#forest spirit dream au

[hiding-in-the-vault]

redux?

[hiding-in-the-vault]

WAAAAAA ITS MY BOOYYYYY!!!!! MY LLAAADDDDDDD!!! he looks so good ommgggggg ; v ; !!!!! hhee!!! Thank you so much i will cherish him always

It is @hiding-in-the-vault day, hope it is a great one!

pls take this offering vault :D

[checkadii]

mfs do anything but finish their wips . like startign another, for example

[monsterritory]

AU Anon here! I really want that prize. So, Imma guess….

I have three guesses.

One is that Dream kills Wilbur and carries a very terrified Tommy off for some save the forest shenanigans. 

Two is that Dream, interested in both Tommy and Wilbur, agrees to play nice if they help him protect nature. Wilbur agrees, Tommy does not. Neither give a shit and live as this toxic family group.

Three is that Dream kills them both just cause.

Throwing a few stones hoping that one will land in the right spot, aren't we? Well well well...

I'll give it to you, one did land. And I'm in a benevolent mood. You get the prize.

The true ending that I like is the one where they just kinda... live together now.

Tommy sends letters to his parents without return address. He can't go back to his old town because he kinda is the face of a killer who slaughtered the innocent. But it was time to leave the nest anyways, and Wilbur is kind of an okay roommate, so he's content.

Wilbur is just glad he can finally split the rent with someone- I mean, Wilbur eventually grows to see Tommy as a brotherly figure.

As for Dream. Well, he did "lose his powers". Possibly? So that's probably the only reason he isn't killing the two brothers at the first instance-

Yeah, why would an almighty forest spirit grow attached to some random humans? That's kind of silly... but maybe life is silly.

In the end they learn to coexist and live happily ever after.

The end.

...Welp. The story's over. Nothing else to do here...

...On to the next one!

[hiding-in-the-vault]

WWHHAAAAAA?????? ; - ;ITS LITERALLY HIMMMM OOMMMG THANK YOOUU

I am sorry I was late uwahhhhh!!!

But happy belated birthday to @hiding-in-the-vault! I really like the forest spirit so I just have to doodle him for you!!! Have a good birthday, bud!!!

[deerspherestudios]

🔍 QNA MASTERLIST (PT.4) 🔎

This masterlist covers general lore and an AU featuring MindReader!Mychael.

📍 For part 1, it's [HERE] for abilities, romantic/yandere traits and his opinion on kids. 📍 For part 2, it's [HERE] for anatomy. 📍 For part 3, it's [HERE] for reactions to different MCs.

Random Mychael lore❕

He has a different name in his own language, but goes by Mychael.

He also chose Mychael as a name himself.

He doesn't have a last name.

When did he start knitting and why?

Where did the nickname 'firefly' come from?

What music would he like?

His favorite smells are old books, honey and gasoline.

He's super ticklish.

How did he carry MC to his home?

His favorite thing to knit are beanies.

He'd love bringing you outdoors.

He's a quiet sleeper.

He sleeps in a fetal position.

He sleeps with both sets of eyes closed.

He'd love cheek kisses.

(Minor) loredump!

His knowledge on marriage.

He's overworked himself when fixing up the cabin.

Would he like stargazing?

You're not the first human he's found unconscious.

He'd be okay wearing a dress.

What's his wardrobe like?

He has a fear/phobia of snowstorms, thunder/lightning, trains/train whistles and water wells.

We can't get sick from him.

Does he have a religion/beliefs?

He would love the Shrek series.

The chickens' name origins (they're all flowers).

He's never considered humans as 'food'.

How did Mychael get his hens?

His favorite candies would be marshmallows and cotton candy.

If he had internet, he'd mostly look up arts-and-crafts and recipes. He'd also love DIY candy kits. He would enjoy nonverbal ASMR.

He prefers being warm.

He kinda celebrates New Years' and loves fireworks. + Why he loves fireworks but are terrified of thunderstorms.

He doesn't need skincare but would enjoy face masks.

His first experience with bees.

He's never played UNO (but would love board and card games).

How does Mychael view the animals/people he meets in the forest?

More Mychael lore❕

He can't handle spicy food as it makes him physically ill.

He's ambidextrous.

His MBTI is INFJ-T.

His favorite desserts are pumpkin pie and cranberry muffins.

His favorite books are self-help skill books and picture books.

His favorite color is yellow. His favorite animal is a jellyfish.

He used to wear cloaks when it was socially acceptable to.

He doesn't believe in ghosts.

How did he learn to speak and pronounce words?

He would love origami.

He'd love to have a cow but think it'd be high maintenance.

He prefers tea over coffee.

His first time seeing the ocean.

He would enjoy K-pop, phonk and electropop music the most.

He would enjoy making fairy bread!

His favorite Ghibli movie would be The Secret World of Arrietty.

Kid!Mychael. + His personality.

Mychael playing Stardew Valley.

Mychael trying a laptop at the library for the first time.

Mychael's perspective in Ending 2 and Ending 3.

Mychael would lose against Atom (Astronought) and Alma (Lift Your Spirits).

Mychael wearing (terribly-shaped) glasses.

About MR!Mychael ❕

MR!Mychael origins and discussion.

MR!Mychael with MC thinking nice thoughts about him.

MR!Mychael wouldn't rescue MC in Day 1.

MR!Mychael analysis and the type of MC he'd fall for.

How MR!Mychael's power works.

How MC would meet MR!Mychael.

MR!Mychael would react the same regardless of MC's psyche.

MR!Mychael with an overthinking MC.

MR!Mychael can't see dreams.

MR!Mychael with an MC with an earworm.

MR!Mychael's personality + when comfortable with MC.

[cheerclaw]

(skyclan rusty au) Smudge... this old dead man keeps telling me to go to the forest

quick au explanation/concept:

Rusty didn't go to the forest that fateful day, he simply ignored the calls and went to bed resulting in a catastrophic change of events, Tigerclaw manages to succeed with his plan and now he's the leader of Thunderclan and he has control over Shadowclan, there's a resistance starting but that doesn't matter right now.

Rusty is around ≈ 25 moons he is living the life of an ordinary kittypet, sometimes venturing into the city but never too far from his home, until one day he starts having strange dreams, the dead clan cat keeps saying that he has to rebuild his clan and fight for the freedom of those who live in the forest, Rusty tries to ignore Clear Sky as much as possible but reaches a point where Clear Sky stops only showing in his dreams and start showing up as an spirit irl, this freaks Rusty out a little and he decides he's going to help Clear Sky, but in his own way. He will recruit kittypets that he knows to try to set up a clan and fight with whatever is the forest.

^ this is very basic and is missing a lot of info btw, but idk if ill continue w/ this ai

[enviedear]

christmas dreaming ❅ jason todd

part of enviedear's winter wonderland... 🎧ྀི when jason overhears your complaint about the town’s lackluster christmas trees, he takes it as a challenge. every day, he stops by your store with an update—always casual, always shrugging off your insistence that it’s unnecessary. but beneath the easy smiles and weather-worn jacket, jason is on a quiet mission. for weeks, he’s combed through forests and farms, chasing the impossible—your perfect tree. and while he won’t admit it, this isn’t just about holiday spirit. it’s purely about you—and the way your smile might make the coldest december day feel warm. wc 1.4k | fluff. just toothrotting fluff. background on my farmer!jason au !

you never meant to set your own customer up for failure. truly. if you had known that by divulging your disdain for the local christmas tree selection you’d start jason todd on a nearly impossible mission—finding you the perfect tree.

for days, he’s come into your little general store to gently remind you that he’s still looking. despite you telling him that he really doesn’t have to go through all the trouble.

he always shrugs you off, even going so far as insisting upon the task. because for jason, this is his in. his way to show you how much he likes you. a perfect action to alleviate the ineptitude he feels with his words.

he’s working himself like a dog for it—for your joy. he’s consistently been up and searching before the sun fully rises, taking trips to neighboring towns, and going so far as to ask the other townsfolk—just for you. so you can have your perfect tree.

he has a list for himself. all the things he knows you want, and a few things he just assumes you may. so far the list contains the following:

a full tree—no sparse spruce! tall, but not too tall. wide, but not too wide. something that can fit in your living room, yet still maintain all your decorations. ethically sourced, of course. and finally, thick branches—for any especially heavy ornaments.

currently, he sits—freezing in his truck—waiting for the heat to kick on. it's a particularly dreary december day. grey skies, and land barren of foilage or much color. but aside from the weather's affliction upon the earth, jason's mind is peaceful. he feels contented by his task.

finding you the perfect christmas tree had seemed like a rather innocuous task at first, but your small town could certainly buy up all the good trees quickly. he started his hunt at the first of the month—and here he is, fifteen days in and tree-less.

he takes a peek at the list displayed on his dash, eyes taking in the mixture of your penmanship surrounded by his own. a shiver makes him cut his gaze back to the world around him—and he thinks back to you when he focuses in on fact that it's seven in the morning on a saturday, and he's up in the cold—for you. he wants to be annoyed at the fact he's not at all annoyed.

with a sigh that fogs his window—heat moreso tepid if anything—he puts his truck in drive and heads into the town over. praying that the farmer he talked to yesterday wasn't playing him for a fool when he promised to have 'just the one'.

just an hour and three miles down a dirt road later—jason's truck pulls into a small farm. there's a hand-painted sign in front of a barn, SMITH'S EVERGREEN’S, written in red paint and worn with age.

from the few trees he can see, there's nothing special. mostly quaint little things. nothing good enough for you. not in his eyes, anyway.

as he approaches the barn, a middle-aged man clad in flannel and wool emerges, rubbing his hands in hopes of hindering the cold.

