#can we ask about something that wouldn't be answered by a five second search of a six letter word. your commenting on my post just open a

[nams2]

Talking to other partnering aros: Yeah so I've been reading original fics on AO3 to try and find some good queerplatonic stuff. Theres a steady stream if you filter by the queerplatonic tag which is nice. The problem is that most of it's either too short for me or just underdeveloped background characters but its something. Yeah it sucks to settle for that but you know how dire it is finding rep.

Talking about being aro to allos: No Im aroace. That means aromantic and asexual. They're different things. It- no asexual means a lack of sexual attraction. They can be different.

[helloalycia]

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐅𝐈𝐑𝐒𝐓 𝐌𝐎𝐕𝐄 [𝐓𝐖𝐎] — 𝐉𝐀𝐂𝐊𝐈𝐄 𝐓𝐀𝐘𝐋𝐎𝐑

one / masterlist / wattpad

summary: when you find yourself in a situation where you want to kiss Jackie, you're not sure you can make the first move. A fact made even harder when Nat is there to tease you about it.

warning/s: none really.

author's note: here's part 2! hope you like it whilst i sort through a ton of wips lol

I nodded along as Taissa was telling me about a colourful bird she'd seen earlier. We were eating some deer stew together outside the cabin, with the other girls settling down for dinner too, and it was basically a five star dinner with what we had out here.

"It was so pretty," Taissa finished. "And I swear it was following me."

I tried not to laugh. "Tai, I think you might have officially just lost it if the highlight of your day was a bird following you."

"Oh, shut up!" she said with a laugh, smacking me on the arm.

"Hey, don't take it out on my dinner!" I said lightheartedly, clutching my bowl of stew tightly with my one good hand.

"Idiot," she mumbled, but was smiling still.

"Hey, guys," Jackie said, joining us. "What did I miss?"

"Tai here was telling me about a pretty bird that wouldn't stop following her," I said with an amused smile, and it wasn't even an attempt at teasing her, but she nudged me again anyway.

"Quit it!" she warned, before giving Jackie a look. "It was so cool, Jackie."

"She's lost her mind," I told Jackie as she sat down opposite us with her dinner.

Jackie chuckled as she let Taissa tell her the story, and I stayed quiet as I heard it again. After Jackie gave her surprisingly positive input that didn't make fun of it, we all finished dinner and were about to get up together when Van called for Taissa, wanting her for something.

"It's okay, you go, I've got it," I told her, holding out my bowl. "Just put yours here."

"Thanks, Y/N," Tai said with a smile before stacking her bowl in mine, then looking to Van. "I'm coming!"

Joining Jackie, the two of us walked to the washing up area together when, suddenly, someone – I think it was Javi – ran past me and made me stumble backwards into Jackie. I bumped my broken arm in the process, making me curse as I inhaled sharply at the shooting pain up my shoulder.

"Watch where you're going!" Jackie yelled after Travis, who was running after his brother for God knew what reason.

"Come here," Jackie said softly, leading me to the steps of the porch of the cabin to sit down.

She took the bowls from my hand and set them to the side before leaning down before me, her hazel eyes searching mine worriedly.

"You okay?" she asked.

I breathed out slowly, trying to imagine the pain leaving my body, but the abruptness of the shove had hurt pretty bad. "Yeah, I think so."

She sighed, shaking her head. "They're jerks."

"It's fine," I said dismissively, knowing it was an accident.

She frowned, eyes flickering between mine, and I was forced to look away because I hated the sudden attention, my cheeks flushing at it. After what felt like forever, she grabbed the bowls from beside me and stacked them in hers.

"I've got this," she said, squeezing my knee comfortingly before standing up.

When she walked away, I let out a quiet breath of relief, not realising how nervous I'd been. So maybe this crush thing wasn't so fun anymore.

—

With crushing on Jackie meant wondering if she even liked me back, a question I wasn't sure I wanted to know the answer to. Sometimes I'd feel like she did, whether it be her lingering glances or ability to make me flustered, but then I'd second guess it as her personality and feel stupid for even considering otherwise.

For example, one time I was playing cards with Coach Scott when the blonde found me, asking to join in. So, we let her and played a few rounds of Go Fish before coach's leg was hurting and he left to take a nap.

"You wanna play acorn soccer?" Jackie asked with a playful glint in her eye.

I chuckled at the immediacy of her question. "Sure, why not?"

As we packed the cards away and left them on the side, I glanced around, noticing a few of the other girls were free.

"Should we ask the others?" I asked Jackie before we headed off.

She pretended to consider it. "We could... or we could save the hassle and just stick to us two?"

"Jackie!" I scolded lightheartedly.

"What?" she played along, flashing me a smile. "Someone's just gonna complain and then they'll spoil the fun. I like when it's just us."

I sighed, but gave her a small smile. "Fine. Let's go."

She grinned and led the way, and I had no choice but to follow her. It warmed my heart to know she enjoyed our time together too, but it was also one of those moments where I couldn't tell if I was seeing more into it than there was.

Luckily for me, I received an unbiased opinion on the matter without even asking for it. After Jackie and I played some acorn soccer together, we returned to the cabin before dinner and Jackie left to go catch up with Shauna. As I hung around to help with the fire, Nat found me.

"Hey," I greeted her with a smile. "You just come back from hunting?"

"Uh-huh," she said, before studying me curiously. "I have a question for you, Y/L/N."

Intrigued, I nodded encouragingly. "Shoot."

She knitted her eyebrows together with curiosity. "Since when did you and Jackie become so friendly?"

I shrugged, tossing some wood into the fire.

"Ever since she's been hanging out with you, she's been... nicer," she decided. "What d'you do?"

I gave her a disapproving look. "She was never mean, Nat, c'mon."

Nat weighed it up. "I guess, but sometimes she could be a real b–"

"Nat!" I smacked her arm gently, making her laugh.

"Look, all I'm saying is that girl is different," she said, motioning to the blonde who was chatting with Shauna, thankfully not in earshot of us. "And she definitely likes something about you."

"What can I say? I'm pretty likeable," I said jokingly.

She smirked knowingly. "Not like that, Y/N."

I lost my smile as she left me to it, wondering if she was right. I'd always thought it, but maybe if Nat was seeing it too then I wasn't going insane?

—

A few days later, I was helping Mari to hang some wet clothes on the washing line we'd strung up when something caught my attention.

"And where've you been?" Van asked someone, and I wouldn't have been intrigued if it weren't for the nonchalant response.

"Nowhere," Jackie replied, clearing her throat.

Curious, I glanced over my shoulder and saw Jackie returning to the cabin from somewhere or the other. The strange bit was seeing her clothes a little dirty, earth staining her denim shorts and white shirt. It was very unlike her to be so unkempt and dishevelled, from the mess of her hair to the mud on her nails. As the only one of us who seemed to actually still care how she looked, this was very out of the ordinary.

"Seriously?" I asked, reading Van's thoughts.

Jackie shrugged, wiping her hands on her shorts before heading around back, no doubt to wash off. I exchanged confused looks with Van before resuming with my job. Weird.

—

Struggling to sleep was something that hadn't really gotten better as time went on. You'd think it would considering it had been a month since we'd crashed here, but it was quite literally a hit and miss to whether I could actually fall asleep or not. And even then, at most, I'd get around five hours.

Tonight wasn't any different, and I was getting tired of the tossing and turning and forcing my eyes closed, so I accepted defeat and got up from my spot to sit in front of the fire. It was getting a little chillier in the air, the nights a little colder, and I feared what would happen when summer was over. But I tried not to overthink it right now, instead watching the wood burn a hot orange, embers crumbling off in the fireplace.

I sat there, hoping I'd succumb to fatigue soon enough, and then ten minutes passed and I heard movement from behind me.

"What are you doing?" It was Jackie, and she was yawning as she took a seat beside me, blanket hugging her.

Feeling bad, I said, "You don't need to–"

"Are you in pain?" she asked, waking up some more as she studied my expression.

"No," I breathed out, to which she relaxed. "Just couldn't sleep. Did I wake you?"

Another yawn, this time she tried to stifle it, and she shook her head. I wasn't stupid though, a frown on my lips.

"You can go back to sleep," I reassured her, in case she felt any moral obligation to be here.

Sly smile on her lips, she tilted her head to look at me. "Eager to get rid of me?"

I rolled my eyes, a smile tugging at my lips, and she chuckled quietly as to not wake anyone.

She nudged me with her shoulder, taking on a serious approach. "What's up?"

I stared back at the fire, finding it easier to tell the truth when I wasn't looking at her. "Just a lot on my mind."

"Like?"

Sighing quietly, I said, "This. My arm. Being rescued. It's been a month, Jackie."

She fell quiet, exhaling softly. "I know."

I wasn't sure why, but hearing the defeat in her voice only confirmed my fears – that we might be stuck here forever. Frowning, I looked down at my arm, remembering the day we crashed. The day everything broke down. The last day of our old life, but the first of our new one. How depressing.

"I had a dream about a cheeseburger last night," Jackie suddenly spoke, surprising me at the randomness of her comment.

"What?"

"Yeah," she continued like it was normal, nodding, "it was fresh from the grill, had cold lettuce, pickles, onions, tomatoes, that really good burger sauce with the bits of pickle in–"

"Jackie," I stopped her.

She looked to me, confused and almost offended that I'd interrupted. "What?"

Bizarre, that's what she was, and it made me laugh. Worried I'd woken up the others, I looked around, thankful that everybody was still fast asleep, and looked back to Jackie with a stifled smile.

"What are you going on about?" I asked her in a low voice.

The fire was casting shadows across her face, making the glimmer of gold in her hazel eyes shimmer as she spoke. "There were fries too. Hot and crispy and perfectly salted."

"Thanks," I said sarcastically, though smiling. "Now you've just made me hungry."

She laughed quietly, looking to the fire with approval. "Better than sad."

My smile didn't disappear as I admired her profile, the curve of her jaw, the soft smile imprinted on her face, her hair that was still messy from being asleep. I could have watched her forever, sat there like that, but then I noticed something stuck in her hair. A remnant of a leaf or something.

"You've got something in your hair," I said in a hushed voice, and she lifted a brow as she glanced at me.

"Huh?"

Figuring it was easier to get it out myself, I leaned forward and used my fingers to gently remove the leaf from behind her ear. She stayed still as I did, then I flicked it in the fire before looking back to her, realising she was watching me closely. It could have been the quiet of the night, the crackling of the fire, the proximity between us, but I was amazed by her beauty, eyes taking in her whole expression.

I was close enough to make out the freckles dusting her nose, her earth-coloured eyes which were focused on mine, even the pinkness of her lips as she licked them subconsciously, making my heart race in my chest. It would have been so easy to lean forward, to close the gap and kiss her, but I was terrified. What if Nat was wrong?

What if she was right?

No, I wasn't bold enough to make the first move. If Jackie wanted this – which, the longer she didn't move away from me made me feel like she did – she'd have to do it. Like the wimp I was, I pulled back, looking away. She sighed as she looked back to the fire, and if I couldn't sleep before, I definitely couldn't now.

"Thanks for staying up with me," I said, "but you should sleep."

"So should you," she retorted.

"I promise, I'll try," I said, before standing up and returning to my bed.

She did the same, the two of us tucking ourselves in a few beds over from one another. My heart was hammering away as I laid down, thoughts of Jackie infiltrating my head.

"Goodnight," she whispered.

I swallowed thickly. "Goodnight."

—

If wanting to kiss Jackie Taylor one time wasn't bad enough, having Nat tease me was even worse. She never outright said anything to me since telling me what she thought that one time, but she was certainly enjoying watching me squirm. Especially one evening, when we were all settled around the campfire.

I had my blanket wrapped around me as I sat close to the fire, appreciating the warmth. It wasn't super cold out tonight, but it was comforting nonetheless. Nat was sat on my right, a space between us, and then Jackie appeared, glancing down at me with a smile.

"This seat taken?" she asked.

Before I could even answer, Nat glanced at me with a stifled smirk, and I knew what she was thinking which made me embarrassed all over again.

Trying to ignore Nat, I answered Jackie, "No, go for it."

She grinned and sat in the space between us, and I gave her the other side of my blanket which she wrapped around her shoulders. It wasn't huge though, and she was forced to sit a little closer, close enough for me to make out the smell of the perfume she still spritzed on every morning for a sense of normalcy. It was distracting, as was the feeling of her arm and leg pressed up to mine, and I willed myself to snap out of it.

Suddenly, some of the girls were cheering on the other side of the fire, and then I tuned in when I realised they'd agreed to play a game of truth or dare. Nothing like a typical dumb party game to get everyone's minds off being stranded in the wilderness, right?

Admittedly, it was a little funny going around the circle and watching the stupid dares involving the girls drinking moonshine and flashing themselves, or listening to the amusing truths about someone stealing money from their parents or lying on school tests. For a moment, it was like we really were just at a dumb party.

Then it was my turn to go and Mari asked me if I wanted to pick truth or dare.

"Hmm," I thought aloud, being sure to choose wisely. "I guess I pick dare. I mean, how bad can it be when I only have one working arm?"

"Wanna bet?" Van threatened playfully, a devilish smile on her face which made all the other girls laugh.

Smiling with amusement, I didn't doubt her ability to make a fool of me, broken arm or not. "Damn, truth it is."

Everybody fell quiet as they thought of something to ask, and I wasn't worried in the slightest until Lottie decided to speak.

"This is such a go-to, I'm surprised it hasn't been asked," she said with a chuckle, before looking at me. "Do you have a crush right now? Maybe a long lost love back home?"

My smile was still on my lips, though wanting to disappear as I blinked and became acutely aware of everyone's eyes on me, especially the blonde beside me who was very much the root of my crush.

"Nope," I said as convincingly as I could, making everyone groan at my boring answer.

I truly believed I'd gotten away with it until I looked to Jackie beside me as she was next, but instead caught sight of Nat's mischievous grin beside her. Swallowing thickly, I pretended she wasn't there and looked back to Jackie who was already considering her answer as Mari asked the question.

"Truth," she chose excitedly.

"Oh, I've got a good one," Van said eagerly, before fixing Jackie with a curious look. "What's the most disgusting thing you've done since being here?"

A few girls snickered, and I hid a smile as I awaited Jackie's answer. Everybody knew Jackie acted like a princess, so this must've been good.

Jackie thought about it for a moment, looking up in consideration, before she scrunched her nose with disgust. "Okay, nobody kill me," she disclaimed, piquing everyone's interest, "but I accidentally used someone else's toothbrush one time."

Almost instantly, everybody began to talk over one another, demanding to know whose toothbrush she'd used, but Jackie wasn't having it.

"I don't know whose brush it was!" she exclaimed, embarrassed and avoiding everyone's eyes. "I answered your truth and there's no follow up questions. Also, you should really keep your things out of the communal areas. Just saying."

I suppressed the urge to laugh as a few girls scoffed with disbelief. Jackie glanced at me, both embarrassed and amused, a smile on her lips.

"Okay, Nat, you're up next," Mari moved on. "Truth or dare?"

Nat leaned back on her hands as she answered nonchalantly. "Truth."

"I've got a good one," Shauna said, entertained smile aimed at Nat. "Who do you think has lied tonight?"

Everybody began to 'ooh' at her question, knowing it would be the start of some drama which we had so little of out here. I didn't consider it much, until Nat answered without missing a beat.

"Y/N."

I widened my eyes at her response, looking past Jackie and to a smirking Nat. Everybody was watching the two of us like a tennis match.

"What? Why?" I asked Nat calmly, not wanting to betray anything.

Nat only shrugged indifferently. "Dunno. It just can't be true that you don't have a crush."

I kept my cool as I said, "Well, it is."

"Maybe," Nat said, "but I don't believe it."

"Well, you're wrong," I said a little too quickly.

She laughed, unbothered by my defensiveness. "Okay. It's just my opinion."

My cheeks were flaming as I looked to the fire with embarrassment.

"Doesn't matter anyway," Nat added as an afterthought, enjoying tormenting me. "There'd be no way of you letting your crush know. It's not like they're here, right?"

I hoped Jackie couldn't feel the heat exuding from my skin as I sat there silently, distracting myself with my bottle of water and unable to respond to Nat's teasing. Thankfully, the subject was changed with the next person's turn, and I reminded myself to kill Nat later. She was enjoying this a little too much.

Once we'd gone around the circle once, it was getting late and a little nippy outside, so a few girls began to leave. Nat was one of them, winking at me playfully as she walked past, and just as I rolled my eyes, Jackie looked to me with confusion.

"What was that about?"

"Just Nat being Nat," I mumbled.

Unconvinced, she continued to stare at me with furrowed brows. "What was she doing earlier? Why did she say you were lying?"

"What?" I said, hoping to buy some time as I thought of a reason, because I definitely didn't expect her to say anything about it. "Oh, nothing. She was just trying to be funny."

Jackie licked her lips before pursing them. I thought she'd drop it, but then she narrowed her eyes at me suspiciously.

"Is it Nat? Your supposed crush?"

I almost choked on my spit. "What?"

Her expression softened. "Is that why she was teasing you? Because you like her?"

Shaking my head instantly, I said, "No, no. That's literally not it at all. If anything, Nat is a pain in my arse."

Jackie hummed quietly, looking back at the fire which was on its way to burning out. I exhaled with relief, finding it ironic that she thought it was Nat who I liked. Oh, how wrong she was.

"So, whose toothbrush was it?" I asked, changing the subject, knowing she was lying earlier.

She paused. "Misty's."

I snorted with amusement. "Yeah, she would've killed you if she found out."

Jackie smiled in agreement, hiding her laugh. I couldn't seem to look away, lost in her stunning profile, lit up by the fire. It was deja vu. Her blonde hair appeared golden, her eyes a kaleidoscope of green and brown, and her lips... they were pink and soft and I wanted to kiss her again, just like last time.

She suddenly turned to look at me, soft smile gracing her lips, and I was too warm in this blanket, our bodies so close that I wouldn't be surprised if she could feel the heat from my skin, a consequence of how nervous she was making me with a simple glance. All I had to do was lean in, but I couldn't.

"I think you're lying too," she muttered with amusement.

Dumbfounded, I asked, "What?"

She clarified, "About not having a crush."

I raised my eyebrows, making her chuckle quietly before patting my leg.

"C'mon, it's cold," she said, before standing up and leaving me with me the blanket, probably assuming I would follow her.

But I was too surprised at what she'd said. That was a hint, right? She knew? She knew I liked her?

Should I have kissed her?

—

I wet some scrap material in the lake, my only source for something cold in the wilderness, and carefully wrapped my broken but healing arm in it. It acted as a terrible ice pack, but I sighed with relief at the cool feeling.

It had been a month and a half since we'd been stranded, a month and a half since my arm broke. I couldn't be sure it was healing correctly, since it still hurt when I moved it and looked a little weird, but the swelling was gone and I didn't need to rely so much on the limited medication we had.

Still, I couldn't do everything I wanted to and I really missed having two working arms. Even now, as I looked out at the lake and saw some of the others swimming in the water, I was jealous. God, I was so bored. Even a swim would be nice, but I physically couldn't.

Instead, I took a spot by the shore and laid on my back, using my arm to shield the sun from my eyes and have a little nap. I didn't completely doze off, just enough to tune out my surroundings for a little while, but then I felt a shoe gently kick at my leg.

"Huh? What?" I asked tiredly, lowering my arm.

Jackie was stood above me, eager smile on her face. I hated the way the butterflies began to swirl in my stomach, all because the sun crafted her silhouette so perfectly. Stupid. Crush.

"I've got a surprise for you," she said.

I sat upright, rubbing my eye. "What does that even mean?"

"Come find out," she exclaimed, before grabbing my hand without warning and pulling me up.

"Jackie–"

"Close your eyes," she instructed with a suppressed grin.

I gave her a disapproving look. "Seriously?"

She shook my arm encouragingly. "C'mon! You're gonna love it. I hope."

Very curious and also still a little out of it from my nap, I decided to entertain her and closed my eyes. She didn't let go of my hand as she dragged me somewhere carefully. I wasn't sure where at first, but then the ground was full of grass and sticks, and leaves were skimming my bare arms the further she led me, and I guessed we were back in the woods.

"Okay, we're here," she said suddenly, stopping abruptly. "Open."

I sighed, opening my eyes and blinking a few times. We were at the usual spot we played acorn soccer in, and I didn't know what the surprise was, but then I saw it. It was some sort of goal or net made of sticks twisted together in an awkwardly shaped dome, about the height of my knee and the width of my outstretched arms.

"What is this?" I asked with an amazed smile, running forward to study it closely.

"You gotta have a target, right?"

I laughed. "This is sick, Jackie!"

She chuckled from behind me. "I'm glad you like it."

"Wait," I realised, turning around to look at her. "Is this what you've been doing?"

It explained why she would sometimes return to the cabin looking a little messy, but I never expected her to be building this. DIY wasn't really her thing.

"Why? You been keeping tabs?" she teased, crossing her arms.

I sighed softly, thinking back to the first time I'd said that to her. Funnily enough, in this very spot.

"You're such an idiot," I said, rolling my eyes playfully, before moving forward to hug her.

She returned it before asking, "Wanna test it out?"

I stared at her with an obvious look. "Duh!"

She grinned and we returned to our usual positions for acorn soccer, though this time we had an actual 'net' and it raised the stakes in the best way possible. I still couldn't believe she'd done this for me.

As I dribbled the acorn 'ball', throwing in some fancy footwork just to annoy Jackie, she put her foot out and I tripped over it, hitting the ground instantly. It didn't hurt, though was definitely surprising, but I thought it would be funny to make Jackie feel bad anyway.

"Ow!" I shouted, rolling onto my back and pretending to clutch my broken arm.

Her expression transformed into one of concern as she gasped. "Oh, shit, are you okay?! I didn't mean to–"

I pushed my foot out slightly before she could finish, easily knocking her forward onto the ground, landing right next to me with a thud. Laughter spilled from my mouth almost instantly, only increasing when she lifted her head to playfully glare at me, a dirt mark on her cheek.

"You asked for it," I said knowingly, before sitting upright.

I offered her my hand as she sat up too, legs intertwined with mine as she wiped her hands onto her shorts.

"Did I actually hurt you?" she asked, tilting her head towards me with a smile.

"You did not," I assured her with amusement, making her sigh with defeat.

"Not funny," she pointed out, which was hard to believe when her eyes were sparkling with anything but seriousness.

I snickered, before my eyes fell to the dirt mark on her cheek. "You've got a little something..."

Motioning to my cheek, she furrowed her brows and lifted her hand to her own to try and get it, but she missed.

"What?"

"Just right–"

"Here?"

I scoffed lightheartedly before using my thumb to get rid of it for her, wiping it away in a few swipes. I had to cup her jaw as I did, not even realising what I was doing until she exhaled softly and her breath dusted my lips. I paused, eyes flickering to hers, and that feeling came back, along with the nerves that always accompanied them. She looked between my eyes before hers fell to my lips, and mine did the same. I wanted to lean in, so so badly, but as usual, my body became paralysed with fear. Why was this so hard?

Like the wimp I was, I was about to let go of her jaw and pull away, ready to pretend this never happened. But she surprised me when she spoke up.

"Just do it."

I blinked, surprised, briefly meeting her half-lidded gaze, and that was all the confirmation I needed. Pushing away my fears, I finally leaned in, kissing her. She sighed into my mouth, moving her hand to the back of my neck to pull me even closer, and I had goosebumps all over at the feeling of her lips on mine. It was slow, long-awaited and wonderful, and I regretted not making a move sooner.

When we pulled apart, my heart was racing and I opened my eyes, only to be submerged in pools of hazel.

"Getting a kiss from you is like pulling teeth, I swear," she murmured, lips curving into a satisfied smile.

Flushing with embarrassment, I cleared my throat and let go of her. "Nothing stopped you from making the first move, y'know."

"And do all the work?" she asked rhetorically. "I left so many hints. I thought you would've taken them."

"I wasn't sure," I admitted, lips still tingling. She rolled her eyes teasingly, but I continued, "I couldn't be sure. Not with you. Not for me."

"You still sound doubtful," she noticed, smile fading a little.

I wasn't sure what to say because a small part of me still was. Accepting that Jackie Taylor had wanted me to kiss her was something I wasn't sure I'd ever get used to.

Suddenly, she kissed me again, brief but enough to have me second guessing my own name. When she pulled away, a knowing smile was on her lips.

"How about now?" she asked, and all I could do was swallow hard with warm cheeks.

She laughed before helping me up off the ground. We dusted ourselves off and then she held out her hand towards me.

"Let's head back," she said, and I smiled as I accepted her hand.

We walked back to the cabin, me personally feeling like I was on cloud nine because the girl I liked actually liked me back.

"So, the thing with Nat," Jackie brought up as we headed back. "The crush and the lying thing. That was about me?"

Oh, God, why was everything so embarrassing?

"Yes," I admitted reluctantly. "She was teasing me because she knew I wouldn't make a move."

This made Jackie chuckle. "She wasn't wrong."

I shot her a sideways glance. "Thanks for the reminder."

"Oh, c'mon," she said between laughter, "don't pout."

I rolled my eyes lightheartedly. "It's fine, don't worry. Let's just all laugh at Y/N because she couldn't kiss the girl, ha, ha, ha."

Jackie kept laughing, though I knew it wasn't out of spite. Besides, at least I'd finally made a move. That was all that mattered.

