#he's a sweetheart. but he makes himself understood to anyone who wants to understand

[louehvolution]

.

[lovexjoe]

how wwould armando react if he is in love with the reader, but she shows no sign of feeling the same way, (he's so devoted when it comes to the reader) And he'd like to know if she feels the same way, I wish it would end in a passionate way (you know what I mean) 🔥

New follower 💗💗♥️🌷

Amor Prohibido

A/N: This was meant to be short, but I took the idea and ran with it. I hope you guys enjoy🤍 I also flip around with pov; sorry in advance.

Warning: Forbidden love, angst, violence, smut (idk what else im missing 😭)

Music to listen to while reading:

Fuck Love - XXXtentacion ft Trippie Redd.

SAD - XXXtentacion

John Redcorn - SIR

Y/N has been working with AMMO for 2 years now.

Kelly was the firecracker and you were the reserved sweetheart. Just don’t let nobody cross a line cause you’ll turn into an explosive real quick.

Mike and Marcus loved having you around, you brought the balance to the squad.

Being Kelly’s little sister, you were protected by everybody, including your least favorite person: Armando.

You didn’t understand him at all. Stone cold killer trying to turn a new leaf? I don’t think so

The moment Mike brought him into Kelly’s house unannounced was the first time ANYONE has seen you explode.

“What the fuck is he doing here?! He needs to leave NOW” Kelly points her gun directly at Armando.

Without even a hesitation you pulled your pocket knife out and slammed Armando against the wall. Shoving the knife up to his neck, close enough to draw blood.

“I know who you are and if you’re working with us. Do not make us regret it or you WILL be my first body count” Y/N spoke with venom. She couldn’t stand that Captain wasn’t here because of him. All the trouble he's caused. Everyone stops and stares at the two of you.

“Holy shit! Since when did Y/N turned into a Cobra?” Marcus jokes causing the air to lighten up a bit.

“Puedes confiar en mi” (you can trust me) Armando says as he takes in how beautiful her eyes are. He fully understood where she was coming from. He knew he had to show everyone that he wasn’t a stone cold killer: it was his mother who trained him.

From that day forward Armando could not stop thinking about you.

Kelly with hesitation moved Armando into the guest bedroom, across from Y/N room. Y/N wasn't too happy about it, but she gave him a chance to redeem himself.

He was quiet, respectable and kept to himself. Observing everyone like he always does. Observing his new favorite person, you.

8 months later

Armando was up late after a mission with AMMO. He was on standby as Y/N flirts with the drug dealer to distract him. She looked beautiful under the club lights. Her tan skin was glowing and her curly hair framing her face. The dress she was wearing took his breath away. He's never seen her in this light. She's usually in a tomboy attire just cause it was comfortable and convenient. This was the first time she wasn't on tech duty, Dorn's therapist recommended he took a rest from the action so Y/N volunteered herself. He was happy she was here, but it drove him crazy that she had to flirt with this old fuck. The man trailed his hands along her exposed back. It took everything in Armando not to put a bullet through his head and accept whatever consequences that came with it. Shortly Rita appeared along with Mike to arrest the drug dealer, putting an end to his torture. Y/N headed back into the van with Armando following behind her: watching her back just in case. Mike took notice that he never left her side. He knew his son, because they were exactly alike and hoped Y/N could bring a softer side out of him. Their friendship was forming, Y/N saw a side to Armando that nobody else did and she finally trusted him. She would never admit to it though, because with that trust comes with other feelings she wanted to lock away. It felt wrong to her. More like forbidden.

After they got home, everyone parted ways to their designated space. He's been thinking about her in that dress all night. It was 3am and sleep was definitely not in the air for tonight. He started to collect the dishes he had scattered around the room, irritated he let it get a bit messy. As he exits his room he notices the door to Y/N's bedroom was open. The kitchen light was on, the sink running as Y/N was clearing up the dishes that piled up the sink for over a week. The whole house was slacking on cleanliness.

"Can't sleep?" He asks as he sets his dishes on the counter next to her. Now leaning against it as she shook her head looking up at him. His heart skipped a beat taking in her nightly attire. A baby blue silk nightie that hugged her curves. Her curly mane was up in a messy bun and her glasses set low on her nose as she didn't bother fixing it.

"I've been so restless for the past two weeks" She shook her head, trying to make sense of why. She signals her head for him to put the dishes away as she washes; He complies. Armando would comply to anything that you said honestly. He loved that it was just the two of you right now with no interruptions. They never talked much, just enjoyed each other's presence. Maybe tonight could end differently he thought to himself.

"You did a great job tonight amor. It was nice having you away from the computer." He places the last dish in the cabinet and proceed to grab a bottle of alcohol walking over to the couch. Everything in you was screaming to go back to your room and not entertain this conversation further, but your body was already seated next to him. He took a sip from the bottle without even a struggle, handing the bottle off to you. You took a huge gulp knowing you need some liquid coverage if you're gonna stay up with him at these hours. You knew why you were restless for the past two weeks, it was the exact time when you started developing these other feelings for Armando. The best thing you can do is DENY DENY DENY. After all he's still a bad person right? A few months doesn't mean anything...right? Yet you trusted him entirely, none of this made fucking sense.

"Qué estás pensando?" (What are you thinking about?) He studies her worried face, deep in her thoughts; wishing she'd let him in. She turns her body to completely face him, her bare legs resting on his.

"Are you happy here?" Your eyes searched his, hoping to find something...a soul maybe? Some reassurance that he's on the path of making himself a better man.

" Happy? I don't know what that is fully. But I can say, when I'm here with you I'm at peace." He spoked openly for the first time, his hand grazing against your exposed leg. At this point you were just looking into each other's eyes, wishing one of you would make the move first. He took his whole being not to show you how much he worships you on this couch, but he does not want to disrespect you in any way. Your body felt so hot, yearning for his touch. Slowly your head was leaning in, both of you breathing uneasy, his hand resting on your cheek; lips so close but not touching just yet. You never felt this way about anyone before. Relationships, feelings all of that love bullshit was so new to you. Love? Do you love him? No it definitely can't be. You shoved the thought away as you pulled away.

"I-I have to go" You set the bottle down, hurrying to your room and locking the door. Armando curses to himself for even entertaining what had happened. You were curled up in bed when you heard the front door slammed. He had left to god knows where and you hugged your pillow wishing it was him.

1 week later

The two of you have not spoken a word to each other since the almost kiss.

Armando had returned at 10am that morning with no emotion towards Y/N at all.

She went back on tech duty until today.

The tension could be cut with a knife the whole team noticed.

"You two lovebirds are fighting aren't you?" Mike teased.

You rolled your eyes as you prep your ammo before you made it to your destination. This is something Armando already had done for you anytime you were on a mission with him; today was not that day.

He felt guilty as he watched you out of his peripheral but he felt like it was time he stop pursuing this. If you wanted him you would have kissed him that night: not run away.

Callie has been kidnapped along with Mike's wife. We received coordinates on where they were being held hostage.

As you reached the destination, both you and Armando scooped out the scene. You felt something off about the coordinates.

Once you two made it inside, you heard crying that sounded like Callie. Armando signals you to stay as quiet as possible as you guys make your way through the abandon building.

Once you guys got closer to the voice, you both realize it was just a recording.

"Its a TRAP!! BOTH OF YOU ABORT NOW" Mike and Marcus yelled over the intercom.

Before you could even try to escape there were already men surrounding you guys. Gunshots being the only sound that filled the air. The both of you, took as many men as you could, with the help of the drone assisting. Armando hated more than anything to see you shed blood, but those combat training days you two had was worth it. You could hold your own. Your surroundings got quiet, as you shove a knife through your enemy's neck. You turned around hoping to see Armando following you, but you froze in your steps. Mcgrath had his gun pointed at you ready to shoot. You guys were out of ammo, the drone gave out and any slight movement Mcgrath would kill you.

Everything slowed down, you felt your world stopped as Armando jumps in front of you causing Mcgrath to let out 3 shots. Armando taking the impact of all of them. You heard the rifle go off after, Mcgrath being taken down by a headshot. You immediately wrapped your arms around Armando, trying to find any way to stop the bleeding. This can't be happening right now. No no no no. You applied as much pressure as you could.

"Armando please stay with me, I can't lose you. Please" You cried and screamed for help. Mike and Marcus rushed in helping you take Armando into ambulance. You REFUSED to leave his side. The nurses had to pry you and Mike off of him so they could take him into surgery.

Armando started off hated by everyone, but over the past few months he truly became family. You sat down on the floor of the lobby, looking down at your bloodstain hands and your heart broke. Will you ever get a chance to tell him how you really feel? He jumped in front of a gun for you with no hesitation. Callie and Mike's wife was safe, the rest of Ammo took care of the mission while you and Mike were on standby waiting for Armando's results.

3 hours later

You laid next to Armando's bedside, holding his hand waiting for him to wake up. Mike left a few minutes before, thanking you for staying with him as he returns to his wife.

"I love you so much" You whispered against his hand, placing a soft kiss against it.

"I love you too mi amor. Más de lo que jamás sabrás" (More than you will ever know) He says softly, squeezing your hand reassuring that everything is okay. With no hesitation you pressed your lips against his, both of you moaning into each other's lips.

"I had to get shot 3 times for you to finally kiss me mami" You both started laughing.

✧･ﾟ: ✧･ﾟ: :･ﾟ✧:･ﾟ✧✧･ﾟ: ✧･ﾟ: :･ﾟ✧:･ﾟ✧✧･ﾟ: ✧･ﾟ: :･ﾟ✧:･ﾟ✧✧･ﾟ: ✧･ﾟ:

4 months later

Armando was finally healed and better than ever. Rita released both of you on a well needed vacation. The two of you avoided any of "those" activities till the doctor cleared him. Everyone was finally relieved to see you two engulfed in each other; the angst was truly unbearable. You guys had the house to yourself after returning from your romantic dinner. His lips immediately on yours after he locks the front door. Melting into his touch as he pushes you against the hallway of your bedroom, leaving hickeys on your neck and he didn't give a fuck.

"Mando" You let out a soft cry as he sucks on your weak spot right below your ear.

"Recién estoy empezando princesa" (I'm just getting started princess) He whispers as he slips his fingers under your dress, rubbing you through your underwear. Your little cries only ignited his dominate side even more. He rips your underwear causing it to fall to your feet, teasing you with one finger.

"You're so wet" He works a second finger in causing your legs to weaken. He pumps his finger harder and faster till your pussy started to make a squelch sound.

"Baby! Im squirting I'm squirting please!" Your orgasm dripped down his hand, he smiles to himself taking in his view. His girl, completely weak in her knees for him and the night just started. He wraps your legs around his waist carrying you into the bedroom.

"You came like a good girl for me baby." He gives you your well deserve praise as he lays you down, removing your dress and his clothes. His size and length definitely matched his attitude. The kisses were hot and messy as you aligned him with your entrance. As he slips in, you both couldn't help the sounds escaping from your mouths. His thrusts were slow and deep causing your eyes to tear up from the intense pleasure. He lifts one of your legs over his shoulder for a better angle. The sound of pants and skin slapping was all that could be heard in that room.

"I love you" You both said in unison as you came as the same time. He collapse on your chest and you played with his hair. You didn't speak for a little bit, just enjoying each other's presence.

"Y/N?"

"Yes?"

"Estoy feliz aqui" (I am happy here) He says as he kisses your chest.

The End

[vesppperoro]

hii uhh, i had a little idea that id like to share if thats ok, it might be quite triggering tho so be warned ‼️

a sinner demon reader thats based on a teddy bear, because theyre too soft and mushy personality-wise, and they ended up in hell due to being suicidal. like their whole body is covered in stitches thats supposed to be a metaphor for sh scars

do whatever u want with that info, u can even ignore it if u like, have a nice day ❤️

Hazbin Hotel Cast with a Teddy Bear!Sinner Reader

Includes: Charlie, Vaggie, Angel Dust, Husk, Niffty, Sir. Pentious, Cherri Bomb, Alastor.

A/N: this is such an interesting idea! I’m going based on my own experiences as someone like this, along with research. I appreciate you for trusting me with this <3 I definitely WILL make a p2!! Might write for this sinner more tbh I loved writing them!! I thought you meant a child and I wrote that I’m so sorry 😭

Charlie Morningstar

She truly didn’t understand why you were in hell.

You are such a sweetheart! She adores you.

When you showed up to the hotel one day, without clothes and covered in stitches, she was immediately worried.

She took you in and washed you up as best as she could.

You were like a child! Why were you even here?

She was happy that you wanted to be redeemed, however.

She became a mother figure to you.

You go to her when you’re sad and you hug her frequently.

She traces your scars sometimes and you two share a silent moment together.

A silent moment of understanding.

She loves picking you up and holding you!

She hugs you like you’re an actual teddy bear.

She’s the one you go to for emotional things.

She’s good at comforting you. She somehow knows what you wanna hear at all times.

Vaggie

She became a secondary mother figure to you.

She was Charlie’s girlfriend, so of course she was.

She understood your situation and was pissed heaven casted a sweetie like you because of your lowest point.

She’s the more levelheaded one.

She’s the one who gives you advice and stuff like that. While Charlie is the more emotionally supportive one, Vaggie is the more mature and steady one.

She also traces your scars. Even if you don’t like them, she tells you you’re beautiful no matter what.

When you told her more of your story, she almost cried.

A child feeling this way broke her to pieces. Especially since you were so soft.

Other than the sad stuff, she loves cuddling you.

You, her, and Charlie sometimes have cuddle sessions with you in the middle because you’re so warm + soft + squishy.

She would kill anyone for you. You’re just so adorable!

She tries to teach you to fight but gives up when you don’t want to hurt anyone.

Angel Dust

Honestly, he saw himself in you.

A lost, scared, and lonely child. You didn’t know the cruelties of the world, aside from those cruelties in your mind.

He tries his best to comfort you. He’s not the best with words, but he’s always there for you.

He calls you sugar bear! He loves you to death.

He would go to the ends of hell for you.

He treats you like he wished to be when he was the same way.

You two share a lot of similarities, so you bond well.

He nearly cried when you told him your stitches were scars from sh.

He embraces you any time he can.

He tries to be the parental figure he needed so you can have a better life, somewhere no one would judge you.

Husk

He’s stubborn, like a dad. He acts like one too.

A hardheaded, yet sweet dad.

He’s like the father you never had. Or did have. Whichever.

He’s the bartender, so he knew how to comfort.

But when you told him your story, he almost broke.

You two definitely sing some sort of song together. Maybe Angel or Vaggie joins.

He cuddles you and hides you with his wings.

If you give him baby doe eyes, he might just take you on a flight.

Husk is SUPER protective over you. He’s very similar to Vaggie in a way when it comes to protection.

He gives you good advice but he still hides behind his tough guy exterior.

He doesn’t understand why you’re down here, even if you tell him. You’re so sweet!

Either way, he adores you.

He loves patting your head and messing with your fuzzy ears.

Might even boop your nose once or twice.

Late night talks.

He probably talked you down from trying to commit again.

Niffty

Another tiny person! Yay!

You’re not a bad boy. She may be a psycho, but she would never call you bad.

Actually, she did once and felt bad once you cried.

She likes to hang out with you since you’re both tiny!

She cuddles and hugs you like you’re her stuffed animal.

Bug killers! Even if you don’t wanna kill bugs, she’s dragging you along anyways.

She tries to hide her needle from you since Husk told her what your stitches meant.

Alastor has to babysit both of you basically.

You and her do almost everything together! You’re best friends!

She sneaks into the kitchen and grabs you both snacks so you can watch a movie.

She makes you sleep in her bed sometimes so she can cuddle you.

Sir. Pentious

He’s a dad. Or, he was.

He treats you like he wishes he treated his son before he passed.

He acts like your father. An awkward father, but he still tries.

He also protects you.

Expect him to curl his tail around you and cuddle you when you’re sad.

He literally cried when you told him your story.

