#his name isn’t even a tag sob

[nopxxx]

YALL. I FEEL LIKE THE GRAY GHOST ISNT TALKED ABOUT ENOUGH.

In the 1992 animated Batman series S1EP18 Bruce reveals his identity to Simon Trent, the actor for the gray ghost, saying the same line to him in and out of costume word for word “…as a kid I used to watch you with my father, the Gray Ghost was my hero.”

It’s also shown in this episode that in this version he based the batcave on The Gray Ghosts hideout, and even has a shrine for it in there lol (This appears for us when he takes Simon Trent INTO THE BATCAVE)

And in that episode the films for the gray ghost series got released, and copies were probably made and sold and I feel like Bruce most definitely purchased them all

And since he definitely purchased them all, he also definitely showed it to Dick, then Jason, then Tim, and likely Damian and the other batkids yk?

Anyways I’ve only ever seen it mentioned ONCE in a fanfic and never here, and I feel thats an issue so like yeah pls give me more gray ghost content ITS SO IMPORTANT

[taeslarityy]

outage ༄ joel miller one shot (18+)

-> pairing: no-outbreak joel miller au x female curvy reader

-> word count: 4.3k

-> summary: after a citywide power outage, you're left to deal with the scorching texas heat. until, the well-respected neighborhood dilf — joel miller — lends you a more than generous hand.

-> warnings/tags: sarah is 10/11 so joel had her a bit older, power outage, texas heat, yes this is a warning because its not a joke, reader has a cat!!!, age gap (reader is 24, joel is late 40s), curvy/mid/plus size reader, brief fatphobia, reader has self-image/parent issues + is a lonely gal, fluff, SMUT (18+), unprotected piv, creampie, oral + fingering (f!recieving), squirting, body worship, brief ass play, daddy kink, big ole tits, spanking, spit kink, praise kink, a bit of belly bulge, cockwarming, pet names galore (darlin, sweetheart, baby, _ girl), joel has a huge dick (not canon!)

-> a/n: hi hi! i have been so anxious to begin writing again and currently have some wips that i am just not confident with. so when i saw the lovely @hellishjoel post her #hotdilfsummerchallenge, i was positive i wanted to join in! such a pleasure to be involved in this — thank you kylee for creating such a fun way for this community to get involved! as a curvier woman, i wanted reader to reflect that. because... joel miller is a handsy mf and loves to just grab himself some wide hips, thick thighs and phat tits <3 but ofc, this is can be for various body types. please please please, leave your thoughts and even constructive criticism! <3 DILF NEIGHBOR JOEL, YOU WILL ALWAYS BE FAMOUS!!!!

You’ve got to be fucking kidding me. 

You release a groan of annoyance as the visual of your TV, coffee table lamp and humming of the refrigerator all flicker off into silence. The frills on your throw-blanket settle, as the ceiling fan no longer produces the small gusts of wind that have caused you to be rather chilly on this hot, humid and rainy summer night. 

When you made the courageous decision of moving across the country for a new teaching opportunity in Austin — you were never informed on the true brutality summertime unleashed onto Texas residents. More-so, you really had nothing to do but be caged up in the comfortable AC of your home. You’ve been here for roughly 14 months and the only "friends" you’ve made have been the 28 fourth graders you had the pleasure of teaching last school year. Tragic. 

Your coworkers, did not handle your arrival pleasantly. Young, beautiful, freshly-educated and determined. That’s what your grandmother referred to you as when you called her sobbing after your first week. Informing her that the seasoned teachers won’t even bat an eye at you, and when they do it’s a look of disgust. Whispering amongst one another. Like you were in middle school again, trying to befriend the popular girls. 

“I was foolish to think things could be different for me down here, so stupid of me.”

“Now listen to me, you are the most intelligent woman I know. More than anyone in this family. Bullies like that, it stems from an unknown jealousy and overbearing insecurity. Don’t let a few sour grapes ruin this outstanding career for you. Your students adore you already, and so do I. Just continue to be yourself and if that isn’t enough for them, so be it.”

Your grandmother always knew how to make you feel better. She had been instilling your own sense of confidence since you were a little girl. The only adult in your life to do so. If only her words were enough. Your coworkers just never let up. After overhearing them gossip about you during lunch break, you gave up your attempts indefinitely. 

“She really thinks she deserves a place here?”

“Look at her back rolls in that shirt…”

“She really needs to put that sandwich down.”

“Why is she so quiet? It’s freaky, honestly. No wonder she’s always alone.”

You’re not a stranger to being alone. You practically have been your entire life. Your parents never really bothered to form a genuine relationship with you, always so focused on your younger sister. She was the prettier, thinner, more impressive version of you. You have only had one best friend throughout your long 24 years on this earth. She was smarter than you and moved away from the timid small town you shared in Northern Maine, choosing an out-of-state university. So, being alone was a familiarity. You have made peace with it. But being lonely — that’s a whole other ball-park. 

The booming thwack of thunder startles you from your thoughts. Your sweet calico boy leaps from your warm lap and scurries under the dining table — tail puffed in fear. “Milo... it’s okay,” you whisper. He just gleams at you with his jet-black saucer eyes. Even you don’t believe your own words. You are not used to storms like this, and you didn’t really prepare. You read some articles online about stocking up: having plently of batteries, candles, non-perishable foods. Yet, you didn’t do any of that. 

Rubbing away the moisture from your damp upper lip — the heat inside your home already becoming unbearable. Deciding on a whim, you can head to a nearby hotel for the night. Unsure how long you will be without power and don’t wish to succumb yourself or your cat to the searing temperatures of the night. 

The rain has slowed down, as you feel the soft patter on your umbrella. Throwing your purse and water bottle in the front seat, you begin to dread unpacking all this stuff when you get to the hotel. Bags, cat litter, cage — scrutinizing yourself mentally and deciding you better fucking prepare for the next storm. 

“Where ya headin’ sweetheart?”

Your heart jumps at the deep smooth Southern voice that fills your thoughts at night. When your hands would find their way in between your quivering legs. Throughout the day. Pretty much all the time.

Joel Miller is the only person in this town that has ever filled the lonely void you can never seem to fill. When you moved to the quiet suburban street, he was the first to come greet you as you struggled to pull your mattress out of the U-Haul. Immediately lending a hand, and proceeding to lug all of your remaining boxes, furniture, miscellaneous items into your new home. 

“Pretty lady like you, shouldn’t have to lift a single finger.” He remarked when you blushed and assured him you could handle the rest, not wanting to be a burden. Even though the sweat dripping down your back was apparent and 5 minutes prior you had no idea how you’d be able to unpack the remainder of the truck. He then assured you — there was no way in hell you were being a burden. Words that were a rarity. 

Later that afternoon, he invited you for dinner at his home. You met his lovely daughter, Sarah. Where everyone learned that you were her new school teacher. What were the odds? 

Following that, seeing Joel was frequent. From parent-teacher conferences, backyard barbecues for the neighborhood, or even small intimate dinners with Sarah at each others homes. Sarah would even spend the night at yours on occasion. When Joel had a late night at the construction site, or when she just needed some girl time. You adored that little girl, and vice versa. 

You also adored the fuck out of Joel. 

So when you looked up at his porch, finding him in nothing but a pair of plaid pajama pants.. your throat went dry. His tanned skin gleamed softly from the street light — little speckled freckles adorned his waist in various spots. And that darkish grey hair on his chest and fat of his lower tummy that flowed underneath his pants. Your brain fuzzy at the thought of your face pressed against it as you swallow his cock. 

But you were not a fool. Joel would never express an attraction towards you. A man like that? He deserved the perfect woman. 

“Darlin’?” He speaks again, a bit louder. Disturbing your wandering thoughts. 

“I- I was gonna head to a hotel for the night, my house is too hot already. And I don’t want Milo to be uncomfortable.” 

Joel’s eyes wander down your body as you explain — the plush jiggle of your tits in that small tank. Nearly spilling out. Slightly damp from the rain or humidity. The chub of your tummy spills slightly from your leggings. A sight that makes his cock swell unbearingly. An act that occurs more often than not when he sees you or even thinks of you for the countless minutes of his day. 

“No way. Not gonna let ya drive in this weather. Plus, most hotels nearby are gonna be overbooked. I got the generator up n’ working, got the spare room too. You’re stayin’ over.” 

“No! No, Joel. I can’t.”

“N’ why not?” His hands have found his way to his hips, popping a knee out and giving you that classic dad glare. Not angry, but confused as to why you’re even protesting when he’s already decided. 

“I don’t want to intrude and I have Milo. You and Sarah are allergic.”

“Sarah left yesterday to stay with her mom in California for the rest of the summer. Besides, Milo loves me. I can handle a runny nose as long as I know the two of ya are safe.” 

To this, your stomach nearly flips inward on itself. You’ve never been alone with Joel in his home. Not for this long. The few times you’ve come over to help him with dinner before Sarah got home from soccer practice, have always been excruciating. Staring at him without worry. Watching his muscles flex through his t-shirts. Big hands chopping vegetables and plating food. His hand lightly touching your waist when scooting by. 

There’s no possible way you can survive a night in Joel’s home. 

But, he’s already grabbing his umbrella and walking over to you. He grabs your stuff from the car and tells you to go grab Milo. So, you do.

Joel slips on a t-shirt after he put your stuff in the spare room, disappointedly enough. You nearly told him to keep it off, but held your tongue. You made yourself comfortable at the island barstool as you typed up some early lesson plans, Milo at your feet. 

He patters over to Joel who is now leaning against the counter, brushing against his leg. He then leaps onto the granite and purrs against Joel’s arm. 

“Psst! Milo get do-“ you beg, embarrassment coloring your cheeks. 

“S’ okay, sweetheart. He’s not botherin’ me,” Joel attempts to settle your nerves. Petting Milo’s soft fur and scratching under his chin, that special spot all cats love. “Can I get you anythin’ to drink?” He nods towards the coffee he’s brewing. 

“Coffee would be nice, thank you.” You beam at him. Joel’s heart skips a beat every time your cheeks puff up ever so slightly when you smile at him. It’s something he swears is the most endearing thing about you. Of course, he’s only ever shared that with his daughter. Who begs her father to just take her favorite teacher on a date already. 

Joel grabs some sugar and oat milk from the fridge, your favorite. He learned from the few breakfasts you guys had shared. A bit of sugar and a nice gulp of milk softens the dark roast color in the mug, he slides it over to you as he grabs his plain black coffee. 

“You remembered!” You giggle slightly at the Number 1 Dad title that adorns the mug, taking a sip. You moan at the taste, exactly how you like it. 

“Of course I did, darlin’.” You almost hate how easily those pet names roll of his tongue. You summed it up as his southern hospitality, figured he calls any woman those special names. “So, you ready for this new school year?”

An icky feeling settles in your stomach. The thought of returning to the painful and toxic work environment you can only escape when you’re with your students.

“Not without my Sarah girl,” you swiftly change the subject towards the one person he can talk hours about.

He smiles proudly at her name. 

“Ya know, she still all mad that you wouldn’t flunk her so she could have another year with ya.” Both your laughs quickly fill the empty house. 

“Well, even if I tried to, that girl is too smart for her own good. She should skip a grade in my opinion.” You state, and you’re truthful at that. Sarah Miller is as intelligent as she is quick-witted. 

“Yeah, she gets it from me.” At that you roll your eyes playfully. Typing something up before closing your computer and taking another sip of coffee. “Although I love boastin’ over her, I guess I meant are you excited to go back? They treat ya good there?” 

Joel watches the color drain from your soft skin. Realizing he touched somewhere that might be too personal. Too raw. “M’ sorry sweetheart, shouldn’t have asked.”

“No- no uh, you’re fine. Um, honestly? No. I’m not excited. The staff there aren’t exactly the kindest bunch.” You confess, slight unease crawling over you. 

Joel’s eyes scrunch in confusion. Mind blank on how the kindest soul he knows, could be surrounded by complete opposite. “Whatcha mean?”

You sigh letting the anxiousness settle a bit before speaking again, “they hate me. I don’t even know why, really? I have tried my hardest to get them to accept me but nothing seems to work. Whether it’s jabs at my appearance, teaching style, they’re never satisfied.” Your eyes are burning slightly, haven’t confessed this burden you constantly carry to anyone. “If it wasn’t for your daughter and my class, and… you.. well, I think I wouldn’t have made it through. I try to be strong, I try to be everything that people expect from me but it’s just so hard, Joel.” At that, the fat tears begin to stream down your face.

Joel was frozen in shock. Or maybe anger. Protectiveness. He wanted to hurt the people who made you feel like this. The least deserving of any pain. He sets his mug down and snatches you in his embrace. Holding your head with his hand, stroking your back with the other. He lets you sob almost uncontrollably into his firm chest. 

“I just hate being so alone.” You whisper, clutching onto him. You can’t even be embarrassed anymore, you’re so overthrown by his scent, his comfort. Comfort you’ve not felt in so so long. 

Joel kisses your temple softly, "promise you're not alone, sweet girl." He nudges your head to look up at his own sorrowful expression. His thumb running over your full lips, a bit swollen from your teeth biting down on them in an attempt to muffle your sobs. "So beautiful." He murmurs as he leans down to place a kiss on your left cheek, his lips skim over yours before he places another on your right.

Joel just barely hears the whimper from the back of your throat when that feather light skim happened. He leans back half an inch, staring into your glossy eyes. "Tell me not to, and I'll let you go upstairs and get some rest. Tell me, sweetheart."

It feels like a whole minute passes by. The soft patter of the rain, the smell of coffee beans from each others breath, the same slow breathing that overwhelms the little space between you both.

Desperation.

Your fingers tighten on his shirt, "don't let me go upstairs, Joel."

Joel smashes his mouth into yours, his guttural groan flying into your soft whimpers. The softness Joel expressed a moment ago is long gone. This kiss is messy, teeth-clanking, tongue inside your mouth. Like he wants to devour you from the outside in. He releases your lip with a pop.

He threads his thick fingers through the base of your hair and yanks it back gently, tongue on your neck. Biting the skin there. "You're so soft, baby. Just need me to mark ya up, is that right?"

You nod as hard as you can despite his harsh grip on your locks.

"I need you to use your words, sweet girl. Let me know what you're thinkin'."

"Everything you do is okay. I want more. I need it all. Please."

"Oh baby, cm'ere," he wraps your lavish thighs around his waist and hoists you into his arms. Easily. Like you're just the most delicate thing he's ever held.

As he walks to his bedroom, you smile into his neck. Arms wrapped over his shoulders, hand rubbing ever so softly at his greying curls. You bite at the skin under his ear and he gives your ass a huge squeeze. Groaning at how his big hands barely hold all the meat there. He couldn't wait to touch and gnaw at this body he loved.

At the foot of his bed, he taps your leg as if telling you to get down. You stand in front of his massive overbearing figure, staring up at him lustfully. You grab the bottom of your compression tank top and pull it over your head, revealing your unsupported chest. Your heavy tits fall a bit.

"My god," Joel falls to his knees in front of you, face nearly level with your pebbled nipples. Both his hands grab a fistful of each, rolling them in his palm. Your sweet noises fill the room and he swears he might've just came in his pajama pants right there. He takes his teeth and bite at the fat above your leggings, licking and sucking at a sensitive part of you. Literally and figuratively.

Joel abandons your chest to yank your leggings and panties down in one move, coming face-to-face with your prickly oozing pussy. He can't restrain himself much longer, spinning you around he pushes you down into his mattress.

He spreads your ass open with both hands, the chub of your lips open ever so slightly as the slick between them strings together.

"Perfect cunt." That's when you feel the chill of liquid spat right onto your puckered hole, dripping down to your clit. He leans in, tongue catching the tangy mixture of your slick and his saliva, right on your throbbing clit.

You screech into the sheets, so turned on from his actions. As he licks up to dip his tongue into your hole, one hand that's holding you open sneaks up your back, to your neck and yanks your head up.

"Nu-uh, let me hear you, baby girl." He demands as he pauses to throw his shirt off as fast as possible — not wanting to leave your cunt for too long without the warmth of his mouth.

He sloppily makes out with your cunt as it clenches and unclenches under his tongue, his beard prickling at your skin. Like he wants your scent all over him for as long as possible.

"Ohh daddy, more more," you whisper hazily, hand reaching back to grab his head desperate to have him as deep as possible.

Joel stops as he processes your choice of title. "What was that, darlin'?"

You freeze at his serious tone. Just now realizing what you've called the man. "Oh my god, I'm s-" Joel grabs your wrist and pins it against your lower back — thick middle and ring finger hooking into you with no warning. Your wetness aiding in the rapid slide of them.

He spits on your puckered hole again and abandons your wrist to land a harsh smack against your ass.

"Only dirty girls say that word, baby. Are you daddy's dirty girl?" He edges you on as he spanks you again on the opposite side. Hard. Unsparing. A side of Joel you've never seen. And oh, does it make you feel that coil tightening within you.

"Mmmm yes yes 'm your dirty girl, daddy!" You groan loudly, eyes swelling with fresh tears. But not tears of pain from earlier, pleasure.

Joel's fingers fuck into you harder, thumb now rubbing at your clit as he leans forward to prod his tongue at your asshole. "Cum for me, my nasty sweet girl. Drench my face. Let me taste you even more." He halts his fingers knuckle deep, hooked inside your cunt as he presses into that spot on repeat. Like he's stroking it out of you.

That's all it takes for you to silently scream as you squirt all over his lower beard covered face and your thick inner thighs, that nearly squish his head from how hard you're coming. Joel just keeps himself situated, never letting up. Allowing you to completely let go and rut back into him, telling him you need more.

"Thaaat's it, my good fuckin' girl.” He praises as he kisses your cunt and ass, he leans over your face capturing your lips in a kiss so messy and depraved. “Open that mouth.” Spitting roughly onto your tongue with a groan as you taste your sweetness that he knows he will forever be addicted to. No chance of recovery.

He ruts his thick bulge into your ass as you whine needly.

"Really want you to fuck my face, now." You beg, hand reaching down to grope him through his loose pjs.

"Mmmmm," he murmurs as his hips keep rutting into you. "Tonight is about you, baby. M' gonna stuff your tight cunt so fuckin' deep you'll feel it in your throat, don't worry." And with that promise, he releases himself, throbbing cock slapping against his lower tummy. You flip onto your back just to see it and your eyes widen at the sight before you.

You always knew it was huge just from perception, but god. It's thicker than your wrist, and looks like it would prod into your cervix. Painful even. Joel senses the worry on your face as he pushes your legs back against your chest. Admiring the way your stomach folds into itself, soft roll after roll. And the thickness of your inner thighs lays heavy. He just wants to get down and feast on you again but he might die if he doesn't feel you wrapped around him.

"You're in charge here, sweetheart. Understood?" He explains as he rubs his fat cock head up and down your swollen slit — notching on your opening with every downward stroke.

You nod slowly, peeking down at the monster between your legs once more. He squeezes your ankle, subtly reminding you to vocalize.

"Yes daddy, I understand."

"Good." And with that, he pushes into your fluttering hole. Your eyes roll back immediately, head thumping onto the soft duvet. He pushes in deeper, barely halfway in and he sees your feet and eyes scrunch a bit. It almost feels like he could rip you apart. Maybe it's because you haven't been fucked in a hot minute — or maybe it's just that Joel is so fucking hung. More than any guy you've slept with.

“Deep breath for me, sweetheart.” He soothes you, as soon as he sees your chest fall — he slams the rest of the way in. Hips flush with the back of your thighs. Cock fully sheathed in your warm soaked cunt. Heavy brimming balls pressed against your little puckered hole. “You feel so damn good. Dripping for me.” Joel’s eyes close at the feeling of you hugging him so tight. He suddenly forgets the feeling of any other woman he’s pleased. Utterly devoted to you from here on out.

When he pulls out all the way to his fat tip — it notches on your opening. Like he has to put in that extra effort to fully remove himself from you. But he doesn’t, and starts fucking into you fully. Never half way, never pulling completely out.. but always making sure he reaches the end of you.

“Da- daddy oh, harder please.” You plead, squeezing his forearm at the overwhelming feel of him nudging your cervix with every thrust.

That confirmation of pleasure is all Joel needs to push your legs back even more — ankles by your head — and began a brutal relentless pace. Grabbing a fistful of your jiggling tit and messy hair, he pulls your head up so you can watch how he ruins you for anyone else.

“Ya see that, see how swollen your gettin’ already?” Joel questions as he holds your head perfectly to observe the slight lifted pudge on your tummy. Paired with the way his coarse hair rubs against your swelled clit — it’s a drool worthy sight.

“Cus’ your so big, Joel.” You sigh, eyes fluttering from the primal force he’s using on your body.

A smug grin flicks across his face at the view. Mind consumed by the most perfect woman. Eyebrows turning inward, the little lines between them deepening as you try to comprehend all the emotions in this moment. Removing his hand from your head, he finds your clit and swipes it upward. Over and over. Leaning down, he sucks as much of your breast into his mouth as humanely possible. Tongue flicking the pebbled area, coercing your orgasm from you. “Cum with me, baby.” His muffled command shoots straight to your filled core.

As he feels you spasm around his thickness, he stills balls deep. “There it is, baby…” Spilling his cum inside your warmth. Plugging you, keeping you full of him. Joel relaxes his body against yours, finding your mouth to kiss you gently. Sweaty foreheads against one another. Joel goes to push off of you, his comforting body heat about to be ripped away.

"No! Wanna feel you longer, please."

Your protest makes Joel's heart surge. "Of course, sweet girl." Wrapping his large arms around you, he flips you both so that your soft plush body lays above him. The new angle makes his spent cock nudge a bit deeper, you both moan at the faint squelch of his cum overflowing your cunt. "You're so perfect," he mutters.

Smiling into his full chest, you leave a swift kiss. "So are you. Thank you for this. For.. everything."

Joel's hands finds your back as he begins gentle strokes onto your supple skin, his head resting atop your own. "Thank you, darlin'. I want you to understand something, you might just be the finest thing that ever happened to Sarah and I. Y'know, she didn't really want to see her mom. Never had the best relationship with her. She just wanted to spend the remainder of the summer havin' ya over everyday to swim and all. That girl admires you more than anyone."

Eyes foggy, you shift to gaze up at him. "And what does her father think?"

Joel pauses briefly, rich brown orbs beaming into yours. "Think she's damn right. She didn't want me to tell you this, but she left so I could have some alone time with you — take ya out. Scolded me sayin' by the time she's back, we better be together." He laughs at the thought, you join him. Picturing that 4'9 ball of fire lecturing her father on the rules of dating.

"So, you're asking me out Miller?" You question with a heavy hopeful heart.

"Should've done it forever ago, darlin'." He confesses, placing a delicate kiss on your temple.

And with that, you place your head back onto the warm chest of the man you've craved your entire life. Realizing, ever since that day where he first greeted you with that sultry gentleman voice — you were never truly alone.

thank you truly for reading! let me know your thoughts below or in asks!! reblogs are greatly appreciated <3

[undiagnosedcruelty]

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"Pretty Crybaby"

Summary: Hyunjin loves nothing more than breaking you down piece by piece—until you're a sobbing little mess begging him to ruin you.

Pairing: dom!hyunjin x afab!reader MINORS DNI

Genre: smut. just pure smut.

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Tags/Warnings: dom!Hyunjin, bondage, blindfolds, edging, overstimulation, unprotected sex, choking, degradation, praise kink, orgasm control, dacryphilia (crying kink), mild humiliation, soft aftercare, slight dumbification, multiple orgasms, breeding kink if you squint (I might’ve missed something)

Word Count: 2k

A/N: it’s midnight and I have no idea what possessed me to write this.

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WRITTEN FANFIC IS PURELY FICTION──DOES NOT DIRECTLY RELATE TO REALITY.

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The silk blindfold is tight around your eyes. Soft enough to feel expensive, but snug enough to make your lashes flutter against the fabric.

You can’t see him.

You can’t touch him either—wrists bound behind your back with the same silk scarf he’d been carrying in his pocket all night, like he’d planned this from the second he laid eyes on you.

Maybe he had.

Hyunjin’s always been patient with you. Too patient. He likes to drag things out until you’re sobbing, shaking, begging for him to finally give you what you need. Gets off on breaking you down slowly, piece by piece, until you’re nothing but a pretty little mess crying into the sheets for him.

It’s been hours.

He’s edged you three times already, leaving you spread out on the bed, soaked and trembling, while he played with you at his own cruel pace.

Ice dragged down your stomach. Fingertips brushing along your inner thighs without ever dipping inside. Open-mouthed kisses pressed to your neck, your nipples, the soft curve of your hips—everywhere except where you needed him most.

You’re wrecked.

Tears streak down your flushed cheeks. Slick drips down your thighs onto the sheets. Your cunt clenches around nothing, empty and throbbing, every nerve in your body burning from how long he’s kept you on the edge without letting you fall.

And he loves it.

“You’re shaking, baby.”

His voice is low, teasing—like this isn’t the third time he’s edged you tonight. Like you’re not seconds away from completely falling apart.

“It’s too much,” you whimper, voice cracking.

Hyunjin clicks his tongue, dragging the melting ice cube down your stomach, stopping just before your aching cunt.

“It’s not enough.” The sound that slips from your throat is more sob than moan.

Your hips lift automatically, chasing the cold sting, but he presses you back down into the mattress with one big hand splayed across your stomach.

“Stay still.” You obey—because you always do. Because he’s trained you so perfectly.

“You made such a mess for me, baby.” His thumb brushes over your bottom lip, catching the trembling little pout you can’t control. “All this just from me teasing you… aren’t you embarrassed?”

You should be.

You’re soaked, dripping onto the sheets, and he hasn’t even touched your pussy properly yet.

But you’re too far gone to feel ashamed.

Hyunjin smirks like he knows exactly how fucked-out and desperate you are. “Don’t hide from me.”

His fingers curl under your chin, tilting your face toward him even though you can’t see him.

“I want to see how needy you get when you’re falling apart for me.”

The first tear slips down your cheek without warning—hot and wet against your flushed skin—and he groans like it’s the hottest thing he’s ever seen.

“Fuck…”

He swipes it away with his thumb before licking it straight off his finger.

“My pretty little crybaby.”

Your whole body shudders beneath him, a broken whimper slipping from your lips.

You shouldn’t like it—the humiliation, the way he teases you until you’re crying for him—but your cunt clenches at the pet name, slick dripping onto the sheets beneath you.

He sees it. Of course he fucking sees it.

“You like that?” His fingers trail down, brushing over your soaked slit without ever dipping inside. “You like crying for me?”

“Yes,” you sob, too wrecked to feel embarrassed by how pathetic you sound.

He chuckles, fingers slipping lower, teasing your clit with slow, lazy circles.

“Such a filthy little thing.”

Your hips buck against his hand, chasing the friction, but he pulls away just as quickly, leaving you throbbing and empty.

You whimper, high and broken, fresh tears spilling down your cheeks. Hyunjin moans at the sound. “God… you’re so fucking pretty when you cry.”

His hand wraps loosely around your throat, squeezing just enough to make your head spin. “You want to come, baby?”

“Yes—please—”

He tightens his grip, cutting off your next breath until you’re lightheaded and dizzy beneath him. “Then ride.”

He drags you up onto his thigh, forcing you to grind your soaked cunt against the hard muscle beneath the rough fabric of his sweatpants.

It’s filthy, wet, sticky sounds filling the room, but you don’t even care how pathetic you look. You’re too far gone, chasing the friction like a dumb little toy.

“That’s it.” His breath is hot against your ear. “Use me, princess. Make yourself come for me.”

You’re already close, too sensitive from how long he’s been teasing you, but he makes you work for it. His hand stays wrapped around your throat, squeezing just enough to make your head swim. The other grips your hip, guiding your rhythm slow and deep.

You can’t stop the little sob that slips from your throat—fresh tears streaking down your face—and Hyunjin smirks. “You gonna cry for me again?”

You nod helplessly, hips stuttering.

“So pathetic.” His hand tightens around your throat, making you lightheaded. “My filthy little crybaby.”

The pet name makes your whole body jolt, cunt clenching hard, slick dripping down onto his thigh—but he stops you with one hand buried in your hair, yanking your head back. “Not yet.”

You sob openly, body trembling in his lap, but Hyunjin just chuckles darkly, licking your tears straight off your flushed cheeks. “You don’t come until I tell you to.”

