#him just deciding he’ll do two hats so he can use both decoration

[leclercskiesahead]

Austin hat workshop

from sf app

[skywarpie]

New Blood 

Ch. 2

AO3 link , ch 1

Rating: mature for eventual violence and language

Medieval/Renaissance AU because I can. Fight me.

Morning comes far quicker than he would have liked it to. If it were up to him the sun would never rise on this day. Then he couldn’t let everyone down by being a failure or by — stop it. He shakes his head as he sits up in bed. Thinking like that is only going to make things worse. Copia knows he should take his own advice, but that’s easier said than done.

Copia rubs at his eyes. His hip makes an uncomfortably loud pop when he shifts slightly. He hisses, rubbing at the offending appendage. Lovely. Another thing to add to this horrible day.

It takes a great deal of effort, but he finally drags himself from the warmth of his heavily quilted bed. As soon as his feet plant themselves on the stone floor, a sharp pain runs up both legs. He’s never been overly fond of the cold. It tends to make his condition worse. Wintery stone floors only add to this.

He fumbles for a moment as he grabs his cane from against the nightstand and uses it to pull himself up so that he’s finally standing. His free hand raises in the air as he stretches. It’s meant to be a relaxing gesture but it has the opposite effect. A shape pain shoots down his spine, causing him to inhale sharply and nearly double over. Please, not today. Please. 

It takes a while, but eventually his morning routine is complete and he’s dressed in his red cassock and settled on the small bench in front of the vanity. He runs a comb through his hair to pull it back the way he likes. He settles for running two fingers across his pencil thin mustache. It’s an effort to smooth down any wayward hairs, but in truth the hair isn’t even thick enough to have that problem. 

Lastly, he leans forward to apply the black paint around his eyes. It makes his white eye pop, something he thinks looks rather good on him. He’ll never have papal paint, so this is his settling for the closest possible. Once he’s finished he wipes away any lines that seem out of place, not wanting it to smear. Good enough. It’s not, not really. Nothing will ever be good enough for his father, but Copia can still hold out hope each morning that maybe, just maybe, his attitude may change for the better. But it never does.

Copia sighs as he fastens his pellegrina across his shoulders. He stalls for a moment as he considers picking his biretta up but decides better of it. He settles for the red saturno hat that matches his cassock, one of his old rosaries with the grucifix on it decorating the top. He doesn’t plan on going to breakfast. It’s bad enough he’ll have to face everyone later today. Why should he have to put himself through that twice. No, instead he decides he’ll take a nice long walk in the gardens to get some fresh air. His chosen hat will protect his face better from the sun far better than his biretta. 

He gives himself a once over once more in one of the floor length mirrors that decorates his simple rooms. Good enough. The same hip as earlier lets its agitation be known as it sends another sharp pain through him. Maybe a short walk then. That’ll work better. 

—---- 

Copia likes taking walks alone through the gardens early in the morning. It helps relax him. He doesn’t know what any of them are. Primo was the one responsible for planting and tending to them. Since he’s left they’ve gone down hill. Copia tried once or twice to save a few but all he succeeded in was killing them. He hasn’t tried gardening since. Occasionally a ghoul or two is seen out and about doing Satan knows what out here. He likes to think that they’re reviving the once lush greenery, but he knows they aren’t. They’re more than likely just making it look presentable so Nihil doesn’t lose his head when he has an important visitor. Copia scoffs at that. The only important person in Nihil’s life is Nihil. 

Someone clears their throat behind him. 

Copia nearly screams as he’s startled from his thoughts. He’s still clutching his chest with one hand and gripping his cane with the other when he turns around. He immediately calms. “Aether.” It’s followed by a look of annoyance. “Don’t sneak up on me like that.”

The ghoul lets out a deep chuckle as he has the audacity to look sorry. His tail moving to lightly wrap around one of Copia’s ankles. “I thought you heard me.”

The man sighs, feeling like his chest is still constricting him. “I did not.” 

“Tough morning?”

Copia opens his mouth but thinks better of it, shutting it and chewing the inside of his cheek for a second. 

“Ahhh,” Aether’s smooth voice cuts through the air. “Nerves, then?” A brow he raises as if saying tell me I’m wrong?

He wants to argue that no, actually he’s just extremely sleepy. He got no sleep last night and — and that would only prove the ghoul’s point. Instead he sighs and shrinks in on himself. “I don’t think I can do it.”

Aether’s face contorts into confusion. “Why wouldn’t you be able to? You’re the best at all of your other studies so far.”

“Yes but —” but what? I can’t let my family down anymore than my health has already done so? I need Nihil to be proud of me? That last one makes him feel nauseous and Copia files it away in his brain for things to sort through later. “What if I mess up?”

“You won’t.”

“You don’t know that.”

“I do. You’ll do fine.” It’s said so matter of factly that Copia can’t even bring himself to be irritated. Aether always believes in him, why, Copia doesn’t know. He’s been a disappointment to pretty much everyone in his life up until this point. Maybe it says something about his character if a ghoul is saying this? It can’t be anything good.

“You okay?” The ghoul’s voice is soft as he cranes his neck to get a better look at the man’s face.

“Si, sono buono.” He’s really not, but Aether doesn’t need to know that. 

“Come on, several of the sisters just made some fresh tarts.” He looks down at Copia. “I know how you love those. Plus, judging by your appearance you haven’t eaten this morning. We should fix that.”

Copia sighs. “Fine. I do like a good tart.” 

—-

“Saltarian, it’s so good to see you.” Imperator smiles as the man places a chaste kiss atop her hand. 

“I would have to think a ritual as important as this one would take place without me.” He chuckles as he brings his arm to fold behind himself. “Especially with it being your boy.” The emphasis isn’t lost on Nihil who stands just to the side. 

“Well, I would hate to keep the both of you.” She smiles at Saltarian and shoots a look at Nihil over her shoulder. “If you need me, I will be finishing the preparations for tonight.” She offers a small curtsy to Saltarian as she exits. 

Imperator can already hear Nihil’s sorry excuse for conversation. Thankfully it’s shut out as she rounds the corner and makes her way to the great hall they use for celebrations. And this is a celebration. Whether her husband wants to acknowledge that or not. 

Several ghouls cease their scurrying about as they spot her, stopping to bow. “Lady Imperator, it’s nice to see you.” They’re dismissed with a wave of her hand. They waste no time in rushing away.

She scrunches her nose as she examines the decorative room. It’s nice, really. The ghouls did an okay job…but it doesn’t seem fitting enough. It should be more grand. Copia is her only child to actually make it to adulthood, infancy too if you really want to go into details. She has no other children and she’ll never have anymore. This isn’t just a celebration of his newfound title, but also one to essentially say fuck you, I made it, to a world that had fought tooth and nail to try to take him from her. 

“You.” She points at a ghoul. 

“Y-yes ma'am?” 

“This is all the seating?” Her voice holds an edge. The table is massive, enough to set nearly fifty people and yet there are only a handful of seating arrangements.

“Uh – yes.”

She grits her teeth. “I recall sending out an invite to many more than these.”

Now the ghoul looks absolutely horrified. Their eyes dart around nervously to look anywhere but at her. “It’s – it’s all the arrangements we were given from Nihil.”

“Nihil!?” The ghoul cowers as she explodes. “Last I checked I was the one in charge of this event, not my husband.” She hisses like the word burns her to say it. 

“I-I’m s-sorry. We – we –”

“Get out of my sight.” The ghoul remains planted where they are until she yells. “Now!” They squeak and hurry off as far away as possible from her.

Imperator rubs her temples. This is not going how it was supposed to. There’s hardly any guests. It was supposed to be an elaborate party but instead her husband seems to have turned it into a small family gathering, plus Saltarian. 

She stills herself with a deep breath. Fine. Whatever. She can still work with this, as long as all of the food is prepared and ready when the time comes, then she can make it seem like this was the original plan. 

—---

“What!?” Copia practically chokes on his mouthful of tart, shooting a glare at Aether. “You knew these were for tonight!?” 

“Theoretically I want to say yes, but no one ever confirmed it.” Aether shrugs and Copia looks from him to the kitchen ghoul who informs them of their mistake in horror. 

He tosses the remaining few bites back onto the plate and stares at them with wide eyes. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Why else would they have made them? 

“She’s going to kill me. Do you understand that, theoretically?” He shouldn’t be as upset with Aether as he is. Copia knows he’s overreacting, but he can’t help but feel that this is another notch on his today is fucked belt.

Finally having had enough, the kitchen ghoul rolls her eyes and snatches the plate that has the remaining pastries on it. They waste no time in making their exit. 

Copia feels like throwing up. He wants to yell and scream at Aether more but he’s interrupted by another ghoul. 

“Your mother is in the dining hall looking for you.” They disappear once more around the corner.

Copia looks to Aether horrified. “I should probably finish my chores.” He places a hand on the man’s shoulder. “Good luck.” And quickly makes his own leave. Copia is left there fuming silently.

Whatever, he’ll just deal with that later. He sighs and grabs his hat from the counter as he slowly makes his way into the dining hall which suddenly feels like his tomb. 

“Ah, there you are!” Imperator meets him halfway in the large room. “There has been a slight change in plans, it would seem.”

Copia simply nods, waiting for whatever this new bomb that’s about to be dropped on him will create. 

“It seems that we have less than half of the originally expected guests.” 

That’s it? That’s all she’s upset about? Copia feels like laughing hysterically. “That’s okay.” Honestly it’s a relief. Copia isn’t the best when it comes to large crowds of people. They make him uncomfortable, especially when their focus is on him. 

“Are you sure?” Her brow is furrowed as she looks up at him. 

“Si. It’s okay.” 

Imperator smiles sadly. “Okay.” There’s a split second of silence between them before she starts in again. “Is that crumbs in your hair?”

His eyes widen as he shakes his head frantically. She grabs his face to pull him closer for inspection when a ghoul chimes in.

“Ma’m, it appears the tarts that were made are no longer available.”

Copia makes to bolt but Imperator’s tight grasp on his chin stops him. His wild frantic eyes meet her’s as she smiles mockingly, never once looking away from him. “I suppose we won’t be having tarts either.”

[pensat-i-fet]

12 Days of Christmas: Day 6 (Scott McTominay)

Day 5  l  Day 7

Masterlist

Wattpad

"Come on, darling. We are going to be late”.

“I hope we are late so I don’t have to do this”, muttered Scott under his breath, but his mum still heard him.

“Stop being a child. It’s just a couple of photos”.

The family had decided to do a Christmas photo shoot to send to their family and friends on their Christmas cards. Scott couldn’t be less excited about the next few hours. He even tried to use the excuse of not wanting any embarrassing photos to leak to the press and his mum shushed him immediately. 

“Being with your family can never be embarrassing, Scott. This is the last complaint I want to hear from you”.

So now they all found themselves in a little studio in Manchester, where the shoot was going to take place.

“Hi, please come in. We have everything ready”, you said. But Scott couldn’t see who the voice belonged to since his dad was blocking the view.

They all got up to get inside the room and when he saw all the decorations and costumes, he tried really hard not to groan. This is going to be ridiculous. 

“Uncle Scott, I want you to sit next to me”, said his little niece. 

“Of course. But your mum and dad will want to sit next to you too”.

But she didn’t seem too convinced and just took his hand to walk him to the little bench that had been set up for them. 

“Hello sweetie. Are you and your dad ready for the photos?”, you said, and Scott recognize you as the same voice he had heard before. When he lifted his head, he couldn’t stop staring. 

“Uncle”.

“Excuse me?”, you said, finally looking at him.

“I’m her uncle. Not her father. I don’t have children. I…um…”, what was he saying? 

“Ok…uncle”, you responded, trying not to laugh. 

Great, he thought, she thinks you are a weirdo. 

You had already planned where everyone was sitting for every photo and even got a Christmas theme for each time. 

“Here you go”, you said, giving Scott two elf hats. “For you and your niece, mister uncle”.

“Thank you”, he said, looking down so you couldn’t see him blushing with embarrassment. But it was too late. You loved teasing the clients, always while remaining respectful.

Instead of grabbing the camera, as Scott expected you to do, you knocked on a door.

“Joe, they are ready”.

Your brother came out and introduced himself as Joe, the photographer. He was acting normal until he saw Scott.

“You…you are Scott McTominay”, he said, struggling to get his words out.

“Who?”, you asked. “A United player”, he told you and you couldn’t help but roll your eyes. Of course, it was something about football.

But Scott didn’t know you, so his mind went through all the worse possibilities. Does she not like football?? Or worse, does she hate United?

Everything was going well until one of the babies got restless and started to cry, making the other one cry in solidarity.

Scott’s sister tried to get them away to calm them down when she noticed it was the nappies that needed a change.

“Both at the same time, great”, said his sister.

You got there quickly to help her. “Don’t worry, you can change one and I’ll do the other. That way they can still do some of the photos that won’t involve you three”.

“Oh God, you’re a saint. But you don’t have to, really”.

“I’ve had to deal with way worse than a dirty nappy in this job, believe me”, you laughed. And it was the truth. Some clients were extremely weird. 

“Scott, go get one of the babies. That poor girl has already done more than she should have. Help her a bit”, you heard Scott’s mum say to him.

“Oh, it’s alright. I’m here to help”, you said with a smile.

But before you could finish the sentence, Scott was already next to you.

“I think this one belongs to you, uncle Scott”, you told him, giving him one of his nephews.

“Yeah, thanks”.

“I want to apologize for anything my brother might say to you”.

“What do you mean?”, he asked you, while bouncing the baby in his arms. They looked adorable.

“He’s a big United fan and is obsessed with all of you. He’ll embarrass himself at some point, of that I’m sure”, you laughed.

“That’s ok. If he wants me to sign something, I’ll be happy to…”.

Hearing that Joe was your brother, and not a potential boyfriend, had put him in a better mood. Also, if he had to sign the chairs and tables to impress you, he was going to.

“Oh please don’t tell him that. I want to finish work before midnight”, you said, causing him to laugh. 

“A selfie, then?”

“It sounds harmless now but…who knows?”, you faked grimaced.

You both walked back to the photos area and while he was sitting down, you grabbed the next props.

"Who wants to wear the reindeer headband?"

"Uncle Scott!"

You could tell he was internally debating whether that was a good idea or not, so you put it on his head and while adjusting it behind one of the ears, you whispered. "Remember who you are doing this for and it'd be less painful".

But looking at your smile, he wasn't so sure who he was doing this for.

��                                                         **

"Thank you so much", said Scott's mum to you and your brother. "It was such a lovely time. And you are so good with kids. I worried they would get restless too soon".

"It's all her", said your brother, pointing at you. "I just take the photos. She makes sure everything else goes right".

"Oh, absolutely. We were all impressed by her. Well, maybe some more than others", she said, and you saw her looking at her son.

You weren't blind and had noticed him looking at you and trying to find excuses to talk to you. But there were only so many times he could offer to sign things for your brother. And you didn't mind his attention at all.

"Hey, Joe!", you heard Scott say. "How about I thank you with some tickets for the next match?"

"Wha…what? What?", oh God, here comes when he embarrasses himself.

"Yes, for you and your sister".

"She doesn't like football".

If you could punch him right now, you would have.

"Maybe seeing Scott play will change my mind", you said, smiling at the United player and letting him know you were interested too.

"I'll see you there then", said Scott before leaving and joining his family.

                                                      **

The next day, a bouquet of flowers was delivered to you. And with it came an envelope with the tickets for the match.

"Right. So I only got those tickets because of you", said Joe, finally realizing what was going on.

"You're welcome, big bro".

[amysteriousmessenger]

May I request some fluff RFA headcanons? 🥺🥺

I hope these are okay!! I added Saeran and V just for the sake of it!! <3 these will be a random mixture of with and without MC!

Random Fluffy RFA + Saeran and V Headcanons

Yoosung Kim Fluffy Headcanons

He asks you to marry him in LOLOL, since there’s an expansion pack where you can set up a little house for extra storage. He gets really nervous and a bit sweaty about asking you to do it, he takes it oddly seriously and Zen almost passed out when he thought that you were actually engaged.

He tries to make you coffee every morning, especially if he’s trying a new style out. He thinks it’s really fun and he loves to greet you with it for breakfast. After a while, you come to associate the faint smell of coffee with Yoosung. 

At the start he starts sneakily using little bits of your shower gel because they smell so much nicer than the one his gamer student budget allows him to buy. Eventually, he’ll just cave and buy a bottle of the one that you use because it means he gets to be reminded of you all day and it’s a lot better for his skin anyway.

If you play with his hair when his head is in your lap, he’ll absolutely fall asleep. Yoosung is a little bit like a puppy in that way, it just makes him feel so happy and loved.

Zen/Hyun Ryu Fluffy Headcanons

Zen’s a big person for morning kisses, especially sleepy ones. He’s an early riser and definitely feels extra needy in the morning. He’s also always the big spoon, he likes to feel as though he’s protecting you even when he’s asleep.

Whenever you’re crying and cover your face so he can’t see, Zen’s the kinda person who would gently pull your arms away so he can get a look at you and figure out what’s wrong. He’ll kiss at your eyes and cheeks until you either stop crying, or let him get close enough to pull you in so you can cry on his chest. 

He loves doing skincare on you. If he thinks you’ve had a hard week, he’ll do your moisturiser, clay mask, face mask, eye mask- you name it, Zen wants to pamper you with it. He knows the importance of skincare and he thinks it’s a great way to relax and pamper you. 

Zen’s ‘Happy Place’ that he thinks of when he gets stressed is the two of you, beers in hand, spending an evening in the kitchen trying to cook food. He can hear the laughter, smell the ever-so-slightly burning food, taste the traces of beer on your lower lip. It just makes him so happy to think about and he can feel the desperation in his limbs to sprint home at full speed and make the daydream real.

Jaehee Kang Fluffy Headcanons

Saturday mornings are Jaehee’s favourite out of the whole week. She’s just worked 5 hellish days and Saturday is the day where she gets to have a bit of a lie-in. Usually, Jumin doesn’t ask her to come into the office on weekends and it’s usually just a case of working from home. Jaehee tries not to oversleep too much because she doesn’t want to throw off her schedule but sometimes she can’t help but pass out for 10 hours straight and undisturbed. 

She really enjoys bubble baths with you. When you first start doing it together, she’s a little shy at being seen undressed so intimately, but she still really enjoys the time alone with you. It’s a great way to unwind and she likes being so close to you.

Jaehee isn’t much of a cuddler when she’s asleep, she tends to just sleep flat on her back out of exhaustion. However, if you wake up for any reason during the night, you’ll frequently find her hand holding yours, whether she did it consciously or not. 

She collects really nice and cute stationary. She doesn’t really take them to work because she doesn’t want to be seen as unprofessional, but once she runs the coffee shop, she gets to write in her little hot-drinks-themed stationary and decorates the little cups with tiny stickers for the frequent customers and especially for whenever Zen comes to visit.

Jumin Han Fluffy Headcanons

Sunday mornings are Jumin’s favourites. He usually wakes up really early by routine, but on Sundays he spends a little bit longer curled up in bed with you and Elizabeth the Third, watching you both sleep. Jumin’s also usually the big spoon if he’s sleeping on his side, but when he sleeps on his back he typically still has one arm around your waist so you’re pulled next to him with your head on his chest.

He personally donates to many different cat shelters all over the country. He takes the money straight out of his own bank account and gives generous monthly donations to make sure that there’s enough funding to both feed the cats already there, and take in extra cats of the streets along with getting them adopted. Jumin’s staff actually has a company policy that if they adopt a cat from one of the shelters that Jumin supports, the vet and adoption fees are covered by him, he counts it as philanthropy.

Jumin has a bottle of wine in his cellar from the date you met, the date you first kissed, the date you got engaged and the date you got married. He hasn’t quite decided when he’ll share those wines with you, he just knows at the moment that he wants to keep them for a very special occasion. 

When he’s bored at work but he can’t call you because you’re busy, he pictures taking you to one of his vineyards on the weekend. He’ll picture your smile, you adjusting your hat and lightly squinting against the sun, you smiling at him over your glass of wine. Then he’ll tell Jaehee to clear his schedule for the weekend.

Saeyoung Choi Fluffy Headcanons

Your arms around him, holding him against you, is pretty much the only thing that can bring Seven out of an anxiety attack. If you’re not physically with him, he crawls under the duvet on his bed in hopes of still smelling you. He’ll call you and look through selfies with you that he has on his phone until he calms down. 