He tells you anytime he can that it’s not your fault. Your stitches are still beautiful.

Best girl dad ever.

Buys you anything he wants, even if he’s broke. (Except sharp things)

He teaches you some things about inventing!

You made him a little metal flower and he was so overjoyed. He took it with him everywhere.

He still remembers you, even if he’s in Heaven now.

Cherri Bomb

Chaotic auntie energy.

She would do ANYTHING for you.

She picks you up and places you on her hip like a baby.

She loves your ears! She also adores how sweet you are.

She wouldn’t admit it, but you’re the cutest thing she’s ever seen.

Even if you tell her your story, she wouldn’t see you differently. You’re a child, a child who went through so much.

Hangouts with her and Angel are a MUST.

They try to avoid doing the normal around you and focus on fun time.

She took you with her when she had a territorial fight one time and you almost cried.

She felt so bad that she bought you anything you wanted for a week.

She did anything you wanted to do, even if Husk or someone else said no to you.

Basically, if you wanted something, you went to her.

Alastor

He’s not one to like kids, really.

He was, however, kinder to you.

He did anything to protect you.

He was like your insane uncle.

He was the one who taught you how to use your abilities. Maybe to help you, or to manipulate you when you grow.

He made you jambalaya once and it became your favorite dish to share with him!

He introduced you to radio and he was happy that you loved it.

He started bringing you to his studio whenever he did a radio show.

He took you to an overlord meeting once. That’s how you met Rosie.

He pats your head like a dog lol.

Don’t expect him to be emotionally available. But he will be there to have fun sometimes.

[lanawinterscigarettes]

Negotiations (Joe Goldberg x gn reader)

Summary: Joe puts you in the glass cage and makes you negotiate for your freedom

Warnings: typical creepy Joe behavior (implied stalking, obsessive behavior, kidnapping, etc.), the reader either doesn't understand the full gravity of their situation or just doesn't care

A/N: I realized I never officially wrote something for it so here y'all go (this was written super quickly so idk if it's any good or not)

"So I had to do it, you see. I had to get rid of them. I had to save you," Joe insisted frantically, sounding like he was trying to convince himself as much as he was you.

You'd woken up in the infamous glass cage underneath the bookstore he worked at, curiously looking around. The only thing you'd said so far was to ask where to you, to which he replied "somewhere safe". Talk about ominous.

"What if I need to go to the bathroom?" You spoke up suddenly, as you soon realized upon inspecting the inside of your new home that there wasn't a toilet. There was, however, a bucket.

"Well..." He awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck as he avoided the question. It didn't take much for you to put two and two together.

You gave him a look that was a cross between disgust and disbelief. "I can't pee in a bucket, Joe."

"I'm sorry, but I can't just let you out." He felt bad, sure, but he had to do this. He had to make sure that you were safe, even if it meant making you a little mad at him.

Crossing your arms, you turned in the opposite direction, refusing to look at him. Clearly you weren't too fond of your new living arrangements and were choosing to pout.

"Oh, come on, it isn't that bad," he lied upfront as he watched you. It was that bad, actually. Using a bucket to go to the bathroom was pretty gross.

And now he was starting to feel bad for putting you in this kind of situation. Anger was one thing, that he could handle. He could brace himself against that, or he rationalize away your worries or fears, but you seemed less genuinely upset and more annoyed than anything else.

He let out a heavy sigh as he contemplated his options. You were ignoring him, and he just couldn't have that. "If I let you out, you have to promise not to run away from me or anything like that. Understood?"

As if on cue, you turned back to face him again, a look of hope in your eyes. "Really?"

Joe tried not to let out a laugh when he saw you get close to the glass and press your face against it. "Yeah, really. Just- you have to move in with me. I don't want you living alone anymore. And I have to know where you are at all times."

Sure, he knew he could just follow you like usual, but he wanted you to be able to trust him. "And there's certain people that I don't want you hanging around anymore. Deal?"

Oh, god, what was he saying? This was going to be too much to put on you all at once. He should've just started with one small thing and gone from there, he shouldn't have given you an entire list-

"Deal."

Your voice instantly cut through his thoughts. Part of him wanted to believe you, even if he was a little suspicious that you'd agreed so quickly. Then again, you seemed so sincere, trusting even, observing him the same way anyone who truly loved their partner would: like he was the only thing that mattered.

"Could you let me out now? I really need to go pee."

Rolling his eyes, he made his way over to the door of the cage and unlocked it, letting you out. "Remember what I told you, alright? I don't want to have to put you back in there," he tried to make himself sound stern, to show you that he wasn't playing around when he said that.

To his surprise, you responded by giving him a hug. "You're such a sweetheart, caring about me so much," you muttered affectionately.

He couldn't stop himself from melting into your touch. If this was an act, it was certainly working.

"I'll never, ever leave you."

God, you were going to be the death of him. "And I'll never let you go," he promised in turn.

He really meant it when he said that. He was never going to let you go. Not that you seemed to mind.

End notes: I don't know if this is any good or not honestly. I really wanted to write something for Joe but I was kind of at a loss for what exactly to write about so 🤷 send me some ideas though if y'all want

Likes < reblogs | comments are greatly appreciated | requests are currently open

Main masterlist | You masterlist | wanna be added to my taglist?

🏷 taglist: @caplanreblogsfics

[yanderestarangel]

⊹ ۪ ࣪ ꒰ 𝐬𝐞𝐱 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐬𝐲𝐳𝐨𝐭𝐡 - 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐛𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐭𝐬 ⊹ ۪ ࣪ ꒰

‧₊˚✧˖°💌 in my syzoth era, I had never noticed him, but now I have... so get ready for lots of fics from this bbg on my profile. Requests about him are also welcome! just read the rules first <3

𝐓𝐖: afab anatomy, ftm reader, v!sex, overstimulation, soft!dom syzoth, confused feelings on the part of the reader, little angst, reader has trust issues, passionate syzoth, unprotected sex, cum play, smut, porn plot, praise.

You and Syzoth just had a friendship with benefits, you didn't want a serious relationship with anyone after all the messy breakups you suffered in the past ⸺ however, he only left it because he was always in love with you, and you knew it, but he was with afraid of getting involved again.

It was another night that you called him to your house, and he seemed softer... more insecure too. "-I really like spending time with you dear..." Syzoth spoke calmly, as if he wanted to say something to more, but refrained for fear of your reaction ⸺ You slowly took off your clothes, replying that you also enjoyed his company, however, putting emphasis on the phrase "friendship with benefits"; soon getting on top of the tattooed man's lap, he was still wearing his clothes while you lightly rubbed yourself against his growing erection, you notice a vague, but evident sadness in Syzoth's eyes when he looks at you.

"-Dearest (Y/N)... I have thought about how much you mean to me and..." He starts breathing heavily as his hands gently touch your hips with remarkable timidity; it is clear that he hopes to calm down any nervousness this conversation might cause "-I know we said no strings attached, but I can not help but feel something deeper for you." He uttered softly. You sighed, obviously you enjoyed the Zeterran's company, he treated you extremely well, he was a gentleman, he listened to you and understood you, but fear still consumed you.

You took his dick out of his pants, watching the pulsing shaft jump and leak pre semen, rubbing your pussy along its length, saying again that the two of you had talked about it, trying to divert the focus from your heart racing because of the man below you ⸺ he bites his lip nervously before responding in a husky tone as you touch him.

"-I know—but it feels so good to be with you... I won't force anything on you... I know we said that... But since the day we started this arrangement, my feelings for you have grown much stronger." His voice was filled with an unspoken plea for understanding that might not translate well into words.

He groans softly at the sensation caused by your fingers moving over his cock while rubbing against your wet cunt; he holds onto your hips gently trying not push himself more than necessary despite these impulses stirring inside him. "-I know it can be scary... but please trust me..." He whispers fervently right before his lips gently brush against your cheek; the tip of forked tongue emerging briefly only to vanish back inside just as quickly—subtle reminder of who he is – then looks deeply into your eyes again... He knew how much you suffered, but he wasn't like anyone you had been involved with, he loved you more than anything, he needed someone to care for, he needed to be loved and love you.

As each inch goes deeper inside of you, a low growl escapes from him, he was trying desperately maintain control over himself due to the intense desire gnawing at him. "-I won't ever do anything that hurts or disappoints my sweetheart."

Syzoth's eyes glaze over with raw lust. The sight of his dick disappearing into your pussy is too much for him to handle right now - every twitch and contraction makes him feel in control but also dangerously close to losing it all... just like those thrilling circus acrobatics. "-You are so tight... Oh god... Fuck baby... You are driving me insane-" His hips moved rhythmically beneath him and tendons popped up on either side of his muscular thighs clearly showing how much power each thrust carrie.

"-You look so beautiful while taking me... my sweet petite little thing." He growls out almost incoherently before kissing your neck passionately while his erection glides effortlessly within you; body pressing against yours intimately - skin touching sweaty skin. His cock throb harder, leaking a trail of precum that trickled down onto the bedding below.

His breath was hot against your neck, his tongue flicking out to taste the saltiness of sweat dripping down your skin – almost like a hungry animal seeking sustenance. "-Please... tell me you trust me..." He pleaded with those beautiful puppy dog eyes that held so much vulnerability and desire mixed together perfectly; "-I've never wanted anything more than to please you... Just let go darling... Let yourself fall into this moment with me- Tell me... tell me you need it... say it!" he demanded hoarsely "-T-Tell me that you want more of my cock. "

Your brain was confused, the haze of pleasure consumed you, you just let the words run wild in the space of the room, opening up your fears and feelings while Syzoth fucked you harder every second, feelings that were locked deep inside your core hurt by people from past, every word was heard by your dominant ⸺ "-I will give you, all the love... - whatever it takes, let these fears go..." Syzoth pleads softly in your ear once again before starting to kiss along its length loudly slurping noises resonating throughout room due their intensity level. "-Just let yourself fall into my arms completely… Trust yourself to be safe with me right now."

He could feel tears streaming down your cheeks while panting heavily underneath him – wanting nothing but for her satisfaction. It seemed like a battle between two forces within them: fear versus love—fear of getting hurt again against an undeniable yearning towards one another. "-Cum all over my cock baby... let me feel every single contraction." His hands reach up to caress and squeeze your breasts roughly while continuing to thrust into you deeply; nipples erect from the rough treatment. "-You're so close, aren't you?" he asked soft "-I can feel it building up inside you... tell me when you're about to come..."

You finally reach the edge, shaking and mouthing his name over and over as you throw your head back in ecstasy. Syzoth couldn't help but let out a growl of his own, feeling the walls tighten around him and your fluids mixing with precum that had leaked earlier - yet another trigger for him.

"-C-Cumming..." He curses breathlessly as he pulls back slightly – cum shooting across your chest in thick ropes; body shuddering violently from this intense orgasm. "-Oh fuck!- That's it baby... you look fucking beautiful when you cum for me boy- holy shit-" Syzoth praises hoarsely between gasps for air while still stroking himself above you - enjoying each spasm wracking through his body after depositing his load on you lovingly. He falls onto bed next to my shivering form - both panting heavily.

Syzoth's breathing slowly starts to stabilize, his chest heaving up and down in sync with yours, "-I don't know what the future holds for us... But... I want you to be my partner... My first choice." His hand reaches out tentatively towards yours—seeking contact as if testing the waters before fully committing; "-Let me make you happy again... you can be my boy... and I can be yours..." His other arm wraps comfortably around you, pulling you closer into his chest – feeling safer with every passing second together against the darkness outside your world - You didn't know what it would be like, but you wanted to try, for you and for lover... Syzoth.

©YANDERESTARANGEL 2023

[alessiathepirate]

The Fate of the Furious

ALIVE: Deckard Shaw x fem!reader

Summary: She thought Deckard Shaw died - yet luckily he didn't. After joining the crew on the rooftop, he had some explaining to do.

Notes: English isn't my first language. I apologize for any mistake I may have made while I wrote this short story.

A quiet thank you for my friend who watched these movies with me during a movie night. I love you <3

Warnings: swearing, mentioned violence and death

•••

"Oh, this will be good." Roman said to Tej as he poked - or rather punched - his arm. Both of them looked at the scenario in front of them, suddenly forgetting about their bickering over Ramsey.

Perhaps if things went differently, they'd stop arguing to quietly laugh at Shaw carrying a baby - only silently, because they perefer living over dying. Shaw with a baby was something they couldn't imagine at all, yet the thing Roman pointed out wasn't the baby. No, it was Shaw himself, who clearly overestimated his self-worth if he showed up there after the stunt he pulled.

And just in time, the girl whose feelings were very obviously hurt because of the said stunt noticed Shaw's arrival - and she looked like she's seen a ghost.

"No way, man. I really don't want to see this." Tej answered unsurely, leaning back in his seat.

"You won't want to miss it either. She'll kick his ass, that's for sure." In no other scenario would Roman dare to say that - the guy might have super hearing or something.

And just like that, the show started.

"You dick!" the shouting was so loud everyone's gaze was on her, but then - after understanding the situation - they decided to look away, not wanting to become a target of her wrath. "You absolute fucking asshole!"

"Come on, sweetheart, don't curse in front of the-"

"Don't you act like you suddenly give a shit about someone!"

"Oh, he fucked up!" Roman laughed in his seat.

"He fucked up big time." Tej agreed, and it was very rare that they did.

"No way I'd be him right now..."

Her expression was a mixture of anger and hurt, and she very clearly didn't want anyone else there to intervene - no man would dare to either way and they wouldn't succeed in doing so without getting a punch to the face.

But Letty, understanding her feelings because she was the only one she had talked to about them, did her best to diffuse the situation - in front of the child at least.

"I'll take him, don't you worry." she took the infant seat from Shaw, who had the expression of betrayal on his face.

"Thanks for your help, now why don't you go and talk this out?" if Dom's voice was anything to go by, he secretly very much enjoyed seeing Shaw's face as his son, the safety blanket he could hide behind was taken from him.

"Yeah, why don't we go and talk this out, Shaw?"

Ramsey gasped behind them and Dom patted Shaw on the back, sending him the luck he'll need. Roman poked Tej on the arm again, Hobbs chuckled from not so far away.

Deckard Shaw must have fucked up big time - he himself knew that too. It's been months since she called him Shaw. He was never Shaw, only Deckard or maybe if he was lucky enough, Deck. But he was never ever Shaw.

"All right, let's talk this out, sweetheart."

She hugged herself with her arms, not giving him the opportunity to hold onto her hand. Deckard didn't try to do so though, he understood where the line was and he didn't want to overstep it.

They walked to the other side of the roof, away from their gazes and voices, and only then did her eyes start to water.

Deckard wasn't good at apologies, but even he knew that's the time for one. She's hurt and rightfully so, but he didn't mean to hurt her at all. God, he'd go to Hell and back for her and he knew she'd do the same - they knew more than a few things about the other and they liked the other even if they don't like many people.

But now she's sad and hurt - and angry, because of Deckard and he didn't know what he should do to make it better.

"Sweetheart, I-"

"No, don't you fucking sweetheart me." Sweetheart was the petname Deckard saved for her and didn't use it on anybody else. "I thought you died, do you know how that feels? I thought you fucking died!" she grabbed onto the railing to try and regain her strength. "Do you know that I cried for you? I fucking cried for you. I almost went after Dom by myself to hurt him like he hurt me and Dom is my friend!"

He put his hand on her shoulder and she let him, but she didn't look at him at all.

"And then you just call me to tell me everything is okay, I- I don't know what hurt more: that you didn't tell me or that you don't trust me enough to tell me stuff like that."

"I trust you. I trust you and I don't trust anybody else." Deckard touched both of her shoulders to turn her towards him.

He expected her to be angry or sad, he even expected a punch to the face, like when she playfully hit him after a way too bad one liner on a mission. But she didn't do any of that.

No, she was crying. And if Deckard was bad at apologies, then he was even worse at comforting crying women - especially someone he genuinely cares about.

"Why didn't you tell me not to worry?" her voice was high pitched, the kind Deckard hadn't heard before. She never cried. He hadn't seen her cry.

