#he rolls us to my house at whatever time and we can just chill in the car for hours fr or go out for a meal or some tea and time flies by

[halloithmeagain]

.

[mistiell]

When you're lost in the Darkness

Pairing: Astarion x Reader

Summary: Astarion suspects that you're afraid of the dark. What he doesn't know, is that not only will he soon be proven right, but he severely underestimated just how severe your fear is.

Word Count: 2.4k

Warnings: Fluff, hurt/comfort, nyctophobia, brief description of panic attack, possibly ooc Astarion, literally one use of y/n

A/N: Hey hi hello, I am back from the void for now. I would like to make a disclamier: I have not yet played BG3!! So, if anyone is out of character, I apologize!

---

Astarion has a theory.

A small and rather unimportant one, but a theory nonetheless.

It started when he noticed the way you set up your bed roll when the group makes camp for the night. You’re always as close to the fire as you can be without lighting yourself aflame, and when it dims to a certain point, he’s watched you rouse out of a dead sleep to stoke the coals and add more fuel. At first, he thought perhaps you were just prone to chills – he knows some people run cold when they sleep – but after lingering after one of your shared nights together, he came to realise that you’re actually more like a mostly-human furnace.

Then he noticed the way you linger around any sort of light source like a moth to a flame after the sun has set, and the way you fidget and glance over you shoulder every few minutes on the off chance your back is to the darkness.

He finds it strange. Granted, he thinks you’re strange for a variety of other reasons, but this pattern of behaviour is particularly puzzling to him. Which has lead him to his theory;

“You’re afraid of the dark.” He jests after watching you glance into the woods for the umpteenth time, aiming for teasing and realising he’s missed when your face falls into something akin to shame and discomfort.

You try to cover it with a scoff, rolling your eyes in a way he knows is meant to feign indifference, “I have far worse things to fear than the dark.” You spit those last two words, as if they taste bitter on your tongue. Firelight dances in your eyes as you keep your gaze trained firmly on him, even despite how much you look like you want too search for whatever it is you’ve convinced yourself is out there, intent on disproving him.

“True,” He smirks with a practiced ease, suddenly – strangely – desperate to ease the tension he’s just created, “But should you ever find yourself too afraid to sleep alone,” He leans in just a smidgen closer, grinning coquettishly, “My arms are always open.”

You snort, the tension in your shoulders ebbing just so as you chuckle, “I’ll be sure to keep that in mind.”

“By all means, keep me in your thoughts as long as you wish, darling.” He hums, smile just a little softer than he intends when you genuinely laugh at that, the sound sweet and airy as it bubbles up from your throat.

“And with that, I’m off to bed.” He nearly mistakes incredulousness for fondness, but catches himself as you stand. Turning back for just a moment, you give him a smile so soft, it makes is gut twist with a feeling he’s a little unsure of, “Goodnight, Astarion.”

If he’d fed more recently, he’s sure his cheeks would be flushed. He blinks, clears his throat, “Sleep well, my sweet.”

Only days later, his theory is proven correct when you stumble upon some sort of abandoned cottage – House? Astarion’s not entirely sure – and, upon Gale’s insistence that it could be useful, decide to search it for wares.

“You do know there’s likely nothing of use in here, don’t you?” Shadowheart sighs impassively as she thumbs through a tattered book, slotting it back into place where she found it once she’s deemed it useless.

Gale huffs and rolls his eyes, “Well, we won’t know until we look, will we?”

“We won’t be finding much of anything if you two don’t quit your squabbling.” You quip before turning your attention back to the chest you were searching. You just barely lean into Astarion’s space, grinning impishly. He leans in just a little closer – only to hear you better, of course – as you whisper, “They’re like children, I tell you.”

Something shatters. You both turn just as Shadowheart fixes Gale with a stern look, “Hells, Gale, pay attention to where you’re going!”

“Wh- It’s not my fault!” Astarion raises a brow at their bickering, tutting amusedly, “Children, indeed.”

Huffing a laugh, your attention slides to a door on the far side of the room and move to investigate. After trying the handle and finding it jammed, it takes a good shove to get it open. The only thing that illuminates the small pantry is the light filtering in from the door you’ve just opened.

You seem content to simply skim over the contents of the room from where you’re standing until you spot something of interest, eyes lighting up with a little gasp.

Astarion takes your place in the doorway as you rush into the room after propping the door open with a nearby pail, curious, “What have you found?”

Snatching a little tin box off a shelf, you open it and beam, “Oh, I haven’t had this in ages!”

“What?” He asks again, a little impatient.

You hold it out to him, and when he comes closer to look over the lip of the tin, he finds a fair amount of shredded, aubergine coloured leaves inside.

He looks back to you, confused, “Tea?” “Tea.” You grin, holding it up to your nose and closing your eyes to revel in the fruity scent, “I don’t know what it’s called, but it’s delicious.”

With how delighted you are over finding it, he doesn’t doubt it.

“Well, at least we can tell the others our searching wasn’t in vain.” He turns, “Settle that dispute between Gale and Shadowhear-.” The toe of his boot bumps the pail, sending it rolling as the door swings shut and swathes the room in darkness.

It takes a moment for his eyes to adjust, but eventually, the door comes back into view, only now the faded sage green paint is a dull grey.

Just as he moves for the door, he’s startled by the clattering of metal and a loud bump. He whips around to ask what in the hells just happened, but the words die in his throat when he finds you pressed flat against the shelves on the far wall – which really isn’t that far considering there’s only about six feet between the two of you. He can hear your heart racing from where he’s standing, your breaths quick and shallow.

That theory he had just got a lot more important.

He calls your name and you flinch, gaze flitting in his general direction but never settling on him. You look well and truly petrified. “Darling, are you alright?”

It’s a terrible question considering you are very visibly not alright, but he can’t seem to come up with anything else fast enough.

“I can’t–.” Your voice cracks and you swallow, looking dreadfully close to tears as you squeeze your eyes shut and cover your face with your hands, “I can’t see you. I can’t see anything.”

“Hang on,” After trying the handle, he finds the door is jammed no matter how hard he yanks. He considers calling for Karlach or Wyll, but thinks better of it, not wanting to frighten you further. They’ll notice the two of you are missing and come looking eventually.

“Astarion.” His name from your lips pulls him from his thoughts. He usually loves hearing you say his name, even when your cross with him. But when it comes out like a pitiful mix between whisper and whimper, he finds his heart twists uncomfortably in his chest.

He turns back to you and stalls. Unsure, helpless. He wants desperately to comfort you, but he has no idea how. He goes over the many different ways he could try, and the many different ways you could react, before finally, “Tell me what you need.”

After a moment of hesitation, you hold out a trembling hand and he steps forward to take it without a second thought. You tense when his skin first meets yours, palms wet with tears as your breath hitches. You tug him closer to wrap your arms around his middle and cling to him like a lifeline, shaking terribly as you bury your face into his neck. He secures you to him with an arm around your back and a hand cupped over the nape of your neck. He can feel your heartbeat stuttering under his fingertips when they settle over your pulse.

You’re still gasping.

“You need to breathe, lovely.” He says it gently, voice void of his usual coquettish flare. The nickname is softer than what he’s used with you so far, and it feels and sounds more earnest than it should. He tries not to dwell on it as he soothes his palm up and down the length of your spine, “Try to mimic me. I’ll guide you, alright?” You nod, and when starts coaching you through each inhale and exhale, you do your best to follow.

It takes several breaths, but eventually, they grow deeper and stop catching in your chest. Your heart slows. Not by a lot, but enough that Astarion can stop worrying that you’ll work yourself into a panic induced fainting spell.

He guides you through a few more before asking, “Better?”

You nod. With your throat dried out from crying, your voice is rather croak-y when you reply, “A little.”

“You sound like a frog.” It startles a laugh from you, the sound letting Astarion breathe a little easier.

“I do!” You sniffle, still laughing. It makes him laugh too.

“What the hells is so funny in there?” Lae’zel shouts from the other side with all her usual charm.

“Frogs!” Astarion shouts back, and you giggle a little more.

There’s a few loud bangs as one of your friends attempts to open the door. He can feel you flinch with each one until finally, it bursts open, blessed light washing over the two of you despite Karlach towering in the doorway. Your body sags with relief, and a little, involuntary sound escapes you as a new wave of tears threatens to spill, this time for an entirely different reason.

“What happened in here?” Gale asks, looking wildly confused as you slip out of Astarion’s arms and wipe at your cheeks hastily. “Oh, erm,” You clear your throat awkwardly, gaze bouncing between the items the fell when you backed into the shelf before settling on the tea leaves. You look genuinely disappointed as you gesture vaguely towards the small pile on the floor, “I found a tea I really like and got upset when I dropped it.”

“Ah. I see.” Gale nods, still obviously perplexed. If any of them find the explanation odd, they don’t say anything.

Shadowheart leans around Karlach, “We should get a move on. There are only so many hours before sundown.”

“Right. Yes, that’s a good idea.” You nod, clearly thankful for an excuse to get the hell out of there as you squeeze past them and lead them outside.

Much to Astarion’s chagrin, Karlach turns when she notices he’s hung back, “Oi, Astarion. What are you doing?”

He glances between her and the pantry before huffing, “Just... Tell them to wait a moment.”

She narrows her eyes suspiciously but agrees, leaving him to tell you and the others. He makes his way back into the pantry for a moment before jogging outside to join you.

It’s a good few hours until you make camp, and another few before he finally plucks up the courage to approach you near your tent.

You notice him striding over and smile at the sight of him, “Astarion! To what to I owe the pleasure?”

“I come bearing gifts.” He announces dramatically, hoping his puckish grin will be enough to mask how incredibly fucking nervous he truly is.

“For me?” You ask, cocking your head slightly to one side.

He rolls his eyes playfully, “Sweetheart, I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for you, would I?”

“Well obviously, I just meant–,” You huff and shake your head, chuckling incredulously, “Never mind. What have you got for me?”

He holds out the tin and watches surprise and confusion flash over your face in quick succession before something unbearably soft settles over your features.

Taking it from him, you’re quick to pop the lid off. You gasp when you lay eyes on the contents, eyes wide when you look back at him with such wonder, it nearly knocks the wind out of him, “How did you–?”

“I salvaged what I could off the top of the pile. I– erm,” He clears his throat, “I thought it would be wasteful to leave perfectly good tea behind when at least one of us could enjoy what’s left of it. Irresponsible, even.”

You huff a laugh. There’s no mistaking the fondness this time.

“You’re absolutely right. That would be irresponsible of us.” Your smile shifts into something heart achingly earnest as you step closer and lean up to peck his cheek, “Thank you.”

“Of course, love.” He’s aiming for coquettish but it comes out too sincere to be convincing. That feeling twists at his chest again and it’s only now that he realises what it is.

He actually, genuinely cares for you.

Rattled, he feigns a yawn and smirks, “Well, as much as I adore your company, I really must be off to bed. Beauty sleep, and all that.”

“Right!” You seem to startle yourself with your own volume and clear your throat, chuckling awkwardly, “Right, of course. Goodnight, Astarion.”

He takes a mere second to mull it over before he throws caution to the wind and cradles the side of your neck in his palm, thumb brushing the curve of your jaw as he presses his lips to the apple of your opposite cheek. Before he takes time to actually think over his new found feelings and potentially freak himself out, he’s going to let himself indulge in you just a little while longer.

Pulling back, he brushes the back of his knuckles over the skin he just kissed, “Goodnight, Y/n.”

He can hear your heart thump, thump, thumping as he walks towards his own tent. The feelings he has for you are a new and rather inconvenient development. But if later he finds that he doesn’t particularly mind?

No one has to know just yet.

[spidermans-l-o-v-e-r]

Strawberries and Cream

Paring: Eddie Diaz x Reader

Word count: 7.1k

Notes: 🎶 is that a baton in your pocket or are you just happy to see me🎶 please understand I’m gonna shoot myself in the face if I ever have to edit this chapter again it is what it ISSSSS

Episode 6: Blueberry Pie

This entire chapter be like

Eddie calls you around 10 pm, asking you to pick him up so he can take you somewhere special. He’s still got a day or two before he’s allowed to drive with his shoulder and you’ve been taking him everywhere lately, just to spend time together.

You show up a little after 10, he’s on his front porch, just chilling, waiting, playing some random game on his phone while he waits for you. 

“You’re late Sugar Cube,” He says as he pushes off the wall, walking to the Jeep

“It’s 10:04 you big baby” You stick your tongue out as he gets in, and he leans over and kisses it right back into your mouth 

“Are you always late?” He buckles his seatbelt and watches you blink slowly, processing what just happened 

“Huh?”

“I said,” He kisses you again, a little slower this time

“Are you always late?”

“Ehh??” You shrug, unable to form a sentence and he snorts, taking your phone from the stand and typing in an address for you

“I hope you don’t mind…” He holds up a pink pouch “I bought you a little something” 

He won’t tell you what it is, or where you’re going. He just keeps ignoring those questions and asks you some instead. How was your day? What did you do? Did you miss me? Little things but it’s cute the way he’s interested in these things 

You pull up in front of a large house, the lights are off. You shut off the car and look through the windshield 

“What are we doing here? Are you gonna kidnap me??”

“Yeah I made you drive Buck’s Jeep to my super secret kidnapping hideout” He gets out of the Jeep and comes around to your side, opening the door for you. You hesitantly hop out, narrowing your eyes at him 

“I have friends okay? They’re out of town and they asked me to housesit. Said I could use whatever I wanted… that includes the pool and hot tub”

“We’re going swimming?! Night swimming!? That’s the best kind of swimming!!” You squeal excitedly as he brings you inside. 

It’s a very nice place, these people clearly have money. He brings you to the pool house, handing you the little pink pouch 

“I bought you a new swimsuit… I hope you like it. Buck sent me the size of the one you have now. I hope that’s alright with you”

“A new swimsuit? You didn’t have to do that I have a perfectly good one” You take the bag from him, opening it up to peek inside 

“I know, but I just really wanted to… I wanted to see you in this. If you’re uncomfortable in it I’ll just give you my shirt okay? That’s always an option”

“Thank you, Eddie, I’m sure I’ll love it. Or you know, absolutely hate your guts for it, who knows!” 

He rolls his eyes at your sarcasm and flicks you off

“You change in there, I’ll be on the other side” He shuts the curtain and goes into the little cubicle next to you to change too

You pull the swimsuit from the bag, and honestly? It’s not that bad. It’s a pretty, black, two-piece with the sides cut out on the bottoms and ties and a short-sleeved low-cut top. You’re pretty sure he wanted those sides on purpose just to be able to feel you up.  

He lets out a low whistle as soon as you walk out and you roll your eyes, doing a little spin 

“How do I look?” 

“Good enough to eat” He winks and takes your hand, leading you over to the pool. You step back a little, letting go of his hand as he walks in, he goes under for a minute, swimming out a bit before coming back up

“Aren’t you coming?” He tilts his head, and you shrug a bit

“Awww what’s wrong pretty girl, don’t wanna get wet?”

You cross your arms over your chest “No…no it’s not that!”

“So what is it?” 

You roll your eyes, looking down, and shrug “I can’t… I can’t swim” You mumble 

“Don’t worry about that, mi vida. C’mon the waters warm” Eddie reaches for your hands, water droplets flowing down his body. His gorgeous…sculpted-

“Earth to Y/N. Come on. I’ll hold you” Eddie smirks as you step down into the water, the water is warm and you narrow your eyes at him

“You know the pool chemicals will tell me if you peed” 

His head falls back laughing as he pulls you into his chest, floating backward with you in his arms

“That’s so childish oh my god” 

His body feels good against yours, your arms wrap around his neck and you bury your face in his shoulder. He runs his hands down your bare sides and squeezes your hips. You feel his hands slide over your ass and your breath hitches in your throat

“See? Safe and sound…” He says quietly, nuzzling against you “And I didn’t freaking pee”

You snort into his shoulder and push at him “You’re so annoying oh my god”

“You literally started it!” He gives your ass a swat and your mouth drops open. Ever since the beach…and the drive-in, he’s been openly affectionate with you, there are no labels yet. For you two at least. Buck however is losing his mind every single second of every single day. 

He nuzzles into your neck again, his favorite thing to do. You smell like summer and strawberries and he’s addicted to it 

He carefully lets you go, holding you by your hands and pulling you slowly around the pool. You let him drag you through the water and he goes a little deeper. He pulls you closer, his hands firmly planted on your waist and your hands on his shoulders

“I could teach you to swim,” He says, continuing to walk you around 

“Yeah, but then you wouldn’t have an excuse to hold me”

“Oh sweet girl, I don’t need an excuse to have my hands on you” 

He dips his head into yours, kissing you softly. He pulls away slowly, smirking at the little dazed smile on your face. 

“I don’t need an excuse to want to taste you either… just waiting for when you finally let me” 

“I let you kiss me all the time”

“That’s not what I’m saying” 

There’s a long pause while he stares directly into your eyes, he’s daring you. Practically begging you to take the bait, god it should be illegal for his voice to be that deep, that sultry when he’s saying things like this. His heart flutters at the way you swallow and your lips part, like you’re really considering it and he wants you to be considering it. He wants that pretty little head of yours to think about being with him like that

He walks backward until his back hits a wall and pulls you into his lap. Your legs automatically wrap around his waist and his hands settle on your ass

“Watcha thinkin' about” He grins wickedly and you roll your eyes 

“Nothin…” you feel shy in his lap, suddenly a little self-conscious.

Maybe a bikini wasn’t the best idea. And it had nothing to do with your image at the moment, you’d worn that with confidence

But right now? You wish you were wearing one of those old-timey dress-type bathing suits. His hands feel good, they’re strong and a bit calloused from work. His biceps are… something else as your hands rest on them for a moment. Every little thing about Eddie is driving you crazy right now, especially the way his hair curls a little when it’s wet. 

“Nothin'?” He mimics your voice and you frown at his teasing, he kisses your nose making you giggle 

“Come on… use your words, Princess” 

“God, do you really have to tease me that much?” 

“Do you not like it?” 

“I hate it!” You make a little face at him and he chuckles, nuzzling his nose against yours 

“Oh come on baby girl no you don’t” 

“Okay, I don’t… but can’t I be the one to make you nervous?”

“You do make me nervous Y/N” he scoffs, laughing.

“God since the minute I set eyes on you like two months ago…I can’t seem to do anything right. I literally had my shirt on backward the other day because you called me when I was getting dressed before work!” 

