#he just had No idea until he met crowley and crowley was like 'excuse me the fuck how are you looking at me'

[rollforjackass]

did you ever write anything for the good omens cryptid hunting au ?? Im a little obsessed with the concept of a human Aziraphale having a scam name lol

hahaha it's still one of my favorite concepts honestly.

i wrote up a few bits and pieces of it with a friend of mine, but never a full fic!! i think we were considering that crowley was a cryptid (being the snake and all) and aziraphale — who became a(n) cryptid hunter unexplained phenomena researcher in part to prove to his mother that there's plenty of fascinating things down here on earth for free — ran into him quite by accident (crowley lives in a secret garden shielded from the outside world, appropriately named eden, but aziraphale can see right through the shielding) and decided to stay to keep the lonely old snake company.

i do still have the initial paragraph i wrote for it, actually!!

Aziraphale Heart — named after an angel his mother read about in a deeply incorrect pamphlet that advertised a direct line to several high tiers of Heaven for a monthly payment of 9.99, and who has stubbornly refused the use of any and all nicknames that have been proposed since — has been looking for a garden for almost a decade. He never expected to actually find it. He certainly never expected to find it occupied.

[aziraphales-library]

Ello Ello Ello :D

Would you happen to have a Human AU fic where Aziraphale has an toxic relationship with his family and it is well explored? Bonus points if Crowley and Aziraphale are long date friends.

Thank you so much for your work <3333

Hi. We have some fics where Aziraphale's family aren't great here. Here are more to add...

Against All Odds by GroovyNightStrawberry (E)

How can you just walk away from me? When all I can do is watch you leave 'Cos we've shared the laughter and the pain and even shared the tears You're the only one who really knew me at all Az is eleven, and his world is falling apart. His best friend is walking away from him, and Az can't find a way to make him stay. Thirty-five years later, there's a familiar face at Aziraphale's new job, and it threatens to break his heart all over again. Can they do it better this time?

Ships in the Night by tishae (G)

Aziraphale did not want to head home for Christmas. Spending the entirety of the holidays with his Mother and siblings seemed, if you asked him, like a special version of Hell carved out just for him. Making up a boyfriend that he was spending the season with seemed like a perfect excuse (and no, he wasn't going to think too hard about why he had provided Crowley's name), until his Mother had insisted they should both come. "It'd be great to meet him!" Aziraphale had no idea how he was going to explain this to the coffee shop owner he'd had a crush on for the last two years, much less convince him to take part, but he was about to find out. or It's Christmas time, and our ineffable idiots are faking a relationship while definitely not being totally, completely head over heels for each other.

The Fall (Edition) by Thinkinginscripts (M)

Anthony J Crowley, former face of Burberry, fashion editor of Hell Magazine, arbiter of cool, found himself perched at a small antique card table at the back of a cluttered bookshop, looking down at a tea pot and porcelain cups, milk jug and sugar bowl as if they were alien artefacts. Or Azir's family, of sound military stock, treated feelings a little like illnesses. They could be prevented, cured, but were certainly not to be shared. Or A human AU about what happens when a photoshoot in an atmospheric bookshop puts two men from different worlds together, and how long it takes them to bumble through the embarrassment of talking about Feelings (20+ chapters, it turns out).

Rain Fall by mageofthepeople (E)

A human, Victorian AU. Anthony Crowley and Azra Fell meet and fall in love and into a two year relationship while Az finishes university. When they are set to finally escape to the continent, they are separated for three years and neither of them are completely sure what happened to cause the split. When they accidentally run into one another, they find they can't move forward until they figure out what happened in their past.

Plus One by Caedmon (E)

Aziraphale Eastgate’s wealthy family have finally come to tolerate the fact that he’s gay in the last couple of years. However, to their mind, he’s in his mid-thirties and should be settling down with someone… acceptable. So Aziraphale tells them he has a boyfriend whom they haven’t met -and doesn't exist. Now his older brother is getting married, and Aziraphale has been given a plus one. They're expecting to meet his imaginary boyfriend, so he’s got to find a date. Fast. He takes his problem to his best friend, Fergus, who suggests his mechanic, Crowley. Much to Aziraphale's surprise, the gorgeous (and likely straight) mechanic agrees to go to the Tadfield Estate for the whole five-day event. Simple, right? Well...

The False and the Fair by Princip1914 (E)

Growing up in the shadow of West Virginia’s Eden Mountain, Aziraphale Wright always expected to work for the family coal mining company. Anthony Crowley, the son of a down-and-out miner, was going to become a pilot and leave town forever. Now, thirty years later, neither of their lives have gone as planned, and an unexpected inheritance brings them back into one another’s orbit. Aziraphale hopes that they can move beyond their shared past, and a high school arrangement that ended in disaster, but he has secrets of his own that threaten their fragile reconnection… Finished, July 2021. This fic will occasionally be archive locked (I put all my E rated work behind a lock at various times due to personal reasons) but please don’t let that put you off reading it!

- Mod D

[sinfullyrosey]

Can we please have more of eldrith horror reader

mkay

EH!Reader tried to eat Idia’s hair. Twice. It’s not their fault his hair looks like candy (and smells like it too). The one day Ortho convinced him to attend class in person, only to end up sitting in front of the abomination and being blissfully unaware that they were sniffing his hair for a good 15 minutes before unhinging their jaws to have a “little” taste. The second time was because his hair changed color and apparently neither of them learned the first time.

Loves watching Epel’s apple carving (mainly ‘cause they want a snack). One day Epel offered to let them try for themselves, only to have EH!Reader completely ignore the carving knife offered to them and popped the apple right into their mouth instead… and then spat out a perfectly carved apple in the shape of a swan. Epel was shocked. Everybody around who witnessed it was shocked. Idia, who was watching from one of his security cameras was shocked (and horrified). And then they ate the apple.

Silver once woke up to the sight of EH!Reader sniffing at his face and hair. His animal friends all fled, scared of the inhuman aura surrounding them. Silver had no idea who the heck this person was or why they were so close and why they were smelling of him and-he fell asleep again. He woke up later to find them asleep, head and crossed arms laying on his torso. Guess he attracts more than just animals.

Back on the annoying Vil train: EH!Reader doesn’t understand the big deal with makeup and looking good, what with them having the ability to shapeshift; yet, Vil still finds it important to teach them about this stuff. One comment catches their attention though when Vil mentions how every product he uses is organic and doesn’t use any sort of animal parts. It’d ruin his reputation if anyone were to hear that the Vil Schoenheit supported animal cruelty, all for the sake of his looks.

EH!Reader, takes one whiff of Vil’s moisturizer: You know you have eel mucus on your face, right?

Vil: Excuse me, but wHAT.

Better run Azul/Tweels, Vil’s coming for your ass (with a lawsuit).

Their best subject is PE, for the sole reason that they are one of the most physically fit and strongest at the school. Well, excluding flying. They’re able to keep up with Jack during his runs, can take on students like the Tweels, Malleus, and all of Savanaclaw in a non-magic fight, and has the ability to tell when Rook or Lilia is close by. This is the whole reason they’re not allowed to participate in Bean’s Day, because their senses allow them to hunt down anyone in the school and they have a tendency to get carried away. They kind of go into this predatory-hunter mode that sends people to the infirmary…

Nesting. Yes, I’m going there. EH!Reader has a room dedicated to their nest where they keep all their trinkets they’ve collected since coming to Twisted Wonderland. Some things are stuff they’ve found, while others are mementos from their adventures. Their bed is also covered in stuff like blankets and pillows given to them by other dorms. EH!Reader even has some things that they swiped from their friends and schoolmates like jackets, hats, one or two of Vil’s makeup, some jewelry from Scarabia’s treasure hoard, and even one of Malleus’s blazers. Some of the others have noticed their missing items, but don’t suspect the little abomination has anything to do with it. Only Grim knows, he also knows that nobody but EH!Reader is allowed in this room.

Much to the annoyance of the NRC boys, EH!Reader seems a lot more interested in RSC, especially after having met Che’nya and Neige. The others, especially Crowley, informs them that they’re their rival school, so are the “enemy,” but EH!Reader don’t care. They find RSC interesting and fun and they all smell so nice, kind of reminds them of the scent Silver and Kalim gives off. Everyone is frustrated over this, until the revelation that EH!Reader possibly views the RSC as prey, at least, that’s what Rook has suggested based on their body language and the look in their eyes whenever they come into contact with a rival student…

Grim: Hey, henchman! How come you always seem to smile with your mouth closed? Come on, smile for real!

EH!Reader: . . . *smiles widely, revealing rows of big, sharp teeth*

Grim: Nevermind. Go back to what you were doing before and never do that again.

[lillotte17]

I keep waffling back and forth about what I think actually went down at the end of the last episode.

I know without a doubt that there is more layers to this than what we’ve been shown. It is incredibly suspicious that we don’t actually see the talk between Aziraphale and the Metatron, and we only have Aziraphale’s word about what was said between them. That, and my little author brain hears the line, “Does anyone choose death?” and automatically wants to paint it red and underline it three times.

Something Happened.

But I can’t decide if I feel like Aziraphale was tricked, or that Aziraphale was threatened.

(under a cut bc omg this got long, oops)

On the one hand, it certainly wouldn’t be the first time Aziraphale has been duped. He is especially susceptible to it when someone praises him and makes him feel important. He craves affirmation and purpose, and he is used to looking to Heaven to fulfill those needs, even if they never really met any of his hopes or expectations. If there was going to be a ploy that got him back into Heaven, “you can fix everything forever and bring your SO, too” seems like the exact sort of deal to pull him in.

Evidence in support of being tricked:

-Aziraphale’s genuineness, especially when he starts edging towards desperation. That “I need you!” was tinged with real panic.

-He is (usually) not a very good liar, he typically only gets away with it with angels who happen to be even more guileless than he is.

-I am certain that getting Crowley reinstated as an angel so they could be together was literally his dearest wish at one point. Whether or not it still is might be debatable.

-The fight follows the same pattern that all of their fights seem to. One or both of them storms off, and then Aziraphale pouts until Crowley misses him enough to come back and they patch things up. Only this time there isn't the opportunity for reconciliation.

-The fact that he does seem waffle for a few moments at the end when the Metatron comes back into the bookstore and asks if there is anything he needs to take with him. He’s clearly staring out the window at Crowley and grasps at the excuse of not wanting to leave his bookshop unattended, more like someone who feels like he might actually have a choice in these proceedings than someone who just had to push away the person they love to keep them safe.

On the other hand, the idea that Aziraphale would just blithely run back to Heaven and believe that they would want to give him a big bag of candy, the love of his life, and a huge promotion when they literally tried to execute him a few short years ago feels like a stretch, even for his usual level of gullibility. He absolutely still believes that Heaven is better than Hell, and he misses being a ‘certified’ angel with assignments to ‘do good,’ but thinking that he would trust Heaven and the Metatron so implicitly on such short notice with no real proof of their good intentions seems almost insulting to both his intelligence and his character growth from season 1. It would make much more sense (to me), if he pushed Crowley away intentionally, knowing that if Crowley thought that one or both of them was in some sort of danger, he would fight it tooth and nail, and quite possibly get erased from existence in the process.

Evidence in support of being threatened:

-He clearly did NOT want to go to the coffee shop with the Metatron, nor did he seem particularly excited about the alleged offer afterwards until he got back into the bookshop and started talking to Crowley. He was visibly uncomfortable in the Metatron’s presence the entire time, which is a little strange for someone who genuinely believes that the Metatron has just offered him his heart’s deepest desires.

-The alleged deal on offer is just TOO perfect. It’s exactly the sort of thing pre-armeggedidn’t Aziraphale probably daydreamed about in the bathtub surrounded by rose-scented candles. Exactly the sort of “too good to pass up” deal he would make up to tell Crowley why he was leaving, because it sounds exactly like what he’s always told him that he wanted.

-The fight was flawless. He didn’t JUST tell Crowley that he decided to take a position with Heaven again. He lumped Crowley in with the rest of Hell as ‘the bad guys.’ He insinuated that in order for them to be together, Crowley would have to become both an angel AND his subordinate. He refused to engage with any counter-argument Crowley offered. The bitter-sounding 'I forgive you,' after the kiss. This wasn’t just tripping over an unknown stumbling block in their relationship, this was falling down a flight of stairs face-first and hitting absolutely every step on the way down. Everything was framed in the worst way possible. And personally, I cannot reconcile the idea that Aziraphale, who has known Crowley since before time itself began, would somehow believe that Crowley would not only agree to this deal, but think that he might actually be excited about it. Crowley's resentment of Heaven is one of his strongest and loudest opinions. There is no way that Aziraphale doesn't know this about him. Every phase of their conversation almost feels designed to wound.

-Aziraphale is not only unsurprised by Crowley’s confession, but he doesn’t even seem especially pleased to hear it. This season, Aziraphale has made several less-than-subtle implications that he is operating under the assumption that he and Crowley are already an item, even if they haven’t actually put an official name to anything. He immediately corrects Crowley in episode 1, saying that the fragile peace they created belongs to both of them, it’s an existence they are sharing and enjoying together. Similarly, he insists that the Bentley and the bookshop belong to both of them, even if they each only own one on paper. The amount of casual touching has gone through the roof. When he asks Crowley to dance and drags him to the dance floor, giggling the whole way, that is not the demeanor of an angel pining after someone he hopes will return his affections, that is an angel who already knows that his feelings are reciprocated, and is absolutely giddy at the idea that they have an excuse to do something romantic like dancing at a ball. I cannot believe that the same angel who gasped and grabbed onto Crowley like a lifeline as he watched Gabriel and Beelzebub get the sort of happy ending he's always hoped for, would hear the love of his life offer to be an 'us', and answer with anything less than enthusiasm, or at least an admonishment that they are already an 'us'. Instead, he sort of just...dances around it. Turns it back towards the idea of returning to Heaven without even acknowledging the fact that the person he loves more or less just asked to spend eternity together. I know they both have bad habits of talking over each other and not really listening when they think they know what's best, but that is...quite a significant dodge. How do you skim over something you've been waiting to hear for at least the last hundred years, if not longer?

-I have seen the claims that Aziraphale looks like he is about to say 'I love you,' before changing it to 'I forgive you,' but the moment that always catches me is right after Crowley turns away. He does this shaky sharp inhale of breath and his mouth moves in what seems to either be, 'no' or 'don't', but he reels it back in. He swallows it down, and looks completely miserable about it. And just...why? Why not call after him? Why not chase him to the door? Sure, he's stubborn, and he has his pride, but the love of his life is leaving, and if Aziraphale really wants Crowley to go with him, if he really believes that going to Heaven would make both of them happy and safe...why not push harder for it? Why not break out the 'I love you's and the 'I want you to be safe', or even the 'I want to see you as happy now as you were before you fell', if that's what he really thinks being an angel would do for Crowley? Yes, I know, 'Communication Problems', but a lot of those walls come crashing down when you really think you're going to lose something. That's why panicked OTP confessions when one half of the pair is grievously injured is a Thing.

-The elevator smile. Everyone has their theories, of course, but my favorite was summarized with "it is a lovely day in Heaven and you are a horrible goose angel." That is the face of an angel who is heartbroken and FURIOUS, and has every intention of making it absolutely everyone else's problem. He doesn't look happy, but he does look satisfied. 'It worked. Crowley got away. He got away.'

~~

I know it seems like I have a lot more arguments for the latter than the former, but it's one of those maddening situations where like...I know which one it would be if I was the one writing it, but sometimes the curtains really are just blue. And sometimes people who know each other well, and love each other with their whole hearts, are still stupid about things and fight and say things they don't mean. Sometimes people take the bait. Sometimes people get tricked. Sometimes they lose what they love the most while trying their best to hold onto it. Either theory makes sense. Either premise could lead to a satisfying and happy ending when machinations are revealed later. I trust that Mr. Gaiman knows what he's about. Hence the waffling.

[crazyforbarbatos]

Obey Me x Supernatural : You’re summoned to the Devildom but Winchesters are your brothers

A/N: This was wild but I enjoyed writing this SO much! I have more ideas for Obey Me x Supernatural!

Warning: Swearing

you were on a hunt with Sam & Dean

just investigating some ghost business

and next thing you know, you’re being teleported away

last thing you hear is Dean aggressively yelling for Cas

and Sam tries to grab you but he’s too late

and now you’re standing in some room

surrounded by a bunch of dudes

well alright

this was not how you wanted your Wednesday to go, but you’re not mad

they were all kinda hot

WAIT

is this what heaven looks like?

did you die?

shit, one of your brothers are gonna sacrifice themselves to bring you back

Damn it, Dean/Sam!

It was your turn on the sacrifices

“Welcome to the Devildom!”

Devildom?

So this wasn’t heaven?

Damn it.

