitive even in bed.

He looks down at you, your eyes closed and your mouth slightly open as you pant. Your moans bounce off the walls and slip under your door. The bed creaks with the headboard occasionally tapping against the wall. Reiko’s head reels back as he groans in pleasure like he is letting the gods know the sins you two are creating. But even if the gods don’t hear it, the barracks do. Y’all really shouldn’t be this noisy but your minds are mush. You could only focus on each other. And damn any soldier who is against you and Reiko having some fun.

His hands squeeze your thighs harshly as he keeps your legs open. His eyes move across your body, taking in every bruise and scratch you gained from training. A bit of pride creeps up into his chest as he takes in the fact that he is fucking the best female soldier he has ever seen. That pride urges him to do more. Pleasure you with the love and desire he holds for you.

He leans down and nuzzles his face against the side of your neck before biting it. Yes, biting, because kissing wouldn’t be enough for Reiko. He bites just enough for it to sting but not enough to break skin. You yelp out in pain before it gets drowned out by another moan as he thrusts into you. You can’t see it but as his teeth find another place to sink into, he has this smug smile on his face. He indulges in your reactions. More, more, give him more! Feed his ego!

He starts going rougher, pulling out till it’s only the tip left inside before slamming back in. A wet sound is made every time he pulls out. The sound of skin slapping against each other was now added to the orchestra of lewd sounds coming from your room. If you weren’t somewhat fucked out of your mind you would be embarrassed by how your body was reacting to this. Your cheeks would heat up hearing how wet you were for Reiko. Getting turned on by a man who is happily marking you, slut! Reiko’s slut!

The left side of your neck and your shoulder are littered with bite marks that will surely bruise by the time the sun rises. His lips dance across your skin to find another place to mark up. He moves lower till he gets to your tits. The way they jiggled slightly with each thrust tempts him to mark them too. Why not, what does Reiko lose from showing others that you are his lady? Exactly, nothing. That’s why he starts sucking at the sensitive skin of your tits to mark them with hickeys. Those beautiful red hickeys will take days to fade away.

You felt his tongue begin to swirl around your nipple. His hot breath tickles your skin as his warm saliva coats your nipple. His lips wrap around the sensitive bud, sucking on it as he starts rolling his hips. Your back arches from the pleasure that came from that. Every time he rolled his hips it rubbed against your clit. It works well with his curved cock as it begins to rub against your g-spot. It makes your toes curl and you get the sudden urge to wrap your legs around his waist and never let him go. The only thing stopping you was his hands which kept your legs open. Reiko is in full control and all you can do is arch your back as you moan his name.

Gods, hearing you moan his name drove him crazy. It makes him go rougher. The slapping sound gets louder as his balls slap against your ass. He sucks a little harder on your nipple until his teeth start to lightly graze it. They threatened to bite down, but not fully, he’s not a maniac. Once you start to feel a slight sting on your nipple that’s when your hand goes up and yanks on his hair. He groaned not from pain but from pleasure when you did that. He snickers before saying,

“What, are you afraid of a little pain? I thought you were tougher than that. Come on gorgeous, I know you can take it.”

“Shut up…” You whine out. You sound pathetic trying to fight off your moans when you say that.

You yank his hair again, earning yourself another satisfied groan from him. He slams into you while grinding his hips so he can rub against your clit. It works in making you weak enough to let go of his hair and pleasure you. He takes the chance to move his mouth to your other tit. His slick tongue licks your nipple before he bites down around your nipple. Teeth marks showed up around the areola. You yelp at the sting that dwindles into a light-burning sensation on your right tit. That’s definitely gonna leave a mark.

“Ow Reiko! You bastard!” You scold him.

But what’s the point in scolding him when he knew you liked it? He felt how your walls squeezed and pulsed around him. The wet sound grew louder since you got wetter from the pain. That son of a bitch chuckles from the fact that the pain he was giving you was pleasuring you. It turns him on more and you feel his cock twitch inside you.

You recognize that you are getting closer to cumming. It felt like a knot in your lower belly was growing tighter with each thrust. Your body grows hotter and your breath becomes shorter. Your hands grab Reiko’s shoulders before your nails dig into his pale skin. Red scratch marks are left behind as your grip grows tighter. He keeps rolling his hips and thrusting at an angle, your reaction letting him know he is hitting those sweet spots. Your pussy pulses around his cock until finally that knot in you snaps. This warm feeling in your lower belly swirls and consumes your body. You feel like you can breathe again but all that air is being used up on your desperate moans. That pleasure reaches your brain and it’s like everything you were worried about was gone. Your mind was clear and all you could think about was Reiko’s thick cock stretching you out.

Reiko listens to the sweet moans that slip past your lips as he keeps pounding into you. He looks into your beautiful eyes, eyes wet with tears. They were happy tears. Happy to be fucked out of your mind. His cock twitches from the knowledge that he was the first man to make you feel such ecstasy. He plans to be the only man to give you that high that everyone deserves to get.

All the emotions, the noises, the pain and pleasure, it was enough to make Reiko cum. He thrusts into your warm, wet pussy before he pulls out quickly. His lips crash against yours to sloppily kiss you. Truly, this kiss was sloppy. He couldn’t keep his mouth closed the whole time with all those groans and…oh fuck he’s moaning. Breathy low moans come from him as his cock twitches between your legs. Warm cum splatters all over your stomach and even reach up to your tits. It drips down your sides as he finally manages to close his mouth and goes back to kissing you. Some saliva drips out and dribbles down both your chins. Aw, poor Reiko, he was so pent up.

He slowly pulls away, a string of saliva still connecting your lips. He lets go of your legs. They go limp from how weak you are. You’re both panting. Your skin slightly glistens with sweat and so does his. You are soaked down there with some of your wetness dripping down onto the sheets. After a few deep breaths, one of you manages to say something.

“So, do you still think I am joking?” Reiko asks.

“Obviously not. I felt the love you have for me.” And you still do as you remember it all. Got you shivering like it was still going on.

He laughs almost mockingly as he grabs the towel that he used before to clean you up. Look at him being a gentleman and cleaning his cum off your body. Only a man who loves you would do that.

When he finishes, he throws the towel in some random corner as he lies next to you. His head lays against your pillows as his arm rests over his eyes. He is still breathing heavily as he takes in everything that happened. The feeling of your body against his and how nicely your pussy squeezed him is fresh in his mind. So fresh his cock twitches as if it were still in you. That’s what good pussy does to a man. It stays with him.

You snuggle up to him and his arm instinctively wraps around you. You rest your head on his chest as his hand squeezes your shoulder. Your fingers trace over his abs, something you thought you would never be able to do before. Your heart flutters when you realize that Reiko is yours. He is your man now. He wanted you just as badly as you wanted him and now he is yours. You can’t help but smile as you lean up to kiss along his jawline. He smiles before looking down and kissing your forehead.

“So what, you’re going to act all lovey with me now that we are together?”

“Hah, maybe in the bedroom but not on the training grounds. I’ll still beat your ass in a loving way.”

You can see the smile on his face become prouder as he says, “I’d like nothing better.”

With one last kiss on the lips, you begin to fall asleep in his arms. Your body is satisfied, and your heart is full of love. And even if Reiko is your boyfriend now, your words are true. You will beat his ass with everything you got. You’ll keep being the warrior he fell in love with, just with a few more kisses and hugs sprinkled in.

Ah actually before you sleep I’ll advise you to apologize to the other soldiers in the morning. You were not discreet at all. Even General Shao heard what you did. That’ll be fun to deal with in the morning.

