#felix fighting for his life trying to figure out how to say that he's not a potential client without sounding rude or judgemental

[golden-moony]

king of my heart | pt. 2

pairings: lando norris x fem!reader | pato o'ward x fem!reader

warnings: love triangle? kinda.

author's note: go get some popcorn cause we have some drama here🍿... and it's a long part, so enjoy!!

part 1 | part 2 | part 3 | part 4

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yourusername

liked by charles_leclerc, isahernaez, frosenqvist, and 79,121 others!

yourusername Miami GP over and out ✅🏁 No words could ever explain just how grateful I am for all of you and for the opportunity that I get to cover this amazing sport with such incredible people by my side. Thank you for everything Miami, I hope to see you again soon! 🌴💖

user1 the power she holds 🙌

user2 she's really living my dream 🥹

lissiemackintosh so happy to be able to share this with you!! love u❤️

yourusername we really need to do this more often😘 love u too! user3 y/n and lissie hosting track tv together is my new roman empire fr user4 SLAY QUEENS!! user5 the queens are thriving user6 i wanna be friends with them so bad 😫

user7 omg girl you're STUNNING

user8 BEST F1 WAG

user9 facts facts facts user10 she's not even a wag lol it's so obvious lando just keeps this nobody around for when he's bored and horny user11 user10 this "nobody" has done SO much in terms of women representation in motorsport, she's hardworking and a lovely woman. meanwhile, you're just a sad little person who's jealous of her because she's successful and close to your crush, who doesn't even know who you are. so get a life and stop embarrassing yourself. user12 user11 SAY IT LOUDER 👏 user13 user11 PREACH!!!

user14 i don't know if i wanna be her or be with her😩

user15 this is such a mood tbh

landonorris so proud of you, boo😍

yourusername 🥰🧡 user16 YNLANDO NATION WE WON user17 we love a supporting boyfriend 🤩 user18 i want what they have, your honor user19 is this considered a soft launch or what? user20 y'all are delulu😂 it's so obvious they're just friends user21 user20 girl being delulu is the solulu 🙌

user22 so when are we gonna talk about felix liking the post?

user23 i'm lost sorry, who's felix? user24 user23 he's pato's teammate in indycar and one of his besties user25 if felix liked then WHERE'S PATO user26 user25 doing more important things than being focused on this girl.

lilymhe such a pretty girl 💗

alex_albon should i be jealous? yourusername you should indeed. can u fight? user24 the friendship i didn't know i needed 🥹 user25 MY FAV WAGS INTERACTING YAY

user26 f1 is so lucky to have you!!!

user27 LOOOL why would they be lucky to have her?😂😂😂 she's nothing special user28 user27 and yet she's still rising 💅 user29 user27 then why are you even on her post? lol obsessed much?

user30 my role model ❤️‍🩹

📞 incoming call

[y/n; normal] [pato; cursive]

"...Hello? Did you butt-dialed me or something?"

"Uhm, hi. It's not a butt-dial. I-I actually just wanted to talk to you. Hear your voice, y'know. I've been kinda missing you."

"Oh really? And here I was thinking that your cold behavior toward me over the past three weeks meant that you didn't want anything to do with me. Silly me, I guess."

"I-I'm... [sighs]. That's what I wanted to talk to you about, actually. About the way I've been treating you. I'm sorry, y/n. I really am sorry. I know I've been a total jerk-"

"Yeah, you can put it that way."

"...I've been a total jerk and I regret it very much. You didn't deserve it at all. I just- I'm not trying to excuse my awful behavior but I just think I got- Uhm..."

"You got what?"

"Well... I saw Lando's instagram story when you went back to Monaco, as you've probably already figured it out. And I think- Well... I got jealous. And I know it probably sounds stupid now but at the time it felt like a punch in the face."

"Pato..."

"I know I didn't and still have absolutely no business to be jealous about you and Lando, cause you and I are not dating or anything and you don't owe me any kind of explanation about the type of relationship you have with him. But after the great time we spend together in Long Beach... I don't know, it just hurted seeing you with him. But that doesn't excuse anything and I just regret so much the way I've been treating you since then, it hasn't been fair to you at all."

"And it didn't cross your mind that we could have had this conversation way before now? I mean, you waited three weeks to finally talk to me like a decent human being, how-"

"I know and I'm so-"

"Let me finish."

"Sorry, go on."

"However, I do appreciate that you're finally acknowledging all of this and communicating with me like an actual adult. I know it's not always easy to do. And although I don't owe you any kind of explanation, I just want you to know that there's nothing going on between Lando and me."

"So you and him...?"

"We're friends and that's it. We care for each other but there's nothing going on."

"Oh... well, thanks for clarifying that for me."

"Yeah, yeah. You'll have to work harder for my forgiveness, anyway. I appreciate the call but it won't be that easy for you."

"Is that so?"

"You've heard me."

"In that case, what would you say if I invite you for a few days to come here to Punta Mita? Maybe that'll help me a little to earn your forgiveness."

"... I'm sorry, what!?"

"You've heard me."

"You're joking. You have to be joking."

"I'm not joking. You're still in Miami, right?"

"I am..."

"Great! My brother in law is in Miami too and he'll take the jet tomorrow morning. If you want to, you can join him and come here with him! We'd be thrilled to have you here too."

"Oh my God... Pato, I don't know what to say!"

"Say yes and you'd make this birthday boy the happiest man in the world. You'd even make my sister happy, I've been telling her a lot about you and now she's eager to meet you."

"I hope you've been telling her good things about me, then."

"Only the best. She's even on your side, y'know. Said I was being a giant cabrón and needed to make things right. She wasn't wrong tho."

"[giggles] Fine. I'll go, but I'm only doing this for your sister."

"I'll take that anyway! I'll let Brett know you'll join him and I'll send you the details, okay?"

"Okay!"

"Now go and pack your bags for tomorrow."

"Hey! Don't get bosy with me, mister!"

"[Laughs] Fine. Take care, I'll see you tomorrow."

"See you, birthday boy!"

patriciooward posted to his story!

[caption 1; 🦈] [caption 2; beautiful views]

yourusername posted to their story!

[caption 1; para-para-paradise 🌞] [caption 2; in his sharkboy era] [caption 3; 🐶❤️]

paddockgossips

liked by magui_corceiro and 84,091 others!

paddockgossips Among the alleged "breakup" between y/n and Lando, the McLaren driver was photographed last night having fun in a Monaco club in the company of Max Fewtrell and other friends. Some sources have said that Lando seemed very cozy with a blonde woman at the party, whom he later left with. However, we cannot verify this information in any way, so it remains a rumor.

user1 I HAVE A CHANCE AGAIN (i'm delulu)

user2 so this confirms ynlando is over?? 😭

user3 girl i'm devastated 😭😭😭 user4 i'm still in denial user5 well they were never together to begin with user6 user5 THIS!! people act like they were a couple when they NEVER confirmed anything 😂

user7 "blonde woman at the party" "it remains a rumor" and magui goes and like the post LOL

user8 she's so desperate for attention🙄 user9 who's magui??? user10 user9 she's kika's friend and she was dating football player João Félix not so long ago (in fact, i thought they were still together lol) user11 user10 and don't forget she's a cheater. user12 user9 she's trouble

user13 yn >>>>>>>> magui

user14 user13 no need to compare them

user15 sorry but single lando it's so hot 🥵

user16 SO TRUE user17 FACTS he looks so good omfg

user18 in his heartbreaker era 😎

user19 in his reputation era 😎 user20 in his idgaf era 😎

user21 i'm a child of divorce fr

user22 i know y'all love y/n for some reason but i'm SO glad lando finally got away from her.

user23 SAME. and if magui makes him happy then great for him user24 stfu i'm mourning here

user25 y/n this magui that but max was, is and will forever be lando's true wag💅

user26 the one and only indeed

elbaoward posted to her story!

[caption1; off to dinner] [caption2; my love🤍] [caption 3; lovebirds!]

patriciooward

liked by landonorris, yourusername, brettkimbro, and 86,382 others!

patriciooward BDAY WKND DUMP 📸 thank y'all for all the love❤️‍🔥

user1 THE HARD LAUNCH IT'S HARD LAUNCHING

user2 OMG IT'S HAPPENING EVERYBODY STAY CAAAAALM

user3 he really said i'll give you what you want: thrist traps and y/n... and he's so real for that

user4 he really knows his audience user5 king behavior if u ask me user6 everybody say thank you Pato 🙏

user7 YNPATO NATION HOW ARE WE FEELING??

user8 I'M STILL SPEECHLESS user9 they're so perfect i wanna cry😭 user10 LOVE TO SEE🔥

user11 as a ynlando shipper i have to admit they're cute but ngl this still hurts 😩

user12 MOOD user13 ynlando will always be in our hearts 🥺 user14 ynlando >>>>>>>>>> ynpato user15 user13 girl grow up.

user16 THAT SHOULD BE ME

elbaoward where are my credits for the last pic? cuties🤍

user17 u literally gave us the cutest pic ever user18 elba thank you so much for your service🫡 user19 elba is ynpato's #1 fan and you can't tell me otherwise user20 elba is just like us fr user21 LOVE YOU ELBAAAAA 🩷

user22 MOM AND DAD

user23 can't believe how fast she moved on and got together with this dude lol lando really dodged a bullet with her

user24 how fast she moved on?? girl y/n and lando were never even together so stfu user25 ???? why are you even on pato's ig post? go away user26 user23 y/n is such an attention seeker and yet everyone loves her, i'll never understand it 🥱

user27 not to be that person but i would KILL to be that piñata😏

user28 MOOD

frosenqvist oh to be tanned, young and in love

patriciooward 😜 user29 IN LOVE??? FELIX BESTIE TELL US MORE user30 i don't know about y'all but this is all the confirmation i need about ynpato being real, bye user31 i think i can hear the wedding bells user32 user31 yesss and felix as pato's best man

user33 bestie don't be shy and drop more y/n pics 🫶

user34 i second the motion !!!

user35 NOT LANDO LIKING THE POST LOOOOL

user36 he is so unserious i love him user37 ICONIC BEHAVIOR TBH user38 yeah but i just know he's crying inside user39 user38 for what? lol lando knows he's so much better than this cheaper version of him. user40 user39 i'm so done with people like you who insult pato just because you cannot defend lando with good arguments.

yourusername magical weekend 💖

patriciooward with you there? always user41 STOP THEY'RE SO CUTE OMG user42 this is such an upgrade tbh user43 SO HAPPY FOR THEM 🥹 user44 what a bitch.

yourusername posted to their story!

[caption 1; back to reality✈️] [caption 2; I'm a high performance athlete. Athletes sweat. Sweat, baby] [caption 3; cutest model🧡]

paddockgossips

liked by magui_corceiro and 53,237 other people!

paddockgossips NEW WAG ALERT? 🚨 Magui Corceiro, the Portuguese model and actress, attended the Monaco GP after being seen a few days ago having lunch with Lando. It has been rumored that they could be in a relationship, especially since Lando and y/n apparently went different ways, and Corceiro's presence in the paddock has not gone unnoticed by anyone. Still, neither Lando nor Magui have confirmed or denied these rumors.

user1 A TRIGGER WARNING WOULD BE NICE NEXT TIME

user2 um let's hope there isn't a next time user3 user2 let's pray girl, let's pray 🙏

user4 "neither lando nor magui have confirmed or denied these rumors" well that's bs cause she just liked the post

user5 istg she's trying so hard to get attention user6 lando was asked about magui and he said she was just a friend... and then she goes and does this lol what a clout chaser user7 and people used to say that y/n was after lando's fame and yet she NEVER did anything like this user8 she's such a pick me girl

user9 everything i know of this girl has been against my will istg

user10 SAME

user11 oh good luck lando

user12 oh be prepared for the y/n fans and little girls that'll come attack magui when she hasn't even done anything wrong

user13 literally they're just mad at magui cause she's dating their fav driver loool user14 they're only jealous cause magui is a gorgeous woman user15 user14 she's gorgeous but she's still a snake

user16 i'd ask why lando would be with someone like her, but then i remember he's an adult and if he wants someone like her by his side then that's up to him. let's not treat him like a baby please

user17 say👏 it👏 louder👏

user18 weeeeell if this is the kind of people lando likes to have around then i guess y/n really dodged a bullet with him

user19 FACTS user20 i mean at the end of the day he's just another privileged white boy, so🤷‍♀️ user21 i really don't get all the hate that she's getting, is she really that problematic? user22 user21 girl google it yourself but yeah, she is

user23 I MISS MY GIRL Y/N WHERE IS SHEEEEEEEE??

user24 what is she even doing there?

user25 must be cause lando wanted her to be there user26 why y'all never asked the same thing about y/n? y'all are such hypocrites istg user27 user26 cause y/n was actually doing her job????? user28 user26 oh you're stupid 😂😂

user29 magui in the paddock, pato not being able to finish Indy 500... it really is a shitty day huh

user30 DON'T EVEN REMIND ME WHAT HAPPENED WITH PATO OMFG user31 I'M STILL SO MAD ABOUT PATO user32 the only good part is that y/n and his family were there for him ❤️‍🩹

see y'all in part 3!

taglist: @drunkinthemiddleoftheday @evie-119 @evans-dejong @minkyungseokie @noneofyourfbusinessworld @bernelflo @eiaaasamantha @ijustgomessitupx @honethatty12 @daemyratwst @f1fan65

(if you'd like to be tagged in the next part, just let me know in the comments!🧡)

[dark-lord-of-awesomeness]

Question about Double Cursed

If the spirit didn't change the spell and if the spell did what it was meant to

How would the story have gone?

If Ford actually got turned human again and Stan was stuck forever as a cat

Hmm. Hard to say, as I haven't put a huge amount of thought into the alternative timeline.

Probably very similar to 30 year Nikola, except Stan's pretending to be a total stranger trapped in a cats body. Fords making all kinds of accommodations to his house for his new cat friend and figuring out how to allow easier communication and such, while Stan's low key having an angst attack that maybe Ford only likes him when he doesn't know it's Stan. He won't run become that's suspicious and life really is good for him like that (plus he missed his chance in the woods due to shock), but in the back of his mind he's yelling at himself for lying to Ford by omission. When the subject of Stan going missing comes up with his car, I don't think Ford would rant like he did in htcbaf, as he's now been a missing person, but he'd be some kind of mix of worry and anger. Would talk to Felix about his twin brother Stan and how he ruined his project and might be missing or just chose to disappear and now that it's almost happened to him he's worried.

So Stan's getting hit with Ford actually noticing his disappearance a few months too late to have done anything, making his guilt worse as he goes back and forth between agreeing with Ford that his brothers a jerk and defending himself and just getting moody about the whole thing.

I think it'd end with Ford trying to locate Stan and getting 'Fellix' instead, until Ford either is struck with realization or Stan admits to being himself. This would be one Stan that wouldn't run, as he's too wired and feeling aggressive about some of the things Ford had said. Knows that Fords so angry but was also genuinely worried about him.

So they'd fight about it, both would go sulk, before Ford gets hit with the teary realization about all the things 'Felix' said and how it applies to his own brother who's trapped as a cat forever. Theyd have a talk similar to the one in the fic, and ford would work on figuring out how to fix Stan's soul. So instead of a portal it's Ford trying to undo the cat curse for 30 years.

[midnighthazee]

Greenridge ABO Series

a/n: Sorry for the late post!!! Writer's Block got to me this weekend and I had to push through!! ENJOY!

Series Masterlist Masterlist

Warnings: explicit language, fear, mentions of past abuse/trauma, violence, alphas loosing their temper, abuse, blood

WC: 5823

Chapter 12

Felix decided to come upstairs to nap after eating. He was about to go into his room when he looked down the hall and saw your door cracked. You never leave it cracked - usually fully open if you weren’t in there. He goes to your room, knocking. No answer so he pushes the door fully open.

“Y/n?” he calls out.

Silence.

He steps inside, noticing a paper at the foot of the bed. He picks it up and reads. He reads it nearly four times, his mind reeling. He panics, running down the stairs to find Minho. 

Minho had been in the living room trying to figure out the unsettling feeling he had in his stomach. It started nearly an hour ago and he’s been nauseous ever since. But why? Could it be nerves? But he never got nervous like this before. 

He was so caught up in what it could be when Felix came in, interrupting his thoughts. The other packs came around after hearing Felix yelling.

“Minho!” he calls out. “Minho!”

“What? What is it Felix?”

“Y/n. She left.” he answers, holding the paper out as he pants.

“What?” Minho snatches the paper and reads it. “Shit. How did she find out?”

“She overheard someone talking about it.” Jeongin shrugged.

“How long ago since she left?” Minho asked.

“I don’t know. She told me she was going to shower after we told her she couldn’t come with us. But that was almost three hours ago.” Felix looked at his watch.

Minho shook his head. “Assuming she found her way, she would be there by now.”

“So then let’s go. We can leave now.” Jungwon spoke, standing up. His pack stood with him, ready to fight.

The other packs stood as well.

Minho nodded. “Okay. Let’s go get our pack back.”

They all headed out, getting into cars and driving over to the Nyko territory. It didn’t take long and soon they were driving up the long driveway to the pack house, parking in the front lawn. Getting out they all hurried over to the house.

“It’s awfully quiet.” Changbin whispers.

Minho nodded as the two of them walked up to the front porch. They kicked open the door, hurrying inside. A mix of the other pack members flanked, coming inside as well. The rest stayed stationed outside. 

They weren’t confronted with any hybrids as they made their way through the house. It didn’t take long for them to declare it empty. 

“It’s clear.” Minho called out.

The Greenridge members and all the alphas came inside.

“Where could they be?” Seungmin asked. 

“Alpha Minho, you might want to see this.” Mingyu said, leading Minho to the basement, the rest of them following.

They were all quick to cover their noses at the smell, the smell of rotting flesh now mixed in with the foul smell of the basement.

“Oh my god… Our y/n was down here? Living in this her whole life?” Felix looked on in horror at the cells. They were worse than he had imagined. 

Minho clenched his jaw, pushing onwards. Mingyu led them to the torture room, allowing them to look in. Changbin peeked but was quick to turn away, pushing Felix back from view. He knows Felix’s sensitive nature and doesn’t want to upset him further.

“What? What is it?” Felix asks, trying to push past him.

“It’s Lewis.” Minho says, walking past them and back up the stairs.

Felix froze, his face perplexed.

“He’s dead.” Changbin explains.

Felix’s eyes go wide.

They all go back upstairs, exiting the house. Minho’s fuming as he comes out of the house. The rest of the packs come over, wondering what happened inside.

“Lewis is dead. No one’s inside.” Seungcheol announced.

“Alpha, sir, I think I might have found something on the side of the house.” Niki said.

Minho was quick to follow.

“At first I thought it was graffiti, but I think it’s a message,” he explained when they got there.

“Blackmane?” Jeongin questioned. “They have our people?”

“Let’s hope.” Minho said. “Let’s go. We’re going to regroup and get ready for the drive.”

The packs headed back to Greenridge Manor, prepping for their travels. They didn’t know if that’s where their people were, but it was the only lead they had.

Your head was pounding, each pump of your heart making it throb. You groan, turning over and pushing your face into the pillow. The smell wasn’t familiar at all. Where were you?

You open your eyes and take in the room. The room was bigger than yours back at the pack house, having two double beds, a desk and chair, dresser with a tv on it, and a couch with a coffee table. There were curtains shutting out all but a sliver of light - just enough to tell you it was daytime.

The memories of last night come back to you, making you lean forward and massage your temples. Maybe you should have trusted them and stayed put. But then again, they would have been captured instead. Or killed. 

You sigh, swinging your feet off the bed and padding over to the window. Squinting, you open the curtains more and look out. Your stomach dropped, making you stagger backwards. Why were you so high up? 

Two little beeps made you whip your head around, a door opening on the other side of the room. It was then you noticed another door with a shower beyond it.

“Oh good. You’re awake.” a man said, coming inside and walking over to you. “Hungry?”

You scurried over to the side, only for him to place the plastic bags he carried on the desk. You caught his scent - another alpha. He turned to you, seeing your fearful expression.

“I’m not gonna hurt you.” He chuckled, as if your fear was silly.

You didn’t say anything as he turned back and began emptying the bags. You eyed the door, wondering if you would manage to get out before he got to you. Even then, you didn’t know what was on the other side of that door - what you would be running into.

“You can run, but I doubt you will get far,” he said condescendingly.

His back was still to you as he spoke. You roll your eyes, finding an ounce of courage to question him.

“Who are you?” 

“Oh, sorry. How rude of me. I’m Reed.” He smiled warmly at you.

You looked away from him. 

“Are you hungry, y/n?”

“How do you know my name?”

“Uh, I was there the day you were born…” He said as if it was obvious.

“Wh-what?”

He turned around, brows furrowed. “Did mom and dad never talk about me?”

You stared at him in bewilderment.

“I guess that’s fair. Why would they talk about me after they sent me away?” he rolled his eyes.

“I don’t have an older brother.”

“You do actually… Me. And we have a younger brother apparently. Hudson, right?”

Your heart started to beat faster. Who was this stalker?

