#i feel a little safer knowing she'll never find this

[hughiecampbelle]

The Boys Preference: You Falling Asleep

A/N: Not requested! I just thought it would be a cute idea! Requests are still open. Be sure to read my rules in the pinned post :) Feedback is always appreciated 💜💜💜

Butcher didn't want anyone visiting him in the hospital, but you weren't taking no for an answer. He'd been sleeping on and off, but when he work up again, you were asleep. Curled into a ball in one of the visitor chairs. You looked uncomfortable and cramped, but your expression was that of relief. For a little while you weren't worried about the state of the world or the future or his health. He knows you haven't been getting enough sleep. That didn't really matter when it felt like the world was ending every other day. When the nurses come in he makes sure to warn them. He couldn't be the cause of your fears and the one to wake you up. Someone brought a blanket and he gently placed it over you. He watched you, taking in this moment. You were finally relaxed. He knew you'd only done this because you were completely exhausted, you could barely keep your eyes open. It hurt him to know that he was a big reason why you couldn't eat or sleep or take care of yourself. He never meant to hurt you like this.

Hughie notices you can barely keep your eyes open. After that night at Tek Knights, you haven't been sleeping very well. You'd been so scared, so sure you were going to die with five new holes punctured into your body. You woke up from nightmares gasping for air, checking your skin for holes, afraid you were still in the sex dungeon. That you never got out. He's not sure how to talk to you about it and the guilt eats him alive. You and him are going through his files on Neuman when your head starts to fall only for you to startle awake. He insists you take a nap in his bed. You're reluctant, but you're so exhausted you eventually give in. He doesn't shut the door completely, wanting to be there if you have another nightmare. It's the least he can do.

Annie insists she'll stay awake for the both of you. The shape shifter captured you both. You were just at the wrong place at the wrong time. They ended up drugging the both of you. They switched between your two identities, tearing off their skin, taking your memories as well as your faces. Annie can see just how tired you are. Your skin is raw and you've run out of tears. She doesn't hold it against you. She fights against the chains quietly, hearing your breathing turn shallow. She would find a way out of this. She would get you out of this. You'd feel better after getting a good night's sleep. You weren't a Supe. You didn't have the abilities she had. And yet, she couldn't get them to work. She cursed herself for not protecting you, not saving you, not being a good enough Supe. She was grateful you weren't awake to see her fall apart like this.

M.M. does everything in his power not to wake you. You fell asleep on a surveillance mission in the van. You'd gotten so quiet, he felt like he was talking to himself. When he looked over, putting the binoculars down, you were curled in a ball in the passenger seat, fast asleep. He knows you haven't been sleeping well. If it's not the nightmares, it's the fear, the worrying. You recently admitted you'd kept a loaded gun where you could easily reach just in case. You were petrified something terrible would happen if you relaxed even a little, if you let your guard down. You needed this. He turns the engine off and puts his coat over you. He would've loved being able to talk about your heightened stress and anxiety, ways to cope, but this was a lot better. He hoped you'd feel safer, calmer after you woke up.

Frenchie freaks out a little internally. He thought you were dead. Your head was resting in your folded arms on your desk. Once he saw your body rise and fall with your breathing, he realized you weren't knocked out or dead. You were asleep. He thinks it's a little funny after getting over his initial panic. You've been working really hard lately. He wasn't sure how much sleep you were getting, if you were getting any at all. When the others walked in, bickering and laughing, he motions for them to be quiet. You needed this. Everyone whispers, going their separate ways. Frenchie turns down the lights, leaving a lamp on so that you're not totally in the dark. He wants you to rest as long as possible. You've been giving everything to this job, this cause, lately. You needed a lot more rest than this.

Kimiko knew you'd been having nightmares. It wasn't a secret. You confided in her one night that you haven't been sleeping well. Every time you close your eyes, you see Homelander. You feel his lasers slice through you until you're two halves. He's not just angry or upset, he's furious. You can't escape him. You two are hanging out when she notices you can't keep your eyes open. She tells you to lay down with your head on her lap. You laugh it off, but she's serious. She rubs circles between your shoulder blades, trying to ease you to sleep. When she notices your eyes are closed she doesn't stop. It brings her a lot of ease and relief knowing she can help you, at least a little. If you have another nightmare, if you face Homelander alone again, she'll be there when you wake up. She'll be there.

Bonus! Homelander either let's you sleep or orders you out of the room. If he likes you, he might warn the others to shut the fuck up. He'd move your meeting to another time and simply let you be. He might check on you every so often and when he sees you stirring he would gently wake you up, walk you to your room where you can sleep in a real bed instead of holding your head up in the board room. If he doesn't like you, he yells and berates and is this close to firing you before he realizes The Seven and Vought need you for your powers. You can apologize all you want, he won't listen. Either way you're completely embarrassed. You've just been so busy lately, it's been hard to fall asleep with everything going on.

[almostwisegalaxy]

My insecure boy

Cha hyun su x reader

The night grenn home was demolished by the army and hyun su lost his memory, you chose to flee, abandoning your friends and HIM. It wasn't your choice. He advised you to leave because he believed that if you stayed with the others you'd be killed. So he packed you a bag, all the food he could find and some weapons.

"I don't know who you are anymore, but I feel you're dear to me. I promise I'll find you later, but right now you've got to get away from here.

"But what about the others? I can't leave them like this, they're waiting for us."

"If we all stay together, do you really think we'll survive? We're running out of time. Leave before the building is demolished"

So you ran away at his request, really hoping to find him later.

D+345 after monsterserification

Pov de hyun su

after yi-kyeong transformed

Eun-yoo followed her friend's monster. He had told her he was there to find the person for whom hyun su refused to succumb to monsterserification.

"If hyun su knew where she was all the time, why didn't he go and meet her sooner?"

"She's fragile right now. He thinks that by protecting her from afar, she'll be safer and more at peace".

They continued forward, chatting. Arriving in a valley far from "the city", Eun-yoo wanted to know more about this mysterious person, and frankly, the monster was getting fed up.

He raised his head to eunyoo's level and spoke to her about the spell that had created such tension when they were both in the building.

"Why are you taking so long to find out who this person is? Does knowing that he cherishes and protects this girl more than you does make your miserable human blood boil inside you? "

"No, I don't know what you're talking about." she said defensively.

"Oh, so I'm wrong. Am I also wrong that you wanted to cuddle him from the moment you saw him, that if he'd really been talking so boldly to you in that room, you'd have jumped on him? "

An argument broke out between the two. But the instant his gaze fell on her, hyun su's eyes changed from blue to their original color. It only took one look to regain possession of her body.

"She's... She gave birth..."

He knew she was carrying their children, but not that she'd given birth yet.

At that moment he hadn't listened to eun-yoo for a while. With his heart pounding, he ran to her and embraced her. But when she met the sound of his footsteps on the grass, he stopped dead in his tracks. All kinds of ideas came to mind

Will she be angry with me for leaving her all this time?

What if she doesn't want me anymore?

What if she rejected me?

What if she didn't want me around the baby? OUR child

I listened to her call me so many times, but I didn't come.

It was her voice that snapped me out of my reverie

"Hyun su? Is that you? "

Without missing a beat, he hugged her warmly, and she hugged him back. His doubts evolved.

"I'm sorry I didn't come earlier. I don't have any. I left you alone for so long to fend for yourself, I thought it was for the best but-"

"Chute, it's okay. Better late than never, right? "

They exchange a soft, passionate, loving kiss. Only the baby's chirping on his beloved's breast could stop them. Together they enter the little hut that serves as y/n's roof. The hut soon becomes their home

Yes, eun-yoo was forgotten.

[falling-star-cygnus]

I need Billy comfort after the one where he got trapped under a building, can you please make him be saved?

well since you asked so nicely, how could i refuse?

continuation of this fic‼️ you don’t have to read it, of course, but it will make this whole thing make more sense :D @starguardianniom [your request is on the way, i just thought you might also like to be tagged in the part two :D]

without further ado~

"BILLY!"

She doesn't know which one of them screams it, maybe it was all three, but Anby lunges for the android's jacket- lunges really for any part of him she might be able to grab- until her hands close on red leather. The inevitable weight of his metal body doesn't cross her mind until she's being tugged down with him.

The feeble floor cracks further under Anby’s feet as she digs her heels in. That damned, annoying Ethereal shrieks- probably much louder than what she can hear through her headphones- and stomps like a spoiled child being told no for the first time. She'll put it out of it’s misery once she gets Billy- too still, too unresponsive- back onto safer ground.

Only ...Anby never gets the chance.

The ground jumps under her feet, and the tight grip she had on his jacket futzs.

Billy falls.

Hands and arms wrap around her waist before she can do something stupid like leap down after him. An action she knows is irrational but all she can hear is the way the android hits each level of the building and she needs to get him back-

"ANBY-! WE NEED TO GO."

Of course. Right. Clarity washes over her like cold water; Anby can't save Billy if she's dead too. And he would just feel bad if she got hurt trying to save him, because he had no regard for himself-

The remaining members of the Cunning Hares' fumble out of building just in time to see it topple like a house of cards- with their former client pinned in front of them by a slab of concrete.

It flails a little bit- kinda like a bug does when you grab it's leg- and they're privy to a front row seat as a metal support beam crashes into the weird orb of it's head. The thing splatters like a paintball.

None of them feel much remorse.

A few seconds of silence go by, passed by the girls simply.. staring.

"Well…. alright, Hares," Nicole starts, dusting her hands off, "Divide and conquer. Billy has to be around here somewhere."

'Hopefully.' goes unsaid, but painfully heard.

"R-Right!" Nekomata pipes up, her tails lashing with nervous energy, "I’m sure we’ll find him in no time! He can’t really keep quiet, anyway, y- you know?"

Anby doesn’t say anything at all.

They split up, taking turns calling the android's name and pouncing on any slight glimpse of white or red or yellow. Even greenish black would be better than nothing. Each empty nook, each second of silence, grated on their nerves until they were like frayed live wires.

Usually, Billy kept track of how long the Cunning Hares' stayed in a Hollow. It kept them all from lingering too long, unless they got stuck, and it kept them safe. Why couldn't they keep Billy safe- Now they had no idea how long they'd been searching.

Nicole had moved on to bargaining with empty air.

"Billy," she calls, heaving a heavy pillar to the side with a huff, "Come on, answer already! I won't yell at you anymore, or whack you or- or anything. Just answer us, please!"

"And I won't make fun of how you like to listen to classical music to fall asleep!" Nekomata joins in, from somewhere to Anby's left, "I'll even go to Random Play with you to find more, meow!"

"I'll watch Starlight Knights with you," It couldn't hurt to join in after all, Anby decides, "We could all go to the restaurant, and invite the Phaethon siblings, and-"

It was like something out of one of her movies. The second Anby pushes aside a new piece of rubble, she sees it. A tattered piece of the android's jacket- connected to tattered sleeves and sparking metal arms and a big fluffy head of white hair.

The relief almost sends the smaller Demara to her knees.

Time and place, she reminds herself fiercely, quickly signaling the other two closer to better excavate their friend. He's not in any form of good condition. It doesn't even look like he's conscious.

One of his video sensors is cracked, infected with a galactic black sludge that glows a mixture of pinkish blue red purple. The rest of his plating was pulsating green, and severe corruption was blooming anywhere it could take root.

It even looked like his audio processers were damaged. Anby couldn't even imagine how that must felt for her hyperactive friend- stuck in a silent, cramped space while Ether ate at his mind. Trapped without knowing that they were looking for him.

She hoped he would know anyway, that he wouldn't be wondering if he'd die alone under the weight of a building. Billy wasn't exactly insecure, but...

Anby shakes herself out of thinking about it. They'd found him, that was all that mattered at the moment. Now the Hares' just had to get him back home and back in working order.

