#i just know he DOMINATES the coffee shop au tag

[raven-delamuerte]

To this day, this is the best headcanon I've come up with:

Y'all cannot tell me this little troublemaker ain't got an AO3 account

[bunny-jpeg]

lovingly dominant

capt. john price

tags: smut/pwp, age gap (20s/30s), size difference/kink, dom/sub dynamic, bdsm au, virgin!reader, light bdsm, praise (kink)

a/n: in a surprising twist, bunny has written call of duty again!! expect more cod stuff into december when the f1 season is over and it stops eating my brain <3

john price considered himself a little old fashioned. he thought it was better to have his birdie of the week on her back and rut into her until they both finished. he had no need for whips, chains, collars, and whatever else the world of bdsm had to offer.

but after so many missions and so many years, the pollution of combat bled into his sexual desires. he craved for control, near domination of his birdie. yes, they looked cute on their backs and their soft noises. but it looked far more appealing to keep her blindfolded, second guessing what was being done to her while price's filthy words spilled across her brain like wine on a white carpet. tainting her. tainting you.

most dominants loved a trained submissive. loved that they knew the ins and outs of the dynamic, tinkering to their liking. price on the other hand had a thing for over eager virgins. ones who got all their bdsm know-how from horribly written fan fiction. he liked to teach and guide, he liked to shape his submissive into the perfect image of what could be.

and when he met you, oh, well something else came up. an unwavering possessive need. price tried to not get possessive, this was all just a little game for sexual pleasure. but when he found out his little trainee worked at a flower shop, it was all over for him. it was only doubled down when you had your first meeting at a coffee shop and you got the most delicious looking slice of strawberry shortcake.

the cream on the corner of your mouth almost made john price lose resolve. instead he covered up with a cough before you asked, "do you want some, mister price." and who was john price to deny such a lovely girl her offer. you even fed it to him, a glimmer in your eye and gentle smile.

"it's lovely, baby girl." he said before he wiped a bit of the cream off his beard which made you giggle. that giggle seared into his brain and he knew that you weren't getting with any other man.

you met at his flat a few weeks later, and you were eager. price liked that. sex was only half as fun when the person he was fucking was almost having a good time. you came over in a big sweatshirt and jeans that were a little baggy, something that covered up. it made price curious as to what was hiding underneath.

"look beautiful, birdie." he said as he guided you inside and you got your sneakers off. you looked over at him to help you through the flat. you held onto him a little nervous, the only familiar thing in the place. price held you by the middle and let you press your face up against his strong chest.

he was in a flannel with a white undershirt and jeans. you could see the gold chain around his throat and the heavy chest hair. you had seen him naked from photos shared and he had seen you naked, but to feel it up close left a shiver of excitement through you. he leaned down and kissed you on the top of your head as he led you to the bedroom.

he said, "afterwards, i'll make ya some dinner. not the best chef, but, i can cook ya somethin' to replenish the energy you spent fucking me." he then ruffled your hair, which made your heart leap and he got you onto the bed.

you nodded meekly, you looked so small. so innocent. a girl like you should be on dated with finance guys or even the artsy kind. not a weathered, older military man like him. but even things in smaller packages can be surprising, just like when you took off your clothes and revealed a matching set of bra and panties. a soft grey colour with pastel yellow accents. it made price have to adjust himself in his jeans.

"ah, pretty girl got a surprise for me. how sweet?"

you nodded, "i wanted to make tonight special. good luck for a long... dynamic between us. so, you don't get rid of me if i suck." and soon you were in price's embrace while you still sat on the bed. your cheek pressed hard against his soft but firm middle.

he petted your head a little and said, "ah, don't worry, petal. even if you do bad tonight, i got every intention of trainin' ya. make you the perfect girl." the words spoken hit right to your core and when he pulled away long enough to strip down, you felt your eyes go wide for a moment.

a photo couldn't capture every inch of john price's skin. the scars, the tattoos, the hair, the muscle, the fat. he was like a big brown bear and it made you soaked. you shifted a little in your spot on the bed and rubbed your thighs together in anticipation. it was surprising that you were still a virgin, but you always chickened out. now as an adult, you wanted to just get it over with. but, you wanted to have fun. and why not have fun with a well experienced dom who wouldn't half-ass your first time. it didn't hurt that he had the kind of looks that would make any man with half a brain jealous.

"i hope i meet expectations." he chuckled as he put his hands on his hips. his cock stood at full attention and you swallowed. there was something so masculine about him, but not in a toxic way. he played with your hair once more before he patted your cheek, "no need to gawk, petal. i'm not goin' anywhere." and you swallowed. he chuckled before he got into bed with you and slowly unwrapped you of your lingerie like delicate christmas paper.

he hadn't been this excited to upwrap something since he got the toy firetruck as a kid. but in total fairness, you were hotter than any fire red truck. his hands grazed across your body with total tenderness and his hungry blue eyes gazed the skin.

the stretch marks, the moles, your own scarring. you were beautiful in ways that price couldn't describe. to compare you to something would be unfair to the thing being compared to your beauty. he took you by the wrist and kissed the center of it.

"this is a promise, petal. for as long as you keep me as your dominant and you my submissive, i with cherish you, adore you, and most of all. make sure that you cum over and over again." before he kissed you on the lips and got you onto your back. he admired you, "usually i like to take pretty things on their hands and knees. but, tonight's gotta be special, right, doll?"

you nodded.

he tapped your nose and said, "ah, ah, ah. that won't cut it. the words are 'yes, sir', got it? would hate to bruise that little behind during our first time."

you found your voice and said, "yes, sir." and was met with a rough pat on the cheek before price pulled away to rest on his knees to fuck you with just right. you felt heat course through your body as you took in the sight of him. burly, large from top to bottom.

course dark hair on his body, a little heft in his middle (but who didn't love that), a sparkle in his blue eyes, and hands large enough to break things between the digits. he admired you in return and said softly, "pretty little petal, yeah? ah, who let ya be so beautiful?" he chuckled as he rubbed his cock up against your slick sex, "i got so much to teach ya. how to tie ya up, how to gag ya properly. mmm, we'll have so much fun." he then pulled away to grab a condom from the nightstand. he held up the silver foil to you and said, "rule one, play safe or don't play at all."

you nodded and remembered to reply, "yes, sir."

price gave you a smile that lit you up and said, "good girl." then quickly got the condom on. he admired your soaked sex for a moment longer, "she achin' for me, huh? cute." then slowly, almost agonizingly, he inched into you and felt the spread of warmth through his body.

heaven was created with your pussy in mind. price was never a quick finisher, but he almost finished inside of you when he managed to get all of himself inside of you. he kept eyes and ears open, the type of examining done in his line of work, to make sure that you weren't in too much pain.

"ya alright?"

you nodded and swallowed.

price added, "baby girl. words." and then nodded his head when you replied that everything was okay, he nodded and said, "roger that." which made you pussy clench. a smile spread across price's face as he leaned forward. he captured your hands in his and pressed them to the bed under you. he chuckled lowly, "ah, someone likes a military man? a man in uniform gets ya goin'?" he kissed your pulse point, "ah, too cute, petal. i guess seeing that on my description didn't scare ya off." he rocked against you, "know it's a crime to mess up a man's uniform."

you swallowed, "sir. fuck." and felt the strike of heat through your body. you had to admit, you had seen a few photos of him in uniform. the beret, boots and all. and it made something turn in your stomach. only added an appeal to him that made you hot.

price replied, "i guess it worked out. because i like cute little civilians who are more than eager to make me feel good. doin' your civic duty makin' me cum, baby girl." these was a tension in his voice that made you heart hammer and your throat feel tight. the bed squeaked a little under the both of you as he continued his movements. he knew he was going to have an amazing time with you.

you whined, "please, sir."

"tell me. tell me what ya like about it? what gets my baby girl goin'? i gotta know, because maybe i can get somethin' together that'll rock your world." his words were hot and your cunt fluttered around his achy, hard cock. for a moment he was uncertain if you were actually a virgin, you took him so well.

you moaned when you felt a spark of pleasure in your core, your entire life had just been your hands and an assortment of toys. but to have price work your body beautifully was something else. you replied sweetly, "i... i want to thigh ride you in uniform." you felt a flush of embarrassment.

he chuckled, "oh that would be quite the sight, huh?" he continued to move against you beautifully, "i bet that i could make ya cum just from my thighs. rub your cunt all over it, messin' up the fabric. higher-ups will be wonderin' about the pussy stains all over the fabric. maybe if i'm lucky i'll get some of your wetness in my beard. let 'em smell you on me." and well, that excited you deeply.

you arched your back a little bit, but price kept you pinned perfectly under him. you tightened your thighs around him and he continued to work your body. it wasn't rough sex, but it also wasn't boringly soft either. he worked you at a steady pace, like a man with immense stamina. he eyed the bounce of your breasts and he moved against you.

he licked his lips at the sight of you, "baby girl." he purred, "you're a dirty girl. but don't worry." he soon held onto your wrists instead of your hands, a further act of domination, "i like 'em dirty. i like girls i can sink my teeth into. soon enough you won't be able to cum unless it's my fingers, tongue or cock in you. ya got the kind of soft skin that would bruise perfectly. but be careful, petal, i can be quite mean with a paddle." and it was met with a heavy moan. music to his ears.

you had never been spoken to like this before, but it excited you. you wanted to be price's dirty girl any day of the week. you felt excitement cross over you as he picked up the pace. the two of you fucked heavily and it left a taste of want in your mouth. this was better than anything you hoped for. it wasn't just that price checked boxes on a superficial level, he knew exactly how to make you squirm and moan. heavy noises came from your mouth as he worked your achy cunt, you felt amazing.

"ya like knowin' that i'm your first. big, scary captain makin' a mess of the sweetest cunt in the world. knowin' in a way, i got ya for life." he licked his lips. he liked that you were pure in that way, call him old fashioned. but knowing that he got to have you first was sort of like getting the first slice of cake at a party. something he wished to sweetly devour. and with you it was with heavy thrusts and filthy words. taint you to his liking.

you whined as you clenched your fists, you tensed up and he loved the feeling. he could almost read your mind with how sweet you felt. he could nearly feel your heartbeat as he fucked you. he loved the sight of you, you looked damn near perfect under him. you said between heavy pants, "please, sir. fuck, please!"

"feel good, petal? like how i take you." he moved against you further and it left him feeling the anticipation for climax. he continued to fuck your sweet body, working every last centimeter of warm skin, "remember, ya gotta ask me to cum."

his movements were overwhelming, his pace left you feeling breathless. and in your first lesson of intimacy, you croaked out, "can i cum, sir? please, i need to cum."

and price could be a giving man. he looked down at you, haze in those blue eyes as he said, "of course, baby girl. cum for me, cum for your captain." and swore under his breath as you beautifully came apart for him. he held onto your wrists tighter and groaned. it paired nicely with your sweet little moans.

"sir! fuck!" you gasped as you clenched around him. you finished and it only prompted him to move faster while you laid in such a blissed out state. no one had made you finish like that, not even your own nimble digits.

but price was just that good.

the bed creaked further and the headboard hit against the beige wall of the bedroom. he fucked you faster and made sure to cram every inch inside of you. with a few more heavy strokes, he finished into of you with a heavy groan. he fucked you through his climax before he slowed to a stop.

he wiped the sweat from his forehead and exhaled deeply, "beauty, beauty. where has the world been hidin' ya from me." he chuckled as he kissed you on the lips. you melted against him and moaned.

when he pulled out, he got up with a creak in his hip to throw out the condom before he was back in bed with you. you were both naked under the covers as price traced your form with his calloused fingers. the roughness on your soft skin made you shiver.

"how about it, lovie." he said in that low, gruff tone of his. his hand grazed across your side and behind, "how about i invite the boys over and their little birdies and we can have a little playdate. introduce you to the group."

you swallowed, "play... date?"

price pulled you closer. he held onto you the way someone would hold a stuffed animal. he smiled at you, "don't worry, petal. no one's gettin' their hands on ya. not while i'm still breathin'." his voice was tinged with a possessiveness. you nodded in response and he added, "besides, i know i'll make the boys nice and jealous with you." he chuckled, "my beautiful baby girl." then kissed you on the lips.

you could only imagine what would happen at a playdate with price's friends and their submissives. it also didn't help that it made you a little excited as well. <3

[sarahowritesostucky]

📖"Temporary Custody"

Rating: Explicit

Pairing: Steve x ofc x Bucky

Word Count: 2366

Tags: Dom/sub, bdsm au, dom Bucky, sub reader, hurt/comfort, enemies to lovers, gay sex'n'stuff, straight sex'n'stuff, Steve being a literal Golden Retriever, mental health issues, dub-con, forced submission, bakery au, m/f/m, gentle domination, total power exchange

Summary: The stigma and shame of being a submissive has kept Mary unfulfilled and in the closet her whole life, until an inciting incident leads to Bucky and Steve taking her in and giving her everything she was always too afraid to ask for.

Trigger warnings: This story contains background/minor themes of eating disordered behavior, body image issues, self-harm, and alcohol abuse.

1. Lemon Cream Tart (with Pistachio Streusel)

“Oh, baby, yes.”

Mary grunts, annoyed that this is still going on.

Her pleasure waned a while ago, nowhere close to orgasm, and she can’t seem to get it back when she’s being fucked this hard. She’s getting too dry now, just wants him to come and have it be over with. 

“Yeah,” she says breathily, canting her hips up against where the guy—Dennis, she thinks it is—is fucking into her. He’s going too fast, pulling out too far,and hardly connecting with her body at all before thrusting again. “Jackrabbit sex,” she calls it in her head.

“Shit, Ugh. M’gonna cum,” MaybeDennis grunts. 

It’s nice to finally hear him talk. He’s been virtually silent this entire time and Mary’s whined and squirmed and panted, wishing that the sex was better and that he’d just fucking say something to her—something low and quiet in her ear, something confident and knowing, maybe putting a hand on her neck at the same time as he—

“Fuck!” he shouts, close to her ear. His thrusts start to stutter, losing their rhythm as he gets close. Mary grips him harder, and moans loudly like she’s getting close too. It makes him come, and she tenses her body and matches his sounds of relief with some of her own. It’s performative and easy to fake, she doesn’t overdo it, and she sounds convincing.

MaybeDennis groans and collapses against her, resting his sweaty forehead on her shoulder for a moment before pulling out. He flops over onto his back, chuckling tiredly and removing the condom. Mary watches him get up from the bed and pad into the bathroom. He’s a good looking guy, with just a little too much fat in the midsection for her taste. But then, she knows she’s overly picky, especially considering the state of her own body.

Beyond the open bathroom door, the toilet flushes, and MaybeDennis peeks his head out from the bathroom. “Hey, you mind if I grab a shower before heading out?”

Mary resists the urge to grimace and smiles tightly instead. “Nope. Go ahead.” She’s just grateful he isn’t asking to spend the night. “Towels are in the closet.”

MaybeDennis smiles. “Thanks.”

After he leaves, Mary gets her vibrator out of the bedside drawer and shoves the extra pillow between her legs, arranging the toy so that it sits against her just so. She doesn’t think of MaybeDennis as she gets herself off. The orgasm feels good but leaves her feeling bereft afterwards. She scowls and wipes the tears from her eyes, feeling just a little pathetic.

Like most other nights, she gets up and goes to her apartment’s little kitchen, grabs the vodka from the freezer and pours herself a glass mixed with diet soda. She winces in relief as the first sip goes down. It’s eight o’clock now. She doesn’t have to be up for work until seven, so that leaves at least another six hours to get drunk and have a nice relaxing evening in. 

It’s her favorite part of the day.

Bucky’s just left the gym after a really intense workout and is feeling pleasantly worn out and relaxed when he decides to try the new coffee shop on a whim. He’s passed it by for months, and when he finally walks through the front doors he’s pleasantly surprised by the atmosphere. There’s a small dessert case next to the register, which he examines while he waits his turn in line. It’s filled with colorful, glossy, artful little pastries that look almost too pretty to eat—almost. He grins as he thinks about what Steve might want.

“Welcome to Angie’s, what can I get for you?”

The greeting sounds mechanical and anything but chipper, and Bucky’s attention shifts to the woman behind the register. He eyes her up and down, noticing both how pretty she is … and how worn down she looks. Her hair is pulled back in a messy bun and her eyes look red-rimmed. They have faint circles under them. Bucky offers her a sympathetic wince. “Late night?”

She blinks at him, unamused. “Yeah, I guess. Do you know what you want?”

“These pastries all look so good,” he says, trying again for friendly. “What would you recommend?”

“Any of ‘em. They’re all good.”

“Are you sure?” he teases.

“Pretty sure, yeah,” she deadpans. “Since I make ‘em.”

Bucky looks back to her, impressed. “Yeah?” He regards her nametag, sees the little handwritten “Mary,” and thinks, aw, that’s cute. He reins in his reaction. Leaning against the counter, he praises, “Well you’re very talented. They all look like little works of art.” 

(They’re priced that way, too. $8.99 for a shiny little dome thing? Jesus.)

Mary blushes and smiles a little, not seeming to know what to say to that. But she leans towards Bucky too, receptive to his compliments. She’s not making eye contact, which automatically gets Bucky’s instincts perking up. Not that he has any intention of taking this anywhere. It’s just a little friendly banter, a woman reacting to him in a way that’s naturally satisfying for Bucky. “Thanks,” she says shyly.

“I’m still waiting on that recommendation, Mary,” he says, inserting a bit of flirtation into his tone. She makes eye contact at his use of her name, her lips parting just the barest bit and her pupils expanding. Bucky grins, leaning closer. “Hm?”

“Uh, the … the lemon tart is very good,” she says. “If you like lemon. Not too strong. I balance it out with cream and some pistachio streusel, and the meringue on top of course …”

Now that she’s closer and is talking more readily, Bucky catches the faintest whiff of alcohol coming off of her. He raises an eyebrow and looks at her more closely, noticing how there’s a sheen to her eyes, how she doesn’t look just tired, but unsteady; not just unkempt, but disheveled. He frowns. Is she … is she drunk? “Um,” he hedges, pulling back to stand straighter. “Are you okay, Mary?”

She looks surprised at the question. She glances down to her nametag, then back up at him. “I’m … fine,” she says. “Just tired.”

“You kinda smell like booze,” he whispers, not wanting anyone else to hear. He gives her a searching look. “Are you hung over?” Her eyes widen in alarm and Bucky frowns, concerned. “Are you drunk?”

 “I told you that I had a late night,” she hisses. “Not that it’s any of your business.”

Bucky gives her a warning look for her tone, and the girl is immediately lowering her eyes. Hmm. Not many people are dominant or submissive the way that Bucky is. It’s considered disordered, so he doesn’t usually play around with testing people this way. But this girl has raised some of his telltale red flags, and he’s curious. “I wasn’t trying to embarrass you, Honey,” he says gently. Then, inserting a careful amount of authority into his voice and watching how she reacts, he says, “Now: I’d like an almond venti chai latté with stevia and cream, double-frothed, to-go. And why don’t you be a good girl and grab me two of those lemon tarts as well? They look too tempting to resist.” Her eyes flick up to his, some strange mixture of outrage and obedience in them, and Bucky feels like he knows, then. She looks the way a woman looks when you’ve just whispered something filthy in their ear. Bucky raises his eyebrow. “Did you get that, Mary?”

“... Yes,” she breathes, making something deeply innate in Bucky stir. She shakes herself out of her stupor and gets to work with a sharpie and venti-sized paper cup.

“Bucky,” he tells her, as he taps his card to the terminal to pay. “That’s the name you can write down.” Mary looks inordinately pleased at having been given his name (another clue). Bucky nods over to the other end of the counter. “I’ll be waiting over there.”

“Okay,” she says, once again back to not meeting his eyes. She seems embarrassed at having been found out for being drunk at work. Maybe she expects Bucky to scold her. He wishes he could. Instead he goes down to where he said he’d wait, and makes up his mind to ask her about whether she’s on the spectrum.

“Here you go,” she says as she hands over the cup several minutes later. “Bucky” is written in neat, sharp letters on the paper sleeve. She pushes a little white box across the counter at him too. “And the tarts.”

Bucky takes them without comment, eyeing her up and down instead. “Mary?” he says, because subs love hearing their names said aloud. Predictably, her eyes snap right up, alert and bright, like Bucky’s just dangled catnip in front of her nose. He offers her a kind look and delicately ventures, “Have you ever been assessed on the D/s spectrum, Honey?”

“What?”

“The D/s spectrum?” he repeats, keeping his voice low because he’s still not trying to upset her. He can see the moment that her brain clicks over in recognition, because her irises flare and her face slackens in shock. “Hey, hey, it’s okay,” Bucky reassures gently. “I don’t mean any of this in a negative way. I just think you might be on the spectrum. I’m familiar with the signs. And if you’ve gone undiagnosed all this time … well that’d explain it if you’re struggling, you know.”

“I’m not … I’m not struggling,” she stammers.

Bucky gives her a look. “You don’t think so? When here you are, sleep deprived, drunk at work?” 

Embarrassment stains her cheeks within seconds. “How dare you? I am not.”

“Not drunk? Or not submissive?” 

She blushes even harder, jaw working. “I’m not,” she repeats stubbornly.

“Oh, Honey,” Bucky says, and he reaches for her hand before she can pull it back. He circles her wrist with his fingers, marveling at how tiny it is in his hand. He squeezes—and proceeds to watch her eyelids flutter like he’s touched someplace far more erogenous than her wrist. “I think you are,” he murmurs sadly. 

It takes her a minute, but she gets angry again and yanks her hand away, scowling at him. “You’re very rude,” she says. “You can’t just say stuff like that to people.”

“Can’t I?”

Her lip quivers. She pushes the box further across the counter at him. “Take your stuff and leave.”

“You don’t have to be so defensive,” Bucky says. “It’s okay. I’m diagnosed dominant, you know. I understand what it’s like.”

“What?”

He shrugs. “I’m just saying: I’m not going to judge you. I think you should probably get some help, though. It’s pretty progressive if you don’t address it.”

“You don’t even know me!” she hisses, then looks around the shop nervously when she realizes she’s gotten louder. Nobody seems to be paying attention to them, but she still looks back at Bucky with a furiously embarrassed expression. “You're wrong. I’m normal.”

Bucky knows that arguing with her isn’t going to get him anywhere. Instead, he slips the paper sleeve off of his coffee cup and plucks the sharpie from the edge of Mary’s apron. She gasps at the boldness of it and he shoots her a wink. “It’s nothing to be ashamed of,” he says, as he jots down a number. He hands the sleeve back to her. “You can call that number any time, if you wind up needing help.”

“Oh my god, is this some sort of come-on?” She sneers. “Newsflash: I’m not interested in you.”

Bucky nods placidly while imagining putting her over his knee. “No, it’s not my number. It’s a hotline you can call. To talk about this stuff. It’s free and confidential, and it’s manned by people like you and me.”

She regards the cardboard sleeve like it might suddenly have more information written on it. “I don’t—”

“Here.” On a whim, he jots down his cell number as well, this time on the back of his receipt. He slides it over the counter at her but she doesn’t take it. “That’s my number,” he says. “If you want it.”

“I don’t need these. I’m not some friggin’—”

He cuts her off from whatever undoubtedly prejudiced thing she’s about to say. “I’ll be back to give a thorough review of the tarts,” he tells her, taking the box and his coffee cup and stepping away. He heads for the door, satisfied that he’s done the right thing by this woman, even if his dominance is still urging him to do more. “You should have a coffee, yourself,” he calls back over his shoulder. “Have two, even—Strong ones.”

“I hate coffee.”

He hears her scoffing at him as he goes out the door. She’s right, he thinks: he doesn’t know her. It was ballsy to talk to her the way that he did. To presume her situation from just a few reactions. He could’ve been wrong about her … 

Glancing back through the café’s window from outside, he sees her making a drink at the espresso machine. There are no other customers waiting in line. Bucky watches as she takes a sip from it, winces in distaste, and takes another sip anyway. She’s obeying his command. She took it as a command. Bucky smiles sadly from out on the sidewalk. He wasn’t wrong about her. Hopefully she’ll call the hotline, get started on the right path to fix whatever’s going wrong in her life. But even though Bucky’s a dom and thus a natural “fixer,” he can’t solve every sad case he comes across. Especially when the person doesn’t want to be helped. He’s done all he can do, and that’s going to have to be enough.

Shaking his head, he turns away and starts off for home, sipping at his—excellently made—latté, and feeling grateful that he got help when he needed it, back when he was young. He’s one of the lucky ones. 

He puts Mary the drunk barista from his mind, thinking instead about how he needs to get home to shower and change into something nice. He’s got a date with Steve, after all.

