#give me gray coasts

[huanted-dennys]

My warm ups for the last few days

This time it’s mermaid au themed

siren?

idk take em

I love the idea of bored out of his mind Jazz

also thalassophobic Jazz

[compacflt]

Dude you should be so so so so so proud, literally one of the best pieces I've ever read. It's the angst and complex characterization of Baldwin's Giovanni's Room meets the research behind The Alienist (the book, obvi- haven't actually seen the show yet). I adore how you maintained the characters' personal values even though I don't like them most of the time, and I now know way too much about the military in general because I would wikipedia something every third sentence. (Also thanks for that because coincidentally I'm working on a research project on how low-level fighter jet training affects marine animal behaviour, and I actually passed my first oral with flying colours because of the random knowledge I have acquired while reading/because of your fic.) That being said, I desperately want a physical copy on my bookshelf- would you ever feel comfortable distributing one or letting us go get it printed professionally? If not, I totally understand and am more than happy with what we have access to now! Seriously, thank you- it's incredible.

thank you thank you thank you for the ask!! just gonna answer by point

1. i am very proud!!! just extremely editorbrained ie have been trying to fix all the flaws for the last two months straight, and now all i see are problems & flaws that i couldn’t fix…. you guys should see my hard copy of this fic every single page is basically black with pencil. just ripped it to shreds. it’s just a writer thing i think, i am my own worst critic :(

2. if by personal values you mean political opinions … I wish it were like socially acceptable to post my extremely in-depth headcanons about random shit like this because i am so deep in it that i literally wrote out ice and mav’s voting records since 1980. Tldr: conservaDems. registered R but consistently vote D. mav would vote libertarian if his husband weren’t standing over him threatening divorce. after 1/6/21 change their registration to D & are basically just neolib shills. only reason they don’t vote obama in 2008 is that mccain was a navy vet.

3. thank you for the compliment but i am literally BEGGING you guys not to take anything i say/claim in this fic about the military to be true. there are certainly elements of the truth but many of the details i literally just made up. or altered to make plot sense (see IRST discussion ch 9, IRST was SUGGESTED by Boeing in 2007/8, not implemented until 2010ish). so much of the plot simply would not happen in real life. i can make a whole post about this sometime if people are interested cause there is actually so much I could say about real life accuracy in this fic/implications of real life shit…

4. no way???? that research project sounds so interesting??? congrats on passing ur oral!! idk what that means but congrats!!!! coincidentally i am also working on a research project—it’s why i have to stop working on this fic at some point. my senior research thesis is a novel about USAF CSAR chopper pilots so ive been doing so much research over the last 5 months… but about the USAF not the USN. my navy research HAS helped though. so maybe it’s a mutually reciprocal relationship :) i would love to hear more about ur project!!!

[moonstruckme]

hi lovely! can i request sirius taking care of sick reader?? where he's really sweet like total fluff!!

have a good day/night!!

Hey gorgeous, thanks for requesting! Hope you have a good day/night as well <3

Sirius Black x fem!reader ♡ 940 words

“Can I just say,” Sirius says, leaning against the bathroom wall, “that this is the grossest thing I’ve ever seen. It’s a testament to your hotness that I’m still attracted to you right now.” 

You laugh, and it makes a bit of water come out of your nose, splattering into the sink. Though the bathroom mirror is fogged up from the hot shower you’ve just sat in, you have an idea of what you look like right now, and you’re inclined to agree that it’s a miracle anyone could find you attractive like this. 

You’re wearing the same bathrobe you’ve been in all day plus a fabric headband to keep your half-damp, frizzy hair away from your face as you bend over the sink, trying to flush out your sinuses with salt water. Your face is flushed and dry, your lips chapped, and your nose turned an agitated color from tissue overuse. 

“Are you sure?” you ask Sirius, taking another tissue from the nearly empty box. “You could leave me, I wouldn’t blame you.” 

You blow your nose. It makes a gratifying, horrendous sound, and Sirius’ mouth pinches. 

“Charming,” he mutters, but moves closer to you. “No, I’m afraid I’m in for the long haul, sweetness. After I catch whatever it is you have, no one will have me anyway.” 

“A cold,” you remind him, wincing as you wipe your raw nose. 

“Sure.” You don’t turn around, but you can practically feel the uplifted eyebrow directed at your back. “You done with this part for now?” 

You hum, letting Sirius take you back to bed with a hand curled in the fuzzy material of your robe. For someone who gripes about how sick he’s going to get so often, he sure hasn’t been holding back on the physical contact this past week. He pushes you down onto your bed, settling in beside you. 

“I know it’s good for your snot or whatever,” he says, low enough you think he might be talking to himself, “but I don’t like you sitting in that hot shower when you’ve still got a fever. I’m freaked you’re gonna pass out on the bathroom floor, and we both know my reaction time isn’t quick enough to keep you from cracking your head on the tile.” 

“I’m not gonna pass out,” you sigh, though you do let your eyes slip closed, succumbing to the exhaustion that seems to find you every time you stop moving since you’ve been sick. 

“Mm,” Sirius hums discontentedly. You hear him twisting the cap off of something, and when you open your eyes he’s reaching for your face. You stay perfectly still as he cups your cheek in one hand to steady himself, using the other to smear vaseline onto your chapped nose. 

You sniffle. “I could do this myself,” you say quietly. 

“Obviously,” Sirius murmurs, “but I haven’t been much help, so let me have something to feel like I’m contributing, okay? I promise I’ll ask you to do tons more when it’s my turn to lay around.” 

“You made me soup.” 

“That was a box mix, babe. When I’m sick, I’m going to want chicken noodle made from scratch.” 

You want to point out that chicken noodle soup isn’t all that difficult to make, but you stay quiet. 

You wonder if Sirius can feel your heartbeat with his pinkie tucked under your jaw like this, if you’re giving yourself away. It’s always nerve-wracking having someone this beautiful look at you, worse when you know you’re not exactly at your most winsome yourself. But Sirius’ touch is nothing short of adoring as he soothes the cold jelly onto the burning parts of your nose. He’s looking at you with a tenderness you wouldn’t have been able to picture when you first met him and yet suits him perfectly, gray eyes gone soft and quiet like the sky after a storm. 

They flicker up to you, catching something in your own expression. “What’s wrong?” 

What’s wrong is the unbelievable fondness of his thumb as it coasts down your cheek, the way he blows lightly on your freshly moisturized skin once he’s done with the vaseline, cooling it. The gesture is half teasing and half sincere, evidence of a thoughtfulness he doesn’t often show and almost never admits to. You think that if you were to tell James the other boy would probably bug your room with cameras to try and catch it on film. 

Sirius brushes a piece of hair behind his ear. “Does something else hurt, baby?” 

“My eyes,” you whisper, pressing your fingertips to the skin underneath your eyes to show him. You can actually feel your sinuses crackling when you apply pressure. “They sort of ache.” 

He makes a terribly lovely cooing sound, stroking your cheek and bending to press a kiss to your forehead. “Be right back,” he promises you. 

You close your eyes as he goes into the bathroom. There’s not much point in keeping them open when your boyfriend’s not here to admire. You hear cabinet doors opening, the faucet running, and then your mattress dips again. 

“Keep your eyes closed,” Sirius murmurs, settling a warm rag over your eyes. 

You sigh, the relief is so instant, and you hear him chuckle quietly. 

“God, I love you,” you say. 

“That feels rather conditional,” he replies. “Would you love anyone who warmed up rags for you and made soup out of a box?” 

“I think the real question is, could I love someone who I say ‘I love you’ to and they don’t say it back?” 

“Fickle.” Soft lips press to your cheek. “Love you, sweetheart.” 

[doctor-dusk]

𝐛𝐚𝐛𝐲, 𝐰𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐭𝐨… 𝐟𝐮𝐜𝐤 | 𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐱 𝐭.

what would a musician be without his inspiring muse? 

warnings: soft dom!alex, smut, oral (both receiving), bit of anal playing, spitting, unprotected sex (piv). i think that's all, folks.

word count: 4.1k

i wrote most of this last year on a crowded bus on my way back from college, an old lady gave me a dirty look, but it's worth it. probably the dirtiest smut i've ever written so far because i was bored with my job today. hope you enjoy it :3

you had just gotten out of the shower. the skin of your shoulders and chest was still wet and the scent of grapefruit soap still perfumed the bathroom when you left the room amid a thin curtain of steam from the warm water. alex found it funny that you loved warm showers, even though it was almost forty degrees outside. you were wrapped in a dark gray cotton bathrobe, your hair was wrapped in a towel of the same color and you were drying your face with a white face towel. 

you noticed that alex was in exactly the same position since the last glimpse you had of him before entering the bathroom. he was sitting in a position that was not very comfortable visually speaking, wearing only moss green cargo shorts. his head was resting on his right hand, which held a pencil with a worn tip between his fingers, while his left hand was busy with a half-smoked cigarette, which released a thin curtain of smoke that escaped through the open window in front of him, his guitar resting on his lap, untouchable. 

he had been staring at the page of his notebook for almost twenty minutes. there were a few scribbles on the corners, loose words, but nothing that formed a sentence, much less something that made sense to him.

you tilted your head to see his face, seeing that his eyes were closed now, his hair, which was usually combed back, falling over his forehead, with some of the ends of the strands tickling his lowered eyelids. you gave a weak smile, hanging the face towel on the window and standing behind him, taking advantage of the exposed left side of his neck to give him a little kiss.

‘’what's up, huh?’’ you asked, giving him another little kiss and feeling his skin shiver with the contact of your lips.

‘’it’s all crap.’’ he grumbled, dropping the pencil on the table and straightening his posture, feeling you raise your hands to massage his shoulders. ‘’you know when you really want to write something, you have the idea in your head, but you just…’’ he said, his tone frustrated as he held the guitar. you knew alex well enough to know that he already felt this way before you even asked. you knew his frown, his sullen voice, his strong drag on his cigarette as if he were breathing the air with anger, and maybe he was.

‘’i know.” you answered in an understanding tone, letting your fingers massage the tense and stiff muscles in his shoulders. “but you’ll make it, you always do. you have a mini genius inside you who can think of the most incredible lyrics in the world in the blink of an eye.” you continued encouraging him, lightly tapping his forehead, watching him shake his head subtly.

“well, guess what: this genius is probably on vacation and i didn’t know about it.” turner replied. for a second, you liked to think that alex really did have a miniature of himself in his head, and that at the moment he was just wearing a pair of swim trunks while sunbathing on some paradisiacal beach on the italian coast. “or he must have died, i don’t know.” he finished with another mumble, leaving the guitar leaning against the wall next to it, standing upright and without any risk of falling.

‘’oh, you're so dramatic, turner.’’ you laughed, dragging his last name because of your accent. ‘’you just need some time. maybe relax. you demand too much of yourself.’’

“you know i've always been like this.” he replied, taking one last drag of his cigarette before putting it out by rubbing the butt on the wooden window frame. you've lost count of how many marks there were on the window frame from rubbing the butts of his cigarettes, but you never complained to him.

alex picked up the pencil again, pressing the end of the eraser to his cheek, glancing at the moment you walked around the chair, making a little space to sit on his lap. he felt the scent of the soap a little more intensely on your body, especially when you wrapped both arms around his neck.

alex liked it when you did that without warning, and you liked it even more. you liked the way he wrapped his long arms around you, letting his big hand wander around your waist, following the path further south and leaving it positioned on the warm skin of your left thigh, gently patting it in a caressing manner.

even though he was stuck in his little musical world, he didn't stop giving you the attention you deserved, even if it was just a little. but you knew he wouldn't be able to do anything now, not being so tense.

you had an idea, laying your head on top of his head, since the position you were in favor of the fact that you were sitting a little higher on his lap. you smelled the faint scent of shampoo in his hair, sliding your nose over his scalp, going down a little to kiss his temple, and then his cheek, and then his jaw. you kissed him as far as your mouth could reach, feeling his skin in contact with your lips and feeling the muscle in his cheek contract as he gave a small smile.

‘’what do you think you're doing, huh?’’ he asked, tilting his head a little to the left so he could look at you, but you were more focused on continuing to trail your kisses down his body, each kiss going down proportionally to the point that you had to get off his lap to get between his legs. ‘’you're distracting me, y’know?’’ he pretended to grumble in protest, but you knew him well enough to know that he was far from angry or bored by the fact that you were doing this.

“that's the intention.” you answered with a slightly muffled voice because you were kissing his belly now, letting your fingers slide over the skin of his abdomen in a slowly torturous way to reach the button of his shorts. not even if alex wanted to, he would be able to hide the shiver he felt with this simple act.

“you're crazy.” he laughed, now lightly nibbling the eraser on the tip of the pencil, his eyes not leaving your figure kneeling in front of him for even a second. it was almost majestic for him to see you like that, at an angle he loved, by the way.

“for you? of course.” he heard you retort in the same tone, feeling you unbutton his shorts and lower the zipper with one hand, while the other was resting on his knee. “but you like it.”

“i didn’t say i didn’t like it.” he said, dropping the pencil on the desk at the exact moment your hand reached the hem of his underwear, letting your fingers curl around the elastic to threaten to pull it down.

but you did it so slowly that it actually hurt him. by now, he was already throbbing just at the thought of feeling your hand wrap around him, or feeling your tongue play with the tip, or simply feeling every inch of him burying himself inside you. it awakened unbearable agony in him.

“you're such a twat.” he said through gritted teeth, squeezing the edge of the desk with his fingers. you raised an eyebrow as you feigned offense, threatening to stop. ‘’no, no, love, i didn't mean that, it's just…’’ he said in a frustrated tone with himself, watching you laugh and lower the piece again enough for his cock to practically jump out.

you saw how impossibly hard he was, with some veins marked all over his length, from the base to the beginning of the tip, which by the way was already merely lubricated with precum. it seemed to be calling your name, totally ready to let you wrap your hand around it and swallow it to the last inch, whether with your mouth or with your cunt.

you didn't waste time, you were as eager as he was. your tongue slid deliciously over the tip, tasting him and watching him suck in air forcefully between his teeth. it was as addictive and tasty as the sight you had of him, feeling his hand grab the back of your head, guiding your swollen lips to start swallowing him slowly.

as much as he had that urgency to see you choke on his cock, he could be content with feeling your warm mouth envelop the tip, your delicate hand stayed around the base, pumping slowly and gently and holding it firmly to make him erect as he entered more on your mouth. 

turner was already starting to feel the slight spasms with the vibration of your throat on his cock when you let out a muffled moan. he’s not the kind of guy who is a fan of advance warnings, because when you least expected it, you felt him bucking his hips, making you feel him deep in your throat, which made you cough. he moaned shamelessly when you pulled your head away to get some air, playing with his tip with your tongue, giving it kittenish licks from every possible angle before putting him back in my mouth, swallowing him again without him having to move again.

“oh, so fucking good…” he groaned, letting his head fall back, delighting in the feeling of your warm mouth wrapping around his cock, taking him deeper, feeling your throat closing around the tip. he felt his senses overwhelmed, every fiber of his body contracting as your tongue swirled around his pulsing length.

he looked down at you at some point, your eyes locked on his, he couldn't even try to explain how crazy he went when you looked at him like this, hypnotizing him with your warm mouth and enigmatic eyes, wide like cherry pies.

“such a good girl for me. you're going to make me want to put composition aside to fuck you.” he growled, his fist closing around the towel wrapped on your head.

“you say that like it's a bad thing.’’ you pouted, kissing his tip several times and he chuckled, moving his hand to run his thumb on your cheek, looking tenderly at you.

“baby, you know i love fucking you. really.” he purred, holding his cock and gesturing for you to open your mouth, tapping his shaft on your tongue, the slapping sound adding to the pleasure of both. ‘’love feeling your mouth, your tongue, your pussy clenching around my cock…’’ he continued, his words sending slight jolts of lust through your body. he always knew what to say to make you even wetter.

‘’mhm, so we should fuck, y'know?’’ you said, swirling your tongue around his tip, your eyes pleading for him. you said that like you hadn't already fucked that morning.

‘’we should.’’ he agreed with you, pulling the towel from your head, massaging your scalp, the damp strands of your hair tangled in his fingers. ‘’stand up and turn around.’’ he said in a gentle order, patting your neck lightly.

you giggled, obeying him without a second thought, standing up and turning on your heels, the open window overlooking the deserted street was all you had. could there be people passing by or neighbors who might appear at their apartment windows at any moment? possibly.

but you didn't care much about that as you felt alex untying the knot of your robe while standing behind you, you could feel his hard cock rubbing against your thigh as he made you bend over the desk, your bare tits pressing on top of his notebook. the rough paper pages combined with alex's hands holding the hem of your robe makes your nipples harden, the cotton fabric reached halfway down your back, your lower body exposed to him like a full meal.

“you smell so good.” he hummed, dragging his nose over the skin of your left buttock as if he were snorting coke, your soft skin and your refreshing post-shower scent made him want to melt all over you. he was completely crazy about you.

“it's because i took a shower.” you laughed, feeling his teeth sinking into your skin as if he wanted to take a bite, and he would do that if he could. he could devour you and not waste a thing.

“nah. just your natural scent. and a bit of grapefruit.” he hummed, his large hands gripping your buttcheeks, separating them to reveal your two puckering holes, your cunt already drooling, needing him to take care of it.

his mouth watered at the sight as his cock throbbed in need. he didn't think twice or wait for you to beg for him, his tongue was already darting out to taste you, collecting your slimy juices, feeling that his guts were being blessed by your taste, like a sweet nectar.

you gasped softly, your forehead resting on the rigid wood desk, his tongue molding between your slick folds as the tip of his nose tickled your asshole, making it gap at the slightest touch. the wet muscle made its way upwards, sinking into your needy hole, going as far as he could, holding your buttocks tightly to keep them apart.

you muffled your moans as he fucked you with his tongue, biting your arm to prevent some loud moaning. his tongue moved up just a bit, licking your perineum just to tease your tight hole, circling the spot with the tip of his tongue, making you squirm.

“too bad we're out of lube.” he sighed, more to himself than to you. he knew you still could try it just like this, lubricating you with lots of spit and stretch you with his fingers until you were relaxed enough to accommodate his cock, but he didn't want to risk hurting you and consequently never wanting to try again. 

you chuckled softly, remembering that you're indeed out of lube. alex ended up overdoing it last time because he felt like it was never enough. or maybe he just liked to see how easily he could fuck you from behind, seeing how his cock disappeared inside your hole that was tighter and warmer than your pussy.

“maybe next time?” you suggested, feeling the tip of his tongue threatening to enter, the sensation almost overwhelming you. 

“yeah. i'll remember to buy the whole supply of lube next time i stop by the drugstore.” he said, giving you one last lick, one of his hands went down to stroke his cock lightly, he was hard as a rock at this point, aching to be inside you. his internal struggle with music could wait a bit.

alex's right hand spread your right ass cheek while his left hand guided his cock to your entrance, playing a bit with you, his tip threatening to enter, making a small “pop” when he pulled back. you were about to complain about it, but your unspoken words disappeared when he eased inside you, his thick cock filling every space as if it was molded especially for you.

“oh fuck, yes…” you gasped, your hands closing into fists on the edges of the desk, your knuckles turning white as he bottomed out slowly, pulling back until he saw his tip, slamming back inside your cunt again.

“fucking love this pussy, did i tell you that already?” he groaned, lifting your leg so you could bend more on the desk, allowing him to bury his cock deeper inside your clenching walls. 

“everyday.” you said. you almost smiled at the thought if he wasn't picking up his pace gradually, your mind and body filled by him and only him. his fingers gripping the flesh of your ass cheeks, leaving a red mark upon their wake. 

alex collected a small amount of saliva on his mouth, angling his head to spat directly on your asshole, watching how it slided, coating his cock as he moved in and out of you at a frantic pace, the desk hitting the wall with each violent thrust. 

he couldn't help but brought his thumb there, circling the tight ring teasingly, threatening to go in a little bit more and more, until the tip of his thumb went through, stretching you just a little, but it was enough to make you gasp and clench more around him.

“do you like that, hmm? do you like having your holes filled by me?" he growled when he reached your ear, his thumb sinking deeper into your hole until his knuckle, making you squirm even more, whining in pleasure as you nodded, the idea of letting him take you from behind like this didn't sound so bad even with the lack of lube. “dirty little thing.”

you brought your hand to your clit, your eager fingers trying to build the pleasure faster as your body heated up, like there's an inferno inside you. but no, it was alex. just alex.

alex notices your subtle moves between your legs, his thumb abandoning your gaping hole to grab your wrist, pinning it behind your back, holding it tightly with his other free hand.

“no. only i can do this.” he said, his voice sounding demanding and authoritative despite the husky tone. it wasn't like you couldn't touch yourself, but he loved the idea of touching you, of being the only reason you're completely destroyed after he's done with you. he wanted to be everything to you and do everything for you.

your hand was replaced by his, his fingers already coated with your wetness when he rubbed against your folds, feeling the outline of his cock sliding in and out of you, filling you to the brim and even making you stand on the tip of your toes.