“you that jason fella'?” the man asks, squinting at him.

“that’s me.” jason replies, offering a nod. “you said you had a good tree?”

the man scratches at his beard, lips quirking in a grin. “good? i said i had'a hell of a tree. saved it just like i said." he motions for jason to follow him, "c’mere.”

jason tails behind him until they reach the side of the barn, where a single tree stands, base wrapped in burlap and tied with twine. and despite himself—his breath catches. the thing's perfect—full and lush, with branches so thick they could hold every ornament you owned and then some. it wasn’t too tall, not too wide, and even standing in the dull morning light, it looked vibrant.

“hell of a tree alright.” jason murmurs, already imagining how it would look after you get your hands on it, the soft glow of lights and kitschy ornaments catching the reflections of your sweet smile.

“told ya.” the man hums, clearly proud of himself. “took a lotta pruning to get it lookin’ that good, but she’s a beauty.”

jason digs his wallet out of his back pocket without hesitation, counting out the cash. “i’ll take it.”

the entire drive back into town makes jason feel like both an impatient child and a concerned parent—he's at least ten over the speed limit but constantly checking his rearview. worried beyond belief that the tree may fall out of his truckbed or crumble with the wind. he’d gone overboard strapping it down, but for good reason.

this wasn’t just any tree. it was your tree. the one you’d reluctantly let slip that you could never seem to find—and he found it.

another hour and a mile of a dirt road, and he pulls into the lot of your general store. he gives himself a minute in his truck—he doesn't want to give it away before you see it.

the bell above the door jingles as he walks in, rubbing his hands together for warmth. you look up from behind the counter, eyes immediately lighting up when you spot him.

“jason!” you greet, a teasing smile tugging at your lips. “you’re not seriously still out looking for a tree, are you?”

he shrugs, hands in his pockets. “what can i say? s'good challenge.”

you shake your head, chuckling. “listen, you don’t have to—”

“i found it.” he interrupts, voice soft and stable.

you blink at him, caught off guard—completely. “you…found what?”

“your tree,” jason said, his lips curving into a lopsided grin. “it’s outside waiting for ya.”

for a moment, you just stare up at him, and jason can feel his pulse quicken under your gaze. but then, you slip from behind the counter, brushing past him as you head for the door. he follows close behind, his hands shoved deep into his jacket pockets as you step outside and stop to peer into the bed of his truck.

“oh my god.” you breathe, enunciating every word. your eyes are wide as you take in the tree, tied down and dusted with frost—and impossibly perfect.

jason scratches the back of his neck, suddenly timid. “well, what do you think?”

you turn to him, breath visible in the frigid air as you struggle for the right words—words worthy of such a sweet deed. for a moment, it’s like you don’t know where to look, at the tree, or at him.

jason shifts under your gaze, his cheeks tinged light pink, though whether it’s from the cold or something else, you’re unaware.

“what do i think?” you repeat, tone shocked. your hand rises to cover your mouth as a laugh escapes, part disbelief, part absolute wonder. “jason…it’s perfect.”

the tension in his shoulders eases at your words, his lopsided grin softening into something sweeter. “yeah? checks all the boxes?”

“all the boxes and then some.” you take a step closer to the truck, reaching out to touch the spruce with such reverence that it makes jason’s chest tighten.

the tree is full, lush, and even more beautiful up close—exactly as he knew it would be. exactly what he wanted for you. exactly what he knew you deserved.

“how did you—” you glance back at him, shaking your head in disbelief. “i mean, this must’ve taken too much effort.”

jason shrugs, the movement casual, but the way his hands are buried in his jacket pockets betrays his nerves. “didn’t want you to settle for some shit tree—figured you deserved the best.”

your heart stutters like an old car’s engine at the sincerity in his tone. you let your hand fall from the tree and take a step toward him, your smile soft but radiant. “jason todd, you’re an angel.”

he chuckles, ducking his head as if to hide the way your words fluster him. “takes one to know one.”

“i mean it!” you insist, adamant now. “this…god, this is the nicest thing anyone’s ever done for me. i don’t even know how to thank you.”

jason’s eyes flick to yours, a glimmer of hope and something deeper shining in them. “you don’t have to. i’m just happy you like it—really, that’s enough.”

for a moment, you’re both quiet, the only sounds the faint whistles of the wind and the distant hum of town life. on impulse, or maybe complete delusion, you step closer, standing up on tiptoe to press a gentle kiss to his cheek.

the warmth of your lips lingers—even in the cold, and jason hates the fact that his breath catches amd his heart thumps franticly in his chest.

when you pull away, your head feels dizzy, and you avoid his gaze, second-guessing your boldness. but jason doesn’t let the moment pass—he tilts his head, catching your eyes with his own, and offers you a smile so soft it feels like a gift. with the corners of his mouth upturned, he speaks, “i don’t mind those sorts of thank you’s.”

[hiding-in-the-vault]

WAHAHAA forest creecher buddies!!! This is ssooooo cute ; - ;

spirit!Dream is pretty strong, but maybe not up-root-a-whole-tree-and-throw-it strong. But!! He’ll do his best!!!!

Listen. Listen. I got inspired by @hiding-in-the-vault and their forest spirit Dream, and I also have a forest spirit/God au with Dream and I just. I just think they'd get along lmao.

He just wants to play fetch uwu (with a whole ass tree).

[hiding-in-the-vault]

Can I humbly request more forest spirit au? Not because I am obsessed or anything (definitely)

Well I got good news for you. I am actively working on revamping the spirit AU!! Some new LORE, polishing existing plot lines, exploring new ones, new characters, it'll be fun :D eventually!

Until then, have this

[iwuvcofi]

Season of Neighborhood

Deep in the rain forest, there’s a small village with not many spirits lived. They lived with peacefully, with the light from these little creatures, a butterfly, jelly fish and manta, the village always full with dreams and loves.

Someone can only hope that it's true..

______________________________________

Hello! Yeah, you! who’s reading!

Meet the AU of light! Or we can call this AU as "Season of neighborhood"

Sky children of the light x Welcome home

!Let’s meet The Spirits!

Wally Darling: Say Hello to him!

Sally Starlet: Say Hello to her!

Frank Frankly: Say Hello to him!

Poppy Partridge: Say Hello to her!

Howdy Pillar: Say Hello to him!

Barnaby B. Beagle: Say Hello to him!

Eddie Dear: Say Hello to him!

Julie Joyful: Say Hello to her!

Thanks for reading until this line! I’m just happy to say it’s mean a lot to me to make something like this happend! I hope you’ll like it!

.

P.S. This AU might be inappropriate content such as Blood, Violence and some of contents that might make you feel uncomfortable. GOOD LUCK

[picturejasper20]

Do you have any good Danny and Vlad fics you can recommend to the viewers at home? 👻🎤

That depends on the story you are looking for but i would recommend:

-Seeing is Disbelieving: ¨Caught in the crossfire between Time and Existence, Danny and Vlad are forced to face the Master of Time, the Defenders of Existence, a new Enforcer, and, ultimately, extinction. ¨

These Cold Days trilogy: ¨After tragedy befalls Amity Park, an injured Danny and his friends must flee with authorities snapping at their heels. As Sam and Tucker try to protect their suffering friend from ghost hunters and himself, they begin to worry why Danny is hiding the truth from them. Why the Fruitloop is madly trying to contact him. And what truly happened in Amity Park...¨ -Miasma: ¨When Freakshow is broken out of prison, he teams up with Walker to repair the shattered scepter that grants the wielder the ability to control ghosts. Together, the two form a diabolical plan and agree to go after the one ghost who has ruined both of their lives¨ -The Crossroads Betwixt Life and Death: ¨Takes place instead of Phantom Planet. Danny is left alone after a 'Nasty' explosion and it's up to Vlad Masters to help the lonely ghost boy pick up the pieces and move on. But along the way, they find themselves entangled in a mysterious plot which could destroy all they have left.¨- TUE timeline AU

I would also recommend reading other stories from History101, they are one of the best writers i have seen when it comes to Vlad and badger cereal.

-Protection: Danny and Vlad are on the run from the GIW and they have to work together to survive and getting captured.

