#hand made opal jewelry

[gurugirl]

Dress up

sugardaddy!harry x yn | An extra for The Arrangement

Summary: Y/n dresses up in diamonds and jewels and thinks she looks sexy so she secretly makes a solo video of herself. But then she goes out on a limb and sends the video to Harry while he's working.

A/N: Sorry it's been so long since I've given you an update for these two! This was requested! Here

Word Count: 4,548

Warning: 18+ only, smut, use of toys, spanking, sharing of a solo sex tape

The Arrangement Masterlist

. .

Y/n remembers a time when she’d wear clothes that were slightly unkempt. Clean but perhaps maybe a little wrinkled. Shirt hems and collars would be folded funny, buttons misaligned, sweaters and dresses not fitted properly…

Back then she relied on the drier to de-wrinkle her clothes. Nowadays a professional service delivered her freshly cleaned and pressed items to her door. All of which were tailored to fit her perfectly.

So it wasn’t unusual for Y/n to play dress up with herself when Harry was away at the office and she was at home alone. She enjoyed having such nice clothes and things filling her closet. It’s something she never had before.

She’d layer on a silk Chanel dress with her Ferragamo belt, a Hermes scarf, and the expensive custom disk hat with silk roses Harry bought her when they went to the Kentucky Derby. She’d watch herself in the long floor-length mirror and practice walking like a woman who owned the kind of clothes she was wearing.

But sometimes she focused on the jewelry. The pretty shiny rocks and jewels, delicately woven precious metal bands and chains… Harry had bought her more jewelry than she’d ever seen in her life. Diamonds, gold, platinum, rubies, emeralds, pearls, silver… Rings, watches, brooches, necklaces, anklets, earrings, belts, and bracelets. You name it.

And on this particular evening, Harry was at a dinner meeting that was going to run late. She’d bathed and put on her perfumed moisturizing balm and then walked naked into her massive walk-in closet where she opened up her lingerie drawer and spotted the elbow-length velvet opera gloves. She’d only ever worn them once but she remembers the way they felt on her arms and how luxurious it made her feel.

Watching herself in her mirror she slid each glove up her arms and posed, raising her arms over her head to lift her tits and make her tummy appear more svelte.

She grinned as she turned and then she had a sudden idea. Opening up her jewelry armoire she was presented with shiny, sparkly bobbles and jewels.

“Siri… shuffle music by Sara Vaughan to the master bedroom speakers.”

When the jazzy slow music began to play she traced her gloved fingers over the diamond necklace she often wished she could wear every day. It was littered in diamonds, the drop cutting down to just above her cleavage. Lifting it up she placed it gently over her head and laid it over her bust. It was spectacular. Heavy and twinkly and chilled on her skin. She smoothed her hands down her body and stared at her figure in the mirror wearing nothing but gloves and the ridiculously expensive necklace Harry had bought her.

Which then gave her the idea to add on the pretty rainbow jewel body belt. The thin chain was loaded with various colored diamonds, emeralds, rubies, topaz… The end of the chain draped down her back, laying just over her bum with a pretty pearl at the end. Then she put on the drop diamond earrings that matched the necklace. The bottom diamond was so big it nearly reached her shoulder when she shrugged.

She layered pearls and opals and her diamond bracelets over her gloved wrists and then slid on her black high heels, doing a dramatic twirl and bending to see her backside with a giggle.

She swayed her hips to the sexy music crooning through the speakers and then grinned at herself in the mirror, “Look how pretty… Daddy would love this.”

Feeling her naked skin under her gloves was a dream. The way the velvet ran smoothly over her flesh felt sexy and the more jewelry she layered on the prettier she felt. All sparkly and fancy with soft skin and perked nipples.

Sitting her video camera on its stand next to the mirror she hit record and began dancing slowly with herself, all decked out in diamonds. Running her hands over her curves and up to her tits she bit her lip and looked at the camera, “There isn’t anyone that wouldn’t want to have this…” She spun around and laughed to herself before bending at the waist and spreading her thighs just enough that the camera could catch the view of her pussy from behind.

Peeking over her shoulder she stared into the lens and drew a hand down her back and over her bottom before swatting a cheek and moaning softly, “Not so bad with the glove,” she spoke aloud as she lowered her fingers until she could feel the velvet sliding over her pussy, back and forth.

Humming she looked at herself in the mirror and then pressed her finger over her other tight hole, “Needs a little sparkle, doesn’t it?”

She stood up and pulled open her toy drawer to select the plug of the night. It was an easy choice. The anal plug with diamonds. Real diamonds. Another thing she didn’t often wear because it was the least practical of her plugs. But it was pretty.

Stepping back up to the camera she held the plug up and drizzled lube over the tip then repeated the words of the song Whatever Lola wants, Lola gets…

Bending at the waist, ass aimed toward the camera she took her left hand and pulled at her cheek as she began to push the plug into her hole with her right hand. Y/n had become quite the expert at putting in her own plugs. She was used to it now. Even though Harry always told her to not do it when he wasn’t present, she often did it anyway. They had fun with it every time he found out she disobeyed him (but she knew he secretly loved it).

“Oh!” She squeaked when the cool metal fit into place and stretched her out. “Feels so good…” she swayed her hips as she spread her ass cheeks for the camera and hummed to the music.

Turning around to face the camera she tutted at herself, “Beautiful… So sparkly. Think I deserve a treat,” she grinned at her reflection and brushed her hand down her torso to her hips, and raised the other arm over her head as she toyed with her clit and gasped.

Of course, she was putting on a little show. Something to watch later on in private. She’d gotten in the habit of making little videos of herself dancing naked or masturbating. Or just talking about nothing really. She’d started to feel so confident and happy with herself thanks to Harry. And the videos were her naughty little secret. Sometimes, with the extra sexy ones, she’d even touch herself as she rewatched them later on, loving the way she looked.

This time was no different. She was stunning with sparkly jewels and velvet gloves. Long stretched of bare skin, breasts bouncing as she swayed and twirled.

Reaching for her breasts she squished them together with a moan and then jiggled them at the camera before swiping her thumb over each nipple, “Get those nice and hard. We know how much I like hard things don’t we?” She laughed to herself.

Reaching into her toy drawer she found her tiny pink vibrator and turned it on, “Gonna feel so good,” she ran the small toy down the center of her body, between her breasts, over her belly button, and then circled it over her pussy with a sharp inhale.

Moving to the music she kept her eyes on the camera and continued pressing the toy against her clit, “Oh… I’m getting so wet.”

Her breathing picked up and her nipples tightened more, goosebumps covered her skin as she felt the yummy sensation of arousal fill her veins.

“Mmm… I do it so well. Always get myself off. Don’t need Daddy every time, do we?” She chuckled and then gasped when she pressed the toy harder against her bud.

“So wet already. Such a dirty, horny girl…” she bit her lip and turned off the pink toy before placing it on the counter and running her velvet-covered fingers up and down her swollen, wet pussy, “So messy… mmm… Gonna get in so much trouble doing this. I think Daddy’s gonna have to spank me.”

The more she stroked her pearl the wetter her gloves got. She clenched her empty hole and moaned, “Need more. Like all my holes stuffed,” she spoke breathily as she peeked into her drawer and pulled out her clear silicone dildo. The extra long one that was ridged thickly and made her come so fast. She needed to get on with the show. Harry would be coming back soon.

Pulling her soft chair in front of the mirror and the camera she gently sat and cooed at the feel of the plug shifting under her bum, “Oop! Fuck that’s feeling really good.”

Y/n lifted her legs, planting her heeled feet on the seat cushion and spreading her thighs so there was an excellent view of her plug and her pussy.

“I’ve gotten myself all wet,” she drew a finger over her inner thigh and licked at the velvet-gloved finger, “Mm! I know why Daddy says it tastes so good. So yummy,” she sighed as she spread her legs wider and placed the dildo against her pussy lips, running it through her slippery folds before finally pushing it in slowly.

She parted her lips and stared into the camera as she began to work the silicone toy in and out until she could push it in deep and it pressed into the shared wall where her anal plug was. The toy tucked in her ass bobbed every time she thrust the dildo in deep and she moaned at the sight, “Oh my god… that’s so hot isn’t it? Look at how both holes take everything I give them so well.”

Fucking herself with the dildo and rubbing her clit with her gloves she stretched her neck back and whined loudly.

The slick sound of her cunt around the silicone toy filled the spaces between the notes and the music playing, just loud enough for the camera to pick up the sound. Going in faster she lulled her head forward to keep her eyes on the camera but she was in a bit of a daze. She always tried to keep her eyes open for the camera when she came because that was her favorite.

“Good girl, baby… Taking your toys so good. Fucking look like a goddess right now. Oh shit… that’s it… doing it so good…”

Her chest was rising and falling and she heard the chime of an incoming text, which she was sure was Harry, “Daddy’s trying to reach me,” she laughed playfully, “But his little girl is busy fucking herself, isn’t that right?”

It wasn’t long before she was shaking and her body was covered in a light sheen of sweat. Her velvet gloves were ruined with her arousal as she fingered her swollen clit and clamped down on the dildo and the plug with a soft cry, “Oh god! Right there… Fuck…”

Her orgasm had wiped her out. She tried keeping her eyes on the camera but her whole head was swirling with pleasure and lust as she trembled and moaned, creaming all over her dildo.

She heaved and pulled the toy out, dropping it to the floor, and leaned back into the cushion to recover for a moment, “So good. You always do it right. Even better than Daddy sometimes,” she snorted a laugh and sat up to look at the camera teasingly before wobbly legs took her across the space to turn off the recording on her camera.

.             .             .

Y/n had watched her newest home video at least four times. And she was so turned on every time she watched it, she’d make herself come in record time, rubbing her clit and feeling so proud of how pretty she looked and how brave she’d become since she’d been with Harry.

And the recent video with all the jewels was her best work yet. She really loved it. So much so that she was thinking about sharing it with Harry. She wondered what he’d think about it. She was positive he’d just go nuts over it like she did. He’d act all upset and stoic. Probably give her a good spanking (at least) but she knew he’d adore it.

So, in a moment of sheer insanity or bravery (she wasn’t sure which) she tucked her top row of teeth into her bottom lip, attached the video to a text message for Harry, and squealed when she hit send. She couldn’t believe she’d sent it. All of her solo videos had been her little secret all this time but now she was bringing Harry into the mix by showing him.

It was 2 pm on a Wednesday. He was at the office and probably just getting out of his most recent meeting. And she knew he’d see it shortly after she sent it.

She kept her eye on the screen of her phone, waiting for the message to say ‘read’. It only took a few minutes. She giggled to herself as she snuggled into the couch with her laptop and watched the video, trying to time it so that she was watching it at the same time he was. Wondering what he was thinking with every minute that drew on.

Her heart was racing in anticipation of his response. She knew she’d be in for a bit of punishment but she didn’t know exactly what to expect from it.

But then minute after minute drew on. The video had ended and there was no word from Harry. No bobbing dots to indicate he was texting. No phone call. Nada.

She felt heat creep over her skin as she thought about all the ways Harry would teach her a lesson. Y/n knew Harry was making a plan. Surely he was devising some kind of punishment for her misbehavior. She couldn’t wait.

Less than an hour later Harry was walking through the front door. Y/n peeked over the back of the couch toward the foyer entry and she saw him pass through but he didn’t look in her direction. He breezed by cooly and went into the kitchen.

Y/n scrambled off the couch to follow after him. He was pouring a glass of water for himself silently when she rounded the island and put her hands on his shoulders, “Hi, Daddy.”

He grunted and moved away, making her hands fall from his back as he put the water pitcher back into the fridge before taking a long gulp of his water.

Waiting silently for him to award her a glance she watched her man place the empty glass into the sink as he sighed, placing his palms flat onto the marble countertop, “So you think you can take care of yourself better than I can? Is that right?”

She knew that line would stick out to him.

“I was just teasing. You know no one does it better than you, Da–“

“And you disobeyed me. Looked like you were having the time of your life, Y/n. Did you enjoy wearing all the expensive jewelry I bought you? Enjoyed getting yourself off while I was working hard to keep a roof over your head?” He turned and looked at her. Stern and serious.

Now she knew he was being dramatic. The whole keep-a-roof-over-your-head comment was a bit silly. Harry could retire right then if he wanted to.

“I did enjoy it, actually,” she quipped back before biting her lip.

“Well now at least you’re being honest with me. When did you make the video? Was this today?”

Shaking her head she leaned into the counter, “A week ago.”

He nodded slowly, his green eyes trailing down over her body. She was only wearing one of his t-shirts.

“And what were you up to today that compelled you to send me this one-week-old video?”

 She gulped, “Nothing really. Um… I just wanted to share it with you because I liked it. Thought you’d like it to.” She said blinking her eyes innocently at him.

Harry sniffed, “It was very pretty to look at. But you went against my explicit rules. Does Daddy not give you enough orgasms every day? Every morning and every night I work to keep you satisfied. Are you so desperate for an orgasm that you can’t wait a few hours until I get home?”

She breathed shallowly and looked down, “I just sometimes like to do it myself. And I felt so pretty.”

Y/n felt Harry’s touch on her arm, “Come.”

She followed him upstairs to her closet where he opened up her drawers until he found her toys and then her gloves and opened up the jewelry armoire.

“Put everything on that you had in the video. Meet me in the bedroom when you’re ready.”

Y/n felt her nerves bubble as she put everything on. The jewels, the gloves, the plug, and her heels. She sighed as she gave herself a once over in the mirror before stepping out into the bedroom where Harry was seated at the end of the bed facing the TV. Her video on the large screen paused at the beginning. He had his sleeves pushed up to his elbows, ready to get to work.

“C’mere,” he patted his lap. He kept his eyes focused on her body as she neared him and placed her hand on his shoulder to sit down but he pulled her over his thighs, tummy down, and ass up where he gave her a very swift smack and then massaged at the meat of her bum, pulling her plushy cheeks apart and tapped her plug, “Good. Looks like we’re all set.”

Her head was hanging down and the weight of the necklace was especially heavy in her new position, the earrings pulling at her lobes as she rocked over him to stabilize herself. She imagined she was going to need to hang on to something.

“Watch with me. Lift your head. Let’s see this dirty little video my spoiled girl made.”

She scoured the screen with her eyes, her body in view and the jewels glinting off the light from above her. Y/n had to strain to keep her head up. She leveraged herself up with her hand on the bed next to Harry’s thigh.

She had seen the video enough times that she had the whole thing nearly memorized. The music, the moment she bends and shows the camera her plug, the lines she spoke…

Harry spanked her ass, two stinging open palmed swats to each side and she winced at the pain and gasped as she slid down, losing her balance when she kicked a leg up.

“Stay still for me and keep watching,” he spoke gruffly as he grasped the front of her neck and tilted her head back up so she could watch with him.

Gulping into his palm she arched her back when he spanked her bottom again, “Look at how pretty you are in my lap, baby,” he ran his hand down her spine to the little jeweled belt where the pearl hung at the top of her crack, “All these expensive things on your body, ass up for me,” he twisted the plug, “Pussy wet.”

She moaned when he ran his fingers between her crease and pressed his middle finger inside of her cunt before pulling it out and wiping it on the back of her thigh, where he then gave her another smack.

“Who bought all this for you, baby? Hmm? Who made this whole thing possible?”

“You, Daddy!” She didn’t hesitate to answer him.

“That’s right. This video wouldn’t exist if it weren’t for me. This pussy wouldn’t be wet if it weren’t for me.”

She nodded against his palm and moaned when his fingers circled her clit.

“Always my desperate, needy little girl, aren’t you?”

“Yes,” she gasped when he pinched her bud and she wiggled her hips but he gripped her neck tighter, “Don’t wiggle. You got yourself into this mess. These are the consequences.”

She squeezed her eyes closed as he swatted her again before he continued speaking, leaning down to groan into her ear, “Do you know how hard I got the moment I opened up that video at work? Walking down the hall to my office I had to hide my boner and click the volume off.”

She felt him pinch at her inner thigh, giving her clit a moment of respite from his fingers, “Had to calm myself down and lock the door. But then I finished watching your little video and I had to excuse myself to leave work early. Do you know how disruptive that was?”

She grunted as he pressed over her plug, “Right now, I’m supposed to be in a meeting with a potential investor. This was a big deal, Y/n. But I physically wasn’t able to stay at the office for a moment longer, and it’s your fault. Every time I thought about the way you came with your legs spread and this little plug flicking around from the dildo you were fucking yourself with… had to calm my cock. Was gonna burst in my pants.”

His fingers slid back into her cunt, two this time as he pumped into her walls and continued gripping her neck, “Look.”

She shifted her eyes to the screen and her voice filtered through the room, her gasps and moans as she began to come. And just as he described, her little plug was twitching in time with the way she was pressing the dildo into her cunt. It was a pretty sight.

She moaned when he kissed the back of her ear, “Fucking gorgeous when you come, baby. But this video? S’like a work of art. But you were still naughty. Didn’t get permission to do any of that did you?”

“No, Daddy. I’m sorry.”

His fingers were filling her up and squelching with every thrust, “You look so proud of yourself too. So confident. Like a big girl playing dress up with Daddy’s things. And if my cock weren’t throbbing right now I’d really teach you a lesson but I need to come inside of this little pussy. Been aching for it.”

She felt his legs shift and her body was moved, heels on the floor as he steadied her hips before he stood up and began to undo his pants, “Bend over the bed, spread your legs.”

She wanted to watch him pull his cock out. Wanted to see how hard he was but she knew better than to hesitate. She laid herself tummy down on the mattress and spread her thighs apart.

One of his hands was on her hip, lifting her slightly when she felt his thick cock drag against her pussy and then his chest was pressed into her back, “No one does it better than, Daddy.”

The moment he finished his sentence, lips against the shell of her ear, he slammed his cock inside of her. He took both of her hands in his, the velvet gloves keeping her from feeling his palms, as he pulled her arms behind her back and took both wrists in one big hand as he continued rocking into her.

She felt a sharp smack on her ass again and he grunted, thighs flexing as he worked into her. Her shoulders burned as he kept her arms held down at the middle of her back, one hand groping her ass cheek.

The view he had was gorgeous as always. Her plug pushed and pulled with every thrust of Harry’s cock and he could feel the press of it gliding over his cock through her tight warm walls.

The necklace was digging into her chest but she welcomed the way it felt on her skin as well as the burn of another swat to her bum because her body was giving itself over to him.

“My spoiled girl just keeps getting whatever she wants. Even when she’s naughty she gets all these pretty things; gets Daddy’s cock inside of her, gets all the orgasms she can handle. Guess you’ve got me wrapped around your finger, don’t you, baby?”

“Umph!” She croaked, her cheek smushed into the comforter, letting go of her ass as he leaned over, palm on the mattress, and drove into her with the kind of force she loved. It felt so much better than anything she could do to herself with her meager dildo. Harry’s cock was exactly what she needed.

“Yeah? Didn’t hear you make that noise in your little video.” He buried himself in, bullying another lewd sound from her throat as his hips rutted against her ass.

“Can’t help those pretty little noises can you? Daddy’s cock will always feel better won’t it?”

She was jolted forward, her mouth open with drool pooling over the blankets, “No… your cock… aoohha!”

Harry grinned at her inability to answer properly as he continued pounding into her, still holding her wrists together at her mid-back.

“Squeezing the fuck out of me baby. There you go… fuck…”

Y/n’s orgasm wiped her body out. The way the plug was stretching her out and Harry’s big cock was slamming into her guts she couldn’t hold on for a second longer.

She heard Harry panting between grunts and then felt both of his hands on her ass as he pressed in deep and unloaded himself, filling her insides with his come.

“My pretty baby. Love seeing you dripping in diamonds and all fucked out of your mind. Does it make you feel good baby? Wearing all these expensive things?”

He had his chest pressed into her back as he spoke quietly into her ear, hips pasted to her ass.

“I love it. It’s so nice, Daddy.”

He moved off of her, reaching an arm under her waist to pull her up to standing, and turned her in her arms, “Look at this,” bringing her gloved hands into his, he lifted them upward, “Ruined. Need to buy you new gloves it appears.”

She realized the cleaning job she’d done on them after making the video had been shoddy at best and now the tips of the fingers were steaky and lighter than the rest of the material, “Maybe dry cleaning?”

Harry pursed his lips as he began to take off her bracelets, unhooking each clasp, “Maybe. Not sure these can be salvaged, though.”

When he pulled her gloves off he reached around her neck to undo the necklace and then her jeweled belt before running his hands up and down her arms, “Gorgeous with or without all the diamonds,” he smirked.

“I like the diamonds, though. Fun to play dress up.”

He raised a brow and brought her left hand up to his mouth pressing his plush lips over her ring finger, “Thinking about what you’d look like with a pretty diamond right here.”

Y/n parted her lips and kept her gaze locked on Harry’s, “Like a… ring?”

Harry laughed at her shocked expression and pushed his fingers between hers as he cupped her cheek with his free hand, “Yeah. Like a ring.”

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[lancermylove]

Gifts (HC)

Fandom: Twisted Wonderland

Pairing: All x gn!Reader, minus Ortho.

Warning: None.

Prompt: His white day gift to you.

——————————————

Malleus

Malleus gifts you a bouquet of red crystal roses. Each flower is gracefully carved from red crystals, and the base stem and leaves are gilded in 24-karat gold.

His gift is meant to symbolize eternal love. He even takes it a step further by saying, "My love for you shall remain until the roses wither."

Lilia

If you are of age, he will gift you a bottle of aged wine.

If not, he will give you a bottle of juice as a joke just to see your reaction. Then, laugh and hand you a luxurious box of heart-shaped chocolates.

Silver

Silver hands you a white velvet box containing a necklace. The necklace has a pure silver base with a white iridescent opal pendant surrounded by diamonds.

Unknown to you, the necklace is actually a gift passed down to the woman in his family as a symbol of being part of his family. Congratulations, he indirectly proposed to you, and you accepted. Lilia is looking forward to the wedding.

Sebek

Gifts you an oversized white teddy bear with a red plaid ribbon around its neck. The teddy bear has a red heart on the left side of its chest.

He practically shoves it in your hands and looks away, not knowing what to say. He hopes that when you miss him, you will hug the teddy bear.

Riddle

Riddle goes through a list of gifts, not knowing which one to give you. He thinks jewelry, then switches to chocolates, but then feels too much sugar is not good.

So, he sticks with a traditional gift: a bouquet of white roses with red trim neatly held together by silver ribbons.

Ace

He goes all out for the gift and makes you a custom deck of playing cards, which are actually 52 reasons why he likes you. Each card has something he likes about you, from your appearance to your personality to the cute things you do that make him smile.

The gift is thoughtful, but part of you wonders why he chose to go all out. Did he do something? Something is definitely fishy.

Deuce

He gives you a white envelope with a lopsided heart drawn on the flap on the back. Inside the envelope is a heartfelt hand-written letter expressing his feelings. There are many scribbles, and apologies for the scribbles between the words, but you can tell each word holds meaning.

Along with the letter is a white ribbon that he wraps around your wrist and ties into an uneven bow.

Trey

He bakes you a cake with ingredients that he grew and harvested himself. And for the ones he bought, he made sure to purchase the finest ingredients.

The cake is layered with fluffy sponges, moistened with vanilla bean syrup, filled with a rich mascarpone and white chocolate blend, and enveloped in a silky white chocolate ganache. On top of the cake are rare white strawberries, highlighted with edible gold leaf and crushed pearls.

Cater

The first thing Cater does is check the internet for the most trending gifts for White Day. He narrows it down to a few gifts and eventually buys matching phone cases for the two of you.