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[chaotictarlos]

(more than)Seven Sentence Sunday

Thank you for the tags @carlos-in-glasses @cold-blooded-jelly-doughnut @reyesstrand looking at my WIPs and was reminded of this Coffee Shop AU I started months ago. Maybe I'll slip back into it and start writing it again...

The smell of coffee slowly fills the air as more of the delicious, liquid gold fills the pot.

Standing in front of the coffee pot is an attractive man around 27, with soft brown skin, messy dark curls, and a crease between his brown eyes that was at least a mile deep. He’s slouched against the counter, chin rested in his hands as he stares intently at the coffee pot, like it holds all the answers to his life questions.

“You know staring at it won’t make it brew any faster.”

He jumps, startled by the voice breaking through the nearly silent space, and lifts his head, turning in the direction of the voice. Leaning against the door frame is another attractive man with pale white skin, messy brain hair, and blue eyes that are shining with mischief. He pushes off the door frame and walks further into the room, joining the other by the coffee pot.

“Why are you looking at it so hard?” The man asks, raising an eyebrow. “It’s just coffee brewing, nothing special.”

The other man shrugs, “I don’t know. Just thinking about life and how I’m not sure I want to do this anymore.”

“You’re the best in the business, though. You could break out onto your own and dominate the interior design business.”

“I know, but it’s not fun anymore. All anyone wants is gray walls and minimalist designs. There’s no creativity in it anymore. Nothing that excites me.”

“If you want excitement, go down to The Three Ponies and buy a lap dance from one of the twinks there, don’t go looking for another job.”

The coffee stops brewing and the man by the pot reaches for it, pouring himself a cup. He adds a splash of cream and a teaspoon of sugar, stirring it until his coffee turns a light brown.

“Maybe a new job is just what I need.”

No pressure tags: @paperstorm @thebumblecee @largepeachicedtea @mooshkat @mikibwrites @sanjuwrites @basilsunrise @catanisspicy @heartstringsduet @noxsoulmate @detective-giggles @taralaurel @kiloskywalker @bonheur-cafe @bubblesandroses8 @hoko-onchi-writes @freneticfloetry @rosedavid ANYONE ELSE WHO SEES THIS AND WANTS TO DO IT. Tag me, I love seeing people's creations.

[lapinbunwrites]

Title: Felix's Embarrassing Holiday

Rating: Gen

Warnings: None

Fandom: Fire Emblem Three Houses

Relationships: Annette Fantine Dominic/Felix Hugo Fraldarius, Felix Hugo Fraldarius & Glenn Fraldarius, Felix Hugo Fraldarius & Rodrigue Achille Fraldarius, Felix Hugo Fraldarius & Felix's Hugo Fraldarius' Mother

Characters: Annette Fantine Dominic, Felix Hugo Fraldarius, Glenn Fraldarius, Rodrigue Achille Fraldarius, Felix Hugo Fraldarius' Mother

Additional Tags: Modern AU, AU Where Christmas Exists, Fluff, Comedy, Meeting the Family, Original Character

Word Count: 3,426

Ao3 Link

Felix groaned as he read a text from his mother, she wanted to meet Annette. He always told himself he was never going to tell Rodrigue anything else that happened in his life, but that was never going to happen. Deep down, even though he would never admit to anyone (he barely admits it to himself), he did love his father and did enjoy being around him. While he knew his parents were excited to meet his girlfriend, and Annette felt the same, he did not. Felix knew they were planning something, but he never knew what. He always ended up being unprepared when he was around him and it always gave him whiplash.

He pinched the bridge of his nose before texting his mother back saying that he will think about it, and instead of replying back to her, he just locked his phone and put his phone in his pocket. He walked down the sidewalks in Fhirdiad to find this little shop that his girlfriend wanted him to try out. He knew she loved sweets and she had a knack for finding little places filled with any sort of confection, but he always kept an open mind about them. Annette always found a shop that always served him something he would end up liking. Felix smirked as he peered into the shop's window, looking at Annette as she sipped on her hot chocolate.

"Sorry I'm late," Felix said, wrapping his coat around her shoulders.

"Oh, you're fine," Annette reassured him, clutching his coat. "I got here a few minutes myself."

"You lost track of time, didn't you?" He asked, sitting across from her in the booth.

"Yeah," she squeaked out, avoiding eye contact with him.

"Annette," he said softly, placing his hand on hers. "Do you I need to get you an alarm? You keep drowning yourself in your homework."

"No, please don't" she whined, fiddling with his coat. "It's the end of the semester of my last year of college. I want to make sure I pass and graduate."

"If you don't relax and keep going, you aren't going to run yourself ragged," he reminded her, raising his eyebrow.

"I know, but I can't miss a beat or I will fail," she protested, taking a drink of her hot coco.

"Annette," his voice low and deep that she couldn't resist.

Annette felt her face heat up the moment he spoke her name.

"I can't, in good conscious, allow you to continue to do this to yourself," Felix smiled at her.

"Felix," she tenderly said, placing her free hand on top of his.

He thought for a couple of seconds of plans that they could do to distract her from her studies while she ordered food for the both of them. The only thing that was sitting in the back of his mind that could be a plan was meeting his family, but he knew he was going to regret that. He kept quiet as he drank his coffee, thinking of a million other plans, but they all came back to his family.

"Felix, are you okay?" Annette asked, taking a bit of her strawberry and banana crepe. "You're unusually quiet."

"Yeah, I'm fine," he reassured her, taking a bit of his spicy turkey focaccia sandwich. "I'm just thinking."

"Thinking about what?" She smiled, wiping the chipotle aioli off of his face.

"My family," he offhandedly said, taking her hand off of his skin.

"Oh! Are you finally going to let me meet your parents and your brother!" She chirped placing her hands together.

"Uh, not exactly," he rolled his eyes.

"Felix, I've been asking for this for months," she whined, placing her hands on her lap.

"Annette, it's not like that," Felix said, trying to reassure her.

"Then what is it like?" Annette asked, staring at him with her bluish green eyes.

He sighed, he was not going to win this fight. "Fine, but only if you relax and pull yourself away from your studies more, I will let you meet my whole family."

Annette clapped her hands and cheered.

Felix rolled his eyes as he smiled, but he knew he was going to regret this. He pulled out his phone, texting his mother to set up a date. He groaned when he saw his mother's next text, it was for Christmas.

"What's going on now?" She laughed, shoving the rest of her crepe in her mouth.

"My mother wants you to come over on Christmas," he groaned, falling back into the booth.

"Tpaft's wonpfrul!" Annette chirped, swallowing her food.

"Yeah, wonderful," he laughed, wiping the chocolate off of her face.

"Oh! I'm so excited!" She laughed as he patted her face.

"I know," he smiled, moving his hand back to his lap. "I will let my mother know."

"Thank you! But I need to get back, class is going to start in a few minutes," she gasped as she looked down at her phone.

"Annette," he sighed, pulling the check towards him. "Go."

He smiled as he watched her rush out the door. When he left the shop, everything finally hit him, and it hit like a truck. The meeting was in two days, he completely forgot that it was close. He rushed around town, heading to a couple of different places before heading home. He was grateful that his parents weren't home when he got back, they were they weren't his favorite people at the moment. He smiled when he received a text from Annette, he was relieved to received it from her. Felix stayed up late into the night, messing up his own sleeping schedule to talk to her.

He woke up in the morning, not realizing that he fell asleep with his phone on face. He rubbed his temples, feeling pressure build up. He groaned as he got out of his bed to get ready for the day, he had plenty to do. He sat in the living room, near the Christmas tree, with wrapping paper, scissors, tape, and pre-tied ribbons. He consistently cursed to himself trying to line up the boxes on the wrapping paper as he tried to get it to stay before taping it. The worst part for him was when he taped the corners. He tried multiple times to fold them into perfect triangles, but they ended up into squished, misshapen triangles. He sighed and just put a bow on the rest of his gifts before putting them under the tree.

The rest of his day was spent cleaning and organizing the house. He made sure to find all of the family photo albums and hiding under his bed like he was a horny thirteen year old boy with a porn magazine. Felix looked around the house, trying to find any other embarrassing thing that family might use against him and placing them in his closet in his room. Annette wouldn't go through there right? He could only hope that her curiosity didn't get the better of him and she decided go through his stuff. When he woke up the next morning, the pain in his head only grew worse. It didn't help that his parents were already up.

"Morning, Felix," Rodrigue smiled as he drank his black coffee.

Felix just grunted as he dragged his feet into the kitchen.

"Well, you're in a good mood," Rodriuge said sarcastically. "I hope this isn't the attitude that you aren't going to have when Annette comes over later tonight."

"Sorry, I just have a splitting headache," Felix lied as he put some headache pills in his mouth and washing it down with water.

"Dad, he's stressed about us meeting his little girlyfriend," Glenn teased his brother as he laughed and stretching out his face.

"Stop that you fool," Felix protested, fending off his brother.

"It's so cute to see you in woove!~" Glenn laughed louder as Felix pushed him.

"Oh, do you think we are going to embarrass you?" Emmeline asked, smirking.

"Yes! Yes I do!" Felix declared, trying to go back to his room.

"You are exactly right!" Glenn said with a giant smile, holding Felix by his collar. "And you aren't going anywhere. You're helping mom with cooking and baking this year. It's your turn."

Felix groaned as he stopped fighting his brother.

"I saw that you already grabbed everything," Emmeline said, clapping her hands. "I'm assuming you want to make spicy fish and turnip stew and saghert and cream." a "Yeah, those are a couple of Annette's favorite dishes," Felix murmured, scratching the back of his neck.

"Awe, you're so cute," she smirked, walking into the kitchen. "We better get started, that stew is going to take some time to make."

Felix shook his head as he helped her get out the ingredients. The two barely spoke to each other when they cooked, but it always brought them together. He preferred baking over cooking because when he formed dough, he was able to beat the dough to release his stress and anger. It would also help clear his mind when he baked, nothing seemed to matter. What helped him was the smell of the stew that his mother worked on. Smelling the smokiness of the fish, hearing the bubbling of the stock, hearing the turnips being shaved, made him feel calm. It even made smile. Doing all of this transported him back to his childhood where him, his parents, and Glenn were all together in the kitchen making a giant stew dish with many different vegetables.

Reliving those memories where short lived when he felt his chest tighten up when he heard the doorbell rang. Felix rushed out of the kitchen, tripping over his feet as he tried to get to the door. He felt defeated when he heard Rodrigue's laughter when his father beat him to the door.

"Hello Annette," Rodrigue greeted with a smile. "My wife and Felix are currently making dinner so why don't you come into the living room with me and Glenn."

"Hello! That would be lovely!" Annette chirped as she took off her shoes when she entered the house.

"I'm not in the kitchen," Felix moaned out as he picked himself off the floor.

Annette laughed as she gave him a little peck on his check.

"How are you?" He asked, trying to hide the kiss he gave to Annette.

"Ehuehuehue, look at the two little love birds," Glenn teased.

"Awe, you two are very romantic," Rodrigue teased along with his oldest son. "You two are just like me and your mother!"

Felix did his best to suppress his groans and hide his blushing face. He could feel in his bones that is was going to be a long night.

"Hello," Emmeline greeted with a smile. "You must be Annette."

"Yes, I am!" Annette cheerfully said, turning to face her. "You must be Felix's mother."

"Yes, you can call me Emmeline," Emmeline said, placing her hand on Annette's face to take a good long look at her. "My, you are very cute. No wonder my son fell for you."

"Mother!" Felix growled.

"Oh hush and get back into the kitchen," she said, pushing him. "I have some very important business to take care of."

Felix rolled his eyes as he went back to baking and cooking. He was no longer able to space out again, not when he could hear his family laughing in the background. He could think of the many things they could be saying and none of it was good. He did his best to ignore their laughter as he continued to cook, he was at least prepared with hiding the photo albums and embarrassing childhood items.

"Oh my goodness!" Annette squealed. "He looks so cute!"

"What? What's going on?" Felix said rushing into the living room.

"Felix you look so cute!" She said, showing Rodrigue's phone to him. "I didn't know you had a bowl cut when you were a little ity bity baby!"

"Old man!" He growled, holding a knife up to him. "How did you get that picture? I hid all of our photo albums."

"Felix, I have a phone that I downloaded it to," Rodrigue reminded him, taking the phone from Annette to show her more pictures.

"How? You are the least tech savvy person I even meet?" Felix asked, trying to take the phone from his father only to be fended off.

"Your brother did it for me," Rodrigue said, trying to find a very specific picture. "Glenn, do you know where that picture."

Felix's eyes became wide and he felt so much tension in his shoulders as he rushed to his father to grab the phone. Glenn lightly pushed his younger brother out of to grab Rodrigue's phone. Felix did his best to grab the phone, but by the time he could, Glenn had found the picture of Felix in his emo phase. He was dressed all in black, trying a different hair color, and got a tongue piercing.

"Oh, wow Felix, that is a look," Annette laughed, taking a good long look at him.

"Yeah, I know," Felix groaned. "Being thirteen was a time for me."

"Clearly," she said, handing Rodrigue's phone back to him. "Do you still have the tongue piercing?"

"No, the whole closed up a while ago. You should know this by the amount-" Felix then felt his face begin to heat up again. He was even in on embarrassing himself. "Never mind."

"Hohoho, how far have you guys gotten?" Emmeline teased, smushing Felix's face.

"None of your business!" Felix said, his voice going up an octave.

"Look at you, you're face is so warm!" Emmeline laughed, kissing his forehead. "You are adorable."

"Can we stop now, please?" He asked, his voice going back to normal. "Plus dinner is done."

"Wonderful, what did you make?" Annette asked, taking a hold of his hand. "My mother and I made spicy fish and turnip stew with saghert and cream for dessert."

"Felix, you are so sweet!" She chirped, as he led her into the kitchen.

He grabbed a plate out for her, placing a heaping amount of fish and stew on her plate. He helped her over to the table, moving the chair so she could sit down before placing the plate of food in front of her. Felix grabbed his plate of food, along with dessert.

"Look at them," Emmeline mused, placing her head on Rodrigue's chest. "They are so cute."

"Yes," Rodrigue agreed, hold her tight to his body. "Much like us when were their age."

Emmeline nodded and gave him a kiss.

"Are you guys going to eat or are you guys going to have a mush fest and gross me out?" Felix sneered at them before taking a bit of his food.

"Yes, yes," Rodrigue laughed. "Come on Glenn, you don't want to miss out."

"Oh no, I want to give Annette all the embarrassing stories of when Felix was little," Glenn smirked walking over into the kitchen.

"Be kind on your brother, I think he has had enough embarrassment for the day," Rodrigue smiled, following his lead.

"We'll see about that," Glenn laughed, sitting down at the table.

Over dinner they told stories of their lives, filling the room with laughter and warmth. Rodrigue told how he met Emmeline and how they had Glenn a little younger than they wanted, but saying he was a bundle of joy and by the time Felix arrived, their family was complete. Emmeline even told them Annette about Felix's laugh when he was young. That if she ever she was sad, she would make him laugh, she would feel one-hundred times better. Glenn made it even worse by asking how Annette met Felix. Annette being her, told them that they met in class, or at least in passing. She was running a lot earlier to class than she planned, thinking she was going to be late, bumping into Felix, and dropping all her school supplies to the ground, which included her and Felix.

That probably was the most embarrassing story Felix heard all night. The only way he could get it to stop was to redirect them to the presents. He didn't care if not everyone finished their food, he just wanted to stop the stories. He did not realize that his presents that he bought were wrapped, he remembered that he just put a bow on all of them but one, and that was Annette's. It didn't matter though, he just wanted to get the night over with and go to bed. It would be one more day closer to him going back to college.

Felix sat down on the ground with Annette between his legs. He wrapped his arms around her as Emmeline handed her a gift.

"Thank you," Annette smiled, opening the gift. "Felix look! That little teddy bear that I wanted! The one with the drums!"

"Yes, I know," Felix smiled, giving her a kiss on the back of her head.

"Sorry it's not sewn very well," Emmeline faintly smiled. "If I had more time, and if Felix was more prepared, I would have sewn the teddy bear correctly."

"What? You sewed this yourself?" Annette gasped, holding the teddy bear closer to her heart. "That's amazing!"

"Yes," Emmeline nodded. "Felix showed me a picture of it a while ago and I thought the best gift to give to you on short notice would be that."

"This is a wonderful present," Annette smiled, kissing the teddy bear's nose. "I love it."

"Thank you," Emmeline said, with a giant smile.

Felix smiled as Annette fiddled with the her gift.

They all grabbed their presents, opening one by one. Felix let out one long sigh looking at the 'gift' Glenn gave him. He looked up to Glenn, who had a giant smirk on his face, then threw it at him. After a few choice words they had with each other, they opened the rest of the presents. The one Felix got for Annette was the last to be opened.

"Wow, this is, some good wrapping," Annette teased.

"What like you can do better?" Felix scoffed.

"I can, because I'm a perfectionist!" She laughed.

"Oh, so you finally admit it," he said, tickling her and kissing her.

Annette laughed to the point it started to hurt her side. "Okay! Okay, you win!"

Felix laughed, helping her to sit upright. "I know I do, now please open the present."

Annette excitedly ripped off the wrapping paper to reveal a small box, letting out a gasp from everyone. "Felix! Is this?"

"What?" He asked, taking a few seconds to realize what she was asking. "No, it's not. We are way too young for that."

"Oh, sorry." She sighed, opening the box to see a necklace. "This is so pretty!"

"Yeah, I guess," he muttered, reaching for the jewelry. He unclasped the lock to put around her neck. "I saw you looking at at that shop on our way to Mercedes bakery. I asked the jeweler to replace the gem inside to an emerald since you were born in May."

"It's beautiful, Felix," she smiled, giving him a kiss.

"You're welcome," he said, kissing her back. "It looks very pretty on you."

"Thank you," she said, nuzzling her head in his chest.

"Well, since all the presents are all open," Rodrigue started, picking up all the wrapping paper. "Why don't we go to bed."

"Yeah, it's been a long day," Felix agreed, pushing Annette back.

"Right, I should be going," Annette said, getting up. "My father is probably getting worried."

"Annette, please stay," Emmeline insisted. "It's getting late and you probably live so far."

"It's alright," Annette said, getting her stuff.

"Not a chance," Felix said, holding onto her. "You and I both know you are just going back to your dorm room and study."

She let out a little whimper, knowing he was right. She stayed the night, staying in his room with him. "Hey, Felix?"

"Yes, Annette?" Felix asked, turning over to face her.

"Would you ever want to get married to me?" She asked, moving his long hair out of his face.

"Yes, but in the future," he replied without missing a beat.

Annette gave him one last kiss before laying down on her side. Felix began to fiddle with her hair, humming for her as she blinked her eyes to help her go to sleep. He kissed her head before laying down next to her, wrapping his arms around her before going to bed himself.

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

I am finally able to post up my fic for the NetteFlix Winter Exchange! I got to write this lovely fic for meatsuru on Ao3 and I choose meeting the family prompt that they had and put Felix in yet another stressful situation. I love putting him in situations, he is my favorite little play thing sometimes and it's fun to see him being stressed. This is also featuring meatsuru's version of Felix's mom!

[kolchekyourweapons]

So You’re My Tattoo Artist?

Wednesday Prompt: Insecurities

I am once again standing proudly at the helm of my tiny Kingwin Eric x Merwin rowing boat, fully aware that it’s filling with water beneath my feet because it’s only good for some lusty daddy dominance every once in a while (and what’s wrong with that, I ask you?) but I’ll be damned if I don’t go down with it.  At least @candygrahm might enjoy it, and @yesitsloulou for extra Eric content... 

@aislinnsulien thanks for the general, completely-unrelated-to-Kingwin tattoo conversation that made me think of this hot mess in the first place

Eric x Merwin fic 

NSFW 

AU: Eric wants a tattoo, Merwin is only too happy to deliver. 

Warning tags: tattoos/needles/blood/prosthesis (I don’t know if this should be tagged as a warning/trigger? But just in case)/sexual content

***

Eric walked along the opposite side of the street this time. He’d purposefully put on his Aviators that morning so that his eyes were free to rove to the tattoo parlour across from him without it being too obvious. He slowed when he came parallel with the glass-fronted studio, feigning rummaging for something in his jeans pocket. There was an empty bench beside him, directly facing the studio, but that would be too obvious; he didn’t want to be that guy who sat alone staring through the glass opposite, even if he did have his shades on.

Eric stopped rummaging when he saw him through the glass. The olive-skinned tattoo artist, now running a hand along his close-cropped hair as he surveyed something on the table by the window. Then he was lost to shadow. Eric realised he had completely stopped in the middle of the street and was staring now; he cleared his throat and turned away.

‘Get it together,’ he muttered to himself.

A woman walking by frowned at him.

‘Shit,’ he said quietly, looking back to the bench. It was either sit down, hover like an idiot or leave. And Eric knew if he did the latter, he’d lose his nerve the next day, like he did every day.

He sat down on the bench, scratching the top of his nose under his sunglasses and shifting on the wood awkwardly.

His ex-wife, Rachel, had a small tattoo on her ankle; he remembered telling her that he would consider getting one, too. She’d laughed, but then seeing his expression, her face had sobered and she’d asked him what tattoo he’d get. He said he didn’t know, too embarrassed now to tell her, and they’d never mentioned it again.

‘You ever gonna come inside or you just gonna sit staring?’

Eric jumped. The tattoo artist was stood behind him, smirking slightly.

‘I – I wasn’t staring, I –’ He stopped. ‘Wait, how did you know I was thinking of coming inside?’

‘I’ve seen you pacing about here every day this past week. You think I don’t see you?’ the man replied in a deep voice. ‘You’re about as subtle as two dogs fucking in the street.’

Eric didn’t know how to reply to that, but he was saved from thinking of something by the man glancing behind him. ‘I’m about to grab some coffee,’ he said. ‘Why don’t you go inside and we’ll talk about whatever it is you’re looking for?’

Before Eric could respond, the man had walked away. Eric stared after him for a moment, and then back to the shop.

‘Shit,’ he breathed again. It was now or never.

Eric clenched his fists and pushed himself up from the bench, stepping into the street and moving across to the studio. He pushed the door open, expecting a bell tinkle, but there was nothing other than the bass thrumming through him from a sound system in the corner. There was a red curtain drawn at the far side of the room.

Eric took a deep breath and glanced around the room. He came to a stop infront of the wall of artwork, taking off his sunglasses and slipping them down the front of his shirt. He frowned at the crude drawings on the wall.

The door opened behind him. Eric turned as the man moved back inside, not looking at him and dumping some items down on the counter with a grunt.

‘What’s this?’ Eric asked, jerking his thumb at the wall where a vibrant green ‘Yo Momma’ was displayed in graffiti ink. ‘Is that supposed to be modern art or something?’

The man turned. ‘I don’t know about no modern art, but that’s Merwin art.’

‘Merwin? Is that your name?’

The man held out a hand, and Eric took it. The man’s grip was strong, but surprisingly soft. Eric had expected calluses or rough skin. Merwin’s gaze lingered on him.

‘Eric,’ he replied.

‘Well, Eric,’ Merwin said, turning to the counter. ‘I got you a doughnut. The fancy kind, with rainbow sprinkles on top and shit. You look the type.’

‘The type to eat doughnuts?’

Merwin smirked. ‘The type to like rainbow sprinkles.’

Eric found himself smiling at that. ‘Thanks,’ he said. ‘But I’m not hungry.’

‘Nerves?’

‘I guess you could say that.’

‘Ain’t got nothing to be nervous about. You know what you want?’

‘I have an idea.’

Merwin surveyed him for a long moment. Eric was surprised to find he held the man’s gaze easily, but he still felt the faint flush creep up the back of his neck.

‘Why don’t you come into the back and we’ll talk about it,’ Merwin said, and he was already striding towards the red curtain. Eric followed, and Merwin held it back for him, waiting. Eric slid by, catching a scent of the man’s cologne. The room beyond was small with no windows, comfortably lit with a large leather chair in the centre.

Watching him, Merwin said, ‘There ain’t nobody else here. I ain’t got any appointments until later this afternoon.’

‘You always leave the door unlocked when you leave for coffee?’ Eric demanded.

‘I left it unlocked for you.’

‘How’d you know I’d come inside?’

Merwin smirked and didn’t answer. He stepped towards a messy desk in the corner. ‘You wanna take a look through my portfolio? I got some bad ass ones in here – you like snakes? I got some fucking huge snakes –’

‘I’m not really a snake kind of guy.’

Merwin turned to survey him. His eyes roved down Eric slowly and then back up.

‘Na, I don’t suppose you would be, would you? Why don’t you lie back here and we’ll talk it out? You’re making me on edge just stood there like a fucking deer in headlights.’

‘I’m making you on edge?’ Eric asked, glancing around the room, at the vulgar art which – he had to admit – was extremely impressive, before his eyes rested on the needle on the table.