“Please eat. You’ve been unconscious for a while. Not to mention, you threw up before that.” He says, sitting down on the couch and placing your food on the coffee table. He sat down, taking a bite of his own food.

You didn't move or say anything.

He sighs, putting down his food.

“Y/n…what’s it going to take for you to trust me? I mean you no harm.”

“Where’s Chan? Was he there with Hyunjin and Jisung?”

“Chan…? Oh, you mean Chris?” he asked.

You furrowed your brows.

“Did he not tell you his name was Chris?” Reed sat back. “How long were you with them anyways. Lewis wouldn’t shut up about you being stolen away.”

“I wasn’t stolen…” you cross your arms.

“Please don’t tell me you got Stockholm syndrome with that foolish pack,” he joked.

You felt anger course through you at the way he talked so negatively about your pack.

“They aren’t fools, they are my soulmates…my pack.” You growl. “Lewis lied, abused, and falsely marked me.”

Reed is quiet as he thinks this over. He studies you, smelling the anger and fear off you. He squints his eyes before finally going back to eating. He motioned for you to eat your food. “It’s good.”

“Where’s Chan, Hyunjin, and Jisung?”

“Safe. With the Hybrid Association.”

“Where is that?”

“Why? Do you plan on going there?”

“If I need to in order to get them back.”

“You won’t get through without clearance…which I have. So are you going to indulge me for five minutes to eat? Or keep playing hard to get?”

“How do I even know you’re my brother?”

“You were born twenty three years ago on a full moon. It was a Friday night when the moon was highest in the sky. Mom’s name is Haneul. Dad’s name is Walker. Hudson is…wait I know…five years younger than you. I don’t know that much about him considering I was sent away before you were even six months old. We lived in a little house on the hill, five minutes from town where they had the best fish cakes. Does Ms. Daisy still make them? Or did her daughter Daphne take over?”

You glare. He clearly knew a lot. 

“Why’d mom and dad send you away?” you question.

“Why did they send you away?” he rebuttals.

You don’t say anything.

“They sent you away for the same reason they sent me away. Money. The packs paid them.”

“But you’re not an omega…”

“True. Omegas do go for way more, but I was sold to a pack that desperately needed an alpha heir. And they paid a handsome price for that.”

“How old were you?”

“Ten.”

“What was the pack like?” You ask, sitting on the bed.

“The pack was great. They became my family, and I took over when the old alpha passed. I am now in charge of them, leading them into years of success. You’ve heard of the Blackmane pack…”

You shake your head.

“Really? That’s a first. Everyone knows us. It’s one of the oldest and largest packs still around. We have over a hundred members, twenty subpacks under us. The Nykos included.”

“The Nykos are under your rule? Did you know I was there?”

“We don’t monitor the packs like the police. They do their own thing, but all packs under Blackmane are automatically in an alliance. So it’s against our agreement to start fights with another sub pack. That’s about as far as regulation goes. As for you, they never listed they had omegas like they should have. Now I know why. So no, I didn’t know you were there.”

“Is Greenridge one of yours?”

“No.”

“So if you don’t monitor them, then what were you doing there?”

“With my help, Blackmane climbed the rankings and became privileged members of the Hybrid Association. There was a tip called in about Lewis and his treatment of omegas a few days ago. I took the responsibility to follow up and see if it was true, seeing as they were under our pack. When we arrived, Lewis was quick to butter us up, but I saw right through him. My men rounded up the immediate members and went through the house. It was then we found a female omega, Chris, and his betas.”

“How did they look?” you stepped forward.

Reed titled his head at you. “They were beaten and bloody but fine. They could walk out on their own so I sent them and that girl to the Hybrid Association with a couple of my men.”

You breathe a sigh of relief, thankful that they were okay. “Why send them to the Hybrid Association?”

“To give a statement of what happened so the remaining Nyko members can be dealt with.” Reed went back to finishing his food.

“Why’d you kill Lewis then? Instead of giving him to the Hybrid Association?” you asked warily.

“I couldn’t bear for him to weasel his way out of a death sentence after what he did to you. So when that girl told us what he did to you three omegas, I had him chained in the basement. My men dealt with him, I gave the final blow.”

You shudder, remembering the way his body looked.

“Let’s get one thing straight. I’m not Lewis. If I hurt or kill, it’s with intention and reason, not for fun.” He sat straighter, speaking with so much authority. “I’m not a threat to you.”

You nod, thinking over his words.

“Please eat.” Reed insisted.

You finally caved, sitting down and eating. It was so good you scarfed it down. Once you both finished, he offered you a chance to shower. You showered quickly and got dressed in the clothes he left you to change into.

Once dressed, you emerged from the bathroom. He was sitting on the couch, typing on his computer with a serious face.

“Can you take me home now?” you ask, brushing your hair.

“No.”

“No? Why not?”

“Because you’re going with me.” he said, still not looking up from his computer.

“I don’t want to. I want to go home. The rest of the pack is probably so worried about me.”

“They’ll be fine.” He reached for his phone, still barely paying attention to you.

“No. They won’t. Did you forget the part about us being soulmates?”

He finally looked up. “You need to give a statement at the Hybrid Association for what you have been through.”

“Fine. After, will you take me home?”

“Yes.” 

You figured you wouldn’t press the matter further and fell back on the bed. You laid there for a few more minutes until Reed declared it was time to go. You followed him down the hall, two men in front of you, two men behind.

They stopped in front of three sets of doors and pushed a button. There was a light above each door with arrows pointing up or down, flashing in time with a beeping sound. One of the doors opened, revealing a small room. They led you inside, and you looked around nervously.

“Never been in an elevator, I’m assuming.” Reed smiled over at you.

“No.” you mumbled,

The doors shut and you felt the room shake. You nearly jumped out of your skin, grabbing Reed’s arm tight. 

“It’s alright. It’s just lowering us to the ground floor.” Reed said, resting his hand on yours that was gripping his bicep. “We are going to have to work on your exposure to the world.”

“Blame your minion.” you grumble.

“Oh I do. I just regret not making him suffer longer.” 

Part you wished you had been here. Sure you might not have stomached it but to see him struggle and get what he deserved…it would have been satisfying.

The room finally stopped moving, bouncing slightly before the doors opened. You stepped out, seeing a whole different area. It felt like you had teleported.

“Come.” he beckoned with a small smile.

You followed Reed to the car, climbing in the backseat of the Escalade. As the suv peeled away from the hotel, you looked out the window. You didn’t recognize anything around you and it made you wonder.

“How far from Greenridge are we?”

“Couple hours.” Reed shrugged. “But it’s about to be more.”

“More? But I need to tell them I’m okay. That I’ll be back.”

“Do you have their number to call?”

“No…”

“Then how did you plan on telling them?”

You shrug. You had no way of reaching them.

“State your name for the record.” a man said in a bored tone.

“Bang Chan.” 

“Please tell us what happened last night to the best of your knowledge.” he muttered, two other gentlemen sitting on either side of him.

“Of course. Well, it actually started earlier that morning when I-”

“Mr. Bang, we are just here to collect your testimony as to what occurred at the Nyko Pack’s main house last night.” the man interrupted.

“This is important information relating to last night’s events, sir.”

“If we need the extra information, we will ask for it.” the man stated. 

Chan cleared his throat. “Last night, Hyunjin, Jisung, and myself were locked in cells in Lewis's basement. We had been sedated and were just coming to. Lewis pulled me from my cell, chaining me to a wall in a separate room. He had a cattle prod that he used to shock me repeatedly. He wanted us to suffer, but also wanted to use us as bait for y/n to come back.”

“Who’s y/n?”

“She was an omega he held captive in his basement, tortured and abused for years.”

“Why would he treat his omega like that?”

“She’s not his omega. And it wasn’t just her he abused. There were two others treated the same. I don’t know what compelled him to do such heinous acts.”

The three of them began to scribble on their papers.

“And how do you know this to be true?”

“She came onto our property. I saw the scars and injuries first hand.”

“What injuries?”

“His brothers liked to hunt her for sport, which they did the night we found her. She had silver and cobalt pellets embedded in her skin from them using her as target practice.”

The men scribbled more notes.

“Is she still in your care?” the man on the left asked.

“Yes.”

“And you didn’t return her, why?” the center man asked.

“She’s our soulmate.”

“Our?”

“All of my pack felt the soulmate bond, myself included.”

Jotting notes once more.

“What happened next?” The man to the right asked.

“We had our pack doctor, Doctor Quinn assist our medic, Felix, in caring for y/n. They removed the pellets, gave her an IV and let her heal. Slowly she learned to trust us. We helped her settle in, make a nest and now she’s feeling like part of the pack.”

“Is she marked?”

“Not by us.”

All three men looked up, confused. “Elaborate.”

“Lewis marked her.”

“Was he a soulmate as well?”

“Y/n said she never felt the pull with him the way she did with us.”

They wrote down more notes, shaking their heads.

“We’ve gotten a little sidetracked. Let’s get back to last night. After Lewis tortured you, what happened.”

“His brothers, Hayes and Milo came down as well…”

“Well well…look at the true alpha now.” Hayes taunted.

“Not so tough now, are you?” Milo snickered.

Chan was panting and shirtless, now suspended from the ceiling by his wrists. His skin was sweaty and bloodied from the lashes Lewis just delivered.

“Got nothing to say?” Milo asked, circling Chan.

Chan spit at the ground right in front of Milo. Milo punched him in the ribs, smiling at him.

“That wasn’t very nice, Chris.”

“Stop calling me that.” Chan growled.

“Look, Hayes. He’s getting angry.”

Hayes smirks, coming closer. He gets directly in Chan’s face, forcing him to look up at him.

“Such a pathetic alpha…” Hayes taunts. “You can’t even protect your pack.”

As if on cue, the cries of Hyunjin and Jisung echo down the hall. Their pained screams tug at Chan’s heart. 

“And soon enough…that little omega will be ours once more. I do enjoy fucking her sweet little cunt. Tell me, have you had the pleasure yet?” Hayes tilted his head at Chan.

Chan was seething, his chest heaving as he took deep breaths. His eyes were bloodshot, pupils red with fury. His jaw was clenched and his hands bawled into fits. The chains above him groaned as he pulled down on them. Hayes threw his head back, laughing.

“She’s quite a prude if you ask me. So if you really want a taste…” Hayes leaned into Chan’s space once more, whispering, “you’re gonna have to take it. And when you do, those sweet sounds she makes…..ugh the tears and whines as she begs you to stop. You know she secretly loves it. She gets so wet and-”

SNAP.

The chains holding Chan’s wrists snap apart, leaving a few links dangling from his wrists as they drop. His hands are immediately around Hayes’s neck, forcing him backwards to the stone wall. Milo was quick to jump in, attempting to pull Chan off his brother. Haye’s eyes flash panic as he feels the strength in Chan’s iron grip.

Chan releases one hand to shake off the pest that is Milo, shoving him to the ground. Hayes grips Chan’s remaining hand with both his hands, still not strong enough to pry him off. 

Chan now gets in Hayes’s face, gripping his neck so tight his face was starting to turn purple.

“You will never….ever get to touch my girl again.” Chan growled through gritted teeth.

With a flick of Chan’s wrist and a crack sound coming from Hayes’s neck, it was done. Chan threw his limp body to the ground, turning around and seeing Milo standing there in shock. 

“How dare you!” Milo charged at Chan

Chan was quick to duck out of the way, quickly turning around to face Milo, hand grazing the table. Milo yelled, turning around and lunging at him once more. Chan lifted his arm and stabbed a knife into Milo’s neck.

Milo froze. Chan yanked it out, blood spraying out. Milo was quick to clutch his neck, looking dumbfounded at Chan who just watched emotionlessly. Chan’s face and chest was splattered in blood, Milo dropping to his knees as blood poured from his neck. Toppling over, Milo too was now dead.

The room was silent.

“It was then some of the men from the Blackmane pack came in, rescuing me and my betas. They also rescued the omega girl left behind, and sent us all here.” Chan continued.

“I see.” the one in the center said. “And you’re aware of the laws we have in place, correct.”

“Yes, sir. I know it sounds bad. But I only acted in self-defense. They were hurting me and my betas. Plus they also-”

“Unfortunately, Mr. Bang…” the man on the right sighed, removing his glasses. “We know your history with these kinds of things. You are a power hungry alpha and many have fallen at your hands.”

“Sir, I-”

“Christopher Bang. Did you think we didn’t know your last name? Or your alias ‘Chan’?” The gentleman on the left spoke, rising from his chair. “You killed your own brother and now two members of a neighboring pack - one being an alpha. Our first law is ‘Thou shalt not kill one’s hybrid brethren’ or did you forget?”

Chan swallowed, before shaking his head.

“Take him away.” the one in the center waved his hand.

Two guards from the back of the room stepped forward, grabbing Chan by the arms.

“Wait. Please, this is a misunderstanding.”

“You would do well mind your manners and go willingly. Any protest will not help your case.” the man on the right cautioned.

So Chan left willingly, the two guards leading him to a holding cell. It looked more like an interrogation room, having a two way mirror on one wall. There was, however, a cot on the opposite wall, a toilet and sink with a smaller mirror next to it. 

Once they were gone, Chan groaned. He looked into the small mirror, seeing the blood still decorating his skin. His eyes flash red and he punches the glass, shattering his reflection. Pulling his fist back, he plucks a few shards of glass from his knuckles. His hand bled a little so he turned on the water to wash his hands, splashing water on his face in an effort to wash off the remaining blood.

Hyunjin, Jisung, and the omega named Piper all gave their statements of what happened as well. Hyunjin managed to convince them to allow a phone call to their pack. They knew everyone was probably worried sick and needed to hear from them. On top of that, they desperately wanted to get back home. He held Jisung’s hand as they called together, luckily remembering Minho’s cell number.

“Hello?” Minho asked warily.

“Min? It’s Hyunjin.” They hear him let out a big exhale.

“Where are you guys? Are you okay?” Minho asked in a serious tone.

“We’re okay. We’re at the Hybrid Association headquarters.” Hyunjin answered.

“What are you doing there?” 

“A pack rescued us. They sent us here to explain what happened last night.” Jisung said.

“They wanted you to explain Lewis’s death?” Minho questioned.

“Lewis is dead?” Jisung nearly yelled.

“Yes. You didn’t know?”

“No. We were here because Chan killed Hayes and Milo.” Hyunjin whispered.

“He did?”

“Yes. They had us in chains and were torturing us. But Chan snapped, breaking free and killing them.”

“I bet y/n is relieved. She didn’t witness it, did she?” Minho asked.

“Y/n? She’s not with us.” Jisung stated.

“She’s not with you?” Hyunjin asked.

Minho was silent, clenching his jaw.

“Min?” Hyunjin looked to Jisung.

“She ran off last night to rescue you guys. We came shortly after, but we were too late. The house was empty. We found Lewis’s body though. We…we assumed she was with you guys.” Minho explained.

“We never saw her. It must have been the pack that found us that has her.”

“They probably killed Lewis too.” Minho said. “Where’s Chan?”

“Um…in a holding cell.” Hyunjin admitted.

“What!?” Minho yelled, making them jerk from the phone.

“They won’t let us see him.” Jisung whined. “Maybe it has something to do with Hayes and Milo?”

Minho was silent. He wondered if the real reason was Chan’s past coming to haunt him once more. After a few moments, Minho spoke. “We will be there shortly to get you. Then we are heading to the Blackmane pack. We believe they have y/n.”

“Blackmane? That was the pack that helped us.” Hyunjin noted. “They were nice people.”

“Then why haven’t they returned y/n?” Minho asked, doubting the kind nature of the Blackmane pack.

“Our time’s up. See you soon.” Hyunjin said.

“We are on our way.” Minho assured them.

Hyunjin and Jisung then followed a gentleman down the hall. They headed down the hall which opened up to a corridor that was well lit with natural light from all the windows. The ceiling was ten stories up from the bottom and glass with a huge chandelier hanging from the center. The halls opened up to the sides, walkways that wrapped around the corridor in a circular design. The center was open through all the levels, the walkway inclined to bring you up to each level. 

They headed up the walkway to the upper levels from level three which overlooked the reception desk below. The employee led them up to level four and they turned down the hall.

Downstairs, Reed and you walk in. He smiles at the receptionist, guiding you up the walkway. You get to level three and Reed leads you down a hall towards a small room designed like a courtroom.

“I’ll be right here when you’re done. You can do this.”

You take a deep, nodding. You step inside, standing in front of three gentlemen.

“State your name for the record.” the man said.

“Um… y/n y/l/n.”

“What are you here to discuss?”

“Alpha Lewis and…um…his mistreatment of omegas.” you say, twiddling your fingers.

“Y/n…as in the omega who escaped the Nyko pack?” the one on the right asked.

“Um…yes?” you say.

“Speak up, honey. We can barely hear you.”

“Yes.” you speak louder.

“Okay. Where would you like to start?”

It took nearly an hour to go over everything he did to you while in his house. They questioned you about a lot of details, some hard to talk about. They asked you about your time and treatment during the period you were with the Greenridge pack as well. You confirmed the soulmate connection and talked very highly of everyone. The men just nodded, taking notes to look over later. 

Chan paced restlessly in his cell. Of course they knew who he was. And now they had him trapped, soon to face trial most likely. What was he going to do? He had to find a way to prove he didn’t kill his brother. He wouldn’t have become a true alpha if he had.  

Plan after plan swirled around his head as he tried to figure out how to get back home to his pack - to you. It was then his thoughts were interrupted, a voice speaking into the intercom.

“Well, well.” The voice taunted.

The hairs on the back of Chan’s neck stood tall. He froze, eyes wide. He knew that voice.

“Seems the alpha finally got caught.”

“You.” Chan growled.

“What about me?”

“You were there. You’re the one who killed my brother.”

“Still spilling that lie? What makes you think it was me?”

“I know your voice.”

“Do you? It would be wrong for you to falsely accuse an innocent person.”

“You’re not innocent.”

“And neither are you, I hear.”

Chan glared at the two way mirror, being only met with his reflection. The man's words rang true as Chan took in his reflection.

“Tell me Chris…or Chan if that’s what you prefer now.” the voice continued. “How much longer do you think your pack will follow you when they learn the truth of what you’ve done?”

Chan’s hand balled into fists, rage coursing through him. Only Minho knew the truth about his past. How his brother was killed right in front of him. How the killer ran off before anyone else showed up, Chan being left there looking guilty. No one wanted to believe the alpha who always boasted about having his own pack. Instead, they called him greedy, power hungry, and ruthless. He’s never been able to prove them wrong, not knowing the name of his brother’s killer. But one day, he always dreamt, he would expose the truth.

“You’re a murderer. They aren’t going to follow a murderer.” the man continued.

Chan growled, banging his fists on the glass and causing the man to just laugh.

Once you finished your statement, you came out to see Reed working on his phone. Okay, not working. More like nodding off. You smiled, coming over and shaking his shoulder. He jumped awake, looking around frantically.

“Oh. You’re done?” he asked, putting his phone in his pocket.

“Yep. They said I was free to go.”

“Great. Let’s go.”

You followed him back down the walkway and out the front doors. You got in the suv, eager to go back to your pack. You missed them terribly and felt a deep need to see them. You wanted to assure them you were okay and hopefully get Minho to stop blaming himself. 

“Hungry?” Reed asked.

You shook your head.

“You don’t eat much, do you?”

You shrug. “I just want to get home.”

“Suit yourself.” Reed shrugged too, going back to his phone as the driver peeled off from the Hybrid Association.

Not even five minutes after your departure, Minho pulls up. The packs wait outside while Minho and Changbin go inside for their people. The receptionist directed them to level two. They followed her directions, finding themselves in a lounge. Off to the side, they located their boys.

“Jinnie, Ji!” Minho calls.

They both come rushing over, jumping into their waiting arms. They hug each other tight, Minho pulling back to examine them.

“I’m okay.” Hyunjin says.

“Good.” Minho says, kissing him briefly before checking over Jisung as Changbin holds him close. 

Changbin kisses his check, rubbing his back as Jisung relaxes into his hold. Minho then ushers them to the car, staying behind at the desk as they walk off with Changbin.

Minho turns around, his smile gone from his face. He marches up to the front desk, all pleasantries gone.

“I want to visit someone.”

“What’s the name?” the older lady asks.

“Bang Chan.”

“I’m sorry, son. He’s not allowed visitors.”

“What?! No, I’m his right hand alpha.”

“I’m sorry. Your rank doesn’t matter here.”

“Is there someone I can speak to about this?” Minho asks, exasperated.

“That would be Mr. Park. His office is on level three.”

Minho marches up the walkway, and finds his way to Mr. Park’s office. He knocks on the door, but no answer.

“Can I help you?” a gentleman asks, coming up from behind Minho.

“I’m looking for Mr. Park.”

“That’s me. What can I do for you?”

“I’m here to see Bang Chan.”

“I’m afraid he’s in lockup, pending trial.”

“I know. I want to visit him?”

“Those pending a trial are not allowed visitors.”

“He didn’t do it. His brother was killed by someone else.”

“I’m afraid I cannot discuss the case with you.”

“I’m his second in command, current Alpha in Greenridge until he returns, Lee Minho.”

