#he’s going to pet every dog he sees (asking the owner’s permission each time of course of course)

[ghosts-and-blue-sweaters]

Okayokay I think. I’m gonna project onto Ghostbur a Lot in this AU. Specifically when he is a small child… I’m gonna make him act So much like how I acted when I was a kid ooh goodness.

[nationalharryleague]

Dog Days Are Over

Pairing: Harry Styles x Reader

Genre: Strangers to Lovers AU

Word count: 4.8K

A/N: Hi all! This is something I’ve been working on for a little while now and I’m really proud of it! As usual, a massive thank you to Miss Lu (@meetmymouth​) for being the best and beta reading. You can read more of my work in my masterlist and please please please send feedback to my ask! Thank you so so much for reading and I hope you enjoy it!! 

***

Jagger was a good boy. He was a massive Great Dane with a shiny black coat and goofy wide eyes that softened his overall intimidating appearance. Great Danes had been bread as guarding and hunting dogs, but the gentle giant was nothing like his ancestors. He trapesed around the park every morning with his clumsy oversized paws and a tail that never seemed to stop wagging. A sunshiny yellow collar sat around his neck with a leash connecting him to his owner, a curly headed man with kind eyes.

She had built a rapport with Jagger over time, always willing to spare a few of the treats she kept in her pocket for her own dogs, Annie and Hallie. The pair of speckled Dalmations always looked up to give her a disappointed look that seemed to ask “Why are you giving our cookies away, Mom?” when she offered the chicken flavored morsels to the charming brute. She would lean down (not very far due to his massive size),  give him two cookies, a scratch behind the ear, and a kiss to his forehead every morning, murmuring a “Good morning buddy.”

While she greeted Jagger, the man would always give her spotted ladies the attention they loved and a couple treats of his own, earning a few thankful and loving licks from the dogs. After the affectionate moment with the dog of a perfect stranger (she didn't even know his name), the pair would always give each other a smile and move on with their days.

This was their routine for months, meeting briefly every morning through falling leaves of a New York autumn that eventually gave out to the first snowy mornings and the charm of winter in Central Park. They never spoke more than a friendly morning greeting, occasionally commenting on the weather, but always taking a few moments to say hello to the endearing animals that accompanied them.

Her favorite coffee shop was especially busy one morning when they accidentally brought her two hot coffees with cream and sugar, instead of just one. When she had tried to return it, her favorite barista, a girl with golden skin and eyes to match, told her to take it anyway because it would just be thrown out. After the barista herself declined to keep the drink with a light chuckle, Y/N was sent on her way, each hand holding a coffee and both her wrists each looped through a leash.

Y/N, Annie, and Hallie made their way into Central Park, a surprisingly difficult task on his specific morning.  She struggled to maintain control over the hot liquid and the two strong dogs with strong opinions of where they wanted to walk. Inevitably and like clock work, they ran into Jagger and the man with the kind eyes, Y/N slowing to a stop to greet her giant furry friend. It wasn’t long before her K-9 balancing act gave her an idea.

“Do you drink coffee?” she quickly questioned, the words leaving her mouth without permission and directly addressing the man with the kind eyes about something other than the weather or their dogs for the first time since they had known each other. Jagger bumped his oafish head gently into her hip, seeming to ask for her attention back, just as surprised as she was with her uncharacteristic interaction with his dad.

“Uh, yeah,” the man answered, eyes locking with hers and seeming to be just as shocked that she spoke to him as she was. His deep and velvety voice was a sharp contrast to the sweet and fairly high pitched tone he usually used with Annie and Hallie.

“Well, the cafe gave me two instead of just one by accident. Do you want it?” She offered the cup to him with a hopeful shrug and a smile spread across her face when he took it.

They continued on with their routine of saying hello to each other’s animals without another word, the man with the kind eyes taking a sip of the coffee to test it out. She was pressing the usual kiss to Jagger’s massive head when she watched a ring clad hand offering itself towards her in the peripheral of her vision. “My name is Harry, by the way,” he said with a friendly close lipped smile playing across his lips. “We never really did introduce ourselves, did we?”

“I don’t think we ever did,” she said with a chuckle, reaching her hand out and connecting it with his. His hands were soft, but felt strong like he worked with his hands and his palms felt hot despite the freezing temperatures from where he had been clutching the coffee. “Y/N.”

“It's nice to formally meet you, Y/N. I usually just think of you as Annie and Hallie’s Mom.” His lips saying her name made it sound like it was sung by a million angels and she just couldn’t get over the idea of him thinking about her outside of the park. Of course she thought of him, a British beautiful man with kind eyes who loves her dogs was like finding a unicorn, but it had never crossed her mind that the thoughts could be mutual.

Before she had a chance to respond, Jagger began to walk forward, ready to take on the rest of his walk. “I guess it’s time for you to go,” she joked looking down as the giant animal who began to pull Harry forward.

“I guess so,” he agreed, jerking forward as he tried to slow Jagger down. “Thank you again for the coffee.”

“No problem!”

“Next time,” he said over his shoulder, a teasing smirk on his face, after Jagger had led him a considerable distance from her. “I take my coffee black!”

***

She thought about him all day after the park. She couldn’t believe that the tiny conversation had with him was all it took for him to occupy her every thought. She wondered if he enjoyed the rest of the coffee, if she would ever run into him at the cafe that had its logo drawn across the side of the drink she had gifted him, or if his girlfriend was suspicious when he came home holding a coffee order that definitely wasn’t his. What if he thought what she had done was weird? Would he change Jagger’s walking schedule? Or maybe change his route completely to avoid her?

Y/N ignored every one of those thoughts the next morning when she attended her usual coffee shop; and especially when she ordered one hot coffee with cream and sugar, and one without. She even asked her favorite barista with the golden eyes to write a little ‘H’ on the black coffee so she wouldn’t get them mixed up.

“To make up for all the treats you’ve given to Annie and Hallie over these last few months,” she lied when she handed the coffee over to him, relishing slightly in how his fingertips brushed hers when he took the drink from her hands. She knew that she didn’t get him the coffee for the treats; she got it because she had a crush.

“Oh, thank you so much!  You didn’t have to do this,” he insisted as he took a sip. “You even had a little ‘H’ put on it for me?” His eyes lit up at the possibility and from that second forward Y/N pledged to herself that she would do anything she could to see his eyes sparkle like that again.

“I just wanted to make sure they didn’t get mixed up.”

“H is what all of my friends call me.” She watched his plump pink lips move as he spoke, his warm breath creating a small steamy cloud in the frosty air.

“That’s really sweet,” she said smiling like a fool, endeared by the nickname.

“You can call me H, ya know?” he spoke and her heart just about stopped. “I think if our dogs are friends,” he said, gesturing to their dogs as their dogs played amongst themselves, “we can be friends too.”

She knew she would be unable to contain herself as soon as she got out of his line of sight in a few moments. She might bust out into a happy dance, or maybe even let out a small squeal;  but for the moment she just nodded her head. “I think I would really like that, H.”

“So,” he began with the smirk she had already begun to fall in love with, “friends don’t let friends buy them coffee two days in a row without returning the favor. Tomorrow is on me.”

“Sounds good, H,” she said as the pair of dalmations began to pull her forward. “I take my coffee with cream and sugar!” she shouted over her shoulder, shooting him a wink as she went on with her walk.

“I know.”

She was unable to contain herself and did, in fact, do a little wiggle when she was out of his sight.

***

Of all places she thought she could end up this Saturday morning, she didn’t think it would be in Harry’s apartment.

She had casually mentioned that morning when they met up in the park, more to make conversation than anything else, that the heat in her apartment was out but she had never expected him to invite her and the girls back to his place to warm up.

They had fallen into a delightful rhythm of bringing each other coffee over the past few weeks, taking turns and spending a few fleeting moments speaking to each other before one of their pets decided it was time to move on with their walk. She had learned that he was a physical therapist and that he had rescued Jagger from a puppy mill when he was a baby, but to be completely honest, she didn’t know much about him beyond that. They could only learn so much about each other  in 5 minute bursts before the dogs got bored and pulled them apart once again.

What she did know about him for sure was that his eyes didn’t lie when they said he was kind. He never missed a day getting her coffee and he always profusely thanked her when she brought him his. He always asked about how her day was going, and seemed to be genuinely interested in when she spoke about her work, hobbies, or whatever else ended up being the topic of their short conversations.

While she wouldn’t go as far as saying he cared about her, she knew that she cared about him.

“It’s not much,” Harry said, opening the door for Y/N and her dogs to pass into his home, “but it’s mine.”

As most New York City apartments were, it was a tiny shoe box of a living space; but it felt cozy, and most of all, warm. It was a small studio, with all the essentials packed in tight. His sofa sat up against the right wall of exposed brick, mirrored by a small kitchen on the left. She had to admit it was well styled; dark woods and stainless steel decorated the apartment and various posters and framed pictures on the walls made it his own.

The most breathtaking feature was a massive bay window that sat above his bed on the far back wall. The window directly overlooked Central Park and she couldn’t help but feel a pang of sentimentality because that’s where they had met. His bed was perfectly made with dark charcoal grey sheets all she could imagine was being wrapped up in them with Harry.

Walking through the door, she was intoxicated by the most delicious smell that she could only assume was Harry’s cologne, but she was brought back to reality when he asked for her coat. Their hands met as she handed it over to him and a flash of concern immediately flashed through his face, bushy eyebrows furrowing. “You’re absolutely freezing, love.”

Once again, her heart began to burst with joy. Just that little word, the little pet name and term of endearment. It made her feel like a kid on Christmas, like she was ready to burst.

“Oh, I’m okay,” she managed to get out, still overwhelmed by his words.

“We’re gonna get you and the ladies all warmed up, okay?” She watched from her spot by the front door as he began to run around the apartment with one goal: to warm his friend up. He moved gracefully from the thermostat to a chest of drawers, making a small triumphant noise when he pulled out two dog sweaters that were Jagger’s. “They’re a little big, but I think they will work,” he said with a helpful smile.

She watched as he knelt down in front of Annie and Hallie, asking for their paws. Both of them quickly responded, clearly trusting the curly man in front of them as much as she did. He delicately slipped the knit over both of the dogs, and with anything he did, Y/N’s heart swooned.

To her, those dogs were her everything. She had moved to the city completely alone and had rescued the pair of sisters from a kill shelter only a week after arriving. She named them after the twins from The Parent Trap, her favorite movie growing up. She felt it was symbolic; like she and the dogs had been brought together by some twist of fate but had known each other in a past life. Those dogs were her everything and watching them interact with Harry ignited a fuzzy warmth within her; a sharp contrast to her still frozen nose.

“You next,” he teased, beckoning her over from her spot at the front door. She took careful steps over to him, trying her best to stay respectful of his space, already feeling intrusive for being there. She met him in the middle of the room, where he had grabbed a blanket off the couch, placing it over her shoulders and enveloping her in soft warm fabric and the smell of him. Shocks were sent up her arms as he rubbed them in an attempt to generate more heat. It was the first time he had ever really touched her other than light brushing of their fingertips, and she had never felt like anything was more right in the world than the way she felt in his arms.

She watched his face closely as he held the blanket tight around her frame. He had a light stubble peppering his strong jaw and his eyes were the most vibrant yet soft shade of green she had ever seen. His brows were still slightly knitted together in care for her, trying his best to accomplish his goal of warming the woman who had become his friend. Her eyes narrowed in on his plush pink lips and it took everything in her not to learn forward and press her lips to his; but she wouldn’t. They were casual friends; nothing more, nothing less, and her school girl crush didn’t change any of that.

His hands on her arms slowed and their eyes finally met, the deep green feeling like it had penetrated her soul. “I have soup in the fridge,” he said softly, eyes narrowing in on her still cold nose, “let me heat it up for you.” And as soon as the moment had happened, it was gone, him walking away from her in a flurry and starting his next task of making her soup.

“H, I promise I’m okay,” she said with a light chuckle. “I will warm up, eventually. Don’t worry yourself over it.”

“You have been in a frozen apartment for four days. You’re going to get sick,” he said, head still stuck in the fridge out of her line of sight.

“What do you care if I get sick?” she teased. “Won’t get your coffee?”

“No,” he said in an exasperated tone, popping back out from behind the fridge door to connect his eyes with hers, “because then I won’t get to see you.”

Despite the chill still present in her bones, she felt her cheeks heat with his words. “Oh, okay,” was all she could muster before he returned back to his search for the soup.

He did eventually find the soup and nearly force fed her the hot liquid, insisting that “you’re not getting pneumonia on my watch.” And while she kept up the act that she was totally fine and didn’t need him to fuss over her, it felt so good to be cared for like this. She had been on her own for so long now, lacking the care and affection that came with an overbearing mother-hen-esque friend, and she was honestly loving it.

It was later that day, while they were sat watching a movie on his couch, Y/N still wrapped up tight like a burrito in the flannel blanket that smelled like him, when he informed her that she wasn’t allowed to go back to her apartment until the heat was fixed. “H,” she had playfully groaned, “I am a big girl and will survive a little chill.”

“There’s a cold snap coming,” he justified his demands. “Saw it on the news this morning.”

“H, this is all too much. All of this has been so kind and the dogs and I appreciate it from the bottom of our hearts, but I can’t let you put your life on pause because I might get a little cold.”

“Please stay,” he began gently, almost pleading with her in a deeper and softer voice than he had ever used with her before, “for Annie and Hallie,” he finished. Her heart sank, reminding herself that the pair were just friends. He was just doing a favor for her out of the goodness of his heart; nothing more, nothing less.

“Maybe,” she murmured. “I’ll have to see if it gets fixed tonight.”

It didn’t get fixed. Apparently, New York City landlords, especially the one that owned her very tiny, and very shitty, apartment didn’t care much about their tenants turning to icicles. Around 10 PM, she finally gave up hope of anything getting fixed today, much to Harry’s delight.

She had accepted the sweats Harry had offered for her to sleep in, enveloped by soft worn fabric that spelled like him. A dark blue crew neck with ‘Holmes Chapel Comprehensive School’ written across the front swallowed her frame and Harry laughed at her when she had to roll up the legs of the sweatpants so she wouldn’t trip on them. “It’s not my fault you’re a giant,” she giggled, poking him in the chest and sticking her tongue out at him like a child.

“You’re lucky you look cute in those or I would be taking them back after a comment like that.” Her cheeks reddened for what felt like the millionth time since she had entered his space this morning. They had fallen into a charming banter, a rhythm of teasing jokes and kind words intertwined with each other that made her heart sing. While she still felt like she was intruding on his space, there was a growing part of her that was glad her heat wasn’t back yet. She didn’t want to leave his warmth and light just yet.

When a yawn left her lips later that night, Harry decided it was time for bed. “We’re in the middle of the episode,” she had argued through another yawn, “we haven’t even seen who wins the technical challenge yet.” They had watched almost an entire season of Bake Off over the course of the day, both of them curled up on the couch under a pile of blankets and dogs.

“We have to be up for our walk in the morning,” he smiled as he lifted Jagger’s massive head off his lap to get up. “I’ll even buy the coffee.”

“Okay, I guess so,” she agreed gently. “Can I just borrow a pillow?” she asked as she adjusted herself and the dogs on the couch under the blankets.

“What are you doing?” he asked with a confused face.

“Getting ready to go to sleep?” she responded with an equally questioning tone.

“You’re not sleeping on the couch. Come on, get into my bed. I’ll take the couch.”

“No.”

“Why not? You’re my guest.”

“Harry,” she spoke gently but was met with a lift of his eyebrow like using his full name was an insult. “H,” she began again, “I’m not going to come into your home, inconvenience your entire day, steal your clothes, eat your food, and then make you sleep on the couch.”

“Please, just let me sleep on the couch, Y/N,” he nearly begged.

“You’re not sleeping on the couch,” she repeated with a stern tone.

“Then neither are you.” Her breath caught in her chest and her eyes flashed to the dark charcoal sheets she had imagined being wrapped up in with him when she first entered the apartment. “It’s a big comfy bed and I want you to actually sleep well. I’m perfectly okay with it if you are.”

While her heart was beating out of her chest at the opportunity of being that close to him, all she said was “sounds good,” unable to come up with anything more than that in the moment.

She reverted back to her careful steps and bated breath as she left the couch and made her way over to the bed, suddenly so aware of the respectful boundaries she had created for herself when she first arrived. She lifted back his heavy comforter and slid herself inside, pulling the blanket to her chin as she watched, mesmerized, as the man walked around the apartment getting ready for bed.

He walked around the apartment on the pads of his bare feet almost silently, turning off lights and pouring them both a glass of water before refilling the dog bowls on the ground. He led Jagger to his giant dog bed and invited Annie and Hallie up onto his couch to sleep, gently coaxing them onto the cushions and laying the blanket Y/N had been wrapped in for most of the day over the speckled sisters.

There was only the light coming off the street lights streaming through the window above her head to illuminate the silent apartment and she watched as Harry made his way to the tall chest of drawers on his side of the bed. He lifted his sweater over his head to expose his muscular back and elaborately tattooed arms, and she prayed he didn’t hear the small gasp that left her lips. As quickly as his back and torso were revealed to her, they were hidden once again when he slipped a large tshirt back over his body. She had only ever known him in the colder months, always wrapped up in a sweater or a coat; she had never expected the beautiful illustrations that decorated his body or his broad muscular shoulders that stayed hidden under layers of clothing.

“Stop staring, ya perv,” his deep velvety voice joked with a laugh and she felt her cheeks burn worse than they had all day. “I’m only kidding, love,” he spoke softly when he turned around and connected their eyes.

“I was just looking at your tattoos,” she stammered while she watched him slip into the bed next to her, trying to wipe the adoring look from her face. “I like them a lot.”

“Thank you.” He settled into the bed, far enough to be respectful but still close enough for her to feel the warmth off his skin. He brought his arm out from underneath the covers, allowing her to get a closer look at the ink that illustrated his skin and she rolled herself on her side to face him. She carefully traced the veins of the anatomical heart on this bicep with her finger tips. “Your fingers finally warmed up,” he said barely loud enough for her to hear.

Her eyes flashed up to meet his eyes in the darkness, his irises still seeming to glow in the limited light. She felt his warm minty breath fall over her face and the sweet smell of him that had been enveloping her since she entered his space intensified with her proximity to him. He smelled of sandalwood and vanilla, mixed with the smell of clean linen coming from his bed sheets.

“I guess they did,” she said under her breath, like if she spoke too loudly the moment would be scared away. “We should get some sleep,” she said regretfully, remembering the respectful rules she had set for herself. She withdrew her hand away from his arm and rolled back to her previous position to stare at the ceiling until she fell asleep. If she hadn’t been so tired and if it wasn’t so dark, she would have thought she saw disappointment on his face before she dozed off.

When she began to wake the next morning, she was warm. Not a sweaty or sticky warm, a cozy warm that makes you want to curl up and spend an entire day in bed, seeking respite from the cold air that lives outside the cocoon of blankets you’ve created. She snuggled further into the warmth, and further into the arms that held her close. Her consciousness was blurred with sleep as she buried her face deeper into the warmth between someone’s shoulder and neck. She wouldn’t have woken up if she didn’t feel the body holding her release a light chuckle at her sleepy huffs.

Coming back to life, she lifted her head and opened her eyes to the strong jaw peppered with stubble that she had studied so intensely for months now. A gasp left her throat and she tried to pull herself away, wracked with guilt for passing a boundary she had set. But her movements were stopped when the pair of arms around her waist only pulled her closer, a deep gravelly voice next to her mumbling “don’t go.”

For the first time, she let herself occupy the thought that her fascination with Harry may be mutual. He had gone above and beyond for her and had always been kind and accommodating, always ready to take care of her any need or want. He had let her stay in his house for god sake, let her stay in his bed, and was now holding on to her like if he let go the little world they had created together would fall apart.

“Okay,” she whispered softly into his neck, melting back into his warmth once again. Her drowsiness must have clouded her judgement when she pressed a gentle and soft kiss over his pulse point.

It was Harry’s turn to pull back, a drowsy chuckle leaving his lips as he made eye contact with her still half closed eyes. “Did you just kiss me?” he asked incredulously.

“No, definitely not.” She buried her face in her hands, blushing uncontrollably and feeling her whole face heat up.

“You liar,” he grinned. “Come here.” He pressed his hands to either side of her face and pulled her mouth to meet his. It was a soft kiss, both of them unable to control their smiling lips. Her heart raced and so did his. Their lips moved together in a rhythm that was occasionally interrupted by excited giggles, and Harry pulled her closer to him than she ever had been before.

They stayed in that bliss for as long as they could; cheeks hurting from smiles, gentle laughter released often, and enjoying the warm cocoon they had created together. It was only a matter of time before they were interrupted, both of them letting out loud laughter when all three of their animals joined them on the bed. It was only then Y/N peaked out the window above them to discover Central Park covered in a bright white blanket of snow, flurries continuing to fall outside.

“I have been obsessed with you from the first day I saw you walking the girls,” he confessed as the dogs curled up around them both. “I thought you were so special and beautiful. I about lost it the day you offered me that coffee. I couldn’t believe you were actually talking to me and not my dog for once.”

“Let’s be honest, I fell in love with Jagger first,” she teased. “His hot dad was just a bonus,” she giggled against his lips as he pressed their faces together once again, bodies held apart by the dogs that had wiggled between them.

This moment felt like a fairytale. She wasn’t sure how long it would last or what would come from it but she knew that this was what pure joy felt like, and she would hold onto it for as long as she could.

They only had the dogs to thank.

Thank you so much for reading!! Reblogs/feedback mean to the world!!! 

[tainted-wine]

I hope you don’t mind this being exclusive for the Pro-Heroes!

(NSFW)

Papers? Check. Writing utensils? Check. Lube? Check.

You were primed and ready to begin this cocktastic journey. Completing this project will be a great benefit to Thirstology. You can’t believe that they put their trust in you to collect such valuable information from several willing participants. There’s no way you’re going to let the people at National Thirst Studies down.

With your lower body completely bare, you and your ambitious pussy set out to begin the cockwarming interviews.

Yagi Toshinori/All Might

Pre-Notes: The Symbol of Peace. It’s still surreal to see him in such a fragile state. Strangely enough, I never once asked myself: Does All Might fuck? “Obviously he was too pure for fucking,” is what I would have said before I devoted my life to Thirst Studies. But I have learned over the years that there is no such thing as purity.

------

After he got over the initial shock of you wearing no pants or underwear, you were finally able to begin your study and ask him the main question.

You barely dodged the spray of blood spewing out of his mouth. “Am I into what?” He sputtered.

“Cockwarming, sir. The act of settling a penis in a nice cozy orifice. There’s no movement, only penetration. Surely you already at least knew the definition when you agreed to this?” You offered him a paper towel, which he accepted with a choked “thank you.”

“Midnight told me this would be about intimate relationships,” he anxiously explained while wiping the red off of his lips. “But I wasn’t expecting to hear something that graphic.”

Ah, so he was talked into this. “Well, with your permission, I can give you a personal demonstration.”

His answer was inaudible the first time; you had to ask him to speak up in order to hear his adorably high “yes.” He was a lot shyer than you imagined. Poor guy was shaking like he was on a verge of a heart attack when you took his cock out and boy, did he put the ‘long’ in ‘schlong.’ But your mission wasn’t to admire the dick’s appearance, it was to learn how their owners used them inside a hot snatch. You climbed onto him and lowered yourself and ooooh shit, both of you were moaning as his inches sank into you. You couldn’t take it all, but it was more than enough to get the job done.

“Mmnngh, yes, very long. Pushing almost painfully,” You said through clenched teeth, scribbling in your notepad as you sat semi-comfortably in his lap. “Can you give me your input, Toshinori? How is this feeling for you?”

“Blrraaaffggg.”

“Toshi?”

“…”

He laid limp in the interview chair as crimson liquid continued to flow from his mouth. Well, this is troublesome. You’ll have to wait for him to regain consciousness to hear his feedback.

------

Conclusion: This was his first time experiencing cockwarming. He described it as ‘intense, but not unpleasant’. Unfortunately, whenever I ask for more details, he would get too embarrassed to share anything. Frankly, this isn’t the most fruitful start to my series of interviews, but it was a great privilege to meet the amazing All Might.

Shouta Aizawa/Eraserhead

Pre-Notes: I honestly don’t even know who the hell this is. An underground hero, apparently. You wouldn’t believe me if I told you that he brought a cat with him. I told him that it needs to stay outside during the interview, but the difficult bastard was ready to turn around and leave unless I allowed the furball in. What a hassle. Do I even want to sit on this man?

------

You’re thankful that you did, in fact, sit on this man. His sleek ebony cat was relaxing in your lap while your pink kitty was stuffed with his cock. Despite his indifference to the situation, it was strangely intimate. Taking notes over a cute feline while his length twitched inside you was rather challenging.

“You seem like a rather exhausted fellow. Is it maybe the laid-back nature of the act that you find so alluring?” You asked.

“Mmhmm.” His arms circled around you to stroke his adorable pet.

“Being able to just wind down by giving your hard snake a wet hot crib to rest in?”

“Mmmmm.”

“I would appreciate a more elaborate answer.”

“Mmmmm...”

You shifted just enough to turn your head and see Aizawa’s head lolled back, his breaths getting heavier after each exhale. You can feel him quickly going soft inside you.

Ugh...

------

Conclusion: Given that he fell asleep in the middle of the demonstration, it’s safe to say that he finds the act very relaxing. I can only make guesses because the moment he woke up, he hurried me off his lap, picked up his cat and headed out. I did my best to chase him and ask if I could at least hear his final thoughts, but that bastard leaps on cars and buildings as skillfully as Edgeshot.

Hizashi Yamada/Present Mic

Pre-Notes: I’m not sure what to expect from the Voice Hero. His radio show has hosted some surprisingly insightful interviews. Unlike the last two, he will hopefully have some truly constructive answers to give.

------

“Not gonna lie, I always wanted to try this!”

Both of you were red in the face as you sat on his throbbing cock. Despite the blush and slight shake in his voice, he was as cheerful as ever. “Sometimes I just wonder, it would be pretty cool to just have a hottie warmin’ me up during my show, ya dig? No sex, though. I know I’m not quiet enough to get away with that on the air!” He laughed loudly right into your ear.

Well that kinda hurt, but it’s nice to finally have a fully cooperative interviewee. You were actually able to ask all of your planned questions for once, and Hizashi gave a satisfying answer to each one.

Unfortunately, it just couldn’t go perfectly, and his phone ended up ringing near the end of the interview.

“Hold on, listener. I gotta take this.”

Did he really? You wished he would wait until you were done.

You felt him lean back as you remained on his lap. “Shouta, buddy! What’s goin’ on?”

Shouta? Does he mean...?

“Sorry about that! I’m not home yet, I’m doin’ a...special interview, with a hard-working thirstologist.” You heard the voice on the other end respond, and Hizashi made a noise of confusion. “Eh? What do you mean ‘you too?’”