-Second Chance: ¨After an intense battle Danny finally receives the chance he's been waiting for. Remembering a valuable lesson from the past, the young half-ghost confronts Vlad Plasmius once more. But what exactly is our hero trying to achieve with his actions?¨ (One-shot)

How to Mentor a Troubled Ghost Child: Takes place after Bitter Reunions. AU- Vlad tries to be a good mentor to Danny instead of becoming his enemy. One of the best badger cereal fics you can find.

Survival of the Fittest: ¨When Danny and Vlad are fighting in the Ghost Zone, they accidentally go through a portal to the human world... one that leads to the middle of nowhere. They later try to learn who was behind sending them there. Takes place after Eye for an Eye.¨

Playing with Fire: ¨Danny knew something was up when in the dead of night he saves the distressed spirit of a phoenix from being captured by the Guys in White. However, what he didn't know was that by doing so, he was in for one heck of a ride… Now the ghost of some sorcerer has abducted his friends and he's stuck in yet another forest with a certain fruit loop..¨ -Sequel to Survival of the Fittest

Shattered Identity: ¨ Vlad has been shot with a weapon that breaks him down to his very core, more specifically, his ghost core. But before Maddie can shoot Danny with the same weapon, he saves the core and flies off, stuck with making sure he stays safe despite his conflicting feelings about it and tries to keep it from breaking despite not knowing what will reemerge from the unstable core. But as Vlad finally reforms, both of them realize that the core fiasco was just the beginning of a new disaster.¨ Written by mutual Hello-I'm-Not-A-Possum

Paradigm Shift: ¨Danny is snapped out of his dream by Vlad of all people, seeking his help to defeat Nocturne. Though they succeed, Nocturne’s latest scheme sets off a chain of unforeseen consequences that lead toward a future even Clockwork cannot see. With the fate of the world hanging in the balance Danny must face one of the most difficult foes of all: his fellow humans, and the tangled messes they weave with one another.¨ This one is more about Jack and Vlad but it has parts about Danny and Vlad. Written by mutual KuzAnn

[thehistoriangirl]

Viktor Masterlist

✨ = Fluff

💔 = Angst

💞 = Smut aka Fluff with Horny sprinkled

💀  = Violence; Blood; Major/Minor Character Death(s)

💔 💀 The Silence Between Us [Viktor x gn!Reader]

-> SFW, Secret Crush, Angst, Canon Compliance|

✨💔The Memories We Kept Within [Machine Herald!Viktor x gn!Reader]

-> (A continuation): SFW, Friends to Lovers, Happy Ending

✨💞 I’ll Show You, [My Love] in the Shelter of the Night   [Viktor x fem!Reader]

-> NSFW, Explicit, Friends to Lovers

✨ 💞 A Well-Deserved Celebration [Viktor x AFAB!Reader]

-> Christmas Special 2022, NSFW, PWP, Established Relationship

💔It Had to be You,: Part 1 [Machine Herald!Viktor x fem!Reader]

-> Soulmate AU, Childhood Friends to Lovers, Heavy Angst, Eventual Happy Ending

💀 It Had to be You,: Part 2

It Will Always Be You: Part 3 [PENDING]

✨ 💀 Where the Woods Brought Us Together: Part 1  [MH!Viktor x Fem!Reader]

-> Halloween Special 2022, Magical Forest, Offering, Strangers to Lovers, Forest Guardian Spirit!Viktor, Healer!Reader|

✨ 💔 Part 2

💔 ✨ 💞Part 3 (Final Part) NSFW

💀Primeval Penumbras: Part I [Viktor x Fem!Reader

-> Halloween Special 2022, Void Monster! Reader, Strangers to Lovers

✨💞 Part II NSFW

[PENDING: Part III & Part IV]

✨ Not Just a Summer Affair: Part 1 [Viktor x Fem!Reader]

-> Crushes, Friends to Lovers, Beach AU, PWP

✨ 💞 Part 2 NSFW

✨ 💞 Part 3 NSFW

💔 ✨ I Love You, As Friends Do  [Viktor x gn!Reader]

-> St. Valentine Special 2023, Friends to Lovers, Misundestanding, Light Angst, Happy Ending

✨ I Hope to Found You [Viktor x fem!Reader]

✨💞When You Warmed Up My Heart  [Viktor x AFAB Reader]

-> Mild NSFW

✨ I’ll Be There for You [Viktor x gn!Reader]

✨When You’re Not Here, I Lie Awake and Dream of You [Viktor x gn!Reader]

✨[We’re] More than a Match Made in Heaven [Viktor x gn!Reader]

✨These Ones Are For Love [Viktor x AFAB!Latinx!Reader]

✨To Feel Better, All I Need is You [Viktor x gn!Reader]

-> A request

✨Amuse Me, Love [Viktor x gn!Reader]

✨ Let Me Be Your Shelter [Viktor x gn!Reader]

-> A request

✨All Our Ways to Say “I Love You” [Viktor x gn!Reader]

-> A request

✨ You, My Solace [Viktor x gn!Reader]

-> A request

✨The Sweeter Trick [Viktor x gn!Reader]

-> A request, Halloween Special 2023, Established Relationship

✨ Loving Gifts [Viktor x Fem!Artist!Reader]

-> A request, Holidays AU, Established Relationship

Until Our Secrets Drift Us Apart [Viktor x Fem!Reader] EXPLICIT

-> Modern AU, Marriage of Convenience, Strangers to Lovers, Slow Burn [8/16]

> M A S T E R L I S T 

The Oblivious Game I Want to Lose (Without Losing You) [Viktor x Hopeless Romantic! gn!Reader]

-> A request, Strangers to Friends to Lovers, Slow Burn, Angst & Fluff, Happy Ending [COMPLETED]

>  M A S T E R L I S T 

The Tides Have Veiled [Viktor x Fem!Reader] MATURE

-> Halloween 2022, Gothic AU, Spooky Sea AU, Strangers to Lovers, Magic, Ghosts, Mermaids [17/40]

> M A S T E R L I S T 

Without Compromise [Viktor x Fem!Reader] EXPLICIT

-> Blind Date, Valentine's Day 2024, Matchmaking, One Night Stand Going Wrong [2/7]

>M A S T E R L I S T

If You Hadn't Left (Me) [Viktor x Fem!Reader] EXPLICIT

-> Second Chance/Exes to Lovers, Valentine's Day 2024, Angst & Fluff [2/10]

>M A S T E R L I S T

[zepskies]

The Honorable Choice - Part 3

Pairing: Dean Winchester x OFC 

Summary: June 1872. Captain Dean Winchester of the U.S. Cavalry is tasked with one job: break a wild mustang. He just didn’t expect the woman who infiltrates his camp, intent on freeing her tribe’s horse.

AN: The last chapter! Hold on, it's about to get bumpy...

Disclaimer: I got inspired after a recent rewatch of Spirit: The Stallion of the Cimarron (literally a perfect movie), as well as having Yellowstone in the back of my brain. I’ve done extensive research for this one, both on the American Indian Lakota tribe, and on American history during this time in the late 1800s (AKA: the Old West, during the American Indian Wars and the Sioux Wars). Of course, one of my main goals is to avoid inaccuracies, both historical and cultural.

**Pronunciation guide at the end!

Jacklesverse Bingo24 Prompt: @jacklesversebingo Western AU

Song Inspo: The Spirit Soundtrack

Word Count: 5.7K

Tags/Warnings: 18+ only. Protective Dean, survival situations, smut (mutual masturbation, fingering, and more), angst, and fluff.

🐎 Series Masterlist || Bingo Masterlist

🎙️ Listen to the podfic version here!

Part 3: Worthy

They travel together for two more days. Dean isn’t really a talkative man, but inevitably, he finds himself speaking to fill the comfortable stretches of quiet plodding across the grasslands.

He tells her about growing up on his family’s farm, where his father was firm but fair, and a larger-than-life presence when Sam and Dean were kids. His mother though, she was the only one who could ever go toe to toe with John Winchester and win.

“She tamed him,” Mila remarks with a smile. Dean’s lips quirk in response.

“I wouldn’t go that far,” he chuckles, “but he knew he couldn’t pull a whole lot of shit with Mom. She’s a real pistol when she’s gotta be.”

Talking about them makes his heart heavy and sobers his mood, so he deflects with other stories, other chapters of his life. 

He talks about going through basic training alongside Benny Lafitte. As privates, Dean pranked his friend by filling his lumpy old pillow with raw eggs and chicken feathers. In retaliation, Benny swapped Dean’s morning coffee with actual dirt and hot water. Their boyish games escalated until they were nearly kicked out of the military.

Dean managed to smooth things over though. He’s always had a way of charming people, even the gruff Sergeant Major, Bobby Singer.

Mila admits that she and her cousin Šóta used to sneak out of the village when they were younger. He taught her how to climb trees, how to fight and protect herself, and how to ride a horse astride, like a man. He was the only one who ever encouraged her to have the “free mind” her mother dreamed about.