Yap notes: Uhhhh yeah that was long. I should've been working on final papers but I really just wanted to finish this fic. I hope this is good because I felt uncertain in some places. Idk I just wanted to feel some joy again this semester sucks and the past few days have been awful. Anyway I freaking love Reiko. He makes me question my morals. But he is so hot. I can't play with him in front of my fiancé sometimes because he makes fun of him. On test your might to be more specific. There was one time I was looking for tramp stamp inspirations (don't judge me I just think they are neat) and we saw a tattoo and he said "that's probably what it looks like after having sex with Reiko" like hush 😭. 👇

I should get back to my papers and I hope I can just have some free time soon. This semester is killing me. Adiós!

[starsreminisce]

Lucien showed off his powers in front of every enemy he knew ... For Elain. Lucien defied Tamlin's orders ... For Elain. Lucien left the Spring Court ... For Elain. Lucien traveled through a court where he is a wanted male ... For Elain. Lucien was willing to let Elain go if she wanted to be with her fiancé ... For Elain. Lucien entered a court with a reputation where no one comes out alive ... For Elain. Lucien argued with his own host ... For Elain. Lucien journeyed to a dangerous continent with just a first name and a kingdom name ... For Elain. Lucien brought back her father and two armies ... For Elain. Lucien never once used or demanded his right as a mate ... For Elain.

So, how can I not ship Elain and Lucien when every action Lucien has taken has been for her, and not once has he asked anything from her in return?

[somuchforahobby]

how many secrets can you keep?

Summary: An arranged marriage to everyone's fav tsar

Part 2: crawling back to you Words: 10K Tags: Fluff & angst Warnings: women used as bargain to win wars ? Gifs stolen from: @goatsandgangsters Read on AO3 ******

The Palace was much bigger than you were told. As soon as you stepped off the carriage you were led to what would be your rooms. On the right was a big bed, a sitting area in front of a chimney and a bathroom. At the end of the room there was a door to the balcony. 

You stood on the balcony for what felt like hours thinking about all of this. An arranged marriage, a bitter laugh on your lips. Damned your father to have sold you off to Ravka and damned the King for buying you off in exchange for an alliance with Kerch. The irony of it all would drive you crazy.

“It is a nice view” a voice behind startled you. It was a man in ragged and dirty clothes. “Do you ice-skate?” There was a shit eating grin on his handsome face.

“No”

“Perhaps you will learn this winter” he pointed to the lake, “it becomes a ice rink”

“Does the tsar skate?”

His grin turned into a half smile, “he does, or tries to.”

“Who are you?” 

“A friend”

“Of who?” You looked him up and down.

“Hopefully yours”

“I don’t think I’ll be allowed to have male friends” you looked at him again, “not that handsome at least” a blush raced to your cheeks.

“Yeah, you should ask your fiancé” The stranger leaned against the balcony, next to you.

“When I meet him” a disdained sight left your mouth, “do you work here?”

“Yes”

“What do you do?”

“A little bit of everything but first and foremost I’m an inventor” 

“Of what?”

“Mmmm” he tapped fingers against his mouth, thinking, “ships, aircrafts” 

“Are you part of the army?” 

“Yes I am”

“Is it true that Ravka has flying ships?”

He laughed, “it is true, I invented them myself” 

“The groom is not supposed to see the bride before the wedding!” A beautiful red haired woman shouted from inside of the room. She was wearing a kefta and glaring daggers at the man next to you. 

“Your highness.” You bowed your head slightly to him.

“Please don’t.” He took a step forward, his hands raised awkwardly at his sides, uncertain what to do with them. “Please don’t ever do that again, it is just Nikolai.” 

You raised your eyes to see him and nodded.

“You can have all the friends you want” he smirked, “none of them will be this handsome anyway”

You nodded, suddenly ashamed of your bolt of honesty.

“Hey” he lifted your face to see him, “we will see a way to make this work.” He gave you a half smile that told you he was not comfortable with this either.

“I am sure we will.” You gave him one of your own, “Nikolai.”

And with that, his smile was complete.

***

The ceremony was beautiful, you had to thank Genya for all the attention to detail in the decorations as well as to your dress. The white and golden gown worthy of fairy tales had been a perfect choice.

You drank and danced with your husband and guests, and although every single member of Nikolai’s court treated you wonderfully, your smile could not quite reach your eyes. There was an unspoken sorrow in your heart, no matter how handsome and kind your husband was, you did not know him and yet you now had to devote your life to him.

You thanked the servant who helped you out of the dress, walked into your joint bedroom in your nightgown and your heart stomping out of your chest.

Your husband was taking off his jewelry when he spotted you through the mirror, a shy smile on his face.

“Hey” he greeted first.

“Hi” you walked to him, “would you like me to call someone to help you?” 

“No, thanks. I can do it.” He continued with the buttons on his jacket. Although the gloves made the task much more difficult.

“I can help you, then.” His hands laid nimbly at his sides as your fingers did the work efficiently. “You looked very handsome today.” You complimented, trying to get the conversation flowing.

“Thank you. I must admit I felt quite jealous, I don’t think I could ever look as good as you, my queen.” 

Your face flushed at his compliment, quickly finishing with his jacket and taking a step back, looking down.

“Are you alright?” 

You figured it was best to be honest about it. “I am nervous, Nikolai. I have never done this and I hope I can, well, please you.” Your face was crimson by the time you finished the sentence, but his’ was puzzled.

“Done what?” His brows furrowed.

“Consummate a marriage.” You looked away in shame.

He scoffed. “Neither have I, I’m afraid this is my first marriage.” 

His joke release tension from you, making you smile, “you know what I mean.” 

“I do, but you don’t have to worry about that.” His gloved fingers guided your chin to look back at him. “I have no intentions of doing it tonight, or any other night, as long as you do not want it. I do not find your fear desirable.”

A breeze of relief fell on you.

“I asked for your room to be ready for tonight, you can stay there as long as you like. This thing-“ his hand gestured to the space between your bodies, “will take time, and I have no intention in hurrying it.”

“Thank you. But I know why I am here, Nikolai. If this thing” you mirrored his gesture, “doesn’t work, just know I know my duty.”

He contemplated you for a minute before speaking again. “I will not bring a child product of fear and disdain into this world. It would not make a good king.” He leaned in and placed a tender kiss on your forehead. “Good night, my queen.” 

With that, you left his room for the night, grateful that you had not married an ape.

***

“I did not know I had married a little myshka.” Your husband smiled from the door of the library, bringing one to your own face.

“Moi tsar.” You teased, “what a surprise to see you this afternoon.” 

He walked to you, hands clasped on his back, looking at the books on the table.

“Ravka’s history and myths.” When you looked up he extended a bouquet of flowers to you. “Thank you!” 

“The least I can do for my queen” he sat in front of you, “how are your studies going so far?” 

“Good, the life of Saints is a bit confusing, but it is going well.” You took a quick look at your notes, leaving the flowers aside, “Hopefully I can get a good idea soon enough so I can join your court, maybe?”

“Oh” he smiled, “is that what you wish to do?”

“I think so.”

“Why?” He seemed intrigued.

“Well, I was on my way to become a scholar in Ketterdam, I think I could do decent work.” 

“I went to College in Ketterdam as well, quite a nice place.”

The declaration surprised you, “Oh? Never saw you there, I think.” 

“I doubt we frequented the same places, darling.” He smirked.

“What was your major?” 

