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lovinqmils · 2 years ago

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ꜰᴀʀ ꜰʀᴏᴍ ʜᴏᴍᴇ┊ avatar x human!reader

Warnings: follows avatar twow plot (aka spoils the whole thing) , sfw (don't even try me w anything weird) , some ooc, use of y/n, female reader

can also be found on wattpad: @lovinqmils

THIS IS A STORY (NOT A ONESHOT) SO IT'LL HAVE MULTIPLE PARTS

𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐍...

you manage to get lost on your way home, you unintentionally get yourself caught in a sketchy science experiment...yikes. you wake up in a foreign land (or shall I say planet) that filled with 8-10ft tall blue...creatures?

read along to find out how this interesting adventure unfolds !

according to google the oldest of the sully kids was 15, so the reader is 14-15yrs. please pretend the reader could get to pandora in a couple months, js for story purposes :))

TW: KIDNAPPING

PART 1: ❝ PANIC ❞ 1.7k words

"this doesn't look familiar..." you muttered, frantically wiping your phone screen dry from the pouring rain, trying to find out where in the world you were. but no matter how hard you swiped and tapped your phone was frozen still , completely ruined from the rain. still in denial , you continued trying to get your phone to cooperate with you , failing to notice the white van pulling up towards you.

after feeling a light splash of the cold rain splash onto your legs, you look up making direct eye contact with a blonde-haired man wearing a white lab coat with the letters 'RDA' sewn onto the left side.

"oh my ! sorry to bother you, but do you know the fastest way to get to xxx station?" you ask, a bit loudly as he still hasn't rolled down the window.

the back door of the van slides open, a fairly muscly man dressed in a black tank top and matching cargo pants steps outside. strolling over towards you, "what'd you need , darling?"

feeling slightly intimidated, you take a step back realising just how dangerous this situation is, "oh, uhm...don't worry about it..thank you for your help though"

"now now, where do you think you're off to?" the muscly man chuckles, roughly grabbing your arm. he leaned in so close you could smell all the smoke and alcohol he consumed.

"let go of me !" you attempt to pull yourself away , but unfortunately his grip only tightened.

panicking, you started to scream and kick anywhere you could , but he managed to wrap one of his arms around you and drag you into the van. you took a last glimpse of the dimly lit street, your phone laying on the wet concrete , broken. the doors to the van slammed shut and sped off to an unknown location. you felt a damp cloth being stuffed into your mouth and in no time everything went black.

༻✧༺ ༻✧༻༻✧༺ ༻✧༻༻✧༻

TW: operation?, syringes

your eyelids still too heavy to open , you felt restraints tied around your hands and legs forcing you to lie as stiff as a pencil. your senses seemed to be dulled but you managed to make out a conversation between 2 people who stood on either side of you

"boss..you got fired from the RDA years ago...do you even think she's gonna make it through the transportation?"

"quiet! just because we don't have all the fancy equipment does not mean this project is impossible! now pass me the scalpel."

'...scalpel? are they operating on me!?'

your body immediately tensed, your tried to force your eyes open but they wouldn't budge. so you resulted to jerking your body in any direction possible.

"SHE'S MOVING! HURRY AND PASS ME THE SYRINGE!"

you felt a tiny prick in your arm and once again, everything faded into complete darkness.

༻✧༺ ༻✧༻༻✧༺ ༻✧༻༻✧༻

your eyes shot open, you sat up looking around you. you were in a forest, filled to the brim with exotic colourful plants. the trees towered over you , the trunk was at least 50ft tall.

"where am i...?" you muttered. as beautiful as this place was it definitely was not home. you brushed your hair out of your face and stood up, you've got to find a way out of here. after some scavenging, you managed to create a makeshift spear, consisting of a sharp stone that was tied to a sturdy stick with a couple of hair ties.

"anyone!? hello..!! can somebody please help me!?" you started to walk mindlessly deeper into the forest shouting for what you hoped, would be help.

"is anyone there!? pleas-" you were cut off by an extremely tall blue creature landing in front of you, aiming a dagger that would definitely do more damage than your spear directly to your throat.

"w-wait..what are you..." you stumbled back unable to finish your sentence gripping onto your spear for dear life.

you heard the blue creature make some sort of screaming sound, alerting 6 other 8ft tall blue creatures to land on all sides of you. you were surrounded.

hyperventilating, you swung your makeshift spear around, trying to create an opening however they only moved closer. a slim blue fist collided with your left cheek, the force throwing you to the ground. the pain you felt was unbearable , and the stinging sensation in your cheek caused tears to roll down your face. you were picked up by the front of your shirt, and one of the creatures held its dagger against your neck. at this point you were frozen still, were you gonna die..?

unexpectedly, you heard a loud whistle which must've startled whoever whatever was holding you as it let go of your shirt, dropping you to the floor.

as soon as you made contact with the floor, you scrambled over to your 'spear' and held it protectively. the 7 blue creatures that had ambushed you earlier stood in a line listening to a taller blue creature. this 'taller one' looked more mature, and was probably the leader of whatever these things were.

when all 8 of the 8ft+ creatures turned in your direction, you started swinging your spear at the air screaming with every movement you made.

"don't! ugh..come! any! closer!!"

as the tallest one started to approach you, the adrenaline vanished along with any other courage you had. so you threw the spear and took off into a sprint.

it certainly wasn't easy running in a forest where you're the size of an ant so you only made it about 15 meters before you tripped.

you looked up to see all 8 of those creatures directly in front of you, the 7 you saw before looking especially angry.

"w-wait! I'm sorry, p-please...don't kill me!" hot, salty tears raced down your face, as you desperately tried to crawl away.

"stop." the tallest one was now crouched in front of you, "what's your name ,and who sent you?" he asked, his amber eyes staring into your soul.

"...you speak english?" you breathed out, feeling relieved that you weren't as alone as you thought

"answer the question" he repeated, the 7 other creatures reaching for their weapons

"okay..okay ! just don't kill me" you took a deep breath,

"m..my name is, y/n l/n and I wasn't sent by anybody...I was ki..kidnapped by some crazy people and ended up here.." you tried your hardest to speak clearly, but you couldn't help but hiccup every now and then.

"do you know where you are?"

"no..I don't even know... what in the world you are..!" your eyes welled up with tears as you finally grasped your reality. you were stranded, in a foreign land, with people who want to kill you.

"get up. if you won't tell me the truth, I'll force it out of you." the leader stood up, pulling your arm to force you onto your feet.

༻✧༺ ༻✧༻༻✧༺ ༻✧༻༻✧༻

awkwardly you sat on a lab table, surrounded by scientists that would not stop taking tests or examining you.

you sighed, "how many times do I have to tell you! my name is y/n l/n, I turn 15 this year and I have NO IDEA how I got here."

"I know this must be stressful, but if you're a human you shouldn't be able to breathe the air here," a female scientist, Florence, explained, rubbing her temples hoping to ease the stress.

you heard a knock at the door, immediately knowing who it was you slipped off the table and hid behind a wall, "DO. NOT. LET. HIM. IN!"

"y/n dear, you cannot keep avoiding Jake, you've been here for a good 3 days now!" Florence groaned, walking over to the door.

"you cannot tell me I'm on PANDORA, the planet that humankind tried to destroy, and expect me not to fear for my life!" you retorted. despite your fear, Florence still unlocked the door and let the visitors inside,

"y/n! come say hi, Jake and his sons have come to check on you!" Florence sweetly called, yet the only thing you heard from the message was that the two people who had previously threatened to kill you, were in the building. Florence chuckled as she heard your footsteps quickly scurry off into your bedroom followed by the loud slam and locking of the door.

"don't mind her, she is still a bit panicky due to the current circumstances." Florence sighed, moving out of the way to let Jake and Neteyam Sully (two familiar faces), followed by Jake's younger son; Lo'ak.

"I understand. have you learned anything about her?..why she's able to breathe without a mask?" Jake asked, putting on a recom breather as he walked further into the lab.

"we managed to get an x-ray of her lungs," Florence said, picking up a remote and turning on a projected image of your lungs. " it looks like a filter of some sort has been placed in the middle of her trachea. as of now we can only guess what it may do , as trying to look at it surgically would put her life in danger."

the room fell into an awkward silence, Florence rested her hand on her chin trying to think of a way to get you to socialise with the Na'vi. "ah!" she exclaimed, "Jake, I don't think we're gonna be getting y/n home any time soon, and your sons are around her age so why don't they teach her the language? it'll help her loosen up around you !"

Jake sighed, "I mean I don't see why not." he turned to his two sons, "I want the two of you here tomorrow 3 hours after dawn. remember to be patient, learning a new language isn't easy"

"yes sir." they both answered, now wishing they never came to the lab in the first place.

"right it's settled! I'll see you two tomorrow!"

* . • ☆ . ° .• °: . *₊ ° . ☆ .* . • ☆ . ° .• °:. *₊ ° . ☆. * . • ₊ °

A/N: thank you so much for reading! please comment and lmk who you want to be the main love interest! (as the reader is a child, the love interest will not be any adults.) <333

#avatar #avatar the way of water #avatar x reader #neteyam #lo'ak #tuk #tsireya #avatar 2 #sully family #avatar x y/n #atwow #x reader #fanfic #lovinqmils #pandora #na'vi #omatikaya #metkayina #human reader

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am-i-the-asshole-official · 11 months ago

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AITA for not wanting to writing a positive review of my brothers moral character?

(🖌️ to find later)

TW for drug use and misogyny

My (24X) older brother (26M) recently ended up getting arrested and charged with some very serious charges due to his distribution of fentanyl. I’m not going to get too into the legal stuff for obvious reasons but he could end up in prison for up to 30 years. I’m not any type of fan of the legal system (US, for clarification) and am not a fan of the situation but can definitely see some silver linings to him being in there. I wish there was an actually system of help he could get but with the rate he has taking drugs and the way his circle of friends was dropping (4 funerals in 6 months) my mom and I were fairly certain he was going to over does soon and he showed no signs of wanting to seek help. So ya know, at least he’ll be alive.

But that’s not fully the issue. My mom and I talked and she said his public defender wanted letters from people to prove his good moral character to read in court and, as his little sibling, figured of course I would provide one. But I truly have nothing good to say about the man’s ‘moral character’ the last time we had a conversation was before I moved out over two years ago. When I moved out my roommates I was moving in with said they didn’t want him to know our address as they would be living there too and didn’t want him bringing his violence into their lives. He blew up called me a bunch of homophobic slurs and that was pretty much it.

Before that he was my biggest reason for wanting to move out. He regularly calls my mom a bitch and a c*nt. He never cleaned up after himself because ‘there was two women in the house and we were f*cking (r-slurs) if we thought he should have to do anything.’ Lovely things like that. He punches holes in the walls, says slurs like they’re the only descriptive words he knows, steals anything not locked up (and smashes through doors and windows even then to get to it), and hounds my mom for money non-stop, usually until she gives in. In short I have nothing positive to say about his moral character.

Now my mom is a very loving mom. Far more than I could be at this point and is in denial about the man her son is. She would say she’s spent the last decade living with the personification of meth and heroin and she will get her son back some day if he could only get clean. But none of that has actually been him. I just can’t have that kind of optimism or denial towards the situation. She’s going to be very upset if I don’t submit something because she (fairly, again fuck the prison system) doesn’t think he should be locked up for upwards of 30 years.

I’m a good writer. I could come up with something. None of it really true but it can sound nice. Make my mom feel better (gods know she needs a break) but just thinking about it makes me feel gross. I don’t even know if it will matter much in court, but I don’t know how awful of me it would be to abstain.

There’s obviously more nitty gritty to the situation but this is long as it is. I just hope I didn’t make my mom sound bad because I do want to say she’s a loving woman in an abusive situation and I hope it’s not to much to ask that no one be too cruel to her in the notes, thanks.

What are these acronyms?

#aita #am i the asshole

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marvelwitchergilmore · 1 year ago

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Detecting Love

Summary: Loki x Fe!Reader -> You and Loki work together at a police precinct in NY, and you have had the biggest crush on him for ages. But when your life is put in danger, will he realise he feels the same way?

Disclaimer: Fluff, Angst, Pining, Taking care of the reader (not sexual), hurtful words shared, denial of feelings, acceptance of feelings. Violent crime cases mentioned. Slight inspiration taken from B99 (I couldn't find ACTUAL police sayings, so I used B99 - sorry for any inaccuracy).

If Loki had known that the minute you let your voice wash over the radio with those dreaded words, he would have told you his secret earlier.

It had been a few years since the Asguardian God had come to Earth and been on such a mission that it led him to taking a job as a New York Detective which was one of the main reasons he decided to stay, even after his mission was over.

This had been where he met you.

At the time, you had just transferred from Boston.

Boston in itself had been a big leap for you since you had planned staying home with your folks before getting your acceptance letter from Harvard and joining their police force as a Rookie.

So, moving even further away was another leap.

Yet, you didn’t regret it for a minute.

Loki had been friendly, even in the beginning.

You had been one of the very few female Detectives when you joined. And the only one with experience in solving and dealing with Homicide.

Emily, the other female Lead Detective, although having experience in homicide, was more an expert in Narcotics and Fraud.

That morning when you joined and were setting up your desk, he knocked on your office door and stood there in a freshly pressed suit, his hair away from his face and his shoes gleaming. All the while, a new case file was in his hand.