Oh dear, he does. They actually know each other.

The conversation quickly transformed into an argument, a loud one. The two heroes apparently have some...tension between them.

“Oh, so I throw hints at you for years and you act as innocent as your cats, but you’ll sit down and let a girl hop on your dick during an interview?!”

You had to lift yourself off of his softening member and take shelter from his booming voice. He was tucking himself back into his pants with one hand as he marched out of the room, but his hurt and anger was still loud and clear. “Don’t give me that bull. I bet if I hit you with twenty one questions about cockwarming, you’d just pretend you’re asleep! Oh, you actually did fall asleep? Huh.”

You awkwardly collected your notes as the two gentlemen were seemingly making up.

“Damn right I’ve always felt this way. Oh man, you better get ready tonight because I’ve got over ten years of pent up feelings, and you’re gonna take it all.”

------

Conclusion: It feels good to have a full interview. In summary, Hizashi is intrigued by the combination of closeness and casualness of it all. His interest in cockwarming during his jobs also indicate a possible thrill out of doing it in public. In addition, I’d like to announce with some pride that I may have assisted in taking two friends to the next level of their relationship.

Hawks

Pre-Notes: I’m eager to hear what the handsome winged hero has to say. I wouldn’t mind if we just stare at each other throughout the entire interview. My lust for him is unbearably strong and I’m not sure why. It’s probably just the horny writer’s obvious bias towards this bird. She could use another hobby.

------

Hawks laughed once you gave him the question that officially begins the interview. “Gotta admit, I’ve actually never tried it.”

That’s a surprise that you quickly jot down in your notes. “I see. Is it something you’re interested in trying? I can give you a demonstration right here.”

“Oh? I’d love one.”

You try not to look too excited as you leave your seat and move to undo his pants, but Hawks raises a hand.

“But I want you to do it on your knees.”

Your eyebrows furrowed. “My knees? How do I-”

“With your mouth.”

Oh my.

You granted his request and kneeled down to take his half-hard cock into your mouth.

“Ahhh, that’s nice.” He sighed loudly, spreading his legs more as he stared down at you.

You detached your mouth from him to speak. “Can you tell me what it is that you-mmffrrf.”

A hand pushed you back down onto his man meat. “No no no, just...stay right there. I’ll do the talking in a minute.”

You sat there with his cock growing in the heat of your mouth. Hawks’s eyes were closed, a small content smile on his face. Every time you lifted your head just an inch, the hand on your head pressed you back down. Just when this interview was starting to feel more like a hookup, he finally began to talk.

“Oh yeah, I’ve fantasized stuff like this. You got a shitty boss? I do, don’t tell them I said that, though. They’re always finding something to get on my ass about. Working me like a dog everyday, expecting me to pull off these insane missions flawlessly.”

All you could do was look up and listen to his rant. He must have loved the sight of you, going by the strong twitch of his length in your mouth.

“They just keep asking more and more from me. ‘Do this faster next time, Hawks!’ or ‘I know you’ve never done something like this before, but don’t fail us, Hawks!’ Sometimes I just wanna shove something in their mouths...like my dick. Can you relate?”

You shook your head as well as you could in your current position.

He shrugged. “Oh well. As far as I know, I’ll always be the one getting fucked by them. But something like this...” He pat your head. “Ah yeah, it would be so nice to see them like this...”

------

Conclusion: Hawks was sadly short on time and had to leave before I could even get into the questions. Going by the very personal feelings and frustrations he shared, Hawks enjoys the dominance displayed from cockwarming, and prefers it be done orally. I will respect his wishes and not reveal any of the opinions that he shared about the establishment he works for and its executives.

Taishiro Toyomitsu/Fat Gum

Pre-Notes: It’s best that I continue to be honest: I’m anxious. Fat Gum is one of the biggest heroes around, and I just know that there is a deadly pillar of pussy destruction in those pants. I know that I should be more concerned with the questions, but it just won’t leave my mind.

------

“So, what experience do you have with this, Toyomitsu?”

The large man chuckled. He was currently in his skinny form, which you’re pretty thankful for since his fat form would have been beyond awkward to straddle. That would be like trying to hump one of those giant inflatable characters at parades. “A pretty lady I knew was really into it! I tried it for her sake, but I’ll say this with no ego, my sausage ain’t something to be taken lightly! Still, she was determined, and I was really digging just how strong her will was to take me.”

‘She sounds like a very brave soul,‘ you thought as your pen glided across your paper.

“I couldn’t believe it when she managed to get all of me inside. She couldn’t either, because she passed out! At first I just wanted to laugh it off,” he cackled as if to give an example, but his face quickly drooped into a somber expression. “But then I realized she wasn’t breathing...” His eyes shut in pain and sorrow. “And I couldn’t find a pulse...”

You nearly dropped your pen in horror. “My goodness, Toyomitsu. I’m so sor-”

“I’m just messin’ with ya! She’s fine!” His face immediately brightened up again, leaving you shocked and somewhat upset over the scare. “But seriously, if you want a seat on this big boy, I hope you’ve got plenty of lube on hand.”

“Don’t worry, I do. More than enough for the biggest flesh towers.”

But your doubts instantly returned when the bulging monster was freed from his pants. It’s huge. Toshinori may have been long, but this monster was unbelievable in both length and girth.

Your fear must have been evident on your face, because Toyomitsu asked, “You sure you wanna do this? Don’t want you to hurt yourself.”

You whipped out your bottle of lube and drenched your hands. “Thirstology is my passion. My life’s work. I am more than willing to put my life on the line for science.”

The hero raised an eyebrow. “It’s...not that serious, but I really like your guts, missy.” He gave himself a few strokes. “So let me tear them up.”

Even with the coatings of lube inside your pussy and on his massive cock, this was still the most arduous task you have ever performed in your life. You didn’t know it was possible to be stretched this far. The light blonde was mesmerized by your trembles and scrunched expressions and as you tried to take more of him, his mouth slightly open when he noticed the swell in your lower abdomen.

“Oh, that is hot.”

------

Conclusion: I did it. I took the Fat Gun. Fat Gum himself takes a lot of pleasure in watching the strain of someone trying to take him in, and due to his partner often being much smaller than him, the tightness is very pleasurable to him. He was the only interviewee that actually came during the demonstration, so I suppose it’s safe to say that he is the biggest fan of cockwarming out of the five. He was very panicked when he came inside me, but I reassured him that I am on the pill. This is still a hell of a mess to clean up, however.

(I hope the information I have obtained will be useful for the institute. Thank you for giving me this opportunity)

[taeyamayang]

hq boys as fur parents

disclaimer: purely based on how I perceive each character

PRETTY SETTERS ed.

🌃 KAGEYAMAㅡSTRAY PUPPY

a stray dog followed him on his way home from practice one day. he tried to shoo it off but the little puppy has already fallen in love with him. left with no choice, he takes the dog home. he convinces himself that he would let it stay for a night or two until he finds an owner. he hopes hinata is fond of dogs. upon reaching his home, the puppy kept biting onto the hem of his pants as if it's asking him for something. maybe it's hungry, he thought. albeit, having no experience of taking care of a pet he googles 'how to take care of a puppy'. he pulls the handle of the refrigerator open to search for leftover table food. he spoons out marinated sweet pork from the container then proceeded to feed the puppy. he squats down, folding his knees as he observes it eat. "finish it, i can't put it back in the container. don't throw food, you asked for this." he talks to the puppy using his normal voice. the poor dog glances at him for a bit after hearing him talk before going back to devouring the remaining bits and pieces of the pork. shortly after, the puppy falls asleep. it is probably tired from the long walk on the way home. kageyama proceeds with his usual routine. he lies down on his bed tossing a volleyball in his hand. his mind wandering off somewhere mostly about volleyball. a tiny bark surprises him, reminding him of the tiny intruder in his house. he squints at the small puppy wagging its tail next to his bed. its front legs are slightly bent down and his butt in the air. he barks at him one more time. kageyama crosses his eyebrows at the dog. "what do you want?" he says spinning the ball in one hand. the dog barks at him again. his lips purses and his eyebrow raises. "you want to play?" he wiggles the ball in the air making the dog jump excitedly. "alright." he pushes himself off his bed to sit on the floor. he spends the next few hours playing with the puppy until both of them pass out.

🌃 OIKAWAㅡPOMERANIAN

iwaizumi didn't trust him with the dog, obviously, but oikawa insisted on taking care of it for a while until mattsun comes back from vacation. knowing how impatient oikawa can be iwaizumi agrees with his plan but with the condition of sending him an hourly update and a permission to visit his house whenever he wants to. like a parent in shared child custody. the first few hours were smooth sailing and oikawa is high on his horse. he even sent pictures to iwaizumi gloating about his perfect parenting. not until the pomeranian decided to bark consistently at him. even though, he has given it food, toy and even played with it, and a nice comforter to sleep on. "what is it?" oikawa exasperatedly says to the dog. the pom barks at him in response. "do you want me to hold you?" he nears his hand to the dog's torso but it wriggles his hand off as it bounces off the ground catching his hands using its mouth. "i don't understand what you're trying to say. what do you want?!" oikawa's patience is getting thinner. the dog has been barking at him for more than five minutes straight now. an petty idea struck him. if the dog won't shut up then he won't too. he does the thing that only an oikawa breed does; he levels his body down to the ground to meet the dog's eyes before barking back at him. for a second, the dog pulls back tilting its head to the side confused with what he was doing before barking back at him more aggressively this time. this has become some odd battle of dominance. the front door of their house opens to a dark-haired boy. "hey, toru i brought some dog treats." his mouth falls at the sight of a human turned dog. oikawa stops and their eyes meet. "iwa-chan." his voice came out in a whisper. "unbelievable." iwaizumi shakes his head before shutting the door close.

🌃 KENMAㅡCALICO CAT

kenma isn't the best at taking care of a living breathing thing. he barely has the energy to look out for his well-being what more to a pet. but this calico cat outside their house pleads the bare minimum of attention and affection. so, they work perfectly well together. it only asks him for food then it goes off to sleep on their roof and food isn't his biggest problem since he spares her food from dinner. everything was going well until one day when kenma was walking down the empty streets of his neighborhood. he hears a whimpering sound of kittens near his house. no way, he thoughts to himself. but as his footsteps near his home, the sound gets louder. he opens the gate to his home. lo and behold he sees the calico cat with her four kittens in front of their house. "you can't bring them here!" his duffle bag falls from his shoulder as he reprimands the mother cat. the cat meows back in reply. "put them back to where they were before. you only eat here. you don't get to stay here!" the calico cat rubs its body against his leg as it purrs. the kittens follow their mother, surrounding kenma. "you're too many." he puts his face on his hands. his mind go through possible solutions. then it hits him. he fishes his phone out from his bag and his finger navigates through his contacts knowing exactly who to call. he picks up after three rings. "kuroo, the calico cat has kittens. i can't take care of four more cats. take the kittens." he says in one go. kuroo convinces him to house the cat family for now. left with no alternative, kenma agrees. sigh escaping from his mouth. the older promises to find the kittens an owner. the kittens look at him with their big rounded eyes. kenma grunts to himself unable to leave the hungry cats on his porch. he goes to the kitchen to grab spare food and milk. he places the food near the mother cat for her to eat while kenma tilts his head back to taste the milk. "you're lucky the milk isn't spoiled yet. here have it." he pours the milk in a small bowl watching the kittens waddle their way to their fiest.

🌃 AKAASHIㅡOLD ENGLISH SHEEPDOG

generally, akaashi is a perceptive person so that makes it easier for him to see through people or living things and give them what they want. which points us to the fact that he has knacks for taking care of dogs. it's only been a few months since their family adopted an old english sheepdog but the dog has already learned a lot of tricks from him. he knows how to sit, lie down, roll over, and fetch. he has taught their house pet where to pee and poop and the dog follows his orders when he reprimands him for chewing on their slippers. although, still remaing nameless since they adopted him they seem to get along pretty well, to say the least. oddly, though, the dog has a weird habit. it tends to goof around a lot, barking at other dogs to play with while him as he jumps and turn in the air like a fool. he has his tongue out all the time and his eyes are round yet droopy as if he was excited yet sleepy at the same time. the dog also loves praises. every trick has to be followed by praises and treats. if you skip the praises though still giving him the treats the old english sheepdog goes through what seems like a cycle of depressive thoughts. weirdly, it reminds him of someone. someone with the same habits and same way of thinking. even the coat of the nameless english sheepdog reminds him of him. the next day during break from practice their manager, kaori, approaches akaashi to ask him about his new still nameless dog. "how do you teach it when it doesn't have a name yet?" she questions him. " I call him 'boy' before. though, it has a name now." akaashi says crossing his arms over his chest. "what is it?" kaori's eyes glimmer in curiosity only for it to dissipate as his point finger leads her sight to grey and black-headed boy. the subject of interest then turns his head pulling a big smile. "you called for me, akaashi?" bokuto says. his dog's name is bokuto.

a/n: thanks for reading!

Masterlist

[beann-e]

Far Off Crushes

Mattsukawa Drabble pt.2 ( click here for part 1 )

I’m not sure why this took me so long sorry for the wait !!

“ uh — so what do we do now “

“ the fuck if I know “

Your body shook as he made eye contact with you almost trying to see if something had happened in your last class for you to become an asshole like this out of no where

He smiled softly when you looked away and shook your head causing your face to light up in confusion.

Today had not gone like you planned at all.

You originally planned to end your day walking out of school with your best friend mattsukawa while he preached to you about your beauty and how much he adored you maybe even stopping and buying you some flowers on the way home

but for some reason you found yourself still stuck in your last class with a tall male, blonde striped hair, and a horrible attitude staring down at you “ I did my part right I asked you out so “

your eyebrows furrowed as you cut him off “ so “

He shook his head at your remark “ so why are you acting like a prick right now ? “

your face morphed into annoyance looking away from him to try to calm down he hadn’t done anything wrong but you needed something—someone to blame something to say that you weren’t at fault for all these unexpected mistakes that popped up in your plan “ so”

“ so don’t you also have to do some shit too ? A part to play ? why the hell am I doing all the work here “

you sighed you knew this was gonna be hard you weren’t sure how your personality’s had meshed together so well earlier.

All you knew is that for some reason right now he was annoying you because one he wasn’t mattsukawa and two he wasn’t mattsukawa

“ let’s just —let’s go home ok “

“ finally a good fucking idea —getting tired of just standing here“ he nodded slowly as he sipped the milk box he held in his hand.

He was honestly a bit more confused than you were he thought it was normal to be nice to your crush but if it was then why did it seem like you two had suddenly traded personality’s. You the asshole he really didn’t want to be around and him the submissive schoolgirl. He thought it would be better if he didn’t come on too strong , limited his cursing , and talked to you regularly but that clearly wasn’t working.

now he was shitting his pants at the fact that he would have to actually talk to you and then on top of that work up the courage to curse at you someone he only found himself wanting to spoil.

“ you have to move out of the door way first “ your face went deadpanned looking up at your new ‘boyfriend’ who jumped in his shoes moving over as far away from you and the door as he could causing you to scream out “ not that far you ditz I don’t have fleas“

he scoffed walking behind you your bodies heading for the exit as you stopped at the door him running right into your back holding your shoulders so you didn’t fall over from the impact

His eyes widening when you didn’t move to open it “ uh “ his eyes roamed over your face his own morphed in pure confusion why would you just stop in front of the door after just telling him not too long ago to move away from doors.

“ the fuck are you doing “

you growled “ your suppose to open the door for me ‘boyfriend’ “

“ w-what “

“ it’s gentlemanly y’know “ you looked to the door sadly “ and mattsukawa used to do it for me “

“ one i swear you just made that word up the fucks gentlemanly and two ok —what do I do with that information “ his eyebrows came together in a furrow as he looked down on you visibly confused “ you do know i’m not going to do everything that your perfectly capable of doing on your own just because we’re dating now right ? “

you felt your body flame as you pushed the door open by yourself the boy behind you racing to keep up with you. Screaming profanities as every door you opened smacked him in the face because you only opened it enough to let yourself through.

“ god such an— “ his mouth snapped shut as you turned around and drilled your stare into the side of his face.

The quiet air swirling around between you two the wind howling before you heard his voice become softer.

your mind slowing when you finally landed on a thought that’s been stuck in your head since he showed up at your last class earlier ‘ wheres the smart alec asshole from the hallway —why’s he acting so —so sweet ‘

“ psst “

your head turned to look his way before turning back around “ hey y/n “ you groaned giving him just a little bit of your attention

“ look “ his hand came down on your shoulder patting you gently as you followed his finger that was outstretched to point at the animal across from you two “ a puppy “

your face lit up in excitement as he stared down on your child like state his heart beating rapidly when his gaze finally fell to your eyes that were gleaming with interest.

His own darting around your face as if stuck in a trance watching as the wind comb over your features your smile one he wanted to see all the time.

‘ they like what I like ‘

His mouth flying open without his permission “ so pret—puppy— let’s go see the puppy “

“ wh-what no we can’t ju— “

“ let’s go see the puppy “ you jumped he obviously wasn’t one to take no for an answer and that was clear when his offer seemed to turn into more of a demand than a request you nodded as if he could see you his body already across the schoolyard and making it’s way to the park.

Your mouth moving to scream out stop when you saw him touch the dog without permission his hand already coming onto the top of the dogs head softly “ hey you cant ju— “

His face never changed as he pulled back the finger that the dog bit only to smile at the red that moved across his skin and fell to the grass. Holding out his hand showing where he’d been hurt. Eyes coming up to look at the owner “ shots ? “

the owner shaking their head as they spoke “ knew he could fend for himself so I let cha’ do it “

your ‘boyfriend’ smiled as he stood “ he’s got a little spark — like em “ he turned back to look at you before he squatted again hands on his knees “ come ‘ ere “

you looked at the boy in confusion before you looked to the owner “ come on “ you glared at the male that sat next to the dog before following him letting out a small apology to the owner that went unheard as he paid more attention to his phone instead of the two high schoolers that were attacking his dog with their hands.

You moved to sit on the grass staring at the dog in front of you that just stared back your eyes never leaving his. The two of you almost having a conversation through your eyes.

A loud laugh rippling from the ground up and through your body “ the fuck are you doing ? “ the boy beside you screamed both the dog and yourself turning to stare him down “ what are you ? having a staring contest with — with the dog ? “ he busted out laughing as he thought back to your behavior a couple minutes ago

“ here look this is you “ he moved to stare at the small animal before you two. His eyes hard and serious as he tried to stop the laugh that threatened to leave his lips

He wouldn’t stop staring until he heard you laug—

“ oh god shutup “ you laughed causing him to relax and finally let himself laugh when he felt your hands outstretch and push him over to the ground “ it’s not like he can talk or anything how else are we suppose to y’know communicate “

“pet him you doof “ he smiled as he looked to the dog in front you flailing his hand towards the animal as he spoke “ pet him y/n he’ll respond better to a nice person like yourself than he did me “

your eyebrows creased before you nibbled your bottom lip “ swear it “

he smiled softly before holding out his pinky to you. Your eyes widening at the childish motion before laughing softly reaching out your own and wrapping it around his

“ swear it “ he spoke loud enough for you to hear but soft enough for you to hear he meant every word he said regardless of the sharp edge and bass his voice held

you felt the nerves in your body electrify before a hand inched it’s way across the grass ghosting over your own hand feeling your hesitation “ may I “

you nodded as he took your hand in his own squeezing lightly to calm your jumpy fingers before he guided you to the dog his hand wrapped around yours as he directed it up and down—guiding it softly around the puppy’s fur. Your mouth quirking up in a small smile when the dog whimpered in approval and turned over on its belly “he’s — he’s cute “

the owner turned to look between you and the boy that sat next to you “ yeah he’s a friends actually “

you nodded “ your friend has great taste“

he smiled “ yeah I like to think so— actually thinking about him right now he’s got quite the eye for pretty things “

you and the taller boy next to you spoke at the same time both of your eyes on two different thing when speaking “ yeah “

you moved to stand up as you made eye contact with your boyfriend who nodded in understanding before he led you back to the street to walk you home.

the mood created by the dog left behind and now traded for a dry and quiet one as you two walked a distance away from each other you playing with your hands as he pushed his own deeper in his pockets

“ hey look “ you gulped heavily at his voice forgetting how deep and heavy it was “ look— I — i’m not like mattsukawa I know it I understand it “ he nodded to himself trying to get it in his head “ I don’t think i’ll ever be on that level personally and — well physically“

you listened not turning around so that you didn’t make him nervous “ but “ his voice went hard “ I can try I can try to be what you want me to be — who — who you want me to be if you just —just give me a chance—please I— “

your eyes widened as you moved to speak causing him to realize that he was just begging in the middle of the street his hands sweaty while gripping at his backpack straps “no—no just “ he sighed “ just leave it alone this shit got way too fucking emotional too quick “

“ but why “

he grunted “ didn’t I just say leave it the fuck alone “

“ but I don’t wanna “

“ you don’t listen “ he rolled his eyes “ kinda hot kinda “ he dropped his voice to a whisper “ pisses me off “

“ mm “ his eyes darted to yours before looking away

“ look your good ok “ your voice croaked out making his brain swirl as he listened to you speak letting you melt away all his doubts “ i’m sorry i’ve been a little bit of an asshole “

“ a litt— “ he laughed before coughing “ uh yes i’m sorry you’ve been really um wonderful y/n“ he coughed again fixing his uniform before following after you

“ it’s just today didn’t go how I expected at all and now i’m just i’m here with a guy I don’t even really know and I can’t help but be a little pissed off that I lost my best friend and crush all in one day — I just —don’t think I blame you or I’m upset or pissed at you just“ you looked to the ground “ just a really crappy day “

“ yeah no I totally understand “ he took a big gulp as he loooked to you his body finally stopping and taking a deep breath “ y-y/n can — can I — I have something to te— “

“ hey wanna come in “ you put the key in your door flinging it open smiling back at the male not hearing anything he’d just siad “ ‘ rents aren’t home and I — “

you shook your head “ I kinda don’t wanna be alone think i’m gonna cry or spazz if I am “

he looked around the street before turning around and staring at the floor face made up in a state of confusion “ o-oh we’re at your — your house “ his eyes went into shock realizing what he got himself into he didn’t think this far ahead “ the place where you eat , study an—“

“ what the fuck are you a reporter why are you out here telling every single neighbor i have what i do in my house “

he smiled softly before accepting the invite waking in and putting his shoes to the side after taking them off

“ sooo this is where you live “ his eyes glanced over towards a wall—-every wall trying to figure out what kind of person you were or even trying to figure out how he’d gotten this far he assumed you would’ve called the whole dating thing off

He wanted to savor this moment before you cut all connection with him. He just wanted one day of doing nothing but spending his time hanging out with his crush maybe then they would finally notice him as the nice kid and not just the asshole from school who screams and sulks in corners

“ ha you say that like you’ve been interested in it forever—do houses really bring you this much joy —what are you an aspiring housewife?“

“ no I just — well I do have something to tel— “

“ god I can’t believe I confessed today “ his face dropped before it hardened him following you while you ran through your house and plopped down belly first on your bed

“ I never thought this would’ve happened I mean look i’m sitting here with you for christ sakes —i assumed i would never see you again“

he moved to sit next to you grabbing your feet hesitantly and laying them across his lap “ I-is there something wrong with me”

“ no no no I just “ you sighed into your pillow “ I just don’t know you “

“ would you y’know like to know “

your brain stopped working at his question —did you wanna get to know this new person next to you ? “ if you don’t wanna know that’s cool I just I know a lot about you and you don’t know about m— “

“ hey can you tell me how you know so much about me “

“ I— I um ? “ he looked away from your back and looked to your room door “ maybe after you find out a little bit more about me “

“ fine “ you huffed “ but you don’t deserve to look into my pretty eyes until you tell me “

your voice dropping into a flirty tone eyebrows wiggling into your pillow as if the male next to you could see them “ their pretty you may just fall in love — so I really suggest just telling me “

he laughed “ no I know — I know but uh I don’t wanna tell you and freak you out because you don’t know me yet—that’d be weird “

you groaned out a small “ fine “ as he shifted uncomfortably in his space looking for a little bit of comfort. He was seriously really surprised he even made it this far he didn’t want to screw up now

“ ok so uh my names kentaro you can call me—“

“ ken “

“ fuc—i mean um sure —i was uh thinking the same thing“ his eyebrows furrowed trying to get used to the new name “ I play on the volleyball team hence why you saw me in the hallway on my way there and fell on me with your extremely heavy body may i add “

“ hey “ you screamed pushing out your foot from his hold and kicking him in his side causing him to laugh and rub at it softly while he spoke

“ yeah and I— I like dogs or animals really “ he smiled to himself hands moving to play with your socks still searching for that comfort he tended to ramble when he was comfortable. Most people assumed he was quiet and reserved but the truth is he just didn’t feel comfortable enough to talk to anyone no one made him want to speak

well no one except you and you made him want to simply because he couldn’t understand you instead of pushing you away like other people he wanted to learn more about you and if that meant breaking down his wall and outside persona god he would do it so fast “ their um sweet and fun and I like that they keep to themselves y’know—their never asking me to do things or yelling at me they just “ he sighed “ chill “

he smiled wider looking at your floor “ did you know my nickname on the team is mad dog “ he scoffed “ honestly used to hate it until I went to the dog park one day I tend to go to calm my nerves —I should bring you one day actually i would love to bring you one day—first date maybe? no wait we’re not really dati— but uh there was a lady there and she yelled out ‘ mad dog ‘ “

he shook his head at the words that just spilled from his mouth silently begging himself to stop he didn’t wanna scare you off

“ so I turned my head and said yeah only to get cut off by a dog barking and running into her arms that day —‘ts weird but for some reason it made me a bit more confident in my nickname not just because of the dog that would be stupid but because I seen how something I thought was made to make fun of me could one day turn into something with love behind it “

he sighed “ that was a horrible explanation—I mean I used to think they were doing it because they were assholes but as time went by I noticed they just really dug giving out nicknames and I was lucky enough to have one—that wasn’t just straight up demeaning like shittykawa “

he smiled softly while his hand traced up from your socks to your legs playing drums on them “ I hope one day i’ll have someone who’ll say the nickname with just as much love as that lady did — the dog they— they seemed so happy and I — I wanna feel it too y’know “

he felt his hands going sweaty and pulled them back off of you not wanting to scare you “ sorry I — I tend to ramble if i’m comfortable because I don— “

“ don’t talk much around people “

“ y-yeah how’d you “

“ same—feels nice to finally get it out huh and just talk without being rude to everyone—when’s the last time you had a proper conversation like this “ you smiled softly your head now turned to look at him body moving to sit next to him both your legs hanging off the side of your bed “ ken your really passionate with your words “

“ oh — oh I am ? “

“ do you show the volley guys this side of you or “

“ yeah right and risk being called soft why the hel— “

“ then why’d you show it to me “ your eyes moved to look into his you were honestly confused you two barely knew each other youd just technically met today as far as you knew. so why did he feel so comfortable of course you were happy for him to finally say what felt like was sitting on his chest for years but

“ kentaro “ his eyes snapped away from their place on your lips with a slight hum “ why did you — why do you feel so comfortable with me “

“ because I — I “ his eyebrows furrowed “ because y/n I love y—” his body jolted when he heard a knock on the front door causing him to ramble “ BECAUSE I LOVE KNOCKING “

your eyes widened at his outburst shaking your head and standing “ fuck I um — I enjoy knocking a lot y’know how it just — it just uh y’know goes knock knock —really cleanses the soul “

you laughed uncomfortably before you left the room him following quietly behind you watching your body slowly get closer and closer to the door “ who is it “ you screamed making your through the house

“ hey babe it’s issei “

“ issei “ you screamed happily kentaros body shaking in fear his mind racing with thoughts and hands sweating like crazy his eyes on the brink of tears.