“Sorry Minho. Those are the rules.”

“Your rules are bullshit!”

“You’d do well to watch your tone.” 

Minho grabbed the man by his collar, shoving him back into the wall. A nearby security officer stepped forward but Mr. Park raised his hand to stop him.

“Let go or you will be in a holding cell of your own.”

Minho growled, releasing the man and storming off. He flipped a stack of chairs in the process, scaring those passing by. He was livid to say the least.

Upon exiting the building, Changbin turned to see his mate. 

“What happened?”

“He’s pending trial. So no visitors.”

“Pending trial for what?” Seungmin asked.

“Killing Hayes and Milo probably.” Hyunjin said in a quiet voice.

“And his brother.” Minho added, face void of emotion.

They all looked at him confused.

“We should talk.” Minho sighed, deciding it was time they knew the truth.

You were in fact hungry, but didn’t want to admit it now after you told him no thirty minutes ago. Unfortunately, home would be hours more of a drive to get to. Ugh you were going to have to speak up.

You turned to Reed, who was typing on his computer next to you, but noticed a giant mansion out the window. The car turned, stopping at a large gate that opened.

“Where are we?” you asked.

“Home.” Reed said.

“This isn’t Greenridge. You said you would take me home.”

“Yes, I did. I didn’t say to your home.”

You stared dumbfounded at him as the car pulled up under a carriage and stopped. Reed moved to get out, noticing you not moving.

“Come on. I’ll show you to your room”

“No.”

“No?”

“You tricked me.”

Reed sighed. “Come inside. I have some things to tend to. You can eat while I do that. Then we can freshen up and change clothes. Then I’ll see about taking you home.”

He winked at you before exiting the car. Groaning, you get out. You were hungry so you’d allow him to feed you first. He will be taking you home to your mates after that.

TAGLIST:

@estella-novella @lxvxchxrlxttxbxrsx22-blog @butterflydemons @readr1221 @gaby105-skz @notevenheretbh1 @bah2004 @sinfulfic @bowsnbang @just-a-blackthorn-cookie @dreamerwasfound @motheraiya55 @m00njinnie @writeuntilthebitterend @jutdwae-flower @staytinyluv @emmxxsworld @galaxy4489 @wolfo2027 @iknow-uknow-leeknow @thatgirlangelb @fr34k4c1dr41n @stwq2349 @rylea08 @sang-09.

Shout out to my lovely beta @cherry-erii

[cheeseceli]

Sides of SKZ they only show around their s/o

Pairing: ot8!skz × gn!reader (individually)

Genre: fluff and maybe a little bit of angst

A/n: idk if that makes sense and I'm sorry if it happens to be repetitive but ! I liked to write it so yeah. As always, not proofread

Bang Chan - He's Reckless

Being the eldest sibling, eldest member and the leader of stray kids, Chan became pretty much a parental figure for many. He's always looking out for everybody, making sure everything is okay and dealing with any problem. Don't get him wrong, he loves his job and the people in his life, but sometimes it's exhausting to take care of everything. When he met you though, everything changed. He feels that he can let go. He can be reckless and ask for attention some times. Because, for once, there's someone taking care of him.

Lee Know - He's scared

Usually, he is a confident and even cocky guy. With you though, he is scared. Scared that he might lose you. Scared that his job or personality might scare you. Scared that someone out there is better than him and you'd soon find out. He can't bear to lose you, he doesn't want to imagine a life without you in it. So he'll fight each one of his fears if that means you'll be with him till the very end.

Changbin - He doesn't care

I feel like he always wants to give people the right impression. He wants to say the right thing, behave the right way and hope people will be always satisfied. But suddenly he doesn't care that much anymore. Because he already managed to impress you and you're more than satisfied. Above all of that, you love him. People's opinions are not that important after all.

Hyunjin - He's aware

Always an artist, he knew how to appreciate the beauty in the world since a young age. But since he fell for you every moment seems like an epiphany. The autumn leaves are beautiful, falling with grace. The old lady talking to a kid brings tears to his eyes for an unknown reason. He realises how the breeze is refreshing and how he loves you dearly. He thinks for a second that maybe you're the one who brought life to this world, and he is so happy that he can see all this beauty when he's with you.

Han - He doesn't think

Most of the time, he's too self conscious about his actions and his words, like he needs to be super cautious with everything. Self doubt and overthinking is part of his routine at this point, except when you're with him. You're his safe place. Whenever you're with him, he just does or says whatever he thinks and is never scared you'll judge him, because he knows you never would.

Felix - He's protective

He has a kind nature. He usually doesn't look up for confrontation and is always gentle. But then you came to his life as the most precious treasure he ever saw and now he wants to protect it. Because you're the light of his life and he'll fight anything and anyone if that means you'll be safe. He would happily be your knight in a shining armour if you asked him.

Seungmin - He's vulnerable

Most people only see his "mean" personality or how he doesn't show a lot of affection towards others. We all know he actually is really caring but when it comes to you he's also vulnerable. He doesn't care if one can perceive him as "weak", and he's not scared of oversharing by accident. When he's with you, he's made of glass, but he doesn't mind as he knows you'd never break him.

I.N - He's perfeccionist

You're the best thing to ever happen to him and he is aware of that. He wants to give his all to you and he wants you to be treated like royalty. So he is always trying his best to make sure you're treated like one. He always wants everything to be perfect, because he believes that perfect is still so little compared to what you truly deserve.

Feedbacks and reblogs are always appreciated!

Dividers by @cafekitsune

[sugarushwriting]

ot7 vampire — human blood bank

s2, p10

adult content featured

this may or may not be a sneak preview into a spinoff involving skz 😊

this is the last part! i had started writing a part 11 and last part but couldn’t figure it out so human blood bank, s2 ends here! — [not proof read]

you were in awe at this world around you. it’s almost like you’ve stepped into a new dimension. dark and gloomy, but inviting. castles lined up, feeling like an academy of some sort. like a boarding school.

you’ve been here a few hours, chan giving you a tour of the most important parts. jay annoyed behind him that your attention is all on chan and his clan.

you’ve seen the workout and defense trainings ran by leader of the guards and protectors, seo changbin. he was a buff guy and you couldn’t help but poke at his bicep. lee minho, vampire you have accustomed to, helps out with the classes as well.

you’ve seen the class led by lee felix, healer and fairy. he teaches medicine and support on how to help others that are hurt.

han jisung, werewolf, and kim seungmin, vampire, run a music class for fun. you’ve also learned they’re both part sirens which is why their voices are so entrancing.

hyunjin teaches fencing and classes involving weapons with chan at times.

“what about jeongin?” you asked.

“he just does whatever. makes sure the newbies stay out of trouble.”

“maybe ni-ki should’ve came here.” you said.

you, jay, and sunghoon followed chan up to the main castle. “is this your house?” you asked in awe.

“something like that. not my main, personal home. that, no one will see other than my inner circle.” chan explained

“why? have a torture chamber or something?” you snickered as a joke but chan turned to you with a straight face, then a smirk.

“maybe.”

you stood still as the three walked ahead of you. “coming sweetheart?” chan asked.

jay’s eyes were twitching. sunghoon was internally laughing knowing chan was teasing jay on purpose. jay wouldn’t dare try and fight chan. not with his inner 7 around him. heck, chan doesn’t even need assistance.

“where’s ni-ki, eunchae, and the others?”

“probably with jeongin creating mischief.” chan replied. “anyway, why don’t you come into my office.”

chan opened the door to a huge ass office, lined with books on books. “are these readable?”

“yes. but not fun to read.”

“what do you mean?” you asked curiously.

“it’s mainly history. century old history.”

“eh, i’ll find a way to enjoy it while you men figure out how to make sure i don’t die.” you said and frowned towards jay.

hours later, as the three discussed, you were engaged in the mountains of century old books. learning more about the mythical creatures that surround you. learning about hierarchy. learning in this world, things aren’t black and white, and almost everything has a consequence.

learning about bang chan. if he was destined to mate, where’s his love? you bit your lip, as you read on in the book hoping to find something.

your inner nosy self came about, and you decided to go to chan’s desk as the men were out trying to find a powerful witch or warlock. saying something about the most powerful was giselle with the aespa sisters. they left you behind so you wouldn’t run your energy down.

bingo. you found a journal. multiple actually. the most recent from 1912!? the earliest from 1827. fuck, how old is chan?

“he’s very old. and doesn’t like people meddling in his personal things.” you whipped around seeing seungmin.

“how’d you know—?”

“i can read your mind.” he smiled widely. “now put the journals back before he kills all of us.”

you swallowed but complied. “do you know about chan’s love life?” you began asking but seungmin turned around. you ended up following him.

“oh, the pup is following.” he sighed.

“please! i read alpha males could possibly die without a mate? what about chan? he gives alpha vibes but i have never seen him with someone.” you rattled off.

“that’s not my business to tell.”

“aw come on seungmin! you seem like the type that likes to gossip!”

“you have me incorrect.”

you stood in your spot and pouted. “please?”

“why don’t you just ask me if you’re so curious?” you heard chan speak from behind you.

there he stood with jay and sunghoon, with another woman with a hood up. she removed her hood, revealing her long dark hair.

she walked up to you, no words, and grabbed your hand, hers cold as ice. “she’s weakening. we don’t have anymore time.” the woman turned her head to the men behind her. “we’ll have to go against the ritual and moon. beg for forgiveness.”

“you heard her!” sunghoon snapped. “you’ll be begging on your knees for forgiveness dumbass!” sunghoon snarked to jay.

“chan, do you have an empty space we won’t be bothered? possibly an atreum?” chan nodded. “great, i will beckon giselle, winter, and karina to come quick. gather felix and have him come as well.”

“who are you?” you asked, wondering who was this woman with ice cold hands.

“im ning-ning.”

you paced in the office of chan’s as you waited for the girls—witches—to finish setting up.

you did feel weaker. you felt as if you were losing a part of yourself.

“if you keep pacing, you’ll weaken yourself even more.” chan sighed.

you stopped, turned to him, and asked, “what happened to your love? your mate, if you all still call them that?”

chan’s heart sped thinking about his past lover. it still hurt, even centuries later. “she was killed by an enemy. a hunter.”

you took in a deep breath. “oh my goodness, chan—,”

he nodded. “yeah, it still hurts, but im okay.”

“everyone deserves a second chance at love! have you tried? what do you do when you know—you get the itch you need to scratch?”

chan chuckled. “i have a hand.”

“oh, well, uh,”

“and i will have a second chance. she may have passed on, but im just waiting for her to come back to me.”

“come back as in?”

“yes reincarnation.”

you smiled, but just then, your hand went to clutch your chest in staggering pain. a quick frown came on your lips. you heard voices around you but couldn’t make them out or what they were saying. some voices even seem distant. like not on this earth.

suddenly, you started coughing up blood uncontrollably, falling to your knees on the ground.

again, deep screams came from around you. panic. crying. yelling. footsteps. your vision became blurry. white. you couldn’t see anything.

maybe you screamed. you at least tried to, anyway. your neck burned. the mark burned. your whole body felt on fire.

“please. please. please.” you mumbled out. you didn’t want to die. you didn’t want to forget your boys.

“43 fucking hours!” jay yelled, throwing a glass cup, full of whiskey at the wall. “she hasn’t woken up in 43 hours!”

“all because of you.” ni-ki snickered.

“would you relax? the good thing she isn’t dead! the aespa sisters and felix are keeping a close eye on her.” sunghoon stated.

“fuck!” jay tugged at his hair.

all 7 of your boys were gathered in chan’s office, talking about what happened. your body got so weak, you had less time than anticipated. they had rushed you to the atreum where the aespa sisters had candles, herbs, and other things sitting around your body. hoping the earth, moon, would heal you. forgive jay for his sins against authority.

sunghoon was right. you weren’t dead, but you weren’t exactly alive either. you were in the in between. it was up to you, your soul, your ancestors to choose the path you either continue to take or change.

“what if she becomes a hunter?” sunoo spoke up.

“oh please she can barely stand up right, let alone try to kill one of us.” ni-ki teased. he was trying to ease the tension of everyone. they understood where he was coming from, but it was hard.

“why don’t you all go to the dining hall and find some food? something other than blood.” minho suggested. “all of you.” he narrowed his eyes at jay and sunghoon.

“sitting here worrying isn’t going to make the situation any better.” seungmin added in. “let’s go, i’ll take you where we eat.”

reluctantly all 7 of them followed seungmin and minho, leaving chan behind with changbin and hyunjin.

just as the boys left, giselle came into the room. “she’s alert, but confused.”

“her path?”

“still unclear, but looks like she won’t be a hunter.”

“could she become a witch?” changbin asked, cracking his knuckles.

giselle sighed. “still unclear.”

karina came beside giselle and they shared a look.

“what?” chan asked.

“we think it’ll be best for the ultimate vampire to try and feed her his blood.”

“you mean me?” chan asked with a squeak and pointed to himself. jay would not go for that.

karina added, “you would be the last resort, yes. but we were thinking of starting out with ni-ki. he is a special vampire. their bond is different than hers with the other guys.”

hyunjin asked nervously, “would she be turned into a vampire? i know her bloodline may prevent her from, but could that be so twice in a row?”

giselle then added, “we don’t know, but it’s best we try.”

chan through his mind asked jeongin to bring ni-ki back to the main castle as soon as possible and to not alert any of the others. chan could trust jeongin will make up an excuse of wanting to play a prank.

in no time, jeongin and ni-ki arrived back at the main castle, and was told of the witches plans.

ni-ki hesitated, but would do anything to protect you. he found the four witches and felix surrounding you in the atreum, chan and his guys right outside the door.

felix handed ni-ki a sharp knife, as winter talked ni-ki through feeding you.

with ease, he cut himself, and held his forearm against your lips as his blood dripped into your mouth. since you weren’t be turned, you didn’t latch on like most would.

your eyes fluttered open, turning red for a quick second before they went back to normal. ni-ki removed his forearm, felix immediately tending to you.

suddenly you got the most painful headache, grabbing your forehead. ni-ki felt the same. “fuck!”

“now your imprint with ni-ki has saved you.”

ni-ki and you whipped your head to the witches. “im—imprint?” you stuttered out.

ni-ki looked at you in disgust. you looked back at him with equal disgust.

“remove that look off your face, you turd!”

“im fucking imprinted with her?” ni-ki asked in disbelief. the girls and felix exchanged looks then laughs. “i want a redo.”

“it was either imprinting with ni-ki or chan.” winter explained.

“i would’ve rather taken my chances imprinting with chan!”

after your strength came back within a few minutes, you all walked out to the big room where chan, jeongin, hyunjin, and changbin waited.

“wait until jay finds out i imprinted with you.” ni-ki sighed. little did he know, they had just walked through the door.

“you did what!” jay yelled. the mark on your neck was healed and gone, yet your smell was still strong of jay’s clan.

“i just saved your human blood bank, you’re welcome!” ni-ki said.

chan explained that the imprint between you and ni-ki were out of protection not romantic feelings. chan had also explained with this, senses are heightened even more.

“you mean—,”

you groaned, “don’t tell me this fucker will be able to hear me doing the dirty!”

[hatterladz]

Ok now my actual thoughts

Spoils for 357

I'm gonna focus this on the fight. Now as much as Oswald completely INFURIATED me this chapter, I can't just walk away saying he's the worst. Listen I analyze problematic characters for a hobby I can't just wash my hands and walk away because someone did something that made me mad.

I can see why it spiralled so quickly on both parts, Fanny is struggling to get a foothold in her life [god the part of her wanting to cry about getting actual support bc she never had any is so SO relatable]. I mean she left her husband the previous night, is now being bodyguarded by the brother of the person she barely gets around to apologizing to, got fired got hired again at the Quester's House and is watching and seeing how unique every one of the sick are when her ex walks in out of nowhere.

She's reeling, I imagine her emotional regulation is shot to hell and back and then Oswald tells her hey you know this super nice good thing that JUST happened to you? You don't deserve it.

Now onto Oswald. Oswald walks in trying to help Felix. And I mentioned it before reading the chapter, Oswald has the worst habit of assuming and acting on his preconceived sense of justice before actually figuring things out. He has good intentions just the WORST way of acting on it

And to him, the Fanny he knows is the one from his toxic relationship with her. The Fanny he remembers wasn't ever a nurse, hadn't gone through the same recent events that she just did to make her the very slightly better person she is now. As absolutely rage enducing that he was, there wasn't a sign of him trying to start something.

He was trying to avoid other people being hurt. Through terrible means. Because he remembers how much Fanny hurt him.

Fanny, after having everything happen to her that just did and then her ex walking through the door and saying "You're too bad of a person to have this good thing" AFTER Cup just tried to assure her she just had to do better AFTER Red offered her a job because her friend knows and AFTER she just got invited to this warm family dinner. And the more Oswald pushed the more he emphasized that point.

And the more he said it the more Fanny fell back on both of their old patterns. Snapping back over and over until Oswald threatens to bring in her awful father and until she also brings up Felix.

Now I'm going to be honest while the threat is there along with the intent, I'm sure Felix and Oswald will be fine. There's a good chunk of zanies, who won't care, people who live with zanies who will be forced to get over it and the questers maybe not without knowing from the others, have long since grown past being homophobic [asides maybe Boris but I don't see him being homophobic] or weren't in the first place

The house will keep the gossip under control, there might be a slip but I doubt Red or Oddswell will let that fly. But I could be wrong we'll see. At the very least Bendy won't be and we've already seen how much sway he has over the household.

Now onto the respective parties reactions. Felix running out isn't surprising and I doubt it's just because he's bi. He just watched the man he brought into the house to come support him start harrassing this woman seemingly for no reason, and then got outted and told he looks like Ortensia. Because let's be real, although Felix is told he is REMINDED of Oswald's wife he's never been told he looks IDENTICAL to her. And he just watched said man try to hit this girl.

Now I'm going to give Fanny some credit here, she's dealing with her toxic ex but not ONCE does she let Cup get involved. Every moment it looks like he's about to prior to Oswald's attempt to hit her, she sees it and cuts Cup off. And I'm happy for her for that, she really does care about Cup's wellbeing that when she sees him about to get involved in her mess she prevents it from happening.

Now what took me by surprise is it wasn't Oswald that left, it was Fanny. Fanny was the one who left out of shame [who could blame her], and Fanny was the one who tells Cup to leave since she's in a toxic mindset. I was also curious as to why Mugs didn't try to follow her out instead of Cup, since Mugs is her bodyguard and seemed pretty insistent on keeping Cup uninvolved. Something tells me he's sticking around for the Oswald situation, or maybe that's wishful thinking.

Still maintaining my love hate relationship of Cup getting further and further involved with Fanny. He's trying hard to be a good friend to her, he cares a lot and he wants to help because Fanny's situation is one he can try to understand and help with. However it does mean it can get messy, especially with the divorce and people see the two together.

[sheikahwarriork]

Sylvain: I think she is staring again…

Dimitri: I am sure she simple despises me.

Felix: It’s called focus, boar. You should try it for once in your life.

Jeralt, who is in horse duty nearby and knows exactly where she is looking as once he also received the very same unblinking, wild and intense gaze from Sitri to his own bosom: … that boy has no idea what he just got himself into.

CANON TO ME DEAR ANON!!

i liked this idea so much it made me write a little fic, i hope you'll enjoy!

wordcount: 2.4k

Staring

Dimitri was puzzled by the Ashen Demon- no, she said her name is Byleth, and Dimitri couldn't find a reason to not use it (especially because it sounds so sweet on his lips)- by Byleth's intense stare. The woman was not very expressive, he knew it well by now; and despite Dimitri's efforts to get to know her better, he still couldn't figure out why she started to staring at him so much. He was almost sure she hates him, and how could he blame her? His army essentially forced her and Jeralt's company to join the kingdom (that, or death); and even if Shez tried many times to reassure him that Byleth wouldn't do anything she doesn't want, and Jeralt himself thanked the king for freeing them from the Empire's hands, Dimitri can't help but feel like Byleth Eisner isn't feeling comfortable in his army. ('Forced to fight for the useless beast you are-')

And that was a shame, because the woman was a formidable warrior (stronger than Felix, or Dedue, or Shez, and perhaps than Dimitri himself), and Dimitri wish he could make the woman feel more at home. After all, he was the king: it was his duty to make sure everybody is fine. No other reasons whatsoever, of course!

---

Entering the Dining hall of the kingdom's camp, Dimitri immediately noticed two things: Byleth Eisner was eating with Shez and Flayn; and Byleth Eisner's look turned to him the very moment he stepped foot in there. Feeling flustered, Dimitri's gaze turned away, but he sould feel the woman still staring at him. (He already noticed that, if she got caught in her staring, she didn't look embarassed like anyone else caught staring would be; she kept doing whatever she wanted- exactly like Shez told him.)

Sylvain must have noticed too, because Dimitri could hear him chuckle a bit. "She really is shameless, isn't she," he said with a teasing tone.

"I am sure she is holding a grudge towards me," Dimitri replied, unable to hide the light sad tone. "Everytime I look at her, she has that same staring expression."