“a-alex, i'm gonna cum, please…” you panted, almost passing out, he was taking you so hard, like he was angry or frustrated with you. yeah, he was frustrated, but not with you. never with you.

“yeah, i know, baby.” he whispered, rubbing your clit sloppily because of the position, but still making you go crazy with his movements, hitting that sweet spot inside you over and over again, determined to reduce you to a crying mess as you came on his cock and your body collapses onto the desk. 

in no time, the feeling of orgasm hits you hard, your whole body lost all strength and you felt the knot in your stomach undoing abruptly, your breath completely disappearing for a few seconds, replaced by a moan that was almost a scream.

contrary to what you thought, he didn't stop there. firstly, you didn't even know why you thought he would stop. he never stops after your first orgasm.

he flipped you over, slipping out of you just to fill you up again, not even giving you time to open your eyes to look at him, forcing your sore pussy to accommodate his veiny and angry cock once again.

“too cockdrunk already?” he smirks at your wrecked state, making you rest your calves on his shoulders. you didn't even need to answer him, even because you could barely form coherent words.

he continued at the same intensity while you tried to escape because you were already crying and didn't know if you could handle the overstimulation he was giving you, your legs wobbly like jelly failing on his sides, being supported by his forearms since his hands were gripping your thighs, preventing you from running away or closing your legs.

“come for me again, darlin’. i know you can do it.” alex said to you, his voice sounding like a rough melody as his face came close to yours, placing kisses along your jaw. 

and again, another orgasm consumed you in a much more intense way, your cervix hurt and you felt that you're so aroused and wet that it was already running down your legs as you cried out.

“so pretty.” he praised you, his index finger strolling through your half-open lips, passing through them and entering your mouth, pressing on your tongue. “wider.” he commanded, putting more pressure on your tongue with his finger, forcing you to open your mouth wider.

he took his finger out of your mouth, squeezing your face with his firm hand as he spat inside your mouth, hitting your tongue and the back of your throat. it didn't catch you by surprise, actually. it just turned you on, even if you were already at the height of your sensitivity.

“swallow.” he tapped your cheek, allowing you to swallow it without even thinking, opening your mouth and sticking your tongue out just to show him that you did it. “good fucking girl.” he said proudly, his cock twitching at your submissive side, teetering the edge. “fuck, 'm gonna cum, baby. where do you want?”

“inside me.” you answered without thinking twice. it wasn't like you didn't like it when he came on your face or in your mouth or on your tits. but you liked the primal feeling of him spilling all his cum inside you. he chuckled darkly.

“greedy. want my cum all to yourself?” he asked and you nodded, finding the strength to lock your legs around him as he picked up his pace slightly, chasing his own release after making you cum twice. 

“you know that i love it when you fill me up.” you whispered, propping yourself up on your elbows to reach his bottom lip, nibbling it gently as he grabbed you, holding you close as his head sank into the curve of your neck.

“oh fuck, f-fuck…” he choked on his own words as he came inside you, spilling jets his seed deep inside your cunt to the point that it leaked out, staining your legs and your bathrobe. “jesus fucking…” he paused, catching his breath as the last remnants leave his body to fill you. “christ.”

you finally could let your body dismantle on the desk, your head resting on the window sill, your blurry vision trying to get used to the view of the blue sky on that particularly sunny afternoon. 

“you good?” he asked you, still buried deep inside you, giving you sweet kisses along your stomach. 

“always good with you.” you smiled at him when he reached your chest, resting his head on your left boob, listening to the rapid beating of your heart. 

“you just gave me an idea, y'know?” he whispered to you, his warm and ragged breathing tickling your skin. “my beautiful inspiring muse. don't know what would become of me without you.”

“you flatter me.” you chuckled, running your hand through his messy hair, his sweaty scalp moistened the tips of your fingers. 

“just telling the truth.” he chuckled along with you, his pretty and wide eyes looking at you in awe. “i love you.” he whispered again, as if he was sharing a secret that only you needed to know.

you looked back at him, taking the sight of his face so close to yours. you were looking at him with that loving gaze while you felt the blood flow increase in your veins because your heart was beating too fast. but it was impossible not to have that feeling when looking at his slightly contorted mouth as he absentmindedly bit the inside of his cheek, his cheekbones were flushed and his eyes again took on that slightly greenish brown hue when the light reflected off them in that underexposure of colors that matched the ebony of his hair unruly now without the hair gel.

yeah, you loved him too.

“i love you too.” you answered him, seeing the smile forming on his lips, the corners of his eyes getting a bit wrinkly. you loved these little features of him. 

he leaned in to kiss you, his body moved and consequently his soft cock slipped out of you, you both groaning softly at the disconnection. but the kiss made it better. 

“i’ll have to take another shower.” you mumbled between his lips when you felt his cum running out of you, running down your thighs. he chuckled, it wasn't like you're complaining, much less that he had regretted it. “when will you work on your idea?”

he pretended to think, his lips still sealed in yours.

“after the shower.” he blowed some air inside your mouth like he was inflating a balloon. you laughed, rolling your eyes. he always played these stupid pranks on you, but you loved it. 

“will you join me?" you asked with raised eyebrows.

“only if you have me.” 

you didn't have to answer him.

[heavysighing-dreamyeyes]

On Muddied Stones

Part Three of this pirate!au. Stubborn, self-sacrificing love because sometimes we don't realize what's best for the people you love is you. 18+ warning, beginnings of smut that gets cut off, MDNI. Angst and a bit of a cliffhanger. ~2.5k words

Your husband guides you into the store, smiling easily as he leads you towards a mannequin, "Welcome to Vixen's. Mari is the best at what she does."

You tilt your head curiously, "And pirates would know which seamstresses are the best?"

He laughs a little, "She is the best designer, treasure, you'll see," and he lowers his voice to lean down and whisper, "But she's also the best weapons smuggler on this coast."

"Oh," you murmur, surprise pitching in your voice.

He grins widely at you and pulls your hand up to kiss your fingers, "Pick out anything you want, love, I'll be right back." You watch quietly for a moment as he steps away and disappears behind a curtain leading to the back of the store.

You start to busy yourself by picking over materials and colors of the displayed clothes, eventually settling on a dark gray, cotton cloak with a hood. It will suit the purpose of blending in with a crowd. You fidget with the material between your fingers, lost in thought.

"Is that all you picked?" Jason's voice draws you to attention and your gaze flicks to his.

"It's all I needed," You tell him, eyes trailing to the women gracefully walking out from behind the curtain. She gives you a knowing smile and a wave.

"Ah, I figured as much. Mari will have some things sent to the ship for you," he says idly, taking the cloak from your hands.

"Things?" You question, "But I don't need–"

"You do need, my love," Jason cuts in, gently pulling the cloak around your shoulders and fastening the clasp. "I took you to my ship with nothing but the clothes on your back. Allow me to remedy that, and have things of your own brought to our cabin."

He leans forward and presses a kiss to the crown on your head, then draws the hood up, voice fond, "A perfect fit. Do you like it?"

"I do, thank you," you answer softly, and you find yourself leaning into his touch.

"Good, I'm glad you approve, darling," Jason says, tracing his thumb over your cheek affectionately, "I would keep you like this forever, if I could, but I believe we have more things on your list to buy."

"Don't we have to pay?" You ask, eyes darting over to Mari, who offers you a sly smile and a wink.

"All taken care of," Jason answers, nodding to Mari as he takes your hand, leading you back out onto the streets. "Shall we get your hair pins next, my love?"

"I– yes," You mumble, reeling slightly at how sweet this is. How much of your husband you still recognize in the man most people fear. It makes guilt coil in your stomach, at the thought that you've been planning to leave. But how much can a few weeks of kindness make up for years of separation?

He squeezes your hand, and leads you along to a stall with a variety of scarves and pins and handkerchiefs, "Here, treasure. Take your time."

You pick over the hair pins slowly, selecting three. A simple, glossy black pin. A shiny silver pin, dotted with glistening red gems. And pin engraved with a golden snake, its eyes made of piercing green emeralds.

"And this one," your husband says, holding up a pin with a rose etched from silver.

You falter, "Our gardens had roses. You planted them after we got married."

"Aye, I remember," he says fondly, and carefully sets the pin in your hair. He nods in approval and digs a few coins out of his leather pouch, dropping it in the vendor's hand, all without taking his eyes from you, "You look beautiful."

He steps closer to you, guides you to his body with his hands on your hips, "So beautiful. I always remembered you in our garden. Surrounded by flowers, petals in your hair. I'd imagine children running past your skirts, a babe in your arms. And your laughter. Always you smiling." He's rambling, his voice gentle as he leans down to press a kiss to your shoulder.

You exhale shakily at the thought of children, "It's a shame we can't have a garden on the ship."

He laughs and nuzzles your throat for a moment before pulling back, "Mm. Yes, treasure, a shame. I could build you a new garden, a little place to keep your flowers. Would you like that?"

You blink at him, and the pins in your pocket feel heavy. You're keenly aware of the rose in your hair. You feel your voice come out unsteady, because you've always been able to see that life with him, "What about your ship and crew?"

He lifts your hand to press a kiss to your knuckles, "My ship will be fine. My crew is more than capable of keeping her afloat. And I've enough gold to keep us comfortable for the rest of our and our children's lives."

You're not exactly sure what to do with that, "I guess raising children on a pirate ship might not be the best environment," You murmur and your eyes fix on a merchant's caravan for a moment.

He laughs, his hand settling on the small of your back to lead you to the next stall, "We can have both love. A few weeks at sea, a few in your garden. There's nothing I wouldn't give you. Now, books next, darlin'? Something to fill your lovely head and the ship's library?"

"The ship has a library?" You ask curiously, wondering if you had missed it when you were exploring his ship.

"I'm having one built," he drawls, like it's nothing at all.

"You're- What? Where?" You stumble out, trying to figure where there could possibly be room on the ship for a library.

"In one of the storage rooms, treasure, it wasn't being used anyway. Ah, here we are," Jason nudges you towards a vendor with more books than you've ever seen, effectively ending your line of questioning, "Pick out whatever catches your eye. I'll be right back."

He presses a kiss to your cheek, and you watch as he lazily heads over to women selling baskets.

You hastily pick out the first book that looks interesting, and Jason raises an eyebrow at you when he strolls back to your side, "Only one book, love?"

"Just one is fine," You answer, reaching to take the basket.

He moves the basket from your reach, "Pick out a few more, darlin'. You're not being greedy. It'll be good to have something to do at sea, right?"

He watches you closely as you nod, and go to pick out two more books a little more carefully, "Good. Now pick out two more."

You frown, "This is enough."

"Two more, treasure," he says softly, reaching for the three books in your hands. He pulls them from you gently and sets them in the basket, "go on."

He hums in approval when you pick out two more novels, and he drops coins in the old vendor's hands. He takes the books from you, "Very good, love. What did you want next?"

"That was everything," You answer quietly.

He smiles brightly, "Then, there's a bakery I'd like to show you. They have croissants, love, with chocolate on the inside. But, first," he says, mischief glinting in his eyes as he leads you away from the marketplace, and into an empty alley.

He places the basket on the cobblestones and gently pushes your hood back, admiring your face as you watch him with confused eyes, "What are we doing, Jason?"

"This," he mumbles, pressing a firm kiss to your lips. It catches you off guard, and he kisses you again and again until you're both panting, "so perfect, my treasure." He trails kisses up to your ear, nipping at your skin, "so clever and lovely and sweet."

"Jason," You protest as he starts to lift your skirts. He hums softly, kissing your throat as he turns you around to face the wall, pressing his stiffening cock to your backside.

"Jason," You try again as he traces his fingers up your thighs, exploring and relearning what makes you shiver.

"You're trembling," he notes, pressing more kisses along your neck, "Don't worry, love, I've got you."

"Someone could see," You mumble, eyes darting as you brace a hand against the wall, his weight behind you making you unsteady.

"Let them," he says simply, and the sound of his belt clinking makes you tense.

"Jason– wait, I–" You stumble out and he freezes, fingers stilling against your thighs and mouth leaving your skin, "I feel like a whore."

He makes a choked noise and drops your skirts, turning you back around with panic in his eyes, "Love, no, I would never– the last thing I want in the world is to make you feel that way. You're my partner, not some wench," he says your name, strangled and pained, "I love you. I swear it. I wasn't planning to– this was the first secluded spot I could think of, treasure. All I ever think of is how much I want you by my side. This wasn't supposed to hurt you. I never want to hurt you."

"I'm not hurt," You mumble, embarrassment and unease settling in your stomach as you avoid his eyes.

"Love," he breathes out, "I'm sorry."

"Don't be," You say quickly, adjusting your clothes and cloak, "I– this is what your life is, isn't it? Danger and thrills and all that comes with being a pirate."

He frowns, reaching for you, starts to say your name. "Will you take me to the pastry shop?" You cut him off instead.

He studies you, concern and apologies written clear on his face. He then nods slowly, and bends down to pick up the basket filled with your books, "This isn't– treasure, I've only ever been with you. You know that, right?"

You nod, "I know."

Jason doesn't quite look like he believes you, but offers you his hand hesitantly. You don't miss the way his shoulders drop in relief when you take it, "The bakery, then," he says gently, leading you slowly through the winding alleys and back onto the streets lined with stores.

"Jason," You call, pausing outside an expensive looking shop.

His gaze snaps to you immediately, voice eager yet careful, "Yes, love?"

You gesture to the store, "They sell rings."

His eyes light up and he steps closer to you, "You want me to buy you a ring, love?" He exhales softly when you nod, and he lifts your hand to kiss your wrist.

"Can I wait out here? With the books? I'd like to sit on the bench. And, ah, be surprised by what you pick," You say, drawing out your words.

"Of course, darling. Anything," he agrees easily, immediately guiding you to the bench and placing the basket next you. "I won't be long." He hesitates again, before bending down placing a tender kiss to your cheek.

You watch as he disappears into the store, and every fiber of your being knows this is your only chance. If you're ever going to leave, to let him go so both of you can move on, now is all you're ever going to get.

It makes you sick with guilt, thinking of the way he looks at you with adoration, but he's in love with a memory of the past. He should be focused on his future. He's a pirate lord now, and he has a full life, a new family, and new adventures where you don't fit.

To tie him to a life of flower-filled gardens when you've seen first hand how much he loves the salt and sea, is something you could never do.

You stand on shaky feet. You leave the basket of books on the bench, you take the hair pins. Jason will look for you. His crew will look for you. He might even think you've been kidnapped. So, you have to be clever. You've always been clever.

You force a practiced, perfect smile to your face, one you've worn for the past two years around Gotham's finest nobles. You approach a young woman, "Excuse me, Miss? I love your cloak, would you want to trade it for mine?"

She looks surprised, but when her eyes dart over you and lock on the insignia engraved on the fastening of your cloak, she seems much more interested, "Oh? That's– a cloak from Vixen's?" You nod innocently, and she smiles greedily, "yes, let's trade."

You both unpin your cloaks, and as you walk away, drawing the light gray material over your head, you hear her chirp about how naive people from outside Star City are, how they don't appreciate how hard it is to get any clothes by Mari.

You have to be fast. You've learned how to be fast, to disappear into crowded streets during the years Jason was gone. It's not long before you're standing in front of an elderly man ticking off items on a list. "Sir?"

He looks up at you kindly, but looks can be so deceiving. It's a risk you're willing to take, you decide, and force back the thoughts that it's unfair to be testing your husband in this way. You hadn't meant for it to become a test, but in a way, it is.

Lies spill easily from your tongue, "I heard your wagons are traveling to a village near my sister's home. Is it possible I could pay for passage to ride with you?"

He smiles at you, eyes still soft and kind, "of course, Miss. There's room. You're welcome to sit in the wagon," he offers you an aged, calloused hand, and you take it as he helps you into the wagon.

"Thank you," You murmur, grateful you didn't have to steep to bargaining with the hair pins just yet.

He nods, voice soft and knowing, "We'll be leaving in just a moment, Miss," he draws the canvas of the wagon closed, and you settle yourself between boxes and sacks of goods.

You busy yourself with picking at your sleeve as the caravan starts to move, the rumbling and shaking doing nothing to calm your nerves. You keep your head down, and wonder if he's even noticed you're gone.

The horses whine and cobblestones turn to dirt roads, the sounds of the city grow dull. You risk a glance out the wagon towards the port city. There's no smoke from fires, no screams or alarms raised.

It had been so easy. So painfully simple. And there's no way for him to track you down. No way for him to know if you're still in the city, on ship, or in a carriage. There's no trail for him to follow. No lighthouse that leads to you.

Tears start to spill down your face before you even realize you're crying. You tug your knees to your chest. You're heading inland, far from any ports where ships could chase you. If you went through enough towns, you'd be impossible to trace.

You could disappear almost entirely. And why would he look for you? Abandon his crew and the sea to find you?

It was for the best, you tell yourself as you muffle your tears into your traded cloak, for both you. It had to be done. You had to leave.

There was never any other choice for either of you, than to end the dying chapter.

Part Four | Even More Headcannons

[cobrakaisb]

ever since new york

summary: the west coast brings out a side of luke you’d never thought you’d see, and suddenly everything you thought was right is slowly becoming wrong

featuring: SPOILERS FOR TITANS CURSE (according to the summary and my memory), fluff to angst 

word count: 4.36k

series masterlist ||| previous ||| next

the curtains rustle softly from the cool breeze blowing in through the open window. while the heat is blasting, keeping the area nice and toasty, the two of you have always preferred the cold. you giggle softly, scratching your nails gently against his scalp as luke hovers over you. his hands are planted beside your head, caging you in, as he plasters kisses all over your face. 

you laugh again, trying to shove his face away from yours, but he doesn’t let you. instead, he takes a hold of your left wrist, thumb pressing softly into your palm as he kisses the pads of your fingers. 

“you’re not getting rid of me that easy, angel,” he teases, a playfully smile on his lips.

“well i know that now,” you reply, looking down at the jewelry on your finger. 

his honey brown eyes follow your gaze, focusing on the golden band wrapped delicately around a diamond. it’s nothing elaborate, and while luke wishes he could give you more, this will have to be enough. the love between you two is enough; his love for you is enough.

“no matter what happens, i’ll always love you. you have to know that,” he stresses, placing a fleeting kiss at the base of your ring finger. 

you hum absentmindedly, too busy twirling one of his curls around your finger. since coming to the west coast and fleeing new york, luke’s been different. he’s merely a shadow of his former self. everyone can see it, even you. but it’s moments like this, where he looks at you with pure love and adoration that you have hope that the boy you fell in love with is still in there. 

“i need to hear you say it,” he whispers, “that you understand.” 

you look at him, focusing on his face, and cup his cheeks. subtly, he leans into your tender touch so different from the cold purple irises haunting your nightmares. 

“i love you, luke. nothing will change that, i promise,” you assure, lips brushing against his. 

he doesn’t answer, instead kissing you as if tonight is your last night together.

*****

you awake in a cold sweat, fisting at the satin sheets. your chest heaves as you try and catch your breath, eyes frantically searching the room for any danger. once you determine your safety, you breathe a sigh of relief and your head falls back against the wooden headboard. 

your eyes flutter shut, but all you see are specks of gray, purple, and a flash of auburn hair. shaking your head and pressing your palms into your face, you try to dissipate the vision. another deep breath, and you’re calmer, surveying the room once more. you reach for luke besides you, but find his spot empty and cold. 

panic, that’s all you feel. everything seems smaller now. the walls. the bed. the balcony. the time to your demise. it’s all suffocating you. restricting your airways and clogging your arteries. your chest heaves, and you reach for the gold band on your finger. 

one twirl, one breath. 

two twirls, two creeks of the floorboard. 

three twirls, three doors in the room. 

four twirls, four plush pillows. 

five twirls, five fingers around your wrist.

you gasp, lurching back from the person in front of you. you swing your right fist, and they duck. it’s too dark for you to make out their face and you’re too panicky to think rationally. 

“it’s just me, angel, just me,” he whispers softly, catching your fist in his other hand. 

you relax at the sound of luke’s voice, shoulders dropping as your head falls forward onto his chest. he releases your right hand, cupping the back of your head to pull you closer. his other hand rubs soothing circles along your pulse point, and for a minute your panic quells. 

“you were gone,” you say, but you don’t sound like yourself. 

“i’m sorry. just needed a smoke,” he mumbles into your hairline. 

“why didn’t you wake me?”

“you were sound asleep, angel. i couldn’t wake you even if i tried.” 

you hum, already feeling drowsy and ready to cuddle back up under the covers. luke notices. he helps get you settled and comfortable, adjusting your pillows and the blankets, before shedding his winter jacket. as he steps away to toe off his timberlands, you grab desperately at his wrist. 

“don’t do it luke, please don’t go and hurt her,” you beg. 

and while he assures you that he’s not going anywhere, he can’t shake the ominous feeling of being watched and the thought that you already know what’s coming.

*****

“have you seen luke anywhere?” you ask, walking up to katrina and chris. 

they both exchange a confused look before katrina answers, “he said he was going to find you.” 

