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honeytea8 · 5 years ago

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✨✨La Squadra Boyfriend Headcanons✨✨

[Alexa, play Boyfriend by Big Time Rush]

Guys, I spend an ungodly amount of time thinking about La Squadra, so here are some bf headcanons for the sexiest group of assassins in Naples. No one asked but I am bringing it straight to your dash anyway! (under the cut for length lmao)

I’m going to start with Prosciutto, who has recently fallen on my radar pretty heavy!

He’s a good and decent boyfriend, if not a busy one. Not that he doesn’t care about the relationship, but most of his energy was going to Passione things before you waltzed in and so he’ll struggle a bit between his work responsibilities and maintaining his relationship with you, but only in the beginning.

If you are also a part of Passione, it’s a hell of a lot easier to manage.

I see Prosciutto as the gift-giving type: lingerie, sweets, perfume, designers, etc. His salary isn’t the best, but he manages it as well as he can just to accommodate you!

I just can’t get the idea out of my head that Pro was raised by a strict mama, that’s why he can be a bit of a stickler sometimes. He’ll catch you still lounging in bed at nine am, and be like “Why are you still in bed? Get dressed, we’re going out.” Dude!

I’m sorry to say, but Prosciutto is absolutely the ‘lecturing’ type. (He lectured someone in nearly every scene in the anime, Formaggio once and Pesci numerously and Bucci too)

He will lecture you when you make mistakes, especially because as his s/o, he has high expectations for you and believes you’re capable of so much more. It’s never, ever out of hate. He loves you, and that’s why he chides you a bit lol.

This does not negate the fact that he doesn't mind when you lean on him for support. He likes when you count on him, because he always comes through especially for you!

Depending on whether you’re in the mafia or not, I totally see him sparring with you, or working out with you in an effort to make you tough. Prosciutto wants you to be able to defend yourself, just in case. If you complain, he’ll tell you, “Better safe than sorry, tesoro”.

Prosciutto will respect you, period.

A good listener, goddamn! He’s up there with Risotto when it comes to who listens to their s/o more! If you have an issue, he’ll hear you out and offer advice if you want it. If you give him advice, he’ll take it into serious consideration. He’s honestly a good partner, can’t stress that enough.

Finally, sex with Pro is an entire event. Romantic dinner, candles lit, wine, the whole nine yards before he gives you nine inches of something else :) (I’m kidding!! Lmao, kinda).

But as I said, Prosciutto is quite deliberate, and a bit of a perfectionist. He knows what to do and how to do it, you can trust him.

Ghiaccio is next only because he’s my favorite.

The ice gremlin is probably the most interesting (and hilarious) boyfriend out of the bunch (I say this with only a tidbit of bias). He isn’t funny himself, but funny shit just happens to him.

Because of this, he will use you as a soundboard when everyone else refuses to listen to him. He’s got a lot to say, so be prepared for his TEDtalks. LMAO!

It will take some perception on your part to notice when he actually expects a response from you, and other times he’s just ranting to get his point out.

He will correct your grammar when you text, but barely notices when he makes a similar mistake (his brain moves in mph). Please use the proper names like Venezia, Italia, Roma and Napoli when talking to this man; save yourself from the headache.

When it comes to dates, please have mercy on him, he’s a textbook over-thinker! You’ll just have to plan something simple at home for you both to enjoy.

He isn’t incapable of planning dates, but he’ll want everything to be so absolutely perfect for his s/o and will throw a fit when it ultimately isn’t.

Contrary to popular belief, I think that Ghiaccio is a pretty attentive partner. He’s super intelligent and I think a part of it stems from his innate ability to read people (I’m referencing the part in the anime where he deduced what Giorno and Mista had come to look for, while going off very little information).

The more time he spends with you, the better he gets at it.

His form of affection will be shown through the amount of time you both spend together. When it comes to sex or anything related to that, be gentle and slow as Ghiaccio will likely be a flustered mess.

As he becomes more comfortable and confident, he will be bolder and just ask out right if you’ll suck him off tonight or not. The man appreciates directness, so don’t bother being coy. “You want me to give you head? Cool, lay down a towel or something.” is what he’ll probably say.

Very practical 👌🏾👌🏾

Melone, good lord, he’s kind of perfect.

A bit of a doting boyfriend here and there—very much concerned about your health. Expect him to ask if you’ve eaten, or taken your multivitamin. How are your bowel movements? LMAO

It can become a bit much, but he really genuinely cares. He’s not asking to be intrusive or nasty! If he was, you’d know. 🤣

But I seriously consider Melone to be the one (at least among La Squadra) who is way, way invested in his relationships. He will know every little detail about you; will ask you lots of questions and expects you to ask him just as many.

This may be annoying to some, but this dude will definitely bring up your horoscope in an argument. He’ll be like “I honestly can’t fathom why you’re being this way, though it’s to be expected from a libra.”

Peg this bitch so he can shut up.

Melone is also touchy as hell, but not in a clingy way. He loves touching, and just to tag onto the headcanon about his partial blindness, I want to say that he’s so touchy because that’s how he ‘sees’ you best.

Just know that half the time, he isn’t touching you to be lecherous, even if he genuinely does like the feel of your skin under his fingertips. Melone will even encourage you to touch him back.

Rub his thigh or back and he’ll be simping.

He is obsessed with your legs, and will paint your toes if you let him.

LOVES PDA! Melone will also tongue-kiss you in public if you let him!

Notice how I keep saying ‘if you let him’. Give him an inch and he’ll press you for a mile, so if there are boundaries you would like to establish, please do, cuz he sure as hell won’t, just saying!

When it comes to sex, Melone is a dick and coochie sensei. Oral is his favorite thing to do, probably enjoys giving more than receiving to be honest. I’d say he’s pretty much mastered sex for what it is.

That being said, if he’s ever talking out of his neck, just invite him to put his mouth to better use. He’ll even thank you for your gracious request.

Formaggio is next 💀

According to my JoJo compatriots from discord, he’s like the Optimus Prime of fuckboi’s so let’s ride that wave for a bit! LMAO

I hope it doesn’t come as a surprise that Formaggio is pretty shameless. He will send you a dick pic on Sunday morning before church and have the audacity to say “Just wanted to bless you real quick”.

@autumn-kouhai mentioned him giving his s/o sickly sweet pet names and I just have to agree.

Expect to be hit upside the head with: baby-boo, sugar plum, honey bunches, sweetums. I can imagine them becoming really ridiculous too like “the last piece of red velvet cake” or “cheddar bae biscuits from Red Lobster”

His catch phrase is “Got nudes?”

Send them, and he won’t be afraid to reply with something equally sexy.

Be warned though, he will stockpile whatever you send him and then be careless with his phone. If you don’t mind Illuso’s snoopy ass seeing your nudes then by all means, have at it. Otherwise, send them through snapchat, so they disappear later.

As far as La Squadra boyfriends go, he’s the most fun! Y’all don’t even go anywhere because man’s is broke. BUT, Formaggio knows how to have a good time without any need to spend money (my kind of dude tbh) you guys just crank up the tunes, dance, and get lit until the neighbors complain.

Formi is also the CEO of jokes/memes, and will have you in absolute tears almost always! I literally tell my friends that funny guys are so dangerous, don’t sleep on them! They will make you laugh until your panties drop, it’s magic, I swear. Formaggio has that same energy.

No matter how bad of a day his s/o is having, rest assured, he will draw the biggest laugh out of you.

Besides his fuckboi tendencies, his most redeeming quality is the fact that he’s super cool and fun to hang with. You’ll literally have a good time, always, because his energy is right! Very good vibes around this man, I swear! It’ll be exactly like dating your best friend, because essentially, he will be your bestie.

Formi has many moments of tenderness that aren’t sexually charged too—moments where the jokes stop and he’ll just rub your back or feet, this is usually when you aren’t feeling well and need some quiet.

However, Formaggio won’t let you mope all day, he’ll pull out the big guns and call you his “sweetie baby” and when you try to resist he’ll say “What, I’m just tryna show you some love.”

He’s a good dude lmao I’d date a guy like him irl 😭

Pesci stans wya??! Let’s get into this baby boy.

Pesci is boyfriend material, idgaf what anyone says.

He is pretty much the least problematic to be with among all of La Squadra, even more so than Risotto (don’t argue with me).

Pesci is hyper aware of your likes and dislikes and will literally go out of his way to make sure that you’re well and okay.

Arguments are basically nonexistent and if they occur it ain’t coming from his side.

I also think that Pesci has a lot of empathy, so when you’re going through something, he’s right there in the thick of it with you. If you’ve seen that meme that goes ‘when my gf is on her period it’s UterUS’ lmao that’s Pesci’s energy 100%.

Sometimes, he’s more of a lover and not a fight, that is perfectly okay!

However, if someone tries up his s/o, say farewell to Mr. Niceguy. He will defend your honor to his dying breath. And with you in his corner, trust me, he’s not going down.

A romantic at heart, Pesci will plan little date trips like picnics in the park or boat trips to Capri, actually, I’d like to point out that he excels in the art of date planning. If you’re the adventurous type, he’ll plan outings where you both will be more active, like biking through the city or renting a mop-ed and going sight-seeing.

Because Pesci has a sensitive stomach, he’s very much considerate of what you both put in your bodies. If you have dietary restrictions or allergies, this guy knows all about it and will cater to you perfectly.

A true gentleman through and through, he will never force himself on you, ever. In fact, he really doesn’t like engaging in anything sexual when you’re drunk or high, sorry if you’re into that!

Pesci is the kind of guy who keeps up with your favorite shows.

If ya’ll have similar taste in media or literature, he will immerse himself in it so that he can relate to you all the more.

If there’s anyone who will entertain anime-related discourse, no matter how nonsensical, it’s Pesci. And he isn’t just putting up with it, he’s actively engaging in the conversation so you are always heard and validated.

He’s an A+ boyfriend, that’s all I gotta say! Haters can stay mad :)

Goddamn Illuso... idk man.

I really feel like you have to have thick/tough skin to handle this guy, for various reasons.

The first being that Illuso can be a bit mean at first. He’ll push your buttons on purpose just to see what’ll make you tick. Will tease the living heck out of you, always, kind of a bully lmao but not to the extreme, it’s just his brand of humor—and the thing is, he won’t be mad when you dish it right back, so it’s cool.

Secondly, Illuso has big dick energy!!

I mean rightfully so, because he is indeed packing! But my word, he ain’t humble about it at all!

He is not above making jokes about ‘splitting you in half’. In fact all of his jokes have hidden, dirty undertones!

His affection is shown through speech mostly. Illuso will drop subtle innuendos and provocations, half to see you flustered and half because he wants you to know how much he wants you.

Illuso isn’t incredibly vocal about his feelings outside of ‘I’m tryna hit that thang’ but you won’t doubt that he loves you because Illuso doesn’t waste his own time.

If he’s spending his time with you, you can rest assured that it’s because he wants to.

Illuso is a voyeur and you’ll just have to understand/accept that and move on.

He loves watching you and will even creep over to your place through the mirror world just to hang or watch you do chores. Loves to surprise you and give you jump scares lmao it’ll make you a tad paranoid but it’s also fun.

Illuso is prone to random bouts of sweetness; it’s very sporadic, very touch-and-go.

One day, you’ll wake up to chocolates on your dresser or new shoes, lingerie, or makeup if you wear it. I imagine that if you’re low on funds, he will even help you buy your groceries that week.

It’ll surprise the hell out of you, but that’s just how Illuso is. He enjoys keeping you on your toes!

He’s prideful and smug as hell, so he will definitely expect a thank you, because even if he does it out of the kindness in his heart, he also wants to hear that you appreciate him

Same goes for the bedroom scene. Illuso loves making you vocal, it’s his favorite thing in the world, so he’ll make a game out of doing the things that get the biggest reaction out of you. Like I said, it's that big dick energy at work here, smh.

Sorbet and Gelato in a polyamorous relationship with you? Let’s get it!

We don’t get anything substantial about these two except that Sorbet follows the money, so these are all personal headcanons for how I see and write them.

Here’s the juice: when it comes to you as their s/o, these two are possessive as hell. You are theirs and that’s that on that! 😭 Don’t ask questions, just go with it.

Sorbet is the chill one of the duo. He can be a bit smug at times, but he’s mostly a laid back dude who doesn’t get bothered by much.

When it comes to you, Sorbet likes to spend quality time with you more than anything, and will ask you to cook for him at your place so he ain’t gotta spend money. Oh? Did I not mention that I kinda think of him as a cheapskate? Lmao cuz I do.

Sorbet will come by your place just to steal your coupons from the mail then head out; you’re not using ‘em so why should he let them go to waste?

Gelato is the complete opposite; personality wise, I headcanon him as a mix between Melone and Formaggio lmao

But it’s not as crazy as it sounds, he’s cute and outspoken like Melone, while maintaining a free-spirit like Formaggio. One quality that I like is that he’s quite devoted to you and Sorbet. If anyone crosses either of you, goodluck to them!

I like to think Gelato’s also just really boujee and high maintenance. He loves to pamper and be pampered. You and him tag-team Sorbet’s wallet and go on spa dates together at his expense (not that he ever really stood a chance)

While Sorbet is cool with just being in the same room as you, Gelato loves hugging/cuddling with you and Sorbet—will definitely fight for the middle spot between the two of you on the couch during movie nights.

He baby, so let him have it lol

In the bedroom, I would salute anyone with the guts to take the two of them on. They both lay down that work, period.

Sorbet gets his kicks from teasing and edging you (his sadistic side comes out a bit), while Gelato loves when you give him extra TLC. To put it short, they know how to take care of you, so there are no issues there.

Last but not least, Mr. Risotto Nero himself.

Man, idc on the lowest of keys, he seems a little bit like a grandpa to me

The type to sit at home and do crosswords, has a bird feeder in his yard and plays old Italian hits while washing the dishes. It’s very domestic 💀 (I find it cute, whatever!)

As a boyfriend, I can’t imagine him suddenly being spontaneous or outgoing unless you drag him out of his home/comfort zone.

Be patient with Mr. Nero, and he can come to surprise you

After a while, it won’t be just you dragging him out and about; one day he’ll ask you to come over and you’ll be greeted with a nice, traditional, homemade meal

Pay attention and you will notice him watching your face to see if you like his cooking 🥺

After seeing his fight with Doppio, I must admit that Risotto is very, very observant, almost scarily so.

I can totally picture him pointing out random things about his s/o that even they don’t know

One night, Risotto may come up to you and say “I talked to your neighbor about the dog, they’ll keep it inside now.” And you’re just staring like 😳 how did he know the barking was keeping you up at night????

He’s sweet, and will take good care of you as a boyfriend should.

Very good listener, won’t talk as much but will hang on to your every word, I promise. He could even recite it to you verbatim.

He’s a big dude, that ain’t news, so expect to be swallowed up in hugs and sometimes even picked up (as a tall girl myself, I simp!!!)

Gives A1 piggyback rides, lol

ALSO RISOTTO IS HUMBLE ASF!

Big dick energy, but on low volume 👏🏾 after all, he doesn’t need to do much talking, because a night with him is more than enough!

Listen babe, you better stretch, do some squats, and prep in whatever way you can before Mr. Nero gives you that work. 🤐

Lowkey a freak, but it’s well hidden behind his ‘quiet giant’ exterior

So, who are y'all dating? Personally, I’m going for Formaggio and Pesci hehe

#jojo #jojo’s bizarre adventure #vento aureo #la squadra #prosciutto #illuso #formaggio #melone #risotto nero #pesci #ghiaccio #gelato and sorbet #la squadra esecuzioni #la squadra di esecuzione #jojo headcanons #la squadra x reader #jojo part 5

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thesleepiesthufflepuff · 4 years ago

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My Favorite Fics 2020

Alrighty. I read a decent amount of fanfiction this year (mostly thanks to Wizards Hearts/Game of Drarry), and I’m here to list out some of my very favorites. Thank you to all of the creators out there who put so much time, effort, and energy into creating beautiful stories, and here’s to lots of reading in the new year 💜 also, this is in no particular order and all rec notes are from my personal fic tracker spreadsheet (if anyone wants details on how I set up my spreadsheet, etc. please feel free to send an ask!) 💕

1) Change on the Horizon by Static_abyss / @static-abyss [Explicit, 118.6k,]

When things settle down after the war, Harry has trouble figuring out who he’s supposed to be and what’s expected of him. At the same time, Draco finds himself having to decide between what his parents want and what he wants for himself. Together, Harry and Draco embark on a journey to figure out who they are as individuals and what that means for their future together.

A canon AU drarry fic based on the relationship between Mickey and Ian from Shameless.

Hands down one of the best fics I've ever read. Ana did the most amazing job at translating Micky and Ian's relationship to Harry and Draco, although it’s definitely not necessary to know Shameless in order to enjoy the story. The writing is stunning, and I loved every single bit of this

2) I’ll Play Your Game by JayseHasNoGrace [Mature, 52.2k]

After quitting the Auror department at the ripe old age of twenty two, Harry Potter finds a nice, uneventful job in an apothecary. At least, it's uneventful until his old rival Draco Malfoy comes into the shop.

They strike up an unlikely friendship, which evolves into an increasingly convoluted scheme, which then snowballs spectacularly out of control into a tangle of lies and blurred lines.

They'd agreed to a fake relationship — in Harry's case, to get the wizarding world to take him off his 'perfect saviour' pedestal, and in Draco's case, just to be given a chance in wizarding society at all — but neither of them expected just how difficult that might really turn out to be. Especially when the stakes grow ever higher, and they both start falling for each other. Just a little bit.

FAKE DATING!!! Ugh, this was so good. I love the media aspect of it, and the way that everything comes together is just brilliant. A must-read for anyone who loves fake dating!!

3) I Can be Your Lighthouse by orpheous87 / @orpheous87 [Teen, 4k]

When Harry gets called to investigate reports of Dark magic, the last thing he expects to find is an almost unconscious Draco Malfoy. After multiple instances, he resolves to find out what's going on.

inspired by the song The Lighthouse by The Used.

So, so sweet. I love Harry's determination to figure out what's going on. This is such a lovely fic, and I enjoyed every minute of it

4) Freedom to be by Quicksilvermaid / @quicksilvermaid [Explicit, 169.5k]

Harry Potter is the Boy Who Lived.

12 years after the war, he's become the Boy Who Lived For Everyone Else. He has the perfect wife. The perfect house. The perfect job. The perfect friends.

Only nothing feels perfect.

Until one day he stumbles across a club called Release and begins a journey of self-discovery that takes him to a very different place.

This left such an impact on me, and it’s a fic I think about often. I can't even begin to explain how incredible everything about this is.

5) Dear Diary by AWickedMemory (TeddyLaCroix) [Teen, 20.4k]

// This can’t possibly go worse than the last time I kept a diary. //

After the war, Harry picks up a journal to write in… and it writes back. Luckily, it’s not a Horcrux on the other end this time.

Absolutely amazing. The relationship that develops between Harry and Draco as they write to each other was so soft and wonderful, and I would easily read 100k of this!

6) Grounds for Divorce by Tepre [Explicit, 122.2k]

Malfoy finds a coin. Harry finds a letter.

A story about histories, a story about families. A story about a lemon tree somewhere in Upper Egypt.

I loved this. It was so angsty at times, but well worth it. An absolute classic that I’m so pleased to be able to say I’ve read.