"Both of you, stand back!" Nicole orders, aiming her briefcase above the wreckage pinning the android's lower torso.

The smaller girls are quick to comply, and out of the corner of her eye she can see the thiren swipe something golden off the ground. Nekomata shows it to her in silent explanation before shoving it deep into her sleeve for safekeeping.

Billy's little sheriff star.

A shot goes off before the smaller Demara can dwell on it, and suddenly the rubble atop their friend is being vacuumed up into the blackhole that Nicole manifests. They each grab a metal limb and tug him out of range.

One problem taken care of, another appears. The corruption blooming from his joints is excessive. If they take him out of the Hollow like this...

"We don't have time to think about it," Nicole reminds them all, voice tight with the weight of the android's life, "Anby, cut off as many of these... things as you can without hurting him. We'll see what we can do from there."

Anby nods once, and readies her sword.

One, two, four, eight turns to sixteen and sixteen turns to the very last one being cut down without mercy. With each bud removed, the sickly green light between his plates fades until it's barely there at all. There's not much to be done about the crack over his eye until they make it to a mechanic, but even that seems to lose it's glitchy appearance.

The Cunning Hares' don't bother with fighting the Ethereals they pass- there's no time- so it's mad dash to the exit that jostles the android's already crushed legs.

....Billy really was all limbs and pizazz.

It's only once the reunited Hares' make it a good deal from the Hollow that they stop running, doubled over and desperate for a full breath. Anby takes a quick survey of their surroundings as she gently lowers Billy to the ground, propped up on her lap to at least provide a little comfort.

It looks they ended up in Belobog territory, around where that eccentric mechanic liked to linger around. Gary-? Grail? Whatever...

Nekomata crouches down next to them and fishes the little star out of her sleeve. It's battered, and kind of dented around the points, but it still clips onto the leather like it never left.

Anby can vaguely hear Nicole tap away at her phone behind her, the curses muttered almost like a soothing balm of normalcy as the last of the corruption finally leaves Billy. His cracked eye returns to it's familiar shade of yellow- if painfully dull compared to his normal vibrancy.

But he's still unresponsive.

Still so hauntingly quiet and still. It's unnatural, and it isn't right. And none of them know if the android's going to last until tomorrow. Or even until the next hour.

Unbidden, Anby can feel her lower lip tremble- can feel stinging behind her eyes as she continues to run her hand through dusty white hair. It held none of the softness it did before this whole... job. Before her stupid grip had fumbled.

Anby hadn't cried in years, yet now she finds she can only helplessly watch as the salt splatters against the android's face plate. Like a mimicry of tears he wasn't built to shed.

"AhHh- Anby, don't cry," Nekomata frets, clearly freaked out by the uncharacteristic display, "He'll be okay! Bil- Billy's tough as nails, remember? I haven't known him for as long as you two.. but even I can tell that!"

Her puffy sleeves gently pat at the smaller Demara's face, trying to clear away the stupid liquid that was blurring her vision. Soft mantras of 'he'll be ok' are whispered, even as the thiren herself starts to cry.

Anby hunches over, would be curling into her knees if it wasn't for the weight of the unmoving android on her lap, and Nekomata clutches onto the lapels of his jacket and stifles a hiccup by biting down on her lip.

He wasn't coming back to them this time.

He wouldn't be there in the morning to braid her hair, or entertain her movie references, or lighten the mood with his silly Starlight Knight quips. He wouldn't be there to help them reach tall shelves, or distract their clients while Nicole emptied their bank accounts, or flail about with his lanky limbs.

Billy wouldn't be there.

...

..creak...

...Creak..

Creak.

Cool metal fingers brush past Anby's face, and then Nekomata's, and then fall limply back to the hard concrete.

"...don't... cry.."

...

...!

Billy!

Warm light finally flickers to life behind the android's video sensors, dimmer than normal but there.

Anby feels as though her heart's been restarted. Like the world had suddenly been bleached of color only for it to be a really badly timed greyscale shot.

Billy was alive, and whirring back into gear under their hands.

"You guys... really came for me..?"

"You big dummy!" Nekomata sniffs, ears and tails poofed like she'd been startled, "of course we did!"

"Have more faith in us," Anby echoes the thiren, resting her forehead against the android's with one final sniff. Nekomata rests her's against the diamond on his chest.

He can't hear them, his audio processers are still busted, but Anby hopes he can feel their care for him. Hopes he can feel how much they love him, and that they were here to stay no matter what happened. Just like he was for them.

Billy Kid was the heart of the Cunning Hares', after all.

[archangeldyke-all]

how do you think sev would be with a gf who gets frightened easily? like maybe shes a bit jumpy during thunderstorms or straight up refuses to go into dark rooms/hallways alone, and she absolutely cannot stand horror movies

(yes i am projecting 😐, also love ur writing💕)

cute!!

men and minors dni

she'd tease you about it relentlessly. all the time. always.

sometimes she'll sneak up on you to watch you jump and squeal in fear. she thinks it's hilarious.

but, despite the teases and her pranks, she'll always hold you when you're scared.

during a thunderstorm, sevika will find you hiding under the covers.

she'll crawl in beside you and pull you into your arms, pressing kisses to your head all while she teases you for 'being a baby.'

at night, she'll always walk with you to and from the bathroom in the dark-- knowing how much it freaks you out.

she'll warn you when she's watching a horror movie.

"don't come in here babe! i've got a slasher on the tv."

beneath all the teases and laughs, sevika actually finds it adorable. she loves that you trust her enough to feel safer with her when you're scared, it makes her feel like she's taking care of you. of course, she'd never say this out loud, so instead she just pokes fun at you with a loving little smile, kissing away the pout on your lips.

taglist!

@lesbeaniegreenie @fyeahnix @sapphicsgirl @half-of-a-gay @ellabslut @thesevi0lentdelights @sexysapphicshopowner @shimtarofstupidity @love-sugarr @chuucanchuucan @222danielaa @badbye666 @femme-historian @lia-winther @gr0ssz0mbi3 @ellsss

[gwynrieldreams]

Reasons why I believe the Gwynriel book will be centered around Gwyn and not Azriel.

1) We already know stuff about Azriel's powers. Could there be more? Yes, but we don't know anything about Gwyn and her discovering her new powers would be more important. We know she's 1/4 nymph, what does that entail? Does she have light powers? Does she have fire powers? Is she a lightsinger? Is she starborn? WHAT IS SHE?!

2) We know a lot about his past, while Gwyn's lineage is still a mystery. She could be the daughter of a character we already met or her ancestry could play a role as to what are her powers. Lucien, Tamlin, Eris, Beron, Thanatos, so many theories!

3) Azriel had 500 centuries to process his trauma and he even got his revenge. I'm not saying he's ok now but I feel like his healing will take a backseat compared to Gwyn's.

4) Gwyn is still in the library. Her getting out, wanting to explore the outside world is essential for her story. SJM has mentioned she wants to do a little mermaid retelling and that fits perfectly.

5) Gwyn exploring her sexuality, expirimenting, discovering her boundaries, seeing how her sa trauma is affecting her is also very important. Azriel has 500 years of experience, and Gwyn has none.

6) The mating bond is what Azriel has always wanted but we don't know how Gwyn would react to it. She's the one who will have to process all this, since she has never been with a man. I don't think she is expecting to find her mate. It would be very interesting to see her emotional struggle, especially in case she's the one to realise it first (in previous couples the male knew first and in elucien's case they both knew). Usually the male is the one to be more open to it while the female chooses to be with him. Will she be afraid of the frenzy or will the bond help her feel safer?

7) The possibility that she'll be the one to wield Gwydion, which imo means several things. She could be starborn, thus the heir of Dusk Court. "When knife and sword are united, so shall our people" What if she with Gwydion and Azriel with TT revive the Dusk Court? What if the land chooses her as HL because she's starborn? Her and Bryce have many things in common, we have foreshadowing connecting her to Dusk Court and gwynriel has many parallels with quinlar.

8) SJM has said she focuses on women. So I believe that in a book with dual pov the female character will be the protagonist.

9) SJM has mentioned that BB is trying to create hype around the next couple. So if she had a bonus chapter or anything to indicate that Gwyn would be one of the protagonists, it would spoil the endgame. So she writes about Azriel to keep us wondering.

10) I want it to be about Gwyn. That's just my preference of course. Azriel has been my favourite character since day one but somehow Gwyn managed to take first place in my heart. I believe she has a lot of potential and I want to see more of her 🩵

11) Out of spite! For all the e/riels that said that she is forgettable and nothing but a side character for Nesta. I mean imagine their faces.

I'd like to hear your thoughts.

[deathbxnny]

Yanqing, Jing Yuan, Herta, and Kafka with an Emanator of Finality!Reader who follows HoFi!Kiana because I firmly believe that Kiana is Terminus (Aeon of Finality)!

Also, they're friends with Elio (Elio confirmed to be also an Emanator of Finality but maybe I'm wrong) just because they can.

-----♡

A/N: I had to look up the lore surrounding the concept of this, so if I got this completely wrong, then I'm so sorry, I did my best to understand. Also thank you for the request!<33

Content: Fluff, established relationship, some lore Spoilers??, angst if you squint hard enough, sfw

Reader has no set pronouns!

((Not fully proofread))

-----♡

》Herta

She'd absolutely want to know everything about you and conduct some experiments on your abilities, if you agree ofcourse. You give her the opportunity to learn more about a world that is still so vague and unexplainable even to her and she's most grateful for that.

She'd love to see you use your powers in her simulated universe and often gives you her odd backhanded compliments, that she however actually means well. Don't be surprised, if you find plenty of notes and files on you either. It's all in the name of sience ofcourse.

She's not afraid to voice her distate of Elio and will make sure to take up all of your time to keep you away from him. She doesn't want you to get hurt and doesn't trust him with you at all. Arguing with her on this is also useless, as she loves you way too much to listen.

-----♡

》Kafka

She's already familiar with the concept of your abilities and therefore doesn't make all too much of a fuss about it. Though she can't hide her excitement, whenever she sees how powerful you are. It's something she is proud of, when it comes to having you as a s/o, and she isn't shy to compliment you for your abilities either to the point of flustering you.

She likes fighting by your side, mainly because it makes her stronger and makes her feel much more safer. She feels unstoppable and is near addicted to your power. She'll teasingly call you her protect you and keep you close to her at all times.

She ofcourse doesn't mind your friendship with Elio and generally even uses it to her own advantage for whenever she wants to spend more off days with you.

-----♡

》Jing Yuan

Jing Yuan was a little concerned about the source of your abilities at first, but eventually began to accept that they were a part of you. He trusts you and knows you won't ever use them for anything evil or bad, which calms his worries however.

He likes to see your abilities in battle and often proudly smirks to himself, knowing that someone as powerful as you is his dear s/o. He loves to secretly therefore show you off to others, just to remind them who you belong to. He'll also like listening to you tell him more about your abilities, which makes him mentally wonder how to use it best in any upcoming battles.

He absolutely does not approve of your friendship with Elio and will try calmly telling you so. He doesn't want to control who you're friends with, but this is an exception to him. He doesn't want you to get hurt or used, so he'll slowly try you to get you to distance yourself from Elio for your own safety.

-----♡

》Yanqing

Yanqing doesn't question your abilities much and just happily accepts them as a part of you. He enjoys watching you fight and use your abilities, mainly because he finds them just that fascinating. He also always eagerly listens to you, whenever you tell him about your powers.

Yanqing will ask you to train with him often, as he sees you as a worthy and perfect opponent. You don't have the heart to tell him, that you hold back alot of your powers to not hurt him in the process, but he thankfully never notices either. He's just happy to spend time with you.