You giggle and run your fingers through the back of his hair as he talks, your cheeks flush and he sighs, leaning into your touch, his body glistening with water in the moonlight 

“I had to sign off on the chore sheet…and I wrote “Y/N Diaz” on it” 

He cringes at that one and you snort, shaking your head 

“Okay that one’s embarrassing”

“You know what was really embarrassing? When Chim found it in the trash and sent it to the group chat. God they still haven’t let me forget that and that was like a week ago or something” 

You feel a little bad, giggling at his cringy misfortune, but it feels good to know you make him just as nervous even if he doesn’t show it as much. Maybe it’s time to give him a little taste of his medicine. It had been a back-and-forth game the entire time you’d known each other and now it was your turn. 

His eyes are still closed and you take the opportunity to kiss him, he breaths out through his nose, laughing a little as he kisses you back, not bothering to open his eyes. 

You run your fingers through his wet curls, tugging his head backward to expose his neck 

“Thanks for bringing me here,” You say sweetly, and he opens one eye, peeking at you 

“We can come again tomorrow night if you want, make use of that hot tub” He moans softly as you kiss his neck, scraping your teeth against his soft skin 

“Yeah okay,” you whisper against his pulse point as you bite down. He hums pleasantly, kneading your hips with his hands, as you give him a necklace. His hands trail up and down your sides slowly as he relaxes into your kisses. He may be quiet on the outside, but you can feel just how much he likes this. 

“Can’t wait to go back to work, wear these with pride” He purrs, his voice gravely and deep. “Gonna wear my collar open just so they can see them” His breath hitches at the end of his sentence and he bounces you in his lap, thrusting his hips against you 

“You should stop” He whispers in your ear “Before I bend you over this pool wall”

Moving in with Eddie is something that’s been on your mind for days. You guys weren’t actually in a relationship yet… but all your stuff was there anyway

After your little hickey attack, he’d kept a small distance between the two of you as you both floated around, you pouted like a little brat and he laughed about it, cooing and teasing you. Eventually, he’d brought you back into his lap, squeezing you as tightly as he could until you laughed and smiled and told him to let you go before he crushed you. 

“I want to move in with you,” You say suddenly, your forehead against his now as you kiss him. Man, there’s a whole lotta kissing going on for just friends. 

“Three days at your place, three days at Buck’s, and alternating Sundays. When we get together maybe I’ll do four at your place. But I just. I need a home… and I’m ready for it to be with you. You know- sort of. 

“On one condition” He mutters against your lips, you can feel his moving with each word. 

“I want you to move into my room, please?” 

Your heart pounds in your chest, pulling back a little to look at him. He’s serious about it too. He tilts his head cutely…giving you those irresistible puppy eyes 

“Eddie…” you groan “I’m not-“

“You and Buck sleep together”

“We’re cousins!”

“And we’re friends!”

“What if I need space?!” You protest and he rolls his eyes. 

“Fine. You can move into the guest room,” He pecks your lips “But you sleep in my room-“ he pecks them again “With me” he kisses you a little slower this time, tasting the sweet summer strawberry he loves so much “-In my bed”

How can you possibly deny him when he’s kissing you like that?

You spend the rest of the time splashing and messing around in the pool, shushing each other loudly to avoid disturbing the neighbors  It doesn’t work. 

Eddie is launching you into the pool when the doorbell rings. You both freeze and Eddie gets out of the pool, pushing the button on the wall to open the side gates. You quietly “Ooooooo” him from the pool and he flips you off. 

Two police officers come around back and you shrink down a little, coming to the edge of the pool 

“Hi, I’m officer Nolan this is Officer Juarez. We got a noise complaint? Said the people living here are supposed to be out of town” 

Officer Nolan looks pale as he introduces them, it’s just a noise complaint… 

Eddie runs his hand through his wet hair and you get out of the pool now, walking over to your towels 

“Uh yeah, no uh, my friends let us use the pool I’m sorry, we didn’t realize how loud we were being” 

“Yeah we’re really sorry, we can leave now” You walk over, handing Eddie a towel and he takes it, giving your body a lingering look. Your cheeks flush and you roll your eyes, gesturing to the literal police officers in front of him 

“No that’s okay. We’re sorry for interrupting your night. It’s just your neighbors are old” Officer Juarez shrugs 

“Was it the Schumacher’s?” Eddie rolls his eyes 

“Actually we can’t-“

“Sure was,” Officer Juarez says, putting her hands on her hips and Eddie groans drying off his hair 

“My partner shouldn’t have told you that I apologize. But yes it was them and it would probably be helpful if you left… honestly we get a lot of noise complaints from them but since it was so late we decided to check it out” 

“They’ve done this before” Eddie sighs, turning away to collect your stuff 

“You’ve done this before?” You scoff a little “with who?”

“Oop” Officer Juarez whispers and Officer Nolan glares at her 

“No, no, no, baby I meant like. During the day, I’ve never brought anyone who wasn’t Buck and the team here before at night or any other time of the day, I swear. It’s just you Y/N. Not to mention Buck would totally tell on me if I was lying” 

You sigh and narrow your eyes, you totally believe him but you just want him to be a little nervous

“I promise” He pouts at you, with the sweetest face he can muster and you hear Officer Juarez's breath hitch 

“Oh god I know right” You say turning to her and she snorts 

You haven’t even left Eddie’s driveway before he’s immediately calling Buck. He slams the front door as you drive away and goes to his bedroom, crashing into bed. He doesn’t bother changing yet he’s too excited 

“Eddie? It’s like 1 am Is everything okay? Do you need me to come over?”

“No, no I’m okay. Thanks. I just needed to talk to you right away”

“Okay, yeah what’s up?” He can hear shuffling and a click as Buck sits up and turns on the light 

“Is Y/N sleeping over?”

“No she’s on her way home, I have to be quick. Buck- she’s moving in with me”

“She's moving in with you?!”

Buck screams into the phone and Eddie has to pull it from his ear for a minute as he squeals loudly. He shouldn’t have told Buck before you did but he’s his best friend and he had to tell someone before he burst. 

“Yeah, but just part time! She said she’d live with you the other days of the week but I’m totally going to convince her that staying with me is the best option. It’s gonna be so good” 

“Have you been by the pound lately?” 

“There’s a German Shepherd puppy!!” Eddie practically squeaks when he says it, kicking his legs as he lays in bed “He’s cute, he’s very sweet. He’s the perfect future, Captain Barkley Diaz”

“Aren’t you moving a little fast?”  

Eddie sends Buck a picture of the puppies listed on the humane society’s site

“Nope!” 

Buck laughs as he looks at the adorable little puppy. He scrolls through the other animals too 

“What about a rabbit? She loves rabbits”

“Why not both!” Eddie starts looking through the site again and Buck giggles 

“Eddie… you can’t just spring an animal on her”

“I won’t! I swear. We’ll go pick one together” he sighs dreamily “We’ll hold hands while she pulls me down the aisle looking at all the cute little dogs

Buck fake gags and rolls his eyes 

“Hey, maybe you should get an older dog! they deserve some love”

“Maybe even two dogs. That’s such a good idea!”

“Okay, not. Not two dogs Eddie” 

“But I want Captain-“

“Don’t say it”

“I want Captain Barkley Diaz to have a friend! Maybe I should see if there’s a dog park nearby…”

“Yeah see! He can make friends… oh my god I’m starting to agree with this. Eddie! You guys aren’t together yet and she’s only living there part-time you gotta rein it in!”

“I’m trying, Buck, I swear. But she’s all I can think about… I just. I want a life with her so badly”

“So why don’t you just freaking ask her out” he sounds so strained when he says it and Eddie chuckles 

“I’m working on it. I just… I’m gonna need some help” 

Eddie has no damn right looking that fine when he pulls up to the studio to help you move. It’s not like you even need that much help it’s just like three to five boxes. And with his shoulder, he technically shouldn’t even be helping. You finally got him to agree to be on team “folding” with Maddie 

He never comes empty-handed, he brought a cake this time. Strawberry cake with whipped frosting. 

“A cake?” Buck asks as he sets it on the counter 

“I was craving okay. Shut up, you know you’re gonna eat it all”

“You’re not wrong” 

He leads Eddie up to his bedroom where there’s a tiny mountain of clothes on the bed. You and Maddie are sorting through it, so they can be folded 

“Hey Sugar” He smiles, coming over and kissing your head before he plops on the bed. 

Admittedly you do stare at him, his tank top is flowy and lower than normal. He claims it’s his moving shirt. More like his porn star shirt  Okay, not really.

But his arms look so delicious in that tank top and you’re tempted to bite his bicep. Which is completely normal. 

“Mads” He winks and she smirks, tossing a shirt at him 

“Took you long enough, where have you been?” 

“Well I had to make sure the guest room was clean” He shrugs as he takes one of your mini skirts, looking at it.

“That room has been spotless and you know it. What were you really doing?” Buck narrows his eyes and Eddie glares at him 

“It’s a surprise alright?” 

You perk up immediately, looking over at him 

“Surprise? What kind of surprise?” 

“Oh god please tell me it’s not what I think it is. Eddie you promised!!” Buck whines as he puts a box together and throws it down the stairs 

“Oh my god, It’s not that. Shut up” he pulls out his phone and hands it to Buck, who snatches it from his hands 

“Oh my god… Eddieeee” He pretends to blink back tears “That’s so sweet!” 

“What’s so sweet?!” You try to reach for the phone and he holds it out of your reach

“No, you’re gonna ruin it!”

“Wait I wanna see!!” Buck hands Maddie the phone and you try to look over her shoulder 

“Uhhh that’s my property and I’m not comfortable with you looking?!” Eddie gestures awkwardly and your mouth drops open 

“That’s not fair!! Of course, I’m gonna respect your ass!”

Buck points at you, laughing “Ha!!! You’re the only one who can’t see it yet, sucker!! Eddie, I dare you to send it to the group chat”

“Bet”

“I’m already on it” Maddie sends the photo and you get up, throwing down the shirt you were holding 

“Oh come on!! I hate you guys!��� 

“Awww don’t be like that Sugar cube I’m sure you’ll forget about it in like 10 minutes”

“She has ADHD so yeah I’m pretty sure she will too” Buck snickers as he tosses a pair of panties at Eddie. 

“Buck!!” You dive across the pile snatching them from Eddie’s hands and stuff them back into the pile closer to Maddie. Maddie puts her hand out in front of her, pushing herself up gingerly 

“I think she’s gonna cry” Buck snorts and Eddie can’t help but giggle with him. They sound like an older brother and his annoying friend. Buck might as well be your older brother at this point 

“I am not!!” You throw a skirt at him and he ducks, it knocks over an empty cup on his nightstand that falls and knocks over his AirPods. He gasps loudly, picking them up off the floor 

“Oh, you’re gonna get it!” He goes to dive for you and you squeal, stumbling backward off the bed 

“Alright okay!”Maddie yells and you and Buck freeze. 

“Since you want to be children. Buck and I are going downstairs, you and Eddie toss the clothes down to us okay? Okay. Buck, now.”

She walks past them down the stairs and Buck follows, sticking his tongue out while you flip off him and Eddie.

Eddie looks at you, putting his fingers up to his lips in a V shape and you throw a pair of pants at his head before he can finish his lewd gesture. Really you’ve got a whole arsenal here if he wants to be nasty. 

“You perv!” 

“I don’t see clothes coming down!” Maddie calls upstairs and Eddie laughs, grabbing your waist and yanking you into him, he nuzzles his face in your neck and takes a skirt, throwing it over the balcony 

“Sorry, Mom!” He yells down and you giggle in his arms trying to wriggle your way free 

“I swear to god if you guys have your first time in my bed I’m gonna cry happily but also slice Eddie’s balls off with my katanas”  You launch a few more clothes over the railing while Eddie kisses your neck 

“You have katanas?!” You yell, looking around for them 

“Yes, he does” Eddie whispers in your ear, his hands sliding up under your shirt. He feels over your torso as he nibbles your ear and you whimper quietly. One of his hands comes up and covers your mouth, keeping you quiet 

Suddenly that little promise he made in the rain pops into your head and your eyes nearly pop out of your head 

“Of course I do! They’re super sweet I’ll show them to you later! Maybe we can fight with them!”

“Absolutely not” Maddie immediately vetoes it, and Buck whines. 

Upstairs, Eddie’s busy kissing your neck and handing you clothes to toss over the balcony. His hand slides from your torso down to the top of your pink sweatpants. He toys with the drawstring and your heart pounds in your chest 

His fingers slip under the top of your waistband and you freeze in his lap, as his fingers slide down over the front of your panties and tease your clit like that, you gasp quietly and he smirks, putting his head on yours. 

“Be a good girl and keep your mouth shut” He whispers in your ear as he pushes your panties to the side, sliding his fingers between your folds and collecting some of your wetness. He lets out a deep sigh as he drags it back through your folds, getting them nice and slick. 

He lets go of your mouth and keeps handing you things to toss over the railings, making sure you stay quiet at the same time. It’s quick, it has to be with them right below you both but it doesn’t make it any less hot. His fingers work deftly, your legs spread wide for him as he toys with your clit. He drags his fingers down your folds again, circling your tight hole with his finger for a moment 

“Hey! I gotta go get some more tape from the store, Maddie is gonna come with, either of you wanna come?” Buck calls up the stairs and the moment is shattered… for you at least. Eddie doesn’t move at all, keeping your legs open for him. 

“Nah we’re good, might start in on that cake while we wait!” 

Buck gasps dramatically as he and Maddie head out “You better not touch that without me!!” You hear the front door shut and Eddie immediately adjusts your bodies, laying you down at a better angle for his fingers to sink deep inside you 

“Can you take two?” He whispers in your ear, his voice is breathy and a bit strained… you can feel why, pushing into your back. He doesn’t have time to stretch you properly like he’s aching to do, he doesn’t know when they’ll be back. 

“Your hand is a lot bigger than mine,” you tell him, looking up. He takes his other hand, holding it up to yours, and smirks a little 

“Yeah, it is… isn’t it?” 

“I want to try anyway”

He doesn’t hesitate in the least and you feel his fingers teasing your clit, smearing your wetness over your lips. His hand comes back over your mouth in case they walk back in as he slowly slides his fingers inside you, allowing you time to adjust a bit before he curls his fingers upwards. 

He slowly works his fingers in and out, following the curves of your body. You pant harshly, whiny and needy for him. 

“Can’t wait to get you home” He bites his lip, and you feel him shift against your back. 

“Can’t wait to have this sweet little cunt wrapped around my cock. Look at how good you’re taking my fingers baby girl… imagine taking this cock instead”

He tilts your head down, making you watch the way your pussy grips his fingers as they thrust in and out of you. They’re coated in your slick more and more with each thrust. He has to bite back his moan as he watches you cum on his fingers, your pussy clenching around them. He chuckles lowly, watching your hips move on them as you fuck yourself on his hand 

“That’s it pretty girl” He purrs “That’s my good girl” He doesn’t stop until you’re whining from the overstimulation and you look exhausted. He pulls his fingers away, his eyes roll back as he sees how sticky and wet they are. He smirks as he stares you down, sucking your juices from his fingers. His eyes flutter closed after a moment, savoring your taste and it’s downright dirty. 

“Fuck I knew you would taste good, from the moment I saw you I knew my sugar cube would be the death of me”

Buck and Maddie come back to you and Eddie folding clothes together on the couch while watching TV. You’re sat as far apart as you can be 

“Did I miss something?” Buck asks as he puts together another box 

“What do you mean?” Eddie’s tone is nonchalant as he folds one of your skirts 

“You guys are like 10 feet apart. Did you fight??” 

“Buck they’re like a pillow away” Maddie sits in between you two and starts folding with you guys

“Okay but you know them” Buck puts his hands on his hips and you get up from the couch, tossing your shirt into a box 

“Come on let’s go upstairs and toss more clothes down” You walk past Buck and Eddie doesn’t even look 

Buck looks at you, and then back at Eddie, and then back to you again, and one more time at Eddie 

“Later” Eddie mouths and Buck glares at him but shrugs it off because he’s one thousand percent getting the story out of one of you.

It doesn’t take long once you all stop goofing off. You and Buck take all the boxes to his Jeep and awkwardly fit them all in. Eddie sits in the backseat next to two boxes and you sit in his lap, so the front seat can also have a couple of boxes, and because Buck says you have a way less chance of being pulled over that way. 

“I swear to god no funny business back there” Buck threatens and you look at Eddie, who can’t help but lean his head against your arm and burst into giggles. You face forward, you back against his chest and lean into him, turning your head to kiss his cheek 

“Gonna keep me safe?” You ask and he shrugs 

“Or I’ll throw you out the window, haven’t decided yet”

Your mouth drops open and he snickers 

“I’m moving back in with Buck!” You hiss and he smirks, nuzzling into your neck and kissing it 

“Oh no you don’t, you’re stuck with me. Besides it’ll be fun to live with your best friend and not your brother” 

“Since when are you her best friend” Buck snorts as he looks at you two in the review mirror 

“Since this afternoon,” He says with a shit-eating grin on his face and you elbow him in the ribs 

Eddie stands in front of you now, his hands on his hips as you set the last box down in the spare room, your new bedroom. Buck left to go visit with the Bennetts after piling your boxes on the front porch and Eddie helped you drag them inside, even if he shouldn’t have. He kicked a couple of them slowly down the hallway and into the spare room while you picked up what you could. 

“All moved in,” He says, not bothering to hide his excitement and you smirk, walking over to him and wrapping your arms around his waist. You look up at him, your chin on his chest as you smile 

“Uh huhhh, all moved in. Just me and you roomie. And again, thank you so much for the raised garden bed, you didn’t have to go through all that trouble” 

“Hey, it was nothing. I know how much you love your plants. I wanted you to have something that would make you happy every day you saw it…”  

Your hands trail over his torso, just like he’d done to you. He watches you as you tilt your head down and look at his belt. You work it open, nuzzling your head sleepily in his chest 

“Watcha doin' there sweet girl?” He chuckles, letting you continue your little expedition 

“Nothin..”

“Nothin' huh?” 

“Uh huh” You let his jeans pool around his feet and he actually steps out of them, kicking them to the side 

“Doesn’t feel like nothin”

“Oh?” Your hand slides down the front of his boxers, your fingers brush over his cock and he gasps softly, feeling your hand wrap around him 

“S-shit” He breathes out heavily and your cheeks flush. You give it a couple of tentative strokes, feeling his precum get on your hand too. You look up at him, your eyes softly hooded 

“Is that okay?” You keep stroking him, tortuously slow, enjoying the way he whimpers into his knuckles. He pushes you backward with his body, your hand never leaving his cock. Your back hits the wall and you squeak, he braces himself on the wall, his hand above your head 

“Yeah” His voice is deep and husky “Yeah that’s okay” He tilts your chin up and kisses you, it’s a bit rough and needy and your hand starts to speed up. He growls against your lips, trying to keep from thrusting his hips up into your hand. 