7) Nero Su Bianco by Zuzallove [Explicit, 40.5k]

September 1997. Hogwarts is under the regime of Voldemort and the Carrows. Finding himself alienated by both his friends and his supposed enemies, Draco puts quill to parchment, and writes letters. He addresses them to the only person he can think of, as Hogwarts rapidly falls into chaos and ruin: Harry Potter. He goes to great lengths to ensure the letters are never discovered, and he’s pretty certain he’s done a great job.

Until the day of his trial.

The letters were so much fun to read, even though they were heartbreaking at times. I loved Draco’s characterization in this, as well as how his relationship develops with Harry.

8) Thunder by Keyflight790 [Explicit, 21.5k]

The storm will disappear; the rain will subside; but what's left in its wake will last forever. A story of love and loss, redemption and thunder

I really loved how well Draco's addiction was written. I'm not a huge fan of past relationships, but this was done in such a beautiful way. Plus, talking to dragons!!!

9) dirtynumbangelboy by magpie_fngrl [Explicit, 39.4k]

After Harry’s unfortunate encounter with his ex, Draco Malfoy makes him a proposition. Draco wants his parents to stop matchmaking him and Harry wants to make his ex jealous. All they need to do is simply pretend they’re in love. Problem is… Draco already is.

Amazing. This has absolutely sucked me into the world of fake dating. I could ramble about this forever, to be honest. Simply incredible, and I love how snarky their relationship was. It was the epitome of a good Drarry fic.

10) just tell me when it’s alright by M0stlyVoid / @bonesliketambourines [Explicit, 23k]

Harry’s been fighting tooth and nail for any bit of normalcy he can get his hands on. He’s sick of feeling like something’s wrong with him, tired of feeling different. He thinks he’s finally gotten to the root of it, and has settled into a routine that makes him happy. Naturally, that’s when Draco Malfoy walks back into his life and upends it once again. Has Harry bitten off more than he can chew with his former rival?

YES!! I genuinely loved Harry’s clinginess. This fic was absolutely amazing, and the secret dating was lovely. Plus, bi awakening!!

11) When Hippogriffs and Pygmy Puffs Collide by oldenuf2nb [Mature, 32.7k]

Harry Potter bakes cakes, brilliantly. Draco Malfoy inks tattoos, brilliantly. Owls deliver post, including messages from clients, with an occasional lack of brilliance.

I was really surprised at how much I loved this, especially since I’ve not really read many fics with odd jobs. I absolutely adored the fact that Harry was a baker and Draco was a tattoo artist, and the characterizations were absolute perfection

12) You Send Me (Honest You Do) by firethesound [Explicit, 37k]

As far as potion accidents go in general, and deaging incidents go in particular, Draco knew this could have been so much worse. Harry only lost about ten years, and all his memories are still intact. But the sight of him looking as if he’s stepped straight out of Draco’s Hogwarts memories has dredged up a whole mess of complicated feelings Draco thought he’d buried years ago, and Draco really doesn’t know what to do with any of it.

I absolutely adored this, and I thought the de-aging aspect was done is such a tasteful way. Such a good read.

13) Highly (in)Compatible by daisymondays [Teen, 36.8k]

Draco’s been shagging The Prat Who Lived on and off for a few months when his soul mark starts to change. Draco’s had to accept a lot of adjustments to his life, but accepting that Harry Potter could be his soulmate is one step too far. It can’t be true? Can it?

I LOVED THIS! Oh man, that ending! Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant

14) Kiss the Joy (Until the Sun Rise) by ICMezzo [Mature, 37.8k]

The Room of Requirement was severely damaged in the war, but not so much that it could not provide for one lost student and another young hero—especially when they needed each other most of all.

An amazing, beautiful, tender fic! The ROR has given them the gift of each other, and I honestly love that it's just the two of them and no other characters. An incredible and soft read

15) December Never Felt So Wrong by MaesterChill / @maesterchill [Explicit, 50k]

'Twas the month before Christmas and sixteen year old Draco Malfoy had never felt worse. His attempts to kill Dumbledore were failing and, as usual, Harry Fucking Potter was a constant thorn in his side.

All that suddenly changed when Draco woke up 15 years in the future and discovered that not only was he allegedly shagging Harry Fucking Potter, he also had thinning hair and a five year old son, and no fucking clue how he got there.

Truly brilliant, and I was laughing from the start. The combination of the aging up, Harry’s off-tune singing to Muggle songs, and soft parenthood were all things I immediately fell in love with. Will be reading again and again

16) Catch Me If I Fall by keeli_marie [Explicit, 38.2k]

When Draco Malfoy collides with Harry Potter one morning while dropping the kids off at school, things don’t go quite the way either of them would have expected.

Another absolute gem, and I'm still reeling from how amazing it was. I'm always a bit hesitant with kid fics, but this is one of the best depictions of love between Harry and Draco that I've read. I love how supportive Astoria is. Such a lovely fic

16) Love Found by Peachpety / @peachpety [Explicit, 7.5k]

During Harry’s sixth year, Draco Malfoy joins the Order as a double-agent and continues with his task to get the Death Eaters into the castle as assigned by Voldemort. Draco succeeds with his mission the evening Harry returns from the caves with Dumbledore. The boys reunite on the Astronomy Tower and, with the Death Eater’s arrival, are forced to engage in a fight, driving Harry to come to terms with his feelings about true friendship and romantic love.

SUCH a good rewrite of the astronomy tower scene. I can’t describe how much I love the pre-existing relationship, which is a trope I typically steer clear from. And the snark!!! Such a good fucking fic

17) Taro Milk Tea with a side of Depression by Veelawings / @veelawings [Mature, 1k]

Draco sat through twenty grievous minutes of Ministry-mandated group therapy for Newly Registered Magical Beings & Creatures — then promptly stormed out.

Okay, I loved this. The play format was so cool and fit the narration so well. Absolute perfection and SO. GOOD.

18) The Dragon At The Bottom Of The Garden by Zopno [Explicit, 52.3k]

At 25 Harry Potter's life was simple; he flew, sculpted, and had the vault in the back of his mind to keep all unpleasant business. It was stable, but when Draco Malfoy literally hit him with a giant rock; all that changed.

I loved the storyline, especially Animagus bird Harry!! This was such a unique take on an Animagus and post-war fic, and I loved reading it so much

19) Exposure by GallaPlacidia [Mature, 26.9k]

When Seamus uncovers Draco Malfoy's camboy profile, he, Harry and Ron decide to anonymously book a private show so as to humiliate him later. Fascinated by Draco's confidence, Harry keeps booking private shows under the disguise...

Self prompt: Draco is a camboy. Harry betrays him.

I can't give this enough praise. The hurt of it all was so brilliant. A new favorite for sure

20) you've got the antidote for me by Kandakicksass [Mature, 20.7k]

When Harry Potter unintentionally severs their soulbond before it can fully form, Draco Malfoy resigns himself to a slow death and decides not to burden Harry with a soulmate he's made it very clear he doesn't want.

He's never been selfless before, but for Harry, he can try.

Fuck. Like...fuck. This was so sad and angsty and perfect in all the right ways. Watching everything unfold was so painful but so worth it. Another new favorite

21) A Room Up There (And You In It) by thestarryknight [Teen, 59.2k]

When Preservationist Draco Malfoy was assigned to work on Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, he was excited to delve into the gorgeous Black family antiques. His excitement quickly ended when something in the House decided it did not like his presence one bit. Featuring a grumpy antiques lover who most certainly did not sign up for this, encounters with a vengeful apparition, and a healthy application of Christmas spirit.

Absolutely fucking fantastic. This fic reads intimacy all over, despite there being no sex. I love preservationist Draco and the way in which information about Harry unfolds. I can’t say enough how much I loved this advent fic, and Starry did such a great job

And now for three fics that I have yet to read/need to emotionally prepare myself for:

1) Modern Love by Tackytiger / @tackytigerfic [Explicit, 61.2k]

Harry Potter, of all people, knows that life isn’t always fair. And no one gets to be happy all of the time. But surely there’s something more—something better—than a rubbish Ministry job, and a lonely old house, and that feeling that everyone out there is doing a better job of living than Harry is.

And it really doesn’t seem fair that Draco Malfoy is back in Harry’s life, all of a sudden, and even though he’s wandless, and living with Muggles, and making his mother cry with his lifestyle choices, he’s happy. So what's he doing right, that Harry isn’t?

Because things don’t really change, do they? And if Harry can’t be happy, he’ll settle for a good night’s sleep, some posh antiques, and the opportunity to find out what Malfoy has been up to for all these years.

And that’s what starts it all.

2) Dragons Don't Know Paradise by tainara_black / @teacup-tai [Explicit, 50.9k]

In 2004, when Remus spends two scary weeks in the ITU due to complications of pneumonia and his HIV condition, Sirius walks around the house like a ghost and Harry finds comfort and strength in Draco through a chat in an online LGBT forum. Harry falls for him, but Draco has a lot of secrets and, before long, will need to come clean—even if he believes that no one is able to understand a dragon.

This is a story about falling in love online and about facing the reality of death, but above all, this is a story about hope, finding love and acceptance. (Non-magical / bookshop AU, written for the 25 days of Drarry 2020)

3) Aeternus Solem by onbeinganangel / @onbeinganangel [Explicit, 36.9k]

On December 1st, Harry Potter gets sent halfway across the world to attempt to break a possibly fatal curse on an unnamed British Unspeakable — except said Unspeakable is not unnamed at all and Harry has been in love with him for over four years.

{If anyone spots any mistakes in this list, PLEASE let me know! I hope you all have a lovely New Year’s, and may 2021 be less of a dumpster on fire than its predecessor 💜}

#drarry #draco malfoy #harry potter #draco x harry #harry x draco #drarry fanfiction #drarry fic recs #drarry favorites #fay recs

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kimberly-spirits13 · 5 years ago

Text

Random Characters with Creative/ Designer S/O HC:

Characters: Damian Wayne, Tim Drake, Bart Allen, Conner Kent (RSS), Jamie Reyes

Damian Wayne (Fashion Design):

· You’d started off your career when you were young

· Your father wasn’t super supportive of everything and said that you were too young to start a business or what have you

· So, with approval from your mother, you started one behind his back

· He didn’t know until one day you ended up treading and going viral with a dress you made for a very famous celebrity

· At that point he couldn’t stop you and was just impressed that you made it for months without him knowing

· As long as you were keeping up schooling, it would fly

· You ended up getting to travel the world and go to fashion week

· More specifically NYFW

· New York was the big one

· That’s where you and Damian met

· He was there for a business trip with Bruce and saw you at one of the shows the girls dragged him to

· He was immediately infatuated with you and wanted to meet you

· Thank the heavens he has sisters who wear your clothes to almost every gala

· They got to go back stage and talk to you which led to you two exchanging numbers and the rest is history

· When you started dating it was really hectic

· You had a few kidnapping scares which made him want to break it off especially after you found out about the entire Robin thing

· Heeeellllllllll no

· You didn’t let that happen at all

· Bruce actually commented and said that if you were that stubborn, Damian should probably keep you

· Fashion week becomes more tiring and you also hate not being able to see Damian as much

· He comes and visits though to make sure you don’t throw yourself out a window or something lol

· When it’s over, you guys always take a long vacation to Lake Tahoe in a house Bruce owns on the Nevada side

· He loves seeing your studio since it’s so organized and colorful

· You’ve got walls of mood boards and mannequins with unfinished garments everywhere along with a massive soft couch that one of you is always sprawled out on

· Sometimes he’ll send you pictures of pretty things he thinks you’d might like which ends up being incorporated into something

· You taught him how to drape and make his own suit so that Alfred can have a day off

· If anyone has a wardrobe malfunction and you’re around, you’ve got the needle and thread kit on hand at any given moment

· Some things in the kit come in handy for picking locks too

· He thinks it’s hilarious if you ever critique something or just call it straight ugly

· If you’re at a gala and do it it’s even funnier

· “Omg...”

· “What is it beloved?”

· “The drape and hem of that dress is the most preposterous thing I think I have ever seen. The fabric isn’t even the right material or fit for their shape. How rich are these people? And they can’t afford clothes that look decent on them?” You said giving them the famous inspecting side eye, “Also, who wears pearls with double sided sequins and fur?” “They can’t fix everything sweetie.”

· *intense snickering from Damian*

Tim Drake (Software/ Web Designer):

· It’s a match made in heaven

· The two of you meet at a tech conference

· He thought that you were such an interesting person to talk to and you had offers from places like MIT

· You got along so well and then he found that you liked coffee like he did

· Omg

· He asked you out in the nerdiest way by making you decipher code on your own computer

· You were kind of mad since you had been doing some other things for some major companies but after reading the message you determined you were fine with it

· I mean how could you say no

· Anyways the date when off great and eventually the media caught heavy wind of what was happening

· You already knew about the Red Robin thing pretty quickly into the relationship though

· Tim was a genius and you weren’t far behind

· It was scary how similar you two were

· From expressions and shared humor and meme taste, it was everything

· Staying up together was another thing you did

· Although, after some time one of you would pass out and the other would go to bed too

· It was like a competition in sorts of who could stay up the longest but at the same time you needed him to sleep

· The time he felt most betrayed by you was when you replaced his coffee with decaf

· You guys just sometimes hang out in his bed tangled up in the weirdest way watching vines or weird movies

· Totally the couple that would watch the worst rated movies just to laugh at them

· Damian commented on it once and got a tired middle finger from you once

· It wasn’t the classiest move however you couldn’t care less and Tim laughed his ass off

· After that Damian seemed to respect you more

· You guys probably have matching hoodies or something with really funny or obscure culture references

· Clingy couple but nothing too over dramatic

Bart Allen:

· Your designs in architecture went down in text books

· You were famous for some really amazing builds and constructions

· You started off by building these really insane LEGO sets or doll houses based off of designs in your notebook

· Your mother still has the models in the attic which is kind of embarrassing when he sees it but he thinks it’s really cool

· When he came to your time line he knew immediately who you were

· He also totally came to you and complimented your work plus some additional hinting at what was going to happen pretty soon

· Bart was there at the rise of your success

· He basically was your number one fan the entire time

· He’ll stay up with you as long as he can when you’re working

· It’s kind of funny seeing that when you’re designing the things you went down in history for you’ll be stuck on something and he’ll just tiredly recommend what he remembers learning

· You let him look through the designs sometimes but he understands if you don’t really feel comfortable with it

· He also knows that in order to do all of this, you’re wicked smart

· When the cave needed remodeling, you were the first person that they called in

· The League was very glad that you were there and they didn’t have to pull any strings to get anyone different in

· Plus, you knew what was needed since you were there all of the time

Kon Kent:

· You got your start writing

· It was the best thing that you did to relive stress

· Once your parents saw that you were such an imaginative child, they got you in a ton of art related classes but you liked writing the most

· Your writings had won awards before but then you wrote a book and it did amazing

· So now, that’s what you do

· Kon secretly actually really likes your books and met you at a book signing

· Nerd

· He got your number there and then you realized who he was

· It was kind of funny cause you were both in that moment of realization like

· Ohhhhh I know who you are.... kinda thing

· He finds it hilarious that sometimes you’re just all over the place

· When doing research your room isn’t terrible messy, it’s just piles and piles of notes and articles

· You also probably have an expansive collection of literature yourself ranging from all genres

· You don’t really like him to proof the book, however if you have an idea for something he’s all ears

· Coffee dates to strange hole in the wall joints

· Clark really likes you and finds your humor funny in the sense that it’s close to Bruce’s

· Both very sarcastic and dry

· Lex is just glad that his son found someone with an intellect

· You don’t really like Lex though

· That’s because you hear everything that Kon has to say about him

· Although, without giving the man too much credit, the charade that he plays on the daily in quite impressive

· You will never admit it however

· Ma and Pa love you

· So does Lois

· You get along because of the writing

· Sometimes Kon will just take you to some random part of the world if you need inspiration

· “Hey wanna fly to Morocco?”

· “Why not?”

· You make a day trip out of it but if it’s a long one you’ll stay longer

· Short distance he’ll fly you himself but overseas or something, he takes one of Lex’s jets

· He likes to tease you sometimes but will take it easy during the editing phase

· Those aren’t fun at alllll

· You get cranky sometimes during that and he just backs off lol

· He will make you sleep though

· He doesn’t want you turning into Tim or anything for an extended amount of time

· Nope

· Not doing it

Jamie Reyes:

· The team didn’t know anything about your job as an artist

· You were internationally revered

· No one knew of your job but for the boy wonder who saw the paint in your hair

· Once the team did know however, everyone was amazed

· You and Jamie were already dating by then though

· He was always impressed with what you did

· Laughed when you were covered in paint

· He lets you paint or draw on his hand

· You both have matching hoodies or jackets from your clothing line or merch that you painted

· If you have a YouTube channel, he’s in some of the videos

· Scarab notes that you have a more creative personality which Jamie responds to with a sarcastic remark

· Your clothes are partly covered in paint

· He’ll go to every show

· During the Reach thing you still stayed with him

I have more parts of the Damian Wayne x reader story coming and also requests but I’m just getting into school which is my priority so that’s why I’ve been a bit more inactive. Anyways I hope you liked this one and I can’t wait to put out more

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euterp3 · 4 years ago

Text

🌺Leorio Fluff ABC🌺

Some soft Leorio Headcanons because the tag is EMPTY. 🌺 Enjoy the Leorio Fluff ABC! More under the cut ✨

A = affection (how affectionate are they in day to day life? Do they show affection publicly or keep that more in private?)

FOREHEAD KISSES. I take Leorio as a person, who likes to keep his affection private, but whenever you’re out in public he’ll hold your hand, give you short forehead kisses or just stays close to you. But at home, he’s way more affectionate. He’ll hug you from behind, cuddle with you while watching TV or give you a lot of soft kisses.

B = best memory (what is the best memory they have with you)

His favorite memory is going on a spontaneous car trip with you in the middle of the night. The two of you screaming your favorite songs while he drives, stopping in the middle of nowhere to look at the stars.

C = cat or dog person

Both. Leorio probably loves both animals to pieces, don’t make him choose 😭

D = dreams (what do they want to do in life?)

Well, aside from finally becoming a doctor, I’d assume that Leorio would want to live with his s/o in a pretty house, maybe a family, if his partner would agree.

E = evenings (how do they spend their evening? So they go out? Do they read?)

Since Leorio has to learn a TON for his exams and studies, he’ll probably learn a lot at home but still tries to leave spend his evenings with you. Either at home or he takes you out occasionally. If you stay at home, prepare for cuddly movie evenings with popcorn and ice cream.

F = first date (what was it like?)

Gosh, he is N E R V O U S. You guys talked about how bad his cooking skills are, so you invite him over to cook something with you. After finishing the meal, you two sit on your couch and start watching the show Leorio has been talking about for the last weeks. He slowly comes closer and asks you, if you would comfortable with him putting an arm around your shoulders. You agree and lean closer to him. Leorio is absolutely tensed up, until you turn around and laugh at him. He slowly realises, that there is no need to be this tense and opens up.

(after that you guys decided to go on a few more dates until he finally asks you out <3)

G = giggle (what is their laugh like? What makes them laugh?)

A warm, hearty laugh! Leorio is such an open person, so I think he would genuinely enjoy bad dad jokes, terrible puns or funny moments with his friends.

H = hugs (do they like hug? What kind of hugs do the give?)