Didn’t Sam and Dean both go through hell literally in Hell?

did you touch some bewitched object?

well it’s alright, you’ve got your bag on you filled with everything you may need to protect yourself

“This has been a nice meeting, but I would like to go back.”

yeah from the exchanging of glances, that wasn’t going to happen

fuck

well, you were probably fine

you pretty much talked through the going-ons of the red head

oops

“My name is Diavolo.”

Diavolo? Alright

Kinda sounds like Diablo

that’s suspicious

“I’m the ruler of all demons, and here all know of me.”

???

what was this dude even going on about?

Crowley rules hell

“And someday soon, I’ll be crowned king of the Devildom.”

Where the fuck was Crowley anyways!?

Wait first things first

“Why am I even here?”

“I will explain it to you.”

Well.

Wait until Sam & Dean find out that you’ve met the hottest men in the entire world

“This is Lucifer-”

Excuse you?

Lucifer?

The one who possessed your brother?

“He won’t be when I’m done!”

you’re literally restrained by one single fellow who just kind of picked you up by the scruff of your shirt

you just see red

“LUCIFER YOU MOTHER FUCKER! YOU TORTURED BOTH OF MY BROTHERS! I WILL KILL YOU!”

and you saw Lucifer transform?

What the heck?

this was new

and honestly you don’t understand why the blonde one is laughing hysterically to the point he falls to the floor (you learn later that this is Satan)

it boils your blood

???

You’re so lost

and pissed

“Tell me what is going on, why Lucifer is her and not in his prison or else I will use my holy water.”

It isn’t long before the big buff fellow (who you learn later is Beelzebub) put you down at the behest of Diavolo

and for your safety, you draw a salt circle around yourself

you listen to Diavolo explain the Devildom and that you were summoned to be a transfer student

well, that’s not very hell, is it?

actually this doesn’t sound like your world or your version of hell at all

and this Prince of the Hell, er, the Devildom was…good?

What?

and he wants to reunite the three realms?

honestly you had to commend the guy

“If no one’s going to attempt to kill me, is there any way I can get in touch with my brothers? They’ll find a way to get here and I don’t imagine that’d be pretty.”

“No apology?”

“None, Luci. I don’t trust any of you.”

“How about we do some introductions.” (Diavolo)

[cinnabun-faerie]

Obey Me x Supernatural : You're summoned to the Devildom but Winchesters are your brothers

A/N: This was wild but I enjoyed writing this SO much! I have more ideas for Obey Me x Supernatural!

Warning: Swearing

Obey Me taglist: @missnella-nova @thai

If you want to be added to the taglist for whenever I post, you can comment here on the original post !

Frightfest ‘22 Masterlist

you were on a hunt with Sam & Dean

just investigating some ghost business

and next thing you know, you're being teleported away

last thing you hear is Dean aggressively yelling for Cas

and Sam tries to grab you but he's too late

and now you're standing in some room

surrounded by a bunch of dudes

well alright

this was not how you wanted your Wednesday to go, but you're not mad

they were all kinda hot

WAIT

is this what heaven looks like?

did you die?

shit, one of your brothers are gonna sacrifice themselves to bring you back

Damn it, Dean/Sam!

It was your turn on the sacrifices

"Welcome to the Devildom!"

Devildom?

So this wasn't heaven?

Damn it.

Didn't Sam and Dean both go through hell literally in Hell?

did you touch some bewitched object?

well it's alright, you've got your bag on you filled with everything you may need to protect yourself

"This has been a nice meeting, but I would like to go back."

yeah from the exchanging of glances, that wasn't going to happen

fuck

well, you were probably fine

you pretty much talked through the going-ons of the red head

oops

"My name is Diavolo."

Diavolo? Alright

Kinda sounds like Diablo

that's suspicious

"I'm the ruler of all demons, and here all know of me."

???

what was this dude even going on about?

Crowley rules hell

"And someday soon, I'll be crowned king of the Devildom."

Where the fuck was Crowley anyways!?

Wait first things first

"Why am I even here?"

"I will explain it to you."

Well.

Wait until Sam & Dean find out that you've met the hottest men in the entire world

"This is Lucifer-"

Excuse you?

Lucifer?

The one who possessed your brother?

"He won't be when I'm done!"

you're literally restrained by one single fellow who just kind of picked you up by the scruff of your shirt

you just see red

"LUCIFER YOU MOTHER FUCKER! YOU TORTURED BOTH OF MY BROTHERS! I WILL KILL YOU!"

and you saw Lucifer transform?

What the heck?

this was new

and honestly you don't understand why the blonde one is laughing hysterically to the point he falls to the floor (you learn later that this is Satan)

it boils your blood

???

You're so lost

and pissed

"Tell me what is going on, why Lucifer is her and not in his prison or else I will use my holy water."

It isn't long before the big buff fellow (who you learn later is Beelzebub) put you down at the behest of Diavolo

and for your safety, you draw a salt circle around yourself

you listen to Diavolo explain the Devildom and that you were summoned to be a transfer student

well, that's not very hell, is it?

actually this doesn't sound like your world or your version of hell at all

and this Prince of the Hell, er, the Devildom was...good?

What?

and he wants to reunite the three realms?

honestly you had to commend the guy

"If no one's going to attempt to kill me, is there any way I can get in touch with my brothers? They'll find a way to get here and I don't imagine that'd be pretty."

"No apology?"

"None, Luci. I don't trust any of you."

"How about we do some introductions." (Diavolo)

[uhh-materialgworl]

Can I request Leona with a s/o who is manipulative towards everyone but him? Okay, that is a bit confusing so let me explain. The reader does not trust anyone but them so they are always controlling everyone else around them. I am kinda fantasizing about finally being able to trust someone, so...

Sure thing! Don't know if this is what you meant, but I tried.

I don't trust anyone...except maybe you

Leona Kingscholar × GN!Reader

Author's note: Someone send me more requests. Or ideas. I'm slowly running out of ideas 😭

Call them dramatic, they couldn’t care less. Despite how nice everybody seemed to act, Y/n just couldn’t bring themselves to trust them. Back home, before they ended up in twisted wonderland, everyone seemed to betray them. They tried; they really did. They would befriend someone, share everything with them, only to be disappointed months later when their “friend” left and spilled all their secrets.

All Y/n had was their parents. But they quickly learned that even they couldn’t be trusted. Y/n eventually gave up and decided to keep everything to themselves. They still had friends, but those friends knew nothing except what Y/n wanted them to know.

Y/n hated people who weren’t able to keep a secret for more than a day. They thought that people like that deserved a punishment, so when Y/n found out they had a way with words to get others to do what they wanted...well, it became a part of their everyday life. Manipulating others just so they wouldn’t have their heart broken once more.

They felt guilty sometimes, but it was simply what they had to do. It was something that would never change, they knew it wouldn’t.

Until they met Leona.

At first, they did not trust him at all. They already didn’t trust anyone there. If people back home were liars and couldn’t be trusted, well, what could they expect from a school based off villains?

To them, Leona was rude and shady. They were proven right that Leona could not be trusted after what Savanaclaw did just to win the magical shift tournament. They understood his anger, but that was no excuse to hurt others. However, the more they got to know him, the more they grew on him...they could see just how loyal he was. They were convinced they could kill someone, and he’d help them hide the body.

It was only a matter of time until they started dating. They would never be worried about him as a boyfriend as he would never cheat or lie to them. He was the most loyal and trustworthy person they had ever met, even if others didn’t seem to believe that. Heck, their previous surprise party had been spoiled because Leona just couldn’t lie to them (Grim had not been happy with that. He tried to light Leona’s tail on fire.)

Leona knew what they were doing to everyone else. He was there when Ace wouldn’t give Y/n his sandwich and they’d frown, “Oh, sorry. You know, it just kind of looked like the one my mom made me every day when I went to school. I really miss her...It’s fine though. I’ll just get something else.” They’d get up only to be stopped by Ace who was apologizing and Deuce who decided to give them his sandwich too.

He was there when Y/n wouldn’t get the grade they wanted and would somehow convince Crowley to get them an A. “I’m stuck in this place, haven’t seen my family nor friends in months. I’ve done so much for this school, always ending up in situations that could leave a magicless student like me, dead. Always helping students who overblot and getting in trouble for situations that I had nothing to do with. On top of that, I have to worry about my grade that was brought down, all because I was too busy repairing something another student broke. It’s not fair if you ask me.”

“You told Riddle? I was going to tell him eventually, but I guess he already knows because you can’t keep a secret. I was really looking forward to telling him myself. Plus, didn’t you swear not to tell anyone? Where did that promise go, huh?”

“And why are you telling me this? You say I can’t say anything because you promised you wouldn’t tell. But here you are, telling me. I’d be pretty upset if I were them.”

“What? No, of course not. I would never, I just thought it would be best if I kept this to myself.”

Leona was there for all of these events and much more. He was aware of how little trust his S/o had in others. He had seen how they manipulated others, seeming to like being the one in control. He truly wondered what had happened for them not to trust anyone besides themselves and Leona.

Y/n trusted and valued him so much, he would be lying if he said it didn’t boost his pride. His dear herbivore trusted only him, and he would not give them any reason to think he was not someone reliable. He could see through their manipulation, though they had never used it on him. His herbivore never had a reason to use it, and he was happy about that. What kind of boyfriend would he be if his S/o felt the need to control and manipulate him so that he wouldn’t lie?

Leona knows what his herbivore does is wrong sometimes, so he tries to prove to them that there are others who could be trusted. He knows it’ll take a long time for them to understand that, but he is willing to try. In the meantime, he’ll show them that if there’s no one else for them, he’ll always be right there. He will be by their side, willing to listen and help.

-----

“Mm... how was your day?” Leona yawned as he made room for his S/o.

“It was alright I guess.” Y/n climbed into bed with Leona and sighed.

Leona wrapped his arm around Y/n and kissed them. “You don’t sound too sure. Mind telling me what happened?”

He sat still and listened to them rant, giving advice and comforting them when they needed it. "Honestly, I don’t know why you put up with me. Aren’t you tired of this?”

“Tired? I’m always tired, just not of you. Listening to your worries and problems is the least I could do. Now,” He wrapped both arms around them, “Let’s sleep, alright? Your friends seem to be causing you a lot of stress lately. You’ll feel better after resting for a few hours.”

Y/n nodded and closed their eyes, ignoring the sound of Grim’s yelling as he was dragged out of the room by Ruggie.

“Sorry dude, it was Leona’s order.”

“I don’t care what your boss told you to do! My henchman is still in there and I can’t leave them alone with the oversized cat!”

[britishassistant]

I'm curious: how did the rest of the villains find out that Crowley is Yuu's bio dad? Did Azul/Leviathan let it slip during the next villain's meeting (I have a feeling some also use it on occasion as an excuse to complain about certain heroes and it's one of the few times they don't fight/argue with each other) since Crowley only seemed to make that "don't tell anyone" threat to the twins? How would they have reacted to this revelation and how does Crowley either deal with it or twist it into his favor?

“I want to tell the other six.”

Azul stops and stares at the reporter. They keep walking, hugging their arms close to their body.

“A-are you serious?” He sputters.

“Yes.” They turn and fix him with a level stare. “It’d be better for them to just hear it from me straight, rather than if they find out during a more high stress situation where people could get hurt.”

“Of course, because there’s no way the situation wouldn’t get out of hand once those guys hear about this.” Azul mutters sourly, walking so he’s alongside them. “It’ll go just as smoothly as one of our League picnics.”

He accepts the gentle nudge to the side that earns him as they continue their journey to the exit.

“It’s not like I’m going to tell any heroes, the civilians, or Great Seven forbid, my boss’s boss. I’m not stupid.” The reporter looks down at their shoes. “It’s just. Better for them to hear it from me than to hear it from him.”

“From hi—?” Oh, they have to be joking. “Yuu. You can’t be suggesting that you’re willing to expose a secret of this magnitude to the people who could view you as a rival to their ultimate ambitions so recklessly, just because you dislike Crowley-sama.”

The reporter’s expression twists. “It’s not just ‘dislike’. Besides, do you know what he’s probably doing to Jade and Floyd right now?”

He shoots them a suspicious glance. “And what, pray tell, is that?”

“The stupid bird’ll be finding a way to twist this whole thing into a way for him to blackmail you, rather than the other way round.” Their steps become more akin to stomping, shoulders rounding as they hunch in on themself. “That’s what he always does. It’ll never be his fault, never his problem, he’s just soooo kind and sooo gracious, it’s always your fault for daring to try and make something of yourself outside of his plans for you, you’re the selfish one, you’re the ungrateful one, you’re the self-destructive one, exposing yourself to all those dangerous supervillains that he’s just trying to protect you from!”

Azul can only blink in befuddlement as Yuu exhales harshly at the end of their rant. The reporter must catch sight of his expression, because they sigh and begin again in a slightly calmer tone of voice.

“That’s one of the things the old bird tried to use to control me, you know. After he met me for the first time in twenty-two years.” Yuu scoffs, bitterly. “He claimed that you all were guaranteed to find out about me and kill me, or worse, to take my place as his successor. That is, unless I abandoned everything I loved and worked for to go ‘live’ under his protection and ‘defend my birthright’, as he put it.”

Azul’s mouth works silently for a moment.

He wants to deny it vehemently, to sputter at the sheer audacity of Crowley to think that Azul could do such a thing to Yuu—

Except, whispers a small part of his brain, would you have really been so kind, back when all you knew of Yuu was that they were a cute reporter who poked their nose into supervillain business? If you knew that cute, nosy reporter could be a threat to your ambitions back then, can you honestly say you wouldn’t have done your best to get them out of your way by any means necessary?

He doesn’t like the answer.

So Azul just swallows to try and find his voice again. “He...he may have a point, you know. With some of the others. Maybe not all, but. Some.”

“I know.” The reporter keeps rubbing their arms, like they’re cold. “But hey, at least it’ll beat the suspense of waiting to find out!”

Azul blinks, trying to digest that sentence and the false cheer that accompanied it as they near their destination.

“You’ve—you’ve been scared of that all this time, haven’t you?” He mutters, as they stop in front of the door to the outside. “Whenever you got kidnapped.”

The reporter lets out a suspiciously wet sounding laugh, dabbing at their eyes with the sleeve of their jacket. “It was worst with my first kidnapping by Royal Flush, back when all this started, because I had no idea what he wanted from me. At least when I got into snooping around on everyone else’s schemes later on, I knew you guys’d be more likely to kidnap me for that rather than anything else.”

Azul massages the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger. He thinks he can practically feel his blood pressure rising. “I thought you were supposed to be the stable one out of all of us.”

That actually gets him a real, honest laugh. “With how little sleep I get? Azul, please.”

They linger at the door for a while, until they hear a car pull up outside and honk it’s horn.

“You’re really going through with this?” He asks them, resigned.

The reporter swallows, hands trembling slightly, but nod, resolute. “Yes. It’s the best option for everyone here.”

“We’ll have to agree to disagree on that one.” He grumbles. “Just. Promise me. Promise me you’ll tell me when and where you plan to do this.”

Yuu blinks. “Why wouldn’t I? I was planning on asking you, Jade and Floyd to come with me anyway.”

“I won’t accept you being stubborn over this, I’ll draw up a contract if I have—” Wait, hold on, what had they just said? “What–but–why–what??”

“Well, you haven’t exactly being trying to make a contract with me so that you can become the heir instead, or murder me for it on the way out.” Yuu glances up at him, almost...shyly? “I figured that meant I could trust you, at least.”

Oh Great Seven, please don’t let his heart explode from this. It’s pounding so fast in his chest it feels like it might.

“A t-terrible decision really.” He hears himself say, and wants to bang his head against the wall the moment the words are out of his mouth.

Yuu laughs again, almost gently. “Well, I am known for making those. I think I can live with this one.”

And on that bombshell, the reporter slips out of the lair’s door and into the taxi that will hopefully see them safely home.

Azul watches the car pull away, and then closes the door. He turns around and goes to find the first pair of minions he can, ordering them to tail the car and call him immediately if any of the other six supervillains show signs of trying to stage a kidnapping en route.

Azul then strides further into the lair, mind whirling with all the favors he can call in and strings that he can pull.

If he’s going to be ensuring that his naive little reporter is able to go through with this insane plan safely, then he needs to be prepared to be able to defend them against the six potential threats they’ll be up against.

[massivelycreepypineapple]

Love Of My Life

Request: Crowley and reader dancing "queen love of my life" or it can be a scenario in which they fight and the two hear this song or "freddy mercury and montserrat caballe how can i go on"

Pairing: (Good Omens) Crowley x Fem!Reader

Song: Love of my life by Queen

A/N: This is my first song fic. Not really sure if it came out good. I’m really sorry if it’s bad! I’m also sorry this took so long to get out. I’ve been so swamped with work. 