The cases are white with pink, clear, and red crystals. He warns you to be careful with the case in the sunlight. Cater accidentally temporarily blinded Ace and Deuce by holding the case in the sunlight facing them. The shimmer of the crystals was too intense for the troublemaker duo.

Leona

Literally walks into a designer store and chooses the first thing that catches his eye. One can never go wrong with a scarf, right?

The white piped trim bandeau scarf is made of pure silk and has the designer's name monogrammed at the base of one of the ends.

Ruggie

Ruggie learns some recipes from his grandmother and cooks a meal for you. He tries to get the best ingredients he can, with the help of the garden club, so he can give you a decent quality meal.

The recipes are not fancy, nor is the plating, but he put a lot of effort into making it, so he hopes you like it.

Jack

He struggles to find a gift for you, and his siblings give him a few ideas, but none of them sit with him.

Jack gifts you a cactus terrarium with rare, colorful cacti arranged in a heart shape. But in case you don't like the gift, he also hands you a small box with a silver charm bracelet.

Vil

Vil contemplates gifting you apparel or something fashion-related. However, he thinks clothes and accessories wouldn't convey his message properly.

So, he settles for a hand-held mirror. The mirror is made of 24-karat gold with diamonds surrounding the edges. An intricate rose is carved on the back of the mirror, with the stem and leaves curving around the base.

He wants you to know that no gold or diamonds can match your beauty.

Rook

Rook sets up a scavenger hunt for you with some of the most beautiful locations on the campus, where he hides the next clue. The end of the scavenger hunt leads to a picturesque picnic spot in the middle of the woods near a waterfall.

He recites a romantic poem for you, half in English, half in French. Then, the two of you enjoy snacks and talk for a while. Rook hands you a bouquet of white roses with one red rose in the center. The white roses represent your beautiful soul, and the red rose is your priceless heart.

Epel

Epel learns how to knit and crochet from his grandmother so that he can make you a handmade gift for White Day. He can't pick a design, so his grandmother tells him to just follow his heart and not overthink.

He knits you a scarf, using your favorite color as a base. Inside the curves of the scarf, which will be hidden around your neck, are the words "I love you." Epel hides those words on the inside of the scarf because they are meant for you, not the world.

Azul

Azul wants to give you a physical gift but thinks that everyone gives physical gifts, so it's better to do something different.

In the end, he takes you to one of the finest restaurants under the sea, literally. You dine with sea creatures, trying out their unique and exclusive dishes.

Jade

At first, he is tempted to give you a mushroom terrarium but gives into his better judgment and gives you something you might like.

Jade presents you with a beautiful floral arrangement. The bouquet is thoughtfully arranged, and each flower symbolizes his feelings and love for you. Roses show his passion for you. Gerbera daisies represent the playful side you bring out in him and the joy you make him feel when he is with you. Alstroemerias show his care and support for you—know he will be there for you when you need him to. Lastly, Gladiolus represents his eternal love for you and his faithfulness towards you.

Floyd

He doesn't know what to get you, and his mood changes every time he decides on the 'right' gift. In the end, he gets frustrated and decides to just spend time with you in a fun place.

Floyd takes you to an amusement park. The two of you have fun, and he gets to spend the entire day with you.

Idia

His initial idea is something video game-related, but Ortho advises against it. He gives Idia a lecture about finding a meaningful gift.

So, Idia builds and programs a cell phone for you that has some of the most advanced features known to men. The phone makes your life easier - almost to the point that you think it, and the phone has it. With that phone, you might as well change your name to 007.

Kalim

When you arrive in your room, you freeze. Your entire room is filled with gift boxes, and Kalim is sitting in the center, grinning.

He didn't know what to get you and ended up getting you everything on the list, from chocolates to jewelry to teddy bears to clothes to handbags to you name it. It will take you about a day or two to open all the gifts. Good luck finding space for everything in your room and closet!

Jamil

Jamil knows from the start that he wants to give you something meaningful. The entire day is supposed to be special, so he doesn't want to give you a present and call it a day.

In the morning, he brings you breakfast that he cooked. Then, gives you a bouquet of flowers. In the afternoon, he hands you a neatly wrapped gift box with a white ribbon tied around it. Inside is traditional wear from Scalding Sands, but the patterns on the apparel are exclusive to his family. Another one indirectly proposes to you. Congrats!

In the evening, he has a candlelight dinner with countless dishes that he prepared himself.

———————————————

➣ Twisted Wonderland [1][2] ➣ Main Masterlist

➣ Buy me a Ko-fi? ➣ Commission: Open ➣ HC/Scenario Requests: Closed || Quick Ask Requests: Closed || GIF Requests: Closed

[sweetmoonlight7]

30. Diamond

@jegulus-microfic | March 30: diamond | word count: 619

If there was one thing that Regulus Black was known for it was being picky.

James has been thinking about this for months, even now as he walks back to their apartment he can't help but think about it.

Regulus had grown up in a fancy house in London with butlers and people who were willing to adhere to his every whim. This of course makes him, frankly at times, a very spoiled boy. While he had grown out of some of his habits from childhood, one thing neither of the Black brothers could ever outgrow was their expensive taste.

James has never minded this, he knew about all of the things that Regulus liked well before they got together. He loves Regulus and is more than happy to indulge him with all of those things.

This all tied into his dilemma.

Since he has never shied away from buying Regulus gifts. It's one of his many love languages. If he sees something that Regulus might like he will immediately buy it and give it to him, he won't even wait for a birthday or special occasion.

One of the things he will often buy for Regulus is jewelry. His boyfriend loves it, he trades out rings, necklaces, and earrings.

So what do you give your significant other that has a large assortment of rings (a lot of which) you buy for him yourself) each just as fancy as the next for an engagement ring?

This has been driving him crazy.

There are of course a few things that he knows. Like that he wants to get it engraved so that even if it is not custom-made it will be special, he knows it has to be silver, and he knows that it should not be overly flashy.

At the moment his biggest dilemma is what stone he will use. A diamond? no, too classic and boring. Pearl? too simple. Alexandirat? no blue wasn't either of their colors. Birth month stone? Basic. Opal, Emerald, Topaz… nothing seemed right. Nothing screamed, “Regulus Black I love you, marry me”.

He has seen hundreds of rings by now. Passed by so many jewelry stores, and had seen rings that Regulus would love…so why can't he seem to pick one?

Realistically James is aware that regardless of the ring that he gets him he will say yes. But how could he propose if he doesn't even know what stone Regulus would want? Isn't there some sort of guide or rule that says they should know?

The longer he waits the more reasons he comes up with as to why Regulus might say no and it becomes all too clear why he is having a hard time picking a stone. If he doesn't ask he doesn't get rejected.

Maybe taking the long way home wasn't doing any good to his overthinking. But Regulus had said that he would be home late and he thought the day was nice enough to go out.

The thoughts lay heavy on his stomach as he opened the door to their apartment.. and then almost like they had never even existed they vanished as he stepped in.

In the middle of their living room with flowers scattered around him and the light from the dining room hitting his face stood Regulus with a small box in his hand. He was smiling, a full real smile. Something that had been so rare when they met but he was now blessed with every day.

When he looks down at the ring in the box, he sees the complementary ring to the first one he had gotten Regulus, he knows that there is no world where Reg would've said no, or even hesitated.

[littlefreakelio]

Sidlink headcanons bc i am unwell about them

- the first time Link sounds out Sidon's name Sidon tears up 😁👍

- Link is very bad at receiving compliments. Sidon is very good at giving compliments and turning Link into a Mess

- Muzu shaking his fists when he realise not one but BOTH of King Dorephan's kids...he can't help but grow to like Link too tho bc Link is the domain's errand person 🫡

- matching body jewelry sets (sidon's is opal & luminous stones and he had one ruby & luminous set made for link because it matches his scales....)

- over time they develop certain signs for Link to communicate ideas and the most used one has to be "are you alright/safe?"

- Link adopts Royal Guard Mode when he's out with Sidon out of instinct...Sidon finds it adorable but also "Link I can't see you if you walk behind me please I just want to hold your hand"

- they go swimming together all the time with Link on Sidon's back

anyways two dumbos in love.......

[valentinedaughtler]

Tainted Opal-

Kaz Brekker x fem!reader

PART 1

A/N: This is a series I have posted on a few other platforms.

T/Ws: violence, romantic feelings, blood, mild spice scenes sometimes, fem!reader and she/her pronouns, sexual abuse/trauma (not explicit)

Synopsis: You are a a seductress who owns a large stolen jewelry business in Ketterdam. You approach Kaz for assistance after your business partner steals all of your money and your poison ring.

REQUESTS: OPEN✅

____________________________________________

1 - A ‘tell’ in poker

I found myself not being cornered, but on the opposite end of such a relationship.

The dark alleys of Ketterdam are for the faint of heart to be victim, but I had played that role too many times to repeat such. Instead, the Bastard of the Barrel stood before me, scrappier and more daunting than I had expected. Though, all I had to go off of were the blackened whispers of Ketterdam's constant voices.

As usual, I observed my surroundings, the alleyway in which I stand in became a map in my mind.

The silence was thicker than the fog of the docks, fear was beginning to pool like bile in my throat. Maybe this was a mistake.

"My apologies for cornering you in an alley, Mr. Brekker," my voice melted the silence like hot honey. Years of practice in my field allowed for faking demeanors to be easy. "I want to offer you a job," I cock my eyebrow slightly and saunter my way towards him.

He had a piercing stare stabbing my insides and twisting my flesh in odd ways. Showing weakness is an option that leads to downfall, I remind myself when I notice my faltering confidence.

"What job are you proposing?" He asks tersely. Tapping his cane between us, an invisible boundary being made. I cleared my throat, "one week ago, to the dot I might add, my partner went missing," I explained. "My business

partner, Arx Dam-Tres, and his wife were spotted at the nearby port, boarding a privately owned boat. Along with his dear darling, Rasmine, he took our shared wealth and my most prized ring-"

"What makes this ring so important? You're obviously willing to risk your life cornering me in an alley to retrieve it." He interrupts me. I peer at the many hiding spaces the dark night offers Ketterdam's voices. I've been told of Kaz's crow, Inej, I assume she wields her knife atop a building above me. The barrel of a gun glints in the moonlight. It comes from a window on the right, barely noticeable, but the one holding the trigger was slightly sloppy in their hiding.

"I'm aware that I have multiple threats to my flesh at all sides at the moment, so I'll get to the point. I'll pay 1 million kruge... upfront," I propose, smirking. Kaz shows the slightest hint of interest, I note that when he is intrigued, he right eyebrow raises and his lip twitches. 'A tell in poker' they call it. While dollar signs replace the pupils of Kaz's eyes, his lips part once more.

"For a price like that, this must be dangeruous. What makes this ring so special?" he rasps. His voice is rough, like coffee grounds thrown into a fire, adorned with an accent. The ignition of such flames sparked something inside me, but I ignore it promptly.

"Well, the ring was created by a fabricator and a shadow summoner," my eyes fall to one of my fingers where the ring should be. "The gold is valuable, but the real worth is on the opal stone hugged by said gold. It is infused with merzoft," I continue, noticing a slight flinch in Kaz when I state such. It's so difficult to tell what he is thinking, but I'm well known for my keen eye. "When the desire strikes me, it will poison those who kiss my ringed hand. I'm a seductress, it comes in handy." I let out a soft, sweet laugh. "My company is owned jointly between Arx and I, a luxury jewelry company of sorts... my products must come from somewhere," I say, shrugging at my implication.

"Why would Arx take the ring?"

"He knew the value, I assume, or Rasmine begged for it-..." my eyes widened as the realization fabricated its of in my mind, my faux demeanor cracking. "He's sailing to Ravka..., he boarded a ship with his wife and millions of kruge," I piece the puzzle together in a mess of words. "He is going to the Darkling, in hopes to learn he properties of the ring.... He won't stop there, Arx is going to make weaponry this way." A growing horror sprouts up in my stomach and wraps itself around my intestines like thorny vines. My panicked voice squeaks out, "I will pay you now, come with me, and we must leave tomorrow morning, I have a boat prepared. We need a crew-"

My frantic string of a tangent is snipped by Kaz's husky voice, "I haven't agreed to this yet." I notice he is getting the upper hand as my confidence is peeling like wallpaper. I calm my nerves, melding my personality back into what it was before.

"Arx had a good connection with your dear friend Pekka...," I cooed, regaining my former composure. His pupils dilate, the wall he built as a shield crumbles, but only for a split second. "You can finally get your revenge, little crow," I break the boundary he made with his cane, moving closer to him. "1 million kruge, a boat, and revenge," I whisper, "sounds like a fantastic reward."

Kaz walks backwards fluidly, his lanky body shrinking away from me. His jaw clenches as he grips his cane tighter. His knuckles must have turned white under those gloves.

"You bring all the kruge in cash here at midnight...,"

I smiled at a turned away, disappearing into the night, my heartbeat meshing with the countless others taking up borrowed space in the darkness of Ketterdam.

_________________

Word count: 919

_________________

Thank you everyone for reading, first chapters are frustrating to write due to their need for a hook, but also a yearn for explanation. It'll get better from here.

-Valentine

[nexility-sims]

have been feeling listless and unmoored re: sims stuff lately, but i got a healthy dose of inspiration from @warwickroyals & @prydainroyals this past week, so i did a little succession / magazine-ish thing :^) obviously beatriz's 2023 death would be commemorated in uspanian vogue !!!!! obviously !!!!

transcribed text below:

Fashion is a Royal (and Family) Affair

That Crown Princess Barbie is a student of Uspanian style isn’t a surprise. For this issue, she recounts the historical episode at the heart of our memorial for the late Queen Beatriz. Pictured above in private photos are: Mother Desideria in 1860; Mother Zuriñe in 1885; Mother Rowena and then-Crown Prince Alfonso in 1926.

THE “BIRDIE” ISSUE OF VOGUE USPANA debuted in 1973. At the time, the magazine was in its infancy. An issue shaped by the queen—and it was, from cover to cover, driven by her desires and presence—ensured longevity. It proved to be a bestseller. Clothes, too, flew off the racks as Uspana’s designers received a boost among popular consumers. A textiles renaissance commenced among women of a certain class who had been looking elsewhere for quality fabric. Then and now, this was the mission of the magazine: loyalty to Uspanian fashion. The Birdie issue was a testament to this, from the sensibilities it imparted to the sourcing of its materials. The queen’s favorite designers, stylists, and photographers filled the issue; it made them iconic, and they would continue to set national trends for decades to come. More importantly, the Birdie issue fit into a larger project underway during Beatriz’s reign. Foreign fashion’s creep into the Uspanian mainstream had started two centuries before Beatriz obtained the Crown, but it reached its cultural apex under the sway of her mother. Uspana’s people had long reviled Queen Rowena’s taste in one breath and wished to emulate it in the second. The two women were not seemingly opposed in a diametric sense. They overlapped under the label of “extravagant,” namely, but Beatriz was forgiven her excess. The Birdie issue, in retrospect, shows why. In an initial meeting with the queen, she told then-editor Lluc Soler that she cared deeply about a “revival” of traditional fashion in the country. Soler replied that traditional fashion was alive and well—“in the mountains, with the grandmothers.” Some in the annals have suggested that this retort led to control of the issue being ceded informally to a team with whom the queen preferred to work. (By 1975, Papan Ibarra had risen from those ranks to become the magazine’s new editor-in-chief, a position she occupied until 1991.) Nonetheless, a certain truth in Soler’s statement formed the foundation of the issue. It did draw heavy inspiration from those grandmothers in the mountains. This included people such as the queen’s own grandmother, Mother Zuriñe, who readily embraced the aesthetics of Yaas and was a master weaver in her own right. The cover reflected the elevated homage orchestrated within. On it, Birdie herself posed in a wool rebozo hand-dyed with cochineal. This garment was a perfect duplicate of the so-called suncloths the queen’s great-grandmother, Mother Desideria, wore on a regular basis in the late nineteenth century. Fittingly, it was also topped with a replica inspired by the time. One of the many jewelry pieces destroyed during the 1880s had been the Shield Flower tiara with its red fire opal set in gold and symbolic allusions to the sacrifice and self-immolation of Uspana’s founding mothers. Queen Beatriz wore tiaras on many occasions, but it was widely known that she preferred to wear the true Uspanian symbol of elite regalia: the jade necklace. For that reason, jade

BIRDIE, 1973 Shield Flower tiara by Xiuhcozcatl for the House of Tecuani. Rebozo by Quilatzli Castañeda. Necklace creator unknown. Fashion editor: Papan Ibarra.

[methylphenidate-already-taken]

A dragon keeping their finest treasure (a prey) safe and warm in their tum? I've always really liked the concept of being kept safe in a belly by such a 'greedy' being.

Yes yes yes 1000% yes

You're tapping into another part of my brain that may or may not like object vore.

Im just gonna,,

--

You watch as the gemstone slides down your captor's throat... which would be a boringly long wait with their cartoonishly large neck, but you find yourself fixated the whole time.

Things could be worse. The Dragon, whom you have decided to name Glut (short for gluttony; it's not too creative, but it works), had taken good care of you. You can feel the sunlight on supervised outings in the fields near their den. They even bring you home a lamb every few days and wood so you can make a fire and roast it. This was after you refused to eat... erm, any bipedal meat. Most importantly, though, they keep you warm at night.

It returns to that damn gemstone, an opal, now deposited in Glut's stomach with a content gurgle. Glut doesn't eat every treasure they get: only the most precious, and in this case, fragile, pieces. Opal cracks if it's not kept moist. It's why opal jewelry needs to be worn often.

At first, you thought it was because you were fragile, prone to freezing at night, surrounded by the rocky cave walls. You believed that Glut swallowed you up most nights only to prevent hypothermia. He made it very clear that the few precious pieces in there with you were not meant to be touched.

Not that you could see any of them. You could barely see your hands in front of you. The only break from the darkness was yet another part of the dragon, just a slight glow, barely visible unless you squint, from Glut’s burning fire inside. That was until a crystal ball became one of their many treasures. It glowed, allowing you to see, and appreciate the treasure inside. Once Gult understood you really did see the value, you were allowed to move things around.  

"Getting lost in thought now, are we?"

Glut's low, rumbling voice practically shook the cave walls; you could almost feel it in your bones. They sounded so amused, and you're sure if they had an eyebrow, they'd be cocking it. However, when you open your mouth to apologize, their jaws quickly descend upon you.

You know it's safe. You always know it's safe. That split second still makes your heart stop every time, though. Glut is quick to gently gulp you down, as if handling any of their other fragiles. Their razor-sharp teeth pinned your ankles but didn't even break the skin. Sometimes you wondered if that was physical or if magical intervention was involved in keeping you intact.

There's never too much time to think of it when you're getting eaten alive. You can feel gravity shift as they lift their head up, using the force to aid with your descent. Inside is hot, cramped and... You've grown used to the sensation of the firm muscle pulling you deeper and deeper into the beast. At least they were soft; at least it made Glut happy. You wished they wouldn't swallow you head-first so much, though...

It didn't matter in the end, because no matter how much you squirmed and fought for freedom, you never got it, so the short ride, and particularly it's ending, had become somewhat calming. Maybe. Your brain had trouble coming to terms with that. 

Before you know it, pressure rolls up your body as you pass the Dragon's neck, then, an even tighter squeeze before you sink into their stomach with a harmless gurgle. Glut hums contently at your annoyed kick. They had agreed to give you a warning first. 

"Oh don't give me that~" Glut purrs. They got back to picking up another one of their precious treasures, poking their forked tongue out at the pretty colours. They were a dork in the end, really. "I saw that look you were giving my neck, you were practically begging to go in with just your eyes. It was impressive~."

You feel the chamber around you shake with Glut's warm laugh, and you smile. At this point, you're a master at not getting smothered by any treasure that slides around with all that movement. You've settled right in, in fact. 

Today, though, you don't have to worry about that too much. Most of their prized possessions aside from the opal and that same crystal ball are in their broad pouch, a calmer fleshy compartment adjacent to you in their warm stomach. It was less slimy, gurgly, and gross, really, but that meant it was less personal. Something about being squished and moved by the warm flesh of Glut's strong gut felt right. You weren't their young, you don't belong in that pouch, you're something unique, and you both knew deep down Glut's stomach was where you were meant to be. The crystal ball and the gemstone are warm as they press into you when the stomach walls squeeze you tightly. Glut wasn't laying down, so that was a hug directly from the Dragon's contented stomach. 

 You used to just think you were in here because you were fragile. Glut just wanted you well preserved. That's still the case, of course. Right now, though, not only is Glut keeping you warm and protected, Glut is prepping to move for the winter. Just a few mountain ranges over, so they can be by the hot springs. 

They've eaten you just now to take you with them—their most precious treasure.

[elsewhereuniversity]

Hello I have been given two jewelry sets but they requested that I would give one of them to someone who needs it. I do not know anyone in my life who needs it so maybe you can find someone.

In the jewelry box that shimmers with glass beads there is an opal jewelry set that contains

A ring that shapes itself like the user's favorite flower that helps soothe anxiety and intrusive thoughts

Earrings that have a symbol representing the user's favorite sound or smell that help those with sensory overload

A bracelet that has imagery of the user's favorite season that when asked will help you remember to do tasks throughout the week whether it be wash the dishes or eat a healthy meal

And finally a necklace that can turn into any stim toy you would like as long as you're using it as long as it's no bigger than a 7x7x7 centimeter area. When not in use it looks like a simple necklace with an opal carved into something that reminds them of a good memory

These come in a set the main owner can give some out to people temporarily but after 3 days they will appear back into the box. I hope you find someone who can use them and need them as much as I do.

I suppose you could leave them out in the library and let them know those who need it but after 3 days it'll always return to the box I hope you can help those around you with these.

If I understand how this transaction works you might need to give me something in return anything will work but I enjoy things that have a story behind them something that I can put on a shelf that will start a conversation.

Sincerely a disabled woman who hopes to help others find ways to cope.

Made with a care for the small things that amazes me. I will see these to grateful hands. In turn, a charm for you: a conversational piece. I was given pieces of a fallen oak a long time past, cursèd wood blighted by the murder of the dryad within. In time they were passed on to a skilled woodworker, and only recently have they returned to me in new form - three statuettes of foxes, each styled as the muses of memory, thought, and song. There is something brighter than polished wood in their carved eyes. They should be kept together for their sake and for yours.

[maggacammara]

UM if ur still taking them … I would love to see 34. Bauble .. for whom or whatever < 3

Bauble

��Take your pick.”

Lying before Gale was a veritable cache of fine jewels and precious metals, ranging in color from bloodless opal to sanguine ruby, and each one hung from a tiny metal hook. The candlelight in Frey’s tent sent a warm glitter across the collection. Before the decision managed to overwhelm him, Gale caught sight of a pair of amethyst cabochons framed in silver. When he reached for them, however, a hand stayed his.

“Just not those ones,” Frey said in a stage whisper.

Gale raised an eyebrow.

“You’re only taking one, see,” he added, his tone normal, if slightly exasperated. “These two are… bonded. They can’t be separated.”

“Which two might be separated, then?”

Frey’s face lit up to be handed the choice he had clearly already made. He at least put on a show of indecision, his hands wavering over this pair and that one, before he settled on a rather simple set of jade obelisks on gold hooks. He eased one off of its velvet cushion and presented it to Gale quite seriously.

Gale feigned uncertainty. “Well, green is certainly most flattering on you, my love, but I’m not sure it suits me.”

Frey simultaneously basked in the flattery and rolled his eyes at Gale’s performance. “Let’s just try it on, shall we?” he said, beckoning Gale to sit on a low cushion near the makeshift vanity.