Seven frequently tries to make you food. He’s never had to cook for anyone before and he doesn’t really cook for himself, so it’s a lot of trial, error and frustrated takeaways. You try to eat whatever he makes though because you can really tell that he’s put his heart into it and you want to show him that you appreciate the effort he’s making.

He loves you feeling his biceps and gushing over how strong he is. He’s not even particularly ripped but you can tell he has strength in his limbs and seeing you give him any kind of physical approval makes him m e l t instantly.

He’s both the big and little spoon, depending what mood he is in. Sometimes he wants to hold you close and never let go, but sometimes Seven needs a little bit of support too and want to feel like he’s needed by you.

His absolute favourite dates are the arcades, the cinema, bowling and carnivals. He has far too much fun on the bumpercars and he absolutely has it out for you, you spend most of the time trying to escape him.

GE Saeran Choi  Fluffy Headcanons

GE Saeran always makes very over the top hot chocolates for the both of you. He has an arsenal of whipped cream, syrups, chocolate shavings and sprinkles. His hot chocolate is better than any you could buy in a store. He’ll make one for you whenever you ask, and then sometimes just to surprise you if it looks like you’re having a bad day.

GE Saeran ends up getting two cavities in his first few years of living freely. He does look after his teeth, but he let his sweet-tooth go little bit wild with all the new foods he got to try, it was all so new and fun to him, he just wanted to try everything! He took much better care of his teeth after that, but the trip to the dentist was quite a weird one since he’d never been before. 

Slight Angst: Saeran always serves your food first and makes sure there’s always extra helpings if you want it. He usually puts a little bit more on your plate than what you would usually eat. He never quite gets over the guilt of taking your food away at Magenta, so he spends the rest of his time making sure you have more than enough to eat now.

He likes to constantly buy you little gifts that he sees when he’s out and about that remind him of you. A little notebook in your favourite colour? A little forget-me-not necklace? A candle that smells like your perfume? He’d added them all to his cart. 

After lip kisses, Saeran loves giving cheek and hand kisses to you. For him, he really loves getting head kisses and he thinks it’s extra cute when you plant a little kiss onto the tip of his nose.

V/Jihyun Kim Fluffy Headcanons 

V usually wakes up first, unless he was working late in his studio. He wakes you up with a kiss to the forehead, a cup of coffee and soft words. After he’s put your drink on the table, he’ll climb back into bed with you and cuddle until you’re properly awake.

He actually enjoys baking with you. Well, he likes to help you bake and then he gets to do the decorating. You usually bring a cake to any RFA hangouts and it’s always very obvious when V’s helped you bake because it feels like he goes out of his way to put a piece of gallery-worthy art onto a cake with food colourings and icings. He thinks it makes it tastes better, and you have to agree. 

In recent years, V’s been considering trying a more plant-based diet. He thinks he’d like to try vegetarianism, but he’s frequently spend periods of time as a pescatarian, especially after he’s come back from travelling. It also means that he gets to practice cooking more too.

[versadies]

general + lantern rite with scaramouche hc (gn!reader, 400 follows special)

penpal: it’s finally here!!! thank you guys sm for the follows and the support. i enjoy writing hcs and i’m happy that a lot of you like it! a few of you also requested me for a scaramouche general hc so hope this lives up to your expectations. happy readings! - ver.

warning/s: ooc!scaramouche

sypnosis: what it’s like to date scaramouche + hang out with him in lantern rite festival

note: i was actually supposed to make this toxic given that scaramouche is... scaramouche but my heart can’t take it so i decided to just go wild on this one.

-> i salute to you for dating this man.

-> scaramouche is scary and is probably not even the type to be interested in having romantic relationships. the fact that he fell in love with you though is shocking to the fatui if they even find out about it. hell, even the man himself is surprised.

-> he’s going to be not so affectionate at first (just subtle affection here and there but no kisses or long cuddling) since he’s not an affectionate type of guy but as time goes by, he’ll eventually start to give you lots of affection.

-> pda is a no for scaramouche. the two of you have to agree in keeping this relationship a secret due to not only the danger you could be in but also the fact that he doesn’t want anyone to know about your relationship with him.

-> don’t get him wrong— it’s not that he’s ashamed of dating you. he knows that almost everyone in teyvat hates the fatui, so the fact that the potential harassment given to you from others is a possibility, he doesn’t want you to be in that situation.

-> the way he acts around you is unpredictable. i think he’d be both cold yet affectionate if that’s even possible. don’t worry, his mean demeanor is different to you than how he acts around everyone else— it’s less harsh and harmless, to which you understand that he’s not serious. feel free to bicker back at him, he won’t kill you.

-> your family would’ve thought he forced you into this if they found out of your relationship with the man. it will take you a lot of reassurance to them that you weren’t forced and the fact that you love him as much as he to you.

-> dates with him are to be private. i’d think he’d pull on a reservation on a restaurant and make sure that everyone around you knows that this date is “private affairs on your debt” (even though you never had a debt in the first place). even if these “private affairs” happens a bit too often than normal, people would be too scared to even confront scaramouche.

-> i honestly see this guy as a classy man. he’ll pull classy dinners, walking around the city hand-in-hand at 3am when everyone is asleep, go somewhere private outside + get a picnic date + star-gazing, etc.

-> i can already imagine this man telling you all of his theories on the skies and on teyvat during your picnic-stargazing dates while you listen and eat an inazuma dish. (his line about the sky being fake really do be sus to me to this day 👀👀👀)

-> during dates where you two aren’t living together yet and when scaramouche always has to escort you to your dates, he’ll definitely not hesitate to throw a pebble against your bedroom window if you’re not going to answer the door after countless of pounding against it. he’ll throw every pebble he can get from the ground until it either breaks or you finally answered lol

-> like childe, scaramouche is hella busy. unless you’re in either snezhnaya or inazuma— then you two can be able to spend time. however if you live in other nations that isn’t one of the two, you’d have to get used to a long distance relationship. however if you’re not the kind to like a long distance relationship, then sorry to break it to you, that relationship might not work unless you and scaramouche are able to find a way.

-> breaks for him are rare, he’s a hardworking man and wants to live up to the tsaritsa’s expectations (even if he dislikes the archon). when he does go home to you, he makes sure that he’ll spend time with you every single moment and that they’re all precious memories.

-> he is lowkey caring but he will deny it will all of his life if you even mention it. oh you fell asleep on the couch while waiting for him to go home? wow would you look at that, the wind is so kind for putting a blanket over you and he somehow wasn’t there! oh my gosh you’re getting a cold and is coughing a lot? la signora is so nice for making some people from the fatui to offer medicine and it’s def not him, who has the upper hand in ordering them to do it!

-> don’t get me started on him spoiling you. he always writes letters to you and every letter he sent always has a small gift or a package sent with a scared-looking fatui member who just wants to go home. the gifts are either souvenirs from his travels or something that reminds him of you. either way, it’s always what you like.

-> you can’t convince me that not all of his letters are 60% him complaining about how his subordinates have some audacity to give him headaches and how he just wants to lowkey go home to you because of it (in reality, the both of you know he just misses you).

-> ik a lot of scaramouche simps really wanna try his hat out and i can already imagine you finding ways to get your hands on his hat without him noticing or not wearing it. if you somehow managed to get the prize, he’ll def try to get it from you and won’t hesitate to throw (harmless) threats until you finally give in and give it to him.

-> fighting with scaramouche is kind of rare given that he’s mostly away but when it does happen, it’s related to him being too harsh or his sudden announcement that he has to leave. your arguments never includes long distance relationship since it’s something you and scaramouche expected and are ready for. of course, scaramouche will treat it as if you’re the one making a big deal out of it— which is something that angers you and a disadvantage of dating him.

-> during those arguments, the way he acts depends on how serious it is. by the time you leave the room to get some space, he’ll give you all the space you need— though he couldn’t help but not ignore the harsh pangs he’s feeling from his chest.

-> scaramouche will def be the first to apologize because he feels guilty (the feeling of not being satisfied is strong whenever you leave and he hates it) and doesn’t want you to be mad anymore. unless the fight is truly your fault, he’ll wait till you apologize.

-> his favorite moments are always when he’s allowed to take you with him to his travels for a mission. he won’t admit, he’s very looking forward to show you around places privately and his ego will rise if you praise him for his intelligence on the land. though, those who try to interrupt his private moments with you just to tell scaramouche about something related to the fatui— they’ll face an even harsher treatment than normal.

-> nights with scaramouche are quiet. the moment scaramouche lays down on the bed and closes his eyes for a moment, he’s asleep. can’t blame him, he’s always exhausted from the fatui so he needs it. however, he does make sure you yourself get some sleep as well. he’ll make sure that you’re always beside him before he sleeps.

-> mornings with him are short. he’ll wake up first and immediately get ready for work while you’re on your bed still sleeping. scaramouche won’t be able to eat breakfast in your home and always buy food on his way there since he doesn’t have time to wait (and partially doesn’t wanna make you wake up just to cook for him). he makes sure to kiss your forehead and leave.

-> don’t ever bring up about his goodbye kisses, he will straight up take that secret to his grave. the moment you mention it, he’ll act like you killed someone. “me? kissing you on the forehead? are you sure you’re not dreaming at that time?” he would say while hiding his light reddened cheeks with his hat.

-> if you’re the type to wake up very early though, he’d definitely try to wake up at the same time as you and run with you in the morning if you do. though if you’re not the type to do morning runs, you’ll either cook for his lunch or get ready for work as well. he won’t admit it... but he likes your cooking. expect yourself to be the one to ask for a goodbye kiss cuz man’s going to act like he doesn’t want to do it.

-> as for fatui when you date scaramouche... they’ll probably find out fast. if you don’t work for the fatui, scaramouche will make sure you will never be involved with them. he knows how the fatui can be and will be mad if he finds out you came across to one of the harbingers.

-> overall, dating him is just wild.

-> scaramouche has to admit, liyue has outdone themselves on this one.

-> the two of you decided to attend the festival as your one year anniversary date and you did not regret trying to convince your man to come with you to liyue for the festival 24/7 ever since you heard childe talking about it to you.

-> while you were taking your sweet time by admiring the decorations around the harbor, scaramouche makes sure no one is following or planning to bother you two at the moment. thank goodness he didn’t have to worry about the millelith, given that they act like they don’t know him at all.

-> he makes sure that you’re having a great time. he’ll let you go buy whatever you want if you wish, it’s his gift i suppose. i’d think he’ll get way too competitive on theater mechanicus and will expect you to praise him whenever he wins.

-> scaramouche will take you to the most fanciest restaurant of the harbor, but if you want to go for another option— he’ll reluctantly accept that and let you buy food for the both of you. given that he mostly resides in inazuma, he’s definitely a skilled chopsticks user (unlike childe).

-> when it comes to making lanterns, it will take scaramouche to try and make a few lanterns before he finally does it right. he’ll gladly help you out if you still couldn’t get a hang of it (he’ll teach you in an “annoyed” way, but he means well).

-> i feel like he’ll take you somewhere not so crowded. man’s probably gonna make sure the whole pearl galley is just the two of you (and the staff) with the help of his mora and let you watch the lanterns from there. however should you not want to ruin someone’s night and force scaramouche somewhere that does not require any mora and is not crowded, then he’s fine with that too.

-> i think he’ll lowkey be interested in the stories presented by the storytellers around the harbor. he’s not invested but just earned enough of his attention to actually listen.

-> by the time the mingxiao lantern is about to be released, you two immediately head to your designated area and started writing your wishes.

-> his wish will probably be something related to successfulness.

-> when the lanterns are released with the mingxiao lantern, the two of you’d just watch in silence. you’d be pretty speechless from the beautiful scenery while scaramouche just watches in slight amusement.

-> the moment scaramouche glances at you, he’ll be surprised by you immediately hugging him and thanking him for taking you to the festival when you have the chance. man’s probably going to try and deny your hug for a moment until giving in and hug you back.

-> he might consider thanking childe when he comes back to snezhnaya.

[amazingphanisnotonfire-imagines]

Jason//you’re all my birthday wishes rolled into one

Request: Can I request a Jason blossom where he gets jealous of the reader spend time with Cheryl it's because she and Cheryl are planning his birthday surprise

hey! i hope you like this!! i was a bit stuck at first, but thanks to @statticscribbles we managed to figure it out! 

Something’s not right. 

Jason can feel it in his bones, something is missing and it’s throwing him off everything. He’s lost every game for the past three weeks, he’s scored way below average on every test, and he just feels an aching sense of loss. Like when you go from having your phone in your back pocket all the time, to suddenly leaving it at home one day and you just know that it’s gone and that nothing will be right until you get it back. 

Yeah, that’s how he feels. But his phone is in his bag, like it always is during a game. No, it’s you. You’re the reason he feels like this, because you’re not where you usually are. Normally he doesn’t even have to look for you, you’re always sat in the same seat cheering him on, and usually he can hear you before he see’s you. 

But tonight he can’t, and it feels like the hole that you’ve left behind when you’re not there, has only grown bigger over the weeks. 

Usually he’s used to you being right there, always beside him with a bright smile and a sarcastic comment. You make him laugh when the weight of being a Blossom get’s too much, and he always replies the same thing, that he could make you a Blossom with just one question, but you never get the hint and he always get’s the same reply, ‘i don’t think your future wife would appreciate that.’ 

And he looks at you, as you usually get distracted by something else, and he longs to be able to tell you how he really feels. How when you’re stood beside him, he feels like he can do anything. That he’s not good at football because it’s in his genes, it’s because he knows you’re close and cheering him on. 

It’s something he’s felt ever since he was young, even when he didn’t know what it was that he was feeling. He just knew that if you were off sick, he would feel sick. And that if he asked to hang out and you were already busy with your family, he would mope around the house until he was able to see you again. He insisted on having you come to all of his birthday parties, even when you were on holiday, he would wait, much to the dismay of Cheryl, and then the two of them would have their birthday party a week later, just so you could be there. 

But then he looks to the side of the pitch, and he notices Cheryl watching the time on the board. She bites her lip as it slowly counts to the end of the game, and when the whistle is finally blown, she practically sprints back to the school, leaving Jason puzzled and sweaty. 

It seems like the only Blossom you want to hang out with recently, is her. The two of you have been inseparable, and he starts to see why people get so annoyed when he hangs out with you if that’s how the two of you act together. 

Whenever he walks into a room, you and Cheryl freeze and go silent. He hears the hushed phone calls and see’s all the sneaking about, and thinks that maybe you’ve had enough of him and now prefers her. 

He doesn’t blame you, she’s confident and funny and doesn’t take no for an answer, compared to him, she’s a lion and he’s a mouse. He’s confident, but not in the right places and it’s understandable that you would eventually realize who the better Blossom is. But it doesn’t sting any less, and it doesn’t stop him from wanting to cry every time he see’s the two of you together, always sneaking off to do something and coming up with the worst excuses when he questions either of you. 

He sighs and re-adjusts the bag on his shoulder. All of his friends have now disappeared, and he doesn’t think he’s ever seen the entire team move quicker while getting changed. They were practically sprinting out of the day as soon as Jason came out of the showers. 

So now he’s moping, with slightly soggy hair and a permanent frown. He lost the final game of the season and now he’ll have to go home and listen to his mom whine at him for something she’ll decide when she see’s him. 

His head hangs low as he shuffles down the dark corridor and he wonders what you’re doing. He tries to think back to the last time you had an actual conversation, and whether or not he said something that could have upset you. But he can’t think of any reason why you’d be ignoring him, and how in a weeks time he’s going to be eighteen and he’ll be celebrating with everyone but who he truly wants. 

He thought his tenth birthday sucked, it was the year you got chicken pox and became banned from anywhere that wasn’t your house. He remembers looking around at all of his friends, and even then he knew that something wasn’t right because you weren’t there. 

Now, almost eight years later he feels the same, only this time he knows what he’s feeling. He loves you, he’s so in love with you that when you’re not around he feels like half of him is gone. He doesn’t know how to function without you, you make him feel safe and loved, just by standing beside him. 

“Hey!” Archie shouts causing him to stop and turn around. “Coach wants to talk to you in the gym.” He adds before walking in the opposite direction. Jason frowns and then sighs heavily before dragging his feet back up the corridor and towards the gym.

The wooden doors open with a loud creak, and he huffs, knowing that he is no doubt going to be shouted at. Why can’t he just go home and cry in silence like he normally does when he’s stressed? 

“Surprise!” His eyes widen at the sudden noise and he looks up and locks eyes with you, grinning and holding a party popper with too much enthusiasm. He then looks behind you, and notices everyone else. All his friends, his family, even some people that he has no idea who they are, they’re all stood grinning at him. 

Cheryl stands beside him and wraps an arm around his shoulder, while you shove a party hat on his head. 

“Happy birthday JJ.” She says and squeezes him. Music plays through the speakers and Jason smiles at the opening lyrics of his favourite song. You smile up at him, and then wrap your arms around him, pulling him into a tight hug and he lets out a breath he feels like he’s been holding for the last three weeks. 

“Happy birthday!” You grin and motion to the decorated gym. It’s covered in balloons and banners and pretty lights. There’s a football theme throughout, even down the cake that has clearly been decorated by you and Cheryl seeing as though it’s wonky and has some of the icing missing from the back. 

Tears sting in his eyes and you look at him concerned.

“Is it too much? I’m so sorry, it’s just we wanted it to be really special because it’s a big birthday but I knew we should have just done it somewhere a little smaller but Cheryl insisted the gym becaus-” You’re cut off by his lips on your and your eyes widen as his hands cup your cheeks. 

You can hear gasps and cheers from behind you and your cheeks heat up in embarrassment, which is then quickly taken over by the need to kiss him back. Your arms wrap around his neck, pulling him closer to you and the cheers get louder, however, you can’t hear them. The only thing you can hear is your own heartbeat.

“I thought you preferred Cheryl over me.” He laughs once he pulls away, his voice barely above a whisper and you giggle quietly. 

“Never, you’re my favourite.” You reply. 

“Understandable.” He shrugs and Cheryl rolls her eyes at him. “But you’d been hanging around with her so much that it just felt like you’d forgotten I existed and I didn’t know what to do without you, which I know sounds really stupid because now I know that you were planning all of this and it’s incredible, thank you.” He rambles and presses another kiss to your lips. “This is the best birthday ever.” He whispers in your ear and you feel your cheeks heat up as a shy smile pulls at your lips. 

“As happy as I am for you both, seeing as though I have been waiting ten years for this to happen.” Cheryl motions between the two of you. “But this cost a lot of money and a lot of time, so if we could get to the partying now and then you can sort out whatever this is later on, that would be great.” 

You and Jason look at each other and roll your eyes, but the matching smiles on your faces prove that neither of you care about the party anymore, the only thing that matters is that you’re by his side again, but this time there’s no small gap between you where the line between friends and something more sits, it’s been crossed and held tightly in your intertwined fingers. 

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@amberritonicole

[oneprompt]

Hi! Do you think you could write super fluffy cuddling headcanons or drabble (up to you) for corazon 💐

Corazon x Reader - Prompt : Cuddling <3

Authors notes : i decided to do a little bit of both <3 i’ve . never written for Corazon , actually ..! hopefully this isn’t Too clumsy .. although , i wouldn’t be shocked if it is .. it is quite late here ;;; oh my ! well , i certainly hope you enjoy <33 thank you for requesting <3

Cuddling Hc’s

• Corazon loves cuddling, believe it or not. He was always one to love physical affection, even when he was a little boy and would constantly cling to / embrace his mother.

• Old habits die hard now, don’t they? You best believe he’ll engage in slight touches with you, even in public. Usually a squeeze of your hand beneath the table whenever you two engage in outings.

• Corazon’s favourite way to cuddle is certainly having you perched up on his lap, leaving you completely open for pets, kisses and hugs. He’s a very affectionate man, don’t let those dull eyes deceive you.

• He also loves to spoon <3 With how tall and broad he is, it makes him the best big spoon in the world. Pairing his huggable stature with his cute cozy clothing makes it 10x better. You often trace your finger along the hearts that decorate Corazons pink button up.

• Corazon would certainly own plushies and cute patterned blankets, that i know. If you two are cuddling, he prefers to in bed with all of his belongings, plushies looming over the two of you as you cuddle and kiss within the pastel sheets he owns.

• He also loves to lay his head on your chest, especially after a hard day. Some days, Corazon just wants to be silent, cocooning within your body, embracing every bit of warmth that sticks to your flesh and clothing.

