#genuinely surprised i hadn't made the will powers one yet

[just-illegal]

spoilers for the last case of aa3

[lecsainz]

Can u do any kind of luke imagine with maybe a daughter of hades:p

˒ ⌕ DID YOU EAT, TODAY?

parings: luke castellan x hades!reader

an: this was my first piece that my sister liked? I'm sooo happy because she's picky, and I usually have to beg her to read anything I write. yes, I know it's pathetic, but I usually don't think my writing is good, and I don't think you guys will like it. I have a bit of a validation-seeking complex (mirroball girl here 😭

summary: where, after 18 years of surviving alone, you finally arrive at camp half-blood, discovering you're a child of hades. adimist it all, a hermes' boy might find himself perhaps falling for you.

( my last work || my last work for riodanverse || go to main masterlist )

The camp was bustling with activity, but for you, the chaos of your newfound identity as a demigod and a daughter of Hades was still settling in. The moment you were claimed upon entering the camp, it felt like your entire world had shifted. As the campers dispersed for their activities, you sought solace by the lake, needing a moment to process the overwhelming revelations.

Luke, having noticed your absence from the group, made his way to the lake with a small cupcake in hand. Blueberry, your favorite. He approached cautiously, recognizing the turmoil on your face. The daughter of Hades, a complex puzzle of emotions and powers.

"Hey there," Luke greeted, sitting down beside you. "Did you eat today?"

You looked up, your eyes still reflecting the confusion and vulnerability that came with the newfound knowledge of your divine parentage. The mere question, though simple, struck a chord within you, resonating with a sense of care that you hadn't expected.

"I... I didn't really feel like it." you admitted, your voice betraying the uncertainty.

Without another word, Luke handed you the cupcake, and the corners of his lips lifted into a reassuring smile. "Well, you should. It's blueberry – your favorite, right?"

Surprised, you glanced at the cupcake, realizing that somehow, amidst all the chaos, Luke had remembered your preference. A small, genuine smile formed on your face as you took the cupcake. "Thank you."

Taking the cupcake, you managed a small smile. The gesture was simple, yet it carried an unspoken understanding. You hesitated for a moment before taking a bite, savoring the sweetness that contrasted with the bitter reality you were grappling with.

Luke watched you quietly, and when you finally met his gaze, he reached over to wipe away a stray tear that had escaped your eye. It was a gentle touch, one that conveyed more comfort than words ever could.

"You know, being a demigod is tough, especially in the beginning," he began, his tone gentle. "But you're not alone in this. We're a family here, weird as it may be."

You chuckled, feeling a hint of warmth amidst the emotional storm. "Yeah, a family of demigods with divine parent issues."

Luke chuckled with you. "Exactly. And you've got powers from the Underworld, which is pretty cool if you ask me."

Your laughter echoed by the lake, and Luke couldn't help but feel a warmth spreading within him. He looked at you, your smile contagious, and a goofy grin formed on his face. In less than 48 hours, everything you did seemed to become his favorite thing.

"See? I knew blueberry cupcakes were the way to go," Luke teased, nudging you playfully.

As you enjoyed the cupcake, the night air became a canvas for the unspoken. Luke's gaze lingered on you, studying your features. The flicker of vulnerability in your eyes and the subtle playfulness of your smile sparked something in him. His mind wrestled with conflicting thoughts. The prophecy and his allegiance to Kronos felt like a weight on his shoulders, yet the simple act of being there for you seemed to defy the inevitable.

Luke couldn't help but think he was treading on dangerous ground. The more he got to know you, the more he realized that maybe, just maybe, there were things worth fighting for beyond the plans of gods and Titans.

Caught in his own internal struggle, he locked eyes with you. His expression shifted between uncertainty and an undeniable connection that was forming against all odds.

And then, as if a realization hit him, you blushed, looking away. The daughter of Hades, powerful and enchanting, now bashful under his gaze. A small smile played on Luke's lips, acknowledging the unexpected turn of emotions.

"Stop," you said, your voice a blend of amusement and a blush that colored your cheeks.

"I can't help it," Luke responded, a mischievous glint in his eyes. He made no effort to hide his amusement, which only intensified your embarrassment.

A playful slap on his arm was your immediate response. "Seriously, cut it out."

Luke chuckled, the sound resonating in the tranquil night. "Alright, alright. I'll behave... for now."

"Hey, Castellan! We're heading out. You coming?" The moment was interrupted by a group of Hermes cabin members calling for Luke. As he got up to join them, he glanced back at you. "You coming?"

He extended his hand towards you, a gesture so simple yet filled with unspoken invitation. With a slight hesitance, you placed your hand in his, and together you walked away, fingers intertwined.

The children of Hermes exchanged smirks, whispering amongst themselves as they watched Luke and you leave the lakeside. One of them winked at Luke, teasingly remarking, "Looks like someone's got a soft spot."

Luke shot back with a grin, "I don't know what you're talking about."

He glanced at you, a sly smile playing on your lips radiating a warmth that ignited a turmoil within him. In that moment, a realization struck Luke like a lightning bolt – perhaps you were the unforeseen obstacle in Kronos' grand plan. As he stared at you, the idea that his growing feelings for you could complicate the titan's scheme loomed over him, and for the first time, Luke Castellan felt the weight of a dilemma he hadn't anticipated.

[aphroditelovesu]

Yandere husband Genghis Khan

❝ 📜 — lady l: I hope you like! I hadn't written to him yet, but I confess that I liked it! Good reading and forgive me for any mistakes!❤️

❝tw: dub-con, mention of massacre and destruction, possessive and violent behavior, implied torture.

❝📜pairing: yandere!genghis khan x female!reader.

Genghis Khan set his eyes on you after you became a concubine, one of his many that he possessed. After invading your city and looting and massacring the inhabitants, you were given to him as spoils of war. A concubine and nothing more.

When you were summoned to his tent, you were scared to death. Terrified of what he could do to you. You had already seen what the other soldiers had done to the captives women and you were shaking in terror at the thought of suffering the same.

Your heart was beating wildly in your chest when you walked in and found him waiting for you, wearing light clothes and drinking. You took a deep breath and walked towards the conqueror of your city. He looked at you briefly and you knew what you had to do.

To your surprise, Genghis wasn't rude or forced you, he was quite calm and gentle. A word you never thought you could use referring to him, aiming at the reputation he maintained. That said, you started to like him more, to like the nights you spent together more and more.

You were called by him every night and not every night was about the pleasures of the flesh, but because he enjoyed your company. You also started to like him, he wasn't that bad, at least not to you.

He soon decided that he wanted to marry you, to transform you from a concubine to his wife. You were surprised when he told you this news, but you didn't reject the idea. Being his wife would bring you more benefits than being his concubine and soon the preparations began.

The wedding was celebrated in typical Mongolian style and you were welcomed by soldiers and people important to him. Even his main wife, Börte, congratulated you and she seemed genuine. Genghis Khan appreciated this fact immensely, he could always benefit from it later.

You were treated with all the perks he could give you, jewelry, food, clothes made of the purest silk, anything you wanted he would have no problem getting. If you asked him to, he would destroy an entire tribe or city just for you.

You held a lot of power over him, especially when you got pregnant with your first child. Genghis was especially happy about this and you spent the whole night making love after this news. He was falling more in love with you every day.

He was quite possessive, however, and that was obvious to you. He once had one of his own subordinates tortured for daring to lust after you. You would never forget the screams that night or the bloody way your husband had appeared to you.

Genghis cares and cares for you in his own way and often resorts to violence to do so. He wasn't a conqueror without a reason, there was a murderous fury inside him that many knew. It soon became very clear to everyone who they must protect at all costs. You kept him in check.

He might have other concubines and wives, but he always came back to you in the end. In your arms, he had found a comfort he didn't know he needed until he got it. Genghis could kill anyone who looked at you the wrong way, but it was because he loved you.

You may not be his first wife, but you are definitely his favorite.

[jumpywhumpywriter]

Mind over Mind - Hero Whumper Villain Whumpee

Warnings: torture, violence, forced compliance, mind control

Summary: Hero almost loses the fight against Villain... until she uses her unique powers to flip the tables.

Villain and Hero had been fighting for only an hour when both of them started to falter from exhaustion, but that's just the kind of fights they got into. Quick. Intense. Violent. Bloody. The kind that's hardly survivable for long.

Hero wielded two wickedly sharp daggers in her hands, while Villain had one in his left, and a serrated hunting blade in the other. Their weapons clashed together repeatedly, showering sparks onto the ground as they fought fiercely for the upper hand, both of them covered in sweat, bruises and dozens of vicious injuries inflicted by their opponent.

"Don't you ever know when to give up?" Hero grunted through gritted teeth as she blocked yet another one of Villain's attacks.

"Nope, apparently not," Villain sneered, and slashed a blade across Hero's ribs, slicing open a deep gash that made her cry out in pain. It was all the opening he needed. He didn't give her a chance to recover.

Villain closed the distance between them and brutally pummeled Hero with a series of quick blows, too fast for her to block or dodge. He punched her gut hard enough to crack ribs, before landing another blow on her jaw with a concussive amount of force, making her head snap back -- and the peak of the fight was over just like that.

Hero faltered and stumbled back with a broken, rattling wheeze, falling to the ground, and Villain descended on her like a bird of prey, wrapping a strong hand around her throat and lifting her up to pin her against a wall, squeezing hard.

Hero's eyes widened as she clawed desperately at the hand cutting off her air, thrashing uselessly in Villain's grip with slowly failing strength.

"The real question is... do you know when to give up?" Villain chuckled coldly.

Blood trickled from both corners of Hero's mouth as her terrified gaze locked with Villain's.

STOP! A booming voice suddenly roared in Villain's head, making him jerk back in surprise, losing his grip on Hero so that she crumpled to the ground, gasping and choking and coughing blood, her eyes still locked intensely on Villain.

Something brushed against Villain's mind that made him shiver, like claws brushing lightly against his brain, wandering and prodding uncertainly, as though searching for a hold. Then those claws turned sharp, deadly, sinking in.

Villain's whole body went stiff, muscles locking in place as that same voice spoke again.

That's right... obey.

Villain's blood went colder than ice, his face going pale as a slow, stretching pain spread through his body, setting every nerve on fire with excruciating agony as it sank into every part of him.

His mouth gaped, he tried to speak, but couldn't find his voice.

He was rooted to the spot with fear as Hero slowly picked herself up off the dirt, gasping and panting as she caught her breath, rubbing her neck where Villain's hand had been mere seconds away from crushing her windpipe.

She straightened with a groan, staggering a little before finding her balance, one arm wrapped protectively around her bleeding midsection. Then a crooked grin that was part-grimace broke out on her face as she spat out a mouthful of blood.

"My, how the tables have turned," she taunted, though it came out in a shallow, weak rasp of air.

"H-How..." Villain breathed, eyes enormous as they watched Hero with sudden wariness.

Because I never reveal all my playing cards, the voice echoed in his head. It sounded like Hero's -- but her mouth hadn't moved.

My single biggest advantage is letting people underestimate me, the voice continued.

Fear -- genuine, raw fear pulsed through Villain's entire being when he tried to move -- but physically couldn't.

He swallowed hard, fighting to tamp down the rising panic and maintain any shred of composure.

"W-What are you doing... how are you doing this?" He snarled, finally snapping out of the shock.

Hero limped towards him until she was inches away, the icy blue depths of her eyes boring into his, full of righteous anger.

"Surprise... my superpower isn't limited to super strength." She grinned wolfishly at his confusion, the utterly bafflement on her enemy's face.

Funny, isn't it? It's almost like... you don't have control over yourself anymore.

Again, Hero's mouth didn't move.

Hero bent over and picked up Villain's own fallen dagger, pressing it into his hand and resting the tip against her chest without a glimmer of fear.

"Go ahead, give it your best shot," she purred. "All it takes is one little push to kill me... try it if you can."

Villain shuddered as those strange mental claws tightened on him.

He gripped his dagger hard, mustering every inch of willpower in him to end it, to finally kill his greatest enemy, be rid of the menace -- his hand trembled, but he couldn't bring the blade forward.

"Don't tell me you're too weak for murder," Hero mocked with a dramatic gasp.

Villain's brow furrowed, and he held the hilt tighter, pushing, yanking against those restraints shackling him in his own mind. The blade jerked forward an inch, but no more than that, and Hero let out a cold, heartless laugh, easily swatting the weapon out of Villain's hand before roughly grabbing his jaw hard enough to bruise, forcing him to look straight into her cruel eyes.

Villain let out a weak whimper, ashamed that the sound even slipped out. But he was injured, and in pain, confused, and so, so scared... fear was a new feeling for him. He was the most powerful villain in the entire city, strong enough to beat Hero on several different occasions -- but never had he been rendered so vulnerable, so useless before, like a puppet with strings, at the complete mercy of his enemy.

Hero carefully wrapped her other hand around his throat, and step by deliberate step, backed him up until he was pinned against the opposite wall. She applied the same pressure that Villain had put on her windpipe earlier, and Villain's chest started heaving as he struggled to keep drawing air. His eyes went huge with disbelief, he couldn't even fight, his arms weren't working right. None of him was, bound and chained by some invisible force.

Spots danced in his vision, and right when he thought he would pass out the pressure on his neck vanished, leaving him taking great gulping gasps of air.

Hero leaned in close, her head right next to his face.

"Doesn't feel very good, does it?" She hissed into his ear before pulling back.

Her fingers trailed down his chest, almost seductively, running over the shredded lines of his suit where long gashes had sliced through and ripped the leather. They stopped at his stomach, grazing over a particularly deep slash right below the ribs.

Villain shuddered with a wince, a low moan escaping him, and he cursed himself for it.

Hero stared at him, then dug her fingers viciously into the wound, never breaking eye contact, her expression deadpan and impassive.

Villain screamed in sheer agony and writhed, which was more like weakly twitching against the bonds holding him in one place.

Hero took her fingers out, and Villain was left trembling all over with pain, his injury throbbing. His head lolled forward, breathing harsh and ragged as he recovered.

"Huh, even agony can't let you break free," she murmured aloud, as though she were experimenting with Villain, testing the limits of her ability. It was dehumanizing, degrading, and flat-out terrifying to know that Hero could do whatever she wanted to him. Holding his life in her hands.

"S-Stop it... L-Let me go..." Villain croaked. He couldn't help the shakiness in his voice, and Hero's eyes lit up at hearing it. "S-Since when could you even do this?" He added.

"Since always," Hero answered flatly. "I just never show it. I don't use this power often, because it is unfathomably taxing on my body in ways you couldn't even imagine, but today... today I'm feeling violent." Her teeth bared into a feral grin, making Villain shiver uneasily.

"I haven't practiced using it much, so I'm curious to see what potential... motivations might be enough for your willpower and desperation to let you break free of my hold." She tilted her head to one side, a lethal predator in every slight movement. "I can break you in so many ways beneath the surface," she whispered dangerously.

"Let's see how strong your resolve is, hmm?" Hero's gaze dropped down where a dagger was, and she stomped on the hilt, skillfully flinging it up into her waiting hand.

Villain whimpered again anxiously, squirming and eyeing the bright metal, and she pressed the blade against his lips.

"Shhh... all you have to do is raise your left hand when the pain becomes too much, and I'll stop," she said mischievously. A deadly game for her, toying with her new victim like a plaything.

Hero leaned close again, her breath ghosting above Villain's carotid artery as she scraped her teeth lightly against his neck, teasing, violating his space.

She trailed the sharp edge of the blade down his bare arm, not breaking skin at first as she smiled coldly. Then she sliced it deep without warning, tearing a ragged wail from Villain as she started carving into his flesh over and over again while her enemy screamed his throat raw.

Villain tried desperately to push her away, to stop the excruciating agony, do something but stand there and take it... but he couldn't. He physically couldn't.

Tears of pure pain spilled out of his eyes and rolled down his cheeks, hiccupping sobs breaking up his breaths at the sheer intensity of it, every time the blade left a fresh mark of fire in his flesh.

He could feel the warm blood sliding down his arm to drip on the floor with every pounding heartbeat, endless suffering. It was worse when she switched from his arm to the sensitive skin of his abdomen, and he screamed and yelped and cried out as the metal bit his skin repeatedly. Hero showed no signs of stopping anytime soon.

Eventually the screaming devolved to agonized moaning and pathetic whimpers as Villain lost strength, his throat burning fiercely in the aftermath of all his loud cries.

Now, listen closely...

That voice returned in his head, and his stomach churned with dread. He couldn't take any more torture. Any more pain. His whole body was blazing with it.

Take the knife from my hand, and put it against your throat...

Hero held the dagger in her hand invitingly, stained with Villain's own blood.

Villain moaned as his shaky hand automatically lifted to take the blade, then his body betrayed him by resting the sharp, cool metal right under his chin. He swallowed against it, throat bobbing fearfully.

Saw through your neck.

Villain's eyes widened with terror, hand trembling as he fought against the mental claws Hero had sunk into him. But it was no use. The blade started slicing through his skin, and Villain closed his eyes, another teak leaking out as he accepted his fate.

...Now stop. Villain's body instantly obeyed, stiffening in place.

Villain took a rattling breath, cautiously opening his watery eyes to gauge Hero's expression, which was dark and unreadable.

I want you to remember this moment, her voice hissed into his mind, remember that I held your life in my hands... that I could have killed you right now... and I want you to run away from here with that memory, and the scar on your neck will remind you of me every time you look in the mirror. Run, and never come back. If I EVER see your face again... I will not stop.

