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itneverendshere · 23 hours

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Can we get something along the lines of bartender reader maybe working at the country club and some guy has been hitting on her all night, he’s older, creepy, won’t leave her alone, getting drunker as the night goes on and she’s just trying to ignore him but she has to go to the supply closet later in the night or steps away for whatever reason and the guy follows her? reader is gone for too long and Rafe notices, finds her and stops the guy?? I need protective Rafe over reader 😍

ugh i hate creeps, literally felt ill writing this but for the sake of the story i did, bc it's unfortunately very common. thank you for the request lovely 🫶🏻🫂

throw away my faith just to keep you safe - r.c

pairing: rafe x pogue!reader (bartender!reader universe) warnings: unwanted advances; there's a creep.

It was just another Friday night, the usual crowd of kooks indulging in their weekly rituals of wealth and excess. For you, it was just another night behind the bar.

Wiping down the counter, you glanced at the clock. Nearly midnight.

Your shift was crawling toward the finish line, thank god, but the crowd promised at least another hour of pouring drinks and faking smiles. Not that you minded by this point — the tips were decent, and the job wasn’t hard. But sometimes, the clientele was more than you could handle.

“Another round for me, sweetheart?”

You turned toward the voice and visibly shuddered at the sight. There he was again — the guy who had been hitting on you all night, like a stupid plague. He was in his mid-forties, with thinning hair and a sleazy smile. He’d been getting progressively drunker, his advances getting bolder with every drink. You didn’t get paid enough to put up with this shit, but you also didn’t feel like getting fired for slapping someone across the face.

You gave him a tight-lipped smile, trying to keep it professional. “Sure. Another whiskey?”

He leaned closer, his breath reeking of alcohol. “Y’know you’ve got the prettiest eyes. Why don’t you come sit with me for a bit? I’m sure the bar can survive without you.”

Internally, you cringed. Outwardly, you kept your smile, though it was starting to drop. “I’m working,” You replied, “I can’t.”

He grinned like he hadn’t heard you — or maybe he just didn’t care. “C’mon, you can take a break. I’ll make it worth your while.”

You’d rather shoot yourself in the face. You turned away, busying yourself with grabbing his drink. You didn’t want to make a scene. You could handle this. You’d dealt with drunk idiots your entire life.

But something about him was different — he wasn’t just annoying, he was persistent, and you didn’t like the way he was looking at you.

Rafe had checked in on you earlier, but you hadn’t seen him for a while. Normally, you could handle yourself, but tonight you really wished he was closer.

The guy’s drink slammed down in front of him harder than you intended, and you forced another smile. “Here you go.”

“Thanks, sweetheart,” he drawled, eyes dragging down your body in a way that made your skin crawl. “You’re too pretty to be stuck behind a bar. Bet you could find someone to take care of you, huh?”

You barely held back an eye roll as you turned away from him, grabbing the rag to wipe down the counter again just to have something to do with your hands.

The guy cleared his throat, leaning even closer over the bar. “How much longer do you think you’ll be working, sweetheart?” His voice was low, like he was trying to make it intimate, but it just made your stomach turn. “I’ll wait for you. We could have a little fun after you’re off. I know you’re not gonna go home alone tonight, right?”

“Yeah, I am,” you muttered under your breath, hoping he didn’t hear.

But he did.

“Aw, come on now, don’t be like that,” he said, his grin widening like you were joking with him. “I know girls like you — all tough on the outside, but once someone gives you a little attention, you melt.”

You slammed the rag down, turning toward him, patience leaving your body. “Look, I’ve told you, I’m working. And even if I wasn’t, I’m not interested. So how about you just take your drink and leave me alone?”

His smile dropped for a moment, his eyes narrowing in irritation. “You don’t gotta be a bitch about it, sweetheart,” he slurred, clearly not backing down. “I’m just trying to be nice.”

Before you could answer — or reach for the nearest object to throw at him — a familiar voice cut in from behind.

“How about you fuck off before I make you?”

You knew that tone. It was the one he used right before things escalated. Fast. You looked over to see Rafe standing just behind the bar, his jaw clenched and his eyes locked onto the guy in front of you.

His posture was tense, fists curled at his sides like he was holding himself back from jumping at the guy. “Rafe,” you called softly, reaching out to grab his arm. “It’s fine, I’ve got it.”

But he didn’t take his eyes off the man. “No, you don’t,” he muttered, stepping closer to the bar, “This guy’s been harassing you all night. He needs to leave.”

He looked Rafe up and down, taking in the expensive clothes, the look in his eyes, and the way his muscles tensed beneath his shirt.

“Hey, man,” the guy said, holding up his hands in a show of surrender. “No need to get all worked up. I was just talking to her.”

“You weren’t just talking,” Rafe snapped, “You were being a creep, and now you’re gonna get the fuck out of here.”

The guy opened his mouth to argue, but Rafe took another step forward, and whatever argument he had died in his throat. He grabbed his drink from the bar, muttering something under his breath that you couldn’t quite catch before he turned and stumbled away toward the door.

Once he was gone, you let out a breath you hadn’t realized you’d been holding.

Rafe turned to you, his expression softening immediately. “You okay, baby?”

You nodded, but your hands were shaking slightly. “Yeah. I’m fine. Thanks for stepping in.”

He stepped closer, “You shouldn’t have to deal with assholes like that.”

“I can handle it,” you replied, “But I’m glad you were here.”

Rafe’s brow furrowed slightly, his thumb tracing soft circles against the skin in your arm. “I don’t want you handling it. I don’t want you dealing with that shit at all.”

You smiled faintly, leaning into his touch. “It’s part of the job sometimes.”

“Not when I’m around, it’s not,” he said firmly, his eyes locking onto yours.

You grinned, your fingers brushing over his collarbone as you tilted your head up to kiss him. His lips were soft against yours and when you pulled back, his forehead rested against yours.

“I’ll be fine for the rest of the night,” you whispered. “Promise.”

He exhaled softly, his arms tightening around you just a little. “I know. I just hate seeing shit like that happen to you.”

“Me too, baby.” you admitted, your fingers tracing patterns on his chest. “But at least the tips are good, right?”

He chuckled, shaking his head. “Only you would focus on the tips after that.”

“Gotta find the silver lining somewhere,” you teased.

Rafe chuckled, leaning down to kiss you again. This time it was deeper, and for a moment, you almost forgot you were still at work. When he pulled away, he glanced back toward the bar. “You need me to stick around?”

You shook your head. “Nah, I think your little display of alpha male behavior probably scared off any other creeps for the night.”

He smirked, looking a little too pleased with himself. “Good.”

“Go hang out with the guys,” you said, patting his chest. “I’ll see you when I’m done.”

He hesitated for a second, his hand still resting on your waist like he wasn’t ready to let go, but finally, he nodded. “Alright. But if I see him again…”

“You won’t,” you assured him. “And if you do, I’ll let you know.”

He gave you one last kiss, then reluctantly let you go and headed back toward his friends. You watched him for a moment, smiling to yourself before you turned back to the bar.

Forty minutes later, Rafe stood by the side of his truck, fingers drumming against the hood as he waited for you to finish up. He hated this place most days — hated how these old, rich assholes thought they could treat you like you were some kind of prize they could buy. It had taken everything in him not to knock that guy out earlier, but he knew you didn’t want a scene. Still, he’d been fuming ever since.

You’d be out any minute now, and the two of you would go to his house. He just needed to chill. But then, five minutes passed… then six… and a knot started to form in his stomach. You were never this late getting out, and you’d told him you’d be quick tonight.

Where the were you? He checked his phone again. Nothing.

Rafe pushed off the truck and started pacing, his eyes glancing between the front entrance and the locker room doors around the back. He knew you were still inside, but something wasn’t sitting right with him. His instincts were screaming at him now. After another minute, he couldn’t take it anymore. Fuck this.

He strode back inside and headed straight for the back hall that led to the locker room where you always changed after work. As he turned the corner, his heart stopped. There, right outside the locker room door, was the same asshole from earlier — the drunk creep who’d been hitting on you. His greasy hand was on the door, shoving it open, trying to force his way inside.

Rafe saw red.

Without thinking, he surged forward, grabbing the guy by the collar and slamming him back against the wall so hard the drywall cracked. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing?”

The guy didn’t have time to react before Rafe’s fist connected with his jaw, his head snapping back against the wall. He stumbled, eyes wide with shock as he tried to raise his hands in defense, but Rafe didn’t give him a chance.

“You thought you could get away with that shit?!” He growled as he shoved him again, pinning him hard against the wall. The guy let out a choked gasp, his face going pale as he tried to squirm out of Rafe’s grip.

“I-I wasn’t—” the guy sputtered, his words slurred from the blow.

Rafe didn’t want to hear it. He threw another punch, this one harder than the first, his knuckles splitting against the guy’s cheekbone. All he could see was you — you, behind that door, completely unaware that this piece of shit had been about to force his way in.

“Rafe!”

He stopped his fist still clenched, inches from the guy’s face. He turned his head just enough to see you standing in the doorway, dressed in your usual jeans and a hoodie, eyes wide, like you couldn’t believe what you were seeing.

“Baby,” you said stepping forward. “It’s okay. He’s not worth it.”

But Rafe couldn’t let it go — couldn’t let the image of this creep forcing his way into the room where you were out of his head. The thought made him sick. It made him want to tear this him apart piece by piece.

“I should fucking kill you,” Rafe spat, his voice trembling as he pressed the guy harder against the wall.

“Please. I’m okay. He didn’t get in.”

It took every little ounce of self-control Rafe had, but he finally let the guy go, stepping back just enough for the asshole to crumple to the floor, groaning in pain.

“You come near her again, I swear to god…” He didn’t finish the sentence. He didn’t need to. The guy knew exactly what he meant.

The creep scrambled to his feet, clutching his bleeding face as he stumbled down the hallway, mumbling something that Rafe didn’t bother to listen to. His eyes were on you now, his breathing heavy as the adrenaline started to wear off.

His hands were still shaking, “Are you sure you’re okay?”

You nodded, though your eyes were still wide, “I’m fine. He didn’t get in, baby. You stopped him.”

Rafe exhaled, running a hand through his hair as he tried to breathe properly. The thought of what could’ve happened if he hadn’t come inside when he did made him want to throw up. “I should’ve been here,” he muttered “I should’ve been right here with you.”

“Rafe, you can’t be with me every second,” you stepped closer to him. “You did the right thing. I’m okay. Really.”

But he wasn’t convinced. He wrapped his arms around you, pulling you into his chest, needing to know for sure that you were safe. His grip was tight, maybe too tight, but he couldn’t help it. “I swear to god, if he’d touched you…”

“He didn’t,” you murmured, your hands rubbing soothing circles on his back, “He's not going to."

He held you like that for a long moment, his heart still beating too fast, his mind conjuring everything that could’ve gone wrong tonight.

“No more working late nights here.”

You pulled back slightly, raising an eyebrow. “Rafe—”

“I’m serious,” he interrupted, “This place is full of creeps, and I’m not letting you deal with that shit anymore.”

You sighed, “We’ll talk about it.”

He didn’t argue — not now, at least. But as far as he was concerned, you weren’t coming back here. Not without him.

“What the hell is going on back here?”

You both turned to see Greg, your manager, striding down the hallway. He looked between you and Rafe, his eyes landing on the dented wall and the bloodied handprint smeared across it.

“Seriously, what the hell happened?” He barked, crossing his arms over his chest. “Why is there a guy running out of here with blood on his face?"

Rafe stiffened beside you.

He didn’t like Greg — never had. In his mind, he was lazy, incompetent, and more interested in playing golf with the country club regulars than actually managing anything. You opened your mouth to try to explain, but he beat you to it.

“Why don’t you fix your goddamn locks, Greg?” Rafe snapped, stepping forward, “If you weren’t so busy kissing everyone’s ass, maybe you’d realize that your employees aren’t fucking safe here.”

Greg blinked, “What are you talking about?”

Rafe pointed to the locker room door, where the knob was still hanging loosely, as if the creep had almost succeeded in breaking it off.

“Your fucking locker room door doesn’t lock. That asshole was trying to force his way in while she was changing. What the hell are you running here, man?”

Greg glanced at the door, then back at you, his face paling slightly but instead of apologizing, or even showing the slightest bit of concern, he threw his hands up in a defensive gesture. “Look, I didn’t know—”

“Yeah, because you don’t pay attention to shit!” Rafe shot back, his voice rising. “You think you can just let her and the other girls fend for themselves? Is this the kind of place you’re running?”

“Rafe,” you murmured, your hand on his arm again, trying to calm him down. “It’s fine.”

But Rafe was far from calm. His hands were shaking, and his eyes locked onto Greg. “No, it’s not fucking okay. This shit keeps happening, and it’s gonna get someone hurt.”

Greg took a step back, holding up his hands in surrender. “Look, I’ll… I’ll talk to the maintenance guys, alright? We’ll fix the lock.”

“Not good enough,” Rafe snapped, “You better fix it tonight. Because if this happens again, I’m not gonna be so nice next time.”

Greg swallowed hard, clearly shaken. “Y-Yeah. Fine. We’ll take care of it.”

Rafe scoffed, shaking his head in disgust. “You better.”

He turned his back on Greg without another word, grabbing your hand again as he led you toward the exit. His grip was tight, and once you were outside, you let out a breath you didn’t realize you’d been holding.