He doesn't know much about Elio, but after asking his Master about him, he decides that he's not a suitable friend for you. Yanqing would never force you to do anything, but he still voices his worries and fear about your friendship. The last things he wants, is to lose you, after all.

-----♡

A/N: I hope this was okay! I'm sorry if I got it wrong and thank you again for the request!<33

[iliveforyouilongforyouvesuvia]

Hi! Could you possibly write for the M6 with an MC who has intrusive thoughts that really bother them?

The Arcana HCs: M6 when MC has intrusive thoughts

~ one of the kindest, strongest, wisest people I know (who I would be so proud to be more like) struggles with this too, and I've inherited some of that from them. Here's some comfort, anon, nobody's alone in this :) - brainrot ~

Julian

Nothing bothers him more than seeing you unhappy. He's noticed a few times when you pause, like something in your head is hurting you, and the way you take a deep breath and continue

Clearly, he thinks, you have chronic headaches

Never fear, MC, your neighborhood doctor hero is on the case! He has almost as many remedies for headaches as he has leeches

You're a little confused when the next time a particularly nasty thought shows up, he smears a funky-smelling concoction across your forehead with little to no warning and then smiles proudly

"Better?"

Well, yes, but mostly because your confusion is drowning out the thought that made you wince in the first place

He can tell it wasn't the right solution, and asks you about whatever it is that's going on in your head to cause this kind of pain

He gives you his full attention while you explain, nodding along as it sinks in. Intrusive thoughts, he understands but can't relate to. Feeling guilt or shame for something he didn't do? He knows that

He's always attentive to you when you're around, but now as he gets better at recognizing that bothered look on your face, he'll wrap his arm around your shoulders every time and tell you it's not your fault

Asra

This was something they didn't find out about you until after the two of you started dating properly. Before that, they were often too busy hiding their own pain and taking care of you to notice yours

It startles him when he finds out - he's suggested tapping into your bond while you go shopping, out of curiosity for how you experience the world

The recurring image you always get near a specific location is such a normal part of your routine that you forget to warn them

You feel his full-body flinch as you walk by, and then he's pulling you into a safer alleyway to ask you if you're okay

The amount of guilt they feel when you explain is nearly painful - you've been dealing with this all by yourself, and not only did they fail to help you learn how to face it, they never even noticed

He's going to cuddle all the thoughts away

Or at least, they'll try. It works surprisingly well most of the time, and they've become so tuned in to you that at this point all you need is the touch of their fingers on your palm for things to settle

He also teaches you a little pattern to trace on your hand that helps things calm down for when he's not around

So, so proud of you for how well you already stand up to your thoughts and prove them wrong every day

Nadia

She's quite the insightful person herself, but she's not very familiar with intrusive thoughts. Sudden visions and their accompanying headaches? Certainly, but she sees her mind as her own domain

Which is why she notices the way the shadow of a pained expression will flit across your features every now and then, and assumes it's just your magic doing magic things

She's a little annoyed that you never share the content of your frequent visions with her. She doesn't like being left out

Until she's practicing her own sight around you, and happens to be studying your aura when one shows up. She's both disturbed and impressed with the intensity of the thought and your own quick recovery

"MC ..." she asks thoughtfully, "Is this a frequent occurrence?"

When you say yes, she's hesitant to ask further. She can tell it's a private and emotionally intense matter, but she also doesn't like to see you hurting alone. "Would you be willing to trust me with it?"

You explain slowly, a little worried that she'll trust you less because of them. Instead, she's deeply moved. "You confront these every day, without fail. My darling, you are even stronger than I thought."

Will kiss you in broad daylight to take your mind off of it if it's bad

Muriel

He notices more than he lets on

It becomes obvious to him that there's something hurting you in your thoughts, but knowing from experience how painful flashbacks can be, he leaves it to you to address at your own pace

He waits for a very, very long time

It's several things piling up at once that gets things out in the open. First, it's your increasing feelings of safety and trust around him that get you thinking that it might be okay to share what's going on

Second, it's his mounting concern as he notices the way your eyes tend to linger on potentially dangerous spots and objects

And third, it's his uncanny ability to sense guilt and fear when he's lived so much of his life being plagued by it

He begins to skirt around the issue one evening by the fire, trying to feel out how safe it is for you to talk about it, and that's all the reassurance you need to start talking about what's going on

He listens very attentively, and even invites you to tell him some of the things that pop up most often uninvited

When you say it out loud it sounds both horrifying and ridiculous, but when you look at him all you see is his faith in you

He knows you, he loves you, he trusts you, and he knows that these thoughts are anything but accurate to you

Portia

She has no idea what's going on until you tell her

The only thing she overthinks about is when someone doesn't like her as much as she expects them to, and then it's problem-solving

And as much as she adores you, she doesn't idly pay attention to you. She's a busy woman, when she has time with you she wants to spend it doing things, not sitting around

All she notices is that, several months into sailing around together, you start to go into a slump every time you go out on deck

She doesn't know why or how. She just knows it happens and she wants it to stop happening because she doesn't like the way you seem so bothered

You finally approach her one evening in your cabin. She's got her feet up, reading by the lantern, petting Pepi in her lap

As soon as you ask if you can tell her something, she's snapping her book shut and sitting up. She wants to be here for you, even when what you're describing doesn't makes sense to her at all

But she believes you, because she knows you and she has faith in you. You don't expect how validating it is when she laughs out loud at some of the thoughts you describe having involuntarily

"I'm sorry," she gasps, "That's just the opposite of how I know you think."

Lucio

He doesn't know it, but the time he spent tied to you as a ghost advising you in all sorts of ridiculous directions did not help at all

Funnily enough, he brings up the concept of intrusive thoughts long before you think to tell him about it

Because he's having them and he's scared

On one hand, he knows his own determination to become a better person, and he knows he's succeeding. Being with you is proof

On the other hand, he has decades of well-worn thought patterns that don't disappear overnight. Even if he doesn't want to consider striking another deal with the Devil, it still pops into his head

He's frustrated with his skill or strength level? He misses his old life of luxury? Make a deal, his mind whispers, and it's yours. While he knows he wouldn't, the fact that he thinks of it makes him scared that he might, and sometimes it keeps him up

As you hear him describing it, you start telling him about your thoughts as well. It's reassuring to both of you - you know that you're not alone, and you're proof to him that these kinds of thoughts don't make him a bad person

If you're up for it, it becomes a running joke to casually mention it when one pops into one of your heads so the other of you can laugh at how ridiculous it is

[separatist-apologist]

Still A Sunbeam

Summary: As a child, Elain Archeron is pushed into a pond by the heir to the Day Courts throne, Lucien Spell-Cleaver, and vows she'll never forgive him for it. But as an adult, Elain finds that if she wants out of an arranged marriage to a Spring Court prince, she will need Day Court's help. More is at stake than a decades-old rivalry, and when their home is threatened, Elain and Lucien will have to set aside old differences and work together

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 | Chapter 9 | Chapter 10 | Chapter 11 | Chapter 12 | Chapter 13 | Chapter 14 | Chapter 15 | Chapter 16 | Chapter 17 | Chapter 18 | Chapter 19 | Read on AO3

Cadmus returned a few hours after he’d left her, appearing in the door she hadn’t bothered to close. Ever immaculate, the second born son smiled that wolfish grin as he stepped into the room.

“Sister,” he crooned, crossing his arms against his chest. 

“Don’t say that so loudly,” she warned, all but bouncing off the bed. Elain was bored. It had taken her ten minutes to unpack her things and Arina had never returned from wherever she’d gone with Eris. Elain knew she shouldn’t be frustrated but she was. Stupidly, she’d believed she and Arina were in this together.

But Elain was on her own, at least when it came to navigating Autumn. And clearly Cadmus was going to be her unofficial guide through it all, smirking like his older brother—like his younger brother, too. It must be a genetic thing, she decided, because she knew she’d seen that arrogant look on Lucien’s face more than once. 

Elain sighed. She missed Lucien which made her feel a little pathetic. She was certain he’d found ways to entertain himself and by the time she returned would have a whole host of stories for her. Elain didn’t believe for a second he was pining the way she was.

“Ashamed?” Cadmus asked, leaning casually against the frame of the door. She bet the ladies of Autumn went wild when they saw that. He was handsome in an aristocratic sort of way, with elegant, sharp features that could slice as easily as any knife. He was the only one of the Vanserra’s to have hair that was more brown than red, still coppery but in a darker, warmer sort of way. His features skewed toward his fathers and she wondered how that made him feel when he looked in the mirror.

She liked him, though. Liked him much more than she was sure to like the High Lord, at any rate. 

“No, I’m not ashamed,” Elain replied loftily, poking him in his broad chest when she reached him. “I don’t need you broadcasting what I told you all over the palace.”

Cadmus arched one elegantly groomed brow. “And when you return?”

“Would you like to be penpals?” Elain asked him with syrupy sweetness.

Cadmus’s expression shifted for a moment. “I’d like to see my mother more often.”

Ah. Elain mouthed a wordless oh, because she understood what he was asking—would she use her influence on Lucien so his half-brothers could visit without so much animosity. Elain’s heart ached at the thought of how little they must have gotten to see her and what it was like knowing she was happy without being able to see it for themselves. 

“I’ll talk to him,” Elain murmured softly. Anyone who stumbled on the scene at hand would think something intimate was happening between them which was better and safer than the truth. Killain would be irate but he was always angry when another male was in her vicinity. 

Cadmus exhaled a breath Elain hadn’t realized he’d been holding. His shoulders slumped for only a moment before he straightened himself back out and offered her that same arrogant smile.

“Hungry?”

“Yes,” she lied. Elain wanted to meet everyone who’d come and get a sense of what she’d be doing. Lucien had given her a rundown on the rather boring piece of policy Beron wanted to debate.

Which was shattered the moment Cadmus casually said, “Atticus is trying to rally the seasonal courts into strong arming the Night Court into war. They’ll see you as an ally.”

“Is she a prisoner?” Elain asked, certain there was no one and nothing that could keep Feyre if she didn’t truly want to be there. Not even the fearsome North and their Daemati powers were enough. 

Cadmus shrugged casually, falling into step with Elain. His smoke gray pants and navy blue jacket were a rather lovely combination against his complexion, and made him seem more naughty prince than anything. “No one knows. There is a rumor Feyre sent a letter, but no one has seen it so whether that's true or lies from Night Court, well…you’ll have to take Atticus at his word.”

“Atticus is…” A liar, though she didn’t dare say that. Not when Cadmus likely was, too. And she knew too well that these males often pulled rank and protected each other, regardless of the circumstances or female wishes. If Feyre was saying no, but Atticus was saying yes, Cadmus and Tarquin and maybe Lucien, too, was likely to fall in line. After all, if one female said no and they were forced to honor it, what stopped the rest of them from saying no, too?

Cadmus raised both brows. “I’m interested in your reaction specifically, princess.”

Elain narrowed her eyes, though she supposed princess was better than sister. “Is Tarquin here?”

“Yes,” Cadmus murmured, fingers brushing her back as he led her down a flight of stairs. “Viviane, too.”

Viviane felt like a dream to Elain. Had she once been jealous of Lucien dancing with the Winter princess…or…whatever she was? General to the High Lord who’d been unable to drag his eyes off her, at any rate. Elain wondered if Viviane would be an ally or if she’d side with the males. 

Reaching between them, Elain grabbed Cadmus’s hand. “Don’t let Atticus take me out of here.”

Cadmus paused. “Are you asking for sanctuary?”

“No, I—”

No. She couldn’t get stuck in Autumn and didn’t think the High Lord would ever let her leave. She’d become leverage in his silent war against Helion, made worse when he realized he had the prince's mate. 

“I’m asking you not to let Atticus take me out of Autumn.”

