#belle just making it in there.. 8 year old me is losing her MIND | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

lumiereandcogsworth · 8 months ago

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that baseball ask you sent (which I'm answering rn :3) made me wonder if Belle or Adam or any of their kiddos ever play sports? or enjoy any? 👁️

FUN QUESTION YAY!!! i am going to divide it between canon and modern au because i think about BOTH.

CANON:

adam: he… does not like exercise at all. he got teased a lot as young lad for preferring to sit in the shade (or inside) and read during recreational time, rather than joining the other boys in activities. now, i did a bit of digging, and actually at this point in time, france wasn’t a very sporty place. they were much more into the ✨intellectualism✨ of it all. and sports were rough and grimy. blegh! even still, the upper class (i.e. where Prince Adam would be hanging, if you can believe it) had lots of tennis, fencing, and equestrian things. i think adam liked Watching equestrian races/obstacle courses/polo matches, (and probably(definitely) developed crushes on some jockeys) but wasn’t super interested in Doing those things. he preferred to just ride horses freely, not so much for challenge’s sake. but he loves horses a lot so watching them was fun for him :3 anyway, he hated tennis because there’s way too much running and coordination involved and you’re usually just standing directly in the sun. disgusting. even if it was indoors it’s too SWEATYYY. BUT! i do think he enjoyed fencing a lot! he sees it as less exerting (though it is) and more of an art form to master. and he was pretty good at it! which was a nice confidence boost. i have a fic that’s a few years old but it’s when adam & belle are still courting and they FENCE!! it’s incredibly adorable. here it is

belle: ACTIVE ADVENTURE GIRL WHO RAN LIKE A MILE AFTER GASTON PROPOSED TO HER????? hell yeah she sports. like i said though, “sports” weren’t much of a thing. and especially since she didn’t have any friends to play with :( BUT i absolutely think that her and maurice would toss/kick a ball back and forth of SOME kind. you can’t convince me otherwise. she always wanted to be outside!! and maurice was with her much of the time!! so i think they played catch. i also hc that he taught her how to swim in the river that flows past the village, and i think she’d enjoy swimming A LOT. when she learns about mermaids she loses her freaking mind and wishes on stars to become one. but anyway, she was as sporty as a french 18th century village girl could be!! she climbed trees constantly (definitely has lots of little scars like giselle!!) and loved to RUN ! she just had (and still has) So Much Energy. she also just made up a lot of silly games that requires running between trees and making her own obstacle courses. and as an adult, as QUEEN! i think she enjoys tennis and plays with either her kiddos or her ladies in waiting. (or just anyone. i could see her being like “hello sir we need to figure out this business thing. shall we discuss over a game of tennis?” and he’s just like ??? okay ?? your majesty ???????)

renée: SPEAKING OF ENERGY! little renée is just like her mama. loves running and jumping and climbing!!!! but a major difference is they grew up in entirely different stations!! when renée grows older she gets REALLY into polo and maybe even equestrian obstacle courses - though idk the policies on women doing that stuff at that point >:/ but she’s the princess royal so fuck you. anyway she also enjoyed fencing and tennis when she went to university. (i don’t think she was super good at either of them but… she does her best) she’s just such a horse girl !! so that’s where she shined. (her & adam sometimes go to horse races/shows together,,, bonding time. i’m sure belle joins a lot too but she’s BUSY and adam is more willing to play hooky from work, lmao)

juliette: not really a sports girlie. she loves running around and playing with her siblings !! but she wasn’t as brave in terms of climbing trees, and she was afraid of horses until she was like, 8 (and even then, she’d only ride with adam or belle). i think her favorite way to be active is either going on walks or swimming :)

maurice: little reecy is much like his mama too, just chaos and running and climbing. he has fun swimming too. he also likes to WRESTLE even though he’s not all that muscular. he and his best friend xavier, since they were toddlers, simply attack each other for fun. (maurice also likes picking play fights with adam, and adam’s always like sON PLEASE— but maurice has already tackled him onto the bed or sofa adjskd) anyway i think it would be so funny if he just absolutely DOMINATED in tennis when he goes to university. like just an absolute legend. they put his name on the plaque in the trophy hall and everything. and what’s so annoying is he doesn’t even care about it that much. he’s just having fun and making friends. he’s one of those people that is naturally good at a lot of things… very annoying but he’s so charming and sweet that you don’t even care 😮‍💨

(oh and, obviously, all the kids are WELL verses in many many many different dances. just comes with the 18th century royal territory ✨ they all took classes and they all enjoyed it to varying degrees!)

okay, MODERN AU!

adam: once again, sports were not his vibe. PE class was a damn nightmare for every possible reason. later on when he’s with belle, she Tries to take him on runs or at least to do some yoga or something. and he just hates it man😭 “why must you TORTURE ME” but then it always bites him in the ass later because he’ll be groaning from aging and being randomly sore and belle’s like “if only you stretched!😌☕️” and he’s just like 😒

belle: sooo sporty as a kid, i can’t even decide if she had a favorite. soccer basketball softball volleyball track cross country tennis lacrosse swim team ?? i think she’d enjoy basketball and soccer most, just because they’re the most stimulating and active. but she really did enjoy trying all of them!!! i think cross country was also lovely for her bc she could just run and THINK! in college she probably took a lot of fitness classes (i took kickboxing and spin, which she Definitely would too) and just be at the rec center as much as she could (which unfortunately wouldn’t be much, since she was doing two majors and So Busy). and as an adult she probably is always doing some kind of fitness class, as well as going to gyms to swim! and going on runs when the weather is nice (the runs make adam uneasy because WHAT IF SOMEONE KIDNAPS YOU!!!! so she’s like 🙄 and turns on location on her phone so he can check if it’s been Too Long. also he makes her carry pepper spray. the man worries Okay) anyway she’s always doin somethin <3

renée: again, like belle, she tried lots of sports!! not as many as her mama, but lots. she also did dance/ballet for many years. like from toddler age to maybe 10 or 11 or so. and that took a lot of her time, but she still somehow found a way to try other sports too. i think of the ones she tried she probably liked volleyball the most. and it’s the only one she did in high school. (she focused more on academic stuff anyway, so one sport was satisfactory). she’s still a horsegirl in modern au though and, given their financial capabilities, she probably did horse stuff on the side like polo. i think she always wanted her own horse but it was never realistic, she focused more on other things and couldn’t devote her time to it. but she definitely complained about it A LOT when she was younger. looking back as an adult though she’s glad she didn’t Have A Horse to care for still. she had her favorites at the ranch she’d go to and that was good enough!

juliette: still not a sports girlie! lmao. PE was Also a damn nightmare 😭 but she did ballet with renée for a handful of years as well, and i think she liked taking swim classes, so adam & belle found some kind of swim team club thing for her to join that was less intense than school competitions. (which Really helped her get a tad better at socializing !! but still always a struggle for her 😞) anyway i think she still swims sometimes in college, but is much more focused on school and being in the orchestra (we got a violin prodigy over here!!!!) so it’s less and less. but as an adult she walks and such. whenever her & renée can meet and catch up, they go on long walks together :”3 and sometimes horseback riding !

maurice: okay reecy ALSO did ballet as a kid, just like his sisters, but he only did it a few years because he got Really Into Baseball !!!!! so he traded his dancing shoes for CLEATS! i think he did other sports too, soccer, track, maybe even tennis to be reminiscent of his 18th century counterpart, but baseball is his love. he may even play in college, perhaps! as an adult i can totally see him being the baseball couch for his nieces/nephews/kids later on. i think he’d enjoy that a lot :”3 AND he’d also be really into hiking. he’d wanna be all “into the wild” and go on a solo hike somewhere lesser known but adam 1000% forbid it. “that boy was an idiot. you’re not doing that.” and maurice says “DAD! don’t speak ill of the DEAD!” and adam goes “my point entirely😮‍💨” but anyway reece obeys and only goes on hikes with groups of friends and in Relatively Known Areas🙄. he even drags his family on a hike every now and then when they’re all adults! only belle and his partner eloise really enjoy it with him 💔 reecy & belle prob do (VERY CUTE) mother-son hikes sometimes though!!!!!🥹

#EEEEEEEEEEE :)))))#sorry i talked so much but AH!#i couldn’t Not include modern au. i think about that universe A Lot #anyway thank you🥰🥰🥰#alex tag #answered #batb 2017 #batb headcanons #adelle #modern au adelle #oc writing #adam #belle #renée #juliette #maurice

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hillsandpoon · 2 years ago

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The Sudoku Book - Short story

I wrote this story about 7 years ago it's part of a set of three. Not quite sure what I was thinking about or the reasons why but I don't think I did a bad job?

OK so it's no match for Messrs Dahl, Fleming or Conan-Doyle nor is it going to win the Pulitzer or Booker prizes but there is always scope and hope.

Hope you enjoy it and please leave feedback if you could be so kind.

I lie on the plastic sun bed by the pool as crisp as a red tomato it creaks in protest as I adjust my position with too much rich food and cheap alcohol the reason to blame. Factor 8 daubed carelessly all over my body, my hair lightening rapidly in the sunlight from the first week of my 2 week vacation. Sunglasses balanced on my head in a precarious position. Somewhat bored now of the seriously desperate although mildly amusing shag, marry or kill game which has kept my mind largely occupied thus far.

Let’s face it there could have been some very lucky ladies this week if only they knew the results of my thoughts (wry smile) but now I’ve actually resorted to scraping the bottom of the barrel in desperation and I’m currently filling in numbers haphazardly in my new Sudoku book

Sitting alone trying to get comfortable, my towel covered in body sweat trickling down my back like a waterfall from the intense Greek sun or is it the Greek sun isn’t the sun the same everywhere? Why do people say Greek sun or Spanish sun or Mexican sun there is only one it’s surely the same for all? It’s dilemma after dilemma though does that number 4 go there in the middle or in the top right corner? My mind relaxing for a moment and then a thought enters my head “Oh god did I remember to turn the boiler off before I left home”? Thinking I can’t actually do much about it now as several uncontrollable beads of sweat falls from my face and land in the middle of the page of my Sudoku book.

So if the 6 goes there and the 1 goes there where does the 7 need to go? I ask myself as an old lady hauls herself out of the pool, loses her footing and falls back in creating a splash which splashes my legs providing me with some entertainment and respite from this sweltering heat I kick my legs for some reason to remove the excess and think to myself why do people bother to dry off as the heat of the sun will have them dried off in 2 minutes anyway.

Suddenly there is movement as some new blood arrives and the shag, marry kill game is reinstated briefly at least for now. Two women appear in near matching striped bikinis with their hair tied back and faces shadowed by brimmed hats both armed with those big daft Longchamp bags tossed in a carefree manner over their shoulders.

The game is on is it sisters? Is it two friends? or is it a mother and daughter? I get curious and for now Sudoku is the last thing on my mind. Sunglasses are lowered, belly fat sucked in, fingers quickly run through damp hair, a quick innocuous self breath test with the cupped hand as they head towards me and place their towels on two nearby sun beds and start to make them selves comfortable and place the big daft shoulder bags under their sun beds.

By now naughty scenarios play in my mind and I just adjust my shorts just in case they look over at the handsome man with sunglasses on, taking a seriously unhealthy interest in what they are doing. Women never look like this at home I think to myself why do they both look like sure fire shags and that a holiday ménage et trios with a mother and daughter would be very nice.

All of the sudden the silence is broken by a chirpy male scouse voice shouting “Karen, Becky, do you want drinks girls?” I look over and across by the bar are their partners one donned in a Liverpool shirt and one in a Tranmere Rovers shirt.

The ladies respond in kind replying in a broad scouse dialect “Yes please Dave” and shout their orders over to what obviously are their partners and for me the moment of hope of a holiday romance is over again, totally extinguished and my hopes dashed.

Sunglasses up, belly relaxed, hair tousled, Sudoku book picked up again and in taking that action more sweat runs down my face and back but this time I use my towel to take the worse of the sweat off. I move my knees up and create a table again to rest my book before getting back into puzzle mode. There are more big decisions to be made. Does the 8 go there and if that is the case where does the 9 go it can’t go in that row because there is a 9 there already?

As a final insult as the two luckiest guys currently in the world bring the drinks over to their partners I overhear one say to the other in a Bootle brogue voice “I think we’ve picked the wrong hotel mate it’s so lifeless that fella there has resorted to doing Sudoku” before the four of them burst into a chorus of giggles and chuckles at my expense.

At which point I suddenly realise that Sudoku is in so many ways actually very similar to life just a load of jumbled and pointless numbers you have little or no chance of ever working out and with that I decide to return to my room to cool off and as I pass the wasp ridden waste bin tentatively the Sudoku book is discarded finding a new place to reside in the great dustbin of life.

#short story #puzzles #humor

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solmints-messyocdiary · 2 years ago

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Blue, I just want to thank you again for creating this series. I never expected this, and it has been wonderful reading it and talking with you about it. 💗

Now... let me lose my mind below.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw him walk back inside. Putting her fingers in her mouth, she bit down slightly to try and fight the tears.

My baby girl, you can really feel how much Belle's disappearance has affected her. :(

From around a doorway, bright olive eyes watched him dress, gather his things, and leave.

Pftt... a lil' creep.

He didn't flinch. He never did. Death didn't bother him, and that troubled him.

"Why are you taking pictures?" A boy - about 8 or 10 years old - was standing over him. He was clutching a handful of wilting flowers. A little mourner, come to dutifully lay flowers on a loved one's resting place.

Why was he taking pictures?

He didn't know either. It just felt natural. Like muscle memory.

BLUE, THE FORESHADOWING. THE EERIENESS. Yeah, Darrell, why aren't you feeling queasy, huh? Why doesn't death bother you? 👀

Also, I was about to copy past the entire conversation with the boy but I refrained so I'll try to explain how much how love that setting.

It was AMAZING. The way Darrell was joking around and entertaining the kid, thinking it all was a silly story. A make-believe done by a young and scared boy. The entire "an evil Bulgarian fairy in Moldova?" delivery, AND THE SPITEFUL COMMENT OF THE BOY TELLING HIM THAT ALL THE FORMER GRAVEDIGGERS HAVE BEEN KILLED BY HER, only for Darrell to immediately stop smiling??? You gave me a little sneak preview of the outcome, but I wasn't prepared for it. To tell you, I grinned at how well the scene was set, the playfulness, turned tale, turned horror, to realization? Chef's kiss.

I just want to say that I adore how Odile has been trying to convince herself that the reason she is risking her safety is for Belle alone. Makes sense, Belle is the only company she had for god knows how long, but she could have waited for Darrell to leave her unattended, and it would still have had the same outcome. Now we know where her intentions lie. She has the vibes of an unreliable narrator, which I adore.

She'd been lying when she said she wanted to see Belle. Inching closer, her eyes hesitantly darted from one feature to another. From his hands - large and sinewy - to his collarbone, his throat, and his face - framed by raven locks that spilled over the cushions. He looked like an ink drawing pried from the pages of a story book. Eros reclining. Endymion the Shepherd.

Oh gosh... Odile as a Psyche or Selene gazing down at the sleeping man below her. I can't. You hit me right where it stings good for me, longing, jealousy, and Greek myth. 😭

Odile cast a jealous look at the moon, daring her to step down and intervene.

Odile is being a little hypocritical as if she herself isn't staring at the man without his knowledge. Despite being religious, she is ready to catch hands with a goddess if she has to.

She ran her fingertips up and down his side, wanting to count his ribs - see if he was missing any. Did not God pluck Eve from Adam's side and fashioned her to be his wife?

Don't mind me... I AM SOBBING HERE IN MY CORNER. Beautiful line. Just... beautiful.

Also... Darrell just touching and embracing her??? That's probably the first time she has been held like a lover...

The next morning, Darrell found a single golden strand of hair on his blanket - which had again left its spot at the foot of the bed. The picture the boy had taken of him had vanished from his desk.

Oh? 👀

For those who do not know, a Samodiva would sometimes give a small portion of her hair to her lover to strengthen her control over him via its magical effects.

For Life Or Until Fault

Alt Timeline 2.0 - Darrell x Odile Part 2

Warnings: MINORS DNI! Main characters are slasher ocs! stalking(?), descriptions of dead bodies, implied cannibalism, implied murder

Darrell is my oc

Odile belongs to @solmints-messyocdiary

Odile cowered behind the trunk of an ash tree, hoping the man wouldn't see her. Heart hammering, knees trembling, she looked to see if he had followed her.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw him walk back inside. Putting her fingers in her mouth, she bit down slightly to try and fight the tears.

She'd been looking all day for Belle - the only company she had in that desolate place. She was so worried, afraid the poor dog had been hurt or taken to the pound.

She was fine, thank goodness, but she was wearing a collar. Her fur was washed. She had been fed.

Was that bad?

Surely, Odile should be happy that her friend found a new home. Besides, she always knew that Belle would abandon her, too. What had she to offer anyway?

Her heart stung as she finally broke, tears pouring down her cheeks.

She was already missing her, her puppy dog kisses and her warmth. She just wished she could have said goodbye.

Maybe she could try?

Odile dried her face with the skirt of her dress.

Yes. She could sneak into the old manor house once the strange man had fallen asleep.

Darrell woke up with a start. He'd seen the willowy fingers slip on the pane in his dream.

Only this time, he felt the weight of them on his chest.

He sat up, his back stiff from the chaise. He peeled back the blanket that had been pulled up to his chest. Funny. He didn't remember using it the night before. He was sure it had been folded into a neat rectangle at his feet.

Bark!

Isabelle trotted into the parlor. The way her tail wagged made Darrell feel like she was urging him out of bed. "Rough night," Darrell said. "Hungry?"

With the blanket wrapped around him like a shawl, Darrell crouched by the hearth and set his coffee pot over the coals. He busied himself with cooking sausages.

"Stop looking at things that aren't there." He patted Isabelle's croup. She was staring intently down the dark hallway that led deeper into the house. Darrell got down on one knee beside her and squinted. Nothing.

"You're scaring me," he told her as he ruffled the fur of her neck. "Alright, come on. Time to go to work."

From around a doorway, bright olive eyes watched him dress, gather his things, and leave.

They started on their patrol, using the map as a guide. Darrell wanted to inspect the graves, try to find a pattern to the vandalism, see if he could tell where the culprit was coming from.

Darrell made his solemn way through the memorials of the departed. The days were prematurely cold, and he was thankful for the mug of steaming coffee he had brought. It was prime hunting season, if you asked him. The ground was frozen, food was scarce, so the animals ventured out of the woods of their own accord.

He made quick work of the marked sites, snapping pictures of the graves with a funny little instant film camera he impulsively bought in town. He compared dates of death and extent of damage, stuffing the little paper snapshots in his jacket pocket. They jutted out wildly like carnival tickets.

The last grave was cordoned off by braided rope. The cloying scent of turned earth and rot greeted him as he drew nearer. Some of the bodies had been carted off. To be cremated, no doubt. A few, like this one, had been left by investigators. He could make out the shape of the coffin under the nylon tarp. However, other indentations hinted the lid had been removed.

Darrell rested his gun against a granite headstone and stepped off the edge, dropping six feet straight down. He landed with a muffled crunch. Isabelle watched from ear level as he removed the tarp with a snap.

The corpse in the coffin was pale with a putrid tinge of purple and green. Its eyes were rolled back into its skull. Its fingers, once peacefully folded on its stomach, were stiff and gnarled.

He didn't flinch. He never did. Death didn't bother him, and that troubled him.

Why was he taking pictures?

He didn't know either. It just felt natural. Like muscle memory.

Darrell tore the film from the camera and inspected the snapshot. "I'm the new graveyard keeper. They're paying me to find who's doing this," he explained. "I'm looking for clues."

The boy crouched beside the hole and picked up the camera. He aimed it at Darrell and took a candid snap. "I know who did it."

Darrell humored him. "Do you?"

The boy carefully removed the film and showed it to Darrell. "A samodiva," he said. "The cops don't believe us. They think it's just a story told to scare kids."

So did Darrell.

"What do they know?" muttered the boy reproachfully.

"So, you think a fairy did this?"

The boy stiffened in indignation. "It's not just me! Grownups talk about her, too! A woman dressed in white, tall and blonde, with fiery eyes. She steals the dead away and… and eats them."

"An evil Bulgarian fairy in Moldova?" Darrell was smiling wryly.

"She killed the other graveyard keepers," the boy told Darrell spitefully. "Why'd you think the job was open?"

That knocked Darrell's grin clean off. A chill went down his spine. At a loss for words, he grabbed the corpse by the wrist. The arm popped right off. The boy immediately got on his feet with a soft gasp.

Darrell turned the arm over, inspecting the purple flesh. Whole chunks were missing. Frowning, he pried Isabelle's jaw open with a finger, trying to see if the bite marks fit a canid teeth pattern.

They didn't.

Besides, he knew they were human the second he saw them.

"Do you believe me now?" demanded the boy.

The pictures burned in his pocket. The dates in his mind like glowing cattle prods. Every corpse had been recently interred.

Fresh, more or less.

Darrell tossed the arm back into the coffin and replaced the tarp. The boy kindly helped him out of the grave. They stood together for a moment, sporting identical shades of pallor. "What's wrong?" the boy asked.

Darrell licked his lips. "I think I saw her," he told the boy, whose eyes grew wide with terror. "Your wicked fairy."

There was a hole in the back of the house. Close to the ground. A chink in its brick armor. Odile found it the first night she snuck in.

It was blocked off by a rough rectangle of bricks, held together still by the same mortar that had crumbled and rotted around it. She wormed her willowy fingers through the cracks, carefully pulled the bricks loose, and squeezed through.

She wormed into the laundry room, which was chock full of ancient washing machinery and other junk. Quiet as a mouse, she wove her way around the clutter, bunching her skirt around her hips so it would snag on any protruding bars or edges.

She hadn't meant to come back. She promised herself that she'd stay away from the stranger. For her own safety, really. Just until the townsfolk's anger subsided. She'd survived several witch hunts before. She could surely hideaway for another one.

Yet, here she was again. Needy girl, she reproached herself. Stupid, silly girl! Why are you here?

She wanted to see Belle.

Up close. Not from a distance, like she had all day.

She crept down the dark hall, past the kitchen with the blackened cooking ranges and cracked tile. Minding her footing on the floor boards, she crossed into the parlor.

Her eyes immediately went to where the graveyard keeper was sleeping, laid out stiffly on a chaise lounge. His nightshirt had hiked up slightly from tossing and turning, and Odile could see his cream-colored thigh in the light of the moon.

Odile cast a jealous look at the moon, daring her to step down and intervene.

Undaunted, Odile knelt beside the chaise. Scarred hands set primly on the edge, staring up at the sleeping stranger. She'd spent countless hours thinking of him.

How gentle he was. How sweetly he crooned at Belle as he tried his best to dance with her, music pouring into his ears. How intriguing that a man so strong could be so soft at the same time.

Odile lay her head on his belly, strawberry blonde hair tumbling down his sides like a waterfall. She let her head rise and fall with his every breath.

She ran her fingertips up and down his side, wanting to count his ribs - see if he was missing any. Did not God pluck Eve from Adam's side and fashioned her to be his wife?

He stirred and her heart clenched. Frozen with fear, she watched his lashes flutter as his eyes opened just a crack and stared blearily at her. He made no move to go, showed no hint of surprise or terror or disgust. Instead, she felt his hands shift from under her wild hair. He placed one on her head, the other on her cheek. He stroked her hair, ran his thumb back and forth over her flushed cheek.