He made her cry.

"Because I needed her to believe it."

It was a poor excuse. He knew it - she knew it.

Yet it was still better than not saying anything or him just saying a 'fuck you'.

"So you're okay? Not even a small cut?" she asked looking at his face, trying to find some scars.

"You know me, sweetheart." he smiled and she was the only one who has ever seen him smile. "And I know you too, so if you'll punch me please tell me so I can get ready."

She chuckled. "Because?"

"Because your punches are really fucking strong."

That was the kind of compliment Deckard Shaw gave her, the kind only she recieved and no one else. And she smiled at that too, even if her eyes were still teary and the pain and fear didn't fully go away.

"I don't want to punch you."

"Really?" he had a suspicion that she really wanted to.

"Really. I just got you back and you want me to hurt you straight away?"

"I'd let you and I'd deserve it too."

He really meant that, she thought as she examined his face, trying to find some dishonesty. She couldn't find any - but to her surprise, his eyes were soft. There was some softness in there, the kind no one's ever seen, because they didn't deserve to see it.

"No, just..." she wiped away the tears and pushed his hands off her shoulders as she leaned against the railing. "I just want you to promise me that you'll tell me- the next time, because in a job like ours there will be a next time for sure."

"Yeah, I promise."

She smiled softly, her wrath slowly disappearing and tiredness took its place. She looked tired.

"You know, we never really talk about it, but just so you know, you mean a lot to me." she said quietly, as if she's confessing something she's not ready for yet. "And I mean it. I really do. No joke or anything."

"I know." he really knew, and he also knew that not many people would do that for him. "And I'd kill for you."

"I know, you already did." she chuckled. "And not even once."

"They deserved it."

"In your eyes everyone deserves to die who looks at us the wrong way." she said remembering all the times Deckard decided to pull out a gun to shoot someone who was unfriendly. "Actually, I'm surprised Hobbs is still with us."

"I promised to fight him one day."

"Yeah, I'm not surprised about that at all." she looked at the others who sat around the table talking. "You'd win."

"I know I would."

"But he'd kick your ass too. He asked me if I want him to do that after the stunt you pulled. I said I'd think about it."

"And what do you think?"

"You'd deserve it, but I'm leaning towards a no."

Deckard laughed and so did she. It was good to laugh with him again.

They stayed quiet after that. She didn't know what else to say or rather how she should talk about the things she should definitely talk about. She thought of the last few hours and days, how Letty was there for her after Deck's fake death - and what they talked about. How she regretted not telling him the things she wanted to.

"I didn't mean it like that." she spoke up after a while. "When I said you mean a lot to me." she had his full attention, she knew it and felt it in his gaze. "I meant that I think about you as more than a friend."

She continued to look at her friends again, watched as they laughed and talked. Dom had his son in his arms and Roman and Tej were arguing again. She focused on every small detail instead of looking Deck in the eyes.

"I know what you meant sweetheart. That's what I meant when I said I'd kill for you." she had to look at him when his hand was on hers. "I just can't let them see me as a softie, can I?"

He was teasing her and he was grinning, and in that moment for her he was the most lovable, playful asshole in the whole world.

"You dick!" she shouted with a laugh as she hit his arm and she felt the others' eyes on herself. "You come back from the dead and you act like this? I should let Hobbs kick your ass. Being soft with me is the least you can do to apologize."

"I knew you wanted to hit me."

She hit him on the arm again - this time the both of them were grinning like idiots and she wouldn't have it any other way.

"Of course I do. This is the worst love confession I've ever seen."

"But you wouldn't have me any other way."

"That's right, I wouldn't. I'd be way too bored without you in my life."

This time he caught her arm before it could land and his hold on her wrist was gentle. That hand could kill and punch - and he looked damn good when he did that -, but it would never ever hurt her. Not intentionally.

They both leaned in to kiss the other - and they most likely argued about who had the balls to initiate the first kiss later. It was a great kiss, a damn good one. The one what's full of passion and emotion, the one that made her stomach tighten.

"I love you, you idiot, but if you act like you're dead in front of me ever again I--" he kissed her again to shut her up.

"I love you too."

"So much for not being a softie." she giggled as she hugged him, hiding her face from everyone - because she was grinning like an idiot in love.

"You won't let this one go, will you?"

"Not at all." she answered. "By the way, just so you know, Dom wasn't the only one who called your mother."

"You did not call my mother."

"I didn't want to punch you, but she'll definitely scold you for me."

She smirked as she saw his expression. "You're one evil woman."

"But you wouldn't have me any other way." she quoted.

On the other side of the roof the table was set a long time ago and everyone was waiting for the two of them to join in so they can start to eat. Although watching the drama before eating wasn't too bad either.

"You know, as much as I dislike him, I'm happy she's happy." Ramsey said after the pair kissed.

"I was right man, I really didn't want to see that." it was Tej's turn to poke Roman, who only stared at Deckard and her in disbelief.

"I expected more drama." Rome said with clear disappointment in his voice. "And why is she in love with the guy? What does he have that I don't?"

"Why don't you go ahead and tell that to him yourself. I'm sure he'd happily answer you with a punch." Tej teased him with a grin. "Go ahead boss, ask him."

"I hate you all..."

[davinashifts333]

DATING KIM HONGJOONG OF ATEEZ PART 1:

⚫️summary; once again, first part to Hongjoong’s section in the new ATEEZ fics or requests I am taking, so REQUEST!!! & STREAM GOLDEN HOUR!! LET’s GOOOOO!! see all my fellow ATINY at the Arlington concert!!🩷🩷🩷

⚠️warnings; fluff, Joongie being Joongie, Ateez idiocies, craziness, some swearing, implied smut, etc. IF YOU’RE NOT 18, GTFO! disrespectfully.

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

-dating Kim HongJoong is also becoming a mother of 6 & a sister wife to Seonghwa.

-dating HongJoong means late nights where you walk around Han River with snacks from the 24hr convenience stores & chat about your days but also, early mornings for the days off he has & has planned a full day of activities for you two.

-dating HJ is like being his best kept secret but also his most prized possession, he is so protective & loving to you, it’s weird for the boys.

-dating Joong is being at his dorm as much as possible because once he had you? he never wanted to let go, he swore he hated skin-ship but with you? nahhh. that was out the door.

-dating Joongie is like having a boyfriend, husband, best friend & confidant all in one because he is so respectful & sweet but also so serious & dominating that it sometimes scares you how quickly his personality can switch. (but it’s also hot asf because Captain?)

-dating HongJoong is being BumJoong’s bestie & little sister, when HongJoong is off on tour? you best believe BumJoong, momma Kim & anyone from HongJoong’s family is calling you & visiting you to make sure you’re doing well.

-some nicknames he would call you based on his initial vibe/aura & personality seen on camera; Baby, Babydoll, Love, Sweetheart, Darling, Little one (because he finally found someone smaller than him), Beautiful, Dove, etc.

-dating HJ is moving fast but it feeling right? like a month in & he’s flying you out to Seoul to visit him or coming to visit you (if his schedule permits because baby boy is BUSY).

-being HongJoong’s girlfriend means also being his true right hand, the person he wants to learn about everyday, the girl of his dreams, the one who he asks for advice all the time but ultimately protects with his life & the best part of all, the person who sees his true self & softest parts of him & his personality.

-dating Joongie is meeting his family early on & going on vacations with them but also becoming so close with his mom he just sits & pouts that you’re stealing her from him & Eomma Kim is stealing you from him too.

-you & Eomma Kim cooking for the fam & her loving you so much because you remind her of a young version of herself (be that you’re foreign or not, she find attributes about you so calming & similar to hers).

-dating HongJoong is a blessing & curse st the same time, let’s be real this man is a Scorpio, he is DEMANDING. but, also the sweetest & most sensitive & emotionally open person you know, he truly understands the beauty of the world, of people & is driven by passion so, if you are similar to him? he would be most grateful because he would feel so understood & like he could truly open up to you.

-dating HJ means truly learning the deepest parts of his soul, his drive, his motivation, his passion & the reasons behind all of them. him showing you & teaching you the way he sees the world through his eyes & loving that you understand & see it the same way.

-soft launching on your IG & the ATEEZ acc because you’re also a musician/artist/producer/singer (whatever) & you do a challenge with him & some other members.

-being his girlfriend would mean also being the group’s baby sister, each member loving you for a different reason & you often hang out with them but, yes your boyfriend/future husband gets jealous so he steals you away & keeps you to himself. (we all know this man is jealous, be for fucking real).

-“Ya! Jagi, why are you with Wooyoung & not me? Am I not enough for you? Wooyoungie, go away, she’s mine.” & so he does, San is already waiting for Woo in the living room of HongJoong’s dorm so you both can have alone time in his room.

-“Don’t worry, we don’t love Y/n at allll. It’s not like she’s OUR friend too.” Woo yells back as he walks off to steal Joong’s snacks he has “hidden”.

-you laughing the whole way Joong drags you to his room.

-Joong being a complete baby & softie with you despite the persona/front he puts on for the cameras.

-ATINY loving that they get to see this side through small snippets & stories on your IG/YouTube/Twitter/TikTok, etc.

-posting pics together & also him posting pics he’s taken of you on his camera/polaroid.

-being his muse, he literally has made 10’s of playlists & is working on songs that include things about you that only the members, him & you truly understand & know the meaning behind.

-being his all time biggest supporter, he DID meet you wearing a MATZ t-shirt so, it got him flustered & thinking about how you could he so calm while seeing him in person.

-yes you were ATINY before you dated, like dude, come on. who couldn’t love these 8 idiots.

-playfully arguing with Mingi over how you can’t choose between their rap styles because they’re so different & both so good.

-movie nights with the members where you & Joong end up sneaking off to be alone & they start hounding you both about not being able to keep it in your pants.

-he’s a passionate lover, so hidden marks, body to body, eye contact, multiple positions, etc. are for SURE his go to.

-he loves to be in control but whenever you do try to take control? it only riles him up more & has you walking funny for a few days after.

-your personality & aura is made up of leadership energy, dominance, bluntness, strength, etc. but, the real you is a soft & loving person, he is definitely the type to like someone like him, who looks so dark & scary on the outside but is truly just so intelligent, caring & creative as he is.

-dating Kim Hong Joong is like breathing underwater in a dream & no longer fearing anything, it’s like giving into your deepest & darkest desires & fighting no matter how hard the fight is. It’s like being worshipped & worshipping at the same time, it’s a push & pull of who loves who more but ultimately it’s so equal because you BOTH are so equal, it’s insane. It’s air in lungs that haven’t been able to take a full, clean & crisp breath in the longest time. It’s feeling so high & happy like you’re on cloud 9 24/7, 365.4 days a year & more.

-being his person, his lover, his best friend & future wife? is a dream written in the stars but only time could bring you closer. it’s poetry, passion & pain all in one but truly, a love so deep & understanding you could never consider it vain.

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

A/N: I AM SO EXCITED TO GET BACK INTO WRITING, I HAVE MISSED SPILLING MY THOUGHTS & IDEAS ONTO THIS BLOG. FELLOW TX ATINY, SEE YOU SOON, even if you don’t know who I really am (my real name is NOT Davina & you’ll never know the real me BUT) LET’s STREAM GOLDEN HOUR!! MI GENTE LATINA!! LET’s GOOOO!! also, i am so close to 200 followers & I’m so excited & curious why I have so many followers but!! let’s get to 200!! (i’m at 199 rn)

[cha-melodius]

A ship of your choice firstprince, please!

A location—(Although I dare someone to send the White House or Kensington, I WILL make it into an AU. I have ideas.) Also if you want a particular historical setting, you can feel free to include a time period too. GO NUTS, please.

Well sheesh, with that kind of tease, I suggest both the White House and Kensington Palace, circa the year 2068.

I look forward to seeing what you choose to do with this! I am certain to enjoy it, whatever it is ❤️

(This was such an intriguing prompt, and I hope you enjoy what I did with it. Also happiest of birthdays to @dumbpeachjuice, who's incredible fic "make me your god" inspired this one.)

The Impossible Soul

(M, 7.2k, read it below or on AO3)

“I shouldn’t let you do this for me,” Henry tells him in the moments before.

“You should know by now that you’re not letting me do anything, sweetheart,” Alex returns. “Anyway, I’m doing this for us.”

“Even though we still won’t be able to be together?”

“I told you, it’s only temporary. Once my mom’s no longer in office, I won’t be in the spotlight. But I can’t leave you trapped here for another four years. I won’t.” Alex cups Henry’s cheek with his hand and brushes a thumb against the corner of his perfect mouth. “Besides, what if I left you here and you forgot about me?”

Henry covers Alex’s hand with his, warm and soft. “Never.”

~~~~~

One Year Earlier

Alex didn’t think he could be surprised by AIDEs at this point, but the ones populating Kensington are really something else.

“It’s a pleasure to have you here,” Prince Henry says, his blue eyes crinkling slightly at the corners as he shakes Alex’s hand.

Alex can’t help but stare. The eyes are the hardest part, or so Nora says. All the Secret Service agents’ eyes have a kind of strange metallic glint behind them. Often it’s not even noticeable, but if you look too closely, it becomes obvious. Prince Henry’s eyes are flawless, though. Just endless, perfect blue. Really, the only flaw Alex can see in this model is that they made him inhumanly beautiful. No real person has lips like that.

Henry’s hand is warm in his, his grip firm but not too tight. Alex forces himself to let go.

“Yeah, thanks,” he says, looking around rather than staying trapped in Henry’s piercing gaze.

Palace servants flit about, attending to all of the gala guests’ needs along with those of the princes and princess. Apparently, it’s a perfect recreation of the palace’s operations from the turn of the century, back before the monarchy was abolished. Now they just keep fake royalty here, like they can’t quite let go of the idea. Alex has never understood it, and visiting hasn’t really helped. Of all the things he’s had to do on this goodwill trip, this is by far the strangest, pretending to hobnob with royalty at a fancy ball like anyone does this shit anymore. Then again, maybe showing off is the whole point, same as it ever was.

It’s not like Alex isn’t used to interacting with AIDEs. The use of Artificially Intelligent Dynamic Entities is still limited more broadly, but they’re common in dangerous or sensitive jobs. The entire Secret Service was replaced by them two administrations ago; their loyalty is never in question, nor their willingness to protect their charges at all costs. Use of AIDEs for entertainment purposes is growing in popularity too, like the Kensington ones. They play the role they’re programmed to without deviation, they don’t need to eat or sleep (though they usually do, to better mimic humanity), they can be abused or even killed without repercussion and, most importantly, they don’t need to be paid.

“I hope your visit to London has been pleasant?” Prince Henry asks with perfectly-tuned amiability. It makes Alex want to push a little, though he knows Nora would tell him it’s a futile exercise.

“Mostly I’ve been spending it in lots of meetings,” Alex says. “Kinda wish I had time to go out and see more of the city.”

“I can understand that,” Henry replies, glancing toward the doors in a way that Alex would call wistful if he didn’t know better.

Can he? Do they let them leave the palace? Probably not. Does Henry want to, though? That would be a weird thing to program into an AIDE that’s supposed to stay in one place.

“I guess you probably don’t get out much, huh?” Alex asks.

Henry smiles indulgently at his bad joke. “Not so much, no. Makes it ever-so-difficult to meet people, you know.”

Alex laughs despite himself. He’s never met an AIDE that was so self-aware. If he tries to joke with Cash about taking a day off, the agent just stares at Alex blankly. “You must talk with a lot of visitors to the palace, though.”

“I do,” Henry allows, taking a sip of his champagne. “Most of them aren’t very interesting, though. All they do is ask what it’s like to be a prince.”

“And? What’s it like?”

Henry smirks a little. “Bloody boring. Not that I can tell them that, you understand.”

“Yeah,” Alex agrees, a little lost for words. Henry is nothing like what he was expecting. “So, what do you want to talk about, then?”

In response, Henry takes a step closer. He smells like fancy cologne, like linens and fresh grass, and something inside him seems to tug Alex closer. “Can I show you something? Still inside the palace, of course.”

Alex’s eyes flick over to June and Nora, chatting with someone he doesn’t recognize—AIDE or government official, he can’t tell—and the Secret Service agents linger at the periphery of the ballroom. He knows shouldn’t leave the event, but honestly chances are no one would notice he was gone. Plus, his curiosity is through the roof.

Henry takes him to a library. There are barricades set up to keep the visiting public to certain areas, but Henry slips past them and Alex follows him. Watches as Henry walks down the rows with a small, private smile curving his lips, trailing a finger along the spines. He pauses and plucks a book off the shelf—Pride and Prejudice, Alex can just make out—and smooths a hand lovingly over the cover.

“I love to read,” Henry says, almost to himself. His eyes flick up to Alex’s, shining brightly in the low light. “All those worlds… They’re incredible, don’t you think?”

Alex doesn’t know what to say. AIDEs don’t read. They don’t dream of other worlds.

“The rest of your… family,” Alex says, diplomatically. “Are they like you? I mean, with the reading.”

Henry laughs quietly and shakes his head. “No. No one’s like me.”

Alex is rapidly coming to that same conclusion.