By the time he finally lays you back down on the bed, you’re shaking so hard you can barely breathe.

“You’ve been such a good girl for me, baby.” His fingers brush damp hair away from your face, voice soft again—like he hadn’t just spent hours breaking you into pieces.“You deserve a reward, don’t you?”

Your head bobs frantically, fresh tears clinging to your lashes. “Yes—please—”

He kisses the words right off your tongue, messy and desperate, before finally pushing inside you with one slow, aching thrust.

You scream, back arching off the mattress.

You’re so fucking wet, he slides in all the way to the hilt—splitting you open, filling you up until you’re sobbing into the pillow beneath you.

“Shh…” Hyunjin catches your chin between his fingers, forcing you to face him even through the blindfold. “Take it, baby.”

His hips roll slow, dragging his cock out inch by inch before slamming back in, deep, bruising thrusts that make your whole body jerk beneath him.

“You wanted this, didn’t you?” You sob brokenly, nails digging into your bound wrists behind your back.

“You begged me for it.” He snaps his hips harder, grinding deep—punching little gasping sobs out of your throat with every thrust. “You wanted me to ruin you.”

You’re already close, so overstimulated you’re shaking beneath him, but he wraps one big hand around your throat again, cutting off your next breath. “Not yet.”

You actually cry, fresh tears spilling down your cheeks, but Hyunjin just groans, licking them straight off your face like he’s starving for the taste of you. “My perfect little crybaby.”

His thumb rubs slow circles over your clit, dragging out the pleasure until you’re trembling, sobbing, so close you can taste it—still waiting for him to give you permission.

“Come when I tell you to.” You’re shaking, convulsing beneath him, but Hyunjin just smirks, bouncing his hips harder, fucking you right to the edge.

“That’s my good girl.” His lips brush against your ear, soft, teasing, before his voice drops to a low, dangerous whisper. “Come for me, crybaby.”

You shatter beneath him—legs trembling, back arching, soaking him with a broken sob as the pleasure finally crashes over you.

Hyunjin fucks you through it, chasing his own release, eyes locked on your wrecked, tear-streaked face.

“Fuck…” He groans, hips stuttering as he spills deep inside you—filling you up, leaving you messy and dripping.

By the time it’s over, you’re trembling, thighs slick with your own release, lashes wet with tears that won’t stop falling.

Hyunjin should give you a break.

Should untie your wrists.

Should kiss your sore little pussy and tell you what a good girl you were.

But he doesn’t.

Instead, he grins—slow and lazy—like the wrecked little mess you’ve become is the hottest thing he’s ever seen. “Still crying, baby?”

You whimper, wrecked and ruined. His fingers slide down between your legs, teasing your swollen clit.

“I’m not done with you yet.” Hyunjin’s fingers circle your swollen clit, featherlight, teasing, just enough to make your overstimulated body twitch beneath him.

You flinch, a broken sob spilling from your lips.

“Sensitive, baby?” he coos, mock sympathy lacing his voice. His thumb presses down harder, making you jolt.

“You can take it.” You know you can—because he’s made sure of it.

“You wanted to be my good girl, didn’t you?” His free hand grips your bound wrists, pulling them higher above your head, pinning you down. “Good girls let me use them however I want.”

You whimper, legs shaking, body too wrecked to fight him off—not that you’d ever want to.

His cock is still buried deep inside you, thick and heavy, stretching you wide. Every little movement makes your cunt flutter around him, milking him even though you’re too sensitive to bear it.

“Look at you.” He groans low, watching the way your body trembles beneath him. “Crying like a little slut… but your pussy’s still sucking me in.”

You sob, cheeks flushed hot with shame but your walls clench tighter around him, proving him right.

Hyunjin smirks. “Filthy.”

His fingers pick up their pace, rubbing slow, cruel circles against your clit. The pleasure is too much—sharp and overwhelming, making your thighs twitch and your stomach clench.

“I can’t,” you choke out, voice cracking.

“You can.” His hand wraps around your throat again, squeezing just enough to make your head spin. “You will.”

The pressure makes your cunt clamp down around him, fresh tears streaking down your flushed cheeks. He moans at the sight—like the wrecked, crying mess beneath him is the hottest thing he’s ever seen. “My perfect little crybaby.”

You sob openly, body arching into his touch, completely broken for him, and he fucking loves it.

“You wanna come again?” You nod frantically, hips bucking into his hand without permission. “Please… please-“

His grip on your throat tightens, cutting off your next breath. “Beg.”

You’re already sobbing, barely able to form words, but you try anyway──pathetic little gasps falling from your lips. “Please, Hyunjin—need it—please—”

He leans down, lips brushing hot against your ear. “Such a good little whore when you’re crying for me.”

His thumb presses harder against your clit, circling faster and pushing you right to the edge, holding you there. “You wanna come?”

You nod desperately, body trembling beneath him.

“Then do it.” His hand tightens around your throat, cutting off your air completely, forcing you to shatter for him.

You come with a broken sob, back arching off the mattress, thighs shaking as the pleasure crashes through you—wet and messy, soaking his cock as he fucks you through it.

Hyunjin groans, hips snapping harder, dragging it out until you’re nothing but a shaking, crying mess beneath him. “Fuck—”

He buries himself deep, spilling inside you again, filling you up until you’re dripping—cum leaking out around his cock, mixing with your own release.

By the time he finally lets you breathe, you’re wrecked. Body trembling, face streaked with tears, completely broken for him.

Hyunjin strokes your hair back from your damp forehead, voice soft again—like he hadn’t just spent hours ruining you. “You did so good, baby.”

His lips brush gentle kisses over your tear-streaked cheeks, down to your swollen lips. “My pretty little crybaby.”

You whimper softly, too wrecked to respond.

He finally unties your wrists, massaging the red marks into your sore skin before pulling you into his arms. “You can cry all you want now, princess.” His lips press against your temple, voice low and soothing.

“I’ll take care of you.” And he does.

Cleaning you up. Kissing every sore inch of your body. Whispering soft praise into your hair until you’re nothing but a warm, pliant mess in his arms.

But even as he soothes you, there’s that familiar smirk tugging at his lips—like he’s already planning how to break you all over again.

[nymphoniah]

thinking about pornstar!old man!logan having a channel where he and his pretty princess play for a while, or rather, he plays with his little doll, teasing her clit for so loooongg and edging her, until he gets bored and doesn't stop making her cum, overstimulating her, obviously she's such a cry baby, pleading him to stop but everyone knows that in the inside she doesn't want to stop. need this man to fuck me dumb and record it ngl 💝

trash magic | logan howlett

a/n: you read my mind!! omg i was thinking about this the other day, about what it would be like running an account with logan, and oh my god my brain was absolutely going numb just thinking about ittt >_<

pairing: pornstar!old man!logan x afab!pornstar!reader

contents/tags/warnings: nsfw, minors dni, 18+ only, filming pornography, porn with a little bit of plot, age gap (reader is in their 20’s), oral sex (female receiving), cunnilingus, cum eating, pet names (princess, babydoll, etc.), overstimulation, daddy kink, manhandling

when you proposed the idea to logan, he thought it was absolutely ridiculous. sure, in his 200 years, he’s seen some shit, experimented sexually when he was younger, but that was before.

now that he’s visibly aged, logan is reluctant to admit that he feels self conscious about the way he looks—he’s worried that he isn’t at the “top of his game” for you, that you’d leave him for a better, younger looking guy.

but that thought never crosses your pretty little mind. his age, the way he looks, it doesn’t bother you one bit—if anything, it spurs you on even more. you love every single of his “imperfections”, at least that’s what he calls them.

in your eyes, he’s perfect.

filming your first ever home video was a slight challenge, having to figure out which angles to record at while struggling with finding the correct lighting.

after smoothing out all of those bumps along the way, the two of you found that you had quite a knack for making porn.

the films you and logan would made could never be compared to the fake shit you’d see on those sketchy porn websites. no faked orgasms, obnoxiously loud moaning, none of that nonsense. when the two of you fucked, you absolutely fuckin’ meant it.

“no more…” you sob, feeling your mind getting hazy. you were at your third, no, fourth orgasm, but logan was convinced he could pull another one out of you. “s’too much, daddy!”

“you taste too sweet, princess” logan mumbles against your cunt, his beard drenched in your arousal. “just one more time f’me, yeah?”

his tongue messily laps at your folds, paying close attention to your aching bundle of nerves. he alternated between licking and sucking at the swollen button, making you whine out in ecstasy.

“m’gonna cum.. gonna cum…,” you pant out, shutting your eyes tight. your hips buck into logan’s face as you run your fingers through his hair, slightly tugging at the strands as you felt your core tighten.

“let it all fuckin’ out, babydoll,” logan groaned, flattening his tongue against your womanhood to increase the pressure on your clit. “c’mon and drench daddy’s face in your cum.”

you absolutely lose it, and the coil in your stomach snaps for what it felt like the hundredth time. you’re a whining mess beneath logan as he kept your legs spread out, his massive arms keeping you in place.

“thank you… t-thank you,” you bawl as a steady stream of tears fall down from your face, ruining the mascara you carefully applied on prior to shooting.

he continues to lap at your cunt and watches how you crumble at his touch, observing the way your brows furrow in pleasure while breathy moans escape your lips.

once you finally catch your breath, logan pulls away, beard glistening with your arousal. he readjusts and places himself on top of you, caging you in with his arms.

“taste yourself, sweetheart,” he murmurs against your lips before he parts your mouth with his tongue, sloppily making out with you.

logan breaks the kiss, and a single strand of saliva connects your bottom lip to his. using a single hand, he cups your face and squishes your cheeks together.

he roughly grabs at your jaw, turning your face to the camera that was propped at the foot of the bed with a tripod.

“now let the people watching know how good your old man fucked ‘ya.”

[minniesfiles]

OPERATION WONWOO: CALM DOWN MY GIRLFRIEND

In which Wonwoo tries to comfort his overly dramatic girlfriend after his enlistment news came out.

❧ PAIRING; wonwoo x reader

❧ GENRE; fluff, humour

❧ TAGS/WARNINGS; established relationship, idol wonwoo, tears, humour, fluff, topic of enlistment

❧ WORDCOUNT; 1.1k

𐚁₊⊹

▍5 MARCH 2025

Wonwoo never considered himself as a particularly emotional person. He was rational, practical, and logical. None of which, apparently, applied to you, who was currently curled up in a blanket burrito on his sofa, sobbing like he just told you he was moving to the moon.

He sighed while standing over you with his arms crossed. “Babe, you’re being ridiculous.”

You lifted your head from the blanket pile, eyes red and puffy. “I am not,” you wailed. “You’re leaving me for eighteen months, Wonwoo. That’s, like, a lifetime in relationship years.”

“That’s not how time works.”

“You don’t care about my suffering at all!” you sniffled dramatically.

Wonwoo rolled his eyes and shifted his weight as he continued watching you spiral into despair. “Okay, first of all, I’m not leaving you. I’m literally just going to work. Second, I’m not even doing active duty. I’m doing an alternative service because, in case you forgot, my eyesight is so bad that the government won’t even trust me with a gun and is making me do a desk job instead.”

“Still counts” you hiccupped mid-sob.

“Does it?”

“Yes” you crossed your arms, glaring at him. “You’ll still be gone, and I’ll still be alone, and — oh my God, what if you get super buff and realise you don’t love me anymore?”

Wonwoo blinked. “I’m literally going to be working in an office.”

“So? What if lifting all those papers gives you arm muscles?”

He sighed, rubbing his temples. “First of all, paper isn’t that heavy. Second, even if I did somehow get buff, I wouldn’t stop loving you.”

You let out a dramatic huff. “How do I know that for sure?”

Wonwoo stared at you for a long moment before answering, “Because if I was going to leave you, it would’ve been when you made me watch that thirty-episode historical drama just so you could cry over it.”

You gasped, clutching your chest like he physically wounded you. “You said you liked it!”

“I lied.”

You let out a strangled noise, then flopped back onto the sofa. “I knew it! I’m already losing you.”

Wonwoo sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Babe, I’ll be home every night. The only difference is that I won’t be promoting with the members for a while. That’s it.”

You sniffled again and gripped the blanket tighter. “It’s not just that! I won’t get to see you perform, or travel with your members, or do all the cute idol boyfriend things—”

He raised an eyebrow. “When have I ever done cute idol boyfriend things?”

“Okay, fine, Jeonghan does cute idol boyfriend things. But that’s not the point!” you huffed, sitting up to glare at him.

“The point is, I won’t get to see you in your element. I won’t get to watch you perform on stage, and I won’t get to hear you talk about making music with your members. You love being with them.”

He frowned slightly at that, because — well, you weren’t wrong.

It would be weird not promoting as a Seventeen member, not spending every day surrounded by the usual chaos and comfort of his group. He would miss standing on stage. He would miss the adrenaline of performing, the way the members bickered, the way Carats screamed their names with so much love.

But, at the end of the day, he would still be home.

Wonwoo let out a sigh and sat down beside you, resting a hand on your knee. “I get it. I’ll miss all of that too,” he admitted.

“But it’s not forever. And honestly? I’d rather be at home with you every night than stuck in a training camp running laps at five in the morning.”

“I feel like you’re just saying that to make me feel better” you pouted.

“Maybe. But it’s also true” he smirked.

“You think I’d rather be sweating in a field somewhere when I could be home with you, eating ramen and watching bad dramas?”

You hesitated. “…That does sound better.”

“Exactly.”

You sighed, rubbing your eyes. “But what if you change?”

“What do you mean?” your boyfriend frowned.

“What if, after eighteen months, you don’t love me the same way?” your voice was quieter now, and your usual dramatic energy was replaced by something more vulnerable.

His chest ached at the sight of you, and the way you curled into yourself like you were trying to brace for impact.

“Baby,” he murmured, reaching up to tuck your hair behind your ear. “That’s not going to happen.”

“You don’t know that” you mumbled, biting your lip.

“Yes, I do,” he said firmly. “You think I’m going to go to work, file some paperwork, and suddenly forget how much I love you?”

“Maybe there’s a really hot co-worker with perfect vision who loves books as much as you do” you shrugged.

Wonwoo gave you deadpan look. “First of all, I can barely see people’s faces without my glasses, so your imaginary rival isn’t even a threat. Second, no one could ever be you.”

“You promise?” you sniffled.

“I swear on my terrible eyesight.” That finally got a small laugh out of you, and Wonwoo felt some of the tension ease from his chest.

“Besides,” he added, smirking. “If anything, you should be more worried about Jeonghan stealing me away while I’m gone.”

Your eyes narrowed. “I knew it. He’s been trying to seduce you for years.”

Wonwoo chuckled, “you have no idea.”

You let out a dramatic sigh and flopped against him. “Fine. I’ll let you go.”

“Oh? You’re giving me permission now?”

“Yes,” you sniffed. “But only if you compensate me properly.”

“And how exactly do I do that?” Wonwoo raised an eyebrow.

You perked up. “A life-sized body pillow with your face on it.”

Wonwoo groaned. “Not this again.”

“You owe me emotional damages” you crossed your arms.

“I’m not getting you a body pillow.”

“Then I’ll just make my own,” you threatened.

Wonwoo sighed, rubbing his temples. “Okay, how would you even do that?”

“Print a giant picture of your face, tape it to a pillow, and boom. DIY boyfriend” you smirked.

“You have issues” he stared at you.

“I have needs” you corrected.

Wonwoo shook his head in defeat. “Fine. I’ll send you so many selfies that you’ll get sick of my face.”

You gasped. “Never.”

“You’re ridiculous” he chuckled, wrapping an arm around you and pulling you close.

“And yet, here you are, cuddling me instead of telling me to stop.”

“Unfortunately” your boyfriend sighed dramatically. You gasped and smacked his chest. “Take that back!”

“Nope” he grinned mischievously.

You huffed, but your arms tightened around him. “Ugh. You’re the worst.”

“And yet, here you are, crying over me leaving.”

“Shut up and let me be sad. And you’re not exactly leaving, remember?” you sniffled.

Wonwoo chuckled, squeezing you gently. “Alright baby. Be as sad as you want.”

a/n; dreading the almost 2 years of Wonwoo drought icbbb

[nikkento-writes]

Babysitter - Part 2

Pairing: dad!Toji x babysitter!reader

Rating: Explicit – MINORS DO NOT INTERACT

Word Count: ~3.8k

cw: age gap (reader is 21, Toji is in his 30s), explicit language, cheating, pregnancy, smut – PIV sex (doggy style)

Summary: You deal with the aftermath of your summer babysitting job turned adulterous summer scandal.

Author’s Notes: Thanks for all the kind words and support on Part 1 of this! I hope you enjoy part 2, and who knows, maybe I'll write a part 3 one day lol. Thanks for reading! Divider credit to @/fic-dumpster.

Taglist: @scorpiosugar @diegojeanne @f4irygard3n @cvixmei @soniiyi - more tags in the comments

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.” You blink away the tears in your eyes, holding the pregnancy test, hoping that somehow, you’ll blink away the second line indicating that you are indeed pregnant.

“No way.” Chiyo waits for you outside the stall, the apprehension in her voice apparent.

“Yes. I’m…” There’s a lump in your throat you have to swallow before you finish your sentence. “Pregnant.”

Your best friend’s silence on the other side only makes you panic more, but you don’t blame her. What can she really say to make any of this better? To stop your world from turning upside down?

She whispers your name quietly, at a complete loss for words. Then, she clears her throat, sounding as if she’s fighting tears herself. “I’m going to buy you a melon pan. Just…wait for me here, okay?” It’s the only consolation she can offer you in this moment, huddled in a public restroom of a convenience store; you appreciate the effort, nonetheless. You wait for her to leave, completely alone now. As soon as she’s gone, you sob into your hands.

It's not that you oppose being a mother. You’ve always imagined handing a positive pregnancy test to the love of your life with the biggest smile on your face, excited to raise a family together. Ideally, this would have happened sometime in the future, once you’ve established yourself as a full-fledged adult. Not like this: twenty-one years-old, less than a year until graduation without the slightest clue what you’re doing with your life. Worst of all, the father isn’t your husband, a boyfriend, even a friend. It’s Toji Fushiguro, the dad of the little boy you babysat over the summer, the husband of the kind woman who hired you. You still haven’t forgiven yourself for your adultery, the guilt eating away at you since the start of that lecherous summer fling. And now, you have this pee-on-a-stick to remind you how incredibly reckless you were to get involved with him in the first place. How undeniably irresponsible you were to have unprotected sex with a married man. Sure, it was the best sex you’ll probably ever have in your life. But was it worth it?

You wrap the pregnancy test in toilet paper, tossing it in the trash bin. Knowing that no good will come out of sulking in the 7-11 bathroom any longer, you finally exit the stall, washing your hands clean at the sink. Your phone vibrates in your back pocket as you stare at your reflection in the mirror, fixated on your belly, wondering what it will look like round and full of life. It buzzes again, snapping you out of your trance. When you check to see who’s messaging, you almost drop your phone out of shock.

Somehow, someway, the universe has it out for you. Because in the most perfectly disastrous timing ever, Mrs. Fushiguro decides to contact you.

~~~

A week later, you’re sitting on the train, heading to the Fushiguro household. Your stomach is in knots, both from anxiety and from the morning sickness. Sweat beads on your forehead, skin sticky against your clothing in this hot weather. The closer you approach your destined stop, the more and more nervous you get, almost convinced to call the whole thing off.

Believe it or not, Mrs. Fushiguro did not contact you to confront you about the dirty deeds you did with her husband. Instead, she messaged you in dire need of a babysitter once again. She spares you the details, asking if you could meet her in person to better explain herself. And for whatever reason, you agree.

You haven’t come up with a solid plan yet on what you want to do about your little predicament. So far, the only people that know are Chiyo and your parents, who, after the initial shock of it all, have been surprisingly supportive. They advised you to take the rest of the term off, which you were able to get arranged quickly through your school. This gives you several weeks to decide what you need to do. With one issue resolved, it leaves you with the next, and the most pressing: whether or not you should tell the father. The last thing you want is to break apart the Fushiguro family. You’re fully prepared to raise this baby as a single mother, which, with the help of your parents and best friend, seems doable. Besides, you’re not even sure if you want Toji to be involved considering his complete lack of interest in his other child, Megumi. Despite that, you believe that as the father, he has the right to know. Can you gather the courage to actually tell him?

Still lost in your train of thought, you hop off to walk to the house. When you arrive, you spot Mrs. Fushiguro already outside, leaning against her car in the driveway with little Megumi in her arms. They both smile upon seeing you, warming your heart. You take a deep breath, bracing yourself for whatever is to come. 

“Hello Mrs. Fushiguro,” you greet her, bowing politely, too shy to meet her gaze. “How are you?”

“Doing really well. Thank you for coming on such short notice.” She lets her son down, who steps towards you until he’s hugging your knee, cooing. “I wanted to talk to you in person about my complicated situation.”

“Is everything alright?” you ask, unable to resist kneeling down to meet Megumi at eye level, making funny faces at him.

She giggles. “Oh, everything is great! The divorce finally went through and I’m living with my new boyfriend now, who’s been the absolute best, especially with Megumi.”

You make a shocked expression, mouth agape, exaggerated for the kid’s entertainment, though you’re pretty much stunned yourself. “Divorce…?”

“Yeah! Toji and I have been separated for a long time now. I’m sorry I didn’t mention that over the summer. You’re still so young after all, no need to rope you into adult things.”

You almost bust out laughing at the irony, but you hold your tongue, continuing to listen to her.

She sighs, flipping her long, beautiful hair behind her shoulders. “That being said, I still care about the guy. I mean, he is the father of my child. Without me or Megumi there on a regular basis, the whole house has gone to shit. It seems like he’s actually taking this divorce pretty hard. So, I want to hire you as a babysitter for my ex-husband. Just for a little while until he can get back up on his feet.”

Another shocked face, which makes Megumi laugh while dread sinks into your chest. “Babysitter…?”

“Babysitter, housekeeper, whatever you want to call it. You did such a wonderful job with him over the summer, even while you were taking care of Megumi! I don’t know what you were feeding him. Whatever it was, he was definitely a little bit nicer when you were around.”

Lewd flashbacks replay in your mind of Toji eating you out sloppily, slurping up all your pussy juices in every room of the house. You focus on the ground, too ashamed to look at her. “Mrs. Fushiguro, I don’t know if I can do this.”

She squats to your level, reaching for your hand, holding it gently in hers. “I know this is a lot of ask. You’re the only one I can rely on for this. Please.”

A sense of déjà vu hits you. There’s desperation in her tone and it tugs at your heartstrings the same way it did when you first met her a few months ago. It doesn’t help that Megumi is now squeezing the index finger of your other hand, eyes full of curious wonder, grip surprisingly strong for such a young child. Would she be pleading with you like this if she knew the truth about you, Toji, and the baby? Even though they were separated during this whole ordeal, it doesn’t make what you did any better; you still decided to do it regardless of their marital status.

Maybe you can use this opportunity as a way to atone.  

You finally look at her, giving the most convincing smile you can muster, trying your best to ignore the wave of nausea washing over you. “Okay. I’ll do it.”

~~~

Mrs. Fushiguro asks you to start at noon the following day, giving her enough time to notify her ex about your temporary employment. When you use the set of keys she gave you to open the front door, you step inside cautiously, not sure what to expect. You’ve been dreading this impromptu reunion all night, wondering if you could even face him.

It’s a mess inside, heaps of dirty laundry scattered all over the furniture, fast food wrappers and empty ramen bowls littered on the kitchen counter. There’s a stench lingering in the stale air in here and you almost think the worse, but Mrs. Fushiguro had warned you about this. Seeing it in person is more heartbreaking than disgusting. Toji really is taking this divorce hard. It wouldn’t be right to burden him with more life-changing news, right?

You begin by gathering all the trash into garbage bags, flattening any cardboard to recycle. By the looks of it, he’s been living off junk food and protein bars for the past month. The refrigerator is near empty, aside from a questionable take-out container in the very back, which you end up dumping along with everything else. You make it your next task to get groceries after you load the washing machine.

When you return from the store, Toji remains absent. Nerves prevent you from leaning against the bedroom door to listen for any signs of him in there. His ex-wife mentioned that he goes out to gamble at the horse races whenever he’s short on cash, so it’s likely he’s there. Still, you’re anticipating his return, mentally preparing yourself for how you’ll behave around him. Given your current circumstances, you are serious about turning over a new leaf. No more funny business with him. Absolutely not.

It’s near dinnertime now and you’ve miraculously accomplished tidying the house and doing his laundry all within a few hours. You even managed to cook soup for dinner, full of hearty beef and fresh vegetables, something to provide nutrients compared to the processed food he’s been consuming lately. You’re stirring the pot when you hear keys jingle from outside the front door. He comes in, clad in a tight-fitting black shirt that accentuates his muscles and grey sweatpants that don't leave much to the imagination. A plastic bag is slung behind his shoulder, clearly from a convenience store. Despite his concerning diet, his physique is still impressive as ever. Just one glance at him has you fluttering below your belly, replaying the erotic memories you share together. You turn to face him, standing up straight, feigning confidence while you fret internally. He looks at you, brow raised slightly, a small smirk forming on his lips.

“Hello sir,” you greet him, bowing politely. Acting as if he’s a total stranger and not the man who rocked your entire world over the summer, now with evidence to prove it.

He sets the bag on the counter, revealing a couple of ramen packets inside. “What’s with the formalities?” he asks, grinning. “If I remember correctly, you were screaming my name nonstop the last time you were here.”

Heat rushes into your cheeks instantly, not surprised by his vulgarity, though still embarrassed. You clear your throat, trying to stay strong. “I’m here to work. Nothing else.”

He walks towards you, his stature casting a daunting shadow as he steps closer and closer, towering over you. His voice is low, borderline threatening to a point that has you trembling. “So you don’t want me to fuck you anymore?”

You swallow hard, composure wavering. “That’s right.”  Even you don’t fully believe it when it comes out of your own mouth, how can you expect him to?

There’s a strange look in his eyes, almost like he’s disappointed by your response. He turns his back to you, mumbling something about taking a shower. You watch him enter his bedroom, hearing him clear as day before he shuts the door with a dull thud. “I guess you don’t want me either.”

~~~

A week into being Toji’s live-in housekeeper, the two of you figure out a routine together that involves minimal interaction. You wake up in the morning to cook breakfast, eating it quickly and leaving the rest for him while you go out. You use this time to go for a walk, meet with Chiyo or your parents, do some grocery shopping, or just sit at the nearby park, enjoying the sun with your baby, who grows little-by-little each day.

Toji is usually gone the whole afternoon, either working out or gambling, so you’re able to do chores back at the house, like cleaning his room. He doesn’t return until dinnertime when tension seems to be at its highest. A big reason for that is because he’s made it a habit to eat right after his shower, shirtless and with his legs crossed on the floor, displaying a perfectly visible outline of his manhood. It’s distracting, to say the least. Chiyo mentioned the other day how you can have an increased libido during the first trimester. That’s definitely proving itself now.

Aside from the half-nakedness, something else surprises you about him. The two of you mostly avoid conversation with each other, eating in silence at the dining table while sneaking furtive glances whenever you get a chance. But he never fails to mutter, “Thank you for the meal,” before washing the dishes at the sink, retreating back into his room when he’s done. It’s the tiniest act of consideration that makes you wonder what’s going on in his head.

Tonight you sit across from each other as usual. You just finished eating the chicken katsu you made for dinner, along with a couple of side dishes you prepped earlier in the week. His abs look especially spectacular today and you find it harder than usual to stop peeking at them.

“You’re gonna burn a hole through me with the way you’re staring,” he says, chewing his last bite.

Shit, caught red-handed. You quickly look down at your empty bowl, mumbling an apology. “Sorry. I just…I can tell your hard work is paying off.”

“Yours too. The house has never been cleaner. And the food has never been better.” He’s looking directly at you, a genuine smile on his face. “Thank you.”

It’s no good. Your hormones are raging, sexual desire courses through you, all from that stupidly handsome grin and a silly little compliment. How did you ever think you could resist him?

You stand up, grabbing everything from the table. “I’ll do the dishes,” you offer, walking them to the sink, trying to calm down.

It’s no use, though. He sees right through you.

He gives you only a minute alone before he follows you, caging you between his big arms, your back to him, his mouth hot on your ear. “Let me help you.”

You let out a frustrated huff, already unraveling from his proximity. The smallest jut of your hips and there it is, his erection pressed to your ass, throbbing and even more massive than you remember it. “Toji, we can’t,” you whine, not making any attempt to separate yourself from him.

He slides his hands around your hips, pulling you in closer, rubbing his rock-hard cock against you. “I know you want it. I know you want me.”

And he’s right. You do. You want him with you, around you, inside of you. In all the ways he’s had you before, in new ways he’s never had but you’ve fantasized about. There’s no denying it anymore. You want him. You want him so fucking bad.

He takes you right there at the kitchen sink, bent over with your grip tight on the edge of the counter, pounding away at your wet, needy cunt. Neither of you bother to remove your clothes completely, Toji’s sweatpants shrugged down his thighs just enough, yours pooled around your ankles, soaked panties at your knees. “Fuck, Toji!” you moan, sticking your ass out to meet his thrusts.

His fingers find your clit, rubbing slippery circles around it. “Say it,” he grunts, increasing the pace.

Drools leaks out from the sides of your lips, too fucked out to process what’s he’s asking you. “What?”

“Say you want me,” he demands, massaging your swollen bud so deep, you feel it all the way down to your fucking toes.

“I want you. I want you, Toji!” you respond breathlessly, squeezing him tight with your orgasm.

“Fuck, I missed you. Missed my good girl.” He continues to fuck you, slowly now, relishing every second of being inside you. “Always so fucking creamy for me, fuck.” He pulls you up to embrace you from behind, fingers still pleasuring you, his other hand at your chin to face you towards him. The two of you kiss passionately, lips smacking, tongues swirling. So sloppy and wanton that it puts you on the verge of another orgasm, completely succumbed to pleasure.

You sleep with him in his bedroom after several more orgasms and a big one of his own, wrapped comfortably in his arms, with his cock and creampie inside you the rest of the night. For the first time in a while, you’re oddly at peace.