❅ ❅ ❅

Y/N was livid. She couldn’t believe he forgot about their date again. This was the third time in a row and she was getting sick and tired of his excuses. 

“It’s hell and heaven related, Y/N!” Crowley had snapped at her when she asked him where he kept running off to, after the second time he forgot. “Some things are more important than a damn date night.” He then stormed off. Again. Of course to Aziraphale’s place.

She understood that being a mere human she wouldn’t take priority over celestial things. But the third time he forgot had done it for Y/N. There had to be a limit for her patience and she found it. 

He was supposed to pick her up from her place. She had waited for him two hours past the agreed upon time and she had had enough. She changed her clothes into something comfortable and decided to heat up some take out. Just as she was about to put it in the microwave, the door burst open and Crowley stumbled into her apartment. Drunk. 

Y/N rushed into the living room, and saw him lean against the wall. His eyes lit up after they landed on her. He pushed himself off and walked towards, going in to hug her. But Y/N pushed him away, glaring daggers at him. 

“No!” She shouted, “You can’t just come in here, reeking of alcohol and pretend like everything is fine, Crowley!”

“Love-“

“Shut up! Just shut up! I understand there are more important things than me going on, with Armageddon just ending and everything. I really do, believe me. But there’s a limit for everyone and I have just about reached mine!”

Crowley sobered up at her outburst. He didn’t expect to be yelled at. He didn’t understand what he was doing wrong. He was doing everything in his power to keep her safe. After Armageddon, hell and heaven were pissed off at him and Aziraphale. He had to make sure that they didn’t find Y/N. He’d die before letting anything happen to her. And yet somehow here she was yelling at him. 

Y/N continued with her rage filled monologue, “Maybe it’s the fact that I'm bloody human and you’d rather stick to your celestial friend here. Someone who gets you better. It’s not fair that you leave me behind every time!”

“Leave you behind?! Sweetheart, you have no idea what is going on out there! You have no idea the kind of danger you’re in!” He yelled back, clearly triggered by her. 

“Then why won’t you tell me!? Why do you keep sneaking off early in the morning to god knows where?!” 

“It’s not something you’ll understand! You’re just human! And right now, I’d really appreciate it if you could stop your human needs, and let me do my job!” 

Y/N didn’t realise just how close he had gotten to her. Crowley was a demon from hell. A fact that she sometimes forgot considering how wonderfully nice he was to her. But right now, he took his glasses off and his snake eyes bore into hers, anger evident in them. He never looked so intimidating than at that moment. For the first time since they met, he scared her. 

What he said went through her like a shock. He basically just reduced her to just some human being. No longer his Y/N, which he so often claimed. She teared up at that. 

“Leave.” She whispered. 

“Gladly.” He replied with a snarl.

Crowley was a demon, and once a demon was angry, it was hard for them to let go. He didn’t think about what he had said to her and simply turned around and left, slamming the door.

Y/N had never felt so heartbroken before in her life. Because no one else held her heart like he did. She wiped her tears and went to finish her dinner. She wasn’t going to let Crowley get to her. It was her decision for him to leave and he happily went with it. There was nothing left to say or do about it.

She finished eating and went to the living room to watch some telly. She needed a distraction but she wasn’t really paying attention, her mind constantly going back to the fight. She was starting to regret asking him to leave. She should’ve talked it out with him. But then again his temper didn’t allow for reasonable conversation. 

She closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the head rest. She didn’t realise she stopped at a music channel, until suddenly a song began playing. She quickly recognised it as Queen, Crowley’s favourite band. 

Love of my life, you've hurt me

You've broken my heart and now you leave me

Love of my life, can't you see?

Bring it back, bring it back 

Don't take it away from me, because you don't know

What it means to me

“Fuck” Y/N whispered. Of all the songs to play, this just had to be the one. The universe really was out to get her, wasn’t it?

She got up from the couch and walked behind it, placing her hands on the headrest. She watched the video on the screen, letting the words wash over her. Where had it all gone wrong? Maybe this was doomed to fail since day one. 

Love of my life, don't leave me

You've taken my love, you now desert me

Love of my life, can't you see?

Bring it back, bring it back

Don't take it away from me

Because you don't know

What it means to me

Y/N didn’t hear her door open and close. It took her by surprise when she felt arms wrap around her from behind. She knew then who it was and she felt relief and pain all at once, overwhelming her to the brink. 

Crowley turned her around and cupped her cheek with one hand as the other remained wrapped around her waist. He pecked her lips and looked into her eyes. She noticed that his glasses were missing as she looked into his beautiful yellow eyes and she fell in love all over again even if it hurt to do so. 

He pulled her away from the couch and began swaying with her to the music, singing softly with it.

You will remember

When this is blown over

Everything's all by the way

When I grow older

I will be there at your side to remind you

How I still love you 

“I still love you” Y/N whispered to him, as he tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. He rested his forehead against hers still dancing to the music. All she wanted was him at her side. That’s all she ever asked for and maybe that was asking too much. 

As if Crowley could hear her thoughts, he said, “I’m so sorry, my love. I was such an arse to you.” 

Y/N was sniffling. She didn’t know what to say but at the same time she had so much she wanted him to know. She rested her head on his shoulder crying softly at his apology. The music washed over them, conveying more than they ever could. 

Oh, hurry back, hurry back

Don't take it away from me

You don't know what it means to me

Love of my life

Love of my life

As the song ended, they pulled away looking into each other’s eyes. Crowley was the first to break the silence, “I love you so much, it scares me, Y/N. I can’t lose you.”

“You being away for so long doesn’t prove that you don’t want to lose me.” She said, voice breaking.

“I know”, He whispered with shame. “Heaven and hell, they’re angry, Y/N. If they find out about you, they’ll hurt you just to make me suffer.”

“Is that why you’ve been disappearing so much?”

“Yes, Aziraphale and I have been trying to think of a way to keep you safe. I never wanted to hurt you, honey.”

“I should stop being so human, huh?” Y/N chuckled as a tear slipped from her eye. Crowley wiped it away with his thumb.

“I didn’t mean that. I’m so so sorry I said that. I was pissed that you weren’t listening to me. And I just took it out on you.”

“It’s ok” Y/N whispered looking down. 

Crowley lifted her chin up making her look at him, “It’s not okay I said that. Your humanity is one of the things that made me fall in love with you so deeply.”

“Why’d you come back?”

“I regretting leaving the second I walked out the door. I went over to Aziraphale’s and he made me realise that I would lose you either way if I didn’t show you how much I cared about you.”

“He’s a smart guy.” Y/N said with a small smile, making him chuckle. 

“Don’t let him hear you say that. He’ll be unbearable.” 

Y/N giggled at that. “I’m glad you came back. I regretted asking you to leave.”

Crowley hugged her tightly, resting her head on his chest. Protecting her from unseen danger that he suspected was right around the corner. 

“What now?” Y/N asked.

“We find a way to keep you safe and we never let anything like this happen again.”

“I like the sound of that.”  

[winter-soldier-vibes]

I don’t have a good reason (Bucky x depressed reader)

I don’t have a reason (Based loosely on Close the Door, by Beth Crowley)

Bucky barnes x reader

Word count 2316

Warnings: depression, tears, isolation, feeling worthless

Summary: Reader is depressed and tries to hide it from the rest of the team. But Bucky knows the signs all too well of someone who’s not doing well.

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

“Night guys,” you said, smiling and waving to the rest of the Avengers. You had all gathered to watch a movie and you excused yourself for the night, saying you were tired. It was all fun and games. You appreciate everyone’s commentary about how unrealistic the fight scenes were. You all agreed about the mistakes that were made and had fun berating the movie.

But despite you trying to kid yourself, you couldn’t lie to your own mind, you wanted to be having fun, but you weren’t. 

You didn’t know exactly when it started, the bleak numbness that consumed you a little more each day. You turned your back on the others as they wished you good night, and dropped your plastered on smile as you rounded the corner. You didn’t have to pretend if no one was there.

You were walking up to your room, each step wearing you more out than the last. You felt tears prick your eyes but you didn’t know why. Not that you really cared. You opened your door and turned around to close it, surprised to see that Bucky wasn’t far behind you.

You paused at your door, and he greeted you. You put your smile back on, willing the tears away for now. Though you were sure it wasn’t nearly as convincing as the one you had worn all day. “What’s up Buck?” you asked. 

He stood in front of you, looking to either side of him to make sure you were alone. “Are you okay?”

You shook your head and tried to look surprised. “Yeah,” you added a laugh. “Just tired I guess.”

He crossed his arms, searching your face for a crack you hoped you had hidden. You didn’t want to have this conversion, not yet, not here. He asked agaiN, “Are you sure you’re alright? You just -”

“Buck, I swear, it’s just exhaustion. I should get to bed. Good night.” you said, shutting the door. You leaned back against it and held your breath, waiting to hear him walk away. You heard him sigh after a few moments, probably running a hand through his long hair, and you eventually heard him walk away. 

You sighed and sank to the floor, finally letting your guard down. You didn’t know why you didn’t want the others to know, you trusted them with your life. You wish you could tell them the truth and show them who you were behind closed doors, but you were terrified that if they really saw who you were that they’d hate you as much as you had come to hate yourself.

You felt the tears come, and again, you had no idea why they did. You didn’t really care anymore. Knowing why they were there wouldn’t stop them from falling. You just buried your head in between your knees and tried to contain the sobs that were causing your shoulders to shake. 

You didn’t even know why you were so upset. Nothing big had happened, there were no tragic events in your life, and everyone you knew was healthy and most of the time happy. You didn’t have a reason to be so down. And you didn’t know what had caused you to hate yourself so much. You had been a confident person up until sometime in the past few months. You were doubting yourself even though you had no reason to. 

Maybe that’s why you didn’t want to tell anyone. You couldn’t explain it, and you knew that anyone on the team would want an explanation that you couldn’t provide. 

Sometimes you just wanted someone to notice. You wanted to scream sometimes “Can’t you see that I’m not okay? Don’t you fucking notice??” But you also knew that you hid it really well. And you couldn’t be too angry with them. Bucky had just asked if you were okay and you shut the door in his face.

You sighed in frustration. Your own mind wasn’t making sense anymore. How were you supposed to deal with your own shit when you didn’t even know what you were thinking?

You sat there for a while. How long, again, you didn’t care. You just cried until your body couldn’t anymore from exhaustion. Only then could you stand to walk over to your bed. You stumbled a bit at first, trying to find your balance, but then you walked the 10 steps to your bed and fell into it. You didn’t bother to put on anything more comfortable. It wouldn’t help you sleep any better, and you were tired enough to sleep standing up if you had to.

You stared up at the ceiling for a few minutes. Could things get any worse than they were now? You supposed they could in your environment. Something could happen to someone on the team, a mission could go wrong, something along those lines. But you didn’t think it was possible for your mind to become any darker than it was.

You closed your eyes and prayed you would rest peacefully tonight. Sleep evaded you, often playing a game of hide and seek with your mind and body. You could find it impossible to keep your eyes open but yet you couldn’t fall asleep. It always confused you why your mind was so keen on keeping you awake to endure it’s torture. Like you didn’t get enough of that when you were conscious.

Tonight was one of those nights.

You tossed and turned for longer than you would’ve liked, thinking various self-deprecating thoughts and assumptions about how the team would react if they found out. There was no best case scenario in your mind. 

Eventually you did fall asleep, but it was later (or earlier) than you would have wanted to. Luckily there was nothing on the books for you until the afternoon, so you slept for as long as you could. Even though you slept until noon, you still wanted to get a few more hours than you did. But that would have to wait until you tried again tonight.

You sat up and tried to wipe the sleep from your eyes. Standing, you walk to your bathroom and turn on the shower, hoping the hot water would help jolt you awake. And if not, then you would turn the temperature all the way down. That always did the trick in desperate times.

When you finished you walk back into your room, deciding to dress down in sweatpants and a loose T-shirt. You paused in front of your door and took a few breaths, psyching yourself to put a smile on your face before you opened the door. You never left without it. You were trying to be everything that they wanted and needed you to be.

Turning the knob, you walk down the hallway and through the living area to the kitchen. There wasn’t anyone in your sights, and you shrugged it off. They were either in the gym, the lab, or out to enjoy the day. You wished you could do the same. 

Deciding it was safe enough to do so, you dropped the facade you had put on. No use in wasting your energy if you didn’t have to pretend for anyone. You opened up the fridge and pulled out the orange juice, not feeling up to eating anything solid but knowing you needed something to kickstart your system.

Reaching for a glass, you turned around and started pouring. You rubbed a hand over your tired face. How were you sleeping more and yet the days were growing longer?

“Hey, something wrong?”

You jumped a little, not having heard anyone come in. you look up to see that it was Bucky, and he had obviously just come from the gym. You tugged the corners of your lips up and shook your head. “Yeah, I’m good. Just didn’t sleep well last night.”

He laughed gently. “Is that why you got up so late?”

You chuckled before raising your eyebrows. “I suppose so, Barnes.”

You took a sip before looking back at him. “You sure you’re okay doll?”

You faltered for a moment. Did you really want to tell him? Maybe it would be nice to have someone try and understand. But you quickly shook off the thought. “Why wouldn’t I be?” you ask instead.

He shrugged and shook his head lightly. “It just seems like something’s bothering you. Whenever I ask if you’re okay you say you’re tired, yet you never look like you’re getting any sleep. I just want to know if there's anything I can do.”

You looked down and tapped your finger on the counter. He seemed genuine, and you wanted to trust him. You really did. But you were so scared that he’d see you the way that you saw yourself.

Nothing. 

Worthless

Useless

“Y/n?”

Shit, you must have spaced out. You tried a smile again, but you knew it was growing weaker. You had to get out of there. “No, I’m good. Thank you though, I appreciate it,” you said, making your way to the doorway. You heard your voice waiver and you prayed that he hadn’t noticed, but the sound of footsteps behind you confirmed that he was on to you.

Getting to your door, you knew you couldn’t say anything else without completely breaking down, so you tried to close the door behind you, but you felt something stop it. Bucky was standing in the doorway, hand against the door. 

You kept your eyes downcast, fearing that he would see the pain behind the lies or the tears that were forming in them. You tried to shut the door again but it was no use, since he was, in fact, a super soldier. 

“Please tell me what’s going on.” he said gently, stepping into the room.

You turn your back to him and cross your arms over your chest. Your breath was even but shaky, you would not have a panic attack in the presence of someone else. You felt a hand on your shoulder and you tensed, wanting to give in so badly but so afraid of what he’d think or say. How did you even let yourself crack this much?

You suddenly made a move for your bathroom, planning to shut Bucky out again, but he stopped the door before you could, again. “Don’t try and shut me out.” he said. You kept your back to him, afraid to show the panic spreading across your face. “It’s okay to have emotions. You don’t have to hide from me.”

You shook your head and said softly, “I don’t have the answers you’re looking for.”

“What are you talking about y/n?”

You turned around and met his gaze, worried about lacing his features when he saw the tears in your eyes. “I don’t even know what’s going on with me. I can’t explain it.” you let a few tears run down your cheeks as you shook your head. “I just know I’m not okay.”

You started crying harder and Bucky didn’t hesitate to pull you into his arms. Your hands curled up and were pressed between both of your chests, and you buried your head into his shoulder. He held you tightly, being your anchor right now. 

The words just started tumbling out of your mouth and you couldn’t stop them. “I don’t know what happened. I don’t know why I’m such a mess. I just started feeling so empty and like nothing mattered. I fall apart once I’m behind closed doors and there’s nothing I can do to stop it.”

“Why didn’t you say anything, doll?” he asked.

You shook your head. “I wanted to, I really did. I don’t know, I just…” you took a deep breath and closed your eyes. “I was afraid you would see me the way that I see myself. That if you knew the mess that I am you would leave me far behind.”

“Hey,” he started. “Don’t you ever think like that. First of all, we all love you here and there’s nothing that could change that. You’re a part of the team, and teams stick together. It’s okay to have emotions, it’s okay to not be strong all the time, it’s okay to break down, and it’s okay to not have a reason for any of it. Sometimes that’s how emotions work, and there’s nothing wrong with that. And there’s certainly nothing wrong with you.”

You tried to swallow the new lump forming in your throat. You shook your head against him. “I’m sorry Buck”

You felt him shake his head. “You don’t have to be. But you don’t have to be alone in this either.”

You sniffled a little and asked tentatively, “So you’re not going to leave?”

You felt him laugh a little. “Unfortunately, doll, you’re stuck with me. There’s nothing you can do about it. Push me away, shut all the doors, I’m not going anywhere.”

You laughed a little and pulled back, looking up at him. “Thank you, Buck.”

He half-smiled at you. “Anytime.”

You took a deep breath before asking, “So now what?”