~~~~~

“There’s nothing special about the Kensington AIDEs,” Nora tells him, sounding more beleaguered than necessary. “We talked to Princess Beatrice for like an hour, it was the same as any other AIDE. Pleasant, but a little vacant. The eyes are a neat trick, though.”

“I’m telling you, Henry is different,” Alex insists. “We talked all night. He’s aware of what he is. He reads and he thinks and he feels. Fuck, Nora, he dreams when he sleeps.”

“AIDEs don’t sleep. Not really.”

“Henry does.”

“Someone just got a little creative with the programming,” Nora says dismissively. “He’s supposed to say those things to make him seem more real. If you went back, he probably wouldn’t even remember you.”

“And what if he did?”

“Alex—”

“What if he did remember me? What if all of it really is real?” Alex presses.

Nora frowns at him. “Then there are some major ethical implications that current AI laws are frankly not prepared to deal with,” she says bluntly. “Look, it’s just not possible. They don’t have feelings, period. He’s just a fancy computer.”

“Fine. Whatever you say,” Alex huffs, mostly because he doesn’t want to have this argument anymore. She’s not going to change his mind, and clearly he’s not going to change hers.

“Promise me you’ll leave this alone. We can’t afford some kind of diplomatic incident because you got a crush on the prince AIDE.”

Alex glares at her. It’s not a crush. “I’ll leave it.”

He absolutely will not.

~~~~~

Cash doesn’t blink—literally—when Alex tells him that he’ll be visiting Kensington Palace again rather than the scheduled afternoon tea with some MP he couldn’t care less about. He sends his apologies with an excuse that he’s not feeling well and heads to the main entrance with the rest of the tourists. He has no idea where Henry might be, but AIDEs don’t take days off, so it stands to reason that he’ll be somewhere acting princely, or whatever he does all day.

Unfortunately, he gets stuck on a tour led by an AIDE with a dirty blonde bob and green eyes who most definitely shows none of Henry’s spark. It’s boring as fuck, and he almost bails more than once, but this place is huge and he’d probably get lost forever before he found Henry. They go past a few rooms Alex recognizes, but there’s no sign of the ‘royal family’ anywhere, and Alex starts to worry. Maybe they only trot them out for big events. Maybe you have to buy a special tour package. Ugh, his mom is going to kill him if he ditches any more events.

“Next, we’ll visit the palace library,” the guide says, and Alex perks up.

This has got to be his chance. Henry had said they were basically allowed free run of the palace so long as they remained in areas where they’d run into visitors during operating hours, and Alex knows there’s nowhere Henry would rather be than the library. Sure enough, he’s reading in a massive armchair by one of the windows, though he gets up when the tour group enters and comes over to talk to them. His face is fixed in a pleasant, bland smile as he looks over the group, until his eyes land on Alex. The flash of recognition is clear, even if he recovers quickly, and Alex’s heart thuds a little harder in his chest.

He lingers toward the back as the rest of the visitors ask Henry about living in the palace and being a prince—exactly as he said they would. He answers graciously, of course, the words so bland and scripted that Alex almost wonders if maybe he hadn’t been drinking too much champagne during the gala. But he hangs back when everyone else files out, and as soon as Henry turns to him, his eyes practically light up.

“You came back,” Henry says, his voice soft with something like wonder.

“Of course I did,” Alex replies. “We didn’t finish our conversation.”

Henry ducks his head, blond hair falling alluringly over his forehead as his cheeks turn pink. The way their bodies mimic human physiology is astounding sometimes. “I suppose we didn’t. Would you care to walk with me in the gardens? It’s a lovely day.”

“Can we do that?”

“Ironically, you’re allowed so long as you have one of us with you, and I’m allowed so long as I’m with a guest,” Henry explains. “Plus, you’re a foreign dignitary. No one will bother us.”

“Sure you wanna be seen with me? My sister would say I’m the furthest thing from dignified,” Alex says, grinning probably a little too broadly.

Henry’s smile slants mischievous as he steps close enough for Alex to get a noseful of linen and fresh grass again. “Maybe I like that about you.”

~~~~

“Have you ever been outside the palace?” Alex asks on his next visit. Nora had given him a look like she knew exactly what he’s been up to when he’d begged off from an official tour of the British Museum, even though he hasn’t brought up Henry again. The fact that she’d found him down a rabbit hole of academic papers about AIDE psychology probably hadn’t helped anything.

“Not that I remember,” Henry answers. It’s rainy today, so they’re ensconced in some kind of parlor with ornate, uncomfortable furniture. The fact that Henry only knows this life is outrageous. Has he ever truly been comfortable? Does anyone even care? “They gave me a basic knowledge of London as a background. I’m supposed to be fond of the Victoria & Albert Museum, but I’ve never seen it myself.”

“That’s fucked up,” Alex blurts.

Henry shrugs. “It’s just how it is.”

“How does none of this ever seem to bother you?”

“It can’t bother me, Alex. My entire existence has been—and will be—only this, and if I allowed any of it to bother me, I’d go mad.”

This does not, in fact, make Alex feel any better about the situation. “Guess I’ll just have to be angry for the both of us, then.”

“I’d rather you weren’t,” Henry says mildly. “It’s no use being upset about my life. Nothing can be changed.”

“Bad idea to tell me something can’t be changed, sweetheart. I fucking love a challenge,” Alex returns. He’s not joking, but Henry laughs anyway. “I’m serious, Henry. You deserve to get things you want, too.”

“What if I said I wanted you not to worry about it? That I want you to be happy?”

“Because you’re programmed to?” Alex counters, letting more bitterness than he means to slip into his voice.

Henry reaches out and slides a hand over Alex’s fist where it’s curled on his thigh. “Because I like you, Alex.”

~~~~

On the last visit he can manage before he leaves London, Alex brings Henry a cell phone.

“What’s this for?” Henry asks when Alex hands it to him. It’s a cheap smartphone, pay as you go, something that Alex can renew the data and minutes on remotely.

Alex frowns at him. He would have figured Henry would be familiar with the concept of phones, but maybe they purposefully programmed him to not recognize it. “It’s for communication. Audio, text, video—”

“I know what a phone is, Alex,” Henry says wryly, interrupting him before Alex can make a fool of himself. “I mean why are you giving it to me?”

“I’d like to keep talking to you after I go home,” Alex tells him, feeling oddly exposed by the question. “If that’s something you’d like, too.”

Henry smiles, almost bashfully. “Yes, I’d like that.”

“I assume you’re not allowed to have that,” Alex says with a nod at the phone.

“I don’t think anyone would consider it a possibility that we might,” Henry muses, “but I’ll keep it hidden nonetheless.”

“Good plan.”

“I’m going to miss your visits, Alex,” Henry says earnestly. “I’ll miss you.”

AIDEs can’t miss things, Alex’s brain supplies, an oft-repeated truism. He feels vaguely sick, leaving Henry here like this.

“Yeah,” Alex croaks, unable to quite meet Henry’s bright blue eyes. “I’ll miss you too.”

~~~~~

“How would you get a site-locked AIDE off the premises?” Alex casually asks Nora one late night at the Residence, when they’re deep in the weeds of polls and projections.

The campaign has been rough; rougher than the first one. Or maybe it’s just that Alex is far more involved in the filthy underbelly of it this time around. The experience has definitely made him question his resolve to go into politics. Then again, sometimes it feels like his only option to make a difference in the way he wants to. These days he frequently gets into arguments about the need for more protections for AIDEs, though right now it feels like a losing battle. They’re not supposed to need protections, that’s the point of them, and no one believes him when he suggests that they might have more in common with humans than previously believed.

It’s been months. Months of texting, and phone calls, and occasional video chats. Months of getting to know Henry—the real him, beyond his programmed backstory. For his part, Henry has seemingly blossomed further with access to the internet. Alex was admittedly not certain that was a great idea, but Henry seems to stay off the darker parts. He watches a lot of Bake Off, apparently. He’s obsessed with some cute beagle account on Instagram. He reads travel blogs and insists that just knowing that these wonderful places exist is enough for him.

Alex doesn’t believe him. Well, he believes Henry believes that, but that doesn’t stop Alex from yearning to show Henry some of them in person. Even something in London would be worth it. Hence, the question.

Nora looks at him like she knows exactly what he’s on about. He’s kept his correspondence with Henry a secret from everyone, but he’s pretty sure she suspects something is up. Him broaching this topic all but confirms that, but he needs the help.

“Permanently, or short-term?” she asks.

“Let’s go with short-term to start.”

Another capital-L Look. “Well,” she says eventually, “I would probably hack into the control system and override the barrier protocols. These systems are self-healing, though. You’d have a couple of hours at most.”

“And what happens if the AIDE was off-site when the system kicked back on?” Alex asks.

“Depends on the program. Possibly just an alarm or something. Most of the time it’s full deactivation though.”

“They kill them?”

“AIDEs aren’t alive, Alejandro,” Nora says pointedly. Alex bites his tongue. “But yes, in a manner of speaking.”

“Fuck,” Alex breathes, wiping his hands over his face. “And to permanently get him out?”

It’s a slip. He’s not dumb enough to think she missed it, though she doesn’t show it.

“Not entirely sure,” she admits. “I’d need one of the tablets they use to control them so I could go into the AIDE’s code. And good luck with that; the companies that make them have some of the tightest security out there.”

“Yeah, of course.”

She turns back to her laptop, and Alex half-expects the conversation is done, at least for now. But then, as she’s typing, she says, “I assume this isn’t idle curiosity.”

Alex sighs. “No.”

~~~~~

It takes nine months from their first meeting for Alex to find a reason to visit London. His mother offhandedly mentions sending someone to some conference he doesn’t really care about, and he jumps at the chance. All he can think about is Henry. Being in the same city as him again. Seeing him. Touching him.

Alex has had time to come to terms with his desire for Henry. Honestly, the bisexuality was easy compared to the AIDE aspect of it. Nora is fond of pointing out that they’re literally designed to be desirable, even the ones not populating what basically pass for sexy amusement parks, but Alex doesn’t just want Henry physically. He wants to spend time with him, to make him laugh and see the crinkle of his eyes not through a phone screen.

Frankly, he also wouldn’t mind a little clarity on the whole situation. To either get incontrovertible proof that Henry is fundamentally the same as a person, or else be reminded that he isn’t, that Alex has deluded himself into believing Henry was more than a machine (a possibility that Nora regularly reminds him of).

On the flight over, Alex finds himself watching Cash, not for the first time. He’s doing a sudoku puzzle, which can’t really be much of a challenge for him. Still, he works on them religiously. Did someone program that into him? Or does Cash actually enjoy doing them?

“Do you like your job, Cash?” Alex asks.

Cash looks up at him, setting his ballpoint pen down—he does the puzzles in pen because he never makes a mistake. He’s got an expression on like he doesn’t really understand Alex’s question, even though it should be straightforward. “It’s my job,” he finally says.

“Yeah, but do you like it?” Alex pushes. “Do you find it fulfilling?”

The tip of his head means Cash is analyzing Alex’s body language. After another moment, he says, “Yes.”

Alex can’t quite hold back a sigh. The answer is predictable. Cash is only saying that because he thinks Alex wants to hear it. That’s what AIDEs do, they anticipate your needs and wants.

“Is that not the right answer?” Cash asks, frowning.

“Don’t worry about it,” Alex says.

He knows Cash won’t.

~~~~~

Henry is understandably nervous about the plan. It is, after all, his life on the line.

“The control system will go down at the very end of the visiting day, so we can slip out with the exiting crowds,” Alex tells him. “It’s gonna look like maintenance, which shouldn’t set off any red flags right away. Between that and the roadblocks Nora’s set up, we should have five hours.”

“For what?” Henry asks.

Alex just grins. “It’s a surprise, sweetheart.”

Henry looks even more human in Alex’s Longhorns baseball cap and hoodie. Soft. Dangerously so. It makes Alex want to do reckless things. Instead, he sets his watch for four and a half hours and reminds himself how high the stakes are. He’s arranged everything just so tonight. No surprises.

The escape goes off without a hitch, and Alex breathes a sigh of relief once they’re making their way through the crowded city streets. Out here, the two of them are completely unremarkable, even with Cash trailing a few steps behind them. Henry seems to take it all in stride, though Alex doesn’t miss the quiet looks of awe that steal over his face as he takes in the city. They stop and get falafel at a food truck. Henry asks to pet every dog they come across. He looks indescribably happy in a way that makes Alex’s heart clench in his chest.

At the back entrance to the museum, Alex pays off the night guard—not an AIDE, thank god, they’re nearly impossible to bribe—and they slip inside, leaving Cash by the door. It doesn’t take long for Henry to catch on.

“You brought me to the V&A,” Henry breathes as he looks around.

It had seemed like the obvious choice, after what Henry had told him. “I’ve never actually been here,” Alex admits.

“That’s all right, love,” Henry says, grinning now. “I know my way around.”

Alex has never been so enraptured by someone telling him about art, but it’s impossible not to be taken in by the passion with which Henry speaks about the sculptures. He tells Alex about Tipu’s Tiger, about Giambologna, about Narcissus and Zephyr and Pluto rendered exquisitely in marble. His programming hadn’t bothered to give him anything more than a general interest; all of Henry’s knowledge comes from reading in the palace library—and now on the phone Alex gave him—and he’s apparently done a lot of it. His programming also has nothing to do with the wonder and emotion in his voice, with the tears that glitter in his eyes when he gets overwhelmed by the experience.

Machines don’t cry over art. They just don’t. Art is supposed to be a fundamentally human experience, which is proof enough to Alex that, whatever he was designed as, Henry is just as human as Alex is now.

~~~~~

In the Santa Chiara chapel, Henry finally pauses and turns his awe on Alex.

“I’ve dreamed of this,” he murmurs, closing the space between them until only inches remain. Alex has to tip his head up to meet Henry’s bright gaze, and his heart thuds hard in his chest. “You risked so much to give this moment to me. I don’t know how to thank you.”

“You deserve it,” Alex tells him, meaning every word of it. “You deserve the entire world.”

“Alex,” Henry breathes.

Alex doesn’t think; he leans up and presses their lips together, a fleeting thing, over before he can convince himself it was a mistake. Except it was, because now he knows the softness of Henry’s lips against his, and he’ll never be satisfied with anything else. Henry’s eyes are wide when he pulls back, his lips slightly parted, and all at once Alex curses his impulsivity. What if Henry thinks that’s what he wants in return, that he owes Alex part of himself for this, when the last thing Alex wants is to take advantage of his programmed desire to please?

“Sorry, I shouldn’t have—”

But Henry presses a hand against his face and pulls him in again, slides their lips together with intention, leaves Alex breathless when he pulls away again.

“You don’t have to do that,” Alex breathes into the silence afterward. “You don’t owe me anything.”

“I want to,” Henry says, like it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “I want you, Alex.”

“You’re not just saying that because you think I want you to?”

Henry laughs a little, shaking his head. “I’ve wanted you since the moment I laid eyes on you,” he confesses. “I can assure you, that wasn’t programmed. And neither is this.”

This time, when Henry kisses him, Alex can’t help but smile into it.