Give this poor man a hug, he’s stressed out 😭 he is probably pretty touch starved and loves hugs so much, since he rarely gets some.

I = instrument (do they play an instrument?)

If Leorio could play an instrument, I’d take him for an acoustic guitar or even ukulele player.

J = joy (what brings them joy in life?)

His friends, his partner, M o n e y. And spending quality time with his favorite people.

K = kisses (what kind of kisser are they? Shy? Passionate?)

Leorio likes to pamper his partner with kisses and as soon as he knows that they’re comfortable with it, he will do it as often as he can. His kisses are either soft and loving or very heated and passionate.

L = love (how do they act when they have a crush)

What a dork. He’s so helpless and tries to impress you so much but he’s actually embarrassing himself. Expect a lot of secondhand embarrassment until his friends (probably Kurapika) can’t take it anymore and talk to him. He’ll deny it at first but admit it after a while. After that talk, Leorio will try to act more normal around you, but still flustered.

M = memory (what’s their favourite memory?)

That one time you two decided to go on a roadtrip in the middle of the night after Leorio finally finished his exams for the semester. The semester has been extremely stressful, so he was happy to take a breather. After driving for hours in the middle of nowhere while listening to your playlist with your favorite songs, you take a short walk to watch the stars.

N = no (what is their pet peeve?)

Leorio is a very insecure about the dark under-eye rings he got due to his terribly exhausting shifts. Please don’t make fun of this handsome Himbo.

O = occupation (what’s their dream job?)

Emergency Doctor 🌺

P = parent (what kind of parent would they be?)

The best dad with the worst jokes. A very loving parent but still strict enough to raise his children right.

Q = questions (do they believe in the super natural? Aliens? Anything along those lines)

After meeting so many different people in his life, I bet he’s ready for everything and everyone else.

R = romantic (are they romantic during the relationship?)

What a sap. He loves to spoil you with little thoughtful gifts. I imagines Leorio’s love language to be gifts and quality time since he’s sometimes at a loss of words.

S = smile (what makes them smile without fail)

Literally everything. But most likely his partner, friends, loving memories and looking back at all the achievements he’s made in his life.

T = together (how clingy are they? How long do you two spend together per day on average)

Since our man is always busy or needs to learn, he tries to spend at least a few hours with you, even if it means just sitting next to you while he’s learning for his exams.

U = unbearable (what habit do they have that’s unbearable? What habit do you have that they find unbearable)

Leorio leaves his dirty socks all over your shared flat for you to find them, which drives you INSANE sometimes. On the other hand, he hates it when you forget to open the window after showering and often complains about you sitting too close to your phone since it’s bad for your posture and eyes.

V = videos (do they take lots of videos or photos during your relationship?)

He takes a decent amount of cute selfies of you two, with either funny moments or adorable filter.

W = wedding (what was the wedding like?)

Your wedding was a very lovely and smaller feast with all of your loved ones. Leorio prefers quality over quantity and wanted you to enjoy your special day to the fullest. (also, imagine this beautiful man in a wedding suit, my heart-)

X = eXtra (what’s an interesting fact about them that they don’t tell anyone about?)

After your first cooking date, he decided that he’d need to learn how to cook properly in order to impress you. He learned pretty quickly and was so proud of himself when he surprised you with a pretty good meal (for Leorio Standard)

Y = yuck (what do they hate? Could be a food, scent, word anything)

Late night shifts at work. They exhaust him the most and he often forgets to count how many cups of coffee he already had.

Z = zzzz (how heavy of a sleeper are they? How do they sleep? What mood do they wake up in? Really any sleeping headcanons)

Shifts in hospitals are absolutely terrible and exhausting, so Leorio probably suffers from insomnia and is always tired. It often happens that he planned something with you for the evening, but falls asleep next so you instead because he is just so tired. He also loves to cuddle with you to fall asleep or makes you read him stories until he falls asleep. He also likes to sleep in on his days off. 🌺

Ah, that was fun to write!! I know, that I'm definitely rusty asf but I hope you like it nonetheless 💕

#Hxh #leorio x reader #Leorio hcs #Leorio headcanon #Leorio paladiknight #Leorio #hunter x hunter #Hunter x Reader #Reader x #hxh headcanons #hxh hcs #Hxh Leorio

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trashcatsnark · 4 years ago

Note

You said in a previous ask that at the end, when everyone is safe, etc. you envisioned your V expecting Johnny to pursue Rogue, for them to swallow their own feeling, trying to be a supporting friend, encourage Johnny and push him to do it. Can you expand on your thoughts on the matter? Can’t help but think it is an awesome scenario

*Screams in someone asked me about my v’s canon* Thank youuuu

SPOILERS WITHIN THISS

My V even actually does this a bit prior to the aftermath of Mikoshi, because in her canon Alt tells her about the six months thing during the first meeting (because other than dramatic tension or Alt not taking the time to check, I can’t think logically why she couldn’t have told V from the start) so my V has managed to mentally hide from the Johnny the fact that due to this, she pretty resolves herself to letting Johnny have her body after the oil fields. So, she wants to make sure his relationships with Kerry and Rogue are cleared up, so they can be there for him when she’s gone. She actually goes as far to invite Rogue to the Samurai Reunion gig in hopes that her and Johnny will be able to clear the air after whatever happened on the date.

And yes absolutely once everything has sorta cleared up a bit. My V is still encouraging Johnny to pursue Rogue. Because I have a habit with my oc’s universe for it to be like okay, once all the actiony stuff has settled we’re doing a complete tonal shift and this is now a romantic comedy. But, my V also ontop of all we see in game, she goes through Temperance endings and is fucking around in cyberspace for a while. And when Johnny becomes determined to save her, one of the first things he does once they find a way to save her life/body is go see her in cyberspace through the net and of course, who did he go to first, who did he bring for safety. Rogue. So, my V has that as well as part of the evidence Johnny really loves Rogue and has no feelings for my dumbass. Mixed, with my V’s generally low self esteem and belief that anyone who really knows her can’t possibly want her.

Of course one they’re back, post her recovery, Johnny and her are full clingy and even fall back into some old habits (ie casual sex), are living together. Are essentially living as if they’re a couple, but without technically being a couple. Like, to anyone with a single functioning braincell, its clear that they have some feelings between them. But, my V also knows how powerful the relic bond was and that a decent amount of this is probably because of that. She doesn’t believe that Johnny could have romantic feelings for her and all of this intimacy is due to left over effects of the relic. And she begins to worry that this is going to negatively impact Johnny moving on from all of this. Because she wants him to have his life back and take this new chance to do what makes him happy; rekindle his thing with Rogue, start playing with Kerry again, have some independence. Because Rogue’s not gonna want to be with him if he’s still playing house with V, fucking them, and they’re clinging to him like a leech. So, she doesn’t want to continue going along with enabling these side effects because as much as she adores having Johnny completely wrapped up in her; she thinks its just the relic and it’ll get in the way of him getting what he really wants. It feels good in the moment but won’t be sustainable long term, because who Johnny really wants is Rogue. So, she’s convinced she has to just swallow her own feelings and do this to really help Johnny and be a good friend.

And a big part of everything is the fact these two dumbasses have to use their big boy and girl words to talk, yet vehemently refuse to for a significant amount of time.

So, she starts like sewing those seeds of, “well you know we’ll have to eventually stop screwing around, after all can’t have a serious relationship if you still have a fuckbuddy” which Johnny takes as V wants a serious relationship with someone other than him.

“Hey, when you think you’re up for it, we’ll start looking at apartments, I know you don’t wanna share a bed with me for the rest of your life.” which Johnny takes as, she doesn’t want to live with him for much longer.

“Hey have you talked to Rogue lately, you two should have a chat, see where things stand now that you got your body back.” Which Johnny takes as, she’s trying to push me off on someone else.

“Oh hey, that looks cool….you should take Rogue there, she’d probably enjoy another date without my face ruining everything.” Which again Johnny just sees as she’s pushing him off on Rogue, because she doesn’t want him.

She’ll even do thing like take Johnny to the Afterlife with her to get a gig from Rogue and oh cool, this is a one man job though, so you stay and have some drinks with Rogue; okay byeeeee~ And him and Rogue have a chat, because he’s so fucking down about this, because this is like his worst fear realized to him. Now, that V doesn’t have to deal with him, doesn’t have to be with him, she doesn’t want to. That she’s trying to get rid of him, because why would she want him. And Rogue, having ya know functioning braincells sees through all this shit.

And Rogue asks what the fuck is going on because she wants to hear Johnny’s bullshit idea and he’s like “yeah, pretty sure V is sick of me, keeps trying to push me off on you.”

“She thinks she’s helping.”

“What do you mean?”

“She thinks you still have feelings for me and that what we had can be salvaged.”

“Why the hell would she think that?”

“You used her body to take me on a date.”

“….okay, fair point…”

And I’m still not totally sure how everything like resolves; I haven’t even written the third chapter of her fic yet, so this is way off in the distance as is. But, my V does eventually have to leave for a decent chunk of time to take care of personal shit, and doesn’t take Johnny with her because she feels she has to take care of it without him and honestly thinks its best to break some of the dependence as much as it physically fucking hurts. And when she comes back she learns that Johnny basically spent the whole time sitting by his phone and watching the door, waiting for her to come back or call. They end up finally talking it out because Johnny says like, “you must think I’m pretty pathetic clinging to you when you don’t even fuckin’ want me” and shes like “woah what the hell do you mean I don’t want you???” And actually talk it out and she realizes her actions made him feel unwanted and like he was the only one feeling this pull, like he needed her and she could leave him in the dust and not think twice. And fuck that was not her intention and just admitting, that she does need and want him as much as he needs and wants her, she just didn’t think he wanted her and thought she was helping him get what he really wanted. Just them finally talking like grown adults and maybe someone will fucking confess or I’ll scream.

#cyberpunk 2077 #cp2077 #cyberpunk 2077 spoilers #johnny silverhand #silverv #fem v #aidan becker #aidan v becker #Anonymous

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rainbowcarousels · 4 years ago

Text

You can blame @aimeelouart for asking about my keeping track of how each relationship between AGSZC progresses for the fact this meta now exists. It was somewhat hastily written in the back of my maths textbook so please excuse the lack of polish and put it down to the fact I couldn’t take another 2 hours of algebra.

Fives Company, not a Crowd

Relationships with Love

(or how AGSZC functions in the JBSWM universe*)

Cloud

Love is something that is given without expectation of return. This is applicable both platonically and romantically, he's willing to put everything on the line for the people he loves but he doesn't really expect them to do the same for him. Some of that comes from the fallout from his and Tifa's trip up the mountains and the subsequent responsibility placed on him for that but other parts stem from wanting to feel included but not being able to put himself out there so it's a lot easier to be prickly and pretend you don't care when in reality, I think Cloud loves incredibly deeply and it's why he's easily hurt by it no matter how strong a front he puts up. At eighteen, he's still trying to find a balance between keeping everyone at bay so he doesn't get hurt and letting himself figure things out and take those risks. There's a fun parallel to Sephiroth there in that neither cut themselves any slack for mistakes so it's hard to get out there when you might make one when making a mistake – especially in his first real adult relationship – feels like the end of the world. His only really obvious love up till that point is his mother and I do think he misses her a lot, but is also deathly afraid of letting her down and that weighs on their relationship.

The rest under the cut!

Zack

Loves to love (and he loves to dance, kudos to anyone who got that reference). The walking embodiment of a carebear, loves quickly, easily and casually. The more affection and love you throw at him, you'll get it back tenfold. The trick with Zack is that he lives his life with his heart so open that he has a natural connection with most people but it does make it more difficult to spot the differences between puppy love and intense, romantic love. This is one of the reasons he and Gen clash so much, Gen is 10000% passion and intensity and Zack always seems casual even when he's not. Ultimately, Zack is only 20 and still has a lot of trouble balancing his life between love, friendship and work. Since he's a social creature by nature compared with Cloud's more introverted nature, he's pretty decent at reading people and what they're feeling and absolutely wants to listen to them and hear about what they're feeling instead of having to guess. Compared with any of the other four really, he grew up with a strong sense of his social community and it helped instil a lot of compassion and resilience in his ability to love.

Sephiroth

Big yikes on this front. A walking talking advertisement for dysfunctional attachment and it would not surprise me in the least if he has some kind of attachment disorder as a leftover from a childhood which has probably left it's fair share of emotional scars. If I consult my Master timeline (and my attempts to make sense of Gast's timeline since he appears to have left Shinra on a fact finding mission around the time Sephiroth was born and left again for real this time two years before Aerith was born taking Ifalna with him), his first experiences of emotional connection are Hojo (yikes), Gast (who must come back sporadically from his fact finding between 1979 and 1983 so even before he dies when Sephiroth is four it's probably difficult to pinpoint as a positive attachment), Ifalna (here is where I get a little creative with canon but I do quite like the idea that if she did end up at Shinra before Gast left that he would have wanted to be like LOOK AN ANCIENT BABY and have her be like um no no that is not but also he was probably a toddler at the time and has no real strong recollection of her) and then SOLDIER. We know he served with adult SOLDIERs so I really doubt he connected in any strong way with them having had an extremely sheltered upbringing and oh yeah HE'S TWELVE. Man this one needs splitting up because it's Sephiroth.

So Enter Gen & Angeal when he's around 13, maybe closer to 14. What we know from Zack!Cloud and see from some of Zack's memories in CC, Sephiroth is not cruel but he is a hell a taskmaster and I think there's two big reasons why I put his connection with Angeal first. One, Angeal is a hard worker, he tries to do as much as he can and get himself out there and Sephiroth can respect that.Genesis on the other hand is talented, which...means he actually has to work hard at the things that don't come naturally to him for the first time and since he had the hero worship thing going on and Sephiroth was not social, they did not get along easily until they had a better understanding of each other. This is the same understanding that Gen gradually loses through degradation in canon, whereas Angeal and Sephiroth remain close-ish. Two, Angeal doesn't take anything personally and remains at a respectful distance, even when trying to connect. Sephiroth for his part was perplexed by his continual attention and has no idea what to make of it. It's only when Angeal is still doing it a few months down the line, when Gen has calmed down a little from his perceived slight, that they're able to forge stronger connections and I think there's a tandem effect with those two where Angeal is emotionally open and unobtrusive and Gen is not about to talk about anything emotional but he's physically affectionate. Most importantly of all, they aren't afraid of him, even the parts that a lot of other SOLDIERs may find disturbing, Angeal wants to just check in on and Genesis is mostly thinking 'meh, I could do that'. So ultimately, what would end up being his relationship with love is largely impacted by people who keep him at a distance or leave for a long time and then it's like a bus, you wait for one friend and two come along at once.

So then we have his concept of love being defined largely by friendship because his concept of it is so heavily defined by two people who were friends with each other and him first. The potential problem being that his world gets very wrapped up in only two people and as such, he's obsessive and possessive of them because it's all he has. Then Zack comes along and he's hyper affectionate, social, loving basically in a way he hasn't really had thrown at him and he doesn't fully know what to do with. To a degree, Cloud is easier – he's independent, prickly and does not get on with people which for him is relatable. Zack comes in like nothing he's ever experienced and the way he loves is so different that it's left him trying to figure out how he feels about this new kind of love coming into his life.

Angeal

Hands down a nurturer. It's all about putting his time and energy and heart into a relationship and letting whatever kind of love blooms happen naturally. While I don't think he forms connections easily, he tries to keep himself open and supportive of people around him and that lends itself to connecting with people. I do think he had a strong, loving role model in his parents (well, mother and stepfather, fuck you Hollander) and he had good relationships with them so he has some model by which to judge what love looks like. I also think canonly this is the thing he never really gets over losing, his mother and his connection to his parents.

I think Genesis has always been his great love story. They were, when they were a couple, one that would tell the story of how they met bit by bit until Angeal let Genesis take over telling it because he knows Gen never ever stops talking. I think it's one of the reasons they work well together – Angeal has the calm, quiet and cosy sort of love compared with Genesis who is passion and intensity 24/7. They balance each other out because Angeal does also try to push at his partners to behave, he will be passive aggressive or take small measures to try and correct things (a good example in 7s9s is that he will lock the liquor up knowing Genesis can break it but it's the fact he at least tried to get him to behave that helps him sleep at night) but ultimately, he is more passive as a person. When it was just the trio, Sephiroth added to some of the calm from Angeal but also more than matches Gen for obsessiveness. As things progress, Zack's casual nature adds to the calm but his excitement adds to the intensity and Cloud's introversion adds to the quiet but he's also a mouthy little shit.

One of the major things Angeal brings to the table is that his default setting is to care, same as Zack and that everyone at this table needs taking care of in some way. Cloud is obvious, he's struggling the most but he also feels that way with Zack because he can't completely separate the mentor-ship role even he tries to respect Zack as a First Class in his own right, Sephiroth has so few connections that being able to read him and react in a way as needed is extremely valuable and Genesis is just extremely responsive to the first instance of a seemingly unconditional love in his life and even if he would hate to admit it, loves that Angeal tries to take care of him. I think he's happiest when he can express how he feels to each person in turn in their own language and watch them respond.

Genesis

I think with Genesis there's a very large difference between his relationship with love and his relationship with romance. Romance is easy, he can be lyrical and affectionate and flirtatious at the drop of a hat but the emotion behind it being love is tricky at best. For some reason, I've always viewed him as someone who was a very clingy kid, who wanted parental attention constantly, was constantly seeking reassurance and often didn't get it. We know that Gen at that point was confined to Banora so I do think his parents would leave a decent amount when he was young and it's one of the reasons he latches on so hard when he meets Angeal. Angeal is not only present all the time but wants his attention and doesn't seem to mind that he chatters on and on. It's probably something to do with the idea if he keeps talking, he'll stay longer or trying to just fill silence because I think quiet disturbs him on some level because he's actually terrified of loneliness.

As he's gotten older and he turned out to be good at a few things, he got some of the loving responses he'd wanted but I also think as much as this reinforced the idea love is earned and you have to pay for it, a part of him from Angeal, from seeing his parents relationship with him covetously, knows that love can be unconditional but fears it's not so for him and probably spent a great deal of their early romantic relationship waiting for Angeal to realise and leave.

It's why his relationship with Sephiroth when they make the decision to expand the relationship to include him is initially categorised as casual, he can walk away any time and so can they, it's super casual, okay? Except I don't really think it was, it was just an out and then with Zack, he has no out. Zack is happening and it's love or bust. There's no out and then Zack does not seem that into making an effort and he is Not Happy about that. If you then contrast that to Cloud, who is incredibly responsive to his attentions but without demanding it. There's a lot of control on his end when it comes to his relationship with Cloud so it felt a lot less high stakes. Then Hojo happened and all of that went out the window because it was obvious how deep in he was at that point, he was willing to try and comfort Zack and keep him out of trouble, he was willing to care for Cloud in a way that isn't totally to his nature (if Angeal is the gardener, he's a very finicky plant – needs much attention and the right amount of everything to grow properly and will pretend to be dying if you miss a day) and show concern where he would usually rather jump off the plate headfirst than show emotions that vulnerable.

*This is your standard disclaimer that this only applies to how I see them in this verse, it's not applicable elsewhere but I might use examples from elsewhere to back up the point.