Felix sighed, annoyed. "For someone so sure she hates you, you sure seems to notice her a lot, stupid boar," he said, rolling his eyes.

Sylvain's chuckle becomes a full laughter.

Dimitri's cheeks blush. "I- I only wish for Miss Eisner to feel comfortable in our army."

Sylvain, still laughing, managed to catch breath. "Well, maybe you should try to give her a dagger, Your Majesty!"

Now Dimitri's blush reached his ears. "Sylvain!" he exclaimed, looking at his friend in astonishment. "This is very unprofessional and uncalled for."

"Strange to say, but the boar is right," Felix said. "If she truly hates him, why should he give her a weapon?" he asked, raising his eyebrow.

Aware that Felix didn't know about the so-called "dagger incident", and fearing that Sylvain was going to tell too much, Dimitri tried to change topic. "Do any of you know about today's stall duty turn?"

He failed. "Well, Your Majesty, if you're really so curious about her feelings for you, shouldn't you ask her directly?" Sylvain said with a malicious hint in his eyes.

Felix shrugged. "Again, strange to say, but Sylvain is right," he said, then looked at Dimitri. "This whole thing is distracting you. Fix it before you fully become a full useless boar, and not just an annoying boar."

Ignoring Felix's last comment, Dimitri nodded. "You are probably right. I should speak to her and make sure Miss Eisner is not bothered by something."

---

When Byleth reached puberty, Jeralt feared he was too old to deal with a teen girl; but luckily (for him) his kid never caused any problem, never went through any "rebel" phase, and never showed any interest towards anyone. And even if Jeralt knew it was selfish of him, he was glad his little girl was still the same.

But now, he would trade a whole troublesome adolescence, if it meant his daughter wouldn't fall for the freaking King of Faerghus.

The Eisners were assigned for stall duty that evening, and as always Byleth was doing an impeccable job. But she suddenly stopped in her working, and Jeralt noticed her eyes carefully following the king's movement: he was walking near them, probably headed to his tend; and Jeralt noticed the nervous expression of the king, when he noticed Byleth was staring at him.

"Hey, kid?" Jeralt called, hoping to catch her attention.

"Yes?" she replied, her eyes still fixed on the king's figure.

"Are you feeling alright? We can take a break if you want."

"No need," Byleth simply replied, not bothering to look away. When the king was out of sight, she turned to Jeralt. "Dad, Dimitri's weird."

The man almost choked. His daughter always has been honest and straight to the point, but to hear her call the king in such a casual manner… he was glad that at least the king didn't look like a strict guy. "Wha- why do you think so?"

Byleth frowned a little, the expression Jeralt knew she made when trying to express a thought she herself didn't really understand. "He… is weird. He's not like anyone I've ever met."

Jeralt sat down. 'I'm too old for this.' "Is that why you stare at him so often?"

Byleth nodded. "I'm curious. And I'm trying to understand why he intrigues me so much."

"So you're… intrigued by him?"

Byleth nodded again, not showing even a hint of embarassment. "And I can't figure out why. He's strong, but he's not the only strong person I met, right? And he's tall, but Dedue is taller. And he's very kind- well, Mercedes and Annette are kind to me too, but in a different way. And he has a pretty smile. But other people smile too. That is to say, he doesn't have anything special per se, and yet, it's like everything is special about him. And I can't figure out why." Byleth was frowing again.

Jeralt wished he had at least a beer with him. "Well, kid… sometimes, people think someone in particular is very special, and that someone is special in ways only for them. The king… is not weird. I think you're intrigued by him not because he's weird, but because you feel he's special for you."

Byleth brought a hand to her chin. "And why is that?" she asked, sincerely puzzled.

Jeralt wished he had two beers with him. "I don't know, kid. Nobody knows how… uhm, why sometimes people think someone else is special. Only the Goddess, perhaps."

Byleth looked like she was lost in thoughts for a few seconds, but then she shook her head. "No, I don't think she does."

Confused, Jeralt decided to drop the matter. "In any case, it's completely normal to feel this way about someone. So you shoudn't worry."

"I don't," Byleth stated. "I guess I'll just have to live with that."

Jeralt's heart almost broke. His kid's first crush was a king, probably already engaged with some duke's daughter: not the most lighthearted romantic story. And yet, the look on his daughter face when looking at Dimitri was the same one Sitri used to give him, a long time ago. It wasn't a simple crush.

He made a bittersweet smile. "Kid, have I ever told you the story of when I met your mother?"

Byleth looked at him, her eyes full of curiosity. She simply shook her head.

"The first time I saw her, she was watering some flowers. Blue irises, just like her eyes. She was the most beautiful woman I've ever seen; she was so captivating I stopped in my walking, and almost tripped! She heard me and turned to look at me… And when our eyes met, she simply smiled. And that is when I knew I fell for her."

"So you did trip in the end?" Byleth asked, tilting her head.

Jeralt chucked, shaking his head. "I mean I fell in love with her."

Byleth nodded, as if understanding during a lesson. "I see. Interesting choice of words." She adverted her gaze. "But thank you for telling me this story."

Was Jeralt's sight getting bad, or was his daughter smiling?

---

Dimitri breathed deeply. The time had come to face Byleth Eisner, to finally talk to her and find out whatever reason she hated him for.

He was well aware of the true reason he postponed the talk for so long. The fear of hearing her sweet voice telling him how much and why she hated him was frightening at least. ('Pathetic. To fear some words from a whatever mercenary girl…') The fear of seeing her go away, far away from his army, far away from him-

Regular as clockwork, her stare was on him the very moment he entered her field of vision (-The fear of not watching her beautiful emerald eyes again-). She kept staring at him while he was approaching. Her stare was unnerving; and Dimitri realized, it was not because he didn't like the idea of getting attention from her, but because it was like she could see inside him, see the monster he truly was. (-The fear of hearing she knew the beast inside him, the fear she may hate him for what he truly was, the fear of knowing she, too, rightfully hated him-)

"Good evening, Miss Byleth," he managed to say, trying to hide his anxiety.

"Hi, Dimitri," she simply replied, calling him by his name. Someone else would be offended by such casualness, but Dimitri always preferred to be addressed by his name, rather than sumptuous titles. (-The fear to lose one of the few people that seemed to understand his wish, the fear to not hear his name from her sweet lips ever again-)

"I don't want to cause any inconvience, but may I speak with you?"

The woman was sitting on a bench, polishing her sword; she simply nodded and made space on the bench for him.

Feeling more nervous than ever, Dimitri complied, and sat next to her. Byleth set down her sword and whetstone and looked at him. "What's the matter?"

Dimitri inhaled deeply. "Forgive me if it's not the case and I'm stealing your time uselessly, but I have the feeling you hold some kind of sentiment towards me. If I have done anything that upset you, please feel free to speak to me."

"Oh. So you have noticed," the mercenary said, for the first time adverting her gaze.

Dimitri felt his heart sink. 'She hates you. Of course she hates you. Were you really hoping she was interested in such a lowly beast-'

"I talked to my father, and he said I think you're special," Byleth kept talking. "Then he told me the story of when he met my mother. I'm not completely sure the two things are related, but maybe he meant he thought my mother was special too?" she asked, looking at Dimitri, as if he had the answers.

He simply blinked. "I'm sorry. What?"

"See? So I'm not the only one that doesn't understand," Byleth sighed.

"No, I mean… I- what… You… What?!"

Byleth looked at him again. "I mean, it was a nice story, and I'm glad he told me. Jeralt rarely speaks about my mother. But I don't understand. And it's annoying. Dimitri, do you think someone is special for you?"

Dimitri was speechless; their talk wasn't like anything he had prepared for. "I- well, I think you're a very special person, Miss Byleth," he finally said. He did, in fact.

"Oh." Byleth, the usually impassive Byleth Eisner, the infamous Ashen Demon, the one mercenary known for striking down enemies without batting an eye, was blushing.

"I- I mean, I saw what you're capable of on the battlefield, you're one of the strongest warrior I've ever met. But I know you're also very kind and patient- I see how you help everybody you can here on our base, and… And you're also very smart, your strategies in the last battle were crucial for our victory! It's a pleasure to have hired you, I consider myself a lucky man to have the change to know you, Miss Byleth. So yes, I can confirm you are a special person indeed."

Dimitri was aware he stuttered a lot, but couldn't stop himself in keep going. Especially because for every thing he said, the blush on Byleth's cheeks got redder. And she was more mesmerizing than ever.

"Very interesting," she finally said, breathless. "Now I understand what my father meant with 'thinking a person is special'. Thank you."

"I admit I feared you held a feeling of hate or some sort for me, Miss Byleth, but I'm glad to know it's not the case," Dimitri said with a smile, feeling lighter.

Byleth frowned lightly. "Why would I hate you?"

Dimitri blushed. "I…" 'Because I'd deserve it.' "It doesn't matter."

"Well, according to my father's words, it's more like I'm in love with you, so I don't think I hate you even a bit," Byleth bluntly stated, as if reflecting on a mission plan.

Dimitri stared at her, sure he didn't hear her words well. Surely he misheard, she couldn't really feel that way for him, he wasn't worthy of such things from anyone, especially her-

And yet, if he did hear her right, if she truly meant what she said- if there was a little, brief possibility she returned his sinful feelings-

"… So yes, you shouldn't worry," Byleth nodded at her own words. "If it's all, I think I'll go to get my dinner. Are you angry? We could-"

She was getting up, she was about to walk away. Unable to stop himself, he grabbed her by the wrist. He needed to know. "Can you repeat that?"

Byleth tilted her head. "That I'm gonna get my dinner?"

"No… before that. That you lo… that you lov…" Dimitri immediately regretted his actions. Of course he misheard her, and now he was making a fool of himself. 'To hope for such things when it's clear nobody can love you, do you enjoy so much to suffer?'

"Oh! You mean that I'm in love with you?" Byleth replied. "My father didn't exactly said that, but I guess it's the right name for this feeling-"

Dimitri moved quickly, taking her face in his hands and pressing a soft kiss on her lips. "Byleth, I love you too. Please marry me."

Byleth was right in thinking she'll live loving Dimitri, and Jeralt was wrong in worrying about it.

bonus scene:

Byleth: Dad, I made a weird dream about Dimitri. We were both naked and-

Jeralt: NOPE. I'M TOO SOBER FOR THIS CONVERSATION

[kpop---scenarios]

Whiplash (5)

Pairing: Felix x Reader x Hyunjin

Genre: Street Racing, Gang, Friends to Lovers

Warning: Some violence, swearing, etc

Word Count: 3.5k

Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four

“I'm sorry.” You whisper. “Who are you?”

The two men look at you in shock. Who were they? Why don't you remember them?

“I'm Felix..this is Hyunjin. We're your.. boyfriend's.” Felix explains to you. You're taken aback, staring at them, confused.

“No.. No, I don't think so. Where's San? We're seeing each other, I need to see San.” You whisper. Your head hurt, your body felt weird. You felt as though you recognized the two men standing in front of you, but you also didn't. You knew San would be able to tell you what happened. He was always honest with you. “Pass me my phone.” You say.

The doctor hands you your phone, and you dial the number you knew well.

“Hello?”

He answered.

“San.” You whimper. “Something is going on.. I'm in the hospital. There's two men here who say they're my boyfriends and I'm just really confused. Can you please come?” You ask.

“I'm on my way.” He says. You can hear him grab his keys before he hangs up the phone. You look up at Felix and Hyunjin, and a knot forms in your stomach. “Can you guys please go? I just need some time.” You whisper. “I have to figure things out, I'm just so confused.”

The two men look heartbroken as they stare at you with sad eyes. They both turn for the door, the doctor holds it open and they leave you all alone.

Twenty minutes later, A sweaty San rushes into your room. He stares at you, the bandage wrapped around your head, The tubes running from your arms and nose, the machines you were hooked up to. He had never felt so guilty in all his life until now, as you laid there and smiled up at him. He hated himself more than anyone else possibly could.

“San..Hi.” You whisper. He walks over to one side of the bed, sitting in the chair next to you. He grabs your hand and starts whimpering.

“I'm sorry Y/N..I'm so fucking sorry.” He cries.

“Why are you sorry? You didn't do this.” You say, squeezing his hand.

And that's when it hit him. You truly didn't remember anything in the last few weeks, months, maybe even years.

And you had no idea that he was the one who pushed you.

“I should have protected you. I failed at that.” He says, sniffling as he looks up at you.

“Do you know what happened?” You ask him. He nods his head. He turns his head, looking at the door before looking back at you. He was internally fighting with himself on how to tell you..or what to tell you. This was his chance to get them back. He needed to distance you from those two, breaking you down and having you hate them is the perfect way to throw them off their game and that's exactly what he wanted.

“It was..Hyunjin and Felix.” He whispers. “They pushed you. You fell and hit your head on a rock.” He tells you.

“What?” You ask, a pang in your heart hits you like a tonne of bricks. “They.. no, that can't be it. They just..i feel like that's not right. They wouldn't do that.”

At least they didn't seem like they would do that to you. Or Would they?

“You can't trust them, Y/N. It was over the stupidest thing too..you called them out for cheating in the race.. they got upset, you got in their face and then they pushed you. You fell back and hit your head.” He sighs.

“But if they were my boyfriends, why would they do that to me?” You whisper.

“Because they don't really love you. They were using you and they were done with you a guess. They decided to try and discard you like trash.” He finishes. Your heart fucking hurts right now.

San’s phone begins to ring loudly, he pulls it from his pocket, answering it quickly, talking quietly enough that you can't hear anything. After he hangs up, he looks at you, pouting. “I have to go.” He says. “But I'll be back to see you.. like I have been the whole time.” He smiles.

As San leaves, a nurse comes in to check your vitals. Something feels off, the way San is acting, it feels sincere but fake. You look at the nurse as she checks you over. “That man.” You begin. “The one that just left..”

“He's handsome! You seem to have some very good looking men in your life.” She chuckles.

“Ha.. yeah.” You reply. “Has he been here the whole time?” You wonder. “Like since I've been in the hospital?”

“Him? Oh no. That's the first time I've seen him. Those other two though. Phew, we practically had to kick them out of the room to eat, shower or do anything. You're a lucky girl.” She smiles.

You give her a half smile as she finishes up, but your mind is racing. You hate that you don’t know what is the truth and what is a lie. Just before she leaves the room, she gives you a few pain pills, and minutes later, you're pain free and in a dead sleep.

The next morning when you wake up, you stretch a little, glancing out the window on your door. You see two familiar faces talking to your doctor. Those two.. how could they?

“Hey!” You yell. They look over at you. “Yeah you two! Come here!”

They walk over to your room, opening the door. “Hi bab..” Felix starts but catches himself.

“Hi Y/N, how are you feeling?” Hyunjin asks. They both look so sad.

“You guys say you love me, right?” You ask. Tears forming in your eyes.

“Yes, of course.” They both answer.

“Then why would you do this to me?” You ask, tears falling already. You couldn't hold it in. “Why would you push me!? Is what he told me true? Were you just using me and this was your way of getting rid of me?” You sob.

“What are you talking about, Y/N!?” Felix asks. They both look worried, their brows furrow as they replay in their head what you had said.

“We didn't do this to you!” Hyunjin says. “It was San! You called him out for cheating!”

“We would never hurt you, Y/N. Ever.” Felix says. Your head is spinning, you feel like you can't breathe. “Get out! How can I believe what you say!?” You scream. “Get out! Go!” You sob.

Both men stare at you for a second, their hearts breaking along with yours. They knew the truth, they told you the truth but why would you believe them? You didn't even remember them.

As Hyunjin and Felix walk out of your room, leaving you behind while you sob. They're walking down the hallway when they see San, heading towards them.

“Son of a bitch.” Hyunjin mutters. Felix walks straight up to him, grabbing San by the collar and slamming him against the wall.

“You fucking lied to her. You told her this was us!? You're such a fucking piece of shit.” Felix yells. San shoves Felix back, walking up to him. “Hope you said your goodbyes, next time you see her she'll be in love with me.” San whispers, laughing as he walks towards your room.

There's a knock at your door and San comes in with a smile on his face, hearing what the doctor is saying. “You're going to be discharged. But you need to take it easy. If you feel dizzy, nauseous, or anything, come back.`` He smiles.

“Yes doctor. Thank you.” you grin. You were feeling better, just weak still.

“Here, I got your clothes from the night of the accident.” he says, handing you a few items. He helps you walk towards the bathroom, letting you get dressed in peace.

Once you're dressed, he grabs your bag, helping you carry it and your shoes, as the two of you leave the room. His hand rests on the flat of your back as he helps you down the hallway, where you see an angry looking Felix and Hyunjin standing, watching the two of you. They watch as you and San pass them, but you don’t notice San turning his head to smirk at them, sending them a wink before the two of you turn the corner. The two of you get in his car and you cannot wait to get back to your own house and be in your bed. You look out the window, and you know this isn't the way to your house.

“Where are you going?” you ask San as he drives down an unfamiliar street.

“You're not staying at your place.” he says, staring at the road.

“I want to go home, please.” you say. “Turn the car around.”

“No, what if something happens? You're not staying there all by yourself.” he says.

“Then I'll call you. Please just take me home.” you say, again.

“No! Fucking listen Y/N!” he snaps, slamming his hand down onto the steering wheel. You turn your head, looking out the window instead of at him. You didn’t want to look at him. For the rest of the ride, neither of you said a word. As you get to his house, you notice a few people passed out on the lawn. It was the afternoon, how were they still out? You get inside the house and it was exactly how you expected it to be. Almost like a frat house, booze everywhere, mismatched furniture. It made you feel sad, like you were missing something, or someone. San led you into a room that had a bed, dresser and a few things scattered around the floor. You walked in, almost gagging at the smell of balls and sweat. He helped you into the bed, as gently as he could. He made you nervous. You worried about saying the wrong thing. He seemed to have a temper and you didn't want to aggravate him.

“Lay down. I'll go get you some water for your pain meds.” he says with a smile. “I'll be back in a few minutes.”

He comes back, water in hand, with two pills. He hands them to you, along with a glass of water. “Drink it all.” He smiles. “You need to stay hydrated. Do you want me to stay here with you?” He asks. You shake your head no, it would only take the pills a few minutes before they made you feel groggy and you'd want to sleep. “I'm going to sleep soon.” You say. “Can I have my phone?” You ask. You had forgotten he had slipped it into his pocket.

“It's in the car. I'll get it and bring it to you.” He says, leaving the room. You lay there and wait. You continue to wait, and wait, and wait. You just wanted to check it, but you couldn't keep your eyes open any longer. You tried to stay awake but you were tired of fighting it now.

San sat on the couch, thankful that you didn't have a pass code on your phone. He read through the messages Felix and Hyunjin had been sending you, telling you not to trust San, and to please be careful. They wanted you to call them if you needed them. San scoffs, yeah right. As if he'd let you see any of those messages. He sat there deleting the incriminating texts, you couldn't be second guessing him, that wouldn't work for his plan.

“Hey man, you wanna game?” Mingi asks, plopping on the couch next to San.

“Yeah, let's do it.” He says, turning on the game, tossing your phone beside him.

“I gotta ask, dude, what the fuck are you doing?” he asks San.

“What’d you mean?” San laughs.

“With the girl? Shes got a fucking head injury, not to mention two boyfriends in a rival gang.” Mingi says.

San laughs loudly. “She won’t have those boyfriends for long. I just need her long enough to ruin those two. Weaken them while I decide what to do with them.”

“And Y/N? What are you gonna do with her once you're done” he asks.

“I don't know yet, I'm kinda liking having her around. Maybe I'll keep her or toss her, I dunno yet.” San laughs.

Mingi chuckles. “Maybe I'll keep her when you don't want her. We could have some fun.” He laughs.

“When I'm done you can have her.” San chuckles.

**

“I can't choose, and I won't choose. I'm falling hard for you both and I want you both. If you're okay with that then I'm all in, but if you're not then it won't work.”

You can see Felix and Hyunjin standing there, looking at you with nothing but love in their eyes. This is familiar, you vaguely remember this night.

“I'm in.” Hyunjin smiles.

“I'm all in.” Felix says.

You remember the pure bliss and happiness you felt in this moment. You remembered sitting at the restaurant with them, terrified they were going to end the friendship with you. You remember the knot you felt in your stomach, the pain you felt in your whole body.

“I'm falling in love with you with Y/N.”

“Falling in love with you Y/N.”

the words keep echoing.

“In love with you Y/N.”

“Love with you Y/N.”

“With you Y/N.”

“You Y/N.”

“Y/N.”

“Y/N.”

You shoot up in bed. Beads of sweat dripping down your forehead. San looks at you with a weird look, like he was so annoyed with you.

“What The fuck were you dreaming about?” He asks. “You were so fucking loud.”

“Sorry.” You whisper, rubbing your eyes. “What time is it?” You ask.

“8pm.” San says. “I brought you some water. Drink it all.” He says. You chug the glass quickly, with your eyes shut, missing the smirk on San's face. He leans on the dresser, watching you. Minutes later, you're asleep again.

“Too fucking easy.” He chuckles.