“Rafe,” you said softly, pulling him to a stop as you stood by the side of his truck. “It’s over. I’m okay.”

He exhaled sharply as he looked down at you. “I can’t stand that guy,” he muttered. “He doesn’t give a shit about you or anyone else working here.”

He wrapped his arms around you, pulling you in tight, his chin resting on the top of your head. For a moment, he just held you like that, the tension slowly ebbing away. “You shouldn’t have to deal with this shit,” he murmured against your hair.

“I know. Let’s just go home.”

Rafe looked down at you, his brow furrowing slightly, “I’m gonna get you a gun.”

"A gun?"

"Yeah," Rafe said seriously, his grip tightening on your waist. “You need to be able to protect yourself if I'm not around."

"Baby, that's... kind of extreme," you tried to make him understand, "I don’t need a gun." You placed your hand on his chest, your thumb rubbing slow circles "I know you're worried. I know you don’t want me dealing with stuff like this, but a gun isn’t the answer."

He sighed, “I just want you to be safe.”

“I know,” you nodded. “And I will be. I promise.”

He held you close for a few more seconds, his forehead resting against yours. Then, with a reluctant sigh, he nodded. “Okay. No gun. For now.”

You smiled faintly, relieved. “Thank you.”

“But if it appens again, I’ll shoot him myself.”

“Okay, James Bond, get in the car.”

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1d1195 · 1 day

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Most - Extra I

Read Most here | ~2k words

From me: It's probably too early for an extra for them, but I seriously couldn't resist. Takes place sometime within the first couple of months of the last part.

Warnings: this is going to be disgustingly sweet. Nothing to report except you'll have a toothache after reading.

Summary: Harry gets to rush home from work now to the love of his life. Everything about her makes his heart ache.

Harry was exhausted. Now that she was home, he didn’t have a reason to avoid going home to be by himself. There was no need to feel suffocated by loneliness because he wasn’t alone anymore. So, he changed his work schedule quite a bit. He wasn’t single anymore (even if he never felt that way anyway). But he didn’t do overtime much anymore. He didn’t pick up shifts that others didn’t want or were unable to work due to their own families. The station was never left stranded regardless, but he wasn’t the go-to ask anymore. He felt a little bad and still occasionally took a short overtime shift, but not nearly as many as the insane hours he was prior to her coming home. He didn’t take his time leaving either the way he used to. There was no need anymore. Fortunately, all his coworkers were completely understanding.

48 hours on and 96 hours off. A normal shift for a firefighter. It was so much better than the 18-hour days he was doing before she returned. He could see her for days at a time. He pampered her, snuggled her, and kissed every inch of her skin like she might disappear again even though he really didn’t believe that anymore the way he did when she first came home.

But the end of this two-day shift left him exhausted. It was exceptionally busy. Thankfully, no one was hurt. Only one small house fire contained to the kitchen and the toaster that caught the curtain in the window at fault. There was lots of paperwork that needed filing and reporting for a hundred different things. There was more training. Another visit to the elementary school and a safety outreach program in partnership with other community groups.

Harry grabbed his bag from the back seat, locked his door, and headed inside. Each step felt heavier than the next. He couldn’t wait to get into bed beside her and snuggle her. With the way her work schedule was, she had arrived home after him the last few times. But today, her car was parked next to his. It made his heart flutter. Happy that he had everything he ever wanted. The love of his life, a cute house, and everything. But Harry could have done without the house, the car, the career he loved.

She was there.

That was everything.

It was late. Almost eleven. The outside air was chilly. The moon glowed so bright it almost felt like a stage light on his arrival home. There was the smell of a campfire somewhere a few streets over. All concluding to a perfect fall night. He almost wanted to wake her just so she could come outside and smell it because it reminded him of a bonfire they went to when they first started dating. They made out under a tree and giggled about all their future while their friends drank around the fire.

Quietly, he unlocked the door. He was hoping she wouldn’t wake from his arrival. Her classes alongside work had been kicking her butt. Maybe worse than a 48-hour shift not that she would ever let him think that. No, she doted on him and made sure he was doing okay regardless of how tired she was. It made his heart ache with how much she adored him, but Harry was lucky to have five days off between his shifts. She was lucky if she had one.

Kicking his shoes off right inside the door he was overwhelmed with how good it smelled. A combo of whatever she cooked for dinner and the now permanent scent of her hair care wafting through the house from bathroom all the way to the living room. If this had been even a year ago, Harry never would have thought it was possible to have it all. But the smell of her shampoo was enough to make his eyes watery. Especially after a long couple of days.

He dropped his bag by his shoes, locked the front door, and turned to make his way to the kitchen to put his Tupperware in the dishwasher. He wished he looked sooner because the sight made his heart skim a beat. A strangled, quiet groan came from his throat, as he tried to stop it so he would wake her. Wouldn’t start sobbing with how much he adored her.

Harry rushed to the living room sofa, dropped to his knees beside it. One hand fell to her hip and danced up the curve of her waist, resting on her ribcage as her breath moved her body up and down at gentle intervals. “Kitten,” he murmured.

She didn’t stir. Harry placed a hand over her ear along the side of her head. Softly he rubbed his fingertips into her head. “Baby,” he tried again. Seeing her so peacefully on his couch made him possessive and happy. He wanted nothing more than to watch her like she was his favorite show. All she had to do was sleep; it was enough entertainment for him. They dreamed of things like this and now it was here, and he felt so much love it made him want to cry.

She grunted softly. “Hi baby,” she hummed reaching out and grabbed at his T-shirt. She pulled at the chest, right below the collar of it and tugged him toward her more. Then, she slid her hand over his face. “You okay?”

“M’fine. Why aren’t y’in bed, kitten?"

"S'cold,” she mumbled, yawned.

“So, turn the heat up, baby,” a smile was in his voice as he shook his head at her.

She shook her head back in response. Slowly, she sat up. Her arms came and wrapped around his shoulders and tucked her face into his neck. “Not that kinda cold,” she mumbled.

Fuck, he loved her so much. She was so cute it made him want to scream. She was purposefully on the sofa. Waiting for him.

He swallowed the emotion that was blocking his throat, and he exhaled slowly to calm himself before he had to explain to her why he was crying like a baby because of her and how much he loved her.

He was royally fucked when she walked down the aisle. He would blubber. There wouldn’t be enough tissues in the world to dry his eyes.

“Baby, y'can't sleep on the couch every time m'at work."

"Watch me."

God. His arms tightened around her waist, and he kissed the side of her head as he rocked her gently. He couldn't be close enough to her. "S'bad for your neck t’be on the couch, kitten.”

"It's bad for my heart to be without you in bed."

Harry was going to sob because of her. He squeezed her again. He wasn’t arguing. He just wanted her to be comfy and cozy. Gently, he gripped just behind her knees and pulled her legs around his hips and swiftly stood all in the same movement. He kissed her temple. “Are you hungry?” She asked sleepily. “I’ll make you a plate,” but she nuzzled into his neck, and he almost wanted to say yes, just so he could see how she would manage while half asleep. He thought it was adorable. She was adorable.

“No, kitten. M’fine.”

She frowned. “Did you eat?”

“I ate baby. Don’t worry,” he promised.

“You don’t have to carry me. I’m heavy and you worked so long—”

“Shh,” he hushed. He supported one arm beneath her bum, cradling her to him. He carried her to the bedroom and placed her softly on the mattress before he moved away. She pouted rubbing at her eye with the palm of her hand.

“Where are you going?”

He really didn’t think his heart could take how cute she was. It felt like it was bursting, threatening to break out of his ribcage and find its way into hers so it could be next to her heart. “M’jus’ changing, baby, showered before I left,” he explained. “Gonna be all snuggled close.”

She sighed with relief. Crawled beneath the covers and waited patiently while Harry stripped down to his boxers and went to the bathroom to quickly swish his toothbrush around his mouth.

Harry wasted no time getting into bed. He lifted the sheet, blanket, and comforter that she had decorated the bed in a pattern Harry never would have had if she didn’t live with him. It was plenty warm. Rendering her defense all the sweeter.

He opened his arms for her to nuzzle against him where she also wasted no time falling into his embrace.

Maybe one day she would sleep in bed without him suffocating her with his cuddling.

But it wasn’t going to be any time soon.

“I love you,” she murmured to him.

“I love you,” he kissed down the length of her neck.

“Missed you so much.”

Sometimes he didn’t know if he meant her shift or the three years that he didn’t see her.

“I missed you, baby,” honestly it didn’t matter what she meant because the moments she wasn’t within his sight he missed her like crazy. Too much time apart made him a little insane. A little hungry for time that he couldn’t get back. But he would try anyway and enjoy every second of it. “Don’t sleep on the sofa waiting for me,” he hummed. He worried about her always. “It’ll hurt your neck.”

“Don’t you care about how my heart will hurt, Harry?” Her voice was soft, joking.

“More than anything, kitten,” he promised, seriously. “M’always going t’come home t’you though. Did y’sleep on the sofa last night?” He wondered, realizing that there was always going to be a day he didn’t know where she slept. She nodded against him. No speaking. Perhaps she was too tired. Too tired to pretend as well. There was a tight pressure around his heart and a half-smile, half-frown pulled on his lips. “Baby,” he tutted. “I don’t want you t’do that.”

“S’too late. Spent too many nights without you,” she mumbled.

So, Harry understood. He would have to think of something to help her. But for now, he understood. “M’in love with you,” he reminded her.

“Me too, baby,” she squeezed him making him feel whole.

He cupped the back of her head, kissed the center of her forehead letting his lips press there for so long he hoped it would suction his mouth to her skin just so he never had to let her go ever again. “Can we have French toast in the morning?” She whispered.

He nodded easily, his eyelids felt heavier as they closed, and his chin bumped the top of her head. “Whatever y’want, kitten.”

“Whatever I want?” She murmured.

He nodded again. “Always.”

“Harry?” She whispered. It seemed she got a bit of a second wind from the time he got her off the sofa and brought her to bed. Unfortunately, Harry wasn’t feeling any bit of it. As much as he wanted to stay awake and talk to her for hours on end, he hadn’t slept much the last two days and he felt sleepiness winning over the desire to speak.

“Hmm?” He hummed, almost falling fast asleep before he could hear her again.

“I hate sleeping without you. I never want to do it ever again unless you’re working or you’re on a trip with your family or because Niall wants to sleep with you,” she took a deep breath while Harry smiled and shook his head at her. “So, when we get married, I don’t want to do a single night apart, not even the day before.”

Harry reached for her left hand that rested on his shoulder and he softly rubbed her ring finger. He nodded. Kissed the crown of her head and sighed. “Okay, angel,” he murmured. “No night’s apart that aren’t necessary.”

“I’ll stop talking. You can go to sleep.”

“Don’t get out of bed in the morning,” he murmured and squeezed her tighter. “I hate when y’do that,” he grumbled.

She giggled. “I’ll wake you.”

“Good,” he sighed. “I love you. More than anything.”

“I love you,” she answered. “More than anything.”

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aealzx · 17 hours

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Update Post

Prologue | AO3

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Even though Damian had contacted Raven before lunch they had decided to wait until the next morning for her to actually come for a visit. The hemoperfusion treatment had gone well, there didn’t seem to be any complications that Leslie and Bruce hadn’t already planned for. As expected Danny’s platelet count, blood sugar, and a few other components of his blood had ended up slightly lower than desirable. But the half donation from Danielle had been more than enough to compensate for it. They had just opted to wait the rest of the day, and only carefully monitor Danny’s condition to be 100% sure the treatment had benefited him before they wanted to do any other kinds of exams.

So, it was only within an hour after breakfast that Raven was stepping up the stairs to the manor entrance, getting let in by Damian instead of Alfred.

“Good morning, Raven,” Damian offered as a short greeting.

“Good Morning Damian,” Raven returned, not quite over being pleasantly surprised when Damian was polite with them.

“I appreciate your assistance with our guest. Danielle and the other two are with Jon in the barn, brushing Goliath and Batcow. But I will lead you to Danny,” Damian informed, closing the front door and pausing for a moment to allow Raven to choose whether to leave her jacket on the coat hanger or not. It was chilly outside, but her jacket seemed to be more for fashion than warmth. As proven when she didn’t move to take it off.

“It’s no problem. I’m happy to help,” Raven assured. “I didn’t know Jon was going to be here too. Did Superman send him as a way to keep an eye on everyone without ignoring Bruce’s wishes?”

“No,” Damian admitted, gesturing for Raven to follow him as he began to lead her towards Danny and Jazz. “We had a pre-established overnight appointment. I simply asked him to help keep the others entertained while we took care of business. Especially since Allen returned home and left only West to follow through with monitoring Grayson and Todd.”

Ah. Jon and Damian apparently had a sleep over scheduled for that weekend, and they didn’t feel the need to cancel it. That was good to know. “I see,” Raven acknowledged, getting distracted by the ever growing presence of a sensation she had noticed when she’d reached the house. It didn’t seem malicious. Just one that she was somewhat unfamiliar with. It distracted her enough that she didn’t have more to comment before they reached the bedroom. Dick and Jason were on monitoring duty since it was easier for them to stay at the house while the Justice League thought they were Deathstroke’s targets. And while they’d managed to get everyone to start the night in their own rooms, the Phantom kids had inevitably made their way back to Danny’s room for the latter half of the night. Jazz had returned there once again after breakfast, but the others hadn’t. Opting instead to keep themselves entertained as well as aware of what was going on in the rest of the house.