At least, it did for the next two minutes until we reached the cabin and I saw Nat sat on the steps, taking note of the two of us holding hands.

"And here we go," I whined to myself.

Jackie's smile, still on her face from the amusement of my inability to make the first move, faded as she glanced between Nat and I.

"Hey, Nat!" she called to the blonde, confusing me and earning her attention.

As soon as Nat looked our way properly, Jackie let go of my hand and kissed me, cupping my face between her hands  and taking her time. I was so surprised when she pulled away, as was Nat, not expecting her to be so outright with it.

"What–"

"Anything to add?" Jackie cut me off, instead looking to Nat with a quirked brow that dared her to tease me.

Nat shook her head. "Not at all. Huh."

Satisfied, Jackie smiled sweetly and I was sure my face was hot with embarrassment. I probably should've seen that coming, but also, how could I have?

"Good job," Nat said to me as she walked past us, impressed smile on her lips.

I blinked, before looking to Jackie. "Erm, thanks?"

"Hey, she may have been right, but only I get to tease you about it," she said in a way that sounded like she was joking but I knew she wasn't.

I breathed out, small smile on my face. I may have been the shy one, but at least I had Jackie to rely on. It's not like I'd ever have to make the first move again anyway. The hard part was over.

[chaosheadspace]

How about #15 for the kissies? Hope you feel better!

Hello! Thank you for sending in an ask. Yes, I am better by now, but I still have for prompts to do :D This is a continuation of this prompt, because they wouldn't shut up in my mind (tagging @academicblorbo for obvious reasons).

15 is passionately, I hope this qualifies.

Of course Hob gets the job. It just takes the interview and five weeks of waiting, during which Dream misses him that much more fiercely, because Hob could be here, with him, if they would just hurry up and answer.His inability to do anything about it almost drives him crazy.

When Hob does get the answer, the search for a house proves to be equally frustrating—slow at first, before it's all over fairly quickly. They're on a phone call, both scrolling through listings.

“Here, look at this one,” Hob says, sending a link. Isn't that—”

The listing is for a flat identical in layout to Dream’s, albeit decorated somewhat more… frilly. “There is no way to know, Hob,” Dream says. “There are thirty-five apartments in this building alone, you cannot—”

“No, look at the pictures of the balcony, it's the one next to you. It's the exact flowers you're always stealing, and the pink bird bath.”

“Excuse me?” Dream asks, offended. “I do not steal, I simply take what grows over onto my side, which—”

“Do you think we could knock down a wall?” Hob muses.

“—is very well within—what?” Dream's train of thought comes to an abrupt halt.

“Like. Make a passage. From this one to yours.”

“The lease is very particular about holes left by nails,” Dream tells Hob, holding back a smile. “I do not think they would take at all kindly to holes very much larger than that.”

“Pity,” Hob says. “Okay, have you seen the one with the double parking spot that we don't need because we both go by bike?”

In the end, they get very lucky. Through one of Dream’s coworkers, they find a small house with four rooms and a fairly large kitchen, tucked away from the seaside hotels and tourists, just a short walk away from a stone beach. The style of it is, as Hob would call it, romantic. Dream just calls it “in dire need of renovation.”

“I know you'd have loved grey stone and glass,” Hob teases. “If you want, you can paint the bedroom.”

And so Dream does. Hob knows Dream secretly loves the house just as much as he does. He’s seen him caressing the wooden framework when he thought Hob wasn’t looking, as well as trying and failing to tuck the overgrown roses back behind the archway. When Hob, who only offered up the bedroom walls as a means to make peace between the house and Dream, checks up on the room after two days, he's left there in the doorway, gaping.

The room is painted in dark blues and greys in a soft gradient until it dissipates into a light grey in the middle of the ceiling, a rippled almost-circle around the cables where Dream detached the lamp. The walls and ceiling are covered in bioluminescent sea creatures, winding themselves around the corners of the room, swimming up, partly hiding behind an underwater volcano that covers most of the wall where the wardrobe will go. Amidst all of this kneels Dream, on cheap, taped-down paper sheets, painting something close to the floor.

“Love, that's amazing, Hob gasps as he finds his words again.

Dream, veritably covered in paint, looks up at him. “You always seem to forget that my second major was art,” he pouts.

There's a bright green streak on his cheek and a white spot on his nose, his usually raven hair flecked with grey. Hob thinks he's adorable. “Never,” he vows, stepping up to Dream to carefully press a kiss on his as of yet clean forehead. “You'll always be my little artist.”

“I am not little,” Dream says.

“You so are,” Hob grins.

Dream gets up from the floor, where he has been painting the very bottom of the wall with little rocks, the paper he put down to protect the floor crinkling. “Just because I am one centimetre smaller than you—”

“One and a half,” Hob corrects cheerfully.

Dream points at him with his brush. “I am not small,” he tells Hob again.

“To me you are,” Hob sing-songs, narrowly avoiding getting his face painted on. He gently grabs Dream's wrist to stop him, his tone turning earnest. “Does it really bother you? Because I'll stop if it does.”

Dream arches his eyebrow, stepping closer, making no move to free his wrist. “Are you insinuating that I cannot take a friendly barb about my height?”

The tension in Hob's stomach eases at once, while other parts of him light up with a spark of interest. Dream really does look cute covered in paint. Maybe they should split the library room to double as an art studio. “Well, I know all kinds of things you take very well, but even I can't know everything, can I?” Hob says softly, smiling.

With a hoarse, sobbing laugh, Dream buries his face in the crook of Hob's neck, dropping the brush in favour of embracing him. “Are you seriously coming onto me right now?” His disbelieving tone is belied by his hands that wander down to tug Hob flush against him by his waist, his breath that ghosts hot over the side of Hob's neck, followed by a playful nibble.

“I might be,” Hob hedges, his breathing just a little heavy. “Why, are you objecting?”

Dream moves away from his neck to frame Hob's face with both hands. “This house is basically empty save for painting supplies, and I am filthy,” Dream states before kissing him, deep and hungry. Hob sighs and opens for him, snaking one hand under Dream's shirt, feeling a cold smear of paint on his cheek from Dream’s nose.

“A shower, then,” Hob murmurs, “so we're clean before we get filthy again.” His fingers trail up over the knobs of Deams spine, finding goosebumps on their way back down.

“So you are suggesting two showers with work in between?” Dream asks, rubbing his nose through Hob's scruff, no doubt still leaving paint, before biting at his Adam's apple.

“I think you’ve worked enough for today,” Hob says, emphasising his words by sneaking one hand into the back of Dream’s paint-smeared jeans. “Could let me do some work for a change.”

“Very well,” Dream says smugly, wrapping his legs around Hob’s waist, leaving Hob to catch him so they don’t fall. “You may.”

Hob just laughs and kisses him again before walking them unsteadily towards the bathroom.

Send me a kissy prompt or read the other one's here

[yaksokhay]

a walk to remember

plot: in which you go out with your new friend circle in your new school, including the guy you like, and your friends come up with an impulsive idea to let you two walk to the cafe while they use the cab.

ᵍᵉⁿʳᵉ: ᶠˡᵘᶠᶠ, ᶜᵒᵐᶠᵒʳᵗ

the school bell rang. releasing us into the afternoon with a screaming sun. we gathered our things and headed out. we laugh and jostle each other, our footsteps echoing on the stairway as we make our way downstairs. we try to search for a cab, and suddenly my friends come up to me and him with a sudden, mischievous plan.

'how about we take a cab to the cafe, and you two walk? there aren't enough seats in the cab for all five of us to fit in, and on top of that we have bulky bags. you can give us your bags and walk, the cafe is close by anyway" my best friend suggesting, eyes twinkling with mischief. i looked at her with my wide eyes as she barely suppressed a grin. oh you are so dead when i see you later.

in the background the others slowly get the hang of what's going on - "yea, it's just a short walk." they chime in.

feeling a mix of excitement and nerves, i glanced at him. he shrugged, giving a small shy smile that made my heart flutter.

"sure, why not" i said, trying to sound casual and not give it away. with that, my friends piled into a cab, leaving the two of us standing on a sidewalk. the sun-drenched afternoon felt warmer than it should. every second step made me conscious about myself - was i looking alright while walking? why is it so hot? am i sweating too much?' i prayed to the gods above that he wouldn't notice the singular drop of sweat dripping down my temples.

we started down the tree-lined street, the sound of our footsteps mingling with the chaotic hum of traffic. we weren't that close as friends, not like i was with the rest - I was never really able to break into his protective 'shell' so to speak

i glanced at him as he walked a little ahead of me. he was wearing a black hoodie, his classic, with the grey school trousers and the hem of the white t-shirt peeking out from beneath. his hair looked soft with a few black strands sticking out due to the lazy breeze.

"so," clearing my throat as i began, breaking the silence, "tell me something about yourself. what are your plans after school?"

he smiled, looking a bit shy but willing to share. "well, i'm not entirely sure yet."

i let out a sound of 'oh i see' but was internally dying because he clearly seemed like the type to give short answers and not open up much. i shut my eyes tightly in embarrassment and let out a soft sigh as i mustered up the courage to ask him my next question.

'so what are your hobbies?" we both asked each other at the same time. for that moment we paused, looked at each other amused and laughed lightly.

"ahh i like music, maybe something in composition or performance, i enjoy the idea of creating something new, even if its just a small part of a bigger piece" he said.

"oh my god, no way! me too. i want to do something in music producing and performance too. i like singing and dancing, lets pair up for the end of year talent show this year. oh and maybe one day you'll produce a track for me". i joke excitedly, bumping his shoulder and looked at him smiling brightly, a little too brightly in my opinion. quickly realizing that, i looked in the front, feeling a little embarrassed.

he nods, a chuckle leaving his lips as he notices you looking away. "i can see that. you have that kind of energy. and i'd like that." although the last part was soft, you'd heard it. and your heart was on fire, it was beating so fast, max verstappen wouldn't be able to beat the speed.

we look ahead and realize we need to cross the road. stepping out from the cool shade of the trees into the warm embrace of the sunlight. the light dances on the road, the shadows of our figures blend, creating a fleeting moment of connection. of course, i am the only one who noticed that. thinking to myself as i internally chuckled at my silly behavior.

once we reach the other side i curiously ask him "so who's your favorite artist?"

he looks thoughtful. "i really like the beatles, and nirvana. their music is so introspective. what about you?"

i grin, excited to share. "i love the beatles too, these days i listen to a lot of seventeen and ateez though."

as we approach the cafe, the scent of freshly brewed coffee and baked goods wafts through the air. i realize how easy and natural it feels to talk to him. when we finally reach the cafe, our friends are already there, waving from a corner booth. i glance at him, and he gives me a shy but genuine smile.

it's a small moment, but oh boy my heart did a little !

pt.2 - 'warm lights & bold moves'

[melminli]

Lost And Never Found

pairing - avengers x female reader

summery - from time to time, things in the avengers tower disappear out of nowhere

"Okay folks, this is getting ridiculous. Who's stealing my toothbrushes?" Steve asked, annoyed as he entered the living room. "This is the third time in two weeks, and I know it was one of you."

Sam looked at him a little confused. "Those are some serious accusations you're throwing out there." He joked before turning sincere. "What are we even supposed to do with your used toothbrushes, though? You sure that you didn't just misplaced them?"

Before he could respond, Steve took a deep breath and massaged his forehead. "No. It's not like I'm doing a marathon around the tower with my toothbrush that I could put it anywhere but in the bathroom." He pointed a finger at the people in the room. "One of you took it." He pronounced, his tone showed that he was not to be convinced.

Tony rolled his eyes after taking a sip of his coffee. "What advantage should we get from your used toothbrushes, Cap? We're not perverts."

In response, the super soldier raised an eyebrow challengingly. "I don't know. Are you?"

A series of sighs rang out from the people present in the room. "It's just a toothbrush, Steve." Bucky said, shrugging his shoulders. "It's not a big deal."

"No." He replied. "It's the principle. You shouldn't take other people's property."

Of course. It's always some principle.

Wait a second. A certain billionaire suddenly remembered something at the current topic. "You know, while we're on the subject of mysterious disappearing toothbrushes, I'm missing two pairs of sunglasses." Tony threw the information into the room to see if a motive could be discerned.

"Hmm. Come to think of it, I'm missing a couple of shirts, but I always thought they got lost in the wash somehow." Bucky answered.

Sam nodded. "I haven't found my cologne once or twice, but I thought it would show up on its own. Don't think that's going to happen anymore."

Now, that was a little unexpected. When the others talked about it like that, it felt less like a coincidence and more like all these things were connected with each other. "So what? We have a thief among us who steals useless stuff?" asked Sam. It sounded a little absurd when spoken out loud.

You entered the room somewhat abruptly in the middle of the conversation. It was too much of a coincidence seeing you walk in after that statement so the others might or might not think that it was a bit suspicious.

"What's up, guys?" You asked as you looked at your phone and plopped down on the couch. You didn't notice the tense mood until you didn't hear a response and looked up to see all eyes on you. "Is something wrong?"

Bucky raised an eyebrow as he asked you. "Are you missing anything lately? Like toothbrushes or sunglasses...or anthing like that?"

You wouldn't lie. Your heart stopped beating for a second. This was kind of a sticky situation you got yourself in since you didn't work well under pressure. "Oh yeah, totally! Uhm...I miss -" your eyes subtly peeked around, stopping in the open kitchen on the other side of the room. "- my microwave."

You said worse things in the past.

"Your microwave?" Tony repeated with a certain undertone that said - at this point, you can just admit it.

"...yeah."

Tony spoke your name warningly, which made you sweat a little. You instinctively searched for escape exits, but the only one you could see was the door where Steve stood, looking at you with his Captain America eyes. Yeah, you didn't think you were going to survive that. Your eyes then looked at the windows, but even then, your succes rate of escaping wasn't exactly high if you considered that you wanted to get out alive. "So no one wants to ask me how school was?" You finally asked.

"Don't change the subject. Also, what are you? Five?" Tony responded without any mercy.

You rolled your eyes. "Alright, I may have taken some of your stuff...you happy now?" You admitted.

A grin graced Tony's face. "I'm always happy when it turns out that I was right. So yeah I feel pretty good right now."

"Well, technically Steve was right. Besides, you too were first against the idea that it was one of us." said Sam.

Now, on any other day, Tony would let this one slide with a sarcastic laugh, but this was about Steve. On top of that, he felt a bit petty today. "The we was referring to as in we the Avengers. The good people." Defended Tony. "You know because...heroes don't steal and stuff or whatever."

"Oh, come on." Groaned Sam. "Don't throw her under the bus like that. How far are you gonna go just to prove that you're right?"

"You don't want to know how far I'll go, bird man."

Steve clapped loudly once to draw attention to himself. "Can we please focus on the situation at hand?" He asked, looking to you.

You shook your head slightly. "I'm fine. You two can keep talking."

Steve ignored that statement and got straight to the point. "Why are you taking our personal stuff? What are you even doing with it?" He finally asked the question that was secretly on everyone's mind.

"Well..." You began laughing a little nervously while avoiding eye contact. "...I kinda sell it online on eBay?"

It took him a second to process that.

"You're selling my used toothbrushes to random people?!"

You pointed your index finger in the air to correct him. "No. I sell Captain America's used toothbrushes to random people. It's hard to believe, but there are some guys out there who pay an insane amount of money for these things." You told him and then remembered how that man wasn't from this century, so he must be a bit weirded out by that information. More than the normal amount.

Tony challenged you in a sarcastic tone. "Maybe as much as I paid for those expensive sunglasses?"

You looked at him judgmentally. "I think you will be fine, Mr. Capitalist."

You had explained it, but Bucky still didn't understand what was going on. "I guess i can understand some shirts and stuff, but the used toothbrushes kinda freak me out if I am being honest. Like, what are they gonna do with them?"

You shrugged. You thought about it yourself every now and then, but not too much so that your morals couldn't keep you from making money. "I don't know. Maybe a new super soldier from the DNA of the left saliva on it? Oh! Or maybe it's some fangirl hoping for an indirect kiss or even better -"

"Okay, that's enough." Steve stopped you before you could elaborate further, trying to keep you from saying something he'd be mulling over for the next few days. He knew that some people could do disturbing things, but he could block it out as long as you didn't say it out loud. "Why am I hoping that it's the first?" He muttered, slightly disappointed in himself.

After that question was answered, a new question opened up in Sam's mind. "What do you need all that damn money for anyway that you're willing to reach for such extreme measures?" He asked, still slightly in shock from the revelation.

You shrugged your shoulders. "Lady Gaga is going on tour and concert tickets are fucking expensive these days." You answered casually. "Might as well get the best view while I am at it."

Teenagers really are relentless these days. None of them said it out loud because they didn't really have to at this point.

Tony asked, a little confused. "You know you could have just asked me if you wanted some money, right?" And stated the obvious.

"Not to be dramatic or anything." You began with a serious tone. "But I'd rather die than do that. Asking others for help...is so embarrassing."

"And stealing is not?"

"Well, it wouldn't be." You stated and then added. "If you guys hadn't figured it out."

There was no need to go further into this aspect, which is why Steve stopped you. "We are not having this conversation again."

"Well, how about you all stop acting like you seriously cared about these little things because I'm gonna cry if you keep going! Four men against a defenseless little girl. Is that what the Avengers are doing these days? Make little girls cry?" You asked in a serious voice and could see their strong demeanor crumble at your words. You didn't feel bad about making them feel guilty since you did feel like crying at the moment.

Steve tried to argue against it. "You gave the exact same speech the last time you were in trouble."

You crossed your arms challengingly. "So what?"

His argument was invalidated. Silence followed for a few seconds until the men finally sighed simultaneously.

They shouldn't let you get away with these things so easily. They really shouldn't, but somehow they still always did.

[messenger-of-stupidity]

You Must Be This Tall

The amount of research about rollercoaster accidents for this. The amount of copying the transcript I did for this. The amount scrolling through the timeline I did for this. I swear to god if this fails I'm going to lose my shit. (I wouldn't blame you if you didn't read it. It kinda goes from 0-100 real quick. I did get kind of lazy with the end but I didn't want to go as gruesome as the original draft did.

TW: Depictions of roller coaster accident, panic symptoms, shitty friends, copy of transcript for Vincent's Valenweek Flashback Audio, Cursing, Some simping, Angst, Not beta read we die like Vincent's Stranger, GN Listener Character, Listener Character Death, Typos.

Redacted Masterlist

Summary: Come. Come one, come all. You must be this tall to ride this ride, at the carnival. It's all fun and games until somebody falls.

The park was filled with the sounds of life, all kinds. Laughter, screams, too-loud music, carnival games, all of it. Sizzling of overpriced and sugar filled fairground food covered any smell of vomit from the unfortunate participants of the more active rides. 

They wandered amongst their five other friends, all arms looped together to prevent getting lost. The sun was still half above horizon, but the extra lights of the amusement park were activating. The closer they got to the food stands, the stronger the smell of half burnt sugar and grease became. With the wonderful undertone of cigarettes. Yum…

“Hannah! We should get some nachos or something.” One of their friends shouted over the music blasting from a nearby stall. They squinted, searching through the attempts at attention grabbing to seek out the requested food. They were sure one of the food stalls had to sell nachos, even if that wasn’t the main focus. Their own stomach grumbled malcontentedly despite the corn dog they had consumed only half an hour prior. 

“No way! I wanna splurge on sugar. Get all the good shit that we can’t get back home.” Hannah shouted back. They kind of wished that the music would lessen a little bit. Their eardrums were still thrumming from the earlier ride they had all participated in. The group walked past a wailing child and a too-tired father trying to convince the child to leave whatever had them so distraught.

“We coulda gone to Disneyland.” They muttered under their breath. Mike, who held on tightly to their left arm, nudged them with a crooked grin plastered on his lips. The light from the passing sign glinted off of the metal ring locked into the middle of his bottom lip. 

“Don’t be such a sourpuss. Wonderworld is cheaper than Disneyland and it’s got newer attractions.” He answered. They pushed his face away from them with an open palm, even as the corners of their own lips tugged into a grin. He certainly had a point. Two, as it were. Wonderworld was introducing new rides, so the prices were low as they tried to get as much attention as possible. They couldn’t blame the amusement park, but a headache was tapping at the base of their skull. They could suck it up until they got home to take some aspirin though.

“Call me a sourpuss and I’ll shove pizza so far down your throat that not even going on the Surge can force it back up.” They retorted. Mike laughed and linked his hand with theirs to swing it back and forth. It took several minutes of searching before they were able to locate a stall that sold something everyone wanted or could at least settle for eating. 

“What ride should we go on next?” Hannah asked as she bit into some colorful teeth-rotting monstrosity. They shrugged, sucking on the red and white striped straw. Too-sweet slushie lighted on their tastebuds and their pupils dilated a few seconds later as the stream of glucose settled into their bloodstream. An involuntary smile pressed into their lips.

“Let’s see. We already went to the bumper cars, ferris wheel, merry-go-round, and the swinging pirate ship.” Jason said, counting off as he crumpled up a hamburger wrapper, his food settled on a napkin. They watched as the stringed lights reflected off the silver coloring of the waxy paper.

“We need to go on a classic roller coaster.” Mike decided and they pushed their straw around to even out their treat so they could suck it up the straw easier. They were content with letting their friend group decide the next ride, too preoccupied with the current task to actually listen. 

“Which one? There’s Night Stream, Gran Lunda, Raincage, Surge, and Treasure Cyclone.” Terra said, licking the salt from her fries from her fingers. They missed the glance that Mike sent towards them, as well as the devious smiles that spread over the rest of their friend group’s face. It took Mia nudging them to get their attention.

“Huh? Did we decide on something?” They asked, licking their lips with their stained tongue. 

“It’s Valentines Day tomorrow.” Mike said, lips twisted into a smirk. They nodded slowly, not sure they really liked where this was heading. “And the only single here, you need to live wildly before the reminder day.” I have a bad feeling about this. “So we dare you to go on a ride by yourself to commiserate.” He finished. They set the drink down.

“Which one? The spinning one?” They asked, brow creasing. Hannah shook her head.

“The Surge.” She answered. They stood up from where they sat, eyes surveying the park to seek out which ride had been dubbed as such. The smile dropped from their face as they caught sight of the lit up sign in front of an steep arch of track. Their stomach clenched painfully and the headache felt closer.

“Nuh-uh. No way.” They said, shaking their head quickly sitting back down. Jason groaned and tossed the rolled up wrapper in their direction. 

“Don’t be a pussy. Just go on it.” He drawled. They sent him a glare and shook their head again. Hannah laughed alongside Mike. They tried to ignore the ache of hurt that raced through them at the same speed they were sure the coaster car would go down the decline. 

“I don’t like rollercoasters like that.” They whispered, but the words were lost under the sounds surrounding them. 

They protested throughout the entire journey towards the wait queue. Mike pushed them towards the line and they shuffled towards it, each step feeling too heavy. The music seemed to fade into the far background as their ears filled with the sound of their heartbeat and the rollercoaster in front of them. The chugging machinery and clanking ride chains that pulled the carts along at a hurtling speed. The screams seemed more terror filled than adrenaline rushed to their ears. Oh god oh god oh god.

“Well you look terrified.” A friendly voice sounded next to their ear. They turned around quickly to see who the offender had been. A boy that seemed close to their age held his hands in front of him in surrender, a laugh dancing on his voice. “Sorry. I’m not trying to call you out or anything but…” Their gaze sharpened, even as their knees felt weak. “I-I-I mean, you kind of do.” He finished, hands dropping. They swallowed, their throat dry.

“It’s that obvious, huh?” They said, calling out over the sound of the fast-paced music and the announcer’s voice. 

“I mean, if you don’t mind me asking, if you are terrified of the ride… then why are you gonna ride on it? Alone no less.” He asked, hands sliding into his hoodie pocket. They wondered if they should really share the stupid reason their friends had provided for making them go on this bloody ride.

“My friends dared me to go.” They said, simplifying and shortening the explanation down. No need to dump on a stranger.

“Ah. Gotcha.” He said, nodding his head sagely. “No offense, but your friends kind of sound like assholes for daring you then. Where are they?” He asked. They raised an arm, pointing to where the five other members of their friend group stood, giggling amongst themselves. Assholes indeed.

“They’re just watching.” They mumbled, the sound of metal on metal racing overhead making them cringe. The stranger followed their hand.

“Is that them over there?” He asked. They nodded in confirmation and dropped their upraised arm. “Dicks.” He added, coaxing a small laugh from them. He looked back, eyes brighter at the sound and continued. “It’s all good. You’ll show them, and then you can tell them they’re the scared ones for trying to make you do it alone.” He paused, almost looking sheepish for a half second. “Plus you’re not alone. You got me.” 

Warmth rushed up their neck and tickled the tips of their ears. He sounded so heartfelt. “What about you? Did your friends do something of the same?” They asked hurriedly, spurring a chuckle to leave his lips.

“No. I’m-I’m I’m kind of the opposite. I’m the only one of my friends who wanted to ride on this one again.” He said, shrugging. They stared at him. Again? He wanted to go AGAIN? Oh my god. “So they’re all over on the other side of the park.”

“Other… side?” They said slowly. Them and their friends had been lingering in one main area of the park, not having fully wandered through to explore. Probably not the most efficient or whatever, but in the beginning it had just been so exciting.

“Yeah. They’re fucking around in that um, that big gift shop near the entrance until I’m done,” They could recall seeing that on the rushed entrance in. Maybe they should see if there was anything worth taking back home as a souvenir. If it was still open by the time they left. “But I really liked the ride. I wanted to do it one last time before we head out.” So he’s nuts. Why are all the pretty ones nuts?