#if you read through all that you deserve a medal #just be still with me #agszc #meta #Final Fantasy 7 #rainbow writes #rainbow rambles

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psychosistr · 5 years ago

Text

Kings

Summary: Domino is forced to attend a party for FOWL’s top agents, and is having a hard time enjoying himself when the presence of someone in particular makes him feel very uncomfortable. Good thing Steelbeak’s there to provide both a distraction and some surprisingly good advice.

Notes: This was a little something written to wish @thefriendlyfour a happy birthday! Thanks for everything you do!

(P.S.- All OC’s in this story belong to her, not me)

Dominic was not having a good time…

It wasn’t often that FOWL High Command granted permission and spared funds on things deemed “unnecessary” for work. Everything from bank heists to political blackmail schemes and even the smallest pieces stolen from museums- every cent earned was carefully accounted for, recorded, and allocated properly. FOWL was a big organization that had many facilities to maintain- and even more workers to pay (maintenance and repair men, scientists, eggmen, all the way up to the special agents) to keep everything running smoothly.

Still, even with everything that had to be paid for, High Command understood the basic concept of things like “morale” and had to relent and reward their workers- particularly their top agents- every once in a blue moon (though it was mostly to make sure that they would feel content with their jobs and not try to leave and use their skills and training to make it as solo villains). Parties seemed to be the easiest and most effective way of keeping employee morale up: It only took one day of actual work, and food and beverages were easy to acquire and serve. After that, all that was required were a decently sized venue and some half-way decent music.

That was how the chief officer of FOWL, Steelbeak, and his partner, Dominic “Domino”, found themselves spending the evening in a heavily fortified and closely monitored outpost several miles away from Saint Canard at a party for FOWL’s most accomplished agents.

The large central room of the relatively unused outpost had been cleaned up and hastily decorated with a few different colored lights and decorations that were likely leftovers from the last party that had been thrown there. There were tables of catered food and drinks ranging from standard soda to a large punch bowl and even a fully-stocked bar all along one wall, leaving the majority of the floor open for agents to mingle and converse freely. The wall opposite the food and drinks housed a small stage that was being used for the evening’s entertainment: A small but highly talented orchestra with a full string section and a full-sized grand piano that had been brought in just for the occasion.

The party had been in full-swing for more than an hour already, but Dominic wanted nothing more than to leave and it was for one reason and one reason alone…

It wasn’t because he hated parties. Granted, he was by no means a party-loving social-butterfly, but he could still have fun and enjoy himself so long as the venue wasn’t overly crowded and his fellow partygoers weren’t so intoxicated that they forgot to respect his boundaries. In fact, compared to the parties he’d been dragged to at the northern base (which tended to involve excessive amounts of alcohol, brightly colored flashing lights, deafeningly loud pop music, and half of his team drinking to the point of passing out while he stayed sober to keep them from getting into too much trouble), this was one of the nicer soirees he’d been to in a while.

It wasn’t because he disliked his fellow agents. While there were still many new people that he was getting acquainted with and had yet to familiarize himself with each and every person present, the others in attendance all seemed like intelligent, capable, reasonable individuals who were pleasant to converse with in small doses. They also had enough common sense to not trust one another, so no one was trying to get hammered- meaning no loudmouthed or clingy drunkards to deal with, which always made for a much more pleasant evening.

It wasn’t because of his partner- if anything, the other man’s presence was one of the only things making this whole evening more bearable. As chief officer of FOWL, Steelbeak’s presence was required at any gathering of its most elite agents, which meant that Dominic, as partner of the current chief officer, was also required to attend. To the loon’s surprise, Steelbeak seemed even less excited to attend the event than his partner, stating that he found High Command’s mandatory gatherings boring and repetitive (if they were all like THIS, though, Dominic could certainly understand why the rooster felt that way after eight years of forced attendance). The lighter fowl’s hushed banter and sarcastic remarks about the party and some of the other agents never failed to bring a small smile to his more serious partner’s face and even elicited a few quiet laughs that were drowned out by the music.

No, everything else at the party was somewhat boring, but otherwise tolerable…except for one thing…one frustratingly perfect, ever present thing that he tried VERY hard to stay as far away from as possible…as long as he stayed by the wall and what he was trying to avoid stayed in the center of the room conversing with another agent about who knows what, then he’d be fi-

“Geez, short fuse, ya look like you’re waitin’ for a bomb t’ go off.” The familiar voice of his partner offered the loon a much needed distraction from his thoughts.

Dominic glanced away from the crowd of agents in front of him and looked instead to his approaching partner who’d broken away long enough to join him in his sequestered corner against the wall by the stage. “If that were the case, we might have a valid reason to get out of here.”

Steelbeak leaned against the wall beside the loon, looking across the room at the bar as if he were seriously considering it as a solution to their current predicament. “Well, there IS a full bar over there…find me a microwave an’ a can of that spray-on oil from the kitchen and I could whip somethin’ up.” It was hard to tell how much of that was actually a joke.

A smile tugged up the corners of the darker bird’s beak even as he shook his head. “Tempting as that is, we would probably just receive orders to turn the event into some sort of ‘garden party’ in the woods..and I know how much you love nature.”

A visible shudder ran down the taller fowl’s body at the thought of spending that much time out in the forest. “No-ho thank you, all that fresh air makes me gag.” He even made a retching sound to prove his point, earning a quiet laugh from the other man that made him smile and laugh along for a moment. “So, if we’re not all ‘bout t’ go out in a big ball of fire, then why’re ya over here lookin’ like you’re ‘bout t’ dig someone’s grave?” He asked after they’d both had a moment to regain their composure. “I’d ask if someone touched ya or somethin’, but I haven’t seen anyone go flyin’ through a wall or stuffed inside a cello case, so it can’t be that bad.”

Darn it, Steelbeak had gotten too good at reading the darker bird after three months of dating him. At times like these, Dominic wasn’t sure if he was more annoyed or grateful for that fact…

“No, nothing that extreme yet.” Red eyes glanced over the crowd and once more found their target. “I’m just…trying to avoid someone..”

Dark grey eyes followed the other’s gaze and landed on a well-dressed man who stood out among the crowd. “Wait…Osprey? Ya know ‘im?”

Of course he knew him. Who didn’t?

Agent Edward Osprey was a statuesque brown and white hawk that was even taller than Steelbeak. Everything about him was elegant and perfect from his immaculate feathers to his tailored blue suit coat, long-tailed shirt, black pants, and neatly folded white ascot. On top of being well-groomed and well-dressed, the man was undeniably handsome with his sharp features and piercing black eyes offset by yellow sclera- his eyes were even accentuated further by the brown band of feathers that cut perfectly across the lighter feathers on the rest of his face. He looked like he’d just stepped out of a painting; to have such perfect features shouldn’t have been possible in nature.

Oh, but the perfection didn’t end at the osprey’s looks- oh no. He was one of the most musically talented men Dominic had ever seen, being both a concert-level pianist and conductor- the orchestra which provided most of the evening’s music had been led by him when he wasn’t playing the grand piano for the crowd’s applause. The hawk was also an incredibly skilled agent specializing in sharp objects and weaponry with a nearly flawless track record under his belt. Add to that the fact that he was nothing but charming and gentlemanly to everyone he met (enemies not withstanding), and you had the walking reality-defying-perfection that was agent Edward Osprey.

“We’ve..met before, yes…” Dominic folded his arms over his chest, trying to look away while still keeping the source of his current stress and anxiety in his peripheral vision.

“Ya don’t sound too thrilled ‘bout it.” Steelbeak pointed out while eyeing his partner with one brow cocked. “I’m guessin’ ya don’t like the guy?”

Oh boy, now THERE was mine field that was difficult to navigate.. “I don’t…dislike him..”

“But ya don’t like ‘im either, right?” Once again, Steelbeak proved how good he’d gotten at reading the loon over the past few months.

Exhaling a heavy sigh, Dominic closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the wall behind them. “…Promise you won’t laugh.”

“Hmmm, weeeeeellll~” The fake contemplation ended when a single red eye opened just enough to side-eye the rooster with a warning glare, making said rooster break into a grin. “Alright, alright, I’ll hold it in.” The red eye narrowed at him and he held up his hands to show he wasn’t crossing any of his fingers. “Promise.”

Though he hardly trusted the other man’s word, Dominic would take what he could get. After taking in a deep breath and closing his eyes again, the words he’d been trying to avoid speaking aloud finally came out. “He makes me feel………uncomfortable..”

A brief but repressed snicker was heard before his red eyes opened and gave the taller fowl a warning glare. “Sorry, somethin’ in my throat.” A clear lie, but Dominic let it slide (this time). “So, why does Mr.Fancypants over there make ya uncomfortable? Knowin’ ‘im, he probably didn’t do nothin’ to ya on purpose- the guy takes it as some sorta personal offense if anyone forgets their manners ‘round ‘im. Think he’d have a stroke if he was the one bein’ rude for a change.”

“No, he isn’t rude- I don’t think he has it in him to be anything less than an absolutely perfect gentleman.” The loon looked across the room again, making sure the man in question was still far away and that no one was close enough to overhear him aside from his partner. “And that’s part of the problem: He’s just so..so-!”

“Practically perfect?” Steelbeak supplied, the look he gave the shorter fowl both amused and understanding.

“Yes.” Dominic groaned, rubbing a hand down his face in frustration. “He’s just so perfect in everything he does- he’s attractive, strong, clever, talented, gets along with EVERYONE, and has the highest record of successful missions in FOWL ever.” His eyes lingered on his hand as it lowered once more. “He’s so infuriatingly perfect that it makes me seem so…” His words trailed off into a mumble at the end, not wanting to voice how the hawk really made him feel…

“So, just t’ make sure I’ve got this whole thing right-” The lighter bird began without waiting for Dominic to repeat himself (likely because he knew he wouldn’t do so willingly). “Osprey’s so perfect that ya feel less perfect bein’ around ‘im?” Darn it, three for three- Steelbeak was on a roll tonight.

“Who wouldn’t?” He didn’t bother to look at his partner again while muttering his response.

He was right, of course: Who wouldn’t feel inferior next to someone like Edward Osprey?

“Heh.” The answer he received was a short, clipped laugh followed by the sound of retreating footsteps.

By the time Dominic looked back up to see what the other man was doing, the metal-mouthed fowl was heading towards the stage. “Steelbeak?” He called after him, but received no response.

One by one, others in the room began to notice the new figure stepping up onto the stage. It had been vacant for about twenty minutes now, allowing Osprey and his orchestra to take a break and enjoy the festivities themselves. With this in mind, it was understandable that the others in attendance were reasonably surprised to see none of the previous performers take to the stage- but the chief officer himself.

Steelbeak ignored the confused looks and hushed whispers as all eyes in the room were suddenly on him. He simply cracked his knuckles and shook out his fingers before seating himself at the grand piano, never even acknowledging them or saying a word.

Then, after taking a quick breath, he began to play.

The melody was captivating- soft but passionate; steady but rapid; light but powerful. Everything about it was such a contradiction, but it somehow just worked. It seemed to change and evolve as the song progressed, sometimes changing to the point of almost seeming like a completely new song, but then that familiar pattern would find a way to weave itself back in naturally to connect it all back together.

And then there was the sheer amount of skill and movement of those off-white fingers across the keys; they were practically a blur during the crescendos. The notes came so quickly that Steelbeak’s hands were never still, even for a second, often having different fingers of the same hand playing at completely separate rhythms from one another. Honestly, it was astonishing that they didn’t trip over themselves. It was almost mesmerizing to watch them fly and jump from one key to the next with expert timing.

Dominic was transfixed by the sights and sounds. While Steelbeak had told him of his experience as an undercover concert pianist on their first date, he had never actually heard him play before. He’d also never heard this song before, but there were no doubts in his mind that few could play it as well as Steelbeak was then and there.

Managing to tear his eyes away from the spectacle long enough to look around the room, it seemed he wasn’t the only one to feel that way. Everyone was staring in awe at their chief officer’s jaw-dropping performance. Even Osprey, who’d worked his way closer to the stage since the song began, seemed genuinely shocked and amazed by Steelbeak’s playing.

The song reached its final crescendo and Steelbeak let it drag on for a moment. Before anyone could pick their collective jaws up off of the floor and react appropriately, however, he immediately began to play another tune.

While still incredibly difficult to play and requiring a good deal of hand-acrobatics to hit each note properly, this one was softer than the last. There was something light and almost..sweet to it- as if the first one was to show off, but this one was to communicate something deeper.

This was another song that Dominic was unfamiliar with but, judging by the similar movements required to play the complex melody properly, it felt like it was by the same composer.

It stirred something in him as he listened, the gentle tune causing a pleasant shiver to linger in his body and a warm feeling to blossom in his chest. For a moment, he thought of the love songs he’d heard in the past- of their cheesy lyrics declaring adoration that ultimately became meaningless with how many people sang those words over and over again. Those songs were cute, but they ultimately felt hollow without a sense of genuine romance to them.

This song, though…This one, without any words or blatant messages to project, somehow felt more like a true love song than any the loon had ever heard in his life. This was raw, passionate, gentle, and beautiful all at once…and he’d be lying if he said the thought didn’t have him blushing a little..

By the time Steelbeak finished playing and stood up, the partygoers had recovered from their initial shock and finally applauded the exemplary performance they’d been treated to. Steelbeak, for his part, just smirked and gave a quick wave over his shoulder as he left the stage, not even taking a bow despite how well-earned it was at that point.

“Not that I’m complaining,” Dominic began once the other man joined him against the wall once more. “But what was that about?”

Steelbeak looked down at him with a smirk, but it was less teasing and far softer than usual. “Just MY way of answerin’ your question.” Before the loon could ask for clarification, Steelbeak looked towards the piano he’d just been playing. “You were askin’ who wouldn’t feel less perfect ‘round someone like Osprey: I wouldn’t ‘cause I know I’ve got somethin’ I’m better at than him.” Dark grey eyes returned their attention to the red ones still looking up at him. “One thing I’ve learned from bein’ chief officer all these years is that ya can’t be better than everyone at everythin’, someone’s ALWAYS gonna have somethin’ they’re better at than you are. The trick t’ stayin’ on top an’ remindin’ everyone why YOU’RE the king an’ they’re the pawns is t’ find the one thing you’re better at than whoever you’re up against an’ make ‘em feel like you’re superior ‘cause of it.”

Dominic took a moment to digest this new philosophy. It certainly seemed to make sense, and would probably explain why Steelbeak always acted like he was better than everyone- it was a way to stay on top and keep others from challenging him by appearing superior. While this information was useful, there was still one part of the chief officer’s advice that was easier said than done: “So you’re saying that I have to find something I’m better at than him? That’s asking a lot since I don’t have any comparative talents like you do.” Dominic didn’t really have much experience with playing instruments or conducting, so he couldn’t use that for any sort of advantage (and while his singing voice was pretty good, he’d never heard Osprey’s so it would be hard to compare them). They were experts with completely different weaponry, so no luck there. The hawk had a better track record for missions than he did, so he couldn’t use anything work related. “I don’t think-”

“You’re a better leader.”

Red eyes blinked in confusion and stared up at the taller bird. “What?”

“You’re a better leader.” The other repeated once more, looking down at the loon with an expression halfway between a smirk and an encouraging smile. “Osprey’s got one heck of a record with missions an’ gets along with everyone, but you’re a better leader than him: Ya know when t’ be nice an’ when t’ be serious. Ya know when t’ listen t’ others an’ when t’ make ‘em listen t’ YOU instead. Ya walk int’ the room an’ command guys three times your size t’ shut up an’ do what they’re told an’ put ‘em in their place if they even THINK ‘bout talkin’ back.” With a smirk, he inclined his head in the general direction of the crowd. “That’s why you’re over here with me an’ he’s over there with them. Sure, his track-record’s higher, but YOU’RE the one High Command picked t’ stand at the top with me- ya beat him an’ everyone else in FOWL for your position ‘cause ya deserved it.” Having made his point, Steelbeak reclined fully against the wall once more, his hands raised to cushion his head against the hard surface in a casual manner. “If anyone ever makes ya question yourself, just remember: I actually listen t’ YOU.”

Dominic was floored (and..maybe a little touched?) by his partner’s words.

After a moment of contemplation, he began to feel a smile slip onto his beak. Steelbeak had a valid point and wasn’t just stroking Dominic’s ego: The loon WAS a pretty good leader. He could coordinate teams ranging from two people to two hundred. He learned his teammates’ strengths and weaknesses and planned around them accordingly to complete any task he’d been assigned.

And, if nothing else, getting someone as bigheaded and arrogant as Steelbeak to listen to him HAD to count for something.

Before he had the chance to thank the chief officer for his rare-words of encouragement, another voice added itself to their conversation. “Steelbeak, your performance was absolutely awe-inspiring!” Looking away from one another to see who’d come to join them, the deadly duo saw none other than Edward Osprey approaching them. He smiled and bowed his head politely. “Do forgive my intrusion, but I simply HAD to commend you for your beautiful rendition of La Campanella: That is an incredibly difficult piece that I struggle with even after a few warm-ups.”

Steelbeak ate up the praise as one would expect, giving Osprey a smirk while idly bringing one hand around to inspect his fingers like a girl checking her nails for imperfections. “Woooow, really? That’s what I play FOR my warm-ups. Start with the harder ones an’ everythin’ else’s easy, y’know?”

“I suppose you’re right.” Osprey was quick to agree, never losing his genial smile. “Though, I must say, I didn’t know you were so familiar with Liszt. Your playing of Love Dream was very emotional- anyone in particular you were dedicating that performance to?”

That actually seemed to trip the rooster up a little, Dominic catching a bit of red on the other’s cheeks between his light feathers as he tried to play it off cool-and-casual. “I mean…maybe…it’s just a song, though, no big deal..”

It was Dominic’s turn to smirk knowingly at the other man. “Well, if there was someone you had in mind while playing it, I’m fairly certain they would have found it beautiful and charming.”

Steelbeak side-eyed the loon, his cheeks going a bit darker, but was saved by another agent coming up to them. “Hey, can you play one more? Everyone loved you out there!” To the trio’s surprise, the request was directed at Steelbeak rather than Osprey.

“Eh, I dunno-” Steelbeak started to say, but his eyes wandered over to Dominic and something in those dark grey depths shifted. “…Ya know what? Sure. I can handle one more.” Then, to everyone’s delight, he walked back up to the stage and took his seat at the piano once more.

“I had no idea he was so talented.” Osprey admitted to Dominic once the lighter bird was out of earshot. “I must admit, I’m a little jealous that you get to work so closely with him- that man’s been chief officer longer than some of us have even been agents.” He looked away from the stage to meet the loon’s gaze directly. “I can only imagine what you must have gone through to earn his respect and companionship.”

“Thank you. It has been.. a journey, to say the least…” Dominic was more than a little surprised..but not necessarily by the taller man’s words- Osprey was polite to everyone and was no stranger to sincere flattery. No, what REALLY surprised the loon was the fact that he just had a conversation (albeit a brief one) with Edward Osprey without any feelings of anxiety or inferiority rising up within him.

What Osprey said next was lost on Dominic as he heard Steelbeak begin to play. This song was different from the others. It was a completely different composer, era, and genre of music- one that the loon was all too familiar with since it had been played in his car a couple of times while his partner sat beside him in the passenger seat praising his singing of the accompanying lyrics. A soft smile tugged at his beak as Dominic listened to the equally soft melody, knowing that this was likely just Steelbeak’s way of driving his earlier point home and wasn’t really meant to be recognized by anyone else.