~~~

Your reckless decision making has led you into another troublesome scenario. Fortunately, you haven’t had any morning sickness the entire first week of your employment at the Fushiguro household. Unfortunately, it decides to come back today. There’s no way you’ll be able to make it to the bathroom near your room, so you have no choice but to hop out of Toji’s bed and run into his, clutching onto the porcelain bowl until it’s all out. You rinse your mouth off at the sink, hoping Toji didn’t hear any of it. But you know all too well by now that luck is never on your side.

He’s sitting up against the headboard, watching you come out of the bathroom. “Did you just puke in there?” There’s a hint of concern in his normally blunt tone.

You nod, bending down to retrieve your underwear and pants off the floor, avoiding his gaze.

“Are you sick?” he asks, the worry even more obvious now.

Shaking your head, you respond, “No, I just…I’m feeling a little nauseous, that’s all.” You walk towards the door, still not willing to look at him. “There should be leftovers in the fridge, so help yourself to breakfast. I’m going to lay down.”

He calls out your name. “Wait – ”

You ignore him, closing the door shut behind you, letting the tears fall down your cheeks as you retreat into your own bedroom, muffling your sobs into a pillow. After your wild romp last night, this bout of morning sickness has swiftly brought you back to reality. You’re still harboring the secret growing in your womb from the man who gave it to you to begin with.

There’s a firm knock on your door, startling you. “Hey, it’s me.”

In this split-second, you decide to stop with the lies and finally tell the truth. You open the door, Toji standing in front of you fully clothed in his usual attire, a serious expression on his face. “What’s going on? Talk to me.”

Eyes still puffy from crying, you take a deep breath. “I’m pregnant. And you’re the father.”

His mouth parts the slightest bit, no words coming out of it. The silence seems to linger on forever. You fill it by rambling all the thoughts that have been swimming in your head the last couple of weeks. “Before you start freaking out or anything, I’m telling you so that you know. I don’t expect you to be involved. I’m perfectly willing to raise this child on my own. And besides, I won’t be completely alone. I have my family to help me, my friends too. I’ll be totally fine. This baby is going to be well taken care of, I’ll make sure of it. I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you sooner. I just didn’t know how. But I feel better already because this has been stressing me out. It’s all going to work out okay? I think. I hope.”

After the long spiel, he stares down at the floor, jaw tight, mouth opening and closing, unsure how to respond. Eventually, he says, “I have to go.”