“Law and politics.” 

“Same as me.”

“Yeah but I barely spent any time in classes.” 

“Were you a drunken moi tsar?” You teased.

He laughed, “I will not entertain this nonsense of accusation.” 

“You were!” You laughed as well. “That is why I never saw you there.”

“You are also younger than me!” He tried to defend himself.

“Just two years, I still could have seen you in some classes.”

He scrunched his nose, “good thing you did not”

“Why?” 

“I would have asked you out, of course.”

You scoffed, “I don’t think so”

“Are you joking?” a pretty girl who can do all of my homework? Darling you would have been my number one target.”

It was your turn to laugh, “then good thing you didn’t because I wouldn’t have done your homework.”

He shrugged, “I would have done mine with you, for sure.”

You blushed at his comment, feeling your face warm at the insinuation. “But we did not meet.”

He raised his shoulders, dismissing the missed opportunity.

“So… a law and politics advisor in my council. I like that. Right now it is filled with soldiers, Ravka is in urgent need of a brain there.” 

You matched his smile with your own. “I’d be honored.”

His eyes were kind on you, as if he was amazed to hear you want to be part of his life. “Please let me know when you feel ready and or if you have any doubts.” He took a look at his watch and then stood up. 

“Nikolai, I do have one question.” He looked back at you tenderly. “What is myshka?” 

A sweet smile lightened his face, “mouse, my little library mouse.” He leaned in to kiss the top of your head before leaving you for the day.

***

Time passes so slowly when you are in a trial.

“She bleeds again.” One of you maids said during your second month in the Palace. 

“You shouldn’t be running everyday, moi tsaritsa. Your eggs will fall.” the doctor ordered, little did he know you had barely seen your husband.

“It is not her bleeding we should be checking.” Some girl whispered during your breakfast at the patio, while you pointlessly drank all sorts of beverages to ‘help’ your fertility.

“He doesn’t like her because she is not noble” a whisper on your back, “neither is -“ she shut up when you looked.

“Your duty to the Lantsov Dynasty remains” a letter addressed to you from Queen Tatiana was stamped in your brain. You tossed it in the trash when you read it. 

“Nikolai wants you to visit the Hospital today and send the ill his regards.” Genya announced with a smile that brought sickness to your mouth at the mere thought that everyone in the Palace knew your husband’s wishes better than you.

Whispers and voices filled your days, until it was nighttime.

Because every night, you had dinner at the quietness of your chambers and then, you would stay awake to listen when your husband came into his room, next door from your own. When he did you counted the steps that accompanied and then waited in the hall to see who and when they left.

Every night your heart sank a little deeper, because every night the same person walked out of his chambers.

And not a single time General Nazyalensky could hold your stare.

***

You were not speaking to him. You were actually avoiding him.

You ran at breakfast time, ate at council time and read in your bedroom. It was not so hard considering he didn't try to find you either and he was away constantly. Away with her, your mind shouted.

A month or so went by since the last time you had seen your husband. Until one night a servant announced the King wanted to have dinner together.

You chose the most beautiful dress in Lantsov blue, simple but elegant, to drag yourself to the dining room. He was already there in his First Army uniform, smirking at you.

“My beautiful wife.” He stood and walked to you, bringing your knuckles to his lips and placing a soft kiss. He helped you in your seat before returning to his. “I missed you, I haven’t seen you in forever.” He complained with tenderness. 

You did not answer.

“I just returned from a trip with General Nazyalensky and Count Kirigin, can you believe he is crazy for her?”

You bit down a growl. The audacity of this man, you thought.

“I was hoping you’d join the council soon, how are your studies going?”

You did not answer.

“I am running out of ideas for a conversation here, darling. I think I need your help.” His tone was firm and you finally raised your eyes from your plate to his face.

You sighed, “leave us” The waiters left the room, giving you the much needed privacy. “Perhaps you should ask General Nazyalensky to join you for dinner.”

Every hint of amusement and his signature smirk were gone in an instant. “Why would I?” 

“Well if you can’t help to have her in your chambers every night then perhaps you should have dinner with her as well.” Your tone was also firm.

His eyes did not falter, “it is not what you think”

“Then explain it.”

“You wouldn’t understand.”

“Try me”

“You have my word, dar—” 

Your scoff interrupted him. “Nikolai,” your patience thinned, “I would rather you behave like a jerk than keep up the good boy facade while you’re mocking me.” 

“Because I am not!”

You covered your face with your hands, it was the lie that hurt the most. “I knew this would happen and I only ask you to be more discreet.” You sighed, keeping your face down, “the whole damn castle talks about it and I am the idiot wife who can’t even do what she was brought to do. I can’t compete with her, Nikolai. She has it all, the beauty, the power, the king’s attention. It’s excruciating.”

“Look at me.” A firm order, your eyes caught his again, only that this time you did not see Nikolai, you were looking at the King. “You do not have to compete with her or anyone else, you are my queen.” His gloved hand captured yours on the table, drawing circles on your skin with his thumb while guiding it to his chest, you could feel his heartbeat, strong and steady, “I swear to you, there is no one else, General Nazyalensky is not in my bed. You must believe me. I will do anything for you to believe me.” 

“Everything but the truth.”

His heart beat faster. “What can I do to make you trust me? What do you want?”

Tears pricked your eyes, “Your attention.”

“You have it, but now I will make sure you have no doubts about it.” He closed both eyes, then swallowed, defeated. “Would it be ok with you if I paid you a visit every night, and then returned to my rooms?” 

“That would be a place to start.”

“Although, the Second Army General will continue to make a brief visit afterwards.” 

“Can I be there as well?”

“No.” That was definite. It amazed you how easy he changed from Nikolai to The Tsar.

“This would be easier if you told me the truth.” 

An exasperated sigh left his mouth and he stood from his seat, “my word will have to do for now, myshka.” 

Removing your hand from his chest, he laid a tender kiss to your knuckles before leaving the room.

***

Later that night he knocked on your door, you opened it widely and he walked all the way to the couch in front of the fireplace. “How was your day?” 

You sat next to him, facing the fire, his arm extended on cushions and your shoulders. “It was alright. I have been looking for books or writings about your father’s reign but I haven’t found any.” 

His gloved fingers picked a strand of your hair to toy with. “I think I can help you with that, if you’d like?”

“Please.”

“Well, umm” his gaze was lost on your hair, “what would you like to know?” 

“Anything a member of your council should know.”

He thought for a minute or two, immersed in your hair, “I do not think he was a good king. All he did was send troops to borders, give power to the darkling and the apparat, I don’t think he cared for the needs of the working class.”

“And do you?”

“Of course. I’d be a fool not to, they’re the only ones who want me to keep my throne.” He gave you a lazy smile.

“Why is it different what your father did with the darkling than what you do with the triumvirate?”

He leaned back, getting more comfortable, as he weighed your question. “Because I am not relying on one person but a council of Grisha, and because they would never do the atrocities the darkling did.”

“Such as?” 

“Separating families, sending children to be abused by powerful men, even to the king himself…” 

“Nikolai,” you turned your whole body to face him, “that is an awful thing to say about your father.” 

He released a hopeless scoff, “good thing I am not.”

Your head leaned to a side at his statement, “so it is true?” 

“I am afraid so.”

“Well that is also important information for a political advisor.” 

He smirked, “and to my wife.”

“I don’t think she’d care as much as Fjerda.”

“Is that a fact?” He asked playfully.

“A hundred percent.” 