Gale obliged, sinking to a seat despite his knees aching in protest. Frey stood beside him, clearly reveling in every second of being slightly taller, and brushed Gale’s hair back from his ear. In the ornate mirror they had looted from some derelict mansion, Gale saw the scene reflected, watched Frey slip the symbol of Mystra out of his pierced ear, and felt—nothing.

No, not nothing. Physically, the sensation was so subtle as to be mistaken for an evening breeze, but as he watched his beloved’s hand close around that token, a strange sense of relief flooded Gale.

It was quickly replaced by the sharp pinch of Frey sliding a new piece of jewelry into his lobe with no warning. “Ow!” he said, though he managed not to flinch away until the earring was securely nestled into its spot. Frey put an arm around Gale’s shoulder, half apology and half I-know-you-already-forgive-me, and met his gaze in the reflection.

Both of their eyes went to the earring, the pale green dagger that stood out marvelously against Gale’s warm skin, that shone softly in the low light and was, indubitably, quite flattering.

“You made a good choice,” Frey whispered, squeezing his shoulder. Gale felt no urge to correct him.

[anxiously-going]

I am exhausted but I genuinely had such a good day. I was able to go to a gem and mineral show at a localish museum, which I was very thrilled to do as I have a long standing tradition of going to the show in the city I grew up in and being that I moved last summer, I knew that wasn't happening this year.

Part of this tradition is coming home with some kind of opal. It is my very favorite gem stone and whether it's a piece of jewelry or loose stone, I always come home with opal. And I found my opal at the second vendor we went to.

The gentleman running the stand was a kind older man and we chatted for a little while about previous shows we'd been to and I explained my tradition and how I was thrilled to have found his raw opal. When he asked, i told him about my plans to take my loose opals and place them in one of those glass locket necklaces. I did want to want look around a bit more before purchasing as I knew how I was about opal and I wanted to be able to purchase more than just that stone.

At the end of the day I returned to his stand and he seemed genuinely surprised to see me. I wne tight to work searching out the stones with the least amount of rough stone still attached since I knew that would add weight and thus price. I picked out a few that I loved and went to weigh them.

My plan was to settle on one large piece and few smaller chips roughly working it out so it would be around twenty dollars or so. He was watching me do this mental math and my friend asked about it and before I could explain, he asked how much I was looking to spend and I told him.

When he told me I could have everything in my hand for 20, when it was easily double that the only thing I could say was "Are you sure??" and when he told me that, yes he was sure I could barely keep myself from bouncing with excitement.

It absolutely made my day and I can't wait to find the perfect locket for them all. I hope he finds the same kindness he showed me today

[keruwu-san]

Tart Wine. Chapter four.

Chapter one Chapter two Chapter three  

Aemond Targaryen x Auntie! Reader

My first publication on this site. ENGLISH IS NOT MY NATIVE LANGUAGE. I worked with a translator; I hope that the text is still clear! Let me know if there are any bugs! Thank you in advance!

Summary: The younger sister of King Viserys and Prince Daemon finds solace in Rhaenyra and Alicent children, because she cannot have her own. Prince Aemond Targaryen is experiencing a childhood crush, which he plans to carry through the years and ask for his aunt's hand in the future.

Word count: 5803

Warning: Allusion to incestuous relationship,  mention of a corpse, blood, suffering

King's Landing. Lenerys

Lenerys liked the gift, sincerely, but she was wondering why it was not made in the canonical colors of her house: red and black. At first it was difficult to get used to the new coloring, the woman often looked at small sapphires replacing the eyes of dragons. "Aemond, why did you choose sapphires?" Lenerys was curious about her nephew's choice, usually Targaryens preferred other precious stones in jewelry, such as rubies, fire opal or sunstone. To her question, Aemond only smiled lightly and said that she would find out, but later, his look at that moment was cunning, the prince was up to something. He's playing with her, well, she accepts the rules of the game.

The decoration was incomparable, it was combined with her favorite dresses, and the woman decided to wear it on a permanent basis, as a sign that she still belongs to the House of the Dragon, and not to the lords of the Valley. The first one who paid attention to the replenishment in the treasury of the princess was Helena. The girl unmistakably determined who gave her aunt a beautiful necklace.

- But how did you know? – drinking wine, Lenerys asked in surprise, - I didn't even give a hint.

Helena only smiled sheepishly and continued her embroidery, - Aemond likes sapphires when others prefer rubies and emeralds. And as I remember, you love rubies, Aunt.

- Yes, it is so ..., - another sip, - and what do you like?  Helena raised her eyebrows in surprise, usually few people were interested in her opinion or interests, except for Aemond, her brother was always sensitive to her.

- Oh, I think it's Angelite.

- Angelite means,- the woman said thoughtfully, - you know what interpretation the maesters give this stone, don't you?"

Helena thought for a while, remembering why she likes this gem so much - Hmm, I can't say, I think it's just beautiful.

- But I can say, - Lenerys put down the wine cup and moved closer to her niece, covering her hands with her own, Helena's attention was in her power, - Angelite is a delicate stone, it symbolizes peace and unity, – the woman spoke in a half whisper, creating a feeling of something secret, - They say it enhances natural abilities such as divination and telepathy, and dispels fear. It suits you.

Helena liked this interpretation. "Enhances predictions and telepathy" well, she really saw and heard things that are inaccessible to others, if only she knew the meaning of it.

The girl pulled closer to her aunt, intending to say something, - Leaving the fire, the flower will make it burn more.

The smile on Lenerys' face disappeared, replaced by bewilderment, - What? - Targaryen never understood the meaning of the phrases she said, but they sounded beautiful. When Helena was younger, Lenerys only smiled at such phrases from her niece, pretending that she understood the meaning of the words spoken.

- You will find out, but later. – The woman sighed in disappointment, "How much intrigue", - even I do not quite understand what this means.

After talking a little more with her niece, the woman left, after all, she had duties and things to do, which is why she is here.

Although she said she had come to King's Landing on business, but as such there were no such, a couple of contracts and deals, all for the enrichment of the House of Arryn. The Princess liked to feel comfortable with her brother and his children, that on Dragonstone, that in King's Landing, unlike the Eyrie, a place that reminded her of her failure as a woman, as a mother. Now this impregnable fortress was a painful reminder of her loss, it seemed that the walls in those dark days absorbed all her pain and now they themselves were spilling it out, from which it was uncomfortable to sleep, and in general it was uncomfortable to be there. Moreover, the relationship with her husband was going through its crisis. John longed for an heir, and if after the loss, he was next to his wife, trying to support her, then over time he became colder to her, often disappearing and ignoring her. The birds whispered to her about her husband's regular infidelities when he left for King's Landing or North. If earlier, she treated this normally, because she herself had lovers, now that she needed not only a status man, but also a husband who was ready to endure the pain of losing a child, but he had fun with whores, leaving her. Therefore, the hiding from each other began, the spouses tried to meet as rarely as possible, and if they met, they exchanged only a couple of everyday phrases. The atmosphere was suffocating her, but she found an outlet in her nephews and in Daemon and Rhaenyra. Unlike Viserys' family, there was a spark in Daemon and Rhaenyra's marriage, there was love, and they shared it with their children. Jackeiris and Luke were so cheerful and perky and could vividly support a conversation. Lady Arryn often gave them gifts, not only for the sake of the gift itself as a courtesy, but also because she liked to see their reaction. Jackeiris tried to hide his joy, but his shining eyes and trembling lips showed everything from anticipation, and he thanked his aunt with restraint, while Lucerys did not limit himself in any way and rejoiced with all his heart and hugged her, without fear of being misunderstood. Now, the princess was thinking about bringing them this time. Now she wanted to make a return gift also for Aemond, but abruptly discovered that she did not quite understand what her nephew liked.

Having completed business negotiations with Thailand Lannister, about the transportation of gold and jewelry through the Valley and having come to favorable terms, the princess left. Lord Lannister couldn't help but notice the beauty of the princess' new necklace, unmistakably determining that it was white gold. To the woman's surprised question, the man only chuckled and said that the Lannisters have a love for gold in their blood. After saying goodbye, Lenerys left the lord and went to her chambers. Now she wanted to spend time alone, without talking and unnecessary chatter. The woman was thinking about the meaning of Aemond's gift, usually this kind of jewelry is given to mothers, or narrowed, when Lenerys was just an aunt for the prince. Yes, he had feelings for her as a child, but now? The young man has his whole life ahead of him, when Lenerys herself is nearing her sunset. Now, the prince's behaviors and touches were evaluated differently. Drunken songs pulled her out of the stream of thoughts, and deciding to see who was singing there, she went to the source of the chants. Prince Aegon II was standing on a small balcony with a bottle overweight and singing.

- Hello, Aegon, - the prince was leaning on the railing, at first he did not pay any attention to her, but then, when her voice reached him, he turned around.

- Ah, Lenerys, - the young man smiled with all 32 teeth and took a step, his eyes looked at her and at the same time past her, - our dear aunt, you have arrived, - Aegon tried to make a bow, but his legs were wadded, so he began to swing dangerously, intending to fall. Seeing this, Lenerys quickly moved towards him, in case of something to catch the unpretentious nephew.

- No need, no need! – the young man actively waved his hands in a gesture of protest, including a bottle of wine, the contents began to splash out on the floor, and Lenerys was now forced to move away from the prince on the contrary. In that little time of their contact, Lenerys smelled how Aegon stinks, it seems that the prince was absent all night, sleeping at the Flea End, otherwise the noble lady could not explain such a stench.

It seems that Viserys' firstborn almost threw up, but he restrained himself, Lenerys realized this by the strangled and wheezing sounds. After standing in a half-bent position for a while, he finally straightened up, smiled triumphantly and took another sip of wine.

- How much have you drunk, my Prince? – Lenerys wanted to get away from the untidy type, but remembering that this was her nephew, she decided to stay and wait for any guardsman to accompany the young man, and for now keep his attention on herself.

- Hmm, it's not evening yet, so a little, - Aegon reached for more again, but found that the desired contents were not in the bottle. M, now he turned his attention to his aunt, - oh, what have we got? – The firstborn son unceremoniously approached the person and stretched out his hand to the ornament, which rested on the heaving chest. Anticipating his drunken actions, Lenerys quickly grabbed her nephew's hand and roughly squeezed it, probably too hard, because his face was squeezed by a painful grimace.

- I understand, I understand, - the prince walked away from Lenerys as if scalded, still staggering a little and waving his hands, but suddenly he began to giggle, to which he received an inquiring look from his aunt, - Hehe, I know who gave this necklace, - Aegon pointed his index finger towards the jewelry, giggled a little more, as if I remembered an interesting story - Has he given you a ring yet? Hah, that's right, you're married to the nasty Arryn, - Aegon laughed even harder. Lenerys tensed, she didn't like where this awkward conversation was leading.

- Aegon, you are drunk, let's take you to your chambers? – no matter how disgusted she felt for the drunken prince, but she would not forgive herself if something happened to him, and having overcome herself, she approached him, - and do not express yourself about my spouse, - the woman said with a sigh.

- Hey, ik, everyone knows that you don't love him, - Aegon looked up, it seems he was sick again and so he tried to restrain his impulses, - and he's you, ik, he's a frequent guest on Silk Street, at least I've seen him often, ik, - noticing the irritation on her Aegon began to giggle again in his pretty face, - you don't even have to look for a groom, he's just hanging around with you! – the prince said this with feigned annoyance and pretended to put his hands on his heart, he was having fun, but Lenerys was not. She was annoyed, eyebrows bent in displeasure.

The drunken prince looked at Lenerys and as if an epiphany came to him - Hey, hey are you serious? My brother lost an eye, and you're the only one blind here! – Aegon poked his finger into Lenerys's chest, too sharply, intending to poke at the necklace, but missed hitting the soft flesh, she did not have time to grab his hand, - This one-eyed fool gave you a necklace with a sapphire, seven, he should have given you a ring right away, he's playing smart, but he didn't think of that! - but suddenly the smile disappeared on his face, - Wait, or are you deliberately ignoring him? Cruel, cruel!

Aegon laughed again, tears welling up in his eyes. Lenerys looked at him with doubts whether to believe his drunken delirium, or he was just sabotaging his brother. Aegon made a sharp lunge forward, outweighing his arm over his aunt's shoulder and leaning on her with his weight. Lenerys gave way a little from so much abrupt movement, but quickly straightened up and took a couple of steps forward, well, she herself will escort the wayward nephew into the room, let him get drunk, - Come on Aegon, it's time to go to bed.

- Ah, ahah, about that, - Aegon let out a laugh, - don't worry, I've prepared it…

- What are you talking about?

Aegon smiled slyly, his drunken eyes outlined the figure of his aunt, oh yes, she was good,"Aemond," Lenerys tensed, - When the little boy grew up, how old was he…Yes, thirteen! I took him to silk Street and bought the best whores so that they would teach him how to treat a lady. Of course, he resisted, but I'm still his older brother, ik, I had to teach him about love affairs,- Aegon was already openly hanging on her shoulder, "Everything is for you.

Lenerys looked at him with disgust, she didn't know about it, and Aemond never shared this with her. Well, he probably wouldn't have told her about it, after all, it was about his pride, "Prince Aegon, don't talk nonsense, you've had too much to drink, they'll put you to bed now, and I'll call the maesters.

- Don't look at me like that, Auntie, I tried for you! I see how he looks at you, I know how he thinks about you, so it didn't hurt him to practice, I only helped him... and besides, he loves to study! – Aegon was completely amused.

The memories of the drunken prince were, despite the alcohol consumed, extremely accurate. He and his younger brother wander down the lonely street of King's Landing, their silver hair covered with layered hoods. It was difficult to persuade Aemond, but Aegon was not only a passionate lover, but also a great liar when he wanted to, of course. No matter how smart his brother seemed, he was still a child. A child who still wanted his eye back. A child who was still in love.

- You didn't call the guards with you... not even Ser Kriston,- Aemond broke the heavy silence, - we never go out into the city without an escort.

- You,- Aegon glanced at his brother, - you're not getting out. In addition, even more so, considering who we are going to... the guards are clearly superfluous.

Silence again. The one-eyed prince doubts, there is a desire in him to turn around and go back, to forget this stupid idea as a terrible dream. In some ways, the prince is right, his gut does not deceive him, but he insistently does not listen to him.

Gradually, Aegon led them to streets filled with people, at first it was just a couple of vagabonds and beggars, but later it was commoners and merchants. Aemond's anxiety was beginning to grow. Yes, their hair is hidden, probably they really don't pay attention to Aegon, but the one-eyed boy sometimes caught glances at himself: nevertheless, the bandage on his left eye was noticeable.

Aegon's voice brought him out of his anxious thoughts, - You want to get your eye back, don't you? – Viserys' eldest son leaned closer to his brother's ear, - believe me, women do not like cripples, they need "full-fledged" men, including our aunt.

Aemond's single eye widened and he stared at his brother in shock. But Aegon, using his height and strength, roughly wrapped his hand around both cheeks of the younger, - Look, dear brother, - he took advantage of the acquired position and began to turn his brother's head, forcing him to look in the desired direction, - even whores want a healthy man, refusing cripples and dwarfs.

- You said that there is a sorcerer from Asshai, - the boy looked scared, he cast glances at couples, some kissed, some engaged in obscenity hiding in the shadows of the alley, and only the moon illuminated them.

- Yes, I said so, - Aegon hesitated, loosening his grip on the young man's face, - he is here.

Aemond followed the direction of his brother's finger and saw a large brothel, women looked out of windows and balconies, their outfits were frank and dissolute, they invited and attracted the attention of men.

- Let's go, - Aegon dragged the younger one, and he, like a rag doll, trailed after him.

Entering the brothel, a lot of attention was thrown at Aemond, a lot of fake sly glances from the local women, for them he is not a child, once he is here, for them he is klien, and the men, apparently merchants and guards, only looked at the youngster with disgust. "He won't get it, there's not that much money," they laughed merrily. The desire to turn around and leave was huge, but now, if Aegon is not lying, there really is a sorcerer from the Edge of Shadows who can return his eye.

Aemond did not want to and wanted to look at that obscenity, shame and ambition demanded to close his only eye, and pure curiosity and, probably, lust, wanted to continue looking. Probably, hormones and the fact that Aemond began to turn into a man influenced his reaction. Previously, he would have turned away from shame and retreated, but now, shocked, he could not take his eyes off, his cheeks were blushing, and a volcano seemed to have woken up in his lower abdomen. Moans of pleasure, squelching sounds, all this drove the young mind crazy. Aemond was old enough to have some pictures in his mind, just ideas, but they are incomparable with reality. He was excited. Noticing two people passionately sharing a bed, a woman writhing with pleasure when a man violently crashed into her, simultaneously leaving bites and bruises on her dark skin, Aemond could not help but think about the one he dreamed of every night. His mind screamed that it was impossible to think about his aunt in this way, this would only make things worse. But his heart, his cock, wanted something else. It was hot, the way the man held her, roughly, bruises remained after his touch, but it seems the woman from Dorne did not care, she completely dissolved in pleasure, only grabbing her lover by the hair and scratching her back.

- I-, - Aemond stammered, and clearing his throat continued, - I don't see a sorcerer here.

- A magician from Asshai is certainly good, - a magnificent lady appeared in Aemond's field of vision, - but let me, brother, show you a completely different magic. – now the woman was in front of him, and Aegon pressed her to him in a friendly way, to which she only grinned.

Aemond didn't know what to do, there was too much information and shock. Excitement, rage, devastation filled the young man, he was ready to smash his brother's pretty face, "What are you, seven hells, up to?! – the flushed prince muttered. Now he shifted his gaze to the woman, and he became a little softer. The woman in front of him was a whore, but obviously rich, because her lush figure was adorned with a purple dress, the pigment of which was not so easy to get, it opened a view of her large breasts, a translucent stole rested on her strong shoulders, and a small necklace in the form of a seven-pointed star hung on her neck, ironically.

- Come on, young Prince, - the woman beckoned him with her finger, - the time has come.

The memories were extremely murky, but the types in this brothel for a couple of gold were ready to help a rich stranger in a hood without any questions, which suited the first son of Viserys. Dragging and simultaneously gagging the younger, people were silent when Aegon cheerfully sang something to himself.

After knocking down the prince, Aegon's men dispersed, leaving him, his brother and the whore alone. Aegon still held his hands tightly, despite the fact that they were already tightly tied to the bed. Eamond kicked until he felt a touch on his leg, above the knee. The hand slid confidently to his thigh.

The one-eyed prince cast a frightened look at his older brother, to which he received only a cruel grin, "Hanged, my brother," Aegon bent down and, removing his hair from his sweaty forehead, kissed him.

- Aegon! – the prince seemed to plead, - Aegon! - but his brother didn't hear him.

Finally, left alone with him, the woman began, - You are beautiful, my prince, even in spite of your injury,- Aemond cast a contemptuous glance at her. He did not believe her, and he showed it to her with his whole appearance.

- How much did my brother pay you? -  The Prince spat. Rage and despair boiled in him. What a fool he was, believing that his eye could be returned, that he could see again…Sometimes, Aemond wondered if he would have exchanged the Vhagar for the eye back if there had been a ghostly chance that Lenerys, his beloved aunt, would turn her attention to him. The maids often whispered that Lady Lenerys was hanging out with him out of pity, it hurt him.

- M, a lot enough, - the woman put her finger to her lips, - so that we could teach you, - she ran her hand over his stomach, bypassing his groin, there was lust in her gaze, - so that we could show, - Aemond gasped when he noticed the translucent fabric falling off, which had previously rested on her shoulders, - to keep us quiet.

The woman gently untied one of his hands, and Aemond, as if bewitched, obeyed her. She took his baby hand and pressed it to her chest. Instinctively, Aemond squeezed it. The flesh turned out to be soft, pliable, the feeling was pleasant, - My Prince, you have a beloved woman. – The question sounded like a cure, and it knocked the prince out of his trance, he cast an anxious glance at the woman, - You love, it's obvious. Your brother takes care of you, he wants you to be ready for your -she gently took his chin and ran her thumb over his lips- first time.

Aemond felt as if he had been doused with cold water. "Does she know?", "Who else, the seven hells, knows?" The prince had enough panic, he doesn't need rumors and gossip to go to Lenerys, not now, never!

- Oh, my dragon, don't worry, - the woman continued to undress, Aemond only turned his head away shyly, - no one but me and the prince does not know about her and about your feelings.

- What... what should I call you? – the question seemed inappropriate.

- Oh, as you like, - the nameless woman, already naked, came up to him and clasping her face with both hands, forcing him to look at her, - you can call me by her name.

 The Red Castle. Aemond.

 - Lady Lenerys returned to the Red Castle about thirty minutes ago, my Prince,- the servant said, - apparently on her way to her chambers.

- I see, you can be free, - Aemond waved his hand and headed towards the residential floor of the castle.

Aemond's history lesson was over, now he intended to talk to his aunt as usual, but now he knew that she had a piece of himself on her neck, now a sapphire, replacing the empty space of the eye socket. It was easier with him, the pain became less frequent, and it was much more pleasant to feel the weight of the stone than the unnerving emptiness. Sometimes Aemond wondered if it was a placebo effect. But the main thing is that it helped to some extent.

Despite his outward coldness and detachment, Aemond was an extremely nervous and anxious young man, he just learned to live with it, ignore it. He learned to live with headaches, with eternal migraines and panic attacks, he learned to be lonely, it all became his daily routine. But when Lenerys arrived, all this faded into the background. In her company, he again felt like the same boy who had not lost his eye yet, sometimes forgetting himself and just relaxing in her presence. Since childhood, Aemond loved when Lenerys read to him, not because he was lazy himself, but because her voice affected him in a special way. So soft and velvety, he didn't always listen to what she was reading, but closed his eyes and enjoyed moments of calm.

It seemed that the prince's feelings only intensified as time passed. Now, along with the welcome relief, the young man felt even more nervous. Complexes about his own attractiveness gnawed at his soul, and evil tongues did not give relief. Despite the passage of so many years, Aemond was still trying to find disgust in her violet eyes, maybe it would have been easier, so he would not have hoped for anything, but instead of disgust, he saw an all-consuming concern, the way she looked not only at him alone, she looked at Helena like that, and at the damned Jackeiris and Lucerius, which made him incredibly angry. The bastards of Rhaenyra were not worthy of their status, their surname, dragons and her attention. Servants and spies who were in the service of the One-Eyed Prince reported on the princess's frequent visits to Dragonstone. The woman could have been there for weeks and it was clearly not business meetings. He had no spies specifically in the possessions of his sister-in-law, so he did not know the purpose of her so frequent visits. Aemond still had a "special" connection between Damon and Lenerys in his head, despite the fact that his uncle was married to Rainier, his sister.

Foreshadowing a pleasant pastime with his aunt, Aemond walked a little faster than usual, his soul was so calm…

When he reached the residential floor, Aemond heard drunken screams, obviously it was his brother, who else would drink at such a time? "Lenerys! Just think... so young... his blood is boiling for you!" Panic. Damn drunk, what's going on there? The one-eyed prince quickened his pace, almost running.

Aegon practically hung onto Lenerys, and when he saw his younger brother, he burst out laughing even more:

- Damn you, Aemond, how omnipresent you are! – Aegon finally broke away from his aunt and walked towards his brother, - only you were remembered and here you are!

- At least someone, thank the Seven! – Lenerys went after the clever drunk, - help me take him to his chambers, and then the maesters will sort it out without our participation.

Aemond anxiously examined the woman, and making sure that his brother did nothing to her, quickly picked him up.

 Red Castle. Later.