He grabs your wrist, pulling it from his boxers for a second, and holds it up 

“Lick” he instructs you and you do as he says, tasting him on your hand. He shoves your wrist back down his boxers, and your hand slides easier now, wrapped right around his cock. He groans loudly, and you feel the tiniest snap of his hips. You pick up the pace, watching his mouth fall open in an O shape as you jerk him off  His head falls to your shoulder, and you listen to his soft pants, and his quiet little whines… he sounds absolutely pathetic and you giggle, turning to kiss his cheek

“Come on baby… I wanna hear you” You whisper in his ear and his whimpers get louder. He does start to frantically thrust into your hand, pinning you to the wall and getting off on you. 

“Wish it was your pussy” He says, his voice cracking a little in desperation 

“Wish I could fuck you right against this wall an watch your ass shake from how hard I’m pounding it”

Your hand speeds up again and he cries out, cumming all over it and the front of your shirt. He thrusts into your hand a few more times as you milk his cock, spilling out every last drop. 

You do your best to support his shaking frame, but he’s a lot bigger than you. You hold him up, pulling your hand away from his limp cock, and start licking your fingers. He looks at you like he can’t wrap his head around what he’s seeing. You stare into his eyes as you lick your hand clean with a satisfied little smile and his eyes roll back as he pushes himself off the wall. 

“I’m gonna make you pay for that, Sugar Cube”

Eddie lays in bed staring up at the ceiling. He can’t get over that surprised look on your face as he came all over your hand. Honestly, he can’t get over the feeling of your hand. He can still feel it, the way your nimble fingers wrapped around his cock… his hand doesn’t compare in the least. He strokes himself slowly, dreaming about what you would look like on your knees for him. You’d look so pretty staring up at him with those sweet doe eyes, his cock tapping heavily against your sweet lips 

“Eddie?” He’s startled out of his daydream by your small knock at the door, he covers himself and sits up, running his other hand through his hair 

“Uh… yeah, yeah babe what’s up?” His voice is strained as you open the door and poke your head into his room 

“Uhh…it’s kinda childish” 

You scoot into the bedroom and shut the door, looking around suspiciously

“What is it??” He looks around himself, for whatever the heck you’re looking for

“I had a bad dream” You sigh, letting your head fall against the door and he smirks scooting over in bed and patting it 

“Come on you” 

You bounce on the bed as you get in, immediately snuggling into his arms and curling your body into his. It’s a perfect fit, it always has been. He leans down and kisses your head softly, wrapping his arms around you protectively 

“I’m uh… I’m sorry if earlier was a little forward” You blush as you lay your head against his chest. His pecs are smooth and squishy and the perfect pillow 

“You’re saying sorry?? When I literally touched you while your family was right downstairs?” He snickers, shaking his head 

“Oh Sugar Cube, you’ve got a funny sense of guilt” 

“I should honestly kick your ass for that one” You glare at him and he smirks, you feel him push you back a little so you’re laying flat on your back 

“I said I was sorry” He grins, not sorry in the slightest. You feel him rest between your legs, his favorite place to be it seems 

“Maybe we can… finish something we started?” He asks quietly, and you can feel his hardness poking against your panties 

“It’s not really sex if you don’t put it in?” You snicker, quoting him and he brings your thigh up and hooks your knee around his waist. He rubs your smooth thigh, squeezing it in his hands and massaging it 

“See! Now you’re getting it!” He puts more weight on you, his cock heavy between your legs, you gasp softly, letting your eyes flutter closed and he smirks 

“This cool?” He asks softly, nuzzling your neck as his hips start to roll in those delicious little circles. 

“Mhmmm” you hum in his ear “So cool” you shudder as he picks up the pace, he reaches down between the two of you, pulling your panties to the side, and grinds against your clit. Your hips jerk up into his and he chuckles, kissing your neck 

“Down, Baby” he purrs condescendingly in your ear. He smirks, feeling the front of his boxers get wetter 

“Oh… you like that, don’t you?” He squeezes your cheeks together in his hand making your lips pucker. He kisses them lightly 

“You like when I’m a little mean to you, huh?” He asks softly, turning your head and kissing your neck, not really giving you time to answer any of his questions 

“You just wait until you’re mine… I’ll show you what a good girl like you deserves” 

You didn’t know Eddie knew Spanish, okay maybe you did know and just forgot. But he’s whispering something in your ear as his hips pick up a bit more speed and press down into you harder and you’re praying you can control yourself and not flip him over and ride him until your legs give out.

He doesn’t waste any time as he pulls his boxers down, sliding his cock between your soaked folds, very carefully not inserting himself, and at this point, you’re about to just shove him down and do it anyway. 

“Fuck, such a needy little thing aren’t you?”

His moans are angelic. He’s not afraid to let you know just how good you’re making him feel. This isn’t going to last very long if he keeps moaning like that, saying whatever dirty things come to his mind. Your hands fly up to his face, cupping his cheeks and kissing him heatedly. You run your fingers through his fluffy hair and tug a bit, causing him to groan against your lips 

“Come on sugar… I know you can do better than that” He whispers tauntingly, his eyes dark and cloudy. His breath hitches as you tug harder, pulling him away to look at you  “Better?” You tease and you feel his hips stutter, he stops for a moment, a smug little smirk on his face 

“You’re gonna end this way too quickly”

“You have so much audacity blaming this on me Mr. I know you can do better than that” “

“Are we really gonna have this discussion right now?” He shakes his head chuckling 

“I think you’re using it as a distraction” 

“And you don’t? Need a distraction?” He scoffs

“Okay. Nice to know” 

“That’s not what I me-“

He covers your mouth, pushing you back in the pillows, he slaps your clit, and your body jolts as you cry into his hand

“Oh, bite my finger if you want me to stop okay?” He lifts his hand for a second, rubbing your reddening cunt 

“O-Okay” You nod slowly and he smiles, it’s not sweet in the least, there’s nothing “cute” about him right now. He’s a man on a mission with that devilish look in his eyes

“That’s my good girl” he coos softly 

He covers your mouth again, as you moan and whimper pathetically on his fingers. He’s merciless with the way they plunge in and out of you, his palm slapping against your clit with every thrust of his fingers. This is nothing like it was earlier, no he wants to make you squirt now that you’re in his bed. His knuckles shine with your juices as he laughs evilly in your ear, his voice deep and molten as he watches you come undone all over him.

“Holy shit” He whispers in your ear and your eyes widen, as he keeps going, pulling another orgasm from you. It’s like he can’t get enough of the way you keen and cry out his name, cursing at him over and over like a broken record. His long fingers stroke over that spongy spot one more time and you’re squirting, your hips rising off the bed while crying out loudly.

You manage to push him away before he does it for a third time. He pulls his hand from your mouth and slides his hand down your body, keeping your legs spread for him. 

“Fuck I wish I was recording that” 

He likes watching the way you’re lying there now, an overwhelmed, dazed little smile on your lips. He wants to take a picture of you like this, with your hazy afterglow and shaky thighs. 

Instead, he takes your hand, using you to stroke his cock. You squeeze a bit while biting your lip as hot, thick, white ropes coat your sopping cunt. It takes everything in him not to drag it over your clit with his tip and stuff it back in you, making you take each drop. 

“One day…” He promises, panting harshly after finishing like that and using his fingers instead of his tip to tease your overstimulated body with his cum. 

“One day I’m gonna stuff your pretty pussy and take pictures of the way it drips from you” 

He taps your lips with his fingers “Clean up, honey” He tells you, grinning wickedly when your lips wrap around his fingers and you eagerly lick them clean, he loves how sleepy and cock drunk you look. He’s even more excited to find out how you look when he finally gets to fuck you dumb.

“We’re going to need to discuss limits sometime soon Sugar Cube… I wanna know just how far I’m allowed to push you” 

[wolfsong-the-bloody-beast]

Warden: You've never killed an innocent?

Zevran: Now there's an interesting word, "innocent." How many men do you know who can claim to be truly innocent?

Zevran: But if you're talking generalities, such as children and relatives and bystanders and such… never on purpose, but it happens.

Zevran: It's unfortunate, but death comes to us all. If not me, then some wasting disease. Or a fall down the stairs. Or at the hands of a darkspawn. It's all relative in the end.

Zevran: "Death happens," as we like to say. And when I get paid for it, death happens more often.

-

Zevran: In Antiva, being a Crow gets you respect. It gets you wealth. It gets you women… and men, or whatever it is you might fancy.

Zevran: But that does mean doing what is expected of you, always. And it means being expendable. It's a cage, if a gilded cage. Pretty. But confining.

-

Davrin: Lucanis, how do you decide when one of your targets deserves to die?

Lucanis: Usually when the client pays up front.

Davrin: I'm serious. Do you just kill anyone?

Lucanis: No. There has to be merit.

Davrin: "Merit?" Who decides that?

Lucanis: The Talon of the house.

Davrin: And then you just carry out the order?

Lucanis: It's my job.

Davrin: Must be tough to sleep at night.

-

Lucanis: You kill for a living, too, Davrin. How do you sleep at night?

Davrin: Like a baby. The things I hunt are pure evil. Monsters. There are no shades of grey with darkspawn. But you...

Lucanis: Provide a service.

Davrin: What if your target doesn't deserve to die?

Lucanis: Who does? Good, bad, everyone dies eventually. We just speed things up.

-

Emmrich: Do you have any say in your... targets?

Lucanis: You want to know if my victims deserved it.

Emmrich: Forgive me, I shouldn't have asked.

Lucanis: Everyone wonders.

Lucanis: I've never killed an innocent, by my count.

Lucanis: I cannot say if yours would agree.

-

Emmrich: Lucanis, do the implications of your work never trouble you?

Lucanis: Everyone on this team has killed before. I'm hardly unique.

Emmrich: Yes, of course. But in your case, it's a profession, rather than an act of necessity.

Lucanis: I'm not sure the Venatori or the Antaam see the distinction as you do.

-

Emmrich: I find it extremely interesting, Lucanis, that you consider the point of view of your enemies in battle.

Lucanis: I have to. It's much more difficult to find and kill them, otherwise.

Emmrich: Exactly! A utilitarian attitude towards death, and yet you extend empathy to your victims.

Lucanis: Not that much empathy.

Emmrich: Enough to wonder how the Venatori and Antaam view your actions.

Lucanis: Death comes to everyone, in time. I get paid to deliver it. Like a letter not everyone wants to read.

-

I think about this a lot. I'm always... surprised when I see the talk that they're supposedly trying to make Lucanis into the perfect "cinnamon roll" in Veilguard, because his sweet personality doesn't "match" his profession and background. Like, no? That's a very surface level of looking at it, I think.

Zevran is like this, too. He is an incredibly chill guy, and when you romance him, he is also very sweet and vulnerable, despite being an assassin. They're not that different in that department. They were both trained to be assassins since they were children. They're both traumatized in various ways. But neither of them acts like a bloodthirsty, evil freak. But they both also take pride in the job they do (or did), and how well they can do it, and have no intention of stopping. And yet they both express surprising empathy. (Zevran argues against annulling the Circle! Quite extensively!) And they make pretty much the exact same arguments about being killers for hire, as shown above.

Death is a natural part of life. Sometimes it just comes sooner, because we're there to deliver it. There's (almost) no such thing as an innocent person, so my victims aren't innocent people. Therefore, I've never killed an innocent in my entire life, as far as I know. (At least not intentionally.)

And that's interesting and fun about them! It's beautifully deranged. Lucanis completes an assassination mission, slitting somebody's throat or what have you, and then goes on his cosy coffee break, satisfied with a job well done.

The fact that they both say that they've never, in their opinion, assassinated "an innocent", so it's all good, doesn't automatically make it true and doesn't mean it's not complicated, however. Not every line of dialogue can be taken at face value. As video game players, we're rather desensitized to this, but hearing this should normally be at least a little alarming. For a regular person, at least. And it is for the people in the game! Like Emmrich and Davrin. Davrin has several banters with Lucanis about it. Like, who decides when somebody deserves to die and which contract's going to get carried out? Well, the "CEO" of "the company," of course! What could ever go wrong that way? Emmrich tries to coax Lucanis into saying that he does feel something about the whole thing, because he really wants it to be true. While Lucanis is very matter of fact about it. He knows what the Crows are, and that's it. He doesn't glamorize or demonize it.

So, it definitely isn't that "Veilguard says that Lucanis has never done anything wrong ever in his life," just like Origins doesn't do it with Zevran. Both the men's attitude towards killing is warped in an interesting way, completely in line with their background and upbringing. It shows when Lucanis argues with Davrin about them both being killers, because it completely escapes him (or maybe he ignores it for the sake of the argument) how the killing he does (contracts where the targets tend to be people) and the killing Davrin (a monster hunter, a darkspawn slayer) does is of different kind entirely. His logic is flawed at that point. But to him, it boils down to the fact that "it's just a job," and "killing is killing," and "death is death" regardless of form, and that rightfully baffles Davrin to no end. If anything, it shows how the Antivan Crows are taught to hand wave the issue, because the arguments Lucanis and Zevran both present are too similar to be anything else.

Of course, Lucanis, unlike Zevran, as the grandson of the First Talon and her favourite, might have had some extra privileges and wiggle space in comparison, which might have allowed him to bend the rules sometimes, give him space to show more compassion and act more heroically, because people are complex and there are many layers to what each person might consider right and wrong (e.g. killing is okay in various circumstances, and slavers in particular can get fucked - hell, we do it in video games all the time), but still. The fact that his grandmother wanted to tap a new market, so she made Lucanis specialize for hunting mages, which ultimately led to him killing a lot of Venatori and blood mages, makes it cleaner, which is nice, but then again, we hardly know the full extent of all his work. Moreover, when you ask Zevran to tell you stories about his jobs, you don't get much dirt out of him, either. He talks about some of the goofiest ones he's had. One of his targets that he (unsuccessfully) participated in taking out, a royal that got his position through plotting and murder, he also describes as somebody so immoral he basically deserved it. Also very clean. (Compare both these guys with somebody like Blackwall who truly committed a despicable act of murder for money that we do know of. And this single crime sounds so much more upsetting than anything either Lucanis or Zevran describe. None of the things Zevran says is as awful, besides the murder of his lover, which is framed like it wasn't really his fault, because he was misled.)

It's also worth noting that Zevran talks about how he was the best the Crows had before he left and how it brought him respect, wealth, women, men, or "whatever it is you might fancy." All in all, it comes with benefits. By his own admission, he was well off. But of course that came with a catch, as well. The "gilded cage" Zevran talks about. But that's not what made him leave. It was the plotting, backstabbing, and ever present distrust in the end, which led to the biggest mistake he'd ever made. Much like him, Lucanis also mentions that he had a comfortable life before getting captured, in the same quest where he also talks about how he didn't actually have full control of his life. ("Even before I was captured, my life was not really my own. So much had been determined for me.") The gilded cage comes up yet again. And it was plotting and backstabbing that made him lose a year of his life in the underwater prison.

My point is: Lucanis and Zevran are both assassins, because that's what they've always been, they were trained to be assassins since they were kids, they have a very pragmatic approach to death and killing, which they were most likely taught or perhaps were forced to develop, and they both take pride in how good they are at their job, and express no intention of ever stopping. And yet they both show that they have a good heart in various other ways, turn out to be friendly and incredibly loyal, and even very sweet as lovers. Because people can be complex, and so can be fictional characters. Yes, they're very different men, with different problems and personalities, yet also not that different.

You can't think that Lucanis is "too good" without also thinking that Zevran is "too good." You can't have this problem with Veilguard unless you also have it with Origins, is what I'm saying. And I think this may also apply to some of the other Crows we meet in Veilguard.

[prettypinkporkchop]

A/N: Reader dislikes Embry. When he imprinted on her, she got pissed off. Ofc she thinks he's attractive, but he annoys her. Also, this is after they all graduate. Embry is 19.

Embry call x fem reader

"Y/n, Victoria is after you too." Alice looks at you. You observe the faces of all the vampires in the room. Jacob and Embry stand beside you. "Jesus christ. We're in." Jake steps forward.

"No way." Bella objects. "This is what you want. Us working together." Jacob smirks at her. You look over to Embry who has his arms crossed and is in deep thought.

After the talk, you guys go to Emily's house. Quil made a joke about your hairline. "Burn!!!" Embry laughs. You roll your eyes at him and pinch his arm. "Aye!" He glares at you. "Shut up." You spit. "Dude, chill the fuck out." He argues like a child. "Mom and dad don't fight over me, please!" Quil jokingly cries. "Whatever." You get up to leave Emily's. Embry grabs your wrist. "You're not leaving here without me. Victoria will kill you." You jerk your arm away. "You're not my boss. Why did you imprint on me? I didn't like you when you were regular human and now that we have this stupid ass bond, you're up my ass." He backs away from you. "Move." He warns you. "What? You gonna hurt me?" You taunt.

He phases and howls, running into the woods. Quil runs out and looks at you. "You know, he may be a bit childlike but he's a good guy. He loves you. Cut him some slack." Quil says.

---- the tent scene ----

Bella and Edward are in one tent while you and Embry are in the other. You shiver and hold onto the thick blanket. Embry stares at you, feeling guilty. "Stop staring, Call." You grit. "Let me help-"

"Don't." You hold your hand out to stop him from moving to you. "This is all my fault." He sighs and looks down. "I let you around Bella. I should've step my foot down." He puts his head in his hands. "You didn't LET me do anything. You're not in charge of me." You hiss.

He looks up at you. Your lips are turning blue and your teeth are chattering. He rolls his eyes and sits next to you. You groan and he looks at you with a stern face. "I'm not going to touch you. Just trying to give you some relief." You give in feeling how warm he is. You lean against him, putting your hands on his waist.

"We aren't talking about this after." You mumble against his shoulder. He chuckles and shakes his head. "You need sleep." He lays back, pulling you down with him. "No I don't." You try to argue to make sure he knows that he annoys you.

The longer you hold onto him, the more you realize you can't deny the feelings you have for him any more. Right now, you feel safe. He keeps you safe. He cares about you.

You get lost in thought about everything he does for you that you forget that he even annoys you. He's two years younger than you, he likes to be rowdy and rough house, but you're his. You think about how you can find it cute and enjoy the immaturity.