And he was pretty. His smile right now was sympathetic, but the way his lips curved into it was almost contagious. If fear wasn’t making their stomach feel cold - and not from the slushie earlier - they probably would have been smiling back at him. 

“I mean, we drove a long way to get here so…” His voice said, leaving the sentence open-ended.The queue moved forward, pulling them closer to the coaster and they inhaled sharply. The stranger quickly started up speaking again. “And the line’s finally short now that the park’s getting ready to close,” Yeah. Not exactly a great thing in my book, handsome stranger. “Plus I get to ride it in the dark which is pretty cool.” Definitely not a great thing in my book. He chuckled again. If it had been a full laugh it would have probably allured a giggle from their throat.

“It’s that fun that you’d want to ride it in the dark?” They said, doubt coloring their words more than a three year old with a marker and a blank wall. He shrugged again, his posture relaxing further.

“Well I mean… I-I loved it. I thought it was an awesome ride.” Considering his definition of cool or fun, they were pretty sure that they wouldn’t think the same. Their shoulder hunched up and he spoke up again, pulling their attention back to his words and face. Lovely face. “What part of roller coasters scares you? Like is it something specific like loops, or heights, or-“ 

“All of it. Everything.” They interrupted, voice rush and pitched an octave higher as the line drew them closer to the ride.

“Or all of it. Okay.” He laughed again. That made it a little better. Just a little. “Well, I’m not gonna lie… you’re probably not gonna have a great time then.” Really Captain obvious? “It’s a lot.” He added. They gaped up at the twists and turns of metal tracks above and decided that was the understatement of the fucking year. His voice pulled their focus back.

“I-I mean… I mean personally I’m not huge on, like, drops. Like… like I hate those drop rides. The ones that just go up and down so um…” He paused for a second to consider before going on. He was talkative, huh? “So-So the first drop you go over is kind of scary. I mean, for me at least because it’s-it’s really vertical.” 

They looked back up at the roller coaster and the tall arch near the station. They were pretty sure the gulp they made was audible, even over the ambience. 

“I mean, it feels like it’s like… ninety degrees. So it kind of feels like one of those rides… for a sec, when you come over the crest of the hill.” Was it difficult to breath or was that just them? “But I mea, then the feeling goes away almost immediately because then you’re like, facing the direction you’re going if that makes sense.” They looked at him, their expression pained. Words seemed to get caught in their throat. “Like, you’re not dropping. I mean like… you’re, like, facing the ground as you head towards it.” I think I’m going to be sick.

“This does not seem to be helping. Okay. I’ll shut up.” He said, laughing. The corners of their lips twitched in response, but they couldn’t muster a full smile. Not even for social obligation. “Hey, you can look at it this way. I mean, this is the biggest, baddest rollercoaster this park has to offer so once you’ve ridden it, you’ve won. You know? You cut the thing off at the head.” Like a hydra. Except once you cut the head off of a hydra, more sprout up in its place. It’s never-ending. Like my panic and dread over this. “Have any of your friend ridden it?” He asked.

“No.” They croaked out, their hands growing clammy. “We were trying to figure out our next ride when they had their brilliant dare.” Sarcasm at its finest. He laughed at the words and they attempted a smile again, although were more that doubtful about their level of success in the endeavor.

“Well see, now you get to be the one who says you actually rode it. Plus since they’re not going, they don’t get to see how bad it scares you.” They straightened a little at that, considering his words. The stranger seemed to notice because he continued on, a smile on his face and in his voice. “Yeah, so when you walk out of the exit and march up to them, you just put on that confident mask and you rub it in their face.” They were more confident in their smile at this attempt.

“If I walk out. I’ll likely die before I get that chance.” They replied cheekily, provoking another laugh.

“Come on, what do you mean if you walk out? Nothing bad’s gonna happen.” Famous last words, but whatever you say. “Rollercoasters have been around forever,” Only since July 8th, 1817. Not quite ‘forever’ in the grand scheme of things. But continue on, handsome stranger. “It’s almost never been an accident. I mean, you were a million times more likely to get hurt on the drive over to the park than anything here. Least of all this ride.” They cocked an eyebrow doubtfully, but didn’t interrupt him.

“I mean, it’s new so it’s got all the latest safety crap,” Not crap. It’s useful. “You’re fine. I mean, honestly, usually the only time people get hurt on rides is because they did something stupid like… taking off the belt or standing up or something. It’s almost always the person’s fault. Not the ride.” He was a ride apologist through and through. “You know, just keep your hands, arms, feet, and legs inside the car at all times. You got this, I promise.” 

The line moved closer and the car, now filled, set down the track. Their breath suddenly turned shallower. The stranger nudged their arm gently with his elbow, moving closer and lowering his voice a little.

“Come on. You can’t let them see you’re scared. You know they’re looking.” It was a goad, and it worked. At least their spite was firmly in place, even amongst their fear, dread, and rising panic. They rubbed at their face, and when they dropped their hands they changed their expression. Brows pulled down into a determined line and a shaky smile cemented onto their lips. “There we go.”

“Any better? Am I radiating confidence like an old leaky radiator supplies water damage to hardwood flooring?” They said, their voice as quiet as they could manage while still letting the stranger hear them.

“Yes. You look very confident.” He said, another laugh spilling from his curved lips. They snickered along side him. “From a distance away. I mean, you still look terrified in the eyes, but hey. They can’t see that far, so that’s okay.” He took a step back to dodge the kick they sent towards his boots.

“Hey.. I don’t mean to make this more awkward. But, if you’re able…” Their voice trailed off as their gaze dropped the the ground beneath their feet and the littered garbage sprinkled along it.

“Yeah I’ll ride with you.” He said, easily picking on the unfinished request. They lifted their head again, the smile this time not an attempt at projecting faux confidence, but rather grateful. “I mean, we’re both single riders. You know… might as well.” 

“Oh! Since you’re the resident Surge expert, how big are the rows? I’m guessing it’s two. Unless you’re fucking with me.”

“Yeah it’s-it’s a two-seat wide one,” Oh thank fuck. If I was going to need to sit next to a real stranger while freaking out about the ride, that would make it so much worse. At least he’ll have some warning of my impending freak out. “Which is such a pain in the ass if you come here with three people.” My group is six people in total… “You have to keep rotating who gets stuck next to a stranger. If. Sometimes you end up riding solo. I mean, it depends how busy the line is and stuff.”

They glanced back at the remainder of the line behind them - they didn’t want to see how close the loading station was to them by now - and the chances of someone near the end riding solo in one of the two-seat rows seemed likely. They felt bad for that person if they shared the same fear.

“Sounds like you have experience with that as well.” They mumbled. He nodded.

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m here with two of my friends. And they’re a couple, so I have the please of not only third wheeling in general, but uh then also having to break up the happy couple seating wise everything I’m sick and tired of sitting by myself.” There was a small tinge of bitterness in his jovial tone. Which was the most bitter they had heard him. Even when insulting their friends. But they inhaled sharply at the awkward interactions and experiences he must have been having to deal with throughout the evening and night.

“I’m sorry. That must suck ass.” They said, glad to be the one giving sympathy for once in this conversation. He laughed again.

“No, they’re good with it. I’m just bitching. I mean, they’re both my friends and they were before they started dating, so we’re all good,” That still didn’t necessarily alleviate the awkwardness. “But still, I feel like they should be able to sit next to each other most of the time since they are, in fact, together.” He shrugged his shoulders, hands now fidgeting with his hoodie strings. 

Their gaze dropped to watch the soft flexing of the tendons under his skin and the liquid movements of his fingers as it pressed into the tightly stitched together fabric of the strings. Damn, he had nice hands…

“Still sounds awkward though. But I get it. I’m the single friend in my friend group too.” They replied and his head quickly bobbed in a nod of agreement.

“Yeah, these places are really only made for couples… or families, I guess. But even then, you better have an even number or you’re still fucked,” Wait… why is the line moving faster? “Some parks do have that single rider line thing, but then you don’t end up on the same cycle as your friends so then you’re having to wait for them,” Oh god. The next cycle is us, isn’t it? I don’t want to be here. Please don’t make me be here. I should have stayed home. Fuck this shit. “Or they’re having to wait for you which, I mean, isn’t a big deal I guess… but I don’t know.” He sighed. I don’t want to go on the next cycle. Why can’t the park close before it’s our turn? Will it close before our turn? Please close. Please. 

“It’s not working, is it?” He said, voice a mix of teasing and disappointment. They turned to face him.

“What isn’t?” They asked, hands twisting together. He gestured towards the coaster ahead.

“Me trying to distract you by talking.” He said. As if it was the most obvious thing in the world. A laugh bubbled out of their throat. It sounded a little strangled, but he matched it nonetheless. “I’m trying. I’m sorry.” He said, humor still dancing on his voice. They liked the way that his laugh seemed to hold little dance parties on his tongue when he spoke. It was endearing.

“The closer we keep getting to the front of the line, the more panicked you look.” What was less endearing was the way he kept consistently calling them out without a moment of reprieve. “It’s okay. Really. I mean, you might even have fun,horrific a thought as that might be.” He wasn’t able to dodge the light shove they sent at him and he laughed again. “I mean, hey. Who knows? This could be the way you find out that you’re secretly an adrenaline junkie.” A snort pulled oxygen in, painfully scraping their trachea.

“I think you’re projecting.” They replied, crossing their arms over their chest. Their hands gripped the fabric of their fleece-lined sweater that protected them from the biting chill of early-mid February. 

“I mean, I used to be terrified at rollercoasters.” He added. Their head snapped towards him quickly, eyes wide and full of questioning doubt. He nodded sagely. “Yeah. As a kid I-I would not go on them. I was, I was a hellion about it too. I mean, I would make a scene, I’d cry, I’d scream. I was literally the kid in line for the matterhorn like, saying to my mom,” His voice raised slightly in pitch to represent a more juvenile version of himself as he added vocal shakes. Committing to the bit. I respect it. “‘if you love me, you won’t make me ride on this.’ Like, I was awful. The literal worst. Like, seriously. I mean, they save up all this money to finally take us on vacation and I have a hissy fit in the line of a ride that isn’t even bad.” A part of them wondered if he was a storyteller in his spare time, or in his normal time, as giggle after snort came from the mental image of a smaller version of the hot guy in front of them throwing a fit with snot and tears running down his face because of a kiddie ride. 

“Oh! And that was the biggest one you were going to get me on. There was no way in hell I was going on anything that had a big drop. Or, god forbid, a loop. Like, no way. It was not happening.” He finished, laughing alongside them. They almost didn’t notice the way the line was starting to inch a little bit closer to the ride entrance.

“But now you like rollercoasters. What changed?” It was kind of difficult to fully believe this absolute maniac who wanted to go on the Surge for a second time in the dark, had such a strong revulsion to rollercoasters just… stopped one day. Something must have occurred to change his mind.

“Well, I just avoided them the whole time I was growing up,” Sounds familiar. “I didn’t go to amusement parks very often, so I mean, it wasn’t a huge deal either way. But then, senior year of high school rolled around. And my group of friends wanted to go on a trip that summer. To, you know, celebrate us graduating. And, um, they all agreed on going to a rollercoaster park. Like, not just an amusement park. Like one that pretty much exclusively has roller coasters,” Oh hell to the no. “But, I mean, I wasn’t gonna be the one to say no. I mean, I really didn’t want them to make fun of me or anything so… I went along with it and I didn’t tell a single one of them that I was terrified of rollercoasters.” He shrugged.

“Although I’m sure they could tell by the time we got there. I mean, I was shaking like a leaf in the line for the first time. But then… I rode it. And yeah, there were parts that were scary and I hated. Like that initial climb that felt like it was never going to end. And then that first… drop.” A slight scoff colored the last word. Huh. He really doesn’t like the first drop. That wasn’t just a ploy to seem relatable and so that it didn’t look like he was pitying me. “But… but then I had a great time. Wind in your hair, flipping around, going that fast. It was fun.” His gaze turned a little more serious than it had been so far as he stared into their own eyes. They forgot to breath for a second.

“So that initial fear is always there. Even now for a little bit. But then it’s just a good time. I mean, now  I love them. You might just surprise yourself.” They are already shaking their head before he finished the sentence.

“Don’t get your hopes up. I’m probably going to vomit once it’s over. Fair warning.”

“Hey, if you don’t and you absolutely hate it, then you can just tell your friends to fuck off and you’ll at least have this one under the belt. Which is more than any of them can say.” They nodded slowly and looked back towards the front of the line… their stomach and heart immediately dropped as they were created with the carts directly ahead of them. 

“Oh fuck.”

“Hey. You got this.” He said, voice closer to their ear and a warm hand in the middle of their back. A reassuring presence and a coaxing nudge. “Come on. Let’s do this.”

Their movements felt stiff as they walked across the path to the cart, their heart having jumped too far up and now firmly lodged in their throat. They sat down, tears already watering in the lower half of their vision.

“See? Seatbelts. There’s roll bars. You’re not going anywhere. It’s the last ride of the night and then you get to go tell your friends that they’re wimps for not going with you.” They nodded stiffly, body going cold with panic. “It’s gonna be fun. Even if the ride isn’t, that part will be.” Another stiff nod. They were pretty sure that their body was breaking out in a cold sweat. Was it too late to climb out?

“Hey.” He poked their shoulder gently and they turned their head to look at him. “Do you want to hold my hand? Nobody will see it over the walls of the car. It can be out secret.” They were entirely sure he could see the tears they stubbornly refused to let fall. His expression had softened from gentle teasing and sympathy to just flat out concern. They nodded again, teeth digging into their bottom lip. “Okay. When it feels like it’s too much, just… squeeze, okay?” His hand was warm in theirs. And if their palm was sweaty or clammy, he made no mention of it. His fingers curled between their own as his thumb rubbed small circles on the knuckle of their own thumb. They took a deep, shuddering inhale. “I got you.” He murmured. They tried to swallow around the lump in their throat.

“Can I get a smile?” He asked, voice shifting back to the jovial teasing tone he had adopted earlier. They tried to remember how and replicate the muscle memory. It was an obvious fail from the laugh that egressed from him. “Kind of more of a grimace, but I’ll take it… my name’s Vincent, by the way.” And miraculously the kind and attractive stranger, had been blessed with a name. They offered theirs in return, their voice just as shaky as the rest of them. 

“N-Nice to meet you.” They added after a small pause.

“Nice to meet you too. One last ride, right?” He said, his own hand giving their’s a gentle squeeze.

“One last ride.” They breathed and the ride operator’s voice came out over the speakers installed.

“Just a friendly reminder that the park will be closing in about forty-five minutes, so please keep that in mind when choosing your next ride.” He kind of sounds like an angsty news anchor. And there was never any hope in the park closing before my turn came for this ride. Dammit. “An approximate wait time is listed on signage at the end of the queue. One last reminder before we get going, keep your hands, arms, feet, and legs inside the car at all times,” They glanced over at Vincent to see him mouthing along to the words. He sent them a wink as he continued and they smiled back at him. Probably still shaky though. “This is a fast flipping freak of a ride,” I don’t want to be here. “We want to make sure you all enjoy it safely. Make sure all bags, hats, sunglasses, loose items are secured and that your belt is fastened tightly.” He does not sound like he wants to be here. Something in common. I wonder how many times he’s said that tonight.

They pulled the strap of their belt until it was practically pinching and digging into their skin. A few different attendants were wandering amongst the cat, checking everything. Vincent was smiling.

“Check one?”

“Check.”

“Check Two?”

“Check!”

“Alright alright, here we go. Have fun you guys and enjoy your ride on the might Surrrge.” 

The screech of the metal brake releasing had them jumping. That sense of dread was starting to feel like lead in their gut. The ride chains clanked as the cars began to rise up the initial incline. They were already squeezing Vincent’s hand as gravity pulled at their shoulders and pressed them against the seat.

“I don’t want to do this.” They whispered. Vincent squeezed their hand back.

“It’ll be over before you know it. Promise.” He said. They squeezed their eyes shut, feeling hot tears slipping down their temples as their nose and throat burned. The car stalled near the top, and they forced their eyes open, immediately wishing they hadn’t. The people below seemed so tiny and the ground was so very very far away. 

“Please no. Oh god, please no.” They said, voice shaking. The drop had a scream of terror ripping free from their lips. The kind of scream that tore your throat raw and pushed all air from your lungs. The kind of scream that had your abdomen tightening painfully. The scrape of the well worn tracks below the cart wheels was barely audible over the pounding in their ears and the wind stinging their eyes and skin. Their free hand gripped the roll bar with white knuckles. I’m going to die. I’m going to fucking die. 

There was something final about that thought. As if their mind accepted it. They looked over at Vincent, his hair pushed back from his face and eyes wide with a sense of delight they couldn’t understand. A grin was plastered to his face, even as his hand remained in their own. Please don’t let go of me. Please don’t let me die.

A whimper and a gasp left their lips as the cars twisted into a swirl, approaching the loop-de-loop up ahead. Something’s going to go wrong. I can tell. They could see their friends waving and laughing below, pointing to the car they sat in. They couldn’t make out what they were shouting, but they could see Hannah miming making out. Was she talking about Vincent. The car started the quick ascent up the loop. 

Time slowed. Or the car did. No… it was the car. The sound of the ride chains clanking along side them slithered to a stop at the very height of the loop. Blood was starting to rush to their head.

“V-Vincent?” They said, too scared to move. 

“What’s going on?” They could hear him whisper. They tightened their grip on his hand. The air seemed to still. I’m going to die. Their mind felt empty except for that one thought. It was like it was outline and illuminated by the flashing bulbs so favored at amusement parks. Shouting started from below, as well as a few cries. Someone started to scream as the sound of metal groaned. 

Why wasn’t the car moving? Their head was starting to really fucking hurt. Breathing was getting difficult.

“Vincent, I’m scared.” They said, their voice sounding far away over the pumping in their ears. Vincent didn’t answer. Their hand was starting to ache from how tight they were both holding onto each other. 

Then there was a snap. A screech of metal. Gravity didn’t exist anymore and there were a lot more screams. Pressure pushed down on their head, shoulders, neck, and spine. The ground was growing closer. Too close. There was part of the track in the way. 

They were going to hit it. Oh god, they were going to hit it. I’m going to die.

The park was filled with all sounds of life. Screaming, metal tearing, sirens blaring, running footsteps, sobbing.

And the footsteps of a man who had lived long enough to see many horrors, quietly dragged away a boy that still held on tightly to a hand to someone that no longer had a head or a life.

[666writingcafe]

The Carnival (Part One)

Click!

Both the sound and the accompanying bright light that greet us the moment we're inside the carnival gates cause me to nearly jump out of my skin. The Celestial Realm isn't known for being spontaneous, you see; everything is planned down to the second.

"I'll be right back," MC mutters, handing off Number Two to me before going after the individual---or rather ghost---that took a picture of us. Not wanting to be in other people's way, I find a bench and sit down.

"I didn't think angels could feel sin," Number Two states, sliding down to my lap and looking up at me.

"What do you mean?" I ask, trying to ignore the sinking feeling in my stomach. Based on the expression on Number Two's face, I would say that the little one thinks I'm dumb.

"Do you know why I'm called 'Number Two'?" I shake my head. "I'm basically an extension of the second Avatar of Sin."

"You mean Mammon."

"Yeah. Every time that he succumbs to his sin, another one of us pops up."

"There must be thousands of you at this point." Number Two grins.

"Try millions."

"So, are you all Number Two?"

"No. Just me. I'm the first, you see. I live with the original Numbers One through Seven at the Demon Lord's castle."

"I imagine the dynamics between you guys are the same as those between the brothers." Number Two grows serious.

"Listen, I know this is a really forward, impolite sort of question, but out of curiosity, how do you feel about MC?"

"They're near and dear to my heart."

"And?" I hesitate to answer, fearing that the little one is going to rat me out if I tell it the truth.

"Look, I can sense the greed radiating off you. You're lucky that Number Five isn't here, or you'd be in big trouble." I sigh.

"I can't. There are rules in place."

"Ah, the classic battle between the brain and the heart." Number Two pauses. "You know, there's nothing that says we have to find Lord Diavolo and Mr. Lucifer right away. I mean, I don't know for sure where the illegal casino is. It could be anywhere, and the carnival is so big."

"Why are you doing this?"

"It'd be good for you." The little demon smiles. "Oh look, it's MC."

"Sorry about that," MC states, sitting down next to me. "The ghost was quite apologetic, and he even gave me a voucher for free food."

"That was nice of him," I reply. "It wouldn't be a bad idea for us to eat something before we begin our search. Number Two, where would you like to eat?"

[liltaz-asatreat]

💐 (throwing you a whole bouquet!)

:D!!!!

Ask game here!!

So I did the minimal amount of research, see: looked at one website for 0.5 seconds, and figured out the standard go to number of flowers in a bouquet is 12!!! So here are twelve sentences from Chapters 3-5 of Julia Burnsides vs Canon Lore lol

(Also, idk if you saw the little snippet I posted earlier, but you can read it here if you didn't :> )

Going under a readmore because it got long because I can't just post a single sentence alskghdslkghsdglh

1. (Restraining myself from posting this whole scene is hard alskghslgkhsdglh): “What the hell?” Taako breathes right next to her, and she turns her head to look at him as he sprints toward the skeleton.

He slows to a stop and stares at the skeleton for a long time before he kneels down beside it. Julia walks up next to him and kneels down too. His ears are flat back against his head and his hands are shaking as he stares at it, but he doesn't move or say anything else.

“Taako?” Julia asks cautiously. “Are you okay?”

2. “Because I want to make sure we get the truth from you this time!” Merle says with his hands on his hips. “You didn't tell us what the hell you were really doing up front. Taako almost died and Magnus also got close to it trying to find you and save your ass. Barry was also nearly dead when we found him. You just admitted that you didn't even think we could do all this not five minutes ago. Tharden and Nundro are dead. Magic Brian and Killian are speaking in static. And no one has given us a straight answer about what the hell is going on since we got hired by you!”

3. “Killian, are you able to speak freely to us at this point?” Taako asks.

“No, but I can try as much as you want me to!” she says desperately. “Look, that thing is called the ####### #### ########, and it's ####### ######## ##### ### ###### #### #### ##### ##### #### ## #### #### #### ## #### ####!”

All five of them stare at her blankly.

“So you can't tell us anything, got it,” Merle says, arms crossed.

“For fucks sake!” Killian exclaims.

“Even if you could stop speaking in maraca sounds, I don't want to hear it,” Gundren says.

4. “Okay!” Merle puts his hands up and backs away a little. “Okay, I won't help you control it, but, listen, Gundren...” He takes a deep breath to steady his voice. “Remember Candlenights at Aunt Blarg's house?”

“Yeah?”

“Remember when we'd sit around and drink mulled wine...”

The intensity of the heat dies down a little bit again. “I do, but... I don't remember you being there. How do you know about that?”

Merle pauses for a second, looking confused and a little hurt before he morphs his face back into something more soothing and sympathetic. “Because I was there too, Gundren. It's okay if you don't remember me right now, but we were both there."

5. Julia is starting to feel weak and nauseous. The boys continue talking, but their voices fade to the background. Her head is swimming, and her vision is zeroing in on the gauntlet.

Heeeeeyyyyy, buddy. Wouldn't you like some dope fire powers? I can protect you and the people you love from any attacks. I can burn your enemies to the ground. I can help you get revenge on the man who murdered your father and your hometown. All you have to do is put me on. Go ahead. Put me on, buddy.

“Julia.”

Someone is shaking her arm, and with a tremendous amount of effort that almost makes her black out, Julia pulls herself back to the present and turns away from the glove. She blinks slowly, and it takes her a solid thirty seconds to register that her three companions are looking at her with concern. Magnus is still holding on to her arm, and he's searching her face for any sign of recognition.

“Yeah. Sorry, um...” Julia swallows hard and shakes her head to try and clear it. It still feels like it's stuffed with cotton balls. “What were... what were you saying?”

6. When Merle steps back from untying the rope, Killian stands up and rubs her wrists. She looks at Merle and says, “Thanks for the healing. I guess it's kind of the least you could do since you four landed on me, and did not heal me immediately.”

“It's a tiny well!” Magnus says, affronted.

“It was your fault!” Merle exclaims.

“Technically it was Gundren's fault for blowing up the town and forcing us to run to the well,” Julia mutters.

“If we're doing that, then technically it was the orc kid's fault for shooting him in the shoulder!” Taako says, crossing his arms.

“No, Julia's right, he did put on the gauntlet in the first place,” Magnus sighs.

“Guys, there'll be time for blame later,” Killian says.

7. The music is really smooth and melodic and melancholy, and the melody seems to swirl around in the air as he plays. As he gets further into the song, his music dips and varies in intensity, and it's almost as if his violin itself is singing. Julia swears she can almost here words woven between notes, like how Zeno used to weave different colored threads into their tapestries.

It takes her breath away, but she's too wrapped up in the music to notice. It's the most beautiful song she's ever heard, and it somehow reminds her of her dad and her home. If only she could share this moment with him.

If only she could share this song with any of them.

8. “Oh! Then let me cast a spe– Magnus, wait!” Merle begins to say, and Julia glances over at her husband and sighs wearily as she watches him drink the vial without another moment's hesitation.