~~~~~

They go off-plan. There are two hours left when Alex takes Henry back to his hotel room and presses him back into the bed. Peels away their clothes and kisses across warm skin that feels no different from his own under his lips. Henry gasps and twitches under him as Alex takes him in hand; for an AIDE that was only supposed to staff a museum, whoever designed him really went all out on the anatomy.

“Have you ever done this?” Alex murmurs into the crease of his hip, breathing in the scent of him. Linen and fresh grass and something else, musky and heady.

Henry shakes his head, and relief floods through Alex. It isn’t some virginity kink, ok? He’s just heard stories of how some people treat AIDEs no matter what their jobs are, like they’re free for the taking because they never say no, and he’s glad Henry’s never been in that situation.

“And you’re sure you want to with me?”

“How many times do I have to tell you?” Henry nearly growls. He drags Alex up from between his legs and kisses him hard, then rolls them over so he’s on top, straddling Alex’s waist. Slides back until Alex’s cock is pressing into the cleft of his ass and rocks his hips in a way that makes them both moan. “I’ve never wanted anything more.”

Alex is pretty sure he sees God when Henry lowers himself onto his cock, sitting upright with one hand behind him gripping Alex’s thigh and the other splayed over Alex’s chest. Or maybe it’s just that Henry looks like a god, like one of the mythical marble sculptures in the V&A, muscles rippling beneath his skin, but warm and yielding and vibrant and alive.

You’re unreal, Alex almost says, but that’s not quite it. Henry like this is very, very real. Impossible might be a better word.

Henry is impossible, and Alex is impossibly in love with him.

~~~~~

“Do you think you could steal one of the tablets they use to access your code?” Alex asks as they lie together in the darkness. His ear is pressed to Henry’s chest, listening to the steady thud of his circulatory pump—not quite a heart, but not not one either.

Henry’s hand cards through his hair, idly twirling Alex’s curls around his fingers. “What are you planning, love?”

Alex tips his face up to look at him. “Can you?”

“I doubt I can,” Henry answers after a pause, “but the technician responsible for us… he may be willing to help.”

“And you trust him?”

“He’s protected me before. I think he knows about my… differences.”

Alex hums. “How do we contact him?”

~~~~~

What Shaan Srivastava is not willing to do is speak over any sort of electronic form of communication, which Alex honestly takes as a good sign. They meet in a cafe on the other side of London, the day before Alex is set to leave.

“I want to get him out,” Alex tells him plainly. “For good.”

“Mountchristen Technologies puts numerous failsafes into the AIDEs they build,” Shaan tells him. “Trackers. Latent viruses. Kill switches.”

“Can they be disabled?”

Shaan takes a sip of his tea. “I have an idea, but I have no way of implementing it. I’m just responsible for keeping them in good working order. I’m not a coder.”

The hope that flares up in Alex’s chest is dangerous but oh-so-seductive. “I think I know someone who could help with that.”

~~~~~

“This is insane,” Nora tells him. “You honestly think it’s a good idea to pull off some kind of heist from the world’s biggest tech company a month before the election?”

“No,” Alex says reasonably. “That’s why we’re waiting until after. I convinced mom to let me take a trip to London between New Years and the inauguration.”

Nora shakes her head, every movement like a knife in Alex’s gut. “I can’t do this. I won’t. I never should have helped you on that little excursion in the first place, but this is a whole ‘nother level. We could both go to jail for who knows how long. And for what? Because you fucked an AIDE and now you want him for yourself?”

“Fuck you,” Alex nearly shouts. “I love him, asshole! I can’t let him stay a— a slave in that fucking palace.”

“He’s a machine! That’s what he was designed for, Alex!”

“Maybe he was, but that doesn’t mean that’s what he is now,” Alex insists. He holds out the tablet that she has yet to take from him. “Just look at his code. Even I can tell it isn’t like anything else out there.”

Finally, she snatches the tablet from him and jabs at it a few times. Her frown gets deeper. “There’s something wrong with this tablet,” she says eventually. “It’s not displaying things properly.”

“It is.”

“It can’t be, this level of complexity is impossible—”

“He’s writing his own fucking code, Nora,” Alex interrupts. Shaan had explained his theory on Henry’s code as best he was able before Alex left London. “With every one of the choices he was never supposed to be able to make. That’s why it looks like that.”

Heavy silence stretches between them as Nora stares at the tablet, occasionally swiping around and tapping. She chews on her lip. “It shouldn’t be possible,” she mutters, half to herself.

“But it is. He is. Please, Nora,” Alex pleads, not caring how desperate he sounds. “I’ll do anything.”

“Yeah, well. Hopefully it won’t come to that.”

~~~~~

“You need to understand that the changes to his code means that accessing the safeguards is much more difficult.”

“Ok.”

“And I can’t guarantee that this will work. We can’t test it out. Once we shut him down, there’s no way to know exactly what will happen when we boot him back up again. He might come back the same as he is now, but he also might undergo some kind of reset. Even if he retains his free will, he might not remember his life before. He might not remember you.”

Alex swallows hard. “I understand.”

“Does he?”

~~~~~

It takes Alex a month to work up the nerve to broach the topic with Henry. On video call not long after the election, he explains Nora’s plan, how they need to do a full shutdown so she can extract the safeguards like a surgeon. He makes himself explain the risks even though his first impulse is to downplay them. Henry deserves to know, deserves to make the decision for himself. Alex would be a huge fucking hypocrite to take that away from him.

That doesn’t mean he’s required to like Henry’s reaction, though.

“It’s too much risk,” Henry says, a stubborn look on his face that Alex is very familiar with by now. “Things are fine now.”

“They’re really not,” Alex argues. “You’re no better than a prisoner there, Henry. Your freedom is worth the risk.”

“It’s not.”

“Of course it fucking is!” Alex snaps, rapidly becoming frustrated by this argument.

“Not when it could mean losing you!” Henry bites out. He presses his lips together and looks away from the camera, but Alex can see the tears shining in his eyes. “My memories of you—of the museum, of us,” he says eventually, his voice unsteady, “are the only things I have that are truly mine. And you tell me I could lose them… I can’t do it. I’d rather stay here forever.”

“Don’t you understand?” Alex pleads. He wants to reach through the screen and grab him, turn his face and make Henry look at him. “I’m trying to give you the world, baby.”

“I don’t want the world,” Henry says miserably. “Please, Alex. It’s better this way. You may think this is worth it now, but one day you’ll change your mind when you realize that having a secret AIDE lover isn’t exactly compatible with a political career. You’ll want to be with a real person. Someone whose affection you can be certain isn’t just programming. Just… leave me here with my memories.”

Then Henry hangs up on him.

~~~~~

Henry doesn’t answer his calls or reply to his texts, and Alex couldn’t be more miserable. He doesn’t eat and sleeps only fitfully, which confuses his family. Everyone’s still riding a high from winning the election. They think Alex is seriously ill and try to bring in a doctor, but nothing’s physically wrong with him. He can’t tell them he’s suffering from a broken heart like some pining Victorian maiden.

On the fifth day, Nora comes storming into his bedroom in the White House and throws a duffle bag at his chest.

“Pack your shit, we’re going to London,” she says bluntly. “Also take a shower. You reek.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?”

“It’s Henry.” She waves the tablet in the air, which is still linked to Henry’s code in real time. “Someone’s trying to make changes to his code.”

Alex flops back down onto his bed and stares at the ceiling. “It’s probably just him deciding he’s done with me.”

“God, you’re pathetic,” she huffs, now rummaging through his dresser. “It’s not him. Looks like someone else is poking around, and that can’t be a good thing.”

That’s enough to make him rocket straight out of bed, an icy spike of dread shooting down his spine. “Have you gotten in contact with Shaan?”

Nora shakes her head. “No. He’s radio silent.”

���Fuck.”

“I booked us tickets with your credit card on a flight that leaves in two hours, so hurry the fuck up.”

“Nora, is he—” Alex starts before his voice clips off as his throat closes. He forces out, “Can you tell… is he ok?”

Her expression softens, and she puts a hand on his forearm and squeezes. “For now.”

~~~~~

The good thing about Kensington being a museum is that no one can stop him from just buying a ticket and going in. He’s been here enough times to know his way to the library, at least, which is where he goes first, barely aware that Nora’s following hot on his heels. All he can think about is Henry.

Henry’s not in the library, though, nor in any of the surrounding rooms. Alex stops a palace attendant and asks for directions to Prince Henry’s apartments, which she helpfully provides. It’s a part of the palace that’s not on any tours, but that doesn’t seem to matter. A palace attendant’s directive to be helpful to humans is off the charts, even for an AIDE.

Somehow he’s not expecting Shaan to answer the door when he knocks. Alex immediately shoulders his way into the room, anger and fear an unholy cocktail in his veins.

“Where is he? What going on here?” he demands, frantically looking around. “Henry, baby, where are you?”

“Mr. Claremont-Diaz—”

“Henry!” There’s no answer, and Alex rounds on Shaan again. “Are you doing this to him?”

Shaan sighs, and it forces Alex to look closer, to take in the bags under his eyes and the grim set to his face. “I told you, I’m not a coder, Mr. Claremont-Diaz. I have, however, been doing my best to slow their progress.”

“What’s happening?” Alex demands.

“Someone higher in the company noticed Henry’s unusual code. I’m not sure how. A standard review of the AIDEs in the palace, I suppose. Or your trip out of Kensington was less secret than you hoped.”

Fuck. None of that is good. Alex scrubs a hand over his face, forces himself to take steady breaths and not descend into a panic attack. “Ok, ok. Is he all right?”

“Alex?”

Alex’s head whips around so fast he nearly strains his neck. Henry’s standing in the doorway, dressed in his usual slacks and button-down with a blue v-neck sweater over it. He looks… normal, and Alex nearly sobs in relief.

“Baby,” he breathes, practically throwing himself across the room and into Henry’s arms. He buries his face in Henry’s neck and breathes deeply, and the barbed wire wrapped tightly around his heart loosens a little.

“What are you doing here?” Henry asks, his strong arms wrapping automatically around Alex’s body.

Alex yanks his head back and looks askance at Shaan. “Does he not know?” He stares up at Henry. “Your code is under attack.”

“Ah, yes,” Henry says carefully. “It’s not the first time.”

“This has happened to you before?” Nora asks, and Henry looks at her in shock, like he hadn’t realized she was in the room.

“You must be Nora,” he surmises. “Yes, it has. I might have thought you’d have noticed the effects in my code.”

A look of understanding dawns over Nora’s face, and she nods. “They’re like scars. Fuck. How many times?”

“It’s not important,” Henry says in a way that suggests he’s been doing this for a long time. “The main point is that I can handle them.”

“Fuck that,” Alex spits out. “I’m not letting them scar you anymore.”

Henry closes his eyes and sighs wearily as he extracts himself from Alex’s grip. “Alex, love, you shouldn’t be here—”

“No, you listen, asshole,” Alex snaps, his terror giving way to fury. “You can’t fucking hang up on me this time.”

“I told you my decision, Alex—”

“And what about what I want? Doesn’t that mean anything?”

“Fine,” Henry says shortly, his own temper flaring. “You know as well as I that we can’t be together as long as your mother’s in office and the public’s eyes are on you. So if you still want me in four years, come back and we’ll talk then. You know where I’ll be.”

He says it with a humorless slant to his lips that’s probably supposed to pass as a wry grin, like it’s a joke. Alex wants to fucking scream.

“And let them keep on trying to chip away at what makes you you? Take the chance that they’ll just get rid of you?” he retorts instead. “Fat fucking chance! I’m not leaving the man I love in captivity for four fucking years!”

It takes Henry’s eyes going wide and his mouth falling open for Alex to realize what he’s said. “Alex, you can’t—”

“What, love you? Because I do,” Alex says defiantly. “And I think you love me too.”

“Didn’t anyone ever tell you AIDEs can’t love?” Henry says, his voice wavering as he stares at the floor.

Alex steps close, forcing Henry to look up at him, until their noses are almost brushing. “Yeah, well, I know better,” he says, low and heated. “I also know I’m not gonna want anyone else, ‘real person’ or not. You’re a real person to me, Henry, and that’s what matters.” He raises a hand to Henry’s cheek and swipes his thumb through the tear track streaking it. “You’re it for me, sweetheart. I’m never gonna love anyone like I love you, and no one can take that away. Plus,” he adds, for the first time letting a corner of his mouth tug upward, “you know how annoyingly persistent I am. If you forget me, I’ll just make you fall in love with me all over again.”

Henry lets out a wet laugh and covers Alex’s hand with his. “It won’t take long.”

~~~~~

Seeing Henry shut down is wrong. He doesn’t even look dead, he just looks… not there. There’s no light in his eyes. Alex hates it. Can’t make himself watch as Nora works furiously.

It takes longer than he expected, but eventually she takes a deep breath and mutters, “Here goes nothing,” then taps a big green button on the tablet.

Henry’s eyelashes flutter as he wakes up. He looks around the room, eyes landing in turn on Shaan, Nora, and Alex. He holds Alex’s gaze and Alex stares back as if he could make Henry remember him through sheer force of will.