When he leaves the house, you crawl into your bed, bawling until there are no tears left for you to cry.

~~~

You wake up in the late afternoon to an enticing aroma wafting from the kitchen. It’s been hours since you’ve been in bed, moping about how poorly everything went with Toji. His reaction left you devastated. While you always expected to do this alone, hearing his negative response to it hurts more than you anticipated it to.

Curious, you make your way into the kitchen, shocked to find Toji standing over the stove, stirring a pot, the soothing scent of soup surrounding you. “What’s going on?” you ask, noticing a plethora of fresh vegetables laid out on the counter, along with a big bottle of prenatal vitamins and various snacks.

He turns the heat off, covering the pot with a lid. “I’m cooking,” he answers, facing you with a grin on his face. “Bone broth is a good source of calcium. And you need to keep eating lots of veggies so our baby is strong, like me. No more of this instant ramen shit.”

“I thought you were upset,” you say, stepping closer to him.  

“I know. I’m sorry I left like that. I was shocked at first, I’ll admit it. But I started to get excited." He takes your hands in his. "I have a lot of regrets in my life, but being a father isn’t one of them. Being a bad father is. I want to change. I need to change. For Megumi. For our new little one. For you.”

Strangely enough, you believe in his heartfelt declaration. You smile at him, letting him go to stand in front of the stove, taking a whiff of the comforting aroma of the hot soup he made for you, happy tears welling in your eyes. He hugs you gently from behind, nuzzling his nose to you. “I’m going to do it right this time, okay? I know I can do it with you.”

As Toji caresses your belly, kissing you softly along the neck, you feel the weight that’s been heavy on your shoulders ease up. Maybe this won’t be so bad after all.

[smut-anarchy]

Crybaby

Soft!Mattheo Riddle x Hufflepuff!Fem!Reader

Warnings: Some mild swears, nothing spicy... for now.

Summary: Every time Mattheo sees you cry and falls in love with you for it.

A/N: This is my first fic EVER! I was too excited to get it proof read by my bestie so all mistakes are my own. Check the tags at the end for a funny surprise.

Word Count: 7,300+ (Sorry, I went crazy)

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Mattheo had never been one of those who could be influenced by tears. With who his father was he learned very quickly as a child that tears equated to weakness, and weakness was never allowed. 

Even at times where previous flings had sobbed after being tossed aside or cried for cuddles after sex, it didn’t move him. After all, he’d always made it clear that he wasn’t a romantic. He’d have his fun and move on, he never gave any indication that it would be more meaningful than that. Because of this he’d been called a “cold hearted bastard” more times than he could count. 

Which is why the first time he saw you cry he swore something was wrong with him. Seeing your puffy, red cheeks, your quivering, plump bottom limp and wide, watery eyes he felt like someone sent a stinging hex right to his gut. Your eyes were trained right on a laughing Enzo. 

Now it wasn’t completely uncommon for Enzo to make a girl cry. After all, he too would flirt his way into one of their classmates beds from time to time. Though Enzo prided himself on having a kind, prince-like persona publicly, so he kept all of his trysts and crying ex-lovers deeply hidden from public view. So it was unusual for Enzo to be seen with a crying girl in public, right in the middle of the hallway near the potions classroom. 

The closer Mattheo got the clearer he could see that you had not actually cried yet. Your eyes were full of unshed tears, and by the look of your puffed up cheeks and bitten bottom lip you were clearly attempting not to cry. Oddly to him, this didn’t lessen the weird sensation in his stomach. It only made him slightly angry at his friend for a reason he couldn’t even name. 

Your eyes flickered to him for a brief moment before settling back on a smiling Enzo. 

“Fine,” you said in a defeated tone, “You win. You can borrow my notes for Transfiguration. But this is the last time Enzo!”

Enzo’s smile widened as he picked you up in an embrace and spun you around. Immediately your face brightened and your giggles echoed in the empty hallway.

“That’s my favorite Hufflepuff!” Enzo teased, ruffling your hair, “Next time just agree before you lose another bet and turn into a little crybaby.” 

Your giggles turned into a playful pout, “Hey! You cheated! You have longer legs than I do! And the staircase moved on my way down! You’d cry too if you ran as much as I did and still lost.” 

Enzo let out a chuckle and shook his head, “Well maybe don’t propose a race next time. It was your idea after all. I play quidditch love, there isn’t a world in which you win against me.”  

“Whatever, I’ll win the next bet, you’ll see!” 

You stuck your tongue out at Enzo and turned around, walking away from Enzo much more cheerfully than Mattheo expected for a girl whose eyes were bursting with tears when he walked into this hallway. 

“In your dreams love!” Enzo called after you, earning a swift middle finger from behind your back. Mattheo stopped behind Enzo, pure confusion over witnessing the entire interaction between you two. The assumption that you were one of Enzo’s fangirls or jilted ex-lovers was clearly off the table, but he still couldn’t make sense of the welled up tears in your eyes.

“Girl trouble Enz?” Mattheo hummed, curiosity thoroughly peaked by you and the strange feelings you brought on. 

Enzo, now aware that Mattheo had witnessed the entire exchange smirked, “Nah, nothing like that. She’s just fun to tease, is all.” And with that Enzo ducked into the Potions classroom, leaving Mattheo not entirely satisfied with the answer. Nonetheless, he brushed off his gut feelings and whatever thoughts swirled in his head. He likely wouldn’t have an opportunity to interact with you again, he and his friends never kept one girl around too long, even if she was entertaining. 

Shaking himself out of his thoughts, he followed after Enzo to their table in class. 

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When Mattheo entered the Slytherin common room after smoking in the Astronomy Tower he was not prepared to find you on the couch with Enzo, this time actually crying. Though you were also laughing hysterically because Enzo happened to be tickling your feet. 

“How dare you! How dare you say I’m not your favorite Slytherin!” Enzo chided, gleeful smile on his face as he tickled the sock covered soles of your feet. He slowed to a stop, holding your ankles in his lap to keep you from escaping. 

“I didn’t say you weren’t!” You giggled, voice breathless because of your laughter, “I said I don’t know the other Slytherins so I can’t pick a favorite!” 

Enzo smirked, “Not good enough!”, and with that he resumed tickling your feet. Your laughter and squeals bouncing around the common room. 

Mattheo couldn’t help but stare, he and the guys never brought girls to the dorms, and certainly never sat together in the common room. Your yellow skirt and robe were a beacon in the dark and cold that was the Slytherin common room, Salazar Slytherin himself would have a conniption if he saw a giggling Hufflepuff on the couch. And yet, there you were with Enzo, both laughing as if this was not peculiar at all. 

“Say it! Say I’m your favorite!” Enzo demanded, his fingers still torturing the pads of your feet. 

“Okay!” You laughed, “Enzo is my favorite Slytherin!” You were attempting to wiggle your ankles free from Enzo’s grasp and escape the tickling torture but Enzo kept an iron grip, not satisfied with your answer. 

“And?” 

“And I’ll always share my notes with him!” You squealed, completely out of breath from all the laughter. Enzo, seemingly satisfied with your answer finally released your feet, which you immediately tucked under your lap, still wheezing from laughter. 

“Enzo,” you huffed, “You’re a spoiled brat, you know that?” 

“You love it, crybaby.” Enzo winked. His head turned and noticed Mattheo staring at them, still trying to make sense of the scene before him. “Mattheo! Come here, meet my little Hufflepuff!” 

Mattheo strode over and sat on the chair opposite to them, eyes flickering between the two of them. The addition of his presence made you seem more shy now, as if you were embarrassed to be caught with Enzo like this, you refused to make eye contact with him and your cheeks were a little blushed. 

“Y/N this is Mattheo, Mattheo this is Y/N. She’s my transfiguration partner and the cutest girl in Hogwarts.” 

Your blush seemed to bloom even redder from the compliment. But your eyes shyly made contact with him and a soft smile graced your face. 

“Hi, ignore Enzo, he’s just trying to get into my good graces after tickle torturing me and making me tutor him for two hours.” 

Mattheo muttered a low ‘hello’ and quietly trudged to his room, door slamming with much more force than he intended. His heart was pounding and he felt surge of envy towards Enzo. 

Enzo was right, you were cute, and even though your face was streaked with laughter induced tears and wild hair from wiggling on the couch, Mattheo thought you looked adorable. He’d never thought that tears could be cute before, but there you were with a soft smile and bubbling laughter. These thoughts and feelings were all new to him, it made him feel suffocated and embarrassed, but he was Mattheo Riddle for Salazar’s Sake! Mattheo Riddle doesn’t run from anything, let alone cute girls. Yet he knew he couldn’t just sit there under your pretty gaze and risk making a fool of himself. Enzo would never let him live it down.

Outside in the common room he could hear you ask Enzo if you said something wrong. Now he felt like an asshole, of course you were too sweet to think he was the problem. Mattheo closed his eyes and flopped onto his bed. He could hear Enzo comfort you, saying ‘Mattheo’s just an ass’ and offering to walk you back to your dorm. 

For whatever reason, hearing that made him sort of agitated. He wanted to walk you to your dorm, and he’d be his usual charming self and make you laugh and blush, then you’d direct your smile at him and maybe that’d make him feel better. Maybe he’d even kiss you, and that thought warmed him in a different way. Mattheo groaned, just thinking of kissing you burned his mind with other ideas, less innocent things with you, where your sweet, shy smile turned into something sultry and pleading, he could feel his dick harden and more thoughts bloomed, each one more tantalizing than the last. 

Mattheo’s door opened and Enzo walked in with Theo following behind. Theo just looked at him, nodding casually before turning to his side of the room, but Enzo’s eyes were dancing with mischief, a Cheshire grin already etched into his face. 

“Very smooth, Matty-boy.” Enzo teased. 

Mattheo fixed him with a glare, he hated when anyone called him Matty. “Don’t call me that, and I have no idea what you’re talking about.” 

Enzo’s smile widened, eyes alight, “Oh no? You don’t want to talk about how cute, little Y/N said one sentence to you and you ran off?” 

Theo’s head shot up at that, looking between his two dorm mates with mild interest. Theo always had an uncanny way of reading Mattheo, which right now really irked him since Enzo was stirring the pot. 

“I didn’t run off, I’m tired.” Mattheo grumbled, “Why did you even bring her here? We don’t bring flings here.” He had a feeling there was no such relationship between you and Enzo, but he couldn’t help but try and fish for more information.

“You brought a girl here?” Theo asked incredulously, his interest now fully invested.

Enzo rolled his eyes, “She’s not a fling, we’re friends. We were doing homework together after we got kicked out of the library.” 

“Didn’t seem like homework when you were tickling her.” Mattheo grumbled, the memory flashing in his mind with a new wave of annoyance. 

“You were tickling a girl here?” Theo echoed. 

“Jealous?” Enzo directed at Mattheo before he turned to Theo, “Theo, she’s a Hufflepuff and so much fun to mess with. It’s not like that.”

“So, you wouldn’t mind if I flirted with her?” Theo drawled. Mattheo’s head snapped to Theo, he could feel acid in his throat thinking of Theo flirting with you. Theo’s eyes were already on him, eyebrow quirked, his expression knowing. Mattheo glared back at him and turned away, he knew he shouldn’t care what Theo or Enzo did with you, but he did, and that pissed him off more.

Enzo laughed wholeheartedly, “Sure, but if you’re not serious she’ll sniff out your bullshit. When I first met her I flirted with her for her notes and she stepped on my foot so hard I had to go to Madam Pomfrey!” 

Theo chuckled, “Alright, so she’s off limits then.”  

“You’re fucking right she is. I actually do want to be friends with her, I don’t need you assholes scarring her for life with your flirting. It’s already going to be an uphill battle with how hellish Draco and Pansy can be.”

“So we’ll be seeing more of her?” Theo questioned, and for once Mattheo was glad for Theo’s inquisitive nature, the same question burning in his mind. He wanted to see more of Y/N, his mind flickering back to those not so innocent thoughts. 

“Yeah, probably.” And with that, the conversation seemed to be over, Mattheo’s lack of talking not going unnoticed by his two friends. They shared a look, coming to the exact same seemingly impossible conclusion: Mattheo had a crush. 

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Enzo’s casual affirmation was an understatement, as the next day he invited his Hufflepuff to sit with them in the Great Hall at breakfast. She was smiling up at Enzo when he brought her over, then turning her smile to all of them at the table. She shot Mattheo a shy smile and wave before settling between Enzo and Blaise. 

Pansy and Draco both offering indifferent greetings before turning to each other and continuing their conversation. Theo, Blaise and you began an intense discussion about potions, Enzo offering a comment here and there while he ate breakfast. Mattheo could only look around at his friends in confusion, his group not known to be friendly with people outside of Slytherin, or even with others in Slytherin for that matter. Draco and Pansy being the worst of two but they barely even acknowledged you and continued what they were doing. Blaise and Theo were known to be standoffish and yet here they were joking with you about potions. 

“They know her, dumbass.” 

Mattheo’s eyes shot to Enzo across from him, his face looking smug. Everyone else was so wrapped up in their conversations they didn’t hear what Enzo had whispered. 

“What?” Mattheo asked.

“You look confused,” Enzo clarified, stopping to take a bite of his Apple, “They all know her, she’s been in all of our classes since second year.”

Mattheo nodded in understanding, eyes flickering back to the sweet Hufflepuff, who had now drawn Pansy and Draco into the conversation, the five of them debating whether or not Professor Snape used shampoo. Her face was glowing with happiness, every time she laughed he could see the flutter of her full lashes. His mind echoed the strange desire to count each lash. 

He liked her laughing. The two times he’d seen her teary he thought she’d been cute, the frustration tears from chasing Enzo and the tears from laughing too hard, it was easy to find her adorable, but seeing her carefree and laughing filled his chest with yearning, he wanted her light to shine on him, even just for a moment. Yes, he much preferred her like this, hopefully he wouldn’t have to see her cry for a long while. 

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Mattheo didn’t know how many different ways someone could cry until he met you. 

Now fully adopted into his friend group he’s seen you cry over something with each of his friends and it confused him. He always assumed crying meant a person felt sad, that there were no other reasons to cry. The first time he saw tears in your eyes he added exhaustion as an acceptable reason to cry. Then he added laughter after the common room tickle incident. He figured that’d be it.

Until he found you and Pansy swaddled in blankets in her room listening to a muggle artist named Olivia Rodrigo and eating ice cream. He’d only stopped by to return a book he borrowed from Pansy the week before, he knocked and the door cracked open and he saw your tear streaked face and Pansy huddled on the floor, her face was turned away from him but he heard her sniffles. 

He fumbled out an explanation about the book and you accepted it from him with a small smile. After the door had closed he heard the music blast to full volume. 

He’d never thought Pansy would ever cry, she’d always felt like such expressions were beneath her. He was also very much confused on why you were crying, which made him worried something had happened to both of you. It wasn’t until later that Theo and Enzo told him that Pansy and Luna had broken up and you had decided some girl time was much needed to “feel your feelings” and listen to sad songs.

He’d never considered sympathy crying, but there you were with Pansy, sharing her pain. He admired you for it, your kindness knowing no limits.

The next day Pansy threatened to cut off his dick if he ever told anyone he’d seen her cry, though he was honest and said he actually hadn’t seen anything, and she seemed comforted by that fact. After Pansy seemed to be lighter almost, and she became as protective of you as Enzo, which became clear after Adrian Pucey cornered you in the hallway to harass you for a date. Enzo broke his nose and Pansy sent a hex that had Adrian vomiting hair clumps for a week. Mattheo would deny it but he also paid Adrian a visit after the hex had worn off and threatened a whole lot worse than a broken nose and a gross hex if Adrian so much as breathed in your direction.

The lust Mattheo felt for you still burned but there was something else, something new to him. Something that made him want to comfort you and protect you, to have you look for him for safety. Now, he didn’t just want your body, he wanted your undivided attention. 

Mattheo tried to brush off these thoughts. He was no romantic, you were too sweet and nice to get wrapped up in something with him. As soon as it ended, you’d be crushed and Pansy and Enzo would likely make him suffer for hurting you. He told himself he just felt this way because you were friends, and friends is what you’d have to stay to be safe from him. 

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Quidditch hardly interested you, Mattheo found out. Occasionally you volunteered with Madam Pomfrey and you’d seen enough quidditch injures to give you too much anxiety to watch the game. So whenever he and the boys played you’d skip up to them with boxes of baked goods to wish them luck and left on your merry way to watch the infirmary so Madam Pomfrey could supervise the game.

Surprisingly, Draco had been won over through his stomach. His indifference morphed into a kind of bland acknowledgement until he’d gotten the first good luck treats of the season, then he became outright friendly towards you. But when he’d caught the snitch the first time that year you’d made the whole team a whole fleet of chocolate lava cakes and candied fruit. Draco had sworn all of it was for him but after that he had taken on a kind of pseudo-brother relationship with you.

Conversely, you and Blaise bonded over your distinguished and varied adoration of books, often times swapping between yourselves. Blaise alleged that you were the only one he could read around because you weren’t “a distracting idiot” like Enzo and Draco or “an eternal gossip” like Pansy, but Mattheo could see that Blaise just had a soft spot for you like everyone in the group. Every time they went to Hogsmeade together you and Blaise would peel off to Flourish and Blotts, always coming back with more books. Of course, Blaise being chivalrous meant you never carried your own books despite your protests. The more time they spent in Hogsmeade the longer your books would get passed around to be carried until they always landed in Mattheo’s hands. Though he didn’t mind because you would smile sweetly at him when they returned to Hogwarts and thanked him for carrying your books. 

Yes, Draco and Blaise had become like brothers to you. So when Madam Pomfrey rushed them to the infirmary both bruised with multiple broken bones Mattheo had seen all the color drain from your face.

None of the team was allowed to be in the infirmary so the last thing he could see was your crushed expression and tears welling up in your eyes. Theo, Pansy, Enzo and him had paced outside the hallway until Madam Pomfrey had shooed them away to go rest, telling them they could visit in the morning. 

Mattheo had hardly slept the entire night. His two friends unconscious and battered and your crestfallen face had haunted him. As soon as he could reasonably leave the dorm he rushed to the infirmary. Madam Pomfrey pursed her lips upon seeing him, knowing he had not rested but allowed him to visit anyway, despite it still being too early. 

Draco and Blaise laid in their beds, looking much better than when they’d arrived. Whatever Madam Pomfrey had given them was slowly repairing the bones and easing the bruising on their bodies, their sleeping faces looked peaceful so it was clear they weren’t in pain. In between the two of their beds was you, huddled into yourself on a chair. 

Hearing Mattheo approach had made you lift your head from the floor. Your eyes were puffy from exhaustion, your usual bright smile gone and replaced by a mournful frown. You were wearing the same clothes from yesterday so he knew you’d stayed by their side all night and likely not slept. 

He stood in front of you, not sure what to say and as he looked at you he saw fresh tears gather in your eyes and your lip was trembling. Before he could say anything you’d lept from the chair and wrapped your arms around him, holding him tightly as silent sobs wracked your body. 

Mattheo had never been hugged like this. He was fairly certain he’d never been hugged ever. But here you were, clinging to him and crying into his chest. His heart ached feeling your tears soak into his shirt, you couldn’t keep your sobs silent anymore, now fully weeping on him. He wrapped his arms around you and rested his head on top of yours. 

He just held you as you bawled. Though this situation was less than ideal it felt good that he could be here for you, comforting you. Your body was enveloped in his and he was reminded how small you were, so fragile but so strong at the same time. He wondered how long you’d held yourself together before he got here. That thought made him embrace you tighter, at least he could be here for you now. He told himself he’d keep holding you until you were ready to let go.

Your sobs had turned into little whimpers and sniffles, but you didn’t let go of him. Your head stirred underneath him and he looked down at you, seeing you staring up at him. Your wide eyes glassy and cheeks red, dried tear tracks on your face. The word beautiful flashed through his mind, somehow no matter what you did you always managed to look perfect to him. 

“T-thanks Matty,” you voice quivered, “Er, I mean Mattheo.” Your cheeks were already red from crying, though Mattheo desperately wanted to believe they got a little bit pinker.

“You can call me Matty.” His voice was somewhat hoarse and raspy from fatigue. Her lips quirked up slightly and then she sighed and closed her eyes. 

She slowly unwrapped her arms from him and dropped them to her side, looking back at Draco and Blaise. His body felt empty and cold after you let go, he felt the urge to pull you back but stifled it, as exhaustion was currently winning over his body.

Mattheo looked around and saw a spare blanket and two pillows. He quickly grabbed them, dropping them on the floor between the two beds with his friends. He sat on the floor, with one pillow behind his head against the wall. He pat the spot next to him and down you came, sitting next to him with the other pillow behind your head. He spread the blanket over the two of you and your head came to rest against his shoulder. His eyes closed and then sleep claimed the both of you.

He woke up to a flick on his forehead. He was still propped up against the wall with you ully leaned against his body, still dozing. Draco stood in front of him, the obvious perpetrator of the flick against his head, he was changed out of the hospital clothing but had various bandages and wraps on his body. Blaise was next to him leaning against the hospital bed he’d been spent the night in in, displaying a similar number of bandages. Both of them wearing smirks on their faces aimed at Mattheo and the Hufflepuff curled against him.

“Cozy?” Draco teased. 

Mattheo rolled his eyes with a smile, clearly his friends were alright if they were feeling up to making fun of him. 

“She stayed here all night for you dopes and we were tired,” Mattheo grunted, “Clearly you’re both feeling better though.” 

His friend’s teasing smirks fell and they looked guiltily at the sleeping girl. 

“Y’know she’s going to fuss over us when she wakes up.” Blaise admitted, Draco nodded with a sigh.

“She’ll probably cry.” Draco sighed. Not one of the three boys were looking forward to seeing their friend cry.

“I’ve gotta start carrying around some tissues for her,” Mattheo blurted. Blaise and Draco laughed at that, nodding in agreement and joking the whole group should start carrying some.  

The boys’ laughter stirred the Hufflepuff and she blinked her tired eyes open. At seeing Blaise and Draco awake and standing in front of her she shot right up, discarding the blanket on the floor.

“Blaise! Draco! Oh thank Merlin! How are you feeling? Are you supposed to be standing up? Do you need water? I’ll go get Madam Pomfrey to clean your bandages!” You rattled off, mind clearly spinning off with things to help the two injured Quidditch players. Luckily Blaise grabbed your hand, pulling you from your thoughts.

“We’re fine. Madam Pomfrey is letting us go today. We’re coming back everyday for the next week for the medicine and check ups.” Blaise seemed to sooth you with this, you nodded absentmindedly. Without your brain taking over you really looked at Draco and Blaise and, just as the boys predicted, you started shedding tears. You grabbed both boys and pulled them towards you, both giving you a half hug as you cried. Through your sobs you started babbling your relief about how they were both okay and making them promise to never have to come here half comatose they way they did. 

In the span of a couple of hours your waterworks had turned from fear to relief and Mattheo was glad to see his friends being fussed over by someone so sweet and caring. Your tears were short lived, as Blaise and Draco did their best to make you smile. Your sniffling turned to giggles when Draco’s stomach made a loud gurgle and he moaned about being starving, in typical dramatic Malfoy fashion. 

You had stepped away to thank Madam Pomfrey for allowing you to stay and taking care of your friends. Though the older woman swore it was her job to care for all students and softly chided you for sleeping on the floor even she seemed to fall victim to your charm, hurrying you out the infirmary and promising to see you next time you volunteered. 

“Mr. Riddle, a word please.” Madam Pomfrey said before he could follow you, Draco and Blaise out the door. He nodded to his friends that he’d catch up with them, trying not to think too hard about your worried look.

“I do try not to meddle in my student’s affairs,” Madam Pomfrey started, “But my dear apprentice has been here since midday yesterday and hasn’t eaten anything or slept, aside from your two hour nap on the floor,” the older woman gave a quick glare, “so if you’d please make sure your girlfriend eats and goes straight to bed, I would greatly appreciate it.”

Mattheo nodded dumbstruck, a satisfied Madam Pomfrey led him out the door. 

Girlfriend. Madam Pomfrey thought you and Mattheo were dating. Mattheo once found dating any one repulsive, but he thought about your sweet smiles and angelic laughter and suddenly the idea of dating was inviting, so long as he was dating you. And that was terrifying thought, Mattheo didn’t think himself boyfriend material, but the idea of seeing you date anyone else, or Merlin forbid one of his friends, made him nauseous. He conceded that maybe these feelings would fade after some time, after all, you didn’t give him any indication that you wanted to be more.

Taking Madam Pomfrey’s words seriously he met up with you, Blaise and Draco. After all four of you were fed he suggested they all get rest, Draco and Blaise didn’t argue, their exhaustion kicking in from their injuries, but you pouted, not wanting to go back to your own dorm alone. Mattheo wasn’t immune to your puppy dog eyes so he offered his own bed so you could be with everyone. Draco and Blaise shared a knowing look, but you beamed up at him and happily trotted along with them to their dorms. 

Enzo and Theo were still sleeping, likely to be out until afternoon so as quietly as they could Blaise and Draco went to their own beds, passing out shortly after pulling their blankets around their bodies. 

You shed your large yellow knit sweater and yawned, smiling sleepily at Mattheo. He smiled and tilted his head to his bed, offering it to the kindly Hufflepuff. After removing her shoes she slipped under the covers, he could tell she was struggling to stay awake. 

“Are you coming to bed too?”

Her question made his neck feel hot, she looked at his innocently, eyes fluttering. If he got in that bed with her, he knew he’d never let go of whatever feelings were developing for her. He slowly shook his head, ready to lie to her and say he wasn’t tired, that he was going to go shower or study or literally anything other than get into his bed with her.

“Please Matty?” You pouted. Merlin, he was a goner. He sighed softly and slipped under the covers with you, trying to keep a respectful distance. This whole situation had his body burning and mind in overdrive. You smiled happily and let out a small giggle, wishing him goodnight and then allowing sleep to take you.

Truthfully, he didn’t think he’d be able to sleep. His mind and body kicked into chaos at the proximity of the beautiful Hufflepuff. But he was actually tired, and your soft snores helped him relax and he was able to fall asleep as well. 

That sleep was short-lived, as he only slept for about two hours. When he woke up you were completely tucked into his body, still snoring, with his arms wrapped around you. Luckily, everyone else was still completely knocked out. Against his urges he detached himself from your cuddling, thanking whatever higher power that no one witnessed the intimate moment, and slipped into the bathroom for a cold shower to cool his fevered skin. 

The next day, he went to Hogsmeade and picked up a single green handkerchief with a snake and his initials embroidered into the fabric. He’d never tell anyone but he always kept it in his pocket, just in case.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mattheo knew Theo didn’t care for his birthday, after his mother had passed his father became cruel and he never had another birthday. When Enzo had mentioned it in passing at dinner, Theo had told you himself he didn’t celebrate it. 

Mattheo, now attuned to your expressions, saw a glimmer of sadness flickering behind your eyes, followed by a flash of determination. You hadn’t said much after that, but he saw the gears in your head turning. 

A week later on Theo’s birthday Enzo had dashed into the common room, asking all of them to follow him to the Room of Requirement. The whole walk there was tense, Mattheo could tell by Theo’s expression that if it was a big party he was going to be pissed. You were mysteriously missing most of the week, or dashing away quickly so he assumed you had planned something, with Enzo’s help of course.

When they pushed into the room there was no party. Instead there were soft string lights hanging from the ceiling, a fire going in an intricate stone fireplace and a swirling emerald green carpet guiding them further into the room. Just a few steps further and there you were, covered in flour and wearing an apron with splashes of food stains. In front of you was a table with only seven seats set, a cacophony of steaming food on top.

Mattheo and his friends had their mouths agape, trying to take in the extravagance around them. They knew you loved to cook, having been on the receiving end of endless, delicious desserts. But never before had you cooked an actual feast for them. He looked to Theo, who was not looking at the lights or the fireplace or even the food, his deep gaze on you. 

Mattheo saw a nervous smile take hold of your face and watched your hands tug on each other, clearly nervous about Theo’s reaction.

“Um… I made it,” you pushed out, “I remembered you said once you missed your Mom’s cooking so I made a bunch of Italian dishes. Y-your Mom probably made them better but I did my best. I even made Mostaccioli! I remember you said it was your favorite…” Your nervousness getting the better of you. No one said anything, all looking at Theo for his reaction. 

Theo strode up to you, his face not showing anything, and he pulled you into a hug. Theo, who hated unnecessary touching, was hugging you. Mattheo even swore he heard Theo mumble “I love it.”

When your arms came around Theo’s broad back Mattheo got a glimpse of your face. Your eyes were closed, tears leaking out of the corners and a soft, peaceful smile on your face. 

Mattheo didn’t know what to call these types of tears. It felt bigger than the other ones he’d seen. These tears felt sweet and sad at the same time, like you and Theo had a secret understanding. Looking at you and Theo embrace felt like a private, raw moment, but he couldn’t look away. He decided to deem these: bittersweet tears. 

Theo let you go and you chuckled and wiped the sides of your eyes. You beamed at everyone and invited them to sit down and eat. 

And as Mattheo sat down next to you, with a messy apron, covered in flour and a cheery grin on your face, Mattheo couldn’t help but think you more radiant than he’s ever seen you. 

And even though Theo refused to share the Mostaccioli with any of them, it was easily the best meal of Mattheo’s life, love and attention baked into everything you made. His friends more carefree and happy than he’d ever seen them, laughing and joking. 

When you left to get the cake you made that was cooling by the room’s kitchen area Theo leaned over to him and whispered, “If you don’t make a move soon, I’m going to marry that girl.” Mattheo froze like a deer in headlights, but Theo just grinned at him and sipped his champagne. 

Mattheo tried to ignore Theo’s words but they sat heavy in his mind. Ever since he started carrying around a handkerchief for you, he barely even noticed other girls. He can’t even remember the last time he accepted a girl’s invite to her dorm. He only ever thought about you, and instead of fear and uncertainty now he only felt warmth and longing when he imagined you and him together. It surprised him how much he wanted all of it. He wanted to kiss you, to hold you, to have you laugh at his jokes, to smile at him, to worship you in any and every way you’d let him. The realization that he was completely smitten with you pierced through his whole body. Theo was right, you had to be his.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Finding you alone was damn near impossible, Mattheo found out. If it wasn’t his own friends it was literally everyone else in the entire castle. Apparently your light touched everyone at Hogwarts, as every time he tried to get a moment to ask you on a date someone would appear and ruined the moment. 

At first he didn’t mind. When the Weasley twins approached you with a new invention, something they called the Zinger Wing Giggle Ball you had been too excited to test it for them. Even Mattheo would admit a ball that flies around making teasing, sarcastic remarks and giggling was funny. Even more so when it scared the daylights out of Mrs. Norris and chased her all through the halls calling her “a dirty flobberworm with legs and a tail”. You, of course, had felt bad for Filch and his tattle-cat but even so, you couldn’t help but laugh along too.

Then there were the professors, Mattheo didn’t realize how much volunteering you did for everyone. Professor Sprout requesting your assistance with the odd plant in the greenhouse or Hagrid wanting you to come witness whatever mysterious beast he’d found that week and log their abilities. Even Snape, who never seemed to like any of his students, would approach you for helping him stock his precious ingredients closet. How you made time for anyone was beyond Mattheo, but he was determined still.

His friends seemed to be the worst of all, they seemed almost determined to not let him have a moment alone with you. No matter where he was with you at least one of them would appear. When he’d finally gotten tired of it he gathered them all and told them he was trying to ask you on a date, a real ’not Mattheo being a fuckboi’ date, by Pansy’s words, not his. Of course with who his friends were and how fiercely protective they were over you, they grilled him for over an hour about his intentions. When they were finally satisfied galleons passed around into Theo and Enzo’s hands. Those fuckers had placed bets amongst themselves on whether or not Mattheo would ever figure out his feelings and ask you out. If Mattheo wasn’t so annoyed he’d be a little touched that his two best friends had faith in him. 

And now, here he was. There were no classes today, and almost everyone in the castle was at Hogsmeade. He knew you were somewhere, his friends confirming you weren’t coming that day and had chosen to stay behind. He’d looked for you everywhere, he had even bribed a younger year Hufflepuff with chocolate frogs to check if you were in your room. It felt like another day of failure for him. It was two hours before everyone would come back, he knew that it would be impossible to get you alone after that. He dragged his feet up to the astronomy tower, hoping to take a quick smoke to clear his head. 

But he heard a familiar sniffle from the stairs. As quietly as he could he peaked out from the staircase and there he spotted your familiar tuft of hair and bright yellow knit sweater. He approached you, nerves bursting in his body until he felt his stomach drop. You were crying.