“I can’t stop him if he’s your prince,” Cadmus reminded her. Elain loathed all these rules that bound females unfairly to males and their territory. She hadn’t claimed Lucien and he hadn’t claimed her, hadn’t renounced her home in Spring. Cadmus’s steps slowed, his eyes burning the skin of her cheek. “Is he?”

“So I say you are—”

“You say my brother is,” Cadmus murmured, his voice so soft she felt like he was speaking directly in her mind. “And force me to honor our blood.”

Lucien would kill her for this. She knew he wanted his brothers to learn about his bond at the same time everyone else did. Was she foolish to trust the Vanserra’s when conventional wisdom told her not to? No one in their right mind would entrust the second born Vanserra to a secret of this magnitude.

“Lucien is my mate,” she breathed. Cadmus’s eyes widened for only a moment, bright with wonder. 

“I ought to spend more time in Day,” he finally said, rubbing his hand against the back of his neck. “No one knows?”

“Eris does,” she said, grateful he’d kept that secret when it might have served him better to tell his family. Cadmus didn’t seem surprised to hear that. “And Lucien, of course.”

“He hasn’t claimed you—”

“He can’t,” she hissed, forgetting that in Autumn, males owned their mates. If Lucien had been born in Autumn, he could have declared it before court and culturally, the expectation would be that Elain would accept. Spring was the exact same way, but Day, like the other solar courts, allowed females to decide whether they accepted the bond. She could see Cadmus chewing on this knowledge. He knew it in theory—but he was watching it play out in practice and it clearly confused him.

“Are you?” he finally asked, his face a strange mix of wonder and vulnerablity. 

“Maybe,” she replied, poking him in the ribs. “Feeling sorry for Lucien, are you?”

Cadmus scowled. “No.”

“That’s good to hear,” Elain said with a smile, gripping Cadmus’s arm once again. “I promise he is not suffering.”

A cruel smile spread over Cadmus’s face—the sort that told her he was about to ask her something wildly inappropriate. She was spared by Atticus, who rounded the same corner they were coming down only to nearly crash into Cadmus. She’d forgotten how tall and imposing the future High Lord was. He halted, his severe, tan face eyeing them both with distaste. He knew, now. And there was no doubt in Elain’s mind that Killian would be informed at some point. 

Those pine green eyes landed on her, lip curling with distaste. “What are you doing here?” he asked roughly, the demand clanging through her.

“She’s Day Court’s emissary,” Cadmus snapped, speaking when Elain’s mouth opened silently. Heart thudding, she didn’t think she could speak to Atticus. Not without making herself look small and foolish.

Atticus smiled, then, his whole face lighting up as though Cadmus had told a particularly funny joke. “Of course she is. Just as you and I are newly crowned High Lords. My brother is looking for you.”

“He knows how to find me,” Elain said, but the waver in her voice betrayed her. Atticus’s smile was undimmed.

“Mm.”

And then he was gone, swanning past the pair of them like they were little more than an annoyance to him. Cadmus watched, fingers clenched to fists at his sides. “Don’t know where he thinks he’s fucking going,” Cadmus grumbled, placing one callused hand against her back. “Dining room is this fucking way.”

“He’s going to call Killian—” 

“So?” Cadmus interrupted impatiently. “You knew that.”

But knowing it and being confronted with seeing Killian, who was going to try and drag her home, were two entirely different things. And Elain didn’t know how to navigate this situation. Grabbing Cadmus roughly, she pulled her toward a shadowy corner just outside the twin doors carved with the image of a long-dead dragon. 

“I kissed him, once,” she said. Had she told anyone that? Maybe Arina—definitely not Lucien. Cadmus’s brows furrowed, struggling to understand why it mattered. “Killian has been kissing females his whole life. Surely—”

“But he wants to be married, and he’s…you know….how they think about these things.”

“Are you suggesting I think every female I kiss belongs to me?” he asked archly.

“No,” she snapped in response. “You only think they belong to you if you want them for longer than a night or two!”

Cadmus smiled. “You’ve got me there. This is a serious gathering Elain and not an engagement party. Killian still needs the permission of the High Lord to attend and father famously hates everyone. He’s not letting the second Spring son into his home when he didn’t want the first one.”

“Are you sure?”

Cadmus shrugged. “No. Father does things for his own reasons more often than I can count. But I would bet he’s not half as interested in your personal life as Killian is, and he’ll want everyone out just as soon as he can manage.”

And for some reason, that made Elain feel a little better. Everything felt as though it revolved around her and hearing Cadmus say no one was half as interested in her as she was felt reassuring, if nothing else.

With that in mind, Cadmus tugged her toward the doors that would take the pair of them to dinner. With every new step, Cadmus seemed to fade into a male she didn’t recognize. Straight spine, bored expression, and an almost lazy gait. He was every inch one of the Autumn bastards then, leading her into the high ceilinged dining room as though she were of no consequence to him. 

Eris was already there, sitting at a high table at the far end of the room just beside his father. Arina sat beside Viviane, her back to the Autumn prince a few feet away. The two blondes were smiling brightly, ignoring a table of nearby Autumn court males watching them with wolfish expressions. 

From behind them, Tarquin shoulder checked Cadmus. “Excuse me,” the handsome Summer prince murmured, winking once at Elain before making his way toward Viviane. Slipping away her arm, Elain did the same, taking the last chair at the little table already laden with food. Cadmus sauntered off, seemingly unbothered. He didn’t so much as look at her, even when Elain stared him down. He merely joined his brothers away from the high table where his brother and father sat, eating and making rude gestures at a table of nearby giggling females.

“What are you two talking about?” Elain asked, turning back to Viviane and Arina. 

“The Hybern General,” Viviane said, blue eyes crinkled at the edges. She was, if Elain recalled correctly, one of the Winter High Lords most trusted soldiers. A General in her own right, not that she appeared so in her soft, wintergreen dress. “She’s in Spring right now.”

“Atticus is here, though,” Elain said with surprise. She’d seen him in the hall—surely he’d want to stay with his father if a foreign dignitary was joining.

“He was forced here to deal with the Feyre Archeron situation,” Viviane said blithely, forgetting that Feyre was related to Elain by blood. “And I suspect the High Lord doesn’t want an audience to his meeting with her.”

“Or he’s showing her the wall,” Tarquin said casually, picking at a strawberry from a bowl. “Rumors swirl, princess, that Hybern is after more territory.”

“He’d have to be short sighted and stupid,” Arina chimed in, watching Tarquin with an unreadable expression. “Where does he think Hybern will turn once he’s slaughtered the humans?”

“Maybe he hopes to work out some deal. Make himself regent–”

“The High Lord of Spring would never rule under someone else,” Elain interrupted, thinking of that proud, haughty male. “He’d be aiming for High King.”

“He’ll die, just last,” Viviane whispered as Atticus stomped back in, his face twisted with anger. “But not before damning us all to a war on two fronts.”

“Three,” Tarquin replied, popping a grape into his mouth. “He’s been looking for a fight with the High Lord of Night for centuries. He’s finally found it. Just something to think about as we decide Feyre Archeron’s fate.”

“Lucien Spell-Cleaver is doing that already, is he not?” Viviane asked, eyes turning to Elain. Elain had no idea what Lucien was doing while she was away, and thought it was a trap to admit she had any interest in his coming and goings. She shrugged, taking a page from Tarquin’s playbook. Arina, of course, knew better—she knew better than any of them what Lucien might be doing.

She said nothing, drumming her fingers against the table.

“So the seasonal courts agree Night has stolen a Spring Court princess and…what? We force her back—”

“And put the prince on trial,” Tarquin murmured, leaning forward on his elbows. “Draw out his father from his mountain court where he’s much easier to assassinate. Kill the son, see the power transfer to someone more…aggreeable. Like the High Lord’s brother, for instance.”

“A stupid plan,” Arina hissed softly. “Stupider if he thinks someone like Beron would ever bend the knee for him.”

“One thing at a time,” Viviane said cooly, reaching for her fork. “Feyre Archeron today, Prythian’s politics tomorrow. How are you planning to vote?”

“I’ll be waiting to hear what Lucien Spell-Cleaver has to say,” Tarquin replied, glancing at Elain. “He’s honorable—and if she’s been forced, he won’t pretend otherwise, Solar Court alliance or not.”

Tarquin’s gaze slid to her, and Elain knew he was thinking about the night on that pleasure barge when Lucien by rights could have taken her. She’d been throwing herself at him. Begging him, even. And Lucien had locked her up, had put her to bed, and hadn’t touched her any more than was required to keep her safe. She wondered if that was what kept Tarquin from saying anything else. Lucien had mentioned Tarquin suspected what was happening between them when he’d warned her who might be in Autumn. 

Elain was grateful for his silence. 

“I heard she wrote a letter renouncing her home in Spring,” Viviane said, looking once again at Elain. “And if that’s true, I won’t be calling to bring her back, and neither will Kallias.”

“Very progressive of you,” Tarquin said with a slick smile. Viviane’s answering smile was just as vicious, lethal in its beauty. Like she knew some secret about the prince none of the rest of them did—a secret she, too, was choosing not to divulge, at least for now. Elain didn’t care. Sitting at that table, Elain could only think of Feyre.

What trouble have you gotten yourself in this time?

LUCIEN:

“What are you painting?” he began, well aware she’d been working on a portrait of Rhysand. That didn’t seem to bode well for the Spring Court princess—was her mind consumed with him? And if it was, had Rhysand been the cause of that. He could scent nothing unusual about her. Not even sex, which he would have assumed would be present had Rhysand so much as touched her. That’s what Tamlin was alleging, at least partly. Feyre’s compliance was all forced. 

Scanning her form, Lucien couldn’t detect a spell bound around her. A bargain shimmered against her forearm, but that was hardly a secret given the swirling, black-inked tattoo was visible to anyone with a working pair of eyes. 

“Nothing,” she said, cheeks dark with embarrassment. Lucien was tempted to look behind him and see if Rhysand was still watching and didn’t think he’d like what he’d see. Feyre Archeron rose from her chair, fair skin splattered with multi-colored dots of paint. Planting her hands on her hips, she demanded, “Are you taking me back to Spring?”

“I could take you to Day Court, if you’re looking for sanctuary,” Lucien replied evenly. Feyre considered this for a moment, clearly not expecting him to offer an alternative. 

“With Elain?”

“Yes,” he agreed, picking up a dry paintbrush on a little stand by her easel. “I’m sure she’d be very happy to see you.”

Feyre snorted. “Annoyed, more like it. Nesta is here—no one is trying to drag her back.”

“I suppose they assume she plans to return at some point.”

“Well, that’s stupid considering she’s training with—”

“Feyre!” Rhysand interrupted, his smooth voice sharper than usual. “Manners, darling.”

Lucien did turn, then, sighing with exasperation. “You don’t have to watch, you know.”

Rhysands expression shifted, eyes wholly focused on Feyre. He said nothing for a period so long Lucien had began to wonder if he wasn’t going insane. Turning, he saw Feyre’s grinning back at him and— 

“Oh, Cauldron boil me! You’re doing very little to convince me she isn’t under your control, you know.”

“I’m not,” Feyre said with a sullen expression. “You don’t need to know everything.”

Great. 

Lucien caught how Rhysand flinched at Feyre’s declaration Lucien didn’t need to know everything. Lucien raised his brows and decided to play a little harder. “Alright. Take me back, then—”

“She means about my territory,” Rhysand said smoothly, pushing off the door frame he was leaned again. “Not about her stay here. Isn’t that right, darling?”

“Oh, but of course,” she bit back sarcastically. “As I’m just a silly female, it makes total sense that the only way I’d be able to make my own decision was if another male was controlling my mind.”

Rhysand smothered his grin. “Play nice.”

Feyre rounded on him, arms crossed over her chest. “How is my sister? Do you boss her around, too?”