It was Dominic’s turn to receive a few stares- first from the other agents in the room, and then from Steelbeak himself when he passed in front of the piano to grab the microphone that had been left in its stand nearby. Once he removed it from its spot and made it more mobile, Dominic walked closer to the piano and leaned against it casually. He did a circular gesture with two of his fingers and Steelbeak smiled, instantly knowing what his partner wanted.

Without missing a beat, Steelbeak smoothly looped the song back to the beginning and nodded to Dominic when it was time to join in.

Nodding back, the darker bird brought the microphone closer to his beak and closed his eyes as he began to sing. “You're a-lone. You're on your own. So what? Have you gone blind? Have you for-got-ten what you have and whaaat is yours?”

He blocked out the stage lights; blocked out the crowd around them and their eyes on him. “Glass haaalf empty~, glass haaalf full- well~, either way you won't be go~ing thirsty; Count your blessings, not your flaws.”

There was only one set of eyes on him that mattered right now, and he knew the look they held without even having to see them. “You've got it all~ You lost your mind in the sound. There's so much mooore, you can reclaim your crown. You're in controoll- Rid of the monsters insi~de your head…Put all your faults to bed…You can be king a~gain…”

Another quick breath stolen between verses and he gained the confidence to open his eyes, but he kept his gaze locked solely on the one gazing back at him with awe and adoration. “You don't get wha~at all thiiss i~s a~bout. You're too wra~pped up in your self-doubt. You've got that young blood, set it free…”

The smile on Steelbeak’s face was brighter than any of the lights pointed at the pair on stage, making Dominic feel twice as warm and making him smile just as much. “You've got it all~ You lost your mind in the sound. There's so much mooore, you can reclaim your crown. You're in controoll- Rid of the monsters insi~de your head…Put all your faults to~ bed…You can be king.”

There was a spark of something in the air between them- that same connection they shared when they were working together to take down an enemy that made both of them feel so much more aware of one another on a completely different level. “There's method i~n my ma~adness…There's no looogic in your sa~dness…You don't gaaiinn a siinngle thing from misery~yy…Take it from mee~ee…”

He used his free hand to close the piano’s cover, careful not to let it drop and ruin the gentle decrescendo of the song. “You've got it all~ You lost your mind in the sound. There's so much mooore, you can reclaim your crown. You're in controoll- Rid of the monsters insi~de your head…Put all your faults to~ bed…You can be king.”

Dominic gracefully lifted himself up to sit on the closed piano, one hand holding the microphone in front of him while the other was braced behind him so he could lean back with his legs crossed in front of him- head tipped back as he belted out the notes of the final verse. “You've got it all! You lost your mind in the sound! There's so much mooore, you can reclaim your crown! You're in control- Rid of the monsters inside your head! Put all your faults to bed…You can be king again!”

Red eyes met dark grey, one additional line being sung softly and with so much more feeling than any other line before it. “We can be kings a~gain.”

Steelbeak’s playing came to an end and the two were left staring at one another fondly. There were cheers and applause and words being called to them, but neither man payed them any mind.

After all, they were the kings standing at the top.

End Notes: For anyone who’s curious, here are the songs that Steelbeak played in order: The first is La Campanella by Liszt. The second is Liebstraum No.3, also known as Love Dream, also by Liszt. And the final piece that Domino sang along to at the end was King by Lauren Aquilina.

When choosing the first two songs for Steelbeak to play, I asked a couple of my friends who were piano majors in high school what the most difficult type of music to play is that still sounds good. The general consensus among most of them was, and I quote, “people who hate their hands but love to please others usually play Liszt”- and La Campanella came up repeatedly as one of the hardest songs to play, so I went with it xD

Once again, happy birthday to @thefriendlyfour / @eleanorose123 ! Hope you had a good one and thank you for another year of awesome content!

#steelbeak #Dominic Domino #steeldomino #darkwing duck #dwd #darkwing duck oc #not my oc

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heave-hyung · 6 years ago

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UPDATED BTS HEADCANONS

PART B: EMETO (CARETAKING)

Seokjin

Has a sixth sense for when his members are sick

Knows all of the caretaking hacks, pressure points, teas and their purposes, signs of bigger issues, DIYs, sleeping positions

Also knows the members’ individual preferences as far as all of the above go—what type of tea they prefer, how they like to be cuddled, medicines that they’ll take easier than others or that help better

As qualified as a man could get through the internet and trustworthy WebMD and MayoClinic

Always keeps the house stocked with everything; three thermometers—ear, mouth, rectal—and a backup or two or five, knowing how easily things get lost or broken, on brand and off brand of the same medications and a few other brands too, multiple flavors of cough syrup and all the types of OTC painkillers, bandaids in every cabinet as well as all the disinfectant liquids and creams one could need in a lifetime

Has his own sneaky ways of getting members to take medicine

He knows the others better than he knows himself

Has a particular caretaking style with each of the members that suits them best, but generally speaking, it’s a lot of baby talk (for the maknae line), soft speech, constant reassurances, and a consistent presence to cuddle

He can tell when someone’s got an upset stomach just by looking at them

Knows the other members’ limits with food and such, as well as all of their allergies/intolerances/small things that don’t agree with them

Isn’t fazed by vomit anymore, at all

Keeps a trashcan in everyone’s room

Has plastic bags kept everywhere just in case

Their house is always stocked with orange juice; the second it gets low, another bottle replaces it

Also keeps juiceboxes in the house

And plenty of pepto

Some TUMS

Cleans out the fridge every week; makes sure the milk is always far from spoiled

Always seems to know exactly what to say to calm a member down

A professional stand-in parent

Yoongi

A very straightforward caretaker

Keeps a medicine stash with him at all times; the essentials—painkillers, antacids, motion sickness pills, sinus relief, and bandaids (though they aren’t a medicine lol)

Also has a decent amount of medical knowledge

After having an appendicitis himself, his first move whenever a member’s got a stomachache is to check their right side

Stern caretaker; doesn’t take no for an answer, and he has his ways of getting the other members to listen to him

Also not fazed by vomit anymore

Even if he gets puked on he’s not surprised (really just sighs and accepts it)

Not a verbal caretaker, really; a silent, consistent presence to do what’s needed (though if it is a member who needs verbal reassurances he’s there for that too)

Subtle in his questioning until he needs to make a deal of it; likely to ask questions to rule things out instead of straight “are you okay?” (Like, if a member seems pale or shaky, or their stomach is loud, “did you eat today?” Or if a member is flushed, he’ll ask to nobody in particular “is it hot in here, or is it just me?”)

If he needs to be blunt he’ll be blunt though (“You look like shit. You okay?”)

Not afraid to bring up past experiences (“You remember what happened the last time you did this, don’t you?”) as a scare tactic

Very gentle, though, he’s very gentle

Soft pats, gingerly playing with hair, dusting kisses, pressing lips to their forehead to check for fever, quiet reassurances

Hoseok

Better at handling the aftermath than being there in the moment

He’s squeamish, so blood and vomit can get him kinda shaky or nauseous himself

Therefore he’s much better at cheering a sick member up after they’ve vomited than being there to rub their back while it’s happening

That doesn’t mean he wouldn’t do it anyway though

Very good at brightening the mood, though; good at providing a distraction from the pain

Will pull a member into his lap and hold them if they look even remotely uncomfortable; the others are totally okay with skinship and cuddling, so it’s a tactic that works

Gives good belly rubs

Lots of baby talk

Tummy, belly, icky, etc

Will talk to a member’s gurgly tum

Because why not?

Isn’t necessarily as good at reading the others

But he’s still a good caretaker once he’s caught on

Again, a behind-the-scenes caretaker; water, hairties, informing a manager if it’s at an event, calling for help in an emergency, etc

Good cuddles

Namjoon

Kind of an awkward caretaker

But he’s another part of the unfazed line

A bit panicky, and easily worried

But he has a stomach of steel

He’s typically the one on clean-up duty if a mess is made and there are multiple members to help care for the sickie

If he’s alone with another member it’s easier for him to sort of go on instinct? When it’s on him to figure out what to do he can figure it out

It just doesn’t come AS naturally as it does for some of the others

Less of a sense of a specific member being ill or a sense of illness being the cause, more of a sense of impending doom; he has a good instinct for when something bad is gonna happen

Openly extremely nonjudgmental

Not that any of the members would judge anyone else

But Namjoon is very obviously laidback

Considering how casual he handles his own illness

It’s a lot on him to handle things like sudden illness as a leader because he’s…the leader? (I.E, when Jungkook was really dizzy and struggling to perform and on the verge of passing out during their performance in Chile, Namjoon did say during the Burn the Stage episode that “since I have to speak for us, it’s very hard for me when these kinds of things happen. Because I’m also a kid. “

Jimin

Naturally inclined to care for others

Puts others before himself, most definitely

If he had pneumonia while another member had a cold, he’d still try to fuss over the other member first

Cuddles, lots of cuddles, and he doesn’t care if he gets sick

Dating someone? They have a stomach bug? Will kiss them anyway, not that he doesn’t think he won’t get sick. He knows full well that he’ll get sick, but the thing is, he really doesn’t care

Very good at calming members down, he just has a really calming presence, calming voice

Gives tight hugs and cuddles that say he doesn’t intend on leaving

Vomit doesn’t really bother him either, but seeing another member ill in any way scares him a bit, just because he’s worried for their health

Also gives good belly rubs, and he also likes playing with the others’ hair and kissing them softly

Taehyung

Another member who tries to lighten the mood more than hush the sickie

He’s very willing to cuddle at all times; he’s a very clingy type in every day life, and when he’s looking after someone, it’s ten times more

He doesn’t like letting the sickie(s) out of eyeshot, he gets worried something might happen

I think he’s a lot more of a physical comfort type than verbal comfort, though he’ll go for both

It’s hard because I don’t really picture him or the other maknaes taking care of the others since I think they’re the ones that are sick the most ??

Jungkook

It’s really weird to think of Jungkook as a caretaker lmaooo

I think he’s on the awkward side as well, because he’s the one always getting fussed over

But he’s not terrible

He’ll still be there to rub a member’s back, keep their hair back, he won’t totally freeze up or anything

I just think it’s a foreign feeling to him, so he doesn’t really know what to do

There comes a point where he’s able to just run off common sense though, and that gets him by well enough

He knows the others well, but not as much as they know him

I don’t think he even knows himself as well as his hyungs know him

He gets really sad when the others are unwell in any way, and really sympathetic; I have a feeling he apologizes often as a response

#emeto #bts emeto #bts vomit #bts vomit headcanons #emeto headcanons #bts caretaking headcanons

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chewiewrites · 6 years ago

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@bluesrgcnts sent: 📱 + mainik / eric&kc

SEND 📱 TO FIND OUT ABOUT MY MUSE’S PHONE.

w/ MAINIK

What ringtone my muse has set for yours: Hang on to your uwus for this one. I think her ringtone for Nik changes… not constantly but as their relationship grows and changes. Her autonomic ringtone for everyone is definitely the Pokemon theme song. During their time as friends, I can definitely see her having Total Eclipse of the Heart because she really loves the song? Probably sings it too often, #prayfornik’sears. And later she changes it to Something About The Way You Look Tonight; and her final ringtone for him is definitely Can’t Help Falling In Love. Oh, did I mention that all of her ringtones for him are the violin version of the original song? Because that’s canon.

What contact photo my muse has set for yours: Full disclaimer, Mai changes Nik’s contact photo SO often, it’s ridiculous.

What my muse thinks of the way yours texts: Mailan.. finds it amusing that Nikita texts almost the same way he speaks? She could hear him saying what he sends her and it’s funny yet intimidating at times? Especially considering the way she texts? She sends so many emojis and a sentence at a time whereas I can see Nik sending her one block or line as a response and that’s it? No emojis or uwus or any of that sort of thing. And while at times Mai thinks it sucks, since she has NO idea how to take some things he says, she also loves it. The way he texts is just so him she couldn’t imagine it any other way? Because of how stoic-y he texts, Mai usually asks him questions such as “what do you mean by that?” and such. She feels bad doing so and sometimes avoids asking questions but other times she’s too scared of the meaning of what he says to keep quiet. That being said, I feel like she just grows used to it? To his stoic responses and such? I feel like at one point in their relationship, she no longer needs to ask questions and just feels much more calmer in regards to understanding him and such. Growth™️, I guess.

How quickly my muse responds to your texts: Is it a surprise to anyone that she responds to him almost immediately? The minute she gets a notification and sees the bunny emoji, she’s unlocking her phone to answer him. Mailan often waits for his response in suspense or simply out of excitement. The only time she doesn't reply to him immediately is if she’s actually busy, think of work, schoolwork, showers, cooking, gardening, and sleep. And even so, there’s been instances were the notification from his text wakes her up and she responds and falls back to sleep (I can’t guarantee that those messages make any sense, some may have been in Vietnamese).

How often our muses text: Often, like I’d say daily. Mai definitely enjoys texting him every day, I can see her sending him good morning and goodnight texts every day without missing a beat. Even if he doesn’t reply to her, she still sends him so many messages? It’s almost a monologue and I’m embarrassed. But she means well with her texts and I’m sure Nik gets used to getting spam almost every day.

How often our muses call: Depends? I’d say that if they are close to each other, think of school, camp, or wherever—I don’t know what other universes they may meet on, but if they are close and can see each other often or almost every day then the phone calls rarely happen. However, if they are in their perspective homes? The phone calls happen weekly if not more often. I’d like to think Nik is a busy boy considering his career of choice, so that’s why I don’t say daily.. Although if it were up to Mai’s clingy self.. that’s how it would be. But yeah, they probably schedule calls to have weekly. It’s funny to think of these fools as organized but again, Nik is a busy boy. And I’d imagine that when Mai is on break or home she’s doing a million things at once? Getting transfiguration classes plus violin classes. I somehow feel like she would also help her mother with her job?

Does my muse purposefully miss calls from yours: Knowing Mai, no. She doesn’t have it in her to purposefully miss his calls UNLESS they’ve had a misunderstanding or she’s crying over something. I think Mai purposefully not answering his calls is so RARE, like.. I would be shocked when it happens. But I can imagine them having disagreements and she just kind of needs time? So she doesn’t answer his phone call—sometimes she lets him know, like “hey, I don’t think we should talk right now. Can you give me an hour or so?” Once they become.. a couple and have a some bumpy ass experiences she becomes so much more vocal about when she doesn’t understand what he means, or whether she does or doesn’t stand with it, etc? But them as friends? Mai just doesn’t answer his calls and then gives such a Lame excuse about it? Think of “sorry I was feeding my cat” even though Nik called her like five hours ago.. Additionally, Mai would purposefully miss his calls if she’s having a hard time and is crying, she sometimes texts him saying she’s struggling or other times she doesn’t.

Last text(s) sent from my muse to yours:

( ✉️ – con thỏ tai to ) that moment when your day is completely ruined!! ( ✉️ – con thỏ tai to ) i was just about to eat my breakfast right?? as i do everyday ( ✉️ – con thỏ tai to ) and when i go to get peach juice?? there is none left?? like WHO TOUCHED MY PEACH JUICE ( ✉️ – con thỏ tai to ) ..no one did. i had the last of it yesterday, i’m so upset.. it’s not a complete breakfast without peach juice ( ✉️ – con thỏ tai to ) anyways, i hope your morning is going better… morning or day.. or night. what are time zones drafted! ( ✉️ – con thỏ tai to ) i miss you so much

w/ ERIC & KC

What ringtone my muse has set for yours: I’m so sorry to disappoint everyone but Eric doesn’t bother with ringtones? Like at all. This boy lets his ringtone be the basic af iPhone ringtone.. He doesn’t even change them to the other options it’s the one the phone comes with.

What contact photo my muse has set for yours: You best believe KC took this photo and added it himself.. because otherwise, he would have no contact picture. Eric doesn’t bother with that either. This demon doesn’t bother with ANYTHING and I hate him for it.

What my muse thinks of the way yours texts: Eric.. has seen people text worse than KC. It’s not that KC texts in a weird way.. it’s just A Lot™️ for Eric? Like he can just cringe at what KC sends him? I don’t know why but I feel like KC is an uwu sort of guy so he would use that and lots of periods or commas, maybe even a lot of line breaks? So that and the memes? And keysmaches? It just feels like a lot to Eric but he can.. see KC’s personality come through? He doesn’t know whether he hates it or is amused by it. Maybe he simultaneously hates it and finds it amusing. (The only bright side of KC texting habits is that it keeps Eric up to date with the memes).

How quickly my muse responds to your texts: This dumb demon child takes his TIME getting back to KC! Unless it’s about business or it’s leading up to it in which he would reply sooner.. He still doesn’t reply instantly. At the beginning of Eric trying to charm KC, he definitely took a specific amount of time before replying to KC, like yes this demon calculated it. He wanted KC to wait, learn to at least. His goal? For KC to anticipate his response. To see whether KC would send more text messages instead of waiting. But Eric can take days or weeks to get back to KC.. good thing they live in Camp so they can at least see each other and talk then.. yikes.

How often our muses text: As said previously, Eric is a slow ass texter but they probably have.. somewhat decent conversations. I’d imagine Eric would also text KC, it can’t all be one-sided because it might discourage him and Eric needs KC to still cave into his dumb demonic methods and ways.

How often our muses call: Not.. that.. often? I feel like there’s different answers to this. When Eric’s manipulation was at its Peak™️ they probably had phone calls often, usually during the night. I can imagine Eric playing Fortnite (because.. he would) and having an hour conversation with KC, leading him on. He probably grows quiet when the match gets hard but.. I kind of works on his favor? You know that whole “let’s fall asleep on the phone” thing? Eric accomplishes it accidentally because he gets quiet id he’s really focused and KC eventually falls asleep. But after Eric calls them off? It’s just.. not a Thing anymore? KC can still call him.. but Eric doesn’t make the effort to have an hour conversation with KC. I imagine Eric and his dumb self calls KC when he’s highly intoxicated though, so good luck with that.

Does my muse purposefully miss calls from yours: Yes, all the time. Though Eric sometimes doesn’t pay attention to his phone? He’s the type to not charge his phone for days because socializing is too much and seeing so many idiots face to face daily is Bad Enough for him. But Eric.. purposefully misses everyone’s calls, he can’t be bothered. If KC is insistent enough he’ll answer I guess or send one of those automatic(?) messages like “I’m busy, call later.”

Last text sent from my muse to yours:

( ✉️ – kc ) if you’re awake you should meet me near the entrance of camp in 5. i’m going to get legit chinese food from the city.

#( answered. )#bluesrgcnts #it's so long i just divided it up bc in ONE post it would be so... bAD YIKES AT ME but pls yell at me once u read ths #( otp. mailan & nikita )#( notp. eric & kc )#( ch. mailan pham )#( ch. eric liu )

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dholwrites · 7 years ago

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Sleeping Headcanon

Aymeric

He sleeps on his back, he’s a light sleeper. The slightest of moment would cause him to go high alert, even more now with the position he is in. He would work himself to the point of falling asleep in bed, but Lucia has been ensuring that he stops after catching him for the fifth time. He’s not a solid sleeper, the nightmare of his time in the Vault still haunts him and they pick at his mind when he tries to rest. Your presence near him does sooth them away, assuring him that things will turn out well. Often you wake up with him reaching to you.

