#aurora's 'right where you left me' series °❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

[chrisstvrns]

𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐥𝐞𝐟𝐭 𝐦𝐞: 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐫 | 𝐜.𝐬.

warnings: REUNION REUNION REUNION! kinda angsty but calm reunion, accepting parenthood/coparenting, one mention of pregnancy stretch marks, please let me know if i missed anything! 

word count: 4,198

part one | part two | part three | part four | part five | part six

it had been six months since you last saw chris. you hadnt seen him since the day he broke up with you. that night, when you got home, you tried calling him, but it went straight to voicemail. he blocked you. 

eventually, you got yourself together again. you scheduled a doctors appointment to further confirm your pregnancy, you got a nursery set up, and started telling your family and close friends. now? you were sitting up in your bedroom of your childhood home, your living room filled with your family and your mothers friends, all there to see your child. 

two weeks ago, you gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, with big, blue eyes that looked identical to her fathers. everytime you looked down at the little bundle in your arms, all you saw was chris looking back at you. 

there were little things in your pregnancy that constantly reminded you of chris. you were emotional, and you brushed it off as hormones, but everywhere you went, you saw him. the biggest thing being that one of the most obvious stretch marks on your stomach was in the shape of the letter ‘c’. 

the biggest help in your pregnancy, besides your parents, was nick and matt. at least once a week, anytime they were in boston, they came to your house to check up on you, and they kept their promise to not tell chris. 

it hadn’t been easy, but nick and matt had stepped up in ways you never expected. despite their complicated feelings about keeping the truth from chris, they’d thrown themselves into being there for you and the baby. they showed up with groceries, helped you assemble furniture for the nursery, and even accompanied you to a few doctor’s appointments when your mom or dad couldn’t.  

it was almost surreal having them around so much- two pieces of chris in your life, while the biggest piece stayed missing. sometimes, when nick made a certain joke or matt gave you one of his signature serious-but-caring looks, it felt like chris was in the room, just out of reach. and every time, it brought that familiar ache back to your chest.  

but now, as you sat in your childhood bedroom, rocking your baby girl in your arms, the ache was dulled by the overwhelming love you felt for her. her soft coos and the way her tiny fingers wrapped around yours were enough to make the world feel okay again, even if just for a moment.  

there was a knock at your door, pulling you from your thoughts. “hey, can i come in?” nick’s voice was quiet, careful not to wake the baby.  

“yeah,” you said softly, adjusting your grip on her as the door opened. nick stepped inside, holding a cup of tea in one hand and a soft blanket in the other.  

“thought you might need this,” he said, placing the tea on your bedside table before draping the blanket over your lap.  

“thanks,” you murmured, smiling up at him. nick sat down on the edge of your bed, his eyes immediately falling to the baby in your arms.  

“she’s so perfect,” he said, his voice full of awe. “looks just like...” he trailed off, and you both knew what he was going to say.  

“just like chris,” you finished for him, your voice barely above a whisper. nick nodded, his jaw tightening.  

“yeah,” he said. “but she’s got your nose.”  

you let out a soft laugh, the sound surprising even yourself. “maybe a little,” you admitted, brushing a finger gently across her tiny button nose.  

nick hesitated for a moment before speaking again. “matt and i were talking earlier,” he began, his tone careful. “and... we just want to make sure you’re okay. really okay.”  

you looked up at him, your smile fading slightly. “i’m managing,” you said honestly. “some days are harder than others, but... madi makes it worth it.”  

he nodded, but there was something else in his eyes—something he wasn’t saying. “you know,” he started, “you don’t have to do this alone forever. when you’re ready… if you’re ever ready… we could talk to chris. you don’t have to, but-”  

“nick,” you interrupted gently, shaking your head. “we’ve been through this. i don’t want him to know. not now. maybe not ever. he made it clear where we stand, and i’m not going to force him into something he doesn’t want. if he finds out, sure. he deserves to know about his daughter. but i dont know if im ready for him to know.”  

nick sighed, running a hand through his hair. “i know. i just… i see the way she looks at you, and i can’t help but think about how much he’s missing out on. but it’s your call. it always has been.”  

“and it always will be,” you said firmly, though your voice softened as you glanced back down at your daughter. “she’s my priority now. no one else.”  

nick reached over, resting a hand on your shoulder. “we’re here for you. whatever you need, whenever you need it.”  

“i know,” you said, your voice thick with emotion. “and i’m so grateful for you and matt. i don’t know what i would’ve done without you both.”  

nick gave you a small smile before leaning down to brush a finger gently against the baby’s cheek. “she’s gonna grow up surrounded by so much love, you know that? even if chris isn’t in the picture, she’s got you, your parents, and me and matt. and that’s more than enough.”  

you nodded, tears welling up in your eyes. “yeah,” you whispered, holding your baby a little closer. “it’s more than enough.”  

“is he.. is he here?” you mutter, your heart clenching. 

nick lets out a deep breath, about to speak when theres another knock on the door. matt pokes his head in, looking at you and nick as he gently speak. “can i come in?” 

you nod, shifting on the bed. he takes a seat next to you, eyes locked on your baby as he smiles, gently whispering 

“gimme my niece” he jokingly mutters, reaching for her

you pass her to him with ease, her little, soft coos filling the room. 

nick looks at you sympathetically, like he knew something you didnt. 

“hes downstairs” nick mutters, awkwardly fiddling with his thumbs 

you take a deep breath, your heart about to jump out of your chest as you nod. “okay.. does he know about her? like, this is a party for her, so how much does he know?” 

“i dont think he knows. theres nothing down there that indicates that theres a baby, unless someone says something.” 

nick and matt exchange a quick, meaningful glance before nick finally says, “we didn’t tell him. he thinks this is just some get together, barbecue thing your parents are throwing. theres so many other people down there, and your parents technically invited our parents, we just tagged along. and, we figured it wasn’t our place to say anything... but he’s bound to find out now that he’s here.”  

your heart pounds harder at his words. chris is downstairs. chris, who you haven’t seen in six months. chris, who left without looking back. chris, who slammed the door in your face. chris, who doesn’t know he has a daughter upstairs.  

you glance at your daughter in matt’s arms, her little hands waving in the air as she coos softly. she has no idea what’s happening, no idea that her father is in the same house.  

nick leans forward, his voice quiet but firm. “we can handle this however you want. if you don’t want to see him, matt and i can say we need to refilm something for the channel to get him to leave. but if you’re ready to talk to him… we’ll be right here.”  

you take a deep, shaky breath, trying to steady yourself. part of you wants to hide, to keep the walls you’ve built around yourself firmly in place. but another part of you knows this moment was inevitable.  

“he deserves to know,” you whisper, your voice barely audible.  

nick raises an eyebrow. “you sure?”  

you nod, even though you’re not sure at all. “yeah. i think so. but, i need a minute. can you keep him down there for now?”  

matt stands up, cradling madison gently in his arms. “we’ve got you,” he says, his voice steady and reassuring. “take as long as you need.”  

nick gets up as well, giving your shoulder a comforting squeeze before the two of them leave the room.  

as soon as the door clicks shut, you let out a breath you didn’t realize you were holding. you stand up and pace the room, your thoughts racing. how are you supposed to face him? what are you supposed to say?  

a few moments later, a knock at the door startles you, but it’s just matt again. “she’s asleep,” he says softly, holding up the baby monitor. “we put her in the crib in your moms office downstairs, away from everyone. nick’s keeping an eye on chris.”  

you nod, your chest tightening. “thanks.”  

“you okay?” he asks, leaning against the doorframe.  

“no,” you admit, your voice cracking. “but i don’t think i ever will be.”  

matt gives you a small, sad smile. “you don’t have to do this alone, you know. you’ve got us.”  

“i know,” you whisper. “but this? this is something i have to do on my own.”  

matt hesitates but nods, stepping aside as you make your way to the door. you pause for a moment, your hand on the doorknob, before opening it and stepping into the hallway.  

the sound of voices and laughter drifts up from downstairs, but all you can focus on is the fact that chris is down there. you walk slowly, your heart pounding with every step, until you reach the top of the stairs.  

there he is. standing by the kitchen, a drink in his hand, looking as effortlessly handsome as ever. your breath catches in your throat. he hasn’t seen you yet, but the sight of him brings back a flood of memories- both good and bad.  

nick spots you first, his eyes widening slightly as he gives you a subtle nod. matt, standing nearby, follows nick’s gaze and tenses slightly, as if preparing for the worst.  

and then chris looks up. his eyes meet yours, and for a moment, everything else fades away.  

the room goes silent, or at least it feels that way. chris sets his drink down, his expression shifting from confusion to something unreadable. he takes a few steps toward the stairs, and suddenly, you’re face-to-face with the man who broke your heart.  

“hey,” he says softly, his voice carrying that familiar warmth that once felt like home.  

you swallow hard, your fingers gripping the railing of the staircase. “hey.”  

for a moment, neither of you says anything. then chris glances around, his brow furrowing slightly. “what’s going on? nick and matt wouldn’t really tell me. is this some kind of surprise party?”  

you take a deep breath, your heart pounding in your chest. “not exactly,” you say, your voice trembling.  

chris looks at you, his blue eyes searching yours. “then what is it?”  

before you can answer, a soft cry comes from the monitor in matt’s hand, who was standing a few feet away. chris glances at it, then back at you, his confusion deepening.  

“whose baby is that?” he asks, his voice cautious.  

you take another deep breath, summoning every ounce of courage you have. “she’s mine,” you say quietly.  

chris stares at you, his jaw tightening. “yours?”  

you nod, your throat tightening. “and... yours.”  

you refuse to look up at him, as his breath hitches, and for a moment, he just stands there, frozen, as if trying to process what you just said. his face pales, and his hand grips the back of a nearby chair as if he needs something to hold onto.  

“wait... are you saying...?” he trails off, his voice wavering, eyes flickering between you and the baby monitor.  

you nod, barely able to meet his gaze. “yes. she’s yours.”  

the silence between you both stretches, thick and suffocating. chris’s face changes from shock to disbelief, his lips parting as if he’s trying to find the right words but nothing comes out.  

finally, he finds his voice, though it’s barely above a whisper. “why didn’t you tell me?”  

the question feels like a punch to the gut, and you instinctively glance at the room where your baby is, with nick. you want to say something, anything, to make this feel less like a bombshell, but all that comes out is a shaky breath.  

“can we go somewhere else? theres alot of people here..” you mutter, glancing around at your parents friends 

he nods, motioning for you to lead the way to wherever. the only place you can think to go is your moms office, not feeling comfortable enough to give him the privilege of being in your bedroom again. not yet, anyways. 

you creak open the office door, your eyes landing on nick watching your daughter in her bassinet. you hear his breath hitch in his throat at the sight, and you sit in a chair next to chris as nick takes it as a sign to leave the two of you alone, going out in the hallway with matt. 

you see him wipe his face, taking a seat on the couch. 

“so.. why didnt you-” he starts

“you left,” you say softly, your voice cracking. “you made it clear you didn’t want anything to do with me. you slammed the door in my face.”  

chris’s face softens, his brow furrowing in regret. “i never wanted that. i didn’t mean to hurt you... i thought i was doing the right thing. i didn’t want to see you continuously getting hurt because of my fans.”  

you take a deep breath, finally looking him in the eyes, the weight of the months of silence between you both heavy in the air. “you didn’t know because you didn’t want to know. i tried to reach out, chris. but you cut me off. you blocked my phone number, and on social media. you left me with no choice.”  

chris’s face falls, and he runs a hand through his hair, his shoulders slumping. "i... i messed up, didn’t i?" his voice is shaky, the anger and frustration that used to define him replaced with a quiet vulnerability that you hadn’t expected. "i never wanted to hurt you. i just... i didn’t know how to deal with everything. i thought i was protecting you by walking away, but now... now i see how much i fucked up."

you stare at him, the pain in your chest still raw, but there’s something else there too—a flicker of relief. you were angry. you were hurt. but hearing him admit his mistakes, finally, felt like a sliver of justice, even if it couldn’t undo the past.

"i never wanted you to walk away," you whisper, your voice trembling. "i never wanted to go through this alone. you didn’t have to protect me from your fans or from anything. we could’ve figured it out together. but you left. and now, we’re here. and you missed so much."

chris swallows hard, his eyes darting to the baby in the bassinet, his brother still sitting next to it as he takes in the weight of your words. "i... i didn’t think you’d ever forgive me," he admits, looking down at his hands, as if he couldn’t bear to look at you. "i didn’t think i deserved it."

you shake your head slowly, the tears still stinging your eyes. "it’s not about forgiveness right now," you whisper. "it’s about her. she deserves to know her father, whether you think you deserve it or not."

he looks up at you, his eyes brimming with emotion. "i don’t even know where to start. i’m so sorry. i... i can’t believe this is real. i can’t believe i have a daughter."

you nod slowly, fighting the urge to cry. "i didn’t want this for her," you say, your voice small. "i didn’t want her to grow up with one parent and never knowing the other. i wanted to protect her from the pain of not having you in her life. but i can't do that anymore. she deserves better."

chris stands up abruptly, pacing across the room, his hand gripping the back of a chair. "im so sorry.. i.. shouldve let you explain, but i just shut you out. i just left you, i slammed the door in your face. god, im so sorry.. she’s... she’s my daughter."

you watch him, your heart heavy with the weight of the past few months. it’s hard to accept that the man who walked away so easily is the same person standing here now, remorse in his eyes.

"but it’s not just about you anymore, chris," you say, your voice gaining strength. "it’s about her. and i need to know you’re ready for that responsibility. i need to know you’re ready to be her father, whether that means stepping up now or stepping aside. but if you’re going to be a part of her life, you can’t just show up when it’s convenient for you."

his face tightens, and he turns to face you, his eyes serious. "i don’t want to step aside. i want to be there for her, for you. i want to be the man i should’ve been six months ago. i know i don’t deserve your trust, but i’ll spend the rest of my life earning it, if that’s what it takes."

you nod slowly, your breath catching as the reality of the situation settles in. "we’ll see. one step at a time, okay?"

he gives a small, shaky nod in response. and as you both stand there, the tension between you is palpable, but there’s also a flicker of hope—however small it may be—that maybe, just maybe, things can start to heal. for you, for chris, and most of all, for your daughter.

after a moment of silence, he speaks up again, his voice soft and caring. “whats her name?” 

“madison. madison nicolette sturniolo.” you mutter, glancing at your sleeping baby in the bassinet 

“madison...” he repeats to himself, staring at the baby ““can i hold her?” chris asks hesitantly, his voice barely above a whisper.

you pause, your protective instincts kicking in. it feels monumental—this moment where he meets his daughter for the first time. but you nod, your voice steady despite the nerves swirling in your chest. "yeah. just be gentle."

matt stands, giving you a supportive nod as he steps aside, watching as you lift her from the bassinet, cradling the baby carefully before transferring her into chris’s waiting arms. chris’s hands tremble slightly as he holds his daughter for the first time.

his breath catches as he looks down at her peaceful face, her tiny features soft and perfect. "she’s beautiful," he murmurs, awe and disbelief coating his voice.

"she is," you agree softly, watching his expression shift as the weight of it all sinks in.

chris’s lips part as he whispers, "hi, madison," his voice cracking. "i’m your.. im your dad."

your throat tightens at the tenderness in his tone. the man who had once shut you out now stood before you, humbled by the reality of what he’d lost and what he now had the chance to gain.

madison stirs slightly in his arms, letting out a soft coo, and chris lets out a breathless laugh, blinking back tears. "she looks so much like you," he says hoarsely, though his eyes flicker back to hers. "but those eyes... god, they’re mine."

you let out a faint laugh despite yourself. "yeah. she makes it hard to forget." there’s a long, quiet pause before chris speaks again. "thank you... for keeping her safe. for doing everything i should’ve been there to help with."

"you weren’t there," you admit honestly, but your voice is softer now. "but nick and matt were. they stepped up when i needed someone."

chris flinches at the truth but nods. "i’m glad they did." he looks at you, sincerity etched across his face. "but i’m here now. and i want to be here- for you and her. no more running. i promise."

there’s doubt lingering in your chest, but for the first time in months, there’s also the faintest glimmer of hope.

"one step at a time," you remind him firmly, needing to protect not just yourself, but madison too. "we’ll figure it out."

chris nods, holding madison a little closer as if silently vowing never to let go again. "yeah," he agrees. "we will." 

in that small, cluttered office, surrounded by lingering pain and tentative hope, the first step toward healing is taken. for madison. for you. and maybe, just maybe, for chris too.

“chris?” you whisper, a tear spilling from your eye

without taking his eyes off of madi, he hums in response. 

“we need to talk. about.. us..” 

before you can get another word out, he cuts you off as he mutters, yet its clear enough for you to hear “i still love you.” 

your breath hitches in your throat, staring at him. 

“and i know, before you say anything, i know i left you. but i thought that would be best. i couldnt stand watching you get hurt by the fans everyday. i wanted to call you, and i wanted to explain. i just couldnt. i didnt know if youd believe me, if youd want to talk to me.. nick and matt told me to just keep giving you space.. and now i know why..” he glances up at you, a tear falling from his eyes as you stare at him, your lips slightly parted, your eyes watering with tears 

“i wanted you to come back.” you whisper, honestly. “i wouldve taken nick or matts phone and called you and begged you to come back. i just.. i didnt want you know about madi. i didnt want to force you to stick around if you didnt want to. i didnt.. i didnt want trap you.” 

“god, baby dont say that. dont say you didnt want to trap me. you wouldnt have. i wouldve- i shouldve- never broken up with you. i wouldve stayed, been there through the pregnancy, been there to hold your hand when you were giving birth, i..” he trails off, tears falling from his eyes. “i love you. i always have. and i always will. nothing is ever going to change that.” 

you clench your jaw as tears fall from your eyes, chris gently taking a few steps closer to you. he carefully holds madi in one arm, his other reaching down to cup your cheek. 

“come back to me. please. let me be a dad to madi. let me.. let me be your boyfriend again. and maybe.. maybe eventually youll let me be your husband. we can raise madi. together. be our own little family. because i love you, and now i love madi. please, baby.” 

you nearly sob at his words as he wipes tears from your face, eyes locked on yours. 

“let me come back.” he whispers yet again, followed by you gently nodding, a soft smile appearing on your face

“i love you.” you whisper

“i love you too.” he responds, his eyes locked on yours 

“always have...” you trail off, waiting for him to finish the promise you made to each other when you were younger

“always will.” he finishes, resting his forehead against yours as the both of you close your eyes, finally okay again. 

you let out a soft laugh, placing a hand on his neck, opening your eyes to see your daughter, being held in her fathers arms for the first time. he softly pulls away, carefully placing madison in the bassinet, his arms immediately wrapping around your waist. you stare up at him, smiling. you wrap your arms around his neck, looking into the eyes of the love of your life. 

he gently tilts his head down, tilting it as he connects his lips to yours, passionately kissing you for the first time in six months. 

you melt into the kiss, tightening your grip around his neck as tears stream down your face. after a few more seconds, you pull away from the kiss as the two of you tightly hug each other. 

“i love you. so much. and im not going anywhere. i promise you that.” you mutters, placing a kiss to your temple. 

“i love you too, chris. i know youll be a great dad to madi.” you whisper, burying your face in the crook of his neck 

he places one final kiss to your temple, taking your hand in his, glancing down at your sleeping daughter. 

“come on,” he whispers, reaching down to lift madison. “lets go back out to the party.” 

and you knew that this was it. chris was back. for you, and for madi. you were going to be a family. 

────────────୨ৎ────────────

a/n: IM GONNA CRY i had so much fun writing this series there MIGHT be a part 5 but idk yet???

- aurora ᯓ✮⋆˙

find other parts of this series here

likes and reblogs are always greatly appreciated! ੈ✩‧₊˚

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⋆˙⟡ tags: @lvrsturniolo @marrykisskilled @mattscoquette @emely9274 @wh0remikasas @mattsstarlet @pvssychicken @sofia-is-a-sturniolo-triplet-fan @jvngle18 @sturns-mermaid @mattslolita @lolastrniolo @55sturn @oliviasthatgirl @hannahsturns @dykes4chris @y3sterdaysproblem @bernardsbendystraws @courta13  @colorthecosmos444 @delilahsturniolo  @colorthecosmos444  @chriss-slutt  @cvnntagious  @conspiracy-ash  @bluetalia  @chris-hallelujah @15vogue  @chrispleasure  @idkwhatthisis2009  @sturniologirlzz  @sturniolo101  @leeeeree  @nicksorange @tylerstacobell  @simpforeveryman @sofieeeeex  @espressqe  @yesterdaysproblemm  @skye-44  @kikirasweatsweathoho @shadowthesim @chrepsi @st4rcs @mattswifeyx @sturnslux3 @iheartmattsbeard @sophiaxsblog @slutforchrissturniolo2 @pair-of-pantaloons

[milliesfishes]

⋆౨ৎBilly the Kid Masterlist⋆౨ৎ

Series Masterlists:

𝜗𝜚 Impossible Masterlist

𝜗𝜚 Serendipitous Masterlist

𝜗𝜚 Enchanted | Pirate Billy + Mermaid Reader AU Masterlist

𝜗𝜚 Spellbound Masterlist

𝜗𝜚 Fairytales Masterlist

𝜗𝜚 Star Girl Masterlist

𝜗𝜚 Undressed Masterlist

𝜗𝜚 Know That My Love Would Burn With Me/We'll Live Eternally

Fics:

𝜗𝜚 Sweet Girl (you want a baby, but Billy's hesitant)

𝜗𝜚 But Daddy, I Love Him! (Billy scrambles to figure out what to do when your father decides to send you away)

𝜗𝜚 I Know What You Want From Me (you get with Billy as a way to get back at your parents)

𝜗𝜚 Ordinary Things (you have a hard time showing affection and Billy teaches you how)

𝜗𝜚 When The Tide Changes (merman Billy x fishergirl reader AU)

𝜗𝜚 Destiny's Dead (you think Billy's been killed)

𝜗𝜚 Right Where You Left Me (you try to go on after Billy dies)

𝜗𝜚 Tender is the Night (fem reader x ghost Billy)

𝜗𝜚 Aurora , Part Two (70s AU- Billy works as security for a band with you as the lead singer)

𝜗𝜚 Honeymoon (Billy slips in and out of your life like the tide)

𝜗𝜚 Angel Eyes (Billy comes across you in the woods)

𝜗𝜚 Someday (you find Billy in the garden)

𝜗𝜚 The Final Act (Billy has to let go)

𝜗𝜚 Half Life (you aren't the same after you were kidnapped)

𝜗𝜚 I Can Go Anywhere I Want, Just Not Home (you were the center of Billy's world and the center faded away)

𝜗𝜚 Millennium (Billy helps you when your hunt is unsuccessful) (vampire reader x Billy)

𝜗𝜚 Swan Song (Billy thinks you're gone forever) (vampire reader x Billy)

𝜗𝜚 O Brawling Love, O Loving Hate (Billy finds his way back to you)

𝜗𝜚 Bodies Are Not the Only Things Buried (ghost Billy)

𝜗𝜚 Modern Americana (time traveler Billy)

𝜗𝜚 Staying (after Billy leaves, you find out you're pregnant)

𝜗𝜚 Heart Shaped Locks (you don't understand why Billy still wants you)

𝜗𝜚 The Greater Good (you broke Billy's heart when you left him, but there's more to the story than he thought)

𝜗𝜚 I Wish You Were My Last Words (snapshots of you and Billy)

𝜗𝜚 Nevermind (he said he would never leave)

Blurbs and Imagines:

𝜗𝜚 Imagines Masterlist

𝜗𝜚 billy cooking for you

𝜗𝜚 having a two year old daughter (includes both Billy and Coryo)

𝜗𝜚 you're insatiable for him (includes both Billy and Coryo)

𝜗𝜚 lazy morning off/taking care of billy when he's sick

𝜗𝜚 billy notices a necklace you never take off

𝜗𝜚 you have a baby during the lincoln county war

𝜗𝜚 you're in an arranged marriage with billy

𝜗𝜚 forbidden love with billy

𝜗𝜚 billy and coryo on their girl's birthday (includes both Billy and Coryo)

𝜗𝜚 billy's girl doesn't like loud noises

𝜗𝜚 beach day with billy

𝜗𝜚 with a partner who has a lisp (includes both Billy and Coryo)

𝜗𝜚 billy with a short girl

𝜗𝜚 billy with a tall girl

𝜗𝜚 with a girl with an oral fixation (includes both Billy and Coryo)

𝜗𝜚 you give billy a back massage

𝜗𝜚 billy sings you to sleep

𝜗𝜚 reading with billy

𝜗𝜚 billy and you dropping your daughter off at college

[yourfatherlucifer]

Our Aurora : Chapter 2

Poly!Ot8!Ateez x Afab/Female!Reader

Summary: Attending university with your eight boyfriends wasn’t easy, neither was sharing a mansion with them.