• If you’re together while he takes Law in, expect family cuddles! Corazon will make Law cuddle you and him during some nights, wether he likes it or not ( spoilers : law likes it )

• Corazon will let you wear one of his shirts when you guys cuddle, especially when you two are about to sleep. He loves seeing how large his clothes are on you, he finds it to be incredibly cute.

• He can be a bit too clingy, at times. As i mentioned, old habits die hard. Corazon gets too close at times, almost not wanting to let you out of his arms. He’s afraid of losing you, even if he takes his eyes off of you for just a single second. Of course, Cora respects your space, he’s just afraid of losing more people he cares for.

Cuddling Drabble <3

Letting out a gentle sigh, Corazon finally cuddled up in bed with you. It had been a rather busy day, having occupied more then enough of the mans time. He was tired, excruciatingly tired. It was more then obvious to tell, especially having his usual makeup stripped from his features, exposing the bags that loomed beneath his eyes.

You moved onto your side, facing your lover. Corazon was a much better sight then the blank canvas of the wall within your shared room. His blonde locks were tossled, left a mess after wearing his minverva shaded hat all day. Part of you wanted nothing more then to speak to him, wanting to ask all about what happened today with Law and his brother. Had Baby Five played more nasty pranks on him? You couldn’t help but wonder and anticipate the possible stories that laid before you.

But something caught your tongue, almost as if a spell had been casted upon you, preventing you from even parting your lips. Cora looked so very sleepy, certainly too tired to giggle and share stories with a level of sincerity. You didn’t speak, just gazing upon the blonde. He was so very cute, even as you two had been together for a year or so by now.. you were still taken aback every time you saw him with his signature face paint discarded. Corazon was handsome, regardless. But the sight of his genuine face, his most authentic self made your heart melt.

Your silence was suddenly fumbled by the audio of a small gasp exiting your mouth, slipping like fine wine. You were suddenly pulled close to the man, his strong arms securing you around his chest. Corazon smelt of smoke and cologne, just like he always did. It was a comforting smell to you, at that point. Every whisp of cigarettes you would smell in public made you smile, every trace of your face reflecting a gentleness only a love struck fool could display. Smelling the real thing was perfect, a perfect end to your day.

You smiled against the fabric of Corazon’s shirt, placing a tiny kiss against the pink, your lips sinking into the material. It was a subtle gesture, but one that was apparent enough to display your affections to your beloved. Corazon was used to such a thing and he had always loved it. He loved the way you displayed your love, wether whenever you would throw your arms up excitedly and engulf him in a deep hug or the subtle caress of your hand running against his shoulders. No matter what you would do, he loved it. Corazon loves every form of love you fed him, and he always would love them.

He squeezed you, letting out a tender groan as he nuzzled within your form. You felt so nice, you always would. Much better then the plushies Corazon would be stuck with whenever you were out of the house, leaving him to snuggle and lovebomb the sewn items. Corazon felt at home within the lengths of your arms, the sound of your soft breathing rocking him to an unbelievable state of steadiness. He loved your cuddles and every bit of love you would show him, no matter what form of affection it was, he adored it.

But your cuddles were certainly the best declaration of love you handed him.

[classic80sand90smovieloves2]

Meeting and Courting Dirty Steve Stephens

(My bad gif)(Requested by anonymous)

(I love this dumbass)

- You and Steve first met when Tunstall took you in. Whether the man was looking for a new hire or just stumbled across you and decided he needed to help is up to you to figure out.

- Regardless, he brought you back to the ranch and introduced you to the boys before letting you get settled in.

- Now, there’s two ways that I can see you and Steve first getting on. He either has a crush on you the minute he gets a good look at you or he’s a jackass; as per usual, and develops an unshakable crush on you at random.

- If he likes you right away, he’ll try his best to be polite and sweet with you. He’s not used to being around girls so he tends to debate whatever he wants to do before doing/saying them. If anyone were to watch him, they’d probably witness him faltering a few times before finally approaching you. 

- If you don’t immediately like each other than he’s likely going to pick a few fights with you before he either see’s you all mad and steamy or just standing somewhere doing your own thing and comes to the realization that you’re like …a really pretty young woman.

- Once he notices that, he doesn’t know how to handle himself around you anymore. He can’t follow through whenever he wants to be a jackass and now he likes you so he’s awkwardly trying to be nice and debating his actions a hundred times before doing something sorta sweet; and you don’t really know what happened but you aren’t necessarily complaining.  

- Dirty Steve? No, no, Clean Steve. He tries to look as put together and handsome as he can, actually washing the dirt off his face and trying to smooth his hair down after he takes off his hat. 

- Him and Charlie are close so he definitely talks to him about you, asking what he thinks of you and asking if he thinks you like him (in a general sense). Charlie probably doesn’t immediately realize the guy has a crush on you so he just gives him normal “be nice and respectful” advice; and had probably tried to make him act nice when he was first acting rude. 

- He watches you a lot, whether you completely catch him in the act or not. Sometimes you’ll be busy enough not to notice, other times you’ll see that his eyes are on you and give a little wave; Charlie probably laughs and whacks the flustered mans shoulder whenever this one happens, and other times, he’ll look away and unconvincingly act as though he wasn’t looking at you when you glance over. 

- Whenever he doesn’t have any work, he tends to gravitate towards you, asking questions about what you’re doing after watching for a while and maybe giving it a try if you ask if he’d like to.

- He gets a little flustered whenever you offer to help him sew his shirt or get a splinter out or something. He sits there real quiet and tries to think of something to say while being distracted by how close you are or how softly your touching him. 

- Steve has no idea how to start a relationship with you. What does he do? What does he say? Does he ask you to marry him? How does this whole thing work?!

- For this very reason, it’ll probably take him quite a bit of time to find a way to ask you out. When he finally does, he’s going to be sorta shy about it and he’ll endearingly ramble out a whole speech to try and explain what he’s getting at. 

“Well …well you know when a man likes a woman-”

- After you piece together what he’s trying to ask you, you tell him that you’d like to be with him and he asks if you “mean it” before he face breaks out into a big grin. 

- For your first date, the two of you go for a walk, sharing some food and getting to know each other away from everyone else. He probably has a few areas that he’s intent on showing you, certain caves and rocks and cactuses; things like that. 

- Your first kiss happens about a month or so after he starts courting you. The two of you are walking and you’re talking about what you’d had planned for the day, asking him what he thinks. He replies that he thinks you look mighty pretty and you laugh shyly.

- A few moments later; after he thinks it over in his head a few times, he leans down as you’re walking and pecks you on the lips. You both slow to a stop and look at each other for a few seconds before he leans down and kisses you softly, his arms winding themselves around you and pulling you closer. 

- Thank god he took a break from the Tobacco that day. 

- He loves touching you; even if it’s just stupid little pokes, but he’s gonna be a bit shy about it when you first get into your relationship or when he’s around Tunstall. He isn’t sure if it’s “proper” to have his hands on you so, for the most part, he sticks to being affectionate with you in private; especially since the other guys give him hell if he’s too sweet on you. 

- He definitely didn’t realize what he was missing out on until you hugged him for the first time. Now that he’s felt it, he’s finally aware of just how much he craves having you touch him. 

- He leans his chin on your shoulder like how a dog puts their head on a persons knee. Sometimes he gives you a hug from behind or wraps his arms around you, other time he just stands there with his arms crossed. 

- Shoulder kisses. 

- Slow, soft kisses. 

- You can practically feel the excitement radiating off of him every time he gives you a real good kiss; especially as he chases after your lips when you go to pull away. He’s probably never really kissed a girl so he’s going to be a bit clumsy, but what he lacks in experience, he makes up for in enthusiasm. 

- Most of the time, you’re the one making the first move when it comes to kissing; though he does give signals whenever he really wants one. These signals pretty much just include him not leaving you alone, i.e. standing by your side until you look at him and locking eyes with you until you lean in and give him one. 

- He loves being the big spoon but if you have to get up before him in the morning, I recommend finding a different cuddling position because he’ll snuggle into you and refuse to let go any time you move to leave. 

- Sometimes, when he gets to bed late and you’re already asleep, he finds himself staying up even later just to look at you, wondering how you could be so pretty. 

- Regardless of whether or not they’re clothed, he is obsessed with your thighs. He’s constantly touching, laying on, and holding them whenever he can. 

- He’s almost always lingering close by or sitting next to you whenever he can. He likes being right by your side; whether it’s him being protective or just loving to spend time with you is anyone's guess. 

- I think his constant beef with Chavez is partially due to the fact that he gets bored easy and because he’s learned just what buttons to push to get him to fight with him. So, you tend to keep him out of trouble just by being there to entertain him. 

- He can definitely be a little jackass when he wants to be, particularly when he’s bored. He likes messing with you to get a reaction: poking you or pulling your hair whenever you’re in the middle of something, things like that.

- Getting offered chew. 

- Getting him to stop taking chew. You at least get him to cut back; it’s pretty easy to do when you just refuse to give him any kisses beyond pecking his cheek.  

- He secretly lives for those moments where he gets to brush something off your face or pull something from your hair; which is sort of ironic because he constantly has something on his face. 

- Slapping his hand away from nabbing whatever you’ve just baked/cooked; even if it’s just to protect him from being burnt by the food that literally just came out of the fucking stove. 

- He takes interest in all that you do, even if it’s partially just to stare at your prettiness for a while; though he’s usually genuinely curious. 

- Cutting his hair for him. He complains and whines the whole time but someone's gotta do it. 

- He definitely baths regularly now that he has you; partially due to the fact that you join him for quite a few of them or give him some other kind of incentive. 

- Patching him up when he gets hurt. You feel bad for having to fight back your laughter but you just can’t help it with some of the faces he pulls whenever he’s looking himself over or watching you do something to him. 

- Teaching him how to dance in the barn. He gets lost pretty quickly and stands there with an adorably confused face for half of your “lessons” but he certainly likes watching you go!

- Reading to him and trying to help teach him whenever you can. 

- Please give him a little praise every now and again; especially when it comes to him trying to do things he thinks he’s bad at: like reading. He doesn’t quite believe you when you first say something but it does make him bashfully happy to hear it. 

-  He thinks you’re really smart and it’s incredibly flattering to see/hear. He always assumes that you’ll know something whenever he doesn’t and seems genuinely surprised whenever you don’t; even if it’s completely out of your usual territory of expertise. 

- You probably wouldn’t expect it but he does have a tendency to remember certain things about you; even when you assumed you were more or less talking to yourself whenever you told him them. He especially remembers them if you told him them before you started dating. 

- Going on walks together. You pretty much always get to choose where you go; he just likes being with you. 

- Going for horseback rides with him. If you don’t have your own horse, you’ll either ride behind him on his or he’ll walk beside you and guide his horse along as you ride. 

- Getting handed little flowers; which are more often than not just decorative looking weeds or dried up plants. 

- He always tries really hard to be nice and polite to you; even if it means putting up with the other boys sniggers and teasing. He may falter when he hears them laugh but he keeps on going because it’s you.

- Charlie probably gives you a little warning speech when he first finds out the two of you have gotten together. It’s basically him telling you that Steve’s a little different and rough around the edges but he likes you, and giving a few subtle threats. At the very least, It’s sweet to see how much he cares about his friend. 

- Steve seems like the type of man to not have any reservations as to how women should act; if only just because he has so little experience with high society. 

- Wanna learn how to shoot a gun? Sure, he’ll teach you. Wanna wear pants? Fine, whatever. Like wearing your hair down and letting it get wind blown? He thinks it looks pretty either way, and now he can ruffle your hair!

- He’s very proud of you. He’s always thought that he was gonna be a nobody his whole life but if he’s got a woman like you, he certainly can’t be a nobody, can he? 

- He sort of provides entertainment for you; even when he’s just going about his day. One day, he’ll be chased around and pecked at by a rooster, another he’ll stumble out of bed shirtless with his pants hanging low and go to dunk his whole head in a bucket of water to wake himself up. There’s never a dull moment. 

- Him? He just likes hearing you laugh, even if it’s at his expense. 

- Watching in amusement as he tries to remember his manners or completely forgets them; not that you mind or are so proper yourself.

- Whispering to each other in the background of situations. Sometimes you’ll catch him by the arm and you’ll tell him something, other times you’ll both whisper argue before you relent and do whatever he asked you to. 

- Stopping him from acting like an asshole and pulling him away from fights. 

- He isn’t an incredibly jealous person but he does get jealous when he knows for certain that somebody is interested in you. He’ll ditch his manners whenever he notices and you’ll have to pull him away before he gets himself into a fight. 

- He’s not necessarily protective but he is always there to help you in your time of need. When push comes to shove, he’s ready to throw down and keep you safe. 

- Given Steve’s general attitude and behavior, chances are, you’re going to have quite a few arguments. He likes starting trouble and pissing people off; even if it’s you.

- That being said: he does buckle down and apologize when he knows he’s acted like a jerk and he does his best to make it up to you when he’s crossed a line. You might get annoyed by him but you know how he is and you take the good with the bad. 

- He doesn’t tell you that he loves you a whole lot but he shows you that he does with his actions. 

- You’ve probably got a shotgun wedding ahead of you but you’ll be as happy as can be. 

[fantastic-bby]

ATEEZ vs. Christmas confessions

Pairing: Gender neutral Reader x Member

Genre: Pure fluff 

Word count: 2.5k

Summary: When you spend Christmas at the ATEEZ dorm, they confess to you

Warnings: -

A/n: Merry Christmas!! It’s already Christmas over where I’m at, but it might be weird because I know half of the world is still only in the 24th, but I hope everyone has an amazing Christmas and Happy New Years! 

Masterlist

Hongjoong

Would help you decorate a few weeks beforehand 

I feel like he’s probably more excited than he would show 

He just really likes christmas 

He even made a v short song about it because he likes it that much 

Wants to see what you think about it 

Bcs your opinion matter a lot to him ｡◕‿◕｡

Still won’t admit that he likes you even tho it’s pretty obvious 

Spends the night trying to stay close to you

Would probably get bullied by the other members because they all know 

If anyone else got you for secret santa, he would pretty much beg them to let him have you 

“Please???”

“Hyung, it’s just your luck” 

“PLEASE????” 

He just keeps saying please until Wooyoung gives him your name because he starts feeling bad 

Would buy you cute multiple gifts but they’re all small gifts 

Mingi or Yunho would purposefully hold mistletoe above the two of you 

Bcs they just want him to tell you already 

He’s nervous

You’re nervous

You’re both just staring at each other like ●﹏●

Until someone else Yeosang just yells at you to kiss already 

You peck his cheek softly 

Joong’s face is completely red

He wants to kiss you more 

Pulls you away from everyone else to finally confess to you

When you say you like him back he politely asks for another kiss like the good boy he is 

Seonghwa

Got you for secret santa when everyone drew names 

He’s excited bcs he knows exactly what to get you

He likes you a lot and tries to make it obvious but not too obvious

Apparently it's not obvious to you bcs you brush it off a lot as friendly flirting 

Puts him down a lot bcs he’s worried you don’t like him back

You do 

You’re just oblivious to it 

San teases him about it a lot 

Wooyoung teases you about it a lot 

“Whaaat?? There’s no way Hwa likes me haha Woo you’re being weird” 

Hwa helps you set up the tree because everyone else planned something to finally get you two together 

They’re all hiding from both of you 

When you and Hwa are alone you’re just setting up the tree while listening to music 

He loves the way you find the ornaments so pretty even when half of them are crumpled 

Bcs Mingi bullied Jongho so he hit him with the bag of ornaments 

Mingi’s lucky they weren’t glass ornaments 

Anygays 

When you notice that Hwa’s staring at you

(ﾟωﾟ;)

You blush ofc bcs hhhhh why’s he staring at you like that??? 

“I like you” 

He blurts it out bcs he can’t hold it in anymore 

When he realises that he said it, he blushes like crazy 

You’re blushing too 

You’re also freaking out on the inside 

If you know that tiktok audio filled with high pitched squeaking and screaming yea that’s what’s going on inside your brain 

“(Y/n)...?” 

“yeAH! ◎ܫ◎” 

You’re flustered 

But you finally tell him you like him back too 

The both of you spend the rest of the night pretty much stuck together while the other members bully you both for taking too long to get together 

Yunho

AAAA I love this man 

If he likes you he would be so precious and flustered about it 

Gets nervous around you vvvvvv easily 

Completely forgets how to act like a human around you 

“Yunho?” 

He screams

And it scares everyone in the room because what??? 

You’re staring at him like “wtf”

He’s staring at you like O_O 

Can’t believe he embarrassed himself like that 

Gets teased by Seonghwa 

The other members knew ofc bcs he’s so bad at hiding it 

You also had a feeling but you never really said anything about it 

Helps you go christmas shopping for secret santa 

He runs around the store like an excited puppy 

Is so amazed by all the cute decorations 

“(Y/n)!!! Can we get these?” 

Points to random decorations and holds them out in front of your face 

You let him because you think it’s cute

When you actually get to decorating their dorm he stumbles around a lot 

Makes you really worried 

You see him hanging the lights 

The ladder starts shaking 

“YUNHO???”

He fell but he’s fine because Hongjoong broke his fall he almost crushed the poor man

Confesses to you on accident 

He’s talking to Mingi about it in their room and you accidentally overhear bcs the door is slightly open

“I like (Y/n) a lot” 

“Yea it’s so obvious” 

“That’s not helping” 

Wants to confess at the right time 

But since you overhear you push open their door to the bedroom and they’re both staring at you like (◯Δ◯∥)

You’re staring at Yunho 

He’s staring at you 

Mingi ran away 

“Yun, I like you too you know” 

He goes all huh 

You tell him that you like him too you just never said anything about it 

His face goes from O-O to :D real quick 

Cuddles you for the rest of the night 

Won’t let you leave his side 

Yeosang

No one knows about his crush on you 

He’s very secretive about it 

Thought about talking to Wooyoung but he knows that man might just spill to you on accident 

It’s happened before and Yeo calls him a bumbling fool because of it 

Can compose himself around you 

But sometimes his mind just goes into overdrive 

Finds everything about you adorable 

You got San for secret santa 

You’re torn between buying him condoms as a joke or actually getting him a proper gift 

Yeosang thinks it’s cute that you even considered buying him peppermint flavoured condoms bcs even he thinks it’s funny 

“Yeosang, seriously, should I get him condoms or the plushie???” 

Laughs at you bcs he finds you extremely adorable 

Even tho he’s not your boyfriend, he protects you whenever the members tease you about something 

You tripped over Yunho’s long ass legs while he was sprawled out in the living room, letting San and Wooyoung try and turn him into the grinch

You get covered in the weird green fur that they were using 

When Yeosang hears them laughing at you 

He comes up behind them all (-`д´-)

He makes them leave you alone 

“Don’t laugh at them!!” 

Helps clean you up too 

It takes a lot of time because you’re covered in glue 

“Why are they using elmer’s glue???” 

“I don’t know,,,” 

You two spend quite some time in the bathroom just trying to clean your previously cute sweater 

Yeosang decides he’ll just throw it into the wash in the morning 

Lets you wear that really big grey hoodie of his bcs he thinks you look so (♥ω♥*)

The way it pretty much engulfs you completely 

He tells you before you leave his room 

“I like you a lot, (Y/n)” 

You’re honestly surprised 

Didn’t expect him to like you back because he’s just that good at hiding it 

You tell him you like him too

He pats your head while feeling all c:

Spends the rest of the night helping WooSan turn Yunho into the grinch 

San

He tried to make it really obvious that he likes you 

You just never seemed to notice 

Flirts with you a lot 

Compliments you a lot 

Calls you cute a lot 

But you just blush and brush it off 

He’s all pouty because he thinks you don’t like him back 

He forces Jongho to give him your name for secret santa

“Please”

“But hyuuuung”

“GIVE ME THE DAMN NAME”

Jongho’s lowkey sad bcs he knew what he wants to get you but doesn’t know what to get for Hongjoong 

San goes all out 

Buys you a HUGE gift 

Like it’s actually HUGE 

The box is almost the size of Yunho 

You’re kinda scared of the large package when you see it 

But when you open it you’re all UWU because it’s a giant teddy bear

There’s a cute note hanging off of the tag saying it’s from San 

Draws a cute c: on the note

He tells the others he has a plan to confess to you 

He asks Yeosang to hold mistletoe above the two of you 

Yeosang thinks it’s dumb 

So he asks Seonghwa instead 

He also thinks it’s dumb 

(｀Д´) 

San asks all of them to help 

Hongjoong offers because he wants to be nice (also bcs he knows that if San asks Wooyoung, he might throw the mistletoe at the two of you and accidentally hurt someone in the process) 

Hongjoong gets Mingi to help bcs he’s tall 

Mingi hangs the mistletoe from the ceiling 

Almost gives Joong a heart attack in the process bcs he almost slipped off the ladder 

San’s excited 

Mingi accidentally slips anyway and almost brings down the whole ceiling with him 

Everyone’s terrified

Mingi gets up and reassures everyone he’s fine despite almost destroying the whole dorm 

San’s frustrated bcs now he has no excuse to just kiss you 

Instead, Yeosang shoves you two into the closet and locks the door 

Forces San to confess or else he’ll tell you himself 

He finally tells you 

You go “ohhhhh” bcs now you realise his flirting was actually flirting and not just San being playful 

You apologise for being so oblivious 

San finds you so adorable he just kisses your nose 

You love it 

Spends the rest of the night trailing you like a puppy and makes hot coco with you 

Mingi

Mingi’s like Yunho 

Becomes an absolute mess around you 

Doesn’t know how to handle his feelings 

Finds every inch of you insanely adorable 

He pretty much does everything for you 

“Mingi, can you help me with—” 

“Okay :D” 

“I didn’t even say what it was…” 

It was just baking cookies 

He helps you decorate the cookies 

He messes up a lot 

The snowmen cookies don’t look anything like snowmen but you find them so cute  

Mingi makes you laugh a lot bcs he likes hearing you laugh 

Purposefully messes up the cookies to show them to you 

“(Y/n)! Look!” 

