#do you see the family resemblance

[nuclear-caffeine-addiction]

Ollie saying he knows the inchident meme by heart 🤝 Oscar saying the inchident is his favourite F1 meme

grid parents are real

[mapacart]

Transmigrators and their original bodies 🔄

(+ cumplane bonus!)

[elfrootbong]

quick paintover of a movie still i liked ft. kinloch era julian

[mayo-productions]

good evening tumblr (it's literally midnight..)

I'm back in the Miguel trenches and I just saw this and I just about fell to the floor in tears because this is literally what's gonna happen to Mateo..

(incoming nonsense rant in tags, sighh)

[creepyscritches]

I see my biological grandma this weekend :3 it's the first time we've seen each other since her cancer diagnosis (now completed treatment!! Yippee!!!!)

I'm also meeting her sister which will be 👁️👁️ I've never met other members of her family, but I've heard a lot about them

[hollenka99]

Like grandfather, like great great grandson

[idiosyncraticrednebula]

I don't understand why TLM 2 tried so hard to emphasize and clarify how much Ariel is like her mother in terms of personality when she is, in the movie, quite frankly, written to be more like Eric in character. She was really primarily introverted, shy, awkward, tomboyish, mild-mannered and more serious, which is more like her father. I guess it was her impulsive, curious, rebellious and reckless nature that made the characters in the movie go, "Ow, she is so like her mother!", but I don't know, whenever I see Melody, I see her as closer to her dad. I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who sees it this way. I don't believe for one second that NO ONE in that universe was able to notice the similarities she had with her father. C'mon, she even has his doggone smile! 😂

[raitrolling]

!!

The random number generator has rolled...

Pavlov Espino / The Swindler

The ancestor of Viltau Espino. The Swindler was a member of the Empire's Hunting Dogs, a collective of elite agents and soldiers who carried out the Empress' will by taking on all the dirty work ordered by officials. He would use his charisma and status to infiltrate rebel groups and then take them down from the inside-out, manipulating key figures of these groups by sowing chaos and pitting them against one another, and then executing their leaders when the time was right. Even those who were well-aware of the machinations of The Swindler and thought they could outplay him would find themselves manipulated by his honeyed words, or blindsided by his pawns who had once been their trusted allies.

Pavlov regularly wrote journals and memoirs with deliberately false information so that his movements within rebel groups were untraceable, which makes the validity of his accomplishments difficult to ascertain. These journals are currently in the care of the Espino bloodline, and are used as a means to teach Pavlov's descendants into seeking out the main truths and using them to follow in his footsteps.

... That is, until Viltau came along.

[mikeytxt]

i was supposed to prepare for something we're doing tomorrow but why do that when i could marinate in all sorts of feelings, uh, instead

[talia-kane]

do some of you guys even like Damian???like he’s not baby he’s never been baby he was never given the chance to just be a kid until he was like 10/11 ish and by then he was struggling with winning everyones acceptance to care about being a kid, thats the beauty of his story he’s a fucking tragedy and some of you are out here saying ohh he’s baby bro shut the fuck up and pick up the comics

[karlachismylife]

Simon Riley got his fingers fucked up. Time spent under Roba's torture messed up the joints, made his digits barely able to flex and curl and left him with chronic pain, especially once the temperatures start to drop. It's alright, not the worst thing he came out of that encounter with, he can live with it. Doesn't bother him even that much.

It's just that Simon Riley used to love knitting.

Soft, creamy white, thick yarn turning into volumunous sweaters with huge warm collars his mother and his brother's bird could wear, safe from the nasty winter chill. Stripey socks, comfortable hats, long fluffy scarves - he could and would do it all.

Roba took it from him. Knitting needles became almost impossible to hold properly, struggling over the yarn mess for more than 15 minutes pisses him off and makes him never want to pick it up again. He can barely make a couple rows of a shitty excuse of a scarf, let alone finish a single thing.

And then Soap brings his LT over to his family home for their joint leave - two whole weeks in a household full of bustling life, hearty food and loving banter. In the evenings, when Johnny and all the younglings of the family have already spent their buzzing energy and are snoring in their beds, sometimes piled up like tired puppies, Simon and Mama MacTavish both are kept up by their insomnia. In a pleasantly dimly lit living room, this beautiful woman with white hair and noble profile sits, kitting - soft white wool of Highlands' best sheep turning into a sweater in her hands.

Simon comes to sit with her, calmed down by the sounds her needles make and the hypnotizing movements of her hands. First couple of nights he just lets it lull him to sleep before Mama MacTavish sends him off to wam bed with her snoring son already sprawled across it like a starfish.

Then Simon picks up needles himself. It's a slow, torturous process, his grip slipping, threads coming apart, frustration and anger at his useless fingers building - yet Mama's hands always come to rescue. She soothes the pain in his fingers, helps fix uneven loops, tells him stories of Johnny's childhood to distract Ghost from his angry mind. It works.

By the end of the leave he presents Soap the ugliest knitted hat with pompoms stitched to it in a row resembling a mohawk, and you bet Johnny wears it all the time, flexing in front of everyone who sees him in this monstrosity. He takes it to all the places he shouldn't, stubbornly unwilling to part with the gift, and loses pompoms - yet somehow Simon constantly sees new ones pop up on the hat.

It's Mama MacTavish stitching them on, because she knows, Simon needs a little help with this painstaking work for now.

[bats-and-the-birds]

The Batkids on being mistaken as Bruce's biological children.

Look, the Batkids have all been forced into various social gatherings, and enough of them share vague features with Bruce that some of the older members among Gotham's old money, or the younger ones that are out of the loop, sometimes mix up the facts.

Dick gets it from the very beginning. Old women pinch his cheeks, still tan from a life outside of Gotham's gloom, and tell him, Such a sweet little boy, and just like your father at your age. His hair used to stick up just like yours. Dick didn't like it at all. He bit the first person that told him he had Bruce's eyes, and stomped on the foot of an old politician that told him, With your father's height, I thought you'd be taller by now.

He laughs it off as an adult, but sometimes, it still eats at him. People still tell him that they thought he'd eventually be as tall as Bruce, or that he should be thankful for his inherited jaw line. It's not the comparison to Bruce that bothers him anymore, or even being mistaken as his son, but rather, the fact that he sometimes struggles to remember exactly where his features actually came from; parental faces turning fuzzy in his distant memory.

Jason thinks it's funny, the first time it happens. Mostly because it's his nose of all things. Your nose is bent, grumbled the old man sitting across from him at the gala, Just like your father's. Tough luck on the genetics. The man didn't realize the bent noses were because they'd both been broken in the past. Jason spent days after studying Bruce's face, trying to figure out if their noses really bent in the same way, and eventually came to the conclusion that, yeah, they really did. From that point on, each time either of them broke their nose, Jason would distantly think, Ah, damn, there goes the family resemblance.

As an adult, Jason takes care to make sure people don't often seen his face. The hood does a pretty good job of that. Besides, he doesn't move in circles where the mistake could be made anymore. Still, sometimes he looks in the mirror at the bump in his nose and thinks, Family resemblance. Yeah, right.

It happens less with Tim. Anyone that made the mistake with Jason and Dick also remembered Jack and Janet Drake. It's not until he's almost an adult that a new hire at Wayne Industries, some kid from out of town, sees him and Bruce in the office together and remarks, Oh, you two furrow your eyebrows in the same way when you think. My mom says that my dad and I do that too. We inherited it from my grandpa. Tim feels unsettled all day and makes a conscious effort to not to furrow his eyebrows anymore.

There's no mistake to make with Damian. At least, not the same one that can be made with the others. He's the blood son, and he's a perfect mix between Bruce and Talia. Of course, there's the well-meaning, if confused, adults that assume he's adopted like the others. He corrects them, swiftly, and sometimes aggressively.

There is one incident. It happens while Bruce is gone, after he's been staying with Grayson for a few months. He knew, of course, that people thought that Grayson looked like Bruce. He could even see the similarities. Superficially, of course. However, he never considered that Grayson looking like his father also meant that Grayson looked like him. Not until an old woman leaned over to him at a gala and said, You look just like your father when Mister Wayne first brought him out to these things. The hair, that disgruntled little frown. He hated these parties too. Couldn't ever sit still. Gosh, I really can't believe it's been long enough that he has a child of his own. It took Damian a while to realize what happened, and even then, he couldn't bring himself to tell her that he wasn't actually Grayson's son, or that he and Grayson weren't actually that far apart in age. He felt strangely guilty the rest of the night, and he never dared to tell Grayson about it.

It happened to Steph exactly once. Really, she doesn't look like Bruce at all. It was a man with exceptionally thick glasses, who actually told her that she reminded him of Martha Wayne. She's pretty sure he was just trying to be nice. She tries to forget about it. She never tells Bruce.

You have his eyes, is what Duke gets. Which confuses him, because, uh, no, he doesn't. Not even close like Dick's. He says as much to the woman that said it to him, and she squints her eyes at him and responds, No, you definitely do. Not in the shape or the color, but you look at things the same way he does. Duke thinks about that sometimes, and he swings back and forth between being annoyed and weirdly proud that he apparently looked at the world like Batman did.

People tell Cass that she has his smile. She beams with pride at that. After all, she learned it from him. She studied, closely, the way his mouth ticked up at the corners, both while he stretched the dazzling, fake smile across his face for the public, and the genuine, gentle smiles that he gave her while he helped tie her hair back or slip on her mask, and now she could replicate them both perfectly. She didn't like the fake one, but she knew it was necessary.

[whoevenisjavier]

EROTICA

part 1 | part 2

pairing: no outbreak!joel x reader

The plan was to finish your thesis. You didn’t actually want to meet a neighbor with a past you can google and a history caught on tape. Or did you?

a/n: the adult content t-shit gave me ideas. btw, my first story here and I swear this is not a TED talk about morality. critical thinking? yes, bc the story needs it. moral lectures? absolutely not. porn? you'll see. this is just for fun — enjoy, i guess. the storys finished already, so I'll post the next chapter soon.

additional tags/warnings: 18+, mdni. reader is 26, joel is 50ish. no outbreak. joel is a dad. conversations about porn. inaccuracies about joel miller (I know his parents aren't chilean but bear with me). javier peña is there too. do I have to add anything else here? I don't know how to do these things.

wc: 9k

This time, your parents aren’t waiting for you at the bus terminal like they’ve done every year for the past three. It’s a good thing, a sign you’re standing on your own now, with your own car, but you still miss seeing their smiles through the fogged-up bus windows.

That moment always made you feel like you belonged somewhere.

Driving through the streets of Lake Placid on your way home feels like walking through your childhood memories. The stores look almost the same, sometimes with a fresh coat of paint, and the people, though not exactly familiar, are the daughters and grandsons of the adults you grew up around before moving to New York. Their faces carry just enough resemblance to make you do a double take.

When you park in your parents’ driveway and pick up your phone for the first time in two hours, there’s a message from your mother.

“We’re in the backyard having a welcome barbecue for the new neighbor! You can go up to your room and rest if you want some time alone or come eat. Can’t wait to see you. X.”

You smile as you step out of the Jeep, the door creaking behind you, and breathe in the cold, clean air rolling down from the mountains and the lake that wraps around the village where you were born. Your parents’ house sits above Mirror Lake Drive, right at the edge of the hill on the northeast side of the village, and from your bedroom window on the second floor, you can see the lake and the distant peaks of the High Peaks.

A far cry from the view outside your New York apartment: nothing but gray swallowed up by buildings. It’s the perfect setting to finally finish your thesis.

As you grab your two suitcases from the back seat, your eyes wander to the house next door, which had been empty for the past three years, mostly because the previous owners were asking too much for it.

Buying real estate in Lake Placid takes careful thought, since turning a profit is unlikely even with upgrades and expansions – the village is just too isolated. So if you’re buying here, it’s not for the money. It’s because you want a life far away from the city.

The house in question is a larger and more luxurious version of your parents’, made of gray stone, with cute white-framed windows, and for the first time in months, you see the lawn freshly trimmed and a new pickup truck parked in the driveway.

Probably the new family your mom mentioned.

The house is empty when you walk in, but you can hear laughter and voices drifting up from the backyard. You head the opposite way, climb the stairs to your room, drop your bags, take a shower, and spend a good while debating whether to sink into sheets that smell like home for the first time in ten months or go downstairs and find something to eat.

Hunger wins.

You throw on a warm sweater and go down. When you open the back doors, six pairs of eyes turn toward you, but it’s your mother’s squeal that makes you smile, followed by the tight hug she and your father give you.

“There’s our girl,” your father says to the others, wrapping an arm around your shoulders as he says your name. You give a small wave. “She always comes home for the holidays.”

The couple sitting together you recognize. They’ve been friends with your parents for years.

But you don’t know the woman who smiles sweetly at you, and you definitely don’t recognize the man, at least twenty-five years older than you, who keeps a neutral expression as he sips from a beer can. He doesn’t seem particularly friendly, but maybe that’s just the impression left by the slightly graying mustache and broad shoulders.

Two minutes later, you’re settled into a lounge chair with everyone in the backyard, a warm burger on your plate and a cold beer in your hand.

“I told Joel he’d have trouble with the house,” says the sweet-smiling woman to your parents, continuing the conversation they were having. “But he really wanted a place here, so I just supported him.”

“What kind of trouble are you having with the house?” your mom asks Joel — the mustached man, now officially identified.

“Nothing major,” Joel replies in a deep, firm, polite voice. “Had to redo the plumbing in two of the bathrooms and fix the heating in the kitchen sink, but it’s all fine now.”

“And are you liking it here?” you venture. You glance at the woman. “You and... your wife?”

Joel gives a faint smile.

“Tess isn’t my wife. And yeah, I’m liking it. It’s peaceful. Not too many teenagers. Feels like paradise.”

“What’s with the teenage hate?” you ask, half-joking, half-serious, silently filing away the Tess isn’t his wife detail.

“Fewer teenagers means fewer cell phones.”

Your response is a light laugh that earns a slight eyebrow raise from Joel, but you go back to your burger and let him be.

The conversation between the adults shifts to Fleetwood Mac, Lake Placid families, suggestions for places Joel should check out, and gossip about someone’s daughter who apparently got knocked up by the neighbor’s grandson, or something like that. You listen in, partly because you’re curious about the latest news (true or not) in the town you grew up in.

Your parents mention that you’re staying longer this time to get a change of scenery and finally work on your thesis, and that’s when the dreaded question comes. From Tess.

“And what’s your thesis about?”

Your mother holds back a laugh, because despite the seriousness of the topic, the initial reactions are always the same.

“I study anthropology,” you say. “My thesis is about the influence of pornography on male behavior over the years.”

That’s because the way men acted around you had always bothered you. When you were ten, wearing a cute chiffon skirt to the grocery store, they stared. When you were fifteen, walking home from school in your uniform, you heard disgusting things shouted at you on the street.

It wasn’t until you got older and realized that behavior like that isn’t natural (and why would it be, if women don’t do it?) that all your anger turned into the foundation for your research.

Tess raises her eyebrows and smiles slightly while the older couple gasps in surprise. Joel doesn’t react at all, except for rubbing the condensation on his beer can with his thumb.

“That’s a very interesting topic,” Tess comments, glancing at Joel, who briefly looks at her, then back at you. “Do you have any conclusions yet?”

“A few,” you say, though you already know the core of your research is the objectification of women’s bodies for the industry’s gain. “But I don’t want to bore you—”

“What’s your research method?” Joel cuts in before you can finish.

“Sorry?”

“Your research method. The system you’re using for the thesis.”

“Mixed methods,” you say, but you sense something more behind the question. Something slightly aggressive that you can’t fully pin down. “I did some fieldwork in New York.”

“Did you interview anyone from the industry?”

You shake your head.

“No one agreed. At least not the newer actors and actresses. The more established ones charged absurd fees just to answer ten questions.”

Joel says nothing, and the silence is broken when your father makes a joke about the topic. Everyone laughs—including you.

The barbecue lasts another hour at most before people start saying their goodbyes. Your mom wraps up two burgers for Joel, and he thanks her sincerely.

Then he turns to you and says:

“Good luck with the thesis, sweetheart.”

You nod, and you could swear you catch a faint smirk at the corner of his lips before he waves goodbye and walks off.

You run into Joel again at the market three blocks from home, standing in front of the fruit display, looking stuck between red grapes, green grapes, and oranges.

Joel’s voice comes suddenly from your left.

“What deep philosophical truth are you hoping those grapes will reveal to you?”

You startle, turning toward him with your hand over your heart as if that could slow it down. Joel raises one eyebrow as he begins placing seedless green grapes into a plastic bag.

He’s wearing worn jeans and a plaid flannel shirt over a white T-shirt. Thin-rimmed glasses rest on the strong bridge of his nose.

He smells like pine and something expensive that you guess it’s aftershave.

“Hi,” you say first, then quickly add, “I was trying to decide between grapes and oranges.”

“Grapes are sweeter this time of year.”

“But I like sour fruit.”

“Then go for the oranges.”

“But grapes are easier to eat. More practical.”

Joel gives you an impatient look, and you answer with a laugh. You grab a plastic bag and start selecting oranges.

After a short silence, while Joel ties off his grape bag and begins picking oranges too, you ask:

“Are you liking it here?”

Joel murmurs:

“There are some interesting things. Sarah likes it.”

“Your wife?” you ask quickly. Too quickly.

“My daughter. Just turned fifteen.”

Oh. Great. He’s a dad. You glance at his hand but see no ring. Joel notices.

“What’s with the marriage obsession?” he asks, although not rudely.

You shrug.

“I’m just curious. And you’d better brace yourself. The older ladies in Lake Placid are going to eat you alive with questions about your relationship status.”

“Really? Why do you think that?”

You freeze with your fingers wrapped around a particularly juicy orange. Without meaning to, you basically confessed that you think he’s a catch: attractive, polite, middle-aged, apparently wealthy, and tall. What other reason would the ladies have to shift their attention from their knitting?

You avoid his eyes.

“You bought the house that had been on the market for years. They’ll want to know who the buyer is,” you say, a half-truth.

He grunts, as if to say he doesn’t care about any of that, ties his orange bag, and places it in the cart. He glances at your basket, scanning the hygiene items (specifically the pads) and the chocolate bars.

“Did you drive here?” he asks.

You shake your head. He does too.

“Then let’s go. I’ll give you a ride home. It’s raining.”

His tone doesn’t invite objection and you don’t want to argue. Silently, and after grabbing a bag of green grapes too, you follow him through the market. He picks up a box of chocolate cereal, milk, kale, and oats, and then you both head to the checkout line.

You pay for your items first, so you end up waiting under the automatic doors, arms crossed beneath the blasting air conditioner.

People come in shaking umbrellas, mumbling about how unexpected the rain is or how cold the drops feel.

Older women walk in, spot Joel, and start whispering to each other with that smile every woman — no matter her age — immediately recognizes. The universal woman-smile.

He, seemingly unaware to all of it, pays with his card, grabs the bags with one hand, and walks over to you.

“Need help?” he asks, motioning toward your three bags.

You shake your head. He nods once and tilts his head toward the door, signaling for you to follow him across the crowded parking lot.

His pickup truck is parked near the exit, looking big and sturdy. You both get in at the same time. The inside smells good but feels stuffy from the rain, so he turns on the A/C and runs his hand through his graying hair to shake off the water.

“It rains a lot here,” he mutters as he starts the engine and buckles his seatbelt. You do the same. “Not sure I like this humidity.”

“Where were you living before?”

“Los Angeles.”

Your eyebrows rise. You can’t picture him with the stereotypical California vibe. It doesn’t fit.

So you ask the million-dollar question:

“What did you do there?”

The sound of the windshield wipers is your only response for a few seconds. Long enough for you to wonder if you crossed a line.

“A bit of everything,” he finally says, and you understand that he doesn’t want to talk about it. Yeah. You were being nosy.

Weird. Joel is weird, and everything about him makes you feel like you should think he’s an assassin, or a retired California mobster, anything that would kick your survival instincts into gear. You probably shouldn’t be sitting in a closed space with him like you’ve known him for years.

“Nothing illegal,” Joel adds when your silence starts to stretch.

That makes you laugh.

“Very reassuring.”

He smirks. At a red light, his fingers tap lightly on the leather steering wheel.

“How’s the thesis going?” he asks.

“Honestly? I haven’t opened the file since I got here.”

“Procrastinating?”

You hum in agreement, resting your head against the seat.

“I think I’m stuck.”

“Yeah? Why?”

“I need to watch some films to move forward.”

He freezes. Then he lets out a low chuckle. You defend yourself:

“I’m serious. I need to understand which narratives work best and why, and connect that to how they influence real-life behavior.”

“Makes sense,” Joel says.

“It does,” you reply, a little proud. You glance at him. The shape of his nose, the mustache, the gray-streaked beard. Then you add, “But it feels weird watching porn in my parents’ house, even if it’s for educational purposes.”

“Porn isn’t always for educational purposes?”

You gasp in horror.

“No!” you exclaim. “Porn is not educational. People don’t have sex like that in real life.”

“Hm…”

“You disagree?”

“I do,” he says plainly. “People do have sex like that.”

“I didn’t mean physically, Joel. Sex is easy: a good position, one thing inside the other, and done.” You catch yourself, because not all sex involves penetration, and something about Joel makes you think he wouldn’t mind sitting through a lecture on inclusivity if it came to that, but you add: “What I meant is that sex doesn’t happen like that. It’s not normal to open the door for the pizza guy and two seconds later be bent over the couch.”

“Says who?”

The frustrated growl that escapes you seems to amuse him. You know he’s teasing, and his grin proves it, but you can’t resist continuing.

“Not to mention the incest plots or the underage fantasies. Do you really think sex happens like that?”

His smile disappears instantly.

“You’re changing the subject.”

“No, I’m not. You can’t separate porn genres like some are less harmful than others, because even the ones that seem ‘harmless’ fuel the same industry that writes those sick scripts.”

“We’re here.”

He cuts you off with that simple phrase, and when you look out the window, you realize he’s right. You’re in front of your house. You turn your gaze back to him, and he meets it firmly, returning all the intensity you just threw his way.

You swallow and reach for your bags.

As if you hadn’t just delivered a monologue on the ethics of pornography, you simply say:

“Thanks for the ride.”

He doesn’t respond. You step out of the truck and walk to the door of your house, feeling like a kid who just got scolded, which is ridiculous. But even more ridiculous is the fact that Joel only drives away after he sees you walk safely inside, even though he literally lives next door.

You meet Sarah — Joel’s fifteen-year-old daughter — the next day.

After running along Mirror Lake Drive, you get home with your lungs burning and your body drenched in sweat, the elastic band of your pink sports bra stuck to your back. As you’re kicking off your sneakers at the door, you spot a pair of pink Converse, way smaller than anything anyone in your family would wear.

In the kitchen, there’s a skinny, unfamiliar girl sitting at the counter, two open books spread across the marble, her curly hair pulled up into two puffs.

She lifts her head, and her brown eyes hit you with a soft echo of familiarity.

“Hi,” you say, as if it’s totally normal to have a stranger in your house.

She waves back. Before you can ask “who are you?”, your mom walks into the kitchen and calls your name.

“This is Sarah, Joel’s daughter. Sarah, this is my daughter I was telling you about.”

Sarah gives you a shy little smile, and you smile back, a bit frozen by the fact that you’re standing face-to-face with Joel’s daughter. You’re not even sure why it freezes you.

“Joel had to spend the night out because he needed to go to New York, and he asked if Sarah could stay with us,” your mom explains.

“I’m old enough to stay alone, but my dad’s crazy,” Sarah chimes in, and you laugh.

You don’t think she’s old enough to stay alone, especially in a new town, but you don’t say that.

What you do say is:

“So, Sarah... what are you studying?”

Sarah needs help with her social studies homework, so after you shower and change into something comfortable, you sit down next to her and go over the assignments together. That’s when you realize she’s ridiculously smart and funny, slipping little jokes into the conversation, blending internet memes with historical facts, and talking to her turns out to be genuinely easy and fun.

Your mom serves dinner, you both eat, and then you settle onto the couch with your Kindles, each of you leaning against an end and your feet meeting in the middle of the cushions.

You’re in the third chapter of Ghost Radio when she calls you.

You peek over the top of your Kindle to let her know you’re listening.

“How old are you?” she asks.

“Twenty-six.”

She looks up at the ceiling as if doing mental math. Then, reaching some conclusion, she raises her eyebrows.

“Why?” you ask.

“No reason,” she shrugs, turning back to the book she was reading. Another question follows, this time without looking at you. “Are you dating anyone?”

“No. I ended my last relationship six months ago.”

“Was he older?”

“No,” you say with a laugh. “I mean, yes, but only by about three years. Why do you ask?”

Sarah wiggles her feet like she’s a little too excited about something.

“Just scientific curiosity,” she says, but her tone sounds more like a villain plotting something mischievous.

The next morning, Joel comes to pick her up at eight o’clock. You’re the one who opens the door since your parents left early to go to the farmers’ market to buy honey and vegetables.