“What happened?” Mattheo questioned. His voice made you jump and when you looked at him, he saw your familiar puffy, red cheeks and watery wide eyes. 

“Hi Matty,” you said softly, “Its nothing. Just something stupid.” You sniffled, trying to wipe your tears with the sleeve of your sweater. He pulled out his handkerchief from his pocket and passed it to you. You looked at him gratefully and accepted it, wiping your face with the soft, expensive fabric.

“You’d never cry for something stupid.” He corrected. He could remember every instance he’d seen you cry, nothing had ever been stupid about them. He sat next to you on the floor. You sighed, twisting your fingers nervously.

“Someone called me a Slytherin whore.” 

Mattheo could have gotten whiplash with how fast his head snapped to you. Mattheo tried not to let his fury show. He really tried, knowing that his anger could potentially scare you. 

“Who?”

“…Does it matter?”

“Who?”

“It’s not worth it.”

“Who?”

He didn’t mean to take a tone with you, but he was trying to figure out what asshole he was going to beat the shit out of. Then he’d let his friends have their turn.

“Adrian Pucey.”

That son of a bitch. That idiot couldn’t learn the first time. Screw the quidditch team, they’d find another chaser. When Mattheo was finished with him Pucey wouldn’t be able to go near a broom for at least six months. 

“Is that what people think of me?” 

Mattheo was so focused on his rage he didn’t even see you deflating at his side. As he looked at you he realized you weren’t just hurt by Pucey’s words, you believed them.

“No, no one believes that. No one with a brain anyway.” Mattheo assured you. He would cast his anger aside for now, you needed him more.

“I just-“ you groaned, holding your face in your hands, “I know I can be… clingy and a crybaby and maybe I do spend too much time with you guys, but I feel like you guys are my best friends and I like being around you guys and I feel like you guys like me around or maybe you just tolerate me but I feel like that shouldn’t make me a whore and I-“ Mattheo had let you babble long enough. He held your face in his hands and turned your head so you could look at him head on. 

“Listen to me,” He demanded, “You are not a whore. Nothing you do or say could make you that. Understand?”

You nodded in his hands. 

“We do like you being around because we like you. You aren’t clingy or a crybaby. Do you cry? Yes. Is it a perfectly normal reaction? Yes. You’ve made all of our lives better. Pansy has someone she actually likes to do girl stuff with. Draco knows someone outside of our fucked up group and his Mom cares about him. Theo had one of the best fucking birthdays of his life since his Mom died. All because of you! Don’t let some asshole that I’m going to punch in the teeth make you feel like you’re anything less than a ray of sunshine of every single life you touch.”

Mattheo hadn’t realized your hands were cupping his own. You were smiling at him, eyes watery, he wiped a stray tear off your cheek. Your glassy orbs flashed with vulnerability.

“What about you, Matty? Have I made your life better?”

“Better doesn’t even begin to describe what you’ve done to my life.”

More tears were flowing from your eyes but before Mattheo could wipe them away with his hands you threw yourself into his arms, toppling him over and kissed him. 

Any thoughts in Mattheo’s head flew out the window as soon as your lips touched his. Your delicate fingers holding his face lovingly and your soft lips pressed against his own. He brought his hands up to your waist, lightly caressing the skin there that was exposed by your shirt and sweater riding up. The a flurry of peace flooded Mattheo’s body, it was as if his entire being was releasing a sigh of relief, a single thought echoed throughout his body: finally.

Unfortunately, youpulled away, your cheeks flushed. Mattheo was laying on the floor underneath you so you ended up right in his lap, which, looking from his point of view, was so fucking tempting. 

“I’m going to marry the fuck out of you.”

Mattheo meant it but blurting it out had not been his intention, his brain still reeling from the kiss. Nonetheless, you giggled, airy and light like a tinkling bell.

“How about a date first, Matty?” You teased. 

“It’s a start.” Mattheo sat up, pulling your legs tighter around his waist so he could pull you even closer to him. Your fingers started to entangle in his hair and he looked up at you, pure adoration in your eyes, “Do I get to call you mine now?”

“I’ve been yours Matty.”

He hummed happily, pulling your face down to kiss you again. 

[eraserbread]

𝘪 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘢 𝘣𝘦 𝘢 𝙜𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙬𝙞𝙛𝙚 part 2 masterlist, listen, nanami tag

help me be a good wife, cause I need him i know, i need him read part 1 nanami goes back to sorcery, and the color comes back to his face. but, all the color drains from yours a/n: I know it's a bit of a hot take writing a canon nanami fic in 2025, but I always wanted to have some version of him wrapped up in the angst of sorcery. his downward/uphill spiral was so beautiful and made him just so special. this is just my way of giving him a sweeter story. brb while I sob.

cw: 18+ somno, angst, explicit content

♫ - good wife - kacey musgraves

A year into marriage, Nanami begins losing his footing. 

You notice it immediately—he would sleep through work alarms, needing your presence to wake him. Even after ten hours asleep, he would rise with dark circles under his eyes and stare blearily at the wall as the sun began to rise. The way he showered and dressed held a different undertone, too, like he was in pain—constant pain. Even the way he said your name felt different. 

So, you scramble, spending extra time tending to each of his unsaid needs. Dinner every night as soon as he comes home? Check. Expensive, thoughtful lingerie for him to unravel? Check. Letting him drink, letting him be alone, but letting him talk if he needs to? Yes - you’re doing it all by the book. 

Which is why it’s debilitating when he pulls away even more. 

Or when he doesn’t come home at all, like tonight. It’s been hours of you hovering around your phone long after his workday concluded to an eerily silent line. 

There was no,

Be home soon, dear.

Or, more mildly. 

Pulling overtime.

There was just… radio silence. Tonight was the first night since he was your boyfriend that you felt a falter in his demeanor. This time, it’s eating you alive. 

You reach for the phone, nose deep in his contact as soon as the screen turns on. You call him twice, then again, and wait for the notifications to settle before trying once more. 

Then, you text. Just once, just to make sure he’s okay. 

To: Kento i'll miss you tonight

Ten minutes pass without an answer, then twenty more. 

It’s after an hour of nothing that you finally peel yourself off the couch and start cleaning up for bed. The beautiful dinner spread you prepared for him gets reduced to leftovers and confined in dishes in the refrigerator. You wash and clean everything just like you would if he were peeking over your shoulder, this time, swallowing down tears and angst with the constant unknowing where he was or what he was doing. 

When you’re about to crawl into bed and rid the fateful night over, you perk up to a ding on your side table. You give yourself whiplash sitting up and reaching for it. 

From: Kento Please sleep. Don’t wait up, I’m okay. See you in the morning, my love. 

It’s simple, and you want more, but you take it with a stupid little smile on your face. At least you know he’s okay, he sounds okay. It sounds like he still loves you and worries about your headspace. So, you don’t respond. Instead, you put your phone away and curl up in bed, wrapping your arms around your frame to imitate some of the warmth Ken would lend you in the night. 

As you fall asleep, there’s nothing you can think about that isn’t just… him. His eyes, his sweet smile, your name on his sex-stained lips, the way it feels when you’re tangling your fingers in his and his hair. It’s stupid to need someone so wholly, to rely on their mood to carry you through your day, but it's the only way you could keep him. 

All Kento wants in a wife is exactly what he laid out for you: 

Comfort, meals, someone to listen, to fuck, and someone who understands. 

What he’d give you in return: 

Money, lots of it, and whenever you need it. Stability, love, understanding, sex, his undivided attention, and whatever else you asked of him. 

Except, you never ask. You never demanded anything that wasn’t his love. If you had the nerve, you’d pick up the phone and demand he come home. He’d run, too, drunk and all, just to get lost in your arms for the night. But you couldn’t do that. You won’t crowd him. 

The night is spent alone after all, and it’s only at the drop of sunrise that you feel the bed shift with that familiar, heavy presence. It jolts you awake immediately, and his smell is wafting all throughout the room and over the bed. Smells like him, magnified by a thousand. Perhaps it’s the missing him, but you can tell it’s because he’d been confined in these clothes too long. Years together give you senses like this – the ability to smell every shift in his routine, the way he just flops down instead of sitting. It’s all very telltale; you pause when you pull open your eyes. 

When you open them, he’s fumbling at his shirt before giving up and falling back into his spot on his side of the bed. He’s pushing his face right next to you, humming low in his throat, and barely awake as you sit up and stare at him. That big breath he takes in through the nose is to absorb your smell - that comforting perfume he told you to always wear those years ago. Of course, he picks up on that. 

You drag a hand across his sleeping face, smiling gently as his skin twitches against you. You wish he would wake up and drunkenly dote on you a bit, but assuming he hasn’t slept all night, you let him have this moment. 

You’re not counting the minutes of constantly watching him sleep, but it had to have been close to an hour before he shifted, groaning somewhere deep in his throat. 

“So hungry… baby…” 

“Hm?” Perhaps he’s dreaming, you don’t jump into service immediately. Until, he repeats, this time with more pained conviction:

“Hungry…” 

Then, you’re turning out of bed, sliding on socks so you won’t be assaulted by cold wood in the early morning. Since it’s so early and the sun is soft, you only prepare what you made him last night, and accompany it with a cup of coffee. The caffeine wouldn’t do much on Ken’s system but sober him up, and that’s what he needed if he’d forego a hangover tomorrow. 

Of course, you’d know this,  you two used to be drinkers in your prime. 

So you tiptoe back into the bedroom with a plate and mug in your hands, rounding his side of the bed and taking a seat next to his large frame. Kento’s been at the gym a lot more lately, too, and he’s starting to fill out accordingly. You love how his large arms feel when you drag your fingers over them. It’s a new type of familiar. 

“Hungry?” You echo his earlier thoughts, speaking softly enough not to jostle him. He seems to be stirred by your presence, because he turns around and cracks open an eye. Golden hair all messy and falling over the pillow in a halo. He also cut it about three months ago, and you’re just now getting used to the shorter undercut. It’s like your Kento was changing in front of your eyes, and you’re just staying the same. 

He blinks at you, muttering into the pillow. “Oh, you’re an angel.”

“Brought you coffee.” You bring the steaming mug to your lips, blowing it gently before lowering it to him. 

“Oh.” He sits up, turning around with a hand pressed to his forehead like it was still swimming in drunkenness. “Truly a miracle worker… give me that first.” His words are scarily competent for him, only having slept an hour, but you’re not complaining. Ken takes the coffee from your hands and swallows about half of it in a single sitting. 

“Where were you all night?” You start, gently… just testing the waters to see if he was in a mood. After all, you had every right to know. 

“Had mountains of work and went into overtime.” He exhales, gaining his bearings after chugging scalding hot coffee. “Pissed and didn’t want to come home, so I went drinking instead.” 

“All night?” 

“Go on, scold me.” 

“I won’t scold you.” You decide, cleaning up some hair around his sleepy, paled face. Now, he’s looking at you with a strange sort of pleading look in his eyes. 

“I’ve been thinking about leaving my job.” 

It hits you like a ton of bricks and all at once. You knew he was struggling in his current position, but he’s never equated it to more than overtime stress. He’s been pulling so much more lately, and it’s getting to him. 

Though unsure, you start nodding immediately, holding his tired gaze. Right now, you want him to know you’re there and support him. It’s not your decision if he decides to keep his job or quit, but he trusts your input. He likes talking to you because you always have something good to say – something comforting. 

“I have a plan, I just need to explain it to you.” 

Two more sips and Ken’s at the bottom of his mug. He hands it off to you, and you hand him his lukewarm plate of food. Lackluster or not, he’s devouring his meal, leaving just over half of it when he wipes his lips and starts speaking. 

“Surely you are familiar with folklore? Curses, ghosts, devils, and demons? Even just apparitions and legends, ” He’s searching for any type of unease in your eyes as he speaks, but your loving, gentle gaze doesn’t even falter. “They’re all true and real.”

In your mind, you weren’t sure about anything like that, but Ken has never told a lie in his life. If he told you the sky was red, you wouldn’t even look up at the sky. You’d just assume it’s red. 

He continues, “If all those fated evils moved about society freely, surely there has to be some control.”  He’s going slow to shovel bites of food and let you process it all, but you wish he’d spit it out. “Some type of… law enforcement.” 

“I don’t…” You furrow your eyebrows, shifting over the bed so you’re more comfortable. This conversation would drag; you can tell because he’s cherry-picking his words, trying to come off as sane as possible. You don’t want him sane, you just want him to tell the truth. 

“They’re called Jujustu Sorcerers.” He yawns, then pushes his empty plate to the nightstand for you to pick up later. “Unfortunately, I came from a family of them. They are the government’s one-trick pony, set to die whenever they need them to. Only one catch, they pay you a salary that almost makes it worth it.” 

Half of that gets lost over your head, and he’d have to explain it when you’re awaker. You’re caught up on one thing, though, the one thing you always asked about. “You never talk about your family…” 

“Because they threw me to those shits when I was fourteen and without a dime in my name.” He lies back in bed, turning so his back is facing you. Missing his eyes already, you reach forward to touch him. “I’m afraid that’s all I can tell you. It’s a troubling industry, and the last thing I want is for you to be caught in it.” 

You’re unsure what to say, but you know you trust him. All you can do is trust him; he’s never steered you wrong or put you in danger. There’s just one phrase that kept echoing through your mind. 

-Set to die whenever they need them to. 

It gave you chills. 

“I trust you, but what do you mean? Set to die when they need you to? That’s absurd.” 

Thank God you can’t see the look on his face, right now. One so overcome with shame and fear. It was only a matter of when, not if. 

You can tell he means to follow up and ease your nerves, but it’s the stark reality of the career. He’d have so much money, more fulfillment, but also run that 60% failure rate if he were to take on a Special Grade… he definitely wouldn’t tell you that. All he can do right now is nod against the pillow. 

“I know it sounds-

“-wait, why would you do that to yourself? I don’t understand.” 

The interruption makes him flex his jaw, but he understands your frustration. “I know it sounds rough, and it is, I’m just far more equipped for sorcery.” 

You shake your head, then nod. Then, you just decide it's better that you don’t understand and perhaps that you never will. Kento could go to work, make a lot more money than he does now, but could probably end up dead? What would you do if he died..? 

You don’t think you could handle it. 

“If you die, I’ll never forgive you.” Is what you settle on. He breathes out a laugh, then shrugs. 

A sickly sort of lie forms on his lips. It makes it easier to lie when he’s not looking at you. “Of course, you know dying isn’t likely. I am good at my job.” 

“So, don’t die. That’s the only stipulation. Work as much as you need to feel fulfilled, but don’t be stupid and don’t give your life to them. No job should require that.” 

Kento listens like he cares, nodding every few seconds. He knows you don’t truly understand, and he wants it that way. He wants to come home to you and always be able to forget about work. You truly are his sanctuary, but he doesn’t think he’ll tell you anytime soon. 

What he feels the need to tell you now is about his past. Everything about it. His parents - how they dumped him without a single word. Haibara, Suguru, Satoru – Ken’s sure he’ll be a new constant in your lives… If he’s still alive. Surely all of his classmates perished by now; they had to have. It’s why he didn’t continue in the industry after graduation. He could feel his death timer drawing closer and closer.

So, he ran from it and into your arms. 

A promise well-kept, Kento quits his salary position and starts back at Jujustu High a week later. 

Things have been different; his work schedule is changing and longer, leaving you mostly with time to yourself all day. You thought you’d love it and use it to find yourself again, but you loathe it whenever you feel him crawl out of bed in the morning. 

Kento would wake up at 8 and shower, oftentimes convincing you to join him. Just like this morning, he was stuck under the spray, letting the steaming water rush over his face with no need to breathe. You’re pressed into his back, standing bare with your arms wrapped around his torso. You listen to his breathing, feeling the patter of his heartbeat against your crossed hands. He’s so warm, so tall, and strong under your fingers. 

It’s in the shower where you tend to feel the closest to him. It’s not about sex here, not all the time, but the sheer closeness you two hold in this space is one too deep to comment on. You pray in this moment for him to come home safely, and he prays that he won’t leave you behind. He’s been purposefully picky with his missions lately, telling Satoru he just didn’t want to risk it today. Every Special Grade mission got pushed to the side, and unfortunately, it left him having to mop up century-old dormant Grade 3 Curses and accompany Satoru on bad days. 

You don’t mind listening to his hour-spanning stories about his rowdy colleagues, you love them. 

It feels as if you know this Satoru more than Kento does. Like an annoying brother, though you’ve never even seen his face. 

Kento is especially quiet this morning, like he knows something is hanging over his head once he leaves the safety of your arms. 

“I feel quite selfish asking this of you…” He starts, smooth voice drowned out by the water. “Tonight, if you could just… just have all the household chores done when I get home so your attention is on me all night? Please?” 

“Of course.” You reply, lips buried in his shoulder. It makes you wonder if you haven’t been doing a good enough job taking care of him lately, but he’s never said anything about feeling neglected. Perhaps he just needs more. 

“And don’t bother with the frilly stuff. Just be naked, waiting in bed for me, please.” There’s something behind his tone, making your heart swim in unknowing. He’s speaking against the water, blinking it from his eyes as he stares forward. 

“Yes, Kento.” 

“Make sure you have everything prepared. I will do everything I can to be home after six, just please be thorough and caring when I arrive.” 

“Yes, baby. Anything you need…” 

“Thank you.” He’s standing up straight, running his hands through his hair to wring the water out. He’s actually starting to shower now, so you hand him over his soap, making sure he’s contented before taking care of yourself. 

In your chest, you feel a hint of unease and excitement from what he’s asking of you. It’s not much different from most nights, but he’s making sure you know. He doesn’t want one of those one-off chances that you could be visiting a friend or out at the shops. He needs every difficult emotion he faced buried inside of you, strangling you from within until your beautiful demeanor and endless comfort exorcise it like a curse. 

Kento thinks you are immensely strong, stronger than Satoru himself in so many ways, but mostly for your selflessness. He’s never known a woman as strong, tender, loving, and thorough as you are. It’s why he married you, and it's why he calls you by his name every chance he gets. He wants you to know that you’re his, right into your very being, just like he’s yours. 

So, he lives his day with your promise, seeing you in every reflective surface and hearing you in every passing voice. Kento hasn’t told any of his colleagues about you, but he keeps a ring on his finger, not hiding you away when the dirty comes to be. 

That feeling he had when he woke up was real – he understands it when he comes face-to-face with a four-legged curse, and inevitably spends another hour on the job that evening. He gets off, texts you immediately, and thanks himself ten hours ago for giving you those instructions. 

He drives home with a quirk in his neck and angst in the front of his mind, he’s reeling – busting at the seams for you when he pushes into the bedroom. Seems you’ve fallen asleep during the wait, but Ken doesn’t mind the view of your front pressed to the mattress, eyes fluttering with REM. 

You’re completely naked, lying with your cheek shoved into the crook of your crossed arms. Hugging the pillow close, Ken wishes it were him, so he gets as close as possible. 

The trail of his lips against your cool back makes you twitch. Kento can feel it when he kisses your protruding shoulder blade. The lingering of a fresh shower stains his lips as he trails down your back, right hand working his tie loose. He wants you to wake up – needs some type of reaction, a moan, a whisper. He just wants you, right now. 

“Wake up, Nanami.” He begs, left hand sliding from your back and between the swells of your ass. He’s comfortable there, craning his fingers so they hit right over your clit. 

You don’t even stir, he lets out a breath. 

“This is not what I need from you right now,” he warns, getting close to your ear. He flexes his hand between your thighs, prodding his thumb against your slick entrance. “You had all day to sleep; now is not the time.” 

You’re blinking awake when his finger presses inside of you, leg pushing against the bed as you try to escape the pressure. It only clicks that it’s your husband when you fully wake up, heart sinking once you realize you dozed off. 

“Fuck,” you sit up, wiping a stray line of drool from the corner of your lips. Kento’s bright against the moonlight pouring in through the bedroom window, face pulled up in frustration. “Mm, why didn’t you call when I didn’t answer you?” 

“Because I was on my way home.” He starts quirking his finger, still buried inside of you, massaging lazily. It’s nothing much, just familiar closeness, but your breath picks up. He drinks up the soft moan you give him immediately. 

“Bad day?” You play that tone for him, the one so nurturing and comforting that he lets his eyes flip shut. 

“Terrible.” 

“Feels good.” You whisper against his lips as he leans down to kiss you. He’s treating your cunt how you should be treating him – massaging and doting at his most sensitive areas. “You’re so good to me, baby. Let me take care of you.” 

“Just want you to lie there and look pretty.” He starts undoing the rest of the buttons on his blue work shirt and crawls over you, knees resting on either side of your crossed legs. You’re nodding for him, anxious because you can’t see him – can’t predict his next movements. You can feel him fiddling away back there, likely pulling his belt free and pants down. 

What you don’t know is the fact that he has a flesh wound on his back, patched up by Ieiri, but still there nonetheless. He doesn’t want you to worry just yet, but knows it's only a matter of time before your fingers grace across the fresh scar. Kento’s not worried about the pain; he’s worried about your reaction, so he hides it long enough to slip out of his loose briefs. 

“Tell me you love me.” Kento’s hovering over your body, guiding his cock through your ass, chasing friction against your sweet skin. “Please, just say it all. Say my name.” 

“I love you… Kento, my Nanami.” You whisper into the pillows, drawing your eyebrows together as you focus on staying still. He’s wound so tight, right now. Moving so robotically strained. “Love you so much, with all of my body and soul. Everything you do for me is so selfless and loving, you’re the perfect husband. I just love you so much.” 

“Love you…” He bites, swallowing a whine as he leans down and presses his head into your back. His forearms shake, trying to keep his weight steady, but he refuses to budge. He refuses to let the ache in his back nullify his need for you. “I love you so much, you don’t deserve this. You know you don’t. I know you don’t.” 

“Deserve what, baby? You? We deserve each other.” 

Kento stills for a minute, heavy breathing in your ear as he finally guides the blushing tip of his cock inside of you. It starts slow, so gentle and sweet as you feel yourself stretch and expand to fit him perfectly. 

Halfway to the hilt, you both breathe out a moan, your arms hug the pillow closer. 

“No. You deserve a husband with an easy go of things – someone not blinded by money and depression. I look at you every day and wonder why… how you chose me…” 

“I chose you because you’re perfect.” There are tears in your eyes already, not from overstimulation, but from him. From Kento’s sweet emotion and how he loves you so much, you can feel it pouring and flowing through your shared bodies. 

“You make me perfect.” 

Finally, his soft voice makes those tears overflow and stream into your ivory sheets. You’re dragging out soft moans, breathless and breaking under his touch every time he fucks into you so tenderly. The zipper on his pants scrapes your sensitive skin – his fingers are digging into your arms, teeth latched into your shoulder. It’s like his softness enters you from every sense, eating you alive and making you sob. 

“Don’t cry.” He whispers over you, blinking open his eyes and seeing the ebbs and flows of his Cursed Energy cascading over your body like a blanket. It makes him hold you tighter, grip bruising against your shaking arm. He’s been absent-mindedly coating you in the viscous blues, marking every sense you didn’t even know existed as his. 

“My Nanami… Nanami, baby…” Your surname rings so familiar against his lips, blooming in a blush around his grip. “My wife, my strength… my peace. In every universe, I will find you. Don’t ever worry about me leaving you. I never will.” 

“Mmf – fuck, K-ken,” You’re shaking your head, fisting the sheets in your free hand. He feels so good – so right buried inside of you and fucking you slow. You’re both so wet, it’s impossible to keep his tired thrusts steady. “I’m gonna… gonna-

“Whenever. Cum whenever.” He’s answering for you, craning his neck to kiss your tear-stained lips. It’s that sloppy mouth-kiss that finally opens those floodgates for your orgasm to come pushing through. 

Your warning dies in your throat, but he’s expecting it enough to keep fucking you through it. Perservering even when it feels like you’re gonna snap him in half. He’s hardly fucking you, but it’s his voice — his sickly sweet words rolling off his tongue that unravels you from the inside out. It’s with a tight, craning grip on his arm that you finally cum against him, crying his name and begging for more. 

This time, you want more. You need more. 

You don’t even have to tell him. In one fateful swoop, he’s turning you on your back, still seated halfway inside of you, when he starts a pace that’s exactly what you need. He’s pinning you down into the bed, lips pressed to yours as he fucks you so right. 

Skin is slapping over skin, moans getting lost between each other's lips. It’s so lewd, even Ken’s words get lost in the moment. With each thrust, it’s as if a weight lifts from his shoulders, concentrating into a single amalgamation before completely lifting away. 

He feels like a new person, throwing his sweaty head back in relief. 

He’s exactly where he wants to be right now, looking down and staring into your beautiful eyes. Buried inside of you, cumming to the sound of your elated cries. The orgasm is so mindblowing, so delicious and everything he needed after an especially shitty day. 

It’s only when you reach up, hands trailing over his back, that he catches himself. 

“Wh-what? Your… back…” You sit up with him, your arm falling limp onto the bed when he pushes it away. Your fingers just barely grazed over the gauze cover, but you’re not stupid. That look in his eyes isn’t too nonchalant for you to break through. 

“Don’t worry about it.” 

As much as your heart physically hurts at the thought of your husband being injured, you shut your mouth. It’s not what Kento needs from you right now, and you understand that. 

After all, you are a good wife. 

Both of you fall asleep unshowered, covered in each other and spooning on top of the sheets. Only two hours of sleep pass, you’re dreaming of your long-past honeymoon, and Ken is stewing over work. The post-sex mindlessness has worn off, and now he’s knitting his eyebrows together in dreams. If you were awake, you’d kiss the lines away and reassure him that he can always leave his job if need be. He can always take a year off and let you be the provider — you wouldn’t know how you’d accomplish it, but anything is possible for your husband. 

So, the clock ticks on quickly, and at the mark of midnight, Kento’s phone begins to buzz on the side table. 

It only takes a few rounds before he’s sitting up, eyes closed as he brings the phone to his ear. 

“What.”

‘Nanamin, I know I told you I wouldn’t do this tonight…’ Satoru’s on the other line, an eerie calm edge to his smooth voice. Ken takes a breath. 

‘But, there’s a Special Grade swarming the city center. I’m at the scene, but there are Curse Users — six of them.’

“‘f you need my help, just say it.”

‘I need your help.’ 

So, he hangs up the phone and swings his legs out from under you, not too conscious about waking you because he knows his lack of presence would do it anyway. 

Just as he thought, you’re stirring as soon as his body heat moves. “Where… where are you goin’?” You whisper, sitting up and rubbing your eyes. He’s halfway to the closet, oblivious to your half-asleep mannerisms. “Kento?” You try again, pulling the soiled sheets over your naked frame, suddenly cold. 

“Go back to sleep.” He demands, walking out of the closet with a fresh blue button-up hanging from his shoulders. He starts at the base of the shirt, fiddling his fingers in the buttons as he gets ready… again. 

“What are you doing?” You try again, this time with more conviction behind your tone. 

���Called in.” He shrugs this off like it's normal, but he’s never been called in before. He’s never told you about the possibility of removing himself from you at night. “Make sure you stay home. Be safe and smart, just like I know you are.” 

“But, what do you mean you were called in?” You want him to answer – can tell he’s dodging it as he lifts his neck, shirt buttoned up at midnight. 

“Sorry. I won’t make you my liability.” That's all he says before turning his back to you, heading into the closet. 

“W-what does that mean?!” You’re flustered, now. Anxious and tired, needing him on your skin. It’s so cruel to imagine a night with him, only for it to get ripped out from under you. “You just worked ten hours today.” 

“And it will likely be ten more.” He’s speaking like it’s nothing, using that stupidly stoic tone of voice like he’s lecturing a student. “Thank you for being my constant. I’m much more at ease, now.” 

You can tell he wants you to bow right now, but your back wants to bend. 

“I don’t want you to go.” You sound so stupid and needy in this darkness, feeling his eyes staring holes into your shadow. He’s walking back into the room with his entire uniform on, tie tangled around his fist, and glasses in hand. It makes you sick. 

“I’ll see you in the morning.”

He leaves you with a look over the shoulder and a baseless goodbye, and you feel like a shell of yourself…

Watching him fade away through your door and into a world you couldn’t understand feels like a knife in the chest. 

To Kento, you’re safe and strong - unyielding and comforting whenever he needs it the most, but internally, you’re wailing. It’s like you hardly see him anymore, it’s like he only exists at night to touch and kiss you. Then, he’s an apparition again, only to drink from your fountain once night falls again. 

There has to be some cheat book, some file tucked away in plain sight that could give you answers. You needed a list sprawled out in serif, boldly plain and to the point. 

Most of all, you needed to know: 

How can you keep a man that can’t live without you?

[amdiriel]

lonely

Azriel x fem!Archeron!reader

SUMMARY: Reader, the second Archeron sister, finds herself overwhelmed by the sight of her sisters in their respective happinesses one day. Luckily Azriel stops by her room in time to comfort her.

WARNINGS: feelings of loneliness (real), fluff, Azriel being hot (that’s a given), slight suggestiveness at the end, first time writing

NOTE: hey, i’m diri! been sort of a silent spectator on this tag for a while but then i wrote this and thought hell why not!!

WORDS: 2.5k

main masterlist PART 2

•••

The emptiness of loneliness burned hollowly in my chest, blooming when I entered my room at last, stumbled onto my bed.

Pathetically, I just wanted what my sisters had. I didn't dare show it, but I ached to be held, loved, to love fiercely and be happily, healthily devoted to someone.

I wanted to be touched and adored. I wanted to build a life with someone. To not have to look, wish, hope, or dream about it anymore.

My knees curled up under my chin as I sat there in the nest of my bedding, looking blankly at the wall as the tears came.

I hadn't realized that I had been softly weeping until the knock came to my door. Fuck. I heard his soft, beautiful voice announcing himself, asking to come in.

When I don't reply, frozen in terror that he'll come in and see me in this state, Azriel calls my name again in question. I know he can sense me behind the door, and when I sniff, he calls lowly, "I'm coming in."

Panic sweeps through me as he pushes open the door, eyes falling on me in concern as I wipe at my face. The book he borrowed from me goes from his hand to a side table as he comes to me, forgotten. "Hey. Hey, what's going on?" he asks with the softest tenderness I've ever heard him speak. To know that it was reserved for me makes my chest ache for it even more, and another little sob slips from me. He sits on my bed and reaches for me, hands going to my arms and rubbing up and down.

“I’m sorry,” I croak, shaking my head and trying to draw back and wipe my face. He doesn’t release me.

“No,” he says firmly, squeezing my arms. “No, you’ve done nothing wrong. Let me help you.”

I shake my head again, can’t seem to stop, trying to wave him off. “It’s not something you can help with,” I rasp. “It’s my own shit, I’ll deal with it—“

“Tell me what’s going on.” His tone brooks no argument.

I can’t speak for a long moment, for several long moments. The words are embarrassing, stuck like molasses on my tongue. To say them would be to humiliate myself. But he isn’t relenting. I realize that five hundred years of extracting information from people as spymaster had made him patient in a way I could never outpace.

“It’s just hard,” I finally settle on, not quite processing my own words. “It’s hard seeing them—my sisters, I mean. Sorry, I think I’m just tired, out of it—“ He shakes his head with a squeeze of my arms.

“Stop trying to excuse your feelings. It’s merely how you feel,” he murmurs, watching me carefully. A breath puffs uncomfortably in my chest, but I go on.

“I’ve always made myself content in the fact that something like that didn’t really happen to people like me. I’ve never known why,” I rasp, the color finally rising in my cheeks as I gear up to admit, “But I’m—“ I choke. “I just see them and I feel so lonely.”

His expression shutters and his eyes soften. “Sweetheart,” he whispers, stroking my arms. To hear that word from his lips is already a shock, but knowing it’s directed at me makes me fall apart more.

“I’m not one for self pity, ever,” I get out as another cry raises the pitch of my voice. “I just feel so alone.”

A huff of a sigh leaves Azriel’s lips and he draws me forward. “Come here.”

My breath shudders in my chest as I try not to lose it, try to calm myself as the tears stream hotly down my face. “I’m sorry,” I whisper again. “I feel ridiculous. It just hurts sometimes. Right here.” I rub my chest where the hollow ache is.

He hums and soon I’m in his arms. He gently scoops me onto his lap and tucks my head into the crook of his neck. He’s so warm, so strong, and smells so good that I shudder again and let myself break in his embrace.

His hushing and stroking over my hair lulls me as every bad feeling seeps out of my body. He holds me quietly until my crying ceases, until my shaking stills. Until I am merely breathing tiredly against him.

I could fall asleep like this, could die peacefully here. His hand strokes my hair again. “Feel better?” he asks, his voice a quiet rumble that rumbles in his chest, therefore mine.

I blush profusely at how ridiculous I’m being, but make no move. I nod. I can’t move, can’t look at him. I must be the silliest, most ridiculous woman—female, I correct mentally—at my age that he’s ever seen. He’s centuries old and has a better grip on things than I do. I know he feels bad for me, but any respect he had before must have loosened considerably in the minutes he’s seen me in this state.