He closed his eyes with a soft sigh and returned to his dreams.

Smiling, Odile did the same and followed him.

The next morning, Darrell found a single golden strand of hair on his blanket - which had again left its spot at the foot of the bed. The picture the boy had taken of him had vanished from his desk.

#alt timeline 2.0 #darrell × odile #darrell todd #oc: odile #slasher: odile #ocs of cool peeps #for life or until fault

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looooooooomis · 3 years ago

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FINAL GIRL | FIVE

You were his final girl. And there was no chance in hell that anyone or anything was going to mess that up.

p a r t five | t h e c a b i n (part I)

masterlist here

pairing: Billy Loomis x f!reader word count: 5.6k (I’M SORRY I GOT CARRIED AWAY) warnings: s m u t (18 +!!!!!)

A/N: after 8 months of MIA, SHE’S BACK BABY!!! this is part 1 of 2 of our fav couple being at the cabin x next chapter will have soft moments I promise lmao

You should have been paying more attention.

If you’d been paying more attention, you wouldn’t have had five sets of eyes currently watching your every move, waiting for an answer you didn’t have. Why had you thought it was a good idea to stay up as late as you had packing your overnight bag for the cabin? If you had gone to bed at a reasonable hour, you wouldn’t have been as braindead as you currently were and, if you hadn’t been braindead, you wouldn’t have wound up in whatever ring of hell you were currently stuck in as your friends stared at you as though you’d grown a second head.

You pleaded with your tongue to say anything, pleaded for your brain to register a decent enough lie to make this uncomfortable silence end but nothing came out of your mouth. Only a pathetic hum and a gusto of forced laughter.

You wanted to die.

It should have been an easy enough answer to what was an even easier question. One that you’d practiced answering for the last two days and yet, as the moment for the lie came and went, you were left scrambling like a fucking moron.

You didn’t dare look at Billy as Sid curled into his side knowing if you managed to catch his coffee-coloured stare, you’d only be met with something between terror and amusement as you royally shit the bed. So, instead, you did the next best thing. You replayed the question over and over again in your head until you were driven mad.

‘Are you up for a movie this weekend?’

It was a simple enough question, one you’d managed to decline easily enough but, as Tatum frowned and asked the one question you were expecting to hear, your mind went blank.

‘Why? What are you doing?’

The answer you were supposed to say: I have to babysit my cousin in Santa Rosa all weekend. The answer they got? Silence. Pure, awkward as fuck, silence.

“Earth to Y/N,” Tatum laughed, brows furrowing. “Are you alive?”

“Sorry,” you huffed out a quiet laugh and shook your head, “I barely slept last night, I’m braindead.”

While it wasn’t a lie, you were still on edge. You’d think after months of sneaking around with the asshole sitting in front of you that you would have chilled out a little more but not today. Maybe it was the nerves of a full weekend away with Billy Loomis as his girlfriend hosted a fucking movie night sans her boyfriend and best friend – but something was making you stumble over what should have been second nature to you.

“You feeling okay?” Sid, the angel she was, asked with a small frown. Your stomach twisted in the familiar way it always did when your sweet friend showed concern. Concern which you most definitely didn’t deserve. “You seem…off.”

It would have been so easy to confess your dark little twisted affair with Billy right then and there. To just open your mouth and let the truth of everything you’d been doing behind her back play out. But you knew it would break her heart and, more than that, you were a fucking coward.

“I’m fine, Sid,” you smacked on a small smile and leaned into your locker. You had one more class until you were home free. Free of your friends’ inquiring eyes, free of Biology, free of Woodsboro. If you managed to get through this incredibly uncomfortable moment. “And I would if I could, trust me. I have to babysit my little cousin in Santa Rosa.” You feigned disappointment with a small frown. You could see Stu’s lips tug up in mild amusement out of the corner of your eye. “She’s nine, so if I don’t come back on Monday, know that she annoyed me to death.”

Randy scoffed and casually threw his arm around your neck. “Every day I’m thankful I don’t have any snot-nosed kids in my family. Losing my weekend to babysit? I’d rather rot.”

Despite your guilt, you managed a small smile as you looked across at him. “I think the kid would rather you rot, too. You’d be a terrible babysitter.”

“She’s right,” Tatum smirked, “you’d show the kid one of your weirdo movies where a girl with big tits is running helplessly away from her killer. It’d scar the kid for life.”

“Or,” Randy mused, “prepare them for the real world. Put some hair on their chest and all that shit.”

“Furthering my point, Meeks, you’d be a shit babysitter.” You laughed. “But, yeah, I’ll be suffering at the hands of a nine-year-old, so you guys have fun without me.”

“How about you, lover boy?” Tatum asked, looking across at Billy. “Will you be joining us this weekend?”

You should have averted your eyes. Should have done anything besides wait, with bated breath, to see what Billy would say. Slowly, those brown eyes tapered over towards you just briefly before looking at Tatum. With a casual shrug of his shoulders, Billy shook his head and leaned into Sid. “Can’t,” he merely said, “I’m going up north with my dad. He wants to get some of his affairs in order or something, I don’t know.” He ran a hand through his hair. “All I know is I was promised free beer if I helped him. So, I’m helping him.”

If Sid caught onto his lie, her face didn’t betray her once. And, as she looked up at her boyfriend with doting eyes, you couldn’t help but feel that pang of shame slice into your gut once again. She believed him. She always believed him. Believed you. Regardless of how good it felt to have Billy, that shame of knowing just who it was unwittingly hurting in the process never dissipated.

“You sure you guys won’t need help?” Sid asked, further digging that knife of shame into your chest. “Besides this movie, I’ve got nothing else going on this weekend.”

“Real nice,” Randy teased. “She’d rather watch Billy’s dad punch away at a fucking calculator then sit down with her nearest and dearest.”

Billy ignored Randy entirely as he glanced down at the brunette. “I’m sure,” he affirmed, giving her a quick squeeze. “Enjoy the movie night. I’ll be there for the next one.”

He lied so effortlessly, so casually, that it should have unnerved you. But it didn’t. Because for as good of a liar Billy Loomis was, you were right here with him. This dangerous little game the two of you were playing was becoming second nature to you and for as much as it pained you to see Sidney get lied to, you couldn’t help yourself.

You loved Billy. Billy loved you. Right person, wrong time. Only rather than wait like you knew you should have, Billy’s glow was much too enthralling to miss. You were both moths to each other’s’ flames and no amount of guilt or shame was strong enough to outweigh the otherworldly affliction the two of you had for one another.

The bell signifying your final class rung out, snapping you out of your brief reverie as you blinked and focused on pushing Randy off of you. “Want to drive me to the bus station?” You asked him. “I don’t want to drive all the way to Santa Rosa, so I bought a bus ticket.”

“Tonight?” Randy considered it briefly before shrugging. “Sure, I guess. I’ve got a shift tonight at seven, though. When’s your bus leave?”

“Six thirty,” you lied, mainly doing this so that should anyone drive by your house this weekend and see your car still neatly parked in your driveway, they wouldn’t bat an eye. “I owe you.”

“Yeah, you do,” Randy agreed. “And, lucky for you, I accept a lot of different payment options.” He wriggled his brows, earning a playful smack from you and an annoyed glare from Billy. Thankfully, Randy didn’t catch onto the latter. “Pick you up at six?”

You nodded. “Perfect.”

With your eyes flickering to Billy’s once more, you managed to shoot everyone a quick smile before disappearing down the hall towards Biology. Just how you’d managed to dance your way out of what could have been an incredibly awkward moment, you didn’t know. But as you felt that weighty stare of Billy’s on your back as you walked away, there was an air of excitement that swallowed you whole.

No matter how much guilt you felt, no matter how sick it made you to see Sidney get hurt, even if she didn’t quite know about just yet, there was a much larger part of you that couldn’t wait to get Billy alone.

Because for the first time in the seven months since you’d started this torrid little affair, you were finally getting Billy all to yourself. No prying eyes, no secret kisses, no having to hide every part of your relationship with the man. None of that.

This weekend, it was you and it was Billy.

And you couldn’t fucking wait.

»»-------------¤-------------««

Randy, being the superstar he was, had dropped you off at the station a little after six-fifteen and by six-thirty-two, just around the time the actual bus was leaving for Santa Rosa, you were scrambling into Billy’s car with a wild grin on your face.

Just how the pair of you had managed to pull it off, especially given your brain lapse earlier in the day, was beyond you. But, as Billy tore off down the main street leading to the freeway, you couldn’t help but feel a sense of freedom engulf you the farther and farther you got from town.

It was exhilarating.

And, as you glanced at Billy, who couldn’t have looked more like a movie star with his dark locks blowing with the wind cascading in through his open window, you couldn’t help but reach across the divide to gently squeeze his jean-clad thigh.

“Thank you,” you found yourself muttering and as those brown eyes met yours, you couldn’t help but grin. “For your stupid key proposal. In hindsight, it was very sweet.”

The dimple in Billy’s cheek deepened as his own grin grew. “Glad you let me steal you away?”

You loosened your seatbelt momentarily and leaned across to give him a kiss on the cheek. “Very glad.” You made a move to pull away but stopped when he gently grabbed your chin with the hand not holding the wheel. “What—”

The kiss, while dangerously stupid, was short and sweet but the emotion behind it, the genuine happiness that exuded out of Billy in those few seconds was palpable. “I really do fucking love you, you know that?”

“You’ve mentioned it,” you hummed and slinked back into your seat. When his large hand found your thigh, he gave it a firm squeeze that sent shockwaves throughout your whole body.

“Not going to say it back?” He teased, giving you a sidelong glance as he drew nearer to the freeway.

“I’d rather show it.” Rather than put your seatbelt back on, you shimmed in your seat and leaned into him as your fingers scraped along his thighs towards the button of his jeans. “Eyes on the road, Loomis.”

Easier said than done, Billy thought, torn between watching the road and watching you unzip his jeans. Raising his ass out of the seat just long enough to allow you to tug his pants down his thighs, the second Billy saw yours eyes light up as his now somewhat erect cock sprung free of his jeans, keeping his eyes on the road seemed impossible. But, the second he saw that pretty mouth of yours perk up in anticipation, it was game over. “Are you trying to get us killed?”

A low chuckle escaped your lips as you began to pump his length with your hand. “Focus on the road, Billy.”

“You say that like it’s easy.” Not being able to keep his hands off of you, he reached for your nipple and gave it a pinch through your shirt. “Take your shirt off, baby.”

“Shut up and drive.” You chided him, shimming in your seat so that you were on your knees leaning over the console. His cock was rock hard now and, as you ran your tongue alongside his length, from the base of it all the way up to coax your tongue along the precum that had gathered along his head, you felt him shiver beneath you.

“Fuck,” he hissed, tangling his fingers through your hair. You were too fucking good with that mouth of yours.

Still pumping the base of his cock with one hand, you swirled your tongue along the tip of his dick again before taking that perfectly girthy cock in your mouth. His grip tightened on your hair and your eyes watered as he pushed your head down to fully take the length of him inside of your mouth. He heard you gag on him but even as his grip eased up, you continued your pursuit of deepthroating him.

His breathing was shallow as he felt your hot mouth all over him. Between the sounds of your wet mouth taking him in and the occasional gag as you choked on his length, Billy was in heaven.

But having you this close as you fucked him with your mouth whilst still fully clothed was killing him. He needed to feel you. He wanted to feel your juices on his fingers and running down those perfect fucking thighs as he fingerfucked you. He wanted to hear you moan, feel you moan on his cock as he made you feel as good as you were making him feel.

He wanted all of you, needed all of you.

Trying his damnedest not to shut his eyes as your mouth brought him closer to the edge, he reached beneath you to work on your own zipper but when that proved to be impossible, a frustrated growl tore out of his lips. “Undo your pants.” He hissed through bared teeth.

You hummed against his dick which nearly sent him into the other land of traffic. “No,” you purred, “I want to make you feel good.”

With one hand on the wheel and the other now gliding up and down your back as you fucked him with your mouth, Billy couldn’t help but buck into your mouth as you began to massage his balls. He was going to bust and soon if he wasn’t careful.

You were too fucking good and he was too fucking in love with you not to get lost in the way you made him feel.

“Touch yourself, at least,” he breathed out, desperate to see that pretty cunt. “Please, baby.”

Not granting him the satisfaction, you simply dug your nails into his thighs and moaned onto his cock and the sensation of it alone was almost enough to make him come down your throat. It seemed to slither around his cock, making him twitch and buck into your mouth.

But it was the second you moaned out his name as you swirled your wet mouth along the head of his dick one final time, swallowing back his precum with a contented hum, that Billy blew his loud inside of your mouth.

For a good five seconds, he didn’t care if he crashed the goddamn car as he watched you swallow his seed. He was bucking into your mouth, his breathing was ragged, as you guzzled him back and, as you finally released his cock with a pop, Billy almost lost it.

With a devilish grin, you simply wiped a finger along the edge of your lips and leaned back into your seat with a satisfied glimmer in your eyes. You knew you’d be in for it once he got his hands on you at the cabin, but for now, as you watched him lamely try and pull his jeans up his body to cover his slowly softening cock, you couldn’t help but laugh.

“What’s the matter, Billy?” You teased, fastening your seatbelt back up. “You look a little rattled.”

“Yeah, yeah,” he simpered, not bothering with the zipper or button of his jeans. Instead, he reached across the divide and grabbed for your hand as he ghosted his lips across your knuckles. “Just wait until we get to the cabin.”

With your suspicions confirmed, you couldn’t help but beam across at him as you drove further and further away from Woodsboro. That was definitely a threat and good god were you excited for its execution.

»»-------------¤-------------««

By the time you’d pulled into the Loomis family cabin, it was pitch black outside.

The moon was too high in the sky and only a sliver of its light poked through the tall pine trees that surrounded the small house but, even with the low light surrounding you, the shadows that danced along the lake was enough to bring out a small smile as you quietly made your way out of the car. You didn’t need full sun to see the beauty surrounding you and the smell of the fresh air mixed with the spice of pine made any ounce of nerves filter out of you.

You were happy.

Unreservedly so.

Glancing across the roof towards Billy, he seemed almost distracted as he looked around at the familiar surroundings. You couldn’t quite tell if he was feeling as happy as you were in those brief moments, but you couldn’t quite blame him for that. The cabin held a lot of memories within it, many of which you knew included his mother. Where you felt freed and excited, you could tell the weight of his current whereabouts was heavy on his shoulders.

“Hey,” you muttered, slicing into the quietude around you. Walking around the front of the car, those brown eyes found yours as you circled your arms around his middle. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” he assured, but his voice was low and distant. All the same, however, his strong arms enveloped you as he kissed your hairline. “Lost in a memory, I guess.”

You nodded into the crook of his neck but said nothing. He needed time to decompress, to familiarize himself with a house he hadn’t been in since his mother left. So, you’d give him that time.

For what must have been minutes, the two of you simply stood at the helm of porch holding onto one another. It wasn’t until Billy placed another quick kiss to your forehead that you felt his arms slowly fall only to grasp your hand in his own. “Come on,” he hummed. His grip on your hand was firm as he walked up the steps leading to the wrap around porch and as he stuck the key inside of the lock and opened the front door, the smell of cedar surrounded you.

The cabin was gorgeous. Wooden slats covered every square inch of the small house and a small fireplace sat at the front of the house with a worn-in couch and chair facing it. It was obvious nobody had come to visit for quite some time judging by the dust lining most of the countertops and shelving units, but you didn’t care.

To you, it was perfect.

Your own little oasis with the boy you loved without any sort of outside interruption.

You released his hand to take a brief look around the small living space but you could feel his eyes on you with every step you took. You knew he was looking to get even with you after your little stunt in the car, but you also knew that he hadn’t quite been expecting the swell of emotions to hit him upon driving up to the cabin. So, you continued to wander around the cabin to both grant him the space he may or may not have needed and, simply, to snoop around.

There were family pictures lining the tables and one in particular made you smile as you caught sight of a young Billy swinging from a tire swing. With a quiet laugh, you picked the frame up and surveyed it with a fond smile on your lips. “Cute,” you remarked, looking across to catch his stare. “A little model, eh?”

Billy watched you carefully place the frame down on the table before continuing on with your self-guided tour. No matter how hard he tried, regardless of the bittersweet memories swirling around inside of his brain, he couldn’t take his eyes off of you. Not that he ever really could, but there was an ease rolling off of you tonight, coming off of you in waves, that drew him in.

“I’ve been thinking about this all week, you know that?” He remarked, leaning against the back of the couch as he watched you pick up another picture frame. “Just me and you. Out here alone in the woods for an entire weekend.”

“Sounds like a scary movie when you put it that way,” you goaded with a wink. “Or a really niche porno.”

“Why not a bit of both?” His molasses coloured eyes glimmered mischievously as you walked up to him and stepped between his legs. The second you were close, he pulled you flush against his chest and kissed the tip of your nose as he pushed your hair back and away from your face. “Both could be fun.”

You grinned. “I’m down for anything,” you shrugged. “So long as you promise to take me on an actual date tomorrow. We’re not just fucking like bunnies inside of the cabin all weekend.”

“Heaven forbid,” he leaned in and gave you a slow, torturous kiss.

“I’m serious, Billy,” you moaned.

Pulling away from your mouth, Billy nudged his nose against yours and nodded. “The entire population in Bumfuck, California will know you’re my girl by the end of the weekend,” he avowed, skimming his hands down to your ass to give it a firm squeeze. “I promise.”

“Oh, yeah?” You hummed, kissing him again.

His calloused hands slipped beneath your shirt and scraped up your side. “Yeah.” Digging his hips into yours, he gave you one last kiss before nodding towards the bedroom. “Take your clothes off.”

You giggled as he slapped your ass to steer you down the narrow hallway. “And if I don’t?”

“I’ll rip them off of you,” he simply said, “so either they remain in one piece or I ruin your outfit.”

You glanced down at your jeans and tank before frowning. You looked cute tonight and you’d be damned if the bastard ripped them. So, being the good girl you were, you held his stare and slowly slinked out of your clothes. His eyes seemed so much darker as he watched you strip and the small smirk he wore slowly fell into a hungry thin line as you then perched yourself on the edge of the bed, completely nude.

“You just going to stand there looking pretty or are you going to do something about this?” You slipped your fingers between your thighs and ran your fingers along your swollen clit. A low moan slipped out of your lips at the sensation. “I’m already so wet for you, Billy.”

Slowly, Billy stepped towards you and undid his belt. Leaning down, he kissed you, hard, and steered you backwards on the bed beneath you until your head reached the soft pillows. You could feel his cock straining against his jeans but rather than grant himself any sort of reprieve, you watched him gently grasp your hands and raise them above your head only to wrap his belt around your wrists.

In the blink of an eye, you were tied to the bedposts.

“Is this payback for the car blowie?” You laughed, looking up at your restrained wrists. “If it is, I can’t say I’m mad about it.”

“You wanted something between a horror movie and a niche porno, remember?” He hummed against your skin, placing sloppy kisses along the vein that ran along your neck as he pinched your nipple. “God, you’re fucking perfect. You know that?”

He bit down on your collarbone, kissing his way down your chest until his warm mouth wrapped around your nipple. You could feel his teeth slither along your breast as his tongue lapped expertly on the sensitive bud. You hissed, arching into his mouth as your wrists, on instinct, fought for freedom. “Hardly.”

His eyes met yours as he slowly released your nipple. You were in nothing, of course, but he was still fully clothed, and you hated him for it. You hungrily eyed the bulge in his jeans as he propped himself up on his arm, letting his other hand glide up your chest and neck until it cupped your cheek. His nose brushed against yours, nudging it up to allow his lips to hover just over yours. Close enough that you could almost taste them, but much too far away to satisfy the hunger you had for the man.

“I love you,” he whispered, thumb stroking the apple of your cheek as his warm, brown eyes swallowed you up. “You know that, right?”

“Yes,” you swallowed hard and tilted your head up just enough to finally catch his lips. But, just as quickly as it happened, the man pulled away and let his hand begin to roam down your body. His mouth was at your ear now, nibbling at your earlobe as his hot breath slithered against your neck. You shivered. “I love you, too.”

His voice was gruff in your ear. “I’d kill for you,” his hand continued its journey down your throat, brushing past your nipple, down the length of your stomach until reaching the small smattering of hair along your mound. He was careful to keep his hands from dipping any lower, tormenting you as best to his ability, which just about killed you, if you were being honest. “You know that?”

Bucking your hips up, you nearly growled at the lack of attention you were receiving. You were soaked and touch-starved for him. His fingers, his mouth, the erection currently poking into your thigh, anything. “I wouldn’t ask you to do that,” you managed a quiet laugh. “But I appreciate it.”

His teeth bit down on your neck again. “But, I would. I’d do anything for you, sweetheart.”

His hand slipped further down to your sopping cunt and as he slowly slipped his fingers through your wet folds, the moan he got in return nearly killed him. “Billy,” you whispered desperately. It felt as though you were going to die if you didn’t feel him inside of you. “Please.”

His lips hovered over yours and on instinct, you caught his bottom lip between your teeth and bucked your hips against his hand. He snarled as you bit down on his lip but as the metallic taste of blood met his tongue, it was as though Billy was transcending. His pace on your clit quickened but it was still too slow for you and he knew it. He was torturing you, killing you, and he was enjoying every second of it. Struggling against the belt, your struggle was all for naught as it didn’t so much as move an inch.

“You’d love me, no matter what, right?” He asked, slipping one of his fingers inside of you as he kissed his way down to your chest. Lapping at your nipple, Billy was gentle at first before biting down hard enough to draw blood. Tit for Tat.

“Yes,” you moaned. Your entire body was on fire as his fingers brought you closer to the edge. “But I’d love you even more if you fucked me. You’re killing me, Loomis.”

Licking up the small trail of blood off of your tits, Billy hummed against your nipple and added another finger inside of your pussy. He’d fuck you soon but right now, he needed to feel your entire body light up the way it always had when he drove you into that fit of madness. You were a woman unhinged in the bedroom, he knew as much, and he knew exactly how to get that animal inside of you out.

“You’re so fucking wet,” he admired, reaching his hand up to coat your tit in your own slick. When it was sufficiently wet, he licked your juices off of your breast and growled. God, you tasted so fucking good. “You’re my girl, Y/N, you’re always going to be my girl, right?”

You looked up at him as those words fell from his lips. His brown hair hung down his forehead, his neck red from the strain of having to watch you writhe beneath him without doing a damned thing about it. But what struck you was the look of vulnerability in those brown eyes. That longing, far-away look as his eyes searched yours.

He wanted nothing more than to hear you say that you wanted him. Needed him. Just as much as he needed you.

“Always,” the answer tumbled out of your lips before you so much as thought twice. “I’m your girl, Billy.”

His mouth caught yours in a bruising kiss. Finally, his pace quickened inside of you as met your throbbing core with his dept fingers. With his thumb circling your clit, he dipped two fingers inside of you and grinned against your mouth as you let out a low, desperate moan.

It happened so fast after that. One moment, you were the one tied up on the bed and the next, he’d released you, stripped himself naked, and managed to flip you over so that you were the one on top of him, straddling his waist. Pulling away from you mouth, Billy’s eyes darkened as he saw that familiar glimmer in your eyes. That animalistic side of you was out in full force now.

“Get up here.” He demanded.

You smirked and leaned across him so that your lips hovered over his. “Why would I want to do that?”

