#i could've probably made like 4 more gifs but

[hawkeyefierce]

auston and his emotional support wild dogs

[kingkat12]

seven minutes in hell (roman godfrey x reader)

WARNINGS: 18+, public sex(??), voyeurism, emotional extortion (Roman is such an ass omg), groping, foul language, smoking, angst, mentions of sex

summary: after you made out with Roman during a game of seven minutes in heaven, he insists that you owe him for not telling Letha about it-- how can someone so beautiful be so evil?

word count: 8,192 (yes I know lol)

PART 1, PART 2, PART 3, PART 4, PART 5, PART 6, PART 7, PART 8, PART 9

a/n: after having my inbox flooded w sweethearts asking for a part two, here you go!! I do advise new readers to read the first one before this, because idk how much sense this is going to make without it lol, but enjoy!!<33

Paranoia. That was the only word that could describe the week that followed the party where Roman and I had kissed.

I had spent every waking moment wondering when Roman would show up to cash in his debt or prick me with a goddamn needle. His words lingered in my mind, haunting me; "Fine, I'll be nice. But you owe me," The reminder of those words sent a shiver down my spine, and I couldn't help but wonder how I could've been so stupid as to rope myself into something like this.

Roman knew I liked him. In fact, he knew it very well. I couldn't even mask my feelings with hatred anymore, and everything about that made me want to throw myself off a cliff-- that would probably be more merciful than whatever it was that I had in store. 

After we had made out during seven minutes of heaven, I had to tell my best friend, Letha, that nothing had happened. If she found out that I had made out with her cousin, I doubt she'd want to have me hanging around any longer. And quite frankly, Letha was my favourite person in the whole world, so it was detrimental that she stayed close. She was like a ray of sunshine peeking out through heaps of stormy skies; there was no way in hell I'd lose her without a fight.

Which is why I needed to keep Roman in check, along with my body un-pierced by any incoming needles. 

The first time I saw him after the party, was a few days later in the cafeteria at school. I had stopped in my tracks, completely turning to stone as I watched him with his friends. It was almost as though I was afraid he'd see me if I moved, and to my shock, that's exactly what happened-- as I shifted my weight from one foot to another, harshly gripping my tray of food, his eyes landed on me with a quickness that immediately threw me into a state of panic. I bolted with speed I didn't know I had, not stopping until I reached the other end of the school, panting. 

The second time had been at the library. I had been looking for a specific book that was quite old, meaning I had to do a lot of searching-- the librarian had been of no help, of course. As I scoured the shelves of endless books, crouching down to get a look at the lower sections, I suddenly felt a pair of eyes on me from above.

I looked up to find Roman's green eyes staring at me from the other aisle; his height made it ridiculously easy to lean over, having no visual obstruction of my side of the shelf. Something about the smirk playing across his lips made me freeze up-- it felt like I was prey, about to be eaten whole. I let out a squeak of horror as I grabbed the first book I saw, not letting him get a word in before I dashed towards the exit without a second thought.

The third time was the absolute worst; I had been walking down the stairs with Letha, on our way to our shared history class, as we suddenly encountered Roman on his way up. I felt my heart beat against the books I now pressed tightly against my chest, holding my breath as he neared us with a conniving look on his face-- I was quite sure I had lost all the blood in mine.

As Roman and Letha had a conversation about some sort of family dinner later, I did my best to make myself as small as possible; I wondered whether I should slip away into the crowd or just throw myself down the stairs. 

I was quite sure that it was clear to Roman why I was avoiding him, and I was even more sure that it also was amusing to him. It was rather obvious, with the way he obnoxiously eyed me up with a growing grin. "You okay?" he asked, nudging me. "You look spooked."

Asshole. Just the slightest touch was enough to make me flinch, and my words came out in a breathy mumble; "I'm fine," 

Roman nodded, exchanging a look with Letha. He grew taller when he took a step up, inching closer as he leaned over to check which books I had pressed up against my chest. His long, slender fingers reached forward to tug at one of the books to get a better look, and I would've missed the note he slipped down along the front of my history book if I had blinked. As Roman pulled away, dragging his fingers through his hair as though nothing had happened, I held my books as tight to my chest as I possibly could to not let the note slide down to the floor. 

My heart was beating harder than ever as Roman made his way past me, his familiar cologne lingering in my system as Letha and I made it to class five minutes early. As she left to use the bathroom, I could finally put away my things, inhaling a shaky breath as I checked the note;

meet me behind school in an hour, or I tell Letha everything

I couldn't help the groan that escaped me, ripping the piece of paper to shreds. This was not going to end well.

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Somehow, I had managed to pry myself away from Letha for long enough to make it in time for my meeting with Roman. I was tugging at the sleeves of my jumper, anxiously ripping at the fabric. Wondering whether I should've worn protective gear to shield myself from any needle-kinks he might impose on me, I trembled with fear-- I didn't want to see him. 

Despite my wishes, Roman eventually came around the corner, a rather mischievous smirk spread across his soft, pink lips as he neared me. His hands were tucked into his pockets as he leaned against the wall next to me, his green eyes etching themselves into my skull. His usual cardigan was draped around his shoulders and over his white shirt, tied in the front, as he crossed his long legs in the classic Roman Godfrey stance. "I'm glad to see you came,"

"As if I had a choice," I mumbled, glancing at our surroundings, not wanting to be caught alone with him here. I had to do everything in my power not to look at the casual swoop of his hair, not wanting to think about how handsome he looked right now. "What do you want?"

Roman blinked twice, almost as though he had expected me to say something else. "Isn't it obvious?"

I was afraid my heart was pounding audibly in my chest. "No," My gaze darted down to my shoes, kicking away a nearby rock. "Can't we just forget any of it ever happened?"

"Well, that was sort of the draft of the original plan," Roman said, shrugging. "But you've clearly not been able to forget it, with the way you've been avoiding me for a week now... So it seems we have to resolve this, somehow."

Did this mean that I had only made things worse for myself? I wanted to hit my head against the wall and bleed out-- that would probably feel better than what I was feeling on the inside right now. "The actual kiss hasn't been on my mind much... Mostly just the needles,"

Roman let out a huff-- was it a laugh? "I'm not going to fucking poke you, could you calm down about that?"

"I can't be sure when it comes to you, Roman!--"

"So you haven't thought about it?" He cut me off, eyes sparkling with the need to know. "The kiss?"

If I'd had something to throw at him, I would've done so in a heartbeat. Why was he so keen on knowing that? "Not much,"

"Only at night?"

I couldn't even hold back my grimace, listening to him snickering like a proud toddler. "Definitely not," I grumbled, now kicking at another rock. "Why does it matter to you?"

Roman shrugged; "I don't think you understand how intriguing it was to find out you've liked me all this time," He watched as I continued to tug at the sleeve of my sweater, looking like a nervous wreck. The image before him made his grin widen. "You've been the biggest bitch ever, do you know that? I was dead sure you hated my guts until you begged me to fucking kiss you!"

"I didn't beg!" I exclaimed, protesting. "In your fucking dreams, Roman!"

He rolled his eyes, taking a step towards me. Feeling his presence inching closer, I stopped kicking the scattered rocks around me, looking up to meet his gaze.

Roman leaned down, matching himself on the level of my widening eyes. He studied me as I froze to my spot like an icicle, holding my breath to not get swept up in thoughts of how good he smelled and how soft his lips looked up close. "You're still running your mouth," he mumbled,  and I felt his eyes fall on my lips as well. "I thought you might get a little nicer if I complied with your little kiss."

His way of thinking had me furrowing my brows, confused. Was that why he kissed me? A tiny piece of my heart broke, the hope I had buried deep in my gut dissolving. Why had I ever hoped that his reasons for kissing me the way he did had been different? "I'll be nice if you agree that I don't owe you anything anymore. It's been driving me nuts,"

With this, Roman broke out into a rather abrupt laugh; "Are you kidding? There's no way in hell I'd absolve you of that, anymore,"

The laugh felt so damning, I couldn't help but shudder. I was two seconds away from kicking him instead of the rocks. "What do you want, then?"

Roman straightened up, the look on his face giving away that he was debating what to choose. "It's probably not something as bad as you expected it to be," he said, nodding to himself as he no longer met my hard gaze. "I'd just like it if you told me why you like me."

What? I stared up at him in disbelief, lips parting in shock. Had I avoided him like the plague over a simple question? Sure, it wasn't the most comfortable one to answer, but my mind had already concluded that he would stick me with needles like a voodoo doll and leave me for dead on a road somewhere.  "Uh... Could I ask why?"

"Nope,"

I nodded; "Okay...?" Clearing my throat, I pondered where to start. I hadn't actually thought about this question, and I had to scour my brain for the answer. "I don't know," I eventually mumbled. "I guess I just think you're handsome." Saying it out loud physically pained me, but I knew I had to get this over with.

Roman blinked twice, meeting my gaze with a rather empty look about him. "That's it?"

"I don't know? I think so," I shrugged, searching through my mind for more. "You're my type, I suppose. Tall, brown hair, green eyes... And unattainable. I guess that a part of me likes that you'll never like me back." Saying this out loud, however, was even worse. I hadn't thought about it like that up until this moment.

Roman seemed even more confused than I did. "So it was nothing that I did?"

Something told me he was searching for something more meaningful, but I had always known that my crush was superficial. "I don't think so..."

What followed would haunt me for days on end; Roman broke out into a rather maniacal laugh, running his hands through his hair in clear denial. "So it's just the same, then," he said in between hiccups of laughter. "It's not about me at all!"

I could only watch as he went into some sort of a mental storm, biting down on his lower lip to suppress the noise. "I don't think you quite understand how it is for no one to like you for you," Roman continued, now pacing back and forth as his trail of words sped up; "You've probably never had that problem, right? Guys probably like you because you're nice to them, I've seen that multiple times. Or that one guy that just hasn't left you alone since you sat together during assembly that one time-- what the fuck was his name?"

I held my breath; what on earth was I witnessing? "Roman, I think you're spiraling, let's just breathe--"

"Daniel, wasn't it?" Roman finally looked back at me, a cramped smile on display along his lips. "He definitely likes you for you, right? Not just because you're cute? That must be fucking nice." 

I had never imagined that I would pity someone for only being liked for their looks. Somehow, I found myself wanting to comfort him, and I had to fight that instinct. "It would probably be easier for you to find something real if you weren't such a prick," I mumbled. "If you didn't tug people's hair, throw stuff at them, or stab them with needles?"

That seemed to be enough for Roman to take a step back from his weird state, his pacing coming to a halt. Something seemed to be dawning on him, a crushing realization that should've come about ten years ago, but instead of taking it like an adult, he retaliated; "Well, you're not exactly doing any better than me! You've liked me for God knows how long, and you've treated me like utter crap!"

"Because you did the same to me!" I said, feeling my voice raise with my emotions. "You've had no interest in me, along with all the bullshit you've pulled all year! Don't you think it would probably be easier for me to like you for who you are if you had been a pleasant person to be around?"

Groaning, Roman turned his back to me, ready to walk away. After taking a few steps, he turned on his heel, facing me once more. Fury was burning in his green, green eyes, fists balling up as he spoke; "This is not over. You tell anyone just a tiny fraction of this conversation, I'll tell Letha I fucked you raw," 

My jaw fell in complete and utter shock as he walked away, cursing myself to the heavens and beyond. How had I managed to make this an even bigger mess than it was before I came? As I went back to kicking rocks, trying to catch my breath, bits of the conversation suddenly came back to me; did he just say that I was cute? That he had seen me with Daniel during assembly, and that he had spotted me talking to my previous flings?

This only made everything furthermore confusing; it was obvious that he didn't like me, either. But what on earth was going on in that brain of his?

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The next time I saw Roman was a few days later in the hallway during rush hour. I had spent several nights tossing and turning, trying to decrypt the conversation that continued to haunt me. The conclusion I arrived at, was that he might be lashing out with the needles and the childish behaviour because he didn't know how else to express interest. 

But then again, that would mean that he was very interested in me. I was sure something was wrong with that conclusion, but I couldn't pinpoint any other possible theory at this moment. I also couldn't shake how upset he looked when he found out my crush was purely superficial; was his need to be seen for who he was so overpowering?

So when I finally flagged him down, Roman was in a rush, and this was rather unfortunate; my legs were much shorter than his, and I had to go into a jog to not lose sight of him. Eventually, I caught up to him, grabbing his wrist and tugging at the sleeve of his shirt to get his attention.

Roman seemed rather confused, glancing down at me with a wild look in his eyes which quickly died out when he saw who it was. "What are you doing?--"

"You smiled at me in class," I confessed, feeling my cheeks redden. "The sun was hitting your eyes in a way that made them extra green, and you smiled at me and handed me a pencil. That's when I knew I liked you." Slowly, I pried my fingers away from his wrist, letting out the breath I didn't know I had been holding. It felt like an enormous weight had lifted off my shoulders, like the anxiety that clung to me had been washed away in a calm stream of water in the mountains.

Why did I feel such strong a need to tell him my crush wasn't purely superficial? That it had stemmed from the simplest act of kindness? I couldn't quite put my finger on it. Did I pity him that much? 

Roman's pupils expanded, and he stood as if glued to his spot. People kept passing us by, but it was as though all the surrounding sound died out. It was clear that his mind was racing, his brows drawing together in confusion-- or was it disgust? I couldn't be sure. Either way, my heart was thumping so hard in my chest that it hurt. 

I cleared my throat; "Have... a nice day," Before he could answer or make fun of me, I turned on my heel and bolted down the hall, knowing my heart wouldn't be able to take it if he shut me down once more. 

I couldn't take any more of this. Clutching my heart as I made it to my locker, I knew I had to get ready for class and that I didn't have time for the crushing feeling taking over my chest. 

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A big part of me had hoped that our last interaction would be the end of it all. That I wouldn't have to owe Roman anything anymore, that he wouldn't be threatening to tell Letha that we kissed or fucked or whatever-- I should've known that was an unattainable reality. 

I was practically falling asleep at the end of a long day of school. Exhausted, I allowed myself to close my eyes as I leaned my head against my palm, elbow at my table, waiting for class to start. A worrying thought popped into my head as I realized that chemistry was the only class I shared with Roman, which meant that he would probably be showing any time soon. 

With a yawn, I blinked several times, hoping to wake up as I sat back in my chair. I was about to do some stretches, but as I turned to my right, I let out a yelp, nearly falling off my seat.

And I would've fallen right down to the floor if Roman hadn't grabbed the edge of my chair, holding me back with one hand as though it was nothing. "Careful, there," 

That's exactly what he had said when we were in that damn closet playing seven minutes in heaven. I shivered, getting a severe case of deja vu as I looked back at him in disbelief. "When on earth did you show up?"

"Right around the time you nodded off," Roman's books were already on the table-- had I genuinely slept for a minute or two? How could I have missed this? He let go of my seat with a snicker, shaking his head; "You're quite the case, aren't you?"

I didn't like the sound of that. "What do you want? Why are you sitting here?"

"Could you relax?" Roman rolled his eyes, his mood worsening by the second. "Look around, Sherlock, there's nowhere else to sit."

It pained me to realize he was right. With a huff, I fought the urge to kick him under the table. As the teacher finally entered the classroom, excusing himself for being a few minutes late, I let out a sigh of relief; I hoped to avoid talking to Roman as much as possible from now on. After I had confessed to him and gotten nothing in return again, I was dead tired of seeing his gorgeous face-- it was physically painful, at this point.

As class started, I reached into my bag to find a pencil. A good minute passed by as I rummaged around, which eventually garnered Roman's attention; he immediately knew what I was looking for. He turned to me with a spare pencil which he had lying about on his table, holding it out in front of me.

Someone up there was definitely playing pranks on me-- I was sure of it now. With an embarrassed smile, I watched as the sun hit the green of his eyes, illuminating them further as I reached for the pencil. The tips of our fingers touched, just for a few seconds, but it felt like I had almost burned myself with how my nerves reacted to the nudge of his hand against mine. 

Roman seemed to understand the irony of the situation, the corners of his mouth tugging upwards into a dizzying look of kindness. 

There it was. The root of all my problems-- the simplest act of warmth along with the most beautiful smile I had ever seen. The bullshit that started it all. 

I hummed to myself as I broke eye contact, crouching over my table to start taking notes, desperate to distract myself. Every fibre of my being felt like it was buzzing with electricity, unable to calm down. 

It didn't take long before Roman shoved a small note onto my part of the table. I gave him a look before I opened it, sighing.

we need to talk. meet me by my car after school

Turning to Roman, I couldn't help but glare; this again? But his smirk melted me in more ways than one, and I knew that it could have consequences if I didn't go. 

Fuck.

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I waited until there were almost no cars in the parking lot in front of the school, hiding away in the library in the meantime. I didn't exactly want to be seen talking to him. As I finally walked out past the front entrance, I held my breath as I spotted Roman leaning against his red jaguar, typing away on his phone. I wondered who he was texting-- was it Brooke from the cheerleading team? No, it couldn't be; unless she still wanted to be with him after he pricked her with the legendary needle.

It didn't take long for Roman to put away his phone, watching me as I neared him. Something about the way his hair lay in waves over his forehead made him look like even more of a heartbreaker than he already was. "Long time no see, hm?"

I didn't even want to fake being entertained by that-- we both knew that we'd seen each other in class less than twenty minutes ago. "What do you want?"

Roman rolled his eyes; "Can't you at least act like you like me? We both know you do,"

Something about being called out like that didn't sit right with me, but I swallowed my curses. I had to be on his good side, after all, so that he wouldn't turn around and tell Letha what had happened between us. "Did you want me to come skipping down the stairs and run to you?" I asked, getting a good look at him. "Or maybe a blowjob before I bake you a pie?"

A humoured smirk spread across his lips, giving in to a chuckle. "You could at least start by standing a little closer?" Roman put his hands up in the air as though he was surrendering; "Look ma, no needles!"

I huffed, complying. I took a few steps forward, watching the last car leave in my peripheral view. It was definitely not a good idea to be alone with him like this-- I should've known better. 

This didn't seem to be enough for Roman, who proceeded to tap the spot next to him on the hood of his car. 

I groaned; "Roman, come on--"

In a swift motion, he hooked his fingers inside my front pockets, dragging me forward as I yelped. Roman grabbed my hips, forcing me down on the car with a soft thud. With wide eyes, I turned to him, watching his hands disappear back into his pockets. 

"You're infuriating," Roman mumbled under his breath, fishing out a pack of cigarettes from his right pocket. He held it out in front of me; "Want one?"

Honestly, I had only smoked once. It had resulted in me coughing up what felt like half a lung. "No, thanks," 

He shrugged, lighting up a cigarette as he hummed. This little dance around why he had told me to come made me further nervous, once again reaching for the sleeve of my sweater, tugging at the seams that had come loose. The smell of nicotine infiltrated my nose, and I turned to him just in time to watch him exhale a few rings of smoke, eyes transfixed on them as they evaporated into thin air. 

Finally, Roman spoke up; "I'm calling for a truce,"

What? My eyes widened, scanning him for lies. "... What's the catch?"

Roman turned to me, a slight smile splayed across his lips. "You know me too well," he said, chuckling as a light breeze passed us. "I want us to play a game, and then all is forgotten."

"Oh no," I blurted out. "What kind of game, Roman? Can't you take pity on me just once?--"

I immediately shut up as I felt his arm wrap around me, holding out his cigarette in front of my mouth between his fingers. I wasn't about to start fighting him in an empty parking lot, so I parted my lips, accepting the cigarette despite knowing I would cough up everything I had eaten for lunch if I inhaled properly. 

Roman's face was suddenly very close to mine; "Ever heard of this game... Wait, what was it called? Seven minutes in hell?"

For fuck's sake. I watched as he laughed, amused by his joke. Still, my eyes darted down to his bouncing leg, watching as he gave away a sliver of nervousness. I reached for the cigarette, getting it out of my mouth; "Sounds about right," Balancing it between my fingers, holding it out in front of his mouth just as he had done to me, Roman hummed as he wrapped his lips around the cigarette, taking a puff.

Before Roman could take it back into his hand, I pulled the cigarette away from him, putting it back into my mouth. Something about sharing the cigarette was making a familiar ache between my legs throb, which in turn made me cross my legs. I didn't inhale the smoke into my lungs, keeping it in my mouth before breathing it out, knowing it was hard to differentiate between that and the real thing. "Where would we play?" I eventually said, glancing at him.

Now that we were sitting like this, Roman's arm around me, I realized we hadn't been this close since that party where we had kissed. Something about his embrace was comforting, despite me knowing that he was doing it to take the piss out of me. However, my steadfast belief in his reasons became shaky as I met his eyes, watching how unusually big his pupils were as he looked down at me, a certain calmness about him. "My car?"

I couldn't help but giggle as I handed him the cigarette, our fingers meeting in the exchange. "I'm not making out with you in your car,"

"Why not?"

"Every single cheerleader slut at this school has been in the back of that thing," 

Roman shrugged; "Not everyone. Eleven out of fifteen,"

"Ew, you're not making it any better!--"

"Fine!" he huffed, giving me a squeeze with the arm he had around me. Roman put out his cigarette by throwing it to the ground, giving it a proper stomp before he turned to me, a mischievous smirk on display. "No one has been in the front, though."

It was hard to say no when he looked at me like this; how was it possible for someone so conniving to be so beautiful? I had to look away from Roman-- it was getting impossible to breathe. Tugging at my sleeves once more, I realized I had ripped out a new seam. "Look, I have to say I'm a little confused... You're not even into me, so I don't get why you'd want to kiss me again," I let go of my sweater, realizing I would probably manage to rip it all apart if I didn't calm down. "It really is a power thing for you, isn't it?"

Roman hummed, rubbing my arm in a soothing manner as he stared out at the parking lot with a rather hollow look in his eyes. "Yeah... That's definitely what it is,"

I didn't have time to wonder why he didn't sound so convinced. As I dared to look at him again, I watched him lost in thought, pondering something. I took that as my cue to get out of playing his game; "Making out would probably be fun and all, but don't you think it is more beneficial for you if we maybe got to... I don't know, know each other?"

Confused, Roman's gaze darted back to me. "Why?"

"You seemed to be a little upset that I didn't like you because of you, remember?" I gave him a playful nudge, drawing forth a smile. "Instead of imposing your weird dominance kink or whatever it is on me, wouldn't you want to prove that there's more to you?"

This seemed to strike a chord with Roman, who slowly started to nod in approval. "That... doesn't sound so bad,"

I damn right hoped so-- I let out a shaky breath, relieved to not become the twelfth girl to end up in Roman's car.

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I couldn't believe that I had managed to fix myself up with a date with the Roman Godfrey. He was practically known for never going out on dates with anyone, but here I was, running around my room trying to find something nice to wear.

However, there was one tiny hoop I had to get through-- Letha was on speaker phone as I rummaged through my drawers, and my heart was racing as I tried to avoid her questions."I still don't get why you can't hang out today!" Letha whined, clearly upset with me. "I thought you were going to help me pick out some shoes down at the sale!"

I grimaced, feeling like the biggest prick on the planet. "I'm sorry, Letha, I'm just not feeling too good..." With a heavy heart, I could hear her sulk on the other end as I finally found the perfect bag. 

"I've barely seen you this week... You've been so jumpy, I just feel like you're avoiding me. Did I do something?"

No, no! I was about to protest until I heard a sound coming from my driveway; I made my way to my window, glancing down at Roman's red car, watching as he parked. Clearing my throat, I rushed to my phone; "Letha, I'm so fucking nauseous, I think I need to throw up... I'm so sorry, could I call you back later?"

I heard her sigh; "Get better soon, okay?--"

As Roman started honking outside, clearly impatient, I had to leave the call without even saying goodbye. Groaning, I gathered my stuff, making my way down the stairs and outside with hurried steps. "Stop that!" I said, trying to steady my breathing as I approached the car. "My parents are inside!"

"So what?" Roman's cocky smirk was on display as always, tapping his fingers against the steering wheel. "Whatever dumb fuck told you I'm a patient man, is a dumb fuck." Roman got out of his car to open my door on the other side. It was nice to see that he had a gentleman bone in him-- it gave me hope that this date wouldn't crash and burn. 

And weirdly enough, it actually went quite well. I had been worried that he'd take me out shooting or whatever it was that he did in his free time, but Roman settled for something simple-- we were currently sat in my favourite café in the city, having the most normal conversation we'd ever had. 

"You're kidding me?" Roman said, putting down his coffee with a look of shock on his face. "You've never seen The Godfather?"

I couldn't help but huff-- this was a solid reminder that he still was a guy at the end of the day. "I haven't gotten to it, I guess,"

"Well, you have to!" He ran his fingers through his styled hair, shaking his head in disapproval. Roman was wearing a different shirt today that I hadn't seen before, and I was getting the feeling that he had actually dressed up a bit despite how casual this date was. "What else haven't you seen?" 

"Uh, I don't know?--"

"What else haven't you done, is probably a better question," Roman was grinning from ear to ear now, eyes sparkling in anticipation. "First kiss?"

"David Parker, eighth grade," I put down my milkshake with a smirk, happy to be sizing him up. "You?"

Roman seemed beyond amused; "Amanda Reiley, sixth," He leaned forward, placing his elbows on the table, intrigued that I wasn't backing down from his intrusive questions. "First time?"

I had to suppress a cough, feeling as though I was choking on air. There was no way in hell I'd tell him I hadn't had sex yet. "... Some guy I met on vacation last year in Greece, don't remember his name,"

"Really, now?" Roman hummed, leaning back against his chair. "Not buying it. You squirm like a virgin every time I look at you."

My breath caught in my throat-- "Pardon?"

It seemed that my reaction only amused him, but he still spared me by brushing over it. "My first time was with Denise Campbell, ninth grade. Was really sweet, actually,"

I tried to shake off the fact that Roman had been right in his deductions. The story of his first time was unexpected, and he had been quite young-- concerningly young. "Roman Godfrey and sweet don't usually go together, in my book. Did you light candles or something?" I took a sip of my milkshake, watching him break out into a smile. 

"Honestly? I think she lit one," he said, a soft chuckle following.

 I had forgotten how beautiful his laugh was. Flustered, I put away my milkshake, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear as I met his gorgeous, green eyes. There was a calmness about him now, something I had trouble getting used to. It was a big contrast to the way he had looked at me while we played seven minutes in heaven, or the way he had been looking at me the whole week I had avoided him. The usual feeling of unease that crept up my system whenever he was around was long gone-- it was almost as though we were friends. 

Nervous about my next question, I started picking at my nails; "So where did it go wrong?"

"Pardon?"

I didn't meet his gaze anymore. "When did it become casual to you?"

"Sex?"

"Sex,"

Roman hummed, taking a rather long sip of coffee. I wondered whether I had gone too far with the question, but he didn't seem fazed. "Didn't get too far with being sweet, I suppose,"

This was definitely a chapter in Roman's life that I hadn't expected to hear about-- who had broken his heart? And why was it comforting to know that he'd had that experience? Something about it made him more human. "That's sad," I mumbled, forcing myself to leave my nails alone. "Sweet usually gets you quite far."

Something about that seemed to intrigue him; he moved to the edge of his chair, closer. "Don't you girls usually like the bad guys? That seems to work well, in my experience,"

I shrugged; "It can be fun for a week or two. Any longer than that, and your heart starts to tire,"

"Ah," was all Roman said, tapping his fingers against the table in an impatient manner. "Would you want to get ice cream? It's on me."

This conversation was starting to give me whiplash. "I'm sold," I eventually answered, shooting him a smile. It was nice to know that he wanted to continue the date despite my intrusive questions-- I couldn't lie; I was rather enjoying myself. And my ego was getting the biggest inflation it'd had in a while, remembering he didn't usually go out on dates at all.