Warnings: MDNI, this mini series includes tons of smut, slight violence, protective ateez, poly relationship, established relationship, mentions of mxm, choking, other smut themes.

bullying and violence for this chapter.

WC: 1.5k

AU: University

Genre: Smut/fluff

Nets: @newworldnet

Tags: @deltamoon666 @watermelon2319 @justconniez @a-teez-4-exo @mingtinysworld @certifiedmoa @kittkat44 @sanhwalvr @spenceatiny18 @vtyb23 @sousydive @haebaragisworld @yourallaround-simp @therealcuppicake @ja3hwa (please make sure I can tag you in your settings)

SERIES MASTERLIST

The morning sun beamed in your eyes, you tried to move away from the direct sunlight but strong arms held you back from moving. When you opened your eyes you saw that it was Mingi holding you.

Right, he fell asleep with you after your bath last night. You turned your head to look at his sleeping face. He was at peace.

He was happier these days, happier than ever. More than he was when he had met you. Mingi was at his lowest then, his heart was aching. His brain was telling him horrible things. He was the epitome of depression and anxiety.

High school was hard, but to him, it was pure hell. Even as a big guy, he was still bullied, he was in pain. He had no one. He had no friends. You’d see him in the halls, he was cute to you. Very cute. Mingi had always worn headphones to block out the other kids.

You never liked your friend group, they were the other rich kids that sort of pulled you with them everywhere just because you were richer. However, they participated in harassing the poor boy. You wanted to stop them but didn’t know what to do.

Until one day, you were trapped in a thunderstorm outside because your ride got caught in the weather. Mingi had been rushing through the storm, clearly crying. He wasn’t watching where he was going and had slipped near you, taking you to the ground with him.

He gasped and scrambled to get off of you, his clothes were sticking to yours because of the rain. You could see the pain in his face, the panic as well. But what you noticed was the black eye. The huge swelling. It angered you. Your so-called friends went too far.

“I’m sorry!” He yelled out over the storm.

You shook your head, “Mingi, please, don’t apologize.”

He froze in his movements, “H..how do you know my name?” He felt the happiness bubbling within him. Someone knew him.

Your ride had finally pulled up, “It doesn’t matter, for now, I’m giving you a ride home,” you crawled from beneath him and pulled him up, which was hard, “Get in, please.”

He stammered over his words but followed you into the backseat, “Thank you..”

-

When you had pulled up to his home, he had realized his family wasn’t home. Typical. They always left him alone, by himself.

“Oh, um..”

You shook your head, “Doesn’t matter, I’ll just take you to my home, my parents are on vacation so I’ll take care of you, okay?”

Mingi’s heart fluttered, however he was terrified. He didn’t know if you were being genuine or if you were gonna trick him.

He sat in silence, fiddling with his ruined headphones, they looked like they were purposely ripped and broken.

“Mingi, did..did they do this to you?” Your eyebrows furrowed in concern. You just knew you’d teach those kids a lesson. They weren’t your friends. How dare they harm someone as sweet as Song Mingi? He never hurt anyone.

His head snapped to face you, “What? No. I-“

“Don’t lie to me.”

“Yeah..they did this. They always do. This is my third pair of headphones this month.” You could see the pure sorrow in his eyes.

Your fingers clenched in anger, “I see.”

When the car pulled into the mansion's front lawn, your driver stepped out of his seat and opened your door for you, “Miss, welcome home. I’ve already let the household staff know about your companion, they have fresh clothes for him.”

“Thank you, Hyunwoo.” You smiled, taking Mingi’s hand to bring him inside. He was so glad his eyes were still puffy from crying, else you would’ve seen his red face.

Never has he had someone care about him so much. He couldn’t help but fall in love. It didn’t help that he already had a crush on you.

Your staff greeted you inside, rushing to help you out of your wet clothes, “Guys, I’ve got it.” You laughed, “Just bring the fresh clothes to my room, I’m gonna get him comfortable.”

You trudged up the stairs, taking the large man with you, “Don’t worry about my staff, my parents like to spoil me too much, they have staff to take care of me when I’m alone. I’m almost 18, you’d think they know I can take care of myself.”

Mingi gave you a small smile, “It’s okay..I may not be used to this, but it’s alright.”

As you pulled him into your room with a smile, “The bathroom is over there, go ahead and get undressed, I’ll bring you fresh clothes. My staff will wash and dry those for you.”

He shyly pulled away from your hand and entered the bathroom, shutting the door behind him. He stood there in confusion. Just how did he get here? With the prettiest girl in his school. He didn’t know she’d be this nice and caring, how could she hang out with such horrible people? He wondered.

You went through your closet and changed into warm pajamas, you’d had to wait to blow dry your hair since Mingi was in the bathroom.

One of your maids knocked on the door and came in, “Here you go, Miss. your companions clothes. Henry was the only one who seemed to have clothes that would possibly fit that boy.” She passed off the clothes to you.

“Thank you. You can go now.” You smiled as she left.

You knocked on the door and Mingi slowly opened the door, peeking his head out, “Thank you.” He took the clothes from you.

You could see a bit of his chest and it looked bad, there were new bruises and healing bruises.

You sighed, they must’ve pushed him over and kicked him. They were gonna pay for this. You didn’t care if Mingi would hate you for taking this into your hands. You just couldn’t stand by while they hurt someone. What if they took it too far and killed him? No, you couldn’t allow it.

He closed the door and put on his new clothes. Just a plain shirt and sweatpants.

“Would you like to stay the night, Mingi? I have several guest rooms if you’d like. I’m sure you don’t want to be alone.” You suggested with a smile from the other side of the door.

Mingi opened the door with a puppy-like smile, he was beginning to feel safe around you.

“Thank you, for everything, Y/N. You’ve been nothing but nice to me and I don’t know how to thank you.” Mingi stared down at his feet.

You stepped up to him, reaching out for his large hand, “It’s okay, there’s no need to thank me. You don’t deserve any of this.

You brought him to your bed and sat down, “Why don’t you get some rest, I’ll go make you something to eat, okay?”

He nodded with a small smile, “Okay.”

-

As days passed, the two of you got closer. He was becoming your one and only friend and you didn’t mind. He managed to avoid his bullies with you around, but one day you weren’t.

You had hurt shouts in the school's courtyard and found a crowd.

Oh no.

You could hear Mingi’s cries for help as no one did anything, they only recorded and laughed.

You were pissed. You threw your bag down and rushed into the crowd. Finding his group of bullies. All you could see was red. Your fist collided with someone’s jaw. This person was kicking Mingi.

“Fuck off of him!” You shouted.

The crowd went silent as your fist repeatedly bashed into the kids face, his nose was bleeding bad but you didn’t care. He hurt Mingi.

“Y/N, please.” Mingi cried out for you, the bullies already leaving his side to take care of you. But you weren’t having it.

You fought them off with everything you had.

Your fists were hurting, they were covered in blood but you didn’t care whose it was.

From that day forward, no one fucked with you or Mingi. The school didn’t even bother doing anything because your parents were their biggest sponsor.

On the day of your graduation, you had asked Mingi out and he was ecstatic. He was becoming a man. He vowed from the day you saved him that he wouldn’t stop at nothing to protect you.

You had kissed him on the stage and flicked everyone off, a final fuck off to the horrible school you two were leaving.

As the memory faded from your brain, you turned to look at the sleeping Mingi.

You were so glad for the day you met him. He called you his princess yet he was yours. He was the true princess.

“Y/N?” He stirred awake.

“Yes, Mingi?”

“I’m hungry, princess.” His stomach grumbled just right after his words and you both laughed.

“Then let’s go get something to eat, I’m sure the others are home and would like to eat as well.” You just knew Wooyoung would want to cook for you, especially since you were sure they all knew what happened with Hongjoong fucking you so hard.

Together, you left to go downstairs, happily and in love.

[unholywriters]

Demon's Desire: Chapter Six: Insatiable Hunger

╰┈➤ Summary: Being in hell wasn't terrifying, but it also wasn't safe if you truly left the house. It was more harder to do but it was also a reminder who to be careful of, that demon was out there and there was only a handful of people who would get this close, but what can one do when seeing the ruler of the lust ring doing his job and enjoying the feeling? Would you run from Hyunjin calling your name?

╰┈➤ Parings: Switch! Demon! Hyunjin x Demon! Male reader

╰┈➤ Genre: Smut, non-idol au, series, demon Au, Sin Au

╰┈➤ Parts: teaser, 01, 02, 03, 04, 05

╰┈➤ Taglist: @a-short-ass-disappointment, @gnusihcom, @fallenangel7777777 @hyunjinnnnnnnnnnnnnn @midlike @pars-ley

╰┈➤ Network: @mirohs-aurora-society @ksmutsociety @keopihaus

╰┈➤ WC: 6.1k

╰┈➤ Warnings: MDNI, blowjob, biting, marking, hair pulling, scratching, swiitching, switch hyunjin, switch reader, multiple orgasms, overstimulation petnames,

╰┈➤Ratings: 18+

There’s something different from going into clubs now. Being able to sit and not have to deal with people coming up or waving dollar bills as a way for me to come over and do whatever they ask me to do when all I wanted to do was to get money, and dance with the hands trailing places I hated. But now I could dance and know there was something I could do about it. If Changbin wasn’t teaching me how to fight, Lee Know and I.n are still teaching me about soul magic. Something every demon needs to know when dealing crowds and can’t just kill them. Which can be hard but when they show it to me drive it looks so easy. But of course I have many things to learn and trying to figure it all out will slowly, after all they aren’t just teaching me these things to get better at being a demon. But seonghwa has been getting more out of hand, though hongjoong has been learning how to handle it. Some of it isn’t working, and it’s instead creating more trouble for him than ever.

I only say this because I got the chance to leave with no need someone to be near me. I got to leave and relax and after taking the best bath and shower of my lifetime; I got dressed and went to my favorite club. I first thought it was going to be weird for me to go back, but then I remembered Felix told me that since people assumed I died, I’ll look different to them no matter how many times I try to tell them it’s me and I’m alive. I can’t tell them I’m a demon without them bursting into flames and now being in hell because of me and my friends are too nice to be going to tell. Sure they tell some dark jokes now and then but they don’t deserve to go t hell and suffer because of me, knowing that there I very little that I can do about it.

But I got to go, and I could just walk right in and got to dance around. I didn’t need to stop or drink anything during this entire time and was just able to have my fun. But in doing so I could also see a purple smoke flying around. It was confusing me, in this club I never seen us use any fog machines to make things look more fun. I got curious on the far dance floor and walked over to the main dance floor. Where it looked like people were just dancing to the music but their eyes were also closed, trying to focus my eyes and se them, but it was hard to focus because everything was loud and shaking, but I still walked to the center where no one else seemed to go and I saw someone I didn’t expect to see.

Wearing a loosely buttoned shirt, black jeans with a longer skirt with the long side slit and boots. A tail swaying around him as he danced with his hands moving around was Hyunjin. His back was facing me but when he turned to face me, I saw his eyes; they were glowing purple and his smile showed some of his fangs. He looked surprised but also happy and calm to see me here at the ripe hour of 2am. Well, it was almost 3am, and I wanted to leave before then just to get home and rest, I knew I was going to have more practice in the morning and honestly I hated it. I was getting too good at fighting and keeping up with Changbin on some degree, since sometimes he would go easy on me just to see what all I needed help with doing other times he was fighting to see if my eyes were following him fast enough. Since it was proven he’s just as fast as Seonghwa, but I needed to get faster than the both of them, but also be able to fight just as fast, making it look like each movement was over in the blink of an eye with no questions asked.

Looking around him as he slowly let his hands fall to his side and walked closer to me, I noticed the change in everyone, seeing that they were engulfed in purple smoke that all seemed to lead back to him. And he was enjoying it, he was feeding off of them. Something I only heard a little about but told that either Seungmin was going to teach me that or Han, most likely han and I was supposed to be up and ready to talk with him in the morning when it was time for the session. But seeing it in a person like this was something different, and I had many questions, but still wondered if I was going to get any answers t said questions. Hyunjin is the type of still joke about some things when he feels himself and there’s nothing even I Can do about it even if I asked Chan to help me. But he’s someone almost none of us can find unless he wants to be found and I’ve slowly been getting used to that. Still hated it when there was a question I had just for him but I also knew better than to keep trying and asking.

“Well look at you, didn’t think you’d be spending the one night you had to actually sleep early to come back here and dance. You came when I was feeding.” He sounded annoyed at first, his eyes moving up and down while walking around me slowly before smiling, I wasn’t sure if it was genuine or not, but his eyes were slowly going to normal, or at least think they were normal.

“Feeding? Is that why there’s purple smoke around and they keep dancing?” Watching him turn around some, twirling on his heels before watching people collapse on the floor. His tail swaying around while walking around, carefully stepping over people while moving his hand around to life up some of the smoke that was coming from the people before just inhaling some, some going into his mouth. Letting out a satisfying sigh before turning to me. His wings slowly peaking out of his back while his hands were resting in his pockets. It was something I’ve tried to get used to seeing, but it was something different every time. I’ve seen this many times when he did this even after I woke up but how am I supposed to get used to this now? There was something new and honestly, I was more intrigued more than scared.

“Every Demon has a color, the smoke becomes their color so they can feed from it. Here the feeling of lust is strong, it’s never ending with the drinks and the influence. Clubs here are always full of it even if someone is just here to get a drink. You have all these people dancing, some sober enough to catch a human's attention, it’s always the best part and why I love coming here when I’m starving.”

He always loved to talk when he getting feeling himself, but watching him under the lights of the bar, staring at me with some hair covering one of his eyes before staring at me like a predator that finally found the right prey to eat after all this. Usually I would be scared, after all he’s the sin of lust. He can probably see my own fantasies I’ve had since I was a child and there was nothing I could really do about it/ But the look on his face soon calmed down as he grabbed me, pulling me in his arms while turning to the doors, he was running before we vanished on a different building on the roof. H looked worried, scared even and didn’t know what to do other than to run. Maybe it was because I was there, still new to learning things and if someone was trying to do anything, he was gonna get me out first before trying anything. But I wonder, why not just take us to the base in hell? Was it more dangerous for that?

He looked around before letting my feet hit the ground, his tail swaying in a frantic manner while he hid his wings. Maybe he didn’t want someone following him or to cause trouble with me here. I always wondered how strong the sins are. But if hell is in trouble then would that affect their abilities?

“We need to get home without them seeing us. You aren’t ready to be exposed to such high energy yet.”

“Who was it? If it was soenghwa-”

“You aren’t ready to deal with angels. Let alone archangels.”

I haven’t gotten to do anything regarding this, why would angels even bother coming down to us in the first place? Let alone when I don’t think we were doing anything wrong. It’s not like he killed them or left them stranded to die in the area where I know Chan and Lee know go to torture souls in ways I know for a fact I’d never sit still during one of those sessions. Why in the world would an archangel come for us now? I wanted to question more but there was no time to get any answers. He looked around; the clouds were slowly parting away to show the moon glowing brighter than I ever saw, but then again I never really got to see the moon when I was awake at night, being at work and just ready to go home and rest after dancing all day in heels and talking to those who paid top dollar for my services, they got nothing too sexual from me, no matter how much some of them really tried to pay me for it.

He Held my hand while we walked to the edge, Jumping high with his wings flapping to take us far away from the city. Changbin used to fly me around in the training ring to make sure I got used to someone using their wings against me in a fight, despite not having my own wings myself it was still something I was learning. Despite that, getting picked up from the ground by any part of my body only to be tossed in the air and told I have to control my air movements is terrifying in itself. But I was getting used to controlling my body in the air when the time came, if I ever got knocked down in the air I could land on my feet even if the aftermath always seemed to hurt my toes in the end. Ever tried landing on your feet while trying to deflect flaming arrows from hellfire? Neither have I until today and I still would question if this was as hot as it could get or if there was an even hotter fire, not something I really weaned to know the more I think about it.

But with hyunjin, the way he was flying was careful, as if he was under watch but he could still move fast to get away from the danger. I mean if anything he could take us to the hotel we still live at, maybe to see if Felix could help us some but it still made me worry, what if this threat we’re now dealing with would follow us to our own home and try to get in? It was something terrifying but if it was a haven, then there was no time to question it anymore.

He was holding me close, making sure I wasn’t falling with his tail wrapped around my waist making sure I would not fall but man was he able to fly faster than Changbin, which was a shocker to me because I’ve never seen him fly around like this before. He was getting closer; we were getting away from the crowded and tight spaces of cities before I saw a light when peaking over his shoulder. So I could only scream out his name before the next thing I knew we were tumbling on the ground. His tail letting me go away while we were tumbled around, Hyunjin hitting a tree while I was trying to get up from the rock I hit. Gids my head hurts even when trying to even stand and look around. There was a taller male walking closer to the two of us.

Wearing all white with gold buttons and accents, holding a sword in his left hand while looking at the two of us. His eyes slowly scanning around while Hyunjin slowly stood up from the tree, his wings were flapping while he was hissing. I think something broke when he hit the tree, and I was worried while trying to stand up. Who was this person and why were we attacked? Why did we need to run in the first place? What all was happening right now and were we going to be okay?

“Hello Hwang Hyunjin, I see you have another bride. Tell me, how did you kill this one, car crash yet again? Or did you get your hands dirty this time?”

“Hyunjin!” Calling out his name while seeing the sword being pointed to him, the person appearing in front of him with the sword being under his chin, it was burning him, I could see a cut on his jaw while he was staring down at hyunjin, hyunjin staring daggers at him while trying to stay still and not move. After all this was someone who just came out of nowhere and just struck us down in an open field when we were just dancing around, Hyunjin explaining things to me I needed to know before we just suddenly needed to get out from something. Maybe hyunjin felt him near and knew we needed to go before things got worse.

“What can I say? Their attractive. I used a natural cause, I did nothing against your stupid rules, Choi.” Slowly standing up, I felt something in my hand, I knew I needed to do something. That sword was the only thing that seemed to hurt Hyunjin. I didn’t do all of this training for nothing at the end. Holding out my hand, I knew there was something I could do as long as I got to focus. Lifting it up and swiping down my hand, I watched as fire flew towards him, I knew it would not do much, but the fact his wings still covered him, though he remained perfectly still. But his head was turned me with his no emotions in his face whatsoever. But he seemed interested while staring me down, slowly pulling away the sword while the burning wing seemed to flutter off the flames and showed little to no damage whatsoever.

“You must be a fast learner. Handling demon fire burns the user's hand when their turned.”

“Don’t you dare!”

Watching Hyunjin’s tail try to strike, the angel vanished only to appear in front of me; he towered over me and had to lean down closer to me as if he was trying to read something about me. That didn’t make any of this any better, let alone any safer while seeing his left hand stayed held out. Keeping hyunjin against the tree while he started to hiss and burn at the feeling. How in the world was I supposed to handle any of this? I just got all the basic down and worked on doing things more dangerous and more advance to understand what was happening with me. Why during the one time I go to relax knowing I was about to get a lecture of a lifetime but making sure I understand anything,

He stared me down with his eyes turning white; I was getting nervous while trying to move but it felt like he was keeping me in place. But I could still see something, I may not have been able to move, but there was something I could do, and I saw his eyes turn back and widened while he tried to cover his face, only to see fire fly towards him. Backing away from the white flames that seemed to keep him away, I felt myself breathing while looking around rapidly, Hyunjin fell from the tree but he was in pain. Trying to move and hissing the entire time, I ran over to him, looking at the burns on his arms and lower legs, we needed to get to hell. Somewhere safe before this got worse. Trying to look around I looked for something, that bracelet Lee know said they all had to wear as a protective measure, I didn’t have mine yet since no one thought it was going to be bad.