He leaned towards you, leaving a kiss on your temple, “That is good to know.” He mumbled against your hair.

“How was your day?” 

“Awful.” He looked at the fire. “There are a bunch of people wanting to Sanctify the Darkling and my wife hates me.” He looked at you with what you guessed was some sadness in his eyes.

“I don’t think she hates you.”

The tiniest of smiles tugged at his lips, “no?” 

“No. I think she is just insecure.”

“Well she shouldn’t. As a victim myself I would never inflict the pain of lies on someone else.”

“Thank you.” You whispered and his face warmed.

“Trust me, please.” 

You simply nodded. 

You both sat by the fire for a good while, his arm on your shoulders as you slowly dozed off.

The next morning you woke up in your bed, alone. The other side, as usual, untouched.

***

“It is not up for discussion” one of your maids had said. So now here you were, dressed in a beautiful gown, alone in the balcony while strangers celebrated your Birthday in the saloon.

The leaves on the trees had just started to fall, early signs of the upcoming autumn visible in the palace gardens. The night breeze stirred your arms, making you shiver. A warm jacket fell on your shoulders then, making you turn to find a man standing beside you.

“My apologies, moi tsaritsa. You seemed to be cold.” A tall man with dark hair said. “I am Count Anton Nerenski, your highness.”

“Thank you for your kindness, Count Nerenski.” You turned to the gardens again.

“Beautiful party, I assume that tulips are your favorite?” 

Since the whole Palace was filled with them it was a fair assumption, “No. Roses are.” 

“Then why haven’t I seen any?” He quipped.

You sighed, “because nobody asked me anything about this damned party.”

“If I had known roses were your favorite I would have brought you a hundred of them.” 

You turned to see him, there was tenderness in his eyes, “thank you Count Nerenski.”

“Please, call me Anton.” 

You smiled and he matched. 

“If you don’t mind me asking, Your Highness, Where is the King?”

You sighed, unable to hide your disappointment. He left in the morning and promised to come back before the celebration, yet he had failed his promise. “He is on an important business trip.”

“And how do you feel that he is away?” 

Your jaw tightened, your whole body turned to face him, “I do mind your questioning, and I am nothing but proud of the King’s work. As should you.” 

“My apologies, your highness. I didn't mean to offend the King.” 

“You have spent far too much time on this conversation apologizing, haven’t you?” You pressed.

He scoffed, “I have, and I am further willing to get on my knees if my queen requested so.” 

A blush crept your face, understanding the nature of his intentions. “I wish for no such thing.”

“Yet,” his features softened, “but the path you are on is a lonely one, moi tsaritsa, I wish to extend you my friendship if you ever need it.” 

You merely looked at him: he was a handsome man, taller than you, his eyes were the color of sapphires, and a full beard filled his face. Black hair fell to his shoulders, which were wide and built like a soldier’s. Was this how your life would be now? Men throwing themselves at you offering an affair to deal with your loneliness?

“Your beauty does not belong to a balcony, moi tsaritsa, you have not danced all night, would you like to change that?” Count Nerenski extended a hand to you.

“As caring as always Anton, but I am afraid I must steal my dashing wife’s first dance.” Nikolai’s voice took you out of your thoughts, your eyes instantly finding him. Your heart swelled on your chest at the sight of him, already taking off his First Army jacket and walking towards you. “I fear other men might try to take her for a swing, forgetting altogether that can be considered treason. Although, I would too forget protocols and loyalties at the sight of her.” Nikolai’s voice was cheerful, yet a slight treat could be found in it.

Nikolai removed Anton’s jacket from your shoulders, replacing it with his own and pressing a chaste kiss on your cheek.

Anton grabbed his jacket from Nikolai’s hand, “Your Highness” bowed towards both of you and returned to the saloon. 

“My savior” you looked up to your husband.

“Would you dance with me?” He offered, his hand lingering on your waist. “I’m afraid I have to remind everyone in this Country who your husband is before they try to steal you from me.”

“Are you jealous, moi tsar?” You teased.

He huffed, “of Count Nerenski? Don’t make me laugh, dear.” His fingers tapped your waist to the rhythm of the background music.

“Then laugh.” You dared, “laugh and take the jealousy off your face.”

“I’d be jealous if you had enjoyed his company.”

“I enjoyed the warmth of his jacket.”

He scoffed, “enjoying another man's warmth, darling please just put a bullet in my head, it would wound me less”

“I am sorry, Nikolai.”

“Don’t be, unless you are actually interested in him?” There was a silent sorrow behind the question.

“I am not.” 

“Then I am sorry for not arriving on time.” His gloved hand touched your cheek, you leaned to his palm. “I brought you a gift though.” From the pocket of his pants he pulled a paper and handed it to you. It was a list. 

“You bought… nineteen, twentyfiv, THIRTY books?” You looked up to him to find him smiling.

“Well I could not fit them all in my pockets so I figured I’d show you the list. If you want to change them we can go to the bookstore tomorrow morning. The order sails in the afternoon to Ketterdam.”

“Nikolai” tears gathered in your eyes, touched by his present. “You didn’t have to do that, thank you.” 

He placed a lock of hair behind your ear, “I might have not known you loved roses but I knew you loved books.” 

“Thank you.” 

“Let’s go back in there and give them a nice show, shall we?” 

You nodded.

He helped you get your arms through his own jacket, “such a condecorated and beautiful soldier.” 

With both hands on your nape, you pulled your hair out of the jacket. “What can I say? I'm a catch.” 

He smirked, “of course you are” he guided you towards him with a hand on your waist, pushing your body against his, as you both walked back to the salon.

One of Nikolai’s valets stepped in front of you. “Your Highness, it is against protocol for the Queen to wear a military uniform as it is for the King to have an incomplete one. Also please be aware of the closeness.” The man’s eyes moved between your bodies, clashed together. 

“Thank you for your suggestion, Mikhail.” Nikolai pulled you towards the dance floor. 

Gasps filled the room when you both bowed before the music started; the King without his jacket and said jacket on his wife’s shoulders must have been a whole show. Anxiety left your body as soon as his hands guided your waist through the waltz.

***

You left the bath in a sheer gown, your hair wet falling on your back after your usual bath post run, and found your husband waiting for you in the same spot he had taken the day before, but instead of toying with your hair, he had one of your books in his hands and his long legs stretched on the couch. At the sight of you he raised his eyes to your body, taking an embarrassing amount of time admiring you before turning away. 

“I am sorry I should have-“ 

You grabbed a robe and pulled it on your shoulders, “that’s fine, you can look now.” 

When you saw his face, a faint blush still colored his cheeks. 

“How can I be of service, moi tsar?” 

He rearranged himself, allowing you to sit on the other side of the couch, nervousness could still be found in him, oddly enough. “I came to ask you to join me at the council today.”

“Yes, sure, when is it?” 

He looked at his watch, “In 10 minutes.”

“Oh.” You walked to your wardrobe in a rush, trying to find something to wear.

“Punctuality is important but not mandatory for a queen, myshka. Take your time.” He leaned back and returned his gaze to the book in his hands.

Without Genya or a maid to help you, you put on a dress and dried your hair as much as possible before leaving your chambers with your husband. You had never been to the war room before, and you were just as surprised to see it as the people inside were surprised to see you.

Nikolai held your hand during the entirety of the meeting, drawing circles on your skin with his thumb, what you had now identified as an anxiety tick.

Every time some decision was to be made, he turned to you and asked your opinion, every time you said you’d rather listen this time and every time he announced again you were a political genius to the group. Shy smiles could be spotted between all of them as a blush betrayed you. 