‘This ain’t no fucking torture chamber,’ Merwin said, sitting on the wheeled stool at the base of the leather recliner.

Eric moved uncertainly over to the leather chair and slid onto it. He led back, propped up slightly by the adjusted seat, and immediately felt ridiculous. Merwin surveyed him from the bottom of the chair at his feet.

‘Comfortable?’

‘Highly uncomfortable, actually.’

Merwin smirked. ‘Good.’

‘Good? You think it’s good that I’m uncomfortable?’

‘Na, it’s good that you’re telling me the truth. Don’t want you passing out on me now, do I, Colonel?’

‘Colonel?’

Merwin shrugged. ‘You look like the bossy type.’ He turned and grabbed a pack of cigarettes from the table behind him and lit one. Eric frowned at him.

‘Should you be doing that in here?

‘I ain’t ever been much good at following the rules,’ said Merwin.

‘Won’t that… I don’t know… compromise the space?’ Eric asked uncertainly.

Merwin stared at him. ‘The fuck you talking about? You’re getting a tattoo, not cleansing your fucking aura.’

Eric surveyed him steadily. ‘You don’t look like the type to know about auras.’

‘Ex-girlfriend,’ Merwin said, pulling a long drag on the cigarette. ‘She was into all that shit. She made me meditate once, and fuck me was that a waste of time.’

Eric laughed at that. Merwin surveyed him with interest.

‘You don’t look like the type either,’ he said.

‘I don’t believe in any of that,’ Eric confirmed. ‘But I don’t have to believe in it to be aware of it.’

Merwin nodded, and then shuffled closer to Eric’s boots.

‘So what we thinking here, Colonel? You got any idea where you want it?’

Eric hesitated. ‘I always thought about my leg, but –’

Merwin had already moved across and reached for the hem of Eric’s jeans, but Eric jumped and straightened up. Merwin looked at him in surprise, the cigarette hanging from his mouth.

‘No, not – not that leg, the other leg,’ Eric said quickly.

Merwin frowned at him. ‘The fuck’s wrong with your other leg? You insecure about something?’

Eric breathed steadily and held his gaze. When Merwin continued to look at him expectantly, Eric found himself reaching down to pull up the hem of his jeans slightly. Merwin’s gaze fell on the prosthetic.

‘Shit,’ he said quietly. ‘That’s gotta be rough.’ He raised his eyes to Eric. ‘How’d it happen?’

‘Car crash.’

‘You driving?’

‘No. My ex-wife.’

‘Fuck.’

Merwin watched closely as Eric pulled the hem back down and sat back.

‘Why the fuck you worried about people seeing it?’ he suddenly demanded.

Eric looked at him in surprise.

‘Well it’s not something I walk around showing to everyone.’

‘You telling me in summer you still walk around in these tight little jeans instead of short-shorts?’ Merwin asked.

Eric said nothing, and Merwin let out a gruff laugh. ‘Fuck that,’ he said. ‘You ain’t got nothing to be ashamed of.’

Eric felt something warm his chest. He hesitated, before saying, ‘That’s… that’s where I always thought I might want a tattoo, on that leg, but…’ He trailed off.

‘Well, fuck, that’s where you’ll get it then,’ said Merwin, his voice constricted as he spoke while clutching the cigarette between his lips. Eric watched the man closely as he reached up to claim the cigarette, at the soft fingers that came to wrap around it and the tongue that darted out to wet his lips. ‘We’ll just do it higher up, yeah? How about on your thigh?’

Eric considered. ‘I… I guess that would be all right. I’d prefer it to be out of sight.’

‘Out of sight?’ said Merwin. ‘You gonna be embarrassed to show off my ink, Colonel?’

‘It’s Eric, and no, not embarrassed, I just… I like the idea that it’s more private. Just for me, you know? Not always on display –’

‘Your dirty little secret, huh?’ Merwin smirked up at him. ‘I hear ya. But if I do it there… it’s not just for you, it’s for me, too.’

‘What do you mean?’ Eric said quickly.

‘Because I’m the one doing it,’ Merwin said. ‘The fuck you think I mean?’

He glanced down at Eric’s jeans and tugged on them again.

‘Only problem is, these jeans ain’t gonna roll all the way up. You’re gonna have to take them off.’

Eric blanched. ‘Take them off?’

‘Yeah. Unless you want me to cut them. Depends how many fancy pairs of tight little jeans you got at home. Or whether you wanna walk down the street with everyone able to see your dirty little secret.’

Eric hesitated. Shit. Why hadn’t he thought of that?

Because he hadn’t seriously thought about coming in here at all, that’s why.

Abruptly, Merwin stood. He moved to pull back the curtain and Eric twisted in the seat to watch Merwin return to the door and lock it, turning the sign on the door to display CLOSED. He walked back and pulled the curtain across before sinking back into his stool. ‘That better?’ he asked gruffly. ‘Ain’t nobody gonna come in. Just you and me, so you can take your pretty little jeans off.’ When Eric hesitated again, Merwin smirked and added, ‘Unless you’re going commando. Is that what this is? Or you wearing a thong, or some little tighty whities?’

‘No,’ said Eric in a strained voice. ‘Just normal briefs –’

‘Well fuck, what’s your problem, then?’ said Merwin. ‘They’re just like shorts.’

Eric surveyed Merwin for a long moment. He remembered Rachel laughing when he’d said he wanted a tattoo. He thought about how much god damn time he’d wasted walking up and down the street this past week like an idiot. So he nodded.

‘Fine,’ he said in a strained voice. He slipped down from the chair, as Merwin clapped his hands on his knees and said, ‘Atta boy.’

Eric turned his back to him and removed his boots. He reached for his leather belt, undoing the buckle and then unzipping his fly slowly. He glanced back to see Merwin watching him. The flush returned to the back of Eric’s neck, and he pushed on the waistline of his jeans and pulled them down, stepping out of them to reveal tight black briefs. He turned to see Merwin glance down, just once, but he said nothing.

‘Ain’t that better?’ Merwin mused, his voice low, his eyes flashing. ‘Hop back up, then.’

Eric did as he was instructed and settled back on the reclined chair. Merwin turned to stub out his cigarette, and then stood next to Eric to look down at his thigh. As Eric watched his eyes, he was grateful that Merwin was focusing on his thigh and not the prosthesis.

‘So. You said you always wanted one on your leg. That means you must have had some idea of what you’d want. Even a vague idea, like shit – I don’t know – ponies or flowers, or something –’

‘Is that the first thing that comes to mind when you look at me?’ Eric demanded. ‘Rainbow sprinkles, ponies and flowers?’

Merwin laughed at that. ‘I do a lot of ponies,’ he said. ‘I ain’t judging. And that definitely ain’t the first thing that comes to mind when I look at you.’

Eric met his eye. ‘Care to share?’

Merwin’s eyes roved ever so quickly back to Eric’s crotch again, and then he turned back to study his thigh. ‘So come on – anything you’ve thought about?’

Eric glanced down at his bare legs now outstretched before him on the recliner.

‘Caelus,’ he said.

‘The fuck is that?’

Eric raised his eyes to him. ‘He was my dog,’ Eric explained. ‘I raised him from a puppy.’

‘Your baby then, huh?’

Eric nodded.

Merwin brandished his tattooed forearm. ‘I have a thing for dog’s myself,’ he smirked. ‘What kind was he?’

‘A golden retriever.’

Merwin laughed. ‘Of course he was.’

Eric frowned. ‘Why do you say that?’

‘Well, look at you.’

Eric shook his head, nonplussed. Merwin rolled his eyes. ‘You know what I mean. Puppy dog eyes and soft blonde hair you wanna run your fingers through.’

Eric tilted his head slightly. ‘You want to run your fingers through my hair?’ He caught Merwin’s cologne again as the man stood close.

The side of Merwin’s mouth twitched. ‘It looks fucking good to grab, is all I’m saying, Colonel.’

Eric felt himself heat. Beneath the briefs, his cock twitched and his face flushed as he suddenly realised Merwin might see it. But the man’s eyes were back on his thigh.

‘Fuck it,’ he said. ‘Caelus it is. You ain’t got a picture in your wallet or anything?’

‘No,’ said Eric.

‘We can just do some fancy ass text for his name if you want?’

Eric nodded.

Merwin moved closer to Eric’s side, and he put his hand on his thigh now. Eric swallowed.

‘So what you thinking for positioning?’ Merwin mused in a low voice, his finger trailing over the skin on Eric’s thigh. ‘We can put it closer to the knee, down here,’ he said, caressing the skin to demonstrate where he meant, ‘or we can go inside the thigh up here –’ He moved his finger slowly. Eric felt his cock twitch again, and he quickly said, ‘Further down is fine.’

‘You sure?’ Merwin asked, lifting his eyes now. He’d moved closer and there was something else there, now. A glisten. He smirked, and his tongue came out again slowly to wet his lips. ‘Depends how close you want Caelus to your cock, I guess.’ He laughed.

Eric shifted on the table a little, maintaining Merwin’s gaze as he inwardly begged for Merwin not to glance down.

But he’s gonna be tattooing right next to it in a second, his head – oh fuck, his head is gonna be so close –

Eric abruptly straightened on the seat.

‘You know what,’ said Eric quickly. ‘I think – I think I’ll have it on my arm instead –’

‘Sit the fuck down, Colonel,’ said Merwin firmly. ‘Tattoos are for life. There ain’t no compromise. You said you wanted leg, so we’re doing leg. The fuck is wrong with you?’

Eric lay back down. He risked a glance to see that his black briefs still lay undisturbed.

‘Just give me a sec to get the design sorted,’ Merwin said, turning away from him now. ‘Then we can get going.’

‘Can I use your bathroom?’ said Eric suddenly.

‘Sure. This door here.’

Eric looked by him to the black door he gestured to. He reached behind him for his jeans, but Merwin said, ‘There ain’t no windows, it’s further down the hall. No need to put your pants back on.’ He smirked.

Eric was too flustered to disagree, so he moved swiftly by Merwin before quickly pulling open the door and moving hurriedly down the dimly lit corridor. The door for the bathroom soon came up, and Eric hastily shoved it open and fell inside, locking it behind him.

‘Shit,’ he breathed.

He turned. The room was just one stall with a small sink and a grimy mirror above. Eric moved over to the stall, knowing that he had to do something – and quickly – for a release.

His cock was now hard, straining at his briefs, and Eric hurriedly tugged at the front of the cotton to release it. He grabbed it in his hand and feverishly began pumping, remembering Merwin’s soft fingers in his as he shook his hand, imagining those fingers now doing what Eric was doing to his cock, and he moved faster, letting out a soft groan as he remembered Merwin’s tongue glistening along his lip, imagining what else that tongue could do –

Eric came with a soft cry. He leaned against the wall of the stall, panting heavily, and quickly grabbed some of the toilet paper to clean up the mess he’d made. When he was finished, Eric straightened his shorts and glanced quickly in the mirror, his swept-back hair now falling a little into his face. Eric pushed it back.

Soft blonde hair you wanna run your fingers through…

Eric shook his head and tried to dispel the image of Merwin’s fingers, before unlocking the door and heaving it open. When Eric emerged back in the room, Merwin was back on his stool by the recliner holding the design in his hand. He didn’t turn when Eric came back in, messing with the slip of paper, and Eric settled back onto the recliner. Merwin didn’t say anything, his eyes fixed again on Eric’s thigh, frowning slightly now as though contemplating.

‘How you like this?’ Merwin asked. ‘I never asked what kinda script you were looking for, so I thought I’d do my own thing.’

Eric was instantly concerned it would be the same ‘Yo Momma’ graffiti script he’d seen out in reception, but he was surprised to see the flowing black arrangement Merwin had made. It was delicate, pleasant. Eric suddenly felt more confident.

‘That’s – really great,’ Eric admitted.

‘You surprised, Colonel?’

‘No, it’s just –’

But Merwin was smirking. He leaned forward again and Eric felt his fingers graze his skin once more as Merwin positioned the template on his thigh above the knee. He peeled it away, surveying it. He pushed the stool back and said, ‘You wanna take a look in the mirror?’

‘No, it’s fine,’ said Eric quickly.

‘You should stand up and take a proper look –’

Eric looked down at the tattoo, upside down from where he surveyed, but he liked it. The flowing script moved across the top of his thigh centrally. Not too big, not too much.

‘It looks great,’ Eric said.

Shit. You’re really doing this.

‘All right,’ said Merwin slowly, ‘if you don’t wanna stand up…’ He turned to pull the small table closer to him. ‘Now, you gotta tell me if you don’t feel right or you gonna pass out. All right? This is your first time, so I don’t know how this is gonna go –’

‘Just do it,’ ordered Eric, placing his head back against the seat cushion and staring up at the ceiling fan.

The tattoo gun began buzzing and Eric clenched.

‘All good?’

‘All good.’

Eric gasped as the needle made contact with his skin. His thigh immediately felt painfully sensitive – ticklish even – as Merwin drew the needle across his skin. It felt sharp, it felt like a deep, penetrating scratch, it felt – painful but… nice?

Eric lifted his head to look at Merwin work. The man was hunched over, his eyes fixed on the needle as it moved along the elegant script. He stopped and wiped, drew the needle over some more, stopped and wiped. Merwin’s other hand moved up to the higher point on Eric’s thigh to rest there, steady his leg, as he worked. Eric felt a warmth around his crotch again. Did he… did he like the feeling of the needle? It hurt – shit, did it hurt, it was so sensitive – but… watching Merwin move the needle, feeling Merwin move the needle and his soft, almost intimate wiping of the blood and excess ink away as he worked… Eric felt his cock twitch again as he surveyed the man, felt his hands on his skin. And now there was nothing he could do about it, he couldn’t risk jumping up in the middle of the design, couldn’t risk leaving with half a design done. He felt his cock grow hard as he watched Merwin’s hands closely, once again imagining them running through his hair, running just a little bit further up his thigh –

Merwin stopped and looked up at Eric. His eyes focused only on his face.

‘You feeling good?’

‘Yeah,’ said Eric, rather breathlessly. Then he cleared his throat. ‘Yeah.’

‘You want me to stop?’

Eric shook his head. ‘Don’t stop.’

Merwin nodded and then when his eyes moved to turn back to the tattoo, they halted at Eric’s crotch. His gaze lingered there a moment, and Eric felt himself grow even more hard under Merwin’s gaze. A small smirk perked up at the corner of Merwin’s mouth as he drew his eyes slowly back to the tattoo. The needle began buzzing again, but now, Merwin’s free hand resting on Eric’s thigh clutched a little tighter and moved an inch further up. Eric let out a soft breath that he was relieved couldn’t be heard over the buzzing of the needle.

They said nothing more as Eric watched Merwin continue the tattoo. Merwin didn’t raise his eyes from his work, didn’t say another word or even look at Eric again the whole time he worked. But that other hand… it clenched a little tighter, drifted a little higher, and Eric couldn’t even hope to hide it now. His groin ached with the weight of it, and he even let out a soft moan of desperation as Merwin’s hand stopped at the top point of his thigh. Eric threw his head back and closed his eyes.

Shit.

After what seemed like an eternity – an aching eternity of Merwin’s damn hand resting on his thigh – the needle stopped buzzing and Eric felt Merwin wipe gently across his skin. Eric dared to raise his head again to watch Merwin study the finished tattoo. He said nothing about the hard cock now tenting Eric’s briefs as he reached across to the table beside him and collected some wrapping.

‘What do you think, Colonel?’ he said, his voice low and husky, his eyes still not looking at Eric as he began picking at the corner of the wrapping.

Eric moved his eyes down to the black script on his skin. ‘It’s – it’s just what I wanted,’ he said in a tight voice.

Merwin leaned forward and lifted Eric’s leg slightly to wrap the film around, his fingers deft.

‘You sure?’ Merwin said quietly. ‘Because by the look of the hard on you got going on, I’d say there’s something else you want.’

Eric stared at him. Merwin continued to wrap the tattoo slowly, painfully slowly, until eventually his eyes came back up to Eric’s.

‘You want me to wrap my lips around that hard cock of yours, Colonel?’

‘Fuck yes,’ Eric breathed.

Merwin smirked slightly again. ‘Just be careful you don’t move your leg,’ he said with a wink. ‘Let it settle, you know?’

He pulled the stool closer to the chair. Merwin reached across and pulled down the briefs, releasing Eric’s cock.

‘Fuck,’ Merwin muttered, his eyes trailing over it. ‘You’re fucking big, Colonel.’

Eric closed his eyes at the growl in Merwin’s voice, and titled his head back, feeling ecstasy even just at his words. And then he felt Merwin grab his cock and he let out a gasp, as the man stroked his fingers along the shaft and then drifted his tongue across it.

‘Oh shit,’ Eric moaned.

And then Merwin took Eric’s cock full in his mouth, pumping it with his hand while he licked the tip of it, sucking, stroking. Eric’s groin heated, ached, as he let out a desperate groan as Merwin worked his cock faster, Eric feeling the tip stroke the inside of Merwin’s mouth, reach the back of his throat, his tongue cradling the hard shaft.

‘You behave like this with all your clients, Merwin?’ Eric managed to demand breathlessly.

In response, Merwin took a longer drag on Eric’s cock, sucking tight, as Eric gripped the sides of the leather chair and cried out as he came in Merwin’s mouth. He lay there desperately for a long moment, as both his cock and his tattooed thigh throbbed at the movement, until he lifted his head and looked down at Merwin leaning smugly across his crotch.

‘See, that’s why I left my door unlocked,’ Merwin said, wiping the side of his mouth. ‘I fucking knew you’d come inside.’

[maroucia]

SanSan Russian Roulette | Summer 2021

Here they are! The results!😄 But first, here’s a reminder of the game’s rules: 

-Your prompt fill should be at least 500 words (one-shot or multi-chapter fic). You can post to the platform of your choice (AO3, FF.net, Tumblr, Twitter, etc.).

-Please tag "SanSan Russian Roulette 2021" on AO3, Tumblr, or Twitter so we can track all the wonderful fics!

-Post by 31 July—For multi-chapter fics, you’ll only need to have posted the first chapter by 31 July. You can post sooner than this. If real life crops up and your fill will be delayed, just post as soon as you can. If you’re unable to fill your prompt, please reach out to maroucia or sansanwritersguild on tumblr or @Mod or @...Maroucia… on Discord.

Now here are the prompts:

1.     To Fleurdeplume: “Dusk. Secret meetings. Stolen kiss. Sansa looks like a little bird but deep down, she's a wolf.” (From Lysae).

2.     To TheImmaculateBastard: “Inspired by a tweet, "I don't know what just happened, but I was at an animal shelter before work and a toddler walked in, pointed to me, and said “I want that one”. His mother looked at me and said “you can’t have that, that’s a grown man”” (From Lorel).

3.     To Jadedelcinismo: “Sansa is in love with Sandor and is jealous of someone in his life. Canon/AU, your choice.” (From Missy-1978).

4.     To Vermilion_Sunrise: “Sandor tucks Sansa in bed after her first day as Queen in the North.” (From Prettybadmagic).

5.     To Meganfence: “Fight, argument or other disagreement. Open to interpretation, minor or major.” (From Redbirdblackdog).

6.     To Sharkaria: “Sandor discovers he's got a good eye for photography. He fills his time taking pictures of his urban landscape, until he spies a Little Bird Muse...” (From Glamgrowl).

7.     To Missy-1978: “Kinda stole this from the Discord, but I love a forced marriage trope! Maybe Sansa got left at the altar and Sandor steps in last minute. Or a role reversal where she has to marry him to save his honor. Something fun and unexpected, can be modern or set in GOT world.” (From Atomic-bomb-shell).

8.     To TailBobSquid: “Jumanji AU - either a game that they are playing comes to life or they get sucked into a game that they are playing.” (From ReadyReaderOne).

9.     To Prettybadmagic: “Sandor is going to do it. He's going to do the kiss your best friend challenge. The friend he just happens to have been in love with since day one.” (From Islandida).

10.  To Glamgrowl: “Feel good and funny modern au where all Starks are alive and well. Sansa makes the first move on Sandor even though she's not sure she's his type as he is much older and works a blue collar job. (Please no Joffrey bashing) Cameos from other Starks would be awesome but not necessary.” (From Rayne).

11.  To Glitterswitch: “Bakery/coffee shop AU Stranger is Sandor’s service animal.” (From OrangeTabby).

12.  To LittleWolfBird: “Sandor joins the Stark family traveling circus when he sees a casting call for "freaks." Bonus points for Sansa on trapeze or tightrope.” (From GlitterGoth114).

13.  To Diverse.lorde: “Sansa playing her high harp (or other instrument) and singing a song that she wrote about/for Sandor.” (From Neleam).

14.  To Lysae : “Sandor finds out Sansa made him TikTok famous after a video of him goes viral: Sansa: hey can I have x/can we go to y? Sandor: no. Sansa, in a sweet voice: pretty please? Sandor, huffing: fine (Daddy on the end of pretty please would be lovely, but if Daddy Sandor isn’t your thing, no problem).” (From TailBobSquid).

15.  To OrangeTabby: “Mafia AU, fancy party. Dominant Sandor, thirsty Sansa Sandor in a suit, hand tattoos, creeping neck tattoo, whiskey - Sansa thirsting.” (From Meganfence).

16.  To Neleam: “Sanson Stark has always been the dutiful yet idealist second son of House Stark. Sandra Clegane is a Silent sister who has been disappointed by the very songs she once admired. A knight of the Seven and a handmaiden of the Stranger unexpectedly find comfort in each other.” (From Jadedelcinismo).

17.  To Redbirdblackdog: “Sansa gets her first tattoo by none other than the famous tattoo artist "The Hound". When she's in pain, she exhales slowly and Sandor says, "Good girl". Sexual tension ensues. (This prompt was inspired by a meme.)” (From Thequeen--in--thenorth).

18.  To Thequeen--in--thenorth: “Following a tumultuous few years, Sansa has spent every penny she's ever earned on a quiet cottage, surrounded by forest and wildlife. Not long after moving, a strange man appears in the pond near her home, half-alive and unable to remember anything about himself except his name: Sandor.” (From Suzi).

19.  To Atomic-bomb-shell: “Crust punk modern AU. Sandor is a crustie squatting in the backyard of an abandoned house. Sansa is a friendly neighbor who offers him a warm meal and access to her laundry room.” (From Diverse.lorde).

20.  To Lorel: “Sansa manages a gallery in King’s Landing. After storming out of a fight with her boyfriend, she drives off into the countryside. That’s when she sees the most amazing art behind some dusty glass in a car repair shop. Now all she has to do is convince the artist, Sandor, to do a show at her gallery.” (From Vermilion_Sunrise).

21.  To GlitterGoth114: “Walked in on. Caught in the act. "Can opened, worms everywhere." (From TheImmaculateBastard).

22.  To Islandida: “Robb comes home from war with a big loyal man behind him. Sansa never thought she'd see her brother again let alone *him*. Modern au or canon.’’  (From LittleWolfBird).

23.  To Rayne: “Modern AU: After finally getting out of an unhappy/controlling relationship with Joffrey that desecrated her self-worth, Sansa enrolls for self-defence classes with martial arts Master Clegane, who proceeds to build up her self esteem and fighting skills while the two fight their mutual attraction.” (From Fleurdeplume).

24.  To Suzi: “Prompt submission -- passionate time travel.” (From Sharkaria).

25.  To ReadyReaderOne: “Sansa leaves with the Hound that night. Their journey thru Westeros is loosely similar - Arya, Twins, etc. They find Elder Brother to help Sandor. After healing, all 3 head for Braavos, and the Dragon Queen. Lots of friendship/bonding b/t all 3; both defend Sandor from Dany. Devoted sansan, HEA!’’ (From Glitterswitch).

[personasintro]

My Tiny Secret | 13; Not Welcomed

𝑴𝒚 𝑻𝒊𝒏𝒚 𝑺𝒆𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒕 𝒅𝒓𝒂𝒃𝒃𝒍𝒆 | 13; Not Welcomed

⏤𝒔𝒚𝒏𝒐𝒑𝒔𝒊𝒔; Pretty face doesn’t make it up for an ugly personality. And Kim Seokjin is the perfect proof of that.

⏤𝒑𝒂𝒊𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈: seokjin x reader

⏤𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒓𝒆: angst, smut, mistress au, unexpected pregnancy au

⏤𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔: toxic relationship, strong language

⏤> 𝒇𝒊𝒄 𝒊𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒙

buy me a coffee?♡

The packages looks exactly the same for him, the only difference is various kinds of brand and pictures decorating the same thing. He can’t even tell the difference between those sizes — just another thing that makes him frown and groan in frustration.

“How the fuck am I supposed to know which ones are right?” he asks through clenched teeth, muting his voice down when a woman with toddler attached to her hip passes by his frustrated and puzzled figure.