I found his bracelet and squeezed it, knowing that it was going to send the SOS while trying to say what was happening as fast as I could. “Hyunjin’s burning and Theres an angel attacking us, please. I don’t know what to do!” Looking back behind me, I saw the angle standing there and just looking at his hands, they had some burns before healing with a glowing golden light and the burns seemed to just vanish. His shocked expression replaced with another expressionless look with his sword still drawn. I knew there was no way I was going to do that again, not in the state I was in. Hyunjin tried to stand up with his spear in hand, the lights getting brighter before seeing a mixture of dark blue fire, a bright green flames surrounding the man with the illusion of chains keeping him down.

Looking around, I saw a pissed of Chan march out of a cloud of smoke, it must’ve been serious when he didn’t even have his mask on, but Felix appeared next to me and checked the both of us. But we all heard Chan’s booming voice before we could even ask questions. “What the fuck are you doing to my Sin Choi. You have no grounds for an attack against the both of them and you fucking know it!” I never saw Chan wield two swords, but he kept them held tight in his hands while Felix was healing Hyunjin’s scars, was it harder to do anything but I was watching Chan and this man, why were they just calling him choi and what was he talking about with looking at me.

“You killed before the agreed time and used more engery to make them be erased from their coworkers minds. I was sent down to retrieve them and remove the demon from inside of them.”

“And you know that an attack starts with you fighting me before you ever lay a fucking finger on them. Now are you going to handle this the right way or fucking leave.”

The man tilted his head, a smirk on his face while he looked over to me, Felix moving to stay in front of us while hyunjin let out more pained hisses, I guess healing on the surface is more painful than trying to heal in hell. But I could still feel him staring at me, it was something that had me curious but with the way Felix and Chan were staring at him; it was something I didn’t need to speak just to look at him.

“Your new bride, or husband whatever floats your boat. Is more special than you can handle, Christopher. Eventually, the angels will have to intervene to handle it.”

Before we could fully blink and understand what was happening, the man vanished. Chan still looked around while Felix retracted his wing, Cha slowly turning to us with worry written all over his face while Hyunjin let out more whimpers while holding his stomach and squirming. “What happened?” “I went to the club to dance before taking another bath and Hyunjin was feeding and explaining to me how it works and the smoke and then he just grabbed me and we were up on a roof before he took off flying and then-”

I tried to stay calm while Chan leaned down; he was staring at Hyunjin and making sure that there were no more scars over him. But I still was worried, he was trying to stay still and focus on breathing while his eyes were flickering. What was he doing? Felix seemed to keep his head down, covering his eyes while hyunjin let out more whines. “We need to go, he’s starving after protecting you. Getting attacked from an angelic weapon makes even a sin starve. He’s fighting, so he doesn’t go in a lust hunger. We need to get you away.”

Felix slowly moved, Chan slowly guiding me back away while Felix kept his tail ready. Hyunjin left eye was completely purple, his right eye flickering while his left eye was shaking, despite him trying his hardest to return, was this him losing his mind? But before anyone could truly get me away, Hyunjin was gone from sights only to appear vaguely behind me and took me somewhere. The last thing I saw was Felix lunging over with Chan reaching his hand out with blue flames reaching out to me but before they could even catch me they were gone, purple smoke somewhere surrounded us yet I was sitting on the floor, trying to get up but the smell of everything around me was making it hard, and suddenly boiling. Was this what happens when hyunjin starves? When he gets hurt to where he can't control himself. Was he acting on instinct now with me in the room? But then why did he go straight for me instead of the other two there? Was it because I'm not that strong yet either?

Looking up and watching him, he was panting still while his eyes were getting darker, well one eye was getting darker, the other was getting lighter while he was standing there shaking while staring at me. I wanted to move, to get up and probably slap some sense into him while trying to figure out where in the hell did he suddenly take me? But trying to move felt like I was burning with each movement, like I was turned on, but how the fuck was I turned on when this was confusing me. But I guess I was learning something new by the minute now wasn't I?

“Hyunjin… what are you doing? Where are we and why does it feel this hot?”

He didn't respond for a while, licking his lips before I saw his actual eyes shine through his left eye. He as trying to gasp for air, slightly leaned forward with his head tilted some.

“I'm staving. Angelic weapons make me hungry. But no clubs are going to help this. I need you, I need to touch, to feel and to hear you. We're in my domain, Chan can barely get in here without giving into it, gods you've never felt a big dick till he bends you over till your shaking. No one can save you in here, unless someone willingly switches places with you.”

If there was one thing I haven't fully seen up close, it was that smirk on his face. There was something about that smirk that could always make people blush to look away or want to push for more but there was something different. Like he's waiting on me to say something while he was slowly walking around in a circle, like there was something holding him back from just letting it all go, but what could I even do to help him? I mean I have an idea about what he wants from me but the question is do I want to give in? Do I have a choice to give in or can I run away and let someone else handle him till he's able to calm down.

“But, I can't do anything without consent. Even if it burns me more and more, if you don't say es then I can't do anything without it.”

Slowly getting on his knees and crawling over, he didn't exactly cover me, but he was closer enough to where he could kiss me if he wanted to, well I guess he wanted my permission before doing anything else. I mean how could I say no? Don't get me wrong I understand what he's getting at by the way he’s looking at me. Even with the purple in his eyes I can see the pleads in them, how soft his face was getting and how his lips were just trying to get closer to me as if they were the only things keeping him alive. Despite feeling hot, despite feeling like I'm going to go insane and start tearing things off just to feel cold I was still consistence to make my own choices. Despite all the videos I've watched when I was bored and alone, despite all the dances and dirty talk's I've given with practice from my job, how does one hold their own with the Sin of Lust himself? It's not exactly easy to do in that case.

“I want you, but don't degrade me too hard alright? I want to see what you have in mind for me right now, just no blood, is that okay?”

“More than okay, puppy.”

Seeing the smirk on his face, and how his tail swayed around with excitement knowing I was in for a wild ride. He had that look in his eyes, and I think I was smirking a little at his excitement before I got the kiss I never got to handle. Feeling his holding the back of my head to keep me closer, I couldn't see him with my eyes closed.

Change of Perspective here

Hyunjin kept y/n closer, the kiss slowly getting to be more hungry, more needy with each kiss that was slowly getting faster. Hyunjin's tail slowly getting to move faster with each kiss while he slowly had y/n pinned down to the ground. His tongue slowly slipping inside y/n's mouth and sucking on his tongue, letting out a breathy sigh while he listened to the quiet moan coming from yn. It made him smirk just a little before pulling away, the smirk on his face growing as he looked down, seeing the dazed look and latching onto y/n's neck just to suck on it and leave softly leaving bite marks. Grinding his hips some and wanting to burn off all teh clothes that were left on the two, he wanted to rip them all off and let the clothes burn in the distance while giving you his entire attention, worshipping you with each kiss but he had to make it go slow somehow.

Pulling away just to hear the sounds of Y/n's moans and groans, enjoying the feeling of thier hands running through his hair while he made the clothes vanish. If he never did that then the clothes would've been ripped to shreds with no regrets on his face while he stared down, licking his lips with his hands slowly going up Y/n's chest and enjoying the view, seeing your chest rising and feeling with the look in your eyes getting more needy, he promised he would not go too rough for now, adding little kisses there while watching you to make sure that nothing was too wrong with what he was doing. Moving your hands up to his hair while he leaned down to lick on your chest, sucking on one nipple while squeezing the other one, his hands slowly getting warmer just to watch you squirm and feel your soft hands tug his hair in fistfuls. The higher whimpers of his names were driving him more crazy, yet he was feeling himself get more full. This was better than any meal he never could have had, unless it came from the other sins, they would have him bent over anything, or even on display for lower demons to wish they could touch, but none of them were ever going to touch him, if they tried to they would have been tortured right then and there as a lesson.

Pulling away and looking back down, he saw the marks he left all over your chest and stomach, some were blue and some were purple, it was making him more excited while his eyes had that purple glow; he was going to do something he rarely did, but he was great at it. But he wanted to make sure your eyes stayed on him the entire time and never left him. Swirling his hands around, letting the smoke come closer and keep your arms up while it felt like something was on the back of your head, making you look down while he kept his head on your thigh, his tail swaying like a curious cat while he smirked. He knew where he was going to take you, a place that you could never see the beauty of without losing your demon side to, heaven.

Licking his lips he leaned closer and sucked on the tip, looking up and watching your arms tense up while tried to buck your hips, it made him curious, taking the rest of your cock in his mouth and quickly moving his head. His hands holding onto your thighs while swirling his tongue, pulling out every move just to watch you squirm, moving your legs behind his head while tugging on the smoke chains around your wrist. Looking up to see your eyes with tears staring down at him while trying to stay still. Hyunjin letting out muffled moans just to feel the tip hit the back of your neck. Knowing that if the others tried to save you all they could hear were the echo of your moans and there was no way of getting closer without falling on their knees and giving in to their own sexual desires no matter how hard they try to run from it, there was no ending to it.

But he had to pull away, letting his head go all the way back and showing off the sweat that made him glisten while panting. Licking his lips with his head slowly looked up at you. Seeing strands of your hair sticking to him while he leaned up closer yo you, holding your chin while he got close enough just to barely kiss you, but he teased you for it.

“I can either bounce on mister big dick here or I can fuck you, which would you like first hm?”

“Who said anything about just you doing all the work, hyunjin?”

Tilting his head some, only to look up and see the chains snap, he gasped while he was now the one of the floor, his hands being pinned above his head while he stared at you. The only other people to see him like this were Chan and Changbin, well not from the sidelines and their own imaginations. But it was something else with you, not thinking he was going to be the one on the reviving end but he stilled happily wrapped his hands around you, watching your movements and reaction before opening his mouth to say something. But the only thing that came out was a loud moan, feeling something inside of him that never seemed to stop moving, it was yourt own dick moving quickly inside and out of him. His eyes opening wide while his tongue stick out some, trying to keep his eyes on you but it was still driving him crazy. Closing his knuckles tightly while feeling himself squeeze around you.

“Keep your head down and watch me do the same thing you want to do to me. I want to see you squirm around and clench at the thought of being inside me after this.”

Watching his eyes roll back from the whisper our voice, he moved his head to the side and allowed you to leave as many hickies on him as you wanted. His moans getting louder than his own pants, arching his back up from the clear floor just to feel his hair being tugged, something he loved while he was being forced to look at you. Letting his tongue hang out, feeling his own release come just to feel his body tense up and shake, trying to move his arms while feeling something fill him up inside. A smile appearing on his face while he moved his head around side to side. Looking up at you to see the both of you had a smirk and there was no leaving while the two of you leaned closer to each other only for no kisses to happen.

“I want to feel full to, hyung. Can I ride you like a good puppy that I am? Hm?”

“Bounce like you'll die if you don't, Puppy.”

Biting his lip at the empty feeling, that didn't stop him from looking at you, moving his hands to your side as he watched you take him in like you were made from him. Feeling the tightness around him and watching you rest your hands on his chest, making sure you were steady before bouncing, the moans starting out quiet before slowly getting higher as he moved faster. Biting his lip while making sure only your moans were the main ones being loud and heard. He was watching you closely the closer you got, but he noticed something that made him tilt his head with curiosity while you were getting closer. Your eyes were glowing, not just because of the light but they were glowing white with a mixture of red in teh middle like it wa swirling around.

Gasping at the feeling of his release, seeing your cum land on his stomach, he kept his eyes on you. Coming back from his hunger only to see you shaking, not just trembling from the sex but from something else. It worried him as he slowly sat up to watch you; he watched your eyes, seeing how your puppies rolled back before the white and red came back. Almost like something was happening inside of you, but you passed out from the release, as far as you knew you were sound asleep and he was taking care of you as he always would and promised he would.

But touching you was burning, but not like his encounter with Soobin no, it was something else. Getting his clothes back on, he snapped his fingers and landed in the middle of his room where Chan and Lee know were waiting, at first Chan was about to lecture him till he saw how worried he looked. Lee Know quickly standing up and leaning down to see what he was shook.

“His eyes, he released and his eyes became like this, he's not enough to leave little burns but he's asleep. He isn't waking up, I don't knowe what happened.”

Walking and kneeling over, Chan saw it and watched how your hands were burning, but it was burning you and neither of them knew why, it was something new but Chan had an idea and he knew he had to be careful while holding out his hand, keeping his focus on you while Lee Know watched him to understand what was happening before seeing Chan's hand shook while he was slowly summoning angelic fire, something angels still can't control, but Chan was the only one recorded to handle it. Slowly keeping it over your chest he saw your eyes glowing while slowly calming down. But then there was a problem, the red was coming out, and it seemed to affect you.

“Lee know, Hyunjin, both of you hold up your flames, we need something to balance this.”

“Chan, what is happening to them? Is this because of Soobin?”

“He might have awaken something. But for now if we don't want to deal with an out-of-control hybrid.”

[anachr0nismm]

I think that Scar is or would be a very very big fan of the mechanisms (queer and disabled space pirates??? What more could you want?!). I have a lot of thoughts on this (I’m writing a mechs inspired hermitcraft au where he’s literally the mechs biggest fan, so, of course I’ve put my mind to it very very often) so here’s some!

I think people would assume that Scars favourite character is Marius because they are very alike, and while, of course, Scar does love Marius an absurd amount like the rest of the mechs, I think his favourite would actually be Ashes! I think their backstory would be very interesting to him, and (this is mainly for the au) their mannerisms would remind them of Cleo a bit!

His favourite album would be High Noon over Camelot, and his favourite song Blood & Whiskey! Doomed relationships in a desert wasteland sounds quite familiar but I was not, funnily enough, thinking about that while deciding this. I think he’d generally love all their music, of course, like I do, but that album is his favourite. ALSO UDAD!! The music from udad is amazing (in my opinion) and I think he’d agree!

He watches Revenge of Spaceport Mahon religiously and laughs at the joke about flesh eating mutants (if I can recall correctly) every. Single. Time. Is this me projecting? Perhaps. But that doesn’t mean it can still be true!

Gets a lot of stims from the mechanisms. I see a lot of my own autism traits in him, so why not add another more? Humming or singing songs is an obvious one, but I think a lot of vocal stims from narration songs would also be common! “Ew!” (The Aurora strikes), “Where did you get that violin?!” (Expert testimony), “It’s been sixty years!”, “She was absolutely covered in blood. Luckily, none of it was hers.”, “hello!” (Alice), and more I can see very well. Maybe even “he’s just some guy you know” from the udad live.

As you can tell, I am insanely autistic about the Mechanisms (I am watching the Revenge of Spaceport Mahon right now actually…) and I will keep pushing that onto Scar. Named plushies from character? Yep, he would too! Has a (UDAD) cd? Of course, come on now. Listens to their music daily, and has been for nearly two years? That’s just a given.

I think also for Hermitcraft (which I watch and enjoy more than life series, so most of my ideas are based on that), Ren would also enjoy them because of the theatre kid stuff. But this is about Sir Scar! The Czar of Star Wars, himself!

One second left alone, and Scar immediately starts singing Drunk Space Pirate. Is this something I do, as well? Silly question, of course it is. If there’s anything I’m good at, it’s giving my favourites my exact autism.

I also want to note how much you can tell I love hermitcraft. The fact that I’m making a mechs inspired au for them is actually monumental. I generally don’t like au’s, and have not really felt comfortable enough to connect another interest to my main one, the mechs, before (aside from splatoon but that didn’t really go anywhere. This is) so! It makes me happy

[maddymoreau]

🌍 + Unknown ^_^

Send 🌍+ a series and I'll tell you a fact about my self insert!

Songs that make me thing of her:

Exist for Love - Aurora

Under Your Spell - Snow Strippers

Tw: Character threatening noncon (over the phone) and strangulation.

( ☞ ˙ワ˙)☞ As a heads up, all my Self Inserts are named Madison/Maddy, including my Unknown Self Insert. Also, in order to explain my Self Insert I have to talk about Grant, since the two are the opposite of each other when it comes to three things.

Grant is eight years older than the player. So for my Self Ship he's thirty-four years old. Grant has lived a very full life with multiple past relationships, friends, and a successful career.

He used to be in the Army until his Lieutenant made a bad call, resulting in all of Grant's Squad/Friends getting killed. The only survivors were Grant and his Lieutenant, who he drifted apart from after the Army.

Note: That's the Lieutenant's messed up photo from another game.

When Grant left the military, he moved into his parent's old log cabin. Later, he sees the player in town, starts stalking them, and eventually kidnaps them.

Meanwhile, my Unknown Self Insert is a twenty-six year old who has struggled with issues isolating herself (social recluse).

She recently moved to the city/town for a fresh start, sometime before Grant. Unfortunately, the quote, "Wherever you go, you take yourself" reflects her situation. As moving to a new place didn't change anything.

She isn't happy with where her life is at. She feels behind others her age, both career-wise and socially.

Madison works as cashier for a home improvement store (like Home Depot/Lowes/Ace Hardware). She's working at a dead-end retail job until she can figure out something else. Her dream job is being an artist, which feels unattainable since it won’t provide her with financial stability. This has caused her to suffer from art block.

She's unsure what to do to since her future feels bleak.

Before being kidnapped, Madison was an extremely lonely person. She doesn’t have any friends, isn’t close to any of her coworkers, and has felt disconnected from the rest of society for a very long time. She feels like there’s something wrong with her that she can't pinpoint but everyone else sees. That everyone got a manual on how to be human except her.

Madison is extremely insecure. Due to her lack of confidence, she tends to put walls up since she's afraid of rejection and failure. However, she desperately wants to break out of this self-destructive cycle she's in. She's TRYING to change, but is struggling.

Her insecurities about herself, her passions, and future are a HUGE contrast to Grant, who is EXTREMELY confident in himself.

For example, in the game, Grant calls the player under the ruse of receiving a fake number.

He'll call them again and ask, "Hi there. Yea, it's me again. I just had to ask. Why would someone who was hitting it off with someone else turn around and then give them a fake number afterwards?"

The player can later say, "Sometimes it's cause they just don't find the other person all that attractive."

To which Grant responds, "What? No. I'm plenty attractive. Lots of women find me attractive."

Also, insulting Grant doesn't really work as he tends to turn it back onto the player.

Player: "You're a fucking creep! YOU'RE SICK!"

Grant: "Mmmm . . . That I am dear. But only for you."

Player: "Getting off on just my breathing huh? You must be a two pump chump!"

Grant: "Whether I am or not, there's other ways to make you scream. And either way. I'll still be filling you with my hot cum. Wait. . . . right . . . I was suppose to be insulted, wasn't I? I'm sorry dear, let me try again. Oh . . . forsaken me . . . Woe is my manhood."

He chuckles to himself as if he was incredibly funny. I don't find myself laughing though.

Grant: "I do love talking to you sweetheart. But I think it's time now."

However, his confidence isn't like a stereotypical egotistical cocky character, but rather it's something he views as simply a fact. Like yes, he's objectively attractive and hasn't struggled to date.

His confidence is what makes him so terrifying. That he without a doubt believes the player will eventually submit to him.

Grant is so convinced the player will given in, that he can accidentally kill you. Since he believes you'll stop resisting and sleep, if you refuse and try to stay awake he'll accidentally strangle you to death.

It's one of the few endings where you're killed.

There's also two scenes where the player can threaten Grant with a knife. However, Grant doesn't take your threat seriously at all.

Player: "Stay the fuck back!"

He doesn't listen though, instead he starts to walk forward towards me.

Player: "I said-"

Grant: "Yea, I heard you sweetheart. But we both know you don't have what it takes to use that thing. So, why don't you just put it down."

Depending on the player's choice he CAN get stabbed:

The other scene where you threaten him with a knife:

Player: "STAY BACK!"

He lifts his hands slowly but without caution.

Grant: "Sweetheart . . . This is very disappointing of you. Why are you fighting me?"

Player: "Stay back or I'll stab you!"

He lets out a long sigh but continues to slowly walk towards me.

Grant: "You wouldn't stab me my beloved. Now put the knife down."

I find it interesting the way Grant is so confident that you won't stab him that he approaches you without any caution. Technically, Grant does have military experience, which could add to that. However, I'm pretty sure that lore wasn't added until after the game's release. So it's not that Grant believes he can handle you, but that he 100% believes you don't have what it takes to do it. Something he's so confident about that could end with him getting stabbed.

Grant feels very optimistic about the future and is convinced after kidnapping her, that, in his own words: "We're going to be the best couple there ever was."

While Madison felt very grim about her future. When Grant kidnaps her, he takes her away from all her problems and fears. While unintentionally giving her a new fear (him) and a new goal (escaping).

Since she's isolated (and possibly restrained):

She's now no longer dealing with the issues that plagued her for so long. The stress of paying bills and figuring out what career path she wants to follow. One that will both pay well, and she's happy with.

Art that was once the skillset she never felt good enough at now has turned into a creative outlet for the situation.

Also, since Grant kidnapped her, she's not able to interact with anyone outside him. Which also means she is no longer is at risk of facing rejection or judgement from others.

As horrible as the situation with Grant is, it's one of the first times she's ever felt fully accepted. Since she can’t turn to her coping skills by running away or isolating herself after being kidnapped. She’s forced to spend time with him and be vulnerable. It’s very jarring since she has so desperately craved to connect with another human being. Yet it’s happening with the worst person imaginable.

Due to her low self-esteem she has mixed feelings over Grant's obsession with her. She tries to rationalize it in her head, but it just feels so nice to be desired. To be complimented and praised.

Grant: "You're so beautiful. So precious. I knew you were the one for me the moment I saw you. You're perfect. In every way."

Due to not having very high hopes for her future overtime, she subconsciously develops a fear of returning to society. After all, if she escapes and Grant is arrested she'll truly be alone again.

There's this HUGE fear of restarting. Just because you've been kidnapped doesn't mean the world stopped moving. You still lose your apartment and job. Everyone else continued to live their lives and the world you already struggled to feel a part of functioned fine without you.

So, when you so desperately want to be loved and accepted, having someone say that they unconditionally accept you and all they want in return is for you to love them, sounds so enticing.

Grant: "I'm going to take real good care of you. You don't have to work anymore. Or do anything. All you have to do, is love me. There's nothing to be afraid of. I'm going to be real good to you."