As I’m trying to overcome my embarrassment, he strokes my hair softly and begins on a murmur, “I get this way too. I feel it right in my chest, like you said. I have for a long time.” I don’t dare breathe or move. He’s revealing very vulnerable feelings and I fear one move will scare him off. He sighs. “It is difficult—seeing everyone pair off and be happy. Just as difficult to see my brothers as it is for you to see your sisters that way. But you aren’t alone. You’re never alone.”

I sigh, whispering haltingly, “I know. But—it isn’t the same, is it?”

He shakes his head. “It isn’t,” he concedes, “But you shouldn’t doubt that you’ll find that. You’re more than deserving of it.”

A little flutter in my chest, and of all things, a smile blooms on my face. “You are too, Azriel.”

I feel his smile against my hair.

I sigh and draw away even as my body screams in argument, not looking him completely in the eye. “I really am sorry. For—this.” I gesture nonsensically between us, eyeing the wet stain at the collar of his shirt with a small wince. “I really am not usually like this,” I grumble.

His soft chuckle draws my eyes to his face, and I find him looking down at me softly, amusedly. “I know. You’re usually very formidable, self-assured. It was a surprise to see you so…” I raise my brows as he searches for the word, something he usually never has to. “Weighed down,” he settles on.

I don’t know what to say. I settle on a small shrug of my shoulder as I take my sleeve and wipe my face again, sighing as a calm settles over me again.

When I glance back over at him, he’s still observing me quietly. “What?” I croak.

“Nothing,” he says softly with a shrewd yet not unkind look in his eye. “It’s just funny.” I frown, but he continues on before I can interrupt. “You give yourself a private moment to let it out, then you reset. Like nothing happened.”

I feel a heat in my face at the accuracy.

“It’s funny because, well,” he shrugs, “It reminds me of myself.”

I glance warily over him with questioning tilt of my head. “You don’t seem like the type to deal in self-pity. Or crying at all for that matter,” I reply wryly.

His lip curls in amusement, and something hot curls in my stomach at the sight of it. My expression remains carefully composed, as it always is. “I have my moments,” is all he says.

I roll my eyes, shifting on the bed and sniffing. “Cryptic as always too.”

His laugh is quiet yet rumbling, and even though we don’t touch anymore, I feel the sound tumble deliciously through my muscles and bones, all over my body. “There she is,” he practically drawls, mirth lighting his hazel eyes. Cauldron bloody boil me.

Then he softens again. “But know that anytime you feel like this, you don’t need to wait for a private moment to yourself. Come talk to me,” he offers. Tingling warmth blooms in my chest. In my handful of years since turning fae and finding my place in Velaris, he’s been a kind but somewhat infrequent friend due to his busy nature. “What you feel isn’t anything to be ashamed of, and I’d rather you not bottle it all up.”

I eye the impenetrable Spymaster again, brow raised. “Bit of the pot calling the kettle black, aren’t you?”

He laughs in earnest now, and I watch in wonder as it lightens his features. And again that sound—

I’d been careful not to let my foolish mind not delve too deep in daydreaming about the silent, beautiful specter I had met in my house in the human lands those years ago. Everything about the fae then and even now had just seemed so elevated above my little life. And as hard as I worked, as skilled as I had become with my new body and abilities, I still felt like a complete novice, like a schoolgirl amongst grown men and women most days.

So no. I would not be the fool that fell for the male way above her very modest level, not when I knew he’d be too nice about it, and make me feel even more like the fool.

“What are you thinking about?” his voice breaks through my reverie. He’s eyeing me with amusement now, and a hint of fondness.

I force the heat creeping to my cheeks way down within the depths of myself, determined not to make more of a fool of myself than I already have. “Just wondering why you came in here. I wasn’t—“ A blush rises to my cheeks in earnest now. “You couldn’t hear me crying from the hall, could you?”

He shakes his head, hands creeping forward over my bedspread as though to placate me. “No, no. I just came to return the book you let me borrow,” he replies gently, and again my eyes fall to the book he had dropped on the table near my door as he came in to comfort me. Oh. Right. “You were right. I did like it.”

A small smile creeps up on my lips. “Of course I was right.” He chuckles again, and I relish that I can make him do so.

“Will it inflate your ego terribly if I tell you that you have surprisingly good taste?” he drawls. I let out a playfully indignant noise and gently shove his shoulder.

“Says you. You may be quiet, Shadowsinger, but don’t think I haven’t noticed you peacocking more than once,” I toss back. He draws closer with a little grin. Holy fuck.

“Well when I’m as talented as I am, why shouldn’t I?” he purrs, the most Rhys-like I’d ever seen him. I hold onto my composure for dear life.

“Yeah, well, you can take your peacocking and incredible talent off my bed and out of my room,” I retort with a scowl, shooing him as I fight blushing like a schoolgirl. He laughs, but slides smoothly off my bed and stands, hands raised in mock surrender.

I realize then that he had taken me from my depressive state, comforted me until I calmed, then goaded me until I smiled and bantered with him again.

His eyes go from mirthful to soft, and a beat passes where he’s looking down at me still sitting on my bed, and me at him. His lips quirk. “I’m glad you’re alright. Come to me with anything. I mean it,” he reiterates with gentle firmness. I nod my head.

He begins to leave, but I blurt his name and he halts. As soon as he looks at me again, I murmur, “Thank you.” He nods his head once, eyes kind.

I expect him to turn, to leave. But he steps toward me. I still as his hands gently hold the sides of my head, and he drops a single kiss to my hairline. I don’t move or breathe until he leaves the room with one last look at me over his shoulder.

My door snicks shut and a rush of breath leaves my mouth as my hands fly up to my face. My back finds the duvet.

I was fucked.

—

Azriel walks leisurely down the hall from her room back to his once more, musing on the hour that had just passed in her room.

He’d always found the second Archeron sister to be the most interesting female he’d ever met.

Clever, strong, funny. Beautiful, absolutely, in her own way. She was interesting to look at—that counted far more than conventionally beautiful.

The kind of person you don’t let get away.

He’d have to play this carefully. Had he had thoughts these past two-three years about the fact that they were both the remaining unmated ones of their respective sibling units? Yes. But he knew that even as it drew the two of them together in a careful dance around the line, it could also end very poorly if that was the only assumed reason that he wanted her.

Which it wasn’t.

Sometimes he curses that of his brothers, he hadn’t met her first. He could have, should have wooed her. Then, at least he could be enjoying the same felicity his damned brothers were currently enjoying with two of her sisters.

But she’s proving to be a tough one to crack.

It was no matter, he decides. He hadn’t failed to notice at least some attraction on her part. But she brushes off most things with a clever joke, much to his frustration.

Tonight had been a step forward. Even as it had killed him to see her in such a state, he thanked every bit of fate that led him to her room as she had been breaking.

So he could be the one to hold her, put her pieces back together.

He could have held her in his arms, in his lap until the day he died.

But he knew getting her to come back out, to grin and tease him again was more important than his selfish desires. And gods, what a sight she was when she did.

It was no matter, he thinks to himself again. He’d be patient. He’d be the person she’d lean on until he could make her want him. Maybe she’d allow him to touch her in the way he envisioned in his most needy moments in the dark of night. He enters his bedroom and sighs.

Fuck. It might be another one of those nights after all.

•••

NOTE: hey so uhhh if literally anyone cares i’ll make a part 2

[nevadancitizen]

-> OH VIKTOR, MY VIKTOR (WHAT COULD'VE BEEN)

synopsis: viktor reality-skips and meets different versions of you, different versions of himself, and some sort of god, who tells him of an unyielding truth.

word count: 5k

ships: viktor/reader

tags: angst with a happy ending, fluff and angst, pre-established relationship, pre-season 1 act 3 (aka sky isn't dead (yet))

notes: this is me cashing in my birthday fic (as in i can write anything cause it's my birthday) so i rewrote my other viktor fic w a twist from his perspective

related reading: Rot in Purest Gold

It’s been six weeks since you… left. 

Well, ‘left’ isn’t the right word, and Viktor knows that. But it lessens the blow upon his heart and his mind to just say that you left. Like you took a vacation instead of just disappearing into thin air. But that doesn’t erase the memory of the blue arc of… something – natural lightning, artificial electricity, something else – coming from the Hexcore and touching you, and you just not being there the moment after. 

He had scrambled for you, his cane clattering to the ground as he grasped at the air where you just where. A chant of “No, no, no,” left his lips, and panic quickly wrung his chest until he felt like he couldn’t breathe – more than he usually couldn’t, anyway. His leg buckled beneath him and he held his hands to his chest as he fell to his knees, trying to hold onto whatever was left of you (which was… nothing).

It’s been six weeks of a cold bed, six weeks of not waking up next to you. 168 pills (two for pain, one to regulate high blood pressure, and one to dilate the bronchi in his lungs to breathe easier – all taken daily). 36 days of work, despite your insistence that he take both days of the weekend off. 

It’s been 42 days of you… you left. You didn’t die. Your body would’ve been here if you died. There’s no body, so you’re not dead. (At least, that’s what Viktor hoped and prayed for.)

But, for all that hoping and all that praying, he never thought about what he’d do if he walked into the lab one morning, with you just… waiting. Sitting on the workbench, cross-legged, looking out the window. 

He says your name – a rasping whisper, honestly – and you turn. 

A soft smile spreads across your face. It’s polite, but forced all the same. “Hello. Do you happen to know where I am?”

“You’re here,” Viktor says, breathless and unbelieving. He staggers forward the best he can while his body is still in this state of pseudo-shock. His mind is racing – the speed of the hexgates couldn’t even hope to compare.

“Uh… yeah. I am.” You look around the lab and pull your knees to your chest. “Pretty nice place you got here. You rich or something?”

The tip of Viktor’s cane drags along the ground – he can’t even bother to lift it properly as he makes his way to you. You probably can’t even begin to know what this means to him. Seeing you, you for real (not in his dreams, or behind his eyelids, or in photographs). 

Tears well up in his eyes and mist his vision. “My love… what happened to you?”

Viktor rests his hip on the edge of the workbench and reaches out to you, his hand trembling. You shift away, your eyebrows drawing together in confusion. 

“Excuse me?” You say. 

His body shakes as a sob racks through it, his teeth gritting together to suppress the ugly sounds threatening to escape him. Viktor is usually calm, controlled; the one with a royal flush hidden against his chest. But this poker hand isn’t one he recognizes – what game are you playing?

A look of panic washes over your face and you take Viktor’s hand, probably to try to soothe him. But in that instant where skin meets skin, something… happens. 

Viktor opens his eyes with a start. He sits up in bed, and his joints groan in protest. 

The bed is… plush. Many blankets and pillows with a straw mattress much too big for just himself. And the bedroom itself isn’t huge, but it’s much bigger than anything down in Zaun. (Probably something below average in Piltover.)

Viktor pushes the layered blankets off himself and hooks his legs over the side of the bed. He stands and grabs his cane. 

There’s a knock at the window above the desk across the room. He looks over, only to see you, smiling, perching on the outside window sill. You look younger – maybe fourteen, or fifteen?

The thought strikes Viktor just as he passes a full-length mirror propped in the corner of the room. He looks younger, too: the same age as you, most likely. His face still has remnants of baby fat, and it looks like he’s in that awkward stage where he’s yet to grow into his cane. 

You rap against the window again –

– and it’s not a window. It’s two doors. Big ones, at that; with armored guards with spears standing on either side. 

“Enter,” Viktor calls out. It’s an odd sensation – he wasn’t the one who commanded his lips to move, but it was his voice coming from his mouth all the same. Like he’s being puppeteered. 

The guards’ armor clanks as they pull open the door. You stagger through the entryway, gritting your teeth and clenching your jaw repeatedly. You look almost… manic. Crazed. 

As you come closer, Viktor observes you – no matter how hard he tries to move, he can’t. It’s like this body is his, but… not. He’s just an observer. He can’t approach you, hold you, even if you look different. He knows it’s you. 

Grey streaks through your hair, and deep scars litter your body, the nastiest above your heart on your bare chest. Your baggy pants are torn and bloodstained. Mud and dirt cover your worn feet. Your gaze is trained on the ground; you don’t dare to meet Viktor’s eyes.

You finally kneel before his throne. Wait – was he sitting on a throne all this time? Is he, like, a king or something?

You confirm his thought with a whispered, reverent “My Liege.”

“My warrior,” Viktor responds in kind. 

You begin to reach for him, but stop yourself. Instead you rest your hand on your knee. “The exile to the badlands… I – I wanted – needed – a conflict to call me back home. Back to you.”

Viktor thinks to himself as his disconnected body stays silent. Why would he cast you out, especially if you’re in such high standing? The scars on your body indicate numerous battles, and you being alive before him indicates you’ve won all of them…

“If I may have the honor…” You trail off. You glance up at him once, but don’t meet his eyes. You bow your head. “I would… it would bring me great joy to fight for you again. To be your chieftain once more.”

His body continues to stay silent. If King Viktor has any thoughts, he can’t hear them. Well… this might be an improvement from the last… reality? Since Viktor only had a few moments of seeing you before he jumped to another one. Wait – jumped? Skipped? He needs to get back home to discuss this with you further. (Never mind your apparent amnesia – he’ll deal with that when he gets to it.)

“When the vultures start to circle…” Viktor begins.

“I will keep my nerve still,” you complete for him, your head still bowed.

He hums appreciatively. A small sound telling you to continue.

“The badlands…” You shake your head. “We must bring order. There are no gods, no kings – only man. The people there are many, but they don’t know how to organize amongst themselves. They have nothing but pride to defend.”

“Pride is a powerful motivator,” Viktor says. 

“They speak of a crown for the victorious,” you say. “It shall be rightfully yours, if you allow me to conduct battle in your name.”

He takes you in. Your body is strong, chiseled, half-bare. You look battle-forged, molded in a crucible fuelled by hellfire. He can’t tell if the badlands have done you good or bad, but you stayed loyal to his kingly counterpart. That ought to count for something. 

Viktor holds out his hand, his palm upturned. You look up, your eyes trained on his hand before looking up and meeting his gaze.

A moment passes. Your face twists slightly, the corners of your lips turning down a little and your eyebrows coming together a bit. Your jaw starts to clench and unclench again. 

He turns his hand over, the back of it presented to you. You breathe out a shaky sigh and lift your hand from your knee. 

“May the true king rise,” you say softly. You take his hand –

– and then immediately flinch away, clutching your palm. You let out a low growl, your face contorting in pain. 

Viktor feels his stomach twist and his heart drop. He stumbles backwards into the corner of his cage, flexing his hands and digging his fingernails into his palms.

“No! No, no,” you say. You clench your hand, trying to stop your palm from bleeding. “No, Viktor. It wasn’t your fault. You just don’t know your strength yet, that’s all.”

You put your uninjured hand on one of the bars. “Please, Viktor. You’re hurting yourself.”

Viktor looks down at his hands. Sure enough, his fingernails have broken skin and his palms are starting to bleed. And, when he really looks at his own hands, they seem… different. His hands were comparable to King Viktor’s, but not to these. 

His hands are rough and big, almost paw-like. And the rest of his body is, too; it’s mutated and it’s wrong. 

He looks at you. You look… mostly the same. Your eyes are the wrong color and you’re a little bit shorter, but still. So why was he so different? What the hell happened to him?

“What…” Viktor’s voice is not his own. He’s not controlling it, and it’s deeper, his accent is thicker, and his words just barely slur together. “What did you… do to me?”

“I’m saving you,” you say readily. “You – you told me to continue the treatments…”

His eyes flutter shut. That’s right. He did. His disease is progressing and he is dying. This must be a truth in every reality. 

“Don’t feel guilty,” you say, your voice soft and reassuring. “It’s worth it. Everything is worth it.”

Viktor opens his eyes. You’re still there, still smiling through the pain and still by his side. You look at him with nothing but love.

He lumbers forward, his bum leg no longer as much of an issue. He raises one of his hands and gingerly presses his fingers against yours where they rest on the bars of his cage. 

“There you are,” you say softly. 

Viktor’s eyes sting with tears. He leans forward and presses his forehead against the bars, letting his eyes slide close. It seems like there’s two truths in every reality – his disease and your love for him. Even if he’s a monster, you love him. You love him. 

Surely, at home – in his base reality – you still love him. Somewhere, deep inside, there are remnants of your feelings… and Viktor would do anything to help you remember them.

A tear rolls down his cheek. “Here I am.”

“Oh, Vik…” You bring your hand to the side of Viktor’s neck, holding his jaw. “Don’t cry. You’re perfect.”

He lets out a shaky breath. He feels your lips meet his forehead – 

– and then pull away. There’s a crooked smile on your face, and there’s something around Viktor’s neck. 

He looks down, noticing a necklace you must’ve slipped on him while distracting him with a kiss. It’s sparkling with diamonds and white gold, but speckled with blood. He takes it off and puts it on the desk in front of him.

“Money is easier to process,” Viktor sighs. He shifts in his seat and crosses his legs. “But I appreciate it.”

“I put a whole lotta effort into gettin’ you all these nice things,” you say, your tone holding a twinge of a whine. You sling your arm around his shoulders and lean in. “Do all them families without pig-cop-daddies mean nothin’ to you?”

Viktor breathes in, then exhales slowly. He puts a hand on yours where it rests on his shoulder. “It means the world to me.”

You laugh and squeeze his shoulders, pressing the tip of your nose against his temple and knocking his glasses askew. Even though Viktor still feels… trapped in this body, for lack of a better term, this is nicer than the body he was in before. You’re warm against his cool skin, and he can feel himself smiling. 

He allows you to continue your clinging as he flicks on a bright lamp and picks up a small magnifying glass. The word comes to mind – loupe. He hums softly as he brings the necklace close to his face, inspecting it with a careful eye. 

“The white gold is real,” he says. “Most of the gems are real diamonds. Some of the smaller pieces are substituted with quartz. The piece looks relatively old, so they are more likely to be blood diamonds rather than lab-grown.”

You rest your cheek on Viktor’s shoulder. Your hand moves away from his other shoulder, instead tracing shapes into his back. “How much d’you think it’ll go for?”

“Our usual fence is shifting something big in Miami,” he says. “If that deal goes well, and she’s in a good mood… maybe twenty thousand?”

Viktor can feel you smile against his clothed skin. “Mh… I hope.”

“And the duffels you and the others brought back…” He sets the loupe and the necklace down on the desk. “How much do you estimate?”

“Maybe… half a mil each,” you say. Your hand moves further down his back, tracing over the notches in his back brace. “Silco has been talking to Danske Bank – they’re willin’ to launder. He also has an investor in Bosnia lined up.”

His stomach drops at that name. Silco. But… he might be different. Viktor’s different, you’re different – it’s almost as if you’re part of some sort of robbery group, with Viktor as a mediator with the fences. The blood on the necklace and the duffel bags full of money are evidence enough. 

“Maybe we can take a trip there,” Viktor says, leaning back into your touch.

“Vik…” You laugh. “I’m on, like, seventeen ‘do not fly’ lists.”

He lifts a hand and runs a few fingers down your jaw. “When has that ever stopped you?”

You hum and lean into his touch, silently acknowledging that, no, a simple piece of paper (and the authority behind it) has never even given you the slightest bit of pause. “Why, ain’t you the smartest gemologist there ever done was…”

“You are quite the flatterer,” Viktor hums. 

“Only the best for the love of my life,” you say softly. 

His heart roars in his chest and he’s smiling so wide he’s sure he looks stupid. A breathy laugh escapes him and he turns, holding your warm face in both his hands. 

You scrunch up your nose and screw your eyes shut, your smile big as you put your hands over his. Your laugh is soft and giggly when he pinches your cheeks lightly. 

Viktor leans in, but his mental projection onto this body is so strong that it actually hesitates for a moment. This is… a different version of you. But he’s also a different version of himself – one that’s in love with this version of you. Besides, he doesn’t have that much control of this body, anyway. He’s missed you so much he can’t bring himself to care. 

It’s almost as if you can feel his close presence, or his breath on your face, or maybe you just want to kiss him. His thin, chapped lips meet yours – 

– and your lips feel rough, with patches of moss smattering across your face. 

Viktor pulls away, one hand still splayed across your cheek, the other holding himself up with his cane. You bring him away from your face, and he can take you in in full. 

He’s standing in the palm of your hand. You’re huge; sitting, you must be a story and a half tall. Your skin is covered – no, actually, you’re made of wood, twisting branches and trunks and bark making up your entire body. A winding crown made of bramble sits atop your head. Golden flowers, almost glowing, bloom across your collarbone and up one side of your neck, the petals looking almost silk-like. Your face is a simple blank mask, but Viktor can tell how you feel. The intrinsic connection between you two is almost tangible. 

You hold out a finger towards him, then slowly, carefully ruffle his hair. Viktor feels a little like a doll, but the care and caution you use when handling him causes delighted laughter to bubble up his throat. 

He leans into your touch, and a moment later, he realizes it’s of his own volition. He’s not trapped – his thoughts match his body, and he can do whatever he pleases. The very idea brings a smile to his face.

You make a sound that’s vaguely affirmative, kind of like cooing. You run your fingertip across the shell of his ear and past his pulse point, tipping his jaw up. 

He looks up at you, that content smile still on his face. “Yes?”

You (again, slowly, carefully) move him close to you. With your free hand bracing against the ground, you stand. Wind batters Viktor, but he blocks most of it out when he hides against the flat, broad expanse of your chest. 

When you stop moving, he looks over his shoulder across the vastness now exposed to him. Roots of trees reach from the ground into the night sky. Some are weaved together neatly, some are jerked into tight knots, some seem to be isolated from all the rest. None are the same. Everywhere Viktor looks, it’s crowded, with roots from one collection traveling a ways before joining another knot or weave or lattice, then another. 

“What… is this?” Viktor asks.

“Behold the beauty, the interconnectedness of all realities,” you say. Your voice is deep and rumbling – it reminds him of the far-away explosions he’d hear in the mines as a child. “Lo, Viktor, witness the cosmos. We nurture its essence, lest each fragile existence come unraveled.”

“We?” Viktor echoes, looking up at you. 

You look down at him, then raise your free hand to lovingly caress the flowers blooming on you. The color of the petals almost seem to match Viktor’s eyes. “Yea. We.”

You look forward and take a slow step that thunders when your foot meets the ground. The roots of the trees groan and whine as they bend out of your way as you walk. “Not long ago, I beheld a reflection of my own being… they were of your kind – small and frail, bound by the same fleeting fate. Dost thou know of this encounter?”

“I… did not know of this, no,” he says. 

You hum, and it sounds like the rolling tide of an avalanche. “Yes. It is as I thought.”

Viktor watches as you reach up to a particularly intricate weaving of roots. Your fingertips grow branches and intrude the plait, lacing themselves into it. 

He reaches out and splays a hand over the pad of your thumb as you… work? He’s not sure what you’re doing, actually. He doesn’t try anything else – just slowly lets his fingernails drag and catch on the dips of your thumbprint. It’s almost peaceful like this. Not trapped in his body or forced to say words he doesn’t mean. 

“Doth that reflection of my own being recall thee?” You ask softly. (Well, as softly as you can ask, anyway.) “Or art thou but a wisp of memory, lost in the abyss?”

“They… they do not remember me, no,” Viktor says, his voice hesitating despite himself. “I do not even know if they would wish to have their memories back.”

Your fingertips slowly retreat from the lattice. “Thou and I art entwined, Viktor. A truth, unyielding – two fated souls, forever bound in every existence. In all realms, thou art bound to me, as I am unto thee. This truth cannot be undone; not even by mine own hand.”

“In every existence…” he repeats, a whisper to himself. The thought – fact, as you had pointed out – makes his chest swell. 

Viktor gets interrupted when he feels something make contact with his foot. When he looks down, a root, skinny and scaly, is winding around his ankle. It reaches underneath his pant leg, and when it touches his skin –

– it’s you caressing Viktor’s ankles as he rests his feet in your lap. 

Nothing to be scared of. Nothing to be afraid of. Everything is fine. There are no cosmos, no alternate universes and nothing to worry about. 

The living room is warm and comfortable and it smells like home. It smells like you and sweetmilk. Fast-moving, sequential images are being displayed on a weird, skinny box – it’s a television. Something is playing on the television. 

A rather… odd-looking man is sitting behind a table stocked with various candies and foods. He throws a handful of colorful candies in his mouth and chews. After a few moments, his shoulders start shaking in either subdued laughter or poorly-concealed terror – it’s hard to tell. 

“It tastes like hamburger meat,” the man cries. “It tastes like raw hamburger meat!”

You laugh, and Viktor finds himself laughing with you. He doesn’t know what he’s laughing about. What’s a hamburger? A food. It’s an American food. What’s America? Stop asking questions.

“I am nothing if not a scientist,” Viktor says out loud. “And scientists ask questions, do they not?”

He turns to you and you have the wrong face. Distorted, melted. He opens his mouth to scream –

– and finds the breath stolen from his lungs. 

You have the root crushed beneath your finger. It crumbles and withers away under the slight pressure.

“Pardon the interruption,” you say. “The feeble realities… they yearn for the conscious, intelligent soul. Thy mind must be a feast most bountiful.”

Viktor gasps, recovering from the mental whiplash. Then, after a moment, he smiles slightly, a soft breath passing his lips. “I would like to believe that it is.”

“More shall seek. They sense thee, crawling forth for whispers of memories remaining.” You move a bit faster now, with more purpose. “We must return thee to thine reality. Mine own dear Viktor slumbers… soon, the time comes for it to wake.”

You continue moving at a quicker pace, but it’s clear you’re making sure not to knock Viktor out of your hand. The roots groan and give soft cracking noises that leave him worried as you continue on your path. 

Viktor clocks what you said a second later. “Wait, your own Viktor?”

“Indeed,” you say. “For now, it slumbers. This is for the preservation of both your fates.”

“Your Viktor is in danger?” He asks. 

“Nay. With every shard of my being, I shield it from danger unknown,” you say. “Such potent, restless souls dwell within you both. I shall not tempt risk and allow both thine eyes to open at the same time.”

Before Viktor can question you further, you slowly come to a stop in front of a ball of roots – a delicate lace made of strong wood. He feels an intrinsic, instinctual pull to it; like how an animal doesn’t know the word ‘hunger,’ but eats when it’s hungry. He doesn’t know the word or the feeling he has toward this thing – this reality – but he needs to interact with it. Needs to be back in that reality, his base reality.

“Hark,” you say. “Thine home.”

You reach out to it, invading it with your branches like you did to the one before. They snake their way through the intricate weaving.

You then look down at Viktor and bring him up to your collarbone, close to the golden flowers. Up close, the petals are whorls and swirls of golden yellows, and the stamen are crimson at the base with off-white tips. 

“Dost thou not behold the beauty of my dear Viktor?” You ask. 

He stops himself from touching one of the petals and looks up at you. “This… this is me?”

“Indeed,” you say. “A reflection. Brush over the blooms. It shall lead thee back to thine home.”

Viktor takes a step forward and brushes his hand over the flowers. A chime sounds, and pollen falls – well, it doesn’t really fall so much as it floats in the air. 

A translucent, almost celestial figure appears from the flowers and pollen, curled up with its eyes closed. As it hovers, it morphs for a few seconds, then becomes a reflection of Viktor; naked, warm, peaceful. A small smile rests on its lips. 

“Lo, witness my harbinger. My Viktor, the conduit of fate,” you say. “A catalyst for thine return. Touch, and behold its might — your might.”

Viktor looks up at you. 

“Be not afraid,” you say. Your voice shifts, and it’s no longer deep and thunderous and godlike. It’s yours. It’s the voice you have in Viktor’s reality. It’s the voice you use when you’re marveling at his beauty, when you make him turn soft and mushy and romantic. “They wait for thee, Viktor. Who art thou to deny thine beloved?”

And something in him cracks and blooms, like a weed through the concrete slabs of Piltover sidewalks. Viktor reaches forward and touches his reflection’s shoulder. 

His reflection breathes out a sigh, a pink mist leaving its mouth. It slowly uncurls, then opens its eyes and turns to Viktor. 

Their eyes meet –

– and he’s home. He’s in the lab, still holding your hand in a crushing grip. 

Your eyes go wide and your breathing starts to turn labored. Viktor is still crying. Tears well up in your eyes in response.

“Viktor,” you whisper, your voice warbling. 

He whispers your name in return. Quiet. Disbelieving.

You let out a choked, ugly sound, and scramble for him, almost falling to the ground as you get off the workbench. You wrap him up in your arms and he holds you close, pressing his face into the crook of your neck.

“You’re really here,” Viktor says, his voice thick and sticky. 

“I’m here,” you sob. 

He pulls away just a little, just enough to see you, to take the true you in again. Your face is twisted in heavy emotion, and yet, you still look so gorgeous. Fat tears roll down your face and you can’t stop crying, but you’re all that Viktor ever wants. 

“I never thought I would see you again,” he says softly. “When you – it…”

He tilts his head forward, touching his forehead to yours as his eyes close. “I was so scared. I thought…”

“You’re not getting rid of me that easy.” You laugh weakly. 

“What? No, no, don’t say that.” Viktor moves his hands, one now holding your face and the other resting on the back of your neck. “I would never get rid of you. Never, never in a thousand years.”

You put your hand on his where it rests on your cheek and relax into his touch. A moment later, you gasp, turning away from Viktor. “The Hexcore!” 

You look around, then spot it silently hovering above its place on the workbench. It doesn’t make any noise, doesn’t spit blue arcs of lightning, doesn’t do much of anything. 

“Is it…” You trail off and sniffle. “Is it stable?”

“We have not so much as touched it since you left,” Viktor says. “We did not want to risk anything… not until I got you back, at least.”

“You got me back?” You turn back to him with a smug smile playing on your lips despite the drying tears on your face. “Possessive.”

He laughs and returns to his rightful place, resting his forehead against your shoulder. “Yes, maybe. But you cannot blame me, no? You have been gone, and I… I have been afraid.”

“I’m here now,” you say softly. Your arms wrap around him and ensure he stays close. “I’m sorry, I didn’t… I didn’t know what to do.”

“Don’t you dare apologize,” Viktor says. 

You hum and rest your head in the crook of his neck, breathing him in. He remembers you fawning over the faint scent of sweetmilk that hid under the smell of electrical smoke, smiling and telling him that it made him ‘even cuter.’ (But you had complained about the smell of rancid smoke. You told him to go get a change of clothes soon after.)

“I’m exhausted,” you say softly. Your voice is so quiet only he can hear, like it’s a whisper, like it’s a secret.

Viktor pulls away just slightly, then guides you to the plush sofa hidden behind the blackboard. He wheels it out of the way and waits for you. 

You lay down and stretch out, wiggling until you’re comfortable. You reach behind your head and prop your head up with your forearm, then pat your chest in a silent invitation.

Viktor props his cane up against the side of the sofa and carefully lays down on you, slotting himself against your body. You’re just as warm as he remembered. Your free hand strokes his messy, untamed hair, and it’s like you were never apart from him. 

He silently promises himself that this will never happen again – this separation will never happen again. The Hexcore will be dealt with, whether that means taming or destroying it. 

Viktor will never leave you again. Just like the god-you said, with every shard of his being, he will protect you. He may be a dying cripple, but a dying cripple doesn’t have a lot to lose. 

“Thou and I art entwined, Viktor. A truth, unyielding – two fated souls, forever bound in every existence. In all realms, thou art bound to me, as I am unto thee. This truth cannot be undone; not even by mine own hand.”

The voice of god-you, deep and thundering, whispers in the back of his head. The thought gives Viktor comfort. 

He slides his hand underneath you, holding you just as you’re holding him. He’s not letting you go, not for a while. As long as you’ll have him, he’ll be yours.

Come hell or high water, he’ll always be yours. He doesn’t have that much energy to fight that fate anyway. (Nor does he really want to.)

[notjustjavierpena]

Parents

Series Masterpost | Main Masterpost | Support a disabled creator

A/N: Merry belated Christmas from me! I know this is my second Christmas fic this time around but I finally got the courage to write about Wife’s awful parents. 

Summary: Javier puts his foot down during Christmas with your toxic family. 

Pairing: Javier Peña x f!reader/you (no y/n)

Tags: Toxic family dynamics, psychological abuse, childhood trauma, Christmas, conflict and confrontation, sobbing, declarations of love, hurt/comfort, body/fat shaming

Word count: 5.7k

Link to this work on AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/61942318

Parents

You get a call from your parents’ home number a few weeks before Christmas. Your mother and father haven't actually bothered seeing you since your wedding day last year but Lucas is four months old now and there’s suddenly a strange interest from them in being grandparents to your firstborn. Somehow, they talk you into spending Christmas with them and reassure you that they’ll take care of everything as long as you bring their grandson. The whole idea causes a ball of anxiety to settle in your stomach, almost imitating getting hit right in the solar plexus with how much your breath struggles to even out as you tell Javier about it. Your husband agrees reluctantly but not without raising a concerned brow, asking you several times - and with days between each time - if you are absolutely sure. 