He leaned up, the veins in his neck swelled against his neck as he caught your bottom lip between his teeth. “Get. Up. Here.”

Releasing your lip, Billy watched you smirk and crawl up the remainder of his body until your pussy was less than an inch away from his mouth. Grabbing onto the metal of the headboard you’d just been tied up to, you gasped as Billy’s tongue slid into your folds. Finding your clit instantly, you moaned and allowed your eyes to fall shut as you reached down to play with your hardened nipples.

Fuck, what Billy could do with his mouth should have been illegal.

He sucked and lapped at your clit as you rocked back and forth against his mouth. His fingers dug into your hips, so much so that you knew there would be bruises in the morning but, blinded by the pleasure between your thighs, you couldn’t care less.

The moans that were coming out of you were raw and guttural and, as you played with your own tits, envisioning his hands being the ones to squeeze and nip on the swollen buds of your nipples, you saw stars.

“Fuck,” you moaned out, “Billy, baby, fuck.”

He pulled your hips further down so that you were sitting on his face. Not just hovering but sitting on that perfect mouth of his as he held you in place. You knew it must have been hard for him to breathe but he was adamant and as his tongue continued its assault on your throbbing cunt, you came devastatingly hard and incredibly loud.

Stars danced behind your eyes as you continued to ride out your orgasm. When you couldn’t take another second of Billy’s skilled tongue, you climbed off of him only to feel his large hands take hold of your hips again.

Swinging you around so that you were on your back and he was the one hovering over you, Billy wasted no time in slipping his rock-hard erection into your soaking pussy.

He was thrusting hard and the sounds of your juices squelching with every thrust of his cock would have been off-putting if it hadn’t been for the raw, primal need coursing off of the pair of you in waves. He was kissing your lips and biting them and suckling your neck as he continued to rail into you with all of passion in the world. You weren’t sure you’d ever seen him this riled up and you had to admit it was inherently sexy seeing him so affected by you.

Not surprising in the least, it didn’t take him long to come. You’d riled him up to the point of no return in the car and, as you felt him come inside of you, you all but laughed when he dramatically crashed on the bed beside you.

Sweat glistened over every inch of body and the sheen of your juices was still on his lips as he kissed you. This kiss was slow, methodical. Sweet. And you felt yourself fall even harder for the man as he broke the kiss and gently brushed your hair away from your now damp forehead.

Wrapping one arm around your chest, Billy held you against him as he propped himself against the headboard. You were both naked and sweating and while a shower was something you both definitely needed, neither of you found yourselves all too willing to move out of the other’s embrace.

“Is it hard being back here?” You asked, listening to his heart beating in his chest.

“For a second, maybe,” he admitted, soothing your hair down. “Not now.”

“What’s changed?” You asked with a small smile. “The sex was that good, huh?”

A quiet chuckle shook his chest as he kissed the top of your head. “I think horror meets niche porn is my new favourite genre.”

Kissing his naked chest, you grinned into his body. “Same.”

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tenthgrove · 3 years ago

Note

Hello, I just saw that you opened your request. I'm the one who ended up writing a whole prompt! Imagine this for each member from La Squadra: they had an one-night stand with a random woman, she accidentally got pregnant and decided to have the baby without telling them. After a while, the woman got ill and passed away, but not without before sending her child with their father (let's imagine she has the direction of their hideout even if it's ooc, or she knew where they hang out). So, one day someone knocks the door and introduces themselves as the kid of one of the members/if it's too young, someone left them on the door with a explainatory note... How do you think each member would react by discovering that they have a child and they're supposed to take care of them from now? You can make each kid with different ages if you want, it would be funny to see Prosciutto or Ghiaccio dealing with a rebellious teenage son or Risotto trying to take care of a toddler, but I guess not all of them would want to keep their children. Sorry if it's a lot, haha.

La Squadra did a Diavolo

La Squadra x Reader, Platonic/Familial, SFW

A/N: your idea about mixing up the ages got me thinking, and I ended up using randomisers for the children’s ages (though I did consciously change some of them) and genders. It added a fun bit of chance to this prompt.

Formaggio, with an 8 year old daughter

The whole thing feels surreal to him. There's a little girl on his doorstep calling herself his daughter and by all evidence, it's true. He doesn't really know how to feel about it at first. On one hand it's kind of cool he had a kid all this time and you're clearly a lovely girl, but on the other hand, what the fuck? Still, not being the practical sort, his sense of sentiment far outweighs any question of how he's actually going to look after a child, so without much deliberation, Formaggio agrees to let you stay.

Formaggio isn't too experienced with kids but he doesn't exactly dislike them either, so he figures he knows what to do. At your age you can at least do the basics of looking after yourself, so he isn't too worried. The only problem is that if you ask him to cook for you or help clean your room, his eyes go very wide. He never quite picked up those skills himself, he's afraid, so you're going to have to ask someone else for that one.

The good news is that Formaggio is a very easy-going, fun sort of dad, who is a natural at playing with you and lets you do what you want when he can't be around. He quickly gets used to showing affection to you, letting you cuddle up to him on the sofa in front of the squad and even carrying you around once in a while. He gives amazing piggy back rides.

The bad news (or more good news, depending on how you are) is that you have to leave school. Risotto says that at your age you can't be trusted not to tell anyone your new family is a bunch of assassins, and taking you to and from school each day would be too much of a hassle. Nonetheless, you're welcome to continue your education from home, though Formaggio will hardly push you if you don't keep up with it. Melone is much better on that front.

Despite the risk, Formaggio can't bring himself to force you to lose all your friends, so he lets you keep meeting with them. Furthermore, he knows a few guys in other squads who have kids about your age, so he's happy to introduce you to them if you want a friend you can be more honest about your home life with. Formaggio might not have a clue what he's doing, but he's doing pretty good.

Illuso, with a 3 year old daughter

He's been fearing this day would come for years. A small child knocking on the door of the hideout, holding a note in hand addressed to him, just as a shady looking car drives away. Yeah, Illuso remembers your mother pretty well and he remembers the distinct lack of precautions they took during their encounter. Now, the consequences of his actions are here at his house, and Risotto is currently standing in the doorway of the office looking ready to give him the biggest dressing-down of his life.

After his tongue-lashing, Illuso frantically agrees to take responsibility for what he's done and see to it that you're well cared for, and begins the task of looking for relatives who might take you. Unfortunately, none of your mother's family can be traced, and Illuso can't exactly call up his own right now. Leaving you on the door of an orphanage isn't an option because you're old enough to say where you've come from, so it looks like for the time being, Illuso is stuck with you.

Initially, Illuso is not thrilled. He pawns you off on Melone, Sorbet and Gelato whenever possible and tries to live his life as before. But increasingly, he can't help finding himself visiting your room whenever he's stressed or has had a bad mission. There's something so pure about gently stroking your hair as you sleep. He can't help but feel... attachment, as he rubs his thumb against your tiny palm.

From then on, Illuso starts to make a point of spending more time with you. You're at the age where you just want to touch and explore everything you're given, so letting you make a mess with his makeup and beauty creams is an easy way for him to observe and learn about you. He even starts doing the more practical things like washing and feeding you every so often.

Eventually, Illuso becomes an actual father to you. He loves you as a father should and puts his time into making you happy. Illuso is glad he didn't give you away, as you've opened his eyes to so many things. For the first time in many years, he feels human. He feels redeemable.

Prosciutto, with a 13 year old son

As you tell him your story Prosciutto racks his brains. He didn't have many one-night-stands in his youth but the ones he did have were so far back he barely remembers them, so your mother's name doesn't immediately ring any bells. If it weren't for the striking resemblance between you, Prosciutto probably would have thrown you out for a liar there and then. But as you are, it's clear you're being honest. He lets you in.

After a short interrogation by Risotto to make certain you aren't acting on behalf of some third party looking to infiltrate the squad, it's agreed you can stay, so long as you keep quiet about it to your friends. At your age you can largely look after yourself and all you really needed was a roof over your head, so there's no problem with you moving into the spare room as long as you stay out of the others' way.

Education isn't much of an issue either, since you're likely well settled in your current school and can get yourself there and back. Just whatever you do, don't go telling anyone you live with a bunch of gangsters now. Prosciutto means it, you could seriously put yourself in danger if you do that.

Much to your father's ire, you end up befriending several members of the squad, especially the younger ones like Melone, Ghiaccio and Pesci who have some generational overlap with how you were raised. Prosciutto would rather you didn't do this but at the end of the day, he can't really stop you. God forbid you call him an old boomer again.

Your relationship is overall positive- Prosciutto makes a point of taking you on outings when he has the time, and giving you parental advice when you need it. However that doesn't stop you from making fun of his stuffy, old habits, and playing the moral high ground in regards to his work.

On that note, the problem comes when you develop an interest in the squad's work. It's only inevitable, given how pervasive the topic is in conversations around the house, and the fact you're more than old enough to know what a gang is, but the day you first ask him about it is no less welcome. What's scary is that you're about the same age as Passione's youngest recruits and, well, if you ended up joining them because of him, Prosciutto might never forgive himself.

Pesci, with a 6 month old son

He knew it had been a mistake. Not long after his 18th birthday he'd given in to the squad's pestering about his virginity and finally gotten rid of it just to shut them up. Now he's ridden with guilt. Not only did the poor woman get pregnant because of him but now she's died. He can't help but wonder, the letter attached to the basket you came in was very vague after all, was your mother's death at all related to your birth? If so, Pesci doesn't know how he'll forgive himself.

Pesci immediately panics and stumbles into his Fra's bedroom crying louder than you are. Prosciutto remains calm, advising him to first make sure this actually is his baby through Melone, in case this is somebody trying to trick him, and to then think through his options rationally. As far as Prosciutto sees it, he has two. He can either see to it that you're taken in by a caring, reliable individual, or he can keep you for himself. Surprisingly, Prosciutto's actually okay with the second one, since in his eyes duty to one's family is absolute.

Pesci stammers a bit and asks if he can wait a few days to make his mind up, which Prosciutto permits. But it isn't long at all until Pesci is far too attached to you to ever let you go, and it becomes clear you'll be staying for the long-run. Risotto is hardly happy about this but agrees with Prosciutto's sentiment of family, so he doesn't try to insist you be sent away.

Pesci is an incredibly loving father. He'll dash from the other side of the house at a moment's notice if he hears you crying. That said, being so young himself it's inevitable he requires some help with raising you. Sorbet and Gelato chip in quite regularly, as does Melone when Pesci is desperate enough to fall on using him. Prosciutto helps out too, being your uncle, and occasionally you've even had Risotto answer your cries.

La Squadra can only hope their situation improves somehow in the coming years, since Pesci has no idea how he's going to deal with an older child in a house full of assassins. At very least, being so young it's a long time before he has to worry about things like school. For now, what's important is that you are loved very dearly. Pesci has discovered a new protective streak in himself, something he discovers every time he looks in your eyes.

Melone, with a 4 year old son

When you arrived you were frightened and confused. You struggled to babble out the story you were told to tell as the strange men crowded around you in the front room of the house. Then, a bizarre looking man with purple hair pushed to the front of the crowd, insisting he knew what to do in a situation like this. He carried you somewhere quiet, and gently asked you to repeat your story again. You told him you were looking for your father, Melone.

Melone is elated. He's always wanted a child, but getting into a relationship stable enough to produce one has never been an option with the life he lives. Now the happy accident he never new he had has come home to him! Carrying you back to the living room, Melone introduces you as his son and announces to the team that he will be keeping you.

This is met with some protest. Not only are you of the age where you'll need constant supervision, but quite frankly, nobody trusts Melone to take care of a kid. Melone refutes their accusations harshly, making it absolutely clear he will not be giving you up without a fight. Finally, Risotto surrenders, on the terms that if he catches any signs of abuse or neglect, he will see to it personally that you are re-homed elsewhere.

Melone's parenting style is relatively laid-back. He believes parents should be a 'safe base' from which children should explore the world, coming back when they need advice but ultimately following their own whims within reason. He encourages you to play as you wish and does not stop you from bonding with the rest of the squad. Finding supervision for you while he's on missions proves to be a non-issue, since his stand's massive range means he can often do most of a mission's work at home.

When the time comes to educate you, Melone decides against the risks of enrolling you in school. He is an amazing teacher and can teach you everything you'd need in half the hours of a typical curriculum. Beyond the essentials of literacy and simple maths, Melone largely encourages you to follow you own interests rather than stick to some boring, arbitrary list of useless things a normal curriculum for some reason expects you to learn.

That said, he knows the importance of making friends, so he frequently takes you out to meet with neighbourhood children. All-in-all, the squad is surprised at his sensible parenting choices, and the happy child you are turning out to be.

Ghiaccio, with a 2 year old son

It's almost comedic the lengths Ghiaccio goes to to avoid the problem. As the others crowd around you in Melone's lap, Ghiaccio cowers in the corner insisting that you absolutely cannot be his. It's very obvious you are, of course. You look almost exactly like him, and have a cry to match. You've even inherited the same, mild visual impairments that earned him his glasses. There's no getting away from the truth.

After accepting the truth, Ghiaccio takes you away to his room to 'clear his head' before deciding where to send you in the morning, but when morning comes, that deliberation time quickly turns into a few more days, then a month, then never. It's clear Ghiaccio's become attached to you, and he cannot bring himself to give you away.

Unfortunately, he doesn't have the foggiest clue in hell how to look after a toddler. He has a hard enough time understanding what it is adults want from him, let alone small children. There are times he even considers giving you away again, but they never last long enough for him to go through with it. Bit by bit, he slowly learns how to be a father.

Melone is his primary co-parent. As cautious as Ghiaccio is about letting him around his baby, it soon becomes clear Melone can understand your needs far better than he can. The pair have many sessions together teaching Ghiaccio how to do things like wash you or cook your food. It's honestly a massive help, and probably the main reason Ghiaccio doesn't completely melt down within a month of having you.

These issues aside, Ghiaccio is a person who is very genuine in his affections. He would break the shins of anyone who even looked at you threateningly, and every fibre of his being wants you to be happy. He even learns to control his temper, as he knows from experience just how damaging an angry parent can be for a child. He's going to give you a better childhood than what his parents gave him, and that's a promise.

Risotto, with a 6 year old daughter

Well, perhaps this ought to have been expected. In his early 20s Risotto was really far less careful than he ought to be in regards to his encounters, so he probably had this coming. You are at a difficult age, old enough to understand your father is a criminal but young enough to still need his care. If he takes you in, there will be many challenges. And yet he cannot bring himself to turn you away. Looking at you he feels... obligation.

In the early days he tries his best to shelter you. He keeps you in his room and tells the others not to talk to you. But that's no way for you to live, and he knows it. Eventually, he swallows his fears and lets you explore your new home, even taking you out to the park a few minutes each day so you can run around. He talks to Melone about continuing your education, and asks Sorbet and Gelato if they'd let the spare room next to them be turned into a bedroom for you. He's going to make sure he raises you right.

Risotto may be quiet and introverted, but do not mistake that for emotionally distant. He does not underestimate his vital role in your emotional well-being, and is quick to pick up on when you are feeling sad or lonely. He makes sure to pick you up in his arms and ask what's wrong when that happens.

Though he didn't know her well, he mourns your mother with you, and is very watchful for the signs of attachment issues that may result from losing a parent at such a tender age. Being all you have left, Risotto gains a new instinct of self-preservation. For the first time in years, his life has meaning.

In terms of bonding, he prefers calm activities that allow him to passively observe your interests, such as watching movies or reading you books. When he's working in his office and doesn't need his camera on, he's happy for you to sit in his lap as long as you're quiet. He would ask if you don't read what's on his screen, though, at least not while you're so young. He'll give you a better explanation of what he's doing some day, but not just yet.

Sorbet and Gelato, with a 12 year old daughter

First of all, let's make clear that regardless of which one is biologically your father, they both feel equal responsibility for you. No doubt they were both present for your conception anyway, so as far as they're concerned, if one of them has a secret kid from a hookup, they both have a secret kid from a hookup.

Having always wanted children, they are happy when you appear on the doorstep and introduce yourself as their daughter. Though they don't say it out loud to avoid upsetting you, they kind of wish your mum had kicked it sooner so they could have raised you from a younger age, but they're more than happy to make do with what they've got. There's no hesitation in welcoming you to live with them permanently, and anyone who has a problem with this isn't brave enough to say it.

Right from the get-go they are very permitting parents, awarding you a generous helping of their cash each week and having a rule list that pretty much starts and ends with "don't talk to the police." Despite your age they don't expect you to be independent, and are happy to cook for you and help you out with other things when you ask. It seems parenthood was made for them.

Despite all this, there is one problem in your relationship that is making things difficult. That of your fathers' work. You're 12 years old and you aren't stupid. You know they kill for a living and you know they enjoy it. When you stumble into the bathroom at 1am to find them covered in blood and laughing together, there's no making excuses. No matter how good they are with you, this is going to make you afraid of them.

Sorbet and Gelato are incredibly stringent in solving these early issues. After all these years they've finally got the family they wanted, and they aren't going to let it slip away from their own cruelty. They are honest with you about their occupation, since they want you to know you can trust them, and make absolutely clear it won't affect their care for you. You are welcome to ask questions and receive honest answers, but other than that Sorbet and Gelato will make a point of not accidentally causing you to witness something you shouldn't.

With them, you are welcome to continue your old life in terms of school and friends. They want to spend time with you, but they don't want to overtake your existence completely. When you are up for it, they are keen to take you on outings that interest you so you can spend time together as a family. They hope you know how happy you make them.

#la squadra #la squadra di esecuzione #la squadra x reader #formaggio #formaggio x reader #illuso #illuso x reader #prosciutto #prosciutto x reader #pesci #pesci x reader #melone #melone x reader #ghiaccio #ghiaccio x reader #risotto nero #risotto nero x reader #sorbet and gelato #sorbet and gelato x reader

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brightly-painted-canvas · 3 years ago

Note

Credo che possiamo affermare con assoluta certezza che tutte le bambine della parrocchia avrebbero una cotta fotonica per Nico l'animatore del Grest, E LE MAMME SAREBBERO PURE PEGGIO, "tanto un caro ragazzo lui..."

Ah, sì. Poco ma sicuro. Headcanon accepted. Passerebbe il tempo circondato da bimbe (e bimbi perché no) adoranti che lo seguono ovunque e che parlano di lui talmente tanto a casa che tutti i genitori si sono fatti assurdi film mentali su questa figura mitologica. E poi se lo trovano davanti all'orario di uscita e pure le mamme perdono la testa.

A riguardo, piccolo aneddoto personale: anche io quando facevo l'animatrice ero molto apprezzata dai più piccoli XD Una volta un bambino di seconda elementare mi ha regalato una carta Pokémon e mi ha chiesto di sposarlo.

Quindi, dato che avevo promesso avrei provato a scrivere un po', complimenti: hai vinto una drabble ispirata proprio a questo fatto realmente accaduto! :D

Innocent proposal (animatore!Nicky AU)

When the bell rings, announcing it’s time to gather up the teams for prayers before heading to the mess hall for lunch, Nicky is still helping Jacopo solve a math problem.

“It’s okay. We will finish this tomorrow.” he smiles at the 9 years old, who looks ready to bolt, summer homework already very far from his young mind.

“Grazie, Nico!” he exclaims, while dutifully picking up his book and pencil case.

Nicky gets up, helps the kids gather their stuff, cleans up the study room and heads down to the gym, where Don Luigi is waiting for all the 120 kids attending this year’s oratorio estivo to sit on the floor before starting his usually brief and often sung pre-lunch prayer.

The gym is already full of it’s typical colourful mass of kids, from the ‘juniores’ to the ‘seniores’, all with caps and neckerchiefs of their team’s colour: blue, red, yellow or green.

Nicky is about to slalom through a group of rowdy seniores to reach the side of the gym where the other animatori are seated, when he feels a tug at the back of his t-shirt.

He stops, turns his head and looks down, surprised in seeing little Chiara biting her lips and still holding the hem of his shirt in her tiny fist.

“What is it, darling?” he asks, smiling down at her.

When she lets him go, he turns and crouches down at her level, balancing on his heels, to give his whole attention to the shy, sweet 7 years old.

“Vanessa taught us how to make beaded bracelets.” she says, her voice so thin it’s almost impossible to hear her mumbling beneath the chaos of the gym.

“Did she? That’s very nice!” he encourages her, while in his mind he is revising his animatrice friend Vanessa, that very morning, cursing at all the colourful beads boxes she had to carry from the storage to the art laboratory.

Chiara, who already has her own bracelet around her small wrist, produces another bracelet from her jeans’ pocket: it has beads of all the colours of the rainbow, not really placed in a logical order. At the center there is a dice shaped white bead with an ‘N’ printed on it.

“This is for you.” Chiara says, possibly even more softly than before.

“Grazie, Chiara! È bellissimo!” exclaims Nicky, accepting the gift and immediately snapping the plastic elastic band around his thick wrist: the bracelet it’s a bit tight, but he’s surely gonna wear it proudly all through summer camp now.

“It’s because I think you’re very nice and handsome and I like you very very much.” says Chiara then, somewhere somehow finding the courage to even raise her voice a bit.

Nicky blinks exactly twice, then he smiles sweetly, trying not to burst into a laugh in the face of such a cute love confession: “Thank you, I like you too.” he says, taking the girl’s tiny hand in his huge one. He can’t help falling a bit in love with every small kid he tutors during oratorio estivo each summer: they’re adorable, even the most troublemakers.

Then Chiara asks suddenly: “Will you marry me, Nicolò?”, catching him so off guard he almost loses balance on his crouching and falls on his ass.

He fumbles, looking into her hopeful, big green eyes as she waits for an answer. He knows he can’t get away with a joke or an attempt to gloss over. He has to give her a reply, so as not to hurt the shy girl’s feelings.

Later that evening, Nicky is sprawled on the couch eating popcorn, distractedly watching some superhero movie on Joe’s big flatscreen TV while his boyfriend slowly and lovingly massages his sore feet and calves. Joe has had Nicky’s legs propped on his lap since the moment they sat down, claiming that helping Nicky relax and ease the pain of more than 8 hours spent standing, running and lifting heavy stuff, was his favourite job.

Above them the ceiling fan whirs in a monotone and Nicky is almost falling asleep were it not for the loud booms of explosions from the TV and the many sounds of late summer evenings coming from the street’s bars and restaurants below. Joe’s apartment is in a very lively neighbourhood.

By the minute Nicky is feeling his eyelids drooping and his breath becoming deeper and slower and he’s about to let slumber win when Joe suddenly moves, getting up.

“I bought gelato. The pistacchio and stracciatella one you like so much. Want some?” he asks, already smiling, knowing that not even deep tiredness could deter Nicky from eating his favourite summer dessert.

“Ti amo tantissimo.” he just mumbles as a reply, smiling dumbly with his eyes half closed and his neck skewed at such an odd angle he must have at least five chins showing. He can’t even English at the moment, so he just continues with much fondness: “Cosa devo fare io per meritarmi un amore grande così…”

Joe snorts, having heard him from the kitchen.

He comes back a few minutes later, one cup of ice cream and a spoon in each hand, and places them on the coffee table before bending to kiss Nicky on the (slightly sweaty, ugh, gross) forehead.

“You have to kiss me, hold me close even if it’s summer…” he starts listing, plopping down on the couch and then in Nicky’s arms, linking their legs, pushing his face against Nicky’s too warm collarbone.