He’s standing on the porch, wearing a thick leather jacket, jeans, and heavy boots. He looks exhausted, and the two-day beard growth makes him even more intimidating.

“Good morning,” you say.

Joel looks you up and down in your pajamas: heart-printed pants and a tank top. You realize too late that you’re not wearing a bra.

“Good morning,” he replies, lifting his eyes back to your face. “I’m here to get Sarah.”

“She’s finishing breakfast. Come in.”

Before he can protest, you turn on your heel and walk away, leaving him no choice but to step inside and follow you to the kitchen. You hear his slow, hesitant footsteps as he returns to the room filled with the smell of butter and coffee.

Sarah is sitting at the counter, devouring pancakes. Joel walks over, presses a kiss to the top of her head, and they exchange a few quiet words before he says something that makes her nod and hop down from the stool, leaving the kitchen.

You hear her going upstairs, probably to grab her things.

“How was the trip?” you ask, filling a mug with coffee and placing it in front of him on the marble.

Joel stares at the pink mug like it’s a threat but eventually wraps his big hands around it. You take a sip from your own cup and look at him over the rim, just the counter between you two.

“Good,” he says simply. He gestures toward the coffee. “Thanks. I needed that. Drove back and forth without stopping to rest.”

“Just thinking about it makes my back hurt.”

“I want my bed.”

You watch him over your cup, blowing on the surface of the coffee. You imagine him in the silence of his own house, in his bedroom, in his own bed. You wonder what color the walls are, what the sheets look like, and whether he sleeps clothed or not.

“Sarah’s really smart,” you say, pushing away the mental images.

That earns a small smile from him.

“She’s fantastic, my girl. But she’s cocky, so don’t tell her that.”

“She takes after someone.”

“I’m not cocky.”

“I’m joking,” you say lightly, offering peace because you don’t want to relive the animosity from the last time you saw him. “Is the coffee good?”

“Very.”

“Want to take some pancakes? Bet you’re hungry. I’ve eaten, Sarah’s eaten, and my parents always grab breakfast out when they leave early.”

Joel drums his fingers against the ceramic, looking like he’s fighting an internal battle, as if accepting food from you would be a terrible crime. Still, you take his silence as a yes and start stacking the remaining pancakes into a thermal container.

When you’re done, you walk around the counter and hand him the container with both hands.

“Here.”

Joel takes it with his left hand. With his right, he reaches out and gently pinches your chin between his thumb and forefinger.

“Thanks, sweetheart,” he says quietly, and you freeze.

He walks past you, saying something to Sarah, who apparently has come back downstairs. Feeling a warm flutter deep in your belly, you turn and follow them to the living room. You hug Sarah goodbye, promise to send her books for her Kindle, and then walk them to the door.

You smile when Joel thanks you for looking after Sarah and asks you to pass his thanks to your parents as well.

You watch them cross the lawn between your gardens, and just before Joel enters his house, he turns to look back at you.

You could swear he deliberately and slowly sweeps his gaze over your body, from your feet to your head.

And then he goes inside.

And you have to mechanically force yourself to close the door.

That same night, you start watching the films.

As you work through your research, you put together a report listing the names of the ten most famous stars from each decade between 1970 and 2020, five male, five female.

You already have a pretty clear idea of what defined the main point of pornography in the ’70s: the start of structured scripts and absurd, fantastical narratives that, one way or another, tied a woman’s pleasure directly to a man’s. Like in Deep Throat, where they came up with a story about a woman whose clitoris is located at the back of her throat. You can already guess what the most "effective" method of stimulation would be.

Porno chic was created to make adult content more palatable to the general public, especially as debates about the legality and morality of filming started to gain traction during that decade.

Sitting on your bed with your laptop open in front of you and your tablet resting on your lap for notes, you watch the films at 1.5x speed while eating green grapes.

You knew you might get aroused watching them, because dopamine responses are inevitable, but apparently there's nothing about '70s pornography that even remotely stirs your body. It feels like you're watching a National Geographic documentary.

You can't push away what Linda Lovelace wrote in her autobiography about the most famous film of that time, the one that made millions of dollars: There was a gun pointed at my head the entire time, she said.

You swallow hard and return to your notes.

By the end of the first week of this stage of your thesis, you finish watching the films from the '90s. You note the radical shift in the female body ideal — all the actresses with breast implants — and the peculiar aesthetic of VHS tapes, since this was the era when films started being widely distributed in that format.

What stands out most, though, is the shift in perspective. Gonzo-style pornography centers the camera exclusively on the man, making him the sole focus, and by extension, reducing women to mere tools for male pleasure. The camera's focus on women's bodies is restricted almost entirely to their genitals, which explains a lot about the birth of violent pornography during that time.

If women exist solely for male pleasure, then it’s no problem if they’re violated, right?

And just like that, the normalization of male domination in pornography begins, which, of course, spills over into social behavior.

You shut the laptop in front of you and lie down on the bed, closing your eyes. You doubt even a sixteen-year-old boy has seen as much porn as you have in the past few days, and there’s still so much left to do.

You reach for your tablet and pull up the list of male stars from the 2000s.

Tyler Cross, Javier Peña, Max Thunder, Ryder Grey, and Clint Fury.

Is there someone in the industry whose only job is coming up with these ridiculous pseudonyms?

You get up, leaving everything behind, and head toward the kitchen to find something to eat. It's already past eleven at night, your parents are asleep, and the only light in the living room comes from the lamp. On tiptoe, you’re halfway to the kitchen when the doorbell rings.

You freeze like you're in the middle of a crime scene.

A doorbell ringing at eleven at night in Lake Placid? Something must be on fire.

When you open the door, it’s Joel standing there on your parents' porch, looking anxious.

“Hi,” he says. Another meeting where you're in pajamas and he's fully dressed. “It's dangerous to open the door in the middle of the night like that.”

“Great way to start a conversation. I'm calculating how many seconds it'll take me to get to the kitchen and grab a knife.”

You get a somewhat tense smile.

“I’m still not used to these small-town habits.”

“I get it. I would never open the door for anyone after eight p.m. in New York, but here it’s normal.”

He nods, then asks,

“Were you sleeping?”

You wrap your arms around yourself as a cold breeze sweeps by.

“No, I was studying. Is everything okay?”

“I need a favor,” he says bluntly. “Sarah’s asleep, and I have to head back to New York. Can you stay at the house tonight?”

“Is everything okay?” you repeat.

“My brother’s wife just went into labor. He asked me to be there. I should be back tomorrow night.”

Your eyes widen, and Joel nods as if to say, “Exactly, got it?” You hold up a finger to ask for a minute, then run upstairs to grab your slippers, your robe, and your phone. When you come back, Joel is still on a call but waits patiently until you close the door before leading you to his house.

He lets you step inside first, and even with the urgency of the situation, it feels a little like you’re a twenty-year-old girl walking into a guy’s house for the first time, especially when Joel shuts the door behind you, finishing up his call.

The house is warm, clearly lived in by a family. There’s a big rug in the living room, a brown leather couch, and pictures of Sarah hanging in the hallway: lifting a soccer trophy, carrying a skateboard, the two of them at the beach. A line of photos shows her growing up, from a baby all the way to now.

The last photo is of her at Jewtraw Park, right here in Lake Placid.

“You can sleep in my room if you want. If that’s too weird, the couch is really good too. I left some blankets and a pillow right there,” he says, pointing to the armchair. Then he adds, “Everything’s clean. The guest rooms aren’t ready yet.”

You roll your eyes.

“I know, Miller. Relax. I’ll manage.”

“Okay. Give me your number. I’ll text you so you have mine. And if you need anything, call me.”

You say your number, and he types it into his old, barely-hanging-on iPhone.

“Thanks,” Joel says, genuine. “Really.”

You smile and give his arm a quick rub without even thinking about it.

“No problem. Just let me know if you need anything.”

After showing you where Sarah’s room is, where the extra blankets are, and telling you about ten times you can eat whatever you want, he leaves. You quickly text your mom, explaining the situation and letting her know you’re staying at Joel’s, then settle down on the couch.

Little signs of Joel are scattered around the house. The reading glasses forgotten on the coffee table, the suede jacket hanging by the door, the boots by the entryway, the faint smell of the same lotion you caught on him at the store.

You feel a little like a criminal as you get up and start quietly wandering through the rooms.

The kitchen is beautiful and organized, but there are a few dishes left in the sink. Since you’re still awake, you start washing them.

You move on to the dining room, all wood furniture and a classic chandelier, and then to a small office off to the side. It feels almost too empty except for the bookshelves. Just a desk with a laptop sitting on it, making you think it doesn’t get much use.

You head upstairs.

Sarah’s door is closed, but you walk softly down the carpeted hallway to the room at the end.

You push the door open, heart pounding like you’re about to find a monster or worse: Joel sitting on the bed saying, “Snooping where you shouldn’t be?”

Instead, you find a huge bed neatly made with gray sheets, dark curtains, and matching desks on either side. There’s a closet and a door leading, you assume, to a bathroom.

It’s empty in the way you’d expect a fifty-year-old man’s bedroom to be.

You almost give in and crawl into his bed but force yourself back downstairs, turn off the main lights, and curl up on the couch, which really is pretty comfortable.

It takes a while to fall asleep in a strange house, but when you finally do, your dreams are filled with gray beards and gray sheets.

You wake in the middle of the night to the ping of your phone. You rub your eyes, still dazed from sleep, and grab the phone from the pillow beside you.

4:47 a.m.

It’s a text from an unknown number:

“Hi. Joel here. Sorry for the hour, I hope you’re sleeping. I just got to New York. Please let me know when Sarah wakes up. I’ll need to call her.”

A sleepy smile tugs at your lips at how formally he writes, no abbreviations at all. You save his contact as Miller.

You type back:

“hey. don’t worry. I’ll let you know. everything ok over there?”

“Why are you awake?”

You don’t tell him it was his text that woke you.

“New place… light sleeper.”

“I see.”

An “I see” with a period and everything. Then another message:

“Yes, everything’s fine. I’m in the waiting room, and Tommy’s with his wife. She’s been in labor for seven hours.”

You type: “ouch. hoping all goes well. lmk if u need sth”

“What kind of vocabulary is that?”

“don’t you have bigger things to worry about, grumpy?”

The impossible happens: Joel Miller sends you a smiling emoji.

You reply with one sticking its tongue out.

His next message comes in text again:

“Tell me about your thesis.

“you’re really curious about it.”

“It’s an interesting topic.”

“sure… men and their obsession with porn.”

“I’m not obsessed with porn. I don’t even remember the last time I watched it.”

Your fingers freeze over the keyboard. This sounds way too intimate.

You type back:

“last time I watched was this afternoon.”

You get a single question mark in response: “?”

You clarify:

“for my thesis. I’m at the stage where I have to watch films.”

“Oh. How are you doing that?”

“picking stars from each decade and watching two movies for each. starting with the 2000s tomorrow.”

Joel reads your message but doesn’t reply right away, which is odd. He had been responding immediately. You wonder if something’s happened at the hospital, if everything’s okay with his sister-in-law.

You stare at the screen until it goes black. Three minutes later, his reply pops up:

“Who are the stars from the 2000s?”

“looking for suggestions?”

“No.”

You open your report from iCloud and copy the list of male and female stars from the 2000s. You send it over.

He reads it. Another little pause.

“I see.”

Then another question:

“And how are you watching? Like a documentary?”

“yeah, pretty much. I put on the films, watch them critically, and take notes.”

“And they don’t affect you?”

“in what way?”

He reads the message but doesn’t answer. After ten minutes of staring at the ceiling, you take a deep breath and type courageously:

“are you asking if I get turned on?”

Again, no response.

Still, you type back:

“i do. it’s inevitable and natural. but only starting with the '90s films. the ones from the '70s and '80s were way too gross for that.”

This time, a reply comes.

“Gross?”

“yeah. the men were really disgusting. it’s obvious they had no idea how to have sex to actually please a woman.”

“I see.”

You picture Joel Miller, tall and broad-shouldered, sitting in a sterile hospital hallway, texting you about porn while waiting for his nephew to be born.

The thought makes you smile to yourself. You burrow deeper under the blanket and decide to be a little bolder.

“do you have a favorite genre of those movies?”

“To watch?”

You frown. What else would it be for?

“yeah”

“I don’t watch them.”

“okay, but if you were going to watch one today, what type would you choose? one with a storyline, straight to the point… what? help me out for the research.”

You almost chew on your lower lip as you watch the little “typing” bubble appear and disappear three times. Finally, he sends a simple response:

“No storyline, not a lot of talking. Something filmed in the morning, in bed, right after waking up.”

“morning sex?”

“Yes.”

Before you can stop yourself, your mind fills with images of Joel’s bed, the same gray sheets now rumpled and tossed aside. The cold morning light pouring through the window, the scent of him still on the fabric, the warmth of sleepy skin, the scratch of his beard against the sensitive part of your neck.

A big hand adjusting and lifting your leg into the right position, low, sleepy moans filling the space.

You snap your eyes open wide.

“got it,” you type back, heart racing.

“Do you have a favorite genre?”

“i hate porn,” you reply.

“Okay. But if you were going to watch one today, what would you pick?”

He’s throwing your own question back at you, meaning you can’t dodge it.

You type the whole answer at once but hesitate a dozen times before finally pressing send, knowing Joel will understand exactly what you mean and exactly what you like. It’s probably not right to tell your parents’ neighbor, who’s at least twenty years older, but you don’t take it back.

“in the car. an age gap where he looks a little older than her, slightly graying, and he’s desperate for her, desperate to do things to her in the backseat.”

“Things?”

“you know what I mean.”

“Say it clearly.”

“desperate to go down on her.”

And again, he responds:

“I see.”

Your cheeks burning, you turn off your phone screen.

But another message buzzes through:

“Good choice.”

You cross your legs and lock your phone again.

The next time you wake up, it’s to Sarah poking your cheek with an insistent little finger. She’s standing over you by the couch, looking at you like you’re a science experiment.

The sunlight pouring through the living room windows makes you wonder if it’s already past ten.

“What are you doing here?” she asks, still poking your cheek.

Yawning, you answer,

“You’re about to have a baby cousin.”

Sarah squeals.

Joel calls her twenty minutes later, right after you text him—carefully avoiding rereading the messages you sent each other during the night—that she’s awake.

Afterward, you eat breakfast together, and Sarah gets ready for school, where she’ll stay until six in the evening. You wait until the bus picks her up before going back to your house, crawling into bed, and sleeping a little more.

When you wake up again, it’s time to log onto a video call with your boss, even though you’re technically on vacation.

You help your mom with some work in the garden, bake muffins, and by late afternoon, you lock the door to your bedroom, find a cozy spot in bed and open your laptop again.

2000s.

Now all the actresses definitely have implants, bleached hair, heavy makeup, thin eyebrows, and elaborate hairstyles: exactly the fantasy for any guy with a DVD player and one hand free.

But it’s also the beginning of the internet era, meaning access to all of it is even easier than it ever was with VHS tapes.

Roleplay everywhere. Boss and secretary, student and teacher, best friend's mom, best friend's dad. A fantasy world that definitely fried a lot of men’s brain circuits.

You start with the male stars.

First up is Tyler Cross. He's a tall actor with spiky, gelled hair, a tribal tattoo on his left bicep, and a defined six-pack.

You watch a POV movie, new at the time, and another where he plays the older brother’s best friend. It’s set in a girl’s pink-walled bedroom, teddy bears thrown to the side, and it’s all absolutely disgusting.

You glance at the clock after finishing Tyler Cross’s films. 5:55 p.m. You figure you’ve got about fifteen minutes before Sarah gets home, so you decide to at least start Javier Peña’s movies.

You type his name into the search bar.

The results flood in. One of the first titles you see: No Overtime for the Babysitter: Daddy Comes Home Early!

You roll your eyes. Great, now they’re coming for babysitters’ labor rights too.

You click the movie. It takes a moment to load.

The cover stares back at you while the loading icon spins.

The actress is gorgeous, with breasts you immediately envy and long black hair. Her lips, glossy and slightly open, look like she’s mid-moan. She’s one of the first actresses you’ve seen who isn’t drowning under a pound of makeup.

The scene starts with her dusting some furniture in the living room.

She’s wearing a mini-skirt and a light blue crop top made of thin fabric that shows her stomach. Definitely very appropriate attire for her job.

The sound of a door unlocking fills the room, and then it swings open.

The actress sighs:

“Oh! Mr. Peña! You’re home early!”

The camera pans to Mr. Peña. You blink at the screen.

Javier Peña has that classic '80s kind of handsomeness. He’s tall, lean but broad-shouldered, his dark hair messy in a way that somehow suits him. The thick mustache above his tight lips and the long sideburns give him the look of an old-school movie star, and you have to double-check the release date of the film. 2002.

He’s wearing a button-down shirt and a loose tie, his gray blazer slung over his left shoulder. But it’s his brown eyes that catch you, because they’re familiar. It feels like you know them.

“The meeting was canceled,” Peña says, tossing the blazer onto the couch. “My daughter’s asleep? You can go now.”

The gasp that escapes your mouth is quickly muffled by your hand when Javier Peña’s voice fills your ears through the headphones, because you immediately realize where you know it from.

The voice is a little softer, younger, with more of an accent, but it’s the same voice.

Joel Miller’s voice.

“She is,” the actress says sweetly, crossing the room. Javier looks her up and down, from her bubblegum-pink painted toes to the way her chest strains against her top. “Are you sure, Mr. Peña? You seem really stressed out. Can’t I help you with something?”

You freeze where you are, heart hammering against your ribs. Holy shit.

“Help how?” Javier asks, raising an eyebrow, pretending to be disinterested.

She smiles, grabs his hand, and leads him to the couch, urging him to sit.

You’re almost ready for her to drop to her knees in front of him, because that would be the obvious next step, but that’s not what happens. The actress — Mila, her name — circles behind the couch, leaning over him to start unbuttoning his shirt.

“You’re so tense, Mr. Peña,” she says, pouting as she undoes each button. “Taking care of the house by yourself, your daughter…”

The shirt falls open, revealing a firm, broad chest.

“So responsible… No one to help you out…” She leans in and whispers against his ear: “No one to suck your cock.”

The shocked laugh that bursts out of you is immediately covered by your hand again.

Javier’s shirt falls completely open, and he takes Mila’s hand, guiding it straight to his pants, her long red nails vivid against the gray fabric.

“I’ve got you for that.”

“Mmm…” the actress moans, massaging him through the fabric. She runs her hands back up his shoulders. “That’s right. You do.”

She moves to kneel in front of him, but Javier clicks his tongue and says:

“Take off your clothes.”

You feel a pulse low in your stomach. The actress smiles and obeys.

Once she’s fully naked, she starts to kneel again, and Javier spreads his legs wider, tossing his shirt aside.

She massages him through his pants for a few more seconds before tugging the zipper down and pulling his pants down with both hands. He’s not wearing underwear, of course he isn’t, and suddenly, you’re staring straight at Joel Miller’s cock.

Large, hard, slightly veiny, every inch of it.

Javier shifts on the couch, gathers all of Mila’s soft hair into one hand, and with the other, guides himself to her mouth, and—

Someone knocks on your bedroom door and you nearly slap the laptop closed.

“Honey, I think Sarah’s getting home from school. Aren’t you going to greet her?” your mom asks.

“I am,” you say, but your voice comes out too soft. You clear your throat and try again: “I’m going, Mom. Just a second.”

“Okay!”

Your mom leaves you sitting there, staring at the wall with wide eyes and a racing heart, so much slick between your legs you have to stand up, clean yourself, and change panties before going downstairs to greet Sarah.

She gets home, you both go into Joel’s house, you make her a sandwich, and she heads upstairs to shower. You stay on autopilot, your head still completely full of Javier Peña... and Joel Miller.

Holy shit.

The man was a porn actor.

And apparently, a very successful one, because you distinctly remember seeing that his films topped the charts for years. Is he still doing it?

You rub your eyes and fight the urge to shove your fist in your mouth and scream.

The irony is almost too much. Fate is throwing a former porn star into your lap when it knows all too well the thesis you’re writing, and all your hatred for the industry.

You order pizza for you and Sarah. You eat while watching a cheesy teenage romance movie that keeps her glued to the TV. When she’s yawning hard, you ask if she has any homework (she doesn’t) and send her off to brush her teeth and get into bed.

She hugs you goodnight and heads upstairs. You hear her brushing her teeth, then the door to her room closing.

You take a deep breath. Pull your phone out of your pocket. You type in the search bar: Javier Peña. The image results flood the screen.

Joel Miller in a thousand different styles. At industry parties in clothes that scream early 2000s, at photoshoots with other actresses, even holding up a trophy that reads—

You lean in closer to make sure you’re not misreading it.

Longest Cumshot of 2006.

Wow. Congratulations.

The Google summary confirms it: Joel Miller, born in 1981 in Arlington, Texas, to Chilean parents. Porn actor, best known as Javier Peña. Joel Miller became an advocate for porn actresses’ rights, one of the main reasons he left the industry in 2010.

One of his last public appearances as Javier Peña was in 2016, co-hosting an adult film awards show alongside Tess Servopoulos, his former career agent. Since then, very little is known about Joel Miller, though several producers have tried to lure him back with massive paychecks, even for solo work.

You hear the key turning in the lock.

You lock your phone at record speed and sit up straight on the couch, eyes wide open. Joel will probably think that you’ve been doing cocaine on his coffee table.

He walks in, shrugging out of his coat, and looks at you.

“Hey,” he says, kicking off his boots. “Everything okay?”

You nod, then try to use words:

“Hey. Yeah.”

Joel gives you a strange look, glancing up the stairs.

“Sarah’s asleep?”

You nod again.

Oh, Mr. Peña. You must be so tired. Can I help you? My God. You’re the babysitter working overtime.

“Are you really okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“Um… I…” you rub your hands over your thighs. “I’m just tired. That’s all. Is everything okay with your sister-in-law?”

“She’s fine. I’ve got a nephew now,” Joel murmurs, collapsing onto the couch across from you, legs spread, hands over his eyes. “And he’s so small. I almost didn’t have the nerve to hold him. I don’t even remember Sarah being that tiny.”

“Ha ha.”

At your awkward laugh, Joel drops his hands and studies you carefully, narrowing his eyes. He watches you for a moment, like he’s seeing right through you.

Joel says,

“You found out who Javier Peña is.”

You freeze, hands clenched in your lap. Joel rubs his temple with a heavy sigh and sits up straighter.

“Which one did you watch?”

You swallow hard.

“The babysitter one.”

“You’re gonna have to be a little more specific than that, sweetheart.”

“The film’s from 2002. I think the actress’s name was Mila? She was trying to comfort you about being a single dad.”

Joel raises both eyebrows.

“I know the one,” he says with a dry, humorless laugh. “Right. Here it is. I was Javier Peña for ten years. I guess I still am, when the paycheck’s good enough. I made porn movies. They’re out there.”

“Still are?”

“Not for films. Just for appearances or special gigs at awards shows.”

“Oh.”

He says your name firmly.

“That industry is your thesis. You know those actors and actresses are real people. I’m one of them. Are you going to stop treating me like a normal person now?”

“It’s weird,” you say softly. “Sorry, Joel, but it’s weird seeing you like… that… and then coming here and seeing you being Sarah’s dad, being… Joel Miller.”

“Okay.”

“Don’t be mad at me.”

“I’m not,” he sighs, collapsing back onto the couch. “I’m way too tired to be mad, honestly. We can talk more about it later if you want. I’ll even help you with your thesis if you need. But not tonight.”

“Okay.”

“Thanks for staying with Sarah, seriously,” he says, shifting back into Dad mode. “Let me pay you.”

“No way,” you say quickly.

He opens his mouth to argue, but you cut him off:

“You said you’d help me with my thesis, right?”

He just looks at you. You explain,

“I’ll take that as payment.”

Slowly, he nods. And just like that, you have a deal.

That night, you head upstairs again and lock the door.

You open your laptop, type Javier Peña into the search bar, and scroll through the films. One title catches your eye: Neighbors: The Lust Lives Next Door.

The irony.

The title is ridiculous, sure, but the movie isn’t. He’s the married woman’s neighbor, and when her husband goes out of town, Javier shows up at the door asking if everything’s alright because he heard a noise and got worried.

He’s wearing tight jeans and a short-sleeve, light pink button-down shirt.

They head upstairs to check the bedroom.

She sits at the edge of the bed while Javier kneels down to look under it, but when he straightens up again, he sees the actress isn’t wearing any panties. Of course.

Two minutes later, Javier spreads her legs and goes down on her for a good while, his dark eyes locked on hers. And you could swear the moans are real. Either that, or she’s a damn good actress.

It’s when Javier starts whispering in her ear, loud enough to be picked up by the mic, but low enough to sound private, that your own fingers hover at the waistband of your pajama shorts.

He grips her thigh firmly, legs wide open, about to sink into her, both of them watching where they meet.