“yeah, something about you wanting to go for a walk in the garden,” chris finishes. 

your eyebrows furrow at her words and your head reels back in shock. firstly, you hate the garden and everything it stands for. it’s the place that destroyed your boyfriend, and you’re all too aware of the fact that he almost died fighting the stupid drakon while trying to retrieve that damned golden apple for his sorry-excuse of a father. secondly, luke specifically told you not to leave the ship today. 

“i hate that fucking garden,” you say, looking at katrina. 

she holds her hands up in defense and tries to justify herself, “i know that, but luke insisted. i figured your mindset changed.”

he lied. once again, luke was lying about his plans and intentions. he kept you in the dark with the lightning bolt. then again with thalia’s tree, and now he’s lying about his whereabouts. the thing is, you can’t figure out why. you’d supported him with the lighting bolt, and while it took time (and a lot of effort on his part) you were ultimately able to forgive the poisoning incident. this time though, you’re stumped. 

you blink, and all you see is a flash of gray. it’s the same one from your dreams recently. you thought maybe it was an indication of the weather on mount othrys and the overall west coast during the winter. now though, you’re not so sure. 

think, think, think.

and when the realization sets in, you gasp loudly. 

“what?” katrina asks, stepping closer to you. 

“i-” you stutter. 

“you what?” she asks, resting her hands on your shoulders. 

you meet her gaze, a silent conversation taking place between the two of you. katrina is your best friend, she always has been, and she can read you like an open book. you’re not even sure what message you’re trying to convey to her, but she understands anyways. 

“go. whatever it is, go. i’ll cover for you,” she assures, giving your shoulders a final squeeze. 

you nod, meeting her eyes one more time. she nods firmly, and that’s all the confirmation you need before sneaking off the princess andromeda. 

at the base of the mountain, it’s winder and colder than you anticipated. you wish you brought a jacket, and wrap your arms snuggly around your body in an attempt to keep your body heat in. your bowstring digs uncomfortably into your shoulder and your quiver feels heavy at your side. you’re bogged down with fear, and even though you haven’t prayed to your mother since leaving camp, you find yourself begging her for guidance. 

miraculously, she answers your prayer by providing you with another flash of gray. 

you huff, your breath coming out in a cloud in front of your face, as you continue to trudge up the mountain. 

“thanks mom. real helpful,” you sass.

the gray flashes again behind your eyelids. this time, however, you’re able to pinpoint them as a pair of eyes. you stop in your tracks, feeling like you’ve been run over by a truck. why would he do this?

you run the rest of the way up the hill, mumbling, “it can't be true. it can’t be true. it can’t be true,” over and over again. 

you know those thoughts are dangerous. delusions are dangerous, especially when you know your mother has never lied to you before. since leaving your home, she’s guided you in the right direction, even if her actions were unbeknownst to you. there’s no way for you to distrust her and while you may be allies with the people trying to destroy her, you won’t start now. 

yet, you still hope that she’s wrong.

the top of the mountain is always dark, but it feels darker this time. you can’t decide if it’s from the stormy clouds, nighttime hours, or the new knowledge you’re bogged down with. when you see luke slip up from a kneeling position, and watch with horror as annabeth takes his place, you know it was the latter. 

*****

“katrina,” you whisper, looking down at her. 

her mouth is open and her hair is a mess of tangled curls on the pillow; there’s one particular strand stuck to her cheek. her tank top, the floral patterned one, has ridden up to expose most of her stomach while the blankets rest in a heap at the foot of her bed.

you almost feel bad for waking her up. 

“katrina,” you say, louder this time, but she still doesn’t budge. 

you roll your eyes, taking a deep breath before you shake her shoulder and call her name once more. she jolts up in bed, blue eyes wide and surprisingly alert for someone who just woke up. she looks at you, taking in your outfit of jeans, a long-sleeved shirt, and your bow and quiver, before throwing her head back against the headboard. 

“why do you always think i want to be involved?” she asks annoyed, but she’s already swinging her legs over the side of the bed. 

“trust me, you do this time,” you answer somberly. 

as if sensing the seriousness of the situation, katrina stops goofing around and asking questions. instead she tugs on a gray hoodie (you think it might be her girlfriends) and a pair of ugg boots. she grabs her sword from the nightstand, stifles a yawn, and nods in your direction. 

“lead the way,” she whispers, following you out the door and off the cruise ship. 

surprisingly, she manages to wait until you’re at the base of the hill to ask questions. a true christmas miracle, you think.

“what’s in the bag?”

“food, nectar, and ambrosia,” you answer, hiking up the dirt path. 

“for who?” she asks, and you can tell she’s raising an eyebrow without even looking at her. 

you struggle to come up with a response. how do you explain this to her? how do you explain that your boyfriend kidnapped his younger sister and is forcing her to hold up the sky, all to bait percy and some olympian gods? 

so you don’t. you just keep walking.

“no. no. no. no! you do not get to do that. you don’t get to wake me up at fucking midnight and not give me a reason. things just don’t work that way!” she shouts, stopping in her tracks. 

you huff, clenching your jaw as you turn around to face her. your hand clutches tightly at the strap of the tote bag over your shoulder, and you have to refrain from screaming the truth at her.

“katrina, you’ll see when we get there. and you’ll understand why i didn’t tell you, but for now i need you to trust me,” you reply in a surprisingly calm manner. 

there’s an edge to your voice, but it’s not mean rather vulnerable. katrina looks at you, her blue eyes scanning over all of your features. she notices the tremble in your hand, and suddenly she can feel your anxiety. she sees the tears brimming at your waterline — something you’ve surprisingly kept hidden this whole time — mixed with a sense of defeat and betrayal. whatever if troubling you, it’s too much for you to speak aloud. 

she puts her hands up in defense, walking into step with you, “okay fine. but you owe me big time.” 

“when we’re done here, i’ll owe you my life,” you mumble, continuing the trek up the hill.

at the top, you stop suddenly and pull katrina behind a tree with you. she opens her mouth to ask a question, but you shake your head no and hold a finger to your lips. she gets the memo. instead, she follows your lead, watching the older man/monster thing acting as a guard.

“whatever you do, follow my lead,” you whisper, darting out from behind the tree with a previously unknown confidence. 

“dr. thorn, you’re being relieved,” you announce.

he raises an eyebrow, clearly not believing you for one second. as he’s moving towards you, you have to remind yourself to stay strong and confident; one look at the sight behind him does the trick. 

“by whom exactly?” he asks.

“by us,” katrina answers, stepping beside you with her sword held tightly in her left hand. 

he laughs in your faces, and you clench your jaw in annoyance. you want to slice him into a million pieces, watching as his body turns into nothing but golden ash and a mere memory. but, katrina’s hand on your arm keeps you steady. 

“you dare question the daughter of hera?” 

he laughs again, “that title has no meaning here.”

“fine. then you dare to question me, your future queen? i’ll remember your insolence from my golden throne,” you snap. 

he’s taken aback, but recovers quickly: “so confident. so cocky. that’s the problem with you demigods.”

“maybe so, but i’m just following your master’s orders. if you want to ignore them, fine by me,” you answer, gesturing towards katrina to pretend like you’re leaving. 

it only takes five steps for dr. thorn to offer to switch places. and once he’s out of sight, your real plan can begin. 

“unpack the stuff,” you instruct, getting down on your knees next to the young girl. 

“what are you doing?” she asks, voice trembling from both exhaustion and confusion. 

“taking your place. we only have a few minutes before they realize we weren’t scheduled to be here, so stop wasting time,” you answer. 

your words are harsh, you know they are, but you can’t find it in you to coddle her. she needs to know the truth; they will be coming back, and it will not be pretty. 

“but you’ll…” she stutters, and katrina shushes her. 

“daughter of hera. she’ll be fine.”

you slide in next to annabeth, hands already up and bracing the sky. the two of you are under it, and you can already feel the burden of carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders. you nudge annabeth’s thigh with the tip of your shoe, and she takes that as her signal to roll out. now it’s just you. 

you grunt from the heavy feeling. it’s worse than the anxiety or the crippling fear from your recent nightmares, but you have to push through. 

in through your nose, out through your mouth. 

closing your eyes, you ground yourself in the cold mud and frosty grass beneath your knees. the wetness seeps into your jeans, leaving a ring around your knee caps, and while you’d normally be at least a little annoyed, you’re thankful for the distraction. 

“you need to eat,” you hear katrina say. 

you can only assume she’s forcing ambrosia and nectar down annabeth’s throat. 

“just give me a minute,” annabeth mumbles, but her words are slurred and she sounds like she might pass out. 

“katrina,” you grit.

it’s a warning. she needs to save annabeth. 

“i’m trying,” she snaps.

you briefly open your eyes to see katrina crouched down next to annabeth, who’s still keeled over. your heart breaks for her. while luke has betrayed you in so many ways, you can’t imagine what she’s going through. he was her brother and she trusted him with every bone in her body. he broke that trust once again. 

“he tricked me,” she sobs, chest heaving. 

“i know sweetie. he tricked us all. but you need your strength okay? because it’s going to get worse before it gets better,” katrina whispers, soothingly rubbing her back. 

annabeth nods and eats the food. by the time she’s finished, and katrina has managed to calm her down somewhat, you can all hear the rustling of grass and leaves as someone rushes up the hill. 

“we need to switch back,” annabeth decides, sliding back under the sky next to you. 

“we’ll be back tomorrow,” you promise, looking at her from underneath the atmosphere. 

she places her hand on top of yours, nodding her head softly. you roll out, letting her take up the burden once more before hiding in the surrounding forest, all within the knick of time. 

*****

“where did you go last night?” luke asks. 

he’s standing by the door of your shared bedroom with his arms crossed. he’s wearing a pair of dark wash jeans with a tight compression shirt to match; he looks devilishly handsome. his hair is slightly tousled and windswept, which makes you wonder where he’s coming from: the bridge deck aft or the top of a mountain. 

“what are you talking about? i was here all night,” you answer, refolding one of the shirts in your laundry basket. 

luke clenches his jaw. it’s obvious to him that you’re lying. he knows exactly where you were last night, but he wants you to admit it. 

“i thought we agreed not to lie to each other,” he replies, pushing himself off the wall to walk towards you.

“me too,” you say, but your words are sharp and pointed. 

luke grimaces. shame flickers across his face and eyes, but it’s gone just as quickly. his eyes, which are now a melding pot of gold and brown, turn completely golden, a true sign of his loyalty and alliance with the titan lord. he takes a deep breath to ground himself in the moment as opposed to allowing kronos’s anger to consume him. if you’re going to be together forever, he needs you to understand.

“things are going to be different now,” he whispers.

his words finally have you meeting his gaze. you stare at him for a moment, admiring his sharp jaw and the curls that fall effortlessly over his forehead. there’s a softness reflected in them, but it doesn’t hold the same meaning that it used to. 

“tell me something i don’t already know,” you mumble, going back to the laundry at hand. 

*****

katrina finds you in the archery range. she pauses at the entrance, watching as you line up a shot. the target is already filled with arrows, all of which are clustered together in a meticulous order that makes it obvious you’re working on your accuracy. she watches with bated breath as you release the bowstring. the arrow glides through the air before piercing the fabric of the target with a loud thud; it’s only millimeters away from a previous shot. 

“you’re working hard,” she says, making her presence known. 

“i need a distraction,” you explain, reaching for an arrow in your mostly empty quiver. 

katrina hums in agreement, stopping a couple feet away from you. she watches intently as you line up your next shot. just as your hand grazes your cheek from the pullback, and she thinks you might release the arrow, you freeze. you wait a moment, but ultimately decide on placing the arrow back in your quiver and lowering your bow. 

“are you okay?” you ask, turning to face your best friend. 

“i’m hanging in there. are you okay?” she asks. 

your eyes dart around the room. even though the two of you are the only ones inside, you never know who’s listening. you take a step closer to her, and katrina follows your lead. 

“i want to go see annabeth again,” you whisper. 

katrina’s eyes widen at your statement. “didn’t anybody tell you?” she asks. 

“tell me what,” you demand, eyes turning frantic. 

“annabeth isn’t holding up the sky anymore, lady artemis is.” 

you gasp at the revelation. your bow clatters to the ground as your hands come up to cover your mouth. the news is shocking to you, and you start to wonder if luke would ever have told you himself. 

i should have told him the truth, you think. 

“where’s annabeth?” you ask. 

“i don’t know. all i know is the general wanted to kill her, but luke stopped him,” katrina confesses. 

“there’s still good in him, you just need to bring it out,” she continues, taking a hold of your hands and squeezing them reassuringly. 

you shake your head no, “not enough. i can’t fix him, katrina, not anymore. and as much as it pains me to admit that, i know i can’t keep convincing myself that i’ll be successful.” 

katrina nods her head in understanding. 

“i won’t be my mother, tree, no matter how much i love him,” you confess, barely getting the words out as she pulls you into a tight hug. 

“i’m with you every step of the way. i want you to know that. until the end of the line.” 

you nod, stepping out of her hold and straightening your shoulders. there’s a new look in your eyes, one of bravery and fierce determination. 

“when they come, and they will come, i’m leaving with them,” you decide. 

there’s no changing your mind. katrina knows that. “me too,” she agrees. 

*****

percy expected a lot of things to happen when they arrived at mount tam. he knew that artemis was going to be the one holding up the sky. he knew that zoe was going to come face to face with her father and sisters. he knew that thalia was going to see luke for the first time in years. what he didn’t know was that you were going to be by his side. 

he’d seen you helping annabeth and artemis multiple times in his dreams. he assumed it meant that you defected to their side. but he should’ve known what happens when you assume: you make an ass out of you and me. 

he studies you. your body language is relaxed standing next to luke. your arms are crossed and your bow is securely fastened to your back. by the looks of it, you have no intentions to fight. your eyes meet his seagreen ones, staring him down. percy is sure you’re trying to tell him something, but he can’t decipher your secret code.  

why do girls have to be so confusing?, he wonders. 

he stares at you some more, giving you a once over. there’s something different about you, but he can’t figure out what. then, your eyes flicker briefly to the tree line. percy follows your gaze, eyes locking on katrina. the brunette has her sword unsheathed, clutched tightly in her hands, and he wonders what your plan is exactly. 

are you his backup or luke’s?

he doesn’t have time to decide, however, as thalia let’s out a frustrated scream, jumping into battle with luke. atlas goes after zoe, which effectively keeps all of luke’s forces distracted. katrina bolts out from behind the trees, and for a moment percy thinks she’s running towards him, but she falls to her knees in front of artemis. he’s quick to jump in next to katrina, as she cuts the celestial bronze chains keeping the goddess in place. 

“roll!” he shouts. 

surprisingly she listens, and percy finds himself holding up the sky. 

his arms shake. he’s not strong enough for this, all skin and bones. looking back on all his major battles, most of them are won through his ability to annoy the other person; sarcasm really is his only defense. yet, he looks at annabeth and thinks about how long she carried this burden. he thinks of you, taking it on so willingly to protect his best friend. somehow, he finds the strength to keep going. 

it doesn’t last long, however, as he makes eye contact with artemis. her plan is clearly written all over her face, and for once percy feels like he understands girl-talk. before he can react, atlas is thrown towards him. percy is flung backwards, hitting the ground with a loud thud and a major wince. 

that’s going to leave a bruise, he thinks as he struggles to get on his feet. 

once he’s up, he almost wishes he had passed out. thalia and luke are at the edge of the cliff. luke is laying on his back, backbiter long forgotten as thalia holds her spear to his throat. percy looks for you. your eyes are locked on the scene too, but your bow and arrows still remain in place. you don’t make any attempts to help luke, to save him. instead, you keep a steady grip on annabeth, who’s leaning most of her body weight on you. 

“thalia please,” luke begs, and percy almost feels sorry for him.

“you had this coming,” she mumbles, kicking him off the edge. 

you turn your face away, shoulders shaking. your crying, percy realizes.

thalia focuses her attention on you, a menacing sneer present on her face. you’re her next target. percy rushes forward, but annabeth beats him to it. 

“she saved me. you can’t thalia,” annabeth pleads. 

thalia looks at you, and then at percy. percy gulps. he hates when people leave these big decisions up to him. he knows saving you is the right thing to do; you’ve helped them so many times despite leaving camp. 

“she’s right thalia grace,” artemis says, stepping forward to place a hand on his older cousin’s shoulders, “we would not be here without her.” 

thalia hesitates. percy can tell she’s displeased by the goddess’s orders. 

“you need to go,” you announce, directing all the attention back to you. “they’ll come looking for him soon, and when they don’t find him there will be hell to pay,” you finish. 

artemis nods, but she doesn’t make any moves to leave the mountain. 

“come with us. i will ensure you both receive a full pardon,” she promises. 

you look to katrina. “we’ll meet you in new york.”

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[roosterforme]

The Gray Sweatpants | Rooster x Reader

Summary: For you and Bradley, sharing a home comes easily. He is always willing to put in the extra work to make you happy, and he will do it wearing his gray sweatpants and a smile.

Warnings: Fluff and smut

Length: 2100 words

Pairing: Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw x Female Reader

This was written to accompany my series Is It Working For You? along with a bunch of my one-shots! (But it can be read on its own) Check my masterlist in my profile for the reading order! Based on a request.

Living with you was an interesting change of pace for Bradley. He had gotten so used to tiny living quarters and never sharing anything. But now you were here in this big house, along with all of your colorful stuff, and your perfume, and your kitchen gadgets. And you wanted to share everything with him. 

Not a day went by that you weren't wearing his clothing and using his shaving cream in the shower. And you always offered to share your food with him, holding up a sandwich or forkful of food for him to take a bite. You always seemed to be around asking about his day and giving him all of the details of yours, delivered with your own brand of wit and humor that never failed to have him wrapping his arms around you. 

It was one of the first Friday nights after you moved into his house, and now it was your house, too. Every time he got to use the word "ours", it made him happy in a way he couldn't really explain. 

"I was thinking we should plant a garden in the backyard," you said, feeding Bradley a bite of your dinner from your perch on his lap. You were wearing one of his Top Gun shirts and nothing else, and Bradley couldn't imagine living here without you. "I mean, San Diego kind of sucks for flowers, but we're hardy east coast people. We should have a garden."

"We would have no street cred if we didn't have sad, dying, east coast people flowers," he replied, delighting in the sound of your laughter. 

"Exactly! Plus, the backyard is a little scary, Roo. I'll help you clean it up on Sunday, if you want."

"Sure, Baby Girl. We'll see."

But he had something else in mind now.

---------------------

You woke up on Saturday morning to an empty bed and groaned. Bradley knew you had particular rules concerning him staying in bed with you on Saturday mornings. And you expected a certain level of compliance. 

"Bradley?" you called as you stumbled into the kitchen where you found him brewing coffee and eating some toast in just his gray sweatpants.

"Morning, Sweetheart," he rasped, but your mouth had gone dry. You must still be in bed, asleep and dreaming. That was the only way this would make sense.

You made a soft, strangled sound as Bradley reached up into the cabinet and grabbed your favorite mug. "Want some coffee?"

"Bradley," you whispered. He wasn't even wearing any underwear. You could see the outline of his cock pressing against the soft fabric as the pants hung low on his hips. 

You were taking a step closer to him, ready to drop to your knees when he said, "You'll be late for brunch with Cam and Maria if you don't leave soon." You had completely forgotten about your plans.

Your eyes slid up his naked torso until they met his smirking face. "Why are you not wearing underwear?"

He suddenly looked embarrassed, cheeks flushing pink. "I actually need you to show me how to use the washing machine. I'm almost out of clean clothes. Can you show me after brunch?"

You glanced at the clock on the microwave and sighed. You didn't even have time to properly blow your boyfriend like you wanted to. "Yeah, I'll show you after I get home, Roo," you whispered, running your fingers along his length through his pants.

"Oh fuck," he grunted when you cupped him and squeezed softly. He pressed you against the edge of the counter, and you could feel him getting hard for you. 

But you just stuck your chin in the air. "Next Saturday, make sure you stay in bed with me longer." You ducked out of his grasp with a grin while he groaned your name. "Oh, and I don't want to be late for brunch."

You got ready to go out, and when you passed him in the kitchen before you left, he was eating more toast and glaring at you. 

"You gonna come back and take care of this later?" he grunted, gesturing to his semi.

"Sure, Roo. Right after we do your laundry," you said with a wink. He just grunted in response before you added, "And make sure you don't go out in those pants. They are indecent!"

----------------------

As soon as you were gone, Bradley thought about jerking off, but he knew he had a limited amount of time before you would be home again. So he quickly put his old sneakers on along with his aviators and traipsed out through the sliding glass door to the backyard. You weren't wrong; it was in pretty rough shape.

Bradley kicked over a faded lawn gnome and opened up the shed. He pulled out some shovels and a rake that the previous owners had left, and he got to work. An hour later, he was shocked to find that there was in fact a garden bed buried back along the privacy fence. He dug up dead plants and weird lawn ornaments, tossing everything off to the side to get taken out with the trash. 

He stopped working for a minute to wipe the sweat from his brow. The sun was strong even for early December, but at least it wasn't too hot outside. And now, as he looked around, Bradley was pleased to see that the whole space looked a lot better. His girlfriend wanted a garden? Well then she would get one.