 After laying his brother on the bed and leaving the maester with him, Aemond went out. The young man was breathing through his nose, his rage was boiling, and the desire to kill his brother exceeded all limits. Aegon, the king's first son, was forgiven a lot and got away with almost everything, and this annoyed Aemond extremely. The whole nature of Aegon was repugnant to him, probably, like everyone in this family. One-eye always looked with sadness at poor Helena, who is now engaged to her brother. After sighing several times, he finally turned to Lenerys.

- And often so?

- Unfortunately,- Aemond was looking at her, openly, as always. But she's not. She didn't look for his gaze, instead looking at the floor and tucking her arms under her, - Is something wrong? Did Aegon do something?

The young man moved towards the woman, his inner anxiety only grew, but he tried not to show it. Finally, when he was near, Lenerys raised her head to him, but her eyes were still looking somewhere to the side, - No, no... nothing like that.

She's lying. Aemond knows. He sees it. Her eyes are running, her chest is heaving almost with a shudder, and her hands, which now rest in his calloused ones, are trembling. Lenerys is tense, as is he. Aegon had told her something she should not have known. Seven hells.

Overcoming his nervousness, Aemond began,- I don't want to catch you in a lie, -  the young man began to gently draw circular patterns with his thumb on the back of her palm, - my brother... could say anything, and I want to make sure that he didn't tell you anything superfluous.

Lenerys clenched her jaw tighter. She felt like a cruel creature. Seeing how her nephew treated her with reverence, since childhood, she continued to vent her grief on him. Grief from the loss of her son, hatred of herself as an untenable woman, and only now she realized that spending so much time with the young man gave him hope. His words, his touches, and, in the end, the necklace–all were signs of his love for her, and not simple affection, as Lenerys tried to assure herself. She put a blindfold on herself, trying to ignore her nephew's growing feelings... how selfish.

Her heart sank. Aemond didn't deserve this. He had suffered enough already, and now she was going to do him even more harm... break his heart.  

But what does she feel herself? Targaryen couldn't answer. She had a fondness for all her nephews, but for him... something more special. What she once felt for her brother, for the man from Dorne, and probably for her husband. It was scary. Aemond is too young for her, just as she is too old for him. She needs to stop it.

- Aegon... talked about a lot,-  Lenerys began, - but I want to ask you one question. - Aemond tensed, but continued to stare intently, releasing her hands.

The woman raised her hand to the necklace, gently leaving the white coat of arms of House Targaryen on her palm, - What does this gift mean to you? - Finally, she looked at him: his eye was strained, and his jaw was clenched.

Aemond did not know what to say. It wasn't in his plans. Too fast…

- Please, tell only the truth ... - Lenerys came closer to him, - I like him, even very much, but I want to know with what intent you gave him.

The prince was discouraged. He wanted to sink through the ground, get on the Vhagar faster and fly away over the Narrow Sea ... everything, just not to relive this moment ... his personal nightmare. The missing eye began to itch, as it always did when Aemond was nervous. Right now, he was just in a quiet panic. She knows. He won't get out of it, he won't translate the topic. It's now or never.

- My intention was bright, - Aemond, no matter how much he wanted to, but looked at the chosen one, - I put my feelings for you into this decoration, Lenerys, - again a pause, the prince breathed deeply, - Feelings that come from deep childhood.

His legs felt like cotton wool, the desire to pinch myself was as great as ever. The prince peered into the face of his relative, it seems that for the first time he could not read her. Panic was building, he swallowed.

- I love you, - Aemond took her hands in his, - and I've always loved you.… I understand that you are married, but I am ready to wait -he kissed the back of her hand-"as long as it takes.

Lenerys didn't know what to say. What had to happen happened sooner or later. What she should have seen, what she should have nipped in the bud years ago…But because of her laziness and selfishness, she did not. The woman swallowed. She couldn't say yes to him, - You're so young, Aemond,- smiling nervously, Lenerys stroked his cheek, which was decorated with a scar. Instinctively, Aemond, like a kitten, put his cheek to meet her touch, apparently the meaning of the words she said had not yet reached him, - so many ladies who crave your attention…

Finally, it dawned on him. His gaze ran anxiously over her face, - I don't need other ladies! - He said it in an extremely offended tone, not controlling himself. Lenerys lost that sensible 15-year-old Aemond, he was replaced by an insecure 10-year-old prince, - I don't need anyone in this damned castle!

- Please calm down, - She came up to him again, squeezing his hand, the corners of her lips trembled, - I'm ... old for you, Aemond. You are at the dawn of your beauty and strength, when as my time is nearing its sunset. – a moment, Aemond's face takes on a stony expression, and only his eyes express emotions of pain.

- I ... highly appreciate your gift, you ... but I can't accept your feelings, - Lenerys let go of his hand, took a step away, - I'm sorry…

Aemond's eye kept running over her pale face, trying to find a hint of a lie... but she was telling the purest truth… He didn't notice how he reached for the patch on his eye, - Is it... because of this? – the prince said it with a dead tone. The aunt's confusion and slow response made the bleeding heart bleed more. No, it was not only his chest that hurt, but with every second of this hell, it was as if his own bones were breaking, his skin was burning and his thoughts were confused.

- No, of course not, - she scolded herself for procrastination, - no way, - perhaps she was convincing not only him, but also herself.

- Childhood infatuation will pass, and we will remember this story with a smile and…

Aemond did not let her finish, abruptly grabbing her hand, squeezing it lightly and putting it to his chest, - This is not a childish affection for a long time, aunt. I know what and who I want,- he was overwhelmed with emotions, adrenaline mixed with pain and despair made him a hundred times bolder, - I want you. I don't care what my mother, the church, or even the gods themselves say –I don't care!

Aemond has always been stubborn and single-minded. These are the traits that pleasantly distinguished him from his older brother, and the traits that Lenerys always liked in men.

No,- she said sternly, goosebumps ran down the prince's back from such a harsh answer, - we can't... you're a prince,- she put her hand on his chest, - you have to choose a wife from a noble house, making a good deal...- seven, why did she say that, - sometimes, everything goes not the way we want…

- We will escape,- desperation spoke in him, - beyond the Narrow Sea. To Essos, where no one will find us... you talk about duty and moral principles, but don't talk about your feelings…

Now his desperate speech was not allowed to finish, - I don't love you.

Tags:   @sheetalkalkhandey   @elraeeee   @minaxcarter @infirebaby   @khonshu-help-me     @caspianobsessed   @bietchz   @may-machin   @marvelita85   @uselessbutinteresting   @whitejuliana1204    @zafirina12  

[lipid]

disclaimer: my 12th anniversary is really close which means i can be insane about my husband

i've been thinking about this for some years (decade????) now and i really like to imagine promise (and later engagement and marriage) ring exchanges.

ashford era would be a super cute double stacked gold ring featuring a pink heart surrounded by moons (in my vision they're moonstone and opal but ig no one has done that yet irl #sad and lelouch's would have to be lowkey but still really cute. probably never worn as supposed, but on a thin chain concealed by the turtleneck.

emperor lelouch era: big, antique and ornate amethyst gold victorian ring probably taken out of the palace's heirloom room or something. if we want to make everyone hate the emperor we need to make clear he dgaf about old traditions or respecting his ancestor's legacies + seeing a non-britannian wear such a thing would cause uproar within the conservative britannian society + it would infuriate the destituted nobles also. lelouch's would obvs have to match with his stupid gay pope robes so rubies + diamonds + gold. needs to look expensive asfuck and be ooak designer made! the emperor deserves only the best ♡

post ZR (on monique's both hands this time since he's died RIP): victorian mourning ring, gold salvaged from lelouch's robes and miscellaneous jewelry, engraved. a braided hair locket ring made with a lock of the emperors hair. never to be taken off

[starlightkun]

❧ word count: 20.1k

❧ warnings: cursing, mentions of death/dead people but as a moral quandary, definitely more legal jargon than there should be i am so sorry (if it doesn’t make sense then it wasn’t important), oh there’s a short scene with a weirdly graphic depiction of eating fruit sorry if that gives you the ick, it gets very existential and kind of angsty at some points in this one in terms of morality around death and reader’s job

❧ genre: fluff, no literally so fluffy it probably should have been in the warnings actually, established relationship, greek gods/goddesses au, hades jaemin, human reader, nades au, paralegal reader, bit of a ham-fisted persephone allegory, inspired by the gods/goddesses assigned to the work it unit in 2020 for this video, appearances by aphrodite johnny, bestie jeno, coworkers kun and sicheng, and galactic-threat level menace yangyang

❧ extra info: this is the sequel to obsidian black, it cannot be read as a standalone!!!

❧ spotify playlist

⤷ series masterlist

Your fingers were still caressing his cheek, softly, he was still holding you with a hand on your back, and he was beholding you with a yearning that made your heart lurch against your ribcage; and you knew in that moment if you asked him for his own heart he would have reached his hand into his chest and given it to you, the organ still beating and dripping crimson.

“Hi, honey, how was work?”

Jaemin was already in your apartment when you got home that night, sitting in his favorite spot in your armchair, book in hand. As you walked around in front of him, you saw that this time his pick was Dracula by Bram Stoker.

“It was alright, lots of revising briefs,” you stretched your neck out. “And what exactly do you do all day while I’m at work anyway?”

“I do own a business, you know.”

“The Underworld is an LLP?” You joked as you stretched your shoulders next.

“An LLC actually,” he quipped back as he flipped to the next page. “But I meant one on Earth.”

“Glad you’ve got something to keep you busy aside from dead people,” you twisted around to crack your back, letting out a groan when you heard a satisfying pop. “Dinner?”

“I know a place nearby.”

And just under forty-five minutes later you were sat beside Jaemin in a private booth at a nice restaurant, drink in hand and food on the table.

“By ‘know a place’ you meant you had surprise reservations,” you declared, affectionately bumping his knee with yours.

“Maybe so,” he grinned, resting an arm over the back of the booth. “Did it work?”

“Depends, what were you hoping it would do?”

“Oh you know, woo you, make you fall madly in love with me, the usual.”

“Hmm,” you pretended to scrutinize your surroundings. “I guess I’m feeling mildly wooed.”

Jaemin suddenly leaned in, and you watched him, breathless, eagerly awaiting his next move. You always enjoyed your back-and-forth, the seamless way you two went around each other, the mutual pushing and pulling. With him this close you reveled in the smell of cedar, cinnamon, and bergamot wafting around you, drawing you in even closer.

“Well then how…” his arm that had been resting on the back of the booth now wrapped around your shoulders, the fingers of that hand gently gracing over the shell of your ear “…about…” his cool fingertips brushed over the back of your neck, raising goosebumps in their wake to then caress over your other ear, “…now?”

Suppressing a giddy smile, you lifted your own hands to feel at your earlobes. You hadn’t been wearing any earrings when you got to the restaurant, but now you could feel jewelry there.

“And what are these?” You asked as you felt over the smooth gems dangling from your ears.

“Opal.”

Your enamored grin finally took over your face, “Okay, I’m officially wooed. The magically appearing earrings got me. Thank you, Jaemin.”

“Success,” he murmured before giving you a fond peck.

His hand stroked up and down your back as you leaned against him, enjoying the quiet that the private booth afforded you.

“You looked tired when you came home, Y/N,” Jaemin commented, and you could hear the hint of worry coloring his tone. “More tired than just proofing briefs.”

You sighed, reaching for your glass to take a sip of your drink, “It was the content of the briefs. I’m usually pretty ambivalent about the morality of the stuff we do at Kim & Moon. But the one that Ms. Haseul had written on this medical malpractice case…”

Your date didn’t speak as he let you find your words.

“The argument she constructed… it was the first time I genuinely just felt… gross about the work I was doing, and all I was doing was proof-reading the thing! I didn’t even write it! And I know Ms. Haseul doesn’t actually believe in what’s in that brief, it’s just a legal argument, it’s all putting together precedent and logic and interpreting the facts of the case. She doesn’t even think it’ll work; she just has a responsibility to try every avenue she can for her client. But… I don’t know. Someone died in this case, Jaemin.”

“They did?”

“Yeah, and I can’t say for sure whether it was because of anything our client did or didn’t do. But the crux of Ms. Haseul’s argument is that our client, as this patient’s medical provider, didn’t owe a duty of care to the patient because the provider wasn’t technically an employee of the hospital due to a bunch of legal stuff, even though our client directly treated them. She said our motion will definitely be denied at the hearing but… it’s scary.”

“Death?”

“Hm?” His question threw off your train of thought for a moment.

“Death is scary?”

“I meant that Ms. Haseul’s duty to her clients involves arguing that medical providers don’t have a duty of care to ensure that their patients don’t die. And that my job involves helping her do that. But yeah, I guess that involves a want to not die. I don’t think not wanting to die and being afraid of dying are the same thing, though.”

“Are you afraid of dying?”

“I… don’t know,” you frowned thoughtfully as you looked down into the mouth of your glass. “I think most people who are, are usually afraid because they don’t how they’ll die or because they don’t know what happens after they die. They’re afraid of the unknown. Which is a pretty good thing to be afraid of. But I’ve been to the Underworld with you, I’m dating Hades himself, for fuck’s sake. I’ve got a fairly good idea of what’ll happen to me after I die. And… I don’t know if I’m afraid of dying.”

“That’s fair. You know more about it than most humans do, but not enough about what your specific experience of dying will be like to make a determination.”

“Really though, I just couldn’t stop imagining living in a world where I could go to a doctor who doesn’t owe me any duty of care, who doesn’t legally have to give a shit if I lived or died,” you sighed, then took a long swig of your drink, well aware that it was mostly diluted by the melted ice by now. “And I don’t want to contribute at all to making that world a reality. I don’t want any part of that, big or small. Even just proof-reading a legal brief. It just… grossed me out.”

You set your glass down on the table a little too harshly, the garish bang making you jump a little.

Looking up to meet the dark eyes that you could feel watching you, you searched them for something, “Jaemin, do you think I’m a hypocrite? I-I have all these opinions, but when it comes down to it, I’m at this job, helping attorneys to write briefs that say all this horrible stuff.”

His gaze was steady as he answered, “I think that if you had to find a new job every time your boss asked you to do something that went against your morals in the slightest way, you’d be spending so much of your time trying to find new jobs that you’d never have the time to actually impact the world in any meaningful way.”

“So that’s a yes.”

“That’s a ‘you proof-reading one brief isn’t going to bring about the end of The Hippocratic Oath and all morality is relative anyway.’”

“Damn, moral relativism…” you clicked your tongue. “Intro to Philosophy flashbacks aside, you might be making some points, Jaemin.”

“Thanks, I try,” he chuckled. Tilting his head to the side, he brought a hand up to grace over your new earrings again, tender but contemplative gaze in his obsidian eyes, “Y/N, do you think I’m a monster?”

His voice wasn’t sad or forlorn, just curious, inquisitive. You took his hand in yours—the one that was looking over the jewelry he’d just gifted you—and squeezed it. It was really more self-soothing than anything else, and he ran his thumb over your bejeweled knuckles in response.

“And where’s this coming from?”

“Humans have a lot of monstrous ideas about death and the dead. I want to know what you think.”

“In my ghost lit class, one of the concepts we discussed was the difference between the monstrous and the divine. I argued that there is no line between the two, that it’s up to how one chooses to interpret what they’re seeing or experiencing.” You brushed the back of your fingers over his cadaverous cheeks, taking comfort in the familiar cold against your skin. “So no, Jaemin, you’re not a monster. Not to me.”

You finally found what you’d been searching for in his eyes, that warmth of evanescing embers that compelled you to keep looking lest you miss the moment the ephemeral glow finally died. Your fingers were still caressing his cheek, softly, he was still holding you with a hand on your back, and he was beholding you with a yearning that made your heart lurch against your ribcage; and you knew in that moment if you asked him for his own heart he would have reached his hand into his chest and given it to you, the organ still beating and dripping crimson. Surging forward, you claimed his lips with your own. He reciprocated your kiss with one that made your head spin and your very bones ache and burn with a craving to both embower him and be consumed by him. Jaemin, god of the Underworld, your Hades.

“Hey, Y/N, I need you to draft a—”

“I’m going on lunch, Sicheng. I can in sixty minutes.”

“Oh. Right.”

“Y/N, will you please help me research this—”

“Qian Kun, the clock just struck 5:00 p.m., the work day is over. I’m going home and you should too.”

“God, sorry, I didn’t even realize. Yes, go home. I still have so much to—”

“I say this with the best intentions and all the platonic, workplace appropriate, and professional love in the world: Don’t make me go into your office and turn your computer off without saving your files.”

“…5:30?”

“Fine. And you know I can check your billing logs in the system, right? I’ll be able to see if you’re here even a minute past 5:30.”

“I know that now.”

“Uh-huh. Goodnight, Kun.”

“Goodnight, Y/N.”

And so went your days at Kim & Moon, helping to conduct the three-ring circus that was Kun, Sicheng, and Yangyang. Despite the legal assistant initially seeming like a trustworthy and responsible ally on your first day, you soon found that he was an accomplice to the madness, or more often than not, the instigator. He was good at his job, and you could rely on him to make sure things got done by deadlines. But when it came to making the workplace itself run smoothly and ensuring your day-to-day lives were stress-free? Absolutely not. He knew exactly how to make his attorneys tick in the worst ways.

Dong “dumber than a box of rocks” Sicheng was the current victim of Yangyang’s boredom today. How he could even get bored with your workload was just a testament to his efficiency, but it irked you that instead of using this free time for good he instead used it to be the menace of the millennium.

“Isn’t that right, Y/N?” Yangyang’s voice suddenly cut into the recording of Ms. Haseul’s voice that was playing into your headphones. His tone clearly begged for you to agree with him.

“Hm?” You took the headphones off and paused the dictation.

Sicheng was standing at Yangyang’s desk, a stapler in his hands. You raised an eyebrow to look between them. This seemed somewhat normal so far.

“All the new staplers now have a safety mechanism so that they won’t staple fingers because a kid stapled all the way through his finger and his parents sued the stapler company for like millions of dollars,” the assistant said with the right amount of casualness, sincerity, and almost disbelief that Sicheng didn’t know this ‘common piece of knowledge.’ “They rolled out the new ones what—ten years ago?”

“You seriously interrupted my transcription for this?” You rolled your eyes. You were about to put your headphones back in when you saw Sicheng tentatively reaching his index finger towards the mouth of the stapler. “No, Sicheng!”

You lurched forward to take the stapler from his hand before he could test the ‘safety mechanism’ on himself. Yangyang had to bury his face in his arms on his desk to stifle his laughter.

“He was lying, wasn’t he?” Sicheng was catching on quicker to when Yangyang was teasing him these days. Not quick enough that you didn’t have to intervene every time you saw it happening, but you had to give him credit somewhere at least. Sometimes you didn’t have to explain to him afterwards the fact that he was being had.

“How did you even become a lawyer, Sicheng? How did you get through law school?” You waved the stapler at him accusatorily. “And I don’t mean grades, I’ve read some of your briefs, so I don’t doubt your 4.0 GPA. I mean how did you not die before you ever got there? How did you not stick a fork in an electrical socket, or eat candy with razorblades in it, or get kidnapped before you met me? I’m convinced you should be dead in a ditch and yet here you are.”

“It’s because he’s pretty,” Kun walked up to your desks then, setting down the papers in his hand to pinch Sicheng’s cheek, and the other attorney swatted his hand away. “People want to do stuff for him.”

Yangyang had sobered up from his laughing fit, teasing glint in his eye now focused on his other attorney, “That why you followed him to Kim & Moon, Kun? To make sure the big bad lawyers here don’t be mean to your pretty Sichengie?”

“So all sense of professionalism and decorum is just out the window right now?” Sicheng scoffed.

“That is not how it happened, Yangyang, and you know it,” Kun rolled his eyes.

“Did you two know each other before you worked at the firm?” You asked, realizing that you didn’t actually know anything about how the two associates had started at Kim & Moon, even after working at the firm for six months now.

Kun took it upon himself to explain, “We were friends in law school. I was a year ahead of Sicheng and after I graduated, I did a short stint at the prosecutor’s office. He came here straight out of law school.”

The other attorney finished the story, “When Kun figured out being a prosecutor wasn’t his thing after a couple years, he came to Kim & Moon as well.”

“That’s cute. Besties who litigate together, stay together. Right Jeno?” You tossed the last question over your shoulder at your friend who was working at his own desk. Jeno gave a thumbs up back without turning around, and you could see that his headphones were definitely in. Returning to the other three men with you, you looked to your fellow assistant, “And what about you, Yang? When did you start working here?”

“Oh you mean the worst day of my life?” Yangyang sighed melodramatically.

“One of these days I’ll record you with my dictaphone when you say that, play it for the senior partners, and you’ll be out of here you little demon,” Sicheng narrowed his eyes at his assistant.

“Anyway, I actually started out as an intern like…” Yangyang craned his neck around until he spotted a tall, lanky figure carrying probably too many boxes of copier toner into the copy room. “Like Sungchan over there. I got an internship here in undergrad because one of my professors knew Mr. Jeong, and I didn’t have anything better to do. Then once I graduated, I had no other plans and was offered a full-time legal assistant position working with Yejin. She was Ms. Haseul’s paralegal before you, Y/N. She used to do all of Ms. Haseul and Sicheng’s work by herself. They wanted to have Kun start medical malpractice too, so I came on as more support.”

“And when was that?”

“I came on full time a little before Jeno started I think?” Yangyang grabbed a pen from his desk, spinning his chair around and throwing the pen at said man. It missed Jeno’s head, thankfully, smacking against one of his monitors and clattering onto his keyboard. Your friend whipped around, immediately focusing in on your chaotic coworker as the source.

“What?”

“When was your first day at the firm?”

“I don’t know, summer like two years ago now?”

“Sounds about right. Thanks.”

“I’m keeping the pen, asshole.”

“I have more.” Yangyang shrugged, once again turning back to your conversation. “So I started full-time probably May that same year.”

“You are a galactic-threat level menace,” you shook your head. “You know that, right?”

“Don’t compliment him, Y/N,” Kun sighed.

Laid in Jaemin’s arms one night, feeling full, warm, and content, you couldn’t think of anywhere else you wanted to be in that moment. Dinner had been exceptionally delicious that night, and when you got back to your apartment you wanted nothing but to curl up with him on your couch, which he easily indulged you in. He picked a couple books off your shelf, plopped down onto your couch, and pulled you down on top of him. You nearly melted when he tucked you under his chin, and had been in a hazy state of half-consciousness since. Your eyes would occasionally flutter open or shut as you listened to his heartbeat under your ear, the sound of his fingers running along the pages as he turned them, and felt his chest rise and fall with his breaths. His arms were wrapped around you enough to read the book behind your head—The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, you’d caught a glimpse of the cover. You knew when he’d found a passage that he was exceptionally taken with or wanted to ponder, because one of his hands—the right one, specifically—would fall to the small of your back just under the hem of your shirt, his middle finger drawing mindless circles along your skin until he was ready to move on.

This particular part seemed to be stumping him, though, as his fingers ruminated on your back for much longer than they had before. Before you could comment on this, you let out an embarrassing noise at the sudden feeling of his cool fingertips working their way up your spine then along your shoulder blades, caressing your skin and pressing on your body playfully.

“Jaemin!” You coughed to cover up the squeak in your voice. “What are you doing?”

“Just checking for wings, I know they’ve got to be around here somewhere,” his words hummed against you as you continued to wriggle away from the ticklish feeling.

His book had apparently been set aside at some point, as you felt both his hands on you. When you’d finally managed to twist yourself onto your back, albeit still on top of him, he gave up his ministrations.

You couldn’t help the tiny bursts of laughter that continued to bubble up out of you at the pure cheesiness, “After thousands of years, you still can’t get better lines than that?”

You grabbed his hand, holding your linked hands to your chest, a fond smile on your lips as you looked down at his fingers between yours. He kept you tucked under his chin, wrapping his left arm around your waist as you had already claimed his right.