9. At the door, Amkyl and Rozes looked awful. They looked like they had recently been crying, and not even the three visible layers of clothes they were both wearing to protect themselves from the cold winter air seemed to be doing much to prevent them from trembling. As soon as Julia got within range, they both pulled her into a group hug and squeezed her like they were afraid she was going to vanish in a puff of smoke.

“Whoa, guys! Need to breathe!” Julia managed to choke out, and they let up a little bit. “What's going on? Do you want to come inside? I can make you both a cup of hot chocolate–”

They both pulled away from her, and Rozes wiped fresh tears from her eyes. “We can't. We shouldn't even be here, but we had to say goodbye.”

Julia's eyebrows shot up in surprise. “Goodbye? Where are you two going? Finally getting hitched, and you don't want me at the wedding?” she joked weakly.

Rozes buried her face in her hands and fully broke down into renewed tears, and Amkyl swallowed hard as he rubbed her back.

“No, it's Kalen.”

10. The woman chuckles. “No, I'm not going to kill you, That's not how the Bureau operates. And I promise, I have no interest in using the Gauntlet, Magnus.”

Magnus tilts his head a little in confusion. “How did you know my name?”

The woman hesitates.

“Killian told me your names and gave me descriptions of who each of you are.”

11. “Oh,” Julia says quietly, suddenly feeling bad for her mild outburst. Considering how hard it was for her to not take the Gauntlet while she didn't even touch it, she can see how it would take so long for any of them to get destroyed until now.

The Director gives them a small smile as she says, “However, the fact that the thr– that the four of you have managed to overcome the thrall of the Gauntlet is commendable, and–”

“Just to be clear, I overcame the thrall of the Gauntlet. These three idiots didn't touch it.” Taako says with a smirk.

Oh to be able to be slightly irritated at his ego again instead of full on wanting to murder him, it truly is a blessing.

12. They all take their tokens, and Julia looks him over curiously. “Thank you, and I– I'm sorry, I don't mean to be rude, but... why do you keep saying your name?”

Davenport looks down at the floor quietly, and the Director clears her throat again.

“He uh... he can only say his own name, unfortunately.” Julia looks up at her, and the Director's gripping her staff a little tightly now. “He was involved in an accident, and... He still understands a lot, he just has a hard time communicating, so I um... I take care of him now.”

“Oh.” Julia looks back at Davenport and says softly, “I'm sorry to hear that, and I– I didn't mean to make you upset.”

Davenport looks up at her and gives her a small sad smile as he shrugs.

“Um... I'm a cleric, maybe– maybe there's something I can do to help?” Merle asks hesitantly.

“We've already gone to a lot of different clerics and healers, and nothing's worked,” the Director says quietly. “I don't think there's anything you could do.”

Davenport looks over at Merle who's staring at him with an even more distressed look than he had when he saw his cousins' bodies, and Davenport walks over and puts a hand on his shoulder. “Davenport,” he says softly but firmly, and he squeezes his shoulder.

Merle looks at him with a little confusion, but he nods anyway.

Davenport smiles a little more genuinely now, and he turns and walks back into the room he came from.

[orangetubor]

Balcony scene first draft

I open the door. Just another empty room. I open the next door and the next and they're all just empty rooms. I'm starting to give up hope on this thing. But as I open the next door, a voice calls from the balcony.

"I told you, I don't want any- oh," and that look in her eyes is what really makes me lose hope. "What are you doing here, Donnabháin."

"I... Was looking for..." But before I can think of an excuse,

"That man who's been following you around like a lost puppy? He's in the next room." She spits out the words like poison, and goes back to leaning on the banister.

"Uh... Yeah. Yeah, thanks Dija."

"Sharmouta..." She mumbles under her breath. I heard it, though.

"Look, Dija, about that time-"

"Stop calling me that," She whips her head around to look at me, thin brows furrowed deeper than a rabbit, "I'm not your darling Dija anymore!" She turns back around. "Now go have sex with your boyfriend. Try not to be too loud."

"Khadija it's not like that-"

"Oh yeah? Well have you had sex with him or not?" I glance away, my face burning. "That's what I thought." She bites.

"Khadija I'm sorry." It's a stab in the dark, and I'm not yet sure if it hit. She stands there for a while, still as a statue. And looking like one too, draped in her evening gown, sparkling in the gaslight. Eventually she asks,

"Sorry for what?"

"For hurting you," I walk to the balcony, "For doing that," I rest my arms on a spot next to hers, "And for pushing you in the river."

She laughs. Briefly, but she laughs. "I saw a smile" I croon, she bites it back. "Come on, I haven't seen you smile in five years! Don't I deserve at least a little one?"

"No, you don't." She says, smiling that wide, gummy smile I missed so much. "I bet you're not even sorry that you pushed me in the river!"

"Well, I'm not." She makes an affronted noise and elbows me in the ribs.

"Why are you dressed like that?" She eyes the cravat.

"Why are you dressed like that!" I put my hand on my hip, "You look like some rich duchess."

"Believe it or not, I am rich. And I have to fit into high society so I don't get hung from a mangrove."

"Same reason here, actually," I sigh, "Now don't tell anyone but I'm not actually supposed to be here."

"You're joking." Her brown eyes widen. I make a noise that says 'not really' and she says "I can't believe you." But she probably does. She wouldn't put it past me.

We stand there in silence for a minute, taking in the view. The garden below us is flooded, clearly trying to be a swamp again, and the stars are reflected in the puddles.

"Why did you do it?" She whispers. I think for a second.

"I was scared."

"What?" She looks startled, like she wasn't expecting an answer.

"I felt nothing for you," I turn to look at her, "and that scared me. My whole life I'd never been with a woman, and then you came along. You were just so... Happy. Happy to be alive, and it made no sense to me. You were novel."

Her face falls. "It didn't last." She says, under her breath.

"It didn't."

"But why Mahmoud? Why have sex with him?"

"He was available." I shrug.

"Oh come on," she scoffs, "surely there was more to it."

"Well, I didn't feel anything for any women, so I thought I'd try a man."

"And was it worth it?"

"No." I pause for a second. Look down at the stars. "I think I'm broken."

"Donny you're not broken," she puts her hand on my shoulder. I missed that hand.

"Donny?" I cock my brow, "what happened to 'I'm not your darling dija'?" She scoffs,

"It's habit, alright!" She flings her hands up, exasperated. "Jeez..." She looks at me. Her face is tensed, showing all the wrinkles that weren't there before. Her once shining eyes now searching for something. I can't give it to her.

"It was nice talking to you, Donny. Goodnight." That's my cue to leave. I head to the door,

"Good night, Dija," And I shut it.

764 words

[doodle-nerd]

We will be married one day... || part 6 || Aladarius

Word count: 2563

Notes: Also on ao3! doodle_nerd_43 uwu

@sunset-bobby asked to be tagged for the next part, here you are :DDD

FIRST PART < - - -        PREVIOUS PART < - - -

- - - - - - - - - -

"Well... I do not swear often, but I have to say, that you fucked up" bard answered. Eda covered her lips with her hand.

"Wow, Alador, you had to do something really intense if it made Raine swear" her voice was a bit shaky, because she was holding back laugh. She knew that situation is serious, but swearing Raine was somehow hilarious.

- - - - - - - - - -

"I don't like your tone" he answered, opening the door. "Is something wrong? Maybe come in so we can talk more comfortably" he invited them inside.

Raine sat on the chair near the table. Darius took a sit on the edge of the bed. He looked a bit worried.

"So, what's the matter? Your face fills me with anxiety" he said, looking straight at bard's face. Raine needed a second to convert thoughts into words. They had to start conversations casually, so Darius wouldn't suspect anything...

"I am worried about you" they finally spoke. Darius raised his eyebrow.

"Worried about me? Why?" He searched few past days in his memory, but couldn't remember neither anything bad happening nor his own weird behaviour. Maybe Raine knew about something which Darius couldn't hear about?

"When we talked some time ago I mentioned Alador and your reaction was... Quite intense. I can't stop thinking why was it so emotional" they started slowly. Darius had to resist urge to cut them off right after hearing name "Alador".

"Why are you asking about right now? Were you too busy thinking about ignoring the Owl Lady earlier?" he answered. That was an obvious attack, not very nice, but it was a way of defence. Changing the topic and making another person mad, so they most likely won't fancy talking anymore.

"It doesn't work on me, Darius" they said, just like they could read his mind. Abomination coven head rolled his eyes.

"I don't know what are you talking about" playing stupid might work, at least. It's like big, loud "I don't want to talk", but said less rudely.

"You look... Sad, lately" they ignored Darius' words. "I'm worried about you because you are my friend and if it isn't enough for you to talk, then I can also mention that you won't do a thing with the Day of Unity if you will be so distracted. May any of this convince you to talk?" they asked, looking Darius in the eyes. He looked away.

"Fine" they were right. He should let it all out, for one reason or another. He sighed. Raine stayed quiet.

"We were close friends once, I believe that you can remember that. Some were even joking, that we were dating... I hate to say that they were wrong" he sighed heavily. It was hard to open about it, but at the same time, Raine seemed like right person to listen. He started playing with the ring on his finger. He tried to take it off and close somewhere at least few times in recent days, but it kept coming back on his finger. There was no better place for it.

"I loved him, really. I felt happy to just spend time with him, enjoyed being close, getting him out of his bubble. I think that he liked it, too. Maybe even had crush on me. But I don't think that it could be something more. He wouldn't find himself a wife if he loved me, right?" he raised his eyes and looked at Raine. They remained silent, afraid that Darius will stop talking if they interrupt. They just nodded they head to show, that they are listening.

"Talking about wives... A-and marriage" his voice became shaky. He took a deep breath to make it normal again. "We had agreement. Reach age of twenty five, no serious relationship, we marry each other" he said as simply as he could. Talking much about it would be too painful.

"As you can guess... He married Odalia before that age. And I could live with it, really. It's his choice, even if I don't like it. But... There's more" Raine tried to look surprised before, as if they haven't heard the story from Alador. But now, it might get interesting for real. Maybe they will acknowledge something new.

"I tried contacting him, many times. But... He kind of cut me out of his life. Completely. Meeting less and less often, then ignoring me. I got erased from his life, this is how I feel. Erased. Forgotten. Neither conventional nor unusual methods worked" he frowned.

"What do you mean by "unusual" methods?" Raine asked, bending their head a little. They felt like it might be an important part.

"I checked plans that Blight industries were sending us. I... I was adding little notes on the sides, non professional, sometimes funny. He never answered. Not to a single note" he started to look mad.

That was new. Raine frowned. Something was off here. If Alador wanted to contact Darius and bond with him again, then why would he ignore these messages? These would be a perfect opportunity, he wouldn't have to employ Raine to help. They have to ask him about it next time.

"He didn't contact me at all for a really long time. And lately he dared to came here, show me a ring on his finger and expect me to forgive him ignoring me for so long! What was he thinking, that I'll agree to be his side chick ride away? No fucking way" Raine placed their hand on Darius' shoulder. It reminded him that he should control his emotions. Screaming wasn't best considering where are they right now.

"I assume that rings were part of that agreement, right? A bit like proposal, because it was about getting married in the future?" Raine almost forgot to ask about it. If they didn't, it would be weird. Darius skipped that part, they couldn't just know it.

"Yes, you got it right, songbird. They were a bit like proposal. The closest I got to confessing my feelings" he looked at his hand.

"How about now? Do you still... Feel that way?" They asked, trying not to put too much pressure on him.

"Are you asking if I still love him?" Darius answered with another question. Raine nodded.

"I hate to say it, but... Yes. Yes, I do" he looked away again. Raine never saw him as sad as he was right now. They felt urge to hug and comfort their friend.

"You should fight for your love, then. At least talk about it with him" they said while hugging Darius. He appreciated that gesture.

"Maybe one day. If he would fancy talking to me" he rolled his eyes.

"Don't worry about this. I can arrange your meeting" they answered, stepping back to look at his face.

"Dear Titan, how? Do you secretly contact him from time to time?" his voice sounded sarcastically.

"No. But I can contact Eda. Her child is dating Alador's daughter" they smiled. Darius remained silent for a while.

"Fine. We can do this. But maybe not right away" he said after a few minutes.

"Sure. Let me know when you will be ready"

Darius smiled weakly.

* * *

Sneaking out with help of kids was easier that Alador would expect. Odalia really was ignoring him if he only was busy in his workshop. She didn't bother to talk to him at all, so illusion could do the trick.

Scientist was waiting for Raine at the Owl House. He wasn't best in starting conversations, so they were just sitting there. Atmosphere was a bit awkward.

"Sorry I'm late" Raine rushed through the door opened by Hooty. He already knew that bard is an always-welcome guest and was okay with them coming any time.

"Terra made it really hard for me to leave this time, but I managed. Anyway, I talked to Darius" they were kind of rushing this conversation, because they didn't have much time today.

"And?" Alador looked at Raine's face. His eyes were shining with excitement and hope, but also stress.

"Well... I do not swear often, but I have to say, that you fucked up" bard answered. Eda covered her lips with her hand.

"Wow, Alador, you had to do something really intense if it made Raine swear" her voice was a bit shaky, because she was holding back laugh. She knew that situation is serious, but swearing Raine was somehow hilarious.

"Uhm... I don't really know what I did, can you explain please?" scientist looked confused.

Something was even more odd. He should connect the dots, shouldn't he?

"You ignored him for a while. I'm not surprised that he wasn't fancy talking to you" Eda finally calmed herself down completely, because Raine's words were interesting.

"What? No! I mean, I might refuse to meet him few times due to work my wife gave me, especially after I was left alone with all of the work, but I never ignored him. Or at least I do not remember something like that happening" they could see that every muscle in Alador's body tenses. Stress completely took over him. Raine sighed.

"He told me about the notes. Notes on the plans, that he sent back to you after checking them. You had to see these" bard finished explaining.

Alador looked puzzled.

"I responded to every single note. He ignored my responses, actually. I never got an answer" he said, frowning. He couldn't understand it.

"He told me that you never answered. Plans were coming back corrected but side notes ignored. Huh, that's quite weird" Raine rubbed their chin.

"It looks like your responses disappeared on a your house - castle way" Eda commented. Alador suddenly got up.

"Of course! Of course it vanished" his voice revealed that he was really mad. "Guess who takes care of sending this to the castle. Come on, take a guess. My fucking wife!" he answered his question before anyone else could open their mouth.

"In that case, she probably knows that you want to reconnect with Darius. And she doesn't like it" Eda said out loud what was obvious. Alador sighed and sat down again.

"I convinced him to meet with you and talk" Raine said softly after a minute of silence. Alador needed it to calm down.

"Just text me when and where. Thank you. Now sorry, but I have to go. I can't believe that this bitch was erasing my notes" he frowned again. Raine put their palm on his shoulder.

"If I can suggest you anything, maybe wait with arguing with her. Talk to Darius first. She might complicate it later" bard tried to keep soft and smoothing voice tone. Alador nodded his head.

"Thank you for your help. I'll try to ignore her like usually. At least for now" he added, said goodbye and left.

Raine sighed heavily. Eda hugged them.

* * *

Darius was looking at the ceiling, thinking. Did he do the right thing telling all of that to Raine? He never talked about all of this to anyone.

Raine was his friend, they knew each other for a long time, but got closer recently due to rebellion thing. They weren't usually talking about things like that. On the other hand, Darius had a feeling that Raine can actually help him.

Ohhh, stupid, stupid, stupid heart! Stupid feelings!

He couldn't really focus on anything recently. Raine was right, he was sad. Short encounter with Alador made him loose his mind over him again. Completely.

How could he still love him after all this time? After being rejected so many times? How could he still have a hope?

He told himself that he wasn't naive nor desperate anymore. But was it true? If he wasn't, he would be able to get over it all, right?

He felt really pathetic. He sighed heavily and looked at the ring.

He closed his eyes and did something that he haven't done for a while. He tried to remember every single detail from that day.

They were sitting on the small hill. He got there first. Alador couldn't run that fast. He had terrible physical condition, not going out much, sitting in his room and experimenting with abomination. Nerd.

Darius smiled slightly.

Alador was slightly blushing. Or was it light reflection on his face? They met just before the sunset. Sky wasn't blue anymore, but pink and red... But he preferred to think that it was a blush. Well, it could be because he was running. But just for a little moment of happiness, he wanted to think that he was blushing at him specifically.

He tried to recall another part of that moment. Oh, he did blush because of him, for sure. When he called him "sweetie". He was kind of joking back then. He wished that he could call him like that for real.

Then he started talking. He took the rings out of his pocket. Oh Titan, he was so stressed at the moment. His heart was beating fast and he was scared how Alador would react. Brunet seemed to be happy with his proposition, thought.

They were watching sunset together. The most beautiful one Darius have ever saw.

He opened his eyes. Back to the grey reality.

He was smiling, but at the very same moment, tears were running down his face. He got up and grabbed a tissue to wipe them off.

His heart felt weirdly calm. It confirmed his conviction that he did the right thing. Telling Raine let him calm his mind.

He walked to the window and rested his elbows on the windowsill. It was quite late already. Sun was setting.

He spent few minutes on looking at it. One more tear run down his cheek and hit the windowsill under.

* * *

Alador came back home. It was weirdly silent. Well, maybe kids were busy in their rooms and Odalia left or something. He didn't want to overthink it at the moment.

He went straight to his workshop, so illusion might disappear.

Then he gasped in horror.

Illusion wasn't there.

Something had to go wrong this time.

He started checking every room, looking for the rest of his family.

He found them in the living room. Odalia was sitting on the sofa. Amity, Edric and Emira were next to her. All of them had sad expressions on their faces. When he entered the room, his son raised his eyes. His look said "sorry".

"Alador" Odalia's voice was sharp and unpleasant for the ear. Brunet cringed when he heard it.

"Why did you gather all of the family members here? Spending time together isn't in your style, so I assume that there's a different reason" he said, trying to play it cool. It wasn't easy. He still was extremely mad at her for getting rid of notes.

"You tell me. How bad has to be a father to turn his kids against their mother?" she frowned slightly, making the face of a victim. It made Alador even angrier. She wasn't the poor, innocent one.

"How bad mother has to be to have all three of her kids against her" he answered, clenching his fists. His face was completely red.

"I didn't know that you can talk back" she rolled her eyes. "Children. All of you are grounded. Go to your rooms" she said, ignoring Alador for a second. Amity and twins got up, but didn't leave.

"What are you waiting for? I said: go to your rooms" her voice got even more unpleasant. All of the kids cringed, looked at their dad once more and left.

"And we... We need to talk" she frowned, looking her husband right in the eyes. Alador gritted his teeth and nodded.

He had to face her earlier that he thought.

[jangmi-latte]

࿐ “If Malleus had given you anything in the form of gold or diamond. You must prepare yourself. That’s a sign. You may not bear his kids just yet, but once his heat comes, it will be inevitable to stop him.”

➻ warnings: nsfw w/ a mix of fluff, breeding kink intensifies, vaginal penetration, clingy mal mal, rough sex, cunnilingus, just malleus going all out 

➻ comments: it’s going to go back and forth between fluff and smut so be aware. minors, do not interact! this is The Dragon’s Temptation part two so enjoy! 4.4k words and fem reader <3

"Lilia…" you called, concerned, "...why are you laughing so much?" With no signs of stopping, the old fae continued to holler in laughter. His whole body shook as he continued to take in deep breaths in between chortles. You were growing even more concerned. It wasn't maniacal laughter, neither was it sadistic, it was just Lilia laughing in… joy if you would put it.

Silver— who was staring at Lilia and is currently half-awake—nudged his father to catch his attention; it didn’t work. Scratching his head with the same concerned expression on his face, he said, “Father. You know how laughing out of nowhere makes me nervous.”

The old fae shimmered down into small chuckles, wiping a tear or two as he laid back on the couch. Out of breath is he, he looked at you and chuckled again. His shoulders mockingly shaking before letting out a loud sigh. “It’s happening again.”

“What’s happening again?” both you and Silver asked simultaneously. Lilia looked over at the second-floor balcony of the castle they resided in. In silence, he caught Malleus, who stood and was staring at nothing; or at you. He was deep in thought, and neither you nor Silver noticed. Lilia asked Silver to give you and him some privacy, and the young man respectfully obeyed. He left you with the older fae and your husband, who now descended down the stairs, yet hid behind the wall. He avoided you, much to his dismay, and you have yet to notice the distance he has been placing.

“y/n, dear.” He sat upright and gestured for you to sit down beside him. You obliged and listened attentively. Lilia’s tone was soft, fatherly— or grandfatherly— like. Your thumb caressed the small black diamond that adorned your wedding ring whilst you glanced around in hopes of looking for Malleus. With half your attention situated in your surroundings, you looked back at Lilia, who held a knowing smile.

“Has Malleus given you anything yet?”

You pondered; it wasn’t your anniversary or was the day anything special. You replied, “Uhh... “ you bit the joint of your index finger in thought, “Give me anything like what? Be specific, please…” In the back of your head, you knew the answer. You have been married to and living with Malleus for five years now, it’s not unusual for Lilia to act like something was going to happen.

“Oh, you know what I’m talking about, dear.” There go the shaking shoulders and the suppressed laughter again.

Knew it.

You took a deep breath of air and leaned back on the couch. Your hands covered your face in embarrassment as you remembered the night before. Malleus gave you a pair of 24-carat gold earrings last night. Additionally, he was very lustful and clingy. He would sniff your neck while you’re in the kitchen, he would kiss your knuckles while you’re at the garden, he would hold and grip your thighs while he handled royal duties, and he would kiss and lick your breasts while you slept.

“Those earrings surely are beautiful.” Lilia grinned and stretched, before continuing, “Looks like I have to tell the gnomes to be ready in nine months again.”

“No, wait, Lilia! I’m not even pregnant—”

“Yet.” He cut you off with a wink.

“How would you even know I would get pregnant again this time?!” you whisper-yelled, face flushed in red. Unbeknownst to you, Malleus has been itching to touch you again as he stayed behind the wall. As each day passes by, he keeps on touching you, making sure to stay close to you at all times. It was only today that he kept his distance. He knew he would break any second and just fuck you on the spot.

“Is Faye enough of an answer for you?”

“Mama!”

Speaking of the devil, a little girl, no older than four, ran inside the castle’s lounge and wore a big grin on her face. She stopped just as your legs caught her from toppling to the ground. In a fit of giggles, she climbed onto your lap and kissed your cheek. “Hi, baby,” you cooed and rubbed your nose against your daughter’s cheek.

“Mama, mama. I found...i-i found—” she spoke, too hyper and giddy to finish her sentences as you tried to calm her down while rubbing her back.

“Deep breaths, sweetie.”

Obeying, she took a deep breath and exhaled. She then continued with her statement, “I found a mama duck with her…” she stopped and looked at her fingers, mumbling the numbers as she lifted each finger, “...four—” she showed you four fingers, “—baby duckies, and they were going for a swim! I want to touch one, but Silver told me not to.” Faye pouted.

You grinned, giggling as you kissed her cheek. “That’s great! And Silver is right. Don’t touch mama duck and her babies because she might get angry and hurt you. It’s just like how papa and I would get angry if someone else touches you.”

“She looks so much like Malleus. I feel nostalgic,” Lilia spoke and squished Faye’s cheeks. He wasn’t lying; Faye had green eyes and your hair. What made her look a lot like her father was her having his horns. She has developed into a part dragon, and her horns looked like two small bumps on her head.

“Grandpapaaaa…” Faye complained with a giggle as Lilia stopped his pinching. “Where’s papa, where’s papa?!” She looked around and even stood on your lap to look for her father.

“Ah, Faye. Come with grandpapa for a second. Playtime is over. It's time for your reading sessions. Your mother will look for your father while we read.” Lilia nodded his head towards the wall near the stairs, indicating Malleus' whereabouts. He carried the princess away from you and into another room. She even waved at you and sent you a flying kiss before Lilia closed the door. You sighed.

Malleus is in heat and Faye needs not to know about that.

“Mal?” you called and stood. You hear shifting from behind the wall and as you glance over, you see your husband. He was a bit bigger than his usual height and he had his long tail gently swishing behind him. The formal (it was casual in a way) attire he was wearing had the top buttons unbuttoned, giving you the best breast window you would ever see. As you took in a sharp inhale, he approached you.

You couldn’t speak as he eyed you; you eyed him back. Your brain absorbed this work of art of a husband in front of you. Handsome would be an understatement. “Dearest,” he sighed.

“Why...Why are you like this?” you asked, now concerned as you held his arms.

“You already know the answer.”

“I know but...why…” You moved your hands around, gesturing his whole physique while he looked down at himself. “Has Faye seen you like this?”

“She has,” Malleus said, making you surprised. “She likes playing with my tail. It gave me enough of a distraction from wanting to touch you,” he admitted. His tail wrapped around your waist and pulled you flushed against his chest. The closer you are to Malleus, the more you look at his features.

Your hand caressed his jaw as you smiled, "When did this happen?"

"This morning while you were in Faye's room. It was a sign for me to avoid you at all cost." Malleus' voice was strained and gruff. It held the hesitance of him needing to speak those words. He wants to do the exact opposite of course.

"And why would you do that? Mal. I'm your wife. It's my duty to make sure you're alright and sustained with all your needs. Do you really think you could avoid me?"

"I don't want to hurt you."

"I survived during your first heat," you confidently spoke. You felt the king's possessive and needy hands rub against your clothed hips. Itching their way under your dress and towards your thighs while he kept eye contact with you. "And you wouldn't hurt me."