He managed to turn the santa hat into traffic cone 

You find it so cute 

Mingi’s just an absolute bundle of sunshine around you 

When you’re all decorating the christmas tree 

Jongho hands you the star to place at the top 

But you can’t reach it because the tree’s so tall 

Yunho offers to help but Mingi shoves him aside asks him to let him do it

He stands behind you 

“I’ll carry you” 

“Wait—no—” 

You don’t have any time to process that he’s lifted you onto his shoulders 

You’re surprised at how easily he carries you 

Almost bumps your head onto the ceiling because he’s so tall 

“Mingi!! Careful!!” 

He has to squat slightly so that you don’t get hurt 

When he brings you back down he has the biggest smile on his face 

“I like you” 

Your face changes from :D to (꒪⌓꒪) real quick 

Mingi thinks you don’t like him back 

Gets sad for a moment 

It’s not that you don’t 

You just didn’t think he liked you back and now you’re so flustered your brain pretty much short circuits 

“Nononono” 

He visibly deflates 

You explain that you like him back 

His group members cheer for him bcs goddamn you both took so damn long to confess 

He spends the rest of the night clinging onto you 

“Mingi, I have to pee” 

“Bring me with you” 

Wooyoung 

He doesn’t want to make it as obvious that he likes you but he can’t help it 

When you’re around he gets so excited his volume goes all the way up

You find it adorable 

You know he likes you and you like him too

You just wanna see how far he goes before he finally confesses to you 

He helps you cook dinner 

You accidentally burn yourself while cooking and he’s all “!!!” 

Maybe he went a bit overboard 

Tries to wrap your entire hand in bandages 

“Woo, I promise I’m fine. It’s just a burn” 

Still offers to run out and buy something to soothe the burn 

It’s not even that serious, your hand just grazed the frying pan lightly 

Wooyoung only calms down when you reassure him for the hundredth time 

Keeps an eye on you while you continue cooking but loosens up after a while 

He feeds you the food to taste (＾▽＾)

Chases you around with a wooden spoon because you pranked him 

When he catches you 

He can’t bring himself to hit you really hard

So he just 

Taps your arm with it

When it’s time to unwrap presents 

You realise that Wooyoung was your secret santa 

He got a picture of the two of you framed 

It’s a picture you both really like 

Wooyoung LOVES the picture 

Every time he sees it he just gets all (♥ω♥ )

It was the first time you went to their concerts after you became friends 

Jongho helped take the picture at the time 

Wooyoung also had a cute lil sticky note on it that was basically his confession 

You find it so endearing 

When you turn to him he’s smiling really widely but he’s obviously really nervous 

You tell him you like him back and his smile somehow manages to widen 

He pretty much grabs you and pulls you into a bone crushing hug 

He’s honestly a child at heart and he’s so cute 

You spend the rest of the night teasing the other members with him and pranking them 

The other members found it cute at first 

Now they hate it 

Bcs somehow you just managed to make his pranking more intense

Jongho 

Doesn’t know how to deal with his emotions 

Gets really quiet around you because he doesn’t want to say something that could embarrass him

You feel like he doesn’t like you as a person in general from how quiet he is 

Either way, you needed his help to carry some stuff from your car into the dorm 

“Jong, could you help me carry some stuff?” 

His heart flutters at the thought of you asking him first 

So he helps you 

It’s still silent because he really doesn’t want to make a fool out of himself 

You’re kinda scared because you knew he was really strong and you didn’t want torture the others with carrying the bags filled with various christmas decorations 

All of you decorate the living room together 

Jongho’s kinda sad that you don’t stick by his side 

He wonders whether you don’t like him either and starts feeling discouraged because he was supposed to play you a song he wrote

He had Hongjoong help him 

Hongjoong finds Jongho really cute and he couldn’t say no 

He has to reassure Jongho that you do like him because you’ve told Hongjoong before 

“I don’t think they hate you” 

“They don’t talk to me much T-T” 

“Just try it” 

Jongho still doesn’t know how to feel 

Brings out his guitar and starts feeling real nervous 

You watch him intently 

When he’s done, you’re both blushing like crazy 

Pulls you away from the others to talk to you about it 

“You were so quiet I thought you didn’t like me,,,” 

Now he feels bad for being so quiet 

He explains that he just felt really nervous around you 

You find that adorable 

He cuddles you for the rest of the night 

He’s so strong he legit doesn’t let you go and you can’t escape 

[sopxhiea]

Moirai

Alfie Solomons X Reader

Summary: The mysterious niece runs into Alfie in her uncle’s office and she expertly plays it cool until she’s pulled away by his strong grip and the night has more in store than she’s bargained for.

Warnings: Age gap.

Part 1

“Fine. You win.”

“Are you blushing or cold?”

The deep colored oak desk is illuminated by the sunlight coming through the open window, the room is quiet as dust gathers on the many shelves that decorate the place. The space is mostly filled with books, torn out old covers with faded colors and it’s obvious that the furniture around is aged except the large table that resides in the corner.

It stands out, much like you do.

A low tune plays from the record player in the office, next to the assistant’s desk as she types the day away. The boss is away in Birmingham, brushing shoulders with dirty faced gangster even though he’s very much one of them. There’s no chatter inside the walls today, nor the voice of the golden haired lady’s heels clicking against the hard surface.

The boss isn’t supposed to come back for another two hours.

The weather is chilly, grey sky bestowed upon the citizens around as the large coat you have on hugs you tight. Your uncle’s office is empty for the day, as far you know which means you’re more than welcome to stop by to get some work done. As much as the men around London despise the idea of a woman getting education, your uncle is aware of your potential.

The boots on your feet are meant for men, heavy and dense as you stomp away. The days are shorter due to the weather and it will get dark in a couple hours as far as you’re aware, but that doesn’t stop you from making an unwanted visit to your uncle’s office.

He’s a criminal with gold wrapped around his fingers. Not many are content with the men and even though he tends to get the approval of the higher class in London, it’s not hard to recognise the distaste the working class have for him. He’s a gangster, a good one at that.

He’s your family.

It’s not by choice, that much you accept. Years of being alone on end make him seem like an angel sorts, someone to rescue you from the hellhole you’d been in for the first seven years of your life. It looks different from the outside, you know that it does which makes you realise just how easy it is to trick people around here.

From the outside, you look like a pearl wrapped in cotton with flowers carefully placed around you. Most people do not approach you unless you make the first move, perks of having a powerful man as your only family. It’s easy to point out that your features belong somewhere else on the map and not the dirty roads of London.

You spare one last glance to the dim colored sky before barging into the building that your uncle redeems as his. Its walls are made of brick, one on top of the other that make up a three story building that occupies most of the side of the street its on.

It’s easy to recognise, Alfie thinks.

The sound of your heavy boots against the hard floor are easy to recognise but it’s too late for you to lighten your steps when Martha, your uncle’s trusted assistant, calls your name. You sigh then, a grunt leaving your mouth and you curse at yourself for being so careless for once.

Walking through the large corridor, you face the old lady as she looks at you through her smudged glasses. That color of pink on her lips is far too vibrant on her lips, you think as she sizes you up. 

You’re not conventionally dressed but she’s used to your choice of clothing.

“Hello Y/N.” she speaks, her voice a little shushed when compared to normal but you’re too busy fixing your long dress to realise that there’s a reason for her quiet attitude.

You lift your head to look up at her again, no longer pulling at your dress as she gives you an uninterested look, the usual treatment. Your lips part, a playful smile on your lips but before you can let out a word, the door of the gathering space opens with a loud sound.

It’s him, you gather as you stare at his hat.

There’s gold on his fingers and a crown tattoo. It’s easy to recognise him, you think, his hat is peculiarly shaped and the rhythm of his steps is far too unusual for a normal person. There’s flour on his sleeves, the kind that looks like he’s been laying in it for a while.

His hat creates a shadow over his eyes so you miss the evident look of surprise in them but he’s quick to take it off. He’d been bothering Martha for a while, asking when the beloved boss would return since their deal was now ‘off’ due to a couple complications in the process.

When in fact, Alfie is directly betraying him.

He watches your eyes glisten as the sunset is bestowed upon the sky. Short strands of hair fall around your face from the braid, the braid that had your friend pulling at your hair for the entirety of breakfast. He finds himself to be too intrigued at the sight of you to actually speak but he’s fast to recover.

“’ello, lass.” he says, the words echo in your mind before you can answer. Martha isn’t daft, she catches onto the way you stare up at the man but before she can say anything, you speak with a plastered smile.

“Hello, Mr. Solomons.” your voice is soft against the air around as you look up at him. There’s mischief in your eyes mixed with a glint of innocence, the kind of thing that could easily mess a man of Alfie’s wrath.

You hadn’t gone the address he’d sent you.

It was easy to make up excuses: you were busy with school and simply swarmed with work. You ignored the heat rising to your cheeks and gave him your softest smile while Martha eyed the both fo you, it was obvious that whatever you and Alfie had was doomed from the start.

Your uncle was a sheltered man and had raised you the same way. No boyfriends until you wanted to marry someone, only talk to men your uncle had assigned you for protection and if you were to go out, you informed him a week before.

But he wasn’t as sharp as he liked to believe.

You did things that would simply torture the man, from sneaking out to man’s apartments to dancing intimately with strangers. The city was fun at night, when it was supposed to sleeping seemed to be the only time the groggy streets felt alive to you.

And through years of sneaking around and lying almost too expertly, no one knew what you did. You’d have a different fake name, a different set of friends and a whole new part of town each week so things didn’t get messed up. It was a perk of being closely related to a gangster of your uncle’s power.

Martha knew how intense your uncle was when it came to you making contact with men, let alone a known brutal man like Alfie so she stood up and smiled softly, threat evident in her eyes as she spoke to you under her breath.

“Why don’t you go to the office, dear?” she speaks through her teeth and Alfie couldn’t hear but your eyes don’t leave his, if anything this was highly amusing.

And you wanted to talk to the men.

“No, thank you. I think I’ll keep Mr. Solomons company while he waits for uncle.” you spoke, looking directly into Martha’s eyes while speaking in a tone that was loud enough for everyone to hear.

She doesn’t say anything, she just backs off.

As cautious as your uncle had been with you, there were two sides to the story. Behind closed doors, he would get mad at you and scold you as much as he could while remaining as gentle as possible but in front of those very doors, he’d have your back and protect you that made most people frightened. He was allowed to get mad at you since you were his niece, but that was a privilege only he had in his hands.

Much to Alfie’s surprise, you shoot him a smirk through the smile you had on and ignore the old assistant. He doesn’t flinch when your hand comes in contact with his arm but there is a wave of alarm in his eyes. He knows your uncle will have Alfie’s scalp in his hands if he doesn’t behave well around you, he’ll try anyway.

Soon, you both find yourself in the dusty room that your uncle so graciously gave you when you had asked for a place to do some work and reading. Standing in the middle of the room, you slowly take your coat off while Martha keeps the door open and mutters something under her breath about making some tea for you and the gentlemen you offered to entertain while he waits for business.

But you don’t ignore the elephant in the room since he’s already gawking at you. You stare back instead. The ghost of a smile pulls at the ends of your lips as his eyes reek over your body, he isn’t subtle to say the least. Glancing at Ollie through the open door, you watch him for a moment as he talks to Martha but your observations are cut short when you hear his voice.

“You ain’t visited me yet, aye?” he speaks, talking about the address he had sent you and you know you can take this two ways. You decide on the fun way. 

He sits in front of the desk and you take the opportunity to lean on the wooden material and have a look at his features. He still looks as handsome, but you don’t give in that easily. You shake your head and he watches the ends of your dress move with the small breeze that comes in from the open door. For all you know, Martha is listening.

“Is that why you’re here?” you speak, words filled with something other than curiosity. Lust, he thinks. He sees the familiar glint of insanity in your orbs and he’s aware of the little game you’re playing behind your uncle but much like you, he isn’t keen on giving in so easily.

“Nah, just business.” he says, voice heavy as it fills the walls. You nod, a few times more than you should before getting comfy on the desk. 

Your eyes glisten before you speak, so he has been waiting for you. Just no matter how interesting this rugged man seemed, there were certain lines you wouldn’t cross and going to an unknown address given by a stranger was one of the many lines you were taught to beware of.

Although it all worked out for the best.

The stranger that had invited you to the location was looking at you now, with hungry eyes for things he wasn’t able to have. You knew men like Alfie, ones who had a superiority complex or it seemed that way from the outside. The kind of men who got whatever they wanted since there was immense blood in their hands.

“So you waited then, hm?” you ask, eyes looking up and down his built figure as he stands before you, he had gotten up when you’d taken a minute to look out the door to see where Martha was since she was usually keen on listening.

“Seein’ as it’s my fuckin’ work place, yeah, can’t say I have, luv.” he speaks, talking about the peculiar address he’d given which you now realise was his work place. 

So he could be trusted after all.

You sigh, this game is highly amusing for you. It’s easy to make up the lines of how this is going to go but it could go so wrong all of a sudden. You want it to, this stranger seems to be a kind one you wouldn’t mind getting under. His eyes watch as you lick your lips, not aware that he’s watching while he observes you in all your wrath since your uncle isn’t around here. Alfie can tell you’re a wolf in mere sheep’s clothing.

“Fine. You win.” You shake your head as you speak. You need to know whether this man wants the things you do, even though you’re sure he does. He’s not to be toyed around with and you recognise the blood on his hands for that matter.

He walks a little closer, close enough for your chest to be almost brushing his figure but he’s entirely too tall. You don’t glance up while your next words fill the air, voice soft to lure him into the fantasy you want to live, no matter how short lived it will end up being.

“What you want?” you ask, eyes looking up to meet his handsome face as he looks down at you in an expression you can’t quite solve. The question hangs around the air while the breeze from the open door gets a little strong.

He sees no reason to ponder around, he knows the old assistant will be around the corner with her peering eyes in a second and this will be the scarce moment he’ll have with you. He doesn’t beat around the bush anyway.

“Ya’ know what.” he says, easy as that and you do, now you’ve learned what he wants.

But it’s not so easy to get it.

It’s the forbidden fruit situation all over again, you know it is. He’s a man with power, the kind of authority that’s able to shake a grown man to his very own core. He has blood on his hands even though his golden beard contradicts the very image that’s created by everything about him. He knows he’s dangerous and so is this situation but you’re no forbidden fruit.

Your uncle has taken all kinds of measures to make sure you’re the best you can be. It’s not like you’re a regular citizen, it’s obvious in your features that you belong somewhere else in the map but there’s the kind of elegance that comes with your bloodline, excluding your uncle who happens to be a gangster.

You take a large step back from his built form, clearing your throat when Martha comes in with a tray in her hands. You see the look he’s giving you and she does, too. You know she’ll rat this out to your uncle but you’ve always made sure he stays on your side so you see no problem with it.

Offering the assistant the widest fake smile you can muster up, you wait until she leaves to speak. It’s a thin line you’re dancing on but it’s a familiar one to you which is why there’s a faint smile on your lips as you speak.

“I’ll let you get on with your business, since that’s all you’re here for, Mr. Solomons.” you speak, watching the way something along the lines of frustration and arousal come over him. You know he thought you’d let him have you against the desk, it seems like the plausible answer from any logical lady whom he’s offered the pleasure but he failed to see the silver lining. You don’t happen to be a logical lady.

He sees the devil behind your eyes and it brings a smirk to his face. It seems as though you’ll be haunting him for a while.

You hear Martha talk about uncle’s car being parked outside to Ollie and you get up at a slower pace than he’d expect and wear your coat over the dress again. You know there are manners your uncle has tried to teach you and covering up in front of a stranger is one of them, or so you think.

He watches as you walk towards the door, waiting like a little kid for your uncle. There’s a flip side to your coin, he gathers. The innocent little jewel who’s been protected all her life also happens to be dancing with the devil for a while, he can see it in your eyes. 

You watch Alfie walk by, touching your waist gently when he has to pass by you to get through the door. You see the way his beard covers up his bothered face and since your uncle is about to arrive and have a meeting with him, why not rile him up further?

A childish smile finds your lips and you hold his arm as an attempt to make him look down at you so you see eye to eye, which works due to the unfamiliar sensation. He lifts his eyebrows, telling you to go ahead and speak and you do but you don’t realise your uncle has been watching your strange interaction with one of the most dangerous man you could find around here.

“Are you blushing or cold?” you speak, fighting giggles as you look up at the man. Alfie opens his mouth to say something but before he can greet your amused face with his playful words, you catch you uncle’s eyes. He clears his throat and you immediately let go of Alfie’s arm, smiling at the old man as he looks at you and Alfie.

Looking like a child caught red-handed, you offer your uncle a small hello but he’s dismissive of it. It’s unclear to you whether he’s in a mood or he saw something he shouldn’t have seen just now. Alfie seems unfazed as he looks down at your little, the devil behind your eyes long gone as you look at your uncle and then Alfie.

“Mr. Solomons..” your uncle speaks, not sparing a glance at you while his eyes size Alfie up. Your gaze moves to the large man next to you as he tips his hat at your uncle as a way of greeting him.

“Shall we start discussing the deal in my office?” your uncle asks but you know better than to assume it’s an invitation, it’s more of an order.

Alfie mutters something unintelligible and turns his gaze to you. You offer him a formal smile this time, everyone is watching so he figures it’s his time to make you blush.

He takes your hand in his and your eyes shoot up, you see your uncle watching hesitantly but Alfie is far too powerful for him to scold the man like he scolds you. Alfie’s plump lips come in contact with your hand as he kisses the back of it gently. A small smirk plays on his lips as you gather the game he’s playing.

“Always a pleasure, luv.” he says, finding his true self to be a gentlemen at the given moment as you stare at him with heavy eyes.

You smile then, the kind of smile that he’d remember when he went to bed at night. You know he’ll be waiting for you in the address he gave you the first time he met you from the way he’s behaving, he isn’t keen on giving up that easily this time.

The territory is familiar to you but it takes two to do this and the other player is foreign territory. A gangster, someone with blood on their hands as it grips the golden rings around his calloused fingers. It perks up your curiosity, the thrill of being with someone so powerful. 

He knows you’re protected. There are two guards with you wherever you go, your uncle’s gift to you on your birthday. He knows you live in a mansion of sorts with too many people around so sneaking in is not a choice. 

But he’s tempted to say the least.

He wants to dance with the devil you hide so well, to feel her touch against his skin under the moonlight. He knows you have your ways around the city and men, too. He also knows that your uncle will try to cut his balls off if he hears even the possibility of the things Alfie wants to do to you but you don’t find in yourself to care.

He knows you’ll come around this time.

Your soft voice plays at a tone only he can hear and he listens with his ears perked up before he goes into your uncle’s office and you go off on your own way. “Pleasure’s all mine.” 