He could not let mattsukawa in if he let you open that door his chances were over. He felt the whole world slow— he felt his whole world get closer and closer to the thing that would only destroy them feet moving faster than he’d ever thought possible

“ fuck “ he screamed “ people just — I keep getting interrupted “ he huffed “ I-i’m trying and trying and I “

“ k-ken “ you spoke causing him to look up and notice that he had somehow made his way in front of you his back to the hallway leading to the door and blocking It from your view “ what are you tal— “

“ please just — just shutup “ he cringed at his word use he’d been trying all day to be nicer around you he couldn’t ruin it now “ no don’t shutup never shut up just — god fuck — holy shit “

“ t-the big threes “

he laughed “ y/n please i’ve — ive — i’m in love with you “ he spat out quickly and harshly making it feel more like a threat than a good thing.

His words turning into a giant spitball as he stared at the floor arms outstretched “ i’ve been in love with you since first grade and if you wanna count kindergarten I swear I loved the way you nibbled on your crayons “

he shook silently “ middle school started it all I was gonna con— confess but you — you were too focused you liked school at that time and I didn’t wanna be an asshole and ruin it—or even make you sacrifice your grades—in elementary god I was sucha prick but a dumb prick I was an idiot I didn’t understand why I felt the way I felt—it pissed me off so I broke your color pencil “

he was on the verge of tears causing you to soften when you thought back to the angry guy you met in the hallway earlier “ I replaced it I swear I ran to the bucket and tried my best to find a red but I couldn’t it was so hard all the crayons were broken and — and I tried y/n but I couldn’t so I took tape and glue and tried to rebuild it and left it at your desk and it was so worth it to see 3rd grade you showing everyone your cool new pencil “

He took a quick breath before starting again “ and then — then high school came and god fuck highschool that’s when you met that asshole and he — I — I — he knew I liked you it was almost obvious to anybody on that fucking team if they looked closely enough “

he shook his head to the floor as if sitting through his thoughts “ everything mattsukawa did or gave you for your birthday was my doing I was the one texting the group chat and reminding them that it was coming up — every time he took you out for lunch dinner whatever the fuck he did that was all me — I paid —i took you out not him “ he felt his rage seeping out

“ he stole all my ideas for you away from me and then earlier actually tried to steal you from me in my fucking face the nerve of that shitty asshole— “ he scoffed his anger boiling inside and staring to pour over

“all you’ve been doing is talking about him while I have the fattest fucking crush on you and it — it hurts “ his voice was going hoarse body tensing at the knocking that never seemed to stop only pressing harder into his head making him spill everything “ I became an asshole in high school and I — I knew you wouldn’t want me I knew I had no chance so I left you alone but that doesn’t mean I stopped liking you I still did I still do — when I saw you in that hallway earlier I thought it was fate “

he laughed “ and I don’t even believe in that bullshit much less believe that you’ll like me after I show i’m not the tough asshole I pretend to be “ his heart broke “but I do I fucking love you — I don’t know how else to say it how else to make you feel it but I love you — I love you y/n l/— “

his body relaxed and fell into happiness when his eyes slowly dropped and noticed your lips on his.

‘ how long have they been there’

Eyebrows coming together before his hands ghosted around your waist his mind telling him not to smile so he didn’t break the kiss but at the same time telling him to kiss back so he also didn’t break the kiss and trust he never wanted to break the kiss

and oh god he forget that he was suppose to close his eyes he’d dreamed about this for so long so why— why did it feel so different now that it was happening is it because your real is it because that assholes knocking on the door outside waiting to get in.

Is it because he can say that this situation perfectly describes how mattsukawas trying so desperately to get inside your heart but he’s already there stealing the job from an asshole like him yeah that’s it

“ you dick stop smiling “ you pulled back and spoke against his lips

“ I—- I can’t help it your just so “

“ you should’ve told me sooner “

“ I didn’t think you would accep— “

“ no you asshole “ you punched him in his chest causing him to grab hold of it “ that you were the reason why my rose was two different colors in 3rd grade “ you laughed to yourself “ the crayon you gave me was cool yeah but it was orange not red —you gave me the wrong crayon back asshat”

“ I-i’m sorry we can make another one “

your heart warmed “yeah — let’s make that our second date ok “

“ h- huh when was our first “

you scoffed “ as long as you’ve liked me I thought you would’ve remembered every little thing we’ve done together “

his face crinkled into confusion “ i’m sorry I “

“ in middle school we were science lab partners “ you smiled softly “ we dissected a frog together remember“

“ you— you remember “ he laughed “ and how you were cutting it open while I was screaming my head off like a chick “

“ how could I forget “

“ so you knew me this whole time “

“ mm I know the sweet guy that’s standing in front of me right now pouring his heart out to me yeah “ you paused to look up at him “ if your asking if I know the asshole who curses every other word and is just a straight prick to people as a facade then no I will continue to forget him “

he brought his face close to yours his breath tickling your lips “ may I “

“ you ma—- “ his lips locked on yours again causing you to gasp and finally tune out the knocking swirling around your house “ you gonna get that “ he looked to the side “ if you want him to come in he ca- “

“ no I wanna be with you “

he smirked to himself “ then tell the asshole your busy “ he picked you up bridal style your voice loud causing the knocking to stop so the person could listen “ hey douchebag i’m with “ your eyes came to rest on kentaros “ i’m with my boyfriend “

you smiled as he moved to speak “ yeah and he says the only dick allowed in here is his own so give us some alone time yeah so they can fall in love again “ his eyes locking with yours meaning everything he said “ the right way this time “

[sideblogformindtrash]

Aduhsfgh self indulgent pet whump with Orfeu as a Whumper AU. This made me so sad :’)

It’s not canon ofc. 

CW:  NSFW/NO-CON/Dubcon; Pet whump; Dehumaniziation; beating; mentioned knife play; dislocated bones; collar; creepy/cruel whumper; teeth/biting; mentioned starvation; manhandling; degradation; 

 The thin shape of Haru stands in the doorway, doing his best not to shiver. Master wouldn’t like that. He knocks on the wood to call for his attention, as he slowly lifts his head from the book. Haru realizes, way too late, that he has a knife in his hands, candle and herbs spread all around him. He whispers a few words and shuts the book.

“Hello, songbird” And Master gives him a wide smile. He hates that nickname. It made sense in his old house, when he was still good and pretty and useful. Now he can’t sing anymore, he never has for this Master. But… He knows Master’s patience with him is running out “…What is it?”

…He lets his head fall down, takes a few steps in and falls to his knees besides Master’s bed. He stares, fluttering his eyelashes, trying to look good – seducing? – for Master. It was never something his trainers thought him. He had to learn. And he is a little clumsy at it, as he moves his hands and rests them on Master’s knees…

Master grabs him by his collar. He barely has time to yelp, as Master throws him over the bed with him. At least he gets a few seconds to recompose, before leaning forward, laying his head between Master’s legs…

Master starts to pet his hair, and that’s the best sensation in the world. This is the one thing he loves about this home. At least, there is some sort of affection. Even if he gets hurt, if he cries and if he can’t quite follow the rules… At least the had pats will be there when he is good, and Master will praise him.

Today, he isn’t being good.

“M-mm-ma-mas-“ He breathes. Speaking is so, so difficult. He is making some progress, but his stammering is annoying. He is afraid Master will decide it’s not worth the trouble and silence him again “Please…”

“What is it, Haru?” His voice is amused. At least he isn’t getting impatient yet…

Slowly, he lifts himself back to his knees, prepared to be punished for it at every turn. It doesn’t happen, so…

‘Please. Allow me to give Blue some pain killers? Please. Please, Master’

“Painkillers, hm?” Master smiles, and pulls Haru into his lap “Why should I? Are you saying it didn’t deserve the punishment, little bird?”

…His eyes widen. He tries to calm down, he knows Master isn’t really angry, he is just teasing, just seeing if Haru will fall for it…

But it’s still a dangerous game to play. He has to be careful with his words.

‘Of course it did Master. Master deemed the punishment necessary, and Master knows what Is best for us’ he closed his eyes for a second. Just a second. He wasn’t allowed that luxury for long. When he is talking to Master, he had to look into the cruel cold green eyes. Master knew how powerless it made him feel. He was naked under that stare, more naked than just without clothes: It was as if his soul had been stripped bare ‘It hasn’t slept since yesterday. I’m sorry for assuming it was okay for it to rest’

…Master’s smile just widened. Haru rolled his hips slightly, offering himself up. Master is already hard under him. He will claim that Haru has to ‘pay’ for whatever he is asking… But of course that’s arbitrary. Nothing stops Master from taking him either way. Still, is a way for him to ask for things they need. To at least pretend he is working for it, instead of just relying on his Master’s mercy.

‘Please?’ he risked gesturing again, swinging his hair around a bit, acutely aware of the knife in Master’s hand…

His other hand went inside his shirt. Cold. It was cold. He felt the tip of the nails scratching his skin, his fingers tracing over scars on Haru’s chest, both his and from his old owner, until they settled on his nipples, pinching toying with them.

Back on his old house… All he had to do was stay still and let it happen. He was just like a ragdoll, tossed and used and then thrown off the bed, and what he was thinking or feeling never mattered. He hated it, but at least it allowed him to just… dissociate. He would stare somewhere, and get lost, as far from his body as he could. But this Master liked when he took initiative. He wanted Haru to be active… to be there the whole time.

So, he unbuckled Master’s belt. That was one of the scariest, full of pointy spikes. He prayed Master never used that one on him or Blue – he once was beaten with one covered in gemstones. It ended up leaving hundreds of small squared wounds on his back, all itching and stinging awfully, costing to heal. And those had been nearly flat stones. He didn’t even want to wonder how much the spikes would hurt.

This wasn’t important now. He opened the thing, and pulled Master’s shorts down, all the while giving nervous glances to see if he had permission to continue.

Slowly, He took a step back, lowering himself to Master’s crotch and taking Master’s dick in his mouth while his fingers idly played with Haru’s hair.

He tried not to think of anything. Just do it. Just get it over with. At least Master’s touch on his hair is soft, at least it doesn’t hurt.

Master lets out a soft moan, as Haru takes his head to the shaft and swallows. He closes his eyes, forgetting for a second that he shouldn’t.

“Look at me” Master scolds. His voice is deep, soft. But it’s an order, so he does, trying to hold back the tears, back and forth, back and forth.

And fuck, staring into his eyes is one of the hardest things to do. Cold. Cold fucking eyes with something slightly inhuman about them. But at least he seems satisfied, so Haru must be doing a good enough job. Master’s grip on his hair turns vicious. He pushes Haru down, nearly making him choke, as he comes. Haru struggles to swallow the load, but he has too. Master would not be happy if he spilled any, and he needs Master to be happy. At least enough to let him help Blue.

He licks Master clean and pulls his shorts back up. He is playing with the knife, spinning it around his hands, no doubt thinking of how he will cut Haru later. But for now, he hopes this will suffice.

Master smiles, maliciously.

“…Get your painkillers, bird”  

‘Thank you Master. Thank you so much’ he says, nearly jumping out of the bed. The sooner he gets out of the room now, the better. He searches through Master’s bedroom cabined and runs back downstairs, as Master goes back to his reading.

Haru walked back to Blue, still trembling, and crouched near the dog bed, where Blue was curled up in pain and softly whimpering, nuzzling Bonnie. A heavy chain around his neck as if he was going anywhere.

He had done his best to patch up the wounds, but Blue’s shoulder still seemed dislocated. Haru didn’t know how to fix that, and he was afraid of hurting him more, so Blue was at Master’s mercy.  

“H-ha-haru…” Blue cried once he saw him, a big cup of water and the pills “…It…It wants back. It wants W-warren…”

He stared at Blue with pity. He said that all the time. He missed his old Master, who treated him nicely, he said. Haru shushed him. But he had to let that go. Holding onto nice memories only brought them more pain.

‘You need to stop saying it out loud. It’s why Master beat you in the first place’

“I-it knows but… ngghn… it hurts. It hurtsss. It, it, it wants back. Wants fluffy bed and, and the treats, and, and going out m-making photos…” Blue kept sobbing, the movement of his chest causing him more pain, as he grieves for the brief moments of happiness he had.

Haru gestured to the pills, and offers him the water. He kept holding the cup even as Blue took it to his mouth, knowing that if he let go, Blue might drop it… And then they would be screwed.

…They both fell silent, hearing the steps coming downstairs, Haru’s heart skipping a beat. They were only hearing because Master wanted to give them a heads up. He was deadly quiet when he wanted to be. Haru set the cup down, putting his hands on the floor and his head over them.

Master found his two pets quiet and behaved. Blue tried to kneel as well… But he seemed in too much pain to do it properly, leaning on Haru for support. He hoped Master would forgive that.

Without a word, he walked up to Blue and grabbed him. He barely managed a yelp, as Master snapped his bone back into place, and then let him fall back into the dog bed, barely containing his sobs.

“Watch your mouth from now on, doggy” he smiled, awful little sharp teeth. They had left plenty of scars all over Haru’s body.

“S-s-s-sso-rry Master” He yelped, trembling. Master smacked Blue’s cheeks twice, as affectionate as that gesture could possibly be.

After that, Master went out. He and Blue waited in tense silence for around ten minutes. They never knew where Master went, when he would go out or when he would return. But it felt a little easier to breathe when he wasn’t around. It was like a ghostly presence was removed from the house.

“Yy-y-y-“ Haru closed his eyes. This was still so hard “S-s-sna-snack?”

Blue quietly nodded. This was one point where Master was merciful, at least. They weren’t starved.

“O-o-oatmeal?” Blue pleaded. Well, they were both allowed to eat but only Haru was allowed to cook, so Blue was dependent on him for that, too. However, he still only had a limited amount of options to cook, as Blue could barely eat any hard food.

He nodded, blue giving him the smallest smile, hiding the broken teeth, as Haru pulled up his little blanket and wrapped him on it.

‘Try to rest a bit, ok?’

Blue whined softly, laying back to hug his little bunny. At least they had each other, Haru thought. He hoped he and Blue weren’t separated again.

[jingabitch]

Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell ch.1

Summary: When you were ten, Taehyung adopted you and gave you a home. Now that you’re eighteen, the sudden change in your scent perplexes and confounds him.

Pairing: wolf hybrid!tae x human!reader (all bts members are hybrids)

Warnings: smut | talk of ownership (reader is tae’s pet human) | (eventual) daddy long legs syndrome | masturbation (m) | tae is conflicted | OC is underage when they meet, although there is no sexual attraction until after she is an adult

Word count: 10.5k

A/N: here it is!! I hope you enjoy it and tell me what you think; I was really unsure about writing this, especially at the beginning. Edit: I will not be doing a taglist, so please don't ask. Thank you!

Series index

“Hyung –”  Taehyung whined as he sulked on the couch of the dorm.

Yoongi sighed, looking over at his team member. “What is it, Taehyung-ie?”

“I’m bored,” Taehyung replied, crossing his arms over his chest as he slid down on the couch, his usually perky ears drooping.

The snow leopard hybrid just grunted, flicking one of his ears in irritation. “Why are you telling me this?”

“Hyung, come play with me, please?”

Namjoon, who was lying on the adjacent couch, stifled a snicker. Taehyung had been more needy than usual in the past few weeks, and he was working Yoongi’s last nerve. The older man had inherited his animal counterpart’s solitary tendencies, and while he was, for the most part, happy to socialize and hang out with the rest of them, Taehyung had been cutting into his alone time a little too much lately with his neediness, and the grey-haired hybrid was Not Happy.

Jin, their resident spotted hyena hybrid, laughed, a sound very reminiscent of his animal counterpart’s trademark sound. “Yoongi, just play with him. He’s lonely.”

Yoongi scowled. “Why do I have to do it?! Isn’t this why you got a pet in the first place, to keep you company?”

Taehyung’s frown deepened. “It is, but as you can clearly see,” he bit out, upset now, “Yeontan isn’t here.”

Hoseok, seeing the snow leopard hybrid taking in a deep breath to begin ranting, cut into the conversation to save the wolf hybrid from a scolding. “Hyung, you know how Tae is. He misses the company, is all.”

“Why don’t you just get another pet, then?” Yoongi asked.

“Because the same thing would happen, hyung,” Taehyung responded drolly, unable to hide his irritation at what he clearly thought was a ridiculous suggestion. “I don’t want to get attached to another pet, and then have to palm it off onto my parents again.”

Namjoon, ever the problem solver, lit up in that way that happened only when he had a eureka moment. “Get a human, then!”

The rest of them gawked at him. “A human?!” Jin asked skeptically.

“Yah, if he didn’t have time for a dog, how’s he going to care for a human baby? They’re even more high maintenance, and for way longer!” Yoongi snapped.

Namjoon made a rude noise. “Don’t get a baby, then! There’s lots of children and adolescents in shelters that need good homes. You can get one of those; they’re more self-sufficient.”

Taehyung’s mouth dropped open in shock. “That’s genius!”

Jungkook and Jimin, who had until now remained out of the conversation, immediately leapt up excitedly. “Yes, yes, can we adopt a human, pleaaaase,” Jimin pleaded. The black-footed cat hybrid, already small in stature and adorable because of his animal genes, opened his eyes wider and pouted up at the others.

Taehyung and Jungkook, seeing him, followed suit, and before long, the other members conceded, and they’d agreed to get a human pet. Taehyung, excited now that he was going to have a new little pack member to take care of and keep him company, immediately ran to get his laptop so he could research human shelters in Seoul.

Two hundred years ago, humans created hybrids in science labs. Splicing human genes with animals was supposed to create the perfect servant, companion and soldier – with the intelligence and capacity for emotional connection of humans and the superior physical capabilities of other animals, these new creations were supposed to make life better for humans.

What the scientists hadn’t realized, in their hubris, was that it was extraordinarily likely that the hybrids wouldn’t be content merely taking orders and serving the whims of humans, who were, after all, genetically inferior to their artificial perfection. A revolution and reordering of society occurred, and now humans were the pets, bred for the sole purpose of being the best possible companions for their hybrid owners.

You understood this history well enough, thanks to the kindly old hybrid who adopted you as a baby to soothe her empty nest syndrome after her grown-up children moved out and began their own lives, and her husband sadly passed away. She’d given you far more than she was obliged to as an owner, even ensuring that you had a basic education.

It had been a couple of years since she’d unfortunately passed away suddenly from a massive heart attack, landing you in a shelter when none of her family members wanted to take you in. Now that you were ten, you understood that the likelihood of you staying in the shelter for the rest of your childhood grew exponentially each day, as most families wanted babies or toddlers that would be more attached to their adopted families.

Plus, everyone loves babies.

You sighed as you pushed the covers off yourself. You’d finally managed to get a coveted bottom bunk bed after one of the girls in your room was adopted out, and you felt like you should be happier about it.

If only it wasn’t so sad to be happy about getting a bottom bunk in a shelter, after years of waiting your turn. You hoped against all hope that you wouldn’t spend much time in this bunk, that you’d be going home with another family soon, and you promised yourself there and then that if you ever got adopted, you’d do whatever it took to make your new family happy for saving you from this drudgery.

As you made your way to the cafeteria for breakfast, you noticed that there seemed to be a lot more… buzzing than usual. You shrugged it off – you’d been here long enough to know that it just meant a high-profile visit was scheduled for the day, and all of the children were told to dress up and be on their best behavior.

Picking up a tray and lining up for your breakfast, you held in a sigh. Most people are looking for babies and toddlers, and it’s rare that anyone wants to adopt at a shelter. Even when they do, they go for younger children, who are still cute and cuddly.

Well, not that you weren’t cuddly. It was literally in your genetic makeup to crave physical affection because hybrids like to snuggle with their pets, but you’d lost that cute doe-eyed helplessness that hybrid clients like in their pets. With a sigh, you took your tray and sat in a corner to eat, unwilling to listen to the excited chatter of the younger children. You weren’t that hopeful anymore, and it hurt too much after the first few times to get all excited and put in effort, only to not be chosen at the end of the day.

Finishing your breakfast, the same porridge with kimchi and laver that you have every morning, you went back to your room to wait. It’s standard procedure – every child has to remain by their bed in their room when the prospective client arrives and takes a tour to find the child they want to bring home.

With a sigh, you sat on your bed, propping the pillow up against the metal frame of your bunk bed, to continue reading the book you’d begged off from one of the caretakers. Most of the human children couldn’t read, because it wasn’t mandatory to teach them and many of them were rescued off the streets, but the grandmother who owned you before had taught you the basics.

You were still engrossed in the story – a classic from hundreds of years ago about a boy who found out he was a wizard and went to a school called Hogwarts – when Taehyung arrives, flanked by Namjoon on one side and Jimin on the other. The leader had accompanied Taehyung to restrain him and keep him from getting every child in the shelter, and Jimin had just wanted to see cute human children and give his two cents’ worth on the human they eventually adopted.

Because, as he said, he was Taehyung’s best friend so a pet Taehyung adopted would naturally be his business. The others didn’t quite buy it, but Taehyung seemed okay with him tagging along, so he cleared his schedule and came.

The matronly caretaker at the shelter, a middle-aged dog hybrid, came out to greet them excitedly when they arrived, gushing about all the cute children they had in the shelter, and how she hoped they would find their perfect match today.

They nodded and listened politely as she ushered them into her office, where she went over the ground rules for today. No pictures, no yelling, disturbing the children, et cetera. If there was a child they were interested in, they had to ask for permission before they were allowed to approach the child, and at all times children’s safety was paramount – if they indicated that they were uncomfortable, they could be removed from the situation without any repercussions. It was all aimed at ensuring that the humans were prioritized and felt safe in their home, and this was why Taehyung had chosen to support this shelter.

Namjoon, ever the responsible one, and Taehyung, who was dedicated to becoming a good pet owner, listened carefully as the hybrid caretaker explained what the challenges were in taking care of a human child, especially one that had lived in the shelter. Older children would be harder to train, she said, less malleable, and depending on what their circumstances had been before coming to live in the shelter, may have trauma or other psychological scars.

Jimin impatiently bounced around, aware that this was important stuff, but just excited to see some cute children and hopefully take one home today. When they finally stood up to leave the office and go to the dorm rooms where the children were waiting, Jimin could hardly keep the wide grin splitting his face under control, and Taehyung was similarly excited, the muscles under his shirt periodically tensing up as he resisted the urge to bounce along behind the caretaker. She was hardly likely to be impressed with him if he couldn’t demonstrate that he was a mature adult able to take care of a human child.

Because Taehyung had made it clear that he wanted an older, more self-sufficient human pet, the caretaker skipped the first two rooms, where the young children were, and the nursery, heading straight to your room. You were still reading your book, and she tutted as she saw you sitting there.

“Y/N, sweetie, would you like to come say hello to these nice hybrids?” she asked patiently, and you looked up from your story, surprised to see that there were indeed three men clustered behind her. Most hybrids decided on the child they wanted to bring home after seeing the younger children, so it was uncommon for you to see visitors.

You were tempted to reject the offer, but remembered your earlier promise to yourself, and smiled graciously, putting your bookmark back in and leaving your book on the bed. “Yes, ma’am,” you said sweetly, standing up and brushing imaginary lint off your skirt. “Good morning, sirs. My name is Y/N. I’m ten years old, and I’m very pleased to meet you,” you recited dutifully, remembering the spiel they taught all the children to say to visitors.

“It’s very nice to meet you, Y/N-ah,” the tall wolf hybrid said, kneeling down so he could look you in the eye. His ears twitched slightly as he looked up at you slightly, and you smiled back. He had such a friendly demeanor that you couldn’t help but feel comfortable around him immediately. “My name is Taehyung, and these are my friends Jimin and Namjoon,” he said, pointing at the other two hybrids. You weren’t certain what kind they were, although you deduced that Namjoon was some kind of canine hybrid and Jimin, based on the cute rounded ears on top of his head, was a large cat.

“It’s a pleasure you meet you all,” you said politely, looking up at them. Your speech was crisp, delicate and refined from years of being the prized companion of a wealthy old lady.

“Likewise,” Namjoon said with a nod, and Jimin said nothing, but smiled so widely that his eyes all but disappeared. You smiled back, liking them already, and hoping that they would choose you to go home with them.

“What are you reading, Y/N-ah?” Taehyung asked, and you took his hand excitedly, bringing him to the bed where you’d left your book. He trailed after you, looking back at the other two members with a wide grin. It was so cute, how you lit up when he expressed interest in what you were reading, and how at ease you seemed to be, even initiating contact with him. You didn’t seem aware of who they were, which he supposed was to be expected, since he didn’t think humans really kept up with pop culture, and it wasn’t like you were walking around the streets of Seoul where BTS music was playing all over and their photos were plastered on every available surface in the city.

Sitting down next to you, he listened, his chin in his hand, as you chattered away excitedly about the book. Namjoon and Jimin came to squat on either side of you, and you basked in the undivided attention that you hadn’t had since your previous owner passed away.

“Who taught you how to read, Y/N-ah?” Namjoon asked when you wound down, his ears sticking out of the black hair on his head flicking slightly.

“My previous owner,” you replied.

“She seems nice,” Jimin said carefully, and young as you were, you picked up the unspoken question.

“She was,” was all you said, a little quietly and sadly. You missed her, the woman who’d asked you to call her ‘mom’ and really had acted like a mother to you.

At least, you think so – you were bred by a breeder to be a pet, and you didn’t remember your own mother, having been too young when you were separated from her.

After talking for a little while more, they excused themselves and you smiled as graciously as you knew how, returning to your book as they left the room to go back to the office to discuss things further.

“Hyung, she’s so precious,” Taehyung fairly sang, spinning around in circles with his arms spread out wide.

Namjoon was more reserved, but he agreed internally. She wasn’t rambunctious in the way that Yeontan was, but adorable all the same, in the way she’d lit up while talking about her book and how easily she’d accepted their touch, clearly happy to have the physical affection.