"y/n, you don't understand," came his strict and authoritative tone. "With me in this form, I am already warning you, it's dangerous—"

"That's not stopping me from staying away from you."

"You're so stubborn." Malleus knew who he married as he exhaled through his nose and looked away in sexual frustration. Blabber here, blabber there, that's what you two are doing. What he wants is to mark you, kiss you, lick you, and make you scream already. Unbelievably horny.

You stood your ground, arms crossed over your chest as you stared up at your man. "I am."

His tail tightened around your waist, teeth gritting in frustration, "I held back on my first heat because you weren't my mate yet," he emphasized, "and now that you are my queen—" His used your chin to bring your face closer to his, lips grazing yours sensually as his slitted pupils glared at you, "—I am not going to hold back."

"I will fuck you. Breed you. And make sure you're pregnant by the end of the week. I can not and will not be able to hold myself back if that were to happen. Even if you tell me to stop, I will not. Do you understand, y/n?"

Air got stuck in your throat as your lips quivered. Either you were sexually turned on by Malleus' demeanor or you could really sense how intense his heat was at the moment. He was right. The moment you said 'I do' was the same moment you were claimed as his mate, his queen. How that sentence made your legs weak if it wasn’t for his tail holding you firm.

"Then so be it."

"y/n—…" Malleus searched your eyes for any signs of hesitance, maybe even fear. There was none. Must he be scared if he were to hurt you. You wanted to be there for him during one of his intense moments. Well, you were the one who gave him an heir; it’s not anything new that you would give him another. He only fears that with his strength and power as a fae, with him going out of control, he might just harm you.

And Malleus never wanted that to happen, not to you, not to Faye, not to anyone.

To you, this man is still your husband. This is still Malleus Draconia. Just different but it’s still him. You are his weakness; no matter how stubborn you get, even now that he YEARNS to be around you, you still have that impact on him. “Mal. I promise I’ll be okay. I’m here to help you.”

He sighed, letting you wrap your arms around his chest. “I’ll tell Lilia to keep Faye away from the castle for a week. I can’t expose her to this,” he mumbled against your hair. “By tomorrow, you should be ready.” You felt him inhale your scent as his grip around you tightened. Smiling, you kissed his neck, “As you wish.”

❥❥ ❥❥ ❥❥

“Faye, don’t give grandpa and your two big brothers a headache, okay?”

Tomorrow came sooner than you expected. Your husband is going to be one horny dragon for a week and it was hard to find an excuse to tell Silver, Sebek, and Faye since they’re going to be living in a cottage in the meantime. While you prepared yourself the previous night for Malleus—he was already impatient while you spoke to Lilia—you were also preparing Faye’s stuff. Not only did you have to prepare yourself for a rough week, but you also need to prepare to conceive another child. Faye is already old enough and you’re most likely going to give her a little sibling.

The first time Malleus was in heat already caught you off guard, but this time, you were ready. Besides knowing his sex patterns already, this new season was going to bring something new. Malleus’ draconic features showed no signs of disappearing and if his heat wasn’t sustained, he’s going to be very grumpy. You trust Lilia enough to look after your daughter. You could even see Malleus stare at his daughter while she got ready to leave. He’ll miss her, even if it was just a week.

“Yes, mama. I promise!” Faye hooked her small pinky around yours and she pecked your cheek. Sebek was already holding her bag while they waited by the door. Malleus looked at Lilia, eyes squinted as if to tell him something. The older fae just chuckled and nodded, “I got her, I got her.”

“Young Master, are you sure you’ll be alright on your own with the young mistress?” Sebek asked worriedly while he gripped the doorknob. It was a surprise to see his king in such a state, more reason for the knight to get worried. Malleus nodded, watching you approach him with Faye in your arms.

“Kiss papa bye-bye,” you said.

Faye pouted and hooked her arms around Malleus’ neck. Her father held her gently as she kissed his cheek. “I’ll have fun with Silver and Bebek but I’ll miss papa,” she admitted. Malleus smiled and placed his daughter down by using his tail, “I will be alright. After one week, you’re sleeping with your mother and I. Be obedient, am I understood?”

An overprotective father is scarier than a dragon if Silver and Sebek would ever compare.

“Yes, papa!” giggled Faye as she held Silver’s hand.

“We’ll be going now. See you in a week.” Lilia grinned while he ushered the two boys outside. You and Malleus stayed by the door, watching your daughter skip away while she held Silver and Sebek’s hands. “Call us if anything goes wrong okay? Don’t hesitate!” you called out. Lilia simply waved his hand at you while hearing Faye say, “Bebek, I want to pick fruit up trees again!” as their figures slowly disappeared from your view.

You sighed, already missing your daughter. And while you moved away from the door, it slammed shut loudly. Malleus’ hand on the door indicated that it was him who slammed it shut. Without you taking notice, you are now trapped between his body and the door. Your back faced him as his nose tickled your neck; his tongue slithered across your nape, the warmth of his tongue and the cold air sent shivers down your spine.

“Mal…” you inhaled, your hand holding onto his thigh while you arch your neck, “We just sent them off. They might come back…” came your quivering breath.

“Oh, they won’t come back.”

“What—”

Before you could even blink, you were thrown on the bed, dazed by the sudden shift of environment. From the living room, you’re now laying submissively on the bed. He towered over you, eyes narrowed, and glared at you so lustfully. “Wait—”

“I warned you, y/n.” The king crawled on top of you. His long tongue slithered across his lips, breath hitting your face as you started to pant in anticipation. The room grew hot. Your body felt like it was burning. Your legs rubbed against the sheets in dire need to be touched and fucked until you could no longer walk. Only he could make you feel this way. Your man.

“I will no longer hold back.”

And holding back he did not, indeed.

Gripping your neck, Malleus captured your lips in a hot, searing kiss. His tongue, with no hesitance, slithered inside your mouth and in desperation and temptation. Incapable of resisting your own muffled moans, and to keep yourself sane, you weakly gripped on his bicep and his wrist. He held you by your neck to keep you in place. It was his way of showing you dominance.

Breath was knocked out of your lungs almost immediately. To keep up with his addicting, electrifying, pace was enough to make you light-headed. With his knees being his support, his other hand roamed on your body. With just a tug of his finger, your clothes were discarded, ripped, on the floor. He was devouring you, really making you feel that you are his mate, his fucktoy for the day.

Moving from your lips to your neck — without even letting you have a moment’s breath — he sensed your pulsating veins. You could feel your heart beating everywhere; from your neck to your chest, and down to your cunt. You laid bare under him and you don’t even know. You felt lightheaded.

“M..Mal…” you panted.

He sucked and bit on every sensitive spot he knew would make you weak. As the rapid beast he is, he left marks, dark and bruising, at his wake. Littering your neck and your chest as his tongue flicked against your nipples. Roughly did he suck and tug with his teeth. He made them look swollen, indescribably sensitive. The hotter your body went, the more you wanted him to touch your throbbing clit already. You don’t know if the marks have satisfied him; it felt like he wanted to add more. To litter your body with hickeys that showed that you're His Highness, Draconia’s only. Waves of arousal hit you strongly as he descended to your navel.

“Shit,” he panted against your skin.

He finally stood upright, kneeling against your whorish spread legs. Your wet, glistening pussy is clear in his sight. He is hungry.

You were left under his gaze feeling so sensitive and aroused, any touch that lingered on your skin would leave goosebumps and shivers. “Mal—!” Just as you were calling out, he dove down to your cunt and latched on your clit. His lips did the work as he greedily sucked and nipped on your hardened clitoris. Your back involuntarily arched as you gripped on his horns. His hands kept your legs open. Choking out loud moans while he slithered his tongue inside your walls.

“M-Mal—..please..please! T-Too much—!” you gasped out.

It was too much, alright. Your cunt so red and wet, your hips shivering as he pushed his tongue in and out. Eating out your wetness with strings sticking and stretching from his lips to your cunt. He groaned with every tug you did on his horns. He was so good, too good, with his ability to pleasure you with his tongue alone. He was right. It was so rough. It was nothing like his first heat.

It was animalistic.

Your overly sensitive nub hardened the more he sucked. Malleus’ thumbs even spread your labia open for more access. You are vulnerable, stimulated, and submissive to him. It was all coming swiftly. You could’ve drenched the sheets with just your wetness alone. Cries of pleasure alone bounced around the bedroom walls along with the audible wet sounds that Malleus’ mouth made on your pussy. He thrusted his tongue, wiggled it inside you, hitting your spots more than you could handle. At this point, you’re shaking with your toes curling.

“I’m close! I’m close— I can’t b-breathe…!” you cried out with your body spasming. Subconsciously, you squirted just as he pulled away from your nub. Now, you’re too overstimulated for you to think straight. You panted at the intense orgasm you had. Your hazy vision looked at Malleus. He was licking your cum from his lips. “You’re ready.”

You couldn’t see his thick cock from your position. All you could do was watch; up until he flipped you onto your stomach with a pillow under your stomach to lift your hips. Your weight leaned on your knees while your arms — as weak as they are — lifted you enough to keep your head from the bed. “Malleus...wait, I’m not—”

He did not listen. Malleus rubbed his cock against your slit and without warning, he slammed into you, deeply. In one sharp thrust, he was balls deep inside you as you cried and gasped loudly. He hovered over you, pushing his hips further into yours. Your cunt was quivering from accommodating his thick cock. You have never felt so full.

“Malleus!..Nngh!”

You’re just where he wanted you to be. Under him, screaming in ecstasy, ready to take his seed. Letting him breed you until your pussy couldn’t hold his cum. And he wouldn’t stop even though it’s already spilling on the bed. Your walls devoured his cock greedily. It sucked him. You're still so tight even after giving birth years ago. To fuck you senseless would drive him mad.

That he did.

Pulling all the way out, Malleus pounded back into you. There was no mercy in his thrusts as he snapped his hips against your ass. He grunted at how you make him feel good. Breathy moans left his lips while you moaned under him. Each thrust was harder and rougher than the last. He was speeding up. One objective in his mind was to make you pregnant. It was just day one. His tail wrapped around your waist, lifting your ass higher for him to fuck you more relentlessly.

“You...take me so well,” he panted as he leaned his lips against your back. “Just hang in there. You’re doing so good…”

His cock grazed and hit just the right spots inside you; he was going to bruise your pussy with his roughness. You were growing addicted to the pleasure building up inside you. As you kept on moaning his name, his relentless thrust fueled you into absolute bliss. Fuck, you wouldn’t even know if you came again. The pleasure just never seems to seize.

His fingers crawled down to your hardened clit, rubbing them in circular motions which sent you twitching and biting down on the sheets. “Mal that’s too much!” you screamed in stimulation. Tears were already dripping down your cheeks. “Aah…! Fuck—!”

“I’m not stopping,” he growled, pounding repeatedly.

Skin slapping against skin was very evident now, the bed rocked under the both of you. You couldn’t even scream anymore, you shimmered down to whimpers and gasped. His deep groans seem to be more audible as you feel him coming closer to his orgasm. You’re trembling as he manhandles you. He really used you like his fleshlight. With a sharp thrust, you moaned loudly. Leaving your mouth hanging open as you squirted for the second, third, or was it the fourth, time.

Watching you erotically cum and stain the sheets just drove Malleus wild. It was beautiful. Seeing you filled up with his seed just urged him more. The tightness of your pussy just made him moan louder, pushing further into you as his pace grew erratic. “Take it, my queen.”

He panted, “Take all of my cum…!”

Malleus’ hips halted, ejaculating deep inside you while you’re left whimpering at his warm cum filling you up. You convulsed and continuously quivered. His thick semen already spilled out of you before he even pulled out. It felt amazing. It was so...fucking addicting. You tried to collect your breathing, left staring at the sheets as sweat ran down both your bodies. He finally pulled out, leaving you empty as you sighed in relief. Malleus watched as cum dripped down your thighs; he grew hard again.

Just as you were lifting yourself up, your husband flipped you onto your back, “You’re not going anywhere,” he smirked as he watched your eyes widen, “You won’t get pregnant in just one round.”

“Wait..wait.. Malleus let me breathe—!”

He ignored you again and sheathed himself back inside your vagina. “Mngh!”

“I’m s-still...sensitive!” You felt your clit pulsate, feeling like you want to cum again.

He moved again, just as relentless as the first round. With this position, he bit you, squeezed your breasts, kissed you, anything he could do to send you into overdrive, he did. Malleus did not let you rest. Hours and hours he bred you. At times where he’s calm, he would bring you a glass of water. Then it would proceed to another set of sex. Again, it was just and still day one. You have four more days before he’s completely satisfied.

When you started, the sun was up high, but now it was the moon that peeked through your window. It was finally the sign that Malleus was content for the night as he laid in bed in a heap of breath and sweat. You felt like passing out as you stared up at the ceiling. Your cunt was really full of his semen. “Are…” you whined, “...you done?”

“For now,” he smiled and pulled you into his arms. “We still have four more days.”

He kissed your nape as he kept you tight in his arms. You whined more, shifting your legs to make you comfortable. “I already feel pregnant…”

“Just think of Faye’s happiness once we give her a little sibling. I’m sure she’ll be delighted.”

You tiredly smiled, intertwining your fingers against Malleus’ larger hand on your stomach. Two little kids will be running around the castle soon. A happy Lilia Vanrouge would be spoiling the younger one. Sebek and Silver would have one of each Draconia child to look after. And… probably another one to come after that if Malleus would ever come to heat again in the future years.

That is what welcomed you as Mrs. Draconia.

© jangmi-latte, all rights reserved. Happy to Serve!

[jungw8ns]

GOING TO AN ESCAPE ROOM WITH ENHYPEN !

PAIRING: boyfriend!enha x gn!reader. GENRE: established relationship, fluff, crack. WARNINGS: profanity (not that much tho), mentions of death (?). WORD COUNT: 100 - 200 each member.

HEESEUNG:

the two of you were so pumped playing an escape room together for the first time that the other people in line had to calm you guys down (which was trully embarrassing to say the least 🤐🤐)

he was looking at the ranking board filled with pictures of players that had succeeded in the shortest amount of time and he just wanted nothing more than to see both your faces on there

but anyways, we all know how competitive heeseung gets 🕴️

oh boy let me tell you, this guy WAS SPEEDRUNNING IT but not the kind you were thinking

the second the timer had started he was literally SPRINTING AROUND THE ROOM LOOKING FOR CLUES YET COMPLETELY MISSING THEM 🏃‍♂️💨💨💨

while he was busy running around, you were picking up the little details in the room and in no time managed to open a few locks

"y/n look i found– oh 😐😑😐"

HE WAS SULKING PLSSS 😭😭😭

when you noticed him standing from afar staring at you with his arms crossed, you called him to solve this one puzzle you already did

*gasps* "oh no! babe i don't understand how to do this, please help me 😔😔🤥🙏🙏"

he had to bite his lower lip to stop himself from letting out that cocky grin but it got out eventually

"oh it's so easy sweetheart, just put this here and then voila! 😉"

when the two of you escaped you suprisingly got to take a polaroid with him home after ranking 2nd in the records

heeseung was the one who held onto it tho, placing it underneath his clear phonecase for safekeeping <3

JAY:

GOD THIS DUDE

THE ESCAPE ROOM WASN'T EVEN THAT SCARY AND YET EVERYTIME YOU GUYS OPEN A LOCK OR A DOOR HIS FIGHT OR FLIGHT INSTINCTS COME UP 😭😭👊👊

"y/n stay behind me >:(("

"um, babe, you do realize that's just a door right?"

"WE'LL BETTER SAFE THAN SORRY?? THE STAFF COULD'VE PROGRAMMED IT TO GROW LEGS?? 😵🧐🧐"

you knew you shouldn't have played horror games with him a few nights ago cause he looked like he was about to lose his mind 😔

you had to shove his ass aside and move on to the next mission cause the both of you knew that he was stalling 🏌️‍♀️

jay was being extra clingy the whole time you were playing, he'd either link arms with you or hold hands (he's literally so adorable) 💞💞

BUT THEN YOU THOUGHT OF DOING A PRANK ON HIM

while you were roaming around the room trying to solve a puzzle, you saw this horse mask on a nearby table

and so you made sure jay was distracted and put on the mask

you could've NOT worn the dusty old thing but where was the fun in that?

"jay can you come here for a sec?"

you hid behind the wall beside the door frame waiting for him to come into your sight and attacked him

now, how about we guess what happens next?

a. he faints

b. he runs away

or c. he slaps you in the face and forces you to buy him food for the rest of the night

if you guessed c then YAY! YOU'RE CORRECT 🥳🎉🎉🎊

THIS HOE SLAPS YOU AS HE SHOULD

"$##/@+(+'£%(:?!!)&£**/*%@"

when he finally takes off the mask like those scenes in scooby doo he's never felt so betrayed in his life

"i- I TRUSTED YOU 😭😭😭 YOU BETTER BUY ME FOOD LATER, I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS, THE BETRAYAL???? LITERALLY UNPROVOKED?????"

he wouldn't stop side eyeing you until you guys finally pulled up on the mcdonalds drive thru

"hi, can i get two um– bts meals please? 😒😒 and two oreo mc flurries 🙄🙄 and also large fries 😐😐"

sane (1/3)

would be trailing behind you like a little puppy (i love him so much 😭😭😭)

he either has his arm linked with yours or held hands every five minutes

JAKE:

really focused on the puzzles he's doing but the second he hears you call out his name for help he's there beside you with the sweetest smile

but anyways, mans was POPPING OFF the entire time you were playing

he was solving problem after problem in no time (he wanted to impress you is why he activated his inner flash ⚡⚡) but he did let you play tho, the last thing he wanted to do was make you pissed at him for hogging all the games

def buried jake with compliments and forehead kisses right after ❤️__❤️

and so the two of you got out in like an hour and a few which you were very proud of

"you were so cool today babe, good job !!"

"aww thank you angel 😊😊"

sane (2/3)

SUNGHOON:

would be linking pinkies with you the whole time, only letting go whenever the both of you had to solve something that needed two or more people

there was this one game tho where he had to arm wrestle this literal hand lever to open the door to the last room (yea...don’t ask why, the staffs were pretty weird 😬😬) 

it made him enjoy the experience a bit more as it was only the two of you playing instead of getting accompanied by strangers

HGAWAHSGDHSGHDA PLSS THIS GUY

“oh this’ll be easy, y/n step aside, i’ll handle this 😏😏😏”

idk if you were supposed to think about how handsome he looked with his serious expression on and his veiny hands coming into frame or be worried for him because the lever was REAL HARD to pull that his veins looked like they were going to pop any second soon, you stepped in and helped him tho cause you were a good s/o <3

from a spectators point of view, the two of you looked like y’all were about shit your pants but the two of you eventually succeeded on beating it, immediately dragging him to the next room which had a sofa in it, laying down to catch your breaths

cliché moment ahead ⚠️⚠️

the two of you shared a few laughs before standing up on the empty space, held hands and started to jump in circles to celebrate your success 💃💃

yupp, y’all were never going back to that hellhole again

very stubborn at first, he wanted nothing to do with the game but then you held him at gunpoint by saying:

SUNOO:

"please just this once or else i'll revoke your mint choco ice cream rights 🔫🔫🔫"

"BUT IT'S SCARY IN THERE BABE :((("

"it won't be that scary sunshine, besides, i'll be ready to 🤜💥 yk?? trust me babe i would never let anyone hurt you <33"

kinda pissed since you blackmailed him into the place and also bc he wanted to play bumper cars and dance mania but he yea he caved in pretty quick 😋😋

(y/n let him play his games in peace tf >:(((( )

once you guys got in tho he realized how normal it was and that it was not terrifying at all

THE EPITOME OF CLINGY OMFG

he wouldn't stop back hugging you and you couldn't bring yourself to push him away to play the games so you just let him walk behind you with his arms on your shoulders 😩😩

(y'all were walking kinda funny but don't tell sunoo that 🤫🤫🤫)

yea the two of you ended up escaping with a whopping 2 hours and a few minutes

but it was the effort that counts so A+++++ for the both if you 😜👍👍👍

sane (3/3)

JUNGWON:

was the one who suggested going, he even searched on naver about really good escape room places to visit and was overall really looking forward it

he liked going to places and having fun with you so it wasn't a shock how his eyes were literally crescents and his dimples were so evident

yea he literally rushed the both of you to the place that you were the first in line 😵

while waiting for the staff to finish setting up he was playing with your connected hands like 🖐️✊🖐️✊ (so precious 💞💞)

"y/n why are you taking so long 😭😭 what if they close and we end up not solving a single lock, hurry up por favorrr 😩🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏"

when they finally lead you to the room he was kind of surprised that they had separated the two of you into different spaces (like the one with txt where they had the answers to the other member's puzzles yk???)

he was locked inside a telephone stand while you were handcuffed in the main room

dw the two of you reunited after a few minutes cause jungwon was rushing his lock to get to you 🤭

you both were progressing at an average pace and it made you guys a lot more closer (not that you guys weren't before but you get what i mean)

after you guys escaped the two of you went to eat curry and talked about the whole experience 😋✌️✌️✌️

this boy literally dragged you in the escape room with him

NIKI:

HE DIDN'T EVEN GIVE YOU TIME TO REFUSE HE JUST 😐👉🚪

"ok masterchefs, in order to test your abilities we must go through series of puzzles and make it out alive, understood?"

he tried ignoring how confused you were and went on to try and get you guys to escape

HE'S LAUGHING AT YOU FOR WHATEVER REASON AND OBV YOU LAUGH ASWELL CAUSE WHO WOULDN'T??? his laugh is so contagious pls 🤖🤖 he was so close to d wording cause he couldn't breathe from laughing too much

yea.. you guys spent so much time laughing at each other for being so dumb at this that you ended up playing 'till closing time

spoiler alert: he fails on doing anything cause the second you made eye contact with him this child collapses 😍🤩

GIRL SO EMBARRASSING 🤡🤡

THE STAFF KICKED THE BOTH OF YOU OUT AND NOW YOU GUYS WERE BANNED FROM THE PLACE ☠️☠️

"haunted house next weekend???"

"BET"

NOTE – god they were WAY funnier in my head but yeah.... i love them so much AND OMFG HAVE YOU GUYS SEEN HEESEUNG’S SELCAS LAST NIGHT???!?@??#?@?!?@ HE’S NOT REAL WTF ⁉️❓❓⁉️

also, idk why BUT EVERY TIME I SAVE A DRAFT the paragraphs get scrambled?? £!?) 6=6) 🤣😂💔💔🤣🤣😂💔 it's so annoying but anyways, ilysm pls stay safe and have a great day <33

[helloalycia]

my patient’s neighbour [one] // wanda maximoff

summary: whilst caring for a new patient of yours, you definitely didn't expect to fall for her cute neighbour, Wanda Maximoff

warning/s: very minor mentions of injuries and death

author's note: okay so firstly, buckle in, folks, this is gonna be like 6 parts long lol. Also, I google translated all the Russian bits so i apologise if they are incorrect! okay, you may enjoy now :)

part two | part three | part four | part five | part six | part seven | masterlist | wattpad

"38... 38... 38..."

I scanned the doors to the many apartments in the hall, hoping to find the one that belonged to my newest patient – Anna Pivec. As a nurse, I was always given new patients to visit and tend to until they no longer needed it or chose not to have me around. I'd just been assigned a new patient, Anna, and was excited to meet her.

"38!" I said to myself, spotting the door at the end of the hallway. I knocked on before waiting patiently, hoping she wasn't sleeping or anything. It wasn't too early – 10AM – and she knew I was coming, so finger's crossed.

The door opened to reveal a short, old lady with grey hair and a cane in her hand. I smiled kindly, meeting her cloudy gaze.

"You must be the one my granddaughter is paying to look after me because she can't do it herself," the woman spoke before I could introduce myself. Stepping to the side, she motioned with her cane. "Come on in."

My smile dropped at her abruptness. "I, er, yeah, I guess that's me." As I walked in, I said, "My name is Y/N Y/L/N. The nurse from–"

"Yeah, I know where you're from," she cut me off, closing the door and heading further into her apartment. "They sent me a brochure, milaya."

I followed after her, surprised at how quick she was for an old lady with back and heart problems. She was leading me into the open plan living-room and kitchen.

"I'm sorry – milaya? What does that mean?" I asked politely, hoping I didn't come across as rude.

She waved her hand dismissively, mumbling something to herself in what I think was Russian. Her profile did say she was from Sokovia, so maybe that was it.

"Okay, erm, well, as I said," I changed the subject, figuring she wouldn't give me an answer, "I'm Y/N. I'll be here five times a week and basically be doing anything you need me to do. Of course, I only want you to be comfortable in your own home, so if you ever feel anything but, please let me know."

She hummed in acknowledgement before motioning for me to follow her. I set my bag on the kitchen counter before sitting on the couch as she did so on the recliner. She sighed with content as the pain on her back was eased from taking a seat.

"Tell me about yourself," she said gently.

I smiled with amusement. "That's usually what I ask my patients."

"Do forgive me, milaya," she said, and I made a mental note to bring a Russian-English dictionary with me tomorrow, "but you're a stranger in my home. I'd prefer to know about you before I let you take care of me."

I nodded, slightly impressed. Her profile didn't do her justice. Usually, the elderly I cared for were quick to allow me to do my thing, never really questioning who I was or what my intentions were. I was starting to get the impression that Anna was a strong, stubborn woman in a little old lady's body – definitely not one to mess around with.