“Well,” he started, “I say we just spend the rest of the day watching movies and relaxing, but I’m not sure if you had better plans.” he looked at you with his eyebrows raised.

You laughed again. “No, shockingly, I don’t. That sounds good to me.”

The two of you spent the rest of the day movie-marathoning it sitting on your bed. You started leaning against the headboard, but eventually made your way curled up into Bucky, him with his arm around you. At some point you had fallen asleep, and you drifted off into the most peaceful rest you had ever had.

[440mxs-wife]

Tea of Love

Pairing: Dean x Reader

Other Characters: Sam, Castiel, Crowley, Rowena

Imagine: You’re hunting a witch with Sam and Dean, only to fall victim to her curse.

A/N: This is my contribution to the SPN Bi-Weekly Writing Challenge offered by @supernatural-jackles. I signed up to contribute on a monthly basis, but it looks like I missed the deadline. Here it is all the same. Enjoy!

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Dean parked the Impala a good distance away from the two-story farmhouse. Far enough away to be hidden from sight, but still within running distance for a quick getaway if needed.

You had received word that a witch was causing trouble, and had tracked her to the town of Smithville, Arkansas. The plan was to sneak in to the house, with you going in through the back entrance, while Sam and Dean went in through the front door.

"All right, weapons check," Dean whispered. Each of you ejected the clip from your handguns, yours from your .380, to make sure it was full of witch-killing bullets. Satisfied, you re-inserted the clip and pulled back on the hammer so that a round was in the chamber. After a successful weapons check, Sam went up the steps and started picking the lock on the front door.

"Ready?" you asked as you turned to head for the back door.

Dean nodded. "Hey? Be careful," he remarked softly.

You sent him a quick smile. "Always, Dean. See you inside," you replied. You and Sam be careful too, Dean, you said in silent prayer.

Quickly and quietly, you made your way to the back door. The wooden steps to the porch looked like they had seen too many blistering summers and frostbitten winters to still be stable. You carefully climbed the steps, sticking to the edges where the wood appeared to be less worn.

You gingerly tested the doorknob, only to find that it turned easily in your hand. An unlocked door could mean one of two things: a careless witch or you had just walked into her trap. While you were hoping for the first option, with your luck, you had a feeling it was probably door #2. You tiptoed through the kitchen, through the living room and down the hall to the bedrooms. First bedroom on the right was clear, second one across the hall was also clear.

As you carefully approached the last bedroom, you realized that you hadn't seen Sam or Dean yet. You stopped and strained your ears for any confirmation that they had even entered the house yet. Just as you were about to resume your progress towards the bedroom door, you felt a hand on your shoulder. You whipped around, only to be confronted by the mossy green orbs of one Dean Winchester.

With your heart hammering in your chest, you took a moment for it to return to normal before continuing your trek down the hall. "What is wrong with you?" you hissed. "You shouldn't just sneak up on me like that!"

"Well, excuse me," he shot back. "First of all, I didn't expect for you to have gotten this far without running into the witch. And 'B', isn't it better to go in knowing you have backup than only hoping you do?" he retorted.

You took a deep breath before answering. "You're right. Sorry Dean," you whispered. "Let's get this witch taken down so we can blow this popstand," you replied.

Dean nodded and motioned for you to continue down the hall. You turned the doorknob and slowly swung the door open. You entered the room first to assess the situation, while Dean stood just outside the door, ready to bust in if needed.

The witch had her back to you as she sprinkled something into a bowl. All of a sudden she raised her arms above her head as if in victory and turned to face the doorway. "I was wondering when you hunters were going to show up. I've been expecting you," she smirked.

Before you could raise your weapon, she picked up the bowl and threw its contents at you. The blue powder from the bowl doused you almost completely from head to toe. As she chanted some words in Latin, the powder started to glow and burn a bit wherever it touched bare skin. You cried out in pain, at which time Dean entered the room and fired his weapon. The witch fell to the floor, dead from the witch-killing bullet he fired.

"Dean," you pleaded softly as you started to feel faint.

"Whoa, hold on there. Stay with me, sweetheart," Dean said as he rushed to catch you before you could hit the floor. He called out for Sam, who had finally caught up with you and Dean. Sam scooped you up in his arms and carried you out to the Impala.

Dean filled him in on what had happened between you and the witch. "I don't know what kind of spell she got hit with, so we're going to have to be ready for just about anything," Dean said grimly.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

You carefully opened your eyes enough to notice that you were back in your room, in your bed instead of the backseat of the Impala. You decided to sit up, only to be met with a splitting headache. A groan of pain escaped your lips as you eased back onto your pillow and draped your bandaged arm across your eyes.

There was a soft knock at your door, then you heard it creak open. "Hiya, sweetheart," Dean said softly. "How're you feeling?" he asked.

"Like I got hit by a truck. Twice," you grumbled.

Dean chuckled. "Here, I gotcha," he said as he handed you a couple of painkillers and a bottle of water. He helped you up to a sitting position, putting pillows between your back and the headboard.

"Thank you," you replied. "What the hell happened? The last thing I remember is that witch throwing a bowl of some kind of powder at me. Then I remember her chanting something, the powder burning into my skin, then you killed her," you finished.

"Well, that's about it, you collapsed after that and we brought you back here in the Impala," Dean explained. "Sam brought you in and put you on your bed," he remarked.

"How long was I out?" you asked.

"You've been out for about a day and a half, sweetheart," he remarked softly. "We called Rowena to see if she could tell what you may have been hit with, so we'd know how to counteract it. And, oh yeah, Crowley tagged along, just so you know," he grumbled.

"Oh. Fabulous," you deadpanned. "I'll bet he's just been a joy to be around," you snorted.

Dean laughed. "Yeah, he said he was bored in Hell, so he latched on to Mummy's magic bag to show up here," he grinned.

You reached over and took Dean's hand in yours. "Hey, in case I forgot to tell you, Dean....thank you for getting me out of there and taking care of me here," you remarked softly.

He shifted a little in his seat and nervously rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, sure, no problem. All in a day's work, you know," he said as he jumped up from the chair. "Um, I'm uh....gonna just....yeah. I'll check in on you later," Dean then bolted out of your room.

What the hell was that all about? you thought, as you replayed the conversation in your mind. When you got to the part where you took his hand, you mentally smacked yourself in the forehead. He was fine until then, you realized. After that it was awkward, because he doesn't want you to get the wrong idea. He's telling you that he doesn't think of you in 'that way'. You leaned your head back against the headboard and squeezed your eyes shut, willing the tears not to fall.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

It's been almost ten years since you came to live in the bunker. You met the Winchesters through a mutual friend, Sheriff Donna Hanscum, whom you've known since high school. She never knew you were a hunter until after Sam and Dean showed up at that spa she went to. You had caught wind of some strange things happening at that spa, so you went in with her, but undercover as a patient.

You and Sam clicked instantly, becoming best friends. You both nerded out about the same things, like books, sci-fi, and research. You liked the same kinds of movies and were more at home in a library than the bar.

You and Dean were a different story. At first, you didn't get along at all, because he thought you would be someone else he'd have to be responsible for. That is, until you stepped in front of the swipe of a werewolf's claws to save his life. Despite your condition, you still managed to fire off three silver bullets at its heart to kill it before collapsing from your injury. After that, Dean seemed to see you as a fellow hunter, rather than a civilian he had to constantly keep watch over.

Too bad he didn't also see you as a woman--full of passion, kindness and understanding, with eyes only for him. You watched as he showered his attention and affections on countless other women, just not on the one woman who truly knew and loved him. So, you handled your feelings by using the Winchester Method: you shoved them down out of the way and pretended that they didn't exist.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

A couple of hours later, you carefully got out of bed and wandered into the kitchen. You picked up the teakettle, filled it with water and added several pinches of your special blend of tea. While you waited, you grabbed your favorite cup from the cabinet and took a seat at the table.

"Well hello, dear! Nice to see ye up and around, 'specially after what ye've been through, darlin'," a voice from behind you said. You turned to see it was Rowena, which brought a small smile to your face.

"Hello, Rowena," you replied. "Any luck figuring out what we're up against?" you asked.

"Not yet, dearie. Still workin' on it, but don't ye worry abou' it," Rowena assured you.

"I hope so," you murmured. "Would you like some tea?" you asked.

Rowena shook her head and smiled. At that moment, Sam, Dean and Castiel came into the kitchen and walked over to the table. Sam and Cas each squeezed your shoulder as they took their seats. "Hey, sweetheart, you must be feeling better," Dean remarked as he kissed the top of your head.

You smiled and nodded. The teakettle whistled that it was ready to serve, so you rose from the table. "You guys want some tea? I made some from my secret stash," you grinned.

The boys all nodded, so you got out three extra cups, along with the cream, sugar and honey. You poured cups of tea for everyone, then resumed your seat at the table. You added a bit of creamer and some sugar to your tea.

"So, what's in this 'special blend' of tea you made?" Sam asked.

"Well, it's got some dried orange zest in it, some cinnamon, black tea leaves, ground nutmeg. And a few other secret ingredients," you winked conspiratorially.

"Mmm, I think it's delicious," Cas remarked as he took another sip, with Sam nodding in agreement.

Dean watched as you absently stirred your tea, while the others talked among themselves. Your furrowed brow showed him you were still coming to terms with what had happened in the past few days.

It had not yet been determined what kind of curse you'd been hit with, and he knew you had to be worried. Your eyes glistened a bit with unshed tears which told him you might be more than a little scared of that unknown. You stood up from the table just as he was about to reach out for your hand to comfort you.

"I think I'll go take a shower. Might feel a bit more human if I do, after wearing the same clothes for the past few days. Excuse me," you murmured as you left the kitchen. Dean stared after you, wanting so badly to help you. To show you it was okay to be scared, and that he would do everything in his power to figure out how to reverse the spell.

At that moment, Crowley waltzed into the kitchen. "Hello, Mother, Feathers, Moose, Squirrel," he drawled. "Where's our little Mouse? Can't complete the clubhouse roll call unless she's here to sound off," he smirked.

"She left to go take a shower," Dean grumbled as he brushed past Crowley out of the kitchen.

Crowley noticed Dean's full cup of tea and took a drink. "This is wonderful, delicious, wherever did it come from?" he asked. Sam told him it was from your own homemade blend of tea and spices. Crowley shrugged and continued to drink the tea.

As the men continued to drink the tea, Rowena noticed a bit of a change in each one. Their thoughts seemed to become more focused towards you, and had also turned more amorous in nature. Before she could voice her observations, Sam left the table after downing the rest of his tea.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

After your shower, you brought your favorite book and settled into a chair in the library. Once you had made yourself comfortable, Sam approached you and knelt beside your chair. He smiled up at you as he took your hand in his and brushed his lips across the back of it.

"Sam, what's going on?" you asked in bewilderment.

"N-nothing, I just wanted to spend some time with you, be around you. What book are you reading?" he asked.

You were a bit confused at the sudden focus of Sam's attention on you. But you pushed it aside for the moment and explained the plot of the book you were reading. He asked if he could read it aloud to you, which you politely declined. Then he broke out the best version of his puppy-dog eyes, and you were powerless to resist. You relented with a smile, and he suggested that you curl up with him on the couch to be more comfortable.

Moving from your chair to the couch, you made sure to bring your favorite blanket with you. Once you got all settled, you showed Sam where you left off in your book so he could start reading. The gentle lilt of Sam's voice as he read to you caused your eyelids to feel heavy until you could no longer keep them open.

Dean walked through the library just in time to see you curled up with Sam, and for Sam to press a kiss to your forehead. An uncomfortable feeling settled into his chest, but he had no idea why. He shook it off for the moment and headed for the garage to work on the Impala.

About an hour later, you awoke to find Sam's arms around you and his cheek pressed against your forehead. You tried to extract yourself, but Sam tightened his embrace a bit more. "Mmm, don't go Baby, stay here with me a little longer," he mumbled.

Baby? you wondered. Since when am I 'Baby' to anyone around here?!? your thoughts screamed.

You managed to wriggle yourself out of his arms and into a upright position. "Sam, wake up. Sam! Wake up!" you shook his arm to try and rouse him. Your efforts were unsuccessful, because he stayed asleep. Puzzled, you picked up your book and your blanket then returned to your room.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The next morning, you woke to find that Castiel had set the table for the two of you to have breakfast. "Good morning," he greeted you with a wide smile.

Not quite awake yet, you answered him with a yawn then a smile. "Good morning, Cas. What's going on here?" you asked, gesturing towards the table.

"I thought it would be nice to have breakfast made for you when you awakened, Honeybee," he stated.

'Honeybee'? What is going on with the men in this bunker lately?!? you thought. "Well, you certainly brought out one of my favorites, peanut butter and banana toast," you grinned.

You reached for two slices of bread from the wrapper. Cas took them from your hands before you could put them in the toaster. "Please, allow me," he said. He added the bread to be toasted and proudly pushed down on the lever.

When it was finished, the bread popped up, perfectly golden brown, with no burnt edges. Cas placed the toast on a plate and set it on the table. Just as he was about to pick up the knife to spread the peanut butter, you stopped him. "Cas, not that I don't appreciate it, but I don't mind fixing my own toast. You've done so much already, why don't you take a little break?" you suggested.

His face fell a bit, then all of a sudden lit up. "I just remembered that you like to drink milk with your peanut butter toast. Be back in just a moment," he grinned, tapping the end of your nose before heading to the fridge. Cas returned shortly with a small glass of cold milk. "Here you are, Honeybee," he remarked shyly.

"Thank you, Cas. Exactly what I needed. So, what are your plans today?" you asked.

"I'm glad you asked. I was going to see if you would like to go on a walk with me, maybe see some wildflowers? I know of a lovely field we could visit, if you are interested....?" he asked, his voice full of hope.

You were planning on doing some research to try and find something to counteract the curse. You also didn't want to be too far away from the bunker in case a cure was found. From the look on Castiel's face, though, you couldn't bear to disappoint him.

"That sounds lovely, Cas. We could leave in an hour, if you wish. That would give me time to finish my breakfast, take a shower and all that," you added.

"I shall endeavor to keep myself busy until you return, my sweet Honeybee," Cas said as he took hold of your hand and gently kissed the back. With a whoosh of his wings, he was gone.

As soon as he had gone out of sight, you slumped over the table, putting your head in your hands. Dean arrived in the kitchen shortly after hearing you let out a groan of frustration. "What's with you this morning?" he asked.

You returned to an upright position. "Good morning, Dean. Cas made me breakfast today, which was very sweet, and now he wants me to go with him to check out a field of wildflowers. I think there's something very strange going on around here. I wish I knew what it was," you grumbled.

"Why is Cas wanting to spend time with you and do things for you 'strange'? Do you not enjoy his company? I mean, if you don't want to go, just tell him. Don't string him along, Princess," Dean retorted.

You looked at Dean with a mixture of shock, anger and hurt on your face. "Like I said, something strange is going on around here. First Sam, then Cas, now you," you retorted as you bolted from your chair.

Dean closed his eyes and instantly felt remorse for what he had said, because he knew you weren't like that. You didn't play games with people's emotions, and when you loved someone, you did it with your whole heart. Unfortunately, doing so had led to your heart being broken by too many others along the way.

He understood about your independent nature, which was one of the things he admired about you. To have anyone do anything for you was sometimes hard for you to accept. You were so used to being the one who cared for or catered to others, not so much the other way around.

As he gave it more thought, he realized that neither Sam nor Cas had shown any romantic interest in you until recently. Dean began to wonder if maybe you had a point about strange things going on in the bunker. He promised himself that when you came back from your outing with Cas, that he would apologize.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

You and Cas spent a lovely afternoon walking through a field of wildflowers. Cas told you about every species of flower and what each color meant. He found a spot underneath a willow tree, where he produced a picnic basket containing assorted fruits and cheeses. You showed him how to make flower crowns as someone had once shown you. Then you placed one on his head and took a picture.

Upon your return to the bunker, you searched for a vase to hold the wildflowers you and Cas had picked. As you arranged the flowers, Cas placed his hands on your shoulders, then began to run them up and down your arms. When you had finished with the flowers, Cas took one of your hands in his and led you into the library.

Cas punched some buttons on his phone. After appearing quite frustrated at times, he finally relaxed and music started playing from his phone. He pulled you into his arms and started dancing with you, a love-struck grin on his face.

At one point, Cas spun you out away from him, which is the exact moment that Dean walked into the library. He looked at you and Cas dancing with a raised eyebrow, which caused your face to grow warm. "C-Cas, th-thank you for a lovely afternoon," you stammered. "Sorry," you mumbled as you brushed past Dean and out of the room.

"Cas? Is there something going on between you two?" Dean asked.