His mop of curls brushes under Nicky’s nose and he huffs, but still accepts the weight (and warmth) of his boyfriend on his tired body.

“You have to take me out on dates, go to the beach with me when oratorio estivo is over and, one day, you will have to marry me.” continues Joe, each word kissed against the skin of Nicky’s neck.

“Marry? You wanna get married?” asks Nicky, worsening his multiple chin situation to look down into Joe’s glinting eyes.

“Eventually? In our late twenties? When you’ll be a doctor and I’ll be a famous artist? Yes.” he confesses, suddenly almost shy, but with a gaze full of trust and love.

“That’d be nice.” immediately replies Nicky, heart engulfed in the same sentiment he sees in Joe’s perfect eyes: “But alas,” he sighs theatrically, placing the back of his right hand above his forehead, for emphasis.

“‘Alas’ what?” asks Joe, pushing himself up a bit, looking confused.

“I’ve already accepted one marriage proposal today, I’m afraid.” admits Nicky, showing the beaded bracelet on his wrist, his new love token.

“Excuse me?” protests Joe, his disbelieving expression so cute Nicky can’t help but grin and boop him on the nose.

“Yeah, a young suitor asked for my hand in marriage, today. In, let’s see… 11 years, she will be of age and we will tie the knot.” he explains, barely succeeding in holding back a laugh.

Joe sighs exasperatedly, a mischievous grin spreading on his beautiful red lips. He flops down heavily once again, punching the air out of Nicky’s lungs and then he rubs his itchy, bearded chin on his boyfriend’s chest. “That’s alright,” he declares after he’s satisfied with his retaliation methods: “I’ll just have to kidnap and marry you before that, then.” he reasons.

“Oh, you brute.” sighs Nicky, finally placing his hand on Joe’s jaw to guide him up and steal a kiss from his smiling lips.

Joe kisses back, with mirth and then with intensity, stealing his breath and dissipating, in an instant, all of Nicky’s tiredness.

When they part, Joe has his hands in Nicky’s hair and Nicky’s left hand, the clever bastard, now rests on Joe’s ass.

The movie, the lively evening outside, the fatigue of the day, everything is forgotten. Except: “Now that that’s sorted out, amore mio, pass me the gelato.”

Notes: Nicky is 18 and Joe is 21 in this, I guess. Sorry for the mistakes, English is (obviously) not my first language. Hope you enjoyed!

#fanfiction #drabble #tog fanfic #the old guard #kaysanova #joe and nicky #nicolò di genova #yusuf al kaysani #annoying italian dude nicky #nicky animatore estivo #modern au #inspired by true facts (happened to me - as in i got proposed once by a 7 years old while being animatrice di oratorio estivo)#don luigi is the priest in my church when i went to oratorio estivo too #ask #reply #regina-del-cielo

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erismerald · 4 years ago

Text

𝓐𝓷𝓰𝓮𝓵 (Ryo Asuka x plus size reader) 𝓹𝓪𝓻𝓽 1

HeyHey my little angel, I’ve been a little off from Tumblr wasn’t I? Well I’ve been thinking about new fanfics and I’ve been enjoying the summer holidays, I hope everything is all right with you! From now on I’ll start writing again, and I’ll bring you news, in a few days I’ll open the requests again, so be aware!!

✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦

𝓯𝓪𝓷𝓭𝓸𝓶: Devilman crybaby

𝔀𝓪𝓻𝓷𝓲𝓷𝓰𝓼: none ( for now 🌚)

✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✦ ✧ ✦

The sky seems more starry tonight, it seems like a dream you don’t want to wake up to, you miss the old days when you were with the people you loved the most, but that was a long time ago, until one of us left and you had to say goodbye to the only boy you really loved.

It has been a few years since you last saw Akira, he is older than you 2years so he has always treated you like a younger sister, Ryo was the same age as Akira and he treat you…well he treat you like a friend.

The last time you saw Akira and you were 8 and he was 10 years old, of course they still exchanged messages and letters, but since your parents moved to Europe when you were 8 it was always a bit more complicated. After so many years you still felt the pain of having to see Akira crying after the news of you leaving, you knew the pain of losing someone you care about because some months before your best friend had left too.

The three of you were inseparable, you and Akira were more emotional and more connected to each other, but your heart had chosen Ryo to be the person you would fall in love with.. why? You admired him and you always felt safe around him, besides he taught you many things and you were always amazed how a boy with only 10 years old could be so intelligent.

You and Ryo had a bit of a strange relationship, you were different ages and had different mentalities but that didn’t stop you from falling in love with him. The day he left you and Akira cried a lot and fell asleep crying, it was painful to see someone you loved go away, you spent weeks a little depressed, but after some time you already felt better with Akira’s help.

Since then, since you knew nothing about Ryo, you always tried to ask Akira through the letters you wrote but you always received the same answer “I don’t know anything about him either… I miss him too”. Where would he be? Would he still remember you? Nobody but you knew the feelings you had for him, neither your parents nor Akira and you preferred to keep it that way, it was easier to try to forget him… at least that was the idea you had in the first years but no matter how hard you tried it was almost impossible to forget his crystalline eyes… so you decided to hide these feelings only for yourself, of course you tried to have some kind of loving relationship with other boys but they didn’t last more than a week.

Today was the day you came back to Akira’s side, he was living with some friends from his parents and only they knew that you would come back, they offered if you stay with them and that was great news. You missed him, he was your brother from other parents, the last time they spoke was a few weeks ago and since then you try to hide the surprise of moving in with him.

It was a few hours before you got to the Makimura’s place and you couldn’t stop thinking about how Akira would be now.

You felt so comfortable that you ended up falling asleep in the cab on the way home, it had been a long trip and you were really tired. The hours seemed like minutes and without realizing it you had already arrived at the Makimura’s house.

“Thank you sir” you said when you took the bags out of the trunk and put them down, you thanked him and said goodbye.

A few seconds after you got out of the car you walked to the front door, you noticed that they had a motorcycle at the gate, whose would it be?You rang the bell and waited for someone to open it, you kept looking to the side waiting until they opened the door.

“Y/n?? Oh hi my name is Miki Makimura, come in,” she said giving you a space to come in.

“O-okay, and nice to meet you miss miki” you came in and looked down.

“Miss Miki? you don’t have to call me that, we are friends now, please call me miki” She said with a huge smile on her face, she was really nice, I remember Akira talking about her in one of the letters.

“S-sure” you looked up and saw a smile from her dirrored to you, you felt a warmth in your heart, it was so good to be back.

“Well akira hasn’t arrived yet, he’s at a friend’s house and he won’t be back until later and my parents went on a business trip so it’s just the two of us and my younger brother” she bent down and grabbed my bag “you’re staying in my room for now, I hope you don’t mind”.

“Of course not, I’m the one who has to apologize for being in the way” you smiled lightly following to your room.

“And here we are, it’s a small room but it’s good for both of us” Miki smiled and put my bag on the floor near the bed.

“I loved it, it’s like my room in France, I lived there for two years”you said sitting on the bed, feeling miki sitting next to you “you traveled a lot, huh?” Miki asked if lying in bed.

“Yes…my parents’ job took us everywhere, the place I was the longest was here, where I met Akira and …. Well I spent 8 years here and then my parents took me to Europe, and we didn’t spend more than a year in a place, except in France, where I was two years” you explained lying next to her “honestly it’s good to come home, this feeling of nostalgia is good”.

“I’m happy for you, and I’m very happy to be with you personally, I’ve heard a lot of stories from you.” Miki said leaning on her elbow and looking at you, “Akira won’t shut up, he only talks about you, I think he’ll love it when he finds out that you’re here.”you look at Miki with a confused look

"Have you heard a lot about me? I thought akira didn’t speak so honestly” you smiled and stared at the ceiling, you’re so excited to be able to hug him again.

“So Y/n how old are you? I remember Akira saying that you are younger than us” Miki turned to you-

“Oh I’m 16, I’m two years younger, Akira always treated me like a younger sister… to speak truthfully I miss him” you spoke turning you in his direction to face her.

“Oh that’s really interesting and sweet, I hope you don’t mind me treating you like a little sister” she said laughing.

“Of course not! I always wanted an older sister! And once again Miki thanks for welcoming me here” you said and smiled at her and ended up laughing.

You two spent some time talking and did not realize the time, when you looked at the window it was already dark outside, you suddenly heard a noise on the floor below:

“Miki I’m home!!” this voice… was Akira? since when does he have a hoarse voice? “I’m coming down!!” miki answered looked at me

“Well, your best friend has arrived, shall we?“ she said and pulled you by the arm.

We went down and when I saw him he didn’t look the same defenseless and crying boy from 8 years ago, he was now tall, muscular, his hair was uneven, he was much more attractive

"Miki I saw some bags down here, your parents hadn’t left in the morning?” Akira said turning around and stopping the moment he saw you:

"Y/N?!?! ITS REALLY YOU!” he ran towards me and hugged you “I DON’T BELIEVE THAT YOU ARE HERE” he said by grabbing your body.

“H-hi, I missed you and I decided to come back, I’m sorry I left” you said embracing him “ Akira, you’re suffocating me” you said laughing a little bit. “oh sorry, it’s just that I was so happy to see you again, what are you doing here?” he asked away a little but not leaving the hug

“I came to live with you, I got tired of traveling with my parents, and Miki’s parents offered to take me in” you said with a smile and looking at him “and since when did you get so tall? you were my size when we were kids” you laughed and hugged him again.

“I think we can say puberty was generous to me, unlike you, you are still lower than I remember” he laughed and separated from your embrace and sat down on the sofa.

“Ah Ah, you became a comedian? I’ve grown up a lot, and let me sit there” you said, walking on the sofa to sit next to him.

“First of all I’m going to the supermarket and then I’m going to get the …., have some fun” Miki said laughing.

“Okay” both replied in harmony seeing Miki leave home.

“So tell me all the news, how did you get like this?” “It’s a long story but I think you have time to talk now” Akira said seriously The conversation flowed and Akira told everything that was going on including the part of Ryo… that he had returned home, why didn’t he contact you? did he still remember you? There were too many questions in your head, Akira realized the confusion of feelings and put a hand on your shoulder.

“Akira…do you think Ryo still remembers me?” you asked facing your hands.

“I think so, I was surprised to see him myself, but I’m sure so” he smiled and you tried to smile back but you were confused and hurt, you knew you were such an important person in his life, but did he ever have an interest? Some time passed and you both fell asleep on the sofa, you woke up with a weight on your belly, still a little sleepy, you looked at the place to see what Akira’s arm was around you ‘I have to find a way out, I have to help Miki make dinner’ you thought and tried to drag Akira’s arm to the side.

After a few minutes of many attempts you finally succeeded,you got up from the sofa and walked to the kitchen and glanced Miki in the cutting some ingredients. “Do you need help?” you asked with an embarrassed smile

“I’m sorry I fell asleep, because of the trip I’m very tired it was almost impossible for me to stay awake” you explained while looking at her with an embarrassed look.

“Don’t worry Y/n, I understand, and yes we can cook together it’s always more fun to cook with someone” she smiled and grabbed both your hands. You smiled and followed her directions.

Finally you felt at home!

𝒪𝓃𝑒 𝓂𝑜𝓃𝓉𝒽 𝓁𝒶𝓉𝑒𝓇

You were living with the Makimura and Akira for a month now, it was really a dream and a nightmare to live with them, you, Akira and Miki always went to school and stayed until late to see their athletics training, it was an intressful sport but not for you, Even though you were younger than them, Akira always made it a point to left you in your classroom, It was a bit uncomfortable, listening to the girls’ comments addressed to you, because you were always with Akira but you didn’t really want to know that for anything.

You were supposed to go to the athletics training but as you had a math test that week, so you decided to stay and study in the library, and without realizing the hours went by and when you looked at the clock it was already 6pm. Is it already 6 pm? I’ll be home late and it’s raining a lot and I don’t have an umbrella’ you thought about how fucked up you were, you packed your books in your backpack and almost ran out. You could feel your heart beating, when you were leaving the building you felt a hand on your shoulder and you automatically got scared and put yourself in an attack position.

“WOW take it easy, fighter, we don’t want you to rip my arm off” Akira said laughing “Where have you been?”

“Oh I had an exam this week and spent the afternoon in the library, sorry I should have warned you” you said laughing, you looked more closely at him and saw two motorcycle helmets in his hand “are you going somewhere with someone?” you asked a little curious.

"Yes with you” he said quietly walking “I’m going to take you somewhere, so I stayed here waiting for you to leave. Come on".

“Wait what? Do you know what time it is Fudo? We don’t have much time to go out there and besides it’s raining” you said refusing to move.

“Don’t worry, I already told Miki and you’ll like where we’re going, so come on” he paused waiting for your reaction but you didn’t move

“Is that how you want it? It’s ok” he went to you and picked you up like a potato bag.

“AKIRA FUDO! it’s raining, i’m going to be sick on Idiot” you screamed as you felt the rain wetting all your uniform, he put you on the bike and gave you the helmet.

“If I die on top of this I will haunt you for the rest of your life” you said a little in panic.

“ahahaha don’t worry, it’s okay!” he laughed and took off. He was going really fast it was almost impossible not to have a accent but for your happiness nothing happened, you were watching everyone around and you saw that they were going towards a huge building.

He parked the bike and helped you down.

“Oh how thoughtful Fudo I had never seen a building before, now we can go home” you asked looking at it as it walked towards the entrance of the building.

“Ah it’s really boring sometimes, don’t spoil the surprise, it took me days to get you here” he said opening the elevator shaft.

“Where are we anyway?” you asked curiously.

“At Ryo’s house, he owns the building and its surrounding area, I told him what I was bringing with me today, honestly I think he already knows it’s you” RYO? WAIT YOU IN THIS MOMENT ARE GOING TO RYO’S HOUSE? you feel dizzy, and nervous, excited but scared, what will you tell him when you see him? Akira turned to you and realized again the confusion of feelings.

“You don’t have to worry, only if you yourself and let the conversation flow, so much for what I know he also missed you” those words hypnotized your mind. You heard the sound of the elevator a stops, you took a deep breath and you left the elevator… it was all white, wide and white, it was as if you were entering the sky.

“Good afternoon jenny! Do you still remember Y/n? she was 8 years old when you saw her” Akira said

“Of course, how are you?” Jenny asked, you couldn’t fool her, she was a bit scary.

“I’m fine, thank you” you said with a warm smile on your face.

“Jenny where is Ryo” Akira asked you sitting on the sofa and pulling you to do the same, you looked around…

“I’m here, sorry for taking so long, as it was raining I asked jenny to prepare the service bathroom so you could take a bath”

When you finally looked back at him, all dressed in white, he had grown a lot too and was more attractive, you felt your Heart stopping a bit when his gaze crossed yours, you look quickly forward feeling your face burning. Akira got up quickly and went to hug Ryo, confused looked back to see you still sitting on the sofa looking forward intensely.

Ryo approached the sofa and squatted beside you.

“After 8 years, this is how you will greet me?” he looked intensely at you, you turned your face slowly and still felt your heart beating super fast.

“H-hi Ryo, it’s good to finally see you again” you said shaking and smiling a little nervous

“Its really good to see you too Y/n” his answer was short but you couldn’t resist much more, without thinking you jumped off the sofa and hugged him hard, and to your surprise you felt him hugging you too, it was so comforting to be in his arms, his smell had changed now his smell was characterized by the smell of weapons, cigarettes and alcohol.

𝑅𝓎𝑜 𝒫𝑜𝓋

I looked away from the computer and observed the view from the window, it was raining a lot, I looked at the phone next to me and noticed that I had two messages from Akira.

Akira: Sorry I’m late, I just found her now

Akira: We are there in 10 minutes

I sighed and stood up slowly rubbing the back of my head.

“Jenny?” I called looking through the window glass.

“Yes?” jenny asked by my side. “Can you set up the service bathroom for when they arrive? and put the bag of clothes I bought there,” I said, walking away and walking up the stairs to the top floor. Why did he go to so much trouble to bring her here? She will be a distraction in our objective and I can’t let that happen. In a few minutes I heard voices downstairs, I left my room and approached the stairs, I could see her from there, she hadn’t changed much yet she was still small and her body was not the ideal that society asked but still she was beautiful, I felt the chest heavy but I could not let this affect me in any way.I went down the stairs and interrupted the conversation:

“I’m here, sorry for taking so long, as it was raining I asked jenny to prepare the service bathroom so you could take a bath” I said approaching them, I watched Akira get up from the sofa to greet me but curiously she didn’t get up, she looked back and our gaze crossed if, her face was red and could see that her breathing was faster than normal. hugged akira and without thinking I approached the sofa squatting next to her waiting for a reaction.

“After 8 years, this is how you will greet me?” I said staring at her, slowly she turned her head to face me, her cheeks were red and her gaze was shy.

“H-hi Ryo, it’s good to finally see you again” her voice was shaking, she was nervous to see me? but why? without hesitating I answered calmly

“Its really good to see you too Y/n” I quickly saw the relief in her gaze, and in a few seconds her body was clinging to mine, automatically my body moved and corresponded to her embrace for a moment I let my body relax next to hers, her smell was mesmerizing, it was delicate but at the same time strong, my body almost melted close to hers.

𝒴𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝒫𝑜𝓋

You felt his body relaxing in yours for a moment it seemed like nothing else existed around you, but in a few seconds we were back to realidader. ~

“The bathroom is ready to use,” Jenny said, forcing Ryo’s body to separate from yours, for a moment you felt empty.

“Y/n if you want you can go first, I bought some clothes for you, they were there in a bag, I hope you like it” Ryo said when he got up, your gaze looked at him, you got up and followed him, you looked back and saw Akira sitting on the sofa moving his phone. “This is it, you can take your time, I asked jenny to buy some more delicate products for you, since from now on you will begin to participate in the missions with us…but we will talk about it later” Ryo said opening the bathroom door giving you space to pass, when you entered he closed the door.

You couldn’t believe you were in the bathroom at Ryo’s house right now…it’s been eight years since you last saw him, both of you had changed…it was a lot of information to keep track of at that moment.

You took off your wet clothes and went into the shower, the water was warm and on the wall there were lots of buttons, he really was too rich to have a bathroom like that. You got out of the shower and rolled up in a towel, you walked up to the black and red bag and took off some clothes, when you saw the mark you got scared, they were very expensive marks, how come he bought this for you? you took a dark green hoddie and some jeans and looked at yourself in the mirror, nearby there was a basket full of perfumes and expensive creams, it was really frightening the amount of money he had spent on things for you, you chose a random perfume and got out of the bathroom.

You walked to the room again and saw Ryo sitting on the sofa stirring the computer, you approached and sat a little far from him.

“Thanks for the clothes and the perfumes, I promise I’ll return everything as soon as I wash,” you said looking down, yet you could feel his gaze drifting away from the computer screen to you.

“You don’t have to give it back, from now on I’ll offer you everything you need, so keep the clothes with you,” he said smiling lightly, but his gaze was still on you “I suppose Akira told you everything about what’s going on,” ryo said as he put the laptop on our side.

“Yes he told me…” you were silent for a while waiting for a reaction from him “Ryo? What did you mean when you said I would be part of the missions?” you looked at him with a confused look, you had too many questions in your head to be able to reason properly

“What I wanted to say is that it’s too late to let it go, and I know that Akira will feel safer if you’re around… but I promised him nothing will happen to you I’ll protect you myself” even though his words seemed cold, your heart reacted in a different way making you blush

“Oh… I understand and thank you… I don’t want to get in trouble with anyone especially the two of you” you said by looking away and looking at the ground, until it occurred to you that someone was missing “Where’s Akira?” you said by looking everywhere

“Ah he went to buy some things at the mall, you two were going to stay here for the night” Ryo said as he got up from the sofa and walked to a small closet taking out a vodka bottle, walked to the window and opening it looking through the glass while the rain fell in the pool water.

To be in his presence after so many years is increasibly hypnotizing, he seems mysterious, cold, inaccessible, you could feel your heart beating fast, you wanted to get close to him, but the shame of your feelings did not leave you.

“Y/n…” lost in your thoughts you were dragged back to reality with the voice of ryo calling you.

“Yes?” you stood up and walked to him, you waited for him to continue. “I heard that you’ve been traveling for these years, what made you come again to Japan?” he questioned without taking his eyes off the glass, you look at the landscape, gaining courage to answer him.

“I couldn’t forget the memories I made here, I couldn’t forget the friendships I had made, and no place in the world gave me the feeling of calm and security that you gave me here…I couldn’t forget Akira…I couldn’t forget you” without noticing you had revealed the nostalgia you felt for him, you immediately closed your eyes and cursed yourself mentally.

“To tell you the truth I knew where you were, all this time I had people who inform me about you and Akira, but I admit that seeing you in person was unexpectedly good” he says, walking away from the window and sitting back on the sofa putting his computer on his lap

“Why don’t you come sit here? I knew you were good at research and languages, you could help me translate a document” he said looking back at your waiting, you smiled and nodded and sat down next to him. ~

✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✦ ✧ ✦ So what did you think of the first chapter of my new story? I hope you like it, soon I will bring the second part! Until then, take care🤍🤍

#devil man crybaby #devilman crybaby fanfic #devilman crybaby x reader #anime #devilman #akira fudo #akira fudo x reader #akira fudo fanfic #ryo askua #ryo asuka x reader #ryo asuka x plus size reader #ryo asuka fanfic #miki makimura #netflix #devilman crybaby #bnha fanfic #demon slayer #nswt fanfic #ryo asuka smut

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thiscrimsonsoul · 3 years ago

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Meta – Wanda & Vision Having Children Naturally: Pregnancy, Medical Complications, & Caring for the Twins

[ Trigger Warnings: Heavy medical and hospital themes having to do with pregnancy and babies ahead! ]

This meta contains all my headcanons for Wanda getting pregnant naturally by Vision, what that means for her pregnancy and health, and what raising real, half-human, half-synthezoid children is like. I’d like to have some threads with Wanda and Vision regarding the twins if possible, so I’m getting everything written down here for reference purposes. If you have any questions or comments about anything in here, let me know!

POTENTIAL AUS IN WHICH THIS COULD HAPPEN

Without Vision – Wanda has Vision’s twins, but he remains dead. Either he’s harvested and repurposed into a weapon by SWORD as he was in WandaVision, or Wanda is able to reclaim his body for burial, but he remains dead and Wanda, at least for now, is a single mother. I would be willing to write this AU either as Wanda or as another character relating to Wanda if someone else wants to write her.

With Dad!Vision – Vision’s body is taken by SWORD, but either in the early stages of her pregnancy or after the twins are born, she confronts Hayward as she did in WandaVision. Except this time, instead of leaving after she determines that she can no longer feel him, Wanda has an emotional burst of magic (like she did when she created the Hex) that, instead of creating a temporary new Vision, infuses Vision’s original body with the energy from the mind stone that she’s been storing inside her. This essentially restores Vision’s soul, memories, and personality. All that remains is to reassemble him. In an AU where Tony Stark survives Endgame, he could help Dr. Cho not only reassemble him but also restore his organic content as well, which would otherwise have rotted away during the five years he was dead. Or… a huge fudge could be done and we could just say that Wanda reassembles him and restores his organic content herself as part of her emotional magical outburst. Vision would then be restored to Infinity War status, as himself, with all his memories and emotional capacity intact. He can then help Wanda raise their twins and would likely ask her to marry him, which he was planning on doing before everything went to hell in a handbasket in Infinity War anyway. I would be willing to write this AU as either Wanda or Vision.