The next day, you wake up later in the day, still feeling groggy. You didn't know how though, you had slept for over 16 hours. Maybe it was too much sleep? But now you were tired and fucking starving. You shuffled out of the room, and into the living room, seeing San sitting on the couch.

“Ahh you're up. Hungry?” He asks. You eagerly nod your head. He leads you to the kitchen, having you sit at the kitchen table while he pulls out some things to make you a sandwich. Suddenly memories of sitting at an island while someone makes dough in front of you flashes through your head. Who was that? Someone used to cook for you and bake for you but why couldn't you see their face?

San places a sandwich with some chips in front of you, and you eat it. You weren't about to be picky with someone you barely know but acts like the two of you are close.

San has his back to you, while he's at the counter. You can hear him doing something over there before filling up a glass of water and setting it in front of you. “Drink it all.” He smiles, watching you chug a glass of water. You didn't even get to finish your sandwich before you felt exhaustion take over. Your eyes closed with your head on the table. San picked you up over his shoulder and carried you to his room. You tried to keep them open but you couldn't, and you missed seeing the 4 empty pill capsules on the kitchen counter.

**

“Why are you trying to pass the blame, San?”

“I saw you. You started going before the fucking flagged dropped.”

Anger. You remember seeing the pure rage on San's face as you called him out. Of course it wasn't Felix and Hyunjin. of course San was lying.

“Why don't you just shut the fuck up!?” You remember San screaming. The terrifying look he had on his face before shoving you - hard.

You were scared as you fell back, you could feel your head smacking the rock and then nothing.

You shot up in bed, practically hyperventilating. It was dark out now, the clock read 11:34pm.

You remembered. You remembered everything and you needed to get the fuck out of there. You get out of the bed, looking down at your clothes, he had changed you into one of his shirts and it made you feel gross. You can hear the music thumping in the living room, you really fucking hoped they were here. San still had your phone. you walked out into the living room trying to cover yourself the best you could but you needed to get your phone.

“You're up again.” You hear from beside you. San looks annoyed as he grabs your wrist, pulling you towards him. You scanned the room but saw no sign of Hyunjin or Felix. Your heart sank. You knew you told them that you needed space to think but you had hoped they would have showed up if not to just check on you.

“Can I have my phone please?” You ask, San looks surprised.

“Why? Why do you want it?” He asks.

“Because its my fucking phone and you have no right to keep it from me.” You say, your voice getting a little louder.

“You just want it so you can text your little boyfriends. Right? That's it? Why do you want to leave me? Huh? I've been there for you, I was at the hospital for you! Taking care of you! After they hurt you! So why are you trying to go!?” He screams. Everyone has turned to look at the two of you. You're raging. You can't control it. Not since everything came flooding back to you.

“You? Taking care of me? That's fucking laughable San, cause you know what?” You say, getting closer and in his face. Someone cuts out the music. “I remember. I remember everything. Like you cheating, and you shoving me down for calling you out.” You whisper, but your voice now is getting increasingly louder. “I bet you felt like a big fucking man, didn't you? Putting your hands on me. You've got a temper you can't control cause you're an insecure little boy, and you're gonna get yours, believe me. Now give me my fucking phone so I can get the fuck away from you.” You scream.

“What the fuck are you talking about?” San yells. “You've gone fucking delusional. Go back to bed.” He scoffs, lightly shoving you.

“Don't fucking touch me.” You grit. “Where's my phone!?” You scream, pushing him. He looks at you, shocked that you actually put your hands on him. You had barely made him step backwards but he didn't like that you felt like you could do that. He stomps towards you, shoving you back again. You fall to the floor, this time you protect your head.

“Wow again? Didn't you learn from last time?” You snap. San stands there rubbing his face with his hands, running them through his hair as he tries to decide on a course of action. He hadn't anticipated you'd get your memories back so soon.

“Come on babe. Just get up and go back to bed.” San says, his voice trembling as he tries to remain calm. He forgot there were tons of eyes on him that had just witnessed him pushing you, again.

“Babe?” You both hear, followed by chuckling.

“Don't call her that.” Felix snaps, making his way through a few people, Hyunjin behind him as they're now standing by you and San. You could see it in their faces, how mad they were at that moment. You really hoped none of their anger was directed at you.

“You really have a hard time keeping your hands to yourself don't you?” Hyunjin asks.

“He just likes to pick on women, he's a woman beater.” Felix yells.

“I'm fucking not! She wouldn't stop!” San yells.

“So your solution is to push her down, again? You shoved her so hard last time, she had a brain bleed and was in a coma for two weeks.” Felix snaps. “So here's what you're gonna do. You're going to give Hyunjin Y/N’s phone, and we're going to take her back with us, where she belongs and you're not going to contact her, think about her, nothing. Understand?” Felix says. His voice is calm but scary. .

“And if I don't?” San asks, with a laugh.

“I'll make your life even more miserable than it already is.” Felix whispers.

“Fine, take her.” San grunts, tossing your phone to Hyunjin. Felix helps you up, then pulls you into a tight hug as he breathes a sigh of relief. Hyunjin pulls you into him after holding you so tightly. You finally felt safe, relaxed and loved. You started to walk away with the men, but San grabs your wrist. You never wanted to be back here, ever again. San was scary, he wasn't the man you'd previously known. Before you can get away, He pulls you into him. “Don't worry, you'll be back real fucking soon.” He whispers, pushing you back towards the two men.

If you ended up back here again, you were sure you wouldn't make it out alive.

[kangaracha]

QUEENMAKER | CHAPTER 2

—

pairing chan x reader

genre ninth member au, enemies to lovers, angst, fluff, coming of age, social media, cancel culture, anxiety, depression, forbidden love,

summary To JYPE, the solution is simple; take the sole trainee that will not debut with your brand new girl group, and use her to replace the missing vocalist in your male group that insisted on starting as nine.

Unfortunately, to the fans and the members themselves, it isn’t that simple.

status ongoing

taglist OPEN

previous | masterlist | next

—

The first thing you hear when you walk in the room is yelling.

You first hear it from down the hall, really, though you don't really realise that it's coming from this room until you reach the door, and you don't appreciate the full volume of the voices until you knock and the door opens, letting the sound escape containment into the hallway. You don't have time to react either - because the face that opens the door for you is strikingly familiar, in the way that faces you see often in photos and on billboards are.

"Y/N?" he asks, pulling the door wider so that you can come in.

"Felix sunbaenim," you reply and bow, though it feels...awkward under the circumstances. You suppose you'll get used to it, now that this is your life. "It's nice to meet you."

He looks uncomfortable too, for a moment, before it is smoothed over with a graceful smile. "You better come in," he says, making room in the doorway for you to step through.

The room that greets you is achingly familiar - a dance studio, like any other in the building, though this one feels a little more personal that the faceless classrooms on the trainee floors. Boys are scattered across the space, practising on the far side of the room, counting out time to themselves, or sitting quietly on their phones. 

Changbin and Hyunjin are the source of the noise; sat together in one corner, but they aren't what draws your eye - no, you look right past them to the lanky figure with his back turned to you, hunched over the laptop that he's connected to the sound system. You've already met Stray Kids' leader, in a way - he'd been there for that long meeting three days ago that had decided your fate, though there hadn't been an opportunity to exchange words then. There hadn't been many words to exchange by the end of the meeting either, not when he'd spent the first hour making it very clear that this was not his idea, nor did he think it was a good one.

You're trying not to be hurt by it. You don't think he really realised that you were in the room until the conversation shifted directly to you, and it wasn't really about you anyway. This is an insular, self-made group, and he didn't like JYP meddling with their affairs when they didn't have to, that was understandable. 

It still makes you nervous to walk into this room and pretend to be one of them, though. There's no pretending that he wants you here, and both of you know that.

"Sorry that I'm late," you say to Felix, tearing your eyes away from the others before one of them can turn around and notice you.

"You're early, actually," he replies, closing the door behind you.

"Am I?" you question. "You guys are already practising." Your head tips towards the two on the far side of the room - Lee Know and I.N. You kind of wish you didn't know their names. It would be easier to fight off the feeling of intimidation then.

"They've been here for an hour already," Felix says, waving a hand in the air. "Come and sit down while Chan-hyung fixes the music."

Wordlessly, you follow him to the long couch that lines the wall, the same sort of place you'd sat with Minseo in Midnight's studio when she told you that you should do this. The louder boys are both sat here too - somehow, you end up right next to them, Felix slumping down on your other side. There's no avoiding how their eyes turn to you now, or the way their smiles dim as they do, their fun interrupted.

"Is this our new maknae?" Hyunjin asks without preamble, leaning forward to see Felix around you.

Felix frowns in confusion. "Isn't she older than us?" he questions. 

None of the three know the answer, silence reigning until Hyunjin's eyes turn to you. "What year?" he asks.

"'98," you answer, and he blinks.

Between you, the sound that erupts from Changbin's mouth is almost loud enough to burst your eardrums. "Maknae-noona," he says, with a grin that gives away just how funny he thinks it is. Felix cracks a laugh, unable to help himself - Hyunjin just looks perplexed, caught up on some implication that you've missed.

"How old are you?" you ask the three of them.

"'99 and 2000," Felix supplies. "Only Chan-hyung is older than you."

"Lee Know is the same age," Hyunjin supplies. Felix shrugs like it doesn't matter, leaning back in his seat.

"This is Changbin and Hyunjin," he says just to you, ignoring the other two the way that you would ignore a pair of hecklers on the sidelines. "Do you know everyone's names?"

"I think so," you say, looking around the room - for each one of the boys you see, a name comes to mind that you're reasonably confident is correct.

"I can introduce you to everyone if you want," Felix offers freely.

"No, that's okay," you say, because you think about meeting all eight of them at once and your stomach kind of drops. "I'll meet everyone as I go...if that's okay." Not that you weren't already nervous walking in, but having to face them all one after another...

"It's a lot of people, huh," Felix says, as if he's reading your mind. You nod, grateful for the understanding.

"Not as many as a trainee class, at least," Hyunjin points out. It's hard to tell if he's trying to be supportive or just letting his thoughts flow straight to his mouth, but at least he's not being mean. You'll take not mean.

"If it's easier to meet everyone now-" you start to say, backtracking as fast as your heart starts to pound. Great start - a whole five minutes, and you've already come off as rude.

"Don't worry about it," Changbin answers you before you can finish, waving away any doubts. "This is weird for us as well."

"Do you have an accent?" Hyunjin cuts in when you don't immediately answer, leaning around Changbin.

"Oh." Unbidden, your eyes cut to Felix. "Yeah. I'm from Australia."

Felix's face lights up. "Hey!" he says, switching easily to English. "Nice!" 

Hyunjin grins, his hands clapping together. "Aussie-racha," he says, pleased with himself.

"She's vocalracha too," Changbin adds. "Everyone has three now."

"Racha?" you question.

"That's what we call our units," Felix explains. "Vocal, dance, rap. And now we have three Aussies as well."

Overhead, music blares from the speakers followed by a cry of success from Chan. "He fixed it," Changbin says, pretending to be dejected even as he springs to his feet, stretching his arms like he's ready to dance.

"And broke my ears," Hyunjin grumbles, following along. Felix stands too, and you follow him to your feet - just in time to catch Chan's eye as he turns away from the computer.

"Y/N," he says. "You made it here okay?"

His voice is warm but his eyes are guarded; wary, of what you might say or do. "Yes, sunbaenim," you answer, bowing just in time that it is still polite.

"Oh, don't worry about honourifics," he says quickly, almost before the words are out of your mouth. "Has anyone sent you anything on what we're doing today? Or...the comeback? Anything?"

Wordlessly, your head shakes. His brow furrows.

"I've run over some of your choreography and songs, since-" The meeting, but you're hesitant to bring that up. No need to remind him that he doesn't want you here, even though so far he's been...nicer than you expected. "-well, two days ago."

"Yeah, the timing is..." a hand reaches up to rub at the back of his neck, "...not great. We're doing choreography for the comeback shows today so we'll run you through that and think about formation changes, and tonight I'll send you all the tracks for the new album and the old ones you'll have to learn? There won't be parts for you yet in any of the newer stuff, but I'll figure that out by next week, and then we'll figure out when we're recording and all of that."

"That sounds good," you reply, blowing out a nervous breath as your heart stutters in your chest. It sounds like a lot, actually, but you can't just back down in the face of hard work, no matter how high it piles up or how quickly it reaches those heights. The time for that was three days ago, when you decided to do this.

(The time for that was six years ago, when you decided to leave everything you knew and everyone you loved, but if you think that far back now, the amount of potential wasted time and the blank future ahead is paralysing.)

"I'll look after her for today," Felix offers, a hand patting Chan's shoulder. "I've got most of the song down anyway."

"Thanks," Chan says, and then turns as someone calls him across the room, pulling him away as quickly as he'd come.

"Come on," Felix says, gesturing for you to follow him.

TAGLIST

@kokinu09 @rainfallingfromthesky @lixie-phoria @mysweethannie @chlodavids @hanniemylovelyquokka @tfshouldidohere @lauraliisa @puppysmileseungmin @kalopsian-thoughts @puppy-minnie @readerofallthingss @dvbkie099 @kthstrawberryshortcake-main @acker-night @d-chagi @keepswingin

[sgtcalhouns]

Adore You

I'd walk through fire for you Just let me adore you Like it's the only thing I'll ever do

heyo, have some body worship smut?? it's the mechanic au, and felix has recently discovered that sex can be as emotionally intimate as it is physically intimate. he's not sure how to explain it to tamora, but he's happy to demonstrate. obviously nsfw. enjoy!

Soft morning light streamed through the bedroom window. There was nothing on the schedule for the day, no pressing tasks or work commitments to force the couple out of bed, although they had been awake for some time now. The only sound in the room was the occasional contented sigh, or words of affection murmured against skin. Felix couldn't imagine a more perfect morning.

Tamora lay beside him, glowing where the rays of sunlight met her skin. It gave her an ethereal quality that Felix couldn't find the words to express; he hoped the soft, slow press of his lips to her neck was enough to get the message across. He was generally adept at telling her how he felt, but she had opened him up to feelings he didn't even know he was capable of; trying to define them felt impossible. The more time they spent together, the more it seemed that his entire body was calling out to her, and with each passing day it was more difficult to resist the pull.

It was deeper than lust, but the distinction felt somewhat inconsequential when the outcome was the same. Still, he couldn't fight the growing need to explain himself to her. She deserved to know that he spent every waking moment longing to be right here, feeling her skin against his. But how could he ever tell her without sounding like every other man who had ever lusted after her? Lifting his head, he leaned on his elbows and gazed down at her. In this light, he could easily make out the dusting of freckles across her nose and cheeks. When her icy blue eyes glanced up at him, he nearly stopped breathing; she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He wasn't sure if he would ever get over the fact that she was here with him. Deep down, he never wanted to.

"What?" she asked.

"It's nothin', I just..." he paused as he searched for the right words. "I really love getting to know you like this."

His answer took Tamora by surprise. Normally, she might have teased him for openly admitting how much he enjoyed their intimacy—even now, he was often too shy to say it outright. But she could sense his earnestness, and she certainly didn't want to discourage him.

"Yeah?" she replied, a gentle nudge for him to continue.

"It's hard to explain," he said. "Of course it feels good when we're together, but it's more than just physical. It's somethin' deeper. I just feel so close to you."

He looked away from her as he finished his thought.

"I didn't know it could be this way," he admitted. "I didn't know I could feel like this."

It was clear that he’d spent a lot of time reflecting on the topic, but Tamora wasn’t sure how to respond. She didn’t think she fully understood what he was trying to say. In a way, it felt like he was still trying to figure it out for himself. In the absence of words, she reached up to brush her fingers through his bangs, which had become messy in his sleep. He closed his eyes and smiled, leaning into her touch before turning his head to press a kiss to the inside of her wrist.

“You know I’m not the best at talking about this stuff. My whole life, it felt like somethin’ I wasn’t supposed to talk about or enjoy,” he explained. A bashful smile appeared on his lips as he continued. “You remember how hard it was for me to admit that I wanted you.”

Tamora smiled at the memory.

“I sure do.”

“I’ve always believed in talking things through,” he said, shifting to reach one of his hands across her to rest in the curve of her waist. “But being with you has made me realize I can say so much without talking at all.”

She was about to ask what he meant when she felt his hand brush against her skin, making its way to her hip. His thumb lovingly stroked her hip bone, and she suddenly thought she understood his intentions.

“Tammy, I love you so much. Sometimes I get frustrated because there just aren’t enough words for me to tell you everything I’m feeling,” he explained. Even now, there was a sense of frustration that he couldn’t accurately explain himself to her. “I don’t know how to say this without sounding like all I care about is sex, but…”

Felix shook his head and met her gaze; she could see his desperation to be understood simmering in his eyes and she wished there was some way she could reassure him.

“Lately all I can think about is being in bed with you just like this. Touching you and kissing you and making love because when we connect, it’s almost like I can make you feel what I feel.”

His cheeks were flushed now that he had finally made his feelings known. He still didn’t know if she understood his meaning, but a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Tamora took a moment to reflect with this revelation in mind. He had always been an affectionate partner, even outside the context of their bedroom. His constant touch had been strange for her at the beginning of their relationship, but she had come to enjoy the small ways he doted on her. She had never questioned it, but she realized now that this, too, was an expression of his love.

“I love you in ways I didn’t even know were possible,” he continued. “I didn’t know I could do that before I met you.”

Tamora shifted, moving her hand from his forehead to the side of his face. His eyes were shining with love, and she took a moment to bask in it before pulling him close to her for a kiss. He sighed as he relaxed into the embrace, allowing his chest to rest against hers and relishing the skin-to-skin contact. In that kiss was everything he needed to confirm that she understood him, and it was freeing. It gave him the courage to ask for an opportunity to put his new skills to work.

“I can explain it better like this,” he murmured against her lips. His fingers trailed the curve of her hip before making their way back up to her waist. “Let me show you how much you mean to me.”

In lieu of a response, she pressed an ardent kiss to his lips. Around Felix, she often found herself at a loss for words; the sappy, romantic feelings he awakened within her were too difficult for her to voice. Instead, her approach involved hoping that the emotions translated clearly through touch. At times, she felt guilty for not being able to verbalize her feelings for him when he seemed to have such an easy way with words. Knowing that he’d come to recognize the possibilities of expressing himself this way made her feel seen and excited her beyond words.

“Show me.”

Felix shifted so that he could rest just above her. The hand not supporting his weight traveled a loving path up to her face, fingertips ghosting across her cheek to brush the hair out of her eyes. Once his view was unobstructed he leaned down for a gentle kiss. When she teased him with her tongue he accepted, perhaps a bit more enthusiastically than he had planned, but he simply couldn’t fight his instinctive desire. For a moment, he allowed himself to get lost in the sensations, to relish the electric spark between them and the drive to chase it, but soon he pulled back, reminding himself what he was hoping to accomplish. There was so much to show her, and he was just getting started.

They were both breathing heavily when he broke the connection, but he tried his best to maintain a controlled pace as he moved to his next area of focus—those darling freckles across her cheeks. She was indifferent at best when it came to the tiny sunspots that graced her skin, but he loved them. They were sparse, and so light that most of the time they were barely visible, but in the morning light they seemed to pop against her otherwise pale complexion.

He took his time as he left a trail of soft kisses from one side of her face to the other, taking care to ensure that no freckle was left out. Now that he had arrived by her ear, he adjusted his path to make his way along her jawline, maintaining the same steady pace as he showered her with affection. Sweet pecks transitioned to more impassioned, open-mouth kisses as his mouth traveled down her neck. Here he paused, resting his head in his favorite spot in the curve of her neck, and breathed in deep. He’d never felt so drawn to another person’s scent before meeting Tamora; it brought him a sense of peace, the type he always felt when he was close to her.

It took her by surprise when his affections picked back up and she felt his tongue against her skin. Felix loved it when she got rough and sank her teeth into his neck, but it was rare for him to behave so recklessly with her. He knew she enjoyed it when he kissed her neck, but most of the time he left it at that, not daring to allow his teeth or his tongue to mar her skin. Sometimes he let himself imagine giving in and ravishing her, leaving his mark behind for all to see. Even just fantasizing about it felt improper—he didn’t own her, and it would be wrong to mark her as though she was his territory. But that very feeling of ownership was just what excited him when Tamora left hickeys on his neck. Whether it was right or wrong to feel that way, he was hers, and he wanted everyone to know it. Anytime he got a glimpse in the mirror or he caught a stranger’s eyes flitting down to his neck was a little reminder of the moment she left her mark. Was she disappointed not to have any physical reminders of their intimacy? He’d never thought to ask her before.

As though she could read his thoughts, she buried her fingers in his hair, her firm grip keeping him in the curve of her neck. He had done a good job of maintaining control of himself, but the slight dig of her nails into his scalp did things to him, and she knew it. It felt like her way of granting him permission—he didn’t dare think of it as an outright request—to let go and give in to what he really wanted. His tongue found one of the sweet spots on her neck, where she always seemed to be most receptive to his touch, and her grip tightened. Tentatively, he allowed his teeth to graze the spot. He felt Tamora’s hum of mmhmm against lips and became emboldened to act in earnest this time, gently biting into her skin. She gasped and he felt the way her torso pressed against his when she arched her back. Feeling her body respond to him in this way was invigorating, prompting him to nip and suck at her skin without holding back. His hand reached for her breast, gently kneading as he soothed the bites with soft kisses.