It doesn't help her and Grant have this natural chemistry. That he also desperately wants the player to reciprocate even though it's super unrealistic they would. To the point you can use it to your advantage in the game.

In one of the routes after Grant breaks through your apartment window, you can scream for help and he'll grab your mouth. He'll then pull you over to the couch and telling you to not do that again. The player afterwards can try to stall for time with the hope that one of their neighbors has called the police after hearing you scream.

Grant: "I have to get you home."

Player: "Can't we just stay here?"

I pat the couch invitingly.

Grant: "Nice try. We both know you don't mean that."

He starts to dig for something out of his pocket.

Player: "But what if I did?"

He pauses before he pulls it out all the way.

Grant: "What if . . . you did?"

He thinks it over for a moment.

Player: "You could . . . come sit with me. Watch some tv . . . talk?"

He eyes dart around the room in contemplation.

(HE'S ACTUALLY CONTEMPLATING ADFN;LAKDJ. She was screaming for help two seconds ago there's no way she actually wants to- BUT WHAT IF?!!!!!!!)

Grant: "Why the change of heart?"

He's not foolish enough to fall for it that easily and the police arrive before you can answer but oH MY GOD.

In the beginning, Madison would occasionally fight against him. However, she quickly stops since she doesn't want to constantly be punished and is scared he's going to accidentally kill her. Instead, she plays the waiting game looking for an opportunity to attempt to escape. Until she just has one moment where a flip switches inside her, wondering what she's even fighting to return to.

A life with Grant she's guaranteed to know what she gets. Meanwhile, life outside is scary and filled with uncertainty. Even though Grant is the thing she should fear most overtime he becomes a source of comfort and the outside world is what scares her.

As long as she stops fighting then everything will be okay :)

Grant: "I know, it's really scary but I'm not going to hurt you unless I have to. Everything's going to be ok."

Grant: "I don't want to hurt you Maddy. That's not what I want."

Player: "Please don't hurt me. Please . . ."

Grant: "Shhh . . . I'm not here to hurt you. I could never hurt you."

He pulls my head backwards and places a kiss on the top of it.

Grant: "There's no need to be scared. See?"

Somehow I just can't agree.

Grant: "Let me make this simple for you Maddy. You don't want to get stabbed. I really don't want to have to stab you. So come quietly and neither one of us have to do something we don't want to. Just cause I don't want to, doesn't mean I won't. You're likely to be easier to handle if you're wounded."

I try to showcase her transition in some of my commissions:

Unaware of the stalking: Drawn by Saccharineheartx

The night of the kidnapping: Drawn by Toxictrashdump

Being held captive at Grant's log cabin: Drawn by Ohmenthamo

Confused about her feelings: Drawn by Eliotlime

I gave Eliotlime creative freedom with what the Mini Maddys would be doing, but asked if they could have mixed emotions. Like one angry, scared, shy/embarassed, and the other lovey/affectionate.

Madison initiating affection: Drawn by Bebbyb00

Acceptance: Drawn by UnusualMuffin-Art

Shown through them being silly and lovey-dovey together.

[archerandthefoxx]

So I was up from 12am to 5am reading ACFTL and I honestly can't believe that it's over now. Like my brain can genuinely not wrap my head around it. The book I have been waiting for months. The series I've been reading since it was only ouabh. I honestly can't believe it's done now.

So these are just my thoughts on acftl: (SPOILERS BTW)

So I want to start with things I didn't like because I like to end things on a more positive note:

● There was a lot of potential for other things that Stephanie has hinted to in the past (just basically a lot of unanswered questions) that I can't simply believe isn't anything bigger:

> "too familiar nickname" when Jacks called her Little Fox for the first time. This had the potential to be something really big, but the fact that Eva has no connection to the fox is just leaving me confused (as in being the first fox or a reincarnation). Like how. Especially when it was heavily hinted to in the past.

> "heavier than an apple should've been" when Jacks threw an apple at Eva in ouabh. I don't understand what this was supposed to mean if it just ended up being nothing. Like why did it have to be mentioned

> An Evajacks wedding was heavily hinted to in ouabh (even the reverse dust jacket for bn acftl). I just would have liked to see that.

● For me, some of the plot points just felt very disconnected and not linked, to the point where it felt like just random things being stringed together. Like it felt like things were just happening, as if I was reading different books at the same time.

● Acftl kinda feels like after tbona, Stephanie went online and saw everyone's theories and aimed to do the exact opposite. Sometimes I felt so confused because it felt like random facts and points were just thrown at me. Or this felt like this was the original version that Stephanie wrote.

●Why was time personified constantly?

●Where was my boy, Luc? I love him and I missed him so much. I was waiting for him to pop up on the page or make a creepy/funny appearance ("Hello, Eva" - I always laughed when he pulled stuff like this).

●Even though she's not relevant, where was Marisol? You can't tell me she just disappeared. I would have just liked to know what happened to her.

●Aurora's role felt so random.

●The whole thing about Jacks's curse felt to simple and barely touched on.

●I would have liked a better answer on Jacks’s obsession with apples. Like I understand it was left like that on purpose but it would have been nice.

*

●I would have liked the return of Scarlet and Tella. They were the ones who sent Evangeline to the Magnificent North. It would have been nice to see them after all of that and Jacks and Tella could have gotten some sort of closure.

●I love how everyone was hell-bent on the fact that apollo is lysander. The fact that everyone believed Apollo was Lysander started to make me doubt it. When Lysander appeared on the page, I was surprised tbh.

● Tbona established their clear feelings for each other and acftl was them just accepting it.

●Anyways I need domestic evajacks. Like 20 chapters. The bonus epilogues healed me.

My theories that were actually right: ●Tiberius slashing Apollo’s back

●Aurora having some type of magic and being the true villain. I was so sure that she was obsessed with Jacks and placed the Archer's curse.

~"My turn" if you know, you know. Something I never knew I needed. And I need more. There is never such thing as too much Evajacks.

Me having mixed feelings about acftl hurts so much because I've been waiting for this book for so long (I've been reading this series since it was only ouabh). I haven't been able to wrap my head around the fact that this is the official book. Ouabh and Tbona were soo amazing. They were so magical and fairytale like and I cried after I finished acftl, not just because the series was over (because I did) but because it didn't live up to the expectations I had and the high standards that ouabh and tbona set.

This series will always and forever be the series I go back to when I'm sad. Regardless of how it ended, I loved it because Stephanie created a new definition of magic and fairytale for me.

[stranger-fanfiction-n-things]

DATE NIGHT

written December 14, 2023

a/n: I've read the first ACOTAR book in the series and a bit of the second book in the series. I immediately gravitated towards Azriel and of course wrote a blurb? one shot? About him and an oc. Her name is Ori, short for Aurora and she is the bastard child of Mr. Archeron. I picture her resembling Carmen Solomons the South African model. This thing in my head was inspired by the tiktoker ShannBailee. There's a video of her husband washing her hair and it was so sweet and beautiful to watch that I had to write something involving Azriel. I'm rambling. Enjoy.

Word Count: 3043

When Ori and Azriel decide to stay inside for date night, the Shadowsinger proposes a question that catches his mate off guard. 

“Can I wash your hair?” 

I stop detangling my hair turning to look at Azriel. He gazes down at me, honey brown eyes burning bright under faelight. I swallow, blinking slowly and open my mouth to answer, but the words die on my tongue. Azriel was well aware of my hair washing routine and often left me alone, not wanting to intrude on the vigorous and lengthy regimen I curated. Sometimes he would stay with me if we were deep in conversation, watching me detangle and coat my hair with various conditioners and hair masks. But wash my hair? The question caught me off guard. 

His mouth twitches, a faint smile appearing on his face. I realize I'm gawking at him and close my mouth, shaking my head. A flush creeps up my face and I turn back to the mirror playing with my ends. A trickle of cool air whispered against my skin. Black shadows grazes my shoulders in attempts to get my attention. I glance at Azriel through the mirror where he lounged on the bed, leaning back on his hands, legs spread. He blinks at me, tilting his head to the side waiting patiently for my answer.

“You want to?” I breathe. 

Azriel gave a nod, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees, hands dangling in between his legs. 

“Are you sure?” 

Azriel chuckles quietly. “Yes. I’m sure.”  

I stare at him for a long moment before nodding my head. “Okay.” I note the way his eyes gleam with mirth, but don't comment. “I’m almost done detangling my hair. I’ll set up the bath when I’m done.” 

Azriel rose from the bed, walking to the vanity. He places his cold hands on my shoulders and bent down kissing the exposed skin. “You sit and finish with your hair. I’ll set up.” 

“Wait,” I say, holding his hand before he left. “You don’t know what products I use. I can show you—”

“I’ve seen you wash your hair several times.” 

“But—” 

Azriel brings my hand to his lips, kissing my skin. “I can figure it out, Ori.”

I watch him walk to the bath and after a few moments the sound of running water fills the room. I turn to the mirror returning to the section I was at and scoop a considerable amount of product into my hands, rubbing them together. I start from my scalp and run my hands down to my ends then comb my fingers through my curls making sure I remove all the knots. I crane my neck using my enhanced hearing to listen to what Azriel was doing in the bath, but his damn shadows. I can’t hear anything. 

“I can feel you staring.” Amusement laces his tone. I can feel it through our bond. I fix my posture responding to the bond feeling bashful. Azriel chuckles quietly and I smile fondly focusing on detangling my hair. 

+ 

The aroma of apples and water lily filled the air when I ease the door open. I peer around the door and find Azriel sitting on a stool hunched over with his hand in the water testing out the temperature. Bottles and jars of my hair products line the stone ledge of the bath along with a wide-tooth comb. I linger by the doorframe in awe of the set up. From my favourite candle lit on the other side of the bath, the light blue ceramic pitcher, to the goblet of red wine—when did he get wine, I thought in disbelief. 

“I told you I’d figure it out.” Azriel spoke. 

“How did you—” I struggle to find the words. Azriel smiles, big enough for his dimples to make an appearance, one very few got to see. 

He rose to his feet strolling toward me. I take a step back to look up at him, his large stature overwhelming my pixie-like height. Azriel takes my hand in his leading me toward the bath. He stops right in front of the pool of water and I admire the pungent fumes of apples and water lily.  

“Wow,” I gasp, gazing up at Azriel. “This is just—wow.” 

“The water is at the temperature you like.” 

I gaze up at Azriel lost for words at his attention to detail and begin to unwrap my silk robe. Azriel helps me out of the garment and assists me into the tub. I instantly sigh the moment my body descends into the water. It was the perfect temperature. Azriel sits on the stool beside the bath, thick, long legs spread open to accommodate his large size. 

I turn my body to the side, placing my forearms on the ledge of the bath gazing warmly at him. 

My stomach feels like it's full of butterflies fluttering around. I've always known Azriel was observant but this was…everything. Azriel picks up the light blue ceramic pitcher dipping it in the water, lifting it out when it was full. I wait for him to pour the water but he pauses for a moment leaning forward, placing a gentle kiss on my forehead. My heart hums at the loving gesture. To the outside world, Azriel was distant and cold, observing the world from the outside looking in. But when it was only the two of us, he was gentle and loving; affectionate and doting.  

I face forward, sitting upright in the warm bath with my arms wrapped around my shins, gazing at the rippling water. Warm water trickles down my head splashing back in the bath. I feel my long cinnamon red curls flatten along my back as Azriel fills the pitcher again, pouring water on my head in efforts to rinse out all the product in my hair. He repeats the motion again and again, running his scarred fingers through my hair, kneading my scalp to get the leftover product. I watch him in silence as he worked, my mind buzzing like a bee. 

“What’s going on in that pretty little head of yours?” 

I watch Azriel pick up a bottle of cleansing shampoo, pouring the smooth paste into the palm of his hand. He rubs his hands together until bubbles form. I turn around to face him, holding the ledge and he combs his fingers through my hair kneading my scalp.  

“Nothing. It’s just…” I sigh as he began to scratch all around my head. My eyes nearly roll back to my skull at the pleasurable feeling. I am quiet for a couple of minutes revelling in pampering. Azriel stops to add more shampoo. “Why do you want to wash my hair? We could’ve done anything else for date night.”

Azriel lathers the soap onto the back of my head. A slight frown puckers between his brows in concentration. I bite back a smile, admiring his features. The elegant slope of his straight nose and refined tip, his high cheekbones and chiseled jaw. The way he bites his lower lip when he is lost in thought or a task. Light freckles dusted over his nose, giving him a boyish, youthful look, I always adored. 

“I don’t know…” he mumbles, lifting a shoulder. “I just wanted to do it.”

Azriel was a man of few words and it was an issue in our relationship we constantly worked on. I found it difficult to open up to people, even my sister Feyre sometimes when things became too much. But with Azriel it was much more than not talking about things. He kept it all bottled inside and I want him to feel safe enough to let whatever was going on in his head, out. It took us both a while to get comfortable enough to communicate our feelings. It didn’t mean we didn’t struggle with it daily. 

I stare up at him with round eyes. Azriel fills the pitcher with water pouring it over my head to rinse out the shampoo. He blinks at my silence peering down at me and I lean forward resting my chin on my arms, waiting for the rest of his answer. He gazes at me, golden brown eyes trailing over my face and hair. I lift my head feeling uncertain about what he was looking at and thinking about. Reassurance pulled on my heart, rippling through the bond. 

“How do you use this all the time?” he asks, referring to the pitcher. 

“I usually dunk my head in the water to rinse my hair. Using the pitcher all the time would take way too long.” 

Azriel chuckles quietly setting the pitcher back on the ledge. I giggle turning to the front and ease down to my elbows, tilting my head back submerging my long hair in the water. Balancing on my right elbow, I used my left hand to knead the remaining shampoo in my scalp out. A flush crept up my chest and the back of my neck feeling Azriel’s intense stare on my body. The water, though sudsy, barely covered my nakedness. I arch my back more and my chest hovers out of the water, the cool chill prickling my nipples to hard peaks.   

I swish my head from side to side before sitting up, feeling the warm water trickle down my back. Azriel’s eyes flickers up to my face at the last second. His eyes darkening and I can feel his desire reverberating through the bond. 

“What?” I ask softly, feigning innocence. 

Azriel licks his lower lip. “Turn around.” 

From the corner of my eye, I notice the gold goblet of wine. “Wait,” I said reaching for the glass. “I can’t forget about this.”

I sit on my backside holding the stem of the glass between my fingers. I take a sip of the cool red wine humming in content at the acidic and sweet tangy taste bursting in my mouth. Azriel scoops up my long hair, wringing out the excess water before letting it hang over the edge of the bath. He opened up a jar of my conditioner scooping out what I hoped wasn’t a considerable amount based on the size of his hands and runs his fingers through my hair. 

I sink deeper into the bath letting the water reach just above my chest as he repeats the motion, evenly distributing the product so that no strand is left untouched. Azriel rearranges himself on the stool grabbing the wide tooth comb on the ledge and sections my hair into four. I feel him hold the first section in his hands and the scraping of the comb against my ends. He combs my hair from the ends to my scalp, untangling any knots I may have missed when detangling my hair prior. 

We fall into our usual comfortable silence. Azriel taking his time to comb through each section of my hair and I sipping leisurely on the glass of wine. I never gave much thought on how intimate the act of washing someone’s hair was. The gentle attention and appreciation for your mate. The trust and vulnerability.

My stubbornness gets the best of me. I'm still not satisfied with Azriel’s answer. 

My mate kisses my temple breathing deeply and I lean into his touch before turning back around to face him. Azriel takes the goblet of wine out of my hand setting it down on the ledge and inclines forward nuzzling his nose against mine. I gaze up at him waiting for his next move. Azriel closes the distance between us, pressing his full soft lips against my own. My eyes flutter close, smiling into the kiss knowing he couldn’t go five minutes without touching me in some way. He pulls away not before kissing me again, this one quicker than the last. His hand lay on my knees rubbing small circles on my skin while the other grabbed the pitcher again, filling it up to pour water on my head. 

I play with his fingers, softly trailing my fingers against the intricate designs of his marred skin. It took some time to be able to touch his hands without feeling sadness through ripple through our bond. It was still an adjustment but slowly and surely, he was learning to like the scars. 

“Az,” I spoke. 

“Mm?” 

“Why did you really want to wash my hair?” 

Azriel pours the water on my head again and shrugs. I almost zap him with my powers. Sensing my impatience, a faint smile ghosts his lips. I open my mouth to protest but he speaks. 

“I watch you do your hair all the time,” he begins filling the pitcher with water.  “And I love how much time and effort you put into your routine.” I kiss his palm coaxing him to continue. “I’ll admit though, sometimes when you talk about your hair products and a new regimen you came up with, I’m looking at you, nodding my head as if I understand what you’re talking about but honestly, I don’t. I’m not listening.” He laughs when I squeeze his hand at the confession. Azriel pause and looks at me. “It’s not because I don’t want to,” he explained. “It’s because I can’t stop admiring you. Your hair is your expression, creativity, your freedom and I want to completely immerse myself in that part of you.”

Azriel returned to his task as if he said something so casual it didn’t require much thought. I shake my head. 

“Gods, you’re so frustrating.” 

Azriel stopps mid-pour. My response catching him off guard. 

“Why?” He frowned.

I scoff. “Because how could you be any more perfect.” 

Azriel rolls his eyes and continues to pour, shaking his head. “I’m not perfect,” he said flatly. 

I hold his other wrist, halting his movements and bring his arm down. I gaze in his beautiful hazel eyes. “You are to me,” I say strongly. “You’re perfect and thoughtful and loving and—” Azriel cuts me off with his lips on mine.  

I giggle leaning away from him, smiling when he purrs, chasing my lips. I indulge him closing the distance. The kiss deepens, Azriel licking into my mouth. My heart stutters at the fierceness of the kiss. Passion and devotion thrums through our bond as Azriel brings his hand up the back of my head, curling his fingers through my wet hair. I lean forward fisting his black shirt in my wet hands, desperate to feel his body against mine. A low groan escapes his lips sensing my desire and Azriel nips my bottom lip pulling away.

“You might take back those words when I’m done with your hair.” He breathed against my lips, amusement in his tone.

I grin. “So far you’re doing well for someone who doesn’t listen when I’m talking about my hair care routine.” Azriel growls playfully and the sound sent vibrations between my legs to my core. He leans back, the tips of our nose touching. 

“That’s all you took from what I told you?” He spoke lowly, carefully. 

“Yup.” I respond cheerfully, pulling away.

Azriel smiles, kissing my cheek before asking me to dip my head in the water again. 

“I think we should think about your hair care regimen.” I muse, rinsing my hair out. It feels so silky and smooth against my fingers. Azriel hums a response, pulling strands of hair out the comb. “Yes, so you can stop using my shampoo.” I arch my brow knowingly at him. His hair has been smelling like pears and roses lately. 

He grins, white teeth shiny and straight; dimples indenting his cheeks. It takes my breath away. 

“What do you suggest?” 

I sit up treading my hands through the soapy water. The tips of my fingers tingles with power surging through them. The soap in the water faded away becoming fresh and clean. I manipulate the temperature of the water making it a little hotter. Steam soon wafts in the air. Leaning back on my elbows again, I purse my lips in thought.  

“A hair mask to lock in moisture. Flying dries out your hair,” I say. “Oh, and there’s this conditioner for wavy hair I saw at the market the other day.” Azriel rinses his hands in the water and combs his wet hands through his dark hair. I sit up observing him. “Other than that, I just think you need a haircut.” 

“I thought you liked my hair.” 

I do like it. I love it actually. He had grown it out, thick waves falling just above his shoulders. I was accustomed to his low taper fade, thick waves falling above his hazel eyes. Long hair somehow made him look older, despite his boyish looks. I love playing with his hair when he snuggles up against my chest or helping him put half his hair in a bun before training. But I miss his short hair. 

“I do!” I promise, sitting up on my bottom. “But any longer and you’ll look like Cassian.” 

Azriel tips his head back and laughs. I join rising to my knees, reaching up to card my fingers through his hair moving the strands of hair that fell over his face.

“I’m done,” he said, golden eyes trailing down my exposed body, drinking me up. I shiver at his intense stare. He drags his gaze up to my face looking into my eyes and I wrap my arms around his neck pulling him close. Azriel’s arms envelopes around my small figure, not caring I am wet. 

“Thank you,” I murmur in his ear. 

Azriel pulls away reaching a scarred hand up to caress my cheek. I lean into his touch and his cool finger brush my lips. I take the tip of his thumb into my mouth, biting softly. Azriel’s eyes darkens and desire thrums through the bond. He lowers his lips to mine in another deep kiss. His lips were warm and soft, parting slightly allowing my tongue to slip inside. I press into him feeling his heartbeat against my chest. Azriel sucks on my tongue eliciting a whimper from my lips. He pulls away, breathing deeply against my lips. 

“You’re welcome, baby.” 

[moonydustx]

can you do an imagine where reader and pedro bring there newborn to the last of us set to meet everyone

Hey! First of all, from the bottom of my heart, I apologize for the delay. Life has been tough, but I'm getting back to writing now. I hope you like it and if you have more requests, I'll do my best to answer them. I adapted the idea a little, hope you don't mind.

masterlist | requests here

Fears and Monsters

Pairing: Pedro Pascal x F!Reader

Warnings: You are the parents of a baby, mentions of the clickers, no spoilers for the series.

With a visit to The Last of Us set, you find out a little more about your daughter's fears.

Translations: Amor - Love / Princesa - Princess

No beta and english is not my native language, so please be nice!

Aurora's little legs were bouncing restlessly as soon as you got her out of the safety seat, if she could talk she would surely be thanking the heavens, a short four hour drive seemed like an eternity for a five month old baby.

The weekend was too boring, Pedro had spliced ​​some footage, which made him not see you for a little more than a week. You had talked to Neil, asking for a little time to visit the set and as he already knew who would be your companion, he accepted immediately.

"No way!" Bella's voice, still dressed as Ellie, echoed before you could actually see they. "I can't believe you two came."

"Just a quick visit, we couldn't stay home any longer." you replied, already handing little Aurora into Bella's arms, who seemed to be more anxious than the baby.

"And you... You've grown!" your daughter's laugh when she was squeezed by Bella made you laugh together, your presence already attracted some looks. "Are we going to find your old man?"

"Please." you asked, following the path. "How has the reshoots been?"

