#cornelia fluff

[anime-fan-05]

Hey 🤗

Before making the request, I wanted to tell you I really like how and what you write ❤️

I saw the scenario of the first kiss you did for Naruto characters, could you also do it for Lelouch, Suzaku, male Kallen and male Cornelia (I'm obsessed with them in the male version; if you don't mess with characters' genderbends, you can not do them), please?

Thank you very much 😘

Code Geass ~First kiss~

Manga/anime: Code Geass

Warnings: nothing

(Y/N): your name

Kal: male Kallen

Cornelius: male Cornelia

Thank you very much for the compliment! Yes, I can make stories with male versions of female characters, but I'd rather not do the opposite.

"Z-Zero?" A meek voice rings out in the temporary headquarters of the Black Knights.

Lelouch blinks from behind his mask and looks away from some documents to look at the voice that had called him. (Y/N) was there, playing with her hair and with her pink-tinged cheeks, avoiding eye contact with her leader. The boy lets out a small sigh behind his mask, annoyed at being disturbed.

"What happens?" (Y/N) flinches at his words and shifts uncomfortably, the pink turning red on her cheeks.

"W-well, Tamaki told me you wanted to talk to me about the plan..." Lelouch's purple eyes narrow: he had never told Tamaki to call her. Damn Tamaki, he did it to embarrass me, the boy thinks.

The leader is both frustrated by the interruption of his work and annoyed by Tamaki's prank, but he suppresses the urge to get angry to avoid scaring the already intimidated girl in front of him. Actually, not because he doesn't want to scare the girl, but because he doesn't want to scare (Y/N): ever since Lelouch met (Y/N) at school a few months before obtaining the Geass, he's always felt a very strong attraction towards her; then, that attraction turned into love.

Furthermore, when she showed up in front of Zero, saying she wanted to join the Black Knights, his first instinct was to forbid her from participating in the missions due to the fear she would get hurt. However, the boy was then dissuaded from carrying out that behavior by C.C. to avoid anyone noticing his preference for the girl.

So, Lelouch quickly thinks about how to extricate himself from the complicated situation he's in: "(Y/N), I-"

He can't even finish the sentence he was about to say, because a loud sound screeches in their ears, echoing in the room occupied by Zero and (Y/N). The girl is stunned and closes her eyes, preparing for the worst, when they feel the ground shake and pieces of the ceiling begin to collapse. When she doesn't feel any pain, she opens her eyes.

"Z-Zero? A-are you okay? A-are you hurt?" One of Lelouch's arms is against the wall next to (Y/N); the other arm holds her close, caging her body with his and acting as a shield.

"I'm fine." The boy pulls away from the girl, loosening his grip.

After standing a little distance from her, Zero calmly presses a button on the side of his mask with one hand, shocking and astounding (Y/N) when she hears the whirring of gears, causing the back of the mask to retract.

"Z-Zero, what are you-"

"Answer me, (Y/N) -he interrupts her- are a few months enough to fall in love?"

"I-I think anything is possible in love. Why did you ask me this?"

(Y/N) swallows, watching the boy adjust his mask so his mouth is visible.

"Because I'm madly in love with you." The girl doesn't even have time to realize what he said, before Lelouch grabs her face and brings it close to his, and presses his lips to hers.

"Suzaku, I'm scared" (Y/N) whispers.

While she and her brother Schneizel were in a meeting, an attack by the Black Knights was reported, so Suzaku, (Y/N)'s Knight, grabbed her hand and started running to carry her to safety.

After they moved away from the attacked area, the princess felt the pressure collapse on her; she burst into tears, both because of the fear for her life and because of the concern everyone had managed to escape to safety.

The girl feels strong arms around her and then herself being carried against a warm body. Her eyes open: she sees her Knight embracing her.

"I'll protect you, princess." Suzaku says softly in (Y/N)'s ear, holding her tighter to him.

"S-Suzaku..." The princess murmurs in surprise, looking at him shyly and sweetly, heat flooding her cheeks.

Suddenly, loud battle noises ring out and the sounds of explosions, which cause the ground to shake, almost causing the princess to fall, are heard. Suzaku's eyes widen a little, and he immediately turns, almost as if to go back.

"Where are you going?" She cries.

"I must go back to fight with 'Lancelot'. Please, princess, stay here, so you'll be far enough from the combat zone."

"But Suzaku, you have to follow me -she whispers- I'm scared."

"Princess -the boy approaches the girl, with his eyes full of pain- I have to fight again to protect you." (Y/N) knows Suzaku must respect his duties as a Knight.

"But... You can't protect me if you're there." The girl says, trying to convince the boy to stay with her, since she doesn't want him to go because she fears he might die.

"I have to go -Suzaku replies with regret- those from the R&D Division have already called me before: they need 'Lancelot'."

"Wait!" (Y/N) screams as her Knight turns and takes a few steps towards the headquarters Zero attacked, running to hug him from behind and starting to sob.

"Please, please, don't go! I already lost Euphy, don't leave me too!" The princess can't breathe because of the tears and sobs, and she's crying so much she can hardly stand up straight: she's in the middle of hysterics.

So, Suzaku immediately hugs (Y/N), first hesitantly, fearing her panic attack might get worse, then more tightly, after seeing she showed no sign of resistance and, indeed, she seemed to calm down the closer he was to her.

"I'll never leave: I'll always stay next to you and protect you."

Minutes pass, and (Y/N) slowly calms down, cradled in her Knight's arms and soothed by his sweet, relaxing words.

"Hold out your hand." Suzaku says, placing a watch on his princess' outstretched hand, and he continues: "This watch is very important to me: it's the last gift my father gave me. Keep it safe for me -he gently closes her hand- and, when we meet again, you can return it to me. I swear I'll come back to you."

After saying that, the boy starts to turn around, but the girl calls his name, so he turns back again to look at her.

"Princess?"

"I love you, Suzaku! Please, come back." After saying those words, which shocked him, (Y/N) looks at her Knight softly, and she gently presses her lips to his.

Britannian Military Prison in Japan, evening.

After another day of torture, (Y/N) is in her cell, hurt, sore and crying in pain.

Unfortunately, the Britannian Military had discovered the girl was one of the Black Knights' girlfriend, so it had captured her and has continued to torture her to have information about them. However, it was wrong: (Y/N) didn't even know her boyfriend Kal was one of the Black Knights.

While the girl was reflecting on her boyfriend, a very loud noise is heard and the ground begins to shake, and her cell's door is thrown open. That scares her a lot, so she tries to hide herself in the most remote corner of her cell. Nevertheless, it isn't a soldier who enters, but a tall man, dressed in black and with a mask on his face: he's one of the Black Knights.

"(Y/N)!" The girl recognizes the man by his voice.

"Ohgi? It's you?"

(Y/N) already knows Ohgi: he had come to Kal's house several times while they were together; her boyfriend said he was a friend of his brother and, after his death, he continued to come to visit him. The girl never would have thought that kind man was one of the Black Knights.

"Yes, it's me. (Y/N), are you ok? Kal was so anxious about you... Come, he's waiting for you outside." Ohgi holds out his hand towards her, but (Y/N) pulls away.

"I don't want!"

"Why?"

"I don't want to see Kal: he lied to me the whole time! I don't want to go back to him! Please come back. I don't want you to get hurt because of me."

The man looks at the girl for a few seconds, torn between whether to leave or try to convince her to follow him. However, before Ohgi can make a decision, sounds of footsteps are heard, and then a head pops out of the door: Kal.

"(Y/N)!" Kal rushes to embrace (Y/N), wrapping his arms around her waist and burying his face in the crook of her neck. Nevertheless, she doesn't feel good in his embrace like all the other times: his lie has hurt her too deeply. In fact, she violently and quickly breaks away from the embrace.

"Stay away from me!" The poor girl screams, quickly pulling away and falling to the ground from the force she broke away with.

"Darling?" The boy tries to move closer to his girlfriend, but she pulls away again, trembling and almost crying from the pressure and worry.

"What happens? Are you ok? What have they done?"

"The soldiers hurt me, but you hurt me more: why did you lie to me? You were taking advantage of me, weren't you? I'm a Britannian, were you pretending to love me just to get information about the Britannians?"

"No!" Kal exclaims.

"I swear to you: I've never taken advantage of you. When I fell in love with you, I wasn't one of the Black Knights yet; after I became one, I didn't want to tell you anything because I didn't want to worry you or put you in danger." He continues more calmly, gently helping the girl to get up.

"You don't necessarily have to continue to be my girlfriend, but at least let me continue to protect you, please. I don't want anything to happen to you again." After saying that, Kal hugs (Y/N) again, taking care not to hurt her, and he brings his face closer to hers, until they touch their foreheads.

"Will you let me protect you?" After she gives her nod, the Black Knight captures his girlfriend's lips with his in a tender kiss, while continuing to hold her tightly, as if protecting her from all harm.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be."

"Sorry." (Y/N) repeats, as she finishes treating Cornelius' many wounds.

"I already told you not to be." The prince replies.

They both remain silent for a few minutes. (Y/N) is embarrassed to be so close to the person she loves, Cornelius is trying to repress the groans of pain caused by his wounds.

"Are you angry?" The woman breaks the silence, worried her superior was angry with her. In fact, (Y/N) was a new Knightmare Frames pilot, but, during her first mission, an attack against the Japan Liberation Front, a disaster happened: the group led by Prince Cornelius, in which she had been placed, was the victim of a surprise assault, and (Y/N) would have died if it weren't for her commander, who threw himself into the path of a spear to save her, but injuring himself.

"Not with you." The prince answers.

"Why not with me?"

"Why should I be angry with you?"

"I was careless. I almost got myself killed. Because of me you got hurt!" The soldier screams with a broken voice, surprising Cornelius with her outburst.

The man, recovered from the shock of the woman's outburst, smiles almost sweetly, and he gently caresses her head.

"Don't worry. I don't care you cause me trouble or I hurt myself to save your life."

(Y/N) wonders if what Cornelius told her was some kind of confession, while blushing profusely. Nevertheless, despite wanting to ask him the meaning of those words, she can't say anything other than an apology.

"Stop apologizing or I'll get angry."

"Excu-" (Y/N) stops before finishing the sentence.

"I can't help saying that!" Due to her phrase, the prince bursts out laughing, making the soldier blush again.

"I've done it!" The woman exclaimes happily and, after seeing the man's confused look, she continues, but with a bit of shyness: "Since you're always so serious and, forgive me if I say it, even a little sad, I set myself the goal of making you laugh at least once."

After a few seconds of silence, Cornelius murmurs: "You're wonderful, (Y/N), you know?"

"Really? Are you serious?"

Without even realizing it, the soldier steps closer to her superior, taking his right hand in hers.

"I really mean it." The prince whispers, tucking a strand of her hair, which had escaped from her bun, behind her ears with the hand that wasn't held by hers.

"I think this is why I fell in love with you." Without giving (Y/N) time to realize his words, Cornelius bows his head and presses his lips softly and delicately to hers.

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─────  ⨾ ﹙ 𝐖𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐅𝐎𝐑!﹚

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⊹ ֗ ꫂ 𝐑𝐔𝐋𝐄𝐒 𝐓𝐎 𝐑𝐄𝐐𝐔𝐄𝐒𝐓

001 ✧ remember to be kind! no hate speech or bullying will be tolerated here or on my account in general. be respectful with me and everyone else. my account is a safe space and i’d like to keep it that way. please don’t send in requests when they’re closed.

002 ✧ be patient with me as i do have a life outside of here and get busy. i tend to also get stressed and burnt out easily but i am trying to work on that. i will get to your request as soon as i can.

003 ✧ be as detailed as you can be with your request as it helps me out a lot! i do have the right to deny any requests that break the rules or i don’t feel comfortable with, so please remember that.

𝐃𝐈𝐒𝐂𝐋𝐀𝐈𝐌𝐄𝐑𝐒! ───── do not request super dark and triggering things as i will not write them. more spicy requests are fine but i’m not sure if i’ll write full blown smut as i am not the best with it. please be respectful of everyone’s sexualities and gender identities; i will not write an imagine with a gay man and write him with a fem reader and vice versa. polyamorous relationships are something i’m down to write for. i also have to note that i did not watch 2024’s contest but have heard most of the songs and watched some ‘deep dive’ types of videos about the contest.

𝐊𝐎𝐓𝐀'𝐒 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄𝐒! ───── hi guys! it’s been so long (over a year) since i’ve written anything here but recently i’ve wanted to get back into it. it may be a slower start but yeah, feel free to send some requests if you have any for the artists listed. i will do my absolute best on them. the list will likely be updated with more artists in the future but this is the current ones i want to write for.

[mschivs-works]

Scar(r)ed - Part 1 & 2

(The start of) a take on how Dustfinger got his scars. Further notes at the end, enjoy :)

You even get part 1 & 2 because I'm cool like that 😎

1.2k words

—

PART 1

Just like any other day the people were eager to get from stall to stall, trying to navigate through the crowded market. Few kids listened to their mothers and instead of staying close to them marveled at the baked goods, glazed with honey, edible flowers and nuts or at the Firedancer. Though Dustfinger had not only attracted the children. Everyone loved watching him throw the torches into the sky and catching them every time without fail. All five of them. If the tight-rope walkers in their blue garments would lean down and reach out they would have surely been able to catch them.

Dustfinger was without a doubt the greatest attraction.

He felt their eyes darting back and forth in between him and the flames and couldn't help but smile. Though he heard neither their cheers nor their clapping, giving his undivided attention to the fire. The wind picked up but it only took a few whispered words in its language to keep the flames bright as ever. One by one Dustfinger caught his torches and finally looked at his audience, taking a bow. He had been growing his hair out all summer and it fell onto his shoulders, the very front strands framing his face. The sunlight seemed to set it on fire and when he straightened back up his eyes glistened, full of life.

Roxane had to smile. She stood not far away, a little to the side and was clapping with all her might. Her arms were starting to get tired but she couldn't have cared less. Dustfinger caught her eye and she had to smile even more, giving him a thumbs up. Was that a hint of a blush on his face? It was gone before she could be sure, for Dustfinger was already putting the torches down to move on. As soon as he let go of them the flames jumped into his hands instead. The people blurted out 'Woa'-s and 'Oooh'-s and looked at the flames with astonishment. Roxane chuckled, they didn't know why the fire wasn't scorching Dustfingers skin and it made his acts all the better. Not like the Sootbird, he burned himself every time he performed. Though today he wasn't on the market and so Dustfinger drew all eyes onto him.

Dustfinger. The best fire dancer in all of Lombrica and Argenta. He who threw his torches the highest. He who had made friends with the fire.

It was currently climbing up his arm, flames licking at his skin but never biting. He made it jump to his other hand and formed a flower. Its petals wilted away in mere seconds but new ones sprouted in their place. Dustfinger looked at Roxane and it warmed his heart to see her in awe. He knew she loved the flowers and made sure to make at least one every time she was watching. He gave the flower a blow and it turned into countless moths, almost the size of his hand, that flew up above the heads of the crowd before vanishing into thin clouds of smoke. Once the last one was gone he formed his hands into a dome and gently blew into it. The inside began to glow like embers and you could hear the roaring of the fire. Then he opened them and with a stronger blow set a jet of fire into the sky. The people gasped and stumbled backwards only to lean forward again eagerly awaiting another one. Dustfinger did it again. And again. The kids were cheering the loudest, they loved it more than anything, he knew. Dragonbreath is what he called it.

—

His knife was polished to perfection - as per usual -, reflecting the sun perfectly, as well as Basta's hateful eyes. His fingers caressed the back side of the blade lovingly, almost as if he was petting a small animal. However, this pet had sharp teeth and Basta wanted nothing more than to see it bite off the fire-eaters face.

He was leaning against the wall of a house, envying the damned fire dancer. He didn't understand what they all saw him or his fireplay, why they were all so in love with him! Basta didn't care what the people thought of the fire-eater but oh how he hated that Roxane loved him. Beautiful Roxane. She was madly in love with Dustfinger and for what?! He was a coward and what else could he even do besides throwing a few torches into the air? She was stupid to love that unfortunate boy and not him, Basta. Oh yes, Roxane loved Dustfinger and Basta hated her for it but he loved her all the same. It was insanely frustrating. He huffed as the fire dancer came down from his stage and met Roxane with a smile.