He introduced himself and said he’d been assigned as your partner.

You couldn’t have been more lucky after that.

Over the years, you’d had a couple partners who were either too harsh with their title or not harsh enough. Some had tried to blame children for something that was completely out of their control.

But never Loki.

For all his moments of being “A God” - which came as a shock which you managed to downplay - he was kind.

Genuine.

One of your first cases dealt with a mother and child in danger. The moment the doors burst open, you made your arrest of the father before handing them over to a fellow cop and turning to the mother who was terrified, bloodied and crying on the sofa with the phone unhooked beside her.

Meanwhile, you looked through one of the bedrooms and saw Loki put away weapon and kneel down.

A girl, no older than 6, was cowering in the corner of her bedroom floor, already half-way under her bed.

You watched as he lowered himself to her height, spoke softly and waited until she felt safe enough to come out on her own. Loki assured her she was safe and that she’d never be hurt by that man again.

Once she finally did come out, she hugged Loki and he picked her up and carried her outside.

He saw the look you gave him, questioning if everything was okay and he just nodded, putting his other hand onto the back of the child’s head as she cried her last few tears into his shoulder.

That moment was almost three years ago, and things were still the same between the both of you. Though, perhaps, there was more of a deeper connection.

Walking into the bullpen, you found Loki folded over one of the desks, fast asleep.

Smiling a little, since it was rare to find him sleeping, you picked up a couple files and carried them over to his desk, piling the rest of his under yours.

Placing a gentle hand on his back, you shook him away.

“Loki? Hey, Loki. Go home. Get some rest.”

Slowly, he lifted himself from the desk and looked around, still half asleep.

“I can finish up here. Go on, you head home. I’ll see you in the morning.”

He tried to protest until you told him once more that you were more than happy to finish up the rest of the paperwork and that if he didn’t leave, being a god or not, you’d personally drag him home if you had to.

After that, he thanked you, grabbed his coat and left, but not before saying goodnight.

It was at times like this that you were reminded of the harsh truth that Loki wasn’t with you.

After a year into your friendship and partnership, you began feeling slightly differently towards him. You didn’t know what it was. There was no change in him, there was no change in you. But you began to develop feelings towards him.

Feelings that left you mad at yourself for even feeling. Feelings that left you a little heartbroken at the end of every shift because it meant waiting more than 8 hours to see him again. And if it wasn’t 8 hours or more, that just meant something terrible had happened.

Sure, you’d dated some guys over the last three years, but none had ever stuck around long enough. It was either your work hours, or it was Loki himself that they didn’t like.

Either way, you returned home every evening to your Australian Shepherd, Zoey.

“Zoey! Zo! Where are you? There you are,” you smiled as Zoey came around the corner, clearly having been asleep on your bed…again.

“Hey, girl. Hello. Oh, thank you.” Zoey gave you multiple licks across the face as she wagged her tail before running to the bathroom.

“Just give me a minute. You can have a bath soon. I promise.”

Feeding both yourself and Zoey, you put your plates into the dishwasher before grabbing the dog shampoo from under the cabinet and running a couple of inches of water into the tub just as Zoey jumped inside.

Little did you know, in a week’s time, you’d hear a set of words which would send your heart into a thousand pieces.

Everyone at the compound, apparently other than Loki himself, was convinced that you had feelings for the latter.

Natasha had seen it when she happened to spot you and Loki together getting coffee. Tony, Steve and Bucky had seen it when they went down to the station to give a talk to the officers. Wanda, Peter, Sam and Maria had seen it when they met you in the park, one day, walking Zoey before she ran off only to jump up to Loki. And Thor had seen it every time he went to see Loki.

Sometimes, he’d show up outside your door when he was looking for his brother because he knew, if he wasn’t at home, he would be at yours.

That day, you both had been washing Zoey so when Loki answered the door, half soaked with water and you appeared moments later, seemingly in the same situation, Thor had gotten the wrong impression until Zoey then came running out of the front door.

However, on this particular day, Clint, Natasha and Thor had appeared in Loki’s office.

It had started out with the group sharing information and handing Loki a case for him to possibly investigate since, if he did it, it wouldn’t draw too much attention too soon.

But it wasn’t long until the conversation turned towards you and the feelings they had told Loki you had for him, despite having no verbal confirmation from you.

But this wasn’t the first time your “feelings” about Loki had been brought up to him. And, in all honesty, he was sick of it.

So he put a stop on it, once and for all.

Only, he seemed to mistime his rejection.

“You don’t know for certain.” Loki told them.

“For certain? Jesus, Loki, the woman looks at you as if you’re her whole world! The last time I saw someone that smitten was Peter with MJ this afternoon - and those two are actually together.” Clint told him.

“For the love of-!” Loki had to take a breath. “How many times do I have to tell you people? She doesn’t like me like that, and I don’t like her that way either! She’s just a friend! She means nothing to me. I don’t have, and never will have romantic feelings for her. She’s just a close colleague, nothing more.”

At the trio’s reactions to his comment, and Thor’s finger signalling to behind Loki, he turned and found you standing there and there was no denying you had heard him.

She means nothing to me.

She’s just a close colleague, nothing more.

You could, and had accepted that he would probably never have romantic feelings for you. But that didn’t stop it from feeling like a stab to the heart which left a wound that would take a while to heal.

But those words.

She means nothing to me.

She’s just a close colleague, nothing more.

They hurt the most.

Because, even if you couldn’t have Loki’s acceptance in romance, you at least had him and knew him in a close friendship.

But apparently that didn’t even exist.

Something simply made up by your imagination, when it got caught up in avoiding romantic feelings.

But rather than yelling, crying or fleeing the scene…you said nothing.

Seemingly, you managed to hide your emotions from them all and mask them completely.

Loki said your name, ready to apologise, but you just spoke over him, telling him what you had been ready to tell him when you walked to his office.

“Rebecca called again. She’s got some new evidence for us at the hospital.” You handed him over the case file. “I was gonna ask if you wanted to ride down with me, but…I can see you’re busy.”

You looked at the trio of Avengers and smiled. “Hi.”

They gave similar replies.

“We were just consulting him on a case.”

Natasha elbowed Clint in his ribs to shut him up.

“Oh, you’re really busy then. I can handle interviews this afternoon, you don’t have to worry.”

“Wait,” Loki called your name as you were about to leave.

“No, it’s okay.” You told him with a smile. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll see you later. Bye, guys.”

They all said goodbye to you, watching as you walked back down the hall and towards your office. Within a few moments, you had your coat, badge and bag and stood at the elevator.

“Well…that was awkward.”

Natasha stamped on Clint’s foot this time.

“Ow, what was that for?”

“You know.”

Loki pressed his head into his hands and groaned. “I’ve really messed up.”

“Yeah, no shit, Sherlock.”

“Fuck you, Watson.” Clint replied before he could shut himself up, which earned a glare from Natasha. “Sorry.”

For the next week and half, Loki couldn’t stop feeling guilty. Yet, you acted as if nothing had changed…almost.

Usually, you’d invite him to get food with you at lunch or grab him lunch, already knowing his order. Instead, you’d work through lunch, running on a coffee or two. You’d still finish off some of his paperwork, but you wouldn’t look at him when you gave it back. There was no longer a crumpled post-it note on top telling him to go home and get some rest.

And when you’d leave for home, there was no bright goodbye or bright good morning. If Loki himself, or another colleague, hadn’t physically watched you leave, he wouldn’t have known you’d gone home.

It was hell.

But everytime he tried to talk to you about it, you’d change the subject or bring it straight back to work.

And when he asked you about Zoey…you just said that she was good. There were no more funny stories about what she had done when you took her for a walk in the park. There were no more little anecdotes from you or funny quips that you made on the job.

He was now working with…a colleague.

You were no longer his friend.

The conversations between you and himself on the weekends slowly trickled away, turning into simple questions of; “Are you coming into work today?” and, “Have you got the ME record yet?”

Before he knew it, just over a month of this had passed and it couldn’t have been more torturous.

And then you went on a date.

You had gotten changed at work since the case had wrapped up early and you could actually make the date this time.

Stepping out of the bathroom, you were dressed in a floor length emerald green, satin gown. A slit came mid thigh and your heels - for once - were not uncomfortable. Meanwhile, your hair, which felt like it took forever to get right, curled around your face just the way you wanted it and Loki, unbeknownst to you, couldn’t take his eyes off you for a moment.

All Loki wanted to do was to turn back the clock to over a month ago when he said what he said and slap himself before he could even think of those words.

Because you had never been nothing to him. First, you had been a partner, then a friend, and then a woman he wished he could have to himself. But that third one, despite the amount of times Thor and the others would tell him that you felt such romantic feelings towards him, he had no other choice but to ignore them.

For one, you worked together.

For two…he wasn’t aware about how deep his feelings ran for you when he saw that split-second look on your face after you heard everything he said and how much he missed knowing you, for what you did after work, to what Zoey got up to and even to the notes you’d leave him - even when they were, 95% of the time, about work.

He missed you, more than he ever knew he could. Even when you were standing directly beside him.

“Wow.”

You looked up to find Loki paused halfway from one of the other detective’s empty desks. His jaw was hanging open for a moment before he closed it shut. Slowly, he walked over to you.

“You…you look…incredible.”

You looked down to yourself before finding the first ounce of courage in weeks to look him in the eyes. “Really? Thank you.”

“I-I mean it.” Loki paused for a moment again, taking you in. “Wow.”

“I…I have a date so I better…” you signalled to the exit behind you and Loki tried his best to snap out of the trance you had him in. Stepping back, feeling his heart shatter even more, he forced a smile and bowed his head, letting you go.

“Enjoy!”

Loki didn’t get a minute of sleep that night. His mind was too busy thinking about what you were doing and if your date was treating you how he would, and if he was complimenting you in the way he would.

The next morning, you stood smiling with Emily. Loki only heard a couple of comments from you about your date. But he couldn’t help but smile when he heard you at the end of the conversation, when Emily asked if you’d see him again, you said; “No. Brad was great and all, but…”

“But?”

“I don’t know. He talked about his ex quite a bit. And when he dropped me back home, he got a call and he seemed pretty happy about it.”

“Oh.” Emily sighed. “I’m sorry, hun.”

“No. Don’t be. Brad found his “one”. I’m just…I can wait a little longer to meet mine.”

“Well, in the meantime, I have a case for you.”

But, just as Emily was about to hand you the file, you heard your name being called into the Captain’s office, including a couple other officer’s names.

“We have a hostage situation at the bank, downtown. I need you and these officers to go down there and get as many people as you can, out of there and to safety until SWAT arrives.”

“Yes, Sir.”

Once you left the Captain’s office, Loki made his way to Emily’s desk and asked if she knew what was happening.

“I don’t know. Whatever it is, the Captain seems upset.”

But then they got their answers.

“Listen up! We currently have a hostage situation downtown with live civilians inside. I have already assigned a team but I need everyone to be on call just in case.”

Before Loki or Emily could say goodbye and good luck, you were out of the building like a shot.

Just over an hour later, the team returned, minus one.

Loki called out your name until one of the officers came over.

“Where is she?”

“She said she would walk back to the station.”

Both Loki and Emily knew it must have been a tough one if you had decided to walk back to the precinct.

Only, after 15 minutes of Loki’s thumb hesitating over your phone contact, Emily’s radio came on.

“All nearest available units and officers to 6th Avenue. We have an active shooter inside Jefferson Library.”

What followed were multiple badge numbers and officers names before those three, dreaded, words.

Show me going.

After the first five officers, with people tuning in and out, not really knowing the badge numbers, everyone recognised the sixth.

“Y/L/N, 64952. Show me going.”

“That’s Y/N.” Emily said before turning to look at Loki who had been drained of colour.

For the following two hours, Loki spent the whole time trying to distract himself from what could be happening to you. Every now and again, they would hear the sound of bullets flying and Loki had been restrained to remain at the precinct.

He couldn’t double himself or transport himself to the library. He already had a case to work on and they couldn’t afford to possibly lose another officer, even if said officer was a God.

When a third hour passed, Loki was ready to leave just as his Captain called him into the office, closing the door behind him.

“Sir, with all due respect-”

“She’s in the hospital.”

Loki stopped in his tracks. “What?”

“From what they’ve told me, she’s okay. Just a little bruised. She took a bullet to the shoulder but the doctors have said she’ll heal up nicely.”

“Okay.” Loki didn’t fully know where to put himself.

“They were going to call you, but one of the on-call officers alerted me first and I asked the hospital not to.”

“Why?!”

Loki had been your emergency contact for three years, just as you had been his. They should have called him regardless.

“Because you would have rushed down there and kicked up a storm that they didn’t need. Look, son, off the record, I know how you feel for our girl. We all do. It seems you two are the only ones not to know. But I need you to go down there now, and take her home. Stay with her all week if you have to. I don’t want her feet stepping anywhere near this building until she’s well enough to come back to work, at least at the desk.”

“She’ll still fight you on it.”

“Oh, I’m counting on it. But I need her to rest for this week. I’ll have Emily and a couple of the Rookies cover your cases in the meantime.”

“I can still come in to work, Sir.”

“Perhaps, but what happens the moment you leave her alone?”