"Tammy," he sighed against her skin, "you make it so hard for me to control myself."

She was breathing heavily, and as he caught a glimpse of her flushed cheeks, he thought he might melt. Their eyes met and the hunger in her expression sent a thrill down his spine.

"I don't want you to."

Somewhere in the back of his mind it occurred to him that he probably ought to be embarrassed about the affect her words had on him. These thoughts were quickly drowned out by desire, and he returned to his task with enthusiasm. His hand slid up her chest, reaching for her bicep. After such a heated exchange, she hadn't expected this to be his next move. But she was so strong, and he had never been able to articulate the way it turned him on. There was something exciting about the fact that she could truly do anything she wanted to him; knowing she possessed such power made it all too easy to submit to her, and it made their softer encounters feel that much more sacred. His fingers brushed against the contours of her muscles, lovingly tracing every dip and curve, and he desperately hoped it was enough to convey his admiration to her.

Next, he turned his attention to her breasts, taking one in each hand. He’d always felt that they were the perfect size; a tailor-made handful that gave him just enough flesh to sink his fingers—or teeth—into. Perhaps his favorite thing about them was that they were so sensitive—Tamora certainly wasn’t shy about the pleasure it brought when her breasts were touched, and he was always happy to oblige. As he ran his callused palms over her nipples, he felt a shiver run through her and he smiled. 

“Does that feel good?” he asked.

She clamped one of her hands over one of his, wordlessly demanding more. He responded by shifting his palm so that he could grip her nipple between his thumb and his index finger. Gently, he massaged it between his fingers, reveling in the hum of approval she provided in response. 

This was why he loved her breasts; she didn’t always tell him what she enjoyed most, but this was one area where her body couldn’t help but give away the truth. It was addictive, coaxing these reactions from her and knowing without a doubt that he was satisfying her. He couldn’t get enough, lapping his tongue over her nipple so he could hear her gasp, nipping at the soft flesh, and praying she could feel the love he was trying to bestow. 

His mouth was still occupied by her breasts as his hands slid down to her stomach, fingertips ghosting over the peaks and valleys of her abdominal muscles. He felt them tense under his featherlight touch and couldn’t help but smile; of course he knew she was ticklish, but every time it presented itself felt like the first time. That such a visibly strong part of her body contained such tenderness was one of the many things about her that had settled deep into his heart.

Reaching behind him, he pushed the covers out of the way so he could better reach her lower half. He kissed his way down her stomach as he shifted further down the bed, hands caressing her waist on their journey to her hips. Everything about her was beautiful, but the curve of her hips was a particular soft spot of his. So much of her body was taut with muscle, but here his fingers could really gain purchase in the soft tissue that padded her curves. His hands were drawn to the spot like a magnet no matter what they were doing, and he was grateful that the action wasn’t too scandalous when they were out in public. He’d always been shy about expressing his desire to Tamora, but gripping her hips and pulling her close had become his preferred method of getting the message across. 

Tamora understood him perfectly, instinctively spreading her legs apart to give him access to where she assumed he was heading next. The sight was certainly tempting as Felix scooted down the bed, but he had something else in mind first. Her disappointed huff was not lost on him as he directed his attention to her thighs, and he couldn't help but chuckle.

"You can be patient, can't you?" he teased. "I'm not quite done with you yet."

He didn't wait for her to answer, kissing his way down one of her inner thighs. Patience had never been her strong suit when it came to these matters, and he knew that, just like she knew that he wouldn't torture her on purpose. Even as the tension between them grew, she could sense how important it was to him to pay tribute to every part of her body. Every touch was intentional. So, even though she ached for his touch between her legs, she would see this through without complaint.

"You know what I love most about your thighs?" he asked, his featherlight touch along her inner thighs making her tremble. "They're so muscular and strong. You could probably crush me if you wanted to."

His tone was even as he spoke, pressing an occasional kiss to her skin. He was right, she probably could crush him between her thighs, but she didn't understand what was so appealing about that. He placed a palm on each of her thighs, slowly pushing them further apart and settling down between them. Out of everywhere he'd ever been, his favorite place in the world was right here.

"So when you use those thighs to hold me in place, I know it's because you've got me right where you want me," he explained. "When your legs are wrapped around me, I know I'm doin' something right."

At this, he leaned in close and ran his tongue along her slit. She gasped and arched her back, reaching down to grip his hair between her fingers. He loved this part of her so much, he didn't think he'd ever be able to put it into words. The smell, the taste, the texture against his mouth, his hands, his cock; merely the thought of it was enough to get him going. He loved learning all the different ways he could use it to bring her pleasure, and he loved that he was still learning. He loved that it could push her to climax more than once, and he really loved that they hadn't yet found her limit. Perhaps selfishly, he loved how it felt to be buried inside, to know without a doubt that she was just aroused as he was and to feel her walls pulse and clench around him as she came.

With a renewed focus, he wrapped his lips around her clitoris, lapping and sucking at the tender flesh. Her response was immediate, and while up until now he had managed to ignore his own arousal for the most part, the sound of her moans immediately brought it back to his attention. Under normal circumstances, he might have given in to his desire, but this morning was about something else. Before he could satisfy himself, he wanted to be sure that he treated his current task with the love and attention it deserved. He wanted to involve all of his senses, to engage with every part of her that he loved. Removing a hand from her thigh, he gently slid two fingers into her. A breathy moan escaped him as his fingertips became enveloped by her slick heat; her taste, her nails digging into his scalp, the sound of her moans, all of it was driving him mad.

Felix picked up the pace, thrusting his fingers into her and sucking intently on her clitoris. As her thighs squeezed the sides of his head, a sound he had never made before escaped him, a strange mix between a laugh and a moan, because she knew exactly what that meant to him. Tamora knew it would signal to him that she wanted him to keep going exactly as he was, that he was right where she wanted him. He was overcome by a wave of emotions, love and affection and need, and he knew she understood. This was what he had been trying to tell her all along—something special happened between them in these moments, something unspoken that made him feel more seen than he had ever experienced. His enthusiasm quickly pushed her over the edge, and he savored the sensations around his fingers and against his mouth as she reached her climax and slowly worked her way back down.

As he withdrew his fingers from her and sat up, he watched her, enamored by the complete relaxation in her body as she caught her breath. He thought about asking her if she had felt what he did, but he worried it might ruin what made it so special in the first place. When she finally opened her eyes and met his gaze, he knew without a doubt that she had felt it, too. In that moment, he had never felt closer to her, and a wide smile broke out across his face. She returned it as she sat up to face him.

"Tammy..." he began, quickly losing track of the words he was looking for. "That was amazing."

Still at a loss for words, she reached out for the sides of his face and pulled him to her for a kiss. As he relaxed into her embrace, she felt his erection brush against her leg, and he felt her smirk into the kiss.

"Y'see what you do to me?" he murmured against her mouth. "It's no wonder I can't seem to get enough."

His hands were on her hips, a gentle grip that told her everything she needed to know.

"You know what I think?" she asked.

"Hmm?"

Before he knew what was happening, she flipped him down onto his back, crawling over him with a predatory expression.

"I think this little conversation is far from over."

[staybabblingbaby]

Felix Tinder AU (First Date Part) A2 D3

[Caution: These are not full fics, or even full parts of fics for some, these are part of my writing progress archive!]

Concept: You match with what you think is a Stray Kids fan account on Tinder. You get along great with the account's owner, and think it's probably your most successful match to-date. Little do you know who's actually behind the screen...

Word Count: 1,580

Notes: So this will probably be the actual beginning. Maybe. Some version of it, anyways. idk, the formatting for this one is a bit... And I still have to figure out how to make fake Tinder stuff without photoshop. I do not own adobe products. This may actually end up being the first writing part in a hybrid SMAU, so it might not be the first part at all. We'll see. I didn't read this one back for any editing notes bc This entire fic is fighting me rn and I don't wanna look at it lol

Warnings: None as far as I'm aware

Leave me comments or questions or anything! Love hearing from folks <3

Masterlist | Next Part (Coming soon!)

You nervously tap on your steering wheel, anxious gaze glued to the side door you were parallel parked directly in front of. You felt sketchy as hell, but this was the manager-approved pick-up method apparently. Or at least leader-approved. You weren’t really clear on the details.

You were still sort of processing that this was your life, actually. Details were a bit secondary to the big picture here, you thought.

At last, the door creaks open and the blond head you’d been waiting for pops out. After a brief cautious sweep of his gaze, his eyes lock on your car. You roll the window down to offer him an awkward smile and a little wave.

Then, with a bright smile that made your heart do stupid little summersaults, Yongbok Felix Lee is sliding into your beat-up little jeep. You’re shamefully distracted by his (very) pretty face for a solid 10 seconds before you roll up the window and start moving to a proper parking spot.

You may be dazed by his presence, but by all things good in this world you were not carting off a (sort-of) stranger without talking to them first.

“Hi!” He’s the first to break the momentary silence, sunny grin on full, blinding, blast in your passenger seat. Your brain stalls a second time as your (again) realize that Stray Kids’ Felix is in your car. Like right now. Currently.

“Wazzup?” You greet back with a cheeky little smirk. You feel a bit bad for Felix. Making light of things was your one and only coping mechanism. You hoped he hadn’t been expecting a serious candle-lit dinner from you.

Well. Candles, maybe. Depends on how late the two of you ended up staying out.

Luckily Felix seems delighted by your overly-casual demeanor, bumping your arm with gentle playfulness. It almost feels like you’re two close friends meeting up after a long time instead of (sort-of) near-strangers.

You know that if he spends enough time with you the shell of confidence you’re currently wearing will become transparent, but hopefully the façade would carry you through tonight.

“We’re just moving so we can talk without being in the way before we head out.” You explain, pulling into a shaded parking spot in the corner of the lot. You’ve pulled hopefully far enough away to not attract attention from the doors, but also not far enough to be creepy.

Felix nods, tilting his head curiously at you. “Sure, what are we talking about?”

You put the car in park and laugh a bit at his cuteness. “Just expectations and whatnot,” You say, unbuckling so you can turn and face him properly.

“Before all that, though, are you a hugger?” You hold your arms open a bit, not enough to actually touch him, and making sure you’re not leaning forward, letting him take the reigns of contact.

You worry you may be being a bit too forward, but you were trying for normality with all of this, and you really did open most interactions with hugs when you could. You were touchy like that.

Fears once again unfounded, Felix grins widely and quickly reels you in for as tight a hug as the two of you can manage whilst still seated. He reels you in so quickly, if fact, that your arms become trapped between the two of you and you struggle for a moment to wiggle them free and wrap them firmly around his waist.

As you settle in, you rock the two of you to-and-fro, and Felix lets out a content little sigh that has you melting into the embrace.

You sort of feel like giggling madly and tearing up at the same time. You feel a bit like you need to vomit, as well, but you hold all three urges back. It’s just that Felix holds you so warmly and delicately, you feel a bit like you might shatter before the night even begins.

You reluctantly pull back before you cross the bounds of appropriateness for a first meeting, skootching around so you can bring your legs up into your seat in a weird pretzel and start the conversation properly.

You want to coo at Felix as he imitates you and gets himself comfy as well. You’re down bad for this man already, unfortunately. IT’s best that you don’t let on quite how badly if you can help it. You don’t know if you can.

“So!” You start with a clap, “First of all, allow me to welcome you to our humble city.” You do an awkward showman’s bow, gesturing as grandly as you’re able when you’ve crumpled yourself into the world’s cringiest ball.

You’re so damn lucky that Felix seems so charmed by you so far. You’re begging with everything you can that your innate silliness will guide you through tis interaction without you panicking too hard.

“I’ve been here for several days now, first of all,” Felix starts, eyes twinkling with amusement and mischief. You play right into his hands, squawking with offense and playfully swatting at him.

You both dissolve into giggles as he tries to catch your hands to keep them from hitting him, and you loudly begin to complain, “Oh well, I’m sorry someone was too busy playing two fabulous shows to come see little ol’ me before now!”

“Oh, come on now, you wouldn’t let me get you seats, you deserve this ribbing!” He retorts back, finally catching your hands and putting a stop to your flailing. He pauses then, and you can practically see the gears in his head turning.

“Wait.” He tugs you forward by your hands, staring you down with an expression of delighted disbelief. “Fabulous show? Were you there?”

You quickly turn your head to hide the mirthful smirk on your face, replying only with a drawn out “Maaaaaybe.”

Felix gasps loudly, letting go of your hands only to lightly slap your knee, “Why didn’t you tell me? I could have gotten you backstage or something!”

You wave your hands in front of you, both warding off Felix’s playful attacks nd waiving off his words.

“No, no!” You deny him, continuing on to confess, “I actually had the tickets before we even started talking, I got them right as they went on sale.” You pause and duck you head a bit to hide your blush, “Besides, our first real meeting should be our first date, right? That’s how this works.”

To your slight mortification, you can very easily tell that Felix is trying his hardest not to coo at you, so you quickly rush to move on before he can interrogate you further.

“But we’re getting off track!” You exclaim, pointing at him in gentle threat. He holds up his hands in surrender, but you can tell by the smirk on his face that he wouldn’t let it go that easily. Still, he lets you move the conversation forward for now.

“So, I’m a bit paranoid,” You suddenly confess. Felix’s brow creases with concern, but you continue before he can get any weird ideas into his head, “I just wanna make sure we’re on the same page before we actually go anywhere.”

Felix makes a noise of understanding and gestures for you to continue.

“So I just want to make sure we’re both expecting this to be a romantic date and not, like, a platonic one.” You explain. Felix tilts his head a bit in confusion but nods along.

“Yeah, we’re on the same page there.” He agrees. His gentle smile feels a bit like he’s humoring you, but you plough on regardless.

“And I know we’ve already talked about this, but I don’t put out on first dates. I’m not into hookups, so even if you’re leaving tomorrow I’m expecting this to be the first of many or the first and last date.”

Felix seems to be cottoning onto the intended severity of the conversation, despite its relatively light tone. He nods along, seeming pleased about something. You pause to let him interject, but he just gestures you to continue.

You hesitate a moment, but then finish with, “That’s all, really, I just want both of us to be happy with things at the end of tonight.”

Felix smiles so fondly at you that you think you’ll combust, so you quickly reach across him to open your glove box to pull out a couple of papers, to Felix’s utter bafflement.

“Moving on!” You exclaim, pretending that your ears aren’t burning with the force of your blush, “I also have these!”

You present to Felix a paper with an address and your vehicle details as well as a map with a certain area circled.

“Ok, so, keeping as much a secret as I can,” You begin to babble as Felix examines the papers with confusion painted over his delicate features.

“But I was thinking about what we could do that didn’t involve being in public much and wasn’t expensive or anything, and I came up with a plan. A friend of mine owns some forested land with some nice hiking trails, so I thought we’d start there, but it’s a bit rural and I know it’s weird, so I brought both the lot address and coordinates and my car details so you can tell your people exactly where you’ll be and if phone service dies or anything no one freaks out and-”

You cut yourself off, realizing that you’d probably said way more than you needed to

[knoepfl]

The Price of Perfection

Characters:

Felix Fickelgruber: A charismatic and driven businessman, Felix is dedicated to his work in the chocolate factory, often at the expense of his personal life. His sarcastic wit hides a deeper sensitivity, especially toward those he loves.

Reader (You): Felix's loving wife, longing for his attention and companionship. She is patient and caring but can feel hurt when Felix prioritizes work over their relationship.

Trigger Warnings:

Emotional neglect

Brief mentions of feelings of inadequacy and loneliness

Masterlist

Words: 1030

---

The fireplace crackled in Felix Fickelgruber’s office, casting warm shadows across the room. His hands moved swiftly, penning notes and adjusting figures in his ledgers, while his pristine office exuded an air of luxury and discipline—everything perfectly in its place, just like Felix himself.

You sat quietly across from him, curled up in a chair, watching the clock tick away the hours as Felix worked tirelessly, as he had done for what felt like days on end. The smell of rich chocolate lingered in the air, but it did little to ease the growing ache in your chest.

“Felix, you’ve been at this for hours,” you said, trying to sound patient. “You should take a break.”

Felix didn’t look up from his papers, his tone casual yet sharp. “Darling, some of us have responsibilities. You know how much depends on me. I’m not in the business of taking breaks.”

His words stung, a quiet pang of hurt settling in your chest. You had expected a little pushback, sure—Felix was obsessed with his work—but something about the way he said it, as if his work was more important than you, made your heart sink.

You sat up a bit straighter, trying to hide the frustration building inside. “I’m not saying you don’t have responsibilities. But I miss you. We never have any time together anymore.”

Felix sighed dramatically, finally looking up from his work, his sharp blue eyes narrowing slightly as if you were an interruption. “I appreciate your concern, darling, truly,” he said, his voice dripping with his usual sarcasm. “But this work is crucial. You’ll just have to understand that I can’t drop everything for some… downtime.”

Trivialities. The word echoed in your mind, cutting deeper than you expected. You felt the heat rise in your cheeks, your patience and understanding slipping away.

“Right,” you said, standing up abruptly, your hands balling into fists at your sides. “I suppose I’m just a trivial part of your life then.”

Felix frowned, seeming confused by your reaction. “Now, darling, don’t be dramatic. I never said that.”

“You didn’t have to,” you muttered, turning on your heel and heading toward the door, feeling the weight of disappointment in every step.

“Where are you going?” Felix called after you, his voice still carrying that irritating air of nonchalance.

“To bed,” you said curtly, without looking back. “Since apparently I’m interrupting something much more important.”

Felix opened his mouth to respond, but you were already out the door, your heart heavy with hurt. You closed the door behind you, fighting back the sting of tears. It wasn’t the first time he’d been too absorbed in his work, but somehow, this time it hurt more. The way he brushed off your feelings, the way he treated your need for him as something trivial—it was too much.

Later that night, you lay in bed, your back turned toward the door. The room was quiet, save for the faint sounds of the city outside. You stared at the wall, replaying Felix’s words in your mind, the ache in your chest refusing to fade.

You heard the soft click of the door opening, followed by Felix’s familiar footsteps as he entered the room. You didn’t move, your body stiff, your mind still reeling from the hurt. He hadn’t even realized how much his words had affected you, hadn’t even bothered to follow you out of the office to talk. And now, he was simply slipping into bed like nothing had happened.

The mattress shifted as Felix sat down beside you, the rustling of the covers indicating he was settling in for the night. “Darling…” he said softly, his voice lacking the usual sass and sharpness. “You’re quiet.”

You didn’t respond, your eyes fixed on the far wall. You didn’t even bother to turn around.

Felix waited a moment, his brow furrowing when you didn’t answer. “Are you still upset about earlier?” he asked, his voice tinged with confusion, as if he couldn’t quite grasp why you were so hurt.

You swallowed hard, finally turning your head just slightly. “I don’t know, Felix. Maybe I’m just… trivial, after all.”

His eyes widened at your words, and for the first time that night, he seemed genuinely taken aback. “I didn’t… You’re not trivial. I would never—”

“Except you did,” you said softly, sitting up and finally turning to face him. “You made it clear that your work is more important than spending time with your wife. You brushed me off like I was just in the way.”

Felix blinked, clearly at a loss for words. He opened his mouth, then closed it again, struggling to find the right thing to say. For a man who was so quick with his words, it was rare to see him speechless.

“I’m sorry,” he said quietly, his voice lacking the usual sarcasm. “I didn’t mean it like that.”

You stared at him for a long moment, the hurt still lingering, though the sincerity in his eyes made you soften just a little.

“I know you didn’t mean it,” you said quietly. “But it doesn’t change how it felt.”

Felix nodded slowly, his gaze dropping to the blanket. “I… I suppose I’ve been a bit too focused lately. But it’s not because you’re not important to me. You are.” He looked back up at you, his blue eyes filled with a rare vulnerability. “I’m just… trying to make everything perfect.”

You sighed, the tension in your chest easing slightly. “I don’t need everything to be perfect, Felix. I just need you.”

Felix hesitated, then reached out, gently taking your hand in his. “You have me. I promise. I’ll do better.”

You looked into his eyes, searching for any hint of his usual arrogance or defensiveness, but all you saw was sincerity. Slowly, you squeezed his hand back.

“Okay,” you whispered, though the hurt still lingered in the back of your mind.

Felix smiled faintly, leaning in to press a soft kiss to your forehead. “Thank you for being patient with me. I’ll make it up to you, I swear.”

You nodded, leaning into his touch, hoping that this time, he really meant it.

---

Author’s Note: Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this little exploration of Felix Fickelgruber’s character and the dynamics of his relationship. If you have any thoughts or feedback, feel free to share! I’d love to hear from you.

[noisydreamlandkoala]

The Queens Court

CHAPTER SIX: EXPLANATIONS

YOUROFFICIALREPIRTER@BLONDIE

Our residence bonde does not seem that exited for the choice in court members.