—

The people were still clapping and while coins rained into the opened bag Dustfinger had placed at the front of the stage he grabbed his shirt. It was black with accents of red - of course, the colors of the fire dancers. Then he took his bag with a thousand thank you-s directed at his audience and put his torches inside. He hung it over his shoulder and as he made his way down he tried to fix his hair a little. A moment later he stood in front of Roxane. She took his hands and smiled at him. "I love it when you make the flowers." "I know. I make them just for you." Roxanes gaze shifted a little and Dustfinger could have sworn he saw her blush. A smile settled on his lips. Though it did not last long. In the corner of his eye he recognized a characteristically dark silhouette. Raven hair, piercing eyes and black clothes. And a knife in hand. "Is something wrong?" Roxane's voice immediately pulled his eyes back to her visage. Her head was tilted, making her long hair fall off the side a little and Dustfinger saw the concern in her eyes. "N-no don't worry," he answered with a smile to sell his words.

"Listen Roxane, I need to leave now. I have to bring the Prince some rations, I promised. People think his bear is a Night-Mare and no-one will leave him alone if he shows his face anywhere near the city." A chuckle echoed in his voice and he squeezed her hand a little tighter. "Meet me at the old barn at sun down. You know, the one with the withered away well." Roxane gave a nod in agreement and Dustfinger smiled. "Wonderful, I will see you then." He gently placed his hands on her shoulders and placed a kiss on her forehead. Then he made his way to the city gate.

Dustfinger looked over to the house. Basta was gone.

PART 2

Dustfinger passed the guards at the gate and followed the path. His long legs gave him a fast stride which he did not mind, not at all. tht uneasy feeling from seeing Basta still clung to him and he wanted to get away from the city as quickly as possible. He took a breath and checked his bag. Alongside the loose coins - he would sort them later -, and his torches there were some rations, wrapped in leather. Everything was still there. Satisfied Dustfinger kept walking and soon the late summer sun and the chirping of the birds made him forget about Basta. Or at least he wasn't bothered by him anymore.

The prince was with the others in one of the camps near the city. After walking along the path for a while he had gone straight into the forest. Dustfinger knew every tree, stone and bush near the city and in less than an hour he arrived. The kids were playing while most of the women prepared some food or repaired clothes. One came back with a load of fire-wood and dumped it near the fireplace. Dustfinger gave her a quick nod and she smiled before tending to another task. "Dustfinger! There you are." The prince came over and Dustfinger embraced him with a big smile on his face. He glanced at the bear but he seemed to be half-asleep. "I hope you brought-" "You can always count on me." Dustfinger got out the rations and handed them to the prince, who eagerly uwrapped them. His face lit up when he saw the fresh loaf of bread. "Thank you my friend." Dustfinger shrugged it off and sat down next to the fire instead. The flames turned towards him but Dustfinger looked at the Prince.

"Judging by the sound of your bag you had a successful day." Dustfinger had bitten into an apple and nodded in response. "Was Roxane there?" The Prince's voice was smug but affectionate and the fact that his best friend seemed to blush only made him smile more. Dustfinger sighed. "Yes, she was. And so was Basta." Evidently Dustfinger was not happy about that. "Don't worry about him. To Roxane he is the same that he is to all of us; a sign of trouble. She chose you." The Prince gave him a nudge and Dustfinger couldn't help but smile a little.

Yes, she had chosen him… why? He didn't know. Roxane was the most beautiful girl he knew and not even a nightingale could match her voice. She had had many admirers but she had sent them all away. Roxane only had eyes for him, Dustfinger, a no-body that happened to know how to make the fire speak to him. Sometimes he believed it was all a dream, that he'd wake up one day and see her with someone else. The thought of it alone made his heart break, because he was sure that living without her was a thing of the impossible. He loved getting lost in her eyes and hearing the sound of her voice, oh yes he loved it. More than anything else in this world. When she sang all of his worries simply faded away into nothingness and the world seemed a better place. He forgot about the cold winter nights, about the Fire-Raisers and Capricorn and the Adderhead. He loved it the most when she sang only for him. Then it was just the two of them, his head resting in her lap while her fingers gently ran through his firey hair.

A sudden huff of hot breath next to his ear let Dustfinger flinch. He turned and stared right into the beady eyes of the bear. He took a breath of relief and chuckled when the bear nudged his arm. "You want the apple, don't you." As if he understood exactly what Dustfinger said the bear grumbled and a second later the fruit vanished into his mouth. Dustfinger turned back to the prince. "Speaking of, unfortunately I can't stay because I am supposed to meet her at sun down. But I am sure you and your 'Night-Mare', " he nodded over to the bear with a grin, "will be just fine. I will be back tomorrow." Dustfinger and the prince gave each other a pat on the back and he was already on his way back to Ombra. Or more specific: the farms and fields surrounding it.

—

Hi all. I will update this as frequently as I can. I like to go into detail and build up scenes so expect a couple more individual parts. Later this fic will get exolicit with descriptions of violent and angst but triggerwarnings at the top will warn you.

Let me know your thoughts in the tags and comments!

Also that's MY art do not steal! (may use with credit)

[wilted-society]

i mean... it's not like no one would be willing to read these right???.??????????????

#should i continue these

[sagiow]

In camera - Chapter 4

Eli woke up to the sun rays darting between the foliage, to birds crying far away. The air crisp upon his face, over the warm heaviness of his blanket; a heaviness that barely registered against that of Cornelia’s head on his shoulder, of her body pressed against his, her gloved hand abandoned on his chest. He wanted to take it, but did not dare do so; he could not risk moving and waking her, and for this moment to end.

He still could not quite believe the turn of events from the previous day: how she had suddenly pushed back against herself, sending the barricades tumbling down, revealing the secret source of all the terrible anger and fear she’d been carrying all this time. How she had stood there afterwards, open and unguarded, her burden cast away but her body still bent from its weight, waiting for him to judge and dismiss her for it. How she had risen and clutched to him, as if not to float away, when he had not.

She had let go as he returned her to the solid ground, to the tangible present; when she let herself to consider that nothing else should matter but them. He felt a shift in her focus: eyes no longer set on the fateful road ahead, but curiously taking in her immediate surroundings and all the trivial little things they held, as if she was seeing them for the first time. As if she finally allowed herself to see them, and care for them. Be amused and amazed and moved by them.

He taught her how to read the river, to set a line, which bait would do for which type of fish; and when she pulled the string and caught a trout larger than his, her laughter had been clearer than the water before them, than the sky above.

And when that sky turned from the blue of her irises to the purple of her riding outfit, to the dark navy of his cavalry coat, its stars’ brilliance could not match that of those in her eyes as she reached out for him once more, her hand in his and her cheek on his shoulder as they sat by the fire, grilling and eating the day’s catch, she mostly talking, he always listening. Remaining as such as they’d laid down for the night and he’d pulled his blanket over them, pressed a kiss to her temple as she’d nestled closer, and fallen asleep a mere few breaths later.

Had she been Pawnee, this would have meant something. Everything. But she was not, and he did not explain. It was enough for him to know. To have and to hold.

Read the rest on AO3

[counting-leaves]

I want to write a cheolsoo jeongcheol cardigan+august+betty au so bad but I'm not good with angst so ig i won't

[mischievoussilvertongue]

GUYS the first two parts of Scar(r)ed are out on my other Tumblr. A fic on how Dustfinger got his scars.

[a-boca-do-inferno]

good graces (caesar x human!reader)

summary: A remarkable ape catches your eye at the sanctuary.

warnings: angst, swearing, mild fluff

words: 0.8k

notes: just a little drabble... he owns me now i fear. enjoy!

gif credit

“Hungry?” You hum with a soothing tone, petting the orangutan’s head to catch his attention. He eyes you and signs positively, making you smile. “That’s why you’re my favourite, but don’t tell anyone. They might get jealous.” You tease and Maurice grunts in response, clearly amused by your words.

You were a volunteer at the sanctuary for a year now and you attempted your best to help the apes in light of the clear mistreatment they received from that blond asshole. You lost count of how many times you tried to get him fired, but the owner simply didn’t care enough for the animals to do something about it, so your only option was to show some kindness when you fed them or went inside to clean the cages. Most were indifferent to your presence there when it wasn’t food related, outside from Maurice and Cornelia, who had gentler personalities. Until something happened.

Someone.

A newbie came along—wearing clothes, no less. He was standoffish and kept to himself a lot, but the primates didn’t like him already, especially Rocket; and so you watched with an aching heart as he beat up Caesar and no one did anything to stop it, ape or human. You wanted to step in and do something, anything, even if it meant you getting hurt in the process, however it was out of your reach.

“That’s just how nature works, (y/n).” The boss tried to console you that morning, to which you only huffed in indignation.

As weeks went by, the newcomer got settled in, albeit not without his fair amount of struggles. Everyone picked on him and one day, you simply had enough. Stepping inside the area of the cages, your ears ringed as the animals screeched in excitement, probably thinking you were bringing food. You strolled towards Rocket’s cell and tapped lightly on it, catching his attention.

“You need to stop.” You sign firmly, although being fully aware Rocket didn’t know ASL as well as Maurice did. The other apes look at you with a mix of confusion, some even getting angry at the realisation you’re not there to feed them, and they start screaming again. You continue, your hands swift, “leave Caesar alone.”

As you said that, your eyes fell automatically on Caesar’s cage at the end of the hall. He stared at you quietly, his green orbs filled with curiosity and sheer surprise at your display of protection. Amidst the bullying he endured daily, the ape didn’t have time to take note of your kind acts, the hurt from being abandoned by Will the only thing in his mind—up until that moment, that is. The apes kept on shrieking while you sighed and prepared yourself to leave at last. A gesture from Caesar made you stop in your tracks, though. You never saw him speak to anyone before.

“Come.” He signs almost stealthily, blinking impatiently towards you.

You step closer to his cage and ignore the loud sounds around you, raising your brows. “You know how to sign?”

He hoots softly, suddenly excited at your interest. “Dad taught Caesar.”

You can’t help but grin, nodding slowly. “That’s amazing… I never saw a chimp sign before, only orangutans.”

He grunts and points to you, asking, “why defend Caesar?”

You consider his question for a split second and shrug. “Why not?”

He snorts happily at your answer. It’s like music to your ears, for you never heard him make such a sound before. He glances back at his cell, staring into blank space as he remembers the harsh treatment he was put through every day. “Everyone hates Caesar.” He signs simply. A statement, as if it was a known fact.

You shake your head vehemently, eyeing him with resolve. “I don’t hate you.”

As Caesar finds your gaze again, he seems deeply affected by your response, walking closer to rest his forehead against the cage. “Thank you.”

“No need to thank me. Just helping a fellow primate out.” You grin, touching his hand through the cold metal separating you both. 

He’s surprised by your touch, the warmth of your hand sending chills down his spine. He looks down at your fingers as his eyebrows raise, his own twitching without being able to grab yours in return. Caesar hoots once more, his expression softening. “Stay.” He pleads, his palm signing desperately.

You feel your chest tighten at the sight, giving him a bittersweet smile. “I’ll come back to feed you in a few hours.”

A whimper escapes him, Caesar’s body hunching forward in disappointment. A moment passes and although his demeanour deflates considerably, he grunts in acknowledgement, still eyeing you eagerly, “Caesar wait.”

You only chuckled to yourself and exchanged one last hand wave with Caesar, walking out of the cages’ room with your head down. Soon you’d have to tell Maurice there was competition to your good graces, now.

[poetsblvd]

fic recs ﹐ ( charles leclerc x reader )

— key . fluff (❀) angst (✿) smau (❁) mature (❃) —

leclercs type (❀) @thebearchives

always, evermore, even after and still (❁) @love-belle

it’s never over (❀) (❃) @leclsrc

fix what has been broken (❁) @lorarri

you’ll change your name, or change your mind (✿) @monzabee

heartbreak on tour series (❁) @twobluejeans

right timing (✿) (❀) @moneymasnn

baby leclerc series (❀) @starkwlkr

lightning mclover (❀) @f1version

10 seconds (❀) @lxclerc

itch (❃) @monzamash

this is what it feels like (❁) @love-belle

sweet pea (❀) @leclsrc

delicate series (✿) (❀) (❁) @redclercs

north star series (✿) (❀) @harley-sunday

amour rose (❁) @cartierre

cherry tomato (❀) @xxblairexxss

to live for the hope of it all (❁) @pierregazly

una noche en monaco (✿) (❀) (❃) @charlesswife

sparks (❀) @writingstoraes

a house, a home (✿) @vetteltea

saw your mom at the grocery store (❁) @love-belle

it’s called love (❀) (✿) @racinggirl

honeymoon (❃) @lecsainz

what would you say (if i told you i loved you) (❁) @cieloclercs

what could’ve been (✿) @norrisleclercf1

pardesi girl (❁) @fleetwooods

i’d never walk cornelia street again (❁) @love-belle

night tea and tears (❀) (✿) @httpiastri

the seasons of love series (❀) (✿) (❃) @formulaforza

pretty visitors (❀) @strawberrysainz

still writing pages (✿) @leclercsbunny

royal series (❁) @maryleclerc

lonely call (✿) @lxclerc

for sentimental reasons (❀) (✿) (❃) @deadaydreams

the delicate series (❀) (✿) @fleetwooods

when it rains it pours (✿) @silverszobo

you gotta move, or move on (✿) @formulaforza

thirsty thoughts (❃) (❁) @lorarri

you’re losing me (✿) @oconso

why we broke up (✿) @charlesluvr

shoulder to lean on (✿) (❀) @silverszobo

ma moitié (❀) (✿) @thebearchives

the winner takes it all series (✿) @silverstonesainz

stories old and true (❀) (❃) @cherry-leclerc

i have forgotten (✿) (❃) @cherry-leclerc

lily’s notes , if i studied for half the time i spent on tumblr i’d be a genius. but this is more fun and i slowly find myself tumbling down the tumblr black hole and re-experiencing my old fav fics that i’ve stumbled across again , and omg wow im having so much fun making fic recs so expect a lot more !! so this is the charles rec list aka the current f1 poster boy , max rec list next !! thank you to all the amazing writers for pushing their hard work onto these masterpieces mwah xx

[death---dealer]

I just need to talk about Cornelius because he's just a baby and for sure keeps Blue Eyes on his toes 🥺

Title: Actions are Stronger. Fandom: Planet of the Apes. Pairing: ( Mildly, I'm working on it okay ) Implied! Blue Eyes x Reader. Rating: K. ( FULL OF FLUFF BABY. ) Words: 1.6K Summary: You were left alone to watch Cornelius until Blue Eyes returned. You had no idea what you were doing. ●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・○・●・●・○・

You felt small hands tangling into your hair. Laughing at the mere sensation, you raised your arms and grasped at the small Chimp responsible. Sounds of sadness left them as their fingers rose out of your hair, your grasp bringing them down and away from the prospect of pulling your hair right out of your head. Cornelius looked up at you - eyes so familiar and so impeccably like his Fathers that you found it difficult to not find any endearing feelings towards him. 

He hooted at you, obviously not content that you had grasped him and pulled him down from the eagerness he had to explore your hair, and with that, you placed him softly on the ground in front of you. Now--- It wasn’t your responsibility in the Colony to watch the young. In fact, you were pretty adamant to Caesar when he told you to look after his offspring that you weren’t sure how to. He just told you for a few minutes, until Blue Eyes returned from his endeavors with Ash.

Cornelia was resting, Blue Eyes knew he needed to be back by dusk. Caesar wanted her to rest, irked in all respects that his other son was not back yet and that’s how you ended up with the younger of the two Ape Prince’s. Well, better to learn now than later, right?  You thought to yourself and watched as the baby Chimp shuffled back towards you on all fours after momentarily being entranced by a few rocks, eyes rather sharp and focused with wonderment as he jumped right into your lap. 