"Very calm. Well, they are simpler scenes, in Jackson, there is very little left to finish."

"This is great, I heard you saw a giraffe these days."

"My God! You should have seen it, she was so beautiful and calm, I swore their necks weren't even that huge."

"Pedro was also impressed, I needed to hear about it for a few days." even though Bella held Aurora tight, you kept a close eye. "I confess that maybe I got a little jealous."

A few meters walked and you were already entering Jackson's set. Most of the things there were practical effects, the little wooden houses, the horses in the stable. A handsome man in a shabby plaid flannel with disheveled hair. You could swear that the environment became even brighter when you saw him smile in your direction.

"My girls!" he came towards you, giving you a hug that took your feet off the ground. You could feel him bury his face in your neck and smell your perfume. "I missed you, amor."

"We miss you too." you replied as soon as he released you. It only took seconds for him to take Aurora from Bella's arms and shower her with kisses, barely pausing to breathe. Aurora was in that adorable phase where every gesture was a reason to laugh.

"You look so beautiful, my sweetheart." Pedro had entered a universe of his own, lost in love with his own daughter. "What do you think about taking a walk with Dad?"

"And then he says he's not a silly daddy." Bella commented to you, who immediately agreed, but it didn't go unnoticed by him.

"I'm not. She's just too cute." you could have sworn Pedro would melt right there when he saw the little girl put her little hands under his cheeks. "See? She agrees with me."

"This time we let it go." you replied, still with a silly smile watching the two. "So, shall we go for a walk?"

"Sure. Let's go see Jack!" Pedro reached out one of his hands, taking yours and giving it a quick kiss.

You and Bella followed him, laughing at all his excitement. Jack, whoever he was, seemed miles away, as Pedro made a point of stopping and saying hello with Aurora to everyone along the way.

When you get close to one of the stables in the scenario, you finally understand that it was Jack. A completely brown and beautiful horse that was there. Bella went ahead and called him, Jack with meek steps placed himself at the edge of the fence.

"Look princesa, a horse. Just like in that book daddy showed you." Pedro approached and you can see Aurora's face close. Foreseeing what would happen, you moved even closer to the horse. "Don't be afraid, my love, it's just a pet."

"Look at Mommy." you got her attention by petting Jack. He promptly licked your face, making you laugh. "See? Want to try?"

Pedro barely took her little hand and it was enough for Aurora to show the power of her lungs. The cry echoed throughout the set, making Pedro immediately move to the opposite side of the horse.

You even thought about going to him and trying to help calm her down, but you were no match for Pedro, who managed to calm her down just by talking to her. Since the little girl was born, he had taken that role for himself.

"Okay, someone really doesn't like horses." Bella spoke, petting Jack. "Maybe she likes Olivier."

"Who is Olivier?" you walked towards Pedro and Aurora's cry was no longer heard.

"10 bucks she won't cry with Olivier." Bella arrived announcing, attracting Pedro's worried look.

"20 bucks for you not to make that up." he replied, with the little girl lying on his shoulder.

"30 bucks to see him from afar."

"What do you think amor?" Pedro turned to you, who shrugged.

"I have no idea who it is."

"You promised that when she came we would show her." Bella interrupted, thrilled to see Pedro relent.

You made your way back to the inner area of ​​the set and it didn't take long for you to understand what it was all about.

"You are not going to show my daughter a zombie." you made a move to pick her up, but the little one remained firm in her father's arms.

"Only from afar." Pedro warned, turning his daughter to face Olivier. "I promise if I see her threaten to cry, we're out of here."

"Aurora, look over there." Bella tried to get her attention, she seemed to understand exactly what they were saying.

Aurora glanced in Olivier's direction and then at her own father, babbling something. The little eyes, still red from crying, no longer had any tears. Again she turned to the man who was made up and pointed her little hand, trying to reach.

"I think... Hold on a second." Pedro took a few more steps towards Olivier.

At that point, everyone around was already paying attention to the girl's reaction, who still looked curious. A few more steps and you were around Olivier, who, despite his hideous make-up, was looking curiously at the girl.

"She's definitely not afraid of him." Neil, who accompanied the recording, said in surprise.

Aurora cooed excitedly and stretched out both small hands towards the man who was dressed as a clicker. He lowered himself to her height and she started to play with him, trapping her little hands on the ends of the makeup she had made.

"No way!" Bella mumbled as disbelieved as the two of you.

"She hates horses…" you started, still baffled by her toothless smile.

"And she loves Olivier" Pedro's voice was as surprised as yours.

"Unbelievable!" Neil placed himself between the two, asking permission to take Aurora in his arms, which, as he was even closer to Olivier, he accepted immediately. "Hi Miss Pascal. Do you want to play with the clicker? Oh dear, Uncle Neil will get you a job next season."

"Unbelievable." Pedro muttered, still disbelieved. "Did you see? My little girl isn't afraid of zombies."

"That she certainly didn't get from me." You watched Neil distract Aurora with the rest of the staff dressed up as infected.

"My fearsome." Pedro caressed your chin, stealing a quick peck from your lips. "You made my day, coming here, bringing our girl."

"Too bad we're already going home." You said, just to tease him, but you saw his smile disappear immediately. "By home, I mean room 42 of a certain hotel near here."

It took a few seconds for him to understand, which drew a sincere laugh from you.

"Are you staying all week?"

"Yes, my love, we couldn't take the longing anymore." he didn't hesitate to hold you in a hug, distributing several kisses, just like he did when he saw Aurora.

"Well, then I guess Aurora would love to meet all the other Olivier's in the series."

[jerzwriter]

A chat with Sienna...

Book: Open Heart (Book 2 Timeline) Characters: Tobias Carrick x Casey - eventually 😊, Sienna Trinh Rating: Teen Warnings: Mentions of PTSD, panic attacks, nightmares Words: 2,300 Series Summary: Can be found here. Chapter Summary: Tobias is there for his friend Casey when she's struggling months after the chemical attack. During a visit, he has the chance to talk to Casey's best friend. (This text fic is a lead into this chapter.) A/N: I decided to mesh the "With Warning" fics into the existing fics from the start of Tobias & Casey's relationship. The Fine Print would take place shortly after this fic, and the next installment of "With Warning" will be a conversation with Aurora after the events of The Fine Print.

With Warning Masterlist Tobias x Casey Masterlist || My Full Masterlist

There was nothing delicate about the knock on her bedroom door. Bold and a little too loud, some would say it wasn’t unlike the man knocking. Pushing her weighted blanket off with vexation, Casey left the comfort of her bed with a sigh. It was nice of him to stop by, but... She looked down at her ratty, old t-shirt that hadn’t been changed in two, maybe three days, and her pink flannel Snoopy pajama bottoms had been on just as long. Despite her sour mood, she almost smiled; she was about to make one hell of an impression.

Shuffling to the door in stockinged feet, she considered rescinding her invitation. But the aroma of shrimp Pad Thai was too seductive. He noticed she thought, she never told him her favorite Thai dish, but he must have been paying attention.

Tobias was about to knock again when he heard a gentle thud when Casey leaned against the door before opening.

“This is your last chance; you can make a run for it.”

Amused, he lifted the bags as if she could see them.

“But I’ve got food?”

“You could leave it at the door, I’d even Venmo you a tip... pretend you’re the delivery guy.”

“You know,” he snickered. “I have seen movies that start off like that...”

That did it. It might have been a tiny laugh, but it was a laugh nonetheless, and Casey had been devoid of laughter for some time.

“I’ll bet you have,” she said, mindlessly running her fingers over the slide lock.

“All right, this is your last chance, kid! If you open the door, you get me and food; if not, I walk... but the food comes with me. What’s it gonna be?”

Casey cracked the door open and peered at her guest. “Don’t say you haven’t been warned," she kicked the door open, and Tobias eagerly entered.

While she had one of the biggest bedrooms in the tiny garden apartment, it was still rather small, and Tobias couldn’t figure out where to put the food.  

“You sure you don’t want to eat in the kitchen? I mean, there’s a table there,” he grinned.

Casey shot him a look as she pulled a flat sheet from her closet and spread it over a tiny spot on her bedroom floor.

“You’ve never had a picnic, Carrick?”

He sank to the floor and spread the food out like a smorgasbord and Casey sat sullenly before him. “It was nice of you to come,” she said, grabbing a steamed dumpling.

“It’s my pleasure,” he stated, his eyes catching hers. “Of course, I know you’re just using me for the food.”

Normally, that would have earned a sarcastic reply or at least a little chuckle, but today, she flatly retorted, “You’re on to me.”

They ate in relative silence, Tobias leaning his back against the wall and Casey cross-legged as they scooped down ku chai, tod mun pla, and som thum tua. She began to wonder if he had known her favorite dish after all; perhaps he just ordered the entire menu. Either way, she was content, and when they were both sufficiently stuffed, Tobias began to clean up, stopping Casey when she tried to help him.

“Clean-up duty is on me today, princess. You just relax. Do you want your ice cream now?"

"So, saving the ice cream for later," he chuckled.

After placing the leftovers in the fridge, he returned to Casey's room and found her sitting on the edge of her bed, picking at a ragged cuticle as she stared blankly ahead.

 “Would you like to talk?” He asked as he sat in an easy chair in the corner of the room.

“Not now,” she muttered.

“I brought my laptop; we could watch a movie if you like.”

She turned to him with a forced half-smile. “Maybe later.”

“All right,” he replied, pulling a book from his bag. “I told you, you don't have to say a word at all. But I'm here if you need me."

He flipped through the pages, and Casey, who hadn’t been showing interest in much, she suddenly wanted to know what Tobias was reading. He could feel the weight of her stare but pretended he didn't. She'd talk when she was ready, and when curiosity got the better of her, she asked. “What are you reading?”

Tobias held the book up for her to see. “Homeland Elegies.”

“Is it any good?”

“Not sure,” he shrugged. “I just started it. But it was on my buddy Barrack’s best books of 2020 list, so I’m confident I’ll like it.”

“Hmmm. You and Obama are on a first name basis now.”

“Well, duh,” he snorted.

“Maybe I can borrow when you’re done.”

“Do you want to read along with me now?” he asked.

“No,” she said, still no inflection in her voice. “Not now.”

Closing the book, he looked at her thoughtfully. “How much did you sleep last night?

“Sleep,” she chortled. “What’s that?”

He tilted his head, awaiting an answer.

“Three, four hours tops... it’s just hard... it’s... the nightmares.”

Tobias leaned forward, and Casey couldn’t miss the concern etched on his face. “The nightmares have started up again?”

“Just this week," she nodded. "Ever since I had another panic attack. Some of them make sense, like I’m back in that hospital room, alone, and the plastic sheeting starts to smother me... others are more abstract... like I’m in a dark room, and I hear these terrifying screams, but no matter what I do, I can’t find a light... I can’t find the person screaming, and I can’t make it stop. I wake up in sweat, and there’s no going back to sleep.”

“Have you told your therapist?”

She shook her head. “They started after our last session, but I’ll be sure to tell her this week.”

“Good,” he replied. “She’ll be able to help.”

“Tobias,” she said, her voice so soft and broken that it sounded more like a frightened little girl than the confident young woman she had become. “I just feel like... like I’m failing.”

“Failing?” He asked, brow furrowed. “How?”

“The attack was two months ago now; everyone's moving on, the world’s moving on... and I was doing better... you know I was... and look at me now. I'm a fucking mess. I feel like I’m right back where I started.”

“Casey. You experienced an extremely traumatic event, and two months is nothing. You’re doing great.”

“I thought I was. I was progressing, but the world is so damn dark again, and I feel like a failure.”

“Hey,” he moved closer and placed a hand on her knee. “Look at me. You are not a failure. Do you understand? Casey, progress isn’t a straight line, and setbacks are a normal part of recovery. Be gentle with yourself. I promise you, the sun will come out again; you won’t be in the darkness forever.”

“I want to believe that," she sniffled. "But right now... I can’t.”

“You don’t focus that far ahead. You just keep doing the work and get through the moment. I’ll believe for you until you can do it on your own because there is no doubt in my mind that you’ll get there.”

Casey took a deep breath and closed her eyes; when she opened them, she had the faintest of smiles on her lips.

“If I take a nap, would you stay?” She asked.

“Of course.”

“I’d like to shower first, though.”

“Yeah,” he chortled. “That might be a good idea.”

“Wow. Really?” she chided.

“Hey, tell me...” he teased. “When’s the last time you did?”

“Shut up,” she smirked, grabbing clean pajamas from her drawer. She stopped and ran her hands over the soft fleece, appearing to be deep in thought. “I really appreciate all you do for me, even when I can't show it. I hope you know that.”

“I do,” he smiled. “I'm happy to be here for you, Casey. Now go take that shower.”

“All right,” she grinned, and for the first time since he arrived, it was a genuine smile.

Once she was gone, he brought the leftovers to the kitchen. He could hear Casey and Sienna’s muttered voices at the end of the hall and picked up his pace to give them privacy, but as he returned to Casey’s room, Sienna turned away from the bathroom door, her cautious optimism morphing into absolute glee. Grabbing Tobias's arm, she pulled him toward Casey's room.

"You did it!" She beamed the moment the door closed behind them. "We've been trying to get her in the shower for days, and she wouldn’t budge. But you’re here less than an hour, and ... viola! I’m amazed!"

"Thanks,” he shrugged. "But I didn't do anything special. I just..."

A wave of the tiny but mighty woman's hand brought him to silence. "I know you're not the humble type, Tobias. So do me a favor and spare me the false modesty. Casey will be in there in ten minutes, tops, and I need your help here.”  

"Here?" He raised a brow. "In her bedroom?"

"Yes. I haven’t been able to get her to shower or change her bedding all week. You can help me with the bedding.”

“You sure that’s smart? I mean, you’re her best friend. I’m not sure she'd want me poking around her bed, you know?”

“What do you mean?” Sienna snickered. "I am her best friend, so I know where the toy drawer is. You don't have to worry about finding any under her bed."

"That's NOT what I meant!" he blurted, and Sienna took delight in his astonishment.

“I know,” she threw a comforter his way. “I'm teasing you.”

Tobias decided to focus on the task at hand, and they quickly changed the sheets and blankets. When Sienna fluffed Casey’s pillows, she stopped to watch Tobias tucking the bedding in so it was just right, and she felt her heart warming. 

“Tobias, can I be honest with you?"

"Of course."

"I was jealous of you right after the attack.”

“Of me? Why?”

“Because I’m Casey’s best friend, and she was rebuffing me and latching on to you.”

“But that wasn't anything against you. Casey was just dealing with... a lot, and it was easier to be around someone who was kind of an outsider like me. She was too afraid to let you down - it was nothing personal."

“I know that. That’s why I took a step back. Casey's well-being was all that mattered. She needed someone, and she had you. I want to thank you for everything you've done for her.”

“You don’t have to thank me,” he said with a wave of his hand. “I’m happy to help. If anything, I want to thank you.”

“Me?” Sienna asked. “Why?”

Tobias returned to the chair, pausing momentarily to choose his words.

“When Casey and I became friends again, after the attack... most of her friends all but threatened me. Actually, some did threaten me. And I understand why... given our history, there was reason to question my motives. I’m not stupid. But not you... you always made me feel welcome, and I appreciate it.”

“I just try to focus on the bright side,” she shrugged. “I saw you the night of the attack; no one can fake that level of worry and concern. It was clear how much you cared for her. I chose to give you the benefit of the doubt, but I have been watching you... I’ve watched you like a freaking hawk... and if I had seen the slightest reason to doubt you, I would have swooped in like you were an injured squirrel I planned to devour for lunch!”

“You know... you’re starting to scare me.”

“Good!” Sienna smiled. “But you never gave me a reason to worry. You’ve been nothing but helpful and kind, and it means so much to me.”

“Well, thank you for saying that. I promise you, Sienna, I’d never take advantage of her. I’d never hurt again. You have my word.”

Sienna grabbed a pillow from Casey’s bed and held it close against her chest. “I believe you,” she smiled. “Do you love her, Tobias?”

The tender moment changed in an instant when Tobias jerked into an upright position, his eyes as wide as if that hawk was swooping down for him after all.

“What?” he gasped. “Love? No! No... it’s not like that... we’re friends! I told you I want to help her. I’m not trying to get her into bed or anything! You have to....”

“Relax,” Sienna interrupted. “I’m not accusing you of anything sordid. I’m asking you if you love her.”

Tobias shifted uncomfortably, and Sienna was devastated that she wouldn't be able to share these delightful details with Casey later. The great Dr. Carrick sputtering like a child caught with their hand in a cookie jar... no, she'd save this story for her wedding toast instead.

“I care about Casey.. very much, but no, no... it’s not love...it’s not....”

“OK,” Sienna said matter-of-factly; her words attempted to put him out of his misery, but she couldn't wipe away that smirk.

“What?” he asked defensively.

“Oh, nothing,” she sang. “But you seem to forget what I told you... I have been watching Tobias. And I see everything.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he demanded, but Sienna was already heading toward the door.

“Nothing. You’re free to join me in the living room until Casey’s done.”

Giving up on the conversation, Tobias picked up his book and got comfortable in the chair. “I’m good here... Varma’s inside, and... she scares me a little.”

“She scares everyone a little,” Sienna concurred. “You read, but I’m right down the hall if you need anything.”

“I appreciate it,” he nodded. “Oh, and Sienna, there is a ton of leftover Thai in the fridge. Feel free to have some.”

“That sounds great! I think I will.”  

“Oh, just one thing... don't eat the shrimp Pad Thai. That's Casey's favorite. I'd like her to have it when she's ready for a midnight snack."

"It is her favorite," Sienna said, her smile stretching ear to ear. "I wouldn't dream of touching it. And Tobias..." she said, slowly closing the door as she left.

"Yes?"

"Remember... I see everything."

If you're new to their story and want to read the next part as I fill in the gaps, you can read The Fine Print. Thanks so much for reading!

@choicesficwriterscreations @openheartfanfics

Tagging others separately.

[chrisstvrns]

𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐥𝐞𝐟𝐭 𝐦𝐞: 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐨𝐧𝐞 | 𝐜.𝐬.

warnings: unresolved angst, secret pregnancy, breakup, abandonment, decision of being a single mother, please let me know if i missed anything! 

word count: 3,333

part one | part two | part three | part four | part five | part six

oh, you were so excited. since you were a little girl you dreamed of being a mother. and when you started dating chris six years ago, you knew you wanted him to be there with you. you wanted to grow old with him, raise kids with him and watch your grandchildren grow up.

and now here you were, standing on the front porch of chris’ childhood home in boston, barely standing still as you anxiously yet excitedly fiddle with your rings. buried deep in your spacecamp wellness tote bag was the biggest secret, that in this moment, nobody besides you and God knew of. 

you had texted chris, telling him that you needed to talk. within seconds, he answered, agreeing with you. you didnt know what he needed to talk about, but you had to tell him. 

you knock on the door, the door immediately being opened by chris, who had a serious look on his face. you reach for his hands, gently taking them in yours. 

he gives you a weak smile, pulling you close as he kisses your forehead, leading you inside. you walk into the living room, flashing nick and matt a quickly smile as they hurry out of the room, odd looks on their faces as they leave you and chris alone to talk in the now quiet house, since his parents had gone out. 

“okay, so. i need to tell you something.” you reach for chris, who ignores your reaching arms, sitting next to you, a bit of a distance between you as he buries his face in his hands. 

you knew how he was. when chris got like this—quiet, tense, distant—it meant something was weighing heavy on his heart. something he’d been thinking about for a long time, probably rehearsing how to say it in his mind for days, if not weeks. your chest tightened as you watched him, his elbows propped on his knees, fingers threading through his hair like he was trying to steady himself.  

"chris?" your voice came out softer than you expected, your excitement from moments ago quickly being replaced by a gnawing pit of dread. you reached out again, but he didn't look at you. his silence said more than words ever could.  

he sighed, dropping his hands and finally meeting your eyes, and that look—God, that look—hit you like a punch to the stomach. his eyes, usually so warm and full of love, were clouded with guilt and something else you couldn’t quite place. regret, maybe.  

"i—" he started, then stopped, his jaw tightening. "i don’t even know how to say this." his voice cracked on the last word, and you could feel the tears welling up in your own eyes, unbidden, your throat tightening in response.  

"chris, just say it. whatever it is, we can figure it out, okay?" you tried to sound steady, but your voice wavered, betraying the panic clawing at your chest.  

he shook his head, leaning back and running his hands through his hair again. "i don’t think we can figure this out. that’s the thing," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.  

your stomach dropped.  

"what... what are you talking about?" you asked, even though you already knew. you needed him to say it, to rip the band-aid off, even if it would tear you apart.  

he looked at you then, really looked at you, and the pain in his eyes was almost unbearable. "i can’t do this anymore," he said finally, his words deliberate, each one cutting deeper than the last.  

your hands fell into your lap, your heart shattering into a million pieces. "what do you mean? you... you can’t do us anymore?"  

chris nodded, swallowing hard. "i’ve been thinking about this for a while," he admitted, his voice raw. "and i hate myself for it, but... i think it’s better if we end things now before we hurt each other more."  

"hurt each other?" you echoed, your voice trembling. "chris, what are you even saying? we’re not hurting each other. i love you."  

"and i love you too," he said quickly, his voice breaking. "but sometimes love isn’t enough. i feel like i’m holding you back, like i can’t give you what you deserve. you deserve someone who... who’s better at all of this than i am."  

you shook your head, tears streaming down your face. "that’s not true. you’re everything to me. why are you doing this?"  

he reached for your hand then, and you almost pulled away, but you couldn’t. even now, even as he was breaking your heart, you craved his touch.  

"because i don’t want to be the reason you lose yourself," he said, his voice steady now, like he’d convinced himself that this was the right thing to do. "i’ve seen it happen before, and i can’t let it happen to you. i love you too much for that."  

you opened your mouth to argue, to tell him he was wrong, that this was a mistake, but the words wouldn’t come. deep down, you could see that his mind was made up. the stubbornness that you loved about him was now the thing that would tear you apart.  

chris stood, his hand lingering on yours for a moment before he pulled away. "i’m so sorry," he whispered, his voice barely audible. "you have no idea how much this hurts me."  

“chris, stop. you.. you cant do this, not now..” you whisper, youre heart breaking as he stands up, beginning to walk away.

you softly chase after him, reaching for his arms, tearing streaming down your face. he faces you, gently taking your hands in his. 