"Okay, well, I'm a nurse," I began with the basics, and from there, went into a long ramble about my job, how I got into it, what it consisted of...

Anna was full of questions, taking the time to get to know me and I her. Once I had told her everything I could think to, she told me about her life. How she lived in Sokovia up until she was thirty-five years old and had to flee with her husband and daughter because of the war. She gushed about the both of them, a twinkle in her eye as she recalled their livelihoods like they were still alive. Her husband had unfortunately passed many years ago due to liver problems – "All that drinking, milaya! Us Sokovians are a force to be reckoned with!" – and her daughter had passed in a car accident not long after.

It was a tragic tale, but she didn't let it bring her down. In fact, she seemed grateful to have lived it and I couldn't help but smile as she shared it with me.

I noticed she would speak short phrases in Russian mid-conversation, without realising, which didn't make it easier for me to understand, but I couldn't bring it in myself to interrupt her to ask what they meant because she said it with such sincerity that I figured it reminded her of her home.

After our conversation, I made her lunch and gave her her medication before watching some TV with her and pretty much talking to her once again. She was quite an interesting woman, different to my usual patients, and I was enjoying our time together. After spending the day there, I wished her a good night before leaving.

When I returned the next morning, I let myself in with the key Anna gave me and called out a good morning.

"In here!" an unfamiliar female voice called out.

I furrowed my brows as I took off my jacket and headed into the living-area. Anna was sat in her recliner as usual, but she had a guest sat on her couch. A young woman, possibly my age, with long dark hair and a friendly smile on her lips was sat comfortably; she had a cup of tea in her hands and her legs pulled up on the couch like she lived there.

The stranger and Anna exchanged words in Russian briefly before the former stood up, about to introduce herself.

"Oh, are you her granddaughter?" I asked, putting two and two together. It was the only explanation I could think of for how comfortable she was and the fact that she was also Sokovian (I assumed, anyway).

The girl laughed, her green eyes sparkling as she shook her head. Putting out her hand, she said, "I'm Wanda Maximoff. Anna's neighbour."

Slightly embarrassed by my mistake, I smiled awkwardly and shook her hand. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have– I just thought because you were speaking Russian that–"

"It's fine, no harm no foul," she put me at ease quickly, before taking her seat again. "I've lived next door to Anna for about a year now. Sometimes I keep her company on my days off."

I set my bag on the floor before taking a seat on the couch, leaving a gap between Wanda and I.

"That's nice," I said with a smile before looking to Anna. "How are you feeling this morning, Mrs Pivec?"

She sighed, waving her hand dismissively, before saying something to Wanda in Russian who was listening intently. Nodding her head, Wanda looked to me with amusement.

"What did she say?" I asked, quirking a brow.

"She said she told you to stop calling her Mrs Pivec yesterday," Wanda translated, trying not to laugh.

"Just call me Anna, Y/N," Anna added with a nod. "And I'm fine. Just had breakfast with Wanda here."

"Breakfast," I repeated slowly. "How long ago was that? Just gotta make sure you get your meds."

"Shoot, am I doing your job?" Wanda asked, slightly panicked.

"No, no, you're not." I laughed at the way she scrunched her nose. "I mean, it would help if I could have breakfast with Miss– Anna, so I know when she has her medication. But it's all good."

"Are you sure? I can leave if I'm in the way," Wanda said with a frown.

"No need," I reassured her. "If Anna doesn't mind your presence, it's all good. I'm just here to look after her, clean up, make sure she eats, has her meds."

Wanda looked to Anna, who seemed unbothered by her presence.

"She can stay," Anna said with a shrug. "Makes it feel less like I'm a pet."

I opened my mouth to say something, possibly make her feel better, but I wasn't sure what to say.

"Don't mind her," Wanda reassured, giving Anna a knowing look before shooting me an easygoing smile. "She tends to speak her mind exactly as it is. No filter whatsoever. And very stubborn. You may have noticed."

I cracked a smile, feeling better knowing that it wasn't just me who noticed Anna's unique personality traits.

"Hey, that stubbornness and lack of filter is exactly how I beat my husband and his friends in every poker game back home," Anna said with a playful smirk.

Wanda and I chuckled, before the brunette leaned on the couch comfortably and looked to me.

"We finished breakfast, maybe, ten minutes ago? I made us eggs and toast," she answered my question from earlier.

I hummed before getting up with my bag and heading to the kitchen. Setting my bag on the counter, I grabbed my diary and also Anna's medication from its place on the kitchen counter.

"I'll give you your medicine now, Anna," I told her, already grabbing a glass of water for her.

"Thank you, milaya," she called back, and I spun around, immediately going to get my Russian-English dictionary from my bag. "Wait, I know what that is!" I flicked through the pages and scanned it eagerly. "Milaya... milaya... milaya! Okay, it means... sweetie."

"Sweetie," Wanda said at the same time, and I looked up to see her watching me from behind her cup of tea, trying not to laugh again.

"I guess another perk of your presence is being the translator," I said sheepishly, realising just how eager I was a second ago. "Anna likes to speak Russian a lot, which I'm fine with of course, but..." I waved the dictionary in the air.

"It's funny watching tvoye lichiko, milaya," Anna said with that same mischievous smirk on her face.

I looked down to my dictionary, struggling to pinpoint a single word in her sentence that I could search. It was overwhelming, the words going in one ear and out the other.

"She said it's funny watching your little face, sweetie," Wanda translated upon seeing my frozen state.

I relaxed my shoulders. "Thanks." Then I realised what she said. "Hey!"

Anna laughed as Wanda grinned, and I was suddenly glad she was here. I grabbed Anna's meds with a glass of water before giving them to her. After making sure she swallowed them properly, I put the glass to the side and took a seat on the couch again.

"So, you said you visited Anna on your days off?" I asked Wanda, intrigued by why a neighbour would be so interested in another. It wasn't very common in today's day and age.

"She's almost always here," Anna answered before Wanda could speak. I looked to her as she continued with a grateful smile. "Helps me with everything. Groceries, cleaning, my medication."

"So basically me but unpaid," I joked, and Anna laughed.

"Exactly," she agreed, and I looked to Wanda to see her blushing, eyes avoiding mine.

"That's really sweet," I said gently, earning her attention. "You're a really good neighbour, Wanda."

Wanda ran a hand through her hair. "It's nothing. If anything, I enjoy being here. Anna reminds me of Sokovia and my family and, well, home."

"Oh, so you're Sokovian, too?"

She nodded before smiling playfully. "Did the accent not give it away?"

I hid a smile. "I didn't want to assume. I mean, you could've been Czech. Slovakian. Basically anything else."

"Okay, I'll give you that," she gave in, tilting her head to the side, smile widening.

It was then that I learnt her smile was extremely contagious.

Same as yesterday, my plan was to stay the day with Anna, though this time Wanda also kept her company (and me, too). After lunch, I left the two of them to watch some TV as I excused myself to change Anna's bedsheets in her room, ready for bed tonight.

As I was doing so, I heard the door open and glanced over my shoulder to see Wanda entering the room. I gave her a smile before continuing to replace the pillowcase.

"Here, I can help," she offered, and didn't give me chance to decline as she grabbed the pillow on the other side of the bed and began to change its case.

"You sure? You know it's my job, right?" I teased, looking up at her over the bed between us.

She rolled her eyes playfully. "I'm aware. Just thought I'd make it a bit easier for you."

I chuckled. "Well, I appreciate it... how is Anna?"

"Dozed off," Wanda quipped with an expectant nod. "Same time every day. Like clockwork."

"Huh." I thought back to yesterday and how she ended up taking a nap after lunch, too. "Noted. Thanks."

Wanda smiled before putting the pillowcase on the pillow and puffing it with her hands. I did the same, content with its appearance, before moving to the duvet. Wordlessly, Wanda grabbed one end and began to help me put it on, which I appreciated. The duvet was bigger than I was and definitely a two-person job.

"Hey, can I ask you something?" I spoke out of the blue as we were putting on the duvet cover.

"Go for it," she said encouragingly, glancing sideways.

"Of course, you don't have to answer, but I thought I'd ask since I'm going to be looking after Anna for a while," I gave a little disclaimer, before saying, "She makes a lot of snide remarks about her granddaughter. Do they not get along?"

Wanda sighed quietly. "Her granddaughter doesn't really visit her here. She rarely calls."

"Her daughter's kid?"

"The only one," Wanda confirmed. "She keeps her distance, ever since her mum – Anna's daughter – passed. She just pays for, well, you."

I frowned. "That's sad."

"Yeah," Wanda agreed, breathing out.

The two of us spread the duvet over the double bed before I looked to her with a small smile.

"At least she has you," I pointed out. "It's nice you give up your free time to spend it with her."

"Like I said, it's good for me, too," she reminded me, returning the smile.

"So what do you do when you're not here keeping her company?" I asked curiously, moving to Anna's bedside to clear it up a little.

Wanda hid her smile behind a look of confusion. "Do you not– don't you recognise me?"

I quirked a brow, pausing my actions. "Am I supposed to?"

She snickered, shaking her head, eyes falling to the bed with mild disbelief. "I mean, I guess not. I'm–" She chuckled, looking to my confused face. "I'm one of the Avengers."

I studied her, her words not quite settling in. But when they did, I realised I actually recognised her and she was one of the Avengers.

"Oh my God!" I blurted, the penny finally dropping. "The one with the weird red energy powers! I mean– not weird but– the magic!"

She stifled laughter, nodding her head. Just like her smile, her laughter was contagious, too.

"Yeah, that's me," she confirmed.

I made a weird motion with my free hand, like I'd seen her do on TV when saving the day. "Does Anna know about your y'know?"

Wanda crossed her arms, raising a brow and watching me with a humoured gaze. "Is that supposed to be my powers?"

I stopped making the motion and felt my neck heating up. "I– yeah."

Laughter spilled from her lips yet again, automatically making me smile. I didn't mind that I'd made a fool of myself all of a sudden.

"Anna knows, yes," Wanda said with a bright smile. "She actually recognised me straight away. Much quicker than you. And she's eighty."

Waving my hand to distract from my flushed cheeks, I said, "Pfft, she probably confused you with someone else and played along when you told her who you were."

"Yeah, I'm sure that was it, ty milyy maneken," she retorted with her piercing gaze.

"No fair, my dictionary is in the other room," I said with a pout, and she only laughed even more.

"Guess you'll never know," she teased with a smirk, making me roll my eyes to distract from the way it made me feel when she stared at me like that.

It was much later on when I learnt that she had called me 'a cute dummy'. And that was the beautiful start to Wanda and I's introduction into each other's lives.

—

From then onwards, about eighty percent of the time I would go to care for Anna, Wanda was present, too and I didn't mind one bit. Not only did she keep Anna company, but she made my job a lot easier whilst keeping me company as well.

I was beginning to look forward to seeing her whenever I would open the door. Whether she was cleaning something up, playing board games with Anna or simply having a tidy up around the apartment, she'd always stop what she was doing and help me with whatever was in my hands as she greeted me at the door. It was adorable. She was adorable.

The few times she wasn't present because of work only made me miss her, the apartment feeling emptier than usual. Even Anna agreed, the two of us making up for the lack of the Sokovian girl's presence by distracting ourselves with other activities.

I was convinced Anna was warming up to me as she freely let me care for her without resistance. Obviously, she wouldn't be Anna if she didn't throw funny remarks my way or speak to me in Russian, knowing I didn't understand her, but it was tolerable. And I was liking her, too; she was easily becoming one of the best patients I cared for. There was just so much personality to her that I couldn't help but smile whenever I spoke to her.

One time, I was helping Anna out at her place when Wanda wasn't present. I was leading her into her bed when I decided now was a better time than ever to ask her about her birthday on Sunday, which I knew was then because of her file.

"So, I'll be seeing you in two days next," I told her as I pulled the duvet over her. "And a little birdie told me it's your birthday then. Eighty-one, Anna! That's amazing!"

She smiled but seemed embarrassed that I knew.

"Tell me what you want and I can make it happen," I said promisingly, smiling down at her.

She waved her hand. "I don't want anything, milaya (sweetie). Your presence is enough."

I chuckled. "As sweet as that is, I know everybody wants something for their birthday. Now please, Anna. What can I do to make the day a bit more special?"

She pondered my question momentarily and I waited for her to speak, hoping it was something doable.

"I would love to have a traditional Sokovian meal," she said reluctantly. "It's been a long time."

I breathed out quietly, patting her hand gently. "I can do that, Anna. Don't you worry."

She smiled genuinely, before shooing me away. "Okay, enough sappiness, ty mozhesh' uyti seychas (you can leave now)."

I laughed, standing up and dusting my pants off. I only knew what that phrase meant because she said it almost every time before my shift ended and I left for the day. I knew she didn't mean it as harshly as it sounded.

"I'm going, I'm going," I said, already heading to the door. "I'll see you Sunday, birthday girl."

She groaned quietly, making me grin, before I double checked everything was okay in the living-area and grabbed my stuff to leave.

As easy of a request that it was, I knew absolutely nothing about cooking a traditional Sokovian meal. But I knew of one person who did and instantly headed to Wanda's apartment next door to see if she was home.

With a quick knock, I waited patiently. I wasn't sure if she was even home since she hadn't visited Anna today and she usually did so if she was. When I was beginning to think she wasn't, I told myself I could Google a recipe and put something together, but then the door opened and revealed a tired-looking Wanda.

"Y/N," she said with surprise, but a friendly smile was on her lips nonetheless.

"Hey, I'm so sorry to disturb you this late, but I wanted to ask– wait, what happened to your face?" I stopped speaking and lost my own smile when I noticed the faint scratches and bruises dusting her skin.

"Oh, it's nothing–" she started, raising her hand, fingers wavering over her head, but I cut her off.

"Shit, Wanda, what happened?" I reached out, taking her hand in mine and studying the cast that was around her wrist. Concerned frown on my lips, I glanced up at her. "Are you okay?"

"It's fine, Y/N," she tried to reassure, but I couldn't help it as my worry got the better of me and I studied the cuts on her cheek. "I just came back from a mission. Minor injuries. Honestly."

I let go of her hand, realising I was still holding it, and nodded slightly. "Right..." Realising she must have been exhausted, I awkwardly stepped back and shook my head with realisation. "Sorry, I should go. I didn't mean to bot–"

"You were saying something," she interrupted, nodding encouragingly. "You wanted to ask me something. What is it?"

I paused, nodding. Admittedly, I was still worried about the bruises on her forehead. I knew she was an Avenger and this was probably the norm for her, but to me, it looked like she'd just got mugged. And the irregularity of that worried me.

"Yeah, I was saying," I finally found my words, trying to ignore the way her tired eyes peered at me hopefully. "It's Anna's birthday on Sunday and she wants to have a traditional Sokovian meal to celebrate. The only problem is, I don't know what that is." Wanda cracked a smile as I continued. "Do you, maybe, have a recipe I could use?"

"Of course," she said before motioning for me to follow her. "Come on in."

I followed after her, closing the door behind me, and stopped at the kitchen counter patiently. As she searched for a notebook in her drawer, I subtly glanced around, taking in the inside of Wanda's apartment. I'd never actually been in it before, but the minimal décor was very her. She didn't have many knickknacks and everything on display served a purpose.

"There's some recipes in here," she said, grabbing my attention. She slid the notebook across the counter and leaned forward with a smile. "Take your pick."

I flicked through it briefly, smiling at the notebook filled with recipes, all in Wanda's neat, cursive handwriting.

"Thank you," I said gratefully, looking up and catching her staring.

She perked up, clearing her throat as she nodded in response before looking the other way. Cute.

"Are you working on Sunday?" I asked with a raised brow, before rolling my eyes playfully. "What am I saying? Of course you're not. Not with that wrist."

She chuckled, still avoiding my eyes. "I'm not."

"Well, why don't you come over for her birthday? You can help me cook her a meal. Or rather, I can help you cook it since I'll probably screw it up."

Finally meeting my eyes, she smiled with amusement. "Are you sure?"

I gave her a knowing look, ignoring the butterflies swirling in my stomach as she held my gaze with her intense dark eyes. "Yes, I'm sure. Anna will love to celebrate with you. And..." I pursed my lips, taking a leap of faith and adding, "and I'd love it, too."

Wanda let out a quiet laugh. "You would, would you?"

I straightened up, smile widening. "Yeah, I would."

She tilted her head, studying me with a curious smile. "Well then, I clearly can't say no."

Something stirred in my chest the longer she watched me and I oddly liked it. It was obvious that Wanda was a beautiful girl with a heart of gold, but I guess I hadn't really acknowledged that I may have had feelings for her until now. And I didn't mind one bit.

"Great," I finally found my words, nodding slightly. "I'll see you Sunday."

She mirrored my expression, saying, "See you Sunday," and I knew I couldn't wait until then.

[randomshyperson]

The Scarlet Witch Prophecy - Chapter 13 - The Sixth Year (Part Three)

My dear friend @abimess, I keep stealing your gifs and making updates without telling you. I hope you never get tired of it.

Summary: As the youngest daughter of Howard Stark, you have ordinary expectations for your years at Hogwarts. Little do you know what adventures await you when your destiny is intertwined with the legendary Scarlet Witch.

Warnings: +16. Adaptation of the Harry Potter Saga, Magical Thematic, Prophecies, Mentions of Violence, Torture and dark magic, Language (swearing and minor/major offenses), manipulation of will, Underage kissing, insinuation of smut with minors, Smut (overage), descriptions of death, aggression, obscurity, angst, fluffy, soulmates analogies. || Chapter Warnings: Magical torture with minors, cursing, angst, ptsd, derogatory thoughts and behavior, dark magic.

Chapter Words: 8.486 K

A/N> Yes, I've gone for a month without warning anyone, and yes that might go on, but at least i'm near ending this (I'm already writing chapter 21). Once I'm finished, I'll just programe tumblr to upload them all for me because i'm lazy. I hope anyone like this yet, i don't even know what i'm doing anymore. Good reading!

Series Masterlist ||  Read on AO3 || All Works Masterlist

Chapter 13 - Part XIII - The Sixth Year (Part Three)

Gossip really starts to irritate you when you go to lunch after potions.

"You want to say something to me, girl?" You charge impatiently when you hear the giggles behind you again, coming from a group of students sitting at Ravenclaw's table.

The group turns around with wry smiles on their faces, and you notice the editions of the Daily Prophet in the hand of one of the boys. It is Hope Summers, your classmate, who speaks first:

"We're just sharing some theories, Stark." She says in a provocative tone. "Some of us find it an interesting coincidence that just now that Mephisto is back, you and Maximoff are losing control of magic."

You frown.

"What are you talking about?" you ask in surprise, referring to Wanda, but Hope thinks you want her to keep mocking you.

"It's just suspicious that no one knows what happened to you in that dungeon, or at the ministry of magic." Hope counters. "And now you two are blowing things up, and we have a dark wizard on the loose."

"Fuck you, Summmers." You curse as you stand up, leaving the girl in shock at your aggressiveness.

The same auror from the first day stands in front of you as you try to approach Slytherin's table.

"Students must respect..."

But you interrupted his speech with a loud shove that sent him staggering backwards, and drew the immediate attention of several people.

You were seeing red by now, the man's wry smile only making you more irritated.

He drew his wand, but so did you. And the room held its breath.

"Put your wand away, Miss Stark." Warned the auror angrily, but you didn't.

Wanda stood up as she noticed the confusion, rushing to reach you, but the auror put his arm in her way.

"Now, miss." He warned again, and you grunted in irritation.

"Get your hands off her." You retorted, feeling your body fever with hatred.

"Stark." The man said, his arm reaching down to push Wanda back, and you exploded.

You didn't even finish thinking about the spell, the magic exploding out of your wand.

The auror masterfully blocked it, and you dropped your wand to jump on top of him.

It was a confusion of shoving, other bigger students pulling you away from the man and he away from you.

" Never fucking touch her again!" You warned snorting in anger, Thor Odinson stopping you from jumping on the man's neck.

"I just pushed her away from the line of fire, you crazy bitch!" The auror retorted indignantly and angrily. "Go to the headmaster's office now!"

"Fuck you!"

Thor pulled you out of the hall as the crowd of students whistled in celebration, excited about the whole fight. The auror was too busy dissipating everyone to follow you.

"Hey, hothead, calm down." The blonde warned as he released the grip of you by the courtyard. You grunted angrily, wishing you could break something.

"Fuck this school, fuck that asshole." You complained aloud, as Thor looked at you curiously.

"You have quite a rage, Stark." He comments, and you grumble in irritation.

But Wanda catches up with you the next moment, and she looks even angrier than you.

"What the hell was that?" she asks and you roll your eyes, running your hands through your hair.

"I think you are going to be fine for now on." Thor comments, smiling at the thank you Wanda says to him before leaving you two alone.

"So?" Wanda insists, arms crossed. You bite the inside of your cheek as you look at her.

"What do you want me to say?" You retort angrily.

"You just started a fight for no reason! Again!" She accuses. "Only this time it was with a wizard who could kill you. I want to know what's going on!"

"I don't know, Wanda!" You exclaim angrily. "Why does everyone expect me to have answers? I don't know! Do you understand that? It feels like I'm going to explode in frustration any second, neither you or Gamora seem to get it. I don't understand what's happening to me!"

"Because you won't talk to us!" She shouts back, just as annoyed as you are. "You're pushing everyone away! Even me! We can't help you if you don't talk to us!"

You grunt impatiently, turning around. There was a strange throbbing in the back of your head, a strange whisper. Like a voice telling you that no one was telling you the truth, that your friends expected too much of you, that Wanda didn't care...

This last thought made you sob. Wanda softened her expression immediately, taking a step toward you and touching your shoulder, but you pulled away from her touch as if burned, wiping your tears away quickly.

"Leave me alone, Wanda." You mutter between teeth. She hesitates, raising her hand toward you again.

"Please."

"I need some time from you." You insist, pushing her hand away, and walking away.

A part of your brain is begging you to go back and make things right, but there is a cloud of anger and irritation that keeps you walking.

//-//-//-//-//

You roll over in bed in discomfort.

Nightmares. Again.

It has only been five days since you had your fight with Wanda, and you are getting worse every day.

With Summers' teasing, you end up noticing other things too.

How the school really found the theory that you and Wanda were somehow related to Mephisto, because the minister had covered up what happened in the dungeons and in the ministry, and everybody thought it was strange that two students were showing an increase in magical potential with the return of a dark wizard.

Unlike you, who were failing considerably in any simple execution of spells, Wanda was demonstrating exceptional abilities. Kaecilius was more than willing to make her the face of progress at Hogwarts, you heard the gossip about bringing in reporters to share the news of the new direction.

You know that the only reason Wanda hasn't come after you yet was because you're running away from her like the plague.

And you couldn't even explain why.

You were also blocking out your real health condition from her. Just like you two practiced during the summer.

Besides hiding this from Wanda, you have kept your friends away too, isolating yourself from everyone else in search of a little rest, only succeeding in taking a nap when you are running away between classes.

And the detentions with Kaecilius keep increasing as you skip classes.

You begin to consider learning to write with a different hand, just so the bruise has time to heal, but at this point you don't even care about the scar anymore.

"You really must like pain." Loki teases wryly as you sit in an empty room, waiting for the aurors' shift change again after your detention.

You don't ask him what he's doing on that floor again, and he doesn't ask why you haven't spoken to your friends in two weeks.

"Sure, that must be it." You joke back, massaging your injured hand.

He assumes a pensive expression for a second.

"Are you sure you haven't been cursed by someone?" He asks, causing you to frown in shock and confusion.

"Excuse me?"

He gives a little chuckle, settling himself better against the wall.

"Everyone's been talking about you being sick." He says. "I heard some of the Ravenclaw people theorize that you became a werewolf over the summer."

You laugh helplessly, massaging your temples lightly.

"I guarantee that's not it." You say making Loki smile.

"If you are sick for no reason, it could be a curse." He says. "I wouldn't be surprised, the way things are."

"But how do I find out if I've been cursed?"

Loki takes a thoughtful stance.

"I don't know." He says. "But I'm sure you can learn that in the no longer reserved session of the library."

You laugh at the joke, but soon you both return to silence. When that hallway's shift ends, Loki sighs, getting up and helping you to stand.

"Still can't perform spells?" He asks, already drawing his wand.

"Only if I want to blow things up." You scoff making him laugh.

"Fine, I'll enchant you." He says. When you are transparent, he looks at you with an amused expression. "See you next Saturday, troublemaker?

"Don't worry, I plan on skipping DADA, maybe I'll be here tomorrow." You retort in the same tone before turning to leave.

//-////-//-//-//-//

It takes three more days for Wanda to finally corner you.

You are skipping class in an empty room on the seventh floor, trying to doze off, and almost fall out of your chair with fright when the door opens and Wanda comes in, looking annoyed.

You grunt impatiently, without lifting your face from the desk.

"I told you I needed time." You complain, but tense up when you notice the tears in her eyes as she moves closer to sit at the table next to yours.

" You want to break up with me?" She asks in a whisper and you raise your head immediately, feeling your chest tighten.

"What? What are you talking about?"

Wanda gives a humorless laugh at your expression. "Why are you acting like this is an absurd idea? You've disappeared. You've been avoiding me, not even talking to me anymore."

You shake your head quickly, feeling the urge to cry.

"I don't want to break up with you." You say. "I..I would never want to be away from you."