If Namjoon could see him right now, he would laugh his ass off. Never in a million years he thought he would be standing in this kind of aisle, completely confused and so out of place.

“I showed you the package!” you exclaim at the other side, your sigh of disbelief booming through Seokjin’s phone speakers.

“I fucking know that!” he exclaims back while a woman that’s grabbing one of the packages from the aisle gives him a glare, but he could care less. He looks away with coldness in his eyes, rubbing his eyes with his free hand that’s not holding his phone.

You specifically showed him the exact diapers package he needs to buy, even described it when he had it in front of his face. It caused him to snap at you ‘I’m not an idiot for fucks sake, I get it’, that’s what he told you. It turned out that he didn’t get it and is, an idiot after all. You would like to point that out, but you bite into your lip in amusement at his distressed tone. It kind of makes you wish you were there to witness it with your own eyes.

“I’ll send you a photo of it,” you sigh at the other side, the rustling sound can be heard before Yoojin’s soft whimpers follows right after. “I know baby, you’ll have to wait. Your daddy can’t remember a single package.”

He hears the amusement in your voice, the way you try to hide a giggle but he ignores it at the name you called him. Daddy. It’s so weird hearing that. It’s been a month since he became a father, but it still comes as shock that he can never fully recovers from. Still, the corner of his mouth twitches at the new nickname, a weird tension clenching his chest.

“You’re coming with me next time.” he grumbles before he can fully dwell on that new feeling, shifting on his spot as he stares at the baby that’s on one of the diaper packages.

Yoojin is cuter, he thinks as he hears you humming in agreement before you curse under your breath.

“Someone’s knocking, I’ve to go.” he hears you mumbling, the same rustling sound reaches his ears and he wants nothing more than to grumble in annoyance, but his eyes widen instead.

“What-- no-- what am I supposed to do? Send me that damn picture.” he stutters over his words, face red with frustration.

“Ask someone.” you quickly tell him before the line is dead, his eyes closing as he tries to calm down himself.

You were his only hope and now he’s stuck in the middle of grocery shop in front of diapers, babies on the packages looking at him. Fuck, he never felt so ridiculous. He’s starting to regret his offer of buying diapers for Yoojin once you found out there are only few left. Something he noticed is, that small babies use a lot of diapers throughout the day.

“Hello, sir. Do you need some help?” A cheerful lady with a name tag on decorating her red shirt reaches him. She must’ve seen him struggling for the past ten minutes that he’s been standing in the same spot, glaring at the various types of diapers. Ten tremendous minutes that he’s been too cocky not to call you straight away, since he thought he won’t need your help. It turned out that he did need it and well, still needs it since you declined the call.

“Err, yeah.” he says, preparing to embarrass himself in front of her as she keeps smiling at him — too much for his liking. Doesn’t her cheeks hurt from all that smiling?

“Well, what size do you need?” she asks, understanding that he’s looking for the right package and size.

How can buying a diapers be hard? Yeah, he thought. That’s what he gets for being too cocky and confident.

“Well-- I-- I’m not sure.” he mutters, scratching the back of his neck as he avoids her big eyes.

“It’s okay,” she smiles, “How old is your baby?”

He already feels annoyed by the amount of questions and her overly cheerful expression that she’s obviously faking just because it’s her job. Still, she’s his only hope.

So with that thought, he sighs and gives her an answer. “He’s newborn. Well, one month old.”

Wow, is he already one month? He wonders as she nods and already reaches for one of the packages.

“This one should be perfect.” she says, handing him the item before he takes it and examines it with curious eyes.

He looks at the price, not surprised she gave him the more expensive ones but he doesn’t care. As long as it the good size, he’s going to pay anything.

“You sure? He’s really tiny.” he says, turning it around to read the description that’s written on the backside.

The saleswoman smiles at him while he’s busy reading the back of package with a small frown settled on his thick brows. “Well, if it’s wrong you can always return it. Just don’t forget to take receipt with you.”

He barely manages to thank her before she disappears behind another aisle, leaving him alone with diapers package in his arms.

Fuck it, he thinks as he goes with the one she handed him while he makes his way to cashier.

The timing of the knock couldn't be worse, considering the unstoppable wailing that comes from the baby in your arms as you try to open the door with him in your arms.

You mumble repeated apology to your son, your lips brushing over his soft hair as you finally open the front door with a sigh of relief. The person behind the front door has a raised hand, probably ready to knock again since you took your time answering the door. But you don't have enough time to think about it for too long, surprised by the sudden visit you've never expected.

Your best friend stands in the front door, which brings a complete shock to you since his first and last visit was the day you moved it. You haven't seen him for weeks, at least in person, only through the screen of your phone.

Missing Hoseok is daily part of your life, especially during times when Seokjin goes home. Back to the times when you were living together, you never felt lonely. Not in the way you do right now.

He hasn't changed much, he looks exactly the same way he always does and you almost blurt 'what are you doing here' but stop yourself at the very last minute. It might sound rude and you're nothing than happy to see him standing in front of you.

“Hobi,” you breathe out, a large smile spreads across your chapped lips. “You're here.” you say with disbelief and happiness in your voice while he gives you a soft smile.

“Yeah, dropped by the last minute. Am I interrupting?” he asks, hiding his hands into the pockets of his jeans as he eyes Yoojin squirming in your arms.

He probably thinks he does at the sight of your bare exhausted face with baby crying while you pat his back to calm him.

“No! Of course not! Come in!” you say quickly, opening the door wider for him as you watch him cautiously cross over threshold.

He doesn't hug you, silently taking off his super clean sneakers to yours which makes you slightly frown. He's acting weird and considering he came to visit you, the lack of enthusiasm makes you feel tense. Maybe he doesn't miss you as much as you miss him, maybe he's glad he doesn't have to take care of you anymore.

Yoojin's wails turn into loud cries and you cringe at the volume, a look of distress dominating over your exhausted face when you look at Hoseok. “He's hungry. I have to feed him.” you apologize to him.

“No worries, I'll wait.” he gently says, fingers running through his lock that seemed to be longer and you wonder if he plans to grow it out.

“Thanks,” you smile at him, bouncing Yoojin as you're ready about to step into the bedroom before you turn around to look at him. His eyes are already on yours, their warmth lacking of something. “You can sit down or anything you want.” you tell him causing him to nod in appreciation before you're rushing to feed Yoojin.

It takes only ten minutes until he burps, his cries no longer existing as you step into the living room where Hoseok patiently waits and sits on the couch. He's occupied with his phone, his brows slightly furrowed in concentration before he looks up meeting your eyes.

His eyes soften at the sight of Yoojin and it makes you slightly relax, just a tiny bit. “He grew up so much.” he comments as you make your way to him to sit next to him.

“Really? Seokjin says he's tiny.” you say without realization, until the words leave a weird taste in your mouth as you look in alarm at your best friend.

He doesn't seem to react, his eyes focused on your son as he stares with look of adoration.

“Do you wanna hold him?” you ask softly and he nods with no hesitation which makes you smile.

He carefully takes him, supporting his head and back before he's pressed against his chest. It's nice to see him remembering all the important facts. Despite of his sudden visit, and mostly weird behavior, you smile at both of them finding the sight in front of you adorable and touched. But as you carefully eye Hoseok you know he doesn't came here for a simple visit, since he sort of avoids your eyes.

Over the years of knowing him, you just know there's something else that bothers him and you've no idea what that is. The only option is to ask and for couple of minutes in utter silence,  you're trying to find the guts to do it.

“I didn't know you were planning on visiting. I would've bake you your favorite cheesecake.” you nervously smile, your voice thick and complete contrast to the silence between you two.

He looks up, causing your breath to hitch at the weird look in his eyes. His throat moves each time he gulps while his face twitch in the weirdest grimace as if he was in the pain.

“I didn't plan it.” he decides to speak, his tone dry as he cringes at it.

Is he trying to be cold to you for some reason? Because he's doing an awful job at it when he seems to be regretful right after he opened his mouth.

It's unusual to see him being so distant, but it's enough to create a weird lump in your throat.

“What--”

“Open it.” he cuts you off, pulling out a folded paper that's wrinkled by the pocket of his jeans.

He throws it on the couch, the paper landing just couple of inches from your thighs as you give him a look of utter confusion. But you don't question him any further, reaching towards the paper. As you slowly unfold it with knitted brows, your eyes widen as you finally read what's written on there. Opening your mind, you're not sure what you're about to say, you just know you've to explain it.

“What the hell, Y/N?” he asks, brows furrowed so much that you've never seen him being so angry – at least not to you.

He never looked at you this way and it only makes you want to shrink and hide.

It's a printout of his bank account, coming and incoming transaction as the huge number on the paper screams at you.

You surely knew he wouldn't be happy once he finds out, but you never expected him to come here and be so angry with you. Nevertheless, you don't feel like you've done something wrong.

It was a few days back when you finally got the time to sit down and transfer the money Seokjin gave you, to Hoseok's bank account. You've wanted to do it ever since he gave you the money, to repay your best friend for everything he has done for you and Yoojin. If it weren't for him, God knows how would everything turn out.

You completely forgot that you've sent him that money in the first place and judging by Hoseok pissed off look, he probably found out just today.

“Hobi--”

“I'll transfer that money back.” he cuts you off, his jaw tightly set as he pats Yoojin's back.

“What? No!” you protest right away, scowling at your best friend which mimics your expression.

You've never really got into fight with him, there never was a reason to, and you surely believe there isn't right now.

“The money is for you. I told you I would pay you back and honestly, this is the least I can do for you. You deserve them, Hobi.”

“I don't want them. You should have them. Buy something for Yoojin, yourself or just leave them in your bank account. I don't care, I don't want any money from you.” he's determined, his eyes burning yours as he makes sure to emphasize every word.

“We don't need them.” you tell him softly, scooting closer to him as you place your hand over his knee.

It makes you realize how much you've missed his warmth and proximity. He is the only person who would embrace you in a hug, the only person that makes you feel loved and appreciated. Feeling him even through the fabric of his jeans is enough to make you emotional, because you miss your best friend. You miss having him close and cuddle to you while watching boring movies and TV shows. You miss living with him, not caring that his apartment isn't as big as yours and not fitted for three people.

Even Hoseok himself, seems to relax under your touch while his eyes stay on yours. But there's still that irritated darkness in his eyes.

“We're fine.” you assure him, his eyes leaving yours to look around.

His eyes set on the picture of you and him, that's been there from the day one. It brings a soft smile on his lips, enough to make you do the same as he sighs.

You and Yoojin are really fine. And by that you mean you're being taken care of well.

Seokjin makes sure there's nothing missing for his son. He visits more often, mostly during weekends and later in the evening after he's done in the company. You even went for a small walk in the nearby park together, which was really awkward at first. To walk side by side with Kim Seokjin while pushing Yoojin's pram, in front of neighbors who couldn't help but turn around with shocked expression every time you passed by them. It felt awkward, weird but nice at the same time.

There's nothing much you both talked about, the only topic of your conversation was Yoojin himself. It surprised you, because Seokjin took a huge interest in his son as he asked the most detailed questions. You answer all of them casually, although you were freaking out inside.

“I-- it's a lot. I can't take it.” he manages to choke out, his eyes widely open once he looks back at you.

It's a lot – but still enough for everything that he has done for you.

“You can and you will.” you smile up at him, your eyes boring to each other with so much intensity to see who will budge first but you're stubborn to do so.

“Half,” he decides to say. “I'll take.. only half of it.”

He doesn't look comfortable with his own proposition, showing discomfort on his face but you can happily agree with him. It's a progress he even agreed to take the money – at least some of it. With cheerful squeal, you hug him as much as you're allowed considering he's holding Yoojin. He shakes his head at you, a playful grin shining your way at your stubbornness while he pulls you closer to him with his free hand. You both sigh in happiness, the familiar scent of his favorite cologne is like a peaceful smell for you.

“I've missed this.” you mumble, boring your head into his chest as your nose nudges Yoojin's small hand.

“Me too, I missed you guys,” he says back immediately, hand caressing your shoulder in calming manner as you feel him snuffling your hair. “It feels lonely without you.”

He's talking about his home, causing your heart to shiver at the way he says it. It makes you sad that you've left him and although, you can't complain about how you live right now, you still miss him. That will never change. You both got so used to living together that now it feels lonely and weird. But you both always knew that time will come.

“I miss this baby pumpkin.”

As you look up, you see him admiring your son with heart-shaped eyes but you see the slightest glimpse of sadness in them. “You should visit more often.”

“Mhm, maybe I should.” he hums, kissing the top of your head as you giggle, the both of you grinning at each other. God, you missed him.

Hoseok has always been very affectionate, the both of you are to each other. It's just the way the two of you are – not anyone would truly understand it. Not everyone would get the fact that you're comfortable with each other.

“What the fuck?”

The loud booms between the walls, breaking apart the two of you as you jump away from Hoseok in shock. Seokjin stands between the living room and corridor with a huge look of disapproval and anger, his eyes deadly set on Hoseok. You can't seem to bring yourself to check on Hoseok, your eyes focused on the father of your child and his growing scowl. He looks intimidating, causing your throat to go completely dry for some goddamn reason.

“What the fuck is he doing here?” he impatiently asks, the intensity in his voice is much bigger now as he stares back at you – sending daggers your way.

It's only now when you notice the huge package of diapers in his arms and if it were under different circumstances, you'd laugh at the rare sight in front of you. But you can't find anything amusing, especially right now when Seokjin looks like he's planning Hoseok's death. This is what you wanted to never happened, the two of them meeting since you're pretty aware of the grudge they hold against each other. It completely blew out of your mind that Seokjin is supposed to come here.

“Seokjin, please--” You're not sure what you're begging him for, but you don't want him to cause a scene even if there's just the three of you. Plus Yoojin, who luckily doesn't seem to be affected by the sudden loudness.

“Why the fuck is he holding my son?” he growls, taking a few steps forward as you're quick to jump on your feet.

Before he can truly charge at your best friend who seems to be awfully quiet about the whole situation, your hand is firm against his hard chest as you stop him.

“Our son,” you remind him with a frown and stern voice as he looks down to take a glance at your irritated gaze. “And stop making a scene. Hoseok is my best friend and he came to visit us, whether you like it or not.” you speak slowly, but firm and loud enough for everyone in the room to hear you.

You really want to check on Hobi, but your eyes are set on Seokjin as he challenges you with his firm and dark eyes. His jaw clenches and unclenches, complementing with himself.

“You told me this is my home,” you speak, the darkness of his eyes shifting between yours. “If I want him here, he's going to be here. If you have something against this, I can pack my stuff and leave.”

“Are you threatening me?” he scoffs.

You've no idea what's going on in the man's head, but he probably thought of it as you taking Yoojin away from him which is ridiculous, because you don't live together. Maybe he thinks you won't allow him to see him, which is again – ridiculous. You wouldn't do that, at least not now considering how they've just started to bond together more. Yoojin brings a different side of Seokjin, unrevealed and new one.

“I'm informing you.” you correct him and it causes him to scoff again, but he holds his ground and slightly relaxes underneath your palm.

Forgetting that you never moved your hand, you cautiously do with a sigh before you turn around to glance at Hoseok who stares at your interaction with unreadable gaze. He stands up, careful not to drop Yoojin as he smiles down at him before he walks closer to the both of you. Your breath is caught in your throat while you cautiously watch him, slowly handing Yoojin to his father. He drops the packages onto the floor with a huge smack, greedily taking Yoojin from Hoseok's hands.

“Hey, kiddo. It's daddy.” he doesn't forget to emphasize, glaring at Hoseok while you glare at him for making unnecessary comment. Hoseok is more than aware of Seokjin's position in Yoojin's life, there's no need for him to remind everyone around him.

“I'm gonna go,” Hoseok speaks with soft voice, hand caressing your touch as he draped an arm over your shoulder to bring you to a faint hug. You're about to tell him he doesn't have but he only shakes his head at you, smiling at the distress and determination on your bare face.”I'll come later, yeah?” he assures you and with a weak nod, you smile at him.

He leaves, your heart dropping when you hear the front door closing as you glare at Seokjin. “Was that necessary?” you snap, irritated when he only looks at you with a pleasant look.

“Actually, I think it was.” he mutters sarcastically, hinting at something with the roll of his eyes which you're not sure what's that about.

Your blood boils inside of you, angry from what has just happened and the fact Hoseok must've left because there was no choice. He could stay but it wouldn't do any good and you know he made the right decision to leave. You just feel angry that he felt like he's not welcomed here, thanks to Seokjin.

“It wasn't. Hoseok is my best friend and he'll get to see Yoojin whenever he wants to. He was there for me during my pregnancy and after it. He has done so much for the both of us,” you glance at Yoojin before you continue. “So stop acting like a fucking prick.” you snap at him.

“If you just told me about your pregnancy in the first place, I could've been the one who would take care of you.” he snaps back, glaring at you.

“You mean, before you tried to buy my son from me or after that?” you mockingly ask him, a shame flashing in his eyes as he looks away with locked jaw.

Bingo.

“Look, it doesn't matter now. All I want for you to act decent if the two of you are going to meet in the future. It's for Yoojin's sake as well. He's too little right now but I don't want him to grow up and see the hate between you two.”

The fact that you don't scream at him and not letting your frustration to get the best of you says a lot about your patience. But you need him to understand this. He isn't stupid but he's Kim Seokjin. Nothing is ever easy with him.

He's silent, cuddling to Yoojin as his plump lips touch his soft hair. You try not to melt at the pure sight and not let your guard down as you stare at him with intense glare. His eyes shift between you and the wall behind you as the wheels are running in his mind. But you don't budge, lifting your brow in waiting manner as he rolls his eyes.

“Fine.” he doesn't say anything else, nibbling on his bottom lip to calm down himself as you sigh in relief.

You're on your way to the kitchen to cook the chicken soup, knowing Seokjin will stay for lunch before you pause and call out his name. “Oh, and stop being fucking possessive about me or Yoojin. You don't own anyone.”

And with that, you leave into the kitchen with satisfied smirk on your lips.

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(comment on the most recent chapter to be added)

[keelywolfe]

FIC: The Rose and the Thorn: Chapter 10 (Mafia AU)

Summary:  We left off with Edge and Rus on a cliffhanger, let's see where they go from there!

Tags: Spicyhoney, Cherryberry, Mafia AU, Flower Shop AU, Violence, First Meetings

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 | Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 | Chapter 9

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Read it here!

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Rus knew what he looked like. Tall, gangling skeleton and his bones were thin, almost delicate. Most people probably thought a stiff breeze would send him off like a tumbleweed and they were sort of right. He would’ve had more than a couple scars from a childhood from tripping over his own feet if his brother wasn’t such a good healer.

But if you took his innate clumsiness out of the equation, it was a load of bullshit, really. He’d helped his brother set up their garden, hauled bags of soil and manure, lugged oversized flowerpots, carried fencing and poles. He wasn’t weak, thank you very much, but even he had to admit, holding up a Monster of Edge’s size for any length of time was pushing him to his limits.

Luckily, he didn’t have to manage long. Edge caught his balance quickly, rocked unsteadily back to his feet and once Rus wasn’t completely blanketed by tall skeleton, he got a better view of the Dogs standing on either side of him, helping hold him up. Okay, they were at least part of the reason Edge hadn’t fallen on him, so what, he was pretty sure he did his part.

More Dogs, wow, did they buy these guys by the six pack? They were pretty good at the stoic, almost as good as Edge, but Rus didn’t miss their brief, amused tail wags. Yeah, yeah, laugh it up, watching him trying to catch Edge must’ve been a funny sight, like a meek village fool trying to catch a crumbling mountain.

But watching them immediately school their expressions to bland seriousness when Edge looked at them was even better.

Large hands settled on his shoulders, drawing his attention back to Edge and more to the point, his face, holy fuck—

“I’m all right,” Edge started, and no, just no.

“you certainly don’t look like it!” Rus snapped. He took hold of one of Edge’s sleeves, flinching at sight of the charred fray that was all that remained of his gloves. “come on, for pity’s sake, come sit down!”

Edge didn’t really resist, bemusedly letting Rus lead the way down the hallway. Only for Rus to stop a few steps in, turning back to admit sheepishly. “um. i’m not sure where you were going?”

He hadn’t heard any of the Dogs speak yet, but that wasn’t entirely unusual, some Monsters didn’t use a verbal language. It didn’t stop one of them from letting out a snicker, hastily quelled when Edge slanted him a dour look.

“This way, flower shop.” Edge took the lead and stayed on his feet mostly under his own steam with the occasional steadying hand from one of the Dogs. He led the way to another of the thousand doors, only this one had a panel that opened to reveal a keypad. Rus pointedly didn’t watch as Edge punched in the code and went inside.

But it wasn’t an infirmary of any sort or even a bathroom. Inside was a large bedroom, dominated by an enormous four poster bed that was covered in an fluffy comforter and huge pillows, with actual curtains hung around it, like they’d taken an accidental trip with the Ghost of Gyftmas Past and wandered into the bedroom of Ebeneezer Scrooge. Rus hovered awkwardly by the door as the Dogs helped Edge to one of the wide sofas set in a half-circle in a sort of open-air sitting room.

Once Edge was settled, the Dogs took their leave and Rus didn’t miss the wink one of them sent his way.

Well, it seemed they were expecting him to play nurse, not exactly a role he’d had much experience in. One look at Edge had him setting his shoulders, ready to step up and give it his best shot, though if there were any cracks about him putting on a little white dress, he was out.

Or maybe he was fooling himself, because he couldn’t possibly leave Edge alone like this. His clothes were streaked with burnt marks, the fine suit from that morning looked like it only recently stopped smoldering. Worse of all, the bone all down one side of his face was scorched and blackened, and Rus supposed it was a small mercy that the damage was on the already injured side of his skull.

Just looking at it made nausea lurch up into his throat. Rus swallowed it down and walked over, biting the tip of his tongue and focusing on that tiny hurt while he inspected the damages.

It must be painful, but Edge didn’t flinch from Rus’s timid prodding as he tried to decide if he actually could help or if he needed to find a phone to call for someone more qualified. So much soot and who knew what damage beneath it. Rus blinked hard as sympathetic tears welled; he’d always hated seeing anything hurt, Rus was the one getting teased for rescuing worms from the sidewalks after a storm and giving the pigeons in the park the crusts from his sandwiches. A thumb grazed underneath his socket, wiping away the trickle of tears, and Rus could smell the smoky char on Edge’s ruined gloves.

“It’s not that bad, flower shop,” Edge murmured. “I’m only a little crisp around the edges.” If he were trying for lightness, he failed, and Rus could feel wetness escaping from around his touch, trickling down his cheekbones. “Don’t,” Edge tried, “You don’t need to—"

“this is about us, isn’t it?” Rus interrupted softly. He wasn’t sure what kind of fool Edge thought he was, but he could at least manage to put 2 and 2 together and know that a vengeful fire monster who was prone to kidnappings likely matched up with fresh burns.

Edge said nothing and that was all the answer Rus needed.

“then i think i do.” Rus drew away, wiping impatiently at his damp cheeks bones with his sleeve. “where’s the bathroom?”

He followed where Edge pointed and one step inside was enough to stifle his remaining tears. If he thought his own lavatory was opulent, this one seemed to belong more in a palace than above a strip club in the red-light district, all of it gleaming dark marble streaked with gold. He caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror and sighed. All his efforts to obey his brother’s scold to keep his new clothes clean ruined by smudges of soot streaked all down his shirt and a full set of handprints impressed on his shoulders.

Welp, guess it was a good thing he probably wasn’t going to be doing the laundry.

Under the sink was a basin that he filled halfway with cool water, along with a well-appointed first aid kit. Rus snagged both along with a couple clean washcloths and clumsily carried the lot of it out, only spilling a couple splashes of water to disappear in the lush carpet.

Edge hadn’t moved, only watched him with an intensity that sent an odd prickle down Rus’s spine. Whatever, let him stare. Rus ignored it to set his newfound supplies on the coffee table and sat on the sofa next to him to get to work. First, wetting a washcloth and very gently washing away the layers of soot to reveal the chalky, damaged bone beneath. It actually wasn’t too bad, he was relieved to see, at least Edge was right about that. Most of it was filth, the only real damage seemed to be to the very side of his face, a ragged line that ran from his forehead nearly to his chin. Edge never made a sound even when Rus had to really scrub to clear away the sooty blackness. The friction must have hurt terribly, but he allowed Rus to clean him up as he muttering vague apologies the entire time, because honestly, if he’d been the one hurt, Rus would have been howling for mercy by now.

The silence grew to be too much, nothing but the splash of water as he wrung out the cloth again and Edge’s crimson eye lights following his every move. Luckily, filling silences with nervous chatter was one of Rus’s greatest skills.