And suddenly, a rush of cold washed over Villain, an aching absence of a hollow void that opened up, and Villain collapsed on the ground, panting as he felt those vicious mental claws retreat, releasing him at last.

Hero stepped back, eyes narrowed. "You have ten seconds to remove yourself from my line of sight before I change my mind. Run, or die. Ten."

Villain peered dizzily up at her, his face pale with blood loss. "...You're bluffing," he wheezed in disbelief.

"That is a theory you're certainly welcome to test. Nine." Hero's face stayed harsh and cruel, and Villain lurched to his feet with a gasp, not willing to risk the chance she'd given him.

He stumbled into an awkward, adrenaline-powered run, limping heavily away as fast as he could while Hero's voice trailed after him.

"Eight... seven... six..."

She never got to five before Villain was out of sight, slipping away into a dark alley. Gone. Never seen or heard from again.

I appreciate any and all feedback from my peers! 😁 (and if anyone has any other Hero x Villain prompt ideas or things they'd like to see more of feel free to share them and I might write a story for it)

Masterlist

@scoundrelwithboba

[frickingnerd]

i hate loving you as much as i do

pairing: luka couffaine x gn!reader

summary: left heartbroken by a missunderstanding, you end up getting akumatized. but luka seeks you out and clears up any missunderstandings by confessing his love to you!

tags: angst to fluff, missunderstandings, happy ending, mentions of marinette/lukanette, luka × reader endgame, wholesome fluff

everything would've been different, if luka had been by your side, like he promised. you never would've gotten akumatized if he had been there. luka would've been able to get through to you with his words and save you. but you were all by yourself when that akuma took over your body. and nobody could prevent what was about to happen…

luka couldn't believe his own eyes when he saw you on the ladyblog, as an akumatized villain. he was late to meet you, when he got an akuma alert and checked the news. and that's when he saw you.

without even thinking about it, luka rushed to the spot you were last seen, knowing he needed to talk to you. as much as he trusted chat noir and ladybug, he knew you better than they did. they'd only hurt you by trying to restrain you. but luka was convinced that if he was there, things would be different! but he was wrong…

“you are the worst thing that happened to me, luka. why would you think your words would do anything to convince me to stop this? i despise you! acting like you care about me, just to forget all about me when she wants to see you–!”

your words were cruel and your voice was different than what luka knew. it was much deeper, almost twisted. the akuma had done more than just change your appearance.

but while your words sounded too mean to truly belong to you, something caught luka's attention. that girl you mentioned, that made him forget about you…

“do you mean marinette…?”

“ha, so you do know what i'm talking about! did you grow tired of playing dumb? of course i mean her! you're always with her! and you can't even see how much you hurt me when you're with her…”

luka's heart sunk. he never knew you were this hurt by him spending time with marinette. but there was no reason to be jealous of marinette!

“marinette is just a friend! you're the one i love!”

for a short moment, your facade seemed to crack. that mean glare on your face vanished and you looked genuinely surprised. but quickly, you grew bitter again and a sad expression covered your face, that made luka's heart ache.

“stop giving me hope. it hurts so much more than if you'd just tell me the truth…”

“it's the truth!” luka sighed. “i've been spending a lot of time with marinette recently, but she was just helping me with a song i wrote for you! i wanted it to be perfect before you heard it and i knew she'd keep it a secret…”

“l-liar… y-you… you have to be… lying–!”

you shook your head, tears streaming down your cheeks. you couldn't even look at luka, as you heard hawkmoth's voice in your head, trying to convince you all he said was a lie. that luka merely was afraid of you and wanted to weaken you with his words. but was that really true?

“please, look at me…”

you hadn't even noticed that luka had closed the distance between the two of you, gently placing a hand on your cheeks. as your eyes inevitably darted towards him, luka surprised you with a sudden kiss. and as you gave into the kiss, hawkmoth's control over you weakened…

“if my words couldn't convince you, was this kiss able to do it?”

luka looked at you with such fondness. you had said terrible things to him, had accepted hawkmoth's villainous powers and yet he looked at you with such fondness. as if there was nothing you could say or do that would make him hate you.

“i thought you didn't care about me…”

as those words left your lips, you finally regained control over yourself again. hawkmoth lost all power over you and you detransformed back into yourself, as luka quickly wrapped his arms around you. almost as if he was worried you'd slip away again if he didn't hold you close.

“i'm sorry i couldn't show you just how important you are to me. i should've never kept secrets from you, not even to surprise you. i've hurt you so much… can you forgive me?”

you only began to tear up more at luka's words.

“of course i can forgive you! but i'm the one who should be asking for forgiveness instead…”

“don't.” luka brushed it off with a smile. “there's nothing you need to apologize for. what you said earlier, those weren't your words. i know that you were just trying to push me away, because you were hurt…”

“still!” you insisted. “i'm sorry for what i said. i could never hate you. in fact, i… i love you!”

luka's thumb gently stroked your cheek, as he smiled at you. he slowly closed the distance between you, whispering out four little words, before his lips finally met yours again:

“i love you too…”

[mamawasatesttube]

Sorry, I know you don’t really like people bringing up Jason but I’m very curious. I read Straight on Till Morning several times before really joining Tumblr and I was surprised by how much you seem to dislike him compared to how nicely he was written in said fic. Is it cuz it’s a future fic so he can be more chilled out than in current comics or something?

Feel free to ignore me if you want. Curiosity does not owe me answers.

no worries, i don't mind polite questions! :P

so there's two things. a) sotm was written when the only real comics i'd read were sb94, yj98, tt03, batgirl (2000), and nightwing '96 (iirc - i might be forgetting one or two but the point is, when i was pretty new to comics). at this point wfa had tricked me into thinking jason actually had a consistent character arc that i simply hadn't read yet, and i assumed it would be weird to write a fic where dick, tim, and cass were all around as kon's friends + damian was there being jon's friend in the background, but jason didn't get mentioned, so i worked him in bc i thought that was like. gonna be weird if i didn't, even tho i didn't know what he was doing in postcrisis yet. i mostly just wanted to write about kon and did not yet have the strong "actually i do not care for 99% of post-rebirth comics" feelings i have today. if i were to do the sotm rewrite in my mind, jason would actually still be in his villain to antivillain era because that's my actual favorite era of him. i think it's fun when he's hanging around being like... a vengeful ghost who's just determined to make his problems Everyone's Problem. i'm not really interested in soft angsty daddy's boy jtodd or whatever sdkjfh and that seems to be the most popular version of him i see. it's either soft angsty daddy's boy jason or it's power fantasy cop-adjacent jason who has never done anything wrong in his life and is completely valid in every decision he's ever made. neither of these interests me.

which brings me to b) it's not so much that i dislike jason todd as a character so much as that his fans are so fucking annoying to me. that chapter of sotm? multiple people in the comments were there ONLY to talk about jason, even though the fic is literally about kon and not about jason and he just happens to appear for PART of one scene that chapter. it made me get sick of hearing about him. like theres soooo many jason todd fics out there can you go read those. i want to talk about kon! and i've had people bring him up on my completely unrelated fics too like he doesn't even get MENTIONED like one fic is about clark kon and tim, and someone was in the comments like "omg i bet clark was thinking about jason here" and i was so ... dude. read the room. or the fic even. it is not about him.

but even more than the way a lot of jason fans have this apparently compulsive need to make him the main character of the entire universe, i really can't stand how many of them i've seen spout literal straight up copaganda and/or defense of the death penalty. like they will bend over backwards so hard to defend why he was right to put 8 heads in a duffel bag or why it's morally correct to kill rapists that they start spewing right-wing talking points. and the constant need to make him the perfect imperfect victim ("he's angry and loud unlike GOOD victims--") and all of that just... it really turns me off of 99% of fan content about him that i've seen. it makes me genuinely kind of uncomfortable. like if you think there's a category of criminal that it's okay to execute (without a trial, even) i want nothing to do with you. can you guys just say it's sexy when a man is covered in blood after murdering a room full of people without having to be like "and he was right to do it too!!" because i promise he was not. and if you SAY any of this people will come up with a whole thing about how you must hate victims and/or poor people or some shit. its... really something.

all of that being said - i think there are interesting things you COULD do with his character. i think he can be a fascinating character! with stories worth telling! the family tragedy, the horror story, the vengeful ghost! but at this point with how rancid i find his fanbase i just really only want to see jason takes from people i know will not start spewing copaganda at me + people who i know appreciate tim kicking him in the balls (bc he kicked dick in the balls and tim is a bitch).

anyways. bring back tentatodd 2k25 who's with me

[stuckymonkey]

Kinktober Day 3: Bondage

Bucky Barnes

word count - ~1k

a/n - this work was inspired by a photo by @/fakesngays on Twitter:

Anyways-

Since coming out of the ice, obviously things were different. What Bucky hadn't expected however was the way people were so open about sexuality and pleasure. After coming out of hiding, Bucky had a lot of time on his hands, most of which he spent learning about the new world, space, media and conspiracy.

Eventually, kinks got added into the mix of topics to be researched.

You and Bucky had been dating for over a year and your sex life was far from vanilla. Bucky found pleasure in both dominating you and submissing to you. You prided yourselves on your level of communication and ability to share desires and fantasies with eachother.

So when Bucky came to you one night and asked you to tie him up, you were more than willing. With some help from outside sources (cough cough, Tony) you were able to have some special handcuffs made so Bucky would genuinely be restrained.

The vibranium handcuffs and kevlar ropes surprised him when he came home that night. He was eager to strip just like you'd asked him, and he willingly stood still while to secured the bonds, having each limb restrained. He tugged at the bonds, testing their strength.

When he found them indeed much stronger than he had originally thought, he was both aroused and nervous at the level of power you now had over him.

Don't get him wrong, he trusted you body, mind and soul. He was yours entirely. But he knew you loved to tease.

"Ready?" You purred, crawling to him. Your seductive moves excited him, his cock stirring to attention. "Yes ma'am." He rasped.

"Good. I think you're going to like this."

What felt like hours later, Bucky was a sweaty, moaning mess. You had edged him at least a dozen times, letting him beg and whine for release. "It's okay baby, be my good boy, I know you can take it love." And he did. He took everything you gave him, over and over and over.

His head hung, watching as you kissed and licked up his thighs. You took your sweet time, making sure every inch of skin had been kissed and nipped. He groaned at the sight. You peered up at him through your eyelashes, blinking slowly. A strangled moan escaped him, you knew all of his weaknesses and you were determined to break him.

Finally, you reached his inner thighs. just by his crotch. "Come on y/n, baby, please." You licked around his length, beside his heavy ball sack and up his abdomen, kissing and biting at the tender skin of his hips.

He tried squirming, aiming his length at your mouth. You slapped his dick away, earning a sharp hiss from James. You pulled back to look at your pretty baby.

He stood tall, yet so defeated, legs and arms spread wide for you. His purple cock head was leaking trails of precum that pooled on the sheets. Hickeys covered his chest, abdomen and inner thighs. The dark purple on his tan skin aroused you, knowing he was yours. You owned him, and he owned you too.

You slowly leaned forward and blew cold air over his cock, making it twitch. Bucky pulled at the ropes. "Please! Please, let me out," He sobbed, tired of the teasing and edging.

You ignored his pleas, taking his member in your mouth instead. Your tongue circled his cock, tracing the vein and flicking over his frenulum. He bucked his hips into your face, making you gag softly. You slapped his thigh harshly.

He let out a low cry and thrust his hips once more, earning a harsher slap over his already red leg.

You took his cock back in your mouth, this time just holding it there, not moving a muscle. "Y/n, this isn't fair, please, please, I need you," You just stared at him, unmoving, enjoying his displeasure.

After a few minutes of Bucky taking deep breaths and trying to be good, you took his length all the way down your throat until your nose settled in the curly thatch of hair at the base of his cock. "Yes, Yes! Please! Oh, God."

You started moving your head slowly, and Bucky knew better to test you now. Although he didn't move his hips, his limbs fought against the restraints. He tugged and writhed, core lit on fire from the way you were taking his cock down your throat.

He whined and begged, trying to be patient as you took him apart. Slowly, you pulled off his cock, letting a string of spit connect you to it before going down to his balls. You took one in your mouth at a time, swirling your tongue and relishing in the texture of them. Bucky keened and whimpered as you sucked and licked. They were firm and heavy in your mouth, ready to cum.

You pulled off after making sure each side of the sack got equal treatment. Leaning back on you heels, you took in the sight of Bucky for the last time. His chest heaved and drool was escaping the corners of his mouth. beads of sweat coated his forehead and abdomen. His eyes never left yours, ready to obey despite being restrained.

teasingly, you stroked a finger from his toes to his metal shoulder. You kissed his lips tenderly, pulling away to see him try and chase your lips. He tilted his head, trying to regain your lips. You gave in, kissing him while untying his bonds. He gasped into the kiss. As soon as his arms were free, they came to your cheeks, holding you as if he wasn't sure whether to believe what was happening or not.

His legs were next, and once they were freed he collapsed onto the bed. Quickly, Bucky rolled over and pinned you under him. "Missed you so much," he whispered, tucking his face in your neck. "You did so good baby," He moaned softly, letting you grasp his cock and line it up to your entrance.

He gasped, feeling overwhelmed at finally being sheathed in your wet cunt. "Y/n!" His hips started moving immediately, not giving you any time to adjust. "Fuck!" His hips were unforgiving as he pounded into you, his thighs hitting yours with each thrust. It didn't take long for his cock to start brushing up against your g-spot, making you cry out and see stars.

The roles had been switched since Bucky got free, as he now started dominating you and guiding you through your pleasure. He used your body for his own pleasure, gripping your hips in a bruising grip.

After a few short thrusts he came with a loud cry, never ceasing the snapping of his hips. Bucky's hand threaded through your hair, pulling harshly and forcing you to meet his eyes. "Come on baby, you gotta cum for me," He said, "You just gotta cum and then we can rest, okay? Cum for me sweets," He continued to thrust, removing his hand from your hair to twist your nipples. You gasped at the touch.

"B-Bucky," "I'm right here," You pushed his mouth over one of your awaiting tits before crying out as you came around him. "Bucky!!"

"Fuck, so sweet doll, coating me so nice," His hips slowly came to a halt. After pulling his length out of your sopping hole he helped to clean the both of you up.

Aftercare that night was spent cuddling and watching movies in the hands of your love.

I hope you guys liked this!! I don't have a taglist but feel free to turn on notifications! All interactions/likes/reblogs/comments are appreciated!!

[osmanthus-wine-addiction]

◈ Pairing: Zhongli x fem!Reader ◈ Summary: You've just gotten out of an exhausting relationship with your boyfriend of ten years. Your boss, who you've only brushed shoulders with a few times in the six years you've worked at the company, suddenly makes you an offer that you can't turn down. ◈ Contains: NSFW, Angst, Boss/Employee Relationship, Power Imbalance, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Emotional Manipulation

Already, this was more care and consideration than you've ever received in the past after having sex. Zhongli and you were technically just office acquaintances, albeit him being hellbent on changing your casual dynamic.

“Good morning Mister Zhongli.” You gave him an appreciative smile as you set his usual osmanthus tea in front of him along with a few binders.

Zhongli glanced up at you with a smile, his eyes softening. “Good morning, dear. How are you feeling this morning?” He asked, genuine concern lacing his voice.

A blush colored your cheeks at his reminder.

“A little sore still, but I'm fine.”

Zhongli raised an eyebrow, but didn’t comment on it. “I trust you had a good night’s rest?” He asked, handing you a binder.

You nodded, a sincere smile on your lips.

“I haven’t slept that well in a while. So... thank you.”

Zhongli returned your smile, his eyes warm. “I'm glad to hear that, dear. It’s the least I could do for keeping you up late.” He said lightly before taking another sip of his tea.

The flush on your cheeks deepened at his words.

“Also, thank you for bringing my clothes.”

You didn't find out until days later that it was Keqing who insisted his driver take a whole chunk of your closet with him, insinuating that you were going to be spending a lot of nights at Zhongli's place and that she was completely fine with it.

“There’s another meeting with Mister Kamisato later today to sign the contract. I’ve also gone ahead and booked a private room at an upscale club this evening to celebrate the collaboration. The dinner will be served there as well.”

Zhongli gave you an appreciative smile, his eyes landing on a faint mark peeking out from behind your blouse's collar.

“I’ll be outside if there’s anything else you need from me.”

“Please stay for a moment longer.” Zhongli said, getting up from his chair. “I wanted to discuss something else with you.”

Zhongli made his way around the desk, stopping when he was standing right in front of you. You inevitably caught a whiff of his cologne because of how close he was. He reached out to fix your lopsided collar so that it hid the mark he left on your neck a little better.

“What do you need to discuss with me?”

Zhongli's gaze rose to your eyes. “I will be paying someone a visit in Mondstadt in a couple weeks. Would you like to accompany me on a business trip?” He asked softly, a hopeful smile playing on his lips.

“A business trip?” Your eyes widened.

If it were a business trip like he said, then it was your job to go with him and handle all the petty little preparations and paperwork involved like booking flights, renting cars, and hiring temporary personnel.

“Of course. You’re my boss. Wherever you go, I go."

Zhongli smiled at your response. “Good. I think it'll be a memorable experience for you.”

He reached out, gently taking your hand in his own and pulling you close. Maybe the spell he had cast on you last night hadn't worn off yet. Before you could snap out of it, he had his hand against your face and was leaning in to kiss you.