When they entered the room Raven briefly glanced at Jazz before her gaze was drawn to Danny’s form in the bed. Not because of how he looked, all the tubs and machines surrounding him, but because he was the strongest source of the sensation she had been picking up on. There was still a faint residue of sorts clinging to Jazz, but Danny felt like a source of the oddity. Even if he did seem more like a nearly empty power source, he still felt like the substance was part of him instead of it simply lingering on him.

“Jazz, this is Raven, a friend of mine. Raven, Jazz is Danny and Danielle’s older sister,” Damian’s introduction broke Raven out of her slight daze, gesturing to each of the girls in turn.

“Hey Raven, thanks for coming,” Dick greeted with a wave. Jason simply raised his hand wordlessly.

“...Hi,” Jazz responded after they were introduced directly. She was a little wary, but Damian couldn’t blame her. Raven had mentioned before that people didn’t think she was an easy person to get along with, and she might look a little intimidating to some.

“You’re uncomfortable with me being here?” Raven guessed, having easily noticed Jazz’s anxiety but not finding it anything to be upset over. “I understand. I wouldn’t want strangers near someone I cared about when they were in this state either.” For that reason Raven decided to remain where she was by the entrance instead of approaching anyone closer. “I promise I won’t intentionally hurt him further. I’m here to help.”

The bluntness with which she spoke was unexpected, and while Jazz wasn’t completely calmed by her words the openness did hold a certain amount of charm to it. She was apparently a bit like Damian and Jason, who just said what they meant and didn’t try to soften words to get their way. It made it so Jazz wasn’t sure how to respond, but Damian could see her shoulders fall just a little less tense than before.

“Like I told you last night, Raven is here to see if she can locate a better source for the ectoplasm we need. It’s just easier for her to get a reading from a source rather than a substitute,” Damian further explained, not wanting a repeat of before when Jazz thought they wanted to experiment on Danny.

“Ectoplasm?” Raven repeated, mildly curious. “Is this what you’re calling that?”

“It’s what they’ve been calling it,” Damian clarified, nodding towards Jazz.

“Is there another name for it?” Jazz asked, curiosity starting to win over the wariness.

“...Perhaps,” Raven admitted, remaining where she was until Jazz was just a little more at ease. “I can recognize something different about you two. It’s stronger in him, but you both radiate it. I noticed it when I got close to the manor, but I’ll need to take a moment to analyze it before I can say for sure I know what it is.”

“Analyze it how?” Jazz asked quickly, her hands lacing tightly on her lap as her lips pursed slightly. She hoped Raven would follow Bruce’s example and explain everything before she did it.

“It would take a long time to explain the exact details. My methods are not common to cultures like what predominates Earth,” Raven explained, apologetic but not wanting to delve into her personal skill set too much. She didn’t mind Jazz’s protectiveness though. She couldn’t feel any hostility from Jazz, just fear. And that was something Raven couldn’t fault her for. “I use magic, but for this you can think of it as a type of clairvoyance if that’s easier to understand. My readings are painless. I’ll only need to touch the sides of his head for a moment, and I should be able to tell if the substance in him is one that I’m familiar with,” she assured, giving Jazz a faint smile.

Jazz seemed confused and skeptical about the process after Raven mentioned magic, but considering she lived with ghosts at home she figured she could give Raven the benefit of the doubt. She didn’t even seem to want to take anything from Danny either, so it didn’t seem like something she should decline. “...Okay…,” she finally agreed, gesturing towards Danny briefly to reinforce that she accepted.

“Thank you,” Raven nodded, finally entering the room fully, hedging towards Danny and carefully sitting on the edge of the bed. She could feel Jazz’s skepticism, but didn’t pay it any further attention. If she got them what they needed that would be proof enough that she wasn’t trying to hoax them. And even if she wasn’t of any help, she didn’t need Jazz to believe in her powers.

Clearing her mind with a steadying breath Raven leaned forward just enough to rest her fingertips on Danny’s temples, closing her eyes. Once she had the contact it was easy to read Danny’s existence without trying to filter through the rest of the environment around them. A delicate state of being, held in perfect limbo between two sides. As she’d noticed before, while Jazz felt more like someone who was just exposed to a substance for a long time, Danny’s central being radiated it. But he definitely felt weak, and closed off. Energy burned too low and reduced to a survival mode, trying to salvage what was left to allow for him to continue to function at minimal health instead of restoring what was missing.

It was enough to confirm her suspicions, and Raven couldn’t help smiling a bit wider when she opened her eyes and pulled back. “You really are a lucky one, Damian,” she commented, her amusement just barely leaking through. “You’ve got quite the rarity in your home.”

“What do you mean?” Damian asked, brow scrunching mildly in confusion. He’d asked Raven to help locate a rare substance, but it seemed she was referring to Danny himself in her response.

“Do you recognize what he needs?” Dick asked, having remained quiet until now since Raven seemed to have been handling the situation well on her own. His curiosity about what she’d found won over his decision to let them handle it though.

“Yes,” Raven confirmed, answering Dick first since it was easier. “The term ‘ectoplasm’ has been used for other substances before, so I wasn’t certain I was thinking of the same thing you were. But, this is indeed true ectoplasm from the Liminal Realm.”

“The Liminal Realm?” Jason repeated, face scrunching in confusion at the unfamiliar name. He’d heard of liminal spaces before, and that made sense considering those were usually associated with being haunted. But he’d never heard of an entire realm before.

“That is the most common name I’ve heard used for it in my studies, but it’s known by many other names as well. The Realm Between. Infinite Realm. The Lingering Space. Median Realm,” Raven confirmed, adding further explanation.

No one missed how Jazz flinched and stiffened when Raven mentioned ‘Infinite Realm’, but they didn’t comment on it just yet.

“Can you access this realm and get what we need?” Damian asked, ready to get moving as soon as Raven confirmed she had a way to get them to the realm she mentioned. They could discuss realm studies at a later time, after they had a steady supply of the nutrient Danny needed to live.

“Perhaps,” Raven admitted, stilling Damian’s haste with a single word. “But it will be difficult, and I can’t guarantee what comes of it will be pure,” she persisted, continuing when the others remained quiet to allow her to explain further. “The Liminal Realm isn’t one that likes outsiders accessing it. Those who try to open a gateway to it without having a prior connection usually end up destroying themselves, or corrupting the outcome.”

“Excuse me?” Dick raised a brow, suddenly a lot more concerned about their next mission.

“I’m not joking,” Raven reinforced. “Throughout my time as a student we were allowed to travel between other realms at will once we learned how. But we were forbidden from attempting to access the Liminal Realm without adopting it as a lifetime study. Because no one I knew had ever successfully created a gateway to it, but there were plenty of records of potential gateways exploding, imploding, or more often simply failing. And those who attempted to pull something from the Liminal Realm instead of going there instead ended up with vile substances that caused people to go mad. It was only through studying these samples that people realized there was a pure form. And from that we were able to recognize certain beings who had close ties to the Liminal Realm.”

“Yeesh,” Dick grimaced.

“That sounds oddly coincidental considering these kids got in trouble for stealing Lazarus water because it was the closest thing they were looking for,” Jason pointed out, eyes narrowing in discomfort both about the topic and because it seemed this wasn’t going to be as easy as they thought. “Is that one of the ‘corrupted outcomes’ you know of?”

“I believe so, yes,” Raven confirmed with a nod.

“So… how do we get in there? Sounds like trying to just find ectoplasm floating around somewhere isn’t a promising idea,” Jason prodded, following Dick and Damian’s gaze to look at Jazz this time instead of Raven. It seemed they all agreed that now was a good time to address her reaction earlier.

Jazz did her best to act like she couldn’t understand why they were addressing her. “What are you looking at me for? I don't know anything about this interdimensional realm stuff,” she sputtered, waving her hand.

There wasn’t anyone in the room that couldn’t tell she was hiding something.

“What about the Infinite Realm then?” Jason prodded with a mildly amused smile.

Jazz flinched again at the call out, and one look between them was enough for her to realize they already knew she knew that particular name. Her demeanor stilled significantly, and her smile fell. But she maintained her stance of not answering. “...Nothing,” she openly lied.

“You do realize this may be the only way we have to help Danny,” Damian pointed out, folding his arms and falling more into an interrogation mode than maintaining friendship.

Jazz’s mood fell significantly, but her resolve remained. Even if it upset her to do so. “...I can’t.”

This time Dick held his hand up to stop his brothers from answering, realizing they were getting a little too aggressive with their questions. “...Why not?” his own voice came a lot more gently than the others. More concerned about the situation than irritated with the secrets being held. It caused Jazz to lower her gaze to her own hands, unable to answer, but trying to think of how to without telling them anything.

“Probably because that realm is arguably the most catastrophic one if damaged,” Raven spoke up in Jazz’s stead, raising her hand to pause questions while she continued to explain. “You’re familiar with the concept of realms almost like isolated spheres that certain people are able to draw power from, or travel between. If one of those spheres is destroyed the others may lose certain abilities or traits, but will continue to exist. But the Liminal Realm isn’t another one of those spheres, it’s the space between them. All realms are connected to the Liminal Realm, and all travel passes through it temporarily. It’s the structure that holds all realms together, and if it’s damaged, or even destroyed, then all realms will probably be lost as well. That’s most likely the main reason it’s so hard for people to access, and why so few people even know about it. It’s easier to protect something when everyone is oblivious of it… right?”

As Raven explained the risk tampering with the Infinite Realm had, and even accurately guessed the reason Jazz was being so adamant with her silence, Jazz’s mental barrier around the topic fell. Everything Raven had said was true as far as Jazz knew, so there probably wasn’t any reason to remain ignorant. And therefore, Jazz nodded when Raven spoke to her at the end of her explanation.

The revelation was enough to make the boys take time to reorient their minds back to being investigative instead of interrogative. Damian’s demeanor didn’t outwardly change other than a subtle relaxation of his brow. But Jason averted his gaze after a moment and breathed a calming breath. “Right… That makes sense,” he agreed, then added a quick ‘my bad’ in apology for his earlier intensity.

As the room calmed back to a more conversational tone, Dick brought them back to the question they still hadn’t been able to answer. “So… any ideas on how we get some ectoplasm from such a closed off realm?”

It seemed like a question that they would have to take some extensive time to answer, but to their surprise Raven spoke up easily enough. “Ask it for permission,” she said simply, the faint smile returning as she pointed at Danny.

“.... You lost me there, Raven,” Dick admitted with a slight huff chuckle. “Are you implying that Danny is some sort of personification of an entire realm?”

This time Raven gave a tiny laugh, and shook her head once. “No. But he is the perfect catalyst between the Liminal Realm and any other realm, being what he is.”

“.... Which iiiis…?” Dick prodded when Raven didn’t automatically continue this time.

It earned another small laugh from Raven before she obliged and continued. “Danny is what scholars from Azarath came to call a perfect liminal being. As you’re aware, different realms sometimes have entities that originate from or are otherwise tied to them, and the Liminal Realm is one of those realms. I think the most common names given to beings tied to the Liminal Realm are ghosts or spirits.”

“That’s what Dani and the others said they were. Or, more specifically they said she and Danny were ‘half ghost’,” Dick added, connecting the older information with what was just given to him. “So the Liminal Realm is the realm of the dead?”

“Somewhat. But not quite,” Raven shook her head once. “The Liminal Realm is where people go who, for one reason or another, did not want to die, and are unwilling to accept it. Most beings who die pass through the Liminal Realm and continue on to one of the afterlife realms. Hell, Heaven, Paradise, Field of Aaru, Valhalla, and the like. But those with a strong enough reason to refuse death, despite being unable to stay alive, end up in an in-between state stuck in the realm between realms.”

“Okay… I think I’m following,” Dick confirmed when Raven paused, and Jason and Damian nodded to agree. “So Danny and Danielle are… half dead people clinging to life?”

The question earned a slight smile from Raven. “Maybe,” she half agreed. “They are not fully like the beings that dwell in the Liminal Realm. But they are also not like anyone that is in the dead realms, or living realms. It helps if you remember that life is a spectrum, not a single state that switches into death. People on the living side of that spectrum are what you’re more used to; those who have bodies, age, physically grow, and such. But there are some people who are just closer to the side of death than others. Diseases, illness, critical injuries and other similar ailments are things that would be easy for most people to understand. Those who are dead no longer have those traits and, like I said before, most of them pass on to an afterlife realm with very few lingering in the Liminal Realm. All beings who are part of the Liminal realm or any of the dead realms are on the Death side of the life spectrum. In general, entities are usually on one side or the other, dead or alive to varying degrees,” she explained, raising one hand to one side, and then the other hand to the other side as she did so.

“But if there’s two sides, then there’s a middle point. And if people exist on either side of that point, then there’s the possibility of something existing exactly in the middle.” Dick added, following Raven’s lecture and also realizing where she was leading to.

“That’s right,” Raven nodded again, placing her hands together. “It’s an almost impossible feat. If a decimal number was naturally generated between zero and one hundred, the chances of it being exactly fifty is extremely small. And with Liminal Realm entities being rare already, a perfect fifty percent was something no one I knew had ever seen before…. Until now,” she finished by looking back at Danny, still smiling and wondering what the scholars back in Azarath would do if they met him. “Danny, and his sister, are rare beings that exist in that perfect state between realms, and therefore are more easily accepted by other realms when trying to travel between them. If one of them was present when I attempt to extract some ectoplasm, I believe I may be given some allowance, and obtain a pure sample.”