“Why would I want to when they make you giggle like that?” He then splayed his right palm over your chest, and you could feel your heartbeat thrum up against it as if your heart were trying to leap into his waiting hand, “And make your heart race like this?”

Another few moments passed by of the two of you quietly listening to your heartbeat before you spoke up again; softly, absentmindedly, the words leaving your mouth as soon as you thought them, “Sometimes I feel more like Icarus with you, actually.”

“How do you mean?”

“I swear sometimes it feels like it’s just too good to be true, like I’m too happy and if I’m not careful it’ll all melt away and I’ll fall into the ocean.”

“You do remember the other part, right? Icarus was warned that if he flew too low, the seawater would weigh down his wings.”

“…You’re right.”

“Of course I am,” he said, and you could hear the smug smile in his voice, annoyed that it actually kind of made you feel better. The fact that your Hades was so confident about something, it made you want to believe in it too. His right hand moved from your chest so that two of those fingers could lift your chin. Once you were looking up at him, he continued, “Besides, you don’t have beeswax wings anyway, you have angel wings, remember?”

You let out something between a scoff and a chuckle, both in disbelief that he was still on about that, and also absolutely smitten with him as usual.

Knowing that he didn’t have you convinced or cheered up enough for his liking, Jaemin’s other hand snaked to the space in between his chest and your back, fingers playing at the bones of your shoulder blades once more. “Aha! I’ve finally found them, Y/N, they’re right here! I told you you’ve got angel wings!”

The longer he went on the more his fingers drifted around to your sides to tickle you instead, and you squirmed in his grip as both his hands participated in the assault, you soon falling from your previous spot on top of him. His arms darted out to gently guide your tumble, twisting himself around to make sure that you landed on the couch cushions instead of the ground.

“Jaemin!” You yelped out as the breath was being squeezed from your lungs.

He quickly let up his tickle attack, now hovering over you, supported by a hand on either side of your head. You looked up at your Hades with a bright grin that surely mirrored his, reaching up to grab his face with both your hands and kiss that smile right off him.

“Anything else on the agenda, Y/L/N?” Ms. Haseul prompted you.

“No, ma’am,” you shook your head, having crossed off the final thing. You’d just concluded your monthly team meeting for everyone under Ms. Haseul’s purview at the office.

“Does anybody have anything to add?”

At the other three shaking their heads, Ms. Haseul dismissed everyone, already efficiently packing up her supplies in her briefcase.

“Y/L/N, don’t forget to send that memo to Mr. Moon and Lee Donghyuck,” she reminded you on her way out, referencing the managing partner and his trusted paralegal.

“Of course, Ms. Haseul.” You nodded, but she was already out the door.

The other four of you were a little slower to leave. You cracked your back as you stood, “Alright, I’m going to the break room to grab a cup of coffee, anybody coming with?”

“I have to jump on a conference call in a couple minutes, but could someone get me a cup?” Sicheng asked from the threshold of the doorway. “The orange K-cups, two sugars.”

“Sure, Sicheng, I’ll grab you one,” you nodded for him to go ahead, and he immediately disappeared down the hall.

“Y/N, what did I tell you about telling him no?” Yangyang chastised you as he tucked his pen behind his ear. “All those suffragettes didn’t chain themselves to stuff for you to give in to the patriarchy so easily.”

“Yangyang, I’m really starting to think that you’re just one of those guys who took a singular Women and Gender Studies class in college and hasn’t shut up since.”

“I think Yangyang is one of those guys who was born and hasn’t shut up since,” Kun scoffed under his breath.

But your fellow assistant wasn’t letting it go, “Y/N, seriously—”

“Liu Yangyang, it’s a cup of coffee, and I’m already going there anyway. If you asked me to make you a cup and I was already going, I’d say yes too. If Sicheng asks me to wash his car or clean his apartment, I promise I’ll say no.” You rolled your eyes. “Anyway, are you coming with to watch me singlehandedly take away my right to vote by making a man a cup of coffee or not?”

“Yeah, fine.”

“Can we go then?” Kun asked sternly, clearly waiting by the door for the two of you to stop bickering. The twitch of his hand belied that he was itching for his caffeine fix. Presumably his fourth or fifth cup at least. He must have pulled a late night or early morning. Or both.

“Oh and we’ve even got Kun to witness the downfall of gender equality as we know it!” You cheered in mock enthusiasm.

“Do I want to know what the hell you two are talking about?”

Jeno was already in the breakroom when you got there, pouring creamer into his own cup of coffee. He stepped aside for the attorney to use the machine as you and Yangyang struck up conversation with your friend.

“Did you guys see that email Mr. Jeong sent to all the support staff this morning?” Jeno asked, shaking in some sugar.

“About the Administrative Staff Appreciation Lunch tomorrow?” You confirmed. “Yeah, I’d feel a lot more appreciated if they could get somewhere nicer than the pizza place down the street to cater.”

“Or just get an open bar,” Yangyang snorted. “No lunch necessary.”

As you and Jeno groaned out your agreement, Kun had finished making his black coffee, freeing up the machine for you to start on yours and Sicheng’s.

The attorney was on his way out but slowed to a stop in the threshold of the doorway, turning and lowering his voice to address the three of you, “You didn’t hear this from me, but all of the associates were taken out for an appreciation lunch just last week at Nobu. You all deserve much more than pizza.”

And with that, he left the break room.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Jeno spat out, setting his cup down and crossing his arms over his chest.

“Oh now I definitely need a fucking drink,” you sighed, violently snapping Sicheng’s orange K-cup into place.

“I’m going to key somebody’s Tesla,” Yangyang whispered resolutely, curling one of his hands into a fist.

“No, Yangyang.” You shook your head, grabbing the two sugar packets you’d need in a minute. “No property damage. Or no property damage in our parking garage with cameras. Lord knows I’m not paying your bail.”

Your best friend took over, “What we need is a drink, or five. Tomorrow after work?”

Yangyang grabbed a coffee stirrer and gestured around wildly as he spoke. “Oh yeah, especially after that fucking insulting pizza party they’re throwing us.”

“We can invite all the support staff. At least the ones we actually like,” Jeno suggested. “Us three, Lee Donghyuck, Osaki Shotaro in Billing, uh, Sungchan the intern…”

As he trailed off, you all looked at each other.

“And that’s it, right?” Jeno asked.

“Our coworkers kind of suck, don’t they?” Yangyang mused, chewing on the plastic stirrer.

“Or are we just assholes?” You locked your own K-cup into the coffee machine.

That night you were sprawled out on your couch, legs propped up in Jaemin’s lap as you anxiously scrolled through restaurant recommendations on your phone. Every Saturday night you and Jaemin tried a new place, and this week it was your turn to pick, but you were yet to find one, fearing that the two of you had finally ran out of restaurants in your city. Jaemin, meanwhile, was reading another book from your ghost lit syllabus, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. You swore he’s read more of those books than you ever did, and you actually paid to take the class.

A text popping up on your screen from Jeno caught your eye.

[make it double: you’re DD tomorrow, right?]

[you: i am. might have other plans though, let me double check]

[make it double: don’t make me pay for an uber please]

“Jaemin,” you called out his name softly.

“Yes?” He put his thumb in the novel to hold his place as he looked over to you attentively.

You’d think that you’d get used to this, your Hades’ full attention on you, head lolling to the side as his gaze drank you in, black hair falling into his eyes, and fingertips messing with the edges of the pages absentmindedly. But you still weren’t, your breath hitching in your throat for a moment, your question being momentarily forgotten.

After a beat, you finally regained your speech and were able to say, “Some of my coworkers want to go out for drinks after work tomorrow, but I know that’s your time that I gave you.”

“I can come a couple hours late and we’ll add an hour each to Saturday and Sunday,” Jaemin suggested.

“Here’s the thing: tomorrow is a Friday, and Jeno and I have been taking turns DD’ing whenever we go out since college, and it’s my turn.”

“You’re anticipating a late night.” He surmised.

“I’m anticipating taking care of a drunk Lee Jeno until midnight then passing out as soon as I get home. I can’t imagine I’ll be much fun to be around after.”

“And you want to go get drinks with these people?” He clarified with an eyebrow raised.

“I know I’m not making it sound appealing but yes, I promise,” you chuckled.

“Just checking that this wasn’t a cry for help.” Jaemin tucked his bookmark in the novel to fully set it aside. “How about we move those eight hours to Saturday or Sunday then? Instead of arriving at six p.m., I'll get here at ten a.m. and we can spend the day together too.”

You squinted skeptically at him, “Can you even go out during the day? Won’t the sun burn you or light you on fire or make you glitter or something?”

“I’m the god of the dead, angel, not a vampire from a teen movie.”

“I know, just teasing,” you snickered.

“And I know you were just teasing. I love to see the little smile you get on your face in the middle of one your bits. Too adorable.”

He grabbed your free hand, and you watched him fondly as he kissed your fingers before letting your linked hands rest over your stomach.

You continued your weekend planning, “I’ll need to recuperate from Friday night and run some errands on Saturday, so a Sunday date sounds perfect. For sixteen hours straight, you’re mine.”

“I’m yours all the time,” he squeezed your hand.

“You know what I meant, you sap.” You rolled your eyes despite how warm his words made you feel inside. With the daytime suddenly available to you, a destination immediately popped into your mind, “And no making big romantic plans, I’ve got it this time; I know exactly where I want to take you for our first daytime date.”

“Understood. I can’t wait.”

Sunday morning you were practically skipping through town, relishing in the warm sun on your skin and the feeling of Jaemin’s fingers laced through yours. You came to a stop at an intersection, waiting impatiently for the lights to change so you could cross. Bouncing on your heels, you could feel your Hades’ gaze on you, even through the dark sunglasses he was wearing.

“What?” You asked, taking your eyes off the crosswalk signal to look over at him.

“Nothing.” He was grinning at you, hair getting blown around by the passing cars. His shirt was made of a loose-fitting, flowy material with a deep-cut V-neckline, showing off an assortment of fine silver chains with pendants and gems. Even the leather belt around his hips betrayed a subtle expensiveness, the impression of a designer brand’s logo on the buckle.

He pressed a chaste kiss to your cheek, making a smile spread across your face in turn.

“Oh, signal’s changed,” he pointed out.

The rest of your walk didn’t take long, and finally you had arrived.

“Art museum?” Jaemin questioned as you tugged him towards the front doors.

“Yep!” You were buzzing, and fought to keep your voice down once you passed the threshold into the quiet building.

He bought your tickets, and you accepted the informational pamphlet from the worker behind the front desk that listed the exhibits, quickly tucking it into your handbag.

The first gallery was just behind the ticket counter, and was one of the largest, mostly for paintings. You stopped Jaemin at the very first one by the door.

“I brought Jeno here exactly once,” you whispered. “You see how big this gallery is? He cleared the whole thing in like two minutes then waited for me at the door literally tapping his foot.”

“There’s like a hundred paintings in here,” Jaemin pointed out in disbelief, looking around the gymnasium-sized room.

“I know. I’ve been back by myself and spent over two hours in just this gallery alone. Saw the docents switch out like four times.”

Looping your arm through his, you leaned against your Hades to look over the first painting. You liked to just absorb the piece in front of you, ruminate on it, really ground yourself in what you were looking at. Sometimes you read the small information card next to it about the artist and the piece. But mostly you looked at the subject, the brush strokes, the colors and how they blended into each other—or didn’t. It was relaxing. Sometimes the paintings made you feel things, and sometimes they didn’t. Sometimes they were just pretty to look at.

Jaemin was quiet for the most part, occasionally commenting when he especially enjoyed a painting, or to respond to something you said. But generally the two of you were silent, and you were satisfied that you’d found the perfect art museum companion. He never dragged you from a painting before you were done with it and even wanted to stay with some longer than you did.

The museum had three levels, the second was split into two smaller galleries, this time with sculptures, drawings, and etchings. After you and your Hades were done with that one, you found it difficult not to practically run up the stairwell to the third and final floor, knowing exactly what was waiting for you there.

“Okay, Jaemin, so this museum has something kind of special,” you forewarned him, pressing your lips together in an attempt to fight off your excited smile. “Or, I hope it’ll be special. I think it’s special, you know, for you.”

He tilted his head curiously at you as the two of you reached the top of the stairs, “Okay. It’s up here?”

“Yeah, yeah, come on,” you took him by the hand to pull him towards the entrance door to the final gallery.

The gallery you had entered was void of other patrons; and sectioned up into several smaller areas, many stark white pedestals displaying vases, urns, trinkets, with a large marble sculpture of a woman at the center as the focal point. Your focus was entirely on Jaemin’s face as you held your breath, waiting for his reaction. His eyes widened as he scanned the contents of the room.

“It’s…”

“An Ancient Greece exhibit,” you finished his sentence, drawing his eyes back to you. You fidgeted with your ring nervously, “What… uhm— Do you like it? Like, do you want to look around? This isn’t weird, is it?”

Jaemin brushed a piece of your hair back from your face, the tenderness of his touch making your chest swell. He pulled you closer, kissing your forehead before pulling back to look you in the eye.

“This is great, angel, thank you.”

At his words, you let out an audible sigh of relief. Your Hades’ obsidian irises were twinkling in the museum fluorescents as he looked at you with pure adoration.

“I love you,” he declared simply, earnestly, for the first time. “And, I’ll never love someone exactly like this again.”

You nodded in understanding, “I love you too, Jaemin. And, I believe you.”

He was still holding you, and despite the emptiness of the exhibit you were currently in, you were aware of the fact that it was a public museum that you two were in.

“Jaemin…” you murmured, listening to the docent’s footsteps in the other room. “Don’t you want to look at all the stuff?”

“In a second,” his tender gaze roamed your face. “Right now I’m looking at something more beautiful.”

“Oh God, you’re so chee—” Your retort was cut off by Jaemin finally pressing his lips to yours.

Blearily looking around your room, you realized that it was vacant in the only way that mattered. Jaemin was gone, and you didn’t remember getting into bed last night. You were pretty sure you had fallen asleep on your couch with your Hades after getting back from your long day out. Half-sitting up against your headboard, you grabbed your phone from your nightstand to check the time. You still had five minutes until your work alarm went off. Flopping back down, you were fully intent on dozing back off, and rolled over to face the empty half of your bed.

Except it wasn’t quite empty. Atop the second pillow was a small black box. When you reached out to grab it, you felt the velvet that encased it, and pushed yourself up onto your side, held up by an elbow. It was a jewelry case of some kind. Flipping the lid open, you took a sharp breath in. Inside was a gorgeous necklace; a teardrop-shaped gemstone the size of your thumbnail in a deep red shade, surrounded by smaller white diamonds, and hanging from a dainty silver chain.

Clicking on your bedside lamp, you were able to get a better look at the center stone. It was a dark, cool red, with just the slightest tone of purple when you held it up in front of the light. Outside of direct light, it was so dark you couldn't even call it blood red. Pomegranate red, you thought to yourself. It was the color of fresh, bursting pomegranate seeds.

Unlatching the hook, you carefully clasped it back around your neck. The crystal wasn’t obnoxiously weighty, but you could feel the subtle pressure of it as it rested against your bare skin.

“Thank you, Jaemin,” you mumbled, eyes trailing over the unoccupied sheets longingly. “I love it.”

“Damn, Y/N,” Yangyang whistled lowly as you walked into work that morning, eyeing the gems adorning your fingers, ears, and now neck. “Did you get a sugar daddy or something? You’ve got an entire jewelry shop on you.”

“Oh, uhm, no,” you shook your head, warmth spreading across your face. No sugar daddy, just the god of the Underworld.

“Mind sharing with the class where all the new bling is coming from then?”

You looked up from where your fingertip had been gently gracing the pomegranate red gem that hung from your neck to stare Yangyang directly in the eyes as you scoffed, “Actually, I would mind, thanks.”

“Bet she’s moonlighting as a cat burglar,” Jeno teased from his desk.

“Ooh, that’s a good guess,” Yangyang nodded, eyes gleaming as he continued that avenue of jibes. “Mafia boss’ daughter maybe? Y/N, what does your dad do for a living?”

The ringing of your desk phone saved you from having to respond to that. It was your boss.

“Y/L/N,” she was as monotone as ever, voice giving no indication as to her thoughts or intentions. “My office, please.”

“Yes ma’am,” you assented before placing the phone back on the receiver.

Standing from your seat, you gave Yangyang and Jeno a professionally concealed middle finger down by your thigh, earning giggles from Jeno and indignant protests from Yangyang. You coolly dropped the offending gesture to grab your company tablet, a notepad, and pencil before departing the open floor for the hallway of private offices.

You stopped in front of one partway down the hall, in the midst of the junior partners’ offices. ‘Jo Haseul’ was engraved on the nameplate in an elegant font, and you rapped your knuckles below it on the solid wood door.

“Come in,” the familiar voice of your boss called out from within.

Gently turning the handle first, you then pushed the door open.

“Good morning, Ms. Haseul,” you bowed your head politely to her.

Junior partners at the firm allowed the assistants and paralegals to address them by a formal version of their name, the associates were just addressed by their given name, but senior partners and the managing partner were of course always addressed in the most formal vernacular, Mr./Ms. Surname. Not that you really interacted with anybody higher up than Ms. Haseul anyway.

“Good morning, Y/L/N. Please, sit.” She gestured to one of the two armchairs in front of her desk.

“Thank you,” you replied quietly, taking the seat she had indicated. You quickly opened up your tablet to view her calendar and readied your pencil over your notepad. Ms. Haseul typically had a sit-down meeting with you every Monday morning to discuss the upcoming week: deadlines, hearings, meetings, etc.

Ms. Haseul took a moment to click a few things on her desktop, “Looks like we have those Hwang discovery responses due Thursday. I’ll finish dictating those this morning and you can get started on transcription today. This morning I have my hearing on the Motion to Dismiss in Lee that you filed last month. Mediation on Wednesday for Alpine Products, we sent out those letters on it, right?”

“Yes, ma’am, two weeks ago,” you confirmed, scribbling down the key events. “You also have a teleconference with the insurance company for that file this afternoon.”

“Yes, I see…” she mused, a twinge of annoyance in her tone that was only discernable to the trained ear—i.e., yours. You knew she didn’t like the insurance rep assigned to that case, he tended to be a pain in the ass constantly asking for updates. “Where are we at in scheduling the expert witness depositions for Peng?”

You filled her in on all your progress in various matters, attentively writing down her directives in response to your reporting. Finally, you had finished out the calendar for the week, as well as your works in progress.

“One last thing before I let you go, Y/L/N,” she cleared her throat.

“Yes, ma’am?”

“I have a new client meeting tonight.”

“You do? I don’t remember scheduling one,” you flipped through the calendar on your tablet in mild panic. You hadn’t booked a conference room or let building security know about an evening meeting.

“You didn’t schedule it, don’t worry.”

Your boss’ words immediately made you let out a short sigh of relief. It wasn’t long lasting, as you still needed to handle arrangements on your end, “How many will be in attendance? Will you want Jade Conference Room or Malachite? Would you like me to stay to scribe?”

“It’s a dinner meeting, so the conference room won’t be necessary.”

“Understood.”

“I would like you to come, though, Y/L/N.”

You felt your eyes bug out, stylus slipping from your fingers. Ms. Haseul never asked you to come to meetings outside of the office. Sure, you would act as scribe for some of her meetings in the office, but you’d never accompanied her to a lunch or dinner meeting.

She continued, “This will be a general corporate client, and I anticipate having them on for quite some time. You’re familiar with corporate matters, correct?”

“Yes, ma’am, that was my concentration in my paralegal studies, and you of course have several corporate clients currently.”

“I plan on having you act as case manager for this client. This dinner will be a good way for you to be introduced.”

“Of course, I’m honored, Ms. Haseul.”

The corner of her mouth quirked up just the slightest, “Good. The meeting is at Nobu in downtown. We will leave from the office at the end of the day. Change on your lunch if you need to.”

You looked down at your outfit, your typical office wear. The office’s dress code was business formal, which you made sure to follow to a T. She wanted you to wear something else?

“A little dressier but less formal,” your boss spoke again, as if reading your thoughts. “Think office Christmas party.”

An image of a suitable outfit flashed in your mind, and you nodded, “Right, thank you. I’ll change on my break.”

“That is all I have. You’re dismissed for this morning, Y/L/N. I have to prepare for that hearing now. I'll be leaving at 9:00 a.m.”

At her dismissal of you, you got back onto your feet, bowed your head to her again and departed her office. The heavy door closed with a soft click behind you. You held the pencil, notepad, and tablet in one hand as the other reached up to play with the jewel hanging from your neck. Looks like you wouldn’t be seeing your Hades until tomorrow night.

You stepped out of the company car that Ms. Haseul had driven you there in and followed her towards the restaurant. Nobu was a high-end sushi restaurant downtown, much out of your everyday dinner price-range, but you figured she’d be paying with her firm credit card since this was a business dinner.

The hostess greeted you brightly, to which Ms. Haseul informed her of your reservation.

“Of course, right this way,” she grabbed four menus before guiding you further into the restaurant.

You two were brought to a private room, and the hostess slid the door open for you. As you sat down at the table that was within, you marveled at the aesthetics of the restaurant. It fused traditional style with modernism in a way that was effortless. The menus were set down in front of each of the four chairs at the table. Your waiter came by soon, and Ms. Haseul put in an order for four waters while you waited for the clients to arrive.

The door suddenly opened again, and two men entered the room. Your eyes were first drawn to the taller of the two, who entered ahead of his colleague. He had roughly shoulder-length wavy blonde hair that was half pulled back from his face, and he was so stunning you could hardly believe that he was anything other than a model. He was wearing an all-white suit, a bold move for a dinner. When your gaze moved from the gorgeous man to his companion, you choked on your own throat. Black hair, dark eyes, silver and gems glittering across his ears. Jaemin cocked an eyebrow at you when you made eye contact with him. He was in a similar ensemble as to when he first appeared to you: black slacks, black suit jacket, and black vest. This time, however, he did have a dress shirt underneath the vest, the top buttons buttoned up as the silver chains that hung from his neck rested atop the crisp material.

Thankfully your boss took the lead on introductions, allowing you a moment to attempt to compose yourself. She stood up from her chair to greet them, as did you.

“Thank you both very much for coming, I’m Jo Haseul,” she bowed to both of them, and you rushed to follow suit from your position beside and just behind her. Ms. Haseul then gestured for you to come forward, “Mr. Suh, Mr. Na, this is my paralegal, Ms. Y/L/N Y/N. She will be your first point of contact on all matters. She’s incredibly capable and reliable. So please, reach out to her with whatever you need.”

While the open and high praise from your boss should’ve made your chest puff out with pride, instead it practically went in one ear out the other. Jaemin, your Hades, was standing right in front of you. It took everything in you to draw your eyes from him and to the floor to once again bow appropriately to him and the other man.

“Yes, please contact me with anything at all. I will do everything I can to assist you as treasured clients,” you declared respectfully before standing back up straight.

“Thank you, Ms. Jo, and of course thank you very much too, Ms. Y/L/N,” Mr. Suh was the one who acknowledged your words.  “We will be sure to contact you as needed. I’m Johnny Suh and this is my business partner, Na Jaemin.”

“It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Suh, Mr. Na.”

“Shall we eat, then?” Ms. Haseul suggested, prompting all of you to sit at the private table.

You took the same seat as you did before, a prick of disappointment in your chest as Johnny, not Jaemin, sat across from you. It took everything in you not to scoff and roll your eyes at yourself. What exactly would Jaemin sitting across from you accomplish? It’s not like you could do anything that indicated your knowing him prior to this meeting, especially not in the way that you do.