PREGNANCY AND BIRTH: SPECIES INCOMPATIBILITY AND LIFE-THREATNING MEDICAL COMPLICATIONS

I tend to get very detailed and realistic when I flesh out topics like this, so I didn’t just want to gloss over things and say that Wanda has a normal pregnancy. She really shouldn’t. Even if Vision is capable of reproduction (which my version of him is) and conception can occur, there are a lot of issues with Wanda carrying partially-synthezoidal children. Their genetics would be combined, and as such, their physiologies would be a blend of human and synthezoid. What does that mean for them as far as their health, appearance, and capabilities? I’ll get to that later. But first… what effect does this have on Wanda’s health as the pregnancy progresses?

Early on, the pregnancy is fairly normal, or at least there isn’t enough wrong to set off any warning bells with regard to her health. But as it progresses, Wanda will start to experience metal toxicity and vitamin deficiency symptoms. She’ll have balance problems, she might slur her words at times, she feels weak, shaky, and has fainting spells. Her skin will also become very pale, almost translucent. This occurs because most of the vibranium atoms that were contained in Vision’s… donation to Wanda, eh-hem… have already been incorporated into the twins’ bodies, and now they need more. In the absence of more vibranium, they start to compromise by drawing away other vitamins and minerals from Wanda’s body. Whatever vibranium atoms were not incorporated into the twins ended up in Wanda’s blood and organs, causing her various potentially life-threatening side effects.

The result is that neither mother nor babies are doing very well, but by this point (probably at around three months in), Wanda’s health would be noticeably bad enough for her to get help or for anyone who sees her to reach out to get her medical assistance. Eventually she will be placed under Dr. Cho’s care. Why? Well it was her technology that created Vision’s physical body, and aside from Tony, she’s the one who would know the most about what might be required by offspring of someone with such a body. Tests will need to be done on Wanda and on each of her babies to determine what is going on in their blood, which would then give a clearer picture of what was wrong, missing, etc.

Basically, it is determined that the twins need an influx of free vibranium atoms to incorporate into their bodies as they grow. They also need a specialized panel of vitamins and minerals to grow properly. Wanda, on the other hand, needs the normal human amounts of certain vitamins and minerals for herself, but then also needs to be protected from vibranium toxicity and unwanted substances ending up in her blood. Wanda lives where Dr. Cho’s laboratory is located, and is mostly told to rest as much as possible. The less she stresses her system, the better. Twice a week, her blood needs to be cleaned of any toxic substances via a filtration process not unlike dialysis. She’s placed on a strict diet as well. Ports are carefully placed for each twin that allow for vibranium atoms and essential nutrients to be directly injected into the babies.

Because this is an extremely delicate and precarious procedure to place the ports without disrupting Wanda’s pregnancy or harming the babies, she’s basically bedridden to limit the potential for tears and other injuries. Very quickly, Wanda is forced to confront and overcome her fears of doctors, labs, and needles, which is a daunting task for her. The only thing that gets her through it is the very real knowledge that the pregnancy might fail without this intervention. At this point, Vision would likely still be dead in either AU, and so Wanda views her babies as the last living parts of Vision. She’s willing to do anything, no matter how painful or frightening, to carry her twins to term.

At around 7 ½ months, however… things begin to look grim. Despite the blood filtration processes and other attempts to keep Wanda as healthy as possible, her health begins to decline again. The stress and strain of carrying two unique babies whose genetics and biochemistry are partially incompatible with her own begins to take its toll. Dr. Cho and likely Clint or anyone else who’s been frequently caring for or staying with Wanda eventually need to have a very difficult conversation with her. If she continues with the pregnancy, there’s still a chance it might fail early, but the longer she can hold out, the better chance her babies will have of surviving after they’re born. However, the longer she holds out, the greater chance that life-threatening complications will occur, such as more seizures, strokes, and toxicity conditions. In short, she’s told that she could deliver the twins early and survive, but because the twins are unique beings, there is no guarantee that they will have developed enough to survive at this point… or… she continues to carry them, and she may lose her life. Wanda chooses to continue, because she’s willing to die to give her twins the best chance they can possibly have.

Wanda is able to make it to 8 ½ months before something changes and her health declines rapidly. When she loses consciousness, the decision is made to deliver the twins by C-section. Once that’s done, Wanda is stabilized, and a potential tragedy is averted.

CARING FOR INFANT TWINS

The twins are kept on much the same supplements of vibranium, nutrients, and other minerals as they were in the womb. A powder is basically custom-designed for Wanda that she can mix into their milk. In addition to breastfeeding them, once a day she bottle feeds them milk containing the dissolved vitamin supplement. This ensures the twins have what their bodies need to grow properly. Otherwise, they’re normal, happy, healthy babies that mostly appear human to those who don’t know their unique genetics.

At only a couple months old, however, Wanda begins to notice a few interesting things about her sons, and the reasons why they required vibranium atoms begins to become apparent. Occasionally while dressing or changing them, Wanda notices patches on their bodies that look just like Vision’s “skin.” They’re red, they’re textured, sometimes they’re hard, and at other times they’re soft. The patches don’t remain, but rather they come and go, seemingly at random. At times, Wanda even catches it happening in real time, seeing their skin ripple and change, just like Vision’s did when he was employing his human disguise. The curious thing though, is that the twins are not synthezoids, but neither are they human. Their genetic code, their blood lab results, and various other statistics come back inconclusive, anomalous, or otherwise different than normal humans. They are their own unique beings, a hybrid species.

As the twins grow and become more mobile, crawling around and such, Wanda notices that sometimes the synthezoid skin would appear as a result of impact trauma. In other words, if Tommy hit Billy while careless flailing his pudgy little infant arms, that area of Billy’s skin would ripple and form hard synthezoid skin which is stiff to the touch, like armor. Or if Tommy crawls around and bumps his head on something, the same would happen where he was hit. It’s almost as if it’s part of some kind of defense response in their bodies to armor-up if they’re being injured.

CARING FOR OLDER TWINS

Once they’re older and eating solid foods, their supplements are still mixed in once a day with whatever they’re eating. The older they get, the more the twins are able to control the transformation of their skin at will instead of it just being a passive physiological response. Billy takes after Wanda with regard to his powers, and Tommy resembles Pietro’s with his, but there are indications of Vision’s abilities in them as well. Billy is able to control his density to some extent, and Tommy’s eyes have extra lenses and extended irises that allow him to adjust his vision to better see in the dark, and while moving at high speeds. He can also see a much wider spectrum of light than humans can. Billy tends to take after Vision more in personality, being more introspective, gentler, and being a sponge for information. Tommy takes more after Wanda or even Pietro (which, Wanda would inherit a lot of genetics similar to Pietro’s with them being twins, so that makes sense), being more impulsive, a prankster, and quicker to anger.

In an AU without Vision present, as they grow and develop these abilities, they begin to ask Wanda a lot of questions about the things they can do and parts of them that aren’t like her. Wanda waits until they’re at an age to understand well enough before she tells them about their father. She’s able to find video footage of Vision to show them, and she explains as much as possible about who and what he was. Above all, she makes it very clear that he would have loved them both so much. Billy is very curious about Vision and will sit with a tablet and look up information about him all on his own. Tommy… is a bit more defensive and doesn’t like to think about Vision, because it makes him sad and angry that he had to grow up without a father. The twins are very close, however, and sometimes he watches things with Billy when they’re alone.

In an AU with Vision present, he can teach them about the synthezoidal aspects of their bodies and abilities himself. He is the proudest, happiest, most hands-on and involved dad ever. He explains what he can, shows what he can’t explain, and otherwise tries to guide his sons as best he can… in amongst loving on Wanda, of course. He becomes very much like Westview!Vision as far as personality, just happy and living the dream.

That’s all I’ve detailed for now, but if I think of more, I’ll add it here. Let me know your thoughts if you like! =)

#tw: medical #tw: hospital #tw: pregnancy #headcanons #wanda maximoff #vision #billy and tommy

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drakeandkatherine · 4 years ago

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Reunion- Ch 2: alstroemeria (Drake x MC TRRAU FanFic)

Hello! I am so excited to show you guys the second chapter to Reunion!

I’m sorry this took sooooooo long to upload. My personal life has been super hectic lately, and I haven’t had time to really write!

(Drake, Liam, Hana, Maxwell and any other The Royal Romance characters belong to Pixelberry! Katherine Delacroix belongs to me!)

Series Overview: Reunion is a short series about Drake Walker and Katherine Delacroix, along with their friends, Maxwell, Hana and Liam. In this series, we see the gang at a high school reunion, five years after they’ve graduated. There will be flash backs, taking place up to nine years ago (the start of high school) up to when they graduate. You’ll get to see how the gang came together, and how they fell apart, only to come back together, and the main focus is how Drake and Katherine come back to each other after years apart.

All chapters of this series are named after flowers, with certain meanings. This chapter is named “alstroemeria”. It has meaning of friendship, love, strength and devotion. They're often thought to represent mutual support. And the ability to help each other through the trials and tribulations of life. This chapter, it flashes back to where the group of five became friends.

Word count: 1578

Warnings: adult language, mentions of death and drinking

Tags: @burnsoslow @drakewalker04 @marshmallowsandfire

Let me know if you’d like to be tagged in future chapters!

Katherine and Hana spent the rest of their first day back after five years in Cordornia preparing for the next night. They tried to plan out just how long they would stay and who they would talk too if those people showed up.

“Hana, are you really sure we should be there that long? I feel like two hours is more than enough time to say hi, have a drink and get the fuck out of there.” Katherine complained as she fished for her pajamas in her suitcase.

“We came all the way here for this reunion, we might as well stay longer than two hours; possibly even the whole time, Kat.” Hana said, a small chuckle escaping her lips. “Besides don’t you wanna see Olivia again?”

“I don’t really want to see much of anyone to be honest, Hana. I’d rather go get a couple drinks and maybe say hi to Olivia, if she even shows up and then I want to bounce.” The truth was, she did miss Olivia and all the fun nights the three had during junior and senior year, she just wasn't going to admit it.

Hana shook her head and continued to put away her clothes in the dresser that they shared in the room as Katherine changed into her pajamas. “Should we order room service?”

“I think a better question is, can we order alcohol?” Hannah laughed.

The next day as Katherine was preparing herself mentally, her mind wandered back to sophomore year of high school, the year that Hana and her became friends with a few others who soon had become the closest thing to family she had had in a long time. Family, she sadly remembered, that barely talked to her or Hana anymore.

8 years ago

Liam and Drake were two of the most popular boys at the high school. Both were star football players and in the winter, star basketball players. A lot of the girls tried their best to get the boys to notice them, but sadly none of their efforts worked. It wasn’t until one Saturday in detention that they met two other girls who would soon become their best friends, as well as another man who was known for his shenanigans.

“Alright, this is Saturday detention. All of you know why you are here. Your assignment for today is to write an 1000 word essay on how you recognize that your actions have consequences. I will be in my office which is just down the hall and I will come check on you periodically to make sure you are writing quietly. Once the bell rings at 3 o’clock, you’ll be dismissed and can go home for the day.” Dean Constantine told the teenagers, a strict tone in his voice.

All of the students rolled their eyes but complied nonetheless. After about an hour of trying to focus on anything other than the assignment, a tall boy with sandy brown hair finally spoke, breaking the silence that hung in the room.

“All right, I’m kind of over the silence. Not sure if anyone else is, but hey guys, I’m Maxwell. I’m in here because I made a stink bomb in science class and the teachers weren’t so happy about it and neither were the other students.” He smiled triumphantly as if he was proud.

“That was you? I’ll never be able to get that smell out of my nose. Good job.” Katherine smiled. “I’m Katherine and I’m here because Hana,” she paused and pointed to Hana who sat next to her. “and I decided to go off campus for lunch and they found out and caught us when we were coming back.” She looked at the two boys sitting side-by-side a few rows behind them in the classroom. “What about you two?”

“Someone on the junior varsity team was giving me some lip, so, I punched him in the lip.” The darker haired boy said, holding up his hand to show the bruises on his knuckles. Katherine eyed him, wondering how strong he was.

“I got in trouble because I tried to break up the fight but the coach thought I had helped start it, so thanks to this one I am in yet another Saturday detention.” He playfully shoved his friend.

“Oh please, Liam. You would’ve been here regardless just because your dad makes you come here.” Drake laughed.

“Who’s your dad?” Hana asked.

“Well as Drake so helpfully mentioned, my dad would put me in Saturday detention regardless because it’s his way of keeping an eye on me. My father is the dean of the school, Dean Constantine.” Liam said, a somber look on his face.

“No shit, are you serious?!” Katherine asked, her eyes wide.

“Sadly.” Liam replied, expression flat.

“So what you’re saying is that you can leave whenever you want because you’re just gonna be here next Saturday anyway? Why are you here then?”

“Let’s just say it would be hell at home if I ditched.” Liam grimaced.

“And what would he do to us if we just got up and left?” Katherine asked, Hana giggling next to her.

“He probably would just give you guys another Saturday detention to be honest. Most of the students here never do anything that would require suspension or expulsion.” Drake explained.

“I think it would be wise if you guys just got through this day and not provoke the beast.” Maxwell chimed in, not wanting to get into any more trouble, as he was in Saturday detention almost as often as Liam.

“Really? Because I say that when it gets to lunch time we all sneak out, get past him and then ditch this place and go to the beach or something.”

“Katherine as much as I love that idea I really don’t wanna have another Saturday detention. My parents would literally kill me.” Hannah said with a frown on her face.

Katherine didn’t much care what happened to her but she did care what happened to her best friend, so, even though it frustrated her and as much as she wanted to leave this hellhole, she nodded, agreeing, before saying “You’re right, Hana, we should probably just stick it out and then go back to my house.” She looked at the three men surrounding them. “I know we just all met each other but you guys are welcome to come with us to my house afterwards. My grandma is a nurse and she works mostly night shifts so she’ll be gone, meaning we can raid the liquor cabinet.” Last year, Katherine would have never asked this to anyone besides Hana. Becoming friends with Hana had made her enjoy life again, made her want to make friends again.

“You drink?” Liam asked, sincerely.

“Usually Hana and I will sneak a couple drinks sometimes but we don’t usually drink.”

“Well if your grandma has some whiskey, I’d be down.” Drake said. “My old man, before he passed, would drink whiskey all the time. Sometimes he would let me have a little sip. I always told myself once I was old enough I have glass in his honor.”

Katherine’s felt tugs on her heart strings. She felt for Drake since, she too, knew the pain of losing a parent. The difference is that she lost both of hers. Though she didn’t really know him so she didn’t know if his mom was still in the picture.

“All I know is is that I don’t want to deal with my brother when I get home so I'm gonna go where you go, Katherine.” Maxwell said, saluting her as if she was the group’s leader.

“And then there was one.” Katherine smiled at Liam.

“Well I have nothing better to do and it’s better than going home to my dad who's always in a bad mood, so, sure I’m down.” Liam smiled softly, a hint of sadness showing before he quickly looked away, hiding his emotions.

“All right, it’s settled then. After we get out of here we will follow Katherine back to her place and we’ll have a good time.” Hans said, clapping in her hands in excitement.

As soon as 3 o’clock came around and the bell dismissed them, Katherine took off running as soon as she was out the door, the rest running close behind her. ”Come on guys, what are you? A bunch of snails?” Katherine laughed as she ran on ahead.

Drake and Liam quickly caught up to her. “You wish we were snails. Not our problem you decided to choose a race between two star football players.” Drake smirked. Maxwell caught up to them a minute later saying “And I’m on the track team!”

Katherine slowed down matching Hana’s pace, chuckling. “Jokes on them, they don’t know where I live.” The girls laughed when the men came to a stop, wondering where they were going. Katherine then proceeded to show them the rest of the way to the house and instead of running they walked.

Present

“Hey, Kat, are you okay?” Hana’s voice snapped Katherine out of her memories. She turned her head and looked at her best friend in the entire world, who had a worried look on her face.

“I’m just having a little anxiety about tonight. What am I going to say to him if he shows up?” Katherine said, panic showing on her face. If he showed up, she didn’t know what she would do. Katherine wasn’t sure if she was ready to face the reality of what happened to them.

“I think you’ll know when the time comes. I can’t tell you what to say, it wouldn’t be authentic.” Hana gave her a small smile. “Now come on, it’s time to put on your make up and get dressed!” Katherine threw a pillow at her, making both of them laugh.

“Okay. Let’s do this.” She said, rising from the bed and walking to the bathroom to start her make-up. Katherine wasn’t sure how tonight would go, but she couldn’t run anymore. She had to finally face him.

#drake walker #drake x mc #katherine delacroix mc #katherine delacroix #the royal romance #the royal heir #liam rhys #maxwell beaumont #hana lee #olivia nevrakis #the royal romance fan ficiton #trr fan fiction #trr au

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glenncoco4 · 3 years ago

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You Can Count On Me

A/N: Chapter 8

••••

Marty Deeks has been patient his entire life, whether that be waiting until Christmas morning to open presents or until a new Donnie & Marie album was released, but when it comes to one Kensi Marie Blye becoming his fiancé, he’s anything but. So he’s not at all deterred when he steps into the small antique shop in search of a ring. Her ring, without getting a yes first.

No, she hasn’t said yes to his proposal yet, but she did confess that she wanted everything with him. So even if it’s not a yes right now, it will be eventually and he wants to be ready.

Now here he is at the fourth store today, considering how large Los Angeles is and the amount of people, he thought it’d be easier than this. As he examines the display of unique and elegant jewelry, he begins to lose hope once again, nothing catching his eye.

The shaggy blonde’s attention is suddenly pulled away from his perusal when he looks over to the man behind the counter and the older lady that’s holding out something to him. He’s only a few feet away but the delicate features of the solitaire diamond ring scream out to him.

The older black woman feels the shaggy blonde’s stare, she turns, studying his face as his focus continues to stay on the ring in her hand. There’s one thing she’s learned in her 70 years of life and that’s the look of a man in love, but not just any love, a love that’s all consuming.

He’s pulled out of his trance, realizing that the two have stopped their conversation completely and the woman’s gaze is now on him. “I don’t mean to stare its just...”

“No need to apologize, I recognize that look on your face. Reminds me of my Henry.”

He flashes her sad smile, knowing just by the reverence in her voice that she’s talking about him in the past tense. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. He was my first love...my only love. Some people don’t get that in life, we were lucky.”

“I know what you mean.”

Something in the way he drifts off for a minute with a dreamy gaze makes her consider her ring and the love she hopes it will be a part of again. “Tell me your story.”

Never missing the chance to talk about his girl, Deeks feels his lips pull into an automatic smile. “I met Kensi when I was 11 years old. My mom and I were in a bad situation at home and her family took us in. That first night we were there I had a flashback of sorts, as I was sitting there paralyzed in fear, she wrapped her arms around me and some part of me knew that I was finally home.” Shaking his head, he thinks about how easy it is for him to tell this woman with deep brown eyes full of understanding how much his best friend means to him. “I know its crazy, she was 8 years old, I was 11, but it made sense in my mind. Growing up we were inseparable, still are. We experienced so many life changing moments together and apart, but no matter what we were there for the other. She’s my person...the person I go to for everything, no matter how big or small it may be. I’ve always felt like I’m my most true and authentic self around her and she around me. We’re just synced. A few weeks ago we finally realized what everyone else around us saw from the start, we’re in love. It’s been 20 years and she still makes me feel like that safe little 11 year old boy. I didn’t see any point in waiting any longer, so I proposed to her a few days ago.”

The older woman takes a look around the store, expecting to see the young woman since he’s already proposed, she’d imagine they’d want to pick out the ring together. “Where is she?”

He feels the heat rise to his cheeks, a little embarrassed. “Well, she hasn’t said yes yet. My Kensi’s a thinker, she likes to look at a situation from all views.”

“But you’re still looking for a ring?”

“Yeah, because I know that she’ll be ready one day and when that day comes I want to give her something special with meaning behind it. I’ve been looking everywhere for the perfect ring and I was losing all hope until-“

“You saw mine.”

He smiles hopefully as she finishes his sentence. “Yes, ma’am.”

Without hesitation, she extends the delicate piece of jewelry towards him.

He hesitantly reaches for it, looking to her for confirmation. “Are you sure?”

“Absolutely. This ring deserves to continue being a representation of our kind of love. It represented mine and Henry’s for 50 years and now its for you and Kensi.”

“It’s so beautiful, I’m sure you could get so much more for it than what I have.”

“How much do you have, son?”

“Four thousand.”

It’s not about the money for her really and that’s when the idea strikes her. “I think we can make that work, but on one condition.”

It takes everything in him not to wrap the woman up in a bear hug. “Anything.”

“You let me meet this woman of yours.”

Nodding his head, he can’t agree fast enough. He thinks about his love and how sentimental she is, especially when it comes to their relationship. She’ll definitely want to meet that’s given them something so special. “I’d like that...we both would.”

••••

The next day at work its as if the universe is helping him out when the death of a marine who had suddenly come into a lot of money lands on their front door step. Of course its tragic but the shaggy blonde can’t help smile at the opportunity this case is bringing him.

Once the two pair of partners return from their respective assignments they gather in the bullpen, trying to figure out the different angels that could’ve resulted in the marine’s untimely demise.

“Maybe he was here to spend it.” Kensi speaks up, snowballing off of Callen’s statement about leaving behind a paper trail.

Sam’s eyebrows raise, nodding his head at the strong possibility that she may be right. “Corporal Peterson said he was thinking about getting married.”

“An engagement ring from Tiffany’s?” Deeks questions, knowing Corporal Porter had a serious girlfriend and it would be logical he’d be hunting for a spectacular ring now that money wasn’t really an issue.

The brunette locks eyes with her partner, flashing him a small grin. “You have no idea what that little blue box means to a girl.”

He smirks, thinking about the small delicate ring that’s in the black satin bag tucked in his wallet between a photo of them and Marg’s information. One of the main reasons he went in search at an antique shop is because he remembers the gaudy diamond ring Jack had proposed to her with and how it screamed the opposite of what his best friend was. That should’ve set off warning bells from the get go, because if there’s one thing Kensi Blye is not, its flashy. His girl isn’t one for bling and he knows the story behind the ring he bought will mean more to her than any content of a little blue box could. “Oh, but I do.”

••••

She’s been feeling him stare at her on and off all day...well more than usual. It’s when they’re walking towards the home goods store to question Porter’s girlfriend that she’s finally it. “Why do you keep looking at me like that?”

His brow furrows at her accusatory tone, shrugging his shoulders. “What, a guy can’t look at his fiancée?”

“I didn’t say yes.”

“Didn’t you?” He smirks, knowing good and well that they’re as good as engaged.

She shakes her head. He’s right, but there’s no reason for her to voice that, not that there’s really time to before they’re already at the front of the store.

As her partner goes off to distract Diane’s manager, Kensi’s able to question the blonde without interruption. It’s when the young woman talks about she and Porter picking out rings that she suddenly feels a strange kinship with her.

When Jack had proposed to her all those years ago she hadn’t really thought about how gaudy and so unlike her that the ring truly was. It wasn’t until he was off in Afghanistan that she would catch herself staring at the large diamond thinking that it didn’t belong there. Everything was different with him, she realizes that now that her rose colored glasses are off.