“i’m glad the bathroom was close,” Rus admitted with a self-deprecating laugh, “if it was in the hallway, i would’ve been a while. i’m not sure if i could find anything in this labyrinth.”

“It’s not as big as it seems,” Edge’s sockets fell half-closed as Rus gingerly cleaned around the delicate, damaged rim, showing only a bare gleam of crimson. “You only think it is because of the Dogs.”

That gave Rus a pause. "what do you mean?”

Edge offered him that little half-smile of his, "The hallways are designed like a labyrinth and my brother has the Dogs lead people through the same ones several times. Even the artwork is designed to change the picture when someone walks past it, to make it seem larger and more confusing than it is.”

“seriously? what kind of low-rent james bond villain bullshit is that?" Rus blurted. He winced at his own words, shit, calling Red a villain wasn’t exactly what his brother would call good manners, but Edge's slight smile only widened.

"I prefer the term frugal.”

“hmmph,” Rus huffed, deciding not to argue the point. If Red wanted a subplot of being a cheapskate, that was his problem. “are you going to tell me what happened?” he asked, dabbing gingerly at a particularly darkened spot. The bone beneath was slightly pitted and he could only hiss in sympathy, imagining how much it must hurt.

That little smile faded. “I went to see Blaze in a neutral location, to negotiate.”

“looks like negotiations went south.”

Edge grunted in agreement, closing his sockets entirely as Rus finished cleaning his skull with a last gentle wipe. He dropped the washcloth into the dingy basin water before digging through the first aid kit for burn ointment. With the soot cleaned away, the burns matched Edge’s assessment of not too bad. They should heal fine, probably wouldn’t even scar if Edge kept it clean and well treated. Of course, there was another option.

Rus carefully set the ointment aside, reaching out instead with a cautious bare hand, “you were right, it isn’t too bad. i’m not as good as my brother, but if you let me heal you—”

The hand that caught his wrist moved so quickly Rus barely saw it. He yelped in surprise and automatically tried to pull away. Uselessly, that grip tightened painlessly as Edge said, firmly, “No.”

Even sitting, Edge was taller than him, especially when he wasn’t slumped back on the sofa. Taller than him, larger than him in every way and even sitting here in a ridiculously lavish bedroom in his ruined suit, Edge seemed larger than life, nearly a force of nature. And Rus looked up directly into his hurt face and asked boldly, “why not?”

The flick of his crimson tongue over his teeth nearly distracted Rus from his words. “Because having someone else use their magic on me outside of a fight is entirely too intimate for my tastes.”

Intimate. That was the problem? Considering that Rus was in possession of a shivery memory of Edge’s weight on top of him, pressing him into the cushioned plush of the rug with the heat of the fireplace pouring over them as Edge’s gloved hand skimmed against his bare hip…um…better to stop there. Anyway, considering all that, it seemed silly to him for Edge to suffer through days of discomfort when a little healing magic could ease it.

Exasperated, Rus pointed out, “you were willing to have sex with me but won’t let me heal you?” It was only after he said it that Rus belatedly remembered that actually, Edge hadn’t been willing to have sex with him, that was sort of where their awkwardness this morning came from and he looked away, a miserable blush rising in his cheekbones, like an echo of Edge’s burns.

To his shameful relief, Edge didn’t comment on that, only ran his thumb over the delicate, interlocked bones at the inside of Rus’s wrist. “It’s not the same. Magic involves souls, sex is only as intimate as you allow it to be. Anyone can take your body, flower shop.”

“yes, thank you for that reminder,” Rus muttered unhappily. He couldn’t hold back a shudder, remembering Blaze’s unbearably sweltering hands on him, forcing his touch on Rus as he whispered horrible things, cruelly teasing threats about Rus’s mouth and what he might do to it.

Edge’s voice jarred him from the unpleasant memory, cushioned in gentleness. “You’re safe here. This club is as well protected as it could possibly be. Aside from basic security precautions, we’ve been layering on every sort of protection spell possible over it since we got to the surface.”

That was a comfort to know, for now. But what about when he left, they left, him and Blue heading back to their shop and their lives without an ounce of protection surrounding them.

“i want to go home.” The words slipped out, small and miserable. And true, their home was small and a bit cramped, but it was home.

“I know,” Edge said, softly. He offered no promises about getting Rus there and he wondered wanly if he should be grateful for that honesty. Rus reached up and took hold of the large hand still holding his other wrist as his gaze searched Edge’s face, eye lights skimming from the untouched side to the one stark with darkened burns. With a tug, Edge brought their joined hands to his mouth, pressing a kiss against them and murmuring, “I’m working on it.”

There was something in his voice, something coldly dark beneath that tender touch and Rus swallowed hard, “you’re going to try to kill him, aren’t you.”

“Don’t ask questions that you don’t want answered.”

“aren’t you?” Rus persisted.

Edge let out a small frustrated sound, "It's the only way to end this. The only way you'll get your life back."

Rus shook his head, helplessly. That couldn’t be true, the only answer simply couldn’t be tainting Edge’s soul with XP, racking a LV onto Edge’s conscious in the name of their wellbeing, his and Blue’s and Rus knew without question that his brother would agree. “there has to be another way.”

“Are you willing to bet your life on that, flower shop?” Edge countered, “What about your brother’s?”

“there has to be! i can’t let you—” kill someone. Rus choked on the words, felt the ache of tears welling up again.

Again, that thumb rubbed a soothing little circle against Rus’s wrist. “Why do you care so much?”

“I…” Rus swallowed nervously. “it’s…it’s the right thing to do!”

“Of course,” Edge said wryly. “And you always do the right thing, don’t you.” He let go of Rus’s wrist and sank back into the cushions. “Go on, then.”

“huh?” Rus blinked, confused, ready to argue that he wasn’t about to leave with this debate still between them.

“Go on,” Edge repeated, “Heal me.” A sardonic slash of a smile tipped up the undamaged side of his mouth. “Since it’s the right thing to do.”

Oh. Rus had to kneel up to reach, leaning across Edge’s torso to settle his bare hand lightly against the side of his skull. It was a matter of moments to focus his magic, calling up the tingling warmth of healing and concentrating it on the burns. He certainly didn’t miss Edge’s relieved sigh; it must’ve hurt something awful and honestly, fussing about intimacy when the alternative was days of pain? He really couldn’t understand these people.

When Rus finally stopped, the bone beneath his hand was smooth and unblemished, at least as much as previously cracked bone could be. All signs of any burns were gone and Rus beamed at Edge, pleased.

“there,” he said triumphantly. “isn’t that bett—oh!”

The way Rus was leaning already put him off balance and the sudden, strong arm winding around his waist sent him nearly sprawling into Edge’s lap. A rough chuckle greeted his twisting and squirms until he was sitting across Edge’s femurs, looking up into his newly healed face with wide sockets.

“Yes,” Edge agreed softly, “This is much better.” He lightly bit the tip of one of his fingers, tugging off his glove and spitting it aside before reaching out to brush bare fingertips lightly over Rus’s mouth, cautious of the sharpened tips. Rus sat frozen beneath that touch as it slid lower, broad knuckles curling beneath his chin. “To tell the truth, I’m at a loss,” Edge murmured, low, like a confession. “Even if I deal with Blaze, you’re irrevocably linked to me now. Do I let it be? Or do I embrace it?”

That…that sounded…Rus wasn’t sure, his thoughts were in wild turmoil, caught up between Edge’s words and his embrace, “what about what i want?” he asked, weakly.

A soft chuckle gusted over him like a caress and Edge’s face was close to his own, as he said, “Pretty flower, you’ve wanted me since the day I walked into your shop.”

Rus wanted to deny it, but what was the point? It was true, he couldn’t possibly have been more obvious. He didn’t move as Edge leaned in, every possible protest twittering out of his mind even as Edge said, his deep voice raw with the barest of regrets, “Just remember, I tried to let you go.”

His mouth was achingly gentle, coaxingly sweet and Rus parted his teeth with a watery sigh as he met it with his own. Parted his teeth to timidly meet the slide of a clever tongue with his own. He was surrounded, Edge around him, beneath him, the arms that circled him held Rus close. Safe, he realized, he was safe, and Rus groaned shakily, clinging to Edge’s broad chest as those dizzying kisses deepened, teeth scraping with tantalizingly deliberate roughness as a low growl rumbled out from deep within Edge’s chest.

In the back of his mind, Rus was hyperaware of the enormous bed behind them, equal parts inviting and terrifying to consider Edge carrying him to it the same way as he had to the rug. His heavy weight again between Rus’s femurs, the hard press of his hips, and the senseless magic settling in Rus’s pelvis wanted that, wanted even more. He could feel his magic taking form, embarrassingly eager wetness dampening his undershorts. His mind might well be unsettled, but his body was making its wants known to them both and he couldn’t help wriggling again, already feeling the response of Edge’s body beneath his pelvis.

The door bursting opened shattered any burgeoning arousal and Rus jerked back, scrambling away even as Edge reluctantly let him go.

Red didn’t even seem to notice them yet, kicking the door shut as he groused, “dogs said you and blaze got into it, bro, you okay—” he stopped, staring blankly at his brother, eye lights gliding over where Edge’s joints were flushed and his jaw clenched. Then flicking to Rus who was curled up far on the other side of the sofa with a burning blush high on his cheekbones. Red chewing on the end of his cigar furiously, saying acidly around it, “might need to have a word with ‘em, since they didn’t see fit to mention this lil’ tête-à-tête.”

“Perhaps they thought they didn’t need to,” Edge said, coolly, “There is this charming social construct called knocking, you should consider trying it sometime.”

“uh huh, you know me, all up in the social constructs.” Red turned his sour look back on Rus, who only cringed harder, “sorry to interrupt, but i’m fresh outta social constructs right now. me and my bro need to talk, hit bricks.”

Edge crossed his arms over his chest, “No, he can stay.”

Yeah, because Rus was all about hanging around Red with his magic still uncomfortably roused between his legs. “i really don’t mind, i can go.”

Neither of them paid him any mind, both brother’s glaring. Finally, Red shrugged, “i was gonna talk business, but if you wanna scar your pretty lil’ flower, ain’t no skin off my bones.”

That seemed to give Edge a pause. He frowned, considering, then sighed out, “Go, Rus.”

Rus wobbled to his feet, all ready to head for the door. Only to have Edge catch his wrist, reeling him in. He didn’t try to take a kiss, thankfully, no attempt at a little pda in front of his brother. He only studied Rus’s face as if drinking in the sight of him, then tapped him lightly on the nasal aperture as he said, sternly, “Behave.”

That made him remember that morning, sneaking downstairs to chat with the ladies in the break room. Rus gave him a wobbly nod, and said, “i always do,” hoping his guilt didn’t show on his face as he slipped away and headed towards the door.

He skirted widely around Red and even that didn’t keep Rus from hearing him mutter, “if that’s you behavin’ flower shop, can’t wait to see ya bein’ bad.”

Outside the door one of the Dogs was waiting and Rus was about to ask them to show him back to his room, preferably without the extra mileage, when his eye lights caught on a long line of blistered redness along their muzzle.

“did you get burned, too,” Rus gasped, appalled, “that must hurt, do you want me to heal…it?” He trailed off awkwardly, expecting to be brushed off. But the Dog only whined and lowered their head, their dark brown eyes hopeful.

The little wound was even easier to heal than Edge’s and the Dog heaved a sigh of relief when Rus was finished, offering him a slightly slobbery grin, along with something else that had been sitting unnoticed by their feet. They held it out in offering and Rus took it, uncomprehending at first until the familiar jangle made him look down in disbelief.

It was his backpack, somewhat sooty and Spongebob was more than a little worse for wear, but it was his, with all his pins still attached.

“how did you—” Rus started, dumbly. There was only one answer and Rus glanced at the door speculatively, wondering if he’d gotten the backpack before, after, or during getting burnt to a crisp. Questions for later and he added it to his list as the Dog led him back to his room.

The moment he opened the door, a loud shout almost sent him tumbling head over heels back out.

“Where have you been!?”

Rus sighed to himself and shut the door, bracing himself to face his brother.

Where was a kidnapping when you really needed one.

tbc

[khoicesbyk]

Beloved.

A/N: I'm officially obsessed with Wolf Bride and what does one do when she's obsessed with a certain book? She writes an AU about it! 😁 So, Talley Ho! *in my Sherlock Holmes voice*

Rated: Mature. | Contains sexual content and strong language. (You know? The usual from me. 😁) | Bolded and/or italicized words are conversations and thoughts of the characters. | Main Characters: Roman (LI) and Naia Evans (MC) | All Characters and names: (except MC and original characters created by me) are property of Pixelberry.

Current Word Count: 2,755 words. (more or less. I stop counting after editing and re-editing. 🤷🏾‍♀️)

Tag List: @rideordiechronicles @shewillreadyou @txemrn @lucy-268 @pixie88 @secretaryunpaid @aussieez @shannonsaid @shannonwrote @queenjilian @bebepac @imturaxamara @texaskitten30 @choicesficwriterscreations

This series is rated Mature. It is NOT reading material that is safe for those under 18. Reader discretion is STRONGLY advised!

This series may contain spoilers. If you wish not to see spoilers, please do not read any further.

(Also this series is a slight deviation of the original story. In the original story, the werewolf hunter is a woman. But in this series the hunter is a man.)

Missing a chapter or want to read a chapter again? I got you covered! Click ——> Here!

If you’d like to be added to my tag list. Just reblog or dm me and I will gladly add you. 😁😘

TW: character death, Car Accident, death of a parent.

Chapter 15.) Skeletons.

It was Saturday but not just your typical Saturday. This was Laurie’s chance to get her daughter the hell outta dodge of the upcoming full moon. While she was having breakfast at Tucker’s with Shane, she was starting to really worry.

“I swear that girl acts more and more like you every day.” Laurie said to her husband.

“Me?! She’s LITERALLY your living, breathing reflection but yeah sure let’s blame me.” He replies while shaking his head.

“If we don’t get her the hell outta here by the next full moon, she will never leave.”

“I know baby. But you know how she is when she sets her mind to something.”

“I wish she’d set her mind to something other than staying here!”

Laurie sighed.

“I’m scared, Shane. I’m really scared. We can’t let her go through what I went through.”

Shane sipped his coffee before reaching over to take his wife’s left hand in his.

“I swear on my momma. We WILL NOT let that happen. She will be leaving with us tomorrow. There will be no arguing about it.”

Laurie smiled softly. After finishing breakfast they stepped out into the sunlight then decided to take a walk down Main Street.

“I haven’t had a chance to ask you but how are you feeling baby?” Shane asked her as they walked.

“Nostalgic. I’ve missed home. And I won’t lie, part of me is glad to see it. But in the same breath, I hate being here.”

“I know baby. We haven’t been here since we left 30 some odd years ago.”

“It’s not just that though.”

“Then what is it? Tell me.”

“Shane…I-I-I can still feel him. I can still see him. I can still hear his voice. He’s still around. Even though he’s dead.”

“I promise you, you’re safe. He’s dead and rightly so. And even if he wasn’t, there is no way in hell I’d let him anywhere near you.”

“My hero.”

“Always baby.”

Shane smiled at her while wrapping his arm around her shoulders. He knew she was struggling and all he wanted to do was take her pain away. As they walked both took in how much the town square had changed. Most of what Laurie knew 30 years ago wasn’t there now.

When they got to the park they sat down on her old favorite bench.

“Remember our first date?” He asked her.

“Yeah. You took me to the old drive in then we came here, sat down on this bench and tried to count as many stars as possible.” She replies.

Shane laid his wife’s head on his left shoulder.

“I know you’re struggling. I know being home is bittersweet.”

He felt tears fall on his shoulder.

“I didn’t think it’d be this hard. I just knew that I’d see this place and I’d hate it as I always have. I didn’t think that I’d miss it so much.” She said as her voice cracked.

“I know baby. Don’t cry. It’s hard to come back here after all this time and not feel anything.”

Shane rubbed her back as she cried.

“It’s okay baby. Let it out. Let it all out.”

When her tears finally subsided, Laurie took a deep breath.

“Thank you.”

Shane kissed the side of her head.

“Always baby.”

Laurie looked up and suddenly had an idea.

“I wanna do something.”

“What baby?” Shane asked.

“…I wanna go see mama and daddy.”

Shane nodded.

After going by Alfred’s flower shop Shane and Laurie drove a little ways out of town to S.R. Timmons National Cemetery. Laurie laid the flowers at the grave of her parents.

Laurie laid her hand on the grave stone with Shane right beside her.

“Hi mama. Hi daddy. I’m home…” she whispered.

It had been 30 years since she’d seen her parents grave.

“I know you’re probably furious that it’s taken me this long to come back. And I wouldn’t blame you if you haunted me for the rest of my life because of it. But I want you to know that…I miss you so much.”

Shane knelt next to his wife as she took a shaky breath.

“I have so much to say but I don’t know where to start. I’m sure you watched it all from heaven but I have to tell you myself. I became a nurse like you were mama. And I found a man that is just as stand up as you were daddy. We got married at a courthouse. I know it probably wasn’t the wedding that you and daddy would’ve hoped for mama but…I wish both of you were there.”

She stopped as her voice hitched.

“Anyway, you have a granddaughter. We named her Naia Michelle. She’s a giant handful but you’d love her nonetheless. Maybe even more than you ever loved me. And your son…well we won’t get into that. But now I need you. I need you to help me bring my baby home. She’s in danger and she won’t listen to me. The wolves here mean her no good. And I’m scared that if she doesn’t leave with us tomorrow, I’ll never see her again. Mama…daddy…I need you.”

She burst into tears with her husband right next to her.

“It’s okay baby. They hear you. I promise, they hear you.”

“I know they do but it’s Naia who doesn’t…” Laurie said through her tears.

Shane took her face into his hands before speaking.

“Look at me baby. Naia will. We will make sure that she will.”

Shane held her close before speaking to the plaque in front of him.

“I never got to meet you two but I met your daughter and I fell head over heels for her. She has made my life better. She gave me the greatest gift in life. She gave me a daughter. Naia is beautiful. She’s smart. She’s talented. She’s strong willed. And God knows that girl is as stubborn as her mother. And now she is determined to stay and I can’t stand it. I need her at home, where she’d be safe. She’s not safe here. If she stays here her mother and I are afraid that she’ll wind up hurt or dead. I can’t have that. So please help us bring our girl home.” The two sat in a somber yet comfortable silence as Laurie reflected on her parents.

“Thank you.”

“For what?” Shane asks her.

“For coming with me. I needed this.” She replies.

“Baby there’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”

“I think I’m ready now.”

“Are you sure babe?” He asks.

“Yeah. Besides we still need to get our girl and get out of here. But it was good to see mama and daddy.” She replies.

“Alright. Let’s go. We have a long afternoon ahead of us.”

Meanwhile Naia was sitting at the bar with her laptop open at Buck’s showing Layla her nursery design.

“What do you think?” Naia asked Layla.

“I LOVE IT! It’s beautiful!” Layla replies.

“And it’s neutral. Just the way you like it.”

“Thank you so much Naia! I can’t wait to show Callum.”

“You think he’ll like it?” Naia asks.

“Trust me if I like it then he’ll like it.” She replies.

“And here I thought wolves were supposed to be the dominant ones.”

Layla snickered.

“I know that’s a dig at Roman.”

“It’s not a dig! It’s a smartass observation.”

“If you say so…”

“I do say so!” Naia said emphatically.

The two giggled just as Callum walked in.

“Hello girls.” He said to them.

“Heyyyyy!” They replied.

“What are you two up to?” He asks.

“Naia was showing me her design ideas for the baby’s nursery. Here take a look.” Layla replied.

Callum studies the design.

“Well what do you think?” Layla asks him.

“Very nice. I like it. I think it’s perfect for the baby.” He replies.

Naia’s jaw dropped.

“Told you!” Layla teased her.

“You must have some kinda mind control over him.”

“Yeah I do. It’s called the munchkin in my stomach.”

Naia shook her head and smirked.

“Are you ready to go love?” He asks Layla.

“Yeah I’m ready. You coming Naia?” She replies.

“Not quite yet. I’m gonna run by my uncle’s house first so I’ll see you later.”

“Okay. And thank you again Naia.” Callum said to her.

“You’re welcome. As for you young lady, we got baby shopping to do!”

“My favorite pastime!”

They shared a laugh before leaving the bar. When Naia got back to her uncle’s place, she was met by her parents who were sitting at the kitchen table looking through an old photo album.

“I didn’t think you two would still be here.”

“Is it Sunday?” Shane asks.

“Nope.” She replies.

“Then we’re still here.” Laurie said to her.

“Where’s uncle Zane?” Naia asks.

“In the shower.” Shane replied.

“Then how’d you two get in the house?” Naia asked.

“I still have a key, Naia. You forget I grew up in this house.” Laurie replies.

“Touché. What’s that?” Naia asks.

“Family album.” Laurie replies.

“Can I see?” Naia asks.

“Have a seat.” Laurie replies.

Naia sat next to her mother and looked at the page of old photos.

“Are these two your parents?” Naia asked, pointing to the couple.

“Yes. That’s mama and daddy, right after they got married in Parkersburg.” Laurie replied.

“They’re beautiful.”

“Thank you.”

“They were amazing.” Zane said as he came into the kitchen.

“Yes they were. Daddy built this house with his own two hands.”

“Really?” Naia asks.

“Yup. He was a carpenter. He could build you a mansion out of a mound of dirt.” Laurie replies.

“And what about your mother?” Naia asks.

“She was a nurse.” Laurie replies with a smile.

“So is that why you became a nurse mom?” Naia asks.

“Yes. I wanted to be just like her.” Laurie replies.

“What were their names?” Naia asks.

“Susanna and Lewis. Mama’s maiden name was Wright.” Laurie replies.

“I wish I could’ve met them.”

“They would’ve loved you. Probably would’ve spoiled you rotten if they had gotten the chance.”

“You mean like how they used to do you?” Zane asked.

“They did not spoil me!” Laurie protested.

“Ha! They all but neglected me when you were born.”

“Can you blame them?” Laurie asked.

“Yes I can! I was here long before you were thought of!” Zane replied.

“Somebody sounds jealous.” Laurie teased.

“Me? Jealous? Of you?” Zane asked his sister.

“Yes. You’re jealous. You always have been.” Laurie replies.

“Such a diva!”

“Now that we can agree on!” Shane quipped.

“What were your parents like?” Naia asked.

Zane contorted his face to do an impression of their father.

“Simon! Watch your sister! You know she can’t go wandering off into the woods by herself!”

Laurie snickered.

“Jackass!”

“Thank you! I’ll be here all week.”

“I didn’t know your name is Simon, uncle Zane.”

Zane chuckled.

“Yes. Simon Zane Roberts. I was named after my mother. And your mother was named after papa. Somehow Laurie Michelle is the same as Lewis Michael.”

“Semantics.”

Laurie turned to the next page to a newspaper clipping. The headline took Naia by surprise.

Naia looked over at her mother who was pale.

“Mama?” Naia asks.

Laurie’s hand was trembling.

“Baby are you okay?” Shane asked.

“I…I…this…” she tried to say.

Zane put his hand over his sister’s.

“It’s okay squirt.”

“You kept it?” She asked in a whisper.

“Yes. I couldn’t throw it out. I didn’t know how to.” Zane replied.

Laurie looked haunted as she ran her hand over the newspaper clipping.

“It…it…was my fault…”

“What?” Naia asked her mother.

“The accident…it was my fault…” her mother replied clearly haunted.

“Squirt…it wasn’t your fault. And you know it wasn’t!” Zane spoke up.

“The state fair…daddy and mama were taking me…it was an early birthday present…if they hadn’t they’d still be alive.”

“Mama what happened?” Naia asks.

“I don’t remember.” Laurie replies.

“I do.” Zane said quietly.

“You do?” Naia asks.

Zane sat across from his sister.

“Yes. Mama, papa and squirt were coming back from the state fair in Huntington…when he lost control of his car and hit a tree then flipped over. Papa died on impact and mama…she died at the hospital.”

“I thought she died in the crash too…” Laurie said to her brother.

“No the truth is she died at the hospital. I told you that she died in the crash because I couldn’t bring myself to take you to her when you woke up. She was brain dead and I had to make the decision to take her off life support.”

“What do you mean when mama woke up?” Naia asked.

“According to what the police told me, squirt was sleeping in the backseat. They thought she was dead too until she woke up crying for mama before passing out again.” Zane replied.

“I don’t remember any of that.”

“Of course you don’t. You were 4.”

“How old were you uncle Zane?” Naia asked.

“I had just turned 17, 2 weeks before the accident.” Zane replied.

“Why weren’t you with them?” Shane asks.

“I was staying with Toby Robinson and his family that weekend. Toby and I were fishing when Toby’s dad came to get us. He said he was taking me to the hospital because of the accident.” Zane replied.