"I'm sorry." You break the silence. He looks down at you, confused. "I'm sorry for treating you badly. I'm just not used to being around silly guys. I'm a serious person, but the more I think of it, you can even me out. We even each other out. I really do love you, Embry. I have this whole time. I was just scared of getting into this forever when we are opposites." You admit.

He grabs your face and makes you look at him. "Are you going to regret this?" He asks quietly. "No."

You lean in and kiss him. His lips are fire on yours. The first kiss has you melting into his arms.

He pulls away and places his forehead on yours. "I love you, doll."

"I love you, my everything." You whisper the last part. He smiles and giggles, pulling you on his chest and laying down.

---- after the battle at Emily's----

You sit at the table with Jared, Quil, and Paul. Jacob, Embry, and Sam walk in. Embry kisses your cheek and sits next to you. "Hey baby." He puts his hand on your knee. "Hey, my love." You smile at him and give him a quick peck on the lips.

Paul turns to Jared and holds out his hand, "twenty bucks, cough it up." He smirks.

"Bro!" Jared rolls his eyes and hands it to him. Quil smiles at you guys and gives you a thumbs up.

[saerins]

( 𝐒𝐔𝐍𝐀 ) — 𝐓𝐎 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐘𝐎𝐔

+ suna x f!reader | wc 1.8k | content: fluff, highly suggestive (skinny dipping), college au, best friends to lovers

notes: i …. do not know how this came out it just happened ૮꒰ྀི ´∩∩` ꒱ྀིა i was going somewhere with this but … yeah :’) idk i hope it’s okay >_<

summary: you both are good at living in denial. until now, until neither of you can stay away anymore.

“god, i missed hanging out with you.”

it makes your heart skip a beat; suna’s sudden confession. you look to your right, suna in the passenger seat of his own car with you behind the wheel. his head is thrown back against the seat, his green eyes lost behind his bangs.

you swallow the lump in your throat. “what kind of friend would i be if i left you all to your miserable, lonesome self, huh?”

suna sits up, looking at you, that godforsaken smirk plastered on his face. “as much of a horrible best friend you were back when i was still with haruka.”

he laughs when you flip him off. “please, your girlfriend’s insecurity comes first, okay, rintarou?”

“ex-girlfriend now,” he points out, “and there was nothing to be jealous about, we were just friends, babe.” he’s still laughing, obviously amused by your incredulousness after so long of not being in contact with you, and too used to you that he doesn’t flinch at calling you things like babe.

you extend your index finger, pointing it at him as a warning, “rin, i’m not joking.” because yeah, there was nothing going on, but you and rin were… close. and you’d probably get why some girls wouldn’t be okay with that. some of his girlfriends were fine with it, some of them even made friends with you, but of course some were not. like haruka.

that’s also why you and suna haven’t spoken in well over a year. it’s nothing you can’t handle… really.

but then you feel suna prying your outstretched palm open, your index finger in his hands and his lips pressing softly against your lifeline, a glint of mischief in his green eyes and that favourite smile of his filling your vision and you suddenly remember why you had to pry yourself away in the first place.

“stop being so smug, rin,” you snap, heated cheeks and suddenly remembering to breathe. hurriedly, you yank your hand away from him and start the engine while suna’s still there beside you, staring at you, amused.

“whatever you say, princess.”

it’s been over a month since the breakup with haruka and strangely, suna feels fine. there wasn’t any animosity between them either. it was just two people figuring out that this wasn’t working. they had that spark at first, yeah, but everything after that was just… something. a whole lot of something that suna just wasn’t interested in anymore. neither was she.

funny how he didn’t think he’d want anyone else for a while—until he saw you again on campus. being apart from you took some time getting used to, as it always did, but it wasn’t hard when there was always someone for him to fool around with.

and funny how the moment he started talking to you again that he started thinking maybe he wants it, all of what he had with all those ex-girlfriends, with you. and sue him for thinking that maybe you wanted it too.

“you’re such a slow ass driver, oh my god,” suna groans, earning your glare. now this; this feels like the kind of life he wants. chilling, enjoying night drives, you next to him. just you.

“you take the wheel then,” you huff, indignant.

fuck, you’re so cute.

suna crosses his arms, “nah i’m a little sleepy.”

you roll your eyes, hands on the gearshift, increasing the speed a little after his complaint. he still remembers how you pout when you’re disgruntled, how you idly puff your cheeks out when you’re concentrating, how you bite your lip when you’re nervous.

maybe his repressed feelings are catching up to him. maybe they’re telling him to just fucking get it over and done with because he’s done pretending.

you’re driving him to your parents’ holiday beach house after all, because your parents are rich like that and have absolutely no notion of saving simply because they never had the need to. you’re able to enjoy the spoils of it all.

plus, your car’s probably a thousand times better than his semi-beat up gt-r but here you are, insisting on driving his car instead of yours.

suna steals a sideways glance at you, the yellow from the street lamps bouncing off your face in all the right ways. god, you’re fucking pretty.

maybe he’ll make a move after all.

“can’t remember the last time i was here,” suna sighs as he gets out of the car. his heart is beating out of his chest; you don’t need to know that. he acts normal, like he isn’t anticipating anything with you, like he still thinks you’re just his friend, as though either of you can continue pretending like this.

because sure, when would a guy and a girl go to a beach house together completely platonic? suna thinks if there were people like that they’d be insane. especially if it’s with you because—he steals a glance at you again, dragging your weekend bag along with you as you fumble with the keys to open the door—look how goddamn beautiful you are.

and he thinks even more so one hour later, when you come out of the house in your swimsuit, looking hot as hell that suna’s glad he’s already in the water because you don’t need to see him reacting to that.

“what, you pussying out on me, rin?” you tease later, when he had half jokingly dared you to turn this into a skinny dip.

suna narrows his eyes at you, and for a moment it’s like you realise that he doesn’t look like his usual, smug self. like you can tell his expression’s growing soft. “i’ll do it if you do.”

some part of him is wishing you’ll say no, and not because he doesn’t want to see all of you (because he’d be lying if he said he didn’t think about you when he’s alone sometimes)—but because he doesn’t know if he’ll be able to hold back if he does.

maybe you’re oblivious to that, though, because you swim closer, throwing your arms around his shoulders and grinning. “my bottom’s off,” you tell him, and he can’t get it out of his head how you sound absolutely sinful.

with the sea so dark, he’s cursing it for not letting him see you.

“your top’s still on,” he tells you, eyeing the straps, eyes glazed with full-blown lust. so are yours, as he realises the moment he flicks his greens to you.

you’re not grinning anymore when you speak, “untie it for me.” you look a little timid, like you’re a little too aware of how his index finger is trailing a path down your spine—and yes, your bottoms are definitely off, probably lost in the bottom of the ocean somewhere.

suna doesn’t say a word, only relishes the way your breath hits his lips, enough of a compensation for a kiss for now, while his other free hand undoes the strap on your right, and then left, until your top goes limp and is probably joining your bottom soon.

it’s taking everything in him not to just carry you up so he can look at you. you smirk when you catch him thinking; like you know exactly what’s going on in his head.

because you do, he’s your best friend after all.

“let’s get back to the house, i’m freezing,” you grin, knowing that he’s groaning on the inside.

“fucking tease,” he’s grinning now too, watching as you float back towards the shore, pulling him along.

when you get out of the ocean, he stays still as you pick your towel up off the lounge chair, swallowing the lump in his throat as he admires you, bare body and so so perfect. he doesn’t mind dying tonight after this.

“quit staring, perv,” you giggle as you toss him his towel.

suna’s not crazy for thinking you’re into him too right? with the way you look at him with those eyes, with the way your fingers linger above his for a little too long.

“what’s wrong with staring?” he asks, challenging you, inching closer, feeling the smugness wear off when you realise you’re chest to chest, the kind of proximity you didn’t allow for earlier.

you’re stubborn, you insist on playing along, refusing to back down. “quit it, or i’ll think you like me, rin.”

it’s borderline amusing how you’re almost breathless by the time his forehead presses against yours, his fingers brushing your sides through your towel. your breath hitches in your throat and he likes that, likes you, so maybe he should keep staring.

“what’s wrong with that?”

he’s treading that line you’re always so afraid to cross, but fuck he just wants to pull you with him, take you back to your house and fucking love you like that’s all he knows.

but he’s patient, he’ll wait—because he wants you to make the move. to close that gap, to inch even closer than he has.

you’re nervous, but your hands come up to his cheeks and you give him that relief he seeks; your lips taste even better than he thought they would, and you sound like paradise. the way you gentle tug on his bottom lip before you eventually pull away has him going crazy, though maybe to be fair, he’s been going crazy for a while now, thinking of you in every crevice of his room whenever he’s alone.

“finally,” he exhales, taking some pride in the way you seem to have weak knees now, leaning on him. “maybe some of my exes had a point.”

you laugh, playfully pushing his chest away, “oh our first kiss and you’re going to talk about exes? i could tell you all about the time i dated kiyo—”

suna shuts you up forcefully with a kiss, both pairs of your legs clumsily hitting sand and rocks and the cobblestone path as the urgency to get back to the house hits.

“don’t wanna hear you say another guy’s name,” suna tells you in between kisses, smirking against your lips when he hears you whining as he pulls away. “just my name okay, baby?”

it’s hard not to fall for him when he’s like this; when even before everything he calls you pet names and introduces you to his family, when he always puts an arm around you and holds you close, when everytime he breaks up with someone and you inevitably draw close again that it feels like nothing’s changed.

“yeah, only you, rin.”

that smile will be the death of you, and his whisper of good girl against your ear is the ultimatum.

maybe you’ve always had a thing for your best friend.

now you finally get him.

[writingtraumaforever]

Home Alone: Courtship Mini-Sequel

Notes: Just a crack oneshot I wrote out of pure boredom while waiting for the Sonadow Twitter Takeover to start. This is purely silly energy. Rated T for language and slight suggestiveness.

Summary: Sonic is left at the Wachowski house alone, and Shadow returns from a GUN mission early. Embarrassment ensues.

Read Courtship Here!

Link to my AO3!

Start:

Sonic has been talking about for weeks how he’s gonna finally get to have the house to himself a couple days. Maddie is taking Tails to an inventor’s convention a state away, and Tom is taking Knuckles to a wrestling match that Knuckles has been talking about for months. Sonic was invited to both but declared he’d rather dogsit Ozzy a couple days and just chill. 

“And no boyfriends allowed while we’re gone,” Tom had warned with narrowed eyes just before climbing into his truck.

“Can’t invite over what you don’t have~,” Sonic had cooed back teasingly, still in full denial that he and Shadow were exclusive even though quite literally everyone else pretty much had accepted it by now.

While they never made it official, ever since Shadow had had dinner with the Wachowski’s several months back, Shadow was a regular part of Sonic’s life. It was rare the two didn’t see one another at least once or twice a week. Only time there was an exception to this was when Shadow was away on a GUN operation— which he currently is. He’s pretty much their biggest asset these days.

“You know what I mean,” Tom warns through his rolled down window, eyeing his middle son with a stern look but a teasing smile as well.

“Yeah, yeah, I won’t have anyone over,” Sonic concedes with a little shrug, rubbing the dog’s head beside him. They’re standing in the front yard, seeing the remaining two members of his family off for their trip.

“Counting on you, Sonic,” Tom winks, “You’re the man of the house the next few days.”

“Only because I will not be there,” Knuckles can’t help but antagonize from the front passenger seat.

“Not my first time,” Sonic assures with a shrug.

“Yeah— and last time we left you alone, we came home to half our house demolished.”

“Hey! That was his fault! Not mine,” the blue blur defends, pointing accusingly at Knuckles peeking out from behind Tom.

“I was being misguided and used!” Knuckles argues immediately with a little furrow of his brow, “I can’t believe you would bring back such a clouded time of my past!”

“Whatever, dude, it was still your fault,” Sonic rolls his eyes to which Knuckles growls.

“Anyway! We’ll be back in three days,” Tom interrupts before the two’s bickering gets carried away, “Be safe and responsible,” he instructs, already slowly backing out of the driveway.

“When am I not??” Sonic grins, watching the truck back up into the street.

“We love you, kiddo! See you soon!” Tom calls, Knuckles waving begrudgingly behind him.

Sonic grins and waves back, “Love y’all too! You crazy kids have fun!”

And then they’re gone.

Sonic looks down at his favorite doggo, Ozzie looking back up at him.

“Let’s do this.”

And just like before, Sonic takes full advantage of his time alone. Bubble party in the living room, all the snacks he can eat, pizza and chilidogs galore, jumping on beds, grinding down the stair rails, the whole shebang.

Nothing he can’t undo in a few minutes with his speed.

He even goes into Knuckles’ shed and plays with some of his forbidden weights the echidna always declares he’s not allowed to touch. Just for shits and giggles.

Once the night befalls them, though, Sonic and Ozzie lounge on the couch covered in snacks and empty wrappers. He has a gaming headset on, trash talking some punk on Call of Duty named ‘Robots4Life623’.

Ozzie is snoozing beside him, obviously tuckered from their antics of the day. 

Ending the match to the competitor yelling angrily like a lunatic, Sonic snickers and turns off the game. Stretching his arms above his head, he then pats his dogs head and places a little kiss on his ear, “You’re the goodest boy that ever gooded, Oz.”

The dog just lifts his head to lick Sonic’s face before laying it back down.

Sonic chuckles and hops up from the couch. It’s not too late as of yet. About 8:45. He’s not tired, but he’s running out of ideas on what to do.

So.. walking over to the speaker system, he hooks up his phone and decides on a jam sesh. Turning on his ‘Gotta Go Fast’ playlist, the hero starts hopping and dancing around the room to his fast paced favorite songs to hype himself up. He does this for probably a good five songs: Don’t Stop Me Now, Speed Me Up, Stars In The Sky, Uptown Funk, and Barracuda. Once those are over, he finds himself very much re-amped for his next three days alone.

His gaze temporarily moves to his phone, picking it up off the speaker to make sure he hasn’t missed any calls or texts. There’s a new picture in the Wachowski Family Group Chat of Tails and their mother taking a selfie in front of the stage they’d be listening to some old guy Sonic forgot the name of speak at tomorrow. Sonic smiles and sends back a simple thumbs up.

Flipping over to his photos after saving the one just sent, he browses through them a moment. One of Knuckles drooling in his sleep during a nap on the couch. One of Ozzie with a vest on that made him look like a proper gentleman. One of a selfie of Tails and Sonic and Knuckles all at the top of separate trees in the forest at the end of one of their races. One of Tom and Maddie covered in cake batter after a baking incident.

And then there’s one of Sonic and Shadow..

Sonic taking the selfie with Shadow behind him, Sonic’s arm around Shadow’s shoulders and pulling him close with a wide grin and a peace sign at the camera, Shadow looking at Sonic with his arms crossed and a small hint of a smile.

Sonic sighs, staring at the picture a little too long before he locks his phone again and sets it back on the speaker. As This Is How We Do It starts playing, Sonic’s gaze falls on the black leather jacket hanging by the door. He wears it often when it gets a little chillier.. Or when he’s simply missing Shadow.

Now is one of those instances.

Moving to the jacket, he swipes it off the coat hanger and slides it onto his own arms.

Popping the collar up, he buries his nose into the leather and breathes in deep.. The distant scent of lavender still there. Subtle but not absent.

He smiles a little to himself and moves back into the living room, about to skip to the next song when he spots his mom’s iPod sitting on the shelf behind it.

His curiosity gets the better of him, eyeing it only for a moment before deciding to see what taste his mom prefers. Plugging the iPod up, he presses play on the playlist very eloquently titled ‘Slay’. 

The first song comes on, and it’s Water by Tyla. Sonic tries extra hard  to not think about what his mother might be thinking about while listening to this song, and instead just listens to the beat and starts moving. It’s not bad for a girly playlist. She has some nice tunes in here, and Sonic doesn’t discriminate music tastes based on what people deem mainstream or not. Music is music, and if it speaks to someone, so be it.

Though, he’d be lying if he didn’t say his mother’s playlist had him going from dancing with energetic bounces and headbangs and silly moves to smooth and suave dancing. Letting the music flow through him as he moves his hips and swayed his tail to the beat, a lot more fluid and possibly seductive. Oh well. It’s not like he’s dancing for anyone, so let him be a little raunchy! He’s nearly 18!

Little does he know, he soon will be dancing for someone, a certain ebony hedgehog pulling up on their motorcycle outside. 

His mission was long and boring, but Shadow is finally back in town. He’s honestly just thankful the op ran smoothly enough for it to finish early. He was going to go home and rest for the night, but his brain kept running to a certain blue hedgehog. And he figured he’d surprise him. The thought of the hero’s face lighting up like Christmas at his surprise appearance made him feel warm inside, and he frankly needed the positive turn after having to have zero contact while away.

Climbing off his bike, he sighs as he walks towards the front door of the Wachowski residence, running his hand back through his quills and fiddling with a small item in his pocket with the other hand. 

He took only two steps up to the front door before realization dawned on him.

The Wachowski vehicles were gone. He couldn’t see any lights on.

Was anyone home???

Frowning a bit, he tried to recall if Sonic had mentioned going away only to remember that he would be home alone. 

A slow smile forms on Shadow’s face, his quills resembling devil horns behind him.

He could hear the sound of muffled music coming from the side of the house, stepping back down the steps to walk around and peer through the window to see if he could spot the hedgehog.

Sure enough, there was Sonic. Wearing his jacket. Dancing very lewdly.

Shadow swallows hard and feels his body tense up a moment at the sight, unable to take his eyes away as he watches Sonic’s hips sway and his arms move fluidly around himself. Quite literally feeling himself. Shadow has never seen Sonic act such a way, though he supposes dancing is different  than acting. Still, it left his throat dry and his tail stiff for reasons he couldn’t quite name.

The song switches to a new one, Sonic grinning and jumping up and down excitedly since he seems to know this one. And much to Shadow’s surprise, Sonic doesn’t only dance to this one, but he sings. Swinging Shadow’s jacket off his shoulders, he places it on a nearby vacuum cleaner to make it stand on its own, placing a basketball on top of it to act as a head. 

“How can it be? You and me

Might be meant to be, can't unsee it

But I don't wanna 'cause no scene

I'm usually so unproblematic

So independent

Tell me why

'Cause the boy is mine, mine”

Sonic sings all playful and sweet, strutting over to the jacketed vacuum that Shadow can only assume is meant to be himself. And the way Sonic walks can only be described as seductive.