“Like this?” Javier asks.

She nods.

He licks his fingers and touches her clit. Her left leg trembles slightly.

“Sensitive? You’re not gonna come again for me?”

You swallow your shame and remind yourself that no one will ever know about this.

You slip your hand into your panties.

You close your eyes, listen to Javier whispering filthy things into the actress’s ear, and feel your pulse thudding in your ears and the slickness between your fingers.

[planetaryupscaled]

Claiming Naivety

Male OC x Eunchae

Tags: 15k, smut, first time, creampie, oral, anal, gb, tw

The story is not ours, we alternate the original story to match our desired settings.

Eunchae was enjoying breakfast with her sister on a Saturday morning. They always made time like this to hang out. After all, they were the only family they each had. Eunchae's sister had dedicated her life to giving her all the love she could.

Eunchae, now that she was eighteen, had come to appreciate all her sister had done for her. The past year of her sister’s life was split between working and caring for her. But now that she was an adult herself and about to head to college in a few months, she hoped her sister would make time for herself again. Find new hobbies, make friends, and maybe even find a romantic relationship.

Eunchae herself hasn’t explored the romantic world either, but for different reasons. She dedicated herself to her studies as well as her love of art and music. While she may have lacked boyfriends, she made up for it with friends. In particular, she had four close friends: Eunwoo, Doyun, Chanwoo, and Minho. Her sister had teased her in the past for having four guys as best friends and predicted she would end up dating them. However, Eunchae asserted that wasn’t going to happen, proving herself correct. These guys were her friends, and no other funny business had ever occurred between them.

“Are your friends coming over tonight to hang out again?” her sister asked. Eunchae nodded. Her house was a frequent hangout spot for them. Her sister enjoyed having her friends around, too, and they often called her the ‘cool sister.’

“I’m glad to hear it. Now that you guys are adults, I can’t help but notice how handsome they are,” she said with a sly smile.

“Unnie! Gross! Those are my friends you’re talking about,” Eunchae said, shocked that her sister would comment on her friend’s appearance.

“Relax, I’m just saying. They wouldn’t be interested in me anyway. I’m older, but can you imagine...,” she said, looking off into the distance.

“No! I can’t and won’t imagine that. Can we please talk about something else,” Eunchae said in protest.

Hearing that her sister even entertained the idea of being anything resembling romantic with her friends was beyond embarrassing. She appreciated that her sister hadn’t had any contact with a man in years, but she could start by dating men her age.

However, Eunchae calmed herself down; her sister was just teasing. Even if she was interested in her friends in that way, as her sister said, she’s older than them. Eunchae even doubted how much her friends were interested in romantic encounters at the moment. None of them had girlfriends or gone on dates, as far as she knew. The five of them just wanted to have some fun.

That evening, the four guys arrived together at Eunchae’s. She had made plans for them to play a board game. “Hey guys, I got the game set up in the backroom. I even added in the bird expansion, so there are even more bird powers you can use!” Eunchae excitedly said.

But as she led them to the room where she expected them to spend the next hours playing the game, the four boys were momentarily distracted by the arrival of her sister. “Hello, boys! It’s so nice to see you all. I trust you all are staying fit as ever?” she said to them.

“We try our best, Noona,” Eunwoo said in a flirty tone that alarmed Eunchae.

“You’re looking fit yourself,” Doyun added.

“Oh, stop it, you guys. You’re going to tempt me into doing something bad...,” she said. What the hell does that mean, Eunchae thought. She started pushing her friends down the hall, away from her sister.

Eunchae said, “Come on, I need to explain to you guys how the egg-laying mechanism works in the game.”

Finally, distancing herself from her sister's odd behavior, Eunchae got to work walking them through the board game she intended for all five of them to play over the next few hours. Ten minutes later, she was in the middle of explaining how food selection works. “If the dice show the same food, you can re-roll. But that’s optional,” she said as she showed them an example.

"Wow, Noona looked amazing! Has she been hitting the gym, Eunchae?" Minho asked, cutting her off mid-sentence.

“She’s been taking walks more, I guess. Anyway, you can only take food when you do the collection action...,” she said, changing the subject back to the game before getting interrupted once more.

“She was being really friendly with us. Even flirty,” Chanwoo remarked.

“Yeah, she kept talking about how handsome you guys were earlier today. She even wondered out loud if you guys were interested in her. It was pretty embarrassing to hear. Can you imagine!” Eunchae said with a laugh. She felt bad making fun of her sister like this, but her behavior was so odd today.

“Your sister interested in us?” Doyun asked, surprised.

“That’s not what I said. She was wondering if you all were interested in her. God, I feel cringy even telling you guys about it,” Eunchae said, clarifying. “But let’s talk about how nectar is used.” However, the boys were becoming less interested in the game.

“Dude, she said we were handsome. She hasn’t been with anyone lately. Do you think we might have a shot with her?” Doyun asked the group.

Eunchae’s eyes lit up in horror. These guys were actually interested in her sister? “Whoa, guys. She’s my sister. Can we not talk about her like this?” she asked.

“We’re not teasing, Eunchae. I don’t know about the other guys, but I think your sister is a stone-cold fox. I’m sorry, but if she is attracted to me, I’m taking my shot,” Doyun said.

The other three voiced their strong agreement. “Let’s go talk to her. She might be on board for anything,” Eunwoo suggested. This prompted the four boys to stand up.

Eunchae ran to the door and blocked it. Their willingness and her sister’s flirty demeanor tonight created a bad combination. She didn’t need her friends and her sister engaging in... funny business.

“Guys, wait. I’m asking you, as your long-term friend here, please don’t go flirt with my sister,” Eunchae said, appealing to the four guys.

They all looked at each other before Doyun replied.

“To be clear, we’re not looking to flirt. Let’s stop beating around the bush here and be clear. We want to have sex with your sister, and we think we have a real shot tonight at actually making this happen.”

While Eunchae didn’t say this, she agreed with her friends. With the way her sister has been talking today, she might let her friends seduce her. Eunchae did not need to have her friends turning her sister into their fuck buddy.

“Don’t do this, guys. She’s my sister,” Eunchae said desperately.

“We’re not asking you to watch or anything, Eunchae. We’re adults now. Your sister is an adult woman—a woman with desires and the ability to give consent. I’m sorry that you are uncomfortable with the situation, but you don’t have the right to interfere if everyone involved is on board starting a sexual relationship,” Minho explained.

She understood his point, but her point was she didn’t want her sister fucking her friends.

They started crowding Eunchae, trying to get past. The second they do, there would be nothing stopping them from starting a five-way orgy with her sister. Her mind raced with thoughts of what she could say to convince them. Suddenly, a viable idea occurred to her, and she voiced it.

“How about I flash you guys my underwear?” Eunchae blurted out.

All four of them halted their attempt to leave the room, and her cheeks flushed red. She couldn’t believe the words that had come out of her mouth. She nearly spoke up, declaring it to be a joke, but she had managed to stop them.

“Really? Or are you just fooling us?” Doyun asked skeptically.

Eunwoo was also in doubt. “You’ve never been one for showing off. You wear a t-shirt and swim trunks over your one-piece bathing suit when we go to the pool.”

“I’m... not kidding. But only a quick flash! Just so you guys will calm down, and we can play the game,” Eunchae said with a shaky voice.

The four of them backed up and watched Eunchae with interest. They seemed to expect her to flash them right then and there. Eunchae’s mind raced with panicked thoughts. She had never done anything like this, and she worried she was opening a door she could never close. Would these guys expect her to do this again in the future? Would they start to see her as more than a friend? She wasn’t sure she was ready for that.

But in the short term, she needed to do this. Their having sex with her sister would change their relationship far more than briefly seeing her underwear. As she felt her face heat up, Eunchae gripped the bottom of her sweater tightly. Closing her eyes, she quickly lifted her shirt, feeling the cooler air hit her stomach and upper body chest. She then pulled her sweater back down. They saw her bra, even if just for a second. It was done. She opened her eyes to the smiling faces of her friends, still staring at her chest, even though the underwear was now not visible.

“Okay. Let’s get back to the game,” Eunchae said in a quiet voice.

But the guys didn’t follow her back to the table. “You only showed us your bra. You still need to flash us your panties,” Minho said.

“What?” Eunchae said, turning around in shock. “I didn’t say anything about my panties. That’s asking too much, guys!”

They looked disappointed but understanding. “You don’t need to do anything that makes you uncomfortable, Eunchae. We’ll come back after we’re done to start the game,” Minho said as, once again, the guys headed towards the door and into the welcoming arms of Eunchae’s sister.

“Okay, look!” Eunchae yelled as she lifted her skirt, showing the four guys her panties. They all spun around and witnessed her underwear for the first time. Only this thin fabric was between them and their female friend’s most intimate area.

Confident they had seen what they requested, she lowered the skirt back down, restoring her back into a decent state. “We need to see the back of your panties as well,” Doyun added.

“What? Why?” Eunchae asked the question even though she could guess why.

Were they really so interested in her body that they needed to see her in her panties from different angles? The guys didn’t answer, so rather than wait for them to start walking towards the door again, Eunchae rolled her eyes and turned around. Lifting her skirt yet again, the four men enjoyed yet another view of her body that no man has yet seen until today.

The flowing air she felt on her cheeks reminded her that this underwear didn’t cover as much of her as she would have liked. She let the skirt fall back into place and felt relieved this was done. She hoped her friends would agree not to speak of this embarrassing day again.

“Wow, that was pretty hot, Eunchae. I didn’t know you had an exhibitionist side to you like that,” Chanwoo replied, still thinking about his friend in this new, sexy light.

“I didn’t do it for any weird reason like that! I just did it to convince you guys not to go try and get with my sister!” Eunchae replied in protest.

“Eunchae... why would giving us a quick flash of your underwear stop us from fucking your sister? She’s going to show us a lot more than just two seconds of her panties,” Doyun pointed out. Eunchae couldn’t believe this. Had she just embarrassed herself for no reason?

“Well then, how about I strip to my underwear and stay that way for the evening,” she offered, her muscles tensing up as she thought how shameful this was going to be for her.

“I’d love that,” Minho said, taking a seat as he looked forward to a much longer view of his longtime female friend in her unmentionables. The others followed suit. Once again, the naive teenager found herself in a situation where her friends anxiously awaited her to expose her body to them.

“You guys don’t really want to see me in my underwear, do you?” she asked them with a nervous laugh. Her friends responded with enthusiastic nods as they eyed her body.

Seeing no other path forward except letting her friends seek out her horny sister, Eunchae’s shaky hands reached for the bottom of her sweater. As she pulled it up and felt her stomach get exposed, she told herself it was nothing they hadn’t already seen, albeit briefly. The sweater rose to her face, and she knew that once again, her bra, holding her ample breasts, was on display for her friends.

“Fantastic,” Eunwoo commented as she placed her top on the ground.

The young lady instinctively wanted to cover her chest, but she knew she needed to finish the job first. She turned to face her friends before starting to push her skirt down, as she didn’t want them to see her rear end. But both Doyun and Chanwoo walked behind her, making that plan null.

The skirt slid down over the cheeks of her butt as she was again reminded that these panties didn’t cover the entirety of her ass. Trying to avoid bending over, Eunchae let the skirt fall to the floor. Her task was completed, but she now faced the humiliation of playing the game all evening in this state. Her friends would be able to view almost all of her exposed body whenever they wanted. She felt like a tramp, but her sister would be free from the eager hands of these four familiar guys.

“I’ll stay like this if you guys promise not to look at me too much. Now getting back to the player boards...,” Eunchae said, desperate to get back to her instructions once again.

But as always, her friends interjected before she could continue. “Eunchae, this is really hot. But your sister is going to show us her whole body, not just tease us in her underwear,” Doyun pointed out.

“God, I can’t wait to see her tits. So big and juicy. Fuck...,” Chanwoo said while mimicking their shape with his hands.

“Stop describing my sister’s tits! Jesus! I stripped to my underwear, and you guys still aren’t satisfied. Throw me a bone here,” the young woman complained.

“I’m looking forward to throwing your sister my bone,” Minho remarked.

“Shut up!” Eunchae had never seen this side of her friends. Were they really this anxious to fuck someone? And why did that person have to be her sister? But she understood their point about seeing her sister naked, as weird as that point was to make, countering it would be insanity. She would have to show them something she hadn’t planned to reveal until she got married in her late thirties: her naked body.

“Maybe I...,” she started to say, but then lost her words. The four guys waited for her to finish her thought, but she continued to stammer.

“Maybe you what?” Chanwoo asked curiously.

“Eunchae, you don’t have to do anything you aren’t ready for.” If she wanted to keep these guys from knowing what her sister’s naked body looked like, she did, Eunchae thought.

“Maybe I am willing to show you guys more,” she said, finally getting her words out.

After a brief pause, the boys sought clarification. “Like your boobs?” Eunwoo asked.

“And maybe your pussy too? Your sister will certainly show us hers.” Doyun pointed out.

“You should get on a table and do a strip tease!” Chanwoo added.

“And then give us lap dances like our own personal stripper!” Minho said excitedly.

When Eunchae said she was willing to show more, she meant maybe a quick flash of her chest while keeping her nipples concealed possible. But before she could say anything, her friends turned this offer into her acting as a full-on stripper who showed every inch of her body and even sat in their laps. Any compromise she offered from here would only create disappointment that would drive them into the arms and other parts of her willing sister.

“Trust me, guys. You don’t want to see me naked. It’s not worth it. I���m not that attractive,” Eunchae said, vocalizing her self-doubts.

“Are you kidding? Seeing you naked has been a dream of mine since we met. But you have never shown any interest in that kind of stuff till now,” Doyun admitted. The other three were in total agreement. Eunchae was taken aback at this admission. Her friends thought about her naked? This was such a foreign concept to Eunchae. The thought of someone seeing her as a sex object was confusing. But she shook off this strange thought. She had a choice to make. Either strip nude for her friends or send them off to fuck her sister. The choice was clear, albeit incredibly embarrassing.

“Where do you want me to do this?” she asked as her four friends’ faces lit up with the realization that this was going to happen. They led her to the game table, where they pushed game pieces aside and helped her onto the table. Standing on the table, she realized how shameful of an angle these guys were going to have on her various... parts. But she was up here now, and backing down would spell an end to her sister’s innocence.

“Do you... guys have a preference on what I... start with,” she asked them as her hands moved back and forth between her bra and panties. She couldn’t bear to decide for herself. Whatever piece she thought about removing first would send an unintended message to her friends about her confidence in that part or would indicate that she wanted them to see this first or last. Let the guys decide.

But this proved to be folly. Half of them yelled for her to show her boobs first, while the other half demanded the sight of her naked pussy. Hearing both sides argue about what part of her body they wanted to see put Eunchae into a state of extreme agitation, and she found herself pulling her panties down without even realizing what she was doing. The arguing stopped instantly as her panties landed on the top of the table, and her bald pussy was put on display for all four men. In that instant, they became the first, second, third, and fourth men ever to see this sight.

“Holy shit Eunchae, you shave?” Eunwoo asked. Eunchae’s eyes looked at her private area with horror as she hadn’t considered this when she stripped.

“Yes... But only because I think it’s more hygienic. It’s not for any weird sexual thing, I promise.” She cried out as she covered her groin with her hands. “Stop looking at it!”

The guys complained that a stripper wouldn’t hide her nudity after stripping. “Stop calling me a stripper! That’s not what’s going on, and you know it!” Eunchae was getting flustered but knew her friends were trying to get a rise out of her.

“Keep going! Let’s see everything!” Chanwoo cheered.

“Do it, do it, do it,” Eunwoo started chanting as the others joined him. Half an hour ago, Eunchae was explaining to these guys how to place cards in the board game. Now, they were uniformly calling for her to remove the last piece of clothing she had on.

As she stood there with her hands at her crotch, the boys started to move to the other side of the table to get a view of her ass.

“Where are you going. Stop!” Eunchae cried. But soon, they were on all sides of her, and she was unable to prevent them from enjoying yet another aspect of her body.

After a few minutes of posing like she needed to pee, the teenager realized she couldn’t delay things any further.

“Fine! Just... I don’t know. Just don’t be weird,” she said, standing upright and removing her hands, exposing herself once more. All four men quickly rushed to view her womanhood again. She closed her eyes, and her hands went to her back. Despite having done this tens of thousands of times, her unsteady hands struggled to unhook her bra.

“Do you need help, Eunchae?” Chanwoo asked.

“No!” She cried. Getting stripped by her friends seemed even more shameful than stripping herself for them.

Finally, to her relief, she got it unhooked. But that relief was replaced with the horror that this meant her friends would now see her ample breasts as soon as she released her grip on the garment. She peeked out of one eye and saw all four long-time friends practically drooling over her chest in anticipation. As she debated her options, her shaky hands lost their grip, and before she knew it, her bra fell off. The weight of her boobs weighed on her chest, and at that moment, her friends came to know every intimate detail about her naked body.

After the accidental strip, Eunchae was frozen in place. The four guys were equally in shock as they studied the newly revealed source of their apparent long-time lust. The silence made Eunchae ask herself increasingly worried questions. Were they so quiet because her body is weird? Did they not like what they saw? Why did she now care if her friends liked her body or not? But the following sudden response of the men threw these negative thoughts out of her head.

“Holy shit, your tits are incredible!”

“Yeah, but how about that pussy? Damn!”

“I’ve got to see that ass again.”

“So... fucking... hot.”

All four of them simultaneously voiced their admiration for her body.

Eunchae became conflicted. Showing herself off like this was embarrassing, and she wished to get dressed again. But these compliments gave her feelings of warmth and pride—something she hadn’t felt before.

“I call first lap dance!” Chanwoo called out, breaking up the moment of self-discovery Eunchae was having.

“What? Lap dance? I’m not...,” she said, turning rapidly towards him. With her tits now free of the confines of clothing, they jiggled considerably. A fact that the guys noticed.

“You said you were going to be our stripper. Strippers give lap dances...” Chanwoo said as if the lap dance had already been agreed upon previously.

“I have been adamant that I am not your stripper. And it was your idea that I give lap dances. I never said I would!” Eunchae cried out. Her friends kept pushing the boundaries of this friendship at a quickening pace.

“That’s okay then. Thanks for letting us see your naked body, though. I can’t believe we are going to see you and your sister both naked on the same night,” Doyun said as he followed the others toward the door.

Eunchae was astounded at this. She had stripped fully naked for these guys, something she had never done before. And even with all that, they still wanted to seek out the sexual attention of her sister.

“Wait! I didn’t say I wasn’t willing to give lap dances,” she said, stopping her friends once again.

“Each of us can get one from you?” Eunwoo asked, seeking clarity.

The idea of rubbing her body against one of them was odd enough, but all four?

“Yeah...,” she said meekly.

Chanwoo moved a chair into the middle of the room, and one of the guys started playing music that was appropriate for a lap dance. Eunchae stood several feet away from her friend, still fully naked. A fact that she still couldn’t believe was true. She had never done anything like this, so she thought back to the various movies she had seen where the actresses gave someone a lap dance. Slowly, she started swaying her hips back and forth, which prompted loud cheers from the guys. Chanwoo’s eyes were locked on her tits which jiggled considerably even with Eunchae’s small movements.

“Come closer, Eunchae. Stand over my lap while you do that,” he said, waving her over. She tip-toed over slowly, hoping to keep as much distance as possible from her horny friend while she was in this nude state. Still, he beckoned her to continue until her tits were mere inches away from his face.

“Isn’t this a bit too close?” Eunchae asked.

“It’s a lap dance. You’re supposed to be as close as possible. Your sister would understand that,” Chanwoo said. Why would her sister know that, Eunchae wondered as her hip movements started up again. Her male friend was now close enough to see every detail of her tits. Weirder still was that he needed to lean his face in only a few inches to make contact with her chest. That thought got the inexperienced girl’s heart thumping.

Feeling emboldened by the erotic sight, Chanwoo reached out and put his hands on Eunchae’s bare hips.

“Chanwoo... what are you doing...,” Eunchae nervously asked him.

“It’s just your hips,” he replied.

The young man’s eyes diverted from her ample chest to her womanhood. In this embarrassing position, her pussy was situated just above his crotch. True, his parts were contained within his pants, but it was still in proximity to her very exposed parts. Her eyes were also drawn to an area in his pants that bulged out. She wasn’t so naive that she didn’t know that was. The sight of her nude body had given her friend, likely all of her friends, an erection. A response before today, she wasn’t sure anyone had ever prompted her body. As she stared, she became curious to see more, but shook that thought out of her head. All this time, Chanwoo continued to watch Eunchae’s pussy.

“Turn around. Let’s see that naked ass shake,” he said. Eunchae did as he asked, but she took note of the change in dynamic. Her friends weren’t asking her. They were now telling her what to do. She truly was their own personal stripper now. But again, she remembered why she was doing this. If not, her sister would be in this exact position now. Her nude body being drooled over by her friends, or worse.

After watching her cheeks shake back and forth for a few minutes, her friend had another command. “Bend over. All the way.”

Eunchae looked back at him with a scared look. “Bend over? But you’ll see... Do you really need to see me in such a state?” She asked. Chanwoo shrugged, but if she protested, he would probably bring up her sister again and her willingness to do almost anything. A fact she wasn’t sure was true, but rather not tested. Eunchae bent over, holding onto her friend’s knees for support. The flow of cold air on the newly exposed area told her what this position was doing. Chanwoo was getting a close-up view of her pussy from behind. Rustling sounds behind her also told her that the other three friends had joined him in enjoying this view. Every second in this state was humiliating, and it would take another four minutes before she was told she could stand up.

“My turn,” Minho announced, taking the seat that Chanwoo had just been in. Eunchae was being passed around from friend to friend like they all wanted a turn lusting over her. It made her feel used but wanted. Her mind was a storm of conflicting feelings. For now, she obeyed the lusty commands of her friends. All the while telling herself every sexual gaze or embarrassing pose, she did was one less than her sister would do later.

Minho had her sit on his lap, her back resting against his front.

“Don’t just sit there, move that butt into me. It’s a lap dance, after all,” he explained.

As her bare ass slid back and forth on his crotch, the feeling of his erect dick became unquestionably noticeable. While she had seen Chanwoo’s contained in his pants, with Minho, she was feeling with him. With her own ass, no less. Why was it that he felt no shame in getting felt up like this while she felt like she was being used? Where did this power dynamic arise from? But she did admit feeling his dick rest between her butt checks was an erotic and naughty sensation. But feelings that were overwhelmed by the shame she felt for acting in such a way.

“Turn around and face me. I want to see your tits as I feel you grind into my crotch,” he said with confidence. She turned around and sat on him while facing him.

“Would it kill you to say please? I’m still your friend, guys,” Eunchae complained as she started up lap grinding on him again.

“Please shake your tits in my face while your ass rubs against my dick,” Minho said.

Eunchae gave him an angry look, and he started laughing. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry! That was a joke. You’re right. I’m getting carried away. We’re just having fun.” Despite the apology, though, he didn’t pull back on his expectation that she continues to stimulate him with her nude ass.

As Minho sat there with her tits swaying close to his face, he placed his hands on her lower back. Slowly, they moved south until they rested just above the start of her cheeks. “Where are your hands going there, Minho?” the naked teenager asked her aroused friend.

“I was thinking about getting some hand full of your ass. Or should I hold off and wait until I get my hands on your sister’s?” He asked.

Eunchae was well aware that they were using her over-protective attitude toward her sister to get her to agree to more sexual things. But they seemed genuine in their desire to get with her sister, so she had to play along. Even if it meant her ass would now be open to the groping of a guy she had trusted for so long. “If you have to...,” she muttered.

Within the instant she said that his hands went straight to her ass and squeezed, prompting her to yelp out of surprise. He felt them in every way possible and manipulated them in all directions. Her other three friends sat behind her and witnessed this occur. The weirdest was when he would push her cheeks apart.

“Stop doing that, Minho!” Eunchae complained, feeling him push them apart yet again.

“Why?” He asked.

“Because you’re showing...,” she started to say while trying to motion back subtly to her friends.

“If you’re worried his massaging of your ass is revealing your asshole to us, then so that you know, it is. We’ve seen it extensively now,” Eunwoo commented from behind her. Fantastic, Eunchae thought to herself. God forbid that her friends don’t see every square inch of her body.

Five minutes later and Minho had memorized how every nook and cranny of Eunchae’s ass felt. He then relented to give Eunwoo a turn at pushing Eunchae’s sexual boundaries. Eunwoo had her take the same position on him and wasted no time getting his own hands on her ample ass. Eunchae was now assuming all four of them were going to end up groping her naked ass. In fact, the whole rest of the night might consist of her cheeks getting felt up while stimulating her friends with a lap dance consisting mainly of crotch grinding. But this would be fine. She could handle this and waste away the night with this activity. Her sister would fall asleep in a few hours, free from the hands of her eager friends. What this meant for the future of Eunchae’s relationship with them was worrying. She doubted they would call this a one-time thing. More worrying was that Eunchae didn’t hate that idea.