-----

Tagging: @clairecrive  @parkbearum @sourirez  @vetseras​ @mollybegger-blog @babylooneytoonz @peakascum a/n: This is a little too late :) but i just got done with some project deliveries and I truly do hope you enjoy this chapter! Let me know what you thought of the chapter and if you’d like to be tagged <3

(If i’m forgetting to tag you, please lemme know!)

[mistaeq]

since christmas is coming, how about some headcanons for preparation for christmas and baking with the bucci gang? ✨💖

Bucciarati Gang: Baking and Christmas HCs

TW // none

This was so fun to write, plus I put a lot of effort into editing the images! I'm so happy I managed to post this as soon as possible ~ thank you so much for the suggestion, memory♡

Bucciarati Gang Baking and Christmas Headcanons with a neutral!reader

WORD COUNT: 2.5k

GIORNO GIOVANNA

He's never really tried to bake something, to be honest Giorno never had the occasion to even think about trying, in his past. So when Christmas approaches and you suggest the two of you try to bake something for the holidays, he's incredibly suprised and looks forward to it at the same time.

"Baking? Me...? That's sweet y/n, but I'm not sure I'm made for this."

He lets you be the one who does the shopping to buy what you need to bake whatever the two of you have in mind, plus he decided what ingredients to use in the recipe and what to bake.

Get ready for man bun Giorno, while you bake! He won't resist tying his golden hair up.

Christmas stuff doesn't have to be forcibly Christmas related, does it? Anything edible will be fine, and Giorno can't resist when he comes across the recipe for sunflower shaped cupcakes. Luckily you have everything you need to make them, you're just in awe for Giorno's inexperienced ideas.

Let this boy be the one to use the sac-à-poche to make the petals of the sunflowers. Since he's the one whose stand has nature related powers, it sounds just good for him to be the one who makes the petals with the frosting!

"I became one with Gold Experience!"

The two of you are concentrating on the chocolate chips to put in the middle of the sunflowers when you hear the signature sound of Gold Experience creating something. Your eyebrows raise when you see a real sunflower in the stand's hand, and giggle. "Thank you Gold, but I don't think we can put real flowers in the cake."

While you wait for the cake part of the cupcakes to be ready, the two of you are gonna choose a flower for every gang member, and create Christmas decorations with it thanks to Giorno's stand power. Abbacchio is gonna hate it so damn much. It gives you life for it's definitely hilarious.

BRUNO BUCCIARATI

Bucciarati is probably the one who gave the idea. In his mind, he wanted to bake with all of the gang, but for some reasons, all of them declined, you may never know it's because they wanted to let you have some time with Bruno, the two of you only. Abbacchio convinced Mista and Narancia.

"Who knows why nobody can join us... nevermind, it'll be the two of us, amore."

The two of you go doing the shopping together, so you can confront each other and decide what to buy while you're at the supermarket directly. Bruno enjoys doing the shopping with you.

Bruno loves Christmas, above all if it's with the gang - basically his family - and with you. So, he's gonna choose something more classic than Giorno's cupcakes. Chocolate chips cookies, the most popular ones, a must for christmas. Plus, he can't help but admit those remind him of his outfit.

"I'm... lowkey dressed like a cookie, ain't I?"

I bet Bucciarati's gonna be the ninety percent of your self control on how many chocolate chips to put in every cookie, and how to blame you, it's literally delicious. Plus, he can't lie. He enjoys seeing you so enthusiastic about it.

"Come on Bruno, it's not that big of a deal, just a chocolate chip more..." you insist, when all of a sudden, a metallic blue arm crosses your sight, and the bowl full of batter that was in your arms is now closed by a giant zipper. Your gaze automatically electrocutes Bucciarati. "It's not fair to use Sticky Fingers!"

When he unzips the bowl, you manage to throw in more chocolate chips anyway.

As you wait for the cookies to get ready, you're gonna witness Bucciarati writing touching Christmas themed letters to his gang members, and if you feel inspired, you might wanna suggest him what to write in some cases eventually. He's gonna ask you to sign the letters as well.

LEONE ABBACCHIO

You'll have to get his ass off of the couch using brute force, for he's never gonna bake something with you unless you try really hard to convince him. He's gonna let you pull him eventually, just because you rarely are so enthusiastic about something, and he likes to see you like that. So he accepts.

"Okay, I'll bake with you, just if you're the one who works and I'm the one to watch."

No excuses, mr. Scrooge. You're gonna make Abbacchio do something for it, sending him to do the shopping and asking him to surprise you in terms of ingredients, so that he's gonna choose what to bake, too.

You decided to find a compromise, and bake something for everyone to enjoy it, but not really Christmas themed. Still, you forced him to wear a Santa hat while you were baking. Blueberry cupcakes, that's what he liked. The color matching his tastes, plus cupcakes are units, for everyone.

"So everyone has their own cupcake 'n shit."

He's messy. You had asked him to be the one to put the blue frosting on the cupcakes, but he turned out to be so clumsy that you had to put your hands on Abbacchio's and guide him to make a perfect twirl. At the end, both your hands are blue.

Hope you enjoy Abbacchio in a ponytail, because this is what you're gonna get here.

As soon as you show him how to do decorate a cupcake, he's gonna use Moody Blues, for the scene to repeat and you to decorate every cupcake with him watching only. Luckily, your stand manages to stop this, as you cross your arms. "No lazy man will be my boyfriend, just so you know, Leone." he then started to work.

He's gonna work on something serious for his fellow gang members and for you when he'll be alone with himself, probably. Around you, he just plays it cool and opts to give each member one of the blueberries left from you baking session. Woah, Leone. Don't stress it out too much, huh.

GUIDO MISTA

The gunslinger will probably not even ask for your opinion about it, deep down he knows you'll accept to bake some delicious Christmas treats with him. You'll wake up one day just to find him in a cook outfit already, pulling you out of the bedsheets to drag you in the kitchen. He's so extra.

"Come on y/n, you can't keep on sleeping! Don't you feel the Christmas atmosphere?"

He's already done the shopping. When you get into the kitchen, expecting him to send you to buy everything you need. But the sweet goofball was so excited for it that he bought it all himself.

Oh, he wants to go wild. He can feel the Christmas spirit all over his soul already. When you look at the ingredients you can tell he chose to bake some classic panettone with raisins. That's not easy, but he believes he can do it with you, and you'd never let your boyfriend down. Let's do this!

He's gonna be so extra that his signature hat will be replaced with a chef hat for the day.

You better hide the raisins in the process, because Mista's gonna distractly munch on them, ignoring the fact that if he keeps going, they'll finish before you'll even be able to put it in the panettone. Keep your hungry man under your control.

"Guido... care to explain why do you keep on eating all of the raisins? We need them for the recipe!" he's then gonna stare at you, confused, for he claims he hasn't eaten any but a single raisin since the beginning. You seem to figure out the issue when you see a raisin moving by itself, Number 3 under it if you squint. "Oh my god."

While you wait for your panettone to be ready, him and the Pistols are gonna wrap up some smol presents he bought for you and for the gang. You're allowed to help the Pistols, but don't you dare to even try to look at what he's doing. You know, he's the one wrapping your present.

"If you watch this, I'm gonna fucking die."

PANNACOTTA FUGO

He's gonna be the one to bring the idea up, but it will take Bruno to sweet talk him into asking you. Asking something to Fugo isn't easy, and you told Bucciarati you would have liked to bake something. So he talked Pannacotta into be the first one to bring up the idea of baking to you.

Get him by the hand and bring him to do the shopping with you. His embarrassment with asking you to bake will slowly go away with time spent together choosing the ingredients you'll have to use. Let him enjoy it.

"So uhm... you choose the recipe and I follow you? No...? I choose? Oh my god..."

How much do you have to love a fruit to have it as a pattern on your tie too? You can't say no when Pannacotta suggests baking a strawberry cake. Even if it's not really Christmas themed, you don't dare to question him, it's already a good thing that he expressed his thoughts freely.

Pannacotta feels lucky to be able to have such a quiet and good time alone with you.

For the love of God, don't you even think about letting Fugo be the one to put the strawberry frosting on the cake. Man has no patience. Unless you want your cake go to waste, make sure you're the one to decorate it. Or maybe, decorate it together.

"Damn... you really made a mess on the counter, huh." you jokingly scolded Pannacotta. But now you had to find a way to clean up without Bruno to notice. "Do you think Purple Haze would be interested in tasting the frosting which flew around?" you suggest, seeing the stand summon itself and stick his tongue out of his mouth stitches.

"I think we did our best. I love you, cara/o."

While you wait for your strawberry cake to be ready, you'll happen to ask him what has he bought as presents for his fellow gang members. Fugo will shyly answer that he was lowkey hoping you could help him in choosing what to do. He's doing his best, please be proud of the boy.

NARANCIA GHIRGA

Baking? You really want to bake with him? Is he allowed to bring his headphones with him while you bake? No? Flour might ruin them? Narancia is new to this baking thing. Before you came to Passione, he left these tasks to Bruno or Mista, but now you want to bake with him? This is good...maybe?

"What's the point of baking if you can't even listen to some good music and vibe to it?"

You left Narancia at home to get the kitchen ready to bake with Bucciarati's help, and after asking what kind of Christmas cake he would have liked to bake, you took care of doing the shopping.

Obviously he would have wanted to bake that. It would have been hilarious, but predictable. Still, you decided to make Narancia happy despite the failed Christmas theme. Orange chocolate cake! Turns out he wanted to bake such a thing just to apply the meme "I am cake" to himself.

"I'll finally be cake... like the prophecy said."

Please keep Narancia from eating the cake batter, or else he'll probably eat the whole cake before you even bake it. It's a good thing, though. The boy's got a good sense of taste, and at least you know the cake's turning out pretty delicious.

"We have to slice the oranges. I'll try to figure out a way to do it properly- Nara? What are you..? NO-" you only manage to say, without keeping Narancia from throwing the oranges towards Aerosmith's propellers. You hate to say it, but you must admit that your boyfriend's idea worked and sliced the oranges perfectly.

He's gonna suggest to keep the cake for yourselves and give the gang brioches.

While you wait for your chocolate cake to be ready, Narancia's gonna show you all the playlists he prepared for his friends, but obviously not the one for you, that has to be a surprise. The music's one of the best ways for him to express himself, so that's a great gift, coming from Narancia.

TRISH UNA

It's not like she has had so much time to dedicate to baking in her last fifteen years of life, so you're gonna let her have a good time with it, being the one who brings it up first to her. Trish is gonna happily accept, and will take it as a way to thank Bruno for all that he's done for her, too.

She's gonna want to go doing the shopping by herself, in order to show you she's become independent enough and to make you proud of her. Trish is gonna surprise you with her choices!

"I won't disappoint you, y/n, I'll come back with the best ingredients you can wish for."

Turns out the poor baby's not really good at baking, but that's no problem! You opt for something more decorative, but still sweet. She's on cloud nine when you tell her it's no big deal, and that the two of you can still prepare some pink meringues to munch on during the festivities!

"Let's stay positive. Meringues are perfect!"

The girl is gonna definitely use you as a taste tester for the meringues, Trish likes to spoil you by feeding you the pink candies the two of you just prepared, and if they're good enough, she'll even let you do the same for her and feed her a meringue.

She'll be likely to do her best to be romantic to you. Trish's new to love relationships.

"Ouch... I think the batter turned out a little too hard. Maybe we put too much flour, babe." you tell Trish, but she smiles, and looks like she has a good idea. At the sound of a loud "WANNABEEEEEEE", Spice Girl punches the batter enough to turn it a little softer, a little less dense, just like you needed it to be. "Thank you, love."

While you wait for your pink meringues to be ready, Trish is gonna tell you a Christmas secret. She thinks it's not much, but she's prepared a small speech to tell to every member, to thank them for having saved her life. Reassure your girlfriend of the fact that her gift is amazing.

[hotchley]

happy birthday aaron hotchner!

jack will try and fail to make him breakfast in bed, setting the smoke alarm off which will wake hotch up ten minutes before his alarm was set to go off. when he enters the kitchen, jack will look down from the stool he’s stood on and grin. hotch won’t be angry, just a bit amused, and jack will wash up whilst hotch makes them edible pancakes.

jessica will come over before she goes to work with her present- a new tie and a teddy bear that says happy 60th birthday even though he’s not quite 50 yet- as well as a balloon and a cupcake, completely covered in various sprinkles and sweets (him and jack will split it because he’s getting old now and he needs to watch his sugar levels (although he’ll never admit it)

penelope would’ve been watching, waiting to see when he signed in. as soon as he did, she ran up the elevator, making sure it closed before he spotted her, ignoring the stares from other agents. when hotch steps out three minutes after her, she hands him a gift bag. it’s pink. the present is a lump. a soft toy for his office. before he can protest, she grabs his arm- it’s almost funny to watch this petite, brightly dressed woman drag him- still dressed in a suit despite having stepped down as unit chief years ago and only going on some out of state cases- towards the bullpen, shouting the words to happy birthday.

derek pulls him in for a hug, jokingly calling him old man but hotch knows he means it as a compliment and that he’s relieved that they’re even here. there had been too many close calls recently. but instead of focusing on that, he focuses on the box he pulls out of his desk drawer. it’s wrapped neatly (jj’s influence) with the same paper hotch used for jack’s birthday. inside is a tie, bright yellow with green squares and purple triangles all over it. it’s clearly meant to be a joke, but hotch smiles, pulls his current tie off and replaces it with the ugly one from his friend.

dave kisses his forehead, the gesture more paternal than anything else. he’ll hold his cheeks, stare into his eyes until hotch blushes, looking downwards. dave shakes his head and says he still can’t stop viewing hotch as the bright-eyed agent he met in seattle, and that he probably never will. hotch smiles but he knows there’s a deeper meaning: when dave returned, he was a mess- he’d never done the job without his two mentors and he’d been terrified he’d never get back that innocence. he hadn’t (how could he) but he’s accepted that. and he’s getting better everyday. in his office there is a handknitted sweater (blue because it’s the colour that suits him best).

jennifer knows how hotch still has trouble sleeping through the night so she pretends that she got both him and jack presents because- in her own words- it’s just what her and hotch do. in fact, both things are for him. the first is a journal- one of those old fashioned leatherbound ones for all the stories he came up with when henry and jack were kids (and sometimes he tells them new ones). she wants him to write them down so if jack and henry are ever sad, they can read them and remember how much he loves them. the second is glow in the dark stars. you can make constellations from them, that’s how many small ones there are. she knows hotch will set them up in the living room so when him and jack can’t sleep, they can make a pillowfort and look at them.

spencer awkwardly presents the felt hat they made him wear on his 25th birthday because although 49 isn’t exactly a milestone, they were always out on cases when he hit those so he’d take what he can get. hotch smiles but puts it on without hesitating because he can never say no to spencer. when he puts it on, reid smiles, then hands him his present. it’s a box that he shakes to try and work out what’s in there. he can’t tell so he opens it: there’s a mug and a card addressed to the best dad ever, a collection of different teas (all decaf because he also needs to cut down on his caffiene) as well as a new tie- one with books all over it. he smiles slightly, grinning when he realises that under the tie is that law book he’d been wanting to read but hadn’t because he wanted his own copy to annotate.

emily is the one that brings the cake in because she decided to take up baking a month before his birthday for this exact purpose. it’s not perfect, but it’s got the right texture and is soft so it’s deemed edible. her decoration was an absolute disaster because piping is difficult and you need more than a few weeks to perfect that art, but it’s still the best thing hotch has ever seen. the cake is salted caramel- his favorite and has been very generously covered in chocolate buttercream. the piping was done in white and spells out in sloppy handwriting happy 100th birthday hotshot, and he’s going to kill dave for getting drunk and calling him that, but it’s still lovely. because it’s from emily. emily who bought him a new watch because she hates metal straps and wants him to own a watch with a leather strap so he can: “look more like the dark academic professor all the newbies wished he was” whatever that meant and a copy of her favourite book that year, as per the tradition they’d started when he was still working for her mother and had hesitantly given her a copy of  les mis (in the original french) mumbling something about how he loved the book and thought of her when he picked it up at the bookshop.

he cuts the cake, not even hesitating when garcia picked up the first slice and fed it to him. because this is his home and this team of goofballs, despite the fact that he’s got lipstick and icing and god knows what else they’ve been eating smeared on his dry clean only blazer, is his family. and he wouldn’t trade them for the world.

(anderson drops off a card and box of chocolates off later on in the day. it’s not even close to hotch’s favourite but he appreciates the thought.)

[whenisitenoughtrees]

to be honest, capable (of holding you) (part 2/3)

He walks forward, crouching over the snake, and when it doesn’t stir at all, he works up his courage and pokes it, just a little. Its scales are warm and smooth under his fingertip, and he resists the urge to stroke them. He doubts he could get away with that.

“Janus?” he asks, trying to keep the somewhat hysterical laughter from his voice. “That you?”

Thomas didn’t know that Janus could turn into an actual snake, but he’s glad to hang out with him regardless. More than glad; ecstatic, even, because he’s been trying to figure out how to befriend him for ages, and this seems like a good first step. What he can’t figure out is why human-Janus is being so weird about it.

(Alternatively: Janus doesn’t trust easily. He wishes he could stop trusting Thomas— it would be so much less terrifying.)

Chapter Warnings: blood and injury, Remus being mildly unsettling

Chapter Word Count: 5,074

Pairing: platonic Thomceit

(part 1) (part 3)

(masterpost w/ ao3 links)

They don’t talk about it.

Thomas would very much like to talk about it. But whenever he goes to bring it up, Janus glares at him in a way that promises a world of trouble if he so much as breathes a word, and Thomas really does not want to set back any of the progress he’s already made with him, so he shuts up about it. He’s not entirely sure why Janus is so opposed to addressing it; it can’t be that he doesn’t want the others to know, after all, because all the others are literally parts of Thomas and as such are privy to the knowledge of everything that Thomas experiences.

As best as Thomas can tell, it’s some sort of embarrassment that holds Janus back, some sort of shame, and Thomas doesn’t get it. Surely he knows that Thomas doesn’t mind at all, that Thomas enjoys the time they spend together, even if their conversations are far more one-sided than he would like. Janus seems to be under the impression that coming to him at all is in some way unseemly, while Thomas just wants him to be comfortable enough to approach him as a human.

But as more time passes, that seems less and less likely. Thomas spends far more time with snake-Janus than with human-Janus, and Janus begins to come with him even when the sun shines bright and his spot by the window is available. Thomas becomes quite familiar with carrying a weight looped around his neck, and wishes he could puzzle out why Janus is acting this way.

The worst part is that with every passing day, he feels like he understands Janus less, not more. Because the way he acts during meetings and discussions, when he pops in to offer opinions and advice masked as sarcasm and cutting quips, is entirely different to the way he acts as a snake, when he and Thomas are alone together, when he leans into all the contact Thomas has to offer, seeking warmth, and, Thomas suspects, company. It’s almost as if he’s dealing with two entirely different people, each one unwilling or unable to discuss the other, and frankly, Thomas has no idea what to do about it.

Because he’s worried that if he pushes too hard, demands one answer too many, Janus will stop approaching him at all, in any form. And that is the last thing he wants.

So, he leaves it be, and resigns himself to the idea that human-Janus may just remain incomprehensible to him, and that snake-Janus is the closest he will get to making a friend out of him. And if that turns out to be the case, then gosh darn it, he will be the best friend to snake-Janus that he possibly can be.

This has the side effect of leading him to a snake-centric fact-finding mission, which Logan appreciates, at least, because “even if the information may not be applicable to most aspects of your life, at least you’re learning something, Thomas.” Which he supposes is fair. He learns a great many things about snakes over the course of a few days, most of it interesting, if not particularly relevant. He doesn’t know how much of this actually applies to Janus, since he’s not a real snake.

Though he does find out that snakes don’t have eyelids. That would explain the whole no-blinking thing.

Other than his impromptu investigations, they fall into an equilibrium fairly easily. Janus will seek him out at all hours of the day and wrap himself around his arm or neck, sometimes staying awake and aware and sometimes drifting off into sleep. And when he’s fed up with the company, he leaves, disappearing with neither warning nor fanfare. Thomas settles into this new routine with little effort, and decides that if this is all he’s going to get from Janus, he’ll take it.

He gets used to it, so much so that he stops looking every time he feels Janus curl around him. This turns out to be a mistake.

He’s procrastinating, as per usual. His deadline is a full week away, and even Virgil has been unable to provide the urgency that Thomas needs to push through and finish his latest project. He knows that this will only end badly, that he’s going to end up staying up until the early hours of the morning in a few days if he doesn’t get started now, but he simply doesn’t feel like it. So, he’s scrolling through Amazon instead, clicking through pages of items that he neither needs nor particularly wants.