About half an hour later, we were now walking down the street with our ice cream, once again debating why I hadn't watched The Godfather-- boys really love that movie, don't they? I took the liberty of looking up at him as he explained the plot to me in excessive detail, watching his hands flail around in excitement as he spoke, eyes round and green, and the way a single strand of hair lay in front of his eyes, straying from his stylings.

The man I had hated this whole year suddenly became a person to me. A person with interests, quirks, and feelings-- weirdly enough. Roman didn't come off as a spoiled brat right now, and I could barely remember a time when I would run away from him and his needles. Like this, I could imagine sweet moments with Roman, possibly even holding his hand as we walked down this street, doing normal stuff together. 

In another lifetime, I would have really liked just doing laundry and taxes with you.

However, I was quickly yanked out of my daydreams when I spotted a familiar figure leaving the shoe store across the street. With a panicked yelp, I grabbed Roman, dragging him down the nearest alleyway as I felt my blood run cold. 

Roman looked beyond confused; "What are you?--"

"Letha!" 

His mouth formed an 'o', watching me press myself up against the wall. "She doesn't know?"

I shook my head, letting out a shaky breath. This was definitely not what I needed right now. If she found out I was here with Roman and that I had lied to her, I was sure she'd have my head. Why couldn't I just melt into the wall and become immaterial? 

With ease and calm, Roman grabbed my finished ice cream, putting it down on the ground along with his own before nearing me. "We'll wait it out,"

What? "Thought you were ready to rat me out?" I leaned forward, glancing past the corner of the alley, making sure Letha hadn't seen us. 

"Well..." Roman put his hand on my shoulder, guiding my back to the wall once more. "I know she'd kill you, and you can't die before watching The Godfather."

Had I not been preoccupied with being quiet, I would've groaned right in his cocky face. The hand he had on my shoulder burned against my skin, and I was getting flashbacks to our time in the closet at the party where we had kissed. "I've repaid my debt to you now, anyway," I mumbled, warily glancing past the edge of the corner where we were standing, watching Letha from afar. 

Roman's hand on my shoulder quickly made its way into my hair, fingers twisting themselves into the nape of my neck, forcing me to face him. I let my breath escape me as my lips parted, watching him with big, wide eyes; what was happening? It was at this moment that I realized how close he was standing, how he was practically pressed up against me.

There was something sinister about the look on Roman's face-- it suddenly dawned on me that he was still the same person, even though he had buried this side of him for a few hours. He would always thrive when seeing someone in an anxious state, feel joy at any visible conflict or misery, and it dawned on me how bad of a situation this was when his next words came out in a dangerous whisper; "I could just call her over here, do you know that?" Roman's grip on my hair tightened, almost enough to make me wince. "You've made quite a mess of yourself, sneaking behind her back. I could ruin you in a second."

"You won't, though," Fucker.

Intrigued, Roman's green eyes sparkled; "And why are you so sure of that?"

My chest was heaving against him, hating every second, every minute of this encounter. When had he turned into such a sadist? Was it after Denise Campbell in ninth grade? I wanted to make sure I asked him that next time. "Because this gets you high," I hissed. "This feeling that you get from watching me get scared? You're addicted. You're a fucking junkie." 

I felt Roman breathe out against my lips, leaning closer, eyes burning into mine. I could see the flickering flames in them, and I knew that I had set them alight-- I was quite literally playing with fire at this point. "Well, this is who I am," he said through gritted teeth. "Do you get it now?"

"Get what?"

"Why no one likes me," Now, the fire died out, turning into an unintelligible emotion swimming in the green of his eyes. I didn't need to be a specialist to understand that he was baring his coping mechanism for me to see. "Why no one ever will. And why you will go back to hating me once we're done here."

It felt as though I had finally finished a puzzle with five thousand pieces. This was it. Had Roman made himself so unlovable to protect his feelings? Were all his stupid quirks just means to scare away girls so that they would stop liking him? I couldn't help but pity him-- beneath his harsh exterior, I could sense who he was beneath all of it. In a flash of emotions, I reached out to touch his face with a wary, gentle touch. 

Roman's eyes widened, confused, as I moved away the strand of hair that strayed from the rest.

"I know you said this wouldn't be easy," I said, voice soft. "Whatever would ensue between us. And I spent a lot of time thinking about that, actually, and I think the answer is that you just make it hard for yourself." Sighing, I let my hands rest against his shoulders, watching his every move and reaction. It was obvious that he was caught off guard. "I pity you, Roman. But I thank you for making me realize how much guts one must have to feel... Why are you so scared?"

Roman just stared at me, his breathing coming out in shallow breaths through his nose. He stood as if frozen to his spot, and his hand left my hair, falling to his side as his eyes never left mine. "I'm not scared," he eventually said.

"You're terrified,"

"No,"

"There's no point denying, it's really fucking obvious--"

"No, it isn't!" Roman snarled, grabbing my hands, and prying them off of him. "Maybe I just don't like you in that way, have you ever considered that?"

I shrugged; "I have. But it still doesn't change the fact that I can read the fear on your face like an open fucking book,"

Groaning, Roman let out an exasperated sigh. He let go of my hands, the fury apparent in his unsteady breathing. It was obvious that he had never confronted his issues head-on, and that he didn't like the process one bit. "You need to watch your mouth,"

"Or what?" It was as though my fear had escaped me, staring him down with challenge burning its way through my veins. "You're going to tell Letha we fucked or whatever? Go ahead, see what I care! Just know that I will be telling the whole school that your dick is smaller than my pinky if you do."

Roman's eye twitched as he let out a guttural growl, body tensing up as he balled his fists, one of them returning to my hair. It was clear that I had angered him; he grabbed a fistful, yanking my head upward with a force that made me wince, pulling me flush against him. It was at this moment that I felt something press up against my stomach-- my eyes widened with the realization that he was hard. "Do you still like me?" he asked, his breath tickling the underside of my nose. 

When I refused to answer, Roman took my silence as a yes. "You're going to hurt yourself if you continue to,"

"Wasn't it you who proclaimed me a masochist?" I answered, a smirk forming on my lips. Something told me that I had him cornered. 

And I was right-- it was Roman's turn to go silent, staring into my eyes as multiple emotions flashed before him. Standing like this with him was almost comforting; I had finally deciphered him. I knew that he had practically built himself a fortress of hate and fired the canons at any signs of intrusions. He was so desperately human right now-- it was making me dizzy. Or was that just his harsh grip on my hair? 

"Roman?"

A hum.

"You can kiss me now if you want to,"

The hand in my hair loosened its grip, and I watched as Roman inhaled a long breath, no longer conflicted.

And so our lips came together in the alley, a rather hungry kiss ensuing. My hands went up into Roman's hair, letting out soft gasps against him as he wrapped his arms around me, pulling me closer to him with a burning need. I could taste the remnants of the chocolate flavoured ice-cream on his tongue, the sweetness mixing in with the roughness of our kiss. I wondered whether he could taste the vanilla on mine-- chocolate and vanilla were my favourite mix, anyway.

I knew there was a possibility of Letha spotting us if she walked our way, but it only made me more desperate for Roman. I had missed him dearly, the memories of our last kiss having haunted me through every hour of every day. There was no doubt in it now-- he wanted me too. It gave me such an immense rush, along with the satisfaction of feeling how hard he was against me, the throbbing of his cock continuing against my stomach as he pressed me further into the wall behind me. Something felt wrong about him being aroused after our fight, especially now that we were practically in public, but I knew I didn't want to push him away just yet. 

I was completely breathless by the time Roman shifted, his thigh now pressing up against the apex of my own. Caught off guard, I whimpered as he grabbed my hips, moving my hips against him as the kiss deepened, growing further needy. I could feel it in my bones; not only did he want me, he needed me. This was just about the biggest high I had ever had. Roman Godfrey-- all mine in this moment.

The friction between my legs, feeling his cock continuously brush up against my stomach through our clothes, had me gripping his shoulder, disconnecting our kiss to catch my breath. My head rolled back against the wall behind me as I pondered how I had allowed this to happen, not used to pleasure caused by others. 

Roman's fingers wrapped around my throat, holding me in place as we rocked against each other, lips hovering above one another before they came crashing together once more, unable to keep away. I let out a broken whimper, my hands flying back up into his hair, pulling him closer as pleasure coursed through my veins in a way I hadn't ever felt before. I couldn't quite put my finger on what this was, but I had never been this certain that I liked it.

I let out a broken moan as my head rolled back once more, which in turn had Roman connecting our lips, muffling any sounds. This was where I was reminded that we were in public, wondering if I had gone absolutely mad-- I blamed it all on him. His beautiful eyes, his strong arms, and his addicting, soft lips. As Roman continued to grind me up against his thigh, pulling away to watch my lips part and my body squirm in pleasure, I gazed up at the way the corners of his mouth turned up into his signature smirk. He knew exactly what he was doing-- messing with me like this, practically in public. 

It took a lot of willpower for me to push him away, whimpering slightly at the loss of contact. "We-- We can't," I said, catching my breath. 

Like this, I could see how disheveled Roman's hair was, how his lips looked swollen with kisses, and it made my stomach flip-- how was it possible for someone to be so beautiful, even when completely unraveled? 

Roman shrugged, grinning from ear to ear. It was clear that he was scanning my look of arousal; "My car is right around the corner,"

"Okay...?"

Leaning forward, Roman captured my lips in a short kiss. "I can park it somewhere desolate," he said, nipping at my lower lip. 

I couldn't help but shiver-- that sounded really fucking nice at the moment, but I knew I had to control myself. And I wasn't about to lose my virginity in a car? "Another time," I mumbled, struggling to catch my breath. Who would've known that arousal could cloud the mind like this? 

Roman nodded, accepting my words as a promise. "I'll hold you to that,"

Oh no-- This again? Great.

Just great.

(a/n: here are the links to PART 1, PART 3, PART 4, PART 5, PART 6, PART 7, PART 8, PART 9!<33 thank you for reading!!)

[stxrvel]

the cliff (1)

hi guys! this is the first azriel fic i post here. i mainly do marvel but i just couln't stop thinking about this so i decided to take it forward. i hope you guys like this! see u next time <;33

summary: you never thought that the road to your mate could bring so much suffering… pairing: azriel x f!reader words: +4k warnings: briefly descriptions of torture, bad words, descriptions of sorrow¿?, angst but a happy ending, i think. also, English is not my first language and i actually read acotar in another language, so sorry for any mistakes! and also!! i haven't read a court of silver flames, so probably the facts around cassian and nesta's bond and feyre's pregnancy aren't accurate, sorry for that!

part 2: the house

part 3: the court

part 4: the routine

You were sure that the decisions you had made shouldn't have led you to that place. With your limp legs dragging against the grass, the wet feel of the mud drying coldly on your skin with each gale, increasing the chills that ran through your body, not only because of the dread and fear you had for your life, but because of the scorching frost on the top of that cliff.

There was something magical about wishing upon a shooting star. You knew it, your parents were living proof that it worked. They had met just after your mother had wished upon a dying star. Mates. And they promised you it would be the same for you. You hoped it would be the same for you when, encouraged by your same parents, you wandered Prythian in search of meeting the other end of the bond that you knew connected you to someone beyond, in search of a connection greater than you could ever understand.

You firmly believed in that magic one night, in the midst of the lonely and almost desolate journey from end to end, when lying watching the night sky you saw it pass by. A helpless shooting star.

You made your wish with your heart in your hand, closing your eyes and whispering as if it were a prayer. Maybe it was. You didn't know if that was what had gone wrong.

All you knew was that, the next day, your journey was over.

You hadn't finished waking up when you found yourself being dragged across the ground of the Day Court, right at the border it shared with the Night Court, from the hands of Ilyrian soldiers who wouldn't listen to your shouted words. Or simply preferred to ignore them.

You weren't sure how much you had screamed at them, even as they took you in the most savage way possible and furrowed you through the wind, the cold gusts of the Nightmare Court piercing your skin. But it had to have been a good while, because the next time you were above ground your throat was so dry you could barely breathe.

You didn't know what was going on, not even when days later, after feeding yourself with only mush and water, you met the first person willing to tell you something and not turn his face away from you. It was a man, Ilyrian too, with gigantic black wings that covered almost all the light in the small room where you were held captive. His constant presence invoked darkness.

He never introduced himself. He would only ask “who sent you?”, waiting for a sane answer from you, one that you couldn't give because every time you tried to say something that was not remotely like what he wanted to hear, he would move two fingers of his left hand and two more soldiers would enter the room and grab you roughly by the arms, pulling you closer to a barrel with water that was in the corner of the room. That was the water you usually drank, and it was never as cold as when they entered the room.

Needless to say, after a couple of days, you couldn't even go near the water anymore.

It could've been a couple of days, weeks or months… you weren't sure anymore. Time had become an insignificant concept compared to your desire for freedom. You had explained countless times to the Ilyrian the reasons why they had found you wandering near the Court, but that wasn't enough. Not even when you told him that they could confirm it with your family in the Summer Court. No excuse was good enough, the Ilyrian seemed to simply want to find a culprit, whatever he had to do, whoever he had to point the finger at.

And then, one day, you thought you saw a glimmer of hope. Another lone shooting star, which you barely caught through the bars the room had for windows. The memory of your parents flooded your memory, a dark cloud settling over you and drowning out any sense of calm you were able to collect after the ilyrians left. Through tears and sobs you begged the star for a way out, hoping its magic was powerful enough to fight the savage soldiers.

The next day more ilyrians than usual appeared, but they did not enter the room. Not after the High Lord of the Night Court did so first.

And you thought the star had heard you.

“She didn't say anything?”

His dismissive, indifferent tone almost made you shudder on the icy floor, but you didn't let that take away your hope, kneeling in front of him with dried tears and dirt on your face. With your hands clasped in front of you, as if he were a deity personified, you begged him to listen to you, but you had to watch him send you a disinterested glance before he turned in the direction of the entrance.

“Take her away.”

You didn't know why you had expected the high lord to intercede on your behalf, knowing the stories that brimmed through the Courts in Prythian. Your parents had warned you. They encouraged you to pursue the bond on your chest, but begged you to go no further than Court Day if the bond demanded it. They made you promise to return, and that they would then seek a way to find your mate if he or she was beyond the Night Court. You should've heeded, of course you did. When you saw the cold, emotionless eyes of the high lord's face, you regretted every decision you had made.

Even though you knew it shouldn't have been that way, because you had never done anything wrong. You had never tried to harm someone. Maybe that made it harder. Wondering every night why. Why did you deserve to go through that? What evil was it that you were paying for?

There was something magical about wishing on a shooting star, but that magic wasn't guarded for you.

-

Azriel had been spending sleepless nights for weeks now, without explanation. Things were quiet in Velaris, even in the Court of Nightmares. But when he entered the darkness of his room at night, when he tried to close his eyes with his wings spread across the bed, a knot stirred in his chest. Tears would well up behind his eyes and a sadness would engulf him from head to toe. It was so overwhelming that there were few nights when Azriel could contain the feelings and despair of his shadows.

He tried not to let that deficiency interrupt his work, but it was difficult when his eyes would close at the table during breakfast, or in the middle of the room when Rhys talked about the weekly goals. Several times his friends would start asking questions, but it was easy for Azriel to say he had trouble sleeping because that was never an uncommon occurrence over the course of his long life.

It was once Rhys told him that he had told Madja about his problem and she had sent him some herbs that it all started to get weirder.

Yes, Azriel was able to fall asleep. But every night he had strange dreams. Dreams of a life that was not his own. Memories of someone else he didn't even know. Another woman's life, somewhere Azriel could barely remember when he woke up, with more people who must have been close to her, but not to him, who shared her day to day life, who celebrated together with her, who were happy. Azriel didn't wake up much better in the mornings than when he spent the whole night without sleep.

Now he not only had to deal with the heaviness of lack of sleep, but with the questions. He could never think they were random dreams because he heard the same laughter every time, the same voice, the same place. He felt the same tranquility before waking up.

Azriel believed Madja would be his source of answers then.

“Your mate is looking for you,” the old woman answered him, one sunny day in Velaris when he chased her through her tent hoping she would answer his one question. That stopped him abruptly on his feet, his body from the abdomen upward leaning forward a bit from the suddenness of the movement.

“Mate?”

Madja barely hissed in response, a sound of affirmation that would haunt Azriel for several days afterward.

“How is that possible?”

“What?”

Madja was turning her back to him, her small body hunched over as she inspected the medicinal plants she kept for sale. Azriel watched them along with her, his mind moving through the threads of thoughts, between every memory of his dreams and every memory…of her.

“How can she do that?”

Azriel heard Madja sigh and the sound of metal followed as she dropped the gray watering can she had kept for years into place. Azriel could still remember the first time it had been seen, shiny and pompous in the Velaris sunlight. Madja's brown eyes roamed over his face and Azriel hadn't felt this way since the time when Rhys's mom had looked at him with loving motherly eyes.

“Don't ask me how the bond works, Shadowsinger. The Cauldron knows how it does things.”

Azriel could sleep less after that. Madja had left him with more questions than answers. And, on that note, Azriel began to fly over Velaris more often. For some reason, he felt she was close. The bond hadn't snapped into place yet, but he knew that the time was near when that would happen. He didn't even know if it had snapped for her yet, all he knew was that he had a mate over there, too far away from him, and too scared for him to stand idly by.

Eventually, Azriel had to talk to Rhysand. Rhys, his high lord, his best friend, his brother. Probably the only person in the Inner Circle who could fully understand how he felt at those moments. Because Azriel felt he was going to lose his mind if he didn't find his mate and end whatever suffering she was going through. The uncertainty was eating him alive and the hours of hopelessness and fear that were going on inside him, around that emptiness in his chest, did not ease things at all. If he felt this way from the comfort of his home, he didn't want to imagine what she was going through.

Rhysand agreed to allow him more outings to enlarge the perimeter of his search, but the passing days proved his effort fruitless.

“Everything okay, brother?”

Cassian had met his mate. Nesta, Feyre's sister. Azriel was very happy for him, very happy that his brothers had found their life mates and that he could realize the good they brought into their lives. But there was a huge shadow that haunted him, beyond the darkness he carried with him, and it had much to do with the guilt of not being able to find and deliver his mate from suffering. He no longer knew how much time had passed. His shadows stirred restlessly every day, with every memory, with every gale.

Azriel sighed when he felt Cassian's hand on his left shoulder, as they both stood watching Velaris from the top of a mountain.

“I don't know what to do anymore, Cassian,” Azriel let out, his shoulders slumping under the pressure and stress.

He usually didn't talk about the subject of his mate with his brothers, not as often as someone would think to be so close. It was something Azriel held close to his heart and wanted to resolve on his own, but so many failures were beginning to weigh him down.

Cassian patted his shoulder and then gave it a squeeze, trying to silently comfort him, though he knew that would do little to soothe the clamor in his soul. Because, though the bond hadn't snapped for Azriel, he could well believe that he had had it tugging at his chest in an unfamiliar direction for months now. Even if he didn't feel the bond, the mere acknowledgement of its existence was agony, especially when it didn't help him find his mate.

Cassian sighed beside him, letting a few seconds pass in silence before speaking again, his gaze fixed on Velaris' expanse and his heart shrinking at the visible suffering on his brother's face.

“Rhysand is traveling to the camp, will you accompany us?”

Azriel lately had little desire for anything other than touring Velaris and the surrounding area of the Court of Nightmares looking for his mate, but this time he decided to accept. For some reason, Azriel decided to accompany them.

The Night had been feuding with the Summer for a couple of years. Tarquin and Rhysand… were not on the best of terms. The last time Feyre had traveled to the Summer, pregnant with Nyx, Tarquin and his army had held her captive because of a misunderstanding in the information they had obtained from the Spring Court and the Mortal Lands. Rhysand almost destroyed the entire Summer Court with his bare hands if not for Cassian and Azriel, who were able to broker a deal between the two as mediators. It was a very tense time at the beginning.

Mind you, Rhysand did not leave without letting Tarquin know that it would be years before they would return to the same trade, diplomatic and friendly relations as before, if they could ever speak of forgiveness. Azriel remembered how the only person from the Night Court who could cross Tarquin's lands, for a time, was Mor. They were all warned and the meetings of the high lords were suspended, at least with respect to attendance.

For that reason, Rhysand became extremely wary of anyone connected with the Summer Court and for him, being the high lord, it was not too much work to know who wandered near his lands. They had already captured a handful of Summer Court spies in recent years and held them captive in camp with the Ilyrian soldiers.

Of course, the Night Court was much more careful with their spying, having Shadowsinger himself on their side. Azriel had visited the Summer Court a couple of times by stealth, handing Rhysand reports and any strategic breakthroughs he could decipher.

There was one, however, that they could not foresee. Someone Azriel never knew was coming out of the Summer Court. It had been a couple of years since then and it seemed the Ilyrians had been unable to break the spy's stone will.

“Are you going all the way to the mountain?” Rhysand had stopped in front of Azriel as soon as his feet touched the grassy ground, a few feet from the entrance to the camp. His eyes flicked briefly to the bustle behind his high lord, his shoulders tensing unconsciously as he took slow steps towards Rhysand with his hands in the pockets of his tunic and his wings tucked neatly behind his back. Cassian landed behind him, kicking up a layer of wet grass and mud that soiled his boots.

“Argh.”

“I think I'll be at a distance this time.”

Rhysand nodded, with no intention of convincing Azriel to accompany him to give the imprisoned spies of the Summer a death scare.

“I hope the screams are worth this mudslinging,” Cassian spoke up, moving closer to his two friends, forming a small circle. Rhysand barely gave him a glance before turning on his heels and beginning to make his way to the entrance of the camp, where some of the soldiers were clustered to see the high lord. “You're going to be in the bay?”

“Yes,” Azriel walked alongside Cassian, scowling at the entrance through which Rhysand had just crossed, the Ilyrian soldiers freezing in front of their high lord. “I'll watch from afar. Right now I don't have the stomach for anything.”

“I understand, brother,” Cassian squeezed his shoulder again amicably, sending him a tight-lipped look. Cassian was quite good with words, despite many labeling him as insensitive for being Ilyrian, but he knew Azriel well enough to know when he wanted to talk about something and when he preferred not to. “See you then.”

Cassian followed in Rhysand's footsteps, approaching in long strides, while Azriel paused watching his companions disappear into the distance.

Sighing, the knot in his chest tightened. It was so strange to have a void that could feel so many things. Azriel often wondered how it was possible that he still didn't feel the bond, when his emotions had expanded out of his head and there was no longer a feeling he didn't sense inside his bones.

Flapping his wings to take flight, Azriel set off towards the bay, close to the cliff where Rhysand planned to take the Summer Court spies. He was a few yards away, close enough to make out figures, but not too far away that he couldn't hear the screams.

As soon as his feet touched the ground, damp despite the early rising sun, his shadows began to stir around him, restless. They must've sensed his nervousness, the anxiety that ran through his chest like electric currents to his fingertips, causing him to spasm and break out in a cold sweat. Azriel could barely see them moving around him, separating from his body and stirring on the ground just a few centimeters before turning back.

At the top of the cliff he could already make out the figures of Rhysand and Cassian, walking menacingly towards the inmates, leaving them no choice but to keep walking backwards until they fell into the void, where Cassian would then land them, one by one. Azriel could hear them if he wanted to, but his mind and his shadows kept him a bit distracted.

He barely made out the first screams and the sound of Cassian's wings when his shadows began to whisper, much more restless.

Close.

Close.

Help.

Fear.

Help.

Azriel raised his head and his eyes stopped just short of Rhysand's figure in front of about three spies. At that moment, Azriel's shadows took off, moving at great speed across the grass and stones, with the Shadowsinger unable to do anything to stop them, though he tried. His confused gaze swept over the small figures on the cliff, with such speed that his head was beginning to ache, but he couldn't recognize anything.

He was about to fly in the direction his shadows had gone, when a strange, overwhelming sensation, somewhere between irrational fear and deep sadness, sent his back to the ground moving across his chest, as one of the figures slipped and fell into the void. Azriel felt all the air stolen from his lungs, opening his mouth to try to catch his breath, as those sensations coursed through his entire body and settled in his chest, taking strong root as if they belonged there. They were so overwhelming that they caused him physical pain. The ache he must've been feeling for months.

The bond.

The few remaining shadows beside him whispered endlessly.

Help.

Help.

Help.

Azriel raised his head, breathing hard. He felt his chest split open, as if with great force they were breaking his sternum to pull out his heart. It was such an overwhelming and painful sensation that, but for his strong will, he would surely have lost consciousness.

Help.

Help.

Mate.

Mate.

Azriel thought afterwards that he had never moved so fast or with such force as that moment, when he realized what was happening. The adrenaline that coursed through his body, even feeling electric currents run through him from head to toe from the precise moment he felt the bond, didn't allow him to think too much about how the air hurt his eyes because he already knew exactly where he had to go. He had spent so much time flying without direction, walking the wrong paths and searching in empty places. At that moment, when he had a reason and a direction, Azriel couldn't think of anything else. He didn't want to.

He could only look at the figure falling off the cliff from the moment he raised his head. He could only head blindly towards it. The overwhelming fear that threw him backwards was the fear she felt as under her feet she felt the void, her hands moving forward trying to hold on to something that would allow her to live.

Azriel felt like he was about to die with her.

He met Cassian halfway from afar, who seemed to be about to fly in her direction to catch her when he ran into his friend, but Azriel moved too quickly and with anticipation without losing sight of his mate. The chill that ran through his body could've paralyzed him with fear, but how could he stand by and do nothing when his mate was falling to her undisputed death.

He thought he heard Rhysand's scream. Surely it was so, but in his mind there hovered only the thought that he must reach her, he must get there in time. Her hands were outstretched and Azriel stretched out his hands, hoping that would help him move faster.

Mind blank, Azriel felt like he had just pulled his head out of the water, his chest opening in an unfamiliar thrill as his body felt the warmth of his mate's body crashing against him and his arms wrapped around her in a promise to never let go again. His wings wrapped around her immediately after his arms, impacting a few seconds later against the muddy ground.

He was too close to not catch her. The thought left him breathless.

For a moment, he only heard his and her labored breathing, with the whistling of the wind through the trees and the movement of the water of a stream a few feet away. For a moment, Azriel went completely blank. Whether he was there or dreaming, he didn't know.

His hands clamped tightly around her arms, encircling her entire back, feeling the reality of what had happened sink in on him bit by bit. Fear gripped him once more then, considering that there was a chance he hadn't been there to stop that. To prevent it.

He didn't want to move. Still adrenaline coursed through his body and he was so alert that he could clearly hear the voices of his friends in the distance. Seconds later, when he heard their wings, he finally moved.

Azriel met your eyes and with that look alone he knew you had felt the bond as well.

“I'm sorry,” was all Azriel could think of, his eyes crystallizing, voice breaking. “I'm so sorry.”

You were transfixed. Azriel felt you looking at him with fear and that motivated him to move away from your body, but you gripped his arms tightly to hold him in place.

Azriel felt a great heaviness in his chest as he examined your face and what he saw did not please him at all. Guilt swelled on his shoulders, a great weight that ascended with each passing second and he could hardly imagine all that you had had to go through in that camp. You were right under his nose and he couldn't find you. What kind of a partner was he to let all that happen?

When he heard the footsteps of his friends, his shoulders tensed. But it didn't go unnoticed the way you also became aware of their presence and let go of his arms, rushing to hug yourself as you moved to sit behind Azriel. scared. Still breathing rapidly, Azriel sent a warning look. Cassian and Rhysand stopped a short distance away, noticing the obvious hostility emanating from their friend's body, but Rhysand just stopped for a second.

“Azriel, what the fuck?”

Rhysand was so angry that he seemed to have a little red tinge over his face. Good, he was angry, maybe then Azriel wouldn't feel so bad about breaking his face.