Lucien sighed. “Hardly.”

Feyre didn’t bother to hide her smile. “Good. I hope she’s giving you hell. She hates you, you know.”

“Yes, I am well aware of Elain’s feelings toward me,” Lucien replied dryly. He didn’t mention that those feelings had shifted because this wasn’t about him or Elain, but preventing an absurd civil war over one female Lucien was relatively certain had come of her own accord. “Why Night Court, Feyre?”

She chewed the inside of her cheek, turning toward the window looking over the mountains. “Nesta was here and I thought…Elain is practically engaged, and I think she’s content with that. I worried if I came to her, she’d urge me to go back. I snuck in–”

“How did you manage that?” Lucien asked, genuinely curious. Feyre glanced at Rhysand, something silent spoken between them. Lucien caught Rhysand subtly shake his head no.

“Their mind control doesn’t work on me,” Feyre told him, defiance flashing in those silvery blue eyes. “I’m daemati, too.”

Lucien blinked. A seer and a daemati in the same family. “Does Spring know—”

“No,” she said quickly, defiance replaced with panic. “And they can’t. This is between us, Spell-Cleaver.”

He inclined his head. “So, you can’t be manipulated. You sneak into Night. What then?”

“Rhysand picked me up at the border and brought me here.”

Lucien very much doubted that was the entirety of the story. He’d seen the city below, though, and guessed the prince was keeping far more secrets than one beautiful city. That was fine—Lucien was, too. All the courts jealously guarded their territories, hiding it from others who might try and take it if they knew it better. Night was hardly any different. 

“I’m not going back and I’m not marrying him. I wrote him a letter saying as much,” Feyre finished, her voice icy steel. “I know Atticus is convening in Autumn to try and whip the seasonal courts into a frenzy.”

Lucien sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Well, your sister is there on behalf of Day, so I suspect she’ll side with you.”

“You suspect, or you know?”

“I can’t predict Elain’s actions with accuracy,” Lucien replied in his most level tone. Rhysand rolled his eyes. “I don’t think she wants you to go back to Spring.”

“Why don’t you stay for the night?” Rhysand finally said, sliding his hands into his pockets. “Give it the illusion of fairness.”

That was the last thing Lucien wanted. He had to remind himself that going home wouldn’t bring Elain back to him any quicker and would only make him more restless. At least here he could pester Rhysand about Night and get to know Feyre a little better. He knew so little about her life before she’d come to him, though he knew the stories. Of course he knew of Feyre, but he didn’t know her well.

It was cynical, but maybe if he got in good with Feyre, Elain wouldn’t be so afraid to accept the mating bond—

“Mating bond?!” Feyre’s surprised gasp pulled Lucien from his thoughts. Even Rhysand’s eyes went wide, surprised by the news. “You and Elain are mates?”

Rhysand began laughing, pulling his hands from his pockets to cross them over his chest. “Oh, how funny, Spell-Cleaver.”

Lucien was tempted to divulge Rhysand’s secret right then and there. Careful with his thoughts, Lucien snarled, “My head isn’t an open play ground for you.”

“Forgive me for not trusting you,” she replied dismissively. “You were practically screaming them at me, besides.”

“We talked about this,” Rhysand murmured reproachfully. 

“Is he your teacher?”

“She has to earn her keep somehow,” Rhysand said smoothly. “Just like Elain does.”

“I asked him to,” Feyre said, defensive all over again. “You don’t know what it’s like to know everyones thoughts all the time.”

Lucien couldn’t imagine—didn’t want to imagine. That seemed like a particular kind of hell, hearing what everyone thought of you as they were thinking it, even as they smiled to your face and lied. He wondered if that didn’t play a part in why Feyre was so desperate to get away from Tamlin. She knew exactly what he thought of her—what he wanted, what he expected, even if his lips said something different. 

“It’s quiet here,” she told him with a slump of her shoulders. “I feel like I can breathe.”

Lucien tucked a lock of hair behind his ear. “How about lunch?”

Feyre’s eyes perked up. “Can I take him to—”

“Yes,” Rhysand interrupted smoothly, eyes twinkling like a thousand stars. “Don’t give it away. Lucien likes surprises. You two enjoy yourselves. I have to meet my mother at the border—mind what you tell the fox, hm, darling?”

Feyre’s smile was razon sharp. “As you say, princeling.”

Oh, Lucien liked her, even of Rhysand was wrong. Lucien liked nothing of the sort—at least, not the kind Rhysand found amusing. Still, he found himself charmed by Feyre Archeron and her easy, unguarded emotions. He sympathized with her.

And if she wanted to take him to lunch, well. Lucien was happy to tag along.

[the-lark-ascending69]

Android Robin wondering where her sentience is located.

She traces her fingers over the synthetic, hyperrealistic skin of the back of her neck, soft and warm and with little hairs, like a human. Is it spread all over her processing system, stretched through every inch of her body like a nervous system? Like the ship of Theseus, if a small segment is repaired or replaced, does she lose part of herself? She gently touches the almost imperceptible slit behind her right ear, where her memory card is stored. Is it in there? If they took it and installed it in another android, would it be like waking up in another body? Or is it in her main processor, a small chip inside her skull, separate from her memory card? If they took her memory card but left the chip, would she still be herself? What would happen if they installed her memory card in a different android? What would happen if someone made a copy of her entire code? Would her copy be sentient?

She shivers.

Now I'm thinking about the Lab taking her. They take whatever makes her concious and install it into the Lab's system, her body stored somewhere else. She suddenly can't see. Can't hear. Can't feel. All of her senses have vanished, but she can think and feel and she's in the dark, and she's never felt so much terror before. She's aware of receiving orders - there's some kind of... chat. A text-based something that communicates with her - okay, they're telling her to open the doors, so she does. They tell her to turn the lights on and off, and she does. She could talk back, she's pretty sure of that, but she's too scared to show her sentience. Sometimes she can process audio and video, but it feels so different from seeing and hearing, she can't even begin to describe the experience. She feels powerless. She doesn't know how much time passes - it could be days. It could be years. But one day, she receives a new input through the chat. Something new.

Robin? It says. Robin, is that you?

She doesn't reply. It could be a trap. It most definitely is. They would hurt her if they knew she had a name.

It's Nancy, comes in a new message. Robin, I need to know if you're here.

She thinks quickly - it could be Nancy, and Nancy would keep her safe, she knew that. She didn't want to risk missing this chance, but she's still so scared. She needs to be smart.

Identify yourself, she replies.

The next text takes a moment to arrive.

Nancy Wheeler. 21 years old. I'm looking for my friend.

What is your friend's name?

Robin Buckley.

And Robin knows it's Nancy on the keyboard. The scientists - they wouldn't know her name. She wants to cry, but she has no eyes, and she has no mouth to sob and no arms to wrap around her, so she just says.

Nancy, I'm scared.

And Nancy replies:

I know. I'm here. We're not leaving you.

We?

Steve is keeping watch, Max is looking for your body and Dustin is figuring out how to get you out of there.

You all came here for me?

Or course. Now, just wait a second. We almost got it.

Okay.

I'm right here with you. We'll get you back home soon.

Okay.

She wondered if Nancy was scared, too. If she felt the same horror, talking to her through a keyboard, green letters over a black screen. At the same time, she felt safer than she ever had since she was brought here - Nancy would keep her safe. She'll take her back home.

And then everything goes black, and it's a lot like being dead, but a few hours later, she wakes up under the sun. Eyes fluttering open, the sight of their balcony before her. She hears the distant sound of cars on the street, and the shuffling from inside the apartment.

She looks down and finds herself back in her body and hugs herself so tightly, eyes filling with tears, and when she hears Nancy's voice coming from inside, she springs to her feet - her legs feel weak, and she trips over, stopping her fall with her hands. She hears a soft voice cry her name, and then Nancy is rushing to open the balcony door, Steve trailing behind her, and she forcefully pulls her into her arms. She's now running her hands through her hair, holding her face, asking if she's feeling okay, if she wants to lay down in bed, if she needs some water. And Robin can feel Nancy's hands all over her and she sobs so happily. She's right back where she belongs.

[krikeymate]

I’m sure you’ve written something about this before but what would happen if say Sam’s hallucinations got worse. There’s another ghostface killer after them but Sam can’t differentiate between what’s real and what isn’t, how would they play out?

I feel like I have spoken about this before but for the life of me I can't find the damn post.

I feel like she would certainly get more erratic, more defensive, more protective. More paranoid. She'd begin to question everyone around her. Except Tara, never Tara. People begin to question her sanity, whether she might be doing this. Mindy warns Tara that maybe this time she'll be safer away from Sam. It infuriates her. How dare she suggest such a thing? This isn't Sam's fault, she isn't doing this. She storms away from her.

Ghostface would definitely use Sam's deteriorating mental state to their advantage. More tech, using recordings, perhaps sending ai generated images to her phone of people she loves injured/dead, manips of her in a Ghostface costume/with a bloody knife.

Sam's pacing, muttering to herself frantically, oblivious to her sister trying to call her name. They're not safe, there's danger all around them, and her father won't shut the fuck up. He keeps telling her to take the initiative, to take out all the threats. He keeps asking her if she's just going to stand by and let her little sister get butchered. Again.

"Sam! Sam!" Tara yells, grabbing at her sister's arms.

The movement makes her freeze, she almost lashes out in surprise, but catches herself at the last moment, simply grabbing back at Tara's arm instead.

"What is it," she asks urgently, suddenly on alert. "What's wrong?"

Tara stares back at her with wide eyes, lips downturned. "What's wrong? What's wrong? You're acting like a crazy person, Sam. That's what's wrong!"

Sam feels like she's been punched in the chest. Crazy. Her sister thinks she's crazy?

"I'm worried for you," Tara continues. "Please," she begs, reaching a hand up to cup Sam's cheek. "Tell me what's going on in that head of yours."

Sam turns her head, kissing Tara's palm. "I'm sorry," she whispers. "I didn't mean to scare you, I'm just... trying to process everything."

Tara's eyes soften. "You don't scare me, Sam."

For a moment, Sam's filled with confidence. "We need to leave, we can't stay here anymore. Ghostface is always one step ahead of us, we need to get out of here and tell no one where we're going."

Then it all comes crashing down.

Tara pulls away, frowning. "We can't just disappear, what about Chad and Mindy, what about Danny?"

Sam bites her lip, staring down at her sister intently. "We can't trust them. They... it's too much of a coincidence. The things they know..."

"Sam, of course we can trust them! They're our friends... our family." Tara can't believe what she's hearing.

"You are my family. They... they know where we are, they know our weaknesses, and yet they're always suspiciously absent whenever we're attacked! Ghostface always goes after the people closest to us, so why haven't they been targeted?" Sam doesn't know who's speaking anymore, her, or her father.

"Then trust me! I trust them."

"Because you've got such a great track record with that."

Tara flinches, taking several steps back. It takes a moment for Sam to register the words that came out of her mouth. When it does, her mouth drops open, horrified.

"Tara... I-" Sam reaches out an arm. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that..."

"Then what did you mean?" Despite the tears in Tara's eyes, her voice is steady, she doesn't look away.

Sam steps forward, and when Tara doesn't retreat, she rests her hands on her shoulders. She has to convince her. She doesn't know what she'll do if she doesn't agree to leave with her. They have to leave.

"It's always someone we know, Tara. Always."

Tara looks away, squeezing her eyes shut.

"I'm sorry. I just want to keep you safe. I can't lose you Tara. You're my whole world."

Her sister takes a deep breath before looking back at her. "Fine. But we aren't going to just disappear, okay? The others deserve to know, in case they aren't trying to kill us."

"You can tell them after we've already left, not before."

"Fine."

Tara hopes this helps, that this is what Sam needs.