“If you were 17 when your parents died how were you and mama able to stay here?” Naia asks.

“Mama’s aunt Henrietta who lived in Parkersburg came to stay with us until I turned 18. That’s when I was old enough to buy the house. Thankfully it didn’t cost that much back then.” Zane replied.

Laurie just stared at the newspaper clipping.

“Mama?” Naia asks.

“We went to see them…” Laurie replies.

“You and daddy?” Naia asked.

“Yes. Your mother wanted to see them, so we went.” Shane replied.

“I didn’t think I’d ever go back.”

“You went back before I did.” Zane said to his sister.

“What do you mean?” Laurie asked Zane.

“I stopped going to visit mama and papa about 15 years ago.” He replies.

“Why?” Laurie asks her brother.

“Because I figured that they were tired of hearing me beg.” He replied.

“Beg for what?” She asked. Her tone was suddenly short.

“I used to beg them to bring you home. Every year on the anniversary of the accident and their birthdays, I would pray and beg them to send you home.” He replies.

“I’m sure you were miserable.” Laurie said to her brother.

“I was. I really truly was.”

“Good. Serves you right.” Laurie said before closing the photo album and handing it to her brother.

“Keep it. There’s not much that I can do with it.” Zane said to her.

“I don’t want it. That’s why I didn’t take it or any of what’s left of mama’s jewelry when I left.” Laurie replies.

“You can’t just forget it, squirt.”

“Do not call me that. You lost the right to call me that 36 years ago.”

Zane set the photo album on the counter.

“How long are you going to continue to punish me, Laurie?” He asks.

“Until you are lying in the grave next to them.” She replied.

“Mom!”

“No it’s fine, sweetie. I guess this is what I get for letting my sister back into my home.” Zane said to Naia.

“Correction: this is MY home. Because last time I checked, you signed ownership of this house to me when you decided to gamble your entire life away and couldn’t pay back your debts!” Laurie sneered at her brother.

“Enough! I don’t know what’s going on between you two but this isn’t the time or place.” Naia said, trying to keep the peace between them.

“You’re right baby. Besides, I'm done with this place. It’s going up for sale first thing in the morning.”

Zane’s eyes went wide.

“You can’t be serious!” Zane said in a panicked tone.

“As a heart attack.” Laurie replied coolly.

Zane sighed heavily.

“I understand that you are angry with me and that you probably hate me but Laurie please! You can’t just sell the only home I have ever known!”

“I hate it for you but this place has got to go!”

“Laurie for the love of God, not even you can be that damn cruel!”

Laurie’s eyes blazed with unbridled fury.

“Watch…me!” Laurie hissed before turning on her heels and walking outside with Shane right behind her.

Naia was completely stunned while Zane was utterly heartbroken and dejected.

[clonecest-bin-account]

hi! do you do fic recs? as in, if i asked for recs from you? it's okay if you dont!! im just looking for new clone fics to read

Oh boy, I’ve never done recs, but I can try! Though as much as I write I don’t really spend too much time reading, but there are some fics that have caught my interest. Since you didn’t specify if you wanted a SFW or a NSFW rec list I’ll keep it SFW just to be sure. Anyway, here goes nothing!

 One condition by  RobinPlaysTrumpet15  

‘Cody has finally found the perfect opportunity to propose to his boyfriend.’

Set in a modern AU. It’s a very sweet story that I’m sure will warm everyone’s heart.

Left eye dominant by RobinPlaysTrumpet15

‘Rex is having trouble with one of the rifles during ARC training. Luckily, Cody is around and always willing to help.’

Another one by RobinPlaysTrumpet15. It’s another very sweet story about Rex and Cody. Also I’m a sucker for fics set on Kamino.

Speak no evil by Gobayern16

‘Cody’s breath catches at the fear and panic in Rex’s eyes.

“Rex? What’s wrong?” Adrenaline surges through Cody. Rex opens and closes his mouth several times but nothing comes out. Cody’s anxiety spikes as he realizes Rex is trying to speak but can’t.’

A bit angsty but also very fluffy. A good fic.

sleepless long nights by blackkat

‘ “Come on,” Cody says, implacable. “You're about to walk into walls, Rex. Enough.” ‘

This one is very cute too. Also idc this is canon to me it must’ve happened at least once.

no mess, no stress by orphan account

‘“I do, though. Put a lot of faith in you.”

Fives was quiet for a moment before answering. “I know. ‘s why I always come back for you.”’

Some very good rarepair content.

Amazing by RobinPlaysTrumpet15

‘Fives and Tup live after everything with the control chips. They've been dating for some time now, but that gets complicated when they suddenly find out Echo's still alive.’

This one is a long fic but it’s very good! This is the fic that really got me into Fives/Echo/Tup as a ship. A really good read.

You're Something else by Parkkrys

‘He doesn't have anything to look forward to when he wakes up except going to the coffee shop. The coffee shop that has a cute little thing taking orders. The young man is always happy, he hasn't seen a day where the man isn't smiling, making jokes to get everyone laughing.

Or, Wolffe doesn't realize just how much trouble he is in until it hits him right in the face.’

This (and the entires series btw) is a very good read too, though it’s a sugar daddy AU, so if that’s not your thing you might not want to read it. Though I’ll say I wish all the sugar daddies AUs were like this, because this isn’t creepy at all, and I’m somone who gets squicked by this kind of stuff very easily, so if I say it you can believe me.

Broken Glass by firewoodwander

‘One-shots, prompts, requests‘

There are two chapters in this so far, but they’re very good. The Fox/Thorn one is particularly dear to me.

Kris's Clonecest prompts by Parkkrys

‘Hello! I was invited to do a July clonecest prompt list and I decided to give it a go! I hope you all enjoy! Will add tags as we get farther along into the month!’

This one still isn’t finished, but each chapter is a treasure! You get fluff, you get angst, you get everything.

I think it’s enough fics for a rec list? I’m not sure. Anyway, I hope this was useful to you!

[thehuntersmoondiscord]

A trope is a trope is a trope.

And that’s why we all love them! Every single writer’s interpretation is slightly different even based off the same exact trope and we want to celebrate that. This event is themed around the tropes we all know and love, whether that be OMG they were roommates! Or there was only one bed or something as tried and true as College AU and Coffee Shop AU. The possibilities are endless and the tropes are your oysters.

An event hosted on the Hunter's Moon Discord Server

The official collection can be found HERE

My Heart Burns by @miss-shiva-adler

Luke/Valentine | Explicit | Tumblr Post Summary: Some people celebrated the day they were turned, owned the day where their lives were turned up side down. He didn’t. He never would. Tags:  Emotional manipulation, extremism, cheating, jealousy, parabatai feels, mutated parabatai bond, Eros AU, drunk confessions, in vino veritas, Drunk sex, Dark fic, sex magic, come swallowing, Unrequited feelings, Angst, dubcon, anti-family, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, blow jobs, oral sex, unprotected sex, Dom/sub undertones, Domination & Submission, mention of blood

Next Stop: Love by @christophers-lightwood

Simon/Jace | General | Tumblr Post Summary: Jace is late for work, and meets a cute guy on the subway. Turns out, subways are magical places for music, lip syncing, and romance. Tags: Subways, Subway AU, There's so many caller tunes, Yes I like cheesy songs, Listen I'm the kind of person to mouths along the lyrics, And so does Simon and you can't convince me otherwise, Jace is in love, Alec is a good brother, Jimon are cheesy af, Idiots in Love, Shadowhunters Bingo, Free Square

Drowning by @jesseywoodhunter 

Magnus/Alec | Teen Summary: Alec has been keeping a secret from his family, from himself even. He's sick, disgusting. An embarrassment to the family. He's supposed to be the perfect big brother, a role model. A pillar of strength. One day, Alec makes a choice. The repercussions are set to change his life forever. One moment you're downing, the next, you're learning to swim. Tags: Hurt Alec Lightwood, Suicide Attempt, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Angst, Supportive Magnus Bane, Mental Health Issues, Rescue

Amor primo conspectu by @sivan325

Magnus/Alec | Explicit | Tumblr Post Summary:  Translation from Latin – Love at first sight Omegas are meant to be thrown into the thick of battle to defend Alphas, but when the battle is over, they are treated like cast offs. Tags: Alpha/Beta/Omega, Alternative Universe, Soulmate, Wingsfic, Love at First Sight, discrimination against omegas, Hurt Alec Lightwood, Omega Alec Lightwood, Alpha Magnus Bane, MPREG, Self-Sacrificing Alec Lightwood, Time Skips, Violence, Sharing Body Heat, Hurt/Comfort, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Knotting

Disce ut semper victurus, vive ut cras moriturus by @sivan325

Magnus/Alec | Teen | Tumblr Post Summary: Translation from Latin – Learn as if always going to live; live as if tomorrow going to die. This was supposed to be a happy day of union for Alec and Magnus, instead they are apart, Alec is missing and there’s a serial killer on the loose. Tags: Human AU, Cop!Alec, Coroner!Magnus, undercover missions, break up, angst, serial killers, fear, doubt, Ambiguous/Open Ending, swear word for Camille, Team as Family, Blue-eyed Alec Lightwood

Hidden Desires by @sivan325

Magnus/Alec | Teen | Tumblr Post Summary: Alec is just watching what he cannot have, but he didn’t know that he is also being watched. Tags: Mermen AU, Merman Alec Lightwood, Warlock Magnus Bane, Fluff

The Place in Between by @polarnacht1

Alec/Jace | Teen Summary:  "Whenever Alec had thought about dying, he had thought it would be painful. He had thought that maybe he would die in a battle, slit open by a blade or by the claws of a demon, fighting alongside Jace against the evil. Frankly, he had always thought that there would be something heroic about the way he died. He had never thought he would die in his sleep, never really considered that one day he just would close his eyes, fall asleep to never wake up again. Yet, here he was."  A story about death and life, love and letting go. Tags: Afterlife,  Alec Lightwood-centric,  Protecitve Alex Lightwood, Parabatai,  Parabatai feels,  Love,  Hurt/Comfort,  Grief/Mourning,  Coping,  Cancer, Moving on

Not the Way I Dreamt of by @sivan325

Magnus/Alec | Explicit | Tumblr Post Summary:  That is not the way Alec dreamt his first time would be. Tags:  Alternative Universe, Fuck or Die, dubcon, Evil Seelie Queen, Post-Episode: s02e10 By The Light Of Dawn, Time Skips, Humiliation, Virgin Alec Lightwood, First Time, Protective Magnus Bane, Magic

Don't flirt with me (I'm working, dammit) by @thelightofthebane

Magnus/Alec & Jace/Simon | Explicit | Tumblr Post Summary:  Alec and Magnus take a moment to just breathe. Magnus is above him, straddling his waist, and that… shouldn’t be bothering him that much. Well, could someone blame him? His chaotic job and his even more chaotic ass don’t exactly help him to go on dates, and now the most beautiful man he has ever seen in his entire life is sitting on his crotch.  -- Alec goes undercover into a maximum security prison to get information about a serial killer. It doesn't help that one of his inmates, a mob boss, keeps distracting him. Tags:  Alternate Universe - Prison, Mention of crimes, nothing graphic, Undercover Missions, FBI agent!Alec, Inmates, Even Simon was arrested, How to catch a serial killer, Having Magnus as a partner is not helpful at all, All the flirt, Canon-Typical Violence, Blood, Major Character Injury, Light Angst, Gratuitous Blowjob, thirsty boys, Happy Ending, Trope Celebration Event, Gay Disaster Alec Lightwood, Flirty little shit Magnus Bane

A Kickstart To the Morning by @phoenixStar73

Magnus/Alec | General Summary: Barista Alec Lightwood hates waking up so early for work. But hates it a bit less this particular morning when a certain someone just happens to walk in... Tags:  Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood Fluff, Mundane Alec Lightwood, Mundane Magnus Bane, Flirting, Fluff, College Student Alec Lightwood, Barista Alec Lightwood

From the ashes of shattered dreams by @brightasstars

Magnus/Alec | Explicit Summary:  “Yes, Magnus. I do. Whatever it takes, whatever you need.” Magnus’ golden eyes blazed in the dark, then he chuckled softly. “Angsty proposal, isn’t it?” Alec giggled. “It’s a proposal, anyway. It implies forever.” “If there ever will be a chance, I will make you the proper one,” Magnus added. Tags:  Shapeshifting; Alternate Universe; Emotional Hurt/Comfort; Angst and Hurt/Comfort; Rebirth

This Body of Mine by @tobythewise

Magnus/Alec | Explicit Summary: When Alec and Magnus get body swapped, Magnus suggests a fun way to pass the time. What starts as an admittedly weird exploration of each other’s bodies quickly turns heated. In the end, Alec realizes that though his body wasn’t what he wanted when he was born, this same body has slowly become HIS, and that makes it perfect. Tags: Bodyswap, Omegaverse, Trans Alpha Alec, Alpha Magnus, PWP, Mentions of past dysphoria, Happy Ending, Fluff and Smut

Art by @foxymoley​ 

Maia and Clary Witch AU

Pony Up Alexander! by @dmcanonymous

Magnus/Alec | Teen | Tumblr Post Summary:  Mix Jace being an idiot, Alec saving him again, and some magic mischief and poor Alec is all hooves. Hopefully Magnus can jump to the occasion to help out his boyfriend. Tags:  Centaur!Alec, trope transformation, Centaurification, centuar!Magnus, Magnus stop horsing around, why the long face Alexander?

travel the universes with me (let's find out we're meant to be) by @jimonsprettyface

Jace/Simon | Explicit  Summary: When Jace and Simon touch a mirror that Magnus Bane instructed them not to, they're yanked from their world and scattered through many others. Along the way, they find familiar faces, different times, and new feelings. The journey to get home is unknown, and they're not even sure they will, but what they learn along the way threatens to change them forever. Tags: Canon, But also AU, Multiple AU’s, Traveling through different universes, This World Inverted, Genderswap, Arranged Marriage, Huddling for Warmth, Canon Setting, Porn with(out?) Plot, Pining, Tropes, Crack Treated Seriously, Humor, Fluff, Slight Angst 

[missbeautyandherbeast]

Enchanted

Raphael X Reader (Fairytale AU)

Summary: You’re trapped in a tower... how cliche. When your father finally gives you a little freedom to explore the outside world... do you learn a bit more than you want to? Do you find a friend or will status dominate what you feel for him?

A/N: Y’all this has been a long time coming. A very long time coming. And here it is finally. A fairytale AU. Ugh why didn’t I do this sooner? Let me know how you feel about it and if you want more!! I love y’all, stay safe. ((Also who wants to count how many fairytales that I stole from?))

Tags: @brightlotusmoon​ @boatloadsofheart @legandarybeauty​​ @crazywritingbug​​ @bitch-kms @ravn-87 @just-a-casual-fangirl-011​​ @unicornjoos @stuckoutsideofthebox @ilikestuffproductions​ @whygz​ @coffee-addicti​​ @sugarspooks15 @leslieebee @serperiorkb@blossom-skies @fantastical-67impala-fangirl @coresan​ @big-banging-red​ @iceprincess2019​ @raphaeladdict​ @thirstyforvenom​ @merindagriese​ @depressedemo-152​ @bengewatch @corabmarie​ @bitemebro522​ @tmnt-queen​ @muleka-loka​ @violet-sky-96​ @curadopordeus​ @artemismohr18​ @thewhisperpen​ @xjupitermoonsx​ @bisexualbumblebeesstuff​ @merindagriese @oceans-daughter-3 @lowellshade​ @tmntthristy​ @mistyroselove​ @inthehamptons​ @bombshellbella​ @sophfandoms53​ @artofthetiredmind​

“Your father wishes to see you Your Highness,”

“Thank you, Jane. I will be down in a moment.” I set my book on the table and sighed.

My father and I were at odds at the moment. He wanted me safe and protected in this world of monsters and magic, and I just wanted to be free. I wanted to get out and live. I was a few months past my nineteenth birthday, and I was growing restless.

You could only read a book or play a song or knit or sew so many times before you grow tired.

Not to mention the guard detail always surrounding me. They were what others would call ‘monsters’ the ones that my father wanted to protect me from. But they were good. They came from a respectable family.

He was outside the door waiting for me. I sighed as we walked along the hallways to my father’s throne room. He left me at the door as I entered.

“You wanted to see me father?” I spoke up, my voice echoing through the cold hall.

“There is my beautiful flower,” A smile was at his lips. “I have considered your thoughts and have decided that you may be right.”

I gaped at my father then composed myself.

“I’m free?” I blinked at him. “Father, I...” A smile stretched across my face.

“Listen child, I have two conditions,” He tilted his chin back, a king no longer a father.

“Yes, father.” My excitement waned.

“You must stay within the kingdom walls and you must have a guard with you at all times,”

“Father!” I protested. “This is...” I scrambled for the right words.

“If you want to leave this castle you will abide by those rules Y/n.” his voice was hard and commanding, a mix of my father and the king.

“Yes father,” I bowed my head. “Thank you, father,” I curtsied and left his throne room, trying to hold back tears.

I would never be free.

“Are you alright, Highness?” The guard asked as we neared my room. He had been silent all the while, moving like a shadow next to me. 

“I...” Inhaling deeply I gave a soft smile. “Yes, thank you.”

I entered my room and closed the door, leaning against it, tears finally falling. Soft cries left my lips as I sunk to the ground.

“Highness?” It was the guard again.

“I’m fine, thank you,” I said firmly.

“Permission to speak freely Highness?” His voice was hesitant.

I scoffed humorlessly and took another deep breath.

“Granted,” I mused.

There was a moment of silence.

“You father cares for you Y/n. He is trying to keep you safe, there’s a lot of danger out in the world,” His voice sounded distant, as if he were remembering something.

“I want to know what’s out there,” I insisted. “I... I need to know what’s out there. Even if it hurts me,” My voice trailed off.

“Princess, we all care for you here on staff and we want to see you flourish as much as you do, but do not be angry with your father for his rules,” The guard insisted.

I sighed and stood leaning against the door.

“Thank you,” I whispered. “I guess a small bit of freedom is better than staying trapped here.”

“Anything for you Highness,”

A smile lingered on my lips as I heard his footsteps recede from my door.

......

The next morning at breakfast my father brought the subject up again.

“Do you plan to go out today?” He mused.

“If it’s alright with you,” I dared to look up to see a smile on his face.

“You remind me so much of your mother,” He murmured. “And yes, in fact, one of your guard volunteered to escort you around today if you wish to go,”

“Who?”

My father raised an eyebrow. 

“Whom?” I corrected myself. 

“Raphael,”

My eyebrow furrowed. Did I know this guard? I guess it was my fault for not learning names. I felt guilty about it then but realized what he was saying: I was free.

A smile stretched across my face as I stood and kissed my father’s cheeks hurrying to my room to get ready. I heard him laugh from his position at the head of the table but paid him no mind.

I was going outside the palace walls today. I had the entire kingdom at my fingertips.

Changing quickly from the frills and the fluff of my father sanctioned attire, I favored a simpler gown that wouldn’t stand out too much.

Would milady like some help?” Jane knocked on the door peeking in.

“Please,” I looked in the mirror having no idea how to be normal.

She came in and combed my hair, braiding it and delicately twisting it into a crown on my head securing it with pins. She did no makeup except slight blush and a gloss for my lips. The girl in the mirror was unrecognizable.

“I think you’re ready,” She smiled and handed me a parcel wrapped in cloth. “For protection Y/n, from all of us,”

I unwrapped it and found a small dagger with an ivory handle.

“I can’t accept this,” I shook my head. “This is too much,”

“We all want to see you thrive Y/n, go... live your dream.” She handed me my cloak and satchel.

“Thank you,” I beamed and wrapped her in a hug.

There was another knock on my door.

Jane opened it and revealed my guard from yesterday: Raphael. His eyes flickered over me before they met my eyes.

“Are you ready Highness?”

I smiled and nodded, following him out then taking the lead out the palace and to the village. I dropped my hood, taking in the wonderful sight and smells around me. He was a shadow at my side.

“Raphael,” I mused, testing his name. 

“Yes Highness?” He stood on watch, alert.

“Nothing, I just... never knew your name. I’m sorry I didn’t ask for it sooner,” I looked down feeling sheepish.

“It is forgiven Highness.” His tone was emotionless, a façade.

“Permission to speak freely?” I asked him.

He narrowed his golden eyes at me and gave a small nod.

“Don’t call me Highness, or princess, or majesty, or anything,” I shook my head. “I’m Y/n, no more, no less,”

A smile crossed his face. “Y/n,” He tested, and I nodded.

“So... what do we do first?” I looked around at the cobblestone streets and the people milling about.

“You’ve never been out here before, have you?” There was hesitancy in his voice.

I shook my head. “My mother used to take me out here... but I was only a small child... when she died... I was shut in.”

“Permission to speak freely?” He teased.

I nodded. “Always, when it’s just me and you,” I offered a smile.

He smiled back and we went along together through the town. He took me to the bakery first and it smelled better than the palace kitchen at Winter’s Eve. We shared a loaf of bread with butter as we walked along.

Soon he let me drag him into stores that I wanted to see or shows that I wanted to watch. There were jesters and comedians and magic tricks... everything I had ever imagine.

But most of all the people were what I admired most. They always had a kind word and a smile as they went about their days.

“You’re more beautiful than the flowers I sell or even the princess,” One stout shop owner fawned. “Muses sing of your beauty,” His accent was thick through his moustache.

I went to correct him, but from the corner of my eye I saw Raphael shake his head. My identity was to remain unknown then.

“Thank you,” I beamed, “Your shop is lovely,”

“Any flower, my dear, is yours free of charge, seeing your beauty has been reward enough,” He flitted about his shop, collecting flowers.

“Oh, no, please there is no need.” I insisted, looking to Raphael for direction. He was just laughing beside me. I gave him a sharp look, my cheeks bright red.

“Nonsense my dear, it is a gift,” The shop owner handed me a beautiful bouquet of flowers. “For the fairest maiden,”

I gracefully took the flowers, and started again,

“Please let me pay, it’s no trouble at all,” I tried in vain. 

“I’ll have nothing of it!” The owner gestured grandly.

Raphael took a step forward, his hand flying to his sword. I had forgotten over the course of the day that he was for my protection. That he was working for my father. My spirits damped slightly.

“Well thank you,” I smiled. “Your kindness is much appreciated.”

Exiting the shop, flower cradled in my arms I peeked up at Raphael. His face was a mask of calm, watchful.

“Are you okay?” I asked, hesitant.

He nodded. My gaze fell to the ground as we milled around.

____________________________

He never should have volunteered for this assignment. He was getting in too deep.

But God he couldn’t help it, just being around her, everything else seemed to fade away. He wasn’t a guard and she wasn’t a princess. They were themselves.

She was so innocent and naïve, she needed to be protected as she went around the village, glowing like a child on Winter’s Eve. Her eyes lit up at the simplest things that he passed every day.

He preferred this her to the one in frills and makeup. He had never seen her genuinely smile in all his years working for the king.

But he did work for the king. He couldn’t escape that. And this was his daughter. His only daughter. A princess. The future queen.

And what was he? A guard? A monster?

The florist reminded him of the difference between them. Of her untold beauty. She was graceful and pure and everything that he wasn’t and no matter how much he wanted to be near her, they would never have the same realm.

The thought kept him in check. He had a job to do. He wasn’t here on holiday. He was here to protect her that was it.

____________________________

Back at my bedroom door, I looked to Raphael who had been quiet ever since the flower shop. I yearned to know why but didn’t know how to ask.

“Thank you,” I whispered. “For today...”

“Of course, Highness,” He was stoic, unmoving.

I went to correct him, but the words died on my lips. He was a guard. It was his job to take me out. His harsh demeanor reminded me well of that.

I looked down, a sigh on my lips. Reaching into my bag, I pulled out one of my spoils: a jade turtle charm on a leather cord. I placed it in his hand and closed the door to my bedroom behind me.

......

The next day there was another knock on my door.

“Highness?” It was Raphael.

I opened the door and barely looked up.

“Do you want to go out today?” He was collected, behind a mask. 

“Yes,” I whispered.

“Princess?”

I gave him a sharp look. He took a deep breath.

“Y/n,” He started again. “Wear clothes for a ride,”

“Where are we going?” Hope and excitement sparked in my chest.

“There is more to your kingdom than the village,” He smiled, something hiding in his eyes.

......

“How much is my father going to kill me if I wear pants?” I asked Jane as she entered to help me again.

“Maybe don’t test his patience,” Jane advised, pulling a longer dress with plenty of fabric and my riding boots.

“I suppose you’re right,” I sighed softly.

She smiled and braided my hair once more.

“I trust Raphael is treating you well?” She mused. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I raised an eyebrow.