After drinks had been brought out and your appetizer orders were put in, Ms. Haseul began pushing her chair back, “Excuse me for a moment; ladies’ room.”

A few silent moments after she departed the private room, Mr. Suh had already finished off his drink and grabbed his empty glass. He shook it to make the ice inside clink, “I’m going to get a refill at the bar. Ms. Y/L/N, Jaemin, anything for you two while I’m there?”

“Oh, no thank you, Mr. Suh,” you hurriedly shook your head, nervous fingers twitching around your own half-full glass.

“Jaemin?”

He waved off his business partner, “I’m good, Johnny. But thank you.”

“‘Course,” he too, then exited the room.

Leaving just you and your Hades.

You finally spoke to Jaemin for the first time since being introduced, leaning forward to ask quietly, “Jaemin, don’t take this the wrong way but what the fuck are you doing here?”

A smirk came to his lips, “I told you I own a legitimate business.”

“You’re not expecting me to believe that this is an honest coincidence, are you?”

“No, of course not.” Any teasing immediately dropped out of his tone. “I obviously know what firm you work at, the best in the city. Why would I not hire the best firm in the city for my business? It would be irresponsible not to.”

“Did you request Ms. Haseul be your attorney?”

“No, she was recommended by the managing partner. And again, it would be irresponsible of me to not heed the recommendation to the best, most promising junior partner who specializes in corporate matters.”

With your worries somewhat placated, you relaxed back in your seat, “Fine. Thank you for telling me the truth.”

“Of course,” Jaemin reached across the table to brush his fingertips over the back of your hand. His fingers sparkled even in the dim light of the restaurant from the multitude of rings across his knuckles, as did yours. “I’m sorry. Does this make you uncomfortable? I’m sure we can use another attorney at the firm if you’d like. Mr. Moon mentioned a different partner too, uh, Ms. Kang?”

“And let Lee Jeno be your case manager? Absolutely not.” You retorted.

He chuckled at that, switching to smoothing circles into your skin, “Thank you, Y/N.”

“Yeah, yeah. So, your business partner, ‘Mr. Suh,’ is he... another god?”

“Smart, as always. Aphrodite.”

“I thought Aphrodite was a woman.”

“Sometimes,” he shrugged nonchalantly. “He seems to like this form right now. Changes it up every century or two.”

You mulled over this information in your mind. It certainly explained your initial idea that ‘Mr. Suh’ must’ve been some kind of model. And yet, as you looked over Jaemin’s features, you came to the conclusion that the goddess of beauty had nothing on your Hades and his haunting elegance.

“I see that you got the necklace,” he changed gears in the conversation, nodding towards where the jewel sat on your chest, easily seen with the top you were wearing.

You reached up to touch the jewelry in question, “Yes, thank you. It’s beautiful.”

“It looks even more stunning on you than I thought it would.”

“Jaemin...” You were supposed to have said his name in warning, but as your skin grew hot with equal parts embarrassment and giddiness, it came out as more of a whine.

The sound of heels clicking outside made you jerk your hand back from his, placing both of your own in your lap just a moment before Ms. Haseul opened the door. Your Hades nonchalantly picked up his drink again.

Ms. Haseul took stock of just you and Jaemin in the room, “Where’s Mr. Suh?”

“He went to get his drink refilled at the bar,” Jaemin explained as your boss took her seat once more. “Should be back soon.”

Right then the door opened once again, and the blonde man entered, amber brown drink in hand.

“Ah, speak of the devil,” your Hades let out a short laugh. “Were your ears burning, Johnny?”

“Oh, you all were talking about me?” The man grinned. “I hope you weren’t poisoning them against me, Jaemin.”

“Only bad things, John, you know that.”

“Why must you wound me at every opportunity?”

“Because you give me so many.”

You giggled at their banter, feeling yourself become a little more comfortable with your Hades there.

At the end of the dinner, after Mr. Suh had paid the bill at his insistence, the four of you were stood at the front of the restaurant.

“Thank you again for paying, Mr. Suh,” you bowed your head to him.

“No worries, I was happy to,” he waved off your thanks.

“It was a pleasure to meet you both, Ms. Jo, Ms. Y/L/N,” Jaemin spoke up, dazzling grin sweeping you off your feet for a moment. “We’re looking forward to working with you and your firm.”

“As are we,” Ms. Haseul said graciously. “I’m afraid we must be going. I have to take Y/L/N home before attending to something urgent.”

“Oh Ms. Haseul, you can go take care of whatever you need to, I’ll take a cab,” you assured her. “Please, you’ve done so much for me tonight, I can worry about getting myself home.”

“Very well, if you’re sure. Thank you, Y/L/N. See you in the morning,” she gave both you and the two gentlemen with you a final wave goodbye. “Goodnight, everyone.”

She hurried to the black company car that was parked just a little further down the block.

“I’ll go get the car,” Mr. Suh said to Jaemin. “Jaemin, if you could assist Ms. Y/L/N in hailing a cab.”

“Of course.”

And with that, Mr. Suh took off around the building towards the parking deck on the other side of the restaurant. And for the second time that night, you were alone with your Hades.

He stepped up towards the edge of the sidewalk, holding out a hand to passing traffic. You took the quiet moment as an opportunity to observe Jaemin, letting yourself bask in his presence. That same stubborn lock of his black hair had come out of place during dinner was now falling in his eyes. A nearby streetlight illuminated him from above, his unearthly features awash in a soft glow. Jaemin was stoically focused on the task at hand, a satisfied smile crossing his face as a taxi pulled over and stopped right in front of the two of you.

Wordlessly, he opened the back door for you.

“Thank you, Jaemin,” you stepped up to the vehicle.

“See you in a few, angel.”

“Right. See you.”

You climbed into the taxi, Jaemin’s cool hand on the small of your back as you did so. He gave you a wink before closing the door behind you.

The cab stopped in front of your apartment building, and you quickly paid the driver before getting out. Your apartment door swung closed behind you, and you locked up before making your way further into your home. Knowing that Jaemin would be arriving soon, you quickly kicked off your shoes and went to get into your pajamas.

Right as you walked back out of your bedroom, you heard your name being called from the living room. Turning the corner, you couldn’t help the smile that immediately came to your face when you saw your Hades standing there. He was in the same outfit as dinner, and your heart started thudding at the image of such a handsome man being there, in your living room.

“Jaemin,” you said his name in delight.

He’d just turned around before you got to him, catching him in a hug. Jaemin’s arms immediately wrapped around your waist, pulling you flush to him. Yours were around his neck, squeezing him tight, happy to just feel him there in your arms.

“Well, hey there,” he laughed. “Did you not just see me ten minutes ago?”

“I know, but I couldn’t do this ten minutes ago.”

“You could’ve, but your boss might’ve had a couple questions.”

“And she’d probably have a couple more if I did this.” You pulled your head back from where it was resting in the crook between his neck and shoulder, so that you could be face-to-face. With no hesitation, you threaded the fingers of one hand in the back of his hair and pulled his mouth to yours.

Your Hades smiled against your lips, thumbs rubbing circles into your hips. With his grip on your waist, he could easily guide you with him down the hall towards your bedroom, mouth still locked with yours.

You were sat on your kitchen counter later that night, passing a spoon back and forth with Jaemin to polish off the last of your ice cream.

“Does Mr. Suh—? Aphrodite? What should I call him?” You cut yourself off with a thoughtful frown, stumbling over what exactly to call the god-slash-client you’d met tonight.

“Johnny is fine since it’s just you and me right now,” Jaemin accepted the spoon you held out to him.

“Does Johnny know? About me, and what we actually are?”

Your Hades swallowed the spoonful he’d just popped into his mouth, returning the utensil to you, “No, I had no reason to tell him when you and I first made our agreement and now… if I told him he’d think I made the deal for your soul, no matter what I said. He likes to think that he gives me the benefit of the doubt, but he doesn’t.”

“Mm… Alright, I trust that you know him better than I do.”

“Yeah, for thousands of years. He’s a good business partner, but he can be a condescending little bitch.”

You couldn’t help but snicker at this, “Really?”

“Yeah, Johnny usually handles the client-facing side of the company while I do the back-office stuff, because according to him I ‘give clients the heebie-jeebies.’”

“You are the god of the dead, Jaemin,” you reminded him with a giggle, wiping away a stray drop of ice cream at the corner of his pout.

“I know, and that’s what makes us great business partners. I don’t want to do client meetings, I’m not good at them, he loves them, he wants to do them. Vice versa for the back-office things. But he said that like I didn’t know that already when this whole operation was my idea anyway. I factored my heebie-jeebies into the plan. The heebie-jeebies were accounted for long before he ever came into the picture, and he gently put his hand on my shoulder like he was the first person to ever explain this to me.”

“Oh of course. The audacity, to underestimate your business acumen and foresight to calculate for heebie-jeebies.” You nodded, putting on your best serious face despite the urge to laugh.

Jaemin looked you dead in the eye, then sighed, “You can laugh, Y/N.”

You immediately let out a round of giggles, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, hearing you say heebie-jeebies so much, and so seriously I just—”

“You’re right, it’s a bit juvenile,” he shook his head, face finally cracking into a smile as he plunged the spoon back into the ice cream container.

“A warning would’ve been nice, by the way.”

“A warning?” Your Hades asked through a mouthful of ice cream. “For what?”

“That you were hiring Ms. Haseul as your attorney. I understand why you’d want to use her, but not why you chose not to give me at least a little heads-up.”

He shrugged, “I thought it’d be a fun surprise.”

“Fun for you or for me?” You scoffed.

“Would you believe me if I said you?” Jaemin dug up another big spoonful of ice cream, holding it out for you this time.

“Would you believe me if I said I believed that?” You rolled your eyes, but opened your mouth for him to feed you anyway.

“No, not at all.”

A glance at your microwave clock made you sigh. It was late. You should be getting to bed, you still had two more days in your work week.

Jaemin had just turned to throw the empty ice cream carton in the trash, and thinking of work reminded you of plans you’d made with your coworkers.

Swinging your feet lightly from your perch on your countertop, you spoke up again, “Heads up, Friday is after work drinks for the support staff again. My turn DD’ing for the Terrible Two.”

“Noted.” Your Hades walked back over to you. You reached out for his forearms, dragging, pulling, and rearranging him until he was standing between your knees, allowing you to wrap your arms around his neck, hugging him tightly to you, surrounded by the warm scents of cinnamon, bergamot, and cedar. Jaemin kept talking as he looped his arms around your waist, voice low, quiet, and right beside your ear, “Also, isn’t that phrase supposed to be ‘the terrible twos’ and refer to toddlers who throw tantrums?”

“Yeah, but it was one of the nicknames Jeno and I got in undergrad from a professor of ours. The full title was specifically ‘The Terrible Two of You.’” You hummed wistfully at the fond memories that cropped up, eyes fluttering shut as your muscles relaxed more and more in your comforting position. “Dr. Go, one of the best professors I’ve ever had. We ended up taking like three or four of his classes, and I had one more in grad school.”

“Sounds like you two were nuisances to the poor man for four years straight.”

“He was one of those professors that treated students like actual human beings, and you could joke around with. Hence, the nickname. I promise we were good students and the man adored us. Well, me, at least. Jeno on the other hand…”

“You always say the meanest things about that guy and he’s never around to defend himself,” Jaemin clicked his tongue teasingly. “So it sounds like I’ll be bringing bagels Saturday morning then?”

“Please?”

“Of course, angel,” he murmured, rubbing a hand up and down your back.

“Okay Jeno, here you go,” you patted your friend’s back before taking his arm off from where it had been looped around your shoulders, giving him a gentle push to deposit him face-down onto his bed.

Getting him up to the third floor of his building wasn’t so bad this time, he was able to support his own weight for the most part and needed you primarily to make sure he didn’t veer into a wall or trip over his own feet. But he did seem to think that knocking his apartment key from your hand while you tried to unlock his front door was a fun little game.

“I recommend changing into pajamas before going to sleep,” you said from where you stood at his bedside, looking down at him as he twisted around to squint up at you.

“Good idea, Y/N,” Jeno nodded, sitting up in his bed. “That’s why you… why you got that degree.”

“Of course. I got my Master of Legal Studies solely to give you sage advice when you’re drunk.”

As Jeno grabbed at the hem of his shirt, presumably to take heed of said sage advice, you quickly turned, shielding your eyes and heading for the bedroom door.

“I’ll grab you some water and medication. Let me know when you’re done.”

After filling up a water bottle and grabbing medication for the imminent nausea and future headache, you waited in the hall outside your friend’s room. He yelled out something that sounded like a ‘Ready!’ and you hesitantly tried the door handle. Opening the bedroom door again, you were relieved to see that Jeno was at least decent. Sure, his t-shirt was on backwards, but he was wearing pants, which was your main concern. No need for a repeat of Nu Kappa Theta’s Halloween party your sophomore year: plastered Jeno, DD you, and a missing pair of boxers. Needless to say, you were scarred for life, and Jeno couldn’t remember anything from that night past arriving at the NuKapp house still fully clothed. Lucky bastard.

You set the water and meds down on his nightstand to guide him back over to sit down on the edge of the bed. Kneeling on his bed behind him, you prepared to turn his shirt around the right way.

“Come on, arms up.”

He did as you asked, and you only took it off his arms, flipping it around at his neck before working on getting his arms back into the sleeves.

“Arms down.”

And his arms flopped back down obediently in his lap.

“Are you 23 or 3, dude?” You snickered.

“I can put a shirt on, Y/N!” His voice was practically a whine, but his movements had no umph to them as he let you manhandle him like changing a child.

“Apparently not, Jeno.”

He was quiet as you finally got the other arm in, and he straightened out the torso of the shirt himself.

“Alright, there you go.” You patted his shoulder before climbing off his bed to grab the water and medication once more. “You didn’t drink enough that I feel concerned about alcohol poisoning so I’m not going to make you puke your guts out tonight.”

“I ‘preciate that.”

“Me too. So, pills for you to keep it all down… and pills for the bitch of a headache coming your way in the morning,” you pointed at each in turn as you held out the tablets. After he grabbed those, you gave him the bottle. “And water. Wash them down then have a few more sips before going to sleep, please.”

“You’re the best,” Jeno mumbled before putting the tabs in his mouth. He knocked them back with the water then started to lay down in bed, “He’s lucky to have you. And I’m lucky to have you, too.”

Your friend had been trying to pull the covers up over himself, except he was also on top of them. Amused, you began assisting him as you entertained his drunk ramblings, “He who?”

“Th’ guy you’re seein’, duh!” His words were slurring together at this point as he let you tuck him in. “Th’ one with all th’ rings ‘n stuff. We’re lucky t’ have you, Y/N.”

“Thank you, Jeno.” You sat beside him on the bed to brush some of his hair out of his face as his eyes started fluttering shut.

“Even if… even if you won’ let me… meet ‘im. ‘M lucky… t’ be your bes’ friend.”

You let out a bittersweet sigh at that, your hand coming to stillness on his head as he completely fell asleep. He knew you were keeping something from him and was letting you bring it to him at your own pace, and you loved him for that. And he really was your best friend, you’d seen each other through everything of the past nearly six years. The Dynamic Duo, Trouble and Make it Double, The Terrible Two of You. You’d sign up for classes together to make sure you’d sync up your schedules as much as possible, pulled innumerable all-nighters in the library together, were roommates in your first off-campus apartment, done your undergraduate research together, you were there when he got the news of his grandfather passing, and you were certain he’d kept creepy guys off you at parties more times than you’d ever know.

“And I’m lucky to be yours, Lee Jeno,” you said quietly to his sleeping form, watching his even, shallow breaths.

Usually everything was simple with Jeno. Your friendship with Jeno was always simple, even the stuff that felt complicated or heavy at the time, the solution was simple: talk to him. When you’d dropped his phone in the street and it got ran over, absolutely shattering the screen; when you’d forgotten to pay the power bill for your shared apartment one month and your electricity was turned off for a day; when it was his turn to DD at a party, you were a little more than tipsy and ended up making out with his brother Mark. It all worked out because the two of you had talked.

But this time… you were dating a client of the firm. A client of your attorney. A client who was a god. Admittedly, you’d started your relationship before he’d become a client. But again, he was Hades. Then there was how exactly you’d met. Even just thinking about which parts to tell, how much to tell, and what you’d inevitably have to bend, twist, or straight up lie about to Jeno made your head spin.

There at least was nothing you could do tonight.

So you gave his hair one last ruffle before standing up and walking over to his dresser. Your plans had initially been to go back to your own apartment, but you didn’t want to traverse the streets all alone this late at night. Is at least what you told yourself. Really, you’d been missing your best friend. After grabbing a couple articles of clothing that could serve as pajamas, you also stole the second pillow from his bed and a spare blanket before heading out of his bedroom.

You quietly shut the door behind you, setting the bedding down on the couch and changing clothes in the bathroom. After going around to turn off all the lights in the apartment and double check the locks on the front door, you finally laid down for the night. In the low light, you found yourself looking over all the rings and things adorning your hands and wrists. They were all gorgeous, but you still favored the simple silver band, the first one Jaemin ever gave you, to seal the deal you had made the night he appeared to you.

A robotic melody took your focus away from the document on your monitor that you had been drafting. You glanced over at the screen of your office phone, the source of the ringing. ‘RECEPTION’ was emblazoned across it in all caps.

Holding the receiver to your ear with your shoulder, you grabbed for your telephone notepad and a pen, “This is Y/N.”

“Hey Y/N!” The bright voice of the firm’s receptionist, Somi, greeted you. “There’s a Mr. Johnny Suh on line 1 for you.”

“Great, I’ll take him, thank you!”

“No problem.”

You scrawled down Mr. Suh’s name and number from the caller ID on your notepad before pressing the button for his hold, “Thank you for holding, this is Y/L/N Y/N.”

“Hi, Ms. Y/L/N, this is Johnny Suh, how are you?”

“I’m good, Mr. Suh, thank you. How are you?”

“Only thing that’s changed is the weather, you know?” He chuckled.

You gave a short laugh, not entirely sure what he meant by that but needing to build your rapport anyway, “And how can I help you?”

“I am looking to schedule a meeting with you for us to discuss some assets. When are you available next week?”

“Let’s see…” You pulled up your calendar. “Just myself or Ms. Haseul as well?”

“Just you, Ms. Jo has assured us of your capabilities.”

“Oh, thank you, Mr. Suh,” you were warmed at the indirect praise. You couldn’t believe how much Ms. Haseul had apparently talked you up to these clients. “I’m free next Monday afternoon, Tuesday until 1:00, and all day Wednesday and Thursday.”

“Wednesday should be fine. 10:00 a.m.?”

“Yes sir, I have you down for Wednesday at 10:00. Will it be just you in attendance or is Mr. Na coming as well?”

“Actually, it will just be Jaemin. I have prior arrangements that day.”

“Understood,” you made the correction on your notes. “Is there anything else I can help you with?”

“No, that is all I needed from you, Ms. Y/L/N. Thank you for your time.”

“Of course, sir, thank you for calling.”

“Have a good day.”

“You too, goodbye.”

With that, you hung up, immediately pressing the quick-dial button for reception.

“Hey Y/N!” Somi was as cheery as ever when she picked up.

“Hi, Somi, what do conference room bookings look like for next Wednesday at 10:00 a.m.? Just two people in attendance.”

“Obsidian is open, or—”

“Obsidian will be fine,” you immediately jumped at her words. “I have a client meeting: Mr. Na Jaemin from Olympus Investments.”

“Okay, you are all booked for 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday.”

“Thank you very much, Somi.”

“You’re welcome, Y/N. Is that it?”

“Yes, thanks,” you put the phone back on the receiver in order to use both hands to enter the details in your calendar.

‘Client Meeting w/ Mr. Na Jaemin; re: assets; Obsidian Conference Room’

“Oh shit,” Yangyang frowned, tossing the coffee cup he had just picked up into his trashcan. “I’m out of coffee. Anybody coming to the breakroom with me?”

Jeno pushed his chair back from his desk with a groan, “Sure, if I don’t take a lap before replying to this email I just got, somebody’s going to get their feelings hurt.”

“Y/N?”

You shook your head, eyes still on your screen as you printed off a couple copies of the documents you’d need, “Would if I could, but I’ve got a client meeting in a few minutes.”

“Who?”

���Uh, Mr. Na Jaemin, CFO of Olympus Investments. General corporate client of Ms. Haseul’s.”

“Gross, sounds boring,” Yangyang wrinkled his nose. “I’ll keep you in my prayers.”

“Thanks, Yang,” you rolled your eyes.

Just then, your desk phone rang, and you grabbed it without taking your eyes off your screen as you printed a couple more things, “This is Y/L/N Y/N.”

“Hey Y/N!” It was Somi. “Mr. Na Jaemin is here for his 10:00 appointment with you. I’ve gone ahead and set up Obsidian for you two, he’s waiting in the lobby.”

“Can you let him know I’ll be there in just a couple minutes?”

“Of course.”

“Thanks, Somi!”

You hung up, standing and grabbing all your materials from your desk, then off the printer. Momentarily stopping to organize your papers, you then made your way to the reception area, flashing Somi a smile before your eyes landed on him, on your Hades.

Keeping a straight spine and formal bow of your head, you greeted him politely, “Good morning, Mr. Na, it’s a pleasure to see you again. Welcome to Kim & Moon.”

“Good morning, Ms. Y/L/N. Thank you, thank you,” Jaemin bowed back, flashing you a dazzling grin once he’d stood back up. “Shall we?”

“You can’t do that.” You shook your head at the business proposal you’d just heard from Jaemin. The two of you were deep into your meeting about reviewing Olympus Investment’s plans for renegotiating assets in the next quarter.

Jaemin’s brow furrowed in confusion, shifting forward in his spot across the table from you as he pointed to some numbers on his paper, “Of course we can, there’s plenty of assets to pull from—”

“Doesn’t matter, courts say no you can’t. There was a ruling ten, fifteen years ago now that’s been used as precedent in a swath of multi-billion dollar cases since. I actually studied this particular case law quite a bit because—hey!” You cut off your own excited rambling with a snap of your fingers in the space created by the table between yours and Jaemin’s faces.

Jaemin blinked at you innocently, “What?”

“Stop admiring me with that lovestruck grin on your face and listen, this is important.”

“I’m admiring and listening, I can multitask,” he countered teasingly, picking up his pen again. “Anyway, continue.”

“I studied this particular piece of case law in depth because I had a professor who was one of the attorneys who argued the original ruling. It’s a common thing that companies looking to redistribute assets will try to do. And you can’t.”

“You’re right.” Your Hades was beaming at you.

“About this? Of course I am,” you snorted, flicking through your papers to find what you needed to review next.

“Well yes, but I meant about you being good at your job.”

A smile crept across your lips as you continued busying yourself with looking for your papers.

After your meeting had concluded, you walked Jaemin back to the lobby, giving him a final business-appropriate goodbye before turning around to make your way to your desk. You nearly jumped out of your skin when you saw Jeno seemingly waiting for you back behind the reception area. Suppressing your lovestruck grin, you approached your friend and started meandering back to your desks with him.

“Who was that, Y/N?” He nodded back towards the lobby.

“Mr. Na, the corporate client of Ms. Haseul’s I was telling you about earlier,” you desperately tried to keep your voice level and nonchalant as you talked about Jaemin. “I said I had a client meeting this morning.”

“And I was expecting like an eighty-year-old man,” Jeno snorted. “That guy looked like he was—I don’t know maybe five, ten years older than us at the most?”

“I’m… sorry to disappoint you?”

“But like something was… off about him. Right?”

“What?”

“You know how people say that one actor looks like a haunted Victorian doll?”

“…Yeah.”

“He kind of looks like that but— what’s older than the Victorian era?”