A large grin spread across Cas' face as he sighed deeply before answering Dean's question. "I'm not sure, Dean. I've never felt the way I do except when I'm with her. I would be the luckiest man in all of Creation if she loved me," he answered dreamily. Then he seemed to snap back to reality. "I must go, I am needed elsewhere," Cas said, returning to what Dean considered "normal" for Cas.

Dean shook his head, even more confused as to what was going on. First, you were snuggled up with Sam, then dancing with Castiel. He decided to check in with Rowena to see if she knew anything more.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

While Dean was in the library trying to figure things out, you were sitting on the edge of your bed trying to do the same thing. A knock on your door interrupted your thoughts. Your visitor was literally the last person you ever expected to see. Crowley had on an apron, covered in flour and bits of what looked like cake batter stuck to it.

"Good evening, Love," he bowed and took your hand in his. "I was wondering if you would consider, um, helping me with a small problem. You see, someone told me you were a fan of cheesecakes, and I ran into some difficulty trying to make you one. Might I request the honor of your assistance in the kitchen, so you can show me the proper....technique?" he suggested.

It took every ounce of self-control you had not to break out into laughter or tears. The absurd events of the last two days were leading you to believe the witch put an insanity curse on you. Quickly regaining your composure, you told Crowley that you would meet him in the kitchen in about 10 minutes. "Until then, my darling," he remarked softly, placing a lingering kiss on your cheek.

As soon as the door was closed, you sank down on the edge of the bed again. "This is too weird," you whispered to yourself. "Now Crowley wants to spend time with me?? This is some curse I've got on me. I think it's making me lose my mind," you mused.

When you opened your door, you heard a heated argument occurring in the kitchen between Sam, Cas and Crowley. You walked slowly to the kitchen, catching bits and pieces of the harsh words spoken between the men. Each one claimed to love you more than the other two, and promised to fight anyone who dared try and take you away.  Insults were traded and fists were raised, ready to do battle.

You turned around and were headed back to your room when you ran smack into Dean. "Well, Princess, looks like you hit the jackpot in there," he snarled, his arms folded across his chest.

"I--" was all you could say.

"Congratulations, you've got every woman's fantasy going on in that kitchen. Three men fighting for her affections," he taunted.

"Not every woman, Dean. Not me," you choked out as you pushed away from him, tears streaming down your face.

Dammit! How did I end up doing and saying the exact opposite of what I wanted? Dean thought. I need to go talk to Rowena, see if she knows anything else about this curse, he decided. First things first, though, he was going to put a stop to what was happening in the kitchen.

"ENOUGH!" he thundered. Sam, Castiel and Crowley all turned to look at Dean. "Everyone retreat to a neutral corner until we can figure out what's going on," he ordered.

Dean turned down the hallway to Rowena's room. As he came around the corner, you briefly met his gaze as you passed him in the hallway, only to quickly drop it again. Dean reached out his hand for yours. "Wait," he pleaded.

You shook your head at him, fresh tear tracks evident on your cheeks. "No, Dean. I don't want to talk to you right now. I never meant for any of this to happen. I think it's best if I remove myself from the equation for the time being. At least until Rowena can figure out how to reverse the spell," you finished. With that, you closed and locked your bedroom door.

Dean's heart ached to hear the pain in your voice and to see your tear-stained face. He knocked on Rowena's door and entered her room when she granted him access. "What can I do fer ye, Dean?" she asked in her lilting accent.

He mentioned how he had just left the kitchen, where Sam, Cas and her beloved son were fighting over you. "They've all been paying extra attention to her, being all romantic and stuff. What's weird, is that they've never even shown any kind of interest in her before," Dean explained.

"Sam's reading with her and snuggling on the couch, Cas is taking her out for a picnic and to pick wildflowers." He turned to Rowena, pointed his finger at her and narrowed his eyes. "Your son is wearing an apron, asking her to teach him how to bake a damn cheesecake," he huffed. "I swear, it's as if that witch cast a--" he broke off.

"A love spell?" Rowena asked. "Tha's exactly what it was," she confirmed.

"Can you reverse it?" Dean asked.

"I can, but.....," she started.

"But what?" Dean asked.

"It's no' real love that Samuel, Castiel and Fergus have for her. When they realize that fact, it's bound to be a bit awkward at first. They may act a little distant towards her, and she will think she’s done something wrong to make them pull away. She'll believe that the friendship she has with each of them has been ruined, that it's over. It could break her kind and generous heart," Rowena explained.

Dean dropped his gaze to the floor. He knew Rowena was right, and that you would probably isolate yourself in an attempt to maintain order in the bunker.

"Of course, once the right man declares his feelings for the wee lassie, her heart will mend. In time, anyway. Then Samuel, Castiel and Fergus won't feel like they have to stay away from her," she continued.

Dean noticed how she had suddenly focused her attention on him and scoffed. "Whoa, do you mean me? That I should declare my feelings for her? I'm not--"

"Aren't ye?" Rowena asked softly. "Search your heart, Dean. Ye've been in love with her for a while now, haven't ye? Seeing her together with another man, let alone three? Doing the type of romantic things that ye've thought abou' doin' with her? I'd say it's enough to make any normal man just a wee bit jealous. I can only imagine what it's doin' to ye," she remarked.

"Pfft," was the best response he could muster for the moment. "Start working on that spell reversal. I need to head into town for some supplies," Dean replied.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The next morning, Rowena announced that she had prepared the antidote for the witch's love spell. Turns out, it was your tea that had triggered the exaggerated feelings of love. You touched the tea blend with your fingers to add it to the water in the teakettle. Then, the effects of the spell were transferred to whomever drank the tea.

Each man drank the concoction and waited for its effects to kick in, which didn't take long once the antidote was consumed. As predicted, there were profuse apologies to you from all three men. They all assured you that though they didn't think of you romantically, they still loved you in their own way. You smiled and assured them that you were fine, no harm done, that you knew that the right someone was still out there.

But behind your closed bedroom door, it was a different story. At night, you laid awake, staring at the ceiling. You understood that their attention to you was only because of the spell.

You remembered how Sam, Castiel and Crowley all looked at you. You tried not to think about how it would feel to have Dean look at you just once the way they did. Still, you knew that the chances of Dean feeling that way about you for real were slim to none. Especially after everything he said while the others were under the spell.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Today marked a full week since you'd gone into hiding, emerging only for little more than a shower and something to eat. You took most of your meals in your room, instead of eating at the table with everyone else. Dean was growing increasingly worried about you, and was determined to get you to break out of your sanctuary.

He knocked at your door relentlessly, trying to coax you out with offers of a movie marathon with your favorite snacks. He even suggested a midnight stargazing outing in the Impala. However, nothing seemed to be working.

At one point you heard, "You can't ignore me forever, sweetheart," he muttered against your door. Oh yeah? You thought defiantly. Watch me.

Halfway through week two of your self-imposed exile, you needed a new book to read. You carefully unlocked and opened your bedroom door, then looked down the hall. No one was in sight in either direction, so you tiptoed out of your room and into the library. You chose a nice, thick book, then rushed back to your room before anyone could see you. Once back inside your room, you quickly closed and re-locked the door, breathing a deep sigh of relief.

"Hey, sweetheart," a voice rumbled from someone sitting in the chair in the corner.

The heavy book dropped from your hands and nearly fell on your toes. You gasped in surprise and clutched at your hammering heart. "What did I tell you about sneaking up on me?!? Not to do it, if I recall," you retorted.

"Didn't really leave me much choice, though, did you? I wasn't sure if you ever wanted to see me again, but I wanted to see you. Been hiding in here for almost two weeks now," Dean remarked softly.

"I've had my reasons, Dean. This whole curse thing has left me more confused than ever. Sam, Cas and even Crowley never thought of me romantically until that spell came along. And you? You've made your feelings clear about the whole situation at every turn.

"So," you continued. "On the one hand, it takes a 'love spell' for guys like Sam, Cas and Crowley to want to be with someone like me. On the other hand, when I am with someone like them, you don't like it and make nasty remarks about the whole thing. Please tell me, Dean, where's the incentive to make me want to be anywhere but in my room by myself? Hmm?" you challenged.

Dean rose from the chair in the corner and strode over to the door where you were still standing. He stood close enough for you to detect his woodsy cologne, mixed with the mint of his mouthwash. He reached up and tenderly tucked a stray lock of hair behind your ear.

"I understand how you feel. But, before I do this, I need you to know that I have always loved you," he said softly. The hand that had so recently fixed your hair slid around to the back of your head. It pulled you closer until your lips meshed with Dean's in a hungry, demanding kiss.

Dean swallowed the soft moan of pleasure that escaped your lips. His free arm snaked around your waist to bring you flush against his body. His kisses roamed everywhere, trying to leave no territory untouched. Your cheeks, your neck, collarbone and more was all fair game for Dean. "So beautiful," he murmured against your shoulder.

"Dean," you whispered. You reached up to cup Dean's face with your hands, stroking his cheek with your thumbs. You tangled your fingers into his spiky hair and gently tugged on it, earning a groan of appreciation.

Dean's hands roamed up and down your back, gripping and releasing the fabric of your shirt. When the need for air became too great, the kissing was broken, leaving you and Dean each trying to catch your breath. You put your foreheads together as your breathing slowly returned to normal.

Dean took your hands and guided you to sit next to him on the edge of your bed. "Baby, I'm so sorry for what I said to you before when that whole thing with the spell was going on. I guess it was because I was jealous of Sam, Cas and even Crowley," he admitted with a sheepish grin.

"Oh, my love. There wasn't anything to be jealous of. It was kind of weird, all of a sudden having those guys chasing after me," you giggled. You brought your hand down to cup his cheek, running your thumb over his stubbled jawline. "It's always been you that I've been in love with for so long. But, I thought you'd only ever see me as a fellow hunter, or at most, a best friend. Never as the woman who loves you," you replied softly.

"Darlin', what I see before me is a woman who lights up a room whenever she walks into it. A woman with a kind and generous heart that tends to put the needs of others before her own. I see a woman with an exceptional sense of humor, who's smart and sexy as hell. And just as she has chosen me, I choose her. Every time," he finished.

"I love you, Dean," you said softly.

"I love you too, sweetheart," he replied as he leaned in to recapture your lips in a soft, sweet kiss.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Tags: @supernatural-jackles @wayward-mikaelson @jawritter @deanwanddamons @janicho88 @magssteenkamp @lyarr24 @miss-nerd95 @hobby27 @jay-and-dean @waywardbaby

[softsillytwsted]

The Sleep of Blue Roses

I had this thought in my head of a what if story about an Ace betrayal and couldn’t stop myself from writing this until it was done. This is honestly not what I usually write because it’s kinda dark, but hey - it fits October doesn’t it?

Warnings: implied character death, implied domestic abuse, angst, the slow crawl of helplessness

Somewhere between now and back when you were still here, Deuce never understood limits. How can he? You were magicless, but you selflessly faced those impossibly stronger than you and succeeded. Deuce felt that nothing was out of reach when he was with you, with Ace, with Grim, Jack, Epel, Sebek...

When did things go wrong?

After weeks of strategizing a way to rescue Grim, who’s habit of eating everyone’s negative energy finally caused him to overblot, the gray monster was finally back to normal. Looking back, Deuce could only see how reckless and impossible the task was. They were up against a monster that had the combined magic and unique magic of the 7 strongest students from an academy of elites. The situation that promised death loomed over everyone, yet with you there, no one had any doubts they would fail. Not Riddle, not Leona, not Azul, Kalim, Vil, Idia, nor Malleus. And the impossible was made possible.

And you left this world thinking the impossible can be made possible.

“I arrived in Twisted Wonderland right after my mom contacted me,” you admitted shyly. “I haven’t talked to her since I was a kid because my dad always told me to stay away from her but... I really want to see her again.”

You were in front of the mirror, bags packed and your friends surrounding you. You can finally return back home and with a piece of the Dark Mirror in your hands you can communicate with them whenever you desired.

Deuce beamed at you, “It’ll go great, I know it will! My mother is always kind to me and she wanted what was best for me. I’m sure yours will be the same too!”

Ace hugged you before you left. “It’s seriously going to get so boring without you around. You better contact us or I’ll go over there and kick your ass.” Jokes aside, you and Deuce could tell by the glint in Ace’s eyes that he meant every word. You smiled at him then, because despite knowing each other for a year, the three of you shared an inseparable bond.

“I promise.”

You left them.

Days passed, then weeks, with no word from you. After one month, Ace angrily stormed into the Mirror Chamber and demanded to go see you.

“They do not exist.”

“Of course they don’t fucking exist, they’re in another world- now lead me to them!”

“They do not exist in this world or in any other world.”

“What the fuck do you mean by that!? They were here just a month ago!” Ace lunged at the mirror. His fists futilely pounded on its glassy surface before he tried to shake the mirror out of its placeholder. Deuce had to restrain the wildly thrashing Ace before the ginger stilled in his arms- lifeless. “Whatever, I’m over it.” He took a deep breath and walked away, ignoring Deuce’s and Grim’s cries after him.

If Deuce took better notice of the chill that followed Ace’s steps, maybe things would’ve been different. Instead, he visited the Mirror Chamber until a year passed and he too gave up- only visiting again on occasion, whereas Grim still stops by everyday.

Ace’s friendship with Deuce and Grim were strained at best. The ginger acted the same, but something was different. Like a cherished photo misplaced. Deuce didn’t question when Ace started hanging out with Kalim and Jamil more and Deuce and the other first years less. Nor did he stop to think about why Ace volunteered to do errands for Azul and Crowley. He even looked away when he saw Ace chatting it up with the two princes of the school.

They graduated like this without mentioning the name Y/n.

***

“AAH! Oh no are you alright?” Deuce yelled after you when you somersaulted from a heavy onslaught of his color-changing magic. “I’m so sorry!”

You could only giggle at your current state. Ace warned you not to get close to Deuce while he was changing the colors of the roses, but you assumed being behind Deuce would be safe. You were now paying for your mistakes. “Don’t worry about it Deuce,” you paused. The smile you flashed him revealed a weariness he couldn’t comprehend. “It was my fault too.”

***

Two years later, Deuce finally passed his test to become part of Rose Kingdom’s Elite Division. Right after orientation, he was pleasantly surprised by a visit from Ace who threw an arm over the bluenette’s shoulders and cheekily grinned at him like the two never grew apart. For a long moment, Deuce believed they never did as the two went to a bar to celebrate and catch up. Deuce breezed through all the sleepless nights he spent studying and training; Ace regaled his continuation of his internship. 

“They loved me so much they made a new position to get me to stay!” he said. “And guess what? He said that if he becomes prime minister he’ll make me one of his advisors. Not too bad huh?”

Deuce couldn’t be happier for Ace. He always wondered what Ace, who blanched at the idea of the future, would do with his life. He admits, however, that politics was the furthest thing he would ever imagine his friend doing. “Being in the political scene can be dangerous I hear. Luckily I can assign my own bodyguards, including a certain elite policeman.”

This was news to Deuce. He was unaware of any political strife that would need the Elite Division, which specialized in magic-related crimes, to act as bodyguards... Maybe he needs to follow the news more closely. Regardless, Deuce grinned with all teeth and slammed his fist in his palm. “Just leave it to me, no way in hell I’ll let my buddy get hurt.”

“...Glad I can count on you... buddy.”

***

Deuce helped you up and tried to wipe off the paint on your uniform. You didn’t bother telling him that he was only smearing the paint into your clothes because of the look of concentration on his face telling you how hard he wanted to make this right. “Oh Deuce, you ended up painting the finished roses blue too.”

“What? Oh no...” he groaned at the extra work he’ll have to do. Will he be in time for the Unbirthday Party?

“Hey relax, I’ll help you out! We should be finished within an hour if we hurry,” you reassured him. He flashed you a grateful smile which you returned with a soft smile of your own.

***

The time between then and the election passed with a blink of an eye. Once his candidate won, Ace swaggered over to Deuce’s department with the confidence and authority that didn’t fit a 21 year-old advisor. It didn’t take long for Deuce to find himself a part of Ace’s security detail. It took an even shorter amount of time for Deuce to feel like he was slowly crawling into a waking nightmare.

Deuce tried to ignore it, tried to give Ace the benefit of the doubt, but he couldn’t excuse the things Ace did right in front of him. Dismissals of important emergency committees, deregulation of organizations with authority, increased spending on militarized weapons. The public blamed all these new policies on their new prime minister, but Deuce knew who the real mastermind was.

It didn’t take long for him to confront Ace - especially after he realized that the recent strings of overblot cases popping up across the country were a direct result of Ace’s policies.

“So what are you going to do about it?” Ace sneered. Deuce looked away; the gun in his hand hung lifelessly by his side. “You couldn’t even stop Y/n from leaving to die. You definitely won’t stop me from having my way with this country.”

“What?”