Loki nodded. He should have thought.

You’d do something that would probably tear open your wound again, leaving you out of work for longer than any of you want.

“You have a point, Sir. I’ll make sure she rests.”

“Thank you. You’re dismissed.”

By the time Loki arrived at the hospital, you were already sitting up in bed, trying to get dressed.

“Need some help?”

Looking towards the door, you found Loki standing there.

“No. It’s okay. I’ve got it.”

“I’m on strict orders from the Captain and the doctors, and Nurse Jenkins to make sure you don’t open up your wound.” Loki said as he walked towards you, watching you get frustrated at yourself.

Reluctantly, you accepted his help and he pulled your jacket up over your shoulder before kneeling on the floor and helping you put on your shoes.

“I can tie them myself, you know?”

“Without moving that arm?”

“Touche.”

Loki smiled, “Just stay still.”

A moment later, “There, all done.”

“Thank you.”

Loki watched as you went to pull your bag from the floor, but as you did, it slid away from you.

“Loki!”

From the floor, where it now lay at his feet, he picked it up and placed the strap over his shoulder.

“No. Like I told you, strict orders. I’d hate to break them.”

“You love to break them.”

“But somehow, this way is more fun.”

“Of course it is.”

Loki smiled, “Come on, I’m driving you home.”

By the time you both arrived at your house, Loki opened up the door and you walked in and kneeled down to pet Zoey who was taking extra caution when sniffing you and your new bandage.

“I’ll make you some food, you must be starving.”

“I am, but, Loki. Please, you really don’t have-”

“What are friends for?”

“I wasn’t aware that we were.”

An awkward silence settled over the two of you.

Speaking first, Loki said your name. “I’m sorry about what I said. I shouldn’t have said it. You have been my closest friend since I first met you. Know that I didn’t mean it. You mean a lot to me…more than you know.”

After a minute, you nodded.

“Okay. But this doesn’t mean I forgive you for letting Zoey jump out of the tub that time.”

Loki smiled with a laugh. “Of course.”

“And I have some of those mini pepperoni slices you like in the fridge if you feel like pizza?”

“Sure.”

As you left to get into the shower, Loki busied himself with making fresh pizza. Though, his mind ran off with him as he thought back to the first time you taught him how to make it. It had been six months into knowing you and you had just found out he was a “God”. But not only that, but that he was a God who had never made homemade pizza.

So you taught him what to do.

Perhaps that was where his feelings for you had started, without him realising.

It had been the first time he’d seen you relaxed. You were both in your own clothes - not work attire. Your hair wasn’t in a bun, but rather a loose ponytail until after you finished your meal where you removed the bobble and let your hair down.

However, just as he put the pizzas in the oven, he heard you call for him.

“Everything okay?”

“I–” you huffed. “I need your help.”

“Okay.”

“Can you come inside?”

“A-Alright. Should I cover my eyes?”

“If you don’t mind.”

“Okay.”

Opening the door with one hand, Loki covered his eyes with the other.

“I can’t get my top on.”

“O-Okay. What do you need me to do?”

“Just…here, hold onto this end.”

Helping him with the instructions, Loki held open your t-shirt for you and helped pull it down your arm and body until you said;

“Okay, you can open your eyes now.”

Opening them, Loki gave you a small smile. “Everything okay? Wait, here.”

From down your back, Loki pulled your wet hair from out of your shirt.

“I- I can help you dry it…if you’d like.”

“Sure. Only if you don’t mind.”

“Of course not.”

“After food, though. I didn’t eat at the hospital.”

An hour and half later, you were sitting in front of your desk and mirror with Loki brushing his fingers over your hair as the hot air from the hair dryer blew it back and forth.

Soon enough, all though too soon, your hair was dry and Loki turned off the hair dryer.

“There, all done.”

“Thanks.”

From your desk, you remained seated whilst Loki walked backwards and sat on the very edge of your bed.

“About what I said that day-”

“Loki, please…you don’t-”

“Yes, I do.”

“No. I-” you looked down at your hands for a moment before looking at him through the mirror. “I heard what you said and, you don’t have to say anything else.”

“But I do.”

“What else is there to say, Loki?”

“That what I said wasn’t true. Not even by a thousand miles.”

You were a little confused, but Loki continued to explain.

“The moment I saw your face…I knew what I had said and all I wanted to do was go back in time and stop myself from even thinking about saying it. And then when things changed afterwards, it made me realise that not only did I love you as a dear friend, but also as something more and I couldn’t put my finger on what that was until today.”

“Loki-”

“When I heard your badge number…I couldn’t even think. And when the Captain said you had been rushed into the hospital.”

You could see the tears in his eyes as he told you what was going through his mind.

“Just the thought of losing you…of never being able to see you again or even just hear your voice…I…it terrified me.”

You turned around on your chair to look at him properly.

“I love you too much to lose you. Please, don’t let me lose you.”

“Then don’t let me go.”

Looking at you, Loki seemed a little surprised and you took a mental picture. There probably wouldn’t be many opportunities to surprise the God of Mischief.

“What they told you…it’s true. I didn’t know until after a year of knowing you. I still don’t know why, but I do.”

Without saying a word, Loki slowly stood before taking your hand in his, allowing you to stand with him.

“If I kiss you right now, will you punch me?”

“No.”

Loki leaned in before pulling back. “You promise?”

“Scouts honour.”

“Were you even a scout?”

You were silent for a moment. “No. But the honour still stands.”

Loki laughed a little and smiled before hooking a finger under your chin and pulling you closer and pressing his lips to yours.

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tamurilofrivendell · 2 years ago

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Sleeping Beauty | Chapter 10

Previous Chapters [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9] Read on AO3 [x]

Pairing: Thranduil/Fem. Reader Summary: A Sleeping Beauty inspired tale with Thranduil the Elvenking, and a female elf living in Mirkwood under the care of Radagast, who is actually the ‘lost’ daughter of the late High King Gil-Galad. Taglist: @hufflepuff1700 @jinlizz-dragondrama @firelightinferno @bubbleyukismile @coopsgirl @achromaticerebus @sleepyamygdala @smalltownbigheart @qmabailor @genderfluid-anime-goth

The very next morning, Radagast sat down at his wobbly desk, quill in hand, and scribbled out a letter to be sent to the Elvenking’s Halls. He had suffered a very sleepless night, going over and over in his head what he could possibly say, how he could explain it. All he knew was that he could no longer afford to wait. Now that the Enchantress had made contact with you (and he knew that she had, despite your denial of there having been anybody else in that clearing) Radagast could not waste a single second.

He could not keep you here in his cottage any longer. He could not shield you properly, in the way that would be necessary. The Enchantress may very well launch an attack upon him and he would rather that you were safely out of the way. Inside Thranduil’s Halls would be the best place for you, for a time at least. The Enchantress would not be able to penetrate their defences. Radagast knew that Thranduil would not let her.

Yes, you would be quite safe there, though moving you to the Halls would mean that he would have to tell you everything. He would have to shatter the only world you had ever known. He was loath to do it. He was so very fond of you and he did not wish to hurt you. However, there was nothing else that he could do, not like this, not without help.

So, after much hesitation and scratching out of words, Radagast placed his letter safely into the claws of a raven and sent the bird winging its way to the Woodland Realm, where it was received and taken to the king.

To Thranduil Oropherion, Elvenking. From the hand of Radagast the Brown. It is with deep regret that I must inform you of a very large secret which I have kept from you. The keeping of this secret was not done to slight you. In truth, it had nothing at all to do with you and everything to do with the safety of the one that I was sworn to protect. The daughter of Gil-Galad lives, Thranduil. She dwells within this very forest and has for many years, under my strict supervision and care. The High King begged me to keep her hidden from the Enchantress to save her precious life and, until very recently, I had managed to do so. With the Enchantress now prowling beneath these trees, I fear time has run out and the Princess is in grave danger. The Enchantress has come too near and I can no longer protect her as I once could.

I write to you seeking sanctuary for her within your halls. Please respond with all haste.

When it fell into his hands, Thranduil read the letter and immediately began to fill with rage. The little girl had survived? She lived? All these years, he had been led to believe that she had died. No... no, not led to believe. He had seen her die! Witnessed it with his own eyes!

What was the meaning of this? Nothing made sense!

If she was alive, then that meant the curse was still in effect. It meant that perhaps this was the reason the Enchantress had come here, had darkened his forest with her presence. He had asked Radagast point blank if he knew why she had come... and the damned wizard had told him that he did not.

Thranduil paced angrily around his office like an unsettled wolf until he finally forced himself to sit down and respond, glaring at the paper the entire time.

To the Wizard Radagast. From the hand of Thranduil O, Elvenking of the Woodland Realm. I fear you must have hit your head upon a low-hanging tree trunk on the journey home! For the last time I saw you, you said nothing of this despite the topic of conversation which we were engaged in.

Even before this, ever since that witch set foot in my forest, you have said nothing many times over if I recall correctly - and I am not in the habit of doing otherwise. This girl you speak of. How am I to know she is truly the princess? I witnessed that elfling die as I witnessed hers and my own mother meet the same fate. Do not come to me now seeking aid, for I do not house nor have the patience for liars.

Radagast had not expected this to be easy.

Truthfully, he had expected Thranduil’s response to be littered with much more anger than it actually was, so he supposed that was a small mercy. Though he had no doubt that the Elvenking was angry enough and was just keeping it all close to his chest, silently seething as was sometimes his way.

Radagast lifted his head and watched you pottering around the kitchen for a while, a deep sadness in his heart, before he picked up his quill and scratched together a messy reply.

Unaware of any of this, you continued to pad around the little cottage, seeing to your chores and thinking about Thranduil, wondering when he would next travel this way. Radagast had been keeping quite a tight leash on you the last day or so and you were quite frustrated, though at least the birds and beasts came and visited you here.

My lord, I understand your anger and your hesitation. The events of the past still affect us all and you witnessed so much that day that it does not surprise me that it brings out unsavoury emotions. Regardless, I implore you to put aside your grievance with me and think of the poor girl. This is not her fault. Should she pay for the mistakes of others? In all truth, she has no idea at all as to who she truly is. She does not know who her father was or what happened that day. I have told her absolutely nothing about any of it so as to keep her safe.

This had raised Thranduil’s eyebrows indeed, because he had not expected that the princess would not have any idea as to her heritage. Her past, her parents, her history. The history they shared in a way.

How the wizard had hidden her away all these years also surprised him. Thranduil had passed that cottage many a time, had sought brief counsel from the man even, and not a whisper or an inkling that anybody else resided there had ever crossed his mind. He wondered if the wizard had perhaps placed some sort of spell upon her.

Then again, he supposed that if you could live without being discovered in his forest, then perhaps he was not quite as attuned to every little going on beneath the trees as he might like to think that he was. Thranduil did not yet connect you and this princess as being the same, for he knew the princesses true name and it was not Lothíriel.

I am unsure how to proceed.

The wizard sighed as he looked down at the one word answer he received from the Woodland Realm that morning. This was taking too long and Thranduil was too stubborn.

Radagast glanced out of the window he was sitting beside, watching you laugh with the birds in the garden. Your life was so important, he thought, and you were too precious a soul to be lost... especially after all the years he had spent raising you, almost as if you were his very own.

He turned back, nodding to himself. He had to keep pushing. In fact, he had to push harder. So, picking up his quill again, he scratched out his own one word reply to Thranduil and sent it winging its way through the forest with his trusted raven.

I beg of you to help her as your father would have wanted - as your mother would have wanted.

This had, of course, sent Thranduil into a mighty anger.

Feren had come running through to the room at the sound of a chalice shattering against the wall.

Thranduil turned to look at him, gritting his teeth. “That damned wizard!” He cried, throwing the letter to his desk and rolling his eyes. “Arrange a reply. Tell him I will do as he wishes.” Thranduil told Feren even as he was sweeping past him to storm off down the hallway and out to the stables.

He needed air.