Once the meeting was over and everyone had left the room, Nikolai turned to you with the brightest smile you had seen in him yet.

“Thank you.” He placed a chaste kiss on your knuckles.

“Thank you for letting me in. I have so much to learn from all of you.”

“Nonsense.” He hooked your hand on his arm, walking out of the room with you. 

***

“I have been wanting to ask you something.” You said after a few minutes of silence. 

He nodded, asking you to continue. 

“In Ketterdam, there were some places where people had stuff and you could go in and get it for a price.”

His eyebrows furrowed, confused. “Yeah?”

“Every month, my father gave me a certain amount of money for me to be able to get whatever things I wanted.” 

Nikolai tilted his head.

“And since I have been here of course I have not yet needed to buy anything, because the Palace has it all.” You started speaking faster, “But I heard there will be an art bazaar downtown and I would like to go. However I do not have any money and I was wondering if maybe you could lend me some?”

“Lend you?” His voice was firm yet confused.

“Yes”

“And how would you pay me back?”

You had not thought about it, “I could send word to my father so—“ his laugh interrupted your rant. He had bent over his stomach laughing while you stared, not sure what was so funny.

“You are the queen of Ravka!” He said between paths, “you do not need to carry money around !” He said it like a dirty word.

“I do not understand?” 

He took a long breath to rearrange himself. “You can go downtown whenever you please, you get whatever you want and ask for the tab, then bring it to my valet and forget about it.” 

“Oh” you blushed, suddenly ashamed of your question. “And I can do that anywhere?” 

“Nearly, yes.” 

Now it was your turn to smirk. 

“But please measure yourself, do not bring this country to bankruptcy.” He teased.

“You should have thought about that before laughing at your queen!” You teased back.

He sighed and sank deeper into your bedroom’s couch, “either with her beauty or her boldness, but this queen of mine is gonna drive me crazy.”

***

You hugged your legs close to your torso, leaning your face against your knees, watching him as he told you yet another story of his life at Sea. By now the only thing you wish to have done before marrying him was getting to know the notorious Sturmhond. 

Nikolai was so passionate about his privateer past, the way he told the tales was so detailed, you could picture them in your head and soon after you could swear you had been there. He talked about Kaz Brekker and the crows, and your mouth opened to know he knew and was friends with your father’s biggest headache, both laughing at the thought of him finding out.

“What do you desire, Nikolai?” You asked after a few minutes of silence and looking at the nostalgia on his face.

“For peace in Ravka.” A well rehearsed answer.

“I asked Nikolai, not the tsar.” 

He finally looked at you, “what I desire has no consequence since I am no longer a man but a Sovereign.” 

“And if you were just a man again, what would you desire?” 

His shoulders dropped with a sigh, “to sleep” he stared at the fire for a long time, then asked, “what would you desire?”

“To hold your hand.”

He grabbed your hand in his, kissing your knuckles before tangling his fingers with yours.

“Without the gloves, Nikolai.”

He did not speak for a while, just looking at your hands intertwined. 

“I was cursed by the darkling.”

“I have heard, Korol Rezni.” 

He looked back at you with profound sadness in his eyes, “yes, which is why I can not let you see my hands.” 

He dropped your hand and stood up abruptly.

“Nikolai, plea—“

“No” again, when he turned it was the Tsar. You kept your place and nodded when he said good night.

***

You had ten people around you, all of them working to get you ready for your agenda of the day. Genya was working on your hair when you realized nobody was working anymore and instead they were bowing. You turned to find Nikolai leant against the door frame, looking at you.

“Moi tsar.” You teased and returned to look at Genya.

“My beautiful wife.” He walked to your line of sight. “Busy day?”

“Yes, I will visit the primary school today.” A bright smile lightened your face.

“By yourself?” He raised an eyebrow.

“Tamar is going with me.”

“Mmmm” he contemplated for a minute, “Tolya will go as well.”

“And what about you?” As much as you appreciated his concern, he could not be left without a bodyguard.

“I’ll be right in front of him the whole time.” He smirked, “if you don’t mind of course?” 

You smiled, “I’ll be honored.”

That night you were crying on the balcony when he let himself into your room. The weight of everything you had seen that day was starting to get you. 

“Darling?” His voice echoed from your bedroom.

“Over here!” You cleaned your face best as you could hoping he wouldn’t notice, but failed.

“What’s wrong?” There was concern in his voice, “are you hurt?” 

You scoffed, “It’s nothing, don’t worry.”

“What’s wrong?” He guided your shoulders to him, then drew your face upwards.

“What we saw today made me a little sad.” 

“The school?” 

You nodded.

“I don’t think I understand?” His brows furrowed. “I saw children very happy to meet their queen.”

You turned your body towards the garden again, leaning your forearms to the balcony. “I saw boys, mostly. Little girls, that started to be less and less around the age of nine.” A long sigh left your mouth, “they are not in school because they are married, Nikolai.”

“No, that’s” 

“What?” You turned to him, his brows were furrowed, he was piecing together a puzzle.

“Illegal” he muttered.

“Just because it’s illegal doesn’t make it undoable.” There was hate in your voice as you said it.

“That is what illegal means.”

“It means nothing if you don’t do anything to stop it!” You tried to regain control over yourself, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to, I’m sorry. It’s just that I feel for all those girls who will never get to experience their lives because their parents sold them off to the highest bet.”

“Like you.” His voice was barely above a whisper.

Panic flooded you, “No! Nikolai, don’t! I am so very lucky to have you!” Your hands landed on his chest, as if you were trying to keep his heart inside.

There was a sad smile on his face as his hands circled yours, “I understand, I often wonder how different my life would be if I had been born a woman, I understand you are upset.”

“Every day I thank the Saints for the luck I have to be your wife, Nikolai. I swear.” You looked him deep in the eye, not a single doubt on your words. “I just grieve for those girls that did not have the luck I had to marry a kind man.” 

He kissed both your hands and then held you into a tight hug. “Then good thing you are the queen of Ravka and can change things for them.” He mumbled on your hair.

***

You had taken your reading to the gardens. The Palace was just too much noise, too many people, so many whispers. You laid leaning against a tree, reading the Story of Saints again, trying desperately to distract your mind from the aura surrounding you.

You stared at the Palace from afar, how could a place so beautiful be so obsessed with finding other’s flaws? No doubt why the royals often went crazy.

“I have been looking for you” Nikolai’s voice startled you, making you drop your book from your hands to the floor. He sat next to you on the grass. “What are you doing?” 

You did not turn to him, “just reading”

He took the book from the grass and gave it back to you, “Do not let me stop you.”

“Please do, I can’t even focus.” 

“mmmm” His arm rounded your shoulders, “come here” You leaned your head on his chest. “Does that have anything to do with my trip to the Fold?” 

“Not the trip, really.” 

“The crew.” 

You shrugged.

“Darling, I beg of you not to listen to that nonsense.” His hands moved up and down your arm. “It’s not easy when people laugh around me.” 

“You could have them hanged for treason, you know?” 

You scoffed, “Yeah, that would make me a very beloved queen.” 

He sighed, with his free hand, he guided your chin upward to face him, “Then let’s issue a statement.” There was a sassy smirk on his face.

“A statement?” 

His eyes fell from your own to your lips briefly, “yeah.”

“what would it say?”

“Have dinner with me today, I’ll send Genya to your room to have you ready at 7.” 

You just stared at him, not sure what to say nor what to think.