“Rhys,” Cassian frowned, quickly picking up on the tense and hostile atmosphere around him. He grabbed the arm of his high lord, who jerked angrily and turned his gaze back to the Shadowsinger.

“What the fuck is wrong with you? Are you aware of what you just fucking did?”

“Rhysand,” Cassian stopped his high lord, raising his voice and holding his arm tightly this time.

Rhysand turned to look at him with a frown and it seemed that, through his mind, Cassian spoke to him. The next time Rhysand looked back at him, his expression was unclenching, but Azriel stood stone-faced in front of you, his hands clasped at his sides and ready to face anything.

“No way,” was all Rhysand muttered, moving to run his hands through his hair.

Azriel felt one of your hands on his back, his senses splitting in half to try and attend to you as he kept an eye on his brothers on the other side. He moved his head to look at you, your frightened expression trying to hide you from Cassian's curious eyes.

“Is this real?”

Azriel felt his heart crumple. Tears welled behind his eyes and burning hurted the back of his throat. He wanted to say so many things, apologize for a million other things, but in that moment he only responded, moving to squeeze your hand:

“It's real.”

[smusherina]

bridges burnt - chapter 3 [epilogue series] (regina george x reader)

fandom: Mean Girls (all media)

pairing: Regina George x OFC/Reader

summary: When an invitation to Gretchen Wieners' wedding ended up in your mailbox, you'd been sure it was a mistake. Only, it read your name in neat, swoopy calligraphy. It was addressed to you. And Regina George, whom you hadn't spoken to in years.

additional clarification: This is set in the universe of yard work, a series of mine that can be found on my page! Reading this one might be a bit challenging without the context of the series :)

chapter 1 / chapter 2 / chapter 4

You were leaning against the wall, an unlit cigarette in your mouth. Nicotine was the only substance you hadn't been able to cut off entirely. You smoked less now and were trying to quit, but it wasn't quite so easy. You had made a promise to smoke only once a day. This would be your third if you lit up.

"Need a light?" Janis rounded the corner, already inhaling. The scent of the smoke solved your dilemma. Fuck it. She exhaled as she extended her lighter to you. An old zippo. It was gold-ish in colour, engraved with shapes that were wearing away. You were pretty sure if she were to sell it, she'd get several hundred for it.

"Thanks." Maybe this was the universe telling you that it'd be okay. Just today. Just today, you could smoke all the goddamned cigarettes you wanted.

"When'd you and Regina get back together?" Janis leaned against the porch railing across from you. Behind her was a pretty hillside that led down into a thick forest. The sky was grey and not much light penetrated the dense clouds, making the woods look that much grimmer. You'd rather be there than here.

"A while ago." You might've not seen her in years but you knew when she was plotting something. That kiss out in the open like that was a clue, a wordless message she trusted you to get on your own. You were together. You didn't know what she was playing at or why you were going along with it. Probably old habits.

Janis snorted. "Romantic. Mia would kill me if I said we've been together for a while."

"Get off my dick, Janis," You snapped unnecessarily. You didn't want to be on the spot like this. You couldn't give many details and risk contradicting Regina.

(Why couldn't you? Why didn't you say, "Oh, hey, actually we're not together" instead of, once more, following her example like a good dog.)

"Jeez, I was just asking. Trouble in paradise? Sure didn't seem that way." She wiggled her eyebrows at you. You wished you hadn't lit up the cig so you could just walk away.

"We're fine. Why's your Mia not here?" You assumed that was her partner.

"I didn't get a plus one." She shrugged. "Besides, not sure she could've gotten out of work. They're doing a merger, or something."

"She's the breadwinner then and you're what? A tortured artist?"

"What you don't realize, my friend, is that I'm winning here. I have a beautiful wife who makes money like a printer, has a 401k and air-tight insurance, and works nine to five while I get to paint my little paintings all day." Janis took a drag. "And she fucks me good."

You groaned. "Janis, please."

"Meanwhile you act like you're better than me when, in fact, I'm happy and you're miserable." She finished off with a snarky smile.

Once upon a time, you'd fantasized about staying in the garage all day, fixing old cars as a hobby, and greeting Regina when she got home from her Real Adult Job, wearing a sexy pantsuit and carrying a mysterious briefcase.

Not anymore. You wore the suits, you carried the briefcase, and you did not fix old cars as a hobby.

"You should give motivational speeches. Think Northshore would love to have you back." You took a deep drag. Deflecting with sarcasm was cheap but effective.

"You think?" Her smile softens. "Seriously, though, how've you been?"

"It's been... Good." It had been good recently. You knew, though, that Janis was asking about the last ten years and not just your week. If you were to compile a list of all the good and bad things from that long a time period, one would be perhaps a page and the other a several-foot scroll. Respectively.

"Wow. I forgot how close-lipped you are." Janis said. You could tell she was disappointed. You'd never been friends, not really, not ever like her and Damian, but there was an understanding between you.

You let up.

"We got back together after college." You swallowed, trodding on eggshells, being as vague as possible. "I was cleaning up my act, trying to get away from it all. Moved back into town and met Regina coincidentally. Rest is history, I suppose." You eyed the hills. The view turned into misty nothingness before you could tell if it was the ocean there or more land.

"I heard your dad passed," Janis said, blunt but not mean. "Sorry to hear that."

"Yeah, I guess." You rubbed your forehead. It wasn't tactful to tell a near-stranger that you weren't actually all that upset about it. "To be honest, it was a long time coming. He was in bad shape."

He'd gotten ill when you were in college. At first, all the business stuff was being handled by his team but as more and more time passed and he showed no signs of getting better, he started nagging you to do more for the company.

What the fuck you were gonna do? You didn't know shit about business and, besides, were high out of your mind half the time. You didn't want any of it, didn't want his blood money and shady practices. But you were gonna get it.

Now, you could say you had things under control. Somewhat. You sold some locations, passed them off to people better suited, and sure, lost some money in the process but you weren't ambitious like your dad had been.

If it was up to you, you'd keep the one shop you'd always worked at and make an honest, humble living the remainder of your days. Start a project you could work on for the next several years and be content.

"Sorry to hear that." Janis stumped her cigarette on the ground. You did the same, dropping the stub and snuffing it out with your shoe.

"Well." You sighed. "I'm not."

With that, you turned and walked back towards the doors leading into the hall. Janis followed behind you.

People were still mingling around the place, the bride and groom yet to make an entrance. Your table was somewhere in the middle, not one of the important ones but with a clear view of the stage and where the important people were meant to be sitting.

The mother of the bride was eyeing the room like a hawk scanning for prey. Her eyes didn't catch yours but you could tell she was keen on Janis. The all-black ensemble stood out almost as much as Regina's white stole.

Speaking of her. She was sitting and chatting with Shane, seeming cool and casual. Damian was there too, engaged and laughing at the right parts.

You approached deliberately slowly, trying to hear what they were talking about before you sat down.

"-came back to town after college and we hit it off." She turned her head slightly and made eye contact with you. "Baby," She greeted you.

You cleared your throat, suddenly feeling warm. "Reg," You sat down and, as casually as you could, draped an arm over the back of her chair.

"I was just telling Shane how we met." Her sharp eyes met yours. "What'd you tell Janis?"

You needed to get your stories straight. Act natural. It was sheer luck you'd both set the same timeline.

"I was just telling her how we met up after college. If I remember correctly, wasn't it, uh, at uh..." You fumbled. "The grocery store?"

"Yes, mom saw you and I'm sure she didn't let you leave without a date set for when you'd come to dinner." Regina finished for you. Shane was buying it, slowly crawling out of his shell. You were quickly realizing that the gay people had all been shoved to one table. Hopefully, that didn't bode anything.

"That's Mrs George for you." You knew it was Ms now but old habits die hard.

Regina smiled at you, hand coming to rest on your knee. You shivered. It scared you how genuine she seemed. She could be awarded an Oscar for this shit.

You watched her, really looked at her. She was still so beautiful. She'd always been pretty beyond belief, gorgeous like a movie star, but the confidence she carried with herself now made it all a stunning, deadly combination.

Even so, you couldn't help feeling melancholy. You hadn't seen any of it, certainly were not the reason for it, and chances were this little scheme she was cooking up was at your expense. She had every right to seek vengeance against you.

You wondered if it was worth it to try and enjoy it. Would it hurt to dream a little? You could use a break from practicality.

You closed your eyes for a moment.

"Baby?" Your eyes fluttered open as her hand came to caress your cheek. You leaned into the touch.

"Yeah?" You asked and tilted forward, closer to her. Regina mirrored you, putting a hand on your knee and leaning some of her weight on it as her lips neared yours.

"Just focus on me," She grinned and you resisted the urge to steal a kiss. "Trust me."

"Always." You whispered, reverent in just the same way you used to be. You'd known it for a long time, the irresistible fate you'd sworn yourself to, that you'd go back to her every time.

"Ehem," Someone cleared their throat behind you. You went to look but Regina kept a hold on you. She placed a languid kiss on your lips, sending your mind into orbit, before turning towards the person so rudely invading your bubble.

"Yes?" She almost hissed, smiling in a way that was more like a threat. All teeth and sharp edges.

"The bride and groom are about to enter, so it would be really, really nice if you two could can it for a few moments, 'kay? Thanks!" The maid of honour chirped, voice so high pitched you had to wonder if she was inhaling helium on her off-time.

Regina watched her scurry away, eyes going up and down her retreating back in a manner that surely should've made you jealous. You knew, though, that for one, Regina didn't like girls that wore dresses and, secondly, that she was up to something. She wasn't checking out the maid of honour—she wished—but evaluating her.

"What a bitch, right?" Regina turned to the rest of the table with a sneer on her face.

You bit your cheek to hide a smile as everybody agreed. This was going to be utter shit. Total, absolute chaos with a side of heartbreak and, potentially, a ruined wedding.

You dreaded it. You anticipated it. Both could be true at once.

Notes: Hello all! Been some time! I've been in my summer groove, having a proper vacation. It's been liberating. Hopefully there's some interested readers for this series :) Taglist posted separately! If you want to be added, comment on that post please.

[owliellder]

The Finer Details

Post DI! Leon Kennedy x f! Painter Reader

MDNI 18+

(Session 1, Session 2, Session 3, Session 4, Session 5, The Reveal)

Description: Leon realizes that retirement is in his best interest now that he's getting older. All of his accomplishments as an agent mean he's truly earned a painting to commemorate..

Warnings: Not Proofread, Age gap! (reader is anywhere between mid-late 20's and Leon is 40), Porn w/ Plot, Use of she/her pronouns, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Alcoholism, mentions of trauma/PTSD/depression, P in V smut (wrap it NEOW), Leon cries during sex ���

Tags: Older Leon Kennedy, Younger afab!Reader, Leon is SAD but he is your muse, Crying, mentions of Leon masturbating, starts off with Dom! Leon and Sub! Reader, falls into switch territory because that man needs some serious TLC, Praise kink, Hickeys, Handjob, Nipple play, Oral sex (m! and f! receiving), and a heavy dose of Aftercare

Author's Note: This chapter is a tad shorter, my apologies. I almost didn't finish it cause my meds started to make me feel real gross tonight, but I managed! I am determined and powerful and strong 💪

Cross posted on AO3

Session 4: Adding Details

Ever since the last painting session with Leon a few days ago, he's been a lot more lively. He jokes more, laughs more, and flirts a lot more. Specifically with you.

It's only been a couple hours into the next session and he's already called you 'sweetheart' five times. You counted. Hard not to when the man decides to put on the most seductive tone to say it, honestly.

You've begun to reciprocate Leon's flirting since clearly he's not one to hide what he's after.

"Alright Romeo, I need you to stay still and in position for just a few minutes longer. I don't think you want me to accidentally paint you with those goo-goo eyes." Watching his poorly hidden panic made you giggle, his eyes averting to somewhere to the right. "Actually I need you to keep your eyes up here, not over there."

Leon groaned and rolled his eyes before turning them to look back at the spine of the easel, doing his best to hold a lax expression. "You're making this difficult. You have the picture!" He complained, eyebrows raising as he gestured to the stand sitting next to you.

"Yeah but- sit still- you're making the same goofy look in it like you were before." Once he resumed his position, you walked over to him from the easel to get a closer look at his expression, humming softly all the while. Leon was beginning to sweat, mostly due to having to sit still for as long as he had but now partially from your sudden proximity.

After getting a good look, you walked back over to the easel to continue painting, to which he let out a small sigh. He wanted to get to know you more, he should've tried that before you started the actual painting, but better late than never.

The man kept quite for roughly thirty minutes longer while you added smaller details to his face on the canvas, using probably the thinnest paintbrush he's ever seen.

"Is that thing even adding paint to the portrait? Or are you just pretending to get me to sit here longer?" There was that suggestive tone again, and maybe it was your mind playing tricks on you as they began to strain, but you could've swore he did that cheesy eyebrow wiggle at you.

You shook out your arm to give it a good stretch before placing it back where it was. "It's doing something. Don't get your panties in a bunch."

Leon threw his head back with a laugh at your response, causing you to give him a quick glare before huffing out your annoyance. "Alright, clearly you're growing antsy. Let's take a short break." You stood up from the swivel chair and rolled your shoulders back, cleaning off your paintbrush with the solvent sitting next to you in a small mason jar. You had a couple of the windows open due to the fumes of the paint and solvent, so no worries there.

"Thank god..." Leon stood up with a loud and exaggerated groan. He wasn't young anymore, holding even a relaxed position like that was hard work on the body. "Thought I was gonna lose my legs." The dramatics this man possessed was funny, you had to admit.

"It's not that bad and you know it." You set down the paintbrush and turned around to see him mocking you with his hand. "Do I need to circle back to calling you a toddler? Cause I will."

Leon used the hand he was mocking you with to wipe across his eyebrow before letting his arm fall back to his side. "There's no need for extremes." Your lazy eyebrow raise at his response was all he needed to immediately follow up with "Sorry, ma'am."

It didn't sound genuine, but you'll take it. You nodded before walking over to the bathroom, scrubbing the paint from your hands to the best of your abilities. You had to use dish soap since oil paint was hard to wash off, that oily sheen was a pain in the ass when trying to hold a paintbrush.

The painting was really starting to come along. You worked fast while still remaining diligent. Oil paints were difficult to use, needing extreme patience due to how slowly it dried, how easily it could smear, and how hard it was clean off. No matter how nice you wanted to dress for Leon, you had to wear your painting outfit: A designated cheap and oversized outfit you picked out years ago for the sole purpose of taking a beating. You would wipe off your paintbrushes onto it to avoid having to use a paper towels or a rag each time.

Regardless, you were still as cute as ever to Leon. In fact, seeing you care so much about your work to be covered in paint was only making him fall for you more. Oversized clothes looked real good on you, so good that he'd been busy thinking about how you'd look in his clothes, hence that nearly blissed out expression you had to snap him out of earlier.

You both decided to sit over in the living area, Leon splayed out across the soft rug to give his joints a rest. He'd gotten a good look at how the painting was coming along before assuming his spot on the rug.

It was non-stop compliments from him. You could handle compliments, you've heard so many over the years regarding your art, but Leon's compliments were different. Instead of only complimenting the art, he decided to slip in little comments about you directly along side them.

"I went back to the White House over the weekend to look at the other portraits you'd done..." He started, head resting on his arms as they laid behind his head. "Just to get a feel for how mine would look once it's done."

"Is it living up to the standard so far? There's quite a bit more that needs to get done, and then it has to dry." You looked down at him on the rug, massaging your hand so it didn't cramp up more than it already had. "There's no standard for you to live up to, sweetheart. You could draw a stick figure and I'd be blown away."

You laughed at the suggestion, turning your head to look out one of the large windows to try and hide your smile. Wooing a painter was easy, apparently.

"You're just full of little accolades, aren't you, Mr. Kennedy?" You sighed, resting your chin in your hand as your elbow sat on your thigh.

"I can't help it. Being painted by such a pretty girl brings out the worst in me." Never in all your years of being alive had someone worked so hard to flatter you. Every single comment he made included something that had you flustered and struggling to respond.

Leon sat up on his elbows and looked over at you, that smirk as clear as day. He loved the way you could barely handle yourself at his compliments. "What're you thinkin' 'bout over there, angel?"

You let your hand fall into your lap as you looked back at him, giving his smirk a soft smile in return. "I could ask you the same question, calling me all these nicknames and such." It was only fair of you to ask, curiosity getting the better of you.

A little caught off guard, Leon hummed and pursed his lips, eyebrows furrowing slightly as he thought. What was he doing, exactly?

"Well, whaddya think I'm doing?" Yeah, that was good. Instead of answering himself, he'll just drag it out of you. "Well, if I didn't know any better, I'd think you're flirting with me." Your smile turned a bit more mischievous as you leaned towards him.

"Well, you'd be absolutely right, then." He responded with a chuckle, lowering his volume so he could fall right back into a seductive tone. "I got lucky enough to get my own painting. Even luckier to have you be the one painting me."

You gave him a small "mhm" as you nodded your head slowly, your tongue peaking out to wet your bottom lip as you listened to him talk. It took awhile, but eventually you managed a reply. "So... what exactly are you looking to do with all that sweet talk, hm?"

"Take you out on a date." His response was fast and it caught you off guard. Leon was so forward with what he wanted. When it came to the few people you'd dated in the past, you had to practically drag any sort of info from them. Your silence had brought him to sit all the way up now, body facing you as he sat with his legs crossed. "Is it working at all?"

It took a couple more seconds for you to nod, moving your hand to cover your mouth as you giggled. "Yeah, I think it is. Might need to keep it up just in case, though."

"Bummer, now I get to distract you even more while you paint me?" You stood up and placed your hand flat on his face, gently pushing his head back as you walked past him. "I'll paint on you if you distract me."

The session lasted a total of five hours, pausing for a couple breaks in between. You were now thoroughly painted out; hand cramping, eyes straining, and even with the windows open the smell of the paint and the solvent to clean it off the brushes had given you a slight headache. Leon was definitely tired also, given he actually fell asleep in the chair.

You decided to call it a day at that, patting him on the shoulder to wake him. "Time to get up and take your meds, old man." Leon startled awake, sucking in a harsh breath through his nose as he reoriented himself. When did he fall asleep?

You had already walked into the bathroom to wash your hands off, giving him the opportunity to wake up enough to stand. He yawned, walking over to look at how far along you'd gotten.

The painting immediately pulled him from his sleepy state, eyes widening with shock. You said you still had quite a bit left to do and it looked like this? It was like you'd ripped this straight from the 17th century. Leon was in awe. He looked good in this- no, far better than good. You'd captured his likeness better than the photo.

Seeing the man staring at your painting with his jaw dropped after walking out of the bathroom made you smile. "You like it?" You asked quietly while shaking your hands out as you hadn't dried them off all the way.

"No, I love it. You've got magic in those hands of yours, sweetheart." Leon crossed his arms, walking over to stand right in front of you. You clicked your tongue at him before your hand in front of him dismissively. "I wouldn't say it's magic, just years of drawing and painting endlessly until I got to the spot I wanted to be."

Leon closed his eyes and shook his head playfully, chuckling as he did so. "So humble of you." He followed you back over to the easel, watching you cover up the paints you were using with curious eyes. "About that date..."

You cocked an eyebrow, looking up at him through your eyelashes as you continued to carefully cover your paints. "What about it?"

"Just wondering when and where you'd want to go." The man grinned at you lazily, doing his best to disguise how nervous he actually was. "Hmm.." You glanced over at the wall clock you had sitting far above the light switches next to the entrance door, taking note of how late it was. "I'm pretty tired and I'm sure you are too, but how about we order something to eat here?"

Leon seemed surprised by your suggestion, grin widening as he nodded vigorously. "Plus, I am not going out looking like I just got assaulted with a paintball gun."

The two of you decided on something easy; pizza and soda. Leon opted to wear one of your many aprons to avoid getting any grease on his suit which made for an easy joke about him being a house-husband. Even though it was a technically a first date, both of you felt so comfortable with each other already, like you'd known each other for years. It was strange, but in a good way.

Leon was easy to get along with once he opened up. He really was a charming guy, even managing to get you to laugh with those corny ass dad jokes he loved so much. How such a man had gotten away with being single for so long baffled you.

The same went for you. Leon felt like you being single was just a fluke. There was no way someone as talented and gorgeous as you hadn't been swept off your feet yet. It was selfish of him for thinking it, but fuck was he ecstatic about that.

It was about 11pm when the two of you decided to call it a night, the hours spent bonding over random, seemingly meaningless stuff had really loosened both you and Leon up.

"Am I able to come back tomorrow and see you?" Leon asked in such a soft voice, motorcycle helmet in hand as he the other rested up against the doorway leading out of the building. He felt vulnerable for wanting to see you again like this.

"I won't be here tomorrow, need to give my hands a bit of a break." You giggled quietly, holding your palm out in front of him for emphasis. "But I can give you my address if you want to visit. I don't mind."

Those butterflies in his stomach fluttered at your proposal, barely able to nod after feeling his phone vibrate in his pocket once you texted him your address. He tried to act confident, having gone over every scenario possible in his head, yet you'd gone off script and he wasn't quite sure what to do anymore.

Seeing how flustered he'd become, you waved him closer, smiling as he bent over slightly. Leon thought you were gonna whisper something to him, that thought alone had him blushing, but feeling the gentle press of your lips against his had him struggling to breathe. He barely had a chance to react before you pulled away, his lips parted slightly as he stared at you.

You reached up and gently patted his cheek, running your hand along the stubble that had started to grow back. "Let me know when you wanna come over tomorrow, alright? Give me a little time to get dressed. I've looked ratty enough around you."

Leon wanted to protest that statement, you were far from ratty, but you just shushed his stuttering and nudged him out the door, giggling as he stumbled down the steps. He kept turning his head back to look at you every couple steps, feeling like some lovesick teenage boy who couldn't get his feet to work.

He was a little scared to drive home considering how uncoordinated he felt, but he made it back in one piece. Once sat on his bed, all he could think about was you and that damn painting. Leon didn't know what he was expecting when it came to that, honestly, but you seriously outdid yourself in his eyes.

Then you just had to flirt back with him, agree to a little date, and kiss him? Do you even know how hard it was to hide his boner from you?

He really did feel like a teenage boy, a simple kiss having him harder than a rock. Not to mention the drive home was uncomfortable since he had to position himself just right on the seat or else the constant vibration from his motorcycle would seriously cause him to crash.

Leon was weak. He hadn't felt this way in such a long time, but he guessed the newfound attraction came with the subconscious acceptance of his retirement. It's what made sense in his head.

God did he want you, masturbating in the shower to you wasn't enough, he needed you. All he could think about was your soft hands touching him, his hands all over your body, maybe even those pretty eyes of yours looking into his as he loved on you all night long.

The age gap was a bit of a worry to him in the beginning, mostly being insecure about his own age, but that worry was quickly brushed off when you kissed him tonight. You were a big girl. You knew what you wanted.

Leon felt so lucky that you reciprocated. All he'd felt since his retirement was grief, guilt, and pity for himself. Now you had him feeling like he was on top of the world and he couldn't ask for anything more. This little bit of sweetness in his life was so enticing, and of course he was going to follow it for as long as you'd let him.

[ang3lc]

i’m thinking about making my smut debut, any words of encouragement so i don’t chicken out??

also since you asked for asks, how do you think daryl dixon would react to you subtly teasing him all day?

hi there! PLEASE make your smut debut you wont regret it! it's so nice to just put something out in the world that's your own and see that other people enjoy it as well! my words of advice: don't over think it too much! just write what comes to mind and hit the post button. not everyone's always gonna like what you write, and you might not always blow up, but at least one person will enjoy it! tag me in your first smut !

summary - daryl's a tease

⟡ wordcount - 994

⟡ a/n - gn!reader, swearing, suggestive, daryl's kinda mean, but this is pretty mild, I flipped the ask around a little, just a fun little ovulation drabble, ps Lana + writing smut is magical

he'd pick up on how needy you were from the get go. your longing stares, the way you didn't want him to leave the sheets you were both wrapped up in when the sun came up. he knew.

he stood up from the bed, the soft glow from the sun illuminating his sculpted body as he maneuvered around the room, sliding his clothes on his body. in your early morning daze, he could've easily been a fallen angel.

more like an incubus. his pants hung low on his waist as he pushed his belt through the loops, your eyes following his v-line, memorizing the way his waist tapered ever so slightly.

"wanna picture, sweetheart?" he rasped, haphazardly putting on that one black t-shirt that nearly choked his biceps. the same one that you had expressed a specific fondness of just a few nights ago, moments before you tore it off him.

your face flushed at his comment, your eyes meeting. you noticed the smug smile that adorned his lips. he knew.

🌙

you'd find him chopping up some firewood in the middle of Alexandria, the early afternoon causing him to sweat so much that you'd question if he'd just jumped in the lake.

but to your hungry eyes, it'd be no different if he had oiled himself up, stripped himself bare, and had "come get me" written on his back. his muscles were glistening and bulging with each blow of the axe, the sunlight giving his skin a honey-like glow.

you'd watch him- no, gaze at him like a wolf preying on an elk, ready to pounce. his shirt clung to him like second skin, each one of his muscles rippling with each swinging motion. fuck.

he knew exactly what he was doing. the number the hot summer sun was doing on him was incomparable to the holes your eyes were burning into his skin.

the sneaky mother fucker turned his head directly to you, right as the axe was about to come down on yet another log. with a quick blow to the wood, he threw the axe down, turning to look at you once more with a shit-eating smirk. your mouth fell agape. that little shit.

he turned away, wiped forehead, tied the upper half of his hair up into a bun, and practically sauntered down the street and into your shared house.

you had subtly crossed your legs, trying to stop the filth that plagued your mind. as the seconds passed, you became increasingly aware of the heat that radiated from your cheeks and core. your panties were soaked and glued to your heat as you shifted.

in all actuality, he hadn't been doing anything too outlandish- at least not anything he hasn't done before. he just wanted to see you squirm. you stood up from the bench you had been sitting on and walked toward your home.

you knew he'd be there, you just hoped he'd give you what you wanted- no. what you needed. you advanced toward your house, wearily opening the door with a click. you walked into the quiet house and shut the door behind you. the shower was running upstairs.

the clock striked 4 as you made your way up the stairs. each step echoed in your head as your body radiated heat. you took your shoes off at the top of the steps, probably in hopes that you could take him by surprise, but who knows. you were as rational as your thoughts were pure. when you peaked in the door way, you could see the shower curtain drawn shut, but the mirror revealed just the slightest bit of his back, the water cascading down it.

you stripped yourself of your clothes, the humidity mingling with the sheen of sweat on your body. you opened the curtain, stepping in to the shower behind him. your arms snaked around his waist, your head resting against his back. the smell of soap and his natural scent sent shivers down your spine.

you held him tightly, pressing your body impossibly close to his, hoping he'd understand how badly you needed him. being impossibly stronger than you, he turned around in your grasp, his hands pulling your waist and chest firmly against his.

he looked in to your eyes, brushing a wet strand of hair behind your ear. "so needy f' me today, hm?" he cooed so sweetly as his large hands sunk down to the meat of your hip, his grip possessive. you looked into him, bobbing your head up and down and suddenly feeling small under his gaze. you snaked your arms around his neck in efforts to bring him closer.

if anyone was the wolf here, it was him. his lips lingered so close to yours as his eyes flickered to your eyes, lips, your bare frame, and at anything else you had to offer him.

your body was buzzing. you could feel your knees growing weak in his embrace as if he was holding you up with just his regard. you were sure you could feel yourself dripping down your leg. it was almost if he could sense how viscerally you craved him. your hands fell to his shoulders, gripping tightly onto his tense muscles.

he placed a chaste kiss to your shoulder, your head instantly tilting to allow him as much of you as he wanted. he trailed his kisses toward your neck, kissing your pulse in the process. he smirked softly as he felt how wildly your heart was beating. his scruff tickled your neck just right, only making you grip him tighter. you swore you could cum in that moment.

his kisses grew sloppy, his own breathing growing deeper as he felt his cock throb at the sound of your ragged breaths. he kissed your ear and whispered to you as he shut the water off.