To be analyzed by a baby was to be loved, right? A soft chuckle bursted from your mouth as he pried at the zipper of your jacket at the base of your neck, bringing his face in and placing his mouth against it. You watched as he went through stages. It was not food, that much was apparent. Small fingers moved it side to side. Nothing. He decided to grasp it firmly and pull. It moved downwards. The shock rocketed through him, he pounced on your lap, up and around your shoulders to rest snuggly now on your right shoulder, still peering down at the zipper. At the vibrations of the zipper and whimpered at it quietly. The sound must have scared him, you figured.

“Zipper,” You said, very aware of the small green eyes now focusing on your word, “That’s called a zipper.” You knew it was fruitless, that he wouldn’t talk back to you but that was more than okay. He had to learn communication one way or another, and you were more than willing to teach Cornelius a word or two as you waited patiently for his older brother near the bonfire of the Colony. Blue Eyes was nudged by Ash, forcing the Ape to stagger slightly on his feet with a huff of a laugh. They just returned, albeit a bit late, from their watch of the area. Assigned in pairs of two, they were responsible to maintain security around the land perimeter Caesar established so many years ago for the Colony. After tendering the horses into the paddock, Blue Eyes signed to his friend that he was responsible for Cornelius that evening, and that he would be unable to hang out anymore unless Ash had a strong desire to hang out with his baby brother. Ash nodded in understanding, joking a bit with his closest friend, ‘Could teach Cornelius the right way to do things, the Blue Eyes way.’ The young Chimp laughed at that again and nodded, responding in quick signing, ‘Don’t think Father would like that at all.’ And with a goodbye to part, Blue Eyes and Ash went their separate ways. Ash, to his family. Blue Eyes to trail his way to the family nest to get his brother. He felt tired- it was an incredibly long and boring day and that’s how it often is for the security perimeter entailment. Luckily, Blue Eyes thought to himself, he wouldn’t have to do it again for a few weeks. “That’s my hair.” Hm… That sounded like… Blue Eyes shifted his body, angling himself towards the bonfire. If you were there, he hadn’t seen you in his initial sweep as he trailed through the common area just seconds ago. “You have fur,” That was definitely your voice, Blue Eyes would recognize it anywhere--- Wait, he would? He pondered that silently as he moved towards the sound of your statement. “I have hair.” There was a chittering after your words came to stop. Just as quickly as Blue Eyes recognized your voice, he was washed all too familiarly with the sounds of his baby brother. He wasn’t aggressive in nature as he rounded the bonfire, finally setting his gaze on the two of you, he was quick to move though, absolutely floored at the sight in front of him. He stood silently, observing for a few tender moments. His brother--- On your back now, fingers absolutely crushing into your hair. Blue Eyes was tentative at that--- Until Cornelius pulled, probably harder than either of you were expecting and you yelped, reaching up to grab the baby once again and scolding him, “No, no. We don’t pull my hair!” He whined at you, Blue Eyes narrowed his eyes to see the expression of his brother’s face. He was disappointed and sad. Shuffling forward on all four, he finally allowed himself the pleasure of being seen. You hadn’t noticed him yet, but Cornelius did as he quite frankly popped out of the grasp you had on him and jumped excitedly towards the larger frame of Blue Eyes. He had heard your protest, asking to come back, watching as you fell onto your knees in front of you before you finally turned to see where the baby had gone.

An unfamiliar expression hit your face once you saw Blue Eyes; a flush of heat encapsulating your entire body at the fact that you were now on your hands and knees and must have looked like an absolute fool  Without hesitation or reservation on either side, Blue Eyes grasped his brother with one hand and placed him tenderly on his good shoulder, his other still sore and scratched from the bear attack a few weeks ago. You needed to say something or this entire situation was going to get more weird than it already was. Straightening yourself up, you stood onto your feet and wiped the dirt off your knees and hands. “I uhm…” You started speaking, moving towards the two of them. Out of caution of being too close to you, as Blue Eyes typically was for some reason, you stopped moving and bit your bottom lip in contemplation of what to tell him. “Your dad-- Caesar,” How odd to correct yourself, Blue Eyes tilted his head but let you continue as Cornelius began playing with the fur on his back. “He uh--- asked me to watch Cornelius until you came back. He had---” You laughed awkwardly, not sure what the Ape King really needed to do, “No idea. He asked me to watch him…” 

Blue Eyes did soften his gaze once he got a logical and sound reason from you. He nodded, pacing towards you ever so slightly. Only three or four steps, depending how you looked at it as he was still on all fours. Smiling at him, you were almost entranced by the nature of his eyes in the light of the fire next to you. You were always so curious how he ended up with blue instead of the green all the other Apes had, but that’s what kept you so captivated as he looked at you- From your feet all the way up to your head. If he were human, you’d almost make the assumption that he was checking you out but… This was Blue Eyes. Soften, quiet and fiercely protective of what he loved and held dear to him. You swallowed softly, bringing your hand up to lightly place it on Cornelius’ head, Blue Eyes launched into a small panic at the prospect that you were going to touch him. “I had a good time watching him, he’s very good.” Blue Eyes felt pride at that. “I think I taught him a few new words. If he starts talking and says any of them, let me kno---” “Thank… You….”

You blinked, dropping your hand away from Blue Eyes and his younger brother. Had…. Had you just heard correctly? Did… Your eyes widened in surprise. Did Blue Eyes just verbalize? You knew he could, it would have been incredibly ignorant for you to think otherwise given his father was the Ape King, and the entire Colony had sprung from Apes that evolved from the ALZ. You just… In your fit of confusion, you tried to recollect but to no avail. You were right in your assumption.

This was the first time you had heard Blue Eyes say something. Not just sign, but use his voice. It was surely gruff, most likely from years of non-use, but it felt good, a pudding sense of accomplishment hitting you that he had spoken something, even if it were the most meager idea of gratitude. Feeling rather transfixed at that, you nodded an acknowledgement. Blue Eyes gave you one more gaze, lingering just a few seconds longer, before he turned to trail away, back towards the nest for the evening to watch his brother and get rest.

You?

You were left just as perplexed as before, if not more now that you knew the sound of Blue Eyes’ voice.

[bigtedbear]

“ 𝐥’𝐚𝗺𝗼𝐮𝐫 𝐝𝐞 𝗺𝐚 𝐯𝐢𝐞 “

𝐩𝐫𝗼𝗺𝐩𝐭: 𝐧𝐞𝐮𝐯𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝗼 𝐛𝐞𝐬𝗼𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐡𝐮𝐬𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐝, 𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝗼 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐤𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝗼𝐟𝐟

content warning: quite literally no warnings, married life, two old men, complete tooth-rotting fluff, male reader, dragon male reader, this is a part two, large family, a lot of sisters, most of this is character building, can they kiss already

Part 1 here: " serein "

" welcome back, caller @juiceedapplee! connecting your line as we speak! "

"Cornelia, do you happen to know where the Iudex has snuck off to? He promised he would meet with me for lunch."

You felt slightly bad when one of the many assistants around his office nearly dropped the stack of papers she'd been carrying and fumbled to stand at full attention. One of the many things the assistants around the building had yet to get used to; your near silent footsteps when you loitered around your husband's office.

Just as quickly as she nearly dropped her papers, you were lunging forward to support the back of the stack with your palms. She stuttered over her tongue for a moment, seemingly knotting it up in the process. It took her a second before she finally managed to spit out a quiet, "I believe his grace was headed down to the gardens, I overhead him mentioning it to Sedene around the time when he usually takes his lunchbreak."

There was a pause before you huffed out of your nose indignantly. "Without me? He knows I love lunch in the gardens." You helped her set down her stack of papers on her desk before giving her a quiet nod, "Thank you, Cornelia, tell Eunomia that I'll be joining him. I'll need to cancel my prior arrangements at the Opera Epiclese."

She nodded quickly, though, it wasn't as though you saw her nod with how quickly you turned on your heel to immediately head towards the residential wing again.

Before the attendant at the door could so much as give you a greeting bow, the doors were flung open as you rushed out into the endless pockets of color. "Neuvillette!"

It seemed even your own husband was surprised you'd showed up based on the expression stretching across his formerly blank face. He blinked a few times as you stalked towards the table. "You scoundrel, don't tell me you were trying to get out of having lunch with me!"

He blinked a few more times before the cup of tea he was nursing was set back down on the table, "I apologize, my dear, it seems our arrangements slipped my mind."

You huffed again, setting your arms on the back of his chair. "This simply won't do, as the Iudex you must always remember your promises." You tapped your finger on the wooden frame, tail haphazardly swinging back and forth by your ankles. "You even promised you'd set aside an entire hour to spend with me today."

He hummed again, leaning his head back onto your lower stomach. With his eyes closed, he pondered absentmindedly to no one in particular, "Did I really?"

You nodded eagerly, punctuating it with a verbal hum of agreement. "I remember specifically that you promised me because I had something I needed to tell you."

His brow raised curiously, eyes finally peeling open when you moved your hands tenderly to cup his shoulders. "Oh? Did you mention that you had something you needed to tell me when I promised you?"

"No," You squeezed his collarbones before retreating from his chair. There was a small bit of glee swirling at the bottom of your stomach as you watched him chase after your hands subconsciously. As you sat yourself down in the chair across from him, you added, "I thought it'd be best if I simply told you over lunch."

The way his eyebrows twitched indicated his vested interest in the matter. Instead of picking up his cup of tea again, his hand reached for a fork. "Really? Is it something you couldn't have shared while the two of us readied ourselves for sleep?"

You shook your head, reaching across the table to set out your own porcelain. With the saucer and teacup now making themselves at home in their appropriate spots in front of you, your other hand grasped the handle of the teapot. "No, I was afraid you would be far too tired to grasp what I was saying."

He gave a reserved smile in response, watching your wrist tilt at the perfect angle to pour your own serving of tea. "Surely I'm not as incapable as you say when I return home, am I?"

Your own grin crept up towards your ears cheekily, a terribly concealed mirth in your voice when you responded, "Oh please, you might as well be deaf when you get home. After hours of listening to everyone but your dear husband, you barely remember to say goodnight half the time."

You took satisfaction in the deep rumble emanating from his chest in response, "You're exaggerating."

You snickered at him in response, "Am not!" You plucked one of the many food choices laid out on a platter between the two of you off the plate and brought it to your lips. Before finally allowing yourself to indulge in it's flavors, you tacked on a quick, "Just last week before your trial presiding over the one couple who couldn't seem to keep their sticky fingers off their neighbor's jewelry, you forgot to give me a kiss goodnight."

He pursed his lips, his hand coming to rest under his chin thoughtfully for a moment.

You shook your head, "That's completely besides the point." You wiped the crumbs from your lip with your pocket square handkerchief, "I wanted to tell you I'll be taking a trip out of the capital."

He titled his head to the side lightly, "I don't see why you would need to alert me that you're leaving the Court, it seems every other day you're making a trip to Poisson to aide in the Spina de Rosula's operations."

You nodded, "While that may be true, I'm not just going to be making a quick stop into Rosula headquarters.

...I've decided I'm going to be visiting my family in the Western Slopes of Mont Automnequi."

He choked on his tea, automatically bringing a fist to pound on his chest.

You automatically stood up, looming over the table as you went to thump on his back to get whatever was lodged in his throat to clear out.

However, in response, he held up his other hand as though to stop you. When he finally managed to stop coughing, he immediately began the questioning, "What exactly prompted this sudden need to visit your family again? I understand that you're close with your sisters, but I remember you swore you wouldn't see your parents faces unless absolutely necessary again."

You snapped your fingers pointedly, "Exactly why I must visit this weekend!" You ignored the scandalized noise from your husband's throat as you continued. "My parents will be away from home to partake in a local farmer's market in a nearby town. It'll be one of the only chances I have to see my sisters without the interference of either of them."

It was as though he deflated into his seat at the mention of you leaving for so long so soon. "Surely, they'll be gone for long enough you can push the trip back. If you're truly going to be leaving for so long, I must get in as much time with you as possible."

You shook your head, "Only this weekend. They are adamant that my younger sisters not be expected to tend to any of their crops. They'll only allow Helene and Elise to work the fields and the two of them can only be expected to handle themselves for so long when they've never been forced to work the fields before."

He pursed his lips, crossing his arms, "Well, have you considered bringing your sisters to the Court of Fontaine instead?"

"What in the world are you-"

"Move, Helene, I wish to see the children."

In all of her shock, your twin sister didn't put up any fuss as you pushed her aside in favor of invading the walls of your family home. The small cramped hallway welcomed you, but a little bit too snugly. Your antlers had grown a couple inches since you'd last been inside, so had you funnily enough.

"Odette, Aurelie, Evangeline!"

You crouched to make yourself fit underneath the doorway to the main den, finally standing tall and proud in the main living room where the large family of eight you woke up to every morning often shared breakfast. It didn't take long before you heard a few pairs of footsteps begin to clamber down the staircase.

"Big brother's home!"

A head of pure platinum blonde hair bestowed by your mother's angelic genes was the first to bash itself into your stomach, a groan filling the room as your arms wrapped themselves snug around her little head to get the mini daggers stemmed from her temples off your stomach. Despite looking like a carbon copy of your mother, you sister inherited your father's short, stumpy, bull-like horns that curled forward towards her forehead.

You flicked her on the forehead playfully while your youngest sister all but danced at your heels and the third eldest, just barely brushing past the age of a young lady, stood and watched from the bottom of the stairs. "You're far too tall to be Odette, what did you do with my precious little sister?"

A gleeful giggle lit up the room as she squeezed her arms around your much bigger form. "Don't be silly, it's still me!"

Your own joyful laughter chimed like a bell in tandem with hers. She was still just barely young enough that you could lug her around like a baby. The fact brought a sad twinge to your heart, but instead of settling on it, you hooked your arms under her shoulders and twirled around a big circle in the air.

Evangeline, the baby of the family, tugged impatiently at the leg of your far too luxurious pants. "Me too! Me too!"

She looked similar to yourself and your father, the same hair and a similar build to all those that descended from his half of the family. The two big differences stemmed from her brilliant green eyes and the big antlers that were already growing from the crown of her head. As you set down Odette, you tapped your own antlers while you examined her. "Now look at those horns! Soon enough, they'll be even bigger than mine!"

Her own snickers highlighted the room when you gave into her requests for a turn spinning around in the air, setting her back on the solid ground after giving her a big bear hug.

Evangeline, when you left, had just been barely old enough to remember you as her older brother. She had been four, now, just barely hitting her ninth birthday. Odette had only been six, now eleven.

Then, there was Aurelie.

You turned to her standing at the bottom of the stairway. You might've expected her to have been joyful to see you again, but instead of a happy smile, there was a tight-lipped frown. She had the same color hair and eyes as yourself, your dad's horns, and a much more liberal tongue than your parents had ever cared for. Sheepishly, you opened up your arms in case she might've wanted a hug.

Instead of a hug, she offered an unforgiving punch to your bicep. You winced, only to then be taken off guard by her embrace. She'd been eleven when you'd left, now hitting the pivotal age of 16.

You cocked your head to the side, looking down at where she was burying her own bull-horns in your chest. "I missed you too?"

She clicked her tongue in response, muffled by the fluffy fabric of your cravat in her face, "You're an asshole for not visiting sooner, you know that, right?"

You whistled, "Dad would have your head for swearing. That isn't very ladylike, now is it?"

She pounded her fist on your chest again, smiling when you grunted in acknowledgement, "I should have your head for abandoning me for some rich snob in the capital, besides mom and dad aren't home."

"Hey, it wasn't even my decision," You pulled back from her hug to flick her on the forehead, "And I'll have you know Neuvillette is not a snob."

She rubbed the spot on her head, letting go of your plentiful coat to nurse the new red mark. You gave her one last squeeze before turning your attention back to your much younger, much more hyperactive, little siblings. Their first question was one that had you raising your eyebrows.

"Who's Neuvillette?"

You pursed your lips, turning to look at your twin sister who had finally trailed into the den after you. She shrugged sheepishly in response, "Mom and dad said it'd be best not to say anything to them."