“Don’t give me that... You know exactly what I’m talking about.” Ace looked at Deuce like he was a bug beneath his shoe, but the quake in his eyes said otherwise. “You’re hereby dismissed from your post. If the next time I see you and you try to stop me, I’ll crush you.”

Ace walked away from Deuce- just like he did years ago.

“I’ve done too much to have you get in my way.” 

***

Deuce felt so lucky to have met you, despite the rocky beginning. You never hesitated to help and encourage him. Sometimes, when his vague idea of an honor student wasn’t enough to guide him, he would look to you.

He wondered if you knew how much he wanted to repay you for being you.

He wondered if he can one day be someone you would be proud to know.

He wondered... what you thought of him.

***

The familiar halls of Night Raven College felt comforting - a temporary balm to the turmoil Deuce felt lately. He had hoped to see some of his old teachers and Crowley, but the school’s headmaster was tasked to find the Magic Mirror, the legendary mirror that the Beautiful Queen used once upon a time. No doubt, this was Ace’s doing.

When Deuce reached the Mirror Chamber, he was surprised to find Grim was nowhere to be found. Deuce ignored the churning in his stomach and thought to himself that maybe he was just early. After all these years, Grim never stopped believing that you would return to them. Crowley always spoke with pity in his voice about how the little monster would visit the Dark Mirror everyday- waiting, staring.

Deuce respectfully crouched in front of the mirror - like a mourner in front of a grave. 

“Hello Y/n I’m sorry it’s been a while since my last visit,” Deuce began, he softly smiled while thinking of all the memories he had of you. “I was able to pass the qualifications to be part of the Elite Division. One of my first assignments was actually to guard Ace, can you believe that?”

He paused and tried to gulp down the lump in his throat. “Um… about Ace he… he’s made it big as a politician. He’s my friend and I was happy for him but… a part of me is scared. He’s not the same anymore after you left Y/n. Looking back, I can’t help but think how reckless and dumb we were to risk our lives against people we had no chance against. But we always made it through thanks to you.” Every single sentence, every single word came out in a rush. It was a confession to all the sins he committed letting Ace go. A realization that he could never be the man he wanted you to be proud of.

“You somehow make the impossible possible… I… I really need that right now...” He begged, “Please… I need...”

Deuce didn’t realize he was crying until the tears flowed down his cheeks and onto his clenched fists. He looked up at the Dark Mirror and activated it. “Oh Dark Mirror, show me Y/n.”

“...”

“They do not exist.”

***

“Hey Deuce,” you began as you picked up a blue rose. The two of you were almost done cleaning up the mess Deuce made and you decided now was the time to take a breather. Deuce slouched in the shade of the hedge, too tired to do anything but hum to show he was listening. “In my world, blue roses were never found naturally, so they symbolized the impossible. But after years of research, my world was able to grow one.”

You handed Deuce the rose, its petals shone brilliantly despite its withering edges. Deuce took it curiously and the two of you shared a sweet smile.

“They now symbolize miracles.”

[thefatedthoughtofyou]

Another possible chubby Az prompt for you my dear 😊 Crowley sees him in a form-fitting robe for the first time, all white and curve-hugging and pretty. In the sun it’s almost translucent, and every plump part of Az is on display. He looks like a painting come to life. Crowley genuinely has a nosebleed over it. Like, a real one. It’s really embarrassing. He needs a tissue. Maybe he snakes out a bit, gets scaly and can’t say his S’s right for a while lol

( Thank you so much nonny!!!! i loved both the prompts you sent!!!! so much!!! this one ended up shorter than i intended but i am so very tired! it turned out super cute though i think so it’s still a win!!! thanks again i hope you enjoy it!!! )

Ao3

The Garden In Between

It had been… days. Since the ark. Maybe weeks… Possibly months. Crowley squinted up at the sun, looked at the smooth stone buildings around him, let his fingers drift over the cool surface. It may have been years. But not many years. Not enough years for the buildings around him to look like ruins. So not many years at all. He wandered through the streets, moving nimbly around some giggling children as they ran past, chasing each other, smiles on their faces. Crowley smiled as he watched then stumble around the nearest corner. And then he smelled it.

An Angel.

He sniffed, his tongue running along his lip to get a better scent. He closed his eyes and focused. He’d been thinking about the Angel just yesterday. He’d seen some children eating something that looked sickeningly sweet and he knew, the Angel would love it. He sniffed again, deeply, and opened his eyes. It was his Angel alright. Now he just needed to find him.

He checked the market first, eyes moving over the food stalls quickly. He didn’t have to focus hard, Aziraphale was easy to spot. He nearly always stuck out like a sore thumb. Crowley supposed he must stick out as well, he only ever used the bare minimum of his magics to hide himself. And these days it was really just his eyes he needed to hide. People tended not to notice, or if they noticed, they didn’t say much. Either way, he couldn’t be bothered with that now, there were more pressing matters at hand. Matters like where an Angel might go in the city. An Angel who loved food and wasn’t anywhere near the food.

The garden.

The words had barely crossed Crowley’s mind before his feet were carrying him away. Down two side streets, three alleys, and a short cut through a rather grim looking building. He reached the garden gates and peeked inside. The garden was enormous, and beautiful, full of flowers and trees and life. He couldn’t see the Angel, but he could feel him. He stepped inside, wiggling his toes in the soft grass beneath his feet, as he walked.

He moved slowly, his fingers dragging over tree bark, and thick leaves, a gentle smile on his lips as sweet smells rushed through his nose. The sun shone through the trees at their thickest, shining rays of light illuminating the greenery beneath them. Crowley’s chest felt lighter and lighter the deeper into the garden he walked.

He could hear a stream now, the water gurgling in a far-off whisper. He followed the soft sounds, eventually meeting with the small path of water. He dipped his toe in, shivering at the chill. He followed the stream, this garden reminding him so much of the last one he’d been in. The day he’d met the Angel. He squinted into the sunlight passing through the trees, he could see something now. Something bright. He thought it might be sunlight reflecting off of water. He stepped through the trees, onto the banks of a small lake. And it was there that he found his Angel.

Crowley gasped, a strangled sort of sound, at the sight of the Angel. He was standing on a dark flat rock that reached out into the lake, the water just covering his ankles. But it wasn’t the rock that had Crowley gasping, nor was it the water lapping at the Angel’s pale skin. No. It was the sunlight. And the way it shone just behind the Angel, lighting him up. Crowley could see everything. Every curve, every dimple and roll. He tried to swallow, his throat closing around a strange clicking noise. The Angel turned then, toward the sound, and oh, this was so much worse.

The light was hitting him from behind now, his hips now outlined a beautiful shadow against his robes. Crowley could see him smiling, smiling at him, as he walked closer. His brain began to boil, his knees shaking and bumping together as the Angel moved closer.

“Crowley? Is that you?” his voice sounded far away, but he could hear in that voice that Aziraphale knew it was him, of course it was him, who else would it be? Crowley tried to answer, tried speak, to say anything, anything at all. His hands were shaking now as his eyes fell to the Angel’s thighs, the light behind him illuminating the way they moved when he walked, so perfect, so soft. Crowley longed to touch them, to feel them move that way beneath his palms. To know what it felt like to sink his fingers into the meat of the Angel’s thighs, and hear what heavenly noises he might make.

“Crowley?” there’s concern in that voice now. And Crowley knows his eyes have changed, he can feel them. And he can feel other things as well, scales. Along his arms, and his neck, and maybe a few along his face, he can feel them, pressing up out of his skin the closer the Angel gets to him. And then he’s there, right in front of him, looking like Heaven and making Crowley burn.

“Dear me, you’re bleeding.” His voice is much higher now. And it’s now that Crowley’s throat begins to work, how well it’s working remains to be seen.

“Ngk.” Is all that come out. And then the Angel’s fingers wrap around his wrist gently. He leads him to the water and makes him sit. He miracles a cloth and begins wiping at Crowley’s face, just under his nose. His nose was bleeding. How embarrassing. He blinks, slowly, his brain so very fuzzy. The Angel being so close not helping that. He shakes his head and comes back to himself, a little. He swats at Aziraphale weakly, trying to push his tending hands away.

“Now please. Let me help you. What happened to you?” the Angel sounds almost mad now. And it clicks, after a second, that he thinks someone has done this to Crowley. He nearly chokes on the irony. He moves his hand to Aziraphale’s wrist. Halting his ministrations.

“Sss’okay Angel, it jussst happens ssssometimes.” He takes the cloth from the Angel slowly, and he lets him, but only just. He doesn’t move away but he let’s Crowley tend to himself. He wipes at his face until the rag comes away clean.

“What on earth happened? I haven’t seen you this… snake like, since… well, since the beginning.” He says, sitting a little straighter and looking out over the water.

“Right. Yeah. It’ssss gardensss.” He says, internally flinching at the drawn out S’s, his tongue was in shambles in mouth, he could feel it, forked, flicking over his teeth restlessly. The flinch may also have been due to the completely, and badly, made up excuse, but Crowley was going to aim it at the tongue situation and not think about it any further.  

“Gardens?” the Angel asks, looking at him, brows furrowed. Crowley swallows.

“Yeah, gardens… they…” he has no idea where he was going with this.

“Bring back memories?” the Angle supplied.

Sure. Let’s go with that. Crowley nods, not trusting his mouth.

“Oh course. I’m so sorry, I didn’t think. I didn’t realize.” He said, sounding so very sincere.

“Ssss’nothing.” Crowley said, waving his worries away.

“Your scales seem to be fading.” He says, an offering, an attempt to make him feel better. Of course they were fading. Crowley was all but forcing them out, he hadn’t looked at the Angel since they’d sat down. He was so close now. It wasn’t safe to look directly at him this close up. Crowley was genuinely afraid he may just turn fully back into a snake. He glanced toward the Angel, he could see his robes bunched and resting on the soft curves of his thighs, his round stomach nestled perfectly above them.

“Oh, there they go again.” Aziraphale sighed. Crowley looked away again, feeling scales pressing forward, across his cheeks and down his neck, and thought maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to be a snake right now. He could just… slither away.

“Are you certain you’re alright?” the Angel sounded worried now. Crowley did his best to meet his eyes.

“Sss’fine. Nothing to worry about.” he shook his head, not sure if he was shaking it to go with his words, or if he was trying to shake his tongue into submission. He was sure it didn’t matter. Aziraphale was still giving him that look.

“It’ll fade Angel. I’m fine.” The look in the Angels’ eyes didn’t fade.

“Thank you.” Crowley said, and watched the worry dissipate as the Angel looked away, finally.

“Well if you insist you’re fine I suppose I’m inclined to believe you.” The Angel said, his body moving in one of its little wiggles as he sat up straighter, Crowley felt scales run down his back like a chill in the night.

“I do.” Crowley looked away, his eyes falling back to his lap.

“You do what?” The Angel asked, not looking away from whatever his eyes had seen across the water.

“I inssissssss- oh really?!” Crowley growled, catching the Angel looking at him from the corner of his eyes. Crowley glared and the Angel laughed. He laughed. He tossed his head back, and laughed. Crowley sat there, scales breaking out across his skin like the plague, tongue twisting and turning in his mouth, begging to be free, eyes, locked on the Angel. The light was still shining on him, the sun had fallen a bit as they’d been sitting, turning a wonderful soft golden color, bathing Aziraphale in a warm glow. Crowley’s eyes tracked the way his hands fell to his stomach as he laughed, and watched the beautiful curve of it shake with laughter.

He watched the way his legs pulled up a bit, as he rocked backwards, and begged whoever might be listing these days to let him touch, just once, some day. Not today. Not tomorrow. Maybe not for hundreds of years. Maybe not thousands. But someday.

He sat, and he watched the Angel laugh, and told himself that this was enough. For now. If this was all he could have of the Angel, just moments like this, just the two of them.

It was enough.

[rose-demica]

So this started out brief, then it just grew... also I know he says ‘well, I’ve heard that one before’ but this felt like it fit better with the story.

Past Dean x Reader, 

Warnings: Pregnant!Reader (I wanted to keep this as a surprise, but then I realised trigger warnings are important). One night stand. Long Drabble, more of a one-shot. 

Finding a case had been a godsend, you’d been bored out of your mind in the bunker since Sam and Dean had left on their own case. They’d ordered you to stay home, and stay out of trouble. In theory, an easy task, in reality, not so much. The longer their case ran, the more it felt like you were suffering from Cabin fever. The bunker always felt so much emptier, so much less like home when the boys were gone and Baby wasn’t taking pride of place in the garage. You had no social interaction apart from an occasional phone call from one of the boys, checking in to make sure everything was okay. Even Castiel and Crowley hadn’t popped by, too busy with their own things to stop by and keep you company. 

So, you’d done what hunters did best, you’d gone searching for a case, finding one a few states over. It was an easy one, it had to be an easy one, you weren’t ready for anything harder than a salt and burn. You weren’t sure how you were going to manage digging up the grave, but you were sure that you could come up with something. 

You picked a ghost, one that had been haunting the family house, scaring off anyone who brought it and tried to live in it after the last of her descendants moved out of it. The ghost hadn’t taken a life, not until last week, when the newest owners, firm disbelievers in the supernatural had pushed the ghost too far. Kept refusing to leave despite the ghost’s best attempts to scare them off. It had taken the life of a child, seemingly by mistake, another attempt to scare them off gone horribly wrong.

You knew it wouldn’t be satisfied now it had a taste of death, they never were. They always got angrier, stronger, the longer they were left, stuck as ghosts, unable to move on, and unwilling to stop.

It was a quick job, minus the fact that the ghost had already been cremated, forcing you to find the object holding her to the world. 

Thankfully, the formerly firm disbelievers were happy to help you, pointing you to objects that had remained in the house before they brought it. They were willing to do anything to protect both their remaining child, and the unborn one, still protected in its mother's womb. The father even helped you to burn each and every single one of the objects while his wife and child played games in a ring of salt. He had tried to convince you to stay with them, safe in the circle, but you were the expert here, you needed to be out there, getting rid of the ghost. 

It had seemed cathartic for the father, armed with an iron poker, he’d swung with a scream of rage each time the ghost appeared, destroying her time and time again, right up until you burnt the correct item, and the ghost went up in flames. 

It had been worth it, hugging the family as they cried, mourning the child they’d lost, as well as the relief that it was all over. Sam and Dean didn’t like staying for this part, ducking out as soon  as they could, you didn’t mind, comforting them, before leaving them with your number, and a promise to call you if they ever encountered anything like that again. 

Your hand was on your own stomach as you drove home, unable to imagine the grief they would have felt at losing their child. The guilt they would feel for the rest of their lives, the realisation that the child would have lived if they’d not been so stubborn, and had listened to the signs. 

Despite trying to convince them otherwise, you knew there would always be a part of them that believed it was their own fault. 

The boys beat you home, you noticed, pulling into the garage to see Baby back  where she belonged, freshly cleaned by the look of her. Your eyes dropped to your phone, normally they sent you a message when they were returning, but you had nothing from either of them. 

Guilt settled in your stomach, they were going to be furious with you, not just because you’d left the bunker, but that you’d also taken a case without telling them. Last time you’d taken a case without telling them- they’d worried endlessly that something could happen to you, a monster could take you down, you could be kidnapped, and no one would know where to even begin looking for you. Granted it would be worse this time, you’d left them a note, hidden within a book they would probably never open, but you had tried. That would be your excuse at least. 

You knew it was bad when Sam met you at the garage steps, wrapping you up tightly in a hug, a hand pressed to you belly and a sigh of relief passing his lips. He didn’t let you go, silently escorting you to the war room, where Dean was pacing back and forth. 

He wasn’t as impressed, nor relieved to see you. His hands went into his pockets, as he shrugged, perching on the edge of the study desk. Sam directed you to a chair, waiting until you were seated to move around the room, stopping at the side and looking nervously between you and Dean.

“What’s your excuse this time?” He was beyond pissed at you, not even reaching out in greeting, no hug before he scolded you. No murmurs of thanks that you were alright. Perhaps he put his hands in his pockets so he could deny the urge to reach for you, you didn’t know, the Winchesters were hard to read.

“I was bored, so I went to help a nearby family. I left a note.” You went to stand up, and go to get it, prove that there was, in fact, a note there for him to find.

“Y/N.” Dean growled, stepping closer, and you stopped, sitting back down just as quickly. “You are 5 months pregnant, with my child, I would think you’d want to keep yourself here and safe.” He wasn’t yelling, that would be worse, instead he was speaking calmly, his barely contained rage simmering across the surface of his words.

“I was safe Dean, I wasn’t about to put my child in harm's way.” How dare he suggest you would risk the health and safety of your own flesh and blood! A child you’d been growing for five months now. 