"wait f' me in the room"

masterlist

[rosemariad]

THE BITTER END | SPN 15x18 DESPAIR: About that Destiel moment in 15x18

Oh boy…the scene that sailed a thousand memes (and counting)…the scene that made us all go feral in the midst of a contentious presidential elections in one of the most disruptive, chaotic years in recent memory (2020 you son of a bitch)

Now i am super late with this since it’s nearly been 4 years since this was aired live on TV and posted like crazy all over the internet BUT…y’all Destiel shippers got robbed. Not just with this scene but the whole Destiel ship in general - just done so dirty.

I started watching this show on and off back in 2021 and I finally got to finish over the summer this year (2024) taking my sweet time, even rewatching certain episodes (for some fanfic writing 😁). I went into this to settle the debate for myself - is this Destiel stuff legit? Or was it taken out of context? Misconstrued.

No. It really wasn’t. They (the powers behind SPN) tried it, tried to pull the wool over people’s heads, with certain fans chiming in (the destiel haters, the homophobes, the anti-mishas, etc.) but no. The SPN showrunners fucked all this up.

From the beginning….

So it’s 15x18 despair - we’re in the last act - shit’s popping off, everything’s going tits up - Billie is trying to hunt Dean down, calling him chaos incarnate. Dean & Cas get trapped in a room with no apparent means of escape or defense - probably should’ve headed for the exit - but I guess since it’s the 3rd to last episode and the execs clearly want things to go back to the status quo 🙄 now’s as good a time as any to cash in on that plot thread from last season and kill Castiel once and for all 😭 (as 1 person pointed out, given the prior context they probably could've just waited Billie out, since them being trapped in that room - Cas was the one that blocked the door anyhow - but I get it SPN showrunners you wanted to get rid of Cas somehow - what a mess)

If you haven’t watched it - here’s where I gasp and scoff in disbelief - please watch it https://youtu.be/l_r9GZeQl1w?si=uVox8PlXByYEYKci

Basically Cas tells Dean he’s the greatest guy he’s ever known, that he fights for love and that Cas lurves Dean 😭 and he’s not the bad things enemies say Dean is. That he’s more than the worst parts of himself - oh Cas.

This was Castiel’s one moment of true happiness - telling the one person whom he adores more than anyone or anything else in the entire universe - that he is loved by Castiel himself.

The confession that triggers Castiel’s demise to go with the empty, takes Billie with him and before Dean can process the massive TRUTH BOMB Castiel just dumped on him, Castiel is gone.

Despair indeed.

They made too many fucking cuts to this scene, at least for Jensen’s coverage. Like if you don’t want Dean to reciprocate…fine. Don’t. But let him fucking respond! Let him use his words. Castiel just told Dean he was in love with him, that is one of the BIGGEST things you can say to somebody in your life. EVER. Especially on TV. And yes it was in love, like romantically. Not platonically because why make such a fucking fuss over fucking platonic friendship! There’s always been a tension between these 2 characters, it hung over between them since season 4. They just made it into a joke, never expecting to get the traction it did over the years. They even tried writing Cas off the show for good back in season 7. But they got stuck with Cas and never really made proper use of him. They literally just waited until the last minute to get rid of him in a way that couldn’t get the show cancelled until that decision had already been made by the network. to make things worse - COVID happened

So don’t tell me the confession doesn’t merit a response, either for or against on Dean’s part - whether he returns Castiel’s affection or not is another story but dammit let Dean speak! How could you not? Cowards!

And Would it be so terrible if Dean did feel something MORE than friendship for the only other individual that has stood by him for so many years? Like really? A relationship doesn’t demand sex (but let’s be honest, Cas probably wanted to fuck the shit outta Dean 🤣) it’s whatever the people in the relationship want! Dean isn’t young by the time s15 rolls around. Older people tend to just want someone to come home to, settle down with. Companionship. Cas fits that to a fucking T. When Dean dreamed of a future, Cas was right there with him (and Sam, cuz Dean always wants his family close as much as he can, given how he grew up).

Couldn’t find a gif of Dean talking about taking some time off after all the craziness of the hunting they do but I’m not crazy I know he wanted it.

The team behind SPN could have finished Dean’s narrative beautifully as man who was driven by fear all his life and opens himself up to a relationship he never saw coming but when the time came he didn’t run because he grew to love more than fear (and choose to live a life of peace after stuck in one of violence for so many years).

This is why Hollywood is shit! Great beginnings, shitty endings. But in this case, it was because they consistently chose NOT to indulge in queer-like narratives with enough care (aside from some other problematic stuff like the treatment towards women being more negative than positive, the inconsistent writing for characters and plot, etc.)

BUT not when it’s the main character 😡 Charlie can be gay AF but not Dean, seriously? That’s fucked. Like at least let him fucking explore/consider it. So people stop watching it who gives AF?! I never even watched the show when it was on air for 15 years, tons of people didn’t. There are still people out there watching SPN for the first time today! People who started but stopped because it’s a show that ran WAAAY longer than any other normally does.

Idk who made it so that Dean couldn’t explore his sexuality or fucked up the Destiel of it all but they SUUUUUUUUCK! You really shat the bed! at least explore it cuz at the end of the day, it may not work out. Gay relationships aren’t that different from straight relationships in that sometimes it just doesn’t work out BECAUSE we’re ALL people. And who knows maybe they could’ve been happy but we’re not allowed to know that canonically because Destiel was never given a CHANCE!

I mean if it was REALLY that big a deal – why introduce it? By making these little suggestions that (in a way that's funny but why would Dean be queer be haha funny - no that's not okay, queerness shouldn't be a joke) furthermore we’re talking about a show on basic cable - all it would’ve taken was fucking hand-holding or the same routine of staring into each other’s eyes like they’d been doing for 12 fucking years already! Just not shying away from the queerness that time. Legend of Korra did it. That 1 Disney show did it (i don’t remember the name). No kissing would’ve been necessary - nice, wishful thinking but not necessary if the kissing became an issue (but seriously it was 2020 man but ofc - that is a year where a pandemic that required social distancing decided to kick in during the final arc of this show) - just so we’re all clear COVID cock blocked Destiel lol jk 🤣

All those times they had Dean & Cas stare into each other's eyes – the forces at work – showrunners, writers, directors AND editors & the network who is showing this to audiences – if its such a big fucking deal - Don't leave it in. By leaving it in, you're allowing people to make assumptions about the relationship – it happens literally every time in every story ever told. You put 2 people in a scene and they're not family (though not always the case) or JUST friends (explicitly proven) there's a chance SOMEONE is gonna wanna ship them no matter how likely it is (OR NOT) they'll hookup or become a couple. That's just how it is. So don't fan the flames and then turn it around on fans that they're wrong, crazy or misinterpreting. If Wincest can exist, so can Destiel and any other ship. That being said, y’all Destiel shippers were ROBBED but I don’t need to tell you that.

I don’t think the relationship would’ve been perfect or smooth sailing - their friendship as it was on the show sure wasn’t. And Dean wasn’t the only one with issues - Cas had some bad qualities too - the angel liked to lie and for a while there he was extremely averse to conflict. And Dean…he gets real fucking angry 😬 not a good mix for a relationship- hell even a friendship.

But the two had a profound bond, with a great deal of affection for one another and that’s what got them through betrayal, fights, amnesia, curses, apocalypses, and all the ugliness in between. They could’ve made it. Or they could’ve just had Cas and Dean stay friends - but we’ll never know since Cas was pretty much omitted after 15x18 - there were references - like only 2 though 😒

Really SPN? 😒😔 so lazy. But sure, go ahead, blame COVID. It’s not like phones exist. It’s not like the actor couldn’t have just recorded Castiel’s voice nope. Totally not an option 🤦🏾‍♀️ same goes for the other characters - Jody, Donna, Eileen - you know all the other characters Sam & Dean cared about but sure - fuck ‘em too. Status quo is the only thing that matters - SMH.

[oneshlut]

Hello!! This is my first request!

I was wondering if I could request headcanons for humanoid!fluttershy x fem! Dragon-humanoid! Reader?

Like the reader moved into the town and and the mane 6 went to introduce themselves but the reader was really intrigued by fluttershy and is really sweet and caring towards her?

(by humanoid I mean like, Pegasus characters still have their wings and unicorns still have their horns and so on)

Sorry if this is too much 😓

Thank you!

A/N: oh it's not too much at all! these detailed requests actually give me a lot to go off of, thanks a bunch for requesting! <3 (also, i hope you dont mind that i refer to the characters as ponies, dw, they're still humanoid!!)

Calm (Humanoid!Fluttershy x Fem!Dragonoid!Reader) [Headcanons]

Rules For Requesting

Characters I Will Write For

Masterlist

Summary: A new pony moves into Ponyville! Or, a uh.. dragon? Either way, everyone is excited to meet her, but one pegasus catches her eye..

After you had left your past town due to a horrible new mayor, you were looking for a fresh start. You had previously lived in an all-dragon town, so moving to Ponyville was.. an experience. A positive one, at that.

As you could probably guess, the first pony to meet you was Pinkie Pie. She shaked your hand, energy beaming from her smile, as she then dragged you through the town square. Along the way, she asked you a million personal questions, ranging from "Are your parents dragons?" to "Why did you move? I thought it was great down in your hometown! Especially for a girl-pony! Eek! Sorry! Girl-dragon!" She hardly gave you time to respond before she started asking the next question.

It was nice to get a tour of the town! But, uh.. you were more interested in getting to your new house right now. You sighed internally, you still had so much to unpack..

Pinkie Pie then lead you to her very own bakery. Knowing now, how she acted like she was on lethal doses of sugar, it made sense that she would own a bakery.

Inside were 4 other ponies that she called her friends. One earth pony, two unicorns, and.. one pegasus. One of the unicorns complained about somepony named "Rainbowdash" not being there. You assumed it was some sort of get-together. Quite convenient for you, huh?

As the 6 of you are talking and chitchatting about how and why you moved here, (many questions asking about your wings, horns, other dragon features), you noticed a pony in the back who hadn't been talking the entire time. When you looked back at her, noticing now she was a pegasus, she met your gaze. Only for a few moments did you keep eye contact, when she squeaked a bit and looked away. Hm..

Afterwards, you had learned all the ponies names, except for one. You waited for the remaining 4 to leave until all that was left was you and her.

Immediately, Fluttershy thought you must've been mad at her. Why else would you want to talk to her? Alone, for that matter. She apologized profusely for anything she could've done, but seeing the confused look on your face told her she was wrong.

She muttered a quiet apology before quietly introducing herself. Fluttershy was surprised you heard her at first, but then went in to shake your hand, realizing it was slightly scale-y. So you really were a dragon..

Most of the time she was absolutely petrified seeing a dragon. But you were different. You weren't huge--but you weren't small, or a child, like Spike. You had fully grown wings and horns, but not big enough to be intimidating. She noticed the way you were gentle with her palm while shaking it, and felt an unusual red tone rise to her face. She's never met a pretty dragon.

It took a while, but she eventually got used to your presence. The more you spent time with her, she began stuttering a lot less, her voice became slightly more confident, and her wings weren't tucked away like they were when you first met her. Much like her wings, she began to open up around you. Sooner or later, you had become one of her closest friends.

When it came to Fluttershy, you were very sweet, kind, soft, patient... That's how she described you in her head anyways. Having someone as soft as her, especially with nature and what not, warmed her heart to the brim.

She would rant to Angel for hours after meeting up with you. Angel took one look at her eyes, how they lighted up when she talked about you, and immediately knew she was head over heels. It was amusing, so Angel kept his mouth shut. Not like he could say anything anyways.

Fluttershy was as oblivious as ever. To her, all she saw in you was a friend. Don't worry, sooner or later she'll understand. When she does, she may or may not pass out.

One day, you had come over to visit Fluttershy in her cottage. She wasn't there.. hm. Maybe she was just out running errands. With nothing else to do, you sat by a nearby pond, letting your spiny wings cover you. It was around fall, meaning the air was just now getting a bit chilly.

You closed your eyes and breathed in the calm atmosphere, taking in all the sounds with your now heightened senses. Birds chirping, running water, animals chittering or scattering, the small wisps of wind in the air, the sound of footsteps, and--.. Footsteps?

You opened your eyes and turned to find Fluttershy sitting beside you. She apologized for not being home when you arrived, and explained how.. peaceful you seemed. When she asked, you reassured her that you were "far from bothered" by her joining you.

Closing your eyes again, the two of you sat in a comfortable silence. Instinctively, you wrapped one of your wings around Fluttershy's shoulder. She prayed that you didn't open your eyes to see the mass amount of blush covering her face.

And with one bold movement, she placed her head on your shoulder, the two of you now peacefully sitting in the small patch of nature.

Fluttershy was calmer than ever before.

[multifanhoe99]

Kinktober Day 4- Masturbation

This one was a wonderful suggestion by a lovely Anon! I hope you enjoy it and that it meets your expectations.

Pairings: Non-Idol!Hyunjae w/ mentions pining for his neighbor.

Warnings: Slight perv!Hyunjae, window-watching, solo male action, fantasizes about his neighbor he's been crushing on.

=Let me know if there are any that I missed=

PROMPT LIST

MASTERLIST

18+ MDNI

Every day it was the same thing. He knew your schedule like clockwork. He wasn't trying to be creepy but it just so happened that his bedroom window happened to line up perfectly with yours and your curtains were really see-through. It's been a few years that you two have lived across from each other and the more he got to know you and you have become friends the more he realized that he liked you. He's been wanting to tell you for a while now but just hasn't found the right moment. Although becoming aware of his feelings for you has made certain things very difficult for him.

Before whenever he would see you start to change or get ready for a shower he would close his curtains until he was sure that you were done and fully clothed again. He wasn't even sure that you were aware he could see inside your room but he wanted to be polite. That started changing one day. He wouldn't close the curtains every time claiming to himself that he just wouldn't look or that he was so busy with something else that he didn't notice, but he did. Sometimes he would even go as far as to pretend he was doing work on his laptop but really he was watching you. He wasn't trying to be creepy but god you were so attractive that once he started he couldn't look away. At night after your lights went out and he was sure you were asleep he would stay awake gripping his cock tightly and stroking himself to the thoughts of what he'd like to do to you. He wondered what your skin would feel like under his touch. He wondered what you would sound like moaning his name. Every time he thought about that it would make him so unbelievably hard he would just have to touch himself to get some relief.

Something was different about today though. The weather was warm so he had his window open slightly and when you came home instead of your normal routine you went to your own window to open the curtains and crack the window open. You could see him now and gave him a little wave. He waved back and looked back at the blank docs page he had open on his laptop so that he could continue pretending to be working on something. You had just come back from the gym and he knew that you were probably going to go shower soon but instead of getting ready for a shower, you had another deviation in your usual ritual. Honestly, he thought he was making it up but when you continued he knew he wasn't. There you stood in the middle of your room touching and groping yourself letting out the sweetest of moans. They were better than he could ever have imagined. Then, you started taking off your clothes layer by layer until you were fully naked in front of him. He wasn't sure if you were doing this on purpose but he wasn't going to complain. The longer he watched you the harder he got. He knew it would give it away that he was watching you pleasure yourself but his lust-flooded mind didn't care. He needed to touch himself right now so he closed his laptop and moved it to the side. He reaches down and squeezes his cock over the shorts he was wearing and lets out a long moan himself. He knew you could hear him but he didn't care though he missed the subtle way you smiled knowing that your plan was working and you were in fact doing this on purpose.

After a few strokes over his clothes, he moves his shorts and underwear down revealing his swollen cock. He was so hard he probably could've cum just from listening to your moans but he was determined to make this last as long as possible. He grips his cock letting out a moan at the slight relief and follows the rhythm you have set up for yourself. You both listened to and watched each other both feeding off the other the pleasure clouding your minds. You let slip a moan of Hyunjae's name and that alone almost threw him over the edge. He once again thought that maybe he had made it up until he heard you again, "Y-yes Hyunjae right there please make me cum I am so close." With that, he lost it pumping his fist faster until his cum shot out of his cock covering his hand and shirt. When he finally returns to reality he sees you now wearing a robe to cover yourself and leaning out your window.

"So, did you enjoy the show," you ask with a sly smile.

"Oh most definitely," he says tucking himself away and deciding to clean up later. Then he looks up again, "Would now be a bad time to ask you on a date?"

You laughed and said, "Clean yourself up and pick me up at 8." He should have thought of this a long time ago.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A/N: I had so much fun writing this one honestly. Thank you to everyone who is helping me out with their requests these are really fun. Just letting you all know I am also taking requests for things that are not kinktober related so send in your asks if you got them.

[lady-of-tearshed]

Winds of change

Eris Vanserra centered

Eris Vanserra Week 2024

@erisweekofficial

Day 4 : Traditions

Summary: New ruler, new traditions, new ways of thinking. In this fic, Eris has to make his old tutor, Ms,Crawford, who is now tutoring his eldest son Aster, a clear reminder that the Autumn Court education system has changed. For the better.

Word count: 777 words (Ooooh, a lucky number! 🥰)

Warnings: Angry Eris.

Dividers made by @tsunami-of-tears 🤎

🔥Based on this prompt 🔥

Eris' head was still throbbing painfully from this endless progress update meeting about Autumn's new education system. He had spent a good thirty minutes in the quiet meeting room once everyone had left.

Once the headache subsided only slightly after a few deep breaths, Eris stood up, slowly, testing his balance. Once he felt stable enough to stand on his legs, he walked slowly around the large table occupying the center of the room. He pushed each chair back into its place, enjoying the last moments of peace he could get before switching to his second role: being a dad.

Eris only left the throne room when everything was clean and organized. A servant could've, and would've done it for him, sure. But leaving his work place clean also helped him to return home with a clear head.

His muscles were sore, his feets heavy as they dragged him through the endless corridors leading him to the Forest House, to his home, and his body craved yours. Desperately. But fate had other plans for him, it seemed.

Eris winced at the too familiar tempo of heels limping his way. He turned around to face the old hag that tutored him back in his young days and sighed. He truly wondered to himself why he had decided to keep her in this palace, why he hadn't cared to find a remplacement for her.

Probably because he had pitied her, sadly.

“High Lord,” Her voice was so whiny, nasally, that it only worsened Eris' headache. And temper.

“Talk with my assistant for an appointment, Ms.Crawford. I have things to do,”

Eris shoved her off, trying to hurry back to you and his kids-

“It's about Aster,”

The growl in her voice made Eris worry. He turned around, more willing to listen to her. He knew that Aster, his eldest, had quite a … heated temper. He was a troublesome boy, indeed, but very clever. Aster didn't really enjoy school, which Eris could understand, since himself wasn't very pleased to spend his young days learning what this old hag had to teach him. But it had made him grow into a strong leader, yes, but mostly into a strong person. Because in Eris' opinion, knowledge was power. And it was a must that his kids were tutored for at least a few years.

“What about my son?”

Ms.Crawford leaned onto her cane, peering into Eris' amber eyes like she had done when he was just a young Fae. But her authority didn't shake him, not anymore. So he stood tall, and tucked his hands into his pockets, waiting.

“Today, he refused to use his magic,”

Eris raised a brow. “He respected his limits, so?”

“My Lord, with all due respect,” She spat, and Eris' eyes lit up with dark flames, “The boy will never be worthy to keep his title of Heir to the throne of Autumn Court if he won't risk to test the limits of his powers. It should be an honor for him to-”

“Say one more word,” Eris hissed, towering the woman from all his height, “And I'll send you to the farthest spot of this continent and exile you from my Court forever.”

Eris was panting. His fists were clenched on his sides and sparks of fire were crackling all around him. But the old hag stood tall, unshakable. “I am only trying to educate your son, High Lord,”

“Your ruler has changed, methods of education have changed. I thought I had made that clear with you when I had been kind enough to not find a replacement for you. But you're making me regret this decision with every damn word you dare to utter,” Eris gulped, reigning in his magic to prevent it turning this old lady into a mere pile of ashes. “I am not raising soldiers, nor rulers. I am raising kids, good kids; and when they grow up it will be up to them to decide what they do with the powers they were given,”

Eris stepped back, his eyes still piercing holes through Ms.Crawford's face. “I shall summon you to discuss your tutoring contract, soon. Until then, I hope you'll follow the new educational expectations of this Court. Have I made myself clear?”

The old hag frown turned into a sly grin, barely noticeable. When she turned to leave, she peered at Eris over her shoulder. “I knew you'd be a strong ruler one of these days, Eris Vanserra. Times and methods have changed, yes, but I've taught you well,” She said, then left. Her old, frail legs supported her on her way out of this palace.

Taglist: @mybestfriendmademe @lilah-asteria @acotar-lover

[scenteddelusion5]

"Two households, both unalike in dignity, In our unsightly hell, where we lay our scene," PART 3

Vox x gn reader (Alastor's child)

Note: sorry for the rickroll guys, I promise I won't do it again. It's a little shorter but I really wanted it to end where it did because dread. Part 4 will be around the same length as 1 and 2. Also for anyone wondering this takes place before Alastor's 7 years abscence. It's not canon compliant anyway but this does give you a bit of a timeline.

Word count: 2784

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5

After thinking about it Y/n had reluctantly agreed to start 'dating', even thinking of it made them want to smash their head into the wall. And of course their father had already heard about, probably from Rosie or, even more likely, Paris himself. Alastor wouldn't shut up about it and they had to just nod along. This did mean, however, that Y/n was able to use this as a cover up for when they were hanging out with Vox, which is exactly what they did the day after.

Y/n had put on a big jacket, covering their fancy fit, and rushed out the door while rambling about meeting with Paris. Alastor just let them go, only asking for them to be back by ten.

"Hey Vox!" Y/n jumped in to give the man a big hug, getting a strong whiff of his cologne.

"You look dazzling tonight love." He kissed their hand. "I hope you'll like this place, I know it's not of your usual tastes."

"Oh, don't worry about it."

The night went well, the two love birds laughed and cried and gazed into each other's eyes in their private booth.

"You know, I thought it was very sweet you tried to eat demon for me. I was always scared that most people would think it was a dealbreaker."

" I mean I don't mind it but next time we'll go to a restaurant where they have options for the both of us." Vox laughed. "I don't find it a deal breakers, you shouldn't be scared. Besides aren't there a bunch of bachelors in Cannibal Town, like Paris."

"Don't remind me," they sighed, "Vox I... uhm I need to tell you something." Y/n thought back on yesterday, when they smiled in front of their father only to ball their eyes out in their room. "Something happened yesterday with Paris and... Just promise you won't do anything reckless."

"I promise." The TV Demon stared into their eyes with worry. So many thoughts about what this fucker could've done to them swirled through his head.

And so Y/n told him everything; the blackmailing, Paris' smug face, how he practically was an annoying Radio Demon fan wannabe and worst of all Alastor's positive reaction to the news.

"I know I lied to him... I-I know I tried to hide it from him, but somewhere deep down I hoped he would realise I was lying, that it was a facade." They cried. "I'm so selfish, aren't I?"

"Dearie, you aren't. And evening you were, this is hell, so who cares?" Vox tried to console them. "But if this bothers you so much, maybe we should tell him?"

"NO!" They yelled " He will KILL you."

"Alright... We'll find a solution, I promise."

The rest of the night went relatively well. They were able to joke around again. When Vox was walking them back, they complained that their feet hurt, so he swiftly picked them up. Y/n's face was buried in his neck while he held them close.

"I love you."

"I love you too."

When Y/n got home, they looked through their bookcase looking for a certain story. It wasn't there, they checked once more, then again, one last time... And nothing. They walked downstairs and saw Alastor sitting in the kitchen preparing for his next broadcast.

"Hey dad? Have you seen one of my books, it's called Demio and Cannette?" They asked.

"Hmmm, yes I did," he answered, "I didn't think that book was appropriate for you, so I got rid of it."

"What? WHY? You've never checked them before? Why all of a sudden..."

"I know you got the fairytale idea of 'falling in love' with my rival from that wretched story." Alastor stood up from his seat and came over to them. "But you don't need it anymore. You're now with a civilized man and I don't want you to change your mind because you are being influenced by frivolous stories. Speaking of Paris, how was your date?"

"Oh, it went well." They lied. "Don't just switch to a different topic! I STILL want my book back!"

"Not happening."

"YES IT Į̷͙̫̲̣̼̠̹̼̟͑̃̀̾̇̚͘͠S̵̻̪̠̔!!!" Y/n yelled back.

"You can throw a tantrum all you want, you aren't getting it back." His antlers grew. "I WILL do A̸͓̦̿̓̆N̶̻͑Y̶͚̅̓̄̕T̸͙̫͕̥̎͝H̴͈̙̘̮̋̕Î̷͊ͅṊ̵̪͖͕̆̅͒̄G̵̠̯͉͛̄͊ to protect you. Even if you disagree, U̶̢͚͚̲͕̎̇͂͝Ń̶̟͖̥̪̙̿̀͜D̴̹̯̩͓͘͜E̷̟̔̚R̷̬̫̜͛̋̒͗̕S̷͎̺͉͕̥̼̐͆̌̈T̴͇͓̠͈͈͐͆̒̂A̵̳̘̮̩͛̌̄̉N̷͇͚̻̥͖̂̌̇͗͋ͅD̸̡̺̀̔ ?"

"I... I understand." They walked back up the stairs, their head down.

Alastor sighed. He didn't like speaking at his child like that but it was necessary. They needed this, he needed to protect them.

A week and a half went by, on some days Y/n secretly met up with Vox while on others they were forced to meet with Paris. Their 'dates' got more and more uncomfortable. Paris got more daring and daring, he even tried to kiss them once, Y/n quickly shut that down, still they couldn't keep him away forever, he might get sick of their unwillingness and spill the beans.

Y/n and Alastor hadn't talked much since their little fight.... They had never had fights before and now they seem to have become a regularity.

Vox had noticed a difference in them and one day, late in the night, while the two were facetiming, he mustered up the confidence to ask what's wrong.

"Love, what's wrong? You haven't been yourself for a while."

Tears filled their eyes. "I had a fight with dad, he... I don't think he would ever except us..."

"Love, you know that I'm not the biggest fan of your dad but he does care a lot about you. I'm sure once he sees that I truly love you, he'll be fine with it."

"I don't think so... He is just to overprotective, since... I died. It was my fault, I was being stupid reckless and was killed. Before I knew it dad was down here with me and took care of me, sheltered me." Their tears fell down onto their bed. "He cares too much, he won't hesitate to get rid of you to protect me."

"Fine, but just know, I can protect myself against that old fuck!"

"I'll just have to take your word for it," they laughed.

"How about we go to that old school pub around the corner tomorrow?" His speakers started playing a nice tune from their time. "I can show you my dance moves."

"Ughh!! I can't, I have a dinner with me, dad and that asshole!" They complained. "I wish I could come! We're going to that restaurant we went to back then? What was it called again?"

"Heartie's, I will never forget that place."

The two continued to talk into the night. Little did they know, someone eavesdropped on their conversation.

"Heartie's huh?" Valentino held up his gun, loading it with angelic bullets. "Once that bitch is gone, he'll shake out of this and then we'll take out the Radio Demon together."

Y/n was looking through their gallery. Modern phones were so intriguing, those little devices could hold hundreds upon hundreds of pictures. Most of theirs were of Vox or them both, a few were of hell's scenery. Their favourite was by far a certain picture with the two of them. They were hanging out at Vox's place, he introduced them to Vark, his pet shark, and ended up watching a movie. Y/n could still remember the warmth they felled cuddling up, the smell of the pyjama-shirt they borrowed from Vox, everything was amazing.