“i love you, baby. so much. but im doing this because i love you. i see the hate you get from my fans, and it kills me. it kills me so fucking much knowing that i cant do anything to stop it, no matter how many things i say to them. "and that's why i can't let this keep happening," chris said, his voice cracking as he looked down at your hands in his, his thumbs brushing over your trembling fingers. "you don’t deserve any of this. you don’t deserve to feel like you have to fight for your place in my life. none of it’s fair to you."

your chest tightened, and the tears that had been threatening to fall finally spilled over. "but chris, i don’t care about any of that. the fans, the hate, the comments... none of it matters to me. you’re what matters. you’re the only thing that’s ever mattered."

he let out a sharp breath, his jaw tightening as he tried to hold back his own tears. "but it should matter, baby. you say it doesn’t, but i see it. i see how it wears on you. you’ve stopped posting your art, stopped sharing the things you love because you’re scared of what they’ll say. i see how you smile less. and i can’t... i can’t live with knowing that i’m the reason for that."

"you’re not the reason for it," you argued, your voice desperate, shaking. "those people don’t even know me, chris. they’re just looking for someone to blame because they can’t have you for themselves. that’s not on you. that’s on them."

he shook his head, his grip on your hands tightening. "it doesn’t matter if it’s on them. it’s still happening because of me. and the longer we stay together, the worse it’ll get. you think it’s bad now? it’s only going to get harder. i can’t stand the thought of you going through that for me."

you felt your knees weaken, like the weight of his words was pressing down on you, suffocating you. "but don’t you see, chris? you’re worth it. we’re worth it. i don’t care how hard it gets, i’ll fight for us. i’ll fight every single day if it means i get to keep you."

his eyes glistened with unshed tears as he looked at you, his expression torn between love and heartbreak. "and that’s what kills me the most," he whispered. "you shouldn’t have to fight for us. love isn’t supposed to be like this. it’s supposed to be easy, and safe, and full of joy. and i... i can’t give you that right now. not the way you deserve."

"you’re wrong," you said, your voice barely audible, your heart breaking with every word. "love is worth fighting for. you’re worth fighting for."

he gently starts walking you toward the door, the fight to not cry visible on his face "you don’t understand, baby. this is me fighting for you. this is me trying to protect you from everything that comes with loving me. i don’t want you to look back in a few years and resent me for all the pain you went through just to be with me."

"i could never resent you," you said, your voice firm despite the tears streaming down your face. "never. you’re everything to me, chris. please, don’t do this. don’t throw us away because of something we can get through together."

he closed his eyes, his head bowing like he couldn’t stand to see the pain in your eyes anymore. "i’ve already made up my mind," he said softly, and those words hit you like a knife to the chest. "this is the hardest thing i’ve ever had to do, but i’m doing it because i love you. because i want you to be happy, even if it’s not with me."

"you are my happiness," you cried, your voice breaking. "don’t you get that? you’re all i need."

"and you’re all i’ll ever love," he said, his voice heavy with finality. "but sometimes love isn’t enough."

he leaned in and kissed your forehead one last time, his lips lingering there as though he was trying to memorize this moment, to etch it into his memory forever. when he pulled away, you saw the tears streaming down his face, and it shattered you even more.

"i love you. im sorry" he whispered, his voice trembling as he softly pushed you out of his front door, his heart heavy with regret 

you stood there, frozen, your entire world crumbling around you as you watched him slam the door in your face. your hand instinctively went to your tote bag, clutching it like it was the only thing tethering you to reality. the secret you had been so excited to share—the little piece of him you were carrying, the piece of both of you—was now a weight you didn’t know how to bear alone.

"chris," you called out one last time, your voice a broken sob as you hoped he’d open the door again "please. the baby.." you whispered, your voice barely audible, a plea that hung heavy in the air.

but he didn’t say come back. he didnt open the door. you heard his footsteps get farther away, meaning hes going up to his bedroom, leaving you alone with nothing but memories of the past six years, the echo of his absence, and the secret you hadn’t been able to tell him. 

you stood there, staring at the door that had just closed in your face, your breath caught somewhere between a sob and a gasp. the cold, boston air of january nipped at your cheeks, but it didn’t register. all you could focus on was the weight in your chest, the ache that had settled there as you stared at the house in front of you.  

chris’ house. the house where it all began.  

your eyes drifted to the porch below you, the same porch where you’d sat together as kids, eating popsicles in the summer and talking about everything from your favorite cartoons to your wildest dreams. you remembered how he’d teased you about the way you always peeled the wrappers off your popsicle sticks, how his laughter had filled the air and wrapped around you like the warmest embrace.  

your gaze lingered on the window to the living room. you could almost see the two of you, years ago, sprawled out on the couch with a bowl of popcorn between you, arguing over which movie to watch. he always let you pick in the end, even when he pretended not to care about the cheesy rom-coms you loved so much.  

and the backyard… God, the backyard. you could still picture the two of you running around barefoot, him chasing you with water balloons until you tripped and fell into the grass, laughing so hard your stomach hurt. it was in that backyard where he’d kissed you for the first time, his lips brushing against yours so softly you thought you might’ve imagined it. but you didn’t. it had been real. and it had been everything.  

now, those memories felt like ghosts, haunting you as you stood there, clutching your tote bag like it was the only thing keeping you from falling apart completely. how could he do this? how could he shut the door on everything you’d built together? on all the years, all the love, all the promises whispered under the stars?  

your eyes drifted to his bedroom window, and your heart clenched. you remembered sneaking in and out of that room, climbing the trellis late at night when you just couldn’t stand being apart for another second. the way he’d pull you into his arms the moment you made it inside, his voice low as he whispered, “you’re crazy for doing this, you know that?” but his smile always told you he didn’t mean it.  

now, the window was dark. no light, no sign of him. just an empty, hollow void where he used to be.  

you took a shaky breath, your hand instinctively going to your stomach as the weight of your secret pressed down on you. how could you have been so excited just moments ago? how could you have thought this was going to be the happiest day of your life, when now it felt like your world was ending?  

tears blurred your vision, but you couldn’t bring yourself to move. you stood there, rooted to the spot, as if leaving would somehow mean letting go of everything. of him. of the life you’d imagined together.  

your mind replayed his words over and over, each one cutting deeper than the last. “i can’t do this anymore… you deserve better… this is me fighting for you…”  

you wanted to scream, to bang on the door until he opened it and let you in. until he saw that you were still standing there, ready to fight for him, for you, for everything you’d built. but you knew it wouldn’t change anything. his mind was made up.  

and so you stayed, your feet frozen to the porch as you stared at the house that held every memory you’d ever shared with him. the house that had once felt like home.  

but now, it felt like a stranger’s. cold, distant, and unreachable. just like him. 

yet, back in the house, chris was a wreck. he broke up with you. he was sitting on his couch, face buried in his hands as nick makes his way back downstairs 

“did you.. do it?” nick asks, sitting next to his brother. 

chris couldn’t bring himself to lift his head. his hands trembled as they covered his face, tears streaming through his fingers. he nodded weakly, barely able to get the words out.  

“yeah,” he whispered, his voice cracking. “i did it.”  

nick let out a low breath, leaning back against the couch as he crossed his arms. he didn’t say anything right away, just studied his brother with a mix of pity and frustration.  

“and how do you feel now?” nick finally asked, his voice cautious, careful not to push too hard.  

chris shook his head, his hands dropping to his lap as he stared blankly at the coffee table. “like shit,” he admitted, his voice raw. “like i just ripped my own heart out.”  

nick frowned, leaning forward, his elbows resting on his knees. “then why’d you do it? if it’s tearing you up this much, why push her away?”  

chris sighed, dragging his hands through his hair. “because she deserves better,” he said, his voice thick with emotion. “she deserves a life without the hate, without the constant pressure of being with someone like me. she says she’s fine, but i see it, nick. i see how it’s breaking her, and i can’t… i can’t keep doing that to her.”  

nick studied him for a moment, his brows furrowing. “and you think this is what’s best for her?”  

“yeah,” chris said, though his voice wavered, as if he wasn’t entirely sure himself. “i mean.. it has to be. right?”  

nick sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. “look, man, i get it. you think you’re protecting her, and maybe you are in some ways. but breaking her heart? breaking your own heart? that doesn’t sound like protection to me. it sounds like you’re running away.”  

“i’m not running away,” chris snapped, his voice rising before he quickly deflated, his shoulders slumping. “i’m not. i just.. i love her too much to keep putting her through this. i don’t want her to hate me one day because of all the shit that comes with being with me.”  

nick tilted his head, his expression softening. “and what if she never would? what if she meant it when she said you’re worth it?”  

chris shook his head, his eyes welling up with tears again. “it doesn’t matter. i made my decision. it’s done.”  

nick leaned back, letting out a long breath as he watched his brother unravel in front of him. “you’re stubborn as hell, you know that? but you’re also an idiot.”  

“thanks, nick,” chris muttered, his voice dripping with sarcasm.  

“no, seriously,” nick said, leaning forward again. “you’re sitting here, miserable as hell, and she’s probably out there feeling the same way. and for what? because you think you know what’s best for her? maybe—just maybe—you should’ve let her decide that for herself.”  

chris didn’t respond, his jaw tightening as he stared at the floor. nick sighed, standing up and giving his brother a pat on the shoulder.  

“you’re gonna regret this, chris,” nick said quietly, his voice laced with a mix of sympathy and frustration. “and when you do, I hope it’s not too late to fix it.”  

nick walked away, leaving chris alone on the couch, the silence of the house pressing down on him like a weight. he sat there for what felt like hours, replaying the moment he’d closed the door in your face, the sound of your voice—broken, desperate—echoing in his mind.  

“please. the baby…” 

the words hit him like a freight train, and he shot up from the couch, his heart racing.  

“the baby?” he whispered to himself, his mind scrambling to make sense of it. had he heard you right? had you really said…  

panic set in as the realization washed over him. if what you said was true, then he hadn’t just broken your heart—he’d walked away from something so much bigger, so much more important.  

without thinking, chris grabbed his keys and bolted out the door, his chest heaving as he searched the street for any sign of you. but you were gone.  

“damn it,” he muttered, running a hand through his hair as he paced the porch. he needed to find you. he needed to know if what you said was true, to explain himself, to tell you he’d made a mistake—a huge, life-altering mistake.  

but deep down, he feared it was already too late. 

he goes back into the house, now pacing his kitchen, periodically sipping from a can of pepsi. 

“could’ve jus’.. yeah, she could’ve just been callin’ me ‘baby’, i mean, she always did.. shes not.. theres no way, she cant be..” he rambles, running his hand through his hair, his whole body nearly shaking. 

you? you were already back home, crying your eyes out in bed as you held the test in your hand. were you really going to raise this baby on your own?

────────────୨ৎ────────────

a/n: nearly threw up writing this

- aurora ᯓ✮⋆˙

find other parts of this series here

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[parkerslatte]

Songbird || FOURTEEN

Eddie Roundtree x Fem!Reader

Warnings: none

Word Count: 2.9k

Part Summary: Y/N and Warren talk about what is bothering her and the Aurora sessions come to a close.

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TRACK FOURTEEN;

BALLROOM BLITZ

***

...

Y/N sat on the living room couch; the television in front of her wasn't showing anything of particular interest to her. The light filled the room, casting shadows onto the walls. Apart from the television, there was no noise in the house. Karen and Graham were out together somewhere, Eddie had left not long ago, giving a very awkward goodbye to Y/N, and she didn't know where Warren was. 

Y/N had a bottle of whiskey open next to her, and she occasionally took a swig, letting it burn down the back of her throat. She could be out partying right now, and instead, she was sitting alone on the couch, drawing her feelings in alcohol. Grabbing the bottle, Y/N took another swig, a longer one. 

"Woah, what are you doing here?" Warren questioned, walking into the living room. 

"Drowning my sorrows," Y/N says, "Care to join me?" She held the bottle of whisky. 

Looking like he was about to go out, Warren took the bottle out of her hand and took a swig before collapsing on the couch next to her. 

"You don't have yo stay, y'know," Y/N says, "You can go out."

Warren waved his hand, "Nah, I'd rather spend my time with you anyways."

Y/N smiled before taking another sip of the whisky and passing it back to Warren. 

"So, what's got you down?" Warren questions.

Y/N sighs and rests her head on the back of the couch, "Everything."

"Well, I'm here to hear all about it." Warren says, copying Y/N's actions. 

"I'm sure that you won't want to hear about most of it." Y/N says. 

"Why?" Warren chuckles, "It's not like you're screwing any of us."

Warren laughed, but Y/N didn't. When Warren noticed this, he turned to her; his laughter slowly faded, "You're not screwing any of us, right?"

Y/N pressed her lips into a thin line before taking the whiskey out of her hands and taking a long swig. Warren watched with a confused expression on his face.

"Who is it?" Warren presses, "Actually don't tell me, I don't want to know," He pauses, "Actually I want to know."

"For christ's sake, Warren, it's Eddie!" Y/N exclaimed. 

For some reason, telling someone gave Y/N a sense of clarity, and some weight crushing her was lifted.

"Wow," Warren says, "And to think if you screwed any of us, I would be the one."

Y/N chuckled and rested her head on Warren's shoulder. The two sat in silence for a while. The silence between them was comforting; she always felt at ease in Warren's presence. Despite all of Warren's flirty comments, she knew he never meant them. 

"So when did it start?" Warren questioned after a while, "You and Eddie?"

Y/N sighed, "Well it happened twice, once at that party just after Billy came back from rehab and then the day Billy and Camila moved out."

"So you're not screwing anymore?" Warren questioned.

"No," Y/N says, "After the first time we both agreed that it was a one time thing, then when it happened again, it changed everything."

"I did wonder why the two of you were acting weird with each other," Warren states, "How did it change everything?"

"Well he refused to even look at me," Y/N says, "He would avoid me constantly, he then met that girl and brought her back to the house."

"Oh shit that was the girl who looked like you!" Warren exclaimed, "She was dull."

"That's what Karen said." Y/N says, lifting her head from Warren's shoulder.

"So what else happened?" Warren asks, "Because you two seem pretty hostile with each other, you more to him."

"Well that party at Camila and Billy's he cornered me and wanted to talk about that night, finally after ignoring me for so long." Y/N says.

"Was that the night you were with that James guy?" Warren questions.

Y/N nods, "Yeah, he was quite dull."

Warren chuckles slightly, "Yeah, he was asking me all night about him, asking me about who he was and why he was with you. He barely paid any attention to his date."

Y/N pauses, thinking about Warren's comment for a while, "He came to find me that night and we had an argument," Y/N says, "He said that that night meant nothing to him and I said the same. After that we just kind of avoided each other."

"You seem to be holding back from something," Warren says, "You can tell me."

Sighing, Y/N reached over to the nearly empty bottle of alcohol, "We're going to need a lot more of this."

***

Y/N and Warren lay sprawled on the couch; Warren's vest was discarded, leaving his bare torso in the open. Y/N had also discarded her cardigan, leaving her in just her top and shorts. There was a nearly empty bottle of wine between the two, and the whisky bottle was empty on the floor next to the two.

"And then I told him to not talk to me." Y/N says, her voice beginning to slur. 

"Wait, wait, wait, so he tried to kiss you again that night?" Warren says.

"Yep," Y/N confirms, "At the album cover shoot he tried to apologise for it again, but I set him straight, I said that our friendship wasn't working out, that night really ruined everything."

"And that's how you ended up here?" Warren says.

"Yeah," Y/N says, "I could be out there screwing whatever guy I want and I'm sat here drinking my sorrows away."

Warren pauses, "Y/N, I'm going to say something but you have to not interrupt me, okay?"

Y/N furrowed her eyebrows, "What do you mean?"

Warren sighs, "You're leaving one thing out of this explanation, that fact that you fell in love with Eddie."

Y/N opened her mouth to protest, but Warren shook his head, "You promised you wouldn't interrupt. Now, I can't speak for Eddie but what I can say is that everything I've noticed about him is that he has been different since you've been around. He's been happier, he doesn't complain as much. You wouldn't be hurting this much if you didn't love him."

Y/N was silent; she didn't say a thing.

"Now I could be wrong, but I think you love Eddie and you are scared to admit it and I think he is in love with you." Warren says.

"I am in love with him." Y/N says, finally speaking. 

"Then tell him." Warren urged. 

"I can't," Y/N says, "Because if your hunch is wrong and he doesn't love me, then whatever friendship we ever had, no matter how small that is now, will be completely ruined and then that will make things awkward."

"But there is that chance that he does love you back," Warren says, pulling her into a hug, "And I'm sure that I'm right."

Y/N didn't respond; she only hugged Warren tighter. Everything he had said was true, and she hated that he could read her that well. Despite everything Warren had said, Y/N wasn't sure if she would tell Eddie. There was still a small slither that he didn't love her, and then she would mess things up even further. 

"You wanna know something?" Y/N says. 

"What?" Warren questions.

"Your future wife is going to be one lucky woman to have a guy like you." Y/N says.

Warren smiled before kissing Y/N's cheek, "And your future husband, maybe one we already know and love, is going to be a lucky man."

Y/N only offered Warren a small smile before resting her head on his chest. Thoughts continued swirling through her head, her eyes closed, and she drifted off into a dream-filled sleep, Warren following shortly after. 

***

Much later that night, when Eddie walked into the house, his hair was a mess, and his shirt was messed up; lipstick stains were present on his skin that he tried to wipe off, but they were still clearly visible. He sighed when he walked through the door, immediately kicking his shoes off and shrugging his jacket off. He didn't know how to feel. 

As he walked into the living room, he froze. There on the couch were Y/N and Warren. His heart stopped, but once he realised that they were both asleep, he sighed in relief; he didn't want to explain himself. 

As he walked past the two, his heart twisted. Y/N was asleep on Warren's bare chest while his arm was wrapped lazily around her shoulder. He only wished that he were in Warren's place. 

Walking past the two and into his room, Eddie collapsed onto his bed, not bothering to change. Thoughts were swarming around his head. Eddie needed a distraction, and he got one, but he wasn't exactly sure how much this distraction would impact his friendship. Sighing and turning over on his bed, Eddie let out a sigh. It was a problem for the next day.

***

When Y/N and Warren woke the following day, she recalled the previous night's conversation. A small ounce of weight was lifted from her chest, but most of the weight was still there.

"What I told you last night, can we keep that between us?" Y/N says.

"What conversation?" Warren questions and sends her a wink.

Y/N smiles before rubbing the sleep out of her eyes and heading into her room to get ready for the day. They were wanted at the studio again, this time early in the morning, and Y/N wasn't sure how many more early moringa she could take.

As she got ready and headed into the kitchen to make a quick breakfast before she left the house for the entire day, she bumped into Eddie, who was exiting his room. 

"Oh, hey." Y/N says.

Eddie only offered Y/N a tight-lipped smile before he walked down the hallway and out of sight. She heard the front door open and close, signalling that he had left the house. Y/N knew that she was the one that suggested that they just remain civil with one another, but after her conversation with Warren, she wanted to retract that statement. 

With a shake of her head, Y/N continued her route towards the kitchen to make breakfast. 

***

"You regret me and I regret you." 

As Billy walked into the studio, Daisy sang to Y/N, Karen, Warren and Graham, "You can't handle your liquor, and you can't seem to handle the truth. I'm a slippage in the system, and I'm perfectly ready to strike. So go ahead and regret me but I'm not easing up on this mic."

Daisy stands up with a piece of paper, "I wrote one for you this time."

Billy takes the paper and gives it a quick read, "This isn't going on the album."

"Why?" Daisy questioned.

"We agreed to write everything together."

"You wrote 'More Fun to Miss' without me, right? That's going on the album." Daisy replied.

"Yeah, well, this is different." Billy protested.

"Why?"

"Cause I say it is, that's why." Billy says, agitated.

"Like that's a reason that will hold up in court." Y/N mumbled.

"Show of hands," Daisy says, "Who thinks this song should go on the album?"

Y/N immediately raised her hand alongside Daisy's. Karen's hand raised not long after.

"It's a good song, Billy," Karen says, "Isn't that what we're all here for?"

"She's right man." Warren spoke up, "It's good."

From inside the booth, Teddy raised his hand, solidifying that the song was going on the album. Y/N smirked at the pissed-off look on Billy's face.

"This is bullshit." Billy says before leaving.

"See ya," Daisy says, taking a seat.

"Hey, where you going?" Warren asks.

"Come on, Billy." Karen says.

"Like a fucking toddler who doesn't get his way." Y/N says. 

Daisy smiles at Y/N's comment, "Should we run through it?"

As the band recorded the song, Y/N had a genuine smile for the first time in what she thought was forever. She got to do whatever she wanted, record backing vocals for Daisy, and she was having a good time recording the song. 

However, as she looked over at Eddie from across the room, her smile faltered as he looked directly at her, no emotion on his face. A look between the two could usually say so many words, but Y/N couldn't figure this one out or if he was even saying anything. As he looked away, Y/N allowed a smile to appear on her face once again. 

She pushed aside all of her feelings and focussed on the music, and for the first time in a while, Y/N was truly happy.

…

DAISY JONES: And that's how we ended the Aurora sessions.

GRAHAM DUNNE: We had a three-week break before rehearsals started.

WARREN ROJAS: I chartered a boat, and I sailed down to Mexico with these, these two sets of identical twins…

Y/N L/N: I remember Warren asked me to go with him, but he had his hands pretty full. During that time, I bought my own house and moved in there [laughs]. I had a lot of parties in that house.

EDDIE ROUNDTREE: I just stayed around, you know. Just to see what happened or whatever.

KAREN SIRKO: I don't think we did anything actually…

…

Y/N danced around her living room with a group of complete strangers; Karen, Graham, and Eddie were somewhere in her house, but she wasn't sure where. As the song on the radio changed, she smiled, immediately recognising the song. Grabbing the nearest bottle of alcohol, she began to dance around the room, pulling people in. 

Her body moved to the music, her hips swayed, and her hands were in the air. As she gripped onto someone new, he wrapped an arm around her waist, swaying to the music with her.

"What's your name?" Y/N shouted over the music.

"Andreas!" He shouted back.

"Nice to meet you Andreas!" Y/N shouted, "I'm Y/N."