The nightmares had turned for the worst. It shows him images of his supporters, his friends, even you being captured by the Heavenswards. Every single time he force back a cry of your name as he bolts up from the bed, sweat gathering as he heaves deep long breaths to calm down. The image of your eyes losing their light burn into the back of his mind. His eyes dart around the room, the sound of his own heart bumping in his ears. Aymeric squeeze his eyes shut and lay back down onto the pillows. He turns to his side to watch your silhouette, the slow rise and fall of your chest. He reaches out to you, wrapping his arm around your waist and sliding you from your side right next to him. He brings up your hand to press light kisses along your fingers, before pressing a last one on your shoulder. He thanks Halone in his mind for allowing his nightmares to be a simply what it is, a dream.

Thancred

He sleeps on his stomach, hands tucked under the pillow. His face is turned to the side luckily so you don’t have to worry about him accidentally suffocating himself. There’s a relaxed, happy look on his face that makes you sometimes forget that he has his hands wrapped around his knives. Thancred keeps to himself, even with you in bed with him, there’s a respectable distance between the both of you with his back facing you.

It’s established that he often forgets to take care of himself, he starts to take up more tasks when he feels guilty about something. Which means less sleep and more running around until he finally lets it out. He’s been distant since you found him in the forest. You and the others have joked about his lack of dress to try and brighten things up. His responses are only gives a laugh that even a deaf man can tell is fake. You can tell he has been stressed. He repeats his behavior before he fell into the grasp of the Ascians. Distancing himself and venturing off on his own. You and the rest of the Scions had to corner him and lock him into a room for several days to make sure that he gets proper rest. Sometimes it would be with you or Y’shtola in room with him to make sure that he stays in bed. With Alphinaud and Tataru outside bringing food and water to keep him well-fed.

Estinien

It took you a long time and wondering if he sleeps at all sometimes. It wasn’t until Aymeric called him out for falling asleep in his office again that you discover one of his secrets. He could sleep standing up in full gear, he could lean against a wall and doze off on a nap. With the mask, it’s impossible to tell if he’s up and pay attention or he’s taking another nap again. You’ve attempted to find out is often boiled down to staring at him for as long as possible, but you always leave empty handed. Silent sleeper, no one other than Aymeric has discovered him sleeping. Aymeric however have mentioned that there have been signs of him suffering from the lack of sleep since you have brought him back.

You finally caught him once at Tailfeather, hiding on the side of the stairs that is vacant of people. He’s been there for well over two hours since you first saw him and came back from visiting the hot spring. After experiencing one of his ‘hugs’ you’re sure that he’ll be fine to be out in the weather. You double check to make sure that no one is looking before sneaking up to the unmoving figure. He has his shoulder pressed up against the wall, arms crossed across his chest. Looking normal to anyone who only gives him a glance. Once you’re within an arm’s reach, you slow your pace, stopping every step to make sure that he hasn’t moved an inch. Once you’re close enough to him to feel the heat of his body, you let out a long breath of relief. Standing there, you become aware of how it has become, the warmth of the hot springs was starting to wear off. The wind has picked up bringing in dark clouds as a sign of an incoming storm. Leaning in, you press your lips at the warm skin below the mask, a few inches away from the decorative curves. You quickly back out as fast as you can backwards, prepared to act as if you discovered him in the chance that he will wake up. After confirming that he hasn’t woken up yet, you continue your path back to Ul’dah. You were happy that he was at least getting some rest even if it’s in the front lines of a storm. A quiet moment pass after you disappear into the aetheral stream. Estinien reach up the touch the place where you have kiss,

“Damn Warrior of Light”

Hien

He’s does stretches before going to bed, especially after an active day of training soldiers and watching over parts of Doma being rebuilt. He’s a still but loud sleeper, Gotetsu often jokes that he sleeps like a rock but snores like wild tigers. Anyone within the same vicinity can hear him, making it wildly believed by Doman people that he is only in deep sleep when he is snoring. He has made attempts to remedy the snore, some attempts were to sleep on his side but he would naturally fall back on his back after a short amount of time.

You experienced it first hand after you managed to persuade him to come back to Doma. You and the others had asked to participate in the Naadam, only for you to be alerted that you must go through the Bardam’s Mettle to become warrior of the Steppe. Everyone has retired into a tent that the people was gracious enough to provide a bit away from the tribe itself. Lyse has invited everyone to have a meal around the fire before retiring. After a long chat under the stars and swapping stories, the fire was put out and everyone shuffle inside to get some much-needed rest. You’ve been staring at the ceiling of the tent for who knows how long now. Another rack of snore bore through your ears and drowns out any hope of getting any good sleep. Would it be wise to run the trial with no sleep at all? Probably not. But Hien sure thinks it would be a good idea. With the snore seemingly shaking the tent, it dawns on you that this maybe why Gotetsu picked the farthest bed away from Hien as possible. As the snoring echoes in your ear drums, you silently wonder what kind of torture you have accidentally put yourself through.

Cid

For the love of Twelve, save this man. He’ll fall asleep anywhere, and will snore like a truck when he gets deep into it. One time you found him under one of the magiteck taking a nap in the middle of fixing it. Another time sitting on top of a newer model of the windcutter just barely slipping off the wing. Not to mention that time where he fell asleep inches away from his bed.

Wedge, Biggs, and yourself have attempted to get Cid on a regular sleeping schedule. One that doesn’t involve him drinking a dangerous amount of coffee and sleeping near explosive agents. Wedge and Bigg’s plan is that they would ban him from working further on any of his projects after a certain hour, hopefully forcing him to sleep at a decent hour. They’ve asked for your help to persuade him, to force him out of the room and help him relax once he makes it back into his room. Which is why you are currently in his room bribing him with your specially made, home grown coffee beans. The offending look on his face when you reveal what you were hiding behind your back.

“You’re planning to bribe me with coffee? I-”

The light scent of the caffeine cause him to freeze. He cast a longing look at the bag you have in your hand, before turning to you with the saddest pleading puppy eyes that he could muster. With a shake of your head, he lets out a grumble before shuffling around his room, preparing for bed. He realized as he drifts to sleep in the warmth of his bed that he greatly looks forward to a new day. A day where he can share coffee with you in the morning.

G’raha Tia

Sleeps on his side, curled up in bed. He’s used to fall asleep sitting with a book in hand, occasionally you would find him sleeping on high points of the Syrcus Tower with a book in hand. More often than not you’re the one sent to wake him up since you seem to know what high place he ends up when he is trying to get a better look at the amount of detail of the tower. Outside of the tower, he likes a nice shady spot in the midday sun where he can read and sleep to the rustling of wind and the text in his hand.

Sometimes he closes his eyes and the nightmares doesn’t haunt him. He could picture out things perfectly, differently. Him with a book in hand, sitting on a shady porch with the sound of wind and sea crashing in the distance. Your head would be on one of his thighs with a book on your own, and showing signs of fallen asleep. You insist that you won’t, giving him a pout and insist that you want to spend as much time as possible with him. With a smile, he starts to stroke your hand with his free hand and start to hum. You smile up at him, as he leans down and whisper “I lo-” You jolt awake, quickly looking around to see who was calling your name. Cid was waving at you from a distance. You slowly get up from your resting spot, stretching out your limbs for leaning again cold metal for so long. Before you hurry out, you turn to the large metal gates and give it a nod. Perhaps one day in the future, you’ll have the time to tell you your dreams instead.

Alphinaud

He’s clingy as hell with a surprisingly good death grip on you in his sleep. To make it worst, he will always be the first to fall asleep. Which means if he falls asleep on you on a long ride, you’re going to have an Alphinaud attached to the closest person to him. Said person is, of course, you. The first few times, you didn’t mind him leaning against you to get some rest before the next big event. But after a while, you learn at his grip starts to tighten over time and that means a loss of blood circulation in an arm you need to be battling the Primals that he pitches you against.

Alisae had given you knowing looks since you mention that you have been traveling with Alphinaud. This is her brother that you guys are talking about, and she knows him as well as she knows herself. That includes his interesting habits when he’s sleeping. Like clinging to whomever he sits with, and occasionally mumblings things that should be kept a personal secret. Like how he thinks that Y’shtola’s tail looks ‘soft as a cloud’ and he wants to stroke it, how jealous he is of Aymeric because everyone sees him as a child at first glance, the things that he would often keep to himself. The Scions knows that he’s an honest sleepy one. They silently vow to keep it to themselves, even if the things that comes out of his mouth is more than cringe worthy.

Haurchefant

Haurchefant can sleep through a winter storm going outside his window, bang on the glass all you want. But he will be wide awake as soon as you call out his name and start tapping on his door. All the years of being head of Camp Dragonhead has taught his body to be half aware of what is going on around him. what to ignore and what to pay attention to. He likes to wrap himself around you, much like his cuddles, being in physical contact with you is enough. He has a pretty good sleeping habit, since he wakes up early in the morning.

It took you a while to get used to being with him on the days you have off. But once you become used to sleeping next to him, you discover that he is the perfect heater. In a storm, long after the fire reduced to ashes, especially during a horrible snow fall. He would spend an entire day with you in bed if he could. You would be getting all kisses you need, and the laughter drawn out of you from the rumors and stories he has head. He wakes up at early dawns of the morning, but will finish all the paperwork so he can sneak back in bed with you again. He had taught himself how to slip through the door without waking you up. Sometimes if he’s lucky, he’ll finish everything before you even wake up and it would seem like he never left at all. It wasn’t until you woke up hours later in a cold, empty bed that you remember you have to get used to sleeping alone again.

#fanfic #ff14 #ffxiv #haurchefant #aymeric de borel #alphinaud leveilleur #alphinaud #estinien #lord hien #ffxiv hien #thancred #g'raha tia #cid nan garlond #this is really late

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jilyyall · 7 years ago

Text

As Much As I Want You

This was a request from @l--o--u like six months ago, who asked for a sequel to this prompt and I am a terrible person who took this long to deliver. Summary: It’s been nearly a week since Lily and James had dinner and more, but Lily hasn’t seen or heard from her insanely fit neighbour and it’s beginning to really bother her. Word count: 10,535 Rating: Explicit.

“Oh my God, ladies. Our little Lily is growing up. Had her first one-night stand and everything,” Dorcas’s voice was distant, a bit tinny, and came from Lily’s desktop computer, which she usually reserved for work except when Marlene and Emmeline came over to Skype Dorcas on the last Thursday evening of every month. “What a woman.”

“I’m just glad she’s finally getting some action,” Emmeline said and took a sizeable gulp of her whisky on the rocks because I don’t drink wine or that headache-inducing sugary shit you bitches love. “Honestly. I was starting to worry you would dry up forever like an old, forgotten prune.”

“That.” Lily paused, searched for something that wasn’t glass, found only an old lightly used napkin from their takeaway earlier, and threw it at her. It hit Emmeline in the head and bounced off her silky blond bob to land on the floor next to her. “Was uncalled-for.”

“Bitch,” Emmeline laughed, picking up the napkin and throwing it in the bin by the door.

“Hey, let’s get back to the topic at hand, which is that Lily is officially starting to slut it up with the rest of us,” Marlene said, taking a prim sip of wine and smirking at Lily over the edge of her glass. “We should all go out and pull this weekend. Oh, sorry, Dorky.”

“Ugh, I can still pull here in America, you tit.” Dorcas rolled her eyes and lifted a cup that she claimed was full of alcohol, but Lily strongly suspected was just water, given the fact that it was just past noon in Los Angeles. “In fact, I can probably pull easier here given my fucking sexy accent.”

“We all have the same accent, you loser,” Emmeline said, searching through their discarded takeaway containers for another egg roll.

“Everyone there has the same accent, Mellie,” Dorcas reminded her. “Mine stands out here, though.”

“Do the blokes really love it that much?” Marlene asked, leaning forward in her seat.

“I dunno about the blokes, but the birds sure do,” Dorcas said.

“Shit, I forgot. Sorry.” Marlene’s eyes went slightly wide, the corners of her mouth downturned in the expression she always wore when she was sincerely apologetic.

“Oh, it’s still new to me, too. Don’t worry,” Dorcas assured her.

Dorcas, who came from a very religious family, had lived her entire life in denial and had only admitted to herself that she liked girls on her twenty-first birthday. She hadn’t told anyone, even her three best friends, that she was a lesbian until she was already well and settled into her new life in America nearly four years later. Her parents didn’t talk to her anymore and, as such, Lily pretended not to know them on the rare occasion that she ran into them these days.

“I think I could pull a woman,” Emmeline said mildly.

“Okay…” Marlene drawled. “But would you let a woman pull you, is the real question.”

“Yeah, probably,” Emmeline answered, reaching for her drink again. “Who knows how to please a woman better than another woman?”

“I dunno, why don’t we ask Lily?” Dorcas suggested with a laugh. “Does your very fit neighbour know how to please a woman?”

Lily rolled her eyes, distinctly aware of the colour rising in her cheeks. She lifted a shoulder in an attempt at careless indifference. “He did all right.”

“Yeah, sex is almost always all right, but did you have an orgasm?” Emmeline demanded.

Did she ever. She was getting hot all over just thinking about it.

“Oh, my God, she definitely did,” Marlene announced with a delighted laugh. “Look at that fierce flush.”

“You’re the worst,” Lily groaned, throwing her head back dramatically, narrowly missing hitting the wall.

“At least your fit neighbour isn’t the worst in bed,” Emmeline cackled.

“What position did you do?” Dorcas asked.

“Yeah, was it something crazy for your first one-night stand?” Emmeline prompted. “Or was it more tame? Missionary? Doggy style?”

“Er – I dunno. He was standing and I was sitting on the kitchen counter,” Lily said truthfully.

“Oh, my God, you slag!” Dorcas teased.

“Hey, that’s not a bad one,” Marlene said. “Just kinky enough to be a little bit wild and tame enough not to scare you out of the real kinky shit.”

Lily realized at that moment that she didn’t tell her friends enough about her sex life. Sure, she hadn’t had sex in a while, which, in hindsight, was probably why she had been so desperate for James to get his hands on her. She was not, however, some blushing, all but virginal schoolgirl who didn’t know that sex was supposed to be fun and free and feel good.

She liked sex, loved it, even, if the bloke knew what he was doing. She had, in the past, spoken openly and comfortably about her sex life, her wants and needs, her likes and dislikes, with her partners. Apparently, though, she had never shared the same amount of information with her friends.

She loved the girls, truly, but she didn’t trust them not to share wildly inappropriate details about her sex life with people who had no right to know them. They had, after all, told her things their coworkers had shared with them and more than likely didn’t want some random stranger knowing about them.

Listening to the girls talk about their favorite sex positions, Lily felt a bit out of place. They all had had so many sexual partners, so many casual flings, and Lily had had none. She’d had a fair few relationships, all of which had been mostly sexual in nature, but not at all casual. It struck her that she didn’t want to have casual sex. At least, not at this point in her life. Not with James.

She was overcome suddenly by an awful sensation that felt a bit like regret and a lot like loneliness. She stood quietly from her chair, gathered up the empty food containers, left Emmeline and Marlene to cackle with Dorcas’s image on the computer, and made her way down the stairs to the kitchen for another glass of wine.

Trash in the bin and glass blissfully full again, she glanced out the window on the side of her house that faced his house. The lights were off, as they had been every time she had spared him a thought and a glance the past few days. Admittedly, that had happened embarrassingly often since they had slept together.

Lily frowned and sighed. She had a good life. She had a reliable job that brought in a decent amount of money – enough for her to afford a house on her own – even if her boss was a bit shit and brought her right to the edge of murderous rage at least twice a week.

She had a fair few friends who she saw regularly, and parents she spoke to on the phone every other day and had dinner with her mother every Tuesday night and with her father every Wednesday night without fail. Her sister was awful and spiteful and mean and Lily hadn’t heard from her since she had received the Christmas card Petunia had almost certainly sent her more for their mother’s benefit than for Lily’s, but Lily loved her and she would venture to say that Petunia likely loved Lily right back.

She had a car and a roof over her head and a lovely wardrobe full of beautiful, professional dresses and slacks and nice blouses and also quite a few dingy, old, beloved jumpers and sweats. She had more shoes than one person really had a right to own. She had hot water and enjoyed a leisurely soak in a bubble bath with a book and a lit candle and a full glass of red wine every Friday night.

She had wine. Lots of wine.

Her life was good, but she would be lying if she said that lately she hadn’t been feeling like something was missing.

A husband, her mother would say if Lily brought it up during dinner on Tuesday night, which she absolutely would not do.

A cat, her father would insist, clinging as desperately as ever to the idea that his younger daughter would not rush to marry the first man who offered, awful as he might be, the way his older daughter had.

A few good orgasms a week, her friends would undoubtedly suggest.

Lily had never been one to cling to a man. Even when she was a schoolgirl and had gotten her first boyfriend, she hadn’t clung to him. They went on dates on the weekends, occasionally stopped for a hug and a chat in the hallways at school, but for the most part lived separate lives. He would spend his days at school with his friends, and she with hers; they didn’t even eat lunch together. She had introduced him to her parents after a month not because she wanted him to have a greater role in her life, but because her mother and father had insisted on meeting him. Her relationships in uni had been much the same, only instead of an occasional hug and a chat in the hallways, there had been the occasional spontaneous shag in an empty, unlocked classroom. As a young professional, she didn’t have much time for relationships and while she certainly wasn’t against the idea of a one-night stand she had never felt desperate enough to actually give in and go that route.

She wouldn’t say that she felt clingy now, but this was different. She had never met a bloke and felt drawn to him the way she did with James. She hadn’t gone into his house thinking this is going to be a one-night stand, but she also hadn’t gone expecting to walk out in a relationship. She had just accepted an offer of dinner from the fit bloke she had been eyeing ever since he had moved in next door and then, as soon as she had set foot in his house, something had come over her. There was a pull there, between them. It was electric; it was magnetic. It was almost like… fate.

And that was an embarrassing and ridiculous thought because Lily was a firm believer –and had been all her life – that there was no such thing as fate, that it was your choices and your actions that shaped your future and that the course of your life was not predetermined by some unknown, unseen, undeterminable entity. And yet, she couldn’t shake the thought that fate had seen him buy the house right next to her and had her dryer break down and make her hang her clothes out on the line on a sunny day that turned into a rainy evening that led her to his house, his kitchen counter, his couch, his bed, his shower the next morning.

She hadn’t mentioned that to her friends – and likely she wouldn’t – but they had had sex several times. They had started in the kitchen, finally giving in to the irresistible, unshakeable desire after they had eaten dinner and drunk the whole bottle of wine, then James had carried her to the couch when he decided he wanted to lay her down, had finished there, the first time. After that, they had gone to bed, presumably to go to sleep for the night, but Lily had woken after a few hours, desire burning almost painfully within her, and she had kissed him awake – had wanted to stroke him awake, but hadn’t been certain how he would react since they had only just met a few hours before – and then had ridden him with a desperate abandon she had never felt before.

They had both woken ridiculously early – well before five in the morning – to a hard, heavy, thunderous rainfall and he had eventually rolled over on top of her for slow, sleepy, wonderful, half-awake morning sex before they managed to fall back asleep. It was Saturday morning and it was storming out, so he couldn’t go for his usual morning run and didn’t have plans until noon, so they had taken their time waking up for the day, had decided to shower together and gotten carried away again. He’d held her up against the wall and fucked her there in the shower until his feet had started to slip and they had laughed and moved to the spacious marble counter next to his sink to finish.