You hummed, crossing your arms. When you finally settled on an answer, you held Odette's hand in yours, the other intertwining fingers with Evangeline, "Well, you know how in all your storybooks there's always a prince to save the princess from her tower or rescue her from the mighty, fearsome, and evil dragon?"

Both little girls nodded their head.

"Let's say I'm the princess," your smile grew when you heard their mischievous laughter, "and our parents are the evil stepmother that made me work all day in the fields so they could go and spend all their time doing other things."

Evangeline raised her hand, you nodded for her to ask her question, "Can we put you in a dress?"

Your twin sister cackled from the doorway. "HAH!"

Your cheeks flushed pink, "Maybe another time, Evangeline." You cleared your throat, "Anyways, so our parents are the evil step parents in the storybook, right?"

The two little girls nodded again.

"I get kidnapped by these evil people that want to hurt me cause I'm a dragon! " You pulled your hand from your sister's to place it dramatically on your forehead, "Even worse, our poor parents don't even know because they're busy doing other things"

There was an audible gasp between the two of them. This time, Odette interrupted without prompting, "If mom and dad didn't know you were gone, how did you manage to get away from them?"

You grinned, "That's where Neuvillette comes in!" You put your hand over your heart, playing up the dramatics, "There I was, being tortured over and over by these terrible people, and then, suddenly a beautiful prince shows up and he beats up all the bad guys!"

Evangeline immediately slapped her smaller hand on top of yours, shaking them back and forth excitedly, "And then you guys kissed and got married!"

You snapped your fingers, your own laugh filling the air, "Exactly!"

Odette frowned, "You got married without us?" She paused again, putting her free hand on her chin, "Wait, since you're the princess, did you wear the wedding dress or did Neuvillette?"

You shook your head, "Sadly, neither of us got to wear a big wedding gown that night. We both wore suits." You paused for a moment, seemingly thinking something over.

"Well, would either of you be interested in meeting him? I might be able to convince him to wear a wedding dress."

“Are you Monsieur Prince Charming? How come you didn't buy our big brother a nice wedding dress?"

Before Evangeline could say anything else further incriminating, you shushed her, "As sure as I am that you have a lot of questions for Neuvillette, you can ask them later. We have a lot we planned to do today and you need to settle into your rooms before we head out."

Before you could convince the two girls to leave, Neuvillette asked aloud curiously, "A wedding dress?"

Odette nodded quickly, "Yeah, if you were going to marry him without us there, you should've at least made sure that he looked pretty!"

Your face lit up a stark claret. Instead of answering, you cleared your throat loudly and motioned towards the large doorway connecting to the residential area of the building, "Come, come, Odette, Evangeline, you'll be rooming together in a bedroom next to Helene." You placed your hand on the small of either girl's back, silently pleading with your twin sister to bail you out of this little situation. From across the room, she watched silently. She was more than amused, only breaking her silence to laugh behind her finest pair of gloves. The pure white fabric seemed to mock the fact that you were being teased over a wedding dress.

With a fake sincerity dripping in her every move, she went to pick up the pitifully small bags that had been packed for their week-long stay in the Palais Mermonia. However, she was quickly stopped by a pair of attendants scrambling to pick them up for her. More surprised than anything, she stopped in her tracks and simply let them handle the group's luggage for them. She called your name in astonishment, "I dare say you're living the easy life, you don't have to so much as lift a finger anymore, do you? I remember having to get you to sit down next to the tub so I could pick clumps of dirt out of your hair when we were still-"

"Helene!" you hissed between gritted teeth, unable to hide the whine forcing the end of your statement to trail up in pitch.

She held her hands up in surrender, her heeled boots clicking against the tiled floors in tandem with the near-silent snickering. "Yes, yes, I suppose I can hold my tongue for your sake. Now, which way are we headed? Only just walking into the place makes me feel like I'm royalty, I simply cannot wait to see the bed chambers!"

Neuvillette could only watch on in quiet bewilderment as you walked your two younger sisters towards their guest room. There was a quiet patience in the way you presented yourself as they hung off of you. Even when they asked to be picked up, without a complaint you slung Evangeline onto your shoulders and silently put up with her tugging on your antlers while she all but squealed in delight at the beautiful, intricate tile and marble works.

It took Aurelie clearing her own throat before Neuvillette seemed to snap out of his daze. "It's a pleasure to meet you Monsieur Neuvillette, I'm Aurelie, fourth eldest of the family. It is a pleasure to call myself an in-law to the well-respected Iudex of Fontaine."

It took a moment to recompose himself, eyes still locked on your long gone frame disappearing behind the large doors. "Ah, truly, the pleasure is all mine. I've long anticipated meeting the newest extension of my own family."

Elise bowed her read respectfully, "I apologize if we aren't as informed in etiquette as you expected. I'm afraid we are only able to pick up so many manners when we live so far away from the Court."

He shook his head, planting the same polite smile on his face as he motioned for her to lift her head again, "You have been more than polite, there is nothing to be afraid of. After all, we are family, treat as you would your brother." He give a small chuckle, "I'm simply surprised to see my husband so spirited."

Aurelie immediately raised a brow, "Really? We've always joked that he's more like the family dog than our brother."

Without missing a beat, Elise swatted her younger sister up the backside of the head. "Aurelia, manners."

Despite having gotten in trouble with her older sister already for not holding her tongue, she held the back of her head bitterly, sputtering out a quick, "What?! He told us to act like we're family!"

She shook her head, disapprovingly. "That doesn't mean to completely drop all pleasantries-"

Their small bickering was cut off when a low rumble resounded through the room. They both turned to look at the source, quiet as they watched Neuvillette try his best to suppress his laughter behind his hand. "Really? I'm curious, how did he manage to earn that title?"

There was a quiet mirth behind his eyes, both girls holding their tongues quietly.

The younger of the two spoke first, "Well, he's just really cuddly, I guess? He always acted more like a dad than our own dad." She took a step further away from Elise before adding on a pointed, "That and dad always yelled at him for leaving holes in the yard during harvest season."

Her elder sister didn't bother attempting to correct her this time, simply sighing. "Well, I suppose if it's alright, I might as well exchange my own experiences. I was the one that watched him grow up." Aurelie perked up immediately, going to open her mouth, but Elise cut her off once again with a sharp tone and a raised hand, "But, I'll only tell you this once and I'm never going to let another word slip if I hear this gets back to him. He'll have my head."

Aurelia nodded quickly, immediately at attention as a wicked smirk overtook her usually demure features. "You should be excited, these are what we would call insider secrets."

Neuvillette nodded silently, quietly resting a majority of his weight on his cane. He was excited, but he didn't know if it was his place to let that show.

Elise took in a deep breath, before using her hands to smooth out any potential wrinkles in her bodice, "Once, our mother and father forgot my birthday during a terrible harvest season. All of our crops were dying and they ended up going to Poisson to try and find a miracle farmer from Sumeru to fix our calamity." Her own smile grew on her cheeks, "The night they left was the night before my birthday, and since our brother knew our parents didn't have anything planned, he tried to make me a special birthday breakfast but he didn't have any clue how to because he was only seven."

She paused before putting a hand over the bottom half of her face, "He tried to make me a batch of my favorite food, Conch Madeleines, but they ended coming out looking more like little pieces of oddly misshapen beignets." There was a sweet chortle that slipped past her glove, "I obviously knew that he tried to make Conch Madeleines since I had no interest in beignets, but when he swore up and down that they were beignets I didn't have to heart to tell him I knew they weren't."

She sighed, "He truly does care a lot for the people he holds dear, but he's a very proud young man and it often gets in the way of him trying to be sincere. If he'd told me that morning he'd bartered away his favorite toy sword to afford the ingredients, I would've taught him how to make them properly myself and he was more than aware of that. But he refused my help altogether and I ended up having to throw away a lot of the that breakfast because it was undercooked."

Neuvillette hummed, placing a contemplative hand on his chin. "Ah, I see."

Aurelie frowned, "Man, I can't even make fun of him for being a softie because you won't tell me anymore stories like this if I do."

Elise nodded in agreement, "Precisely, now let's go find out where those poor girls are holding him captive." She bowed her head politely once again, curtsying before grabbing her younger sister's hand, "If you'll excuse us Monsieur."

He nodded, "Please, call me Neuvillette. I hope to be viewed as just another member of the family."

"15,000 Mora?! This is insanity, this- this might as well be extortion!"

Your eldest sister sputtered as she stared at the price tag on the dress she was supposed to be trying on. Helene, on the other hand, twirled in her own gown. She looked into the mirror with a dreamy and far off stare. Her eyes were intensely focused on each layer in the train and the way they followed her every movement. "Oh, this dress makes me feel like a princess, are you sure this is truly alright to even be trying on?"

Neuvillette nodded, adjusting the cuffs on his own suit. "As much as I offered to chip in, your brother wouldn't so much as let me bring my wallet. He's insistent on being the one to fund all of this."

Elise bit her bottom lip, examining the price tag again. "Oh, but I couldn't think of asking my baby brother to pay for something so extravagant. I'm sure there are some less expensive options somewhere in this store."

Almost as if you had some kind of sixth sense tingling, you entered the room with your three younger sisters all in their own outfits. "Nonsense, I'm more than privileged enough to spoil you all for the day. Think of it as repayment for not visiting for five years."

Your twin sister had snagged a beautiful emerald green gown, each layer transitioning into a darker green until it gradually faded to black. There were silk shoulder length gloves in black that beautifully complimented her figure. Her bright green eyes stared into the mirror, absolutely in love with the way it hugged her curves and accentuated her waistline.

Your oldest sister chose a much more muted mauve color to try on, having always stated that she loved purple. It was a simple A-line gown with fewer layers and a cute sweetheart neckline that dipped into an ornately embroidered white bodice. "Oh but this money could be going to much better things. What about a new pair of pointe shoes for Odette? Or even new toys for Evangeline? Not to mention, Aurelia is thinking of attending school in the capital-"

You put your hand firmly on her shoulder, "Elise, as much as I love you, you have always been a worrywart. Try on the dress, I am not hurting for money. If you, Helene, Odette, Aurelie, or Eva need anything, you need only write me a letter."

She clutched the ballgown in her hands, still staring at it with a swirling sense of uncertainty.

You sighed, "If not for yourself, do it for me? Maybe I want to see my eldest sister feel beautiful in a new gown for once."

She huffed out of her nose, finally hugging the fabric to her chest with a sense of feminine glee she hadn't allowed herself to feel in a while. "Oh, alright. But consider this the first and last time I try on a gown this expensive."

You cheered along with the rest of your family, Aurelia grabbing her by the hand to lead her into one of the many dressing rooms in case she needed help lacing up her corset. Aurelia herself chose to avoid wearing a dress entirely. Instead, she wore a conservative pant suit with a flashy red coat and a high riding boots the same color.

Neuvillette took the opportunity to watch as you began to spin your younger sister around, Evangeline clapping in glee as she watched the two of you twirl around.

Odette had chosen a pure white gown, graced with white feathers on the front of the dress. She chose to skip gloves and even had a shorter dress to show the length of her slender, toned legs. When she'd been born, your mother had been so insistent she be named after the famed protagonist of Swan Lake she'd nearly divorced your father to ensure her love of dance would be carried on through the family.

Even now, as your family struggled to make ends meet with you gone, you always insisted on sending enough money to your parents to make sure your siblings were cared for. This included money that was specifically allotted to pay for each expensive pair of pointe shoes that your younger sister wore out when she would make the walk to the nearest city to study dance.

A new, pristine white pair of ballet slippers on her feet, Odette laughed with a shy glee as she rehearsed the steps to the Sugarplum Fairy's dance in the middle of the private room you'd rented in the high end boutique. Despite having two left feet yourself, your etiquette lessons finally served you right, allowing you the necessary grace to support her in her turns as you gingerly spun her around in her pirouettes.

Your husband let his posture soften when your youngest sister bowed to indicate the end of her little dance. He clapped politely, "You are a wonderful dancer, Odette."

You nodded, chest puffing out with pride as you rested your hands on her shoulders. "You truly are, mother is always more than proud when she writes of your accomplishments. You will make a wonderful performer when you sign on with a company."

She nodded shyly, suddenly bashful from the attention. It seemed Evangeline noticed the brewing tension in the air as she quickly changed the topic, jumping up and down with a cheerful, "Me next! Me next!"

Neuvillette also couldn't help the smile that rose to his face when you took your nine-year-old sister's hands in your own, twirling her around like a top while she giggled in her baby pink ballgown. The expensive sequins dragged against the beautiful tiled floors, and yet it seemed nobody in the room was able to hear the scraping over the noise of unbridled joy all throughout the room.

You, yourself, were in a new suit that was the same color you always wore. It was a little more extravagant than usual, something Neuvillette chalked up to you wanting to indulge a little bit while your sisters were in town. He had chosen a more conservative, but comfortable blue suit. He stated it would be something to wear around the Palais Mermonia when he didn't have any trials.

You couldn't deny he was still as handsome as ever... or that you were more than happy to gift him this suit.

He couldn't deny the way your sisters seemed to ignite a new spark in your eyes he hadn't had the pleasure of seeing before.

Aurelia and Elise emerged from their dressing chambers after caving and begging Helene for help with the corset. Elise seemed all too eager to hide behind your twin sister, but she couldn't seem to shield away from everyone's prying eyes. Speeding up the process, you yanked her out from her cover and spun her around in the beginning steps of the waltz. Evangeline squealed with glee; Elise all but shrunk in on herself.

Her heels clicked against the floor as she called your name, reprimanding you with a tremble in her tone, "You'll dirty the dress, We haven't bought anything yet-"

You nodded sternly, jokingly of course, "Well then, everyone gather up their things, we'll pay for them now so you can truly enjoy them."

Before she could voice any protest about the mind-boggling amount of money you were about to drop, she couldn't help but close her mouth again when she watched the two youngest girls all but skip towards their respective dressing chambers, all smiles. She only felt further cornered when the older girls did nearly the same, whispers and giggles the entire way.

With a sigh, she went to collect her own clothing in her new expensive dress.

You couldn't help the unadulterated happiness that was written all over your features as you approached your husband, still sitting in the corner observing everyone.

"I apologize if this isn't your scene, love." You gave him a chaste peck on the cheek, "I might be getting a little carried away."

He only smiled in return, hands coming to rest on the lapels of your coat. "On the contrary, I'm more than happy to see you get carried away." He gave a firm tug to straighten out any wrinkles, smoothing them out further with the back of his hand, "I haven't seen you this smitten with anything really ever."

"For being as expensive as it is, you'd think there'd be more of it."

You hid your laugh (and inconsequential agreement) behind your napkin with a cough. Neuvillette himself couldn't help the small smirk that appeared and then disappeared off his face just as quickly as it showed up.

You wiped the smile off your face with your fabric napkin before laying it in your lap once again. "Well, at the fancier upscale places like this, they cook things in small portions but then give you like twenty courses so you can be full and try everything all at once."

Aurelia frowned from where she was sitting, staring down at the small plate with barely anything on it. "That's-" She could feel Elise's hot glare beating down her back, "...not very intuitive. Why have all these small meals that are-" she paused again, thinking hard on her word choice, "-unconventional, when you can order one big one that you know you'll enjoy?"

You simply shrugged back at her, instinctively picking up your salad fork to pick at the green leaves in front of you. It'd been long enough in noble society that it came as muscle memory. You leaned in to whisper in her ear, "If you ask me, that's a much better way of doing it."

Her brows further creased her forehead as she looked down at the copious amounts of silverware set in front of her. Coming from a family that lived in the countryside, especially when that family usually didn't even utilize a knife unless they were cutting thick chunks of meat, she was more than confused. It seemed, so was the rest of your family.

Elise did her best to follow your example and Neuvillette's, picking up the smallest fork to her left. She pointed to the same fork in front of both of the younger girls, "This one, this one should be for salads."

Odette huffed, grasping onto the normal "dinner fork" next to it. "I don't see why I can't use this one."

Helene did her best to mediate, "Well, just think about it like this, if you could chose, you wouldn't want to mix your salad with your meat, right? You'd want to be able to have a fork for each and every food you tried so that then you could taste only that food, right?"