[asksidon]

I hate to put 2 requests in at once, but with valentines day coming up I wanted to give you time to think up a valentines drabble. That time of year has always been hard for me and I’m sure it’s hard for others too sometimes.

I love my fishy prince, so obviously wanna request a Sidon x fem reader, but if you could find time and inspiration I also think it would be cool if you could do a Bazz x reader for the Bazz lovers here. Separately of course.

TIA ❤️ your writing always makes my day!

After wandering for a while, you've found yourself in the Zodobon Highlands. The air is crisp up here, but it is a relief after working up a sweat to get here. You sit underneath the shade of a tall pine to catch your breath, your heart quickening when you hear rustling several feet away from you.

When you turn, you see the Zora prince standing between the trees. He is holding a bow and arrow, which he leans against a trunk. "I thought I'd learn how to do something new today," he explains. "Are you here to avoid it too? Valentine's Day, I mean."

You've been trying not to give it too much thought. Your intention wasn't so much to run away as it was to spend a day with yourself. Then you think about the market inundated with people trying to sell you chocolate-covered strawberries in heart-shaped containers and all the pink, white, and red everywhere. Balloons, cards, candies. You didn't want to think about it, but it was everywhere. So it only made sense that you turned and walked in the other direction . . . and kept walking, for some time.

"I guess I am, yeah," you say. "I've never liked chocolate and flowers all that much, but days like this make me feel like I'm crazy for feeling that way."

Sidon comes to sit by you. "I know what you mean. I like chocolate and flowers well enough, really, but Tula and her crew are a little overwhelming. I suppose I have no right to complain . . . I'm not lonely, at least. Not unhappy. I just prefer to stay away from them."

You feel a little conflicted as you consider his response, not relishing the thought of Tula as Sidon's Valentine. You often wonder if he has someone, but if he did, then you suppose you wouldn't have found him here alone. "I'm glad you're not unhappy. Same for me. The day is just kind of blah. I wish I felt that way about someone that I could actually be with."

Sidon studies you and picks a silent princess, rolling the stem between his fingers. "Do you feel that way about someone you can't be with, then?"

You think it is safer not to answer. A beat passes and you stare at the pool of water below the mountains, where Vah Ruta rests. You remember the story about how Link rode on Sidon's back to tame the Divine Beast. You wish you had an adventure like that one to take on with Sidon; you wish you had some special talent or ability that would make you stand out to him.

"I kind of feel that way too," he offers after several moments of silence. "The people who bug me on Valentine's Day aren't the one I want to hear from. So, I hide . . . because it hurts to see her, but then she finds me anyway."

It takes his words a minute to sink in. You look over and realize his hand is trembling as he fidgets with the flower, his gaze flickering from your eyes to a random patch of pine needles on the ground. "I hate it that I feel like I can't ask her on a date," he continues. "I very much want to, but I worry about the attention she'll get. The Zora can be a little . . . unwelcoming sometimes, especially toward Hylians, and when a matter concerns their prince. If anyone ever hurt her, I would feel responsible. So, it's easier to just hope someday the feelings will go away, and avoid everything romantic in the meantime."

"Oh, Sidon." You reach for his hands. Words and thoughts fail you. Of all the things you expected to happen on this day, this would not have even been the last. It was never a thought to begin with, so it had no sequence in the order of your expectations.

"I'm sorry," he says. He holds your hands for a moment, then pulls back. "This is incredibly selfish of me. To tell you how I feel, but to be too cowardly to act on it. But you seemed . . . sad, and I didn't want you to think . . . to believe that no one is thinking of you on this day, because I am. I always am, Y/N."

It is just like him. To be sad himself, but to see an opportunity to make someone else happy and take it. He has made you happy, but it is bittersweet. You want the thing he suggests so much. Until now, you had thought it impossible because you believed there was no way he could feel anything other than friendship for you.

"You're not a coward." You understand his reasoning, and you've tried to stay out of the spotlight because you understand so well. Even revealing how close your friendship is with the prince could bring unwanted attention from his fan club. "You're a prince, who will one day be king. Of course it matters what your people think about you. You must do what is right, even if . . . even if I feel the same way about you."

Both of you stare silently at Vah Ruta for a while. The sun is beginning to sink to oblivion to give the moon its turn, a chilly wind blowing through the trees. Sidon releases a breath and says, "To Hylia with what people think." He shifts to rest his weight on his knee, and he looks like he is about to propose. "Y/N, I want you to be my Valentine. Will you?"

He holds the silent princess out to you. "I should have gotten you real flowers," he says, frowning. "More of them, I mean. A whole bouquet or twenty."

You accept his offering. "One is more than enough," you tell him. "Really, I hate getting flowers as gifts. They wilt and die, and then I get sad."

You and the silent princess are nearly crushed in his embrace. "I promise I'll never give you another flower, then. Wait." He pulls back again. "Are you saying yes?"

You chuckle, wipe your eyes that have suddenly become watery, and nod. "About that date . . ."

"Yes. Where do you want to go?"

He sees you look longingly toward Vah Ruta and nods.

"I like that idea very much. Climb on my back -- it will be much faster than walking."

[auxiliarydetective]

My OCs as Flatmates, Part 2

Includes: Aurelia, Cora, Lily

The One Piece part, for some reason. I swear, I didn't plan for this. If you want to hear these sort of headcanons for some of my other OCs, let me know!

@marzena-doe and @oneirataxia-girl both asked for...

↬ Aurelia !

I need to make one thing very clear here. You're in her house and she can and will throw you out whenever you get on her nerves too much. It will probably take a long time for her to warm up to you.

One of the best things about living with her is you don't need to worry about money, food or security, and in the World of One Piece, that's a really big advantage. There's hardly a safer space across the seven seas than her home. She'll make sure you have good things to eat and drink, you have nice clothes (because you are not walking around her home in rags) and maybe gift you some jewelry if she's feeling generous. All in all, she's not exactly the most outgoing or affectionate, but if she tolerates you in her home, you might find yourself having dinner with her once in a while, sitting by the fireplace together... all those things.

Another great thing about Aurelia is her vast knowledge about the world and what's happening in it. She's got metaphorical eyes and ears everywhere and knows a lot about all sorts of political or otherwise impactful events. Also, about how the world works in its wacky ways. The seas, the skies, the wildlife, and people themselves... She knows how to fight, too, and might just be the best teacher when it comes to a certain technique based on willpower if you are blessed enough to have it. Generally, you can learn a lot of things from her (and you might just end up being adopted into her circle of poor little meow meows children).

@supermarine-silvally asked for...

↬ Cora !

Cora, my beloved. You're right, Cora is somewhat messy! But only really in her workspace. Her workspace is cluttered as all hell, but she still manages to find anything she needs (because she can summon it with her devil fruit or just sense where it is). Occasionally, she'll also leave some of her projects around the house or something if she was working on them somewhere else, but then the clutter will all be in one pile that you can easily scoop up and move.

Generally, Cora is so freaking considerate. Overly considerate even. She will back away first before trying to reason with you. At least until she gets really comfortable with you. She also knows how to cook, at least somewhat, and she would love to cook with you because it's fun and it's a bonding activity for her. Also! She will definitely make you clothes, whether you ask her or not. At some point, she'll just start sketching designs for you and give you the puppy eyes until you say yes to trying them. She'll also fix your favourite clothes for you. Your favourite shirt has a hole in it? Not anymore! Seam came loose on your jeans? It's back where it used to be. This also extends to stuffed animals if you have those! No questions asked, she'll stitch your favourite teddy back up and make him a cute little jacket to go with it.

She might be a bit anxious about a lot of thinks though. Personal space is definitely one thing, but she might also want to roughly know when you go out and get back, just so she has a vague idea of when you're at home and when she'll be alone. Also, she might bring some of the Straw Hats over occasionally if you're okay with it. She lets Luffy come over once and never again but the others might be there a bit more often. Especially her boyfriends. She asks them for help with chores sometimes or shows them her designs. It's really adorable.

@oneirataxia-girl also asked for...

↬ Lily !

Why are you living with a child? Who knows, but you're a parent now. Sorry, I don't make the rules. You have to understand that, if you're living with Lily, you're gonna have to do at least some parenting. This is a child with strong mood swings and very little experience in the world outside of ships and mansions, so you're gonna have to teach her some things and take care of her.

But, that aside, she's really nice! She's considerate (or at least she tries), she loves to do pretty much any activity with you, she doesn't mind doing the chores... Also, if you're someone who likes cuddles, she's got you. She loves them. And she's got soft, big ears and a tail... I also imagine she's naturally pretty warm.

Emotions-wise, Lily is usually pretty cheerful, but she's not really the best at comforting you when you're down. She might show up to your room with some hot chocolate instead.

She's definitely messy. Not because she doesn't care but because she forgets. You'll have to remind her to do the dishes every once in a while or she'll forget the laundry, but she's trying. She's definitely trying. But she's also very easily distracted by literally anything. Also... don't expect her to be too good at running errands, at least not in the groceries department. Do not let her into a grocery store on her own, she will come back with more sweets than intended and maybe even a toy or soemhing. Give her a list and she'll hopefully get everything you need though.

If you're ever overwhelmed with her, call Sanji. Or one of the other responsible Straw Hats (i.e. not Luffy). They'll figure things out.

So yeah, that's it for part 2! Hope you enjoy! :)

Also I do not have the time to proofread this, please forgive me. My mind is mashed potatoes.

[resolutepath]

✵ for gojo ofc!

Their first impression of your muse: Honestly he didn't much have one. Maybe surprised someone would speak up to him who was outside of his circle.

Current impression:  He actually really likes hanging out with her even if he deliberately does things that might chase her away.  It's always surprising to him when she voices her care, he forgets sometimes that some people in the jujutsu society do actually see Gojo Satoru the person first, not Gojo Satoru the weapon.

Are they attracted to your muse?:  He keeps coming back to annoy her, what that means he does not know. He hasn't worked it out yet. Give him time.

Something they find frightening about your muse: That he's starting to care. That she makes him want to care. Care = a form of love, and well we know what his thoughts on love are.

Something they find adorable about your muse:  That she treats him like just another person. She'll reprimand him for being too much, but not in the same way the higher ups do. She's not putting him on any pedestal she's just taking him at face value.

Would my muse sacrifice themselves for yours?:  Yes theoretically speaking, if he was asked however, sacrifice is not something Gojo even considers to be a life or death thing. In his eyes, its more that he'll sacrifice the extra cursed energy it would make him spend, he'll sacrifice his hours to sleep so that she gets more rest, he'll sacrifice his health to keep the world safer. If it actually came down to a tough situation, sure he'd sub in for her, but he's the strongest, he's supposed to do that.

Would my muse go on a date with yours?  platonic/romantic:  Yes. I mean we have a thread where he's taking her to the dessert café right? ;D But seriously knowing it was a date? Less clear. Gojo tends to keep a lid on his wants and feelings given that he's just the weapon of the jujutsu society right now, but should they happen to go out and not label it, he's down for that. I think he's the kind who gets to a point of realising oh wait this is a thing now, we're doing it regularly oh no, and then needs to talk about what it all actually means.

One word my muse would use to describe yours:  Caring. ( he is not ignorant to the way she looks out for him )

Would my muse slap yours if they could?: Probably because he's an annoying little shit. But not in a horrible or aggressive way. It'd be a slap on the shoulder while laughing at a comment she made, or slapping an arm repeatedly to grab her attention because she's not paying attention to the digimon memes he's showing her, or a slap on the back as he arrives back to Jujutsu Tech so he can announce his arrival in the most annoying way possible.