He even asks you now as he parks the car in your parents’ driveway, looking at you with a serious expression, brows furrowed while you sit stiffly in the passenger seat. You glance towards the front door, trying to act casual as if you’re staring at a wild animal who might pounce if it notices your anxiety. It is an odd feeling you get, staring at your childhood home but feeling more as if it is the scene of a crime. This house is not a memory of warm and fuzzy feelings but rather a place of constant criticism and unjust pain. 

Javier says your name softly beside you. On the backseat, Lucas hiccups.

“Do I look okay?” You quickly ask instead of acknowledging the tone of his voice, fixing your hair without changing anything. 

“Yeah,” he answers and tries not to comment on your nerves, “You look beautiful, mi amor (my love).”

The call from two weeks ago had your shoulders tensing up before you even answered the phone but the way they had reasoned you into revisiting the place of your hardest years has made your shoulders not come down again. 

You sigh gently and unbuckle your seatbelt, “Okay. I can do this for just an afternoon. Let’s get this over with.”

You climb out of the car, Javier following you after carefully unbuckling Lucas and cradling him in one arm while balancing the diaper bag on the other shoulder. You leave his car seat, knowing how much easier it would have been to transport your son inside in it but Lucas has been fussy all night. You really wish he hadn’t because you don’t want to go inside with only half the energy that a good night’s sleep could have provided. 

As you ring the doorbell, you take a look at Javier one last time, “Please don’t interfere. I don’t want to make everyone uncomfortable.”

“Baby, are you sure that—“

“Oh, there you are!” Your mother exclaims when she opens the door with a syrupy smile, “We were starting to wonder if you’d gotten lost.”

“Sorry. Life with a baby and all,” you shake your head with an embarrassed chuckle and try to ignore the tension in your muscles, shrugging your coat off your shoulders to reveal your wine-red button-up and dark skirt. 

“Honey, I thought you knew we always dress up a little during the Holidays,” your mother says while glancing at your outfit with veiled disdain, “Where’s that nice blue dress? With the ribbons?”

“This is all that fits me right now, that isn’t maternity clothes,” you answer apologetically at the first jab of many. Beside you, Javier takes a step closer to you without saying anything. 

“Anyway! Where’s the little man?” Your mother chirps, already having moved on and looking to Lucas who has started stirring in Javier’s arms. When she gets closer, about to reach out to run a hand over his little head, Lucas immediately starts whimpering as if he is aware of the unpleasantries that his mother has had to endure at the mercy of this woman. He knows the culprits before they’ve even revealed themselves. 

“Oh, he’s a little fussy, isn’t he?” She laughs it off and retreats much to your relief, letting Javier bounce your son to make him settle down again. When he quietens down again, you share a glance with your husband who signals that everything is okay. You take a deep breath and let him handle the situation. 

“Where’s Dad?” You ask to turn your attention away from your crying child, smoothing out a nonexistent crease in your skirt. 

“I think he’s just about to get the turkey out of the oven,” your mother says, wagging a finger in Lucas’ face with a little smile, “Why don’t you go say hi and I talk to my grandson for a moment? Oh, look at you, Lucas! You’re just perfect, aren’t you?”

You reluctantly leave the three of them to head for the kitchen. You can feel each family photograph staring back at you as you walk through the hallway to your destination; a picture of your five-year-old self on a bike but somehow no picture of your graduation ceremony as if it has been decided where things went wrong before you could acknowledge it yourself. 

“Hey Dad, smells so good in here,” the kitchen does indeed smell wonderfully as you walk through the door. Your father looks at you over his shoulder, giving you a little smile and you try not to think about how he didn’t bother to come out to greet you. 

“Mom and I were wondering if you were ever coming,” he notes while plating pieces of turkey meat. In the hallway, you can hear Javier striking up polite conversation. He’s handling your mother with his usual calmness, and you feel grateful for his presence yet embarrassed that you aren’t strong enough to handle it yourself.

You shrug a little, Javier’s presence giving you the courage to try and mirror said calmness, “Newborns, you know.”

“He’s four months,” he corrects. 

“Right, time flies,” you reply with your confidence fading fast, the words coming out in a way that doesn’t quite carry the quick wit that Javier usually loves about you. You touch your arm, standing awkwardly by the counter, “Still figuring it out as we go.”

Your father doesn’t turn around, “Parenting’s not rocket science, you know. Your mother and I managed just fine without all the made-up nonsense you young people talk about these days.”

You jump a little as your mother puts a hand on your shoulder and says your name to get your attention. You look back at her, “Can you set the table? I put the tablecloth ready on the silverware cabinet.”

“Sure, Mom,” you smile, already heading for the dining room to escape from your father’s subtle judgments. You find Javier has already gone, an irrational thought popping into your head of how he has bolted and left you to deal with your mom and dad by yourself. 

You glance into the kitchen as you start placing the plates in each of their respective places, “Where’s Javier?”

“He went to get the presents from the car,” your mother replies from the kitchen. You hear her take out a serving bowl from a cabinet. 

“Oh, I should go help him wi—“ 

“He’s your husband, sweetie. Let him handle it. There’s no need to emasculate him like that,” she is suddenly in the doorway, staring you down in a way that makes your hands shake. Her gaze drops to the table and her brows furrow, “You’re using the wrong plates!”

You look up with a racing heartbeat, “What?”

She sighs your name audibly, “These aren’t the Christmas plates. We don’t use regular plates for special occasions. Honestly, I thought you’d know better.”

The words sting and you set down the plates you have been holding in case the littlest twitch will make you drop it onto the floor, “Sorry, Mom.” 

“Ah well, now you’ll never forget it,” she jokes without humor in her voice as she opens the door to the china cabinet, pulling out the plates adorned with what you recognize to be hand-painted holly. You shamefully realize you know them from childhood Christmases and that they are exactly where they’ve always been. 

Automatically, you gather the wrong plates to make room for the right ones. It’s Christmas, you remind yourself as you do it. It is one day. You can survive one day. 

“See? Isn’t this much better?” She says cheerfully when your mistake has been corrected and while you nod, Javier reenters the house. 

He joins the two of you, carrying a large gift bag in one hand and holding Lucas on the other arm. You immediately go to take him, doing a careful transfer until you can lay his tiny body against your shoulder while supporting his bottom. 

“¿Todo bien? (Everything okay?)” Javier asks quietly when you follow him into the living room where the tree stands. He sets down the bag and tries to act casual, laying out the gifts and waiting for your honest response in the meantime. Apparently, you haven’t been as successful in hiding the distress on your face as you thought you had. 

You force a smile that doesn’t reach your eyes and Lucas starts whining again. You bounce him gently, “It’s nothing. Just… Christmas stuff.”

Javier glances toward the hallway to the kitchen where your parents’ voices can be heard faintly over the sounds of cooking. His jaw tightens slightly and his mouth becomes a thin line. 

“Don’t,” you say as firmly as you can muster because you wish he would, “It’ll only make it worse.”

“Dame un beso (give me a kiss),” he says instead, and you shyly lean in to peck him on the lips. Afterward, he pulls back but only after stroking Lucas’ back, “You’re both doing great, okay? Don’t let them get in your head.”

You are interrupted by your mother’s voice ringing out from the dining room, telling you that dinner is ready. Javier kisses you one last time before reassuring you that everything will be okay and that he is in your corner. You try to smile, tense as you take a seat with Lucas still in your arms. 

The Christmas meal begins with polite conversation, your father asking Javier about work and your mother telling you about neighbors that you haven’t spoken to in years. You mostly just speak when spoken to, having decided to focus on your baby as he keeps wriggling in your arms in discomfort. You try to rub his belly, try to make him settle by giving him your attention but still, his tiny face crumbles and he lets out a string of small complaints. 

“Maybe we could open presents while he naps?” You suggest hesitantly when your mother has given you enough judgemental advice, “He’s been so fussy all night, and I don’t want him to get more overwhelmed than he—”

“Oh, for heaven’s sake,” your mother says your name with a sigh. You hear Javier’s chair scrape against the floor, almost as if he is about to get up and get ready for a physical altercation.

“Let’s do whatever is easiest for the baby,” your father interrupts, placing a hand on your mother’s wrist. Her annoyance shines through her eyes but she nods with a smile nonetheless. 

“Of course,” you hear her grit out, “It’s just… We’d love to spend time with him. We’ve already missed so much, and Luke needs his grandparents.”

“We’ll see,” Javier answers for you. 

The dinner continues in mostly silence with turkey being substituted by pie, cutlery clinking against plates, and glasses being lifted and set down again. There’s tension so thick that it can be cut with a knife, your mother glancing at Lucas with a smile before it disappears from her face when she shifts her gaze to your direction.  

Mercilessly, she finally speaks, “So, honey, have you thought about when you’ll start losing the baby weight?”

“Mom!” You exclaim in shock, surprised that sound comes out when your throat feels like it is about to close up completely.

In the same manner as one would spit out a drink in shock, Javier’s fork scrapes unpleasantly against his plate, and suddenly, your mother’s name falls from his lips like the sound itself leaves him with a bad taste in his mouth. She looks startled by the interruption, almost like a deer in the headlights of a car, but it doesn’t faze your husband, “My wife looks beautiful and she has just given me - us - the greatest gift which is our son. Let’s not diminish that, shall we?”

You try to feel the weight of Lucas against your chest instead of how you don’t feel safe within this house, with its bruises on the walls and its ghosts of a youth spent walking on eggshells. Lucas’ body is warm, a reminder that this doesn’t matter. He matters. 

“I’m focused on taking care of my son right now, Mom,” you reply coolly with your lips resting on the soft hairs on Lucas’ head. 

“Right, of course. I didn’t mean anything by it,” your mother argues, clearly flustered, “You know how important it is to stay healthy for the baby.”

“Your mother just wants what’s best for you, honey,” your father intervenes, trying to steer the conversation onto friendlier and safer topics but she has already gotten up from her seat. 

“Why don’t I clear the table so we can move into the living room and open presents?” She mumbles, putting on a show by letting her voice waver. She has begun stacking plates before anyone can even say anything, practically fleeing the room and leaving you all looking slightly sheepish. Javier hides the roll of his eyes exceptionally well and he smiles when you catch him.

“I’ll put Lucas down for a nap,” you announce to what is left of the party.

Javier gets up alongside you to help you. He walks upstairs right behind you, a calming presence with the diaper bag in hand as you head for the guest room.

When you close the door behind the three of you, the tension seeps out of your body at having a quiet moment with your boys. The lighting in the room is soft and calming, almost making you want to lie down to nap with your son. 

“There we go,” you say as you gently place Lucas on the bed while Javier rummages through the bag for his pacifier. Lucas blinks up at you, his tiny fists balled and his chubby legs kicking excitedly. He lets out a happy gurgle.

“Oh, now you’re happy,” you tease softly and kneel by the bed to rub his tummy, “Picky with who we’re smiling at, are we?” 

Javier joins you by the bed and offers Lucas his pacifier. Your son stretches his arms and reaches for his father, letting out a high-pitched giggle around the pacifier. However, as he suckles gently, accompanied by your soft touch that has now moved to his chubby cheeks too, his eyelids start to grow heavy. 

When his breaths have slowed, you do whatever you can with the pillows to create a safe space for him to sleep. You create a barrier around him, ensuring as well as possible that he won’t roll over. 

“You know, you’d think that they would have set up a crib for him if they’re so desperate to see him,” you murmur bitterly as you adjust the last pillow.

“You sure you want to go back down there?” Javier asks carefully. 

“Can you grab the baby monitor?” You ignore his question at first but Javier is already handing you the monitor, ruining your attempt at not addressing the situation further. You sigh and get up from the floor, “I can get through it. If it’ll make them stop pestering me for a visit for a while.”

“I swear, one more word out of her mouth and I’ll open my own,” Javier says with anger simmering just beneath the surface. He drags you into his arms when you stand up again, hears your sigh of relief at being squeezed. It calms your nervous system so effectively that you slump. 

“Believe me, I feel like I am going insane,” you whisper into his neck and shoulder, grabbing aimlessly at his strong frame and inhaling his scent. He returns the desperate touch by simply rubbing your back in slow circles. 

“Yeah, I don’t know how you stay so calm,” he kisses your temple a few times. 

“Trust me, humans can endure a lot when they know there’s a time limit,” you chuckle humorlessly and pull away, “Let’s just do the gift exchange and leave.”

Downstairs, your parents are waiting for you by the tree. The collection of presents is sparse this year due to the short notice but you find it relieving to know that the gift exchange will be over quickly. 

Placing the baby monitor on the coffee table, you sit down on the sofa but don’t allow yourself to relax into it. Javier drops down beside you but leans back into his seat, his hand resting casually on your thigh to ground you. 

“Let’s get to the gifts. It’ll be nice to end this day on a happy note,” your mother says overly cheerfully, pretending to have forgiven and forgotten all about the situation earlier. She reaches for the first gift under the tree while your father stands ready with a bag for the wrapping paper. 

“That’s mine,” Javier tells her with a little smirk in your direction. He holds out his hand until she gives it to him, “To my beautiful wife. Merry Christmas, baby.”

“How thoughtful,” your mother mumbles and sits on the edge of her armchair. 

“Javi, I thought we weren’t on gifts this year,” you scold playfully but there’s no seriousness to your voice. You finally smile and this time it is genuine, feeling his gaze on you while you impatiently rip the wrapping. 

“I know what I said but I know you’ll love it. It’s more for Lucas anyway,” he informs you shyly. 

Inside, you find two pairs of identical fuzzy and comfortable socks with a dinosaur print on them. However, one pair fits Lucas’ tiny feet and the other fits yours. Your whole demeanor changes with the sight of your gift, your face lighting up with a bright smile, “These are so cute!”

“For your cold feet. Thought you could use something cozy while you take care of Luke at home,” he moves his hand to rest just above the small of your back, his palm smoothing over you on top of the fabric of your blouse. 

Your parents sit idly by. They stare at the gift with confusion and arrogance, clearly holding their tongue over how ridiculous they find it. Your mother picks at her fingers, “Interesting.”

“Interesting? Aren’t they adorable?” You hold the matching socks up happily, not sure what to expect but not even your mother’s judgmental expression can bring you down right now. To really rub it in, you kiss Javier’s mouth gently in front of them, “Gracias, esposo (Thank you, husband).”

But the happiness is short-lived as your father goes to get the next present from the small pile. He searches for a moment amongst the few there are, deliberately seeking out the present that you have brought them, most likely to be able to leave the room soon due to the obvious tension. He has never been one to intervene. 

“You shouldn’t have,” your mother tuts with a small smile as she carefully unwraps it in her lap, her fingers doing everything they can to not tear the paper so she can reuse it. 

When the framed picture of Lucas is revealed - a photo taken during an afternoon when he was particularly happy and smiling - her smile develops into a slightly wider one even if it looks against her will. She studies the picture with your father looking over her shoulder. 

“We thought you’d like something to remember him by,” you encourage her to say something. 

Your mother places the photo on the coffee table, her hands smoothing out the wrapping paper while she talks, “It’s lovely, sweetie. Though I’m sure we’d have more memories if we got to see him more often.”

You tense up beside Javier. Out of the corner of your eye, you see him do the same but he squeezes your hip to tell you that he is right there. Anxiously, you curl your fingers into your skirt but your mother isn’t finished.

“I just don’t understand why you’ve been so distant,” she continues, cold in her tone. “You hardly call, which would be fine but you visit even less than that, and now you’re letting Lucas sleep through his first Christmas. It’s not like you’ve gone back to work, so what is it?”

“Mom, please,” you say quietly but it doesn’t veil the wavering of your words, “I’m doing the best I can.”

“Are you?” She challenges, “Lucas has been fussing all night, hasn’t he? Maybe he’s picking up on your stress.”

You hear Javier say your mother’s name as he had during dinner, low and with warning. At the same moment, the baby monitor crackles with the sound of Lucas’ tiny complaints. The sound pulls you from your seat, your instincts to go to him overriding your desire to defend yourself from further abuse. However, your mother’s voice rings out behind you just as you take your first step.

She rolls her eyes, “Oh, just let him cry a little. You’ll make him clingy if you keep running to him every time he whimpers.”

You stop in your tracks, finally turning around to look her in the eye with your own eyes narrowed. You can see Javier watching you closely while you talk, “Mom, if he cries, he needs me.”

According to you, she has already gone too far but it seems that she cannot stop once she has started, “You know, you really should stop babying him so much. He needs to learn to self-soothe.”

Tears of frustration start to build in your chest and you can feel the muscles of your throat start to tighten as they rise to your eyes, “Jesus Christ, Mom, I’m not going to stop babying my baby.”

Her final blow comes out with a deliberate intention to hurt you, “There you go overthinking again and snapping at your mother. He is whimpering. Honestly, sometimes I wonder how Javier puts up with it. You can be such a bitch when you’re stressed.”

The room falls dead silent and the first tear escapes your eye at the cruel nickname… then a second and then a third until you start to cry silently and hopelessly. You suddenly feel like a teenager again, suffering from forced proximity. Your father opens his mouth but nothing comes out, seemingly not able to figure out how to defend his wife for once. It is the final straw for Javier.

“What did you just say?” He firmly cuts through the silence. He has gotten up from his seat and has stepped in front of you to shield you protectively from your mother’s line of sight. His nostrils flare with anger that might explode into rage at any moment but he keeps his voice steady, “You better not have said what I think you did or I am wondering why you haven’t apologized already.”

Your mother’s eyes widen at the idea of consequences. She splutters, caught off guard, “Apologize? Javier, don’t be ridiculous! I’m her mother—“

Javier laughs dangerously and condescendingly and looks away with a roll of his eyes. He shakes his head, not afraid to let the room know that he thinks she sounds pathetic without even calling her out on it. He crosses his arms over his chest, “You got a hell of a way of showing motherly love then; all you have done is tear her down today.”

“Javier,” your father tries to interject, “Let’s not make this into a scene.”

“No,” Javier turns to him, his jaw muscles flexing slightly underneath his skin with how much anger is flowing through him. The simple word makes your father sit up straighter than before - a testament to Javier’s days in Colombia - but Javier is not done, “You don’t get to lecture me about making a scene. Not after sitting there and letting this happen. She is your daughter.”

When your father has shut his mouth, looking uncomfortable by his defeat while he leans back into his seat with no intention to follow up on his words, Javier’s fury settles on your mother once more, “What’s your goal here, exactly?”

You’re aware that it isn’t just a simple few tears falling from your eyes anymore but rather a silent stream that has your face puffy and sensitive. It is accompanied by grief over your younger self not having had someone like Javier in her corner. You sniffle audibly, feeling as if you have been punched in the gut with how much it hurts and humiliates you to sit idly by. Your mother catches a glimpse of you behind your husband but it doesn’t seem to have any effect whatsoever. 

“There’s no secret agenda here, for God’s sake. I didn’t mean anything by it,” she sneers, trying to keep her demeanor straight despite the humiliation of getting called out being evident on her face. 

“Yes, you did,” Javier argues immediately and fiercely, pointing his index finger at her in an accusing manner, “You knew exactly what you were saying. You wanted her to hurt. Well congratulations, you’ve succeeded. Unfortunately, your daughter is a lot nicer than me and handled your words with a lot more grace than you deserve. I will not be doing the same thing.”

Your mother’s composure falters. She says your father’s name helplessly but he looks at her with tired eyes, full of quiet disappointment. Even if he is absent and passive like always, his refusal to intervene further is a sign that he would never go as far as his wife has just done. He shakes his head in disapproval, “Why’d you do it? We were having such a nice time too.”

She gapes at your father while his gaze drops to his lap, shrinking herself slightly at the realization that she is outnumbered and has to face your husband alone. Javier takes a step closer, radiating authority when she tries to avoid further confrontation, distaste so clear on his face for how he has lost her attention for a moment. When you let out a quiet sob, too paralyzed in your spot on the couch to go to your whimpering child, his face hardens further and he continues, “Listen to me.”

Your mother looks up reluctantly. She appears to be on the brink of an attempt to turn his words against him and argue right back once more, but Javier cuts her off before she can even start. 

“You don’t talk to her like that again. Ever. And you most certainly do not question her ability to be a mother. She is a perfect mother and God knows, she hasn’t gotten it from you. Lucas is a happy, healthy, and thriving baby because of her,” he takes a breath, and for a second, it seems like he might be done but then, “You hurt my girl, you understand that? And if you ever speak to her like that again - actually if you even speak about her like that again -  I will personally make sure you don’t get to have Lucas in your life.”

“Are you threatening us?” Her composure slips even more. 

“No, ma’am, I am instructing you,” he replies coldly, “If you can’t respect his mother, we’re done here.”

Javier turns to you now, his face softening immediately at the sight of you sitting teary-eyed on the couch with your hands clutching the baby monitor. He says your name so softly, a sound that has always felt like an unfamiliar and unwelcome sound within this house, and gently pulls the piece of technology out of your hands. 

“Listen to me, baby. Go wait in the car. I’ll get Lucas and his things,” he instructs you, placing the baby monitor on the coffee table behind him without looking away from you. He helps you to stand when you find yourself nodding. 

When you’re up from your seat, he puts a hand on the small of your back to guide you towards the door. He doesn’t say anything, doesn’t let you linger in the room. 

“You don’t have to leave,” your mother protests with obvious surprise that you and Javier are carrying out the promise of consequences. She begins pushing herself to stand. 

“Sit down, I will not let you disturb any of the peace she has left,” he commands harshly when she tries to take a step toward you. 

Your mother falters, stunned by his audacity, and sinks back into her seat.

The moment you’re out of the front door, your legs start shaking so badly beneath you that you aren’t sure if you’ll even make it to the car. The walk feels endless, like climbing a mountain, the neighborhood surrounding your childhood home quiet because everyone is inside with the happy family that you never got to have growing up. 

Until now. You have it now. However, you have left them to fend for themselves on the battlefield to slide into the front seat of the car. You rub your chest as it feels tight but it soothes nothing and suddenly, the tears come harder than they had in the living room. You rest your head against the glass window, screwing your eyes shut and feeling drips of hot tears on your cheeks.

Memories come flooding and you have no power to stop them, pictures of many nights spent in solitude in your room because it was the only illusion of sanctuary in the house before you. The sound of your mother’s scoffs, her unbearable ability to make you feel small, inadequate, and unwanted. Her year-long cruelty feels like a knife in your chest but your father’s silent complicity twists its blade too, makes you think that you were never worthy of defending. 

Yet Javier had done it so effortlessly, had done what you’d wished someone would have done for you in your entire life, and he had done it without any hesitation. You are shattered by another night believing the worst about yourself, yes, but you realize that a part of your sobs comes from relief too. Suddenly, it all feels silly and you don’t know why you have always stopped Javier from speaking up for you since you met because his words - she is a perfect mother - have taken the power out of your mother’s incredibly fast. 

You hear the front door open and a shaky sob leaves you at seeing the two of your boys approach the car. Javier has the diaper bag over his shoulder whilst cradling Lucas against his chest, his face serious. He moves in long strides to get to you fast, not saying anything as he buckles Lucas’ sleeping form into his car seat before climbing into his own seat in the front. 

You sit up again, eyes still brimming with tears that streak your face. You feel overwhelmed like you have run a marathon or fought a bear or a monster. 

Javier puts on his seatbelt but doesn’t put the key in the ignition yet. He looks out of the windshield for a moment, breathes a sigh of relief. The car is quiet except for Lucas’ soft breaths as he sleeps.

Right until Javier says your name when you don’t automatically turn your head to look at him, ashamed of how the day has progressed. It is Christmas, after all, and Lucas’ first one ever too. 

“Mírame (Look at me),” he says in a gentle murmur. 

You shake your head, unable to answer with how tightly wound you are. You feel his hand under your chin, carefully pulling you by your chin until your eyes meet his. His outline is blurry from all the tears but his voice cuts through the fog in gentle firmness. 

“I love you so much, and I love our son, okay?” He says it like it is a promise, “They aren't ever gonna to talk to you like that again because I won't allow them to. Do you understand me?”

You silently look at him through your tears, nodding weakly. He reaches to brush your tears away with a knuckle. 

“Everything’s gonna be okay because you don’t have to see them if you don’t want to. You just have to let me take care of you,” he continues and cups your cheek instead, “And right now, I say you’re done with them for tonight. Actually, for as long as you fucking want.”

“I want… I don’t…” You say at first but then, “I’m sorry.”

Javier furrows his brows, “Why are you sorry?” 

“Because that’s my mom,” you try to speak around a fresh sob, “And you married me and I trapped you with my fucked up family.”

“Hey, heyheyhey,” he shakes his head, moving his other hand to cup your whole face now. He leans over the console of the car and rests his forehead against yours. When you simply cry harder, he pulls you into a hug, “You didn’t trap me, okay? You didn’t. I’m here because you make me happy. You make me so happy, baby, and Hell knows, I needed a bit of taking care of when you met me. Let me return the favor.”

His body is warm, soothing, and grounding. His embrace squeezes you hard enough to make you calm down, giving you a moment of quiet peace in your mind as you begin to take in his words. You feel the same. You want to say it but you’re afraid that you’ll never stop crying tonight, so instead you find the courage to say those words that you should have told yourself years ago, “I don’t think I want to go back.”

“What do you want to do then?” Javier pulls back to look at you. He moves back into his own seat again and starts the car to give you time to think clearly about his question. 

“Can we go to your dad’s?” You ask hesitantly. 

Javier’s brows rise slightly but he doesn’t argue, just nods as he puts the car in reverse. Before reversing out of the driveway, he pulls you in to kiss your forehead softly. 

“Claro, mi amor (Sure, my love),” he says simply, “He’d love to see us.”

.

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[writtenbysprout]

Don't cry (over spilt coffee) | Dean Winchester x reader

word count: 1.3k+

pairing: Dean Winchester x GN!reader

tags: angst, bad day, fluff, dean being adorable

The day had started wrong and never quite managed to right itself. From the moment you got out of bed, everything seemed just a little off. First, it was the frustrating, endless search for clean socks that derailed your morning. Then, you stubbed your toe on the edge of the bathroom door. Small, insignificant things, but they piled up, one after the other, wearing you down by degrees.

By the time the sun dipped below the horizon, you felt like you were barely holding yourself together. The bunker’s halls, usually comforting in their quiet sturdiness, seemed to echo too much today, their shadows stretching longer than usual.

All you wanted was a moment to yourself, a brief reprieve from the weight pressing down on your chest. You found it, or at least tried to, in the kitchen. The simple act of brewing a pot of coffee felt grounding, the steady drip and rich aroma wrapping around you like a familiar hug.

As the pot finished brewing, you reached for your favorite mug—the one Dean had teased you about endlessly when you insisted it was the perfect size, even though it had a small chip on the rim. It wasn’t fancy, but it was yours, and that made it special.

Pouring the coffee, you added the usual splash of cream, stirring it slowly as you took a deep breath. The warmth of the mug against your palms was soothing, the scent promising comfort.

But then, as you turned to head to the table, the mug slipped from your grasp.

It all happened in slow motion. The mug fell, crashing onto the tile floor, coffee splattering everywhere in chaotic streaks. The sound of shattering ceramic echoed in the small kitchen, louder than it had any right to be.

You froze, staring down at the mess. The last thread of control you’d been clinging to snapped. Tears welled up in your eyes before you could stop them, spilling over as you sank to your knees.

“It’s just a mug,” you whispered to yourself, the words trembling as they fell from your lips. “It’s just coffee.” But the tears didn’t stop.

“Hey.”

Dean’s voice broke through the haze, soft and laced with concern. You hadn’t even heard him come in.

You hastily wiped at your face with the back of your hand, trying to collect yourself. “It’s fine,” you mumbled, your voice shaky. “I’m fine. Just made a mess.”

Dean crouched down beside you, his green eyes scanning your face. His expression was tender, worry etched into every line. He said you name softly, “this isn’t about the coffee, is it?”

The kindness in his voice, the understanding, was too much. The dam burst, and you let out a choked sob, covering your face with your hands.

Dean didn’t hesitate. He wrapped his arms around you, pulling you into his chest. One hand cradled the back of your head, the other rubbing soothing circles on your back. His flannel smelled like leather and the faint trace of gun oil, grounding you in its familiarity.

“Hey, it’s okay,” he murmured, his lips brushing against your hair. “I got you. Just let it out.”

You clung to him, your tears soaking into his shirt as the weight of the day finally found release. Dean held you tighter, as if his arms alone could shield you from whatever had driven you to this breaking point.

When the sobs subsided into soft sniffles, Dean pulled back just enough to look at you. His hand brushed a stray tear from your cheek, his touch warm and gentle.

“There you are,” he said, offering a small smile. “You with me now?”

You nodded, though your voice was still thick with emotion. “Yeah. Sorry. I just…”

Dean shook his head, silencing you with a look that was equal parts affection and exasperation. “You don’t have to apologize for being human,” he said. “We all have those days.”

He stood, offering you a hand. You hesitated, glancing down at the shattered mug and the coffee pooling around it.

“Dean, I should clean this up—”

“Nope.” He cut you off, his tone leaving no room for argument. “You sit. I’ll take care of it.”

You opened your mouth to protest, but the look he gave you stopped you in your tracks. It wasn’t stern, exactly—just determined, with a hint of that Dean Winchester stubbornness that you knew better than to fight.

Reluctantly, you let him guide you to one of the stools at the counter.

Dean moved around the kitchen with practiced ease, grabbing a towel to mop up the coffee and a dustpan to sweep up the shards of the broken mug. He worked quickly but carefully, his movements efficient.

“You didn’t have to do this,” you said softly, watching him from your perch.

Dean glanced up, his green eyes locking onto yours. “Of course I did,” he said simply. “What kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn’t clean up your spilled coffee and make you feel better about it?”

The warmth in his voice made your chest tighten, but this time it wasn’t from sadness.

Once the mess was cleaned, Dean washed his hands and turned back to you. “Now, let’s get you a new cup of coffee.”

You shook your head. “I don’t think I want—”

“Uh-uh,” Dean interrupted, holding up a finger. “No arguing. You’re getting a fresh cup, and you’re going to sit here and let me take care of you. End of discussion.”

You couldn’t help but laugh, the sound soft but genuine. “Yes, sir,” you said, mock saluting.

Dean smirked, clearly pleased with himself.

He took extra care this time, pouring the coffee, adding just the right amount of cream and sugar. When he handed you the mug, he stayed close, leaning against the counter as his eyes searched your face.

“Better?” he asked, his tone quieter now, his concern evident.

You nodded, wrapping your hands around the mug. The warmth seeped into your skin, soothing in a way that went beyond the physical. “Better,” you admitted.

Dean didn’t move right away. Instead, he reached out, brushing his fingers lightly against your arm.

“You know you can talk to me, right?” he said. “About anything. I don’t care if it’s big or small. If it’s bugging you, I want to know.”

His words hit you harder than you expected. You blinked rapidly, trying to keep fresh tears at bay. “I know,” you said softly. “It’s just… hard sometimes.”

Dean nodded, his thumb tracing small circles on your arm. “I get it. Believe me, I do. But you’re not alone, okay? Not ever.”

You set the mug down, reaching for his hand. His fingers laced through yours automatically, the simple gesture grounding you.

“Thank you,” you said, your voice thick with emotion.

Dean leaned down, pressing a kiss to your forehead. “Always,” he murmured against your skin.

As the tension in your chest finally began to ease, you couldn’t help but marvel at how effortlessly Dean managed to make you feel safe. It wasn’t just the way he took charge or his easy confidence—it was the way he saw you, really saw you, and cared enough to stay when things got messy.

He moved to sit beside you, his hand never letting go of yours. “Alright,” he said, his voice lighter now. “Now that we’ve got the coffee situation under control, how about we take the rest of the night off?”

You raised an eyebrow. “Take the night off? From what?”

Dean grinned, that familiar mischievous spark lighting up his eyes. “From everything. No hunts, no research, no worrying about the end of the world. Just you, me, and maybe a bad movie or two.”

You couldn’t help but smile, the warmth in your chest spreading. “That sounds perfect.”

“Damn right it does,” Dean said, giving your hand a squeeze.

[cherryblossombankai]

Part Two

Summary: You're All Might's sidekick. While trying to stop a bank robbery, you're hit by a Love Quirk that brings all your feelings for the Symbol of Peace to the surface. Will All Might be able to resist your advances? Or will you tease out feelings he's kept buried?

Word Count: 1.9k