“You seem very fond of him after one day,” Jane pointed out as she pinned my hair up.

“Don’t go starting gossip,” I muttered. “But... being with him... it’s easier. I don’t feel trapped.” 

Jane smiled at me and raised an eyebrow.

“And what of his status?” She questioned, a double meaning hiding underneath.

“That never mattered to me, ever,” I narrowed my eyes. “He...” I shrugged. “Everyone else treats me like I’m breakable... Raphael... he takes me as I am,” I looked down thinking to the end of yesterday. “I just never know what he’s thinking,”

......

Straddling Cleopatra, my prize mare—a gift from some kingdom for something—Raphael held the reigns and led me out of the stable and palace walls.

“I’m perfectly capable of doing it myself.” I pointed out.

“I know,” He smirked. “But I want you to be able to not have to focus on the ride but what’s around you,” There was a softness to his voice that I gave into.

The Raphael, my friend, from yesterday seemed to be back. He was carefree as he led me through majestic woods, pointing out trees, flowers, plants and wildlife, naming them all.

I was in wonder again. I had never been to this side of the kingdom before... I never knew it existed. It was enchanting.

“Y/n?” Raphael asked, looking pointedly at me, a smirk on his face.

“Yes?” I asked innocently, tearing my gaze away from the calm river the flows beside us.

“Are you hungry?” He gestured to a rock clearing next to the river set up with a small picnic.

“You did this?” My heart soared as tears threatened to fall. “Raph,” I dismounted and drew closer to the setup, hand over my mouth in shock.

“Do you like it?” He sounded hesitant.

“This is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me,” I whispered and turned to him, wrapping my arms around him without a second thought, “Thank you,”

He seemed wary of hugging me back, but he did give in.

“I... wanted to make up for yesterday...” He seemed sheepish. 

“Yesterday?” I asked, taking a seat beside him on the soft cotton blanket.

“After the flower shop, Y/n...” he looked down, searching for words. “You... you’re a princess. Royalty. You’re going to be queen one day,”

“One day,” I echoed.

“And look at me! I’m just... I’m nothing compared to you!”

“Raph, don’t... don’t say that.” My face fell as sorrow filled my heart. “Please, believe me, I don’t care about...” I scrambled for the right words. “Status... or face value... or...” I shook my head.

“The fact I’m a monster?” He offered, putting into words what I didn’t want to.

“That never mattered to me,” I reaffirmed. “Please, Raph, for the first time in my life, I’m free from who I’m supposed to be! I can be myself with you. That’s... it means everything to me,”

He nodded lost in thought.

“You know this is doomed,” He muttered. 

“And yet here we are having lunch,” I smiled.

“Here we are,” He echoed.

“Please... don’t feel like you have to be anything but yourself when you’re with me,” I looked down at my lap. “It means everything to me,”

. 

.

Like my writing? Want more? Here’s my masterlist!

[miss-ingno]

Commission: Neutral Ground

Fandom: ragehappy Ship: Jerevinwood (Jeremy/Gavin/Ryan) Words: 4.8k Tags: superhero!Gavin, supervillain!Ryan, neutral!Jeremy, coffeeshop au, getting together, flirting, kidnapping, world domination, mad science, possessive!Ryan, rescue attempts, Jeremy’s mystery superpower, also puns

Summary: Jeremy owns a coffee shop that's basically the Switzerland of the superpowered community. His favourite customers are a hero and villain pair that are clearly dating... so when Gavin gets kidnapped, who else is going to rescue him but Ryan?

A/N: Caliope combined her commission with her outstanding Patron Prompt for this lovely superpowers au! Thank you so much for your support and this amazing idea to play with :D

Read here on Ao3 or here on Patreon.

***

The Neutral Ground café was, as the name suggested, a safe space for any powered individual, no matter their inclination towards good or evil. Rumour had it that the proprietor of the place, one Jeremy Dooley, was a friend of puns and named his coffeeshop after his earthquake powers. Others said he was strong enough to split the ground apart with a kick. Some even considered his interest in wrestling and suggested it was named after his idol, The Rock.

In fact no one was really sure what Jeremy could do. That he was powerful, however, was never in question.

It was a popular location for a variety of of reasons. The coffee was decent and freshly ground, with an assortment of flavoured shots available, and the pastries were creative, to say the least. Some came to spy on their nemesis, others to try and convert them to their side. A lot of anti-heroes just wanted to sit in a quiet corner and brood. All of them enjoyed the neutrality enforced in the café.

There were two regulars, however, who were clearly Jeremy’s favourites.

The first was a hero who called himself Solar Queen, though the media refused to play along and shortened his name to Solar, or sometimes even Solar Man. He was a lanky twenty-something, with tanned skin and sun-bleached hair and the weirdest British accent Jeremy’s ever heard. He had to be a major troll, too, because there was no way words like “schwa” and “guffs” actually existed, no matter how much the hero swore up and down they did.

The other was the Solar Queen’s nemesis, dubbed the “Mad King” by the media. For fairness’ sake, he did keep insisting on calling himself a mad scientist and he was wearing a solid gold crown with a crack running down the front. Every time, he’d tap his foot impatiently while waiting in line for his coffee (triple-espresso shot) and then make a beeline for the table the Solar Queen was sitting at.

Not that Jeremy totally reserved that table for them every Wednesday and Friday, when they usually came in. Nope.

(It did help that that specific table was easy to observe and eavesdrop on from the counter, without giving the appearance of doing so. The staff was greatly entertained by the on-going drama, to the point where the early afternoon shifts on those days were highly coveted. Jeremy blithely ignored the favour trading that was going on amongst his employees and just ‘happened’ to check in during the hour his favourite customers showed up.)

Currently the Mad King was gloating about his most recent ‘victim’, who he was putting through a bunch of tests in his secret lab. Which supposedly the Solar Queen didn’t know the location of, though bets were made on the truthfulness of that statement.

“And there’s nothing you can do about it!” the Mad King exclaimed smugly, throwing up his arms in a victory pose.

“It’s not a proper kidnapping if they agree to come to your lab, innit?” the Solar Queen returned, seeming entirely unconcerned as he ripped apart his banana-mustard filled bear claw. “I mean, informed consent is sorta the backbone of scientific studies.”

“Which is why I’m a mad scientist,” the Mad King pointed out, dropping his arms to pout at the hero. “So I don’t have to care about such petty concerns!”

“Uh huh.” The Solar Queen licked filling off his fingers, pretending not to notice the way the Mad King was staring at him. And definitely didn’t slow down as his tongue swirled around the digits before closing his lips around them. With a sucking pop sound he freed them to point at the Mad King. “Is it still science if you ignore scientific process?”

“What- I- that is-”

The Mad King sputtered, face flushed bright red (in indignation! not blushing!) as he searched for a counterpoint, and the coffee shop employees all hurried off to do their jobs so they weren’t caught staring.

“They’re such a married couple, oh my God,” Lindsay commented under her breath, carrying a tray of fresh pastries past him.

Jeremy choked on his laughter. “They totally are, oh God. What idiots.”

But while he lingered behind the counter, gleefully awaiting what comeback the Mad King would come up with once he recovered, when the shattering of glass distracted him. Looking up, he saw one of his waitresses holding onto a serving tray filled with dirty cups and glasses, shards scattered across the floor around her. That in itself wasn’t too unusual a sight, a certain level of loss in tableware was to be expected from clumsiness or bad timing.

Jeremy narrowed his eyes. This didn’t seem like that kind of situation.

Her hands were shaking, clutching the tray like a lifeline. And in front of her, towering over her with a snarl and raised hand, was one of the city’s major villains. Jeremy knew all of the powered people in the region, whether they were regulars or not. If he recalled correctly, this one had super strength and unbreakable skin. And he was clearly threatening Jeremy’s employee.

Jeremy took all of this in within a glance and already made his way over before the commotion registered for his patrons, conversations dying down as they turned to watch.

“What seems to be the problem?” he interrupted the ranting villain, who seemed to be berating the waitress.

“Are you the manager?” the villain asked, voice tight with anger.

“Something like that, yes,” Jeremy drawled, arching a brow.

“Good, then I don’t have to hunt you down.” The villain smoothed down his uniform, black spandex that looked glued to his every muscle. “I expect to be served immediately.”

“Well, there’s the queue, pal.” Jeremy indicated the line waiting at the coffee counter with a jerk of his chin. The villain’s eyes narrowed.

“No, that won’t do.” He sniffed and straightened to his full height, glaring down his nose at Jeremy. “Do you have any idea who I am?”

“Not anyone worth of note,” a familiar voice drawled from behind Jeremy, and the Mad King stepped up behind his shoulder. He eyed the other villain with undisguised distaste. “And rather dimwitted at that.”

“Can’t even stick to the one rule of this place,” the Solar Queen agreed at his other shoulder. His eyes were glowing a bright yellow-white. “Need some help, luv?” The question was directed at Jeremy, but his gaze didn’t leave the villain.

“Nah.” Jeremy cracked his neck and shrugged his shoulders loose. “I got this.”

He took a step forward, crossing his arms and standing face to chest with the villain, before craning his head up to meet his glare with one of his own.

“This café is neutral. No violence allowed. So either you behave and stand in line-” The villains eyes flickered to the queue, before returning to Jeremy’s with a sneer. “-or you leave.”

“Or else?” the villain asked, sounding amused. He crossed his arms and leaned forward, looming over Jeremy. “What you gonna do about it, shorty?”

“Buddy, pal.” Jeremy shook his head and smirked. “Do you know who I am?” He emphasized his point with two pokes to the villain’s chest. Then he leaned in. “I own this place. You wanna start trouble? You’re going to regret it.”

The villain reared back in shock. “You? You’re the infamous proprietor?” He looked Jeremy up and down, before barking out a laugh. “So what, you got super strength? Big deal.”

“I’ll let you in on a secret, pal,” Jeremy replied conversationally, his smirk growing. And then he lied. “I’ve never had to use my power here yet. You know why? Because everyone knows better than to make me angry.” He paused to let that sink in, before adding, “And you wouldn’t like me if I’m angry.”

“Oh, please do,” the Mad King commented in his usual disdainful drawl. “I’ve been waiting for a chance to see his power in action.”

Jeremy threw the Mad King a deadpan look over his shoulder, while the other villain took a hesitant step backwards, reconsidering his options. Jeremy turned back to him.

“So what’s it gonna be, pal?”

The villain held up his hands in surrender, slowly backing away from him before turning on his heel and storming out, cape nearly getting caught in the door as it slammed shut from the force of his swing. The café roared in laughter, employees and patrons both giving him a round of applause. Jeremy sketched a quick brow before clapping to get his staff’s attention.

“Back to work, everyone!”

With that, the commotion handled, Jeremy turned around to do the same, only to nearly stumble into the Mad King and the Solar Queen, still flanking him. Backing him up.

“Shame.” The Mad King cocked his head and crossed his arms. “I was really looking forward to that demonstration.”

Jeremy snorted and shrugged, leading the totally-not-dating villain and hero back to their table. He had to bite his tongue not to make a sarcastic comment. Because he had used his power, but saying so might give the game away. And for his power to work, subtlety was key.

“Can I get you two anything else?” he asked, before winking at the Solar Queen. “I’ve got a new speciality coffee. A particularly neutral ground, if you will.”

The Mad King groaned, hiding his face in his hands, while the Solar Queen burst into giggles.

“Jeremy, no! Jeremy, that was awful!” he cackled, clearly delighted.

Jeremy smirked and winked at them, before taking their orders and moving on. They were his favourite customers for a reason, and not just because their laughter sent butterflies fluttering in his stomach. Nope.

***

Being a hero was hard work, but usually worth it. Gavin liked helping people, liked making them smile. It felt good. Validating. And it came with other perks occasionally. Rescuing kittens from trees led to kittens he could pet! Or like being kidnapped by his nemesis, that was always fun. But it also came with certain downsides, like being kidnapped by people who weren’t his nemesis.

Case in point.

Gavin pulled at the cables strapping him to the machine and grimaced. Ropes he could have burned through with his powers, and zipties were surprisingly easy to break if you could get the right leverage. But Ryan had figured out how to tie him up just so that he could only escape when it suited him. Seeing and feeling the steel cables made Gavin’s heart stutter for a beat or two, and if he was honest with himself it wasn’t fear.

No, it was anticipation.

He liked arguing with Ryan, riling the villain up until he sputtered and blushed. It was cute.

However, his heart sank as he looked around. He knew exactly how Ryan’s labs looked like, and this wasn’t one of them. Sure, he could’ve build a new, secret one since their last encounter, but it just didn’t feel like a Mad King lair. No flair, no panache, and no adherence to proper lab protocol, going by the hench people running about. Ryan wouldn’t stand for such obvious breach of safety measures. They weren’t even wearing goggles!

The villain looming over him with an evil grin was another hint.

Doctor Ghoulish was a minor annoyance at best, a Frankenstein wannabe past his prime. Not that he ever got very far with his schemes, to the point where Gavin’s only heard of him from… unconventional sources. Namely Ryan complaining about his incompetent competition. For a mad scientist, Ryan had very strong opinions on how science was to be done. Right now, however, Gavin was properly annoyed at the villain.

And no, that wasn’t because he was sulking.

Even if he’d prefered to have been kidnapped by Ryan, in all honesty.

"Awake at last, Mr. Solar?" the villain murmured in his smarmy voice, fitting his smarmy face. Smarmy bastard.

"It's Solar Queen. It's not that hard to get right," Gavin corrected him, frowning. Then he sighed, resigning himself to bad theatrics. At least Ryan got creative with his drama, but Gavin figured he shouldn't expect much from someone who didn't even make the C-list. "What do you want?"

"Ah, what a loaded question. I have knowledge, I have power, and soon I'll have fame! What is left to want?"

"Uh, a lot?" Gavin snarked, wiggling his hands. If he could grab the cables, he might be able to heat them up. He doubted they were as high quality as he was used to. Now, if only he knew what the strange contraption he was tied to was used for...

"Indeed. And I will have it all!" The villain stepped back from Gavin, pacing in front of a different machine full of blinking lights, levers and a big, red button. On top of it sat a small satellite dish, like a weird sort of hat. “Today, we start with Austin, tomorrow, the world!”

World domination. Great. How original.

Gavin tried not to compare villains to Ryan too often, but he couldn’t help it. And Dr. Ghoulish fell short of even his lowered expectations. Gavin figured he could buy himself some time for his escape attempt by getting the villain to monologue. It’d probably be the same boring crap as always, but most villains fell for it. Even Ryan did occasionally, loathe as Gavin was to admit it. Something about being a mad scientist made him inclined to explain his plans. But that was part of the game! Ryan would leave him just enough hints to puzzle through the situation until he found a solution.

Now, however, they were playing for keeps. And the more information he had, the better. So with a sigh, Gavin asked in as reasonable a tone as he could manage, “And how are you going to do that?”

“Simple!” the villain boasted, patting his machine. At a second look, Gavin could see it was connected to the machine he was tied to with heavy duty electric cables. “This baby can fire a laser so strong it would blow up the moon! And if they won’t surrender, I will! But no, a demonstration is needed first. I have commandeered a satellite in orbit, and when I fire this laser, it will be mirrored back, pulverizing the city! And then they will see, they will kneel, they will worship me like I deserve!”

Dr. Ghoulish threw back his head and laughed, before coming to circle around Gavin’s gurney, eyes wide and shining with madness. He reached out, lifting Gavin’s chin with a finger, before caressing his cheek. Gavin’s nose scrunched up in distaste at the unwanted touch.

“All I need… is a little… juice.”

Realization hit, and Gavin paled, fervently glad he hadn’t tried burning through the cables yet.

“I won’t help you, Dr. Ghoulish! I will not use my power to destroy!”

The villain scowled. “Yes, you will! I need you to power the battery.”

“Which I won’t,” Gavin returned, arching a brow.

“Yes, you will!”

“No, I won’t.”

“You…! You…!” Dr. Ghoulish gaped at him, and Gavin felt a twinge of incredulity. How did someone with such half-baked plans ever manage to kidnap him in the first place!?

“It seems like we’re at an impasse,” Gavin said, testing his bonds again. Not being able to use his powers to escape limited his options. He winced. The cables were biting into his wrists with how much he was moving them. “So how about this? You let me go and we forget about this whole thing.”

“No!” Dr. Ghoulish growled, starting to pace. “Do you think me stupid? You will just tell your friends, and I’ll still be down a power source. No, you will power my machine for me, whether you want to or not! Henchmen!” He turned to the assembled crew of hired hands. “Go! Find Solar’s weakness! I’m sure he has a cat or something he rescued like the goody-two-shoes he is. Bring it he-!”

He was interrupted when the doors to the lab slammed open with a loud bang!

"Not so fast, Dr. Ghoulish!"

The silhouette of a crowned man stood in the door framed by a strong light behind him, cape billowing dramatically despite the lack of wind inside the building. Footsteps echoed through the suddenly silent lab, with the sound of glass crushed under boots. The hench people gaped at the supervillain as he brushed past them, not paying them any mind, intent on his quarry.

“Mad King!” Dr. Ghoulish snarled, lip curling in anger. “What do you want? Can’t you see I’m busy!”

"I heard you captured my nemesis," Ryan said, inclining his head in Gavin's direction before clasping his hands behind his back as he came to a stop. "I find that… unacceptable."

“You can have him after I’m done with him.” Dr. Ghoulish waved him off dismissively. “It’s not like I’ll have further use of him.”

“Well, my good fellow, as lovely as that seems… that just won’t do. You see-” Ryan’s voice dropped to a growl. “-he’s mine.”

“And I kidnapped him, so it’s my turn to do whatever to him!” Dr. Ghoulish snapped irritably. “Just because you keep losing him during his escape attempts-”

“I do not appreciate someone of… your calibre-” Ryan gave him a derisive once-over. “-stepping in and ruining my plans. You will hand him over to me.”

"And if I don’t? What are you going to do about it?" Dr. Ghoulish sneered, expression a petulant grimace. "Talk me to death?"

The goons laughed when Dr. Ghoulish signalled them to, and Gavin rolled his eyes. Ryan, however, just smirked.

"Simple," he drawled, raising his chin and staring Dr. Ghoulish down, "I cut your funding."

The laughter died abruptly.

"You… you what?" Dr. Ghoulish asked, aghast.

"I talked to the Corpirate. Did you know, he owed me a favour?" Ryan spread his hands in a 'what can you do' gesture, obviously enjoying himself. He turned to address the hired help directly. "That means no salaries for you, by the way. Just so you're aware."

The hench people exchanged long looks, before dropping their weapons and tools to back away with hands raised.

"No you fools! Stay!" Dr. Ghoulish whirled around to point at them. "Or face the consequences of my wrath!"

"Rather yours than the Mad King's!" one of them quipped, not stopping in their retreat. There was a titter of laughter, and Dr. Ghoulish turned bright red. Only the four goons flanking him remained.

“Surrender, Dr. Ghoulish, and I shall consider mercy when it comes to punishment for your… transgressions.” Ryan turned his back on the other villain, stepping up to the battery, gaze flickering over Gavin, checking him for injuries. Gavin gave him a reassuring smile. “You have lost. Give in gracefully now, and-”

“Ryan!” Gavin cried out in warning, eyes widening. He’d been too busy enjoying the show Ryan was putting on, he hadn’t noticed the henchman sneaking up on Ryan.

Ryan turned only to get a faceful of metal wrench and crumbled to the floor. Gavin strained against the cables, knowing it was useless but fear urging him on. A burst of his power, a small beam of solar energy hit the wrench and tossed it across the lab, where it clattered into a corner. At the same time, the battery lit up, and Gavin felt it suck up more of his energy than such a small beam warranted.

Dr. Ghoulish clapped in delight.

“Well, well,” he mused, smirk distorting his face. “Seems like I have found your weakness.” He kicked Ryan in the side, and Gavin snarled, throwing himself forward and straining against the cables. Dr. Ghoulish chuckled. “Who would have thought?”

“Leave him alone, you smegpot!”

Dr. Ghoulish, however, just continued to cackle, ordering his remaining goons to tie his fellow villain up. He was eyeing Ryan speculatively, before turning to Gavin with a shit-eating grin.

“I will give you some time to consider my proposition,” he said in a formal tone at odds with his behaviour. “And if you refuse… well…” His grin grew. “I can’t guarantee that Ryan here will be quite the same man you knew.”

With that, he turned and left, taking his goons with him. His laughter echoed through the lab long after he walked out the door. Gavin waited a moment longer, just to be sure, before craning his head to check on his nemesis. Ryan hung slumped forwards in ropes that tied him to the machine Gavin was supposed to power, his face turning an ugly red on one side. Gavin hiss in sympathetic pain. That would be one hell of a bruise.

"Well, there goes that plan," Ryan murmured, groaning as he lifted his head to meet Gavin’s gaze. "Should have seen that coming."

"Well, yeah. It's obvious, innit." Gavin drawled, sacking back in relief. "Ryan, you knew it would backfire, Ryan, right?"

"...no."

"...that's just dumb, Ryan." Gavin huffed a sigh. “You trod all over his sense of grandeur, Ryan. Showed him up in front of his hirelings, made him a laughing stock. Of course he lashed out.”

Ryan winced, face scrunched up in pain, before thunking his head against the metal side of the machine.

“I suppose I didn’t think this through,” he allowed. Gavin grimaced.

“You’re not the only one there, sorry,” he admitted, avoiding Ryan’s gaze when the other looked over. “We have a problem.”

“How to get out of here?” he suggested.

“I can’t use my powers without the battery sucking me dry, yeah,” Gavin conceded. He glanced up at Ryan from under his lashes. “Two problems, then.”

Ryan let out a long-suffering sigh, closing his eyes. “What else?”

“I, uh.” Gavin cringed. “I may have let slip your name to Ghoulish.”

Silence reigned as the tension grew between them, Ryan refusing to open his eyes while Gavin bit his lip, cursing himself for his mistake. He was usually better at watching his tongue with others around.

“I suppose we’ll have to deal with that eventually,” Ryan muttered, shaking his head. “First things first. We need to get out. What’s his plan?”

Gavin told him. Ryan nodded slowly, craning his neck to get a better glimpse of the machine’s display.

“I wonder if I can sabotage it…” Ryan tugged at the ropes wrapped around his torso and arms. Gavin could see even from several feet away they were digging into his flesh. Ryan grimaced. “Could you burn through these? Just enough that I can shake off the rest.”

“A concentrated beam shouldn’t take too much energy, but…” Gavin bit his lip. “I’m worried about how much the battery will suck up, though.”

He didn’t mention the stab of pain he’d felt the first time because he knew if he did, Ryan would rather break his own arm or dislocate his shoulder or something equally stupid to spare Gavin. Taking a deep breath, Gavin focussed on that inner pool of heat. Once he felt he had a firm grasp on his power, he tugged it forward hard and fast, rather than letting it swell up as usual.

It burst forth from his eyes, the easiest way to direct them with his hands tied up. Smoke rose from the ropes, and then the pain slammed into the back of his head.

With a cry, Gavin closed his eyes and struggled to push his power back down, trying to cut the connection the battery had established, leeching energy from him. His back arched off the gurney, as little as he could move, his head colliding with the metal slab. Stars glittered in front of his closed eyelids, and Gavin grit his teeth. He felt exhausted.

There was no chance he could do that a second time.

Gavin could hear Ryan curse and mutter under his breath, shifting and fidgeting, trying to shake the rope loose or whatever it took to escape his restraints. He could only hope he’d managed to burn enough. He barely had his breathing back under control, not yet daring to open his eyes, when he heard the doors slide back open, followed by footsteps.

And just like that, they were out of time.

Dr. Ghoulish was boasting about his plans, repeating pretty much what he told Gavin earlier, but with more fervour and mechanical details. Gavin wondered what the point was, until Ryan exhaled sharply in surprise. Gavin’s eyes popped open and he craned his neck to see Dr. Ghoulish was parading around his lab, followed by his four goons. But what shocked Ryan was immediately apparent to Gavin: Jeremy.

Jeremy was walking side by side with Dr. Ghoulish, nodding along.

“-and with Solar’s power, I will have unlimited energy! See, already he has filled my battery with enough juice to take down entire cities, just with his fruitless struggles!” Dr. Ghoulish exclaimed as they stopped in front of the gurney. Jeremy hummed thoughtfully.

“I see.” Then he turned to Dr. Ghoulish. “Might I suggest untying Solar Queen for a moment though, so he may regain his energy? After all, your laser is of no use if you suck him dry prematurely.”

Dr. Ghoulish stroked his chin and nodded. “Yes, yes, I can see the wisdom in that. Henchmen! Untie Solar for now.”