“..... Like bumming off your friend’s membership card to a club,” Jason commented, making his own connection to be able to understand what Raven was suggesting.

It earned a small snort from Jazz even as she was considering what Raven was saying. Raven appeared to know so much more about the Infinite Realm than Jazz did, and also held just as much concern over the safety of it and the others. Taking so much time to explain whatever they had questions to, and remaining patient with them when they had misunderstandings. So Jazz only had two more questions before she allowed Raven to have Danielle help her try to get some ectoplasm. “If I let Dani help you, she won’t be doing anything dangerous, right? You’ll keep her safe?”

“Of course,” Raven promised without hesitation. “I expect just her presence will be enough, and I would prefer for her and everyone else to remain at a safe distance.”

Even if it was a half lie, Jazz wouldn’t have been able to tell with the way Raven responded to her. She decided that she wanted to trust Raven though, both because of their time just now but also because she was the one Bruce and his family had called to help. So she nodded. “Okay. You can ask her to help you then.”

_______________

Biiiig info dump of headcanons for this story that made sense in my brain based on the concepts I had been given and found. I'm also basing Raven off of the only movie I've seen of her X'D (Justice League vs Teen Titans) So I'm writing her as more of a subtle/reserved/subdued emotions girl and not a completely apathetic girl.

I also had to rewrite this part like 3 times before it had a coherent flow X'D

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idkwhatimdoinghere1655 · 9 hours

Text

So Special - Lando Norris

<word count - 5350> |part 1 - Nerd|part 2 - Rumours|

The weekend had gone by, and you and Lando had spent your time doing very different things. He had been productive, spending his two days in the garage with his dad, perfecting your DT project. He couldn't care less that you had told him not to finish it.

He had said he would do it, and now he was damned sure that it would be the best one in the class. Lando and his dad had come up with some genius ideas, even if it was only meant to be a simple little wood-work task.

It would probably be quite obvious that you hadn't done it in the workshop, but Lando had a feeling that you wouldn't care. Also with the help of his dad, Lando had gotten his homework rattled out within an hour.

It wasn't quite the same as having you there to help him through it, since your way of teaching him was a lot better than his dad's, but it was better than nothing, that was for sure.

You, on the other hand, had spent your weekend holed up in your bedroom, not wanting to come out for anyone or anything. Your parents had offered to take you out to any restaurant of your choosing, go somewhere with your friends, anything.

But, you had declined all of their suggestions. You simply didn't feel like going anywhere. All you could think about was how much you were dreading going to school on Monday, how much you didn't want to see anyone in any of your classes.

It genuinely seemed like your worst nightmare at the moment, but you still had to go in. The minutes ticked by slowly over the weekend, every single one heightening the anxiety of being back in school.

The most likely scenario was that people would have forgotten it by now and moved onto something else, but the feeling that that wasn't the case was overwhelming, crippling and soul-destroying.

Even doing your maths homework felt near on impossible. A task that would normally only take you a few minutes took you nearly 2 hours, since trying to work with the numbers made nervousness swirl in your stomach.

The ever present thought was Lando. If anything, you figured he had it the worst out of all of this. His friends mocked and ridiculed him at any chance they got, he couldn't even get the bus anymore without throwing in the towel and getting off early, and you didn't want to be around him anymore.

Guilt mixed into the cesspool of emotions that you were feeling, but the pure fear of being in school and getting the mick taken out of you overshadowed that. You just wanted to get your education and run as far away from that damned place as you could.

Once Monday morning had rolled around, you reluctantly got onto the bus, not wanting to walk in the frosty weather. Lando's mum would've given you a ride, but you didn't want to be seen getting out of his car. Now that would be pure social suicide.

On the bus, you saw that Lando wasn't there, which made things easier. But, you sure as hell weren't sitting at the back near his friends. You shuffled onto a seat next to some random kids in a year below you, but you'd much rather do that than be subjected to Lando's friends.

School was relatively empty when you got there, most people going to sit in the canteen before the bell went for their first lessons. You made a beeline to the lockers, hoping that no one would be there.

Thankfully, there wasn't a soul in sight as you quickly punched the code into Lando's locker. You knew the code since you'd had to leave his homework in there a few times in the past. You pulled his jumper out of your bag and stuffed it in. On the top, you placed a small note of gratitude, before closing the locker back up and going over to yours to put in some of your textbooks.

To your surprise, your locker wasn't empty like you thought it would be. Inside was a small, plastic bag. Just like you had put on Lando's jumper, whoever had been in your locker had put a note on top of it. 'I promised I'd get this finished, and I am a man of my word'.

You knew that handwriting off by heart, since it was one you often plagiarised. Opening the bag, you saw your fully finished, absolutely faultless DT woodwork project. You were baffled by how clean the cuts and joints were, and it was surely going to get you the best mark you had ever gotten in DT.

The first genuine smile that you had cracked in days grew across your face, truly touched by the gesture. You had told him not to bother, that you'd do it yourself, even if you really didn't want to. "I did it right, yeah?" a voice suddenly broke you out of your small bout of happiness.

Lando was leant against his locker, hands in his pockets as he looked at you. His face was tired, it didn't have the life to it as it used to. His eyes were equally as lethargic, no longer holding that cheeky spark that they always had. It was like the colour had dulled out, leaving them more greyed over than blue.

"Yeah, you did. It's great, thanks," you mustered up a small smile, barely even a fraction of the one you had earlier. For some reason, your brain still couldn't make you look him in the eyes as you talked to him.

"Anytime," he replied, his gaze fixed on your side profile. He was thinking the same about your appearance too, your face had sunken and your eyes weren't as bright as he remembered them being.

"I don't think anyone's going to say anything, you know..." he mumbled, half hoping you'd heard him, half hoping you hadn't. The words sounded like he was trying to convince himself more than he was trying to convince you, since he wanted to believe that they were true.

He didn't want to see you upset anymore, he didn't want to have to distance himself from you, he didn't want to have to change his entire routine. All he wanted was his life right back to the way it was.

The life when you two were friends, where he'd get to spend time with you. The life where he got to be Lando Norris, the cocky little shit to the rest of the year, but a softie for you. The life where everything was perfect again.

"I don't think it's that easy, Lando," you said, your eyes still glued to your feet as you avoided eye contact with him. Even the sound of his name on your lips made his heart flutter uncontrollably. He wanted to hear more of it, he wanted to hear it every goddamn day of his life if you'd let him.

"Please? Can we just... just try to ignore it and still be friends? I just want to be your friend again, I mi-" he started to plead, the desperation evident in his tone. His face fell as he was cut off, knowing that both of you were in deep shit before the day had even started.

"You what, Lando? Bit of trouble in paradise for our most prolific love birds?" some random guy in your year interrupted him, standing beside Lando. He had never seen fear in a person's features like he did on yours in that very moment.

You didn't think you could handle hearing another word of it, so you dashed past the both of them and down the hall, trying not to let the tears fall down your cheeks. He hadn't even said anything overly hurtful, but the panic of what he could have said had set in.

"Not gonna run after your girlfriend, Lando?" he further teased, and Lando could feel his fists clenching at his sides, his knuckles turning white due to how hard he was holding them. He knew that a comment like that wouldn't have normally set you off, but it just showed how bad the situation had gotten.

"Go fuck yourself," he spat, walking to the canteen and sitting down on a table away from his friends. They had seen him come in, but he didn't care. They were the last people he wanted to talk to.

For the first time in his life, he was desperate to get to lessons and have some much wanted distraction from everything that was going on. As soon as the bell had gone, he jumped out of his seat and took the shortest route that he could think of to the science labs for biology.

Not to his shock, you were already sat in your seat, hunched over your textbook and exercise book. Lando took his seat, a few down from yours on the long, wooden benches. The start of the lesson was silent to begin with, before you were all assigned to do some questions with the people sat around you.

Lando tried to keep focused on the questions, but he couldn't help but hear his own name coming from your side of the table. As he discretely watched from the side, he saw as your head snapped up to the girl next to you. Lilly.

Goddamnit, of course it had to be Lilly. The one girl who Lando was for sure certain was desperate for him. "Sorry?" you said, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. You hadn't been listening to a word she was saying, so you had to do a double take now that she was suddenly talking about Lando.

"You spent the weekend with Lando, no? Since he's your boyfriend and all, I assumed what I heard was true," she said, her voice laced with a sickly sweet venom. The jealousy she felt was obvious, and it did give you a slightly masochistic sense of satisfaction.

"No," you curtly answered with a small shake of the head, before returning to answering the questions by yourself. Lando couldn't see Lilly's face since she was looking at you, with her blinding mop of bleached blonde hair being the only thing he could see.

"What? So it's not true?" she pressed, clearly looking for a reaction that you weren't willing to give her.

"No, no it's not," you declined again, your leg bouncing up and down nervously. Lando grinned to himself, proud of you for sticking up for yourself and not giving in. He just hoped you had the willpower to carry on being as strong as you were, since he knew how sensitive you were at the minute.

"So the two of you didn't spend this weekend, practically locked in his parent's house by the lake while the bed was creaking-"

"Right that's enough." you said, your voice firm and leaving no room for disagreement. Lilly looked a tiny bit shook by your defiance, but Lando was sat there, wide-eyed. He never told anyone about the house by the lake apart from Max, and the likelihood of him telling Lilly of all people was slim to none.

But he was more taken aback and impressed by your steadfastness. He had expected you to be in tears by this point, but it was a more than pleasant surprise. He still couldn't see Lilly's face, but he could imagine the annoying pout as her lips were pursed together.

"I don't know who you heard that from, but that is complete and utter bullshit. I spent my weekend at home. As for Lando? I couldn't really give a shit, but he wasn't with me. Much to your dismay, he wasn't with you either," you carried on, and your conversation had pricked up some of your class' listening ears.

Lilly looked like you had just slapped her, her mouth agape and eyes wide as she looked at you. "I... you..." she stuttered, unsure of how to respond. As much as Lando was glad that you were sticking up for yourself, he was also feeling a slight stabbing pain in his chest.

You 'couldn't really give a shit'. The worst part was that he couldn't tell if you meant it or not. He doubted that you did, but there was always the small question of what if? What if you had meant it?

If he was being honest, the thought of you not caring scared the life out of him. It wasn't something that he wanted to believe, not at all. He knew that the two of you weren't on the best terms, not by either of your faults but you still weren't friends, yet that didn't warrant you not caring at all, right?

The one person whose opinion he idolised, the one person who he wanted to see everyday, the one person who he could be himself around didn't care. It simply didn't register in his mind that that was even possible.

By the time Lando had snapped out of his thoughts, the teacher had resumed his lesson and you and Lilly were sat in silence, a scowl still plastered on her face. The rest of the lesson wasn't focused on biology, at least not for Lando.

Both of you left as quickly as you could and went to your favourite respective places to spend your break times. Lando didn't know where you'd be this time, since you moved just about every five minutes.

He knew that your little outburst would get back to his friends by the end of the break, and he didn't want to be there when they inevitably found out. He couldn't figure out what they'd say to him or how they'd react, but he knew there would be more teasing.

He was upset enough as it was, and he didn't need them to make it worse. Lando stayed away from the canteen, just aimlessly wandering through the near-empty halls. As he approached the lockers on his third lap of the school, his ears picked up the sounds of a familiar voice.

"You think you're so special, don't you?" she said, and he could have sworn that all he could see was red. Lilly. And there was no doubts in his mind over who she was talking to.

"I bet you're loving all of this attention, aren't you? You probably started these rumours yourself, didn't you?" Lilly carried on, Lando staying behind the wall while he listened to her onslaught. He hadn't seen you, but he could picture the look on your face.

"Why the hell would I make up such awful things about myself? I'm not an attention seeker like you, I don't want this happening," you retorted, a smirk growing on Lando's face as he heard you. He was glad you weren't running off and crying anymore, but he assumed you were bottling it all up as a way of coping.

"Please, you're just annoyed that Lando would never actually date you, aren't you?" she said, and you were both gobsmacked. You knew that that was why she was getting pissy with you, but you didn't think she'd spell it out point blank.

"What, like he'd date you either?" you shot back, stunning Lilly into silence. Initially, she was right to assume that her saying all of these things would reduce you to tears, but today you had built a shell around you - one that almost seemed impenetrable.

But, hidden beneath the tough exterior and firm words, Lando could hear the faintest of a wobble in your voice. Lilly wouldn't pick up on it, but he had. Maybe it was just because he knew you so well already, or maybe it was just because he liked you so damn much that he noticed all of the tiniest little things about you.

"Please, I think anyone would rather date me over you," she said after a few moments, the come back taking longer for her to think up than she would have liked. You nearly laughed in her face, nearly told her what a massive bitch she was and how most people would rather be dead than date her.

However, someone swooped in. "I know I wouldn't."

"Oh, hey Lando, we were just talking about you," Lilly instantly stepped in, her voice suddenly turning nauseatingly sacchariferous. She stepped closer to him, batting her false eyelashes at him as if it would put him under her spell.

"Yeah, I heard." he said, his voice betraying none of his emotions. Lilly could tell that something was up with him, but she chose to ignore it and carry on trying to woo him.

"I was just saying how-"

"I heard it. And I don't think you have any right to say any of that about Y/N. She is a much better person than you, and you're stupid to think she'd make those rumours about us. That's something you'd do. Also, I'll reiterate. I would rather date her than you any day of the week." he said, not missing a beat between sentences.