While Eunwoo was enjoying the feeling of his friend’s behind, his eyes grew hungry for another part of her. “Lean in, Eunchae. I need to get my mouth all over those tits,” he said as his tongue dropped out of his mouth in anticipation.

“My... chest?” Eunchae said as she watched his tongue position itself inches from her nipples. Wasn’t seeing them enough? Wasn’t feeling her butt enough? Was anything enough for these guys? Why were her friends so horny for her and her sister?

“If you think you really need to in order to keep satisfied... okay,” the lap-dancing teen said while looking away.

The feeling of a warm, moist tongue rubbing all over her sensitive nipples made the young woman moan out involuntarily. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw her other friends grow excited by her moan. Eunchae herself was surprised by this. Even more surprising was how continued stimulation of her breasts by his tongue garnered a continuous reaction from her.

Small jolts of pleasure shot out of her chest with each manipulation of her nipples with his mouth. When he took the entirety of one of them in his mouth, she again loudly moaned, and this confirmed to her male friend that she was enjoying the experience, much to her shame. His mouth was relentless, and she found herself grinding into his crotch just a bit harder and faster. Her tits grew warm while the tenderness in them reached levels that were causing the inexperienced teen to writhe on top of her friend.

Eunwoo continued to be bold and brought his hands to grope her chest next. Eunchae voiced no opposition to this and welcomed it. The feeling of his fingers pinching her nipples acted to relieve the building pleasure in her chest that was driving her crazy. The manipulation of her tits by his hands spread this pleasure throughout her body. She was grinding hard into his lap and breathing heavily as her mouth stayed agape. The view of the shy, embarrassed girl was replaced with one experiencing pleasure and actively leaning into those feelings.

It was only when Eunwoo commented, “Damn, you’re horny,” that Eunchae was knocked back to her usual self. She became very aware of her moans and how welcoming she had been of her friend’s touch on her naked body. She looked at him with wide, shocked eyes.

Not knowing what else to do, she suggested, “Maybe we give Doyun a turn.”

Eunchae stood up off Eunwoo, her whole body shivering a bit from the impact of having her breasts sexually stimulated. The last of her friends not to get their lap dance yet was Doyun, who sat on the chair with a smile indicating he had a plan in store for the now-flustered teen. “Sit on my lap, facing away from me. If you enjoyed what Eunwoo did to you, you’re going to love what I have in store.”

Eunchae didn’t know how to react to this. Why did Doyun need to do anything to her? Wasn’t this about their pleasure? But she was enamoured with curiosity and wondered if he could give her the same rush of joy that Eunwoo had. She took a seat on him just as he had asked.

Just like with her previous two friends, the erection contained in his pants was readily apparent as she felt it on her ass. She suspected that Chanwoo, the final friend, would soon give her the opportunity to feel his penis as well. “Just relax and lean back against me,” Doyun said in a calming voice.

His hands started at her sides. While far from an intimate location, Eunchae was so unused to male contact that even having his hands on the bare skin of her side felt intense. As she leaned back, he nestled his face on her neck and started lightly kissing it as his hands moved up and down her sides from her hips to the sides of her bosoms. Her legs squirmed as the feeling of his lips on her neck was divine. It also made her appreciate that men had seen her naked and felt so many areas of her body, but she had still never kissed a man. That realization made her feel whorish, but as Doyun’s hands migrated to become the second man in the last half hour to grope her naked tits, she didn’t care anymore.

“Aahhhh,” Eunchae moaned out as her tits, neck, and most intimate areas tingled with pleasure she never knew her body could feel. Her reasons for doing this were long forgotten. All she knew was she didn’t want this to stop. And Doyun didn’t stop as the next minutes consisted of nothing but her tits getting worked over by the strong hands of her friend while she squired on the shaft of his cock. A cock that consumed her thoughts. It was ever so tempting to suggest possible next steps, not caring that she had an audience. But only Doyun knew where things were going to end up between them.

As Eunchae’s mind was adrift in lust, she failed to notice the downward movement of her close friend’s hands. Soon, his fingers made contact with the area that even her own hands rarely touched. The nude girl shot up as she felt two fingers run along the length of her labia. “Oh fuck!” She yelled out. Coming back to reality fast, she looked down to confirm where her friend’s hands had shifted. She grabbed them and held them in place to prevent further stimulation of that area.

“Whoa there. I think that’s taking things too far. I’m letting you grope my chest extensively. Why do you need to touch me there?”

“You have a beautiful body, Eunchae. Your face, chest, butt, and your pussy as well. Why wouldn’t we want to touch you there, too?” He asked.

“Thanks... but touching me there provokes... feelings. I’m not ready for intensity like that,” the still-panting woman admitted.

“Are you sure you aren’t ready? You were plenty wet from what I could feel.”

“No! I... it was... no!” Eunchae said, not liking that this detail was spoken out loud. “I’m not ready!”

Doyun moved his hands away from the groin of his friend. “I understand. That was asking too much of you. You should probably get off me then,” he said.

Eunchae was cautious of this. “Why? I didn’t say you had to stop feeling my other areas.”

“And those areas are fun. But I’m ready for more, and if you don’t want to progress, then we are going to...,” but Eunchae finished his thought.

“My sister. I got it... Actually, I am ready for you to touch my... private area,” Eunchae said.

“Are you sure?” Doyun questioned. Eunchae didn’t answer with words but grabbed his hands and brought them back to her pussy, all while opening up her legs.

Doyun resumed rubbing two fingers along her labia, but just ever so lightly. Still, Eunchae let out a moan that she worried would echo all the way to her sister’s room. Her friend repeated this motion again, then again, and settled into a steady pace of finger stimulation. As Doyun pointed out, Eunchae provided a lot of lubrication. Ever since she started getting touched by Chanwoo, this had been occurring, much to her embarrassment. But there was no hiding that from Doyun.

The build-up of pleasure that had been driving the teenager mad from just the chest groping. But with her stimulation now vaginal in nature, this build-up felt more intense. Something was happening in her, and with what her friend’s fingers were doing, it was happening fast. During a downward motion along her vaginal lips, one of Doyun’s fingers did a sudden turn and penetrated her slightly. This sent a rush through her legs that caused them to spasm. He repeated this maneuver and got the same reaction from the young woman. His finger went deeper and longer each time and was joined by a neighboring finger. Eunchae’s reaction only grew, and soon her muscles all over her body tensed up from this new feeling of having someone inside her pussy.

Eunchae’s hands had a death grip on the chair that supported them. She continued to writhe on her friend, grinding her ass uncontrollably into his dick still contained in his pants. The relentless finger assault on her pussy sent pulse after pulse of pleasure through her body. These pulses grew more intense with less time between them. Soon, the pleasure was constant, and she lost awareness of the world around her. The ecstasy grew to new levels, and Eunchae wondered if relief would ever be found. Her mind was filled with perverse thoughts, and she thought about all of the unspeakable things she could do with the cock that she felt between her ass cheeks.

Finally, the dam burst open, and her body, from her spine to her toes, convulsed in pleasure. Her concern about her sister possibly hearing her was long forgotten, and she wailed out in beautiful agony. As the orgasm relented its hold on her, she collapsed onto her friend, who grabbed her to prevent her body from sliding off. Eunchae had experienced something she didn’t know was possible.

She also didn’t know how long she had been on top of him as her friends watched her bare chest heave up and down. As her breath got under control, she turned her head and was face to face with the guy who had given her this sexual glee. She put her lips together and contacted his, an event that proved to be her first kiss. She reflected on how embarrassing this was later, having been given an orgasm by a guy before kissing them. A situation that would soon be repeated.

After sharing a few more kisses, they looked into each other’s eyes with bliss until Doyun asked, “Blowjob?”

Hearing such a brazen request caused Eunchae to shoot to her feet and off the lap of her friend. However, her legs were in no state to hold her weight, and she fell on her ass, putting her in a spread-legged pose that her friends enjoyed seeing. The nude girl wasn’t concerned with her body being exposed at the moment, though.

“A blowjob? What? From me?” She asked in her post-orgasm-confused state. She worried that while getting fingered earlier, when she imagined herself doing just such an act, she may have unknowingly vocalized a desire to take on such a task. But that wasn’t the case. This was simply a guy wanting to experience a blowjob from his increasingly sexually active female friend.

“Or your sister. Man, can you guys imagine her luscious lips wrapped around your...”

“Stop. Stop. You guys are trying to convince me to blow you by saying you’re going to seek oral from my sister otherwise. Seriously. Can you just agree not to seek out sexual acts from my sister? Is that too big of an ask,” Eunchae pleaded while on the floor with an exposed, shimmering pussy.

The four guys looked at each other. “Eunchae, we understand that you aren’t that interested in sex, events that occurred just five minutes ago notwithstanding. But we are. If your sister is willing to engage in blowjobs with all four of us. That’s her business. I’m sorry you feel that we are trying to manipulate you into doing anything. We aren’t. But we also aren’t going to turn down anything you are offering,” Minho said in a well-meaning tone.

As Eunchae thought about what her friend had just said, she began to accept the reality. She had done some embarrassing things, but there was no need to go further. Her sister was a woman, and these guys were men. Everyone was of legal age, and no cheating would occur. She wouldn’t get in the way of whatever it was they wanted to do with each other.

But then her mind visualized her sister being surrounded by the four cocks of her friends as she went back and forth sucking on them all. Her friends groped her naked body just as they had Eunchae’s, giving her sister the same feelings of uncontrollable lust. Eventually, they unload the contents of their cocks in her mouth and on her. From there, they progress to even more sensual activities. No! Eunchae couldn’t accept such an event occurring. And it was in her power to stop it.

“Get your dick out. I’ll suck it,” she said with her voice cracking. Doyun stood up, looking like he, well, looking like he just had his long-term female friend, whom he had long been attracted to, offer to blow him. Eunchae, meanwhile, was coming to terms with the many new sensations she was about to experience, all centered around the penis of her trusted friend.

With Eunchae on the floor, Doyun stood on the ground next to her. “How about you get my dick out. That will be fun,” he suggested. Not knowing how to argue otherwise, the nude teenage girl brought her shaky hands to the belt of Doyun. She fumbled with it for a while but got it loose, bringing her ever closer to the object of her soon-to-be oral fixation.

As she reached for the zipper of his pants, her hand slid by the bulge in his pants where his cock lay, sending a shiver up her arm. But she knew that in no time, she would be doing more than just glancing at his shaft. The zipper came down, and she unbuttoned his jeans, leaving a thin layer of cloth between her and his manhood. She could have easily pulled down his boxers, but took the opportunity to delay the appearance of his manly feature a few more seconds.

Released from the confines of his pants, his erection became much more noticeable, giving Eunchae a clearer idea of its size and shape. Seeing her pause and stare, Doyun checked in with her soon-to-be friend/lover. “Everything okay, Eunchae?”

His words almost startled the young woman, and she stammered in response. “What? Oh yeah. Everything is good. Just looking at... I mean, not looking at. But your penis is. Your dick looks good. I mean, no. No, not no... I’m going to shut up and take off your boxers.”

As she dwelled on the embarrassing word salad she just said in reference to her friend’s cock, she pulled down the boxers and, looking up, was taken aback at the sight of her first in-person penis. A very erect one at that, thanks to her efforts earlier. “Fuck...,” she said as her mouth when agape at its sight. It was huge, or at least she thought it was. The idea of fitting into... certain orifices of hers was intimidating, and she was thankful that wasn’t what she was preparing for.

But what she was committed to required her to do more than gawk at it, although she was enjoying her viewing of it. This raised questions, though, that Eunchae realized she needed to answer. How the fuck do you give a blowjob. She knew the obvious parts. You put the penis in your mouth. But was that all there was to it? Was she about to embarrass herself by giving the world’s worst blowjob, all while her friends watched? While giving it to a friend...

She reached up and gently took hold of the base of the shaft with her hand. She was doing it. She was actually holding a real dick in her hand. It was... fleshy. An obvious observation, but it was the best way she felt to describe it. It was firm but pleasantly smooth. She ran her hand up and down it a bit just to get a feel for it, and Doyun reacted positively to this. “God, that feels good. Your hands are so soft on my dick Eunchae,” he said, smiling. The naive girl was surprised at this. Was she actually giving her friend some sexual pleasure? Even with that small amount of effort?

This emboldened the nude teenager currently on her knees. Doyun didn’t ask for a handjob. He asked for a blowjob. So, there was no point in delaying things. Eunchae was going to take a dick into her mouth. She metaphorically dove in and took as much of his length into her as she could without risking ganging. Her lips then wrapped around his shaft, and she slowly pulled away from him, feeling his smooth skin glide along her.

“Fuck...,” Doyun groaned, voicing his approval of her first foray into getting face fucked. Eunchae considered it official that she had now lost her mouth virginity, if that could be considered a thing.

She started repeating this movement, driving the portion of his dick that fit in and out of her mouth, all while using her lips to massage all sides of the cock. After getting used to this, she decided to introduce her tongue to her friend’s dick. As she thrusted his dick once again into her mouth, her tongue swiped a quick lick in. Her taste buds were soon flooded with the taste of the pre-cum leaking out of him. It was an enjoyable salty sensation. But tasting this fluid reminded her of another component, which was Doyun’s sperm. While it was a small amount, for now, the idea of having her close friend’s sperm inside her was intimidating. In the right place, those little swimmers could cause her a lot of trouble. But her mouth was safe, and all the sperm Doyun could supply in this orifice wouldn’t get her pregnant. Despite her extreme nervousness in engaging in such an act, Eunchae admitted to herself that she was enjoying the experience, which was good as she had three friends likely eager for their turns.

As she got more creative with her tongue’s role in the blowjob, Doyun took hold of her head with his hands and started directing her to move faster and deeper. Soon her lips were running rapidly over the cock, and Doyun was breathing hard. Just as the young Eunchae wondered how much longer this might go on, her mouth became flooded with a warm liquid that overwhelmed her taste buds with the previous subtle flavor of his pre-cum. Eunchae had successfully made her friend orgasm, with her mouth no less. Thus returning the orgasm he had given her just earlier.

She pulled away from him, releasing his dick from her mouth. She briefly looked around as her mouth contained billions of his sperm until she finally swallowed, not knowing what else she could do. “Fan-fucking-tastic Eunchae,” Doyun said, needing to take a seat in the chair previously used for lap dances.

“Thanks. I guess,” the teenager said after having her blowjob skills complimented. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to be good at this or not, but for now, she was glad the job was done. For one of these guys, at least.

She looked over at her other three friends in a different light than she had in the past. At this moment, they represented dicks that she needed to make cum.

“So... am I blowing one of you guys next?” Eunchae asked in maybe the most embarrassing question of her life.

“I’ll take a boobjob,” Eunwoo announced, standing up. A boobjob? Was there a menu of options that Eunchae was offering that she wasn’t aware of? Was her job tonight to fulfill all of their sexual requests? Still, considering she just took a dick in the mouth, it seemed to her that pleasuring one with your chest was a lesser ask.

“How do we do this?” she asked. Eunwoo was already pulling down his boxers when she asked, revealing the second cock of the day for the inexperienced 18-year-old girl with a stomach full of her friend’s cum. He laid on the floor as his cock awaited two large tits to surround it. This second dick looked no less large than the last one. And no less alluring either, Eunchae thought in the back of her mind. She was a bit excited to feel it.

She got on her knees and leaned over the fleshy staff. “Do I just rub my chest over it like this?” She asked as she positioned the dick between her ample tits. The idea that her body was ideal for such an activity was too much for her to accept.

Eunchae pushed her boobs inward together, compressing them around the dick, and started moving herself up and down the shaft of her friend. This was another first she had given up tonight, although she was certain ‘boob virginity’ was not a thing. She was almost able to surround the perimeter of his manhood completely. The feeling of having this male feature between her chest was odd—a combination of naughty and shameful. Two hours ago, if her friends had asked her to wear something that showed a bit of cleavage, she would have denied them and run off in total embarrassment at even being asked such a thing. Now she was fully naked and currently trying to induce her friend to cum by stimulating him with her tits. Eunchae was worried about what might happen in the next two hours.

Pre-cum from Eunwoo soon coated her bosom. Again, she thought about her friend’s sperm and how another part of her body was being introduced to it. Another safe area, but not headed in the direction she liked.

“Lie on your back,” he said as Eunwoo was looking to switch things around. Being requested to lie on your back fully naked by your friend, currently sporting an exposed erection, worried Eunchae, but she complied. Surely, he wasn’t taking things to that level. Once she was horizontal on her back, the eager male straddled her over her stomach and plopped down his cock between her chest. He then used his own hands to squeeze her tits together and resume the tit job. In control now, Eunwoo was much more vigorous with pumping his cock between her tits. In addition, having both his hands squeezing her tits while a dick used them for pleasure was having an erotic impact on the young lady.

Just as Doyun and Eunwoo gave her tit-stimulated pleasure during the lap dance, this boob job was proving no different. As she saw a dick thrust towards her face repeatedly, Eunchae began to squirm from the barrage of pleasure her chest was feeling. One orgasm was shameful enough to have in front of her friends, but a second one? Especially one derived from such an act would be too much to bear. But the possibility of such a thing happening disappeared as Eunwoo pulled himself out from between her tits. But she then appreciated that he hadn’t finished and wondered if maybe he didn’t plan to. But then the feeling of warm liquid spraying onto her chest brought her up to date with her friend’s plan. He was cumming directly onto his chest. The sight of a dick cumming was breath-taking to the inexperienced teenager. It shot out with force in multiple bursts. Each pump that hit her made her gasp as she appreciated what this liquid was and how erotic this act was. The smell of the cum hit her, and she found it invigorating and wanting more of it. If not on her chest, then other areas...

The last of his seed dripped out onto her, and Eunchae knew she had finished pleasing yet another friend. But two more remained. “I should go clean up,” she said, sitting up.

“No! Keep it on your chest,” Chanwoo said, with Minho nearby, shaking his head in agreement.

“What? But...,” Eunchae started to argue but quickly relented. If this is what they wanted, fine. She didn’t need to hear about how her sister would happily wear their cum with pride.

Having regained her strength from her orgasm earlier, Eunchae stood up. While wearing the cum of Eunwoo on her tits, she asked Chanwoo and Minho, “So what do you guys want to do?” Eunchae regretted her language as she was starting to sound like she was making herself free to be used for their sexual pleasure. Although, isn’t that what she was doing?

“Get on your knees,” Minho said. Figuring that meant he was volunteering to be next and wanted to feel her lips on his cock, she complied.

However, both men approached her while starting to unzip their pants. “Wait. Who am I blowing?” Eunchae asked as she watched both guys’ pants fall to the floor.

“Both,” Chanwoo said as he pulled his cock out, followed by Minho revealing his.

Eunchae understood. Earlier, she had visualized almost this exact scenario, albeit with her sister doing this instead of her. With the amount of cocks she had handled doubling, the nude teenager took hold of each shaft in either hand and started stroking them. They felt remarkably similar to Doyun’s. From here on, anytime she hung out with her friends, she would know the size, texture, and in most cases, taste of their cocks. Even in the most innocent of interactions, that knowledge would pop into her head in addition to images of the many acts she was partaking in tonight with them.

While she had two hands that were up to the task of jacking off her friends, she had but a single mouth. Eunchae elected to have Chanwoo become the second dick to penetrate her mouth. As her lips rolled over the bare skin of his manhood and her tongue teased his tip, she came to appreciate his cock had a different taste than her previous oral partner. His, likely from the healthy amount of pre-cum, had a bit more of a metallic taste. That made her curious about what Minho tasted like, and she switched her mouth over to his and found it to have more of the salty taste that Doyun shared. She wondered then about the only cock in the room she hadn’t sucked on, Eunwoo’s. But she realized this was embarrassing to consider. She would not ask to give her friend a blowjob just to compare his taste to the others.

Over the next five minutes, Eunchae worked the two cocks with her hand while giving them oral pleasure as equally as she could. “God, I’m getting close,” Chanwoo moaned.

“Me too. Your mouth is heaven, Eunchae,” Minho said.

“Okay, so where do you want to...,” the teen asked before her question was thoroughly answered. Cum out of both dicks sprayed onto her face.

“Don’t stop your hands,” Minho commanded as cum continued to splatter over the surprised face of Eunchae. As the last of it hit her, the boys again complimented her ability to get them to cum, saying she had a talent. A talent that the cum covered friend wasn’t sure she welcomed.

But Eunchae breathed easily, knowing that her friends were sexually satisfied and her sister was free of the horny hands and cum of her friends. “Now that everyone has been... serviced? Can we get back to the game now?” She asked as she looked towards the table. She expected they would want her to play naked and keep her cum coating on. That was fine, and the smell of cum continued to intoxicate her. But the guys didn’t give her the immediate confirmation of that plan.

“Eunchae. I think you’re underestimating the sexual appetite of men,” Doyun said. She turned to face him and was met with her still-naked friend, sporting another erection.

“You’re kidding me...,” she said as she remembered taking his cum into her mouth just half an hour ago.

“What can I say. I’m enjoying the view,” Doyun said, looking over his friend’s seeded body.

“Okay, fine. I guess I’m blowing you guys more,” Eunchae said as she took one last longing look at her board game that remained unplayed. Although she didn’t resent the idea of four men focusing their sexual lust on her again.

“Your blowjob was, well, orgasmic, Eunchae. But we’re looking for the real deal now. Something I don’t think you are willing to do. So you sit tight here, and we’re going to go hang out with your sister for a bit,” Minho said.

“You mean you’re going to go fuck her,” Eunchae said, thinking that now that she was covered in cum, the time to stop glossing over what people really meant has passed.

“Yes, we want to have sex with your sister.”

The four men got up, not bothering to put their clothes on. Eunchae wondered if they were really going to solicit sex from her sister while naked like this? But as she thought about it, the sight of four naked and erect boys outside of her bedroom might make her sister all the easier to convince her sister to engage in sex. Eunchae had an obvious path to avoid this. Offer her own body in place of her sister’s. But that would mean giving up her big V-card. Her real virginity. She couldn’t get that back. But did she really care about holding on to it? She had just engaged in a five-way blowjob orgy. Was claiming technical innocence worth knowing her friends would soon fill her sister’s willing womb with their cum?

Once again, she stopped them right as they started leaving the room.

“Wait...,” the nervous virgin said.

Her four naked guy friends turned around. “Yes?” Chanwoo asked.

Eunchae paused and couldn’t get the words out. “You know what I’m going to say. Don’t make me actually say it,” she said in a shaky voice.

“I need to hear you say it,” Chanwoo said to the nods of the others.

“Y—you... you can fuck me,” she muttered.

“Aren’t you a virgin?” Eunwoo asked, speculating on the sexual experience of his friend.

“Yeah... but we got to start sometime, right?” The four nudes looked at each other.

“I don’t know if you really want to do this, Eunchae. Maybe you should just let us get with your sister and save yourself for a future boyfriend,” Doyun mentioned.

“I know we’ve done a lot of stuff tonight, but I agree. I don’t think this is something you really want,” Chanwoo added. Eunchae was getting frustrated hearing this. She wasn’t drunk, being blackmailed, or anything else. She is giving her consent, and these big dick jerks are still doubting her intentions. She needed to be extra clear.

“I’m telling you that I want to feel your cock inside my pussy! Fuck me now and fuck me hard, you jerk!” She yelled out.

Eunchae felt her pride sink to a new low, but it had the intended effect. “Okay, Eunchae, chill. We will have sex with you. But which of us do you want to have sex with first?” Eunwoo asked, holding his hands up to calm down the eager teenage girl.

“Why do I have to choose?” Eunchae protested.

“Because usually girls choose who they lose their virginity to,” Chanwoo said. The nude girl couldn’t argue with that, but by what logic could she even pick? Whoever she chooses would probably send an unintended message that she felt that one was more attractive or appealing to her. Up until an hour ago, when she started feeling their dicks, Eunchae never saw these guys in that light.

Her eyes were drawn to their dicks which were all now erect. She swore they looked even bigger and had trouble believing they would fit inside her. Not that she had ever explored fitting things in that part of her. But she realized she had been checking out their cock for a while and turned around in embarrassment.

Picking them based on their size would be the last thing she would want to do. It’s not like they all wouldn’t end up fucking her anyway. Oh god, all four of her friends are going to fuck her tonight, Eunchae realized. Why wouldn’t they? They had all wanted a lap dance from her and afterward wanted her to make them cum. She had agreed to a full-on orgy with her best friends. So many words popped into her head that she would use to describe women who partake in such activities. Descriptors that she would soon apply to herself.

“I’ll just pick random. We have dice, after all,” she said, walking to the table. At least a small part of the game would be used, she thought. It would be weird as from here on, every time she rolled the dice playing, she would remember how she used it to decide who broke her hymen and made her a ‘real woman.’ But as she grabbed the dice, she saw the bag of bird eggs, which served as an important reminder to her.

“You guys have condoms?”