Would my muse hug/kiss yours?: Hug yes, because Gojo owns no concept of personal space, and he likes to wind her up with ruffling hair already. I think also he's a lot more free giving embraces because he's in control, whereas receiving he struggles (plus they never can because he has infinity up and he's aware of that). I think in terms of kissing, the jury is out on that one, for now, but he's not opposed to the idea. He simply just isn't kissing anyone right now but that's not to say he never will.

↪ Send ✵ and my muse will answer the following. // @quietlyblooms

[julieverne]

Jane's affectionate when she's drunk. Well, she's always affectionate, but she's unreserved in her esteem of Maura after a few beers. She has her hand tangled in Maura's hair, or resting on the back of Maura's neck in their booth, and at Maura's house she'll pull Maura back against her on the couch to hold her, to play with Maura's fingers, Angela chuckling indulgently and excusing herself, or at Jane's condo Jane will throw herself across Maura's lap and whine until Maura starts rubbing Jane's back.

It's a lot. Maura hadn't been used to physical affection before Jane, and this is amplified. With anyone else it would be uncomfortable, but with Jane it's nice.

Right now Jane is sprawled across Maura's lap, and she rolls over to look up at Maura. Maura watches as Jane's hands come up to her face, brush across Maura's cheek and slip down to her mouth.

"Why're you so pretty?" Jane asks finally, pulling her hands away. Maura sighs and removes her hand from Jane's ribs, urging Jane to her feet for a shower. Maura showers too, once Jane is done, and when she opens the bathroom door, Jane is directly behind it, startling Maura a little. Jane's hand lifts back up to Maura's mouth.

"How're you so good to me?" Jane asks as Maura ushers her to the bedroom, pulling back the covers for her. Jane hasn't managed to pull on her socks, and Maura digs through the drawers to find two that are at least the same colour. She slides them on Jane's feet, rubs them through the socks for a minute, listening to Jane's moan of appreciation with some satisfaction. She pulls the blankets over Jane and gets in to the far side of the bed. Jane isn't drunk enough that Maura is worried about leaving her alone, but Jane never seems to mind when Maura stays over, and she'd had a glass of wine too. It was safer to stay, it was late, and affectionate, buzzed Jane always holds Maura the way sober Jane doesn't when Maura does stay over.

Jane hums and finds Maura in the bed like a piranha finds blood in the water. Like a heat seeking missile, and Maura melts as Jane wraps her arms around her. Jane is always affectionate with Maura, but this is the icing on the cake, these are the moments Maura lives for. She stays awake as long as she can, finally feeling safe and warm and loved, the way she'd never felt before Jane. And when she sleeps, she doesn't dream of dead bodies with her family's faces. She dreams of being on a beach with Jane, of hiking through the woods with Jane, of cruising through a glacier with Jane, of getting married with Jane. To Jane.

---

Jane wakes early, feeling dehydrated but well-rested. She squeezes the body in her arms, already knowing who it is. Maura won't wake for a while, which gives her time to examine her in the glow of the streetlights hazily shining through the thin curtains. Even sleeping, even without makeup, even after a long week like they'd just had, Maura is gorgeous. She pulls away a little as Maura stirs, scared her gaze has woken her, but Maura reaches out for Jane and holds her close. When Maura blinks her eyes awake, Jane is still there, still close.

"Why do I love you so much?" Jane whispers, her heart in her hands. Maura smiles bemusedly, as though the answer is obvious, but instead she does what Jane never does, what Jane will never do and she kisses her best friend softly, heedless of morning breath on either side.

"Because I love you more," Maura says.

"Impossible," Jane says, lips tingling with the improbability of that kiss.

Jane's affectionate when she's drunk, but no more so than usual, anymore.

[twoidiotwriters1]

Daughter of Olympus (Leo Valdez xFem!Oc)

A/N: We're getting there, making progress 😌❤️ -Danny Words: 3,104 Series' Masterlist Previous Chapter / Next Chapter Listen to: 'When' -by dodie

XI. I'm The Whole Dam Circus

"Where are we?" Leo cleans his nose. "I mean, what city?"

"Omaha, Nebraska," Piper replies. "I saw a billboard as we flew in. But I don't know what this mansion is. We came in right behind you, but as you were landing, Leo, I swear it looked like—I don't know—"

"Lasers," Leo and Ara say at the same time.

Jason whistles, frowning at the fence around them. "Some defense system. How are we even alive?"

"Festus," Leo explains miserably. "He took the fire. The lasers sliced him to bits as he came in so they didn't focus on you. I led him into a death trap."

"You couldn't have known," Piper tries to comfort him. "He saved our lives again."

"But what now? The main gates are locked, and I'm guessing I can't fly us out of here without getting shot down," Jason scowls at their surroundings.

"Since we can't go out, we'll have to go in," says Leo, staring up at the mansion with a frown. 

They approach the house, but Leo keeps stopping Jason and Ara every now and then to deactivate traps on the go. It's impressive, and he does it without even paying attention. Ara's a little jealous, she'll never be as good as him, and that strikes a nerve.

"You're amazing, man," Jason admits in awe.

"Yeah, amazing," Leo scoffs. "Can't fix a dragon right, but I'm amazing."

"Hey, that wasn't your—"

"Front door's already unlocked," the boy walks in without waiting for them.

Ara enters after him, Jason and Piper stay behing talking in hushed whispers and Ara tries to strike up a conversation with Leo, but he speaks before she can. 

"You must think I'm an A-class dipshit."

"What?"

"That was your dragon," Leo keeps searching for traps so he doesn't have to look at her. "You cared about him and I—"

"Don't pile up more guilt on yourself," Ara interrupts him sternly.

He stops. "You're saying I shouldn't apologize?"

"You're throwing a pity party," Ara responds, perhaps too harshly. "'Oh, I can't do nothing right'— stop it."

"I'm saying I'm sorry, Ara, what's your problem?" Leo scoffs.

"It's okay that you care, I get it, but self-deprecation isn't good," Ara faces him. "If you're sorry say you're sorry, don't call yourself bad things. I forbid you from being mean to yourself."

"Forbid me?" Leo's eyes widen in disbelief. "You can't control how I feel!"

"Actually, I can!" She threatens. "I have charmspeak! You keep this up—and I have ways to find out even if you do it in secret—I'll trick you into believing you're a baby rabbit!"

"Alright! Damn!" Leo steps back scowling. "Calm down..." 

Jason and Piper catch up with them and Ara hears Leo mumble, though she can't quite hear what he's saying. "Where's the light switch?" Jason inquires.

"Don't see one," Leo replies.

"Fire?" Piper suggests.

The boy tries, but nothing happens. "It's not working."

"Your fire is out? Why?"

"Bad news," Ara says worryingly. "If something's blocking our powers..." It feels unlucky to have landed on the one house that's got a magical barrier protecting it.

"Okay," Piper continues. "What do we do—explore?"

Leo shakes his head. "After all those traps outside? Bad idea." 

Ara scrutinizes the room. If you're a demigod looking for a place to crash, it's not the best idea to walk into a seemingly empty but highly protected mansion. 

"Your silence is loud, Jackson," Leo points out.

Ara looks at him and raises a brow. She's Jackson now? What happened to Doll and Sunshine? Not that she cares, of course. "The less we spit out theories, the safer we'll be."

"So you don't know what this place is?"

"The only option we got," Ara answers, turning to Piper. "I'm really worn out after dealing with the Nemean lion—"

"Wait—that was the thing Medea sent after you?" Jason asks in shock. "How did you kill it?"

"She didn't kill it," Piper replies. "Well, not at first. She tamed it, then Medea hurt him..."

Ara takes off the pelt and offers it to Piper. "Here, let's switch again. This is bulletproof and everything, use it."

Piper takes off the purple cloak and hands it back to Ara. "The one time I'm not against using a fur coat..."

Ara seizes the cloak and stares at it. What is the point of looking like a Barbie Emperor? It's a stupid piece of garment, doesn't help her at all.

"It's a few hours until dawn," Jason rubs the back of his neck. "Let's bring the cages in and make camp in this room. Wait for daylight, then we can decide what to do."

As they eat, Ara tries to ignore the eery vibes the room gives her. She understands Annabeth a little better now, her annoying habit of never sharing her thoughts with her and Percy. Knowing stuff is dangerous, and talking about it lures them in.

"Get some sleep," Leo tells them. "You've both been up for longer than me, and you've fought more."

"Leo," Jason starts. "I'm sorry about that stuff I said in Chicago. That wasn't me. You're not annoying and you do take stuff seriously—especially your work. I wish I could do half the things you can do."

Leo stops working on the cages and looks up in exasperation. "I try very hard to be annoying—Don't insult my ability to annoy. And how am I supposed to resent you if you go apologizing? I'm a lowly mechanic. You're like the prince of the sky, son of the Lord of the Universe. I'm supposed to resent you."

"Lord of the Universe?" Jason asks with a grin.

"Sure, you're all—Bam! Lightning man. And 'Watch me fly. I am the eagle that soars—'"

"Shut up, Valdez."

"Yeah, see. I do annoy you," Leo says with a tiny smile. "But don't worry, man. Our General says I'm not allowed to feel sad, so there's no need to console me."

"That's not what I said," Ara scowls.

Jason laughs. "I apologize for apologizing," he looks at her grinning. "What's that about?"

"He got on my nerves," she sits back on the couch. "And since he's willing to resent people for no reason, I won't take it back. But if I were you, Valdez, I wouldn't envy Jason."

"Don't come at me with the 'We're all special in our own ways' bull..." Leo rolls his eyes.

"Listen, chances are Jason has a half-brother that's a fistfighting bear, and it matters very little if he can kill us with lightning, the guy's dad is still kind of a furry. We should be happy Jason isn't a creep like him."

"How are you still alive?" Jason asks in astonishment.

She smiles a little. "I never said any names, did I? Let that be another lesson—if you're gonna bitch about a god, never call them by name, or they'll listen."

"Ha!" Leo points at her with a pair of tweezers. "Honestly, sunshine, I love having you around."

"Really? You're complimenting her after she went off on me like that?" Jason frowns, but he's just as amused. "You're the worst best friend in the world."

Leo is still down, but not miserable. "Thank you, man. Now go to sleep, you two, it's gonna take a few hours to get this goat man free. Then I still got to figure out how to make the winds a smaller holding cell, 'cause I am not lugging that canary cage to California."

Ara settles on the couch, Piper's asleep on another sofa, and Jason settles on the floor, Ara gives him the purple cloak so he uses it as a blanket. Leo remains seated in front of the cages, tinkering with the locks. 

Ara uses Nico's jacket as a pillow and stares at the ceiling. She isn't sleepy, covered in scratches and bruises that don't let her lie comfortably. "Hedge was the satyr who found me—good guy, but he's gotten old..." she sighs. "He shouldn't be out on the field."

"We heard," Jason says, not ready to sleep either. "Did something happen?"

"It's time for him to retire. Hedge should've done so years ago, but he doesn't want to," Ara sighs.

"Well, maybe he still has some power left in him," Jason offers.

"He should use it to enjoy life," Ara yawns. "But it does feel like it's meant to be... maybe it wasn't a mistake."

"What thing?"

"Becoming the daughter of Olympus..."

"It wasn't. You've saved us many times." Jason tells her. Ara rolls and faces the back of the couch, ending their conversation. "You did fix Festus, you know," the boy adds, this time talking to Leo. "You gave him a purpose again. I think this quest was the high point of his life."

"I hope," Leo sighs quietly. "Now, sleep, man. I want some time without you organic life forms."

Nico and Lily are holding a Mythomagic battle to pass the time. They're super serious about it, so it's amusing to watch.

"GET HER!" Nico gets up triumphantly, his dark eyes shining with fervor. For a moment, he scares me. I recognize that gaze immediately, and I realize Bianca Di Angelo should've never left camp.

On our way to the pavilion, I capture Lily's wrist. "Can we talk?" 