“Yeah?” 

“I don’t think I can say no to you moi tsar.” a shy smile threaded on your lips.

“For the sake of my intentions I’mma say that is correct.”

After a romantic dinner in the garden, he walked you to the main saloon.

When the door opened your mouth did as well. The whole floor was filled with short little candles.

You turned to see him in awe and he merely shrugged like it was nothing. A runway leading from the door to the center was lit by larger ones, where a wide circle was also free of fire. He walked with you through it and once you were in the middle of the room, a quartet of musicians started to play a waltz. 

“Would you honor me a dance?” He offered his hand and you nodded.

He grabbed your waist in a heartbeat, like if your body called to him. Your hand on his chest felt meant to be. He swayed you like a doll, like a well rehearsed play. His signature smirk was permanent on his face.

“What is this, Nikolai?” You asked, blushed.

He made you swirl and you caught servants looking from the balconies above.

He shrugged, “a statement.” He leaned to your shoulder, his lips gracing your skin, “may I?”

“I don’t think I can say no to you, can I?” 

You felt him smile, “I don’t think you can, no.” He mumbled before leaving a path of chaste kisses on your exposed shoulder.

“Nikolai”

“Mmm?” He mumbled against your skin.

“What does this statement say?”

He raised his head to see you, a gilded smile on his face, “that the King of Ravka is head over heels for his wife and that he would do anything to show her how he feels.”

“And is it true?” 

His forehead leaned on yours, not granting you an answer.

“Nikolai?”

“Yes?”

“Can I kiss you?” 

Like it was an order, his lips found yours immediately. He guided your hand to his neck and his arms moved to circle your waist, his lips evolved into a soft, romantic kiss. He was tender, kind, his lips were begging you for more in the kindest of ways.

Your chest tightened in desire, and you could feel the thread where his control was hanging, you pulled back to regain yourself, leaning against him again.

His breath was agitated, but so was yours, he stole a short kiss and then continued his path on your shoulder.

A few waltz later, he guided you to your room. apologizing for not being able to stay any longer, He went into his chambers and soon after you heard someone else walk by. 

The next morning he was gone before sunrise, but your room dawned with a bouquet of fresh roses and a goodbye note from him.

***

Protocols aside, you nearly jumped to hug him when he finally returned. You heard his chest rumble with giggles as he wrapped his arms around you, “Did you miss me, moi tsaritsa?” He whispered in your ear.

Pushing away you answered, looking up to him, “Greatly.” 

His eyes were fixed on your lips, “May I kiss you? You know, so everyone sees it.”

“You may.” 

He leaned down to kiss you, a soft yet needy kiss for every witness to see how much the King had missed his wife; the tenderness of a devoted husband along with the urgent need of a man. It was a display, yet your heart had not gotten the memo, since it was stomping out of your chest.

He pulled away first, his eyelashes fluttering against your brow, his breath hitching your face.

“I missed you too.” He said before kissing the top of your nose and finally taking a step back.

***

Since he returned, he made it his personal goal to kiss you whenever you were surrounded by other people, he had even said so the first time he did. You found him as you walked out of the library towards the garden, he was leaving his study with the council, and the second he saw you his hands cradled your face and kissed you briefly, for then tilt his head sideways and deepen the kiss. When he pulled away you saw everyone around you was flushed and trying to look away, except for Genya who had a genuine smile on her face. Nikolai then winked at you, and continued his path. 

***

When he was focused he would not even look at you. Sitting on his desk and with a thousand papers in front of him, his eyes were reading page after page, immersed in paperwork about the year expenses and needs, you knew this was your chance.

You walked to his desk, until your thighs graced his forearms. Almost instinctively, his hand landed near your hip.

“Yes, love?” He asked, not raising his eyes.

“Nikolai, could you please sign this?” You put the paper in front of him, without hesitation he drew a signature on the bottom of the page and continued his reading. 

You bent down and kissed his cheek then started your path out of his office.

“Darling” he called when you were near the door. 

“Yes?” You turned with feigned innocence on your face.

“What did I sign?” There was a small smirk on his lips and light amusement in his eyes.

You smiled playfully, “A law.” 

“Oh?” His smirk grew. “About what?” 

You returned to his side and gave him the paper, he took it with a playful smirk and read it.

“Mandatory school for girls?” He looked up to you.

You nodded.

He stood from his chair, taking you in his arms. He smelled like woods, like sea, like fire, like freedom and class, like a prince from a fairytale. your arms wrapped around his waist briefly before he let you go. “Please see it published first thing in the morning.”

He sat again but his gaze remained fixed on you, a mix of admiration and fondness emanating from him. “And please keep doing this.”

“That you can be certain of.”

“Darling” his hand hovered above your knee, he was not touching you but you could feel the warmth of his skin even through the gloves and the heavy fabric of your dress. He looked up tenderly, “I have plenty of work to catch up tonight, I’d recommend you to get some sleep, I don’t think I can join you today.” 

“I understand.” You bit your lower lip and turned to leave the room.

“Think of how you want me to make it up to you.” 

You turned to see him again, there was a boyish smirk on his face, and you matched with your own. “I already know.”

“And what do you want, moi tsaritsa?” 

“I want you to take me on a date outside the Palace, I want to see Ravka.”

His brows lifted in surprise, a shadow crossed his face. 

“Have I offended you in any way?” 

He sighed, leaning back on his chair, “not in the slightest. I find it disappointing that I have not done my job courting you properly and I apologize for that.”

“A king does not need to court, your highness.” You teased.

“Not out of need, but of desire. The day I met you I promised you we would make this work, I intended to make it so by courting you and hopefully making you fall in love with me, and look at us: you have to beg me to spend time with you.”

You walked to his desk, a playful smile on your face, “I have not begged yet.”

That brought a slight blush to his cheeks. He placed both elbows on the desk, his gaze intensifying on you “and I am certain you’d look delightful but if I am to make you beg it won’t be for time.” Now it was your turn to blush. “I will take you out on a date, the day after tomorrow. I’ll send you something to wear.”

“You already know where we are going?”

His smirk deepend, “I always have.”

You bit your lower lip to hide your smile and nodded once before leaving the room.

For about fifteen minutes you considered going to Tolya since you felt your heart was leaving your chest right away.

***

Nikolai spent the day submerged in meetings, from one room to another, you heard people passing by all day as you were in the library, which is why you were not expecting him that night. You guessed he was either too tired or still too busy to come to your rooms, and given you were almost certain your hand was injured from all the writing you had done, you made yourself comfortable and dipped your strained hand in a bucket of warm water. That’s how he found you, sitting on the couch, in your spot, with your hand up to the elbow in water while you calmly looked at the fire. 

“Are you alright?” 

You turned to him with surprise on your face, “Nikolai” 

He walked to you, looking at your hand, then repeated himself, “are you alright?”

“Yes, it’s just that I wrote too much today.” 

He grabbed a towel and sat next to you, taking your hand out the water and drying it before massaging it softly. “Was it another Law?” With a raised brow he lifted his gaze to you.

You merely shrugged. 

“I appreciate your service but not to this point, myshka. Your wellbeing is this country’s priority, do not forget that.” 

You pouted at his scorn, leaning against his shoulder. “How was your day?” Your voice was dipping in tenderness.

He sighed, “exhausting” he kissed your hand before extending an arm on your shoulders, you rearranged yourself on his chest. “As much as I wanted to come home to read in the gardens with my wife, a lot happened while I was away that required my attention.”