#youllbesurprised

After hackling  Chloe into an agreeing on having Juleka as a probationary member of the group they sat in a circle, some on the floor, chaise, bad and any chair available awaiting for Marinette's explanation. Marinette sat between Felix and Luka fidgeting nervously.

Both boys saw this and grabbed a hand next to them gently squeezing it in comfort, whilst glaring at one another. Chloe of course still found her friends predicament amusing and couldn't help but throw a smirk at their direction. She enjoyed chaos and this right here was filled with it.

"Can yall stop trying to figure out who's dick is bigger than who's for five minutes," Chloe huffed with a smirk and mischievous look in her eyes. Marinette narrowed her eyes at the sight.

"What do you say Marinette," Luka whispered into one ear.

"Wanna check so we can end this fued once and for all," Felix whispered into the other causing Marinette to squeak as she turned bright red while Chloe cackled. No nope, this was not happening, they were now working together?

"No nope no," Tim said shaking his head. "As tge second most chilled brother *Duke clears his throat*, third most chilled brother I would like to say that I will burry you alive watch it"

Marinette took a deep breath attempting to chase away the redness on her cheeks.

"So some of you need to be briefed on my past, others need an explanation of why I broke the group up or why I cut half of yall off for three years-"

"Cause your original reason is unbelievable," Chloe added causing a few of the group members to sneaker.

"Then they are those who want to know about the Lila situation," Marinette continued ignoring her best friend. "So all in all I need to start at the very beginning of my life."

"Let me assist you," Jason says clearly in a rush. "Bruce was irresponsible, she was the consequences of that mistake now let's get to this Lila chick."

"Baby bat you need to calm down and let her do this in her own pace," Dick says causing the dark haired boy to huff.

"So as Jason so helpfully put in," Marinette said causing Chloe to snort. "I'm Bruce Wayne's child, my father and mother were in a brief relationship that resulted in my birth. Sadly she lost her life when she gave birth to me. She left me to my father at the time, but he still had a few things going on in his life so my aunt took me in with promises of letting me visit during summer and winter break, you know for the holidays,"

"So you grew up in Paris?," Aurora asks eyes shinning.

"No I grew up in China," Marinette answers with a small laugh. "That's how I met Marc, he's part of the rich dangerous family community."

"Oh," the blonde simply says allowing the girl to continue her story.

"So Sabine Cheng raised me, allowing me to do a bit of back and forward between China and Gotham," she continued. "Galas were a big part of the agreement I had galas both in China-"

"Which is where we met," Chloe added before muttering. "I brat"

"And Gotham-" She continued without missing a beat.

"White is where I fell for her," Felix says throwing a smirk at Luka.

"I actually remember a lot of fighting during that day," Dick says causing a few giggles to erupt from the room and an annoyed look to cross upon Felix's features.

"Yes it was hate at first sight," Chloe cackled.

"Though it kind of ended when he saw her punch a grown man in the balls," Babs adds.

"My all time favorite Gala moment," Jason says dabbing fake tears with a fake hankerchief.

"I was never officially introduced to society as either a Wayne or a Cheng for the first couple of years because both parties wanted me in the spotlight thinking I was still too young," Marinette continued.

"Especially since mother was heiress of their entire family fortune," Chloe adds.

"And her Father was one of the richest man in the world and she was at the time his only know heir," Felix continues.

"It's a good thing you weren't there when Damian arrived actually," Tim quips in.

"Otherwise he would have killed you," Stephanie says side eying tge boy.

"Another thing that helped was that I was 2 years older than you," Damian mutters.

"I thought you were going to bring up gender," Jeleka mutters somewhat drawing attention to her once more. The girls ability to dissappear and be forgotten was honestly scary.

"My mother raised, I learnt quite awhile ago you do not underestimate the opposite gender," The boy said with a winch.

"What happened with his mother?" Aurora asked.

"We don't talk about that," multiple voices echoed.

"Alright," Aurora says putting her hands up in surrender, being a reporter didn't mean she was stupid. Something told her if she continued to dig she wouldn't leave to tell the story.

"So when Damian was forced to go to School, he dragged me along stating her wasn't going to suffer it on his own," Marinette says. "So I relocated to Gotham."

"And we followed," Chloe and Felix say at the same time.

"Felix followed Marie around like  a puppy dog at the time and took her relocation as an excuse to finally be close to her," Chloe continues with a smirk.

"And Chloe was obsessed with the bluenette and wanted everything Marinette," Felix laughed as the blonde girl blushed.

"You had a crush on her?" Kagami asks causing the blondes blush to intensify.

"Yes but I got over it when we were 12, I kind of knew I stood no chance," she admitted glancing at the blonde boy sitting next to the bluenette before her eyes trailed towards Luka. "Though maybe I should've tried harder."

It was obvious she was trying to shift the attention from her anger to the possibility of the blonde boys anger. But Felix did not take the bait, he smirked at her clearly counting this encounter as his victory.

"Don't worry I felt something for Marinette as well it's nothing to be embarrassed about," Kagami says offering the blonde an awkward nudge, she was clearly not used to social interactions. Chloe stared at the girl who was already staring at her, the two kept eye contact for longer than was considered friendly.

"Wait you two are gay," Aurora shouted shattering their moment causing Felix to chuckle.

"Yes/I'm bi," Chloe and Kagami answered causing the blonde to squeal.

"Ok so I had been dragged to school against my will," Marinette said continuing with the story. "Which was annoying because I had spent my whole life being homeschooled,"

"More like being groomed to one day take over the world," Chloe mutters.

"You'd think being raised by mafia leaders is bad," Marc shivered. "The mafia is scared of the Chengs"

"Well so we sort of took over the school, we were groomed to be leaders and became just that as soon as we entered the social environment we did just that," Marinette continued on ignoring the interjections.

"Plus Marie wanted to rid the world of all evil," Felix says with a smile. "And I'd follow my queen to the ends of the earth."

"But it soon became too much for me, somehow information about me was leaked, paparazzi was everywhere all the time and the kidnapping attempts," Marie says.

"On the plus side you got Harley and Ivy to completely adore you," Dick interjected earning a small smile from the girl.

"Yeah but I was young and at the time I wanted at least a shred of normalcy," Marinette says. "So for my 11th birthday I asked for them to make it all go away."

"And they delivered," Jason says with a bitter smile knowing very well he was one of the reasons she wanted to escape Gotham, well at least his death was.

"So they moved me to Paris where my Aunt had gone after falling in love with uncle Tom," she continued. "We gained different allies to help me blend in,"

"And where she went we followed," Chloe says pointing to Felix, Marc and herself.

"We once again took over our new school," Felix continues.

"Riding the school of all that is bad," Marc continued on.

"Picking up strays along the way," Chloe says eyeing Nathaniel before tearing her gaze away from him and muttering. "Though some of them did not deserve it."

"The world soon forgot of Marie Wayne, for I had disappeared just as soon as I had appeared," Marinette continues. "Life was okay for about three years before I had someone say something that haunted my everyday living."

"'don't you regret it' those four simple words got me thinking about everything, what if I was doing the world more bad then I was good," she said voice cracking as a single tear slipped down her cheek." I was destroying lives, people were afraid of me, I felt like an oppressor, a villain. And I felt as though no one truly knew me, they just knew the ruthless queen."

"So you asked the gang to split apart," Chloe says with a tinge of guilt finally realizing her friends inner temoil.

"Yeah not my finest moments, I'm sure if I had talked to yall-"

"We would have told you how wrong you were," Jason finished off for her.

"And how much good you'd actually done for us," Aurora says clearly heartbroken at her queens mental state.

"We bow down to you Marinette because of your kindness," Juleka surprisingly says followed with a bow.

"Because of your heart," Felix says following the Goths example.

"Your melody," Luka says with his bow.

"Your bravery," Kagami says.

"Your loyalty," Chloe says with a smile as the rest of the group added their own compliment followed with a bow.

"I'm very grateful for this show of affection," Marinette laughs feeling a bit lighter then she had in years. "But I'd really like to continue this story."

"Yes we're getting to the Lila girl," Jason says firmly followed by a few growls from different members of the group.

"Yes well a few months after the group split, I was honestly ready to come to yall and burden you with my feelings, then a certain incident happened and it completely broke me," Marinette says causing Felix to look away in guilt. "It wasn't even the person's fault it was all a misunderstanding that communication could have solved"

"Communication is a new court rule," Chloe declared.

"So I spent the next couple of years as a shadow of who I used to be, I ignored all that was wrong and made friends who did nothing but walk all over me," Marinette says tears flowing once more. "I did everything for those people, I even went as far as losing myself and the threw ne aside over the words of some liar who can't even style her hair!"

"I'll brief everyone on the rest, you don't need to continue Marie," Chloe says earning a greatful smile from the crying bluenette who was now squeezed in between her suitors.

"Thanks Chlo," she says causing the blonde to beam at the nickname.

"Yeah, yeah you softly," The blonde said feigning dismissal. "Let's plan our revenge."

YOUROFFICIALREPIRTER@BLONDIE

The court is out for blood.

#lrwerecomingforyou

***

[blujayonthewing]

21, 25, 29, 43 and 51, for the boy! (Felix!)

21. What common etiquette do they disagree with? Do they still follow it?

Oh definitely expectations around eye contact with verbal language. Signing he doesn't mind-- it's an intrinsic part of speaking and comprehending the language, and knowing the other person is doing it specifically to listen(so to speak) and understand makes the eye contact comfortable and fine for him, but with spoken word it always feels piercing and invasive and he hates it. He does his best out here but most of the time there's no benefit to forcing himself to try that isn't outweighed by how uncomfortable it makes him.

25. What subject / topic do they know a lot about that’s completely useless to the direct plot?

Oh lots of things, he loves collecting information! Of particular interest to him, he knows a lot of animal facts-- behavior, communication style and social behavior, life cycle, ecology, relationships with people where applicable, etc etc. He also knows, just, absolutely everything about everyone in his hometown, or at least everything there was to know at the time before he took off roving

29. How do they respond when someone doesn’t believe them?

Ah-- with visible stress and upset, but also pretty much immediate resignation. He'll continue to maintain his own honesty, but he doesn't fight it very strongly (often not at all); he's accustomed to not being believed, for reasons he's never been able to pinpoint, and has mostly given up trying to figure out how to be more convincing if 'literally telling the truth' isn't enough

43. What do they commonly misinterpret because of their own upbringing / environment / biases? How do they respond when realizing the misunderstanding?

Honestly a lot less nowadays after spending so much time traveling, eavesdropping, and people-watching a lot of different people from different walks of life, but his hometown is small and isolated enough that it was a lot of things to begin with, from idioms to social mores and so on. He's very apologetic if he's the one who's made some sort of misstep, and really just relieved when it's something he'd at first taken as rudeness or aggression directed at him but that turned out to be a misunderstanding.

51. What’s a phrase they say a lot?

"Oh-- that's interesting...!"

Ask about my OCs! :3

[pyrrhicraven]

I want to see the ideas for your favourites!! :D

I have so many fandoms but here are a few ideas that have been roaming in my head, some of it is headcanon stuff but a few bits are story ideas. It's a bit long so it is all below the line lol

HEADCANON

Hellsing Ultimate: Alucard loves being in crowds of people and loves the glitter and glam of parties. He likes looking good and seducing others even if he doesn't actually do anything with them.

Yu Yu Hakusho: 1) Hiei will never admit not even on his deathbed that he likes Kuwabara's cats or in fact Kuwabara himself. Unless I'm writing Hiei/Kuwabara and then it's just the cats 🤣

2) Kurama and Yusuke have unresolved sexual tension, but won't ever say anything as long as Keiko is alive or dating Yusuke. 3) It takes Kuwabara way too long to figure out that Shizuru and Botan have a relationship, and Hiei asks him how he could be so blind? 4) If Yusuke and Keiko split she starts to date Yukina I will go down with this ship and the live-action 100% teased me about it.

Danny Phantom: 1) Danny and Tucker secretly like Justin Bieber, They won't tell Sam because Sam thinks Bieber is dumb (As a metal head I agree with Sam 🤣) Though she does like some of their other musical tastes whatever those might be. 2) Vlad likes "Tennessee Whiskey" by Chris Stapleton, and various jazz bands. 3) Jack is a rock n' roll kind of guy and Maddie is a big fan of hyperpop for some reason lol

STORY IDEA (Bits and Bobs)

Hellsing: Alucard attempts to Woo Enrico Maxwell as they have a strange sexual tension and Maxwell isn't nearly as straight as Alucard thought the man was. (The Blood Auctions subplot)

Yu Yu Hakusho: Hiei gets turned into a girl because of magic wagic and Kuwabara already attracted to Male Hiei is absolutely besotted. Which Hiei is annoyed by this because he doesn't want to be treated any different while they figure out how to change him back.

Little does he know that Kuwabara isn't just attracted to his girl form and when Kuwabara blurts it out Hiei is shocked. Kurama likens it to a boy pulling on a girl's pigtails. Which Keiko makes fun of Yusuke for because he did the same thing with her for a long time.

Danny Phantom: Danny gets pulled into an alternate timeline (DC) and finds out that while he doesn't exist In this world His family and Vlad do. Vlad is human in this world and isn't nearly obsessed with Maddie to the point he leads a normal life rather than being a stalker. He's been married at least three times and has two kids (basically Dani and Dan), and Maddie and Jack had Jazz but no Danny.

Super Mario Bros: Luigi has a bit of a problem, two enemies are flirting to high hell with him and Mario is completely making fun of him for it. A truce between the Dark Lands and the Mushroom Kingdom had already been worked out so Bowser was over more often and not to attack them. Peach finds it hilarious once she realizes that Bowser is very obviously flirting with Luigi. Even more so when King Boo at Bowser's behest to sign the treaty also flirts heavily with Luigi. Both want the man's attention and Luigi Poor bastard is utterly freaked out. Mario is more amused than Annoyed but still yells at the guys to knock it off and leave his twin the hell alone.

Miraculous Ladybug: Marinette and Felix get trapped by a train collision in an underground tunnel trapping them and other passengers. Felix finally fed up with Marinette being utterly blind to his advances tells her he likes her. She surprises him with a confession of her own. (I started this one, but ehhh I haven't written for it in a long time)

Another one is Marinette and Gabriel starting to see each other, but in their hero/villain costumes and talking about what they want from the world. Marinette is well aware that Hawkmoth is trying to save a life and this goes on for months before Marinette accidentally finds Gabriel shifting out of Hawkmoth. Starting a fight between them, where she tries to take the Butterfly pendent from him. Both are bruised and battered-panting for breath when Gabriel basically says fuck it and pulls her to him, Kissing her at the same time he allows her to take his pendant. Marinette unsure of his intentions runs off which he allows. More than aware that a relationship between them was basically impossible but hoped she'd come back and tell him how she felt.

TMNT: A story about Mikey becoming a super awesome stealthy Soot! His skills are legendary, and he does it for his family so they have enough money and because he likes the thrill and sometimes the stuff he steals. (A subplot for my fic Pac-Man)

Isakai: Slow Life: A new one for me but I've been playing this game for months lol I want to write a fic between Sadako and Dia. Both are ghosts, Sadako for you horror movie lovers is 100% the one from the Ring franchise but if she were a lady trapped in a mirror and kind? When I first saw her I knew but had to look up to make sure they had the same name which they do lol Funny choice for a romance game but to each their own at least she is pretty in it lol

Harry Potter: Vampire Harry Potter Takes Lucius Malfoy for one hell of a ride. The original idea was for Harry to basically fall into a blood lust and snap out of it before actually killing the man and then forcing him to swear that he'd serve Harry and not Tom Riddle. In return, Harry would protect him and his family.

Star Wars: Obi-Wan as a sith is confronted by a padawan Anakin Skywalker, who was separated from his Master Qui-Gon. Obi-Wan remembers when he used to be Qui-Gon's Padawan before he was abandoned on Melida/Daan

[wonder-in-wings]

TIMING: Early August LOCATION: The Worm Row Alleys PARTIES: Felix (@recoveringdreamer and Parker (@wonder-in-wings SUMMARY: A few days after the Fight, Parker tries to return to the scene of the attempted mugging to collect his remaining tools but he can’t figure out which alley it was. Felix happens to be in the area. CONTENT WARNINGS: Drug Manipulation [reference to sedatives before]

Day 5. He was getting fed up. This was the sixth alley he’d been to and his search came up empty. Again. All the alleys in that cesspool of the town looked the damn same. And this was ignoring the part where his tools could’ve been picked up and sold for spare cash at the pawn shop - it’d been several days since he last visited. Parker refused to believe that that could be the case, not when there were three bodies there ripe for the choosing and he was further back in that alley. Not to mention searching for his tools was one of the only drives he had at that juncture.

Parker exited the space, stopping in the middle of the sidewalk, ignoring the people passing by him and casting a venomous glare to anyone who dared say anything or even look at him wrong. The forming scar on his face seemed to be a good deterrent after all, even if it wasn’t his choice to receive. Nonetheless, he couldn’t afford to start another altercation, not for the fifth time that week in public, never mind the completely vapid and incredibly unreasonable breakdowns he’d suffered in the privacy of his own home. He started crying three evenings ago because he ran out of salt. Salt. And that was even after he checked his cabinet to find that he still had some, he just needed to refill his salt shaker.

It was quickly reaching a point where Parker was becoming consumed with these aspects of control that were constantly slipping out of his grasp. It came so naturally to him before and he figured he’d allowed himself enough time to rest and recover from that night. The lack of being able to shut down core facets of his humanity, the ability to become robotic if it served the purpose of his nature as an observer and a collector was starting to get him into trouble. He kept trying to go back to work and every time he went, something innocuous would incense him and he’d snap and be subsequently sent home. He didn’t want to go home. He didn’t want to snap at people for things he didn’t like about them. Even the thought of being out of control threatened to send him spiraling, a self-fulfilling prophecy of getting upset about the lack of control then losing it then getting upset at losing it. Parker took a deep breath, closing his eyes and clenching his fists until the knuckles were white. Exhale. Unclench. Relax his shoulders. He opened his blue eyes again and stepped aside from the sidewalk, allowing himself some space and he went to the next alley.

—

The ground felt a little steadier under their feet than it had before. It was an adjustment, coming back from a full shift. Especially when shifting hadn’t been their choice, when the jaguar had taken control in a moment of terror and danger and kept them away from their life for days after. Their bosses were angry, of course, were punishing them any way they saw fit, and that meant Felix had been scheduled for back to back fights since their return to the Pit, everything they’d missed during the jaguar’s turn at the wheel rescheduled for the first moment they didn’t have another fight. They were run ragged, barely functioning, and still they knew they’d been lucky. They still had their tail. They still had their life. They tried to focus on that.

Even if Leo also had them taking out the trash now. 

It was a taunt, they knew; a way of displaying just how much control the Pit had over the balam. Take the garbage to the dumpster across the street. Don’t complain — you’re lucky we don’t have you in a cage in the basement after the shit you pulled. There’s nothing worse than a flight risk, Fe. You know we can’t afford that… and neither can you. 

So here they were. Lugging a garbage bag full of they didn’t want to know what to a dumpster away from the Grit Pit, for ‘liability issues.’ Felix wasn’t even sure if the reasoning was genuine or if Leo just wanted to make them walk farther. It probably didn’t matter. It wasn’t like they could say no either way.

They made it to the dumpster and lifted the bag inside, grunting with the weight of it. Their arm was still sore where the warden had stabbed them with the sedative, the slashes he’d left on their arms back when they were a jaguar’s leg still present. They thought about werewolves, of the enhanced healing granted to them with the full moon. Lucky bastards. 

Hearing footsteps at the mouth of the alley, Felix hurried to close the dumpster. If there really was something worth hiding in those bags, they didn’t want to be caught with them. They turned, ready to duck their head and trudge out of the alley…

Only to freeze when they spotted a familiar face at the mouth of it.

Immediately, their heard jumped into their throat. The jaguar stirred, sensing the anxiety, and they tried to force it down. They couldn’t afford to disappear right now, no matter how much they might want to. “Leave me alone,” they said, hating the way their voice shook. “I — I mean it.”

—

Wondering why he didn’t bother to carry a map with him so he could mark off inconsequential spots, Parker approached the next alley and examined his knuckles, which were still bruised from the altercation a few days ago. That was one of the things he was missing, his spiked iron knuckles. They were one of his oldest tools, most reliable friends, his defender. An attacker. He figured when he dropped them in favor of going bare-fisted, they slid under a nearby dumpster even though he couldn’t quite recall if there was a dumpster in the particular alley that he retreated into. He was stopped shortly as he turned the corner, however, and Parker glanced up when he was spoken to; by the fourth alley he’d been to where there wasn’t anyone there to ask him what he was doing, he chalked the experience up to luck as he wasn’t in the mood to entertain. This one wasn’t empty though, obviously, and whoever it was sounded afraid. Fortunately for the stranger, Parker’s being hearing-deficient combined with how he’d never been particularly skilled at vocal recognition meant that he didn’t know who it was at first and he could feel the latent irritation that threatened to turn into fury already starting to bubble in his gut. Unfortunately for the stranger, Parker’s eyes were much more proficient to compensate and he could pick a face from a lineup after seeing the assailant once in passing. As the Warden was heading into this alley to search for a set of spiked iron knuckles, he had almost run into a familiar face, indeed. Unlike the past couple of times though, a rush of adrenaline shot through him and for the first time in his memory, he had to resist the urge to run from the unassuming shifter that turned into something so close to ruining his life, managing to leave a lasting mark on the Warden’s face. The thought mortified him. “Where are your ears, kitty cat?” Parker asked, glancing down. “Or your tail?” His tone, while usually flat and clinical, took a sarcastic edge to it, subtle though it was. He was displaying a false sense of bravado as internally, he was calming himself down, keeping himself from bolting like a prey animal under the scrutinizing stalk of an apex predator. The roles should’ve been reversed.