#thranduil x reader #thranduil x you #thranduil fanfic #lotr x reader #hobbit x reader #sleeping beauty

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mesillusionssousecstasy · 1 year ago

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The Fall of the House of Usher : Quotes

"- And if anyone, anyone comes after us, we will exhaust our arsenal until the threat's neutralized. - By neutralized, do you mean sued into oblivion, taken out of the Board, out of the will, on the streets... - Neutralized. Like dead. (Episode 1)

"- Algorithms aren't high tech. They've been around since antiquity. An algorithm is just a finite sequence of all defined instructions to solve a problem, or perform a computation." (Episode 2)

"- Nothing worth having is ever easy." (Episode 2)

"- It's better, I promise, in the moment just before than in the moment after." (Episode 2)

"- We need to talk because when people ask, there are some things you absolutely cannot say." (Episode 3)

"- That's why we've a charity wing, so you paste someone's face on it." (Camille - Episode 3)

"- We remember that he did it, so he did it." (Episode 3)

"- Because opportunity doesn't give a fuck what you're going through." (Episode 3)

"- That's why they hate us. Not because we grabbed the opportunity, but because they didn't." (Episode 3)

"- Like, I make video games, you know? (Leo) - You don't make video games. You give money to people who make video games. No, no. An idea is nothing. An idea is fart that your brain makes. But if you patent an idea, well, then it's an asset. (Camille - Episode 3)

"- You're gonna do the smart thing and go back to your crossword puzzle or else I'll have you fired and sued." (Episode 3)

"- What's a six-letter word for "fucked"?" (Episode 3)

"- I'm gonna need you to tell me who the fuck you think you are." (Episode 3)

"- I can hear Camille's voice in my head right now. "Satin is silk for poor people, no one should wear it to a funeral, unless they died in it." Fuck's sake." (Leo - Episode 4)

"- The other go-to coping mechanism in my family. It's when you direct your more intense reactions towards something or someone that doesn't feel threatening. So you get to react and be angry, be abusive, be violent, even, but you don't risk significant consequences." (Episode 4)

"- Denial, displacement, projection." (Episode 4)

" - But see, I wanted something better. Something better for him. For all of them." (Episode 4)

"- A trait of mine that seemed to skip them somehow... sublimation. That is something that is one of the few coping mechanisms that's considered positive. Sublimation is when a person chooses to redirect strong emotions into an object or an activity that's appropriate and safe. So, instead of lashing out at your employees, you pour your energy into kickbox..." (Episode 4)

"- You drive a car like that, you make a statement. About who you are, where you're going, and how you get there." (Episode 4)

"- Now, let's get a drink, huh? It's gotta be noon somewhere." (Roderick - Episode 4)

"- Something in coke for you? You don't want the designer stuff. It's too dangerous." (Leo - Episode 4)

"- Are you mistaking me for a civilian? I'm not a fucking civilian." (Frederik - Episode 4)

"- You're not who I thought you were. Smart girls are only sex until they don't wanna fuck you, and then they're competition, and then what do you do? You take them down a peg." (Episode 5)

"- It's an opportunity. He's underestimated you. That's a gift. A failure of imagination. He sees you as formidable, he locks down, closes ranks, shuts the doors, battens the hatches. You are a face, you're not a mouthpiece, so just smile and shut the fuck up." (Episode 5)

"- Look, I'm shit at preambles. I made a life by getting to the point, so..." (Episode 5)

"- Why is this happening? - Life is insane. It is madness. The sooner you understand that, the better off you'll be." (Episode 6)

"- Reality's not what it used to be. All that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream. For example.... As those who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night. (Roderick) - Grandpa, are you okay? (Lenore) - I am. I'm fine. I'm just... It's been quite a week." (Roderick - Episode 6)

"- Men have called me mad But the question is not yet settled. As to whether madness is or is not the loftiest intelligence." (Episode 6)

"- Shut your mouth, get your shit together. The fuck is wrong with you?" (Episode 6)

"- I don't know anything about anything." (Episode 6)

"- Men are as stupid as they are simple. You're better off. Oh, my God, my first husband. I thought I missed him, but that was just this temporary insanity. This burp your heart goes through. He was fun to ride. Boy. Men, when they think they're immortal, all they want to do is fuck. When they figure out they're going to die, all they want to do is fuck. (Madeline - Episode 6)

"- You don't have to be a tyrant, but if you don't want to be consistently cruel, then you have to be sufficiently brutal at least once to establish authority." (Episode 7)

"- Everything has a price. Every negotiation's a point of entry. Every deal is simply an expression of will. Mutual will." (Episode 7)

"- You're a collection of impeccable, elaborate masks in orbit of a stunted heart. And I understand. You find an adversary, you kill them. You find a hurdle, you jump it or dismantle it. You find a locked door, you pry it open." (Episode 7)

"- Don't be stupid. Can you imagine what that would look like? My own wife trying to get off my own drug. It's a PR nightmare." (Roderick - Episode 7)

"- All soaked with feelings of absolute desperation and dread." (Episode 7)

"- Basically, the closest analogy I can think of is a fish being pulled out of water, only at least the fish gets to die." (Roderick - Episode 7)

"- So, I will take there years of hell over a lifetime with you." (Juno - Episode 7)

"- He and I share that as well. We both understand that... language in its highest expression is musical. What's a poem, after all, if not a safe space for a difficult truth. So there is a limit. (Verna) - No, it's not a limit, it's a standard." (Episode 8)

"- I don't want it, any of it, if it involves serving at some man's pleasure." (Madeline - Episode 8)

"- One of my favorite things about human beings. Starvation, poverty, disease, you could fix all that, just with money. But everyone loves something. And that love there's collateral. (Verna) - No. I have no collateral. Collateral is leverage. And I won't be leveraged. No man or woman has leveraged me in 70 years of life. And I'm not going to cede that ground, not this close to the end." (Arthur Pym - Episode 8)

#the fall of the house of usher #the fall of the house of usher quotes #quotes #citation #house usher #roderick usher #netflix #netflix series

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phanfictioncatalogue · 8 months ago

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Feelings Realization Masterlist

and maybe we’ll work this out (ao3) - localopa

Summary: old habits die hard. sometimes those habits can make your flatmate kiss you and realize, shit, you’re in love with them.

A Series of Phan Vignettes (ao3) - sasquatchwithawatch (orphan_account)

Summary: Phil's up late reading phanfiction one night, and Dan catches him at it. Things get awkward, tense, incredibly confusing- and neither one is sure if things will ever go back to the way they were. Neither one is sure if that's what they want.

a theism in evolution (ao3) - Tarredion

Summary: The sungod, Phil, sends letters to Mother Gaia. He puts all his worries into words… even when he himself can't see right through them

Bad at Being Straight (ao3) - Masterread

Summary: Ace!Phil and very gay Dan slowly realizing they may be more than friends, but Phil's not entirely sure how that's going to work out...

Blind Date (ao3) - Phandiction

Summary: PJ and Louise know Dan and Phil have feelings for each other that they refuse to admit to one another so the two set them uo on a blind date. imagine their surprise.

Dearest (ao3) - americanphancakes

Summary: On Valentine's Day, Dan surprises Phil with the news that he's been casually seeing a girl for about 6 months.

Jealousy and the denial thereof ensues.

No Homo Howell - ticklishhpickle

Summary: Dan and Phil are just two platonic bros. Dan doesn’t care what his best friend Louise has to say about it. He’s allowed to be straight and think that Phil has the most breathtaking eyes he’s ever seen, okay?

No longer a spider (ao3) - sweetlildudez

Summary: Dan howell hates spiders, but he loves feeling free.

Reconciliation of the Hopeful Kin (ao3) - Yiffandquiff (paradisobound)

Summary: Phil has been friends with Dan for as long as he can remember. But when he leaves Dan behind to go to University, he doesn’t expect for his crush on Dan to grow more when he sees how different Dan looks now. Living in Manchester, he gets called home to help with his father’s sudden illness. But during this time, Phil decides to contact Dan again. Reconnecting with each other, Phil realizes he doesn’t want to go back to Manchester without telling Dan how he feels first.

Seeing The Real Me (ao3) - LittleLola1114

Summary: Neko Dan and Phil have been inseparable friends for the past few years now and now that Dan's 18, they decided to move in together and move away to a place that accepts Dan for who he is- a neko. Everyone can see the sexual tension that they have, well everyone except Dan and Phil. It's only after a situation involving the police and almost getting arrested along with a panic attack that Phil finally acknowledge what they have together and takes the leap of faith.

something to play for (ao3) - spaceandvinyls

Summary: “the world doesn’t revolve around basketball, lester.”

a basketball!au where phil is the school’s star player and dan is his best friend, watching from the sidelines. everything changes when the team makes it to state championships for the first time in ten years and dan and phil realize they want something more than friendship.

Thankful For a Second Chance (ao3) - thatsthephan

Summary: A Thanksgiving fic in which Dan spends Thanksgiving with Phil’s family, and they both realize the things they’re really thankful for in life. And not just tastebuds and the ability to cook.

That's It (ao3) - Phandiction

Summary: Phil comes to terms with hidden emotions he's felt for Dan since the day they met at the train station and confronts him.

#phanfictioncatalogue #phanfiction #phanfic #phan #masterlists #feelingsrealization #feelingsrealization masterlist #feelings

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crystaljins · 2 years ago

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Stars Above | 11 FINAL

Characters: Taehyung x Reader

Word count: 5.9k

Synopsis: Your nagging roommate is desperate for a third person to help meet the rent and your university just so happens to be running a fully-funded government grant for anyone who signs up to participate in the Intergalactic Exchange program.

Having an alien for a roommate is just asking for all kinds of trouble, though.

Alien!Taehyung x reader

Rating: Teens

Notes: So here it is! The final chapter not only to this drabbles series but to our adventures together!! It’s a little hard to believe that today has come. This blog still feels brand new but in hindsight it’s nearly five years old!!! I can’t believe our adventure is ending.

I will put up a proper goodbye post at some point but I do want to clarify that I’ll still be around and contactable, and this tumblr won’t be de-activating, so don’t go getting to sad, I just won’t be writing for BTS anymore.

ANyway, without any further adieu, let us bid a proper farewell to our favourite alien!!

Masterlist

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11

The glint of gold, embossed letters pressed deeply into the thick paper of the invitation shouldn’t feel like a slap across the face. It’s not like you the arrival of the invitation is a surprise. You’ve been dreading the arrival of the invitation with the same dread you often feel at approaching exam dates or assignment deadlines. The date on the invitation is even marked with a red circle on the little calendar on your desk, the one with different pictures puppies playing in meadows for each month.

With a sigh, you slip the invitation back into its envelope and let it drop onto the counter as you step into the kitchen with the rest of your mail.

Nayeon is lying upside-down on the couch in the living room, her legs kicked over the back of it and her head hanging over the edge near the floor.

“Did you bring the mail in?” She asks, her face slightly red from the exertion of hanging upside down, yet she also makes no move to fix her position.

“Yeah.” You answer, in what you hope is a dismissive, indifferent tone. Alas, Nayeon often picks the worst of times to be observant- she hones in on weakness with the same accuracy of a hawk spotting prey. She lifts her head to glare pensively at you.

“What’s wrong?” She demands. And then she even straightens her position so that she’s sitting correctly on the couch. With a sigh, you recognise the futility of denial- she’d merely walk over to you and spot the set of three invitations lying on the kitchen counter. No, it’s far simpler to just come clean.

“The invitations for the Finishing Dinner for the intergalactic exchange students arrived.” You admit.

Something akin to sympathy flashes in Nayeon’s eyes.

Even though he extended his exchange, it was still just that; an exchange. Eventually Taehyung would have to go home to his own planet. It’s a truth all of you have been dutifully avoiding. Unfortunately, at some point an entire year had slipped through your fingers like water through a sieve. Taehyung had seamlessly blended into your everyday life, to the point it had felt like he would always be there. And yet, now the end of both his tertiary studies and his exchange looms near.

He’s not the only alien to have participated in the exchange, and since the whole exchange program was just an opportunity for universities and fancy politician to laude their generosity and the goodwill between planets, they have to mark the end of the successful first year of the exchange program with a big celebration. Taehyung had already notified you that the three of you would receive invitations.

“So he’s really going back, then?” Nayeon wonders. “He hasn’t said anything about staying here?”

You shrug, shuffling towards the sink to wash your hands and begin preparations for dinner.

“From the start he was only staying for the exchange.” You remind her. Her gaze tracks your movement as you edge towards the fridge to examine the ingredients. You always stock up on silken tofu, since that seems to be Taehyung’s favourite source of protein, and there’s some veggies that are beginning to look a little limp that you should probably cook today before they’re inedible.

“Yeah, but he likes it here so much. I’m not sure he’d even last thirty seconds back on his home planet without you to hold his hand and wash his hair for him. He might as well stay.” She sighs with an eye roll. You allow yourself a quick, resentful glare that she returns with a satisfied smile.

“I’ve never washed his hair for him.” Is the protest you offer. She shrugs.

“Only because he’s not smart enough to ask.” She points out. But then her gaze sharpens into something that is entirely too probing for you to be comfortable. “You’d do anything for him, after all. Don’t think I haven’t noticed that.”

You don’t know how to answer that; you’re afraid of the potential truth in them, so you avoid her words by letting the apartment fill with the sound of the knife hitting the chopping board. The sound is perhaps a bit louder than usual.

“You could ask him to stay, you know.” She says. The words are soft, and gentler than her usual, brusque tone. There’s a kindness in them that you didn’t know Nayeon was capable of. “The worst he can do is say no.”

It’s a simple enough solution. Just ask. He can say yes or no, and that will be the end of it.

It’s been the same, simple solution for the past few months. Just ask- tell him your feelings. He can reject or accept them.

Sometimes, you think he’d return them. He gazes at you with round, admiring eyes and hints of colour on his cheeks. He wears a dazzling smile that never fails to take your breath away, a rich, precious adornment like a diamond necklace.

But every time, the words choke in your throat. The truth is this; you’re a coward and woefully inexperienced in the ways of love. You barely know how to date a human, let alone an alien. Any time you think you can gather the courage, it’s quickly squashed by doubts; the temporary nature of his exchange, the incredible distance between his planet and yours, the way his family would strongly oppose… on and on the list stacks up, and now here you are, close to the end of his exchange with nothing to show for it but a battered ego and a crush the size of Jupiter.

“I couldn’t ask that.” You confess at last with a sigh. “It would put him in such an awkward position.”

Nayeon simply shakes her head, clicking her tongue in disapproval.