Evangeline was the next one to interject, "Well, I wouldn't want to cause that's a lot more dishes to wash."

Helene bit her bottom lip to stifle her laughter, she couldn't help the shift in her tone when she went to continue in her corrections, "Well, here, you don't need to wash the dishes. We just get to eat without worrying about it."

Odette's frown only deepened, "Well if we don't wash it, someone else will have to wash it, right? Why not just use the same fork so they don't need to wash more dishes than necessary?"

Elise pursed her lips, "That's enough with the questions, from the both of you. This is the proper fork to use, please use it."

Immediately, as soft-hearted as you were, you stepped up to the defense of your younger sisters. "Oh, don't be so harsh on them Elise, they're only girls, let them use whatever fork they want. I didn't invite you to the city to force you to follow rules everywhere you went."

The muscles in her cheek tightened as she held her own fork in her hand, she hadn't even dug into the food yet. "Well, I worry for if one of them manages to find a husband or wife that lives in the court. What if they grow tired of their lack of manners? Oh, I wouldn't be able to live with myself."

You rested your hand on top of hers, "If their potential suitors have any problems with their lack of etiquette, they can take it up with their older brother. I will be more than happy to set the record straight."

"You can't really expect that you'll always be there, sometime the girls need to detach themselves-"

You put your hand up, setting down your own salad fork and picking up your dinner fork. You used it to scoop up a healthy amount of salad before shoveling it into your mouth. You chewed slowly, watching the horror spread over your sister's face. You then swallowed your food, "It isn't as big a problem as you're making it out to be." You turned to Neuvillette, "After all, you still love me all the same, don't you?"

He blinked owlishly a few times, his cheeks painting themselves in a soft pink that was barely recognizable under the dimmed candlelight atmosphere of the restaurant. "Oh- Yes, of course I do."

You smiled triumphantly, now opting to comfortably switch to using your dinner fork exclusively. "I rest my case, dear sister." Even if you would have to go back to being called a "cute countryman" for the night, it would be more than worth it if you could spare your sisters the embarrassment of feeling like fools.

Despite your more than clear demonstration, Elise protested once again. "Well, not all nobles are as understanding as Neuvillette. I don't want any chances to be ruined for Evangeline, Aurelia, Helene, or Odette just because they don't know which fork to use."

You hummed, taking another bite of food into your mouth. You wiped your lips with your napkin again, "I find it strange you didn't include yourself in that arrangement. I'm sure the girls can decide for themselves who they want to marry in the future since I've already been married off by mother and father, you only need to worry about the kind of man you wish to marry in the future."

She huffed, simply unable to drop the topic. You could tell there was true irritation dripping through her veins when you heard the audible smack of the end of her tail against the ground. "You know what I mean, I want them to have an easy life. If it means scolding them occasionally, then so be it."

You sighed, setting your fork back down in its appropriate spot. "Elise, as I said before, they're only girls. The moment they go home, the only fork they're going to be using is going to be a dinner fork. They're going to forget all about this little 'lesson'." You added on cautiously, "I wouldn't want any of my sisters to marry a man that would shame them for their less than well-off upbringing. As much as they may love him, if I see him so much as utter a sour word towards any of the three of them, I will have his head."

Neuvillette couldn't help but feel a sense of proud vindication course through his bones as he watched you defend your younger sisters so vehemently. Something in his gut compelled him to do something else to back you up, besides just sit there and nod his head. It would seem like he was too put on the spot to truly agree.

Hesitantly, he laid his salad fork down on the table.

While your sisters couldn't tell what he was doing, your eyebrows raised immediately.

He picked up his dinner fork pointedly, taking a bite of his own portion quietly. After properly chewing and swallowing, he couldn't help the bashful smile adorning his normally composed and refined features as he felt your gaze infinitely soften.

"I don't see any harm in it, let the little ones use whatever utensils make them comfortable. If they need to learn these skills later, I have full confidence they're bright young ladies who will have no problems grasping the concept then."

"Eva, Odette, what are you two doing still awake?"

That was the first thing Neuvillette heard when he was stirred from his sleep. Groggily, his eyes blinked open when he felt two different smaller weights shift onto the mattress. Where you'd previously been laid down, you now sat up with your back pressed against the headboard. Silk pajamas loosely hanging off your shoulders, you held a worn brown storybook in your hands. Evangeline cozied herself up underneath your arm while Odette remained seated in front of you on the bed.

It seemed you weren't quite awake enough to really register that there was a book in your hands, seeing as you stared between the two girls in half-asleep confusion. Neuvillette chose not to interfere in the moment between family, instead he opted to observe as the two girls waited patiently.

"Eva had a nightmare," Odette whispered, resting her palms on top of the aged and well-loved pages, "I tried to read to her, but she said it wasn't the same as when you or Helene did it."

With each little muffled thump of the end of one of their tails on the bedspread, he could see more awareness soak your expression as you absorbed your surroundings. You took a deep breath, rubbing the remaining sleep out of your eyes. He shut his eyes as you scanned over what should've been his sleeping form.

Your voice was lowered to a raspy whisper as you shifted around in the bed, "As much as I would love to read you a bedtime story, Neuvillette is in bed with us. We can go back to your room and read it."

At this his eyes fluttered open again, a sleep-steeped noise resounding from the back of his throat as he pulled himself to sit as well. He curved his back, all but purring at the various cracks the resounded from his spine. "There's no need to leave now, they've already made the trip."

You sighed, voice remaining much quieter than it usually was, "It seems I can never seem to get anything past you, can I?"

He shook his head with a small smile, motioning for you to hand over the brown hard back in your lap. You blinked a few times, not really able to process his request. He reached towards the lamp on the beside table, clicking the soft light on so the letters on the page became legible. You turned open the first page of the book, interpreting it as him gesturing for you to start reading.

With a small huff, he reached forward and set his own palm down on the book, asking for permission to take it from you. This time, Odette chimed in, "Are you going to read for us, Monsieur Neuvillette?"

You blinked a couple times, finally processing what he was implying. You squeezed your little sister with one arm, "Would that help you sleep? If Neuvillette read you a story?" You smiled at her, a little bit too tired to really censor the soft affection all over your face as you attempted to reassure her, "He has a very soothing voice."

Evangeline nodded quickly, just about burying herself in the sleeve of your sleep-shirt. She hung on your bicep like it was a teddy bear. Odette herself laid her head on your thigh, curling up into a little ball on top of your blankets.

Doing your best not to disturb either girls positions, you pushed the book into Neuvillette's waiting palms. He yawned into the back of his hand, doing his best to blink the sleep out of his eyes as he scanned the rather large print on the page.

It was the average children's storybook, more pictures than it was words. Still, he mustered up his best storyteller voice. "Once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess. Her name was Snow White."

Neuvillette paused, flipping to the next page. It seemed the sound of the flipping page further pacified the younger girls. "Snow White lived inside of a castle with her father, the King, and her mother, the Queen. But, things were about to change very soon." You remained silent as he flipped to the next page. "Snow White was very young when her mother died, but it was a long time before the King would remarry."

You delicately stroked your finger's across the older of the two's scalp, adding a flippant, "This was because the King loved the Queen so much he couldn't stand to so much as look at another woman.

He smiled as he once again turned the page, basking in the warmth of such a quiet scene. "Well, ultimately, for the good of the kingdom, the King ended up marrying a new woman, a new queen." He put both of his palms on the page of the book, deciding he too could add onto the story himself, "Now, the new queen was very beautiful, but she knew she would never be as beautiful as Snow White." Flipping to the next page of the book, his lavender pupils glazed over the text before adding, "Even though she knew this, she went up to her magic mirror and she asked it, 'Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?'"

It was a little bit before the two girls found themselves trailing off to the land of dreams. Your voice lowered to a whisper when you realized the two of them had fallen asleep on you, just like they always had at your home in the Western Slopes of Mont Automnequi. "Thank you."

Neuvillette's head tilted to the side curious as he set the book on the nightstand situated on his side of the room. "What for?"

You gestured with your free hand to the two sleeping children on your lap, "With story time, usually, they don't fall asleep this quickly." Your own voice slurred with a tired undercurrent. "I usually get to the end of the story and have to start making some stuff up."

He nodded silently, turning off the lamp at the side of the table off. "Do you need any help laying back down? I wouldn't want you to wake up with a sore back."

You shook your head, whispering back, "They're heavy sleepers once you can actually get them to bed." With this, you scooted around on the plush bed, slinking underneath the covers after carefully maneuvering around your sisters to ensure you wouldn't crush them. You reached your hand out of the little happy cuddle pile of draconic dreams, intertwining your fingers with his. You pressed the back of his cool knuckles to the side of your face, letting your eyelids fall over your pupils once again.

You pressed a sloppy, but almost ghostlike kiss over the band on his ring finger before letting out a sleepy grunt under your breath and pulling the covers ever tighter around yourself and your sisters.

He couldn't help but stare down at the three of you, a sense of domestic longing settling over his heart. This, he realized, was something he felt he couldn't do any longer without.

As of now, he was just about drowned in his work, but what he wouldn't do to have just a little more time to spend with you in moments like this. To have happy moments on the town, to see this entirely new side of you he had yet to explore.

His heart skipped a beat as he realized the two of you had an entire lifetime ahead of the both of you. A lifetime where you could share these moments forever. Every morning, he would wake up to your face. Every night, he had the blessing of being able to fall asleep listening to you breathing in rhythm with him. He could feel the warm of your face pressed against the back of his hand. Just little moments like these, you had decades, centuries of them just waiting to be realized.

Maybe the two you could share these tender moments with a family, a family you could start together.

there's a note on the side of the phone booth, read it?

" yes guys this is the result of begging me for mpreg u get a throw away line at the end of a fic "

THIS IS A REPOSTED WORK FROM MY ORIGINAL ACCOUNT BEFORE IT CRAPPED AND DIED ON ME

I USED TO BE FOUND AT @steadybear

I FEAR YOU WILL HAVE TO DEAL WITH SEEING @bigtedbear INSTEAD FROM NOW ON

[hxllfires-gifs]

PAIRING. cornelia jakobs x fem!reader

SUMMARY. cornelia is picked to be sweden’s representative in eurovision and decides to take her girlfriend to italy with her.

WORD COUNT. 1,154

Y/N WAS SURE that if someone told her a year or so ago that she would be in Italy for 2022 Eurovision with her girlfriend who was a contestant, she would not have believed it at all; not because she doubted Cornelia but because she hadn’t attended the contest or even traveled much outside of Sweden. She had the occasional trip here and there but it was nothing too special.

She was thankful for the opportunity that was given to both her and her girlfriend. She had been there every step of the way for her blonde lover and she was beyond proud. For the time that she’d known Cornelia, she was always hardworking and she deserved all of the credit and love. Being chosen to be the Swedish representative for the contest was something that many people dreamed of.

It had become a reality for the Jakobs but she was still processing everything as each day passed by since things were moving so much faster than anticipated. It genuinely did feel as though yesterday was when she was selected, but that was months ago. The time proved to be something that the two of them needed to enjoy since Eurovision was not going to last forever, no matter who had wanted it to.

There was a level of stress but Y/N being there helped tremendously with the blonde’s varying degrees of emotional drainage. With each interaction Cornelia had, the more she needed some quiet time in the hotel with the woman she loved. Feeling emotionally and physically drained was not something that she experienced often but it always took its toll on her when she did, but it honestly was to be expected in some capacity.

Eurovision was a very social heavy event, which was understandable but Cornelia just needed those small moments alone with her girlfriend to recover from the stress. She did want to do well, just like everyone else she’d met over the span of a month and a half. For her, this contest was such an important and exciting experience, so she attempted to get that thought into her head more; she wasn’t going to take it for granted.

The L/N watched as Cornelia finished the process of getting ready for rehearsals. She was amazed by the backstage preparations and questioned if she should change jobs or not; it was a question that appeared often in her brain but she never once acted on it. To be completely honest, she wasn’t sure if she would do well, so she resorted to watching it instead. Her girlfriend was so invested and it was quite the sight to see.

She didn’t realize she was staring until the Jakobs brought it up with a smirk, “Angel, if you take a picture then it’ll last longer.” Each word was teasing and gave more reason for the H/C haired girl to blush at her girlfriend’s tone.

“You can’t blame me,” Y/N spoke truthfully as she went to sit down on a nearby couch. She grew tired of standing around so she’d chosen to rest her body, but still paid close attention to the Swede.

Cornelia smiled at the simple sentence as she expected the L/N to say something like that. “I’m pretty, I know.” She was messing with the other female since she was always told about how pretty she was. They would often have compliment battles and that was a normality for the couple; of course, it was started by Y/N and stuck around over time.

“Yes, you are! You’re the prettiest person I have ever seen.” Y/N complimented Cornelia without much thought or hesitation.

The Jakobs gave her a pointed look when she began speaking. “I think you are talking about yourself. Also, I have to do some voice warmups, so you can’t distract me. The last time, you were making me laugh too much. I love your humor but rehearsals are in seven minutes.”

“Got it, boss.” The H/C haired woman saluted her partner as a way to tease her before leaning back on the couch, listening to Cornelia’s vocal warmups once she had started them.

Cornelia rolled her eyes before starting to warm her voice; the process took a couple of minutes but finished quite quickly. With a minute or two left, she could feel some slight nervousness creeping through her since this was the last rehearsals before the second Semi-Final. She was hoping that everything turned out as it should and that she would end up qualifying when the show actually started.

She heard her girlfriend stand up and the sound of her footsteps neared. Y/N was very aware of the signs Cornelia’s body gave in her times of fear and anxiety, so she could tell that her lover was feeling one of those, if not both. She yearned to help as much as she could whenever this happened since the blonde would always do the same for her. It made things much easier as they were both in tune with one another’s emotions.

“Hey, you’re okay. You are going to kill it, both at rehearsals and the Semi-Final. The people love you and your song. You’ve got this! I believe in you completely.” Y/N didn’t stop talking until she was sure that Cornelia was feeling a bit better.

The L/N didn’t always know what to say if she did not understand what something felt like, but she would comfort her lover even if she didn’t understand to the fullest extent. She would try her best regardless of what was happening. She wanted for the woman she loved to know that she wasn’t alone and that she would always have support, both of those being truthful.

The Swede made eye contact with Y/N, a small smile overtaking the anxiety because of the comforting words and presence. She was beyond thankful for her girlfriend and it was always something she’d tell her often in their daily life. How could she not? She was absolutely in love with Y/N.

“Thank you, lovely. I truly don’t know what I would do without you in my life. You’re very beautiful and sweet. I could go on about my admiration for you but that’ll have to be in private, later on. For now, I’ve got to make sure everything is perfect for tonight.” The blonde leaned forward and her lips met her girlfriend’s for a short but loving kiss.

The two had to break apart for Cornelia to leave but Y/N wished her good luck for what seemed to be the hundredth time already. It would be a lie if the blonde said she did not enjoy it or find it to be cute. Whilst the Jakobs ran through her performance, Y/N L/N watched with nothing but fondness in her eyes since she adored seeing Cornelia doing what she loved; it was one thing that she could witness forever if she were allowed to.

[evermoresqueiswriting]

dance the night

"Baby, you can find me under the lights Diamonds under my eyes Turn the rhythm up, don't you wanna just Come along for the ride? Oh, my outfit so tight You can see my heartbeat tonight I can take the heat, baby, best believe That's the moment I shine"

summary: barbie date and an invitation from clarisse you can't refuse

pairing: clarisse la rue x f!reader

word count: 3.4k

tags: fluff fluff fluff

series masterlist 2/?

You were getting more and more comfortable at camp. You were getting along very well with your siblings. Especially Lee and Cornelia, who explained everything – sometimes twice – to you. They also explained to you that if you wanted to leave camp during the summer, you needed to get an authorisation from Mr. D. And Clarisse knew, so she told you to get it since it was your idea to go see that movie. Your siblings told you he rarely gave them away. 

“Mmh. I accept this challenge.”

“It really wasn’t,” Lee said. “It was a piece of information at best.”