Warnings: Love quirk that basically functions like an aphrodisiac, penetration (p+v), dry humping, begging, dubious consent (I would say for both parties), fem!reader

Author's Notes: Part of a little trade with @actuallysaiyan! I hope you love it, Bacon! ❤️

Tag List: @pixelcafe-network, @actuallysaiyan

Wanna be added to the tag list? Simply fill out this form!

It’s a mission like any other you’ve been on with All Might. There was a bank robbery downtown. Of course, All Might is usually faster than you, but this time you were closer to the scene. You managed to make it there first and catch the thieves in the act.

 The villains were confident in themselves when they thought it was just you. Everyone knows you’re All Might’s little sidekick, but your reputation isn’t as large as his. Your name doesn’t carry the same weight or strike the same fear in the hearts of misdoers. These villains believed they could take you down quickly, and then escape before All Might showed up.

They were almost right. 

You fought a little harder than they’d expected, your quirk allowing you to create shadows to hide in to take them down. However, they had an ace. You create a shroud of darkness, but the moment you emerge you’re faced with a villain who’s dressed in pink with hearts covered in their leotard. They blow you a kiss, and you’re covered in a cloud of glittery, pink dust. 

At first the rush of lust and love is so strong, you pass out on the cold floor. Luckily, All Might is making his grand entrance just a few moments later. His large hand is outstretched in front of him, running right into one of the thieves' shoulders as they try to run out the door. He pushes the thief back. In a matter of moments, he had the gang subdued and ready for the police to haul off. 

You come to again when he’s rounding up the civilians who were caught up in the robbery. You shudder softly at the sight of him, your pussy growing hot under your suit. Your clothes feel like they’re sticking to your body in an unpleasant shield from the one you want. 

“Ah, there you are!” All Might kneels in front of you. “Are you hurt?” 

You’re panting, and your eyes are wet with tears as you look up at him. He’s so beautiful and kind. So caring...So perfect...So delicious. You let out a sweet little giggle and look away sheepishly. 

“Oh, All Might, you don’t have to worry so much about me!” 

He frowns and reaches out to place his hand on your forehead. Your skin is hot to the touch. 

“You don’t seem to be well. Did something happen?” 

Just the touch of his hand has you so dazed that you can’t even fathom trying to speak to him. Finally, one of the witnesses speaks up for you. They explain what they saw. All Might stand up to thank the civilians.

“All Might, don’t leave me,” you pout when he begins looking around to see if the ambulance has arrived yet. You crawl to him and wrap your arms around his leg. You rest your cheek against his thigh. You swear you can smell the musk of his manhood, and your little cunt tingles with delight. 

“I’m not leaving you,” he assures you. He tries to pry you off his leg, but the more he tries the harder you cling to him. If he uses any more force, he fears he’ll hurt you. 

“I love you, Toshi,” you whisper as you rub your cheek against his leg. Your fingertips ghost along the inseam of his suit. He gasps in shock at the touch and tries once more to push you away. To his utter horror, the moment you’re uncurled from his leg you begin to sob. 

“S-stop! Calm down, little one. Please, I didn’t mean to upset you!” 

“Mean, Toshi!” you sniffle softly. The civilians and police are starting to look on judgmentally. Unsure what else to do, he gathers you up in his arms and begins carrying you out of the bank. 

He doesn’t know what to do next. If he tries to take you home, he’s sure you’ll just try to find him again. Which could result in you getting hurt, since you’re not in the right state of mind. Then again, the way you’re hanging on him could be trouble. He couldn’t possibly risk taking you back to UA around the students. 

So, he takes you back to your apartment. 

Inside the apartment, you’re just as clingy as you were at the bank. Even worse, you keep repeating that you love him. It’s tearing him to pieces because deep down he loves you too but he knows you don’t feel this way. You couldn’t. He’s just a broken-down old man. You’re young and bright. Your whole career is ahead of you. There’s a lot more in your future than chasing after him forever. Every time those three sweet little words leave your lips, he pretends not to hear them. 

With each passing moment, your body aches more and more. He’s trying his best to help you settle in, but you’re not making it easy. 

“I’m hot,” you whine as you tug at your suit. 

“Go get comfortable.” 

This was a mistake to encourage because now you’re taking your clothes off in front of him. He’s trying not to look but just knowing your beautiful body is in reach and you’d be so willing in this state makes him hard. It’s a shameful thing, he tells himself, to get aroused during a time when you’re unable to properly consent. 

“N-not in here!” he pants. 

You smirk and take off your final piece of clothing. Once you’re fully nude, you take a step closer to him. 

“But I want you to look at me,” you whisper. “I want you to touch me too. It’s all I want.” 

He backs away from you nervously, coughing up a little blood when his energy runs out and he switches forms. He expects that to snap you out of this a bit, but it doesn’t. If anything you seem to become even more determined to get closer. His knees hit the couch, and he sits down. Right away, you’re on his lap. Your pussy dribbles on his suit as you grind against his thigh. 

“Toshinori, I love you,” you say again. 

He shakes his head, “No, don’t say that.” 

“But I do!” 

“No, you don’t, you got gassed. Remember?” 

You lean in and nuzzle against his chest. You continue dragging your cunt on his thigh, giving yourself at least a little bit of relief. He can’t bring himself to push you away. Instead, he adjusts your position so your rutting stimulates his cock. 

“No, I loved you before that,” you wrap your arms around him. 

“Fuck, you can’t keep doing this. Are you trying to kill this old man?”

You giggle softly before kissing his neck gently. His fingertips dig into the meat of your thighs as you grind down more purposefully on his dick. 

“I’ve been saving myself for you, Toshi. Never wanted anyone else t’fuck me.” 

“Don’t say that,” he pants. His cock throbs in his pants, and he’s so grateful that they’re loose now. 

“I’m makin’ you hard,” you giggle. 

He groans and his cheeks burn, “How else is a man supposed to feel when a beautiful young woman is grinding on his cock?” 

“Can I take it out, Toshi?” you ask, lifting your head to give him those puppy eyes. Your cheeks are flushed still, and your lips are glistening. He realizes from the wet spot on his shoulder that you’ve been drooling. That gas has practically turned you into a bitch in heat. 

“I can’t let you do that,” he says, finally snapping out of it a little. 

“Why not?” you frown. 

“Because you’re not yourself right now.” 

“I feel more myself right now than I usually do,” you lean in and sloppily kiss him. Your stomach flip-flops with excitement. 

“If you don’t stop, I’m gonna—,” he cuts himself off. 

“Put it in, Toshi,” you plead. “Just a little bit, okay?” 

He palms his face in disbelief at what he’s hearing. You’re done for, that much is obvious. There’s not gonna be any reasoning with you, and he’s losing it more and more. Sensing his weakness, you reach down to pull his cock out of his pants. 

“Fuck!” he covers himself with his hand. “Are you insane?” 

As he begins berating you for being irresponsible, you lean in to press needy kisses on his neck and jawline. You guide his free hand to your tits. 

As his resolve weakens, he begins palming at your breasts. Instead of covering his cock shyly, he’s stroking himself. The red, leaking tip of his cock rubs against your folds. 

Before he knows it, you’re working your way onto his cock. The thick head prods gently at your hole. You sink a little bit, taking the tip inside before pulling off. Then, you make your second effort. This time he’s holding it still for you and guiding your hips with his hand. 

“Come on, sweetheart. I know you can take it,” he whispers, shocked at the words leaving his lips. At his encouragement, even more arousal dribbles out of your cunt. By now his pants are soaked from your mess. 

“I’m comin’,” you assure him as you lower yourself down once again. Your walls stretch uncomfortably around his huge cock. If the gas hadn’t made you so wet, you don’t know if you’d be able to take it at all. Inch by inch, he’s sinking into your warmth. 

You press your forehead against him as he bottoms out. You have to take a moment to get used to being so full. You can’t believe this is truly happening. Here you are, stuffed with his cock. Catching his breaths and inhaling him into your lungs. It’s everything. 

‘I love you, I love you, I love you,’ your thoughts roll into this chant of unyielding affection as you begin rocking your hips. He’s deep inside of you, deep enough to destroy you if things get too heated. For his part, Toshinori clings to you. He’s panting and whining with a mix of pleasure and shock. His fingertips leave deep crescents on your hips. 

As you ride him, you feel a heavy comfort wrap around your thoughts. It’s only you and him here. Only this moment, this declaration of love. He throws his head back as your walls begin clenching around him. Your eyes squeeze shut and your legs turn to jelly as a white-hot numbness rolls over your entire being. Your orgasm is pure bliss. 

When you open your eyes again, he’s hovering above you. His hips snap desperately. For a fleeting moment you wonder when he flipped your positions, but when he hits that spot deep inside you it doesn’t matter anymore. Your legs lock around his waist and your nails dig into his back. 

“Toshi,” you pant softly. His eyes lock on yours, and then your lips are crashing in an intense kiss. 

It’s almost too late by the time he realizes he should pull out. With your legs locked around him, it’s not an easy task. He ends up cumming all over your mound, panting and whining with each spurt of thick seed. 

“Shit,” he whimpers as he lays his head on your chest. You run your fingers through his hair. 

As the room grows quiet, you realize the gas isn’t shaking up your thoughts anymore. You’re calm and utterly content. When Toshinori lifts his head to look at you, he can see the clarity in your eyes. For a brief moment, he fears you’ll regret what happened. He wouldn’t blame you if you did. Instead, a sweet smile spreads across you lips. Your cheeks are a pretty shade of pink. 

“I love you,” you whisper. “My sunflower.” 

He blushes and nuzzles against your neck. “I love you too.” 

[steveseddie]

in your dreams

written for the @steddiebingo hop into spring mini event | prompt: wet dreams | rating: e | wc: 2,1k | tags: sharing a bed, awkward sexual situations, bottom eddie, who is mortified for 0.5 seconds but everything is good in the end, anal sex

read on ao3

Eddie wakes up panting loudly.

Sweat is making his bangs stick to his forehead and he’s hard in his boxers, his cock throbbing thanks to the dream he just woke up from.

He doesn’t remember exactly what he was dreaming about, but he knows Steve was there– between Eddie’s legs, pushing in and out of him, fucking him and jerking him off at the same time. Keeping his eyes closed, Eddie focuses on how it felt to be fucked by Steve in his dream. It was good, he thinks. He’d been close and he probably would’ve come in his sleep if he hadn’t woken up.

Now he has to take matters into his own hands. Literally.

With his eyes still shut, Eddie reaches down, sliding his hand into his boxers and wrapping his fingers around his dick, giving it a few strokes.

Pleasure shoots through him and he bites down on a high pitched noise before he remembers Wayne is at work and he has the trailer to himself. He can be loud if he wants.

“Fuck,” he moans, dragging his thumb over the head and imagining it’s Steve touching him. He’ll feel guilty about getting off to his friend later, right now he’s too hard and desperate to care.

So much so that he won’t need much to come. Not when he can still hear the way Steve sounded in his dream or remember how it felt to be touched by him.

God, he swears if he focuses hard enough he can still smell him.

“Fuck, Steve,” Eddie whines softly, reaching down to squeeze his balls. If he thought this would last any longer he’d reach between his legs and tease his hole, but he can already feel the heat in his stomach reaching that point right before he–

“Eddie?”

Eddie’s heart stops and his blood runs cold because– that’s Steve’s voice. He didn’t just imagine that.

“Eds, you okay?” Steve asks groggily and that’s when Eddie remembers.

That he stayed over at Steve’s last night. That they ended up sharing Steve’s bed. And now Eddie woke Steve up because he was jerking off next to him to a dream he had about him.

Letting go of his dick, Eddie opens his eyes. It takes them a moment to adjust to the darkness around him, but when they do, Eddie sees Steve propped up on his elbow, looking at him.

Does he know what Eddie was doing? Did he hear him moan his name?

“Hey,” Steve whispers and Eddie feels a featherlight touch against his shoulder. It makes him shudder. “Did you have a nightmare?”

Eddie wishes it was a nightmare. It would be less mortifying to have woken up Steve with his sobbing than with his moaning.

At least, he doesn’t seem to have clocked the difference.

“Do you need anything?”

A cold shower, probably. He’s still hard in his boxers and Steve’s rough voice isn’t helping with that situation.

“Just– uh, water,” Eddie stammers out. “You can go back to sleep.”

He starts to roll over, but Steve reaches out to stop him, probably to offer to go get the water for him, except he miscalculates and his hand brushes against Eddie’s crotch– and before Eddie can stop himself, he moans.

For a moment, there’s only silence though Eddie swears he can hear his heart hammering in his chest, the blood rushing through his ears–

“Oh,” Steve gasps after what feels like ages. “It– It wasn’t a nightmare, was it?”

“N–no,” Eddie whispers, resisting the urge to hide under the covers.

“But you said my name.”

Eddie gulps. “Yeah.” There’s no point in denying it, not when Steve heard him. “I’m sorry, I– I didn’t realize where I was at first, so I just did what I always do–”

Steve’s breath gets caught in his throat. “You– you’ve dreamed about me before?”

Fuck. “I– I– I’m sorry, fuck, Steve, I’m just gonna go–”

“Wait, Eddie, stop,” Steve says. He reaches out again, more carefully this time, but even if he only touches Eddie’s arm, a shudder still runs through him–

Which is nothing compared to what he feels when Steve’s voice goes low as he says, “If you wanted me to touch you, Eds, all you had to do was ask.”

Eddie’s breath leaves him in a whoosh as he flops back against the bed. “W–What?”

Steve shifts on the bed so he's hovering over him, his fingers trailing softly over Eddie’s arm. Eddie can’t help but wonder if he’s somehow still dreaming.

“Is that what you want? For me to touch you?” Steve asks when Eddie fails to say anything, still in that low voice that makes him burn all over.

“Jesus Christ– yes, yeah,” he finally manages to stammer out.

“Like this?” Steve asks, trailing his hand over Eddie’s chest, his stomach, his thighs. Shivers run down Eddie’s spine at every new touch even if his body feels like it’s about to burst into flames. “Or maybe like this?”

His leg jerks aggressively when Steve moves his hand between his legs, cupping his dick and giving it a squeeze. “F–fuck, yes, Steve–” Eddie cries, pushing his hips into Steve’s hand.

“Is this what I was doing in your dream?” Steve asks, leaning close and speaking right into Eddie’s ear, biting his earlobe in a way that makes him whine. “Tell me, Eds.”

“Y–yeah, you were– you were touching me but you– it was also–”

Eddie’s voice finally cracks when Steve slides his hand inside his boxers, wrapping his fingers around his length.

“What was I doing that made you this hard, baby?” Steve purrs, stroking Eddie, making him melt.

His face and his– everything feels like it’s burning when he says, “You were inside me.”

Steve inhales sharply, his right hand faltering momentarily. “Fuck, Eddie.”

“Yeah,“ he says with a breathy laugh. “Exactly.”

“Smartass,” Steve says with a chuckle, biting Eddie’s jaw. “Is that what you want?“ He asks with his face hovering only inches away from Eddie’s.

“Yeah, Stevie,” he whines softly. “Please, fuck me.”

Eddie’s begging makes Steve growl and then he’s sweeping down and crashing their lips together in a bruising kiss. Steve’s mouth swallows Eddie’s moan as he kisses back enthusiastically. He moves his hands for the first time since Steve started touching him and tangles them in his hair, tugging on the soft strands as he pushes his tongue into Steve’s mouth. Eddie has kissed Steve in his dreams countless times, and as vivid as those dreams can be, they pale in comparison to the real thing where Steve kisses him within an inch of his life. With his hand still slowly working over Eddie’s cock, it’s not long before it feels like he’s going to come again.

“Steve, Stevie– stop or–” He trails off with a whimper when Steve thumbs at the slit. “Sweetheart, I wanna come with you inside me.”

Steve curses under his breath. He gives Eddie’s cock a few more teasing strokes and then he lets go. Eddie whines as he pushes his hips up, chasing after his hand, but when Steve reaches into his bedside table and grabs a bottle of lube, Eddie goesl stills, anticipation thrumming in his veins.

“Can you take these off?” Steve asks sweetly, his fingers teasing the waistband of Eddie’s boxers.

Eddie immediately shrugs them off, his dick slapping against his stomach, rock hard and shiny with precum.

“Fuck, Eddie,” Steve whispers, his eyes dark and molten as he takes him in. “Can you spread your legs for me, baby?”

Eddie whimpers pathetically, letting his knees fall to the side. His dick twitches against his stomach when Steve pours lube over his fingers and leaks precum when he brings one of them to Eddie’s hole, teasing at the puckered skin.

Eddie’s eyelids flutter closed. He pants, “Steve–” His leg jerking when he pushes the finger inside.

“Feels good?” Steve asks, slowly sliding it in and out.

“Mhm– more, Steve–” he pleads, gasping when Steve complies and adds another finger. He scissors them, opening Eddie up. For his cock, Jesus Christ. Eddie can feel it pressing insistently against his leg and it’s hard and big and it’s going to be inside him–

“One more?” Steve asks, curling both of his fingers.

“Y– uh, mhm–” Eddie trails off when they hit that spot inside him that makes him see stars. After a few more strangled sounds, he manages to get out a weak, “Yeah.”

Steve gives him a third finger, really stretching Eddie open and turning him into a squirming, panting mess.

“Steve, Stevie– I’m ready,” he says after a while.

Steve presses a kiss to the inside of his thigh. “Yeah?”

“Yeah, Steve. Fuck me,” he whines, grinding down against Steve’s fingers. They slide in and out easily.

Steve watches him fuck himself for a few seconds with a hungry look before shaking his head and pulling his fingers out. He wipes the lube on his boxers– and then he shrugs them off.

“Fucking hell,” Eddie mutters as he takes Steve in. He went to bed shirtless, which in hindsight, probably prompted Eddie’s wet dream. Right now he’s completely naked– wow. “Big boy was right,” he blurts out dumbly.

Steve laughs, shooting Eddie a wink, and grabs a condom from the bedside table. Eddie watches him roll it on and coat it with lube, his hole clenching around nothing.

“Ready for me to make your dreams come true?” Steve says with a goofy smile, kneeling between his legs.

It’s Eddie’s turn to laugh. “Yeah, big boy. Come here.”

Steve does, lining the head of his dick with Eddie’s hole and slowly pushing in.

Eddie’s mouth falls open with a strangled moan as Steve keeps pushing and pushing and pushing until he bottoms out. His eyes nearly roll to the back of his head when this happens, it’s so much and so big but so good–

It’s so much better than his dream. The way Steve smells, the way he sounds, the way he feels. His dreams simply didn’t do it any justice.

“Is this what you wanted, Eds?” Steve grunts into his ear, slowly starting to move. “Is it just like your dreamed of?”

“N–No– ah! It’s better– fuck, so much better, Steve.”

Steve hums. “Yeah, you’re right.”

Eddie blinks at him. “I– You– Steve, did you–”

“Did I ever dream about fucking you?“ Steve finishes when Eddie can’t get the words out. Their eyes meet as his hips move at a steady rhythm. “So many times, Eds.”

His words shoot through Eddie’s body like electricity and make his dick jerk where it’s caught between their stomachs. “Oh my God– Steve, I’m not gonna last long.”

“Me neither,“ Steve admits, picking up the pace with his hips and sliding his hand between their bodies so he can jerk Eddie off.

God, it’s so much like his dream. Only a million times better.

It’s really no surprise then that soon Eddie starts to feel that familiar heat in his lower stomach. “Steve, I’m close.”

“I’m close too, come on, baby,” Steve urges, adjusting his hips so he hits that spot with every thrust.

“Oh, fuck!” Eddie swears, wrapping his arms around Steve, digging his nails into his back. “Steve–”

Steve hits his prostate one, two, three more times, twisting his wrist just right, and then Eddie is coming, ropes of cum shooting between them, painting Eddie’s shirt and Steve’s chest.

It only takes a couple more thrusts and Eddie clenching around his dick for Steve’s hips to stutter, a loud groan tumbling over his lips as he spills into the condom.

“Christ, Eddie,” he pants with his head tucked against Eddie’s neck as they both catch their breath. “That was–”

“Better than any dream,” Eddie finishes, patting Steve’s back like he’s seen jocks do after a game.

With a chuckle, Steve lifts his head, looking fucked out and breathtakingly beautiful. Eddie can’t help himself– he grabs hold of Steve’s neck and brings him down for a kiss. It’s less filthy than the others but it makes Eddie a little more nervous– kissing Steve now that they’re not in the heat of the moment.

But Steve doesn’t seem to mind. He kisses Eddie back eagerly and gives him a lopsided grin when he finally pulls away.

After he pulls out and gets rid of the condom, he uses Eddie’s shirt to clean them up as best as he can. Which isn’t a lot.

“You know,” Steve says, his eyes sparkling, “I once had a dream that we took a shower together.”

Eddie smirks. “Guess it’s only fair if we make your dreams come true now, Stevie.”

[lilylovestowrite]

We all know that Aventurine's love language is definitely gift giving! So I would like to request aventurine spoiling his s/o with so much money and gifts. At first reader was thankful and also flustered with all of the gifts he provided for her, but later reader started to become annoyed cause he's been spoiling them too much, so one day they decided to text aventurine about this matter. They only just called his name and he already thought that they needed money so he sent the money. Reader was surprised at first but then got annoyed and decided to scold him in the chat (to which aventurine didn't take them seriously and even teases them, finding amusement with his lover's anger) make this a playful banter between the two and at the end, aventurine decided to meet up with them to pamper them, but this time, with affection ✨

MUST BE FUNNY, IN A RICH MAN'S WORLD ୨♡୧

PAIRING ୨♡୧ (Aventurine x GN! Reader)

WARNINGS ୨♡୧ None

SYNOPSIS ୨♡୧ You decide to confront your boyfriend over his overzealous spending habits. 

WORD COUNT ୨♡୧ 1.4k

A/N ୨♡୧ Thank you for the request! I love Aventurine SO MUCH. I want to hold him and cherish him but I think he deserves to be thrown down a flight of stairs because he’s such a brat. I am so normal about this man.

Divider by @/cafekitsune

‘I saw you eyeing this crystal swan the other day. When you and I get married, I’ll buy the whole store and decorate our venue with them if it’s to your liking- Kakavasha’

You are going to kill your boyfriend. 

You are going to kill your boyfriend over a Swarovski Swan on your bedside table. And thirty bottles of the same Dior perfume you wore once around him. And every piece of designer clothing he’s gifted you. And that one time he rented out a whole cruise ship just to play tag with you over a moonlit river. Well, perhaps not the last one. You liked the idea, the execution? A little overkill.

But this? Overkill can’t even begin to explain how much Aventurine has been spending on you recently. Just before you started dating, he would regularly spoil you with large bouquets of your favourite flowers and a few lovely pieces of jewellery. It was sweet at first: you remember blushing and hiding your flustered face behind your palm, only for him to kiss your hand and usher it away. “Stop, you look super cute when you’re flustered,” he’d say, but now, a deep pit of shame hollows the joy out of every gift he gives you. He gives, and gives, and spoils you, but what do you have to offer? 

You do appreciate his gestures, and it feels lovely to be kitted out in the finest gossamer, or the softest of silks. The aroma of expensive perfume smells less chemical-ly and manufactured compared to your old bottles. There isn’t a day that goes by where your flower vases in your house aren’t filled with high-end flowers. It’s affection, sure, but, you wish he didn’t feel as if your love is something to be bought. 

With Aventurine, you have to be careful with your communication. He may play off other people’s rude comments about his origin or his affiliation with the IPC. Other people’s opinions don’t matter. But you know how much he cherishes you, and you don’t fit into the bracket of ‘other people’. If you seem too dismissive of his efforts, you fear that he may feel rejected. Picturing his sad face drooping makes you only want to let him coddle you, but you can’t allow this to happen anymore. You ponder your text carefully, before hitting send. 

You: 

Kakavasha. 

Peacock <3: 

My love? 

Are you upset with me?

I’m so sorry, let me handle it. 

Oh, wow. That was a quick fix. You sigh in relief and put your phone down, allowing yourself to get more comfortable in the covers. Another ping erupts from your phone, and the notification nearly makes you turn around and sob. 

Peacock <3 has sent you 1,000,000 Credits

You: 

STOP SENDING ME MONEY

I’M NOT YOUR SUGAR BABY FFS 

So much for being ‘careful with your communication’, but 1,000,000 credits is insanity! Does he think he can buy you off? You sigh and watch the text bubbles load as he types. 

Peacock <3:

Darling, what do you mean?

I want to spoil you! 

And if I’ve done something wrong, I’ll make it up to you!

You:

Then. Maybe. ASK

‘What’s wrong?’

BEFORE SENDING ME A SHITLOAD OF CREDITS

Peacock <3:

What’s wrong, angel? 

You reread your messages and realise how aggressive you're coming off, so you decide to talk to him face to face. Surely, his suave tongue and pretty face won't distract you from the matter at hand. Right?

You:

Let’s call.

You have started a call with Peacock <3

“Kakavasha, stop sending me money!” You hiss the second he picks up the phone. It’s the early morning, and hues of liquid sunlight paint your lover’s skin in light gold. Streaks of light coming through the blinds of his window shine through his gorgeous eyes, turning them translucent like opalescent marble. Aventurine gives you a tiny lopsided grin, the same one that creeps onto his face when he’s plotting something, and you don’t like it one bit. “

“How else am I supposed to show my adoration for you?” His silken, honeyed voice echoes through the phone. You have to stop yourself from giggling at his lovely voice, the cadence rising and falling masterfully, all perfectly orchestrated to let you listen to him instead of arguing. 

But you don’t take the bait yet. 

“I don’t know, maybe spend time with me?” You reply, but you can’t conceal the blush on your face when you realise that he’s only just woken up. His light blond hair is tousled and one of the cat cakes stretches on his lap. Although Aventurine dresses to impress, it’s the domesticated, sweet mornings where he truly shines. 

“I do spend time with you. We went to see the Opera just three nights ago!”

“Without money being spent, Kakavasha. I want a simple, romantic date. No renting out hotels, no extravagant jewellery, and no mariachi band like that one time-” 

“In my defence, I was completely wasted-” He interjects, giggling softly at the memory of planning a lovely beach date after consuming wine like water, and then ordering a band on a whim.

“You were barely awake, I drew a moustache on you.” You muse. Watching Aventurine’s face morph into an angry pout, like a kitten, makes you emit an ugly laugh. 

“That was you?” He gasps, clutching his heart with faux sorrow. Dramatically falling back on his black pillow, his golden locks are spread. Aventurine’s half lidded gaze and light pink blush makes you want to crawl into bed next to him and trace patterns into his hands, and his lovely eyes would-

“Don’t distract me from the matter at hand! Please stop spending on me, sweetheart. I’m not saying I don’t like your love, I want it! Just not in such an excessively materialistic way, you know?” 

This comment breaks Aventurine’s suave attitude. He blinks at you through the camera, positively perplexed. His eyes are wide and shocked, resembling that of a deer tasting cardboard. “H-how else am I supposed to show my love for you?” 

“Well, how do I show my love for you?”

Aventurine’s eyes look up, trying to recall: “You hold my hands,” he lists one on his fingers,  “listen to me when I speak, you support me through hard times,” he smiles warmly at you, flashing a toothy grin that makes his nose scrunch up cutely, bring back pebbles that remind you of me…” A devious smirk makes its way into his face and you prepare yourself to interject: “and you bite my as-” 

“Enough!” You reprimand him, but your tone is soft. “See? I don’t buy things for you to feel loved. You’re much more than a bank, even if other people don’t make you feel that way.” Suddenly bashful, Kakavasha looks away from you. Perhaps unused to such affections, he hugs the cat cake on his lap closer to his chest. 

“I just want to give you the best of the best.” He replies defensively, and you sigh softly.

“You are the best of the best, Kakavasha.” 

“Then,” his voice cracks in an attempt to hide his shyness, “let’s meet up at your place. Let’s stay inside and watch a movie? I hear that’s a popular date idea.” 

“Perfect. My door is open, we can do face masks and-” The call is interrupted by one of the cat cakes jumping on his head, causing him to tumble off the bed and clutch onto the sheets for stability. Instead, his finger hits the end call button. You giggle softly. For all of his cocky displays, Aventurine, at his truest form, is just a little bit of a dork. 

Said dork knocks at your door, dressed in a lovely black dress shirt and his white pants. You suddenly feel a little self conscious, in your bunny slippers and oversized dress shirt. But the way he hugs you and lifts you off the ground slightly for a kiss, it makes you feel like a national treasure. You waddle your way onto the couch, still hugging, and collapse into the plush cushions.

“So, what movie are we feeling today?” Aventurine pulls a blanket over the two of you, and your eyes brighten with an idea. “The Great Gatsby?” 

“Mm, tragic ending. No. Let’s hold that thought.” He leans over and gently pries the remote out of your hand. “Instead,” he kisses your nose and pushes you into the couch a little more, “let me show you even more ways I can show my affection for you.” He whispers, and captures your lips for a deep kiss…

[guileless-beast]

Reuniting with them… after they’ve twisted

(Ft. Astro, Glisten, Razzle + Dazzle, Shrimpo)

Tags: longpost, headcanons, ambiguous relationship, previous relationship, kinda implied you’re immune to Ichor or smth bc theres no mention of you getting infected, lots of hurt/comfort

notes: first post! pls be nice to me

Astro

•He doesn’t recognize you at first. Not for a while, actually

•Mindlessly chases you around like all the other twisteds, though something in him stirs when he first spots you

•Get somewhere safe and up high where he can’t reach with his arms. His telekinesis has been destroyed by the Ichor; the most he can do with it now is tug on your shirt, and he isn’t exactly focused enough to do so anyway, so you'll be safe so long as he can't grab you

•Talk. About anything, preferably things you used to do with him. Your voice is familiar. Comforting. It soothes the ache in his heart that the Ichor once weaponized

•Resist your own exhaustion long enough, and Astro himself will fall asleep listening to you

•Let him rest. In a few hours he’ll wake up and you can keep trying to help him remember who he is, or you can leave while he sleeps if you think it’s getting too dangerous

Glisten

•Yells your name and RUNS at you full speed. It’s more than a little terrifying.

•He doesn’t mean any harm- he really doesn’t!- he’s just been alone for so long… he’s sobbing as he chases you, he can’t lose you again, he just can’t, please-

•Tackles you down and hugs the life out of you. Literally. If you don’t tell him to let up in time you might lose a heart

•He apologizes, but doesn’t let go. Keeps babbling about how he missed you- he’s hardly even coherent, but you get the gist

•Get to a secluded little spot and let him cry in your arms. Rub the top half of his back and cuddle him close; he desperately needs comfort after what he’s been through

•He appreciates every bit of affection you give him, even if it just makes him cry harder

•So long as you let him stay with/follow you, he'll do anything you ask. Need help extracting? He's even better at extracting than before, somehow. Running from a twisted? You're already in his arms. He'll even scrounge around with you for supplies!

•Be careful if he somehow finds makeup, though. He'll doll you up as SOON as the two of you are safe.

•(And if you do his own, he'll be giddy for the rest of the day.)

Razzle + Dazzle

•Sit just outside the circle with the both of them. Don’t talk, don’t make noise. Razzle bears the brunt of their infection; he won’t recognize you if you wake him. Not immediately, at least.

•Eventually Dazzle is going to wake up from his doze and scan around them for any threats, and spot you

•Dazzle will recognize you after a moment, and his expression will turn positively miserable. You’re not safe around him and Razzle, you need to leave…

•Silently keep them company for long enough and Dazzle WILL shed a few tears. It’s just been him and Razzle for who knows how long, and while he is very worried for your safety it’s nice to have someone else here (that isn’t crazed with Ichor)

•Razzle’ll finally wake up in the middle of his twin crying and see you. As he always does when he spots someone, he takes control of their body and stands, preparing to attack, but-

•…he can’t do anything so long as you’re not in the circle, though. He’ll growl and pull at the weight they’re tied to (as Dazzle squeaks and tries to take back control to no avail) but settles after a while

•Much like Astro, some part of Razzle tries to remember, but can’t- though, your face helps more than your voice in Razzle’s case. He won’t go back to sleep, no matter how much Dazzle pleads

•He sits and stares at you unendingly. It’s possible to talk to Razzle like this- though, he’ll pay more attention to your expression and gestures than your words

•Stay with them for a while, please. You’re the only way Razzle can be calm while awake, and while Dazzle knows it’d be safer for you if you left, your presence eases his mind too

Shrimpo

•It’s Shrimpo. Be ready for a fight.

•He recognizes you almost immediately. Does a full stop AND double take. He'll just stand there for a few moments until you move, and then he'll start chasing you like normal- or…

•...almost like normal. He's faster, more desperate, more angry, and keeps making these gurgling sounds as you try to lose him (to no avail; all his attention is on you, all he is going after is you)

•Be prepared to block his punches. He’s stronger now- they will hurt if they land. If you can, bring some kind of armor or protection for yourself like a shield along with all the patience you have. Otherwise, your arms are going to be real sore from blocking his attacks.

•He’ll punch, and punch, and punch some more. He’s so pissed it almost hurts. How dare you leave him for so long? How dare you think you could just waltz right up to him and be friends normal again?

•(How dare you abandon him here? How dare you not be there for him when he needed you most? How dare you not be there when the Ichor took over and he nearly suffocated? Where were you? Why did you leave him? What did he do?)

•Don’t hit back; your goal is to outlast him, not to overpower him. Let him take out his blind rage on your shield/guards, or you’ll never make progress with him.

•Don’t worry, it won’t take too long for him to falter. He’s still Shrimpo, after all. Wait until his punches weaken and his fists shake. Wait until he starts taking a full second between hits. Wait until he connects one more blow with your defense, and then shove him downward.

•Given he just exhausted himself, he’ll definitely be knocked flat on the ground. It’ll take him a good moment to get up- use this time to kneel down, slide your arms beneath him, and press him into your chest.

•He’ll try to move away- keyword: try, because no matter how hard he wants to, he cannot move his arms. All he can do is twitch and make those gurgling noises again as you gather the rest of him into your lap.

•Just… be patient, and hold him. He’s quite literally never experienced anything like this before. Eventually Shrimpo will stop leaning away. He won’t lean in, per se, but he’ll stop fighting it and go limp.

•Tell him how long you’ve been looking for him, how much you missed him, how glad you are to see him again; and maybe, just maybe, he’ll find the strength to shakily bring his arms around you.

•He rationalizes it as an attempt to scratch you, but he’s still too fatigued to do any damage.

•(Not only that, but he tells himself the heat in his eyes is just Ichor, too.)