"Roo?" you called from the sliding glass door. You were grinning and heading his way with a cold water bottle. "What are you doing?"

He took the drink from your hand and downed the entire thing before he answered you. "Making the yard nicer for you. Check it out. A garden bed."

But you weren't really looking at the yard as much as you were looking at him. You wrapped your arms around his sweaty torso and kissed him. "You're so sweet."

He grinned down at you but didn't dare touch, not wanting to get your cute dress all dirty. "We can go to the nursery tomorrow and pick out some flowers if you want. We can plant them...." His word trailed off as you bit your lip and slipped your hand inside the front of his sweatpants. 

"I've been thinking about this since I left for brunch." Your voice was soft and breathless as your fingers teased his length before you wrapped your small hand around his cock. "Been thinking about these gray sweatpants."

Bradley let you ease the fabric down until he was fully exposed. You were licking your lips and moaning softly. He knew exactly what that meant.

"God damn it," he groaned as you dropped to your knees on the grass in front of him. He was standing in the center of the yard, looking around to see if there was any way one of the neighbors could see what was going on. But when you kissed and licked away his precum before parting your lips and taking his tip, he decided he didn't care. 

Bradley reached one big palm to the back of your head and guided you along. You took him a little deeper, looking up at him as your mouth filled up with each inch of him until your lip was brushing his coarse hairs. You gagged a bit, hollowing your cheeks as you sucked on him. "You're such a good girl. I'll give you anything you want."

You moaned around him, your tongue swirling along the underside of his entire length until you pulled him out to the tip. You kissed him sweetly and softly asked, "You know what I want, Roo?"

Bradley shook his head a little bit, dazed as you let his cock rest against your plush tongue. He was panting now and twitching as your hot breath teased his dick. 

"You tell me what you want, and I'll give it to you."

You giggled and smiled up at him with half lidded eyes as your tongue caressed him. You kissed his swollen tip and nuzzled him with your nose before you said, "I want you to fuck me. Right here. In our backyard."

Bradley hauled you to your feet by grabbing your elbows. You squealed with delight, but he hushed you with one hand over your mouth. "I'll give you what you want, but you have to behave. You want our elderly neighbors calling the cops, because they think I'm back here trying to murder you?"

You groaned and licked Bradley's palm, gripping his cock with both hands. "Please, Bradley. Please make it so good that it sounds like that!"

His hand drifted down to your neck, and he led you to the side of the shed, stroking your soft skin as you practically purred for him. His hard dick bounced along, hanging out over his sweatpants as he backed you up against the small building. "Okay."

-----------------------

You were so turned on for him, and you blamed it all on his sweatpants. He had no idea what he was capable of in those things. But without underwear? Bradley Bradshaw should have been illegal. 

And now he had your back pinned against the shed with his huge hand on your neck while he reached into your underwear and started to finger you. 

"Oh," you gasped, admiring the way his aviators were sliding down his nose while you rode his middle finger. The pressure on your throat wasn't enough to hurt, but it was enough to make you feel like you were no longer in charge here. And that feeling excited you. 

Bradley's thumb stroked your clit, and you cried out for him. "Shh, be a good girl," he whispered, kissing your lips one time while his middle finger pressed forward on your most sensitive spot. When you whimpered, he kissed your forehead and said, "Yeah, nice and quiet, Baby Girl. Show me how good you can be."

You kept your little noises as quiet as you could, moving your hips in time with his thumb stroking you. When you were close, Bradley slipped his finger out of you, leaving you whining his name. He spun you to face the shed, yanking your underwear down so the lace brushed along your legs before they hit the ground. You planted both of your palms against the siding as Bradley pulled your dress up to your waist, fully exposing you to any neighbor who could have potentially been a little too nosy. 

"Oh my god," you groaned as Bradley planted his left hand above yours and guided himself inside you with the other. 

"You're so fucking wet." His voice was deep and needy as he fucked you, placing his hand on your pussy. He let you rub yourself against him as he bumped you along with his thrusts. 

"Bradley." The second syllable was much louder than the first, your voice rising in pitch with pleasure. "Fuck!"

"Shh," he scolded once more. "Quiet, or I'll stop."

It was an empty threat, you were sure of it. He must be beyond the point of no return, but just in case, you covered your own mouth with your hand. He had you pinned tight between his pelvis and his palm, grinding against your butt, and holding you in place.

The beautiful friction of his palm had you clenching and cumming as your orgasm washed over you suddenly. "It's so good," you whined, needing both hands on the shed to keep yourself upright. "You're so good, Roo."

The string of obscenities he muttered next to your ear were nowhere near as filthy as his cock slamming into you and filling you with his cum. He used your pussy to drain him of every last drop as you pulsed around him, and when he withdrew, you felt your thighs get coated with his mess.

You spun around to face him, eyes wide. "I can't believe you fucked me in the backyard." Your eyes dipped down to his cock, softening and dripping your mixed ejaculate all over those gray sweatpants. 

He tipped your chin up and looked at you over the top of his aviators. "You tell me you want something, I'm going to give it to you. Especially if it's my cock."

You grinned and kissed him before adjusting his sunglasses. "Let's go inside. We have even more laundry to do now." You tucked him back inside his sweatpants before stepping out of your underwear. "Don't forget those," you said, pointing to the scrap of lace in the grass.

You watched Bradley bend down and pick them up, bringing them up to his nose with a grunt as he followed you inside.

---------------------------

I hope you enjoyed Rooster's gray sweatpants @thedroneranger

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[ttkinnie]

Tokyo Revengers characters as animals 💖 (for no reason)

Kazutora: let's start with the most obvious one, our resident tiger. Which is funny considering he gives 0 tiger vibes. Or maybe rescued declawed tiger from an abusive circus. Wait a sec... Hanma and Kisaki have a circus theme going on... why did I never notice this? This starts well. Saddest tiger pic I could find

Baji: A black gray wolf of course. 'nuff said

Chifuyu: A cat. Kitty kitty meow meow. Not crazy enough to be orange, but he's gotta have green eyes and a kind face. This tuxedo:

Koko: Talking about cats, here he is. Most obvious choice I've ever made. Black cat of course, very fancy, will knock shit off the counter and eats only the most expensive wet food

Inupi: second most obvious one because you've gotta pick the race of the dog too. I say he's the only serious golden retriever you've ever seen.

Takemichi: A mouse. He is squeaky and scared, looks like he eats cheese. Very cute. Big eyes.

Hinata: A doe, beautiful and kind but will ram into you if you touch her loved ones

Naoto: a buck because I am unoriginal. he does give off buck vibes tho

Hanma: I know the official art makes him a caracal but I love being contradictory so maned wolf it is. Plus look at its long legs and creepy demeanor, it's him

Kisaki: Listen, I am not the most partial person when it comes to him. He's my little meow meow, I wanna put either cat or bunny ears on him and squish his cheeks. But! Let's be honest, that boy is a snake. The deadliest snake in the world, the saw scaled viper, not the most venomous but highly aggressive. He eats mouse Takemichi for breakfast. Also look at its scales, they remind me of his adult hair.

Mikey: A honey badger, small and cute but will bite your balls off and kill your family for fun.

Draken: A lion, beautiful mane and a symbol of strength. Lives among a tribe of lionesses (lucky him)

Mitsuya: I do not like spiders. At all. But an animal literally producing silk is the only choice for Mitsuya. However I am not masochistic so i won't put a spider image, just the web

Taiju: Great white shark. Very smooth skin. Anyone who tells you they have sandpaper skin is lying.

Hakkai: A seal, same eyes, same innocence, favorite prey of the great white shark

Yuzuha: An orca, beautiful but deadly. Only predator of the great white shark. Also eats seals but let's not comment on that. I support women's wrongs.

Pah-chin: it's too cliché to put warthog here, so i won't. He's a cane toad, one of the stupidest animal on Earth, one of their most common cause of death is eating shit they shouldn't because they stuff their mouth without thinking. They also hump anything, including dead animals from another species, and lay their eggs anywhere, which leads to a high mortality rate among their offspring. Why did I give so many facts? I don't know. Look at it.

Peh-yan: A tarsier. it's the eyes.

Sanzu: Arctic hare, crazy eyes and a gift for divination if you can understand his language

Senju: a cutie baby. Bunny x2, will kick you.

Takeomi: a rat. I am not a hater, rats can be cute, but this guy definitely gives off rat vibes

Wakasa: So very pretty. White leopard of course.

Benkei: A bull. I always thought his tattoos were a bull, but I was wrong I just looked it up. Still a bull.

Shinichiro: This one was though, but I'd say a koala. I'm partial about it, but I feel like he would give his children poop to eat, and their reproductive habits are also not a good look on them.

Emma: Japanese dwarf flying squirrel because I play favorites and that's the cutest little furball ever. it looks like it's wearing eyeliner

Izana: Another small but deadly thing, the Australian box jellyfish, found notably along the coast of Malaysia (I feel so clever right now)

Kakucho: Fiercely loyal dog, he's a Rottweiler. Don't tell me Izana and him don't have some kind of puppy play going on.

Ran: Secretary bird. Canonically hates Kisaki which explains why he stomps snakes to death. Wears killer eyeshadow and looks like they hate your fashion style

Rindou: Did you know a group of male Pacific tree frogs is called a chorus? me neither, which is why Rindou is a Pacific tree frog. Peace of music, yeah

Mucho: Polar bear, cold and aggressive. Plus arctic hare and polar bear, there's a theme

[schoenpepper]

River (Charlie Puth)

Intro: He doesn't understand why you keep getting closer and closer to him, even after all he's done. You don't understand why you love him, either.

Warnings: bad writing, awful grammar, not proofread it's too long for me to give a fuck, reader is like simp 100%, book 4-5 spoilers ig, not canon happenings huehuehue, kinda disconnected but like, all my songfics are disconnected so idk, i was half asleep writing the latter parts, so it'll be messy for sure

A/N: Jamil my babygirl~ The people don't enjoy my Twisted Harmonies series, but I don't care because I like writing them. This one went through a couple edits though.

Masterlist

Don't run from me river

Don't run from me river, river

No don't run from me river

Don't run from me river, river

Meeting Jamil was the start of living for you.

Coasting through life back in your old world; everyday was a chore you had to get through in order to continue existing. When you got magically transported to a place with magic and new cultures and new people, it was like you finally got back to the same starting point as everyone else.

But seeing those dark gray eyes and long brown tresses, it made your heart beat for the first time.

A beauty that seems to want to go unnoticed, but how could you ignore him when his radiance filled your very being as naturally as oxygen filled your lungs? When he hid in his mask of incompetence and facade of normalcy, what can you do but trip over your own feet and fall? You see him, and the only thing you want to do is to be closer to him, enough to peel back that visage of mystery, to read him like an open book. Jamil is like a mirage in the deserts of the Scalding Sands, however, you know that the moment you reach out to touch him, he’ll fade away right in front of you.

So you keep watching.

You can’t do anything but watch.

You watch him plot and plan and fall victim to his own schemes. You watch him boil together the mess of feelings he doesn’t know how to release. You watch him bathe in his misery, you watch him drown in it.

You keep your hand to yourself instead of offering it.

You know he’ll never take it.

Look, you can play it cool

Act like you don't care

River don't be cruel

You're pushing me away

You’re interesting.

Jamil doesn’t care about much, and he certainly doesn’t care about you.

But a magicless human barreling into his world (literally) at orientation? You’ve got his interest peaked, at least. That’s it. He doesn’t care enough to give you a second glance. The only thing he knows about you is that you’re from a different world. But rumors always spread like wildfire, and suddenly, you’re the talk of the school. Riddle overblotted and you, somehow, are on center stage. In the Spelldrive tournament, he doesn’t know too much about what transpired, but what he does know is that you’re involved again somehow.

You could be useful.

You could be an asset to him, a boon if used correctly.

1, 2, 3, pieces fall into place.

Kalim is powerful, even if he doesn’t know it. But you, you’re Crowley’s little helper, aren’t you? You can make the headmaster look at the problem head on, instead of cowing to the Al Asims’ money. When everyone in Scarabia, and even Ramshackle’s prefect themself, is saying that Kalim is no longer fit to be housewarden, then wouldn’t the headmaster need to listen?

Stay.

Stay for another dinner. Another night. Another training session.

Stay until you’re useless to Jamil.

Don't want to get hurt

So you hurt me first

With the words you say

Maybe you should fall

Hah. You ruined his plans.

He lays on the floor, soaked in ink and sweat and tears, the forbidden taste of freedom lingering on his tongue. Azul and the twins are looking at him with mild amusement, even though he could clearly see they were just as injured, just as tired as he was. But he can’t read you. Even under snake whisper, he never understands what’s in your mind. You’re looking at him with an expression he can’t place, you give him a feeling he can’t shake. He’s lightheaded, he doesn’t really know where to go from here—when the adrenaline runs out and blood returns to his veins, Jamil has no idea what to do.

He hurt Kalim.

He hurt his dorm.

He hurt you.

Is that all he can do? When the chains that bind him are momentarily unlocked, is hurting other people the only thing he’s good at?

He meets your eyes.

There it is again; an emotion he doesn’t get. Are you pitying him? Is it empathy, sympathy? What do you want from him?

There is nothing that Jamil Viper can offer you.

Not when he doesn’t even belong to himself.

That's what rivers do

'Cause when you're in love

You don't mind a different view

Things are looking up

You think it’s unfair how beautiful Jamil is, even defeated and down on his knees. You ignore Grim for a moment to skirt around the black substance on the floor, making your way to Jamil. He looks at you warily, reminiscent of a wild animal that’s cautious, and rightly so, of a strange being entering its territory.

You hold your hand out.

You should know better than to hope that today is finally the day that he takes it.

But he does.

It’s more than what you imagined it to be. In your dreams, the boy that you love takes it with a flustered face and an awkward smile, hands clammy with sweat. In reality, the very first time that Jamil ever takes your hand, there’s a determined look on his face and sludge on his palms. He’s tiredly glaring at you, likely internally cursing you out for ruining his evil plans. With the way his pretty eyes are slightly squinted, brows furrowed and lips curved downwards into a frown, you think it’s so much better than your fantasies.

Because it’s the real Jamil.

And his grip kind of hurts when you help him up, but he doesn’t complain when you make him lean on your shoulder for support. You help him back to his room.

Everything’s over. For now.

But for you and your poor heart, it’s all just begun.

Maybe this is the step you’d needed to get closer to him? Maybe this is the part of the cheesy romantic movie where he lets you in after troubles and tribulations? Maybe this time, you can get to know who he really is.

Strip away the practiced incompetence. Take off his cloak made of calculated errors.

So, it’s decided.

From now on, you’ll find out everything about Jamil, and you’ll give and give and give and give, if only to replace the parts he’d had to give away over the years.

You’re both broken.

But maybe if you give him the parts of you that are still working, at least one of you can be fixed.

Oh river (river, river) don't run (run, run)

Don't run (river, river)

Don't run (run, run)

Oh river (river, river) don't run (run, run)

Don't run (river, river) from our love (run, run)

He wakes up in the infirmary. It’s still you.

Why are you still here?

Leave. Leave him alone. He doesn’t deserve your gentle care, not when it’s his fault, not when he’s the reason both for your and his own injuries. You never say a word, but you redress his wounds so carefully, making sure not to hurt him in the process.

What do you get out of this?

He genuinely doesn’t understand.

Jamil has never been kind to you, no, he’s always done what he needed to do in order to get you to move according to the script he’d written. He’d toyed with you, manipulated you, don’t you understand? He lied, because lying is his nature, because you’re just so gullible, you never even thought twice before believing any of his words.

Why don’t you get it?

You hand him a packet of cookies. Cheap ones from the school store, but judging by the way you’re dressed, and what little knowledge he has of your financial situation, he knows it’s all you have on you. He takes it with a soft ‘thanks’ and opens it. It tastes like cardboard, he can make better ones.

But you smile at him.

Your smile reminds him of the sun back home. It’s unbearably bright, he wants to turn his eyes away, but it’s also so unbearably stunning. And your voice, it’s akin to the nectar of blooming flowers in the spring when they travel through the air in all their sweetness. “Eat up, you need to regain your strength.”

If you refuse to be his enemy…then what is he supposed to do?

Look, darling don't give up

When the water's rough

Where you gonna go?

My heart is your home

You are persistent, if nothing else. In a corner somewhere, in a low whisper that no one other than you or him would have heard, he’d apologized. You accepted his apology. He thought that would have been the end of it. You’d return to the state of strangers, as you had been before the winter vacation. But you’re like honey, sticking to his fingers and leaving a saccharine residue he just can’t wash off. You’re in the cafeteria and you choose to sit next to him, in the hallways where you greet him a cheery ‘good morning’ and ‘good afternoon’, in the parties in Scarabia that Kalim invites you to.

You pull Jamil away to a hidden balcony to escape the noise. You laugh and chatter away even when he doesn’t reply.

You hold his hand.

He lets you.

He doesn’t know why, but he lets you do whatever you want. He never stops you, even though he knows he should.

You show up to basketball practice and every single game. He tries, he really does, to convince himself that you’re there for Ace. You guys are best friends, right? So of course you’d be there to support him. Hell, you could even be there for Floyd, with how close you seem to be with the merman.

(Jamil is a liar, after all.)

He tells himself you’re not there for him.

Even when you run up to him after a successful play, passing him a cold bottle of water and a fluffy towel for his sweat, he swears you’re not there to support him. Why would you? He’s the guy that threw you all the way to the other side of his dormitory.

(You only give Ace an eye roll when he brags about the win, and Floyd, a high five.)

(The best liars fool themselves.)

Nothing is as cold

As running on your own

So river don't you rush

Maybe you should fall

You have…what was the expression again?

Jamil watches on with Kalim from the corner of the court.

Two left feet, that’s it. Your dancing is, quite frankly, hilarious to watch. A mess of uncoordinated limbs flailing about, but it’s certainly better than Grim’s or Deuce’s. Kalim interrupts with a well-meaning comment (rude, but it’s true), and somehow, Jamil’s volunteered against his will to teach the clumsy first-years how to dance.

Ace knows enough of the basics, Deuce is remarkably stiff, Grim is a hopeless case.

But you can learn.

You want to pass the auditions too? Vil’s rather stringent with his requirements, though Rook is certainly not. But if you want to have even a shot at this, maybe Jamil can teach you more thoroughly, one on one.

Sevens, even he doesn’t know what he’s saying anymore.

You agree.

(Why did you agree?)

That's what rivers do

'Cause when you're in love

You don't mind a different view

Things are looking up

One hand on your waist, the other gently fixing your leg in place by your upper thigh.

(He wonders if you can hear his heart beating when his chest is to your back.)

“You should be more relaxed. The song isn’t aggressive, so you shouldn’t be so stiff.” Jamil speaks lowly into your ear, and he feels you shudder but never pull away. Instead, you nod and try to follow his instructions the best you can. Your body melts into the posture he’s veering you towards, molded by his palms. You’re warm, and the way you’re nervously looking back over your shoulder to gauge his reaction makes him think of the stray cats that occasionally circled him for food.

“Sorry, I just, don’t really dance,” you admit in embarrassment.

“Then why do you want to audition for the SDC?”

“Hm? Because my friends are auditioning. They think that if enough of us are in the team, they’ll be able to replace Epel. He doesn’t seem very willing to compete, after all.”

And there you are again.

Saving another stranger, as if kindness itself is melded into your bones. Jamil finds that he was wrong; it’s not just your smile that’s evocative of sunlight, it’s you. Your eyes meet his with a warmth that doesn’t burn, yet touching your skin makes him feel like he’d just come in contact with red-hot lava.

If you’re this kind to everyone, was he just another charity case to you?

Oh river (river, river) don't run (run, run)

Don't run (river, river)

Don't run (run, run)

Oh river (river, river) don't run (run, run)

Jamil pushes you away like it’s routine.

Everytime you think you’ve managed to dig deeper, you’re met with another blockade, each stronger than the last. He’s confusing, because everytime you think he’s letting you get closer (every time, you’re given hope that your feelings have come through), you’re disappointed again and again and again. You manage to graze the edge of his fingers before he flinches away like your touch burns him like hot metal.

And you keep trying.

What else are you supposed to do?

You continue your efforts and hope and pray that one day, he’ll see you. 

But for now, you watch out for his lines and redraw them without his knowledge. You do what you can to be his friend, because even though every bone in your body is begging for his love, you know it’s impossible when he won’t even let you be his confidant. You sit next to him and stay, even when he tries to scoot further away from you. Is it healthy? Probably not. You know better than to do what you’re doing. But you don’t stop.

(Jamil is like a drug injected straight into your veins.)

Don't run (river, river) from our love (run, run)

Don't run from me river

Don't run from me river, river

No don't run from me river

He thought that distancing himself from you would be the right thing to do. He doesn’t know if it’s right, but what he does know is that it’s impossible. You’re a thought always running through his mind; a dream flowing through his reality.

When did it start that, even when he knows you’re not near, he still searches for you?

Jamil almost feels relief when he arrives at Pomefiore and realizes that you didn’t make the cut. Almost. He’s not relieved though, it’s overshadowed by a feeling of restlessness he doesn’t understand.