She’s been having these moments ever since Marty proposed, finding herself imagining what kind of ring he’d give her. He loves her like no other, he knows she’s not into blingy things. It makes her smile when she remembers all the times he’s seen women with large diamond rings and spouting off something about someone overcompensating. She’d laugh and that would make him laugh, and in turn they’d get stares from strangers making them laugh even harder. Never in her life has someone made her laugh the way Marty Deeks has.

Kensi’s focus goes back to the woman standing in front of her, against her own will the image of their roles reversed comes to the forefront of her mind. What if it was Marty that had been killed? The answer brings a gut wrenching ache over her.

••••

The jewelry store op had been a bust. As soon as the man behind the counter got a glimpse of Kensi’s bracelet the air shifted and they were immediately asked to leave. It may have not turned out like they planned but Deeks can’t help but love the fact he and his partner got to deceive their coworkers once again by “posing” as a couple. Kensi didn’t seem too keen on showing affection however, especially when Sam and Callen were just outside. He wasn’t the least bit surprised when the sharp point of her heel lands directly into the top of his foot.

So now here they sit in the bullpen, in silence, trying to figure out the team’s next move. He took over Callen’s chair so they could work more closely but neither have come up with any links to their victim in the myriad of old case files piled on each desk.

The shaggy blonde takes a look next to him, smiling at the pout that’s displayed on his girlfriend’s face. She hasn’t spoken a word in the past 30 minutes which is kind of worrisome. Afraid that he pushed to far by calling her his fiancée, he speaks up in hopes that she’ll respond. “Are you mad at me?”

“Dogs go mad. People...people get angry.”

The spark in her mismatched orbs makes him want to forget this nonsense and kiss her right then and there, but he quickly remembers the terms of their bet and knowing Callen isn’t anywhere around, he continues this little charade...for now. “Is this about the jewelry store? Listen, I was just trying to sell the fact that we were a couple.”

“Yeah, whatever. Like anybody would believe that we’re a couple.”

He has to hold back a laugh at her words because ever since middle school that’s all people thought they were. “You’re right. You are so not my type.”

••••

It takes longer than any of them anticipated but eventually Porter’s killer is caught. As Hetty congratulates them on a job well done, she hands Kensi a small ring box. The contents of said box are a delicate simple ring much like Diane had described.

She thinks back to the woman and her heart aches for the loss that she’ll never get over. The life that she’ll never get to experience with the man who she loved. She’s drawn out of her thoughts at the distinct laughter of her love filling the room. Looking across to Hetty’s office she watches as he exchanges some verbiage with Sam making Callen laugh and she could swear there’s a hint of a smile on the Operation Manager’s face. It’s then she realizes that she wants to accept Marty’s proposal. Who the hell cares that they’ve only been dating for a few weeks. They’ve known each other their whole lives and she doesn’t ever want to live without him. There’s just one thing she has to do first.

Taking out her phone, she presses call on the newly added number “Diane, hey, Special Agent Kensi Blye, NCIS. I was wondering if I could drop by. I have something that Tom left for you.”

••••

Deeks watched from the passenger seat of the SRX as his partner handed over the small box to Diane. As she pried it open, tears immediately sprang to the woman’s eyes and before either knew it her arms were wrapped around the junior agent in a giant bear hug. It suddenly made him think about what if he were the one that died, leaving Kensi all alone. The thought alone breaks his heart in two.

A few minutes later the pair bid their farewells and part ways. He’s surprised a little at the look in her eyes, its not one of sadness but there’s something else, something he’s not sure how to describe.

The shaggy blonde is so focused on his girlfriend that he doesn’t realize she misses the turn towards his apartment, instead she keeps going for a few minutes until she hits the Santa Monica exit. A few minutes later they’re back in the same spot at the overlook where they were just a week ago.

“What are we doing here?”

She turns towards him, that unrecognizable look still swirling in her mismatched eyes. “Well, I’ve been thinking.”

#Densi #Kensi Blye #Marty Deeks #Densi Fanfic #Kensi x Deeks #NCIS: LA #You Can Count On Me

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niawritess · 4 years ago

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The Lovestruck~Chapter 14

(8 December)

10:12 am

"Y/n! Wake up! It's 10 already!"

You groaned in your sleep but then your lips twitching upward as you heard your mom's voice after more than a week which you missed so badly.

Changing your position to lay on your back, your eyes squinting as the sunlight hit your face. At first you panicked as you thought about your college but then relaxed as you remembered taking a leave for today.

Sitting up with your closed eyes, you let out a yawn with your palm automatically covering your mouth. You stretched your arms up and dropped on your back again with a sigh. Yesterday's scene left a impact on your mind as you couldn't get it out of your head, not to mention the sensation you felt which you have never felt before.

Your thoughts were interuppted when you got a notification on your mobile making you groan and shifted to your side before taking your phone from the nightstand.

It was your bestfriend saying that she would be here in an hour to meet your parents and there was another text which was from Rose saying that something came up so she'd be going to her town which means no Café today.

Smiling, you got off the bed and skipped to the washroom for your morning routine.

Whereas Baekhyun also got the same message from Rose and he sighed as he wouldn't get to see you at the café since you skipped today and that information he got from Ria a while ago.

It was like that day when you didn't came on the café and where he felt your absence. The feeling, the confusion was eating him as he wasn't able to come up to a conclusion of those feelings which was frustrating him as well.

As he told the boys about the no Café today casually and the boys came up with a plan of going to bowling. Baekhyun couldn't refuse since their graduation was this year and it's been long since they have been out then, when will they have time to do this so he agreed.

Not before, they asked him to ask you to tag along with him and hearing this Baekhyun gave them a look but they just made an excuse to see you as you were also becoming their friend.

***

You were heading downstairs after washing up and suddenly the door bell rang indicating your bestfriend was here already.

Your dad opened the door and Ria smiled greeting him before letting out a squeal as she ran up to your mom and they did some weird handshake before hugging eachother.

You rolled your eyes playfully but a smile was playing on your lips and you went to them who were totally ignoring you making you glare at them as they were doing it on purpose.

"OMG! JAE!" Ria exclaimed with her eyes popping out when she saw him coming out of his room and you also flinched not used to his presence.

Ria was your high school friend so, being comfortable with Jae was an understatement and he always treated her like his little sister just like you. Well, you always bicker with your brothers and they tease you but you know how protective they are over you.

Jae went out with his friends as he was meeting them after a long time and will go back in a week for his training Job. You sat on the couch comfortably with your mom and bestfriend talking about their favorite topic shopping which was not so favorite to you.

In that time, you got a notification on your phone, checking it to see it was from Baekhyun and unconsciously your heart beat quicken seeing his name but you immediately shook it off before opening the text.

Baekhyun : Hey, Are you alright? You didn't come today.

You : Yeah, I'm okay. Just skipped today.

Baekhyun: Okay. So I wanted to ask something. We boys decided to go bowling today so would you like to join us?

You read the message with a baffled expression before looking at Ria who was sitting alone as your mom went into the kitchen.

You: Are you sure? I mean won't I be intruding?

Baekhyun: Not at all. Even my friends want you to come.

You were contemplating wether to go or not since yesterday your had been occupied with those things wondering if it would get awkward but you also didn't wanted to lose a friend like Baekhyun just because of those awkwardness and decided to let it aside.

You : Is it okay, if my Ria tag along?

Baekhyun : Of course! So it's decided. I'll pick you up by 5. No excuses! See you later:)

You let out a sigh leaning against the couch getting the attention of your bestfriend as she eyed you suspiciously.

"We are going for bowling in a while." You told her casually and she frowned. "Are we?"

You nodded before your mom came back and sat on her spot with your brother who also was back from his school as he threw his school bag in your lap while plopping beside you.

You clicked your tongue before placing his bag on the couch while showing him a glare.

"Mum, we are going bowling today."

She just nodded nonchalantly not saying anything further but Daniel's eyes perked up hearing that as he eyed you surprised.

"Mom, Aren't you going to ask her anything? With whom she's going with?" He shoved her with his questions and you three looked at him weirdly.

You mom shrugged. "As far as I know her, she wouldn't go without Ria and it's actually a good thing that she's going out since we are the ones who always force her to go out."

"I'm really happy she's progressing with time and whom she's going with, I don't mind because it won't be her boyfriend since we aren't that lucky to have that privilege." She added with a fake hurt expression.

Your brother and bestfriend joined her in her laughter while you stared at her with a disbelief look. Sometimes you think your mom could've been a good actress if not for her catering business.

"Mum, you know me too much."

"That's why I'm your mom." She winked and you shook your head before smiling.

***

You and Ria got ready and Ria already had her clothes in your wardrobe since she stays here often. You got a notification and checked it to see it was from Baekhyun telling that he's already here.

You walked towards your window and saw his car before he got out and as he looked at your window direction you locked eyes with him.

Your eyes widened and you immediately backed off as if you got caught doing something wrong before going downstairs while mentally hitting yourself for doing that unaware of how Baekhyun smiled at this act of yours.

"Mum! I'm leaving!"

"Have fun and be safe!"

"Don't have too much fun!"

Your dad yelled and you rolled you eyes before walking out with Ria who was laughing.

You both approached him who was leaning against his car but instantly straightened himself when he saw you and flashed a smile to you which you returned.

He opened the door for you and you sat in the front seat and Ria settled herself in the back seat not before sending a smug look to you where you gave her a look.

You three arrived at the destination and followed Baekhyun who led you to where boys were already present. You both greeted them smilingly as you have gotten comfortable with them now.

Then your eyes caught another figure which belonged to none other than Lauren who was sitting with her boyfriend while her eyes were on Baekhyun which held something you couldn't tell and with you feeling weird inside which you also couldn't tell.

Ria and you both looked at eachother before going towards an empty seat and sat there as you started chatting with boys not before Baekhyun looking for his place to sit.

That's when Lauren shifted a little to give him space while flashing a sweet smile at him where again you felt that sensation and you instantly shrugged it off as you looked away. However, instead of going there Baekhyun walked towards your side and sat beside you with your shoulders almost touching making your breath hitched.

Chanyeol got up and stood in front of you all with an idea of having a competition with him and you have somewhat noticed that he's a competitive guy.

"So, who's gonna be in my team? Y/n?" He looked at you expectantly and you looked at him with a guilty smile. "I'm sorry but I'm not good at bowling but Ria is really good at it."

Ria almost spit out her water and you surpassed your giggle before she shot a glare at you but you just smiled innocently at her.

"Are you really not good?" You looked at Baekhyun who gave you a question look and you nodded. "I've been trying to do it but I don't think I'm suitable for bowling."

"Like her driving."

Ria popped her head forward as she told Baekhyun who just chuckled while you nudged her back with a death glare.

The game started between Chanyeol's team and Yixing's team and the team who loses has to treat tteokbokki (spicy rice cake).

They played for half an hour where both teams were tied and with the seriousness it was also funny to watch how they kept bickering like five-year old kids. Honestly, you were having fun with them as they kept the atmosphere joyful.

You excused yourself to the washroom and Ria was coming with you but stopped as her it was her turn so you went alone. Finishing your business, you made your way to them but a hard shoulder bumped into yours making you stumble back.

"I'm sorry- Y/n?"

You looked at the familiar voice person before your eyes widened. "Jae?!"

"Oppa."

"Shut up." You made a dirty face on the name which always makes you feel cringe and he raised his eyebrows. "What are you doing here?"

"I can ask you the same." You placed your hands on your waist standing confident.

"I asked first." He imitated you and you rolled you eyes.

"I'm here with my friends." You told him and earned a snicker from him making you frown as he gave you an amused look. "You have friends?"

You rolled your eyes. "I'll see you at home."

You tried to walk past him but he blocked you with a serious expression plastered on his face. "Are you here with your boyfriend?"

"What?! No." You made a weird face before sighing. "Jae, stop acting like a brother."

"New flash! I am your brother!" He gave a toothy grin before leaning in. "Where is he?"

"Gosh, you're so annoying."

"And you're my cute little potato." He pinched your both cheeks and you cried holding his wrist to stop but when a pair of hands pulled his hands away.

You both looked towards the direction to see Baekhyun with clenched jaw and glaring at Jae before he stood infront of you like a shield.

"What do you think you are doing?" His tone was calm but you could sense an anger behind it which made you panick if some fight breaks out.

"Uh, Baekhyun, he is my brother." You spoke peeking from his shoulder not realizing that you took his name casually and Baekhyun's ear perked up.

He looked back at you with a confused face then to Jae who had a smug grin then back to you. "Brother?"

You nodded slowly and wanted to laugh at Baekhyun's confused face which looked so cute and resembled a lost puppy.

The atmosphere turned awkward and Baekhyun instantly stood beside you and Jae held out his hand.

"I'm Jaehyun, Y/n's big brother."

Baekhyun hesitantly shook his head and introduced him before apologizing but Jae waved it off as he liked how Baekhyun came to your rescue.

"Jae!"

You three looked at the voice to see a guy calling Jaehyun and giving a nod, Jaehyun turned to you.

"It was nice meeting you, Baekhyun." He smiled genuinely at him which Baekhyun returned awkwardly.

"I'll see you at home." He gave a cheeky grin to you going to the cinema area not before mouthing nice catch where you shoot a glare at him.

Shaking your head you looked at Baekhyun who was lost and hesitantly tapped his shoulder where he immediately snapped out.

"I'm sorry about that." You smiled sheepishly and he chuckled.

"Don't be. I misunderstood so it's okay." You both started walking. "I guess I didn't really made a good impression on your brother."

You shook your head vigorously. "Not really, Jae seems to like you actually."

He lightly laughed shaking his head. "No way, seriously?"

You smiled nodding. "Hm, I know him."

"When did your family came back?"

"Yesterday, that's why I skipped today."

He nodded before you two joined your friends and the game was over with Chanyeol's team winning in the end which means the losing team has to treat something.

As everyone was eating and talking, you spotted Ria's phone on the seat beside you as she excused herself to the washroom.

Not long before, she came back and sat beside you before a frown crept on her face as she started searching for something.

"What's wrong, Ria? Did you lost something?" Jongin asked her drinking his juice.

"Yes, I can't find my phone." She started looking for it everywhere. "Y/n, have you seen my phone?"

You kept mum since she knows you can't lie or she would just catch you in a blink, so you avoided her eyes while munching and she didn't noticed since her attention was on her phone.

Feeling a little thirsty, you were about to take a juice bottle but a hand came forward to you with a juice bottle while it's cap opened and you looked at Baekhyun who was talking to Chanyeol and you looked at him surprised as without you saying, he knew it.

You smiled taking it before looking at your bestfriend with lost face. You actually felt bad for doing it but she has always pranked you and not to mention she always tease you in front of Baekhyun so you decided to prank her.

As a smile while was plastered on your face, you felt a stare on you causing you to lock eyes with Baekhyun who was eyeing you suspiciously and sensed the reason behind Ria's lost face.

You brought your index finger to your lips indicating him to keep mum and he chuckled shaking his head while you smiled sheepishly.

This scene was witnessed by Kyungsoo who was eyeing those two with a fondly smile and wondering when his idiot friend will realize his feelings.

***

The car pulled over to your house and you got out of the back seat with Ria before thanking Baekhyun and Chanyeol for inviting you two.

Seeing Ria's gloomy face, you couldn't help but feel guilty now. Taking her phone out from your purse, you held it out to her and she looked at you shook.

"You had it all along? Y/n!" She exclaimed chasing you inside with you shouting sorry and then giggling.

"Crazy." Baekhyun mumbled chuckling at you as you went inside before he turned back to his best friend giving him a teasing smile.

"What?"

Chanyeol just shook his head at his stupid bestfriend before Baekhyun drove off.

_______________

@wooya1224 @buttercupbbh @jddcfc-blog

#bbh #exo fanfiction #exo ff #baekhyun fanfic #baekhyun fluff #baekhyun gifs #baekhyun imagines #baekhyun #baekhyun x reader

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cozy-the-overlord · 4 years ago

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Dances and Daggers

Summary: The Summer Festival is upon Asgard, as is the tradition of the dagger ceremony, where each unmarried gentleman chooses a lady to bestow with the honor of carrying his dagger for the night. As Prince Thor’s betrothed, Teki’s only goal is to accept his dagger with grace and hope that her violent stepfather doesn’t find fault with her in the process. But Prince Thor is unpredictable, and when he ignores his engagement on a whim Teki finds herself in a desperate situation. Luckily, Thor isn’t the only prince in Asgard…

Pairing: Loki x Original Female Character

Chapter 8: The Musician

Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

Word Count: 3,135

Chapter Summary: Loki and Teki track down an old friend of her father’s.

Thanks for reading! :)

TW: mentions of child abuse

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“That was lovely!” Queen Frigga applauded from where she was seated on the couch. “Did your father write that one as well?”

Teki hummed in affirmation from the piano. Frigga had been kind enough to give her stacks of new music to play, but she still preferred her father’s notes. This piece in particular was one she had only just discovered the night before, a beautiful, lilting ballad scrawled across some of the final pages in her father’s journal. She had been surprised to find something that she didn’t recognize (she had been under the impression that her father taught her everything he wrote) until she saw the note he had left for himself in the corner of the page: Teki’s nameday.

Eyes burning, Teki had sworn on the spot to learn it by heart.

Frigga stood, moving to sit with her at the bench. “I have been meaning to ask,” she said. “How have you felt about taking dinner with us? Has everything been all right?”

Teki nodded. It wasn’t a complete lie. She still didn’t like how sitting at the royal tables put her on display for the whole court, nor how people seemed to notice her more now as she walked through the halls, but it could have been worse. It made her mother happy at least. And it was an excuse to spend more time with the younger prince.

“Thor has been treating well?”

She nodded again. Well enough, she supposed. Usually, Thor asked her to dance as soon as the meal ended. He was always polite, always cordial, but Teki knew that dancing with her was a formality he was eager to rush through so he could run off with the people he actually liked. That was all right. She preferred dancing with Loki anyways.

The Queen smiled, reaching out to stroke an errant strand of hair back behind Teki’s ear. “You know you can tell me if there’s anything you’re struggling with, right Tekla?” she asked. “I want you to feel welcomed here.”

“I do, Your Majesty.” She could practically hear Loki hissing in her ear. Tell her. Teki bit her tongue. She … she wanted to. She wanted to tell Frigga everything. Maybe he was right. Maybe that would change everything.

But what if it didn’t?

Her mind was elsewhere as she left Frigga’s quarters, cradling her sheet music and her father’s journal to her chest as she wondered. Was it worth the risk? Could it really be that easy?

She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn’t even notice Loki in front of her until she ran into him.

“Oh!” Papers scattered across the marble floor as she jumped back in surprise. Teki almost followed them, but Loki caught her before she could completely lose her balance.

He looked mortified. “I’m so sorry!” he cried. “I wasn’t paying attention.”

“No, no, it’s fine.” Teki’s cheeks were burning, quickly kneeling to the floor in order to pick up her sheet music. Why must you always make a fool of yourself? “I—I wasn’t either.”

Still, he knelt alongside her as he helped to gather up the strewn pages. “Actually, I was just looking for you,” he confessed. “I checked the court records to see who played with your father when he was a court musician.”

Teki inhaled. “And?”

“Well, it seems he was one in a troop of five. Out of the other four, two have moved off world, and one passed away a few years ago. But the fourth is still alive, and still living here, in town. His name is Völundr Vidarson. Here—” he fumbled for something in his pocket, pulling out a small scrap of paper. “I have his address.”

Teki studied it. She didn’t recognize the street, but even so excitement was welling in her stomach. “Do—do you really think he’ll know anything?”

Loki shrugged. “I’m not sure, but it’s worth a shot, right?”

Yes. Yes it is.

“When can we go talk to him?” she asked.

“We can leave now, if you want. I don’t have lessons today.”

She nodded eagerly. “Perfect. Just let me drop off my things at my room.”

No one was home when she got back to her apartment, so Teki ended up changing as well. She told herself it was simply because her silky crimson dress was too ostentatious for a jaunt about town. That she changed into a muted green skirt was pure coincidence.

If Loki noticed she was wearing his color, he didn’t say anything, something Teki wasn’t certain if she found relieving or disappointing. She followed him through the palatial labyrinth, marveling once more at how easily he navigated through the twisting halls. Teki had lived here all her life, and yet she had no idea how they managed to end up in the courtyard in front of the palace.

Teki’s spine tingled as they passed the guards lining the courtyard. The determined excitement that had swelled in her chest when they had first decided to leave was beginning to give way to nervousness. She leaned towards Loki.

“We’re—we’re allowed to leave on our own, right?” she whispered. It felt like a stupid question—after all, they had ridden off to Himinbjorg without a problem—but sneaking off into town seemed different.

Loki nodded. “Technically, I’m supposed to bring a guard,” he whispered back. “But we’ll be fine.” He slipped past the gate. Gulping, Teki followed.

She was hardly a stranger to going to town. Her father used to take her all the time when he was still there, and even now her mother sometimes had occasion to bring her and Brant in to pick something up (although her mother didn’t find the experience nearly as enjoying as her father always did). Teki had a superficial level of familiarity with the streets, the buildings, the vendors.

But without an adult, everything seemed more intimidating. The dirt roads seemed busier, the people pushing past them more impatient. In a market stall across the street, two women were screaming at each other over the price of eggs. Without thinking, Teki grasped Loki’s hand. At first, he stiffened, but then he squeezed her palm, interlacing his fingers with hers.

A wizened old woman pulling a vending cart of rattling bottles came alongside them, ringing a bell as she went. The paint on the side of the wooden cart was peeling with age, but Teki could just barely make out the crooked letters: Apothecary.

The old woman smiled at her, wrinkled face pulling apart to flash crooked teeth.

“Might I interest you, sweetling?” she rasped, tapping the side of her cart with her faded boot. “Potion of luck for good fortune? Potion of devotion for catching a man?” She leaned forward, so close that Teki could smell her breath. “Twist your fate a little?”

Words froze in Teki’s throat. The hair on her arms was standing on end, but the woman wasn’t moving. Go away. Go away please.

Luckily, Loki intervened. “She’s not interested, Asta,” he said, pulling Teki closer to him. The old woman bowed, ambling on her way.

Teki frowned as she continued along, ringing her bell and stopping to talk to other passerby’s. “Do—do you know her?” she asked the prince.

He nodded. “I think everyone knows her around here. She’s been selling potions around here for as long as I can remember. My mother likes her.” He led her down a narrow lane, away from the main street and Asta the Apothecary. “This way.”

They were in the poorer side of town, where the ramshackle houses seemed to lean against one another for support, where faded stalks of grass choked their way through the chalky topsoil. It was a good thing she had changed—her boots and the hem of her skirt were coated in a layer of dust, something that would have surely been noticed by her mother if it happened to one of her red dresses.

In one shabby yard, two children were kicking dirt at each other, laughing at the cloud of dust that poofed into the air. They quieted themselves abruptly when Loki and Teki passed, staring in glassy-eyed silence. Teki got the uncomfortable feeling that she and the prince didn’t exactly fit in.

Loki continued unbothered. He scanned the splintered fence posts for address names, eventually stopping before one dilapidated house that seemed no different from those that surrounded it.

“I think this is it,” he murmured. Slowly, they made their way past the fence and up the rotting porch steps, the floorboards creaking so loudly that almost sounded as if someone was moaning beneath their feet.

Loki rapped on the door. There was a muffled yell from within, more creaking and shuffling about, and then the door opened. The shaggy man who stood in the doorframe leered at them suspiciously.