Swallowing again, Shadow leans a bit closer to the window, the glass fogging up due to his breath.

“Somethin' about him is made for somebody like me

Baby, come over, come over (over)

And God knows I'm tryin', but there's just no use in denying.”

Sonic slowly walks around the Shadow dummy, fingers trailing along the basketball only to grab onto the jacket collar when he’s back in front of it and tug it towards him,

“The boy is mine

I can't wait to try him

Le-let's get intertwined

The stars, they aligned

The boy is mine

Watch me take my time

I can't believe my mind

The boy is divine

Boy is mine”

Sonic turns around then, pressing his back to the jacket’s front and slowly sinking down while letting his hands rub down the leather. Shadow’s crimson eyes have never been wider, his heart pounding in his chest, and his stiff tail now slowly beginning to wage behind him without his consent. 

Swaying his hips, Sonic slowly comes back up with his tail rubbing against the front of the jacket, 

“Please know this ain't what I planned for

Probably wouldn't bet a dime or my life on

There's gotta be a reason why

My girls, they always come through in a sticky situation

Say, "It's fine"

Happens all the time–”

Sonic’s eyes open from their half-lidded daze and are locked directly with Shadow’s.

Immediately, the blue hedgehog lets out what can only be described as a mortified yelp, collapsing onto the ground with his hands over his head as if that’ll hide him from Shadow.

Shadow’s own lips part in a gasp at being caught staring like a creep, quickly backing away from the window with a “Shit!” and rushing around to the front again and straight to his bike.

He needs to go.

He needs to go now.

He only makes it to his bike, cranking it up before two large, gloved hands that don’t belong to him are landing firmly on the handlebars. 

Damn. Almost got away.

He looks up wide-eyed to find a glaring Sonic the Hedgehog standing in front of his bike, straddling the front wheel.

“Shadow! What the hell!?” “It-it’s not what it looks like,” Shadow tries, stuttering his defense only for Sonic to not be having it.

“Spying on someone through their window??? That’s way past not cool!” he looks quite perturbed, his cheeks glowing red with both humiliation and anger, Shadow is sure.

“I wasn’t spying, I was–” his ears fold back sheepishly as he mutters, “I was going to try and scare you. I forgot you were home alone, and came to visit because my mission ended early.” Sonic huffs at this, “That’s still no excuse to violate my privacy like that! You could’ve knocked instead of watching!”

“I know, I know, I–” Shadow blinks, his own shame slowly melting into something else. Something more smug. His lips slowly curl into a smirk as he looks back up at Sonic, “What exactly.. was I watching??”

Sonic’s eyes widen at that, tensing up and looking thrown off by the question only for his cheeks to go even more rosy, “Uhh..” “Because it looked to me like you were dirty dancing on my jacket..”

“...Wanna call a truce and never talk about it again?” “Truce,” Shadow nods, shaking Sonic’s hand in agreement. 

Sonic just offers a sheepish smile and sighs, speaking after a moment of silence and continuing to hold hands, “I’m glad you’re back safe, though..,” his eyes look down bashfully before looking back up to Shadow through heavy lashes, “I missed you..”

Shadow swallows hard again, feeling that familiar sense of tension swell in the pit of his stomach and pound at his chest, the soft thumping of his tail against the seat of his bike coming from behind him.

“You did?” “Of course, I did,” Sonic snickers, rubbing the back of his neck looking at their still interlocked hands, “I’d uh.. I’d invite you in, but Dad had a strict no visitors rule..” “Wanna go for a ride??” Shadow offers without giving it a single thought, eyes hopeful and locked on the blue hedgehog in front of him.

Sonic looks a bit surprised by this before he then gives a little grin, “Let me lock up.”

He dashes off to the house again to lock the doors and check on Ozzie before leaving, Shadow watching him with a little hummed chuckle.

That boy is his.

[queensunshinee]

Time Of Our Lives || Part 18

Part 18:

"Why are you walking in circles around my house?" Art looked amused as he opened the door and leaned against the doorframe. He knew he shouldn't be doing this, and that he was a bit of a jerk for enjoying her embarrassment so much. But her flushed face and the staged eye roll were worth it.

"Because I was early." Liana muttered. "How did you know I was here?" she asked, stepping closer to him while he stayed put, taking his time to look at her. Still amused but also trying to hide his concern. He hadn’t heard from her for three weeks. Not since Atlanta. Until she sent a message yesterday asking if she could come over.

"I have windows in my house and you've been doing patrols here for ten minutes. The option to ring the bell exists, you know." He said, keeping his tone light. "I have a friend who always says that being early is just as rude as being late. You could have had plans." She said and shrugged. As if he would make plans half an hour before knowing Liana was supposed to come over. After five years of not being alone in the same room.

"I didn’t have plans and you can always come early when you come to me." He rolled his eyes. If he had the courage, he would have told her what he wanted to say and offered her a key to his apartment under the excuse that he wasn't always home, but if she was early, she could come in. He desperately wanted her to feel comfortable entering his home. Without knocking. Without ringing the bell. Just come in and sit on the couch or open the fridge. To be an active part of his life. The life he was trying to build for both of them.

"I brought wine. It's cheap, don't be a snob about it." She showed him the bottle and walked past him, causing him to move a bit but not manage to ignore the sensation of her body brushing against his for a second. He knew leaning on the doorframe like a douchebag was a good plan. God, in moments like these, Art felt so pathetic. "Put it in the fridge if you want. There's a bottle of white wine there, we can open it in the meantime." He shrugged as if it wasn't a big deal. As if he hadn’t put that bottle there especially because he saw her order white wine that night.

"So we won't drink my cheap wine?" she asked, opening the fridge and pulling out the cold bottle that even looked fancy. Annoying. "If you prefer the wine you brought, I can open it, it doesn't really matter, it'll just take time to chill, and there's already a cold one." Art said. He didn’t want to come off as condescending. He knew she hated that. He wasn’t trying to buy her friendship with money. He knew he couldn't. They both grew up in abundance, Liana never lacked anything. He wouldn't buy her with wine. But the hangover from the wine he offered would pass faster than from the one she bought.

"I don't know." She really thought about it.

"Next time you come and we want wine, we'll open the bottle you brought, deal?" He liked the sentence that came out of his mouth. As if stating she would come again. She just rolled her eyes. "You think that was smooth, don't you?" she asked and laughed. "You have to admit it was something." He retorted, seeing her move to the living room while he pulled out the wine and took out two glasses.

"Hey." He said after he sat next to her on the couch and they both took a sip of the wine. "This is really good wine. I kinda hate you." she said in response and he laughed. "It's whatever." He shrugged. "Hey." She replied, looking at him. "You disappeared on me." He said quietly, not taking his eyes off her. Art Donaldson had a way of examining Liana as if he saw all of her. As if he had all the time in the world to look at her, and he would use all of it. She felt her ears turn red under the intensity of his blue eyes.

"Don't look at me like that, Art. It makes me nervous." She sighed, and he shrugged again. "Do I have to think twice now about how I look at you so you won't get nervous? You're a big girl, stop getting nervous from looks." There was amusement in his voice. It was friendly but had an additional layer that Liana couldn’t quite put her finger on. "You're such a dick." Another sip of the wine.

"Tell me about those weeks." He stated. Almost not giving her a choice, there was no question mark at the end of his sentence. "It was a great fun, I watched all seasons of 'Gossip Girl' from the beginning." She smiled a forced smile.

Art recognized the exhaustion. She looked tired and sad, trying to hide it with excessive perkiness and humor. He didn’t want to give her the pleasure. He wanted her to talk to him. He wanted honesty and he wanted it now. He wanted to touch the raw flesh. He wanted to know her level of loneliness, if she was thinking about Patrick. If she was in contact with him. If she planned to forgive him.

"Liana." He sighed, running a hand over his neck as he took another sip of the wine. "You want to hear that it was shitty? Because I didn’t come here to cry, Arthur. I'm kinda tired of crying." She lifted her legs onto the couch and put her head on her knees.

"Then don’t cry. Just tell me what's going on here. I never know." He said, gently pointing at her head as she smiled a sad smile. Art thought that smile hurt him too much. He didn’t know that someone else’s smile could hurt him in his bones. How is that even possible? What kind of connection is this? How long has he felt this way? Did he feel her inside his body since he was born? Will it pass with the years?

"I miss him. A lot." She said after a few seconds of silence and didn’t look at Art. "I know it's not what you want to hear, Art. But that's the truth," she returned her gaze to him, her head still on her knees. Art moved close enough so he could hug her. He didn’t know what got into him, but she looked so small on his couch. So fragile.

"Can I?" he asked after her head was already on his chest, as if the question even mattered. He put down his glass and with his free hand ran his fingers through her hair. Inhaling what he could of her scent. "It doesn’t matter what I want to hear, Lia, I just want you to tell me something. It doesn’t have to be good this time." He muttered, wondering if she could hear his heart beating as she curled up on his chest.

"I feel so alone here, Art. Sometimes it hurts my whole body. It's like everyone dressed in white, and I dressed in black. And losing Patrick for so long was really too much. I feel crazy," her voice was so small and he knew her eyes were full of tears even without seeing her. It made him close his eyes and take a deep breath.

"You're not alone, Liana. Not in America. Not when you and I are in the same time zone..." He moved for a moment, missing her touch automatically. He felt the need to look her in the eyes when he spoke. "You could have called me. I would have come. I would have stayed with you." He meant every word he said. "You know that's not possible, Art, right?" she muttered, her voice accompanied by a faint sob. "I can't be what you want me to be right now." She looked back at him. Big green eyes full of tears. "You surely know by now that I'll take whatever you give me, Liana. If you need a friend, I'll be your friend. It doesn’t have to be more than that." And that probably hurt him to say more than it should have.

"You don’t want to be my friend, Art." She said, taking a sip of her wine that stood next to his on the table. "I want to be what you want me to be." And in Art's opinion, that sentence was the most logical thing that had ever come out of his mouth.

When Liana entered her apartment, she wasn’t drunk. She was tipsy. The boxes she had packed for Patrick were no longer in the middle of the living room, and getting to the kitchen to grab a glass of water wasn’t as complicated as it had been a few hours ago.

“Hey.” She heard from behind as she took a sip of water. “Fuck! Patrick!” she screamed a second after the glass fell from her hand and shattered on the floor. “Shit, don’t pick it up with your hands, wait a second.” He mumbled and went to get a broom and dustpan. She sat down on the kitchen chair and looked at him. He looked neglected. His stubble was long and messy, there was a stain on his shirt, and in her untrained opinion, he had lost weight.

When he finished cleaning up, he stood in front of her. Neither of them said anything; they just stared at each other, and Liana felt that if this silence continued, she would burst into uncontrollable tears. “Why are you here, Patrick? I gave you plenty of time to collect your shit.” She sighed. “I needed to see you.” He said quietly, leaning against the counter, not taking his eyes off her. “You’ve seen me. Now you can go.” She swallowed, afraid to stop looking at him.

“No. Liana. I need…” his eyes reddened. He tried to hold back the tears. Seeing him like this made Liana want to forget everything. To overlook. To let it pass. To give in. Because who is Liana Levy without Patrick Zweig at this stage of their lives? And how can she let him leave her (their) apartment when he looks like this? How can she continue living without knowing if she will ever see him again?

“I’m sorry I told you like that about the baby. It wasn’t right.” She said, forcing herself to keep looking at him, because turning her head now would be insensitive. Patrick respects her more when she doesn’t avoid looking at him. Why does she still care if he respects her? He definitely didn’t respect her in Atlanta.

“Can you tell me about it, please?” he asked in a choked voice, and she sighed. “There’s not much to tell,” she took a deep breath, hearing the tremor in her own voice. The whole situation was strange, “I don’t know if you remember, but about half a year ago, there were a few days when I felt really bad? I threw up a lot?” she asked, checking if he understood what she was talking about. He nodded silently.

“I didn’t know who to talk to,” she continued, and this time he looked away. As if to say what they both knew was in the air;  Why didn’t you talk to me? Why didn’t you talk to me? Why didn’t you talk to me? “I talked to Tashi…” his gaze returned to her, surprised. “She went with me to the clinic, and that’s it.” Again, deafening silence.

“Do you want to know about Atlanta?” he asked. “Will it help you to know?” he added quietly, wiping away the tears and continuing to look at her. “What will it give us, Pat?” she asked with an exhausted chuckle. “Why didn’t you talk to me?” he asked what had been on his mind for the last few minutes. Maybe for the last three weeks, since she had venomously yelled at him about the baby, trying to hurt him as he had hurt her.

“Because I no longer think I know how to talk to you.” This time she couldn’t stop the tears. She was choked with them. Her hands covered her face from him, and he automatically moved closer to her, detaching from the counter. “Lilo, look at me for a second.” He asked softly. Where was this softness in the last few years? Where was the man she thought she knew so well?

She stood in front of him, letting him hold her hands by her sides. They looked at each other, his tears dried up while hers still flowed uncontrollably, her lip trembling almost as much as her leg. She just wanted one more moment. Just one. A good one. One she would remember fondly. “It’s me. It’s still me. I got a little lost, but it’s still me.” He said, wiping her face once more. Again, gentleness, again, tenderness. “I don’t know how to find you, Patrick, and I can’t keep wasting my life searching.” She hugged him suddenly, pressing her cheek against his chest while he wrapped her in his big arms, the ones that always promised it would be okay. But how would it be okay? How would it be okay if he left this apartment and didn’t come back?

“I love you.” He whispered above her head. “I love you too.” She replied. It was the truth. “I just don’t think it’s enough,” she pulled away from him.

All that was left were two people who knew each other perfectly. Every smile and every freckle. Every facial expression. Every emotion, but they caused each other more harm than good. “I wish you had told me.” He meant the baby again, and she nodded, “I wish I could have been there for you.” He added.

“I wish a lot of things.” She sighed.

She kissed him suddenly.  It wasn’t full of passion and wildness like most times their lips met, it was heavy and tense. A feeling of necessity and fragility conveyed in salty lips from tears. Tongues slowly uniting, an understanding of an end. Of something that would never return. Patrick’s lips parted from hers only when they were both desperate for air. His forehead touched hers amid short breaths.

“I love you so much, Liana. I don’t know who I am without you.” He said again. Like a child’s confession. Like a convict’s confession who received a death sentence. “We owe it to ourselves to find out. I have to learn to love myself enough alone. And you have to find real reasons to get up in the morning.” She responded After a few seconds. “I’m afraid that I’ll leave here and won’t have a way back into your life, Lilo. I’m afraid you’ll erase my existence as I can never erase yours.” Another confession. His eyes were closed; this time he couldn’t look at her. Not when he was this exposed. Not when he had no defenses.

‘So why did you do it?’ That’s what she wanted to ask in response. ‘Why did you throw away four years of our lives and many more years of pure friendship? Why didn’t you give us a real chance at any stage? Why do you always give up on yourself? why did you give up on us?’ “It hasn’t been working for a long time, Pat, we were just afraid to admit it.” She sighed again. “And if I’m still afraid to admit it?” Another quiet question. A rhetorical one because what else was there to say.

“I love you. I will always love you.” He said for the third time and placed his key on the table. His fingers touched hers for one more moment.

“Maybe in another lifetime, it’s enough,” she said with a forced smile as another tear fell. “Maybe there’s a world where Liana and Patrick are in love, and it’s enough.” He nodded and chuckled in defeat. “Sounds like a beautiful world. Call me when you find it, okay, Amanda?” He asked in a broken voice and left the apartment.

“I promise.” She said, but no one heard her.

Hey again, how are we doing with all the angst? I swear, this part was almost too sad to write, but I feel like it's important to have some healthy conversations. It helps them all to grow. As always, I love it when you message me what you're thinking, so use that askbox PLEASE :)

taglist (if anyone wants to join, just ask) @soberbabes @nina357 @lamoursansfin @marley1773 @ruyaas-world @apolloscastellan @primlovesdilfs @fangirl-kimora @serenadingtigers @imbabycowboy @do-it-for-kicks @izzywags478 @4deline08 @igotmajordaddyissues @jackierose902109 @ganana @yoitsme-04 @swetearss

[callsign-rogueone]

what would these boys be like as dads? who’s strict? who’s easygoing? who’s a spanking parent? who’s overprotective? so curious

I love this. they’d all be great dads and total dilfs

strict:

Dain. he considers himself easygoing compared to his father, but he’s still just a teeny bit uptight. so he’s staying in the strict category until we get more character development out of him. but he’s much kinder to his kids than his father was to him (I know we don’t know much about their relationship but I headcanon Aetos Sr. being a total wad, personally.)

Aaric seems to hold himself to a higher standard than the rest of his family (see his “tour of the kingdom” comment) and he’s iron squad’s new golden boy. he seems very disciplined to me. I can see that turning into him having high standards for his kids. especially if (when) he ends up ruling Navarre and they’re to be his successors. he’s a loving father, but he’s not raising spoiled brats.

easygoing:

Garrick seems very much the fantasy equivalent of “come home when the street lights come on” once the kids are older. lets them start training with swords once they’re ten or so. his kids can handle themselves, because he’s taught them to. he will still throw hands with anyone who harms them though. all of the boys would.

Ridoc owns this category. you know the meme of Chris Hemsworth holding his kid upside down by the ankle? that’s Ridoc. he always makes time to play with them when they’re little, because he’s a very fun-loving guy. they don’t have any problems opening up to him in their teens, because they know he’s going to be chill about whatever issues they have, and help them get through it one way or another.

I thought for a while about where to put Sawyer. but if we use my farm boy Sy headcanon, then he’d be pretty easygoing. country kids get up to all kinds of crazy stuff and they turn out fine — he did. I also see him having kids later in life than some of the others — he’d be more relaxed by then. especially since the continent is back at peace. (insert Anakin and Padmé meme here… the continent is at peace, right?)

overprotective:

Brennan. he’s got that parentified-eldest-daughter complex, and grew up taking care of Violet. so he’s definitely one to err on the side of caution. and he’s mending every single cut and scrape and skinned knee. you don’t need any bandaids in the house with him around.

I wanted to put Xaden in the easygoing category because he’s absolutely spoiling his kids, but we’ve all seen him with Violet — him with a kid that’s half her would be even worse, lmao. if he’s not watching them, then one of the family dragons is. he’s not afraid to square up on a kid either. not that his kids would ever be bullied — he’s taught them how to stand up for themselves. they’re little badasses.