Anything concerning you, Jamil’s never quite understood.

Then you arrive anyway. When he’s managed to calm his heart down, you rev it up again like an engine. Vil announces you to be the team manager, and you agree quickly to let the team stay at Ramshackle at the notion of the prize money.

(You certainly weren’t looking at Jamil when you agreed.)

How is he supposed to avoid you now?

He moves in with the rest of the group, when you insist that you’re one bedroom short and thus, regretfully, Jamil would have to stay with you for the duration of his stay. He’s a liar, of course he knows you’re lying. He can see your gleeful smile you’re desperately trying to hide, in the small giggles that leave your lips when you think no one’s paying attention to you. He can decline, of course, and just room with Kalim instead where he can make sure that the heir survives the night without too much distance.

Instead, he agrees, only asking for Kalim to room nearby.

Don't run from me river, river

No don't run from me river

Don't run from me river, river

No don't run from me river

Your very smart and well thought-out plan worked.

Hm, maybe a little too well.

Jamil didn’t say anything when you basically forced him into sharing a room with you. Now he’s in the bathroom, and you’re shaking in your pajamas (from fear? Excitement? Withdrawal symptoms?), tucked into your cheap cotton sheets you’d bought at Sam’s for a couple thaumarks. It is unfortunate, but true, when you say that these are the nicest sheets you have. Jamil exits the bathroom fully clothed (sadly), hair wrapped in a towel and a hair dryer in hand. “Let me help you.” There is no way you were letting an opportunity like this slip through your fingers.

Surprisingly, he complies.

He’s sitting on your bed while you’re kneeling on the mattress behind him, plugging the device on and getting to work. God, it’s divine, he’s divine—his hair smells fruity and floral, and it moves through your fingers like he’s in a shampoo commercial.

(Don’t be a freak. Don’t sniff his hair.)

It takes a long time for it to dry, but when it does, it’s smooth and shiny and absolutely gorgeous. He tries to get up and says he can put his hair oil on by himself, and you take out the pushiest, most blunt sides of you in order to convince him to let you do it too.

Safe to say, sleep escapes you when you’re next to a five-foot-seven beauty in an oversized hoodie and pajama pants.

Maybe you should fall

That's what rivers do

'Cause when you're in love

You don't mind a different view

Jamil has come to the conclusion that he can’t avoid you.

Perhaps it was a realization that should have come long ago. But as the days pass by and he’s in your dormitory, it only further cements in him the feelings he’d been running from. Seeing you everyday feels right, spending every waking moment with you is more than just comfortable. It’s freeing in a way, like he’d just arrived to the countryside from the smoke of the city and he’s taking his first whiff of fresh air.

Practice is enjoyable.

He dances and he sings, and he can feel your eyes on him, roaming up and down but never to anyone else. For the first time in his life, someone’s chosen him, someone’s looking at him with every bit of their attention and focus. Not Kalim, not anyone else. Him. Jamil might be addicted to the feeling of you so openly lusting after him, almost begging for his attention.

(He can’t recognize the other emotions, but physical attraction is easy to read.)

You desire him. Really?

When he looks back at you, catching you in the middle of your act, he enjoys seeing your flustered face and avoidant gaze all the more. Vil calls for a break, so he stretches before taking the sports drink you’re offering.

(It reminds him of when you’d visit him during his basketball games.)

Jamil lightens the mood by deciding to make small talk with you instead of calling you out on your behavior. He takes a sip and laughs with you when Ace and Grim get in a scuffle in the middle of the dance floor, Vil breaking them up with a well-thrown bottle of apple juice. He watches you laugh at Ace clutching a forming bump on his forehead. It sounds like something he can’t quite place, but what he does know is that he’s dreamt of it before—

He’s…dreamt of you.

Multiple times.

The realization hits him harder than the bottle that Vil had thrown at Ace.

Things are looking up

Oh river (river, river) don't run (run, run)

Don't run (river, river)

Don't run (run, run)

Oh river (river, river) don't run (run, run)

Don't run (river, river) from our love (run, run)

Practice was useless.

You watch the reaction of the crowd in response to Neige and his team’s rehearsal. It was a fine performance (if it had been done in a kindergarten recital). Yet you see Vil seething and Rook sighing like the both of them had already seen defeat before it even arrived. You feel annoyance, frustration, injustice (why should the cutesy dance win when it was poorly put together, nothing but a mockup of an actually talented number?). None of that helps. 

Vil overblots.

It’s familiar, though it probably shouldn’t be. The fight saps all the energy you had in your body, and you rush to your friends before the dust even settles, thankfully, no one has a serious injury. They still perform despite everything that had just happened, on the stage that your friend Tsunotarou had rebuilt with just a flick of his wrist. Predictably, they lose.

Well, who said the majority of people had good taste?

(You find Jamil packing in your room right afterwards. You convince him to stay, just a little longer. You wonder what you would need to do to convince him to stay forever.)

Oh river (river, river) (don't run from me river)

Don't run (run, run) (don't run from me river, river)

Don't run (river, river) (no don't run from me river)

Don't run (run, run) (don't run from me river, river)

Jamil thinks he finally understands.

Not you, exactly, rather, the combination of emotions he always finds whenever he looks into your eyes. It was love, a deep adoration that seeped into your soul and made you vulnerable to everything he did. It makes him rethink; was it his unique magic all that time ago, or was it just you fully willing to submit to his whims? No, when did this even start? You’ll likely never give him an answer to that question, but he’s smart enough to figure it out on his own. Retrace the steps, right? All the way back to the first time he met you.

(It’s not quite love yet. But something is there, and he doesn’t know why.)

It’s incorrect for him to assume that just because he found out what your feelings for him were, he’d automatically unravel who you are as a person. It only serves to deepen the enigma; what had he done for you to notice him so early on?

(He crosses out the possibility it might be love at first sight. How boring.)

You must be some tactical genius, and every action leading to this moment must’ve all been a trap. It was as if every step he’d taken since the day you met had only led him spiraling down, deeper and deeper into you. You’re a master at this game he’d noticed too late, you’d already gotten him stuck in your well-woven web of deceit.

How unexpected.

And yet, thrilling.

As Jamil lays his head on your lap, drifting off to a peaceful sleep under the shade of the apple tree, he takes in the feeling of you gently massaging his scalp and thinks of only one thing.

He’d lost to your machinations.

(If you want it so badly, Jamil will give you whatever is left of him that is his. He will trust you.)

Oh river (river, river) (don't run from me river)

Don't run (run, run) (don't run from me river, river)

Don't run (river, river) (no don't run from me river)

From our love (run, run) (don't run from me river, river)

No

His eyelashes are remarkably long. You gently trail a fingertip over the edge of its fanned-out shape, taking note of the shadow it leaves on his cheekbones.

He doesn’t wake up when you kiss his cheek.

Jamil is a mystery you want to keep trying to read every single moment of everyday. He’s a person you want to keep next to you, even if you’ve already gotten to the bottom of all his plans and ideals. You were attracted to him because Jamil is a shattered mirror, all its pieces still reflecting you.

He was barely existing too.

You saw in him what you know is present within yourself; a creature of self-doubt and hatred, wanting to know its place in this world, needing to know its purpose for existence. But unlike you, Jamil took steps to find a way out of his own personal hell, while back in your own world, you were only ever stuck in the same place. He’s everything you never thought you needed, but did.

Now, he’s breathing.

You wonder if he feels safe with you.

You wonder if he feels the same way that you do. Does he look at you and feel alive? Just like how Jamil was the beginning of your living, are you his?

You don’t need to know the answer.

(You couldn’t fix him, and he couldn’t fix you. Isn’t it great, then, that your broken pieces slot right into each other?)

[cozage]

The Moss that Grew in Gloom

Chapter 10: Waiting

Start From Beginning | Next Chapter | Masterlist | Read on AO3

Word Count: 1.7k Characters: female reader x Zoro --

You don’t remember the trip back to the castle. All you knew was that it was quick, and somehow Zoro managed to keep up as you weaved through the jungle vines. 

“I have to go.” You were already throwing rations and other necessities in a bag.

“Go where?” Zoro asked, keeping pace. 

“I don’t know!” You snatched the coded letter off the table, scanning it again for any hints of where he might have gone to. “I just have to find him!”

“Mihawk?” he asked. “Your…father?”

You let out an exasperated groan and returned to packing. You ran up to your room to grab the remainder of what you needed. Clothes, log pose, your sword…you didn’t need much, just enough to get to him. 

Zoro followed and stood in the doorway, watching you with concern. “Listen woman, you can’t go on some wild chase. You don’t even know where he is!”

“No,” you whispered more to yourself than him. “But I can find him.”

You ran over to the drawer you kept his in and flung it open. There was his card, just as pristine as the day he gave it to you. The knot in your stomach loosened, just a little bit. You grabbed the paper and stuck it in a glass jar. 

“I’ll be back soon.” You slung the backpack over your shoulder and looked at him.

But Zoro didn’t move from the doorway. “You can’t leave.”

“Get out of the way, Roronoa.”

A look of pain crossed his face as you used such a formal tone with him, but he quickly recovered. 

“You’re still hurt.”

You scowled. “I’ll be fine.”

“He’ll be back tomorrow. Just wait another day.” 

“I already waited a day!” You attempted to push past him, but he stood firm.

You could feel your heartbeat quickening. You were losing time. You needed to leave. “If you do not let me pass, I will cut you down.”

The edge of his mouth quirked upward for just a moment, as if he were interested to see how that fight would end. 

You attempted to push past him again. “Roronoa-”

“I’d win.”

You glared at his slate-gray eyes, refusing to back down. “Let me through.”

“Thought you said you were going to fight me for it? I’ve got a new technique I want to try out.”

This was just a joke to him. He didn’t understand the levity of the situation. Instead of helping, he was just standing there, mocking you. Blocking your way to your father. Every minute here was a minute you should’ve been on the sea. 

“Please, Zoro.” Your voice cracked as you said those words, but you didn’t care. You had no shame in this moment. You’d do anything to get out of this room and to the boat. 

“What’d you tell me when we first met?” Zoro asked, giving you a full body scan. “In your condition, you won’t make it to the coast.”

“You don’t know what I’m capable of,” you snapped back. 

You tried to push past him one more time, but when you hit against his body, his arms wrapped tightly around you. 

“Let me go.”

He ignored your words and your struggles to get free. “You never told me Mihawk was your father.”

“It never came up. Let me go.” 

You could tell he wanted to push the topic further, but he let it go. “He’ll be back soon. Just wait a few more days.”

You finally stopped struggling against his hold. “What if he’s in danger?”

“The card would show that.”

Your vision began to blur. “I’m scared, Zoro.”

“Let’s go to bed,” he said softly, beginning to guide you away from the door and towards your bed. “We can make a plan in the morning.”

“He’s never late.”

Zoro guided you into your bed, carefully taking your pack off as he did so. “I’m sure there’s a reason.”

His eyes were no longer hardened stone. They had gained a softness to them, one that was comforting to see. You didn’t want to look away. You didn’t want him to leave. You didn’t want to be alone.

“Stay with me?” The words were out before you had a chance to think. You slid over to make room for him. You didn’t care how it looked or sounded. You couldn’t be alone. You knew yourself too well. If Zoro left, you would sneak out of the house and run for the coast. 

He silently slid into the bed next to you. And then he wrapped his arms around you and pulled you into him. 

A part of you loathed yourself for it, but you felt tears slip down your cheeks. 

“He’ll be back soon,” Zoro whispered in the darkened room. “He’s the greatest swordsman in the world. He’ll be back.”

You let those promises lull you to sleep, fearful of what the next day would bring. 

--

You woke the next morning still wrapped in Zoro’s arms, which meant that yesterday hadn’t been a dream. Your father was late. 

You outstretched your haki to every piece of the island, searching for his presence. You could sense Perona downstairs in her room, the baboons gathered in the jungle, even the fish that swam in the waters at the edge of the shore. But there was no sign of your father. 

“Zoro.” You gave him a light shove. “Wake up.”

“Five more minutes.” He pulled you in closer to him. If it were any other day, you might have savored this moment. 

“We have to get up.”

It took longer than you wanted, but you finally got Zoro out of bed and to the kitchen. Breakfast, and then you would find a way to convince him that you should go look for him. 

Zoro was watching you closely as you ate. Almost as if he were studying you and your movement. 

After he had watched you eat two pieces of toast, you worked up the nerve to say something.

“What?”

He took a deep breath. “So is Mihawk your actual father?” 

“Yes.”

He finally averted his eyes from you, deep in thought. 

“Is that a problem?” 

“I didn’t know he had a daughter.”

“It’s not public knowledge,” you admitted. “He keeps me away from the world government and the reporters.”

“He just hides you here.” Zoro gestured to the place. “On dull, dark islands.”

“I quite like Gloom Island.” Your eyes pierced into him. “People don’t come here often.”

“I did.”

“I blame Kuma for that.” You let out a dry laugh. “You would’ve never come here on your own.”

Zoro’s voice quieted. “I’m glad I came, though.”

“As am I.” You cleared your throat, trying to move on from the subject. “There’s a small sailboat on the coast. We can take that to go find Mihawk.”

“Your father,” Zoro clarified. 

“Is there a problem with this revelation?” you snapped. “I’d like to focus on finding him rather than the status of who he is to me.”

You could see the internal struggle storming in his eyes. What he wanted to say opposed with what he should say. 

“You’re very different than him,” he finally stammered out. “But he’s…I want to defeat him one day.”

You put your fork down and stared at him. “I have no issue with that.”

Your response seemed to surprise him. “If we are competing for the title of the best swords-”

“We’re not competing.”

He stared at you for a moment, trying to read your face and your intentions. “You’re his daughter.”

“That doesn’t mean I want to be the best.”

“What about his legacy?”

You laughed at that question. “His legacy is his. My legacy is mine. They are not intertwined.”

Both of you had abandoned breakfast at this point, Zoro still not understanding your words. “You’re a better swordsman than me.” He paused for a moment. “On your good days.”

You smiled at that. “I am aware.”

“But you don’t want to be the best?”

You resisted the urge to roll your eyes. “I told you, I just want to be good enough to survive on the Grand Line.”

“So what’s stopping you from leaving?”

“At the moment?” You gave him a pointed look. “You are.”

“That’s not fair.” It was his turn to give you a look. “You are not at your best.”

Your eyes turned to where the small boat was docked a few miles away. “I could make it to the coast.”

“Let’s consider it tomorrow.”

You wished you had the energy to argue with him. All you wanted to do was curl up into bed and try to wake up from this nightmare. His vivre card was fine, but a piece of paper didn’t tell the whole story. He could be held hostage, unconscious, or in hiding. You had no way of knowing. 

So you sat in the courtyard with his vivre card clutched in your hand. He didn’t appear to be moving in any direction at all. You kept your observation haki outstretched as far as you could, taking small breaks when you needed to. 

Zoro only left you to bring you lunch or yell at Perona for how loud she was. And when the sun set and sets of eyes began to dot across the treeline, he finally came and sat next to you. 

“We should go in.”

Your eyes stayed fixed on the horizon. “I need to be here when he gets home.”

“We can wait inside.”

“I won’t see him coming.”

There was a close screech of a baboon that caused you to flinch. The one that mimicked your father. Calling out for a challenger. 

“We need to go,” Zoro said again, this time with more urgency in his voice. 

You let him pull you to your feet and walk with you inside, but you refused to go out of sight from the door. 

“Tomorrow I’m going to search for him.”

Zoro sighed, knowing you were almost at your limit of waiting. “We’ll talk about it tomorrow.”

“He’s never late,” you whispered, eyes still on the door.

The two of you sat there on the floor, eyes glued to the door. Your stored amounts of haki had run out long ago, but any time you felt it begin to return, you pushed out to the dock, desperately searching for him. To no avail. He wasn’t on the island. 

Hours later, you finally fell asleep, your head on Zoro’s lap after he promised to keep watch and wake you if he heard anything. But there was only silence. 

--

Tags! @lukepolaroid @ellisaworld @darienjo @bi-narystars @je-an @zoast32

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[climbthemountain2020]

The Adventure - Eris Week Day 5

@erisweekofficial Day 5: War/Adventure

Biggest thanks ever to @cauldronblssd and @witch-and-her-witcher for the beta reads on this. Also @cauldronblssd made this mood board and I haven't stopped laughing since hahaha.

Ao3 Link

For some sibling bonding after a lost bet, Lucien takes Eris to experience a rite of passage. But is Eris ready to enter this new, strange world?

“Lucien, are you absolutely certain about this?”

“Eris, seriously?” Lucien rebutted with a long-suffering sigh, pulling the car around the nearly empty lot.

He shot him a look, irritation and wariness clear on his face.

“Don't Eris, seriously me. This place looks like it might give me tetanus if I touched any surface for too long.” There were dark clouds building on the low horizon, and Eris couldn’t help but see it as a portent of things to come.

“You're too high brow. You need to relax and come join the rest of us plebeians for some joy every once in a while.”

Lucien slammed the car into park, Eris huffing as his head slapped back against the seat. Years of experience hadn't made Lucien any better at driving, though Lucien seemed entirely unaware of it every time he got into a car to put the rest of the community at risk. Eris rubbed the back of his skull with a hand while Lucien ignored him. As always, Lucien was calm and collected as he pulled his keys from the ignition, an assured air in everything he did that Eris had never experienced a single day in his life without faking it.

“I'm certain I just saw a man fighting a raccoon behind that dumpster.” Eris was only half kidding.

Lucien smiled broadly, the wisps of their mother's copper hair hanging loosely around his face. “I'm not gonna discount that. That means the food is good.” Eris wasn’t sure if Lucien was more than half-kidding, either.

He grimaced, but followed suit as Lucien opened his door. The air here was hot, muggier somehow that it was further inland in the city. Lucien spent his time further out by the coast, his and Elain’s pricey beach house intentionally looking well-used and well-worn. It was both opulent and cozy somehow, but Lucien fit in out here. He enjoyed being surrounded by people and novelty and community.

Eris, on the other hand, preferred his upgraded, updated, historical and now very fashionable Tabby home in the center of the city. He liked being a brief drive or walk from wherever he needed to go–typically a drive because the air here was insufferably heavy year round. When he'd been promoted last year and found that the new offices were on the Lowcountry coast, he'd envisioned antebellum architecture, sandy beaches, and swaying palms. What he’d not anticipated was that every single season seemed to be covered in a weighted blanket of salty sea air heavy enough to bring sweat to your lip the second you stepped outside the loving, protective bubble of the air conditioning.

“It's a crime you've lived here this long and never been here.”

Eris scoffed, looking down his nose at the squat building, tones of yellow, red, and gray mixing in a discordant mix of colors that didn't quite fit together. He had acquiesced, though, after losing a bet with Lucien last week, who had been absolutely appalled to hear Eris had never been to a Waffle House.

“Stop acting like you’re going to war. It’s literally a Waffle House, Eris.”

Lucien opened the door, gesturing his brother through. He was greeted with the smell of frying meats and brewing coffee, twisting around his nose and enveloping his senses lovingly against his better judgment. Eris paused for a moment before opening the inner door, wondering if he might use his handkerchief to open the greasy helm of this establishment, but Lucien was already there grabbing it.

“Pussy.”

Eris gritted his teeth and shoved him, following Lucien in, who was of course waving at everyone, looking like an old friend.

“Lu! Back so soon? It's not Wednesday!” The cook was a rotund older man, his salt and pepper stubble covering every inch of his lower face. He could have been someone’s grandfather had his face not been entirely filled with prison tattoos.

“Can't stay away, Bo. The waffles call to me.” Lucien slid easily into a seat at a booth by the windows, Eris following suit and grimacing as the hard plastic of it cracked against his tailbone.

“How often do you come here?”

“At least once a week. Elain loved their grits bowls when she was pregnant with Lara, and then we just made it a habit.”

Eris startled as a grizzled old woman seemed to suddenly appear at the side of their table, her haggard appearance reminding him of the witch masks they used to sell at Kmart in the early 90s.

“Rena! I haven't seen you in awhile. I wondered if you were still here.” The aged woman grinned a near-toothless smile at his little brother. She reeked of stale cigarettes layered over the smell of coffee and the cloying undercurrent of weed. Her curled bangs were teased to the skies, and her baby blue eyeshadow was sparkling over wrinkled eyelids.

“Yeah, well I was workin’ night shift until Katie beat the shit out of Carl on Sunday. Now I'm coverin’ until we can find someone else.” The drawl to her voice was unmatched, truly a relic from the coasts down here.

Lucien let out a low whistle. “That was bound to blow up eventually.”

What the fuck is happening, Eris whispered under his breath. How did Lucien know these people?

Rena shot him an ugly look, not missing his comment, but Lucien stepped in. “It's my brother’s first time. Gotta pop the Waffle House cherry,” he laughed out, wiggling his eyebrows at Rena. She turned and shot Eris a mocking, saccharine smile while Eris fought the urge to roll his eyes.

She sat a menu down lovingly in front of Lucien, as though cradling a laminated babe, then haphazardly tossed Eris’ at him.