You quickly turned your head and avoided the kiss, slipping out of his grasp.

“Not at work.” You took your boss's hand, leading him to his chair and gently pushed him back into it. “I don’t want to be a distraction to you."

Zhongli stared at you in muted surprise, his lips parted.

"I’ll be outside if you need me.” You added before scurrying off.

Zhongli watched you go, feeling dazed and slightly disappointed by your rejection. You were right though. He shouldn’t act on his desires while the two of you were at work. He took a deep breath and turned back to his screen, trying to push the tantalizing thoughts out of his head. This was the first time he tried to kiss you at work since you had become his assistant. Maybe he was also still affected by last night. He had never meant to force you into anything, but his desire for you had gotten the better of him.

Your heart finally calmed down a bit and so did the slight pinkness on your cheeks. Your boss was a very attractive man. You were shamelessly aware of that. It's expected that after last night, things would change between the two of you. You were still much too sensitive to his every touch and glance, shivering if he so much as brushed a hand against yours. You were like a pile of dried timbers. A tiny spark could set you ablaze.

[stolenorchids]

PSYCHIC MISHAPS AND SWEET MOMENTS

Kusuo Saiki x reader WARNINGS: reader is technically not specified as neither male for female, tooth rotting fluff, Saiki using his abilities to save you from an embarassing moment - I think that's all lol AN: just wanted to say that there's not enough Saiki K fanfictions on here (or in general), so do feel free to send me an ask about the show - or any other show lol, I'll be happy to write something that doesn't fully come from my own thoughts:)

Saiki Kusuo never wanted to stand out. For as long as he could remember, he had tried his best to live a normal life—no small feat when you’re a psychic with powers that could bend reality. From mind reading to teleportation, he had long grown used to his strange abilities. But one thing he hadn’t quite figured out?

Dating.

It wasn’t like he couldn’t do it, or that he didn’t know how—he was psychic after all, he knew what people liked. But he wasn’t used to letting anyone close. That’s where you came in.

You had known about Saiki’s powers for a while now. Unlike the others, who couldn’t quite grasp the full extent of his abilities, you had seen through his attempts at acting normal and had accepted him, powers and all. And somehow, against all odds, he had started to care about you. Which is why you were both currently standing in front of a café, Saiki staring at the door with his usual deadpan expression while you smiled at him, trying to break the awkward tension.

"Saiki, you don’t have to look so stressed. It’s just coffee."

"I’m not stressed," he replied flatly, hands stuffed into his pockets. But you knew him well enough by now to understand that the tiniest shift in his demeanor—like the way he hadn't said anything telepathically yet—meant he was overthinking things.

"Are you reading my mind?" you asked, raising an eyebrow as you opened the door to the café.

"Of course not," he said, but the quick flicker in his eyes made it clear that he had.

"You could just ask me what I’m thinking, you know?" you teased, stepping inside. "It’s not like you need psychic powers for that."

Saiki sighed, giving a slight roll of his eyes. This wasn’t exactly his idea of a relaxing afternoon, but then again, things always seemed to get more complicated when you were involved. But not in a bad way. Not that he’d ever admit that out loud.

As you both found a small table by the window, Saiki sat down, resting his chin in his hand, gazing outside like he had zero interest in the conversation—typical. But beneath the surface, he was already calculating all the possible ways this could go wrong. There was the chance that Nendou could show up out of nowhere, or worse, Teruhashi might walk by, sparkly as ever, and cause a scene. He could also accidentally teleport away if things got too uncomfortable.

"Don’t worry," you said suddenly, pulling him back to reality. "This is a Teruhashi-free zone. She wouldn’t be caught dead at a small café like this."

He blinked, genuinely surprised that you had guessed his exact thought. Maybe he was rubbing off on you after all.

The two of you ordered your drinks, and for a moment, everything seemed…normal. The sun was shining through the window, casting a warm glow over the café, and you were sitting across from him, stirring your drink absentmindedly as you chatted about your day. Saiki couldn’t help but feel a little…content.

Until your spoon slipped and knocked your glass, spilling your drink all over the table. It was a tiny accident, the kind that happens all the time, but before you could even react, the entire scene rewound itself. Your hand was back on the spoon, your drink still perfectly intact, as if nothing had ever happened.

You looked up at Saiki, who was staring intently out the window again, trying to look innocent.

"Did you just rewind time?" you asked with a grin, already knowing the answer.

"No," Saiki muttered, still avoiding eye contact.

"Sure, you didn’t," you said, amusement dancing in your eyes. "Thanks for saving me from the embarrassment, though."

He finally turned to face you, his lips twitching slightly in what might have been an attempt at a smile, but of course, it was gone in a second. For someone who was so eager to keep things normal, he really did go out of his way to make sure you were comfortable.

"Why are you staring at me like that?" he asked, switching to telepathy this time, his voice echoing in your mind with a hint of nervousness.

"I’m just happy," you replied, leaning forward slightly. "I know you don’t like things being unpredictable, but you always manage to make things better without even trying."

Saiki didn’t reply for a moment, unsure how to respond to that. His life had always been about avoiding attention, about blending in. Yet, here he was, dating someone who knew exactly how abnormal he was and still stuck around. Maybe, just maybe, this wasn’t so bad after all.

"I guess it’s not a complete disaster," he thought, careful to keep the thought from reaching you. But you caught a glimpse of it anyway, your smile widening.

You rested your hand on the table, close enough to his, and for a split second, you thought he might actually reach out and take it. Instead, he simply looked at you with that unreadable expression of his and said, "Let’s just finish our drinks before something weird happens."

You laughed, nodding in agreement. It was a typical Saiki thing to say, and yet, beneath all of his reluctance, you knew he cared about you more than he let on.

And that was more than enough.

[occasionallyprosie]

A Thousand Ways

Chapter 1: "Sometimes you shouldn't just keep your head down"

Event Masterlist | Next>>

On a night in Legend's era, safe within the boundaries of an unnamed town, the veteran finds himself unstable but unable to sleep. He intended to just sleep off the concussion at best, or take a potion the next morning when they restocked on them at worse. He probably shouldn't have gone outside where he was easily seen while not at his best and without basically any of his items.

Febuwhump 2024 | Prompt 1: Helpless

Read on AO3

Warnings: torture

Legend had decided back on his first quest that he hated concussions. Over ten years later and on his... variably numbered quest (it could be the seventh if he combined the Oracles into a single one, it could be the sixth if he ignored Koholint too, or it could be the ninth if he individualized and counted every single vaguely adventure-like thing that happened), he still hated concussions.

Nonetheless, he powered through. It was a mild one anyways, he would be fine by morning probably, and if he wasn't then he'd buy an extra potion to drink.

They just arrived at a town in Legend's own era and kingdom, it was late and they had already decided to get supplies the next day after a good night's sleep in the inn. Legend didn't go to sleep though, despite the rather mild--he wasn't even nauseous really--concussion, he slipped out of the inn and found himself sitting out on a bench outside, watching the innkeepers wife's--Leanne's, he had visited the town before-- garden of flowers sway in the wind.

"Hey," someone sneered, "what's a brat like you doing out this late?"

He was literally an adult, but before he raised his head he saw armored boots.

A knight.

"Just getting some fresh air," he said, keeping his head down. "I don’t mean to bother."

Please don’t--

The boot swung up and he had plenty of time to dodge it, except he was trying not to be recognized so he took it. The steel boot hit his forehead and he let himself gasp, dropping his head lower.

"Look at me when I speak to you, brat!" They spat.

Legend grit his teeth, not responding in favor of keeping his head down. Maybe he should've dodged and just ran, that kick made his concussion much, much worse if only briefly. He couldn't think and suddenly, that nausea that hadn't been so bad, was very bad.

Instincts kicked in when the guard went in for another kick. Legend avoided it and quickly stood.

"You'll learn some resp--" the guard visibly recognized him when Legend met his eyes, forcing back the dizziness.

"You could've just walked away," Legend said coldly. "You just had to pick a fight with someone who you thought was a kid."

"You! Criminal!"

The outraged cry drew the attention of a nearby patrol of guards. Legend cursed, especially the fact that he'd left most of his items inside the inn. Four guards converged toward him, yelling and waking up the townsfolk while Legend bolted.

He didn't want nor should kill them, they needed a reality check sure, but death wasn't the answer here and he only had his medallions as an offense. No regular person would survive them, so instead Legend just ran.

To everyone's surprise, when he swerved into an alleyway unhindered, a patrol of guards were on the other side and startled when the patrol chasing him roared behind him. They quickly blocked off his escape, and with his head spinning, stomach lurching, and eyes refusing to focus--

A shield was slammed into his face and he was out cold.

Legend woke up in a painful daze, his whole body was sore, arms especially so, wrists in genuine pain and not just sore. His head felt like it was filled with cotton, yet simultaneously it felt empty with how his brain seemed to rattle in his skull. His magic was practically gone--

His magic was gone. He didn't feel the familiar weight of his medallions and pendants. He wasn't even wearing all his clothes! His red mail was gone, and his boots, leaving him just in his dark green under-tunic. His cap was gone as well and his hair was loose.

After assessing his own condition, Legend drew in enough focus despite the physical pain and magical exhaustion, and he tried to determine his situation.

He was in a cell, water audibly dripping down from the ceiling and down the walls. The ground was damp if anything. Stone lined the walls and floor, mortar on the walls but dirt in the floor. He was chained to the wall opposite of the (probably) iron cell door, the cuffs around his wrists had runes etched into it... the source of his magical exhaustion no doubt.

Metal clinked as he tugged the cuffs around his wrists, he didn't have a single inch of give, being cuffed directly to the wall itself. His magic was cut off, and his head spinning and throbbing and requiring far too much concentration to focus, Legend took far too long to come to a conclusion about his situation.

He had been captured, by knights no less, and he was completely trapped. He had no items, he'd never had the strength to even escape, and his magic had been drained before he could even try the... two things he'd been able to do in extremely extenuating circumstances to escape.

The cell door slammed open, Legend glared daggers at the knight who entered.

"Link, seems we finally caught you," they said, scowling and approaching him.

"I wa'--I was par-pardoned years ago," Legend snapped, his words attempting to slur, leading him to repeat himself clearly. "You have-- You have... no grounds for this arrest."

The knight drew closer. "Just because you tricked the queen doesn't mean you’re innocent. You'll pay for kidnapping her, and for the murder of dozens of good soldiers, especially Sergeant Alphon."

He snapped. He swung his leg up and nailed them in the face. Despite the height they had on him, his legs were just long enough and he was flexible enough to kick them.

"Get his name out of your mouth you bastard!" Legend fought against his chains, ignoring the pain and fuzziness. How dare this knight try and use his uncle against him?! How dare he?!

"Oh, you'll pay for that."

The knight punched his face, the back of his skull slammed against the iron panel behind him, a loud clang echoing through the room simultaneously followed by a hissed curse. His skull reverberated, pain exploding and seizing. A stabbing pain tore through his mind.

A second punch to his lower ribs had his legs giving out and his stomach to empty itself on the ground.

"Not so high and mighty now," the knight sneered. "You'll die in this cell, hero. Nice and slow, another day, another hour, another pain for all the men you killed."

Legend inhaled shakily, lips wet as he raised his head to glare.

"Do your worst," he growled. "I've survived worse."

He survived death itself, and returned with new items, new artifacts, new memories. He survived Ganon four times over, a lightning strike to the head, the near-death of his ancestor borderline erasing him from history.

Even if Legend did die here, it was the first... second time he could trust that someone else would finish the job. The other heroes would finish this quest and he didn't need to worry. He could die without regrets.

Turns out, dying slowly with a glimmer of hope to escape is far worse than being struck by lightning and drowning in a storm on the ocean.

The other heroes should've been able to find him, he'd gone with Twilight, or Wolfie, to track down the Traveler and Champion dozens of times, never through towns though. Yet they hadn't and Legend had determined not to rely on anyone, even the other heroes.

Though... it was hard not to cling to the hope of hearing blades clashing, or even just the creak of the door as one of them sneaks in. Not as his body refused to do the most simple of things, not while he could barely lift his head, not while he felt the cuffs that drained his magic very slowly chip away at his soul, eliminating any replenishment of his magic before it even formed. It was hard not to cling to any glimmer of hope of someone else saving him for once when his skin was torn, cut open, and his blood soaked the floors more than the water that dripped from above did. He told himself that he had to save himself, just like every other time he'd been pushed to the brink. He had a job to do and even if the other heroes could do it themselves, it was still his job to at least help. Yet as he hung from bleeding wrists, legs not strong enough to support him, he knew that even if he wasn't chained up, even if the cell door was wide open, he wasn't going to be able to walk out.

When the knights returned, jeering and joking with one another with the familiarity of brothers, Link drew in another breath.

He wasn't escaping. He survived death once, thanks to an ocean deity, but he was certain that he wasn't going to escape its hold a second time. Not as the knights pulled out something new--every day, it had been something new, or maybe every hour, he wasn't sure how long it had been--and discussed who got to use it first.

It was a flail, a handle of leather likely around wood but maybe steel, and multiple long ropes of frayed leather.

Link--Legend(they were still there, he wasn't alone again, the quest was still ongoing even if he died here) didn't have the energy to cry out as the cat o' nine tails was whipped across his face, tearing his lip, the bridge of his nose, his brow and cheek, his eyes sealed shut from the pain. He did flinch, he did whimper and gasp, but nothing more.

He didn't have the strength for more. Frayed leather struck across his chest, catching his collarbone and cutting a scabbed wound open. His throat was raw, had been for a while now with stomach acid burning the irritation of his screams. Even as he tried to scream, nothing more than a wheeze fell from bloodied lips.

He hoped they wouldn't be too upset with him leaving them to finish the fight. He almost wanted to laugh, it was a bit ironic... Of course he, the helpless bunny, would be killed in captivity. He, the veteran, would die on an adventure. He, the collector, would be left item-less at the end, after all you can't take anything to the afterlife.

It was ironic, because the adventuring veteran who collected items from across four countries, three worlds, and had killed Ganon four times... was still just a helpless bunny who couldn't defend himself when it mattered.

Soon enough, as his vision faded out, Legend fell.

Though with his magical stores empty and his soul having just been drained... he didn't even notice that his fall had been in the physical sense. Cuffs didn't matter when the goddess herself took matters into her own hands to displace her hero through time.

Next>>

[purplesoulcollection]

Unnatural Love

Part 12

Synopsis : Name has being transmigrated into the world of I'm Not That Kind Of Talent without ever reading the novel. She's not being reincarnated as a human but as a devil as well. Hi There! I want to let you know that this fanfiction story isn't solely my creation. I borrowed the concept from @quqiwo2. I haven't actually read the novel either, just some spoiler to the end.

I hope you'll excuse my spelling and grammar mistake, because English not my first language.

After a heartfelt conversation between Cruel and Deon, it seems like they are beginning to reconnect as brothers. They’re not completely there yet, but there’s definitely some progress being made.

"Deon, you lost again."

"Noisy, you're really the one who's good at playing this." Deon rested his head on his hand, casting a reluctant glance at the chess pawn that had just captured his king, while Cruel gazed at him with a gentle expression.

They played chess together after I left them. I was gone for three hours, and by the time I returned, they were already chatting and having a good time. It was a wonderful sight, and it made me smile to see them bonding like that.

"Adele!" Deon was the first one to notice my presence, he literally beam after his pouting. Cruel only looked a glimpse of me before turning his head.

I take a seat beside Deon while the two of them are playing on the sofa, so I settle in next to him. He wraps his arms around me, seeking the warmth I can offer.

Cruel only looked the both of us before asking "Deon, why are you dating her. She's the devil."

"Are we being interrogated, Brother?"

"Oh yeah, I haven't introduced myself yet, hello Mr. Cruel, I'm Adele, Mr. Deon's demon servant."

“Servant, aren't the servant is only occupied by lowly devil, so worthless to be killed?”

His words really stabbed me right to the heart. Worthless to be killed...

"Yes, i am, until one day I can use spells."

"Then your relationship with Deon?"

"I'm the one who confessed my love, big brother."

"Do you really love him?"

"...Very." This is my first time to me to actually voicing my love after I genuinely feeling in live with Deon.

"Okay, but why do you appear human? Can now a devil really change their appearance?"

"I cast a spell to take on a human form. As far as I know, I'm the only one who can do this."

"What about your other powers?"

"I understand your concern, Cruel Hardt. But for your information, I’m unable to attack at all, so there’s no need for you to be concerned about my ."

“Then from now on, what do you do, Deon? “

"I... "

"Which side do you want to align with? The battle between demons and humans is about to begin. It's time for you to make your choice, Deon. Someone can't be tossed around without proving his loyalty to one side. "

"I... Don't know who to be choose, I'm not comfortable being on either side. Both the Emperor and the Demon King are very unpredictable."

"Deon, forget about the leaders of the demons or humans for a moment. Just focus on who you truly want to be with, okay?" I asked him this, hoping to gently nudge him toward the human side.

He only looked at me before answer “With you.”

I blushed, this not what i want him to say! "I-I mean don't you want to live with your brother."

"He could be Count Hart's successor, I don't need it"

Hearing that makes cruel surprised and hit the table. "You're not the one who wants to inherit it, Deon?"

"You're the big brother, and that role has been yours for quite a while now. I’m not interested in it, especially since I've already achieved a higher title than that."

"Deon, you..."