Jimin, way more exuberant than Namjoon, grabbed Taehyung’s hands and bounced around with him. “We’re getting a human!” he cried out in excitement as they jumped like children up and down.

The wild dog hybrid just shook his head at his two younger bandmates, before leading the way into the caretaker’s office to settle the adoption paperwork.

You returned home with them that day, to your surprise and pleasure. You hadn’t allowed yourself to hope until the caretaker came back to let you know to pack your meagre possessions, and sends you off with them. Taehyung gives you a hug when you walk out of the building with your bag to join them, and straps you safely into his car before they take off, back to his apartment.

As you were travelling there, they chattered away, filling you in on what their home will be like. You found out that they were part of a boyband that live together, and you would be moving in with all seven of them. Apart from the three hybrids in the car with you – Taehyung, who bought you, the wolf hybrid; Namjoon, the serious-looking African wild dog; and Jimin, the adorable-looking black footed cat who was sitting in the back with you – there were another four. They were all predator hybrids, something Taehyung noted with some pride, beaming at your reflection in the rearview mirror.

You smiled back uncertainly at him, apprehensive about how different the new arrangement was from your previous one but still certain that no matter what, it would still be better than living at the shelter. It hadn’t been awful – it wasn’t like you’d been abused or anything while you were there – but with how stretched thin the resources at the shelter were, it had been impossible for you to get the care and attention that you required to be emotionally and mentally healthy after all this time.

Carrying yourself as stiffly as you could, in order to leave the best first impression possible, you hugged your bag tightly to your chest and stood ramrod straight in the elevator, resisting the urge to look around curiously. Your previous owner had been wealthy, but she hadn’t been this wealthy, and you’d never been in a lift that was so opulent before.

Taehyung tugged the bag out of your arms insistently, and you relinquished it after a brief struggle for control over it. You didn’t want to put him out, feeling that he’s already done enough, adopting you and giving you what looked like it would be an amazing home, but he was stronger than you and you were also concerned that he would think you were too stubborn or headstrong if you continued fighting him, so you let it go.

When they ushered you into your new home, though, your jaw dropped and you couldn’t hold back your reaction that time. The apartment was so nice and spacious, worlds away from the shared room you’d lived in at the shelter. Taehyung laughed at your expression and whisked you off to his bedroom, which was now a shared bedroom for the two of you, showing you where everything you would need was. After getting you settled in, he led you back out by the hand to the living room, where the other boys were gathered, eagerly waiting to meet you.

And that’s how you became part of the BTS family.

Your new home was very different from the one you had spent your early childhood in. Living with seven young and energetic hybrid men meant you suddenly had companions and playmates to indulge your more rambunctious impulses, whereas before you’d always had to be calm and docile, since there was no way your previous owner would have been able to keep up with a screaming and running child on the playground. It wasn’t like it had been bad – you were naturally a quieter child, but all children need space to run and play, to expend their excess energy, and as hard as she’d tried, she hadn’t been able to offer you that.

On the other hand, you played so much with your new family that you were completely exhausted every night, and Taehyung had to prod you to get ready for bed properly, instead of just collapsing in whatever you were wearing. He didn’t mind, though, pleased that you were having so much fun every day. Besides, having you around to dote on made all of them happy, especially Taehyung, who missed his young cousins and was still slightly bitter about how much of his siblings’ and cousins’ childhoods he hadn’t been around for, and later, his nieces and nephews.

And so you spent your adolescence in their company, making a home for yourself. It wasn’t just BTS that seemed to have adopted you – Big Hit as a whole did. The stylist noonas were utterly thrilled to finally have a little girl around on the regular, and treated you alternately like a little sister and a doll, dressing you up in all the cute girlish trends they privately sighed over but couldn’t experiment with.

Another benefit of having a human as a pet was that it was far easier to transport a person – humans were allowed on planes and buses, so you could travel with the boys. Your calming presence helped soothe frayed nerves and mediated fights, and ARMY loved watching the tender interactions between the boys, who were all predator hybrids, and the wide-eyed human child, claiming that it showed how nurturing the boys were despite their natural inclination, and how they would be good fathers someday. You even had your own little fanclub, like Yeontan had before you.

Speaking of Yeontan – the little dog had gone to live with Taehyung’s parents, so you didn’t get to see each other that often, but when you did, the two of you got along like a house on fire. Taehyung had to keep an eye on you at mealtimes to make sure most of the food on your plate wasn’t finding its way down to Yeontan, who lay casually across your feet at the dining table, while the dog was so excited to see you that he basically ignored Taehyung whenever the both of you arrived together.

The vlive of you and Yeontan taking a nap on the couch after Chuseok dinner with his family, curled up together as you whined about your tummy hurting while Taehyung, behind the camera, laughed as he teased you about being such a glutton but then went to rub your aching belly, became the most watched vlive ever, spawning a million GIFs.

It also became common for you to be somewhere in the background of Namjoon’s vlives, reading a book on his couch, while he chatted with fans. After many requests for you to appear on Eat Jin, you did eventually do an episode with him, although he spent the whole time comparing the food to meals he’d cooked for you in the past.

One might think that growing up the lone female around seven men might be awkward at times, especially with you going through adolescence and getting your period and all that, but they made it normal. Hybrids were far more open about normal bodily functions than human societies had been, and it would have been stranger for them to get squeamish about their pet’s bodily functions. There was no hiding from them when you got your period or anything like that, but they were so nonchalant about it that you were too, even warning you beforehand when you were going to start because they could smell the changes in your scent.

It was all fine – at least, until the boys went to the military.

All of them enlisted together when you were sixteen, and you went to live with Taehyung’s parents while they were serving. Living in Geochang was a change of pace from Seoul, but it was nice nevertheless. You helped out at his parents’ farm, got to play a lot more with Yeontan and the other animals running around, and had a lot more freedom since his parents were too busy to micromanage you.

During this time, you really grew into your own – enrolling in an online GED course, using the Internet and the enormous resources at your disposal to figure your personal style out, even finding human friends and a boyfriend. Who would have thought that Geochang had such a thriving human community?

Needless to say, by the time the two years had passed and you went back to live with Taehyung, you were a vastly different person, in both temperament and appearance, than you’d been the day he dropped you off.

Still, you’d missed being in Seoul with him, and you were excited to go with his parents to pick him up from the military base. You’d never been to visit him when his family members went, because they’d needed someone to stay home and tend to the crops and take care of the animals, and ever eager to please, you’d volunteered to do it even though you really wanted to see Taehyung too.

This time, though, you had to go, because everyone was going to Seoul to spend the night, and then you would stay with Taehyung. Although you hadn’t seen each other in two years, you’d kept in contact via text messages and video calls whenever he was free, and you knew that he’d decided to move into an apartment in Seoul without the other boys. It was about time – Seokjin was pushing thirty and planning to propose to his longtime girlfriend, and it was a little weird for seven men in their thirties to be living together anyway.

So you packed your things and prepared to move out of Geochang and back to Seoul. It wasn’t difficult – with technology it was easy for you to keep in contact with your friends in Geochang, and you’d broken up with your boyfriend a couple months ago on amicable terms. The most difficult thing for you had been saying goodbye to Tannie, who was getting on in years now and had relied on you more and more each day.

But move out you did, and you bounced in your seat all the way to the military base where Taehyung had been living for the past two years. When you first saw him walk out of the compound, still in his uniform, your excitement got the better of you and you flew towards him, perhaps uncharacteristically for you given how taken aback his parents were, but you didn’t care.

“Taehyung-oppa!” you screamed as you ran. To his credit, he didn’t waste any time processing the missile currently hurtling towards him, and just opened his arms for you to leap into.

“Hello, Y/N,” he laughed as he hugged you close. He’d missed you too, his cute little human, and after so long away from him, you didn’t smell anything like him anymore, something he was determined to change as he started rubbing his cheek on the top of your head. Used to it after living with him for so many years, you just stood still and let him do it.

Fansite photographers and more zealous fans who’d come to see him cooed and sighed at the cute picture you two made. You were still tucked under his arm, clinging to his shirt, as he greeted the people who were gathered, thanking them for coming all this way, and thanking his commanding officers and platoon mates for being there for him for the past few years.

Then it was over, and he was in the van with his family for a more private reunion. You were still clinging to him, not that he minded as he stroked your hair softly as he chatted with his family. He’d seen them when they’d come to visit, or during his breaks – it was just you that hadn’t had the chance to see him since he’d gone away.

During the drive back to Seoul, you tucked your face into his neck and took a nap, tired from all the excitement. While you were asleep, Taehyung asked his mother how you’d been. “Did she give you a lot of trouble?” he asked.

She chuckled. “No, she was an absolute angel. So good with the children and the animals, always eager to help out.”

He smiled. “Yeah? That tracks. The lady at the shelter told me she has an amazing pedigree.”

“It was a real joy having her, Taehyung-ah. You’re lucky to have such a sweet human in your life.”

“I am. I hope she had a good time in Geochang, too.”

Taehyung’s mother laughed at that. “Oh, did she ever!”

His curiosity piqued, his ears perked. “Sounds like you have some good stories to share.”

“The girl had the time of her life these past two years,” his mother snickered. “She had a lot more freedom in Geochang than in Seoul because it’s smaller and safer, so we let her go out on her own a lot more, and she’s really sociable. She even found a boyfriend.”

He raised a brow. “She did? Sounds like she had lots of fun in Geochang, then.”

He wanted to find out more about what you’d been up to, but since they were arriving in Seoul and would be at the restaurant for dinner, he couldn’t, instead waking you up since you always took a little while to be functional.

You untangled yourself from him sleepily and almost fell out of the car as you tried to get out, and it was only his father’s superior hybrid reflexes that saved you from eating asphalt as he caught you and put you back on your feet. Murmuring your thanks, you waited for Taehyung to climb out of the van and lead you into the restaurant by the hand.

Tonight, you were dining at a Korean barbeque restaurant, which was always a winner for the hybrid wolf family. Usually they just ate meat, not even bothering with lettuce wraps, but they were still nice enough to order some vegetables and king oyster mushrooms for you. You were in charge of grilling, of course, not that you minded, and hearing the praise from everyone else at the table made you glow a little every time.

Taehyung was the center of attention that evening, of course, as he regaled his family with tales of his time in the military. He was the first member of BTS to be discharged, although since they’d all enlisted at around the same time, the others were due to be discharged in the coming few months, so unfortunately there weren’t funny stories of his bandmates coming to visit him, but Bang PD had, and so had some stylist noonas.

There were also stories about silly punishments and shenanigans, water parades, being made to hold the wall and shout, “Help, help! The wall is falling,” because he’d been caught leaning against it once, that made everyone crack up and you almost drop the tongs right on the grill.

Eventually, though, he started asking about how everyone had been, which turned, perhaps inevitably, into everyone ganging up on you and trying to tell the most embarrassing story they could think of. You sighed and whined as one by one, they all took turns rehashing your various mishaps to Taehyung – you trying to climb a tree and getting stuck like a cat, your various fashion disasters as you tried to ‘find yourself’ – complete with pictures, of course, and worst of all, your theatrics when your GED certificate came in the mail.

Well, you were really proud of that last one, but did they really have to describe your joyful outburst as helpless histrionics?

Still, though, the way Taehyung squeezed your hand as he told you how proud he was of you made everything better.

Soon enough, dinner was over and all of you piled back into the van to go to Taehyung’s new apartment. It had already been set up by the multitude of assistants that BigHit had, with some input from his parents, so it was basically already liveable. With so many people helping, it wasn’t long before all your things were moved into the apartment too, and then the two of you were left alone, for the first time in two years.

Since you had so much spare room in the apartment, you had your own bedroom, and it was beautifully decorated just how you’d pictured it, with a very pretty queen-sized bed in one corner with a white cushioned headboard and pink-and-grey patterned sheets, a reading nook in front of floor-to-ceiling windows with an overstuffed chair and foot rest, a lamp, and a large bookshelf with a ladder occupying the adjacent wall, and a little coffee table with a scented candle already on it next to the chair. Fluffy rugs were strewn across the room, and a wooden dressing table sat on the opposite side of the room. It was beautiful and comfortable, everything you’d dreamed of, but when you got ready for bed, you found yourself missing Taehyung.

Which led to you in your pajamas, all scrubbed down and ready for bed, knocking plaintively on Taehyung’s bedroom door. He seemed to know that you would be there even before opening the door, which he probably had, with his enhanced senses (and the fact that there was no one else in the apartment).

When he opened the door for you, clad in just his pajama pants, all you had to do was pout up at him and he was standing aside to let you in. Generally, he indulged your every whim, because according to his life philosophy, why have pets if you weren’t going to spoil them rotten? Making a beeline for his bed, you made yourself comfortable by burrowing under his sheets and fluffing up one of his pillows.

Shaking his head at you, Taehyung followed you back to the bed, getting into the other side with an indulgent huff. “You know, I paid a lot of money for your bedroom,” he said drolly. Ignoring his remark, you cuddled close to him and shut your eyes stubbornly, and he capitulated with a sigh, stroking your head as you drifted off to sleep.

Somehow, you smelled different than he remembered. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it, and it wasn’t bad by any means, but it was just… different. And he didn’t quite know what to do about it.

For some reason he’d been reluctant to ask his parents, even though they’d been the ones living with you for the past two years, if they’d sensed anything different about you. He’d rationalized it to himself at the point – since they’d been with you every day it was likely that they wouldn’t notice anything different if your scent had changed gradually, and if it had been sudden and enough to cause worry, they would already have let him know about it.

Still, his mind wouldn’t stop racing with the possibilities as he leaned in closer to take a good whiff. He could still smell the base notes of your scent, which had always been somewhat citrusy, but now it was slightly… earthier, with a musky, deeper aroma threaded through it. Was it vanilla? Perhaps cinnamon?

Whatever it was, it was nice, and he shut his eyes to allow himself to drift off after deciding to do research on humans’ scent changes tomorrow. He didn’t think it was anything to worry about – any illness would definitely have a sharper, less pleasant scent – but he didn’t know why your scent would suddenly change again. It had changed gradually once before, as you went through puberty, but based on what he’d read about humans, it shouldn’t change again for many years yet.

No harm finding out more about what could be causing it, he thought as he slipped after you into slumber. Maybe he would take you to a doctor, too, if it became necessary.

Morning dawned, and Taehyung woke up leisurely for the first time in too long, slowly blinking his eyes against the morning sunlight streaming in from the windows. As he slowly became conscious of his surroundings, he became aware that he was the most comfortable he’d ever been, probably in his life, and he nuzzled closer behind your ear.

Wait a minute. A second later, he drew back. He didn’t remember going to sleep with a lover, and he definitely hadn’t had a girlfriend since his last one broke up with him while he was in the army. So who was he currently wrapped around…?

When it dawned on him, he recoiled in horror, and almost crab scuttled away from you. Thankfully, you were still asleep and hadn’t noticed his morning boner pressed against you, because it was beyond inappropriate for him to feel that way about you, his pet.

Unfortunately, his abrupt movements pulled on the duvet that you were sharing, and jostled you awake. He froze, wide-eyed, as you stirred. “Taehyung-oppa?” you said, voice raspy with sleep.

“Shh, I’m just going to pee,” he lied. “Go back to sleep, sweetie, it’s still early.”

You hummed wordlessly as you burrowed back into the covers, and despite his own inner turmoil, he smiled at you as he straightened the duvet over you before he left the bedroom.

He darted into the bathroom, where he sat on the edge of the tub, his head in his hands. God, what the hell was wrong with him? You weren’t a hybrid, and he didn’t understand how this could have happened. In that moment before he’d woken up fully and realized what was happening, his instinct had been to treat you like a… lover. He shuddered at the thought.

Okay, he thought, getting up. He was going to take a shower, rub one out, and then pretend like everything was fine. This was an aberration, just a weird fluke. You were warm and in his bed, and it had been a really long time since he had any action, since military service tended to inhibit such activities.

He just needed to get laid, and get used to your new scent, and then everything would be fine. No one would need to know about this embarrassing little slip-up.

With renewed determination, he started stripping off his clothes to get into the shower. All soaped up, he started sliding a hand down his body to grasp his erection firmly, which had never really gone away. Biting his lip, he started stroking it slowly, running his thumb over the head on the upstroke. His mind, however, remained unfocused, flitting between various memories and porn he’d watched, never able to focus on anything long enough to immerse himself.

That is, until his enhanced wolf hearing picked up the rustling sounds in the bedroom. He could hear, even over the sound of the shower, so clearly what you were doing that his mind had no problem filling in the blanks. The rustle of the sheets meant you were pushing the covers back; the soft thud on the ground meant you’d sat up and put your feet down. Then you stretched, and he definitely had no problem imagining it – or an overly erotic version of what actually transpired. Your soft moan of satisfaction as you cracked your spine sent a shiver running through him.

After that, it was basically a race to the finish line, as he fisted himself as hard as he could, leaning forward to brace his free hand against the wall in front of him. Usually it took a little longer, and he would play with his balls more, but it wasn’t going to be necessary this time, he could feel it. Remembering how good you’d smelled this morning was enough to push him over the edge, and he muffled his groan in his shoulder as he came all over the wall of his shower, the hand on the wall curling into a fist.

“Fuck,” he panted as he washed the cum off himself and the wall. Needless to say, he didn’t feel any cleaner after that shower.

When he came out of the shower, you were already getting breakfast ready. Another perk of having a team of assistants dedicated to making your life easier – the fridge came fully stocked. You’d washed up and pulled a sweatshirt on over the cami and pajama pants, and he couldn’t help but smile when he saw that it was a BTS merchandise from several years ago.

“Good morning,” you chirped, flipping the bacon. “I didn’t know what you wanted for breakfast, but I remember how much you love bacon, so I figured this would be safe.”

He leaned his elbows on the island and watched you warily from a distance. “Are you sure you should be cooking?”

“I got better,” you shot back defensively. “You shouldn’t have let me take cooking lessons from Namjoon-oppa in the first place.”

“No, I really shouldn’t have,” he agreed absently. You really had improved in your cooking, he thought, watching how easily you moved around the kitchen. It wasn’t long before a giant helping of bacon was sitting in front of him, with a more modest, human-sized portion on your plate, and some toast.

“You really should have let me make you breakfast,” he sighed, even as he started to tuck in. “I miss spoiling you.”

You shot him a cheeky grin. “Not to worry, you spoiled me plenty while you were in the military,” you sassed him.

He huffed out a laugh. “I know, I saw the credit card statements.”

Giggling, you eat another bite of your breakfast and smile at him with your cheeks stuffed, and his heart clenches with fondness. How could someone so plainly adorable drive him so crazy this morning? It must have been a fluke; his instincts misfiring. He just needed to get laid, and then everything would be fine.

Update: everything was not fine.

Things got progressively worse over the next couple of weeks, until Taehyung was honestly filled with dread every night when you came into his room and slid under the sheets on the side of the bed you’d claimed as yours.

It was getting to the point that all you had to do was sidle up to him for some cuddles and he would start getting sidetracked from having your scent invading his personal space. And yet it wasn’t like he could ask you to dial it back – it was in your nature to be physically affectionate and needy; it was literally what you’d been bred for. What could he possibly say, anyway? “Sorry, but can you stop touching me, it turns me on”? You’d be horrified, and rightly so. You trusted him, he could see it every time you smiled up at him like the sun, looked at him with complete adoration in your eyes, came to sit on his lap for cuddles. His reaction was a complete betrayal of that trust.

There was definitely something wrong with him. It was sick for a hybrid to be thinking about his human pet in this way. Maybe he should be the one to see a doctor, but he’d probably be arrested.

Maybe that wouldn’t be such a bad thing, if it guaranteed your safety from him.

Amidst all the angst and worrying about whether he was a danger to his own pet human, there were some bright moments. All of his brothers were discharged from the military, and after Jungkook, the last to be discharged, was released, they’d all gone for a massive reunion/celebration. You’d wanted to join, but he’d said no, knowing that there would definitely be plenty of alcohol that night, which meant that firstly, he wouldn’t be in any position to look after you and/or resist your charms, and secondly, your underage self was definitely not going to see how depraved your precious oppas were going to get.

The night started off well enough, with a nice dinner at an exclusive new restaurant in Seoul. The wine flowed freely, and by the time they were done, everyone was more than a little tipsy. They then moved to a club – again, exclusive and new – where they were automatically ushered to the mezzanine. A bottle of whisky was brought to their table, but soon enough, several of them had left to hit the dance floor – Jungkook, that brat, was of course looking for someone to spend the night with, and Hoseok and Jimin just wanted to tear up the dance floor.

“How have you been spending your time off?” Namjoon asked. Taehyung had been a little off all night, quieter than usual and when he thought no one was watching, he had a little frown perpetually affixed to his face.

Taehyung forced a nonchalant shrug – or at least, what he hoped passed for nonchalance. “Just hanging around,” he said vaguely, hoping to fend off any more probing into his life. “What about you?”

Namjoon looked amused. “Tae, I was discharged three days ago. I spent it sleeping and fixing up my apartment.”

“Right, right,” he said, staring studiously into his glass of whisky as if the amber-coloured liquid could tell him the secrets of life.

“How’s Y/N?” Yoongi piped up. Of course, he would be the one to bring you up first. For all his bitching and moaning when Taehyung adopted you, he quickly grew the most attached, and the feeling was mutual. He was your very favourite oppa after Taehyung, and sometimes – like when Taehyung has no choice but to discipline you – he was pretty sure Yoongi was your favourite.

“She’s fine,” Taehyung said, aiming for the innocent enthusiasm he used to have when talking about you, but from the way Namjoon’s eyebrow went up, he knew he’d failed.

“Is everything okay?” Namjoon asked slowly.

Taehyung gulped. The jig was up. Curse his inability to hide his feelings. Well, no matter. If pretending like everything was okay at home wasn’t going to work, there was always good old avoidance.

“Yes, everything’s fine!” he exclaimed a little manically, knocking back the rest of his drink in one gulp. “I’m going to hit the dance floor,” he said, making his escape quickly.

The others, a little surprised, didn’t react, letting him leave, although they exchanged suspicious glances. Something was up with Taehyung; he’d made that obvious enough.

Stepping onto the dance floor, he saw Jungkook in one corner getting hot and heavy against a wall with his chosen companion for the night, and he sighed enviously. He wished he could still do that. It wasn’t that they were afraid someone would go to the press – this club really was exclusive, and only celebrities and the ultra-wealthy (read: chaebol relatives) could even enter the club, so discretion would be guaranteed by both parties.

Instead, it seemed that as his attraction for you grew, his ability to find other, more suitable hybrid women attractive… diminished. Which was another pretty significant part of the problem that he didn’t even know how to address. He’d tried hooking up with hybrids over the past couple of weeks, but none of them ever smelled right. There was always something that felt a little bit off that prevented him from taking things further with them, no matter how much he might want to.

He was going crazy, he was sure of it. How could his sexual attraction be focused completely on one human woman? There was no way that this was okay.

He just had to hide it from others. He didn’t know what he was going to do about it yet, and it wasn’t like he didn’t trust his brothers, but this was a little different, and as much as he wouldn’t blame them, he couldn’t imagine the judging or pitying looks they would direct at him if he told them what was going on with his life.

No, better to keep it to himself for the time being.

His resolve seemed, unfortunately, alcohol-soluble. When the night ended, Taehyung returned to his apartment, saw that his bed was empty and immediately turned around to go to your room, where you’d settled in for the night since you weren’t sure what time he would come back, if he came back at all – hey, you weren’t one to judge. Spotting the human-shaped lump under the covers of your bed in the darkness, he stumbled over to the bed and lifted the covers to slide in.

It was then that Taehyung discovered that those cute camis and pajama pants that shouldn’t drive him crazy but did were you dressing more modestly than usual for bed, out of consideration for him. Because tonight, you weren’t wearing pants.

His brain seemed to short-circuit as he stared at your panty-clad ass, but he must have lifted the covers for too long because the cold started to make you stir as you turned over, patting the area around you looking for the blanket. Not finding anything to grab on to, your eyes opened slowly, and you squinted up at Taehyung.

“Oppa?” you croaked. “You’re back.” Clearing your throat, you reached for your phone on the bedside table. “What time is it?”

He groaned as he watched the way your body stretched out as you turned away from him. “You smell so good,” he whined, flopping down on the other side of the bed, and squirming close to you.

You allowed him to press himself against you, knowing that he was a needy drunk. This wasn’t exactly new for you – Taehyung didn’t get drunk as often as his other members did, but he still did occasionally, and you’d been with him for so many years now that you had a routine by now.

“Oppa… are you still dressed?” you whined as your bare skin came into contact with his jeans. You hissed in displeasure as the cold metal on his belt buckle pressed against your thigh.

“…No,” he said unconvincingly after a moment.

You squirmed out of his grasp, and he let out a forlorn whine that reminded you of his animal half. “Come on, you should get changed at least, you won’t sleep well in your clothes. I’ll go get your pajamas, okay?”

“Nooo,” he made grabby hands at you. “Don’t leave.” He pulled you back into his embrace, pressing his face into your throat. “You smell so good,” he slurred, rubbing his face against you.

You giggled at the ticklish sensation, resisting the urge to push him away. “At least take your pants off, okay?” you negotiated. “I have some water here, you should have some before you go to sleep…” Your voice trailed off as you reached for the bottle you always kept on your bedside table, and his head fell to the pillow with a soft thump as you pulled away. His eyesight was far better than yours, and he took the opportunity to stare at you while you weren’t able to notice it.

While he drank, you wriggled yourself back into the bed, blinking sleepily in the dark as you listened to the rhythmic sound of him gulping down the water. When he’d had enough, he started to lay down, and you quickly intervened. “No, you can’t sleep in your clothes!”

He laughed in response. “You’re very eager to take my pants off, love,” he teased.

Your whole body flushed with heat and you drew back, sulking. “Fine, sleep in your clothes, then. Just don’t complain in the morning,” you snapped, turning over to go to sleep.

Instead of doing the same, Taehyung scooched closer and threw an arm around you. “Don’t be like that, baby,” he purred. “I was just teasing. I’ll take off whatever you want me to,” he promised.

Hearing him speak to you in that tone, though, had you all kinds of worked up. It wasn’t unusual for him to call you baby – he’d always used that pet name on you, and Yeontan and all his other pets as well. It was just the way he’d said it… it reminded you of the way your ex back in Geochang used to talk to you when he was horny. And you found, to your shame, that you’d reacted to it with a small shiver.

That couldn’t be right, though. Humans and hybrids weren’t compatible in that way. You’d just been reminded of Jong-in in that moment – even though you’d broken up, it had been amicable, and you’d always enjoyed physical intimacy with him; it was a natural reaction.

While you were busy rationalizing it to yourself, though, the scent of your arousal hit Taehyung and he pressed himself closer with a groan. “Why do you smell so amazing, Y/N-ie?” he asked, pushing his nose insistently into the crook behind your ear. Unfortunately, his belt buckle pressed into the strip of skin on your lower back exposed by the way your camisole rode up.