“I don’t know? The Dark Ages?” You suggested, looking at him with a raised eyebrow as you could only imagine where the hell this conversation was going.

“Yeah!” Your friend’s eyes lit up mischievously. “He looks like a possessed doll from the Dark Ages that’s had like five unsuccessful exorcisms done on him.”

“Oh my god Jeno.”

“Oh come on, you can’t say I’m wrong!”

“I can say that this is an extremely unprofessional thing to be saying about a client.”

“Oh look at you Ms. Professional Paralegal who isn’t disagreeing with me,” he snickered. “Anyway, you seem to have good rapport with him.”

“What do you mean?” You could feel your back stiffen with alarm. How long was Jeno standing there in the lobby watching you and Jaemin? Had you done anything that belied the true nature of your relationship? If you did then Somi would have seen it too. God, you did not need to be the next topic of office gossip.

“Ms. Haseul let you have that client meeting on your own. Both she and the client must trust you lots. Congrats.”

Immediately, your shoulders relaxed, “Oh, thanks. Yeah, it’s going well.”

Monthly after-work drinks with your coworkers—the one you actually liked—had become part of your routine, one that you looked forward to. Almost as much as you looked forward to the myriad of ways Jaemin insisted you “made up” the missing time that you “owed him.” This time, he was preemptively making up the forfeited time, as he had spent the night before and was now staying the morning of.

Somewhere between starting your coffee maker and putting the last dish from breakfast away in the sink, you had been pinned between Jaemin and said sink, a warning not to mess up your work clothes breathed out in the narrowing space between your mouths. Your Hades hummed out his acknowledgement against your lips, kissing you so delicately your eyes nearly rolled out of your head. Of course he had to listen to you this time.

You pulled back from kissing Jaemin as you were about to make something between a quip and a complaint when you heard a click from your front door.

“Y/N!” A familiar voice called out for you.

It all happened too quickly for you to attempt to do anything other than stare in horror at the scene unfolding before you. Lee Jeno stepped through your front door, turning around to close and lock it behind him. He was dressed for work in navy blue slacks and a light blue button up, looking down at his phone as he walked towards the kitchen. In your periphery, Jaemin looked between you and your friend with an eyebrow raised, not moving, but you couldn’t answer his unspoken question. It felt like you were outside your own body, watching a car crash about to happen and you couldn’t look away.

“I’m here! Ooh, something smells good, is that—” his words were cut short when he finally looked up from his screen just shy of the threshold to the kitchen, where you were frozen in place. Your rather lascivious place between Jaemin and the counter.

It took him an entire second to compute what was happening in front of him. Then he let out a yelp, which made you let out one of your own, a little less grating in pitch, but no less distressed. Your body was finally unpetrified, and you rushed to stand between your friend and your Hades.

“Jeno!” Your voice was half chastising and half bewildered. “What the hell are you doing in my apartment?”

“You told me where your spare key is, said I could use it any time!” His voice was still raised and pitched up in surprise.

“I figured that’s how you got in; I’m asking why the hell you’re in my apartment right now!”

“To pick you up?” He jangled his keys that were in his hand, his car fob being on the key ring, “I’m DD for tonight.”

You sighed, pinching the bridge of your nose, “No, Jeno, I'm DD tonight.”

“No, I'm DD.”

“I am.”

“I’m— Wait this isn’t important, that’s Mr. Na!” He pointed behind you accusingly.

With a very visible grimace, you turned to looked behind you. Jaemin was leaning against your kitchen counter, hands resting on the edge on either side of him. With the focus now on him, he lifted one in a casual greeting, “Good morning, Jeno. It’s nice to meet you. I’ve heard a lot of good things, from Y/N.”

“Jeno, this is Na Jaemin. I’m seeing him,” you jumped in to do introductions, well aware that your voice was noticeably tight and tense. “Jaemin, this is Lee Jeno, my best friend since… it feels like forever at this point I guess.”

While your friend’s features did soften a little at how you had described him, when he had to reciprocate your Hades’ offer of goodwill, he turned suspicious again.

“Nice to meet you... uh, yeah, nice to meet you.” Jeno tersely nodded at Jaemin once before his eyes went back to you, serious. He wanted to talk. And clearly, you had a lot to talk about.

“Well, time to go to work,” you announced. “Uhm, let me grab my shoes and my phone, then I’ll be ready to go, Jeno. You don’t mind carpooling since you’re already here, right?”

“Of course not.”

Your Hades spoke up again then, “My tie is in your room, Y/N.”

The two of you had to shuffle by Jeno on your way out of the kitchen and into your bedroom. In your room, you groaned as you rooted through your closet for a pair of shoes.

“I am so sorry, Jaemin,” you whispered as you slipped on your shoes. “I had no clue he was going to come here this morning. I wanted the two of you to meet so differently.”

“It’s okay, angel,” Jaemin reassured you quietly as he tied his tie in your full-length mirror. “You said he’s your best friend, and that you and he have been able to talk through everything before. I think the two of you have got this. One lowly god isn’t going to come between the Terrible Two.”

You’d finished putting your shoes on and slipped your arms around his waist to watch him do the final adjustments to the black silk tie.

“You really believe that?” You murmured.

“I do,” he patted your hands. “I still need to get a tie clip. Now go, you can’t keep him waiting or he’s going to think we’re doing something more scandalous in here than what he walked in on.”

You rolled your eyes and let him go, knowing that unfortunately he was kind of right. As you went to walk away towards your door, Jaemin caught you by the hand, lifting said hand up so he could press a delicate, cool kiss to your fingers before finally letting you depart.

“Have a good day, Y/N. I love you.”

“I love you too, Jaemin.”

You grabbed a purse by the door of your bedroom and braced yourself for what was waiting on the other side.

Jeno was by the front door, arms crossed over his chest. He narrowed his eyes as he appraised that you were alone, “Where’s Mr. Na?”

“He’s not ready to go yet, he’ll lock up on his way out,” you told him.

And thus began your lying, your carefully chosen words to make Jeno come to certain conclusions, your bending of the truth, your ‘well it’s technically true’s. Truthfully, Jaemin would make sure your apartment was locked from the inside before disappearing from here and appearing wherever he needed to be with his god powers.

“He has a set of keys.” Jeno spat out as he opened your front door for you.

Your tone was resigned as you started towards the stairs, “Is there a question in there, Jeno?”

There were a silent few seconds as he mulled it over, then sighed, his voice much less harsh, “No, that was me being bitchy. Sorry.”

“Thanks.” The two of you began the descent to the ground floor as you continued, “And I’m sorry too. Like... really sorry. I know that must have been a lot to walk in on, you have every right to be shocked and hurt.”

“Right. Thanks, Y/N.” And you finally got a Lee Jeno smile again. It was only a small one, and it passed you by far too quick as he opened your car door for you to get in. But you saw your friend’s delightful little eye smile again, and it made you think that maybe, hopefully, Jaemin was right.

Jeno pulled away from the curb, and you kept talking.

“I also know that I haven’t been forthcoming at all about what’s been happening in my life, about who I’ve been seeing.”

“About Mr. Na,” Jeno’s words were blunt but there was no malice to them.

“Yes, about Jaemin,” you confirmed. “I’m sorry about that too. Please, please know before like anything else that we were dating for a while before he was ever a client. Those two things happened separate of each other.”

“Oh.” Your friend’s previously white-knuckled grip on the steering wheel softened. “That’s... better.”

“Like, I know that I’m being kind of stupid, but I’m not that stupid.”

“You said it, not me.”

“I want to talk about this with you more, but I really don’t think now, driving to work, is going to be able to provide us with the time nor the ability to process it. Can we get together some other time?”

“Good to see all the money you spent on that therapist after your last ex paid off,” he snickered.

“Hey, I’m trying to be an adult here!” You protested indignantly.

“No, no, it’s good,” he attempted to reassure you through poorly-suppressed chuckles. “Let’s see if we can pencil in our emotional friendship discussion re: your love life for 1:00 p.m. tomorrow?”

“I’ll have to check my calendar once we get into the office,” you rolled your eyes. Despite the fact that he was teasing you, you welcomed the light jesting, knowing that meant he wasn’t too upset at you in that moment. And he was legitimately trying to follow through on your offer of planning to sit down and discuss your issues with him, albeit with some jabs at you of course.

“Hey, since it’s about you fucking a client, do you think we can call it a business lunch and use the firm credit card?”

With the mood now officially lightened you joked, “Yeah, I’ll put that on Ms. Haseul’s expense sheet for the week and see how that goes down with Billing.”

“Shotaro would get a kick out of it at least.”

Your apartment was quiet and dark when you got home. Jaemin hadn’t arrived yet. Pushing down your disappointment, you changed into pajamas before going to your kitchen to browse for something to make for dinner. If Jaemin wasn’t here yet, then he probably wasn’t planning on whisking you to the Underworld tonight. Fine by you, that made getting to work in the morning easier. The first night you’d spent with him in Hades had been the perfect start to your romance and you definitely didn’t regret it, but the next morning was something straight out of a rom-com.

It was difficult for your phone alarm to go off on time when time zones didn’t really exist in the literal Underworld. So you ran into work exactly on time with unwashed hair, followed around the office all morning by nosy comments from Jeno and Yangyang about that and the blouse that you were tucking into your dress pants as you were stepping off the elevator— which Jaemin had to magically poof you into, having no time to take public transport. Oh and the embarrassingly obvious love bites on your neck that you couldn’t cover up in your haste to get ready; a combination of no time to apply makeup, and carelessly choosing a top whose neckline was cut lower than the marks.

The memory made you shake your head fondly now, months later, as you opened your fridge doors. You’d barely done so when a familiar cool breath blew over the back of your neck and shell of your ear.

“Jaemin!” You exclaimed, immediately closing the fridge again then whipping around to face the god. He had a mischievous smirk already playing on his lips. “It’s been a while since you’ve snuck up on me like that. You must be in a good mood.”

“Yes, I am,” he confirmed.

You cocked your head to the side, “And why is that?”

“Because...” he took a step forward, and you instinctually took one back, quickly pinned against one of the doors. His hips pressed against yours, holding you there as his lips found yours, then your jaw, then your throat. You hummed as he continued pressing kisses along your skin, looping your arms around his neck, your search for food entirely forgotten. His hands on your waist only drew you even closer—if that was possible—fingertips brushing under the hem of your t-shirt and leaving goosebumps along your skin.

Your Hades finally detached his mouth from where he’d been sucking and nipping a mark on your collarbone, “I’m going to take you somewhere.”

“Huh?” You couldn’t help the stupefied noise that came from you.

He was standing up straight again, so close that your noses were almost touching, and you saw yourself reflected in his deep, dark irises. You looked ravished, your own pupils blown wide, mouth parted to let the deep breaths from your heaving chest out, the collar of your shirt askew to allow Jaemin access to more of your skin.

“I’m in a good mood because we’re going somewhere. Go get changed.”

You tipped your head back as you let out a groan, shaking yourself back to reality, “Why are you literally the worst?”

He chuckled as he stepped back, allowing you to push off the appliance, “Because I can be. Now go get changed. Doesn’t have to be too nice, just better than your jammies.”

With a final roll of your eyes, you left the kitchen to do as he requested. You reemerged in the living room in casual going-out clothes, “This good enough?”

“Perfect,” Jaemin offered you his hand, which you took without hesitation.

He gently spun you around, and a giggle tumbled from your mouth as you were spun right into his arms, your back to his chest. You closed your eyes on instinct as he swayed the two of you to a non-existent melody, and you drank in the sultry notes of cedar, cinnamon, and blood orange that surrounded you. His hair tickled your cheek as he started peppering light ghosts of kisses to your skin.

“Alright, you tease, come on. You said we’re going somewhere,” you lightly elbowed whatever part of him was by your arm. His rib, maybe, or that could’ve been his arm. From where you were all wrapped up in him, you couldn’t tell where you ended and he started. And despite your words of complaint, you hadn’t yet opened your eyes or even attempted to wrangle yourself from his grasp.

“I know, we’re here.”

Curiosity won out and you squinted an eye open. Holy shit, this definitely wasn’t your apartment. With wide eyes, you looked around the huge living room Jaemin had brought you to. Plush furniture, floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall windows, large dining area that connected to a kitchen that was clearly built for entertaining. The entire place had an upscale mid-century modern feel to it, and you found your eyes drawn back to the huge windows.

“Where are we?” You questioned, still taking it all in.

“My place,” Jaemin said casually, and you could feel him shrug from where he was holding you.

“This isn’t the Underworld.”

“My new place on Earth. I just got it this week.” He took one of your hands to guide you over to the windows, “Come on, look at the view.”

Spread out below you was the entire city, all twinkling lights. If you unfocused your eyes they could almost be mistaken for stars in the night sky. Your Hades stood just behind you to begin pointing out landmarks, “There’s downtown, that’s the museum you took me to, your apartment should be over that way, and there’s the river way over there.”

“It’s amazing but… why did you get it?” You questioned him, turning away from the view to look him in the eye. He’d never expressed any interest in living on Earth whatsoever, any want to get a home here.

Jaemin walked back a couple steps to lean against the arm of one of the couches, bringing you with him by your hands, “Since Johnny and I have been doing more business up here, it’s good to have a home to keep up appearances.”

“And just how many business clients are you planning on inviting back to your place, Jaemin?” You raised an eyebrow, tone expressing your immediate disbelief.

He grinned up at you in your position standing between his legs, “You caught me. Just one, you.”

“I meant, why now?” You pushed on in the conversation, not so easily distracted. “Why get a place on Earth this week?”

“Jeno.”

“You got a penthouse for Jeno? How romantic, I’ll let him know.”

Your Hades let out a soft laugh at that, looking down at your hands that he was holding, his fingertips taking a moment to adjust your rings that were slightly askew. “The entire situation that happened with him really made me think about you, and about who I am to you. And I want to be more for you than I am.”

You frowned at his words, taking back one hand to cup his cheek and have him look up at you, “What do you think you are to me?”

“I’m a secret.”

“Oh, Jaemin…” You felt your heart breaking at the way he said it. Not in a fun, flirty way, but despondent, isolated. Before you could move to say more, hold him, do anything, he spoke again.

“That’s not passing any sort of judgement on you, angel,” he assured you, squeezing the hand he had in his. “I know the secrecy comes solely from who and what I am. I know there are some things that we'll never really be able to tell everyone. And I don’t think you’ll ever be able to fully understand how much I love and adore you for keeping that between us.”

You pressed a kiss to his forehead, afraid that if you tried to speak in that moment, you’d cry.

“But I still want to be someone that you can introduce to your friends, to your family. Someone that you don’t have to agonize over keeping secret from them. I want you to get to have at least some of that, and I want to do as much as I can to help. I figured having my own place on Earth wasn’t a bad start.”

“Oh… I understand,” you held his face between both your hands, taking a step closer to narrow the distance between you two. He now had to crane his neck up to look at you. Clearing your throat and blinking a couple tears away, you smirked down at your Hades, “You want to be shown off.”

“Maybe a little,” he admitted, not a hint of bashfulness in him despite the coy words.

“Gladly. Starting with a dinner party here I think.”

“I’ll cook.”

“Penthouse and you cook? Careful, it’ll turn from an honest meet-the-boyfriend into shameless bragging.”

His hands that had previously been resting in his lap now gripped the sides of your thighs, “Oh, we both know you’re as shameless as I am.”

“Maybe so. But we’re only inviting friends of mine, no coworkers other than Jeno,” you declared. “I may be shameless, but I’m not an idiot. Still need to figure out the work part.”

“Of course,” he acquiesced with a nod of his head. Apparently thinking that the conversation was over, he pulled you fully flush to him, mouth attaching to your collarbone. Seemed he wanted to finish what he’d started in your kitchen earlier.

But you couldn’t yet let yourself sink into the pleasure of your Hades’ lips, your mind was still ruminating on the previous issue, “And let me know if you have any bright ideas, by the way. It’s your fault I’m in this mess, after all.”

Jaemin pulled back from where he’d been kissing down your sternum, about to get to the neckline of your top, “I offered to work with another attorney, but you insisted we stick with you and Ms. Haseul.”

“You picked Kim & Moon in the first place.”

“I concede, my apologies,” he sighed, entirely removing his hands from you for a moment. “And I mean it.”

“Mhm.” Satisfied with his answer, you grabbed his shoulders and crashed your lips to his.

“But isn’t it just a little fun?” He teased, giving your bottom lip a playful nip. “Knowing that you’re—gasp—seeing a client? Sneaking around?”

You groaned at the interruption, attempting to tug his suit jacket off, talk, and kiss him all at once. “I was seeing you—” kiss “before you—” kiss “were—” kiss “a client.” Kiss. “But yes, maybe a little.”

“Good afternoon, Mr. Suh,” you greeted the goddess brightly as you crossed the room to sit across the conference table from him. “Just you today?”

The other half of Olympus Investments had called pretty much as soon as the firm had opened that morning, requesting a meeting with you as soon as you were available, and you did happen to be able accommodate him that afternoon.

“Jaemin doesn’t know I’m here.” He shifted forward in his chair, looking you in the eye so intensely you couldn’t hold the eye contact for long.

You were a little confused as you laid out your materials in front of you, “Okay... Well, what did you wish to speak with me about? Somi emphasized that this was an urgent matter. Was there something the matter with the documents I sent for your review yesterday?”

“I am so sorry, Y/N...”

Your eyebrows shot up at his words, the forlorn tone he said them in, and at the fact that this was the first time Mr. Suh had addressed you by your first name. “For what, sir?”

“That Jaemin’s done this to you.”

“I don’t understand. What has Mr. Na done?”

“Taken your soul.”

His words made you immediately sputter out, “What are you talking about? I’m sorry, I don't underst—”

“Dinner the other night wasn’t the first time you two have met,” the goddess in front of you declared, gaze piercing you as he changed from despondent to stern. “What did you ask for, Y/N? What was worth your soul?”

“I didn’t sell Jaemin my soul!” You sighed in exasperation, fully dropping all pretenses now. “All he wanted was for me to spend some time with him.”

“And what did you want?”

“A job.”

“That’s it?”

“Yes, that’s all I asked for.”

“I’m sorry about all this, Y/N. All the jewelry... I get worried.” His gaze was still appraising you, and you could tell that you didn’t quite have him convinced.

“Oh,” you twisted the plain silver band you’d first been given around on your finger nervously. “I mean, he did give me all this too, but I didn’t ask for it.”

“Why would he...” Mr. Suh’s eyes fell to the pomegranate jewel sitting below the hollow of your throat. “Ahh... I get it.”

“Get what?” You asked cautiously, now self-consciously fidgeting with the pendant once again.

“That’s a lovely color.”

“Uhm, thank you. But I can tell you mean something else by that.”

“Ha,” he chuckled, leaning back in his seat but keeping his eyes on your necklace. “He’s courting you, isn’t he?”

“Uh that might’ve been what you called it in 300 BC or whenever, but now we call it dating.”

“No, honey. I may be… old-fashioned but I know the difference between dating and courting. Jaemin does too. Do you?”

“What?”

He nodded towards your necklace, “Ask him about the meaning of that color next time you see him.”

Your skin prickled uncomfortably; you didn’t like that Mr. Suh apparently knew more about your relationship than you did. “Did you have any actual business for me, Mr. Suh?”

“Oh, no. I’ll get out of your hair now. Sorry, hon.”

You stood up as he did, showing him out wordlessly to the lobby.

Walking into work some weeks later, you saw Jeno, Yangyang, Kun, and Sicheng gathered around yours and Yangyang’s desks. Not too unusual of a sight, especially considering the matching coffee cups they all had.

“Good morning, boys,” you greeted the four of them brightly, setting all your stuff down on your desk.

When you looked up from where your fond gaze had lingered over your keys, the shiny new one to Jaemin’s place on Earth there, you were met with silence.

“What?”

“Here, uhm, it was my turn to buy coffee this week,” Yangyang handed you a cup from the shop down the street from the firm.

You took it, a little alarmed that he wasn’t doing his usual complaining about being “forced” to buy coffee for “the bourgeois” (Kun and Sicheng) when they could definitely afford it and truly he was just being “exploited” (despite the five of you all rotating out who bought coffee for the group once a week).

“Uh, thanks,” you took a sip, not liking his wide eyes, Kun’s pained ones, Sicheng’s inquisitive gaze, and Jeno’s knowing look that usually meant the two of you needed to talk ASAP. “Okay, what, you guys?”

“Ms. Haseul wants to see you,” Yangyang was still speaking.

“Okay…”

That wasn’t unusual, you were her paralegal, you frequently were called into her office by yourself to have discussions and they never garnered reactions like this from your coworkers.

Kun rubbed at the back of his neck awkwardly, calmly explaining, “She told Yangyang to have you come into her office once you arrived regarding an issue on the Olympus Investments file. Said to make sure you knew it was urgent and severe.”

Your grip tightened on your coffee cup. Jeno’s jaw clenched as he gave you a very much ‘I told you so’ look.

“Then why the fuck did you guys make me play 20 questions with you if it’s that fucking serious? God, I have to go see her!” You set your cup down, briefly checking the phones to see if she was on a landline call. Her quick dial button wasn’t lit up, meaning that she wasn’t, and you grabbed a notepad and pen just in case. Maybe this was about something solely work-related, and not about you seeing a client and breaking company policy. One could only hope.

After speed-walking down the hall, you stopped outside her door to listen for a moment for any sign that she was on the phone or had someone else in her office. It was quiet, and you took another moment to inhale deeply through your nose, then exhale, composing yourself. Rapping your knuckles on her door, you waited for her reply.

“Come in.”

You opened the door, bowing your head respectfully, “Good morning, Ms. Haseul. Yangyang told me you wanted to see me regarding Olympus Investments.”

“Yes, sit, Y/L/N,” she gestured to one of the chairs across her desk from her.

You could feel her sharp eyes on you as you did so.

“I’m going to get straight to the point. Out of gratitude for the work you’ve done in your time here, I’m going to ask you only once and I of course expect the truth. Are you romantically involved with Mr. Na Jaemin?”

To your credit, your jaw didn’t drop. Part of you was expecting this, of course. You breathed in, taking a moment to think about how to phrase your response, “Yes, Ms. Haseul.”

She sighed, taking her glasses off and setting them on her desk. As your boss rubbed her brow and remained quiet, you felt anxiety creeping up through your veins.

Figuring that you were as good as fired anyway, you at least wanted to know how long you’d been made for, when and where you went wrong. “Ma’am? May I ask when— How long you’ve known?”

“Y/L/N…” She clicked her tongue and leaned back in her chair. “I’ve known the whole time. And I know you’ve been seeing him since before he became a client of ours as well.”

“I’m so sor—”

Your boss cut you off with a wave of her hand, “Don’t apologize, please. Aside from not telling me the next business day as you should have, you’ve been incredibly professional about this the entire time. Honestly, nothing about your behavior or work product is how I know.”

“Then how?” You asked, brows furrowing together.

“The first client dinner we had with Mr. Suh and Mr. Na. When we went to greet them, I caught a whiff of Mr. Na’s cologne, and it was remarkably familiar to me. Because you’d come in to the office in the mornings frequently smelling like it before that dinner.”

“Please don’t take this the wrong way but… why wait until now to address it?”

“Would you believe me if I said that I didn’t know how to bring it up?”

You were nearly speechless. It was hard to imagine Ms. Haseul not knowing what to do.

“I don’t… I don’t know what to say.”

“Anyway, like I said, you’ve been the model of professionalism; your client relations—in the office—have been impeccable, and your work product is the same high quality I expect to see from my employees. We of course need to address that you did not inform me of this conflict the next business day as is firm policy, but I see no reason to take any further action than that nor remove you as case manager for Olympus Investments.”