The prince inhaled. “Völundr Vidarson?”

“Yeah?” he asked. Teki couldn’t tear her eyes away from how the curls of his scraggly beard bounced as he spoke. “What do you want?”

“We’re trying to—”

“Gudmund didn’t send you, did he?” Völundr asked sharply. “Because you can tell that son of a bitch that I don’t owe him shit—”

Loki was startled. “Forgive me, I—”

“He can go to the authorities if he bloody well pleases, he can’t prove a damn thing—”

“Sir Völundr?” Teki stepped forward with a small curtsey, swallowing her unease. “My name is Tekla Steinndottir. We’re trying to find my father.”

The bearded man peered at her, and she nearly wilted under the weight of his stare. But soon enough, his features softened.

“Yeah, you are, aren’t you?” he said gently. “You have his eyes.” He held the door open wider, beckoning them over. “Well, come on in.”

Völundr didn’t strike her as one who entertained guests often, but she couldn’t deny that he made an effort. Despite Teki and Loki’s protestations, he insisted upon making a kettle of tea, bringing it out to where they sat perched on the edge of his derelict sofa in mismatched mugs. The liquid in the mugs was a pallid shade of gray. Teki forced herself to take a sip, while Loki only stared at it suspiciously. Their host didn’t seem to mind.

“I never understood Steinn,” he was saying as he poured himself an overflowing mug. “That old man Ásvaldr offered him so much money just to fuck off. He could’ve made off like a bandit – just bought a place in the country and spent the rest of his life writing music. It’s all he ever wanted to do, you know. But no. Him and his fucking honor—he insisted upon marrying that girl. Said the only man who’d be raising his child would be him. Threw his whole fucking life away—they wouldn’t even let him stay on as a court musician, because he had to be a gentleman.”

Völundr paused to take a sip of his tea. Teki could only gap up at him. After so many years of her father only existing within her secret memory, there was something hypnotic about hearing him spoken of so easily out loud.

“He took it well, I suppose. He was real proud of you, you know,” he nodded towards Teki, the hint of a smile under his beard. “He took you to meet the troop once. Do you remember that?”

Teki shook her head.

He sighed. “You wouldn’t, I guess. You were just a toddling little thing. You got up on the piano with him and played Elf Song,” he chuckled. “We got such a kick out of that. This tiny little girl, couldn’t even talk properly yet, but here she was playing Elf Song. We told Steinn that he was teaching you the important stuff!”

Elf Song. Now that he mentioned it, Teki thought she almost could remember. Although maybe not. There had been so many times she had sat on her father’s lap and tapped out the melody across the keys… she hadn’t realized how close she was to crying until a fat tear splashed into her dubiously-colored tea. Embarrassed, she wiped her eyes as fast as she could. Come on, pull it together.

Loki’s gentle pats on her thigh brought her back to reality. She looked up to see him gazing at her with concern. Of course he noticed. Teki couldn’t bring herself to mind, though. Without really thinking about it, she let her hand rest on top of his.

Luckily, Völundr hadn’t. “You still play piano?” he asked her.

Her head spun at the abrupt question. “Yes—” she stuttered. “A little.”

“Good. That’s good,” he nodded distantly, taking another gulp from his mug. “I was always more of a violinist, but piano’s good.”

Teki swallowed. As much as she wanted to hear more about her father, there was a reason they were here.

“Sir Völundr—” she started.

He waved nonchalantly. “Völundr’s fine. I was never much of a ‘sir’ anyways.”

“Völundr.” She breathed in deeply. “My father vanished several years ago—he left a note to dissolve his marriage and never came back—”

“Yeah, I heard about that.” He sat back, shaking his head. “Didn’t fucking believe it. Still don’t, really. Steinn wasn’t the one to back out of a commitment, no matter how miserable he was.”

Loki looked up, frowning. “Miserable?”

“Hel yeah. That marriage was a fucking joke” Völundr motioned towards Teki. “I’m sure she could tell you.”

Teki froze. It was well known that there was certainly no love lost between her parents, but she had never imagined their relationship described like… that.

“I—I don’t know what you mean” she stammered. “They didn’t really talk much—”

He laughed loudly, spilling tea down his beard. “Of course they didn’t! Áslaug was too busy fucking her way through court to have time for that shit.”

Her heart stopped. “What?”

She heard him wrong. She had to have heard him wrong.

“Oh yeah,” he said, downing another gulp. He seemed almost surprised by her shock. “Didn’t you know? If it had a dick between its legs, she took it to bed. Didn’t even try to hide it, either—I think she was trying to piss him off into leaving.”

Her mother … her mother, who spent an hour fussing over her hair because of her worries over how people would perceive her? Who made Brant practice his “la” sound in the mirror every morning because she didn’t want him looking like a fool? Who stayed with Osvald because she didn’t want to be an embarrassment?

Teki shook her head violently. “My mother wouldn’t do that. She’s—she’s a proper lady of the court!”

“Uh huh,” Völundr sounded amused, but there was a hint of sympathy in his eyes. “If that were true, you wouldn’t exist, darling.” He sighed. “Steinn tried not to let her get to him. He just looked the other way. Said he didn’t care what she was doing, as long as he had his daughter. That’s why it’s bullshit, him leaving. It’s bullshit.”

Teki wanted to scream. She wanted to stand up and list out all the reasons her mother could never do such a thing, no matter how much she hated her father. But… but… they hadn’t slept in the same bed when he was still there. They almost never spoke. Calling them man and wife—Völundr was right, it was a joke. And … there had always been other men around. Lords, noblemen, warriors … Teki had never questioned it, never thought to question it, but now …

“Norns …” she whispered shakily, covering her mouth with her palm.

Loki moved closer to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and rubbing her arm soothingly. It didn’t do much to lessen the racing in her head, but she was grateful for the attempt.

“I take it you haven’t heard from Steinn?” he asked Völundr.

The man shook his head. He moved from the chair to crouch before Teki, the curls of his beard just barely grazing her knees.

“I’m sorry to have brought you pain,” he said somberly. His eyes were a deep hazel, and Teki found herself unable to look away. “But there’s nothing else I can tell you. I don’t know what happened that night, but I know there’s no way in Hel he left you of his own accord. No fucking way.”

His words were still swirling in her head as they made their way back up the dirt lane, along with a thought that she was scared to put into words.

“Loki, do you—you don’t think my mother …” she swallowed. “Did something to my father, do you?”

“I—” Loki’s voice was unsteady. “I don’t think we have any reason to think that.” They were silent for a long while as they reached the main road once again.

“Does your mother love your stepfather?” he asked suddenly.

“I—I don’t know.” Yes you do. “They fight a lot,” she mumbled.

Across the street, Asta the Apothecary was making her way back up the line, still clanging her bell. It seemed louder this time, even though she was farther away. Teki felt herself shatter with every ring.

“I wonder why she married him,” Loki mused.

She frowned. She knew that well enough. “What’s there to wonder? He wanted to be the father of a queen. Who wouldn’t?”

“Yes, of course, I understand why he’d want to marry your mother.” Loki’s brow was furrowed in thought. “But why would your mother want to marry him? You say there’s little love between them. Why would she willingly tie herself to someone like him?”

“She was an unmarried woman with a child in court. She needed a husband as soon as possible. It didn’t matter who.” Teki remembered that mad rush to get married. Everyone had been in such a flurry, her father had been forgotten by the end of the week. She had sat quietly at their wedding feast, picking at her food and pretending to smile while everyone toasted to her mother and Osvald’s happiness, praying to the Norns that it wasn’t too late for her father to come back.

“But it didn’t have to be him. You said it yourself—who wouldn’t want to be the father of a queen?” Loki was frowning. “Besides, if our new friend is to be believed, your mother had … a plethora of other options. Why Osvald? Of all people?”

Her head was spinning. “What are you saying?”

Loki shook his head. “I don’t know what I’m saying. None of this makes any sense.” They slipped through the palace gate and back into the courtyard. “Here,” he said. “I’ll walk you back to your rooms.”

#loki marvel #loki fanfic #loki x ofc #dances and daggers #dances and daggers chapter 8 #the musician #cozy writes

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seagreen-meets-grey · 4 years ago

Text

When Lightning Strikes Ch. 15

When your life is nothing but a cloudless sky, lightning can come and strike you so unexpectedly, you won’t even know what hit you.

Or: When Hiccup and Astrid meet, it is as if lightning strikes.

[Chapter 1] [Chapter 2] [Chapter 3] [Chapter 4] [Chapter 5] [Chapter 6] [Chapter 7] [Chapter 8] [Chapter 9] [Chapter 10] [Chapter 11] [Chapter 12] [Chapter 13] [Chapter 14] [Chapter 16] [Chapter 17] [Chapter 18] [Chapter 19] [Chapter 20]

Crossposted on ao3 and ff.net

_______________

The rain splattering against the window glass shook Hiccup out of his stupor. Lips still tingling where they had just so brushed against hers, he hurried through the apartment and onto the balcony where the wind was blowing enough rain under the roof that it hit most of his clothes. Resigned, he picked up the drying rack and maneuvered it into the living room. It wasn’t like any of the clothes had already dried, anyway. Besides, this had distracted him for at least two minutes from his brain’s attempt at understanding what had happened in the last hour.

A knot was forming in his stomach and it grew limbs, spreading into his chest, knocking against his ribs for attention. “Oh, bud. What a mess, huh.” Toothless looked up from his nap on the couch, blinking at Hiccup before laying his eyes on the newest accessory in the room. A few socks were still swinging slightly from earlier momentum and he swiped at them with his paw. Hiccup picked him up and flopped onto the couch himself, putting the cat down on his stomach where it immediately lay down and eyed him expectantly.

“This is not going to end well. We can’t pretend anymore that everything’s fine. And I can’t still wait for her to get more clarity and maybe eventually come around, can I?” Toothless started licking his paw. “Yeah, yeah. I know, bud.” He sighed. “No more waiting, no more guessing, no more holding out. She’s on her way home right now. She’ll want to save her marriage. And I can’t stand between her and a happy life now, right?” The cat didn’t answer, only the voice of a radio host crossed the distance between him and the kitchen. He ran his hand over the sleek black fur until the sound of purring provided the right background noise for his thoughts.

“It doesn’t matter what I feel and it doesn’t matter if she ever felt something for me-“, he allowed himself a moment of daydreaming, “because she has a husband, and yeah, they need to work through some issues, but if she wants to do that, then I want to support her decision. I don’t want to, but then again, I do. Toothless, does that make sense?” The cat’s ears perked up at the sound of its name. Hiccup looked his bud in the eyes, searching for an answer to his dilemma. “I guess, if you love somebody, you want them to be happy, even if it means you leave empty-handed and with a life’s worth of heartache.”

For a while, he watched the gray sky through the living room windows, stroking his cat’s back. The radio host was replaced by ads, then music, briefly interrupted by a traffic report. Some confused Toyota driver was going the wrong way. Or maybe they were going the right way, they just picked the wrong lane. Or the wrong way on the right lane. Did that make sense? What was the right way to go here? Was he doing the right thing? Was there even a right lane to pick?

He groaned and pressed the heels of his hands into his eyes. The purring stopped. Soon enough, the weight on his stomach disappeared when Toothless decided he’d had enough of Hiccup’s drama. “You’re right, bud. Can’t keep doing this forever.” He lifted himself up with a heavy heart trying to pull him back down. But there was no use.

On his way out, he grabbed only his phone and an umbrella. The air had cooled significantly, raising goosebumps on his skin. Maybe he should have brought a jacket. He considered going back inside to get one, but the option of staying there and waiting for the world to fix itself was too tempting, so he turned around and started walking down the street. He had to end this.

_______________

She had to end this. The entire ride home, she drummed her fingers on the wheel, bounced her unoccupied leg up and down, shifted on her seat with restless energy at every traffic light, every intersection, every speed limit sign. She was both anxious and determined. There had never been a point in her life where she’d been more sure about anything. Least of all on her actual wedding day, as she could finally admit with a feeling of sweet relief.

When she turned her key in the door to the apartment, however, her hands felt like lead. While she’d come clean about her feelings to herself, she had yet to do it in front of someone else, someone who deserved to know it probably the most. Someone whose voice carried over from the living room.

Quietly closing the door behind her, she took off shoes and still damp jacket like she’d done for almost every day for the past year and a half. Her keys jingled and she closed her fist around them in order to smother the sound. Why she didn’t want him to know she was here was beyond her, but the second she decided on announcing her presence, someone else beat her to the chase.

Momentarily perplexed, she halted in her step towards the living room, trying to place the male voice chattering away, prompting a chuckle from Eret. Her curiosity whacked her anxiety over the head and she turned the corner to see who it was.

The man sitting next to Eret on the couch was unfamiliar to her. Tall, broad shoulders, muscles, casually-styled sandy hair. Crossed legs, one arm draped over the back of the couch, the other holding a beer, comfortable. He was the first to notice her, pausing mid-sentence to curiously raise his eyebrows in her direction. His eyes were the color of liquid chocolate, at least 70% cocoa. He was handsome, with a pleasant, welcoming smile. Eret followed his eyes and flinched.

Astrid raised a hand in greeting, uncertain about what to do. This other person in the apartment disrupted her plan. “Hi.”

“Hi, there.” The man waved back, looking at Eret expectantly, waiting for an introduction.

Eret cleared his throat, a nervous tilt in his smile. “Um, this is Astrid, my wife. Astrid… This is Timothy.” She racked her brain when that name rung a bell somewhere in the back of her mind, especially as he sent her a meaningful look. “My coworker. The one I told you about.”

“Oh,” she said. Then something clicked. “Oh.” The coworker he’d told her about. Repeatedly. The one she’d mistook for his mistress. Well, fuck, kill her now.

“Nice to meet you, hon.” When she frowned at that nickname, he was quick to put his hands up in an apologetic manner. “Sorry, that probably came out wrong. It’s just what I call everyone.” He slapped a hand on Eret’s knee. “Even this chap here.”

Eret copied the gesture. “And our boss.” The two men shared a laugh and Astrid’s eyes flitted back and forth between them, feeling like an outsider to a deeper inside joke. Their laughter subsided and they seemed to remember she was still in the room. “Do you… want to sit?” Eret asked hesitantly, conveying the same uneasiness she felt. She simply cut to the chase.

“We need to talk.”

Fortunately, Timothy understood his cue. “Well, hons,” he announced, drinking the rest of his beer and standing up from the couch, “I guess it’s time for me to hit the road. Gotta beat that Sunday traffic.” He laughed at his own joke when no one else did, not even his hon chap Eret, whose mood had suddenly turned serious.

They said goodbye to Timothy and when the door closed behind him, Eret discarded of the empty beer bottles and they sat in silence on separate ends of the couch for a few minutes. Astrid tried to sort through everything they needed to cover in this conversation, but she didn’t know where to begin, although it was all in a way connected. But what probably made her anxious the most was how to go on from there. She didn’t want to end this day with another fight, didn’t want to lose her closest friend in the aftermath of this whole mess. No more yelling and accusing, that’s what Hiccup had advised.

“So… Timothy, huh,” she made the first step, stilted lighthearted tone sounding absolutely misplaced to her ears.

But Eret gladly jumped onto the first wooden plank. In order to get to the other side of this chasm, they would have to build the bridge together. “Yeah. Tim is…”

“Your coworker,” she finished. “And not your mistress.” She didn’t avert her eyes as she said it, owning up to her mistake.

“Not my… No. But what I told you about Dana is true. She tried to seduce me. Several times, actually, even though I told her I’m married and not interested.” The old monster scratched at her abdomen, but she refused to pay attention to it.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” she asked instead, keeping her voice as level as possible, and received the same effort from Eret.

“I tried to, but you wouldn’t hear me out! Besides, I could handle her. It didn’t mean anything to me. And with the way you accused me of cheating, I was glad I hadn’t told you earlier.”

She felt the words like a punch to the gut. “Well, if you had told me earlier, then maybe I wouldn’t have gotten so suspicious when you kept talking about your coworker every other minute of the day like a teenager gushing about his crush!” He winced and averted his face. She’d somehow struck a nerve there, which made her guilt explode from where it was nesting inside her ribcage. Throwing her hands up in the air, she jumped up and released it all with one loud yell. “GAH, I’M SORRY!”

He still wouldn’t look at her. “Okay.”

“What do you mean – okay?!” She started pacing through the room. “I’m hurt you didn’t share the fact with me that someone came onto you several times – which is harassment, by the way – and then I rubbed it in by accusing you of committing to it! I’m fucking sorry, Eret!” She kicked at the couch and a flash of pain shot through her toes. Well, so much for no yelling.

“Yeah.” The couch table was still more interesting than her. “That’s why Tim was here. We were discussing how to report Dana without her claiming harassment and sexism herself.”

Astrid put her hands on her hips, taking stance. “Just say the word and I’m gonna knock her fucking skull in.”

He huffed. “I can handle it.”

“You can han– Eret, I’m not some bozo offering you tips on selling your car! I know I should have let you speak yesterday when you called and I’m sorry I didn’t. I couldn’t handle it. I don’t know if you noticed, but I’ve been running from confrontations for quite a while. And will you please just look at me?!”

Jaw clenched, he finally met her gaze, and for the second time that day, she was met with a look in someone’s eyes she wasn’t expecting. She’d prepared herself for fury, for a stubborn wall of fire, for a loaded canon – but not for hurt, guilt, insecurity. Her anger deflated.

“I know.” He was almost whispering. “I should know. I should know that I can always count on you.”

“You should know?” The implication wasn’t lost on her and it stung like a hundred bees. “Why do you think you can’t count on me?”

“I… I didn’t mean that. I know you’d do anything. It’s just that…” He got on his feet, pulling at his short ponytail, voice rising. “Every time you become distant, and we fight, and you go on your solo trips, it’s like there’s a whole world out there for you that I’m not a part of. Over time, that feeling festers, and it makes me wonder.” He paused, piercing her with a look that demanded only the truth. “There’s someone else, isn’t there.” She blinked, sucker-punched to the lungs, staring back at him, shock evident on her face, judging by his grave nod. “So there is.”

“I…” This was not how she’d imagined this topic to be broached. Her first instinct was to tell him that nothing happened, but as of this afternoon, that would be a lie. “It’s complicated.”

Eret shook his head disappointingly, a gesture that irked her a lot. “Accusing me of cheating and then…”

“I didn’t cheat on you!” He regarded her with poisonous doubt, frown deepening. No more running. “Yes, I have feelings for someone else! But it’s not like I planned so, and it’s not like I didn’t try to fight it, and I certainly didn’t do it on purpose!”

“But still you didn’t talk about it with your husband!”

“Like that’s something you do!” The guilt, the frustration, it all came together in a giant wave, pressing every emotion out of her chest with the volume of a tsunami. “Like you just go to your spouse, the one you promised to love until death, the one you made a fucking huge commitment to for the rest of your life, you just go up to them and say hey, guess what, I’m in love with someone else, what do you think of that, do you want potatoes or rice for dinner?!” She sucked air into her lungs with a sharp, shaky breath, not slowing down, even as her eyes began to sting. “This is not something you do, it’s not something you fucking do, just like that, expecting not to make everything worse, and admitting that the biggest decision I ever made in my entire life led to a big! Fucking! Failure!”

A hot tear ran down her cheek and when she wiped it away, more followed, until she was quietly sobbing, shoulders shaking as she refused to break down completely. She felt raw and exposed, exhausted after her emotional outburst. Eret said nothing for a long minute. Then he sunk back onto the couch and put his head in his hands, fingers raking through his dark hair, messing it up until most of it had escaped the ponytail.

“I need a drink,” she mumbled and walked into the kitchen. Eyeing the bottle of wine on the shelf, she opted for some peppermint tea. Calming, refreshing, and didn’t have to cool in the fridge first. Waiting for the kettle to boil, she took a deep breath. Slowly, the shaking subsided and the tears stopped running. She wiped her hand over her swollen eyes and blew her nose on a paper towel.

When the water boiled, she grabbed her favorite mug from the cupboard and fished the last tea bag from the box. She let it steep for a few minutes, regaining her composure, before she returned to the living room. Leaning against the bookcase opposite to the couch, mindful of the stack of beautifully illustrated books behind her, she carefully took a sip, relishing the feeling of hot tea calming her nerves. Eret was still hunched over, head in his hands.

“I was gushing about my crush,” he finally said, voice low and brittle, laden with the effort of finding the courage to get the words out.

She sniffed, unsure if she’d heard him right. “What?”

“I… have feelings for someone else, too.”

It took her embarrassingly long to connect the dots. “Huh.” She sat down next to him, processing the information. In a strange way, it made sense. She couldn’t explain it, but it just felt… It felt like Eret. And it also explained all the knee touching from earlier. “Oh man,” she sighed. “We’re a mess, huh.”

He tentatively glanced up at her. She noticed the little pools of tears that had formed in his eyes and she realized he’d been as afraid to tell her about his feelings as she’d been, probably even more so. Eret had always been so sure about himself and his place in the world, something that had attracted her to him in the first place. Discovering this new side of himself, the confusion, the fear of people’s reaction, her reaction – she couldn’t exactly say she could relate. Meeting his worried expression, she gave him a reassuring smile and reached for his hand. His sigh of relief cut straight through her heart, and when he accepted her hand and returned her light squeeze, it felt like companionship.

“So… Timothy, huh,” she repeated her earlier line, eliciting a small shaky laugh from Eret. He sat up and leaned back against the cushions, wiping a hand over his face.

“Yeah… He’s great.” He turned to her with an earnest face. “I’m sorry. You’re right, this is a mess.”

“Well, I’m glad we agree on something for once.”

For a while, they just sat there holding hands in companiable silence, feeling closer than they had in a very long time, the only sound an occasional slurping of tea.

“I know I should have asked this sooner,” she finally said, “but do you want to talk about it?”

He seemed to be wrestling with himself for a moment and she tried her best to not feel offended by his hesitation. She wasn’t any better, after all. “I don’t really know what to say. One day I’m a heterosexual fella going to bed with his wife, the next I’m thinking about all the different ways I wanted to touch my new coworker. The rest just spiraled from there.”

“When did that happen?”

“About a year ago,” he confessed, carefully regarding her reaction.

“Okay, so, do you know if Timothy’s into men?”

“Uh yes, very openly so, he carries his cute little rainbow flag everywhere and constantly complains to me about the horrible guys he’s dated.”

“Good, that’s good.” He curiously raised his eyebrows at the scheming look on her face. “Have you talked to him about your sexuality?”

“No, I haven’t told anyone, and how are you so okay with this?”

Now she really did feel offended, putting the empty mug on the couch table with a clank. “Excuse me? My best friend tells me he likes dicks and he asks me if I’m okay with it?!”

“Your best friend is also your husband. And that’s not what I meant. You’re weirdly calm about the fact that I’ve been emotionally cheating on you for months on end.”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “Sorry, did you not hear me yelling about my feelings for another man back there? You know, right before I burst into tears? We’re in the same boat here, buddy.”

He snorted. “I don’t know if I like this sarcasm on you.”

“It may have rubbed off on me from someone else,” she admitted.

“Right. Your someone else.”

“Hmm…” She bit her lip. “I really am sorry. I thought about telling you, but I never did, because I had this stupid notion in my head that telling you would mean I failed at something. Namely, making the right decision when I married you.”

“That… No, that makes sense. Sounds like Astrid to me.”

“But was I right?” she asked uncertainly. “Does this mean I failed?”