“Agh,” you cried out in displeasure, squirming away from him. “It’s cold!”

“What? What’s cold, baby?”

“Your belt,” you heaved out, and his hands immediately went to it.

“Okay, it’s going,” Taehyung responded placatingly, undoing it and throwing it onto the ground beside the bed. Now that he’d gotten started, his pants were quick to follow, being scrunched into the corner of the bed under the covers where he’d kicked them, and his button-down shirt. Finally, clad in just his boxers and undershirt, he relaxed into the mattress, and you cuddled close, satisfied now.

“Good night, oppa,” you murmured as you slotted yourself into your usual spot in his side, your eyes drifting shut as you clutched his shirt in your fist.

He mumbled something indistinct in response, but you could feel his hand resting on your back, and you went to sleep peacefully.

(line break)

Taehyung woke up in a bed that wasn’t his own, half-dressed, and was confused for a moment, wracking his brain for memories of last night. Had he finally managed to get some?

Rubbing his eyes with the heel of his hand, he propped himself up on his elbow and peered around, realizing that it was your room. So he hadn’t broken his dry spell, then. Damn.

Pushing the covers away, he meandered out of your bedroom to the kitchen, where you were already working on some hangover breakfast for him. “Good morning,” you chirped, turning away from the stove to point at the glass of water and hybrid painkillers you’d laid out for him. “In case you feel bad,” you explained.

He sat down and downed the water, ignoring the painkillers – he didn’t feel that bad – as he took you in. You’d put some pants on, and a cardigan over the camisole you’d worn to bed, and tied your hair back in a messy ponytail. As a hybrid, he naturally ran warmer than you, so during winters you made sure to pile the layers on to remain warm.

This line of thinking triggered a memory of you squealing in protest at the cold metal of his belt buckle touching your skin last night, and he paled as he remembered how inappropriately he’d acted with you. He watched you carefully, but you seemed the same as always, and he wasn’t sure if he should just pretend it never happened or apologize for it.

When you deemed the yukgaejang ready and took it off the stove to serve together with two bowls of freshly cooked rice, his guilt at how boorishly he’d treated you last night overwhelmed him and he blurted, “About last night – ”

You looked up from the drawer where you were picking the utensils out. “Yeah?”

“Um… about what I said…” he trailed off awkwardly.

“Oh, you mean the scent thing? Don’t worry, I get it,” you laughed it off, waving a hand in the air dismissively. “It’s because of the pack bond, right?”

“The what?” Completely confused, he just stared at you as you poured some soup into your rice.

“The pack bond? I read about it, that some hybrids can form pack bonds with the people around them. Like you did with the other members, or your pets, I guess,” you said, shrugging.

Instead of responding immediately, Taehyung chose to shovel a huge mouthful of stew and rice into his mouth to give him more time to think about how to respond. You’d given him the perfect cop-out for any overly affectionate behavior he might display. He was sure you didn’t know enough about hybrid pack behaviours to actually call him out on his lies.

“Y- yeah, that’s it,” he said, the visible relief on his face making you smile at him cheerily, your triumph at guessing correctly written all over your face.

As you both went back to eating, you felt something that had tensed up inside you last night unclench. It was just the pack bond. You could stop thinking about it, and you wouldn’t misinterpret anything anymore.

Returning to the studio to work on their comeback was a relief for Taehyung. For one thing, it meant that he would be spending most of his time away from you and your maddening scent. For another, he’d worried (perhaps needlessly, given the outpouring of support and congratulations on their social media when they were each discharged) that they wouldn’t be relevant anymore and he would be out of a job.

He’d also really missed his brothers, and was excited to work with them again.

However, what he hadn’t anticipated was that they’d missed you just as much as him, and you felt the same way. Every evening when he came home you were there, waiting for fun stories about the other members, and they pestered him incessantly for updates about you or, better yet, pictures or videos, or best of all, bringing you to the studio.

Since you basically begged for the same thing, he’d pretty much had no choice.

You chattered on excitedly from the front seat of his car as he drove to the studio. It was unbearably early, but that didn’t seem to deter you. Most mornings you were the one who woke him up anyway, since you were by far the most patient out of the members and producers. Even without you being there most days, the members knew that any time Taehyung showed up for practice on time and awake it was because of your efforts.

You fairly skipped from the carpark all the way to the studio where the boys were supposed to be working today, dragging Taehyung along in your wake. You knew the building like the back of your hand by now, having spent much of the time you’d been with Taehyung here. Even the boys from TXT knew you, and often kept snacks and things in their studios for you when you dropped by.

Reaching the corridor where the studio was located, you ran down it and burst into the studio, a ball of almost frenzied energy. “Hi!” you cried exuberantly, causing the current occupants of the room to look up at you. Almost all the members were there, sans Yoongi and, of course, Taehyung, who was following you at a more sedate pace, and they grinned at you.

“Y/N!” Jungkook leapt up from his seat and rushed over to you, and as you hugged him he picked you clean off the floor to swing you around, giggling. The tiger hybrid’s ears flicked excitedly as he took you in. “Don’t you look pretty today?” he cooed, rubbing his cheek over the top of your head. You stood still to let him, used to all the members attempting to scent you since it was basically an affectionate gesture.

“Thank you, Kookie-oppa,” you said politely, smiling up at him.

“You’re such a polite girl,” Seokjin complimented you, pulling a Tupperware of your favourite spicy baby octopus out of his bag. When Taehyung had texted them last night that you would be coming today, he’d immediately gotten to work preparing some of your favourite snacks.

“Ooh, thank you, Seokjin-oppa!” you sang as you stood to take it from him – with both hands, of course, and accompanied by a deep bow.

“Don’t you mean Seokjin-samchoon?” Jungkook ribbed, causing the hyena hybrid to snarl at him.

By the time Taehyung entered the room, you were sandwiched between Namjoon and Jimin, happily sharing your food with them, while Jungkook and Seokjin were playfighting, Hoseok egging both of them on. He sighed as he headed to the last empty couch and dropped down on it heavily, used to the chaos of his members.

“Where’s Suga-hyung?” Taehyung asked, looking around.

You shrugged. “Probably still in bed,” you responded to the amusement of everyone in the room.

Unfortunately for you, the man in question walked through the doors just in time to hear your remark, and he scowled. “For your information,” he bit out acerbically, “I was in my studio. I’m not Jimin,” he said, rolling his eyes, even as he bent down in front of you and opened his mouth for the proffered mouthful of food you were holding in your chopsticks for him.

“Hey!” Jimin protested. “I thought we were past that.”

“Never,” Taehyung promised, and you giggled. To ease the sting of his members teasing him, Jimin aggressively scented you, and you leaned into him to facilitate it.

Taehyung, observing your interaction with the other hybrid, tried not to show his irritation on his face, mostly because he knew it was ridiculous to feel that way. When you’d first come to live with them, the others had been cautious about getting their scents on you, just in case it was something that bothered him, but he’d made sure to assure them that he didn’t mind. After all, all of them were pack. It made sense for them to smell like each other, and it had even comforted him sometimes when you came to him drenched in the scents of his members.

Now that your scent was different, though, he didn’t like it as much when the other members rubbed up against you. It was a shameful, terrible feeling to be possessive over you like that, and he noted somewhat wryly that he could add it to the list. He really hadn’t been a paragon of virtue when it came to you recently.

When the boys started working, you pulled out the book you were currently reading and settled in. By now, you knew how to entertain yourself when at the studio, and tuned them out for the most part. As a result, you didn’t notice the way Taehyung’s attention would drift over to you instead of his members, but Namjoon did.

The older man raised his brow as Taehyung stared at you, sitting on a couch in the corner of the studio, instead of listening to the melody that Yoongi had just been working on. This was uncharacteristic of Taehyung, to say the least, and though as a leader he was somewhat annoyed at Taehyung’s inattention, he was also worried, remembering how strangely the wolf hybrid had acted the other night. He was still watching Taehyung out of his peripheral vision when he saw Taehyung catch himself staring, shake his head and frown.

He followed Taehyung’s gaze to you, wondering what it was that had captured Taehyung’s attention. You seemed unaware of it, turning the page on your book and continuing to read with a soft, relaxed expression, eagerly devouring the page. He couldn’t detect any differences, either – aside from the fact that you’d grown a little and carried yourself differently, you were much the same as you were when they’d left for the army.

Still, there must be some explanation for Taehyung’s sudden change in behavior, and he ran his eyes over your face more closely, watching for any hints.

Unfortunately, Taehyung, looking up from his notes, saw Namjoon staring at you, and before he could stop it, he growled at the wild dog hybrid. A second later, he realized what he’d just done, and shame flooded him. He got up so suddenly that the chair he was sitting in rolled away, bumping against the studio board, and fled the room.

Immediately, you put your book down and got up, ready to follow him to ask what had gotten him so upset, but Namjoon stopped you. “I’ll go talk to him,” he assured you, and looking up at the serious set of his jaw, you nodded, knowing that Taehyung was in good hands.

Namjoon found Taehyung in the restroom, bracing himself against the sinks with his head bowed. Hearing the door open and able to identify his leader by his scent, Taehyung’s hands tightened.

“You doing okay?” Namjoon asked mildly, leaning against the restroom door.

“Go away,” Taehyung grumped without moving.

“Tae, I’m worried about you. You’ve been acting weird since we came back from the military. Tell me what’s going on, please?”

“Nothing’s going on, everything’s fine,” Taehyung denied, his voice becoming increasingly whiny.

“Tae, come on. We’re brothers, you can tell me what’s up.” Namjoon went over to the wolf hybrid and rested his hand on his shoulder.

Resolutely, Taehyung stayed silent.

Left with no other recourse, Namjoon started guessing. “Is it because your heat is coming soon?”

Taehyung’s head shot up, and he stared at Namjoon in the mirror. “My what?”

Namjoon quirked his brow at the younger man. “Your heat?” he prompted. “The one you’ve had once a year for about ten years now?”

Taehyung paled. With all that had been going on with you, he’d totally forgotten about it. Fuck. He was not going to get through this heat alive.

[whumpzone]

Tomas and Rowe - Part 7

look at me smashing out chapter 7 ahead of schedule !! but I’m gonna reiterate again that uni is starting up, so updates may begin to slow down. with that said, please enjoy!

Masterpost

taglist: @sola-whumping @just-another-whumper @oceanthesarcasamfox @looptheloup @briars7 @black-polarf @zipadeedooda-drabbles @just-a-raccoon-with-wifi @rosesareviolentlyread @thingsthatgo-whump-inthenight @jazz-0307 @kestrelsparverius @whumpsy-daisies @whumpersworld @memoriesneverforget @sky-or-something-idfk (just ask if you want to be tagged!)

CW: pet whump, general violence, mentions of self-harm (but not actual), dehumanisation

-

And then Kasia would come again. He seemed to always know when Master was out of the house. It was no different today.

"Hello, pet," Kasia said. Rowe didn’t look up, instead sliding silently to his knees. Kasia had him well taught already. "You may speak, this time."

"Thank you, sir." Rowe’s stomach felt hollow with fright. Every time Kasia appeared he was unprepared. He always seemed to arrive just as Rowe had started feeling calm. Maybe even settled. But the minute he heard that voice he felt like he’d just been caught doing something awful. And this was all so wrong! This wasn’t his Master; he shouldn’t be grovelling like this. He was Master Tomas’s property. It went against all of Rowe’s training to let Kasia treat him like his Pet.

But… what could he do?

The gentle rattle of metal brought Rowe back. He mechanically pulled his t-shirt off and didn’t resist as Kasia put the handcuffs on, securing his hands in front of him, hanging between his hip bones.

"Tight enough?"

This was a game. Rowe could win this one. Kasia played it every time. "No, sir. Not yet." He gritted his teeth as the cuffs ground deeper into his wrists, hissing quietly, but it was certainly better than making Kasia angry.

"How are things going with Tomas? Are you being good for him?"

This was a game Rowe couldn’t win. "I- I am b-being good."

"Mm?"

"I’m being good," he said, clearer. "H-he’s gone out for grocer-"

A smack on the head made his thoughts whirl. "He?"

"M-master! Master To-omas, Master Tomas h-as gone out for groceries."

Another smack. "Stop panicking. You’re so damn annoying. And yeah, I know. He told me he always goes the same time each week so you won’t freak out so much. So lucky for you, he hasn’t twigged that it’s not him leaving that gets you messed up, so much as it’s me coming over. But-"

Kasia grabbed Rowe’s chin and hauled him to his feet. "You’re still giving him trouble. All your trembles and flinches and-" He flung a hand at Rowe’s face, stopping a hair’s breadth from his healing nose. Rowe couldn’t help but jerk away with a gasp. "-all that. So you see? You’re not being good. You’re being a fucking pain."

"I’m s-sorry-"

"No you’re not," Kasia said, matter-of-factly. "But you will be."

-

The knife trailed casually along Rowe’s collarbone. Tiny threads of blood ran down his chest, which was rising and falling normally. His back was perfectly straight against the chair.

"That’s good. Stay nice and calm for me."

"Yes, sir."

"Tomas needs a Pet that doesn’t cry all the time. You don’t want to stress your Master out, do you?"

"N-no, sir, no."

Kasia dragged the knife along to Rowe’s shoulder, digging it in deeper as he cut down his arm. Rowe focused on being blank, and obedient, and keeping his breathing calm, and not making any noise, and not pulling a face, and definitely not crying. He could do this. The knife was momentarily taken away from his skin, leaving the cut to fill itself up with blood.

"Does it hurt, pet?"

"That doesn’t matter, sir."

"Good boy."

Kasia kept his eyes firmly on Rowe’s face and slashed his forearm without warning, watching for any sign of pain or fear. Rowe steeled himself. He wouldn’t give it to him. He let the adrenaline of the sudden cut overcome the pain.

Kasia frowned, clearly hoping that Rowe would falter. He swung the knife viciously along Rowe’s bicep, then another above his bellybutton, then another frighteningly close to his neck- but Rowe was being good-, then another diagonally across his chest. Kasia stood, the knife hanging by his side, taking heavy breaths as he watched Rowe. By now, blood was running down Rowe’s upper body in rivulets, seeping into the waistband on his shorts and dripping off the end of his fingertips.

"You look creepy."

Somehow, this hurt more than being told he looked ugly, like Kasia usually did. "I’m sorry, sir."

Rowe felt a lump in his throat as he swallowed, and a new prickle of fear took over him. He couldn’t cry, he’d made it this far, Kasia couldn’t see him cry. He knew being obedient wasn’t enough to earn him any mercy- Pets were made to take pain, they didn’t deserve pity. He had to be perfect, and then maybe he’d only be hurt a little bit. He took a breath, and the way it hitched made his heart sink.

"What’s this?" Rowe screwed his eyes shut and bowed his head, but Kasia delicately placed the bloody knife under Rowe’s chin and lifted his face up. "Look at me, pet."

When Rowe opened his eyes all he could see were watery shapes- a blink sent tears running down his cheeks. Kasia clicked his tongue.  "I’m disappointed."

Rowe whimpered. "I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry-"

This man wasn’t even his owner, but displeasing him meant more pain. Sure enough, Kasia dug the knife into Rowe’s thigh, slowly pulling it down until he reached his knee. The cut was perfectly straight. Rowe braced himself as Kasia lifted the knife, but he wasn’t prepared for it to nudge itself back into his leg, starting at the top of the cut and following it down, pressing a little deeper.

"You want forgiveness?" Kasia asked calmly.

Rowe’s breathing was becoming desperate, and he couldn’t suppress a whine as he opened his mouth to speak. "Hh- yes, yes, please-"

"Beg for it then. Be a good pet and beg."

"Please," Rowe gasped. This felt all too familiar. "Please, sir, s-sir, I’m s-sorry-"

"What are you sorry for?"

"Not good enough."

"I’m so-sorry f-for being such a b…bad pet! I’m sorry f-for crying," Rowe whimpered as the knife started its journey down the cut again. The pain made his limbs shake, only aggravating the cut further. "Agh- please!"

"Please- sir- I know I’m worthless, I- ah! B-B-But I w-want to be better- so please- f-forgive me…"

"And?"

"And- I, I, uh- agh!" Rowe cried out as the knife twisted in his leg, forcing his words out faster, "Ah, ah, th-thank you, sir, thank you f-for teaching me, I n-needed this, I’m- ah! I’m grateful!"

The knife stopped, but Kasia stayed silent, so Rowe continued. "I’ll b-be good, I’ll be quiet, I w-w-won’t inconvenience Master Tomas, so tha-ank you, thank you sir, th-this is what I deserve as a pet…"

He chanced a glance at Kasia’s face as he pulled the blade away. He was looking at his watch, frowning. "Time for me to go."

Rowe whimpered as Kasia moved around the unclip the handcuffs. Please, at least tell me that was good, tell me I did it right, tell me I begged the way you wanted, tell me I’m good, I’m good, I’m good…

…

The house smelt strongly of bleach. Tomas winced, kicking his shoes off in the entrance. "Only me, Rowe!" he called. Not five seconds later there was a small figure kneeling at his feet, forehead to the floor.

"Welcome back, Master."

"Hey pal. Up you get, I need your help with the shopping."

As the pair set the groceries down on the kitchen counter, Tomas wrinkled his nose again. "What have you been doing in here?"

Rowe looked up with frightened eyes. He hates being questioned, mused Tomas. Always thinks he’s done something wrong. "I- I was cleaning the furniture, Master. I th-thought it might please you."

"It does," he reassured. "It smells very fresh in here. And since you cleaned it, you might as well get to enjoy it, hm?"

"My…my place is at my Master’s f-"

"I know," Tomas held up a hand to stop him. "I’m not testing you. But a lot of pets are allowed on furniture." Well, my mate lets her dog up on the sofa. That’s close enough, right?

"O-oh, really, Master?" Rowe asked with a glint of hope, before freezing up again, "I mean! I’m n-not questioning you, Master, I d-d-didn’t mean that!"

"It’s okay. Yes, really. You don’t need to ask for permission- from now on, you’re allowed, okay?"

"Yes, Master."

"Now, let’s unload all this food, yeah?"

Tomas rummaged in one of the bags, bringing out a packet of cheese. He handed it to Rowe, underlining a word with his finger. "What does this say? Take your time."

Rowe’s lips moved silently as he sounded out the letters. "Ch…cheddar."

"Well done! That was so good! Want to try another?"

"Yes please, Master."

"Good! Now, I’ve got one I need to write down. It’s a whole sentence, but I think you’re ready."

Tomas looked back at the shopping. What was easy to read? What was pronounced phonetically? He didn’t worry that Rowe obviously already knew what everything was called- he was so keen to learn properly he wouldn’t dare lie. Eventually he handed him a small spice jar.

"Puh- ah- pap- r…rika. Ah! Paprika?"

Tomas smiled as he quickly scribbled the words on the side of the paper bag, keeping his handwriting neat and even.

"Try that."

Rowe brushed his hair out of his face and leant in. "My name is Rowe. Hello, Tomas."

"Hello, Rowe!"

Rowe took a step back with a jolt, looking up at him uncertainly. "I- I- I didn’t mean to- to address you w-without your proper title, Master."

"And yet you just did."

Rowe quaked, shrinking away from him, but Tomas forced himself to be steadfast. Come on Rowe, you can do this.

"You were. You’re being good. You’re still being good."

"I’m sorry! I d-didn’t- I didn’t me-mean to, I w-was doing what y-y-you asked Master…"

"Th-then…"

"Try saying my name again."

"T- T- T… I can’t," Rowe whispered, "I d-d-don’t want to be hit."

"I won’t hit you. It’s okay. I’m not your old master."

"I w-was trained to always address my Master properly."

"I know," soothed Tomas, not stopping to think too hard on what Rowe’s ‘training’ entailed, "I know being here is confusing. Can you just try, one more time?"

"T- Tomas…" he forced out, ducking his head and bracing himself. Tomas reached out and Rowe flinched, violently, before seeming to catch himself and force himself to stay still. Still, he couldn’t stop himself from trembling, even as Tomas gently rested his hand on the side of Rowe’s head, rubbing his thumb up and down. It took a few seconds, but Rowe leaned into the touch, his breathing coming under control again.

"There, that was really good. Well done, Rowe. I know that was hard for you."

"Master?"

"It’s okay, it’s okay. We can work on that. For now, I think your reading is coming along just fine. I’m very happy with you."

"You… you are?"

"Mmhm. Now, let’s finish putting this stuff away. I have some work to get on with."

-

Tomas’s smile vanished as he closed the office door. He hadn’t been imagining it. He’d kept calm, and casual, but there were definitely cuts on Rowe that hadn’t been there when he left. They were hard to miss, long searing red slices poking out from his white t-shirt and the bottom of his shorts.

He ran a hand through his hair, pulling on a curl by his ear. What to do, what to do? How had he got those?

He remembered a horror film he’d seen once where a woman had lived in captivity for so long that she kept harming herself even after she was freed, because living without constant pain was too unnatural for her. Had Rowe given himself those cuts? Had he- Tomas’s eyes widened- had he also broken his own nose? Was he that desperate for punishment that he was willing to punish himself?

His panic rose as he realised Rowe could be doing that right now. What was he thinking, making Rowe call him by his name? It was far too early for that, he was still learning it was okay to sit on the damn sofa, Christ alive Tomas.

He rushed back downstairs to keep an eye on Rowe. He had to figure out a way to stop this.

[juminly]

A Losing Game

Summary: A bet was made between Arthur & Theodorus: the mystery writer was not allowed to flirt with you for an entire month. Arthur is not one to back down from a challenge. However, he had no idea what was at stake.  Matchup story written for @dandellien​. 💙

Nobody ever said anything about the exhaustion you would feel when travelling through time. Whatever happened when you went through that door, it clearly drained all of the energy from your body. You were hungry, thirsty, had a huge headache and were craving sleep. Comte had seen the look on your face when you had arrived, apparitions of dark circles forming around your eyes, more than enough proof that you did need to rest and be cared for.

While the pureblood accompanied you to your room, giving you but a glimpse of what you would face in the 19th century, being in a mansion filled with unknown men, you were evidently soothed by his graceful and eloquent demeanor, putting you at ease even though he had insinuated that the residents were not normal men. Not normal was a light way to put it because they were far from normal in more ways that you expected.

Historical figures that you knew quite well, seen them in history books, math, physics or even science books. You were already familiar with vampires, the myth and the fantasy of these creatures warped around multitude of novels, movies and various forms of art. Surprised, yes you were. Scared, not necessarily. You would have to wait and see things with your own eyes before judging and assessing the matter. How true could it be? You were beginning to wonder why did you even end up in such a place? Were you struck by some goddess of Fortune or was this a curse that you were damned to survive somehow?

Sebastian had already set up a light yet scrumptious supper for you and had drawn a nice warm bath for you to relax your body before actually realizing where you were and what kind of situation you were in, once you came face first with the reality of the matter. Theory was so much easier to take than reality. Anyone might have thought that they were simply trying to woo you into staying and keeping your mouth shut about what you’ve seen but they were clearly good people, no malicious intent detected in either Sebastian or Comte. But what about the others? After your bath, Sebastian was kind enough to sit by you and answer any questions you may have since he was the only human in the vampire-filled mansion and he graciously answered all the questions you had, especially about the other residents.

Were you prepared for what was to come? You probably didn’t have an answer but a tiny little messenger came to your rescue. At the crack of dawn, you could hear barking at your door. Sebastian didn’t tell you anything about dogs, let alone pets being around so this was an interesting way to start your day. Opening the door, you found the cutest little dog looking up at you with big brown eyes that you simply couldn’t resist. Picking him up in your arms and scratching his chin (earning you quite a few licks), you had already gotten enough sleep so you took it as an opportunity to roam around and discover more about the mansion before the other residents woke up.

You obviously had no idea who the little cutie in your arms belonged to so it was fair enough to say that you were not really snooping around the mansion but actually trying to find the dog’s owner, if anyone were to stop you in your tracks and question why you were walking around in the middle of the night. As you passed by the different hallways and peeked into different rooms, you came across the different rooms and areas of the mansion, jotting down the different pieces of information in the back of your head for future reference: you came across the library and found a tall man slouched on a pile of books, sleeping soundly with the sweet scent wafting through the air; a slender man with an eyepatch who greeted you meekly in the hallway before scurrying away, another man playing the piano with beautiful silver hair, the sharpest amethyst eyes and a glare that demanded he be left alone, without using any words. Going back to the conversation you had with Sebastian, those were Leonardo, Jean and Mozart. One thing they all had in common: they were all very handsome. Extremely so.

After exploring almost every part of the mansion, you already found out where the kitchen, the pantry, the thermae, the dining room were including other rooms where the other residents used. You found yourself standing in front of, what most probably was, the main door of the mansion. Your small new friend began barking and whining, seemingly telling you in his own language that he wanted to go out but you couldn’t possibly do that. You didn’t have the owner’s permission nor did you have a leash. A resounding playful voice came from behind you with an unmistakable lilting British accent, his words echoing through the mansion’s entrance with each click of his oxfords on the grand stairs, closing the distance between you.

“Oh dear! It seems that Vic’s brimming excitement couldn’t be held back at the scent of our new beautiful guest. If I may be so bold, I should admit that I raise Vic to be quite a fine little champ. He certainly does have an eye for beauty.” Turning around, your eyes were locked on this man’s handsome features, his tousled midnight blue hair, striking blue eyes and the beauty mark so delicately positioned by his lips, you couldn’t help but take in his appearance as he had gotten much closer, now standing before you. The smirk on his lips was also very telling, he had been assessing you in the same manner. Little did you know,  He heard you talking to yourself in spanish while walking through the corridors, doing your own exploring of the mansion and he came to you like a moth to a windowpane. How could he even miss the sight, the smell and the voice of a fair maiden such as yourself walking in her lonesome in this mansion full of mongrels? They were not but he would’ve loved to take advantage of sweeping a cute poppet like you off her feet. Your hair was that of iridescent flames, cascades of lava that drew him in, dark eyes of coffee. “Comte was ever so gracious to inform me that we had a guest in our midst but he had made the grave mistake of omitting the fact that you were such a resplendent poppet. Allow me to introduce myself, love.”

He was absolutely beguiled by you, even more so when you began to speak, addressing him in a firm tone, interrupting his introduction in the mere pause as he took a break. “Arthur Conan Doyle, I know who you are. Sebastian told me all about you.” He seemed pleased to know that you already heard of him but still wished that he could be the one to make his first impression on his own, without having others establish them for him. You were not taken aback by his direct approach, yet his flirtiness did not click too well with you since he had yet to know you before even trying to seemingly romance you in the way he did with all the women he had clearly done the same with. You definitely said what was on your mind, stating it clearly before making your way back to your room since Vic was now with his owner. “If you’re trying to flirt with me, then I’m sorry but you’re mistaken if you think that you can do anything of the sort. If you may excuse me now, I must go ready myself before breakfast.”