That's when a knock came from the door. Y/n quickly shoved their phone in their pocket.

"Fawn, it's me." Alastor opened the door. "I know we haven't talked much since our little... disagreement but please put that aside for now. We have a guest, please come down."

Waiting downstairs was Paris, of course. They wanted to groan but kept their in a smile.

“I was wondering if I could take you on a late-night stroll?”

Y/n took his hands and left the house with him.

“What do you want to talk about?” Their voice was direct.

“You really don’t do small talk do you?” Paris quipped.

They looked to the side. “Only with people I don’t like.”

���Hah! Yeah, you’re going to have to learn how to like me. You see, I know it’s been only been a week but I think we are both ready to tie the knot.” He pulled out a little box. “I mean, can you imagine? Me being the official son-in-law of the Radio Demon?”

“What?” Y/n’s ears pulled back. “What makes you think I will EVER marry you?”

“It’s simple, you don’t want that box to die.” A disgustingly smug smile decorated his face “One wrong move and his fate will be sealed.”

“I-I..”

“One more thing.” He put his hand in their pocket and pulled out their gifted phone. “You won’t be needing this anymore.”

“H̵̱̱̖͛́͛Ḙ̵̯̖̭́̆̅̕Ỷ̶̨͚̣̮̆̅͠!̸̦̜̜͈͖͆̆ ̷̯̈́T̵̨̹̙̻̤̎̈́̂́Ḫ̶̦̥̃Ă̷̙̯̐̑͝T̷̳̝̆̑̕’̷̹̠͔̈͋̏̆S̸͉͚̊̒̊͐̕ ̷̡̧̲̹͒̊̚M̶̭͔̳̣̈͆̌I̷͕͉̬͚͖͠N̸̟̾̄͋͊È̵̛̟̬͖͉̦!!!" Y/n’s eyes glowed, their stature grew and a they scowled.

“Uh uh uh, I wouldn’t do that if I were you, think about your paramour.” With one squeeze the thing crumbled up. As he let go, the now destroyed, device fell on the forest floor.

Vox was pacing around his apartment. He was contemplating going to the restaurant too, just to keep an eye on them.... But Alastor would recognize him. What to do? What to do?

That's when a call popped up on his screen. At first he got excited thinking Y/n might be calling him again but when he swiped it over to one of his set-up screens, he realised it was Velvette.

"Velvette, what do you want? I'm busy."

"Busy my ass! The only thing you've been doing the last two weeks is fawning over them." She held up her middle finger as if that'll prove her point. "I've been picking up YOUR slack, you piece of shit!"

"And that's why I've decided to send you out for a nice dinner tomorrow with all your friends. How about it?"

"This isn't some kind of trick is it?"

"Of course not." Vox's left eye took over most of his screen, circles spiralled his Z-shaped iris. "Just accept."

"Fine, but you NEED to get to work again. All this work has been driving me crazy and Val is doing jack shit." Her eyes drifted to something off-screen. "WHAT THE FUCK! Put that down you worthless BITCH!" She quickly left the call to deal with whatever was going on.

It's true that Vox had been somewhat slacking since meeting them, but can he be blamed? Anyone would if they were THIS head over heels for someone. He pulled up his digital to-do list. He wanted to try to get everything done by tomorrow, this way if something were to happen at the restaurant he'd be available and ready. So he dove into his documents and blueprints.

Vox looked over the different product proposals from his team, when one of them caught his eye.

The Voxle E-reader A VoxTech take on the older, popular kindl E-readers. A market VoxTech hasn't tapped yet and is overdue for a new revolutionary product.

The proposal came from a newer employee, whom Vox had already been considering demoting. The young demon barely brough anything to the table and an E-reader? It's true VoxTech never brought one out but it wasn't necessary, people could already use their V-pads which had many more uses. Besides, this is hell, how many demons actually read? Only those of higher status and they prefer paper books, like Y/n. Like Y/n... Would they like one? Before he could really think about it, he put the proposal in the approved pile. He couldn't wait to gift it to them.

Vox continued on working late into the night. He was so concentrate, the overlord didn't even notice he hadn't gotten any messages from his lover.

Morning came around and with that the dreaded day. The day went by like a blur for Y/n, eating, showering, reading, changing. They felt numb. This was happening, in a few hours they would be engaged to a slimy, shoe-licking bitch and there is nothing they could do about it. They couldn't even complain to their actual lover, their Vox. For the first time since dying, it actually felt like they were in hell.

They wore a beautiful green attire that showed their little deer tail with a matching hat they got from Cannibal Town. Walking downstairs, Alastor was waiting on them. He was wearing a fancier suit than usual.

"Y/n, I apologize for my role in our dispute." His apology was diplomatic and stiff, anything but sincere.

"Start actually meaning it and I might actually forgive you." They walked past him out the door.

Both Rosie and Paris were waiting outside. The whole way there was awkward. Y/n refused to talk with Alastor.

"Why don't you two head inside already?" Rosie shoved Paris and them towards the doors of the familiar establishment. "I want to talk to my dear old Alastor over here." Once the two were out of earshot she began, "So Al, what's going on?"

"There is nothing to worry about, Rosie. Me and Y/n simple had a bit of a disagreement nine days ago, nothing for you to worry about."

"You two never have fights, especially not those that last THIS long." She moved to stand closer to him. "And you're hating it. I see right through that smile of yours."

"I just, miss my little fawn... Ever since that wretched party, they seem to hate me..." For once in a decennia his ears fell back. "And they're hiding something from me, I know it! And it's troubling them, but Y/n refuses to come to me."

"Well... Maybe they're scared for your reaction. You can be a bit... Much when it comes to them. How about this? After dinner we'll have a good talk and lay everything on the table."

"Why not? Now after you." He opened the door for Rosie and followed suit. "Let's get to our table, I haven't been this hungry since the time my hunting rifle broke, hahaha."

Vox woke up on his desk, he had fallen asleep with papers and pen in hand. Looking at his computer it was late in the morning. His deer must have been worried about him since he hadn't texted them all morning, right? Right?

No, not a single text from them. They must have been nervous for the dinner.... But usually when they were nervous they would come to him for comfort. He was just being paranoid, just paranoid little Vox. It was just new for him not to have control over someone, the other two Vees often called him a control freak with how he hypnotised used his hypnotism powers...

Maybe he should've used it on Y/n after all? NO! he shoulder think like that! They were his partner, his equal.

He picked up his phone and messaged them:

Hey love! How are you? I know this day is stressful for you

No, answer. Y/n didn't even receive it. What was going on?

"Vox!" Velvette walked into his office. "I'm going to go get ready with the girls, don't forget to pick us up at the salon!"

"Don’t worry about it, I'll have it handled." He said smugly.

"You better! So make sure you don't fall asleep on your work again!"

Velvette took her leave again while Vox looked over everything he still needed to do. It was a LOT. So much he forgot all about his previous paranoia.

"So they're going to be at this restaurant?" An unknown voice asked.

"Yes, there're probably going to be one or two overlords with them," Valentino answered, "just get that whore and get out of there."

"Got it, don't worry. This isn't the first time I've dealt powerful demons."

Velvette and her girl friends had enjoyed their day at the salon and got picked up by Vox. The limo was fancier than usual, she guessed that he must've really felt bad for the slacking. Not surprising considering how much of a workaholic he was. She guessed wrong though, she guessed very wrong.

"Vox, what the FUCK are we doing back here?" She shoved her middle finger in his face. "This is about Y/n, isn't it?"

"Well, yes." Vox smiled. "Please Velvette, Y/n got a dinner with that Cannibal. They were really nervous about it, but the Radio fucker would notice me too fast."

"Fine, but you OWE me! GOT IT!!"

"Got it, whatever you want."

"Come on girls, we're getting dinner." She begrudgingly made her way inside.

Vox stepped back into the car just in time, because when he was on his way back, he saw them walking by. Y/n looked beautiful. How he wished he could be there.

Part 4

Masterlist/request guidelines

[tenebraevesper]

Shadow the Hedgehog (Sonic Prime, Character Analysis - Part 4)

Welcome back of Part 4 of my Shadow (and Sonic) character analysis! This time, we are covering all episodes up to Episode 16: Ghost of a Chance. While Shadow doesn't appear too often, he is certainly not sidelined, as you'll see soon.

Let's dive in!

''That's the first time one of them has made any sense.'' ''Nine's on our side, Shadow, and if you're not gonna help, you can-'' ''Oh, I can help.'' *knocks Sonic into No Place*

So, speaking of which, Shadow does have a scene in Episode 10: Battle in the Boscage, where he's just being a deadpan snarker, having witnessed Sonic's failure to get the Shard and knocking him right into No Place. I told you that he helps Sonic by keeping him focused on the mission. X3

In Episode 12: No Way Out, while Sonic is busy helping out Dread and his crew in No Place (or rather, being chased by them after he got the Shard), Shadow tries to stall the rest of the Chaos Council by damaging their ship with the crystals that float around in The Void.

''This totally seemed like it was going to be easy. Get the Shard and run fast, which I'm awesome at-'' ''Who are you talking to?! I can see you have the Shard! Run faster and get out of there!'' ''Turns out, it's hard to get up to full speed on water, even with these kicks. Not to mention, having pirates blasting at you.'' ''Then go where they can't blast you.'' ''I need solid ground. I know just where to get it. By the time that ship gets here, I'll be a blip on the horizon.'' ''What was that about a blip?''

So, while Sonic is pursued by Dread and his pirate crew because he's carrying the Shard and Dread spun a lie about Sonic betraying them, he managed to kick up enough Prism Energy to talk to Shadow, who immediately reminds him to get out of No Place. I absolutely love how Sonic is so done with Shadow nagging him like this, especially considering how Shadow probably doesn't know what happened in No Place besides the fact that Sonic got the Shard. Shadow continues to be a deadpan snarker throughout their conversation and it is pure hilarity. You can bet that he was itching to go to No Place himself and help Sonic out.

But considering how he can't, he decides to deal with the Chaos Council robots that are repairing the ship, freaking out Dr. Don't in the process. Unfortunately for him, Mr. Dr. Eggman activates the ship and flies it towards No Place, leaving a frustrated Shadow.

You've done as much as you could, buddy. Honestly, I don't think that even hitching a ride on the ship would've brought you into No Place. Fortunately, in Episode 15: Cracking Down, Sonic managed to eventually get all of the Shards and with Nine in the tow, after making a stop at No Place and Boscage Maze, finally enters The Void.

''It's about time.'' ''Nine, meet Shadow. Shadow, meet Nine.'' ''You're not another version of Sonic, but you could be twins.'' ''Hardly. I am The Ultimate Lifeform.'' ''Don't listen to him. Com'n!''

I do love this small talk, with Nine pointing out how Shadow and Sonic look similar (don't worry Nine, you're not the first to make this mistake), and Shadow retorting how he's the Ultimate Lifeform. You know, he could've just said how he and Sonic are nothing alike or explained Nine the deal, but he decides to go for a boast that is also a factual statement.

*growls* ''Sycophantic wish fulfillment.''

After arriving at Ghost Hill, Sonic goes back to the Ghost Variants of his friends, looking at them longingly, with Shadow calling it a sycophantic wish fulfillment, with Sonic actually looking back at him and smiling. Yeah, he understands that this wasn't much of an insult on Shadow's part, but just more of him pointing out the reality of the situation. Sonic is definitely more optimistic here, knowing that soon, everything will be over, while Shadow, in his own way, shows that he shares his feelings on the matter.

So far, Shadow has gotten along with Sonic quite well after their fight, but when Nine comments on him and Tails being nothing alike, we get this look.

Once again, he is not trusting Nine, no matter what Sonic says, which becomes the new core of their arguments. However, before they could continue, they're hit with another reality quake, with Shadow leading Sonic and Nine towards the Paradox Prism cave. Even if he doesn't want to trust Nine, he has to rely on him to fix the Paradox Prism. He even agrees to Nine's condition on being left alone to fix the Paradox Prism by taking Sonic outside.

''How do you know that you can trust him?'' ''Trust is an issue for you Shadow. That's why you don't have any friends.'' ''I don't think your friend wants the same we do.''

So, first of all, GODDAMN SONIC, YOU WENT STRAIGHT FOR THE JUGULAR WITH THAT FRIEND COMMENT! Like, Shadow really needs some aloe vera for that burn. Seriously, that hits right in the heart, sheesh!

Honestly, knowing what I know about SEGA handling Shadow's character, as in him, Rouge and Omega not being friends, this really hurts. Nevertheless, Sonic isn't wrong.

I had talked in the previous Part of my analysis how Sonic and Shadow complement each other, but I mainly pointed out how Shadow helps Sonic to focus. But, what about Sonic? Well, one consistent issue Shadow has is his distrust of other people, which given his backstory, is valid. However, with Sonic, who fights for others, be it friends or strangers, he does have at least one person he can trust - even if that person is responsible for all the trouble they're currently dealing with. Sonic might come off as a bit insensitive and he is certainly reckless, but his heart is in the right place and Shadow knows that. That's why he sticks by his side and trusts him.

In Sonic Prime, Sonic is Shadow's only friend.

Unfortunately, Sonic's premature celebration of them finally fixing reality is interrupted by the Chaos Council appearing in Ghost Hill, leading into Episode 16: Ghost of a Chance. Now, here, we are shown what real teamwork between Sonic and Shadow looks like.

*sighs* ''Don't you just hate this part? The build up! Shadow and Sonic versus unbeatable odds with the fate of the world at stake. Like, let's just get on with it already!'' *Shadow rolls eyes at him* ''Hey, I'm not going to be the one who pulls a hammy.'' ''What about him? We can't just leave him alone with the Prism Shards.'' ''Uh, yes we can, seeing as he's the only one who can put them together and, you know, fix reality. You really don't trust him, do you?'' ''No.'' ''Of course you don't. You don't trust anyone. You wanna stay here and babysit? Fine, knock yourself out. I'm gonna buy us some time.

I just love this pre-battle banter between the two. Sonic is being so dramatic, but also optimistic, with Shadow just rolling his eyes at his dramatics (seriously, he knows Sonic too well) and questioning whether Nine can be trusted. Sonic brings up a good point about Nine being the only one who can put the Shards back together, something Shadow doesn't argue against, and leaves him to stall the Chaos Council.

Now we see Shadow, narrowing his eyes as he looks down at Sonic, then he glances at the Chaos Council's ship, contemplating the situation.

And 3... 2... 1... Yep, he leaps off the cliff to join Sonic in the battle. X3

I'm not gonna lie, I actually chuckled at this scene because this was too be expected. There is no way that Shadow would stay behind while Sonic fights for several reasons.

Firs of all, Shadow knows that Sonic will probably have trouble with the Chaos Council and will need someone to cover him and help protecting the Prism Shards. Second, Shadow has spent so much time trapped in The Void that he probably just to take his frustrations out on someone and the best target is the Chaos Council, especially since they are also responsible for this mess. Lastly, Shadow, just like Sonic, will never say no to a challenge, and I'm fairly certain that he decided to join the fight because of it.

''Well, look who couldn't resist a team up.'' ''Hardly. Have you seen what happens when you go at it alone?'' ''You mean landslide victory? Someone sounds jealous!''

More banter, but this time with Sonic being really happy about having Shadow joining in and Shadow... Okay, when I saw this scene, I thought that Shadow went tsundere for a moment. Yeah, he makes a good point, but he barely makes eye-contact with Sonic, as if he doesn't want to admit that there is probably more to his decision to join Sonic in the battle.

What follows next is these fighting off the Chaos Council's robots, with some epic shots peppered in (I'm certain that the animators had a field day with this one).

Seriously, you could use any screenshot like this one as a wallpaper. They look so awesome!

Of course, the Chaos Council is shocked to see Shadow joining the fight, and I think that, going by the hand motions Dr. Babble makes, either he wants to grab them and crush them, or he wants to grab them like Barbie dolls and make them kiss. It's probably the former, but if he's a shipper, I don't judge.

In any case, as Mr. Dr. Eggman diverts Prism Energy into the robots, Sonic gets knocked back by one and almost gets hit by missiles, but fortunately, Shadow saves him, leading into the moment that broke the shipping community.

''Probably gonna regret that.'' ''I heart you too, Shadow.''

*takes a deep breath*

You know what, any moment between them that felt like a shipping moment could be excused as Sonic just being friendly with Shadow and Shadow choosing to tolerate Sonic's affection, but this?! THIS?!

''I HEART YOU TOO, SHADOW.''

My jaw dropped when I saw this scene, because this is something I never imagined it would happen. I swear, there was definitely a Sonadow shipper on the writing team, because how the hell do you explain this scene?! Not only that, but the Sonadow community went through every language (myself included) to check what line Sonic tells Shadow in the other dubs, and it's all a variation of ''I love you too, Shadow.'' Not to mention the Thai dub, where Sonic makes kissy noises at Shadow. Kissy noises!

Bless you, Thai dub, for your contribution to the Sonadow community. If non-shippers wondered why everyone freaked out and nicknamed this show Sonadow Prime, here's your reason.

Of course, Shadow just rolls his eyes, carrying Sonic like sack of potatoes. Yeah, he's too used to this.

So, the battle continues, with Sonic and Shadow splitting up and Shadow dodging Dr. Don't's laser blasts, only for Mr. Dr. Eggman to fire at him a bigger energy blast. They think they got him, but he's revealed to be just fine.

Dude, he's smiling again! This is so cute! (≧◡≦)

Sonic is obviously worried about Shadow, thinking the Chaos Council got him. When he checks on the crater, he refuses to believe that Shadow would go down so easily, and he is right about that. He even acknowledges that, when Shadow returns to back him up, that the robots aren't tough at all when they work together. This is then followed up by a fight against Dr. Babble and Dr. Deep, who get a boost via the Prism Shard energy.

''Go! Protect the Prism!

When the cave gets breached, placing Nine and the Shards in danger, Shadow tells Sonic without any hesitation to protect the Prism, with Sonic nodding in agreement, his expression serious. It is a moment of quiet understanding, both knowing what's at stake here. Unfortunately, Shadow gets taken out by Dr. Deep a moment later, with Sonic and Nine eventually getting cornered and deciding to use the Prism energy to power Sonic up.

Sonic quickly takes out the enemy, being so fast that he leaves afterimages of himself, and goes to check on Shadow, who is still fighting Dr. Babble and Dr. Deep.

''Hey Shadow! Sorry to keep you waiting!''

I dunno what's with Shadow's expression here, but it always cracks me up whenever Sonic calls for him. Sonic then proceeds to beat up the two, leaving Shadow baffled in regards to what just had happened.

''How...'' ''Got a power up to save your butt! You're welcome!''

Shadow goes from slack-jawed to just... the image above. I dunno how to describe it, but I think it's something in the lines of ''Of course you got a power up. I shouldn't even be surprised.''

''It's aiming away from us! That doesn't make any sense! Maybe they know when they're beat? These guys? Please, if you believe that, then you're even dumber than you look.'' *nods* ''Finally a Sonic I can agree with.''

I absolutely love this little exchange, with Sonic bantering with his afterimages and Shadow looking so done with Sonic's antics until Sonic says something that makes sense, chiming in with his own comment. I adore Shadow's expression so much here, because you can see just what is going through his head. Also, Sonic shot himself in the foot with that last comment.

The two then observe Mr. Dr. Eggman creation what can only be described as Kaiju Prime!Eggman made out of Prism Energy.

''It's official, I've seen it all!''

I agree here with Sonic. Nobody expected a Kaiju Dr. Eggman who can shoot lasers from his mouth to appear. Shadow is equally baffled by what just happened. Sonic is the one to fight back Kaiju!Eggman, being devastated when he destroys the Loop-de-Loop, with Shadow already being aware of what is going through the blue hedgehog's head.

''Sonic, don't! You can't save anything unless you protect the Shards!''

Unfortunately, Sonic doesn't listen this time, fighting Kaiju!Eggman and doing nothing to him.

''Get to the Shards!''

It is only when Shadow reminds him again to go after the Shards, getting blasted away by Kaiju!Eggman and Sonic realizing that Nine is in danger, that the blue hedgehog rushes towards the cave. There, he and Nine decide to use even more of the Prism energy to power Sonic up, giving us this new form.

This is Prismatic Sonic, and as many have noticed, this shot right here might as well be the same as Dark Sonic from Sonic X. It's kinda chilling to see.

Fortunately, Prismatic Sonic beats Kaiju!Eggman, briefly glancing at Shadow as he arrives at the scene.

Yeah, he's certainly happy that everything went well, following it up by going back to Nine and celebrating their victory. Unfortunately, it is short-lived, because what follows is an argument between him and Nine, who considers Sonic selfish for never seeing him as his own person and more of an extension of Tails, causing another energy pulse to knock Sonic out.

Shadow gets knocked out, suddenly realizing that something went very wrong and quickly speeds off towards the cave.

There, he finds out not only that Nine took the Shards and left, but he also finds a devastated Sonic, who is hit with a wave of realization of that he made things just worse, dooming their reality to destruction.

It is very telling of how much Sonic regrets his words and actions when the last shot of him is covering his face with his hands, clearly crying.

So, that was Part 4, the part where we saw how well Shadow and Sonic work together as a team, peppered with some fun banter and Shadow actually getting used more and more to work together with Sonic. The one aspect of his character that gets highlighted here is Shadow's clear distrust of Nine, something Sonic teases him about, but notice how Shadow actually doesn't stay behind to keep an eye on Nine, actually trusting Sonic's word that Nine is on their side.

At least, until the end when Nine leaves, hurt by Sonic's words and believing that Sonic betrayed him.

This sense of distrust and Shadow's bond with Sonic will be more explored in Part 5, when I cover Episode 17: Grim Tidings.

#Shadow the Hedgehog (Sonic Prime, Character Analysis - Part 3)

#Shadow the Hedgehog (Sonic Prime, Character Analysis - Part 5)

#Sonic the Hedgehog Analyzer (Masterlist)

[d1xonss]

Desert Rose

Chapter 45 ~ All Good things Must come to an End

✧ Pairing : Daryl Dixon x Rose

✧ Era : Season 4

✧ Word Count : 5.8k

In this chapter ~ After living in the newfound community for six whole months, things seem to still be going strong. Relationships had been built, responsibilities had been taken care of, and for the most part, everyone was happy. Though...it can't always stay that way forever.

The smell of cooking meat and eggs filled my senses as I allowed my mind wander for the fifth time that morning alone. Time was a fickle thing, always somehow getting away from me in the end as it was always hard to keep track of and catch. But I couldn't help but try and count the days, knowing that sometime in the upcoming dates would mark six whole months since our community first started. And it still to this day couldn't be more perfect.

I found myself to be very content with where I was in life right now, I was happy, only growing closer with the people we surrounded ourselves with. Though I knew if my past self could see me now, she would be screaming at me. Like I'm talking absolutely losing her shit screaming at me, knowing how much I couldn't trust people in the beginning. But allowing myself out of my shell was probably the best thing that could've ever happened to me. I had never had a family like this before, and I found that I tried to cherish it whenever I got the chance, especially recently.

"Oh, careful it's going to burn!" Carol's somewhat panicked voice spoke up from beside me.

I snapped out of it in an instant, "Shit," I quietly cursed and took the meat off of the makeshift stove, waving my hand over it to get rid of the smoke as it fizzled down.

She peeked around me for a moment and smiled to herself, "You saved it." she said in slight relief before laughing lightly, "What's got you so distracted?"

I glanced over at her as I began to plate the cooked breakfast, "All good things, I promise. I was just...thinking about how far we've come. How happy I am."

Her smile got wider, "We have come pretty far, huh?" she asked while wrapping an arm around my shoulders, looking out to all the people chatting and doing their own thing beyond where we stood.

"We're lucky." I stated as I finished scooping up the food.

She looked back over at me, "Yeah, we are. Couldn't imagine it working out any better than this," she agreed as she gave my shoulder a squeeze, before pulling away to go back to her own pan, "Who's that plate for?"

"Rick." I stated, "I know if I don't give this to him, he won't eat anything at all. I'll just be a sec, you got it handled?" I asked knowingly.

Her only response was to give me a certain look as I laughed to myself, grabbing the plate and heading down to where I knew Rick would be busying himself this morning. These days he seemed to be constantly staying down near the gates, managing the crops we had planted and taking care of the animals we somehow managed to find. In my opinion he didn't really give himself a break and was overworking to the max.

Getting up at the ass crack of dawn just to get a head start on feeding the pigs and checking the vegetables, it's something that he didn't need to be doing. And he knew it too. But he was too stubborn to slow down or take it easy, so I just let him be.

I spotted him in the distance as I slowly walked down the small hill, heading towards the grass to see him filling up the water in the stables. His arms shook slightly as he lifted the weight of the gallons of water, sweat dripping off his forehead as he tried to wipe it on the sleeve of his shirt.

"Hey, Old McDonald!" I yelled to get his attention.

He whipped his head towards me, and a smile broke out onto his face as he squinted his eyes from the blinding sun behind my head, "Yeah, Rosie?" he asked.

I made my way closer to him and let out a small breath, holding out the plate, "Breakfast." I said simply.

"No, I can't, my hands are filthy." he said while looking down at the dirt and mud that was coated everywhere along his palms, under his fingernails.

I frowned, "Okay." I said while grabbing some of the meat in my hand and holding it up towards his face.

He raised an eyebrow, "What are you doing?"

"You said your hands are filthy, but you need to eat...so eat." I said while holding my hand closer to his mouth, dangling the meat from my grasp.

"I'll eat later." he replied.

My eyes narrowed as I wasn't budging and he only sighed in response, slowly opening his mouth anyway. I smiled in victory and dropped the meat in his mouth, listening in as he informed me of the things that needed to be adjusted down here in the fields. It was quite the boring topic of choice, but I only wanted to make sure he actually ate something seeing as he was baking in the hot sun constantly.

Though there were times we had to speak a little louder because of the walkers piled up along the fence, snarling and banging on the flimsy barrier, making too much damn noise. There were a lot of them, and although we had people clearing them every day, they still seemed to be a problem. It had never been an issue before now, but I figured with the amount of noise and people we had behind the gates, it only drew more of them closer.

Suddenly, Rick and I seemed to momentarily stop our conversation when we heard a pair footsteps approaching, the two of us turning around to see Carl coming our way rather quickly like he was late.

He smiled at me before looking towards his dad, "You didn't wake me up." he spoke a little out of breath.

"Cause I knew you were up all night reading comics with a flashlight." he stated with a raised eyebrow.

Both boys then slowly looked toward me knowingly. Carl had a smirk on his face while Rick didn't look the least bit amused as I held my hands up in surrender, "What the hell are you looking at me for?"

"You're the one who got him the comics Ro." Rick stated with a tilt of his head.

"Hey," I said pointing at him, "Michonne got him some of those comics too, why don't you yell at her."

He tried to suppress a chuckle, "Well, she's not here, so you're the only one I can blame right now."

I placed a hand over my heart in mock offense, "Well, that's hurtful." I stated, causing them both to laugh, "You know what, I should've let you starve." I said while placing the paper plate on the thick wooden fence.

"Now that's hurtful." Rick stated, his tone still dripping with sarcasm.

I just raised my hands again with a smirk on my face, "Enjoy your father son bonding time." I winked before backing away.

However, Carl caught my arm before I could get too far, leaning in to whisper in my ear, "Can you still get me some more on your next run?"

I gave him a pointed look, "Just don't tell your dad and we're good." I warned.

He gave me a smile and nodded excitedly, all while letting go of my arm so I could make my way back up towards the prison. As I slowly approached Carol's station again, a few people were quick to notice my presence, greeting me with praises and smiles on their faces. I managed to be as polite as I could considering how early it was, but the attention Daryl and I were getting was only getting worse.