Lilly stayed quiet, that familiar scowl finding its place back on her face. "Fine, yeah, whatever," she scoffed, rolling her eyes as she stormed away from you.

You let out a breath that you hadn't realised you had been holding, finally feeling the weight of the day pressing down on you. You had done so well to keep it all bottled up as you stood up for yourself, but now it felt like the adrenaline had worn off and your resolve was crumbling.

Once she had gone, Lando turned to you and saw the tears in your eyes. "Hey, no, don't..." he softly said, approaching you. He was unsure whether he was allowed to hug you or touch you or if he was supposed to just leave you alone to cry.

He contemplated it, but he couldn't force himself to walk away. You had let all of the fear and the upset of the weekend and the past couple of hours to build up, and now it was finally too heavy for you to hold up.

"Can I... can I please just..." he started, not knowing how to ask the question. He didn't want to outright ask if he could hold you, but he didn't know what else to say. Instead, he hovered his arms awkwardly around you as if he was gesturing at hugging you.

"Mhm," you hummed, your arms going around his neck as his wrapped around your waist. It was nice to be close to you again, to have you again. He also felt a rush of affection. He didn't know how long to hold the hug, how tightly to hold you, where to put his head.

Did he rest it on top of yours? Bury it in the crook of your neck? Just... keep it there?

Despite his inner turmoil, his instincts took his hand up the the back of your head, fingers tangling in the strands of hair. "Please don't cry, c'mon, it's OK," he mumbled, hating the way you shook with silent sobs in his arms.

He knew you had kept your emotions all bundled up inside all day, but he couldn't handle you being so upset. "I'm sorry..." you mumbled, but he couldn't make out the words as they were muffled by his chest.

"Hm? What did you say?" he gently asked, looking down at you as you looked up at him. It had just dawned on him how close you were, and how easy it would be just to lean down and kiss you like he- no, no. Not the time. Not yet, at least.

"I said I'm sorry," you repeated, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

"Sorry for what?"

"I'm sorry for... avoiding you, not being your friend, being a complete and utter bitch to you, and-" you started to ramble, more tears falling from your eyes.

"Hey, no, no, I won't hear it. None of this is your fault, absolutely none of it. OK?" he reassured you, needing you to know that you hadn't done anything wrong. All you did was nod, before hugging him tighter and resting your head back on his chest.

His white button up was slightly see through with tears, but he'd be able to hide it with his blazer no problem. "Shh, please don't cry," he carried on trying to soothe you, his mind going through thousands of other things he wanted to say.

'You're too pretty to cry...' was the first thing that came to the forefront of his brain, but that was too much too soon. He felt your shudders against him stilling as you opted to just stand there in his embrace. He wasn't complaining, he would stay like that for as long as you'd let him.

From down the hall, he could hear the faint pattering of footsteps. Lando didn't want to say anything, he just wanted to let them walk by and they'd likely ignore the two of you. Once you heard it too, you pushed back from him so that there was a sizeable gap between you both.

He was disappointed, to say the least, but he understood your trepidation. It was a good job that you had stepped away, since the person that walked by was one of Lilly's friends. She was probably already floating around, spreading as many lies as her single-celled brain could muster.

"I'll... see you later, yeah?" you weakly smiled, checking the time and seeing that it was nearly time for your next class.

"Yeah, course. You getting the bus or do you need a ride?" he asked, confident that his mum would happily pick you up down the road and take you home.

"A ride would be nice," you nodded, and he was slightly taken aback by the fact that you hadn't argued with him. You were as stubborn as the day was long, but he was happy you had relented quickly on this occasion.

"You just start walking home and we'll find you somewhere along the road," he told you and you nodded.

"Sounds good," you lightly chuckled, the sound welcome to his ears. He hadn't heard any semblance of a laugh from you in nearly a week, and he was unbelievably grateful that he had gotten to hear it again.

"See ya," he smiled as you walked away, a wave of contentedness washing over him. Even if it has come as a result of some of the toughest days of both your life and his, he had gotten to hug you. To actually hug you, to touch you more than your fingers just brushing together when you handed something to each other.

It was what he had wanted, and he had finally gotten it. The price was hefty, but he had gotten it nonetheless. Now, he was counting down the seconds until he'd get to drive you home, spend more time with you, talk to you again.

The rest of the day wasn't actually too bad. Just the odd comment or two, but it was nothing compared to what the pair of you had been getting over the past few days. Lando actually found a few of them quite funny, when he thought about it.

"Hey Norris, your girlfriend is feisty, eh? Bet that makes her fun for you," one of the boys in your year said, as if it was meant to hurt or upset him. Instead he just laughed, shaking his head.

"Feisty? Very," was all he could get out before walking away to get to his next lesson. Lando had never been so prudent with getting to his lessons, but he found that it was the best way to spend his time.

Hour after hour went by, and before he knew it, Lando was practically running out of the front doors of the school and towards his mum's car. She was parked in the same spot that she always was, and he hopped in the back in preparation for you to get in too.

"Why are you sitting back there?" she asked, looking at him in the rear view mirror.

"We're picking Y/N up down the road," he said, leaning over the center console to turn on the heated seats on your side, as well as leaving his jumper from the day on your seat. He had found the one that you had returned to him in his locker, but he wanted you to have the one he had already worn.

There was something strangely intimate about you wearing his jumpers as a source of warmth and comfort, but he wasn't opposed to it. He knew that a lot of girls stole their boyfriend's hoodies, but this wasn't quite that scenario.

He wanted it to be, there was no doubt about that, but this made him feel like you two were a few steps closer to that. You were always happy to wear his jumpers, but he sometimes wished you wouldn't return then just so that he could ask for them back. Not that he wanted them back. If you wanted them, they were all yours.

"Oh are we now?" she smirked, finding her son's actions towards you as endearing as hell. He was shaping up to be the boy she wanted to raise, and she was so proud of him. She could tell his crush on you was definitely developing, and the distance between you clearly made him want you more.

"Yeah, we are," he said, leaving no room for her to say no. Well, she wouldn't have said no since it was cold and she didn't want you walking such a distance in such cold temperatures.

"Does she know we're taking her home or have you just decided?"

"I asked if she wanted a ride and she said yes, so we're picking her up," he reiterated, plugging his seat belt into the socket and getting comfortable against the leather of the seats.

"OK, OK," she chuckled, shaking her head. Igniting the engine, Lando's mum pulled away from her parking spot and started driving down the road, looking out for you. As she glanced at the rear-view mirror, she could see Lando's eyes glued to the window, searching for you on the pavement.

She knew he had seen him by the way his eyes lit up and a small smile crept its way across his lips. Pulling up on the pavement, she rolled the passenger side window down as she called out to you. "Your chauffeur awaits,"

Clambering in the passenger side, you saw Lando's jumper on your chair, instantly taking your blazer off and replacing it with the garment. It was so much warmer than your coat, and you felt so much more comfortable in it too.

You didn't fail to notice the heat that emanated from the seat as well, the added care making butterflies spark in your stomach. "You really don't have to go to the effort of picking me up, you know." you said, feeling slightly bad that she was going out of her way to take you home.

"Well it was Lando's idea. He just told me we were picking you up and here we are," she told you, and you could sense the blush that coated Lando's cheeks.

"Mum c'mon, don't..." he mumbled, crossing his arms and avoiding her gaze in the mirror. He had a slight pout on his face, and it reminded her of when he didn't get what he wanted when he was little. He was always adorable.

You just giggled at him, and it was music to his ears. Seeing you warm and cozy in his hoodie was definitely something he wanted more of, and he wasn't sure how much more waiting he could do before he cracked and acted on his impulses.

Yet, he didn't know what he'd do if you rejected him, or said you just wanted to be friends. He never wanted to be just friends with you, he wanted it all with you. He wanted you to be his first real girlfriend, the one you can never really forget.

And he could only hope that you wanted the same from him. His gut feeling told him that it was obvious that you were feeling the same. Why else would you hug him, accept a ride home from him, wear his jumpers?

He didn't care, all he did care about was the fact that his heart was dead set on the notion that you did like him back, but his head was throwing doubts at him.

After a short drive and light conversation, you pulled up outside of your house. Instead of his mum this time, Lando wanted to be the one who walked you to your door. Getting out of his seat and taking a few steps forward to your door, he opened it forward and stood to the side.

Grabbing your bag out of the footwell, Lando carried it to your front door as you walked together. "Do you think we could go to the library tomorrow at second break? I tried to use the textbook to do the biology, but I really couldn't understand. Plus, I think my knowledge of female anatomy could really be helped out by you," he joked, and it was refreshing to see a bit of Lando's regular cheek coming to the fore.

If someone else had made the comment, you would've been pissed off, maybe a little upset. But not when it was Lando. His usual sense of humor was coming back, and it was like things were slowly returning back to normal.

"I think the textbook is a better help on that subject than I am," you countered, and Lando just smirked at you.

"Probably, but I'm much more of a hands-on learner. I'd like to have the real thing in front of me, you know?" he quipped, and you couldn't help but laugh at him. Now this was how things were meant to be. Just you two, laughing and enjoying being in each other's company.

"Sure," you agreed. Well, not to the hands on learning, just to teaching him the stuff he didn't understand. Your way of explaining things was good for Lando, it made him understand it a lot better than the teachers could.

"Can I get a hug before I go?" he tentatively asked, his brain working overtime to try and think of a joke to play it off in case you said no.

"Course you can," you said, your arms finding their place back around his neck as you leant into him. Just the feeling of you in his arms was enough to get his heart racing, and he felt the ever similar urge to just lean down and kiss you.

A soft smile found its way onto his mum's face - who was watching on from the car. Seeing the both of you so miserable was dreadful, so now seeing you making up and going back to the ordinary was more than enough for her.

There was no missing the fond, soft look in her son's eyes. It was nothing but pure affection and admiration, and it was clear how much he cared for you. She had never seen such adoration from him, and she should have guessed that it'd be you.

From the first time your name had ever slipped past his lips, she should've known just by the way he spoke about you. And now, there you were. The two of you, as you were meant to be.

You and Lando bade each other farewell, and he waited until you were safely inside the confines of your own home before walking back to his mum's car and getting in the passenger seat. "You two seem to have made up," she said, a slightly teasing tone to her voice.

"Yeah, something like that," he agreed, knowing it was more than that. Or so he hoped. If only he knew that things weren't that simple, that the rose tinted glasses would be ripped from his face just as quickly as they had been put there.

A/N - Hello lovely people! Chipping away at all the stuff I have half finished, which is part 2 to Hotel Girl, the requested part 2 of Ceilings, a little old Charlos thing, a Lando thing and Max's birthday special! I have to do one for old Maxie since we have the same birthday so we can roll our birthday specials into one. Have a great night, love y'all! 💖

tag list: @oh-austin @avni-sarai @cheriladycl01 @mariedeyes223 @daemyraforever56 @toriiez @robotchickenmerp

|masterlist|

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dark-and-kawaii · 4 hours

Text

✧˖° Never Broken °˖✧

⊹ ࣪ ˖ Summary: He had failed to perform, a man, who should be strong and powerful, couldn't even get an erection anymore. It felt like his heart was shattering, he was a mess, and the thought of you leaving him over this had his hand clenched into a fist. Zevlor should know by now that you’re creative enough to find new ways to pleasure one another~ And you have no problem reminding him ♡

⊹ ࣪ ˖ Pairing: Zevlor x F!Tav/Reader

⊹ ࣪ ˖ Content: NSFW - Soft Cock Zevlor - Tongue Kissing - Angst - Hurt/Comfort - Tail Penetrating Your Tight Cunt - Nipple Sucking

Notes: This idea stemmed because of @daisyofwaterdeep ♡ ♡ ♡ Thank you ♡ ♡ ♡

He always feared this day would come, that he’d wake up and find himself broken, a disgrace, a lover that is of no use anymore…

Yet it still stung like nothing before.

As the years with you passed, he got older, he could feel it, he was slowing down, getting weaker, getting tired more often and having less energy every morning… Though he did his best to hide it from you.

But now, here he was.

Lying in bed, his usual hardness completely absent.

He had tried for what felt like hours to make something happen, to feel some semblance of pleasure as he touched himself.

But it was all fruitless.

No matter how hard he touched himself, or thought of you, there was no blood flowing down below.

It was all gone.

And now here he was, tears pricking at his eyes and his pride crumbling.

He had failed to perform, a man, who should be strong and powerful, couldn't even get an erection anymore. It felt like his heart was shattering, he was a mess, and the thought of you leaving him over this had his hand clenched into a fist.

He couldn't take it, the thought of losing you, the love of his life.

His eyes shut and it felt like his chest was collapsing…

Then again, was this not a fair punishment for him?

For what he had done, this was probably just his penance. He had betrayed his people, turned against them, swayed by the absolute… The very reason so many of them had fallen, the reason his comrades, his friends, were gone... Then there was you, his other half, his light… His whole world whom he had turned against that day as well, whom he had nearly killed with his own hands...

He was a failure, and this was his punishment.

He was going to lose you and have no one to blame but himself.

The tears had fallen now, staining the bed sheets beneath him.

He had no clue how long he had been laying there, crying like a lost child.

But it seemed that he would have to move eventually, since a soft knock could be heard on the door.

He quickly sat up, rubbing his eyes furiously.

He didn't want you to see him like this, you had enough of your own problems to deal with.