He grabbed the bottle from Y/N's hand and took a sip, "You're a part of this band."

"Yep," Y/N says, "I'm the rhythm guitarist." 

"I'm not exactly sure what that is but It's sounds great anyways." Andreas says. 

Y/N threw her head back, laughing, and she continued to dance with Andreas. 

From across the room, Eddie held onto his drink. He spoke to a few people who approached him, but he was focused on Y/N and Andreas. If looks could kill, Andreas would be six feet under.

"I think there's someone staring at you." Andreas says into Y/N's ear.

Turning around, Y/N made eye contact with Eddie, and her heart felt heavy. As soon as she looked, he looked away, turning to have a conversation with the person next to him. 

"He loves you." Andreas says, "That is a look of love."

Y/N raised an eyebrow, "Well he's been avoiding me for weeks, so I really don't think it's a look of love."

Since that night Y/N had that conversation with Warren, Eddie had avoided Y/N at all costs. If she walked into a room, he would usually walk out. If she said something to him, he would give her a short reply before dropping the conversation entirely. It hurt her that he was acting this way with her. Finally figuring out her feeling for the bassist, Y/N wanted to talk to him, maybe build to that conversation she dreaded. Still, every time she interacted with him, he would dismiss her. 

Not only was Eddie treating her this way, but Camila was as well. Y/N had called her multiple times to hang out for the day or have a girl's night with her and Karen, but she always said she was too busy with Julia or Billy was taking her out somewhere. The first few times, Y/N let these excuses slide, not thinking anything of them, but as Camila continued to dismiss all of Y/N's efforts to hang out, Y/N finally figured out that Camila was avoiding her as well. 

"Well if that's not the look of love, then I'm blind, darling." Andreas says.

"What about you, huh?" Y/N questioned, "Because that guy standing over there has been giving you 'the look of love' ever since you've been with me."

Andreas looks behind him, and he sighs, "It's complicated.”

"Well we have that in common," Y/N says, "Now why don't me and you just get fucked up and forget about everything troubling us."

"I like you, Y/N," Andreas says as Y/N grabs another bottle of alcohol.

"Good because I like you too," Y/N says, "Now, let's dance!"

…

Y/N L/N: Parties like that were frequent at my house in the weeks leading up to rehearsals. I invited the band to everyone; Karen and Graham showed up to most of them, but Eddie stopped coming after one. Despite my feeling for him, having the space from him did me some good. I felt like I wasn't constantly worrying about what was happening between us. I felt like I could finally breathe…well, until the tour started. 

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[witchersmistress]

Briar Rose

SURPRISE!!! i have Sy's pov of the events that happened at the club! ive concidered making this into a series but for now @livesinfantasyland Enjoy. with a guest apperance from August.

Trigger warning: Fluff, angst and irritation at yours truly

Word count: 1.4 K

my usual warnings, you do not have permission to copy my work in any shape way or form, if you do ill find you and haunt you for the rest of your days

Sy’s POV

I have said how much I hate the city. Especially LA?? The traffic sucks, the air sucks, this entire place sucks. But I've spent most of my life in the desert so any crowded place isn't the place for me but my business partner needed me so here I am. While i was here my best friend asked me if I could keep an eye out on Ms. Rory, she was visiting a friend. I agreed with no objections, you were indeed a beautiful girl, but you always managed to find trouble.

I left you and Jill in your hotel room as i made my way out to my wait car to take me to the club, Lux, I remember when August approached me about starting this club, i thought he was barking mad but he was right this club made a fortune, but when it came time to sign the papers i could not sign my actual name, so a pen named worked just fine so at the club i was Alex Stone. We pulled up to the curve and my driver rounded the car and pulled the door open “Have a good evening Mr. Stone "I nodded and clapped him on the shoulder before walking into the club. I made my way to my table and waved at the bartender to send a girl my way. It was auction night, which I rarely missed, but with August off gods nowhere with Ethan Hunt’s daughter, I doubt that man will surface any time soon.. The crazy bastard he just had to have her from the moment he saw her, damn near got her killed trying to keep.... Anyway, here I am, as the girls come and go off the block, some aggressive bidding wars built nothing to get out of hand, but it was the flash of a certain young woman with waist long hair that caught my attention, holding my whiskey glass, I zoned in on her.

Begging her to turn around and prove to me that it wasn't you , but she never looked my way. I must be crazy, there is no way you’d put yourself up on the auction block like that. Sipping my whiskey till the glass was empty when the auctioneer called “For the last girl of the night we have the lovely, this stunning briar rose, Aurora Harlowe who is auction 1 hour of her time for a date” my grip instantly tightened on the glass, as i signaled the waitress i wanted another one, looking like an idiot as  I watch you take your place, front and center. standing under the lights, highlighting your long hair and petite stature, I find myself suddenly wanting to race up to that stage, pull you off and back into my office so I could spank your ass raw for pulling a stun like this, Jill and some guy cat called you from where they stood,  standing in the middle of the stage next to Jake, the auctioneer, in your tight little black dress, sky high black heels.. holding your hands clasped together in front of you, looking way out of your comfort zone. I almost feel bad for you, almost.

 After an awkward introduction and some goading from Theo at the bar, they start the bidding, and I have every intention of only being a spectator. A couple people I know end up getting it going. I find myself scrutinizing the people placing bids—low bids, if you ask me. One is a lawyer in his thirties, another, a younger guy I’ve spotted in the voyeur hall a lot, and then a new guy I’ve never seen here before. I shift in my seat. I trust August and the rest of his team to vet their members harshly, but there’s something about seeing a new face at the club that gives me pause. He looks like something the stock market spit out. Cocky expression. Cheap suit. Big attitude. And I can’t help myself. “Fifteen,” I call, your eyes landing in my direction, I'm still concealed in the shadows, for now. “Alexr Stone bids fifteen thousand,” the announcer exclaims. “Do we have a challenger? Can I get sixteen?” “Twenty,” the young guy returns. The other two stay silent.

My spine stiffens when I watch his eyes cascade over Rory. He’s sure as hell not looking at her face. And something about him just gives me a bad feeling. “Twenty-five,” I say with certainty. This time, the kid in the suit turns to glare at me, adjusting the tie around his neck, clearly uncomfortable. As our eyes meet, I watch the fight in his expression die. He’s not going to outbid me, and he knows it. So it’s all a matter of how much he’s willing to risk and how badly he wants to get this fear-stricken girl alone. But I promise, I’m ready to gamble more. Pressing my shoulders back, I wait for his next bid. “Do I hear twenty-six from the young gentleman up front?” He swallows, then turns toward the stage. Rory is starting to look a little green as she waits for the next move. Hesitantly, he raises a hand. “Twenty-six!” All eyes are on me as I nod to the announcer. “Thirty.” you bite your lip. My competitor laughs, looking cocky. “Forty thousand,” he calls out, trying to appear brave. “Fifty,” I say, without even blinking. The young guy comes back with another bid, and another, and another. I outbid each one until he nervously stammered, “Seventy-five.” “One hundred thousand dollars,” I proclaim, my fingers thrumming against the leather of the chair.

There are stirrings of surprise in the crowd. Your already pale skin takes on a new shade of porcelain, like the keys of a shiny new piano. “One hundred, going once…going twice…” Her eyes dance back and forth between me and the young guy. “One hundred thousand to Alex Stone!” Jake announces, and you look about ready to faint. I watch the young guy’s jaw click as he clenches it in frustration. The crowd cheers, staring in my direction  in fascination as you  make your way down from the stage. I signal one of the security guards, “Bring her to my office.” “Yes, Mr. Stone the right way. Polishing off my whiskey as security walks you back, I stand and button up my suit coat. I watch from the shadows as my security escorts you to the elevator, watching you as the doors close. This is wrong but I've denied my feelings for you, for far too long. Making my way over to the elevator, I received a text from the last person I wanted to deal with this evening.. August

“My how the mighty have fallen, your best friend's daughter?”

I looked around to make sure he wasn’t lurking, then i looked up into the camera, that fucker..

“Fuck off August, dont you have some poor girl to terrorize?”

His response was instant:

“Now now, dear cousin, she is curled up sleeping next to me, this pregnancy has not been easy on her” 

I let out a sharp “ha” under my breath, he really is a crazy bastard. Stealing his daughter wasn't enough, he had to go and breed her as well. Shaking my head as i climb into the elevator

 Sy: “ You’ve got some issues, cousin. You make Walter look like a SAINT”

Swiping my master key on the box the elevator began to move as i waited for a response:

August: “Now that would be an achievement, he is rather far out there”

*Walter has joined the chat*

“Oh shit here we go…. 3…2…1”

Walter: Really Sy?? ..took you long enough.. And August well.. I don't know where to begin with you”

August: “Oops did i make this group chat?!?!  *smirking emoji*

You rotten motherfucker August:

Sy: Sometimes i wonder if your mom doesn't regret swallowing you”

Walter: *crying laughing emoji” Damn aiming for the juggular today arent we cuz?”

August: At least he knows how to aim. Walter” 

The elevator opened up to my office. Closing out of the group chat to let them squabble, like they normally do. Masking my way to my office door and opening it slowly seeing you pace back and forth, like a lion in its cage. oh you poor sweet girl you have no idea what you've just done, now this is where the fun really begins.. Tonight baby girl you are going to learn just what kind of man you are dealing with.

[lucigoo]

So, I'm going to make this a Masterlist of all my Hobbit fics as I write them. I'm also going to attmept to put them in some type of order. Hopefully it's easier for others to anvigate the mess that is my Tumblr lol <3

The Hobbit - All are Bilbo/Thorin unless stated otherwise Active Wips: A Home, A Pack, A Place of Love (Animal Au) Summary: Bilbo is a corgi and he has become the guardian of a traumatised little corgi pup. He has to leave their cosy home and hope for the best. For him and Frodo.

Hopefully he will find a ew place to call home, a new family for him and Frodo, hopefully they will thirve. I want you right here, where you belong:Home with us (Bilbo/Thorin, Sirius/Remus crossover) Summary: Thorin has moved to "The United Kingdoms" with his friends and family.

Follow his life as he ends up an unexpected father, Uncle and husband, and extends his family with wizards, witches, centaurs, goblins and, sadly, elves.

Bilbo stays in Erebor fics:Stop me Fading (Needs major re edtiting) Summary: Its a few weeks since BOTFA. Bilbos running around like a headless chicken, The Company are being plonkers, Thranduil and Dain are being antagonistic, Bards just a cinnamon roll and Gandalf keeps disappearing for long amounts of time (for good causes of course). There's one lonely, sad little hobbit on the plains outside of the Lonely Mountain. Bagginshield-tober (A uncomplete series) Summary: A series of fics spanning from LakeTown until Bilbo's death. Bilbo stayed in Erebor, this is his and Thorin's life. Afterlife Fics: I will join you Summary: MCD!! Bilbo sits with a dying Thorin, knowing he will join him. Dead or not, this will not be the last time he seee his beloved. A Little Drop of Rain Summary: Thorin holds his dying one in his arms. All he can do is hope he will see him again after his life is over. It was a long life and all Thorin wants is to be reunited with his hobbit. Defying Death (or at least the ones in charge) Summary: Bilbo has finally died, and now Lord Mandos wants to shove him away to Lady Yavanna's Green Gardens. Well that wont do. After all, Thorin wont be in Yavanna's gardens and Bilbo wont stay where Thorin isnt.

He's a burglar, and if he can smuggle his dwarves out from under Thranduil's nose, he can smuggle himself into Mahal's Halls under the Valar's noses, right?

Reshirement: Changeling Child (Mpreg) Summary: Thanks to his Stone headed nephews, Bilbo now has a new quest. One that needs cleverness and diplomacy. Not the reckless battle tactics of dwarrow. This is the most important quest Bilbo will ever go on, even more imprtant then facing a dragon. For the most important being in his life. Animal Au's: A Pasture Too Small for A Bovine’s World so Large Summary: Bilbo is an odd Highland Bull, so odd that he has had enough and takes Primula, Drogo and baby Frodo to find a new place. A new home.

Thorin and his family are an odd little herd of Bison. An odd herd with room for a few other strange bovines. Wait for me in the Aurora Bearalis Summary: Bilbo is a red panda, he had had a good life. He had managed to make it to 64 seasons (16 years) when most red pandas were lucky to make 40 seasons (10 years).

Thorin doesnt want to say goodbye to his little Orso but he has too, hopefully they can find one another in another life. Ive found Frodo ....and he found you? Summary: Canine distemper has stolen all of the Bagginses away apart from Bilbo and little Frodo. No he has to find his kit, who has wandered off, again, and keep them safe from "The Sick". If only he wasn't alone doing it.

Bittersweet/hopeful ending: The Last Meeting (Until Arda is Remade) Summary: Bilbo is a sad, lonely hobbit in Rivendell. What is left of The Company, his friends, his Family find him there. There are less then there should be.

This is Bilbo's last meeting with the few remaining dwarves he adores. Until they meet again, when the world is remade, hopefully. Sad Ending: The Demented King Under the Mountain Summary: TW MCD, Murder, Thorin did not beat the dragon sickness. Thorin did not defeat the Dragon-sickness and in his rage destroyed the gift he was given to cherish. “How rare and beautiful it truly is that you existed, and that you existed with me, for me" Summary: It is time for Bilbo to leave The Shire, he is going to make his way to Erebor, hopefully.

Before that, he makes his way to his oak tree, the last living thing he has that reminds him of Thorin, it is time to say goodbye. One more hour with you Summary: Bilbo doesnt want it to end, he just wants one more day, one more hour, one more minute with his beloved. He will deny the truth in front of him to get it if he has too. You Never Cared, Why Start Now? Summary: It started with the fires burning through Erebor. It will end with the fires burning through Bag End. The Last Durin Princess returns home (Gen fic, Dis-centric) Summary: The Last Durin Princess returns home, but home is a tomb. A place with ghosts. With her dead borther and her dead sons.

When home is no longer home, all it is is a place of pain and heart break. What is the last of her line supposed to do? How is she supposed to go on? You were to late Summary: Bilbo is watching the eagles fly overhead in victory. With Thorin's cooling hand in his, Bilbo isnt sure what their is to feel victorious over.

Quest Fics: Dwarrow hugs in the dark Summary: The Fell Winter wasnt just a time whe hobbits starved, it ws much worse then that. An entire generation of hobbits traumatised.

For one Bilbo Baggins, on a quest with a troop of rude dwarves, the memories become nightmares whilst on the road. Maybe waht he needs is dwarrow hugs off a dwarrow king? A heart of stone and Fire in his soul Summary: Thorin is but a ghost of a king, desperate and making stupid choices. Bilbo is a hobbit out of The Shire, trying to find his place. But he needs to keep his daft dwarven king alive to succeed. The trials and tribulations of a married hobbit (a bowman's persepctive) Summary: Bard see's a small hobbit amongst a crowd of dwarves clamouring to get on his barge. From that first glimpse he makes a friend, suprised by who his new friend has married. Follow the events from Lake Town until after from Bard's pov. Far over the Misty Mountains:A hobbit with a heart Summary: Bilbo's home is suddenly invaded by a troop of dwarves. He would be bad, should be mad, but that song ....

Modern Au's: "Bring Your Older Gays To Play" at Club Erebor Summary: Frodo had convinced Bilbo to go the event night at his favourite queer club. All Bilbo wanted to do was go home, back to his books and cup of tea. Well, that was until Mr tall, dark and sexy was pushed into him. The reason is you, the reason is him, the reason is me (Dwalin/Nori, background Bilbo/Thorin) Summary: Nori hates himself for the 4 and a half years he spent in prison. For destroying everythig good in his ife. For losing everything he had to live for.

Hes out now and hopefully he can fix his realationships and see his son again. ABC's of Avoiding Bullying and Crying (Gen fic, The Companny are all young children) Summary: Thorin is a big grown up 7 year old dwarf. Frerin is a little 5 year old dwarf who is usally bugging Thorin and his friends to play. So why didn't he bother them on this day, and who was he with? It's a good job I love you! Summary: Bilbo sees that Thorin has once again forgotten to take the rubbish out, bloody husbands, he thinks exasperated.

LOTR Fics: Akmâthu Bask:Song of the Bath (Gen Fellowship fic) Summary: During a bath by the river, Gimli starts singing Bilbo's bath song. Confusing the hobbits. It turns out that isnt the only song of The Hero of Erebor's that they sing in the Lonely Mountain. Between the forest and the sea, I leave my heart with thee - (Gen fic, Elrond-centric) Summary: Elrond is set to sail to Valinor to reunite with his wife when he has a vision. How can he leave when his he sees his precious daughter dying alone, her grief clear through time and space? Two Lives Will Be Spared This Day (Boromir/Theodred) Summary: Boromir looks into Galadriel's mirror and he doesnt like what he sees. Maybe if he makes a different choice he cna save himslef, and the love of his life.

[twoidiotwriters1]

Daughter of Olympus (Leo Valdez xFem!Oc)

A/N: The titles are long af bc I find that very funny -Danny Words: 3,948 Series' Masterlist Previous Chapter / Next Chapter Listen to: 'Runaway' -by Aurora

V. Memory Lane Has Too Many Stops and I Keep Getting Carsick

Ara has barely stopped crying when Leo Valdez shows up flying the bronze dragon. Everyone stands ready, except Ara. She pushes through the crowd, eyes brimming with tears once again.

"People of Earth, I come in peace!" Leo is the most insane-looking boy she's ever seen. He's dirty from head to toe and looks like he spent the whole night awake. "Festus is just saying hello!"

"That thing is dangerous! Kill it now!"

"Stand down!" Jason shouts anxiously, Annabeth and Nyssa stand next to him. "Leo, what have you done?"

"Found a ride!" He says cheerfully. "You said I could go on the quest if I got you a ride. Well, I got you a class-A metallic flying bad boy! Festus can take us anywhere!"

"Festus..?" Ara echoes hoarsely.

"It—has wings," Nyssa stammers.

"Yeah! I found them and reattached them."

"But it never had wings! Where did you find them?"

"In... the woods," he's hiding something, but Ara couldn't care less about it at the moment. "Repaired his circuits, too, mostly, so no more problems with him going haywire."

"Mostly?"

The dragon tilts his head and oil falls on top of Leo. He's completely unbothered by it. "Just a few kinks to work out."

Ara's mind catches up with her body and she runs to Festus in tears. Leo jumps out of the way in alarm, but everyone else is delighted. She looks less menacing this way. "You fixed it! You fixed my dragon!"

Leo frowns. "Say what?"

"But how did you survive?" Nyssa asks in shock. "I mean, the fire breath..."

"I'm quick," he turns to his sister. "And lucky. Now, am I on this quest, or what?"

"You named him Festus?" Jason adds. "You know that in Latin, 'Festus' means 'happy'? You want us to ride off to save the world on Happy the Dragon?"

"It's perfect!" Ara laughs, the first genuine laughter that comes out of her in days, and gods, it feels so good.

"Okay, so she's as crazy as me," Leo doesn't sound troubled by it. Festus purrs at Ara's touch, she's holding onto his snout. "That's a yes! Now, um, I'd really suggest we get going, guys. I already picked up some supplies in the—um, in the woods. And all these people with weapons are making Festus nervous."

"But we haven't planned anything yet. We can't just—"

"Go," Annabeth stares at them with fondness. "You have Ara, you'll be okay. You've only got three days until the solstice now, and you should never keep a nervous dragon waiting. This is certainly a good omen. Go!" 

Jason looks at Piper. "You ready, partner?"

"You bet." The girl's beaming at the dragon.

"Everyone, give our General a proper send-off!" Lily speaks next to her, which causes Ara to jump. She hates it when Lily does that.

The campers lift their shields and swords. Lily places a Tyrian purple cloak on Ara's shoulders and hands her a worn T-rex backpack. "Come back alive," she raises her left hand, and a thin scar can be seen on the side of her wrist. "Deal?"

Ara lifts her right wrist and lightly presses it against Lily's. "You got it." She turns to look at the campers. "I'll bring you good news this time, I promise," Ara faces Leo, the insane boy, and her eyes fill with gratitude. "I owe you a big one."

"Cash only, sunshine. Or a kiss, if you're feeling generous," Leo jokes, trying to stop her from looking at him like that.

Ara smiles, which is not the reaction he wanted. He's hoping she'll go back to being grumpy soon, but unfortunately, nothing's going to make her forget his great deed. "I'll think about it."

She climbs on top of the dragon, and Leo does an okay job at keeping it together. Ara feels this is where she's meant to be, this will bring back her brother. She's always had a good instinct when it comes to Percy.

I'm weaving baskets when this weird thought crosses my mind: 

Look for Percy!

I saw him fifteen minutes ago, but I tell the naiads and nymphs that are with me: "Go get help." They notice how serious I am—which is unlike me—and follow my plea. I make my way to the forest, something is guiding me.

When Percy fought Ares, I gave him Aphrodite's protection. I told him "Love will keep you safe", and at the time he thought that I was saying it to not be the only one that hadn't given him something, but I knew it would work. I didn't know that it would bind me to him, but I'm not complaining.

When I find him, Percy sounds scared. "You're being used, Luke. You and Ares both. Don't listen to Kronos."

"I've been used? Look at yourself. What has your dad ever done for you? Kronos will rise. You've only delayed his plans. He will cast the Olympians into Tartarus and drive humanity back to their caves. All except the strongest—the ones who serve him."

I throw my basket at the back of Luke's head, trying to give Percy time so he can grab his sword. Luke turns and holds his weapon tighter. He has a new sword. "I've had enough!"

I stumble and cut my palm on a rock, I grab it and hear Percy's panicky voice. "Don't!" I don't know who he's talking to, but neither of us listens. The rock hits Luke's arm and I roll to avoid his blade but it grazes my skin. I grab a fistful of dirt and throw it at his face.

Percy swats whatever creature is on his leg and draws out his sword, Luke notices and decides I'm not worth the trouble, he makes an arch-motion with his weapon and disappears through a portal. I'm scared shitless and I can feel my back pulsing, I wanna run and hide behind someone again. 

"I'm sorry!" I cry, even though I'm not the one who almost killed Percy.

He stumbles toward me in some sort of pain, and I'll be damned if I don't help him out of this one. I put his left arm around my shoulders, and he places most of his weight on me, but I carry on.