“Hello,” Henry says pleasantly. “I don’t believe we’ve met?”

~~~~~

Five Years Later

Alex stands at the end of the long driveway that leads to a small bungalow by the sea on a tiny island in the middle of the Caribbean. He’s got a bouquet of flowers clutched in one hand, which feels silly now. Maybe this was a mistake.

He’s kept tabs on Henry and his life after leaving Kensington. From what he can tell, Henry seems happy. He visits the markets and restaurants, knows the locals, and spends lots of time writing. He’s never taken a lover, but Alex doesn’t let himself believe that’s because of him.

It seemed easier, if they were going to have to be apart, to not fill Henry in on their history at first. At least one of them could weather the years without heartache. Alex threw himself into law school, letting nothing distract him. Graduated at the top of his class, got the job of his dreams working for a firm specializing in civil rights litigation, one of the few considering cases related to AIDE protections. He lives a pretty quiet life. No one really cares about what the former FSOTUS is up to these days. And now he’s here, half a decade later, with little more than hope.

Hope, and a wilting bouquet of flowers.

In his darker moments, he’s wondered if it wouldn’t be kinder to Henry to leave him be. Let him live his life. After all, Alex will get old and die, and Henry… won’t. No one really knows how AIDEs might break down over time—their organic-based bodies must, eventually—but their lifespans will surely be much longer than a human’s. In that context, coming back and hoping Henry will fall in love with him again seems nothing but selfish.

Still, he made a promise, and he owes it to Henry to tell him, if nothing else. Maybe Henry will decide that he’s happy as he is, that he doesn’t want the eventual heartache. He owes it to Henry to let him choose.

The gravel of Henry’s driveway crunches loudly under his shoes as he walks toward the bungalow, announcing his arrival as well as any doorbell. When he gets closer, he catches sight of Henry sitting on the porch that faces the beach, a notebook on his lap and a drink on the table next to him. They’d dyed his hair brown after fleeing Kensington, and brown it has remained. He’s still as pale as ever, though; AIDEs don’t tan or get sunburned.

He doesn’t turn at the sound of Alex’s approach, just stares fixedly out at the ocean until Alex stops at the bottom of the two steps that lead up to the porch. Alex’s heart is in his throat when Henry finally gets up and walks to the top of the steps. The smile on his face is warm, fond. Nothing like what he’d left Alex with when they’d parted.

It shouldn’t be possible… but then again, Henry is the very embodiment of the impossible.

He holds out his hand, and Alex climbs up to take it, letting Henry pull him in.

“Hello, love,” Henry says, raising a warm hand to his cheek. “I’ve been waiting for you.”

[wynnyfryd]

By the time Eddie gets Steve up the stairs and down the hall to his horrible plaid bedroom, the flood of excitement has fizzled out and left bone-deep exhaustion in his wake. He’s pretty sure he hasn’t felt this fucking tired since he woke up in the hospital all those months ago. “Okay, Stevie,” he sighs as he throws himself onto the bed, starfishing across the mattress. “It is possible that I have overestimated my stamina here.” 

“Oh, you think?” Steve grins playfully as he crawls onto the bed beside him. His hand comes to rest on Eddie’s happy trail, fingers skating over the soft hair beneath his belly button.

“Fuck!” Eddie squirms. “That tickles!” 

“Does it?” Steve asks with a glint in his eye that Eddie does not appreciate, but before he can do anything to defend himself Steve is throwing a leg over his lap, straddling him and holding him down while he tickles Eddie within an inch of his life. 

“Stop! Stop!” Eddie gasps, pawing ineffectively at Steve’s chest as he shakes with teary-eyed laughter, “Oh, my god, three taps, red, et cetera, you little monster.”

Steve stops immediately. 

“You’re an actual demon,” Eddie pouts as he sinks into the blankets.

Steve tips forward, laying his weight over Eddie’s chest, and the bastard’s still laughing when he presses an apologetic kiss to Eddie’s neck. “Sorry. Can’t help it if you look cute when you’re flustered.” 

“Jesus Christ.”

Steve sits back up, resting his palms against Eddie’s chest. “What does ‘red’ mean, by the way? Like, I get the gist, obviously, but, uh...”

“It’s a color system people use in kink. Like traffic lights. Basically the same thing as the tap-out system. Which, I still don’t understand how the hell you knew about that if you don’t know about BDSM, but—”

“BD what now?”

“Oh, my god.” Eddie looks up at the ceiling. Where to fucking begin? “BDSM. It’s an acronym. Bondage, Discipline — or Domination, take your pick, Sadism, and Masochism.” 

Steve makes an adorably confused face, his eyebrows drawing down. “Okay, I think I understood, like, three of those words.” 

God, he’s cute. 

“God, you're cute,” Eddie sighs, and okay, guess his filter’s out of commission for the evening. “Don’t worry about the last two for now. Those are more about pain play” — Steve’s eyes widen in alarm — “which, no shame to anyone who’s into that, but I’m not sure how much interest I have in that particular arena ever since, well...” 

Ever since bats used me as a fucking chew toy, he thinks, gesturing at his fucked-up torso. 

“Cool,” Steve says. “Me neither. I mean, I don’t think. I haven’t tried it, but I’m pretty sure I don’t want to hurt you.”

“You might,” Eddie smirks. He leans up on an elbow, kisses the soft skin of Steve’s inner arm. “But you don’t have to, sweetheart.” 

“Cool,” Steve says again, his shoulders slouching in relief. “So, the other two…?” 

“Sure. Bondage is pretty self-explanatory, but there are different degrees of it. The more, uh, extreme side of things usually involves shit like ropes and handcuffs, but it can be more mild. Like tying my wrists up with a scarf, or even just pinning them over my head with your hands.”

Steve’s eyes light up at that suggestion. He leans forward, pressing Eddie flat onto his back, and he scoops up Eddie’s hands and stretches them above his head, crossing his wrists and holding them there with just one hand. Jesus, his hands are huge. Eddie gulps and bucks up into him a little. 

Steve moans, leans down so their lips almost brush. “Something like this?” 

“Yeah,” Eddie breathes, his voice rough and raspy and wanting. 

Steve presses in, kisses him hard, his hips grinding down as he licks against his lips. Hot and filthy and wet. Eddie parts his lips eagerly, swallows the moan that passes from Steve’s mouth to his when Steve shoves his tongue inside. Licks behind his fucking teeth.

“Okay,” Eddie pants when they part; he smiles up at Steve, pupils blown wide and face flushed red. “So we like that one then?”

“Yeah,” Steve grins. “Yeah, we like that one a lot.”

[i-did-not-mean-to]

YOTP - February

For V-day, I'll give you the YOTP fic for February.

A reluctant OTP, but an OTP nevertheless...Please, have some Merestor x Glorfindel (with art from @sauroff)

Lots and lots, heaps and heaps, of love for y'all!

Pairing: Glorfindel x Erestor

Prompt: Valentine's Day, Pollen/Fear Gas/Truth Serum, Established Relationship/Long Distance, different, mermaid, "If I kiss you, will you shut up?"

Words: 2 500

Warning: Sacrifice, implied monsterfucking, Merestor is a savage, nudity

(very sexy art and not very sexy fic under the cut!)

“We are sorry,” the councilman whispered as he stood, outlined by ominous darkness on Glorfindel’s threshold. “You have been chosen. We are hoping—”

“I understand,” Glorfindel replied before the old man could rattle off the perfidious reasons for their cruel decision to send one of their most valued warriors to his death. It made sense, he thought, the threat with which the town had been dealing for quite some time now was not one he or anyone else could fight with swords and arrows.

Thus, he had become superfluous—dead weight, really, and he recognised that much without fail.

“Today is a good day to die,” he added, deep sadness making his voice sound as hollow as if it was already coming from the grave. “I cannot bear the festivities anyway.”

“You must find it heartless—”

“Not at all,” Glorfindel interrupted again. “It’s strangely poetic, don’t you think? Give me an hour to put everything in order, tell the neighbours, and distribute what few riches are left to me, and then I shall be all yours.”

“Very well. I am sorry, please believe me,” the man who had known the condemned for many long years breathed softly.

“I know,” Glorfindel said soothingly. “I appreciate the sentiment, but I am not loath to die. Especially not today!”

As he went through his meagre possessions, the golden-haired hero of another time smiled wistfully to himself.

Outside, maidens and young men were giggling breathlessly as they sang songs of love and hope and waved their elaborate bouquets through the fragrant night air—this was their day, the day of lovers, and Glorfindel felt ashamed of his visceral, asphyxiating resentment of their happiness.

Once upon a time, he had been much like them. Returning from a faraway war covered in glory and illustrious distinctions, he had managed to capture the heart and hand of a beautiful, smart, enchanting young man.

For a few blessed years, he and Erestor—for that had been his beloved’s name—had lived in peace and plenty. Every year, they’d light candles on this hallowed night and sit on the porch of their little dwelling to watch the procession of giddy youths, dancing through the street with elation.

Then, one day, Erestor had disappeared. Glorfindel had waited, searched, and despaired, but no trace of his darling had been found.

Looking back now, he realised that the “deep”—an ominous threat that had transformed the previously merry village into a ghost town of whispered conversations and furtive steps—had first made itself known around the same time.

Nobody knew exactly what it was and what it wanted, but it was generally understood that Erestor—Glorfindel’s very own husband—had been its first victim.

From that fateful spring on, cattle, people, and treasures vanished from the riverbanks and the edges of the underground lake that had always been a highly favoured bathing spot for the villagers. Fear fell like a shadow over the hamlet, stifling all life and laughter.

Soon, people avoided all running water, coming up with complex rituals of superstition and idiocy, but Glorfindel was too heartbroken still to even fear for his life; he wanted to know what had happened to his sweetheart.

At first, the elders had refused that he or anyone else should leave the safety of the village to seek out the mysterious creature that had been glimpsed by a few but never fully seen, and Glorfindel had reluctantly bowed to the pressure of public outrage.

Then, the sacrifices had started. Miscreants and rebels, bound and gagged, were left in the cave to feed and soothe the “deep”—and, to everybody’s horror and delight—they were gone by the time the guards came back in to check on them. As the mouth of the cavern was under perpetual surveillance, it was undeniable that it had to be the sea monster that had taken them.

A part of Glorfindel had always known that, sooner or later, he would be picked to be delivered to the pernicious pestilence haunting their home. His adamant refusal to wear the protective amulets or steer clear of the river had branded him an insurgent and a sceptic, and a community ruled by fear could and would not abide such disruptive, potentially dangerous faithlessness.

Thus, on the night of lovers, he was called upon to do what was necessary to keep a society from which he had almost entirely withdrawn safe. This would be his last act of heroism.

Glorfindel felt relieved and almost happy as he walked, flanked by the mayor and the councilman, down to the cave. Maybe, he thought, he’d be able to find out something about his lost lover; either way, he’d be freed of the torturous half-life he had been leading.

As he entered the cave, he was surprised and more than just a little touched to find countless candles burning in every nook and cranny.

The villagers had carved well-wishes into the melting wax or written down their prayers on little scraps of paper that were now buried under the slow-moving tide of pristine white, dripping off every wall.

“We have to…” the mayor looked up at Glorfindel with undisguised misery as he lifted the length of rope he had been kneading in his sweaty hands. “You can keep the clothes to prevent chafing.”

Chuckling wryly, Glorfindel shook his head slowly. He had promised his last possessions—the garments on his back and the bells in his hair—to the two brave men who stood by him as he set out for his last expedition.

“I hope that you’ll at least get a tankard of ale each for these,” he said as he laid the adornments he had cherished through many a hard year into their unworthy palms. “Now tie me up and leave. For all I’ve done for this village and for you, I think that I deserve the dignity of meeting my fate without having to worry about an audience.”

They complied readily, desperate to get away from the dark water lapping rhythmically against the sloping ground of the cave.

In their furious haste, they were less gentle with this season’s sacrifice than he’d have deserved, but Glorfindel was unfazed by the nails scraping heedlessly across his bare skin and the sharp bite of the rope into his tense flesh.

“Where…”

The councilman pointed at a few worn, discoloured pillows at the far end of the cavern, just a stone’s throw away from the frightening, liquid threat of the purling underground lake.

“Tasteful,” Glorfindel commented as he was heaved, pushed, and dragged to the designated spot. In his mind, images of his first successful attempts at seduction danced as if to taunt him.

He was no stranger to promiscuous poses and elaborate bondage, and—on this lonely night of lost love—he could truly appreciate the irony.

“I am ready,” he declared. “Withdraw and save your lives. Think of me fondly, and don’t let this ruin your evening. Go light a candle in my honour. Maybe, look the other way if you come across a particularly adventurous couple, I don’t know…”

He huffed—it annoyed him that he was still the one trying to comfort and calm the men who had condemned him to an undoubtedly horrid demise, but he couldn’t bear their sad, mournful gazes.

“I am not dead yet,” Glorfindel grunted when nobody moved. “Remember me like this—beautiful, alluring, and very much alive!”

Tensing and squirming against the irregular, badly tied knots, he averted his face which finally convinced his two hangmen to scamper away like the vermin they were.

“Let’s hope this monstrosity makes haste at the very least,” Glorfindel mumbled and leaned back against the smelly cushions as much as he could without cutting off his circulation.

Thankfully for the integrity and safety of his limbs, Glorfindel did not have to wait long until minute ripples on the hitherto perfectly placid surface of the lake heralded the imminent arrival of whatever lethal foe was lurking in the murky depths.

“Ah, a new one,” a voice resounded. To the intended victim’s utter astonishment, it sounded tired and impatient rather than gleefully wicked. “Why do they keep pawning their unwanted villagers off on me?”

Spellbound, Glorfindel twisted as much as his bonds allowed to see a shimmering, mesmerising creature cleave through the water.

“Eh, same as ever,” the aquatic being muttered and launched itself out of its watery habitat, twirling like a falling star and filling the stale, damp air with a fine powder that tasted sweet and cloying on Glorfindel’s tongue as he drew a deep breath. “What is it that you truly desire? Do not even try to lie to me—the spores you’ve just inhaled force you to tell the truth.”

“I want to know what happened to my love,” Glorfindel replied immediately, not even trying to struggle against the sudden heaviness pervading his limbs and befuddling his racing mind. “All I want is to find out where Erestor went.”

With a muted splash, the creature fell back into the arms of the inky lake until only a pair of brightly flashing eyes—as eerily familiar and yet entirely foreign as the accents of that enchanting voice—were visible.

Taking the monster’s silence as an invitation and unable to stem the tide of words that had been unleashed by the potent dust he had ingested, Glorfindel kept babbling about the one he had loved and lost, detailing Erestor’s indescribable beauty and admirable wit and sighing longingly.

“I know that you’ve taken him, and I’d beg you to reunite us!” he finally pleaded.

“You think that I have killed your lover,” the creature mused, its words setting off a flurry of bubbles, dancing over the glassy surface of the water. “And you’d be willing to meet that same fate?”

“Yes. Life itself is worth nothing if it’s to be devoid of all joy and love!”

“You have ever been such a soppy fool! I should have known that my sacrifice would come to nought due to your reckless stubbornness!”

Heaving itself from its fluid realm once more, the creature drew inexorably closer.

“Who made those knots? What a mess! Just look at your beautiful skin!” Razor-sharp claws sliced through the rope without hesitation, and Glorfindel sat up, rubbing the sore spots his writhing had left behind.

“Erestor?” he cried as he now fully faced the well-known and desperately missed frame of the one he had sought for endless months.

There was no doubt about it, that visage—gleaming like mother of pearl and gold in the flickering light of the white candles—was the very one he saw in those terrible nightmares that haunted his every moment of respite.

“How? Why? What has happened? How have you come hither? Have you been enslaved against your will? What can I do? I have missed you so much, you can’t imagine! Oh Erestor, my love! Or…did you leave me of your own accord? Was I not a good husband to you? You should have told me that you were unhappy—I would have done anything to alleviate your dissatisfaction—”

“If I kiss you, will you shut up?” Erestor interrupted, and—not waiting for an answer—pressed his cool, wet lips against Glorfindel’s burning mouth in a gentle caress that grew frantic and heated almost instantly.

“Why?” Glorfindel whispered against the fragrant skin for which he had yearned with every fibre of his being.

“Old enemies came for you—you were out, at the market if I recall correctly—and they spoke terrible threats…” Erestor explained sheepishly. “You were always too rash to heed the warning signs of the deeper, darker secrets of the world.”

“But—”

“I’ve offered myself. What else could I do? The town needed you more than they did me!”

“I needed you! To hell with the accursed village—they’ve left me here, bound and naked, to be eaten by some fearsome monstrosity!” Glorfindel cried passionately.

“So they did,” Erestor agreed, anger and regret turning his eyes into splintered onyx. “It seems that I’ve been mistaken in my assessment, a rarity as you well know. I did not expect you to waste your time bemoaning my loss.”

“How dare you?” Glorfindel roared. Not minding the sharp protrusions on Erestor’s fingers or the dangerously pointy teeth flashing in the semi-darkness, he grabbed his lost husband by the shoulders and shook him vehemently. “I have never stopped looking and waiting for you—loving you—and if that ass of a mayor had not been so laughably terrified, I would have found out the truth much sooner!”