You didn't need to have the burden of taking care of a broken old man.

“A-Ah... I'm sorry, did I wake you, love?” You softly spoke, the door opening slowly as your head poked through the crack.

The sight made his heart flutter, your hair was styled neatly, your cheeks rosy, and you still wore your revealing night clothes. The swell of your breasts, the dip in your waist, and the curve of your hips... Gods, you were the most beautiful being he'd ever laid eyes on.

You smiled, walking into the room as he watched, “I woke up a little bit ago and was wondering if you wanted me to make you breakfast today? You always seem to be the one doing it, and well, you don't always have to do it all by yourself... Besides, I wanted to make you feel special today, my love.” You wrapped your arms around him, kissing his cheek gently.

He felt his throat close, his voice refusing to work, his heart was screaming at him to just tell you, to let you know everything, that he needed you, that he loved you so much.

“I- …” he sighed and smiled best he could, “That’s very kind of you, dear.” He whispered, his hand coming up to gently caress your cheek, the touch of your skin sending warmth throughout his entire body.

You grinned, hugging him tight and kissing his lips, a smile on your face, and a glint of mischief in your eyes. He didn’t have much time to question what you were planning before you pushed him down on the bed and straddled his hips, a soft giggle leaving you.

“Today is all about you, my love~ let me take care of you, please~ you can let me take control, just for a bit~ please?”

Zevlor’s breath caught in his throat, his eyes widening as you began to rub your barely covered core against him. He could feel his heart sink, a sharp pain running through his chest, you looked so happy, and here he was, about to destroy it.

He had never denied you before, not once, always willing to let you have your way with him and vice versa, to show him your love, to take him.

Yet, when you began to kiss his neck and your hands traveled lower, his own hands found their way to your wrists.

He couldn’t let you continue…

Your head cocked to the side, confusion and hurt crossing your face… Zevlor could swear that his heart had cracked even further, he could hear it.

“Wh-what’s wrong? Did I do something?”

You were already blaming yourself, it was all too much for him, he had to tell you.

He took a shaky breath, closing his eyes, then looked at you.

His beautiful, wonderful, perfect, and kind hearted love. Despite his betrayal with the others you still showed him love, you had shown him forgiveness, fought at his side countless of times, and you had taken him into your home treating him with nothing but respect and affection.

He didn’t deserve you, not at all. He accepted the reality of his fate now, he had no right to you, not when you deserved a man that could give you everything, and a cock that worked properly…

He sat up, his hands still holding your wrists as you stared at him, waiting, “what is it, Zevlor?” The fear in your voice was palpable, and his heart screamed for him to just comfort you and reassure you, tell you it was all alright.

“I-I… I am sorry, but-“

You cut him off, pulling away and sitting back on his thighs, your arms coming up to hug yourself.

His face sunk as tears began to creep in your eyes… He wanted to curse. With a deep breath he continued, “I cannot go on… My body- It will not- I- I can no longer perform- no longer function as a proper man should, I cannot satisfy you-“

Your arms released themselves from your body as your mouth hung open releasing a shaky breath, “That’s-“ You smiled and ran your fingers through your hair, “that’s a relief.” You laughed, a small sob mixed in with the sound.

Zevlor blinked, his brow furrowing as his head tilted, his heart feeling as though it had stopped, he was so confused, why would this be a relief?

He felt the heat of your hands as they came up to his face, cradling his cheeks, wiping the tears that threatened to fall, and he could see that tears had begun to fall from your own eyes.

“Zevlor, I- i was so scared… I thought- I thought that you were going to leave me… ha~” You smiled laughing quietly as your thumb traced his cheekbone.

“Tav…” He whispered, his eyes closing, his mind beginning to race.

You thought he would leave you.

You were worried he was leaving.

You feared his loss.

You wanted him.

You didn't think of him as a broken, old man.

“Zevlor, listen to me-“ you whispered, and his eyes opened, a soft sigh escaping him.

Your hands moved from his face, and he was about to reach for them again, only he stopped himself as your hands found their way to the hem of your night dress.

With a small nod, and a smile, you pull the material up and off, leaving yourself bare from the waist up, “I told you during the netherbrain war, didn’t I?” You began to grind into him ever so slowly, “That I loved you no matter what happens.”

Zevlor was speechless, his eyes roaming your figure, the sight of you always took his breath away, but now… Now he truly was at a loss for words.

The way you smiled at him, the look of pure love in your eyes, the softness of your touch, the way your voice sounded as you whispered his name, it was all too much… You- you-

“Tav…” His voice cracked, his hands shaking as he brought it up, his fingers ghosting along your cheek, his mind and heart a mess, “You deserve so much better than me, you deserve a man that can provi-“

He was cut off by the warmth of your lips pressing to his. The man melted instantly, his arms wrapping around you and pulling you close… He was drowning in your touch, the taste of your lips, the sweet scent of your skin. He didn’t want it to end, he wanted to be selfish for once…

The way you trembled in his hold, and the way your tongue prodded at his lips, begging for access, like you wanted him, needed him, it had him reeling.

His hand found the back of your head, pulling you closer, his lips parting, the softest moan leaving him… It felt so good, just kissing you, his tongue running along yours, the taste of you.

He wanted to take it further, wanted to feel you against him, but… That was the problem.

You wanted him, and he-

Pulling away, his hand still on the back of your head, keeping you close as he kissed the corner of your mouth, “I’m sorry, Tav… I just can’t pleasure-”

“There are plenty of ways you can still pleasure me, my love. You don't have to be hard in order to make me scream your name,” Your tongue swirled around his neck, biting at his ear, whispering softly, "I still need you, Zevlor, I still want you… Besides, just the sight of you is enough to make me wet-“

Zevlor shuddered, his grip tightening, a dark blush forming on his cheeks, he couldn't help it.

Your hand reached for his tail, “and I’m sure we can get creative~ I still need my hellrider~ and you are the only one that can make me beg~ even if it’s soft and leaking with precum~” You brought the tip of his tail to your lips, sucking and nibbling lightly, “And who else would know how to use their tongue better than my Zevy~"

Zevlor moaned, his eyes glazing over as he watched. Your mouth felt amazing, and the way your tongue rolled against his sensitive tail… Hells, he could already feel his body heating up.

You were always a master with words, knowing exactly what to say and do to make him submit to your whims, to make him feel whole even when he felt broken...

By the end of the night you were both naked, the blanket kicked to the floor, and the bed rocking against the wall.

You were straddling him, his tail buried in your cunt carefully as his mouth was latched onto your breast. His beautiful soft cock drooling cum, pressed between the two of you.

He had come multiple times, and his mind was blissfully numb as his fingers played with your clit, his tongue rolling over your nipple.

“Ze-Zevlor~ Mnnnhaa~ T-Tails s’deep~ L-Love y-you! Love y-ou! S’much! I-I love y-you so-o~ m-much~” You panted, moaning loudly, his tail- by the gods, was it wonderful. It hurt at first, the stretch and the sharp pain, but his careful ministrations made the pain melt away into nothing but pleasure.

He could never be broken in your eyes. It was a simple truth, and there was no way you’d ever let him slip through your fingers. Not ever. Zevlor would always be perfect to you

#bg3 #baldur’s gate 3 #baldurs gate 3 #baldurs gate #tav #zevlor #zevlor bg3 #bg3 Zevlor #monster smut #monster fucker #bg3 smut

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merrybloomwrites · 12 hours

Text

The Only Way of Knowing You (Chapter 1)

Story Summary: After a chance encounter, Y/N finds herself on a series of dates with Harry Styles. She shares with him her innocence regarding physical intimacy, and he takes his responsibility in teaching her all about that very seriously.

Chapter Summary: Y/N is overjoyed to head to the hospital to meet her new nephew, and ends up meeting Harry Styles as well.

Word Count: 1.7K

CW: mentions of people giving birth

AN: So excited to finally post this series! I've really enjoyed writing this and hope you'll all like it. Thank you to the anon who requested shy virgin reader!

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You’re anxiously waiting to get a text or a call from your brother-in-law. You’d spoken to your sister yesterday morning and she mentioned that she felt like she was having contractions and would probably be in labor soon. So casually! You figured that since this is her second baby she must be feeling more relaxed about the whole situation.

But that doesn’t stop you from worrying about her for the whole day and a half between that call and when your phone finally rings again, Brian’s name appearing on the screen. He’d been sending regular updates to you and your parents and the last one sent almost two hours ago just said “it’s time”.

So this call must mean your new nephew is finally born. You quickly grab the phone and answer the call.

“Brian, hi!”

“He’s here!” He exclaims. “Born at 1:35, 7 pounds, 2 ounces, 21 and a half inches long.”

“How is he doing? How is Kyra?”

“He’s perfect! Kyra did great, she’s resting at the moment. We'll send a picture soon. She asked that no one come this afternoon but we’d love for you to stop by tomorrow. Your parents are coming in the morning and bringing Wyatt to meet her little brother.”

“Ok great! I’ll talk to them and coordinate what time.”

“Awesome, you’re gonna love him! Listen I’ve got a couple more calls and I want to get back to them but I’ll talk to you later.”

“Bye Brian, give Kyra my love!”

“Will do, bye Y/N.”

You hang up and literally squeal with excitement and relief that he’s here and everyone is doing well. You let out another happy noise when you get a couple pictures from Brian. You’re immediately in love with this little boy, even if he looks like an alien/old man hybrid. You wish you knew his name, but your sister made it clear she is keeping it a secret until you and your parents meet him in person.

At 8PM your mom calls and you figure they just got Wyatt to sleep. You talk for a bit and make plans to all meet at the hospital the following morning at 11.

You’re so excited that it’s nearly impossible to fall asleep, but you manage. The next morning passes quickly, and suddenly it’s time to head to the hospital.

Once there you find your parents and your niece signing in and you do so as well. Finally, the four of you make your way to the right room. Just like when you met Wyatt nearly three years prior, you immediately fall in love with this little baby the second he’s placed in your arms.

“Everyone, meet Jasper Lucas,” your sister says.

For half an hour you all get to spend time with Jasper as well as check in on Kyra, who truthfully looks fantastic for having just given birth the day before. You and your parents step out in order to give the family of four some time together.

Your mom comments that she could use a coffee and your dad hastily agrees so they head off to the cafeteria. You figure they must not be used to taking care of a toddler and decide to go over and help out that evening.

They ask if you want anything and you decline, choosing to instead go into one of the family waiting rooms and check on a project for work.

The room is empty when you enter but after a minute you hear footsteps. Looking up from your phone, you’re shocked to see who just walked in.

Harry Styles casually sits in one of the other chairs. You subtly glance at him, noting his jeans and sweater combo, as well as the look of pure excitement on his face. After pointedly looking anywhere but at him for a moment you can't help but turn towards him again.

“Hi!” he says cheerfully when he notices you looking at him.

“Hello,” you manage to squeak out.

“I’m Harry,” he says, leaning towards you with his hand out.

“I’m Y/N,” you reply while politely shaking his hand, hoping you’re doing it right. Which is wild because you;ve shaken hands with people hundreds of times but like, this is Harry Styles.

“My sisters just had a baby,” he adds, and now you understand why he’s practically vibrating with glee.

“Congratulations! Mine has as well. Is this Gemma’s first?” You realize a second later how creepy you now sound, using his sister's name when he hadn’t even told it to you.

Before you can apologize he laughs and says, “Yes, her first. So you know who I am then?”

“I mean, I don’t live under a rock so yes, I am aware that you’re Harry Styles.”

“Can you do me a favor then, love?”

You nod, willing to do anything he asks, especially if he continues to use such sweet terms of endearment like ‘love’.

“Gems kept this whole pregnancy private, and isn’t planning to announce she’s had a baby for a few weeks. I probably should’ve kept my mouth shut, but I just had to tell someone. Can you help keep this a secret and not let anyone know about the baby?”

“Oh of course, yea, secret’s safe with me.”

“I appreciate it. We may be adults now, but I think I’ll always fear the wrath of my big sister,” he says with another laugh. “Is this your sister's first as well?” he asks.

“No, I have a niece, Wyatt, she turns three next month,” you reply.

“And this little one, boy or girl?”

“Boy. His name is Jasper. My sister always said she wanted one girl and one boy so I guess she got her wish.”

You refrain from asking him the same question, not wanting to look like you're asking for personal information about his family, but he apparently doesn’t feel that way because he says, “Gemma had a girl. The tiniest little thing. I think. At least she looks that way in the picture.”

“You haven’t been able to see them yet?”

“Not quite, they needed a few more minutes before they were ready. Our mum’s in there with her, has been the whole time, so I’ve been anxiously waiting on my own.

“I feel that. I was the same way the past couple of days.”

“Well at least we have each other now, I feel much less jittery being able to talk to you,” he says.

“Glad I could help. People say I’m an excellent conversationalist.”

“Oh I can see that already, I’m quite enjoying this conversation.”

Just then Harry’s mum, Anne, walks into the room.

“Harry dear, they’re ready for you,” she says, giving you a quick smile before she walks out again.

He jumps out of his seat and says, “Sorry to cut it short, but-”

“Not a problem! Go, meet your niece. Bet she’ll be very happy to meet her Uncle Harry,” you reply.

“Would you want to keep talking? Later?”

You look at him, confused. “I’m not sure how long I’m going to be at the hospital.”

“Oh, no, I didn’t mean here. I just meant, maybe we could meet again, some other time. At some other place. Preferably with better coffee.”