He’s been looking at a lot of frogs, lately. Cute, decorative frogs, the kinds that sit on mantles and don’t do much of anything. And plushies, too, and those are actually tempting. He’s pretty sure that it’s Patton’s influence.

“What do you think?” he asks, holding up his arm so that Janus can see the screen. Janus hisses quietly, and he laughs. “Yeah, I didn’t think so.” He doesn’t have the money to spend on a bunch of decorative frogs, even if he had a strong inclination toward doing so, but it’s fun to look. He’s seriously considering a stuffed animal, but he’s pretty sure that Logan intends to talk him down from that, so there’s no real need to be concerned about it. Even if he ends up buying one after all, he thinks it would be worth it.

He glances down at Janus, trying to figure out if he’s enjoying this at all, or if he’s just irritated. And that’s when he finally notices the blood.

He freezes up, his muscles tensing, and blinks hard, hoping that it’s a trick of the light, or that spending so many hours doing practically nothing has fried his brain at last. But no; Janus’ scales are dotted with rusty red, and Thomas traces the blood back to a long gash trailing down his side, sluggishly oozing, slowly dripping onto his arm. He stares for a long moment, his mind stalling, and he wonders if the scent of iron flooding his nose is real or imaginary. Or rather, real by a certain standard, since everything to do with his sides is technically imaginary, but oh god, why is he bleeding so much? He thought that his sides could wave off injuries, that nothing could truly affect them unless they wanted it to? Or is that just Logan? And then there’s the question of what did this to him in the first place, and how exactly he’s supposed to treat someone who’s a figment of his imagination, and whether or not any of the real medical supplies he has would work at all—

Focus, Thomas.

It’s like a whisper in his ear, gentle and firm. Logan’s voice. The world snaps into sharp clarity, mind and adrenaline working in tandem.

“Oh my god,” he says, and Janus’ head swivels to face him. The movement is slow, almost lethargic, as if he’s operating on a time delay. “You’re hurt. Okay. Well, not okay. But you’ll be okay.”

He has a first aid kit in the bathroom. He has no idea whether that will help or not, but he won’t know until he tries, as his logic helpfully points out. So the first order of business is to get to the bathroom. He stands, setting his laptop to the side, trying to jostle Janus as little as possible. Now that he’s paying attention, more and more details filter in; Janus’ grip on his arm is looser than usual, his eyes dull and glazed. His hat, usually so perfectly placed, is just slightly askew.

He makes it to the bathroom in short order, yanking the kit out from under the sink and nearly spilling its contents across the floor. He’ll need both hands for this, and he looks to Janus with no small amount of trepidation, wondering how well he’ll take being moved. He doesn’t want to cause him more pain than necessary, and he doesn’t know how aware he currently is, doesn’t know if he’ll lash out if he feels threatened. He gives him an experimental nudge, prodding at him with one finger, and Janus hisses, shifting his coils to hold on tighter.

“C’mon,” Thomas says. “You gotta let me help you, buddy.”

There is is again: buddy. He still doesn’t think it fits quite right, but it seems to slip out anyway, and now is hardly the time to worry about it, not when Janus still shows no sign of budging.

“Please, Janus,” he says, dangerously close to begging. “I promise, I’m not gonna let anything else happen to you, but you need to let me see where you’re hurt.”

Janus’ tongue flickers out, tasting the air, and his eyes seem to focus just a bit. One minute passes, and then another, and Thomas is about to try to remove him by force when finally, he lets go, slithering onto the counter, his motions hesitant and pained, softly hissing all the while. Blood begins to drip onto the sink, the sickening red smearing across the countertop.

“Thank you,” Thomas says, not bothering to hide his relief. “Okay, um, I’ve got bandages. And painkillers, if you want them… can snakes take painkillers?” He sets things out as he names them, slowing as he hits a snag. Not only does he not know if snakes can take painkillers, but he also doesn’t know if there are any other substances in here that would do more harm than good, or if there are any special steps he should take due to his scales, or the fact that he’s cold-blooded. In fact, he has absolutely no idea how to treat a snake, and the idea that he might end up making things worse is enough to send his anxiety ratcheting up a few notches.

Is he overthinking this? He might be overthinking this. But what if he’s not?

Try to remain calm. If you don’t know enough to work within this situation, change the situation.

Logan again, though he’s not sure how that’s supposed to help. He would change the situation if he could— heck, that’s what he’s trying to do— but if it were so simple as wishing this whole scenario away, he would have done it by now. He’s not sure how to—

Oh, wait. Change the situation, or change Janus’ situation?

He has absolutely no idea how to treat a snake. But Janus doesn’t have to be a snake.

He crouches down so that he’s on eye level with Janus, who is limp and unmoving on the sink counter, tracking his motions with clouded eyes. It’s not just the large gash, he realizes; that’s the worst of it, but there are several shallower cuts, all still open and bleeding, and he swallows hard.

“Okay, so, I don’t want to make things any worse,” he says, keeping his voice low. “Do you think you could turn back into a human for me? Just so that I know what I’m doing?”

Not that he knows much about treating humans either, but at least he’d know where to start. Perhaps if Janus’ injuries were less severe, he could work with them in this state, but that prominent gash looks deep and angry, probably about six inches long, wide and painful, rending scales apart and leaking dark blood and god, he is so afraid of making this worse—

Janus stares at him, and doesn’t react.

“I’m sorry,” Thomas says, because he is. He doesn’t know why Janus only initiates contact with him as a snake, doesn’t know why the very idea of deviating from that seems to disquiet him. Asking him to be human now, like this, almost seems wrong, like they’ll be breaking what understanding they do have between them, breaking the peace they’ve found with each other lately. But then, the peace is already broken, he thinks, has been broken since Janus showed up bleeding. “I know you probably don’t want to. But I want to make this better, and I don’t think I can if you’re uh, shaped like this. I… I guess I’m asking you to trust me.”

It’s a tall order, and he is well aware of that. Janus is Deceit, after all, and Deceit is practically the antithesis of trust. He’ll probably have to work with Janus as a snake after all, and he’s just resolving himself to do the best he can when Janus shifts in place, raising his head.

Thomas isn’t sure how to process what happens next. One part of his brain tells him that the change happens slowly, that Janus’ form stretches and morphs in impossible ways, scales fading away and features rearranging before his eyes. The other part of his brain insists that the shift is instantaneous, that it happens as quickly as blinking, that in one moment, there is a snake curled on the counter and in the next, there is a man, with no gradual transition between the two. But however it happens, Janus now sits in front of him, arms and legs all present, hunched in on himself and wheezing. One hand flies to his side, clutching at his shirt.

Thomas blinks. For a second, his mind fights with itself, trying to decide on what, exactly, he just watched. Then, he decides that it doesn’t matter, that he’ll have a crisis about it later, and that there are more important things to concentrate on.

He reaches out, placing a steadying hand on Janus’ shoulder. “Easy, easy,” he says, raising his voice to be audible over Janus’ gasps. “Are you okay?”

It takes a minute for Janus to get his breathing under control, and when he does, he looks up at Thomas, his expression pinched. “Just fine,” he rasps. “Absolutely perfect, can’t you tell?” His voice is strained, tension showing in the lines around his eyes and in the thin set of his mouth. “Really, Thomas, the fuss is hardly necessary. I—” He cuts off with a slight gasp, eyes squeezing shut, and Thomas feels his heart clench.

“Hm, yeah, no, I think I’ve got the right to fuss a little bit,” he says, hoping his voice stays level. He looks him up and down, searching for the injury, and finds nothing; his shirt appears immaculate, his whole outfit as perfectly assembled as usual, not a rip or tear in sight. If it weren’t for the pain on his face, the tremors wracking his frame, Thomas wouldn’t suspect that he was injured at all, and he frowns. “Can you, uh—” He gestures— “take off your shirt, maybe? So I can see where you’re hurt?”

Janus sighs heavily, as though the request has greatly burdened him. He waves one hand in the air, and his shirt and capelet vanish, revealing his bare torso. Under any other circumstance, Thomas might be fascinated by the scales that trail all along his chest and left arm, but right now, his attention centers on the gash bloodying his side, and the thinner scratches that cover him. They all look bigger than they were before, more serious, and he hopes that he didn’t make the wrong decision in requesting him to shift. If it had been a bad idea, he would have refused, right?

“God, Janus,” he says. “What happened?”

Janus sighs again, rolling his eyes. “A mishap in the Imagination,” he says. “Unfortunately, both Roman and Remus designed the place so that its effects stick around even after leaving.”

… Alright. That’s probably something to talk about later; he doesn’t particularly like the reminder that he has no idea how most of the mindscape works. “But I thought you could heal yourselves?” he can’t help but ask. He vividly remembers the day he met Remus, the way that none of his attacks seemed to affect Logan for more than a few seconds.

“We all can, to some degree,” Janus agrees. “It’s more difficult for some of us than it is for others.” He hesitates, and the next words come out slow and almost defensive. “I am capable of it, if I succeed in persuading myself that the problem doesn’t exist in the first place, but in order to do so, I need to sufficiently distance myself from any negative sensations that accompany the harm. I am… currently finding that difficult.” He glares. “I’ll mange perfectly well, given time. There is no need for any of this.” He waves an arm to punctuate the declaration, and it might have been somewhat convincing if it weren’t for the fact that he immediately curls in on himself, face paling, like he’s pulled something the wrong way.

“Yeah, okay,” he says. “Well, how about you let me help you anyway, just for my peace of mind?”

Janus stares at him for a long moment, face unreadable. Finally, he glances away. “Do what you wish,” he says. “If you want to waste time on this, be my guest.”

He hums noncommittally, already inspecting the wound. “I don’t think that taking care of you is a waste of time,” he says, fishing through the first aid kit. He comes up with a bottle of extra-strength Tylenol, looking up just in time to see what can only be an expression of shock fade from Janus’ face, and god, what must he be doing wrong if that is Janus’ reaction to being told that he cares about him? He can’t unpack that right now, or else he might cry, so he holds out the Tylenol instead. “Painkillers?”

Janus nods slightly, and takes two dry. From there, Thomas works in silence, cleaning the wounds as best he can and bandaging them. It takes longer than he expects, and he debates whether or not the long gash will need stitches. He decides not to make the attempt, trusting that what Janus says is true and that he will be able to heal before too long. So he wraps bandages around his torso, and Janus, for his part, remains perfectly still, staring straight ahead, an occasional soft hiss the only thing that betrays his discomfort.

“Okay,” he says quietly, inspecting his handiwork. “I think that’s the best I can do.”

Janus shoots him an unreadable look. “In that case,” he says, “I believe I’ll be going now.”

He hops down from the counter before Thomas can stop him, and his face crumples like a wet sheet of paper. Thomas catches him as his knees give out, hooking his hands under his arms. He is surprisingly light, his skin cool to the touch.

“How about we don’t do that, actually,” he says. “I’ll tell you what, let’s go to my room, and I can work and you can get some rest?”

Janus hisses, trying to jerk away. It’s not difficult to prevent him from doing so; he has all the strength of a floppy pool noodle. “Oh yes, because I’m in dire need of a babysitter,” he spits out, and perhaps Thomas should feel intimidated, but looking at him, at the way all the color has drained from his face, at the way his eyes have glazed over even as they dart around the bathroom, all Thomas can muster up is a deep worry.

“I’m not trying to babysit you,” he says. “Believe me, I know that you of all people don’t need babysitting. But if you try to sink out now, I’m just gonna be stressed out, so if you’d stick around for a little bit, I would really appreciate it.”

Janus stills. The silence stretches on.

“Fine,” Janus says. “Sure. Whatever.”

Thomas restrains himself from letting out a sigh of relief, instead adjusting his grip on Janus until he is only supporting part of his weight. From the look on his face, Janus wants very much to grumble about the indignity of the situation, but miraculously, he remains quiet all the way to Thomas’ room, though he begins to drag his feet when he sees what Thomas intends.

“If you want me to rest,” he says, “I am perfectly capable of doing so in my own room. There’s hardly a need for me to take up space in your bed.”

“Okay,” Thomas says, lowering him to sit on the bedsheets and doing his level best to ignore his glare, “but then I won’t know that you’re alright. Also, I don’t see what the big deal is? It’s not like we haven’t done this before. You were just, uh, snakier.”

He knows immediately that it is the wrong thing to say. Janus’ face sets into an impassive wall, and he looks away, refusing to make eye contact. Thomas can’t tell what he’s feeling, whether it’s anger or embarrassment or frustration or some stubborn combination of the three. But he settles himself against the headboard without further argument, seemingly determined not to carry on any further conversation, so Thomas resigns himself to the silent treatment and sets up with his laptop on the other side of the bed, several inches placed between them.

The atmosphere is awkward, heavy. They both know that Thomas wants to talk, and they both know that Janus will not reply, or if he does, it will be with sharp sarcasm or otherwise cutting words, an answer that will not answer anything at all. So Thomas doesn’t say anything, merely glances over every now and again to be sure that Janus is still there, is still fine, is still breathing. Every time, he is greeted with the same sight: Janus staring off into the empty space in front of him, face blank, a faint tightness around his eyes the only indication that he is still in pain. There is a wall between them, invisible yet insurmountable, and Thomas has no idea how to breach it.

Why does their relationship feel so off-kilter now? Why are things so natural between them when Janus is a snake, small and speechless and cuddly, and not when he is a human?

“I don’t mean to force you to stay,” he murmurs. “If you’re really that uncomfortable, it’s alright if you leave.”

He’s watching him out of the corner of his eye, and as such, he sees the wince, slight though it may be.

“It’s… not that,” Janus admits. “I am grateful for your concern, truly. I just… so love being in unfamiliar territory.” His voice is a quiet drawl, but laced with exhaustion, his words just shy of slurred together.

He takes a second to parse through the words, and then smiles. “Well, that makes two of us,” he says. “I’d be alright with muddling through together. And look, I know that most of the time, when we hang out, you’re a snake. And that’s fine! One hundred percent fine, if that’s what you’re most comfortable with! But uh, I really wouldn’t mind spending more time with you as, like, a person, too, if that makes sense. Not that you’re not a person when you’re a snake! Wait—” He furrows his brow, trying to untangle his words, and looks over, certain that Janus will at least be amused by his rambling.

He’s not. Because Janus is asleep, his chin resting against his chest and his hat about to fall into his lap. Thomas feels an inexorable sense of fondness sweep over him, and with a gentle movement, he reaches over to pluck the hat from Janus’ head, revealing brown hair that falls in springy waves. He places the hat on the nightstand, casting one last look at Janus before returning his attention to his laptop.

There is plenty of work to do, and he is content to do it here, sitting in bed with Janus napping by his side. So he does, his fingers clacking against the keys long into the night, and Janus sleeps on.

-----------

He doesn’t remember falling asleep. But he must, because he wakes, and slowly processes the fact that all is not as he left it. For one, the light is off, the room dark, and his laptop is resting on the nightstand, next to the shadow of Janus’ hat. For another, there is a heavy weight on top of his chest, pinning one of his arms against his side, and in the seconds before his eyes adjust sufficiently to the darkness, he fears the worst, fears that someone has broken into his apartment and… crawled into bed with him, and the irrationality of that idea is enough to dampen his panic. He squints, trying to will his vision into focus, and begins to make out what features he can see of the face pressed against his chest, features that very closely resemble his own, and that is when he remembers: Janus on his arm, Janus injured and bleeding, Janus on his bed, Janus asleep. Janus… still here.

Janus, snuggled up against him, his head resting on his chest, his body curled into his side, latched onto him with both… no, there’s more than two arms. At least four, maybe more; it’s difficult to determine without the light on, because all that Thomas can tell is that he is being very thoroughly hugged, and that it feels very nice.

This fact is distracting enough that it’s a full three minutes or so before he realizes that there is another figure perched on the edge of his bed. Panic roars up in him once again, his heart pounding and the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end, but then he notices the details, notices the poof of the figure’s sleeves, the wildness of their hair silhouetted against the light that creeps around the edges of the doorframe, the unholy red gleam of their eyes. And he… well, he doesn’t relax, not exactly. But most of his fear sidesteps directly into annoyance.

“Remus,” he hisses, as quietly as he can manage. “What are you doing?”

Remus cocks his head, his eyes shining brighter. He’s crouched almost like a grotesque parody of a cat, ready to pounce. But the Duke himself is still and silent, and it’s very odd. Almost worrying. And when he finally speaks, it’s not at all what Thomas was expecting.

“DeeDee got hurt,” he says, voice a subdued whisper, and Thomas is taken aback, both by the seriousness of his tone and the evident consideration toward not waking Janus up.

“I— yeah,” Thomas replies, uncertain as to where this is going. “I, uh, patched him up as best I could. He said he’d heal soon.” A thought occurs to him, and if Janus weren’t keeping him flat on his back, he’d be sitting bolt upright, finger pointed in accusation. “Wait, he said he was hurt in the Imagination. Did you have something to do with that?”

“I can’t keep an eye on every part of La La Land at once, Thomas.” He shrugs. “It’s not my fault if Snake from Snake Farm wandered into something he shouldn’t have.” He giggles, high-pitched and a little manic, but Thomas wonders at his tone of voice. It’s as irreverent as always, but underneath that— can it be concern? He really didn’t think Remus did concern. “Snakes should know better than to let their guard down. Your mind is dark and full of terrors.” He smiles, several rows of pointed white teeth gleaming an unnatural white in the shadows.

“I don’t even watch—” He cuts himself off, shaking his head, and then freezes as Janus makes a small sound. Seconds pass, and he waits with bated breath, but Janus doesn’t seem to wake. “Okay, then,” he continues, more quietly. “Is there a reason why you’re here?”

Remus blinks, and once again, Thomas is reminded of a cat. A terrible, eldritch horror of a cat, but a cat nonetheless. “DeeDee doesn’t like to be around people when he’s hurt,” he says, rocking back and forth in place. “He doesn’t like people knowing when he’s weak.” He sighs through his nose, his breath whistling more than is natural. “He holes up in his room and doesn’t come out for anything, usually. Not even when I bang on the door and put rats in his air vents.”

Thomas stares, trying to process that. “But he’s here with me,” he says dumbly. “He decided to stay here. He’s…” He trails off. He doesn’t need to describe what Janus is doing; surely, Remus can see it for himself, can see them engaging in what can only be labeled as cuddling. And it’s not as if this is the first time; it’s just the first time Janus has been human-shaped.

“Yes, he is,” Remus agrees, voice sharp, and he is definitely trying to convey something here, something that Thomas is missing. “Tommy-boy, Tommy-boy, Tommy-boy, you’re just not getting it, are you? Well, that’s fine. Just remember that the snakes on the plane die too, if the plane crashes.”

“Is the plane crashing?” Thomas asks, voice hoarse, hesitant, and once again, Remus smiles, wide and dangerous.

“Not now, maybe,” he says. “But it still could. It always can. That’s the fun thing about airplanes. I could help with that, if you wanted.”

“No thanks,” Thomas is quick to reply.

Remus shrugs. “Suit yourself,” he says, and then pauses. “Janus doesn’t let just anyone this close, you know. So don’t fuck it up.”

It’s such an uncharacteristic statement that by the time Thomas has recovered enough to reply, Remus is gone, melting into the bedsheets in a grotesque puddle of goo, and then, even that disappears. Thomas is left in a dark, quiet room, and he has never felt more awake.

But Janus is still here, still asleep, is holding onto him for dear life and hiding his face against his chest. And it’s something precious, something intimate, something that Thomas feels privileged to see at all, and Remus’ voice rings loud in his head: Janus doesn’t let just anyone this close. Why, then, has he allowed him this? Why has he let Thomas see him at his most vulnerable, no matter how reluctant he was at the start? Why did he choose to stay, rather than leaving once Thomas nodded off?

Each question only leads to more questions, and it’s clear that he won’t receive any answers tonight. So he settles back in as best he can, though it is a long time before he manages to fall asleep again.

In the morning, Janus is gone. He wishes he could be more surprised.

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

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[noctisfishing]

Milk Buns and Happiness

Summary: On the day before White Day, Hikari questions her heart and her choices after a failed relationship. Eventually, she goes to Takeru to cheer up, not realizing that the answers to happiness were laid out in front of her all along.