"Just take that name, bro, as well as create your own family."

He let out a weary sigh at Deon's words and rubbed his eyes. It seemed he hadn't even considered the idea of having a family if he was already willing to sacrifice himself for Deon.

"Before I start a family, Deon has something I have to talk about."

"What? "

"The Duke Starve Illuster was the one who send you the assassin that day."

"I will kill him."

"I'm coming with you"

I watched the exchange between the two of them, unsure if I should step in or let this awkward conversation continue, at least for me...

Even if i want to say that killing is not good, but it's hard to believe that those who are accustomed to it will be swayed by that idea. Their sense of right and wrong has likely been shattered for quite some time.

But if I let it go, it's like letting my morals will be destroyed here...

I clenched my fist, unsure of what words to use. A chill ran through me as sweat trickled down my palm, so I began to wipe it on my clothes.

"What's wrong, Adele. You look paled? "

I only shake my hand, not uttering single words. Only looked below, I can't make any reason to lie now.

Are you stressed hearing us talk about killing casually?"

I glanced at Deon with uncertainty. I'm not sure if I should agree or not. He truly deserves this chance, but if I approach him, he might get upset with me again like before.

"I won't do it if you're that scared." Deon said which surprised me. My breath being taken away with his sudden told. He what?

I tried to get the words out. but nothing came out of my mouth. 'Deon... doesn't want revenge? Because of me?'

"Brother can do it in my stead."

"Yes, if you don't want to, I will do it myself."

"Deal!"

That was the end of their conversation that I heard before I lost my mind and didn't listen to them at all.

"You've been quiet for a while now, Adele." Deon asked which finally made me wake up from my reverie. Cruel already gone when i see nobody else.

"There isn't anything."

"Are you still thinking about that?"

I'm at a loss for words. There's a storm of emotions inside me, but I've finally found the courage to express my feelings.

"Yes, I thought that I would be an obstacle for you in getting your revenge." I said that with low voice.

I lowered my head, knowing how important revenge was in Deon's miserable life. If his revenge stopped, what happens next to Deon?

Silence struck with an unbearable silence. I can't look at Deon expression. Will he being mad and leave me alone in this world?

"Adele..."

"Don't think that you are an obstacle."

"I already talk with Cruel. He informed me that my parents wrote a letter for me towards the end of their lives. In that letter, they advised me to take care of my health and to avoid harboring hatred towards others. They felt that the way to atone for their mistakes to me was by letting themselves being killed by me."

"Deon..."

"A spellcaster once foretold that I would turn into a disaster."

huh, what's with this unpredictable turnover direction.

"You're not a disaster Deon."

"Listen to me first, Adele."

"She said that I shouldn't hate anyone or anything. Otherwise there would be a big disaster that couldn't be avoided."

I'm speechless hearing this. If the predictions from the spellcasters in this world are true, it means that this world will be in chaos in the end, not just Deon alone.

"At first I didn't understand what the spellcaster meant. However, I believe I've come to understand it now. If I keep holding onto my hatred—be it towards my brother, my family, Duke Illuster, the demon king, or the emperor who allowed my parents to be killed—I risk falling into a deep despair. The weight of these ongoing issues could ultimately lead me to a tragic end, consumed by stress and depression."

"Because of that, I will try to let go of my grudge against this world. Adele. Because now i have you with me. So please stay by my side. ”

I choked. Deon try to changed... because of me. He knows he's wrong and want to change that.

Deon wants to be a better person for my sake.

Because he loves me...

"Is that true, Deon?"

My tears flowed again without control, am i being crybaby lately?

"Damn, why am I so whiny lately... Usually I can control myself. " I said while rubbing my eyes. Only wanting my tears to stop.

Deon gently kissed my eyes while I was in tears. He tenderly kissed my eyes, my tears, my nose, my cheeks, and then my lips. It felt so wonderful to be showered with those sweet kisses.

We kissed passionately. All of our feelings turned into a rough and hot kiss. I wrapped my arms around his neck and he also wrapped his arms around my waist.

We continued kissing until I gave the signal that we needed oxygen.

Gasping for breath and dripping saliva describes our current state.

"That's right, Adelle."

"Then have you decided where you want to be in the war?"

"To become better, I decided to be loyal to humans." He finally decided the right choice.

"That's good, Deon. That's how it should be. Following demons is not a healthy thing for humans."

"You alone are the devil." He giggled at my pouting. I know that fact more than anyone.

"Hehehe..." But in the end i also giggling with him.

"Will you still follow me, Adele. When I fight the Demon King."

"With pleasure."

After that we kissed again, and finally we did it. The most erotic thing in my eyes is with Deon.

To Be Continued

I’m not sure if this matches your preferences, but I hope you enjoy it!

[avacoleman]

when the lights go out || a firstprince fic

summary: Henry Fox’s career is in crisis and his dating life isn’t faring much better either.  After a chance encounter with a charming man becomes memorable for all the wrong reasons, Henry throws himself into his next assignment: writing the memoir of a beloved C-list actor. Henry, however, knows Alex best for the role he played as his random, awkward one-night stand. Henry enters their professional partnership keen on keeping their relationship just that. But after Henry confesses that their hookup was less than spectacular, Alex concots an arrangement that Henry is unable to resist. In addition to ghostwriting Alex’s life story, Henry will teach him a thing or two about satisfying a man.  As they spend months out on the road together, they must decide if the connection between them is yet another story worth telling.

chapter 4/8 || rated e || read on ao3 *updates every tues. and fri. *

Denver, CO Rocky Mountain Expo Henry thanks the powers that be for allowing Pez to crash the tour for the next two days. And by that, he means he cannot thank Alex enough for arranging for Pez to join them at Rocky Mountain Expo in Denver. He figures it might’ve been him mentioning one too many times how much of a Crescent Valley fan Pez was that Alex perhaps took pity and worked some magic behind the scenes to get him to fly out. Whatever it is, Henry is immensely grateful. He hadn’t realized just how much he missed Pez’s presence. Certainly they’d kept up well with FaceTimes and texts over the last few weeks, but there’s nothing quite like genuine face to face connection with a person– especially when that someone is none other than Percy Okonjo. At his side now, Henry watches Pez drink it all in. The convention center, like every other stop so far, is brimming with people from all sorts of fandoms. It’s chaotic and exciting, all baselines for a guy like Pez.  Alex had left from their hotel earlier than Henry so that he could attend the scheduled fan breakfast and Henry could be available to get Pez sorted. It’s such a small thing, but it was almost as strange being apart from Alex this morning as it has been to be away from Pez these past couple of weeks. Henry hadn't realized just how dependent he’d grown on Alex’s company.

Henry’s phone buzzes in his pocket as he and Pez visit different vendors in Artist Alley where creatives sell their custom made pieces. He takes a look at the screen and sees a text from Alex.

Alex everything going well with you and pez?

Henry smiles and notes the time. There’s still thirty minutes before Alex’s panel and having the experience firsthand, he can just imagine Alex behind the scenes, keeping busy to work out his excited energy.

Henry Indeed. Would it be alright if I brought him round to meet you now? Or would after be better?

Alex now pls!

“We’re being summoned,” Henry says, pocketing his phone again. 

Pez doesn’t need any more prompting and Henry leads them through the crowds to get to the hall Alex’s panel is being held. He’s surprised but pleased to find Alex already waiting for them by a private set of doors. Henry’s heart does a funny little swoop seeing Alex standing there, greeting them with a smile.

“Alex. I wanted you to meet Pez.”

Alex beams his thousand-watt smile at Pez.

“I feel like I already know you. Henry talks about you all the time. Nothing but good things, I promise,” he says.

Pez looks more and more like the Cheshire Cat as his smile overtakes his face.

“Alex Claremont-Diaz, as I live and breathe,” Pez says in a scarily good Southern debutante accent.

“You’ll have to forgive Pez. He has consumed far too much American media from the time he was a small, impressionable child. I fear the damage cannot be undone.”

Alex laughs. “It’s paid off pretty well. That sounded authentic as hell. You could give me a run for my money.”

Pez, unshakable formidable Pez, actually giggles at the compliment.

“You’re a charmer. Go on now. Keep saying more nice things. I won’t object.”

Henry watches them go, riffing off each other as if they’ve known each other forever. It feels like Henry has entered into an alternate universe of some kind, watching his worlds collide.

“I’m sure you guys must’ve made plans, but if you’re interested, I’d love to take y’all out for dinner tonight,” Alex says.

Pez’s eyes light up. “I’m sure we could shuffle a few things around,” he says, looking at Henry for confirmation. He nods and Pez smiles.

“We’d be delighted. Dinner sounds positively lovely. Thank you,” Pez continues.

Henry turns to Alex. “We could all meet back in the hotel lobby at quarter to 7 perhaps?”

Alex nods. “Yeah, that’d be great. Things should be pretty hectic at the expo today. I’ll look into making reservations nearby afterwards."

Voices carry a bit louder from inside the hall.

"I should probably get back," Alex says. "But have fun you guys and enjoy the panel. Pez, it was really nice meeting you. I will absolutely be expecting a truckload of embarrassing stories and any overall dirt you might have on Henry, so start brainstorming now,” he says with a wink.

 Henry already rues turning them into co-conspirators.

Pez smiles and wiggles his fingers at Alex before he leaves them to head to the greenroom. The moment Alex rounds the corner, Pez does an unseemly victory dance right there in the corridor.

“How can you possibly stand being around him all day every day without wanting to jump his bones? He’s even more attractive in person. That’s just unnatural. Dare I say, it’s supernatural.”

Henry touches his hand to his forehead.

“Come on. Let’s go grab our seats. They’ll be starting shortly.”

~*~*~

The secret of his true dynamic with Alex haunts Henry like a tell-tale heart. Each time Pez mentioned Alex’s name after the panel and now back here in their hotel room, Henry feels as if he could choke on the secret.

“I’ve hit rock bottom,” he says, apropos of nothing as he and Pez watch an episode of Crescent Valley on his laptop in bed.

“Welcome! There’s plenty of room down here,” Pez says, yanking Henry to rest his head in his lap. “Come now, tell Auntie Pezza what ails you, my darling.”

Henry sighs and hits the spacebar, freezing the show. It’s a small mercy that it isn’t a scene with Alex. He’s not so sure he’d be able to get through this conversation with Alex’s face right there in front of them.

“I think I’ve made a mistake.”

Pez’s fingers scratch lightly against Henry’s scalp.

“My dear Henry, you’re a writer. I need you to put your fancy degree to good use and elaborate for me, love.”

Henry looks away, unable to maintain eye contact for what he’s about to say.

“Part of me is falling for someone that I shouldn’t. Maybe ‘falling for’ is a bit too much. I need more time to parse it, but I feel…different sometimes.”

Pez’s hand stops combing through his hair.

“Hang on now. You haven’t met anyone new recently that I know of. I mean, there’s that secret midnight hookup back in New York and of course, scrumptious Alex. The latter would be bonkers, but it can’t be the former. You never got his info.”

Henry bites back on his lower lip. Pez is so close to the mark.

“That’s not exactly true. I sort of…ran into him the next day.”

“Have you any Advil here? I swear you’re giving me a headache talking in riddles like this. You had lunch with Alex the next day and then came straight home, no?”

Pez’s eyes grow wide, realization sinking in. Henry sits up and not a moment too soon as Pez’s hands fly to his mouth and he muffles a scream.

“No! Oh, my god, wait. No. There’s just no way! You don’t mean to say…Alex is Javier?”

Henry looks down at his hands, suddenly very fascinated with them.

“Well, now, that just shattered all my illusions. Pity he wasn’t good in bed. As fit as he is…hmm.”

“He wasn’t good that first night, no. But since then…”

“Since then! ” Pez shrieks, completely scandalized. “Grab the smelling salts! Get me a lounge chair! I’m going to pass out, I swear it. This is simply too much for me to take,” he says, putting a hand over his heart.

Pez shakes his head almost cartoonishly.

“Do you mean to tell me you two have been shagging this whole time?”

“Not the whole time,” Henry says reflexively. “Look, Pez, you cannot say a word to anyone, do you understand?”

Pez’s face grows serious, all his theatrics subsiding at the drop of a hat. 

“I give you my word. You know that. I wouldn’t tell a soul.”

Henry nods. “No, I know. I’m sorry,” he says, rubbing anxiously at his temple. “I’m just…there’s so much riding on this, you know? The book, my contract. Most importantly though, he’s only out to his friends and family right now. This isn’t even my secret to tell. But, heavens, Pez, I feel like I’ve been dying keeping this in. Things are so good with us. I’ve been loving being on this tour.”

“Well, I should think so,” Pez says, smirking a little. “If I were spending my nights tangled in the sheets with none other than Alex Claremont-Diaz, I’d be having the time of my already fabulous life too.”

Henry shoves him gently.

“You’re horrible, but I’ll admit, that’s been an added bonus. But honestly? I simply like being around him. He’s clever and funny and smart and infuriating in the best ways at times…I don’t know. It’s been fun getting to know him.”

Pez’s brows furrow a bit.

“Are you sure you can handle this, Hazza? It actually does sound an awful lot like you’re falling pretty hard here. I assume you two have struck up a deal of some sort with guidelines?”

“It’s just casual. Platonic even. I’m merely giving him pointers in the bedroom and by the time I leave from the tour, that’ll be the end of that. We’ll both move on from this,” Henry says.

Pez doesn’t look entirely convinced. 

“I don’t think you can put a hard deadline on feelings. No offense, but casual has never quite been your factory setting.”

Henry shakes his head. “It’s fine. This is so unlike me. I’m only being silly now, getting swept up in the secrecy of it all.”

Pez grins. “That I can understand. This is terribly salacious. I’m eating it up with a bib and a spoon.”

Pez hums and taps his chin. “Now, let’s back it up just a taste for one moment, honey. When you say he’s improved since New York…”

Henry buries his face in his hands and groans.

“Oh, come on! You’ve got to give me something here,” Pez insists. “You’ve been sitting on an absolute treasure trove of a secret for weeks now!”

Henry looks up and takes a deep breath.

“He…takes instructions very well. He’s a rather quick and adept learner. An enthusiastic one at that.”

Pez’s smile grows even wider which Henry didn’t think was humanly possible.

“I’d absolutely hate you if I didn’t love you so much. I’m dying. Good on you though.”

Henry laughs at the absurdity of Pez’s praise.

“Anyway, I needed to tell someone before I popped, so thank you for indulging me.”

“No, no. Thank you, my dear, for this cup of delicious, piping hot tea. I’m all the more excited for dinner now, to get to know the kitten who has gotten my best friend so smitten.”

~*~*~

After an incredible dinner at one of the trendiest restaurants Henry has ever been to, Pez insists they keep the night going with drinks downtown. It’s truly a marvel to see how easily his best friend is able to be at home anywhere, even a place he’s only now visiting for the first time.

From the moment they entered the club, Pez took his place on the dancefloor like a king holding court among his subjects. He dances with perfectly good strangers, cozying up to a few of them. Henry is already wondering if he’ll have to arrange to sleep elsewhere tonight.

He shakes his head to himself as he reaches for his drink where he and Alex sit in a corner booth, away from the crowd but with a perfect view to see it all.

“You told Pez about us,” Alex says out of the blue, a statement not a question.

Henry bites nervously on his bottom lip, stunned. He thinks back to dinner. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. He actually thought Pez did a good job of hiding the fact that he was in on the secret. Yet still, Alex clearly picked up on something.

“I did. I’m sorry. I promise, he wouldn’t tell anyone. Subtly may not be his strong suit,” he says, glancing over Pez with his bubblegum pink hair and flashy sequined jacket, an all-out blur on the dancefloor, “but discretion is. He knows you aren’t out. He’d never in a million years breathe a word of any of this.”

Alex nods and smiles. “If you trust him, so do I. Honestly, I’m not worried. In all fairness, I told my sister and Nora.”

Henry can’t even begin to absorb that information or the possible implications of it. It’s just enough to know that this dynamic between them felt worthwhile enough for Alex to tell the two closest people to him.

“And do they think us mad for this?”

“Actually, no. They damn near threw me a party,” Alex says, reaching for his beer and laughing to himself.  “Your fan club increased by two automatically.”

Henry lifts a brow. “Am I to assume you’re a member too?”

“Sweetheart, I’m the president. The founding member.”

Henry smiles demurely and shakes his head. 

“Once again, I must say, you do wonders for my self-esteem. Thank you.”

Alex eyes him curiously.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Of course,” Henry says. “What’s on your mind?”

“How the fuck are you single? Not that I’m actually complaining because, selfishly, there’s no way in hell we’d be able to do any of the things we’ve been doing since New York. I’m counting my lucky stars and all that jazz, but still. It’s absolutely crazy to me that you aren’t seeing anyone. I’m sure that’s a conscious choice on your part. It’s got to be. A guy like you wouldn’t have any issues finding a boyfriend if you wanted one.”

Henry rubs the back of his neck.

“I don’t know what it is. Perhaps I’m too closed off.”

“Bullshit. The night we met, you opened up to me. You were so easy to talk to. I felt like I’d always known you.”

This brings Henry up short. He’d felt that same connection with Alex too, but to hear the man echo the sentiment almost identically to how he’d thought about it is slightly disorienting.

“I think we’ve established that night was a special case. It was different with you. I was different with you than I normally am with literally every other guy I’ve pursued. I don’t know why. I just felt comfortable so it was easy, for the first time in God only knows how long to open up. It was a fluke.”