“Your wife requires your attention as well.” 

A dark smirk formed on his lips, “she does?” He shifted, from being relaxed against the couch to sitting straight with his body angled towards yours, a hunter lurking his prey, “And how can I oblige to her needs?” 

“Take a wild guess” 

“I fear I might take one that turns out to be too wild.” His gaze was fixed on your lips.

“And?”

“Might scare you off”

“Impossible”

He let out a scoff, “Sturmhond would say that you mean improbable.”

“Oh? I wonder what the notorious privateer would do in this situation?” You teased.

An amused sigh left his mouth, “things that are far too scandalous to be even mentioned in front of a queen.” 

“I’d suggest not to say them and just do them, then.”

“Even worse.”

“Ummm” you feigned deception, “too bad, I would have loved to meet the guy. I heard he has quite a reputation.”

“Really?” Nikolai’s ego shone through his smile.

“Oh, yes. I’d like to know if what I have heard turns out to be true.” You laid on your back, him following closely.

“And what have you heard?”

“Things that are far too scandalous to be even mentioned in front of a King.”

He was practically on top of you know, his lips roaming yours.

“Then it is probably true.” He was practically on top of you now, his face millimeters above yours. “Please tell me what you want, love.” A jolt of honesty and vulnerability dominated his eyes, pulling the lust and desire away to accommodate your needs first. 

“You, Nikolai.” 

“Nobody is watching now.” 

It screwed your brains that he might think you only wanted him when you could be seen. One of your brows lifted in a challenge, “Then do your worst.”

His lips crashed against yours, but this time his tempo was slow and cautious, not a hint of urgency and need, but a patient lover with all the time in the world. Your hands rounded his neck and his’ supported him while cradling your face. 

His legs moved in between yours, applying light pressure in your core with his hips, earning a muffled moan from your lips. He pulled away, his eyes dark with desire and mouth open with adoration. “Tell me what you want” 

“I can not move further without the touch of your hand, Nikolai, please.” 

A half smile crossed his lips, “you truly are a delight begging” his sight roamed your face, “close your eyes” a firm order, you obliged. 

Rough and cold fingers wrapped around your hand, lifting it over your head, while the other set touched your face lightly, you could feel all calluses and scars roaming your cheek, then your neck, and after a brief lack of touch, climbing up your ankle.

“Nikolai” you moaned.

“Shh” he let go of your hand to touch your lips with his thumb, “you’re so soft” you could hear him near, the pressure on your core harder every second. He pushed his thumb in your mouth, a weird taste of charcoal in your tongue as you licked it, he groaned in your ear, “can’t wait to feel more of you” his hand finally stopped on your hip, pulling his thumb out and resuming his kiss. His hands were still cold, but somehow made you feel even warmer.

He was toying with your undergarments, cold fingers stretching the soft fabric and touching all around, except where you needed him the most. You wondered how it might be, cold fingers against your hot core, and it made you dizzier.

It was becoming too much: the warmth of the chimney, his body on top of you and the coldness of his hands. You wanted to scream, to beg him to please take you now, but you could only continue under his torturous pace, kissing him back, your hands roaming his chest and making a mess of his hair, pulling his curls out of its perfect place. A gentle tug of his hair earned you a groan, which nearly pushed you off the edge.

“Can I take these off?” He tugged your undergarments, panting.

“Yes.”

“Beg” he said in your ear.

“Nikolai, please.”

“That is not begging.”

“Nikolai, I beg you to take them off.” 

“That’s my girl” he bit your ear while pulling the fabric.

A loud knock made you open your eyes abruptly to see him hide his hands from your sight “close your eyes” he instructed. 

You heard the sound of fabric, steps and a door open. “Nikolai” General Nazyalensky’s voice filled the room, “We received correspondence from the Termite, there are Fjerdan troops marching south. The council is waiting for you in the war room.”

“I’ll be there in a few minutes” 

The door closed and he was back in your eyesight. He sat between your legs again, admiring you for a minute.

“Care to continue?” You teased.

“We’ll have to put a raincheck on that” He said and you blushed at his blunt rejection, turning your face away from him. Suddenly he was on top of you again, his now gloved hands guiding your face towards his’, “because I only have a couple minutes and with you I need so much more than that, myshka.” He kissed you deeply again, it felt like a natural thing now. “Get some sleep, I’ll see you in the morning for our date.” He stood up, extending a hand to help you do the same. You took it.

“Don’t you have a war to attend?” 

“It will have to wait for another day.” With that he kissed you again before rearranging himself and leaving with a flirty wink.

***

The smell of flowers woke you up. When your eyes opened you realized your room was filled with roses of all colors. On every surface of the room there was a thick bouquet and on the nightstand a note that read

I am not sure if they are a hundred, but I brought you all the roses of Ravka. 

-Nik.

There were more than a hundred, for sure. You stood on your tiptoes, careful not to kick any, as you inspected every single vase, each one had a card sending you regards from the flower shop, each of them further away than the other. How had Nikolai gathered them all this morning, you had no clue.

Minutes later one of Nikolai’s valets left a box with clothes in it. After you changed into them, a plain white shirt, trousers and boots, you met your husband in the dais of the main stairs.

“Dashing as ever” His signature smirk greeted you. 

His outfit was similar to yours, way too simple for a king. He escorted you out and towards the lake, where you found a ship.

“Am I meeting Sturmhond today?” You asked with a smile.

“Maybe” 

He helped you on the ship, and after putting on a green jacket, he instructed the squallers as the ship caught the air and rose. 

A gasp left your mouth in terror and your husband was at your side in an instant, holding you close to him. For a while there was only him, your face buried on his chest, his smell grounding you. Then everything was calm again, and softly he pulled away and guided you to the bow, one hand on your waist and one on the railing.

“You wanted to see Ravka… I thought to show you your whole kingdom.”

Out of words, you explored the frozen woods of the North and the border with Fjerda; the vastness of the city of Os Alta, the desert on what used to be the Fold, all the cultures and colors of the southern cities, the clarity of the shore. All the while Nikolai whispered stories in your ear, his chest pressed against your back and his hands on your waist.

You ate at Os Kervo, where you both had to be tailored to go undercover, his now ginger hair bouncing free. 

You stood on the docks, looking at the sea. 

“Missing home?” His chin leaned against your shoulder.

“You are my home now, Nikolai.” 

He turned you and kissed you fiercely. There, in the docks of Os Kervo, tailored away from your royal faces, you were just two idiots in love. No protocols to respect or whispers to feed; just two lovers intertwined, hypnotized by their most animalistic needs of each other. Sturmhond took risks Nikolai wouldn’t; like pulling your hair and letting his fingers dig your skin, biting your lips and tasting your tongue, he pulled muffled moans out of you like a child takes cookies out of a jar. Your knees buckled, but his strong arms were there to hold you and continue his quest. When he was done, he leaned your foreheads together, gasping for air. 

“Such a conqueror” you whispered, panting.

“And I am not done yet.” His threat made your legs weak again.

You barely kept your hands off each other on the way back, but your control was completely lost as soon as you arrived at the Palace.

Your legs were on his hips, and his hands supporting them as you both walked in, the welcoming party waiting for you quickly dissipated as he carried you up the stairs and to your bedroom. 

He pushed you against the wall, and once the door was closed and secured, he carried you to the bed.

“Careful with my roses” you teased.

“I’ll plant you a whole new garden” 

His body was pressed on yours, both of you working on taking your clothes off. You pushed him making land on his back, straddling him, his naked torso to your bare chest.