All four shook their heads.

“Well, we can’t have sex without condoms, so I guess it’s not happening,” Eunchae said. That would give her a short reprieve from giving up the goods to these guys, but she knew next time they would come over, they would probably bring a pack or something obscene.

“Your sister would probably let us fuck her without condoms,” Chanwoo remarked.

Why were these guys making so many assumptions about the sexual nature of her sister? Eunchae fretted. But would her sister go so far as to forgo protection to get with guys younger than her? What worried her most was that she knew for a fact that, like her, her sister wasn’t on protection. A year ago, Eunchae’s sister came to her asking if she would like to start birth control. Eunchae declined, saying she wasn’t planning on being sexually active. Her sister remarked she wasn’t on birth control for the same reason.

“Then promise you’ll pull out and cum on my chest. You guys seemed to enjoy doing that,” Eunchae offered as a compromise. This made her unbelievably nervous as she knew pre-cum contained sperm. In addition, this would require a lot of trust in some guys proving to be extraordinarily horny.

“Eunchae, your sister will probably let us…” Chanwoo started to say before the virgin girl objected.

“If you’re suggesting my sister will let a group of teenage boys cum inside her and risk a pregnancy just for sexual satisfaction, you’re wrong!”

But Eunchae wasn’t sure about this. It’s not like she has discussed anything like this with her sister. Given that she existed at all, though, proved that her sister was capable of agreeing to unprotected sex with men she wasn’t married to. Given her built-up lust, would she repeat this mistake? With her sister’s teenage friends, even?

“So you’re saying the only way you guys won’t cum inside my sister is if I let you guys cum inside me,” Eunchae asked.

“That’s not fair! You make it sound like we are making you do this. Eunchae, if you don’t want to fuck us, then don’t!” Doyun complained.

“Then don’t have unprotected sex with my sister!”

“Be reasonable. We’re guys. All we think about is sex. If a hot woman is willing to let us have sex with her, protection or no, we’re going to take her up on it. I’m sorry that it happens to be your sister,” Eunwoo said, laying out their position.

“But I’m not on birth control. Do you guys really want to risk getting me pregnant?” Eunchae asked as her mind started to panic that she was even considering this.

“It’s not that I want to impregnate you. I want to cum inside a beautiful woman tonight. It seems we have two candidates,” Eunwoo said.

What the hell was happening, thought Eunchae. How did tonight go from a board game about birds to her friends willing to impregnate her or her sister? And what had happened to her in these few hours that she was taking this willingness as a compliment and becoming very tempted by it.

A child would change almost everything Eunchae had planned in her life. College, a husband, and even where she would live would all be drastically changed by getting pregnant at age 18. But the alternative was her sister getting pregnant. By the seed of her friends. God, would one of these guys become her brother-in-law? Oh god, would she have ended up blowing her brother-in-law?

“I’m not saying I want to... yet. But if we did this... and something were to... take hold inside me. Would you guys take responsibility?”

All four of them voiced enthusiastic agreement with that.

“Are you kidding? I’d happily!” Minho said. Eunchae wondered just what that meant to her friends. Were they indicating they would marry her? Or just raise their child? Were they saying that to get in her pants? Even though she wasn’t wearing any right now? Today was proving mind-bogglingly life-changing to the sexually inexperienced teen girl.

“I don’t know if I’m ready for a baby, but I think I’m ready to go all the way with you guys,” Eunchae finally admitted.

This was crazy. She was basically asking these guys to impregnate her to prevent herself from getting a brother-in-law. As per her plan, she headed to the game table and rolled the dice. The four guys continued to look shocked that their friend, who had shown no interest in any sexual before, was now using a board game piece to pick which of them would get the first shot at impregnating her. Assigning each guy to a bird food picture on the die, the luck of the roll favored Eunwoo. He would be the first to partake in the most intimate of actions with his friend.

A wide-eyed Eunchae went and lay on the floor, deciding this was where it would happen. Eunwoo inched closer to her, but still questioned things. “I only want to do this with you, Eunchae, if you really do,” he asked as his erection showed his body as fully onboard.

Eunchae didn’t want to go through this whole exercise with her friend doubting her resolve, so she made things clear.

“Take that cock of yours and fuck my pussy with it until I squeal from cumming. Then fill my womb with so much cum there will be no doubt that I’m pregnant.”

Eunchae's direct words took all four men by surprise. But as the night advanced, none questioned her desire to do this again.

But the soon-to-be ex-virgin’s confidence was just for show. In reality, she eyed his cock with immense anxiety. Both in terms of its size and the millions of little swimmers it would soon dispense. All it would take is for one to find its target. Her eggs. She wasn’t one to keep track of her cycles, but from a quick estimation in her head, this was not the day to be doing this.

Eunwoo joined her on the floor and climbed on top of her, putting his face next to hers. “I’m going to take this slow, okay?” He informed his soon-to-be lover. She put on a brave face and gave him a nod like she had done this a hundred times before. Given how horny these guys were, that scenario might become the truth soon.

Eunchae felt the entrance to her womb get tickled, but she knew this wasn’t any finger touching her. Soon, the appendage in question started applying pressure, and she took one last breath as a virgin. Eunwoo’s dick penetrated her, and a shot of pain sent a clear message to the young woman. She was fucking her friend. True to his word, Eunwoo didn’t immediately start pounding her mound despite her early boast that she wanted them to ‘fuck her hard.’ The pain was more than she expected, but was fading fast. The cock in her pulled out slowly and then back in. This generated new pain, but it was less intense and faded even faster. Eunchae appreciated that the worst was over and was thankful that Eunwoo was proving to be such a thoughtful and skillful sexual partner.

He continued to slide in and out of her, with the pain becoming almost non-existent. The fading of the pain was a relief, but her major concern still loomed large. Even now, she knew sperm was already leaking out of the cock currently fucking her. It was a small amount, but would soon be joined by a flood of fellow swimmers. A flood with one goal. To impregnate her. But for now, Eunwoo was picking up the pace and delving deeper into her with each stroke. They continued to be face to face, and while she tried to look away or close her eyes. However, often their eyes would meet. Was it weird that she wasn’t kissing him? Or if she tried to, would that make it weirder?

Eunchae had expected sex to be much like when she got fingered earlier by Doyun, but that was proving not to be the case. The feeling of getting stretched out over and over by the cock was... unusually pleasant. As well as the friction caused by the movement of his dick inside her. While she still would have liked to be using protection, the skin-on-skin contact was so intimate. The recently devirginized teenager felt every textured detail of him slide inside her. Despite her earlier appreciation of him taking it slow, she was now finding herself eager for him to go faster and harder. While not something she consciously decided to do, her hips started humping in unison with Eunwoo’s thrust, driving him to go deeper into her.

As she was getting comfortable with the experience, a facial expression of pleasure reminded the young woman of the reality of the situation. Eunwoo was approaching his limit, and with that event, the potential impregnation. Feeling the cock inside her, Eunchae had second thoughts about her earlier acceptance of becoming a sister-in-law. Why was she doing this? She could ask her friend to withdraw, and he would comply. Her virginity wouldn’t be restored, but she would be left without this life-changing event occurring. With that thought, Eunwoo’s dick reached a new depth within her, and Eunchae let out a moan, and her legs stirred underneath her current lover. This redirected her attention to the three friends watching the sex show she was freely giving them. Three guys were watching but really waiting for their turn. And if not Eunchae, they would be watching her sister take on the nine-inch cock in her pussy. Her sister would be the one about to get inseminated.

Seeing Eunwoo’s face contort further as his orgasm was approaching rapidly, Eunchae steeled her nerves. This was the right decision.

“Get me pregnant,” she said to Eunwoo.

She pulled his face into hers and kissed him passionately right when she felt the sensation of a warm liquid enter her. Over the next minute, he stayed inside her while enjoying the feel of her lips on his. All the while, the last of his cum, and potent sperm entered the womb of his friend. Eunchae had been inseminated.

Eunchae pulled her face back and looked at Eunwoo with eyes the size of frisbees. As he withdrew from her, leaving her on the floor naked and cum filled, she calmed herself down. Would one load of cum really get her pregnant? But then she saw the eager faces of her friends, one load on her foot. Even Eunwoo was talking about doing more.

“That was so incredible. I’m going to focus on getting ready for my next turn,” he said, taking a seat on the floor to watch the next sex show Eunchae would be starring in.

Next time, she thought? How many times was she going to get fucked today? Minho announced that it was agreed he would go next. Apparently, Chanwoo and Doyun had something planned, which made Eunchae greatly curious. But she couldn’t dwell on that too much as she was about to experience the feeling of yet another long-term friend cumming inside her. Wanting to keep things fresh, he asked that she ride him on top of his dick. As Eunchae saw him lying on the floor with his erection pointing straight upward, she wondered why it was necessary to change things up with a girl you haven’t had sex with yet. A thought that instantly left her lead as she lowered herself onto her newest lover.

Being on top this time, Minho’s cock was able to penetrate her fully right off the bat. A feeling that the newly introduced teenager didn’t appreciate until now. She let out a loud gasp, and her whole body shivered briefly.

“God, your pussy feels so good and wet,” Minho said as his hands took hold of her tits.

That was not a compliment Eunchae had expected her to hear today, if ever in her life. But as the shock of the giant cock entering her wore off, she gradually started lifting herself up and down on it. In this position, she was mostly in control. Minho was eagerly lifting his hips to encourage her to pick up the pace.

Eunchae found her rhythm and was sliding the inside of her vaginal walls against her second cock of the day. The same pleasurable experiences she encountered with Eunwoo resumed. But with her nerves about getting impregnated relaxed somewhat, she was able to focus on chasing these feelings. As she humped the equally large dick, she manipulated the angle of attack to maximize her pleasure. This worked maybe too well, and as the tip rubbed against a very sensitive area she found, Eunchae let out a loud “Fuck,” and her ass twitched as a wave of sexual glee spread out from that spot. Taking a minute to recover, she started her humping back up, telling herself to avoid doing that again as it was just too intense.

However, not twenty seconds later, her curiosity and lust got the better of her, and she manipulated her body to experience that again. Ready for it this time, the next wave that hit her didn’t interrupt her rhythm, and she let out a long moan that she felt a bit embarrassed about. Opening her eyes, she saw the teasing face of Minho smiling back.

“Shut up! I’m letting my four best friends try to impregnate me. I’m not going to be shamed for enjoying myself,” Eunchae said before closing her eyes again.

Minutes later, the tip of the dick was hitting this orgasmic spot constantly, and the newly introduced to sex teenager was in a continuous state of moaning. Her lover was no longer teasing her as he was focused on not cumming early to the sexually charged sight he witnessed on top of him. Eunchae was humping his dick with a purpose. Wave after wave was crashing throughout her body until it became a steady stream of ecstasy. She used her hands to ensure Minho kept a firm grip on her tits as it was adding to her full-body pleasure. She knew she was building up to something grand and needed to see it to its mind-blowing conclusion. Her vision was starting to go white, and any doubt, shame, or worries she had been now gone. A live news crew could walk into the room, and she wouldn’t stop driving her pussy into this dick. Finally, after one last slide of the dick inside her, the build-up exploded.

“Coming, coming,” Eunchae muttered as she felt her legs convulse and her toes curl. The pleasure was overwhelming, and she worried this state she was in would drive her mad if it continued, but she simultaneously wanted it never to stop.

But it finally did, and she fell into her second sexual partner’s chest, gasping for air after she realized she had forgotten to breathe during her orgasm. It was only a minute later that she questioned whether Minho had even finished, but the feeling of fresh liquid leaking out of her confirmed it. As the logical side of her brain booted back up, she knew this meant she had added another name to the list of potential fathers of the child she soon expected to start growing inside her.

Eunchae rolled off of Minho and onto the floor. That was the second orgasm of her life, and her friends had witnessed both on this same night. That one was more intense, too, and she worried about what would happen if these boys got her there a third time. Because she was certain, they wanted to try. And try all night.

As she lay on the floor looking upwards, two dicks came into her view, and she knew Doyun and Chanwoo were standing over her. “How are you doing?” Doyun asked her. She knew he was probably eager to feel her pussy with his dick. Eunchae didn’t vocalize this, but she was keen to let them try after the heaven on earth she experienced.

“Who is next,” she asked, hoping she wasn’t starting to sound like a sex-crazed slut, asking for her next dick.

“Both of us,” Chanwoo said with a devilish smile.

“What the fuck does that mean,” Eunchae said, sitting up. He didn’t immediately answer her, and Eunchae looked around the room at her friends to try to understand what she was missing.

Her last lover finally explained as he lay on the spot where they had just made love. “Chanwoo and Doyun want to fuck you in your ass and pussy at the same time. They want to double penetrate you,” he explained.

“My ass? While I’m getting fucked? I just lost my virginity twenty minutes ago. Now my ass needs to get penetrated? Isn’t fucking my pussy enough?” She fretted.

Chanwoo and Doyun looked at each other. “As we keep saying, Eunchae, you don’t have to do this. We will happily go to your...,” Doyun started to say, using the same excuse that they have been using all night.

“No! My sister may be willing to have sex with you guys. She may even be willing to have unprotected sex. But I know my sister. She isn’t up for getting ass fucked by her sister’s friends while another takes a shot at impregnating her at the same time!” But once again, Eunchae asked herself if she really knew that. What sister knows the sexual kinks of their sister?

“We’ll let you know what she says when we offer,” Chanwoo said, leading Doyun out of the room.

“How about you fuck my butt one on one?” Eunchae offered. Oh god, did she just offer her asshole now?

“I might take you up on that afterward, but for now, we’re sticking with our plan,” Doyun said without even turning around.

“Why does it have to be at the same time,” Eunchae cried out.

“It’s hard to explain. But once you do it, you’ll know,” Chanwoo replied.

“Then show me,” she said, going red in the cheeks at her sudden decision. Hearing that, the two boys finally turned around. “If it’s difficult to put into words, then demonstrate it with me,” she muttered.

“So you’re saying we can...,” Doyun cautiously asked.

“Don’t make me say it. Just tell me what I need to do,” Eunchae said, looking away.

Chanwoo lay on the floor on his back. They were going to create an Eunchae fucking sandwich, as Doyun described it. She climbed on him and laid on him so they were stomach to stomach. She maneuvered downward until she was low enough that Chanwoo can penetrated her with his dick. She started to hump it, almost out of instinct, but the boys told her to wait. As her third cock waited inside her, Eunchae looked back nervously as Doyun joined them. He held himself up just above, and she felt his erect cock resting against her butt crack.

“For this part, I would recommend you try and relax your asshole as much as possible while I put my dick into you,” Doyun said calmly.

That was a sentence she had not expected to hear tonight when she invited them over to play a board game. She did her best as Doyun directed his tip to her most intimate of entrances. And the only one that had been cock free until now.

It took considerably more pressure to penetrate her ass than her pussy, but it finally popped in, and finally Eunchae experienced the feeling of having two dicks inside her for the first time. Her ass barraged her with feelings of pain and pleasure, and Eunchae started squealing. The two mixed and formed a new sensation that the young girl couldn’t process at first. Doyun took hold of Eunchae’s body and started pumping her on and off of not only his cock implanted in her ass but Chanwoo’s as well.

This was giving her double the pleasure as she was being stretched in both places now. Twice the feeling of a hard cock sliding inside her and twice the sensitive spots being massaged. Her ass was relaxing and feeding her feelings of pure pleasure now. Her friends were rocking her body hard, and she learned what they meant. This feeling couldn’t be described, and she was glad she had agreed to it.

Her muscles all over her body started tensing up as sparks of pleasure burst all over her body. Even in unexplainable areas like her tits and neck. But as she tensed up from this sexual joy, it had the bonus effect of making her squeeze tighter onto the cocks ravaging her insides, sending even more orgasmic pleasure into her body. It was creating a viscous pleasure cycle that sent her skyrocketing up a mountain of ecstasy. When it would peak was unknown to the writhing, naked woman.

Eunchae’s mind thought of nothing but sex, and she started blurting out her thoughts without any sense of shame.

“Don’t stop fucking my holes. Don’t ever stop. I want to do this forever with you. Fill my ass and pussy with cum. Impregnate me and make me your forever whore. Oh god!” The young woman couldn’t tell if she was having two orgasms or one large one.

But in either case, her mouth opened wide, and she looked like she was screaming, but no sound came out as the pleasure flooded into her spine, making her back arch. Her hands flayed wildly as if looking for something that could release her from the intensity she felt from cumming.

Her lovers could do nothing but fill her with their seed, which they did happily. Chanwoo added his sperm to the ever-increasing pool seeking to impregnate Eunchae while Doyun came inside the last orifice of Eunchae’s that had been cum free.

When Eunchae’s vision returned several minutes later, the first thought that popped into her head was that this friendship was forever changed. There’s no way you can let two guy friends double-team you like that and expect things to stay the same. But would they change for the better or worse? Eunchae herself didn’t even know what she wanted the future to hold. But as she sat up, she knew one thing. Eunwoo and Minho were both hard again. Her protection of her sister’s innocence from these horny teenagers was still in question.

“Who’s next, and where do you want to put it?” She asked the men.

The orgy continued for five more hours. Doyun took a shot at impregnating her as well. Multiple times, in fact. All four of them cycled between Eunchae’s different holes, but most enjoyed her pussy. There were, of course, breaks in the actions, but in that time frame, she never went more than twenty minutes without at least one dick in her.

Towards the end of the night, the guys began pushing Eunchae to reveal how many times she had cum, as it had become difficult to tell.

“A proper lady doesn’t reveal such intimate details,” she teased as cum leaked out of her ass and pussy from the last round of double penetration they engaged in.

The night ended when yet another dam of pleasure burst open in Eunchae and proved too overwhelming for her to remain conscious. Her friends were spent at that point and left, leaving Eunchae’s sister untouched that night. When the over-sexed girl woke up in a very sore, cummed covered state, she panicked that her sister might find her like this and quickly cleaned herself and the room up as best she could. But the room had a lingering smell of cum in it. The smell made Eunchae’s legs squirm a bit, but she hoped her sister wouldn’t recognize it if she ever came back here.

Having lost a lot of fluids last night, while gaining a lot as well, Eunchae headed to the kitchen, where she was glad to find her sister had made breakfast. She grabbed a plate and sat at the table with her.

“You guys played that game of yours late last night. Your friends must have really enjoyed themselves,” Eunchae's sister said without a hint indicating she actually knew what happened.

“Yeah... it was fun,” Eunchae said, not able to look her sister in the eyes. They both sat in silence for a few minutes with an awkwardness in the air that had never been present before.

“Eunchae, I have something to tell you. And I need you to let me finish before you respond,” her sister asked, looking nervous.

“Okay...,” Eunchae replied, putting down her fork. She anxiously expected her sister to reveal she knew about her orgy last night and expected a lecture on safe sex. A lecture that was a day late, likely, Eunchae thought, putting her hand on her tummy.

“I appreciate that what I’m about to tell you will make you upset and may even make you feel betrayed. I know I messed up, but I hope you at least understand why I did this.” Eunchae suddenly had no clue where this was headed, but kept quiet as her sister had requested.

“Starting five months ago, right after the last of them turned eighteen, I have been engaging in sexual activities with your four friends. Wait. I should be clear about this, as you are an adult and need to hear the truth. I have been having sex with them. Orally, vaginally, and anally. Often at the same time. Your friends have a touch that drives me wild. Often, I pass out in an orgasmic spasm, only to wake up the next day hungry for more. We meet together whenever we can, which is 4 to 5 times a week. I should also mention that I got addicted to the feeling of their bare skin inside me, and thus, we haven’t been using protection. I’m... three months pregnant. I’m not sure which of them is the father, nor do I need to know. I’m so sorry about this. I tried to tell you yesterday, but you seemed so off-put by the idea of me being attracted to your friends. But I knew I had to tell you today, no matter what. How mad are you with me?”

Eunchae sat looking at her sister calmly for a minute before responding.

“Could we pretend you didn’t tell me this yet? My friends are coming over tonight, and there’s a new game we invented last night that I want to keep playing with them. Maybe we tell them in three or four months?”

Her sister smiled at her with understanding eyes.

“You should probably put some lube on your asshole. Trust me, it will help.”

[sooniebby]

an idea; a (bottom) male reader who’s apart of an indie jpop boy group. The members are just you, a childhood friend, and three other people you met through college/random events. Your group was lucky one of the members comes from a rich family that doesn’t mind spending some money to help you guys out—waiting until a company finds interest and asks to manage you.

The first month or so is rough so you all find part time jobs in the mean time. But regular jobs just don’t interest you so it takes you awhile to even apply for any… mostly getting fired after the first week or so because you end up showing late all the time.

You’re left wondering what to do when you come across a website of camboys and camgirls. Some of them show full nudity while others stay dressed for the most part.

It intrigues you enough but you don’t do it without running it through your members. They’re mostly shocked you even want to do that… but other than that, they just tell you to not speak and wear a mask.

Easy peasy. You chose a simple and almost silly name, “Shy Usagi” since your mask resembled a rabbit.

The first stream is awkward, you had to figure out a way to talk. Surprisingly, a few of the people that dropped in were intrigued by your refusal to talk. You had expected them to immediately want you naked but it seemed you attracted people that liked the teasing aspect of camboys.

Though you were 99% sure it was only men watching you. The first few weeks, you only wore skimpy clothing and did anything they requested. The most sexual thing you did was suck a dildo.

Occasionally you’d masturbate on live and that would always garner more attention. But there was always one person who would tip you no matter the stream.

“Hitachikoi”

You were sure he was probably an old man but you didn’t care, money was money. He knew how to flirt so you never felt weirded out with his attention.

Things were going reasonably well until after your group’s performance at a little festival. You had spilt away for a second to look around when you bumped into someone. He had his face covered with a mask and baseball cap.

You were going to apologize and go about your way when you caught that he was holding a poster of your group. He didn’t say anything as he simply held up a marker.

It took a second before you finally realized what he wanted. “Oh! Sure.” You were a bit excited, having never really signed anything before. Your signature was a bit messy but still legible.

“Here you go, thanks for coming to see us!”

“I only came to see you.”

“Hm?” You leaned in closer, wondering if you had heard him right. Only you?

The man let out a laugh as he reached up and pulled down his mask, leaning down so you could get a clear look at his face. “Mhm. Only you… (Name)… or ah,”

His hand reached up and cupped your face, his thumb pressing on your bottom lip. It was only when he pulled off his cap that you got a good look at his face.

He… he wasn’t some random guy. He was a famous actor… a famous actor knew about you?

“Shy Usagi? It’s nice to see your entire face… that mask never hid your lips.”

You could stare as he pushed his thumb into your mouth. The only thing you were thinking of was if he was about to ruin your career before it even took off? But why would he care? Why was he even—

“Don’t worry your pretty little head. Someone like you isn’t made to think so hard,” he said, a slight frown on his lips. “I just, well I got tired of watching behind a screen. I wanted to touch you…”

His other hand moved to rest on your hip, pulling you closer as he pressed his lips against your ear.

“To be inside of you instead of that dildo… I mean, I’m paying you so much money, it’s only fair I get to have you, right? Mhm? I can have you, yea? I’ve thought of fucking your mouth for days now.”

“(Name)! Where are you?”

He pulled away, rolling his eyes. You only watched as he slipped back on his mask and cap, pulling your shirt back down. “You’ll stream tonight.” He said, as if he was giving you an order, not asking.

“I’ll see you tonight, baby. Wear something red tonight… that’s my favorite color.”

With that he left you standing there, mouth agape just as one of your members walked over to you.

You… were so fucking screwed.

In more ways than one.

Tag list: @the-ultimate-librarian @secretivemessenger @chill-guy-but-cooler @star-3214 @tehyunnie @remdayz @cherry-blossoms-187 @tomoeroi @mello-life25 @kiiyoooo @ofclyde @smellwell @iwishtobeacrow @euthymiko @rhetorical-conscience @mooncarvers-world @love-kha1 @anchoredphoenix @yuzuukix @bensontrechic

I already made a face claim lol.



[shiny-jr]

✂ damnation [ the crow courier ]

– Summary: When you commit a crime, you receive a punishment. This is especially true in your society. No matter the crime, your punishment is the same: banishment. But to where you will be sent in exile and how miserable will it be? No one knows, because no one has ever returned.

– Warning: Yes, this is a yandere thing. Gender-neutral reader.

– Characters: Sebek Zigvolt, Silver, Lilia Vanrouge, Malleus Draconia.

– Note: Not gonna lie, I did not reread this to make sure everything transferred alright. So hopefully the whole story is here.

– Pages: 44

– Not satisfied? Try looking here for the quiz to take it yourself and see where you end up banished!

The Praetorian Imp   |   The Crow Courier

A mask. There was a mask of cold black metal settled on the upper half of your face. It was cold, smooth against your cheeks. This was new. It wasn’t some sort of blindfold, as you could see perfectly and last you heard, they never blinded their prisoners. Concealing an evil-doer’s vision during their banishment was considered a small mercy, something they wouldn’t do, and the judges wanted each sinner to see the fate that awaited them. 