Liam. I was torn between putting him in the easygoing category or here, because he’s a very positive, chill guy. but he’s half golden retriever, half guard dog. and there’s nothing more precious to guard than his family.

Bodhi is just such a sweetheart and is so genuinely worried about them at all times. especially when they’re tiny babies. he’d be scared to hold them at first, because what if he does it wrong… when they’re teens, they roll their eyes at his questions (who they’re gonna be with if they’re heading out, etc etc) but they know it’s because he cares — and if shit hits the fan, he’s gonna be their first phone call (metaphorically.)

none of these boys are raising hands to their kids. I won’t even consider it.

[lovecla]

OCEAN EYES | connor bedard

chapter one.

➴ warnings: swearing, underage drinking.

➴ word count: 3.2k

➴ author's note: omg this is my first time actually publishing something i wrote. the things i do for you, connor bedard. hope u like it <3

“SOMETHING tells me I shouldn’t be surprised to see you like this, but I still am.” You hear his voice before you can actually see him, which makes you wipe your tears fast and sigh loudly.

A girl can’t cry to her favorite Marvel movie anymore.

“You should try minding your own business. It’s super fun,” you say, putting the bowl of popcorn down and pausing the movie.

“Why would I even do that? Minding yours is way funnier.” Alex says, putting his luggage on the floor and sitting right beside you. You fight the urge to hug him tightly just because you don’t want to admit you’ve missed him a lot.

“What are you even doing here?”

He scoffs. “Last time I checked, this was my house.”

“You know what I mean,” you roll your eyes. “What are you doing here? You weren’t supposed to be back in Illinois until tomorrow evening.”

“Well, after yesterday’s W, we thought it’d be great to be back earlier,” he grinned and you sighed, again. You knew what that meant.

Winning equals partying in Hockey world and usually, the party happened at Alex’s house since he had a big ass house, no wife, no parents, no kids. Just an eighteen year old sister living with him before moving to her own apartment.

Having a somewhat famous brother wasn’t exactly in your to-do list but here we are. After Alex joined the Blackhawks, everything went upside down in the best way possible. For him, you mean.

For you and my parents it meant going to every game, every party, every important dinner. And even though you’re not complaining at all, it was so much in such little time. So you’re still getting used to it.

But Alex won’t make it any easier. Every time they win and come back home, it’s a party. Your parents stopped showing up after the first one— they opened the door of the guest room (where they were staying) to find Donato fucking some random girl. It wasn’t exactly his best moment, you’ll give him that.

“What time does it start?” You ask, starting your movie again.

“Eight p.m. sharp. Bedsy will be here so you can be weird together or whatever y’all teenagers do.”

“You’re just five years older than me, dumbass. Just because you bought your own mansion at twenty-two, doesn’t mean that you’re that old.”

“Whatever. The point here is: y’all weird.”

As much as you’d like to prove him otherwise, he isn’t one hundred percent wrong.

You and Connor met two years ago, when he and Madi were still living in Sweden. Despite what everyone thinks, some NHL agents already had their eyes on Connor, so they’d casually invite him (and he always brought Madi with him) to games, including the games your brother would play.

You befriended his sister quickly because, hello, she’s just the best human being in the entire world (hopes Chloe doesn’t hear you) and suddenly, going to his games wasn’t that bad anymore.

One day, Madi couldn’t go to one of the games, so when you went to chat with her, you just found Connor, chilling by himself.

“Hum, hi?” You remember saying, very embarrassed and awkward. You weren’t afraid of him, you had spoken to him before and he is friendly, despite what everyone else seems to think. He’s just. Quiet.

“Hi, Ellie,” he answered, taking his eyes off the rink for once. His face was like always: expressionless. “Madi couldn’t make it today. I’m the only Bedard you’ll have today, I’m afraid.”

You laughed, because, what, had he just made a joke? Crazy. Then you sat on the seat beside him and made yourself comfortable, trying to find Alex in the sea of big, aggressive men.

That was kind of the beginning of your friendship. Just like that, you talked his ears off during the entire game, complaining more than speaking, really. You’re not much of a calm person when it comes to game watching. And whenever you thought he wasn’t listening, you’d stop talking, and then he’d look at you and say things like:

“So? Where’s the rest of the story? I’m interested in why you think The Incredible Hulk is the worst Marvel movie.”

And then, when he joined your brother’s team, you were more than happy. He and Mads got to be closer and you could hang out with her whenever school and her job let you.

“I don’t think we are weird. At all. We’re just not excited about partying every single day like you are.” You replied, trying to distract yourself from the fact that Natasha Romanoff had just died on screen.

It should have been that fucking Clint asshole. Fuck him.

“Every time I throw a party here, you both just stay on the couch talking and talking, not a single drink in y’all’s hands. I get that you can’t really drink yet but at your age I was getting shit faced whenever I had the chance.”

“That isn’t the brag you think it is but fine,” He flipped you off and you smiled. “Can I invite Chloe?”

“I mean, I invited fifty guys to our house, you might as well invite your annoying girlfriend as well.” He used that one tone he always used whenever he’s annoyed and it made you roll your eyes, again.

“She isn’t annoying.”

Even though it isn’t a lie, it felt like one. Ever since you started hanging out with the players of Alex’s team more, she started to act weird. And she’s kind of obsessed with Bedard. But then again, half of the hockey community is so.

No biggie.

“Whatever, loser,” he slapped your forehead and you hit him with the pillow you were resting your head on. “You stink.”

“You fucking stink. Go change into something that isn’t a suit, weirdo.”

“I will, but not because you asked me to. I was going to do that anyway.”

You smirked. “Of course you were.”

—

EVEN though you didn’t plan on staying up the entire night like your brother and some of his teammates— the majority of the guys your brother invited were still in his twenties like him, so they don't have big responsibilities like kids or wives or husbands—, you still dressed up a bit.

Thankfully this isn’t anything fancy, so you just put on a black, silky, maxi skirt, a corset-like tube top and low heels. Since you got lazy and ended up listening to music instead of getting ready, you had to put your hair in a slick bun because it was already eight and you still weren’t ready. So, slick bun it is.

Your phone rings and you pick it up, reading Chloe’s texts:

You sent a quick nice and put on some perfume. It’s not long until you hear a quick knock on my door, followed by a blonde mess that you like to call your best friend.

“Hi, oh my God, you look stunning.” You say as soon as you both make eye contact, because Chloe’s just so freaking beautiful.

“I know,” she replies, sitting on your bed. “How are you?”

“I’m fine. Not really in the mood for partying though.”

“Are you kidding?” She slaps her knees with her hands, a smile on her face. “You have a house— no. Not a house. A mansion full of hot hockey players and you’re not in the mood for partying? What do you mean!”

You shrug. “You know I’ve never really cared about hockey. I don’t see the appeal, if I’m being honest.”

It’s true. Even before Alex made it to the NHL, you always thought hockey was just… alright. You don’t get why people get so excited to see some guys throwing a puck and skating. The fights are always fun to watch, though.

“You’re crazy,” she says, and you think she’s probably right. “Is Bedard coming?”

“I don’t really know. Maybe?” You replied, turning around and facing her. “Maybe yes. He’s on the team after all and he did score the last goal.”

“So. I need you to do something for me.” Chloe replied after a minute or two, and just by seeing the crazy look she has on her face, you knew that this isn't a really good thing.

You sigh. “What do you need?”

“I need you to introduce me to him.”

“Him?” You ask, confusion taking over your entire face.

She rolls her eyes. “Connor! I need you to introduce me to Connor!”

You don’t know why but her sentence makes your heart beat faster. You don’t like this feeling or her words either. But you just swallow your discomfort down and try to keep your expression neutral.

“Bedard? Why do you want that? You’ve never even acknowledged him in the past two years.”

“Well, I was waiting for him to make the move, but he’s so oblivious sometimes,” she says, sighing. “Honestly, I thought he liked you. You know, with how close you both are.”

You almost choke on your own spit. “Connor? Liking me?”

“I know it sounds crazy, but you can’t really blame me though. You’re all over each other and you even sit on his lap during movie nights.”

True. But also, not true.

“Well, I do that with all of my friends. I mean, I would do that if I had more friends. It’s not really my fault I just have you, Madi, Alex and Connor. I can sit on your lap if you want to—”

“Ew, not happening,” she fake-gags, making you laugh. “Anyway. Recently he said in an interview that he is single and not interested in anyone in particular. Soo, that’s my chance!”

You don’t know if you’re more weirded out with the fact that she watched one of his interviews or with the fact that she wants to be with him. And what makes you feel even weirder is the fact that you actually can picture them as a couple.

Chloe is your perfect WAG: blonde, rich, tall, good on cameras and gorgeous, even for an eighteen year old, fresh out of high school. She’s always at random, fancy parties because she says college isn’t for her, so she needs to find a rich, hot husband for herself.

You’ve never really said anything about that because you don’t think relying on a man to provide for you is the right decision. You want to get into college and continue to study so you can make your own name, and now that Alex’s known, you will need to work twice as hard to make sure you’re not getting anything just because you’re his sister.

But thinking about Chloe trying to make Connor her husband?

Yeah. It made you feel terrible.

“Yeah, I don’t know about that, Chloe…”

“Wait, what?” Something like anger flashed through her eyes. “You don’t think I have a chance with him? Why?”

“No, it’s not that, it’s just—” God, why were you feeling like this? It’s just Connor. A guy you met two years ago. “Connor’s really closed. We’ve never talked about relationships. I don’t know how to approach him.”

The smile is back on her face. “That’s fine. You just have to tell him hi, this is my best friend, chloe. And I’ll do the rest.”

You had a bad feeling about this. And it probably showed in your face because Chloe was frowning, again.

“Ellie,” she said, slowly. “Do you like him? Is that why you don’t want to introduce us?”

You were the one frowning now. Liking Connor? Seeing him as anything more than a friend? No, what? Crazy. Chloe was nuts. You just didn’t want him to get hurt. That was all.

“What?! No. No, of course not!” You said, feeling hot. “Connor is just a friend. Like you.”

“So?” Chloe said, quietly. “You will introduce us, right?”

“Yes,” you replied, without hesitating this time. “Please, be nice to him.”

“Oh, I am going to be nice,” she smirks. “I don’t know about the things I’m planning on doing with him though.”

She laughed out loud and even though you didn’t find anything funny, you laughed too. Even if your heart felt like it weighed more than the whole moon.

—

FINDING Bedard wasn’t as easy as it sounded.

Even though your brother’s house was big, it felt crowded with people. Alex said it’d only be fifty guys or so, but he forgot that those fifty guys were bulky and big, so it would feel like his house had at least eighty people there.

The music wasn’t extremely loud, it was just a background noise, so everyone could hear each other just fine. And boy, were those hockey men loud.

Every time one of them recognised you, they’d just shout and raise their arms, with either beer or liquor in his hands. It took you and Chloe at least fifteen minutes to get to the kitchen, so Chloe could get a drink for her and you a diet soda. You hated the taste of alcohol.

“God, at this point we’re never finding him,” Chloe mumbled, sipping on her beer and making a disgusted face. “You need to tell your brother to buy some proper beer.”

You chuckled. Despite everything Alex said, he’d probably freak out if you asked for alcohol. “I could always call Bedard. If he’s here, he’ll show up.”

“Yeah, do that. I’ll go to the bathroom real quick, and I’ll be back.”

You nodded, grabbing your phone and searching for Connor’s number. You finger just a centimeter from the screen, your heart beating fast in your chest, and you wanted to punch yourself when you caught yourself thinking I hope he doesn’t answer.

“I’m the world’s worst best friend,” you mumbled to yourself, disappointed with your own stupid brain.

“That skirt looks good on you,” you heard Connor’s voice and you looked down fast, checking to see if you had actually called him. When you found your phone still on the contact list, you furrowed your brows. “Hi, El.”

You turned around just to see Connor standing there, with his awkward smile and blue eyes. His hair was a bit longer than you remembered but it looked even better than before. He looked good.

You smiled, all that tension from before gone in seconds. “Hi, Con. I was literally just about to call you.” You raised your phone, showing it to him.

“Yeah?” He stepped closer, wrapping his arms around you, holding you close. Hugging him was something that felt so precious because he never really did it with many people, and to think you’re one of the lucky ones? Yeah. Precious.

“Yeah,” you replied, hands around his middle, your height difference making the whole thing funnier. You stepped back, looking him in the eye. “I— I need to… hum. Introduce you to someone.”

He raised his brows, just slightly. His face going all-Bedard like again. “It isn’t a boyfriend, is it?”

“No?”

“That sounded more like a question than an affirmation. Are you seeing anyone?”

“What? No,” you laughed, amused with his answers. “No, I’m not. You and Madi would be the first to know if I were, I promise.”

“Then, who is it? Last time you said you had to introduce me to someone, I had to chat for forty minutes with an old lady who thought the Avengers were real.”

“Don’t call Susy old!” You threw your arms up, still laughing. “And that day was funny as fuck. Also, I see myself in her, so if you don’t like her, you probably don’t like me as well.”

“Bullshit. You know I like you.” He said, blue eyes looking everywhere else but your face.

Your heart did that backflip it always does whenever Bedard says something like that. You smiled.

“I like you too,” you whispered. “But I need you to meet someone.”

Just before Connor could ask who that someone was, Chloe re-entered the kitchen, slowing her steps when she noticed that Bedard was there.

“Great, you’re here,” you said, holding one of Chloe’s hands and pushing her closer. “This is who I wanted you to meet. Chloe, this is Connor Bedard. Con, this is my friend Chloe.”

Chloe reached out her hand to greet him. “Hi! I’m a huge fan. Congrats on your win!”

Connor greeted her back, but his gaze was fixed on your face. It was extremely awkward and uncomfortable, all the tension from earlier coming back. Something that you couldn’t really identify flashed through Connor’s eyes and it made you want to scream.

“Hi. Thank you.”

Connor’s dry words didn’t seem to surprise Chloe. “Do you want to drink something? I make the best Black and Tan in the entire world.” She smiles.

Connor looked at you and you bit your lip, your mouth opening to speak before your brain could stop it. “It’s true. She does.”

“Oh, are you drinking now?” He sounded… angry?

“No, of course not,” you scoffed, wishing you had kept your mouth shut. “But people like it a lot.”

“I can’t drink. We have to hit the gym tomorrow morning.”

Blue eyes looked at you again and honestly? You were ready to call it a night and go back to your room, because what the hell. Connor wasn’t usually this complicated.

“Oh,” Chloe sounded disappointed but then. “Then maybe we can grab some drinks together tomorrow evening?”

Damn, she doesn’t give up.

“Sure. But El doesn’t drink.” He replied, leaning against the kitchen counter, his biceps practically ripping the tight shirt. You reminded yourself to stop staring.

And then you proceeded to remember what he’d just said.

“Um. I’m not coming,” you were sure your lipstick was already gone with how much you were biting your lip so you switched to picking on the skin around your nails. “I… I have… well, I’m—”

“She has a date.”

You and Connor both looked at Chloe. Your eyes doubled in size and you had to fight the urge to punch her. What the hell was going on with you that night, you wondered.

“Do you?” Connor asked, and he was definitely angry now. His face wasn’t showing anything but his eyes told the entire story. They had a storm going on inside of them and he had the same look as he did when that one guy made his teeth bleed during one game.

“That sounded more like a question than an affirmation. Are you seeing anyone?”

“What? No,” you laughed, amused with his answers. “No, I’m not. You and Madi would be the first to know if I were, I promise.”

Fuck.

“Well. It’s nothing serious. Just— a guy?” It definitely sounded like a question. Lying wasn’t exactly your best trait.

“Yeah, a guy. So, she can’t come. Just you and me,” Chloe continued, grabbing another beer and sipping on it. “Can you pick me up at seven? I’ll text you my address.”

Truthfully, you didn’t know how Chloe had the balls to act like this, especially with someone who hasn’t shown interest in her at all. Maybe this is what being confident means? You thought to yourself, trying to right her wrongs once more.

Connor just nodded and left the kitchen without saying a word.

“That went well, huh?” Chloe said, looking happy with the situation.

You just hummed, not wanting to lie more than you already did that night.

God.

[natsgrave]

YOU FORGOT YOUR CLOTHES | scarlett johansson

i'm so chill, but you make me jealous, but i got your heart skippin'. you know i'm not a bad girl but i do bad things with you. Professor!Scarlett x Student!Reader, legal age gap. ( v short one. ) i do not give permission for my work to be copied or translated on other sites. plagiarism is a crime! masterlist whispers of heartache m.list

Y/N'S POV

Me and Scarlett are secretly in a arrange marriage and we managed to keep it hidden from everyone.

It was no surprise that she felt nothing towards me but the cold treatment still hurts me sometimes, because this is not what I dreamt of and expect when I entered the married life.

You might say that I'm stupid but I fell in love with her already, it sucks but what can I do? Being married to her and living under the same roof for over 2 years, it's not impossible anymore.

To my surprise, I woke up first before her. Normally, when I open my eyes, she's already out of bed but not this time.

We might be in a arrange marriage and we— she maybe don't feel any love for me, but we still agreed to sleep on the same bed just like what married couples do.

I carefully climb out of bed and do my routine before heading downstairs and make breakfast.

Halfway through my cooking, I heard her footsteps coming down the stairs.

"Goodmorning, Y/N." She greeted with her morning raspy voice. "Goodmorning." I replied.

"How come you're awake already?" Scarlett asked. "This is what time I usually woke up, you're just really much of an early bird." I said putting the last pancake on the plate before putting it on the table.

"Hmm, you can cook." She said, stating the obvious.

"I do."

We start eating in silence, it wasn't uncomfortable anymore since it was everyday.

We eventually finish eating without much talking and just minding our own business. She took a shower in our room while I use the shower in our guest room. Once I'm done, I change into appropriate clothing, and head downstairs with my things I need.

"I'll see you at school." Scarlett said once she saw me walking down. "Sure." I shortly replied as she walked out of the door.

I made myself a food for lunch and made sure to check my things before leaving the house making sure to lock the door and walked towards the cab. ___

The drive wasn't really that long and before I even notice, the car stopped in front of my school.

I gave the driver my payment before exiting the car and walking directly to my classroom.

When I entered the room, frown instantly forms in my face and my bloods starting to boil.

I saw her flirting with one of the teachers. I know, I shouldn't be feeling like this but I can't stop. I let out a scoff before rolling my eyes and walking towards my seat.

After that seems like forever, the bitc— I mean the teacher finally left and she turned to face us and start her discussion.