“Well… You said earlier – or better, you yelled – that your decision led to big failure. Do you really think that’s what this is? A big, fucking, failed marriage?”

Now that she heard him say it, she didn’t need to contemplate much. “Yes and no? I don’t regret marrying you. I love you, but not the way I used to. You’re my closest friend and incredibly important to me, and I will always treasure our time together, past and present. But… That is all I can give you.”

An enormous weight disappeared from her chest when she said it out loud and when Eret nodded and agreed, “I feel the same… I think.” He scratched his head. “No, I’m sure that’s what it is. And I’m also one hundred percent sure I was very into you, which makes me at least bisexual, doesn’t it?”

“Maybe.” She shrugged. “Sexuality can be fluid, right? So who knows what nuance of sexuality you are and what you’ll be next week. Anyway, I wouldn’t be mad at you if you decided you’ve always been gay. Would it feel weird to hear you tell me you never actually loved me? Probably. Would I get hung up on it, knowing you cared about me deeply in a platonic way? Fucking hell not.”

Eret grinned in a relieved and almost proud way. “I’m glad you’re my friend, Hofferson.”

“Me too.” She took a deep breath. “So, does that mean…”

“That this is over?” he completed her sentence and gestured between them, an understanding passing between them. “Yes, I would say so.”

Relief washed over her, combined with a bit of sadness, then peace, and not one flicker of doubt. She leaned into her best friend, her soon-to-be ex-husband, and hugged him tightly for a long minute.

When they pulled away, the shadows in the room had grown longer, announcing the imminent departure of the sun. Soon the horizon would light up colorfully, ending the day with a temporary, ever-changing painting that put every self-respecting lava lamp to shame. Realizing how late it already was, Astrid couldn’t believe how much time had passed since she’d had lunch with Hiccup, and how long she’d talked with Eret.

“Full disclosure, though,” she said while getting up to switch on the light, “last week I took a pregnancy test and it was negative.” Eret blinked a couple times. “Turns out it had just been a mixture of too much emotional stress and chocolate cake that made me take it.”

“Chocolate cake,” he repeated a bit dumbfounded, following her as she carried her empty cup into the kitchen.

“Yeah, I tried to bake the perfect cake and the one I ate was way too sweet.”

“The one you– Did you eat an entire chocolate cake by yourself? While your favorite pool was closed?”

“Oh, I’m glad that’s the part you choose to focus on.”

He sat down at the kitchen table and absentmindedly mimed stroking an invisible beard, a habit he’d picked up when he’d grown an absolutely hideous goatee in college. “I don’t know, I’m still processing it. Were you… sad? Okay? I don’t know what to say here.”

“I was glad. You know I want kids one day, but not like this.”

He nodded. “Probably best. Not that I wouldn’t have been happy regardless – wait, was it even mine?”

“The baby that doesn’t exist?” she scowled at him. “Yes, of course it would have been yours, you muttonhead!”

Holding his hands up in surrender, he believed her. “Alright, alright. I don’t know, could have been your secret lover.” Her scowl deepened and he quickly continued. “But you’re right. It’s better this way.”

“Good, glad we agree. Now will you please stop with the non-existent beard? You look ridiculous.”

“Tim thinks it’s funny.”

That brought the scheming look back on her face. “Seems to me like he’s interested in you. Now that you’re single, you should ask him out.”

A nervous chuckle escaped him and he squirmed a little in his seat. “I don’t know. I just agreed on a divorce.”

“That’s not the problem. You’ve wanted to do it for a long time. You’re a chicken.”

“I’m just being considerate of you–“

“Bullshit. You’re a chicken.”

With a groan, he frowned at her. “You’re quite a handful sometimes, do you know that?”

“Chicken,” she sang, finding joy in pushing his buttons without another fight looming on the horizon. She’d missed her friend and she finally had him back.

“Okay, fine! I haven’t had to ask anyone out since you. I don’t know how to flirt anymore.”

She snorted. “Seriously?” Sitting down next to him, she draped one hand behind him over the chair, shuffled closer and placed the other on his knee, regarding him from beneath her eyelashes. “Are you sure about that, hon?” He jokingly pushed her away, tipping her chair a little. “I think you were doing just fine earlier. Just text him that you want to go out for beer and tell him what happened. Then you can pepper in that you want his dick and voilà, you got yourself a hot date.”

“Yeah, yeah. I think I’m just gonna start with the beer.” He fished his phone out of his pocket and began to type before he paused and looked at her in earnest. “I feel good about this. How about you?”

Something told her he wasn’t just talking about asking out his crush. “Yes, absolutely. This feels right.”

With a content nod, he continued typing and hesitated just a second before sending his message. “Phew, done.” Another thought seemed to come to his mind. “Err, by the way, you’re not my dictator.”

“Huh?”

“Yesterday on the phone, I called you a dictator. That’s not true.”

“Yeah, we both said pretty mean things in the past. Things we didn’t actually mean and are sorry for.” Hiccup would be proud of her. She’d stopped running from an important confrontation, she’d talked about her feelings, she’d let Eret speak without accusing him of stuff, and she’d only yelled a little. It felt good. She wanted to tell him. Where was her phone?

“Apology accepted and returned. Great, now that we settled that, you still haven’t told me about the other guy.” He cracked his knuckles, receiving an unimpressed look. “I want to know who will pay part of the divorce.”

She punched his biceps. “He’s not going to pay shit, you cocky bastard.”

Rubbing the now sore spot on his arm, he shrugged and earned himself an eyeroll. “Worth a try.”

Seemed like calling Hiccup had to wait a little. But after waiting for so long to tell him about her feelings for him, what were a few minutes more? It wasn’t like he was going anywhere.

“Okay… Um. Do you remember Dagur’s 30th birthday party?” she started.

Eret chuckled. “Eh, partially. It was a wild night.”

“But do you remember Hiccup?”

He searched his memory for a second. “Heather’s ex? The skinny guy with the jawline?”

“Yes. He was at the party.” Now came the part that was hard to tell the guy that she’d been engaged to back then. “I will not call it fate or destiny or anything at first sight. But… Do you remember when you claimed you could repair the oven by yourself and were almost electrocuted?”

Not sure where this was going, and with the remnants of a hurt ego in his posture, Eret nodded. “Yeah?”

“Well, meeting Hiccup was like that, but without the pain. I felt like I was the current. And the funniest thing is, the moment I saw him, the lightning storm started outside.”

“Oh yeah,” he mumbled. “I remember there being rain.”

Encouraged by his lack of judgement so far, she continued. “I didn’t understand my sudden attraction to him at first, I just knew that it was strong and it only grew stronger over time, even though I only met him a couple times after that. That one time when we were out doing wedding chores, remember?”

After a minute of contemplation, he nodded. “When you bought that book that he painted pictures for and were super excited about it.”

She rolled her eyes. “He didn’t paint pictures for it, he illustrated the cover. And it was absolutely gorgeous!”

“So, he did paint pictures for it.”

“Oh, shut up. You know what I mean.”

He shrugged, not understanding what the big deal was. But he waved at her to continue.

“I thought it was just a phase and I didn’t want to bother you with it and dampen your mood. You were so happy and looking forward to our wedding and I didn’t want to ruin that by telling you something that would have been over just a few weeks later, anyway. Only that it wasn’t a phase. And the longer I waited, the worse it got.” Her fingers found a lose thread on the tablecloth and she absentmindedly started playing with it. “I was in denial about it. That was the only way for me to keep my sanity the closer we came to our wedding day. In the end, I decided to go through with the wedding because I didn’t want to just throw away everything we built together.”

“Did…” He gulped. “Did anything ever happen between you back then?”

She shook her head. “No. He came to the party, though. We talked outside for a while and I invited him in, as a friend. But he said we shouldn’t see each other anymore. Looking back, that was probably for the best, no matter how much it hurt, because the moment I saw him again a week ago, it all came back in an instant. Not that it was ever truly gone.”

A spark of understanding flashed up in Eret’s eyes. “Is that why you acted so weird from time to time? Distant, I mean?”

“Yeah, that was part of the reason. I just… I felt like something was missing from my life. That’s why I went on my solo trips. To try and find myself, I guess. It helped in the moment, but not in the long run.”

He looked bashful. “And I thought you were going on vacations with your lover.”

Astrid discovered that being on the other side of such an accusation didn’t hurt any differently than making the accusation herself. “I would never do that! I may have kept important feelings from you, but I would never cheat!”

“Me neither.”

“I know.”

“You do?”

She crossed her arms. “Yes! I only accused you of it because I wanted a reason to escape a relationship that didn’t make me happy anymore. I know I should have just talked to you earlier. We already settled that.”

“Okay.” He nudged her with his foot. “Go on.”

“Like I said, I ran into him last week. I thought I could just be friends with him and push my feelings away, but no.” A little nervous, she left the tablecloth be and twirled strands of hair between her fingers. “I was with him when you called. He showed me his favorite spot in the woods. And… Well, he advised me to talk to you about everything. But I hadn’t even admitted my feelings to myself, so anything beyond that seemed impossible. I lashed out at him as well.” The memory of their fight was still fresh on her mind. It had only happened a day ago, but it felt like weeks had passed since then.

“So, he doesn’t know how you feel.”

“Well… He might have an idea. He certainly knows there’s something between us; he addressed it during our fight yesterday. And… I kind of kissed him today. I didn’t plan on doing it, I just… did it. It wasn’t even a real kiss, our lips barely touched, but– I think it was obvious enough.” At this point, she had pulled out a considerable amount of hair with her fingers, tangling it into a ball. “Then I decided I could no longer go on like that and came here.” Eret was quiet for a while. “What do you say?”

“I say we should have talked way sooner. Would have saved us both a lot of pain. Did you talk to anyone else about this?”

“My mom, but that was still before the wedding. She definitely suspects something now as well, though. And I thought about telling Ruffnut, but she’d have just found a way to include your looks into her arguments and based her opinion on that.”

He chuckled. “Good call. That woman needs to get laid more.” She kicked his shin. “Ow! What was that for?”

“She doesn’t need to get laid like some horny rabbit! She’s just very shallow regarding looks sometimes.”

“Okay, sorry,” he apologized, rubbing his shin. That should be a nice bruise tomorrow. Good. “Does he like you?”

Her heart skipped a beat. “I think so.” A sudden memory flashed through her mind. “I think he even told me once! I ran into him shortly after he and Heather broke up and he said he liked someone else. He said he couldn’t ask her out because she was engaged. Looking back, what are the chances he wasn’t talking about me?” The more she pondered it, the more obvious it seemed. Excited butterflies were dancing through her stomach. No, really, was she remembering this right?

The short sound of a speeding race car came from Eret’s phone, three times in a row, and the little notification light lit up. Eret fumbled for the device. From the look on his face, she could guess who texted him back.

“And?” she asked impatiently.

“He’s in for a beer. Tomorrow after work.”

“Yes!” She held her hand up for a high-five, but Eret was too busy texting Timothy back.

“Now you,” he said when he put his phone down. “I can’t be the only one going on a date right after breaking up with my spouse.”

“Right.” Her heart started pounding as she got up to retrieve her phone from her jacket and leaned against the kitchen counter. She was going to do this. Now.

She had three missed calls. One from her mom, which she ignored. Because the other two were from Hiccup. Understandably, after she basically bolted from his kitchen earlier. There was a voicemail attached. With jet planes flying through her stomach, she pressed her phone to her ear, heart kicking harder against her ribs when she heard his voice.

As she listened to his message, one plane after the other crashed from the sky in a fiery explosion.

Eret looked at her in concern. “Everything alright?”

Her pulse was deafening in her ears, blood rushing through her veins, trying to make her heart beat again. “Fuck.”

#httyd #hiccstrid #fanfiction #hiccup haddock #astrid hofferson #eret son of eret #when lightning strikes #modern au #a bit of angst with a dash of drama #or the other way around #maja writes #ff #fanfic #how to train your dragon

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sapphicscullyy · 4 years ago

Text

With You

100. “We could... you know, go together, if you wanted.”

Thank you so much for the prompt @bitshortforastormtrooper. I’m sorry it took agessss to get around to but please enjoy. This can also be read for your convenience on ao3. Tagging @today-in-fic

+++

8:29 am 27th August J. Edgar Hoover Building

Scully blustered her way into the office and shut the door behind her, slumping back against it with her eyes closed. She took several deep breaths before opening them again, attempting to cool the flush in her cheeks, only to find Mulder staring at her, concern in his eyes. The bastard. He didn’t say anything, just waited to see if she would explain her strange behaviour. Scully sighed.

“I just spoke to Skinner in the elevator,” she began slowly.

“If it was about the late case report, don’t worry,” he said quickly, “I was just about to head up there now to hand it in.”

“No, it wasn’t that.” She cleared her throat and took a deep breath. “He asked me if I was attending the Director’s Ball on Friday evening. Of which Skinner informed me that he had given you both of our invitations several weeks ago.” Her tone implied that this was more of an interrogation than a statement.

At least he was smart enough to look slightly guilty. “He may have mentioned it.”

“Mulder…” she groaned in exasperation. “It’s in three days,” she stuttered, “and I don’t have anything to wear.”

“Scully, you could wear anything, even one of your old pantsuits with the massive shoulder pads, and you would still look amazing.”

She glared at him even as the blush returned to her cheeks. “I am not wearing a suit.”

“Why don’t you take the afternoon off?” Mulder suggested lightly. “We only have paperwork to do today. I can deal with it.”

“Are you sure?”

“What’s the worst that could happen?”

She huffed a laugh, deciding not to think about the answers to his question. “Thank you,” she said.

Silence filled the office for a moment, then the rustling of paperwork as Mulder collected some files from the desk.

“Are we-” Scully faltered, then continued tentatively. “Do we have to bring dates?”

“I think everyone has a plus-one invitation; I’m not taking anyone, though.” He stood, not meeting her gaze as he shuffled the papers in his hands.

“Why not?”

“I’m not sure anyone would want to go with Spooky Mulder.” He laughed as though he had told a joke.

“We could… you know, go together, if you wanted.” Scully swallowed, suddenly overly conscious of the lump in her throat, barely daring to breathe in wait of his response.

“It’s alright, Scully. You don’t have to stick with me. You could have any man you wanted.” He stood from behind the desk, file in hand, and walked over to where she was still standing by the door. He gently moved her aside as he opened it. “I’ll be back in a bit,” he said, flashing her a grin, the one that made her go weak at the knees every time, and shut the door behind him.

“What if I want you?” she whispered to the closed door, her words too loud in the empty office.

+++

2:43 pm

That afternoon, Scully pulled into a parking space in front of a small boutique shop that she often eyed as she drove past on the way to work each day. She had only been inside once before, and it had been a few years ago when she had treated herself to a day of therapeutic shopping after a particularly gruelling case. She had bought a new pair of heels, which she had only worn two or three times since, but the feeling of buying them had been worth it.

A small bell above the door chimed as she entered. A woman popped her head out from behind a rack of clothes, greeted Scully, and told her to yell out if she needed any help. Scully smiled at her in thanks and wandered along the rows of dresses, running her fingertips lightly across the fabric.

She wasn’t quite sure what she wanted to wear to the event, so she chose a few dresses at random to try on, hoping to find something that would work, or at least narrow down her choices.

“Would you like to try those on?” the voice of the saleswoman behind her made her jump. She had a hand outstretched for the dresses draped over Scully’s arm. “Let me take them to the changeroom for you while you keep looking.”

“Actually, I’m ready to try them on now.”

“Of course, come this way.” She led Scully to the changeroom, drawing aside the large curtain for her, but she paused before closing it. “May I make a recommendation?” She didn’t wait for a response. “There’s a dress that’s out the back and I think that it would look perfect on you. I’ll go grab it while you try these ones on.” With that, she closed the curtain, leaving Scully by herself.

The first dress was a red, strapless number that came to just below her knees. The fabric pooled nicely around her figure, and she had a pair of heels and a clutch at home that would go quite nicely with it, but she was concerned that there was too much skin being shown to be considered ‘proper’ for a work event, though she knew Mulder would most likely appreciate it.

As would every other straight male in the room. She silently chastised herself for letting her mind wander to such a dangerous topic.

The second dress she had picked up was a shade of green that she knew immediately would not suit her as she held the dress up to her body in the small changing room mirror. She replaced the dress on its hanger without even bothering to try it on.

As she slid on the third dress, she thought it might be the one. The black fabric was smooth against her skin and the neckline and figure were modest yet flattering. But as she stepped out from behind the curtain to admire herself in the larger mirror, she noticed the slit along her left leg, nearly going up to her hip. She sighed at her reflection. She didn’t particularly want to be that exposed in front of her male colleagues, especially since she knew Skinner would be amongst them. She wouldn’t be able to meet her boss’s eye for days afterwards.

At that moment, the saleswoman walked back in, another dress draped over her arm. She stopped when she saw Scully.

“Oh honey, you look absolutely stunning,” she exclaimed.

“Thank you,” Scully dipped her head at the compliment, “but I’m attending a work function and I’m not entirely convinced by this.” She gestured to her exposed leg.

“Of course,” she shook her head knowingly. “Here, give this one a try. I think it will suit you perfectly.” She handed Scully the dress from her arm.

Ducking back into the change room, she removed her current dress and slipped on the one the saleswoman had given her. Black, silky fabric that clung to her skin but almost appeared to be cascading down her body and onto the floor. The straps were thin and the neckline was low, although not dangerously so. The back dipped just low enough that she wouldn’t be able to wear a bra, but so that her ouroboros remained hidden.

The woman gasped quietly as she emerged from behind the curtain. “That dress looks like it was made just for you.”

Scully examined herself in the large mirror and felt her own breath catch in her throat. She did look amazing. Even with her hair and make-up having deteriorated throughout the day, she felt as though she could walk into any ballroom and fit right in.

She couldn’t even begin to imagine how Mulder would react upon seeing her in this dress. Would he stop short at the sight of her? Or perhaps he would only give her a quick once over before he swept her into his arms, unable to keep away for any longer than necessary.

The shrill ringing of her cell phone pierced through the fog of dangerous thoughts that had filled her mind.

“Excuse me,” she said, stepping back into the changing room. She rifled through her belongings and found her phone. “Scully,” she answered.

“Scully, it’s me,” he said, as a loud crash came through the tiny speaker.

“Mulder? Is everything alright?”

“Just fine,” he replied unconvincingly. She heard the crackling rustle of papers being shuffled. “Do you know where you put the file on Cordelia Knox?”

“Mulder, you put that file on the massive pile on your desk, which I strongly suggested that you sort out before you lose something.”

She heard more rustling. Then a muffled bang. “I found it.” She laughed quietly even as her head fell into her hand.

“Are you sure you don’t need my help?”

There was a pause. “Have you finished shopping?” he asked tentatively.

“Not quite.” She may have found her dress, but she wanted to buy a nice pair of heels to go with it.

“Then I have everything under control.” Another crash sounded through the phone. “Go enjoy yourself, Scully. You deserve it.”

+++

8:29 am 29th August FBI Director’s Ball

Scully was bored, tired, slightly drunk and extremely sick of the hot and clammy hands of the men who, because she had agreed to dance with them, believed that it was in their right to put said hands wherever they pleased on her body. She had been passed between the arms of the FBI’s worst perverts and creeps for the past hour and the only thing she wished for was a warm bath to wash away the lingering feeling of the many hands off her body. The man she was currently dancing with was no different from the others, in fact, they were all beginning to blend together. His hands sat hot and heavy on her lower back, making the skin itch and boil beneath the fabric.

There was a small, fickle part of herself that thought of that spot on the small of her back as Mulder’s. It was the same part of her that made her continuously scan the crowds over the shoulder of her dancing partner in the frail hope of seeing him. The same part of her that desperately hoped that he would see her despondence and sweep her far away from this place and all the people in it.

There was a high chance that he wouldn’t turn up at all; perhaps struck by a sudden ailment in the hours between leaving the office and the expected arrival time of the event. She usually didn’t mind his near-perfect streak of missing work events, as usually, he dragged her along with him to wherever he thought was a better place to be, which was anywhere else, really. All she wanted now was to be with him wherever that may be.

She snapped out of her thoughts as she felt the hands of her dance partner slip dangerously low on her back and she was so focused on attempting to keep them in a more respectable place that she did not notice Mulder step forward from the crowd at the edge of the dance floor, his eyes flying from face to face. She did not see the way he stopped dead at the sight of her in the wandering arms of another man. How his eyes sparked first with wonderment, then with indignation.

But then he was there, standing at her shoulder, politely asking for a dance and sweeping her away without waiting for an answer from the other man. He was inconsequential now that Mulder was there.

In the instant that he pulled her towards him, there was not a single soul present in the room that they were aware of, besides each other. He held her close, but his touch on her back was light and innocent, his fingertips deliciously burning the skin where her tattoo resided.

“Hi,” she whispered, tilting her head back so that their faces were aligned, noses only inches apart.

“Hi,” he responded, and she heard everything that he wanted to tell her at that moment. In the way he breathed that single word. She heard his wonder and his passion, and she heard his apology. She could see it reflected in his eyes, swimming there and exposed for her to see. An apology for letting her go alone, for being an idiot, and for all the arms that have held her tonight that weren’t his.

And she forgave him.

The music was slow and steady, a heartbeat thrumming in the air. She slid the hands which had been resting on his shoulders further up and looped them around his neck. They remained completely oblivious to the world around them as they swayed in place together, unaware of the stare and murmurs of their coworkers, not noticing how they diverted their attention to something else with a quick glare from AD Skinner. Men came up to them to ask Scully to dance, but they went unheard and ignored, skulking away after it became obvious they had no chance of interrupting.

He pulled her closer to him, and she turned to rest her head against his chest, listening to his heart beating out of sync with the music, so she danced to his rhythm instead. Both of them shifted slowly from side to side in synchrony, creating their own metronome.

She was pulled out of her trance-like state as the music changed to an upbeat song which she was no longer able to drown out with the sound of his heart beating in her ear. She extracted herself slightly from his arms and looked up at him, meeting his eyes. His face was clouded in an indecipherable storm of emotion, but when she smiled softly up at him, it cleared and he returned her small grin.

“Let’s get out of here,” she said, and his smile grew even wider. He moved the hands that had rested on her back and took her hand in his own, holding it tight as though he might lose her in the crowd, and led them off the dancefloor. They wove through the tables and people surrounding it, ignoring the people who looked their way in curiosity.

The heavy doors to the event hall closed firmly behind them and an instant deafening silence filled the foyer. But it was quickly broken by the echoing sound of her heels clicking on the tiles as Mulder tugged her towards the revolving door at the entrance. A tiny laugh, one that could almost be described as a giggle, escaped her lips. They tumbled out of the door onto the street, both attempting and failing to hide their grins.

He hadn’t let go of her hand.

A cool evening breeze drifted down the street, curling around her bare arms and shoulders, so she stepped closer into him, stealing his warmth by proximity. But, for the second time that night, he pulled her closer, an arm wrapping around her waist, hands still entwined.

She tilted her head up and he tilted his down so that their noses were only an inch apart.

“Where are we going?” he whispered, his breath tickling her lips.

“Does it matter?” she breathed.

“No.”

There were words that remained unspoken, but she heard them all the same.

As long as I’m with you.

#so it appears that the more i write the more i dislike my writing #is that just me ??#anyway i dont love this but oh well #xf fanfic #msr #dana scully #fox mulder #the x files #txf #my fic

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