“Ok, fine.” She says. “I won’t push it. But since we’re on the topic of his farewell, Namjoon bought him a succulent to take back with him as his good-bye gift and wants us to pass it on on his behalf. Do you think you could pick it up tomorrow? I know you were going to be in the area anyway.”

With a relieved sigh, you accept her request.

And maybe, were you not so relieved at the subject change, you might have noticed the glint in Nayeon’s eye, the one that always signals she’s up to something.

The next morning, you’re a little too frazzled to think much of Namjoon’s sudden departure from town.

It’s a home emergency, his text had dutifully explained. But I left the plant next to the elevator. It’s supposed to be a surprise gift though so don’t tell him it was from me.

Distractedly, you pull into the parking lot of Namjoon’s apartment complex.

“Sorry, Tae.” You say, over the phone. “I’m just in the middle of an errand.”

“It’s fine. It’s my error for not remembering to bring my presentation.“ he assures you on the other end. You jump out of your car, racing for the elevator that proudly declares “block B”, the section of building that Namjoon’s apartment is housed in, and sure enough a little potted plant sits next to the lift, a takeaway bag nearby.

It’s actually not a plant you’ve seen before. For a moment, it almost seems fake- the stiff, elongated leaves are lined with what you initially think is just gold paint, but closer inspection reveals something far more intricate and mystifying- sparkling gold veins lace through the body of the thickened leaves.

A quick glance at your watch reveals you don’t have time to spare. You leave it in the passenger seat and quickly scramble into your car, taking off at a pace that is faster than necessary. You’d agreed to pick up the plant Namjoon had intended to pass on to Taehyung on the way to your dentist appointment that morning, only for Taehyung to ring in a panic that he’d forgotten the hard drive that stored his presentation. It would be one of the final ones he would be giving on this exchange and was kind of a big deal, and so you’d grabbed said device on your way out the door when Taehyung had called you close to tears that morning.

He’s waiting on the curbside at the drop-off-pickup zone of the university parking. You had been planning to just pass his device through the window and then head straight for your dentist appointment afterwards, but when Taehyung leans through the window, he spots the plant in your passenger’s seat.

A funny expression crosses his face that you don’t have the time or presence of mind to dissect.

“What’s that?” He demands, before you can pull away. He hovers, half hanging in your passenger seat. Urgently, your eyes flick to your car’s clock. The dentist’s appointment is a twenty minute drive away and you’re already running late. You grab the plant and shove it at him, hoping to kill two birds with one stone.

“It’s yours.” You say. Eyes wide, he accepts it, gazing down at it in disbelief.

“What? From who?” He asks and if you weren’t so preoccupied with the way that the clock in your car warns you of your looming cancellation fee, you’d have questioned the way he’s utterly flabbergasted as he gazes upon the plant.

As it is, you only just barely manage to remember Namjoon’s request.

“Just accept it.” You say as he pulls back, and you take the opportunity to pull away from the curb. “I’ll see you at home!” You cry through the open window.

Taehyung stares at your car as you pull away, hands trembling around the base of the pot, jaw gaping.

After the dentist appointment, things are weird between you and Taehyung.

You’re not sure what triggered it. You’d come home with that dentist-fresh feeling and cheerfully asked him if he’d wanted to watch a movie.

He’d acted like you’d asked if he could hand over his first-born and had scrambled out of the living room with a desperation reserved for escaping when Nayeon asked him to take the garbage. You’d barely caught his stammered excuse before the door to his bedroom slammed aggressively behind him.

Bewildered, you’d left him to his own devices and watched the movie on your own, thinking that Taehyung was just in a mood.

Only, it kept going. He avoids outings he’d normally beg to be invited along to and any attempts to initiate conversation on your end are met with similar results to that first night. You try to leave things be, at first, until a quick glance at the calendar one morning reveals that the Finishing Dinner is only a mere week away.

It hits you, abruptly, that your time left with Taehyung has dwindled into almost nothing and you don’t even know why.

Nayeon, shuffling out of the bathroom, is unfortunately the one to catch your crestfallen expression.

“Everything ok?” She wonders, shuffling closer. You catch the scent of her minty toothpaste as she yawns.

Normally Taehyung is clamouring to get into the bathroom after Nayeon’s extensive and absurd morning skin care routine, but he’s been nowhere to be found in the mornings as of late.

“Have you noticed Taehyung’s been acting weird, lately?” You wonder aloud.

Interest sharpens Nayeon’s drowsy expression and something dangerously close to a grin plays across her mouth.

“I have. You should definitely ask him about it.” She offers cheerfully, before shuffling off towards her room to finish getting ready for the morning.

Suspicion takes root in your chest. Likely, if you know Nayeon at all, she is the cause behind Taehyung’s behaviour and any questioning of him will no doubt end with complete and utter mortification on your part.

But…. The calendar seems to mock you, the small gap between the current crossed-off date and Taehyung’s nearing departure date seems to be shrinking with each passing moment.

With a sigh, you resolve to talk to Taehyung as soon as possible, lest you waste any more of the precious time you have left with him.

Of course, it’s easy to say that you plan to talk to Taehyung, but he’s the one avoiding you and he’s surprisingly successful at it. Somehow, he evades you until the night before the Finishing Dinner. After, there’s only so long he can avoid being alone with you when you’re the primary chef in your home. Nayeon has, for once, been obediently following the cooking roster, but on this particular night she messages you begging for a swap. Sighing, you don’t plan to agree until the friend you had plans with that evening messages you to cancel, citing a flu as the reason.

You’re idly staring at the shelves of your fridge, running through recipes in your head when Taehyung staggers in. He stares at you with a slack jaw and wide eyes, the very picture of bewilderment. His skin flushes an interesting shade of purple and he turns around abruptly, hiding his expression from you.

“I-I thought you’d be home late. You were supposed to be having a dinner with your friend.” He stammers. It’s certainly what you’d messaged the group chat when the three of you had been planning the chores roster earlier in the month.

“She cancelled.” You say with a shrug. You don’t mean for your words to come out as clipped and as short as they do. But the truth is, your feelings are hurt. You’re confused and upset and as if saying goodbye to Taehyung wasn’t bad enough, you’re now navigating this mysterious fight without even knowing what you’ve done wrong.

Taehyung shoulders bunch together and he drops his head a little, the picture of misery.

“Um, I’ll eat in my room.” He mumbles. He goes to walk away, towards his bedroom door, and then pauses. It takes you a moment to realise it’s because you’re gripping his arm. You glance down and surprise and release him.

“Don’t go.” You say, before you can think better of it. He turns to you, a frown upon his face and there’s something imploring in his eyes.

“I…” he begins, and you shake your head, interrupting him. If you’ve upset him, that’s ok, but you can’t apologise if you don’t know what’s wrong, and he needs to tell you. Sitting down and speaking is the only way to get through this.

“Please.” You say simply.

He looks at you for a moment, and the expression on his fece is nothing short of agonised. Finally, he takes a brief nod, and steps back into the kitchen.

He helps you prepare dinner, just like he always does when it’s your night to cook, although the night is absent of the usual chatter he fills the space with.

It’s halfway through your meal that you can’t bear the silence any longer.

“Did I do something wrong?” You ask. He flinches, a fork halfway through his mouth. A string of pasta slips off it and lands on his plate with a soft splat. Nervous, dark eyes flick to you and then back to his plate.

“No. No, of course not.” He says finally, daring to gaze across the dining table at your from beneath his fringe. He purses his lips awkwardly and then ducks his head.

“Then why are you-“ you start, but your mouth dries out. It takes a deep breath to compose yourself before you are able to force out your next question. “Why are you doing this?”

To your surprise, when Taehyung looks up again, he looks even more distraught than you feel. He takes a deep, shaky breath and light blue lines the lower rings of his eyes, the beginnings of tears.

“Because I need time!” He blurts. “It’s all so overwhelming. I have a few days until the exchange has its completion and I have to have a complete final thesis and I have to work out what I’m going to do when I end my studying! It’s so much and I can’t make huge choices like this under pressure!”

You fall silent, startled at the emotion in his voice, and shocked by the sheer depth of Taehyung’s misery. In all your worrying over your own feelings and desire to confess, you hadn’t thought about how Taehyung might feel regarding the end of his exchange. You’d just assumed he’d been avoiding you because of something you’d done, and you’d never considered that maybe Taehyung just needed some space. He’s so extroverted normally that you’d forgotten that even extroverts need that sort of thing.

Dropping your head, you allow the mortification to wash over you, and then you abruptly stand, plate in hand.

“I think I’ll eat dinner in my room.” You say. Taehyung makes no move to stop you as you quickly make your escape, and when you later exit to clean your dishes, he’s cleaned the kitchen and is locked away in his own bedroom.

You allow yourself one hurt sigh, gazing at his shut bedroom door in abject misery, before returning to your task at hand.

You can give him time, you suppose. You just wish there was more to spare.

In the interest of giving Taehyung the space he needs, you get ready for the Finishing dinner at Jungkook’s place. The whole time, Jungkook whines that you’re hogging the mirror and when you step aside to allow him to use it, he just flicks his hair and grins as his reflection and then shuffles out. The cycle repeats about three or more times as he gets dressed, and you’re sufficiently cranky by the time you clamber into the passenger seat of his car.

“So,” he asks you conversationally, and maybe you would have been in a talking mood two hours ago, but certainly not now. “Have you thought about what you’re going to do about Tae? Doesn’t he leave in two days? Are you really not going to tell him how you feel?”

You shoot Jungkook a sufficiently dirty look and he laughs.

“He asked for space. So I’m giving it to him.” You say shortly. You’re not surprised that Jungkook is aware of your feelings- keeping secrets is not a skill of Nayeon’s. What’s more surprising is that it’s not splashed on the front page of the morning newspaper given her normal proclivity for gossip.

Jungkook’s brow furrows.

“Why did he ask for space? He had a year to ask for space- and he does this two days before he has to leave?” He wonders. You shrug- you’ve asked yourself that and more over the last 24 hours. Why? What triggered this? Why now? But you’ve come up with no answers, and are instead left in this awful

limbo of confused feelings and uncomfortable pining.

“Can we talk about something else?” You ask softly.

Jungkook, to your surprise, offers you a warm smile, something gentle and understanding. You’d never thought him capable of it.

“Of course.” He agrees, and your conversation shifts to more cheerful topics with his guidance.

By the time you pull into the venue, your mood is significantly improved. You manage some cheerful small talk with one of the alien administrators who facilitated the exchange over a glass of champagne and you pose obediently for photos for Nayeon’s instagram. You even manage to keep your face neutral when you see that your assigned seat is beside Taehyung. You’re not sure why you expected any different, but if your smile becomes a bit more strained, no one comments on it.

Taehyung is already seated when you make your way to your seat. He’s midway through a conversation with one of his university classmates when his gaze lands on you.

The slight smile slides off his face as he tracks your progress through the function room, but you can’t quite name the emotion on his face- nervous? Apprehensive? It’s a sort of queasy smile.

You’ve braced yourself for a confrontation by the time you reach your seat, so when Taehyung leaps to his feet and pulls your seat out for you, you freeze mid-step. It’s… not the reaction you were expecting, for sure. For someone who had pleaded for some space the night before, he certainly doesn’t seem to want any tonight, settling back into his seat with a beam and even tugging his seat just that little bit closer to yours as he introduces you to his companion.

The friend he’s introducing you to is chatty and too enthusiastic for you to slip in an interrogation about Taehyung’s sudden change in behaviour. You feel like you want to burst out of your skin- the urge to demand what he means by this strange hot-and-cold behaviour burns on the tip of your tongue.

Particularly when he slides his forearm across the back of your seat, like he’s your boyfriend, lounging in that familiar, comfortable way that only intimate partners do, although he carefully avoids brushing the skin exposed by your low-backed dress with his knuckles.

That behaviour continues throughout the night. He acts like the last week hasn’t happened, instead slipping back into that familiar, casual intimacy that had existed between the two of your for the last few months now.

To say you’re confused is an understatement, and when he dares to slide his hand over yours like he wants to hold it, you whirl on him.

“Can we talk?” You grit out between clenched teeth. He looks a little startled, before smiling, that same dazzling smile he always has.

“Of course.” He agrees warmly, and it’s almost absurd how affectionate his tone is considering how he’s been acting the last week- considering what he requested of you the night before.

You pretty much stalk outside, finding a quiet unoccupied balcony, and you whirl on him.

“What are you doing?” You demand, as soon as he allows the glass door to swing shut behind him. He leans back a little, hands held up placatingly.

“You’re upset.” He observes.

“Of course I’m upset!” You explode in bewilderment. Normally, Taehyung is sensitive and understanding, in tune with your emotions in a way that no one else is. You’re baffled and exhausted by this out of character behaviour.

He nods, smiling awkwardly.

“I know it took me some time,” he says, as if this is a comfort or explanation for his confusing behaviour. “But I had trouble having a decision. But I’ve decided now.”

He waits for a beat.

“I accept.” He announces, like he’s handing over the nobel prize.

There’s a beat of silence, so thick that even cricket chirps couldn’t pierce it.

“What?” You ask. He blinks, some of his confidence leeching away- his brows furrow too.

“I accept.” He repeats.

Sometimes Taehyung struggles with syntax and word choice- likely this is one of those times, and while normally you’re an expert at puzzling out the true meaning behinz his words, this time you’re at a complete loss.