I wasn't really paying attention, I don't know what is going on but seeing her flirt just makes me mad. I mean, come on, she's still married to me. I just let out a deep sigh and tried to forget about it, which is failed by the way.

"I want you all to get a partner for your project." I heard her say in a cold tone.

Everyone starts getting their own partners while I still haven't moved an inch when someone coughs beside me.

I look up and saw Gabriel, my suitor, standing there with a smile. For the record, I never entertained him. I'm loyal even though she's not.

"Hey, uhm, would you like to be my partner?" He shyly asked and I was about to say something when we heard a loud bang.

We look forward and there she is, looking at me with stern and cold look, "Sorry, accidentally dropped the book." Professor coldly said and I internally smirk before turning my gaze back to Gabriel. Two can play this game, Johansson.

"Yes, ofcourse! I would love to." I happily replied which made him smile and his face lightened.

Whatever his reply would be got instantly cut off when someone shouted and I know very well who it is.

"Okay! Seems like everyone's have a partner, the deadline will be on Friday and no extensions. That would be all for today, class dismissed." She said and gathered her things, "Oh, and by the way, Y/LN please come to my office after this. You forgot your clothes at my house last night." She casually said with innocent smile on her face while my jaw dropped.

Everyone is in shock too, and I saw her smirk before casually leaving the room like she didn't say anything.

What the fuck?

[aurasy3ag3r]

𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐀.𝐓𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐚𝐦𝐞́𝐧𝐢

☆ an : was requested! hope y'all like. Btw didn't give baby a specific name but feel free to name baby whatever y'all want

☆ wc : 632

It’s been exactly 3 months and 3 weeks since your baby was born, Since then you and your fiancée haven’t had any alone time. Luckily you and aurélien have started to get the hang of this parenting thing and you think tonight is finally the night that you can go on a date, with your baby of course. It’s not that you guys didn’t have anyone to watch your little angel but you guys just loved having him around. 

“Baby are you almost done changing him?”. You peaked your head into the nursery where aurélien was finishing getting him ready. “Me and my baby matching”. Your boys were both wearing matching chrome hearts shirts and some grey jeans and matching dunks. “So yall wasn’t gonna tell mommy nothing?”. You rolled your eyes and went to grab your baby back from daddy. “Well mommy doesn’t get fly like us”. You gasped while aurélien laughed in your face. “Papa you so handsome”. You squished your baby’s cheeks while he giggled.

“Let’s head out mama our reservation is in half a hour”. Aurélien grabbed the diaper bag and car seat as you two stepped out the house, He got the baby all strapped making everything ten times easier for you. “Thank you baby”. The car drive was smooth no need to stop at any point because of baby. 

“Reservation for Tchouaméni”. “Follow me” Aurélien followed behind the hostess as she lead him to a booth, The restaurant was chill, A few families and a few obvious dates but nothing too overwhelming. “Will you need a booster seat?”. Aurélien shook his head and the waiter nodded and walked away leaving you two to settle down. “It feels good to be out the house”. You nodded and Aurélien smiled, You’d been having a rough time adapting to this new life of yours and aurélien wanted to make it as easy as possible for you so seeing you out again was making him happy. 

“You know baby you can always go out with the girls, me and handsome man can handle ourselves”. Aurélien kissed your hand repeatedly making you giggle. “Instead of me going out why don’t we invite some people over”. You and aurélien continued the discussion on having a little get together until your waiter brought out a bottle of whine and the menus. “This is our best wine per Mr Tchouaménis request, I will be back in a few minutes to take your orders”. 

“Mr Tchouaméni… Thank you baby”. You leaned over the table and placed a kiss on auréliens lips leaving your lipgloss all over his lips. Aurélien picked up your baby holding him on his chest, Seeing aurélien holding your child that you two made together truly made you love him more, he was such an amazing father and you loved him for that. “Let me take a picture of my babies”. You snapped a quick pic of them but put your phone away so you could soak in this moment. 

Dinner went well, You and Aurélien discussed many things that you haven’t had time to talk about recently. “Thank you for tonight papa”. “You’re welcome Mon Amour”. Aurélien slapped your butt as you exited the restaurant. “Aurélien you have our child in hand”. Connie just smiled as he wrapped his free hand around your waist.

“I love you baby”. 

Posted 10 mins ago

[dumbslxtclub]

steddie looking after extremely drunk reader??

catch me if you can | s.h + e.m

steddie x fem!reader

content warnings: fem!reader, adult language, reader is very drunk, mentions of underage drinking, mainly just chaotic fluff

word count: 621

a/n: did I swear to myself I wouldn't write requests until I finished my other two current wips?? yes. am I a filthy liar and decide to whip this up in half an hour? absolutely. took a bit of a chaotic angle on this one, hope you enjoy anon xx

The chill of the wind burns your cheeks, but you don’t care. Or rather, you can barely feel it thanks to the copious amounts of vodka in your system. For whatever reason, you’re running. The kind of run that is so exhilarating, dashing around the grassy expanse behind Steve’s house heading nowhere fast. In the distance, you hear two increasingly agitated voices calling out after you. Your chest hurts from how much you’re laughing, the source of which is the two boys trailing after you. 

“I’m gonna count to ten, and if you’re not back here, you’re gonna be in serious trouble.” The younger boy calls out, hands firmly on his hips near the patio.

“Oohh, Stevie’s putting on his big boy voice!” You laugh, hiccupping as your legs continue to carry you as fast as they can in no particular direction. Darting, weaving through the trees lining the edge of his yard, you feel like a child again. 

“Jesus, Harrington! I could use some help, y’know?” Eddie is breathless, finally catching up to you but still far away enough to taunt him. “C’mon, sweetheart. We promised Robin we’d have you home by midnight, and hopefully in one piece.”

“Don’t wanna go.” You retort, dashing past the metalhead in a flurry of chaotic movement. 

“Fuck- nearly had her.” A squeal of laughter echoes in your lungs, his ringed hand barely brushing past your wrist.

“Come and get me!” Taunting, you dart towards the edge of the pool, hoping the threat of water will ward them off. 

“That’s it, I’m not letting you accidentally drown on my watch.” Steve jogs forward into your view, effectively blocking you. With a giggle, you stop in your tracks and poke your tongue out at him, taking off in the opposite direction. You don’t anticipate the man-sized obstacle in your path, large arms quickly scooping you up and throwing you over a leather-clad shoulder. It knocks the breath out of your lungs, but does little to stop your giggling.

“C’mon, cheeky thing. Party's over, time to go home.” Eddie says, tightening his grip around your legs.

“No, Eds! I’m having fun.” You reply, dangling helplessly as he carries you up the steps. Steve follows behind, readjusting one of your shoes which has almost fallen off your foot thanks to your antics.

“I know, doll. But a deal’s a deal. And I don’t want Buckley biting my head off tomorrow when you’re hungover and useless for your shift.”

“God, you guys are no fun.” 

“We are very fun, thank you very much.” Steve replies, scooping Eddie’s keys off the entranceway bench on the way through. “Fun enough to make sure you don’t fall in the pool and freeze to death.”

“She probably wouldn’t, y’know? Like the chief baker on the Titanic. Drank so much brandy that he couldn’t freeze to death.”

“Bullshit.” Steve retorts, pacing beside the two of you. Reaching out, you put all of your core strength into messing up his hair with a scruff of your hand, much to his dismay. He pulls open the passenger side door for Eddie, who gently lowers you into the seat and buckles you in like a toddler.  

“Mind coming with us, Stevie? Don’t want to have this flight risk on my hands all by myself, could use the extra manpower.”

“Yeah, like he’s gonna be any help.” You mutter, eliciting a shit-eating grin from the metalhead. Steve simply rolls his eyes and opens the sliding door on the side of the van, shuffling into the back.

“You’re trouble, you know that?” Eddie gives your shoulder an affectionate push before throwing a water bottle in your direction. Looks like all of their babysitting practice is finally paying off.

[sixhours]

i know you by heart - chapter 8

Series Chapter Index | Read on AO3 | Complete

Rating: Explicit, 18+, here be smut Series tags: The Last of Us, The Last of Us (HBO), Prospect, Joel Miller x Ezra, Joel & Ellie, Ezra & Cee, Joel is bad at feelings and relationships, Ellie is a little shit (affectionate), mostly follows canon after season 1, SMUT, gay sex, bisexual!Joel, period-typical homophobia, alcoholism behavior, light angst, angst with a happy ending, romance, age gap (~10ish years), I've probably forgotten some so please let me know <3

Chapter notes: The happily ever after. <3 Smut ahead, it's clearly marked.

He finds Ezra leaning on the porch railing, looking out over the back yard. It’s a crystal-clear December night, the bitter-cold air bringing every star into sharp focus against the inky black sky above.

“What’re you doin’ out here?” Joel asks. “S’fuckin’ freezin’.”

“Ah. Just admiring nature’s majesty and marveling at our place in the cosmos, I suppose.”

Joel joins him, back to the railing, sidling up to him until he can feel the shared heat of their bodies instead of the chilled air. Then he squeezes a little closer just because he can.

“Isn’t it a wonder to think that a billion different possibilities coalesced in just the right way to make the very star system, the very planet on which we find ourselves? The light from the stars takes billions of years to find us. Somewhere, some other civilization could be watching this very universe being born and think it nothing but a pretty illumination in the sky.”

“Are they freezin’ their asses off, too?”

Ezra breathes a low laugh into the night. “Such infinite complexity suggests that, perhaps elsewhere in this great ethereal realm, there exists another world similarly ravaged by plague, with similar creatures looking beyond their atmosphere and pondering the possibility of our very existence at this precise moment.”

“I reckon they’d have better things to worry about,” he grunts.

“Perhaps. And yet…here we are. Watching the sky, contemplating our place amidst the chaos.”

Joel huffs a sigh. “You’re startin’ to sound like Ellie.”

“Flattery will get you everywhere, cher .”

He ducks his chin, folds his arms across his chest, toes at a loose board on the porch. “So, what…you tryin’ to wish yourself off this planet for a while? Thinkin’ of doin’ some space travel?”

“No, no,” he chuckles softly. “Just thinking how fortunate I am to have found you in this universe, songbird.”

When he finally finds his voice, all Joel can utter is a quiet, “That so, huh?”

“Undoubtedly,” Ezra stands, sliding over to thread his arm around Joel’s waist, lightly fixing him to the railing. The cold is momentarily forgotten. His hands slide down to slip into the back pockets of his jeans–he can think of worse ways to warm his fingers–and his breath is stolen by a kiss.

“Joel, where’d you put the–ugh, they’re doing it again,” Ellie's voice rings out from the back door.

The first time she caught them, the chastest peck, her theatrics could be heard three blocks over. At least tonight, she just rolls her eyes and goes back to looking for whatever she was looking for in the kitchen.

“Get a room!” Cee calls helpfully.

“Christ,” Joel breathes. “S’my own damn house.”

“Another time, then,” Ezra sighs, gaze lingering long enough to send a shiver across the back of Joel’s neck.

Then a commotion, the sound of pots banging in the kitchen, Cee and Ellie laughing, and Joel reluctantly pulls away.

“C’mon, spaceman,” he rumbles. “Girls are waitin’.”

“What’s on the cinematic docket for this evening?” Ezra asks as they head inside. They’ve started sharing movie nights along with the occasional family meal. It’s been a slow and tentative process, not for any hesitation on the part of the girls, who are clearly fast friends.

It makes Joel think, not for the first time and not without a pang of grief, that Sarah would have made a good big sister.

“ It’s a Wonderful Life . Ellie’s pick,” Joel grimaces. “Not my favorite, but t’is the season, I guess.”

Ezra frowns. “Oh…pity. I abhor this trope.”

“You’re tellin’ me,” Joel mutters, then stops. “Wait, didn’t you…weren’t you there last year?”

“Your young prodigy may have cajoled me into attendance.”

Joel blinks. “She did what now?”

Ezra smirks. “I suspect she had it out for us long before we were ever in the loop, songbird. As I said, she’s wise beyond her years.”

“Damn,” he whispers. “That little–”

“Shit!”

There’s more clattering from the kitchen and the faint smell of burnt popcorn. And more giggling.

“Ellie?”

“Cee?”

“It’s fine, we’re…fine!” Ellie calls back.

“Nothing to see here!” Cee adds, as if that makes it better.

“Y’all, please don’t set the damn kitchen on fire again,” Joel calls, shuddering at the vivid memory of flames licking up the sides of an overflowing pot of popcorn left on the stove too long.

“That was one time ,” Ellie says.

“Zero times is the number I’m lookin’ for, kid.”

“Should we…intervene?” Ezra asks, nodding toward the commotion.

But then the girls enter the living room carrying two bowls of popcorn. There are flecks of the stuff stuck to Cee’s sweater. Later, Joel will walk into the kitchen and find the source of their laughter, kernels scattered on every surface, and he’ll have to harp on Ellie to sweep up the mess.

Yeah, the girls are getting along fine.

Joel takes his usual corner of the couch and Ellie plops down next to him, stretching out her legs to hog the rest. Ezra takes the other corner, and Cee opts to keep to the floor, leaning against Ezra’s knee with her bowl in her lap.

“Ready?”

“No,” Joel and Ezra grunt in unison.

“Too bad, suckers,” Ellie declares cheerfully as Cee presses Play.

An hour into the movie finds three of the four asleep; unfortunately for Joel, he’s not one of them. Ellie has dozed off against his shoulder, her feet tucked under Ezra’s thigh. He picks a stray kernel of popcorn out of her hair and tosses it into the mostly empty bowl. Cee leans against Ezra’s knee, and his head is tipped over the back of the couch, snoring.

“Buncha deserters,” Joel whispers, thinking he should reach for the remote and stop the stupid movie, but he doesn’t. Instead, he places a kiss on Ellie’s temple and watches his family sleep, savoring the rare moment of calm.

They have good days and bad days. On the good ones, they practice guitar and watch movies and share meals and she kicks his ass at Boggle. The words come easily and the silences are warm and comfortable and it’s almost like old times.

The bad days are less frequent, but they hurt like a scab. Eventually the wound will scar, but until then, it’s an irritation, too easily picked at and never quite healed.

Then there are days when she doesn’t speak to him at all. Days when she’s up and out of the house before the sun, where she doesn’t come home until after dinner or, worse, she just doesn’t come home. The first time that happens, they have a talk. Now she leaves a note on the kitchen counter, usually a single word: Dina’s .

He still hasn’t figured out how to bring that up in conversation.

It will never be the same, he knows. Her trust was a fragile thing to begin with, and his lies made cracks in the foundation of their relationship that only time can repair. 

But they’re trying.

Today is one of the good days. When he jostles her awake, she lingers sleepily against his arm. At the door, she indulges him with a hug, even hangs on long enough to let him plant a kiss on her forehead. Yep, definitely one of the good days.

“You stayin’ with Cee tonight?”

“Mmhm. You two can do…whatever it is you do when we’re not around,” she says, wrinkling her nose.

“Y’mean sleep?” he says, barely stifling a yawn.

“Sure. Don’t miss me too much.”

“Stay outta trouble, both of you.”

Cee has an arm around Ezra’s waist in a brief side hug. They’re not usually so affectionate, still walking that strange line between close friends and family.

“Goodnight, birdie,” Ezra offers, voice going soft.

They don’t talk about Cee's father and Joel doesn’t press it. There are times when she looks at him as though she wants to ask him something–her father’s last words, or if he spoke of her, or if his death was drawn out or quick and painless–or maybe the weight of the death on his conscience has him imagining things. Part of him will always be waiting for the consequences of his actions to darken his doorstep.

They stand in the doorway and watch the girls walk down the street and around the corner until they’re out of sight. Joel wonders if Ezra has to resist the same urge to follow them until he knows they’re home safe. Tonight they’ll crash in Ezra’s office and plug Cee’s headphones into the record player and drink the beers in the fridge–the ones Ezra stocks specifically for this small act of teenage rebellion. Joel sighs as he closes up, thinks if that’s the most trouble they get up to tonight, he’ll count them lucky.

He leaves the door unlocked.

They really had intended to sleep.

Joel is not young. Ezra is not much younger. And while they had plenty of opportunities for alone time now that they were fully out, much of their original boyish urgency has faded, replaced by a comfortable companionship that’s probably more fitting for their ages.

And that was just fine.

But Ezra’s easy declaration on the porch lit a slow-burning flame. Skin to skin, warm and curled around each other, hands wander and find familiar holds. Ezra’s lips trace that spot on Joel’s throat that makes little electric sparks shimmer up his spine, and soon there are two pairs of boxers on the floor and Joel is caged by his partner’s broad shoulders, pinned to the bed under his lithe frame.

+++++++++++++++++++++++SMUT+CUT++++++++++++++++++++++++

Ezra prepares him well, pushes inside until he’s sheathed to the hilt, so full the blunt edges of Joel’s nails dig into the meat of Ezra’s lower back until his body remembers and relents.

Joel ignores the throbbing ache in his groin, content to watch as Ezra’s eyes flutter shut and re-open, heavy-lidded, pupils blown wide. He admires the furrow in his brow, the slack in his jaw, feels the taut rippling of his stomach against him as his weeping cock slicks the fine hairs at his navel. He strokes the patchy scruff on Ezra’s jaw, pulls him down to nip at his chin, lick into his mouth, press a kiss to the crescent scar on his cheek.

“Good?” Ezra whispers thickly, eliciting a dazed nod before their mouths meet. He lowers himself onto his elbow, resting his weight more firmly on Joel, changing the angle until he’s rutting in tight, shallow thrusts, hitting that spot inside that makes Joel groan.

He reaches back and finds Ezra’s hand, grasping it, letting their fingers twine like the rest of them. His thumb brushes the tip of Ezra’s tongue where it peeks out of the purse of his lips. Ezra groans and takes it inside the warm hollow of his mouth, bites down gently on the knuckle, traces the whorls of his fingerprint.

“You gonna come for me?” Joel growls, pulling him down until they’re chest to chest, hand cupping the back of his neck, threading in his hair and tugging gently. The other reaches between them, giving himself a few lazy strokes to ease the ache.

“Mmm, songbird…I…ohhh, amour , you…fuck…please…”

It comes out as a whimper, a whine, and Joel chuckles. For once, his partner has nothing smart to say as his thrusts grow harder, more erratic. Ezra’s mouth crashes into his, messy and desperate, feeding him a moan that fills Joel’s chest with the force of it. Ezra’s cock swells and throbs, warmth spreading sticky between his thighs, then he sags against his chest, panting and trembling with the aftershocks.