It would be safe to say that Arthur was admittedly smitten with you. The way you smoothly yet respectfully talked back to him with that accent of yours was undoubtedly a beautiful sound that he would love to hear more and more of.

During breakfast, you had finally met all the residents at once and the Comte had obviously taken it upon him to introduce you to them all before the conversation on the dining table naturally flowed from unrelated conversation between a couple of the residents, where the rest simply listened in and back to questions about you, where you came from, your background and most importantly, your time. When the amount of questions seemed to get a bit too overwhelming, Leonardo was the one who spoke up, telling the rest of the vampires that they had plenty of time to ask you all the questions they wanted over the course of the month that you had to spend with them.

As you and Sebastian busied yourselves in clearing the dishes from the table, you could hear a booming brouhaha coming from the room where you had left the rest of the vampires. Looking at the stoic butler, he simply shrugged and you busied yourself by helping the man. On the other side of the man, the residents were all focused on a discussion that happened between the infamous partners in crime: Theodorus van Gogh and Arthur Conan Doyle. Theo noticed how uncharacteristically silent Arthur was during breakfast, sipping on his glass of Blanc while his eyes never left you for a moment, as you bit into your pancakes and drank your coffee/tea, a small smile cracking on your face here and then, noticing the little things that you did. With a wolfish grin, Theo made a bet with Arthur. If the writer is able to spend an entire month without flirting with you, the sadistic entrepreneur would pay for their tab at their go-to tavern/bar for an entire year. Arthur knew what his friend was trying to do, clearly testing him and seeing if he had an ounce of self-control in him. The game was on.

He would clearly prove him wrong. Or that’s what he thought. Two years instead of one and the deal was made.

It wasn’t hard for you to find what to do in that time. The wealth of knowledge that was surrounding you, it was more than enough to fill your days with activities and studying the things that you loved the most. Leonardo and Vincent were more than happy to give you tips on drawing, giving you tips on how to sketch the human body, understanding the intricacies behind different body types in a way that allowed you also to work on fashion, different styles, looks which is something you really loved.

Spending time on your own was not a hard task! There were so many corners in the mansion where you can just spend time alone with no one bothering you. You would often find Leonardo sleeping or reading in the library, stumbling across him or he’s just napping away wherever you find yourself but that didn’t really bother you. You would grab your notebook to write or draw or grab a book that one of the residents had recommended to you and just clear your mind and wind down, finding some much needed peace in the midst of this new lifestyle that you were thrown into.

Arthur though… the man couldn’t really stay away from you. Not that he did want to, on the contrary, he absolutely loved being in the presence of an enlightened woman such as yourself but he had to take extra care not to be flirty with you. One thing that Arthur didn’t do was lose. Unfortunately yet luckily for him, Vic took a liking to you and made it easier for you to get to know each other better when you would both take him on walks, daily and multiple days in a day. He was a spoiled boy and his Master was definitely the type to spoil him rotten. It was quite refreshing just seeing a different type of playful side to him. Pure, genuine and truly affectionate. Even… boyish.

[The famous skirt chaser wasn’t doing any chasing. Whenever he wasn’t around, he was trying to get enough writing done so he could spend time with the beautiful new guest who only had a month to spend with him… everyone AND him.]

You are usually so reserved around the residents, more of an observer than a talker, at least for the first few days in the mansion. Your frequent walks with Vic and Arthur did help you loosen up:  getting to know more about Paris as you roamed around aimlessly, taken away by the depth of your conversations, the ways of the 19th century, all the little tidbits about the residents and also, see more of Arthur, besides the renown flirty playboy side, a label that everyone seems to be pinning on the handsome man. When you get deep into discussions with him, the way you get animated makes him melt. He doesn’t blatantly point it out but there is this glint of amusement and fondness in his eyes and the slightest twist in the corner of his lips, one of absolute admiration and infatuation when you do.

There is never a dull moment with Arthur: his mind is like the most intriguing, bewildering and mysterious place to be. He would try to tell you about how he comes up with the premise of his stories, would talk to you about the ideas of his books and how he gets inspired by things from his past and from his present, take you out on “dates” where you would go detective-solving… cause what better way to discover Paris and know everything there was to know about it.

He was very fond of your objectivity and honesty which definitely compliments the analytical side of your personality which he has come to see and know the more he spoke with you and from what he’s heard from Leonardo. He secretly loves your honesty also when you call him out on his shit: on why he even hates his own creations, knowing that there is hidden meanings behind whatever bogus response he gives you YET you don’t push him for more. You just let him know that he can talk to you.

In those moments, the fierceness in your eyes…he knew that it would be his demise.

He likes to pick your brain and keeps bombarding you with so many “what ifs”, possibilities and probabilities in deflecting and divergent plotlines in his stories until you end up digressing and not even discussing important elements that are crucial and necessary about his manuscripts. You always made things interesting which made him spend even more time with you, always attempting to monopolize your time in any way he can. Especially when you told him that something like MBTI personalities existed in your time, he was very interested in knowing so much more about it. You and also Sebastian jumped in to tell him all about it and his eyes lit up like firecrackers, already thinking of which characters would have which personality. He couldn’t help but feel closer to you, wanting to know you even more...intimately yet he denied himself from doing so. Yet, he couldn’t stop the kindling of affection within his heart, no matter how much he tried to push it away.

The fact that you had even more hidden talents made you even more attractive in his eyes. You knew how to play multiple instruments and didn’t care to tell him until… 2 weeks had passed since you arrived at the mansion. Arthur immediately worked his magic on Mozart somehow, getting him to teach you how to play the piano if you wanted to and had Leonardo prepare a little something special for you: a hand-crafted guitar that you could take with you when you decide to go back to the future (and the thought of you leaving saddened him so much but he didn’t dare say it, yet, the expression on his face said it all). If there is anything Arthur would be good at, and after keeping the resident devil company, persuading, convincing or bribing was an art that he had perfected. Quick-witted charmer that he was.

The sound of his boyish laughter was something that you couldn’t get enough of and that wide smile that stretched from ear to ear was absolutely the most beautiful expression that you’ve seen on him, complimenting his features in a way that suited him even more than that flirtatious mask he hides behind. He loves the look on your face when he can read your mind and knows exactly what you’re going to say before you even say it, when he teases you and especially when he’s able to draw a smile on your face: be it when he thanks you for helping brainstorm or solve a case, or when he buys you a yummy treat that he knows you’d love and enjoy (after forcing Sebastian to tell him the things you actually do enjoy eating since he had information (notes) about every single living being in than mansion. He was a goldmine, source of intel and Arthur wasn’t going to miss out on taking advantage of that fact).

Something exciting did happen, which you also didn’t expect! A trip to Madrid in Spain? It is one of the cities that is most known for it’s art and Theodorus was in need of a translator to accompany him so he can find his way around the city much easier than if he was alone (and you were also not bad company so he wouldn’t mind you tagging along, since he knows that you would appreciate the art as well, being an artist yourself.) BUT, Arthur was not having any of it. How was a young lady supposed to travel with another (very single and very handsome) man on her own? He decided to be the chaperone of your trip under the guise of exploring new avenues for an upcoming book of his that will possibly have events set in Spain (or maybe not, it didn’t even matter). Theo reminded his best friend about their bet/challenge and… well, the entrepreneur knew and told the klootzak right to his face that he’s weasling his way into this because… Well, Arthur shushed him before he could say any more than that but they both knew what he was going to say. The mystery writer wanted to wait until you left the 19th century before even thinking of admitting to others and to himself too.

After a long train ride from Paris to Madrid, Arthur made sure to book the room next to yours in case you needed anything. When you woke up in the morning, he would already be leaning next to your door with that wide boyish smile of his and his lilting “Good morning sunshine~” that evidently did things to your heart, escorting you to have breakfast together. Theo would show up to breakfast with his own bottle of syrup (Don’t even mention it. He had a feeling that he wouldn’t find the kind of syrup he liked in Spain so he got his own with him). The man was completely baffled to always find you there before him and also annoyed to see how sickeningly sweet Arthur was, doting on you a little more than he ever saw him do with any of the other skirts he’s ever pursued. This is not the normal kind of attention he gave a woman and as his best friend, this proved how deep Arthur had already fallen for you. He did throw in a few comments such as: “ Why are you treating her like a small pup? She can take care of herself. Unless she asked you to put her on a leash…”

If you thought you had fun in Paris, it was even more fun in Madrid! You went to multiple museums, galleries and countless restaurants, indulging both in the savoury and sweet of the city, getting the best taste of the city. It was hilarious seeing Arthur trying to communicate with the locals with that British accent of his and try to use whatever Spanish he caught from your brief discussions with Leonardo (where he thought he managed to catch a few words but he was horribly mistaken). You also somehow managed to get lost while going shopping, which made your time out and about together even longer. Not that either of you was complaining. You both had the time of your life and you both had smiles to match and confirm that statement.

Besides the fact that Arthur wouldn’t let go of your hand at any given moment when you were wandering the city, claiming that he wouldn’t find his way back to the hotel without you and that you were the only one that could keep him from getting lost. He also didn’t like how lots of men’s eyes lingered on you whenever they spoke to you (and the fact that he didn’t even understand what they were telling you didn’t bear well with him, he wasn’t having it at all) or just simply when you passed by and turned heads. This man was definitely not jealous (sarcasm) but he was not blind and he had eyes of his own to see just how beautiful you were, inside and out. He was just glad to be the one holding your hand, even though he held on to it “just as your friend”. Whenever Theo looked disgruntled and rolled his eyes at you two, Arthur always teased him and offered to hold his hand too if he didn’t want to feel left out, making the dutch man obviously grumble and walk away from you.

He should’ve known… He should’ve known and he beat himself over it, cursing his gloves as you were on the train, on the way back to France. While Arthur had excused himself to the restroom and decided to go get the three of you some coffee and treats, he comes back to find that you had fallen asleep… with your head on Theodorus’ shoulder. He was definitely not happy about the sight and his best friend could definitely see that, muttering a “Stop glaring at me like a rabid dog, klootzak. I don’t like this either.” Arthur stopped in his tracks, noticing how flushed your cheeks were and how your breathing was a little quicker than normal for someone who was asleep. Removing one of his gloves, he presses his palm against your forehead and your neck. You had a fever.

Arthur immediately gets into anxious doctor mode and tends to you however he can until you reach Paris, where he would be able to take care of you even better. Theo knew that this was not just some act. Arthur’s concern for you was real but it was way more than just a doctor’s oath to take care of his patients. Come on, Arthur. Who do you think you’re deceiving? He basically carried you to the carriage and also inside the mansion, giving out orders as nicely and calmly to Sebastian the moment he set foot in the mansion. He was composed, or at least, tried to be but he was also worried. A fever from exhaustion should not be taken lightly as it can turn into something worse if you didn’t get all the rest that you truly needed.

When you woke up…

Opening your eyes slowly, you blinked only to find Arthur leaning on the side of your bed. “Why are you here? It looks like you haven’t slept for ages, Arthur.” You reached out and threaded yours fingers through his tousled hair. “I know you’re worried about me, Arthur. I promise you I’ll be just fine. I know you’ve been taking good care of me and you know…  It’s just exhaustion, right? There’s nothing for you to worry about it. I already feel much better thanks to you.”

The expression on his face was so soft and tender, a “wistful” smile drawn on his usually smirked lips. He held your hand, rubbing his leather-clad thumb smoothly over it before he kissed your knuckles gently. “Rest well, my love. I refuse to leave your side.” He bit the tip of his index, pulling out his glove from his other hand and leaned and reached to check your temperature, before leaning forward to press his lips against your forehead, sighing. “You’re still a tad warm but you are indeed better. I should’ve taken your word for it.”

“And should I take your word that you kissed me just because you wanted to check my temperature?”

With that irresistible boyish smile drawn on his handsome face, he chuckled like a schoolboy that has just been caught doing something wrong. That’s how he truly was deep down and it was refreshing just seeing him like that. “Guilty as charged.”  His striking blue eyes locked on yours before faltering a little too long on your lips as he licked his own and whispered softly - “I may have ulterior motives but I assure you, my intentions are as pure as they come.” - before capturing your lips in a much awaited kiss, so sweet and tender, pouring all the affection he ached to show you before, all the pent-up emotions he strained himself not to show you in his quest in being a good friend to you.

Arthur didn’t come out of that challenge a loser, but a winner. Getting the greatest prize… no, the most priceless thing he could ever ask for: you and your love. Although it cost him a bill of 2 years worth of alcohol expenses at the bar, he was more than happy to pay it.

This man will shower you with words of affection all day long, tell you he loves you, kiss you whenever he gets the chance, in public or in private, this man is absolutely taken by you and he doesn’t even mind it. He will call you: love, darling, my lovely poppet, my sunshine and even try to throw in a few Spanish pet names: cariña, mi amor and even mi sol. You always wondered why he always referred to you as his sun or sunshine but he told you that you brightened up his life, with your honesty, your intelligence and most importantly, the joy you brought into his life.

You were surprised to discover that Arthur was BIG on cuddling. There isn’t a night that goes by (or even a nap) without cuddling. It is not for naughty reasons, as opposed to what everyone else in the mansion might think, but more for reassurance that you will always stay by his side and leave. His worst nightmare is waking up and not finding you there, the day you realize that he’s not good enough of a man for you yet he will spend his every waking moment trying to be better for you, prove that he is more than what his reputation paints him to be. He is the man that loves you, cherished you and values you even more than his own writing.

Arthur does get quite jealous sometimes. He just can’t help it. For example: he gets jealous when you sometimes get all dreamy when you listen to Mozart composing. He’s one of the biggest figures in music history so it would only be natural for you to be in awe whenever you came across him. His music does help you with your writing especially when he plays very calm tunes. It’s nothing like anything you’ve experienced before and it’s so inspiring. Arthur would frown, pout and even sulk sometimes whenever he sees that another man has captured your attention in a way that he never could (and he looks absolutely adorable when he does, like a lost whiny puppy). He would wrap his arms around you and nuzzle you when you’re writing or simply rub his hand softly on your waist while he rests his head on yours or on your shoulder. He scrambles for ways to get part of your attention or get some reassurance from you without getting in your way or becoming an inconvenience.

Kisses of affection: your knuckles, your hand and your forehead.

Warning: NSFW ahead

His kinks: everything in the book. Anything you can imagine, he’s willing to do with you. If you don’t like it, he’s up to trying the next thing with you. But a few favourites of his are: cockwarming, roleplay, edging, overstimulation, edging, BDSM and body worship. Rest assured that he will ALWAYS keep things interesting between you.

Favourite place to bite you: your thighs.

He can be whatever you want him to be in bed, he is a switch after all. He’ll worship you endlessly when he’s in command and will whine and beg for you whenever you take the reins. All he wants is to be with you, it doesn’t matter how.

You are definitely the luckiest person in the mansion, ending up with the most versatile and open lover of them. He’s willing to do everything with you, and driven by his lust and love for you, he will dirty talk until you’re soaking wet and clenching around nothing in anticipation for him and sweet talk you to tears, overwhelming you with the sweetness of love.

[twinkleallnight]

Melting moments

Here's wishing all a very happy new year with a new year one shot. This happens many years before the social season.

Book: The Royal Romance AU

Word count: 1206

Disclaimer: All characters belong to pixelberry.

Rating: Teen or PG

It was a chilling new year eve when Kiara tightened the jacket around her slim waist to keep warm. Her straight jet black hair tossed over her arms as she sprinted in her sneakers, moving swiftly on the docks of Portavira. She was late for her plans to meet her best friend.

This was their last year as teens and they got a permission to celebrate on the Ebrim’s personal yacht, just the two of them. She knew well, how her bestie was an introvert and preferred to celebrate in minimal company.

She climbed the yacht gently, up the deck. Isolde, the white pet poodle was sprawled next to a mat and lazily lifted it’s head to give a welcome glance and rested it’s chin back on its paws in disinterest.

Penelope, the owner, as fair as the fur of the poodle, sat on the mat, her lonely blue eyes looking at the clear night sky. A wisp of cold winter air ruffled her short black hair and she shivered slightly in response.

“Hey Pen!”

“Kiki.” Came out the short reply.

Kiara dumped her purse and the jute bag next to the mat and sat down beside Penelope. Her black eyes tried to catch Penelope’s direction of gaze in the sky.

“You know you should have come to the royal palace for the Christmas party. It was so much fun!” Kiara started, pulling out the thermos from the bag.

“I had a quite one with Isolde.” Penelope patted her dog.

“I know but you missed your chance to meet the princes.” Kiara said as she poured out their favourite drinks in the mugs she had carried along.

“I suppose you enjoyed.” Penelope said grabbing her hot chocolate from Kiara.

“Ouiii!” Kiara said with a squeal. The memories of the party filled her heart with warmth, as warm as her hands around her coffee mug.

“You texted me that there was something you wanted to tell me. Is it related to the prince?” Penelope asked coldly, caressing her dog with her free hand.

“Not exactly.” Kiara sighed seeing that her friend wasn’t interested much.

Penelope understood that she needed to pep up for her friend. She could tell her own sad story later. She turned around to give Kiara undivided attention with a smile. “Okay tell me all about it.”

That gesture was enough for Kiara, to open up her treasured chest of stories from her visit to the royal palace.

“You know the crown prince Leo? He is very handsome. The pictures in the Trend magazine don’t do justice to him at all.”

“You spent time with him?”

“Non. He was flirtatious.” Kiara said with a frown. “And there was this Madeleine drooling over him all the time. But his younger brother prince Liam is a real gem. He is so chivalrous and, and…” she fanned out her hands trying to explain.

“Oh, so he was the one?”

“Noooo! Not him…” Kiara blushed and that made Penelope’s eyes go wide. Kiara usually was too focused to bother about any guy around, leave alone getting affected by anyone in particular. She was staring in the blank with a stupid grin on her face.

“Kiki, I am listening.” Penelope waved her hand in front of Kiara’s eyes to bring her back from her trance.

“I am sorry.” Kiara giggled. “He was so cool; he had that rugged look, yet a dashing smile on his face. He had an oomph but a snarky tongue. He carried his simple attire in a most stylish way, making him stand out even in that fashionable crowd of nobles. His eyes had a shine and he could kill you when he narrowed them with that look. He had a magnetism and his dark hair...”

“Oh. My. God.” Penelope blurted.

“What?” Kiara asked puzzled.

“What happened to the future minister of foreign affairs, Kiara Theron? Look at you, you are smitten!”

Kiara straightened up and fumbled with her reply. “Its okay to slip once in a while.” And she went at it again. “It’s not every day that one comes across a stunning species like Drake Walker.”

“So, that’s what the king of the hearts is called.” Penelope beamed at Kiara who was melting in her new found feelings.

“Drraake!” Kiara uttered his name with a stretch as if drinking through each letter. “Oui, that’s him.”

“Who is this Drake Walker?”

“He is Prince Liam’s best friend. Although he is some commoner’s son.” Kiara said it casually as if being a commoner didn’t matter to her at all.

“That explains why I haven’t heard of him or seen him.”

“I think I can solve that problem.” She said flipping through her phone, her fingers nimble over the keys. She opened the phone gallery and flashed a smile when she came across the snap that she had captured stealthily at the palace. She thrust the phone almost in Penelope’s face in excitement. “That’s my hero!”

Penelope had seen prince Liam’s pictures in the magazines many a times so her eyes immediately fixed on the dark-haired young man beside the prince. “He is good.” Penelope gave a simple approval.

“Just good?”

“Kiki.” Penelope took a deep breath. “Its just that, he is your clover brew coffee and I am still searching for my hot chocolate.”

She knew they were poles apart in their choices. Penelope's sweetest tastes against Kiara’s sharp ones. Penelope’s romantic ideas against Kiara’s practical decisions. But that seemed to be tossed over with the advent of this new guy.

“Well, you could have met your hot chocolate if only you would have agreed to accompany me to the Royal’s Christmas party.” Kiara rolled her eyes and kept looking at her phone, the picture still on the screen.

“As if he was there.” Penelope said with sarcasm.

“I think I may know who exactly your hot chocolate is.”

“Who?” Penelope asked curiously.

Kiara started excitedly, “There is this noble house to the west of the Capitol. Their son, I think… No, I am sure, you will like him.”

“What’s so special about him?”

“He was sweet just like you and he sat gazing at the stars.” Penelope glared at Kiara. “Don’t look at me like that. That’s not all. He drank choco chip and vanilla crème and talked about his pet dog all the time.”

“Kiki, as much as I like that, you are acting silly. Just because you were bit by love bug, it’s not necessary for me to fall for someone at the same time.”

“Fine, I agree. But promise me, next chance you are coming with me to the palace.” Kiara stretched out her palm.

“Sure. I promise.” Penelope placed her hand in Kiara’s.

They both hugged and sat with Isolde beside them, looking towards the land as the time ticked to midnight. The fireworks from the duchy filled up the sky to mark the new year between the poodles relentless barking.

“Happy new year!” both wished each other in unison. Penelope fondled Isolde and it calmed down.

“Ahm… What is his name?” Penelope asked.

“Whose?” Kiara asked lost in her blissful imaginations.

“The hot chocolate.”

Kiara laughed out, curling her arms around Penelope. “Maxwell. Lord Maxwell Beaumont.”

Tags: @ao719 @annekebbphotography @anjanettexcordonia @bebepac @charlotteg234 @choicesficwriterscreations @choiceskatie @cordonia-gothqueen @cordonianroyalty @drakewalker04 @eadanga @gkittylove99 @glaimtruelovealways @kat-tia801 @hopefulmoonobject @hopelessromanticmonie @iam-the-kind-and-thoughtful @idontknowwhysblog @islandcrow @jessiembruno @jovialyouthmusic @jaxsmutsuo @kingliam2019 @khoicesbyk @lifeaskim @lisha1valecha @lovablegranny @mrswalkers-blog @mom2000aggie @no-one-u-know @ntoraplayschoices @princessleac1 @ritachacha @secretaryunpaid @sirbeepsalot @speedyoperarascalparty @shanzay44 @texaskitten30 @queenrileyrose @sanchita012 @sfb123 @theroyalheirshadowhunter @aestheticartsx @yourmajesty09

[theycallmebecca]

Drabble: Dog Radar

This drabble is for the 24 Hour Prompt challenge at all the HBC blogs! This one is for @the-ce-horniest-book-club​.

Prompt I went with is meet cute. And this story is inspired by my 10-year-old step cousin who has a dog radar and the desire to literally meet every single dog she sees.

Title: Dog Radar

Pairing: Chris Evans x reader

Rating: PG-13

Warnings: Language

Disclaimer: This work of fiction is not to be reposted, used or translated without my permission.

You were going to kill your cousin.

The 10 year old had wandered off again in the five seconds it took you to find your niece a snack.

“Did you see where cuzzy went?” You asked your niece who was happily chewing on a granola bar.

“She saw a puppy,” your niece replied and pointed in the direction behind you.

“Fucking pupper radar,” you mumbled under your breath as you grabbed the backpack. “Alright come on, kiddo, we have a cousin to find.”

Taking your niece’s hand, the two of you made your way in the direction she had pointed. Sure enough, within a minute or so of walking, you spotted your cousin’s hot pink shirt from where she was petting a dog while it’s owner stood alongside.

“There she is,” you said and made your way there with your niece. The two of you were going to have a long chat once you got the two girls back to your parents house and your niece was down for her nap.

Calling your cousin’s name, both she and the dog’s owner looked up.

The ten year old smiled and waved the two of you over. “Come meet Dodger, he’s the sweetest,” she called back.

Finished with her granola bar, your niece tugged her hand free of yours and ran towards the others.

“Don’t run,” you called after her but it was no use.

Sighing, you picked up your own pace and reached them just as your niece was getting a giant doggie kiss from the aforementioned Dodger.

Turning to Dodger’s owner, you found yourself momentarily taken aback by how handsome he was with his dark hair, full beard and piercing blue green eyes. Smiling at him, you said, “I am so sorry. She has a dog radar and a desire to meet every dog that she sees.”

The man chuckled and said, “It’s all good. Dodger loves to meet people.” He extended a hand and added, “I’m Chris.”

You introduced yourself as you held out your own hand. As his hand closed around your own, you felt electric shocks surge through your body. You flicked your eyes up to his and could tell from his expression that he had felt it, too.

“Can we play fetch with him?” Your cousin asked, interrupting the moment.

“Sure,” Chris replied after a second. He took a ball from the backpack he was carrying and handed it to them before removing Dodger’s leash. “Be good.”

You watched as your cousin tossed the ball to Dodger and he took off while your niece cheered him on.

“Are they both yours?” Chris asked.

“No, the older is my cousin and the younger my niece,” you replied and then felt the urge to include. “I’m single. No kids, yet.”

Glancing at him, you saw the corner of his mouth twitch. “Good to know,” he said. “I’m single, too. And Dodger is my only kid, that counts, right?”

“That counts,” you replied with a small nod. You glanced at the girls and then stole another glance at Chris, only to catch him looking at you.

“Dodger and I come to this park all the time,” he said in a seemingly casual tone of voice. “Maybe we’ll see you guys again.”

“The girls would love that,” you replied and then boldly added, “So would I.”

It wasn’t until the two of you accidentally on purpose bumped into each other at the park a couple more times that he asked for your phone number.

And then he called you and asked you out on a date.

You said yes, of course.

(The second your cousin found out about the date, she called dibs on walking Dodger down the aisle when you and Chris get married.)

[sadistgalore]

Chapter 4: This Is Where The Fun Begins

Previous | Next | Masterlist

CW: Starvation, human trafficking mention, suicide mention, dehumanization, implied torture, implied non con, defiant whumpee, humiliation, slapping, electrocution, master/pet, beating, broken bones, torture, conditioning

Harper couldn’t sleep that night. She was fucking scared shitless.

She was locked in a cold, dark room being starved, and was being reduced to sleep on a cement floor. Not to mention, she was fucking kidnapped by a pervert that killed her father and took her brother.

She and Beth had read missing person cases, and investigated strange networking of human trafficking. They never got anywhere close, but they met survivors, and the stories they told were horrible.

Being reduced to be another person’s pet, being dehumanized and forced to crawl like a dog or cat, being kept in a cage and getting dog food.

The worst one Harper remembered was a girl her age, who escaped from her “master” a few weeks before. She was visibly thin, likely starved, and she had several scars on her body that she was afraid would never heal. She described her life for three years, where she was mostly confined to a bed being used over and over again. She was nothing more than a toy for her owner however they wanted, and she mentioned the punishments she would have to endure if she didn’t follow exactly what her master said.

Harper still got goosebumps whenever she thought of that poor girl’s story, and will never forget the day when she saw her body in the police station morgue.

Death by suicide.