The more she confides in him, her eyes sparking with life and her hands gesticulating along with her words, the more Dean listens.  

On the third day, it’s nearing mid-afternoon when Dean slows Baby to a stop. After miles and miles of forest and grassland covered, they’ve finally approached a large, wide river. Mila stops beside him.

“My tribe lives beyond the river,” she says, “but the current is strong now.”

Dean looks over at her. A question he hasn’t wanted to ask crops back up. He feels that now is the time to voice it.

“Yeah, about that…I’m thinking your tribe doesn’t take very well to outsiders,” he says. “White men in particular.”

Mila presses her lips together. He can tell she’s been thinking the same thing, but she turns to him with a determined set to her features.

“I will protect you,” she says.

Dean frowns. He doesn’t like the sound of that. On one hand, it warms him that she seems to really mean it. On the other hand, he doesn’t want to know what it’ll take for her to protect him.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he asks.

She turns her face away and doesn’t seem to want to answer at first.

“Mila…”

“The Chief is my uncle,” she says at last. “He will listen to me.”

Dean blinks. Well, that changes things…maybe.

He’s still not convinced, but at this point, he really doesn’t have many options. It’s either take his chances with her tribe, or become a vagabond. He’s not sure how long he could survive in wilds of the West alone, especially while trying to dodge military patrols.

In the past three days, it’s taken Dean all that time to come to terms with a simple fact. He’ll likely never see his brother again, or his mother. It’s a pain that cuts into him deeply, down to his bones. It stings behind his eyes.

But if he only has two choices, then he at least wants to make sure Mila gets home safely…even if that means he won’t be.

He’s come this far. If his career is worth the price of what he feels is right, then his life is worth it too.

With that decision made, Dean expels a long, somewhat faltering breath. He locks away the rest of his uncertainty, his apprehension, and even his grief. He hides deep inside, where she won’t see it. 

“All right, the current doesn’t look too bad over here,” he says, pointing to farther north along the river. “The horses can make it.”

Mila nods in agreement. She still looks uneasy, though she tries to hide it too. She ventures ahead into the river. Dean follows close behind.

The water is shallow at first, but it all too quickly gets deeper. The horses plod over the river stones and vegetation under the surface, and the humans are led deeper, until they’re submerged into the water up to their waists.

It’s good that Mila rides that giant mustang; if she were on a mare, like Dean, she’d already be sunk up to her shoulders. Baby’s a big girl, to be sure, but Mila is nearly a foot shorter than him, with a smaller frame. He watches her carefully as she makes her way ahead of him.

That’s why he’s able to act fast when Mato slips, dunking Mila under the water. She gasps and tries to cling onto him, but the current is fierce. It pushes Mato down the river no matter how much he scrambles and kicks at the water, braying wildly in distress.

Shit! Dean tugs sharply at Baby’s reigns and strives to catch up to them. He grabs Mato’s reigns and pulls and pulls, until he and Baby are able to drag him to the other side of the river where he can get a foothold with his hooves.

Mila is starting to fall off his back. She struggles to cling on while the river pushes at her, with her wet hair falling in her eyes. Dean leans back as far as he can to try and pull her up.

“It’s okay, I’ve gotcha,” he calls out, even though his heart hammers with alarm.

She reaches out for his hand in turn. Just as his fingers begin to close over hers, a wave from the current crashes into her. A short scream tears from her throat after she loses her grip on Mato’s neck. Without her weight, he’s able to pull himself back up onto the bank along with Baby.

Damn it! Gut-wrenching alarm spears Dean into action. He leaps down from Baby and removes his gloves, his hat, and his uniform jacket, so he can dive into the water. Thank God he’s a strong swimmer.

Mila seems to be too. She carves through the water against the current the best she can and tries to keep her head above the waves, but Dean can see it’s a losing battle. He manages to grab hold of her arm, and then wraps an arm around her waist to keep her close. Both of them work together to try and cling to any passing rock or low-hanging vine as the current sweeps them out toward an ultimate end.

A waterfall.

Of course. Goddamn it. Dean doesn’t know how steep it is on the other side, and he doesn’t want to know. All he’s trying to do is keep himself and Mila above the water.

She hooks her hand around a sharp rock. It bites into her hand, making her cry out, but she clings to it for all she’s worth. She holds onto Dean just as tightly, even though the current wants to take him. She tries to pull him closer, close enough for him to get a hold on the rock as well.

This time, it’s Dean who loses his footing. The rocks slip beneath the soles of his feet when he attempts to gain some leverage.

A shout of surprise escapes from him when he fails, and it gets swallowed up by water rushing down his throat.

“Dean!” Mila yells, for the first time using his name. The last thing he registers is the fear in her eyes—afraid for him.

The river takes him over the edge of the abyss, and he falls.

He never expected that he would get to open his eyes again, let alone to the sight that greets him. Mila’s familiar face, framed by the dark, drying waves of her hair, is bright with firelight. It dances in orange-gold across her features. Her eyes are warm like rich molasses when she looks down and finds him awake.

She smiles in relief.

He realizes that he’s lying on soft grass with his head pillowed in her lap. She’s taken off his boots and half of his white undershirt; she tore one of his sleeves to wrap around a mercifully shallow gash in his shoulder.

The horses are drinking from the river nearby, with a pile of apples split between them. There’s a fish roasted over the fire, but all Dean cares about is the way her fingers are running through his hair. She sings a soft song under her breath while she passes her other hand over his injured arm without touching it.

He doesn’t understand the words, but he thinks she might be trying to heal him. He’s heard plenty of stories about the Sioux people, most he’s taken with a grain of salt. He does remember Cas saying that their healers are different from doctors.  

Dean’s never given their hoodoo much thought, but right about now, he hopes it works.

“Mornin’,” he croaks.

Mila’s relieved face becomes touched with amusement.

“It’s night,” she says. “You slept for a long time.”

Dean wants to sit up and take an inventory of his injuries, but he can’t make his body move just yet. He’s too tired and bruised. He also likes being in her arms. He likes her fingers in his hair, now moving to his cheek. He sighs through his nose in contentment as her thumb drifts over his overgrown stubble. 

“Thank you,” she says. Emotion is thick in her voice.

Dean meets her eyes again, and he smiles. He raises the back of his hand to touch her smooth cheek, gently. He lets his fingers glide across her tan skin, down the column of her neck. Her breath hitches.

She takes his calloused hand in her slender one. Her long hair falls like a curtain over her shoulder, almost like it’s shielding them from whatever is left to come for them beyond the forest. Dean wraps an ebony strand around his finger, just to feel it fall loosely again.

“You’re beautiful, you know that?” he says.

Mila graces him with another smile from her lips. He wants to know what they taste like.

“I guess you are pretty, for a White Man,” she says teasingly.

Her fingers trace his brow, his jawline, even the tip of his chin. She seems to be avoiding his plush mouth, even though her gaze keeps dropping there. Dean pretends to frown.

“Sweetheart, that’s not the way you talk about a man,” he says.

Her brows raise. “No?”

“Handsome. Strong. Toothsome, if you will,” he says, enjoying the way she begins to blush. “That’s what you wanna call a man.”

“Toothsome. I don’t know this word,” she admits. “Am I supposed to eat you?”

Dean resists the urge to say the first incorrigible thing that pops into his head. Instead, his body shakes with laughter.

It’s difficult at first, all his muscles pulling at him in protest, but he raises himself into a sitting position. He cups Mila’s cheek, dragging his thumb across her lower lip. Her lashes are dark and long. They move when she looks up at him. He knows the look in her eyes, wanting, desiring, but also unsure of what she should allow him.

Dean leans in slowly, giving her time to decide.

She tilts her face up to his. He noses at her cheek, his eyes falling closed along with hers.

He finds her lips with his own on instinct and feeling alone. Soft and tender movements, testing, asking.

She answers him. Her fingers tangle in the front of his tattered shirt as her lips begin to move against his. Dean wraps an arm around her waist and gathers her against his chest. His other hand glides down her arm, down her side and along every soft curve. Her clothes are still damp, and so are his.

“It’ll be faster to dry our clothes if we’re not wearing ‘em,” Dean rumbles. His voice is deep with desire. He presses kisses along the side of her jaw, behind her ear, down her neck and shoulder. He earns her pleased hum, her heavier breaths, and her fingers once again in his hair.

“I can’t,” she gasps. She says something in her native tongue, too fast for Dean to even register. He slows down so he can meet her eyes.

“What was that?” he asks. Her face falls, and she starts to trip over her words.

“I am not…how you say, married. I have to be…”

Dean smiles ruefully, sliding a strand of hair behind her ear.

“Chaste?” he offers. She nods, her brows furrowed. Her grip on his shirt tightens.

“Yes,” she says. “In the eyes of my people, it is…”

“I get it,” Dean says. When she still seems conflicted, he presses a kiss to her forehead. 