“Ma’am?” Now your jaw was on the floor, your eyes practically bugging out of your head.

“Both Mr. Na and Mr. Suh report being incredibly satisfied with your work. Therefore, as long as that continues then I am fine with having you stay on as their case manager, with your conflict of interest being properly noted in the file, of course. But as soon as any issues arise or you feel as though your conflict is affecting your ability to do your job, you will report that to me. Do you understand, Y/L/N?”

“Of course, Ms. Haseul,” you bowed your head as deeply as you could from your seat. “Thank you so much.”

“You’re dismissed, Y/L/N.”

“Right. Thank you again, Ms. Haseul,” you leapt to your feet, bowing once more now that you were standing before exiting her office.

Walking back out to where your desk was, the guys were exactly where you left them, clearly pretending to be doing anything else other than waiting to see if you got fired. Jeno, however, immediately zeroed his focus in on you as you approached them, the others soon joining suit to varying degrees of shamelessness.

You gave them two covert middle fingers down by your sides, “Fuck you guys, I still work here.”

“Oh thank god,” Jeno breathed out as you fully entered the pod of desks, pulling you into a hug.

“Hell yeah!” Yangyang jumped to his feet to join in, squeezing the two of you with reckless abandon. “The Atrocious Trio lives on!”

“Did you just invite yourself into our friendship, Yangyang?” You asked incredulously as Jeno shoved him out of the group hug.

You had just finished relaying the news to Jaemin that night—that Ms. Haseul knew, and had known the whole time, about your relationship—over dinner at his place on Earth. He claimed he wanted to test out some recipes before you had your meet-the-boyfriend dinner with your friends there.

Truly, it was a relief to have this weight off your chest, but that didn’t make it any less mortifying to relive possibly the most nerve-wracking meeting of your career yet. If you never had to feel like that again for the rest of your life, it would be too soon.

“Your boss is quite astute, huh,” Jaemin commented as he picked up your empty plate to start cleaning up after dinner, a smile pulling at the corners of his mouth.

“Real bloodhound, that one,” you muttered, standing up as well to grab the drained wine glasses. “And I can see that smirk, Jaemin.”

“Damn,” he clicked his tongue as he began washing the dishes, fully letting his dashing grin overtake his features. “Nothing gets past you either, angel.”

“I’d say that’s why they hired me but—” you gestured at him vaguely.

“That’s why they keep you around, even after such a scandal.”

“You are so—” You cut yourself off with a sigh, feeling how big the smile was on your face as you came to settle in beside him, dish towel in hand, knowing that your words had no punch when paired with how adoringly you were looking at him.

You dutifully dried each dish he handed you until the kitchen was cleaned up. The two of you were in a comfortable quiet, your Hades humming softly as he finished washing up, then took the towel from you and dried off his hands. With your own hands free, your fingers habitually found the pomegranate red gem hanging from your neck. Johnny’s words bounced around in your head. You hadn’t brought it up to Jaemin after, wanting to mull it over with yourself for a bit longer first. Wait until you were in the right headspace to address what the hell that conversation was even about.

“Guess that means we’ll be having more guests then?”

“Huh?” You asked lamely, not following Jaemin’s sudden question at all.

“For dinner,” your Hades clarified, walking towards the bedroom, and you followed him down the hall as he kept speaking. “You didn’t want to invite any coworkers other than Jeno before. But since Ms. Jo told you she knows, you’ll be inviting coworkers, right?”

“Oh. Uh, I guess. Maybe the ones I get drinks with,” you answered absentmindedly. “Or just the team. I don’t know.”

“Think about it, angel,” Jaemin squeezed your hand briefly before dropping it and moving over to the dresser to grab lounge clothes. “Guess I should tell Johnny, then. Funny, goddess of love is the only one who doesn’t know.”

But you most definitely weren’t thinking about the guest list for some dinner as you two did your separate nighttime routines. Your mind felt like it was in another galaxy, wrapped up in flashes of dazzling obsidian black and pomegranate red, dancing in bergamot, cedar wood, and cinnamon sticks. Courting. You’d done your obligatory dictionary reading the same day as your meeting with Johnny: to have a romantic relationship with someone one hopes to marry. Not engagement, not dating, something in between, somehow less and more.

Your eyes got caught on the necklace again in the bathroom mirror, finishing up at your sink at the dual vanity.

In the bedroom, Jaemin was sitting up against the headboard, legs crossed at the ankle and the wall sconce on his side turned on to illuminate the book he was reading—a collection of Edgar Allan Poe’s short stories, borrowed from you.

“Jaemin,” you called out for him quietly, leaning in the threshold of the bathroom.

“Yes?” He looked up at you attentively.

You nodded to the book in his lap, “Which one are you on?”

“‘MS. Found in a Bottle.’” Your Hades patted the spot beside him, “You want me to read for you, angel?”

“In a second.” You reached for your pendant. “Gems have meanings sometimes, right? In different cultures. Other than just being an expensive status symbol.”

He raised an eyebrow, “Yes. Why?”

“What about this one? The necklace you gave me.” You held it up, watching the dark red stone gleam as it caught the light.

He tucked his bookmark into the tome and fully put it aside on the nightstand, “Johnny’s spoken with you.”

“He came to the firm the other day freaking out thinking you’d taken my soul in exchange for riches,” you admitted, feeling a little guilty. “Sorry I didn’t uh, tell you before.”

“It’s okay. Sounds like you two had an interesting conversation.”

“Yeah. I told him that I didn’t sell you my soul for the jewelry, but he didn’t seem to believe me until he saw this one. Said to ask you about the color.”

Jaemin chuckled, “Mm, of course he did. The ego.”

You walked across the bedroom, stopping by his side of the bed. Tilting your head inquisitively, you asked, “Are you going to explain or just keep making cryptic statements, Jaemin?”

“Third option: Cryptic question. What color do you think it is, Y/N?”

“To me... it looks like fresh pomegranate seeds. Pomegranate red.”

“That’s exactly what I was thinking when I gave it to you,” your Hades nodded, a tender smile overtaking his more cynical one from when he was talking about his business partner. “The meaning that Johnny wanted you to ask about. According to one version of a myth, the first pomegranate tree came about from Aphrodite’s mourning of the death of a lover. Pomegranate juice came to symbolize love.”

“I already know that you love me, Jaemin,” you told him frankly, taking a step closer to the bed.

“Well good, something would be very, very wrong with me if you didn’t.”

“And I also know that we’re going in circles around the point right now.” Another step.

“We are.”

“He specifically used the word courting.” Another step. You were now directly beside him, at his nightstand, casting a shadow over his face.

Jaemin looked absolutely delighted to be cornered, both in conversation and literally. He always enjoyed your dialogues like this, as did you, or else you wouldn’t participate. The pushing and pulling, the back and forth, it was the nature of you and your Hades, and you wouldn’t have it any other way. Because at the end of it, everything was always out on the table, laid bare, open and honest.

“You got me, angel,” he held his hands up in defeat. “I’m all yours, now and for eternity, if you’ll have me. And I don’t need an answer about eternity right now of course, but will you let me start trying to convince you?”

You wound the necklace chain around your knuckles thoughtfully, “I want you to tell me something, Jaemin, before I answer you.”

“An answer for an answer.” He was looking up at you with a familiar fond, tender smile, “Of course, angel, anything.”

There was something itching at the back of your mind, that never quite made sense to you, as you came to know your Hades better over all this time, fell in love with him, something that just seemed… out of place. Something he said that just hasn’t sat right every time you thought of it.

“Why did you want to spend time with me in the first place? Way back, the night we met, when you came to me to make our deal, I asked you why you would give me the job for just hanging out with you. Do you remember what you told me?”

“I remember everything about that night,” he admitted freely. “I told you I was tired of spending time with dead people.”

“And that was a lie,” you stated simply, softly, no anger or hurt in your words. Instead, there was a kind commiseration underlying them.

“Yes.”

“So, why did you want my time?”

“I was lonely.”

And you reached in front of you to grab your Hades’ hand, your lonely-no-more god, and you squeezed it tight between both of yours. “I owe you an answer now. Yes.”

Jaemin tugged you closer, making you momentarily lose your balance and fall forward onto his chest, your mouths just centimeters apart. Obsidian black was all that you could see, his eyes looking at you with nothing short of absolute devotion, divine worship, insatiable hunger. You pushed back that obstinate lock of jet black hair from his forehead before twisting your fingers in the strands at the back of his head and pulling his lips to yours. In the split second before your eyes fluttered shut, they caught the glint of a pomegranate red gem on his ear.

You were sat beneath the tree of golden fruit with your shadow man, the fruit you had picked still in your hands. With no hesitation, you dug your thumbs into the golden outer husk, splitting it in half. Inside were hundreds of bright red seeds, ripe, plump, glistening like rubies. Your mouth watered. Looking to your shadow man for reassurance, you were immediately given it.

You set one half down on your lap to dig into the other with your fingers. Bringing the first couple seeds you could get out up to your mouth, your tastebuds were immediately met with the ambrosial, saccharine, tart juice. They burst in your mouth, coating your tongue and dripping down the back of your throat. You went back in for more, eating handful after handful of the fruit’s plentiful seeds. Soon that half was emptied, and you grabbed the other that had been sitting in your lap.

You wanted more. Never had you ever wanted for something more in your life. Your fingers and hands were dripping red, and you could feel beads of the scarlet nectar running down your chin to your neck and down your sternum before disappearing into your top. But you still wanted more, wanted everything the fruit could give to you.

When you had finally finished the other half, you felt your want satiated. Your skin was sticky, and the white dress you were wearing had swaths of crimson red stains all over it. And your shadow man was still there beside you, and he finally touched you. His arm wrapped around your shoulders, encouraging you to lean against him, resting your head on his chest and letting out a sigh of relief.

His name tumbled from your lips then, something you’d always known. You’d always known him. An epiphany, a rite, a blessing, a hymn, a miracle, a prayer.

“Jaemin.”

⤷ series masterlist   ⤷ blog masterlist

[cityandking]

glance, informal, bling, change for dai, minah and narayani!

thanks dear! // oc asks: character design edition

glance: At first glance, what stands out most about your OC's appearance? What's their distinguishing feature?

DAI — probably the scars 😬 boy's got a bunch of golden kintsugi-style scars sneaking out from under his armor/clothes from that one time he blew himself up and spent a couple years in the abyss #justclericthings MINAH & NARAYANI — answered!

informal: What's your OC's lazy-day look? How do they like to dress when they're winding down?

DAI — shirt + pants [this or this depending on the weather] (+ maybe a jacket if it's cold). very loose, very comfy/casual. pretty much the only time he dresses like this is when he's winding down for the evening or in private at home (if he's really really lazy and winding down he'll leave the shirt unlaced, but that's only for the privacy of his own room and/or zaref) MINAH & NARAYANI — also answered!

bling: What jewelry does your OC wear? Does it have any meaning?

DAI — wears his holy symbol on a necklace (it's got the same kintsugi thing going on as he does). he's also got a ring of telepathy made from his father's (unused) wedding rings and also I think? a necklace from scratch?? he doesn't wear a lot of jewelry outside the utility stuff (and party gifts) MINAH — minah wears a fair bit of jewelry; mostly it's stuff she's stolen. she has a nose piercing and her ears are pierced and she wears rings sometimes when she's not on the job (and the fire opal ring she got from alesso and the orchestra). of her useful gear, she has a necklace of disguise (currently with rhydian) and also a necklace of [redacted] which has recently seen some unexpected wear. it's all either utility or for funsies; none of it has any specific sentimental value. NARAYANI — she'd wear a necklace and probably some bracelets, and she also has a few ear piercings (and maaaaybe a nose piercing?). no rings though—she favors a set of slim leather gloves

change: Has your OC ever drastically changed their appearance? Significant haircuts, big tattoos, complete wardrobe swap, etc? Why? How do they feel about the change?

DAI — the biggest change he made to his own appearance was when he shaved his head (badly, roughly, with a drugstore razor and his own dagger) after he died the first time. there was just a Lot going on and he needed a physical outlet. since coming back from the dead (take two) he's got a bunch of new scars and his hair coloring has changed slightly, which is...... it's a little hard to see himself in a mirror, these days. he's getting through it (is he though? is he really?) MINAH — yeah, she started dying her hair and wearing whatever she could get her hands on for cheap. leaving home was rough, particularly with the death of her parents. at the time it was horrid, but she's grown into the changes, and now they feel like her. recently, the shift to the warden uniform has been the biggest change. (I cannot for the life of me decide if she has tattoos or not. schrodinger's tats; until a party member sees her naked it's TBD) NARAYANI — getting her vallaslin was a big change. since then, there really hasn't been anything except for a couple of scars from bad fights. she gets nicer armor and gear as the inquisitor, but her wardrobe is more or less the same besides that.

[valentinedaughtler]

Tainted Opal (Part 4)

Kaz Brekker x fem!reader

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

T/Ws: violence, romantic feelings, blood, mild spice scenes sometimes, fem!reader and she/her pronouns, sexual abuse/trauma (not explicit)

Synopsis: When Pirates attempt to rob the crows, you use your tailor abilities to trick them. You attempt to open up to Kaz.

REQUESTS: OPEN✅

____________________________________________

4 - Tattoos on Her Chest

Kaz's perspective

As I sorted through paperwork, organizing the Crow Club's bills, I heard the clunking of boots. The soles must be rubber if the sound echoed that such a way through the cabin, I concluded. Inej would have come silently, so it must be Y/n. She wasn't known for her stealth. In fact—everywhere she went, sun beams seemed to radiate off of her, it was the only logical reason for why her skin was always so gleaming... and perfect.

The door of my —Y/n's- office swung open with the gleaming sunbeam herself gripping the knob, her knuckles white from the intense hold she had on it. The color had drained from her face, distress took the place of her normally flirty expression. I rose from my desk quickly, I must have looked a bit frazzled, insomnia was beginning to set in.

"What made you burst in? Did Jesper and Wylan light something on fire-?" I asked with an irritated stare. The Crows were too rambunctious in the morning, I thought.

She seemed to be struggling to speak— she actually looked quite nauseous. Y/n only made a few noises that didn't quite string into proper sentences before she finally blurted out a single squeak of a word;

"Pirates," her voice laced with panic. "Their war flag is up. They're going to attempt to pillage us, kill the men, take the women-," I cut off her spiraling rambles with a gruff demand,

"Stop, that's not helpful right now," her frantic yammering was only going to cloud her judgement. I'd never seen her like this before, though I hadn't known her long. She seemed to unravel by the sight of the pirates, but how did she know about their war flags-? I attempted to create a theory from the evidence present, but

Y/n's heavy breathing warped into a small scream.

"Kaz, get Wylan to have explosives ready, the rest of the crew should be hiding on deck, armed," she commanded to me. There was a glint in her eyes, the spark of a leader who was born to bark out orders and demand respect. "You, and the rest of the Crows, under no circumstances,  interject or fire unless I give the signal to do so." She made a quick hand movement to indicate a 'signal' before leaving the office in a hurry. As she left I saw her hands meeting, beginning to work Grisha magic.

After alerting the Crows of the battle about to commence, we slipped into the blind spots of the boat. An upbringing in Ketterdam didn't teach you how to play sports in or write cursive, but it sure as hell taught you to hide, and hide well at that.

I watched Y/n with a keen gaze as she sauntered up the the edge of the deck, locking eyes with a scruffy man on the approaching ship. He seemed to be Captain, based on his gold-plated teeth and pockets stuffed with coins from various regions. The people accompanying him had torn clothes and were decorated with far less jewelry as well.

The captain let out a bellowing laugh as he unsheathed his curved saber. He pointed it at Y/n with a cocky grin before greeting her with a voice that sounded like what eating sandpaper would do to a person.

"Ay, little lady, where be your captain?" His crew drew their swords, looking hungry for a fight.

"You're staring right at her, darling," Y/n replied with a sweet, voice. Like drizzling hot maple syrup onto fresh, thick pancakes. A delicacy for me, but one worth the buck.

The opposing ship became an uproar of laughter, and the captain fell to his knees from cackling excessively. Y/n flashed an expression of disgust, but her demeanor remained poised. I watched closely as she drew a silver pistol from her pants pocket, and with a loud bang, a bullet pierced through the Captian's tricorne hat. Y/n blew the smoke away from the gun barrel and with a flick of her wrist it was back in her pocket. That was one of Jesper's moves. I eyed the sharpshooter himself as he hid behind a few crates on the far right deck. He smiled with pride as he watched Y/n.

The enemy ship went silent, the soft sloshing of the sea was the only audible noise.

"You should treat me with some saints damn respect," Y/n purred as she walked to the very ledge of the deck, leaning against the railing casually. "Do you know who I am?"

The Captain turned red in the face, making him look like a giant tomato. He clenched his sword-less fist, but I saw wary in his eyes. You could tell by the way his eyebrows furrowed for a split second.

"A bitch is what you are!" The gold-toothed man yelled as he pointed his sword at Y/n. She payed his gesture no mind before beginning to unbutton her white, collared shirt. I felt blood rush to my face and heat creeped up on my cheeks.

More of Y/n's  glittering skin was exposed the more buttons she released. I scolded myself for such a foolish observation and gulped. The Captain noticed too, his eyes peering at her chest with a thirst. "You're not a just a bitch, but a whore-... too," his last word seemed to squeak out before his breath hitched. His eyes widened, and he stumbled backwards.

My curiosity peaked as I saw what he was so distressed about. On the lower skin of Y/n's right collarbone, but high on her chest, was a crest; a tattoo. It depicted a tentacled sea monster consuming a cracked human skull. It had no meaning to me, but it seemed to be significant to the horrified Captain.

"How-? You're- shit... I-," the man sputtered to get words out, but no sentences seemed to form. His tied tongue must have been caught in his throat because he began to have a coughing fit.

"Yes, yes. Daddy is the head of the Kraken Killers," Y/n said with the scoff of a spoiled girl, "I've heard it all before, seen it all before. You reaction bores me." She whined with crossed arms.

"I'm so sorry-"

"You apology is worthless to me, but if you spot me a few dabloons, maybe Daddy doesn't have to know about the rude names you called his only daughter," she winked and turned around to face us, the crew. Her expression was hard; demanding, she wanted us to stay right where we were.

After a few minutes of panicked treasure-nabbing on the opposing boat, the Captain scurried out from the lower deck with a dark, wooden chest.

"Throw it in our boat, ya' big lug," Y/n ordered with a dismissive wave of her hand, not even bothering to turn back around. As the chest hit the deck with a kachunk, the opposing boat's Grisha members drew enough wind into the sails to make it far away from us, and fast.

Y/n smiled once they were long gone, hunching her shoulders and softening her expression. She sighed with relief.

"Well, wasn't that eventful," her nervous chuckle was as sweet as her voice, but it had a slight grit to it, as if it were granulated sugar, rather than syrup. The other Crows stared in shock as Y/n began sifting through the chest of treasures. She seemed to meld into 'characters' so easily when a situation needed resolving, and she was damn good at it. I ignored my growing admiration as we all walked over to Y/n. She buttoned up her shirt, but not before I noticed that the tattoo on her chest had changed, instead of the Kraken Killers', it was a spindly mouse skeleton draped over a dark flower. I said nothing, but my suspicions rose. Her history with the sea was apparent.

"You used the pistol trick I taught you," Jesper said with a grin. Everyone began to congratulate Y/n on such a performance, and laughter became as infectious as an outbreak of Firepox. Even the Fjerdan Bull-sized man seemed happy. As everyone began claiming treasure, Y/n looked back down at her chest, now covered by clothing.

"My tailoring abilities really came in handy for making that Crest tattoo!" She laughed along with everyone else, but it was the only notable thing anyone said that night. I waited until everyone made their way to begin their daily tasks before approaching Y/n.

I attempted to make the sound of my cane quiet as I snaked my way over to her. She was tying the ropes at the mass to adjust the sails properly.

"You don't have to try to sneak up on everyone, Kaz," a soft chuckle escaped her mouth as she says this, spinning around to face me. "Let's leave the spying for Inej," she winked. Her body lay against the mass, a smirk playing on his lips.

"You know an awful lot about boats and pirate terminology for a tailor who faked a Crest tattoo of a Pirate gang," my gaze was harsh, pouring into her Siren-like eyes. Just looking at her felt like a trap. Her shoulders stiffened and her lower lip quivered. As she was about to speak when I interrupted her, "you're about to lie, just spit out the truth. I already saw your real crest anyway." She cocked an eyebrow, as if saying, prove it. "It's a mouse skeleton and a flower; a black rose."

Her eyes narrowed, pupils covered by thick eyelashes. She huffed.

"You're not gonna trust me until I tell you, are you?" She grumbled, glaring at me.

"If looks would kill, I'd be as well off as the Captain if he didn't surrender," my backhanded compliment seemed to only frustrate her more. "But I'm alive, so starting talking."

As the sunlight caressed her cheek in dapples, she turned away from me, storming down into the cabin. Her clunky boots were even more audible than they were this morning.

"Are you coming? I thought you wanted to hear my whole life story," her voice echoed from the stairs and the tone felt like a smack in the face as I heard it. Nothing I hadn't dealt with before. I walked down the creaky stairs and slipped into the dimly lit office, where little Mrs. Sunshine was scowling at me from the desk's leather seat. "I ran away for a reason,"

_______________

Word Count: 1761

_______________

Thank you for reading, and enjoy future chapters.

-Valentine

[disneyfanatic1993]

✨Naming Opal✨

Varian and Cassandra are in the nursery, preparing for the arrival of their first child. Cassandra’s belly is so big, she feels like she is about to pop… and it is not a pleasant sensation. But her excitement for the baby’s birth is stronger than her discomfort.

“You know, we still need to decide on a name,” Varian says, putting the final touches on the crib.

“I know,” Cassandra says, fiddling with the stuffed animals lined up on the shelf. They’ve been discussing baby names for a while now. But there are too many! “How are we supposed to pick just one? This kid is gonna be stuck with it their whole life!”

Varian chuckles softly. His wife has a tendency to focus on the negative side of situations. “Stuck with it? I don’t think that’s how they’ll see it.”

“I’m just saying, it’s a huge decision,” Cassandra says.

“Would it help if I made some suggestions?” Varian asks.

Cassandra shrugs. “Maybe. Fire away.”

“Okay, what about Ruby? Or Amethyst? Ooh or Emerald! Maybe Pearl?”

Cassandra raises an eyebrow. “Var, what’s the deal with all the gemstones? Are we naming a baby or opening a jewelry store?”

Varian smiles warmly. “Cassie, this baby is going to be our Little Gem. A name like that is kind of fitting, isn’t it?”

Cassandra finally softens. “Alright, Mr. Smooth. I love the idea.”

Varian’s eyes light up excitedly. “I’m glad you think so, because I have more suggestions!”

“Oh, I’m sure you do,” Cassandra laughs.

“Sapphire would be great! Or even Jade.” He gasps, then adds, “Jasper. Jasper would be perfect!”

Cassandra ponders these possibilities. “What about… Opal?”

Varian pauses, briefly stunned. “I-I think it sounds great! But, I thought maybe you might not like it because…”

“Because of the Moon Stone opal?” Cassandra shakes her head. “I don’t care about that any more, Varian. But I… I do love the sound of the name.” She rubs her belly affectionately, even more excited than before to meet their baby.

Varian smiles again, coming up behind her and placing his hand on her stomach. “How about this: Jasper if it’s a boy, and Opal if it’s a girl?”

Cassandra gazes down, imagining what the future may hold. “She’s a girl. I can feel it.”

“Opal,” Varian repeats, pulling Cassandra closer. “Our Little Gem…”