A supposedly horrid fate, but what sort of cruel end required you to wear a plate of armor and a warm cloak? Over your chest, your hand traced the curves and swirls on a metallic chest plate, reaching the black fabric over your shoulders and extending down your back. Removing the mask over your face and turning it in your hands to examine it, the empty eye holes of a feathered fiend stared back at you. The accessory resembled a bird, dark feathers carefully forged into the mask as the end curved into a sharpened beak. It was slightly unsettling, somewhat resembling the type of mask a plague doctor would don during the middle ages in times of peril. 

On the ground, just past the mask you were staring down at, were shreds of paper which caught your attention. It looked as if something or someone had torn a sheet to shreds and disregarded them in the middle of this dark and dreary hallway. Upon kneeling down to pick up a few pieces, your eyebrows furrowed as you attempted to piece them back together like a puzzle. 

Piece after piece, you managed to somewhat make out the painted image despite the face of a crowned figure being burnt black beyond recognition, but the rest of the image could somewhat be salvaged at least enough to draw a conclusion. A taller faceless crowned figure in garbs, beside a queen, holding a bundled baby in their arms that had been torn straight through. Below, on the aged paper was written text reading: Announcing the birth of the princess. A holiday is to be proclaimed throughout the entire kingdom in honor of the princess. 

Why did this all seem so awfully familiar? 

Slowly standing, you jumped upon hearing the rumbling start of thunder. Outside, past the window, dark storm clouds gathered in a hurry above a dense forest and towering wall of thorns. Thorns! Thorns so tall that even from afar, they looked as big as a house! 

“Oh… wow.” You whisper in slight horror. 

The royal family and birth of a princess, a deep dark forest, a deadly wall of thorns–– these were all part of a story. These were points of a fictional story, and yet you were here. Here, somewhere, in a corridor where the walls were dark stone bricks and a long carpet ran along the floor. How did you play into this? The bird-like mask still in your hands and staring back at you, appeared to answer that. The only bird in the story was a black-feathered one, which served as the villain’s little pet.

This couldn’t be real, could it? Why was this your punishment, of all things? How did the story go again? 

A king and queen had a child, a princess, whose birth was celebrated throughout the entire kingdom. A glittering assemblage of folk from all walks of life, foreign and local, rich and poor, from royalty, nobility, gentry, and even the rabble, were invited to pay homage and revel in the festivities. However, the procession was disrupted by the arrival of an uninvited guest, the Mistress of All Evil. She was a malevolent fairy who brought a curse, promising death upon the infant princess. The princess goes into hiding with three good fairies for years, until the curse can pass, but eventually the malevolent fairy does capture both the princess and her betrothed prince. The princess falls into a death-like sleep, and the prince escapes to rescue her. In the process, the antagonist’s avian companion is turned to stone while the malevolent fairy turns into a dragon to face off against the hero in a grand battle, only to be defeated by a holy sword through the heart! 

It caused you to freeze, gulping as you imagined such an end. Stone… You were to be turned to stone! Would that mean instant death, or were to become a prisoner forced to be still and silent until the very end of time or at least until your stone body crumbled to dust? 

A pair of wooden doors flew open, the sudden sound as it slammed against the wall caused you to scream. That, and the appearance of an odd stranger in armor, was enough to make you believe that your end was now and sooner than expected. 

“YOU!” His booming voice nearly ruptured your eardrums as he pointed an accusatory finger. Directing a rather sharp nail, almost as equally sharp as his two front canine teeth which you caught sight of but sharper was the sword sheathed at his hip.

“Me???” You looked at the intimidating stranger, baffled and uneasy. 

The man clad in armor was certainly not a shining knight of goodness or a pure princess blessed by fairies. It became apparent by his pointed nails, sharp teeth, and unnaturally thin pupils that he wasn’t human. What sort of human had slicked back natural mint green hair? 

“Yes, you!! Do not be so dense, human! Who else do you see in this hall?” He stomped up to you, frowning deeply, almost snarling. As he got closer, you realized he was very tall and built like a soldier. At his hip, opposite to his blade, was a mask of dark metal, resembling yours. However, his mask was crafted to resemble a crocodile. “Do not think yourself superior for even a second! You are only valued for the intel you can provide, nothing more, nothing less. Here you are, milling about uselessly while the rest of us search tirelessly for the girl! I shouldn’t have expected anything less from a mortal!” 

Squinting a bit at him, it took a solid second for all those words he spoke to be processed in your mind. Another round of thunder rumbled outside, sounding closer than before. “But… I am stupid?” You smiled a bit awkwardly, watching how the stranger’s face fell with each following word. “Sorry, who are you? I think you have the––” He has the wrong person. Before you could complete that thought, thunder seemed to shake the very walls as its booming clap reverberated throughout the air. 

It was loud, loud enough to startle both yourself and the uncouth bright-eyed one. 

“Have you no decency? You cannot even recall your colleague’s name! It’s Sebek! Sebek! We spoke months ago before departing for the most recent search!” He replied, frustrated that you didn’t remember his name, despite not even meeting before. Was he mistaking you for someone? It’s as if you had been thrust into some sort of role, maybe that’s why he didn’t take you for an intruder. 

“Okay, okay, Sebek. Got it. You don’t need to say it a third time. Please, spare my poor ears.” Raising an eyebrow, you nearly flinched every time he spoke. It’s like he had a megaphone built into his voice box, because he talked in what sounded like shouts. “Also, why are you yelling? I can hear you perfectly fine, you don’t have to be so loud.” 

“Why am I…?” The weirdo, apparently called Sebek, parroted in disbelief as he ran a hand through his mint green hair. His fingers gripping his head, fingers tangled through his own locks. “Why are you still here?! General Vanrouge has requested I look for you because you were absent for an assembly called by the Master! Deliberately missing special councils called by him is deplorable on every level!” Reaching forward, he suddenly caught your arm in an iron grip as he practically dragged you through a maze of corridors until they approached the source of a commotion. 

Better to allow this Sebek character to escort you than refusing and risking him having an aneurysm, you figured. Something in your gut told you to go with it, and don’t immediately bring up the fact that you weren’t who they thought you were, especially now that you had arrived in a room chock full of armed soldiers dressed in a manner similar to Sebek. 

However, all these people had two striking features, slitted pupils and pointed ears. Pointed ears. Definitely not human. Yes, you were stupid, but not stupid enough to expose yourself when you were outnumbered a hundred-to-one. 

“What’s all this––?”

Before you could completely round the corner, you nearly fell back into Sebek as a cloaked figure appeared out of the shadows. They hung from the ceiling, their face in front of yours. A terrifying individual, with thin locks of pitch black and blood red, and a face of a terrifying gnarling beast. “Boo!” 

Wide-eyed, you stared at the figure as you leaned back into Sebek’s arms who didn’t seem as surprised as you. Was this a companion of his? The matching cloak, the similar armor, and… that face of the hanging stranger was metal. A mask. A mask that looked like some horrifying monstrous bat.

Placing a hand on your heart, you closed your eyes and fell back dramatically, playing the part. Your legs went limp, the only thing preventing your form from hitting the cold hard floor was the pair of strong arms holding you up from behind. 

A snicker was the only applause for your small performance, as Sebek jostled you from your act. For some particular reason, Sebek was impatient as he forced you to your feet, but he didn’t dare raise his voice at this surprisingly short figure that somehow floated down from the ceiling like a feather drifting to the ground. 

“This is an entirely serious matter! Lilia–– General, please.” Sebek pleaded, keeping you stuck in place by gripping your shoulders to keep you facing the General. What did Sebek call him earlier? Vanrouge? This was him? 

This Vanrouge character was on the petite side, he hardly looked like a general with his undersized stature and thin limbs. Yet his armor fit him just fine, and on his belt was a great big cleaver that sparkled like jade. Definitely not about to cross him when he had that on his person. 

Cleaver aside, it was really difficult to fear him when he removed his terrifying mask. While yes, his features were far less human than Sebek’s, he was somewhat adorable. When he laughed, you noticed small sharpened fangs while his big crimson red eyes and slitted pupils shined with mirth. Even one of his pale pointed ears appeared to twitch. “I know, I know, but can’t I enjoy one moment of laughter before everything goes to rack and ruin?” 

There was no need to even ask what exactly he meant by that, because again, there was that thundering rumble that shook the very palace walls. It sounded even closer this time, like it was in just the next room over! 

Vanrouge, or rather, Lilia, appeared a bit anxious, jittery as he brushed off his nerves with a quieter laugh. His own hands had gripped your shoulders as Sebek took a step back. “See, this is why you are one of my favorite humans! Mortals are so easygoing and you get my humor.” 

“Thank you? And you’re my favorite…” You paused. What even was he? What were they? In some renditions, there were fairies, but sometimes the creature that was the malevolent fairy and her goons were left a mystery. In one story the malevolent fairy had an army of creatures with animalistic features. Is that what they were supposed to be? It would explain the masks. What if you were wrong? “You’re my favorite little guy.” 

Sebek looked down at you incredulously as if you had insulted his own mother, and you realized far too late that you had quite literally called a General a little guy. However, instead of bringing his cleaver down upon you and splitting you in half or destroying you with some type of wild fantastical twinkly fairy magic, this General only giggled. He giggled, which made you grin like a fool. You had done something right, apparently! 

Deciding against saying the first thought that came to mind, Sebek instead blurted out, “This is the only human you actually talk to! They are the only one among us fae!” 

So that’s what they were. Fae. “Details, details. It still counts.” Lilia dismissed, leading you closer to the very end of the hall where it opened up to a space with more soldiers like him and Sebek. Faes. In a huge spacious room, gathered, listing reports on the results of their scouting missions. Missions likely with the goal of finding the princess. Once there, he placed an arm around your shoulder. Here, his voice was quieter to avoid being heard by the masses. “Come, we know the Master will be in need of some good news right about now, whether you can deliver it or fetch it. It will quell his… irritability. And it may take a human to catch a human. We cannot fully comprehend how your minds work, but perhaps you can understand a fellow mortal’s and finally make this search a success. Go now, courier.” 

Lilia had pushed you out in the open just as the last of the soldiers were wrapping up their report of failed searches. Your dark garbs and metal crow mask had allowed you to blend right in, but it felt like you were a rabbit in a den of ravenous wolves. No one stared at you, because they were far too transfixed on a towering figure not too far from where the General had pushed you. 

As soon as the figure entered your line of vision, you too became just as transfixed as everyone else. Master. This was their master, which could only be the malevolent fairy, fae, in this case. It should have never been possible for someone to have both the facets of a devil but the magnificence of an angel, but he did. Horns as black as night curved atop his head and inky black scales bordered the bases, making it look like a crown while shadows appeared to blend into his robes like fabric weaved of pure darkness devoid of any light. The only light that escaped him came from his eyes, like the common slitted pupils in this crowd yet his eyes glowed an enchanting green like no other. 

It was like a moth to a flame, destined to burn, but you found yourself drawing near behind his dark throne anyways. 

“It’s inconceivable!” He hissed, loud enough so that the entirety of the gathered could hear his voice echo in the space around them. The thunder outside seemed to crack with his every word. The fae, his loyal denizens, shirked back instinctively yet they continued to awe at the malevolent one. “Twenty years, and not a trace of the princess. How is it that this one human, a mortal, has miraculously escaped the vigilant watchful eyes of every one of my most diligent knights and soldiers who have searched all but endlessly, high and low, for two decades? Hm?” 

You kept glued to the wall, the uneven bricks against your back as you attempted to make yourself as small as possible. What were you supposed to do? What could a mortal do against him, the same fae that has the ability to transform into a dragon of immeasurable strength? This fae was the one who would eventually drag you down with him. 

“Humans are numerous, and they are a tricky sort, Your Majesty.” Lilia appeared at the forefront of the throng. Despite the obvious vexation of the horned-one, he continued merrily with an encouraging smile, despite the apprehension of his armored colleagues. “We can’t exactly venture into towns too long without the risk of being discovered or the presence of that pesky iron weakening us. But we make do, and during nights we’ve checked every strip of land from the moors’ borders, to the villages and towns, even the highest mountains. Haven’t we, boys?” 

A murmur of agreement washed over the crowd. For twenty years they had tirelessly searched, and they had no princess to show for their efforts. It wasn’t that the princess disappeared into thin air, this much you could remember. There was a reason they couldn’t find the princess as she dwelled in a cottage deep within the woods with her caretakers, the three good fairies, acting as poor mortal women. What was that reason again…? 

One hand shot up from the crowd, a voice louder than the rest, the familiar voice of Sebek. “Yes, Master Malleus we did! And we will gladly continue our search, comb through every region once more, and check every cradle again all for you to extract your revenge upon the despicable humans and their wicked king!” 

“Cradles…?” The dark fae, apparently named Malleus, directed his widening eyes towards them. His grip tightened on his long twisted wooden staff. You were given the answer as to why they never found the princess within the first years. The faes had forgotten that mortals aged, so the princess they were looking for was no longer a baby in a cradle. 

“Oh no.” Sensing the impending danger, you took cover behind the throne. From behind the throne you peeked out, using the royal seat as a shield. When the towering fae’s green-eyed gaze landed on you by a glance, you stilled like a frozen statue. The hair on the back of your neck raised as your gaze met his. Seeing his eyes become temporarily focused on you, feeling his unholy presence, sensing the incoming disaster he would wrought–– everything about this man, if he even was a man, made alarm bells ring on your head. 

Suddenly, a smile graced his features. It was the sort that masked his frustration simmering beneath the surface. He was close, close enough to reach a hand forward slowly so his fingertips grazed the underside of your chin. Lips curled upward into a menacing grin, but it wasn’t the crazed sort. He was scarily calm as he peered down at you. “Did you hear that, my courier?” 

There were over a hundred pairs of eyes on you at the moment. Watching intently as you leaned back a bit, a chill traveling up your spine as his sharp black nails traced your flesh. You’re sure you were beaming like a simpleton, whether out of instinct or out of some sort of response to your current nerves. Certainly this was how the sailors felt in times of old when confronted by enchanting sirens that lured them to certain doom in watery graves. What were the don’ts regarding fairies and faes of myths? Don’t give your name, don’t lie, and don’t enter the obvious fae traps designed to ensnare curious humans. This must’ve been some sort of fae trap, it had to when he had a face like that. 

Was Malleus addressing you directly because you were the only human in the room? “Yes… Loud and clear.” One corner of your mouth twitched into an awkward smile in return, but you found yourself unable to remove your eyes from his. A brief and quiet chuckle left your lips, “It’s… kinda funny.” 

“Isn’t it?” When he removed his fingers from your chin, you nearly tumbled forward, but you managed to successfully catch yourself before you could crash into him. The fae turned around, beginning to chuckle in his deep voice, a sound which echoed in the tense silence of the packed throne room. “For all these years I have been waiting, and they have been looking for a baby.” 

The General, Lilia, was perhaps the first to realize something was amiss when the Master of All Evil began to laugh. Vanrouge seemed like the type to enjoy a laugh, but this wasn’t just a moment to crow about their recent failings. A moment of clarity dawned on him while his colleagues unsurely joined in on the commotion. Your gaze met his and you frantically shook your head as Sebek rapidly clasped his hands over his mouth in shock and regret upon realizing their mistake and his blunder. You tried to signal them to flee while you yourself retreated further back behind the throne for cover. 

It was just in the nick of time too, as the air began to fizzle with static electricity, growing with every passing second as his laugh became less humorous and more diabolical. There was the same lightning from before but instead of being outside, it sounded as if it was inside these very walls. Crashing and striking every second, one, two, three, four, five, shaking the castle. You felt your eardrums vibrate as you continued to brace yourself behind the throne until it stopped. This was your first true taste of utter terror and helplessness. 

Here you were for a reason, to die, either by stone or before, whether it be by the clubs of the fae soldiers, at the sharp end of a holy sword, or between the maws of the Master of All Evil. It felt like an eternity, but it was likely under a minute, when the destruction ended. Trembling slightly, you peeked out to survey the damage. 

It was a harsh reminder of your current plight. There were no bodies laying motionless, as everyone either had the means to defend themselves or Malleus simply wasn’t aiming for any of them in his burst of anger. The throne room had been largely evacuated thanks to General Lilia and Sebek. Only shields and the occasional weapon were left behind in the hurry to avoid being struck by his wrath, dark spots were ingrained where the lightning struck the ground, a few stones tumbled loose from any walls that were hit as collateral damage. 

If you somehow survived this, it would be no less than a miracle. 

The air cooled, no longer hot with generating bolts of electricity, as the bottom of the dark fae’s staff snapped against the ground and he frowned deeply. Turning heel, his robes swished behind him as he made his way to his lonely throne with his head hung low. As he sat in the quiet empty room, you slowly revealed yourself from behind his throne. 

The fae only glanced at you briefly, as he took a deep breath and exhaled. Averting his gaze away from you, he didn’t strike you down just for staying. In fact, his next words seemed almost out of character for his role as Master of All Evil. “I apologize for my outburst… That was unbecoming of me.” 

Furrowing your eyebrows, you kneeled beside his throne at the right side of his armrest. For some reason, the king of the faes wouldn’t look at you. Rather, he opted to keep his gaze directed at the empty open space of the throne room. “Well, I think that was a reasonable crashout after twenty years of waiting only to hear they were looking for the wrong thing. I’d probably lose my temper too if I were you. You’re pretty patient for waiting even half that time.” 

“I appreciate your attempts to ease my suffering.” Somber. The dark fae was not as cruel as you had originally imagined. Frightening, yes, but he didn’t willingly and knowingly aim to zap his own subjects. After a few seconds of complete silence, he finally directed his undivided attention towards you. “It has been some time since I’ve personally requested my courier to go. The last time was when the… beastly little royal human had been born into this world. But now, due to the ignorance my own kin have shown, I must ask you to venture into the human kingdom.” 

“O… kay.” Slowly you nodded along, already knowing what he wanted you to find. The princess would be the objective. However, even for your knowledge of the story, you only knew she dwelled in a cottage within the woods. You had no idea how to actually go about finding her! 

The dark fae peered down at you, his green eyes staring into yours. Moving his hand to your head a few inches above the armrest of his throne, he carefully examined your every feature. It was petrifying to be analyzed so closely by such a creature of imaginable power, but his otherworldly sort of allure made it almost possible to forget the frightening show of strength you had just witnessed. Almost, but not quite, as his power was just as striking. 

“Circle far and wide.” Malleus began, his fingers against your chin slowly making you stand on your feet but not stand straight. You had to remain in a low stance as if hunched over, he brought your face close to his until he stood. Stood so his figure was towering over yours like an ominous shadow, and so you had to look up at him. These next words were a command, cold and indisputable. “Search for a maiden with hair of sunshine gold and lips red as the rose. Go, and do not fail me.” 

✧   ✧   ✧   ✧   ✧

Run. That was at the forefront of your mind. The alternative to a life of freedom and chance was appealing when compared to the gruesome fateful end you are destined to eventually meet. It would be easy to escape, given that you already had a black stallion as a steed to transport you from the fae’s moors and enchanted forests to the open fields and sprawling towns where your fellow humans resided. 

Run is what your mentality screamed when you had faced the Master of All Evil and stared him down. There was a good chance that other malefactors who may have ended up in similar situations as yours may have met their fate much earlier. On the ride to the neighboring kingdom’s main capital city, you had plenty of time to think of how you may have unintentionally dodged death. Should Sebek have found you suspicious and realized you did not belong, he would easily have the strength to overtake you; if Lilia had noticed that you were not one of his own, then his cleaver would have been stained red; even Malleus could’ve easily obliterated you with his magic, whether unintentionally or deliberately. 

Run is what you wanted to do when you finally reached the human city. Flee far into the countryside, in a land far far far away from here, completely out of reach for even the mighty fae and his loyal underlings. 

Such an option was tempting, that is, until you actually beheld human civilization. It was jarring, to say the least, the scene was a cold slap in the face, a reminder that this was not at all like the world you once knew. Riding into town, you found it a dreary type of place. Ever since you stepped foot out of fae territory, it’s as if the light had been sucked out of every living thing. Were things always this monotonous, or did the peaceful air in the vibrance of the enchanted forests just make things look worse in comparison? 

This was a medieval era, you were reminded as much by the colorful banners of the royal family and noble houses, the aroma of freshly baked bread, and the strong scent of burning coal and forging irons. People milled about, going on with their daily duties, completely ignoring the stranger that was you. 

That’s right–– to these simple townsfolk, you were one of them! A human, not a fae that which they feared. Perhaps a wandering knight in armor, a traveller passing through, nobody worth a second glance. This is why Malleus thought you were most fit to venture out for clues. However, what you wanted were not clues but answers. Should you stay or go? Risk your life and somehow try to change the entirety of the plot, in the hopes you would be rewarded for your loyalty by the fae king that wielded incredible power and riches? Or choose to run, run and never look back, run and hope you found something better to avoid your punishment? 

This desire for answers was seemingly answered in the form of a stranger. A stranger who nearly ran you over with a brilliant white steed, as you were walking and leading your own stallion by its leather reigns. It was close to the marketplace, but in an isolated corner of the city boxed in by towering brick walls built to fortress invasions. Which is why hardly anyone was there to bear witness as you jumped back, narrowly missing being stepped on by the hooves of the suddenly appearing beast as your own horse grew panicked. 

“Hey! Watch where you’re going!” You scowled at the rider, whose face you didn’t see until their horse backed up and you had to calm your own. It was difficult to calm it, it felt nearly impossible when you had no experience with these finicky creatures as you awkwardly tugged on the reins and tried to reach a hand toward it. 

A pale hand came into view, placing itself upon the creature’s black fur on its forehead. “Here, let me help.” Instantly, he calmed the anxious creature with just one soothing touch and the sound of his hushed voice. 

A fae? No, that was impossible! The telltale sign was the soft round ears and round pupils dotting the most entrancing pair of eyes you had ever seen before. It felt impossible to name the color, but it was like dawn’s first light. The hair on his head reflected the evening sun like silver, even his outfit was pristine and not that of a commoner. Gray and white tunic of high quality fabrics buttoned with gold, tailored dark pants with black polished boots, and a white cloak flowing down his back. Even if this man certainly had the grace and charm of a fae, he certainly was not one, he was human. 

“I’m terribly sorry.” Carefully he gathered the black leather reigns in his hands, placing them in yours as his fingers brushed against your flesh. He was warm. “I didn’t see you there, and I didn’t mean to frighten your horse, or you. Are you alright…?” 

A bit taken aback, you didn’t react as he slid the reins into your hands. You were far too entranced, puzzled by his mere presence. No human should be that pretty. The guy was radiant, he stood out so prominently. Furrowing your eyebrows in confusion, the words came tumbling past your lips and you only realized how it sounded once they were out hanging in the air. “What are you?” 

The refined gentleman remained mostly impassive, but his eyes widened the slightest bit and he blinked. Slowly lowering his calloused hands, he looked at you inquisitively. Specifically staring at your mask. “My name is Silver. Who are you?” 

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” You realized how peculiar you must’ve looked to others. The mask allowed you to fit right in among the fae, but here, there was no need for such a thing. So slowly you removed it and attached it to your hip. “Silver, huh…? Is that a nickname or something? It’s not really original.” 

“No, I suppose it isn’t very original.” Shaking his head lightly, expressionless, his eyes drifted to the ground as he casually admitted, “It was a name suggested by my late uncle who passed on before my birth in a terrible tragedy. My mother and father decided to keep it in his honor.”

When he looked back at you, both your hands were clasped over your mouth. Rapidly, you began to attempt to make up for your blunder, nearly stumbling over your words. “N-No, no, you heard me wrong…! I meant that it’s a very original name. Really. I mean, who else do you know that has the name Silver? Or Gold? Or Bronze? No one! Your name is perfect, I love it.” 

“Oh, well thank you…” Silver managed the slightest trace of a smile, but other than that he remained rather apathetic. Still, he peered down at you with vague curiosity. “You still have yet to tell me your name.” 

“My name?” Were you allowed to even say your name? What if you said it, and a fae heard it, and failed to recognize it? That would be a fatal mistake. “Oh, I have a name. And it’s not a metal-based one, mind you. But, everyone just calls me Courier.” That’s what Lilia had referred to you as earlier. 

The young man tilted his head to the side, looking rather confused as he guessed. “Your nickname is your occupation?” 

“… Yes.” You winced, realizing how stupid it seemed, worse than a name like his, but it was already out in the open. It couldn’t be taken back. “It’s a nickname.”

“I see.” There was no judgement on his end. All he did was nod along, taking it all with grace. Lightly tugging on the reins of his steed, just to keep them close as you did with yours, he looked around the empty street. “Courier, may I ask you a favor? It appears I’ve gotten myself lost. The last time I was here was several years ago, and I hardly recognize any of these roads. I was trying to find my way to the palace to meet with the King. Do you believe you might be able to point me in the right direction?” 