“Really, I understand,” he says.

His problem is that he stares into her eyes too long, and at her kiss-swollen lips. He dives back in for another taste.

This time, he’s a little less gentlemanly than he promised. His tongue sweeps along her lower lip, begging entrance. She makes a sound of surprise, but she opens up to him. Her gentle hands slide up his chest to hold his face, and her thumbs stroke his cheeks. He holds one of her wrists to keep her there as his tongue dances with hers. She tastes like the river, and like salty tears.

Had she cried for him? How long did she sit with his body, waiting to see if he would wake up?

Despite those worrying thoughts, Dean knows this feels right. More right than he’s ever felt.

It’s harder than he might’ve imagined, but he still pulls away, before he won’t be able to stop himself. Mila pants for breath. She seems to feel she should let him go, but also doesn’t show any sign of wanting to. Smiling, Dean caresses her cheek one more time before he turns to the fish she roasted.

“This looks good,” he says, clearing his throat. “What kinda fish is this?”

With a sigh, she attempts to steady herself and moves to join him by the fire.

That night, Mila dreams.

She dreams of wings, white and beautiful. She hears the cry of an eagle before she sees his great wingspan take off in flight. He soon finds his mate, and they dance together in the sky. 

When she wakes, the fire has gone out and it’s still dark in the night. It takes her a moment to realize that she’s safe. Finally safe.

And she’s lying securely in Dean’s arms.

She’s no longer conflicted when she stares up at his face.

She will bring him home to her tribe, and she will explain. If they still don’t welcome him, then she prays for the strength to keep to her honor. Because now, she begins to realize…

Her heart has already chosen.

“Kimmímila, what have you done?” her uncle asks in the language of their people.

He is Tahatan, Chief of their tribe.

Mila’s father, Chatan, and her cousin Šóta have tied Dean Winchester to a post in the center of the Chief’s large tipi. Dean kneels with his head bowed in respect, even though he keeps sneaking looks at Mila to try and gauge what’s happening. He doesn’t understand a word of any of it.

“You’ve brought this outsider into our village, this White Man!” Tahatan shouts, his voice deep and resounding.

Mila steps forward, despite her mother’s embarrassment and her father trying to grab her shoulder. For the second time in her life, she defies her father for what she believes is right. The first was to rescue a member of their tribe—because even a horse’s spirit should not be broken by greed.

“Uncle, I’ve told you the story, though you don’t want to believe it,” she says. “Dean Winchester saved me when he could have killed me, or worse. He defied his own people. He is dead to his own people, for me, and because of me. You may think they lack all honor, but this man is different.”

She looks over at Dean, and he meets her gaze. He wears an anxious frown as he looks between her and the chief, but she has a feeling that his fear is for her, not for himself.

She kneels beside him, then looks up at her uncle with all the stubbornness she’s ever possessed in her life. She feels it’s led her to exactly this moment.

“And we are one,” she says. Nerves trill up her spine as she says it. She predicts the way shock falls over the room. The way her father curses out loud, angry. The way her mother covers her mouth in dismay. The way the Chief takes a step back, tilting his head at his niece.

“You would take it that far?” he asks.

Her face doesn’t change. “It’s already done.”

Tahatan is beside himself, both angry and perplexed. He goes back to his chair of wicker and wood that lies centered in the room. He drops heavily into it. After a long while, in which he thinks in silence…he releases a heavy sigh. He gestures for his brother and his son to untie Dean. The men do so, but they don’t let him go free. They force him to stand and bring him forward to kneel again before the Chief.

“Dean Winchester,” Tahatan says.

“Yes, sir,” Dean replies.

“You prove yourself to be a man with honor,” he says in English. “Kimmímila has chosen you. She claims you have chosen her in return. Do you deny this?”

Dean glances over at her. She bites the inside of her lip, a bit worried about how he’ll react. She’s not sure he completely understands what Tahatan is telling him, but he nods, regardless.

“No, sir. I don’t deny it,” Dean says.

“Then, you will be allowed to stay, and live among us,” Tahatan declares. "We will see for ourselves what you are. We will see if you are worthy."

Dean gives a nod, crossed with a bow of some kind. He obviously isn’t sure of what he’s supposed to do, but he does say thank you. Mila wraps her hands around his uninjured arm and helps him to his feet. She smiles at him to let him know that the worst is over. He blows out a breath in relief.

“Is that it?” he whispers. He expected more of a thrashing, if he’s honest.

“Almost,” she replies. The two of them stop short before her father, Chatan.

Dean straightens up and holds out his hand. “Sir.”

Chatan glances down at the white hand extended toward him. His gaze raises back up to Dean. 

He grunts in acknowledgement, but he turns on his heels and storms out of the tipi. Her mother comes forward next. She examines Dean from all angles. She takes his face in her hand, somewhat squishing his cheeks, so she can look deeply into his startled eyes.

She seems satisfied by what she finds, and she lets him go. Afterward, she takes Mila’s hand and heaves a deep sigh.

She kisses her daughter’s hand and says nothing else, leaving them to find her husband and calm him down.

Dean turns to Mila with a look that says, please tell me that’s it.

She smiles more genuinely.

“Come,” she says.

She leads him by the hand out of the Chief’s tipi and through the village. Dean takes in the rows of other tall, cone-like structures covered in buffalo skin, as well as all the faces that turn to stare at him in a mix of curiosity, wariness, and even fear. Some of them whisper to each other, taking their children by the hand and keeping them close.

Dean’s still on guard himself, even when Mila takes him to a smaller tipi. It’s been closed up for a while now, by the look of it. Weeds have grown right outside the entrance. 

“This one’s yours?” Dean asks.

She pauses, giving him another small smile. “Ours.”

Dean raises a brow. Ours. Really?

She opens the flap in the front and beckons him inside. There’s still enough daylight to shine through the outer lining. Inside, his gaze flits over the old pile of stones in the center for heating, clothes folded in the corner, some cooking pots and utensils, paintings on wood and clay, and a couple of beaded decorations. Buffalo skin bedding is laid out on the other side with a couple of soft looking furs. 

Son of a gun. Dean doesn’t even blink as he processes it all. He’s in a damn tipi. This is really about to become his life.

Shaking his head a little, he forces himself to focus on Mila. She’s his anchor, and she seems to sense that he’s reeling. She guides him to sit beside her on the bedding, holding his hands in hers. After a moment, he reaches up to tuck a curling strand of hair behind her ear.

“You didn’t get in too much trouble because of me, did you?” he asks.

She shakes her head. “No. My father and uncle are very similar. Strong to anger, but it is quick to run out. At least with me.”

Dean thinks he understands. Short fuse, quick fizzle.

“There is just…one thing,” Mila says. Her eyes fall away from his, like she’s embarrassed. He squeezes her hands.

“What?” he asks, his brows furrowing. It gets her to look at him again, but she seems worried to tell him.

“To convince my uncle to let you stay, I told them that we…” she trails, trying to find the right words in English. “That we are married.”

Dean’s brows raise high. His heart trips up faster. Okay, “ours” makes a lot more sense now.

“I am sorry,” she says quietly. “I didn’t want you hurt—”

“Sweetheart,” Dean says, cupping her cheek. Even with the hammering of his heart, he grins. “I’m pretty sure that’s where this was going anyway.”

In fact, this is a best-case scenario, as far as he’s concerned. He leans in to kiss her, and it doesn’t take long at all for her to sigh in relief, melting against him.

“We’re married, huh?” he asks. “No ceremony? No white dress?”

“We are bonded,” she replies, nodding as she meets every one of his kisses. “Or, we will be.”

She tugs him closer and revels in the feeling of his hands beginning to roam her body, sliding down her waist, her hips and thighs.

“Guess that means we have to seal the deal,” he grins. His lips drift away from hers to burn a familiar path across her cheek. He takes to nibbling her ear, making her flinch and laugh as it tickles.

“Seal-the-deal. What does that mean?” she asks.

Dean chuckles lowly in her ear. “Oh, I think you know.”

He guides her onto her back, over the comfortable mess of furs. He wants to take his time exploring every inch of soft, tan skin, but he first sweeps her hair away from her eyes, the back of his hand brushing against her cheek. She smiles up at him softly.

“Do you regret?” she whispers, reaching up to touch his chin with two slender fingers. “Do you regret helping me?”

Dean considers her question. He knows he’ll carry his family in his heart until the day he dies. His brother, his mother, the memory of his father. Benny and Cas, even Jack, and so many others.

It’s already a heavy burden, but he had always been prepared to lose his life on the battlefield, in service of his country. At least this way, he gains a new life. 

“No. Never did,” Dean replies. “Not even once.”

He bows his head toward hers, and he proves it to her. His lips capture hers, fueled by passion and wanting. Mila’s hands slide over his shoulders and down his back. Maybe without her realizing it, she implores him to let go of the weight heaped on his shoulders.