But they weren’t, not right now.

—

It felt too much like it had the last time they’d run into the warden. An alley, two figures occupying it. If Felix tried to run, would the hunter shove him to the ground again? Had he brought those knives with him, the ones with the drugs inside? Had he come here looking for Felix, to either get the tail he’d been so obsessive about or to seek revenge for whatever the jaguar had done to him? There was a fresh scar across his face that looked like a clawmark had left it there, and Felix wondered if it had been his claws that carved it out. But the nymph at the lake, she’d had a similar experience with this warden, hadn’t she? How many people did he attempt to mutilate? How often did he target people like Felix, who’d just been minding their own business? 

The warden was speaking, and he sounded different. Less flat than he had been before. Was it anger? Rage towards someone who’d hurt him? Felix’s heart was pounding in their chest, the jaguar at the ready. He wanted out again, wanted to finish what he’d started, but Felix didn’t want any more blood on their hands, didn’t want to kill anyone. They shoved the feeling down, tried to calm themself even as the warden’s words injected more fear into them. 

Or your tail. 

Just hearing him question it sent a shiver down the balam’s spine. “If you ever touch me again, I’ll leave you with a lot worse than a scratch on your face,” they warned, though the way their voice trembled just a little seemed to take away from the intimidation they were going for. “I — I don’t have to go full jaguar to break out my claws. Remember that.”

— The other individual opened their mouth and the Warden was somehow expecting a complete shift in demeanor; he was expecting a rumbling strength, an actual threat. He was expecting the claws to come out as a show of dominance. Instead, none of that happened. Instead, the sense of fear, that primal urge to turn and bolt as fast and as far as his legs could carry him subsided rather easily as the shifter, who Parker now knew was called ‘Felix’, attempted their own form of bravado but it came out with much less confidence. One of the Warden’s eyes twitched in response as his hands balled into fists again, quivering slightly with the energy that flared up inside of him at the audacity. If he didn’t know any better, he’d think the jaguar was a crutch. There was no respect there. There was only fear; fear for what they housed inside them, fear from a lack of control since apparently the jaguar had thoughts of its own, fear undoubtedly regarding Parker himself. “Maybe not.” The slightly taller man flared his nostrils as he couldn’t keep his expression from flashing with an emotion that was alien on his face. He took a step towards the shifter; his own fear was gone and only a frothing pit of anger and daring remained at his particular moment. His fists clenched and unclenched, the sound of his knuckles cracking pinging against the metal dumpster they stood near. 

He took another step forward, his head tilting slightly as he kept his blue eyes on the other individual. “Show me.” His voice came out in a hiss, low, venomous; he wasn’t sure what the shifter was but he figured they had the hearing of an animal so he didn’t bother making himself more clear. Parker wasn’t even there for the shifter, why did everyone assume that he was anywhere for them? Couldn’t he simply have his own time, goals, priorities? He was challenging them. “Show me.” He repeated. “Will you strike first? Can you strike first? I won’t fight you right now; you have my word.” A dangerous, rare thing, for Parker to give anyone his word, even if he wasn’t talking to a fae but though it wasn’t binding, Parker was a man of his word. He wasn’t a liar. Just another thing for people to misunderstand about him. He was used to it. “Come on, kitty cat. Fall back on the jaguar to fight for you, shifter. ” Parker was playing a dangerous game, one that he wasn’t sure he would be able to win with his current mindset. Then again, the current mindset was what got him into this particular scenario; if he had just stayed calm, stoic, emotionless, and controlled, he wouldn’t need to have come back, wandering aimlessly as he didn’t know where one of his greatest non-fae treasures was. “Show me your claws, Felix.”

—

There was something different about the warden. It wasn’t just his tone — his entire demeanor had shifted. Before, he’d been a blank slate. No emotion in his eyes, no sign that he was a person at all. An empty vessel, a robotic creature with no thoughts or feelings outside his goal, and no room to argue with anyone who didn’t want him to achieve it. But this was different. There was anger dancing behind his eyes now. Had Felix put it there? Had the jaguar’s attack caused this man to shift from the robotic state he’d existed in before to something more fiery, something angrier? If so, was that anger reserved for Felix, or had they unleashed it upon the town?

And, perhaps more jarringly, which was scarier? Was it better to be accosted by an emotionless husk of a man, one who was single-minded in his goals but wouldn’t work outside of them, or was it more preferable to be attacked by someone so blinded with rage that he might slip up in a way that calculated warden from the other night wouldn’t have? 

Felix was terrified now, just as he had been before. His heart was pounding, and he ached with it. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. They were the predator. Why did they always feel like the prey?

The challenge caught them off guard. They weren’t expecting it, because why would they be? He’d seen their claws once — up close and personal, if the new scar on his face was any indication. But Felix wasn’t intimidating when they were themself. It was the jaguar that was the threat, the beast that made people tremble. Felix could hold their own in the ring, but they didn’t much like fighting outside of it. And threats weren’t really their forte. There were no threats in the ring, after all — you just fought. It was simple.

But there was nothing simple about this. 

The warden promised he wouldn’t fight them, and Felix’s eyes darted to the space behind him. “If you don’t want to fight, then I’ll leave,” they said, inching towards the mouth of the alley. “I’m not — I don’t want to fight you, either. Just leave me alone. Stay away from me, and I’ll go.”

—

The silence between them was palpable as Parker’s eyes wavered for a long moment, every muscle in his body tightening like a coiled spring ready to strike… but he wasn’t going to. He stared the shifter down, his pupils contracting and dilating with the light that wavered above them. He waited to absorb the shock from a blow, he waited to be struck by four more claws where the first one came from as they were on a human hand this time instead of the massive paw of the jaguar. He waited. He waited. But Felix disengaged. Maybe that was most of the reason why Parker felt so confident, even as his body pulsed with adrenaline to prepare him for whatever might’ve come; this scenario had a predetermined outcome. Despite everything that’d transpired between the two from the incident with the idiomimics to a few days ago, both of them knew that Felix wasn’t going to start a fight outside the Grit Pit, not on purpose and not with conviction. Felix wasn’t a fighter or a killer. Felix was a young shifter with poor luck and a desire to coexist. Underneath the obsession, underneath the single-minded desire, a small flicker of acknowledgment licked at Parker’s brain. ‘My son, be gentle for me.’ He exhaled, feeling himself deflate like a balloon as his body caught up with his brain’s realization that he wasn’t going to have to defend himself against anyone today, for once. His gaze fell from Felix’ face and the fear that painted it and he took a few shaky steps back, his eyes suddenly doing everything in their power to keep from meeting the shifter’s. “I won’t hurt you.” He said in a quiet breath. “I’m…” What, sorry? No, Parker couldn’t be sorry. The Warden didn’t hold regrets, only causes, effects and lessons to learn next time. He blinked, furrowing his brow and looking at the ground, leaning back against the opposite wall. The pendulum was swinging in the opposite direction now as a wave of uncharacteristic guilt washed over him. “I won’t hurt you.”

—

Felix tensed, waiting for the warden to attack. To grab them by the shoulder the way he had before, to force them to the ground with a knife in his hand. His heart was in his throat and he waited, and wasn’t the waiting the worst part? In the Grit Pit, at least, things were simple. A bell sounded, and the violence began. Fights were contained between the ringing of that bell, even if there were no referees to stop those fights from ending with blood soaking every inch of the ring. But out here? Out here, violence was unpredictable. Someone could push drugs into your system and try to cut pieces off of you, and there was no bell, no warning. 

The warden seemed hesitant in a way he hadn’t been before, but what were the odds that was anything more than a trick? What were the chances that he didn’t intend Felix any harm? He said I won’t hurt you, and for a moment, Felix was back in the alley outside the Grit Pit instead of in this one, was on the ground with a heavy weight on top of him and no one to hear his desperate screams. I don’t want to hurt you, the warden had said then. I don’t want you dead. But he’d still put that knife into Felix’s arm. He’d still pushed those drugs into their system. He still would have taken part of him like a trophy if the jaguar hadn’t intervened. 

Panic gripped them, and they didn’t even realize they were doing it until it happened. The subtle partial shift, the claws on their fingers and that tail that had started it all breaking free as it moved back and forth, swaying. The language in the tail was that of a jaguar stalking its prey, but Felix still wasn’t much of a predator. Their breath was a panicked gasp, their heartbeat a desperate flutter. 

“Don’t say that,” they said. “Don’t say that. You said that before, and it isn’t true. I — I hurt someone because of you.”

—

Parker was still leaning against the wall, his hands now on his knees that jutted out in a makeshift sitting position, swallowing the overwhelming guilt that shivered through his system like a viral infection; his body fighting and trying to reject the strain, making his stomach turn over, strangling his breath as he struggled not to break down as his mother’s voice echoed in his head. She was always the reasonable one, as mothers of that era tended to be; deadly and proficient but also able to draw from the deepest wells of compassion and patience. His brother had inherited the best traits from both parents, Parker could only learn the worst. So when the Warden backed off, releasing the pent-up energy that came with the anticipation of an immediate threat kicking his body into fight-or-flight mode, it was Felix’ turn to reciprocate. Parker hadn’t noticed anything different either until the shifter began to speak and red-rimmed blue eyes were lifted to see the look on Felix’ face… and then they fell onto the tail again. The damned tail, the treasure that lit the flames in Parker’s mind, the tail that wasn’t there when he looked down only to find it swaying mockingly in his freshly-scarred face when he looked back up. A sharp inhale was sucked into Parker’s lungs through half-gritted teeth and his breathing accelerated, the rush of desire and obsession storming through his brain. He heard what Felix said but for an agonizingly long moment, he wanted to disregard everything that he was feeling, everything in his mind that kept him rooted to the spot. Advance. Try again. Succeed. He pulled himself away from the wall roughly, as though he were yanked forward by an invisible tether and he started to advance towards the shifter only to abruptly turn to where he was facing the nearby garbage can. With all his might, he kicked the thing and the clanging metal, the awful scrape of the bottom as it was pushed along the pavement, sent needles in his skin. “Put the tail away.” Parker grunted as he cradled his arms to his stomach to keep them from reaching around and attempting to throttle Felix. He couldn’t look at them. Wouldn’t look at them. He had to breathe. “Put the tail away. I don’t… want to hurt you.” Parker’s voice carried effort into it, almost as though he were speaking between bouts of pushing a boulder up a hill. It was true. It was true. It was always true. “Keep the claws, put the tail away.” He repeated, his tone almost pleading; it was an unusual sound, one so unfamiliar that Parker didn’t know that’s what it was. He couldn’t explain why. He couldn’t explain anything.

—

They could hear the warden’s reaction to the subtle shift. The way his heartbeat picked up, the way his breath quickened. Desire was a physical thing overtaking him, and Felix felt sick at the implication. Fear and anxiety swirled in their chest, making the tail sway faster and faster behind them. They wanted to hide it away, wanted to tuck it wherever it went when they weren’t shifted at all, but control was hard to come by when emotions ran high like this. It was all he could do to keep the jaguar from taking over entirely, all he could manage to stay as human as he was.

They blinked, eyes yellow and catlike when they opened them. Their senses became sharper and, with it, new aspects of the situation began wrapping cool fingers around Felix’s throat. Parker’s sharp inhale was deafening, the want in his eyes as they fell on the tail impossible to miss. The alley was so full of fear, and Felix couldn’t tell who it belonged to. Was that Parker’s lungs drawing breath so quick it bordered on hyperventilation, or was it their own? Whose heartbeat was drowning out the sound of the town around them?

The warden took a rough step forward, and then another. Felix shrank backwards in response, trying to make themself smaller while still trying to appear as a threat. A predator’s instincts were at war with an abused mind, leaving them with a strange sense of limbo. Fight, flight, freeze. Somehow, Felix seemed to be doing all three.

Surprisingly, the warden stopped before he got to them. He kicked a garbage can, and Felix flinched at the sound, jerking backwards violently. He told them to put the tail away, and that was strange, wasn’t it? He couldn’t cut it off if it wasn’t there, and wasn’t that the only thing he’d wanted to do since he saw it? It was a trick, Felix knew. It had to be a trick. Still, he tried desperately to comply. He tried to convince the tail to go, tried to blink his eyes back to human and draw his claws back into his fingers, but nothing was listening.

And again, the man was claiming he didn’t want to hurt them. As if everything he had done didn’t prove the very opposite. “You drugged me,” Felix spat, gasping for breath. “You — you tried to cut a piece off of me. You don’t want to hurt me? You already did!” Faster and faster the tail swished behind them. More and more Felix willed it to go back to where it belonged. But the jaguar didn’t listen; he never did, these days. Angry at the mess Felix had gotten them into, they suspected. Angry that they only ever made it worse. “Just — Just get out of here! Go!”

—

The Warden didn’t turn back around to see if the tail had, indeed, been put away for a long moment, instead taking another step further into the alley with his back to the shifter. Parker’s mind was simultaneously on fire and dipped into icy water. He wanted to run. He wanted to fight. He wanted to harvest, to apologize, to scream, cry, beat his fists into someone’s face until they were unrecognizable, vomit. The weight of conflict was pressing too hard on him, slicking his forehead in a sheen of sweat, clamping down on his stomach. Parker kept trying to catch his breath, gulping for air like a fish on a sunscorched dock. He wasn’t sure what this feeling was that locked his muscles and made him feel like instead of anything else, he was about to pass out but when Felix started talking again, the words instead just expounded on the overwhelming sensation and he straightened up, squaring his shoulders and clenching his fists so tightly that his nails were cutting into his palms. He turned on a heel in a motion just a little too deft for a regular human as he closed the distance between the two with a misplaced grace and fluidity. In what seemed like a blur, Parker hovered his face mere inches away from the shifter, to the point that his pointed nose could’ve grazed the tip of the other. He locked tired, yet alert blue eyes that were spiked with tears onto the shifter’s sharp, feline gaze. He had to keep his eyes on the others, not let them waver even though he felt the allure, a hook in his mind. How much bravado the shifter had once Parker’s back was turned and he promised that he wouldn’t hurt them. How bold they were, hiding behind the jungle cat who did all the work for them even now. Felix wasn’t about to strike but the Warden had gotten wise to the assumption that Felix and the jaguar were not the same person. “I did. That’s what you want to hear.” He finally spoke after an indefinite amount of time glaring unblinkingly into the eyes of the other, staying there even if the shifter tried to disengage, breathing heavily through his nose as his head felt like it was swimming. “I did.” He repeated, his voice a low mutter through gritted teeth that tightened his jaw. “And I don’t want to do it again.” The tears that welled in his eyes now trickled down his face, catching in the folds of his fresh scar from the shifter he now stared down. “I’m not leaving. I lost something.” Another pause. “So get your jaguar to fight for you again, Felix. I said I wouldn’t.”

—

They were almost… worried, for a moment. The warden was sweating, was gasping, was looking less and less like the face from Felix’s nightmares and more and more like an unstable man in an alley that needed help. Felix took an uncertain step forward, kind and optimistic and stupid enough to almost ask if the warden was okay in spite of everything. In spite of their own trembling hands and their own stuttering heart, in spite of the way their tail twitched and curled around them, in spite of the memory of cement digging into their back as they screamed for a rescue that wouldn’t come. 

But just as Felix was prepared to swallow their fear and check on the man, the warden was moving. Fast as a strike of lightning, and just as dangerous, he advanced on the balam and Felix shot backwards, his back hitting the bricks behind him as he ran out of places to retreat to. The warden’s face was so close to theirs, and Felix felt the man’s breath against their skin, felt it like a hand clamped around their throat. 

He hurt them, and he was admitting it. Was this what they wanted to hear? Not really. They didn’t want an assurance that he didn’t ‘want’ to do it again when he’d claimed he didn’t ‘want’ to do it as it was happening. They didn’t want much of anything at all except for the warden to leave, but that wasn’t happening. He was close, he was suffocating, he was somehow scarier than he’d been before. 

Felix reached out their hands and shoved. Hard. They wouldn’t bring the jaguar out if they could help it, didn’t want to lose more days and face more consequences, but they didn’t want to stay in the alley with the warden, either. 

—

It wasn’t claws, it wasn’t the jaguar that pushed Parker out of the face of the stressed shifter. The Warden, every fiber in his being tense and coiled like the serpent he was related to sometimes, felt the energy of movement, the weight of Felix’ hands pressing against him forcefully. And while he didn’t have to, content to be an immovable object to the shifter’s supposed unstoppable force, he allowed himself to take a few stumbling steps back as though he weren’t expecting the effort. As he did so, he straightened up again and reached behind himself to make sure that he didn’t hit the other wall. All the while, Parker kept his steely stare on the shifter, narrowing his gaze; he wouldn’t look at the tail. He couldn’t. If he did so, he’d be gripped by obsession again, throwing the words he’d said previously out of the window. Proving that he was weak. Unable to keep his word. He reached up and roughly wiped the tears and sweat off one half of his face but suddenly slowed down as he reached the other side, much more careful as his middle finger traced the raw scar that was still forming on his cheek slowly, eliciting the faintest hint of a wince. He didn’t have the tools. He didn’t have the energy, the patience, the calm, calculated processes. Thankfully, the shove from Felix managed to stabilize Parker and the latter found his breathing deeper, steadier. The tempest of emotions that churned inside him, oil mixing with water that left him disoriented and split on what to do and which decision to make had seemingly been calmed by the show of aggression, if only temporarily. The Warden could wrap intangible hands around the wheel of control once more. He exhaled and closed his eyes, the frothing storm of extremes that didn’t belong to him settling. In. Out. As he opened his eyes once more, his expression softening, his gaze lowered from where they glared at the shifter before and drifted down to the feet of the dumpster. Slowly, and perhaps the most genuinely that he had in a while, he let a smile creep onto his face as his exhaustedly sharp eyes found the glimmering ghosts of light bouncing off his iron spiked knuckle-duster. Wordlessly, not caring how Felix might’ve reacted to him, Parker approached the dumpster one more time, dropping to a kneel as he reached under it. He collected the object in his hands gently, fondly, though he was retrieving a kitten instead of a heavy iron weapon. “I won’t hurt you again.” He was looking at the barbed knuckle-duster but he was speaking to Felix. “You don’t have to believe me.” Parker’s gaze flickered to the shifter’s face before looking back down at the weapon, slipping it onto his fingers as though to make sure it was really his. Of course it was. He made them himself. “Learn how to put the tail away. It’ll get you into trouble.” He added vaguely but he either couldn’t or wouldn’t elaborate further, unwilling to view himself critically at the moment lest he fall into another unwarranted and humiliating breakdown. With one last, rather earnest look at Felix, staring into their catlike eyes, Parker took the iron knuckles off his hand, slipped them into one of his jeans pockets and skulked out of the alley. He was going home. He’d reached his limit that day.

—

There was a moment after Felix shoved the warden where time stood suspended. There was a moment where they couldn’t move, couldn’t think, couldn’t breathe as they watched the man stumble backwards. Had they signed their own death warrant with that shove, they wondered? Would this be the thing to break the hunter free of whatever strange spell he seemed to be under, the thing that would make him look back at Felix again the way he had before, when he’d shoved him to the ground and held him there, when he’d injected a sedative into their veins to make them more pliable? 

But the hunter only smiled. Felix felt sick with it, the unnaturalness. He stepped forward again, and Felix was already so tense that it hurt but they tensed further at the movement. Like a wild animal, their wide eyes tracked every move the hunter made. The way he knelt, the way he reached under the dumpster. They swallowed when he came back with shining metal, thinking again of a knife in their shoulder and a drug pulling them under.

I won’t hurt you again, the hunter said, but Felix didn’t believe him. They couldn’t. Not when the damage had been done, not when there was blood on their hands because of what this man had done. They stood, just as tense, as the man spoke, tail wrapping protectively around their body as if the jaguar was trying to offer some comfort even as they had it locked away. Learn to put that tail away, as if it was easy. It’ll get you into trouble, as if it was their fault. As if having a tail gave someone permission to take it, as if existing meant accepting that people would want you dead for doing so.

Felix said nothing. No words would come to them, no response seemed right. They watched as the hunter removed the iron knuckles from his hand, watched him slip them into his pocket instead. They watched him leave without moving, without blinking, without saying a word. They listened until his ragged breath was far away, until they couldn’t hear his footsteps even with the jaguar’s assistance. 

And only when he was gone did they allow themself to collapse in the alley. Only when he could no longer see them did they allow themself to fall apart.