“Or fate,” Alex says. His eyes widen and he blinks twice quickly. “I’m like…I’m not trying to say we’re soulmates or anything,” he stammers. “I just mean, I don’t know. It’s rare for me too to click with someone like that. I think there’s something to be said for two people like us just happening across each other then crossing paths again the very next day. What are the odds of that?”

Henry is quiet as he mulls over Alex’s words. 

“I don’t mean to freak you out. Shit, just forget I said anything.”

Henry shakes his head.

“You didn't. I think you might actually have a point and I don’t know what to make of it.”

He searches Alex's eyes then looks away, back down to his laptop.

“Anyway, to answer your question, I suppose I’m single because it simply isn’t my time right now. I’ve never truly been lucky in that department. Our night aside, I really do have a tendency to guard myself.”

“Why?” Alex asks. “There’s so much good in there. I could see it on day one. That’s what drew me to you in the first place.”

“So it wasn’t just my dashing good looks and accent?”

Alex cocks his head to the side and gives him a look.

“I’m serious. I’ve been seeing it ever since. You’re depriving people, Henry. Most of all, yourself and I think that’s the worst part in all of this. It’d be a shame to never share that.”

Henry’s brows furrow. In a way, hadn’t he been letting Alex in this whole time? Henry realizes belatedly that maybe it didn’t count. After all, none of this was actually real. 

If only his heart knew that.

“Shall I get us another round?” he says, rising from his seat, suddenly needing to be away from this suffocating booth.

Alex runs a hand through his hair.

“Fuck. Henry, wait. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“You didn’t,” Henry says, perhaps too quickly. He tries again, setting his hand down on the table. 

“We’re good. I just…I need a moment is all. Besides, I should probably get Pez a large glass of water before he passes out.”

Alex’s knuckles touch the back of his hand. It’s so subtle and faint, any passerby wouldn’t even notice. But that small point of contact becomes the sole focus of Henry’s entire world.

“You’re sure we’re okay?” Alex asks again.

Henry stares back at him.

“Always.”

~*~*~

Columbus, OH GalaxyCon Day 1

Another week, another time zone and Henry is convinced tour life might actually be the death of him.

When they arrived in Ohio yesterday evening, Henry had felt a bit off. He ignored the feeling, not wanting anything to put a damper on the upcoming con and Alex’s excitement over it. He’d be joined again by his castmates and was looking forward to the big dinner they had planned before they were all parting ways again.

Henry liked how pumped Alex got ahead of and during cons, the way he’d light up at the prospect of seeing familiar faces in the crowds and new ones alike. Since the announcement, Henry has noticed the uptick in fervor from both Alex and fans. The last thing Henry wants to do is give Alex any cause for concern or worry.

He gets through most of the morning at GalaxyCon pretty well until close to noon when Alex’s panel is set to start.

“You okay?” Alex asks. “You look a little pale.”

“Yeah, I think all this traveling is catching up to me.”

Alex puts the back of his hand on Henry’s forehead.

“You feel warm, Henry. You must be coming down with something.”

Henry can hear the worry in Alex's voice.

“I’m fine.”

“I can literally see and feel that you aren’t.”

Henry can hear fans being let into the hall. Maybe all he needs now is just some time away to sit alone with some peace and quiet.

“If it’s alright with you, I’m going to pop back to the hotel and get some rest.”

Alex’s lips and brows are pinched with concern.

“Of course it’s okay. Do you need anything?”

Henry shakes his head. “Don’t worry about me. You have your panel to focus on. I’ll be fine.”

Alex doesn’t look convinced and Henry can see the debate he’s having with himself.

He touches Alex’s arm lightly. “I’ll check in with you later. Go have fun out there with your friends.”

Almost on cue, the rest of the cast starts to line up behind the stage. Henry watches them go past but Alex doesn’t budge.

“Go, Alex. I’ll be fine.”

Alex sighs and nods, finally accepting defeat.

“The second we’re done here though, I’m calling you.”

“Fair enough,” Henry says. “I’ll be as good as new by the time you do. You’ll see.”

~*~*~

There’s an annoying pounding sound that makes Henry’s already aching head feel worse as he opens his eyes.

“Henry, let me in,” he hears faintly.

Henry groans and rolls over in bed, instantly regretting the move. His vision feels like a dizzying kaleidoscope. He shuts his eyes again and takes a breath before looking around his room.

He doesn’t know how long he’s been knocked out, but the sun is no longer in the sky and that’s telling enough.

“Henry?” the voice calls again. There are three more quick knocks on the door. “You’re freaking me out. Open up.”

Alex. 

Henry sways as he gets to his feet. It takes a moment for the room to stop feeling like it’s spinning before he walks over to the door and opens it.

On the other side, he’s met with an anxious looking Alex who takes a deep breath of relief.

“Thank God. I was about to get hotel security.”

“I’m fine,” Henry says. 

Alex’s face is incredulous. “You look like shit which I never thought was possible. No offense,” he tacks on. “Shaan has been calling you. I’ve been calling you. I thought you’d passed out though, by the looks of things, I’m guessing that’s exactly what happened. You’re sick.”

Henry rubs at his left temple.

“I need…to sit. You…can keep talking if you want,” he says, stepping away from the door and back into the room.

Behind him, Alex scoffs and presumably comes inside. Henry hears the door close, but it feels like it’d take too much effort to turn around and confirm.

He sits on the edge of bed and wraps the covers around himself like a cocoon.

“I wanted to ask you some more stuff for the book. I just need thirty minutes more. You can go. I’ll set an alarm,” he says, fumbling around the nightstand for his phone but he soon abandons the task when he forgets what he’s searching for a moment later.

“Forget the book. Do you know what day it is?” Alex asks as he approaches his bedside.

“It’s Friday,” Henry mumbles, the comforter falling from his shoulders. 

“Okay, yeah, technically. But it’s also Opposite Day. So, I will be doing the polar opposite of everything you suggest.”

“Alex. How is that— in any way, shape, or form—different from any other day of the week for you?”

Alex grins, his nose scrunching as he does so.

“You may have lost the ability to breathe through your nose, but it’s nice to know your sass is still firmly in place.”

A wave of nausea hits Henry just then, holding him back from making another quick retort. The discomfort he feels must register on his face as Alex’s smile disappears and concern quickly takes its place instead. 

“Come on, seriously, lay down. Please let me take care of you.”

Henry’s tired body responds at once as if it’d been waiting for the command to allow him to finally give in. He settles in on his side and Alex is right there, pulling the comforter over him.

Henry’s surprised as Alex crouches beside the bed, their faces on level as he brushes damp strands from Henry’s forehead. His fingertips are soft against Henry’s skin where they lightly graze him. Alex’s eyes track the movement of his own hand, but Henry can’t look away from the other man's face, taking stock of the way his lashes cast shadows on his cheekbones and his perfect mouth parts slightly. 

“I’ll be right back,” Alex says softly. “I’m going to find the nearest pharmacy and grab a few things for you.”

“I just need to sleep it off.”

Alex scoffs. “Christ, and I thought I was stubborn. I might’ve finally found my match.”

Those words shouldn’t have the power to make Henry’s heart leap. He chalks it up to his sickness for the temporary delusion that Alex could mean anything more. They aren’t a match, even if they’ve been proving to be compatible in virtually every regard. He’s simply not the kind of person Alex actually settles down with.

It’s far too much to think about now; perhaps even when he isn’t feeling like Death warmed over wouldn’t be the best time to attempt dissecting all his complicated feelings.

“You’re the hottest nurse I’ve ever had.”

Alex winks. “If only I’d had time to get a uniform. You’ll just have to use your imagination, sweetheart.”

“A literal interpretation of a fever dream, huh?”

Alex smiles and strokes Henry’s hair again.

“Speaking of dreams, get some sleep while I’m gone.” Henry watches Alex snag his keycard from the nightstand. “I’ll let myself in when I get back. Call if anything changes while I’m out, okay?”

Henry nods, but already his brain is starting to shut down, his eyes too.

He feels a gentle hand against his cheek and what he thinks could be lips on the crown of his head for a brief moment before sleep overtakes him.

~*~*~

When he opens his eyes again, Alex’s back is to him as he sits at the front of the bed. An episode of The Golden Girls is playing on the television and Henry thinks, surely, this fever is playing tricks on his mind.

He sits up slowly and Alex turns at once just as the show breaks for advertisements.

Alex smiles and gets to his feet, going over to the table in the room. Henry sees two tote bags there that Alex begins to unload. The haul is serious, complete with cough medicine, throat lozenges, vapor rub, and even soup and orange juice.

It warms Henry’s heart to see the care that’s gone into this, but he can’t imagine this is how anyone would want to spend a Friday night.

“You’re sweet for this, Alex, thank you,” he says, sniffling a little. He clears his throat.

“You’re going to get sick if you hang around much longer though. You should probably go. I can take it from here. Honest.”

“Do I make for such poor company that you’re giving me the boot already? I’m borderline offended.”

Henry lets out a breath, the closest thing he can muster to a laugh, and gets into bed again, pulling the covers over himself.

“Of course not. I’d just feel even worse if you caught this because of me.”

Alex brings the container of soup over and sets it on the nightstand.

“I’m from Texas. We’re built strong. And besides, I always prepare for the con circuit. At this point I’ve probably got more Airborne than blood running through my veins. I’m good and I’m staying now shh, commercials are over.”

Henry shakes his head to himself as Alex focuses back on the screen and sits beside him now on top of the covers. Henry studies his profile, the sharp angles on a still soft face.

“You must be starving by now and if you aren’t, that’s all the more reason to eat. Here, try a bit of the soup.”

Alex leans over him and grabs the circular plastic container and takes the lid off. Vapors rise from it and it hits Henry then just how hungry he really is. Alex dips a spoon inside and brings it to his lips.

“I can feed myself. I’m not a baby,” Henry protests.

“No, but you’re acting like one. Now shut up and let me take care of you, dammit,” Alex grumbles.

“Your bedside manor could use a bit more work,” Henry says, but he obliges, leaning forward and taking a sip. 

Alex’s eyes look anxious as he watches him.

“Is it good? I went with chicken noodle, a tried and true classic. But if you want something else, I could always—”

“It’s perfect, thank you. You’ve done more than enough, Alex. Seriously.”

He lets Alex coddle him and finishes the soup before taking some cold medicine and orange juice. They watch more TV though Henry doesn’t really pay attention to anything on the screen. His body feels drained again and he's glad Alex had been stubborn and insisted on staying. It’d be an even more miserable scene if he were alone.

He tucks in on Alex’s side and rests his head against his chest.

“I’m really glad you're here,” Henry says after a moment. He listens to the steady drumming of Alex’s heart as the man cards his fingers through Henry’s hair, his dull nails gently scratching against his scalp. It’s enough to lull Henry; he feels himself quickly losing the battle to fatigue all over again.

“There’s no place else I’d rather be. Get some more rest, sweetheart,” he hears Alex’s voice say quietly as he begins to drift. The final word hit Henry’s ear a bit differently. It’s not as if Alex has never said it to him before, but this time, it sounded sincerely affectionate. Romantic even.

His exhaustion and delirium must be at an all-time high and working together to make him conjure up the term of endearment Alex has never uttered in that particular tone before.

~*~*~

Columbus, OH

Day 2

“You missed the cast dinner,” Henry says almost accusatorily, setting his plate of breakfast and mug of tea down on Alex’s table the next morning in the hotel's dining hall.

“Hi, sunshine. Good morning to you too. Slept well then?” Alex replies, popping a grape into his mouth.

Henry frowns as he takes a seat.

“Alex, I’m serious. I just realized you were supposed to meet up with everyone last night.”

Alex shrugs and plucks another grape from the bunch on his plate.

“And yet the world is still spinning. The sun is still shining. It’s not a big deal. I see them all the time and you needed me more. It wasn’t a hard choice to make.”

Henry feels his face warm slightly at the sentiment. 

“You didn’t have to sacrifice your night for me.”

“It wasn’t a sacrifice. I wanted to be there for you. It’s as simple as that.”

Henry pulls out a chair and sits.

“Well, thank you. I appreciated it.”

Alex smiles. “You look good today. I’m glad you’re feeling better.”

“Me too. Considering the fact that you bought up half the pharmacy, my immune system didn’t have a choice but to get itself in order. How much do I owe you?”

“And here I was thinking we finally moved past this. I’m not accepting any form of payment or payback for last night,” Alex says, spreading cream cheese on a bagel.

 Henry smiles to himself.

“You’re infuriatingly stubborn.”

“I might’ve been told that once or twice before, yes.”

Henry laughs and decides he’s better off shifting gears.

“What would you like to do today? Are any of your castmates still in town?”

Alex shakes his head.

“Nah, not for long. They had early morning flights and should be at the airport by now if they aren’t already in the skies.”

Henry bites his tongue to avoid apologizing again.

“Perhaps we could hang out then? Maybe we could get lunch or do something fun before we kiss this city goodbye too.”

Alex grabs his phone and types something into it.

“Have you ever done mini-golf before?”

Henry laughs.

“No, I can’t say that I have.”

“There's an adventure park near here. Mini-golf, go karts…you in?”

“Are you an adrenaline junkie?” Henry asks, taking a sip of his tea.

Alex eyes him for a moment.

“I’m a fan of most things that get my heart racing. Surely you must know that by now.”

Henry tries and fails not to look affected. Usually Alex saves flirtatious talk like this for their lessons, when they’re in the privacy of one of their rooms.

He figures he’s overthinking it. Anyone passing by would simply think it’s an innocuous statement. Only Henry knows the deeper meaning of his words. It excites him, having this secret hiding in plain sight.

“That makes two of us then. I’m game.”

~*~*~

They unwind after a day of adventure in Alex’s room watching Crescent Valley. Alex gives Henry behind the scenes commentary on what it was like filming on the show and he takes advantage of the insights, letting his phone rest between them as they lay side by side in bed, recording all the stories so that he can add more color to the book.

Henry creates a new voice note and puts the show on pause, switching over to his running notes document.

“Can you talk to me about your journey learning about your sexuality?” he asks. “It’s such a key part to the memoir, I’d love to hear more about that.”

Alex pulls in a breath and Henry feels a bit guilty about switching gears so suddenly. In contrast to how easy it was for Alex to share on-set anecdotes, he seems unsure of where to start now.

“It used to be a distant, vague thing in my head. The first concrete period of time I can pinpoint is freshman year. I played lacrosse in high school,” Alex says. “And I was damn good.”

Henry can picture it easily, Alex in uniform, a complete rockstar on the field. He’s patient as Alex parses his thoughts.

“I’d get super competitive with guys I thought had an edge on me. I can’t really describe it. But sometimes I’d reason, if I could beat them, they’d be impressed and I’d get on their radar. I really don’t know how to explain it,” he repeats. Henry can hear the frustration. “I guess I was seeking some kind of validation. I wanted them to notice me and not just as an athlete.”

Alex sighs.

“I’ve only genuinely hooked up with one guy other than you. I’ve gotten wasted at parties in L.A before and I’ve made out with some dudes, but it was always something I could explain away like, I was drunk or just doing a bit. Messing around, you know? But then I’d think about high school and the way one of my teammates and I would kinda orbit around each other. It wasn’t…the same with him. With Liam,” Alex sighs and Henry doesn’t miss how soft Alex’s voice gets when saying his old teammates name. 

“I didn’t get that competitive streak. It was different. More real. With him, it was like we were on equal ground.”

Alex shakes his head, toying with his fingers.

“We were good friends. We’d hang out a lot after practice or games. We kind of fell into it. I almost don’t even remember how or when I noticed it for the first time, the way we’d hold each other’s gaze a little longer than was needed. Or the way we’d make excuses to casually touch either other in almost stealthy ways. I guess it doesn’t really matter. Point is, it eventually came to a head. We’d be so hopped up on adrenaline after lacrosse most times and one day, one thing led to another and the next thing I knew, we were making out in my room.”

Henry studies Alex’s profile, sees the deep furrow of his brow as if, years later, he’s still trying to understand his actions.

“The first time it happened, I thought that’d be the only time. We were both kinda spooked by it, to be honest. After he left though, I couldn’t stop thinking about it…about how much I actually liked it and wanted it again. For fuck’s sake, I got off thinking about him and our kiss that night. That was the first time I ever got off thinking about a guy.”

Alex sighs.

“I saw him the next day at practice. At first, we kept our distance in the locker room. We went out on the field with everyone else, and played our parts well. Then he showed up at my house afterwards totally unannounced and it became a recurring thing after that. If we celebrated a win or if one of us had a shitty day at practice...we’d keep seeking each other out. It was mostly always just kissing. But every now and then, we’d touch. Nothing over the top. Hell, we’d mostly just get ourselves off together. I think I was too scared to touch him like that. It would have made what we were doing too real somehow.”

Henry listens on quietly, fully present in this moment with Alex.

“We… I chalked it up to goofing around. Just boys being boys or whatever bullshit I used to convince myself it meant nothing. Liam is actually engaged now to a pretty great guy. We’ve talked since high school, you know, about everything. I thought we were just messing around, but he told me how serious it was on his end, even back then. He’d always felt different than our classmates. He always knew this truth about himself even though he was afraid to say it out loud. He genuinely liked me as more than a friend.”

Alex frowns and collects his thoughts.