“You accept?” You echo. Taehyung is beginning to become uneasy, shifting back and forth. His hands start to fidget with each other. He nods.

“Is that the wrong word?” He asks. He taps his finger against his chin as he searches for the term. “I will?” He tries, and you shake your head. “I do?”

Now you’re well and truly baffled, and he starts to look a little fearful. He steps towards you, urgency lacing into the tense lines of his body.

“Did I… take too long? Do you no longer want to?” He asks, and his voice is gentle but cautious. You want to be mad, but you’re beginning to realise that something is going on beyond your comprehension.

“Do I no longer want to what?” You finally say.

“Your proposal! I accept it!” He finally gasps out. “Did you change your mind?”

“Proposal?” You echo, absolutely dumbfounded.

“SURPRISE!” Nayeon shouts, the glass door flying open with and alarmingly loud clatter. The two of you whirl on her- she has a little party popper in her hand that’s she’s released in a little burst of confetti and beside her Jungkook has a little piece of paper that says “Congrats on finally dating!”

To say you’re confused is an understatement. Your gaze flicks from Taehyung, who suddenly looks like he may keel over, all the colour drained from his face, to Nayeon, grinning impossibly bright like she’s just won the lottery, to Jungkook, who seems to be the only one catching on to the mood on the balcony.

Slowly, as the silence extends, the smile slides off Nayeon’s face. She looks at Taehyung, paler by the minute. Then she looks at you.

“You didn’t… confess?” She asks.

That’s when it finally clicks.

Proposal. Like proposal of marriage. Taehyung…

He…

He thinks you…

He thinks you proposed to him?!?

Instantly, you grab at Nayeon, snatching the empty party popper out of her hand, because you just know that she’s somehow responsible for this mess.

“You have thirty seconds to explain Nayeon.” You order her, your tone lethal. She winces and scratches awkwardly at the back of her neck.

“Well, I knew you wouldn’t ever confess on your own…” she admits. “And there was so little time left before Taehyung went home! So, I thought I’d take matters into my own hands… that flower, that Namjoon asked you to give Taehyung?”

You remember the flower in question, and recall that you’d given it to Taehyung about a week ago, the same day he started ignoring you.

“I saw on google that it’s how people on his planet confess! So I thought I’d help you out. I blackmailed Namjoon into getting you to give it to Taehyung so that it would look like you gave it.” She confesses. She looks at Taehyung. “I wasn’t being mean. You were supposed to think she was confessing and admit you liked her too!”

Taehyung, interestingly, has turned a fascinating shade of purple. He looks between the three of you, swaying on his feet, before he finally chokes out his response.

“It’s not a confession flower.” He gasps. His gaze looks at you and you think he’s almost glowing in the meagre light. Nayeon’s brow furrows in the same moment he explodes with the phrase “It’s a proposal flower!”

For the third time that night, complete and utter silence follows.

“A proposal… flower?” Nayeon echoes. Taehyung nods deliriously, on the verge of tears.

“It is given as a gift of bethrothal! To request marriage! Like a diamond ring!” He cries. And then again the colour drains from his face, leaving him deathly white. “It… it wasn’t from you?”

It’s taking you a minute to puzzle through the convoluted web you’re faced with. Slowly, you shake your head.

“No.” You say. “Namjoon asked me to give it to you and to keep it secret. He wanted it to be a surprise.”

Taehyung, to his credit, manages to stay upright, but his posture wobbles as though a mere breeze will knock him over.

“Then… you didn’t propose?” He asks. It’s starting to dawn on you, what has happened. Namjoon’s mysterious absence the morning you were meant to deliver the plant- Taehyung’s expression when you’d shoved it in his arms. The way he’d avoided you for a week after- the way he’d pleaded with you for some time. He’d even said it the night before, hadn’t he? That he needed time before making huge choices. You’d thought he was just struggling with the end of his exchange and tertiary studies. But he’d actually meant marriage- he’d thought you’d proposed and he had been trying to decide how to answer amidst all the other things he had to deal with in the final week of his exchange.

And he’d…. Decided to accept? He’d thought you’d proposed and his answer was to say he accepted?

“No.” You say faintly. “I didn’t.”

The words are barely out of your mouth before Taehyung is scrambling back through the glass doors, pushing past Nayeon and fleeing through the function room like his life depends on it.

Nayeon, and Jungkook, to their credit, say nothing as they watch Taehyung tear through the function room with an almost inhuman speed.

“Well.” Nayeon says quickly, attempting to step back through the glass. “Glad we got that sorted. Guess we’ll be going then-“

You fold your arms, smiling menacingly at her, and she cuts off her word.

“You guys have thirty seconds to run, before I murder you.” You say cheerfully, and it’s the only warning the two of them need before they take off as well, racing through the function room at a similar speed to Taehyung, leaving you to clean up the huge mess they’ve just created.

Still… you let them go, with the echo of a smile on your face.

They had meant well, after all.

Taehyung has never been so mortified in his life.

He sits in his room, his suit crumpled and his blazer discarded. He hugs his knees to his chest and buries his face in his folded arms. The darkness there is soothing, somehow. He wishes he could stay there forever, to dissolve into oblivion.

A gentle knock at his door interrupts his brooding. He looks up to see you step cautiously through the door. You’ve abandoned your heels, but you’re still wearing that dress that makes you look stupidly pretty. He’d already decided he was going to accept your proposal when he’d woken up this morning, the memory of your confused, hurt face fresh in his mind, and then you’d stepped into the function room earlier that night and he’d been lost. Washed away in a tidal wave- you’re the most beautiful person he’s ever seen in his life, on both planets, and he’s madly in love with you. This whole stupid week he’d known what his answer was, that he’d accept your proposal in a heartbeat, but he knew he had to be rational. To think things through.

Except, you hadn’t really proposed, had you?

“Come to be mocking?” He asks, and his throat is uncomfortably raw. He knows the sleeves of his white shirt are stained blue, and that they expose his tears, even if his swollen eyes and raspy throat didn’t do that already.

You settled beside him on the bed and it dips beneath your weight. The scent of your perfume fills his senses, dizzying and sweet and he wants to lean forward and bury his face in that tantalising crook between your neck and shoulder and never emerge.

“When have I ever given you the impression I’d make fun of you over something like this, Tae?” You ask. You don’t sound angry, or disgusted at least. Just… confused.

He looks away.

“You’d be right to.” He confesses. “How stupid can I have been? Agonising all week over a betrothal that hasn’t ever had occurrence.”

Another few hot tears, a mixture of humiliation and misery, slip free. A hand lands on his shoulder- the warmth of your palm slips through the thin cotton of his shirt, warming the skin of his shoulder. He can feel you in his bones- your smell surrounds him, right down to his lungs, and the heat and warmth of you beside him seems to fill the room.

“Tae.” You say gently. Your press lightly on his shoulder, forcing him to tilt his body back towards you. “I’m sorry that you got caught in the crossfire of their scheming. And I’m sorry that you got hurt by this. They didn’t mean any harm. They were trying to help.”

He drops his gaze.

“It doesn’t feel like they were.” He mumbles. He flinches when your hand comes towards his cheek. You pull back, just a little, and then approach again more slowly. You’re giving him the chance to pull away, he realises.

Like he ever would.

Slowly, you cup his cheek in your palm, lifting your thumb to gently wipe a tear away. A strange feeling floods him, a warm affection, at the contact of your hand against his cheek but he doesn’t know if it’s your feelings or his. Probably his.

Then you offer a crooked, lopsided smile that makes his stupid, embarassing heart do backflips.

“For what it’s worth,” you say softly. “They were trying to confess on my behalf. If anything, I should be embarrassed that they exposed my feelings for you.”

The words echo in the meagre space between the two of you. Taehyung can’t help the way his gaze meets your, like magnets clicking together. His heart leaps into his throat.

“Your feelings?” He asks, and he hopes the hopefulness in his voice doesn’t make him look any more stupid than he already has tonight.

Smiling warmly, you nod gently and lean forward until your lips are pressed against his forehead, and the flood of emotions that rushes through him are too sudden and abrupt to be anything but yours. Affection, warmth… love. That buzz-y electric feeling that tingles all the way to his fingertips- it’s love. Your love. You love him.

He looks up at you as you pull away, and slowly, you nod at the unanswered question in his eyes.

“I can’t say I would have proposed before we even went out to dinner together.” You admit. “But I can say that it’s definitely something I’d want to talk about in the future.” You turn so you’re face him fully, resting both knees on his mattress and sitting back on your heels. “With you.”

Something warm and burning fills him, from the centre of his chest all the way out to his fingertips.

“You would?” He asks softly. You offer a shy smile and nod, and Taehyung is lost.

“I don’t know how it would look, between us.” You say. “Your exchange is almost over, and you live on a different planet, and we… there’s so much to work out. But if you wanted to, we could do it together?”

Your hands are still warm when he clasps them between his own. Uncertainty and nerves flood across the contact of your skin against his, but also happiness. You’re the good kind of nervous. And when he presses the backs of your hands against his in a gentle, adoring kiss, he doesn’t know or care if the butterflies in his tummy are yours or his.

“I have many job opportunities here.” He admits. “And many friends and connections. I have a life here.” His gaze slips up to meet your own. “I could stay here. If you wanted. I could become a citizen. We could court, and then marry, at whatever pace suits you. We could even have children, if Nayeon and Jungkook are not children enough. I would do all of that with you. If you wished it.”

You beam at him and the expression is so precious, so beautiful that he knows his decision remains. Even if you didn’t really propose to him, one day he will propose to you. If it wasn’t real, he’d make it real. With you.

“That’s ok.” You say, leaning forward. “We don’t have to decide any of that tonight. After all… we have time.”

And Taehyung almost protests, but when your mouth meets his, he finds that he agrees. There’s plenty of time for all that later- proposals, dating, everything.

Tonight, though, he wants to spend his time working out if the fireworks exploding in his chest are yours or his.

Or maybe they belong to both of you.

#tae x reader #kim taehyung x reader #v x reader #taehyung x reader #writing #anis farewell

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succubus-hansol · 4 months ago

Text

.₊•✧˚ ┊ Fav Fics ┊˚✧•₊.

Favourite Stories on AO3

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↪⇢⇢ Pairing: Yang Jeongin x Kim Seungmin ║ Classification: Fluff, Mythical, Angst, Smut ║ Chapters 6/? ║ Summary: Seungmin has never held much stock in wanderer’s tales or myths, but when he constantly finds himself feeling watched after moving to a cottage in the deep forest, it’s hard not to at least consider it. Especially when he swears he keeps seeing the shadowed silhouette of what looks like a man with a fox tail swinging behind him.

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↪⇢⇢ Pairing: Lee Minho x Fem Reader x Kim Seungmin ║ Classification: NSFW ║ Summary: You like your situationship a little too much. you also like your neighbour too much.

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↪⇢⇢ Pairing: Hwang Hyunjin x Kim Seungmin x Yang Jeongin ║ Classification: NSFW ║ Chapters 3/3 ║ Summary: “Part of me is surprised Jeongin had the balls to do that. But he was pissed, and clearly, he knows you well.” “I mean, we all know each other pretty well,” Seungmin points out, and Jisung rolls his eyes. “I don’t think Felix or Changbin would know about your hyung kink and how you get off on being a baby dongsaeng and that you’re super into being held down,” “Theoretically,” Seungmin sniffs.

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↪⇢⇢ Pairing: Bahng Chris x Kim Seungmin ║ Classification: NSFW ║ Summary: Puppy love, if the puppies were also super gay and kind of in denial about the whole thing.

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↪⇢ By @/stuckonspidey

↪⇢⇢ Pairing: Lee Minho x Fem Reader x Kim Seungmin ║ Classification: NSFW ║ Summary: W Korea uploads Minho's fashion film for gucci, and you decide your boyfriend can't possibly be this beautiful without any consequences. Seungmin, your other boyfriend, decides to push at Minho's two biggest kinks: his exhibitionism, and his praise kink.

➤┊Right Under My Nose┊

↪⇢ By @/amidsthechaos & @/northstories

↪⇢⇢ Pairing: Lee Minho x Yang Jeongin x Kim Seungmin x Bahng Chris ║ Classification: NSFW ║ Summary: You like your situationship a little too much. you also like your neighbour too much.

➤┊Curse of the Blue Balls┊

↪⇢ By @/Momo_momo

↪⇢⇢ Pairing: Yang Jeongin x Kim Seungmin ║ Classification: NSFW ║ Summary: In which Jeongin summons a demon to do his homework and gets way more than he bargained for.

➤┊Dear Yamaguchi-san: A Detective Tsukki Mystery┊

↪⇢ By @/stuckonspidey

↪⇢⇢ Pairing: Tsukishima Kei x Yamaguchi Tadashi ║ Classification: Fluff, Mystery ║ Chapters 7/7 ║ Summary: Yamaguchi has a secret admirer. For months now, he's been finding love letters and gifts tucked into his school bag, sitting on top of his shoes in his locker, or left in his cubby in the club room. All clues point towards one of his teammates. . . But which one?