He’d made eggs for her – poached, not scrambled and dry and almost burnt like she always made them when she bothered to cook for herself – and a coffee and they had talked about normal, everyday things. It hadn’t been awkward or strained, like they were complete strangers who had just spent the past twelve hours either sleeping or fucking; it was comfortable, like they were just lovers having breakfast together after a wonderful night and chatting about their plans for the day.

He’d gotten her clothes from his dryer and carried them next door for her. They’d kissed, long and slow, on her front porch, and then he’d gone home to get ready for his day. She hadn’t seen him since.

They’d made no promises of more, hadn’t made plans for a date or exchanged phone numbers, but they lived next door to each other and it seemed a small thing to have each other’s numbers, really, when they could just walk outside their doors when they wanted a chat. Only, she hadn’t even seen his car in the drive since Sunday morning when she’d left to have brunch with Benjy. And it was Thursday night.

She’d been bothered by his sudden and unexpected disappearance all week long; she wasn’t too proud to admit that, at least to herself. But she hadn’t let herself dwell on it as much as she was tonight. It was probably because, even when he hadn’t been home Sunday night, or by the time he usually would have been home Monday afternoon, she hadn’t allowed herself to consider the possibility that this could have been a one-night stand until her friends had determined that it was.

He’d been great in bed, that was an indisputable fact, but he’d been just awkward enough during their conversation before they’d had sex, just nervous enough, that she had assumed that he didn’t pick up on women much. Men could get really good at sex by having a lot of sex with just a couple of partners just as easily as –easier than, even– having a lot of one-night stands. He seemed like the type of guy who had had a few serious partners in his day, the relationship type. But now, Lily had to admit that she didn’t really know anything about him. For all she knew, he had never been in a relationship and was strictly a one-night stand bloke. But who in their right mind chose to have an undisclosed one-night stand with their neighbour, knowing they would see each other every day?

Except, she remembered, she hadn’t seen him since.

It was unlikely that he had moved, she reasoned. He had only bought the place a few months ago and he had already completely settled in, judging by the comfortable way he had decorated. He could have been avoiding her, but if that were the case, he was going to an awful lot of trouble to do so, completely changing around a schedule he had never even once deviated from before they had spent the night together. Besides, he had definitely had as good a time as she had, had initiated things two out of the four times they had had sex, had cooked for her and kissed her and had laughed and seemed to genuinely enjoy the conversations they’d shared afterwards as much as she had.

It wasn’t that she wanted to spend every free moment that she had with him. It was just that she didn’t not want to spend all of her free time with him. She didn’t want for their night together to be just that: their one and only night together. The sex was good – great, actually, easily the best she’d ever had – and the food was delectable. But there was more to it than that. She liked talking to him, liked watching him work, had taken great pleasure in watching his hands as he had chopped vegetables for a salad. She liked his eyes and how expressive his face was – it had seemed to her that he hid nothing – and his stubble in the morning. She couldn’t get enough of his hair, smooth and soft in her hands, messier when he woke than she had ever seen it, either from her constant tugging at it when he was inside her or from sleep. She liked his mouth, the way it moved over words and laughs and smiles, and over her body.

She couldn’t think of a single thing she didn’t like about him. She desperately wanted to find something, to see if she would still think he was wonderful and feel this pull towards him even when she found the something that annoyed her, made her want to roll her eyes or pick a fight with him. It had been her experience in the past that she didn’t have much patience for a bloke once she found that something. Lily wanted more than anything to find out if James could be the bloke that held her attention, left her wanting him even when she was annoyed with him.

If she ever saw him again.

God, she wanted to see him again.

“Lily?”

She found herself still staring out the window at his house, turned quickly, nearly sloshed wine right out of her glass and onto her beige top. Marlene was standing on the bottom step, watching her. “Yeah?”

“Are you okay?” Marlene stepped down onto the landing and made her way, almost gliding across the room, over to Lily.

“Yeah.” Lily smiled and took a large sip of wine. “Of course. Why wouldn’t I be?”

Marlene pulled a face that would have looked ridiculous on Lily: eyes rolling, one eyebrow quirking up towards her hairline, the other curling low as she half-squinted one eye at her, her mouth quirked up in a slanted smirk as she scoffed and shook her head and managed to look beautiful doing it.

“You disappeared without saying anything about five minutes ago and I found you staring out at your neighbour’s house and I can only assume he’s the one you slept with,” Marlene said, looking curiously out the window over Lily’s shoulder.

“You know what they say about assumptions,” Lily said.

“Yeah, but mine are usually right.” Marlene smirked at her. Lily tried to smile back, tried to hide how forced it felt by taking a sip of wine. Marlene, observant as she was, frowned. “What’s wrong, love?”

Lily sighed, downed the rest of her wine far too quickly, and moved around Marlene to pour another glass. When she turned to face Marlene again, she was watching Lily closely, not even bothering to hide her concern. Lily didn’t blame her; she didn’t usually act like this. Usually, Lily was calm, cool, and collected, and just as bubbly and talkative as the rest of the girls when they got together.

“One of those nights, is it?” Marlene said after a moment of silence. She sighed and drank the last of her wine, followed Lily to refill her glass as well. “Okay, I’m ready,” she said once her glass was full.

Lily rolled her eyes, but allowed Marlene to pull her over to the sturdy wood kitchen table, sat down across from her when Marlene released her.

“Talk,” Marlene commanded.

“It’s stupid,” Lily warned her. “You’ll laugh.”

“I would never laugh at something that upset you,” Marlene vowed and Lily knew that she was right. None of her friends would laugh at her for her concerns, or for wanting to see James again, and regularly.

“I didn’t think it was a one-night stand when I told you about James,” Lily admitted.

“James would be fit neighbour, I’m guessing. Well, that’s no big deal.” Marlene waved a hand as if to dismiss the problem. “We’ll just tell the girls that you’re planning to see him again, they’ll tease you that the sex was too good, and that will be that.”

“That’s the thing, though. We didn’t make plans to see each other again,” Lily said. “I just assumed since we’re neighbours that we didn’t have to make plans immediately because we would just see each other pretty much every day.”

“But… you haven’t?” Marlene guessed.

“Not since he walked me home Saturday morning!” Lily complained.

“Wait, you spent the night with him?” Marlene asked. “You made it sound like you’d just gone over there to dry your clothes, had dinner, had a bit of him, and then come home.”

“I had more than a bit of him,” Lily mumbled.

Marlene said nothing, but raised an eyebrow at her. And Lily cracked. She told her just about everything: the incredible sex, the various positions and numerous orgasms, the easy conversation, the warm, fantastic snogging, and his mysterious disappearance afterwards. By the time Lily was finished her story, she and Marlene had both finished their glasses of wine and Marlene had gotten a fresh bottle from the refrigerator and refilled both of their glasses.

“Wow,” Marlene said once Lily had finished recounting her night with James in vivid detail. “Okay. So, this guy’s a major dick if he’s avoiding you after all that.”

“Agreed,” Lily said. They clinked glasses, giggled a bit drunkenly, and each took a sip.

“However.” Marlene paused, whether for dramatic effect or to gather her thoughts, Lily didn’t know. “It is also possible that you are overreacting and that it is in large part due to the assumption Dorky, Mellie, and I made upstairs.”

“Ugh, Leney!” Lily whined.

“No, listen,” Marlene insisted. “You’ve admitted yourself that you hardly know anything about him. You don’t know what he does for a living; maybe he had to travel for work. Maybe he went home to visit his family. You didn’t exchange phone numbers, so he can’t get in touch to update you or reassure you if he even wants to and you can’t reach him to let him know that you would benefit from a bit of reassuring.”

“So, basically, all I can do is wait until he shows back up and see whether he’s an asshole or I’m overreacting,” Lily surmised miserably.

“Pretty much.” Marlene laughed and sipped her wine. “Hey, chin up, Buttercup. Bright side is, either way, you can still fuck him again.”

Lily frowned and drummed her fingers on the table. “How do you figure?”

“Well, if you’re overreacting, chances are he’s as interested in getting to know you as you are in getting to know him,” Marlene pointed out. “And if he’s an asshole, well then he’ll definitely be up for more steamy sex, no-strings-attached.”

Lily cocked her head, unable to stop herself from glancing out the window at James’s house again. Marlene had a point. The only thing was, Lily couldn’t decide which would be the worst-case scenario: never having sex with him again, or having sex with him knowing that it meant nothing to him. Probably, if she were honest with herself, never having sex with him again.

Before she could praise Marlene for her genius, Emmeline shouted down the stairs for them.

“Oi! What are you two doing? Did you fall down the stairs and die? Is there a murderer in the house? Did you just ditch us? Have you started snogging without us? … Oh, like you wouldn’t snog any one of us, Dorky. … Oh, shut up, we’re not actually sisters, it would be fine.”

Lily and Marlene looked at one another, and dissolved into a fit of giggles.

“We’d better go before Dorky disconnects on her,” Marlene said once she had gotten the giggles mostly under control.

It wouldn’t be the first time that Emmeline had pushed Dorcas too far. Emmeline had the wildest personality of the four of them and she had the inappropriate mouth to match. Dorcas, who had been brought up far more prim and proper, often disagreed with the things that Emmeline said. They rowed often; it was part of the reason that Emmeline didn’t join them on every Skype night.

“We’re coming!” Lily shouted up the stairs.

“Oh, good! Bring the whisky when you do!” Emmeline shouted back.

“I’m bringing the wine, too,” Lily said, grabbing her glass and the bottle of wine and leaving Marlene to bring the whisky for Emmeline.

A couple hours later, after Lily and Marlene had updated Emmeline and Dorcas on the subject – though in much less detail – and the four women had long since exhausted the topic, they disconnected from Dorcas, who seemed suspiciously sober and had to go meet some friends out for drinks. Lily, Emmeline, and Marlene each had one last drink, and then Lily walked Marlene and Emmeline out to their shared Uber. They were laughing and Emmeline was stumbling and Marlene and Lily were struggling, but managed to hold her upright all the same. They didn’t usually drink so much on their Skype nights owing to the fact that they were always on Thursdays and they all had work on Friday mornings, but Lily had wanted to numb her mind and Emmeline was never one to be out-drunk and Marlene didn’t like to be the only sober one in a group and Dorcas, even in a different country, was a fucking enabler.

They managed to get her to the car at the curb and had just got the door open, still giggling like the schoolgirls they had once been together, when a set of headlights washed over them. A familiar car pulled into James’s drive. Emmeline was hanging onto Lily’s neck and stroking her hair as if she were a particularly oversized cat when James stepped out of his car. Lily froze, heart hammering, when they made eye contact. James lifted a hand in greeting, and grinned when Emmeline began peppering drunk, friendly kisses all over Lily’s face.

“Oh, my God! Is that him!” Emmeline said loudly, sensing that Lily’s attention had been diverted. Lily got the distinct impression from the proximity of Emmeline’s mouth to Lily’s ear that Emmeline thought she was whispering. “He’s fit as hell.”

“Oh, God,” Marlene muttered, setting a hand on Emmeline’s shoulder to try and lead her away from Lily and into the car all while trying to subtly get a look at James over her shoulder. “Come on, Mellie.”

The passenger door opened then and another man stepped out, impossibly handsome and lean and slightly sorter than James. Lily recognized him immediately as his smoker best friend who had spent a few weeks with James after his motorcycle accident. A third man, shorter again, and thinner, and with lighter hair than both James and the second man, stepped out from the backseat – stumbled out, really – and the handsome smoker steadied him. Lily wondered if the third man was as drunk as Emmeline, but had the impression from his haggard look that his stumble was something else entirely.

“Or was it one of them?” Emmeline shouted. “Honestly, it doesn’t matter! They’re all fit from here.”

All three men laughed at that, one sounding more like a quick, mirthful bark, another sounding rough and tired, and the last one, familiar and free, belonged to James and made Lily feel warm inside.

“Hello, ladies,” called the very fit smoker, perfectly at ease.

Lily waved awkwardly and turned to her friends, her face hot and probably very red, to try to help Marlene coax Emmeline into the car. “The car’s going to leave without you if you don’t get in, Emmeline.”

“Which one of you lives here?” Emmeline called out.

Without hesitation, both of James’s friends pointed to him at the same time as he lifted a hand.

“Mellie, let’s get in the car,” Marlene said gently as Lily tried to push the blond into the backseat.

“Was it a one-night stand or what?” Emmeline asked far too loudly, in keeping with the rest of this awful moment.

Marlene’s head whipped around to stare, wide-eyed, at Lily who was feeling both humiliated and murderous. She clenched her jaw and met Marlene’s gaze. “Get her in the fucking car.”

Giving up on gentle, they shoved a laughing, vaguely protesting Emmeline into the car. Marlene held a hand over Emmeline’s head so that she didn’t hit the doorframe or the ceiling of the car and Lily tried to force Emmeline’s long, toned legs into the car after her. Marlene turned to Lily once Emmeline was inside the car and talking loudly at their exasperated driver. Her eyes went even wider, taking in someone over Lily’s shoulder.

“It was nice to sort of meet you,” Marlene said and turned to Lily with a small, suggestive smile that quickly dissolved into giggles. She kissed Lily on the cheek and then quickly climbed in after Emmeline and shut the door. Lily could hear her bickering with Emmeline, who actually turned around to stare out the back window of the car as it drove off.

Lily turned slowly and was not surprised to find James standing there, mere inches from her. For a moment, they only looked at one another. Then, Lily laughed awkwardly. “I swear we don’t normally behave like ridiculous schoolgirls.”

James smiled, rubbed the back of his neck, and then ruffled his hair. Lily followed the movement of his hand intently, wishing that it was her hand mussing his hair again. “It’s all right. When my mates and I drink, we can sometimes get a bit rowdy and act like the idiot teenagers we once were.”

She looked over towards his house, found that his friends were no longer standing near his car, surmised that they must have gone inside to give him some privacy with her. She looked back up at him, tried to think of something to say that wasn’t I missed you even though I know I had no right to or You make me feel like a schoolgirl, honestly.

“I was away for a few days,” James said quite suddenly, freeing her from the pressure of thinking of what to say. He gestured over his shoulder in the direction of his house. “Our friend Remus fell ill and was in hospital, so Sirius and I took a last minute trip over to York to stay with him and convince him to come back to London with us.”

“Why was he in York?” Lily asked.

“Oh, his parents moved there when we were in uni here,” James said, waving a dismissive hand. “He went to visit them when they fell ill, stayed and cared for them through to the end, and just never made it back home.”

“Is he okay now?” She felt very sorry for this man she had never even met. She could only imagine how it would feel to go home for a visit and stay to watch your parents die, only to fall ill after they had passed. At least he was fortunate enough to have such good friends to look after him.

“He’s fine,” James assured her. “Anyway, Lily. My point is… I didn’t mean to disappear on you.”

“Oh. No. That’s okay,” Lily said. “I didn’t think… Emmeline’s just very drunk and… I didn’t…”

“I came over to talk to you before I left, but you weren’t home. At least, I don’t think you were. Your car was in the drive, but you didn’t answer the door,” James told her. “It was Sunday morning.”

“I wasn’t here,” Lily said, remembering. “I was at brunch with my friend Benjy.”

She had spent most of the morning regaling Benjy with tales of her exploits with James. As a very busy, very single gay man, Benjy had appreciated the detail she had gone into. The only reason she had told him that she had had sex four times in twelve hours and had experienced no less than seven full-fledged orgasms was that it had all been so new and exciting at the time, so fresh in her mind, and because she trusted Benjy to not be a twat and shout out what she had told him on her street in the middle of the night or in James’s presence.

“I left a note for you, on your door. It had my number on,” James said.

“I didn’t get it,” Lily told him. “Oh, my God. I swear I didn’t get it.”

“It wasn’t a one-night stand,” James said softly, taking her hand in his. “Not for me.”

“Me neither,” Lily whispered.

He smiled brilliantly at her, slipped his hand out of hers to slide it up her arm, fingers trailing so gently along her skin that she trembled. His other hand rested on her waist.

It was Lily who surged forward, rising to the very tips of her toes as she threw her arms around his neck and drew him down to kiss her. She sighed when their lips met, and let her hands wander up into his hair.

He tilted his head and deepened the kiss, his tongue working its way smoothly into her mouth to tangle with hers. He pulled her bottom lip into his mouth, nibbled at her, rolled his tongue over her lip, and then released her with a small, gentle peck.

“Is it ridiculous if I say that I missed you while I was away?” he breathed, his forehead resting against hers.

“Probably,” Lily said with a small smile, her hands still stroking through his hair. She laughed quietly when he frowned and pressed his mouth to hers again. “But it’s okay because I missed you too.”

He grinned at her and it lit his whole face up in a way that made her want to squeal with joy and grab his face and never stop kissing him.

“Will you go on a date with me?” he asked, rushing through the words as if he didn’t want to miss his chance. “We can get dinner, or we can see a film, or we can go have drinks and dance and sing out-of-tune karaoke if that’s what you’re into.”

“I will go on a date with you,” Lily said, laughing at the goofy, elated look on his face. “But only if you fuck me after.”

James gaped at her for a moment, then forcibly shut his mouth and nodded. “I can… I can do that.”

“I know you can,” Lily said with a sly smirk. “In fact, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about just how well you can.”

“Damn it. I can… we can… right now… do you want… I…” James stammered, gripping her hips tightly with both hands and eyeing her house.

“I really do want,” Lily said, sliding her hands down out of his hair to stroke along his firm chest. “But your friends…”

“Fuck ‘em.”

“I’d rather fuck you,” she said.

“Well, yeah. That’s what I meant. Forget them and fuck me.” He used his grip on her hips to pull her close so that they were flush against each other and she felt the evidence of how badly he wanted her pressing into her stomach. She buried her smile in his shoulder as he brought his mouth closer to her ear. “Now? Or later? Once we have a proper date? I can wait.”

“We’ve already waited five whole days. You want me to wait longer?” Lily said, only half-joking.

James grinned down at her and kissed her again. Lily had just tilted her head to deepen the kiss, her mouth opening for him, when she heard a loud, ear-splitting whistle. James pulled back and groaned and then there was applause. Lily frowned and looked around, spotting the culprits standing behind the low fence surrounding James’s back garden.

The one she assumed he had referred to as Sirius had both of his forearms propped up on the top of the fence, his hands dangling over the edge in a show of pseudo-polite applause while a lit cigarette dangled from one corner of his smirking mouth. The other one, the one who had been ill, Remus, was leaning against the side of the house next to him, laughing quietly and also applauding.

“Ignore them,” James said, rolling his eyes and raising his voice so that they could easily hear him. “They’re idiots and I hate them.”

“Well, that was rude,” Remus said.

“He’s only upset because we’re cockblocking,” Sirius told Remus in what was the most put-on innocent tone Lily had ever heard.

“I suppose it must not have been a one-night stand, then,” Remus said to Sirius, who shrugged.

“He’d be a bleeding idiot if it was,” Sirius said finally after making a show of looking Lily up and down.

James groaned and Lily laughed. He eyed her questioningly for a moment before sighing and leading her closer to his friends.

“Would you leave us alone?” James asked, voice strained.

“No. I’m afraid you’re really best not left to your own devices,” Remus said.

“What about leaving him to mine?” Lily postulated, smirking.