“Do they really think I’ve killed all these people?” Erestor inquired, leaning against the comforting, dry warmth of Glorfindel’s chest.

When the golden-haired sacrificial offering of beauty and valour nodded, he tossed back his head and laughed heartily.

“Believe you me, I did no such thing. It is in my power to grant one wish to those who seek me out in exchange for something they treasure—and what idiotic things they were—and so, I’ve helped every single person you’ve thrown down here escape the prison of paranoia and worry into which you’ve seemingly turned our once peaceful village.”

Glorfindel stared until his eyes overflowed with hot tears, leaving warm streaks of salt and salvation on his sculptural, freckled cheeks.

“I am so happy to see you—have you been well?” he asked breathlessly. “You should not have offered yourself that without consulting me! Of all the things to lose, I’d rather lose a limb than you!”

“I can see that now,” Erestor admitted. “I am sorry for doubting your love and your strength—they were very persuasive, and they tapped into my secret insecurity that someone like me—cerebral, somewhat scrawny, and undeniably mean—could never keep the love of one so glorious, handsome, and popular as you. It was all so new, and they made me believe that you’d soon grow tired of me anyway…This sacrifice was meant to be my parting gift.”

“And you dare call me a fool?” Glorfindel rasped as he bundled his merman husband—long, iridescent tail and webbed hands—onto his bare lap fitfully. As soon as that smooth, cool skin collided with his own heated flesh, he felt his body and all its dormant desires and impulses flare back to life.

“My love,” Erestor said warningly as he felt the testament of Glorfindel’s enduring, evidently unconditional ardour press against his scaly rear, “this is hardly the moment. I still have one wish to grant you—choose wisely!”

“Do you enjoy this life?” Glorfindel asked seriously, cupping Erestor’s soft cheek and searching his petulant gaze for any signs of dishonesty.

“Yes,” Erestor admitted after a moment’s reflexion. “It is strange, certainly, but I like it well! You’d…you couldn’t understand…”

“Then my wish is to join you!” Glorfindel exclaimed. “It is my turn to offer my life for your happiness. Make me what you are!”

So, that was my contribution to the YOTP for February!

I hope you've enjoyed this! Lots of love!

-> Masterlist

[beanghostprincess]

Pudding and Usopp should be friends me thinks. Usopp hears about everything that happened to Sanji on WCI and is fully prepared to hate her guts no matter what anyone says and then it’s slightly mad at himself when he actually likes her. I have a very specific image of Sanamipu bff dynamic in my head I can’t really describe but I’m having it. The type of people who think of themself as some of the more sane people in the group and sure, they get the idiot ball just a tiny bit less often when they are all together and snarking, but when they get it they slam dunk it so hard the entire court shatters.

I AGREE COMPLETELY!!!!!!!!! This would be so funny, too 😭 (Making this Sanusona as I always do) Usopp finds out about what happened back on WCI and he hates Pudding. Sanji keeps telling him to see it from a different angle. That it wasn't really Pudding's fault and she was being manipulated by her mom. That she actually helped them in the end. But Usopp doesn't like her- Not only because she did what she did, but also because he can't stand the way Sanji talks about her. Ngl, I think Usopp isn't a jealous person, but he is very insecure and Sanji being fond of the girl he almost ends up marrying makes him a bit sick. But, yeah. Final saga, they rescue Pudding, and she meets the Strawhats. Usopp is fully prepared to be her worst enemy no matter what! But- But she's actually really nice? And cute? And really, really funny? And he can't hate her. He tries to be angry at her but she's cooking sweets for everyone and even though she has this weird on-and-off personality when it comes to Sanji... She has a good heart. But Usopp keeps pretending that he hates her because he's a proud idiot and he won't admit he was wrong about her. Sanji just tells him to get his shit together already and enjoy their time together because otherwise, he'll regret it (funny that he's the one saying that as if he wasn't equally as stubborn. That frustrated Usopp more). I think Pudding would actually make amends with them, you know, since I doubt Nami and Luffy could forgive her that easily. But they end up getting along with her when she apologizes (when Sanji isn't around because if he is in front of her she'll end up yelling without wanting to). Usopp doesn't buy it. I mean- He does buy it. He just doesn't want to. So Pudding talks to him in private and explains her situation and apologizes and says she understands if he doesn't want to forgive her. She almost marries his boyfriend, after all. And she has hurt him in multiple ways. And she has broken his heart. It's understandable if Usopp wants to hate her so bad. But the guy is soft against that and Usopp believes people can change. Besides, he knows what being insecure about your appearance and status is, especially if it has to do with a parent. So they end up getting along. The same thing happens with Nami, actually. Imagine trying to forget what Pudding did to their cook. Nami is going feral cat mode against her. If looks could kill, y'know... But! But she saw with her own eyes how Pudding helped them out and she knows what it feels like. To act like somebody you're not. And yeah, okay, the girl might be a little bit insane but it could be worse. And when she's acting like a normal person, she's a sweetheart. So Usopp ends up befriending her quickly, while Nami accepts her and embraces her friendship, but not without the typical "But I swear, if you do anything remotely bad to him again I am not hesitating to electrocute you and throw you overboard. Understood? Understood. Glad we had this chat, bestie". So, uh, yeah- At least they're friends now.

And let me tell you-- It's chaotic. Sanji thought he would be devastated if they didn't get along, but now that they do... Sanji is losing his mind. They're all crazy. He's living his dream, you know. His dear Pudding is friends with his partners. Great. Yeah. Uh. Pudding is teaching Usopp how to use a revolver, which makes sense since he is a sniper and he's curious about guns. That makes sense. But she's also telling Nami manipulation tactics and the navigator couldn't be happier. And you might think that's it, but then you have Usopp showing off his abilities and Nami giving tangerines to Pudding so she can make sweets with them. Which is adorable and cute and Sanji loves every second of it, but it's like they planned this to make him go insane. His poor heart can't handle this. He's going to die. They're a menace to society. Honestly? An unstoppable trio. They manipulate, gaslight, and Sanji malewifes. If they don't like you and you have something they want they probably will steal that from you using either manipulation, burglar tactics or, you know, a gun. Perfect trio. They're also Sanji's protection squad. And also they're the ones who scold him when he doesn't behave. He's a bit scared of them but like, in a good way? And they also look after him a lot so it's alright. And besides, Sanji is kind of like their knight in shining armor too because he gets extra violent if something happens to any of them.

Isn't it just,,, Such a cute picture to imagine Sanji and Pudding cooking while Usopp and Nami work on their own things at the dining table while they keep them company? I find it cute,, They're all a bit crazy but it's fine.

[lost-walmartbag]

Stan x Reader S2 Pt 5

Warning: N/A

Background: Sarah and you have a conversation before bed

Status: Ongoing

Previous part

Next part

Do you?

"Where's Papa?"

You pause for a moment, looking down at Sarah's soft features. It had been a while since Kyle left without saying a word. You knew what he was doing of course but it didn't stop you from worrying. Stan was unpredictable sometimes. Not that he would ever hurt anyone, but you were worried he'd hurt himself.

"He's just making sure one of his friends is ok." Gently brushing a strand of her hair out of her face and placing a gentle kiss on her forehead.

Adults do that a lot. Say something that's supposed to comfort, with little detail to shield their kids from the harsh truths of the world. And as you look down at Sarah you can tell it didn't work.

"He's ok I promise."

"He was really mad before...when that man was here."

Stan. Of course, she didn't know who Stan was but hearing her refer to him as only 'that man' killed you inside. What if that was you? You could only imagine the pain Stan would feel if he heard that. He was her father and yet here she was not even understanding who he was.

"That man was...he's a friend."

"Why were you yelling at him?"

"It's hard to explain, but I'm so sorry we scared you." You whispered, gently stroking her hair.

"Was he bad?"

"No honey he wasn't bad, he was just...angry." Maybe not the best choice of words but you knew they were the only ones Sarah would understand.

"At you?" She asked furrowing her brow. You knew she did this when she didn't fully understand something and as much as you didn't want to say it you knew she was old enough to know the truth.

"Yeah. At me." You whispered looking at the headboard behind her rather than her face. "Mommy...Mommy did something that hurt him and he didn't understand why."

"Why did you?"

Children were naturally curious. Asking you what the meaning of life was at least once a day was normal with Sarah and you loved that about her. Couldn't help but hate it now though.

"His name is Stan. He was friends with me and Papa Kyle when we were in high school."

"Before me." She said not as a question but as an observation. Sarah had an interesting way of understanding time. There was before her and then after her and that was all she knew.

"Yeah before you." You said gently shaking her leg. "Well, when we were friends...he did something. And it hurt a lot, and we stopped being friends."

"Did he mean to?"

"Hurt me? I don't think so, honey." And you meant it. Stand didn't leave to hurt you but that didn't stop it from hurting.

"Do you forgive him?" She asked, making you ponder on her question.

She was a smart kid. She understood a lot more than you ever did. You couldn't read people the way she read you.

"Yeah. I forgive him."

"Does he forgive you?"

Does he? Can he? You got to spend Sarah's entire life with her and all he got were an Instagram post and 4 seconds watching you comfort her. And it's your fault.

"I don't know, sweetheart. I want him to, but what Mommy did was bad, and if he can forgive me it'll take a long time."

"Like five days?"

"Maybe a little more than that."

"That's a lot." She said in a serious voice that made you chuckle.

"Ya it is, but sometimes it's ok to give people time."

"How much time would you need for me?" She whispered, looking up at you with those sparkling blue eyes she got from Stan.

She was so much like him. People wouldn't notice. Kyle didn't. But you did. You spent years hating him and then weeks loving him more than anything before he was nothing again. And every time you look into Sarah's eyes, kiss her soft face, watch her happily sing in the living room. It makes you fall in love with him all over again for giving you such a wonderful person.

"I wouldn't need any time for you. I could never feel anything but love for you." You whispered making her brow furrow again.

"You can love someone and not forgive them. I loved Papa Kyle even though he ate my cookie." She said with a small pout.

You loved Stan even after he left. Even after he broke you and left you to glue and tape yourself together again. But you didn't forgive him. You loved him even when you went through the pregnancy alone. And you love him even when you look down at your daughter indirectly telling you how much smarter she is.

"You're right. You can love someone and not forgive them."

"But you do."

"Yeah, I do forgive him."

"No. You love him?"

You pause before taking in the way Sarah looks at you. It is way past her bedtime. "Yeah, I do."

"Does he love you?"

"Who knows." You said softly before kissing her forehead. "I love you, sweetheart. Get some rest ok?"

"Night night Mommy." She whispered, with a small yawn.

"Goodnight my star."

A/N: Hey guys sorry I haven't been uploading it has been a long few weeks. I hope you enjoyed this chapter I still love ya'll thank you for reading 🩷🩷🩷

Taglist: @jessiegerl

[lee-pines]

Arbitrary Fate- Chapter 3 Plan A

Chapter 3 is here!

Hope you enjoy!

The Man Cave was alive with activity for the first time in years. Jasper, Piper, and Charlotte were all there. Each was able to take off their last few weeks of classes, making up family emergencies. They were to take their finals online.

Finals, however, were the last things on their mind. They paced around, talking amongst each other. They did whatever they could. Charlotte was on a tablet while Piper sat with Captain Man. Jasper accessed Schwoz by wiring up Christopher.

“Do you understand the plan?” Charlotte asked, typing on her tablet.

“I-I think so,” Christopher said as he licked his lips. This was not how he was expecting his morning to go. The day after he told Captain Man everything, he received a call from the man himself. He had no idea how he got his number, but nonetheless he received the call telling him to go to a random street. Once he was there he was… kidnapped. He was pretty sure that he was kidnapped and brought to the Man Cave. Everyone instantly started to talk to him, telling him the plan. Each person had a part as if it was planned out.

From what he understood, they wanted him to go back to Extra Space Storage and tell Drex that he was interested in joining him. While there, he would be wearing special glasses with a camera in between the eyes. This would allow for the group here to get a layout of the basement, and create a rescue plan.

When he pointed out that this plan could take a while, Captain Man said “Tell me about it.” while the youngest girl- Piper he thinks her name was- said that she did not care how long it took. They were going to get Kid Danger back one way or the other. They would try this way first.

They could always go to plan B which, apparently, was a raid.

“You either know or you don't,” Captain Man said sternly.

“I know. I know the plan,” Christopher said, injecting as much confidence in his voice as he could. It was not convincing enough.

Captain Man shook his head. “I don’t know.”

“C’mon, R- Captain Man,” the young man stammered. Jasper. That was his name. It reminded Christopher of Casper.

“He’s the only option we have right now,” Charlotte said, walking over to him. “Drex knows all of us,” she indicated to everyone in the room. “And Christopher already has an in.”

Captain Man stood, marching over toward. He pointed toward his chest, “You cannot give any indication that you are working with us. Drex is dangerous and smart. He will suspect something if you slip once.”

Christopher nodded his understanding. “I got it. No crying, no flinching. None of that.”

Ray still hated it. As angry as he could be with Christopher, he was just a kid, no older than the other kids here. He did not ask for this, he just stumbled upon it. He was currently going above what anyone could expect of him. Charlotte was right, however. He was their only in. The only safe way that they could get Henry back. They needed to get Henry back as safe and sound as possible.

So, Captain Man nodded. “Good,” he waved him off, “now go. You know what to do.”

…

Henry did not know how long he was in his room for. He was fed twice, so he knew that it was at least two days. Two days with nothing to do but wait and sit in his pain was not abnormal.

Henry spent that time daydreaming. He fantasized about somewhere safe. Someplace where he was surrounded by people who liked him and did not hurt him. Dad was there. Dad never hurt him. He still hung out around the edges of the fantasy. Just on the outskirts while he watched movies with his friends or talked to them.

Henry was rudely taken out of his fantasy when his door slammed open. Henry flinched, looking up to see Drex. The goggles and mask dangled from his normal hand casually.

“Hello, Sir,” Henry whispered, bowing his head the way he was supposed to.

“Good morning, Sweetheart,” Drex said gently. He walked over to Henry, grabbing his cheek and rubbing his thumb on his cheekbones. Henry tensed but did not dare back away. He was not allowed to. He had learned very quickly that a nice touch could turn painful, especially when he did something bad.

He knew the rules. He was supposed to obey. No matter what. He was not allowed to do anything before he received permission. That included eating, moving, or speaking. He was to clean anything he was told to and take any beating anyone wanted to give him.

Drex removed his hand, standing to his full height. Despite only being a couple of inches taller than him, Henry always felt so small. Drex was a giant and he was a simple broonie. Only he was not given food in return for his efforts.

Drex snapped in his face. Henry’s head snapped up to look at Drex’s face. He was still smiling. Henry sighed in relief and waited for his next direction.

“So stuck in your own head, hu?” Drex asked.

Drex wanted an answer. What answer, Henry was not sure. So, he said “Sorry, Sir.” He was still quiet. He was not allowed to be loud. Drex did not like it.

“No more of that daydreaming,” Drex ordered. “Too stupid for all that anyway.”

Henry nodded though he did not know if he agreed. He was supposed to agree with everything that Drex said. Sometimes he did not. He would never let Drex know that.

“Stand,” Drex ordered shortly.

Henry instantly listened, but he was slower than he normally was. He had not moved much in a couple of days. He was stiff. Drex did not care. Never did. All that mattered was that he was too slow.

Drex pushed him down harshly onto the mattress. A gasp of pain escaped him as his head bounced off the wall. Without thinking, he rubbed the back of his head. Tears filled his eyes that he did not allow to drop. If he cried over this, Drex would just make everything worse.

Drex slapped his hand away from his head with his clawed hand, causing pain to blister as Drex scratched him. Drex then felt the back of his head with a hum. He pressed down on a particularly tender spot. Henry hissed softly, but did not protest any further.

“You’ll be alright,” Drex dismissed. This time he grabbed the top of his right arm and forced him up to his feet. Henry knew better than to try and fight. Drex was already angry. No need to make him anymore.

Once he was on his feet, Drex said, “Good, was that so hard?

Henry shook his head with a gulp, hoping that he was doing the right thing.

“Now, we’re going to have a fun day,” Drex said.

A shiver ran through Henry’s spine. A “fun day” was never fun for him. He would be hurt. A lot. Henry took a shaky breath, but he did not let himself show his fear. That would just make everything so much worse.