Gavin let himself slump onto the gurney, slowly sliding to the floor as thoughts raced through his brain. Whatever Jeremy was doing here, he had just, intentionally or inadvertently, given Gavin a way out. He opened his eyes half-mast to give a more tired impression, and met Ryan’s gaze across the lab. Several of the ropes were sagging weirdly, some ends stuffed under Ryan’s arm to hide their damage.

Ryan’s eyes checked him over, before flickering back to Jeremy, a calculating glint to them.

“And I see you captured the Mad King, too!” Jeremy said, managing to sound both impressed and bored. “Though I doubt he’s useful to your plans.”

“No, not at all,” Dr. Ghoulish agreed absent-mindedly, fiddling with the knobs and levers on the secondary machine. “I did learn his name is Ryan, however, so that might be of some use.”

“Ryan?” Jeremy repeated, brows arched. He exchanged a quicksilver look with Ryan, before turning back to Dr. Ghoulish. “Nah, that can’t be.”

Confusion furrowed Dr. Ghoulish’s brows. “I could swear Solar called him that, though…”

“Of course he did.” Jeremy nodded with a wise air to him. “And clearly the Mad King must have convinced his nemesis that it’s his true name, but why would he share it with a hero of all things?”

“Yes, yes, quite right.” Dr. Ghoulish mirrored Jeremy’s nodding until Jeremy stopped. Then he blinked. “Now, how about a demonstration?”

“That’s why we’re here,” Jeremy agreed, then gestured to the goons. “Perhaps send them outside to stand watch? Just in case.”

“Yes, yes.” Dr. Ghoulish cleared his throat. “You heard the man! No one is allowed in until the laser fired!”

Once the goons left the lab, Dr. Ghoulish turned to his machine. Gavin surged to his feet, fists glowing like miniature suns. At the same time, Ryan strained against his restraints, the remaining ropes snapping. But before either of them could spring into action, Dr. Ghoulish crumbled to the floor with one well-placed karate chop from Jeremy.

Gavin and Ryan stared at Jeremy who brushed off his hands.

“Well, that’s that.” He turned to the hero and villain duo. “You two okay?”

“I… yeah. Jeremy?”

“Mhm?” Jeremy bent down to grab Ryan’s discarded ropes, making a quick job of tying Dr. Ghoulish up.

“What… How did you know we were in trouble?” Gavin asked.

“He-” Jeremy pointed at Ryan. “-ran out of the ‘shop like a bat out of hell. After he received a phone call while waiting for you-” Jeremy pointed at Gavin. “-for like half an hour at your usual table. Obviously something was wrong.”

“How did you do that?” Ryan demanded to know, pointing in turn at the other villain. “Convince him so fast. You barely said a thing!”

“Well…” Jeremy straightened up and smirked. “You wanted a demonstration of my power, didn’t you, Ryan? You’re welcome.”

He brushed a kiss to Ryan’s cheek, who sputtered. “I… you… what?”

“That’s where my power lies,” Jeremy said, deadpan, and Gavin, having caught on by now, started to giggle.

“Jeremy, my hero!” He laughed, bounding over to the coffee shop owner and kissing his cheek in turn. “Jeremy, that was awesome, Jeremy!” Then he turned to Ryan with a wicked grin, stage-whispering, “Ryan, we should thank him properly, Ryan.”

“Should we,” Ryan returned, eyeing Jeremy up and down. Jeremy flushed. “Why, my darling Solar Queen, I think we shall.” He glanced around the lab, then walked over to the battery and pulled the plug. It stopped humming instantly, energy sputtering out. “But not here.”

With that, they each threw an arm over a flustered Jeremy’s shoulder, leading him out the backdoor.

It would take the goons a while to figure out something went wrong, Gavin figured. They didn’t seem the brightest of the bunch.

[inevitably-johnlocked]

i never see top lock anymore, and i get why— but do you have a list of sherlock being dominant? i love when he’s possessive over the people who he loves.

Anonymous said to inevitably-johnlocked: do you have a master list of toplock?? i just love seeing sherlock jealous of possessive over john :)

Anonymous said to inevitably-johnlocked: do you have any possessive smut fics with sherlock topping? (or just rough sex in general) i really love jealous sherlock.

Anonymous said to inevitably-johnlocked: Hi, do you have any top!lock stories? It can be fluff, or smut. I really was in the mood for some top Sherlock, and if you could maybe some Jealous top!lock too. Thank you very much!

Hey Nonnies!

I hesitate to say you’re all the same nonny, but the wording is very similar and these all came a few days apart. If you aren’t please accept my apologies, for that and for the delay; when I get fic requests for fics I know I have a decent amount of, it takes me awhile to go through all 1000+ of my bookmarks to pick fics to rec for y’all. That said, I know I don’t have EVERY fic I have bookmarked with toplock in it, but I do have a few already tagged, so that’s what this list is for you today

Hope you enjoy, and as always, lovelies, please add your own fics or recs to this list! haven’t added ALL my fics with toplock in it, nor fics with switchlock (that will be a separate list when the time comes), so I’ve definitely missed some fics I’ve recced in the past

TOPLOCK

See also:

Omegaverse

Jealous & Possessive Sherlock 

Possessive Sherlock Pt 2

Husband by jinglebell (E, 2,003 w., 1 Ch. || Est. Rel., PWP, Anal, Multiple Orgasms, Fluff) – Sherlock orgasms when John refers to him as ‘husband’.

Caught in the Act – by Mycroft by ShirleyCarlton (E, 2,040 w., 1 Ch. || Unintended Voyeurism, Mycroft’s POV, Blow Job, Humour) – Mycroft had only planted the camera for Sherlock’s own good, simply to keep an eye on his little brother and make sure he was alright. He hadn’t quite meant to see his brother this content, however… Part 4 of Caught In The Act

Stay by msdisdain (M, 3,561 w., 1 Ch. || First Kiss / Time, Angst / H/C, Bed Sharing, Nightmares, Blow Jobs, Anal) – John’s nightmares are nothing new. Sherlock’s inability to ignore them, however, is.

Wasted Hours by songlin (E, 4,973 w., 1 Ch. || Omegaverse || O!John/A!Sherlock, Pining, UST, Angst & Porn) – John is respectful. John keeps his distance. He doesn’t look at Sherlock when Sherlock decides trousers are for dull people. He doesn’t breathe in and savor it when Sherlock flings himself onto the couch first thing in the morning, wafting alpha scent, dressing gown settling around him in a cloud of blue silk. He doesn’t linger when he’s piecing Sherlock back together after a fight, even though he’s half-dressed and beautiful and right there. He can ignore it. He can control it.

See Recipe for Details by pandoras_chaos (E, 4,981 w., 1 Ch. || Oral / Anal Sex, Food, PWP, Fingerfucking) – John knows Sherlock’s mouth will never water over the sweet smells of baking chocolate biscuits or a lovely roast chicken, but he’s watched Sherlock nick mince pies out of Mrs. Hudson’s fridge often enough to deduce that the man does have taste, albeit confusing and obscure. So John makes a list: Things Sherlock Likes

Caffeine and Adaptive Programming by DemonicSymphony (E, 5,540 w., 1 Ch. || Androids AU / Bond Fusion || Android Sherlock, Coffee Shop AU, Pining John Hinted Bond / Q, Toplock) – Sherlock is a coffee shop android slowly falling for a regular customer. But he’s not supposed to be able to feel emotions.

The doctor is in by PlainJane (E, 7,581 w., 1 Ch. || Omegaverse || Sex Therapist, Anal, Hand Jobs, Frottage, Virgin Sherlock) – Sherlock is a young alpha with an aversion to his cycle. John is a gender medicine specialist. Nothing could possibly go wrong… Part 1 of Doctors and detectives

Just Like That by sussexbound (E, 8,442 w., 1 Ch. || First Time/Kiss, Frottage, Virgin Sherlock, French Kissing, Anal, Emotional Lovemaking, Enthusiastic Consent, Tenderness, Crying John, Bathing/Washing, Insecure John, Toplock) – John doesn’t want to talk anymore. He wants. Oh dear god, how he wants. For the first time in what feels like years he WANTS.

London Gods by a_different_equation (E, 11,092 w., 5 Ch. || American Gods Fusion || Magical Realism, Sex Magic, True Love, PTSD John, First Kiss/Time, Marathon Sex, Sensuality, Genie Sherlock, Human John, Internalized Homophobia, Star-Crossed Lovers, Soul Mates) – Sherlock Holmes is a jinn who does not grant wishes. However, when Dr. John H. Watson, recently returned from the war in Afghanistan, gets into his cab by “accident”, it might not even need magic to grant both men their deepest wish: love.

And if you say the word, I could stay with you by CaitlinFairchild (E, 12,842 w., 1 Ch. || Domestic Fluff, BottomJohn / Topping from the Bottom, Fluff and Romance, Dirty Talk, Proposals) – What Sherlock thinks is, On the day I die, be it in a dirty alley at forty or in my bed at eighty, the last thing I will remember is tonight, the way you looked at at me on the snowy pavement, cheeks pink with the cold, breath puffing in frosty white clouds, your heart in your eyes and snowflakes in your hair. I will remember that single perfect moment in my life, that moment I knew I had everything I ever wanted, and whatever happens next, I will die content. What he says is simply, “Marry me.”

Take My Breath Away by Quesarasara (E, 14,240 w., 1 Ch. || Emotional H/C, Angst & Fluff, Toplock, Smut, Lingerie) – Sherlock opens his eyes and looks at his friend—his best friend—and slowly tips his chin down until his forehead rests softly against John’s. They stay that way for a long moment, lips just a whisper apart, warm puffs of air mingling as each of them struggles to breathe. It’s no wonder they ended up here, really, locked in this breathless moment balanced on the cusp of something new. They’ve spent years taking each other’s breath away…

The Palmyra Atoll by elwinglyre (E, 16,609 w., 3 Ch. || TSo3 Divergence / Episode Fix-It, Stockholm Syndrome, Kidnapped John Watson, John Whump, Evil Mary, Angst, Cuddling & Snuggling, Toplock, Limited 3rd John POV) – As John’s preparing for the wedding, Sherlock is preparing to have his heart broken, and Mary is prepared to do the unthinkable. Intervention required. Enter Sherlock. Set before Sign of Three with a far different outcome. John is drugged, kidnapped, and left on an island, but not just any old island.

Maintaining A Personal Life by Gingerhermit (E, 24,284 w., 6 Ch. || Alternating POV’s, Bisexuality, BAMF!John, Jealous Sherlock, Romance / Drama, Sort-of Case Fic, Peril & Angst, Love Confessions, Toplock, Soft Idiots in Love, Post S3) – Sherlock and John discover some interesting revelations about each other’s sexuality, which lead them both to question the assumptions they’ve made about one another for years. In the midst of their mutual discoveries, a dangerous psychopath looms on the side-lines who threatens to destroy their new beginning.

The Whore of Babylon Was a Perfectly Nice Girl by out_there (E, 32,897 w., 1 Ch. || Past Drug Use, Blowjobs, Toplock, Mentions of Switching, Rough Sex, Background Cases, Sherlock’s Past, Sherlock’s Sexual History, Experienced Sherlock, Past One Night Stands, Fingering, Cuddling, Possessive Sherlock, Paris Holiday, Bed Sharing, Naked Lie-Ins, Bathing Together, Confessions, Worried Sherlock, Laying in Bed All Day, Meddling Mycroft, Naked Lazy Day) – Sherlock walks into a room and takes all the space right out of it. He does the same inside John’s head.

The Wrong Wagon by DancingGrimm (E, 35,663 w., 20 Ch. || Alternating POV, MollyxJohn [Molly pines for John], Public Sex, Casual Sex, Obliviousness, BAMF!John, Awkwardness, Angst & Humour, First Time, Virgin Sherlock, Jealous Sherlock) – Molly sees John in a new light and realises that she may have hitched her horse to the wrong wagon…or something like that. John pines for Sherlock and worries what he will think if he ever finds out. And Sherlock doesn’t know what Molly’s up to…but he knows he doesn’t like it.

Only To Be With You by SinceWhenDoYouCallMe_John (M, 40,768 w., 4 Ch. || Black Mirror / Future AU || Character Death, Future Technology, Sickness/Cancer/Illness, Heavy Angst with Happy Ending, First Person POV John, Pining John, Heart-Wrenching Angst) – I tell myself that next time I’ll come near this same place again. Wait around for the mysterious stranger in his coat to dash past me, hot on the heels of a new criminal in black. I think this all the way back to my Exit, planning where I’ll wait and what I’ll say when I see him. Scheming on how to get his name. It’s only once I reach the Exit Point door that I realize two hours and forty-five minutes have passed, and I realize that this won’t be the last time I Visit. It won’t be the last time at all.

Guidelines by WithLoweredVoices (M, 43,018 w., 15 Ch. || Winglock || Angels, Fantasy, Angst, BAMF! John, War, Jealous Sherlock, Possessive Sherlock, Jealous John, Falling in Various Ways, Needy Sherlock, Wings) – The Good Soldier, one of the oldest and strongest of the fallen, is offered a bargain: to live as John Watson and to Guide a fledgling archangel so that he will stay on the path of good. Of course, Sherlock Holmes has different ideas about his destiny. Fantasy AU. Warnings for violence, occasional gore, and a whole load of hurt and angst.

Bloody But Unbowed by BeautifulFiction (E, 43,211 w., 8 Ch. || Abduction, John Whump, Mild Torture, Background Case Fic, Friends to Lovers, Post-TRF / S3 Rewrite, Hurt/Comfort) – When a familiar argument threatens to destroy the last remnants of John and Sherlock’s failing friendship, both men are left questioning their worth to one another. Before either of them has the chance to make amends, circumstance intervenes. John is left at the mercy of his abductors, and this time, he’s not sure Sherlock will bother coming to his rescue.

Triage by scullyseviltwin (E, 51,612 w., 14 Ch. || Character Injury, Introspection) – Sherlock’s mind goes exceedingly, devastatingly quiet and gray-blank. When he speaks it’s through a thick haze, it’s through molasses, he’s so disconnected from the words that it may as well be the unconscious shooter speaking.

Uphill by scullyseviltwin (E, 77,750 w., 18 Ch. || Olympics AU || Sherlock POV, Skier!Sherlock / Medic!John, Rivalry, 2014 Olympics, Happy Ending) – Sherlock Holmes is striving for gold in this, his fourth and final Olympics as a downhill Alpine racer.

Secrets and Revelations by Hisstah (E, 83,535 w., 9 Ch. || Sentinel / Guides Omegaverse AU || Adventure, Violence, Anal / Oral, Omega!John / Alpha!Sherlock, Case Fic, Politics, Mild DubCon) – Dr John Watson has some major secrets that he’s kept from his flatmate, Alpha Sentinel Sherlock Holmes. Now the Sentinel Tower is after him. Can John stay out of their hands until he can reveal his secrets to Sherlock? Part 1 of Secrets and Revelations

Secrets and Revelations by Hisstah (E, 85,535 w., 9 Ch. || Sentinel / Guides AU, Omegaverse, Aventure, Violence, Anal / Oral, Omega!John / Alpha!Sherlock, Case Fic, Politics, Mild DubCon) – Dr John Watson has some major secrets that he’s kept from his flatmate, Alpha Sentinel Sherlock Holmes. Now the Sentinel Tower is after him. Can John stay out of their hands until he can reveal his secrets to Sherlock? Part 1 of Secrets and Revelations

31_Days_of_Porn_Challenge_2017 Series by distantstarlight (E, 96,540 w. across 31 stories || Prompt Ficlets, Assorted Kinks, PWP) – A collection in response to the 31 Days of Porn Challenge issued by AtlinMerrik! Thanks for doing that because this has been buttload of fun (that joke never gets old). All stories will be brief stand-alone one-shots.

A Fold in the Universe by darkest_bird (E, 152,869 w., 26 Ch. || Omegaverse / Prime Universe Crossover || OmegaJohn / AlphaSherlock, First Kiss / Time, Friends to Lovers, Established Relationship, Angst, H/C, Dub Con, Humour) – Alpha Sherlock and Omega John are in a relationship. Prime Sherlock and Prime John are not. So what happens when a freak fold in the universe switches one John for the other?

Proving A Point by elldotsee & J_Baillier (E, 186,270 w., 28 Ch. || Me Before You Fusion || Medical Realism, Insecure John, Depression, Romance, Angst, POV John, Sherlock Whump, Serious Illness, Doctor John, Injury Recovery, Assisted Suicide, Sherlock’s Violin, Awkward Sexual Situations, Alcoholism, Drugs, Idiots in Love, Slow Burn, Body Image, Friends to Lovers, Hurt / Comfort, Pain, Big Brother Mycroft, Intimacy, Anxiety, PTSD, Family Issues, Psychological Trauma, John Whump, Case Fics, Loneliness, Pain) – Invalided home from Afghanistan, running out of funds and convinced that his surgical career is over, John Watson accepts a mysterious job offer to provide care and companionship for a disabled person. Little does he know how much hangs in the balance of his performance as he settles into his new life at Musgrave Court.

[sserpente]

24 little kinks | Christmas Requests are now open! 🎄☃

“You remember that chocolate advent calendar I got you for December?”

“I do,” Loki chuckled and pressed a tender kiss to your temple. “You made me display it in the kitchen so I would not eat all of the chocolates inside at once.”

Your smile widened. “How about we get another one?”

He raised an eyebrow at you, only now paying proper attention to the sex toy ad. Then, he frowned. It was an odd mixture of disgust, genuine curiosity and even a hint of arousal flashing in his blue eyes.

“I hardly need… toys to satisfy your needs, neither do you need any to satisfy mine. You are not… unchallenged when we are in bed together, are you, sweet one? Because I can ensure you, I can change that in a heartbeat…” He threatened teasingly. His cool lips brushed against your neck, leaving behind a trail of goose bumps on your sensitive skin.

“No… of course not… but experimenting with sex toys can be a lot of fun?”

You almost giggled to yourself despite your growing excitement. You had never actually taken Loki to a sex shop. That should be really interesting; and besides, you had been imagining him tying you up and blindfolding you countless times already. The God of Mischief made no secret out of his dominance, hunger and godly stamina in bed and he had not just once forced you into so many orgasms you had nearly passed out from all the breath-taking pleasure. So why not take it up a notch?

“You intend to buy an advent calendar full of… sex toys for us?” He repeated with raised eyebrows. You could tell he was beginning to like the idea—and what he could do to you, how he could tease you with all the things in this… naughty advent calendar.

You could practically feel him slowly changing his mind, arousal radiating off of him and making you squirm a little in joyful anticipation.

Finally, he sighed, an amused but cheeky smirk playing on his lips. “Very well. Where do we acquire this calendar?”

And with that teaser, I would like to announce that this year’s Christmas requests are now open! 🎄☃ How will it work? This year I’m working on a Christmas special. Everyday, Loki and RC will open a little door and find a new toy to play with... right until Christmas Eve. That should be twenty-four really interesting days, especially with Loki being thoroughly unfamiliar with the concept of sex toys and their function.

Ideally, I would be posting one door—one Imagine, each day until Christmas but due to work, classes, sleeping and baking Christmas biscuits, that might not always work out. Therefore, some doors might get a combined Imagine.

How does my request fit in? So now it’s your turn! Send me all of your (kinky) and Christmassy prompts for Loki. I already know what’s behind every little door, of course. But that doesn’t mean I’m hoping for loads of enticement/suggestions from you guys in my inbox. You know I love receiving your ideas! Please, feel free to request whatever Christmassy prompt you can come up with--most of which I will combine with my Christmas special--and also, do not hesitate to send me requests for other characters as well, if you have any. As this is a Christmas special, most Imagines will be for Loki (and I can’t complain because usually, 80% of all requests I receive are for our mischievous Trickster 😌) but if there’s a specific prompt/request, another character will, throughout the Christmas season, of course make an appearance too.

Requests will be open until November the 30th. I bet many of you guys are in a Christmassy mood already and while I only put away my Halloween decoration today, I’m sure you are as ready as me for some Christmassy prompts.

I will not be able to take regular requests this time, due to the sheer amount of Imagines I’m planning. Rest assured though, as soon as “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” comes out, I will be posting some Kylo Ren and General Hux Imagines in between. I might even be able to take some requests as soon as I’ve seen the movie (which I am super excited about).

Until December the 1st, I will be working on the remaining requests that are still sitting in my inbox, including a sequel for that Thomas Sharpe Imagine you’re all waiting for. ♥

As usual, if you would like to request, please send me an ask, not a direct message and not a comment under this post, simply so I can keep an overview.

I write for:

Kylo Ren (Star Wars)

General Hux (Star Wars)

Captain Boomerang (Suicide Squad)

Harley Quinn (Suicide Squad)

Eric (Divergent)

Loki (Thor/The Avengers)

Newt Scamander (Fantastic Beasts)

Adam (Only Lovers Left Alive)

Captain James Conrad (Kong: Skull Island)

Captain Jack Sparrow (Pirates of the Caribbean)

Ragnar Lothbrok (Vikings) ATTENTION: I’ve only seen two seasons thus far. If you want to request something with Ragnar, please make sure not to include any spoilers!

Jonathan Pine (The Night Manager)

Thomas Sharpe (Crimson Peak)

Now, last but not least, please just make sure to read this quick FAQ before sending me a prompt. I only have a couple of rules but I really would appreciate if you considered them before submitting. 🤗

What do you write? I’ve been a passionate fanfiction writer for more than eight years. Thus, I write stories with my own OCs and Imagines with female reader inserts only. I don’t do personalised Imagines (e.g. specific appearance or name), Imagines with real existing people (like Tom Hiddleston), alpha/omegaverse or songfics (because I have a very specific music taste and don’t want to write a songfic about a song I don’t like).

The only things I don’t particularly enjoy writing about are RC having children and being a mother (unless it’s animals because I’m a proud cat mummy), or being a child. Suicide and self-harm are, with few exceptions concerning context, a no-go for me, as is gore. Other than that, I’m not big on AU’s that take place outside the actual canon universe (so, e.g. vampire!Loki is fine but barista!Loki without his powers in a world in which the Avengers don’t exist isn’t really my thing).

Do you take requests? I do! If you want to send in a prompt/an idea, however, please check the description of my blog before doing so to make sure requests are open. Requests that I receive while they are closed I don’t accept simply because of time management, with only very few exceptions.Please keep in mind: Given that with more than 15k followers, I tend to get up to 100 prompts at once, I choose those I personally like the most and/or that inspire me to write something–it is, unfortunately, impossible to write them all. 😭 I also like to combine requests that work together well to work in as many of your ideas as possible.

So, what should I request? Basically, anything you want. Don’t hesitate just because you think your request is not good enough or weird! If you’re still uncomfortable though, you can send it anonymously as well. Please be aware, however, that I only write what I am personally comfortable with. If I feel like I can’t make anything of your request, if I feel like it’s a great idea but a simple oneshot wouldn’t do justice to it, if I have already read/written something too similar or if it addresses something that is triggering for me, please don’t be upset if I delete it. That, of course, doesn’t mean your request sucks but, like every writer, I want to write stories I actually enjoy writing… or it would just feel like homework! 😅

Do NOT (and trust me, I see everything) send the exact same request you’ve sent to me to other writers as well, for I think that is rude and disrespectful. Should you do so, I’ll simply delete your request(s). If you want me to write something for you, that’s great and I’m flattered but if you send me a prompt, you either want me to write it for you or you don’t want it at all. It’s as simple as that.

How do you let people know that you’ve written/deleted their requests? If the request was anonymous, all I can do is put a note at the beginning of the story and thus make everybody aware that it was a request. I don’t copy the prompts to insert in the Imagine. If the person came off-anon, I tag them to let them know it was posted. If I choose not to write your request because of one of the above named reasons, I will not publish your ask but simply delete it. It would be mean to answer something like “there’s no way in hell I will write this” and I certainly don’t want to show anybody up. However, if you’ve been waiting for a request to be written for a long time already, feel free to ask me about it and I will, if you prefer it that way, answer you privately. Sometimes Tumblr swallows asks, too, unfortunately.

Would you also write about a different character if requested? That depends on the character and the request. You might have noticed that I am mostly into bad guys and villains, so you can’t expect me to write happy unicorn fluff with the world’s nicest super hero. Anyway, you can always ask but please don’t be disappointed if I decline. Naturally, I don’t write about characters from movies/tv shows/books I don’t know, neither do I write about characters that I personally don’t like.

Do you write smut?

Yes, I do. ;-)

Do you do roleplay? No, I don’t.

Do you have a masterlist? You can find my masterlist in the description of my blog, it’s accessable on mobile as well.

What’s your Ko-fi? It’s a website on which you can support me and my writing by buying me a coffee, or alternatively, a cuppa via PayPal. It’s fast, it’s safe (you can stay anonymous) and I would appreciate it so much!

So where and how can I buy you a coffee? Click on the Ko-fi button or the “Support me?” link on my blog. ♥