“You went on a hunt!” Dean lost his hold on his rage, stepping closer to you, a finger poking into your chest to accentuate his point. The chair fell back behind you as you stood, unwilling to let the elder winchester tower over you.

“Then you shouldn’t have knocked up your one night stand, insist on keeping both her and the baby, then locking her in some creepy underground bunker with no friends, no company, and nothing to keep her entertained!” You yelled back, poking him back. You took a deep breath, calming yourself down. 

“It’s been weeks since you left. I’ve been alone and bored out of my brain. So yeah, god forbid I have anything to do. I made sure it was an easy job. Now if you’ll excuse me, I want a shower and to sleep in my own bed. Come find me when you get your fat head out of your arse.” You took a step, and Dean’s hand shot out, wrapping around your arm. 

“Dean, let her go.” Sam stepped up, freeing you from his hold, You offered him a small smile of thanks, before heading to your room, and taking a shower. You weren’t kidding when you stated what you wanted, the smell of smoke and ash clung to you, and if you had to smell if for another second you were going to be sick. Maybe by the time you got out Dean would be ready to apologise, maybe he wouldn’t, either way was fine by you. 

~~~~~♥~~~~~♡~~~~~♥~~~~~

Dean was on your bed when you got out of the shower and made it back to your room. Thankfully he’d taken off his shoes this time, his feet on the bed, back against the headboard while he flicked through the pages of some book that had caught his fancy. 

“Any calmer?” You watched as his jaw clenched, running a towel through your wet hair. “Or not.” You turned your back on him, putting your dirty clothes in the hamper, and hanging your second towel on a hook behind the door. 

“I was worried sick Y/N.” Dean came up behind you, his arms wrapping around you, lips pressed to the back of your neck. “You weren’t here, you haven’t answered any of our calls or texts for days. We rushed to finish the case, then I drove straight back here, no pauses, no breaks and-” Dean took a deep breath, pulling you closer to him. “Sammy offered to drive but there wasn’t time, I had to get back, I had to make sure you were safe.” His hand spread out across your growing stomach, “That you were both safe.” 

“I haven’t got any calls or texts.” You leant back into Dean with a frown, using one hand to scoop up your phone to show him. 

“It said your number was no longer in service.” Dean kept one hand on your belly, taking your phone off you to check for himself. 

“Oh Shoot! It’s because Thomas’ plan would have run out. I need to organise my own.” You didn’t need to see Dean's face to know he was confused. “When Thomas and I broke up, he agreed to keep paying off my phone until it was done, then it was up to me. I paid him a lump sum, it must have just run out, because i was getting your messages a few days ago.” 

“I’ll tell Sammy to put you on ours.” Dean pressed another kiss to the back of your head. “I know we agreed to just be friends, but crap Y/N, coming home to see you and our baby gone, it terrified me, I’d gotten so used to the idea of building a life with you that-” You felt water hit the back of your neck, Dean’s hold around you tightening as a sob escaped his throat. “Please.”

You forced Dean to loosen his hold, just enough so you could turn and wrap your arms around him, a hand in his hair as he sobbed. 

“I’m sorry.” You whispered, offering him what comfort you could. He clutched you tighter, taking a big, shuddering, breath in. 

“I don’t think I can let you out of my sight.” Dean leant back, swiping at his eyes to remove the liquid that was attempting to escape. 

“One night mister, I’ll give you one night.” A chuckle left Dean’s lips as he picked you up and spun you around onto the bed. You quickly kicked off the sheets, knowing if he got settled you would have no chance of getting the blankets out from under him.

“That's what you said last time.” He teased, clambering in beside you and wrapping you up in a tight hug, snuggling up as close to you as he could, cradling you close. 

“Goodnight Dean.” You recognised the way he was curled into you, he was getting ready to fall asleep. 

“Thank you for coming home.” He whispered back, you took a moment to get more comfortable, before letting your eyes fall closed.

[newheart97]

Stress relief (Aziraphale x Reader x Crowley

A/N: Hi! It’s my first time posting here so I hope this works out. Do leave a comment if you have any advice or anything you’d like to share. If you leave aside that tha reader has a bra, then the gender is not specified.

Words: 3100-ish

It had been a really stressful week. Your colleague at your part-time job was sick so your boss had asked -more like, ordered- you to cover for her, which meant more shifts, which meant less time to study for the oncoming university exams, which meant that your anxiety and stress levels were rapidly increasing.

 You just had a night shift, a stressful, long, boring night shift, waiting on rude and drunk customers and having to bear their behaviour with a smile on your face.

By the time you arrived at Aziraphale’s place, it was already 4 in the morning and your alarm was set to wake you up at 8, as you had to be at your university at 9.30 for the only oral exam you had this year. You quietly opened the door of the bookshop and tiptoed to the sofa in the backroom, not wanting to wake up the angel and the demon, if he had decided to spend there the night, and as soon as your head hit the headrest you fell asleep.

After barely four hours of restless sleep and almost none spent going through your notes, you entered the room where the exam was to take place and started exchanging a few words with your fellow students, some sharing information and some sharing your worries.

 At 9.30 sharp, the professor entered the room with a colleague in tow to help him interview the large number of students. The problem was that, even though the number of students was high, the professor had the brilliant idea of NOT separating the exam in two different days and dividing the students between each day, so every student present was left wondering if they would even be able to get everything done that day or they had to come back the next one.

 While waiting for your turn, you felt the phone vibrate in your pocket. You took it out and checked it to see a new text from Crowley.

 C: Where are you?

(Y): At my university, I have an exam, remember?

C: Oh, yeah, that… When will you be done, again?

(Y): Wouldn’t it be great if I could answer you?

C: What?

(Y): I don’t know when I’ll be done, could be an hour, could be two, could be tomorrow for all I know.

C: What do you mean you don’t know?

(Y): It means ‘I do not know’.

 You put your phone momentarily down to check how many students were left -way too many- and just listened to what kind of question were being asked, anxiety raising each time an answer that you should have known decided to flee from your head.

Your phone kept vibrating for a while as you kept trying to ignore it in favour of going through your notes for the millionth time, but in the end, you felt guilty and grabbed it again.

 C: Well, tell me when you’re done.

C: Angel is upset he couldn’t see you off this morning.

C: Keeps saying how he wanted to wish you luck.

C: He’s been pacing for half an hour now ‘cause you’re not back yet.

 Reading all his text made you relax a bit, stress and anxiety forgotten as you thought about your lovers, how you first met them at the bookshop, Crowley coming up behind you saying that you smelt strange -which initially greatly offended you-, how you found out that you were half demon and how they had helped you come to terms with it, all the ups and downs you went through trying to deal with the feelings you had for both of them until you finally confronted them, giving birth to your current relationship.

 Your thoughts were interrupted again by the buzz of your phone. Thinking it was another text from your demon, you hastily opened it without checking the sender, the small smile on your face quickly disappearing when you read the content: it was from your boss.

 B: (Y/N), I need you to take tonight’s shift.

 You were not having it, today was your day off, he couldn’t just tell you that you had to come work out of the blue, especially when you had informed him that you had an important exam.

 (Y): I am sorry, but I don’t think I will be able to come today as I do not know at what time I will be able to leave.

 It seemed a quite reasonable excuse, as you really didn’t know at what time you would be done and even then, you would probably be too exhausted to remember not to be rude to customers.

You received another text and you quickly checked it.

 C: You do know that you don’t even need to be there, right?

 You sighed as you typed the answer, a bit annoyed since you had already had that same conversation at breakfast before your previous exams.

 (Y): Do you really need an answer?

C: Just saying, you’re half demon, you don’t need a degree.

(Y): And as I always tell you, I’m half human, I’ve lived as a human for all my life and I’ll get this damn degree if it’s the last thing I do.

(Y): You can’t just expect me to throw away all these years of hard work.

(Y): Zira has his shop; you got your car. What do I have? I’m just an average student struggling to figure what they want to do with their future who just so happens to be half demon and who hasn’t had time to accomplish anything special.

 For a while, the phone stayed silent and you turned your focus back on the professor and his assistant. It was almost 12.30, which meant lunch break, but just the idea of eating made you nauseous. As the time went by, you started regretting your little outburst, but you didn’t have the strength to apologize right then. The professor stood up and made his way out of the room after declaring that the exam would start again in an hour.

As you got up too, your phone vibrated again and you unlocked it.

 C: You have me and Zira, love.

 Your breath got caught in your throat. Where Aziraphale was quite the sweet talker, showering you with words of love, Crowley was more of a showing-through-actions kind of guy -well, demon- so it was rare for him to call you love. That’s why you knew that he really meant it and that’s why every time he said it your breath hitched and your heartbeat picked up the pace.

You slumped back on your seat and typed the answer.

 (Y): I know and I am forever grateful to whoever decided to make you appear in my life. It’s just that this is one of my last exams, after that there’s graduation and then I can finally close this chapter of my life, my human life, and fully enjoy the new, incredible, amazing chapter that is you guys.

(Y): Sorry for the outburst there, I’m just a bit stressed, what with the exam and the lack of sleep. Let’s not forget my job!

(Y): I just can’t wait to be able to fully focus on my life with you. I love you guys, so so much. I can’t wait to see you after this.

 You put your phone in your backpack and headed to the courtyard to get some fresh air and try to convince yourself that there was nothing to worry about as you did study, you did understand the subject and you would pass with a good grade.

It was almost time to head back into the room when your phone vibrated. You took it out of your backpack and stilled for a second: it was your boss calling, so, even though you really would have preferred ignoring it, you answered.

 “Hello, this is (Y/N) (L/N).”

“You need to come in tonight.” he ordered with a harsh tone without even greeting back.

“I’m really sorry but, as I’ve already told you, I don’t think I can make it, they haven’t said when we’ll be done yet.” you answered trying to keep your calm.

“Either you come, or you’re fired.”

If finding another job was easy then you would have had no restraint and just let your mouth run without filters, speaking your mind without worrying too much. Unfortunately, it wasn’t easy so, with all the willpower you could muster, you tried to keep the conversation civilized.

“You can’t fire me for not coming in on my day off.”

“I can and I will if I don’t see you at 9 sharp.” he threatened and hung up.

 “What?... ugh… I HATE him!” you half shouted, earning strange looks from the few students around you. You huffed and texted Crowley to let him know that you wouldn’t be able to join them for dinner and to not wait up for you. After that you turned off your phone and shoved it in the backpack, your mood completely ruined, hurrying to the classroom, not noticing the dark clouds that were gathering over your head.

 It was 5 in the afternoon and you were still waiting for your turn. As you lazily glanced out the window, you finally noticed how dark the sky had become, darker than it should be at that time of the day. You started cursing the weather forecast guy for saying that it would be sunny and clear all day.

It was nearing the end of the day and the hope of being called was slowly disappearing, while the feeling of having wasted the day doing nothing but wait and worry began making its way to the forefront of your mind, along with the increasing anger at having to go to work when all you wanted to do was cuddle in bed with your angel and your demon boyfriends listening to the various situations they found themselves into, warm and safe in their embrace.

 It was 6.30 and just as you were about to give up and leave, you heard your name being called. After the initial moment of shock and disbelief, wondering if you had heard correctly, you quickly made your way to the desk of the professor.

The questions seemed fairly easy, you answered all of them, but the never-changing expression of the man in front of you left you wandering if you had indeed answered correctly or not. After the last question, when you thought that the torture had finally ended and you would know whether you made it or not, the professor had another surprise for you.

 “Very well. You will know your grade later this evening via e-mail.”

And with that, he started gathering his things and made his way out of the door, leaving a stunned you behind.

You stayed like that a few more seconds before recollecting yourself and checking the time.

 It was 7 and soon the university would close, so you exited the building only to be met with so much rain pouring down that you wondered if God decided to drown humanity again.

You decided to head for your devilish boyfriend’s apartment, as it was closer, to take a quick shower and change your clothes. As you bravely took the first step out of the door, head tilted down to shelter your eyes, the rain that you expected to pour down on you never came.

You lifted your gaze to see a hand holding an umbrella over your head and finally the dark sunglasses hiding the yellow snake-eyes of the man the hand belonged to. The smile with which he greeted you made you want to crumble to the floor and just hug and keep him close.

 “Figured you hadn’t an umbrella with you.” he told you with a small smirk.

 Suddenly all words escaped your mind and you just hugged him, him embracing you with one arm and leaning down to place a kiss on your head. Relishing in his warmth, you whispered a soft ‘thank you’ and stayed there a few more seconds as he just kept hugging you, not forcing you to say anything.

When you finally pulled away, he smiled at you once more and led you to his Bentley. Once there you turned to him.

 “Crow, can you take me to your place? I should still have some clothes there.”

Instead of answering, he just grinned like a child who knows they did something they shouldn’t have done, going the opposite way.

“Crowley, what are you doing? I have to be at work at 9.” you insisted.

“Not really.” he nonchalantly answered while narrowly avoiding a pedestrian.

You knew then and then that he had done something and that most likely you just had become jobless.

Having accepted it as a reality you sighed and calmly asked

“What have you done?”

“Let’s just say the you won’t need to go there anymore.”

‘Well, what’s done it’s done, I guess’ you thought, but there was still one problem: you weren’t heading for the bookshop either.

“Where are you taking me, then?”

Not to your surprise, he didn’t answer your question and limited himself to raising the volume when Bohemian Rhapsody came along.

 After half an hour of reckless and aimless driving, you finally parked in front of the bookshop. You were confused but before you could even take one step inside, the demon stopped you, mad you turn around and quickly blindfolded you.

 “What are you doing, Crowley?!” you whisper-shouted even more confused.

“Trust me.” he whispered in your ear, sending shivers down your spine, your cheeks heating up a bit.

“Trust a demon? Now that’s quite the request, isn’t it?” you asked, trying to hide your embarrassment.

 He just chuckled as a response and began leading you on the path to what your feet memorised as the room they had previously miracled for you. As you approached the room, you could hear the light shuffle of footsteps and feel the fire’s warmth enveloping you.

Crowley stopped you and took off your blindfold. In front of you, in the middle of the room stood your angel, a warm smile adorning your face. As soon as he opened his arms you jumped straight into his loving embrace, soon joined by the snake, sandwiching you between the two celestial beings, engulfing you in their love.

You all pulled back and Crowley made you sit on the blanket and cushions covered floor.

 “Would you like a cup of hot chocolate, love?” Aziraphale asked while pointing at the two mugs standing on the small coffee table in front of you, next to a bottle of red wine.

“Yes, definitely, thank you Zira.” you thanked him, grabbing one of the mugs.

 They then sat near you and for a while you just chatted a bit while sipping on chocolate, your boyfriends careful not to mention the happenings of the day.

When you finished the chocolate, your mood the best it’d been in a while, the atmosphere was momentarily interrupted by your phone ringing. You sighed and looked at your lovers, silently asking permission to go check. After they assured you that it was alright, you forced yourself to stand up and go. You did so silently and just as silently you put your phone back down after turning it off and turned around with an unreadable expression on your face.

Worried, your boyfriends approached you, sharing a look.

 “What’s wrong, dear?”

Hearing the angel’s concerned voice, you snapped back to reality and after looking at the both of them you beamed.

“I did it! I passed!” you exclaimed before throwing yourself at them.

 They relaxed and congratulated you, the serpent saying that he knew you had nothing to worry about while Aziraphale patted your head. You went back to the cushions you were sitting on previously with your angelic boyfriend while Crowley headed out of the room, claiming that he was going to get some more wine to celebrate.

 “Love, don’t take it the wrong way, but may I ask you to remove your shirt?”

 Now, that was an unusual request from the principality, but after looking at him with eyes wide in surprise and him explaining that it wasn’t what you thought with reddened cheeks, you complied with his demand. He made you lay on your stomach just as you heard Crowley make his way into the room again.

He set what you assumed to be the bottles on the table and passed one to Aziraphale, only that, from what you could see, it was too little to be a bottle of wine. As you were wondering, you felt warm fingers on your back as they gently unclasped your bra. You turned your head ready to ask what was going on to the demon, but when you opened your mouth you gasped at a cold liquid being poured on your back.

 Crowley chuckled and watched as realization came across your features and when the angel’s hands began working their magic, he witnessed how you melted, relaxing completely. He soon tugged your pants, wanting to join in on the pleasure-giving work of Aziraphale.

And there you were, only in your underwear and with two pair of hands on your body releasing all the knots the stress had created, your mind in a stated in-between consciousness and dreamland. They kept up the good work until they considered their mission a complete success. Slowly, you felt their hands leaving your body, a small whine escaping your lips, making the beings above you chuckle a bit.

 “Don’t worry.” Aziraphale whispered while helping you get up from your relaxed position.