Pairing: Takari

Notes: Written for @blondeandconfused. Happy Birthday!! <3

I hope you enjoy this Takari fluff :D

~*~*~*~*~

One afternoon, Hikari took a seat on a bench near the front of the high school. She caught within her earshot a group of students chatting about the next day being White Day, and about their plans of giving return gifts to the admirers who had spoiled them on Valentine's Day. They were all smiles, but Hikari could only feel the opposite.

"Are you alright, Hikari?"

A rustling of leaves from above her followed by a gentle drop at her side told Hikari that Tailmon appeared next to her. She noticed the look of concern on Tailmon's face.

"I'll be okay, Tailmon," Hikari said. "I just feel bad that I had to break up with Hideki."

It had been a week since Hikari delivered the news to her now ex-boyfriend Hideki, and although she tried to stay cheerful, the breakup left her feeling glum since then.

"You were just following your heart, weren't you?" Tailmon asked.

"Yeah."

But her heart always seemed to let her down in the end. Hideki was a nice, friendly guy in her class. She liked to hang out with him, and he treated her well to make the rest of the class jealous.

Being with him just didn't feel right. But Hikari still felt guilty.

Tailmon tilted her head, frowning. Then, she crawled onto Hikari's lap and nuzzled herself against her chest.

Hikari patted Tailmon's head gently. Digimon were unfamiliar with the topic of romance and breakups, so Hikari knew that Tailmon was at a loss of what to say. Still, Tailmon wanted to comfort her in that moment, and it got her to crack a smile.

"Maybe you should talk to Takeru?" Tailmon asked. "You're always happy when you're around him, and he knows how to cheer you up."

"Well, he's busy right now," Hikari replied. "Knowing him, he left his White Day gifts for his admirers at the last minute."

Somehow, that made Hikari even sadder.

"He always makes time for the friends that he cares about."

Knowing that Tailmon would persist, Hikari stood up, carrying her in her arms. "Alright, Tailmon. I'll give him a call later. But I'd like to go home first. Maybe a quiet stroll back with you can give me time to think."

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Oh, you're here, Hikari," Taichi said as he entered the apartment.

Hikari sat on the couch with Tailmon on her lap and Agumon leaning against her side, all of them watching TV together.

"I haven't been going out much, lately," she replied, and she was certain that Taichi had understood why. Before last week, much of her time outside of her classes was spent with Hideki.

As Taichi took off his shoes and set his school bag down, Hikari thought about how he handled romance and heartache. He was always comfortable with her in talking about a girl he spent time with, and he would answer her questions whenever she asked them.

When he sat down on the other side of Agumon, Hikari couldn't help but ask:

"How do you know when you love someone?"

Taichi turned to her, startled at the question.

"Uh, well…" He seemed to hesitate more as both Agumon and Tailmon seemed to stare just as intently while they waited for an answer. "I guess you just feel it. If it's in your heart that you want to be with that someone, you kind of just go for it."

"And what if my heart was wrong?"

Taichi sighed, rubbing the back of his head. "There's no easy way to say it, really. None of us are perfect. We'll go on what we feel is right, and what we think will make us happy. It won't always work out the way you wanted it to in the end, but, hey, at least you went for it."

After a few moments, Hikari turned to look at him. "Are you still thinking about the cookies?"

"I'm always thinking about the cookies."

Taichi stared at Hikari as though he waited for her reaction, and she stared back, trying hard to hold back her laughter. She couldn't.

"I think about cookies, too!" said Agumon

"I wouldn't mind some right now," added Tailmon.

Hikari knew that Taichi was smiling at her as she giggled for the next few moments.

"Thanks, Onii-chan."

"Sure."

Then Hikari looked down at Tailmon and shared a smile, and sat back to return her attention to the TV. She heard the crinkle of wrapping paper from Taichi and from the corner of her eye she saw that he was holding some pastries.

"Well, I don't have any cookies, Agumon, but I've got some milk buns if you'd like."

"Yes, please!"

"Have some, too, Hikari, Tailmon." Taichi held out two in front of them. Tailmon grabbed one and started munching on it happily, and Hikari reached for hers, recognizing the style of the sesame seeds decorated on top.

"You went to Takeru's favorite bakery," said Hikari.

"Yeah," Taichi said with his mouth full. "I can taste why, too. Give him a 'thank you' from me when you get the chance."

Taichi's reaction about Takeru was different than it usually was. At worst, he would grumble whenever Takeru joined Hikari at teasing him as well as Yamato - which neither younger sibling could help. But Hikari saw how highly Takeru thought of Taichi, and the only way to improve the current moment was seeing the bright smile on Takeru's face from hearing Taichi himself.

"I'm sure he'll appreciate it."

Then, Hikari picked up her phone, with her first instinct to send a message to Takeru. The thought of visiting the bakery with him was bringing some cheer to her mood, and she wanted to do what she told Tailmon she would do, anyway.

Takeru had texted her first.

"How are you holding up?" he asked.

"Are you free? Let's meet up at the train station," Hikari answered.

Takeru followed up with an immediate response: "Be right there."

"I guess I'll send him your message sooner than I thought," Hikari told Taichi as she and Tailmon got up from the couch and headed toward the door.

"Don't cause too much trouble," he said, slouching into the couch.

"I'll get him to go with me to the bakery so that we can buy more milk buns. He'll probably want some help picking out something special for his White Day gifts tomorrow, too."

"Wait." Taichi sat up straight. "Tomorrow's White Day?!"

Hikari closed the front door without responding to him.

"He just told you not to cause too much trouble, and you're already starting for him," Tailmon pointed out.

"He'll live," Hikari said, continuing down the corridor.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Takeru greeted Hikari with a long, warm hug.

"You're smiling a little more today," he told her.

"Who wouldn't be happy to see you, Takeru?" Patamon piped up, sitting on top of Takeru's hat.

Takeru grinned. "So, Hikari, where to?"

"I thought you'd have some place in mind, you know, with all of the White Day specials going on," she said.

"Hmm. I'm not too worried about that. Besides, you're usually better at knowing the best places to shop. Maybe I'll be inspired wherever you lead me."

"Alright, then…" Hikari eyed him suspiciously. What was he planning for White Day? She took note of the stark difference in reactions between Takeru's calm demeanor and Taichi's sudden panic. Taichi must have had at least one gift on Valentine's Day that he wanted to return a gift for, and knowing Takeru and seeing the handfuls of chocolates he received, he was likely to have similar intentions.

"How about we head over to the cafe first? I'm craving a parfait," Hikari decided.

Both Tailmon and Patamon's eyes widened with excitement.

At the cafe, Hikari ordered a parfait with matcha and strawberry for herself, and let the Digimon partners order a chocolate parfait to share. Takeru ordered a cafe latte.

While waiting for their orders, Takeru told Hikari his story about running into Daisuke, Iori, and Ken earlier that day. He mentioned how Daisuke complained about an exam and Ken arguing with him about complaining too much. Iori stood there, watching them, but he and Takeru could only look at each other and sigh helplessly.

Hikari laughed as she pictured the encounter, and from the way Takeru told her about it. She enjoyed listening to his stories.

"Miyako thinks you're hiding from her," Takeru added. "She's been worried about you."

Hikari thought Miyako might have been just as helpless as the rest of her friends. "I did tell her I needed space."

"I get that, Hikari, really, I do. Even if, for a while, I thought you were hiding from me, too."

Surprised, Hikari looked into Takeru's eyes from across the table. She had seen that same look of concern in the past, back when she fell into darkness and her mind was clouded with thoughts of hopelessness. Perhaps the breakup was taking her back to that same place.

Back then, Takeru had found her and helped her out of that mess. Was it fair to keep him in the dark again?

"I'm sorry, Takeru," Hikari began, feeling guilty.

"No - I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that knowing what was going on. And especially since we see Hideki every day…"

The somber mood at the table seemed to change the moment the parfaits arrived. Both Patamon and Tailmon gasped in delight and gathered around their chocolate parfait, and Hikari took her spoon to scoop up the first bite of hers.

"Delicious…" Hikari said, suddenly in bliss.

"Welcome back," Takeru said jokingly.

She eagerly offered spoonfuls to Patamon and Tailmon, then to Takeru who followed up with a critique as he usually did whenever she shared her food with him. Hikari gathered that he inherited that habit from his older brother, Yamato, whose critiques were a complete opposite of Takeru's. When comparing the two, Hikari was grateful that she got along with the brother whose critiques were in her favor.

Halfway through eating her parfait, Hikari observed her Digimon partner relishing the chocolate parfait along with Patamon. She looked over to Takeru who appeared to be at peace as he held the large coffee cup to his lips and drank it slowly.

When they weren't laughing and joking with each other, Hikari found comfort in the moments of silence with Takeru.

Once the parfait glasses were empty and Takeru took his last sip, he set his large cup down. "Where to next?" Takeru asked her.

"Wanna hit the bookstore?" Hikari asked back. "It's been forever since I've gone to one."

"As you wish."

Once they were all finished, they headed toward the bookstore, but not before Takeru took care of the bill.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Hikari was going to all of the stores that she wanted, and Takeru didn't seem to mind at all. After Hikari found a new book that she was excited to find on the shelves, she led Takeru and the Digipals to the accessory shop, where she found a cute pair of earrings. Then, they went into a pet store, where Hikari caught the attention of a Kishu puppy. Squealing with joy, she picked him up and cradled him in his arms.

"Tailmon, look!" she said, the Kishu nuzzling his cheek against her. "Isn't he so cute?"

"Hmph," Tailmon said, turning away unimpressed.

Patamon sat atop Takeru's head, staring at the Kishu in amazement.

"He looks like a new friend!" Patamon exclaimed.

Hikari and Takeru exchanged knowing looks, and Hikari set the Kishu down on the floor. Takeru let Patamon fly down, and the puppy yelped with glee while Patamon a few inches above him, flapping his wings in greeting.

As Patamon attempted to include Tailmon with their playtime, Hikari stood beside Takeru from afar. In that moment, she realized that she was in a much better mood than she had been all week.

"Can I be honest with you?" she asked Takeru, who was cradling a kitten that was dozing off in his arms.

"When aren't you?" he asked.

"I've been wondering why I've been so down about the breakup, when I wasn't happy being with Hideki, after all."

Takeru turned to her to listen.

"He wasn't a fan of animals," she continued. "We liked some of the same music, TV shows, and movies, but he didn't seem interested in talking about them. Especially not about books. And whenever we ate food together, he wanted to stick to whatever was on his plate."

"That sounds like all the things you don't like."

He wasn't that great of a kisser, either," she added, which she instantly regretted once Takeru gave her a look. "Don't get me wrong. He was sweet and really caring. I had fun. But I get it - everyone's different and that's okay. I don't blame him for any of it. I just blame myself for being together with him for so long even though I knew it wasn't right."

"At least you did what was right for yourself, Hikari. It's okay to think it was right at first but be wrong later on. We're human, and we make mistakes."

A soft purr was heard near Takeru's chest. They both looked to see the kitten was stirring from its slumber.

"Hideki's been down, just like you," Takeru went on. "But it's hard not to be after a breakup. He'll get better, and I know you will, too. You're recognizing a mistake and learning from it. Maybe one day, I'll get over my mistake, too."

Hikari raised her brow. "What do you mean by that?"

The kitten's meowing grew louder and began to fidget even more. Takeru was left no choice but to turn around to return the kitten to the store. When Hikari returned to Tailmon, she found her stare grumpily ahead while the Kishu licked her cheek while Patamon giggled madly.

~*~*~*~*~*~

As she promised Taichi, Hikari made sure to stop by the bakery - Takeru's favorite one. She bought a dozen milk buns to bring home to Taichi. Everyone also indulged in sample slices of the bakery's chocolate castella cakes, which Hikari thought were delicious but didn't want to bring too many sweets home.

"Is there anything else you want?" Takeru asked. "It'll be my treat."

"Takeru, you've done so much for me already, I can't even begin to thank you for today-"

"Please, Hikari. I want to do this for you."

Maybe it was the way his voice lowered or how firm his tone was, but it somehow caught Hikari off guard.

"W-Well, fine…" she stammered, her face warming up, but she thought of her most favorite pastry. "One chocolate cornet."

"Just one?"

"Okay, two. One for Tailmon."

Takeru stared at her long and hard.

"Three. Three chocolate cornets," was her final answer.

Takeru gave her a playful smirk - a favorite expression of hers on him - but it seemed to fluster her even more at that moment.

"Hikari?" Tailmon asked, her ears perked up and her eyes wide with curiosity.

"I'm fine," Hikari replied in a hush, even as her heart was racing.

When Hikari thought that Takeru and Patamon were going to part ways with her and Tailmon, Takeru decided to walk them home and carry the bag of pastries for her. She went along with it, given that he was her best friend and she was comfortable being around him.

There was also the fact that she wanted to stay with him as long as she possibly could.

"Are you sure you're ready for White Day?" Hikari asked while she walked alongside him.

Takeru laughed. "Why are you so concerned about it?"

"I'm skeptical. You don't seem concerned at all, and I know you want to make sure that a girl knows how special she is."

Only their footsteps were heard after that, and Hikari began to wonder whether she said something that troubled him. But she heard him laughing again.

"Funny you should say that, Hikari. You're right. Maybe I should be concerned."

"Really, now? What changed your mind?"

"The fact that I've been trying to do that all afternoon, yet, you still have no idea."

"...What?"

Hikari stopped in her tracks, and so did Takeru. Patamon and Tailmon stopped as well, staying a few feet behind and looking on in confusion.

"This… might not be the right time, Hikari," he began. "Maybe you still need space, but I just couldn't wait anymore."

"He's shaking…" Patamon said softly, to which Tailmon quickly shushed him.

When Hikari looked down at his hands, including the one that held the bag of pastries, she saw that he was trying to hide it.

"Can I be honest with you?" Takeru asked her.

"Of course," Hikari replied, her voice soft, and she felt uncertain as to what he was about to say next.

"I was never ready for White Day. I never planned on returning gifts to anyone this year. I just planned on sitting this one out."

"Oh…"

Takeru chuckled, and Hikari could sense that he was nervous. "But the more I thought about it, the more I realized there was only one person I wanted to spend it with. I just didn't know how to tell her, given the circumstances…"

"And… what are the circumstances?" Hikari asked.

"That she's got a broken heart, and I want to be the one to mend it."

Hikari's breath caught in her throat. At that point, it was obvious where this conversation was headed, and she believed that Takeru would reach his point in due time.

But she still wanted to help him get there.

"Maybe you should back up a little. How long have you felt this way about her?"

"Since that summer in 1999."

Hikari gasped. "That long?!"

"Isn't that when we all first met?" Patamon chirped from afar.

"But, Takeru…" Hikari stared at him, awestruck. "All these years, you've never said anything."

"Well, I wanted to play it cool, and let her go her own way while I went mine. Yet, the longer we knew each other, the closer we became. It just got harder to figure out how I felt, and harder to understand what my heart really wanted."

"So then, how did you feel whenever she had a new boyfriend?"

"I wanted to feel happy for her. I wanted to believe that if she was happy, then I would be, too. But, I just couldn't be happy."

Hikari realized then, that Takeru had been unhappy, even when she was in her relationship with Hideki. He was doing the same thing that she was - following his own heart thinking that it was right, even when it wasn't.

"It was different whenever I was with her, though. The way she smiled like the sun and her laugh sounded like a melody. Whenever she was happy, I felt it, too. Seeing her sad, I felt it just as much."

For a moment, listening to Takeru speak of a girl with beautiful similes made Hikari feel jealous. Then, she remembered exactly who he was talking about.

Her cheeks flushed as the thought set in. Crossing her arms, Hikari asked her next question.

"So, she's got a broken heart, huh? How were you thinking about mending it?"

"Oh - that's easy. I figured I'd start by taking her out and reminding her of all the things that brought her joy."

The parfait, the books, the earrings, the adorable pets, and the chocolate cornets that sat on top of the box of a dozen milk buns in the bag that Takeru was still carrying for her.

"But you let her choose where to go."

"A broken heart cannot be fixed without the owner's permission. I wanted to let her wander freely. It's the most surefire way to see her smile. And I knew - well, I hoped - that spending time with me was an even better way."

Contrary to his words, Hikari felt her eyes beginning to water.

"I've never given you anything for Valentine's Day, Takeru," she croaked. "I've teased you about the girls you've flirted with, and supported you for the girls you were actually serious about. How could you be serious about me? When you've seen me make mistakes that I'm bound to make again?"

"Hikari, you've given me more than you'll ever know after all these years. I could give you all of the gifts in the world and I still don't feel like it would ever be enough." Takeru gripped the handles of the bag in his hand. "I've made a mistake, too. The mistake of letting your heart break more than once. I love you too much to let that happen again."

"You love me?"

Tears streamed down Hikari's face. Were they of sadness? No, she knew that it couldn't be. Fear? Maybe. The fear of following her heart one more time - she could feel that. But there was something else she felt from those tears, something she hadn't felt with anyone else.

It was hope.

Takeru stepped closer to Hikari, and every step towards her made her heart beat faster. Her mind had gone blank, she couldn't find the words to respond, and she held her breath just as he stopped in front of her, only inches between them.

"Hey, now…" Takeru said with a gentle smile, and Hikari gave way for his hands to brush her tears away. "The girl I'm in love with hasn't told me how she felt. Don't leave me hanging."

Hikari looked into Takeru's bright blue eyes and thought about her time with him up until that moment. Deep down, she knew her feelings had been there all along, but they had never been brought to light until now.

This time, it just felt right.

"I love you, Takeru," Hikari said. "I always have."

"Wait, really?" Takeru asked, now searching her eyes which were now watering again.

"Really."

That was when Takeru leapt forward, throwing his arms around her and closing the gap between them with a kiss.

Hikari was stunned. Her arms fell at her sides as Takeru held her tightly with his lips pressed against hers. He pulled away a moment later, watching her and waiting for a response that she was too stunned to give. The look in his eyes told her that he was starting to doubt himself.

But she never wanted him to, not when she shared the same feelings for him. Reaching for Takeru's shoulders, Hikari pulled him close and lifted herself up to kiss him back.

It was a few moments until she heard a giggle behind her. Patamon and Tailmon had been watching them all along, although they looked at them both patiently and with adoration.

Had she not realized that Patamon and Tailmon were still there with them, Hikari would have kept her lips on his a little bit longer.

"We should probably keep walking," Hikari said, giggling nervously with her face feeling hot. "I want to see Taichi's face when we bring these milk buns home to him."

"You know what, me too," Takeru responded in agreement, although his cheeks were tinged with pink.

Patamon flew up to Takeru's hat and Tailmon joined Hikari at her other side as they continued to walk. Hikari didn't realize until a few feet ahead that Takeru had slid his free hand onto holding hers.

"Is this okay?" he asked.

Hikari interlocked her fingers with his. "Of course it is."

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Oops, I forgot the key," Hikari said once they reached the door to the apartment. She knocked on the door, knowing that Taichi was home, but grew annoyed after a few minutes had passed.

"Maybe he isn't home?" Takeru asked.

Hikari groaned. "I'll just text him."

Once she set her phone down, she saw from the corner of her eye that Takeru was watching her.

"What is it?"

He must not have realized what he was doing, because the next moment he looked away with a new blush forming on his cheeks.

"It's nothing," was his casual but nervous response.

Hikari had realized then, that Takeru was always watching her, and she was slowly beginning to understand why. He was always looking out for her, encouraging her with no other explanation other than love.

"Takeru," she said.

"Hmm?"

"That chocolate cake from earlier. You've still got some on your face."

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah. For someone who cared about how he looked, I would've thought you'd notice."

"Maybe I'm just too comfortable around you to care."

"Let me." Hikari lifted her finger towards the corner of his mouth, drawing herself towards him.

Takeru might have figured it out seconds before, but he didn't have crumbs to begin with. It might have been why, after Hikari lightly brushed his cheek with her hand, he accepted her kiss that followed.

And that was when the door finally opened. Both Hikari and Takeru broke off the kiss and turned to Taichi with their arms around each others' waists.

Taichi appeared to be at a loss for words. Hikari took a moment to exchange a glance with Takeru before turning to Taichi again.

"Hey, Onii-chan," Hikari said with a smile. "I was wondering when you were going to answer the door.

"Are you two being serious right now?" Taichi asked.

"Hikari bought you milk buns," Takeru replied, lifting the bag forward nonchalantly. "There's a dozen in here."

"Didn't you say you wanted to thank Takeru for suggesting them?" Hikari added.

Taichi was confused. "How are you not answering me? When did you two become a thing?"