“No objection to that” a lopsided grin on his face

You took his hands, touching the fabric of his gloves, your eyes kindly asking for permission. His breath was ragged when he nodded.

Softly, you pulled the fabric from each finger, making them loose enough to pull out the right hand first. His eyes were closed, defeated, ashamed, as you completely removed both gloves. You laid a wet kiss on each one before kissing his palms and then moved to intertwine your fingers to his. They were black and cold, different, for sure, but not worth hiding and definitely better than those stupid gloves.

“Nikolai”

“Mmm” his eyes remained closed, his chest to yours while you sat on his lap.

“touch me”

“I don’t want the darkling’s curse on you.”

“Please”

“Are you not” he swallowed, “disgusted?”

“Not in the slightest”

He finally touched your face, his palm on your cheek felt cold but you leaned to his touch nonetheless.

“Does your night visitator have anything to do with this?”

Nikolai’s head fell forward in shame, “yes”

He remained silent as you pampered his face with kisses, falling back on the bed but now with a defeated aura.

“The darkling turned me into a monster”

“Don’t say that” your head was on his chest, your whole body wrapped on his.

“I wish this was a theatricality, love” You looked at him tenderly. “He literally turned me into a monster, Alina saved me or so I believed, when she destroyed the Fold. But the monster is still in me, it comes back at night sometimes. That is why Zoya chains me to bed every night.”

Your gasp broke his heart in a million pieces.

“That is why I do not sleep with you, I am afraid I might hurt you, kill you, while I am that damned monster.”

You took his hands and guided them to your waist, the cold of his fingers giving you chills. Softly, you left a trail of wet kisses on his ear, his neck, until he undoubtedly lost himself in you again.

The weight of his arm on your waist dulled you to the deepest, coziest sleep you have ever had, until a metallic clac woke you up. There was a slim figure standing on the foot of your bed, as you blinked the darkness away you realized it was Zoya toying with a set of keys. Her beautiful face was pursed, at least she was not enjoying this.

“I am sorry, I must take Nikolai to his rooms.” She whispered.

Nikolai moved next to you, his fingers wrapping on your waist as he laid sleepy kisses on your shoulder. “Mmmm?” He mumbled deep in sleep.

“He is asleep, he won’t turn into a monster tonight.” 

“We do not know that, Your Majesty.”

“Zoya?” Nikolai asked, blinking.

“I will be waiting in your rooms, Nikolai.” She turned to you, “good night, moi tsaritsa.”

“I’ll go with you.” You turned to him.

Your husband got to his feet, buttoning his shirt, “No.”

“Nikolai”

 He kissed your forehead and left. 

***

Nikolai knocked on your door every night for five nights, not a single one you opened.

***

“I know we are not on speaking terms” Nikolai spoke from the other side of the desk where you had spent your afternoon.

You did not look up to him.

“But I have a gift for you.”

You raised your eyes to him, sneering. 

“Ouch”

“A gift does not change anything, Nikolai.”

“I do not expect it to.”

You raised one eyebrow, insting him to continue.

He flexed his fingers and a man carrying a machine entered, placing the machine in front of you. It took you a few minutes to see it: it had … buttons? with the alphabet, although it was not in order. It had two rollers behind the alphabet and a paper sheet in between.

“It is a typing machine” he leaned near you to explain, “you can use this to type the laws instead of writing them down by hand and hurting yourself.”

Your eyes were glued on the machine. “Where did you get it?”

“I built it”

You raised your eyes to him again, but this time they were filled with wonder and admiration. “Thank you.” 

“I don’t want you to get hurt, love” he said looking at the machine, but you knew he wasn’t referring only to it, “everything I do, I do it aiming for that.”

With that, he left the library, leaving you and your typing machine alone.

***

That night he knocked on your door once again, but this time you opened, leaning against the frame, opening just enough for your body to fit.

“Yes, Moi Tsar?” 

“I…” he swallowed, “was wondering if I could join you for a moment?” 

“You can join me for the night or not at all.” 

His eyes closed in annoyance, “love you are taking this too far now”

“Am I? Or am I merely demanding my husband to trust me half as much as he trusts his soldiers?” 

He faced the floor, exasperated. “As much as I hate to say this: they are replaceable. You are not.”

A scoff, “I’ll make you wish I was, Nikolai.”

With that you closed the door on his face.

[i-am-baechu]

✎ᝰ. Suchwita ⁞ J. Jungkook

Summary: Just Jungkook getting bullied by his members about Y/N, nothing new

Part of ‘ His Fan Girl universe

"After my first show that day, you went on Weverse Live and talked for nearly two hours." Jungkook nodded his head and put a piece of beef in his mouth. As Yoongi put another piece of meat on the grill with a smile, "I bet Y/N was annoyed with you."

Jungkook rolled his eyes and pointed his chopsticks at Yoongi, "She can never be annoyed with me."

Taehyung took a sip of his beer and shrugged his shoulders, "I don't understand how she can put up with you."

"Yah!"

Yoongi leaned back into his chair and smiled at him, "She came to the concert with you and I saw how excited she was. "

Jungkook nodded his head at this, "She was excited to see you because she missed us performing together."

Yoongi crossed his arms over his chest and looked up at the ceiling, "I felt really grateful but also a little sad at the same time."

"It kind of ached a little. I loved performing that song with you, Y/N said it was fun to watch us. She said she can't wait to see us all together again."

Yoongi nodded his head and gave Jungkook a proud smile, "No more sad things. Your album is out, finally."

Jungkook smiled widely at this and nodded his head, "You guys made fun of my concept pictures."

Taehyung nodded his head, "You only did because you knew Y/N would love it."

Yoongi shook his head and pointed his finger at Taehyung, "Don't say that."

"Hyung, Y/N isn't all that innocent."

"To me she is."

Jungkook rolled his eyes at the two, "You guys are talking more about Y/N than me."

"I wish she could come and drink with me. Your title track is "Standing Next To You", was that inspired by Y/N."

"Somewhat, I recorded it with Andrew. Y/N helped me with my english and she was always there when I needed her. It was just a song on the list but I felt like it made the most sense."

Yoongi nodded his head and took a sip of his beer, "When you recorded "Seven", I heard Y/N wasn't happy that you had a explicit version."

"You need to stop talking to her."

Taehyung let out a laugh and smacked jungkook's shoulder, "She was not happy about that."

"I told her I wanted to do something different. She loves the song though."

Yoongi glanced at the camera and then back at Jungkook, "Was it number one in her spofity wrapped?"

Jungkook clapped his hands and waved at the cameras with a smile, "Bye Army, have a goodnight." He stood up and bowed at the camera as Yoongi let out a laugh, "Jungkook sit down."

Yoongi turned his head at the voice and looked back at Jungkook, "You better listen to your fiancée."

Jungkook pouted and sat back in his chair with his arms crossed, "I don't need this bullying."

Y/N shook her head and headed towards Yoongi with her back to the camera, "Can I have a piece?"

Yoongi grabbed a new pair of chopsticks and happily gave a piece of meat to Y/N. Jungkook glared at the scene and pointed his finger at him, "Yah! Hyung! You can't do that with her."

Y/N rolled her eyes and pulled her mask up, "It's Yoongi. He has permission."

"Yeah, down boy."

Jungkook turned towards Taehyung and glared at him. Taehyung looked at Y/N and pouted with his puppy dog eyes, "Y/N, he's being mean to me."

"Jungkook."

"This isn't fair!"