You walked, determined, to Mr. D’s office. You didn’t have many arguments, but Cornelia did tell you Mr. D was always looking for campers to give him alcohol even though his father, Zeus, forbade him to drink any. Mr. D was playing cards with Chiron. Maybe it wasn’t the right time, you hesitated before Chiron looked up.

“Yes?” he said, putting his cards down. 

“Mmh,” you froze before staring at your camp director, “I needed to talk to Mr. D, please.”

Chiron turned his face to look at Mr D, and he took off his sunglasses before looking at you.

“What?”

“I need authorisation to leave camp for one day,” you explained firmly. “Please.”

“And why would I give you that?” 

“Because I need it. For next week, the 21st,” you begged.

Mr D stared at you, bored. He was ready to take back his cards, when you shouted, desperately.

“I–I’ll give you alcohol in exchange!” 

“No you will not!” Chiron gave you a hard stare. “Zeus–.”

“I’m desperate, so yes I will.” 

Mr D was still silent. 

“What is this about y/n?” Chiron asked. “Why do you need to leave camp?”

“I– I asked Clarisse on a date. Well,” you faltered. “It’s not exactly a date I don’t think, it’s more like I won a bet, and what I asked for was for us to go see a movie together. So maybe it is? And it would suck for me if I can’t go, when I won the bet you know.”

Chiron and you were both looking at Mr. D, and you had your best puppy eyes for him.

“Still a no for me,” Mr. D took his cards. 

“Please, please, please, please, please!” 

Mr. D shook his head. You sighed, thinking about what to say to try and convince him to let you go. 

“That’s–,” you hesitated before blurting out “such a homophobic thing to do in 2024 to refuse to let us go on a date! Which is what that is… a date, with us girls.”

“What?” Mr. D muttered confused.

“And during pride month? You have no shame. It’s–.”

“Fine, if I give you this authorisation, will you shut up and leave?”

You nodded vigorously. And Mr. D sent you a  flying paper with the snap of a finger, and after reading the paper to make sure it was legit – which did take a few minutes – you ran away in case he changed his mind. The first person you ran into Luke and asked him if he had seen Clarisse. He pointed at the Ares cabin, and told you he saw her go in. 

You walked to her cabin, and knocked, shouting Clarisse’s name over and over again. The door flew open, revealing an annoyed Clarisse.

“Hi,” you smiled. 

Her face softened slightly at your sight, but she still looked at you annoyed, with her arms crossed. 

“What?”

“Guess what?” your hands were in your back, hiding away the piece of paper you got earlier.

“Your boyfriend called your mom to ask her why you ditched him?” 

“What?” you hesitated. “No. First, I don't have a boyfriend, they were all losers in my school. And no girlfriends either for the same reason.”

“Good,” she nodded. “So what was the news then?”

The paper was still held behind your back, you held her gaze a few more seconds before showing her proudly the paper. She looked at the paper, frowning, and then took your paper. You stood there patiently, swinging on your feet, waiting for her to finish reading it at her own pace. 

“How did you get Mr. D to agree to this?” she puts the paper down. 

“It’s a secret. But I’ll tell you if you want to know.”

“Of course I do, no one here in years got one of these,” she shook the paper in front of you. 

You held up your index, and made a ‘come closer’ motion with it. She came closer, and you put your face even closer, her nose almost touching yours. Clarisse was taller than you – taller than most campers actually – and your face was facing up. And having her this close to you, it was as if time had stopped. You smiled. 

“I promised him alcohol,” you whispered. 

“What!” she stepped back. “Do you know Zeus–.”

“I know, I know, Cornelia told me. I don’t remember what I said after that,’ you lied, “I guess he just likes me.”

“Okay,” Clarisse smiled, “liar.”

Clarisse and you stood there, at the threshold of the Ares cabin for a few more moments, just enjoying each other's company before her siblings ran in, pushing you toward Clarisse. Your  body slammed against hers, her arms wrapped around your shoulders to steady you. You would have been upset if it weren’t for the outcome. But Clarisse quickly let go before grabbing the shirt of her brother – Mark – and made him stop in his tracks. You didn’t hear what she said, but you saw Mark nodding vigorously before walking away. 

“Let’s get out of here,” Clarisse grabbed your arm and led you outside. 

“So,” you started when she stopped under a tree and sat there. “Do you know what you’re going to wear?”

“No. Do you?”

“Uh obviously! I have the perfect outfit for Barbie. I actually planned this before coming here, minus the ‘going to camp half-blood’ cause I didn’t think I’d end up here. It’s all pink, and cute and oh, should I also do my nails? Should we do our nails all pink?” you beamed at the idea.

“No.”

“True, yours do look very good in black,” you nodded. “Oh, we could cosplay Barbie and Raquelle. But it’s not going to be accurate, Raquelle hates Barbie.”

“I think it’s pretty accurate,” she shrugs. 

You slapped her arms playfully before laying your head on her lap. The weather was nice, the sun was out and the leaves were shading you from it, the perfect combination for you to take a nap. And then Clarisse started to run her fingers on your arm which made it for you. You were asleep in no time.

“Wake up sunshine,” Clarisse pinched you lightly on the hip. You jerked awake. 

“What?” you mumbled, standing up. 

“I have to meet up with my brothers and sisters for the next Capture the Flag strategy.”

“Can I come too?” you yawned. 

“We’re not on the same team, remember.”

“I won’t tell them anything.”

“Nope,” she walked away, “don’t follow me,” she turned around, walking backwards. 

I’d follow you everywhere you go Clarisse La Rue. 

“I won’t,” you said instead. 

The night before the date, you laid out your outfit neatly before washing up to go to bed. Cornelia was your bunkmate, with the bed above yours. But before going to sleep, you loved updating each other’s day. 

“So tomorrow huh,” Cornelia sat on your bed. “I never thought I’d live to see Clarisse being friendly with anyone other than her siblings.”

“I think she’s funny.”

“Sure, if funny was a synonym of mean. Wait– do you even have money to spend on tomorrow’s activities?” 

“Actually I do. Mr. D did tell me he wouldn’t give me any, and thank gods I found a load of cash in my backpack. My mom gave it to me. I mean she did write it was for any expense that I would have to make on my way home, but I have other priorities.”

“Clearly,” she rolled her eyes, laughing. “You’re gonna regret this in August.”

“Don’t worry about it.”

Like before any exciting day, it took some time to fall asleep. Anxiety and excitement mixing together, making up the worst and best scenarios. What if Clarisse is just messing with you and forgot? That can’t happen, you just saw her a few hours ago talking about it. What if you annoyed her so much with it, she’d stood you up? What if she doesn’t like everything you planned? Not a single positive and happy ‘what if’ comes to your mind. 

“Wake up!” someone shakes you awake. “It’s 8 already, you're going to be late!” Cornelia said. 

“Fuck!” you ran to the washroom. 

You rushed through your routine, before rushing back to your bed and grabbed your outfit, and put it on. And all of that only took 28 minutes. You looked at yourself in the mirror for a final check up, before opening the door. Clarisse was already there. Her curls free, just like the first time you saw her. It felt weird not seeing her in her usual orange tee, but she still looked pretty. She wore a simple short brown tank top with blue faded jeans, with her beaded necklace still hanging from her neck.

“You look really pretty today,” Clarisse smiled shyly, holding her arms around her.

“Thanks,” you approached her, putting your hands on her arms and leaned in, “you look pretty every day.”

“Don’t come home too late,” Lee interrupted, appearing just next to you. 

“Don’t worry, but also don’t wait up!” 

You grabbed Clarisse’s hand and dragged her away from your cabin. A taxi was waiting for you outside of the camp, and in no time you were at the local theatre in the middle of nowhere. And lucky for you, the people of this town weren’t going to see the 9:30am slot for Barbie. Except for that one couple sitting in the back. You dragged Clarisse in the middle, and sat with the popcorn and sodas. You ate in silence, watching the trailers. 

Well that was not fun. The worst ‘what ifs’ from last night came back immediately making you anxious. It was not supposed to be like this. What if she wasn’t enjoying herself. What if she was mad because she ate a salty popcorn when you asked for the sweet ones. What if she was disappointed—

“Ouch,” you looked at her, frowning, rubbing your arm. “Why did you do that?”

“You were ignoring me.”

“What? Oh I– I didn’t hear sorry.”

“I asked you, what’s the deal with Barbie anyway? Why are you so excited about a blonde, white, plastic doll?”

“W– Barbie is not– ok. She is a plastic doll, and she may not look like us but it’s the idea of Barbie, the idea that us women can be anything we want. And how in Barbie Land, it’s all about girls and women being able to be whoever they want, and have whatever jobs they want. Barbie is literally a doctor, a pilot, a model, a chef, a fashion designer, a business woman, a teacher – she has every job in the world. And there is no one telling her that she can’t do that because she’s not a man. And also, the Barbie franchise is my childhood. The movies, they deserve an Oscar honestly–,” you stopped. “Sorry, I talk too much.”

“I asked,” her attention went back to the screen. “So did you have any barbies?”

“Of course! I had Barbie's dreamhouse, and so many barbies and outfits. I’m surprised I didn’t end up being a writer with all my imagination. Did you?”

“No.”

“No?”

“My mom wasn’t the kind to buy me anything. And certainly not dolls.”

“Oh.”

“Don’t feel sad for me, I’m fine,” she gave you a quick glance.

“I’m not!” you frowned. “So you never watched Barbie and A Christmas Carol? The best Barbie movie ever?”

“Nope.”

“Oh, we have to change that. Mmh. But phones and laptops aren’t allowed though… Maybe if I bring my mom’s DVD player next summer.” 

“Already planning on your next move to woo me?” she teased, approaching you. 

Your eyes widened, your cheeks were hot.

“I– No! I– I– I don’t.”

“Relax sunshine, I’m kidding,” she laughed. 

And just then, the lights went out and the movie was about to start, thank the gods. Because you did not know what to say. The movie was incredible, you shed a few tears at the end, and sang Dance The Night with Clarisse laughing and cheering you on. It was a great experience, and it was even better to have watched it with Clarisse. 

“Did you like it?” you asked her when the credits started rolling.

“Yes. It was great.”

“And you’ll love the other Barbie movies because they are way less depressing.”

“So, what’s next?” she stood up.

“It’s almost time to eat, what do you want?”

“Whatever you want.”

“No you choose, I insist,” you smiled.

Really you were just very indecisive. Clarisse settled for a burger place not too far away from the cinema. There weren't many people inside, so you were able to choose where to sit – a table next to the window. It was a booth seat, so you had your own booth each, facing each other, menu in hand. 

“So, what are you choosing?” you asked her.

“I’ll take the Highwayman. You?”

“The Roadhouse looks good.”

Clarisse raised her hand and weaved at the waitress, when you grabbed her hand. 

“Wait!”

“What?”

“Can you order for me please?”

She furrowed her brow, but nodded. You smiled. You only waited ten-or-so minutes before the waitress came back with your food. Like always, you checked the inside of your burger before eating it, you picked out the onions and the tomato. 

“What are you doing?”

“I don’t like these.”

“Couldn’t you have asked the waitress to take them out.”

“No…”

“Give me your tomato then,” she opened her burger bun.

You were the one entertaining lunch. Clarisse asked questions about your life and you told her – you told her stories about your childhood, your school, your mom and she listened, nodding along. Once you were done, you took a cab and decided to go to the mall. 

“We don’t have any money,” Clarisse stopped you when you were going to step into the mall. 

“I do. Remember I paid for the tickets, and the food.”

“Yeah, but I thought you only had enough for these.”

“Nope. Well, remember how I said my mom is an opera singer. It was you fifty percent talent and fifty percent nepotism and generational wealth. Meaning I’m rich, I mean my mom but her love language is sending me money for not raising me,” you joked.

She stared at you, concerned. 

“I’m kidding,” you grabbed her hand, “let’s shop.”

Clarisse refused to accept anything you’d set eyes on for her. 

“Well, at least try on some of them, just to see.”

She agreed to it, which was a mistake because now that you knew her size, you could buy her everything she laid eyes on. She was trying on this dark green simple long sleeve tee shirt, and after she put it back, you took it with you.

“What are you doing?” she tried to grab the tee shirt back. 

“I might want it for myself!” you hid it behind your back. 

‘Doesn’t look like something you’d wear.”

“My style changes, it depends on my mood. Maybe I want us to have matching clothes.”

“Then why is there only one in your hand?”

You quickly grabbed another one. And then it was settled. You’d buy her things and then another copy for you – everything went, from boots to tee shirts to pants, and jackets. Then you went to a jewellery shop. You needed new rings because yours flew away from your hands during the last Capture the Flag – they were obviously a tad too big. 

“Did you find anything you like?” you asked her. 

“No, they aren't the most useful things to have.”

You pouted, and threw a bunch on the table. 

“What are you doing?”

“Putting these back on the shelves, cause I chose half of these for you,” you sighed dramatically. 

“Oh,” she took a look at the jewellery. 

Various rings and bracelets.

“They’re great, I love them.”

“No you don’t.”

“You picked them out so yes, I do.”

“You don’t have to, it’s fine,” you sighed. 

“Maybe you don’t have to buy all of it, just one of each.”

You nodded, and picked one ring for her, and two bracelets for each of you. You gave them to the seller to wrap them and left to look at other items. Clarisse soon joined you and soon enough the seller gave a little bag, you paid and left. Your hands were full of shopping bags, and before leaving you needed a little bit of rest so you two sat on the chairs in the resting area. Thankfully the mall wasn’t too crowded as it was still early in the afternoon on a random Tuesday. 

“Huh!” you gasped pointing at something behind Clarisse.

“What?” she turned around swiftly, not seeing any threat. 

“A photobooth!” you smiled.

You stood up, grabbed all of your bags and walked to the booth, hoping Clarisse was following you. You turned around, and Clarisse was still sitting still, legs crossed, leaned into the chair, staring at you. You held your hands together, and motionned her to come. She didn’t move for a good minute, but seeing how you weren’t going to move, she caved in and stood up. 

“Sunshine,” she put her hands on your shoulders, “you can look at me for free, I won’t charge you, don’t worry.” 

You rolled your eyes, smiling. 

“You’ll thank me in a few years because of this. Pictures are the best kind of souvenirs.”

Clarisse got in first, the space was a tight fit, and you were glued to Clarisse, but you two fit in the frame so it was good. You put the coins inside, and waited for it to take the picture. But that was not good enough for Clarisse – she put her arm around your waist and scooped you onto her lap.

“Better?” 

You nodded, staring at her. 

“Better,” you confirmed. 

You went to take a pose but too late, the four pictures were already taken. 

“It’s fine, we’ll take another one.”

Another turned into another few more and you ended with a ton of pictures. By the time you left the mall it was already pretty late. Almost time to go home. But neither of you wanted that, so you went to the beach instead – main beach in the east. It was empty – people at this hour were all eating. You two sat on the sand, far from the shore. 

“Did you have a great time?” you asked.

“Yes,” she looked at you, “did you?”

You nodded enthusiastically. 

“Aren’t you glad you lost that bet against me?”

“Mmh,” she shrugged, “my option would’ve been just as good for me.”

“Well, I am glad I won. I prefer this option much better.”

Clarisse started to lay down but you grabbed her arm. 

“Sand will get in your hair.”

“I’ll wash it tonight, it’s fine.”

You shook your head, and took off your blouse and laid it on the sand, behind Clarisse. She tried to protest, but you were quicker. 

“I don’t want this day to end,” you admitted, staring at the waves. “I don’t think Mr. D will give us another authorisation anytime soon,” you laughed. 

Clarisse stared at you, not saying anything. You arrived at camp only a week ago, and yet you two were already closer than she was with any of her siblings. You were nice to her, always rooting for her, and you were a great friend. Not many people were these things to the Ares kids. 

“There this field trip around October,” Clarisse sat up again, “I suppose you’re not staying around the whole year. But it’d be great if you could come.”

“A field trip? To where?”

“It’s something we do once a year at camp,” she explained. “A trip to Olympus.”

You thought about it. 

“Are you asking me to meet your father? I didn’t think we were already at this stage so early on."