Your ear perked up at that. The King? As in one of the humans that Malleus viewed as a foe? It didn’t take long at all to find a lead! If this lead proved to be useful, then maybe it was worth the risk staying. If Malleus became the victor to receive his own happily ever after, wouldn’t that mean you would receive the same? “The King? Well, you must be someone important to meet with him.” 

“Ah, yes, I don’t usually mention this… It draws far too much attention.” Silver shifted as you gestured for him to follow. You had no idea where the palace was, but it wouldn’t be too hard to move towards the general direction of a towering estate once you saw it. Keeping up with your pace, the black and white horses in tow, he continued, “I have to meet with him because I’m the prince betrothed to his daughter.” 

You nearly screamed in delight. This was perfect! Too perfect! This wasn’t just a lead, this was one of the story’s two main protagonists! Instead, you could only grin, your giddiness probably seemed common to him whenever he introduced himself as royalty. But your excitement was due for another entirely different reason. “You don’t say!”

Furrowing his eyebrows, he responded quietly, a bit confused, “I’m saying so right now…?” 

“No, it’s an expression, duh.” You rolled your eyes, half amused by the prince’s innocence. This was all coming together so well! However, you had to remain cautious. In the story, the crow assisted in the capture of the prince and eternal sleep falling over the princess, but it was due to carelessness that the bird still got turned to stone! “So, you’re practically engaged to someone you don’t even know? Ooh… I’m very sorry for your marriage.” 

Silver paused, appearing slightly confused as he spoke in such a soft and enchanting voice. The prince made simple words sound like a lullaby. “I’m no expert in felicitations, but I believe the saying is congratulations, not I’m very sorry for your marriage.” 

Appearing to contemplate his words for a moment, you then shrug your shoulders and dismiss the comment from him. “Hmm… Nahhhh.” You know what you said. “I meant what I said.”

“What an odd thing to say.” Silently furrowing his eyebrows, he appeared deep in thought as he considered your words. Quietly the prince remarked in a hushed tone, “No one has ever said such a thing to me. Since you said that, it must mean you understand that this isn’t an entirely positive ordeal for me. I… never thought anyone would understand my life long predicament.” 

“What…?” Looking at him with a mix of confusion and amusement, you held back any laughter. All you had done was try to poke fun and tease the prince, not talk heart to heart with him! 

The prince looked at you, a delighted sparkle in his eyes that contradicted the apathetic expression of the royal. Keeping pace, he followed rather closely even as you picked up speed once catching sight of the palace from the corner of your eye. “You understand that this arranged royal marriage is not as grand as most make it out to be. I haven’t even met my betrothed yet.” 

Personally, you didn’t see much wrong with his romantic situation, but that was coming from someone of the outside perspective. Slaying a dragon aside, all he had to do was marry a wealthy princess of unmatched beauty and grace, who he’ll come to love anyways. After the wedding he’d remain royalty, and eventually become a king. “Oh, boo-hoo, what a problem to have!” Actually, scratch that. You wouldn’t want to be him when he was the one who had to face the Master of All Evil head on in combat. Malleus was frightening enough just as he was, but seeing him as a dragon was likely a thousand times more terrifying.

Again, the sarcasm went directly over his head. Instead, he nodded along, keeping pace as his leather-toed boots clicked against the cobblestone street. “Well, I wouldn’t say boo-hoo exactly. It doesn’t quite make me sad, just… disappointed, I suppose. It is a heavy burden to shoulder. Father and Mother believe that uniting our kingdoms through marriage is the best option in protecting us from the fae.” 

“The fae, hm? How scary~” You hummed. Upon the mention of the fae, you cannot help but recall the magical folk with their pointed ears and beastly masks. Certainly the way they came across with their attire could be very frightening. They were a funny bunch, but unsettling.

“I wouldn’t know. I have never met one before, my family has forbidden it.” Silver shrugged lightly, keeping his eyes on the ground in front of him. Conscious of every step he took, he made slow measured strides so as to not outpace you. “Perhaps someday, if I were to ever meet one, we could establish diplomatic relations to mend the harm that our people have caused to each other throughout history. Most humans do not want to fight, and I’d like to believe that the fae feel the same.” 

“It’s possible the fae aren’t all bad.”

For a moment, you pictured it. Peace between the Moors and the Kingdom. While some fae seemed to have an aversion toward humanity, their majestic leader didn’t appear to feel the same. Rather, his loathing was specifically aimed at the King and by extension his Princess daughter, which would then also extend to the daughter’s betrothed Prince currently walking beside you. Silver would be an enemy in Malleus’ eyes by association to the Princess. 

“What? Is your heart made out of gold or something?” You scoffed, distracting from the serious topic with a bit of light teasing. The conversation was beginning to feel too heavy. “Or should I say… a heart of silver!” When you only got a silent glance from him, you faltered. “Nevermind. Tough crowd.” 

Coming up to the guarded wooden bridge that separated the city from the kingdom, you stopped in the shadows. It was best to avoid any unwanted attention, especially from the knights standing guard at the entrance as people flowed across the bridge. This was the furthest you could go. Best not risk being caught as a human spy for the fae. 

“I thought it was funny.” Silver admitted quietly, stopping beside you in the light as he placed a hand over his horse’s neck. Even though he said he found it humorous, his expression didn’t match his words. 

Noticing this, you gave a half scoff as you pointed out the obvious. “You didn’t even laugh.” 

Silently he watched you climb onto the saddle over the black horse. At your words he nodded slowly in confirmation. Indeed, he had not laughed at your joke. Stepping forward, stopping you from leaving immediately, he placed his hand over yours which gripped the reins. Those aurora eyes gazed up at you, glittering, despite the detached expression on his face. “May I see you again? You were the first to never scoff at my idea that the fae can be reasoned with.” 

The fae could be reasoned with, you knew this much. It may be difficult, but it is possible. Perhaps once Malleus wrought revenge on those who crossed him, he would be willing to be amicable. Now if that would even be possible after the humans see a notorious fae bring death upon their royals like a curse, was a completely different story. “You want to see me again?” 

Silver nodded, confirming even despite seeing the sheer incredibility of your expression. “Also to hear more of your jokes.” 

Pulling the reins out of his grasp, your steed stepped in place but seemed much easier to control now. “Uhh… sure? Why not? I like you anyways, you’re kinda weird.” Before he could open his mouth, you interrupted, calling over your shoulder as your steed began to take off. “Don’t ask questions! We’ll see each other again, don’t worry.” 

You would definitely be seeing him again, for better or for worse. If your memory serves you right, the Malevolent Fairy captures the Prince and has him chained in her palace’s dungeon. There, while her goons are reveling in their victory, she and her avian companion pay a visit to their royal prisoner. It is then that the Malevolent Fairy reveals her plan to keep the Prince locked away for a hundred years, and only then once he’s old and on the verge of death, will he be allowed free to go and wake the Princess after a century of slumber. Maybe you could convince Malleus to spare Silver? Could that work to your advantage or would that work against you? 

As you steer the steed through the forest, back to the moors through a different path, weaving through dense foliage and shrubbery in the search for another hint, the flash of color caught your gaze. It was out of place, bright and glittering against nature’s backdrop. They were like small puffs and explosions of glitter and light, colorful like fireworks, as clear as flares. When you got close enough, you knew you had found it when you spotted a little hidden cottage. From inside past closed doors came bickering and shouting as the chimney spouted magic instead of black soot. 

Steadily a grin grew on your face as you awed at the magic dust spewing from the top. “Huh… that’s awfully convenient. But wait a minute…” 

You stayed behind, hiding your steed in the dense foliage as you crept along in the shadows cast by the trees and the back of the cottage. Eventually, a girl did arrive. A girl with golden hair and rose red lips, the one that had to be the princess. You listened as she arrived, the side of your face pressed up against the cold rugged stone walls. 

The princess was ecstatic upon receiving her birthday gifts, but she spoke of no mysterious man. No true love she met in the woods. Not even when her caretakers, who must’ve been the three good fairies, told her about her true identity as royalty, she didn’t cry because she would not see the man she fell in love with. Since she hadn’t met him, because of you. 

“Fuck…!” You cursed under your breath, dread pooling in the depths of your stomach. 

You had taken up too much of Silver’s time. So much time that he had missed the vital point in the plot where he was supposed to accidentally stumble upon the hidden Princess in the woods, and they were to fall in love. You were telling him stupid jokes while he was supposed to be falling head over heels with her! The storyline had already gone astray by this one mistake, and the terrible realization dawned on you. 

“I’m a homewrecker––” 

✧   ✧   ✧   ✧   ✧

“Why, our courier is back so soon.” Lilia crooned as he watched you burst through the stairs coming from the stables. Seeing your slightly disheveled appearance, he tilted his head but didn’t move from his spot lounging snuggly at the windowsill overlooking the vast expanse of training grounds. “My, my, don’t tell me the humans gave you trouble! You look like a bat out of hell.” 

Quickly shaking your head, you drew nearer to him as he carefully studied you. It made you nervous, being watched so closely by a General, but you just had to play it cool! “Nooo.” You curse the awkward crack in your voice, clearing your throat. “Of course not! I just have some very urgent news.” 

“Hmm. For a moment there I thought I would have to scare a lesson into some troublesome humans picking on our precious little courier.” Diverting his attention back to the window against his side, he hummed as he spectated some knights sparring against each other with brandished blades. 

You watched as Lilia leaned forward towards the window in interest, his nose practically pressed up against the glass. With a motion of his fingers, he caused some of the training dummies to move by magic. He lifted his fingers, controlling them like puppets so they weakly pestered and frightened any younger knights beside them.

As a few terrified screams and panicked shouts rang out from the courtyard, Lilia grinned and threw his head back in laughter. When he caught your half-amused and sort of confused smile, the mischievous fae beamed. “Come now, these are the jokes, young mortal. I’d expect you to understand. Don’t you have any otherworldly humor you could present to me? Phony says what.”

“What…?” One word. One word he said caused you to freeze, the sentence you were about to say hung off your lips and clogged your throat. Phony…? Any smile on your face was momentarily dashed as you processed what he just said, and you wanted to smack yourself for your stupidity. Audibly you gulped, forcing down anything you would have said before. The confusion must’ve been clear on your face, because it only served to amuse him further. You never were too good at hiding your shock. “You… You know I’m not––?” 

“I know you’re very very far from home. I’ve lived nearly a millennium and traveled the globe, and during my travels I’ve heard the occasional rumor of unexplainable instances concerning particular mortals. A single mortal acting odd, out of place, with more knowledge than they should, especially before monumental events. Although I never assumed it would happen here.” Lilia mused, resting his temple against the glass as his crimson red eyes never left your form. The shiny cleaver at his side looked extra sharp. “Usually, I’m not too fond of strange humans. However, you appear to be relatively harmless.” Flashing a fang-toothed grin that only made you grimace a bit, he continued, “Don’t worry, I quite like you. It sounds like you were successful in your hunt for information, and that’s what matters most.” 

You proceeded carefully, prodding a bit further just to test the limits of the current boundaries. “You’re not… mad?” 

“Oh, heavens no! Why should I be? You seem quite diligent and charming in your own right. So long as you don’t betray Malleus, then we will have no issue between us.” His voice had turned a bit serious, low, as his little grin dimmed. “He has already faced far too much betrayal at the hands of humans. Even for someone on the dense side, anyone can see that becoming a source of hatred for him would be akin to signing away their life. And I’m sure you aren’t that dull, are you?” 

Quickly shaking your head, the frown on your lips pulled down further as you remembered just how terrifying his electrifying show of power had been. And that wasn’t even the full extent of his strength! “Uh, no, I don’t think so. So… you won’t tell anyone about me?” 

“There’s no need for me to do so, so no.” With a slow beckoning of his finger, you felt an unfamiliar visible force against your back. Immediately you were pulled, magically tugged by some unseen force until he was close enough to grab you by the collar. Again, it was a stark reminder as to who you were dealing with, especially upon seeing the calluses on his palms and tiny scars littered across his slim fingers. Nervously you smiled, and he returned the gesture with a confident one. “Let’s have a bit of a partnership, shall we? A trade, if you will. A bit of tit for tat. I’m curious about what you know, and I’m sure you feel something similar towards me. Am I right? Enlighten me, dear courier.” 

“Haha…” A crooked smile made its way on your lips, as you somehow remained composed. Maybe your mind wasn’t immediately comprehending the danger you were currently in. “You first?” 

Lilia eyed you carefully, eventually letting go of your collar as he plucked your metal mask right off your face. “Very well. But only because you asked nicely.” That likely wasn’t the reason. This fae was a General, and it didn’t take a genius to realize he must’ve been a rather ruthless one if his scars were anything to go by. 

You silently thanked whatever higher force was watching over you, as Lilia could have easily decided to take you out right then and there for being a liar and an intruder. 

Sharp black nails traced every dip and groove in the metal, his fingers trailing down the long beak of the mask in his grasp. General Vanrouge made no effort to call for backup or restrain you simply because he didn’t need to. “If I were you, I would first like to know my place in all this.” 

A single nod from you was all the confirmation he needed in order to continue. 

“You are his majesty’s precious courier. A human he found one day when outside of the moors, he watched you be abandoned by your village. Those simple minded folk claimed you were cursed by fae, that there was something wrong with you. So, a fae took you in, because he needed a mortal to be his eyes and ears in the places he couldn’t go.” That explained a lot about why you were the only mortal allowed in the moors and enchanted forest. It explained why his soldier’s would sometimes watch you warily, but never outright harm you. Because you were considered his, a personal servant to their sovereign. “Now, may I have your name?” 

Immediately your mind honed in on those words. May I have your name? Faes weren’t real back home, but here, they were very real and very dangerous. If the stories were true, then they were a tricky type that chose their words carefully, often holding double meanings to what they say. You caught sight of a glimmer of magic readily swirling at his fingertips. The general didn’t just want to hear your name. “No, you may not.” You managed an attempt at a smile as he blinked at you. “You can just call me Courier, just like everyone else here.” 

Steadily a smirk grew on his face as he chuckled, “Smart, mortal. Alright, Courier. If you won’t give me your name, then answer this: why are you here? For power, perhaps glory, or riches unattainable by your current standing?” 

“That all does sound nice but believe it or not, I’m not here willingly.” Was there any harm in telling him? If he wouldn’t speak of your identity, would he mention the reason you were here to anyone else? In myths, faes didn’t appreciate liars. Besides, the near millenia old being seemed like the type to figure this out especially with your habit of letting things slip. Even if you lied now and he later found out the truth, he may not be too pleased to discover that you had the gall to lie twice to him. “It may sound like one big joke to you, but I’ll tell you.” 

Awkwardly you glanced away, unable to meet his gaze anymore. You tried looking everywhere but at him. Your gaze landed on the window, and you saw the familiar green-haired knight picking up the busted remains of ravaged training dummies. After a few seconds, Sebek’s green eyes landed on you by chance, and you immediately averted your gaze again. How did you even begin to explain your origins? 

“See, it’s like this…” You took a deep breath before beginning. “My homeland is strict and punishes criminals by banishing them. I got banished and woke up here. That’s the gist of it. And if you’re wondering what I want, well… all those things you said before do sound nice, I just mainly want to focus on surviving. This whole situation seems… familiar, in a way. Like a story I read before.” 

“Hmmm…” Although Lilia didn’t really react vocally, you could see the shock and intrigue in those big red eyes that widened at your explanation. However, he remained mostly quietly, an amused smile on his face as he was engrossed in your explanation. Only when you finished speaking did he ask inquisitively, “What was your crime? You seem so youthful, naive, and sincere. Positive qualities. Surely whatever your people found you guilty of could not have been any sort of offense worse than I’ve committed. You’re still a bit wet behind the ears after all.” 

Slowly shrugging, you replied somewhat quietly. “I’d rather not answer that.” 

“Fair enough. We all have a few skeletons in our closets that we’d prefer not to reveal. Some may be quite literal!” Wait, what did he just say? “So if you’re not willing to give up your name, or the specifics of your crime, then what are you willing to offer?” 

You watched as he sat up, his feet dangling off the floor as he sat on the window ledge. Carefully you contemplated his words, weighing each of your choices until the first thing came to mind. “I can promise you I’ll make sure Malleus gets a good ending. Because if this plays out like how I think it will, then a dragon ends up stabbed through the heart.” 

Something in Lilia’s eyes flashed as he stood up. It was chilling how the fae’s wide bright eyes went from curious and mirthful to cold and unblinking. “Is that so…?” 

“Yes. But I don’t want that, and I’m sure you don’t want that too, right?” You tried not to falter, but you couldn’t help but take a few steps back when he continued to steadily walk towards you without stopping. “Well… I’d like to prevent that with just one condition. I get to possibly live comfortably afterwards––” An involuntary gasp left your mouth as your back hit the wall, you were cornered. Slowly you sunk down, suddenly very intimidated by the small General as you practically sunk down until he was the one leering down at you. “And maybe you don’t, you know, kill me…?” 

The general’s fist was suddenly beside your head, his thumb grazing the shell of your ear as you could make out the distinct sound of stone crumbling as his fingers gripped the bricks. “So what you’re telling me is that you may be able to predict the future. So if you die, then there’s the heightened chance of our King dying?” 

“I––” You were wrong. You knew Lilia was someone to be feared, but you underestimated how utterly terrifying he was. Yes, he was darling and cute, but he didn’t even need his signature weapon to be effective. “Y-Yes…?”

General Vanrouge appeared to scrutinize you as you realized just how sharp his fangs were. In the blink of an eye, his harsh expression dropped and he smiled at your terror. “Okay! I won’t break His Majesty’s little courier he's been so intrigued by. You’ll be under my protection now. It’s as simple as that. I’m sure you won’t even consider running away from me, isn’t that right?” 

When he tilted his head, his black and red hair was so close that it brushed against your face. His nose practically in front of yours as you immediately shook your head. “I-I would never…!” 

“Good! Then it’s settled.” Lilia beamed as he took a step back, wiping off the crumbled brick dust off his hands as he laughed at your petrified form. “Scurry off now. Go tell the young master the news you’ve brought. Oh, and next time I see you, I expect to hear many jokes and I will be picking at your mind for every single tidbit of knowledge you’re hiding from me.” When you looked at him incredulously, he gave you a little wave with a wiggle of his fingers. His giggling was an unsettling reminder as he seemed to vanish around the corner. “I’ll be watching you!” 

After a few moments, you peeked behind the corner, both awed and slightly aghast to see he was completely gone. There wasn’t a single trace of him left. Rather, in his place was a certain knight. The loud one stood all the way at the other end of the hall, staring at you slack-jawed in furious disbelief. 

“You heard that, didn’t you…?” You sighed. 

“You…!!” Red-faced. He was flustered possibly with confusion and realization, the realization that this entire time he had been speaking with someone that didn’t belong. A human, yes, like he despised but worse, because this human didn’t belong at all. In an instant he was in your face, and you feared more for your eardrums than your life right now. “You, mortal, speak of affairs you know NOTHING about!!!” 

“That is true!” Hopefully no one was within the vicinity to hear him. 

Perhaps he was angry for a multitude of reasons. Lying to him, tricking people, making deals with the General, and overall still remaining ignorant of many things like why exactly did Malleus hate the King. However, it was probably because he knew you were taking advantage of the situation. A situation that was his reality, and very important to him, and he had overheard it all. “You have NO respect––!!” 

“That is also true!” Picking up your mask which Lilia had dropped on the floor, you brushed it off and added quickly before he could assault your eardrums again. “I didn’t ask to be sent here. What more do you want from me?” 

“Spare me your foul excuses, human!” Gnashing his teeth, you only now realize just how much sharper his fangs were than any other fae you had encountered thus far. It reminded you of a crocodile. “You are merely the Master’s pet, the role of the human whether you or someone else will remain constant! For some reason he sees you fit to bask in the glory of his presence, and I cannot even fathom as to why! The Master must find your human presence convenient besides just for basic intel, and for what those other purposes are, our minds can not even begin to comprehend his intentions! Although for what reasons he would want such an unsightly human is far beyond my understanding.” 

Placing your hand over your heart, you reeled back in offense as a hurt expression overtook your facial features. Forget the fact that he basically insinuated you were ugly. “Oww? Why so rude? I am many things but a pet is not one of them!” 

“Are you implying that you, a mere human, are on par with a fae such as I or even the great and mighty Malleus Draconia?” The knight gasped. “Why, the nerve of you, mortal!” 

Incredulously you squinted at him. Did all faes revere their sovereign to this insane degree, or was it just this one? Did he forget that you were his sovereign’s only human courier while he had many knights and soldiers at his disposal? “I’m not implying anything, but I’m just saying, look who has special privileges to go see your precious Master whenever I please. It’s me! Not you!” 

“Human––!!” 

As he clenched his fist, you dramatically gasped and waggled your finger. It was surprisingly fun to mess with him because it was so easy. “No, no, no. Wouldn’t want to hurt your Master’s only human courier when I carry important news, would you? I think he would be very unhappy if you did. You heard me talking with your General, I have a plan.” 

“You? Important news?” Sebek practically sneered. “You don’t mean to tell me you actually went to listen in on the comings and goings of the human kingdom instead of relying solely on your mystic knowledge? Tell me, do you really have a plan or is that one of your despicable lies again?”

“Yes, I did, actually.” There was no telling how successful you would be. Truthfully, you weren’t entirely sure where to go from here now that the plot had changed. The best bet would likely to still curse the Princess, and somehow get the Master of All Evil to consider sparing the Prince, but you would have to convince the Prince to not fight Malleus. Easier said than done. Silver seemed like the noble type, but if you could deceive him somehow so he wouldn’t rescue the Princess… “And I have… part of a plan. How hard can it be? I mean, I practically already charmed their prince! Although that part was fully unintentional.” 

“You…?” The knight didn’t seem too convinced, although there was a flicker of shock at the mention of charming a royal. “You seduced the human prince meant to wed the enemy king’s daughter? That prince? If you lie to me again, I will not forgive you twice!” 

After a brief pause, you shrugged and admitted, “I mean… I told a joke and he said he wanted to see me again––” 

“Debaucher!!” Sebek pointed accusingly, his face flush. Only now as his cheeks heated up did you notice he had the slightest trace of green scales hidden where his hair began. Weird. “I knew humans were vile and loathsome, but you…!” 

Despite his finger in your face, you actually cracked a grin. “You literally cannot call me anything worse than what I’ve called myself. And for the record, I just told him a joke and showed him the way through the human town. Nothing more, nothing less. Don’t get it twisted.” 

The fae appeared to be drawn deep in thought, holding his fingers to his chin, stroking the few scales near his neck as he actually considered your response. Or at least, for a moment he appeared to be doing that. “I don’t understand… Are humans so naturally deceptive or are they so senselessly blind to deceit playing right before their eyes? Perhaps it is both.” Just before you could reprimand him again for saying such things when you were literally less than two feet away from him, he began with a newfound sense of energy, as if reaching a profound realization. “I see! I believe I understand it now! It is because you are so disgustingly devious that the Master has decided to keep you around! Any human can be treacherous and shrewd, but it takes a truly depraved one to betray their own kind! So clearly, our human is superior to all others!” 

You stared at him hard, mostly speechless. What sort of mental gymnastics did he perform to come to that conclusion? Best not to question it, as he seemed like the type to stubbornly refuse defeat. “You know, if Malleus really wanted to––” 

“That’s Master Malleus to you, fiend!” Sebek rebuked sternly, apparently having no regard for the fact that he literally cut you off. 

Resisting the urge to roll your eyes, you replied sarcastically, “You know if Master Malleus really wanted to end things…” Pausing, you waited to see if he would interrupt you again, but he only grinned in satisfaction so you proceeded. “Why doesn’t he just, you know––” You slid your hand over your throat in a slicing motion. “––the Princess?” 

“The audacity of you, courier! How dare you make such an assumption?” Perhaps the suggestion was going too far. “The Master is a noble spirit, I do not know what sort of idea you have of him, but cease that affront at once! If you are to operate on behalf of our esteemed leader among the ranks of his knights, you must change your perspective of him. The Master is understanding and knowledgeable… I too once had a similar idea and asked him once, his response was that the objective of his curse was to cause the most suffering possible to those who have wronged him.” 

You piped up, “… I mean, I could do it just to put an end to things.” 

“No!! Did you not just hear me?” There was the flash of his fangs again, but he wasn’t out right snarling again. At least that was a good sign. Firmly he explained, “The Master doesn’t need your help in assassination! He is far more capable than just slitting one’s throat! With a flick of his finger, he could disarm an entire army! The Princess would stand no chance!” 

Motioning him to tone it down, you grimaced at his volume. There was no doubt in your mind that it was entirely possible that at least one person had overheard the conversation. It would be a miracle if no one had overheard any of the details at this point. “Let’s not talk about that super loud. You know, I still have to deliver the news.”