With a grin, Takeru replied, "You're welcome, Taichi. I told you they were amazing."

"Did I hear more milk buns?" Agumon asked behind Taichi.

"Fine, I'll leave the subject for now." Taichi took the bag of pastries from Takeru. "But you better have an explanation for me later, Hikari."

Taichi walked back into the apartment, leaving Takeru and Hikari in a fit of giggles.

"I guess the cornets are for me, too?" Taichi asked loudly from further in. "I know these can't be your favorite, Hikari…"

"He's messing with you, now," Takeru told Hikari, wearing a smirk.

"I can deal with it. I won't let him take away your gift from me."

"Even if he does, I'll just buy you more tomorrow."

Hikari knew that if she told him that he didn't have to, he would still buy her gifts regardless, so she settled for responding with another kiss before they finally said goodnight.

When Hikari and Tailmon entered the apartment, they found Taichi and Agumon at the kitchen counter, both with milk buns in their hands. Taichi had left the cornets on the side to give to Hikari, who, after a few more minutes of dancing around the subject and aggravating Taichi, finally confirmed that she and Takeru were an item.

"It was about time you two confessed," Taichi said. "I'm happy for you."

And now, knowing that her feelings were out in the open, and her heart was going in the right direction, so was she.

[haledamage]

Silent fury for whoever you want :3

(Jester Sending voice) GUESS WHO IT IS~

it's Nadia/Kurt again 😅 shocking, I know. I let them actively flirt this time! though they still aren't in a relationship yet...

spoilers for Kurt's 3rd companion quest and the story stuff that precedes it

---

“I’m going to get us some drinks,” Kurt announced as soon as they stepped into the Coin Tavern in San Matheus, eyeing the evening crowd suspiciously. “You think you can stay out of trouble until I get back?”

“No promises,” Nadia said with an impish grin.

He glowered at her. She winked in response.

He walked away with a shake of his head, and she found them an open table in a corner, sliding into a chair that left her back to the wall and let her see most of the room. She saved Kurt his preferred seat, the one directly in the corner that would best let him see the door.

Trouble inevitably found her only minutes later, in the form of a young Guardsman wearing the regalia of the Red Sun regiment. He saluted her nervously, looking over his shoulder at the tavern’s crowd before asking, “Are you the Legate de Sardet?”

“I am.” She gave him her most charming smile, trying not to look like the last thing she wanted right now was to work. “Do you need something?”

Without any more preamble, the soldier pulled a knife and lunged at her. She dove backwards to avoid it, knocking her chair over with a clatter. When he swung at her again, she caught his wrist, using his momentum to twist his arm behind his back and slam him face first into the table.

The knife slipped out of his numb fingers and Nadia grabbed it before it could fall, pressing it to his throat. “Is this the fabled honor of the Coin Guard?” she hissed, any hint of kindness in her voice frozen over. “Attacking an unarmed woman in a bar?”

His eyes were very green and very wide as panic and the realization that he lost started to set in. “I’m sorry! Please don’t kill me! I was only following orders.”

She inspected the boy’s face. He was quite young to be sent after someone of Nadia’s reputation; if he was over sixteen, she’d eat her hat. He was also clearly terrified, but it didn’t seem to be her he was afraid of--at least, not entirely. Though the knife she held likely made a compelling argument in her favor. “Who sent you?”

“They said that you’re responsible for the fall of the Guard,” he blurted out. “They’ve given orders to attack on sight.”

Even with her compelling argument at his throat he still wasn't telling her any names. That meant one of two things: either he didn't know their names, or he was blindly obedient to the point of suicide. A remnant of the ghost company, she’d wager; if she was wrong, she’d eat her gloves too.

She seethed in silent fury at the people responsible. The ones that had taken children like this one, like Wilhelm and Reiner and even Kurt, once upon a time, and tried to turn them into puppets and monsters.

Nadia pushed it away, swallowing it down until it wouldn’t show. He would take her reaction for pity rather than sympathy; they always did. She bottled it up so she could turn it into action later, when she finally met the infamous Major Hermann.

She let the boy go, but stood in a way that he wouldn’t be able to run without going through her. “Hmm. I did it all on my own, did I? Not much of a coup if it could be foiled by one woman acting alone. But I suppose they know better than to send you directly after Kurt, or Sieglinde, or Manfred, or any of the other honorable members of the Guard, and so they sent you to me.” She felt a presence at her back, solid and warm and familiar enough that she knew who it was without looking. “Hello, Kurt.”

Somehow, the boy’s eyes got wider. “Captain!” He fumbled an attempted salute.

“At ease, cadet.” Kurt almost sounded casual enough to hide his anger. “What’s this?”

“You know me,” Nadia said, false cheer taking the edge off the lingering chill in her voice. “Making new friends wherever I go.”

“He tried to kill you, didn’t he?” She couldn’t see his face, but whatever was there was frightening enough that the cadet tried to step back, practically climbing onto the table in his haste to escape.

She hummed in affirmation, presenting him the knife. He took from her and inspected it wordlessly. “Likely on Hermann’s command. Or his lackeys. Lad doesn’t know any better. Just following orders.” She was starting to hate those three words. The things men would try to justify under the guise of ‘following orders’ enraged her.

“You’re damn lucky she was alone when you staged your little attempt. Her Excellency is much more polite than I.” Kurt grabbed the young soldier by the front of his doublet and dragged him close, voice dropping into a growl, low and dangerous. “You ever try to touch her again and you had better start swimming, because there’s nowhere on this island you can hide from me.” He released the boy abruptly enough that he stumbled. “Go.”

He didn’t need to be told twice. He ran out of the tavern without looking back.

Kurt immediately turned to Nadia, all his anger forgotten and replaced by a concerned frown. “Are you hurt?”

She tried not to appear too flustered, but her heart always skipped a beat when he got all growly and protective like that. There was something very attractive about watching him lose his cool on her behalf. His sudden proximity wasn’t helping matters, his hands gently skimming her sides, her stomach, down her arms, touching her face, searching for any sign of injury or distress.

She caught them and forced them still. They came to rest on her waist, and he finally looked up at her again. “I’m fine, Kurt. He didn’t even get close. You taught me better than that.”

His shoulders dropped with relief. “I should’ve known better than to leave you alone.”

“At least we know we’re in the right place.” She rested her hands on his arms, just above the elbow, in an attempt to offer comfort. She could only imagine how hard all of this was for him, especially on top of… well, everything else. It had been a rough week for them both. “If Hermann is sending terrified child assassins after me this quickly, he must be somewhere in the city.”

“I think you’re right.” His expression went distant, calculating, already planning two steps ahead. Then he shook it off, and his attention returned to her once more. “Be that as it may, Green Blood, I’m not leaving your side until he’s dealt with. Not for anything.”

Her eyebrows shot up, nearly disappearing under the brim of her hat. “Then I guess it's a good thing my bed’s big enough for two.”

Kurt’s ears and the back of his neck flushed red at the obvious suggestion in her words, but at the same time his gray eyes went storm dark, dangerous in a new and exciting way. His hands clenched on her waist, drawing her just the slightest bit closer. "Yes, well..." he cleared his throat, but his voice still came out a touch raspier than normal, “we should… concentrate on the job at hand. For now.”

Despite his words, however, he made no move to release her, or even to put any distance between them.

It was tempting to see what happened if she pushed the subject, but Nadia decided against it. He was right. This was important, and it needed to be done before someone got hurt. For now would have to keep her warm until then.

Reluctantly, she stepped back, putting a little space between them, her hands slowly sliding down his arms until they fell away. She set aside the spark that had been kindling there in the same place she put her anger - not extinguished, just banked, and waiting for a chance to reignite.

With one last deep, fortifying breath, she turned her back on Kurt and picked up her fallen chair, dropping into it and sliding one of the mugs on the table closer. She hadn’t even noticed him setting them down, wasn’t entirely sure when he’d found time between threatening her would-be assassin and fretting over her well-being, but she let it go.

After a few seconds, he sat down next to her. His arm draped over the back of her chair in a motion that probably looked relaxed to anyone who wasn’t close enough to feel the tension rolling off of him. She leaned into it anyway, letting him pretend it was an affectionate gesture instead of a protective one, that he wasn’t scanning the room like everyone else had also been sent to assassinate her.

“So why are we here?” she attempted to clear the strained atmosphere. “Waiting for someone?”

“Letting ourselves be seen.” Kurt took a long drink from his ale. “I want him to know we’re here. Men like Hermann get stupid when they get scared.”

She was starting to catch up with his thinking. This tavern was owned by the Coin Guard. A once-respected and decorated Major like their quarry would still bend a few sympathetic ears in a place like this. Their presence here was an open taunt. "And do things like send children to kill diplomats in a bar full of witnesses? Especially a diplomat known to travel with a Captain of the Guard as her personal bodyguard?"

He grunted in agreement. “Exactly. He sent that poor boy here to be killed. To make us draw first blood. Now he’ll run straight back to his masters and tell them what happened.” His voice was as dark and bitter as smoke, but when he turned to face Nadia, he wore a soft, if small, smile. He lifted his mug as if in a toast. “So tonight, I get to have a few drinks in a decent tavern with a beautiful woman. And tomorrow, the work begins.”

She tapped her cup against his. “You’re enjoying this. Scaring the ghosts.”

“So are you.”

“I did learn from the best.” She meant it. Nadia would have been a very different person without him in her life all these years; she liked to think he felt the same way.

But whether he did or not, he clearly still didn’t know how to take a compliment. “Flattery,” he said dryly, looking more amused than anything else. “And where do you expect that to get you, Your Excellency?”

“Most likely, alone in my large, very comfortable bed.”

Kurt chuckled, and the sound was like warm brandy on a cold day, sending heat curling through her. “I guess we’ll have to wait and see.”

[spencers-renaissance]

All Roads Lead Home

Summary: Spencer's working the Christmas Eve shift when a young boy with a hurt arm comes into the ER. Nothing out of the ordinary, except his rather flirty dad and leaving later with an extra phone number in his contacts list...

Tags: fluff, hospital au, christmas fic, first date, getting together, gentleman aaron, soft spencer

Pairing: Hotch x Reid

Word Count: 2.1k

Masterlist // Read on AO3

Spencer’s never really minded the Christmas Eve shift in the ER: it’s often fairly quiet, only the odd accident here and there to one extent or the other, what with most people holed up at home with family by now. Everyone working tries to make it as jolly as possible, nurses wearing elf hats and wrangling as many doctors into santa ones as possible, and Christmas music plays on the hospital radio. Plus, it’s something for him to do. He usually spends Christmas Day with his friends, but Christmas Eve can be long and drawn out, so spending it at the hospital helping people is the perfect solution, really. The bonus pay doesn’t hurt either.

It certainly proves to be true when he pulls open the curtain to treatment four to reveal a criminally attractive man and his son who’s clearly in quite a state, tears streaming down his face as he heaves great big sobs. 

“Hi,” he says, deciding to focus on the situation at hand and not the ruggedly sexy man trying to calm his son down, “I’m Dr Reid, how can I help?”  

“Well, Jack got a little over-excited when playing with his friends earlier,” the man explains, ruffling his son’s hair gently, “and slipped in the snow. He’s in quite a lot of pain so I thought it was best to get it checked out today so we can enjoy Christmas properly tomorrow.” He smiles fondly down at Jack before looking back up at Spencer hopefully.

“I’m sure we can get it all figured out in no time,” Spencer says reassuringly before bending down slightly to level himself with Jack, who's cradling his arm protectively. “Okay, buddy, do you mind if I have a little look at that arm there?” 

As soon as he tries to reach for Jack’s arm, he sobs even harder begging him not to touch it, so Spencer decides to switch tactics. “Hey, Jack, do you want to see a magic trick?” he asks encouragingly. 

Even through his tears, Jack nods eagerly, so Spencer wastes no time in showing him one of his favourite tricks, instantly captivating him with his deft hand movements, distracting him enough to slow down his sobs. By the time he’s pulling a penny from behind his ear, Jack’s cries have calmed down enough for him to smile excitedly. 

He takes the opportunity to conduct his examination as quickly as possible, noting how much pain Jack seemed to be in. “Now, you’ve been quite the brave little soldier but how about I get you some medicine for the pain, hey?” 

He waits for Jack’s nod before looking to the nurse working with him and requesting 25mcgs of fentanyl. “We’ll start with a relatively low dose but if Jack’s still in pain after that we can adjust it to make him as comfortable as possible okay?” Spencer says, checking to make sure they’re both happy before administering the medicine. “Now, we need to get you up to radiology to do an x-ray just to check if there’s a fracture, but until then, hang tight. You did so well, Jack.” He gives both of them a warm smile before walking up to the nurses’ station and ordering the exam. 

He doesn’t give the interaction much more thought until an hour later when he’s stood at the vending machine suddenly desperate for a coffee and craving something sweet. “Oh, Dr Reid!”

Spinning round to see who called him, he sees Jack’s father a few metres away, walking up to him. “Mr Hotchner, hi,” he says, smiling a little. “How’s Jack doing?”

“He’s just getting his cast on actually,” he explains, matching Spencer’s smile. “Turns out it was fractured after all, but with the pain medicine kicking in, he wanted to be a big boy and have it done without daddy there.” 

“Well, as soon as he gets back to school, he’ll be king of the playground,” Spencer points out. “These sorts of things end up actually making most kids happy in a funny kind of way.” 

“Ah, he’s already brainstorming how to get the most signatures possible,” he replies, shaking his head with a fond smile lighting up his face. “I wanted to thank you, actually, for being so good with Jack earlier. You really helped calm him down.”

“Oh, please, it’s not a problem!” Spencer says, waving a hand. “Kids are the best part of this job. Getting to flex my magic muscles is just as fun for me” 

“No, seriously, it meant a lot to me. Let me buy you a coffee?”

“Oh… Mr Hotchner, you really don’t need to--”

“Call me Aaron,” he interjects, grinning invitingly. “And I really do insist.”

Well. How could Spencer say no to that? He absolutely does not check Aaron’s left hand for a wedding ring as he lets himself be guided to a table in the cafeteria, but he can’t even feel guilty about it because Aaron’s giving him a certain kind of look that holds promises, and damn if that doesn’t stir something in Spencer’s gut, a spark of unfettered excitement shooting down his spine. 

“Thank you,” Spencer says earnestly as Aaron comes back from the counter with two coffees and pastries, “this is exactly what I needed.”

“You’re a saint for working on Christmas Eve,” he replies warmly. “And you’ve made what could’ve been a pretty rotten day much better, so it’s the least I could do.” 

“Well, I appreciate it,” Spencer smiles, looking down at his hands wrapped tightly around his coffee cup bashfully for a moment. “So, what are your plans for Christmas?”

“We keep it lowkey,” Aaron says after a mouthful of hot coffee. “A nice slow morning of treats and toys before we head to my late wife’s family’s house for a meal and presents in the evening.”

“That sounds lovely,” he replies, choosing to brush past the mention of Aaron’s late spouse; in his experience that only tends to make things awkward. “I’m sure Jack appreciates still seeing that side of his family.”

“Oh, he does,” he chuckles in response. “But so do I, I’m not that close with my own family so having a relationship with Haley’s really means a lot to both of us. Anyway, what about you?”

“I spend Christmas with my friends, actually. My mother lives in Las vegas, but it’s kind of hard to see her anyway,” Spencer says, decidedly not elaborating on that. “Most of my friends have family living out of state or no family at all, so we all go to Derek’s and spend it there, it’s actually a really nice tradition.”

“Definitely,” Aaron agrees. “Well, since we’re both occupied tomorrow, how do you feel about going to dinner with me after Christmas?”

“Really?” Spencer asks, suddenly feeling a little shy. 

“Of course,” Aaron says, face open in a refreshing kind of way. “That is, if you want to. There’s obviously no pressure, but I’d really like to take you out.”

“No, I definitely want to,” Spencer says quickly, reaching out a hand across the table to brush Aaron’s on instinct, the embarrassment he feels once he realises what he’s done dissipating when Aaron interlocks their fingers, keeping him close. “I was just surprised, is all. Spend Christmas with your family, but I’d love to see you afterwards.”

“Perfect,” Aaron smiles warmly. “Hand me your phone?”

⭐️

The rest of his shift flies by and Spencer spends Christmas in a much better mood than he has done in years. His friends needle him for details but it sort of feels sacred, he doesn’t want to say how he feels out loud, much less what he hopes for lest he jinx it. It’s on Boxing Day that his phone chimes with a text. He’s in the kitchen putting together a sandwich full of Christmas leftovers, but he abandons it in an instant as hope flares in his chest. 

Hope you had a good Christmas. Tell me about it at dinner tomorrow night? - Aaron

He can’t stop a ridiculous smile from spreading across his lips, but he can’t find the heart to care; he hasn’t felt like this for a long time, the idea of spending more time with such an intriguing person who seemed to hold so many possibilities excited him beyond belief. 

Absolutely. Pick me up at 7? - S

Shoot me your address. - Aaron

The 27th of December passes in much the way it always does, languid and lazy, but it feels even more tortuous this year with the promise of a romantic dinner with Aaron Hotchner, the man who managed to make him feel so much in such a short period of time, the man who set his tummy fluttering the second he lay eyes on him. 

Eventually, though, 7 rolls around and Aaron knocks on his door perfectly on time. He pulls the door open to reveal him impeccably dressed, wearing a fond, private little smile on his face. 

“Hi,” Spencer says, trying to seem somewhat intelligent and put together despite the mush his insides are currently melting into.

“Hey,” Aaron says softly. “You look gorgeous.”

Spencer flushes immediately at that, looking down at his toes to escape the intensity of Aaron’s gaze. “So do you,” he manages finally, voice a little strangled. “Ready to go?”

Aaron drives them to a cosy little Italian restaurant on the edge of town, and Spencer immediately falls in love with the quiet, intimate atmosphere and the beautiful Christmas decorations still covering the room from head to toe. He pulls out his chair for him, making sure he’s settled before rounding the table to his own seat, the very picture of a gentleman, and Spencer thinks with a little sadness weighing on his heart that his mother would love him. 

“This is perfect, Aaron, thank you,” he says sincerely as he continues to observe his surroundings, immediately feeling comfortable with the other man. 

“Of course. You have to get started on the right foot,” he grins, a joking glint taking root in his eyes. “Especially if you have serious intentions.” 

“You have serious intentions with me?” Spencer asks curiously, tilting his head a little as he implores Aaron with wide eyes.

“Well, yes,” Aaron says slowly, “but don’t feel any pressure if you don’t feel the same, I’m happy to just see where things go…” 

“Hey, no, I definitely do,” Spencer rushes to clarify, reaching out to touch Aaron’s hand just as he did in the hospital. “I’m sorry, I keep messing that up.” He huffs out a little laugh as he averts his eyes.

“Don’t apologise,” Aaron says, voice warm and inviting and Spencer just wants to fold into him, give in already. “We’re still getting used to each other and our mannerisms and the way we approach things; that’s the whole point of dating. I’m just happy that we’re here getting started.”

Spencer feels his body relax at Aaron’s words, melting into the reassuring comfort of his presence. “Me too,” he says, and he means it. 

They both eat pasta to a background of quiet hustle and bustle and elegant instrumental Christmas music, and they click even more than they did at the hospital, quickly settling into easy and interesting conversation. By the time the waiter comes over with the bill, they’re both full and satisfied, glasses of wine empty and plates cleared. Aaron insists on getting it this time and after he’s paid, he takes Spencer’s hand and they head towards the door together.

Before they can actually leave, however, an older woman comes up to them. “You’re standing under the mistletoe,” she winks, pointing upwards. They both follow her finger, and sure enough a sprig of mistletoe is hung right above them. By the time Spencer looks back towards Aaron, he’s already looking at him with an air of intention. 

“May I?” he murmurs, and Spencer just smiles shyly and nods, feeling Aaron’s lips pressed gently against his own the very next second. 

It’s a relatively short first kiss, they are stood in the middle of a public restaurant after all, but it doesn’t make Spencer feel any less dizzied by it, completely overwhelmed by how good it felt having Aaron that close to him, his hands on his waist as they melted into one another. 

The lady’s gone by the time they come back to reality and open the door onto the cold street, and Spencer’s fairly sure that he’s dreaming because this only happens in films right? But he’s snapped out of his doubtful thoughts when Aaron wraps his arm around his waist, bodies pressed closely against one another, because nothing’s ever felt more real than this.

@strippersenseii @criminalmindsvibez