[megumimania]

DIFFERENT THIS TIME — spencer reid

synopsis: things are different this time when you finally understand why spencer has been acting off these past few weeks.

warnings/tags: angst, angst with a implied happy ending, improper use of drugs, addiction, spencer reid x social worker!reader, they’re friends and also neighbours, this is s8 and s2 reid at the same time in my head, whatever works for you. fluff/angst

a/n: my first piece for criminal minds! it’s angsty as hell forgive me but yeah, the title was inspired by a song of the same title by cornelia murr!

spencer has changed.

you are no fbi profiler but you can see the signs. he’s more shifty, more sercretive, he talks less, he eats less. spencer is more irritable than usual and it worries you.

sure you just may be worrying too much, it’s in your nature as a social worker to do so, but when you open the door to his apartment it is a mess. clothes and books are strewn across the floor, dishes and boxes of takeout piled up in the kitchen.

however in true spencer reid fashion they still have a semblance of order to them. you don’t bother trying to establish your own order within his own, so instead you take a snoop around.

his plants still look healthy, so it does look like he has been tending to something and it's not himself. the thought of that makes your heart pang a little. spencer was always the one helping others but in the one instance he had every right to be selfish and prioritise himself over work he didn't.

you figure it probably says more about his spirit and all but you're not here to do some soul searching. the curtains drawn haphazardly allow for a little bit of light to peek through in the otherwise dark apartment.

“spencer?” you call his name out into the void of his apartment, the sound reverberating around the place, the charms of the high ceilings that came pre built in his apartment. no response.

soft whimpers can be heard from the bathroom and you edge closer, not wanting to startle him so suddenly. you turn the doorknob and the sight that confronts you breaks you the most than any other case you’ve worked on.

he’s slumped against the bathtub, his sleeves rolled up revealing the track marks that he’s managed to hide with his vast array of cardigans and long sleeved shirts. all you can make out in his babbles are two names. one male, one female. a reminder of his extensive past that he revealed to you in bits and pieces.

the names don’t linger in your mind for long, not when he lies there helpless and his amber eyes remain vacant. your hands frantically search for a pulse, shaking when you press two fingers against his wrist. one beat after another but it’s weak and thready.

your head spins with things you should do, like the more rational choice of calling his friends, his family—hell even the hospital but even in his state, this would unfortunately open pandora’s box and you knew that spencer loved his job more than anything.

so when spencer rasps out a quiet “no” when you reach for his phone, you acquiesced. you helped him sit up right, his cold and clammy hands that slightly trembled sending a wave of sadness over you. this wasn’t the spencer you knew.

after a quick google search and several minutes of going back and forth with spencer, who looked like he’d rather eat glass than visit the hospital, you help him into bed, bundling him up the blankets that were on hand. the soup you made for him earlier, sits there uneaten but at least he ate the crackers and cheese.

you’re thankful for the small victories.

even though you wanted to give him some space, it didn’t stop you from periodically checking his vitals just in case there was a sudden change. spencer was grateful for you checking in on him it made this part less harder than it needed to be.

“please stay,” he calls out his voice quiet, trying to hide the desperation and loneliness in his voice but it comes in the form of a broken plea, from a broken man.

you figured that you could get to your apartment and back in no less than 15 minutes to grab your laptop and other essentials in order for you to get settled here.

“yeah, just give me a sec.” you say whilst sniffling, the cold already creeping into the building. when spencer is more up to it, you have to tell him to complain to his landlord because another year with a busted heater is a nightmare for everyone—particularly him who was prone to cold hands and feet in the winter.

you quickly slip out, leaving him alone for a while before you return with the essentials at hand. your announcement of your arrival falls on deaf ears as you walk in to a sleeping spencer sprawled out on his bed. the pained and sorrowful expression that had been burned into your mind had is replaced by a more peaceful one.

the sight alone was enough to make you feel at ease, knowing that spencer is somewhat okay, you just hope that one day he’s able to feel it too.

[lookwhatyoumademedohaha]

And that kids, is how I met your mother! Chapter 1 - Until I Found You

I would never fall in love again until I found her I said, "I would never fall unless it's you I fall into" I was lost within the darkness, but then I found her I found you

Summary: Nikolai Lantsov is a falling in love with you. But do you feel the same way about him?

Pairing: Nikolai Lantsov x Reader, Nikolai Lantsov x Six of Crows Reader, Kaz Brekker x Reader.

Warnings: Pure fluff, angst and comfort, humor, unrequited love, pining.

A/N: Hi everyone! This is my first Nikolai Lantsov fic so I hope that I did Nikolai’s character justice! I am thinking of making this a series and writing another part to this because this is not the end but the beginning! Let me know your thoughts and comments on my work because it means a lot to me! I love you all! Happy reading!

Chapter 2 - Labyrinth 

Chapter 3 - Call it what you want 

Chapter 4 - Someone to Stay

Chapter 5 - Cornelia Street 

Nikolai Lantsov did not believe in love at sight. Nikolai was raised in a gleaming palace where love didn’t have a place in his life. He was raised and believed that love was not an option for a Lantsov son and the King of Ravka whose reason for marriage should be to forge political connections and produce heirs.

But then you had stormed into his life. And the moment Nikolai had seen you, he had been absolutely enchanted by you and there was no going back. 

You had arrived into Ravkan Court a few weeks ago from Ketterdam with Nina Zenik who had come to visit Zoya and help her with training Grisha for a few months. Initially Nikolai had been informed that Nina would be arriving alone but he was pleasantly surprised when after Nina, you had stepped out of the carriage in wonder and amazement of a girl who was in a dream. Nina had introduced you to Nikolai, Zoya, David and Genya as part of the Crows in Ketterdam. 

Nikolai couldn’t help falling in love with you. He knew it was silly to fall in love with you when he didn’t even know you properly but he loved the curve of your lips when you smiled at his jokes. He loved how you held yourself with a careless elegance as if you didn’t care what anyone else thought of you. He loved how your eyes would twinkle in love for your friends as you gave warm hugs to them and the joy that shined on your face whenever you sent letters to the Crows in Ketterdam. He loved how you treated everyone from Duke to servant with respect and kindness. He loved you on the days you were silent and reserved, lost in your myriad of thoughts. He loved your fierce scowl directed at him whenever he teased you and your blazing furious glare whenever you saw anyone hurt others. He loved the mischief and amusement that shone in you as you talked with children being childlike yourself making them giggle. 

But there was a problem. 

Your heart was set on someone far away in Ketterdam. 

Nikolai had slyly poked around and investigated with a little help from Genya and Zoya whether you were single because he was aching with hope that you wouldn’t be in love with someone else. After torturing Nina who had kept her mouth shut for an impressively long time, he found out that you were in love with Kaz Brekker but he was not in love with you. You had set your hopeful heart in the hands of the Bastard of the Barrel who had used all of its love for a heist by making you play a role of his wife in a fake marriage for months. Everyone knew that you had agreed because you loved Kaz but as time passed, all the Crows thought Kaz had fallen in love with you because of different, sweet and soft - hearted, his heart in his eyes when he was around you. Nina had heard his heart for you and was certain Kaz reciprocated your feelings. 

But after the scheme, the heist was over, Kaz has pushed you away and thrown you away with a disregard for your feelings as he crushed your heart into broken glass between his bloody claws. Kaz refused to acknowledge your love for him and face his feelings for you and he stayed stubborn no matter how hard the Crows tried to persuade him. So finally Nina who had enough of seeing you miserable and broken - hearted decided to bring you to Ravka because she believed a lot of distance, good food and a nice change of scenery would cheer you up. 

A fake marriage with real feelings. Nikolai understood the feeling all too well. After all, Alina who had been engaged to him had chosen Mal but Nikolai’s heart had been crushed because he had liked Alina and wondered what was wrong with him. He never wanted anyone to feel such a pain and thinking of you suffering in silence, quietly trying to piece your broken heart pained him. He had noticed and wondered about the dark circles under your eyes, the glossy far away distant look in your eyes, the excitement fading when you finished looking through your letters you received from your friend as if there was one missing, the way you looked wistfully and sadly at lovers dancing in court and the quiet unhappiness you hid behind your forced smile when anyone mentioned Kaz Brekker. 

Now Nikolai knew why and though he considered Kaz Brekker to be a mutual friend, he had an urge to punch Brekker in the face because why couldn’t he see you were beautiful and wonderful in every way? Why did he break you heart?

Nikolai knew that the smart option would be to give up and walk away from you because there was no chance you would ever return his love. But he was a fool when it came to you. The feelings he had for Alina seemed insignificant compared to the enormity and significance of the feelings he had for you. The moment Nikolai had seen you, he felt familiarity and the feeling of coming home bloom warmly within his heart as he felt alive for the very first time. Nikolai understood every poem about soulmates in that moment as he knew you were his great and beautiful love that only came once in a lifetime and could never be replaced and forgotten. Nikolai felt his heart whisper that you were the one every time you smiled at him and felt forever surround him whenever he held a conversation with you. You were a dream, a comet in the night sky. 

And Nikolai knew that if he didn’t fight for you, fight for the love that he could have with you, he would be damned to regret and misery for the rest of his lifetime wondering what could have happened between them if he had faced his feelings and let you know that he loved you. Nikolai knew that even if you didn’t return his affections, he would never love anyone the way he loved you.

So he began trying to woo you. Nikolai complimented you, teased you endlessly receiving annoyed and amused glares from you, joked with you mischievously, asked you questions, spent his leisure time with you, found excuses to spend time with you and talked with you nervously stuttering and blushing and listening attentively to you because he was entranced by you. But in all his attempts to show you that he loved you, you would push him away with brushing off his compliments, gestures and comments with sarcastic remarks and the remarkable roll of your eyes and your guarded demeanor when you realized he was opening his heart to you. 

Nikolai remembered the first time he had complimented you flirtatiously when he had seen you in the training grounds “Y/N, you look beautiful as a field of honeysuckle blooming in a spring afternoon.”

Nikolai relished the shock and surprise flushing in your face as your eyes grew guarded “I’m not interested. Save your sweet words for some princess.”

Nikolai appreciated how straightforward you were with him despite how it cut him deep to the bone as he had retorted cheekily “You are a princess to me.”

Nikolai had seen you shake your head in exasperation and walk away when Nikolai yelled out loud “I am going to marry you one day and make you the happiest princess in the world, mark my words Y/N! You’ll be my princess madly in love with me and we’ll live happily ever after!”

Zoya who had been with Nikolai had muttered something about being subtle but Nikolai whose heart was full of you and knew that if he said he was going to marry you one day, he probably would. His attention was only on you who had frozen mid step and then turned around toward him with a completely surprised and exasperated expression “Keep dreaming, Lantsov.”’

Nikolai still was utterly entranced and enchanted by you as he grinned widely, his eyes twinkling with mischief “I got eyes only for you.”

Nikolai saw you roll your eyes sarcastically in exasperation and annoyance at him but he had seen a faint hint of a smile curve on your face as you had walked away, giving him hope. 

Genya thought Nikolai’s crush and attempts to show it were cute. Nina found this hilarious and amusing, encouraging this just to see Nikolai fail. Zoya rolled her eyes calling Nikolai a silly school boy falling over his knees pulling the pigtails of a little girl just to get your attention. 

Nikolai who was lost in his thoughts about you as he took a stroll in the grounds felt depressed and exhausted by the work and the thought of you loving someone who didn’t appreciate you. He was so lost in his thoughts he didn’t see you as he bumped into you and both of you fell down. 

Nikolai’s eyes widened in apology as he stuttered nervously trying to help you up “I apologize, Y/N. Are you hurt?”

“Oh, I’ve been in worse situations.” you replied cheerfully as you helped him up and looked at him with a cheerful smile that grew into a concerned expression as you observed the exhaustion written in his hazel eyes from ruling Ravka which he gave everything to. 

Nikolai froze in surprise when you hugged him gently but he felt himself relax and loosen in your arms as he felt the heavy weight of duty begin to unfold as you whispered softly “Nikolai... just let it all go.”

Nikolai dropped his head on your shoulder feeling the burden of exhaustion throughout the months he had been carrying silently begin to fade away as tears sprang into his eyes and he choked out a sob because it was hard to be the King of Ravka. It was so hard to fight each day for his people, to nod and agree and disagree with his ministers who had plenty of plans and proposals, to keep an eye out for the number of enemies he was surrounded by and to smile and keep everything together so that Ravka could stand strong and unshaken. He didn’t have time to let go and be himself until you had come along. He didn’t even know it was so lonely and painful until he was in your arms, salty tears running down his cheeks as your arms embraced him warmly and your fingers threading through his blonde hair granting him comfort and peace. 

Peace. He had not tasted it for a very long time. 

Nikolai didn’t know how long he had cried in your arms but it felt like forever when he raised his head to look into your quiet and kind eyes. 

He felt ashamed for being such a baby as he tried to move away and apologized “I am sorry. I have never wanted you to see me like this and burden you with my worries. I apologize for ruining your evening.”

“You do realize you are human?” you inquired sassily but there was utmost gentleness in it “And when are you going to realize that you are not alone? That you have friends around you who love you and want to share your burdens?”

Nikolai was taken aback in surprise at your kindness as he blinked back his tears but you took his hand in yours tentatively and gently “You’re allowed to have very bad days and cry and scream and throw a tantrum about it. You are not alone. I’m your friend, Nikolai and that means you share your burdens and worries with me and I’m going to be there for you. You don’t have to pretend around me.”

Nikolai felt a small smile curve on his face as a spark of comfort spouted in him “That means a great deal to me but I don’t want you to worry about me.”

“You worry about everyone but who worries about you? I’m going to worry about you because I want to and you can’t order me not to!” you exclaimed passionately with a fierce scowl that made Nikolai smile widely in amusement as you tossed your hair. 

“You’d get tired of it eventually. And I hate seeing your lovely smile replaced by that fierce frown.” teased Nikolai with a grin as his heart thudded with amazement at how worried you were for him and his heart fluttered as he realized you were still holding onto his hand and hadn’t let go. 

“I don’t have a fierce frown.” you retorted frowning fiercely making Nikolai huff in laughter and you shook your head at him in exasperation “And I don’t think I can ever get tired of you.”

Nikolai felt his heart flutter happily as he blushed nervously and shyly and you smiled at him softly “Honestly if anyone would get tired of a person, it would be me. People think of me as cool at first but then they sick of me eventually and want someone new around. You’ll be the same.”

Nikolai saw the sad smile you wore as you said this, the unhappiness in your eyes and felt something fierce and painful clench his heart at the thought of you believing that anyone would be tired of having you around “Tell me... tell me who made you believe that your presence, your very kind and beautiful presence would tire a soul lucky enough to be in your presence?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“It matters to me. It matters to me because I hate seeing you hate yourself because people were absolute fools who couldn’t see how wonderful you are.” replied Nikolai fiercely and protectively as he held your hands tightly in his, looking earnestly at you. “The next time you think that I will get sick of you... remember that I’m Nikolai Lantsov and that I absolutely adore your friendly smile, your warm hugs, the way you wrinkle your nose and roll your eyes at me when I tease you, and the small things you say that I replay in my head after you are gone. Remember that I want to annoy you forever and I don’t say that about anyone else.”

To Nikolai’s pleasure, you giggled and blushed as you looked at him with something unreadable as you shook your head “I’ll try to believe it. But sometimes... it gets hard to believe everything you told me. It’s hard to believe that I’m someone people will love.”

“I understand how you feel. I - I know the feeling too.” said Nikolai quietly with a vulnerable expression, defenseless and unguarded as he looked at you after a long moment. “I understand how you feel but it’s not true.”

Nikolai saw your eyes widen in surprise and curiosity “But you’re Nikolai! Everybody loves you!”

Nikolai and you had sat on the grassy ground near the lake as he ran his hand through his hair wanting to hide his greatest fears and insecurities but as he stared into your gentle and quiet eyes, he found himself saying “I know... but it’s not the love I want. I don’t feel loved. I don’t believe I’m loved... I’ve never known real love... my father and mother had a marriage of duty and political arrangement. My mother suffered years of heartless neglect at the hands of my father who was too busy abusing young women. And well, my brother... I don’t think he ever cared about me even though I looked up to him when I was young.”