“Coffee?”

Eris and Lucien both nodded and Rena left to go grab mugs.

“How the hell do you know all these people, Lucien?”

“I told you, I'm here at least once a week. If you're not a surly asshole all the time, people talk to you.”

“Then thank God I'm a surly asshole.”

Eris looked down at the brightly colored and slightly sticky menu. He wasn't sure where to begin, and some of the combinations of food were things he'd never even seen before.

“Why would you put scrambled eggs into your grits?”

“Careful. Elain might have your skin for talking shit on her favorite breakfast.” Eris grimaced. “Everything is great, truly you can't go wrong.” Lucien wasn't even looking at the menu, probably assuming he'd just say “my regular” when the waffle bog witch returned.

And return she did, silently again as Eris fought the urge to jump, setting two steaming mugs of coffee down. She was unsettling, a single milky eye tracking him with absolutely unveiled distaste as she dropped a bowl of tiny creamer pods in front of him with a clatter.

“What'll ya have?”

Damn. Eris hadn't decided yet. Lucien, annoyingly gallant, just grinned with all his teeth, pulling her attention to him.

“I'll get my usual.”

Knew it.

“And he’ll have the hashbrowns, double order, extra well, smothered and covered. Do you like it spicy?”

Eris nodded, dumbfounded at the string of words leaving his brother's mouth like some sort of code or spell. “Peppered and country, too, Rena, please.”

She smiled at Lucien. “You want a grits bowl for Elain and a to-go chocolate for the little one too?” His grin broadened and his eyes sparkled.

“You're too sweet to us, Rena, but the girls are at the beach today, so just us.” She patted his shoulder.

“You let me know if you need anything else, and I'll get that right in for ya.”

She left without a single look Eris’ way while he tried to decide what just happened and decode what the fuck Lucien had just ordered him.

“How's work been?”

That, Eris could talk about. He dumped a cream and two sugars into his coffee and stirred.

“Fine. Busy lately with the Strayer case.” There had been a big local uproar lately about the Strayer family–old money and a succession of attorneys with a long line of suspicious crimes covered up over the decades. It had finally all come to a head this past year when the wife and youngest son had been brutally murdered on their plantation property.

Eris had been assigned as partial counsel on the case, and it had been consuming all his days and some of his nights, too. It was invigorating in a way work had never been for him before, and he'd been happily enjoying the challenge

“It's all over the news. You're gonna be some big hot shot now?” Lucien asked, teasingly. Eris sipped the coffee, strong and hot and, against his better judgment, not half bad.

Eris couldn't help but laugh at his brother's teasing. With twelve years between them, they hadn't always been close, but it was nice getting to live near him again. He liked Elain, and he enjoyed being around Lara and playing the fun uncle.

“Hardly. But it has been nice.”

“Has dad called?” The question might as well be rhetorical. Their father, a once-prolific attorney himself in North Carolina, would sooner drop dead than offer a word of praise or kindness towards his children.

“Of course not. But I did talk to mom. She said she’ll be down to visit for Christmas?��

“Yeah, she’s staying with us. You’re welcome to stay at the house–”

The food arrived just in time, steaming bowls of…something dropped in front of both of them, then plate after small plate of orders descended until it felt like the whole table was full. Rena ignored him again as she asked Lucien if he needed anything else before leaving.

“What the fuck did you order me?”

He couldn’t deny it smelled heavenly–some sort of monstrosity with a variety of breakfast foods involved.

“Don’t be a dick, Eris. Just try it.” Lucien was already shoveling food into his mouth. Ever since he’d turned ten, he’d become a human garbage disposal. Eris grimaced, but lifted his fork, checking it for cleanliness before tucking in.

Lucien watched him, still shoveling some sort of breakfast sandwich into his mouth.

The hash browns were a crisp caramel color and shining with grease, the melted “cheese” on top giving off a sparkling sheen of plastic. It looked like onion and jalapenos had been mixed in with breakfast sausage. Eris had never in his life seen anything so ridiculous, but it smelled incredible as he raised a forkful to his mouth.

As soon as he bit down, he knew he was a goner. He’d lost, and now he’d have to humble himself in front of his little brother for being right.

“Well?” Lucien was smirking like he already knew.

“Fine.”

“Fine what, Eris? I couldn’t quite get that.”

“It’s delicious.” The words were garbled as Eris was already barrelling another forkful into his face. He’d never had anything like it. It should be illegal to have any breakfast items this good. No wonder this place needed to look like a back alley diner attached to a prison–it would be flooded if everyone found out how good the food was. He was already calculating the time it would take to drive here on his way to work in the mornings.

As if reading his mind, Lucien pointed the fork at him. “Now you have to make friends with Rena”

“I’m not sure anything I say can endear her to me at this point.” They looked over to find Rena outside lighting a blunt in the parking lot. “Something tells me she isn’t a fan of law enforcement.”

Lucien laughed. “Elain brought her fudge. I’m sure you’ll think of something.” Eris was wondering if she might like those cookie baskets the interns were always buying and leaving around the office when she turned, caught him staring, and spit onto the sidewalk while maintaining eye contact with him.

“Yeahhhhh, I’m not gonna hold my breath on that.”

Before he knew it, Eris was scraping the bottom of the plate, the last slips of hash browns evading his fork while Lucien leaned back in his seat, sated.

“Now wasn’t that a lovely breakfast, Eris?” Instead of answering, he swigged down the dregs of his coffee, more satisfied than he’d been at a breakfast in, well, ever.

“Yes, yes. You win, I yield.”

“See, now, if you’d just be more open to going places with me without having to lose a bet to do it, who knows what you might find?”

Eris grumbled something unintelligible.

“Where’s your sense of adventure?” The wild eyes of his littlest brother sparkled with mischief as he leaned across the table.

“I’m NOT going to South of the Border with you, Lucien. I don’t care how many times or ways you ask.” But there was a hint of amusement in Lucien’s voice as he issued a responding cackle, the two brothers happy and laughing in the marbled gray plastic booths of the Waffle House.

Taglist: @erisweekofficial @chunkypossum @clockwork-ashes @acourtofladydeath @secret-third-thing @the-darkestminds

[fattocatto-wizard]

Finally! After over a month of waiting, I’ve finally found the time to finish my tower and reveal it to you all!!

Here’s what it looks like: (sorry if my art is bad)

(Note: image is not to scale)

(Note: I am visible at the base of my tower in this image)

My tower is a cat tree! The tower is many stories tall and the parts of the tower are scaled up to accommodate medium humanoid beings at the same scale as a normal cat to a cat tree.

Getting up it without being able to parkour or being a master of teleportation is a big challenge. Most of the lower levels are easily accessible, however.

A fair warning; my tower has non-Euclidean geometry as certain rooms are bigger on the inside and may lead to rooms that were not previously there, rooms and platforms may move around when you aren’t looking, and you may be randomly transported to a different part of the tower without noticing.

Don’t expect to be getting anywhere important with that teleporting, however. You will not be brought anywhere that isn’t very different than your current position on the tower, and the upper levels are completely inaccessible via this method. Actually, when you’re climbing the upper levels, you may be teleported lower on the tower.

In the fields below it, I grow various herbs, potion ingredients, drugs, and other plants! Like catnip and weed! I do most of my alchemy on the first floor and the dungeon underneath.

The entire thing is covered in comfortable fluffy cat-tree cloth and I’ve enchanted the area to always be clear skies, and warm and sunny during the day and perfectly cool in the evening.

The sunsets here are absolutely stunning.

The front entrance is obviously locked and only I have the key, so please just knock on the metal knocker to the right of the door; it’s enchanted to allow me to hear it if I’m there. If I’m not there, it will alert you that I’m away and I do ask you to politely leave if I am not home. Unless I have invited you, then I will allow it to open for you beforehand.

The tower has been warded with a tall field of force that fits around the tower’s dimensions, so don’t expect to be flying in.

I’m always welcome for visitors, so feel free to visit whenever I’m around.

Only I can properly navigate the tower, unless I give someone access, which I may or may not do, depending on the circumstances.

The tower gets quite windy, but it’s never enough to affect you because of the enchanted weather. The wind is always a warm breeze.

My tower is situated to the northeast side of wizard island island, along the cliff side coast, just southeast of the gray wizard council local.

From my tower, I can see most of wizard island, however a small portion of the island is blocked by the volcano. (Ex. I can’t see the Pirate Cove, Necrobotanist’s Tower, Ari’s Cafe, and Breakfast Wizard’s Diner and Cafe)

Thanks for waiting patiently! Hope to see y’all around!

@mersinia @the-gnomish-bastards-hat @combustion-witch @average-void-wizard @odd-animated-armor @slymewitch @a-mushroom-dev @a-mushroom-wizard @mossy--wizard @mossthewizard @wizard-at-large @wizardothesea @wizard-island-island-smp @magical-bear-dubin @magical-fox @alchemical-overreaction @transtyranid @transgender-wizard @verylegalwizard @blooper-malte @aroace-wizard @good-wizard @good-wizard2 @gavamont @pollution-wizard @the-mighty-dalob @the-moth-wizard-of-mayhem @the-illegal-wizard-council @ashen-the-tiefling @the-necrobotanist @terrencetheshark14 @the-frog-wizard-leep @the-wozard-council @siley-the-wizard @profeshinul-wizurd @sluttyambiguouswizard @yourlocalbreadenthusiast

Sorry if I forgot someone!

Oh, and have a happy Thanksgiving! 🍁🌽🥧

[a-fluffy-dog24]

Kingdom Pines AU

In a land far away their were two kingdom that hated each other.One of the kingdom was rolled by two twins King Stanley and King StanFord.And Stan adoption his grandchildren, Fords great niece and nephew and go on adventures , were they slay dragons and ride horses. Dipper is in love with a girl with long blonde hair.

If you like the time pirate chapter book you might like this.Also (based on the adoption au make by keleficent and marehami on AO3.It's not associated with the AU but just with a Fantasy coat off paint.And take a lot of Disney Princess movies stuff and Romeo and Juliet,Princess diary's.

Chapter 1. We were the kings and the queens

Once upon a time in the year 1918 off the coast of Middle East this story takes place in early November. It's still autumn, it's colder, the leaves are falling.There were two small kingdoms. One of them was ruled by the The Pines family and the other was ruled by the Northwests, the Northwests richer and their subjects were mean and snotty. So the two kingdoms didn't interact much.

The first kingdom was named Gravity Lands; their castle was gray and blue; it is ruled by two kings who are identical twin brothers. King Stanley wore a red and black robe and a gold crown. He has a girlfriend, an ex wife maybe? named Marilyn  .And King Stanford wore a green and light brown robe and a gold crown. He has a husband named Fiddleford.

"How is the disagreement over money the villagers are having what do you think we should do to stop it" Ford asked "well I don't know I was waiting for them to figure it out but I guess I can ask the Committee what they think" Stan answered. The committee is made up Fiddleford and Marilyn ,Soos and his wife Melody.In the children's room were the twins prince Dipper and princess Mabel. They are both recovering from when they sprain their legs they were trying to climb up a tree. And their Grunkles were to busy giving a Press conference bragging and not paying attention.,They're getting better with medication and resting.

They just turned 12 years old, they are the king Stan's grandkids and king Ford's great niece and nephew . The kings are going to adopt them. They were living in the castle because their parents died in the war 3 weeks ago. In their room their beds were on the opposite side of the room,

Dipper's side the walls were blue, his side had books on the shelves. It was a little messy with clothes and toys on the floor.Dipper was on his bed reading on Mabel's side her walls were purple with drawings on the walls. On her bed were stuffed animals, and toys on the floor she was on her bed knitting a blue sweater.Just then Soos came in. He is the royal helper."Hey dudes, it's bath time, who wants to go first?" he told them, "I will'' Mabel went and took her bath. Both Kings were waiting to help her.

And after her bath they both help dry her off and helped her get on her light purple  nightgown it has a small red bow tied around her waist, she brushed her teeth then, Stan put her on his lap and he brushed her hair ."Grunkle Stan and Grunkle Ford thank you guys for helping me, with my bath" "it was our pleasure" Ford put on her socks they love doing this kind of stuff for their daughter it make them feel like parents "don't mention it sweetie, are you excited to maybe ride horses tomorrow" he asks ."Yes I bet you can't ride"

"That it" he tickles her, she giggles he stopped Ford gave her a piggyback ride and put her on bed "alright bed time", Stan tucked her into bed. "Good night daddy"she yawns "good night pumpkin I love you"he kisses her head "I love you good night my dear"Ford kissed her cheek "good night papa" "case your dreams go take on this whole world but to me you'll away be my little girl " they both to her quietly sing and she falls asleep.

Then King Ford came in to talk to Dipper "may I have a word with you" "ok Grunkle Ford''Ford sat down on his bed."I know we didn't have much luck last week trying to find dragons, and then you children got hurt but let's try again when you healed" "I hope we can. I've never seen a dragon up close before, maybe we can look in the forbidden woods'' Dipper suggested ."NO absolutely not you know the rules no going in the woods by yourself and no going to the Northwests, castle "

"It's time for your bath" Ford added seeing how he has dirt on his legs,arms and face a little. and smells like BO and pee "no I don't need a bath" Dipper interested,"everyone else has had their bath you stink you need one badly" Stan told . Dipper gets out of bed and tries to make a run for it Stan closes the door and Ford picks him up and puts him over his shoulder carrying him. "I'm not a bag of potatoes" he grumbles. After his bath the kings both help dry him off. Dipper brushes his teeth Ford helps the sleepy Dipper, put on his pj's. His pj's were green Dipper sits on Ford's lap and he brushed Dipper's hair.He looks at the green brush

"Is this your brush?" Ford asks, " see how the brush has a lot of brown hair ."No it's Mabel's why do girls shed so much" Dipper asks them "I don't know it will be a mystery" Stan picks him up. "It breaks the scientific laws of nature, " Ford told him.

Then Stan carried Dipper and tucked him into bed "good night goober I love you" Stan kissed him on the head "Grunkle Ford do you think we'll find a dragon tomorrow". "Theirs is a possibility come on time to rest I love you"Ford kissed his son on the head he falls asleep.They both quietly sing"the monster gone we on are own but you're daddy here beautiful beautiful beautiful boy".

The Kings looked at both of their babies sleeping happily and soundly the Kings leave and do some work in the Library then they go to bed.Stanley's bedroom is a red and gold color "Hey there babe" Marilyn  put her hand on Stan's shoulder they kissed and she helped him up they hold hands and go to bed. Ford's room is gold and green he goes to bed where Fiddleford was waiting.

Chapter 2 Long live all the magic we made

The next day the twins ate breakfast feeling 100% better. Mabel went horseback riding with, ladyWendy she is a servant/friend. Mabel rode a palomino pony named Buttercup Mabel is wearing, a purple dress and her hair was in braids. Wendy road a buckskin named spirit, Wendy was wearing a green dress.Stan came to watch them ride around, in the backyard they raced and jumped over stuff. Then after they get off Mabel sits on the ground, and pets her pony she can talk to all animals. "You like being ridden, you think it gives you a purpose" she talks to buttercup.

"What is she saying," Wendy asked."She said she loved our ride today," Mabel told her. They take care of the horses and head back to the castle, "you did great out there pumpkin" Stan congratulated them. "Thank you it was fun" Waddles squeals and walks, inside "Waddles said he wants a treat" she gives her pig his treat. After Stan and Mabel do some painting together she sits on his lap and they have a lot of fun. "I have a crush" she told him "oh what's their name" "her name is April"."That's great you should talk to her at the party tomorrow how could she not love you sweetie" he replied "thanks I had fun with you daddy" she smiles "Aww I did too" he kisses her on cheek.

Dipper sat on the floor of his closet holding a picture of his mother and sister he misses her so much.And he thinks it's stupid but he wants to be held by his beloved mother he tries to be a man but he started crying a little.Marilyn  was waking in the hallway and she heard muffled cries and opened the children room.And finds Dipper crying he looks up at her and hides the picture from her.

She sit down and asks sympathetically "what's the matter kiddo" "I'm ok it's dumb" he sopped  wiped his tears.She sees the picture and says "you miss your parents'' he nodes and begin to bawl his eyes out she picks him up and hugs him in her lap.He knows he has the words best dads him and his sister could ask for and they give good hugs .But he thinks about how he misses being hugged by a mother figure she knows she can't replace his mother.But she knows both children need someone like her. She finds it hard to cope with the loss of her son as well. "It's ok buddy you're cool granny Marilyn  is here" "thank you" he smiles just then they hear Ford calling for Dipper ."Well you better go" he grabs his bag "you two be careful out there" she told him "we will bye".

Ford,Soos and Dipper walk through the woods to find the dragons, they see gnomes,a bottomless pit ,a couple unicorns and an evil triangle. But no dragons they walked up a hill and they found a cave where the Soos made a lantern. They walked further in the cave and it got very dark. But then they see a huge red sleeping dragon"wow its ginormous" Dipper looks amazed, "this is the coolest thing I've ever seen dude" Soos told them then the dragon wakes up Dipper draws his sword. But then it runs towards him King Ford draws his sword "get behind me boy NOW" Dipper listens. Ford points his sword at it then it flies out of the cave, and into the forbidden forest. And breathes fire."dad that was amazing". "Yea let's go home" Ford said worriedly.

They all eat dinner together in the gold and brown dining room.The bowl and silverware are silver colored for dinner they enjoyed chicken stew with a garden salad. That Soos made for them as the chef.Soos and Melody 6 children eat with their mother.They talk and laugh during dinner.After dinner they clean up and then the Kings call over the children and sit them down and explain. That they have been taking care of them for 3 weeks and they would love it if they could make it official. Mabel read it out loud and translated it from Hebrew into English "the legal guardianship of Catherine Green and Michael Pines' children Mason,Alex, Pines and Mabel, Ariel,Pines

will be gifted if signed by StanFord,Frederick Pines and Stanley,Caren,Pines. The custody agreement will be approved if both parties signed ''.Dipper stated happy crying and Mabel stated too they look at the paperwork it already has the king's signatures on it.The twins joyfully signed and hugged their adopted fathers they are over the moon that their son and daughter. Trust them and love them just like they do and always will. They proudly frame and hang the adoption papers above the fireplace.In the living room so everyone in the Castle can see them.

Then kids had their baths, it's raining outside Mabel sat and watched it she is brushing her hair with a fork she heard another princess did it a lot and it worked. So she decided to give it a shot.She put it down and her cheeks soon looked as wet as it was outside raining .

"Dipper I hope mom and dad will be back from their trip soon" she  knew that their parents are dead.They just haven't got the time to reach  out write a letter she thinks.It doesn't feel like they are gone  it seems like they're on a long trip somewhere where they can't see them can't talk to them. She keeps forgetting that they're not here. That they're not coming home.Tears begin to build up in her eyes and make their way down.

"I wish mom and dad were still here", he walked over and she started crying more he hugged her. "Well I wish they were still alive too" he started to cry a little bit and she hugged him tighter. "I remember when we saw they bodies it WAS SO SCARY " she sobbed "it was HORRIBLE THEY WERE COVERED IN BLOOD AND they were...DEAD " she cries more "and they never coming back Dipper" she was staring to breakdown in tears he hug her and said "I know I want dad and mom too badly But we have Grunkle Stan and Grunkle Ford,Soos,uncle FiddleFord,granny Maryland and me, people that love us I love you"

Dipper comforted her. "I love you too Dipping sauce"They hug and dry their eyes, and sit there for a bit then the Kings come to tuck them into bed Mabel crawls into bed. Ford took the warm pink blanket and tucked her in "good night, my dear how are you feeling" "I'm tired good night papa I love you" he kissed her on the head and she fell asleep. Dipper crawls into bed Stan takes the blue blanket and tucked him " are you ok Dippy" Stan asks.

"Yeah I'm ok good night Grunkle Stan " Stan rubs Dipper's head softly and he falls asleep "I love you" he whispers "The kings leave "do you think we're doing this right,it's only been 3 weeks since they lost their parents. And we haven’t been the best caretakers."Stan asks him. Thinking about the kids playing and falling out of the tree."Well that’s is true to some extent but I think this is what they would have wanted for the children to be happy and safe". Ford hugs Stan and they go downstairs. They were fun, great uncles but now they need to be the best parents possible "remember when we were that age we were inseparable" Ford asked him "yea seems like only yesterday we would get in a lot of trouble" Stan chuckled.

"I'm surprised we didn't get hurt or worse we have to look out for each other because there was no else too" Ford added. "Remember when we were 12 mom was still alive and we had no cares in the world I miss it" Stan remember being a kid and having no work no kids no worry ."But look at us now I never thought I would have kids of my own even at 55 years old but now we have two wonderful children"

Ford told him.He and Ford didn't always get along as they became teenagers sometimes would argue with each other over dumb things.And also they're father only planned on having one son to take the throne. And he hated Stanley because he was younger and a troublemaker. He emotionally and physically abused him making him feel worthless.The queen would try to stop him but it wouldn't help she patch up and comfort her son after.He wanted StanFord to be king he thought he would make a good king except he despise his sons love for boys.