“Are you asking me to hang out with you at a coffee shop?” you inquire, wanting to make sure you fully understand what is happening.

“I am. Sorry, it’s been a while since I’ve actually asked someone on a date, guess I’m a tad rusty.”

Your eyes go wide at the word ‘date’. You were already perplexed, wondering why he’d want to hang out with you as friends, but making it a date?

Your mouth works faster than your brain, and before you can really think through your answer, you hear yourself saying, “I’d love to get coffee with you.”

“Fantastic! Here, write your number in my phone and I’ll text you to set something up,” he replies while unlocking and handing over his phone. You’re practically on autopilot typing in your info and handing the phone back to him.

“I should go, I’ve got a niece to meet. It really was lovely chatting with you.”

“I agree. Say congrats to your sister for me!”

“I will, please say the same to your sister.”

“Of course,” you reply.

“Goodbye Y/N. I’ll talk to you soon.

“Looking forward to it. Goodbye Harry.”

With one last shy smile, he walks out of the room, leaving you standing there feeling rather shell shocked. You don’t have long to dwell before your own mother pops back in saying Kyra is ready for you all to go back.

You spend another hour there before leaving to go out and get some lunch. While you’re at a local restaurant, trying to encourage Wyatt to eat her lunch rather than play with it, you get a text from Brian saying Kyra and the baby will be discharged later that afternoon.

After lunch you go to their house and entertain Wyatt while your parents make sure everything is clean and ready for them to come home. Brian, Kyra, and Jasper arrive just before dinner, so you stay to make sure everyone eats and is as content as possible.

You leave after cleaning the dishes, knowing everyone is ready to settle down for the evening. Back home you hop in the shower, and when you get out, you have a text from an unknown number. It reads, “Hello, Y/N, it’s Harry.”

Your eyes go wide and you let out a nervous giggle. Honestly, there’s a part of you that thought you had hallucinated the interaction this afternoon, but here’s proof that it all really happened. Before you can type back you get another message from him saying, “If you’re not busy, how would you feel about getting coffee this Saturday? Say 1PM at Inkwell Cafe?”

“Sounds perfect,” you reply. Your phone dings again a second later and you read, “See you then! Have a great rest of your week.” After sending a quick “You as well!” you toss your phone to the side.

You get into bed, and reflect for a moment on everything that happened since getting up that morning. You knew it’d be a wonderful day; how could it not when you got to finally meet your perfect nephew?

But to have met one of your favorite celebrities and now have a date with him? Never in a million years would you have guessed the day would end this way. You fall asleep feeling like the luckiest person in the world.

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

AN: Thank you so much for reading! I hoped you liked this chapter and can't wait to share the rest!

#harry styles x you #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles x reader

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twoduelsabers · 8 hours

Text

mistakes of an apprentice

the ask -> hey there! could i request a fic...you're badly hurt and qimir in disguise finds you. as injured as you are you just beg him not to tell your master, fearful of what he will do to such a weak pupil. qimir corrects your assumptions.

content warnings -> description of injuries, canon typical violence

it was almost impossible to stay out of sight on nar shaddaa. especially while leaving a trail of blood after every step. the only thing she could use to hide were the narrow alleys across the city, and even they weren't nearly as empty as they should be.

staying focused was difficult, when the reminder of her failure made walking difficult. there wouldn't be an issue if the guards were equipped with blasters only. instead, they carried fucking swords, and the one she was ordered to kill wielded a lightsaber, probably bought on the black market. of course, they weren't a match for her, but she heavily underestimated the seriousness of the situation. and now she paid the price- a cut in the side of her stomach, too deep for her liking.

she cursed under her breath. she was a sith. or, at least she tried to be one. with her potential, even a dozen of armed men shouldn't be an obstacle.

a cough escaped her throat, and she shivered. she could barely walk, and if her master found out just how weak she was... he trained her to defend herself. to attack. to kill. he can't see that she won, but barely.

yet, he probably will. one way or another. qimir might pass on what he was about to see- her vulnerable, wounded state. still, she prayed that he wouldn't.

it took her a few more turns and a worrying amount of effort to get to the ship. it stood in a very old, suspiciously looking dock, but she didn't bother with finding a more dignified place. it was supposed to be an "in-and-out" job.

first thing she was greeted with was qimir rushing to her side.

"finally!" he voiced in an accusing tone. "did you have fun? you know, i waited here for hours...and worried." he sent her a cheeky smile.

as much as his banter might have been funny at times, this was definitely not one of them. and he seemed to realise that rather quickly.

"are you...okay?"

she shut her eyes tightly and exhaled. her side burned like fire, and she was exhausted.

"it's just a- scratch." her voice was strained, and in opposition to her own words, her knees almost gave out.

qimir was quick to catch her. his brows furrowed, as he tried to hold her up. his usual, clumsy demeanor was replaced by seriousness.

"you're hurt." he stated, seating her down on the ground, and leaning her back on the wall. "where?"

he tried to uncover her cloak, but she grabbed his wrist instantly, stopping him in place.

"qimir." his name fell out of her lips, sounding like a plea. "don't tell my master. you hear me?"

he tilted his head in confusion.

"please. please! he will think i'm weak. it doesn't matter i killed that man. that i killed- i killed them all." her voice wavered. "all he will see is that i got injured- badly injured. he trained me so i would be able to handle myself, but turns out i- i can't."

the dock they were in was empty, and she thanked the maker for that. she thanked the maker for the shadows that hopefully covered her teary eyes.

if her master decided she is, in fact, too weak, he'd disown her, in the best case scenario. she'd never see qimir again.

or he'd kill her.

both of these options weighted heavy on her shoulders. she couldn't even bring herself to look at qimir.

he called out her name quietly, snapping her out of her thoughts.

"we need to take care of this. now." he urged, yanking his wrist away from her grasp.

"qimir, please." she uttered, desperate, exhausted and in pain. "he'll throw me away."

qimir froze, clenching his jaw. did she really think he'd get rid of her, just like that? today was the first solo mission he assigned her with, and force, she completed it! he knew he wasn't the one to show affection whilst underneath the mask- but he tried to make up for it when he was just qimir. when he was her guide and supplier. he wanted to make up for that.

but of course, she had no clue.

and now, she was in front of him, wounded and barely conscious.

he needed to make her understand.

"take that cloak off. i'm not asking." qimir said firmly, as he usually would during training.

her eyes widened at the sudden change of attitude. his voice sounded different from how it usually was. there was something behind it- something she couldn't quite place.

yet she obliged, shrugging the fabric off of her shoulders, wincing. she revealed the injury, shifting a little to the side. her robes were already damp and colored with dark crimson.

qimir didn't say a word, and his expression was unreadable, yet laced with worry. he seemed to be contemplating something.

"stay still." he commanded quietly.

he moved one of his hands to rest atop of her wound.

"what are you doing-?" she hissed. the pain certainly didn't get any better from the pressure.

once again, he remained silent. he focused, steadying his breath, and letting his energy flow through his extended arm.

she felt the burn dissolving, and she wondered if qimir finally used his potion-making skills...

"what are you do-" she started, but he cut her off.

"there."

what has he done? she peered down carefully, expecting to see the injury but-

there was nothing there. her skin was untouched.

in one terrifying second, she had realised that qimir had healed her. force-healed her.

it could mean only one thing, and the thought alone made her stomach twist in fear.

"master." was all she could utter.

qimir gaze was different now. his force signature shifted to a dark and heavy, familiar one.

"you did well today, acolyte."

he said calmly, as if nothing happened.

"master- i-i'm so sorry-" uncertainty gnawed at her. what could all of this mean for her? for them?

"you should rest." qimir's voice was gentle, so different from what he sounded like from under the mask.

as he stood up, he extended his hand towards her.

she stared at it dumbly for a moment, then hesitantly let him pull her up, to his side.

to his side, where she belonged.

now, she was certain of it.

#manny jacinto #manny jacinto x reader #qimir the acolyte #qimir x reader #star wars qimir #the acolyte fanfiction #the stranger x reader #star wars fanfiction #star wars x reader

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skyyguy · 2 days

Note

30 for the prompt list perchance 🫵🏻

Prompt:

30) “You’ll be fine.” silence “You’ll be fine. Hey! Wake up! Please. Please wake up…”

He hadn't been able to sit still in nearly two days, his nerves frayed. Even Curt had been avoiding him, not wanting to get his head bit off while John was in one of his rages. Curt knew why John was so upset, so angry, but that didn't mean he wanted to be on the recieving end of it. John understood, but it still annoyed him, that Curt wouldn't join him at the bar. It was his last ditch effort to keep from losing his mind as the search for Martin continued, going nowhere, hitting dead end after dead end. John didn't even care about Martin, no, he only cared about Gale, once again in the hands of that man. Guilt gnawed at him, a broken promise echoing in his ears any time it was silent around him.

That's what found him alone, in a bar, drowning his sorrows with whiskey in a noisy, crowded bar. John swirled his fourth glass, studying the way the liquid sloshed around. He wished Gale was there, even if the morph would give him a disapproving look, telling him to stop drinking as much. Of course, Gale would never be out in a public bar, but that was besides the point, at least in John's mind. They'd been drinking at the base plenty. Well, John had done the drinking, Gale had only had water or soda. John still counted it as them drinking together, though.

"What?" John growled as he answered the phone that drug him out of his thoughts.

"We found 'em, John," Curt said on the other end of the call, breathless, excited.

"What?" John repeated, less of a growl and more of a breathless gasp, the breath having been knocked out of him by his friend's words.

"We tracked 'em, got 'em pinned."

"Where?"

"Team's getting together now, get back here," Curt replied, though John was already getting up, tossing his money on the counter next to his glass, pulling out his Jeep keys.

"On my way, don't you leave before I get back," John ordered.

"Don't drive too insane," Curt retorted, hanging up the phone. John rolled his eyes and shoved his way out of the bar, long strides taking him to the Jeep and sliding into the driver's seat. He barely remembered to look before backing out of the stop, throwing the Jeep in drive and flooring it, running over the curb in his haste to get back to the base.

"Get in," Curt said, John's Jeep barely parked before he was hopping out, long legs taking him to the armored vehicle, waving Curt's order off as he pulled himself into the van.

"Let's go," John barked as Curt slammed the door, the car starting immediately, the driver flooring it to get them on their way. His leg was jiggling as his nerves amped up and some of the other men cast him a look, but Curt shot a glare back, silencing any comments before they started. It had been over four months since they'd rescued Gale and Ken and John had been extremely protective of him since, everyone knew it. Everyone in that truck had seen John's face when he'd woken up in the infirmary wing to learn that Gale had been taken. They'd drawn straws to see who would tell him.

It was a long drive and John didn't know how he held himself together for all three hours of it, but he did, with a lot of stern looks from Curt. John was out of the vehicle before it even stopped moving, taking off running towards the manor. The others— with some swearing from Curt— leapt out and followed suit, ready for whatever the raid would bring. The others easily caught up to John, overtaking him. Curt grabbed John's arm pulling him into a stop, hissing a warning, to him, John rolling his eyes and trying to get his arm out of Curt's grip.

"John, you're the medic, you're not armed," Curt snapped.

"Yeah, and?"

"You cannot be running in there before it's secured," Curt shoved John in the chest with his gun, still holding John's arm, "you're no good to anyone if you get yourself shot, got it? You wait till the area's secured," he growled, trying to catch John's eye, "Whatdda thinks gonna happen to Buck if you get yourself shot, huh?" Curt snapped, thumping his gun on John's chest, making the taller jerk his chin, eyes hard and nostrils flaring as he looked down at Curt. After a few seconds, John deflated slightly, breathing out through his nose.

"I know, I know," John huffed out, shoulders sagging. They heard the door slam open, wood exploding for the force of the impact against it, and John looked up, almost hopeful. Curt didn't let go of his arm, but turned toward the door, taking a deep dreath.

"Wait for the signal, Bucky," Curt ordered, earning a snort from the other.

"I'm the CO here, Curt," John grumbled, but he didn't press forward, didn't try to shake Curt's hold off, he held steady, staring intenly and waiting for the signal. And there, after an aganignly long couple minutes, it finally came. Curt and John charged forward as one, John shortening his stride to stay in step with Curt.

"We're here for Gale, the other's 've got Martin, stay focused," Curt reminded John as he slowed down, glancing towards the sound of yelling, gunfire, an explosion. John jerked his head around to Curt, eyes blazing at his words, and nodded, picking up the pace again. Their intel had told them that Gale was isolated in the East wing, caged and locked up tightly, but that he was left unguarded. John had his doubts that Martin left his prized captive unguarded, but he hadn't been able to convince the rest of the crew. That left him sprinting along to the East wing with Curt and one other armed man in step with him.

"John, whatever we find, don't you dare leave my side, got it?" Curt barked at him as they headed along. John grunted in agreement as they neared the East wing, slowing from a dead sprint to a light jog.

"He'll be there," the other man, Rosie, assured him, "this is solid intel," and again, John only grunted, his stomach roiling in anxiety. They slowed to a stop, looking around the wing, uncertain which way to go. John held up a hand and considered his options, thinking about the manor blueprints he'd looked at on the ride over.