“Looking back on it, I feel like such an asshole. Liam had real feelings for me and I know now that I was attracted to him, but we were in two totally different headspaces when we were hooking up. Each time, it was reaffirming something for him. He knew fully that he was gay. For me, at the time at least, it just felt like a way of getting off and having fun. He felt like an exception to everything, an anomaly. I still went out with and hooked up with girls regularly, you know. I didn’t know what it actually meant about me that I was in fact drawn to both.”

Alex runs a hand through his hair. 

“I’m glad he and I have had the chance to talk things through. And I’ve apologized to him several times, but it hardly feels like enough. I should have been more careful. I should have seen what that really was. I never meant to hurt him.”

Henry inches forward, his heart breaking as Alex looks at him with wet eyes.

“You’ve done all you can since learning the truth. It wasn’t intentional and I’m sure he knows that. Liam isn’t upset with you, right?”

Alex shakes his head.

“No, but he’d have every reason in the world to be.”

Henry places a hand on Alex’s.

“You can’t beat yourself up over this. You’ve made amends. You were just kids back then. This isn’t easy. You’ve got to give yourself some grace.”

There’s a distant look in Alex’s eyes as he blinks his tears away.

“Yeah. Yeah, you’re right and logically, I get that. Still, I can’t fully shake it. I can’t help but to wonder what my life would have been like if only I would have realized what it meant that I kept going back to him. Because I really wanted it with him specifically, but it felt like a one-off, like no big deal, you know? If I thought a few guys were attractive, I saw it as just having eyes and being observant. It didn’t feel like some life-altering thing. But in reality? The things I was doing with Liam, the things I wanted to do with him but didn’t have the courage to say…that was a huge turning point and I totally missed it. Sometimes, it almost feels like I was robbed. But it was my own ignorance that kept me in the dark for so long.”

Alex shrugs and looks away and Henry’s heart shatters at once.

“Anyway, that’s a conversation for me and my therapist. I won’t bore you with it any further now,” Alex laughs, but Henry can hear the pain in it. 

He stops the recording. He’s asked enough of Alex tonight.

“It’s never a bore, a bother, or a burden. You can always talk to me. Even if I weren’t tasked with writing out your life’s story, I’d want to listen. I…perhaps it’s improper, but I sincerely do consider you a dear friend, Alex.”

Alex quirks a brow.

“Given the things we’ve done to each other’s bodies, I’d say friendship is the least improper territory we’ve waded into.”

This time Henry laughs as he concedes.

“You’ve got me there,” he relents. 

Alex smiles softly and reaches for Henry’s hand. 

“I appreciate it though. The offer and…you know, you in general. You’re helping me in all sorts of ways, it’s actually kind of crazy. I don’t know if I’ve even said thank you yet, for any of it. But I am grateful for everything.”

“You’re welcome. It’s nice to know I can be useful,” Henry says, aiming for levity.

But Alex’s face is serious as he shakes his head and laces their fingers.

“It’s beyond that, Henry. You’re essential to me. I don’t ever want you to forget that.”

[slxsherwriter]

Let the Games Begin

Fandom: Death Count

Pairings: The Warden x reader

Word count: 2, 090

Warnings: Mentions of non-con surgery, death, injury

Author's Note: Honestly, I don't know what this is or where it came from. Was sort of just possessed by the idea. For the few that have watched the movie. Hopefully, you enjoy!

The poor lighting was just the kicker to the entirely poor set up. While it was nothing new, it never made it easier to deal with and most certainly always made the time limit almost impossible to meet. Biting the inside of your cheek, you forced the needle through the skin, moving both as quick and carefully as you dare. One mistake with the little hair sensitive triggers on the devices and it would be the last thing that you ever did.

“One of these days, one of these assholes is going to wake up in the middle of this and cause a whole load of trouble for the both of us.” A low chuckle was the response, sound simultaneously dark and amused. One that demanded attention, urged you to have your eyes pull away from the careful task that you were carrying out, but you managed to ignore it. By the skin of your teeth.

“With that skill that you have? It's hardly something I am worried about. For your peace of mind, however, I have plans in place, doc.” If there wasn't some level of trust in the man that was mulling around behind you, you wouldn't have been here at all, partaking in this. With precision and care that came from years of practice, you managed to cut the last suture, leaving the small tail of line outside the body.

“I'm not actually surprised by that statement. Flattered by the compliment, but not surprised that you had contingency plans in place.” Leaning back, you observed the clean line of sutures with a critical eye for just a second longer. By the seventh and eighth individual, your hands cramped a bit, and your eyes were feeling the strain. But you were finished. Your back cracked as you straightened, a satisfying pop that relieved some tension.

“Good work, as always doc.” James appeared in your peripheral as you were tossing the sharps and your bloodied gloves away. Admiring your work and the action was enough to spark a sense of pride. As twisted as that was. Funny to think that this wasn't what life was always like. Helping out mass murders and criminals had once seemed like too far-fetched an idea to entertain. Yet, here you were.

It was only when you had tossed the remaining tools in your small bag that you turned your full attention to James. The man was mostly dressed for his little game, simply missing his mask. A rare occurrence even outside the games, something that you had come to learn over the last several months. He was lifting the last body up and over shoulder for placement in the room, making the action almost seem effortless. A sight that you had come to appreciate more and more as you spent an increased amount of time with the man. More so than most of your other clients.

“Besides, you really think that I would let anything happen to you?” You were pulled out of your wandering thoughts about the man in question when he spoke. Blinking, you were quick to shake your head so that he didn't suspect that you were too lost in thought. Thankfully, muscle memory had guided you through the clean-up process, so you hadn't simply been standing there like an absolute idiot.

“No, no, I don’t.” Which was a genuine response. If it was within his power, you really didn't think that he would let anything happen. His keeping you safe was what had brought you closer together in the first place. A memory that wasn't worth bringing up this very second.

“There you go.” As if it was as simple as that. Which, really, perhaps you should just accept as something simple. Absently washing your hands, you openly observed James for a long second this time. He was leaning against the doorframe to the room, arms relaxed as they lay across his chest. Watching you the way that you had been watching him. Not another word was shared as the typical clean-up process was continued. There wouldn’t be all that much time before his victims woke up and the games began. Something that you did your best not to stick around for when it could be helped. Not that you didn't have the stomach for it at this point, but it wasn't particularly something that you enjoyed. What little time off that you were able to get after such tasks was better spent grabbing some food and heading home to relax.

“The passageway is clear for you to make your way out.”

“I appreciate it.”

“Got everything you brought?”

“Yeah, all packed up and ready to go. Need anything else before I head out?” He shook his head, not giving a verbal response. At least seven people were going to die tonight, and you had a hand in that. Something that should have bothered you more than it did. But that was what this line of work brought. Never would you have thought that life as a trauma medic would bring you into the world of criminals and serial killers. Yet, here you were, blood on your hands. It was only figuratively at the moment, but seconds ago, quite literally too.

“Stay safe tonight, yeah?”

“Always do.” Out of everyone that you had met in this little fucked up life that you had craved out for yourself, admittedly, James was the most careful. Rare was it that he needed serious help from you. More often than it, it was a need for some simple sutures for a wound just deep enough to require them. Or the need for some disinfecting and a bandage. Bag tossed over your shoulder, you were already thinking about where to stop for food as you passed by, only stopping when there was a soft touch of warm fingers to your wrist. “You get home safe.” There was something else on the tip of his tongue, which made you wait a few moments longer. A timer on his wrist went off before whatever it was could be spoken aloud, the moment entirely ruined. He cleared his throat and dropped his hand from your wrist. Giving him a smile, you slipped from the doorway and followed the familiar path upward, through some winding hallways and staircases towards the main floor and ultimate freedom. Maybe one of those that you had worked on would be following the same path, maybe they wouldn't. Not a thought to focus on since it was entirely out of your hands.

****************************

The next day came about with no necessary plans or tasks to handle. A rare day off where you were free to do what you wished. Which meant, you opted for a little bit of a sleep in. Something that abruptly ended when the door slammed open, bouncing off the opposite wall with a loud thud. The sound was enough to jolt you from your sleep, heart beating wildly in your chest. No one was in your room, evident as you wildly looked around. A crashing sound came from the hallway, signaling more trouble. Shit. Shit! Scrambling for the gun that you had been gifted, you managed to find the cold barrel as another crash echoed out.

The work that you did occasionally brought trouble. Never to your home, only to the space that was used as a makeshift treatment slash surgery suite that was paid for by someone else that used your services. To have someone in your home was disturbing and terrifying at minimum. As you carefully cracked the door open, you heard a pained groan echoing out through the hall. Not a sound that you would have associated with someone breaking into the home to harm you. Silence would be expected. So that you would not have been able to tell where they were.

Waiting for another few seconds, straining to hear anything else that would have come. But there was nothing. No more movement, no more pained groans, nothing. As quietly as you could, you opened the door the rest of the way. You gave it another pause. Still nothing. Okay, you could do this. Letting out a slow breath, you began to move through the house.

A familiar lump of black and glint of silver appeared around the corner when you entered the living room. James was sprawled out on your couch, face a bit bloodied and clutching at what was likely a wound that needed immediate treatment.

“Jesus Christ….”

“Hey doc. Sorry to drop in…” Ignoring the attempt at being more lighthearted than the situation called for, you were setting the gun down and moving back towards the bathroom to grab whatever supplies you had here. Which, unfortunately, wasn't a whole lot but should have been just enough to properly patch the man up. No questions asked about how it had all happened or what had gone wrong between when you left and this morning. He wouldn't be likely to tell you anyway.

“Just…stay still. Let me see how bad it all is.” Focus, you needed to focus. Easier said than done when woken thinking someone was breaking into your home to kill you. A steady breath and settling down on the table beside the couch helped you work towards that. “Is there anything besides the two areas that I'm seeing?” You were going to have to take the mask off to get a better assessment of the wound on his face. Really, the metal should have protected that half of his face, but things didn't always work out that way. He was here, in your home, laying bloodied on your couch after all.

“No, nowhere else.” For a second, you doubted the sincerity of the answer but ended up taking it at face value since you needed to be focused on figuring out how he was wounded and the best way to treat it. “And no, no one followed me here either. Made sure of it.” Admittedly, that had been the very next question you had been ready to ask. Though, it was a rather logical next inquiry so it wasn't surprising that he had the response ready. You nodded.

“Good. Gives me time to properly patch you up then.” Fingers grasped the edge of the mask and hesitated for only a moment before getting the okay from him. The slash wasn't terrible but would require some sutures to be able to heal properly. It would scar but hopefully you could manage to make sure that lasting result would be minimal.

“This isn't too bad.” Before you could handle that, you had to assess the other. The one that you guessed is more serious than what you had already seen, given the light blood flow from between fingers. “Gonna have to get a good look at that before we figure out how we tackle getting you as good as new, James.” The set of his jaw spoke to the level of pain that was being experienced at the moment. Slowly, his fingers peeled away from his side. The wound was obvious and not good looking, causing you to suck some air between your teeth. It was not good and probably required more than what you had here but you would have to make due. Take care of it, the mantra repeated in your head, then you can run out for more supplies.

“I thought you said that I didn't need to worry about you,” you hummed out as you worked on carefully pulling away the cloth that was stuck to the wound. Gloves be damned at the moment. Getting it treated was primary. A pained little laugh came from him, a hand raising to brush some hair from his forehead. Sweat lined that space at the hairline itself. “I'll give you something for the pain in just a minute okay? I'm sorry. I know this can't feel good.”

“It's fine. Just….” He shook his head. Another little laugh. “Funny that it took this to get myself to your home.” Now, that caught you off guard. Your eyes shot upward from the wound to his face. He was serious. Giving you a half a smile, as if to say what of it, he laid his head back down and fell silent so that you could work. Right, work, you had to close him up. Pushing back the thought so that you could focus, you pulled on some gloves to wash out the wound.

“Don't think we are talking about that statement.”

“Wouldn't expect any less.”

[mostdream6977]

PERFORMATIVE HOURS

((i lied theres no nerevoryn YET. all foundational. im getting there. other surprise ships in there for the future. for me.

fic and chapter titles are songs! fic name - chapter name

AO3 LINK BLAST))

    0.1

        RULES OF THE SHOW

“‘I do not wish to ask too much of you, so you may decline this and I would not consider it a slight’ … Is he not allowed to have parties or something? He sounds like he’s afraid you’ll beat him.” 

The mer holding the letter furrows his brow and brings it closer, making sure he reads it correctly while walking alongside his partner, bumping into a stray pedestrian every now and again and sheepishly apologizing. The day is the 26th of Frostfall, and the two are headed through colorfully crowded streets on their way to a birthday party. His partner had brought along a few guards, in this moment tasking them with walking in front and breaking up the crowd to move easier, but his nature made it so he was running into people and taking up space regardless. The partner in question doesn’t seem to love this, today she’s taken to shooting him a nasty look whenever he “acts out” as she describes. She’s been on edge all week during the commute to Kogoruhn - he’s not sure he can blame her. A lot of the things she tells him about the other Great Houses sound like mumbo-jumbo to him, but he knows his basics enough and has the lived experience to know that the Sixth House has gotten very intimidating, very quickly - relatively speaking. 

His partner had been worried about staying in the good graces of their (to put it lightly) flippant Lord, who despite having only been in power for about a decade had made quite a significant reputation. He worries. Especially during these social diplomacy-type events. From what he could gather, this Lord was the type to greet you with a kiss on one cheek and send you off with a slap on the other, and was absolutely the type to send an invitation to his birthday party filled with snide humility, in hopes that it wouldn’t be caught and attendees would assume true humility despite the presence of gilded everything.

He rests easy knowing his partner can handle herself in a fight just fine; she’s better with a sword than he is, and that’s saying something. She isn’t even socially awkward by any means, she’s just so… paranoid. Everyone is out to get everyone in her mind - she counts herself among everyone, and keeps her sword hand(s) ready at all times. She would scan a room like she was prey, or looking for it. He admittedly found it impressive, but in these circumstances, a celebration for this House among these attendees? It isn’t viable.

“Are you planning on talking to him like that?” She snapped, softly, with him rolling his eyes in response. 

“What’s your plan if I do, eh?” He lets off a mischievous grin and allows his sarcasm to ooze. “Ya gonna beat me?”

“Yes. What’s your obsession with beating today?”

“It’s a great word.”

This got a slight chuff out of her, which gave him a little bit of satisfaction, though she hadn't stopped the focused anxiety-walk she was doing or met his eyes. He took the following silence as an opportunity, and thought about things for around forty seven seconds. First fourteen seconds - His partner, who herself had only been in power for a couple years longer than the Lord in question, had recently directed aid towards Vvardenfell after Nord attacks had laid waste to their food supplies. The next five seconds - From what she had told him, the Lord had been incredibly grateful, and genuine in expressing this. The final twenty eight seconds - She also mentioned they had talked extensively about the stress, which had been mentioned heavily in the invitation. His conclusion - She was on the Lord’s good side, had recently been only getting the kiss and was waiting for the slap. Getting ready for this event had been metaphorically making her lose hair. After basking in this presence near non-stop for around a week on their journey, he had figured some old-fashioned, good natured heckling of outside parties would cheer her up as usual, but she’s still mostly acting sour.

“So… What’s different about this? I get he’s, like, an asshole,” He hesitates in his tone. “But it’s just one House, yeah? You’ve done this elsewhere, I’ve seen how uh… they can be to you. You handle yourself. ”

“And who is ‘they’?” she said, slowing her pace finally and looking at him with a slight smile forming.

“Uhh… Nobles, I guess?”

“That’s the point, Nerevar. These aren’t just Dagoth nobles, it’s the Dwemer too. I told you that I found out they'd be here weeks ago.”

“I- OHH. You DID say that, heh… sorry.” He’s sheepish again, well aware that he should listen more closely. She finally gives a good laugh and continues following her guards. It’s been almost a year now with Nerevar under her wing, and while he’s grown immensely from the drunk, smelly merchant caravan guard she found throwing large rocks at his fellow guards as a game the day they met, he tends to be a bit dense at times. Still, despite this exterior personality, she knew he held the ghartoki in both hands. He had a certain goal, his want had no borders and knew no limits; you could feel his fire from great distances. She was drawn to his light like a moth, the same as him to her. She knew his distraction did not come from a lack of enjoyment of her company, and she knew he wasn’t stupid by any means, just a bit vapid.

“I wish you'd listen more, but you’re still learning quickly, so don’t apologize to me.” she said.

“Yeah, sure, uh, could you give me the rundown on the whole Dagoth Dwemer thing again?” There’s a touch of embarrassment and annoyance in his voice. “I don’t remember what’s going on there.”

“Well, there’s so much there, I’ll keep it short. You know the Dwarf-Orc?”

“Dummo?”

“...Dumac.”

“Dumac. Right. Doo-Mack.” “..Yeah. That one. The King of the Dwemer is a busy man ruling a busy people. Because of this, he’s not the only one at his level of power among the Dwemer. Their Chief Tonal Architect, Kagrenac, shares an immense part of that power. He’s the one we’re worried about tonight, he’s got a chokehold on House Dagoth,” As she said this, Nerevar noticed a dulled glint in the corner of his vision and stopped to examine. It was a stray bottle laying on the ground, covered by some street waste. It looked to be a potion, and an expensive one too. He allowed the guards and Almalexia to go ahead a bit, then snatched the bottle. It wasn’t labelled with an effect, just “BITTERGREEN, WOLFSBANE, DIAMOND” and was filled with cloudy liquid. Nerevar placed it in his bag and caught up with the group. Almalexia saw him approach and shot him a nasty look for acting out before launching back into her spiel with a quick ‘where was I… ’. 