“Oh god,” she whispered. “Oh fuck, that’s gonna be me.”

She shakily drew in a breath, and exhaled in a sob. She broke down crying, regretting everything she ever did bringing herself here, and could not stop thinking how she would end up exactly like that survivor.

I don’t wanna be...oh my god I can’t even think about it. Will I even get out of here? What will he do to me? He said he won’t hurt me if I follow his orders, but what will those orders be? I don’t wanna degrade myself for him...should I submit or be defiant?

After a moment of thinking, she made up her mind that she wouldn’t break like that girl. She would be strong, for Beth. Beth would find her, or Nic. She won’t be here for long, she knew it.

They already got his name, Alpha team was about to raid the Vault, so they’ll save me...right?

Harper shook her head, she couldn’t think like that. She had to remain strong and not lose hope. She got up and put her back to the wall next to the door, and soon as someone came in, she would attack.

Not even after a minute of standing there, Harper heard a voice from the ceiling.

“Tsk, tsk, little dove. We’re not playing that game. Get back to your little corner, else you’ll regret it when I get there.”

Harper looked around, there’s was no one in the room how did he-

“There’s a camera, dumbass.”

Harper’s face flushed red as she noticed the camera in each of the corners of the room. She sighed and walked back to her corner in shame.

Not gonna submit, huh?

“Whatever,” she mumbled to herself as she put her head in between her knees.

She laid there for about an hour, occasionally whimpering whenever her stomach growled, until the door opened.

Harper scrambled up to her feet and clutched the wall behind her once she saw who it was.

“Good afternoon, Harper,” Dark said as he stepped into the room.

Harper said nothing when he walked right in front of her face, then slapped her.

“What the hell?” She yelled as she clutched her stinging cheek.

“Lesson one,” the man said as he walked into the center of the room, pulling out a cattle prod from his belt.

“You address me with respect, not silence and a scowl,” he finished as he turned on the cattle prod, causing blue sparks to form. It took every ounce of Harper’s willpower not to flinch.

“Let’s start from the beginning, shall we? If I were to call you, you would walk over to me, head down. Do not look at me in my eyes without permission, and be prepared to crawl if I command you to. Now, little dove, come.”

Harper stared at him with a mixture of shock and disgust. “I’m not a dog.”

Dark rolled his eyes and flipped a switch on the cattle prod, which shot a string with the taser heads attached to it. It latched onto Harper and shocked her, causing her to scream immediately.

“You’re whatever I goddamn say you are,” Dark growled as he retreated the tasers back from his captive’s chest. “Now, come. I don’t like repeating myself.”

Harper blinked away tears, those tasers fucking hurt like a bitch, and slowly walked over to her tormentor, eyes on the ground.

“Good girl,” Dark said, patting her head, and Harper couldn’t resist her flinch.

“Next step,” the man continued. “When I say a greeting to you, you respond the exact same thing, ending your sentence with either Sir or Master and, only if I allow it, Edward or Mr. Darmine. I hate the name Dark, the public and your little police force gave me. You will not address me with any other title, no bastard, asshole, bitch, none of that else your punishment will either be a muzzle attached to your face or your lips sewn shut. Speaking of muzzles, you will continue to address me properly even if you are gagged.”

Harper swallowed while she stared at the ground.

What. The. Fuck?! Master? No, no, no, no fucking way. Absolutely fucking not. I guess calling him Sir is fine, but no Master.

“So let’s try this again. Good afternoon, Harper.”

No, fuck please no.

“Look at me, Harper.”

Harper’s blue eyes met his cold, dark brown ones. Not even dark brown, more like black; there's barely a hint of color in them.

Dark rested the cattle prod under her chin. “One last time, pet, address me as Master. Good afternoon, Harper.”

The girl’s mouth opened to speak, further investigating the fear just beneath it, but no words came out.

Dark glared, raising an eyebrow as a small sign of mercy but still, Harper chose to stay nothing.

He turned the cattle prod back on.

Harper couldn’t even scream as her body seemed to freeze in place, but the searing pain still remained coursing through her veins.

Dark threw the cattle prod back and forth between his hands. “I can do this all day, little dove. Just call me Master and all this pain will end.”

“N-never...asshole-” Harper was cut off by her own screams.

“Now, what did I say about those no-no words, dear?”

Harper was twitching, struggling to keep upright, and Dark noticed this.

“Another good lesson you should learn, sweetheart, is to kneel when your owner tells you to.”

“O-owner?”

“Yes, Harper,” the man said while gripping her chin. “You’re my property now.”

Despite her pain and the consequences, Harper spit in the man’s face.

Dark threw her back, disgusted, and reached for a handkerchief to wipe off the saliva from his face.

“You,” he murmured. “Are going to regret that.”

He flipped another switch on the prod which caused a chain reaction to extend the base and retract the taser so the cattle prod looked more like a baton.

He lunged at her, not perturbed by his captive weakly covering her face with her arms. The baton hit the side of her waist, then landed another hit in her calf. He continued till Harper was on the ground, and continued even as a few of her ribs and bones began to break. He finally stopped when he heard a blood-curling scream from Harper, and saw bone sticking through her arm.

“Oopsies,” he chuckled awkwardly. “Sometimes I just see red and just can’t hold back, you know?”

Harper just sobbed as she clutched her arm. Her entire body was in white hot pain, and she wanted to throw up once she saw her bone piercing her own skin.

“Alright,” Dark said with a playtime is over tone. “Get up and let’s try this again.”

“No, please,” the broken girl whimpered. “Please I can’t.”

“Yes, you can because I’m ordering it. I don’t care what you want or how you’re feeling. You do whatever I say, no questions asked.”

Harper still remained on the ground, sobbing, making no effort to move.

Dark sighed and raised his arm, clearly in Harper’s line of sight even through her tears.

“No, please! I’m s-sorry, okay? I’ll try again...I’ll try.”

Dark retreated his arm and stepped back, giving Harper room to get up.

She was shaking all over, and it seemed damn near impossible to just prop herself off the ground. But still, she tried and managed to get on your knees, crying out in pain as she did so.

Harper flinched as she heard the cattle prod crackle. “I don't have all day, pet. Hurry up before I give you another beating, this time with a bat of nails.”

“I’m sorry, sir.” You’re a quick learner. “Please, I can do it just no more-“

Again, cattle prod lifted up her chin and she was met by a deathly glare.

“I hate excuses. I don’t care, keep going.”

Harper nodded as he removed the tool, and finally stood up straight again.

“Try again from the beginning, no mistakes.”

Dark stepped back into a separate corner of the room.

“Come, pet.”

Harper walked over to him, eyes down.

“Kneel.”

She took it as a mercy and listened, considering it a rest from her sore and broken body.

“I’m leaving. Have a good afternoon, darling.”

Still, Harper couldn’t bring herself to do it. She couldn’t degrade herself like that.

She cried out again as she was met with a harsh slap. Dark grabbed her chin.

“You will learn very quickly that I am not a patient man. When I tell you to do something, you do it, understand? Now, address me as Master or I’ll cut out your tongue.”

How could he say that so casually? Plus, he wouldn’t do that...would he?

Dark cleared his throat.

“Have a good night...Master.”

Dark kissed the top of her head. “Good girl, just do that from now on and follow orders, and you won’t get anymore beatings.”

“S-sir…?” Her voice was barely a whisper. She clutched her arm, still in very much pain.

“I’ll give you some pain relievers with your food in a few hours. Oh, and don’t blame me; it’s your fault that happened.”

And with that, he left with a composure that he didn’t just beat the shit out of someone.

Harper fell to the floor, still clutching her arm in pain. She eventually managed to crawl her way over back to her corner, leaning against it in the most comfortable way possible.

I can not believe this is actually my life now. I’ve spent every day trying to find my father’s killer only to be taken as his fucking pet! He seems attached, will he treat me differently than all of the other people he kidnapped? Or will he end up killing me when he gets bored? Maybe he’ll keep me, and if I seem like I submitted to him, he’ll show me around, maybe slip a little, and I can find out as much information as I can from the inside. Maybe he knows what happened to my brother.

Maybe he’s like me, and is in a cell somewhere.

Maybe I could save my brother.

Harper stared up at the ceiling, with a new goal set in mind.

“I’m coming, Harry.”

[cubeswhump]

Part Six: Shatter

Hey y’all @more-miserables and I are back from the dead. 

Okay okay I'm really sorry for my absence I don't even know what the hell I've been doing. Anyway, here we are.

Huge thanks to @haro-whumps for helping me with the plot and thanks to anyone who's stuck around.

Tagging @haro-whumps @albino-whumpee @broken-horn @eatyourdamnpears @whumpsblog @more-miserables

Warnings for institutionalized slavery, power abuses, victim blaming, dehumanization, violence, blood, hints of dubcon (nothing explicit). Skeevy stuff.

"I've given you every fucking reason to trust me!"

"You stick your dick in anything with a pulse!”

She pressed the heels of her hands against her ears but the noise grew louder.

“She’s just going through a phase!”

“She’s out of control!”

Sweetie clenched her teeth against the throbbing in her head.

Michelle was awake so she had to be too, though it wasn’t like she could anyway with all the noise. She paced about her room, forcing herself to listen to Kurt and Michelle’s shouting, because if she let her mind wander she would imagine herself in a different home with long hair and no-

Bad, very bad. This was her home and she was very happy with Michelle as her owner... more so when Kurt wasn’t here.

No, no. She loved Kurt because Miss Michelle loved Kurt and she loved Miss Michelle... Wait, no, Miss Michelle said not to even look at Kurt, but...

She draped a scarf from her cat-ear headband and stuck it on her head. Flicking the scarf back and striding about, she could pretend that was long hair she felt down her back even while she stayed grounded in the apartment she loved, listening to the owner she loved so bicker with the man Sweetie... existed in the same space as.

“Don’t put your fucking hands on me!”

The scarf and headband had scarcely touched the carpet before Sweetie was out the door, exiting the hall, flinging herself between the man and woman.

“DON’T HURT HER!” Sweetie screeched.

They could hear each and every breath, her heartbeat, a pin dropping on the pavement outside as two sets of eyes bore into her.

“Don’t... what do you take me for?” Kurt asked incredulously.

A tug on a lock of hair near Sweetie’s nape, sharp and quick. Again, longer.

“Look at me! NOW”

The world slowed as Sweetie turned and looked into her owner’s red face.

“What the fuck has gotten into you?”

“I thought...”

“You didn’t think! You don’t! Nothing goes on in that stupid fucking head of yours!” Michelle roared it, anger defying gravity as spittle flew up into the tall girl’s face. “I said not to leave your room, and you come out screaming like a banshee. What the fuck?”

She grabbed Sweetie’s wrist, nails biting into her skin as they went toward the smaller bedroom. She let go and pointed at the air mattress, calling after Sweetie as the latter hurried into the room, “Do I need to remind you to stay like you’re a fucking dog?”

The door slammed shut.

“Oh, good, it’s not just me you’re a bitch to,” Kurt snorted.

Sweetie pressed her hands against her ears again, sitting on her bed.

Fuck Kurt. She wished the elevator would fall when he got on it and they could go back to the time before Kurt, their wonderful grace period. The party ruined everything. Kurt, the Heathers, those other people... They should all just...

No. Sweetie loved Michelle and Michelle loved her friends so Sweetie loved Michelle’s friends because Michelle loved them and Sweetie loved Michelle... But Sweetie was for Michelle and Michelle alone so don’t love the friends, only love Michelle...

What was the answer?

“No, no,” Sweetie mumbled to herself. Serve Michelle, don’t wish death on anyone. She was a pet, how dare she act like she was better than anyone? She lifted her hand near her face but lowered it, then raised it again to tug on her hair.

Why would she disobey a command? Of course Kurt wouldn’t harm Michelle. And now Michelle was upset with her.

Sweetie couldn’t imagine Michelle, or rather anyone, scrolling down a page, looking at her horsey, too long face and general... just seeing everything about her and going, “Perfect, I’ll have that one.”

Whatever it was, it was luck. Her face was too long and her feet were too big and her body was a weird shape and she couldn’t follow a simple instruction. And one return, on top of that! She was a refurb!

Oh, that was it. She would be refurbished, no doubt. Michelle was the best thing that had happened to her, and to lose her... And there would be no finding another buyer, not with that face and that record. But she wouldn’t want a new owner, no one but Michelle.

“People like me don’t usually have boxies,” Michelle had told her recently. It was during some free time together, and Michelle was combing Sweetie’s hair. Sweetie wanted to pause time and savor this moment.

“People like you?” Sweetie asked.

“College kids renting apartments. The middle class. You’d probably cost a bit more than you did but my dad cashed in a favor or something. Got you for my birthday.”

“A favor?”

“Yeah, some WRU employee owed him, so he pulled some strings and we got you cheap.” She’d set the comb down then and leaned until her chest pressed against Sweetie’s back, pushing with every breath as she wrapped her arms around Sweetie. Her breath had tickled Sweetie’s ear. “You know, even if you cost a fortune, you’d be worth every penny.”

Sweetie wrapped her arms around herself as Michelle’s voice trailed off in her memory. No real voices filled the silence.

She waited a heartbeat, and another, and another. She scarcely breathed. Was Kurt really gone? 

She stood by the door and listened. Was it all right to leave the room? She could taste her breath by now and wanted to brush her teeth, and she could stand to use the bathroom.

The door squeaked as she was leaving the bathroom after. She flinched, eyes squeezing shut.

Peeling them open, she almost felt... confident. She crept across the living room and to the kitchen. Just a glass of water for her dry throat. Fill, drink, wash, retreat. Don’t leave again until she’s given permission.

She stopped dead in her tracks. Michelle stood at the counter with her back to Sweetie, head bent. Sweetie could had gone back to her room, but sniffle cemented her feet to the ground.

“Miss Michelle?”

Michelle whirled around, gripping her phone so tightly it just about snapped in half. Sweetie couldn’t fully see her face in the fading evening light leaking in through the window, but she imagined tracks of tears and furrowed eyebrows, inviting eyes, no trace of anger. She would open her arms and tell Sweetie she forgave her.

“Miss Michelle, are you all right? I’m sorry for my disobedience and upsetting you so.”

Michelle’s  hand fumbled behind her before shooting forward. Sweetie didn’t have time to process before icy liquid soaked her and the plastic cup bounced off her shoulder. 

“Oh!” was all she could manage.

Michelle slammed her phone down and yanked open one cabinet after another, throwing plates and bowls and cups. Sweetie squeaked and dodged but didn’t quite dare run and retreat even as glass exploded inches from her head and bit into her feet.

“DID I SAY YOU COULD FUCKING LEAVE YOUR ROOM?” Michelle screamed. “Again, you pull this shit! AGAIN! You’re such a fucking failure! You’re a mistake! STOP APOLOGIZING!”

Sweetie clamped her mouth shut. A thick glass - oh no, was that Michelle’s favorite mug? - hit Sweetie right on her breastbone and she spluttered, trying to catch her breath.

Michelle seemed to take a moment to catch her breath too, a hand against her chest. Sweetie dropped to her knees and ignored the stabbing pin in them, frantically picking up glass shards. She kept dropping pieces and she was sure she was getting blood on the floor but this made her start picking them up faster.

“Oh, Sweetie.” Michelle took a step forward.

“Watch out, you’ll cut your feet!” Sweetie squeaked.

Michelle walked tiptoe and leaned to flick on the light behind Sweetie, looking down at her. She placed a hand on Sweetie’s back.

“Drop that glass, we can worry about that later.” Her voice was so soft now, and Sweetie hesitated to do so. “Go on, we can come back with a broom once you’re taken care of. Look what you’ve done to yourself.”

“I’m- I’m so sorry.” Sweetie carefully set the glass down, but a few pieces stayed stuck in her skin. It looked as if she was wearing red gloves.

“Yeah, I’m sure you are. I’m sorry too, you just made me so mad. Now you’ve made me do this and you got yourself all cut up.” Michelle helped her stand, tutting and stroking her hair as the movement shifted the glass in her knees and feet. “Oh, you’re bleeding all over. And you’ve got such a mess here.”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

“Shh, I know. Let’s get you fixed up. Then you can clean this mess and I’ll order takeout, yeah? No need to make a big dinner, you can take it easy.”

“I can clean the mess now.”

“No, I can’t have you work while you’re all cut up, Sweets.”

Sweetie breathed out, barely feeling a thing as they walked to the bathroom. The nickname hung in the air. Things were okay again.

[edourado]

Together, Ch. v

This chapter is dedicated to Mick, my little angel of a puppy, who saved me from spiralling into darkness a few months ago. I love and adore him with the entirety of my heart, and maybe that’s why he’s such a spoiled little boy. 

Also, who can spot the reference to one of my favorite movies?

Be safe. Wear masks. Wash your hands. Defund the police. Black lives matter. Much love. 

Frank came back home one day with a dog. 

Almost an hour after he had left for his run, he called Karen, saying that he had found an injured dog and took it to the vet, so he might be a while longer. 

When he did return, it was with a big pitbull, that did look injured. It’s paw was bandaged, and it looked frightened. 

“What did the vet say?” Karen asked while Frank put it on top of a mat in a corner of the kitchen. 

“Probably a fight dog.”

“Oh, no!” Karen gasped, looking at the poor thing, curled up in a ball. 

“Yeah. She had a few ticks, a few bruises, the worst was a bite in her paw.” 

“It’s a she?” 

“Yeah.” Frank looked at her, something in his eyes. 

“What?”

“She’s, uh… She’s pregnant.”

Karen lifted her brows, and Frank kept looking at her. And she just knew, from the way he did, that he wanted to keep the dog. 

After he explained that they had bathed her at the vet, removed the ticks and cleared her for fleas, he went to take his shower, and Karen stood there in the kitchen looking at the dog, not knowing what to think. 

She felt sorry for her, of course she did, but this was such a small apartment, and there would be puppies, Karen didn’t know how in the world they were going to manage Lord knows how many dogs, in the middle of a pandemic, no less!

After Frank’s shower, they sat down to have breakfast and talk about it. 

“I’m assuming there was no chip on her?” she said, pouring coffee for them. 

“No. Nothing on social media, either, as far as they could tell, and nobody called asking for a lost pitbull.”

“Yeah, I mean, if she was a fight dog, I doubt they’d be looking for her in any official capacity.”

Frank looked at the dog, who was snoozing next to the radiator after they fed her a bowl of the dog food Frank had bought. 

“You want to keep her, don’t you?”

He brought his eyes back to her, looking as if he had been caught, and sighed. 

“Yeah”, he said, smiling. “But I don’t know how you feel about that.”

Karen took a bite of toast. 

“I never… Considered getting a dog. And rescuing one, a pregnant one, in the middle of this quarantine thing sounds like a load of trouble, not to mention expensive.” She rested her face in her hand, looking towards the dog. “On the other hand, it seems cruel to not help. She’s injured, she’s pregnant, you found her in the street… If she really doesn’t have an owner, how could we send her away?”

“I mean, there’s… Shelters.”

The way he said it made it seem like it was physically painful for him just to consider that option.  

“But you wanna keep her.”

He drummed his fingers on the tabletop for a few seconds and then turned back to her. 

“Yeah.”

Karen blinked under his stare, and then it clicked. 

“Are you- Are you asking my permission?”

He smiled, so sweetly she wanted to kiss him. 

“It’s your apartment.”

“It’s ours”, she reminded him. “You live here, Frank, it’s as much yours as it’s mine. We should make these decisions together.”

“Ok”, he said, taking her hand and rubbing her wrist with his thumb. “Then I vote we keep her.”

She didn’t know why, but that made her laugh. Maybe it was the quickness of the answer, maybe it was the eagerness in his face, maybe it was how casual he was trying to keep his voice, or maybe it was the fact that presenting his vote still made it her decision, ultimately. 

“How about this?” she said after finishing her toast and refilling her mug with coffee. “We keep her for a while, she’s not in a good shape to keep moving around, from the street, to the vet, to here, to wherever. Help her with her wounds, take her to get the exams you said she needs, and wait. If she has an owner, a good one, not a dog ring owner, and they show up claiming her, we give her back.”

“And if nobody does?”

She paused. 

“Then we have another meeting”, she proposed, with an air of “I don’t know what else to do.”

Frank smiled, nodded, and picked up her hand to place a kiss on her knuckles.

“Ok.”

He called the vet a little before lunchtime, to ask if someone had gotten in touch asking for the pitbull, and the answer was “nothing yet”, but they had put out a message. 

On the next few days, he went out to buy proper food for her breed, he took her back to the vet to check on the puppies, he bought a dog bed. 

(“She needs to be comfortable, because of the pups. If someone shows up for her I’ll give them the bed.”)

Slowly, the dog started to trust that she was not gonna be harmed, started to walk around the apartment, look up at them curiously, let them pet her without flinching, she stopped hiding under the kitchen counter.

Instead of running, Frank would now go on multiple walks with her, and it was extra work, to wash the dog’s paws and take a shower every time they came back, but he didn’t complain once. 

After almost a month, she had regular visits to the vet, she had gained weight (both because she was being properly fed and because of the growing puppies inside her belly), she liked to sit with her chin on the windowsill, feeling the breeze on her face.

Karen had started to call her “lady”. They didn’t want to name her, in case she already had a name, but they needed to call her something other than “the dog”. At first, it was “this lady”, as in “has this lady eaten yet?”, and then Frank caught on, saying “I’m taking the lady out for her walk”, and then she was just lady. Lady, capital L.

One afternoon, Karen was sitting on the floor with her, trying to teach her to give her paw, and giving her treats when she got it right. 

“She’s really intelligent”, she said, after Lady put her paw on Karen’s outstretched hand, and she cooed and rubbed her face and moved to place a kiss on her head. “Good girl, Lady!”

Frank had noticed how Karen slowly fell for the dog. She was a tad distant at first, and then she started worrying, asking about the exams results, and then she was always checking on her, taking photos, ordering expensive organic shampoos online (“I don’t want to hurt the puppies, what if the chemicals are bad for them?”), talking to her, explaining what her book was about, settling in the couch together to watch a movie while Frank hung out in his hammock, carrying her out to the fire escape to swing on the hammock a little, smiling and cooing when the dog closed her eyes, enjoying the wind on her face. 

“You keep that up”, Frank said, from the couch, while Karen kept asking for Lady’s paw. “And you’ll have a hard time if someone shows up to claim her.”

“Oh, nobody’s gonna claim her! It’s been a month!”

“You sure?”

“Her photo’s been making rounds on social media, and I’ve had people offering to take her, but nobody said they were her owners. I think she’s here to stay.”

Frank’s eyebrows went up, and he smiled in spite of himself when both Karen and Lady laid down on the floor, face to face, and Karen rubbed the dog’s swollen belly delicately. 

“You mean that?”

“I do”. Her voice was sing-song, sweet, cooing, full of love. “Of course I do, Frank, look at her. She’s ours, she’s family, of course she’s staying, aren’t you, sweet Lady, aren’t you?”

“No meeting needed?”

She looked back at Frank.

“Why? Did you change your mind?”

“Nope.”

“So that’s that”, she said, facing the dog again, who lifted her chin when Karen scratched her there. “She’s staying. Forever.”

Before she could change her mind, Frank texted the vet who had been treating her to tell her they had decided to keep the dog. “Fantastic!” the doctor replied. “Congratulations!”

The very next day, just before lunch, they heard whimpers: Lady was having her puppies.

Frank called the veterinarian and she walked them through the process. Soon after, there were four puppies nursing eagerly, and Karen cried real tears of joy. 

“You did so good”, she said, petting Lady’s head gently, kissing her forehead. “You did so good, Lady, you’re so brave.”

Frank had a picture of that moment on his phone: Lady with her head on Karen’s leg, the puppies nursing, Karen with her hair blocking her face, looking down and them. 

It was interesting to see Karen’s transition in regards to the dogs. For someone who was so reluctant at first, she embraced the idea with big enthusiasm. 

They had, for example, agreed that their bed was off limits to the dogs. One day, when the puppies were almost a week old, Frank came back from his run to find Karen snuggled up in bed with Lady and the four little babies, all six of them sleeping soundly. 

“They were crying”, she explained sleepily when Frank got back into bed with them. “There was nothing I could do.”

So now, everyday, he went out to run, leaving the pups on their own bed on the floor, and came back to find them on his own bed. 

And Karen stood for her decision everyday. 

.:.

Soon enough, the puppies all had homes. Curtis got the first one, and it took almost no convincing at all.

“He’s cute, man”, he said over the video call, while Karen held the bigger of all the puppies in front of the camera. “How old is he?”

“Almost two weeks”, Frank said while the puppy sniffed the screen of the phone, curious. 

“Aw, look at him. What’s up, little man?” Curtis said, smiling as the puppy licked the screen of Frank’s phone. “He’s got a name?”

“Not yet. We can’t keep them all, I thought maybe you’d want one.”

Curtis scratched his cheek, thinking.

“You found the mom on the street?”

“Yeah, she was in a rough shape. Our best guess is that she used to be a fight dog, and she was either abandoned or ran away.”

“That’s fucked up. Lemme see her.”

They talked for a little while longer, and he could feel Curtis warming up to the idea of keeping one of the puppies. 

“We don’t want to sell them”, Karen said, holding one in each hand, sitting on the floor. “Much less send them to shelters, so we thought maybe finding them homes with our friends. And you, the honest loner of a Marine’s medic, we thought you’d take good care of him.”

“See, now you’re playing dirty. Why you gotta appeal to my caretaker side like that?”

In the end, he agreed to keep him. And even named him. 

“I’ll call him Pete”, he said, smirking

“Funny”, Frank said, even though he didn’t use the alias anymore. 

The next call was to David. Sarah was the one who picked up. 

“Ooh, look how sweet!”

She mused about the puppies for  a while, and then Zach got into the room, saw them, and yelled for his sister to come down to the living room. 

Karen smiled conspiratorially at Frak when Leo and Zach’s faces shared the screen, over the moon about the tiny puppies.

“We’d have to ask your father”, Sarah tried to reason.

“Mom, look at that one, look at that one! Mom, please?”

Sarah ended up summoning David, who blinked at the phone. 

“You got dogs?!” he asked Frank, who explained the story. 

“Oh, no!” Leo cried, horrified. “Dad, we have to take one, please, please!”

“I can have one and you can have another”, Zach suggested to his sister. 

“You want to get two dogs?!” Sarah interjected. “Who’s gonna take care of the mess if we get two dogs?!”

“We will!” Leo jumped. “We promise, mom, we’ll take care of them, walk them and feed them, everything, please, please, please!”

Sarah and David looked at each other.

“We do have the space”, Sarah mused.

“What if they… Crap everywhere?” David asked. 

“We’ll clean it up!” Zach jumped. 

“They can be potty trained”, Leo offered, eager. “And they’re babies, so it wouldn’t be difficult!”

“Let me take another look at them”, David asked. 

In the end, they said they needed to talk, to decide if it would be a good idea or not, and promised to call later with their decision. 