After I went out with him on that hunt just a few weeks ago, I've been getting out more frequently to help out, and to say the people in the community were grateful would be an understatement. Everywhere we went, we would get stopped to talk, or just a simple thank you as we walked by. We both weren't used to the amount of attention, but I tried my best to hide it. I simply smiled at all the good morning's being thrown my way as I approached Carol again to help her finish up.

"Still aren't getting used to it huh?" she smirked, not taking her eyes off the food in front of her.

It's like she read my goddamn mind.

I sighed, "I don't think I'll ever get used to it." I admitted, "But the funny thing is, Daryl's a lot more awkward than I am so it's worth it to see him squirm a little."

She looked up, "Oh, speak of the devil."

I followed her line of sight once she spoke to see the man himself making his way over to us. There of course were a few greetings as he passed by and I almost busted out laughing at his facial expressions. He didn't know how to respond, giving only a simple nod as he passed through the group of people. Though I felt a big grin spread to my face as I saw his eyes light up when he caught sight of me, his pace picking up the smallest bit.

"Mornin." he drawled, leaning over to kiss my cheek.

"Hey, Daryl!" a woman greeted as she passed the three of us.

He pulled away from me and looked over to the woman who said it, only to look back at me with wide eyes and an annoyed look to his face, "This still happenin to you?"

"Worse." I responded, "Just wait for it." I said while briefly holding up my pointer finger.

Not a second later, a teenage boy passed us in a slight rush, "Goodmorning Rose!" he still managed to call out.

I smiled in response before it quickly dropped again as I looked back at Daryl with the same look he gave me earlier, hearing him chuckle at me as he leaned over the small stove. "Smells good." he commented while looking to see the food we were making.

"Goodmorning Dixons!" a man yelled as he walked by.

Carol looked up to see our faces and laughed lightly to herself, "Just so you know, I liked you two first."

Daryl scoffed a little, "Stop." he muttered, tossing some of the meat in his mouth before continuing, "Ya know, Rick brought a lot of them in too. Wasn't just us."

"Not recently," she responded, "Give the strangers sanctuary, keeping people fed, you're going to have to learn to live with the love." she then turned to look at me, "Even you." she smirked.

"Hey, I'm trying here. Just don't like the attention, it makes me feel...itchy."

"Itchy?" she questioned.

I paused for a moment before nodding more confidently, "Yeah."

"Right," she said before taking the meat off of the stovetop again, "Anyway, I need to show you both something quick, Patrick would you mind taking over?" she asked a teenage boy who was standing too far away from us.

"Yes ma'am." he said politely.

I began to move around the grill, walking towards Daryl who snaked an arm around my waist. I glanced up at him and saw him take the bowl he was eating out of, putting the rim of it up to his mouth to get a huge bite of meat. My brows furrowed, and when he looked down at me and caught me staring, he opened his mouth full of food.

I scrunched up my face, "Gross." I muttered, trying to hold back a chuckle while lightly pushing his face away from me.

"Yer gross." he retorted.

I narrowed my eyes at him, "I swear, I'm married to a child." I laughed.

He gave me a cheeky smile and began to chew to say something else, but the kid, Patrick, cleared his throat suddenly as if to get our attention. The two of us turned to look at him, and he immediately got flustered and nervous when just making eye contact.

"Uh...Mr. and Mrs. Dixon? I just um...wanted to thank you for bringing the deer's back yesterday. I mean... it was a real treat, and I would be honored to shake your hands."

Daryl and I seemed to share some kind of look. I couldn't tell if it was one of humor or one of dread, but either way I had to bite back another laugh as I pulled away from Daryl's grasp, shaking his hand with a small smile.

Daryl, however, wasn't as polite.

As I backed away from Patrick, he looked at me as if he needed confirmation to which I just nodded. But I clearly didn't know what was coming. He then one by one, licked his fingers clean from the meat and used that same hand to shake his firmly. I pressed my lips together to suppress a laugh that threatened to escape as I saw the look on the poor kid's face. Daryl gave him a smug smile before letting go and placing his arm back around my waist so we could follow behind Carol.

I had to wait for a moment or two so we were far enough away, before I couldn't help but laugh quietly to myself. "What?" Daryl asked almost instantly with a small smirk of his own.

I only shook my head, "That was terrible."

"Ah, but ya thought it was funny." he pointed out, giving my side a small squeeze, as if it was his goal to get me to laugh all along.

I rolled my eyes playfully in response as we continued to walk, feeling him place a small kiss on the side of my head. We followed the woman until she suddenly stopped while looking out at the closest fence, the walkers still surrounding it and trying to get through. From an outsider's perspective, it seemed like we were hardly making a dent when in reality we had people out there taking care of them constantly.

"About today," she started, "I don't know if we're gonna be able to spare a lot of people for the run." she said as she gestured to the amount of people already working on clearing the walkers.

"We won't need too many." I reassured, "Plus that place is good to go, we're going to clear it today."

"Yeah," she nodded, "The thing is, we had a pretty big build up overnight. Dozens more towards tower three, and it's getting as bad as last month. They don't spread out anymore."

Daryl spoke up, "With more of us sittin here, we're drawin more of 'em out. Ya get enough of those damn fence-clingers, they start to herd up."

"Pushing against the fences again," I voiced my thoughts out loud, "That had been a bitch to deal with these past few weeks."

"Yeah, it has," Carol agreed, "It's manageable, but unless we get ahead of it, not for long." she spoke before looking towards Daryl, "Sorry pookie." she said before sending a knowing wink my way.

I smiled to myself as I tried not to show too much of a reaction at the nickname Carol had recently given him. Her sole purpose was to get on his nerves and it worked every time without fail, and I personally thought it was hilarious. He scoffed in response, pushing her arm lightly as she walked away from us to go back and finish up whatever she was cooking for the time being. The moment she was out of earshot, I started to laugh quietly to myself.

When my eyes finally moved back up to his face, he was already glaring at me, "Aw pookie." I said while poking his cheek lightly.

He sighed and stood there for a moment as a few beats of silence passed, before he quickly picked me up in one swift motion and tossed me over his shoulder. A small squeal escaped me because of how fast everything happened, feeling him begin to spin me around to I would get dizzy. My protests meant nothing to him as I tried to smack him in order for him to put me back down, but that only seemed to edge him on further, chuckling to himself at his own actions.

"Put me down!" I yelled as my stomach hurt from laughter.

"Quit callin me that." he countered back, beginning to spin me the other way.

My breath caught in my throat as I felt all the blood rushing to my head, "Okay, okay, I give." I spoke slightly out of breath.

He then slowly stopped spinning and carefully lowered himself to put me back down onto my feet. I felt myself sway a little to try and catch my balance, but the whole world was still spinning around me in a nauseating way. He let out another laugh as he placed both of his hands on my arms to help steady me.

"Ya know, I don't really know why I married you. Yer kinda annoying." he joked as he flicked the tip of my nose gently.

My mouth dropped at his words in mock offense, "Well, you're no saint Daryl Dixon, plus there's plenty of other people around here." I gestured to the group around us.

He pretended to look around, scrunching up his face in through for a moment before looking back at me, "Nah...none of 'em are you." he said sweetly before placing a soft kiss on my lips.

I smiled into the kiss, pulling away briefly to mumble, "Damn right." before bringing him in again. He brought his hands to the side of my face and deepened the kiss, feeling his lip slightly upturning into a smirk. But he pulled away before either one of us could get too carried away, leaving a few lingering pecks in the process.

"Alright, we gotta stop or we're gonna be late for that run." he huffed.

I nodded my head in silent agreement, knowing that was nothing but the truth. We headed back towards the cars where a few others were gathering their things, getting a few vehicles ready to head out. Daryl parted from me to pull his bike up closer, leaving me to load the bed of the pickup truck, filling it as much as I could with a few weapons and supplies. Though my eyes glanced up once I saw some movement heading toward me, seeing Tyreese breaking away from his sister before heading my way to place a few things in the back alongside me.

"You're coming along too?" I questioned with a smile on my face.

He shrugged, "Yeah, I figured why not. It's been a while since I've been on a run, and plus you know it's gonna be entertaining when you're going."

I gently pushed his arm, "Oh whatever." I muttered and he smiled at me, before making his way back over to Sasha.

My gaze followed him for only a moment before something to the left pulled my attention away. Zach and Beth stood off to the side, talking quietly with each other before he came along with the rest of us. It was the first time he was coming with us to a place like this, his very first time on a run really and I understood completely why he wanted to see her again before we headed out. Although it seemed like she didn't see the big deal behind it as I watched her shrug it off, feeling Daryl come back next to me to witness the end of the conversation.

She kissed him once more before fully walking away, "Aren't you gonna say goodbye?" he asked.

"Nope!" she yelled over her shoulder, smiling brightly as she passed me, "Bye, Ro."

I nodded to her with a small smile, "It's like a damn romance novel." Daryl grumbled out loud as he zipped up his bag, causing me to hit his arm lightly to get him to stop talking.

But the kid's head snapped over towards him as he clearly heard his hushed words, "Oh you're one to talk." he clapped back.

Daryl glared pointedly at him, pulling away from the truck to approach him and Zach's eyes widened, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry." he quickly stuttered out before speed walking in the other direction.

Daryl watched him scurry away for a moment before turning back towards me with a smug smile on his face, "Be nice." I scolded lightly with a roll of my eyes, shutting the bed of the truck with a slam.

He shook his head, "Nah, I only like bein nice to you."

I sighed as I placed my hands on my hips, "Okay... then just be civil." I offered.

He scoffed, "Even that's pushin it."

"Daryl." I warned.

"Rosie." he mocked.

I narrowed my eyes at him, "Like I said, a child. I'm married to a child."

"Oh, but ya love me anyways." he said with a goofy grin.

His smile only made me smile, "Yeah, I guess I do." I admitted as I walked over and placed a gentle kiss on his cheek, "Like a damn romance novel." I whispered with a smirk before walking back towards the others to finally get the show on the road.

Once we got the okay from everyone, Daryl hopped on his bike and held out a hand to help me on the back of it like always. We made our way towards the front gate in a formed line with the cars trailing behind us, and that's when I noticed Rick and Carl were talking with a familiar face. I smiled to myself when I saw Michonne, knowing she must've just gotten back from a run.

To this day she was still looking for The Governor and hasn't given up yet. It honestly broke my heart seeing how much she wanted to find and put an end to him, staying out for longer periods of time now only to come back for a day or two, before she was leaving again. But I supposed it only made me cherish the times when she was here before she disappeared all over again.

The loud rumble of the motorcycle approaching seemed to catch both of their attention as Daryl barely had a chance to slow the thing to a stop before I was quickly hopping off to greet her. She smiled brightly the moment she caught my eye.

"Well, well, look who's back." I said while quickly wrapping my arms around her in a tight hug.

She gave me a gentle squeeze, "It's good to be back." she confirmed, pulling away to wrap an arm around my shoulder and looked towards Daryl, "Didn't find him." she said simply while looking back and forth between the two of us.

"Glad to see you in one piece." Daryl nodded.

She smiled slightly and continued, "I'm thinking of looking over near Macon...it's worth a shot."

"Seventy miles of walkers, ya might run into a few unneighborly types. Is it?" Daryl asked with squinted eyes.

She didn't respond right away, not knowing for sure if all the things she was putting herself through was truly worth it. It must've been a constant conflict in her mind.

I found myself speaking up again to fill the silence after a moment, knowing she didn't need to decide right now. "We're heading out to check the Big Spot a couple miles from here, the one we were talking about. Just to see." I informed Rick.

"Yeah, I got to go out and check the snares. I don't want to lose whatever we catch to the walkers." he replied.

My eyes glanced back to Michonne who still had her arm wrapped around me, bumping her hip with mine to grab her attention, "Why don't you come with us?" I asked.

She smiled down at me and nodded, "Alright...I'll go."

Carl then spoke up for the first time with a slight frown on his face, "But you just got here." he complained.

"And I'll be back." she assured, letting go of me and making her way back to one of the cars with her bag still crossed over her shoulders.

I made eye contact with the kid and noticed the new comic books clutched tightly in his hands, smirking to myself, "I'll keep an eye out." I spoke quietly to him as I gestured to what was in his arms.

He smiled at me and nodded eagerly before I turned back around to hop on the back of Daryl's bike again. As I adjusted myself on the back, placing my hands around his middle, I looked up to Rick as he gave me a small smile, "Stay safe." he said, receiving a nod from us in return.

Daryl started his bike back up, watching as Rick jogged a little towards the gates to open them up for us. I tried to ignore the snarls of the walkers around us once we made it outside the safety of the prison. It seemed like they've tripled, and the groups only kept getting bigger. Their dead eyes followed us as we quickly drove past them, attempting to reach out for us slowly before we were just out of reach.

I rested my chin on Daryl's shoulder and closed my eyes as the wind hit my face and blew my hair wildly behind me. He took one of his hands and gave my thigh a squeeze before putting it back on the handle, revving his engine a bit as the vehicles behind us stayed close. I smiled at his actions and placed a kiss on his shoulder before closing my eyes again, trying to relax for this longer ride ahead of us.

After driving down the long and windy roads we finally made it to the Big Spot, quickly grabbing the weapons we needed from the back of the truck to check out the oddly quiet place. Each of us stayed silent as we made it up to the large double doors of the place, trying to pinpoint the number of walkers in the area. The parking lot was completely trashed, tents and tarps were set up all around as we silently weaved through them, double checking our surroundings.

Once we got up to the door, Daryl peered into one of the big windows before banging his elbow against it loudly to see how many of them were inside. You could barely see though the glass with how dirty it had become over the months.

"Just give it a second." he said to all of us, leaning his head against the building to try and listen for them as he sat propped up near the glass.

I walked over to the other window just a few feet away and attempted to glance inside, seeing nothing as I moved to put my ear up to it to try and listen for any walkers as well, but I couldn't hear a thing. The building was quite large, knowing that there could be a fair amount inside that we would have to clear out before anything. 

I absentmindedly walked back towards where the rest of them were waiting, sitting myself down on the edge of the window. Daryl scooted a bit closer to me the moment I sat down, feeling him giving my leg a light tap as we waited for any kind of noise coming from inside.

Zach then came around the corner, "Okay, I think I got it." he announced.

Michonne tilted her head a bit as she stepped closer as well, "Got what?" 

I nodded towards the man, "Zach's been trying to guess what Daryl did before the outbreak."

"He's been tryin to guess for like six weeks." Daryl muttered to me, though Zach still heard him clearly.

"Yeah, I'm pacing myself." he said in defense while taking a seat on the other side of me, "One shot a day."

Daryl nodded over to him, "Alright, shoot."

"Well, the way you are at the prison, you being on the council. You being able to track, you're helping people but you're still being kind of...surly."

I snorted which earned a light nudge from Daryl as Zach continued, "Okay, big swing here...homicide cop." he spoke confidently.

Michonne instantly began to laugh somewhat loudly to herself upon hearing the assumption, and Daryl squinted his eyes at her, "What's so funny?"

"Nothing," she shook her head, "Makes perfect sense."

Daryl then cleared his throat as he nodded, "Actually the man's right; undercover."

My head whipped over in his direction with a shocked expression, using my job as a copout so he could mess with the kid a little bit more. He only gave me a pointed look as if to say play along and I rolled my eyes, but didn't say anything as I let the man have his fun.

"Come on, really?" Zach excitedly said.

"Yep...I mean I don't like ta talk about it cause...it's a lot of heavy shit, ya know?" he said before turning his head to hide the small smirk growing on his face.

"Really?" Zach asked again.

"Mhm, that's where I met this lovely lady right here." he continued on as he wrapped his arm around me, "Went through a lot together, only brought us closer."

I couldn't help but scoff at the amount of bullshit coming out of his mouth, but I still didn't say a thing. Though at this point Daryl's voice was dripping with obvious sarcasm and Zach caught on after a moment and sighed to himself.

"Okay, I'll just keep guessing I guess." he muttered.

"Yeah, you keep doin that." Daryl replied.

I knocked Zach's foot with mine as I got his attention, "Hey, if it makes you feel better, not everything that came out of his mouth was a load of shit." He seemed to perk up at that. "I was actually an undercover cop."

"No shit?" he asked.

"No shit." I confirmed.

That seemed to lift his spirits a little, "What's your most badass story?"

I opened my mouth to speak, but that's when a walker finally made its way towards the window as it clawed at the glass, signaling that it was time to head in. I glanced back and forth between him and the people beginning to make their way towards the entrance.

"Maybe some other time." I suggested and he nodded in return.

I hopped off and headed towards the front door along with everyone else, trailing behind Sasha and Tyreese as they began to go over the things we needed to look out for. "You ready to do this detective?" I asked Daryl, nudging his arm as I passed by.

He scoffed but nodded anyway, "Let's get this done."

We easily took out the walkers that piled up towards the front quickly and quietly, Sasha grabbing a hold of a cart as she voiced the main things to grab on our imaginary list. I followed her actions as I grabbed a shopping cart as well, slowly making my way through the isles to grab the things I needed the most. Some new clothes, flashlights, batteries, I even found some new arrows that were practically brand new, nearly shining in the sunlight with how perfect they were.

Though I seemed to stop in my tracks when I turned around a sharp corner, spotting something that made me visibly freeze. There was a small section in the women's hygiene that were packed full of pregnancy tests. They seemed to be untouched. collecting dust as I stared at them, biting my lip in though while eyed them intently, debating if I should grab a few or not. I mean, mistakes happen every day.

Eventually I just shook my head as I made up my mind, grabbing a couple in my hands and placing them in my jacket pocket. I knew for a fact that there was absolutely no way, but it was nice to have a few on hand just in case I ever got a scare. My fear of the unknown was worse than practically anything else.

Though I suddenly heard some hurried footsteps approaching from right behind me rather quickly. Almost too quickly. The sound causing me to practically throw myself away from the shelf as I whipped around to see who it was. 

Glenn stopped dead in his tracks with confusion written all over his face, scanning me before glancing over towards what I was standing right in front of. His eyes got wide as he connected the jots in his head, his mouth falling open as he began to frantically point between me and the wall of tests.

I immediately shook my head and went up to him, "No, no, stop, I'm- I'm not-"

"Then why the hell did you jump out of your skin when I walked around the corner? Does Daryl know? How far along do you think you are?" he asked hurriedly.

I couldn't tell if he was excited, completely panicked, or both. But regardless what he thought was not true in the slightest, causing me to shake my head again, "Glenn honey, I'm not pregnant. I just...I don't know, just figured it was nice to have a few just in case, you know? I swear on my life, I'm not, you don't need to freak out." I finished with a somewhat nervous laugh.

He then sighed in obvious relief, "God Ro, don't do that."

"You're the one jumping to conclusions." I spoke.

He chuckled lightly, "Yeah...yeah, I guess so."

Though I calmed his nerves the smallest bit, I could still clearly see that there was something else bothering him. Something that caused him to freak out the way that he did, similar to how he acted when he found out Lori was pregnant way back on the farm. The thought caused me to stare at him for a moment, knowing something wasn't completely right.

Then, as if reading my mind, he asked quietly, "Can I...have one of those?"

My eyes widened in surprise, "Oh my God, Maggie-"

"I- I don't know, but she's late and uh...we're both kind of freaking out." he admitted, "I was supposed to keep my mouth shut since she didn't want anyone to panic...but when was the last time I ever kept my mouth shut." he finished with a forced laugh.

I nodded silently in understanding, wordlessly handing him one from out of my pockets as he muttered a small "thanks." I didn't know what to say to help ease his mind, I didn't know if there was anything that I could say. But I knew I had to say something.

"Hey, listen...neither of you know what's going to happen. But just know that...everything's going to be okay, and I'm right here for whenever you need me." I finished with a smile.

"But how can you know that? I mean...with what happened to Lori-"

"Don't." I quickly interrupted him, "She didn't have Hershel...and she had to have an emergency c-section. And clearly, I didn't know the first thing about that so... she-"

He shook his head as he realized what he had just said, stopping me from continuing as he placed a hand on my shoulder, "I'm sorry," he whispered, "I shouldn't have brought that up, I'm sorry."

I shook my head, "It's okay," I assured, "But please just trust me on this. Everything's going to be fine."

He looked at me for a moment, before nodding with a small smile, "Okay." he whispered.

However, seconds after the words left his mouth, we heard the sound of glass breaking. The sounds that followed were even worse. A loud crash echoed throughout the entire store, followed by a painful and terrified scream. Glenn and I just looked at each other for a brief second before taking off towards the commotion, and I hoped it wasn't as bad as it sounded. But then again, all good things must come to an end.

~ Thanks for reading!

Taglist - @justareader95 @hayley1998 @ryoujoking @sipsthecoffee @winterassassin1804 @marsmallow433 @catlalice @writingstreetspirit

[sissylittlefeather]

A/N: Ha HA! Another one done! This is the 68 Special one that I promised y'all after the poll. It goes with my series that is currently unnamed, but includes Baby, What's Your Name, Goodnight, Sweetheart and Always, Honey. There are references to all three in here. It takes place before What Kind of Question is That? and Feels Like Forever. This is angstyyy, but the way the story is in my brain, the mid section is that way and the whole story is kind of tragic, in a way. It's very Catherine/Heathcliff (they should be together but can't be for some reason). I didn't set out to write a tragic story, but there ya go. It is what it is. I hope y'all like it anyway!

Also, don't be shy. Let me know what you think! I'd love to hear from you 😁

Warnings: 18+ minors DNI, smut, unprotected sex, p in v sex, kissing, ANGST

Also, I'm using Elvis gifs for this one because I like actual EP here, but if it makes you happy to imagine Austin!Elvis, do you boo-boo.

I Missed You

It's been over 3 years since you last saw Elvis. This is the longest you've been apart since you met all those years ago. You haven't seen him since he got married or became a father. He did all of those things without you and it nearly broke you. Still, you'd had your own marriage happen and fall apart, too. You wondered if you'd ever tell him that it was because of him and the fact that you never could seem to stop loving him.

The year is 1968 and you just got off the phone with a friend of yours who works in Hollywood. According to her, Elvis is going to be recording a new show soon and they're looking for audience members. She called to see if you might be interested in seeing an old friend.

No one really knows what you had with Elvis. Well, no one but your old roommate. Still, despite your long history, he never made you public like his other girlfriends. Maybe it's because keeping you a secret made the romance hotter. Or maybe it's because keeping you a secret meant he could keep you all to himself. Either way, your love affair had always been something that only the two of you really knew about.

But an opportunity to see Elvis again is hard to turn down, even with everything that's happened between you. Perhaps seeing him one last time will give you the closure you need to move on. You decide to call your friend back and see what you need to do to be in that audience.

******

Now that you're here, you start to wonder if this was a good idea. You're sitting in the audience in your new mod-style pink gingham dress with white boots and a white headband. You wonder if he will even see you in the crowd. Will he notice the pink gingham?

Your hands are starting to sweat and you wipe them on your skirt, pulling on it to try to get it to cover more of your thighs. You're not a teenager anymore and this dress is starting to feel a bit ridiculous.

One of the producers of the show comes out to explain to the audience how to react to the "applause" signs. Elvis is coming out soon and you're starting to feel a little sick at the prospect of seeing him. You don't remember the last time you were this nervous.

And then he's there. On the small square stage, right in front of you, in black leather. Your heart jumps and your warm center gets a little warmer. He looks good. Not that you expected him not to, but he looks better than you could've imagined. He breaks into That's Alright Mama and you're instantly transported back to that first show where you threw your panties on the stage to get his attention. You start to laugh a little thinking about what might happen if you did the same thing right now. You'd probably get carried out by a security guard.

He sings 4 songs and then they do a set change to him sitting down with his old band mates for a kind of casual jam session. You're still waiting for him to notice that you're there. Part of you is starting to hope that he'll never notice and you can just slink back onto a plane and go home. Seeing him has enlivened every feeling you've ever had for him and you can't help but have flashbacks to every time he's ever touched you. You long to feel his strong hands on your body, his lips on yours, his fingers and tongue doing unspeakable things between your legs. You squeeze your legs together and pray that you're not going to leave a puddle on your seat.

And then it happens. He's walking around the stage singing again and he kneels just feet from you. You're in the second row, far enough back to be out of reach, but close enough to be visible. He looks out into the audience and your eyes meet. Ever the professional performer, he only freezes for a second when he sees you. You feel like someone dumped ice water down your back and it's suddenly hard to breathe. You want to get up and run out, but you can't. And just when you think he's completely unaffected by you, he closes his eyes and shakes his head. Then he stands up, turns away from you, and keeps singing.

But he comes back.

He walks around the stage like he's supposed to, but he always comes back to you and keeps his eyes locked onto yours for as long as possible before he has to move. Every time it happens, your heart skips a beat and you start to wonder how much more you can take. Just when you think you might melt from the intensity of his gaze, he leaves the stage and the producer comes back and says that filming is done for the day.

You sit there for a while and let the other people around you file out. Eventually you get up and head for the exit. You're one of the last people in the room as you head for the door. And then you hear someone behind you. You turn, expecting someone to tell you that you need to leave, but no.

It's him.

You stand and stare at each other for a good minute before he speaks. He asks a single question.

"Where can I find you later?"

You want to tell him to go to hell. Instead, you hear yourself say, "Hollywood Hilton, room 647."

He nods, turns, and jogs away from you back to wherever he came from. A man comes and ushers you out the exit door. You head back to your hotel in disbelief. You're not sure what you expected, but it wasn't that.

******

You're trying really hard to stop pacing in your hotel room. The clock on the night stand says 12:24am. You're still wearing the pink and white dress, mainly because you're too nervous to change into anything else, but you're barefooted now, your boots in a pile by the door. You tell yourself you are giving him until 1am and then you're going to bed. That's when you hear the knock on your door.

Your stomach tenses up and your heart jumps into your throat. You walk to the door and open it carefully. Elvis walks in quickly and closes it behind himself. You're reminded of the time he did that when you lived in the dorm and you almost laugh out loud.

"Who are you hiding from?"

"Everyone." He looks at you like no time has passed since the last time you were alone like this. He puts his hand on the side of your face and for a moment you let him. Then you move away from him.

"Don't."

"Honey, why--"

"You have a wife."

"And you have a husband. Never stopped us before."

"I don't have a husband anymore."

"All the more reason--"

"You married her, Elvis." He looks down at the floor.

"She has your baby. You're somebody's father."

"I know that."

"Then why did you come here?" He picks up your hand and kisses the inside of your palm, just like he did so many years before.

"I missed you." You want to take that hand and slap him with it. For a second, you really consider it. Instead, you pull it away from him and turn to face the window. If you look at him, you might give in.

He comes up behind you and touches your dress on your shoulder.

"You know I've always loved you in pink."

"It matches--"

"--the dress you wore on the first night. I remember."

That almost convinces you to turn around, but instead you shake his hand off your shoulder. You can't turn around. Not yet.

"Elvis, we said this was over."

"We've said that before."

"Yeah, but last time I thought we meant it."

He walks around in front of you and faces you. He seems afraid to touch you again.

"Baby, you know I could never mean it."

You cross your arms over your chest and look up at him. He looks different now, grown up and fully himself, but he's still the same boy from Memphis who said he would always be yours.

"No. Go home to your wife, Elvis."

You can see in his eyes that that stung. You immediately wish you hadn't said it, but you did and it wasn't untrue. He does have a wife to go home to and you have what? No one because you can't seem to move on from him. He's as much a part of you as you are of him.

"You know what you mean to me." You do know. But sometimes you just wish he would say the words.

You walk past him to the hotel room window and look out at the street below. They say New York is the city that never sleeps, but this town could give it a run for its money. There seems to be people everywhere. He speaks again, ripping you out of your reverie.