➤┊goodbye, earl!┊

↪⇢ By @/velooscuro

↪┈⇢ Pairing: OT8 ║ Classification: Mature, Murder Mystery, Suggestive Themes ║ Chapters 7/7 ║ Summary: A circle of eight, accusations flinging. The body, with an ornate knife dug in up to the hilt in its throat, is not present, but it might as well be; everybody present has the body etched in their minds. The look of horror on its face, the blood splatter against its pale skin—it’s unforgettable stuff. Seungmin eyes the others warily. All this suspicion, all this investigation, all this accusation, and they’re not any closer to the truth. And then Felix steps forward, shushing everybody else without a word. He raises a trembling hand, and, with an unsteady voice, confesses, “I-it was me. I killed him.”

Wherein a weekend away turns sinister—or was it sinister from the start?

#can't stop my universe #masterlist #fav fics #fic rec

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textmel8r · 3 months ago

Note

Cassie and her friend were at home with her (Cassie’s) older sister. Her older sister was planning to go out, and told them to not answer the door for anyone and to keep everything locked.

After her sister left, Cassie and her friend went online, looking at scary chain letters and laughing at how they weren’t ever true. They didn’t believe in any of the chains and went to bed. Unfortunately, they forgot to lock the doors.

Cassie’s friend had been murdered in the middle of the night. Quickly and frightened, Cassie went and reposted every chain letter they had read. After waking up in the morning, she saw something that looked like a face that was very red, staring back at her in the mirror. But she did not see her face. She ran down the stairs and looked in a different mirror. Still seeing the same face, she touched hers. She then looked at her hands and they were covered in something red and watery. Her skin was burned and bloody. News around her town had told about the murder of Cassie’s friend. Cassie’s sister arrived home later that night, not yet seeing the news. Cassie told her sister what had happened, but her sister was in denial. Her sister reported that Cassie had gone insane and put her into a mental hospital. Years passed, and Cassie had died of a rare disease. Cassie came back for revenge towards her sister and the murderer.

The murderer was never found. Nearly hours after Cassie’s revenge, her sister was found dead. The man who found Cassie’s sister bloody with stab wounds on the floor, spotted a faint, red shadow. This was Cassie’s shadow. The man heard a whisper and he could make out small words saying, “You didn’t see anything.”

If you don’t repost this chain letter to at least 6 people in the next 10 minutes, Cassie will haunt you too.

So, if you don’t want Cassie to haunt and murder you, then repost this as soon as possible.

i don’t want cassie to haunt and murder me

#❝ 𝐑𝐀𝐄 𝐀𝐍𝐒𝐖𝐄𝐑𝐒 ❞

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amyreadsandstresses · 2 years ago

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AMY'S DAILY FIC REC

Today, BBC Sherlock and Teen Wolf

*Looking Down - HPswl_cumbercookie

6k, 1/1, Johnlock, Panic Attacks, Trauma, Acrophobia, Greg is a good friend, Hurt/Comfort

Sherlock's time away in Serbia has led to a rather severe manifestation of Acrophobia, which culminates in a severe panic attack and leads to some much needed confessions between our Baker Street Boys.

*The End - SherKat

5k, 6/6, Sherlock Holmes & John Watson, Identity Crisis, Ella Thompson, Mycroft Holmes, Trauma

After the fiasco at Sherrinford and Musgrave Hall, Sherlock is more than a bit not good.

And John has yet to learn that words, especially thoughtless ones spoken in haste, can cut very deeply indeed.

*What Was Different - thelookyouredoingthelookagain

17k, 9/9, Johnlock, Internalized Homophobia, First Time, Sherlock's Past, Gay Sherlock, Bisexual John Watson

John's list of assumptions about gay relationships surprises Sherlock. So the detective decides to enlighten the doctor.

*Denial - A_Candle_For_Sherlock

4k, 1/1, Johnlock, Sherlock's Past, Gay Sherlock, Past Viclock, Gay Bar, Friends to Lovers, Fluff, No smut

Written for a Tumblr prompt by grumpybijohn: "Imagine john and sherlock going to a gay bar for a case and the bartender/manager recognizes sherlock and is all like, 'Sherlock!! I haven’t seen you in years! How are you? Is this your boyfriend?'”

Or, what happens when denial finally gets too hard to maintain.

*On Blanket Forts And Waffles - reveling_in_mayhem

15k, 1/1, Johnlock, Parentlock, Rosie Watson, Sheer Fluff, First Kiss, Getting Together

John was happy with his life with Rosie and Sherlock. He had a lovely daughter and a wonderful best friend.

A sleepover in the living room wouldn't change any of that.

*Deductions Amiss - alice9

3k, 1/1, Johnlock, Confused Sherlock, Hurt/Comfort, Everything is actually fine, Implied/Referenced Infidelity

He sees, observes, and deduces, and the results leave him heartbroken. But he will do anything to keep John, even if it means having to keep his pain hidden and his mouth silent.

*I Can Carry You - lurikko

18k, 4/4, Johnlock, Dubious Consent, Angst with a Happy Ending, Fuck or Die

“I need you to do it for me,” Sherlock said.

*Looking Back, Moving Forward - Schattengestalt

12k, 2/2, Johnlock, Trans Sherlock, TW: Misgendering, TW: Past Transphobia, Supportive John, First Kiss, Domestic Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Childhood Memories, Body Dysphoria, Happy Ending

John believes that he has learned everything there is to know about Sherlock in the years that they have lived together. That is, until an unexpected letter arrives that challenges his view of his best friend.

*A (Sort of) Fairytale - briecheesie, daunt

25k, 1/1, Sterek, Fox!Stiles, Getting Together, Beautiful Illustrations, Hurt/Comfort, Magic, Romance

The summer after senior year starts normally enough, with the gang spending their final months before college together at the Martin family's lake house. Then Jackson stumbles onto the burial ground of a witch's ex-husband, Stiles is magically turned into a fox, and things somehow manage to get worse from there. The gratuitous Princess Bride references are only of moderate help.

#amy's fic rec #bbc sherlock #johnlock #johnlcok fanfic #sherlock fanfic #john watson #sherlock holmes #teen wolf #sterek #stiles stilinski #derek hale

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beewritesstuff · 9 months ago

Text

One Taste Could Send A Man To Heaven- Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Summary:

A year has passed in peace and love. Then, a letter arrives.

This is a spiritual successor to the first 11 chapters- a series looking into the small and momentous occasions in these lives.

Notes:

I'm switching from second to third person- I feel it makes more sense for this new arc of story! Vivi was my imagined name for the fictional 'you' of part one. She is all of us who want to be.

Plus, Vivi means "joy, or exuberant, done joyfully", so it also could simply be a Latin nickname for you from Gaster's muddled memory of the language.

Gaster blinked at the heavy parchment in his hand, mind racing.

The coronation of Prince Asriel as crown prince had been the talk of the city, perhaps even the world, ever since its announcement six months before. Their majesties had recently sent invitations to thousands but his was of a different nature, arriving with seals and ribbons, the Queen's words firm, mournful, and final.

"My Lord Grace,

Time passes, yet so little changes.

Your presence is both required and greatly desired by the Throne at his majesties coronation. The security of the event, appearance of our power, and safety of our people are of utmost importance, and like the general I once was, I am forced again to call my greatest soliders to me in this time of great strife and potential violence. Your skills and Gifts cannot be denied, nor can your penchant for avoiding large events at all costs. This is not one that We can afford you the dignity of being absent or anonymous, and We understand and acknowledge the weight beneath this seemingly simple order.

I also cannot deny my desire for the last surviving, original member of my parliament to be by my side as We face the emissaries of this strange, new world. Despite your constant denials, I was continually impressed by your grasp of decorum in those long ago times. Now I must require that you be properly re-acknowledged in your position within our society, with all the requirements and expectations that entails.

I understand the burden this places on your heart- expectations are not a healthy thing for a burgeoning partnership. Still, duty is duty, which is why I write this at my husband's side, and not from a place of more delightful company.

Monsters are alive and real again, and the public opinion (momentarily) demands we receive recompense for our harsh treatment. If part of that recompense includes lands and titles acknowledged, as We believe it will, then you are my most valuable asset in this coming future, more priceless than any gem or treasure of our kingdom.

I will say it plainly. You alone are of the originating, natural born greater nobility still living, and at the coronation, I require you to acknowledge your ducal claim and act as the arm of the throne that you so despise being. If she is to be a part of that life, then there are expectations to be set that she may not tolerate, and elevations that will be difficult to convey. If this is so, I ask that you will remember your honor and oaths to the throne, ancient but no less binding. We have been gone thousands of years, yet the expectations of wealth, nobility, and partnerships of love are scarcely changed from our time.

Her image will be scrubbed, her presence in every way maintained by those trained to do so. Freedoms she has grown used to will evaporate like morning fog; travel, casual appearance, even the ability to pick all she wears and buys. She will be drowned in gifts, and her home is not adequate even for 6 months of their storage, not to mention the risk of danger that so casual a living place invites with its location and build. You are an incredibly formidable man, but even the worst criminal can find luck once.

I understand the pain of what I ask, and the difficulty of the conversations to come. I hope beyond hope that she can find sympathy in her heart for your position, and the endless patience and tolerance required to have her life shift so dramatically.

(Written in a looser, less formal hand)

Formal phrasing allows so many evils to carry a veneer of palatability. I wish there was another way, Gaster, as I wish I had not spent the last forty years forgetting my last cousin on my mother's side. What I would not have given for the friend you once were to me, these horrible years...

No matter. I am sorry. We are sorry, though you know that he will never admit to it. The crown is a yoke that we cannot throw, and you are a rein that I cannot drop.

It will be a spring event, to celebrate new beginnings. The treasury will handle your expenses, and hers, if there are to be any. I pray that there will. The central records are rebuilding your identity and will soon have the appropriately aged writs of inheritance, endorsement, and rights prepared for your signature

(The ring is not original- if you can possibly remember where you left it, the old palace is practically a museum, untouched and undisturbed. For sentiment, I would love to see it if you find it. Do you remember all of us trying to fit every initial on the backs? Trinket insisted on all eight middle names...didn't we make her carve them on the band instead of the back of the signet?)

There is no easy way in my heart to end this letter. Please, Angels and Stars, be kind just a single time to this man who I once again must ask to do so much.

Her Royal Majesty

Queen Toriel Dremurr

Of the line of Constellatio

He dropped the letter and the signet ring that came with it, and stared out the kitchen window at the rising sun.

(Click link at the top to read the full chapter!)

#wd gaster #one taste could send a man to heaven #gaster x reader #gaster reader #undertale #holy shit is that an undertale fanfic that ISN'T weirdly about #like #the fucking mob?#wild #im sorry i just cannot understand the appeal lol #give me my modern regency not abused y/n

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dreaminginthedeepsouth · 2 years ago

Photo

THE GOP DOUBLES DOWN

TCinLA

I thought waking up this morning to see a photo of Trump at his hatealong last night in Waco with him standing in front of photos of the January 6 insurrection while the “song” “Justice for All” he recorded with the “J6 Prison Choir,” the insurrectionists he claims are patriotic Americans who participated in a “righteous protest” - essentially watching him remove the mask and admit he did in fact incite the insurrection and saying “Yeah, I did it - what are you going to do about it?” - was as strange as things were going to get this final Sunday in March, 2023.

I thought having a confessed statutory rapist and draft dodger - one-hit wonder Ted Nugent - calling Volodomyr Zelenskyy a “homosexual weirdo” was a about as crass a new low for the MAGAts as things were going to get.

I thought having Marjorie Traitor Goon publicly creating an alternative reality by calling the J6 defendants political prisoners who are being “badly treated” in a facility where they have access to computers and the internet, exercise and health services - all completely unavailable to the average inmate of the DC Jail - was a completely laughable denial of reality.

I was wrong.

Yesterday, the three blind mice - Gym Jordan and his co-conspirators masquerading as chairmen of three House committees - responded to District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s reply to their first letter sent this past week by doubling down in a second letter on their intention to intervene in the New York City investigation ahead of possible criminal charges against Trump, revealing they plan to to consider whether Congress should take legislative action on three separate issues “to protect former and/or current Presidents from politically motivated prosecutions by state and local officials.” In other words, to find a way to make such a prosecution of Donald Trump impossible.

Trump admits his complicity in the January 6 insurrection and leaders of the Republican Party take steps to insulate him from accountability before they even know what specific charges he will be indicted on.

The Republicans declare war on reality and the rule of law. THAT is as strange as things got on this final weekend of March, 2023.

Bragg responded to the letter after it became public last night, writing, “We evaluate cases in our jurisdiction based on the facts, the law, and the evidence. It is not appropriate for Congress to interfere with pending local investigations. This unprecedented inquiry by federal elected officials into an ongoing matter serves only to hinder, disrupt and undermine the legitimate work of our dedicated prosecutors. As always, we will continue to follow the facts and be guided by the rule of law in everything we do.”

A spokesperson for Oversight Committee Democrats has stated, “Chairman Jordan, Comer, and Steil believe former President Trump is above the law. This outrageous position is further evidence of former President Trump and MAGA extremists’ hold on Congressional Republicans.”

The MAGA Republican Party has now officially declared war on the rule of law.

Here are the high points from the Letter:

��Notably, your reply letter did not dispute the central allegations at issue—that you, under political pressure from left-wing activists and former prosecutors in your office, are reportedly planning to use an alleged federal campaign finance violation, previously declined by federal prosecutors, as a vehicle to extend the statute of limitations on an otherwise misdemeanor offense and indict for the first time in history a former President of the United States.”