Some 40 minutes later, while Karen was in the hammock with all the puppies, they called back, and when Frank picked up, it was to Leo’s excited face. 

“They said yes!” she told him, elated, and Frank smiled. “They said we can keep two of them!”

Frank filmed the puppies again, for them to pick which ones they wanted, and it was decided that Leo would have the only girl in the litter, and Zach would get one of the boys.

“I can’t wait!” Leo said, after saying goodbye and giving the phone back to David. 

“Bye, Frank!” Zach said, more eager than Frank has ever seen him, smiling and everything. 

“Bye, buddy.”

“That was entrapment”, David said, in a low voice, when the kids were out of ear shot. “What the hell am I gonna do with two dogs, you jackass?”

“Raise them?” Frank suggested. 

“You’re gonna love them, David”, Karen said. “I promise, they’re so sweet.”

“If one of them bite me”, he said, “I’m gonna bite you, Frank, I don’t even care.”  

.:.

They paused to decide who would get the remaining puppy. 

“The logical choice would be Matt”, Karen said, rocking gently on the hammock with the babies while Frank sat by the window, on the fire escape, Lady’s head on his knee. “Single, lives alone, a good size apartment, he’s active. But I don’t know if he’d want one.”

“I’m not sure I’d want him to have one of my dogs”, Frank said, casually, and Karen rolled her eyes. 

“You two need to figure out a way to live with each other.”

“What about Nelson?”

“I doubt Marci would let him keep one. Their apartment is too fancy, too full of breakable things. Maybe Dinah?”

“Nah, she’s never home.”

They went through a list of names, all of them crossed out for some reason or another. 

“I mean, we could… You know, we could keep him”, Frank said, picking the puppy in question from his spot on Karen’s belly, big hand scooping him up easily. 

She blinked at him. 

“You think so?”

“I think so.” 

A few weeks later, when the puppies were old enough to be separated from Lady, Karen and Frank drove to deliver Pete to Curtis, who got the box and waved at them from his building’s door - since they couldn’t get too close, social distancing and everything. 

They left the box with a bow on the Lieberman’s front door, and Frank honked once to signal their arrival. Leo and Zach yanked the door open and kneeled by the box, and Frank smiled when they took their puppies out and ran to the front yard to play with them. 

“Thanks, guys!” Yelled Leo, and they waved at her from the other side of the street, leaning against the car. 

“Come visit when this is all over”, Sarah said, hand shielding her eyes from the sun, the whole family now out of the house, looking at the newcomers.

“You got it”, Frank nodded. 

They took Lady and the last remaining puppy for a drive, and then a walk by the water, Karen holding the tiny guy, since he was too young and a few shots short of being allowed to walk on his own. 

“So what’s this guy’s name?”

Frank asked, hand wrapped around Lady’s leash, the three of them walking leisurely. 

Karen looked at the puppy, who tried to nibble on her mask. 

“I don’t know.” She thought for a few seconds, and then cuddled him. “It’s too soon, he hasn’t told me his name yet.”

But she called him by these cutesy words, like “buhba”, “munchkin”, or “cookie”, and one day she landed on “Pooka”, and it stuck. 

Frank would argue that “Pooka” wasn’t an actual name, but the pup seemed to like it. When Karen lied down on the floor with him, he would make his wobbly way over to her and was already responding to the sound of the name.

So Pooka it was. Lady and Pooka. Frank and Karen. 

His tiny, mismatched, traumatized, fighter of a family. 

And he loved them. 

[lightningcritter]

My friends, there is no one I would rather go into battle with

Summary:            

“We leave no one behind.” Ladybug declares in a conspiratorial whisper as she drapes her arms over Viperion and Le Chat Noir’s shoulders, leaning in. Her brilliant, genetically impossible blue eyes burn brightly in the sunrise, magnetic in their determination, compassion and cleverness. Their leader.

“Of course.” Viperion breathes, his small smile widening as he throws an arm around Ryuko’s shoulders, his breathing calm and confident despite their situation. She smirks, her teeth a brilliant flash of white in the dark room, her amber eyes shining molten gold in the rising sunlight with an unwavering strength, the very defiance that spurred them to action in their darkest days.

Rena Rouge and Carapace share genuine, yet roguish grins as they clap arms over each other’s shoulders. Their muscles are coiled with power, their grips unyielding and firm, grounding everyone in their team. Chat Noir squeezes Carapace’s forearm, his glowing green eyes a comfort to everyone who looks at him.

“On to a new day.” Ladybug says, watching as the sun rises to bathe them in a faint golden glow, her voice hard. “A new fight. We stand our ground.” She takes a moment to look between every member of her team, her face softening. “You are the best team I could ask for.”

AO3 Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28440024/chapters/69691914

Hello! I'm sorry for posting it so late. Happy Holidays! @tiredaroaceperson  @mlsecretsanta ​ This is more of a found family focused piece with a little bit of angst, a little bit of fluff and a lot of action!! I hope you enjoy it :DD

This does take place during the winter and close to Christmas so dw! The first chapter is a flashback.

Chapter 1: Enter the Dragon

"Can you see all of Paris from the Eiffel Tower?"

A small hum replies.

“The Eiffel Tower is at least 300 metres tall, Katsuo-kun, but I don’t know if you can see all of Paris. It’s not a small city. Speak French, you need to practice it”

“It feels a lot smaller than Tokyo.”

Kagami couldn’t help but disagree. While Tokyo has towering skyscrapers and buildings of all sizes, the blaring colors of neon signs, never-ending stream of crowds and clustering shops and restaurants stacked over each other felt much more crowded and cramped than the wide expanse of Parisian skies. Everything felt so much more open and freeing. Even in cramped areas with winding chimneys and towers of gray brick and multistorey grey-blue roofs, the sky was never fully covered and felt so free.

If anything, the only complaint she really had about their move to Paris is the smell of Canal Saint-Martin. It’s the worst in the summer, especially when there is little breeze. Such as today. She squints at the overly sunny day today and wonders if she should ask Katsuo if he wants ice cream.

“I wanna see it!" Kagami looks down from the sky to Katsuo’s finger, smiling when she realizes he was pointing at the Eiffel Tower in the back. It truly is beautiful, especially at night. Kagami sometimes wonders what it’d be like to be at the very top, fingers braced against the thin railing, the wind buffeting her clothes. How free that would feel? Or would it feel scary, like you might be blown away the moment you relax your clenched hands, caught in a storm that sprung on you without your permission, a loss of control that you can only numb yourself to?

"I will discuss with mother and father so we can all go together another day. If we go right now, you’ll be too scared to come back down and cause another scene.”

Kagami can’t help but laugh at Katsuo’s whine as he suddenly stops on the sidewalk. He does his impression of a frown, his adorably chubby cheeks squished to his chest as he crosses his arms petulantly.

"Oh? Are we conveniently forgetting yesterday’s ferris wheel now?" Kagami mimics her brother as she also crosses her arms. His eyebrows furrow inward at her lack of sympathy and he frowns more, stubbornly shuffling to turn his back to her, his arms tightening in his stance.

Kagami hides an unladylike snort that as she circles to his other side, unable to resist a smile. “Don’t you remember? You got so scared-” She follows him as Katsuo shuffles to turn his back to her again. “-That you wouldn’t let go of the pole until mother arrived!” A slight giggle weasels its way into her speaking. “You went on two extra rides for no reason!”

“But the Eiffel Tower isn’t moving, it’s just a dumb triangle.” He mumbles and Kagami ruffles her brother's hair, now broadly smiling as he whines and bats at her hand.

"Don’t worry, another day  otouto. ” She promises. Katsuo peeks up at her from behind his bangs. “Why don’t we stop frowning and pet Maron?”

Katsuo quickly relents, gleefully squatting to gently pet the tiny white dog. Kagami felt a bit of pride fill her heart when he carefully pets Maron the way Kagami had shown him. Said dog stopped to investigate a lampstand, sniffing at it curiously, floppy ear flicking.

"What's convently?" He asks, giggling at the way his fingers disappeared into the soft fur.

"Conveniently. It means to do something that takes little effort." Kagami gently tugs at the leash as she takes his hand and pulls Katsuo away from the lampstand. Maron starts barking at it and Kagami sighs, tugging more insistently.

"Maron, we need to go, your barking is going to.."

A large boom shakes the ground, effectively cutting off whatever she was going to say. While large booms were alarming in general, this one didn't sound too far off. The part of her brain that was used to quick thinking estimated that it was maybe two streets away. Other pedestrians around her were also stopping, and most were already on-guard and straining to hear tell-tale sounds of fighting. While akuma appearances usually happened at night or evenings, it wasn't unheard of for them to activate during the day. Maron' barking seemed much louder as the chatter of Parisian streets stopped, the tiny yaps magnified in the silence, filling the tense air.

"Kagami?" Katsuo asks, squeezing her hand as he steps closer, his other hand fisting into her red varsity jacket. Kagami feels her heart pounding as there was another boom, sounding even closer this time. Katsuo whimpers. A couple cafe signs fell to the ground and potted flowers were sent crashing to the ground. Some people screamed, but it quickly quieted in the suffocating stillness as palpable fear hung in the air.

There were faint screaming and deafening sirens, and a blinding flash of magical light.

Definitely an akuma.

She quickly squats down, suddenly aware of how loud Maron was, trying to soothe Maron who had quieted into snarls, the action seeming foreign to her as panic and adrenaline began to bubble in her chest.

"Okay. We- We need to get away from here.” Her darting eyes latch onto the vast expanse of green shrubbery at the end of the sloped street. “The gardens! Katsuo, quickly, we need to go to the gardens." She shoots to her feet, pulling Katsuo into an unsteady speed walk as she hurriedly weaves through the crowd. She felt uncomfortable out in the open.

It seems that a lot of Parisians have a similar train of thought as the odd stillness quickly breaks into a flurry of shouting and motion as people dart into nearby shops whose owners were pulling down metal gates or swarming down the street in a hurry away from the light show taking place two streets away. Just as she predicted. Many explosions began to sound off, the sounds just barely overpowering the chaos of a panicking crowd. Kagami tugs her brother closer to her in fear of him being trampled, just managing to not stumble over her own feet, her knuckles white on the leash as Maron bounds down the street.

The fears of everyone on the commercial street came true as an Akuma rose into the sky, their vapid cackling easily carrying over the noise of the panicking crowd. A manic, power-hungry grin split their face, the villain positively glowing at their newfound power as they blasted magic from their scepter at presumably a Hero of Paris.

“You know what? Hawkmoth is right. I have been holding back!”

With that, they twirled their scepter into a glowing amber circle, summoning an orb into existence and it sped away into the other street with a piercing whistle. Kagami felt panic shoot through her at the unnatural sound. This time, everyone felt the explosion rather than hearing it as the earth quakes. Many scream, shielding themselves from stray plates of food and potted plants falling from upper buildings.

Kagami feels a horrified gasp tear out of her when Katsuo loses his footing. He cries out, falling to the ground despite her tight grip. A couple other people had fallen as well, struggling to get up as the evacuation started to become more frantic.

In sheer panic, she just scoops up her brother who clutches to her and breaks into a run.

The Akuma notices the panic of the people running from their power and a wicked smile lights their face as they now aim their scepter right at the people, charging another explosive orb. His scepter is suddenly knocked out of his hand by a gray blur as something big and black tackles him in the air, flashing claws digging into Akuma's furious face.

Katsuo mutely watched the scepter fall from over his sister’s shoulder, horrified as the ball of light still unreleased from the scepter continued growing until it touched the middle of the street. “KAG-” He shrills, only to be cut off by the large explosion that bloomed violently from the cobblestone.

Kagami had a split second where she processed Katsuo thrashing in her tightening arms, his rapid heartbeat disappearing from her hands. Then a small sun exploded directly at their feet, and Kagami was aware of her body being lurched away from solid ground into the air. Like the world had flipped upside down under her feet. She was vaguely aware of a dirt covered sky, then the green bottom of a dirty overhang, then smoke. Before she could react, her head smashed into something hard and white bursts in the darkness of her shut eyes.

The searing ache in her skull was too much for her to even THINK, much less withstand the piercing ringing that filled the air. But slowly, slowly, the pain fades just enough for Kagami to take a shuddering breath and force her eyelids open.

Multiple screams of fright and pain surrounded her in an odd haze when Kagami finally opened her eyes to the smoke and dust hanging slow motion in the air. She finally notices that her ears are ringing, and something warm and wet sliding down her cheek. But the fact that most people were unhurt from the explosion itself proved its magical nature. She stands up on the staircase that she had fallen into, where most of the unsteady bricks under her feet had been torn from the sidewalk. Her sides and her arm were throbbing, her cardigan torn. Her attention was drawn to Maron’s barking, who noses insistently at Katsuo who lay sprawled on the ground unmoving.

Fear struck Kagami’s heart like it never had before and she ran to him, crumbling to her knees as she gently shook him. She remembers how to breathe when she finds that he was just curled up in fright, his eyes tightly squeezed with his hands clutched over his head.

“ Otouto , we need to go.” She speaks gently, her hands trembling from relief and her chest heaving from anxious breaths as she picks him up onto his feet. He stumbles a bit, his foot knocking into the glowing gold scepter on the floor.

A lightning strike of fear roots her to the spot as she freezes. “We need to go.” Kagami whispers, her wide eyes locked on the weapon.

An enraged yell startles her again as she looks up. The Akuma was back in the skies, clearly looking for his scepter as he flew up the street, his injured face twisted with fury. His head swings their way as molten gold eyes meet her terrified grey eyes and urgency shoots through her veins at the sheer rage on his face, blood staining his teeth red. His mouth unhinges with the most beastly roar Kagami has ever heard in her life.

“KATSUO, YOU NEED TO GO.” She screams, pushing Maron’s leash into Katsuo’s hands and shoving him away as she scoops up the scepter like a baton and pelts down the street in the opposite direction.

She hears a crash as the Akuma just barely misses her head and flies right into the flower shop. She almost stops, terrified for her brother, but she hears his unmistakable voice yelling for her and the loud barking of Maron as Katsuo was pulled away from the scene by kind strangers who didn’t want to see a child’s corpse alongside the rubble.

Kagami runs like she never had before, like her life depended on it- which it really might. Passing by a mirror display in front of a boutique, she catches a glimpse of the Akuma stepping out from the building, staring right at her with the most hateful look she has ever seen in her life as they lift off the ground and begin to chase. She forces herself to look away and instead turns sharply around the corner heading in the direction of the original explosions hoping to run into the heroes. Those slashes on his face are reminiscent of the deep gouges of Discordant, the current Black Cat hero. He must be nearby. He must be able to help.

Shoving her worry for Katsuo away, she tries to clear her mind of any more anxieties and just focus on sprinting and getting faster and faster. The world fell away from fast moving concrete and passing buildings. She was afraid of stopping even when she hears shouts and sounds of fighting behind her, the close sounds only spurring her on. Her heart thunders in her chest, the roar of her adrenaline drowning out even the shrill from the akuma’s explosion. She was only faintly aware of the blood streaming from her head, splattering the concrete.

Kagami was an athlete, an amazing one she might brag in any other situation, and has never to this date hesitated from the responsibility and duty that comes with every trophy, every win, every move she made in her family’s name. She will try her best to keep the scepter, the source of power away, from the Akuma.

She just prays that she keeps her life.

[blake-belladonna-defence-force]

Ember/Shroud

Okay. I decided to try my hand at an au. Does it even exist yet?

It was mostly born from wanting a more serious reason as to why Blake was scared of dogs. I kind of feel bad.

I’m just going to call it “Emotional Support Soul AU” for now. Is this something people would like to see more of? Is it even a good au? Eh, it was a fun writing exercise at any rate.

Things to note:

Adam (abusive ex) is in jail.

Blake has come a long way but has residual trauma and depression

COMMUNICATION ISSUES

Yang does have a moment of being a lil forgetful and maybe a touch insensitive but she tries to make it better

Blake and Yang were roommates in college who decided to move in together

This is mostly because of Blake’s cat

They don’t know why but being too far apart physically hurts

So oblivious

Adam probably ran a dog fight ring or trained them to attack humans because he’s a goat lookin ass

Faunas are a thing

Set in Vale

Apparently soul pets or bonded animals or whatever are things here

The animal you were always meant to own/your guardian

Even more special if it’s your soulmates pet and it adopts you

Having your soulmates bonded animal approve of you is the highest complement

Both animals getting along and approving of each human in the relationship is rare and usually means they’re soulmates or something

They will often act as wingmen

It’s how Blake and Yang truly bonded as friends

Ember is a stray that Blake rescued as a kitten. When she finds out Yang is her cat’s bonded human, she’s surprised because: blonde party girl. She tried to keep Ember; does not go well.

Yang tried to keep Ember; does not go well

She refused to leave Blake but demanded that her bonded human stay

Even the cat ships them

————————————————————

“…Yang. What is that.”

“It’s a dog, Blake. Ya know, canine? Canis Familaris?”

“I know what a dog is, Xiao Long. I want to know why it’s in our fucking apartment.”

Uh oh. This was bad. Very bad. When Blake was mad she yelled. It was a part of her passionate nature; an injustice is done and Blake will have your head. But it was when she got quiet and spoke in that dangerously low tone of voice that you should probably start backing up. And never mention that’s she’s actually really pretty when she’s mad. Additionally, she was swearing and Blake only really swore when she was really pissed off. And apparently bringing home a Newfoundland equaled really pissed off the cat faunus.

“She needed a home. The poor baby was all alone, isn’t that right, Shroud?” Yang cooed adoringly at the friendly giant laying in front of their sofa.

“That is not a baby. That is a monster that I am sure will probably kill my cat.” Shroud whined and laid her head down, the dog almost seemed hurt. What am I supposed to do about Ember, Yang?!” Almost as on cue, a slender ginger tabby slunk her way into the living room. The cat immediately trotted over to Yang, headbutting her ankles fondly, completely ignoring her actual owner altogether. Before Yang could bend down to let the cat sniff her hands, Ember locked onto Shroud. She slowly walked over sniffed the giant nose that was presented to her. What truly surprised the two girls, however, was when Ember butted her head under the giant dog’s jaw before curling up against the dogs stomach and glancing at them as if to say “this is my bed now”.

“Ember, you traiter. I saved you from the streets when you were a kitten. I raised you and loved you like my own and this is how you repay me?!” Yang wished that she could say that Blake was joking but the cat faunus could be quite… extra when she wanted to be. To say the least; she was not pleased.

Yang walked over and scooped Ember up, not without complaint, and held her out to Blake.

“Aw, c’mon mum. Can we keep her? I’ve only just met her and I love her!” She pitched her voice, wiggling Ember around as though the cat were talking. This resulted in a bitten hand and a very disgruntled cat.

“You earned that. I pay half the rent, Yang. Couldn’t you have spoken to me about this first? You know how I feel about dogs.”

“Yeah, well, that’s kind of why I didn’t.”

“So you decided to ignore how I felt and go behind my back?” Yang winced. When you put it like that…

“Look, I’m sorry that I didn’t talk to you but my old high school buddy needed her gone ASAP. I couldn’t just leave her.” Yang made sure to look her friend in the eyes. She’d learned a long time ago that eye contact was important to the other woman and Yang always tried to make sure that she knew that she had Yang’s attention.

Blake didn’t say anything for a long while.

“Fine. Whatever.” She muttered, faunus ears pinned against her head, before turning on her heel and heading to her room. Yang cringed as she heard Blake’s door slam. Their uni days had taught her when to push and pull and when to back off. This was very much a back off situation. Even if she found it hard to understand why somebody would be so deadset against a dog.

///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Hours later, she was laying on the floor cuddling with both cat and dog when she heard Blake walk into the kitchen. She immediately headed over and stopped short. She knew Blake. She knew what she looked like when she was ecstatic, what she looked look when she was about to kick somebody’s ass.

Yang also knew what it looked like when one of her friend’s depressive episodes were kicking in. So the sight of a drained, red eyed and shuffling Blake was not new to her. It always broke her heart to see one of the most amazing, incredible people she’s ever met hurt like this. But to know that she was the potential cause…

“Blake?” Yang had never sounded, or felt, so small. Blake breathed deeply for a moment before turning to Yang.

“He used to keep dogs. Trained them to bite and attack. I don’t exactly have pleasant memories of them.” When Blake spoke, carefully holding her hip as it ached, it hit her hard. Of course, that was in the police report when they finally managed to get Blake’s ex away from her for good. Why the hell didn’t she put two and two together?!

“Shit, Blake. I am so sorry. I don’t know why I didn’t- it doesn’t matter. I obviously hurt you and I am so, so sorry.” Yang was close to tears herself at this point. She had seen how that man had broken her friend. Watched as Blake pulled herself from the shadows and stood tall and continued to repeat that process every single time he knocked her down. Now that she was finally free of him, she could be who she was meant to be. But that didn’t mean that he didn’t still haunt her. It hurt to see the pain in the other girl’s eyes but she kept eye contact. “I’ll find her a new home as soon as possible, I swear.”

Maybe that would have been it. Maybe she would have rehomed Shroud and they would have been done with it. But the canine in question suddenly walked into the kitchen and made her way to Blake.

“Just stay still, Blake. It’s okay, I won’t let her hurt you. I promise.” Blake was frozen but before Yang could grab her, Shroud sat at Blake’s feet and stared up at her. Yang paused. It was eerily similar to how Ember had decided that Yang was her bonded person. Blake’s breathing started to even out as she gazed at Shroud, who then proceeded to flip over onto her back and wiggle, tongue and jowls flopping comically.

“Hi?” Blake’s uncertainty would have been adorable had it not been for the situation. As the dog shifted, so too did Blake, her gaze becoming more curious than fearful. There was a patch of white on the dog’s black chest, seeming to form the shape of some kind of flower. “I think the fates are fucking with me.” Blake mumbled. “Because that is a Belladonna plant.”

Yang blinked. Blake met her gaze and before too long, the two women were giggling. Perhaps it was the fact that tensions were running high or perhaps Shroud had somehow known how to break the ice with Blake. Because when Blake spoke next, she left Yang surprised.

“Keep her.” Blake inhales shakily. “But please, for the love of God; train her properly. I can’t live like that again, Yang.” Yang immediately nodded and then, unable to help herself, ran over to hug Blake.

Only to be blocked by a large furry body. Shroud wasn’t growling, merely acting as a barrier. The dog had apparently thought that Yang was going to hurt Blake and was already trying to defend her. Wasn’t there a meme online about that? “I’ve only had Blake for one day but if anything happened to her, I’d kill everyone in this room and then myself.” Evidently, that was what was going on here. Not that Yang could blame the dog. Bonded animals did tend to be extremely protective of their person, if that’s what this was.

“Uh, Blake? I think that you have a body guard now.”

“Oh.” There was a light sniffle as the emotions of the past few hours crashed over Blake. “I think that that’s fair since you stole my cat.” Yang snorted, side stepping around Shroud carefully before wrapping Blake up in a hug.

“Not my fault she’s my soul pet or whatever the hell they’re called.” Yang defended herself. “I can’t believe that I’m going to need to ask a dog for permission to hug you.” Blake giggled weakly, burying her head into Yang’s neck.

“Just… lets take it slow, yeah? I’m not going to become a dog person over night. Even if she is my bonded animal.” Yang hummed. Well, that confirmed it. Most people could tell once eye contact is made. They felt a sort of unspoken promise; the creature would protect their sworn master, so to speak. The bonded animal would then act as a sort of body guard. It was useful many years ago but now it was more about them being glorified emotional support companions. Sometimes the matchups were odd. Yang had honestly beloved hers would be a golden retriever, not her best friend’s cat. And apparently Blake’s bonded animal was her best friend’s dog, despite the fear that she held for them.

Maybe Blake would never love dogs. But Shroud could at least be one dog that Blake could at least be comfortable with. After all, people were usually gifted the animal that they needed the most.

///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

It was a late afternoon when Yang realised she had been right. It had taken weeks, even months worth of training and slow progress between the two but eventually, Yang was forced to admit that Shroud was meant to never hers. Just like Ember was never meant to Blake’s.

She had just come home from work and had called out to Blake when she heard distant singing coming from the kitchen. Rounding the corner revealed a very surprising sight. One that made Yang melt.

Shroud had her paws on Blake’s shoulder as the young woman danced them around the kitchen singing along to the radio. Those gym sessions were really starting to pay off for Blake.

“You could be my Queen, I could be your dream. Oh, let me be your bumblebee.” Blake giggled as Shroud barked at her. It was a sign of how far they had come considering that she used to flinch at such. “Yang loves this song. Now that I mention her...I think that you might be a much better dancer than your mother, Shroud. Even if she doesn’t quite realise that staring is rude.”

Yang blinked. She’d been caught.

“Sorry, I’m just stupidly proud of you. So proud, in fact, that I’m going to ignore that jab at my awesome dancing abilities and my pride.” Yang glanced down at Shroud, who had dropped to all fours. “You going to say hi, girl, or are you just going to abandon me for a pretty lady?” Shroud almost seemed to glare at her before looking up at Blake who nodded solemnly in return. Yang let out more than a few grumbles about traitorous mutts and reached out to pet Shroud. Until she noticed an envelope in the dog’s collar. She rolled her eyes; they had taken to using the poor dog as a messenger, after all. Opening the letter revealed a reservation for one of the new high end restaurants in Vale. She looked up at Blake in confusion.

“It’s that new faunus cuisine place I told you about. You’re free Friday at six, yeah?” Blake was smirking and leaning up against the bench.

“Um, yes, why?”

“Because if you won’t make the first move beyond telling me I’m “feisty” and “pretty when I’m mad”, then I will.” Blake narrowed her eyes. “Don’t think that I haven’t noticed, Yang.”

“Oh. Am I that obvious?” Yang swallowed nervously.

“Yes. Also your sister and her “BFF” talked to me and have me informed to, and I quote, ‘take your pining, queer ass out before Weiss kills somebody.” I’m still not sure if Weiss wants me to date you or snipe you.” Yang felt her eye twitch. Those two...

“I mean, I’m more than happy to go on date with you and all, Blake, but I kind of want to kill them, now.”

“Want to pretend like nothing’s happened and mess with them for a couple of weeks?”

“How the hell are you so perfect?” Blake simply laughed and walked out of the kitchen with Shroud in tow.

“And of course the stupid dog follows her.” Feeling a bump against her ankles, Yang looked down. Seeing Ember, Yang quickly bent to hold her up to her face.

“But as long she keeps smiling, she can keep stealing from me. I mean, your mum already has my heart and soul, what else could I possibly lose?” She asked the cat quietly. Ember purred, apparently content with the results of her meddling from way back when. Yang smiled. It always made it a little more special when your bonded animal approved of your partner. If she was being honest with herself, so she was on cloud nine. Well, up until she heard Blake’s voice float down the hall.

“I heard that. Oh, you are so never living that one down, Yang!”