"You know, I could ask you the same question. Why did you come to my show?" You step back from the window and look up at the ceiling. That, you don't have an answer for. You're not even sure why you came. It's no use lying to him or yourself anymore. You turn to face him with tears in your eyes.

"I missed you."

It only takes him three steps to walk across the room and pull you into a deep and passionate kiss, his arms around you to keep you from pulling away. You know you should pull away, but you don't even try. You melt into him like snow in the rain, your mouths picking up a rhythm easily. Kissing him is familiar and satisfying and you begin to wonder why you ever stopped. You wrap your arms around his neck and let yourself get lost in him. He walks you backwards to the dresser and then lifts you up so that you're sitting on it. He runs both hands up your thighs and then grabs your hips, pulling them into his own. You break the kiss and moan softly into his mouth as you feel his hardness press into you. In a second, he has the dress up, over your head, and off. Your fingers shake as you undo the rest of the buttons on his shirt and push it off of his shoulders with his jacket, letting them both fall to the floor. The whole time, he's kissing you on the neck, on your chest, and shoulder, and jawline, and lips. It almost feels like he's trying to devour you whole. In fact, he bites the skin next to your collarbone at one point hard enough that you let out a small yelp. He knows you well enough to know that's a good sound. You grab the back of his hair and pull his head backward, diving into a deep kiss with heavy tongue. He almost breaks your bra, trying to rip it off of you and your panties don't stand a chance as he tears at them and throws them to the side. The button pops off of his pants as you feverishly try to get them off of him. He slides them off his hips and to the floor, letting his erection free to land against your thigh. The sight and feel of it there elicits a moan from your mouth and a good deal of wetness from between your legs. He pulls you to the edge of the dresser and pushes himself inside you. He slams into you heatedly and you both start to sweat. You can feel your climax building around him as he pumps. He's still kissing you all over your face and neck, dipping his tongue into your mouth periodically. Your hands grip his back as your fingernails dig into his skin. As many times as you've been together, it's never felt like this before. There's a desperation and need in both of you that's completely new. You wrap your legs around him and he carries you to the bed, still inside of you. You fuck for a while with him on top of you, until you push him into a sitting position on the edge of the bed. Then, you turn away from him and lower yourself onto him, holding onto his thighs for support. While you slide up and down on him, he reaches forward and makes circles with his finger on the spot between your legs that makes you cry out his name.

"Elvis, fuck!" You scream as your climax pounds into you from every angle, rushing through you from your center to your edges and back again. You turn around and push him back onto the bed. He moves himself backwards until he's fully on the bed and you can ride him easily. You're grinding your hips against him, so that he is so deep inside of you. Nothing seems to be deep enough to satisfy you tonight. You want to swallow him up and keep him there inside you. He moans and grunts while you work, obviously approaching his climax. He flips you over one last time and thrusts into you a few times before he shudders and cusses and fills you with his warmth. You're both dripping wet with sweat and covered in marks from the other's teeth and fingernails. He rolls over off of you and lays next to you, both of you breathing heavily. He picks up your hand and kisses your fingers.

"Oh, honey, I have missed you so much." He smiles at you and holds your hand on his chest. You get up and go to the bathroom, trying to forget that you just committed adultery with him. Again. When you come back, you get some panties out of your suitcase and put them on. Then, you climb back into bed, where he's arranged himself as if he's going to sleep there.

"Don't you... have to... go?" You ask tentatively. You think of his wife, probably pacing her room waiting for him to come home.

"No." He doesn't give any more detail and you don't ask. He puts his arm around you and pulls you close to him. "I'm staying here." He kisses the side of your head.

It feels so good to have him wrapped around you again. This won't be the last time you're together.

He waits until he thinks you're asleep, and you almost are, when he whispers,

"I love you, baby."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Taglist: @itlover8000 @deniseinmn @elvisalltheway101

[serraphinm]

✴Chapter 4 - The Light✴

WC: 10k

Warnings: Violence and Gore. Proceed with caution!!

Taglist: @bready101

I have completely and utterly melted... Ellie's hands pull my body flush against her, and I cup her face with both my hands. I can feel her smile as she kisses me, and it drives me wild. Moving one hand to the back of her neck, I deepen the kiss.

Eventually, she pulls away and rests her forehead on mine. Our breaths mingle as we catch them, and I can feel her heart racing. I chuckle and shake my head a little.

"Why didn't we just do this months ago?"

"Probably 'cause you're a dumbass." She says in a taunting tone.

"Hey! I'm not a dumbass! You were the one who said we were best friends in front of the whole courtroom!" I argue.

She groans and buries her face into my neck.

"Don't remind me…" She groans again, " Not my proudest moment, alright. I had no choice, to be fair..it was either that, or you could've lost your throne… I know how important being able to make a change is to you.." As she talks, her breath tickles my neck, and I bite down on my lip. I couldn't laugh while she was being so sincere.

"Well, I'm glad we finally cleared that up. I was devastated for moons, and we never talked about it… Soooo…" I say quietly. She chuckles, and I can't help but giggle and squirm a little.

"Oh? Is that ticklish?" She asks with a grin before attacking my neck with kisses. I squeal and try to back away, but her grip on my waist and face holds me tight.

"Ellie!!" I whine, "Stop!! That tickles!" She nibbles on a bit of my neck, and I yelp.

"You're the worst! I hate you!" I groan.

"I think we just reiterated how much you, in fact, love me. So, not really gonna buy that one, babe." She says, finally relenting.

"Babe? So am I your girlfriend, then."

"If you let me be yours." She says with a hint of shyness.

I grin and kiss her softly once more.

"I'd love for you to be mine," I whisper against her lips.

"Anything for you, my light.." She whispers back.

"My light?" I ask with a giggle.

"Yea.. my light." It seemed she wasn't going to explain quite yet, so I left it and kissed her nose.

"Then you'll be.. my moth.."

"Really..? Cause of my tattoo; not super creative there, babe." She jokes, resting her hands on my hips.

"No… " I start with a blush. It was a party because of her tattoo: "Because you follow me into the darkness, and thrive along with it." It was cheesy but true. Every time I needed the comforting quiet, she's given it to me and stayed by my side.

"Cheese ball." She mutters, but I can tell she likes it.

"Yes, but I'm your cheese ball," I say matter-of-factly. She grins and attacks me with kisses again.

"I suppose we should head back inside before anyone starts to worry…" I say sadly once she pulls away.

"Aww, what?? Come on.. I just got you all to myself." She says with that irresistible face of hers. Curse whoever gave Ellie Williams that face. It is impossible to say no to it.

"I know.. I know.. Five more minutes." I relent.

"Fuck yes!" She says as she picks me up and spins me around. I burst out laughing and held onto her shoulders. "Ellie!! Put me down!" Giggles fill my mouth and spill over.

"Doesn't sound like you want down to me." She says playfully, spinning me again.

Eventually, though, she relents, and I'm back on my feet, "You're a menace." I huff and fix my skirt.

"I'm your menace." She says, relaying my earlier joke back to me.

"Yea, I get the message; it's not as smart as I thought," I say, rolling my eyes.

She grins at me, and my anger dissipates.

"Back to the ballroom?"

"Fine.. back to the ballroom." She replies, intertwining our hands.

Ellie complains the whole way back.

The Jackson ballroom was something to behold, with fairy lights dangling from the ceiling. Crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling, too, their sparkling light casting a playful glow across the beautifully polished marble floor. The walls were decorated with rich tapestries and lovely golden details in shades of deep green that made the room feel inviting and earthy. Tall windows framed the scene, allowing soft moonlight to stream in and mingle with the warm glow from the chandeliers. On clear nights, the twinkling stars outside seemed to join in the celebration, adding to the magical atmosphere. The floor's classic black and white checkerboard pattern invited couples to glide and twirl, creating a joyful space meant for dance and laughter. At the far end of the ballroom sat a lovely stage where musicians played enchanting tunes, filling the air with melodies that made everyone want to sway along. Along the walls, tables were set up just right, showcasing beautiful china, shining glassware, and cheerful floral arrangements that added a lovely fragrance to the room.

"El! Why don't we dance?? To celebrate our relationship, hm?" She looks at me like I'm odd before rolling her eyes and smiling.

"Wasn't that dance earlier enough for you?" She asked slowly, leading me to the dance floor. It seems she already knew my answer. We get into our dancing position, and I look into her eyes.

"No," I say sweetly with a smug grin.

"Figured." She mutters before Voices of Spring Waltz begins to play. It's so fast my head is spinning, but I'm grinning from ear to ear with joy. Ellie guides me through each part as we laugh over every little mistake we make. She lifts me as if I were weightless, and I giggle each time. Spinning her around catches her off guard, but she grins anyway. The song goes on and on as I lose myself in the dance and Ellie.

As we giggle and dance, people watch on. I can't help but feel shy, and my face flushes. Ellie opens her mouth to say something when a sudden commotion reaches our ears, and the music stops.

"I told you she was a fucking dyke!" Seth's voice carried throughout the room. Gasps echo my own, and I glance at Ellie. She was not fucking happy. He walks over to us despite Maria trying to hold him back. Once he reaches us, Ellie grabs me by the arm and pulls me behind her.

"The fuck did you just say? She yells, walking closer to him. Rage seeps in like the cold, and I move in front of Ellie. Seth turns his anger on me before Ellie can pull me back again.

"You! I thought you were a proper lady, but I guess you're just a little bitc-"

I slap him across the face. Hard.

His head flies to the side, and he stumbles a little. I glare down at him with disgust, my wrath neverending.

"The next time you speak to Ellie like that, you lose your tongue. Are we clear?" I say to him in a low, deadly tone. Ellie tries to pull me away from him, but I snatch my wrist back.

That's when Joel comes into the situation, me seething, looking down at an old man cupping his face. A slight panic fills me as I realize the extent of what I've done. This could get bad if Joel sides with-

"I told you to keep your damn mouth shut, Seth, but you just couldn't listen, could ya?" Joel says, walking right up to Seth. I watch a bit of panic reach Seth's eyes as he stands.

"She hit me, and you're siding with them?!" He cries in outrage.

Maria finally walks over and begins to explain the situation to Joel, but he stops her.

"I don't need an explanation, Maria. I've been here the whole time. Seth, I think you and I are gonna have a little chat," he says with an eerily happy smile.

"What about them-?"

Seth asks, pointing at us like a child.

Joel puts a hand on his shoulder and whispers something in his ear. I watch as Seth's face falls, and terror overtakes his face. On all that is good, I hear a whimper.

Joel begins to walk, and Maria pushes Seth along to follow, seemingly knowing what is happening. I glance at Ellie once more and see her fists clenched. I grab one and hold it in my hand. She relaxes it and intertwines our fingers.

"I'm sorry, Ellie. I shouldn't have gotten so upset and hit him. I just-"

"Don't." She says, still a bit upset.

"You don't need to defend me; neither of you do, " she says, looking back at Joel, who's practically dragged Seth out of the ballroom by his shirt.

"Do you seriously think that all we're doing is standing up to him for you?" I ask softly.

"No… but I can take care of myself." She says, turning to me fully.

"You don't have to hit people for my sake." Her green eyes gaze into mine, and I can see the fear in them. Fear that I could get hurt for the sake of protecting her. It seems her anger was stemming from fear right now. That I could work with.

"Alright, I won't protect you anymore, but you can't protect me then," I reply in a matter-of-fact time.

"What?? No, that's out of the question; you're my girlfriend."

"Hmmmmmm.. So only you get to protect me? That doesn't seem right.." Crossing my arms, I give her a knowing look. She sighs, realizing I got her.

"Look, Ellie…" I take her hands in mine and softly rub the backs of her hands.

"It's not about protecting you because we think you can't; it's about protecting you because we love you and we can." I reach up and move that stray lock of auburn hair behind her ear.

"If we thought you couldn't handle your own battles, we would never leave you alone." My reasoning seems to reach her, and I watch her anger dissipate.

"I guess I understand.. But I'm still protecting you. That's non-negotiable." She seemed serious, so I didn't laugh or giggle at the adorable expression she was making.

"Fine, but then it's non-negotiable for me to protect you in return," I say gently.

"Fine.." She mutters. This time, I giggle and kiss her cheek. Once I pull back, she grabs my face and kisses me on the lips. It caught me off guard, but I assumed she just needed some affection. I don't pay much attention to the gasps in the room; instead, I wrap my arms around her neck and kiss her back. She grins into the kiss, and I think then and there,

Everything will be ok as long as I have Ellie by my side.

Unfortunately, It was time to head back to my kingdom. It had been one moon cycle, and I needed to return to my duties no matter how much I wanted to stay. Joel surprisingly allowed Ellie to return with me, which made going back a million times easier. We flew in as the seasons changed from fall to winter. My jacket wasn't doing enough, but Ellie seemed fine. She was wearing one of Joel's jackets over a hoodie. Seemed she liked stealing from his closet.

Throughout the whole flight, Ellie made puns about planes and such. I nearly threw the book in the trash. But alas, I loved her and let her ramble on about space and dinosaurs. Some of it was actually really interesting, and if she didn't have to rule over Jackson someday, I'd say she should become a scientist.

Once we landed, it was a short drive to the palace before Ellie and I had to separate. She hugged me and kissed my cheek, muttering on about something she wanted to do with me later. I agreed, and she let me go. I made a quick stop to my room and gave it a once-over. It was like nothing ever happened. There was no blood, and the stench of death was gone entirely. It was definitely my room, but it felt… different.

Reluctantly, I headed to my office to see the Prime Minister and Nakir talking. Something was going on, but neither moved to explain.

"Welcome home, Your Majesty. I was just talking with Nakir here about what work needs to be done now that you've returned. Glancing at Nakir, I notice an odd expression on his face, but I can't place what it is. He meets my eyes and nods once ever so slightly but doesn't utter a single word. Something was going on.

"Has something happened?" I ask with narrowing eyes, "I believe I instructed you to inform me about anything that happened through email and letter."

The Prime Minister bows his head and hands me a document. He, too, doesn't meet my eyes, so when I open the document, I expect the worst.

As I read over it, more questions formed in my head. According to this report, Barrow had something to do with my parent's assassination. I hadn't thought much about this, considering there was no new information. But this was shocking and, well, expected at the same time. I flop onto my desk chair as I continue reading.

"How was this discovered?" I suddenly ask.

"Barrow admitted to it as he was carried off to prison. No one initially believed him, but Nakir had some people look into it, and they discovered some shocking evidence in Barrow's old office." The prime minister shakes his head in a sorrowful manner. My head is reeling as I set the document back on my desk. Nakir still hasn't said a word.

"Thank you, Prime Minister, you're dismissed," I say shortly.

He bows and walks out, closing the door behind him.

"Nakir, is everything alright?"

"Yes… Your Majesty.."

Lie. But I can't call him out on it. Not yet.

"Did something happen between you and the Prime Minister?" I ask with trepidation as I flip through the document once more. Meeting his eyes for the answer, they looked to the ground.

"No."

Lie again. So, something did happen.

If I keep pressing, I risk getting nothing out of him, so I'll drop it for now. I'd just have to trust that it was a tiff between them and leave it at that.

"Well, alright then, let's get to work.."

The next few days primarily consist of catching up on everything I missed, visiting Ellie when I can, and taking care of my basic human needs. Currently, I am taking a bath and reading a book when a knock sounds at the door.

"Come in!" I called, thinking it was a maid. What I didn't expect to see was Ellie Williams dressed in a black button-down and jeans. A shocked expression was plastered on both of our faces, and I hid further into the bubbles of my bath.

"Ellie?! Why are you here?" I ask as I become a blushing mess.

She slaps a hand over her eyes, and I watch her face get redder than a robin.

"I—They told me you should be done by now, and I wanted to see you! I didn't know you'd still be in the bath!" she explains frantically.

I burst out in laughter, and I watch her peek at me through her fingers.

She smiles and removes her hand when she sees I'm covered in bubbles.

I look her over once before something catches my eye.

"Are you wearing Converse…? In my palace..?"

She stops laughing, looks down at her shoes, and puts on an expression of mock offense.

"What… they're comfy!" Her excuse caused me to giggle.

"Where did I find you again?"

"Your dreams." She says, wiggling her eyebrows.

I flick some water in her direction, and she moves out of the way.

"Nice try, babe, but you gotta be faster than that." Her smug grin made me glare.

"Oh shut it… what did you need anyway?" I ask, setting my book down on the board that rested across my bathtub.

"Just wanted to see you…" she says, scratching her neck.

"Naked?" I ask with a grin as I tilt my head playfully. This time, it's her turn to glare.

"This was not on purpose. If I wanted to see you naked, I'd go about it very differently.." Her voice lowers a bit, and I feel butterflies swarming in my stomach.

I don't say anything for a moment, and I can feel her eyes watching me.

"Ellie, don't look at me like that," I whisper. She stared, and the bubbles were starting to pop…

"Like what?" She whispers as she leans closer.

"You know.. like ..like.." The words don't find their way to me, and I huff. Ellie chuckles and crouches next to my bath, meeting my eye level.

"I get it…" she whispers. Her face is inches from mine when the door slams open once more. Mariah walks in and screams when she sees Ellie. With a hand over her heart, she began relentlessly apologizing as Ellie and I burst into laughter. Mariah's face flushes, and she steps out. Ellie stands and shakes her head before saying, "Guess that's my cue to go. See you later?" I smile up at her from in my bath.

"Yea, I'll see you later, Els." Her smile mirrors my own. She walks back over and kisses my forehead before leaving and closing the door behind her. I let out a massive breath and lay my head back on the tub lip.

"What the fuck was that?" I say to no one in particular.

I took a deep breath in and plunged. The warm water and bubbles covered my face as I blew air out through my nose. The peace and quiet gave me a moment to think. I was beginning to ask more questions, too.

Why did the crown call my name?

How did it even get in my head?

Who's really behind my parents' deaths'?

More thoughts like these plague my mind as I come up for air. Deciding I was done with my bath, I got out and wrapped a heated towel around myself. My wet footprints are left behind as I make my way to my bedroom.

Jane holds out a pair of pajamas for me, and I slip them on. Walking over to my closet, I grab a pair of slippers and toss them onto the ground before struggling to put them on for about two whole minutes.

Once they're on, I walk over to my room doors and bid my maids a good night. I walk to Ellie's room and knock on the door once, then twice, then once again. She opens it and grabs me by the arm before pulling me into the darkness of her room.

I giggle as she pulls me in for a hug and closes the door behind me, leaving us in complete darkness. Slowly, my eyes adjust, and I can just barely make out her face. Ellie takes one of my hands in hers and guides me over to our bed. I flop onto it and spread out like a starfish. Her chuckling sounds like a symphony to me, and I roll over onto my back. I feel her sit down next to me and then slowly lay down along the edge. Rolling my eyes despite the fact she can't see it, I pull her by the arm over to me. It's a silent dance we do every night, and she loves it.

She relents and moves closer before slipping an arm under my waist and dragging me closer. Everything in here smells like her, and it's intoxicating. I move the sheet to cover the two of us and inch closer to her. She places her other hand on my waist and slips it under my shirt. I snuggle into her chest and slowly but surely drift off to sleep.

I was in deep shit. Emperor Raul was coming to my kingdom in a few weeks, which left me very little time to prepare. His reasoning for a visit? He wanted to meet me. Why such an important man wants to meet me I'm not too sure about. But this meant I had to plan not only for his arrival but also for a welcoming ball slash ceremony. It was nuts. This meant the only time I got to see Ellie was in the darkness of her room when I was too exhausted to talk to her. I felt terrible, so I had been sending her gifts all week, but it just wasn't the same. Going over the ball plans yet again, Nakir seemed more irritated than I'd ever seen. It wasn't any of my business, but his mood seemed to be getting in the way of his work.

"Do you need a break, Nakir?" I ask him suddenly as he drones on about the flowers I've chosen for the ballroom. "No, Your Majesty, I'm fine; now, as I was saying, peonies are a great option, but they sometimes are used at funerals in the Mortican Empire, so I was thinking-" He says shortly.

"You need a break," I say, interrupting him again; this time, I wasn't asking.

"But Your Majesty-"

" I wasn't asking Nakir," I say softly.

He balks at me before sighing and nodding, "Thank you…"

Tension seems to ease from his scorned eyes, and he bows before packing up and heading out. I lean back in my chair and close my eyes. Sometimes, it was hard to be a good ruler. You had to know when you were too trusting, too careful when someone needed a break, and when someone needed a push. I doubted anyone truly mastered it without some mistakes, but it still didn't make me feel any better about mine. Rubbing my temples as I leaned on my desk, I decided to look over the files once more before turning in for the night.

It takes me three hours to get through the files; by the time I'm done, it's 2 a.m. I walk into Ellie's room and toss my outfit to the floor before grabbing one of her shirts and sliding into bed next to her. She groans, wakes up a little, and practically drags me across the bed just so she can hold me in her arms. I snuggle into her when she suddenly asks, "How was work?"

"Els, you don't wanna hear about work. Just go to sleep," I whisper back.

"I asked, didn't I? Just talk to me, you dork.. I'll fall back asleep eventually."

My face warms, and I take a deep breath.

"Apparently, peonies are used at funerals in the Mortican Empire.."

She chuckles and kisses my forehead.

"Yea?"

"Yea.. I gotta pick new flowers."

She hums in response, so I keep talking in a soothing voice.

"I think I'm gonna go with lavender," I mumble as I begin to fall asleep.

Another hum and another kiss.

Then, blissful sleep.

I decided to dedicate some of my very little free time to working on my affinity with Ellie. If I was going to get rid of this emotional blockage, I figured I might as well try what the Affinity master said and watch Ellie use hers. The garden was a bit frosty this morning, so Ellie insisted I wear a coat.

"It's not even that cold out, El!"

"I don't give a fuck wear the damn coat!"

I wore the damn coat.

Thankfully, the sun was out and warming things up. It was mesmerizing watching the sun come up and land on every little frozen water droplet. The garden looked like a pile of glitter because of its sparkle. Ellie and I walked through the garden to a secluded area, our shoes leaving footprints behind in the grass.

Her voice breaks the silence first, "Alright, to use an affinity, you have to feel the energy that stems from your blood." She explains, holding her hands out. I place my hands in hers and can feel the energy flowing through them. It was warm compared to the cool morning air. "Now try to mimic the energy pattern I'm giving out. Breathe in." Her voice is soothing, and I take a deep breath.

"And out.." I release the air in my lungs and focus on spreading my energy to my hands. A tingly feeling starts to form in my chest, and I think of it flowing into my hands.

"That's it.. Now close your eyes…"

I stop concentrating on the feeling and look up at her like she's weird.

"What are you going on about?"

"Just do it." She says, rolling her eyes. I could tell she was already sick of my bullshit, so I just rolled my eyes back and did as she said.

"Now focus back on that feeling in your chest. Guide it to your hands." She instructs.

I listen and try my best, but it takes me a minute. The tingly feeling goes from my chest up to my shoulders, then down my arms to the tips of my fingers.

"Good. Now breathe out and release the energy." Her voice is calm as if my power were just going to be rainbows or something.

"I- I can't just let it out! What if I hurt you-" My eyes begin to open, and she takes one of her hands and covers them.

"Keep those shut; I'll be fine. Just do your best. Focus on the one energy you started with and try again."

I sigh, and she slowly removes her hand before placing it back in mine. Keeping my eyes closed, I begin the process of moving the energy back down to my fingertips. I struggle with focusing on one energy and not both, but I manage to get one to work. The tingle reaches my fingers, and Ellie moves my hands so they face outwards. I feel her walk around behind me and come around me to lift my arms up.

"Now let the energy out. I know it'll be hard with the blockage… But it's there. It's real." She reassures.

I take a deep breath in and push more energy to my fingertips. As I try to let it go, it feels like it's pushing up against something, but I feel a small crack and push through. Exhaling, I let it out of that small hole, and it flows out of my fingertips. I hear Ellie gasp and, in my confusion, open my eyes to take a peak. My fingers are pitch black as little wisps of black smoke trailing off them. I turn my hands around to see it's all the way around my fingers.

"What the—What is it?" A look of awe spreads across my features, and I turn to face Ellie, her hands grazing me as I do so.

She blooms a flower from the ground and holds it out for me to hold—a lovely white rose I feel bad for possibly destroying. I sigh and take the flower in my hands. The light contrasts with the darkness in such a lovely way. Nothing happens to the flower; instead, the darkness licks at it like a kitten.

"Alright, well, we know it's not deadly," Ellie says, pulling out her journal. She writes something down before closing it and slipping it back into her coat pocket.

"I'm glad it's not deadly. Now that would be scary," I mutter as I tuck the flower Ellie gave me behind my ear. Every time she gave me a flower, it went in this little vase in my room. When we were in Jackson, she gave me three more that I had to add when we returned.

"Now, how do I stop it?" I ask, still feeling the energy flowing out.

"Just reel it back in. That or wait until you're out of energy, " she says with a casual shrug.

"Let's try reeling it back in," I say, closing my eyes and focusing on bringing it back to my chest. …

It wasn't working.

I try again.

….

Still nothing.

Popping an eye open, I look at Ellie.

"Erm.. Els? It's not working."

She looks between me and my hands before stuffing down a laugh. I glare at her and huff.

"Will you at least try and be helpful!"

She looks at me and sighs, "There's nothing I can do to help, babe. You're just going to have to wait until you run out of energy."

"What?! You mean my fingers are stuck like this until I get tired?" That would take all day… or at least until noon.

"No… until your core runs out of energy. It may also be because of the energy blockage. Since there's a bunch of energy pouring out of one tiny crack, you can't force it all back in." She explains, and I give her an 'Are you serious? ' look. I glare at her when she shrugs again.

"How long does it take to run out of energy then??"

"It depends on the caster. For me, it takes about two days, " she says, grabbing her journal again. I watch as she begins to sketch my hands.

"Really Ellie? I'm having a crisis and you think it's a good idea to draw my hands?" I ask, trying not to laugh. "What they're pretty!" she counters as she continues to sketch. I facepalm, and she scolds me for moving them. So I stand there holding my hands out while she sketches away, doing that little thing she does with her tongue.

"So.. weather's been getting colder lately…" I say after about five minutes of uninterrupted silence.

"Really? The weather? You wanna talk to me about the weather?" She asks with narrowed eyes.

"I hate the silence, ok!" I retort. She rolls her eyes with a grin and keeps drawing away.

"Fair enough.. Talk to me about…work?" She says before cringing.

"Uh.. no. You tell me about space." I counter.

I watch her face light up, and she begins a big spiel about how cool she thinks the sun is and what constellations are the best. Somehow, she's able to multitask, drawing and talking at the speed of light. Most of the information she tells me makes sense, and I enjoy listening to her talk.

"-so that's how they discovered that Orion's Belt has three stars; I think they're named Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka, but I could be wrong." She says in a skeptical tone. I watch as she finishes up on the sketch and turns it around to show me. Finally, being able to drop my hands was a relief. I thought I'd only feel it at the gym, but here we are. Walking over to It, I swear I get hand-drawing envy. It was gorgeous.

"I want to eat it," I say, suddenly looking up at her with a grin.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Her face is scrunched up in disgust, and I can't help but to burst out in laughter.

"Come on, Ellie!" I whine, "Just a little bite!" Taking another step closer to her, I see her close her journal and take a step back. "No, you weirdo. Get away." She says, giggling a little and taking more steps back. I begin my chase, and she grins before running.

"Get back here!" I say, chasing her through the gardens. Her hair looked stunning in the morning light, and I gazed at her in awe as I ran.

She laughs as fake screams while I pretend to be some odd creature that makes clicking noises and chases after her.

I follow as she goes behind a bush, but she's not there when I turn the corner. That's when I listen for any footsteps of hers. Hearing a branch snap, I sneak over there to find her covering her mouth and peeking over her shoulder. Deciding to get back into that role, I make a loud clicking noise and watch her eyes snap to mine. I wink and close my eyes.