“Oh! Yes. Dagoth. Kagrenac and the Dwemer have a chokehold on them. It’s brought good and bad things, the good is that these guys turned this place around fast- they were always farmers or orphans when I was a girl. Never could have imagined that Kogoruhn would ever become this big.”

“And the bad?”

“Well, the Dwemer doing what they do best. Voryn was talking to me about how their slave trade of House members still hasn’t fully stopped, he’s done everything in his power yet people in House Sotha have gone missing recently. He believes it’s in retaliation for the release of Dagoth captives, but can’t really prove anything. It’s a lot of stuff like that. According to Voryn, Kagrenac won’t budge and won’t tell him, he’ll change the subject pretty frequently.” Almalexia looked at Nerevar and saw his confusion. “What isn’t clicking?”

“It all makes sense, but aren’t they married?”

“Yes.”

“Voryn is the same age as us, yeah? Is he hot? I’m sure he could find someone not as ancient and enslave-y. Why doesn’t he just leave him?” Nerevar questioned. Almalexia thought about her response for a couple seconds.

“Kagrenac has a king’s power, and power is sweet... Voryn likes sugar, to put it gently.” With this, Nerevar understood, and the two continued on their way towards the palace.

~

“If you could sit tight for us, Lady Almalexia, Lord Dagoth would want to greet you in person.” The woman standing in front of them is very clearly Dwemer; her long, curly cyan hair is lined delicately with gold, beads and bands and threads of the sort were braided into her bangs, and her beard was trimmed neatly. The small tiara gracing her head, alongside of her neck piece and the tuning fork at her side told them she was another Architect, likely one who Kagrenac set up to greet the guests staying in the palace like Nerevar and Almalexia. Nerevar, as promised, had seen very many Dwemer and started to understand how Almalexia was feeling. This kind of event was rare, their peoples despised each other. Seeing them bumping elbows with Chimer showed that Voryn had been hard at work regarding the combination of the two cultures in his House.

“Jzarkaz! Are you greeting who I think you are?” A voice playfully rang out from a hallway on the upper level of the foyer. Speak of the devil. A fairly tall mer emerged, laying eyes on his two new guests (or really, just Alamlexia) and breaking out a wide smile. Jzarkaz had this look on her face as if she was preparing to be overstimulated. 

“Ah, Voryn, I was just about to fetch you. I-” She was interrupted by Voryn skittering down the steps and quickly up to Almalexia, greeting her with a mutual kiss on either cheek. Nerevar noticed she had become a bit less tense- maybe she felt safe for now, maybe leaning more into certainty as he watched Voryn emit energy that Almalexia absorbed fully from and into their greeting conversation. Jzarkaz, looking annoyed, cleared her throat and Voryn snapped a little more to attention.

“Ah, it’s SO good to see you again, love! I’m glad your trip here went smoothly. I see you’ve eh…” Voryn paused for a second and glanced at Nerevar for just a slight bit too long before looking back at Almalexia and renewing his smile. “You’ve hired a mercenary! He can make himself comfortable downstairs with the rest, there’s baths in the barra-”

“He’s actually my plus one.” She jumped in, to Voryn’s embarrassment. Nerevar had been standing around observing for so long that he almost didn’t notice the comment. He wanted to be snotty and make a similar comment, but looking Voryn up and down, he couldn’t really think of anything. But then again, perhaps that’s speaking too soon.

“I’m Indoril Nerevar Mora. I’m her boyfriend, we’ve been together for a few months now.” he began. “Not that you would know that, I AM dressed accordingly.” He told no lie, his hair is still slicked up into the tall mohawk he insisted on wearing to travel or battle, alongside his heavy chitin armor that he’d had for an eternity. He told Almalexia they made him look cooler, that if she were going to make him into a warrior-king that he might as well look the part (She always told him he didn’t need to smell the part either and had him change). However, he hadn’t expected to be greeted by Voryn, draped in all that black and red finery and sopping wet in a wealthy context, dripping with gold and jewels. Almalexia seems fine wearing her similar fashion, but Nerevar chose to overthink Voryn’s comment and take offense. 

“Maybe I’d be more accordingly dressed if I looked like a conso-”

“WE ARE VERY TIRED FROM THE JOURNEY!” Almalexia was shocked and shut him down before the word could fully leave his mouth. “YES, yes. If we could go to our quarters and eh…” She shot one hell of a look at Nerevar, who chose to take some more offense.

��What, you’re not going to hel-”

 “Rest up. Before the gala tonight.” Her voice was a bit shaky, butting in over Nerevar again to avoid Voryn’s own offense, though he wasn’t stupid by any means and had already put two and two together at this point. Voryn made a silent decision to maintain his looks and not engage with Nerevar, having many other more important things to worry about than being called a whore. Play it dumb and just move on, he tells himself.

“Right.” Much of the excitement has left his voice. “Well, I’m certain Jzarkaz here can show you where you’ll be staying. I’m afraid I have other matters to deal with before the festivities.” Voryn turns and walks back up the stairs as Jzarkaz (who had been trying her hardest to not let out a laugh at Nerevar’s comment) led the two down a different hall. Voryn stopped about halfway up and met Nerevar’s eyes as he passed below. His face, at this moment, could not be read.

“Make yourself at home.” And with that, Voryn disappeared back into the upstairs of the palace. Almalexia didn’t speak a word, and neither did Nerevar. They allowed themselves to be silently led down the hall and into their chambers; a small guest room with a large window over the bed. Their guards had already moved their things in while Nerevar was making an ass of himself, and as the two walked in and the door shut behind them, Almalexia kicked a piece of her luggage hard, before getting in Nerevar’s face.

“IMMEDIATE. NO HESITATION. FIRST THING OUT OF YOUR DAMN MOUTH. WHAT IN OBLIVION IS WRONG WITH YOU?” Her voice was guaranteed to be booming, ringing through the halls, but she didn’t seem to care. This kind of behavior could EASILY get them in deep shit, or otherwise poisoned. Pissing off the Sixth House at this point in their timeline is a grave mistake, and Nerevar doesn’t really seem to take her seriously when she says that.

“Oh, so WHAT? You’re just going to let him fucking insult me? Why the fuck am I the one getting this fucking reaction?” Nerevar snapped right back.

“He wasn’t insulting you, s’wit! He thought you were a mercenary-”

“AND told you to tell me where the baths were.”

“-For two fucking seconds. I didn’t even leave you to hang, I CORRECTED him! That comment was COMPLETELY unnecessary!” Exasperated, she walks away from Nerevar and sits down on the bed.

“And this IS completely necessary?” He followed her over. “Getting on me and screaming about it? ‘Two fucking seconds’ my ass. Why don’t you stop being such an uptight bitch for ‘two fucking seconds’ and see things from MY view?”

“Don’t you DARE speak to me like that, Nerevar. I don’t care about your ‘view’ on this gods-damned non-issue that you DECIDED to make an issue. You need to learn some fucking people skills, and at least SOME manners if you want to get anywhere near where you want to be.”

“It’s all about what I need to learn, all the fucking time. Why don’t YOU take some time to fucking learn to cool the fuck down?”

“Because you don’t fucking listen enough to know that, shocker, I’m actually acting justified! Nerevar, we DO. NOT. WANT. To PISS OFF the DWEMER. Is that gonna make it through your thick skull?”

“THE ONE DWEMER IN THE ROOM WAS LAUGHING! She thought it was hilarious, you’re fucking insane! Maybe I should go talk with HER instead!” Almalexia’s face dropped with this comment, and she wouldn’t meet his eyes. “Maybe you should.”

“Fine.” he ran his hand through his hair, messing up part of his mohawk and turning to leave the room.

“...Fine. I’ll… I’ll see you later.”

“Whatever.” He shuts the door behind him with a thud, and Almalexia is left in their room alone.

[sapphicromanoffxo]

Lucky Ones | vii. Due encounters

Pairing: Natasha Romanoff x Wanda Maximoff

Word count: 4,042

Warnings: mild fluff, angst, that's all

Summary: Part of Natasha has been revaled and Wanda struggleed to understand the newfound reality

A/N: i needed to get this off my chest so here it is. Uhh. Advance sorry?

»»-----------► Series Masterlist

The days leading up to her birthday did a number on Natasha's mood, and it showed on how she berated her employees on their poor performance. Every now and then, she found herself pacing in her office, trying to calm down her overwhelming emotions. Could it be that she was trying to cover up her anxiety with anger instead? That had been her coping mechanism for years. No amount of therapy could pull her away from her ways.

One more thing made Natasha on edge. She was planning on telling Wanda the truth but couldn't find the courage to do so. Part of her was afraid of what Wanda's reaction would be to the fact that Natasha had been withholding vital information for months. Natasha's gaze frequently drifted to a polaroid picture on her desk, a snapshot of herself captured by Wanda, who had developed a sudden passion for photography, with Natasha as her muse.

There was an unsettling dynamic between them; Wanda possessed an uncanny ability to influence Natasha, bending her to her desires with a subtle power. Natasha, despite her reservations, complied reluctantly. The emotional ties between them left Natasha apprehensive about potential repercussions. Natasha hesitated to reciprocate Wanda's affection, no matter how genuine Wanda's feelings were. She was haunted by a nagging doubt that accepting Wanda's affections might lead to abandonment once the truth surfaced.

Natasha had found herself contemplating her emotions regarding Wanda ever since that fateful night when Wanda confessed her love. In truth, Wanda's affection felt like a comforting embrace Natasha hadn't realised she yearned for. Despite this, Natasha had a tendency to downplay her responses to expressions of love, a pattern that began with Melina's affection. From Melina's nurturing to Wanda's unwavering love, Natasha had been granted a second chance at a family that genuinely cared for her.

As Natasha immersed herself in thoughts about family, her office door swung open abruptly, revealing Yelena energetically barging in.

"Natalia! Happy birthday to you, happy to you!" Yelena embraced Natasha, singing in an annoying yet endearing manner. It's apparent that both of them are polar opposite since Yelena is a walking ray of sunshine while Natasha is a gloomy weather.

"Yel, it's not even my birthday yet and it's only Thursday. You're too advanced," Natasha quipped, rolling her eyes at her sister's antics.

"Oh hush. I can't wait for your celebration this Saturday. Mom had it all planned out and the kids are buzzing with excitement, too! Although they are only excited about the cake part and that's okay." Both women chuckled at Yelena's comments. She remembers how she and sister would fight over the last piece of cake when they were younger. They ended up not eating it at all since Alexie stole the cake while they were bickering.

The two women talked some more about their lives. Yelena is now a fashion designer and starting her own brand. She is the one who has been supplying Natasha's suits which Wanda adores so much.

After a while, Yelena bids her goodbye as she still has errands to run in the city and Natasha is back again with her gloomy mood.

After completing her afternoon class ahead of schedule, Wanda eagerly anticipated a visit to Natasha since she's been having a bad day at work. Intent on brightening Natasha's mood, Wanda concealed a bunch of pristine white tulips in her bag. As she approached the entrance of the building, a familiar voice called out her name, prompting her to turn around in surprise. "Yelena? Oh my god!"

Yelena enveloped Wanda in a warm hug. "Wanda! It's been ages. How have you been?"

"Things are good. I'm still in college and taking engineering."

"Really? I remember how passionate you were about engineering. I'm thrilled to hear you're making it happen!"

"Yeah, it's a wild ride, but I'm hanging in there."

"By the way, my sister is celebrating her birthday at the orphanage this Saturday. You should come and finally meet her!" Yelena had often spoken about her sister during their time in the orphanage, but Wanda had never had the chance to meet her. Back then, Yelena had been considered being adopted by the orphanage owner but chose to stay a bit longer with her friends before heading to New York.

"I'd love to come! It's high time I meet the sister you've always talked about, huh?"

"Absolutely! I'll introduce you, and you two can chat about your engineering stuff I guess."

Numbers have been exchanged before they went on their different ways. They have agreed on catching up and Yelena would pick up Wanda in her apartment on Saturday.

Wanda strode into the building, navigating her way to Natasha's office. Natasha's secretary offered a greeting and inquired about the reason for her visit. Wanda simply stated that Natasha had requested to see her and sought her assistance. Without further inquiry, she received the green light to enter Natasha's office.

As anticipated, Natasha was engrossed in her laptop, wearing a frown that swiftly faded upon spotting Wanda.

"Hey, I wasn't expecting you here, detka." Natasha pushed her chair back, inviting Wanda to sit on her lap for a warm greeting.

Naturally, Wanda complied, wrapping her arms around Natasha's neck. "I just wanted to see you and surprise you, I guess."

"Hmm. I really like this skirt of yours, sweetheart." Natasha's hands travelled down Wanda's legs, caressing the exposed skin.

Wanda chuckled at Natasha's boldness. "Natty, we're in your office!"

"And? It didn't stop us before. I remember how I bent you over that couch, and you loved every second of it."

Wanda suddenly stood up upon remembering the flowers in her bag. She retrieved them and had a shy look on her face when she gave them to Natasha. "For you."

Natasha struggled to suppress a blush, but her body betrayed her. "Baby, what's this for?"

"Nothing. I know you've been having tough days at work, and I wanted to make you feel better." Wanda settled herself onto Natasha's lap, noticing a small smile on Natasha's face – a positive sign.

"You didn't have to, but thank you. Just being with you makes me feel good." Natasha rested her head against Wanda's chest, attempting to conceal the warmth spreading across her face.

"You're welcome, Nat. I love you." Wanda's words stirred something in Natasha, prompting her to take a deep breath and broach a topic with Wanda.

"Do you have any plans this Saturday?"

"Uh, I'll be out with a friend. We haven't seen each other in a long time, so we're catching up this Saturday. Why? Do you have something in mind?"

Though disappointed, Natasha resisted the urge to persuade Wanda to stay with her. Instead, she smiled and replied, "That's alright. I won't be in New York, and I just wanted to know if you wanted to come with me. But it's okay. I'll be back right away anyway."

"Are you sure? I could accompany you if you'd like."

Natasha gently tucked a loose strand of hair behind Wanda's ear, her courage momentarily discarded. "No, no. It's fine. You have fun with your friend, okay?"

Saturday came, and Natasha's anxiety has skyrocketed at a different level. She wanted so badly to just blurt out everything and hope for the best. Being a coward and an idiot will get her nowhere. Wanda has been nothing but gentle and loving towards her, and deserves to know the truth but she can't find in herself to utter a single thing about it.

Wanda was about to leave when Natasha tugged her sleeve. Unable to articulate the depth of her feelings, she managed a simple, "Take care, okay? And keep me informed about where you're headed?"

"I will, Nat. You drive safely, too. Your speed limit is only 60 km/hr." Wanda said to her lover playfully, unaware of the storm that was happening on Natasha's head.

"That's too slow for me, baby. How about I push it to 80?"

"You're too bad! Please be careful, okay? I have to leave now. Bye!" With a peck on Natasha's cheek, Wanda left the apartment.

Natasha headed to the bedroom to dress, catching her reflection in the mirror. Whispering to herself, she said, "S dnem rozhdeniya tebya, Natalia." Happy birthday, Natalia.

Yelena wasted no time initiating a conversation as soon as she picked up Wanda. They delved into years of catching up, compensating for the time spent apart since their orphanage days.

"I enrolled in college; luckily, they accepted me despite the lack of educational requirements from our special education background. It was challenging, having to take multiple tests to meet their standards," Wanda shared.

"Must have been tough. And Pietro? Where's he now?" Yelena inquired.

"He got a scholarship in Michigan as a race track runner. I miss him; it's been a while," Wanda admitted.

"I can't imagine you two being apart. You were practically inseparable!"

"Yeah, it was tough when we decided to go our separate ways. We knew it would happen as we became adults and pursued different careers."

Their conversation flowed throughout the drive until they reached Westview, slightly delayed by traffic. Milena greeted and hugged them upon arrival, marveling at Wanda's growth. Pleasantries exchanged, preparations continued, and Wanda had the opportunity to meet the children.

Wanda had a moment of reflection on how Milena and this place provided safety and a fresh start for her and Pietro, Wanda felt a deep gratitude toward Milena for taking a chance on them and helping rebuild their lives.

"Yelena, your father will be arriving soon. Natalia will be accompanying him, so let's wrap this up," Milena instructed, orchestrating the surprise for the birthday celebration. The children, adorned with smiles and holding balloons, eagerly awaited the moment to astonish the birthday guest. Wanda, however, found herself unexpectedly nervous, unable to pinpoint a valid reason for her unease. She was about to finally meet Yelena's sister, someone she only knew through stories.

Reflecting back to when they were just 13 and 16 years old, Wanda and Yelena shared a unique bond that blossomed in the confines of the orphanage. Yelena's adoption notice at 16 marked the beginning of her new life, and she returned from meeting her adoptive family brimming with excitement about her soon-to-be sister. Yelena had painted a vivid picture of her sister: a college student pursuing a challenging course and is undeniably cool. These descriptions left Wanda with a twinge of jealousy, wanting her to have her own family and the security that came with it.

In those moments, Wanda yearned for the warmth of a family to come home to, a place where she could find solace and a sense of belonging. Although the prospect seemed distant, relegated to the past, Wanda had grown into adulthood, now pursuing her dreams and carving her path in her chosen career.