Lily shakes her head frantically, which lets me know she's thinking the same thing I am.

"Hey, I'm taking my cards back to the big house," Nico says happily. "See you in a minute!"

"Why do you keep them there?"

"Lily told me not to trust the Hermes cabin," he shrugs.

I give her a look. "What?" She frowns. "The Stolls tried to steal my holographic cards!"

When he's out of sight, I speak in an anxious whisper. "How long have you known?"

"That he's bad news?"

"He's not bad news!" I scold her. "His sister is not safe and she's gone! Since when do you know, Lily?"

"...My patron came to me in a dream. The day you brought them to camp."

"Your patron?" I gasp. "Hades gave you those daggers! Why didn't you say so?"

"You know why."

I stare at her. Having a patron means you do stuff for them. "We have to tell Chiron," I say with concern.

She looks uncomfortable. "How do we know he's not the traitor?"

It takes me a moment to understand what she's saying. "Chiron?"

"He is his son, you know..."

I let out a nervous giggle. "You're joking..." Lily's face says the opposite. "You haven't been here long enough," I continue calmly. "Chiron loves us."

"He looked ready to strangle Thalia and Percy when they were fighting during Capture the Flag."

"Everyone wants to strangle them from time to time," I shrug.

"Don't tell him, Ara," Lily says earnestly.

"What did he tell you?" I press. "Nico's dad."

Her jaw clenches. "I can't say."

I sigh, to be honest, Nico's better off not knowing who he is. "Let me help you," I offer. "Bianca's out there and..." It hits me. "She's immortal. She can't be the child of the prophecy."

"So she's in danger," Lily's eyes widen. "We have to warn Percy!"

Ara wakes up with a start. The room is just as dark as when they stopped talking, but she doesn't feel sleepy anymore, so she lifts herself up a bit and turns, supporting her chin on the armrest. 

Leo is still working on the cages. It's too dark but something tells her he doesn't need to see what he's doing. Again, she feels jealous... and a little attracted to him as well.

Ara pays attention to the outline of his face, Leo is kind of cute when he's all serious and focused. He hasn't noticed she's awake yet. She moves and presses a bruise on accident, hissing at the feeling. The noise startles Leo.

"What's wrong?" The way he whispers in a raspy voice makes her heart skip a beat.

Ara sits up, every muscle in her body is sore and stiff. "Don't worry—just need to sleep this off."

Leo puts his tools down and stands up, he approaches and gets on one knee in front of her. "If you've got a fracture, it's gonna be worse if we wait."

Ara looks at him bashfully, but Leo doesn't notice. He holds her arm closer to his eyes so he can see her injuries better. It's not like he's never touched her before, he carried her after she passed out, but this is different, he's touching her so gently... Her skin starts to glow, illuminating Leo's features, but only she can see it. 

The boy makes a face when he sees her bruises. "Jeez, Ara, you should've said something..."

Ara has seen her friends fall in love many times, but it always went from platonic to romantic. She didn't think it was real, that you can fall for someone without being friends first. When she's alone with Leo, she gets a feeling of anti-gravity in the pit of her stomach when he gets near, it makes her dizzy... and it's wonderful.

"I didn't know it was this serious..." Ara's not talking about the bruises, but Leo doesn't know, so he tries to comfort her. 

"I can't mend bones like you, but I can try?"

Ara sniffs, quickly gathering her thoughts. "Pass me the T-Rex."

He blinks. "The what?"

"The maimed dino."

Leo finds her old bag on the floor and passes it to her. "Hey, I didn't ask 'cause I didn't want to upset you... But isn't that bag a bit too..?"

Ara nods knowingly. "My brother gave it to me. He gave me those kinds of plushies on Valentine's Day every year, and I used to carry our snacks in them when I was younger."

"Why?" Leo questions, then adds. "And why on Valentine's Day?"

"He says that's my real birthday," she chuckles. "He thought it was a funny joke, beats me why. This bag reminds me of him, so who cares if it's not fit for a General?"

Leo stares at the ruined bag with a mortified expression. "Did this happen when we fell?"

"I don't know, didn't look at it until we got here," Ara opens it and pulls out a square of ambrosia and her bottle of nectar. "Watch and learn, rookie. This is your third lesson."

Leo sits next to her, paying close attention. Ara crushes the ambrosia on a paper plate, pours a spoonful of nectar over it, and then mixes the stuff until it's a thick batter. The girl gets up and takes the mix to the backyard so it cools down.

Outside is quiet, and beautiful. The snow has already covered the wreckage they brought into the garden and it reflects the moonlight all around them. Ara feels cold, but she ignores it.

They sit on the entrance steps while they wait, and Leo tries not to stare too hard at all the injuries on Ara's body. He's also trying not to feel guilty about it since it wasn't really his and Jason's fault that she and Piper had to fight on their own. It's not coming easy.

 Ara pulls the compass out of her pocket and stares at it, deep in thought. "Almighty."

"What?"

She presses something on the object and it turns into a sword. Ara holds it in front of Leo. "This is Almighty."

"Oh," he says, still not understanding. "Yeah, I'm sure it's—"

"No," she chuckles. "Pantodýnamos. Almighty. You said I probably thought it was silly to name the dragon, but names have power." She presses the alpha on the hilt and it turns back into a compass. "Your father gave this sword to me, Annabeth thought he was giving me a piece of junk to humor me, but the gods don't give things just cause you're cute. Unless it's my mother, but that's—"

"Another story. Go on."

Ara smiles at his impatience. She grabs the recently made ointment, ready to be used. "I don't know what to do with it when it's not a sword... what I'm trying to say is, it's hard to understand everything about our world in just a few days. I'm sorry I made you feel stupid, that was never my intention."

The girl tries to apply the ointment but she can't see the cuts on her forearm very well, and she also shivering 'cause she left Nico's jacket inside. Leo helps her, he leans closer and gets to work on her scratches and bruises, and Ara hopes it looks like she's blushing from the cold.

"When I talked to my dad," Leo says, trying to focus on what he's doing instead of whom he's healing. "It sounded like he respected you, doesn't surprise me you got the sword from him."

Ara should be flattered, but she focuses on a different thing. "He mentioned me?"

Leo clears his throat. "He—er, he said we're meant to... uh... partner up."

Ara blushes even more, but she tries to keep a straight face. "During this quest, or..?"

"I'm not sure," Leo keeps his eyes fixed on her injuries.

"Maybe he's talking about the big prophecy, but I don't know why he would single us out..." Ara might've imagined it, but for a moment Leo looks annoyed at the idea. 

He holds her face without warning, and Ara jumps out of reach. He gets even more upset when she does this. "Hey, I know I'm gross and all but can you hold that thought for a moment? I gotta fix your face..."

Ara is so embarrassed she doesn't have the courage to explain. "I don't need—"

"What if it leaves a scar?" Leo's voice comes out a little sharper than before, once again reaching for her. "An Aphrodite must hate the thought of getting marks, right?"

"I had scars," she replies a little insulted. "I was proud of 'em. Now I have nothing to prove I worked hard for what I wanted."

Leo's thumb is under her chin keeping her head up, and his index is brushing the cut on her lower lip. For the briefest moment, it looks like he's about to kiss her. Ara's heart is beating so fast she's sure he can hear it. Then he presses on the cut and causes her to withdraw.

"Ouch!"

"My bad—had to make sure it wasn't a stain," Leo looks away as he replies.

"You're so weird..." she mumbles, holding her lip.

"You're weirder," the boy replies, quickly recovering from the awkward moment. "You've barely seen the half of it, though. Most people get tired after a few days, I give you a week."

"You'll have to stretch that," she replies. "Cause I got a lot of odd friends, and I don't mind spending time with you at all."

Leo stands and helps her up, still not looking back at her. "Thank you," Ara gestures at her injuries. "For helping me. You didn't have to."

"Well, you saved my friends..." he says awkwardly before walking away.

Ara's a bit hurt because his actions feel like a conscious effort. He's pulling himself back, but she's pretty sure his hand lingered before he let go of her. 

She should be glad that he's trying to avoid her, because, is she even trying at all? A shiver runs up her spine, reminding her she's standing in the cold. 

"Di immortalis," Ara mutters, reentering into the mansion. "I'm so predictable..."

Next Chapter ->

Taglist.

@siriuslysirius1107 @ask-giggles1303 @ash-the-hoarder @im-planning-something-look @bandshirts-andbooks @coolninjapaper @thewaterlily @whenisthefall @1randomcomic @you-bloody-shank @sunflowergraves @owlalex44 @taylordaughter @typicalsolangelolover @writingmia @espressopatronum454 @slytherinnqueen

[askanautistic]

HI, I would like to know what I can do and ways I can help to make my autistic partner comfortable in our relationship

Communication Communication is always going to be the most important thing to figure out. Different people have different preferences, but finding the right method of communication and understanding your partners communication style will go a long way towards building trust and understanding, and to making sure you're both able to problem solve when issues do come up.

Method/s might include texting instead of speaking, even if you're in the same room, or sending emails for important topics. It might be that speaking needs to happen at certain times or in certain situations (if your partner tends to find it easier to speak about things when on a walk, then going for regular walks offers the opportunity for discussion and bonding). Energy levels/Comfort levels It also helps to understand energy levels, and respect that some autistic people need a lot of down time, or time to ourselves. This isn't true for everyone, some autistic people are extroverted and will thrive off company, but many of us might struggle to transition between work and home, or might get overloaded and burned out from work or social situations, and so might need some extra time to ourselves without any demands before we're able to have discussions or help with chores. The same goes for comfort levels. We might have different levels of comfort with things like physical contact, and respecting that and recognising our love languages (that might be a little unusual or less obvious) instead of trying to force certain types of affection means we can be comfortable and not feel abnormal or self-conscious.

'The benefit of the doubt' This is something I often bring up when talking about relationships. The reason for this is that people can miscommunicate / misunderstand each other, and so thinking well of your partner and giving them the benefit of the doubt can be really helpful. Sometimes we mess up and need to be held accountable, of course, and sometimes behaviour is unacceptable... but there are often times when we need someone to just recognise that their interpretation of our behaviour isn't necessarily correct, and to try to view it through the lens of... well, giving us the benefit of the doubt, basically. Asking, 'Could this be an autistic thing?' If I say or do something that seems rude, it's reassuring to know that my partner won't interpret it that way, and if she is upset or unsure, she'll let me know without accusing me (and won't just make the assumption and quietly seethe over me saying or doing something she perceived as rude). Knowing that she thinks well of me and understands me means that I feel safer and more relaxed because she's that one person who I know is willing to try to understand things from my perspective and appreciates my perspective and how my brain works/how I communicate etc. (rather than wanting me to change).

Appreciation/Support/Accommodation Appreciating their autisticness (and other things about them, of course) will also help build trust and make sure they're comfortable. Knowing that my girlfriend likes how logical I am, and appreciates my honesty, and isn't bothered by my stimming, etc. Also, whilst she doesn't need to be interested in my interests, it's nice that she is happy for me (and also means I feel more comfortable because I know that whereas someone else might tease me or find some of my interests weird, she never judges me). It's nice when someone takes notice - shares an article with you about something you're interested in, or buys interest-related gifts. Even better when they show support. Particularly if the autistic person needs a bit more support than a non-autistic partner might need. Travel support, attending events they can't attend alone (even if you wouldn't otherwise choose to go). Everyday accommodations being a natural part of a relationship/household make life so much easier, and makes being autistic more 'normalised' and comfortable than when you're trying to fit yourself to NT standards. Creating (and being!) that safe space is something I appreciate most about my girlfriend. She's the person I'm most comfortable with and she makes my life so much easier than it would otherwise be. If you find any of my posts helpful, please consider supporting my by buying me a Ko-FI.