When he begins to bunch up the hem of her dress, she sits up to help guide his hands. Her quickening breaths mesh with his as the first layer of clothing drops beside the bedding. His tattered shirt joins her dress, along with pants and shoes and boots, until all that’s left is skin against warm, bare skin. He lays on his side right beside her and explores wherever she lets him begin.  

“Beautiful,” Dean murmurs, as his lips follow the column of her neck, down between her breasts. Her breaths rise to meet him, especially when he begins to toy with a dark, pebbled nipple. Her fingers slip through his hair, and his name falls from her lips. He palms one breast while kissing and gently teasing the other, exploring sensitive flesh and grazing her sensitive fleshwith his teeth.

“No man’s ever touched you?” he asks, despite knowing the answer.

She shakes her head, her fingers gripping his hair tighter as his lips and tongue move against her skin.

“No,” Mila gasps a reply. Her hand slides down the back of his neck, and the more he teases her, her nails soon create faint red lines down his back, her thighs squeezing together. She feels a throbbing ache at the very center of her. Despite her inexperience with men, she knows what it means, and she knows what she wants.

Dean’s mouth drags away from her breast. He pulls back so he can meet her eyes. A smile curves his lips, and he takes one of her hands from his shoulders. 

“Have you ever touched yourself?” he asks. He guides her hand down her body, brushing over a wet, sensitive nipple, down her stomach, and between her legs. This time, Mila nods in answer. She stares up at Dean with eyes like molten honey. He leans in to kiss her neck.

“Show me,” he says.

She shudders at the depths in his voice. It increases the flood of wetness she already feels, even before she slips two fingers between the folds of her sex. She gathers some of that slick and circles it over the source of her pleasure, the small nub above her entrance.

Dean takes his hardened length in his hand. While she writhes by her own hand, he drinks her in with his eyes. A soft groan falls from his lips as he pumps himself a few times, sliding a thumb across the weeping head of his cock.

He can’t be a spectator for long though. He nips tantalizingly at her neck, creating a zing of added sensation across her skin. She whimpers, though she tries to stifle it, her knee bending further.

“It’s okay, sweetheart,” Dean says. “Let me hear you.”

He releases himself and replaces her hand with his own. He slips two long fingers inside her drenched entrance, earning a gasping moan from her. She latches onto his shoulders and buries her face into his neck. She whispers fervent things he doesn’t understand, but it only spurs him on.

His thumb circles insistently over her clit as his fingers pulse inside her. Her hips buck a needy rhythm against his hand, until her thighs begin to shake, and her inner walls squeeze even tighter around his fingers.

“Shit, that’s it, baby,” he pants gruffly against her cheek. “Let go for me.”

Warmth snaps and floods from her throbbing core, and she cries out near his ear, her nails biting into his skin. Her release coats his fingers.

Mila drops her head back against the furs underneath her. Her chest rises and falls quickly while she tries to catch her breath, her eyes tightly shut. Dean surprises her with a soft kiss.

“Mila,” he prods. He wants to see her eyes again, so pretty and wanton when she comes. He veers away from her lips to kiss her cheek, and then the other side of her neck. “Let me see you, sweetheart.”

She huffs a small laugh. Opening her eyes, she gestures to her bare body. “This is not enough?”

Dean’s lips tug at a smile. He shakes his head. “As a matter of fact, no.”

He shifts over her, finding his place between the cradle of her thighs. His elbows come to rest on either side of her head. She feels trapped by his body, even as she welcomes his weight and the feeling of his arousal, long and heavy and hard, trapped between their bodies. This man fills every corner of her world in this moment.

“If I’m your husband now, that means I get all of you,” he says with a grin. She gazes up at him, both in blushing amusement and affection.

“All of me,” Mila repeats. She takes his face in her hands and brings him closer, until her lips are a whisper from his. “Then I want all of you.” 

Dean chuckles. “You sure about that?”

She smiles in satisfaction, and her lips claim him this time. One kiss turns into many, each one mounting in passion and desire. Dean groans into her when she begins to touch him. Her hands are soft, but direct in their seeking; they caress his shoulders, run down his chest and stomach, and then, more tentatively explore the now painfully hard length of him pressing against her.

He makes a grateful sound of pleasure when her hand wraps around his cock, squeezing gently. His fingers bury themselves in her hair.

“I want all of you,” she says, this time a plea and a demand all at once as she strokes him.

Dean nods in agreement. He’s come this far. He can do that for her too.

He spreads her thighs a bit wider and encourages her to adjust the angle of her hips for him. His hand glides down her plush thigh and gets a healthy grip. Then he slides his hand under hers and guides his cock through her folds, first just holding himself at her warm, wet entrance.

He manages to wait for a second, in order to meet her gaze. She’s already holding onto his arms tightly, like he’s become her anchor. Her thighs wrap around his hips and beckon him closer.

Slowly, he pushes inside. He takes care in how he works her open. She winces at the sting of his girth stretching her, but his fingers once again massage her clit, stroking her arousal back into a keening flame. He swallows her gasps and moans as he bottoms out inside her, fully sheathed. Tears prick at her eyes, but not from pain.

Mila’s dream flashes like a waking vision behind her eyes. Wings take flight, along with the gleam of a golden beak and a sharp eye.

She blinks, and the image disappears. She’s left with the man who has become hers, making love to her with every stroke of him deep inside her. She presses grateful kisses across his neck and shoulder, wherever she can reach while she clings to his strong arms.

The thick head of him brushes a sensitive place over and over, one that tightens the coil in her lower belly and makes her core tremble again with warmth, until her body convulses against him, pulsing in pleasure, gripping him tight from the inside. Mila’s fingers clench in his hair just as tightly as her release hits her in a powerful wave; even her voice becomes lost to it.

Gritting his teeth, Dean grips the soft flesh of her hip and chases his own end. The way her inner walls choke his cock, he has no choice but to come hot inside her, his spend mixing with her own release. A strangled shout tears from his throat.

He has to brace himself before he crushes her. With his forearms resting on either side of her head, he lowers his forehead against hers. Her legs slip from where they’ve been tightly molded to his hips, her feet meeting the floor. Eventually he slips out of her. He watches his seed drip out and create a mess on the dark furs. The sight of it satisfies something primal deep inside him.

Later he’ll ask her about washing up (and about supper), but for now, he just turns onto his back beside her. She inches toward him, and he raises an arm so she can splay out against his side. They both lay there for a moment in the quiet, just catching their breath together. It marks the end of a long journey, and yet, the start of one too.

Mila turns to raise onto her elbow. She reaches over to wipe the sweat from his brow in a tender touch. Dean smiles up at her. He takes her hand and presses a kiss into her palm.

“I could get used to this,” he says.

Her eyes widen in surprise, but then she laughs softly. “Yes.”

Her hand moves down to his chest, over his heart. She sobers as she considers her people, and how much trust has yet to be bridged—not only her own father and uncle, but the entire tribe. When she led him through the village, they called him wašíču.

Fat-taker. Greedy White. Not one of us.

“It will be hard for you here,” Mila says. She worries it will be too hard for Dean.  

He just squeezes her hand, earning her attention through tumultuous thoughts.

“I’m not afraid of a little hard work,” Dean replies. His usual confident charm is infused in his smile, but she has a feeling he’s just trying to reassure her.

Sensing she’s not convinced, Dean reaches up to hold her cheek, guiding her to look at him and not the floor.

“Listen. I made my choice, and I’m sticking it out, come hell or high water,” he says.

Mila’s brows knit together. “Hell-or-high… What does that mean?”

Dean sits up on his elbow along with her. He takes her chin between his fingers and meets her gaze.

“It means if you want me, you’ve got me. The rest, we’ll figure out as we go along,” he says.

A smile slowly lightens Mila’s face. She tilts her chin up to meet him with a kiss.

“I will be with you,” she says. It’s a promise.

Dean smiles back.

“Good,” he says. “Because that’s just about all I need.”

AN: There we have it, friends. 💜 I really, truly hope you enjoyed this mini series! To be honest, I have more ideas for this little world (like how Dean might try to assimilate into this culture), but I'll leave it to you guys to let me know if that's something you'd be interested in reading.

Until then, I would love to know what you thought of this chapter! 

Pronunciation Guide:

Šóta ("sho-tah") Chatan ("chat-tan") Tahatan ("ta-hat-tann") Wašíču ("wash-ee-jew")

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[monsterritory]

HI! AU ANON HERE! Thank you SO MUCH! First of all, Breath of the Wild is fucking badass, so I don’t blame you. Second of all, Thank you for that! I just felt so bad for a long time…..but now, I don’t. I just know that I like those abusive relationships in stories but not in real life and that is absolutely fine!

As for the AU, ;3.

First of all, I adore this whole fucked up version of the Lorax. XD.

Second of all, while Dream is a protector of the woods, he takes things too seriously and too far. This is important. So, when Tommy gives his body to the demon….yeah.