As you were trying to clasp back your bra, Crowley leaned in, kissing you just below your ear.

“I know another way to release your stress.” he said, kissing along your neck and finishing with a bite that promised more to come.

“Well, I can’t wait.” you answered as you tried to stand up only to stumble back down again, your legs feeling like jelly.

“…though, I fear that you’ll have to carry me, your massage left me boneless.”

 Your lovers chuckled, the serpent smirking a bit, and Aziraphale proceeded to pick you up and carry you princess style. As you reached your shared bedroom, he gently laid you on the bed.

Useless to say that you didn’t have much sleep that night either but, as you woke up between your lovers, you felt all tiredness leave your body, filling it with love for the ones who turned your life in a beautiful unpredictable mess.

 “I love you.” you whispered softly to the sleeping beings.

“We love you too.” they answered back wrapping their arms around you.

[varibean]

Try Turning It Off And On Again

This was my piece for the tangled dreams zine that can be found here! I wanted to try writing a bit of Team Awesome/Dadgene so I hope y’all enjoy and lmk what you think! 

Read On AO3

It was no small exaggeration to say that, on paper, Varian was living a near perfect life. It was hard to imagine the boy-or as his father so often called him, ‘young man’-wanting for anything and for the most part he didn’t. After the battle with Zhan Tiri and the terrifying day of the eclipse, all of his dreams had been practically handed to him on a silver platter. Royal Engineer, renowned alchemist, best friend to several important people; with all that under his belt it was hard to imagine him not being in a constant state of euphoria over how well his life was playing out. Especially after his rocky start.

However if someone was to catch him in the early hours of the morning, they would be led to think that nothing had ever gone right in the history of his entire life.

It wasn’t a fact of Varian not being a morning person that was the issue but rather the sheer number of things he had to do once he got up. Early on in his career as royal engineer, Rapunzel thought it to be a great idea that he live in the palace with them. He’d been excited about the prospect at first; getting to live close with his greatest friends? Spending his days working on machines? Winding down at night in the grand ballroom for dinner? Absolutely perfect.

What he hadn’t considered was the fact that, by living in the palace, he was essentially on the clock twenty-four seven. Every morning when he woke up he skipped his usual routine of combing his hair or brushing his teeth in favor of opening up his bedroom door. That action was always greeted with a pile of neatly placed but still numerous scrolls, all left behind by the morning castle page. Each one was either a task, request, or order form filed by any and all who needed his service. It was only after he picked them all up and read through them that he continued his other morning tasks.

Life at the castle was more boring than he’d ever considered life in a castle could be. The whole place worked like clockwork and not the fun kind. The only thing that broke up the monotony of the place was Rapunzel, with her always chipper nature, and Eugene, who often tagged along with her despite his own duties as Captain of the Guard. But even that small burst of excitement was becoming less and less as time went on. Less Rapunzel, less Eugene, more work.

When Varian first arrived, everything had been wonderful and new. The scrolls at his doorstep were exciting projects, not boring chores. He had time for his own inventions and endeavors no matter how small they were, and most importantly, he got to spend time with his friends. All of those things were slowly fading, dwindling in time and importance as his daily tasks grew and grew. When writing his father about it, the older man simply replied that it was all part of growing up. Varian hated that. Still, the days dragged on, the ever steady pace of the castle completely uncaring to his internal plight of drudgery.

____

It was on a day of heavy rain and wind when Varian got the notice that something was wrong with the boilers. Nothing major enough to cause an entire village to explode, he’d been sure to put that safety precaution in place, but enough to warrant a knock on his door as he was preparing for lunch. No ham sandwich break for him today.

Apparently some rainwater had managed to seep through the shallow earth and gotten into the underground reservoir used to fill the tankers, in turn causing them to overflow. It wasn’t the overflow that was causing any structural issues, the machines wouldn’t rust overnight after all, but it was causing an imbalance in the chemical reaction. Too much water meant there was more liquid than the chemicals could properly heat, leaving everyone with lukewarm water. Tragic.

Duty called though and lunch would have to wait.

“Lukewarm water. Oh”, Varian said sarcastically to Ruddiger as he prepared to go down and find the leaky bit of earth that was causing the problem, “The horror of it all.”

The people of Corona could survive a day or two without hot water, but why should they when they had a Royal Engineer at their disposal? Nevermind the fact that he was a person too, who was currently missing out on his meal so that everyone else could wash their hands in comfort.

He bit back the desire to spout out another sarcastic comment to his furry companion, knowing that he was just being unreasonably bitter because he was hungry. Food would still be there when he got done; the longer he ignored the problem the worse it would get. In all fairness, it took priority. Besides, something like sealing up a bit of loose earth and diverting the dripping water from the tankers would be an easy fix. He could do it in his sleep.

____

Varian had been correct in assuming that the boiler problem would be an easy fix, maybe slightly tedious at best. What he hadn’t accounted for was how difficult it would be to simply get down to the reservoirs in the first place.

The problems started the second he stepped out of his room and into the main hallways of the castle. Ruddiger trotted beside him happily, the fat animal knowing that his only job was companionship and nothing more. Given the time of day and the raininess outside the place was busier than it normally was. Gardeners muttered over their tools, maids rushed to clean up dirt and grime that had been tracked in, and all the other servants began to hustle and bustle around in order to make sure that everyone was safe and well attended to.

It shouldn’t have been a long trek, just a few turns before getting to the downstairs, but the trip was elongated by everyone constantly bumping into him and pushing him aside.

Despite being a respected member of the staff, he was still just a boy in many of their eyes. He glared at the people who brushed past him, knowing that he’d helped each one of them with at least half a dozen things at some point or another. They’d been perfectly kind to him then but now he was nothing more than another body blocking their way. It was easy to be nice to someone while they were doing something for you and even easier to ignore them when the time was over.

Half way through the crowd to his destination he felt a hand grip at his arm and turning around he was met with the stern face of a maid, face flushed with frustration.

“Excuse me young man, you’re the Royal Engineer correct?”

Her voice was twice as haughty as she looked, speaking as if she couldn’t believe that she had to stoop to the level of talking to him in the first place.

“Varian. Just Varian.” He didn’t have time to deal with whatever nonsense the woman needed him for even though he had a sneaking suspicion that he was about to be given no choice.

He was quickly proven right as the woman gave a soft huff and pulled him alongside her to whatever issue she needed fixed. For a moment he considered squirming out of her grasp or maybe telling her that he was busy but as nice as those both seemed he knew that it would only come back to bite him in one form or another. If he didn’t fix whatever problem she had now then he would have to do it later. He was already missing lunch, might as well make the most of things.

She all but shoved him into one of main rooms, where he was met with several maids and servants covered in dust and circled around one of his many machines.

Ah , he thought, That explains a lot.

“Your blasted machine blew up. How are we supposed to clean up dust when the device that you made to help does nothing but blow it back in our faces?” The woman huffed as she crossed her arms.

Varian would have rather been scolded by old lady Crowley than whoever this woman was. At least Crowley didn’t balk like a fish when she was angry.

“Have you tried turning it on and off again?” Varian tried to joke to lighten the mood, but was met with only a cold shoulder and a stifled chitter from Ruddiger.

Eugene or Rapunzel would’ve found it funny.

He signed while leaning down to the device and fixing it up with one very simple step: Flipping the switch from ‘blow’ to ‘suck’.

“Let me know if you have any actual problems with it ma’am. Sadly, even I can’t fix operator errors.”

He skittered out of the room before anyone could berate him for his mouth. He smirked to himself, thinking how funny one of his friends would find that line. That was only the beginning of his troubles though.

It seemed that every step he took towards the boilers, someone needed his assistance.

Nigel’s mechanical pen needed the ink chamber fixed, Hope needed the automatic laundry cart’s wheel to be tightened, one of the chefs needed more preservation chemicals to keep the food fresh until next week.

By the time he actually got to the door to the boiler room it was well past his lunch break, time slowly and steadily creeping towards dinner. Hours of helping crowds of people with their problems and all that just so he could get to the actual problem of the day.

But yet again, right when he was about to turn the knob on the door and enter the stairwell for the boilers at long last, another hand grasped at his arm.

“Hey there buddy-”

“For the sun’s sake I just need to fix one stupid problem!” Varian shouted, turning around to face the stranger who’d grabbed him only to find that it wasn’t a stranger at all.

Instead he was met with Eugene’s surprised and amused face looking down at him, red uniform dampened slightly from the outside rain and hair slicked back in an admittedly stylish fashion.

“Well hello to you too short stack.” Eugene’s response was met with a groan as Varain pushed in the door and began to descend into the underground area. “Rough day?”

“Not more than any other day here.”

“So I’ll take that as a yes. What’re you doing going to the boilers so late, it’s almost chow time kiddo. You know how your dad will chew us out if we don’t get you your three squares a day.”

Even with Eugene’s joking nature Varian could hear a bit of sincerity in his words. He couldn’t bear the thought of confessing that he hadn’t gotten a chance to eat lunch. Instead he just kept walking downwards, the other man following close behind with Ruddiger.

“The rain cracked through one of the underground tunnel walls, which has been causing the small reservoir down there to flow faster. It’s overfilling the machines which means the formula for heating them isn’t working and that means a bunch of people upset at me until I can fix it.”

“Well of course, can’t imagine what a tragedy it must be to go a full day with only lukewarm water.” Eugene’s tone was sarcastic, mimicking Varian’s earlier sentiments on the matter.

Despite the day he had, the alchemist laughed. Of course Eugene of all people would share his same sense of humor at the situation.

“It wouldn’t be so bad if people would just let me get down here in the first place.”

“Nah, they can’t make it too easy on you kiddo, that’ll just make you go soft.”

Another chuckle rang out against the walls. It was more than Varian had laughed in probably an entire week. Suddenly the task of fixing a leak didn’t seem so bad; having company helped and though he loved Ruddiger to pieces, there was only so much conversation that a single raccoon could have.

“So what do we have to do to fix it?” Eugene asked after the laughter had settled and the two made it to the bottom of the steps, leading to the underground tunnels.

“I’m just going to put some of my newest solution on the crack and up the Flynnolium for a few hours. That’ll give everything time to reset by morning and then I’ll adjust the Flynnolium solution release back down to four percent per tanker. And it’ll also give everyone else ample time to find something new to yell at me about.”

Though he spoke with a joking tone he could see the flash of concern that drifted over Eugene’s face, making him instantly regret saying anything at all. He didn’t want to appear ungrateful to the older man; he really did love his job even with the few pitfalls that came with it. His snark was nothing more than the result of a little stress. That’s what he told himself at least.

The rest of the walk was short and comfortably chatty, Eugene going on about his latest guard duties while Varian laughed and ribbed him on his work ethic. It was nice to finally get some time to talk to his friend again, Team Awesome. He almost didn’t want his work day to be finished but the fixes he needed to implement were easy; it had just taken him forever to get down to do them. Just as soon as the two (plus Ruddgier) had made it to the caves, they were back to the top of the staircase.

“Well kid,” Eugene started, “now that we’ve got that all done let’s go get some grub. Don’t want to keep everyone else waiting.”

Eugene began to walk in the direction of the dining hall but Varian stayed put. He was hungry, that much was for sure, but he’d spent all day around people. Being around them, fixing their problems, having them bump into him and squawk at him. It was nice to spend some time with just Eugene but an entire room full of more people...now that was something different entirely.

“Actually I still have some leftovers from lunch in my room.” By which, of course, he meant his entire lunch. “I’m not that hungry anyways so I think I’m going to pass tonight, tell everyone I said hi.”

“Are you sure? Heard there was going to be cookies tonight-”

“Yeah, don’t-don’t worry about me it’s just been...been a really long day.”

Varian mustered up his best smile and gave a thumbs up as he walked away before Eugene could say anything else.

It had been a nice reprieve from his regular day to day drudgery, but it was time to go to bed and start the whole process over again tomorrow.

____

When Varian woke up the next morning he wasn’t tired which was his first clue that something was wrong. He stretched and yawned, squinting as the sun shone brightly through his window which was the second clue.

The third, and by far the most obvious clue, came when he cleared his nose and sniffed a few times and was met with the scent of fresh ham and eggs. Turning to his night stand he saw a brilliantly decorated tray of toast, butter, and scrambled eggs with ham and tomato slices mixed in.

“What in the-oh shit!” Next to the delicious smelling breakfast was his alarm clock which had apparently not gone off despite having wound it up the night before, seeing how the time displayed on it read 11:12. He was late, beyond late. It was nearly noon, he would never hear the end of it. Not only that, but there was a bigger issue at hand.

“The Flynnolium!” He darted up out of bed, not even bothering to put on his work clothes or brush his hair.

He nearly tripped over his own feet trying to reach the door. When he opened it, however, he ran face first into a solid body, sending him reeling back from the impact.

“Well good morning there sleepy head. Man, you really must’ve been worn out to sleep that long huh? Any sweet dreams?” The voice was calm and teasing with just a hint of sincerity playing against the tone of a smile.

“Eugene!” Varian steadied himself and once again tried to get by him. “I can’t talk right now, I have to go. I overslept somehow and-and the Flynnolium has been set on high for too long, I need to get down there and-”

“Set it back to four percent per tanker? Already taken care of buddy. Now come on, I worked all morning on that breakfast and you haven’t even touched it. Well, the royal chef worked all morning on it but I was in the room so i’m pretty sure that counts for something. Supervising, you know, is a very important part of the process.”

“Wha…”

Varian couldn’t even finish his sentence as Eugene guided him back to his bed and sat him down, moving the breakfast tray onto his lap.

“Well don’t sit there wasting all that hard work, dig in.”

“But I don’t...I don’t understand how-what the hell is going on?”

“Language.” Eugene chidded jokingly before sitting down beside the other, “I noticed you seemed a little stressed yesterday. So, I took it upon myself to give you the day off. Woke up this morning and turned the Flynnolium down. Bribed Ruddiger with a few apples to get him to turn your clock off and let you sleep in.”

Varian looked down at the food in his lap, speechless. He hadn’t been that tired, had he?

“Why though?” He asked, quizzically picking up a slice of toast and slowly biting it.

“I just told you, you’re stressed. We’re Team Awesome and Team Awesome looks out for each other.”

Varian continued to crunch slowly and Eugene let out a soft sigh before putting his hand on the other’s back.

“I know the people here demand a lot from you. It would be a big adjustment for anyone just to exist around this place, let alone be the Royal Engineer. Doing projects every day, people only giving you the time of day when they need you, running around like Pascal chasing after a fly. And I know I...probably haven’t helped much in that regard either. You’re the Royal Engineer because Rapunzel and I know you can handle it. But just because you can handle it on your own doesn’t mean you should have to.”

The more Eugene spoke the more Varian relaxed, shoveling more food into his mouth as he got more comfortable.

“Fankfs.” He said, his cheeks full like chipmunks, causing Eugene to laugh.

“No problem buddy. Anyways, like I was saying, I’m sorry I haven’t been around as much-”

“That’s not your fault.”

“No, but it is my fault for not trying harder. And for not realizing how tough things have been on you. So, here’s the plan, once a week from now on you’re getting a full twenty-four hours of off time. Maybe after a few of those and we’ll finally have you back on a decent sleeping schedule. Anyone who interrupts it gets thrown in the dungeon, my royal decree as Captain.”

“I don’t think Captains can make royal decrees.” Varian stated flatly, suppressing a smirk.

“Ok smart mouth, well they can now. You have the rest of the day off.”

There was a comfortable silence for a moment as Varian finished eating, setting aside the tray and closing his eyes. He leaned against Eugene’s shoulder, content and full and happy.

“Thanks Eugene.”

“Anytime kiddo. Team Awesome?”

Eugene extended his fist and Varian happily, if not a bit tiredly, pounded it with his own.

“Team Awesome. Now, since I have the rest of the day off…” In a split second Varian was falling back against his bed, rolling himself up in the blankets pillows, “I’m going back to sleep.”

Eugene laughed and playfully shoved his shoulder.

“Lazy bones. Well, have sweet dreams. Sugar plum fairies and all that.”

“Nah, I’m going to be dreaming of cute blonds who look like Flynn Rider and take me on daring adventures.”

That caused Eugene to laugh even louder.

“Wow, you really are such a teenager aren’t you? Well tell dream hotshot that if he wants your fantasy hand in marriage he’s going to have to get through me first.”

“And my dad.” Varian joked bluntly.

“Personally I think I’m the more important one to impress but, yeah, that guy too-” Suddenly a pillow hit Eugene’s face, muffling his chuckles, “Ok ok I get the message, I’m leaving, I’m leaving.”

“Eugene?”

“Yes sleeping beauty?”

“Thanks, I needed this.”

“Any time kiddo. Love ya.”

As Eugene closed the door, Varian closed his eyes, sinking down into his mattress and into a day of blissful sleep.

“Love you too.”

By the time Varian got the drowsy words out, Eugene was already gone, but it didn’t matter. He already knew.