"You just said you need time away from me." Wanda retorts with annoyance, and you feel your stomach clench as she sighs. "I don't know what's going on with us. And I miss you, but you won't let me near you."

You are exhausted. So you cry.

You rest your head on your arms, and let your sobs fill the silence, hoping that the tears will take this bad feeling away.

It's Wanda's gentle touch on your back that helps.

"Babe, tell me what's wrong." She whispers to you, her tone concerned.

It takes many minutes for you to calm down. But when you do, Wanda holds your hand, kneeling on the floor beside the chair you are in.

"I can't do magic." You breathlessly tell her from crying, "And I can't sleep. I've been sick for weeks, and I'm angry all the time. Healer Cho doesn't know what's wrong with me, but everyone at school seems to have a theory about it. I think I'm going to suffocate, Wanda. I'm messing everything up. Between us, between my family, and at school." You sob as you finish and Wanda shakes her head, her hand coming up to your cheek.

"Don't say that." She urges. "You didn't ruin anything. Hey, look at me. I love you. Your sisters love you, your friends love you. We'll figure out what's going on."

Wanda hugs you tight, and you sob, shaking.

You want to believe her words, so you push the intrusive thoughts away, and believe it.

//-//-//-//

Wanda takes you to a door in that same floor you two were before, but you have never seen that door until that moment.

And you are very surprised to realize that it is a bedroom.

"How...?" You ask confused as she closes the it.

"Welcome to the Room of Requirement." She says with a smile, pulling you by the hand around. "We hold our Avengers meetings here." She counters and you frown.

"In a bedroom? Interesting choice." You comment and she giggles.

"No, my love." She says. "That's how this room works. It is charmed to meet your needs. That's why I asked you to come in first."

"Oh, that's pretty cool." You say looking around. Wanda smiles at you, and then you both reach the bed. "The room thinks I have to sleep?"

"I do too." Wanda retorts, pushing your shoulders gently for you to sit on the bed. "Go on, nice dreams."

You hesitate. "You gonna leave me here alone?"

Wanda denies with her head, pointing to the chair that probably just magically appeared next to the bed. You frown.

"Can't you sleep in the bed with me?"

She giggles. "We don't have much time for you to sleep. If I lie down, you'll want to kiss me. So I'll be sitting in that armchair, studying as I should." She explains seriously, and you pout.

"Stupid rules." You grumble moving your hands up to her waist. "Lie down with me."

"Babe..."

"Please."

Wanda sighs, then nods. You smile, quickly removing your shoes as she does the same. You quickly adjust yourself on the bed, opening your arms for her to lie on top of you, and she gives a little giggle before doing so.

"Are you cozy, sweetheart?" You murmur against her hair, and Wanda squeezes her arms around you.

"Yeah, your boobs are good pillows." She teases, making you laugh with reddened cheeks.

Your eyes begin to heavy quickly, fatigue catching up with your body relaxed by the comfort of the moment.

"Go to sleep, babe." Wanda whispers. "I'll be here when you wake up."

You smile with your eyes closed, surrendering.

It's the best sleep you've had in weeks.

The problem is that as soon as you start to wake up again, you are feeling sick.

You touch the emptiness in the bed, mumbling softly. When you open your eyes you find Wanda sitting in the armchair, the darkhold in her lap.

"Damn it, Wanda, this book again." You complain in a hoarse voice, but she just sighs.

"Why the attitude?"

"I hate that book." You grumble sitting up in bed, massaging your face lightly. "Why do you keep reading it anyway?"

"It's interesting." She says, closing the item to look at you. "Agatha really told me a lot, but there are also things I didn't know."

"For example?"

Wanda bites her lips, appraising you.

"Scarlet witches are forged, for instance." She says and you frown in confusion. Wanda sighs. "Many powerful witches, born scarlet witches, never got to fulfill their destiny because the forging didn't happen."

You straighten your clothes uncomfortably, pensively.

"What exactly does that mean?"

"What the headmistress did last year was my forging." She clarifies and you swallow dryly, feeling your stomach turn. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" you ask confused.

"Everything." She says upset. "I know we've talked about this, but it seems like all I do is cause you problems. With the bond, and with the forge. If Agatha didn't want my powers, she wouldn't have taken you to the dungeon and you wouldn't have suffered."

You poke at the knot of your tie, feeling yourself suffocate slightly. Wanda is speaking, you blink to focus on her words.

"I'm sorry, could you say that again?" You ask out of breath, sweating. You blink to find Wanda's concerned gaze on you.

"Babe, what's wrong?" She asks worriedly, her hands around your face.

You feel your head spin, and everything goes dark before you can answer.

//-//-//-//

You smell the scent of grass when you wake up.

Then you blink in confusion, getting used to your surroundings to realize that you are in what looks like a ward bed.

"Hey, all right, take it easy getting up, Miss Stark." Asked Professor Strange with one hand on her shoulder. In the other he held a potion that you imagined he had given you.

"W-what happened?" you mumbled confusedly, sitting up in bed. Only now did you notice Professor Munroe and Wanda standing in front of the bed, both with worried expressions.

"You passed out, but you're better now I imagine." Stephen explained gently, but you were still feeling very weak.

"Professor, she simply blacked out." Wanda commented in a tearful voice. " Don't you have any idea what's wrong?"

Stephen sighed, and then pointed at the chair, the darkhold.

"Where did you get that book?" He asked, and Wanda frowned, taking a step toward the chair in a defensive posture.

"What does that have to do with my question?" she retorted dryly, and Stephen looked at you one last time before standing up.

"There's a reason it's called the Book of the Damned, Miss Maximoff." He says."It damns its readers."

"That's ridiculous." Wanda retorted, crossing her arms. "I've been reading it for weeks and nothing has happened."

"Not with you."

Wanda hesitates, widening her eyes. And then she takes a step back, swallowing her cry as she reaches out to grab the book and hand it to Stephen.

She turns her gaze back to you, and lets the tears fall.

"I am truly sorry." She says with a mixture of guilt and shame before turning to leave the room.

You call out to her about three times, but she leaves and you don't have the strength to go after her.

"Damn, couldn't I have said that in a different way?" You complain angrily to Stephen, who just sighs, exchanging a look with Professor Munroe. "How come you two are here anyway?"

"It was Wanda." Professor Ororo replies. "She asked the room for someone trustworthy to help her with you. Then there was a door opening in the potions room. Stephen was there with me, and we both came."

"Great." You mutter annoyed, thinking about how you are going to talk to Wanda and convince her that you were not angry with her. "Would either of you happen to know how to make me better now?"

"Sure." Stephen comments by raising the book in the air, and with a wave of his hand, the item dissolves into several pieces until it is gone. "I didn't destroy it, if that's what you're thinking. I just put it away, to prevent something like that from happening again."

"Congratulations." You grumble wryly as you straighten up in bed, the same migraine from before is now weaker, but it's still there.

"You know, you had a better attitude when you didn't have a magical doom on your spirit." Stephen complains, causing you to frown, but Professor Ororo gives a chuckle.

"Thanks professor." You comment wryly, making him laugh. He sits back down beside your bed, and pulls out of the cover a small notebook.

"Now that Miss Maximoff has stopped reading the book, I suppose you will get better." Stephen says, making you sigh.

"You suppose? That's encouraging." You say moving to stand up.

"Where are you going, Miss Stark? You need to rest." Warn the professor, but you ignore him, and ignore the weakness in your body as well.

"What I need, Strange, is for people to stop lying to me."

"No one is lying, Miss Stark." Professor Ororo states next. "We really don't know the extent of the magic the darkhold carries."

"And why is that I imagine?" You sneer. "Because someone omitted the truth from you, and it's been passed down for generations, isn't it? Well, that's over now. Because we've finally studied everything in this place, including a book that condemns anyone who reads it." You exclaim impatiently, stooping down to put on your shoes. "If you two will excuse me, I'll figure out how to get better on my own. But first I'm going to explain to my girlfriend that none of this is her fault."

Ororo and Stephen are silent, but you wouldn't have been paying attention to anything they said anyway.

Soon you are up and out of the requirement room looking for Wanda.

//-//-//-//

She seems to have disappeared from the castle, so you must concentrate to use your instincts.

The hardest part is dodging the aurors, but you finally reach the astronomy tower.

You're a little out of breath from the run, but it's the image of Wanda standing on the edge, the sunlight in her hair that leaves you breathless.

"Hi." You say in a low tone, your hands in your pockets as you approach. She startles slightly, wiping away tears as she keeps her gaze forward.

"What do you want here?" she asks in a husky voice. You sigh.

"That you stop hating yourself and listen to me." You say and she lets out a short laugh.

"And what do you think you can say?" She questions turning her body toward you. "All I do is hurt you."

You shake your head, but Wanda lets out a tearful laugh.

"No you don't understand." She says. "Since I met you, you have only brought me good things. Affection, happiness, hope. You've been that kind warm feeling that I need on my worst days. Hell, you're even the memory for me to cast a patronus." She confesses with emotion, her face wet with tears. "But me? All I bring you is pain and suffering. And now I even bring sickness. This is wrong, I hurt you. You need to see this, and understand that we can no longer happen."

"Don't say that." You ask, reaching up to touch her face, wipe away her tears. "That's not true, Wanda. I love you, you make me..."

"Stop it." She interrupts with a sob. "Don't make it any harder than it already is."

"Please, Wanda, listen to me." You plead, resting your forehead on hers, your hands on her cheeks. "You make me happy, you are the only thing that makes me happy, I love you, please..."

Wanda kisses you hard, and you respond with the same intensity, both of you gasping into each other's mouths.

But then she is pulling away, thrusting you farther apart.

"I'm sorry." She cries, taking a step back. "We're over."

And she's running away again, and this time you don't go after her.

//-//-//-//-//

Without Darkhold's being consumed, you really start to improve in terms of physical health.

The only problem is the emotional ditch you find yourself in.

Gamora, Nebula and Mantis find you, again in the Room of Requirement, skipping class.

"My god this is worse than last time." Gamora remarks as she looks around at the mess of junk food and pillows. The room had been transformed into a "comfortable place", which basically had the appearance of a living room, with several soft armchairs, and lots of unhealthy food. "Why did you guys break up this time?"

"Please don't talk to me." You grumbled, your voice coming out muffled because you were lying on two soft puffs, your face buried in the pillow, your hand inside a bag of muggles snacks.

"I bet you five bucks they'll be back together before the end of the month." Nebula commented and you sniffled against your pillow, hearing a noise that sounded like Gamora hitting her sister.

"We talked to Wanda." Mantis said. "And with Professor Stephen, too. We're sorry about everything, but have you decided you're not going to study anymore?"

"I don't care about school." You grumble against the pillow. "Leave me alone, I want to cry."

Nebula gives a short laugh, and Gamora elbows her.

"Stop hitting me, you crazy." Nebula complains loudly, moving away from her sister to approach you, taking the bag of snacks you have, and making you complain softly. "And you stop being such a drama queen. Aren't you two like soul mates or some shit? It's just a fight, you'll work it out. You're acting like you've never broken up before."

"Your sensitivity is admirable." Gamora scoffs, pushing her sister away to sit next to you, stroking your back until you look up at her. "Do you want to talk about what happened?"

You feel the urge to cry arise again. "Wanda thinks she is bad for me." You say. "And she doesn't want to be with me anymore, and I want to die."

You start crying again, stuffing your face into the pillow as Gamora strokes your hair.

"How did this happen anyway?" Nebula asks, confused, chewing on salty snacks."You barely slept at home over the summer to be with her, and now you guys are breaking up. It's hard to keep up with this relationship."

"Merlin, Nebula shut up." Gamora asks impatiently, and her sister raises her hands in surrender with an ironic expression. You want to scream against your pillow, but all you do is try to control your crying.

"You can't keep disappearing, sweetheart." Gamora says as she runs her hands through your hair, trying to calm you down. "Kaecilius has already noticed. He's trying to figure out where you're going, and eventually he'll figure it out since you can't stay here forever."

"Maybe I can." You mumble making Gamora laugh softly.

"Come on, I'm sure you miss a decent meal." She says. "Why don't you join us for lunch?"

"I can't sit at your table."

"Who said anything about a table?"

This is how you end up on the edge of the great lake, at a picnic.

Mantis gets several dishes from the house elves, and since lunch is a free social hour, nobody seems to mind that you are eating outside.

Your sisters are not the only students who, over time, have learned ways around school rules.

You grumble slightly as you feel the sun on your face, but lie back on the grass, closing your eyes.

Your mind wanders back to last summer immediately, the memories of Wanda, and you feel horrible. You just want her back. And then you swallow the urge to cry again to accept the juice Mantis offers you.

"We wanted to tell you that we've found a way to help you, too." Gamora says after a moment, causing you to raise your eyebrow. "About the darkhold, and the eternal damnation thing."

"Light topic." You sneer, throwing your arm over your face. The day is hot. "I appreciate the help, of course."

Gamora giggles. "Merlin, I had forgotten how grumpy you get when you're upset."

"I'm not upset, Gamora." You retort angrily. "I'm frustrated."

"Sexually." Nebula sneers, making you grunt in anger, but Mantis holds back a laugh.

"What's your problem with my feelings lately?" You accuse the girl with irritation.

"Not everything is about you, you know." She retorts and you sit up quickly, looking at her with a raised eyebrow.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Nebula laughs, rolling her eyes. "In case you haven't noticed, there's a war going on." She says. "We're all stressed and scared. And the three of us have been in the same classes as you, having to watch the same things. But you only have time for Wanda. And now you've broken up, again, because there's some mortal danger, again, that she's caused for you. So, I don't know, but maybe she is right to break up. Ever since you guys started dating everything has been about her, and the trouble she causes!"

"Fuck you, Nebula!" You exclaim angrily, advancing against the girl in front of you. Gamora and Mantis quickly separate you.

"Hey, what's wrong with you?" Gamora shoves you. "Were you really going to hit her?"

"Fuck this." You curse angrily, taking a step away. "I didn't ask any of you to come after me. I don't need you. I just need Wanda. Fucking leave me alone."

You turn back to the castle, cursing the wild on your way.

//-//-//-//

Loki is the only friend you have now.

You wouldn't call him a friend exactly.

Kaecilius has put you in detention for three days a week, including Saturday, but mostly you just clean the castle. But when he takes you to the seventh floor, and makes you scrape sentences against your own skin, you don't worry about being alone anymore, because Loki is always on that floor.

It takes a week for you to tell him about the requirement room.

" You could have mentioned it earlier, we would have stuck around here." He comments without sounding upset.

Soon it doesn't take long for you two to start seeing each other even when you're not in detention.

You are not surprised that Loki also skips classes, he has always been quite mischievous, but the reason is different from yours.

He knew dark magic. Much more than you or your classmates. And he has no interest in practicing it in class.

"It's stupid." He comments as you are sitting in the armchairs. "Most people will never have the courage or willpower to cast a death curse. It's useless to learn."

"Is that the only reason you don't agree with the teaching at Hogwarts now?" You ask in surprise, setting up the chessboard for yourself as Loki shrugs his shoulders.

"I feel like you're judging me, Hufflepuff." He sneers but you smile, rolling your eyes.

"Honestly, I don't give a damn."

And you really didn't care.

Wanda was avoiding you in the halls, and you were doing the same with your friends and family.

When Iron delivered the mail to the Slytherin table, including Nebula's birthday presents, you wanted to throw up, but all you did was walk away from the Hufflepuff table toward the requirement room.

Without the darkhold, you didn't feel sick, but the anger didn't go away.

Your magic hadn't stabilized, and you were failing at everything, but you couldn't bring yourself to worry about it.

Erik wrote to you, commenting on the importance of you and Wanda practicing magical balancing together, and you burned the letter while crying on the carpet.

And at this rate, time went by.

It was almost the middle of the school year when things started to take a turn for the worse at Hogwarts, and in the wizarding war as well.

Mephisto is getting stronger, and the order is losing. And Kaecillius must be under some pressure from the ministry, maybe for answers from organizations like the Avengers, which are forbidden, because his detentions get too horrible.

It is Saturday again, and you drag yourself to the room where you are supposed to fulfill your detention, but unlike the other days, Kaecillius locks the door.

You only notice because he seems tense and distracted, and there is no feather or book.

"Professor, what will my punishment be today?" You ask confused, and he is nodding to the center of the room as he stands in front of the desk, a few feet from you.

"Miss Stark, today I want to ask some questions and I expect honesty." He declines as he turns to you.

You hiss softly, putting your hands in your pockets.

"Shoot."

Kaecillius doesn't even mind your lack of formality, looking at you with an impassive face.

"What is Mephisto's location?"

You choke in surprise and disbelief. "Excuse me? Why do you think I know that?"

"The ministry has reason enough to suspect that the Order of the Avengers is nothing more than a cover for the death walkers.Your brother, whom I had suspected of being part of that order of delinquents, is no longer at Hogwarts, but you will have to serve." He speaks and with each word you become more outraged. "Now answer me, where is Mephisto?"

" Did you just fucking call my brother a delinquent?" You mutter incredulously. "I have no idea where Mephisto is, what's your problem?"

But you widen your eyes when the professor draws his wand, and you barely have time to swallow dry before the spell hits you in the chest.

It's the cruciatus curse. You know the second it hits you. The sharp pain fills every cell in your body and you scream, not having the strength to stand or with your eyes open, hugging yourself.

"We must not tell lies, Miss Stark." Kaecillius says as soon as he stops enchanting you, the pain disappears in the same instant, but you continue to tremble.

In complete shock and fear, you sob.

"I will ask you again, where is Mephisto?"

You let the tears flow, and shake your head. "I don't know, professor."

Kaecillius lets out a sigh of disappointment. "Some cases are more difficult than others." He comments somberly, taking a step toward her. "Did you know that the record for enduring the Cruciatus curse before madness is six hours? Incredible, isn't it? It happened during the first war, with a muggleborn. You're a half-blood, maybe you can take longer"

He has a devilish grin as he finishes, and you clench your jaw at the threat.

"I don't know where Mephisto is." You repeat, but the professor points his wand at you again.

"My bet is seven hours."

And then the pain returns.

You don't know how long you stay in that room.

But it is long enough for your consciousness to begin to fade. The pain gets so severe that it gradually fades away. You begin to gasp breathlessly, not even able to scream anymore.

Someone help me. Please, help me. Help me. Wanda.

Between the tears you see the floor of the room, and between a twinge of pain, a red light. And everything is dark again.

//-//-//

“Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Warcraft and Wizard is arrested in flagrant by aurors from the ministry of magic this week, full coverage on page..."

You blink confusedly, your eyes getting used to the clarity, while the headline of the Daily Prophet was the first thing your vision caught.

And then you shifted in bed, realizing that you were in a hospital room , and whoever was reading next to you put the paper down when they heard you, and you could behold the curious look on your brother's face.

"Tony?" you whispered confused, and he smiled as he stood up quickly, the newspaper forgotten on the armchair.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" He asked as his hand reached for the loose strands of hair on your face and put them back. "You scared the hell out of me."

"What happened?"

"What's the last thing you remember?"

You thought, and then sighed, closing your eyes for a moment.

"Kaecilius."

Tony bit his lip nervously before speaking.

"I'm sorry." He said, lowering his hand to his own. "I came here as soon as I got the howler from Professor Strange, but honestly, I didn't even need it, because all the newspapers are talking about it."

"What...?" You started in confusion, but Tony hurried to explain.

"Wanda found you, Y/N." He told. "She, well, wasn't exactly happy about the whole thing. I think she lost control. Kaecilius is lucky to be alive if you ask me. She almost destroyed the seventh floor, it was a huge mess. And then the aurors interfered, and soon there were reporters everywhere. I guess now everyone knows she's a scarlet witch."

You widened your eyes, straightening to sit up and grumbling a little in pain. Tony looked at you with concern, asking you to take it easy, but you were already asking about Wanda.

"She's at the ministry of magic." He clarified. "Kaecilius is going on trial for torturing a student, and she will answer for putting everyone in danger."

" What?" you ask incredulously, and Tony sighs.

"Yeah I know it's unfair." He says. "But the minister of magic seems to be looking everywhere for people to blame for his lack of control. The problem is how much of that information will get to Mephisto. The whole ministry seems to be full of walkers."

You ran your hand across your face, frustrated.

"I'm so tired, Tony." You confess in a whisper. "It feels like everything is falling apart around me, and things are only getting worse."

Tony squeezes your hand. "I'm sorry, I really am. This whole situation sucks, and I wanted to help you. I'm trying, sister. I haven't been talking to you as much as I should, but I didn't want you to think you're alone. I'm working on breaking the bond. To free you and Wanda from the prophecy, and the wizarding world from dangers like Mephisto. I'm sorry I haven't been by your side."

You swallow your cry, and nod, trying to smile at Tony. He reaches up to hug you, and you gasp softly, taking a few seconds to relax and let the tears flow.

When you calm down, Tony tells you that he is going to get a Mediwizards to check your situation.

You lie down again, sighing softly. The memories come back with full force, and you choke softly, feeling your body tremble.

It's as if you can feel the curse again, sense the pain on your skin. Opening your eyes and shaking the memories away, you swallow dryly and reach for the glass of water on the nightstand.

You just want Wanda by your side telling you that everything is going to be okay.

//-//-//-//-//

You stay under observation for two days.

Doctor Hank makes a joke about you enjoying St.Mungus more than you should since you keep coming back, but Tony doesn't laugh.

Then you' re going back to Hogwarts by train, because the doctor thinks you shouldn't use magical means of transportation for a few days, and it's weird to take the empty express, but as soon as you arrive at the station, Gamora and Nebula are waiting for you with boxes of candy bought in Hogsmeade, and tight hugs.

You are not surprised by the stares you receive from the other students, but you ignore them as your sisters escort you around the castle to the Hufflepuff communal hall.

"Did you get to talk to Wanda?" Gamora asks as soon as you sit down on your bed, sighing with exhaustion from the train ride. The mention of the other sorceress' name doesn't help.

"Not yet." You say. "And I wouldn't be surprised to hear that she's ignoring me."

Nebula exchanges a look with her sister before sitting down on Mantis' bed, who is hugging her knees and looking at you.

"Honestly, I just want to finish this year without any more problems." You confess as you take off your jacket. And there is a moment of silence before you swallow dryly. "I also wanted to apologize to you guys."

Gamora frowns slightly, but says nothing. You take a deep breath.

"I know I was under the influence of an evil book, but that was still no excuse for treating you guys like that." You begin. "Tony told me about how things are in the wizarding world. Everyone is going through something, and it was selfish of me to think that only my problems matter. I'm sorry."

"Really, Y/N, it's okay." Nebula says, surprising you a bit. "We were all stressed, and well, I think an evil book is a pretty fair excuse." She jokes, making you smile. "Maybe things will get a little better now that Strange is the director."

"Oh, that's right" You comment just then remembering the things Tony updated you on while you were at St.Mungus. Like Kaecillius' resignation, and the position being passed on to Professor Stephen. "But honestly, I won't be at peace until I hear from Wanda."

"The trial isn't until Friday. And the way things are going, we won't get any news until it's over." Gamora warned as she sat down on the bed next to you. "I think the Maximoffs are probably too busy to write."

"What do you think will happen to Wanda?" You ask as you tug at the loose strands of the comforter. Mantis sighs lightly.

"I don't have a good feeling about things, Y/N." She confesses and you frown in concern. "And the stars never lie."

"Thank you, Mantis." You mock softly, and Gamora runs her hands through her hair.

"Let's not be pessimistic, okay?" she says. "Maybe the predictions are about, I don't know, the school finals? It doesn't mean something bad is really going to happen."

You grumble unhappily, grabbing a pillow and sinking your face into it. Gamora strokes your back.

"I'm sure things will work out, Y/N." She says. "Wanda will write as soon as she can."

"Do you guys think Kaecilius will be sent to Azkaban?" Nebula asks next, making you raise your head curiously.

"I wouldn't be so sure." You grumble. "I was actually surprised that he was put on trial at all."

"Well, with the whole mess that happened, it was bound to happen." Gamora said. "More than half the school became aware that he used the cruciatus curse on you, and then the daily prophet. And I didn't even know they were in the castle."

"It was because of Wanda really, wasn't it?" Mantis added. "Kaecillius caused his own ruin. He called the journalists to show what he called progress and decided to torture a student while they were in the castle. Then Wanda destroyed the entire floor and the next morning his arrest was all over the pages."

"I'm just really outraged to know that if no one had seen it, he would probably still be at Hogwarts." Gamora says angrily, and you sigh, agreeing as well as the others.

"Well, you must be hungry, shall we go to the great hall? It's almost dinner time." Gamora comments next, pulling you by the hand. You grumble softly, but agree, and soon you are leaving the communal hall to join the rest of the students.

//-//-//-//-//

You are tapping your fingers gently against the desk as you wait for the History of Magic class to begin.

It is Friday, finally.

You have barely slept because of anxiety about news of Wanda's trial.

Things at Hogwarts have changed a lot this week, all because of Strange's administration.

He restored the old classes, banned the teaching of dark magic, the scandal at the Daily Prophet being enough of an argument that the Minister of Magic no longer had a defense over this kind of teaching at Hogwarts. The restricted session of the library was also put back, and the seventh floor was off-limits because of the destruction Wanda caused, and you unfortunately lost access to the Requirement room.

Mantis was writing what looked like a lunar calendar for the divination class while Professor Okoye didn't arrive, and you started whistling distractedly.

And then Thor Odinson was poking you in the back to get your attention, and you turned around in your chair.