"Cool, right?" Leo's smell is starting to get a little too hard to ignore, Ara tries to keep his oil-covered self away. 

"What if we get spotted?" Piper asks.

"The Mist," Jason responds before Ara can. "It keeps mortals from seeing magic things. If they spot us, they'll probably mistake us for a small plane or something."

"You sure about that?"

"No."

"I am," Ara replies. "Don't worry, Piper, the crazier it gets, the harder it is for mortals to notice. If not, I know how to fix it."

"Is it thanks to the cool thing you are?" Leo asks.

"Yeah, Chiron had to readjust my training, not everyone can control the mist, but Thalia Grace is really good at it and she and Chiron taught me, she's the other child of Zeus."

"We're making good time," Jason comments like he's trying to change the subject. "Probably get there by tonight."

"Where are we heading?" Piper questions.

"To find the god of the North Wind and chase some storm spirits." 

"Piece of cake," Ara nods. "I've gone to many quests, follow your instincts and we'll be okay."

"Which reminds me!" Leo adds. "You didn't finish your story! You promised you would explain!"

Ara frowns. "Where was I?"

"That Luke dude went nuts."

She pauses, trying to piece her memories together. "Well, the nymphs took us back to camp..."

Percy's really weak after Luke's attack. Annabeth left half an hour ago, and I'm standing on the porch clinging to my friend's arm. "You're going too, aren't you?" 

The basket I was weaving when I found him is at my feet, I made it for Grover. Percy says he might not come back at all. Grover, Annabeth, and Percy are the closest friends I've had and they're leaving. I want Percy to stay.

"I want to be with my mom, Ara."

"I wish I had a family," I make a face.

Percy pats my hand, I would rather have him glaring, but Annabeth says he's got a soft spot for me. "I thought you were excited to work on the forges?"

I sigh, Percy's words are not enough to distract me. "If I had a family, I'd choose them over camp too," I hold his hand and squeeze it. "Have a good year, Nemo."

He shakes my hand. "Have a fun year, Birdy. Maybe you can come and spend Christmas with me and my mom?"

"You're giving me permission to annoy you outside camp?"

Percy grabs his glass of nectar and drinks from it. "Let's see who gets tired first."

Leo isn't as obnoxious as he pretends to be. He tells them about his connection to Hera, and the girl connects the dots. She doesn't want to use her empath touch on him, but she doesn't need to, Leo gets really quiet after telling his story and keeps his eyes ahead, no longer in the mood for jokes.

Ara process all the information she's gathered, to her it's obvious who the big bad is, but she does not dare to say it out loud, it would mean her future as the daughter of Olympus is bound to that stupid prophecy...

"You know something, don't you?" Piper asks as if reading Ara's thoughts. 

Leo has fallen asleep in front of them so she speaks quietly, though she doesn't need to, the wind is loud enough to hide her voice. "Nothing that could make things better."

"Okay... I just want to say, you know... thank you," Piper squeezes her shoulder. "You must be dead worried about your brother..."

Ara senses dread in Piper, the girl isn't as calm as she appears to be. "He would've wanted me to come. Others are looking for him, so..." She isn't needed. At least here, she feels important. She's a protector, and she likes that these demigods respect her. "And Lily's looking after camp, so I'm not worried."

"Annabeth's sister?" Piper muses. "Is she another daughter of Olympus?"

"Something better," Ara smiles. "She's my best friend."

Lily Saggio is the newest and weirdest camper in this place. She's got pitch-black hair and big gray eyes. Since I came back from Percy's home, I've seen campers give her weary looks when she walks past, they say she's just like Thalia.

"Hi! I'm Ara!"

The girl regards me with distrust, then she glances at the table I was in. I feel like she ran a background check in less than five seconds. "Lily Saggio."

I'll have to carry the conversation. That's okay. "You're lucky you got here during winter and not summer! Where are you from?"

Lily stares at me pondering whether to talk or ignore me. "You're a year-rounder?"

"Yeah!"

"Why weren't you here last week?" I notice she's trying to hide an accent, but I do my best to act like I don't.

"I was invited to my friend's house. Look, he gave me this!" I show her my backpack, which is a teddy bear. I keep priceless things in it: my snacks and the legos Sally gave me as a Christmas/late birthday present. 

"You can leave this place?" Lily's expression shifts.

"Not all the time," I pull Bear and rummage through him. "I promised I wouldn't leave Percy's apartment—and it was Christmas!"

Lily stands up straighter, looking defiant. "I can look after myself, I've fought monsters before," She pulls out a black dagger and shows it to me.

I gasp. "Where did you get that?"

"It showed up on my nightstand after my Nonna..." She pauses and shakes her head. "It's a gift from my patron, so I don't—"

"You don't like it here?" I pull out my box of Legos and Lily's eyes brighten at the sight. "Don't you wanna know who your parent is?"

She frowns. "I know who my dad is."

"Oh! You're an Ares kid? You don't look like Apollo but you'd make an interesting child of Hermes or Dionys—"

"I didn't mean that."

"You know your dad?" I ask, not following the conversation.

"Yes, my mortal parent," she rolls her eyes. "I don't care about the god. They didn't care about me."

To think that way will get her a step closer to joining Luke. I don't want that. "Do I look like I'm Aphrodite's child?"

"What?"

"Do I look it?" I insist.

"You're okay."

This is the first time anyone calls me okay. My brain goes: Well... duh!

"It hardly matters who your godly parent is, you'll grow to love it here," I lock arms with her and place my Legos on her hands. "I'm going to the forges, come and see."

"I don't need a chaperone—"

"You are sooo grumpy," I sigh. "No one would trust me to look after another camper. So!"

Lily waits for me to finish my sentence. "So?"

"They'll leave you alone if I'm with you, I'm not very popular either."

On our way to the forges, I hear a couple of Ares kids shout rude things at Lily, I step in to shut them up and they laugh so hard they forget about her.

"Go away," Lily scowls at me.

I pout a little. "I just wanted to help."

"I don't need you."

"I didn't do that thinking you—"

"I don't care," she clenches her fists. "Never do that again."

When they reach Boreas's palace, two of his children stop them. Zethes stares at the purple cloak covering her shoulders and his smile evaporates. "Ara Jackson."

She gives a start. "Hi. You know my name?"

"You killed Cacus!"

"Who?" Leo asks with amusement.

"It wasn't only me," Ara dismisses the comment. "Can we go in, then?"

Zethes doesn't look pleased. "You'll kill us if we don't let you?"

Ara shrugs. "Sure."

Leo leans closer as they fly down. "So if I get into a nasty fight, could you just smite my opponent? It'd be super helpful if I knew that beforehand..."

"Shut up," Ara scowls, but she's hiding a smile.

When they land, the Boreads get a little nervous about having Festus there. "No, no, no,"  Zethes points at it. "The dragon must be deactivated. We can't have fire in here. The heat ruins my hair."

Ara steps forward. "Stay away from the dragon, then."

"'S'okay, boy," Leo eases the automaton, giving her a reassuring nod. "The dragon's a little touchy about the whole deactivation concept. But I've got a better solution." 

"Destroy?" Cal suggested.

"No, man. You gotta stop with the destroy talk. Just wait."

"Leo," Piper intervenes, "what are you—"

"Watch and learn, beauty queen. When I was repairing Festus last night, I found all kinds of buttons. Some, you do not want to know what they do. But others... Ah, here we go."

Leo sneaks his hand inside Festus's left paw and Ara hears a click, the dragon folds until it's a block of bronze. "Um... yeah. Hold on. I think—aha!" A handle pops up along with four wheels at the bottom. "Ta-da! The world's heaviest carry-on bag!"

"Cool!" Ara gets closer to examine it. Every time Leo gets that reaction out of her, he looks ready to throw himself off a rooftop.

"That's impossible," Jason exclaims. "Something that big couldn't—"

"Stop!" Zethes and his brother suddenly point their swords at Leo.

"Hey!" Ara makes her own weapon appear. "What's your problem?"

Leo raises his hands. "Okay... what'd I do? Stay calm, guys. If it bothers you that much, I don't have to take the dragon as carry-on—"

"Who are you? A child of the South Wind, spying on us?"

"What? No! Son of Hephaestus. Friendly blacksmith, no harm to anyone!"

"Smell fire," Cal gets closer. "Fire is bad."

"Oh. Yeah, well... my clothes are kind of singed, and I've been working with oil, and—"

"No!" Zethes tries to touch Leo but Ara keeps him away with her sword. "We can smell fire, demigod. We assumed it was from the creaky dragon, but now the dragon is a suitcase. And I still smell fire... on you." 

Ara glances at Leo. He is hiding something. "Hey... look... I don't know—Guys, a little help?"

"Look, there's been a mistake. Leo isn't a fire guy. Tell them, Leo. Tell them you're not a fire guy," Jason says, which is not great.

"Um..." Leo's indecision makes Ara uneasy.

"Piper," she could do this, but it's better for her sister to get comfortable with her powers. "Talk some sense into these boys, please?"

The girl understands right away. "Zethes? We're all friends here. Put down your swords and let's talk."

"The girl is pretty," he hums, "and of course she cannot help being attracted to my amazingness; but sadly, I cannot romance her at this time." 

"Destroy him now?"

"Sadly, I think—"

"No," Jason insists. "Leo's just a son of Hephaestus. He's no threat. Piper here is a daughter of Aphrodite. I'm the son of Zeus. We're on a peaceful..."

"What did you say?" Zethes snaps. "You are the son of Zeus?"

"Um... yeah," he pauses. "That's a good thing, right? My name is Jason."

"Can't be Jason," Cal says stupidly. "Doesn't look the same."

"No, he is not our Jason. Our Jason was more stylish. Not as much as me—but stylish. Besides, our Jason died millennia ago."

"Wait," the boy continues. "Your Jason... you mean the original Jason? The Golden Fleece guy?"

"Of course! We were his crewmates aboard his ship, the Argo, in the old times, when we were mortal demigods. Then we accepted immortality to serve our father, so I could look this good for all time, and my silly brother could enjoy pizza and hockey."

So many demigods gave up their mortality, and most of them had done it for such stupid reasons! Ara can't believe Percy's the exception to the rule, she's seen him push a pull door way too many times.

"Hockey!" Cal says happily.

"But Jason—our Jason—he died a mortal death. You can't be him."

"I'm not."

"So, destroy?"

"No," Zethes pouts. "If he is a son of Zeus, he could be the one we've been watching for. He's with Jackson, after all."

"Watching for?" Leo repeats. "You mean like in a good way: you'll shower him with fabulous prizes? Or watching for like in a bad way: he's in trouble?"

"That depends on my father's will," a girl's voice announces.

A brief flash of light comes out of Leo as soon as he sees the girl, but it's so short-lived Ara doesn't even distinguish its color. She scowls at him. Really? Right now? But she doesn't say anything out loud, she's the only one who can see those things anyway. 

The goddess is asking Jason to join her father, apparently, he's got some judgment to make, but Leo is not allowed to come. Jason and Piper don't want to leave him, and Ara doesn't want to either, she doesn't trust Leo will stay put. 

He smiles and obediently sits on top of Festus. "It's fine, guys. No sense causing trouble if we don't have to. You go ahead."

Again, Ara's intrigued. Half the time he's hyper and impatient and now he's just... half a smile that does not reach his eyes. She's never met anyone like him, someone made out of halves.

"Listen to your friend," the young goddess tells them. "Leo Valdez will be perfectly safe. I wish I could say the same for you. Now come, King Boreas is waiting." 

Ara wants to sit and have a full-fledged conversation with Leo about his feelings and how he perceives the world, but she's lost practice. Before it was easy to pay attention to others, but Ara's obligations positioned her above many things, including day-to-day interaction with campers.

Lily's impression of me changes after Capture the Flag."This is your first time playing so don't worry, they won't notice you," I undo the clasp of her armor vest before she can stop me and fix it for her.

"What do you mean?" She frowns.

"You're new, they won't ask you to do anything."

She's deeply upset about this. "They should take advantage of all their assets!"

"We're not tools," I tilt my head with amusement. Lily's lived on the streets for far too long. "If you're so sure you can handle it, though... there's something I've always wanted to try."

She wavers. "What is it?"

"I think I can reach the flag faster than our leader. No one ever pays attention to me and it'd be really funny if we get there first instead of our Captain. What do you say?"

Lily makes a face. "That's not a plan."

"Are you a chicken, Saggio?" I don't know why I tease her, but she looks funny when she's angry.

"No!"

"A drachma says I can get to the flag before you can!" I sprint out of sight.

I hear her trying to catch up and that makes me giggle. I move as quickly as possible, but then, just when I'm reaching the limits, Lily comes out of nowhere and tackles me to the ground. We're both lifted in the air and end up hanging upside down from a tree.

"Why did you do that?" I complain. "We could've won!"

"I wasn't letting you get there first, you turned it into a competition!" She says. "What is this?"

"Rope. Beckendorf did it, so we're stuck here until someone finds us. Or so he says..."

"What do you mean?"

"These are designed for heavier demigods," I look up—down, actually—and follow the rope to see where it ends."I'll take your knife, the rope's tied in my direction."

"Turn us around!"

"Are any of your arms free?"

She groans, trying to release herself. "It's my knife!"

"You're bossy," I sigh. "Sit tight while I free us, boss."

I squirm for five whole minutes, but the rope's only getting tighter. Lily tries to stop me, but I'm not giving up. Finally, after a long struggle... Lily's dagger falls out of her belt. 

She lets her head hang in defeat. "I'll scream."

"No!"

"Why not?" She presses. "There's nothing we can do!"

I was telling the truth when I said this was something I'd been planning to do for quite a while, but this is not how I wanted it to go. "We can't be seen like this, your rep will be ruined!"

Two arrows fly through the gap between us, one of them scratches us but we're released in less than a second. Lily lands sideways and I land on my back. 

"Well, well..." a small boy walks up to us smirking. "Out of all the campers, I never thought they'd send you."

I smile sweetly. "Hey, bud, if you can find it in your heart to let us go..."

He seizes two new arrows from his quiver and points them at us. "Get up."

Lily sits up, immensely disappointed... so I start talking. 

"Michael," I charmspeak him. "Hand me your bow." His shoulders relax and the arrows fall at his feet, then he gives me his bow.

"Che cosa..!" Lily whispers in shock.

"The quiver too," Michael hands it to me. I look at it, then at him. "Forget this happened and go to sleep." He drops to the ground, snoring loudly. "So..." I hand Lily the bow. "He caught me, you knocked him out and took his weapons before he could take me. Fair play."

The more agitated she gets, the more it stands out that accent she has. "Have you always been able to do that?"

"You were going to lose, and now you're going back with a prisoner. They'll give you a bigger role next time thanks to that."

"But I didn't do this!"

"So what?" I shrug. "Next time you'll do something better, that'll be enough to compensate for the lie. There is no honor in going down by charmspeak, Lily. You're tough and Michael's got a bad temper, it'll make both of you look good."

"But I'm..." I can't tell if she's angry or flustered. "I was stubborn, I don't deserve a win."

"I was pushing your buttons," I admit. "Please, Michael will prefer this over the truth."

Lily's not convinced. "And you?"

"Teach me to be quiet and we'll be even," I pick up her dagger.

"I wouldn't want you as my enemy," she seizes her weapon and places it on her belt. The gash Michael made on our wrists is bleeding, hers is on the left wrist and mine's on the right. "It's a deal."

Next Chapter ->

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[starlitangels]

Somewhere with an Aurora

A couple days ago I asked for Avior one-shot suggestions. This one came from @pinksparkl 1.5k words

—

“Ah crap,” I muttered, shoving the gear shift into Park. “This place used to be open a lot later than this.” I made a face, staring at the abandoned, dark coffee shop.

“Probably because it’s New Year’s Eve.” Avior’s face was still tense, partially screwed up like the emotions from that attack at the academy was still weighing on him. It probably was. He was keeping it in, but that many emotions—that much pain—he had to feel dangerously close to falling apart.

“Maybe. That’s kinda frustrating. I knew I should have checked the hours on Google Maps before we left the academy.”

“It’s alright,” he said.

“But you wanted to come here and get something warm to drink and be able to think through everything that just happened,” I protested.

“I know. But we’ll have plenty of time to come here later. Right now I don’t care where we go.”

I bit my lip. We’d been essentially living together for six months in Hell. I swallowed. “Want to come back to my place?” I offered.

Avior cocked his head to one side. “If you need some space I’ll understand, starlight. What we’ve just gone through—I can go back to Aria for the night. The Hellscape, this Inversion nonsense. It’s a lot and I don’t blame you if you’re feeling overwhelmed and exhausted.”

“I am. Both exhausted and overwhelmed. But I don’t want to be either of those things without you, Avior. I want you with me. Just your presence comforts me.” I reached across the center console of my little sedan and took his hand. “Come home with me?”

His gold gaze bored into me. “You’re sure?”

I tried to remember the state my apartment was in. Had I left anything embarrassing out when I left to head on whatever errand I’d been running? My memories had come back like I’d never lost them, and it felt like I’d last seen my apartment six months ago. Was that pair of underwear that had been draped over the radiator to dry after they missed getting placed in the dryer and ended up still damp? Had I put those away? Were there still papers all over my coffee table? Leftover from grading at the end of the semester?

“I’m sure,” I replied.

Avior knew me better than anyone. My lover. Our relationship literally forged in Hell. He would understand if my apartment was a mess.

“Okay.”

I nodded and pulled the gear shift back into gear. “My place it is then.”

—

Creak!

“I really need to oil that damn hinge,” I muttered as I shoved the front door open. “Sorry it’s not much. I don’t really entertain. I never have guests, actually.”

Avior glanced around. Tension was still coiled in his shoulders and back from the attack—that was centered on the far other side of the city now. “No. No, it’s nice. Homey.” He let go of my hand.

I fidgeted with my keyring, not meeting his eyes. “Let me get you something to drink. I don’t know about you, but months in Hell have left me pretty parched. Even if it wasn’t real. It must be worse for you.” I slipped to my kitchen, bustling around to find a two glasses for drinks. I put them under the fridge’s spout and filled them one by one before returning to the living room.

Avior was standing at my bookshelf, examining several of the knick-knacks I had sitting between two bookends. “What’re these?”

I couldn’t look him in the eye. “That’s, uh… that my amiibo collection,” I admitted.

“What’s an amiibo?”

“They’re little figurines that can interact with certain video games. I… I, uh… I only have ones from The Legend of Zelda because it’s my favorite Nintendo series. I’ve been playing Zelda games since I was a kid and the first couple amiibo were gifts but after that I just started kinda collecting and… what? Why are you looking at me like that?”

Avior shrugged and shook his head, grinning slightly. “It’s nothing. Just… your eyes lit up, even as your emotions also tasted embarrassed.” He set the Wolf Link and Midna amiibo back down on the shelf. “You never told me which video games you enjoyed, although I do remember you mentioning you liked to play video games if you ever had enough downtime to do so.”

“Which is rare these days,” I remarked. “But I’ll dink around in Breath of the Wild for a couple hours on a Sunday night when I don’t have any assignments to grade. Sometimes my students ask why I assign less homework than the other professors—like they can’t fathom that I don’t want to grade as much homework as the rest of my colleagues assign.”

Avior snickered. “Amateurs—asking for more homework.”

I laughed. “Well, not exactly. But for any other professor questions like that could lead to more homework. Not for me. I love teaching—I just hate grading. I especially hate busywork. So I don’t bother. And that leaves more time for me to spend doing things I actually enjoy.”

Avior lifted a brow, suppressing a smile. I chose not to press for what was humoring him. I had a guess anyway.

When I didn’t take the bait, he cleared his throat. “Anything else I don’t know about you after living with you for six months?”

I glanced around my apartment. “Well… I collect comic books. Not even particularly valuable ones. I don’t do much with them. People just give them to me because I’m a nerd and I keep them. Because I’m a nerd.”

“Do you read them?”

“I would—but they’re all random issues in the middle of random storylines and none of them make any sense out-of-context.”

Avior chuckled. “Fair enough.”

“What about you? Anything I don’t know about you, living in Hell with you for six months?”

Avior drew me closer to him, resting his chin on my head. “I want to see an aurora one day,” he said. “I could have rifted somewhere with one whenever I wanted in the past thirty-six—thirty-four—years… but I never did. I always wanted to share it with someone who meant something real to me. And… no one ever did. I never figured I’d fall in love but… even a good friend. And I… never had one.”

I smiled. “We’ll do it, then. We’ll go somewhere with an aurora. Probably Alaska. It’s closest.” I reached and cradled his face in both hands. “I’d love to see the lights with you.”

He turned his head and kissed my palm, holding my wrist in his hand. “I’d love to see the lights with you too, my starlight.” He smiled softly. “Though, I fear they will pale in comparison to you.”

I looked away, ears turning hot. “Stop it,” I mumbled.

He hooked a finger under my chin and drew my head back to face him. “Never. I mean it. You are incredible. And I consider myself so lucky to have fallen for you as deeply as I have.”

This was the Avior I remembered. Not the dry, acerbic, sarcastic bastard who welcomed me to Hell after I lost my memories. The sincerity, the gentleness, and the depth of emotion was back in full-force—and I couldn’t have been more grateful. We had each other back after we both lost one another in different ways.

“I love you, Avior,” I whispered.

“I love you too, my starlight.” He leaned close.

We shared a long, slow, tender kiss. Unhurried. Easy.

I remembered desperate kisses in Hell, scrambling to remove clothing like we wouldn’t live to share more affection. I couldn’t be more delighted that urgent feeling was gone.

He pulled back just slightly, both of our eyelids fluttering open to meet each other’s gaze.

“Something else you might not know about me,” he said quietly. “You’re the first person I ever slept with—both literally and euphemistically.”

I choked on trying to suppress a laugh. “Really?”

“Truly.”

“Thirty-four years since you coalesced and you never—”

“Like I said, I never knew anyone well enough to want to try anything like that. And demons obviously have no physical form in Aria so anything that intimate is purely emotional. And I never had that either.”

“Given how smoothly you charm me, I find that a bit hard to believe.”

He kissed me again. “It just came naturally with you.”

I kissed him back.

We stood in my living room, kissing in front of my bookshelf, for quite a while.

Until Avior pulled away again. “So. My people’s ancient gods exist and have a mission for us to save the world. Where do you reckon we’re supposed to start?”