“And Alina... well, you know how that ended. It was a fake marriage with real feelings. I had feelings for her but her heart belonged to someone else and in the end, she chose someone else over me.” stated Nikolai softly with an air of unguarded vulnerability he had never shown anyone else because he was the King who could not afford to be weak. But sitting here on the grass with you, in your presence, he felt like the boy with fears and insecurities who had to carry on and didn’t have to pretend to be anyone as he cracked a grin “So you see... I’m not very lovable.”

Your eyes were heavy with quiet contemplation and thoughtfulness as Nikolai saw you stare at him and scoffed “You can laugh. Go on, laugh at me.”

You looked at him thoughtfully and quietly, with a protective glint in your eyes “Why would I laugh? I was just thinking about making a time machine so I can go back in time and make everyone who ever made you feel unloved and unlovable regret each moment of their pathetic lives.”

Nikolai let out a huff of laughter, as a smile appeared on his face without a thought feeling happy and taken aback in pleasant surprise “I didn’t know you cared so much about me.”

“You are loud, laugh a lot, tell silly jokes and have a heart full of hope in a world that won’t change easily. You’re exactly the kind of person I would scoff at and yet I find myself feeling quite protective over you and worrying about you.” you confided quietly and softly as your fingers twisted nervously, your beautiful eyes looking into his with something undecipherable “You’re nonsensical but I’ve grown to quite like you.”

Nikolai felt something surprising and warm rush through him, engulfing him in tidal waves as he suddenly felt conscious of being the object of your earnest and sincere gaze. He felt something that he had always strived and worked hard to be in everyone’s eyes... he felt special and extraordinary, seen and loved. This feeling felt all too consuming and yet he wanted more of it as he basked in its golden radiance and new sweetness that he was experiencing for the first time. 

“Well... coming from you, it means a great deal.” whispered Nikolai, his foolish heart blooming with hope and adoration as whispers of the feeling that perhaps you could come to care for him in time crowded him and then smiled widely “It certainly is an improvement in our relationship from the last time where you called me an annoying, idiotic, lousy pig and pushed me into the lake.”

You laughed in amusement, your cheeks flushing a bright pink as your eyes sparkled in mirth and nervousness “Saints! I - I don’t know what I was thinking! I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. I was in need of a good swim.” joked Nikolai with an amused grin as he felt happy at being the person who made you laugh in joy and sparkle in happiness. 

You laughed and Nikolai swore that he would walk through hell just to hear you laugh so freely, so merrily as you shook your head at him with an apologetic look in your eyes “I - I mean, I wasn’t myself that day. I was having a really bad day and I was angry and hurt and when you said all those - when you said all those really sweet things to tease me - I just felt nothing but rage and I took it out on you. I am truly sorry.”

“You’re always forgiven.” said Nikolai softly and gently as he looked at you mindlessly picking flowers growing on the ground “Why were you angry that day? What’s your story?”

“Fake marriage with real feelings but it ended in heartbreak.” you replied with a wide grin but there was sadness and pain written all over your face “It’s not very happy.”

“Well I have all the time in the world for you, so go ahead, I’m listening.”

Nikolai smiled when you cracked a smile and watched you twist your fingers nervously and hug your knees “It’s the same story. It feels like a long time ago but I honestly thought I would never fall in love because its silly and stupid. But when I first met the enigmatic, mysterious and clever devil by the name of Kaz Brekker.”

“Just imagine it. An impressionable, young girl, new to Ketterdam and suddenly the Bastard of the Barrel drops into my life and he is clever, infamous, dangerous, kinder to me than anyone in my life has been, appreciates every little thing about me. He made me feel important and seen. Imagine what that does to a lonely girl.” you said softly and quietly, your voice trembling with sadness and heartbreak, with a trembling weak smile. 

“I fell in love with him before I even knew it. He asked me to pretend to be his wife and because I was so stupid, I agreed because I loved him. And I thought as time passed, that it wasn’t an act on his part because it felt like he genuinely loved me back too. That there could be a chance for a happy ending. But people like me never get happy endings because Kaz Brekker never loved me, I was just an investment, a means to an end to achieve his goals.” you told Nikolai with tears of pain and heartbreak glimmering and falling down your cheeks as you choked back on a sob “And I didn’t expect it to hurt this much... but my heart is broken, and everything hurts so much.”

Nikolai’s heart wrenched in despair and distress as you let out a sob of heartache and heartbreak “And I hate him! I hate him so much! But I hate myself because I let myself believe that he loved me too! Because I loved him through everything, through his worst but he never chose me me at all. Kaz was using me and I was a fool to think I could ever be loved!”

Nikolai couldn’t bear your grief any longer as he wrapped his arms around you comforting you as he let you cry into his chest, your sobs racking your body with grief and heartbreak as you held onto him for dear life. Nikolai stroked your hair gently and rubbed your back soothingly, whispering soft and comforting words of solace and truth that you were loved more because he couldn’t bear your cries of pain, anger, hate and heartbreak that had been bottled up for so long. It physically hurt him to see you so broken but he held you in his arms because he wanted to be the person to hold you up and stand by you through your darkest times. 

Nikolai gazed at your tear stained face as he gently brushed away the tears from your cheeks “Kaz Brekker is an idiot. He’s a fool not to fall in love with you.”

“Why are you crying?” you asked Nikolai in curiosity and Nikolai realized that he had been crying too. 

“I don’t know. I felt your pain, your heartbreak and if I could take it and make it all mine, I would. I hate to see you in such pain, I hate to seeing you cry even though you are really pretty when you cry.” said Nikolai confessing shyly blushing faintly as you smiled up at him in surprise and then sighed as he confessed sincerely to you who was looking at him curiously “The truth is life as the King is not easy for me. In fact, it has been hard and there are days when my pain and exhaustion threatens to sink me into the quicksand. But I guess my life is much easier and lighter when I share my burdens with you.”

You smiled through your tears as you sniffed “I’m sorry I - I’m really sorry I cried and put all of this on you. You have enough on your plate -”

“I like worrying about you.” said Nikolai immediately as his fingers brushed gently across your cheek wiping away your tears, his skin tingling at the contact with your soft skin “I want to worry about you because I like you more than anyone in this world.”

Nikolai was delighted to see the faint blush coloring your cheeks but your eyes were still full of heartbreak of sadness and pain as your voice cracked as you placed your hand on your chest “This hurts like hell... Everyone close to me in my life is in a happy relationship and now... and I thought I could have happiness and love too. But I’m beginning to think that I don’t have my happy ending”

“No! That is not true. Take it from the Lantsov Prince who has been dumped by the Sun Summoner and suffered crushed feelings... it’s not true.” replied Nikolai immediately with reassurance and honesty as he placed his hand on your shoulder gently and comfortingly and he saw you crack a small faint smile. 

“It just feels like this pain is eternal and infinite... it’s never going to end.” you replied your voice trembling with aching pain and hurt as you let out a small sob and sniffed looking at Nikolai whose face was etched with gentleness and adoration. 

“Well, that’s what I said about being shot for the first time in the war, exiling my parents and having my heart crushed by a Saint but the pain did and will end.” replied Nikolai quietly in a matter - of - fact tone that exuded simple honesty and reassurance as he looked at you sincerely with vulnerability and affection and felt shy as he saw you gaze at him curiously in concern and admiration. 

“Now... the thing is you have such bravery and strength to be vulnerable and open your heart to compassion and love. You feel your emotions deeply and even though it hurts you, it’s a good thing because so many people numb themselves on feeling and miss out on the good things in life.” said Nikolai sincerely and truthfully as he gazed at you, honesty and kindness gleaming in his hazel eyes as you held your breath listening to him. “

Nikolai’s hand dropped to your hand and tentatively sought permission to hold it and he felt electric when you tentatively and gently intertwined your fingers with his as he squeezed your hand comfortingly “You are right now nursing a broken heart but I believe you will heal, rise through the ashes and walk to the other side stronger than ever. Don’t close your heart to love and pain. The joy is worth the pain.”

You looked at him through the tears in your eyes, feeling grateful for his warm and charming presence surprised by his wisdom he hid behind the charming façade of a boy king “It just - I don’t understand. Why doesn’t Kaz love me back? What’s so wrong with me that he won’t love me back?”

“Nothing! Nothing is wrong with you! Saints, you are perfect!” exclaimed Nikolai in honesty and sincerity feeling disbelief and hurt at the thought of you thinking that you were short of perfection when you were the most beautiful, wonderful person he had ever met. 

“You’re just saying that because you are always nice to me.” you retorted sharply and sassily as you shook your head in doubt and self - loathing. “You don’t even know me.”

“You’re right... I don’t know you.” said Nikolai quietly and thoughtfully because that hurt. It hurt Nikolai deeply that you didn’t see how Nikolai saw every crook and crevice of you when no one else cared to look at the little things that made you special “I don’t pay attention to anything you do.”

“I don’t know that you love Nina like your own sister and though you argue with each other, you want her to be proud of you. I don’t know that you lend a helping hand to the servants and comfort and listen to little children who look up to you with gentleness, mischief and the sweets you steal from the kitchen. I don’t know that when someone suggests something stupid and ignorant, you roll your eyes at them and speak your mind wisely and intelligently with a rather sharp tongue.” said Nikolai knowingly and passionately with a soft and affectionate glint in his hazel eyes as he gazed at you intensely full of adoration for you as your eyes widened in surprise “I don’t know that you love dancing and music but you don’t dance unless you are asked properly. I don’t know that you pretend to scoff pretty dresses but you are secretly thrilled at wearing them. I don’t know that you like reading romance, history and crime thrillers in the library until Genya has to drag you away from the library. I don’t know that you always listen patiently to David, not out of pity but sincerely because you are curious and consider him a friend. I don’t know that you are the only one who can get Zoya to eat a decent meal and have a nap.” 

“And even though, I will say that I’m fine and try to make you leave me, you are going to walk me to my chambers and make sure I’m alright. Because that’s exactly the kind of person you are.” finished Nikolai honestly and sincerely as he gazed at you softly and gently, his heart full of love and passion only for you. 

Your eyes had widened in surprise and you were certain your jaw had dropped as you felt paralyzed in shock and amazement at being seen by Nikolai of all people. You had thought his teasing was an infatuation, a silly game he liked to play to impress every girl but as you felt him gaze at you sincerely and intensely, you felt vulnerable and seen for who you truly were and the little things you thought no one noticed. 

You threw your arms around him as you hugged him tightly because you were so scared that for the first time someone had noticed the small, ordinary, little things about you and cared to remember them. It terrified you that Nikolai cared so much about you because you didn’t feel the same about him. It was a new uncharted path that felt terrifying and yet you didn’t want to let Nikolai go. You wanted to hold onto him, hold onto the only person who terrified you with these new feelings, saw the parts of you that no one else did and made it easy to be vulnerable in a world where everyone and everything was cruelest to the weak. 

“Nikolai...” you whispered, blinking back your tears of disbelief and amazement because it felt like you had been drowning for ages and now this beautiful boy had pulled you up and you could finally breathe. 

“One day, you’ll find someone who loves you heart and soul and all this pain and tears and heartbreak will be just a memory.” whispered Nikolai as he held you tenderly as if you were the most precious, beautiful, fragile person he had the privilege of holding and you felt his silent reassuring promise that he would always be there for you. 

“Promise?”

“I solemnly swear on my life and kingdom. In fact, I’ll bet my mother’s diamond necklace on it!” said Nikolai honestly with a bright and sincere smile as he lightly touched your cheek, breathless by your beauty “You’re smart, funny, kind, sharp and the best person I know. You can declare me right, wise, smart, kind, and handsome of all men in Ravka in your speech as bride when the day comes.”

You laughed in amusement as you leaned your head on Nikolai’s shoulder unaware that he was having a fit of fluttering butterflies in his stomach as he internally screamed like a little girl and you replied with a smile “I haven’t even thought of it. My wedding. What will it be like, do you think? Will you be there?”

“Of course, love. The groom can’t miss his own ceremony, now can he? It’s my solemn duty to take your breath away and take you as my lovely wife with a beautiful diamond -” replied Nikolai, his lips curving into a good natured grin as his heart beat a little faster at the thought of you marrying him. 

He groaned with a laugh as you punched him in the arm but you were laughing “Can you be serious for once?”

“I can only do five minutes but for you I’ll try my best.” said Nikolai with a wink making you shake your head at him in amused exasperation. 

“You are an idiot.” you replied fondly. 

“And yet, you still hold my hand.” said Nikolai in a teasing manner but he felt a burst of warmth and shyness within him, because holding your hand in his felt like heaven on earth. 

Nikolai expected you to remove your hand away from his but his heart swelled with surprise and hope when you squeezed his hand tightly with a warm smile as you looked at him fondly “And yet, I still hold your hand.”

And as both of you walked to the castle, Nikolai looked at you and knew that you were his one true great love and there was no going back from this moment. Your eyes sparkled with liveliness and you talked animatedly laughing good naturedly and Nikolai wondered if you knew that he was falling... falling deeply, madly, completely and utterly in love with you with no way out. 

He had been told hope was dangerous. But the way you looked at him as you left him at his chambers, gave him a semblance of hope that he was not alone in his feelings and this could be the beginning of an adventure that came with a breathtaking view.

[frickingnerd]

clinging to a promise

pairing: dimitri alexandre blaiddyd x gn!reader

summary: when the war broke out, you got kidnapped and locked away in fhirdiad. for years you clung to the hope that dimitri would one day save you. and that day finally came…

tags: kidnapped!reader (by cornelia), brief mention of torture/experiments on reader, angst to wholesome fluff, all blue lions are here, dimitri & reader are childhood friends, set during azure moon

“i promise, i'll keep you safe. always.”

for years, those were the words you clung to. that promise between two childhood friends, that you hoped hasn't been forgotten. the promise dimitri made to you all those years ago. the only hope you had, while captured and experimented on. the only thing to keep you going, even in your darkest hour.

it's been years now that you had spent in the captivity of cornelia, locked away in a prison in fhirdiad. rumors of dimitri's death had spread even within the prison, yet you still held onto the hope that dimitri had managed to escape his execution. and that one day, the two of you would reunite again.

and that day was rapidly approaching.

“what's going on–!?”

“they infiltrated the capitol–!”

“surrender! there's no use fighting them”

most of your mornings were quiet and lonesome, but when you woke up with people screaming and panicking outside, you knew something was different. whether fhirdiad was being invaded by outsiders or your savior didn't quite matter to you at that moment. things couldn't really get worse for you either way.

“everyone, step away from the bars–!”

a familiar voice suddenly echoed through the halls of the underground prison. a voice of your former classmate and vassal to dimitri. and if he was here, then surely…

“are you in here? please, answer me–!”

your heart skipped a beat when you heard dimitri's voice. footsteps soon echoed through the halls of the prison, as people started running around, looking for a certain cell.

“i found them–!”

it was felix who got to your cell first, rattling on the bars that kept you separated from everyone else. soon, the rest of the blue lions followed, with dimitri pushing his way to the front, busting open the cell door, as if it was nothing.

“dimi–” before you could finish his name, dimitri had swept you off your feet and pulled you into a tight hug that made the other blue lions panic.

“not so rough–!”

“you'll squeeze them to death, boar–!”

“careful, your highness…”

dimitri's grip on you loosened a little, enough to allow you to stand on your own two feet again. but aside from that, he paid no mind to the others and still held onto you, worrying that if he let go of you, you'd slip away from him once more.

“after all these years… i finally found you” dimitri's face was nuzzled into the crook of your neck, his words coming out as mumbles that only you could hear. “i promised i'd keep you safe, always. but i couldn't do anything, all those years. can you… ever forgive me…?”

you held on tight to dimitri for another moment, not wanting this warm embrace to be cut short. when you finally did slip away, your hands had cupped his cheeks gently and you made the taller man look down at you, gently caressing his cheek.

“there's nothing to forgive you for, dimitri. you saved me, just like i knew you would. all those years, i've waited for you, knowing that, one day, you'd find me. and now that you're here, i harbor no ill feelings towards you. all i feel is delight, that we are once again reunited…”