“I’m going to put this on you,” Drex explained slowly as if he was talking to a small child. He shook the goggles. He would not be allowed to see today. That was okay. Henry did not like to see all the people Drex had with him. They were scary. Hearing them was bad enough. They always laughed at him.

“I don’t want to have to put your mask on, but I will if I have to” Drex said, once again patting his face. “I want to hear you scream pretty.”

“Yes, Sir,” Henry said shakily.

Henry did not fight the goggles. He never did. Drex tightened the strap around his head too tight. It was uncomfortable and he would likely have a headache by the time they were done. Those were the least of his worries, however. He was going to be hurt badly today.

‘Just take it,’ Henry thought to himself. ‘Don’t try to protect yourself. That will just make everything so much worse.’

“Good,” Drex said as if he could read his thoughts. He grabbed the nape of his neck with his clawed hand. Henry could feel warm blood trickle down his back. He did not react. Could not react as his mind race with the possibilities of what could happen.

“Now walk.”

…

Henry was taken over one hundred steps to the left. Henry’s stomach dropped. He knew what was going to happen now. Drex explained that sometimes his goons would get stressed. A punching bag was the perfect way to get stress out.

He was the punching bag.

Henry heard his heartbeat in his ears as his breathing became labored. He did not want to. He really, really did not want to.

He did not realize that he was shaking his head until Drex pulled his hair, forcing his head back. “You do not get to say no. That’s the first lesson you learned. Remember?”

Henry nodded although he did not remember. It was like the rules were implanted in his mind at some point. He knew them, but he did not remember how he knew them. Maybe that was for the best.

Drex let go of his hair, and they continued to walk twenty more steps. A squeaky door was opened and left open. Ten more steps. The footsteps echoed. The room was empty.

“Hold your arms up,” Drex ordered.

Henry instantly listened. He did not want another correction. Freezing cuffs were wrapped around his wrists and ankles. He was not going anywhere. Just want Drex wanted.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door.

“Drex, there is someone here for you,” a female voice said. Dahlia. She was Drex’s favorite, so she got away with interrupting him.

“Who?”

“That guy- Christopher I think.”

“Tell him I’ll be right there,” Drex said. There was a pleased tone about his voice. Heels clicked on the ground as Dahlia walked away.

“You wait right here,” Drex said, patting his cheek. “I’m sure our new friend will enjoy this.”

‘Great,’ Henry thought to himself as he heard Drex’s footsteps walk away. ‘A new friend.’

[terabyteturtle]

Fighter #06 - Kirby

- Little Mac introduced him to Naruto and now he's a big fan of it. His favorite character is Kakashi Hatake.

- Kirby loves to cosplay! He often makes cosplays of the other fighters. It's not in a creepy way, it's just that he admires them and their unique abilities. Getting a wig is easy enough, since all he has to do is inhale them, but the clothes can be difficult because Kirby's body is so round. Cosplay Pikachu often helps him out and gives him tips.

- He likes painting rocks in his free time. To help earn funds for the mansion, he'll go back to Dreamland and sell them to the locals.

- He's a master of croquet, but somehow terrible at golf. If that wasn't bad enough, he only gets worse when playing Wii Golf.

- Cloud and Link are his idols. He'll hang out with them every chance he gets.

- Kirby's Ultra Sword is the biggest sword in Smash. Unfortunately, this has caused Sephiroth to hate him.

- Kirby is always the first fighter to greet new additions to the roster. No matter who they are or where they came from, he's always super excited to meet them.

- Despite his spherical stature, he's an amazing ballerina. He has a tutu that's pink, just like him.

- Kirby is one of the backup dancers for the Squid Sisters.

- He's a firm believer in giving second chances. He doesn't give a flying flea that the villains tried to kill him, everyone deserves a fresh start in his eyes.

- He loves to read fantasy novels. In his room, there's a giant bookshelf filled with tales about fairies, dragons, unicorns, and other mythological creatures. Speaking of which, he loves reading about Greek and Norse mythology. He finds it really interesting.

- Kirby can inflate anything in three seconds. If the Smash Bros are at the beach and the beach ball is going flat, he can refill it in no time. That being said, if the beach balls are forgotten, Kirby will NOT allow anyone to use him instead. That's just disrespectful.

- Terry introduced him to Earth music and now he can't stop listening to it. He loves k-pop and 80s music the most. His playlist is forty hours long and it keeps growing longer. Kirby wants to expand his horizons as much as possible, so he'll gladly take song recommendations, no matter what genre it is. In fact, that's how he figured out that he was a big Mastodon fan.

- He's really good at Just Dance.

- Kirby is a sweetheart, but his monstrous appetite can be really tough to deal with. Combined with the appetites of Pac-Man, Yoshi, Donkey Kong, Wario, King K. Rool, and King Dedede, it's a complete nightmare for whoever's making food that day. These devious fighters need to have at least three servings for breakfast, lunch, AND dinner.

- One time, the roster held a potluck to celebrate the fact that they were all still alive, and the hungry seven were allowed to have four servings instead of their usual three, which was a big mistake. The only thing left over was a single piece of chicken, and the following day, the seven of them fought over who would get to eat it. First, they argued with each other, then it became an all-out brawl. Of course, Kirby ended up winning. To commemorate his victory, he made himself a trophy out of cardboard, gold star stickers, and dried macaroni that he keeps in a display case in his room.

- He really wants to join in on the Mario Kart races, but keeps getting rejected because Warp Stars are too overpowered, apparently.

- Kazuya really hates him, but poor Kirby doesn't understand why. After Kazuya tried to kill him, Kirby picked some purple flowers and gave them to him as a peace offering. The grumpy devil man thought they were poisonous and crushed them underfoot. Poor Kirby was heartbroken, but he understood that Kazuya didn't have much plant knowledge. He seemed to hate him even more after Kirby showed him his copy ability. Legend has it that Kirby is still trying to win him over to this day.

- His favorite dessert is strawberry cheesecake and you can't convince me otherwise.

- Ever since Ken told Kirby about going to Disneyland with his family, it's become Kirby's dream vacation. He's currently saving up for a trip with the entire roster. His main goal is to meet Mickey Mouse.

- Over the winter, Kirby taught Pichu how to ice skate. Sephiroth was proud to see his son learning new things.

- Kirby and Samus enjoy eating spicy stuff together. Though he usually ends up with fire breath, he always has a good time.

- He brews the best tea in the world. If a fighter is feeling sick, he has tons of herbal tea recipes to help with whatever ailment they have.

- When it's rainy outside, he and the Pokemon will go out and jump in puddles.

- He has the biggest sweet tooth, but can't stand orange or lime sherbet. He doesn't know what it is, there's just something about it that he doesn't like.

- He loves scavenger hunts! During holidays, he always sets up themed scavenger hunts for the fighters to enjoy.

- He's one of the only fighters who have seen Meta Knight without his mask (the other is King Dedede). Being the kind friend he is, Kirby's never told anyone what he looks like.

- Kirby's usually opposed to stealing, but once in a while, he just likes taking Mario's hat. It's super comfortable, and it gives him an excuse to hang out with Cappy more.

- He and Jigglypuff are two peas in a pod. They're almost always together. 

- When Jigglypuff has a bad fur day, Kirby is there in a flash with two combs and some hairspray. He doesn't really know what he's doing, but he tries his best to help her out.

- Kirby, Jigglypuff, and Little Mac have weekly binge-watching sessions. It all started when Little Mac had Kirby watch every episode of Naruto with him. After they finished, Jigglypuff later joined them and they ended up watching the entirety of Sailor Moon. Now, the three of them plan on tackling One Piece.

- He plays co-op games with Fox all the time.

- Link once took Kirby to Hyrule and introduced him to the Gerudo. Long story short, they're the only two voe allowed to enter Gerudo Town.

- Kirby is the type to snack on ice chips.

- This pink ball of destruction is incapable of getting brain freeze.

- His favorite Song from the Smash soundtrack is Green Greens from Melee. He loves Green Greens as it is, but this version makes him feel like he's on a quest.

Note: Next week, there will be not one, not two, but three sets of headcanons for your viewing pleasure. Stay tuned for the mercenary space fox, everyone's favorite supercharged rodent, and the lean, green fighting machine.

[ficreadergirl]

Welcome to my Sweetheart

Ep4

After a delicious breakfast you and Dick were now making your way to where his car was parked. "How was the breakfast?" he asked you curiously as he stopped outside his vehicle.

"It was nice. You know what? It was better than I had expected actually." you smirked as you opened the passenger door. He chuckled as he shook his head at you and got in the driver seat. As soon as he started driving, you glanced over at him and noticed that he seemed distracted. You knew there was definitely something bothering him.

"Is there something wrong Dick? Anything on your mind?" you asked him with a concerned look on your face.

"Huh?" he replied, snapping out of his trance.

"Are you okay?" you added.

"Yes, yes. Everything's fine." he replied.

"Alright if you say so." you muttered quietly. A couple minutes passed without either of you saying anything. The silence between the both of you felt awkward. Neither of you wanted to break the silence that was building in between. Eventually Dick cleared his throat.

"Y/n, uh.. I was wondering..." he began awkwardly, looking at his left hand as it gripped tightly onto the steering wheel. "You see... I was... wondering about your flatmate."

Your brow furrowed slightly. "My flatmate?"

"Yes." he nodded.

"Why would you be asking?" you questioned.

"Cause.... well, you see... I've been wondering... if you ever..." he paused again, clearing his throat. You stared at him intensely, waiting for him to finish whatever he was trying to say. He was obviously uncomfortable. "I wonder if you've ever checked on her." he whispered, glancing in your direction. You immediately understood what he was hinting at.

"I didn't check on her. She was very much fine with taking care of Gloria so I didn't care about her past." you replied.

"What?!" he exclaimed in surprise. You could hear the worry clearly in his voice. "Why?!" he repeated, turning to face you.

"Do you know how funny your face is right now?" you snorted while laughing at him. Your cheeks were starting to hurt from smiling so hard. He glared at you reproachfully.

"I'm serious Y/n." he sighed.

"I know. Sorry about that. I couldn't resist." you giggled and patted his arm reassuringly. "But seriously Dick. Did you really think I'd trust anyone so easily?" you asked.

"Maybe." he answered hesitantly.

"How dare you!!" you laughed out loud. Both of you looked at each other before bursting into laughter once more. The two of you arrived at the police station shortly afterwards. After parking the car, you both made your way inside the building. As soon as you walked through the doors, you spotted chief was talking to an officer that you hadn't seen yet.

The two men locked eyes upon seeing you approach them. They were standing a metre apart from each other, looking like they were talking about something important. You raised your eyebrows as you approached them.

"Chief... who's your friend?" you asked. He seemed annoyed, maybe even nervous. He kept looking around nervously, avoiding eye contact with anyone. You didn't understand.

"I'm Barry Pierce miss." he introduced himself. He took your hand in his and kissed it gently, causing you to pull your hand away from his grasp quickly. "Sorry." he muttered, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

"Mr Pierce, this is one of our best detective, miss Y/n." your chief informed him. Pierce was the perfect picture of a gentleman without seeming arrogant and shady.

"Nice to meet you miss Y/n." he said politely. You nodded silently, feeling a little intimidated by his appearance. Suddenly Dick appeared in front of you, blocking your view of Pierce completely.

"I'm Dick. I'm her partner." he said to Pierce. He offered him his hand to shake, but Pierce refused his handshake.

"Hello Detective." Pierce replied coldly. "We'll talk later." he said to your chief then turned on his heels, heading out of the office. Your chief didn't utter a word to him. He just followed him silently without batting an eyelid. You frowned as you watched their figures getting smaller and smaller.

"Shit..." you uttered under your breath as you realised what had just happened. "You see... it happened again." you told Dick.

"What?" he asked frowning.

"This Pierce... he must pay for covering up his shit." you grumbled angrily.

Other eps

[drwcn]

For some years after Wei Wuxian's resurrection, Wen Ning avoided Yunmeng, and in particular Lotus Pier and its master.

His avoidance was not without cause. After all, their last words to each other were not kind: Jiang Cheng, regarding Wen Ning with the same kind of disdain that he regarded almost everything that came from demonic cultivation, and Wen Ning, tearing a hole through Jiang Cheng's cocoon of lies that in truth was only paper thin.

But then came time for Yunmeng to host the annual cultivation conference, the last day of which just so happened to fall on the seventh of July.

Qixi - a day for sweethearts, for lovers, for those fortunate enough to have found someone, and for all those brave enough to still keep faith that someone will eventually find them.

Wen Ning never much cared for such a day, despite Wei-gongzi's nagging about finding him a "nice Lan girl". Or boy.

Nevertheless, it was on such a night that Wen Ning found himself in Lotus Pier yet again. He was scheduled to meet up with Sizhui, who was meant to break away from his father's Lan entourage to join Wen Ning for a couple weeks of independent night hunt.

But tonight was Qixi, and the whole town was lit aglow with lanterns and talismen, the night sky a dark canvas upon which fire works bloomed. Wen Ning knew not to expect Sizhui tonight. The boy was likely off somewhere enjoying the company of that bristly mouthy kid from Lanling.

And so, with hours at his disposal and not quite entertained by the cacophony of night life, Wen Ning rented a small boat and rowed into the quiet dark waters.

An hour went by, and Wen Ning was almost asleep, drifting along the river, when a piece of debris fell on his face, tingling his breath. He sat up, his surrounding so dark he could hardly make out the shape of his hand in front of him. Yet in an instant, he had realized his mistake, for in the distance, was the lonesome figure of man.

Wen Ning held his breath. There was not another soul around. The current of the river had carried him far away from town but dangerously close to the last place he wanted to be (or would be welcomed, if he were honest). And there, in an isolated pavilion right on the river, connected by board walk yet far removed from the rest of Lotus Pier's waterfront estate, was the last of the Jiangs.

Jiang Cheng sat straddling the bench that circled the edge of the pavilion, back against one of its pillars. Other than the scant stars peaking through the cloudy sky, there was neither candles nor talismen lighting his way. Wen Ning would not have seen him there at all were it not for the small fire in a basin before him.

And it was then that Wen Ning understood what had been the debris that landed on his face. The charred thing crumbled so easily in his hand, no more than dust in the wind, but there was no mistake.

It was joss paper.

On a night like this, a night for sweethearts, for lovers, for Yiling Laozu to bask unshamedly in the sacchrine haze of the Chief Cultivator's passion and devotion, for youngsters like Sizhui and Jin Ling to be teased goodheartedly by their peers for the feelings they were too young to understand but too old to ignore. On a night like this...

...Jiang Wanyin was mourning.

In the dark. By himself.

Not a witness anywhere to ever claim that he did.

Something terrible clenched in Wen Ning's chest, because of course he knew for what - or whom - Jiang Cheng mourned.

It was the last secret Wen Ning carried, the one seflish thing in her life his sister ever asked him to do.

Wen Qing was a private person, complicated too, and in looking back with the clarity and maturity that he possessed now, Wen Ning thought that maybe... he never really got to know her. In the early years he'd been too young, and then the war happened, and there was too much of everything else that had to be put first. The sentiment that Wen Qing carried in her heart, the thing that kept her up at night when even death and duty didn't, she never shared with anyone.

But Wen Ning wasn't blind.

A-Ning, his golden core is gone...

...do you think that martial brother of his would...

It was comical in hindsight to think Wei Wuxian wouldn't give the world to save Jiang Cheng, but back then Wen Qing didn't know Wei Wuxian the way she did in her final days.

Wen Ning wasn't exaclty sure what his sister saw in Jiang Wanyin to make her act the way she did, to break every vow sacred to a physican in order to save not only his life, but its meaning. Perhaps it was because when she gazed upon his face, she saw a reflection of herself gazing back.

Loved I not duty more.

Because only the type of man who would resign himself to mourning a damned woman on Qixi in the dark could be a match for the type of woman who'd rather burn to death than burden the man she loved with her criminal existence.

And she did love him, didn't she? Loved him, and so could not use him for protection knowing the cost it would incur.

Across the river, the fire in the basin had fettered and died, but still Jiang Cheng sat there, against the pillar, alone in the dark.

Wen Ning picked up his oar. Tonight, he would row himself to land, and tomorrow, when the sun comes up, he will make a visit to Lotus Pier. Wei Wuxian will be there, for the brothers had tentatively reconciled, but Wen Ning's visit would not be for him.

The last time he revealed the truth about the core transfer, he had done it for the love of a friend. Wei Wuxian deserved to have the world know his sacrifice, to be redeemed in the eyes of not just his brother, but everyone.

Tomorrow, however, tomorrow's truth will be for Jiang Cheng. Because while no one else may know, and no one else could prove it, and while Wen Qing will never be able to tell him in her own voice, it is still important that he knows, that she had loved him.

still can't believe cql decides to give wen qing and jiang cheng a shakespearean r&j arc behind wangxian's drama.