"Hi, Stark, what's up?"

"Fine." You grumbled suspiciously. "Can I help you with something?"

Thor looked almost unsure. "I was just wondering if you know of anything going on with Loki."

You frowned. "Excuse me?"

"I mean if you know if he's sick or something." He explains. "We had a fight, and well, he's not talking to me. And I've noticed that you guys have been kind of close lately, and I was curious if you knew anything and..."

"No, Thor, I'm sorry." You interrupt with a sigh. "Maybe you should ask him that."

Thor assumes a sad expression. "I would, but he's ignoring me. I think it might be about our mother."

You make a confused expression, and Thor looks surprised.

"Our mother, she...died earlier this year, Y/N." Thor counters, and you widen your eyes. "Our family is a name of reference against Mephisto. With the war, the walkers came to our home. She was there while we were here, and Dad was at the ministry."

"I'm so sorry, Thor." You whisper to him, still shocked by the information. He shrugged.

"I thought Loki told you."

"We don't talk about things like that, I guess." You say. "Sorry, I wish I knew how to help you."

"No, it's okay." Thor says with a sad smile. "You being his friend this year is more than enough. I don't like seeing him all alone out here."

You nod lightly, settling into your chair as you notice the teacher entering the room.

Mantis exchanges a look of understanding with you, having overheard the conversation even if accidentally, but she says nothing, and soon you are hearing about the witch hunt in the United States, and you try to focus on that rather than curiosity about how Wanda's trial is going or Loki's current emotional state.

//-//-/-//-//-//

As soon as lunchtime begins, you join the Slytherin table, where some of the students have placed a radio on the table, equally with other students from the other houses, to listen to the trial.

You are not surprised that a student's trial is such an interesting topic for everyone, but after the school started talking about Wanda being a scarlet witch, and the theories circulating around the halls, it was to be expected.

So you sit back while biting your fingertips and listening.

"And now directly from the Ministry of Magic, the trial of seventeen-year-old witch Wanda Maximoff, daughter of legendary witch Erik L-"

Your attention is slightly diverted from the narrative when loud laughter catches your ears.

They are Gryffindor and Slytherin students, exchanging coins. You don't need to hear the conversation to know they are gambling about the trial, the mean laughter and glances in the direction of you and your sisters are enough.

And as if she could feel your growing fury, Gamora touches your shoulder gently.

"Just ignore them, Y/N." She urges and you clench your jaw. " Everything is going to be okay with Wanda."

"I hope you're right, Gamora." You grumble, turning your attention back to the radio.

The narration of the newspaper is generic, and you discover that the audience has been closed off to the reporters.

You take a deep breath, concentrating.

No strange feeling, so Wanda is safe.

You wonder if Erik and Pietro are by her side during the whole thing.

It is only at the end of lunchtime that you have the result.

"It's amazing how things unfold in the ministry this afternoon." Counted the reporter with almost excitement. "After a unanimous vote, the witch Wanda Maximoff was found guilty of endangering her fellow students by not registering as a scarlet witch to the ministry of magic, after it was proven that her father, the sorcerer Erik Lehnsherr knew of her condition, as well as the affiliation with the criminal, Agatha Harkness was also mentioned. The ministry finally decided on Wanda Maximoff's expulsion from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizarding"

You felt your stomach plummet.

And everything became a little muffled around you, a soft whistle in your ear. You think Gamora and Nebula were calling for you, but you were getting up, feeling the room getting too small.

Stumbling out, you loosened the knot of your tie, finally stopping in the courtyard as you leaned your body against a pillar.

Wanda had been expelled from Hogwarts, publicly exposed as a Scarlet Witch, and tried as a criminal. You wondered if they would break her wand. Banned wizards led horrible lives.

Your sisters and friends caught up with you quickly, and you let them hug you.

In a few minutes Director Strange is catching up with you as well, and you release Gamora's grip to talk to him.

"Professor, I need to..."

"You cannot leave Hogwarts, Miss Stark." He interrupts with a wave of his hands and you frown in confusion, ready to protest but he is already speaking. "Tony sent a patronus as soon as the results came out, he already figured you'd want to see Miss Maximoff. The ministry is a mess, and Wanda will be staying with her father there for the minister's final decisions. You should stay here, where you are safe."

"That's not fair!" You squawk angrily. "Wanda needs me, I must-"

"She needs you to be safe." He interrupts again seriously, and then lowers his tone slightly as he notices the curious looks of the surrounding students. "Be rational, Miss Stark. Now that the Wizarding community knows the nature of Wanda's powers, how long before Mephisto has enough information and discovers your identity as protector."

You swallow dryly, clenching your fists begrudgingly. Stephen is right. You look away, and he sighs, placing his hand on your shoulder.

"Wanda will be fine, even without her NEWTS, she is an extraordinary witch." He says. "And the year is coming to an end, soon you will be able to see her again."

"She needs me now." You grumble annoyed, turning away from the professor's touch. He looks at you for a moment and then clears his throat.

"I'll see what I can do, Miss Stark." He says."In the meantime, focus on your studies, and be careful."

You frown at Stephen's words, but he is already turning and leaving before you can ask.

As you turn to your friends, Gamora has a worried look on her face.

"Are you okay?" She asks, and you sigh, agreeing to hug her again as you mumble no.

"I can feel how upset she is, Gamora." You grumble against your sister's shirt, wishing you could hug Wanda now. Gamora squeezes you against her arms, and you thank her for her intention even if it isn't enough.

The next few days are like a blur for you.

Many letters arrive, as do many editions of the Daily Prophet.

When the picture of the day Wanda's wand was broken comes out on the front page and you see her tired face, you have to run out of the common room to keep from crying in front of your colleagues.

Everyone writes to you, even Carol, everyone but the Maximoffs.

It is frustrating, and honestly, it breaks your heart in many ways.

The news of a Scarlet Witch after a century is almost as bombastic as Mephisto's return, and you're not surprised that many of your colleagues would start to comment on the possibility of Wanda working with him or against him.

It's overwhelming how everyone talks about her, but all you can feel is how much you miss her around the castle, around you.

You couldn't even remember that your magic is stable, and with everything that has happened, you haven't had time to figure out how to fix things.

Stephen tried to help, but he didn't know what was going on. At least the theoretical part of magic you were able to master, and you hoped to get at least an acceptable score in some subjects.

Only almost a week and a half after the trial, Professor Strange interrupts the potions class to talk to you.

Ignoring the curious stares and whispers of your classmates, you ask Professor Munroe to excuse you, and leave the room.

"What is wrong, professor?" You ask curiously as you close the door, watching Stephen with his hands in his pockets.The dungeons feel emptier without the ministry aurors around the castle.

"Saturday, in the Astronomy tower, nine-thirteen at night." He says as he hands you a small gold key, causing you to frown in confusion. "You will have exactly one hour, Miss Stark. Not a second more."

You stare at the object in your hand, and understand. A portal key. To Wanda.

"Thank you, Professor." You say, and Stephen nods before leaving.

You turn back to potions, the object in your pocket. You could barely contain your anxiety.

//-//-//-//-//-//-//

Tag list> @imapotatao / @aimezvousbrahms/ @ensorcellme/ @helloalycia || @mionemymind / @abimess / @stephanieromanoff / @yourtaletotell / @tomy5girls / @justagaypanicking / @thegayw1tch / @idek-5 // @myperfectlovepoem // @helloalycia // @ENSORCELLME // @AIMEZVOUSBRAHMS // @drpepperobsessed // @sighsam // @olsensnpm // @sxfwap // @table57 // @madamevirgo // @causeitswhatjesuswouldfreakingdo // @emptysince18x // @xastrydx || @yuhloversxx || @ymzki-haruki || @wouldirunofftheworldsomeday || @lostandsearching || @lezzzbehonesthere || @musicinourlips || @chaekhan || @diaryoflife || @nervoustrack || @aquamarinescarlet || @cristin-rjd || @idamaemann || @fortunatelynerdylight || @iliketozoneout || @blackwow34 // @tiny--freak || @spongebobtentacles || @cyberbonesworld ||

A/F/N> Place your bets for my next comeback (a week, a month or tomorrow?). If I delete the blog, and you're in love with this story for some reason I don't know about because there are so many better things to read, know that I'll post everything on AO3 if I ever do.

[bbyheedeungie]

kiss me, go on. | bestfriend!Heeseung AU

Pairings: Heeseung x Reader

Genre: fluff, a dash of smut

Warnings: kinda suggestive

Synopsis: You and Heeseung have been best friends for as long as you two can remember, completely platonic. Or so you thought.

Someone once said to you that best friends would never develop feelings for each other, unless they never really saw each other as best friends in the first place. You never really understood what that meant, nor did you ever actually thought it through. You were sure that your friendship with Heeseung was far from that case. That is until one night you find yourself straddling Heeseung's lap in his bedroom on a Thursday night.

"Kiss me, go on." He whispered.

Five minutes ago, you were only teasing each other and making small banter. You were talking about how that guy you liked at school asked you out and was asking for Heeseung for advice on boys' preferences.

"Should I flirt? Act shy? Would jeans look good on me? Or a skirt? Oh God, what if he kisses me, Heeseung I don't know what to do." You said frantically, shaking Heeseung's shoulders for answers. He chuckles, popping an m&m into his mouth. He swats your hands away from him and leans on the head board of his bed.

"Well first of all, just act like your usual dorky self. You'd look good in a skirt, but it might get chilly so just wear jeans. And for the kissing part, well if you're that worried then you can practice on me." He said nonchalantly, smirking.

"Ew, where did that even came from." You rolled your eyes, denying the fact that your heart was beating so hard in your chest at the thought of practicing how to kiss with Heeseung, your best friend of all people.

"Chicken." He teased, grinning. You scoffed and grabbed the nearest pillow you could find and whacking him in the face.

"Am not. I could even french kiss you if I want to." cringe. what has gotten into you? In all the years that you've spend together with Heeseung, this was actually the first time that you had this conversation with him.

"Oh God, please don't say things like that on your date. I'm getting secondhand embarassment here." He laughed, his head hitting the headboard lightly. You squinted your eyes at him, not letting him win this one.

"Oh yeah? Will this make you get secondhand embarassment too?" You climbed onto his lap, making sure your shorts hike up your thighs in the process. Heeseung's eyes widen and immediately tries to sit up and attempt to push you off but you quickly shove his chest back down to its slouching position.

"Y/N." He warned. You giggled seductively.

"It's what you want right? Just one kiss, Heeseung." You said in a teasing tone, even going as far as grinding your hips very lightly. Heeseung tries so hard to suppress a groan, searching for something to grip on for control.

"Does this make you get secondhand embarassment, Heeseung? Or perhaps a boner?" You continued teasing, biting your lower lip as you caressed his chest down to his abs, enjoying what was unraveling in front of you. Heeseung looks up at you with slightly hooded, darkened eyes.

"Kiss me, go on." He whispered so lowly you could've missed it.

You were actually a little taken aback, wondering if all of this were still jokes or was Heeseung dead serious. None of you dared to move, as you search for his eyes that seeked for you in return. He was the first to break the eye contact and cleared his throat.

"I was joking, Y/N. You don't have to do this." Heeseung said in defeat, although he'd never admit out loud how much he wished for you to just go for it. Screw everything.

"I don't have to, but I want to." before he could even speak, you grab both sides of his face and crash your lips against his. He instantly kisses back, taking the lead as his tongue sweeps on your lower lip for entrance in which you gladly give him.

His arms circled around your waist and you let out a whimper as his hips involuntarily grinds against yours, needing some friction. Heat was starting to pool in your middle as you joined rhythm with his hips, your lips never losing contact.

"W-we need to stop." Heeseung said breathlessly in between kisses, but his actions say otherwise as he pulls you in closer, wanting you as close to him as possible as he lightly tugs on your oversized shirt, badly wanting it off.

"We should." you whispered and used all of what was left of your willpower to break the kiss, lightly pecking Heeseung's forehead as you slid off of him, making him groan at the lost of touch. An awkward silence went on for seconds, even minutes as both of you attempted to fix your dishevelled hair and clothes. You clench your thighs together, still trying to grasp what had just (or almost) ocurred between the two of you.

"Are you regretting it?" Heeseung asked, sitting beside you on the edge of the bed with his head hanging low.

"N-no! Not at all," you reassured. "Just wondering, what happens now?" Heeseung himself didn't know how to answer the question.

"Look, I'm gonna be honest okay." He said, finally facing you. You nod.

"I guess I never really admitted it to myself, but I've always wanted more. More to us than being just friends. And there had been many nights where I wondered what it was like to be called your boy friend and not boy best friend. But you know, I always shrugged it off and convinced myself to be happy for you everytime you went out with someone else because hell, I'm just your bestfriend Y/N. I should be happy just being here for you." he ranted, rubbing the nape of his neck anxiously.

"Well I wouldn't kiss you if I didn't feel the same way, Heeseung. But I don't want to lose you though, I still want my best friend."

He smiled, taking your hand in his.

"Who says you'll lose me? Now you have me as your boy best friend and the best boy friend you'll ever had."

[umiarumi]

fucking three houses | prologue/claude von riegan

afab she/her reader, originally posted on my ao3, myukyu <3

Twirling my sword, an excited grin fell upon my face as I jogged alongside Dorte and Marianne. "Hah! Marie, ya think I can keep up your old steed's pace?" I asked excitedly, huffing slightly. The academy had really buffed your stamina, shit, enough to keep up with a damn horse.

"Oh, (Y/N)! I-um, don't strain yourself since we have nearly reached the monastery." She hesitantly called out, brow furrowing. I laughed it off, nodding as I slowed my pace to meet Raphael jogging, carrying a very unamused Lysithea.

"What's up, you two?" I asked, grinning. The behemoth of a man beamed back, motioning his head to the pouting smaller girl in his arms.

"Lysithea here was starting to struggle, so as a good big bro- I mean, uh, friend! As a good friend, I'm helping keep up!" He cheered, laughing.

"I'll remind you, you thoughtless fool, I am not a child! I am quite the opposite, now." Lysithea barked out at Raphael, folding her arms.

I chuckled, shaking my head. I missed these guys, and once we make it to the monastery... well, teach better have kept his promise and not died on us. ~~~~ ~~~~ PROLOGUE END ~~~~ ~~~~ "Ahh... now this one is gonna fill the spot, thanks, prof!" You cheered, excitedly flicking your eyes between your delicious meal of Beast Meat and your slightly concerned professor.

"That smell... it's amazing! My fav, in fact. Do you like it too?" Claude nodded with you, looking to Byleth out of curiousity. Easygoing, huh?

"I like it."

Usually, you'd laugh at your teacher's blunt speech, yet that meat was begging you to devour it and hey- who are you to deny its wishes? Being back at the monastery with your class and teacher as much as you'd loved being back in your home country, you had a soft spot for the Golden Deer. But five years had changed the lot of you, various glowups being noticed, by the way. Yet, Claude caught your attention the most. Which, being honest, wasn't out of the norm, hell, for anyone!

As you tore through your meat, you caught your former classmate stifling a chuckle at your pure ferocity.

"Oi! Got thomething to thay," You quickly swallowed. "What's so funny!?" You annoyedly accused, slamming a hand on the table. He let out a laugh, shaking his head.

"Easy tiger! You just looked awfully cute with your cheeks stuffed."

You felt your cheeks darken, clicking your tongue as you went back to your meal. "Smooth, dickhead..." You mumbled as your teacher let out a sigh at the two of youse antics. As you all continue to eat, a comfortable silence fell upon your trio.

"That aside, I am glad to see you also returning. I heard from Lorenz that you had disappeared for a while." Your teacher finally spoke, looking to you. Your eyebrows rose in surprise as you let a crooked grin creep up your face.

"Funny you say that. How about yourself, five years asleep! Did any lucky gal or guy come to give you that awakening kiss~" You cooed, switching the topic onto him. You had no idea what you could say without getting yourself and Claude in an unknown amount of trouble.

He raised a brow at your dodging of the question but ultimately let it go. "I did not get kissed, no."

Claude piped up from his suspicious silence, leaning in to pester teach. "Ya sure? You were pretty popular back at the academy!" You snickered after this comment, nodding to egg him on.

"I believe we've finished the meal. I shall see the two of you later." He promptly stood up with his plate and cutlery, returning them to the kitchen before strutting off in his usual stern demeanour.

"Aw, we scared him off!" You jokingly whined, leaning onto Claude. Teasing your no-nonsense teacher was great since he's as clueless as Seteth with three times the patience.

"How will we ever apologise?" Claude moaned alongside you, resting his head on yours melodramatically. You tittered together before recovering and bringing your dirty dishes to the kitchen. Leaving the dining hall, you two walked in silence.

You walked with no aim for a while until Claude stopped. You turned to him, intrigued. Tilting your head, you asked him a question.

"Something up?"

He smiled softly, shaking his head.

"Nah, but I would like to ask you some things." He said, and the lack of a comedic tone set off a minor alarm in your brain. You were no stranger to his inquisitive nature, having known him for a good portion of your life. Yet, you had a feeling this related to before. Even Claude wasn't aware of your whereabouts.

"Sure thing, here?" You asked, folding your arms defensively.

"No... let's go somewhere more private." He said, walking off. You jumped, quickly following him.

~~~~

Following Claude up the spiralling stairs of the Goddess tower was quick, that you could confirm. Nearly stumbling over your steps as he transcended so damn fast, you couldn't even call out for him to slow the hell down.

As you finally made it to the top, avoiding the rubble which had gathered after the battle at the monastery, you had leant against the wall, quickly regaining your breath. Yet as soon as you blinked, Claude seemed to have moved from the centre of the room to a few inches away from your face.

"C-Claude! What the hell...?" You jumped, backing fully up against the cold, stone wall. Feeling the cool stones against your back, you shivered as your former leader stared at you.

"Answer teach's question for me, friend? Where were you while we were stopping the whole damn alliance from being chipped away by the Empire?" He asked, frustrated. He took a step towards you.

You gulped, shaking your head as your eyes darted around the tower, looking everywhere but him.

"That's not the answer I was looking for, (Y/N)."

Your breath hitched as he grabbed your chin to look you in the eyes. His voice lowered, a conflicted emotion on his face. A crooked grin tugged at his lips and yet his brows were furrowed, annoyed.

||Translation: فاک - Fuck||

"I-I was in Almyra!" You yelped, quickly realising what you said as you cursed under your breath, "فاک..." You hissed, embarrassed.

"First, you avoid our questions..." Claude listed, cruelly running his thumb across your lip. Your heart skipped a beat, your eyes finally set on his figure.

"Second, you leave us... breaking our promise," He continued, striking your heart where it hurts.

You bit your lip, eyeing him as he let his hand drop to your shoulder. He pushed you further against the wall. You shivered, yet not from the freezing stone this time.

"I-I... even you said you had no attachment to Fodlan! I thought you wouldn't..." You trailed off, searching for an excuse.

"Everyone thought you died! I thought you died! And yet..." His voice rose, yet less out of anger. He finally brought his face to your extremely red own.

"Where was I? Oh yeah, finally..." You stiffened, knowing what he was going to bring up.

"Leaving me hanging."

Before you all reunited, you had made a short trip into Fodlan to grasp the situation. Yet, your undercover mission soon became an open one as a fateful night in Derdriu occurred.

~~~~

It was a warm evening the night you had made it into the lively streets of the city. Even after the effects of war, the city still seemed to bustle. Unassumedly passing by citizens happily talking, you looked for any Knights of Seiros stationed nearby or even members of the Leicester military. Noticing a particular armoured woman, you tapped her shoulder.

She turned, giving you a pleasant smile. "Do you need anything, ma'am?"

You nodded, playing with the sides of your bodice. "I live a while from the military posts, so could you please tell me... um, how is the war going?" Embarrassed, she laughed softly before explaining.

However, you were unaware of a keen eye watching you. The familiar bobbing of unruly hair, gleaning of sun-kissed skin tied in with a confident stance clued Claude onto just who it was he saw. He waited patiently behind market stalls, keeping an eye on you as you bid the woman goodbye. And oh-so luckily for him, you headed his way.

You passed by him, oblivious to the archer's presence. A sudden hand on your shoulder caused you to jolt, your hand reaching to the hilt of your sword. Whipping around, your eyes soon met the green ones of a certain Alliance leader.

"C-Claude!?" You shrieked, hand still cautiously resting on your sword, unsure if he would take well to your sudden appearance.

"So you decided to show up, huh?" He remarked, and if you knew him any less you'd think that easygoing smile meant he was happy. But that smile never reached his eyes.

Yet, despite his obvious inner conflict, you expelled a breath as he pulled you into a hug. You soon wrapped your arms around him. It had been four years since you left after Edelgard and her forces attacked. You felt his grip loosen as he rose a hand to your chin, that oh-so teasing thumb brushing against your lip.

"May I?" He muttered, and in response, you leant into him, lips locking. What started innocently quickly grew messy and needy, your lips growing red.

As you pulled back, you felt the hard pressure as your fronts brushed together. You blushed before turning your head away.

"I'm sorry Claude, I have to go." You muttered solemnly, pulling yourself together.

"Wait, what? Showing up randomly after four years and then blue-balling me?" He teased yet yearningly reached out his hand.

"I promise, I will return and finish what I started!" You called out, running off into the night.

~~~~

Your face grew hot at the memory. Shuffling nervously, you looked into his eyes.

"Then, will you finish what we started, miss?" He asked, running a hand across your face.

Inhaling, you nodded and answered him. "Yes... please."

With your consent, he pushed himself against you, lips squishing as he brought you upon his own. He soon ran his tongue along your bottom lip, asking for permission.

You parted them quickly, his tongue invading your mouth as your tongue danced with his. He began to unclasp your armour as you shifted to help them come off easier.

Before you knew it, you had both shed to your undergarments, all knowledge of this being an open area quickly leaving your mind.

His hands reached behind your back to fiddle with your bra for a few moments, soon letting it fall to the cold, stone ground. His eyes fell to your breasts, your nipples perk from a mix of the cold air in the Goddess Tower and the heat of the situation.

Quickly, his hands began to fondle and grope your tits, your hand slapping on your mouth as to not alert any patrolling guards.

"These really are great. Your armour disguises you, a good thing that is since you'd probably take a few hits otherwise." He commented cheekily, observing your tightly shut eyes and fluttering breaths.

God, he'd tease you even now!?

One of the hands dropped from your breast, the other continuing to squeeze and roll it like wet clay. The forgotten breast soon regained heat as the scruffy head of the brunette quickly moved to suckle on your aching nipple, causing you to let out a quick yelp.

"How cute." He mumbled into your tit, the vibrations sending a delicious shiver up your spine. Whilst you were focused on the pleasure at your chest, your throbbing cunt soon found a welcoming hand cupping it through your underwear.

"Soaked! Were you wanting this all along? Hah! Pretty slutty for an Almyran warrior." He cooed, fingers running against your clothed slit.

"A-ah... fuck you!" You hissed, deciding on paying back the offer. Your free hand reached down to cup his hidden boner, hand rubbing slowly.

"Ffffuck... fine, you want to do it right here, against this wall sweetheart?" He asked, grinning.

You nodded brashly, slipping out of your drenched underwear. He too shed his remaining clothes and your lips locked in a short kiss before he pulled away.

Grabbing onto your thighs, he lifted you as you hooked your legs around him. Pushing you against the wall, he angled his dick at your pussy. Rubbing slowly, teasingly. The two of you groaned, as finally, he stuck his dick in your needy cunt.

You gasped, feeling it stretch you out, slowly, inch by inch. Bottoming out, the two of you stilled for a moment, catching your breaths. Once you adjusted, signalling him with a nod, he pulled out to the tip, before slamming back in. You moaned unabashedly, eyes fluttering open to see Claude's face scrunch up.

He looked up to you coyly, smirking. "Do you want all of the monastery to find us? Would you like them to see you like this?" Your breath hitched.

"Sweating, being fucked against a wall by your former leader? After five long years, you decide to help." He hissed, continuing to thrust as you gasped with each thrust.

The fulfilling feeling of Claude's dick rubbing against your inner walls gradually inched you to your orgasm, the added brushing of fronts stimulating your clit.

"I could get used to this, you'll really help the war efforts this way. Those poor, exhausted knights who you could've helped. A nice cocksleeve like you, you'll do more by getting fucked than you have the past years." He grunted, venting his frustrations.

Yet, despite all the guilt you should've felt, it only made the aching buzz of your clit all the more stronger.

Your cunt spasmed with each thrust, the routine rubbing and brushing working you towards your end as you felt Claude's dick shudder every time he bottomed out.

"Maybe you could motivate Ignatz? He'd be shy though, but a girl so open like you would be perfect for that." He mumbled, watching your face darken.

"Or Raphael? He could use you as training. You'd be spent by the time he was even finishing, yet a slut like you would be okay with that, right?"

His dick continued to twitch in your pussy, your walls clamping around his cock like a vice. Fluttering as you were so close to your end.

"Shit... even Lorenz... he could use you as practice for his- ngh, noble duties!" He choked out a laugh, breath stuttering.

"But I think I like you best as my little runaway slut, yeah? You fit so well on my cock!" He emphasised the last word with a sharp thrust, your walls clamping shut on his cock, your head hitting the wall as you moaned in ecstasy.

He quickly pulled out, dick spurting ropes of cum on your chest and stomach. As you both caught your breath, you caught Claude smiling at you.

"It's good to have you back, my friend."