Pausing, Sebek opened his mouth, “Ah–– you are correct. That was negligent of me to take up your time when the Master is awaiting your presence.” Placing a hand on your shoulder, he squeezed slightly, and you noticed he had quite the nails and a powerful grip. The knight smiled, actually beamed with such sharp teeth. “Do not fret, courier. Although I find your mortal ways absolutely despicable, you will soon realize what a blessing it is to serve the Master! For now, you are my comrade, and I will help change your selfish desires!” 

Silently staring at him, astounded by his confidence and logic, the sarcastic comment slipped out as you looked straight into his eager sparkling eyes. Apparently he really believed he could really change your mindset. “I’m tearing up…” 

“I know, do not cry!” The sarcasm went completely over his head as he roped you in so you were shoulder-to-shoulder. Enthusiastically he continued, forcing you to walk along with him as he moved forward. “I understand, believe me, serving His Majesty is a wondrous thing! Do not be overwhelmed, even if it is very easy to get swept away by the glory of his mere presence, I am here to guide you! Together, we shall serve Master Malleus for many years to come!” After a few feet, his ironclad grip loosened enough for you to stumble a few paces forward out of his hold. “Go. We will begin tomorrow at dawn, and I will take it upon myself to enlighten you on all fae history and the biography of our esteemed leader! If you are late, I will simply track you down and force you to listen, I hope I have made myself clear enough!” 

Note to self, think of an excuse to get out of that tomorrow. Maybe lying and saying Malleus gave you some top secret important mission would be enough to get Sebek off your back. “Crystal clear. Now, if you’ll excuse me––” 

Before he could even think to begin again, you got out of there quickly. It was by asking servants did you hear that the fae king was in his study and apparently did not wish to be disturbed, probably due to the fact that he was likely bitter from the earlier disappointment about the whole cradle thing. 

“Malleus! Master Malleus!” Your fist pounded on the door. According to the servants, the general rule was to never ever bother the fae when his door was closed and especially when he was in a foul mood, but you were the exception as you brought reports. 

The door to the study where he was remained firmly shut for a few moments, until there was a wave of his hand and a green glow which unlocked the latch. Caving under your weight, the door flew open, nearly making you fall face first against the cold hard ground which caused you to shout in exclamation. 

Somehow you caught yourself, your fingers brushing against the ground but you remained on your feet for the most part. Quickly you recomposed yourself, still slightly flustered under the majestic fae’s menacing gaze. 

Malleus lifted his chin, his green-eyed gaze never leaving yours. It was another shock, a reminder, as you nearly forgot how frightening he was. Turning his attention away from the balcony, he watched you fumble about like a king would look upon their pitiful jester. “Well?” 

“Um… well…” Despite how many times you practiced your lines before arriving, your memory and any confidence went right off the balcony ledge overlooking the fae’s kingdom. When under the scrutiny of a magical being so ethereal yet so terrifying, it made your mind blank. “I, uh, saw stuff. Definitely saw things, and… uh…” Suddenly your mouth went dry, and words made no sense in your mind. If you focused on his midnight black hair, it made it possible to speak when you weren’t focused on his gaze. “So there was a Prince… very nice, mind you. Not so bad. He seems to want to think well of faes. Found him as I was walking around the kingdom, then he told me he was on the way to meet his future father-in-law, you know, the King? And then, well, I was in the woods when the strangest thing happened.” 

It was only by staring at his hair so long did you notice the odd features. The small black scales merging with his hairline, the unnatural smoothness of his hair without a single strand out of place, even his majestic horns appeared to glimmer in the light. It was easy to get distracted. 

“And… um… oh…! What I was saying is that there was a cottage, and its chimney was spewing this colorful magic.” That seemed to catch his attention, as his gaze which had begun to drift away immediately shifted when his eyes were suddenly transfixed on you and what you were saying. “Turns out, three peasant women live there with a girl exactly like the Princess.” 

“Like the Princess, you say?” The fae slowly turned towards the open balcony, where one could see the entirety of his domain which included those enchanted forests and moors. Past the wall of giant thorns protecting his land and people, in the very distance, it was possible to just barely make out the towering palace where the human royalty resided. A ghost of a wicked smile appeared on his lips. “Twenty years. I have made my old friend suffer for two decades, approximately a third of his short mortal lifespan. Last I heard from my previous courier, is that his Queen was on her deathbed from a terrible illness and the King was slowly going mad.” 

Previous courier… You should’ve expected this. Instantly you felt sick to your stomach. Did Lilia tell him? Or Sebek? But why? They promised! Didn’t they claim to detest liars? Your first instinct was to cover your face with your hands, as if being unable to see anything or hear him would make everything go away. But what good would that be? Sucking in the air through your teeth, you glanced upwards at the ceiling, praying for some sort of miracle or divine intervention. “They didn’t tell you, did they…?” 

“No, my General and knights keep their promises.” Placing a cold pale hand on your head, his fingers threaded carefully through your hair. Part of you expected him to just execute you here and now, turn you to stone himself for lying to him. “I’ve known since you awoke here. My General, Lilia, even gave you a hint. Twice. He had no need to tell me when I see through your eyes and hear through your ears. You see, I made that deal with the original. You took their role, and the curse remained in place.” 

You felt numb. This entire time, every single second, he had been there. Knowing. Listening and watching through your own senses. In. Every. Single. Moment. Nothing could be kept secret. What if he was in your very thoughts? No–– he would’ve mentioned that, wouldn’t he? 

“No, I cannot read your thoughts.” The timbre of his tone caused a shiver to travel up your spine as you straightened up, snapping out of your stupor. If he was telling the truth, which he must’ve been, then he was just very very good at reading others. “As powerful as I may be, I am not omniscient.” 

Carefully gazing up at him, you kept your head down and arms at your side, afraid he would just crush your skull between his digits. “That’s… embarrassing. You’re not, I don’t know, going to turn me into stone or something?” 

“I’m presuming that is the fate you fear is waiting for you at the end of this story.” Black nails curled along your strands of hair, his finger tracing down to your ears as you squeezed your eyes shut in awful anticipation. “Well, you need not fret. You have not told me any lies, you carried out your duty well, and found the Princess that my legion of knights couldn’t locate in twenty years. I would be a fool to turn you to stone.” So he could turn people to stone if he wanted to. “Besides, I find you quite amusing. It made me smile, knowing my enemies suffer and hearing your silly squabbling.”

Inwardly you cringed, recalling every little mistake you made since gaining consciousness in this world. Every stumble and fall, every scream or exclamation, the bickering with his precious knight, playing along with his General, joking with the very Prince that was destined to slay him! Even when you openly dealt with Lilia, openly bargaining with his life for some sort of ending that you could live with. Malleus was aware of each and every second. “Even for… you know, making that deal?” 

“No, I’m not cross.” Eventually his hand fell back to his side, as the malevolent fae continued to peer down at you. It felt wrong to even breathe within his vicinity. “It’s perfectly within human nature for mortals to claw their way towards redemption. The decisions you have made are primarily for yourself, saving me in the process is merely an unintended consequence. We both know this. Know that I am not shaken by your choice in the slightest. Trust me when I say that I know full well of the sins that humans are willing to commit for their own benefit. I know very well that humans will prioritize themselves over all others.” You felt small under his gaze, as he didn’t even blink once. The cool and collected tone of his became somewhat hushed as he mused, “You were destined to be here beside me, I believe. Perhaps as punishment…” 

Slowly you awkwardly nodded along, confirming his last words. “Well, yeah… I’m guessing you heard me say that earlier?” 

Neither acknowledging your response nor replying to it immediately, seconds of prolonged silence passed before he spoke. “That was not what I was referring to.” Instead of elaborating on what he truly meant by those words, he seemed to gloss over them as he continued. “Our fates are tied. Allow me to grant you salvation. Should you help me achieve my goal, I will protect you from the end you so fear. Should you try to save me as you have been doing thus far, I shall save you.” 

Instantly, without even thinking, you stuck your hand. This was earning you his protection, wasn’t it? You were practically under the guard of one of the most powerful beings in the world! Making deals with fae was supposedly a bad idea. However, you already made one deal. What’s the harm in one more? “You’ve got yourself a deal.”

Slowly the fae blinked at your extended arm. “Well… I didn’t expect you to come to such a rapid decision. You continue to surprise me with your choices and human customs. A handshake, hm?” An amused smirk made its way onto his features, but it wasn’t ominous or threatening like the expression he wore when mentioning the King. When his hand reached yours, you half expected some mystical green light of magic to seal your fate. But it didn’t happen. Instead, the fae held your hand in a firm grip as he proceeded thoughtfully. “I will not ask personal questions, as you seemed quite adamantly against so much as mentioning your true name when my General asked. Although I must ask you to reveal your plan, besides charming the human Prince.” 

Maybe it was due to the fact that he knew your life was now practically intertwined with his, this provided any reassurance that you wouldn’t betray him along with the extra comfort that he heard and saw everything you do. At this point, personal information would be of little use to him. 

If you wanted your own happily ever after, it would require sabotaging the protagonists and changing the entire end of the story. As you considered your next words, you attempted to pull your hand away from his, only for his iron grip to never falter. “Ah, well, originally the Princess returns to the castle since the curse is almost expired. There, you’re supposed to appear in her chambers when she’s alone, and lure her towards a spinning wheel where she pricks her finger and fulfills the curse. Might I say, I would be very tempted too if I was the Princess and you appeared like that in my chambers–– Anyways! Around the same time, you capture the Prince as he went to the now abandoned cottage to meet with the mysterious girl, the Princess, he met in the woods earlier. But, I may have messed up that last part, ha…” 

After listening to your explanation, Malleus finally let go of your hand. Never did he disrupt, but he listened very very carefully, eyes boring into yours the entire time even as you nervously glanced away every few moments. “I see… It seems this human Prince, Silver, as he’s called, is quite naive. This truth can be said for most young mortals. I do find his hope for peace to be endearing, even if it seems like nothing but a fantasy.” 

Malleus knew about Silver. Of course he did. The fae was probably watching like a hawk as you interacted with the future son-in-law of his sworn enemy. It was a bit of a relief to hear that the fae sovereign didn’t see Silver as an immediate threat, for now at least. Now if only you could appeal to his greater nature, the kindness Sebek claimed his Majesty was capable of. “Maybe we can, possibly, now this is just a thought here–– spare him?” 

Malleus was silent for a long moment, and for a second you feared you may have upset him–– that is until the top of his scepter was against your chin. The smooth end with the cold orb glowing that ominous green, propped up your chin so you couldn’t look away. “Anyone that is willing to extend a hand to me or mine will be rewarded, but know this: I will never trust another human again, not fully. You are the one exception to this, my courier. So I expect you to answer the following. Who is the one that is destined to drive a sword through my heart?” 

That tone of voice sent a shiver throughout your entire body. Once again, you felt small, weak, helpless against the fae as he was peering down at you so intensely. It’s clear he wanted an answer, and he wanted it now. “The… uh… Prince–– but with the help of the three good fairies!” As if mentioning the three good fairies would help his case, now that the fae was fully aware that Silver was the one fated to slay him. 

“Now that does contemplate things. So, you implore me to spare the very mortal meant to end my life? That is quite the request.” Malleus mused, his scepter lowering from your neck as you felt you could finally breathe again. For a moment, the fae lowered his gaze in deep contemplation. It felt like hours of tense silence, as you wondered if he would be agitated that you would suggest such a thing. In reality, it was probably a full minute at most when he lifted his hand to his lower face in contemplation. “Those irritating little pixies will likely defy any orders from me in order to protect the Prince. The three alone are far too weak to do anything of significant value on their own… Is the Prince the only one who works against me?” 

“Technically, yes.” In the story, everyone was placed to sleep too by the three fairies, or pixies, or whatever they were in this rendition. The only one left awake was the Prince. “I think the only reason the Prince in the story stood a chance was because he had the help of the pixies. Everyone else is placed to sleep like the Princess.” 

Malleus nodded to himself, appearing to come up with some sort of arrangement to overcome the obstacles. “Then, I trust this task to you, my courier. While I appear in the Princess’ chambers to lead her to her terrible fate, General Lilia will be in charge of confronting the three pixies, and my Knight Sebek will be responsible for safely guarding you as you convince Prince Silver to abandon any notion of defending the Princess or the King.” 

Immediately your eyes widened, as you fumbled over your words, “Y-You want me to convince him to switch sides?” 

“Something along those lines, yes. The Prince will be of little use to them anyways. True love, the requirement to break the curse I placed upon the Princess, doesn’t exist. It was one of my more brilliant ideas, designed to give the King a sense of false hope so he would fall further into despair when his daughter never awoke. At least, she wouldn’t awake within his lifetime.” Malleus nodded in confirmation. Despite the heavy topic of the conversation that consisted of deceit and possible murder, the fae actually gave a smile. A teasing and wicked one as he hummed, “You wished for me to spare Prince Silver, did you not? This should be an easy task for you. As I recall you said earlier, you have already charmed the Prince. Perhaps I should be jealous of Silver, hm?” 

Why did you have to go and open your big mouth? Why did you have to try and be kind by wanting to save someone that was practically a stranger!? This was bad. Silver wouldn’t leave innocents like that. All you could do was lower your head in your hands and grumble, “I’ll… figure something out.” 

“I’m sure you will.” A deep laughter rumbled from his chest, and although you couldn’t see it, you were sure he was still wearing that smug grin. There was some sort of look in his eyes, something not so menacing, more endearing, but equally as chilling. “The last time I trusted a mortal with my life, it resulted in this entire debacle. I’m certain you won’t betray me as well, hm?” 

✧   ✧   ✧   ✧   ✧

The same evening, hours before the sun would set and the curse would be broken, you penned a short and brief letter to Silver. With a wave of his hand, Malleus’ magic whisked it away to be delivered instantly. The message was simple: Meet me at the moor’s borders by the wall of thorns as soon as you can. Signed, the courier. 

You still had no idea how you would go about convincing Silver to essentially abandon the King and Princess. While you were contemplating if it was even possible to save this person from facing Malleus’ wrath, you were not at all comforted when Lilia appeared downright delighted to be the one facing the three pixies. It was a tad bit concerning, especially since he went on about having not seen them properly in over two decades and how they had always been a pesky bunch that favored the humans over their own kin. You were not envious of the three in the slightest, especially when you caught sight of Lilia humming to himself as he polished his green cleaver to a brilliant shine. Those poor pixies would have to deal with the General. 

Sebek was hardly any better. While not outright threatening, he droned on and on about what a privilege it was to personally be assigned a task by His Majesty. Which made it difficult for you to keep calm when he spoke of Malleus every single minute, and made it almost impossible for you to focus on the task at hand. 

“––and so you see, because of that wretched human who betrayed Master Malleus to become the king of the human kingdom, our esteemed leader has been wary of all humans and their activities ever since then.” Sebek explained, gripping the reins as he led the way on horseback, with your steed not lingering too far behind. “So the fact that Malleus is willing to offer an olive branch towards the betrothed of the daughter of his enemy, is nothing short of a gift! A mercy granted to a human who likely isn’t worthy of such a thing.” 

As soon as they reached the thorns, the wall seemed to come alive as its vines and branches slithered like snakes. Creating a temporary path for them to pass through without risk of being impaled by giant thorns. Meaning one thing: Malleus was currently watching. 

“Okay then, since you understand how important that is, that means you know not to act out right? I know the Prince is human and all, and I know how you feel about humans, but let me do the talking.” You pleaded as both horses came to a halt right outside the towering barriers. 

“Tsk, please, I am not so uncouth to– OW!” 

Upon spotting a flash of white and silver through the foliage of the forest, you kicked part of the knight’s leg to shut him up. Before he could open his mouth again, you hopped off your horse and worked your way through the underbrush as you came to a small clearing. There, by the stream, was the Prince standing beside his own noble steed that drank from the clean waters. The backdrop of the forest and setting sun already dipping below the horizon, reminded you of how little time was left. 

The Prince must’ve picked up on the sound of rustling and crunching leaves, because he lifted his head towards the source of the noise. When his enchanting gaze met yours, he smiled such a gentle smile and took a step toward you. “Courier.” However, Silver paused, freezing in place as he looked a bit taken aback at the sight of the knight appearing at your side. A fae, a being he’s never met before. 

“Heyyy, Silver. This is my friend Sebek.” Awkwardly you gestured to the knight, giving the fae a look that basically said please, for the love of his Master Malleus, keep his mouth shut for now. “Sebek, this is Silver, local prince and prettiest human I’ve ever met.” 

Sebek looked anything but pleased. It was then you realized that this may have been his first time actually properly meeting a human, as the fae looked a bit uncomfortable. Instead of saying anything, the knight merely crossed his arms and managed a terse, “Pleasure.” Not even a full, it’s a pleasure to meet you. 

This didn’t deter the Prince, or perhaps it went entirely over his head, as he managed a regal nod. Despite the fact that his expression reverted to his usual apathetic nature, there was an unmistakable sparkle in his eyes. Maybe this would work out well after all. 

“It’s very nice to meet you. Any friend of the Courier’s is a friend of mine.” Silver appeared genuinely intrigued, pleased to meet a fae. Any shock melted away into a friendly demeanor as he approached, “I had to sneak out of the palace just to be here, but I’m very glad I did. Did you really remember my words and bring me here for this? I’m touched, Courier.” 

Part of you grimaced as you exchanged knowing looks with Sebek, who thankfully remained silent for now. The knight merely glanced back at the royal before looking back at you, and he gestured with his head as if saying go on. 

“Something like that.” You spoke, mustering a smile as Silver stopped so he was right in front of you and Sebek. Despite knowing that fae were labeled as enemies, Silver didn’t appear fazed in the slightest. That was bound to change as soon as you opened your mouth. Hey, so my boss is about to complete a curse on your fiancée that’ll put her to sleep for who knows how long and three pixies are bound to put the rest of the kingdom to sleep too while a fae General will prevent them from reaching you at all, but I’m gonna have to ask you to come with us if you want to live. You couldn’t just say that! Fumbling for some sort of response, you began awkwardly, “So… you wanted to meet some fae, right?” 

“Of course.” Silver replied immediately, giving Sebek the slightest smile as he spoke softly and sincerely. “It’s a great honor to have this opportunity. Perhaps by talking more with you, Sebek, and explaining to everyone that I met a fae and all went well, it can change their mind and cause some good to happen.” 

Sebek appeared a bit flustered, unaccustomed to praise from a mortal as the knight looked at you for some sort of support. Probably not even expecting it. Quickly, you interjected, “That is great, because I have the perfect opportunity for you. I never told you, because, well, interacting with fae is generally frowned upon by humans but I happen to know the Malleus! I bet I can even get you an audience with him.” 

“You would do that for me?” The Prince’s eyes widened, his naturally soft voice raised ever so slightly. 

“Excuse us!” Sebek’s eyes widened in alarm as he covered his mouth, hissing in your ear as he pulled you away, “What are you doing, you presumptuous fool…?! This was not part of the strategy outlined by the General! You are supposed to convince the human to join us willingly!” 

Furrowing your eyebrows, you exclaimed quietly, “I am…!” Looking over at Silver, you could see the Prince was puzzled but was respectful and kept his distance. Those eyes of his looking up at the nearby wall of thorns as he waited patiently to be included in the conversation. “Look, he’ll thank me later. He’ll come with us because he wants to speak to Malleus, he thinks he can build diplomatic relations. Let him think that! As long as the pixies can’t get to him, Silver isn’t a real threat to Malleus. Hell, we can even convince Lilia to take him in, I really don’t care, as long as he doesn’t interact with the pixies.” 

“That’ll hardly be an issue. Knowing General Lilia, he’s likely thoroughly dealt with the pixies. They’ve been a thorn in the Master’s side for over a century.” Sebek straightened his posture, folding his arms behind his back as he lifted his chin to appear taller. “Just remember, I am your ally. He is not.” 

“Whatever.” Perhaps this was better. If Lilia had permanently dealt with the pixies, then there was no one else to use magic and bless the Prince with a holy sword and shield. There was no other way to defeat The Master of All Evil. It was practically game over, wasn’t it? Turning back to Silver, just as you opened your mouth to speak, a deep and familiar voice echoed from behind you. 

“My courier, is this the Prince you’ve spoken so highly about?” 

You felt your heart drop as Sebek dropped to his knees in a reverent kneel, and even Silver appeared taken aback by the sudden presence of the being that appeared feet away from you. Looking over your shoulder, there he was, hidden in the shadows cast by the trees. You took a step to the side, careful of Sebek, as you made room for The Master of All Evil. When did he get there? “Yeah–– Yes, it is.” 

Malleus approached, seeming to float as he walked, his robes blending in with the shadows that grew longer and the sky darker as the sun had completely set. Why was he here already? Was it done? Had he actually completed the curse on the Princess in such a short time? A realization came to you, which made you freeze. Surely Silver knew how Malleus cursed his fiancée. 

Stepping closer, the fae appeared to take in the sight of the Prince. Silver leaned back a bit, surprised, but seemingly unafraid. They were complete opposites. Silver appeared to embody light and virtue as he was like a warm spring day, while Malleus embodies the cold darkness like the depths of space that swallowed everything in its path. “My courier tells me you wish to establish peace. Such a lofty goal, I’m afraid, but inspiring. Do you not fear me for what I’ve done? You were there that day, as I recall.” 

“I was hoping to ask you to lift the curse.” Silver glanced at you, before returning his attention back to the fae. Despite the fact that he was in front of a being countless times older than him and far more powerful than anything on Earth, the Prince continued, “It’s true, I also want to establish relations. I believe it can do good for both our peoples. But first, my concern is the curse. Although I haven’t truly met the Princess I’m supposed to wed, I’d like to appeal for the curse to be lifted. She is innocent.” 

“What a noble request. Very well, we’ll talk.” Malleus straightened his stance, standing tall even above the Prince. Exchanging a glance with you, there was a knowing glint in his green eyes as he then commanded, “Sebek, rise. Escort our guest, gently, my knight. Gently.”

Silver appeared quick to believe Malleus, perhaps truly hoping that he would be able to make peace with the fae and get that terrible curse lifted. When the knight stood up to lead the way for the Prince, Silver paused to spare a look over his shoulder as he led his steed along. When his gaze landed on you, you witnessed his entire demeanor soften as he managed a grateful nod. It made you feel a pang of guilt. 

Only once the Prince and Knight had disappeared past the wall of thorns, did Malleus turn to you and admit with a flicker of amusement. “Quite the peculiar human you found, my courier.” 

“Someone’s in a good mood.” You note, taking notice of the twinkle in his glowing eyes and the ominous smile on his face that had yet to falter. That had to mean something. Normally he was unsmiling, so it was jarring to see him like this. “Don’t tell me you already…?” 

“I did.” Malleus confirmed with a brief nod, looking quite pleased with himself. 

The confirmation only made you shudder. You knew it would happen. Still, there was a bit of regret you felt deep within your bones. Although, surely it couldn’t be that bad. It’s not like the Princess was murdered. It was just a deep sleep where she would wake up in the future. “And what do you plan to do with Prince Silver?” 

“I told him we would talk. That is the truth. However, I never said I would lift the curse.” A moment passed, and then he proceeded, watching as the thorns slithered back into place to create that impenetrable barrier protecting his lands. “Since you failed to truly convince him, you merely tricked him into stepping into foreign territory, I’ve conjured a suitable alternative. Allowing him to roam within the moors and enchanted forest has little consequence when General Lilia had took it upon himself to rid the world of those three pixies before they could place the human kingdom to sleep. That way, their King will be awake to anguish and mourn his loss, and yet he will find no one to appease his distress. There are not any other magic users that would be willing to act in favor of the Prince or Princess for the King.” In the cold wind, strands of his pitch black hair fluttered and the emerging moon cast a heavenly sort of glow. “The Prince wanted to meet the fae, so let him. He’ll stay. Should he begin to act out, enchantments could be used to make him forget all things troubling him.” 

“You’d let him stay as a guest…? Really?” That was shocking, considering that in the story, the Prince was kept as a temporary prisoner in a dungeon with heavy chains and stone cold walls trapping him underneath the ground. However, maybe his current fate wasn’t so different from that if enchantments would be used to keep him confined within fae territory. “You know what, nevermind, that makes sense.” 

“Hmm… in addition, I thought the human prince would serve as a good distraction. The General finds human nature to be more accepting of his attempts at humor, the Knight seeks a rival in strength which the Prince is capable of. It seems like a natural fit.” 

With a curl of his finger, some invisible force dragged you closer to him, despite your squirming, it didn’t stop until you were an inch apart and his shadow loomed over yours. Those glowing green eyes that were the bane of many, leered down at you. 

“Which allows you to spend more time with me and solely me. I was betrayed once by a human before, I’m sure you’ve figured this out already. This time, it shall not happen again, I have made sure of it. As naive as you may be, I know you are not so foolish to ever turn on me, especially upon seeing the extent I go to in order to exact revenge upon those who wronged me… So, for your loyalty, I will reward you with lavish riches, wondrous glory, and my undivided attention. Is there anything else your heart desires, my Precious Courier?”