Wanda's momentary reverie was abruptly interrupted by the melodic chorus of the children singing the birthday song. The long-awaited guest had finally arrived, although the seconds seemed interminable to Wanda as she fixed her gaze on the approaching figure, which made her heart stop. The walk, the mannerisms—Wanda recognized them instantly. The world seemed to hold its breath as everyone erupted in excitement, but Wanda found herself rooted to the spot, unable to move.

Natasha. All she could see is Natasha. Natasha is Yelena's sister. The person she have heard stories for being cool. The person who have given her a place to stay, provided her needs, and ultimately, her lover. What are the odds of this happening from one in a million. It's like the world have played on both of them by being at the right place, at the right time.

Wanda's emotions spiraled in every direction, throwing her out of the loop of the present time. Happiness surged within her, the prospect of being with Natasha and celebrating together. But at the same time, a wave of anger and betrayal crashed over her. The realisation hit her hard—she had bared her soul, shared every facet of her life for the sake of transparency, yet she knew so little about Natasha. In Wanda's understanding, relationships were built on reciprocal openness, and this revelation stirred a heavy mix of conflicting emotions within her.

"Wanda! Hey, are you okay? We lost you there for a moment. Come on, let me introduce you to her." Yelena tugged at her arm, leading her toward Natasha.

"Talia! You remember my friend, Wanda?"

In that moment, Wanda felt her heart pause once again.

Natasha's gaze met Wanda's, and Wanda discerned a fleeting hesitation as recognition dawned in her eyes.

"I know her, Yelena. She works at our company part-time," Natasha remarked, avoiding any mention of their personal relationship, aware that this unexpected encounter was something neither Wanda nor she had anticipated.

In this instance, Wanda wished she could vanish, retreat to the hills, and never return.

"Oh bummer! What a small world, huh?"

Operating on autopilot, Wanda tried her best to keep her emotions at bay. The details of what happened afterwards were blurry for her. The celebration went on for hours and she deliberately avoided Natasha. She wondered how she could engage in a normal conversation without her emotions taking over? Choosing to remain close to herself, Wanda kept mostly quiet.

As the evening neared 6 o'clock, Milena extended an offer to Natasha. "Nat, you can stay here for the night if you want. Yelena will be here."

"No, I don't think so. I still have some things to finish for tomorrow. I'm sorry, Mom."

"Tomorrow is Sunday, Nat. That's all you do, so focused at work. Loosen up a bit." Alexei encouraged, hoping to persuade Natasha to stay the night. Despite his attempt, Natasha remained resolute.

"Dad, I know how to 'loosen up'. I just have a lot to do, that's all. I promise I will make it up to all of you next time. Okay?" Natasha compromised, realising the need for an impending conversation with Wanda, which is more important.

Yelena, eager to spend more time with her friend, turned to Wanda. "What about you, Wanda? You can stay here with us."

"I'm sorry, but I have to decline for now. I still need to work on my projects due next week," Wanda replied, a subtle acknowledgement passing between her and Natasha, both recognizing the unresolved tension.

"Well that's fine, Wanda." Milena reassured her and added "Natalia should drive you back to New York. Both of you should head down now before it gets dark."

The two women bid their farewells and made their way to the car, the atmosphere heavy with unspoken tension. It was suffocating and sickening. Wanda wanted to jump off the car but it wouldn't do any good. Neither dared to initiate a conversation, both opting for silence as they endured the awkward car ride.

Yet, someone had to break the silence and address the inevitable. "I know you have questions, and I will answer them once we reach home," Natasha finally spoke, setting the stage for the much-anticipated conversation.

"Did you know?" Wanda's question hung in the air, her gaze avoiding Natasha.

Natasha sighed heavily, her response measured, "Did I know what?"

"That I will be at your party?" Wanda's voice dripped with coldness, a version Natasha was unaccustomed to, a Wanda who couldn't even meet her eyes.

"No, I did not," Natasha admitted. The truth was, Yelena hadn't mentioned bringing her friend, and had she done so, the unfolding events might have taken a different turn.

"But have you known me for long?"

Natasha hesitated for a moment, a fleeting confirmation of Wanda's doubts. Eventually, she replied, "Yes."

The remainder of the ride passed in a heavy silence. Natasha was acutely aware of the tangled mess the situation had become. She found herself in a position where defense seemed futile, unable to offer a reasonable explanation to appease the situation.

Wanda got out of the car immediately and waited in the living room. She was mentally preparing herself for what's about to happen. She has so many questions! Questions that she never knew she will be asking to the person whom she loves the most. This could lead to two things and Wanda cannot fathom how devastating either endings are.

As the door clicked shut, Wanda wasted no time confronting Natasha, "Are you going to be truthful, or are you going to cover your ass here?"

"I am willing to answer whatever you ask. I owe you that. But I am asking for you to have an open mind," Natasha implored, attempting to maintain a semblance of calm between them. Wanda, visibly vibrating with anger, stood on the precipice of an emotional outburst. Natasha, prepared to weather the onslaught of Wanda's emotions, offered what little solace she could in that moment.

Wanda scoffed at Natasha's plea, "An open mind, you say? How can I have an open mind when I don't even know who you are? We've been dating for months, and I've just realized how little I know about you. I didn't even know who your parents were until now, your birthplace, your story, or even your birthday! Do you understand how messed up that is?"

"Wanda, I'm sorry—," Natasha began, but Wanda cut her off with a surge of frustration.

"No! Your apology means nothing! You're only sorry because you got caught. What if I hadn't run into Yelena and she didn't invite me? Would you continue lying to me?"

Admitting guilt, Natasha pleaded, "Yes, I've omitted important details about myself, but I swear I wouldn't lie to you. Please, you have to trust me."

Wanda, questioned Natasha's sincerity. "How long have you really known me?" The impending revelation filled Wanda with a sense of dread, sensing that the truth might be too hard to understand.

Natasha, resigned, took a seat on the couch, covering her face with her hands. The truth, she knew, would cause a chain reaction of nothing but damage. With a heavy sigh, she confessed, "I've known you since the day you moved into the orphanage."

Wanda felt the breath knocked out of her as she processed the weight of Natasha's revelation—eight years. Natasha knew her for that long and felt uncomfortable with this information.

"You've known me for eight years, we are dating for months now and you never thought to tell me?" Wanda's voice held a mix of betrayal and confusion.

Natasha, grappling with her own choices, responded, "I don't have a reasonable explanation, but believe me, I had planned to tell you."

Wanda, frustrated, demanded answers. "Why keep it a secret for so long? Why did it have to happen this way?"

"Because I was afraid of what your reaction was going to be! I was afraid that you would run off and leave once you knew the truth."

"That's not an excuse, at all! You were just protecting yourself but what about me? You have exposed me to something I have no knowledge about!" Wanda retorted sharply.

"I don't know how and when I was going to say it. I was scared, okay? You were the only good thing that is keeping me going and I don't want to lose you."

Silence.

An eerie silence stood between them and they try to comprehend what was going on at this present time. There's a lot to take in with everything that has just been said, and there is a lot more to tackle.

"What else do you want to tell me?" Wanda implored, eager to uncover every detail Natasha had to share.

Natasha hesitated before revealing, "Mom, Milena, mentioned that you and Pietro were leaving the orphanage for college. I knew it would be challenging as the education provided to you wouldn't meet university standards. So, I found a way to help both of you. I provided letters of recommendation to the universities you applied to. Pietro's went smoothly, but for your university, which had higher standards, I used every resource to ensure your acceptance including a sponsorship to them and it happened. I saw the potential in both of you so I helped."

Wanda couldn't believe what she was hearing. The college application she had diligently worked on was manipulated by someone else to guarantee her entry. She thought she had met every requirement, but now she realised she had been pushed into it without a hitch.

"Are you telling me this to appease me? That you're the reason my application was accepted? Am I supposed to find comfort in that?" Wanda's voice reflected a mix of confusion, frustration, and a sense of betrayal.

"I genuinely wanted to help. I had the means, so I did what I thought was right," Natasha quickly defended herself.

"So you're telling me this was all planned? To weave me into your life? For what? To be manipulated or played with just because you had the power to do it?" Wanda's voice conveyed a mix of disbelief and frustration.

"I'm not playing with you, Wanda."

"But I was a child back then, Natasha! You mean to tell me that you have been watching me since I moved into the orphanage?"

"No, that's not how it was. Whatever it is that you're trying to tell me or thinking is not it. There were no ulterior motives on my part. It was only when I was invited to your university as a guest speaker that I developed an interest in you. You have to believe me. Please." Natasha's explanation carried a sense of urgency, a plea for understanding in the midst of the chaos that had unfolded.

Another silence has enveloped two of them. Only Wanda's heavy breathing and Natasha's sighs echoed in the room.

"I didn't even know your name," Wanda whispered as she sat at the other end of the couch, her words loud enough for Natasha to hear.

"My name is Natalia Alianovna Romanova," Natasha conceded. There was no hiding it now that the truth had been unveiled about their situation.

"Your name is beautiful." Wanda's sincere words hung in the air. Natasha chose not to respond, uncertain about how their relationship would proceed after tonight.

"Feel free to rest on my bed; I'll take the couch. It's been a long day for both of us and you must be tired. Take some time for yourself. If you feel like talking more, we can do it in the morning, only if you're comfortable." Natasha extended the offer, hoping to further open herself to Wanda, one step at a time, as long as Wanda wanted to be with her.

Wanda rose from her seat, heading toward their room, seeking space. Both needed the distance to process what just happened. Wanda desperately wanted to believe in Natasha and her reasons, but her mind was clouded with anger, confusion, and betrayal. To top it all, she's having all these doubts. How could she be certain Natasha wasn't playing with her? Considering the lengths Natasha had gone for her, the possibility of manipulation loomed large.

Sleep was not in store for the two of them. Wanda ended up crying for hours, thinking about Natasha. She loves her so much but could not accept her explanations that easily. She has been bombarded with information however it felt inadequate somehow. This emotional distance was unfamiliar to Wanda, yet within it, she yearned for the comforting warmth Natasha had extended. The desire to crawl to Natasha, to feel the reassurance of her embrace, lingered strongly. But she can't let her longing betray her.

Meanwhile, Natasha decided to have a nightcap because she knew sleep wouldn't come easily. Her thoughts were all over the place, jumping between her past, present, and future. Amidst the uncertainties, one thing remained clear – she couldn't afford to lose Wanda. The younger woman had carved a meaningful space within Natasha, and the desire to keep her close was overwhelming. However, Natasha understood that she couldn't hold onto someone who might want to go. Even though her feelings were strong, Natasha realised that Wanda's well-being was more important than her own.

Natasha started at the moon, just like she used to do when she was younger and asked "Mom, will it get better?"

[manyothermusingsofmine]

Adrift || Drabble

Fandom: Xmen

Warnings: None

Wordcount: 1444 Summary: My friend @shadowphoenixrider fell hard into the world of the Xmen thanks to a certain card-wielding Cajun and it got me speculating what my mutant powers would be and uh.. Meet Mutant Drifting I guess. -----------------------------------------------

There was only one thing you could be certain about at the mansion; weird things tended to happen almost daily. Maybe it was because of that truth that Gambit didn't really look up from his card trick at first when a seemingly floating t-shirt, pair of jeans and some shoes went on by. After the initial double take, red eyes set in black sclera followed the set as it wandered down the hall.

It genuinely seemed like something Morph would pull, but if that were the case they would have made some sort of comment about the look on Gambits face by now. And with Shadow popping out of the danger room, Gambit decided it was probably best to do something about this before these mystery clothes turned out to be something far less benevolent.

"Oi," the tone of his voice just sharp and authoritarian enough to make the unknown entity halt in its movement, "and where do you think you're going?"

"Well, the plan was to look for either Professor Xavier or the scientist around here- I guess you found me first. Didn't see you, there," a lower but still feminine sounding voice replied.

Curiosity got the better of him, which was the only reason Gambit hadn't thrown a charged card their way yet. He was however holding onto one, flitting it between the fingers of his hand in debate on what to do.

"Well, mind turning that invisibility thing of yours off before you do that? You're making people antsy; can’t let you do that on Diable Blanc’s watch."

"Yeah, uhm, that's kind of why I need either of those two."

Hm. Shooting Shadow a glance, it became clear to Gambit that both of them could wager a guess as to what that meant. Shadow also seemed to be staring at this invisible being as if trying to figure out something about it.

"... You don't know how to turn it off, do ya?" Gambit suggested, slightly amused by that turn of events.

"Right on the money, sir. I've got no clue; I've been like this for two days. Some help would be appreciated."

Raising an eyebrow, Gambit looked over at Shadow, who needed another moment to process that the Cajun was offering her up as a solution to this problem

"Chère?"

"Wh- no, thank you. I don't mess with mutant powers, who knows what'll happen."

"Fine. Gambit'll go fetch Rogue, then."

"Good- wait a minute, Rogue?" Shadow asked, immediately halting Gambit in his process of getting ready to leave, "that's quite the overkill option!"

"Do you want their powers off or not?"

"By putting them in a coma? Again, overkill much?!"

"What would ya have me do, punch their lights out instead?"

"No!! Look, can you just go find Charles, or Ha-"

In the middle of this argument, the air between the three people suddenly took on the faintest hint of sulfur; it was the only warning anyone had before Kurt popped into view, having teleported himself over from wherever he had been previously standing. A startled yelp of 'Jesus Christ!' was all that left the invisible one, and as soon as it had left their mouth the spell seemed to have been broken as everything about them reappeared all at once.

It revealed a tall ish, pale woman with wine red hair and green eyes, who was now observing her hands with quiet awe and surprise as she genuinely hadn't seen them in at least forty eight hours.

"Oh, hey, I can see my hands again."

"You can thank me by not using blasphemy this early in the morning, Fraulein," Kurt responded with an easy smile. "Noted. I was raised in a harbor town, I apologize in advance for all the times I will end up being blasphemous."

"Ohh," Shadow chimed in, "it's a startle response. Interesti- Wait. Miranda?!"

"Sup?" 'Miranda' casually responded, throwing up a peace sign as she shifted her weight to her other leg. With her now visible, Gambit took another moment to really take her in. She had somewhat of a pear-shaped body and stood high on her legs, but she was definitely shorter than him. If he had to wager a guess she was somewhere between six to seven inches shorter than him, probably closer to seven. Crossing her arms over her chest, Miranda had an attitude about her as if she shook off a lot of things as they came to her; she didn't seem that perturbed by the looks of either Gambit or Kurt for starters. "You know her, chère?" "Yeah, she's my friend, she works in catering at my old job."

"Worked," Miranda corrected, running her thumb over the edge of her middle fingernail to check it for any dents, "they don't exactly like it when you no show for two days with no explanation, but I couldn't exactly explain 'well I don't know where my limbs went for starters' without being clocked as weird, in serious life threatening danger or possibly a mutant- not even necessarily in that order."

"Pardon me, anyway," Kurt politely interjected as he actually needed the answer to his question, "Gambit, are the two of us still on for that mission tonight?" "Yes, mon ami. Don't keep me waiting, now." "I never do," and with that he left as quickly as he had appeared. Miranda startled once more at the teleportation, her invisibility immediately clicking back on in response. It brought a groan out of her that seemed to come from the deepest recesses of her soul. Shadow just blinked, as Gambit desperately tried to keep himself from laughing at her predicament... and failed. Shadow immediately started shoving at him to get him to move instead of laughing at her friend. "Will you just go get our doctor, Cajun?!" With now just the two of them left, Shadow watched as just the set of clothes leaned on the nearest corridor wall with a sigh. Well, that certainly was an interesting set of abilities and turn of events. And then there was also the matter of... "So, what happened? The first time, you know, where you turned..?"

"The cabinet where I hold my kitchenware decided to give up on life at like, three am. Scared me half to death but as soon as I figured it was just something in my apartment that broke and, you know, not some intruder I went back to sleep intending on dealing with whatever it was the next morning. Next morning comes, and all I see when I tossed a look in my wardrobe mirror is my pajamas looking back with me. For a second I wonder if I got down with a bout of fucking vampirism, only to then realise I don't see my hands, or really anything but my clothes when I look down either. And then I figured it's probably some superpower thing and I'm better off looking for someone to fix it." "And your first instinct was to find the X-men Mansion?!" "It was that or Stark Tower; I decided to try my luck with the building least likely to vaporize me with its home security system as soon as I step on the porch."

"You're incredibly lucky Logan isn't here, then. That said; Gambit got close."

"Then I'll thank him for not vaporizing me on the spot when he gets back." Despite not being able to see her, Shadow swore she could feel that Miranda was staring at her trying to figure something out. It's not exactly easy to shake the feeling that someone is watching you, whether visible or not. "What?" "You, and Gambit?" "Are just friends," Shadow immediately snapped in return, frowning at the light scoff coming from her invisible friend. "Uhuh." "Don't you take that tone with me when it took less than five seconds of you being visible to see that you were looking at Nightcrawler." "Lord forbid the plush toy granted sentience piques my interest in any way." "Look," Shadow replied exasperated, "How about we both stop talking about this for a while?!" "Deal." What was meant to be a pleasant silence was quickly interrupted when Gambit reappeared, somehow without Beast in tow to which Shadow frowned. "Gambit, I thought I told you to-" "Not to worry!" the voice of Beast coming from up high and behind Miranda, startling her back to visible as she had her attention pointed the opposite way to Shadow and Gambit, "I am here to offer assistance." "I told him to sneak up on her, it seems to work," Gambit dryly remarked. "Fucking hell, there's got to be an easier way to turn me back than this!"