Sirius hummed thoughtfully, and reached up to pull the cigarette from his mouth after he took a long drag. He stared at Lily for a moment before stubbing his cigarette out on the top of James’s fence. Then, he smiled devilishly at her and Lily knew that, were she not infatuated with his best friend already, she would have been nearly undone by the sight.

“Yeah, I think that might be acceptable,” Sirius said.

“Just don’t hurt him; he’s very fragile,” Remus added with a solemn nod.

“Hmm, that’s not the impression I got on Friday night,” Lily said, pretending to study a scowling James thoughtfully. “Or Saturday morning.”

“This is the worst possible combination of personalities,” James complained, grabbing Lily by the hand and pulling her away. “Later, boys!”

“Be safe!” Remus called.

“If you impregnate her, you’ve got to marry her,” Sirius said mildly. “It’s what Mum always said when we were younger, remember?”

“Bloody hell, Sirius, shut up,” James whisper-shouted, wheeling around to glare at him, but Sirius and Remus were both already walking back around the side of his house to the back door, chuckling. He was red when he turned back to Lily, apologies clearly on the tip of his tongue, but she laughed and kissed him.

“It’s okay. Remember my friend not half an hour ago?” Lily said with a soft smile when he lowered his forehead to her shoulder.

“Yeah, but that was funny. She was drunk. My friends are sober; they’re just wankers,” James complained.

But he loved them, she knew, so he clearly didn’t think they were all that bad. Because he had only recently nursed a broken and bloody Sirius back to health and he had taken off work and driven five hours to sit in a hospital for days while Remus recovered from his illness and now they were both staying in his house. And he was here, standing on her front porch with her, about to ditch his mates for her.

“Maybe we should wait,” Lily said suddenly.

James, who had just started kissing her neck, pulled back to study her face.

“I’m going to kill them,” he said after a moment.

“No, not because of them,” she said, resting her palms flat against his firm chest. “It’s just I’ve got to be at the office tomorrow morning and I’ve had a bit much wine – not too much to be responsible for my own decisions, mind, just enough to need a bit more sleep than I otherwise might – and last time, well, we didn’t sleep much.”

“We really didn’t.” James grinned and leaned in to place a lingering kiss on her lips.

“Are you upset?” Lily whispered.

“Nah.” James shrugged. “It’s okay.”

“Because, honestly, I’m a bit upset,” Lily said on a sigh as she pressed her face to his shoulder. “Fucking responsibility.”

“I’ll reward you handsomely tomorrow night. Promise,” James said, and Lily didn’t know him well yet, but she knew he was grinning, and also that he would keep his word.

“I should probably get your number, though.” He was already reaching into his trouser pocket as he spoke. “In case I need to contact you before then.”

He unlocked the screen and handed it to her. She wasted no time in creating a new contact with her information and handed it back to him. He smiled, thanked her, and slid his phone back into his pocket.

She lifted her face to kiss him, her hands burying themselves one last time in his hair, stroking through the silky, messy strands as he massaged her bottom lip between his. A breathy, high-pitched sound escaped her throat when he backed her up into her door, his hips pressed firmly against hers.

“Dinner or dancing?” James asked, tearing his mouth from hers with no small amount of effort, it seemed to her.

“As long as you fuck me after, I don’t really care what we do,” Lily said.

James groaned and rocked his hips against hers a few times. Lily moaned, hitched a leg over his hip, and he slid his hand down her waist to grip the back of her thigh just under her ass.

“I’ll pick you up at half-seven,” James panted, releasing her leg. She let it fall from his hip and James backed away from her hastily, looking for all the world like it was the last thing he had any interest in doing. He was walking backwards down her front steps, not even stumbling once, the fucker, by the time she managed to push herself off of the front door. “You should get inside, get some rest.”

With any luck, she would need her rest for tomorrow night. She bit her lip, saw his gaze trained on her mouth, and smiled as she reached for the doorknob behind her. “Goodnight.”

She managed to make herself walk inside and shut the door, but she leaned against the door for several long moments, unable to calm her heart or make her legs steady enough to carry her up the stairs. When she finally pushed herself off the door to make her ungainly way to the staircase it was only because she heard her phone chime from her bedroom. It could have been one of her friends, Marlene most likely, checking in on her to make sure James hadn’t been an asshole about everything, but the timing was too perfect for it to be anyone but him.

When she finally made it to her bedroom, she found her phone on the dresser next to her door where she had left it when Dorcas had called to say she was logging onto Skype. Sure enough, she had a text from an unknown number. Heart racing in her chest, she held her thumb over the home button to unlock it and brought up her text messages.

Unknown: I can’t wait for tomorrow night.

She smiled, pausing only to add his number in her phone as a new contact before she answered. Before she managed to come up with an appropriately sweet and sultry response, though, another message popped up.

JP: I’m going to make you scream.

Her mouth dropped open and she felt a fresh, sharp throb of desire deep within her. Her fingers moved furiously over the touch screen.

LE: ohmygod COME BACK HERE NOW!

His response was immediate, came in two separate bubbles, and was not what she wanted.

JP: ;)

JP: Sleep well, lovely.

As if that were even slightly possible now. Frustrated, and more excited than she had ever been for a date, she tossed her phone onto her bed and began to undress, tossing her undergarments near the foot of her bed before she collapsed on top of the mattress.

She’d have to fucking touch herself tonight, which was her own damn fault, she knew. She’d get off, and it would be fine, but it wouldn’t be anywhere near as satisfying as she knew James would be.

An idea occurred to her then, and, smirking, she picked up her phone.

LE: Don’t be alarmed if you hear me scream tonight.

He didn’t respond immediately, but she watched as three little dots popped up in the bottom left of the chat, then disappeared, reappeared, and disappeared again. She smiled, realized that he wasn’t sure how to respond, and snapped a picture of her bra and knickers pooled at her feet.

Biting her lip, she sent it to him. This time, his response was instant.

JP: Fucking hell.

JP: You’re going to kill me.

JP: Warn me if you’re going to send another picture.

JP: The boys have forced me to sit and have a drink with them and they will definitely notice if I come in my pants.

JP: Not that I ever would.

JP: I don’t do that.

JP: That would be embarrassing.

JP: Hypothetically.

JP: I regret sending all of that.

JP: It was awful.

She smiled, imagined his reaction to what she was about to do, and slid her right hand down her bare stomach, wishing it were his. She was embarrassingly wet; her fingers were slick with desire the instant she touched herself, coated them, rubbed them over her little bundle of nerves.

With her left hand, she lifted her phone, threw her head back, snapped a picture, and sent it to him.

He didn’t answer her. She was a bit disappointed, but figured he was with his friends and probably didn’t want to give them a reason to take the mickey for ignoring them in favor of texting a woman who he already knew was going to let him fuck her again.

There was a thud at her front door as if someone had fallen against it, then a frantic pounding.

Grinning, heart racing, she jumped from her bed, ran into the hallway, and raced down the stairs without even bothering to grab her dressing gown. She didn’t even check to see who was there before she opened the door, stark naked. She just knew.

He was on her immediately, his arms wrapping tight around her waist, his mouth hot and hard on hers, his body forcing her backwards into her living room as he kicked the door shut behind him.

“Your friends are going to give you such shit,” she laughed breathlessly as he wrenched his mouth away from her to push her down on her couch.

“I don’t fucking care,” he growled, dropping to his knees on the ground in front of her. “Spread your legs.”

A shock of wild desire coursed through her at the sound of him, so rough and demanding of her, and she did as he asked. He gripped her hips tightly, his fingers digging into her flesh surely hard enough to bruise, and pulled her to the edge of the cushion. He looked up at her, into her eyes, for just a moment, judging, she thought, whether or not she was comfortable with this. He must have seen the eager compliance in her face, must have been really turned on by the look in her eyes, because he dipped his head and his mouth was hard on her, his tongue running slow and completely up the length of her slit.

He groaned against her, the sound deep and guttural in his throat, and licked her again. “So fucking good.”

She threw her head back against the back of the couch, one hand fisting in James’s hair, the other cupping her breast, and moaned when he pressed his tongue flat against her clit, massaging for a moment before he wrapped his lips around her and sucked, releasing her for a moment before flattening his tongue over her again and then sucking her into his mouth. He did this over and over again, and Lily was already breathless and moaning and half out of her mind with need by the time he slid his fingers inside her, curling and coaxing, his other hand reaching up to massage the breast she wasn’t already groping, his fingers alternating between pinching her nipple and kneading at her flesh.

It was embarrassingly fast –maybe three minutes from the time he slammed into her front door– before her thighs were trembling, tightening around his head, and he had to let go of her breast to hold onto one of her legs and keep her from smothering him. His lips clamped down on her, applying a constant, intense pressure on her clit as his fingers moved faster inside of her.

The breath sobbed out of her, both of her hands pulled at his hair in a way that had to have been painful. The contractions started, and he never let up on her as wave after wave of electric energy washed over her.

When it was over and she could see straight again, and the pressure from his mouth was starting to get painful, he stopped as if he knew that she couldn’t take any more. He slid his fingers out of her, looked her in the eye, and licked them clean. It should have been disgusting, but it wasn’t; it was arousing as hell. She slid her hands from his hair, gripped him by the shoulders and tugged.

She wasn’t strong enough, nor her grip effective enough, to physically pull him up to her, but he knew what she wanted and complied. He moved smoothly, slowly up her body, alternating between open-mouthed kisses and licking his way up her stomach and chest. When he got to her neck, he paused, gave her a brief little nibble that shot a shock of desire straight to her core, but wasn’t long or forceful enough to leave a tasteless mark.

He brought his mouth to hers, and his hands to her shoulders to turn her and push her down into the couch cushions, and climbed awkwardly on top of her. They had done this on his couch last time, but he had clearly purchased his couch with his height in mind. Hers was far too short for him to comfortably position himself atop her, but she got the feeling that he would have managed somehow had she not taken pity and gestured toward the kitchen.

“Table,” she said.

Understanding, he stood immediately, and lifted her into his arms. She wrapped her arms and legs around him, and he gripped her by the ass and carried her into her kitchen. She took to nibbling on his earlobe and he stopped abruptly, pressed her into the wall, nudged her head to the side, and kissed her hard on the mouth, his tongue sweeping into her mouth. She rolled her hips against his insistent erection and he groaned and turned swiftly, moving quickly through her kitchen.

He set her down on the edge of the sturdy wood table and their tongues slid along each other as she began to fumble with the hem of his black long-sleeved shirt. He lifted his arms immediately and she quickly pulled the material up and over his head, flinging it off to the side where it landed in the clean sink basin. Her hands moved to his tan trousers, unbuckling his belt hastily before moving on to the button and fly.

When she pushed his trousers and briefs down his thighs, he stepped out of them, kicked them to the side. She noticed then that he wasn’t wearing shoes or socks, had left his house barefoot, ditched his mates, sprinted across both of their gardens and into her house. She was too desperate for him to laugh about it now, but she made a mental note to tease him over it later. There was a wild look in his eye that told her that he was feeling as desperate to be inside her as she was to be filled by him; it sent a shock straight to her core.

Once he had kicked his trousers and briefs into a pile next to him, he moved closer to her, took his place between her legs again, and kissed her. He had meant to slide right into her, she thought, start fucking her immediately, but she wrapped her hand around him and slid from leaking tip to base. His jaw went slack, his head dropped to her shoulder, and he breathed hot obscenities against her neck.

Very suddenly, he nudged her hand aside and dropped to the ground in front of her. For one wild, bewildered, excited moment, she thought he was going to go down on her again. Instead, he started rummaging through his trousers, eventually coming up with his wallet.

“Do you have a… fuck, I don’t have a condom,” James said, fumbling with his wallet.

“It’s okay; I’m on the pill,” she told him.

He looked at her, the wild look in his eyes still strong, but a bit more cautious. “Are you sure?” he asked slowly.

She laughed, gripped his hair tightly, and pulled his face down to hers. “James, I don’t fancy having a baby any time soon, either. We’re good.”

He dipped his head and kissed her, long and probing and arousing and she heard a thud as he dropped his wallet carelessly to the floor. He only pulled back long enough to look her in the eye as he pushed into her in one slow, deep thrust that brought their hips flush together.

“Oh, my God,” she moaned as he filled her more completely than anyone before him.

“You’re so beautiful,” he said, his voice soft and tender. Then he started moving, and there was nothing gentle about him for several long, sweaty, wonderful moments.

Until she screamed. Honest to God screamed when she came. A real, genuine, honest-to-God back arching, toes curling, head rearing, fingers digging into his back, screaming orgasm. She’d been vocal during sex with past lovers, had muttered the empty, ego-stroking more, yes, harder, so good, had moaned when she hadn’t felt the true urge, had faked an orgasm here and there just to get it over with quicker.

This was none of that. When she came down, she was trembling, and he was staring at her, eyes dark and intense and beautiful, and he was still moving inside of her, but not as rough as before.

“So beautiful,” he said again, and kissed her, one of his hands trailing down her stomach and coming to rest on her hip, the other laid flat on the surface of the table to support his weight.

His hips never stopped moving, but instead of the almost painfully frantic thrusting from before, this was more rhythmic, a slow stroke, his cock almost massaging her. After a few moments during which the only sound was their ragged breathing, James slid his hand from her hip to circle his thumb over her clit.

It was slower, more gradual this time, equally as pleasurable, but softer, gentler. Instead of a scream, this time it was a low, long moan as his thumb circled her and his cock stroked her from within.

Not long after, his thrusts lost some of his previous rhythm. He was a bit jerkier, a bit rougher, his thrusts a bit sharper and deeper. He dropped his forehead to the table next to her head, his face turned towards her, his short, quick breath bursting hot against her neck. When he groaned, one loud, low, almost-tortured sound in her ear, he stilled, his hips flush against hers, and she felt him pulsing inside of her, trembling around her.

She’d never thought the male orgasm could be beautiful, but she had also never let a bloke come inside her without a condom, much less persuaded him to. He lifted his head and looked her in the eyes, and the expression on his face was so tender that it seemed almost impossible that they could have only known each other for less than a week; it felt like they’d been doing this their entire lives. She stroked a hand through his hair and he kissed her.

“Should I go so you can get some sleep?” James asked sweetly, his forehead touching hers. Her heart was still racing from her last orgasm, and he was still inside her.

She shook her head. “Only if you want to.”

“I really don’t,” he whispered, and kissed her slowly.

He pulled back, slid out of her, and stood up. She studied him, standing there naked in her kitchen, all lean muscles and long limbs and messy hair and crooked glasses and looking for all the world as if he belonged there, and wondered happily how the hell her life had come to this point.

“You want a towel or something?” he asked.

She closed her eyes sleepily and lifted a limp hand to gesture over to the sink. “Second drawer,” she told him.

The drawer slid open and closed a second later, and she heard water running, and a moment later, he pressed a warm, damp washcloth into her hand. When she opened her eyes and sat up to wipe herself clean, he was wearing the shirt she vaguely remembered throwing into the sink. He crouched down to grab his briefs, pulled them on, searched the floor for his wallet, and shoved it back into his trouser pocket so that he didn’t have to search for it in the morning, she assumed.

He looked up from folding his trousers neatly when she threw the soiled washcloth, which landed in the basket of clothes to be washed on top of her washing machine.

“How’s the dryer?” he asked.

“Still a traitorous piece of shit,” she told him.

“Well, now you’ve got my number, you can come over and use mine whenever you want,” he offered.

“So kind, sir,” she murmured, grabbing the front of his shirt and pulling him closer.

He read her intentions and ducked his head to make it easier for her to kiss him, really more of a lazy rubbing together of their lips at first. Then she flicked her tongue out, licked his bottom lip, tilted her head, and kissed him in earnest. When her fingers slipped under the bottom of his shirt, he sighed contentedly.

“You are actively trying to kill me, aren’t you?” James mumbled against her lips.

“No.” Lily pulled back to smirk up at him. “The sex is too good.”

“Potentially my only saving grace,” James said with a self-satisfied smile.

“You’re also an excellent cook,” Lily assured him.

“Ah, yes, the Aubergine Parmigiana.”

“And you have lovely hands,” Lily said, wrapping one of his hands in hers and lifting it to her face.

“My hands? Really?” He laughed, bemused, when she pressed her lips to the back of his hand.

“And you’re insanely fit,” Lily told him.

“You’re very good for my ego, you know.” James lifted his free hand to the back of her head, shifted the one she was still clutching to caress her cheek before he kissed her softly.

“Does your ego need a little stroking?” she asked. “There are plenty of things I like about you so far.”

“Well, it’s a bit too soon for any other kind of stroking, so go on,” James said with a cheeky grin.

Lily laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck. When he slid his arms around her waist, the warmth of the embrace reminded her that she was incredibly naked and alone in her nudity. She shivered.

“Let’s get you to bed,” James suggested.

When he would have lifted her off the table, carried her up the stairs, she jumped down herself and evaded his grasp.

“I can walk, thank you very much,” she said primly, and sashayed her way to the stairs, acutely aware of his presence right behind her, his gaze hot on her.

She turned at the top of the stairs, caught him staring at her ass, and laughed. “You perv.”

“You wanted me to look,” he said confidently.

He was right, so she said nothing. She took his hand and led him to her bedroom, where her shirt and jeans were still pooled on the floor and her knickers and bra lying at the foot of her bed from her earlier solo exploits. She swept the undergarments to rest on the floor and then collapsed onto her bed.

“You should take your shirt off,” Lily told him, because she wanted as lovely a sight as she could fall asleep to, and wake up to.

James raised an eyebrow at her, but did as she asked. He didn’t drop his shirt on the floor, but folded it and set it atop her dresser. She wondered if this was going to be the something that turned him off of her. She wasn’t messy by any means, but she had a tendency to leave the small things – clothes, for instance – to tidy up later. She remembered how neat his house had been when she’d been there, noticed that he hadn’t left anything of his lying around here to pick up in the morning. He’d even made sure to wash the dishes when she’d been over at his house before giving in to the urge to fuck her.

He didn’t seem to mind at the moment, however, as he slid into the bed next to her in nothing but his briefs, turned to face her, slid his arm around her waist to pull her closer, so she chose not to worry over it. She placed her hand on his wrist, slid it slowly, smoothly up his arm to the back of his neck, where she played with the choppy ends of his messy black hair. He smiled and reached for the covers, pulled them up to cover them.

“It’s getting late,” he said.

He was right; the clock next to her bed said it was almost midnight. She had to be up at seven now that she definitely needed to take a shower before work, earlier even if they were going to shower together, which they probably would.

“What time do you have to be up?” she asked him.

“No time in particular.” He shrugged, then smiled when she quirked a brow at him. She knew his schedule, figured that he probably knew hers since they were so similar, and assumed that he would have to wake up around the same time as her for work. “I took off tomorrow. Didn’t know if I’d be back yet.”

She nodded her understanding, felt her eyelids drooping, her limbs growing heavier. She could fall asleep easily, but she wanted to keep talking, needed to get to know him. “What do you do?”

He shushed her gently, smoothed her hair back from her face. “We’ll get to know each other tomorrow,” he whispered. “But now, sleep.”

She was asleep before she knew it.

#jily #jily fanfic #jily fanfiction #jily au #jily muggle au #james potter #lily evans #smut #marlene mckinnon #dorcas meadows #emmeline vance #sirius black #remus lupin #this was supposed to be short and sweet #it was also not supposed to be smutty

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