He also manipulated Ford in to hide all his feelings and told him he was only going to be king because he was born first no one else would trust a freak like him to rule.Both brothers agreed that neither of them wanted to be king alone. And Frederick had been tormenting their lives for years. So when they turned 18 they kicked Frederick out with the help of their mother the queen. It was her kingdom.And he was banished from the kingdom and if he comes back he will be thrown in the dungeon but he Long dead by now."Yup that's for sure I love those kids I would die for them" Stan replied and with that they both went to bed.

Chapter 3 The night you danced like you knew our lives would Never be the same

The next night everyone is getting ready for the ball the entire kingdom is welcome , everybody has washed up and are putting on fancy clothes. Mabel is wearing a light pink and white, with puffy sleeves ball gown. Her hair is wavy with flowers in it, her silver tiara on top. Marilyn  finishes helping her put the last flowers in her hair. She also has little glass slipper  flats. Dipper is wearing a blue and white shut.And on top of his head is a silver crown, and little black shoes. They had downstairs stairs where they saw Grunkles dressed up. Stan is wearing a black and red shirt.

And a gold crown on top of his gray hair. Ford is wearing a green and white shut. And a gold crown on top of his white and gray hair. "You look great my dear" Ford holds her hand and twirls her around her dress blows around he picks her up and holds her she smiles. "You clean up good when you actually take a bath" Stan teased Dipper Ford chuckles.Dipper sick his tongue out at him.Then all the guests arrive, Fiddleford comes over he is wearing a yellow shut and puts his arm around him and kisses Ford on the lips he blushes.Marilyn  holds Stan's hand she is wearing a purple dress her short White hair has a rose in it. Stan kiss her on cheek she smiles.The family mingle with the guests and the kids eat dinner.

Mabel dances with Wendy and Soos the Kings talk to their subjects, Dipper walks over to the punch bull to get a drink. When he sees a girl with very long blonde hair in one big braid. She was in a purple dress "Hi I'm um I am Prince Dipper of Gravity Lands". "Hi I'm princess Pacifica,it's nice to meet you " then they go outside on the balcony. "I've never been to a ball before. I bet my family could hold a better one ""oh really" he said sarcastically "but we never have or at least I've never seen one I'm always locked up in my tower," she admitted."

"Oh why are you locked up in your tower? '' he asks, '' none of your business dork,"she said as he played and fidgeted, with the roses and cuts himself. "AHH '' he yells in pain as she wraps her hair around his cut. And started singing and her hair started glowing he blush and the cut is healed. "Umm thank you" just then the big grand blue clock in the ballroom strikes 8:00 pm "I have to go now my parents will kill me goodbye " she runs off,"wait when will I see you again" he looks for her but she is gone.

After the ball is over the kids are getting ready for bed Dipper looks out the window at the forbidden forest. Mabel walked over to him "hey I just met this handsome boy, his name is John but I also met my crush she's pretty and her name is April and I don't know who I should ask out" "well that tricky umm ask the one you know more out". "Ok thank you I don't see you that much" "umm can I tell you a secret". "Sure bro bro anything"

"Well I talk to this girl and she is cute and super pretty" he giggles. "Oh somebody's in love" she teased "and she has magic hair but she said she has to leave and I think she is in the forbidden forest". "oh but you know daddy and papa won't ,let you go there or if she is a Northwest,". "I know but I got to do something" just then the kings came to put them to bed."Children I have story to tell you" Ford told them he sat on Mabel's bed the kids crawl on it get comfort. Stan sat in a chair beside them "I will tell you the story of Hansel and Gretel, they're twins like you too" he tells the children.

"I think we've heard this story before when we were little" Dipper complains "you can go to bed if you want" Stan remind he "fine". "Start the story already PLEASE" she begs "once upon a time they're where two twins a brother and a sister they live in the woods in a house with their mother and father. Their parents was having a hard time finding food for the children. The children were hungry" "this when they find the house made of candy that's my favorite part" Mabel interruption him. "Not yet... one day they're father had to cut down some wood so Hansel and Gretel sat by the fire and ate one piece of bread then they fell asleep together."Aww we sometimes do that" Mabel said "yea we do" Dipper agreed. "Anyway.. the twins woke up one morning and were playing in the forest and they saw a house made of candy and cake."

"I want to live there and eat the whole thing" Mabel told them "I bet I can help with that" Stan mentioned. Ford starts the story again a little peeved that he keeps getting interrupted "Okay.. Then the children began eating the house. Then the door opened, and an old woman came out. "Ah, my dear children, come here you must come indoors and stay with me, you will be no trouble." So she took them each by the hand, and led them into her little house. And there they found a meal laid out, of milk and pancakes, with sugar, apples, and nuts. After that she showed them two little beds, and Hansel and Grethel laid themselves down on them, and thought they were in heaven.She was downstairs getting ready an oven she used to eat them."

"How could she eat kids, what's wrong with her?" Mabel said upset "yea that's gross" Dipper agreed ."I know she crazy She was getting the oven ready, then Hansel  gave her a push, so that she went in , and Grethel shut the iron door upon her, and they both ran away, and left the wicked witch to burn miserably.The twins go home to their mother and father live happily together until the end" Ford finishes the story. "Ok it's bedtime" Stan got Mabel under the blanket he tucked her in and gave her stuff dog Wattles sleeps on her bed. And Stan kisses her goodnight Ford rubs her head softly she falls asleep .Dipper gets into bed Ford tucks him in Ford kisses him goodnight.And Stan rubs his head softly he falls asleep the kings closed the door.

Chapter 4 Promise me this That you'll stand by me forever

The next morning There's a knock at the door Soos answer it a older woman with red hair and formally dressed says "good morning sir my name is Kelly I'm am with the BAPP British administration of proper Princess." "Oh ok just a minute mr. Pines there a teacher lady at the door" "huh...what do you mean Soos" "hello your majesty I'm am with the proper princess administration and we want to help you niece to prepare her for Royal duty's".

" Gotcha....but no we don't need your help so you can just tell your king George that.... " "Stanley what's going on here" Ford interrupt them Mabel run up to them and listens.Stan points at Kelly  "She wants to train Mabel to be a better princess" "well I don't know we should think about it and contact you at a later time" Ford jesters for her to leave. " Wait don't go I want to be a proper Princess" "are you sure pumpkin" Stan asked her "yes I do I need to if I'm going rule the kingdom and it could be fun"she replied Kelly said "we start tomorrow 7:00 am" then she left.

Mabel and papa do some kitting she shows him how to kit himself a yellow sweater and he loves it and wears it the rest of the day.Stan went downstairs to get some work done.To Managing the kingdom. Then Ford and her bake some cookies. Fiddleford helps them and she puts a lot in her mouth Ford laughs at his cute daughter. FiddleFord puts the cookies in the jar Ford kisses him on cheek Fiddleford blushed.Then Mabel asks "uncle FiddleFord how did you guys meet" "well honey take a Seat do you want to start darling"FiddleFord asked him.

"I was a young teenager sitting outside under a tree writing I was lonely .I had always wanted to be in a relationship but the person I loved was too shy to talk to me and so was I". "I reckon was too shy to speak to you because you were so handsome" Ford blushed "Aww thank you babe.Anyway if it hadn't been for your daddy we might have never made a move" Stan pushed Ford to talk to him and invited FiddleFord to sit at a little table in the park. For the two of them to fall in love "And bye goalie it worked we had been together for years" FiddleFord looked into his eyes. "I think we will be for years to come right babe" Ford lovingly told him " absolutely darling" they kiss. Meanwhile Dipper sneaks out to the stables

He tells Soos he's going on a quick Trailride "ok dude have fun" Soos was taking care of the horses He rode out to the forbidding forest Dipper was looking around when he saw a tower. He thought this might be it "Pacifica Pacifica let down your hair" he yelled. Then noticed it was locked and he climbed the tower,and when he got to the window he unlocked it.

And out came lots and lots of golden hair. She puts her hair on a bar on top, and slides down "thank you but I don't need help getting down." She brags Dipper grumbles and notices how much hair she has then he slides down. "You have a lot of hair" "I know dork" she says sarcastically "anyway what you want to do now".

They rode around the red yellow and orange woods on a bay appaloosa pony named Dreamer and had a picnic on the grass. "what are your parents names are they as weird as you " she ask "oh umm my parents aren't alive anymore so my great uncles take care of me umm there twins" she got quiet and regretted asking then said "oh I so sorry I wish I knew my parents the king and queen save me when I was two"

"why do they lock you up in your tower" he asks "because they uses my hair and I'm not allowed to leave my mom tell me she much pretty than me that makes me feel upset it hurt when I left my tower that night they were not happy" "oh Pacifica gosh I'm sorry let go back" he doesn't want her to be in even more trouble than she already is. She flipped up his bangs and saw weird dots on his forehead. "What's that, are they zits" "umm it's my birthmark" he bushes "oh so that's why they call you Dipper".

"Yes my real name is Mason"he said embarrassedly "I like Dipper it's unique" "umm thank you" he looked flustered. she moved closer and kissed him on the cheek,"wow you smell nice" he giggled as she bushes at him. Afterwards he returned her to her tower, said goodbye and rode home.They do this for a few weeks without getting caught.

Chapter 5 How the kingdom lights shined just for me and you

Kelly getting her things together in the living room to teach Mabel. A giant rulebook,heels, a brush. "Ok dude I'm ready to get this party started" Mabel excitedly yelled "first off a princess should never yell unless there is a frog in her hair" she told her. "I kiss a frog once" she added Kelly Roll her eyes "anyway you should speak well and what on earth are you wearing" she was talking about her faded blue and brown dress. "Oh this is my play dress so I don't get my other dresses dirty I kind of like it"she gave Mabel a White dress to change into.

After that she fix her hair into a giant bun on her head.And some makeup "You put the tiara on" she tells her Mabel dose then it falls on the floor "I'm sorry". Then she has walk in hi heels she takes her first step forward then a few more. "Very good almost there" she fall Face first on ground they move on to tea party " finally something I'm good at" Mabel takes sip of tea and a bite of cupcake "mmm that was good" then she burps loudly. " That was a good one .... I mean Excuse me" she blushes Kelly looks frustrated.

"The most important thing that you must do is to be perfect. That means not yelling,waking to heels correctly,you have to know everything about your kingdom how to run it properly you subject look up they expect you to be calm and in control. And you have be quiet and very feminine. Let's Resume later maybe your have better luck" with that she left.

The next day the kings go to wake up the kids and see that their noses are a little red."Are you ok sweetie" Stan pats her head "AHH-OWOW" Dipper sneezes " Aww you sneezes like a kitten".She coughs every time one sneezes the other coughs, Ford makes a call for some help. Stan puts his hand on her forehead and she warm then he puts his hand on Dipper's forehead and his warm too.Soos comes with a thermometer, medicine, breakfast and tissues.

"Open your mouth please" Ford put the thermometer in Mabel's mouth it’s 108f "look like a fever" .Stan handed Dipper some juice he drank it ,Ford walked over to Dipper bed and took his thermometer. And he had a fever too Stan give Mabel her medicine "here you go pumpkin" she drink it,

"do you want some pancakes"he ask "no"she replied Ford gave Dipper he medicine"drink please"."This is disgusting'' he moans Mabel coughs Dipper sneezes Mabel starts shivering Stan take another blanket and wrappers it around her and rub her and she warm up she smiles at him he softly rub her head Ford opened a window a little bit to let the cool, air in and sick air out then Stan tucked Dipper into bed. "You kids get some sleep '' he said. "Call us if you need anything" Ford says "feel better soon dudes" Soos added.They go downstairs to let them sleep. Later they feed them matzo ball soup and medicine. They go back to sleep, then after dinner they give them their warm baths to help with their colds .That night the Dads go to cheek in on they're children they are sleeping. They look worse than before and paler. Ford feels Mabel's forehead and

she burning up she whimpers "Soos get me a cold washcloth PLEASE and get two just in case ".She starts having chills Ford take her blanket and tucks her in.Stan moves Dipper over to her bed he feels burning hot he looks worriedly at Stan. He puts the cold washcloth on his head Ford tucks him in Dipper close his eyes Ford carefully climbs into their bed and puts Dipper on his lap and runs his 6 fingers through Dipper's hair Stan puts Mabel in his lap and put the wet washcloth on her head Ford looks worriedly at his daughter and holds her hand .Stan rubs her hair softly she gave him a small smile they"then she slept.They stay in the whole night there and watch their babies they both to make sure they are ok they are worried something will go wrong.

They remember the night they were born when they thought something might go wrong.Dipper had a hard time breathing. He was turning blue after he was born. That was the first time he scared them and his parents. But the doctor saved him and after their mother got to hold her newborn twins then Stan held Mabel she wrapped her hand around his finger and Ford held Dipper he grabbed Ford's shirt they then they swapped them and held the other babies were so small and helpless.Just like the children are now they don't have their parents to protect them. But now they have their adopted daddys to take care of them. They are very worried they will lose their babies.

But little by little more medicine,sleep and soup the kids get better. And their dads are right there to take care of them and soon they are no longer sick. And they can get back to doing fun stuff.

Chapter 6 I had the time of my life fighting dragons with you

Mabel was in Stan's bed room him and Ford were having a conversation about the Princess training. "Guys I just don't want to do it again because it's not me how a dress or act and it's a pressure on how the kingdom sees me" she told them as she played with her hair. "Well we understand" Ford comforted her "don't ever let anyone ever change you my dear." Stan tells her "Sweetie don't worry about the kingdom you'll have your brother to help you and your already perfect princess to me." She hugs him.

Later the Pines,Soos and Melody ,Wendy and Fiddleford and Marilyn  were in the forest Mabel had found unicorns, pegasus and earth ponies. And she was having a lovely conversation over a tea party. The boys didn't mind being at a tea party . Stan and Marilyn  sat down next to each other and cuddle a little.Mabel was wearing a yellow ball dress and Wendy was putting a bow in Mabel's hair, her and Wendy were talking about horses,dresses and girl stuff.

Dipper was wearing a dark blue, White suit and brown pants . Later the kids climbed up a small cliff Dipper made it to the top first, Mabel got their last she tried to pull herself up but started falling down, Dipper quickly grabbed her hand and pulled her up. "Thank brother" she said "you're welcome little sister" he teases her "by 5 minutes that's what mom said" she reminds him he smiles.

They could see the top of their dads gray hair and Soos too after they went back to the castle. They sit down on the couch Mabel in Stan's lap he snuggles her and Dipper in Ford's lap he cuddles him "Grunkle Stan who was the king and queen before you guys" she asked.

"Well your great grandma was the queen before us. She was the oldest of 6 sisters. She passed away when you two were born."Stan answered. "Yes I believe she in her early 50s when she passed The passing down of power goes to twins usually.Your father my nephew didn't want to be king"Ford explained

"And he and your mom were in the military so he can't be king" Stan told them. The kids started to feel sad. Their eyes filled with sadness, they remember being in the war zone  after they had passed and their bodies bloody lying on the ground with bullet holes in them the kids remember crying and sobbing. The kings were there hugging them. Those first few days were the hardest. It is so tragic that they were only 29 and 30 years old.Ford rubs Dipper's back slowly Stan cuddles Mabel to help her "we sorry if we made you feel sad" Ford looked at both of them. "We know you kids are very sad losing your parents."Stan tries to comfort them "and we know we will never replace your mother and father but we love you so much"Ford added.

"It's okay to cry if you want"Stan reassured them "I want my MOMMY AND DADDY" she sobbed "me too it's not fair if someone was there...maybe " he let the tears fall. "I know it's not Dippy" Stan rubbed Dipper's cheek to comfort his son "I miss daddy would get my flowers" she sniffled "I really miss Mommy she brushed. My hair and she......was caring and there was no one else that could replace her ." Tears build up in her eyes and run down "I WISH SHE WAS HERE " she yelled.

"I I miss......Dadddy a lot he was the only one who understood me if I was there I could've done something" he try to wipe his tears away but they just kept coming "There was nothing you could've done, it's a horrible situation my boy" Ford hugged him but that wasn't helping "why did they have to KILL HER AND NOW SHE GONE" he yelled sobbing in anger . His yelling scared Mabel a little bit and she started crying more . "It's okay sweetie I know they love you I lot I'm sorry you both have to go through this "he let her keep crying to get it.

Out he holds her close and rubs her and because he's trying hard not too breakdown in tears as well.He lost his son and his beloved daughter in law it hurts him as much as it hurts them.But he holds it together for the children ."It really isn't fair I wish no child had to go through this specially you children" Ford comforted and held the crying boy.A few minutes passed .

They both give turns giving the twins kisses on the head and they comfort their babies for a while.And talk about the good things they remember about their parents.The king's know that the hole left by their parents wasn't ever going to be filled.And the children will probably never not be sad and frustrated at the loss. But the best thing to do is to not forget and talk about and work through the pain together as a family.And they take a little nap together Fiddleford see them and take a blanket and tucked them in he runs his hand though Ford's hair lovely Ford smile in his sleep then the kings cuddled and snuggled the children .

Later they receive a letter from the Northwest that they need to come over to their castle immediately to have a meeting. So the Pines got in the pumpkin carriage and rood off.They walked in and sat down in the living room. "Have the children go play in the other room. Well, we talk" Preston told them "and tell Pacifica she is awful at the piano and make her stop playing that horrible noise" Priscilla tells them as the kids went into the ballroom. And they see Pacifica in a pink dress, with her very long hair playing on the piano.She is not the best but she is not bad at it.

"Oh Dipper what are you doing here you didn't tell me you have a sister" "I'm his twin sister my name is Mabel are parents are, talking" ""can we play with you" he ask. "Sure dork lets dance" Pacifica got off the bench and grabbed Dipper's hand. Mabel started playing the piano. She is wearing a yellow dress and a yellow bow in her hair, she started slinging "tale as old as time, true as it can be barely even friends. Then somebody bends unexpectedly" Pacifica and Dipper dance slow and close

"just a little change,small to say the least". She lays her head on his shoulder, he blushes "both a little, scared neither one prepared" he twirls her around "beauty and the beast". Then he kissed her and she blushed when they sat down.The doors few open the parents were arguing "why are we here" Ford asked “because you're grandson Mason has been dating my daughter"Preston yelled

"And what that's crazy" Stan yelled. "Is that true that you disobeyed us?" Ford asked. "Well yes it is, we've been, hanging out" Dipper admitted ."you went to no the Northwests, castle alone"Stan yelled "there's a reason you don't talk to the king and queen were trying to protect you"Fold told him "I'm sorry I know that was wrong I just started talking to her and I feel bad I want to help her I love her" Dipper apologize . "It was my idea to keep sneaking out so he would stop using my hair" Pacifica told them.

Chapter 7 One day, we will be remembered

Pression angry, stopped over"Pacifica Northwest you are no longer the princess of this kingdom and, you shall no longer exist"Pression yelled. "I wish we never adopted you little rat" Priscilla added.He draws his sword and tries to kill her but Dipper stepped in the way of the sword, and it cut half of her hair and the rest disappeared. But the sword also stabbed Dipper's side, making a small wound.

He tried not to cry but he fell to the ground. Pacifica cried and held him. Everyone ran over Mabel hugged the other side of him, she looked at Stan and Ford she yelled "DADDY,PAPA please don't let him die too" she sobbed "is there a doctor in the castle" Ford yelled. "It's okay daddy here" he ran over to her and rubbed her back "This is all your fault he's hurt"Stan shouted back at Pression Ford took a piece of his shut, and tied it tightly around Dipper's wound.

Worried that he might lose his son he tries to keep Dipper calm and try to think of what else to help "We need to get him some help" Stan said worriedly as he was getting ready to pick him up he already lost his son he wasn't going to lose his grandson either. "Daddy please help me"Dipper started to cry Stan not sure what else to he sang to him "the monster gone we on our own but you're daddy here" Stan held hand and rubbed it gently.Ford joined in "beautiful beautiful beautiful boy" he ran 6 fingers through his hair.

Then Mabel hugged him more and tried to use her magic and love for her brother to heal him. A few minutes later he whispered "hey it doesn't hurt any more". "Oh thank goodness"Pacifca hugged him, Stan removed part of Dipper shut and there's nothing left but a small stair. The kings take Pacifica and the twins home. Dipper's stair felt sore the next couple of days,

Pacifica lives with them. She has her own room near Soos and his wife Melody's room. Her room is purple and enjoys her life. She can't use her magic hair anymore but she loves the new freedom she has. She spends a lot of time with Soos and Melody’s 6 other children. And he grows a Bond with her.They takes care of her and helps her with schoolwork.They are they're for her when she has a nightmare and comfort her back to sleep.Then Soos and Melody offers to adopt her Pacifica agrees and she gets a loving mom and dad .

Pacifica talks with Wendy and plays games with Mabel and Dipper. She never had the chance to be a kid but she has never been happier.Dipper and her do still love each other but now they'll never be separated.They can't wait until they are older and how much stronger their relationship will be.