I can practically feel her grin as I make my way over to where she is. Reaching that spot, I feel around for her, but all I feel is the tingle in my fingers from the grass and my affinity.

"Ellie…" I say in a haunting tone.

"Where are you…..?" My grin widens as I listen closely to my surroundings. Moving to the right, I hear footsteps in the grass, and I make my way towards them. My hands are out to prevent me from bumping into anything. As I walked in the direction, she was clearly leading me, I suddenly realized why. The sounds of the fountain reach my ears and drive everything else out.

Sneaky little-

A laugh.. but where from?

I walk forward slowly and feel flowers at my fingertips.

"Nope.." A voice whispers in my ear. I scream as Ellie tackles me to the ground in front of the fountain. The grass cushions my fall, but I still groan.

"Ellie!! What the fuck!" I complain my head hurts from the impact. She gives me a smug grin, and I glare at her. Putting her whole weight on me to keep me pinned, she rests on my hips. "I win." She announces before kissing me on the cheek.

"Of course, you won; you weren't the blind monster running through the garden like an idiot." I counter as I look up at her.

"Hm, true, but I still won." Her gloating was getting on my nerves, so I glared up at her.

"Alright, I get it. You won; now, could you get off me." I squirm underneath her, and she relents. Once she's standing, she holds a hand out to me, which I take, lifting me up in one go.

"Show off," I mutter.

"What was that?" she asks, knowing what I said. Rolling my eyes, I fix my coat.

"I said, Show off!" My voice is louder as I roll my shoulders.

"You didn't have to tackle me, you know. A nice hug would've done the trick."

"Ha. Ha. And that wouldn't have been as fun." She counters.

"It would've been more fun for me, jackass!" I wave my arms in frustration and see her grin further.

Suddenly, my feet are off the ground, and I'm staring at her back.

"Ellie!! Put me down!!"

"Nope! Not a chance." She says as she starts walking out of the garden and back to the palace.

I fight her the whole way, but she holds on. I don't know whether to be annoyed or impressed… maybe a little turned on.

Once we're back inside after an embarrassing conversation with my guards, she sets me down. My feet hit the floor, and I relax a little.

"That was completely unnecessary. You could've just let me walk, you know." I say, wiping off my coat. Grass falls to the floor, and I huff.

"I'm aware. I'll see you tonight, right?" She always did this. No matter how many times I slept in bed with her, she double-checked to make sure it was happening—without fail.

"Yes, Ellie, I will be in bed tonight," I reassure her with a gentle voice. There was no point in getting upset when all I had to do was give reassurance.

"Good. I'll see you tonight, then." She kisses my forehead and waits for me to leave.

"You shall; I gotta get gloves for this," I say, lifting my hands and wiggling my fingers in her face.

Grabbing one of my hands, she brings the fingertips to her lips. My face heats up, and I snatch my hand away.

"Ok! Later! Bye!" I say super quickly before bolting to my room. Her laugh echoes in the hallway as I slam my door.

Ellie Williams was going to be the death of me.

It's been two weeks, and the wispy darkness still covers my fingers. I even went to the Affinity Master here in Midiri, and she was utterly confused. Ellie, too, had no idea why my energy was so abundant, but I had a theory.

"I think it's because it's been stored for 10 years… I mean, think about it, when most nobles get their affinities at 10, they use them right away and get rid of all that energy… But me?? I haven't used it since it even formed. My affinity has never been used, so of course, there's excess energy; I just don't know how much.." I explained this to Ellie, who had been listening intently to my theory. "It's definitely possible…but it seems more than even that…I'll look into it, ok? You just focus on that Ralph guy or whatever his name is arriving."

"It's Raul and alright.. Don't stress too much, ok?"

"I won't.. Now we better go get ready for his arrival," she says, pushing me towards her door.

"Ok! ok! I get the message, I'll go." I giggle and kiss her cheek before I walk out of her room and close the door.

Once out of her room, I make my way to my own. I dress in my most regal outfit and slip on silk gloves. Thankfully, the gloves manage to seal the seeping darkness, and I make my way to the Throne Room, where Raul will greet me. Ellie walks in shortly after and stands next to my throne. I honestly just needed to get her one of her own at this point.

Suddenly, the trumpets sound, notifying us of his arrival, and the doors swing open. My hands clench around the throne armrests, and I can feel a bit of panic in my brain. Raul was a mighty man whose Empire stretched far and wide.

He saunters in, wearing a deep red mantle that matches his combed-back hair. Underneath, he wears a white suit paired with deep red Oxfords. He bows to me, and his entourage follows along.

"Welcome to Midiri Emperor Raul. I hope you had a pleasant trip here." I say from high up on my chair. Staying on Emperor Raul's good side was necessary. The Mortican Empire was the most powerful Empire on the continent.

"Thank you for such a courtesy, Your Majesty…" His voice is loud, and it echoes throughout the reception hall.

"You're very welcome; I have prepared rooms for each member of your party. You can ask my staff or me if you need anything." I wonder if I sound regal enough.

"Wonderful, we'll settle in right away." My gaze reaches his, and I feel a sudden sense that something is.. off…

I stare a little too long before I snap out of it and clear my throat. "Right.. Well then, I'll let you get to it. See you tonight." My voice remains neutral, but inside, I'm panicking.

Emperor Raul bows and walks out of the room, his entourage following. Ellie seems to pick up on my unease as she touches my shoulder. I glance up at her and she gives me a concerned look. Shaking my head, I signal that I can't talk about it. If word spread that the Queen of Midiri felt off about the Emperor of the Mortican Empire, rumors would circulate. I would just have to trust that nothing would go wrong tonight. She gave me the look again to ask if I was sure. I stand and sigh. Deciding to keep quiet, I simply nod once more and leave the room.

The ballroom is filled to the brim with people here to welcome the Emperor. It makes me smile to know everything was going so well. Ellie is off grabbing us a drink when the Emperor himself approaches me,

"Your Majesty, I've been meaning to talk to you. I did come all this way to meet you after all." His gaze gives off a type of giddy excitement only children have.

"Yes, well, I'm honored to have garnered such attention. What would you like to know?" I ask in a soothing manner, hoping he will calm down. He clasps his hands together with a slap before beaming a smile down at me.

"So many things! Where to begin? I'll go with.. How did they find you?"

"Oh! You mean, how did they find out I was the princess?" I ask to clarify.

"Yes… yes, let's go with that." His answer creeps me out a little, but I tell him the story I told reporters almost a year ago.

"And then I met the Duke at the time; he was a real piece of work."

He listens intently to my story before laughing and clapping me on the back. I stumble forward a little bit and glance at Elody, who seems on edge. Shaking my head at her, I stand up straight once more and brush my gown off as if it were dirty.

I fake chuckle along with him and look around the room for Ellie.

"You know Y/n.. I could use a wife like you." I choke on my own spit.

His expression remains giddy.

"Excuse me?" I say as I stare at him in shock.

"Imagine our kingdoms combined! What power we would have… I could even make you my Empress." He says, leaning down and whispering in my ear. I lean away and avoid putting a look of disgust on my face.

"I appreciate the offer, but I'm in a healthy, loving relationship right now." My response is as it always will have to be: Kind enough not to break his heart but stern enough that he hopefully gets the message.

He doesn't.

"Come now; there is no need to play hard to get. I'm sure you've been with many men, but none will ever compare to me." He says lowly. I take a step back and look around the room for Ellie again. She's at the drink table talking to some woman.

"Oh! It seems she's calling me now… I better go, this conversation was enlightening thank you, Emperor Raul.." I practically run to Ellie.

When I get there, she seems pissed off, so I approach with caution.

"What the hell would you know about Jackson 20 years ago?" She spits.

"More than you, it seems, I guess Miller still won't tell you anything." The blonde woman taunts.

"Look, I don't know who the fuck you think you are, but you better shut the hell up."

"Why? Gonna fight me, Williams?"

I break the two apart.

"Enough, I won't have a commotion at this ball. Listen, lady, I don't know who you are since you seem to be from Emperor Raul's group, but you shouldn't go around starting fights with people."

The blonde woman glares at me but bows nonetheless.

"I'll see you around. Ellie.." She says lowly before walking off. Letting a breath of relief out, I turn to Ellie.

"You ok?" I ask first while looking her over.

"Yea just pissed off. Said her name was Abby, then started talking shit about Joel. Don't know what her problem is," Ellie says, unclenching her fists. She grabs a drink and swallows it all in one go. I wince, knowing it must burn. She wipes her mouth, slams the cup back down on the table, grabs my hand, and drags me to the dance floor. I sigh and let her know she needs this.

"I need a dance, my light. Do you mind?" she asks with a pitiful expression. Smiling, I get into the proper dancing position and wait for her to join me. I watch her frown turn to a grin as she grabs hold of me and begins to lead.

The quartet on stage begins to play Camille 2000, and the dancing begins. I keep an eye on Emperor Raul and Abby as we dance for Ellie's sake. She spins me, and when I come back around, my eyes snap to hers. My moth and sweet darkness. I lose myself in the most lovely shade of green as we dance and sway. Her hands find my hips as she lifts and spins me. My gown goes in all directions, and I try not to laugh too loudly. Ellie sets me back down before dipping me. While dipped, the sound of glass breaking and bloody screams snap me out of my daze.

Ellie lifts me immediately. I lose my footing from how fast she does so and almost crash into her. Looking around to survey what on Midiri is happening, I spot four men clad in all-black gear, but there could be more. They look like the men who tried to kill me that night in my room. Chills wrack my entire body as Ellie pulls me behind her. At first, I thought they were here for me, but all of a sudden, they turned to Raul and began to attack him. Gasps and screams echo throughout the room as Raul yells out orders to help him.

I honestly didn't care if he died; it just couldn't be in my kingdom. If I were blamed for his death, it would cause a war that I most definitely didn't need.

People run in all different directions, trying to get away from the assassins. Grabbing onto Ellie to get her attention works, and her eyes snap to mine.

"We need to kill those assassins! If he's killed in Midiri, war will follow!" I hoped the panic in my voice was enough, and I walked out from behind her. Screaming orders at my guards, I ask one of them to hand me their daggers. They do so, and I start running to one of the men; he doesn't see me coming as I drive one dagger into his back and drag it downwards. His bloodcurdling scream reaches my ears, and I wince. Pulling the dagger from his back, I go to stand him in the front when another one of the men tackles me to the ground and moves to punch me. Vines wrap around him and pull him off me as Ellie helps me up.

"You ok?" She asks, a bit out of breath.

"Yea, just got the shit tackled out of me, is all," I say loud enough for her to hear. She nods and puts her forehead to mine for a moment before rushing off to continue with the fight. I pick up the daggers I drop and watch Ellie and Raul fight off the men for a second. It seemed Raul had a fire affinity as he set the one he was currently fighting on fire. My guards come running, and a few of them use their affinities as well. As I joined the fight, I saw the one she wrapped in vines creep up to her. Panic clouds my brain as I try and run over to her in time. I trip over my dress and fall to the floor as tears wrack my body. More masked men drop into the ballroom through windows and balconies.

What happened to my guards?

I screamed out her name, but she was too busy fighting another one of the masked men. Just as she's about to get stabbed, I scream as loudly as I can and feel the energy rush from my core and out of my hands. The mental barrier shatters as the energy bolts toward the man. Once it reaches him, he explodes. Bits of him go flying everywhere as everything around that area gets a fresh coat of blood. I scream again. Ellie's back is covered in it, and I stumble to my feet towards her.

I glance at Raul to make sure he's not dead to see him staring at me in horror. Staring like I'm a monster.

Deep breaths in and deep breaths out. The both of us stare. Another breath, then another masked man tries attacking him. I turn away and rush to Ellie. The bastard could handle himself; I had someone to protect.

Fighting continues as people continue to try to leave the room.

I watch as people scream and pound on them to no avail.

Why were the doors locked?

I had no more time to wonder as another masked man approached me with a DaDao. He slices at the air as I dodge and try to devise a solution. With no real fighting experience, my chances weren't looking good. Using my affinity wasn't easy either, and I couldn't rely on it. My best chance was to just keep dodging and wait for the perfect time to strike.

Watching his movements, I notice he swings right and then down. So, while his sword is down, I tackle him to the ground. Taken by surprise, his weapon goes flying, giving me the chance to stab him. He grabs hold of my wrists, so I slam my forehead against his nose. I must've broken it 'cause he cries out in pain, and I hear a snap. Using this chance, I plunge my right dagger through his eye, killing him instantly. Panting, I get off him and check my surroundings. Ellie was fine and had gotten hold of a gun. She was shooting at more men when they jumped through the windows. Seeing she's ok I spare a glance at Raul. He's been stabbed in the side but seems to be managing fine. Guards are scattered around the room, keeping nobles safe while others fight off more men with Ellie. With a groan, I move to help Raul despite my dislike of him. However, before I go over to him, I tear my dress for better freedom of movement. I needed every advantage I could get. Swearing out loud and internally, I sneak up behind one of the masked men and jump on him. Mustering up all the adrenaline I have, I stab as quickly and efficiently as I can. He drops, and I get off him.

"How many more of these bastards are there?!" I shout to no one in particular.

"Seems they're slowing down! Just hold on!" Ellie yells from across the room. Sensing a bit of fear in her, I decided to watch her back. Running over to her, I place my back against her.

"How many bullets do you have left, El!?" I shout over the sound of bullets firing and affinities being used.

"Not fucking enough." She yells back. Ellie didn't like to use her affinity too much in case someone saw it but used it earlier to save me anyway.

I swear a few times before focusing on my affinity. Throwing my gloves to the ground, I let it flow freely from my fingertips. I had no idea what that exploding someone affinity was, but if I could use the darkness, Ellie and I would have an advantage. Letting the energy flow from my chest was so much easier without the emotional blockage. Darkness seeps from my hands and begins pooling all over the floor, but it's not enough. Focusing as hard as I can, the room suddenly goes black, and sounds begin to muffle.

"Ellie! Use your affinity now!" I scream, hoping she can hear me. Instead of getting a response, I feel vines wrap around my legs securing me in place.

Suddenly, the whole room shakes, and through the darkness, I can see thorned vines wrapping around the men and squeezing them to death. Screams are muffled, but they're still ridiculously loud. I wanted to cover my ears, but I had to focus on fueling the darkness. Suddenly, calloused hands cover my ears, and the screaming stops. Glancing up, I see Ellie's concentrated face and tear up. She stood behind me, so it wasn't easy, but I could tell she was having trouble focusing on the men.

"I can't tell where they all are!" She shouts loud enough for me to hear her while still managing to block out the screams.

Looking around, I notice I can sense where everyone is. I begin shouting to her where they are and watch as vines strangle them to death. My eyes watch every little death as I yell to Ellie their locations. Guilt seeps in, but I remind myself that these men were not my friends.

"How do you know where they are?!" She yells.

"I.. I don't know! I guess I can see more than you can?" I yell back.

"I could barely see you enough, let alone find your ears!!" Her voice is still muffled, so I'm guessing that's what she said.

"I'm gonna try and use the darkness offensively!! Hold on!!" I scream as I focus on my energy. Somehow, I was still going despite using so much energy simultaneously. Moving my hands outwards once more, I command the darkness to suffocate the masked men… It listens. Bodies gasp for air before they drop to the ground. I watch as darkness concentrates on every masked man and shoves itself down their throats before leaving like nothing happened. Once I no longer see a living masked man, I command the darkness back to me. It does just that and swirls around my hands and arms like armor. Ellie removes her hands from my ears and walks around to stand before me.

"Are you ok? " she asks, crouching down to my level. I watch her breathe in and out a few times before mirroring it and nodding.

"Yea? You?" I ask, looking her over. She had a small cut on her cheek and some blood all over her, but other than that, she looked fine.

"Never better. Come on, " she says, standing and holding a hand out to me. I take it, and she lifts me off the ground before pulling me into a soul-crushing hug. All the wind is pushed out of me as I smile.

"Ellie, love, I can't breathe.." I whisper.

"Then the hug is good enough." She replies, letting me go a few seconds later. We stare at each other for a few moments when, all of a sudden, Raul begins yelling for his guards. Nobles who had been stuck in the room walked back over to us and gasped at the dead bodies. Whispers are covered by the screaming of Raul's anger. At least he wasn't dead.

He sets his eyes on me and starts storming towards me. Ellie begins to pull me back, but I stand on my ground. I glance at her and nod, letting her know I've got this. She relents with a sigh, and I turn back to Raul as he stomps through the ballroom.

"You cunt! You did this! Next time you don't want to accept a marriage proposal, just say so! No need to try and kill me!!" His screaming echoes across the room, and I glare at him.

"You think I did this? I just saved your rude ass! Not only did you enter my kingdom for no reason other than to meet me, but with very little time to prepare! You also ignored my rejection of you and continued to pester me about marriage despite me telling you I was already with someone!! And even though you pulled all that shit, I still put myself out there to protect you. Oh, and by the way, THAT WAS A NO!!" My voice is strong but exudes frustration. This pathetic excuse for a man was not going to talk down to me.

"This was clearly an assassination attempt set up by you!! The only reason you helped was to make it look like it wasn't. You are not fit to be Queen if you try and murder people of higher power than you!!" He scolds.

"You don't get to determine that. Get out of my kingdom." My voice is like ice as I demand his departure.

His eyes narrow before a grin spreads across his face. "Fine.. but you will regret this." He adjusts his outfit and snaps his fingers. That Abby woman comes running up to him and bows. I glance between the two in confusion before Raul's words devastate me.

"Kill them," he says coldly before walking away and out the door. Abby grins and pulls out two swords, and I back up to Ellie. I couldn't risk Ellie or my people, but I didn't know what to do.

"Get behind me," Ellie whispers as Raul's guards enter the room through the doors. They begin attacking people, and I hear screams come from the hallways. A sickening realization hits me as blood soaks the floors of the ballroom.

Raul had been planning this all along.

"No..no no no no no!" I scan the room for Elody and see her fighting men off.

"Y/n, look at me. We need to get you somewhere safe-" Ellie starts trying to drag me to the balcony as I panic.

"NO! No, I can't just leave! You run! Go tell Joel about what's happening here. I still have some energy." I ramble, wiping the cut on her cheek.

"I'm not leaving you, " she replies sternly. If she were to stay, I'd risk losing her. I couldn't lose her, even if it meant losing myself.

"I'm sorry, Ellie.." I whisper before I surround her in darkness and push her onto the balcony. She yells at me to stop and to let her help, but I don't listen. Closing the door to the balcony and locking it, I take a deep breath, knowing she's safe. She'd be mad, but there was no way in hell I was going to let her die.

Now to deal with these fuckers. I had to act quickly if I wanted to save everyone that mattered to me. Moving towards Elody, I see Abby brutally murder a small group of nobles and decide to deal with her first. Grabbing a dagger off the floor, I coat it in darkness before throwing it at Abby. Using the darkness coating it, I guide it straight towards Abby. Somehow, she senses it coming and gets out of the way. But not without it grazing her side. I watch as a large gash gushes blood. She clutches her side before storming in my direction, sword raised. Preparing to take her on time seems too slow…

Abby swings at me, but vines pull her back, and the sword slices Ellie's chest.

Blood is everywhere. I let out a bloodcurdling scream and caught her. Tears begin to flow faster than I can control. I scream again, and glass shatters everywhere. Abby clutches her ears as blood drips from them. She takes a step back, unable to remove her hands as I scream. I was going to kill her. And she could tell.

Lowering Ellie to the ground, I sob over her. Abby runs as fast as she can, holding her side. Lighting flashes through the room, and I look up to see Elody blocking Abby from leaving. I want to scream at her. Tell her it's not worth it, and I'll kill her someday. But my voice doesn't carry very far.

I watch as Abby stabs Elody in the stomach. I watch as she coughs up blood, and her eyes roll to the back of her head. I watch Elody fall to the floor and die.

Sobbing and clutching onto Ellie for dear life, I try and keep the blood from overflowing with the darkness.

But darkness doesn't heal.

Blood pools onto my dress and the floor, and I beg for Ellie to make it through this.

"Ellie, please…. Stay with me," my choked sobs and pleas reach deaf ears, but Ellie still looks up at me and smiles.

She was dying in my arms, and there was nothing I could do about it. Except smile back so that the very last thing she can see will be just that. A smile, a smile of someone who loves her wholeheartedly.

She closes her eyes, and I scream once more. Someone taps me on the shoulder, and I look up to see Nakir. His face is urgent, but I can't handle any more bad news.

"I- Ellie- she-" I try to explain through choked sobs, but nothing comes out.

"I can save her. But you need to let me see the wound." He sounds far too calm, but I have decided to trust him.

Pulling away from her wound, I allow Nakir to see it. Holding onto her for dear life, I watch as Nakir uses his affinity to heal Ellie. Warmth dances across the both of us, and the cuts I have to begin to disappear as well. A ball of light surrounds the two of us, and I glance at Nakir to see his face is full of concentration. Checking on Ellie, I watch as her wound stitches itself back up and forms a scar. My tears flow faster, tears of joy that she might live.

After a few moments, Nakir lets out a deep breath, and the light stops. Immediately, I give Ellie a once-over and put my head on her chest. Listening for a heartbeat with bated breath…

Ba-dum

Ba-dum

Faint but there. I exhale and bring her head to my chest.

"Thank you, Nakir.. I'll find some way to pay you back for this, I swear.." I sniffle and grab one of his hands, squeezing it.

"No need.. It's my job to protect Ellie.." His voice is calm but warm.

"How do you mean?" I ask, confused. There was something I wasn't getting here.

"Joel sent me here to watch over her. It's why I was assigned as your aide.. I'm sorry for not telling you.."

Nakir was Joel's spy… "Wha- how-"

"I don't have time to explain; we need to get you both to safety. Oren has already secured a safe house."

"Oren?" He huffs and motions for me to stand. I glance down at Ellie and debate if I can lift her. Rolling my shoulders, I lift her into my arms and stand.

How on earth did she carry me for so long?

I was not about to look like some weakling in front of Nakir, so I kicked off my heels for better balance and coat my feet in darkness to prevent them from getting cut up. Wrapping darkness around my arms for better support helped a little, and I followed Nakir. He has a sword and pistol strapped to his belt. So, I was assuming he would be doing most of the fighting. We pass Elody's body, and I blink back tears.

Screams still fill the halls. I wanted to help them all, but I had Ellie to take care of first, and I was done trusting people to take care of things for me. Following Nakir to the basement of the palace, we reach a painting. He looks around before knocking on the painting with a specific pattern before it opens, and Oren opens it. He glances around and ushers us in. Confusion is etched onto my face as I climb over the small lip and walk into a panic room. Shelves line the walls stocked full of supplies and people fill the space. The small room is a slate grey, and I see a small door that leads to a bathroom in the corner. It smells like sweat and blood in here, and I can't help but worry about injuries I can't even see. The Prime Minister is in here, along with my maids, General Roe, and a bunch of other familiar faces. I spot a cot and set Ellie on it gently. Moving hair out of her face, I kissed her forehead before taking a deep breath and facing everyone.

"I'm going back out there," I say to the room before heading over to the painting.

"Your Majesty, please," General Roe says, placing a hand on my shoulder.

"There's not much we can do right now."

"People are dying, general, and you're hiding in here like a coward. I will not sit in a room silent while they're out there fighting for their lives," I say sternly. There was no need for me to be rude, but I couldn't contain my emotions well after everything that had just happened.

"I understand you're upset, but-"

Knocks sound at the painting, and all our heads snap in that direction. Oren glances at us before cautiously opening it to reveal a knight with a chest wound.

"I have word! For her Majesty the Queen!" The knight's voice is filled with terror as Oren helps him in.

"Please sit," I say as soothingly as I can, motioning for him to sit on a cot.

Instead of sitting, he walks over to me, clutches my arms, and with a shaky voice says,

"Emperor Raul has declared war! His troops are already making their way here! Your Majesty, you must do something!"

My heart races, and I begin to panic as the cruel realization sets in.

We were at war with the Mortican Empire.

[adidegmez]

One last time

The bad batch s3 ep 15 spoilers

I am not okay.

Kids survived, some clones survived, tha batch survived What more could we ask for? Well i know Tech. I wanted Tech to return why couldn't he return. Why give us hope why? They convinced us cx2 is someone important and i believed he was tech. But no they just gave hope for nothing.

Ending caught me off guard. I thought someone was going to die i think everyone thought someone would ünd maybe even everyone dies. They survived all them i am glad by this its great.

I cried a lot. When they mentioned Tech i couldn't keep it together.

I am still sad. Ending was great we have everything we ever wanted except Tech.

Hemlock died, rampart died. Nala Se was good. Emerie helped the batch and now she and echo going to help clone underground(hopefully we will get a clone underground show with this artstyle). Everyone and everything is good again except tech i can't stop thinking the fact that they didn't bring hil back why???

If he doesn't have a hand to tremble, there is no trembling problem. They actually did that.

Echo is proud of Omega, hunter wrecker and crosshair knew right away zillo was omega's work.

I thought wrecker was going to die when he echo asked where Hunter and Crosshair are.

The hug omega gave Hunter and Crosshair, the scene where all the batch (except echo and tech of course) sitting in peace so beautiful.

Clone x troopers there are 4 of them. When i was watching i thought they might have been developed with special mutations like bad batch's. But this is not true probably one of those clone looked like a reg. They are all probably reg but how can they fight so good?

Btw I didn't think for even 1 second that the clones wouldn't help rescue their brothers. I like clones, their personality (and their voice ofc) is perfect.

I hope Crosshair knows tech wanted to save him(they must have told him right?). I wish Tech could've see crosshair's character development his story. I wish no could've knew he joined them. I wish... Tech was alive. They didn't bring him back but how could he be dea i still can't belive and now while writing this i am thinking why can't he still be alive maybe i am being so delusional but they didn't confirmed he is dead if there is no body then there is no death, right? Since the end of season 2 we assumed he was alive but they didn't do anything different in this episode than the whole season to prove he is dead. But we still believed he was alive why cant we still believe he is alive the show ended yes but maybe in the future they will make a clone underground show and maybe tech will return. He probably wouldn't return but i refuse to believe he is dead i will believe he is alive untul they prove he is dead but they probably wouldn't prove it. So in my mind tech will be alive and i don't care if i am being too delusional. 🤷🏻‍♀️

When i see older omega first i thought she became a liberater of ancient wonders but this ending made so much more sense. Omega left without saying goodbye to crosshair and wrecker. But Hunter and omega's conversation was beautiful. I think they made that place like a museum?

Crosshair and hunter together killed hemlock, they saved omega together, they believed omega, they believed eachother and themselves. That scene was perfect.

Everything went well, we got a better ending what i expected. But tech...

No matter how much we want some stories doesn't have a happy ending this is what i think about even though we have happy ending i will never forget how tech sacrificed himself for his family. in the end they didn't waste his sacrifice in s2 finale and they did what they were going to do before hemlock captured omega in s2. They lived a peaceful life in pabu they retired.

I keep coming back to the same thing, i know but i can't help it. Tech tech tech... Heroic tech.

I've written too many things too mixed up. But if you've read this far, thank you. And I'm so glad I can be a part of this adventure. I started by writing my thoughts about star wars on Tumblr. And here, theories, fanarts, headcanons, everything was beautiful. Thank you everyone for everything. I'm glad I was able to experience the adventures of Bad Batch with you. goodbye till the next adventure.

thank you dee bradley baker and michelle ang for bringing these characters to life. And thanks to everyone who worked on this beautiful show.

It has been a beautiful (sometimes painful an sometimes peaceful) journey.

goodbye to the bad batch, goodbye

Hunter

Tech

Wrecker

Crosshair

Echo

and Omega.

It has been an honor to know you and being able to watch your adventures. Goodbye o7.