No, you morons, it wasn’t “previously declined” by federal prosecutors. The Trump-appointed Attorney General Bill Barr, citing the so-called “Nixon rule” that a sitting president cannot be indicted and prosecuted, ORDERED the DOJ attorneys to drop the case.

“Contrary to the central argument set forth in your letter, this matter does not simply involve local or state interests. Rather, the potential criminal indictment of a former President of the United States by an elected local prosecutor of the opposing political party (and who will face the prospect of re-election) implicates substantial federal interests, particularly in a jurisdiction where trial-level judges also are popularly elected. If state or local prosecutors are able to engage in politically motivated prosecutions of Presidents of the United States (former or current) for personal acts, this could have a profound impact on how Presidents choose to exercise their powers while in office. For example, a President could choose to avoid taking action he believes to be in the national interest because it would negatively impact New York City for fear that he would be subject to a retaliatory prosecution in New York City.”

This is wholly and completely specious, but what Republican argument about anything isn’t?

“Likewise, because the federal government has a compelling interest in protecting the physical safety of former or current Presidents, any decision to prosecute a former or current President raises difficult questions concerning how to vindicate that interest in the context of a state or local criminal justice system. For these reasons and others, we believe that we now must consider whether Congress should take legislative action to protect former and/or current Presidents from politically motivated prosecutions by state and local officials, and if so, how those protections should be structured.”

“Second, the Committees’ inquiry has an obvious legitimate legislative purpose and is “a subject on which legislation could be had.” To begin with, as discussed above, Congress has a specific and manifestly important interest in preventing politically motivated prosecutions of current and former Presidents by elected state and local prosecutors, particularly those tried before elected state and local trial-level judges. Therefore, the Committee on the Judiciary, as a part of its broad authority to develop criminal justice legislation, must now consider whether to draft legislation that would, if enacted, insulate current and former presidents from such improper state and local prosecutions. These legislative reforms may include, for example, broadening the existing statutory right of removal of certain criminal cases from state court to federal court.”

Here is the argument to use the federal government to protect Trump.

“Moreover, as discussed above, your prosecutorial decision to indict a former President may cause a potential confrontation between federal and local law-enforcement authorities. Federal law requires the United States Secret Service to protect a former President.8 Therefore, your unprecedented prosecutorial decision raises the potential for conflict between the federal law-enforcement officials required to protect the former President and local law-enforcement officials required to enforce your indictment and exercise control of him throughout his presence in the local criminal justice system. Such a novel and potentially fraught collision of federal and local law-enforcement officials with the safety of a former President at stake is certainly a matter of interest for the Committees. The Committees’ oversight is necessary to inform potential legislation that would address or remedy any potential conflicts between federal and local authorities.”

You mendacious morons! It has already been established that state and local law enforcement would COOPERATE with the Secret Service, which would coordinate Trump surrendering after indictment. There is no possibility whatsoever of any “shoot out” happening.

This is the most audacious assault on the rule of law by the Republicans. They are ALL, each and every one of them, traitors to their oath to protect and defend the constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic, because ALL THEM ARE THE DOMESTIC ENEMY.

[TCinLA]

#Mike Luckovich #IEDs #political cartoon #TCinLA #mendacious morons #US House of Representatives #Rule of Law

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meadowofbluebells · 1 year ago

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Find the Word Tag

Thank you for the tag, @enne-uni. :)

So, I have a lot of short story WiPs that I'm currently working on, so there were a lot of instances of these words. Though, a few of these sound insane without their context. Oh well.

WIP 1: And So To Queens Can Fall

Solana spent a couple more minutes in the room, unwilling to leave them just yet. She made sure to analyze her little girls as much as possible. The way Winifred wrinkled her nose whenever Vera was too loud. How Vera never stopped smiling, even in her sleep; her little ray of sunshine.

The little girl slowly blinked into consciousness. Her green eyes hazily fell on her mother. “Is it morning already?”

WIP 2: Denial (Working Title)

“Do you think there is a way to get back? I mean, we’re still talking. Maybe there is a puzzle piece that we’re just missing.” Gideon’s hands were wrapped around his knees and he was staring down at Atticus’ white sneakers.

WIP 3: Beloved

They had been collecting herbs all day, and her feet felt swollen from walking so far outside the city. So, when she saw the pretty white flowers with pink centers she was excited. She had immediately picked one and brought it to her nose, only to realize it smelled like rotting flesh.

“Boo!” Andy flinched at the loud noise right next to her ear.

WIP 4: Powers (Working Title)

Thus, Graham spent most of his early childhood going to specialist after specialist. His parents drove to appointments early in the morning or flew across the country for answers. Nothing ever came of it, though.

As Graham slowly sat up, wincing at the pull on his bruised skin, he watched the pristine white pages of their test flutter to the ground like confetti at the end of a performance.

WIP 5: The Pirate Boy

Yet, as she walked around the house, everything else felt familiar. By the time she had circled back to the attic, she felt no closer to an answer. The only thing out of place was the wooden ladder painted white.

She looked around the tables again. Her eyes focused on each member individually. Lord Sock was blushing all the way to the roots of his balding white hair as he talked to Miss Rock. She, in turn, was smiling so widely that her crow’s feet looked like half-stars on each side of her head.

The next morning, she woke up to a child’s laugh. The sound was loud but melodic. However, to Carla, who got precious few hours of sleep, the sound was grating.

“They are rather loud, are they not?” She said to the boy.

However, the next morning, when she raced out of her bedroom in a bid to get to work as soon as possible, there was no attic. She had stopped in her tracks, one rm hanging out her blazer and the other brushing through her hair.

WIP 6: Signed, Death

The door creaked open as he flicked on the lights - stumbling into the orderly room with a jubilant stride. He threw on his jacket and stuffed his wallet into one of the front pockets. Then, with a satisfied nod, turned to leave. However, as he pivoted, a flash of white on his desk caught his attention. With a furrowed brow, David turned to examine the object - a pristine envelope with his name written in elegantly looping letters.

When David awoke, he was surrounded by white walls. For a moment he thought death had taken pity on him and heeded his cries. However, the overpowering scent of hand sanitizer quickly destroyed that hope. His hazy eyes slowly focused enough to see the face of a smiling doctor swimming in front of him.

There was a fine mist in the air as David drove home. The white fog shied away from the street lamps and his headlights Still, he was practically squinting by the time he turned onto one of the less-used side streets. The sound of other motorists arriving home late drifted further and further away as he drove.

WIP 7: The Grim Reaper (Working Title)

Her tirade was cut off by a cold sensation on her forearm. She turned around sharply to glare at Grim. “What?”

WIP 8: The Wedding (Working Title)

Zoe was dressed in an off-the-shoulder gown with an a-line skirt. The fabric was as white as snow.

“I think you should try something that is more of an off-white.” Melody said as she turned back toward Zoe, her eyelashes fluttering rapidly.

WIP 9: Up a Tree (Working Title)

Barnett snorted. “Like you did this morning?”

“You’ll thank me in the morning.”

This was fun. :)

I'll tag @fleurtygurl and @lassiesandiego. Of course, anyone else who wants to take part is welcome.

Your words are: -Sky -Dream -Melody -Twirl

#tag game #last line tag game

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inquisimer · 9 months ago

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fucked around and got attached

for @febuwhump day 6 (you lied to me) - an argument between the Trevelyan siblings over secrets discovered once Drew became the Inquisitor

read it on ao3 here

Female Trevelyan & Male Trevelyan | Rated T | 1139 words | CW: past violence, implied/referenced abuse

The battlements are colder, now that he knows the truth.

Being the Inquisitor came with all sorts of opportunities and power. That was why he’d agreed. It also, apparently came with a trove of secrets—useful things, the spymaster said. Even the dirty ones. Even the ones he didn’t want to know.

“Drew? Leliana said you were looking for me.”

He closed his eyes. Even hearing her voice soured his stomach. And he was going to have words with his spymaster—if they wanted him in charge, they needed to listen when he asked to be alone.

“Well, she lied. I’m not in the mood for company.”

Even without looking at her, he could see how her brow furrowed. In the past few months he’d made himself intimate with her every expression, drinking up that which he’d been deprived like a man starved. He hadn’t thought he’d regret it, but the clarity with which his mind’s eye showed her face only hurt him now.

Once, he thought the worst thing she could be was dead. He thought wrong.

“Drew?”

She sounded confused. Probably because he’d been terse with her—he was never terse with anyone. Drew took a deep breath and tried to keep his anger from showing when he looked over his shoulder.

Judging by how her expression fell flat, he failed.

“You know, I didn’t think being their Inquisitor would be all that different from being their Herald,” he said. “I was already playing decision-maker for them. It was just a formality.”

“But it turns out,” he fought to keep his voice conversational, “that there were plenty of things they left me out of the loop on. Things they didn’t think I needed to know, despite using me at every turn.”

His fist clenched around the letter from Leliana and he looked his sister directly in the eye.

“Things you didn’t think I needed to know.”

Not even a flinch. Either Leliana prepped her—and he wondered why she was here, if that was the case—or she was actually just that cold. With a scoff, Drew thrust the crumpled parchment toward her.

The confusion instantly dropped from her expression. Just another act.

“You lied to me,” he said. All the hurt and betrayal wrapped up in a simple accusation. Words didn’t feel like enough. “I trusted you, and you lied to me.”

“That’s how the world works, Drew,” she said. No reaction, no anger, no denial. “If you aren’t prepared for everyone around you to fuck you over at any given moment, you’re just asking to be played.”

“That’s bullshit!” He slammed his fist against the stone and it cracked under the force magic that spilled between his fingers. “That’s not a way to live, always afraid and guarded.”

“You’re right—it’s a way to survive. Don’t tell me you didn’t learn something similar in the Circle.”

“Of course I did. Which is exactly why I know it’s not right!”

“Don’t be a child,” Acacia scoffed. “Yes, I lied to you. You didn’t want to hear the truth. You didn’t want to know that I struggled, or if I did you wanted to know that it was over. That I made it through. And I did. Just…not as cleanly as someone proper as yourself might have wished.”

“I lied to you,” she repeated coldly. “And I’d do it again.”

Drew reeled back as if she’d physically slapped him. “You…would?”

“I would.”

“Don’t you…care about me?”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“Well, you don’t lie to people you care about!”

Acacia snorted. “You’re thinking in a utopia, Drew. If you really think that, the first person you’re lying to is yourself.”

“Not about anything important,” he clarified. “There’s a difference between telling someone their outfit is flattering and telling them that they’ve made an honest life when really they’ve been a thief for six years.”

“An accountant for a thieves guild. If you’re going to attempt an insult, use the facts at your disposal.” Acacia folded her arms across her chest. “And you didn’t need to know. It was—is—baggage. It doesn’t matter anymore.”

“It’s part of who you are,” Drew said. “Of course it matters.”

“It’s in the past. Truly, now. You know who I am today.”

He scowled. She didn’t understand, or she was being purposefully obtuse. Either way, he was equal parts annoyed and devastated that she just…didn’t seem to care.

“Where you’ve been changes who you are now, ‘cacia.”

“Not in any way that matters.”

“No?” he challenged. “Tell me then: have you been working with Leliana to leverage your underworld contacts, or not?”

She hesitated and that was all the answer he needed. His breath fogged around his nose as he exhaled his anger. How could he ever trust anything she told him again? Did he even know her, know her mind?

A small voice in his head scoffed at him; of course he didn’t. A few months in a catastrophic whirlwind hardly rivaled two decades apart.

“It’s still affecting who you are now,” he pointed out. “It can’t be wholly irrelevant.”

Her fists clenched where they pressed against her side. “I might be using what I learned then, but I don’t make choices the same way. I don’t make choices for the same reasons. It’s different, and that’s why it doesn’t matter.”

“Don’t get caught up in the semantics.”

“Isn’t that what you’re doing?”

“You lied about who you are!” Drew snapped. His extensive patience wore thin at her repeated nonchalance. “It’s not the same thing.”

“Isn’t it?”

Exasperated, Drew threw his hands to the sky.

“Why did you come out here, if you didn’t want to have an honest conversation about it?”

“Because you won’t get anything done while you’re brooding about this,” she said. “You have power now. People will lie to you, people will use you, people will do anything they can to take advantage of you. If you don’t learn to deal with it in a less emotional way, you’ll never get anywhere in this game.”

Drew spun away from her. She wasn’t wrong, precisely, but she wasn’t right either. He just couldn’t articulate why. Instead he satisfied himself with glaring down at the bustling courtyard below.

He hurt. From being wrong, from being wronged, from not being able to do a damn thing about any of it. Despite the influence and power he apparently held.

“Grow a thicker skin, Inquisitor.” Acacia tossed the cold warning over her shoulder. “Or the world will grow it for you.”

He shoved a fist against his teeth instead of screaming how he wanted. Skyhold’s mountain air stung the torn flesh when he pulled it away to breathe.

And just as he’d asked, he was alone again.

In more ways than one.

#my writing #febuwhump2024 #febuwhumpday6 #oc: acacia trevelyan #oc: drew trevelyan #acacia & drew #ws: nothing but my aching soul #dragon age #dragon age inquisition #dragon age fanfic

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