Stan and Ford helped the children with school and taught them how to run the Kingdom a little bit. They also try to make every day fun for their children and let them enjoy being kids for as long as possible.They all celebrate their first Hanukkah as a family and they enjoy it very much.And the fathers try to keep twins from getting hurt physically and mentally they try their hardest.Mabel asks out the girl she likes and they date from a few months. But they release that feeling that is different now and they are growing in different ways and they decide to break up.Mabel takes a break and makes some new friends. Discover a new hobby.Then when she is a little bit older she tries again with a sweet boy named Charlie.

Dipper and Pacifica grow closer. Stan and Ford try their best to raise their son and daughter. They do a pretty good job. They have help from Fiddleford ,Maryland. They feel happy they were chosen to take care of the children. They feel glad they saved that girl from her abusive parents. And no matter what they would always have each other as a family.The boys have a handful raising two teenagers it's hard sometimes and the fathers don't agree with the kids.But the twins love their fathers they are the best parents they could've asked for.

And when they were all grown up, they had children of their own Dipper and Pacifica had fraternal blonde hair twins one boy one girl .Mabel marries Charlie and they adopted siblings one with black hair and one with dark red hair a 7 years old boy and a little baby boy.Together and all 4 of them ruled the kingdom together.The End.

[thevalkyriesshadow]

🦴 for Azriel

🦴 I think it’s broken...for Azriel

Oh anon, I put Az through the ringer in this

TW: for depictions of broken bones and small medical procedures

I'm practicing my whump so send me any tips or tricks so I can give you all the best gwynriel whump of your life 😈

Also this may or may not have turned into a two parter soo.....

💖 Enjoy! 💖

The cold, blustering winds batted the strands of hair that fell from Gwyn’s braid. The sounds and smells of battle assaulted her senses. The fae Courts fought the fae from Rask. 

The war they'd been preparing for was in full force. 

Every court was working day and night to rally their warriors. After the Raskan’s first attack on the Dawn Court where they destroyed the Palace on the eastern coast, forcing thousands of fae to evacuate and running either inland or into Day Court. 

A High Fae meeting was called immediately and a plan was hatched.

Each court was to have a unified force ready to defend the coast at a moment’s notice. The Valkyries and Illyrians were ordered to split up and send out six separate battalions that would aid the other courts in their war efforts. Day sent a legion of Pegasus scattered along the coast. Autumn Court infantry, known for their brutal hand to hand fire fighting, were sent in droves. Winter Court sent two giants and bear riders to each court’s front. Summer Court provided each coastal front a fleet of ships. Wild beasts hid and waited to pounce out in every woods along the eastern seaboard. 

The Illyrians and Valkyries had been training together for two years before the order, a short time for the span of their lives, but they moved together with the practice of a hundred years. They had to. Or else everything they loved, their homes, would be gone. The Illyrian’s quarrel with the Night Court was snuffed out with the joint efforts of the Valkyries that led to Azriel’s newfound leadership amongst them. They trained long and hard, combining their fighting techniques in unique ways. Making them a formidable front. The assault from the Eastern lands was brutal, quick, and unforgiving. Their ships loomed on the horizon. Never sailing in further or making a move. Just waiting. 

All along the coast this was reported. The day they moved, was the day everything kicked off. 

That was yesterday morning. They’d fought all day and into the night. Now, on the dawn of the second day, things seemed to finally be coming to an end. The fae of the courts appearing victorious. Gwyn wiped the sweat and dirt, and blood from her face and glanced around. Nesta and Emerie were back to back, facing a small group of eastern fae, easily handling them.

Gargoyles soared above. Their massive bodies, formed with rock from the eastern mountains, dwarfed the Illyrian warriors who fought them. Cassian was cutting through the stone beasts effortlessly, his sword and magic blazing left and right.

And Azriel….

Where was he? 

Gwyn didn't see the brilliant blue streaks flying through the air, didn't see the wisping tendrils of shadows thwarting enemies. 

Her heart raced. Her stomach turned.

There.

There he was. Popping in and out of the shadows of the low clouds that hung in the dark gray skies. A winter storm was rolling in, looming like a massive beast over the ornate, white stoned castle between the Winter and Autumn Courts where they fought - The very center of the battle.

With battle dissipating around them, Gwyn took a moment to breathe and watch Azriel, her mate, soar through the sky and fight every single foe effortlessly. Azriel may not realize they’re mates yet, but every fiber of her being knew it. She could feel his triumph through the bond as he knocked another gargoyle to the ground.

Gwyn looked away for one moment when she felt it, searing pain running through the bond and filling Gwyn with dread.

She spun back around searching the skies. Her heart leapt in her throat, her stomach dropping as she watched a gargoyle - who had Azriel in its stony hands - throw the Shadowsinger through the air. He slammed against the castle wall near them, pain shot through the bond again.

Then Azriel fell.

Gwyn waited for one heartbeat, but the Shadowsinger didn’t return.

She turned swiftly and ran over the ridge behind the battlegrounds where the Valkyrie’s pegasi were kept. Her mare stepped out from the equestrian group, as if sensing its rider was close. Her long, dark gray mane swayed in the breeze, her charcoal wings flapped behind her. The muscles rippled under the powerful body as the white and gray speckled mare ran towards Gwyn.

Fear. Pain. Helplessness.

She was feeling all of Azriel’s anguish, his emotions. It pulled at her like a tether, urging her to run faster to push harder. 

“Fly Mistie, Vilya!” 

Gwyn guided Mistie to the castle, towards the steep precipice Azriel fell into. The pegasus swooped down gracefully and with stunning speed, following Gwyn’s touch on the reigns with immaculate precision.

She pushed through the bond, feeling for any sign of him. 

A pulse.

A small twinge on the bond. She followed it, pulling Mistie down further to the snow covered logs and earth below. To the dark shadow that lay crumbled amongst the fallen branches from trees above. 

Gwyn’s heart pounded against her chest, in her ears. He wasn’t moving, his siphons a soft glow. She dismounted before Mistie had even fully touched the ground, and began to climb over the logs and branches to Azriel. To her mate.

“Azriel…AZRIEL!” Her panic began to rise, to crest as the Shadowsinger made no movement. She’d know. She’d know if he was dead. She’d feel it.

Another faint pulse through the bond. “I’m here, Azriel - I’m here!” She tried to control the fear that rippled through her - her fear, and Azriel’s…

She jumped over a large tree trunk, landing gracefully on her feet and stilled. 

Azriel lay face down, his wings and limbs all at odd angles. Gwyn stumbled forward onto her knees, next to Azriel, placing delicate hands on him.

“Azriel,” She breathed. Azriel sobbed, relief washing over her through the bond, an all encompassing feeling that wrapped around her and she felt her fear begin to eddy away. 

“I’ve got you, shadowsinger - I’ve got you.” Tears slid down Gwyn’s cheeks as she assessed the situation. If she could roll him out from between the two small tree trunks he landed on, she could get him flat on his back -

Gwyn reached for Azriel’s right arm and hip, but as she applied pressure to pull, he screamed, his hands clenched into fists.

“Sorry -” her voice wavered as the pain washed over her as well.

“I think it’s broken…” Azriel gritted out.

“What is?”

He breathed heavily and grunted as he tried moving his right wing, “Everything…everything on my right side.” He winced.

She looked closer at his extremities. His elbow was bent at an odd angle and although she couldn't see any broken bones, his leathers were torn along his upper thigh, a deep cut underneath. Then there was his wing. It was crushed, crumbled against him. The beautiful curve and slope of it mangled. His other wing hung limply over the trunks and logs. 

“Okay - I’m going to need to splint your wing before pulling you off the logs. It’s going to hurt for a moment, but then I’ll be able to heal you after we set and tend to your injuries.”

Azriel took a few deep breaths, his brows furrowing. His amber eyes were swimming with anguish until he looked up at Gwyn and nodded. Only assuredness gleaming back at her. 

“Do it,” he ground out.

Gwyn didn’t hesitate. She tore her cape off and ripped a few thin strips, using them to hold his broken wing steady. His knuckles turned white as he gripped the branches beneath him and groaned through his clenched jaw as she moved his wing, setting it into a stable position and wrapping it firmly. 

This time, when she went to turn him over, she placed a flat palm on his chest, the other his middle, Gwyn heaved Azriel off the debris that littered the ravine floor. He let out an agonizing cry that echoed all around them. With Azriel tightly in her arms, his back to her chest, she walked slowly backwards, pulling the shadowsinger with her. His sobs and groans of pain shot straight through her, chilling her veins and seizing her heart. 

She pressed the side of her face to his, “I’ve got you. Just a few more steps.” His scarred hands clutched at hers, wrapping around her wrists. Steadying himself. 

They were both panting as Gwyn set him down. She rushed over to Mistie and tugged her healer’s kit from the saddle, her bedroll, and waterskin.

She placed the bedroll beneath Azriel’s head and tore more cloth from her cape for his arm. She silently thanked the gods for all the available wood to use. Finding two sturdy sticks Gwyn gingerly handled his elbow, placing the sticks on either side of his swollen and crooked arm. 

Azriel watched her with intensity, marking every move she made. 

“Are you okay?” He asked, wincing as she slid the fabric of her cloak beneath his arm. 

“Yes. Well, comparatively - I got hit a few times, but I’m okay,” she replied, tying off the makeshift sling around his shoulder. She shuffled back to tend to his leg. The wound wasn’t gushing blood, thank the gods. It had just missed the major arteries, and her healing may negate the need for stitches.

Grabbing the fabric, she ripped open the leg of his pants and gasped. Realizing now that the deep gash was in fact due to his upper femur breaking. Gwyn could just make out the white of jagged bone protruding from beneath layers of muscle and skin.

“That bad?” he asked.

“Well, you were right. Everything is broken and you’ll need stitches.” She grabbed the healer’s kit, pulled out the gauze, and pressed it against the wound. Azriel cried out, his back arching at the pain. 

He let out a breathy chuckle, “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were enjoying my pain, Berdara.”

She smiled, grateful he still had his humor, “Only now that I know you’re alive,” she teased. She uncorked her waterskin and poured the water over his wound, washing out the dirt and debris that gathered in the sinews of muscle that showed. Azriel hissed in. His fists clenching at his sides. 

Working quickly, she pushed his legs together and wrapped the remaining fabric of her cloak around his legs, binding them.

“How are you going to get us out?” Azriel asked as Gwyn kneeled next to him, placing a hand on his chest, the other just under his ribcage.

“We’ll figure that out after I heal you. I’m pretty spent so It won’t be much, but it’ll at least help you feel a little better.”

Azriel lifted his good hand then, placing it on top of the one she had laying on his abdomen. Her gaze drifted up to his and he smiled, “Thank you, Gwyn - for a moment,” his words wavered and cut short. He cleared his throat and held her hand tighter, “For a moment I thought nobody saw me fall and I’d be - I’d still be sprawled on a stack of sticks bleeding out, alone…” Tears swam in his eyes.

Gwyn reached up, cupping his face in her hand. He sighed into the touch, his tears pooling under her fingers. She leaned forward, resting her forehead to his, “I’ll always come for you, Azriel.”

She went to pull away, but his hand came up to hold the back of her head, pulling her back down to him. She met him with no resistance, their lips crashing into each other’s. 

It was soft and sweet, that first touch of their lips. Until it wasn’t and it was all consuming and greedy, passionate, like it was their first and last kiss ever. His fingers curled in her hair, her hand, now free, slid up his torso and came to rest on his chest as their kiss deepened. 

The bond pulsed and expanded, growing bright between them, tugging relentlessly at their souls.

Gwyn pulled back, their mouths a hairsbreadth apart. Their breaths mingled together in the cold air and she could’ve sworn she heard music between them.

Azriel’s cheeks were flushed, tears and adoration welling fresh in his eyes as he gasped out, “Mate.”

To be continue…

Surprise! The mate thing just kind of happened and then I decided this needed to be a two-parter…👉👈 hope that’s okay anon 👉👈 …the next part will be full of caretaker!Gwyn! 😉  ​tehe

[uncharismatic-fauna]

Taming the Tiger Shark

The tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvier) is a common sight for divers, fishermen, and tourists in the tropical waters of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. They are often found around sea grass fields or coral reefs, and tend to prefer warm, shallower waters near the coastline or surrounding atolls and islands. The northern end of their range extends up to the northern borders of the United States and China, while their southern range reaches down to Brazil, Madagascar, and the eastern coast of Australia.

While they're slightly smaller than great whites, G. cuvier is still one of the largest carnivores in the ocean. Adults can grow up to 4.7 m (15 ft 5 in) long and weigh between 300 and 900 kg (700 and 2,000 lb). Females tend to be larger than males, but the two sexes are otherwise indistinguishable. Individuals are typically bluish gray or green, with a white or light yellow underbelly; this provides them with camouflage, as fish swimming overhead or below are unable to pick out the shark's silhouette against the dark or light background, respectively.

As an apex predator, G. cuvier has few predators of its own. Juvenile tiger sharks will often fall prey to other sharks, including adults of their own species. Orcas are also occasionally known to prey on tiger sharks, but these occurrences are rare. In their own food chain, G. cuvier has a large appetite and will eat almost anything. Coral reef fish are a common target, though their speed and small size makes them harder to catch. More often tiger sharks will prey on cephalopods, crustaceans, sea snakes, turtles, sea birds, and a host of marine mammals like dolphins, dugongs, sea lions, and young, injured, or dead whales. Inadvertently, tiger sharks will also consume garbage such as bottles tires, earning them the nickname 'The Garbage Can of the Ocean'.

Tiger sharks are primarily active at night. Contrary to other sharks, G. cuvier has excellent eyesight, as well as a keen sense of smell. In addition, tiger sharks have two special sensory organs. The lateral line extends down the length of the body and can detect minute vibrations in the water. Ampullae of Lorenzini are small electroreceptors located on the snout; these detect the weak electrical impulses generated by prey. All these features make it easy for tiger sharks to find a meal, and once located their body shape allows them to put on a burst of speed and make quick turns to catch their target. Most of the time, this hunting practice is done alone, but occasionally groups of tiger sharks will gather to scavenge a large carcass or for the mating season.

Male tiger sharks mate every year, while females only reproduce every three years. Breeding seasons differ based on location; in the Northern Hemisphere mating occurs between March and May, while in the Southern Hemisphere it's between November and January. During this time, dozens or even hundreds of sharks may gather to find mates. Females carry their young for up to 16 months, at which time they give live birth. Tiger sharks are ovoviviparous, meaning that eggs are fertilised and hatch inside the mother; this species is also unique in that they employ a technique called embryotrophy, in which young gestate in sacks which are filled with an embryonic fluid. A single litter of tiger sharks may contain between 10 to 80 pups, and each one may live up to 12 years in the wild.

Conservation status: The IUCN has classified the tiger shark as Near Threatened. While exact numbers are unclear, a great many tiger sharks are killed each year for their skin, fins, and liver. This species also has a reputation for vicious attacks, and while they can be aggressive when threatened, only a handful of shark attacks occur each year.

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Photos

Neil Hammerschlag

Brian Skerry

David Snyder

[magnolia-among-the-stars]

Kill the Lights [hangman PT. 5/8]

PART OF MY “WHATEVER THIS IS” SERIES WHICH CAN BE FOUND HERE PAIRING: JAKE ‘HANGMAN’ SERESIN x Female Plus Size Bartender!Reader NICKNAME: Sunshine It goes without saying but I do not give permission for anyone to use my work or copy it somewhere else. Want to be added to the tag list for this character, all stories or another character? let me know here :)

PLOT: Penny Benjamin's niece works at The Hard Deck, saving the money she earns to get out of the west coast and put herself through Graduate School. What happens when a pretty boy pilot ends up as her fake boyfriend?

PART ONE / PART TWO / PART THREE / PART FOUR / PART FIVE / PART SIX / PART SEVEN / PART EIGHT / PART NINE / PART TEN / PART ELEVEN / FINAL PART

Time starts to feel different after that day in the booth when you gave Jake his old secondhand store copy of a Report from Engine Co. 82. There was a quiet nature to the two of you, a harmony of moving parts and matching heartbeats the longer the two of you spent in the mirage of a budding romance. At times, it was so simple, so effortless that the two of you forgot about the arrangement and just fell into natural patterns of him picking you up for work on his days off or you going to his place for dinner on Saturday nights before work.

Even your pestering aunt seemed to feel that a new leaf had turned as she walked the two of you on the picnic tables during the day before the Hard Deck would open. Deep in your work, you would sit barefoot with your legs up on his thick thighs and his lean fingertips would massage your calves as he read his newest book or bathed in the heat of the sun.

When the Summer months passed and September came and went, Javy was convinced the two of you inaudibly changed your relationship status for real. It made him incredibly happy. What made him even more happy was hearing that the two of you were planning to match your Halloween costumes for the party that Phoenix and Aries were hosting together.

“You want to go as cowboys?” Jake asks as he walks you home from work one night, arm wrapped protectively around your shoulders. He couldn’t help but crack a smile just looking down at you, bundled up in his old heather gray naval academy sweatshirt. Your hand skimmed across his toned stomach delicately, grazing your fingertips over the flesh on his exposed hipbone. A shiver runs through the man which makes you giggle.

“Why not?”

“I’m from Texas darlin’,” Jake’s drawl is thick and factual, “It’s a bit on the nose, no?”

You pull away from him as your porch comes into view, back to the home as you stare at him. He’s sunkissed to the gods and with the quiet desk time he’s had before the new group of recruits start, a scruff has begun to scrap his sharp jawline. Over the weeks of your agreement, he had been scaling back on the stiff gel. It left his hair soft and so fluffy that you couldn’t help but run your hands through it any chance you got, even tugging on it teasingly in gentle moments. “Maybe I want to see you in your truest form.”

If Jake caught something in your tone, he didn’t show his cards. You walk through the thick tension until you’re on the top step of your porch, glancing down at the beautiful man in front of you. “Thank you for,” the sound of a car rumbles down the dark neighborhood road and without taking my eyes off his emerald greens, you know the driver in an instant.

Jake steps up, the way you know you can count on him for and he steps up just a step with his hands up. “Say something mean,” he demands, intense gaze on your face as you frown.

“Excuse me?”

“Keep that cute, annoyed look on your face and say something mean to me,” Jake repeats, holding his hands up like he’s trying to defend himself. “He’ll think it’s weird that we were at a distance from each other. So, give me something to try to charm my way back into your arms,” Jake challenges and you narrow your eyes at him, jaw clenched.

“I can’t believe you wouldn’t let me buy an extra book today,” you grumble, shoving him lightly for good measure so he steps off the porch. His brows raise at the sudden motion, and it almost causes a giggle to roll through you. But it doesn’t last because suddenly, Jake’s in your space and clouding your judgement.

He’s fogging up your brain as he takes the steps quick enough to grab your face between his gentle hands. The leather of the watch his father gifted him after graduation roughs against your jaw. It’s delicious. “Is that the best you’ve got?” His tone is taunting and it’s brewing something in your lower tummy in a way you haven’t experienced in a while.

“You make it hard to be mean,” you breath out, hands shoving without much effort at his chest. You muster all the strength of Meryl Streep before shoving him back again, down into the yard. “I don’t want to look at you right now, I can’t believe you.”

He’s getting that whiplash again, your loud and sharp tone something he never wants to experience again. It tugs at his heart strings and suddenly he feels like he’s begging not to leave your side, begging to stay. He watches you turn away from him, toward the door where you try to collect your keys slowly and shakily. “Please,” he’s suddenly whimpering behind you, but you can’t look now. You’ll break and tell him that you don’t want to look anywhere but him. That he’s the only one on your mind. Just as you get your key into the slot, rough hands are grabbing your hips and spinning you around to press you softly against the doorframe.

Jake’s mouth is soft and begging as it slots over yours, moving almost skittishly as he clutches at the soft material by your waist to tug you closer to his body. Your hands slide up his chest, against the strong muscles of his shoulders as you nibble on his bottom lip before you stop kissing back. You push him away but this time, Jake’s prepared and he only steps back once, twice before he’s back.

He grabs your cheeks and tugs you to him as he kisses you again. This time, the porch disappears around you when his lips pepper your neck, and the rumbling of the car is lost in the way Jake’s jeans rub against your thighs. Jake knows exactly where your sweet spot is on the crux of your neck, wet kisses skim along your collarbone as you step backward. Your hand finds the doorknob behind you, twisting awkwardly to step into the house. Your fingers run over the buttons of his shirt and clench, tugging his shirt with your eyes locked as he follows you inside.

He kicks the door shut behind him and locks it swiftly, his chest rising and falling as you stare at each other in the silence of your small home. Without looking away, Jake toes of his boots and steps tentatively toward you with slow hands. It’s a stark contrast to the hot and heated moments out on the porch outside but you were more than okay with this Jake; soft and hesitant.

“I don’t think we’re Oscar worthy yet,” his lips are swollen and pink, inviting as he takes a deep breath.

His minty breath fans over you as you kick off your shoes, eyes searching his flushed face. “Method actors rarely get awards,” the comment makes him chuckle as you slowly tug him to the couch. “Can we…”

“Yes,” he murmurs before he kisses you again, his strength tugging you onto his lap as you forget everything but each other’s mouths.

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