Say that the “cut the trees down” operation was for a lumber company. Dream, using Tommy’s body, causes the forest to go apeshit on these lumber dudes. Some of them are trapped in trees, others are mauled by animals, others are swarmed by hornets.

It’s an absolute massacre…. After all, Father Nature is naturally sadistic towards those who harm nature.

…….And soon, no one is left. None of the bosses or their poor underpaid employees or even the people who were just tagging along for the money. All of them are dead…

Then, momentarily, Tommy wakes up…..to this horrific scene. Dream did this to show him what should happen to those who fuck with the forest.

But this only made the boy feel sick to his stomach. So…..he ran.

My dude (?), the world has yet to have a proshipper that'd be like "oh yeah I totally like violence irl. I go to court just so I can look at people divorcing each other" or whatever.

Alright, to the AU. A fucked up version of Lorax? I love that take.

Dream gets to sing the Bad guy song but its rewritten from the Forest's point of view. Something like,

"Who cares if a few dudes are dying?" I don't know. Just a funny thought. (Someone has probably done this before).

I love that we circled back to giving Dream "black morality" points. Makes Tommy's opinion of him all the more complicated (if it's not just "he is evil" that is.)

There's a quiet moment after all is done, the shock and weight of the situation is setting in as Tommy sits there, and Dream is asking him with such a gentle tone, it's hard to believe he went on a bloody rampage a second ago,

"Why are you sad? We saved the forest. They can't hurt us now."

And that's when Tommy runs. He doesn't want to be a part of that "us" that Dream speaks of. He just wants his normal teenager life back. He wants the lives taken from the people back. But it just can't be done. Life doesn't work like that.

There's a balance between nature and humans, and Dream doesn't understand it.

The sad part is, Tommy can't really run far from something that made home in his own head. The momentary peace that he finds is courtesy of Dream being quiet to give him some time.

Silly child. He just doesn't understand what's truly important. But that's okay. Dream can wait until he does. And even if he doesn't...

...Dream doesn't need his permission to do it all again.

Now the question is, where does Tommy runs to? He stops to ask himself that question.

He could try to find an exorcist. That could help banish the evil spirit. He hopes.

He could run home and ask his parents to hug him and cry while they do. He could apologize for being such a brat and going where he wasn't allowed to, thus causing the deaths of so many innocent people.

Maybe if he says sorry enough times, he could be forgiven?

He could run away. Hitchhike, maybe? Go somewhere where nobody knows him. Teenagers do get hired in some places, he could get a living... Whom is he kidding, a minimum wage is not a living.

Besides, in a few hours all the news channels will have his face and his crime on every screen in the country. There's nowhere he can escape to.

He looks down at his hands. (Were they always this muddy? Is this even mud or blood? He's not sure.)

Can he really run away? Or is there only one way left for him to go...

And that way is back to Dream.

[theanoninyourinbox]

NEW LONGSTAR AU - THE NOT-SO-LONG BALLAD OF FIRE AND FLAME

Before Fire Prophecy

Talltail seeks to kill the Loner that he believes killed his father.  With the help of a kittypet named Jake, he finds the strength to forgive, and instead saves Sparrow from the Monster, and returns to Windclan with new determination in his heart and a dear…friend…that he leaves behind.  It is with this new spirit that he protests the renaming of Hopkit, and he stays Hoppaw.  The two remain close friends throughout their lives.

In Riverclan, Stormkit is renamed Crookedkit, but Rainflower is also renamed – Rottenflower.  Crookedkit’s name is given as a sign of survival, and Rottenflower’s as a sign of her true heart.  Crookedkit still leaves for a time, still is haunted by the Geist Mapleshade, but with his head a little higher and heart a little clearer.

Tiny is playing on an old stump when the Thunderclan Patrol finds him, and Thistleclaw orders Tigerpaw to attack.  Bluefur intercedes, and the heavily injured kitten is brought back to camp to be treated.  Sunstar decides to keep the poor little thing, and Frostkit is semi-adopted by Bluefur. 

Yellowfang is about to bury Hopekit and Wishkit when the sounds and smells of Twolegs alert her.  She knows they will try to take her and her remaining kit, so she grabs Brokenkit and runs.  The twoleg, stretching their legs after a long car ride, finds the two kittens and sees signs of life in the little tortie.  They rush the cold kitten to a vet, and with time and effort, little Nutmeg thrives. 

As Frostkit heals, a moons-long process, he makes friends with Spottedpaw and Whitepaw.  Eventually he notices that Thistleclaw keeps trying to get Spottedpaw alone, and with the help of Thrushpelt, discovers the horrible truth.  Thistleclaw is dragged before the clan, and with Spottedpaw’s testimony, the Traitor is banished from the clans permanently.  Spottedpaw becomes a Healer apprentice, and Thrushpelt begins to mentor Frostpaw.

Nutmeg eventually is introduced to a handsome orange tabby named Jake, and falls in love.  He breaks her heart by leaving when she’s due to give birth, and swears to take care of her beloved bundles of joy by herself.

Raggedstar lies dying, with his daughter Brokentail laughing as she cleans the blood from her paws, and realizes the enormous mistake he made with the way he raised her.  He dies, and watches as Brokentail receives her lives from the Dark Forest. Watches her kill kits.  Watches her banish her own mother.  What has he done?

Longpaw is mentored by Frostfoot, making an unusual pair.  Longpaw is eventually named Longtail, and wonders what his future holds for him.  He does not see the starry crown behind his head, ethereal and light as a dream.

Bluestar and Spottedleaf sit together on a hillside, Leader and Oracle Healer, and a pair of stars fall burning from the sky.  Fire Will Save The Clans.

The Long Ballad of Fire and Flames

Rusty the kittypet has yet another strange dream, of a red-tailed bird falling from a rainy sky.  He and his friend Smudge discuss the happenings around the neighborhood.  Princess, Rusty’s sister, forbids Rusty from going to the forest by himself.  Later that night, Rusty tries to catch a mouse on the border and gets tackled by a gray tabby, who is impressed when Rusty flings him off.  After meeting his mentor Lionheart, Rusty agrees to meet them the next morning, to see the Clan.  Rusty tells Princess about this.

The next morning, Rusty sneaks past a still sleeping Princess and a worried Smudge, and meets Bluestar, Graypaw, and Lionheart. The Thunderclanners refuse to wait for his sister. They head off to camp, with Rusty leaving a subtle scent trail so Princess can find him.  Princess wakes up, and follows the trail with stealth and careful steps.

At camp, Bluestar introduces Rusty as a potential clanmate, and some cats take offense to that.  Darkstripe demands he be tested, but Frostfoot tells him to calm down, what, are you threatened by him? Really?  Lionheart gets inbetween them to break it up, but cocky Longtail challenges the kittypet before anyone can stop him.  Frostfoot is mortified.  Rusty accepts, and the two square off.  Longtail gets the upper paw almost immediately, and gets a hold of Rusty’s collar.  As he pulls, he hears a yowl of outrage.  And suddenly he is FLUNG bodily, his ear burning, the collar still in his mouth.

He gets up, and there is an ENORMOUS molly standing over the fallen kittypet, the warriors and camp guards at the ready to fight.  As Spottedleaf helps him to his feet, Longtail hears the Tortie scolding Rusty for leaving without her, I TOLD you there would be trouble but noooOOOooo you don’t listen to your sister!  You just listen to your silly dreams!! Bluestar interrupts, impressed with the boldness of the kittypet and interested with the dreams comment.  Princess introduces herself, and after Rusty says he agreed to the fight, apologizes to a still stunned Longtail.  Rusty explains he has dreams that come true sometimes, and tells Bluestar and Spottedleaf about the red-tailed hawk dream.  Spottedleaf asks to mentor Rusty in the arts of healing and Starseeing, and Bluestar agrees, asking is Princess would like to join as well. Frostfoot mildly scolds Longtail for leaping without looking, and Princess and Rusty become Flamepaw and Firepaw, with Bluestar herself mentoring Flamepaw.

And then Ravenpaw rushes into camp.  Redtail is dead, he screams, and collapses.  And pandemonium rises.

After Tigerclaw brings Redtail’s lifeless body back to camp, and the apprentices and kits are shielded from the sight by Whitestorm and Lionheart, the pair of siblings settle in.  Firepaw makes fast friends with Ravenpaw and Graypaw, and Flamepaw befriends Dustpaw and Sandpaw.  The pair drag Longtail into being their friend as well, which brings Frostfoot and eventually Swiftpaw into the equation as well.

Longtail begins to mentor Swiftpaw, and finds that he loves teaching.  With the help of Frostfoot and the other Mentor cats, he begins to become more humble and less cocky.  Longtail begins to appreciate his friendship with Firepaw and Flamepaw, and takes more time to live, not just be a Hunter and Mentor.