Joel urges them to the side and wraps his leg around Ezra’s hips, keeping them joined for just a little longer. Joel gently strokes his ribs, taking pleasure in the way the muscles twitch and jump under his fingers until he lets out an overstimulated hiss into his neck.

“ Amour …”

Joel grins, studying his partner’s face, the fire in his gut settling to an ember. He could almost be content to stay this way; sleep is hard-won, and if he allowed himself to drift, to pull the covers over them and close his eyes, it would be welcome. But then Ezra comes back to himself, sighing and nuzzling into Joel’s chest, circles one nipple and then the other with his tongue.

“I believe we have additional business to attend to,” he says, reaching down to stroke him slowly, letting his foreskin do the work, sliding over and over.

“Y-yeah?” Joel rasps, tongue thick in his mouth as his cock hardens under his partner’s touch.

“Tell me what you want, cher .”

“Mmm, I…ah, fuck, Ez, I–”

A growl rumbles up from deep within his chest and he pushes Ezra onto his back, covering his body, kissing him deeply. Ezra’s fingers stroke the planes of Joel’s chest, circling a spit-slick nipple with one finger, slides lower to trace the thick scar on his stomach and cup his arousal as it throbs and kicks between them. Joel hums in pleasure, momentarily distracted by these ministrations, then remembers what he intended to do. Carefully he crawls up the length of his body and straddles the other man’s chest. Ezra’s eyes flash with interest.

“Oh, I see we’re trying something new, songbird. I greatly look forward to seeing how you intend to–”

“Ez,” Joel says fondly, breathlessly. “Shut. Up.”

He cants his hips forward until his cock is grazing Ezra’s lips, parting them slowly. Forward, forward, watching the length of his arousal disappear until he feels the head hit the back of his throat. He thrusts experimentally, eliciting a choked gagging noise as Ezra’s eyes widen. Joel pulls back.

“This okay?” he whispers, suddenly contrite.

Ezra has the audacity to grin, and if Joel wasn’t already balanced on them, his knees would probably give out at the sight.

Then Ezra’s lips lock around his length and he sucks, hard .

“Ah, fuck, fuck,” he grunts, flames fanned to a roar, a blistering heat twining its way up the base of his spine. Ezra responds by gripping Joel’s ass with his hand and giving a sharp tug, pulling him forward, forcing Joel to brace himself against the wall.

“Jesus, Ez,” he growls. “You want it, huh? You want more a’ that?”

As if in answer, Ezra gags again, a tear escaping the corner of his eye. Fascinated, Joel reaches down to cup the man’s cheek, gentle even as his cock hits the back of his throat again, and again, and again. He lets Ezra set the rhythm, lets the waves of pleasure wash over him with every stretch and press of his cock deeper into the warm, wet cavern of his mouth.

Joel can’t look away, can’t tear his gaze from Ezra’s hungry eyes, his expression so trusting, so loving he aches with it.

“Yeah, you like that,” he whispers as one thumb delicately traces the track of a tear, wiping it away, a gesture that’s almost too sweet, too tender for the kind of fucking they’re doing.

“Take it, baby,” he murmurs. “Take it. All of it. There ya go.”

He groans as Ezra sucks, the back of his throat gripping the sensitive head while his tongue strokes and swirls around the length of his shaft. It’s not long before they find a steady rhythm that has Joel chasing his release.

“Alright,” Joel grits out. “Alright, yeah, I’m…Ez, Christ…so good…fuck…”

Ezra grins again, and any control Joel might have had over the situation slips from his grasp with a whimper. He’s at the mercy of Ezra’s dark eyes and that cocky smile, lips glossy with slick. He gives a low chuckle that sends pleasant vibrations up the length of Joel’s cock, then his strong, capable hand squeezes his ass, forcing him deeper. Joel tries to groan out a warning, a barely intelligible sound of pure pleasure before he falls over the edge. His forehead rests heavily against the wall as every nerve in his body is set alight, as his cock throbs and spills down the back of Ezra’s throat.

+++++++++++++++++++++END+SMUT+CUT++++++++++++++++++++++

Limbs like jelly, head swimming, he manages to extract himself from his precarious position without kneeing his partner in the face.

“You alright?” he murmurs, feeling suddenly self-conscious. “Didn’t hurt you?”

“Not in the least, mon cœur .”

Joel kisses him on the nose, nuzzles against it until he’s stretched out alongside him, half pinning Ezra’s body to the bed with his own.

Ezra gives a contented sigh of approval as Joel trails the gentle slope of his partner’s stomach, the fur at the junction of his thighs, the thick length of him soft and spent. He tucks his face into the crook of Ezra’s neck and breathes him in, wrapping his waist with one arm.

They should clean up. Even as he’s thinking it, his eyes are heavy, and it’s all he can do to fumble for the blanket they kicked to the foot of the bed. He pulls the comforter up to cover both of them and drifts in that post-orgasmic haze, face pressed to the side of Ezra’s neck, feeling the comforting thump of the other man’s pulse against his skin.

“Sing for me, songbird,” Ezra whispers into his hair.

Joel snorts. “Hell no. Guitar’s downstairs.”

“Last I checked, you don’t need a guitar to sing.”

“Yeah, but it covers all my mistakes. Ain’t got the voice for it.”

Ezra scoffs. “If you don’t, I will, and then you’ll deeply regret it.”

“Can’t be that bad,” he mutters, tipping his head up to bite at his earlobe, soothing the nip with his tongue. Goosebumps ripple along the curve of Ezra’s neck.

“Very well. You’ve been warned.”

He takes a deep breath. The most broken and off-key sound comes out of Ezra’s mouth and Joel is ready to smother him before he’s finished the first word.

“Christ, stop that racket,” he gasps, pulling back as Ezra’s laughter bursts and shudders against his palm. “Holy mother of…you weren’t kiddin’.”

“I hate to say I told you so.”

“That’s bullshit, you love to.”

“It’s true. But now you have to sing for me, amour .”

“Fine, fine, I’ll…just don’t do that again. ‘Least not til the rest of my hearin’ goes. Jesus.”

“It’s a deal,” Ezra says.

“The hell do you want me to sing?”

“I’m sure you’ll think of something.”

Joel sighs. Outside has grown dark, the stars from earlier in the evening obscured by thick clouds. The first flakes of a winter storm have begun to fall, snowfall illuminated in a faint silver glow by the single street light outside. He can just barely make out the shape of the record album propped on his dresser for safekeeping. He never did give it back, and Ezra hasn’t asked.

Joel clears his throat.

“For you…there’ll be no crying,” he begins, whisper-singing the song that has become his namesake into the crook of Ezra’s neck. “For you…the sun will be shinin’.”

“But I feel that when I’m with you, it’s alright,” he says, leveraging himself up, brushing the sweat-damp hair from Ezra’s temple, taken by the shine in his partner’s eyes. “I know it’s right.”

He ducks his head, murmuring the words into the hollow at the center of Ezra’s throat, punctuating the ending with a gentle kiss. “And the songbirds keep singin’ like they know the score.”

His voice is clear and unbroken as their noses brush, as his hand cradles his jaw, the softest intake of breath as he whispers the final lyric against Ezra’s willing lips.

“And I love you, I love you, I love you like never before.”

Fin.

[sparklingmineraltequila]

American Wasteland

Note: Part three. I realised I never specified an exact timeframe so I'm clarifying that this is the last few year/months of him being undercover, about '94 Rust. I'm an ao3 girl so I'm figuring out how to lay fics out on Tumblr. Deeply appreciate everyone who's reading

Warnings: Drugs, drinking, swearing, smut insinuations and references to past violence but it is a True Detective fic, so

'Do you think we can ever truly talk about God?' Cassandra pipes up, as she's smearing herself in her pre-work lather of coco butter. When the sheen of the grease hits the light, it emphasises the taught expanse of her stomach and the tendons in her calfs. An amalgamation of divinity and delicate mortality; the pathetic fragility of the flesh, blood, skin and bones all knotted together, craving cosmic importance. 'Our soul, if there even exists such a thing,' Rust thinks, 'is just a ghost in a machine.'

Rust glances over to where she is standing in a matching lace, navy set, leg elegantly poised on the counter as she continues smoothing the ointment onto herself. He's lying on the mattress, still fully clothed, as he pinches his cigarette and stares back up to the ceiling. The events of the past few days, a visit to a meth lab in Galveston with Ginger followed by a drug and booze binge, have fucked his cognitive workings into a scramble of old memories and new sounds: the smell of gunpowder on his biker jacket, Cassandra's absent minded humming of an old Willie Nelson song, the brown sludge in his nail beds from when he was draining his Harley's oil, the black grease mixing with the residue of the red, Texan dust. He wills himself to give her a semi-coherent answer,

'I don't believe there's anyone there to talk to,' he drawls.

'I said about, not to.'

'What's your point, Cass? I ain't got the fuckin' will, tonight.' Rust thinks he can feel the chemical reactions behind his eyes; his enzymes breaking down proteins, the Speed throbbing through his neurotransmitters.

She rolls her eyes at him as she swaps leg, 'Chill out, I'm only wondering what you think. You know I value your opinion.'

He stiffens at that. 'Don't do this, baby,' he thinks 'It ain't worth whatever you think it is.' She's been doing this more often, letting that docility seep through the crevices of her impassible constitution. She hates herself for it, he can hear it in the acerbic tinge of her words, when she says shit like that to him. Sometimes, when he really concentrates at the expression in those dark pools of her eyes, he knows she believes she has deserved every horrific thing that has ever happened to her.

'I ain't really got an opinion on this matter, yet,' he says through an exhale of smoke, 'Why don't you tell me yours?'

'I know why, like, logistically we talk about God in modern languages, that's self explanatory. But it feels wrong, like we're corrupting the actual concept of a god.'

Rust doesn't look at her but says, 'Go on.'

'I think speaking about God in a dead language preserves him. Dead languages are frozen in time: absolute. They don't allow the transmutation or fucking corruption that modern languages do which are always evolving with dialects and younger generations,' she pauses, slipping her leg down from the counter as she slides her loose Budweiser t-shirt over her body, much to Rust's dismay. She continues,

'Also, on a more personal, aesthetic note, I think worship sounds a lot more metal in a language that isn't the one I use to order at fuckin' Waffle House.'

Rust snorts at that. He hears the slight smile in her voice as she replies,

'I know it sounds dumb when I condense it like that but that's literally my entire point. Worship is so often so dependent on the words we use and we venerate God in the same language that the televangelists or politicians use to con people on TV, the one that the girls at work use to sweet talk a customer into a lap dance? Seems fucked and incoherent to me.'

'I'm sure you can do that shit in a dead language too.'

'Nah, they existed before us. Whatever we try to imbue them with means fuckall, they don't participate in the reality of our information anymore.'

That gets him to sit up, the conversation staring to sober him up, 'Reality of information, huh? You've been stealing my books again, Cass?' a trace of a smirk on his lips. She huffs at him, stood in the middle of trailer,

'You were gone for three days and class is off for Spring Break, what the hell else was I supposed to do?'

'Buy some decent nightwear?' he remarks dryly. The reference to another one of her seduction tactics gets a mischievous smile from Cassandra . The past couple of weeks, she has been going to bed in some very short and, sometimes, very sheer nightdresses. Despite having made the chivalrous choice of sleeping on the floor of the trailer, chivalry being a virtue Rust is largely unacquainted with these days, his isn't unaffected by the sight of her sprawled out, almost beside him. Especially, when the nightdress naturally rides up during the night; a factor that has forced him to take too many a late night smokes outside.

'Nah, not when I know you enjoy it so much.'

'Cassandra,' Rust warns.

'Shit, full name?' she teases, 'You know, you're the only person who I let call me Cass.' She walks towards him, crawling onto the mattress and lying down next to him to look up at the ceiling. Rust doesn't move, not a goddamn inch. 'She'll know,' he thinks, 'Fuck, she probably already does.' Girls like Cassandra, girls too sexy and too tough for their age, always know. They have to. Growing up in a trailers, apartments and halfway houses, knowing that their tips which become their meals are based on how long they'll allow a drunk patron to stare at their tits or pat their asses as they serve them. They can smell male attraction from a mile off, tongues running over canines in mouths addled with whiskey and cigarettes. Oh yeah, they can tell and they know exactly how to play that game.

Rust wonders if he should feel some resentment towards her for it. He doesn't.

'Oh yeah?' he mutters, unimpressed.

'Yeah.'

'Lucky me.'

'You are. You know how many of your brothers would kill to give me a nickname?'

'Sounds to me like they already do,' his tone being harsher than he intended.

She goes silent and Rust hates himself more now than he did the other day, when he smashed a meth cook's head into a sink 14 times for screwing the Iron Crusaders' supply. The fragments of teeth and filaments of saliva mixed with blood that were left in the sink have nothing on the current look in Cassandra's eye.

'Don't be an asshole, Crash. You know I don't enjoy any of it,' her voice hoarse.

For the first time this evening, he looks her in the eye. 'I know,' tone steady but with a trace of true acknowledgment. Cassandra picks up on it, nodding her head. In these two innocuous actions, both have apologised and are forgiven. She stands up and grabs her duffel bag,

'You gonna swing by, tonight?'

He fucking wants to. Badly. He'd stomach the neon lights fucking with his Synesthesia, the lurid couches and the other Crusaders betting on how well each girl would 'take it'. He'd endure the fucking mire just to have Cassandra looking at him when she's on stage, the lights making her white smile a cool lilac.

'Nah. Can't tonight. Something at the clubhouse.'

'Oh, ok.'

'Poor kid. Like a kicked puppy,' he thinks. For the second time tonight, he can't stand that look in her eyes. He offers,

'You want a ride to work, baby? I'm headed in that direction, anyway.'

Something shifts slightly in her eye. The ball is back in her court. She savours it, rolls it over her tongue as victory coats it in something sweet and tart. Never one to show mercy, Cassandra toys with him,

'You'd give me a ride even if you weren't headed anywhere.'

Rust scoffs, fixing her with a look of chagrin; gleam of affection ,almost, trepidation in his eyes,

'I know, baby. I know.'

[aces-solace]

Help

Pairings: hobie brown x kid!venom!Male!reader

Warnings: fluff, cussing, bad British slang, reader has dreads, mentions of running away, suicidal thoughts. If any of these things make you uncomfortable don't read! Let me know if I missed anything!

A/N: kinda self indulgent I also love the idea of hobie helping a kid with a parasite venom.

You gagged slightly as the taste of blood filled your mouth. You blinked away the tears before walking away from the former strangers. They were strangers anyway. Why you should care? Why does it hurt? You somehow ended up on top of building the guilt and built up sadness from over the years screaming to do it. The anger and the hatred from over the years screaming something entirely different. They deserved it. You deserve to live. When a thought came to mind. Spider punk.

you've seen him use his guitar on tons of police men and women! Sure they might have died but still. It's gonna hurt. He probably won't do it. Yes he will, who are you kidding. You won't be able to find him though. Plus what if venom tries to stop you? Or worse. You let out a shaky breath "I have to at least try..."

It's been hours and you have yet to find him. And this damn-... Venom is getting hungry 'HUNGRY!' he growls you roll your eyes "ok, ok! Chill the fuck out! I'm looking for someone you can eat" wait... You could just let venom eat now... Spider-punk is more than likely gonna stop you then. No. Not right now... You shake the thought from your head and find a person in an alley way. "'s a kid like you doin' here?" He asked. you let out a shaky breath before speaking "Mask". The single word that has killed so many already.

But like all idiots he just had to ask "w-what are you!?" Venom hums before pulling back to reveal half of your face "we. are. venom" you say in unison before he covers your face again. You welcome the familiar taste of blood in your mouth as venom leaves. 'sorry nibble' he says. He knows you hate seeing your victims face before death. Maybe, just maybe he isn't so bad "it's fine V". Then you heard it. The infamous voice of spider-punk. The blood covering your mouth and some of your shirt didn't help "hey mate. See you got one"

You backed up slightly. Why? You wanted to get rid of him. But he helped you find places to stay and sleep... Maybe.. just maybe you were too harsh? Screw it. "Got one?" You repeat slowly. "Yea. A parasite. Pesky lil tings" you nod slightly. Yes they were pesky. "Yeah well this one's currently being nice and letting me keep my vital organs as long as I feed him. So.. do me a favor and hurry up. Blood doesn't taste too good" he seems surprised at this but doesn't hesitate to move his guitar to his front.

Your ears are ringing and your head is pounding. Venoms screeches of pain covering over your own. When you do finally separate everything hurts. "Fuckin' hell.... Thanks..." You say slowly standing up leaning on the wall. Truth be told he would have taken you home then and there but he couldn't rush his identity being known. He nodded and swung away.

It's been days since the encounter and you've been running from the police. Due to the fact you ran away and killed a few police officers (it was the parasite's fault) you've been running for a while. Venom helped with the police a lot. This time was no different. You've been running for at least 15 minutes and you were running out of breath and your legs were starting to hurt. You were suddenly pulled into an alley way by a stranger. You were fully ready to fight when they spoke "calm down mate".

You sighed "didn't expect t' see you again anytime soon" You say pushing yourself off of him. "I've been lookin' for you. Where you been mate?" "In another dimension glitching out, you?" Hobie chuckles at this thinking you were joking. You weren't but whatever.

You've been staying at Hobies boat house for a while when he suddenly decided to bring you to 'work'. "Why am I here again?" You ask "'s bring your sibling to work day" you roll your eyes. "Hey, this is [name]" he says you glance at the one you already knew. "[Name!?]" He gasped "hi pavitr" "you know each other?" "You thought I was joking when I said I was in another dimension?" You said smirking. You continued to talk to the group before Hobie got called into 'the principles office'. You watched as the platform slowly moved down.

"So... He can build high tech dimension travel devices but he can't make his platform go faster?" You ask bluntly. "Hobie, you can't bring normal people to HQ" you eyed him "i take it back hobie, your boss is a real bitch" you say taking back your statement from earlier. "You said 's take your kid to work day" "for SPIDER kids. Not homeless runaways". Oh. "Tf did you just call me you egotistical, selfish, manipulative, self loathing, bitchy, asshole!?" He seemed shocked. "Listen here and listen good you fuckin' vampire".

You say staring him down "I couldn't care less what you've been through cus 's no fuckin'excuse to take your anger out on others you piece of shit. And if you pull sum stupid shit like this again I will fuckin' declaw you, do it again and I'll defang you too"

Hobie has never been prouder. You guys also stole a fuck ton of shit from Miguel's office.

Idk... Feel like it's a bit.. too much?