"Upstairs, down the hall, second door on the right," John said, earning a confused noise from Rosie, "that's the most likely. No windows, no attached bathroom, only one way in and out. Easiest to keep secure," John explained, picturing it. He hated to think of Gale, who loved the sun, the stars, the sky, stuck in a windowless room, wings likely bound once more, abused and hopeless. He hoped that Gale knew he'd come for him, but John couldn't imagine how it felt to get captured by this man once more, couldn't imagine Gale would be able to hold onto any positive thoughts.

"Let's go," Curt said, accepting John's deduction and reasoning with a sharp nod, setting off towards the stairs, John hot on his heels, Rosie falling into the back to cover them. They were slow, careful with their steps to make sure they wouldn't alert any potential guards, on high alert. The wing was quiet, no sounds of any guards or life at all, and it only made John's anxiety worse, the hair on the back of his neck prickling with uncertainty. Gale had to be there, John didn't know what he'd do if he wasn't. Curt held up a hand, making John skid to a stop, Rosie creeping up behind them. They held still, John holding his breath, until Curt nodded to Rosie, motioning to the door a few feet from them. Rosie moved forward to shove the door open, Curt immediately filling the doorway with his gun drawn, ready to fire on any enemy in the room.

"Clear," Curt said over his shoulder, voice much more hushed than John would have expected, and he charged into the room, shoving by Curt with no hesitation as Rosie shut the door behind them. He froze when he took in the scene in front of him, breath leaving his lungs, heart plummeting. Gale was there. Yeah. Gale was there.

His wings were spread wide, multiple hooks in them, holding the morph up off the ground, the blue of his feathers stained with blood. Gale's face and body were bloodied, gashes showing through tattered clothes, his body hanging limp. John couldn't breathe as he took in the way Gale's chest was wrapped in a thick, tight leather harness, helping to keep him suspended from the ceiling, his wrists cuffed in iron shackles, rope holding him spread eagle. Gale wasn't moving.

Curt was beside him in a second, hand on John's arm comfortingly, trying to get him to breathe, to do something. He motioned to Rosie, glancing between him and Gale, and Rosie nodded, strapping his gun to his back and starting to search the room for something to get Gale down with. John finally drew in a shaky inhale, tearing his eyes away to look at Curt, eyes alight with rage.

"Where's. Martin." It wasn't a question.

"John, focus," Curt said gently, "we gotta get Gale taken care of, that's our job, the other's got Martin," he reminded John, relieved when some of the fire drained out of his eyes, gaze flickering back to Gale and softening.

"Rosie, find anything?" John called nodding to Curt before spinning to the other. Rosie glanced up from the chest he was fiddling with.

"Unsure, gotta get this open," he nodded to the chest, shoving a pin into a lock, grinning when the lock clicked satisfyingly, the chest popping open. He flung the lid open and paled slightly before starting to dig through it.

"John, support his legs," Curt said suddenly, urgently, and John's head whipped to him, following his gaze to Gale. Then he heard it, the small groan of pain, and he rushed forward, grabbing Gale around the waist and holding his body up, knees digging into his ribs. Gale let out a whimper at the way his body and wings shifted on the hooks, his body trembling in pain.

"Got something," Rosie announced. John pressed his face against Gale's stomach, screwing his eyes shut and trying to breath through the panic and anxiety racing through his veins. Gale groaned again, breath gasping out of his lungs in short bursts. There was thump behind them and John flinched slightly. John didn't dare try to move again, lest he end up hurting Gale more than he was already hurt, but he heard the sound of boots on metal behind him.

"Ready, John? We're gonna cut him down one hook at a time, 'kay?" Curt asked him.

"Go," John replied, adjusting his grip slightly. He heard a blade slice through a thick rope followed by Gale's gasping whine of pain. He pressed his forehead against the bloody, tattered shirt, not caring if he got bloodied in the process, hoping to help distract Gale from the pain.

"Hey, love," he muttered softly against Gale's stomach, rubbing a hand over his hip, "we're here now, darlin', we've got you. It's Curt, Rosie, and I," John explained quietly. If the others heard him, they chose to pretend they didn't, to John's relief, "we're gonna get you outta here, gonna get you home. Maybe when we're home, we'll get some ice cream," John continued, his tongue finally loose of the anxiety that had him frozen, "get you a nice big vanilla ice cream, how's that sound, baby? Maybe with some sprinkles and fudge sauce, getcha an extra special treat."

"Easy, Gale," Curt muttered as the morph's wing twitched and jerked under his hand, as he started on the third rope, "I know it hurts, Buck, we're doing our best," he soothed, slicing through the third of 14 ropes— seven on each side. Gale whimpered again.

"C-curt," Gale whispered out, his voice pained and painful to force out. John pressed a little firmer on his hip, comfortingly.

"Yeah, Buck, I'm here," Curt replied, holding onto the ladder as Rosie worked to move it to the next rope.

"Hey, Buck," Rosie said softly.

"Ros-rosie," Gale forced out, a cough following on the heels of the name, racking his body in painful gasps, making him jerk and spasm on the hooks. All three of the men froze, waiting for it to pass. John's hold on him tightened, trying to hold him still to reduce the harm and pain. Gale whined in pain, a sob wracking his body as soon as the coughing passed and John felt his heart breaking.

"C'mon, Buck, you're okay," Curt muttered when he sobbed again as Curt touched his wing. John wanted to yell at him and Rosie to both speed up and slow down. He wanted Gale down as soon as possible but he wanted him safe and out of pain more. If going slow kept his pain to a minimum, John would just bite the bullet and deal with it. He wasn't struggling nearly as much as Gale was, that was for certain.

"What else d'you want on your ice cream, Buck?" John asked Gale, trying to distract him as Curt and Rosie moved to the next rope, "we can get anything. Or would you rather keep it simple and sweet? I think either way is great," John muttered, keeping his face against Gale's stomach, his hand gently running from his hip to his ribs, trying to comfort him. He could practically feel the panic simmering under Gale's skin, the way his breaths rattled in and out of his lungs, the shortness of the movemets, gasping and short. John wanted desparetly to have him down already, to start treating his wounds, the gashes littering his body, the holes in his wings. The sooner he could start on Gale's wounds, the sooner his breathing would even out, John reasoned, feeling Gale's stomach muscles twitching under his forehead as he struggled to get enough air into his lungs.

"S-simple," Gale forced out, making John smile softly. Even in unbearable pain, Gale's sweet tooth still won out.

"Can be done, baby, can be done," John replied, "I'll get you the biggest bowl of simple vanilla ice cream, doll," he promised, "we'll make it a date, my treat," John said, nearly laughing at his unintentional pun. He felt a hum from Gale and knew he was amused by it.

"Can I get a mint choco chip?" Curt asked, injecting into the conversation, earning an eye roll from John, and he hoped from Gale as well, though he couldn't see.

"Sure, Curt," John replied, "but you're not invited, we'll bring it back to you, probably melted."

"Aw, come on," Curt whined jokingly as he sliced through another rope. Rosie started moving the ladder to Gale's other wing, leaving the rope holding the harness intact, hoping to make sure the strain lesser on the morph's wings.

"'s okay Curty, just bring Ken, make it a double date," Rosie offered from the base of the ladder as yet another rope was cut, dragging the ladder along from the farthest rope back towards Gale.

"Oh, wonderful idea!" Curt chirped excitedly, "Ken would love that!" Gale's thighs twitched at the mention of Ken, perking up slighlty, the wing that was free shuddering where it drooped limply.

"Fine, we can do a double date," John grumbled in agreement, trying to pretend he was annoyed about this— which he would be if it weren't for the way Ken's name seemed to help ground Gale. If that's what Gale wanted, that's what Gale would get. Every time.

"John, you ready?" Rosie asked as they moved the ladder into position to cut Gale's hands and harness, the final things holding him up.

"Do it," John said, adjusting his grip slightly to better support Gale's slight weight, keeping his forehead pressed against Gale's stomach, breathing deeply to keep his anxiety in check. Rosie hummed and Curt grunted, acknowledging him, carefully cutting Gale's hands loose and lowering them to his sides. Curt made sure to put one of his hands on John's head, smiling softly when Gale sighed and his fingers twitched in his hair, trying to grab on lightly. John smiled against Gale's stomach, the touch doing more to calm his anxiety than just about anything else. Well, except for the sudden drop of all of Gale's weight on him as Curt got through the last rope, freeing Gale entirely.

"There we go, there we go, love, you're free now, let's get you laid down," John rambled, letting Gale's body slip down through his arms, slowly and carefully, till his arms were wrapped under his wings, holding him carefully, "just gotta get your wounds looked at, make sure you're safe to travel, then we'll get you in the trucks and back home," he continued. Gale didn't reply.

"We'll go keep watch," Curt said, shoving Rosie towards the door, dropping John's supply bag beside him, careful to avoid stepping on Gale's wings. John nodded at him gratefully before turning his attention back to Gale.

"A'ight, darlin', a'ight it's just us now. Let's get you cleaned up and home, 'kay?" John said, dragging his bag closer to him to get supplies out, “you’ll be fine, love,” John whispered to him, anxiety shooting through him as he realized Gale wasn't moving again, “you’ll be fine, Buck. Hey, c'mon, doll! Wake up! Please. Please wake up…” he pleaded, shuffling on his knees to press his fingers against Gale's neck, feeling for a pulse. He was only slightly relieved to find it, it was faint and slow, tettering on the edge of being an emergency, and John bit his lip, chewing on it.

"Curt!" John called, hearing the door slam open, "we need to go now, we don't have time to wait, he's fading," he ordered.

"Understood," Curt replied, all business as he stomped forwards and started working on getting Gale's wings folded away, using soft leather belts to hold them closed, muttering apologies to the unconscious morph as he did. Rosie watched from the doorway, alternating his attention between the three of them and the hallway, on high alert. Wings bound, Gale was ready to go and John grit his teeth, carefully working his arms under Gale to lift him up, holding him close to his chest, letting Gale's head rest on his shoulder.

"We ready?" Rosie asked over his shoulder.

"Ready," Curt said with a nod from John, falling into pace beside Rosie, John trotting smoothly behind them, keeping an eye on the rise and fall of Gale's chest.

"Hold," Rosie said, making Curt and John freeze in their stride. Curt moved a little more in front of John and Gale, gun raised and at the ready. Rosie crept forward a little, peering around a corner, hand up to signal the others to hold still. John heard the shouting, the pops of gunfire, then, and he tensed, clinging a little tighter to Gale.

"Curt," John ground out, "we need to go."

"I know," Curt replied sharply, "Rosie, we good?"

"We gotta go fast, but yeah, let's go," Rosie said, nodding, stepping into the hall and motioning the others forwards. Curt darted ahead, John on his heels, Rosie falling into the rear to cover them and keep them going. John ducked his head slighlty when the gunfire grew closer to them, wishing that he could take his time, Gale jostling in his arms. If Gale hadn't been out cold before, he would have been by then, John was sure. He knew he needed to get some meds in Gale sooner rather than later.

"Curtie," John growled as Curt slowed down.

"I know," Curt replied, waving his hand over his shoulder, taking a moment to look around before setting off at a faster pace once more, John immediately speeding up after him.

"I'm peeling off, joining the fight," Rosie called as the front door of the manor came into view.

"Thanks, Rosie," John grunted over his shoulder, not slowing at all. Curt shoved through the door and John burst out after, finally slowing down and taking a deep breath of air, quickly overtaking Curt with his longer legs and reaching their van, fumbling with the door handle till it opened and he launched himself into it, getting Gale settled on the gurnie, sitting in a chair beside it. Curt jumped up into the van and closed the door behind them.

"What'da need?" Curt asked, dropping his gear and moving through the van, starting to gather the essentials he knew John would need.

"We gotta get him stabilized," John replied, focusing on getting the bloodied clothes off Gale's injured body, the too-tight leather harness cutting into his skin as John tried to find the way to get it off, "gimme the scissors, I can't get this fucking thing off," he snarled, dabbing at the new blood welling along the leather. Curt shoved a pair of scissors into his hand and John held his breath as he worked the blade along Gale's skin, wincing when the metal cut into Gale's skin, getting the scissors around the leather and working to cut it off. It released with a satisfying noise and John was relieved to see Gale's chest inflate a little more as the tight leather released it's hold.

"Breathe, John, breathe," Curt muttered behind him, putting a hand on his shoulder, squeezing gently, "we've got him, he's gonna be okay," he comforted him, taking the scissors from him and shoving a syringe into it instead, "do your thing, doc," he said, just shy of an order. John rolled his eyes, appreciating the support, the comfort from his best friend and he sighed, getting to work on his morph, giving him the pain meds before setting to work cleaning and tending his wounds, cursing Martin with each swipe of cotton against blood stained skin.

By the time the rest of the crew got back to the vans, Gale was stable, wounds cleaned and dressed, wings carefully wrapped. John had given him a sedative, despite the fact he was still unconscious, knowing this ride home wasn't going to be pleasant for his beaten and battered body. John had blankets tucked around him, making sure he would stay warm and comfortable, strapped to the gurnie, for the whole three hour drive. John had Gale's hand in his stroking his thumb pensively over the morph's knuckles, chewing his lip.

"Ready, John?"

"What happened to Martin?" John asked.

"Dead," Rosie confirmed softly. John was torn, hearing that word. He wished he'd been the one to do it, but he was glad to know that Gale was safe and Martin would never threaten him ever again. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath, nodding.

"Good," John whispered, squeezing Gale's hand, "good."

#Sky writes #Wings au #I don't have a good name for it yet #This is so long lmfao I'm so sorry

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