One day, while gathering herbs for the Healer’s Den, Firepaw is knocked off his feet by an old gray and yellow molly.  He springs to his feet, ready to fight, but the attacker is just…staring at him.  Like she’s seen a Geist.  He cautiously asks if she’s alright, do you need help ma’am?  And she moans something unintelligible, falling to the ground in a dead faint.  Firepaw panics, and drags her back to camp.  There, she is identified as Yellowfang by Spottedleaf, who tells Firepaw of her alleged crimes, and how she believes that Yellowfang was framed.  Said Healer wakes up, takes one look at Flamepaw coming in to drop off a mouse, and promptly wails in grief and pain.  The three of the get her to calm down, and she quietly apologizes, the siblings look like…patients she lost long ago.  Bluestar listens to her tale of Brokenstar being a False Star, and while still weighing the information, relegates Yellowfang to being a War-Bound for the time being.

Bluestar does not hear the story Yellowfang tells to the Healers and the Apprentice Brawler.  She does not see the siblings take the old molly to meet their mother.  She does not know a family has been made as whole as it will ever be.

At the Gathering, Brokenstar tells everyone how she ran out Windclan, and Bluestar realizes that Yellowfang was probably telling the truth.  As she had just revealed Thunderclan had Yellowfang as a War Bound, she begins to prepare for an attack, and she is correct – Shadowclan tries to kill Yellowfang, and succeeds at killing Lionheart and her dear friend Rosetail. Her heart grows a crack. She names the brave Tigerclaw, names Yellowfang part of Thunderclan, and tries to go on.

Then Ravenpaw leaves, begging shelter at The Barn with Bluestar’s old friend Barley, for reasons the apprentice refuses to communicate.  All his friends Graypaw, Firepaw, and Flamepaw will say is that he needed to be something that the Clans couldn’t let him be.  And the crack grows.

And then Shadowclan steals Frostfur’s kits, Lionheart’s kits. They kill Spottedleaf, Firepaw wailing over her body. She goes with her Warriors, Brawlers, and their apprentices to rescue the innocent.  They are met by Senior Warriors and other banished cats from Shadowclan, aided by Yellowfang in secret. Brokenstar is run out of the clans. Yellowfang takes over Firepaw’s training, and Flamepaw and Graypaw are named Flamewish (per her request) and Graystripe. Why is the crack still growing?

Flamewish, Graystripe, Longtail, and Swiftpaw are sent to retrieve Windclan.  It goes well, until a Riverclan patrol tries to fight them, and Whiteclaw falls off a cliff while fighting Graystripe.

When the group returns, Flamewish and Graystripe receive their first apprentices – Cinderpaw and Brackenpaw.  Flamewish finds Mentoring difficult, and asks Longtail for advice.  The pair become close friends.  Firepaw and Sandstorm make bets as to when they’ll become mates.  Unfortunately, Cinderpaw is lured away from camp and gets hit by a Monster. (It’s a car, just – just call it a car!! -Firepaw) Firepaw saves her life, and Yellowfang bestows the name Fireheart upon him at the next half-moon.

Also unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately), at seeing her apprentice so badly injured, Flamewish has an unusual reaction.  She goes into labor.  Seeing as Flamewish had no idea she was even a little pregnant (as she put it), things get a little crazy.  Longtail is flabbergasted, Bluestar is confused, Yellowfang is baffled, and Fireheart is delighted but also flabbergasted.  Flamewish does some calculating, then privately asks Fireheart to go bite Smudge in the face for her.

(This means Flamewish misses Graystripe meeting the gorgeously muscled Riverclan molly)

But it DOES mean she spends time in the Nursery with Brindleface, her kits Fernkit and Ashkit and Frostfoot and his kits Flykit and Coldkit.  Frostfoot who had just gone out one day and brought back the pair, claiming them as his.  Bluestar was frustrated and elated at the same time. 

The three become even closer when Brokenstar attacks, as they defend the Nursery together.  Longtail and Swiftpaw help drive off the Rogues together, and after Yellowfang blinds Brokenstar and leaves her Brokentail the War Bound, Swiftpaw is rewarded with his Adult Name – Swiftspirit. (Later, Longtail will see this as an omen, unknowingly given by Starclan through Bluestar…) Graystripe is later caught giving prey to Riverclan, and punished by having his apprentice taken away – Longtail is suddenly a Mentor again!  And Brackenpaw has so many things to learn!

Cinderpaw makes a nearly full recovery, but her time in the Healer’s Den had made her rethink her life – she wants to heal others.  Flamewish cracks a joke about her brother poaching her apprentice, but wishes her well.

And then Brokentail’s War Bound status becomes known.  And Thunderclan is attacked.  And Tigerclaw is at her throat, keen claws at her throat.  But as her heart shatters, a yowl of outrage rings through the air, and Longtail and Flamewish HAUL the Traitor off of her.  Bluestar banishes Him, and she holds the pieces of her heart and weeps – there are no stars in her tonight.  She waits too long, then names the astonished Longtail as Deputy.

Then Graystripe begs for the Healers to help him – they find the laboring Silverstream and do what they can, but Featherkit and Stormkit outlive their mother.  Graystripe leaves for Riverclan, refusing to abandon his kits.  Fireheart and Flamewish can’t blame him, but it still hurts.  And Brokentail is dead.  Yellowfang tells her leader that he dies of natural causes, but Bluestar does not see the look on Fireheart’s face.  (She will eventually learn that he just watched his grandmother kill his uncle) Then the fire. Oh the fire.  Patchpelt and Halftail, coughing and then forever breathless.  Fireheart and Flamewish race to find Yellowfang – to find their family.  She lies in a hollow tree, and blesses the Stars that she has enough time to say goodbye.  To say how proud she is of them – both her life paths.  I’ll always watch over you. (and Yellowfang keeps this promise)

Bluestar feels her mind failing, rain through the treetops instead of thoughts. So when she sees the Traitor leading Shadowclan as a False Star, she just…lets go. She watches Leopardstar rise and her clan move around her like a fever dream.  She watches the hawk impassively as it goes for Snowkit, and barely reacts when it takes Speckletail instead.  She doesn’t react when Longtail promotes Snowpaw to train under Brackenfur, or when Flamewish brings the elderly deaf kittypet Brahm to teach Snowpaw and Mistlepaw and others Pawspeak. She doesn’t react to the death of Swiftspirit or the maiming of Brightpaw, save to curse the Stars that left her broken by naming the poor thing Lostface.

(Longtail MOURNS.  He refuses to eat, has to be pried from his nest, and it takes a teary Flamewish admitting she misses the tom she loves for him to snap out of it.  The pair find solace in each other.  Fireheart and Sandstorm are too busy and too worried to exchange the mouse that they bet.  Neither ever says who won that bet)

Rabbits lead a bloody trail to poor Brindleface, and Longtail makes a plan to lead the dogs away from their den and over the river-cliffs.  Bluestar nods absently, but there’s a shining spark in her eyes that hasn’t been there in ages.  The runners lead the killer hounds up to the cliffs and away, but one grabs Longtail, pinning him and scratching his face.  But a blur of blue streaks onto the dog’s back, and overbalances them both into the river.  A pair of Riverclan warriors leap into action, and Bluestar says goodbye to her family, Frostfoot and Whitestorm having raced to the scene.

Longtail is escorted to the Moonstone by Fireheart, and finds himself in Starclan.  He receives his lives from Nightstar, Runningwind, Speckletail, Lionheart, Redtail, Silverstream, Yellowfang, Bluestar, and finally Swiftspirit.  Longstar vows to stop Tigerstar and his cronies.  He names Whitestorm as Deputy, and begins planning.

Tigerstar goes after Windclan, pinning and seemingly killing Gorsepaw, but as soon as the Shadowclan Battle Patrol leaves, he brings his head up and smiles weakly at his frantic mother. He will be scarred for life, but he will have his chance to live.

At Riverclan, Stonefur defends the apprentices to his last breath, and Graystripe rescues his kits from Tigerstar and Leopardstar.  Some Riverclan cats escape in the chaos, unwilling to follow their leader on this path.

Finally, with Windclan and Thunderclan united against the forces of Riverclan and Shadowclan, Tigerstar plays his deadliest card yet, as hordes of strange city Rogues appear.  Led by a figure some Thunderclanners recognize.  Thistleclaw.  But the rogues, no, the Bloodclanners, call him Tyrant.  Tigerstar boasts to the assembled clans how he killed Bluestar using the dogs and

Tyrant kills Tigerstar with a slash to the underbelly

Nine lives gone, in a single blow

The battle comes the next day, all four clans together – Longstar and Tallstar, Leopardstar and Blackstar.

Bone holds down Whitestorm, and is ripped of by a squad of apprentices, including his own, Brightheart.

Darkstripe goes after the Healers, and Graystripe strikes him down. His body is never found, and a gray tabby wanders desolate, his mistakes weighing on his soul.

Longstar strikes the final blow against Tyrant

And life goes on